LfcCharlie4

@Leo Gura Okay I understand, thank you. i Definitely agree about following your own path on this journey and I’m so glad psychedelics helped you so much. and I understand you don’t want to give yourself an LOC, and why you decided to reject RASA. and yes, about the books I am not followIng them blindly, I just wanted to share what helped me more than anything over the last 9 months or so, there was 2 years before that where I felt I was literally getting nowhere anytime soon. I also get there’s going to be issues with this map, and like you say no model of anything is going to be perfect. I feel your path and teachings will appeal a lot more to the younger generation due to their openness to psychedelics, I’ve only done LSD and MDMA, and I had some amazing experiences and the whole motto of the UK rave scene is Peace Love Unity and Respect (PLUR) which is a very stage green community, although there’s HUGE issues around it. However for me, I feel I need that teacher 1-1 I can see regularly, ask questions and of course receive RASA which has probably been my biggest help, and as I’m only 20 I don’t want to push my brain too far with Anymore Psyches right now, and I don’t want to interfere with the RASA, but in the future who knows. One last thing Leo, have you ever looked into your Enneagram type?

@electroBeam I'm glad you're accepting your feelings, but this post has an energy of a cry for help about it. While it's great to accept your feelings, it's really worrying that you're taking being depressed as the norm, I can say with my whole heart that being in peace and happiness is 1000x better than depression, I've been there when I first got into this work and honestly it's horrible. With these serious emotional problems you might want to look into some of Leo's foundational stuff such as your Nutrition, Exercise, Career, Relationships etc, as often just realigning your lifestyle can have a huge impact on lifting your depression. If you ever want to talk please please please message me, any questions or just wanting to vent how you feel, I would hate to think you feel all alone and that you're destined for depression forever, it really doesn't have to be that way man. All the best! <3

@Leo Gura yes I am conscious of its many limits like any model. Thats why I was shocked at your comments as when I bought your book list it was the top book of the new books you added hence why I bought it, and then a year later here I am. But I get they have a very different style to you as in the focus is on the RASA and Enneagram and then 1-1 coaching you could call it I guess, and they don’t really promote psychedelics etc. did you ever receive RASA and I get if you don’t want to answer as people will be skeptical but where would you put yOurself if you had to?

@peanutspathtotruth yeah Fred seems like the real deal for that stage of the process, so if you wanna get into that stage I’d listen to the book. But if you want to go beyond, you’ll have to find a new teacher afterwards

@Haumea2018 in my latest session Ananda done by LOC in the low 800s, I’ve been working with her for around 8/9 months now and honestly has been the most amazing experience. Since you reached Self Realization have you stabilised and integrated, and how has life been for you since mate? I made a recent post on LOCs and got attacked, saying it isn’t viable or has no use and is apparently a dick mesasuring contest. When, in my view it is just another map of awakenings that helps them awaken their students.

Originally I got into this work as I wasn’t happy, I’d dabbled with SA before but never spirituality. Enlightenment is a very destructive process, it will destroy the false in your life internally and externally and this can look different for different people. People hear that and think why bother, but life only truly begins at full self realisation when you are then truly free to be yourself and live the life YOU want to, not what everyone else wants for you. Now, I am incredibly happy, there is just this background of peace and contentment that comes from knowing I am the self, and so are you. It wasn’t easy to get here though, but I can tell you the work is 2847472927% worth it.

Rupert Spira explains it really well and directly (for a change) so the reason Ramana taught self inquiry was because people weren’t ready/ benefitting from his silent teachings and transmissions and wanted something to practice. he didn’t mean it as a way just to repeat who am I for an hour in your head, but to ask the question and see what answer you get that isn’t based in thoughts. Ruperts Version is to ask “Am I Aware?” And then see what happens, you can do this throughout the day, and as you notice pure awareness coming forward more and more, you’ll be amazed at what begins to happen. one thing, don’t demonise thoughts, thoughts will always be created, instead accept and investigate them. where do thoughts come from? Are thoughts interconnected? Is there really a mind where thoughts come and go from and live? Have fun!.....

@VeganAwake I definitely agree. however, saying everything is non dual is just saying everything is “not two” it doesn’t actually say what everything is. The highest understanding really can’t be spoken of, hence my Ramana and Co loved teaching in silence, and filtered the teaching down to self inquiry as a step towards silence. But yes, everything is the self, the absolute, it is all simply the self. when it becomes mainstream, society will change as we know it, you can’t keep having your Bangladesh sweatshops and wanting to murder your rival country when you know they are also the self, and also you. Sadly, we’re a long way from there

@Charlotte indeed I am, a hugeeee LFC fan, so it’s been a decent last few years haha. Why are you a Liverpool fan?:)

I’m glad It helped you, maybe that’s why I’m posting this, and maybe that’s why my love for my teachers and the world has just deepened exponentially since my last session and RASA, I think I’m st around that point. And to transcend it, I need to learn to let go of all concepts and beliefs.

@Nahm exactly, I’ll make another post on it another day, maybe when people begin to see this isn’t a ranking game but just a way to map the common stages “most” students/ teachers seem to go through on their awakening journey. But imo, since there is nothIng you can say that is absolutely true, silent teachings and transmissions will always be the best teachings, when you are ready for them.

Please read the book before saying this, in fact there’s 100s of pages, case studies and personal experience on each stage, it’s also from years of working with students and meeting teachers and noticing the same patterns. Of course there Is no way you can know for sure, but when certain teachers are saying similar things to other ones, then another “group” are saying similar things. as I have said it is similar to the 10 Ox pictures, it just uses numbers instead, awakening isn’t just this one size fits all glove where everyone who’s awake has the same depth and understanding of the absolute.

@Nickyy I agree wholeheartedly. The whole point of me sharing this is because I work 1-1 with Ramaji and Ananda, and this has helped me so much more than just listening to teachers etc. It also involves RASA which is a spiritual transmission, but that's a whole can of worms I won't open, as people seem to have taken offence just to the LOC map haha.

Personally I wouldn't say it works like that, because there's lots of yellow and green and even turquoise people who are not stabilised in non duality at all, but I get the thinking behind it. SD is more about Psychlogical Development, whereas the LOC is more a map for non dual awakenings and embodiment.

@outlandish I understand, you should always go with what resonates with you. I'm a numbers guy so maybe that's why it helps me so much. But it is merely a map of awakening just like the 10 Ox Pictures are, not some sort of ranking system where getting to a 1000 is winning lol. There is quite clearly depths and magnitudes to awakening, not every teacher/ book/ course whatever says the same thing, and to be honest tools like this will help you evaluate teachers. I see why '743.4' or whatever sounds funny, tbh the units and tens aren't really that important more the hundreds from 600 onwards, the tens are fairly important in the 500's, for example the first 5 Ox pictures correlate with the journey to LOC 580. I can go into more detail how they are similar but I'm not sure that will help. This post was simply made to help people who are stuck, as I was stuck for over 12 months watching and reading Non-Duality constantly yet getting nowhere, just look at retreats where people go for years yet still don't awakened. As Adyashanti said if where he was studying Zen was a business, and profit was how many people actually became enlightened, they would be out of business pretty fast. i feel the whole Guru worshipping and Satsangs with a flower days are coming to an end, sure they help on some level, but unless they are your questions what help is it actually. I always found it funny how Rupert Spira awakened through Francis Lucille and has stories of them clearly talking 1-1 and becoming close friends, and Francis Lucille worked 1-1 with Jean Klein, yet they speak to hundreds of people during Satsangs and webinars, and rarely do 1-1 work, I guess the demand for this stuff has rapidly increased so it makes sense. I've attended several of Rupert's webinars and the main value I received was from asking my own questions, and funnily enough, you get hours to do that when you work 1-1 with someone. I'm not saying my teachers are the best or greatest, and you should work with whoever resonates with you best, I'm just saying I don't feel 1-1 teaching is emphasized hardly at all in the community, yet group satsangs where the same people turn up for decades is praised, it makes little sense to me. I rambled on a bit there, but I hope you get what I mean, I'm not sure of your views on Spiritual Transmissions so I won't even begin to go into that lol

@Serotoninluv @outlandish Yeah of course it’s a limited system and limited To the creators just like all systems are. It’s a similar system to the 10 Ox pictures in Zen, just in a numerical form, I don’t get why that’s so hard to understand. Do they have no value as well? It is literally a system to talk aboht the different stages of awakening not some “spiritual dick measuring contest” Have either of you read the book out of interest?

@Serotoninluv what do you mean by that?

@outlandish ?? I honestly do see how it looks loool. However there’s quite a lot of differences between him and say Mooji or Osho.

I was exactly the same as you. im not going to lie enlightenment isn’t all sunshine and rainbows unforunately, it forces you to deal with all the shit you’ve been putting off for years, but that’s a good thing, believe me. You can only truly know if you’re ready, an element of doubt is normal, and the ego will thrive on it to try and survive. what will be easier is to list your actual fears and deconstruct them one by one, list them here and write them down, and contemplate each one. most you’ll realise are just you scared of the unknown and trying to survive.

@rNOW of course this is key to the path. What’s wrong with fashion? It’s another form of art so I don’t see a conflict there, of course having 3 houses worth of clothes and shoes may not be the most conscious thing to do haha. What exactly is your issue, so we can discuss your problems, what issues are you facing and what resistance are you having with your work?

It’s different for everyone but for me, if my phone or some tab is open on my laptop I get distracted. pomodoro is great advice. But I think removing all distractions, writing down exactly what you need to get done and laser focusing on that is most effective. calendar apps are also great. what are you trying to be more productive in relation to? Is it Fitness, Business etc

@Tanz 1) This isn’t a ranking system, as I said there are common differences between teachers, if you read the book it goes into great detail about this. 2) tbh there’s probably people who were on Christ’s Buddhas levels, or even beyond it, remember religions were formed around them, so their teachings survived, think of the countless masters we have no idea Existed, and you don’t know every master who is currently alive to say that. We are also going on records of teachings with Historical great masters. 3) Maybe that’s good it you just want to improve your life, but personally I desire to reach full self realisation, and I don’t think just 1/2 points are going to get me there. I’m afraid the work goes a lot deeper than many perceive, in fact awakening just sheds even more light on to those blind spots and feelings you were trying to avoid for so long.

@Eu Sint because it helps show you exactly where you’re at, and your current fixations etc. I don’t know what is beyond 1000 as I have no experienced it, but what I do know, is life only can truly begin at 1000. No, it is certainly not a competition, you are not “better” than anyone else, it is simply trying to model the unmodellable (I know that’s not a word lol). I wouldn’t call it a rank, it’s a tool to see where you’re at in your journey. Id recommend reading the book for more information, it’s like $4 on Kindle I think so won’t break the bank, there’s depth in each stage. I’ve massively oversimplified it herre which wasn’t my goal, I was merely showing what has helped me more than anything in my own existential experience. Once you’ve finished, you no longer need the teachings, the Buddha has a famous quote about this that I can’t remember, but when you’re not pointers and tools are helpful!

@zeroISinfinity I’m not sure if you’re saying you feel amazing, or that you’re struggling:)

@Leo Gura I loveeee SD, it’s my favourite series of yours along with Conscious Politics tbh, but like you say everything has its limits. Even my beloved LOC scale, although I disagree that it has no value whatsoever, but yes more research could be done into it for sure.