r0ckyreed

I have always wondered how to Astral Project. I have tried following guides of other on YouTube, but nothing has worked. It just seems like I am imagining it. Has anyone had any success in Astral Projection? I also used to keep a dream journal during my Philosophy of Dreams class back in College (really mind blowing class btw). During that class, I had my first lucid dream. The issue that I am struggling with is that I have not been able to remember my dreams, and I have been too lazy to keep writing in my dream journal. Any Conscious Dreamers that could help me out? Thanks!

Thank you!

What do you think about the idea of me waking up and sharing my dreams with myself in the mirror? I think I am just gonna have to find a way to not be lazy about it.

Thanks. I have had two lucid dreams, which were mind blowing. The first lucid dream I had, I was in a car, I got out, and I still noticed the ground moving. I had so much awareness that it woke me up, and I felt my whole body vibrating (sleep paralysis), which was really dope! I also really want to become a more conscious dreamer, but I have not been keeping up with my dream journal.

Is this the book you are talking about? https://www.amazon.com/Way-Liberation-Practical-Spiritual-Enlightenment/dp/1937195171/ref=nodl_

Life is a dream. All people and your body are imaginary. You are nothing dreaming you are something, dreaming a human, an earth, and others. This is the dream of life. “Life is but a dream.”

In my opinion, we should first learn how to think before we stop thinking. Too many people don’t know how to think and thinking becomes a self-deceptive and suffering mechanism. Thinking or imagination is God’s gift. If we neglect thinking, we neglect a big part of our lives. Almost everything around you is born of thought. True, but I also think we should strive to be a conscious thinker. Too many people are unconscious thinkers or do not really think at all. Our mind is a muscle and if we stop using it for a while, it may become weak. If we use it in a conscious/contemplative manner, it may become stronger. I feel like that death will be my ultimate no-mind. I might as well grow my mind while I am alive and brief periods of silence in mind will help, but I do not strive for permanent silence in mind. That to me would be death. Thank you.

From the video you shared above

what do you all think of Leo’s new video? That was what I was talking about here. Solipsism is also a concept, but it was pointing the Direct Experience of total Aloneness as God. Pure Raw Direct Experience is all there is. The idea of a human person or character is hallucination which kind of goes against the traditional idea of “solipsism.” When you discard all of your fantasies. All that seems to be left is This and mindfulness is the process of seeing reality LITERALLY as it is. This video above reminded me of Douglas Harding’s headless way method where he had the realization that “he had lost a head. But instead, he gained a word.” The headless way seems like an interesting way of getting struck by enlightenment. Sam Harris talks about headless way on his meditation all called waking up.

I just watched whole video and did exercises! It is awesome! However, the most common objection I get from people is “just because you don’t see something doesn’t mean it’s not there.” But then a question came to me which was “just because you don’t see something doesn’t mean that it is there.” Another analogy that I was thinking of was that God is the silence out of which the music of my life appears and then disappears.

I resonate with that. When I try to become the Witness of thoughts, there is a moment where it is completely still. I am trying to observe the thought, but it is still, then I eventually realize that I have been gone or lost in my thoughts for a while. Kind of like in a dream. Interesting! Thank you for sharing! However, I disagree that “thinking is a disease.” I think that unconscious thinking is disease, but if you are using your mind in a conscious way, such as contemplation then thinking can be good. One thing I’ve noticed when doing a lot of meditation is that my memory about things has gotten worse after sitting still for a long time. Our memory is about repitition of our imagination. Suppressing thoughts can be dangerous. But maybe I am misinterpreting it. My thinking has been a huge ally in my life. I have used critical thinking to help resolve some of my emotions. I have made thinking into my ally, and I notice that many people use their thinking in distorting and limiting ways. Meditation has helped me think more clearly in a way because I feel like I am more aware of when my thinking can be dysfunctional. But I don’t know, what do you think? I am more of a conceptual/philosophical person in nature. So maybe thinking is used to ground my reality and is the tool of the Devil. I think I may see it now.

I have also tried running meditation (run for miles and observe nature, body and mind). I found it is interesting, but I am not for sure if running is meditation?

I got Ravenclaw. Tell me what you all got. https://www.proprofs.com/quiz-school/story.php?title=mte2mdawoq2srl This test helps you know your strengths and values. Here are the following houses and traits: Gryffindor: Chivalry, Bravery, Courage, and Determination Element: Fire Ravenclaw: Knowledge, Wisdom, Intelligence, Learning, and Wit Element: Air Hufflepuff: Loyalty/Honesty, Justice, Patience, Hard Working Element: Earth Slytherin: Ambitious, Cunning, Leadership, Resourcefulness, Self-preservation Element: Water In reality, you are all of these, but the sorting hat quiz helps you pinpoint which house represents you on average, overall.

Just a few resources that helped me meditate. Nothing too special. Feel free to share your own resources that help you so others can learn. Meditation is so important and is a good habit/skill to development. https://meditationspark.com/how-to-meditate-while-working/ https://www.inc.com/matthew-jones/7-easy-mindfulness-meditation-ideas-to-try-at-work.html https://thedailymind.com/how-to-use-your-work-as-a-meditation-tool-to-change-your-life/ https://zenhabits.net/work-as-play/ https://medium.com/personal-growth-lab/how-to-reach-flow-state-using-10-flow-state-triggers-473aa28dc3e5 https://collegeinfogeek.com/flow/ These are only the beginning. What sources help you?

Hello all! I am new to this health section of Actualized.org Forums. The reason why I am posting is that I am concerned about my diet. I will just get to the point. I am eating really unhealthy and hardly exercising. When I do exercise (which varies from one day per week or every 2 weeks) I typically run, do push-ups and pull ups. I do not work out as much as I need to. My main concern is my diet and the long-term effects of it. I think the shit I am eating now will affect me years down the road. I still live with my parents, and they spoil me with a bunch of stuff that I know is bad for me. I eat a lot of sugar (ice cream, cheezits, oreos, etc.), and somehow, I am on the low end of being underweight. I am about 6 foot tall and weigh around 145. I think I have a good metabolism because I eat a lot of crap and don't gain weight, even with my lack of exercise. I used to play tennis and do cross-country, but now during COVID, I am sitting around meditating, contemplating, and working on school work. I do not notice any negative health side effects, but I do want to prepare for the future. I watched Leo's video on health already, but do you all have any recommendations on food? I am mainly concerned that if I continue on this road, I will have long-term problems and I may already have them. Here is my diet so far: Breakfast: I eat Apples, bananas (sometimes eggs and sausage) Lunch: I some times snack and skip lunch. But sometimes I will eat chili, quesadillas, tacos, pizza (some times vegetable soup), spaghetti, broccoli, corn, fruit cocktail Dinner: Same thing as lunch in terms of food My ideal goal: Exercise (Run 3-5 miles, push-ups, pull-ups) 4 times a week or every day Breakfast: Eat apples, bananas, fruit smoothies, eggs and sausage (which I already do) Lunch: Chili, vegetable soup Dinner: Fruit salad, Chili and vegetable soup I think if I can stick to just the fruits, vegetables, and protein (chili) then I may have a good diet. I am just tired of being addicted to sugar because I realize that my bad diet is a like a drug that will harm me later on. EDIT: I think part of my problem is that my parents eat like crap and buy the crap and then I eat it with them. This is a consequence of living with family. My parents will buy me ice cream, cereal and a bunch of crap that make it hard to avoid junk food. If you all have any questions (personal or not) please ask away , I won't be offended at all. Thank you all for your help! <3

I mean. Yes and no. Trump is a house on his own, but I think he fits well with Slytherin house in general, as well as with characters like Voldemort, Pettigrew, etc. who are manipulative and egotistical and stage red. Here’s how I may use spiral dynamics with Hogwarts: Slytherin: Stage Red/Orange (Individual) Hufflepuff: Stage Green/Blue (collective) Gryffindor: Stage Orange (Individual) Ravenclaw: Stage Yellow/Orange (Individual) Of course this is an overgeneralization, but I don’t know. From my observation, Hufflepuff societies seem more like a cooperative, collective, whereas the others seem like they are individual and competitive. I don’t know. What do you all think of this?

That’s a great idea! What kind of meals do you recommend that I prepare that are healthy and taste good?

Thanks. That’s a good point. You are right!

Yeah. I told them. My problem is that I feel guilty if I refuse to eat their prepared meals because they spent time and I know people in other places are starving in the world.

I was, but I wanted the hat to choose for me without my influence Lol! I guess Slytherin? There is nothing wrong with Slytherin, except Voldemort and Death Eators, and Donald Trump. Swag! That's a good point. This explains many evils that occurred.

Thank you so much! I really appreciate your insight!

True dat.

Lol. Did you get Hufflepuff as your result? I don’t think a Hufflepuff would be hating other houses, but rather try to work with them. I am Ravenclaw because I am a lover of Wisdom and Truth. But I do love the warm heartedness, compassion and empathy that Hufflepuffs bring. The point is that we possess the traits of each house, but what are our strengths and which traits are easier for us to embody? I am trying to understand what you mean by how Hufflepuff is the only true house.

Already failed. You, blind, and eyes are illusions. You don’t know what blindness, eyes or you are.

Title says it. I love questioning reality deeply. Some of my most profound insight have come to me when I was observing something and wondering about it. I have question and critically think or contemplate it. I was on the verge of grasping something like infinite or eternity, but then it slipped away. I have tried meditation and I have found it highly useful for stress and concentration, but as far as insight goes, I haven’t found meditation as useful as contemplation. My favorite contemplation is distinguishing between actuality and concept. I have done this exercise to the point in which the distinction between concept and actuality itself is just more concept. But I am not sure what this means quite yet. Any pointers? What do you all think about contemplation vs. meditation? Why meditate at all when we can contemplate?