Realms of Wonder

Awesome.

For me it is, What is Authenticity?

My curiosity has been thoroughly peaked! what musicians do you consider Mystics?

Who is ‘we’ in this question?

Wait a minute... So you're saying... It's normal to crave sugar/calorically dense foods? oh my In all seriousness though, thank you, I can lose touch with that, getting mired in who I "want" to be or "should" be, and forget to be honest with where I am on my journey. That is accurate. The ideal, (over the course of my life) is to eliminate it entirely. But thank you for this perspective, I sometimes fall into the "all or nothing" crowd, which is pretty toxic at times.

In this case it was cake and ice-cream.... And a cookie lol. Thanks for reminding me it can be a developmental and long process, that's a great idea of making your own, where you can regulate what kind of sweetener and how much is in it. in this case (and it tends to be most of the cases) I was avoiding physical sensations in my body, and mental tension and frustration. my thought process was "if I am already suffering so much, eating this will make me feel better even if just for now."

Still learning to love myself through these moments. I was feeling frustrated, with my body, which has been struggling the past few days, I was/am in physical pain. Also disappointed in how my mind was looking at it so negative, also feeling the backlash from the inner work and consistent action I have been doing/taking. Also, I was at work and didn't want to just "walk off" because then I would no longer have a job, so I chose to stay in the "suck." I was definitely using it to avoid facing the pain in my body, and my mental frustration, I could feel the tension in my body, I was trying to cover it with the pleasure of the sweets. I know there is a solution, thanks for your perspective

Who knows how deep the game goes. But the tip of it is clear, I blame others, put others in negative light, speculate and make assumptions. its mostly unconscious, like a deep OS running in the background, rarely do I vocalize it, yet it remains. Why do I focus on others, instead of inwards? Why do I speculate about others? Why do I distract myself? WHY? so I don't face myself, to avoid my creative work, to avoid solitude, to avoid the PRACTICE. I wonder how deep it goes...

Thanks for this, I'll try this out

What do you desire the most? - To know the Truth of what I am, my highest Self, intimately, fully, completely, light and dark, in and out, EVERYTHING. What do you fear the most? - Facing my dark side, my insecurities, need of love and approval, my repressed sexual drives/desires, my prejudices, biases, beliefs, fantasies, and so on. - Being 100% authentic. Why? Be specific! - I am afraid that my mental idea of who I am will be shattered when I realize what I actually am. - I am afraid that I will be reject able, unlovable, weird, outcast, alienated, spit on, killed, for being me. I haven't thought deeply enough about what it all boils down to, I have heard that the root of all fear is fear of death.. Maybe that's it, What do you desire and what do you fear at the most fundamental level and why? Desire: To be complete, whole, and integrated. Ultimately, Self Love. Fear: Being rejected, hated, or killed, for being ME. Why? Because I have been fragmented, dis-integrated and self hating, and it was literal hell. Because I intuit that if I live authentically, whatever that means, I will have lived the Good life, for me. Why? Because I have been rejected, hated, and even threatened to be murdered for who I am. I am afraid of that repeating.

Chris Martin

I have often wondered the same. To me, the fact so few people go down this path means we need more Leaders, Visionaries, and Creatives, to expose the path, and give people the courage to walk it. In a way they can receive, be it through music, video, art, business, politics, science, and so on. For example, as a kid, I was extremely curious about the nature of reality, even having multiple spontaneous mystical experiences. But I also grew up in a Christian environment, which condemned those experiences, so I closed off to that aspect of reality. It wasn't until I was 19--- when my brother introduced me to LSD, and Leo-- that I was able to see the path presented. I can easily imagine a different scenario, where I never did LSD, and never was introduced to Self-actualization, I would be barely scraping by, depressed, lost, dogmatic and ideological (even more than I am now ,) unproductive and overweight. its a complicated topic, but a fascinating one.

Many people here have already mentioned exercise as a form of meditation or contemplation, running, walking, swimming and so on.. Also have mentioned becoming very clear on WHY you want to go to the gym/exercise, all are very good points. When I go to the gym, I put in earplugs and focus on how amazing it feels to push my body, doing heavy squats or bench press, or even cardio afterwards, or I just experience the pain and suffering I see it as primarily a mental exercise, and the physical benefits are like the leaves of a health tree in spring. I turn it into a conversation with myself, as I walk up to the squat rack, "okay Paul, are you ready? You are strong, listen to your body, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, liftoff, Push, Keep going, watch your knees, press into the bar, 2 more, keep going... GREAT JOB!" Its such special time, more and more its becoming so zoned in I feel nearly alone in a crowded gym, as I focus on the inner world of weightlifting.

Interesting way of looking at it! If I am reading this correct, our mind takes the "Head noise" as truth, instead of dismissing them as just thoughts? Or are you trying to say something else?

You take 100% responsibility for everything? How has it changed your life?

Which instruments? That great! those fields need conscious and musical people in them. They are not genres I am familiar with, but if that's your heart, I am excited to hear what you create. Indie electronic, psychedelic pop, a mix of Enya, Tame Impala, and Coldplay. Definitely still experimenting and learning. I expect my style to evolve as the skill set increases.

What do you mean?

did you grow up Christian or religious?

Since before I got into personal development, intuition has been driving my life, mostly unconsciously until this year, where it has taken a much more central role in my decision making process. It is so difficult to put words to, but its a strong, soft voice from within, not always in words will it speak, but it speaks. A month ago, it became clear that it was time to move, I have been living with roommates for the past 3 years, financially its nice, but it is very distracting and loud. After deciding to move I chose to look at it like this. "I will plan and strategize, set some criteria, then make my decision based on my gut." During that time I toured multiple apartments, and it was fascinating to listen to the intuitive side instead of trying to rationalize why an apartment would/wouldn't work out. Saying no to what seemed like good opportunities based on how I "felt" seemed kinda stupid, but I trust myself. And then out of the blue, this apartment popped up on my radar, everything went to plan, it met all my criteria, but most importantly, as soon as I walked in, my whole being said "YES!" Afterwards, everything worked out so well, so smoothly, like it was "Supposed to be the one." Such an interesting experience.

'tis beyond my current level of being. Believing this wont help, maybe after years of practice I can EXPERIENCE what you are pointing to Thanks for our input.

easy to say, difficult to practice. but I agree.

Authenticity: Building a vision of a 100% authentic life, Research, Contemplation and meditation, aligning my life with the rest of my values, teaching myself to choose truth of being over what feels pleasurable (if they conflict.) Practice being ME. Music Production/Songwriting: writing music (practice finishing songs, getting the shit songs out) researching specific skills within music production (synthesis, percussion, structure, theory, and so on) and deliberately practicing/honing that skill, adding to the overall. taking lessons for the skills I can find experts on. Life Performance/Public speaking: Writing more, being impeccable with my word, DOING IT, toastmasters, studying masters of both.

What style of music do you write?

Great question. 1. Authenticity. 2. Music production/songwriting 3. Live performance/public speaking.

@vizual maybe you are right but what anyone else besides our self believes or doesn't believe is none of our business.