Gesundheit2

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That's what happens when God takes awakening personally

Yes. There is data, but it's forced into a certain interpretation (I'm guessing for business agendas). And that's not 100% scientific, so it's pseudoscience. Why? What's special about Big 5? Awesome going for meta-analysis here! Just because some people can cope with lack of social skills better than others does not make it a normal thing. I think attempting to normalize introversion is part of the problem. It does not address the root problem that needs to be fixed. "You don't lack social skills. You're just an introvert." More like: "You don't suck and can't improve. You're just born that way." I'm all for loving oneself, but that's misplaced self-love and also a bit extreme in my opinion that it becomes harmful.

@Ayham Part of the work, in my experience, has been to learn how to let go and enjoy my time outside of my plans and schedule. Flowing with life is a skill, and you become better at it with time, awareness, and practice. I find that the more I am capable of enjoying my spare time, the more efficient I often am at what I do seriously, as long as the intention and presence is there. Fun activities refresh the psyche and give way for more creative thoughts. And in a sense, a lot of spiritual practices are a way for learning how to let go and go with the flow of life. Enjoy your time, bro. Own it, and don't feel guilty about it. The only time wasted in life is the time we waste on negative thoughts. Focus your attention on how to enjoy the trip to the max, and on how to make the most memorable moments out of it. Good luck!

@Carl-Richard I don't know a lot about the big 5 model either, but I still don't consider it a correct model, let alone useful. In fact, I think it is in a sense harmful to whatever extent people might believe in it, probably just as much as other personality models can be. Just to give one example, I disagree that there is such a thing as introversion and extroversion. I think that's a false assumption, and the reality underneath introversion is rather a group of people that is typically incapable of passing the social tests (they lack social skills, are incapable of dealing with criticism, they get trolled/bullied easily, etc.), and therefore end up isolated from their peers (age-group) and self-hating. They basically haven't learned from an early age how to cope with their existence among other people. And of course, the opposite is true for the so-called "extroverted" people. My reasoning behind this is simply because introverts are not really isolated from people. You can verify this by randomly picking anyone who labels themselves an "introvert", or anyone who is classified by any typology model or definition as an "introvert". You will find that all of them will exhibit social behavior in one way or another, with one difference is that it will be in isolation from people's judgements. For example, someone who calls themselves an introvert but then spends most of their time watching YouTube is simply someone who is socializing from a safe place/distance, so that nobody judges/criticizes/trolls/etc. them so their egos can remain intact. So it's not that "introverts" don't like socializing with other people, but rather that they aren't really successful at it, and prefer to cope with that fact through isolation instead. Other behaviors that indicate extroversion in introverts are reading books, listening to music, following sports, following politics, stalking, active social media life, etc. A truly introverted person would actually spend most of their time meditating, and naturally so, without any force or will. Because that's what introversion means. And anyone who does the opposite and claims introversion is full of shit. But notice the difference here. It's vast. True introverts are not the same as those "puppet" introverts. And all those models fail to even see that. That's just one thing I disagree on with these models. The truth is that I don't even consider any of them to have any sort of truth to them at all, and that they mostly fall under the self-fulfilling prophecies category, where they only become true if you believe in them and to the extent of strength of that belief, so basically placebo. The good news, though, is that since all these models are false, then nothing is really set in stones, and everything can be changed/corrected with some willingness and effort. But first, those who want to change need to drop the models, as they are literally a variation of limiting beliefs that is masked as "scientific truth", which doubles the trickiness. Believing in those models actually rather cripples down the individual and removes any real chance for them at reintegrating themselves back into society.

This seems to suggest that there is an objective truth out there somewhere that the brain is actively trying to avoid looking. At least, that is if I'm using your lens correctly

This one is for me. And this boring version for @AtheisticNonduality.

I don't know you, but I think you're being harsh on yourself and sacrificing your authentic self by somehow caving in for culture. What you're calling mental masturbation is clearly your passion for philosophy. And your desire for marriage seems in some way like an escape from facing and accepting your sexual desire, your dirty side (don't worry, everyone is dirty). I agree with you on getting rid of bad habits like smoking and eating junk food. But the rest sound like they can be recontextualized into a more healthier frame. For example, porn and masturbation are not a substitute for the real thing, but they might be until you get abundance of the real thing.

Lol. What the hell?! That's what you get when you skip steps. Though, in my case it's normal, cuz I'm self-learning and don't have a mentor or anything. Anyway, the concept I was looking for was "memory pointers and (reference-types vs. primitive types)". I've learned about it earlier this year when I went back and studied some of C language. It all makes perfect sense now.

@axiom I wouldn't know until I try. But from your experience, what possible practical implications would you say DMT might have? In particular, I'm interested if you think it might be possible to derive useful psychological information about the mind of each individual that can be utilized to achieve certain goals like personal growth or healing.

Peace of mind is a requirement for happiness, but it's not exactly it. Happiness comes from the recognition that this is the best that things can get. You've done all the work you can, and now it's time to rejoice in the fruits of your efforts. Though, in this case, you can have the cake and eat it at the same time. You can reach a place where the work and fruits of work merge together and become one. You can reach absolute alignment with reality. You can learn to become a master surfer of the sea of life, even if the tides are violent and your surfing board is not the best one around. You can learn to become one with the waves, become friends with the sea, and tame its monsters.

Well, this probably goes back to our (rather vague/primitive) understanding of the brain and how it functions. So the axioms of neuroscience. I'm not very well-versed in that area, so I can't probably say anything except that the map is not the territory. Though, I think from a purely scientific/practical perspective, that would probably be an irrelevant addition lol.

@axiom I think you're misinterpreting the model with an idealistic bias. The model doesn't seem to necessarily suggest anything in regards to where the world actually exists (objective/materialism vs. subjective/idealism). It only seems to highlight the fact that the brain seems to function in a way that updates its current information only when the environment changes and "throws an error", as opposed to another hypothetical model that might suggest that the brain is always updating models regardless of prior knowledge that is stored in memory. The predictive coding model assumes memory that the brain uses to compare with perceived environment. The misinterpretation you seem to be presenting here assumes that the brain's memory is somehow the reality that we perceive, which does not seem to represent at all what the model is saying.

Personally, I use the words awakening and insight interchangeably. But I prefer awakening when the insight is so overwhelmingly obvious and groundbreaking, that it's shocking how I wasn't aware of it before, that I estimate it must stick with me forever. So to represent the difference between the state of being asleep and the state of being awake in regards to a particular insight or facet of reality. Basically, both words boil down to the same core meaning, which is direct recognition of truth.

Sounds a lot like me haha!

Life is a celebration, a private one at that, too. You can't really share the deepest joys in life with anyone, no matter how much you want or try to. They're yours only (once you attain them, at least). You can have all the material things in the world, but still miss out on the joy of life, the gift of being. Materialism is not the way. I can say that with 1000% certainty. Most people are miserable, because they're chasing money, and money is an illusion. Moreover, the possessions that people chase money to get are also illusions. Societal illusions, for the hierarchy. To keep the game up and running, the hamster wheel. The devil preys on their souls, and they are none the wiser. They think they are doing the right thing. But what they do is the biggest loss, for themselves first and foremost. If they only listened to how they feel, but they can't. Cuz listening requires attention, and they're distracted with this and that. The same illusions. They keep them asleep. With no hope of ever waking up. I do chase the same illusions as everyone else, nothing wrong with that, as long as it feels right. It's my Karma or whatever. And I will keep "Karming out" at it, until it is resolved and I am fully dissolved ( = never). I'm just a human, after all.

Empty mind.

Sex brings the human psyche back into a state of holism/integrity where all the opposites collide and distinctions collapse. All contradictions become intuitive when mixed with love. For this brief moment, dream is reality. Nothing more to fear. Desire is here.

Genetics and environment are the biggest factors.

Women love to experience pain in a safe environment. Controlled pain feels good for them for some reason. Pain and pleasure are intertwined for women. They want pleasure, and they want the turmoil. Probably because because controlled pain adds a new depth to the experience, as opposed to raw pleasure or raw pain. The mix gives way to entering a different realm, and that realm is the feminine climax zone, where surrendering meets control, and where union truly occurs.