Nic

@Toby Yes he did some stuff, like letting go of the self as well , but he didn't do more than what others did... He wasn't training to be a Zen master. All I want to say is that you don't need all that suffering, sitting for 1000s of hours or studying ancient texts to get enlightened.

Stop doing drugs!

@Markus I know...

Be ready to experience cold! You'll loose a lot of heat doing it! They will grow again so it's not like having a tattoo... Do it so you know what it feels like!

@NoOne Once you would get to the monastery the only thing you'd think about is your home and family. Your home and your family is your Zen monastery and exercises right here right now. You are waiting and looking for a bus that is already at the station. I believe life always gives exactly what you what you need to be in the now, there is nothing else to have. Once you become aware of it, you can choose be thankful for it! Changing surroundings is what the ego always want. Accepting and embrace all there is, is what you need to do to feel long lasting happiness, there is no other way to enlightenment! There is nothing to wish for, this is it man! This is the perfect moment, nothing more, nothing less. The world, your life, your family, your baby and your wife are perfection, this moment is the absolute perfection. Tell them you truly love them for what they are, that you are sorry to have been blinded by personal interests. Look at them, like you never looked at them before, make love to your wife like you never made love before and play with your daughter! Recognize the miracles in all this and be grateful you could finally see it at last! You have the ability to see it in every moment of your life. Make a mindful practice out of seeing the beautiful in the most challenging moments! As you become aware of a negative emotion, see that this is your body's reaction to not accepting what is, in other words, you are having a negative thought. Change perspective, see your expectations and responsibility in the emotions you are experiencing. Be thankful as your body reacts the way it should, in that sense, that it is working perfectly, send your love and gratitude towards him and yourself. Be thankful for the Zen exercise that comes in your way. You are the light! Take care my friend and good luck in your monastery!

@Henri I have the feeling humans have a tendency to complicate things. "Genius is the ability to reduce the complicated to the simple." Even though this quote could probably be contradicted by another quote of some sort, for my part and where I Am now, I don't feel like I need complicated stuff. It just fills my brain with more concepts. What I need more of is action! But I believe this whole forum could be reduced to a few sentences. For the Sanskrit, a medium told me once that I was an indian in a past life a long time ago... I'm good at leaving the past where it is apparently because it really looks Chinese to me. I'm happy for you that you found the time to understand it. Take care

@Harry I guess a lot of people are traumatized for life with the church. I have the luck to have been raised neutral. But i'm happy you have realized that there is more to prayers than just calling the Creator for help! Enjoy your meditation, it sounds good!

I'm not religious but I really like this quote, I don't know who actually said it: "Prayer is when you talk to God. Meditation is when you listen to him." I don't pray often at all but I should do it more actually. Praying has a bad catholic connotation to it, but I'll try my best to correct that. Yes there is a sens in praying even if you are not religious. Have you ever been praying for yourself or someone else? How did it feel? When I was little, I felt some guilt doing something religious, as I'm not even baptized. But generally, when I didn't feel fear of a God watching me, it felt really good! Did it feel so bad you didn't want to do it again? I found out that you do praying to feel good by expressing consciously a feeling based in the love spectrum. Praying is shifting your consciousness to the next level, it is a kind of meditation. It is training yourself to shift consciously your emotions and to practice emotional mastery. This is not about saying words from an old book, and if you don't do it, you'll have to confess to the priest, it is about expressing love. Put your full intention for the good of others, the one you love or the one you don't even care, also the one you dislike, and yourself, because there is no reason for not doing it, don't look for reasons not to express your love! If you think they, or you don't deserve to be loved, you just lost an occasion to feel great! You can also pray to feel grateful for what you are, what you have to eat, for your health and all your body parts that function and what they allowed you to do today... If you don't feel good doing it, I don't know what you'll need. This is programming your mind to express love as much as you can, it already feels good writing it. Man, I'm gonna do one right now, and I never read a holy book in my life... So in that sens it really works. If it's gonna change the face of the planet? It could because you'll change yourself, if you know why you are really doing it. If everybody does its fair share, maybe we could. It could also be used as a (re)programing of your mind to achieve the next goal, the law of attraction... make the dream feel real! As much as I don't like the book or the film "the secret" there is something to it, this is the practice of visualization. Some do prayers for healing others or themselves... and yes it does work too (of course not all the time...), some say the secret is in the intention. I don't know about that... the only thing I can witness is that it helped a lot of people for health issues, including myself and it feels good doing so. I hope it helped you to see prayers from another point of view. Enjoy praying!

@SkyPanther @Henri Thank you both and sorry for my ignorance, I knew it was something kind of massive, it just sounds massive. It seems like it is exactly what I asked Leo to do as new video actually, the balance and relationship between mind, body and soul... I didn't get any answer... I get lost with those indian names and it makes it a lot harder to catch the sense of it for me so that is a reason why I don't dig deep into it. Would have been cool to make synthesis of it though. But I guess Leo did it already sporadically in his video.

Hi Henri, when you have the time, can you tell us more about it! Maybe open a new thread actually, it seems like an interesting topic! Thanks!

My point was that to me, he didn't have a choice... you don't decide to get enlightened, as you don't decide to wake up in good or a bad mood, even if you don't have a choice in the rest of your tasks during the day, there are some things, or states that seems that you have more control than others. For me enlightenment is like crossing someone on the street and/or could be seen as a part of evolution or just part of life, of nature. It is not because you look for it, that you will find it. The day you drop the quest to enlightenment, is the day it might strike you with all its powers. It will be at the least expected place and come at the least expected time. I believe Eckart didn't look for enlightenment at all and didn't have a clue of what it was in the first place.

@Richard Alpert I'm sure Gary will solve this problem anytime soon! You can check out all his free podcast on iTunes, all the theory, if you look for "happiness through self awareness", or go to the free audio on his website, http://www.pathwaytohappiness.com/insights.htm. I did a lot of the theory before I took the decision to buy his course. I would really advise anyone to do so, before one decides to do the practice! I like "free will", which is not the same subject that Leo talks about, it's about being able to choose the emotions you want in any given situation , but hey, there is a lot of free podcast to choose from, take notes... don't let it be just words you'll forget about soon! There is a lot to learn from the theory too!

In my view time doesn't really exist, there is only a now, you probably mean waste your life.... Using the word "Wasting" is a judgment. I try to quit on judging, in other term, dividing the world in good and bad, and I feel a lot better. What ever you do, if it's coming from the lower self, and it is not concerning your survival, like asking yourself questions, it could be considered as a waste of time but nothing is a waste of time by definition. You are just on the way to something else. If you didn't find a life purpose, you might consider it as wasting your time. So find a life purpose, learn that making others happy is to make you happy, you will be the first person that experience the kindness of your intentions. It is such a great feeling. Just being alive that way will make you feel like you are not wasting your time. Have healthy habits, respect your body, they will most probably seal your fate. Learn to stop the question/answering process, otherwise it will only make you want more questions/ answers and make you run endlessly in your wheel for questions that don't need to be asked and answers that only will satisfy your rational mind and therefor keep you unhappy. Hug a tree today, tell him how beautiful he is and that you are sorry you didn't see his beauty before and feel it. Expressing love is the thing you want to do to not feel like you are wasting your time anymore. Love is not rational, love everyone and everything. Stop looking for reasons, therefor having questions for expressing your love as there is none. Love is your natural state, If you ask yourself questions, it keeps you from your natural state and you might find a lot of so called reasons not to express your love towards yourself, others and the world in general. Enjoy life!

The only thing that comes in my mind right now is: It is very hard when I try to. At these moments I didn't try to stop anything, I didn't look for peace or quietness, I had the feeling it was forced on to me. No effort what so ever, this is why I also wrote that "you don't choose to be enlightened". And I'm not religious at all!

@TwoDays I would like to agree with you, my rational side would say that I agree, but I don't through own experience. I Am not enlightened, but I've been blessed by states of enlightenment without looking for it, without sitting down for thousands of hours. Just through total acceptance of what is. I even forgot about the self help, spiritual knowledge of what to pay attention to, in order to be in the moment. Enlightenment is not my goal and shouldn't be seen as one if you want to attain it, maybe this was my strength, I don't know. For me, it's hard to make abstraction from this idea when I "punish" my ego by trying to control it, but I guess it could work, as people did it before apparently. I embraced my ego, embraced it all without pain, but I felt blessed by life actually before it happened instead and I feel and it felt fine! It's also hard to tell that this is the way or not by rationalizing the process. To be sure of knowing the truth is conter intuitively not the way to achieve enlightenment. They are most probably many ways on that mountain that can lead you to the top. Why all the people that study non duality are not enlightened you ask. Do you want a rational or irrational answer to that question? My rational answer would be: I don't know. My irrational answer would be: you don't choose to be enlightened. The question-answering process has to stop. Even if the answer make sens to you, it won't be the truth. Don't look for something that makes sense. Sens doesn't exit, it's an idea.

@Gary I can't believe Gary is in the house! Woaaaaw! Master!? What an honor! Welcome on board! Well, I'm a little shy now... And I feel a little dumb for not thanking you before with an Email… I never took the time to thank you for what you did for me, so here it is: Thank you from the bottom of my heart, it was a wonderful journey, it still is actually! I wanted to thank you through advertising your course and taking my time to explain others what happened during this journey that I took with you! I never thought you could actually join or even find my words… I could be one of your most devoted disciple as I nearly wrote every single word you said in all your podcasts and courses... translated it and made a resume in my mother tong. I did this because I knew there was a lot of brainwashing to undo. I'm still not quiet finished with the transcription yet actually, lesson 25, "Service to others", I still have a blockage on this one, for the transcription and in real life, but this is funny actually, saying this I've just realized that I've been working in service for the last 18 years, OMG! But I have other views on what service is, like charity or humanitarian work, I should also write one of the latest podcast like “What is a belief” fantastic podcast! Before anybody reads what is coming next, I want to state that I'm not religious, I'm not even baptized, I think of myself being agnostic, very openminded. Last December, some magic happened to me, to sum it up, after I got to know a new friend of mine that works with spirits for healing, never heard of this before. After that, in the next 4 weeks I had 3 times the feeling that I could not control my body, that spirits entered into me (cold air coming in felt by the witness as well), each time for nearly 2 hours and it felt strange but it was not unpleasant at all, like being on hard drugs actually, heavy asthmatic like breathing, blocked hands, shaking legs, feeling cold and hot at the same time, crying with a smile on my face, runny nose like crazy and the first time it happened, the only thing I could say was "thank you" over and over again and the feeling that my brain gets pulled out of me, entering another dimension but still clear in my thoughts somehow. This got me back into my self-help and meditation work/habit in no time and made a nearly perfect vegetarian out of me, (I ate nearly twice meat a day before). I also made a lot of connections with the not seeable, magical world. It seems that I attract highly spiritual beings, I don't know about your abilities Gary, but this is (just) one more encounter over the last 4 months and this is my first virtual, internet encounter) and all this changed my rational world view. This raised my happiness level to its maximum and filled me with positive energy. One day I went for a walk where I walk and run everyday, I had the idea to listen again to your "love beyond reason" meditation, the last lesson of Gary's course. And there, I got blessed by a shift in consciousness, the meditation that I did with opened eyes and walking was just the last thing I needed to get one of those moments of grace, I believe what I did was embracing it all. I didn't know how to call it by that time. Watching later Leo's content, his description of enlightenment (but he is not enlightened) fitted exactly my experiences but I could actually give more details to his description. So with this I just wanted you to know that I reached the gates of nirvana twice for a long moment listening to your last lesson and beyond the duration of the lesson, it lasted 2 hours at least. For the new Gary's students, don’t expect to reach that state, I believe I got some help from… I don’t know… can't explain it. I listened to this lesson many times before although I felt like the happiest man alive, I wasn’t actually in Nirvana. I should try again, I haven’t listened to it since. Actually it scares me a little, it so powerful... I wasn’t and I’m still not looking for enlightenment at all, I want to be happy no matter what and make people around me happy, that’s it, and this from a very young age, when I notice the Xmass presents that I got didn't make me happy for a very long time. I'm also very attracted by truth. So I've got a couple of questions for you, I hope you have the time to answer them... -You don't teach about enlightenment, you teach about awareness, this is what I recommend people should do! Can you tell why you don't teach about enlightenment? Do you consider yourself as enlightened and what are you views on enlightenment? Is it something you’d like to attain? -Leo is basically saying that you have to go through X amount of pain and sitting hours to reach enlightenment, from my own experience, I have to disagree with him even though I’m not enlightened, My experiences show me that it is not a must. What are your views on this matter? -What is your view on the no-self? I know you are saying the same thing as Leo but in a complete different manner... Thank you very much! So Gary, sorry for this long text, thank you again to make the dream I had when I was a child possible, to make me happy no matter what... Even though I still fail from time to time to refrain from being a true master of my emotions, when I feel bad, I know it won't last long until I can see the truth in my emotions, I have a lot of practice now... I don't know how you came so deep in your self-inquiry but thank you for sharing your wisdom and making this world not only a better but also an easier place to live in! Respect! Take care and happy Easter! With Love, Nic I leave everyone with this great 36min podcast about Gary's view on "what is a belief", you'll find it on Itunes, it's hard to get more pragmatic and clear about the lies that happens in our heads: http://www.pathwaytohappiness.com/podcast/pod40-understanding-beliefs.mp3

Couldn't agree more! @jjer94

Rule number one, be creative, Rule number two, makes us all laugh! I believe my own brother would make The Dalai Lama commit an AK47 mass murder in no time for his super annoying skills and life reminds me every day that I’m far from being the thing I still wish and could be. This exercice can be related to Leo’s lesson on how to be more funny…. So get into crazy details about how you would like to see those Zen pain resistant monks/masters break their Zen attitude or just what would make anyone go fucking nuts in the situation you have created for them to check if they are really enlightened! Sometimes life can be stranger than fiction… if you have anything funny to say related to the challenge of enlightenment go ahead. Everything can be told in a funny way. Life isn't serious after all, and laughter can be better than sex... -I’ll have one of those monks sitting for 5 days naked on a fresh nettle bed, in a room filled with hungry female mosquitos, a longhaired genetically modified red & black striped columbian tarantula on his face with a recording of Ben Stiller repeating “who’s enlightened now bitch, who’s enlightened now bitch”.

I don't know i can't see the haircut, he has got a mini baseball cap on it! You'll see better when he stands up from your face

And you don't have pain while doing that? so you are a bad ass zen monk too, I got to find a challenge for you! I have you liyng down 3days in a German darkroom of a free poppers Oktoberfest afterparty with endless effeminate giggling around you, it smells so strong that it's actually wet, you repeat the mantra "why Am I doing this master?" with Donald Trump sitting butt naked on your face! Meditate this!

Absolutely but A lot of people have reached this point, why don't they get enlightened?

Don't we all? take care!

So Leo is not right saying that you have to go through all this physical pain and years of siting, I know Eckart lived on a bench for a long time, but it was not like a Zen monk. I forgot about Eckart... Eckart had a lot of psychological pain, but haven't we all? A lot of people commit suicide... They don't get enlightened... What did Eckart to have this consciousness shift?

@OceanJjb if I can give you an advice, do what you want with it, just don't chase enlightenement! Chase awareness instead! Awareness is the step before enlightenement. It will make you happy and it is humanly makable. This enlightenement stuff is for most of us a wishful thinking... Life circumstances will make you not get there. But hey I might also be wrong! Take care and have fun with yoga and meditation!