Key Elements

After Christmas Joke from: Saint Nick

Being a monk is fine if that's what you really want to do. But, if you find out that you have some other interest that you want to develop into a life purpose, you can't do that in a monestary. For example, if you love to play the guitar, you can't write songs about your "experiences with the no-self" or other spiritual experiences in a monestary. Or, if you love art, you can't express your spiritual experiences in a painting in a monestary. They have their own rules and schedules on when to meditate. Some monestaries even require you to have a bachelor or masters in certain Buddhism. Be sure you notice that. I'm just saying. Some people who became monks didn't really tell their parents. They just went ahead and did it. They started their own monestaries.

"Slow and steady wins the race." This age old saying is true, especially when we found our life purpose. Do something little by little, step by step every day. It doesn't matter how little; it will slowly add up. Of course, if you could do more, that's great, but do something. Plan something. Now that the holidays are here. It's time to take time off of work and do this -- our life purpose. Now is some free time. Of course, even when the holidays are over, plan something everyday. Keep it up. Keep up the good work. Otherwise...

Just wanted to share something... Above clip: recent clip of Ivanka Trump's visit to India about entrepreneurship, networking, and economy. Speech in front of India's Prime Minister Modi. I was recently in India and did some networking there. (Now, I'm back in the US.) What I discovered was being a philanthropist is popular after one becomes an entrepreneur. For example, Bill Gates has his AIDS Foundation (non-profit). This is across the world. Sometimes, when I went to networking events there, it would take place in a donated house donated by an entrepreneur. It is converted into a mini coffee shop / restaurant which serves homemade food and drinks at a very low price to all. Nice little place. Local schools use it for events too, etc. Anyway, all that is great for one's life purpose / startup, but the thing I noticed is, someone like Sai Baba (guru) and Baba Ramdev (guru) are also philanthropists. Sai Baba has hospitals and universities built for the poor and regular people. His ambulance services are still running. I especially like Baba Ramdev's toothpaste, Dant Kanti. My tooth aches are gone. He has other products, and when people buy them, I heard that a large portion of the money goes to charity. This is great, but the point is, they are entrepreneurs, philanthropists, and also gurus at the same time. They have spirituality incorporated into their life purposes. This is one aspect. Another aspect is, I noticed that the Shaolin monks have kung fu as their mastery. This means that mastery and spirituality can be combined. I especially like this example because it goes with the saying: If you learn kung fu (or any other mastery), you could survive with that skill. If you are ready to hear and learn spirituality, you can learn it from someone who knows, like a Shaolin monk or whoever. Philanthropy involves learning and teaching a skill and not just charity and donations because it teaches someone to fish. (More info on combining entrepreneurship and spirituality.) ***** Becoming a philanthropist is a solution to many problems we face in life. We think, "So many 'bad' things happen in life. How can we solve this? What can I do on my part to contribute?" ***** uh oh! (humor)

You could achieve things in basically two ways. One is to make it look like a struggle, where you look constantly 'stressed out' to meet deadlines, etc. Another way is to do it and achieve it in a being mode / meditative state. I would rather practice doing the latter. Life is about being, not struggling. In other words, you could live your life in the being state most or all of the time with practice -- it wouldn't matter whether or not you've reached your goal. A goal is only a milestone. Milestones continue forever / throughout life. I would choose to live my life in being state and find ways to contribute. It's best to start doing this now. The process will always be there. You may only enjoy a goal for 2 seconds, and then a different process begins after a goal is reached.

It's a great text book - very lengthy - 343 pages. I don't find it easy to understand unless the person has some life experiences in interacting with different people and different places. (Eg. Have done travelling.) The book didn't mention stage coral. General overview: Beige: If the thinking is automatic; the structures are loose bands; the process is survivalistic. Purple: If the thinking is animalistic; the structures will be tribal; the processes will be circular. Red: If the thinking is egocentric; the structures are empires; the process is exploitative. Blue: If the thinking is absolutistic; the structures are pyramidal; the process is authoritarian. Orange: If the thinking is multiplistic; the structures are delegative; the process is strategic. Green: If the thinking is relativistic; the structures are egalitarian; the process is consensual. Yellow: If the thinking is systemic; the structures are interactive; the process is integrative. Turquoise: If the thinking is holistic; the structures are global; the process is flowing and ecological. I find it helpful to pair the Spiral Dynamics diagram with this diagram starting from stage orange: From the book: Guide to Investing by Robert Kiyosaki. Both these diagrams paired together make your life purpose. A crucial step in life:

Ok. I get what you're saying. I would just try different things of my interest in real life before knowing what job to get related to my interest. Start small. Basically, for me, one day, I just took a pen and notebook and started writing down whatever came to my mind - journaling. Then, in the same journal I started gradually practicing a foreign language that I had practiced with since childhood. I kept going at it and became a bilingual teacher. Of course, this is not the end of my journey. It continues. You could also do the same - use a simple tool like a pen & notebook. Start small. Start with whatever is practical and reachable within your sight. Hey, here's another simple question that may help. Around your home or within your sight now, what tool(s) are you going to pick up to use to do what you're interested in? For this exercise, your mind has to be free. Do not think of things like: oh, I cannot be a scientist because I'm not qualified. Like I said, I picked up a pen & notebook. If you love science, you may look into a microscope. If you love music, it may be a guitar. Or, you may use your body to do kung fu. Etc. You get the point. Just try to stay away from the computer if you are hooked. Only use it when you need it. Like everyone else is saying on your thread, take the LP course. (During networking, I saw an 'ordinary' person do a science project program. He just video taped everything he did and made it creative. He presented in front of a group of Venture Capitalists, and they invested thousands in his program. I want you to find out about entrepreneurship too -- what it takes to make your dreams come true and eventually go beyond that because at that point you'll realize that money isn't everything. I'm only giving an example. Don't think about this part yet. Like I said, start small.)

Ok, great! You could pick one of those or combine one or two of those and start doing it. Explore it. For example, if you like science, start finding science projects on YouTube or elsewhere to do. This is just one example. There's a quote, "Listen to your heart. What is it really telling you to do?" (Remember, practice doing self-inquiry.) *Just a note here: doing what you like could actually lead to a job related to what you like.

I understand. I just want to add that if you start exploring and start taking little steps toward this path, it is possible that it could lead to a better job or better opportunities, something you would enjoy better. The job will be more related to your path. In the meantime, keep walking this path, regardless. This is what I experienced. I have to keep going and continue.

Interesting question. The healthier goal was discovered because it was there all along waiting for it to be discovered. Then, it was a matter of a mindset change to stay on the path toward the goal. You could always go on it anytime - the sooner the better. You could always adjust it.

What were your favourite subjects in school while you were growing up? (Top 3 please.) Were there anything else you did on your free time? (Doing self-inquiry helps.)

Well, I wouldn't say it's a matter of "believe" in it or not. If a person experiences it, then it's not a belief. I heard from someone on this forum saying that if you kill an enlightened person, it's a billion years in hell (phenomenon). That's the karma of that person. Because the person prevented the enlightened person from doing his job on earth (phenomenon). Then, when the person becomes reborn onto earth (phenomenon), it will feel like heaven (phenomenon) to him. So, he feels blessed and wants to contribute to the world. You have to wonder why books like Dante's Inferno is written. Is it written for no reason? Probably not. Also, different religions point to things in common. Karma, reincarnation, heaven, hell, etc., are both in Christianity and Buddhism. *** For me, the answer is yes. Because why would different religions even mention it if it doesn’t exist? Ppl do experience it and write about it. (I'm talking about different phenomena, including our earth. I'm not talking about God = no-self = no 'you' = nothingness / everythingness)

Such an excellent idea! What about something really hilarious? I mean Leo loves humor. A video clip of him telling non-duality jokes selling at a low price (maybe $1) may work. It's not about the money. It's more about contribution and starting non-profits. (Rap song jokes, j/k )

Great speech by this mom...At around 12:15, the ego was mentioned. I was surprised -- wasn't expecting that. Nope, it's not easy to raise children.

Hey folks... Christmas is near, but I had a good friend fly over to my place during the Thanksgiving holiday to spend time with me & my family. Before he left, we made a deal for next time -- maybe a year later, next Thanksgiving, we share our progress: In other words, when we meet in person next time, we share our progress completely and see who wins the game. Of course, it's just a game. Has anyone played this game with a good/best/BFF friend?

@Maxx You are into Buddhism/enlightenment/other religions/other related topics. I see that. That's great. We have not covered every single topic on the forum or on actualized.org. (Correct me if I'm wrong.) This is not easy for me to explain, but we have not covered: -indigo/starfall/rainbow children where the "experience of the no-self" (Riding the Ox Backwards) takes place at a young age automatically -the topic of nirvana, never talked about what that is -karma, didn't go into that too much These are just three topics, but how do they interrelate? Does that mean that indigo children are free from their karmas and will achieve nirvana in this lifetime? How much do they have to work to rid their karmas? Will 5meo and other psychedelics help "speed up the process?" If so, how? And, I heard the quotation more than once, "if 'God' enters into one's life too many times, life becomes pointless" from ppl who are very much into spirituality. There has to be a reason why Peter Ralston rejected 5meo. It's not because he's close-minded or that he thinks it's "wrong" or "bad." It sounds too "close-minded" just pointing someone out like that. I think he can't just say the answer in one sentence. If he really said an answer, how many ppl will understand it? You see what I mean?

@Maxx It crossed my mind many times already that enlightenment is not just a simple answer of just take 5meo or X, Y, or Z. It's because it "speeds up the process." This may not be the answer.

@Hardkill Hey, tell you something. You could take it or leave it; it doesn't matter. Deal? You could start off simple by taking a walk outside in the fresh air. But, keep this in mind: be very aware of your thoughts -- let them just pass by as if you're seeing a leaf being carried away by the wind. Do not catch hold of any thoughts -- nope, no thoughts, esp. negative ones. The thing I'm trying to say here is, it's just you and yourself. You have to first learn to be by yourself. That's all. You and yourself -- in peace. (You may develop an exercise routine for yourself after a while.) Then, after doing this for a while, I want to say to slowly take steps toward your life purpose. Why do I say this? Because without getting to know yourself, step by step, you will not be able to seek help. How can someone else help you if you don't know yourself? For example, an university counsellor may ask you a simple question, "Are you more interested in arts or the sciences?" If you cannot answer his questions, he cannot help you choose a major. This is just one example. *** Secondly, I'll make it even simpler. If you can sit in your room by yourself, without over thinking or have any distractions, great. In this case, just take small steps into your life purpose. It's a lifetime / lifelong journey that will help you discover and develop yourself in your major / personal areas. If you try to skip steps, it won't work. You got to get your basics handled first. *** We like to eventually hear your other interests, or how you discovered them on your journey. Why? This is what this forum is about, right? It's to go further and further along the journey, and if you share something along this process, we all (or at least some of us) will learn from it. *** Yes, life is demanding like you say -- very challenging. But, f***** up, I'm not sure if I agree. Life is testing us and demanding us to be at our full potential. It requires you to come up with around a handful of interests and then find a way to make at least one or two of them into something that you enjoy doing and eventually becoming a life purpose and beyond. Then life gets easier, but it's up to you to find a way. Good luck.

@Jedd From my experience of finding my life purpose, I had to choose something that I like to do to survive. And then, I chose something else to add to it -- to make the thing I used to survive more creative. This is the basic pattern I followed to discover it. Please feel free to have a look if you want to see an example.

If you are to go out into the real world right now to try to make a living so that you'll be able to survive and stand on your own, which of these from your list would you choose? You're going to pick from this list to survive.

What is this? Interesting It reminds me of Star Trek, and in that show, The Borg Race where 7 of 9 came from. Or, God forbid, the Borg race has taken over earth.

Nice karaoke song...For Christmas Hot Chocolate - Polar Express (movie)