UnbornTao

Enlightenment is independent of brain and perception.

OK

Boredom is an emotion. Two insightful definitions: Hostility without enthusiasm Arrogance! Holding your worldview as real and representative of the way the world is, confusing one for the other. You guys should soberly consider that enlightenment isn't an ideal. There's more work to be done, it's just the beginning. Unless it's a powerful one like that of Ramana, things like emotions, the body, skill, relationships, etc, are to be investigated. Now as a spiritual practice, go get bored for a couple of three days. I should be charging you guys for this advice.

Either one is absolutely conscious now or not. It'd be useful to make a distinction between absolute consciousness, and the way life is lived. The latter is relative while the former is not. In other words, emotions are another matter than the absolute. In the same way that you know you exist, you're conscious of that all the time. Can't forget it, not about memory. You're conscious. It's not a state, nor an activation, nor an energy opening.

Not at all. It's becoming conscious of what's already true, not about meaning and survival. It's about consciousness. It doesn't change anything, and it does change your relationship to everything. After it, the difference is that you're absolutely conscious of who and what you are --your nature. Our job is to get what that is, and then see for ourselves how the way we relate to everything gets changed - or not. "What's the point if I can't get anything out of it?" There's no point in it except knowing the truth, which itself is prior to meaning. That's why most people don't care about pursuing it.

No. Enlightenment doesn't change anything. It reveals what already is the case. It's not an attainment. And it certainly won't transform you -- this is a separate matter, which btw is aided by awakening but is a fundamentally different pursuit. Whatever change can occur in the brain after awakening will always be a side effect and relative, and ultimately is not important. Realizing the absolute is. Similar to waking up in a dream, that doesn't improve the character in the dream. Or some such.

I'm grateful for this space. But it's an only forum with diverse individuals. Everyone has their own particular challenges in life. There might be a few "hardcore" members that provide a lot of value, however, let's not get ahead of ourselves. Most of us here are rather common folks. Proud is a good thing but we're not particularly special, nobody is. Our shared obsession in self-growth and awareness work may be a bit rare, and that's it.

God. Don't know.

What can be done prior to absolute consciousness can be done after it.

You're conflating consciousness with the way you live and with emotions, which are relative. Enlightenment doesn't change anything. Examples of awakened individuals doing silly (and human) things abound. Because they still have to act like a person. Nissargadatta smoked, zen warriors killed people, etc. You could be enlightened and stream games. And certainly get bored, angry, jealous, etc.

Detroit: Become Human. Deals with AI, the near future, moral quandaries, etc.

Is this thread getting somewhere?

I don't think so. Not at all.

Who cares? You can think that you are a butterfly. The point is: who are you? And becoming directly conscious of that.

First I'd start with discovering what self and ego are about. Without being conscious of it you can't become free from it. Also, transcending something isn't a matter of destroying it. I don't know what the ego yet, but I suspect there's some basic functioning for human life in that. Again I loosely distinguish between self and ego, the latter being a function of the former. But contemplation is needed.

Certainly, the struggle you're speaking of seems to be universal, as this principle is independent from self-survival and serves the truth; those might conflict. Honesty is about telling the truth -- that may or may not improve yourself. Being honest doesn't mean telling everything that comes to mind, as that serves your self-agenda, not what's true. Always start with yourself. Be honest about your experience. That's where the principle operates from. Take care that your thinking, communication, acting, etc. are an accurate representation of your experience. What's true in your experience is estimated by you. Then, ask yourself: What might be behind that? Is that all the truth? Can more be discovered? Something considered true might at some point be recognized as phony. So continuously reach for deeper levels of honesty. In a social context, care is advised. You may think that I'm incompetent and at the same time you don't want to hurt my feelings either. When asked about this matter, however, you'd need to express what you think, or refuse the answer.

Addiction seems to be about repeatedly craving pleasurable experiences. Pain and pleasure are the same. The search for pleasure is motivated by pain. Seems as though something in your experience is not entirely accepted and experience for what it is. We want to avoid pain, the mundane, boredom, loneliness, an emotional need. Maybe. Look into it.

Conscious education, how to overhaul the education system.

Others are whatever they are. In your experience, other people are certainly conscious, sentient entities. No point in denying that. An enlightenment into what other is is needed.

Pick a simple, small object in your vicinity, and then strip away the value, associations, concepts, knowledge, memory, and so on, that you have relative to it. What is there as that when your additions and activities are set aside?

Also, what are we referring to when we talk about both religion and spirituality? What actions are we talking about in each case? Based on that, we can clear up the possible reasons and consequences for engaging in either of them.

Kylian Mbappé. "Go to Real already for christ's sake." Oh oh, Ramana Maharshi too.

That spirituality and religion are needed and important for understanding reality. They're not direct. I recommend pure contemplation. "What is this?", basically, "this" being whatever we're looking into.