Space

@kieranperez One of the books Leo just added with his booklist update is really really good for this (TCM by OC)

@Shaun One or two of the Kriya books on Leo's list break down Kriya into a small list of the most effective set of techniques. Would definitely recommend. Saved me loads of time that I would have spent doing less effective beginner techniques.

Hell yes to the trilogy series at the top of your new additions! They really are amazing books. So enjoyable, fun and easy to read. Maybe my favourite spiritual books, and highly recommended! Also I just want to say that the audio reviews are really helpful and enjoyable to listen to. They add so much value to the booklist as a whole.

@Esoteric Interesting, thanks for the response.

Does anyone else get a really 'heady' feeling after they've done Kriya? I've had a sort of pressure-type feeling in my head for ages. I wanna know if anyone else has experienced anything similar? I went to my doctor and he said it was something to do with being long-sighted and working on screens etc all day.

@7thLetter I've been unemployed for more than a year now and I have run into similar problems at times. Some things i've found helpful: 1) have something you're working towards. Create a long term vision, plan or goal and work towards it every day. You need to have a good reason to get up in the morning and to not waste the day. It was only after I became really really clear on my LP that I started to put in the hours every day. Before that I was so undisciplined and lazy. 2) Have some sort of routine. Wake up and go to bed at the same time every day, have a good morning routine, meditate around the same time every day, eat at similar times of the day, etc. 3) Write down a list of things to accomplish for the day. Prioritise 1 or 2 things and spend a good couple hours doing them, with focused, intentional effort. 4) Lastly, as you said, its just discipline. You don't have to be super strict on yourself though. Remember to enjoy your time off work. I'm sure it'll turn out to be a good thing in a long run.

@ttom An impressive start. That amount of meditation is not easy to maintain. Link to your channel?

I know what my purpose is (being an illustrator) and i’m actively working on it every day. I have a pretty good idea of what I need to achieve, and what skills I need to develop in order to make it a reality. It’s something i’ve always known and wanted, but it was only around 8 months ago that I actually realised how it could be done and that I can personally do it. So i’m on track with that. However, whilst working on my purpose I’ve got to survive and pay rent when i move out from my dads place. But I don’t have a job, and i’ve been trying to get a job for a good 9-10 months with little to no progress. I’ve had a few interviews, but no offers - obviously. Most applications are sent off into oblivion to never be seen or heard from again. What the fuck do I do? I gotta move out of my parents place (at my age this should not be the case) but I need a job. But I can’t get a job. I’ve got a 1st class degree, but we all know that barely means anything at all. Right now i’m just applying for jobs that I find on job boards online. But it seems hopeless. I’m reluctant to apply for a low skilled job, because this could be a long term thing depending on how long it will take for me to actualise my LP, and I want to do something that is atleast vaguely enjoyable. Does anyone have any alternatives to simply just applying for jobs online and hoping to get something? Anyone else going through similar situation?Any advice would be much appreciated.

@IVONNE Of course its not too late. You're in your prime! 25 is probably the perfect age to go and do an undergrad in my opinion. I'm 26 and I wish I could go back and do my uni studies again at this age. When your 18/19 you're so young, naive and inexperienced. 25/26 is a great age because you're more mature and probably more hardworking. But you're also young enough to still be able to fit in with the other students. Even if you were 30 or 40, mature students are usually the best students. Older students are more focused and have a clearer picture of where they're heading and why they're doing the course. Professors/lecturers love older students. I guess just make sure that it's what you really want to do. Don't waste the opportunity. You only get a student loan for one course.

@Ashleyy Sounds like you have some natural inclinations for lucid dreaming, astral projection type stuff. Probably worth exploring

@see_on_see Awesome, I did not know about those sites. Thanks a bunch

I just stumbled across this amazing new art competition that has just been announced. If i'm honest it brought a tear to my eye. The prize is £10,000 but really the brief title is what made me super excited to share this, and I hope other members of the forum will enter and then maybe we could all meet at the exhibition! How cool would that be! Anyway, the brief is to produce a piece of work in response to the statement 'GOD IS...'. Here's a link to the website: http://chaiyaartawards.co.uk/competition. The competition end date isn't until October 18th and the final exhibition isn't until next year! So there's plenty of time to enter if you live in the UK (must be UK resident). So i'm definitely going to enter. I'm thinking of doing a large scale painting or illustration of some sort, but I haven't thought of any interesting ideas yet. Maybe i'll do a painting on 5-MeO! Imagine that. Maybe not. But I feel I must verify what God is for myself before attempting this. I'd be fascinated to see other people's interpretations of the brief.

@Peo Well i'm from the UK, but you can become financially independent in basically any country. The only thing stopping you is your own mind. @Elisabeth Indeed I can, although I am only just starting to implement them. So it may be worth asking me in 3-6 months time to see if they are actually effective and/or get me a job. Essentially it involves 2 approaches which I wasn't doing before. 1) Networking through LinkedIn. Connecting with people who are doing the jobs I want, and/or in the same industry. And connecting with people who may then be able to introduce me to other people. I'm still have various questions regarding this, which i'll be clearing up in the coming week or two. 2) Get as specific as possible about what job you want, tailoring your CV to exactly those positions, and then contact recruitment companies which are specifically aimed at those particular jobs, or your particular industry. Apparently, applying for jobs through job boards, which has been my main strategy up until now, is near pointless, particularly if you're CV is shit, which it was in my case. It's like throwing a snowball into a fiery hell. You might get a hit, but very unlikely. So many hours wasted. Thats not to say that job boards don't work. They can. Someone is gonna get the job of course.

@Leo Gura Thanks so much for the advice, really appreciate it. Since writing this post i've actually started working with a career coach. Turns out the strategy i've been using for the past 9 months (not to mention the mistakes on my CV) has been completely wrong and basically a total waste of time and effort. Frustrating to say the least. Building some more marketable skills is definitely an option I am looking into. Considering taking some short online courses. And looking for employment outside of London (to reduce expenses) is definitely the ideal situation. Whether I can get a decent job doing what i'm interested in outside of London is questionable, but still worth the effort of course. I think the most likely strategy will be to get a lower job within the art industry. That way I can potentially have the opportunity to further build my skills within the job, as well as network with people in the industry and get to understand the industry from the inside. My coach gave me some new and much more effective strategies for doing that. So i'm feeling optimistic! @Hello from Russia Very interesting! Thanks. I haven't considered web design stuff. Definitely something i'll keep in mind and look into.

@Elisabeth Thanks for the response In fact i'm actually doing what you suggest in the first bullet point. I'm talking to a career coach who has a lot of experience in HR.

Unconditional love includes the necessary killing of animals. Otherwise it would not be unconditional.

@Buba Generally the perception of vibrations only comes after a lot of practise. It also requires very high levels of focus and concentration. Your average meditator won't experience the vibratory nature of reality in a few sits. As far as I understand, the advice is not to go looking for vibrations, particularly if you're just starting out. Just focus on increasing your focus and concentration. They are not necessarily indicative of good meditation either, not are they necessary to see some good growth from insight practise. But when you start getting super concentrated and focused, things do start to vibrate, flutter, arise and pass, move, etc. Read Daniel Ingram's stuff if you want to learn more about these topics.

@LoveandPurpose Are you a guy or girl? If you're a guy, start NoFap. Since i've been doing it I haven't once needed to nap throughout the day. Before, fatigue was always an issue for me.

@moon777light It's interesting, I am hopeless when it comes to concentration practises, I can't concentrate on my breath to save my life. But when it comes to self-inquiry i'm just naturally able to get hyper focused. I find occasionally repeating your focus question helps enormously. In your mind, or verbally. Don't just ask Who or What Am I? once at the beginning and then thats it. But don't repeat the question every second, obviously. The more concentrated you get the less you need to verbalise the process. With regards to focusing on awareness, you are correct in saying that there is nothing to concentrate on. By consciously being aware, you are simultaneously being aware of being aware. You be aware of being aware by being aware - but consciously! Recognise that you are conscious and aware, and stay there wondering who or what is aware. Atleast that's my take on it, might be complete nonsense lol. If you're interested in reading more about the meditation of awareness watching awareness, check out this helpful article: https://albigen.com/uarelove/most_rapid/chapter07.htm

@FoxFoxFox My understanding is that not everyone has a clear physical sensation, even after years of yoga in some cases. I'd be interested in the book as well, unless its one of the ones on Leo's booklist.

I think I understand what you're asking, and the answer is the second one. Personally I visualise the spine as it is actually positioned, relative to my face/head. Rather than imagining a new entire body, from a side view for example, which I have done in the past but found it doesn't work. I've found that the most success when the visualisation is paired with feeling the prana moving up the spine as well. Both are equally important. Feeling the spine facilitates/helps the visualisation a lot. The feeling and the visualisation don't have to be absolutely perfect to reach a still mind, but of course the clearer they are the better. I still struggle with the down visualisation for some reason, whilst the in breath is sometimes nearly perfect. It just takes practise.

@Pronevron 5-MeO will show you where you're at. But you might be quite shocked at how little consciousness you have in your normal daily life. Atleast I was.

@Yannik Depends on how busy you are with your other stuff. If you don't feel like you can commit to the retreat 100% then maybe its not the right time. And if you're not excited or inspired about going then it'll be much more difficult. Then again you may just be making excuses to avoid going. If you're serious about raising your consciousness, you should go and give it everything you have. 10-day vipassana retreats are quite challenging, but you quickly get used to the schedule and it is only 10 days after all. It'll feel like a lot longer than 10 days, but you'll be glad you went. Personally it was one of the hardest things i've ever done. But some people find it easy and relaxing. If you get the opportunity to have a private room, then definitely do that.

It takes time (most of the time), although the intention to have a breakthrough/realise truth is important. Whenever you feel like you're not doing it correctly, just ask yourself, who do i honestly think I am, or what do I honestly think I am right now. Get really honest with yourself. And then inquire into whether thats true.

Psychedelics can help with these things, but they may not so i'm not suggesting to do them or not. However, there's a reason that psyches are being used in medicinal settings more and more - they're medicine! And they do actually work at alleviating mental/psychological issues. They're also pretty safe to take. I doubt it would have any negative effect on your described symptoms i.e. making them worse (but don't take my word for that). For me, the difference between a good and bad trip is always the set and setting. Trip on a day when you feel fairly level headed and positive, and ensure that your setting is as perfect as you can get it i.e. being alone, being in a clean, warm and comfortable space, and most importantly knowing that absolutely no one will disturb you and you know this for 99% certainty. Take a low to medium dose to start with.