Natasha

@Mary I don't want to waste this short life on things that are not real. It's like watching a beautiful nature scene on the screen instead of just getting out there and actually experiencing it personally in real life using your 5 senses. Besides, TV and other social media are designed to condition/ control your mind, and this conditioning more often than not is not in your favor. Leo has a video where he talks about this in more detail: http://www.actualized.org/articles/30-ways-society-fucks-you-in-the-ass

@Mary When I stopped seeing value in watching TV and decided to have it cut off a couple months ago, I did it 'cold turkey'. I called my cable provider and unsubscribed the service. I also, deleted my facebook and use cell phone only for emergencies. The main benefit of doing this is that you have more time to live in the real world, vs cyber reality. I get out more in the nature now, exercise, travel, read, meet with friends in person, etc. Leo's latest video also made me think seriously about getting more consistent with meditation. I have now spare time for that too. It's all about priorities.

He's not kidding either

@DrMatthewsausage I use her recipes and they work great. You really don't have to spend much time to make these

@jes Strap up to your seat and watch these. If you need to talk, PM me. XO

@Mary There is a good book 'Grain Brain' by David Perlmutter that talks about the downside of consuming grains/ products made of grains. There are a few gluten-free grains that I still include into my diet - rice, millet, buckwheat, quinoa. Our body needs healthy starches to facilitate various functions, and rice is one wholesome starch source. Non-organic rice has been known for being contaminated by arsenic, so no-GMO, organic foods are always a better choice.

Not as pretty as this one

I don't think Leo's telling anyone how to live their life, it's YOUR life to live. He gives us practical 'tools' that help make life smoother and less confusing. I integrate his teachings and concepts with other material out there I find helpful, and only take away what enhances my life most.

@DizIzMikey http://www.actualized.org/articles/grasping-the-illusory-nature-of-thought

@DrMatthewsausage I buy my organics at a local farmer's market, health-food store, Publix carries now a wide variety of organic produce/ eggs/ meats, and even Walmart. I also make my own nut milk from raw coconuts and almonds, bake kale, potato, banana, etc. chips, ferment, and preserve using home-made recipes. YT has good video manuals on how to do all of this.

@Salaam That Looping Rain on the Sun video was very cool

Happy Bithday, @99th_monkey !!

@Lha Bho The Journey After Awakening. Love this piece "It's when awakening also starts to become ordinary, in a sense. Like the very ordinariness of human existence is an expression of the absolutely extraordinary... And that's one of the delights as well - is just ordinary , very simple existence... like this is it, where I always was, this is a manifestation of the most profound Dharma" - Adyashanti

@Elton You'll be fine PM me when you need to talk. Hugs

@jes Knowledge is power

Funny, but true

Thanks for the tip. Added Amla to my shopping list Back home in eastern Europe where I grew up we would buy fresh gooseberries at a local farmer's market, and either eat them raw or made gooseberry preserves for the winter. Here in the U.S. the berries are not as popular, but will try the Amla powder in my morning smoothies. Sounds deliciously nutritious c(:

Will check out the link above, thanks You have to be wise enough not to get trapped in all this conceptualized business. Every move you make, every thought you have is just there to trick you. You're not located anywhere. The human mind is addicted to objects and it's addicted to space and visual imagery. What your mind cannot deal with is nothingness/ existential emptiness. In the video on existential self I linked above, Leo gives good pointers for self-inquiry: - Stop looking for objects, you're not an object. Any idea of an object is not you. - Stop trying to see or feel yourself. You cannot see or feel yourself. - Stop trying to experience yourself. You cannot experience yourself, because you are not an experience, you are the thing in which experience occurs. - Stop trying to locate yourself - that's all space thinking and is mind activity. So, recognize it for what it is and remember that's not what you are. You are what allows location to be even possible. - Open yourself up to the possibility that you're not a human being. You are Reality itself. As long as you're fully identified with this human body, you can't do proper self-inquiry. - Again, open yourself up to the possibility that you're not an object. Even if you think , Ok I'm not the body, but I'm some energy-spirit thing, or I have some kind of aura , or I'm 'software' of the mind, or whatever, you're still thinking of yourself fundamentally as an object and just substituting one object with another object. What's really radical to say is, Maybe I'm not even any of that. Maybe I'm completely different domain than objects. What could that domain even be? cos all I know is objects, no other domain have I ever experienced.' - Nothing is hidden. This thing I'm looking for is right here as an empty field of awareness. The true you is ALWAYS there - it was there before you were born and it will be there when your body dies. That's how PERMANENT it is. Our mind is filled with so many delusions, so many fantasies and ideas about what our true self is. You really have to let all that stuff go through a graduate purging process, which self-inquiry is designed to help us do.

That's awesome, but these are all body/ mind works. There's a much-much deeper Reality that is beyond anything you can experience or create. As a matter of fact, there is no 'you' who does these things in the first place. 'You' function merely as manifest of this unbounded transparent empty awareness. And yes, I don't know what it is you do, but what I do know even better than you, is what you are This is what you are existentially: http://www.actualized.org/articles/the-enlightened-self

@Salaam Will check your journal out, thanks True spirituality deals solely with the truth of reality. And to see reality AS IS you have to be self-realized (acknowledge that the ego (mind created sense of self) you think is 'you' is actually an illusion). That said, ego plays an important role in this process of self-realization - it has to be developed/ self-actualized, integrated, and then transcended. You seem to be doing a good job developing and integrating your sense of self, but that's not where the spiritual journey actually stops. In the meanwhile, keep up the good work! I used to have same mentality in my younger years as you do. And I did most of the stuff you're into now. That was a developmental stage. Yes, a self-realized life style may seem like 'mediocre' on the outside, but trust me I would never trade the inner peace and fulfillment I have now for all the excitement, 'magic', etc. of my prior life. Been there, done that, moved on to yet richer parts of Being. And you will too in time. Thank you for your contribution to this forum. You bring a certain flavor to these discussions and it's refreshing Peace

In one of his videos Leo mentioned around 10,000 people around the world are enlightened. Though, this number could be growing pretty rapidly in this day and age due to massive exposure to spirituality and teachings about enlightenment . The second part of your question... Leo also gave an answer in one of his recent videos - he said, it might take thousands of years to bring humanity to embrace transcendent morality, which can only happen in a self-realized society. Begin with yourself today

All of us here are at different stages of the psychological evolution. Leo gives good description of all stages here: http://www.actualized.org/articles/the-grand-model-of-psychological-evolution No stage is good or bad, one has to go through those stages in order to advance to higher levels of consciousness. Where you're right now in your spiritual journey (from what I read in your posts), I understand your are at the 'purple tribal' stage (shaman and healer) - strong connection to nature, superstition, sensuality, etc. Sooner or later, though, as you keep developing, you'll start outgrowing the 'purple' stage, solving transitional dilemmas, and moving up to 'Red', 'Blue', 'Orange', 'Green', then Tier 2 'Yellow', 'Turquoise', etc. So, no answer in this thread is wrong, it's just that people at different stages value different things according to their current level of consciousness. Some of the folks on here are already in Tier 2 enjoying the peace of mind of seeing and embracing reality as is. They're developed enough to not need any external stimulation to be happy and feel fulfilled. As Leo listed in his recent video - meditation, enlightenment, life purpose, education and learning, slow deliberate mindful action, contemplation, and Being - are the key 'musts' for high conscious living. We're all getting there, one step at a time

@Atom Here's another thread with a discussion about Third Eye. Sounds like Henry is the guy to ask:

@99th_monkey There is a poetry thread in Consciousness forum started the other day by Piotr. Your stuff is very good, more people would see and read it if you posted on there too

Self-realized are not perfect, they still have ego and stumble as well. Those who embrace integral spirituality will advance further in their journey. As you said, it's the future.