ajasatya

@S33K3R it is certainly a phase, since enlightenment requires such a strong commitment. but it's the practitioner's responsibility to find his own balance otherwise he'd be practicing some sort of violence to himself. about the serious energy, you're probably experiencing episodes of aversion to your own past everytime you see something that resembles it. have you been seeing your own ghosts?

both the incapability to be serious and the attachment to seriousness hinder spiritual progression.

28. found out about Leo 1 year ago.

this is TRUE. then let me propose some food for thought. what if the internet we have is some archaic form of platform/tool for spiritual union among humans? past (and present) buddhas talk a lot about using all the skillful means to spread the dharma and encourage people to practice it. why not the internetz?

@John Iverson expand your practice to all positions (lying down, sitting and standing) throughout the day. your target should be 24/7 meditation. every instant is an opportunity to practice.

@Milos Uzelac take the silent approach as an opportunity for spiritual maturation towards sincerity. don't be trapped by the healer role. instead, drop all roles.

@Dino D start slowly. meditate once a week for 2~3 months and see how it feels. let this habit sink in your body then move on. meditate more often. see how it feels after 6 months, always noticing how you are embodying the practice. then meditate everyday. take your time to completely embody the practice. after mastery, you'll be meditating 24/7 and living consciously in this big mystical thing we call present moment. insights will come naturally. you just have to do the job. that's why we don't talk about enlightenment in zen. we just practice it until we master it. it's already very rare and difficult, so we better take the most straightforward approach.

@sgn it won't work until you start working properly on your complete emotional independence. quit this self judgmental overreacting bullshit. you know what you feel. be honest about it. that's all. even jesus went mad and screamed over people because they were using his sacred place to sell stuff.

i bet they won't. i'm not talking about love as something relative. i'm talking about love as the simple fact of existing, which is already mindblowing enough. if i am to embrace duality, i cultivate the pragmatic relative love in order to connect deeply to people. if i am to embrace oneness, i cultivate absolute love and acceptance in order to contemplate existence.

existence is a big loving salad!

@Nahm oh and i ended up forgetting the compliment you made. thank you! but you must have it as well, since you are able to sense kindness in me. and my impressions about you based on your posts confirm it (in my perspective)!

due to my ability to surrender, i am able to experience enlightenment. that's pretty much it. now about the question you asked: how does one know if he is enlightened? before i say anything, i have to say that's a GREAT question. i asked it myself many many many times. but why is it a hard question to answer? because when it comes down to enlightenment, there's no ultimate authority other than your own direct experience! there's no certificate of enlightenment, so i have to diagnose myself somehow. these are the parameters i use: i should be able to be feel compassion instead of playing the victim i should be able to focus on what i am doing right now and do it gracefully i should be able not to identify with thoughts and not feel unnecessary anxiety or remorse i should be able to feel free and content even when life doesn't offer satisfaction i should be able to appreciate deep eye contact and silence with any company i should be able to contemplate the immateriality of the universe and the miracle of conscious experience i should be able to use wisdom to truly help others instead of feeling like some kind of special guru i should be able to enjoy sitting still and doing nothing i should be a temple of peace for everyone around me i should be able to enjoy life at it fullest without the need for strange substances i should be able to put people above any doctrine and enjoy the practice of any religion i should be happy to work and afford my own existence

@Max_V he's right. even for enlightenment to happen, you have to drop all your desires. you have to drop the desire to become enlightened. you have to just sit for no reason. just sit.

@How to be wise this is the knowledge we need to transform ourselves: the more egoistic we are, the more we suffer from jealously, impatience, greed, loneliness etc.

we exist. things exist. that's Love. have an awesome life!

once i had a deep realization of the Truth behind the prajna paramita hrdaya sutra (heart sutra) so i got a tatoo with its main verses: form is no other than emptiness emptiness is no other than form in a circle

@Annetta, you're just projecting your own insecurities. be aware of the way you talk about men and check whether you are the one thinking of men as a means to your own egoistical satisfaction. would you enjoy a male company that acts just like you would like him to act? would you enjoy a relationship in which you'd be in complete control? i wish you the best.

@socal04 always ask yourself i) the purpose behind the tv programs and ii) whether they actually improve any field of your life. these are my conclusions: i) tv programs are chosen in order to keep society on a massive dream state ii) after watching tv, my gain is always absolutely zero. do the job yourself.

@nexusoflife i've been through your phase myself. the best thing we can do is not to be part of that sick theater of suffering. it's the only way to serve as an exemplar human being, just like the historical buddha himself. in other hand, notice the fact that suffering is necessary for human beings to wake up. i am immensely grateful for all the suffering i went through for it guided me towards liberation.

@Sky learn how to feel your body and decide what works for you. be mindful of your body 24/7.

@Random User let go of what you think about yourself and just come back to your breathing 1 billion times in a day.

i'd smile, approving all that struggle to find happiness. i've always been the most hardcore happiness seeker i've ever known. my mistakes are my richest source of wisdom.

i use thinking to solve practical problems in a very effective way very quickly. i am very pragmatic and objective. i am mostly immersed in contemplation. maybe 80% of my awake time.

@Mrkvn8 music poetry dancing painting mathematics physics chemistry peace of mind love in the heart practicing yoga eating healthily building an united family reading seeing people smiling hugging

@sgn you're full of fears, still worried about what people think of you. you lack self love and self responsibility. how old are you? do you still live with your parents? growing up, working for your own survival, becoming an adult is freedom. this leap is urgent for you because you'll see yourself in a situation which there will be no excuses. it's not your parents. it's not your friends. it's you! right now you can just pack up and live like many people do... just traveling around and working. you're eternally free but you think that you're not. are you locked by physical chains? what keeps you from going out and taking a walk? can you ride a bicycle?