Carl-Richard

When you've already gotten to where you are, it's easy to downplay it, but I'm also talking about how you got to this point. It was due to a huge composite of influences pointing you in this direction; so-called "beliefs", promises, useful tools and frameworks, which lead to a ton of new insights that shattered previous notions, values and identities.

Ron Jarzombek was a technical metal innovator in his earlier years, and more recently, he has taken some novel approaches to songwriting similar to Meshuggah by starting from specific limitations. In this album, his melodies follow a type of serialism seen in modern classical composers, which gives off this mentally unstable vibe, as the goal is to have no single note that can be identified as the root note. He also wrote the songs as scores for different scenes from horror movies, so seeing those scenes together with the music, coupled with the unsettling tonal nature and the extreme metal soundscape, truly makes this an especially deranged piece of metal music.

Yet here you are, talking about it, learning about it, sharing perspectives about it. Have you never watched a video about non-duality? Did you make that video?

Well, we haven't finished the deconstruction yet. Like I've proposed before, mysticism (a.k.a. experiencing God or non-duality directly) is only one possible facet of spirituality. It was just easier for the sake of communication to keep that in the forefront, as that is what most of the "spiritual" people here care about. We have to peel back the layers in steps

Because this idea of carving your own path and all of it being about the individual doesn't just apply to your conception of spirituality. It applies to your conception of self-development, of fair government, of ethics, etc. Is that truly what spirituality is at its essence, universally across all cultures? I doubt that. You can just as readily if not more realize the truth of non-duality in a well-established community while following a certain tradition of rituals and practices. In fact, that is partially why you're here. Everybody wants to talk about deconstructing science but not deconstructing spirituality and religion ?

Is it just a coincidence that this perfectly lines up with your more general worldview given to you by your culture?

So again, postmodern and individualist: "I was just following my curiosity, choosing what to listen to"; values that you were born into. It's of course a bit different from a traditional religious person who is more loyal to a certain tradition, but there is nevertheless an element of faith present when you dedicate your time and effort to a proposed outcome which you haven't yet experienced for yourself and which you've only heard from other people.

Give me the pros and cons of JK from your current perspective.

I'll propose to you that you were told by someone that non-duality is true, told to meditate, and you did. You took all of that on faith. So yes, postmodern and individualist values; values that you were born into.

Tiny vampires, must be demonic ? Yes, after the Buddha slaps it and it reincarnates as a snotty 12 year old kid who gets bit by mosquitoes: reality comes back and literally bites you in the ass with a coool karmic strange loop ? (sorry, this is what my brain does at these late hours).

I would try to become aware of the tendency to latch onto role models and external sources of knowledge or wisdom, and also try to identify an internal compass that is based on logic and not just feeling (and which is self-consistent and "your own"). This is coming from somebody who has experienced many of the things you've mentioned and who also used to think like you do. But these things also come with life experience, so you shouldn't hasten yourself too much. And don't completely suppress your feeling side either. It's a superpower.

There is no reason to act like other people aren't conscious.

There are no absolute definitions of words. I'm asking for your definitions of the words. If you don't have any and you go by the general feel of the culture, that is fine. In that case, when you say "religion", I think you're referring to a certain historical phenomena (something that exists right now and has existed for a long time); call it the World religions, old or traditional religion, organized religion, etc., while "spirituality" is new religion; "New-Age spirituality", postmodern spirituality not married to any specific tradition, etc. As old religion is more calcified and not up to date with the times, new religion is more in line with recent modern developments and the individualistic worldview of especially the West: "it's not about following a doctrine — it's about finding the truth and doing what you want! (and completely on your own)", and likewise, it's less established in terms of collectivist things like tradition, institutions and communities. And so the spiritual quest gets fragmented from other human needs (communal and otherwise), and you end up with these lonely and lost people who seek communities such as this one for support and wisdom, which is why I think it's funny when these people talk about how "not religious" they are. No, you're very religious, just born in the wrong era where the new religion is "spirituality".

So what is the difference between spirituality and religion?

Let's say the mystic reads certain books that give insight to the mystical dimension of reality, follows certain rituals and practices that cultivate that insight, and goes to certain communities for wisdom and support. Are they now still just a mystic?

So are Christian mystics religious or spiritual?

Spirituality and religion are more similar than you think. In fact, I don't see any fundamental distinction.

"Job" ??

One thing that ChatGPT is useful for is as an enhanced google directory in cases where you can easily control check if the information is true afterwards. For example, I asked it for a Bible verse that has a certain message, and I could easily control check if the verse actually exists, and I can also decide whether the interpretation of the message is OK.

For some reason, mosquitoes absolutely love me. When I traveled to Italy when I was like 12, I got swarmed by them and had huge lumps everywhere.

Meanwhile Christianity is like: 1 Corinthians 8:1 (NIV)

Meanwhile Leo: "only I am God-realized, you should listen to me if you want to increase your chances of getting there"

Imagine a bipedal lizard, like Elon Musk or Mark Zuckerberg.

Spirituality is more like "I'm pretending to reinvent knowledge that has existed for thousands of years in various religions and also pretending to do it all on my own while seeking help from various internet videos and forums, and joining churches like Actualized.org where we tell other religious people how not-awake they are and how our God is better than their God"

He could easily be a character in a TV show just by playing himself.