Enlightenment: The Ego, what is it? How to transcend it.

[Jake]

Awesome post.. Like searching for the elusive Buddha Palm technique... Reminds me of this scene from Forbidden Kingdom.

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=LVCvU-KKgJ0

Jake

Posted by Guish (here)
2. Empty your cup

Nan-in, a Japanese master during the Meiji era (1868-1912), received a university professor who came to inquire about Zen.

Nan-in served tea. He poured his visitor’s cup full, and then kept on pouring. The professor watched the overflow until he no longer could restrain himself. “It is overfull. No more will go in!”

“Like this cup,” Nan-in said, “you are full of your own opinions and speculations. How can I show you Zen unless you first empty your cup?”

Possible explanation by Geerish: One views the world through one's perception. If one is negative, one would see negativity, one would create negativity and one would attract negativity. If one is positive, one would see positivity in others. If one goes beyond positivity and negativity, one would see the world in a different way. One would see realities created by the dualistic perspective of people. So empty your cup and feel the presence.

[greybeard]

Good to see you here Jake
Thanks for the post.

Much love
Chris

[Grizz Griswold]

Here is a video by David Hoffmeister, who has been involved in teachings from A Course in Miracles,
for quite a few years. ACIM uses Christian terminology, but it's message is one of Spirit. Listen with
Your heart and notice how Davids words (symbols) also agree with what most here believe.

This Video is about "Resigning as Your own teacher"

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=_2eCN0BdcqA

barry

[Innocent Warrior]

Bashar mentions what is discussed in Barry's post in "the three aspects of you".

Adding to Barry's post (I use the same teminology btw and I'm not Christian, no probs, all good). Remembering that I am the creator of my own reality, understanding that my life is not the product of chance and chaos, brought me peace. Then remembering that this experiencer aspect of my being not only doesn't need to be concerned with the how, but is actually incapable of knowing how...how liberating.

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=iR7HEGojnlk

[truthseekerdan]

For my friends here... Enjoy! 💜

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=J9KshCXi9uo

[greybeard]

Good to see you posting again Dan.

Much love, from your old friend
Chris

[Guish]

Posted by Jake (here)
Awesome post.. Like searching for the elusive Buddha Palm technique... Reminds me of this scene from Forbidden Kingdom.

That was so funny as well. There's one scene from the last Samorai that keeps inspiring me.

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=-DAWlspPiuI

[Wind]

The Last Samurai used to be one of my favorite movies.

"When Jesus declared that he was the Way, he spoke as the infinite Christ-self in every man, not as the finite person Jesus. He meant that whoever sought God, the Father, had to come through this higher self, could not find him by any other channel. This only was the Way."

~ Paul Brunton

[truthseekerdan]

This is a very cool original animation by Louis Lefebvre which chronicles the evolution of Consciousness from its inanimate state into human form and then back through spiritual seeking to Oneness. Its inspiration is the spiritual teaching of Wayne Liquorman and Ramesh S. Balsekar.

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=hwyuQbIb0Xs

[Rich]

Posted by bodhi.d (here)
I like them both but what really was the end of the road for me was Tony Parson,s.

I've watched a few Tony Parsons videos on youtube, he among others say there is no such thing as an I.
This is a common theme in the nonduality teaching.
''There is no I''.

What is the 'I' that supposedly does not exist? What is the definition of this 'I'?

[greybeard]

Posted by EmEx (here)

Posted by bodhi.d (here)
I like them both but what really was the end of the road for me was Tony Parson,s.

I've watched a few Tony Parsons videos on youtube, he among others say there is no such thing as an I.
This is a common theme in the nonduality teaching.
''There is no I''.

What is the 'I' that supposedly does not exist? What is the definition of this 'I'?

There are many definitions EmEx
The short answer is ego.
That is the claim to be the the author and the doer of everything
The love affair with the story of me.
An idea --a thought without any substance.

A quoted by quite a few teachers
" Events happens, deeds are done, but there is no doer there of"

Things happen in spite of "us" it seems

Everything is assuming its own potential.
Nothing is causing anything to happen
The flower requires an environment to grow, but you cant say the sun made it grow, or any other part of the environment was solely responsible for growth or non growth.
Sages say that the totality brings everything about---there is nothing separate.

However there is Maya, the appearance of a separate self because "God" wanted to experience this.
God became all without diminishing Self---you are that Self.

Tims thread tells it as it really is.

Hope this helps EmEx---assuming I understood the question properly.

Love Chris

[GarethBKK]

"See clearly that all we know is experiencing. However, experiencing is not known by someone or something other than itself. It is experiencing that experiences experiencing.

Where is the inside self and the outside world in our actual experience? Stay intimately with pure experiencing and see if you find such a self or world there.

Where is the line in pure experiencing that separates an inside from an outside? Search experience and try to find this line.

This absolute intimacy of pure experiencing is what we call love. It is the absence of distance, separation or otherness. There is no room for two there. Love is the experience of pure non-duality."

Rupert Spira Presence: The Art of Peace and Happiness

[Guish]

We are in essence empty. Hence, comes the urge to empty our cup to end suffering.

[Innocent Warrior]

I think there's something I'm still missing with the whole "I" subject. This confusion is what led me to misunderstand that quote Wind posted a little while back.

There are many definitions EmEx
The short answer is ego.
That is the claim to be the the author and the doer of everything
The love affair with the story of me.
An idea --a thought without any substance.

I thought this was of the physical mind?

" Events happens, deeds are done, but there is no doer there of"

Things happen in spite of "us" it seems

" Events happens, deeds are done, but there is no doer there of"

Things happen in spite of "us" it seems

Everything is assuming its own potential.
Nothing is causing anything to happen
The flower requires an environment to grow, but you cant say the sun made it grow, or any other part of the environment was solely responsible for growth or non growth.
Sages say that the totality brings everything about---there is nothing separate.

This I see and understand and agree.

However there is Maya, the appearance of a separate self because "God" wanted to experience this.
God became all without diminishing Self---you are that Self.

I can't imagine God ever wanted/wants anything, God is all that is, and this also seems to be a contradiction of the previous quote? God exists, God BEs (I am) and therefore everything is created (automatically?), simply by God's existence?

I either disagree or I'm missing something and I earnestly don't know which it is.

[Guish]

We are pure consciousness and we have forgotten we are it by getting entangled with matter; matter being the physical body and mind. With time, we realise we are something else and the quest for spirituality starts.

[greybeard]

Posted by Innocent Warrior (here)
I think there's something I'm still missing with the whole "I" subject. This confusion is what led me to misunderstood

However there is Maya, the appearance of a separate self because "God" wanted to experience this.
God became all without diminishing Self---you are that Self.

I can't imagine God ever wanted/wants anything, God is all that is, and this also seems to be a contradiction of the previous quote? God exists, God BEs (I am) and therefore everything is created (automatically?), simply by God's existence?

I either disagree or I'm missing something and I earnestly don't know which it is.

Hi innocent Warrior
Some times I go up and down levels from relative truth to Truth.

Its a little complex but the sages say look for the "I" as in Ramana's classic Self Enquiry (Who am I?)
You are looking for something that is permanent, unchanging.
The I/me is ever changing---concepts, ideas, notions so from the point of Truth, which by definition does not change, its un true and does not exist.
It needs an other, to self define it self, for example "I am a kind person"--well you cant be kind without another.
What looks through your eyes is ---awareness and unchanging. That's what you are.

God is an over used word "Ultimate" perhaps is more helpful.

Its a step down principal.

God,Self,Ultimate as you say, has no desire, wants nothing, is complete perfect and One without a second and everything comes about without desire or intention.

So a step down from Ultimate is consciousness.
A further step down is limited consciousness.
That's duality.
Its some times spoken of as Divine hypnosis.
The hypnosis being that we believe we are a person.

So consciousness is evolving to know itself.

If I say any more it gets muddy and open to misunderstanding.

Enlightenment is the removal of ignorance.
The ignorance being that you/we are currently unaware of our true identity.
We may know or suspect intellectually but that's not it
Which brings us back to, we are Self (Singular) "we" is misleading--there is in reality only One here/everywhere.

Hope this is helpful I,W.
Im not saying I'm right but its my current understanding and that took years to get to.

Much love
Chris

[Jake]

You have all inspired me to join in.. This discussion is priceless. I am humbled. I havs always tended to be quite 'indian brave', with what I have experienced.. I am learning.. Thank you for this space, everyone....

My life has taught me that experience and creation are inseparable.. In the physical world, the artist does not get to jump into the painting and live its life,,, but on the canvas of consciousness,, that is exactly what we are doing! Except that creation and experience happen simultaneously... If it is God doing the creating/experiencing,, then I (I) am part of the unfolding experience of a living God... If this is all my (our) creation,, then someone needs to help me understand who is looking out from behind my eyes!!

I can imagine that God would long for the experience of its creation,, after all,, eternity is a long moment.. lol...

And if it is true that God never leaves its 'station' as the highest consciousness, , then I will be happy to experience my life and bring back those fruits as gifts!!! Either way,, creating and experiencing are inseparable,, if not the same thing...

I like to think that if there is a God,,, then each and every one of us is who God would be if it were to live OUR lives... It makes thing remarkably easier for me... It helps me to see something much more about folks when I look them in the eye!!



What if suddenly your big toe were to begin to become self aware? What would you do? Would you immediately stop it from doing so? Or would you let it experience its life as a self aware toe? Either way, wether or not it realizes it,,, the toe is an integral part of something much more profound than its individual ego...

(Though if yer toe starts wiggling on its own,,, id get it checked,,, lol...)

Ha! Sync,, there is a hole at the bottom of mee coffe cup,,, gotta go...

Thanks for just being who you are..
jake

[greybeard]

Silent Retreat with Sri Mooji at Monte Sahaja
29 July – 5 August 2015
Full info on the link.

http://mooji.org/msretreat/

[greybeard]

Baked beans
What's that got to do with anything?
Cooperation is essential in this duality.
How many people does it take to get this product to you?
Thousands.

I thought about this deeply---dont know why.

If you look first at the cultivation of the beans--how many to till the soil --harvest the beans?
Then there is the transport.
How many involved in constructing the truck?
Then there is the ship to ferry it across the water.
How many involved in that?
Then there is the petrol/fuels etc
How many involved in extracting producing the fuel?
Making the can
Finally of course there is the check out person.
I could go on

Its a question of appreciation of life as it is.
Gratitude is an essential part of the evolution of consciousness

Chris

[Grizz Griswold]

Posted by greybeard (here)
Its a question of appreciation of life as it is.
Gratitude is an essential part of the evolution of consciousness

Chris

Hi Chris,
Very much in agreement, also there is not seeing anyone as separate from
Our self. In Love and Gratitude/Appreciation, we receive truly what We give away. This really is essential in knowing Our true Reality.

With Love
b