thursday

What are "pretend tears" really?

Crying has often been a good kind of release for me.. The truth can often hurt. Crying helps come to terms with how things are.. It's a certain amount of death, reminding me to work on kindness and humility, well, gives me the space to make it come more naturally for me.. Things then might not be as bad as they seemed before.

And if we do see things as they are, it can hit us hard too.. Let's remember to move on regardless of being right or wrong because either can bring suffering. We really want less suffering, sometimes hard lessons..

Yes, think it could be good to observe all of those things, how anger manifests differently each time.. Maybe you can ask someone more experienced on the forum for help.

Anger can be tricky.. I had a lot of anger issues in the past and acted out too often.. Try to simply acknowledge you are feeling anger when it arises in your mind and body. Note the sensations you feel, let them play out without acting out externally.. Do not feed anger, just be with it..

.

Wanted to add that it's actually Not Okay to call out names! What I meant was: as soon as you notice yourself calling names and it's not fun or by accident, stop immediately and cool down. Feel the sensations and let it pass before you act outwardly in a non benefical way.. It -is- okay to fail, just Try do better than that..

Quick magic can be seeking serious trouble too.. It depends.

Get connected to what? Frustration? It is okay to call bad names, just realize you want your bike fixed and focus on the solution. Otherwise your bike will not be fixed as fast and you may have created more trouble than when you started the job.. That would be a lose - lose situation I think..

Rereading a few times, still I don't understand..

It does make a difference to me.. Would like to think that it has made me more careful over time to define people as real.. Still have a lot of work to do. Maybe it's just a matter of perspective, and both can be useful at different times?

Being nice is inefficient.. Okay, I'm not you, you may have your own better method. Feel free to PM me. "Niceness" just happened out of genuine interest, remembering things..

You are real, so am I.. You have deep thoughts, try to take good care of yourself and others, your ability will get cleaner..

Does feeling sorry for those of us who do a practise help you much or is it just that you lack clearer understanding?

Was just thinking before coming here.. "Who really cares?".. Is your point that this reality is a machine? Or that spiritual practise is not necessary or that you'd like to have more close relationships?

That is very nice that you are able to have lucid dreams! I find that if I practise more sincerely and eat healthier, I have more chances of getting them. You're likely doing well! It was said by a few other practitioners that if you get stuck in certain places, you have to remember to practise releasing in your dreams/astral as well. Trying to get to a safe place is fine, but you will have better experiences if you can make yourself less dense. Connecting to your master may be of benefit?

Thank you again Spotless, it is very comforting reading some of your posts here. The one about Karma above is a much needed one for me to hear at this point.. For me, it can be so easy to get lost in worries about the past and future.

I don't know how things were in days past, but what about "Turning the other cheek"? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turning_the_other_cheek Choosing to walk away seems like the more mature thing to do. I wouldn't want to seek trouble like a life or death situation, but if one does end up in such a situation, then it's likely not so much about revenge but trying to survive though, right? This makes it a different story. If I were seeking trouble.. Well, isn't it likely that I will find trouble then too? Why would I want that? "Don't seek trouble, because it will likely find you without further work needed", comes to mind.. Could it be that simple?

Things happen that don't seem right to us, push our buttons, from a little bit, daily annoyances, to more moderate, to quite painful.. The moment I start noticing any of this, I reflect what goes on in myself and wether I have the right to complain or defend myself. Sometimes it's so that I already reacted heavily before coming to the point of noticing.. This is not good, but also not necessarily of "dark intent". Just a lack of awareness. If there is awareness and I still go on, I will not forgive myself easily because I consciously made a mistake, wether that be a small or large mistake. It makes no real difference wether I was wrong or right, it is being observant of the content of my mind and body that should be priority. Returning back to a level of neutrality that is helpful for us is of far greater worth than always being right. These things that happen to us that push our buttons, maybe they happen for this simple reason: to become stronger facing them internally. Bringing light to the dark, not to strive for being perfect, but to suffer less.. It can go really quick, but if I'm aware of revengeful needs, I better try my best to return to neutrality.. Which in the end seem to be the key with most spiritual practise anyway, afaik, well that would make sense.. Just my 50 cents..

.

Aaron, I often wonder about that.. I don't think I see mental illness as a fixed thing, nor do I necessarily believe in a chemical imbalance or that it needs to be fixed. These "symptoms" I call them, were/are my karma and just like everyone else, I have to exert some self control or otherwise I can get in to trouble. Maybe you don't believe me based on your own experiences, just as some people over here (3D) don't believe I was that far gone. Likely I'm still not fully healed, but that goes for everyone, otherwise we'd all be enlightened masters. So where do we draw the line: what is mental illness and what is just a "normal" mental health? I have heard from hearsay and other people online in the past, quite a few, that they were able to heal too. Even my psych said that reports/studies are coming in that people can heal from these more serious mental disorders. Psychiatry itself is changing too, as more people have trouble with their mental health these days, there's less room for long term hospitalisation and they are forced to look for other ways to help people pick up their lives. Surely with medication too, but think there's a subtle change going on..

Having been diagnosed with schizophrenia in the past and a pretty severe case of it at the time, I can see how some "techniques" are not good. I don't know about this particular case, but having a teacher to support you is always better imho.. Retreats, although I have never been on one, seem too generalized for beginners to pick up on. People might lose interest trying, and worse would be like in the article .. Without a solid foundation with meditation and support from a teacher, it also seems like a bad idea to taper off meds. Quitting meds cold turkey can be life threatening too.. Methinks, people should always consult with their psych and family first, have a plan. They will hold you back, but finding a common ground/agreement can be a good safety net and starting point for tapering off. Offtopic sorry..

Yeah, a lot of the thoughts that go through my head often aren't fun to hear and I expect part of that is because of purification, but the other part is likely me holding on to things that are not good for me. I have no experience with other paths that much, but I have ignored clear warning signs before because of curiosity and doubts persuading me to take an "easier route". That "curiosity" did no good for me.. If something looks not quite right on the surface at first glance, you are likely better to keep on moving through.. Which is what we should always do anyway.. Not seek trouble, as there will be enough to deal with already!

No matter the cards we have been dealt with currently.. It's all part of a story that is subject to change, including point of view of that scenery.. See it all as it is now, then trust it will move along as well too..

I have only heard good things about the Guild from those that practised.