The only thing that really matters....

[idiot_stimpy]

The only thing that should matter to me is the liberation of myself and others.

 

 

What is the point of chasing transient things when one is not truly free?

 

 

What is complete freedom, when one is chained to their desires, thoughts, emotions and actions?

[Marblehead]

How did you get imprisoned in the first place?

[ThisLife]

The only thing that should matter to me is the liberation of myself and others.

 

 

What is the point of chasing transient things when one is not truly free?

 

 

What is complete freedom, when one is chained to their desires, thoughts, emotions and actions?

 

.

 

I know all to well the frustration that underlies your post. Basically it's the torment that comes when a person begins to suspect that we are a slave of our own personality,... and the natural response is to intensely want to escape from this prison of 'ourself.'

 

Like you I used to, (and still do), ask myself exactly the same questions -- with the same underlying anger and sense of righteous indignation at the injustice of my predicament. In my own searching for some kind of answer - some way out, I came across Non-Duality teachings. It's a very different way of looking at the same problems that drive probably the vast majority of us seekers to engage in all the multitude of boring studies, questionably queer practices, searching for gurus in far-off countries, etc., etc. These teachings certainly haven't solved my problems and frustrations, but hearing explanations which were radically different from the usual round I was familiar with helped me in that, sometimes, recalling them managed to calm the rising sense of hopelessness. They acted like a mantra, ..."Nothing could possibly be any different than precisely what it is now - at THIS moment."

 

Our root motivation, of course, is that we are NOT happy with who we are and what our life appears to be. I know it doesn't sound very romantic, ( and 'romance' is the aura all seekers prefer to dress up their quests in),... but basically, if we're spiritual seekers it's simply because we want : (1) to be happy (2) to be free from suffering (3) and then, to never ever be separated from our happiness, or from our freedom from suffering. A 'rock-solid' guarantee for eternity.

 

Pretty basic stuff, isn't it ?

 

Anyway, your path is your own and I do not know you, or have any way of knowing what will work for you. But since we clearly do have this connection here due to my empathy with your post,... I thought I would throw in an excerpt from a talk on exactly the topic you raised, given by a teacher that resonated for me. Who knows what, or even if, there will be any connection with you. Still, for myself, I think that I probably come to this forum to experience these periodic feelings of 'shared bonds' with people such as yourself. I don't know why I find this reassuring. Perhaps because humans are social animals, and this spiritual seeking treadmill we're all trapped on, is very often a lonely and isolating occupation. Very often I'm convinced that if I were to take up Latin-American dancing it would be a far more beneficial use of my time in finding genuine happiness. I suspect that somehow this much-coveted 'peace' happens as a by-product,... when, by some means, we are able to forget completely about this 'self' that we're striving so hard to liberate :

 

 

*

*

*

 

 

"I had always maintained that I was basically the centre of the universe with enormous power, and that pretty much anything I set my mind to do, I could do. This was the principle upon which I operated for most of my life. I felt that God was for weaklings, and was a concept that people had created just to make life more bearable for themselves, and that I certainly didn’t need anything like that because,…. “I’m ME !”

 

Now I find that after this experience of ‘awakening’, I find myself aware that true powerlessness carries with it no frustration whatsoever. It is the feeling of quasi-powerfulness that carries the frustration.

 

The idea that you have limited power causes frustration. The conviction that you can truly do nothing, brings with it a sense of enormous peace and contentment if it’s purely understood. You rest easily and comfortably in the knowledge that everything is happening precisely the way it’s supposed to, and could not be happening any differently.

 

But if there is not pure understanding, then there is a sense that what is happening now is not right, and you need to ‘DO’ something about that.

 

And if ‘you’ are not sufficiently powerful by your own unaided effort, then you need to invoke a more powerful source to take care of it.

 

And so you say, “God, do my bidding.! Help me out here ! This has gotten a little bit beyond me.”

 

Now, that movement towards acknowledging the power of God is positive to the extent that you are at least acknowledging some kind of limitation to your own power.

 

 

The difficulty with this idea of ‘personal power’ is that it continuously proves to be false. The fact is that the power is never yours. It flows through you and controls you. Deep investigation may even reveal that this power not only flows through you and controls you but it IS you.

 

One of the surprising gifts of Non-Duality teachings is to discover your own personal powerlessness. Personal powerlessness may not seem like a gift on the surface, in fact if you Google the term "powerlessness" you will quickly see that the world-at-large considers powerlessness to be a condition requiring treatment.

 

It is another of the paradoxes of these teachings that personal strength is to be discovered in the realization of your own personal powerlessness. Personal strength comes from the relief of the burden of trying to exert power and control that is not yours to begin with. Suddenly you find yourself with all the extra energy that was formerly being poured into the fruitless attempt to make things go your way.

 

As with all aspects of Non-Duality teachings, what I am pointing to has to be seen to be believed. Consider what I am saying and test it for yourself. Look within, and perhaps you will discover this truth that is as close to you as your breath."

 

Wayne Liquorman

 

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Edited November 9, 2014 by ThisLife

[MooNiNite]

dont be greedy and chase money, just get in touch with your soul, do what you like to do in your free time. for me it's art, writing, music, and meditation. Enlightenment and liberation will come naturally

[Chang]

The only thing that should matter to me is the liberation of myself and others.

 

You will probably find that liberation of yourself is quite enough to be going on with without worrying about everyone else.

[The Tao Of Alex]

The only thing that should matter to me is the liberation of myself and others.

 

 

What is the point of chasing transient things when one is not truly free?

 

 

What is complete freedom, when one is chained to their desires, thoughts, emotions and actions?

Hi I.S. This is a tricky subject in my mind. The striving after something such as 'liberation' is problematic, in that we can get attached to this 'striving' it's a strong desire. My own personal path was delayed for years before I realized how this had impeded my journey.

As you say, chasing transient things is hopeless...that's a great insight along your journey. We eventually realize that we are chained to desires, etc, but using or following the aspect of Wu Wei, although counter intuitive, we can eventually move forward effortlessly.

Just my point of view.

Alex

[doc benway]

The only thing that should matter to me is the liberation of myself and others.

Where does the 'should' come from?

 

Should implies judgement - who is judging whom?

Rather than judge, we have the opportunity to simply do it or not do it.

An important point for me is to notice when I judge myself.

Liberation, in part, is making choices, taking action, and not judging but rather accepting and moving along.

 

 

 

What is the point of chasing transient things when one is not truly free?

One may be totally free while chasing transient things and one may be utterly trapped by the desire to be free.

Can I hold enough space to allow things to simply be as they are?

If so, things are free to come, free to stay for a while, and free to go, and all of it is simply ornamental.

 

 

 

What is complete freedom, when one is chained to their desires, thoughts, emotions and actions?

Complete freedom is a simple and subtle shift in perspective.

 

Who/what is it that is not free?

It is those very desires and thoughts - the one feeling trapped is not 'other' than that.

If I can simply watch that, not struggle against it, just allow it to be as it is and rest in that sense of openness and acceptance, that is the first step towards freedom.

 

Freedom is nothing more than space and awareness, though some might prefer to call it knowledge, or discernment.

[Nungali]

The only thing that should matter to me is the liberation of myself and others.

 

 

What is the point of chasing transient things when one is not truly free?

 

 

What is complete freedom, when one is chained to their desires, thoughts, emotions and actions?

 

It is non-existent, thats what it is.

 

IMO they are to be enjoyed, in the moment, not things to be chained to. Any 'chains' restrict freedom (well, maybe not the 'Golden Chain' ? )

 

But then again there is that old 'freedom' / 'discipline that allows one to be free' 'dilema' .

 

[Jetsun]

There seems to be a contradiction in that I both crave liberation and freedom while also craving security and stability. It is only because of suffering that the drive for liberation seems to be winning out, without that suffering the drive for security would probably be the dominant force.

[doc benway]

There seems to be a contradiction in that I both crave liberation and freedom while also craving security and stability. It is only because of suffering that the drive for liberation seems to be winning out, without that suffering the drive for security would probably be the dominant force.

 

And interestingly, the two are the same.

When I look deeply into what it means to be secure and stable, I find that security and stability are an illusion.

The freedom to accept that fact is the most stable security.