I am a certified UPG yapper, a philosophical mystic lip flapper. I destroy my own gnosis by describing it. And now I am rhyming it.

I am a foolish man.

I am a foolish man.

I am a foolish man.

Why would I think any others would be willing to understand something I hold so grand.

In their minds it slips through like fingers pulling in the sand.

To the wise my wisdom is bland. To the foolish, I take your hand, and ask once again.

Please Guru-speak while your stroke your meat because you think you got me beat.

And don't get cold feet that egos gotta eat!!!

Feast on me, until the flesh falls off my face, my bones pulverized into dust without a trace.

Do it with great haste, leave no time to waste!

Just sit there Laughing and Crying nothing else works don't even bother trying. Anyone who says otherwise is lying.

Go insane to see that you're not that crazy.

just a little bitch that got lazy.

Become disoriented, let reality be a bit hazy.

With the locus of the mind, don't try to find a sense of time.

Letting it go is surely not a crime.

Try it, see what you might find.

Some of my favorite and most recommended reading and study material in my experience:

Awake: It's your turn ( By Angelo DiLullo)

• This is my best all-around recommendation that has something valuable to offer for both people new to the terrority of spirituality and those who are well seasoned in the mystic pursuits and study.

• It's practical, simple and contains incredibly profound practices, exercises and wisdom around awakening or evoking noetic/mystic experience that are easy to grasp and are very relatable for modern readers.

• This book had deeply impactful effect on my spirituality that has long outlasted the time I spent with the material, it was worth every penny plus It's weight in gold to me, which is not something I would say lightly. It's honestly some of the best work for a no bullshit approach to spirituality devoid of unnecessary metaphysical fluff and inflations or tribalistic knowledge.

• The author committed to making the material devoid of explicitly religious, or spiritual language or high philosophical concepts, thus it avoids the typical accessibility and learning curve barrier to the material like you may find with most of the other options yet it still makes a complete and compelling coherent and simple approach that even a materialistic straunch atheist or any given english literate person could pick up and relate too with ease.

• The author Angelo DiLullo (Simply Always Awake on YouTube) is probably my favorite nondualist author of the modern era and has the most profound personal impact on my spirituality and his wisdom has helped me immensely in life generally, I use what I learned from this book daily.

The Fundamental Wisdom of the Middle Way: Nagarjuna's Mulamadhyamakakarika ( Translated by Jay L. Garfield)

• This material is probably the most philosophically rigorous and sharp out of them all in the list, it is both very terse yet incredibly complex; it's pretty laconic to the point it can be cryptic without really taking time to carefully digest it, it's very intellectually rewarding to chew on, it's dense but pithily compact in its argumentation to form the elucidation of middle way, it's a shorter complete work in the list if you excluded the translator's commentary and notes.

• The Madhyamaka describes, defines, defends and largely founded the Buddhist middle way, and was pivotal in making Buddhism into it's own unique philosophical identity and largely gave it the distinction of how it strictly departs from other dharmic intellectual paths, it was authored in early late-antiquity around 2nd and 3rd century AD in India by a brahmin cast born scholar turned Buddhist named Nagarjuna.

• The Madhyamaka is definitely not material that I would say is very easy to digest for people unfamiliar with broader Indian philosophy or formal logical reasoning, if you have a background in Buddhist study or even formal understanding of Advaita Vedanta it helps to understand the philosophical tensions being addressed (Advaita Vedanta school of Hindu thought was largely born out of argumentation adapted from the Buddhist Madhyamaka Schoo as defense of vedic nondualism and was used to argue against itself and other Buddhist schools, much later in 8th and 9th century AD) And even if you are learned in these things, you should expect to really chew and read through each of the arguments in the chapters multiple times before it's really elucidated meaningfully

• The Madhyamaka articulates Buddhist Nondualism primarily affirming the themes of emptiness (shunyata), No-Self doctrine (Anatta), non-origination (Anutpāda) and impermance (Anicca) and strongly emphasizes and employs the Buddhist 4 fold logic (Catuṣkoṭi / Tetralemma) to get those perspectives.

• Nagarjunas prose and argumentation style is something known as Prasaṅga a Buddhist dialectical method of consequentialist refutation. Instead of building long, elaborate defensive theories, Nagarjuna swiftly takes an opposing thesis, applies a rapid 4 fold logical squeeze using pithy aphoristic stanzas againsts it which continuously exhausts the ultimate logical conclusion of the opposing position and demonstrates how it directly creates absurd contradiction.

• He uses this methodological approach to challenge mundane assumptions about things we consider fundamental to reality, like the self concept, past present and future, linearity of time (starting and stopping), motion, change and difference, conditions, cause, effect and language.

• Nagarjunas expounds and exposes how these things lack a inherent independent state of arising and that they all require dependent relationships, and how they ultimately are empty of individually existent nature or a unique foundation of their own agency or making.

• Madhyamaka is inherently anti-foundationalist, it continuously attacks foundations of established conclusion through the logical premises of how something is true, false, both true and false, and neither true nor false to show how any given fixed point or position can be undermined, and that any given point or object requires direct dependent relationships on things outside of itself.

• For example we say the tree is real, but there is no tree without sunlight, without water, without another tree to drop a seed, without soil. If you remove any of those things the tree ceases to be, yet if you look at the tree you also see none of these things, and if you look directly in any of those things (the seed, the water, the soil, the sun) you will not find the tree; thus everything that arises, requires everything else outside of it to be something in and of itself. there for any given thing is never something that arises in and of itself, it's always without its own origin as it's constituents are always something other then itself, so it reasonably concludes all positions or fixed points are dependently arisen based upon prior conditions with the only exception being emptiness itself.

• Nagarjuna thus avoids and rejects the position of eternalism; that there is a permanent or individually arisen substantial and essential underlying unchanging nature of reality (i.e an unmoved mover) including the existence of permanent unchanging self (i.e an eternal human soul). And the rejects and avoids the position of nihilism; that everything ends in nothingness or is meaningless, he clearly warns against the folly of them both and refutes them quite explicitly.

• Through avoiding these two extremes (eternalism and nihlism) the middle way is established and can be realized. Nagarjuna dissolves these dualistic oppositions by applying dialectical tension via prasaṅga to reach a resolution that ultimately exposes both sides of the extremes lack justification or nessecity and run into serious unresolvable dilemmas that become apparent when the implicated presuppositions and assumptions each position holds are irreconcilable with their conclusions.

• I would say Nagarjunas Madhyamaka is the ultimate account for understanding of the nature of reality and self that does not miss if you actually give it the time and due diligence to seriously contemplate and follow the reasoning from your own interpretation. It dissolves metaphysical inflations and any idea that there is seperation in reality at all. Through emptiness anything appears at all, shunyata is the only thing that has an eternal nature because of the condition of impermance, impermance implies emptiness and vice versa, and it is the capacity for all causes and effects the take place.

• thus all things resolve into shunyata through impermance which is not nothingness, it is non-origination the endless beginningless source of all ending and beginning that never starts nor stops, it's the reason we are all interconnected it's the reason there is anything rather then nothing, because nothing doesn't exist by its own nature it can't and no thing can exist by its own nature, and thus the condition of impermance is implied in all things as if it didn't; there would only be one thing, one independent unchanging thing which is proven as logically impossible or entirely absurd and meaningless.

• Meaning always requires a relationship between more then two things, so an unchanging, eternal thing which we all are would make it's own independent existence meaningless. And it can't be both either, that there is one independent unchanging thing that exists as the substantial to all other changing things. If all this phenomenal reality is clearly dependently arisen, then a independent eternal existance by its own conditional demand couldn't exist without displacing all other things because it would demand all other things came from it as the only true thing, thus they too would have eternal unchanging nature no different then it's source of arising so this unchanging thing could not exist individually in our reality which is in seemingly constantly changing interdepending phenomenal co-araising.

• It would be logically impossible that our closed phenomenal system be the way it is currently if there was such a thing that arises independently. there's also no need or justification for an independent eternal unchanging nature as all phenomenal things that arise do so dependently, and are impermanent. So if there is something that is eternal or unchanging it is shunyata (emptiness) which is not self caused either, it co-arises with impermance to form temporal and spatial reality and all other phenomal things follow and make them both meaningful and necessary.

• So it completely removes the need for such a metaphysical inflation, while not compromising the meaningfulness of existence nor asserting it all ends in annihilation. In the paradigm of Madhyamaka there is no first thing, there is no beginning, and that's there is no ending, It's not infinitely regressive reality either, it's infinitely interdepending, and has no fixed nature or origin, it becomes rather naturally cyclical and self validating picture of reality that affirms the meaningfulness of our existence is specifically because it is impermanent and ephemeral and that the self we take to exsist consistent entirely of things that are not the self. Which leads to the loss of the self conception as a real, permanet thing we can some how loose or must defend or keep, our entire experience of the self and world become exactly what they are when they are how they are. And the acceptance and gratitude for that is what frees us ultimately affirming the Buddhist two truth doctrine.

HERMETICA: The Greek Corpus Hermeticum and the Latin Asclepious with Translation Notes and Introduction (Translated by Brian P Copenhaver)

• The corpus hermeticum is an ancient mytho-philosophical proto-scientific collection of religious texts/tractates which contain various visions, discourses and religio-philosophical insights into the nature of reality and the creation and purpose of humanity which attributes authorship to the pseudepigraphical sage figure Hermes Trismegistus.

• In the tractates Hermes Trismegistus describes in a series of discourses and conversations the requirements for the ascent of the soul to achieve divine union through attainment of salvific knowledge called gnosis gained through an awakening/activation of sorts of the Nous (divine-mind) by recognizing the soul's divine origin.

• This accumulates to a mystic union with divinity through noetic experience (gnosis) and initates a process of purification which requires shedding the "garments" of fate from the soul. these garments have "tormetors" or vices of the 7 governors ( 7 planetary or celestial spheres) that weighs the soul down to the material sphere "the below".

• This purification process counters the tormentors or vices with virtues that when paired with the initiatory gnosis and activation of nous then allows the soul to ascend beyond the cycles of rebirth and death by shedding the fates which bind it to the corporeal material forms and allows the soul to ascend to the 8th and the 9th sphere beyond the planetary spheres and the below.

• A lot of the material touches on a cosmological and philosophical grounding to account for the emerging views of traditional Hellenic astrology and creates cohension between other traditional western occult sciences like alchemy and magic

• Much of the philosophical framework of the corpus hermeticum emerged from the cultural melting pot of Alexandrian world of Hellenic Egypt and was heavily influenced by the views of middle platonism and stoicism, and it's contents were roughly written between 100 BC/BCE to 300 AD/CE.

• The views in the Corpus Hermeticum and other hermetic literature influenced notable later neoplatonists and theurgist like lamblishicus. These texts (or whats left of them) remained somewhat relevant in more priestly and esoteric contexts and saw continued liturgical and philosophical developments (the Stobaen fragments most notably) until about 600 AD/CE and largely went underground or died out with neoplatoism.

• Hermetic texts were rediscovered once again in the Renaissance period and were first translated into Latin by Marsilio Ficino around the 1460s. His work helped reignite interest in mysticism and occultism throughout Europe. It played a significant role in shaping the intellectual foundations of the Scientific Revolution and, subsequently, the Enlightenment. With key enlightenment figures like Johannes Kepler, Robert Fludd, Isaac Newton taking direct influence from hermetic sources. Newton even translating his own version of the emerald tablet.

• Regardless to say, the corpus hermeticum is a very important part of late antiquity, even though it was lost for the majority of the western world in the so-called "dark ages", it re-emerged during the Humanist revival period of the Renaissance and heavily influenced Newtonian thinking and consequently; the modern world as we know it.

The Emerald Tablet (singular Tablet, the emerald tablets of Thoth the Atlantean is new age slop, there is only one emerald real tablet)

• The Emerald Tablet has may English translation and is a corner stone of western mysticism and occultism, as well as part of the hermetic literature (which was talked about in detail above)

• The Emerald Tablet in my own opinion I feel contains the ultimate affirmation of mysticism, instead of talking about the emerald tablet, I feel since it's so short and part of the public domain I will just share my favorite translation of it here below:

> 1) The truth, certainty, truest, without untruth. > 2 )What is above is like what is below. What is below is like what is above. The miracle of unity is to be attained. > 3) Everything is formed from the contemplation of unity, and all things come about from unity, by means of adaptation. > 4) Its parents are the Sun and Moon. > 5) It was borne by the wind and nurtured by the Earth. > 6) Every wonder is from it > 6a) and its power is complete. > 7) Throw it upon earth, > 7a) and earth will separate from fire. The impalbable separated from the palpable. > 8) Through wisdom it rises slowly from the world to heaven. Then it descends to the world combining the power of the upper and the lower. > 9 )Thus you will have the illumination of all the world, and darkness will disappear. > 10) This is the power of all strength- it overcomes that which is delicate and penetrates through solids. > 11a) This was the means of the creation of the world. > 12) And in the future wonderful developements will be made, and this is the way. > 13) I am Hermes the Threefold Sage, so named because I hold the three elements of all wisdom. > 14) And thus ends the revelation of the work of the Sun.

• Translation by * Idres Shah*

Drg Drshya Viveka (Recommend Guided reading: Introduction to Vedanta - Drg Dṛśya Viveka - Swami Sarvaprianada)

• This is a great one for a comprehensive introduction to Advaita Vedanta, or to just strengthen your paradigm of it and the lecture series I linked in the title is very good and easy to go through, Swami Sarvapriyanada is very engaging and enjoyable to study under. It's a true gift that we have access to this quality of lectures from such an experienced and knowledgeable person who has cultural heritage to the tradition and can explain some of the more culturally ingrained wisdom that often coming from a western bias or academic perspective will miss. Swami Sarvapriyanada is held in high regard for his ability to teach and articulate vedantic texts, he is highly respected in academic and spiritual circles for his work.

• The Drig Drishya Viveka text is a spiritual teaching that reveals how we mistake our ever-changing world and objects for the unchanging truth of Brahman. Through rigorous self-analysis, it shows how to discern between the seer (drk) and the seen (drsya), to understand the relationship between consciousness, mind and senses, and analysis of the three states of waking, dreaming and deep sleep to see that the self is unchanging through them all.

• It teaches how ignorance veils our true nature and causes suffering, it has meditation techniques to convert the knowledge from our head to embodied experience, to come to understanding of reality as it is

• This text provides step-by-step guidance for truth-seekers looking for spiritual self-knowledge and liberation. It's a rigorous analysis into nature of “I am”.

Bhagavad Grita (Recommended Guided Reading:Bhagavad Grita Lecture series By Swami Sarvapriyanada Ideally, go through the whole second chapter lectures, it's well worth it)

• In this particular lecture series I linked, once again by Swami Sarvapriyanada, when I first listened to the second chapter parts, it blew my mind and I quickly became involved heavily in Advaita Vedanta and dedicated hundreds of hours to its study, It was like everything he was saying made perfect sense for once, at a time in my life when almost nothing spiritual really landed well after I deconverted from Christianity. It totally enveloped me, I listened to a lecture a day throughout it when I had the ability too while working or on the bus or just out and about and didn't need to pay to much attention to much else.

• I would say the Bhagavad Grita (when paired with a good commentary) is probably the best place to start for learning Hinduism / Sanatana Dharma. the text follows Arjuna a warrior prince who is put into a spiritual and real world dilemma. Arjuna was tasked with going to war against the Kauravas, who were his own cousins.

• The war, known as the Kurukshetra War, pitted Arjuna and his four Pandava brothers against their 100 cousins. Arjuna faced profound emotional conflict because the enemy army included his family, childhood friends, and mentors which included Duryodhana: Arjuna's eldest cousin, the ruthless leader of the Kauravas, and the main antagonist of the epic. Bhishma: Arjuna's beloved grand-uncle who had helped raise him. Drona: Arjuna's revered royal teacher who taught him archery and weapon mastery. Karna: Arjuna's ultimate rival (and unknown to him at the time, his elder half-brother).

• The conflict was fought over the throne of Hastinapura. The Kauravas had wrongfully seized the kingdom, refused to give the Pandavas their rightful share, and rejected every peaceful compromise offered by Lord Krishna, making war inevitable to restore Dharma (righteousness).

• On the eve of the Kurukshetra war, Arjuna drops his weapons, gripped by deep despair (Visada). His conflict centers on a clash of different levels of duty, between his Ego and his dharma or divine duty and his ego. Arjuna’s attachment to his family, teachers, and his own identity as a "good grandson and student" blinds him.

• He confuses his personal feelings with cosmic truth. The main tension is that he realizes that doing nothing is a choice, but taking action will cause immense suffering. He is paralyzed by the fear of consequences, Krishna’s response to Arjuna desire for guidance forms the basis of the wisdom of the Bhagavad Gita, shifting Arjuna's perspective from material ego to spiritual realization of even the gravest and most unfortunate circumstances

• Arjuna’s dilemma directly mirrors the psychological and existential struggles of modern life, not just in Arjuna but all the characters involved are a allegory for our own nature. Our daily lives are the battlefield. We constantly face choices between what is easy, comfortable, or profitable (Preyas) versus what is morally right and aligned with our higher purpose (Sreyas).

• Krisha continuously gives Arun more and more spiritual insights in his increasingly stressed and fearful state of the inevitable tragedy at hand, and in several places it often just freaks him out even more because it demands a courage to do what you must do and actually do it.

• Krishna reminds Arjuna that the soul cannot be cut by weapons, burned by fire, or dried by the wind. Arjuna's gradual character progression leads to his transformation in his own mind, it is the shift from thinking "I am this mortal body fighting a war" to realizing "I am eternal consciousness witnessing this event."

• Arjuna won the war but at a cost, he was the undisputed hero of the battlefield. Armed with his divine bow (Gandiva) and guided by Lord Krishna's unmatched military strategies, he defeated the greatest warriors of the Kaurava army, including Bhishma, Drona, and Karna.

• After 18 days of brutal fighting in the war, all 100 Kaurava brothers were killed, ending with Bhima defeating Duryodhana in a final duel. While the Pandavas successfully restored Dharma (righteousness) and took control of the throne of Hastinapura, the aftermath was tragic. Millions of soldiers died. Virtually the entire military population of ancient India was wiped out.

• All of Arjuna's sons, including his heroic teenage son, Abhimanyu were killed during the war, leaving the family line devastated.Witnessing the absolute destruction of their family and kingdom, the victory felt hollow. Arjuna and his brothers ruled the shattered kingdom for 36 years before ultimately renouncing the throne to walk into the Himalayas, seeking final spiritual liberation. Which was recorded in the Mahaprasthanika Parva.

--- WILL ADD MORE COMMENTARY FOR THE FOLLOWING (I'm tried of typing)

Kore Kosmou: The Virgin of the World (Attributed to Hermes Trismegistus)

On Nature (Parmenides)

Nag Hammadi Library (Particularly Thunder Perfect Mind and Discourse on the 8th and the 9th)

Dao De Ching (Luz Tu)

The Enneads (Plotinus)

Join us at Sanctum Hermeticum for a weekly reading and discussion of the Corpus Hermeticum. Together we will explore themes relating to Hermeticism, including subjects such as Gnosis, Platonic Hypostases, Planetary Ascension, Mystical Union, etc. through guided reading, historical context, symbolism, metaphysical analysis, and open discussion. This gathering will examine the intellectual and spiritual currents surrounding Hermes Trismegistus and its place within the wider esoteric, philosophical, and mystical traditions of the ancient Mediterranean and Western Religion. All seekers, scholars, and practitioners are welcome.

Link:
Join our event!

SteamLink with my beefy PC is actually very good with the Thor. My wifi is stable and honestly I've haven't had any issues using cloud gaming.

I did try my best to get gamenative and gamehub to work, but only a very limited number of titles actually work. So I thought I would give SteamLink a shot, it works great for most titles.

Some of them I had to be at my PC for to enter into the game properly.

But I am enjoying the ability to play my PC titles without sacrificing any of the performance benefits and I can be a lazy shit and play on my couch instead.