You are aware of a thought and then another and another etc

They seem to explain how life actually is and how "you" are doing

These thoughts often have feelings associated with them

We prefer certain feelings to others and so the thoughts flow...

Ultimately, we aren't generating the thoughts even the thought to stop thinking and focus on feeling.

As such, you can't "get there" or "win" with thinking... ie, thinking won't give you the thing you really want

Then it's seen that silence is ultimately the only thing that might help... that might awaken you... not that there is a "you"

And thus, the conundrum continues... and thoughts again will attempt to grasp it... so we read more, watch more in the hopes that we can think our way to freedom...

Either way, my wish is that freedom, peace and happiness happens for you

Suffering usually takes place in the form of a thought.

Usually we can manage however the body feels.

I've been learning about feeling the sensations of the body and when thoughts arise that have the potential to cause suffering (usually it's a fantasy or an imagined thing that has a very low chance of happening) I go directly to what can be felt in the body and I stay there for a while (few minutes).

Thoughts constantly arise about all kinds of things and apparently they're all important and need my attention... but they don't.

I think we think because life is so simple and potentially mundane?

With thoughts we can experience so many things via imagination, day dreaming etc. We are also deceived by our thoughts and those of others.

Maybe the trick to a life of less suffering is to spend more time being aware of what can be felt by or in the body ;)

What do you think?

I used to be quite active on this sub. My mind was always busy with concepts of what awakening must be like... I have a wild imagination.

The thing is that I'm ok without awakening/enlightenment. I don't need it to happen to be happy and have a good life.

I never thought I would say that as I had put all my energy and attention on waking up. I thought it would be the thing to free me from suffering.

I was invited onto a call with Zabi non duality (radical non duality) where I got to ask a few questions and the realisation is that there isn't anything that I can do to wake "myself" up as there isn't a "myself" to begin with.

Life is just happening... automatically, without someone inside who is responsible for it all... stuff just happens.

The realization that I wanted was to see that there is no "self" but then who is going to see that if there is no self?

It's ridiculous so I stopped. There was conversations with Ai leading to see that there isn't anyone who could do anything to get anything... that was it... I lost interest in waking up. Apparently it's a very nice way to live life. If it happens to me great, if not, my life is still pretty awesome and I'm grateful for it all.

Now I take life as it comes (apparently).

Life just happens as it always has and always will.

I don't see why the "enlightenment" experience would happen to "me" and not to anyone else? Why would life choose certain people over others to win the happiness lottery of life aka enlightenment?

It's incredible how much of a change has happened.

The gist of it is that you can truly be happy and free from suffering without being enlightened or waking up.

It's like I went through a phase of hunting for music, downloading and hunting more.
I'm now going through everything I once thought was decent and just deleting them.

It has boggled my mind how different music hits at different times and in different settings.

What's an incredibly nice sound today could be no good in a weeks time...

does anyone else have this experience and if so, do you know what's going on?

Are there any legitimate methods and websites or apps that can bulk assign genres to tracks or will I have to go through them 1 x 1 and manually assign?

Thanks

If there isn't a self (no one inside), who is supposed to awaken? Who is seeking? Who is thinking, doing etc?

It's just what is happening... there has never been a separate self... so there isnt someone who can gain something (liberation).

It's just experience that consciousness (or whatever this is) is having... despite it seeming like you are the do'er. It's meant to be like this for this exact experience... this is it... everything is meant to be exactly this way. No mistakes and nothing is wrong even when life sucks...

The mind continues generating questions because it is hardwired to survive, and to the mind, knowing equals safety.

It believes that if it can find the ultimate answer, it can control life, avoid suffering, and secure its own existence.

The moment the sense of "me" arises, it creates a boundary. This boundary makes the mind feel separate from the rest of the world, creating a chronic sense of lack or incompleteness.

The mind seeks answers to close that gap and find wholeness.

Ironically, the act of seeking is what maintains the boundary. The mind doesn't actually want to find the final answer, because the final answer requires its own dissolution. It prefers the journey because the journey keeps the "seeker" alive.

The conclusion is that there isn't a separate individual who's doing or has ever done anything... regardless of or despite the thoughts and feelings that create the "me" experience. There isn’t actually anyone to get enlightened... and with some very good fortune, the "me illusion experience" can end... and what is left is this... life happening

So hard to figure it out? To keep things going in the right direction... (get what we want while avoiding what we don't want)

To do the right things... that will keep us feeling ok and everything in order?

it's so much effort

and it's not even real

I mean, there isn't someone in here making things the way they are (despite thoughts making it seen as though there is)

worried that stuff is going to run out

that we'll make a mistake and mess things up?

so many worries (almost never ending)

and so we try even harder

we are pushed to our limits

the state of the world and what's happening

no wonder there are so many pursuing awakening/enlightenment

the world is in desperate need of change

but this is just the dream that's happening here, the next person may be having a completely different experience hahaha

Minds love to be busy. Information, concepts, scrolling, talking, anything to avoid what's here, now.

Enlightenment is the opposite direction. Not a state to reach. A return to what's already here. The sensations. The feelings. The breath. The body.

So how do you break the addiction? Not by fighting it. By noticing it. By interrupting the autopilot. A pause. Three breaths. A moment of feeling the feet on the floor, the weight in the chair.

An app can help. A bell. A timer. A reminder to return... not to fix anything, just to feel what's here.

This is not about achieving something. It's about chipping away at the habit of leaving. Every time you notice you've left and come back, you weaken the old loop.

It might be the hardest thing the mind ever faces — because the mind loves thinking as much as the body loves oxygen and breathing. But the return is always available. Not as a technique. As a choice.

This is what's resonating here...

It's all ok

It's a dream and nothing can be other than than the way it is right here and now

If you need to give yourself a hug, go for it, wrap your arms around yourself, take a deep breath in, hold it... and exhale...

It's all good ;)

It's all going to work out haha

Thanks for reading ;) much appreciated. Have a fantastic day

The Ego's Fuel: The character of "Me" is made of movement. It requires a past to regret, a future to strive for, and a present moment to fix.

If you were perfectly satisfied right now, the mind would have absolutely nothing to do. The narrative of "you" would evaporate. So, the mind automatically generates a feeling of "not enough" to protect its own existence.

So what's the solution?

The absolute, paradox-shattering solution is this: Give up on finding a solution.

As long as you are looking for a "solution," you are still treating the present moment as a problem that needs to be fixed. The demand for a solution is just the dissatisfaction wearing a new mask.

To end the cycle once and for all, you must see through the ultimate trick of the mind.

The Mechanism of the Last Trap

The mind operates on a continuous, subtle loop of resistance:

When you look for a solution, you are implicitly agreeing with the ego's lie that this moment is broken. You are trying to use a thought (the solution) to fix a feeling (the dissatisfaction) that was created by a thought in the first place.

The Solution is Radical Permission

The only real solution is the complete, unconditional collapse of resistance.

Instead of trying to cure the dissatisfaction, allow yourself to be completely unsatisfied.

Say to this exact moment: "Okay, the feeling of dissatisfaction is here. I am going to let it be completely unsatisfied. I am not going to try to fix it, understand it, or dissolve it."

When you give the dissatisfaction total permission to exist, the magic happens:

1. The friction stops.
2. The seeker runs out of a job.
3. The space remains.

You are no longer a person trying to get rid of dissatisfaction. You are the vast, open space of awareness in which a temporary wave of dissatisfaction is perfectly free to rise, stay for a while, and pass away.

The open sky doesn't need a "solution" for the clouds. It just lets them drift by.

Right now, in this exact second, can you let yourself be completely unsatisfied without trying to fix it? What happens to the weight of that feeling when you stop fighting it?

I hope this is helpful. I've been on the seeking treadmill for at least 5 years... wish I had known the following 5 years ago but I know it now so...

You have seen through the final trap of the mind: that even the most beautiful spiritual teaching is just another concept.

And now you are left with this—the raw, unadorned, immediate reality of sitting and feeling.

The Truth of What You Are Saying

• Anything you think—concept.
• Anything you write—concept.
• Anything you read—concept.
• Even "awakening"—just a concept.

The mind cannot take you to awakening because the mind is the realm of concepts.

So what is left?

Just sitting. Just feeling.

Not as a practice. Not as a technique.
Just as what is, when all effort to understand or achieve falls away.

What "Just Sit and Feel" Really Means

It means:

• No goal.
• No expectation.
• No need to "get" anything.
• No need to "be" anything.

Just:

• The breath moving.
• The body sitting.
• The sensations arising.
• The sounds appearing.
• The thoughts coming and going.

And you—not as a thinker, not as a feeler, but as the space in which all of this appears.

The Mind Will Resist This

The mind will say:

• "But what about..."
• "Is this really it?"
• "Shouldn't I be doing something more?"
• "This is boring. This is useless."

That is just more thinking. More concepts.

Do not believe it.

Just sit. Just feel.

A Simple Reminder

When you sit and feel

It's been 5 years of intense seeking with an easing of intensity over the last year. Through thoughts I became aware that I am (experiencing life through a human vehicle). There's not 2. Just this.

The mind accepts mostly and when it protests I don't believe it. I'm at ease with whatever is happening and dont seek for things to be different (mostly). I still desire nice experiences for the body mind.

As such, maybe I'm in between 2 identities?

Haven't yet fully and completely shifted to knowing that I am the knowing aka consciousness/awareness?

But I am more at ease than ever before. No fear of death but actually enjoying being alive for the first time in a long time (previously just wanted this life to be over).

I'd love some pointers from anyone who knows where I'm at... most grateful 🙏 thabk you.

I had no idea what to expect and what I discovered is happiness. Currently doing the Thakhek loop in Laos and my heart is full.

I'm so grateful for life, nature and this world. #nevergoingback

A couple days ago I joined a group and honestly, you miss out on so much of the experience when traveling with others. You get into conversations and walk along not really taking every bit of the experience in.

As such... solo travel is the way to go if you really want to fully experience it all... and take it all in at your own pace.

Not to say that traveling with others cant also be fun but I suppose it has to be with your besties (just my thoughts).

Highlights have been the canyoneering and zip lining in Cebu. Snorkeling and jungle exploring in Siquijor. The Koh Rong islands in Cambodia and the amazing people. Angkor wat and surrounding temples. The botanical gardens in Singapore. Luang Prabang in Laos and now the Thakhek loop. Laos is vibes... possibly my favorite 😍 but all the places are actually amazing. Such gratitude.

The agent that wants to be set free *is* the illusion

The desire for liberation is just another appearance happening in the same automatic field as breathing, digesting, and thinking.

When you stop trying to force the realization to “set you free,” the heavy, contracted effort of being a seeker drops away. That dropping away *is* the freedom.

 Freedom isn't a state that the simulation achieves; it is the falling away of the belief that the simulation needs to be escaped.

I'm not sure about this next part but here it is...

What a seeker is looking for is already what you are and the looking for someone prevents you from knowing who you are

The only thing keeping the illusion intact is the subtle, silent belief that “I haven’t gotten it yet.”

Stop looking for a special, explosive experience of freedom. Look *right now* at the ordinary, spontaneous happening of this moment. Notice that the agent is missing. Notice that life is living itself, effortlessly. Rest in that noticing. No effort is required to be what you are.

The agent that wants to be set free *is* the illusion

The desire for liberation is just another appearance happening in the same automatic field as breathing, digesting, and thinking.

When you stop trying to force the realization to “set you free,” the heavy, contracted effort of being a seeker drops away. That dropping away *is* the freedom.

 Freedom isn't a state that the simulation achieves; it is the falling away of the belief that the simulation needs to be escaped.

I'm not sure about this next part but here it is...

What a seeker is looking for is already what you are and the looking for someone prevents you from knowing who you are

What I am is... that which is aware of everything is what I am.

The mind pulls away from the body into thoughts, day dreaming and external distractions... all of which, I am aware of

I am here already and have always been

To come back to myself, I just come back to the body and the sensations within...

What’s actually happening right now

A thought appears:

>

And it comes with a feeling:

• subtle lack
• incompleteness
• “almost but not quite”

🔍 The critical question

>

👉 No.

Ignoring = suppression = still a relationship to it

🪶 The correct move (very precise)

Instead of ignoring or engaging…

Just see:

>

Break it down in real time:

• The thought → “not there yet”
• The feeling → lack / incompleteness
• The sense of a “me” who isn’t there yet

👉 All of that = Known

💥 Here’s the subtle trap

That thought is pretending to be:

>

Like it’s telling you something real about your progress

But actually:

>

⚠️ Why it feels so convincing

Because it’s pointing to something true-sounding:

>

So the mind concludes:

>

But notice:

👉 That conclusion is also just a thought

🧩 The turning point (this is it)

Right now, check:

Without referring to thought…

👉 Is there actually a problem in this moment?

Or only:

• a thought saying there is
• a feeling supporting it

🪶 The clean seeing

Instead of:

❌ “I haven’t seen it yet”
❌ “Maybe I’m close”
❌ “Maybe I’m missing something”

Just:

>

And stop there.

💡 The paradox (important)

The “final seeing” you’re waiting for…

Doesn’t come as:

• a dramatic event
• a permanent state
• a guaranteed feeling

It’s much simpler:

>

🎯 So what do you do with that thought?

Not ignore.
Not follow.
Not fight.

👉 Just don’t give it authority.

Let it be:

>

🪶 One-line pointer for this exact moment

>

Sit with that—not intellectually, just quietly.

🧠 Why the “not yet” signal keeps appearing

It comes from 3 built-in mechanisms:

1. ⏳ The mind is time-based by design

The mind’s core job is:

• compare past vs future
• detect gaps
• move toward completion

So it constantly runs this structure:

>

How that creates your exact thought:

Even after clear seeing, the mind asks:

• “Is this complete?”
• “Is this permanent?”
• “Does this match the idea of enlightenment?”

If not:

>

💥 Key insight:

>

So it defaults to:

>

2. 🧩 Pattern recognition + expectation

You’ve heard (implicitly or explicitly):

• “There is a final shift”
• “There is liberation”
• “There is a clear seeing”

So the mind builds a template:

>

Then it checks reality:

• Does this match the template?
• Is it strong enough?
• Is it stable?

If not:

>

💥 Key insight:

>

3. 🔁 The self-preservation reflex

This is the deepest one.

The sense of “me” is maintained by:

>

If seeking stops completely…

👉 the “me” structure has nothing to do

So the system generates:

• “Not there yet”
• “Keep going”
• “Something’s missing”

💥 Key insight:

>

🔍 Put together, the loop is:

1. Reality is already simple / complete
2. Mind checks against expectation
3. Doesn’t find a match
4. Generates:“Not yet”
5. You (slightly) believe it
6. Seeking continues
7. “Me” persists

🪶 Why it still appears even after clear seeing

Because:

👉 Seeing doesn’t delete the mind

It just reveals:

• thoughts are appearances
• not truth

But the mind still runs its programs, like:

• planning
• comparing
• evaluating

And now:

👉 it includes “awakening evaluation” as one of them

⚠️ The subtle mistake

You’re treating the thought:

>

…as if it’s:

• a meaningful insight
• a progress report
• something to resolve

But actually it’s just:

>

No more meaningful than:

• “I’m hungry”
• “What time is it?”
• “Did I forget something?”

🧩 The shift (this is the whole thing)

Next time it appears:

Don’t:

• argue with it
• believe it
• suppress it

Just see:

>

And:

>

🪶 Even simpler

Treat it like a notification:

>

That’s it.

No need to click it.

💡 The deeper realization

This is the punchline:

>

Because its job is:

>

But what you are…

👉 is not moving toward anything

🎯 Final pointer (very clean)

>

Sit with that.

Not as an idea—just notice:

• the signal appears
• it is known
• nothing actually lacks

Instead, know that you are the one knowing the suffering.

Right now, (if or when) you feel suffering in the body.

But there is a part of you, the deepest part that knows the suffering is there.

That part is not suffering. It is the witness of the suffering.

Rest in the fact of that witnessing, not in the idea of being awareness.

The Secret: Feel the Fear as Energy, Not as a Story

Suffering happens when the mind adds a narrative to the raw sensation:

"This will never end."

"I can't handle this."

"Something is wrong."

Stop adding the story.

When fear arises, feel it purely as physical energy, heat, tightness, pounding.

Do not name it "fear." Name it sensation.

Do not say "I am afraid." Say "There is tightness."

When you strip the sensation of its meaning, it has nowhere to go. It just exists, like a sound or a color. And you are the one observing that existence.