Wondering if I could survive without me

[endofafoxtwo]

It dawned on me that the thing through which I think, percieve, write this, etc, it's formed from my trauma and suffering in life; a reactive creation.
I wonder if I just let go of myself, what would be left?
Would I even be able to function as an adult if all that was left was whatever is bare and essential to I?
I know I am extremely strange in my essence. Would I be able to learn to simply pretend to be normal, instead of being trapped and enforced within this false self? Is that something I can do?
Would the death of me be freedom or would it be... death?

 

[kwho]

I wanted to reply as soon as i read this - i was/am so moved by this.

Then, the more i re-read these sentences, the less i wanted to disturb their beauty by dissecting them.



I have to believe that there is a place or time somewhere where all of us with the strange essence can find our home.

 

[Rational man]

Interesting thoughts... i think all humans are made of self and ego and this is a constant battle between the identity and our conscious being. Our ego is the source of pain.and suffering and it torments us. We exist and then cease to exist, so i dont believe we free anything. When we die, our pain.ceases but of course, we no longer own.the.Identity of.self.

 

[Pluto]

This is essentially a spiritual question. We develop a sense of 'self', a 'me' apart from the world, starting in early childhood. It adds more and more layers through conditioning, so-called education and absorbing the energy of our surroundings. At some point, the weight of the mask gets unbearable and we yearn to get rid of it all.

Yes, awakening is a thing and many people of all walks of life are interested in it. Some are brought to it through feeling unsatisfied despite leading healthy lives on the surface, while others have only known suffering in this lifetime and want the ultimate solution.

The topic is likely to become mainstream within a decade or two since it affects us all. Already we have professors redefining our understanding of consciousness, nondual teachers popping up everywhere and a growing interest in traditions like Zen Buddhism which have always focused directly on this topic.

what would be left?

People commonly describe the sense of wonderment as familiar from early childhood or even pre-birth. But it is advisable to not try and conceptualise it. The conditioned mind is not going to understand awakening, it is going to be destroyed.

Would I even be able to function as an adult if all that was left was whatever is bare and essential to I?

Surprisingly, functioning is generally not affected since the mind can still be used as a practical tool and things tend to flow spontaneously. The mind is no longer the source of identity. The true identity is basically impossible to talk about since its nature is empty, but there are practical techniques that can be employed to bring about the shift away from the false self.

Many people find Eckhart Tolle's book The Power of Now the best gateway into this topic. At age 29, he had a spontaneous awakening and erupted into a sense of euphoria during a suicidal episode, describing his sense of self as collapsing like the plug had been pulled out of an inflatable toy. His writing style is very accessible. Once the basics are understood, there are many ways this can happen and entire communities are around focused on the topic.

 

[endofafoxtwo]

Ive actually done a lot of studying on that topic already, I came to the personal conclusion that esoteric taoism probably has the most accurate and useful system, but in the end it's all really the same 《path》 right?
But I ask questions anyway, because nothing can be known until it is, yaknow? You can read 1000s of books but you won't know it for real until you see it yourself.
I just wish it wasn't so much easier said than it is done.
/highposting

This is essentially a spiritual question. We develop a sense of 'self', a 'me' apart from the world, starting in early childhood. It adds more and more layers through conditioning, so-called education and absorbing the energy of our surroundings. At some point, the weight of the mask gets unbearable and we yearn to get rid of it all.

Yes, awakening is a thing and many people of all walks of life are interested in it. Some are brought to it through feeling unsatisfied despite leading healthy lives on the surface, while others have only known suffering in this lifetime and want the ultimate solution.

The topic is likely to become mainstream within a decade or two since it affects us all. Already we have professors redefining our understanding of consciousness, nondual teachers popping up everywhere and a growing interest in traditions like Zen Buddhism which have always focused directly on this topic.


People commonly describe the sense of wonderment as familiar from early childhood or even pre-birth. But it is advisable to not try and conceptualise it. The conditioned mind is not going to understand awakening, it is going to be destroyed.


Surprisingly, functioning is generally not affected since the mind can still be used as a practical tool and things tend to flow spontaneously. The mind is no longer the source of identity. The true identity is basically impossible to talk about since its nature is empty, but there are practical techniques that can be employed to bring about the shift away from the false self.

Many people find Eckhart Tolle's book The Power of Now the best gateway into this topic. At age 29, he had a spontaneous awakening and erupted into a sense of euphoria during a suicidal episode, describing his sense of self as collapsing like the plug had been pulled out of an inflatable toy. His writing style is very accessible. Once the basics are understood, there are many ways this can happen and entire communities are around focused on the topic.

Forgot to tag u darnit

 

[Pluto]

Very good! It's the same end result and people need to use their intuition to guide them to whatever works for them. Esoteric Taoism is great.

Sometimes it's referred to as a pathless path, since the end result of doing work of peeling back layers will be the realisation that none of it was ever real. But yes, the goal is the direct experience.

One possible barrier is gaining knowledge, which actually inflates the ego by giving it a sense of expertise. It's why sometimes people are more prone to actual experiences when they are caught off-guard and have no prior knowledge about awakening.

Another similar barrier is adopting an identity as a seeker on a path trying to get somewhere. This is an important first step when initiatlly getting on the path, but at some point becomes another ego identity to let go of.

Yet another barrier is shying away from attending meditation retreats and/or one-on-one time with a teacher. There are many possible pitfalls and having someone point at them directly is far more powerful than reading books aimed at a generic audience.

 

[The_End_Is_Comfort]

you can read 1000s of books but you won't know it for real until you see it yourself.
I just wish it wasn't so much easier said than it is done.
/highposting

I feel this, We all dont know what the hell comes after death until we die. We don't know if we'll all get the same treatment or if it's based on our own beliefs, or if there really is nothing and it'll be like before birth. We just don't know.