How good can it get?

[Kevin]

How good can life get? How good is waking up? I’m curious because my days mostly consist of a mix of being lost in beliefs about things, interspersed by moments of causeless joy. In those moments I feel like the sun is peaking out from behind the clouds and I feel like it’s all actually ok and life makes sense. That good feeling isn’t consistent but I imagine if that was my consistent experience, life would just get better and better and I don’t see a limit to how good you can feel.

 

so how good is life for you? How good can things actually get?

[James123]

50 minutes ago, Kevin said:

How good can life get? How good is waking up? I’m curious because my days mostly consist of a mix of being lost in beliefs about things, interspersed by moments of causeless joy. In those moments I feel like the sun is peaking out from behind the clouds and I feel like it’s all actually ok and life makes sense. That good feeling isn’t consistent but I imagine if that was my consistent experience, life would just get better and better and I don’t see a limit to how good you can feel.

 

so how good is life for you? How good can things actually get?

When you completely surrender, it will be a heaven. No worries, drama, anger, hate, suffering. 

[Phil]

The good feeling is as ‘consistent’ as infinity & eternity. 🙂 It’s what the whole yet seemingly finite dream’s made of. 

With respect to what ‘my days mostly consist of’ & that good feeling being ‘my consistent experience’… 

 

For there to be experience, what is infinite & eternal must be it. For experience to be known, what is infinite & eternal must be knowing of it. Since what is infinite & eternal is without limit, it’s knowing that it is infinite & eternal. As the indubitable refraction of the finite lens, it appears as itself, to itself, therein forgetting the knowing of itself; and there seems to be ‘space’ & ‘time’.

 

What is limitless imposes the very measurements it’s unknowingly appearing as, upon itself.  Therein inherently, the  more you actually try to go to a past or future, or from here to there, the more the activity of thought recognizes itself, fruitlessly coming to rest. 

 

[Kevin]

9 hours ago, James123 said:

When you completely surrender, it will be a heaven. No worries, drama, anger, hate, suffering. 

That sounds wonderful. 

[Kevin]

9 hours ago, DMT Elf said:

The conclusion I’ve come to about this is that it depends on what you think “good” is. And if it’s a conditional definition, it will always be limited.

True. For me the joyful moments feel more unconditional. When they happen, the things I normally think I need to be happy no longer seem that important.

[Kevin]

5 hours ago, Phil said:

The good feeling is as ‘consistent’ as infinity & eternity. 🙂 It’s what the whole yet seemingly finite dream’s made of. 

With respect to what ‘my days mostly consist of’ & that good feeling being ‘my consistent experience’… 

 

For there to be experience, what is infinite & eternal must be it. For experience to be known, what is infinite & eternal must be knowing of it. Since what is infinite & eternal is without limit, it’s knowing that it is infinite & eternal. As the indubitable refraction of the finite lens, it appears as itself, to itself, therein forgetting the knowing of itself; and there seems to be ‘space’ & ‘time’.

 

What is limitless imposes the very measurements it’s unknowingly appearing as, upon itself.  Therein inherently, the  more you actually try to go to a past or future, or from here to there, the more the activity of thought recognizes itself, fruitlessly coming to rest. 

 

The only thing is that it doesn’t seem consistent for me. I want it to be consistent.

[Aware Wolf]

It can get pretty good. It can get pretty bad. The Buddha had back pain. His sangha schismed and his cousin tried to kill him. Ramana was robbed and beaten. Gandhi was imprisoned and shot. Jesus was an exception as nothing bad ever happened to him. 

 

U Tejaniya writes:

"You have to accept and watch both good and bad experiences.

You want only good experiences?

You don’t want even the tiniest   

unpleasant experience? 

Is that reasonable?

Is this the way of the Dhamma!"

 

I often suggest not happiness practices but instead equanimity practice as its very practical. 

Edited August 24, 2022 by Aware Wolf

[James123]

1 hour ago, Kevin said:

That sounds wonderful. 

From nothing, you have a body from nothing!!! Can't you see that you are in heaven? You are breathing the air that you don't even see. Unbelievable, amazing, unimaginable, pure beauty. 😍😍😍

[Kevin]

2 hours ago, James123 said:

From nothing, you have a body from nothing!!! Can't you see that you are in heaven? You are breathing the air that you don't even see. Unbelievable, amazing, unimaginable, pure beauty. 😍😍😍

Sometimes I do. Right now I don’t. I don’t know why but i go through cycles for seemingly no reason where I feel sad and lonely. And then other times for no reason at all I’ll feel amazing. Nothing has to change in my life for that to happen either.

[Kevin]

2 hours ago, Aware Wolf said:

It can get pretty good. It can get pretty bad. The Buddha had back pain. His sangha schismed and his cousin tried to kill him. Ramana was robbed and beaten. Gandhi was imprisoned and shot. Jesus was an exception as nothing bad ever happened to him. 

 

U Tejaniya writes:

"You have to accept and watch both good and bad experiences.

You want only good experiences?

You don’t want even the tiniest   

unpleasant experience? 

Is that reasonable?

Is this the way of the Dhamma!"

 

I often suggest not happiness practices but instead equanimity practice as its very practical. 

True I think the most important thing is the attitude we approach things with. Even bad experiences don’t have to be that bad when met with the right attitude.

[James123]

19 minutes ago, Kevin said:

Sometimes I do. Right now I don’t. I don’t know why but i go through cycles for seemingly no reason where I feel sad and lonely. And then other times for no reason at all I’ll feel amazing. Nothing has to change in my life for that to happen either.

Appreciate what you have, do not forget (actually do not remember 😝) what You really are. Enjoy, love, forgive, help, be kind, feel the moment, be gentle with the moment. 

[Phil]

4 hours ago, Kevin said:

The only thing is that it doesn’t seem consistent for me. I want it to be consistent.

Consider the willingness to let a discordant thought go immediately for no reason whatsoever - simply because it doesn’t feel good. That might seem like faith, alignment, or a radical practice or exercise. However it seems, if you do that for three days, I guarantee you the consistency of good feeling will be as obvious as the consistency of air. It’s a matter of uncovering and this would be an uncovering, in comparison to previously having given any attention & time to discordant thoughts.  
 

 

[Mandy]

9 minutes ago, DMT Elf said:

Yeah, like when almost all of your student debt suddenly gets forgiven and you feel so joyful that it seems like nothing can ever bother you again! 😁🥳🥳

And we need so reason or cause whatsoever to feel that level of relief/peace and joy, isn't that relieving???

[Kevin]

1 hour ago, Phil said:

Consider the willingness to let a discordant thought go immediately for no reason whatsoever - simply because it doesn’t feel good. That might seem like faith, alignment, or a radical practice or exercise. However it seems, if you do that for three days, I guarantee you the consistency of good feeling will be as obvious as the consistency of air. It’s a matter of uncovering and this would be an uncovering, in comparison to previously having given any attention & time to discordant thoughts.  
 

 

Doesn’t seem to crazy I’ve been trying not to feed into the thought stories. I felt sad today lots of crying. Felt cathartic though. And I know when I’m sad my mind can supply endless story’s to support continuing to feel that way so I tried to let the thoughts come and go. Honestly I’m not sure if I’m transmuting or spinning my wheels in negativity but I’m doing my best here.

[Kevin]

1 hour ago, DMT Elf said:

Yeah, like when almost all of your student debt suddenly gets forgiven and you feel so joyful that it seems like nothing can ever bother you again! 😁🥳🥳

Ayyyy that’s dope.🤠

[Kevin]

2 hours ago, James123 said:

Appreciate what you have, do not forget (actually do not remember 😝) what You really are. Enjoy, love, forgive, help, be kind, feel the moment, be gentle with the moment. 

Why do you don’t remember? Is it not possible

[Mandy]

@DMT Elf Just go back to feeling awesome, plus cool circumstance or no. You aren't an insufferable asshole, victim or slave. Savor how you feel when something goes good. Just know that you can find the feeling of it whenever you want. And there's the emotional scale and lots of other great tools for when you can't. 

[Phil]

2 hours ago, Kevin said:

Doesn’t seem to crazy I’ve been trying not to feed into the thought stories. I felt sad today lots of crying. Felt cathartic though. And I know when I’m sad my mind can supply endless story’s to support continuing to feel that way so I tried to let the thoughts come and go. Honestly I’m not sure if I’m transmuting or spinning my wheels in negativity but I’m doing my best here.

To transmute, put the sadness into creating something. Anything at all, big or small. To no longer ‘spin the wheels’, keep going prior to the one the thoughts are about. Question who the thoughts are about. Not in any deep contemplative way, in a lighthearted ‘try to point to that one’ way. Also consider, if the thought ‘good feeling is inconsistent’ wasn’t believed, would it still be true? 

[James123]

5 hours ago, Kevin said:

Why do you don’t remember? Is it not possible

When you realize what You really are, you will realize that knowing is the biggest illusion. 

 

5 hours ago, DMT Elf said:

 and feel “Unbelievable, amazing, unimaginable, pure beauty” just because I can breath

Because,  you haven’t realize what You really are. 

[James123]

7 minutes ago, DMT Elf said:

How will I know when I’ve realized what I really am?

You must surrender till/only “nothing “ left as before so called birth.