Grasping The Illusory Nature Of Thought

MikeEEE says:

My new hero.

If only for being able to talk into a camera for 50 minutes with no scene changes and being able to keep it interesting.

Since learning about your videos I have committed myself to a better approach to my spiritual leaning (and learning). I started meditating about a year ago, and I am up to about 30 minutes in the morning, so learning of your material has been synchronous.

I turn 40 next month, and I am setting a goal of 20 years (60) to reach what your preach. I’ve seen about 3 of your videos and am subscribed to your newsletter. Digging your content and your approach/style. Please do continue the greatness.

John says:

Fascinating video. I’ve always had an issue with fixations, especially ones of attachment and intimate relationships. I don’t stress too much during them but when they end it’s like my life has been ripped apart and then my thoughts turn to endless rumination, rehearsal and suffering. I have poor psychology regarding that and I’ve been reinforcing it for years. Only recently have I admitted to this and have been going to therapy to help deal with it.

Generally, I’ve been looking for a way for years to minimise the suffering of these thoughts, without fully understanding the root cause. This video should go a long way to helping me gain control over my thoughts. But I know it will take sustained practice and effort over time. I’m going to try to keep flattening the illusion and I really hope it starts to break away the suffering, bit by bit. Also started a meditation routine for the last week and hope to keep it going, 20 mins a day, every day.

Linzie says:

It sounds so simple… to perceive something for what it really is, rather than the elaborate web of emotional thought and idea’s we attach to a situation. I am a working progress… But totally see the freedom of anxiety this could bring my life.

Thanks Leo

Charles Kronmuller says:

A thought … How truly insignificant and meaningless … Just (just) a moment of egoic perception … of WHAT ? Certainly not Conscious Awareness (or is it) … It’s nothing … It’s everything …

WHERE does the thought actually come from ? WHAT is it’s SOURCE ? And the BIG question LEO, WHERE does it GO when the moment is gone ???

WHERE does it go ??? Peaceful is the _____ who KNOWS a thought is nothing …

Yep … That’s a thought too … Going mad …

Hengame says:

Very powerful video, surely I follow you. Thank you Leo.

Luis says:

Thank you Leo, for all and each video that you have done, they are very useful and full of insights, and very inspiring.
Here is a quote from Arya Nagarjuna

The phenomena that appears to the mental consciousness, the chief of them all,
are conceptualised and then superimposed.
When this activity in abandoned, phenomena’s lack of self-essence is known.
Knowing this, meditate on Dharmadhatu.

Deepa says:

Leo…
Thank u

Ela Rathee says:

Hi Leo

I am not able to quite understand what does flattening the illusion means?

When you asked to think about Mom, first thing that came to my head was her image in my head. So does flattening means I fix in my head that actually when someone says a word My Mom immediately I have an image of her in my head and it’s not real since its just an image of her that I imagine.

Similarly, when you asked to think about God, the first thought came in my head I have no image of God but Ramana Mahrishi is the closest person whom I can consider God. Then I had his image in my head and then as the part of Flattening the image I thought “With the word GOD I have an image in my head which is of Ramana but its just something I have imagined.

Is this flattening? Reminding yourself that with words you have an image that comes to the head. And these images aren’t real but something created in your head.

Thanks
Ela

Max the know better says:

Given I made up for myself a healthy diet, my diet has changed to AI-driven eating and eating habits, as said about above ice cream, and also I eat frozen fruit instead, I will choose a tartare sauce, regardless of its being British, that’s real tartare sauce, but it’s the Praise tartare sauce overall I trust. Even though my life’s simple I can be specific about the content but there’s uncountable amounts of different things I do in my life. Do you think you know what my culture is? No one thinks that, they don’t know what it is, what it contains, how it’s done or how it’s not done, or any of the foods I eat, flattening the illusion it’s just an obscure bunch of stuff I do, people suffer from the illsuion of its meaning, that I must be an evildoer, but everything I do is as good and innocent as tartare sauce, it’s done as if it was morally based, based on what I can do and so there’s a, I dare say, vicious cycle, as reverting back to the same problems, something that starts off innocent then if I keep pushing it people get fed up with it, do you realise it does nothing if you didn’t exist? What I do after all, means nothing to an animal, it doesn’t see me as “the wrong thing”, or “evil”, that’s a meaning people have and for the first time I was always the kind of guy who hated some people, things and circumstances, I was always made uneasy, upset, and that happiness I once had, people upset me all ruining it. I’m not a thing as you think, I’m just a person like you, living my day-to-day life and maintaining consistency, regularity, I suffer the same problems, but also other people’s problems which isn’t so average, and treats me like an evil, distinct person, that’s not my problem, it only dissolves like acid if they’re out of my life, me bonding with my real friends, people who don’t make seal noises being upset constantly every time I do some of the things I do, they can’t bloody well put up with it! I just keep on, I continue, and the whole thing can go on for years and years and still I’m doing it, I’m not the one with mental illness, you have a problem with me and you don’t like me, some irrational thing is some chemical reaction in your brain making you scared, fucked in the head, you get trauma over things that weren’t intended to cause suffering, wow, now we see that acting merely from good intentions isn’t enough, you’re like this when I’m not normal, you have chemicals in your brain that don’t function properly, if it’s too distinctive, individual, strange or weird, you get fucked up, that’s why you’re sick in the fucking head!

Max the shithead says:

I’m back from 7 months later and no longer a troll, I think the above is a “troll” post, to insult what the hell ever! But now that I’m 100% grade A humiliation, and I know I’ve been a troll, well done on distinction between frigging paper, and some snacks for your mountaineering, that really gives me an O mouth in disdain how naive a man can be, too bad this I’m saying now isn’t written on my phone, you yourselves must be fools following almost everything Leo says, I know Leo’s survival tactics to change my “life”, And I can tell you now it’s not pretty, that doesn’t mean I’m hate-watching his content and not going to do it, I’m hate-watching his content and going to do it, I’m not mentally lazy. Furthermore of the vile lifelessness of the teachings (not meaning to troll), I’ll do it, I’ll send a donation to his cause for $3 to support this website, and incase you’re so stupid that you don’t know, I’ve followed a lot of his teachings, eating right with the right psychology almost all the time (I did my research, dark leafy greens, light sauces, hardly any meat, dark-leafy-green salad either of spinach, silverbeet, or kale dressed in vinegar and sunflower oil with seasonings, broccoli fries (there’s no cauliflower fries anymore) with godforsaken Italian tomato sauce, or, preferably, spicy red sauce, pears, walnuts, healthy dips, protein bars, etc, etc), my “diet” wasn’t a diet to begin with when I dropped the iron man diet, no longer on an iron man diet, this not-diet became a diet when I found bread rolls and sandwiches made from them, and regularly eating kale, silverbeet or spinach with my vegetables at teatime, and eating on regular basis sunflower oil in food and fried foods is a diet.