Thanks! I feel it's time to have our thread checked by other guides.
Please wait for a while. Enjoy, and let it sink.

OK - thanks

While "letting it sit", can you revisit these questions?


1. Describe decision, intention, free will, choice and control. What makes things happen? How does it work? What are you
responsible for? Give examples from experience.

What I have seen very clearly is that the "self" is nothing other ...

It has been an interesting number of hours:

firstly the elation of finally seeing the obvious and the sense of freedom that brought

then several hours of emotions - crying - heart chakra opening - joy - happiness - sadness - feeling as if every suppressed emotion was trying to get out.

All of ...

Yes, that's another story, a virtual reality. Within a story,
a boy can make a broom fly.
What makes it a problem?

Either the penny dropped or I went crazy over night. I must have taken the red pill.

I wondered about your question before going to bed (what on earth does Bananafish mean?).

This ...

Close your eyes and sense that "presence". Describe it with as many details as possible.
Give it a name or two other than "presence." Don't say "I already know what it is".
Observe it anew, as if you were a baby.

I think I have moved on a little since your last question - I have spent the last ...

Oh dear, I think I have fallen down the snake and ended up at the start again....

With my eyes open, I can easily say, looking is happening, hearing is happening, arm is just lifting etc. There is no sense of a separate self when I do the exercises in that way.

But with my eyes closed it is quite ...

What is your present understanding of thoughts causing something?
Has it changed from a couple of days ago?

Not significantly - but given what I said yesterday about time, it is making me doubt the reality of cause and effect in general. In any one moment I can only know what is there in that ...

If you can, take some time to do the
handraising experiment or lemon visualization
experiment again, and see if you can observe
something new.

I did these several times again. Something occurred to me. I am not sure how to describe it. But it was of an intuition about time. Only now ever exists ...

Thanks Bananafish - I take your point. I was enjoying the new good feelings so much that I was distracted from the enquiry.

I went back to deeper looking today - I seem to go backwards and forwards, but with more clarity each time.

Today i have seen with total certainty that the sense of self and ...

It has been a fascinating day.

I have not done any formal inquiry. But the inquiry has been in the back of my mind as i went about my day.

But something is happening. I have felt vibrantly alive all day. A great clarity of mind. Very clear about things in my life that were so unclear before. Very ...

I advice you to stay with this inquiry for a while and watch what happens. Apply it to your everyday life. Please send me a daily report on it.

I woke up in the middle of the night and for a brief minute the non existence of self was seen absolutely clearly. It faded just as quickly as it arrived ...

What kind of sense is it?
can you describe it further?


How is that "impulse" felt?

I have been trying to watch this all day. I actually can not separate it from thought.

And I know that thoughts are just happening. (if they aren't I must be crazy! LOL )

In some ways I feel as if I am right ...

How is "intention" experienced? Sense? Thought? Images? Or ...?

it is more like a sense than a thought. The best word would be an impulse that is followed by thoughts

Ah! I see this is a very good point to investigate.

Can you try raising one of your arms now?

I have done this exercise many times, and because I could not find a self doing it, it felt as if it was just happening.

But now, we seem to have complicated this. I can not find a self, but I can find ...

By the way, despite me still not getting this, I can feel a background understanding preparing itself to emerge.

Instead of yesterday's sense of confusion, I have a wonderful sense of wellbeing and peace of mind