Hi Fred,

1) Is there a separate entity 'self', 'me' 'I', at all, anywhere, in any way, shape or form? Was there ever?

Is there a Santa Claus or Spider Man? One sees that the self is imaginary in a similar way. However, if one believes the imaginary self to be a real entity, then an imaginary self ...

Hi Fred,

Still working on these answers.

Warmly,
Jerry

Hi Fred,

Quick correction to the last sentence of the first question. It should read, "No, there is no change in the experience of the real which seems to be unaffected by all the thoughts supporting the imaginary self idea.

Hi Fred,

1) Has anything changed since the beginning of our exchange?

Yes and no. Yes, some changes in the way the thought stream is observed and seen. More clarity about the imaginary self and its disguises, a slight change in perception - i.e. seeing experience as a whole rather than separate ...

Hi Fred,

Who says that it is the end of our interactions? Is this not another assumption? When you are through the gate, we can start a new dialogue/thread in a different part of the LU forum (only accessible to blues and reds). There, we can look at whatever issue comes up, on a one to one basis ...

Hi Fred,

Still contemplating, looking, feeling, hearing, tasting, thinking as it arises. Last night there were some feelings of sadness. And then the stories explaining the sadness: because our interactions would soon come to a close, because 'I' will not have someone to talk to about this, (what ...

Hi Fred,

Appreciating this exploration of thought based assumptions - that's great.

You have looked in your present experience, and cannot find a thinker. You say that there is only THIS, doing what IT does, in this moment. You say that the « thinker » is a thought label. So what could train and ...

Hi Fred,

Took a look at thoughts. No surprises there...

Can you see where they come from and where they go when they leave?

No. They just show up and then they are gone. I cannot see where they come from nor where they go.

Can 'you' plan the next thought?

No. It is never known what the next ...

Hi Fred,

When you say ‘it should be more clear from direct experience’, what do you mean?
In your present experience, is there anything other than here and now?
As you say, once seen that there is no ‘then’, then ‘now’ looses its relevance. There is only THIS.

I meant that 'my' direct experience ...

Hi Fred,

Yet another clarification, well maybe it is....

While our conditioned thinking claims things like « here » and « there », can we ever know that there is such a thing as « there »? Can we ever experience it? Why do we assume it does exist?

Yes, I understand, all experiencing occurs HERE ...

Hi Fred,

Need to clarify my previous post.

What I meant is this:

In direct experience it is clear there is only inside, so the dependent concepts of inside/outside is not relevant and the word inside is meaningless.

In direct experience it is clear there is only now, so the dependent concepts ...

Hi Fred,

OK. I think I understand:

There is only inside, no outside to be found - then inside has no relevance or conceptual meaning.

There is only here, no there to be found - then there has no relevance or conceptual meaning.

There is only now, no then to be found - then now has no relevance ...

Hi Fred,

With eyes open, is there an outside and an inside? Sight is tricky, because, like touch, it can lead to a LOT of interpretation. Take a good look around, what do you say? Where does inside stop and outside begin?

There is no inside/outside seen - just the seen. Could say all of the seen ...

Hi Fred,

1) Can you find a boundary between what is ‘you’ and what is ‘not you’? Is that the skin? Can the skin be sensed? What is labeled as ‘the body’?

With eyes closed:

Cannot find a boundary. No sense of the skin specifically. There are the sensations of the body and the whole field of ...

Hi Fred,

Watched many decisions throughout the day unfold - some simple without thought, some more complex with thought, external factors, conditioning, etc.

Here's an example. Wrote this from memory after getting home.

Hunger sensations began while driving a car back home. This brought up ...