Questions for Stuart

[Satyapala]

Hi Stuart,

I would like to show your answers to some other LU guides so see if they have any queries of question. As they haven't had the advantage of meeting you face to face a bit more information on Q5 would be good. Please take you time to examine your experience of no self and tell me what it means to you in daily life. How do you experience no free will and how do you explain the apparent "choices" that happen every day - when to rise, what to eat, what to wear, what to do?

Thank you, I will look forward to your reply.

Love
Satyapala xx

[stu]

Hi Satyapala

Sorry for the slow reply. I've had a busy few days.

Thanks for your questions. I basically seem to run on habit. It seems that everything I do is based on habits. I tried to look for a self while making decisions like when to get up, or what to wear, but was unable to find any self. The decision that is made just seems to pop into existence, usually preceded by no relevant thoughts at all! To examine further, I paid particular attention to the thoughts that run through my mind when deciding whether to get out of bed at the present moment (each morning), trying to remember the relevant thoughts to report to you.
The best way I can describe my experience, is similar to a computer that runs lots and lots of subroutines. Some probably have high weight when determining the probability of getting up at any one moment, such as how tired I feel when I first wake up, or whether it is a weekday or weekend. Other routines probably have low weight, such as how much I'm looking forward to going to work. Just after waking, I often start planning the day ahead. Perhaps the more I do that, the more likely it becomes that I will get up. But, of course, theses are all just stories that run through my mind. In my direct experience, there doesn't even seem to be an active act of making a decision. I lie there, thoughts run through my mind, and at some point I get up.

I also examined what happens when someone specifically asks me to make a decision. In this case it was whether I wanted a coffee or not. In response to the question, I attended to how tired I felt and how the inside of my mouth felt and then I gave my reply. It all seemed very automatic.

I look forward to your response.

Cheers
Stuart

[Satyapala]

Nice reply Stuart :)

Standby for a day or so and I will check if the other guides have any questions

Love
Satyapala xx

[Satyapala]

Great, Stuart, no more questions. It was lovely working with you, so thank you. I will sort out the paperwork tomorrow so you can join the LU support groups.

Love
Satyapala xx