The Gate

Is there a belief in a you that tried that, a you that can't be found?

No. I'm doing this in the experiential way you're using: after all, if it were down to mere inspection of intellectual beliefs I probably would have made more progress by now 🤣

I have to agree. But the boundaries of this way of experiencing things seem as evanescent as a soap bubble.

Sometimes the "I" labeller and reactor takes a siesta and there's just what's out there, but then the bins need taking out. It's a very temporary experience is all I meant there. But useful.

J

Is there a belief in a you that tried that, a you that can't be found?

No. I'm doing this in the experiential way you're using: after all, if it were down to mere inspection of intellectual beliefs I probably would have made more progress by now 🤣

I have to agree. But the boundaries of this way of experiencing things seem as evanescent as a soap bubble.

Sometimes the "I" labeller and reactor takes a siesta and there's just what's out there, but then the bins need taking out. It's a very temporary experience is all I meant there. But useful.

J

Is there a belief in a you that tried that, a you that can't be found?

No. I'm doing this in the experiential way you're using: after all, if it were down to mere inspection of intellectual beliefs I probably would have made more progress by now 🤣

I have to agree. But the boundaries of this way of experiencing things seem as evanescent as a soap bubble.

Sometimes the "I" labeller and reactor takes a siesta and there's just what's out there, but then the bins need taking out. It's a very temporary experience is all I meant there. But useful.

J

Is there a belief in a you that tried that, a you that can't be found?

No. I'm doing this in the experiential way you're using: after all, if it were down to mere inspection of intellectual beliefs I probably would have made more progress by now 🤣

I have to agree. But the boundaries of this way of experiencing things seem as evanescent as a soap bubble.

Sometimes the "I" labeller and reactor takes a siesta and there's just what's out there, but then the bins need taking out. It's a very temporary experience is all I meant there. But useful.

J

No. I'm doing this in the experiential way you're using: after all, if it were down to mere inspection of intellectual beliefs I probably would have made more progress by now 🤣

:-)

Sometimes the "I" labeller and reactor takes a siesta and there's just what's out there, but then the bins need taking out. It's a very temporary experience is all I meant there. But useful.

Can you try the exercise I gave in my second post on this thread? It's the one titled 'A dream of Being someone' I think. I'm curious what you get from it.

Good evening (it's evening here anyway),
Floris

Germany?

The Netherlands:)

Off to the North for a few days. Will give some time to that reflection. Please enjoy the start of your week...

J

Thank you, and you too. I hope you'll respond to that exercise afterwards
Wishing you good travels

Hi Floris,

I’ll be back in London later today (Friday) and ‘back in the saddle’ this weekend...

J

Okay, thank you for your message

Be well

Hi Floris,

1- Can you find an I which is (doing) seeing?
2- Can you find eyes or anything else, which are (doing) seeing?
3- Can you find the experience 'the seen thing, e.g. the hand' going to a place in the head where it is received?
4- Can you find something which is interpreting the seen thing?

1 - no
2 - no
3 - no
4 - no

The answer to 4 is likely to be no because my hand is familiar to me. Were I looking at, say, a photograph from an unusual angle I could imagine not just seeing but playing around with visual elements to come up with a story about what I'm seeing but in my actual experience of familiar things... no.

J

Hi Jim,

Ahh, well, you responded to the second post in this thread, but I intented for MY second post, the exercise/story with the dream thingy 😇, could you do that one too?

The answer to 4 is likely to be no because my hand is familiar to me. Were I looking at, say, a photograph from an unusual angle I could imagine not just seeing but playing around with visual elements to come up with a story about what I'm seeing but in my actual experience of familiar things... no.

Yes, I like the distinction between the story and the actual experience.

All the best,

Floris,

I gave this exercise more than one go because I needed to try to understand where it was leading. Similarly to the experiment with the hand my imagination no matter how vivid is a poor match for what I experience as real life (still avoiding quotes!).

I'm certainly experiencing long phases when the sense of an I - in the sense of a controlling ego - is less prevalent and loosened around the edges. I put this down to keeping these and other exercises in mind. Of simply asking myself the question spontaneously and at different times: where is the I in this...

J

Hello,

Okay, you mention you did the exercise numerous times. I however don't see your responses to the questions in it, so that doesn't give me much to reply on. So I'll just proceed with something else.

I'm certainly experiencing long phases when the sense of an I - in the sense of a controlling ego - is less prevalent and loosened around the edges. I put this down to keeping these and other exercises in mind. Of simply asking myself the question spontaneously and at different times: where is the I in this...

Okay, so if the sense of an I, can be more or less prevalent at times, would you agree that this isn't a real entity?

If you close your eyes and don't refer to any memories or other thoughts, does anything suggest that there is such an I? Or perhaps is only a certain space of aliveness experienced/there?

Wishing you well,
Floris