I need help seeing through the illusory I with clarity

[Anastacia42]

But we haven't covered the basics... your job is to do pointers I offer. rather than start making up your own.

This is how to LOOK for no self in the exercises - we call them "pointers' - that we will be doing here:

Colored Socks

There is a big difference between knowing that there is nothing to give up and seeing that there is nothing to give up.

Here is an example to illustrate the difference:

If I ask you what color socks you are wearing right now you have two ways to come up with an answer:

• You can think about it, you can think back to this morning and try to remember putting your socks on, and you can probably tell me what color you think they are.

• Alternatively, you can take a quick look at your socks and tell me what color they actually are!

Hopefully you would agree that you can only be 100% certain by looking.

For the purpose of seeing this "no self" idea, it is very important that you are clear about this difference.

Knowing is about knowledge which is all in the mind and we are not interested in that

We are only interested in looking at and seeing what is actually going on in your present moment-to-moment experience. We are only interested in your Direct Experience in the moment..

Direct or Actual Experience is

Seeing
Hearing
Feeling (Sensation, not emotion. Emotion is Sensation plus made-up thoughts & labels)
Tasting
Smelling
Thoughts Arising (but not their content)

Please let me know if you are clear about this or if you would like any further clarification.


Loving,

[Anastacia42]

The agreement is to post every day. What's up?

[Vit1]

Hi Stacy. This morning I went through the sensory perceptions you mentioned and here what I have to report:

Direct or Actual Experience is

Seeing = Yes, this is clear
Hearing = Yes, this is clear
Feeling (Sensation, not emotion. Emotion is Sensation plus made-up thoughts & labels) = Yes, this is clear
Tasting = Yes, this is clear
Smelling = Yes, this is clear
Thoughts Arising (but not their content) = Not so clear, I seem to recognize thoughts arising mainly based on their content (and then often follows another thought noting what just arose). Other times I can sense a cloud of unformed thoughts with a feeling of tension attached to it and that leads to more attention directed at thoughts. Can you clarify?

[Anastacia42]

Hi again,

Thoughts Arising (but not their content) = Not so clear, I seem to recognize thoughts arising mainly based on their content (and then often follows another thought noting what just arose). Other times I can sense a cloud of unformed thoughts with a feeling of tension attached to it and that leads to more attention directed at thoughts. Can you clarify?

Certainly.

The feeling of tension is the lie feeling or the body no. We haven't covered that, yet.

So, yes, Thoughts Arise, we can't deny that. But the story they tell is completely made up and not true. It's just one story after another. One way to check is that if someone had to teach it to you, it's a story, made-up, a lie, even. The names of things are made up. Who taught you something was a "ball?" It isn't. It's just there, no name is labeled on it. We made that up!

Relax. We'll get there.


Here is your first pointer:


Direct Experience - Labeling Daily Activities

Here's an exercise that I would like you to try as many times throughout the day as you can. Label daily activities simply color/image, sound, smell, taste, sensation, thought.

So for example, when having breakfast, become aware of:

Seeing a cup, simply= image/color
Smelling coffee, simply = smell
Feeling the warmth of the coffee cup, simply = sensation
Tasting the coffee, simply = taste
Hearing the spoon stirring the coffee, simply = sound
Thought about drinking the coffee, simply = thought

Just break down daily activities into these categories (which are all Actual/Direct Experience) and report back with lists exactly like the one above.

Post several of your own observations in a list *exactly* like the one above, please. Same word forms. Same order. EXACTLY.

Refer to the green list of Actual/Direct Experience in the prior post if that helps. Those are the only items any experience can be.

Loving,

[Vit1]

OK, here is mini sensing report 1:

While preparing dinner sauce
Seeing= onion, garlic
Smelling= frying onion, white wine evaporating, tomato passata out of glass jar
Feeling= fingers pressure around knife when cutting, eyes watering/crying from onion frying
Hearing= extractor noise, onions frying in pan, cat miaoing
Tasting= olive
Thoughts= is thing process going to work? Thought noticing the doubt thought

Making tea
Seeing= teal (colored kettle)
Hearing= water bubbles rising
Feeling= hot water vapour on hand
Taste= chamomile and honey
Thought= my father in Italy, noticing of previous thought

Will keep recording these....Thank you again for your time and patience. V

[Anastacia42]

Okay, ideally, reverse them. We want the usual description on the left and then we want you to recognize the Direct Experience on the right.

And I haven't figured out how to say that you may not have one of each and certainly not in the same order. So hard to get it right at all that that got left out.

But anyway, other than being reversed, you've got it.

Here is the next pointer:


Mind Labeling Experience

Here is an exercise which examines the way in which the mind labels experience - it takes about 20 minutes and you will need a pen a paper.

This exercise is broken into 10 minute lots. For each 10 minute period pay attention to any bodily sensation i.e. is there any tightening, or any relaxing?

For the first ten minutes write down what you are experiencing right now using the word “I”.

For example:

I am sitting on a chair,
I am hearing a clock ticking,
I am looking at a computer screen,
I am feeling hungry.

Get right to the point, no past or future fantasy, just a plain description of your experience right here and now.

Then for the next ten minutes continue writing down what you are experiencing but this time without using the word “I”. Just describe the experience as it is happening using verbs.

For example:

Sitting on a chair,
typing,
breathing,
blinking,
hearing the clock.

(Again, watch what is happening in the body.)

At the end of the twenty minutes compare the two ways in which the experience was labelled and answer the following four questions:

1. Is one truer than the other, and If so, which one?

2. What is here without labels?

3. Do labels affect the experience or just describe it?

4. Did you notice any differences in the body?

Loving,

[Anastacia42]

Also, this is a new video about expectations It's an hour.

https://youtu.be/93fpiOnKM4M

[Vit1]

Hi Stacy, here is the labelling exercise report:

Mind labelling 20 mins exercise

7.42 am
I am sitting upright
I am feeling a tightness behind my eyes
I am seeing the computer screen
I am hearing the computer fan (feel tightening above mouth area)
I am thinking about this exercise (more tightening)
I am hearing sound of fridge closing
I am hearing sound of water
I am feeling the cat soft fur
I am hearing the cat cleaning himself (feel tension behind eyes)
I am hearing cat noises

7.53
Sitting upright
Typing on keyboard
Looking at white monitor
Noticing breathing in out
Noticing sensation of tightness behind eyes
Feeling calf sensation
Hearing
Seeing
Feeling palms
Hearing fan
Noticing thought
Sound of scratching
Feet sensation
Looking
Breathing
Sensation in the back
Sensation eyes
Fan blowing
Seeing
Sensation (arms heaviness)
Noticing thought
Scalp sensation
Sounds (background)

1. Is one truer than the other, and If so, which one? Not sure about which one is truer (probably the same), but the second one (no labelling) feels a bit more simpler and enjoyable to experience, overall.

2. What is here without labels? Raw experience

3. Do labels affect the experience or just describe it? The I labels affect the experience, it feels tighter in the body

4. Did you notice any differences in the body? When I is mentioned in labelling experience there is a tightness / tension above the mouth behind the eyes

Will check out next the video you forwarded. Thanks again for the help.

[Anastacia42]

Good job. You've got it. I hope the video was useful. We have a few that I often share.

Here is another one:
'
https://youtu.be/wyNwhK2Ur1c

So, two things. I understand that yes, "I" produces tension in the body. The next bit here will explain that. But this does not *change* anything. The thing is still the thing no matter what labels are applied. I'll share a pointer about that, as well.

Here is how to distinguish truth from lies:

We often lie every day & don't realize it.

For example, the grocery clerk asks, "How are you?" You reply, "I'm fine." While, yes. there is a sense in which we are always fine, even in the middle of suffering, at that moment, you were grieving the death of your dog, you had a slight sore throat & you had a headache, but you didn't feel like sharing all of that with the grocery clerk, so you lied, "I'm fine."

Also, it matters none at all how "distant" the remembered lie is. Besides the fact that time itself is fictional, a kind if lie, as we recall the lie it becomes present in this moment, as if it were happening now. This brings the body Sensation that accompanies lying.

Lies can be intentional or unintentional, conscious or unconscious, even so automatic that we ourselves are fooled.

The story of a separate "self" is a lie.

This is the lie you came here to see through. Therefore, it is helpful to notice the body Sensation of lying as one of the tools for finding the truth of no self.

You want to be in touch with body Sensations & able to clearly express them in words. This will help.

Lies are usually felt in the heart or solar plexus as a contraction that we may label as tight, heavy or tense.

In contrast, truth is usually expansive. We may call it loose, light or relaxed.

First, can you remember a time when you lied to someone you loved?

Here we count anything, lies we think of as "big" or "small" that "matter" or don't "matter."

How are you? I'm fine. No, your knee hurts, but you don't feel like discussing it with the grocery clerk.

It's a lie. A seemingly "bigger" one will work better for this exercise.

Find the lie. I don't need the whole story, just a few key words to refer to it.

Then scan your body for any Sensation (DE or Direct Experience), particularly in the gut or maybe the heart. Check very closely.

What is found?

If you think the memory you used wasn't clear enough, find another one or lie to yourself right now, make something up.

1 + 1 = 14 is a lie.

I love eating worms is (probably) a lie.

Or call up a video of a lying politician & notice what Sensations arise as you listen.

I will give you a clue: it is not that peaceful Sensation you felt before when you omitted "I." (refers to an exercise I gave before this one)

Please report back with what body Sensations (not interpretations) you feel. Bodies can feel hot or cold, heavy or light, contraction or expansion, etc.

"Peaceful" is an interpretation of a body Sensation, not the Sensation itself, for example.

Do you see that?

Loving,

[Anastacia42]

Here is the pointer about labels:


Label-Reality Correlation

There is a belief that labels have a one-to-one correspondence with ‘reality’. But there isn’t. Just like it is a generally accepted belief that labels like ‘good’ and ‘bad’ are inherent characteristics of ‘things’. But actually, they are not.

When you look at the word label ‘GREEN' , what is the actual experience?

Is the color red ‘experienced’, or is the color green ‘experienced’ as the label suggests?

Does the label ‘GREEN’ have a one-to-one correspondence with ‘reality’? Or does the label suggest something else other than what is here now (red colour)?

Is 'green' associated in any way with the experience of the colour red; or is green just a label that overlays the actual experience of red?

If the label ‘GREEN’ is replaced with the label ‘GOOD’ or ‘BAD’ , is the redness affected in any way as the labels suggests?

Does redness become ‘good’ or ‘bad’, or do the labels have no affect whatsoever on ‘reality’?

Let me know what is SEEN.

I don't usually give 2 at a time, but at this point both of these things come up.

Loving,

[Vit1]

Thanks Stacy, I have 30% left on the previous video that I'll finish later today. I'll work on the pointers from your 2 messages just sent through tomorrow and revert back. Thanks again, your help is greatly appreciated.

[Anastacia42]

Very good.

Take whatever time you need. Please check in daily.

Loving,

[Vit1]

Hi. Here is the Lie feeling exercise report:
Lie: I feel we were treated very professionally by the architect and that he charged us a very honest fee for the A4 plan received.

Feeling = Tightness. To use more words, acute pressure, compression and squeezing of the heart.

If I revert the lie to a an honest statement of fact the tightness gives way to lightness, and breathing deepens.

[Vit1]

...and here are the Label-Reality Correlation answers:

When you look at the word label ‘GREEN' , what is the actual experience? The experience is of redness

Is the color red ‘experienced’, or is the color green ‘experienced’ as the label suggests? The colour red is experienced despite the label

Does the label ‘GREEN’ have a one-to-one correspondence with ‘reality’? Or does the label suggest something else other than what is here now (red colour)? No the label green does not have a one to one correlation with reality. The label suggests other, and the experience is of red.

Is 'green' associated in any way with the experience of the colour red; or is green just a label that overlays the actual experience of red? Green is an overlay (additional layer on top) to the primary experience of redness.

If the label ‘GREEN’ is replaced with the label ‘GOOD’ or ‘BAD[/color]’ , is the redness affected in any way as the labels suggests? No, it is not.

Does redness become ‘good’ or ‘bad’, or do the labels have no affect whatsoever on ‘reality’? No, the labels good or bad have no effect on reality.

[Anastacia42]

Yes. Good on all points. Be sure your LOOKINGfor answers, not thinking.

Okay, let's try this:

Actual/Direct Experience - Apple

Have a look at an apple (or any fruit you like.) If you have a ‘real’ apple, you can use it for this exercise. Google for a picture of an apple.



When looking at an apple, there's color; a thought saying ‘apple’; and maybe a thought saying, "I'm looking at an apple."

What is known for sure? Color is known and thoughts are known.

What about the content of thoughts, what they describe?

Actual experience does not refer to thoughts ABOUT something…because that is only just more thought.

Actual experience is sound, thought, color, smell, taste, sensation and the fact of thought arising, but not its content.

Is there really an ‘apple’ here, or only color and a thought ABOUT ‘apple’?

Can ‘apple’ be found in actual experience?

While these thoughts are known, what they talk ABOUT can't be found in actual experience.

This is what is meant by "looking in actual experience." What you know for sure, and, is always here.

Taste labeled ‘apple’ is known
Color labeled ‘apple’ is known
Sensation labeled ‘apple’ is known (when apple is touched)
Smell labeled ‘apple’ is known
Thought about/of an ‘apple’ is known

However, is an apple actually known?

Have fun and let me know what you find out.

Loving