The Gate

Ok thanks for clarifying.

Hi Ryan,

Let's try this. This is the only exercise I was given when I came through LU:

I call it "ButtChair."

Please LOOK for any place where your butt ends & the chair begins.

Is there any clear dividing line between them? Or only the Sensation with no clear division?


AND

here is a similar pointer with hearing:

Hearing Exercise

Find somewhere quiet to sit. Rest for a moment and listen to the sounds in the room where you are, or sounds from outside. Whatever it is, I'll just refer to it as 'what can be heard'.

1) In 'hearing' can anything be found other than 'what can be heard'?

2) Can what is doing the hearing be found? Or is there only 'what can be heard'?

3) An 'I'? a 'body'? a 'person'? a brain? a pair of ears?

Can these be found doing the hearing? Or is there just 'what can be heard'?

What do you find?

Can an INHERENT HEARER be found? Would anything that is suggested as the hearer, be anything other than a concept/idea/thought?

Do them both at least once. If you prefer one or the other, you can just do that one.

Much love,
Stacy

ButtChair -- I love the name

Please LOOK for any place where your butt ends & the chair begins.

Is there any clear dividing line between them? Or only the Sensation with no clear division?

There is the sensation of contact/pressure, but nothing else. The only distinction is what gets up when I stand up and what stays put.

1) In 'hearing' can anything be found other than 'what can be heard'?

no it's just sound sounding.

2) Can what is doing the hearing be found? Or is there only 'what can be heard'?

there's no distinction between what i hear and what is being heard.

3) An 'I'? a 'body'? a 'person'? a brain? a pair of ears?

Can these be found doing the hearing? Or is there just 'what can be heard'?

What do you find?

Can an INHERENT HEARER be found? Would anything that is suggested as the hearer, be anything other than a concept/idea/thought?

no. there's no hearer, only what is heard. it's continuous and throughout. it never ends, just evolves.

How does FEEL to see these things?


Loving,

Stacy

To be honest, kind of conceptual. And I know that I shouldn't be feeling these things as a conceptual, so I feel a little stranded in that regard.

You said I should tell you when things shift - it has been an interesting couple of days.

Things have just generally been more of a "flow" or heightened awareness of the synchronicity of things for the last few days.

I was hanging out with some friends the other night, and I had some periods of clarity feeling that reality was unfolding for me, not by me, or even with me in mind, but around me. Almost like my friends were just loving characters in on the joke and playing out a fun little world for me to hang out in.

I had a float tank appointment today and while I was floating I had an experience of coming up against a barrier, a fear, but holding tight and then letting go and swirling into the void resulting in crystal clarity that I was NOT the body, memories, tendencies, or thoughts. I don't control the reality interface of "Ryan" but I'm along for the ride. I ended my float early, following the nothing that led me there in the first place, but in the hours since it has become less clear. I'm still pretty aware of my being a passenger in Ryan's story. I feel like I glimpsed a novel aspect of truth but the world or the mind is creeping back in to obscure it.

Are these experiences important? Are they having a lasting impact? What insights can I draw from them other than those I stated?

Well. if you're going to take over & write pointer questions in blue, perhaps you'll answer them.

Keep LOOKING. I did ButtChair for nearly 3 months.

Have you read Gateless Gatecrashers?

Loving

Stacy

Have you read Gateless Gatecrashers?

No, I have not

I mean no disrespect. I am listening. I am also trying to provide my viewpoint for context if it's helpful. I learn by asking questions, with no intent to rush or take over the direction of the instruction. If you know what I'm seeing, maybe you can help me understand what's being seen.

I genuinely misunderstood what you meant about the blue. You can be blue. It's my favorite color, but you can be blue.

You said in your introduction that you never had any doubt, and at the time I didn't think I did either. Maybe I misinterpreted my tendencies, but I also draw a distinction between doubt and needing to see for myself, maybe healthy skepticism. Not because I don't believe, but because I want to KNOW. I'm done "believing" things, I just want to see through to the truth.

Good morning,

I don't feel disrespected at all. The writing conventions are for clarity. Others read our threads, especially after you feel clear & answer "final" questions. I submit them to other guides to be sure we didn't miss anything. Our color coding helps us to read these - especially on our phones.

This is also why quoting each question and answering below it is important.

We absolutely want you to see for yourself AND we want your expectations of what that means to be realistic. That's another reason to read through Gateless Gatecrashers - for examples of other people's shifts.

I was seriously suggesting that you answer your own questions.

Are these experiences important?

Are they having a lasting impact?

What insights can I draw from them other than those I stated? (If by "insights" you mean more thinking, don't bother with this one. Remember we want you to SEE, not think.)

All clear?

Keep practicing ButtChair & the hearing exercise & report what is found.

Much love,
Stacy

Are these experiences important?

in the moment, but they pass. their memory serves as a helpful pointer or reminder, but nothing more.

Are they having a lasting impact?

it appears so. "I" am able to return to being with much less effort. I've decided my thinking mind is like a puppy, and i can attend to it or let it be.

All clear?

Much clearer

I played ButtChair for a while a little bit ago. I could find no evidence for a chair, nor a butt in DE. Just a sensation/seeing that my mind pointed at and said "ButtChair", but there is no evidence for a chair or butt or anything.

Sinking into hearing is one of my favorite past times, I feel so peaceful when listening to music or nature. In DE, there is nothing but a continuous field of evolving sound, no hearer separate from the heard. And that puppy voice piping up occasionally in the mind, but he means well.

Good!

Keep playing with both of these.

Let me know each day if anything FEELS different or LOOKS different.

Much love,

Stacy

PS, at some point I'll probably give you some others, but let's do these a little while, ok?

Let me know each day if anything FEELS different or LOOKS different.

I've been doing these periodically throughout the day, including meditation but also whenever I remember. I don't notice a change really, once I settle into direct experience, which only takes a moment to settle my mind and body down, I notice sensation as sensation and sound as sound. Sound especially has a tendency to completely fill my sense field (or whatever that's called).

On a completely different note, I've noticed a presence of fear throughout the day -- it seems to be wherever my mind goes there's a fearful thought about it. Do you have any tips for how to explore this most directly?

Yes

https://youtu.be/jKX1llYtlKE

Loving
Stacy