I can see there’s no self, but then it’s time to make dinner and the story of ‘me’ and my life and what ‘I’ have to do kicks in and the illusion seemingly becomes reality again.
I think I haven’t integrated what I’ve seen into daily life yet. There seems to be ‘normal’ life, and then when I look for reality I can find it, but it’s a separate thing. Like everything is in separate compartments. The two 'worlds' don't overlap.
When there is the sense of self during the day, get curious about what it is that is making things happen.
So, we have direct experience, which is seeing, hearing, feeling, tasting, smelling + thought.
When there is a sense of self, separate it into the senses that are involved, and inquire into each sense.
For example, let's say I feel a sense of self behind the eyes, and there's a thought 'this is me'. I would inquire:
Sense of self behind the eyes = sensation = are these sensations the self?
Thought 'this is me' = thought = is this thought the self?
Image of self behind the eyes = thought = is this image the self?
Objections will likely rise up. If so, keep inquiring into those, such as 'Of course there is a self, I'm right here'.
Thought 'Of course there is a self, I'm right here' = thought = is that thought the self?
Then maybe there's a feeling/contraction in the chest, so you inquire into that. Are those sensations the self? Where is it?
If you end up in a quiet place, rest there. Remember, no answer is the answer. There is no answer possible from thought. This needs to be felt into and repeated over and over.
What’s the best way to integrate what I’ve seen into everyday life? Just keep seeing/questioning the illusion as much as possible?
This path is unique to each person, so trust your own experience. I would say to keep looking over and over. Separate the senses and look, as above. You can also go back in this thread and re-do the previous pointers and use them during the day to look.
Here's a pointer that might help:
Your body naturally navigates life, and gives you data on what it resonates with and what it doesn’t.
For example, have you ever had a ‘gut feeling’ that you shouldn’t do something, and you did it anyway?
Or maybe you felt like doing something that made no logical sense, but it led to exactly what you needed at that time in your life?
It may not make sense logically, but the body knows more than we are aware of.
These yes/no signals often come as expansion/contraction, light/heavy, open/closed, but they may be different for you.
They can happen spontaneously or need time to become clear (a sign that you need time is that you think you need to be faster).
What I’d like you to do for next day is this:
1. Tell your mind that you will conduct an experiment for 24 hours, and that things will return to normal after that if appropriate (this is to get some space and focus on the body)
2. As often as you can, pay attention to what your body feels drawn to do. If it isn’t convenient to do this for all decisions, then do it for small ones, or whenever you can.
(If you have a hard time connecting to your body, just do your best. Look at this as an experiment and play with it.)
3. Pay attention to how your inner GPS communicates with you. Where is it in your body? What does it feel like? Is it instant or does it require time? (focus on direct experience)
4. Also notice how thoughts about self affect the body. What do you find?
If you experience thoughts such as:
- “This doesn’t work”
- “Why are you doing this?”
- “This is silly”
- “This is unsafe”
Tell your mind that you’re just doing it for 24 hours to see what it’s like.
What happened? Report back what you discover.
Let me know if you have any questions :)
