The sensation doesn’t point to “over there,” doesn’t name itself “love,” doesn’t ask for anything, doesn’t bind you to anyone. The whole tangle comes from a thought about the sensation — not from the sensation itself. When the story drops, what remains is simple warmth, free to appear and disappear without ownership.
Tiredness is sensation + thought label.
The sensations might be heavier, slower, more persistent, and the body might function differently, but none of that gives them meaning. You can be exhausted and still see: just heaviness, just pressure, just fogginess, just thought saying “I’m tired”. No one is in it. No one is suffering it. Just appearance (i.e. sensations), happening the same way sound or colour happens. Fatigue doesn’t block DE — only the thought “this is a problem” does.
Even while there is no self inhabiting a body, there is often a feeling of gratitude for the ah ha's that show up, and pivot the experience of life. There is a suspended quality of surprise that comes and goes, about the truth that suffering is just thoughts arising.
Like in this case, recognition of suffering being only thoughts feels changes ‘brain chemistry’, and another thought shows up about what an incredible relief it is to have a different 'brain sensation', in relation to life.
Relief about this (that suffering is only thoughts) is really just another case of more thoughts trying to invent a someone. Someone who is living the experience of relief (like the example of sound, and inventing a listener.)
Feeling this kind of relief feels like a gift, personally felt, as though it's some kind of gift received from a vague source. And even before dismissing the personal self belief, and 'personal gift' belief, thoughts come up to say that a dismissing of the treasure of relief is so rude, and bypassing.
But then it’s so interesting to stay with the direct experience of the chatter, and feel those thought tensions loosen on their own. Just by watching thoughts come and go. Noticing emotions about it rise and fall.
So just stating, to make more of a habit here: it's just 'relief', as a combo of sensations + thought appearing. And then sometimes lots of added story that say things like 'thank god for the change in brain chemistry and patterns of thought'.
The trap is not the sound — the trap is the thought trying to invent a listener. Remove the thought, and what’s left? Only sound-ing.
This might not be valuable to be looking at, perhaps too mental? but could you say thoughts themselves have a nature? The nature of thoughts is to invent and create illusion?
Ask quietly:
What is the raw DE here? (pressure, warmth, tingling, vibration…)
Can anything in this sensation say it belongs to someone?
Is there an experiencer of the experience — or only the experience itself?
This is now on a post-it note :) Ty :)
Look slowly… Sound appears. Then a thought appears: “I can’t get away.”
Where is the “I” in DE? Nowhere. The trap is not the sound — the trap is the thought trying to invent a listener. Remove the thought, and what’s left? Only sound-ing.
Another post-it reminder, for thought illusions (trapped by sound, suffering because of ____, etc):
“Look”
“Where is the I in DE”
“What is thought trying to invent here?”
“What remains when thought is removed?”
What is DE?
(Not “what is the DE being experienced right now” .. which came up for a moment to write, thoughts to override the simplicity of simply “What is DE”)
Just checking this out with you — it’s an ok flow?
At this stage, let’s keep it very simple and very direct. For the next few days, try just one thing:
When any emotion or state shows up — warmth, tiredness, love, irritation, heaviness — pause and look before the label.
Ask quietly:
What is the raw DE here? (pressure, warmth, tingling, vibration…)
Can anything in this sensation say it belongs to someone?
Is there an experiencer of the experience — or only the experience itself?
Don’t analyse. Don’t try to change anything. Just look at the exact moment the mind attaches “love,” “tired,” “sad,” “me,” “mine,” “too much,” “not enough.”
That attachment — that tiny moment — is where the illusion tightens. And that’s exactly where it dissolves.
Ok perfect,
“What is the raw DE here? (pressure, warmth, tingling, vibration…)”
“Can anything in this sensation say it belongs to someone?”
“Is there an experiencer of the experience — or only the experience itself?”
Sensation is always innocent. The story is optional. Everything else is already unfolding on its own.
This is beautiful and who would ever know the truth of sensation — that it’s innocent — unless it were taught or pointed to by another (however you say that).
Actually, what language would you use there that feels clearer, when not using the convention of 'another' or 'other'? Even though of course it’s fine to use convention, while not believing it in a technical way, it’s still a curiosity about how you’d say that! Another is .. ? Maybe something like: “Another sequence of appearances arising through what seems like an other”?
In appreciation,
Chal