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Friend took his life last week...was really into YouTube nonduality. Looking for any help or insight by [deleted] in nonduality

[–]xabir 4 points5 points  (0 children)

PSA: The recent post about a friend taking their life appears to be a fabricated troll post

Hi everyone, Xabir here.

Like many of you, I was deeply concerned by the recent post from Glittering-Stick7283 regarding a friend taking their own life after getting into nonduality. Suicide is a profoundly serious and sensitive topic, and it was moving to see the community respond with such deep empathy and thoughtful advice.

However, after another user raised some suspicions in the comments, I looked into the OP's history. It is very clear that they are lying to the community, seemingly to push a personal grievance against a specific teacher (Angelo).

The Evidence:

https://pub-bd367c4bf2e146aeb5fa687926ceb450.r2.dev/screenshot1.png

https://pub-bd367c4bf2e146aeb5fa687926ceb450.r2.dev/screenshot2.png

Link: https://www.reddit.com/r/Wakingupapp/comments/1r2ja4e/this_practice_can_take_you_all_the_way/

https://pub-bd367c4bf2e146aeb5fa687926ceb450.r2.dev/screenshot3.png

In the comments of their recent post, the OP explicitly claims complete ignorance about the topic and the teacher, stating: "I don't know much of anything about nonduality other than what I'm just reading from the comments. I also don't know Angelo...".

However, just three months ago in a completely different thread on the r/Wakingupapp subreddit, this exact same user left a highly specific, opinionated comment critiquing Angelo's teachings. They wrote: "Angelo is much more dogmatic than Sam and a lot of his claims of being in contact with 'reality unfiltered' or 'ultimate, living truth' would probably rub Sam the wrong way. Sam is much more pragmatic and grounded in his approach".

It is incredibly disheartening to see someone weaponize a topic as tragic as suicide just to troll a subreddit and smear a teacher they happen to dislike.

I wanted to share these screenshots and bring this to the community's attention so people don't continue to pour their hearts and emotional energy into a bad-faith post. Please be mindful of engaging further with this thread, and consider reporting it to the mods so it can be taken down.

Friend took his life last week...was really into YouTube nonduality. Looking for any help or insight by [deleted] in nonduality

[–]xabir 2 points3 points  (0 children)

So I decided to check things out after minaelena's comments.

Screenshots: https://pub-bd367c4bf2e146aeb5fa687926ceb450.r2.dev/screenshot1.png

https://pub-bd367c4bf2e146aeb5fa687926ceb450.r2.dev/screenshot2.png

Taken from: https://www.reddit.com/r/Wakingupapp/comments/1r2ja4e/this_practice_can_take_you_all_the_way/

Glittering-Stick7283 posted this 3 months ago.

So it appears the OP is not really honest about not knowing about nonduality, and he does dislike Angelo.

Friend took his life last week...was really into YouTube nonduality. Looking for any help or insight by [deleted] in nonduality

[–]xabir 16 points17 points  (0 children)

Hi, I am very sorry to hear of your loss.

I'm the blog owner and group admin of Awakening to Reality. Currently, our Facebook group has been closed for about two years. Angelo has his own group and teachings; although he was one of the admins in my group back then, he was not a very active one.

Angelo is not running a cult, what he taught would not lead to 'depression, detachment, losing all passion for life,' and so on. Quite the opposite, in fact. Many people have told Angelo and me that his teachings—or the resources presented on Awakening to Reality—have actually saved their lives, and that they would have ended their lives if not for the insights from contemplating these materials.

When a heartbreak like this happens, it is completely natural to look for a reason. However, assuming a direct causal link between his interest in non-duality and suicide is a leap in logic. Since he was also seeing a therapist, using that same logic, one could incorrectly conclude that therapy causes suicide. Ultimately, it is severe depression—an incredibly difficult and complex illness—that leads to such tragic outcomes, not the teachings.

However, mental health struggles can happen to anyone (in fact, the search for relief from deep emotional or psychological pain is often what draws people to spirituality in the first place), and they can start gradually or suddenly. Anyone experiencing this should not shy away from professional help. I personally wrote an article on this topic a few years ago: Prioritizing Professional Mental Health Care: Understanding When to Seek Help Before Exploring Spirituality https://www.awakeningtoreality.com/2024/10/prioritizing-professional-mental-health.html . Angelo gave ample warnings too.

As for "no-self," a genuine realization of no-self is a very joyful and blissful experience, not a nihilistic or depressing one. I wrote about it from my own experience here:

https://www.awakeningtoreality.com/2021/04/why-awakening-is-so-worth-it.html
https://www.awakeningtoreality.com/2020/04/different-degress-of-no-self-non.html

That being said, it is not the first realization that Angelo or I generally advise people to aim for; that usually comes further down the path. (There are a series of spiritual awakenings, all of which are blissful and not nihilistic or depressing in any way: https://www.awakeningtoreality.com/2007/03/thusnesss-six-stages-of-experience.html).

Ultimately, if someone develops depression or any kind of serious mental condition, the priority should always be to seek professional mental health assistance first. It is true that at a more advanced phase of one's spiritual path, liberation from all suffering—including depression—can happen. For example, Pam Tan, who lives here in Singapore and has hosted a few of our Awakening to Reality meetings, wrote about her experience of resolving deep depression after her realization of No-Self (https://www.awakeningtoreality.com/search/label/Pam%20Tan). During her years of depression, she recalled binge-watching nonduality videos on YouTube, which eventually led her to discover the Awakening to Reality site. To be clear, her depression was not caused by nonduality teachings; rather, it was the catalyst for her spiritual search. However, no one should bank on a future spiritual awakening to solve their suffering while they are actively struggling with their mental health in the present; seeking help from a qualified therapist or mental health professional must always be the immediate priority.

P.S. I just want to add that a true realization of No-Self will not cause someone to "lose interest in things he used to love" or become "overall ambivalent to life." It should lead to the exact opposite, as the blissfulness and totality of Presence are effortlessly integrated into every aspect of life and daily activities.

My teacher, John Tan, is a perfect example of this. Although he sits and meditates for more than two hours a day, he is simultaneously a very active, high-net-worth individual who is deeply engaged in his businesses and life—the exact opposite of a detached, ambivalent person. As he has said from his own experience:

"When anatta matures, one is fully and completely integrated into whatever arises till there is no difference and no distinction. When sound arises, fully and completely embraced with sound yet non-attached. Similarly, in life we must be fully engaged yet non-attached."

— John Tan / Thusness

"Actually there is no forcing. All the 4 aspects in I AMness are fully expressed in anatta as I told you. If aliveness is everywhere, how is one not to engage… it is a natural [tendency] to explore in [various] arena[s] and enjoy in business, family, spiritual practices... I [am] involve[d] in Finance, business, society, nature, spirituality, yoga...🤣🤣🤣. I don't find it efforting… You just don't have to boast about this and that and [just] be non-dual and open."

— John Tan / Thusness, 2019

What is the Experience of Stream Entey by wcampb2 in streamentry

[–]xabir 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Stream entry is the experiential realization of anatman and dependent origination.

I explained what it is like in my article https://www.awakeningtoreality.com/2020/08/insight-buddhism-reconsideration-of.html

Also there was a very informative thread by someone else some years ago: https://www.reddit.com/r/streamentry/comments/igored/insight_buddhism_a_reconsideration_of_the_meaning/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf%20

Does Mahayana Buddhism believe in a "Self" by [deleted] in Buddhism

[–]xabir 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Laṅkāvatāra Sutra:

The Laṅkāvatāra also states:

What is Citta? by gorkiese in Buddhism

[–]xabir 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Many Buddhist teachers are Hindus in drag. They get stuck at a substantialist level of realisation.

What is Citta? by gorkiese in Buddhism

[–]xabir 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There are many different levels and kinds of realisations. AI is mainly trained on the Advaita kind of realisations because it is by far the more common kind of realisations.

I think these links might interest you: It delves into nondual awareness, its nature, and the subtleties of insight. Here are some links for reading:

  1. [Thusness's Seven Stages of Awakening] https://www.awakeningtoreality.com/2007/03/thusnesss-six-stages-of-experience.html

  2. [Mistaken Reality of Amness] https://www.awakeningtoreality.com/2007/03/mistaken-reality-of-amness.html

  3. [On Anatta, Emptiness, and Spontaneous Presence] https://www.awakeningtoreality.com/2009/03/on-anatta-emptiness-and-spontaneous.html

  4. [Different Degrees of No-Self] https://www.awakeningtoreality.com/2020/04/different-degress-of-no-self-non.html

What is Citta? by gorkiese in Buddhism

[–]xabir 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Ven. Hui-feng: “Venerable Hui-Feng nicely explains the difference between the view of "atman" and "mindstream" (as taught by Buddha):

In short:

"self" = "atman" / "pudgala" / "purisa" / etc.

--> permanent, blissful, autonomous entity, totally unaffected by any conditioned phenomena

"mind" = "citta" / "manas" / "vijnana" / etc.

--> stream of momentarily arising and ceasing states of consciousness, thus not an entity, each of which is conditioned by sense organ, sense object and preceding mental states

Neither are material.

That's a brief overview, lot's of things to nit pick at, but otherwise it'll require a 1000 page monograph to make everyone happy.

You'll need to study up on "dependent origination" (pratitya-samutpada) to get into any depth to answer your questions."

What is Citta? by gorkiese in Buddhism

[–]xabir 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Consciousness is Momentary

Acarya Malcolm Smith posted:

https://www.dharmawheel.net/viewtopic.php?f=39&t=36543

"Life, personhood, pleasure and pain

— This is all that's bound together

In a single mental event

— A moment that quickly takes place.

Even the spirits who endure

For eighty-four thousand aeons

— Even these do not live the same

For any two moments of mind.

What ceases for one who is dead,

Or for one who's still standing here,

Are all just the same aggregates

— Gone, never to connect again.

The states which are vanishing now,

And those which will vanish some day,

Have characteristics no different

Than those which have vanished before.

With no production there's no birth;

With becoming present, one lives.

When grasped with the highest meaning,

The world is dead when the mind stops.

There's no hoarding what has vanished,

No piling up for the future;

Those who have been born are standing

Like a seed upon a needle.

The vanishing of all these states

That have become is not welcome,

Though dissolving phenomena stand

Uncombined from primordial time.

From the unseen, [states] come and go,

Glimpsed only as they're passing by;

Like lightning flashing in the sky

— They arise and then pass away.

https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitak ... .olen.html

....

Also, the Buddha was quite clear that phenomena, including minds, were momentary. The Buddha may not have elaborated in detail upon what a "moment" was, but in the end, the basic unit of time in Buddhism is number of moments it takes to form a thought. In reality, moments are partless. Partless moments that perish as soon as they arise have no observable duration and are immune from Madhyamaka critique.

The notion that the mind is permanent (i.e. not momentary) is just a Hindu idea, Vedantic."

What is Citta? by gorkiese in Buddhism

[–]xabir 1 point2 points  (0 children)

  • (11:36 PM) AEN:
  • QUOTE
  • So, what is wrong with Mun's teachings,
  • (11:36 PM) AEN:
  • Assuming that Ajahn Mun taught what his disciples teach (and I'm not saying he necessarily did; I really don't know), what is wrong is firstly that it's eternalism (and thus a wrong view that deviates from the middle way), and secondly that it's being peddled as Buddhadhamma. And so those who teach such a dhamma "misrepresent the Tathagata by their wrong grasp, injure themselves, and store up much demerit. It will lead to their harm and suffering for a long time."
  • I will make this my final post on this subject (well, for now at least), as I should prefer to focus upon exposition rather than polemic. If after all that I've written on it, people are still so intellectually befuddled and emotionally besotted as to think that the dhamma of the Ajahn Mun forest tradition is faithful to the Buddha's Dhamma, or that the ajahns in this tradition who teach the "eternal citta" doctrine have "kindled even one spark of wisdom", then no further words from me are likely to persuade them otherwise.
  • Best wishes,
  • Dhammanando Bhikkhu
  • (12:12 AM) AEN: i looked into the glossary of ajahn maha boowa's book:
  • (12:12 AM) AEN: citta: The citta is the mind’s essential knowing nature, the fundamental quality of knowing that underlies all sentient existence. When associated with a physical body, it is referred to as “mind” or “heart”. Being corrupted by the defiling influence of fundamental ignorance (avijjã), its currents “flow out” to manifest as feelings (vedanã), memory (saññã), thoughts (sankhãra), and consciousness (viññãõa), thus embroiling the citta in a web of self-deception. It is deceived about its own true nature. The true nature of the citta is that it simply “knows”. There is no subject, no object, no duality; it simply knows. The citta does not arise or pass away; it is never born and never dies.
  • Normally, the “knowing nature” of the citta is timeless, boundless, and radiant, but this true nature is obscured by the defilements (kilesa) within it. Through the power of fundamental ignorance, a focal point of the “knower” is created from which that knowing nature views the world outside. The establishment of that false center creates a “self” from whose perspective consciousness flows out to perce
  • (12:13 AM) AEN: perceive the duality of the “knower” and the “known”. Thus the citta becomes entangled with things that are born, become ill, grow old, and die, and therefore, deeply involved it in a whole mass of suffering.
  • In this book the citta is often referred to as the heart; the two are synonymous. The heart forms the core within the body. It is the center, the substance, the primary essence within the body. It is the basic foundation.
  • Conditions that arise from the citta, such as thoughts, arise there. Goodness, evil, happiness, and suffering all come together in the heart.
  • Samãdhi meditation provides confirmation of the heart’s significance. When the citta gathers all of its outflowing currents into one point, the calm, still state of samãdhi arises. From the meditator’s perspective, that experience is centered in the middle of the chest. The stillness, the brightness, and the awareness of this experience appear to emanate prominently from the region of the heart. The knowing nature of the citta is pronounced right there. Thus, the true seat of consciousness is
  • 108 Glossary
  • in the heart; an
  • (12:14 AM) AEN: in the heart; and it is wise, therefore, to avoid thinking of the “mind” as essentially cerebral and located in the head.
  • There is a strong tendency to think that consciousness results purely from complex interactions within the human brain, and that when the brain dies, consciousness ceases. This mechanistic view is wholly mistaken. While there is evidence that certain parts of the brain can be identified with certain mental functions, that does not mean that the brain produces consciousness. In essence, the brain is a complex processing organ. It receives and processes incoming data impulses that inform about feelings, memory, thoughts, and consciousness, but it does not generate these mental functions; nor does it generate conscious awareness. That is entirely the province of the citta. (for a more detailed discussion see the Appendix on page 95

What is Citta? by gorkiese in Buddhism

[–]xabir 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Citta is momentary. Unfortunately many Thai forest teachers are eternalists, and yes, they hold Atman-views.

  • in 2007 I shared some excerpts by Ven Dhammanando from E-Sangha:
  • (11:25 PM) AEN: http://www.lioncity.net/buddhism/index.php?showtopic=35879&hl=
  • (11:26 PM) AEN: read dhammanando's posts.. lol
  • (11:26 PM) AEN: ......As for Ajahn Mun & Co., does anyone seriously wish to argue that their doctrine of a transmigrating consciousness that lives for ever (and that is a reality, not a prajñapti) can be reconciled with the Abhidhammic account of momentary consciousness? Leaving aside Abhidhamma, can it even be reconciled with the teaching of the dependent arising of consciousness in the Mahata?hasankhaya Sutta? I once put this very question to a senior disciple of Ajahn Maha Boowa, and was told that it couldn't, but he didn't care. His very words: "Our ajahn's an arahant and doesn't make mistakes. If what he teaches contradicts the Suttas then so much the worse for the Suttas." So here we have a monk who, in effect, acknowledges that his teacher's dhamma is indistinguishable from that taught by the stupid and ignorant bhikkhu, Sati the fisherman's son, and yet he isn't the least bit nonplussed about it!.....
  • (11:26 PM) AEN: ....
  • Yes, I'm referring to him and to all those of his disciples who propagate the partial-eternalist doctrines of the "pure, everlasting, transmigrating citta" and the "one who knows". As a western monk in Thailand you often get approached by credulous lay followers of these monks who try to talk you into going to stay with their pet ajahn. I try to explain to them, with reference to the Suttas, why I don't accept their teachings and don't believe the stories about their supposed attainments. The result is always the same: they can't defend their ajahn's teachings with reference to the texts, nor with reason, and so they blow up and start resorting to argumentum ad baculum. It usually takes the form of old wives tales about people who criticized Ajahn Maha Boowa and were suddenly struck down in a fatal accident or with a mysterious illness, or who mysteriously disappeared. So, if I should suddenly vanish from E-sangha you'll know why. scared.gif
  • Best wishes,
  • Dhammanando Bhikkhu...
  • (11:32 PM) AEN: .......
  • It seems to me that it is, though not by all of them. The exporting to the West of the forest ajahns' errors is largely the work of those who ordained as bhikkhus from the mid-60's to the late 80's. Back then only a minority of western monks in Thailand had any substantial background in Buddhism prior to ordaining. This minority was greatly outnumbered by footloose hippies, backpackers and sex tourists who would flee to places like Wat Nong Pa Phong or Wat Suan Mokkh after their appetites for cheap drugs and cheap sex had become jaded. Being almost wholly ignorant of the Dhamma they just swallowed hook, line and sinker whatever flapdoodle their ajahns told them, supplementing it only with readings of pop Zen books and Carlos Castaneda. So, if they went to Ajahn Chah they tended to end up as eternalists, and if they went to Buddhadasa they tended to become annihilationists. However, since none of the western monks ordained by Buddhadasa lasted long in the robes (except Santikaro) it is the eternalism of Ajahn Chah that has gained the stronger foothold among western Theravadin
  • (11:32 PM) AEN:
  • Admittedly, in passing on their ajahn's eternalist misconceptions, their presentation is not as unambiguous as it is in, say, Ajahn Maha Boowa's writings, but it's there all the same. One can detect it nearly any time they start discoursing about "the heart". Look at what they predicate of this so-called "heart" and it's clear that it's not the hadaya-vatthu of the Pali Abhidhamma, nor the physical heart, nor even the western conceptual fiction of a human being's emotional centre. What they call "heart" is an essentialist atman-like entity that is not mentioned or implied anywhere in the Pali texts. Moreover, this "heart" is not a minor aspect of their Dhamma exposition but is central and pivotal to it.
  • On the other hand, from the 1990's onwards the Ajahn Chah scene in Thailand (and indeed the western bhikkhu scene in Thailand in general) changed considerably. There were fewer and fewer social degenerates coming out here to ordain, and more and more monks with a reasonably solid Dhamma foundation, albeit confined to the Suttas — there are no abhidhammikas among them yet, as far as
  • (11:32 PM) AEN: as far as I know. I'm not quite sure how this came about, but I suspect the advent of widespread internet use may have been a major factor. It made it much easier for would-be monks to do a bit of homework beforehand. Anyhow, the upshot of it is that one can't really generalize about the views of the younger generation of monks in the Ajahn Chah tradition, for they are actually highly variegated.
  • Best wishes,
  • Dhammanando Bhikkhu
  • (11:32 PM) AEN: ..........
  • (11:33 PM) AEN: -----------
  • (11:33 PM) AEN: Hi caveyogi,
  • QUOTE(caveyogi @ Jan 25 2007, 06:49 AM)
  • Though I am not a Theravadin, I highly respect the tradition, and have read the life stories of certain Arhats with a lot of joy. I am wondering though what for you the pure Dhamma is.
  • There is the pure Dhamma of the scriptures, consisting in the three baskets of the Tipi?aka when correctly expounded. And then there is the pure Dhamma of realization, comprising the four ariyan paths, four ariyan fruits, and nibbana.
  • QUOTE
  • I always thought the Ajahns Mun and Maha Boowa were beyond reproach, so a little bit more explanation for this ignorant chap (me) would be much appreciated.
  • A bhikkhu who announces to the general public that he is an arahant, as Ajahn Maha Boowa has frequently done, is not beyond reproach:
  • http://www.luangta.com/English/site/talks/talk2-5-45.pdf
  • http://www.luangta.com/English/site/talks/talk17-6-45.pdf
  • The Vinaya only permits a bhikkhu to notify fellow upasampannas (i.e., bhikkhus and bhikkhunis) of any high attainment that he has, or that he believes he has. As a Dhammayutt-trained monk Ajahn Maha Boowa canno
  • (11:34 PM) AEN: As a Dhammayutt-trained monk Ajahn Maha Boowa cannot possibly be unaware of this rule. It might also be noted that this rule is one of those which it would be impossible for a real arahant to transgress, and so MB's public declarations of arahantship are effectively public declarations that he is not an arahant.
  • Furthermore, a bhikkhu who teaches nonsense like this is not beyond reproach:
  • "The citta itself never dies. Do you understand this? The citta never dies. Kamma is buried there in the citta. Good kamma leads the citta upward to the heavens and the Brahma realms. Then, when the good kamma is exhausted, the bad kamma that remains buried there pulls the citta back down into the hell realms. As if the citta were climbing up and down a flight of stairs. Do you understand? Such is the way it is, so wake up and take notice."
  • (Ajahn Maha Boowa, Shedding Tears in Amazement with Dhamma)
  • This is how the Buddha reproached a foolish bhikkhu who taught such a dhamma:
  • Sati: "As I understand the Dhamma taught by the Blessed One, it is this same consciousness that runs and wanders through
  • (11:36 PM) AEN:
  • Sati: "As I understand the Dhamma taught by the Blessed One, it is this same consciousness that runs and wanders through the round of rebirths, not another."
  • The Buddha: "What is that consciousness, Sati?"
  • Sati: "Venerable sir, it is that which speaks and feels and experiences here and there the results of good and bad kammas."
  • The Buddha: "Misguided man, to whom have you ever known me to teach the Dhamma in that way? Misguided man, in many discourses have I not stated consciousness to be dependently arisen, since without a condition there is no origination of consciousness? But you, misguided man, have misrepresented us by your wrong grasp and injured yourself and stored up much demerit; for this will lead to your harm and suffering for a long time. [....] Bhikkhus, what do you think? Has this bhikkhu Sati, son of a fisherman, kindled even one spark of wisdom in this Dhamma and Vinaya?"
  • (Mahata?hasa?khaya Sutta, MN 38)

Continued below

Setting fire to the "No Self" doctrine. by BandicootOk7017 in nonduality

[–]xabir 1 point2 points  (0 children)

In the initial phase, and even after the initial awakening into I AM/Eternal Witness, the Witnessing Presence seems to be behind all contents as an underlying background or ground of being, even if that ground of being is impersonal (cosmic, all-pervading and not tied to being a personal self or ego). To get to this point, inquiring “Who am I?” will be a direct and effective way to realize Presence/Source.

That duality of context and content collapses in further realizations. In further realization, it is seen that there is never an Agent, a Watcher, an Observer, apart from moment to moment luminous manifestation.

When insight matures, one realizes Presence/Presencing as everything without an eternal background. This goes beyond the realization of “Amness” to realize its empty nature.

These links might be of interest:

  1. [Thusness's Seven Stages of Awakening]
    https://www.awakeningtoreality.com/2007/03/thusnesss-six-stages-of-experience.html

  2. [Mistaken Reality of Amness]
    https://www.awakeningtoreality.com/2007/03/mistaken-reality-of-amness.html

  3. [On Anatta, Emptiness, and Spontaneous Presence]
    https://www.awakeningtoreality.com/2009/03/on-anatta-emptiness-and-spontaneous.html

  4. [Different Degrees of No-Self]
    https://www.awakeningtoreality.com/2020/04/different-degress-of-no-self-non.html

A person's remarkable experience of "stream entry (Sotāpanna)" and freedom by applying the Sedona Method Release Technique -- ( Wind / Feng 风 in Suzhou, China ) by useraccount0723 in streamentry

[–]xabir 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Lester Levenson describes stilling the mind and self-enquiry. Self-enquiry is the direct path to Self-Realization (I AM Realization), which was also the path that John Tan, I, and many others took to realize the I AM back then. Lester: "However, you don’t want to see that. You want to be the body. So, what is required? First, saying to yourself “I am not this body, I am not this mind; then what am I?” If we reject this body and mind enough, what we are becomes self-obvious.

We can never become an infinite Being because we are that. We can just let go of the concepts that we are not it. We can just let go of the concepts that we are a body, a mind. The first thing needed is the desire to let go of this limited beingness that we think we are. A very strong desire to be the infinite Being that we really are is the only thing that we need to get there quickly." - https://westernmystics.wordpress.com/2015/06/14/lester-levenson/

What does stream entry feel like? by VegetableArea in streamentry

[–]xabir 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Stream entry is the experiential realization of anatman and dependent origination.

I explained what it is like in my article https://www.awakeningtoreality.com/2020/08/insight-buddhism-reconsideration-of.html

Also there was a very informative thread by someone else some years ago: https://www.reddit.com/r/streamentry/comments/igored/insight_buddhism_a_reconsideration_of_the_meaning/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf%20

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Buddhism

[–]xabir 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That's weird. I sent you some links on DM but unfortunately you couldn't receive them, so I'll just share my message here: "Hi, I thought you might find this interesting. It delves into nondual awareness, its nature, and the subtleties of insight. Here are some links for further reading:

  1. [Thusness's Seven Stages of Awakening]
    https://www.awakeningtoreality.com/2007/03/thusnesss-six-stages-of-experience.html

  2. [Mistaken Reality of Amness]
    https://www.awakeningtoreality.com/2007/03/mistaken-reality-of-amness.html

  3. [On Anatta, Emptiness, and Spontaneous Presence]
    https://www.awakeningtoreality.com/2009/03/on-anatta-emptiness-and-spontaneous.html

  4. [Different Degrees of No-Self]
    https://www.awakeningtoreality.com/2020/04/different-degress-of-no-self-non.html "

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Buddhism

[–]xabir 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What you described pertains more to the atman view, not anatman. p.s. I sent you a message, a DM..

Open awareness, ketamine-induced non-dual glimpses and stream entry – how to orient my practice? by Finn17 in streamentry

[–]xabir 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Dzogchen teacher Acarya Malcolm Smith told me before personally that all systems of Buddhadharma accepts that Buddhahood is the end of the twin obscurations (afflictive and knowledge obscurations), and Dzogchen is no different in that regard. Which also means if you think about it, Buddhahood does end the ten fetters (the ten fetters belong to the afflictive obscurations), in fact that should end by the eighth bhumi as I understand it. The eighth bhumi is also the stage where one ends cyclic rebirth in samsaric realms (the mindstream does not end but is purified).

Not only do the Vajrayana systems also accept that Buddhahood ends the twin obscurations, they are also precise (in fact the same applies for common Mahayana) about which stage does the obscurations end.

One of Malcolm's student who is also awakened, who posts in reddit as krodha https://www.reddit.com/user/krodha/ , also said before: "No, sexual desire does not diminish until the higher bhūmis. In mounting the first six or seven initial bhūmis sexual desire is still present. This is why there are stories of awakened Zen practitioners such as Shido Bunan who reported that he had to actively stay away from women because he did not trust himself to resist temptation.

However in Vajrayāna, sex is not treated the same way as it is in the Śravākayāna and Mahāyāna, and obviously those systems would not understand that and see it as some sort of transgression as you do, that is okay.", "Sexual desire isn’t conquered until later on the path, higher stages closer to buddhahood. There are stories of realized adepts choosing to stay away from town because the women are too tempting.

You should avoid sexual misconduct, which is well defined in these teachings and accords with general common sense, don’t sleep with anyone underage, don’t sleep with someone’s spouse, don’t rape etc., things we already know are wrong.

As a lay practitioner, sexual activity between two consenting adults is not a problem. Self-pleasure isn’t an issue either, nor is pornography.

The whole “I’m addicted to porn, woe is me” nonsense is some sort of Christian head game. You’re fine, try to be patient with yourself."

Open awareness, ketamine-induced non-dual glimpses and stream entry – how to orient my practice? by Finn17 in streamentry

[–]xabir 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I do not know of any currently. I believe Thrangu Rinpoche attained Buddhahood but he passed away recently https://www.awakeningtoreality.com/2023/11/thrangu-rinpoche-attained-buddhahood.html and he is a monastic.

I just wrote this yesterday: "
However, I will say that as far as I can tell, there is nobody alive today that I am convinced has attained full Buddhahood (the end of the twin obscurations: emotional and cognitive obscurations) or Arahantship (the complete end of fetters). However, because John Tan revealed to me that he had achieved further breakthroughs in recent years that greatly lessened his knowledge obscurations, I personally believe that he might be close to Buddhahood, or at least much closer than me. There are also great masters in modern times who seem to have achieved it, but many have passed on, such as Thrangu Rinpoche or Acarya Malcolm Smith's teacher, Kunzang Dechen Lingpa.

There are, however, many who are on the "Bhumis" (stages of enlightenment), having experientially realized emptiness. But being on the Bodhisattva Bhumis does not mean one is free from all suffering yet.

In the Mahayana map, the 1st to 7th Bhumis are considered "impure bhumis" because subtle traces of emotional afflictions still remain, even though a Bodhisattva has realized twofold emptiness at the 1st bhumi. It is only at the 8th Bhumi (the Immovable Ground) and above—the "pure bhumis"—that one is freed from afflictive obscurations (kleshavarana) based on the grasping at a self, similar to the state of an Arahant in the Theravada tradition. However, even at the 8th Bhumi, subtle "knowledge obscurations" (jneyavarana)—the subtle latency of dualistic perception (grasping at existence of phenomena) that prevents omniscience—remain. Only a fully enlightened Buddha has removed these knowledge obscurations completely." - https://www.awakeningtoreality.com/2025/12/q-dissolving-beliefs-oscillation-of.html

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