Monday's MeditationMom Moment - Walking, Talking Humans - At Peace

This is a sequence of questions from the same person. To read the whole thread and other people's contributions to this discussion you can go to Boards.ie were most of the online MeditationMom conversations take place in the various religion forums.

Question:Are those who attain enlightenment always enlightened?
MeditationMom: Yes.

Q: I ask, as some recent meditation sittings I've done have brought on glimpses of something akin to nothingness.
MM: "Glimpses of something akin" is not yet "it" and it will take more trust and love on your part for that. A glimpse of the ocean differs greatly from jumping in. Also, there is still an "I" that had the glimpse. Who had the glimpse?

Q: But I always come back.
MM: Who comes back? From where to where?

Q: The 'edge of mind' feeling though remains, and sometimes I can almost fall back into that state/feeling/whatever with the simplest effort.
MM: This is very good that you can go there at will and it is good practice to keep going "back and forth". But, "the edge of the mind" is not yet having jumped off the cliff, so to speak. That's where you need more love and trust, still.

Q: The only thing that seems to be holding me down are things & family, even my own body.
MM: The only thing that is holding you back is not body, things or family but "I". Who would you be without your things, body and your family? More importantly, who would you be without thought - especially the root thought of all thought which is "I". Who or what would that be? That is who you are! The Nothingness you had a glimpse of - when fully known - you realize is who you are, rather than an experience that you have. This can be known fully before death, but for most at death is when they find out, again and again, life after life. If you find out before death, it is called enlightenment and it does require losing ones fear of death . So far you are experiencing your mind at profound rest which is great, and truly gives a glimpse. There is one more step in order to go beyond, and it is not a step we can take, but a step that is granted. Readiness is achieved by working on love and trust to its utmost. A family is a great training ground to practice love and trust. The readiness I mentioned is nothing but a complete willingness to give up the self.

Q: Makes me wonder if its only something that can be utterly attained at the end of life, when the final tether (body) starts to unwind.
MM: The body is not the tether. The "I" is the tether. Even when there are "almost enlightenment" experiences, it is still the "I" that had them and then loses them again. Hassidic Jews say: "You have to die before you die." This is no small thing.

Q: Do these enlightened folks walk around in this state all the time? I find that hard to bet on, tbh.
MM: They do not run around in the state you describe, because that is not enlightenment.

Q: Crazy, I know, but I'm interested in the philosophical aspects of this question. I've heard of people attaining enlightenment, just curious if they are still walking, talking humans.
MM: Walking, talking humans - with a twinkle in their eyes and a profound peace about them, living ordinary lives. The "great ones" like Buddha or Jesus were just living ordinary lives at the time, and have only become "great" in our minds over time.

The Intelligence Of Crows

IQ Test Or Not?

Here is why you can feel fantastic about reading this blog - maybe. I can easily spin the pretty girl in both directions or take every one inch section of this image separately, and likewise spin it in opposite directions, every one to two revolutions.

When I don't try to do anything and go into non-doing as in meditation, the image just takes turns spinning left and right, about every 8 - 12 revolutions. After a while of that, this one person spins in both directions simultaneously. Maybe only Buddhists can see such a paradox - or people who have been married for a long time and raised many kids. At that point all awareness of her being female vanishes as well, which I found very interesting. Either I am really smart, or Yale wasted a lot of money on these brain studies. I doubt I'd score that high on an IQ test with all those tricky brainteaser puzzles, which involve neither nakedness nor dancing.

But - I am very impressed with whatever science must be behind this moving image.

If you see this lady turning in clockwise you are using your right brain.

If you see it the other way, you are using left brain.

Some people do see both ways, but most people see it only one way.

If you try to see it the other way and if you do see, your IQ is above 160 which is almost a genius.

Then see if you can make her go one way and then the other by shifting the brain's current.
BOTH DIRECTIONS CAN BE SEEN

This was proved at Yale University , over a 5 year study on the human brain
and its functions. Only 14% of the US population can see her move both ways.

I guess that last sentence explains our present financial crisis.