Posts by Joseph Ramos11

nimblemaker30 said:😍 🙂 I was actually mulling over questions about property and legal paperwork today—just so you know—and you really have quite the intuition, don't you? You managed to hit right on the head the exact topic that's been grating on my nerves lately.

You're absolutely right, both about the stone and the pleasure.

The realization that this whole thing is just a divine play, that everything is God's will and that He alone is responsible for it all—and that within this context, both our suffering and our joy belong to Him, just as He is the only one truly acting—well, that only helps if a person can bring enough awareness to what's happening to take the position of a neutral observer, watching their own life unfold like a movie playing out right in front of them. Just neutral, perhaps slightly curious about "what's next?" That’s what they call detachment, and it's the only thing that grants a person peace and tranquility regardless of the circumstances.

Synchronicity at work, clearly...🙂

nimblemaker30 said:No, suffering doesn't truly exist. All of this—this whole messy experience—it feels incredibly real, doesn't it? But in truth, it’s all an illusion, nothing more than a dream. Because our perception is so inherently illusory, and because we lack any real understanding of WHO WE ARE, this concept of "suffering" emerges as just another layer of that mirage.

If there is a will behind any given action, then the responsibility rests solely with that will. But if we consider that free will is itself a myth, and that everything unfolding is simply God's will, isn't it true that no one else can be blamed? It falls squarely on Him—the Creator, the owner, and the CEO of this entire universe, who seemingly forgets to watch what He's dreaming about.

That sounds great. In that case, would you mind transferring all your assets to my name? Since your suffering from being broke would just be an illusion, right?😛

Jokes aside, what you're saying is true, but it doesn't really help much when someone actually throws a rock at your foot and it hurts...

By the way, in that context, any kind of pleasure is also just an illusion...

shadownomad4 said:Realization is about the MERCY that God provided through Jesus, allowing a person to be saved so simply—even on their deathbed—regardless of how they lived their entire life.

"I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; no one comes to the Father except through me." John 14:6 This is the realization of the Truth.

And you're absolutely right about that. There’s just a massive difference between how Jesus uses words like "I" or "Me" and how you're interpreting them. When Jesus, that enlightened teacher, says "No one comes to the Father except through me," he's saying you have to reach a specific level of consciousness and self-realization to reach the Father—to reach "heaven" (or Nirvana, the Tao, or whatever term you prefer)...

When you say "I," you're thinking of a physical person made of flesh and blood, someone with a name, a social status, and a specific personality. You're tied up in those concepts, so you assume Jesus thinks and acts just like you do within those same boundaries. That's really where the misunderstanding of his words comes from...

mistygull16 said:Why can't you guys just answer the actual questions? Instead, it's always someone else trying to tell us what we supposedly believe or what we're even allowed to think.
We believe what we believe, and that's all that matters when we stand before God!
If I were forcing myself to believe something that just didn't make sense, I'd feel like a total hypocrite—kind of like those Pharisees. Just my two cents.

Yeah, that would basically make you a hypocrite. You'd end up acting like a politician... you either stick to the party platform or you get kicked out of the party.🤣

Elizabeth Lewis11 said:Hey there, everyone. I see things are starting to heat up in here—quite a lively debate you've got going. I won't stick around to clutter up the thread or get in your way, but I thought I'd leave a quick recommendation for a fantastic Christian forum: www.izaija95.lolbb.com
Best regards,

Nah, that forum of yours is honestly pretty pathetic. If you post anything that doesn't fit their specific vibe, they just delete it instantly... It's sad, really. Typical behavior...🙂

I have a few follow-up questions here:

1) What about people born in parts of the world where they never even had the chance to hear about Jesus? Are you saying they’re headed for hell too?

2) Is your God really that limited that He only sent one Son, leaving millions of decent people—atheists, Buddhists, Hindus, and everyone else—to be considered servants of Satan destined for hell?

briskharbor35 said:The author of the Bible is the Holy Spirit, and honestly, you have to be able to understand it; you need to receive the Spirit first, otherwise, you don't stand a chance. God was sending His people to reclaim territories from folks who had turned their backs on Him and were acting out. I don't really need a post to explain this since I have the Bible right here with me, and I know it's perfect without any flaws. I'm done arguing or trying to prove His Love, because Jesus already did that on the cross.

It's probably for the best, you aren't exactly winning any arguments...😉

briskharbor35 said:Honestly, I don't think I could be any more satisfied if I literally quoted a verse for you, since clearly you don't even believe in the Bible anyway.

I could sit here all day and list how many people God personally killed according to the Bible—exactly 2,391,421 humans (if you count those who actually bothered to tally them up)—or how He ordered His followers to carry out massacres. There are plenty of instances involving children too, like when 42 kids were killed just for laughing at someone's bald head, and so on... if you really want the details, I have it all in a PDF I can drop right here...
So, there's the Bible and its literal versus metaphorical interpretations...

briskharbor35 said:It isn't about my will, it's His, and everything I say is rooted in the Bible, which is the only authority worth listening to since it's His Word written down. So there are no ego games here because my ego died the very day I accepted Christ as my Lord and decided to only do what pleases Him. Basically, whatever I receive in my spirit that aligns with God's Word in the Bible, I embrace and follow; anything else, I toss aside. You really have to know the Word to live a life that's above reproach, otherwise, a person just wanders off on their own path—which is basically a guaranteed fail because they're being led by the wrong spirit. There really isn't a third option or a middle ground.
That "feeling" you're talking about doesn't actually exist; it's just conviction, and this whole argument of yours is hollow simply because you haven't been born again. It’s right there in the Bible: "All spiritual things are foolishness to the earthly man" (paraphrased).
So look, if you aren't hungry for the truth, this whole conversation is pointless and just a waste of time.

Total nonsense. You don't actually know what God's will is. You take what you read in the Bible, run it through your own subconscious filters, and end up just voicing your own desires while claiming they're His. That mechanism you're using is called projection, and it's the foundation of fanaticism and cult mentalities...

briskharbor35 said:The path to God is narrow, while the wide road leads to ruin. Trust me, I've been there, and I wouldn't go back.
Just imagine for a second that you were the father of this entire world, and the only way everyone could truly be one with you was if you gave up your own son. After all that, would you really tell everyone else they could find their way to you through any old method, using different techniques, or going through someone else, basically dismissing everything your son sacrificed and his very name? I don't think you would, and honestly, you probably don't even need to answer that.

Concepts, beliefs... they might hold weight within your own consciousness, but they aren't universal truths. Every person is their own universe, walking their own unique path. Even when it comes to the concept of God and Christ, everyone sees things differently... and that's just how it is. It can't be any other way.

I'm suggesting that while your experience might have been real, what follows feels like typical ego games. It looks like an attempt to box in that experience or force your perspective on everyone else... a bit of messiah complex... that "I'm right and everyone else is wrong" mentality. Those are all hallmarks of fanaticism and narrow-mindedness... Well, if that's the path you want to take, who am I to judge?...

briskharbor35 said:Look, you're born into this the second you actually call on Jesus to step into your life—assuming you truly want Him there and aren't just running some kind of experiment to see what happens. Nothing's gonna move if you're just testing the waters, because God is looking for a heart that's actually sincere.
Here's how it went down for me:
I was carrying so much weight from all the mistakes I'd made, and I finally hit a wall where I just couldn't take it anymore. I was reading "the power of positive thinking" by N. V. Peal and realized that Jesus isn't out to judge me, because He took all my sins and bad vibes right there on the cross, so all I really had to do was call on Him and accept His forgiveness. One night before bed, I was just leaning back against the wall, and I did it. I was just so thirsty for that love and freedom I'd read about everyone else experiencing, and suddenly, I felt this massive release from all that pressure. It was pure joy, man; I felt freer than I ever had in my life. Everything bad in my life just stopped—it wasn't even hard. I just quit. Things like smoking, drinking, drugs, and all that bitterness toward people who screwed me over just vanished, replaced by forgiveness and healing from the PTSD I carried from the war.
When people talk about meeting Christ, just like so many others do, that's what they mean—it's something you actually feel. It's not a guarantee for everyone, obviously (depends on how real you are and how much you crave Him), but it's like this surge of electricity that's actually His Holy Spirit liberating and healing you.
If you ever want to experience something like that, here's a link with everything you'll need🙂

Your issue is that you're thinking in such binary terms—either this or that. What you went through isn't the exclusive property of any single sect, religion, or belief system. You were under immense pressure from guilt, and you found a way to face it; you allowed Christ to wash that sin away from you... And honestly, it all makes sense. The negativity in your consciousness reached a breaking point, causing a shift in your perception, a new standpoint, a new way of seeing things. It all adds up, and it's something that's happened many times before... Something similar happened to me when I first read Osho's "my path, path of the white cloud." But everything after that? That's just the ego playing games. You've processed your experience through a rational mind, and now you think you're the only one with the truth. You've latched onto a new belief system, holding onto it so tightly that you aren't letting yourself see the bigger picture... Just remember, so many people have had experiences like yours. They've had their "encounter with Christ" in all sorts of different ways, shaped by their own subconscious structures... So, take a moment to reflect, broaden your horizons, and please don't misuse that experience to turn yourself into just another fanatic... We have more than enough of those already.

briskharbor35 said:Just a heads up, before I finally crossed paths with Christ, I’d already burned through most of the books you guys are talking about—tried all sorts of meditation stuff, transcendental meditation, you name it. But honestly? It all feels kind of hollow, like it just pulls you away from the Truth, which lives entirely within His Spirit. He’s the one in charge of everything, the ultimate wisdom and knowledge, the only thing that's truly whole. If those ancient Eastern philosophies were actually the key to saving our souls or finding eternal life, reincarnation wouldn't even be taught, right? And look, Jesus did everything specifically so we could receive the gift of eternal life. Even if reincarnation were a real thing, He took it all upon Himself on the Cross so we wouldn't have to go through the cycle of being reborn over and over. That's why God gave us His Son—so we can receive the GIFT of eternal life through Him. Because let's be real, NOBODY can achieve unity with God for eternity through good deeds or spiritual practices alone unless they are done in Jesus's name. I mean, what kind of God would He be if He just ignored His Son's sacrifice and offered other ways to reach that eternal union?

The absolute best part is that all we really need to do is repent for our mistakes and ask Jesus to come into our hearts with His Holy Spirit. Then, we just declare to the spiritual realm with our own voices that, from this moment on, we accept Him as our Savior and Lord who looks after every single part of our lives.🙏

That kind of spiritual experience often results in total freedom—spiritually, mentally, and even physically through healing. So, grab a copy of "The power of positive thinking" by Norman Vincent Peale to help fire up your faith in Jesus, then just call out to Him. You'll experience something so personal you won't even be able to put it into words, but I promise, the story will be incredibly joyful and full of freedom.👍

Where did you run into Him? Did you happen to ask how Elvis Presley is doing?...
🙂

placidharbor7 said:Grooooooooooooooo - ho - ho - ho - hot - hot - hot...
grooooooooooooooo - ho - ho - ho - hot - hot - hot...

Just one single thought—but a perfectly sufficient amount of CORPUS DELICTI—to let a New York City chimney sweep know exactly as much as an invisible mole underground!
When people mistake a mere "glimpse" for the ultimate truth, why on earth would you be surprised by Ma Gangaja or L. Cohen? Besides, placidharbor7 warned us about both those "gangsters" (get it? "GANG-aji," "L. COIN") a long time ago!

Our esteemed moderator, please know that placidharbor7 kindly declines to mix this chaotic mess of shamanic ignorance and cheap tricks with his dignified school of thought.
Let someone else take over this thread for "Ljubi"; even his mentor, Master Pathotepa, was busy cleaning up both of them right here years ago—hiddenpuma7 knows the score. Shamantrika, go find that record!

Do you honestly think N. M. feels that way? I don't. He said that out of pure pity. He knows the questioner can't wrap their head around the fact that free will doesn't exist in any capacity whatsoever, but what's the point in hitting them over the head with that right away?
He’s just feeding him enough to swallow at once, otherwise why would N. M. even bother talking to him? Before a real conversation can even start, this person has to agree to certain compromises... otherwise, a dialogue wouldn't be possible at all.

driftingraven122 said:Yeah, in my opinion—they're real, or at least they trigger real consequences. Much like the ego, I guess.

The real question is whether you identify with your mind and body. If not, then what? Is it more like the philosopher in your signature, maybe?

It’s funny how people act when they disagree or just don't get something. They just shut down. You answer them once, they ask the same thing phrased slightly differently, you answer again, and they just loop back to the exact same question...

I completely agree with you. What we experience is real, at least within the context of the person experiencing it. Honestly, I’d go as far as to say that a "shared reality" is mostly a myth. At best, people happen to overlap on certain things, but most of the time, we all perceive the world through our own lens of desires, goals, and experiences. For example, someone might be obsessed with their Dallas Cowboys; they'll cry if the team loses, while someone else couldn't care less. To the first person, that loss is a tangible reality with real emotional consequences. To the second, it doesn't even exist. A paranoid delusion felt by someone struggling with mental health is just as "real" in their world as that football loss is in the fan's world. It's interesting how those examples aren't actually any different from how we cling to our nationality, race, religion, career, or even our own names...

Edward Flores4 said:Honestly, I feel just as much of an identity crisis as my old membership card from the local Blockbuster used to give me!

I suppose it all comes down to how you were raised—you know, that foundational stuff—but it also really depends on how an individual actually perceives their heritage, those old traditions, and the rituals that make up a culture. It’s about whether or not you actually feel like a meaningful part of that whole manufactured "collective" identity. In my case? Not really... I've never felt even the slightest bit of a connection to that kind of thing.

Look, for what you’re saying to actually hold any water, you’d need some kind of direct line into my subconscious—and let's be honest, you don't have that. You're also missing a pretty vital distinction here: the subconscious isn't necessarily the same thing as the unconscious. Think of consciousness like a cube sitting inside a sphere... essentially, your conscious mind acts as this "container" that tries to hold "N" number of cubic pieces of content pulled from the subconscious. Now, sure, that container probably won't ever be able to swallow every single subconscious element all at once—it just isn't built for that kind of volume—but any individual piece of the subconscious can definitely make its way up to the surface if you're actually looking for it.

See, I’m not just sitting here guessing... I actually know. 😉

Why do you feel like you have to measure everything by your own yardstick? It’s easy to assume everyone operates exactly like we do, but people develop different automatic responses—it's just how they're wired. Maybe some folks actually put in the work to "rework" their old habits specifically so those patterns wouldn't be so rigid or overwhelming for them. Everything sitting inside my head is essentially a product of my own mind... which means, logically, it's just as subject to change as anything else—provided I actually want to change it. Do you really think once an automatic habit is formed, it's set in stone forever? I don't think so.

Sweetie, it’s bedtime. Look at the clock, isn't it late?
Grab a glass of milk and get tucked in. I've got much more important things to do than play tag with you... take care.🙂

Edward Flores4 said:By that logic, wouldn't the same apply to someone dealing with schizophrenia and their hallucinations? They define those people, they dictate how they act and live their lives, so does that make them real too?

Do you really think us "normal" folks are all that different from someone dealing with schizophrenia? Just take a look around... all these wars, the mindless consumerism, senseless violence, drunk drivers, or people tearing through residential neighborhoods on motorcycles at eighty miles an hour...

Does our society actually seem normal to you?

😂

Edward Flores4 said:So, if I'm following you, you're saying the ego is essentially just a hollow concept with no actual "objective" footing in reality? Like, in practical terms, it's just an arbitrary way we choose to frame ourselves and how we interact with everything else?

Not at all. The ego is as real and substantial as you let yourself believe it is. Think about it... Are you identified with your own name? Of course you are. Are you tied to your heritage, your traditions, or your customs? Absolutely. It might not always feel like a conscious thought, but on an emotional and subconscious level, it’s incredibly deep... deeper than you realize. When you sit down and dissect the different parts of the ego, it can start to feel like a total illusion, almost like a trick of the mind. But when you're just living life—driving to work, handling business, or caught up in your daily routine—that ego is very much there. It defines you, it drives your actions, and it runs your life. That makes it real...

Edward Flores4 said:Look, since you're out here claiming the ego actually exists, the burden of proof is squarely on your shoulders. We can't see the ego directly—you know, through basic sight—and we certainly can't detect it indirectly via any modern tech, like an MRI, a CT scan, or even an X-ray. So, if you're arguing it doesn't exist, you don't really need to provide evidence. But the moment you step up and claim the ego *is* a real thing, then it’s your job to solve the whole dilemma of how we define a "reliable metric" for existence versus non-existence.

And since you're clearly a bit of an expert on these matters... I'm sure you'll have no trouble figuring that out.

By the way—what is this "ego" supposed to be, anyway?

It's everything you think you are and everything you use to define yourself. For example, your parents gave you a first name, you inherited a last name, you finished school to become an auto mechanic, and so on. All those things are parts of your ego, and you view reality through the lens of those self-definitions. Let’s say your name is Ivan Ivić and you hear people talking about how Ivan Ivić is lazy and useless. You’d feel hurt because Ivan Ivić is your identity; you’re deeply connected to that name on a subconscious level. Now, if your parents had named you William Shakespeare instead, and you heard people saying Ivan Ivić was lazy and useless, it wouldn't bother you one bit. In that case, you wouldn't subconsciously identify with that name, so an "attack" on that persona wouldn't feel like an attack on yourself. It’s the same with all the other labels and identities we pick up over time—whether they stick or just pass through—they are components of the ego that we identify with more or less...
The more you unconsciously identify with these pieces, the more of a slave you become, making you much easier to manipulate. For instance, if someone identifies strongly as a devout Catholic or a true American, corrupt politicians can easily pull their strings and send them off to fight a war in the name of faith (even in Iraq, who would've thought 🙂) just to serve their own financial interests. You see examples like that every single day...

placidharbor7 said:And one for you too: who exactly is supposed to stop "identifying" themselves?

If you’re going by that logic, then "the one who started identifying" in the first place...😂

And if I'm feeling too lazy for elementary school math: No clue!🙂

placidharbor7 said:Wait, what do you mean it "doesn't exist"?

That’s a fair question!🙂 If I get hit in the head during a dream and feel pain, that pain feels just as real to me as if it happened in my actual life. It's real because you don't really have a better way to distinguish what's real from what isn't, right?...

In other words, the ego is real—as long as you're identifying with it, it's nothing but pure reality to you.