Top 50 Beliefs Keeping You from Being Conscious Awakeness Right Now
- I am not the body.
- I am contained by the body.
- I am the mind.
- I am not the mind.
- I am not awake.
- I am awake.
- I should be awake.
- I will be awake soon.
- I should be clear, just like the great teachers are/were
- I’ll never be clear like the great teachers are/were
- I’m making a lot of spiritual progress.
- I’m not making any spiritual progress at all.
- I’m working too hard at this.
- I’m not working hard enough at this.
- I need to practice more.
- I need to give up practice.
- I need a new practice.
- I’m going back to my old practice.
- There’s nothing I can do to initiate an awakening.
- There’s something I can do to initiate an awakening.
- I don’t have the time to devote to this, but I still think it’s important.
- I don’t understand what everyone is talking about.
- I understand what everyone is talking about.
- If it weren’t for fill-in-the-blank, I could wake up.
- If I could just calm the mind, give up thinking, become celibate-vegetarian-vegan-fill-in-the-blank, I could wake up.
- I need to give up all desires.
- I will give up all desires as soon as I satisfy this one last craving.
- If my family would just get off my back I could wake up.
- If didn’t have this damn job, then…
- If I could get a damn job, then…
- I need to talk to Fred.
- I don’t need to talk to Fred.
- Right after this retreat, this book, this course, this video, then…
- I’m going to do it my way.
- If my hair weren’t falling out.
- If my tooth didn’t hurt.
- I need to purify.
- I don’t need to purify.
- I don’t care about a big spiritual experience.
- I’ve got to have a big spiritual experience.
- If my bills were paid.
- If I lived in a cave.
- If I lived near the ocean.
- If I lived in the mountains.
- I’m going to wake up soon.
- I need to do [anything] first.
- I’ll do it while I’m on vacation.
- I’ll do it as soon as vacation is over.
- I’ll do it next vacation.
- I don’t need a teacher.
September 10, 2017 @ 11:49 am
Thanks, Fred. It reminds me of the 12-Step principal that we must commit to unconditional sobriety. It’s even more applicable to awakening. Awakening, by its nature, must be unconditional. After all, it’s the absolute!
?Kathleen
September 10, 2017 @ 5:33 pm
Hey, Kathleen!
In 12 Step recovery they sometimes say that it’s all about accepting life on life’s terms. What’s not stated so often is that accepting life on life’s terms includes accepting the unit as it is -until it isn’t.
September 10, 2017 @ 5:26 pm
Lol, Fred. Great list. I have to admit, I’ve been guilty of many of these. 🙂
September 10, 2017 @ 5:30 pm
Yes, all of us will have suffered from at least some of these, and most of us will have been faced with many. Count me in the latter camp. 🙂