Fruit of the Contemplative Life
Fruit of the contemplative life: => General Discussion => : Jhanon January 02, 2015, 05:55:41 PM
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Jhananda, what kind of barriers and drawbacks do we face from me creating something like an IRQ chatroom for us? Some kind of real-time discussion application that protects the identities of the participants.
I feel certain, through repeated experiences, that such a medium of real-time communication will yield tremendous fruit. The only drawback being that the content would not be recorded here on the forum for others to see. But, I think that is easily remedied by utilizing records of chat content.
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Sounds good to me. I have tried to get something like this going in the past, but there seemed to be no interest in it. How about using Skype?
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Sounds good to me. I have tried to get something like this going in the past, but there seemed to be no interest in it. How about using Skype?
You read my mind :) I already use Skype, but let me look into the possibility of forum members using it anonymously and retaining that.
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Okay, so this should work. I would recommend creating a new account if you already have a Skype account--unless you're not concerned about anonymity or have already given up your anonymity.
1) Click Here to Create Your Skype Account (https://login.skype.com/account/signup-form)
Creating a Skype account is very easy. Even my grandparents can do it.
2) Click Here to Download and Install the Skype Application (http://www.skype.com/download-skype/)
Login and let us know you're now on Skype! Contact me through forum message to be added to the Skype group. This is to reduce spam to our Skype accounts by not listing our usernames on the thread.
Cheers
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Why should I converse on Skype? Why are you making a big deal out of this?
If you've never or rarely had the intense magical pleasure of experiencing real-time Dhamma talk with an enlightened being, I strongly recommend it. In my own personal experience, my presence in real-time discussion has led to several kundalini awakenings for several different people DURING the conversation. Not only that, but I, myself, have had mystical experiences more times than I can count during authentic mystic conversation.
If I could knowingly persuade you, the reader, in anyway, I would. The only moment for enlightenment is in the present moment. And the energy of enlightenment during such conversation is actually palpable--even in the case of individuals completely new to ALL of this mystic stuff. You can ask Cal for confirmation that I am being honest.
And if not for yourself, if not for ecstasy or bliss, then for a humanitarian effort. Real-time conversation generates deep intuitive insight and wisdom, allowing me to further infuse the book I'm writing with this transformative energy. The sales of this book will go directly to Jhananda, this sangha, and our plans for a caravan or establishment for retreating to or even living in the wilderness.
Getting on Skype could mean a year from now we could be sitting quietly in an absolutely silent meditation hall, having our bodies caressed the by soft breezes and setting sun while we dwell in transcendent ecstasy.
Go! Get on. Send me a message. Have faith.
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Login and let us know you're now on Skype! Contact me through my username Jhanon.GWV
Cheers
Thank-you, Jhanon, for moving forward on creating a Chat Room for those of the GWV who are interested in communicating via voice. I have sent you a contact request via skype.
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I have also sent both of you contact requests for communicating by voice via Skype. My user name is Michel.GWV.
Texting via Skype wouldn't work for me since I type with the same velocity as Stephen Hawkings. You'd find waiting for the next Big Bang event to be a far more pleasant experience than waiting to receive a text message from me, haha.
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LOL. Good, good. This why Skype is a good choice, because it offers an easy way to talk via voice or text. We can even have people type while others talk. So, in Michel's case, he can talk to everyone else in the group while others may choose to type in response.
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Trouble is, Jhanon, I don't like to talk either, and when I do, I talk with the same velocity that I type.
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Well, 3 of us have joined contact via Skype. None of mystics are big into talk, so that is probably why we never got a chat forum going to begin with.
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I do not talk much outside of the realm of dhamma. But in the realm of dhamma, I talk and write extensively. Although, it seems to store up. Some of you might have noticed I disappear for a few months at a time. And during that time, I don't talk much to anyone in my personal life. Strange how it builds up and then bursts.
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So I tried texting with Jhanon on Skype. It was a good experience. It has its merits just as jhanon said. It's a useful tool. But due to my cirrhosis of the liver condition, and my age, I found that I tire easily after 15-20 minutes of exchange. But Jhanon is a power house. I bet he can on until the wee hours of the morning. I look forward to voice Skyping with the GWV group sometime to come.
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Hi, I do prefer texting over voice, here is my skype id: bodhiminded
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Hi, I do prefer texting over voice, here is my skype id: bodhiminded
I'll add you to the group when I get on the computer in a bit.
Had an excellent 3.5 hour talk with Michel. I gained a tremendous amount of intuitive insight just by having a voice call with him. I still think people underestimate just how quickly one can learn and develop during real-time discussion.
But, the Buddha didn't say that "spiritual friendship is the whole path" for no reason. That's for certain :) The "magic" of real-time, authentic Dhamma discussion continues to amaze me. I've been doing some rough calculations regarding the level of development I experienced over the last 5 years of practice, and it's as follows. The rates are assuming one is following the N8P to the best of their ability everyday.
Rate of Development
Alone (books, suttas, searching): 1
+Generically Spiritual Friend: 1.25
+Real-time with like-minded unattained group: 1.75
Messaging with High Attainment Teacher: 5
+Forum/Message with High Attainment Group: 7
+Real-Time Discussion: 9
That's the fastest way I can put it together at present.
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I think a chat room, or conference call can work. We have a few people who are interested in getting together via the chat room/conference call. So, now perhaps a little organization will help it happen. Should we set a date and time and a topic to discuss?
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I think a chat room, or conference call can work. We have a few people who are interested in getting together via the chat room/conference call. So, now perhaps a little organization will help it happen. Should we set a date and time and a topic to discuss?
That's an excellent point, Jhananda. I think we should first determine the topic, which will motivate people to be there. So, everyone;
What are you still curious or unsure about?
What have you been struggling to learn or understand?
What important knowledge have you recently acquired that isn't clearly shown on the forum?
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We are practicing towards understanding our suffering and how to end it. Why not discuss this?
It maybe better just to start a thread on this great subject since if we 'conference call it' we'll forget everything we discussed, and the texting that we do will have to be copied and pasted into any threads that we start afterwards. On the other hand with conferencing we can brain storm it then afterwards we can discuss it on the forum. I'm just guessing. Let's just do it and see how she goes.
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I think we should first determine the topic, which will motivate people to be there. So, everyone;
What are you still curious or unsure about?
What have you been struggling to learn or understand?
What important knowledge have you recently acquired that isn't clearly shown on the forum?
We are practicing towards understanding our suffering and how to end it. Why not discuss this?
I think all of these suggestions are excellent topic choices. So, now we have to agree upon one topic to discuss.
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I've made an account on here at Alexander.GWV.
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I'll pop on and add you.
And in lieu of any topic suggestions so far, I suggest:
What important knowledge have you recently acquired that isn't clearly shown on the forum?
I would like to discuss my insights into EXACTLY what "mastering the 4 stages" of meditative absorption means, and then hear from the others and go from there.
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OK, so we have a date now for a video conference call via Skype. It is Tomorrow at 3pm Arizona time. If you can join us, then it should be interesting.
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At the very least, I think it will be far more catalyzing than forum discussion for us non-arahants.
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I believe that this is 3pm Mountain Standard Time Zone, 2pm Pacific Coast Time Zone; 1pm Central Time Zone; noon Eastern Time Zone; 11AM Atlantic Time Zone.
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Thank you, Jhananda.
One last reminder, that the proposed beginning topic is discerning jhana level and attainment in the case of aspirants new to jhana. I've repeatedly run into aspirants (someone give me a better word for that) who say they can't access jhana, and then describe their meditation experiences to me which end up being jhana. The same thing happened to me for two years, before I finally realized I had been accessing it. Once I realized it, I made rapid progress.The same goes for the other aspirants.
What i wish to specifically discuss is the vast gap in how an aspirant and an enlightened being experience the form jhanas. Meaning, the experience of an enlightened being will almost perfectly match that as described by the Buddha, whereas that of an aspirant will not--even though the aspirant is absolutely accessing jhana.
If it pleases the sangha, I'd like to briefly give an example and then hear thoughts from a range of attainment levels. Where it goes from there is sure to be interesting.
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Before we begin in a couple hours, I have a few last points to ensure this goes pleasantly--as I've already crash-coursed in Skype group calls.
1) Firstly, there must be a moderator. Someone who everyone knows is sort of guiding the flow of the discussion. Otherwise some talk endlessly, some never get a chance, or everyone wastes time talking at once. I'm happy to take that position in this call, because I'm very familiar with it. I may not even need to do anything, but I'll basically pay attention to who tries to speak and ensure they are heard. For those who are less assertive, there is number 2.
2) While you're in the Skype call, you're still capable of writing to everyone in the chat window as well. So, if you have a strong inspiration to express something, you can simply type "1" or a few words--just something that shows you wish to talk next. It's like a talking stick. The moderator will ensure you get your chance to speak next.
Within 1 or 2 calls this all becomes natural and flows very beautifully. Simply the experience of harmonious discussion is pleasant.
Cheers
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Michel, Jhanon, and Rougeleader. It was a very positive experience for me, and I believe for them as well.
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Word. I have scheduled a repeat for next Sunday at the same time. The catalyzing nature was palpable, and I now, more than ever, consider these regular real-time meetings one of the highest priorities for us and the future prosperity of the GWV and its ability to support genuine mystics.
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I expect that we will have another fire-side chat on SKYPE today. 4PM my time (Mountain Time) works better for me, but if it does not for those who wish to be there, then let me know as soon as possible so that I can accommodate your request.
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What time do you mean? You have a typo.
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Thanks, Michel, for the heads up. I mean, 4PM my time (Mountain Time) works better for me.
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That's 6pm eastern time where I live. I usually have supper at that time, but I'll eat earlier, I don't mind. Until then.
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I can also accommodate that. Works better for me, as well as I've been too busy to generate topic discussion on this thread for the chat. Discussion is in 1 hour and 24 minutes from the time of this post.
I'll be there.
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I've been very busy with my family....
So, I am sorry to say I've not yet spent time finding a free and easy way to record our Skype calls. Nor, of course, have I set it up. So, unless someone can easily do that who will be attending--we need a notetaker.
Notetaking and Last Week's Takeaway
In place of more notes, the gist takeaway from last week's discussion was that people respond differently to different words. Some aspirants are attaining jhana and much deeper than they are able to see, because what they think a word like "bliss" should feel like, doesn't feel that way to them (which is a personal example that kept me from realizing the depth of my meditation for many years.) Therefor, we've resolved to create threads where we each describe our most consistent experience of each jhana. I've yet to create this thread or check to see if it was. I am sorry.
Topic for the Week
We have a format that is working well for discussion rhythm, so all that's remaining is a suggested topic for this call. My intent in getting this voice/chat going was to help move the GWV forward and develop the Fruit of the Contemplative life. If anyone has any ideas on a topic that can help many, please say so.
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I finished my work for the day early, so I am now available starting at 3PM, if anyone wants to start the chat early.
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Excellent. Thank you for letting us know.
Proposed Topic
I wish to propose the topic of the present moment as.....I don't know how to quickly explain it, other than I conducted an experiment with music and meditation that revealed the kind of insights that--yes I say it often--caused tears to run. The circumstances itself were very unusual--a car full of people flying over a snowy mountain pass far too quickly.
If I talk about it, it can be put into meaningful words.
Everyone is welcome to propose a topic, and we will make sure to get to it in the order which it's received or members of the discussion wish to hear it. Either post it on here during the week, or in the Skype group chat pane before or during the group chat.
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Group call is currently in progress.
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I enjoyed our chat very much. It would be nice to record these chats. I think we may need to find another venue than SKYPE for that.
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I enjoyed our chat very much. It would be nice to record these chats. I think we may need to find another venue than SKYPE for that.
How to Easily Record Skype Calls
I've addressed, tested, and resolved the issues with that. A free application now records both audio and video automatically whenever I use Skype on my laptop. I can share it in .wav or .mp3. So, we're all set--as long as I'm present at the call (or someone else who has TalkHelper.) For someone with a newer device, it is a very simple setup of download and install. Uploading to something like YouTube should be straight-forward.
It's called TalkHelper and can be accessed here: http://www.talkhelper.com/
It is a Windows program, but there are other free applications out there. If necessary, a Mac user can download a program which is capable of installing and using any Windows program. The name of it eludes me at the moment, and I've not researched it for many years since.
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Thank-you, Jhanon, for your kind support of mystics like you and I. I look forward to being able to see our video conferences on line soon, for those who do not live within our time frame.
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Thank-you, Jhanon, for your kind support of mystics like you and I. I look forward to being able to see our video conferences on line soon, for those who do not live within our time frame.
I'm glad to be of service.
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I expect that we will have another chat via Skype today. I will be available from 3PM on, so perhaps it will be better for others if we start at 3PM Mountain time?
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The 2 hour chat was successfully recorded. I am going to try to find the time to extract a 30-minute continuous chunk from the midway point in the conversation which should be appropriate to post.
Another call will occur same time as usual this week unless requests are made.
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Okay, Michel, RogueLeader, and anyone else. Let's have a Dhamma Discussion! We're all set for recording, if we wish. Should be a good one!
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I hope it went well. The notice came out a bit late for me, and last week it got started late, and I have a lot still to do to move by the end of the month, so I felt I needed to work on the move. I expect that next weekend will be the same for me.
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I understand. My laptop died, and I have many projects and others who have taken up all my time. I don't even have skype on this laptop I just got.
I'll be available on my phone Skype at the usual 2pm PT for anyone who may want to chat. No recording because the laptop did that part.
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Do we have anyone wishing to attend this weekend's Sunday session? Please let me know within the next 24 hours, if you can. We can also probably reschedule for another day.
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Thank-you, Jhanon, for keeping the GWV Chat Room going. We are in the middle of a 6-day rain storm, so there is not much for me to do regarding moving, so I plan to be available for the conference call, which will be at 5PM EST/ 4PM CST/3PM MST /2PM PST/
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I am sorry I have not kept my duties with this. It seems everyone is fairly busy, and I've had several intuitions there hasn't been individuals to attend who have microphone or camera ability. But, I will resume should someone request it. Simply private message me.
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Requested. I regret missing these. I have also created a skype profile Cal.GWV
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Hi Cal, good to know that you are interested in joining the GWV chat room. If I am going to participate, then it will have to be arranged at times when I can use the public library, because I do not have broadband at this time.
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I'm still interested as well, i find much solace in talking with mystics... maybe I can find a way to record skype conversations easily (since my timezone is completely opposite of US time)...