Some of the things that can't make me happy ...

[Guest guest]

You know when you really get this Inquiry thing it really blows your

mind. All those things that I thought brought me pleasure I realize

(in a moment of clarity) were just a confused lies I was telling

myself and innocently believing.

Here is my list of some of the things that CAN NEVER make me feel

good.

Music

Fine art

A beautiful sunset

Women

Children

Fine jewelry

A beautiful house

If I think any of these things are the CAUSE of my good feelings I am

very confused, because ONLY my THOUGHTS can make me feel anything at

all. As says the order of creation is THINK, FEEL, ACT, HAVE.

So no thought, no feeling even if I am standing in front of the

painting of the Mona , wearing one million dollars worth of

jewelry and Chopin is playing in the background.

Now all this is very good news to someone really interested in

freedom because it means that I can be happy anywhere. My happiness

is not dependent on anything external, it is dependent ONLY on my

THINKING. Takes some time to really get this, and the far reaching

implications for how I see my world

" Sanity doesn't suffer, ever . . . ever! Sanity doesn't suffer,

ever, ever! Isn't that lovely? " Byron

[Guest guest]

Dear lovetheworkofbk,

Thank you for the reminder. :-)

You said:

" Now all this is very good news to someone really interested in

freedom because it means that I can be happy anywhere. "

I would add to that: " Now all this is very good news to someone

really interested in freedom because it means that I can be happy

anywhere, and with or without anything or anyone. "

As has said, this means nothing until we can say this when we

are in the middle of it.

" It has recently ocurred to me that any pain or suffering can be

linked to 'a simple case of mistaken identity', or as KT puts

it, " all pain is confusion " and " Sanity doesn't suffer, ever " .

Steve D.

>

>

> You know when you really get this Inquiry thing it really blows

your

> mind. All those things that I thought brought me pleasure I realize

> (in a moment of clarity) were just a confused lies I was telling

> myself and innocently believing.

>

> Here is my list of some of the things that CAN NEVER make me feel

> good.

>

> Music

> Fine art

> A beautiful sunset

> Women

> Children

> Fine jewelry

> A beautiful house

>

> If I think any of these things are the CAUSE of my good feelings I

am

> very confused, because ONLY my THOUGHTS can make me feel anything

at

> all. As says the order of creation is THINK, FEEL, ACT, HAVE.

> So no thought, no feeling even if I am standing in front of the

> painting of the Mona , wearing one million dollars worth of

> jewelry and Chopin is playing in the background.

>

> Now all this is very good news to someone really interested in

> freedom because it means that I can be happy anywhere. My happiness

> is not dependent on anything external, it is dependent ONLY on my

> THINKING. Takes some time to really get this, and the far reaching

> implications for how I see my world

>

> " Sanity doesn't suffer, ever . . . ever! Sanity doesn't suffer,

> ever, ever! Isn't that lovely? " Byron

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 10/5/2004 9:31:13 AM Eastern Standard Time,

mwille@... writes:

Dear Lovie,

I was asking you if you are aware of the thoughts behind the music

when when you feel joy and freedom. What would they be?

For me, I am very excited to be able to finally hear my

heart/mind song....and know that it has nothing to do with the

external landscape..

Love nne

im truly thinking about this. and i don't know what the thoughts are. i

know the *feelings*, but at the time of being immersed in music, thoughts are

very quiet or possibly absent. if anything, once in a while my mind will

interject " oh my god! " or something similar. it is as if i am hearing my

heart/mind

song being played for me by four people who appear to be outside of me, and my

thought then might be " oh my god! how do they know?! " it feels like a very

deep and mysterious connection of the music to something inside myself that is

actually very difficult to put into words...but i appreciate your questions,

and look very forward to being able to hear my heart/mind song regardless of

whats in front of me.

love,

jeremy

[Guest guest]

Dear Lovie,

I was asking you if you are aware of the thoughts behind the music

when when you feel joy and freedom. What would they be?

For me, I am very excited to be able to finally hear my

heart/mind song....and know that it has nothing to do with the

external landscape..

Love nne

[Guest guest]

> im truly thinking about this. and i don't know what the thoughts

> are. i know the *feelings*, but at the time of being immersed in

> music, thoughts are very quiet or possibly absent.

Here is how it works, in my limited understanding

There is normally a lot of mental chatter in my mind, much of which

gives rise to stressed feelings. When I hear some lovely music I

attach to the thoughts processing that sensory information, which

means for a time I drop my attachment to my normal mental chatter. It

appears as if I am not thinking, and this is in one sense true I am

not attaching to my normal mental chatter. However, I am still

thinking thoughts but the thoughts processing the music are nothing

like my normal mental chatter, so I think that I am not thinking but

that is not true.

I once read a story about a concert pianist who was severely

depressed except when he was playing the piano when he felt wonderful.

He used to practice more than eight hours a day just to keep the good

feelings. After some careful awareness on his part he came to see

that when he played the piano he was not attaching to his normal

mental chatter which was depressing him. The pieces he played on the

piano were so complex that his thoughts were solely focused on the

music. When he stopped playing the usual mental chatter started up

again and he felt depressed. This also explains why movies, beautiful

sunsets, beautiful paintings, meditation etc. make me feel so good.

For awhile I cease to attach to the normal mental chatter in my mind,

and I engage with a very pure and simple sensory thought which causes

many beautiful feelings.

If you still don't get this don't worry I am just writing it so I can

hear it

Sanity doesn't suffer, ever . . . ever! Sanity doesn't suffer, ever,

ever! Isn't that lovely?