fred flinstone:
Hmm, maybe that will work... Sort of have felicity as the bottom line and from there just focus on the senses to the point where the answer to HAIETMOBA is the senses.
Ok, I resolve to always have felicity and then whenever I can manage it, layer focusing on the senses on top of that, if I get irritated back off the senses and get to felicity.
or depending on your resolve you might be able to look at it directly and see it as silly and watch it fade. but yea that would be getting back to felicity.
also try having it not be so important to 'you' to have one. this one still gets me, and it's annoying as heck, but if 'you' think its important to have a PCE, 'you' will grasp for it, and that will prevent the PCE from happening.
in a similar vein, try allowing yourself to have one - just let yourself know that it's ok before you start the day or go on a walk.
fred flinstone:
If I stick with this will I one day have a PCE? Like 5 years from now maybe? Will I have to be a totally different person first? Or will it be a matter of a realization that is out of my control? Eh I guess it doesn't matter.
hmm well a PCE can happen any time.
sometimes fear comes up when i get close to a PCE - fear of oblivion, perhaps. but asking 'is it okay to go away and be in a PCE right now?' is kind of a redundant question, since the PCE is always happening.. it's just the senses and those are operating at full capacity, just overshadowed by a 'self'. so remember (i still forget) that it's not a far-away magical paradise.. it's a right-here magical paradise =P.
what do you mean by 'will i have to be a totally different person first'? becoming a happier and more harmless person will certainly help. 'you' just have to fade away for a little bit.
the issue of time is a red herring - it's just 'you'. maybe re-read the "this moment of being alive" essay and the "apperceptiveness" essay - it's always now. things can only change now. worrying about when it will happen is something that happens now and prevents you from being felicitous. so treat the worrying about time just like you treat a random momentary annoyance - just more negative stuff to get rid of. that is to say, that flavor of worrying doesnt have any special meaning as opposed to any other flavor of worrying.
fred flinstone:
also, when I'm just paying attention to my senses, is there anything I should be doing other than trying to focus on the clean sense percept and not 'interpreting' or 'mediating' the perception of sense data?
enjoy them! be fascinated by them. pay attention to the little details if they catch your eye. have you noticed that nothing is just one color? and white isn't really white - it's the color of everything that's reflecting onto it. but also pay attention to the totality of your experience. maybe focus on just the periphery of your vision for a bit - i notice if i focus on it the right way it seems to expand until i cant see the edge anymore.
so yeah basically play around + have fun.