When I got into this stuff last year, I found maps really helpful, but I stopped abruptly at fractals / subnanas, since it felt a little too into the weeds for me. Overall, I try to only use the maps when I need em, plus I have a tendency to overthink things and I didn't want to fall into that trap.

But lately, I can't help but notice these cycles within cycles and it was driving me crazy for a bit. I like my nanas tidy and linear, and I didn't want any Dark Night gunkin up my Equanimity, dangit.

But I recently started watching Russian Doll, and I realized that fractals are a lot like that show and also Groundhog Day. Like you have these recurring cycles over and over again, but you can tweak little things here and there and notice changes ripple out. It adds a lot of depth to things and makes the process a lot more interesting.

Just wanted to share that thought on this for those who might also feel a little lost in the waves of ever-turning cycles.

This is gonna be me someday:


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Those are useful analogies.

Can you get "stuck" in a fractal within a cyle, or at least remain there for a while? For example, when in Misery and subcycling could you remain in Misery.Misery for a while and have a nice miserable time, or move forward and then get stuck in Misery.Equanimity for a while, and have a much more flowing experience of Misery? Essentially I find I can get stuck in a certain nana for a while, so does that also apply to the fractal aspects as well?

Hey Lars, I'm still new to this aspect of practice and I'm not as meticulous about cataloging all the details as maybe I could be, but what I've been experiencing is lightning-fast subcycles, with longer overarching cycles. So rather than feeling trapped, I feel like I'm being whipped around. Little zips of Kundalini up the spine/other A&P stuff have become my "I Got You Babe," where when it comes back I'm like, "This again?!"

Getting "stuck in a nana" could also be described as "learning a nana" or "developing knowledge of the nana". There is something in these mind states that need to be experienced before they are understood and sometimes it takes a while before we understand. The goal is not to bypass nanas but rather to fully experience and understand the nanas. And it's interesting how the mind seems to know where to go to give us the lesson we need. 

The fractal nature of a nana is simply the progression of understanding: first there is the basic effort to see the nana, then there is the powering-up of investigation and a fast growth in understanding, then there is the collapse of what we are capable of and a need to develop new ways of thinking about the nana, then there is the mature stage where the simplistic view of the nana is replaced with much more nuanced and wise.

This basic initial, early, middle, and late stage pattern happens throughout practice in many many ways. But if you can notice the basic pattern...

1) we are initially inspired an make an effort 
2) the effort bears fruit and we become more able
3) we reach the limit of what we can do with our old approach and need to develop a new skill/view (often the exact opposite of stages 1 and 2, for example if "effort" made 1 and 2 happen now "allowing" will make 3 possible)
4) mature and experienced practice, which exists as a linguistic paradox of sorts (e.g. neither effort nor no effort)

... then you can have a little more confidence to really investigate and participate with what is showing up in the mind, rather than assuming it means we're "stuck".

This applies to almost every skill that humans develop.

Thanks, I appreciate the in-depth answer. I've been reading the detailed map .pdf someone linked here, so i'd seen the 4 stages before, but this clarified it somewhat. The "neither effort nor no effort" is the tricky part, I seem to bounce back and forth between each extreme, though I seem to spend more and more time somewhere balanced after each bounce. Anyhow, it'll work itself out as long as I continue to practise. Thanks again.