1. Should I attempt to suppress my thinking? I've stopped suppressing thoughts because I think my intellect is supposed to be just like any other sense, but now that I've stopped I seem to be less in EE more just in felicity. Is this due to me being unable to separate identity-thoughts from 'out-from-control' thoughts? Should I just try and not think?

2. Is challenging beliefs/instincts as silly enough to eventually get rid of them? People are often talking about things like physical triggers and alot of stuff that I don't seem to be able to do with a pre-path-access-to-first-jhana skillset, or maybe I just don't quite know what I'm supposed to do, but is that necessary or can I just keep intellectually seeing things as silly? Specifically in reference to instinctual passions, these seem to be things utterly outside of the realm of intellect, is intellectual perception able to touch them?

Practice has been going really well, thanks for all the help with my other recent questions

like feelings, i think try not to suppress or repress thoughts in particular. but generally it seems like a good idea to be focusing more on your senses than your thoughts. thoughts are quite sticky and tend to carry around lots of identity with them... if you find yourself in mind-loops, then maybe apply more sensuousness, become more fascinated by what's around you.

a better scale to look at, instead of thoughts vs. no-thought, might be mindful vs. not-mindful. if you're mindful of your thoughts, along with everything else, then they won't be a problem, and shouldn't take you out of EE mode since they won't be going off on their own, uncontrolled. in essence, be as attentive of them as anything else - don't just decide to not suppress your thinking but then stop looking at them.


well, as your practice progresses you'll start focusing on different things. do you have a particular issue with an instinctual passion now that isn't going away just by thinking of it as silly? if not, i'd say to come back to the question when you do.

EDIT to add: i say that because, if challenging the instinct as silly causes it to abate, then that is, indeed, all you need to do. but you have no way of knowing until the situation actually comes up.

well I'll occasionally feel fear at things that haven't got anything to do with social identity, then try to see it as silly using intellectual arguments, but the thought occured to me that if I hadn't ever intellectually learned this instinctual fear then how could I unlearn it intellectually? same thing with sexual desire. seeing it as silly seems to get rid of it for the present but I was just wondering if I should do anything else to attack it so that it doesn't come back.

and with the suppressing thoughts thing, it does seem to be effective to focus on the senses and just let the thoughts go as they will, maintaining awareness of them. I guess I was trying to hard to let everything just be without any affect regarding anything at all, focusing on one the senses is a nicer mode of experience but I thought I might be somehow perpetuating identity with some form of aversion to thoughts... probably over-thinking lol

My understanding of actualism theory is that it's a game of whack-a-mole when it comes to the instincts. The social stuff is uprooted but with the instincts, you're just putting them down as and when they rise, to keep your brain in PCE-orientation for as much of the time as possible. So the instincts will still be able to come back right until you're AF.

oh ok, so no gradual dismantling of instinct to worry about.

The instincts are pre-cognitive and automatically arise from different external and internal triggers. ex) Seeing or thinking about a woman will automatically bring desire because a woman gives you a chance to procreate (part of your instinct to survive). In order to reach AF, one has to fully understand the instincts through investigation and in this way, they become increasingly harmless.

Once "you" know why an instinct comes around, "you" are now aware of the internal thoughts and external events that heighten the intensity of the instinct and can consciously be harmless (instead of unconsciously fearing/desiring etc through wandering thoughts). In this way by understanding, one can realize they are redundant and not necessary. As the instincts decrease in degree, the senses are more freed and enjoyment is greater.

One, i believe, has to ride out the instincts until they are fully understood and actively prevented through intent (first actively and then automatically). Although one has to "ride" the instincts out, by strengthening and re-strengthening effort with 100% pure intent every moment or increasingly, the process moves faster. Also what helps is putting yourself in conditions that promote intent like watching tv makes the mind zone out but sitting outside keeps one consciously aware.

edit: looking at AF as a fun adventure both into reality and actuality helps make the process more enjoyable IMO.

Hey ya'll... new to this site. Not new to delving into within. I first discovered the AF site some 8 years ago, had reservations and doubts, still do asfaras a few things, and really do not choose to debate. After even more exploring, I seem to always in some way gravitate back to AF -- albeit with my own intepretations.

Whack-a-mole ....ROTFMAO !!! See, to me, I've discovered, whatever path to being AF... HAS to have humor! Otherwise WTF? and what's the point? So thank you for that.

I'm happy to have found a people practicing this that I can converse. Like I said, I resonate with alot of the stuff on the AF site, alot I don't -- and yet -- yummm... something is there . eerrr. I mean here.