James: No, I wasn’t aware of why Richard called it pure intent. I need to make the connection that he called it that because of the intent that it was his destiny. Still not completely sure I have that right. I know it’s important to be precise. Still looking at that. In your next paragraph I see that it is the intent to take yourself to your destiny as opposed to having something else do it for you.
I don’t know what specific objection I have right now to becoming free. I am drawing a blank such as I don’t know. Will keep looking.
I think my objection right now to becoming free is that the ‘me’ that is preventing it is not a ghost. It is real. (link)
Hi James,
Today I read again Claudiu’s report about this visiting Geoffrey and what he had to say might help your contemplation on pure intent and self-immolation –
Claudiu: Basically the way he [Geoffrey] put it is, what will happen in the universe if I physically die? Essentially nothing except this body is dead (most of it will continue as-is). And the point is that the only difference with self-immolating rather than dying, is that there is a body that will continue being conscious (and not fall into a coma or whatever). But for me it will be exactly the same as if the body physically died, no difference whatsoever for me – total extinction. That put the notion to rest that I would continue in any way after self-immolating.
He also really impressed upon me just how significant this is. It’s not kid stuff. It’s not a playground ride or a roller coaster where you get on it then come back and get off and you’re back to where you were. It is a one-way ride with no return ticket. So long as the enormity of it is not grasped – to which fear and dread are a normal response – then it’s still just being on the playground ride.
Only once this is grasped then can the decision be made to take the leap and continue anyway (otherwise you’re just imagining yourself to be on a cliff but you’re really on a flat ground, and you don’t see the edge to jump off of but only think you do). So you have to actually get to the edge of the cliff (seeing the enormity of the extinction) and only then you can decide to jump.
And that decision to jump, self-immolation doesn’t happen right then – it takes a little longer, which is the final, constantly-accelerating, out-from-control process which Geoffrey experienced for about a week. But he said the experience after jumping is one of constantly accelerating, and also no dread afterwards, the dread part (“wall of fear”) only happens before. (30 May 2025)
As you can see one needs to have a full and existential comprehension of what ‘self’-immolation means for the identity. No intellectualising about ‘a ghost in the machine’ can give you the reality of your oblivion-extinction.
When you grasp this fully, your objection to it will become more specific and then you know more precisely what to look at. As Geoffrey emphasises, this is “not kid stuff. It’s not a playground ride or a roller coaster where you get on it then come back and get off and you’re back to where you were”.
James: Intellectually I know that ‘me’ is a ghost. What makes it seem real is the feeling. The feeling comes first and then initiates the thought which makes it seem real. It is only a feeling which is not real that keeps me from being free. It seems simple enough: Disappear the feeling and I am free. (link)
Now here you present a typical logical-intellectual argument – if a) is so), then b) must happen. This is merely painting a misleading map and is not at all how it works in practice.
You must have read, and conveniently forgotten, that Richard said many times –
Richard: ‘Often people who do not read what I have to say with both eyes gain the impression that I am suggesting that people are to stop feeling … which I am not. My whole point is to cease ‘being’ – psychologically and psychically self-immolate – which means that the entire psyche itself is extirpated. That is, the biological instinctual package handed out by blind nature is deleted like a computer software programme (but with no ‘Recycle Bin’ to retrieve it from) so that the affective faculty is no more. Then – and only then – are there no feelings … as in a pure consciousness experience (PCE) where, with the self in abeyance, the feelings play no part at all. However, in a PCE the feelings – passion and calenture – can come rushing in, if one is not alert, resulting in the PCE devolving into an altered state of consciousness (ASC) … complete with a super-self. Indeed, this demonstrates that it is impossible for there to be no feelings whilst there is a self – in this case a Self – thus it is the ‘being’ that has to go first … not the feelings.
It is impossible to be a ‘stripped-down’ self – divested of feelings – for ‘I’ am ‘my’ feelings and ‘my’ feelings are ‘me’. Anyone who attempts this absurdity would wind up being somewhat like what is known in psychiatric terminology as a ‘sociopathic personality’ (popularly know as ‘psychopath’). Such a person still has feelings – ‘cold’, ‘callous’, ‘indifferent’ – and has repressed the others.
What the wide and wondrous path to an actual freedom is on about is a virtual freedom wherein the ‘good’ feelings – the affectionate and desirable emotions and passions (those that are loving and trusting) are minimised along with the ‘bad’ feelings – the hostile and invidious emotions and passions (those that are hateful and fearful) – so that one is free to feel well, feel happy and feel perfect for 99% of the time. If one minimises the ‘good’ and ‘bad’ feelings and activates the felicitous/ innocuous feelings – happiness, delight, appreciation, joie de vivre/ bonhomie, friendliness, amiability and so on – in conjunction with sensuousness – then the ensuing sense of amazement, marvel and wonder can result in apperceptiveness.
If it does not … then one is way ahead of normal human expectations anyway as the aim is to enjoy and appreciate being here now for as much as is possible.
It is a win/win situation. [Emphasis added]. (Richard, Articles, A Précis of Actual Freedom)
Perhaps the whole article is worth re-reading for refreshing your memory.
In other words, feelings do not disappear until ‘I’ cease being. ‘I’ am my feelings and my feeling are ‘me’.
Cheers Vineeto