Addiction – The Real Cause

Michael Cupo proposes that society does not clearly address the real cause of addiction. He has an understanding that all addictions can be overcome when that real cause is addressed and understood. – See more at: http://ow.ly/I57B1

A Tribute

Here is a tribute someone messaged to me about my book. I was so honored by this that I wanted to share it.

I have 2 online businesses, on both I posted your book, It’s Monday Only in Your Mind as reading material for 2015. Your written experience has influenced me more than any book I have read, what my M.A. in psych has taught me, 16 years of on/off therapy, Byron Katie workshops, personal interaction with Phil Lombardo, Shakit Gawin , Bob Stahl, Louise Hays and various Hay House authors that I personally know who have directed me towards my true being of love. I haven’t seen my therapist in 6 weeks. I am looking forward to a new relationship with him and with myself. Thank you so much for discovering the truth and sharing it with the world. Without meeting you, I believe you are my friend.

Unconditional Love

A Mother’s love is special because of the connection she has with her child. This connection is unconditional love beyond what words can describe and it’s a love formed in the womb because mom and the child are one…

A Mother’s love is something that needs no words to describe. It’s a love that’s forever binding regardless of what happens. Watching a mother care for her child is so beautiful and this isn’t limited to humans. Mom loves from instincts, it’s a love that occurs from within. Watching a mother take care of her child is the love that everyone should have for each other. This love is the same love that the Universe has for each and everyone of us. A Mother loves all her children the same as the Universe loves all of us the same. Mom doesn’t see color and never puts conditions on her love, she just loves. If we are to survive as a species we will need to go beyond the limits of the mind and see how to love unconditionally. We’ll need to observe how a Mother loves and mimic that with all humanity.

A Mother’s love never ends. There may be disappointment in her heart at times, but that’s only because she wants what’s best and it’s the love in her heart crying out. Mankind is on a course of self destructing and it’s because of the lack of love in their heart. If it’s not seen how the Universe is our mother and we are all brothers and sisters, our separation will be the end of us. Mom is always there for us as is the Universe, but unfortunately we are given enough rope to hang ourselves and that’s exactly what many do. Watch a Mother give birth and see the light in her eyes, it’s the same light (the stars) the Universe has for all humanity. This light arises because there’s no thought of herself, the child born is just an extension of herself; they are one. Only when we all see each other in the same way will we as a species turn our attention to loving each other unconditionally; seeing the light of oneness in each other’s eyes…

Accept It and Move On

You can only act in ways that are already in you. A trigger activates the Conditioned Mind and one can only act according to what’s in place. Accept it and as the mind settles, you can move on…

Our unity as a society is dependent on learning to love unconditionally; ourselves and others. If we judge ourselves there is no way we won’t judge others, and in our judgements unity as a society will not happen. Our unity with humanity doesn’t start with humanity, it starts with ourself. If we can’t accept ourselves as we are, there’s no way we will be able to accept anyone else as they are. We may be able to accept them for a time, if they are as we want them to be, but they remaining that way will also be fleeting at best. This ability to accept ourselves will only occur when we know our own mind. And only in the sense of how it is the cause of not accepting ourselves exactly as we are.

Think of this when you act in a way that’s not in your best interest, where does that originate from? Who would purposely act in a way that isn’t beneficial to their own well being, but it’s done all the time. These acts come from one’s own mind, but it’s not the act that causes the problem, it’s wanting the way one acts to be in some other way that’s the problem. It’s impossible to change what’s already been done so accept it and move on. It may be possibly if you are practicing living a life that allows the mind to settle. The next time something triggers the Conditioned Mind to act in a way that’s not in your best interest you may be able to respond differently. The thing is if you do act in a way that’s not beneficial, accept it and move on. When the mind settles enough, you will stop acting in ways that aren’t in your best interests, but in the meantime understand you are perfect just as you are because good, bad, or indifferent, you are only doing what you are conditioned to do, so accept it and move on…

Mindful of Yourself

The road that leads to a peaceful life begins and ends with yourself. You can be mindful that you’re thinking about the past or future, but the only place you’ll ever be free is right now…

When a practice of mindfulness is in place it’s to allow the present moment to be experienced, this is within yourself. Being mindful of what’s actually happening as opposed to being pulled around by it determines the amount of peace there is in life by allowing you to mind yourself. Life is magical in its essence, but there’s nothing magical with being mindful of yourself. All roads that lead to a peaceful life begin and end in the present moment, and a mindfulness practice will assist in keeping you mindful of this.

A thought arises, be mindful of it, now watch another, this is a tool as is the breath to be used to keep you mindful of yourself. One cannot be mindful in the past or future. You can be mindful that you’re thinking about the past or future, but you can never actually be there. Every watched thought or breath can only be taken as it’s happening. The more you become mindful of this, the more focused you become in the body and being in the present moment as opposed to grasping for the story of the past or future. Be mindful of this article pertaining to you and then be mindful of what arises. Just be with it by being mindful of yourself. It’s in this space that you will find the peace because it’s the only thing that’s there…

A Past Reality

For many, the past has way too much control over what is done today. Until this is identified and the past is let go of, you will continue to be controlled as if you were a puppet on a string…

Understanding that living life today as opposed to living it from what happened in the past, is the difference in being at peace or being controlled by conditioning. When you’re living today you’re with true reality, not a made up one. When there isn’t the reality of today, there’s the delusional state of the past which makes for very little if any peace in your life.

The reality of what’s occurring today means if you’re reading this post, that’s reality. There’s nothing else going on beyond what’s in front of you (right now). There may be something going on between your ears, but that’s the created delusional state of the past (what isn’t). The bottom line is the past is not the reality of what’s occurring today.

The mind has been conditioned to think it has to use the past to create a life that’s better than the one that’s occurring today; this is what keeps you from truly living life. I’m not sure why this is, but I do know it has to do with influences beyond one’s control. To me what matters is to develop a disciplined through sitting which allows you to break free of the control of outer influences. Control is control so the more you’re controlled by the past the less reality there will be. Unless you live with the reality of today and learn how to identify past influences, it will be impossible to ever be free because you’ll remain under the spell of what happened in the past…

Awareness Space

Not justifying everything you do creates the space needed to go beyond the unconscious view. This allows enough awareness so the way things are looked at changes…

When it’s said one is aware it can be described as being conscious of all the different mental factors that arise in each moment; this allows knowing why you see things as you do. It doesn’t prevent what arises or what happens, but it can lessen the reactions and some of the consequences associated with not being aware of this; but only if there isn’t attachment. Nothing inherently causes problems for anyone, alcohol never poured itself down someone’s throat. To reach for it it has to be viewed as beneficial. Same for drugs, gambling or anything else, nothing causes anyone to abuse it, it’s the individual alone who unconsciously sees them as beneficial. Granted most of this self destructive reaching is done without awareness, but I do try to shed light on this. I know a thing or two about this because I was unaware for forty nine years.

So many things controlled me and as long as I was unaware of this, unconsciousness continued its onslaught of control. How this unconscious view gets deeply ingrained is by justifying everything that’s done. From pointing out the faults of others, to being nasty to people, and so many other justified behaviors, all this does is keep the unconscious view in place. Aware that this is being done is the first step in breaking the chains of the unconscious view. Stop looking out there for answers, stop blaming and talking about others, in other words stop justifying everything you do and this just may create the space needed to allow you to go beyond the way you look at things. After all, if you’re unaware of the way you view things and it doesn’t change, the onslaught of being controlled by an unaware view will remain…

Bodily Presence

This is one of my most valuable and cherished articles, it’s worth repeating. It’s life changing if applied…

The mind is usually everywhere but in the present moment, the body is a great anchor to use in a sitting practice because there’s no way it can’t be in the present moment…

The importance of developing a sitting practice is in how this develops discipline which allows the mind to settle enough so one is in the present more often than not. The breath is used for this because it anchors you in the body which is always in the present. You never take a past or future breath, you can only take a breath in the present, this is why the breath is used. It’s the same reason chants are used, when Om is used, or EFT, you don’t Om or tap in the past or the future, you do it right now. When this is done it anchors you in the body which is always in the Now. The mind for most is constantly in the past or future, there are times when it’s present, but this is fleeting and mostly occurs because of happenstance. The body is a great anchor to use in a sitting practice because there’s no way it can’t be present. This doesn’t prevent anything from happening, but what it does do is it allows for one’s awareness to be with what’s happening instead of using resisting energy and trying to push what arises away. This resisting energy is at the core of how addictions manifest.

Besides a sitting practice, I often use the tool of simply looking down at my feet, and since wherever my feet are there I am, it also anchors me in the present. This is also why one uses a mindfulness practice, such as walking meditation because as you are mindful of each step, you’re anchored in the body which as stated before, is always in the present moment. Life is magical in relation to the things that occur for one’s energy to be transformed to form, but there’s nothing magical in being present for what’s actually happening. That is as long as one is aware that nothing happens to you, it’s just happening, you just happen to have the discipline to be aware of it…

Splendor of Life

The splendor of life can only be seen if that’s the view you have of the world. The world can only be seen through your eyes, and how quiet the mind is determines the splendor of the view…

The world is beautiful if you only take the time to see its splendor. You don’t have to go to a special place to see it. How about your own back yard or just taking a walk in the park, but if the mind isn’t quiet it will not matter where you are, you will not see the splendor of life.

So much of life is missed because of the noise in the head. Take the time to smell the roses before the roses are gone. If you keep saying tomorrow, my heart goes out to you because literally tomorrow never comes. Regardless of what goes on in your head, it’s always today. You may dream of tomorrow, but the dream can only happen today. You can hope or wish for tomorrow to be different than today, but at some point it will become today. It’s always today and that’s where the mind needs to be if you want to be with the splendor of what the Universe has to offer.

Take a step back before you miss one more second of your life. There are many distractions, that’s why if the mind isn’t quiet you miss the splendor of life which is always right before your very own eyes. It’s up to each individual alone to see the splendor life has to offer, but if you’re too busy to slow down, life will be over before you know it. You can accomplish many things in life, but that doesn’t necessarily equate to seeing the splendor of it. The Universe gives you a sense of awe, but it will only be seen by a mind that’s ready and quiet enough to see the splendor that is right before your eyes, if the time is taken to see it…

Triggered Thoughts

If a person is stuck in a thought based world, most likely they’re being controlled by a triggered existence. This is a prison that you will only be released from by going beyond your triggered thoughts…

It’s impossible to be conditioned by triggered thoughts that aren’t created by your own mind. This doesn’t mean without triggered thoughts things won’t occur, it just means that regardless of what happens it’s your own mind that creates the triggered thoughts which come from within yourself. Lots of things happen throughout the day and each time there’s a choice to hold onto it or not. Everyone has the ability to cease causing their triggering, it just takes a certain amount of discipline for this to occur. What discipline does is it slows down the thought process that runs continuously. This slowing down is the beginning of truth being revealed. Without it the necessary quietness that allows less triggering will not happen.

If there’s continuous triggered thoughts and no quiet, all there will be is thought and this will not allow the ability to watch the triggering unfold. If this isn’t seen your mind will never slow down and there won’t be any space created between your thoughts. Life will simply be thought based and the result of this creates triggered thoughts. When life slows down, you’ll see how it’s your own mind that takes something that happens and puts it into a conditioned category. When you see this, you can break free of the hold your triggering has over you, and you’ll be able to see that you’re not your thoughts, you’re beyond the triggering of a thought based world…

Accepted Stories

There are many stories that are accepted which keeps you trapped to the stories. If these accepted stories aren’t exposed at least to where this is realized, your life will mostly be controlled by these accepted stories…

Accepting your stories is what gets you in trouble. Thinking the grass is greener on the other side is one of these stories and until it’s seen that this grass also has to be mowed, you will continue to be controlled by your stories. If you think only accepting things a certain way is the answer you’ll be sadly mistaken even if those things come to pass. This is very hard to see and as one clings to the acceptance of needing life to be a certain way, this reinforces the stories. Case in point would be something as simple and seemingly innocent as playing the lottery. Here’s how this works. Here’s the story that makes you think if you hit the lottery you will have it made; it’s the answer to your so called prayers. So you buy a lottery ticket just because the jackpot is a billion dollars. This seems innocent, but make no mistake it isn’t.

There’s nothing wrong with money inherently, but whatever is accepted that makes a person think life would be better if this or that happens, it puts you in chains. Granted a billion dollars would make life different, but different doesn’t mean it will necessarily be better. The moment one accepts that life needs to better, it means the present moment is wanted different. There are many stories that are accepted which keeps you trapped, and if these aren’t exposed, life will mostly be controlled by a story. Money is only one story, anything can be substituted for money. Don’t take my word on this, investigate this and see the stories you’re accepting. Or not and remain trapped to the stories that you’re keeping in place by accepting them to be true…

Memory Attachment

Understanding the attachment of memory is very important in breaking the chains of suffering because it’s the attachment to “I“ that wants to only remember what’s pleasurable…

The attachment of how we remember things and constantly bringing them into the present is simply that, an attachment. Although this happens without it being realized, when it is realized it changes the way existence is viewed. The memory of how things truly are gets distorted in a way because they’re viewed through the conditioning in place; conditioning that mostly attaches to constantly seeking pleasure. Think of this, when someone dies no one gets up and says the person was a SOB. What’s usually said borders on making the individual a saint regardless if when alive the person was a SOB. This is the memory attachment in place and until it’s realized life is spent constantly seeking pleasurable memories; the mind doesn’t like unpleasant memories so it attaches to anything it remembers as pleasurable. This is part of the survival instinct ingrained in us. Those who remember painful events also use them to find something pleasurable, even if to just push them away, hence this is also why one attaches to the outside for comfort.

Nobody attaches to anything for any other reason but to provide comfort, in this comfort seeking there’s so much unconscious suffering. Comfort pleasure, pleasure comfort, these two go hand in hand and until this is understood they’ll continue to cause unconscious suffering. Understanding the attachment of memory is very important in breaking the chains of bondage because it’s the attachment to “I“ that makes one only remember what’s pleasurable. Even to the point of its own destruction “I” attaches to pleasure, just look in any rehab or detox. Every drug or drink of alcohol taken had the attachment of pleasure associated with it or it wouldn’t have be taken. Understanding this isn’t limited to just those things, this goes for anything that’s reached for. The mind defaults to what’s familiar and it attaches to anything seen as pleasure. Until this is realized you will continue to attach the memory that makes everyone a saint; at least that’s what’s said when they die…

Non-Beneficial Tools

There’s an energy that occurs in life that keeps non-beneficial tools in place without investigating them. The issue with this is how these non-beneficial tools are passed onto others…

If there are non-beneficial actions and reactions in your daily decision making process without investigation, there will be many decisions made without knowing what is truly beneficial. When these tools are passed onto others, it equates to the blind leading the blind; very few people truly understand the Conditioned Mind. Without the discipline that provides some stillness, non-beneficial energy is followed simply because it’s in place. To the Conditioned Mind there’s no need for questions because it has all the answers. Saying I’m not there yet is just crazy and it’s a created block that hampers the ability to live in a beneficial way. If you’re not there yet wherever there is, you will never get there. What amazes me is how people settle for a place just because it’s comfortable and someone else says it’s beneficial.

To me, it’s just mind boggling how a person holds onto what is non-beneficial and doesn’t even consider there might be another way to see things. What’s mind boggling about this is how this non-beneficial energy keeps you in a self created prison that causes suffering; life doesn’t cause suffering the nob-beneficial Conditioned Mind does. Unless you’re willing to sit and allow the mind to settle, the non-beneficial energy of the Conditioned Mind will remain in place and you’ll continue to use the non beneficial tools that cause suffering. Here’s the real issue with this, these tools are passed onto others and this makes it as though the blind are leading the blind…

Seduction of “I” Desires

The most important thing to understand about the seduction of desire is the less attachment there is to “I” the less you will be seduced by “I” desires because without “I” there’s no one who desires…

The seduction of “I” desires are so enticing because they feel good; this is why the seduction is so powerful. There’s issue with this because of the impermanent nature of “I” seduction. It simply will not last, it has no staying power so something will always be needed almost immediately following each seduction. Think about it, with all the “I” seductions that have been fulfilled throughout your life regardless of what it was, it doesn’t bring the fulfillment now that it brought at that time. Most times even if the same exact “I” seduction is physically repeated, it’s usually not as fulfilling as the first experience. I used so many things as I was seduced by my “I” conditioning, but it never lasted; the “I” seduction of the next needed desire always arose. This went on all the time, seduced by one desire after another and never satisfied for long.

I understand this seduction of “I” desires as the main reason people start using and become addicted to things. If the seduction of “I” desires didn’t arise, nothing would be reached for so there would never be an addiction. Unfortunately the seduction of “I” desires has its way with people. It’s deeply ingrained in the subconscious and has been in place since existence began. I know it was the seduction of desires that controlled me for forty nine years and it was directly associated with “I”. Without “I” no one is there to be seduced. Even with this understanding the seduction of “I” desires don’t just disappear, but they do subside somewhat. To me, the most important thing to understand about this is the less attachment there is to “I” the less you will be seduced by “I” desires because without “I” there’s no one who desires…

Inner Flare Ups

All flare ups arise from within yourself; they arise from internal mind disturbances. Without discipline, the mind will never settle nor will the flare up of needing to reach for something externally…

The world is in a state of constant flare ups, but not with each other as you may think, it’s with ourselves. The lack of understanding of your own mind is the cause of all inner flare ups; most people haven’t a clue of this. We lash out at people, have road rage, try to change people, protest, and constantly seek to alter the way that we feel because we were never taught how to be with life as it is and accept who we are as we are. Needing things different would never arise if you had the ability to be with life as it is. If you don’t have some contentment with the way things are, what makes you think if things were different there would be contentment. You would still have inner flare ups that make you reach for things externally.

There’s external reaching because you want to feel different. My mind was always disturbed because there wasn’t an understanding of the Conditioned Mind so the flare ups weren’t understood. It didn’t matter what happened, by not having the ability to be with life as it is, the mind becomes disturbed as flare ups arise.

Nothing causes a flare up unless it’s allowed. If something bothers you and it can be changed by all means change it, but it needs to be looked at why there’s a flare up to begin with. Even if the thing is changed, without an understanding of your own mind, you will just move on to the next thing which will cause you to become disturbed once again…

Life Energy

Life energy is more than manifested form. Form can be individualized energy cannot. So when the form of “I” isn’t conceptualized, life can be lived as the loving energy that it truly is…

Although it’s better to give than to receive, the less deserving one thinks a person is to receive the more difficult it is to give. What I mean by this is the more unconscious a person is, the harder it is to not judge them as with each judgement it becomes harder to not place them in a convenient category of this or that. Any applied label blocks one from giving love and it makes you see people as individuals, this is a block to loving others unconditionally.

To not be drawn into this energy takes much discipline. It’s so easy to hate, it seems almost effortless, but it’s not. It really takes a tremendous amount of energy to hate, but unfortunately this is the energy of unconsciousness. That’s a problem because this is the energy that far too many people are guided by in their everyday decisions, but regardless of this and as difficult as it is, if you’re truly conscious you’ll do what’s necessary to love all beings because it will be the energy of what’s in your heart. The only reason there’s fluctuations between love and hate energy is because one is not fully conscious. The more conscious energy there is, the less harmful energy there will be. This occurs simply because the heart doesn’t want anything to do with energy that’s unloving…

Common Sense

When life is viewed without common sense, drama is mostly seen because of the lack of discipline that a quiet mind provides. Common sense allows the mind to settle into a state that’s truthful and logical…

When we apply common sense to life it’s so much more beneficial than relying on the made up stories that defy common sense. Simply stated; a man and woman performed a deed many years ago and life began. The common sense here is a deed was performed that allowed the transformation of energy and you were the result of it. Nothing magical; a condition was satisfied that allowed birth. At the start of existence there’s nothing yet developed as far as the Conditioned Mind is concerned, so we’re pretty much truthful and logical.

The common sense here is there’s nothing yet developed for life not to be truthful and logical. But as we grow older and influences begin to mold and condition the mind, common sense slowly gets replaced by the illogical influences we’re surrounded by. This is the beginning of our Conditioned Mind Patterns, and unfortunately what the base of most of these influences are is self-serving. We develop a Conditioned Mind that revolves around satisfying an illogical self that has been influenced to be this way.

The Conditioned Mind blocks this common sense approach as too simplistic so it can hold onto its story. The truth is living the most beneficial way to live is inward, but this only occurs if one is quiet enough to see it. If this isn’t seen the mind will use a conditioned story of why living inwardly isn’t for you and your approach to life will not be seen from a common sense state. This prevents you from returning to the truthful and logical state. Unfortunately because of this, life remains based in making decisions from a self-serving mind instead of using common sense, and it will remain a struggle regardless of the outward changes that are made…