This is a concept from the great 60's philosopher Alan Watts.

God likes to play hide-n-seek, but because there is nothing outside of God, he has no one but himself to play with! But he gets over this difficulty by pretending that he is not himself. This is his way of hiding from himself. He pretends that he is you and I and all the people in the world, all the animals, plants, all the rocks, and all the stars. In this way he has strange and wonderful adventures, some of which are terrible and frightening. But these are just like bad dreams, for when he wakes up they will disappear.

Now when God plays "hide" and pretends that he is you and I, he does it so well that it takes him a long time to remember where and how he hid himself! But that's the whole fun of it-just what he wanted to do. He doesn't want to find himself too quickly, for that would spoil the game. That is why it is so difficult for you and me to find out that we are God in disguise, pretending not to be himself. But- when the game has gone on long enough, all of us will WAKE UP, stop pretending, and REMEMBER that we are all one single Self- the God who is all that there is and who lives forever and ever.
You may ask why God sometimes hides in the form of horrible people, or pretends to be people who suffer great disease and pain. Remember, first, that he isn't really doing this to anyone but himself. Remember too, that in almost all the stories you enjoy there have to be bad people as well as good people, for the thrill of the tale is to find out how the good people will get the better of the bad. It's the same as when we play cards. At the beginning of the game we shuffle them all into a mess, which is like the bad things in the world, but the point of the game put the mess into good order, and the one who does it best is the winner. Then we shuffle the cards and play again, and so it goes with the world.

-Alan Watts
from "THE BOOK on the taboo against knowing who You are"

This was his simple way of explaining the ancient Hindu philosophy of Vedanta. After my mind exploding awakening and REMEMBERING that I am God I can TRULY attest that it is the truth. I felt as if my normal life was nothing but a game I was playing to entertain my God self. It was like...OMFG!! I REMEMBER. Total and utter realization. It was like my normal life was only one thought I was having in my God life. And if my God self wasn't thinking about my normal self it didn't even exist. We are all thoughts that our God selves are thinking! When your perception shifts into "God Mode" it is so unbelievable you almost cry.......Everything EXPANDS and your house/environment EXPANDS into what it really is! And you feel SO FREAKIN GOOD. And you say to yourself- "This is how it's SUPPOSED to be ALL THE TIME. You are still yourself, but you have no fears, doubts, or ego crap bogging you down! Almost like you peel off a veil of scum you've been wearing and looking through your whole life. and you know you have COME HOME.

Now most people who experience an awakening like this tend to eventually be sucked back into "normal" reality.....as I did. But you are never the same person again. Because now you KNOW you have found the truth you have searched for your entire life. No ifs, ands or buts. Like having a near death experience, you are forever changed. You will never fear death, that's for sure! One of the hardest things for me was trying to integrate my experience back into my daily life. At first you tend to go a bit nuts getting rid of "crap" in your life that you know now means nothing. I went out and bought ALOT of art and beautiful things for the house in an attempt to make it even a shadow of the way I know it REALLY is. I almost closed my business. It takes time for the physical ego to wrap it's little brain around THIS! But after several months of reflection and with the help of wonderful philosophers like Watts I think I have a grip on things. I have to balance between one reality and the other.....and am seeing the beauty in day-to-day life we tend to miss. I work less and enjoy more. I started painting after a 30 year WORK delay.....I sit in the Sun at least 10 minutes every day and just enjoy nature w/o thinking or worrying about the usual stupid crap. I hope that maybe the 2012 shift will be of our own perception, and we all can be who we REALLY are ALL THE TIME, as it should be!
Peace-

I know exactly what you mean.

For me though it was... oddly horribly depressing. I wanted to stay there forever. I was ready to kill myself to get back. But now something tells me, that won't get me back there. It has taken me about 6 months to come to grips with it and I'm feeling good again.

I have to ask though, did you get a sense of claustrophobia at all, because even though it is so vast, you also get a sense of how contained it is?

I would love to read more from Alan Watts. Never heard of him but thankyou for introducing some of his philosophies. They resonate harmoniously with my own realizations.

My big thing, what is "the truth". I feel like my heavy use of psychadelics over the last 10 years has made me more confused than ever, and for some reason every time I have an experience that initially makes me think I am closer to the truth, afterwards I realize that all I have done is create an infinite number of more questions. I used to feel satisfied with just having more brain work to do, but I have come to believe now that God, whatever god is, and the real truth behind existance as a whole is completely beyond human comprehension, and that we are never meant to actually know the answer. This kind of thing drives me really crazy, and I don't think that I can even verbalize or put into words the real feelings I have about the ideas in my head because they are too profound for human language to actually convey, for me at least. The whole cosmic existance of the universe and just, everything I guess. The idea of everything that ever was and has been having to begun somewhere by something. I mean, how can the universe even really exist? Sorry for the rambling, but that is what happens every time I try to talk about this sort of thing, and I took a sample of some deems about an hour ago, so at the moment I really feel how profound consceceness really is.

Thats funny - I just bought a book by him called The Way of Zen - If you want to get back to that God feeling in everyday life? Start meditating.

I had some amazing experiences when i used to meditate 8 years ago and I'm now getting back into it. Whats cool about Zen meditation is you don't have to have specific religious beliefs, it's just a pratical way of finding Eternal Peace Now

Wow that pretty much exactly described my first experience with salvia which I detailed on some other sub forum on this site. But yeah, it felt like I had infinite power and my mind was finally free, and yes it does make an impact on your life.

I came to this message board after reading The Spirit Molecule. I thought DMT and its effects were interesting enough. But then I entered this thread, and it was like swallowing the red pill and finding out how deep the rabbit-hole really goes.

I've since read The Book on the Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are, and I cannot express the profundity of my awakening. I feel like I have found the missing piece of the puzzle. That one connecting fibre that makes perfect sense of everything.

For example: suicide was one of the last mysteries with which I had grappled. No matter how I tried, I could never empathise with those who took their own lives. So I was deeply moved by this passage in the book:

"For all such there must be deep and unpatronizing compassion, even a special kind of reverence and respect, because, after all, in them the Self is playing its most far-out and daring game--the game of having lost Itself completely and of being in danger of some total and irremediable disaster."

Now I have the instrument by which I can feel compassion for such people. So much more have I gained, but I think I will need years to properly process what has been given to me.

Thank you BoyPony.

welcome Morphane

Thanks.

I tend to stray from using the word God because to lots of people what it represents is an actual entity, weather we're just a part of him or not. In my own opinoin that dosen't add up to be true, though you can never say anything is impossible because you have no proof, i still don't think it is likely. From what i observe, it seems that everything in existence is connected, but that could be due simply to the idea that before there was anything there was energy existing in nothing, i think this energy kinda made a bubble in a way to evolve within its self. I don't really think there is a container holding this energy, so it would seem to have to contain itself, or not really contained, but grouped together. I truly wonder if there are countless evolving energy spots like the one that holds our universe all through out space. We know you eventualy run out of stars and galaxies, but does space run out of space? I believe we'er all connected because we where never disconnected, and different dimensions are explainable because again, its just another type of energy evolved within our pool of energy. I wonder, with the theorys of worm holes/black holes, could that possibly be a way for the other energy spots to connect? I like to think this way because with my little personal theory, i can make anything fit in a, to me, very logical way, to a degree. I would not have an answer for how space could never end, i guess that would be a good thing to focus on. Its hard to imagine something not having a beginning or end, thats we'er logic breaks down. Though, i think logic is a good way to think, so i'm sure there is a logical explaination, if only we understood more.


Anything i said above was just personal opinion, i respect everyones ideas because truly thats all we can have. I'm just giving another view.

This is true, although I feel there is more to this than I can describe. My own experiences have involved having manifestations of it enter reality where all of reality becomes like god is in everything, god would be speaking to me through other people. I had so many impossible events happen to me, so many synchronicities, so many things that defy what one considers normal statistical probability and downright miracles happen. I wish I could fully tell this tale as it would be epic, beyond anything ever told in a book or movie. My own 'game' it played with me was so impossible, so supernatural as to remove all doubt that things were not as they appear. I'm not sure when I can fully describe all of it but things like shortly after listening to Terrence McKennas True Hallucinations, The 'good shit' showed up and I had a telepathic conversation and a dream quest where all kinds of things happened that night. Over the next two weeks. When I would use this stuff and go out riding my bike it would show me all sorts of things give me all kinds of wisdom and truths.
I would experience telepathy, thought transmission, messages from TV and books, communication with animals and nature, impossible synchronicities, all to weave this wandering tale. Tales of the Inexplicable truly.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxXFURKAafQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5QWhDBmfEQA

Either way I'm not Kansas anymore. I believe I have been selected to see all these things, to have all of this manifest. I also entertain the idea that more and more of this is showing up on youtube as more people experience this. I also wonder at times if it is all one big cosmic game, like the Truman show where we are the star.

I can't emphasize enough how NUMEROUS these impossible manifestations were, and how it all laid down these breadcrumbs of sorts. It literally intervened and altered the coruse of my life. I hope some day I can be clear headed and bardic enough to fully tell this rousing tale as it's one for the ages. I have yet to find any others who experience such strong manifestations of it. But it was the only way. I was so very skeptical and could not imagine a reality with either god or supernatural things being possible. I don't consider myself currently that spiritual or enlightened but I've seen the proof in the words of Terrence McKenna quoting someone else "You know what you know".

Indeed I do, to quote again "Nothing, nothing is as it appears to be, surely you've noticed that by now"

Beautifully written Boypony and others. might i suggest you all read the book of secrets by osho. good book for meditation techniques to achieve this god state; the supreme, wayless way.

all of our minds are filled with lies but we are still equal in life and love.

love and peace.

Great posts everyone! And Newshaman, I totally know what you mean by syncronicities. Ever since i started to genuinely look into the nature of reality, whats really going on here, who am i? etc, syncronicities have been a daily occurrence. For instance in this thread, Tripples mentioned the book from Watts, "The way of Zen" I just took this book out of my local library the other day. All these things happen for a reason.

Every night I close my eyes and a soft voice in my mind says "Ah... you're home.".

Before sleep, have any of you ever closed your eyes and actually LOOKED around the darkness? Next time try it and describe what you see. Initially focus is difficult and you fall asleep almost instantly because it's so tiring, but the more you do it, and the longer sustain it, the more intense become dreams.

For me, when doing it, a sensation of staring into the night sky observing the splendid stars, space and the universe beyond. I feel it's in front of us all along and all we have to do in order to connect is close our eyes.

Yes and how many reasons are there?

none.

PS its not my opion its a koan. I guess you could say I agree with my friend Seven


M.V.

Maybe there's too many reasons so it looks like none from far away?

maybe friend
every one is entilted to veiw things from there own perspective.

M.V.

Alan Watts, awesome. So happy he got quoted, his books are like meditation, you will read, take a few deep breaths, feel everything around you, and go on. The book on the taboo is really good, does it matter is also awesome, the essence is awesome, has circular pictures and reads really quick - you can get them all together or get the separate chapters as single books - just bought nothingness today.

He's basically like a character to me because his writing is so personal, kinda like I see McKenna as a character now. He has really fun thunkers, like animals being tubes, intelligent life being one stars way of creating other stars, his musings on time. His videos rock, check him out on google video or youtube, southpark guys did some cool little animations too.

The way Alan Watts described God as playing hide and seek with himself made me feel better about the world being crazy, means we're playing all angles pretty damn well. If that's what we need to call this life thing into existence, can't be any worse than the mean of two polar opposites, assuming you can entertain the idea of reincarnation.

Have you heard his voice on audio. He is the real thing the experance is the olny thing that is real and can be defined is the moment NOW. To late you lost it. He has been a guide and companiom of mine for many years.

It took over twenty years but when I remembered his words I tasted for the first time liberatiuon Freedom it is a long hard road never give up because you destiny waits over the next hill, the next second the next breath, struggle just as bit more never stop it is near...

EDIT assuming you can entertain the idea of reincarnation

YES that is very difficult it must be a metaphore. The atoms in our bodys are in a constant cycle of change. cosmic consiness is REAL but has no description in the mind of man

M.V.

I amazed how people look at God as a man, woman, spirit or a being. God is nothing but a force, the life force that surrounds us, is inside us, and is inside of every both living and - in our eyes; dead, both on this planet, every other planet, and actually the universe itself and every possibly dimension. God is infinite consciousness, which we are all a part of. I believe the personalization of this force is done to make people believe, possibly to get more power to the corrupt churc. God is obviously (or at least; for some people's beliefs), not a human, not an entity, not a spirit and definately not some guy chilling in the heavens and manipulating and judging people because of their actions and belief or non-belief. This authorative look at God as a judge is relatively new, in historical context. I believe the lie of the existence of hell and eternal judging is just another scare technique used to recruit people, both in Christianity, Islam and several other religions. God is not anything, yet God is a part of everything.

I am even more amazed that many people refer to this force as a man, as this force is obviously of feminine qualities. There could perhaps be a spirit heigh in the hiararchy, or actually there are several, both good, bad and neutral. Do not mistake this for God's voice. There are an infinte number of spiritual beings, forces and things beyond our imagination that people mistake for God. God does not talk, think or judges. God just is. God is nothing but a force, a force of infinite counsciusness that we all are a part of, have always been a part of, and will always be a part of. It has no beginning and no end. In this context, praying to God has no effect, the praying only awakens your inner God. But perhaps this is exactly why praying, whether done traditional or through other means, does indeed work?

A often misquted saying from Jesus Christ is this: "Be still, and know that I am God". What he really said and meant, was that you should "be still", as in meditation, yoga, entheogens or any other mind-expanding technique, and in that context know that God is inside yourself. Actually, God is inside every human being, every animal, every bacteria, and even every rock.

YOU are God. Your friends are God. Your pet is God. The woods and the great natura is good. Treat them with respect, and you will be rewarded. Ask God for forgiveness and positive energies, and you will obtain nothing. Spread forgiveness and positivity, and you will obtain everything.