We talked on the phone the other nite. I have found in my own life that I encounter jealousy and envy on some level but for most of us it is manageable therefore it would not require therapy. There is ofcourse self therapy which occurs as a result of introspection and self analyses. These qualities manifest more and more on the spiritual journey.
One important ingredient I would add here however. Both jealousy and envy fall into the category of what most masters call desire. Desire is what manifests these bodies in the first place. Our bodies are an indication of desire manifest. If it were not for desire we would not be here unless ofcourse we were here to help other body bound souls release there bodies by shedding desire.
On the spiritual journey we more and more become witnesses to the play or Lila around us... just as we become witnesses to our own thoughts in meditation. In this sense we dissolve some of what you called boiling over in the somewhat rambling discourse (lol). And we may have a bubbling pot from time to time however we are quick to cool 😎 down due to our reactions being tempered through years and years of spiritual experiences and practicing.
In our encounters with worldly people we often find that we are on dissonate wavelengths and must move on with other people leaving them and reasserting our connection with spiritual connections. 🙏
That's a great response Steve! I agree with all of it.
**warning** more meandering rambling "tiresome words" ahead (lol)
Envy & Jealousy are both subsets of Desire, as are Greed, Lust and everything underneath Anger, Sadness & Apathy...
I'm really lucky to have found a deeply Spiritual therapist. I rarely see him anymore, but when a major life event happens or every few months, he's a great person to touch base with, but in general, I "graduated" from needing to see him on a regular basis a year or so ago. If anyone on here is ever looking for someone like this, who lives in Austin, let me know. He's the best.
It's funny, the same thing that brought me here, brought me to meet him and so many things that have changed my life. My old friend Jessica. When she "ghosted" (disappear, ignore, etc.) me a few years ago (and would periodically reappear, apologize and disappear again), it triggered a great desire in me for connection. My friendship with her, at the time, was the nearest and dearest I'd ever experienced, moreso than with previous long term girlfriends, so I felt abslotuely baffled and lost at being "ghosted" by her. I've since learned whenever someone says or agrees "we will be friends for life" or "I love you" a bit too much, it is probable the relationship or friendship will be short lived...
Going back to my history with what brought me to seek a therapist, Jessica was part of the reason, but the actual catalyst was the depression that was caused by my foot getting seriously injured and losing my ability to walk for months (and then years to various degrees). That combined with my history of insane relationships, a partially tumultuous childhood and complicated Guru & Spiritual Group ups and downs, led me to seek help from a therapist, and anywhere else I could find answers, peace & clarity.
Eric invited me here, but he didn't want to discuss Jessica or for me to directly message him at all. When I pressed him on this, he told me he "didn't care about my pain", which is a painful memory my mind still returns to sometimes. And yet, through this website I was led to the greatest Spiritual experiences of this lifetime so far. One of which was meeting Amma, another the experience I described above in the OP.
So the greater story here, it seems... is that desire brings suffering... but with attachment and identification with a body and mind, it's also guaranteed. Psychologically, all of our mind's desires stem from our upbringing. And even the most "perfect" upbringing and parents cannot prevent this. It is physically impossible for a child to have all of it's needs met. No matter what, some lack or overindulgence on the caretakers' part will cause an imbalance in the child's psyche, which will send the child on a lifelong "hero's journey" quest to resolve...
Example: My dad was hyperanalytical, very cold and distant emotionally. So, my baby brain didn't get the need met to be loved or feel safe from a very early age (<1 year old and up). This has created a lifelong "need" or "desire" to be loved by people who have trouble showing emotion, who prefer to be distant a lot of the time, who are uncomfortable by touchy, feely, warmth, intimacy, etc.
A book which expanded my view of this phenomenon is Keeping the Love You Find by Harville Hendrix. It's a brilliant extension of Jung's theory of relationships, maybe a century ahead of it's time (or so I gather, based on most Humans' ignorance on the topic of why they fall in love with who they fall in love with, or what falling love even is).
So, we are born into a world that causes trauma, which creates a need for healing of the mind that was traumatized in some way... before that, can a baby's need for safety and love even be called "desire"? I don't think so. No moreso than any adult Human's need for Breathe or Food or Sleep.
So, adulthood happens and the Hero's Journey begins (as Joseph Campbell puts it). What is the end of this journey? According to Mr. Campbell, who coined the term, the end is a new beginning! So the journey is cyclical! Endless!
All that "desire" for closure, healing, growth, peace is natural... Sometimes the External Material World will grant it beyond our wildest dreams and other-times it will never come, not even a little bit from the Outside World. If we get it from the outside in the form a new perfect friend or partner or a winning lottery ticket, what then?
Ramana Maharshi basically said that when you get something in the Material World that give you Bliss, what is really happening is the Mind has FINALLY become silent, stopped it's chatterring and "desiring" and allowed the INHERENT UNDERLYING BLISS OF SELF to SHINE THROUGH... untill the chattering, desiring mind finds something else to focus on...
Ramana Maharshi also basically said that if life only gives us pain and suffering, this is a great blessing, as it leaves us no choice but to surrender to God, there is no desire to be attached to this External World of Suffering, and our longing for Peace will open our Hearts to God as Self.
What is this Desire? Fulfilled or Unfulfilled? What is this Pain? This momentary Pleasure? Who is having these experiences that pass in time like leaves blowing in the wind?
I love you Eric!
I love you Steve!
I love you Brock!
I love you Jessica!
I love you Linda!
I love you L Ron Hubbard!
I love you Ramana Maharshi!
I love you Anandamayi Ma!
I love you Amma!
I love you Paramahansa Yogananda!
I love you Paramahansa Prajnanananda!
I love you All!
We are all the same thing, behind these temporary forms. A single diamond of consciousness with a million million million million million million million reflecting sides in a mote of dust the infinity of oneness
I Am Is All
I Am
You Are
Is Is
One
I
