Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION
AN INTRODUCTION TO PRACTICAL ENLIGHTENMENT
What Enlightenment Is – And Is Not
GETTING STARTED
Reality, Distortions, and Enlightenment - Making “stories” fall away
Important: in the following chapters we are going to introduce the core concept of best choice, it is extremely important that this concept is well understood so I prepared a custom page and video explaining this concept in great detail to be sure it is not misunderstood, you can click here to read it
TYPES OF STORIES
Overview: The Four Categories of Story - The mental constructs that trap us
The Predictive Story - Noticing patterns to create mental maps of the world
The Should Story - Alternative realities are impossible. “Should” is an illusion.
The Meaning Story - The need to feel in control.
The Ego Story - The high price of defending self-image
THE PATH TO DISMANTLING STORIES
Authenticity - The battle not to lie to yourself
The Practice of Authenticity - No lies. No judgment. No forced change.
SKEPTICISM
Skepticism - In all things, find out for yourself.
TRAPS: STORIES THAT CAN SEND THE SEEKER IN THE WRONG DIRECTION
Overview: What Stories Are - Defining stories as mental maps.
The Fatalism Trap - It’s still worth it to make thoughtful choices.
The Anesthetization Trap - Renunciation and abstinence are nonsense.
The “Becoming” Trap - Change is an illusion. What matters is realization.
The Spiritual Ego Trap - How seeking “transformation” can inflate “what we believe ourselves to be.”
The Rationalization Trap - Finding ways to justify our preferences.
STORIES THAT DISTORT REALITY
Justice Stories - The mistaken belief that you understand how ultimate Reality works.
Merit Stories - The concept of “deserving” is purely a human construct.
The Past as Unincorporated Stories - Integrating the past as experience rather than conditioning.
Happiness Stories - Happiness is a story of an impossible standard.
Reward Stories - Actions motivated by expected future payoffs like karma or heaven.
Stories of Whether Something Is Worth the Effort - A method for investigating the “why” behind our actions.
Moral Compensation Stories - The trap of using “good” deeds to justify “bad” ones.