I am really grateful and thankful towards everybody who entered the giveaway. It took me some time to reply to all the questions, but I managed to pull it off on time. Before we move on to the reply's, let me say again, THANK YOU! I had a blast thinking about your beautiful questions and it brought me joy. Also, Everyone mentioned in the article wins 1SBD for the entry, except one person and that person is.
Alex has been a motivation to me, from his lifestyle to his leadership skills and has given me the opportunity to be part of something great right here on steemit. I think you deserve more than 10 SBD for the time and efforts you invest in people, but that's all I can do at this stage.
1SBD Winners
Thank you all for your authentic entries. Your questions really made me smile and I had a blast writing about them!
SBD will be sent after posting.
1
@gardenbsquared
Can a psychedelic drug initiate a spiritual awakening?
Honestly, I began my spiritual journey exactly by taking hallucinogens, they showed me that there are things beyond our every day looking perspectives but there is more to spirituality than altered states of perception and awareness, if there are 100 doors to spirituality that one needs to open, psychedelics can only open 40. (Note: The numbers don't really mean anything). The experience might be very powerful, but there are other aspects that require patience and devotion to be mastered. It was due to psychedelics that I had my Kundalini activated but after that my spiritual progress was refined in other practices. Alas.... there isn't any wrong approach to awakening yourself, if you seek something sooner or later you will find it.
2
@braveboat
I'd like to hear from you how your perception of success on Steem may have changed from when you first started up until now. Were there strategies you thought were going to work that turned out to be ineffective? Perhaps there was something that you have you since learned that is key to your success that you didn't realize at the start?
At first, I really did look at steemit as a platform where I needed to do a lot of tactics and techniques to grind money. After the first month, I quickly realized what potential the blockchain had, not only towards money, rather towards finding people that you can enjoy sharing with. The money in my eyes only shows the devotion and consistency of a given individual. That is the main reason I started investing all of my earnings into SP. Having the ability to give something back to the loving community is the most amazing thing in the long run. From the end of month one till now, it has been all about the wonderful friendships, social opportunities and a means to refine myself and my writing :). Write about what you love and find people with the same interests so you can progress together, there are many people from which you can learn about things enjoy and actually add experience to your knowledge base.
3
@bubke
What would be nice in your subject style is a series of different paths to "enlightenment".
The way I see it, we are all unique by ourselves and the way one goes towards enlightenment is dependant on a person's overall structure. Everyone has different aspects which are superior to others which mean they would need a different approach to pierce the veil of illusion or put, in other words, the veil of logical thinking. I honestly think that Enlightenment is differently accepted by everyone and has a different shape of representation given that individuals traits. But when we boil things down to the core, Enlightenment means to see beyond the logical thinking, this is why I think enlightenment is specific for every person as everyone has his own personal unique approach to find that path within himself. As to "different paths" I would say that there are different styles of disciplines that can benefit a person to for say " Learn Faster ", like Buddhism, Mysticism, Yogic practices and all the rest.
4
@icmultitudes
How about something more grounded like, right now, what would be your idea of the 'Perfect Day'? If you don't pick this I am hereby suggesting it for a possible #ecoTrain question of the week :)
Hmmm very interesting one, I haven't stopped recently to think about this. A great day for me would be a day where I can enjoy the scenery from the view of my inner peace and emotions. This meaning going somewhere new and enjoying the emotions and peace without getting caught up by obligations and people that might radiate some discomforting vibes around me. Or in other words, a perfect day would be a day spent without regrets, even if you ended up doing nothing productive or beneficial for any external causes, yet you had the opportunity to grasp its beauty from your inner dimensions.
5
@gigpen
You are such an inspiration to Steemit community. Thank for the milestone, it's always good to look back and smile. Your next post should be " The fear of the unknown". Thanks for engaging us!
Thank you so much for your kind words! They really do mean a lot to me. In spirituality one really does deal a lot with the unknown and at times it's a rollercoaster ride, where you enjoy the ups and get a bit shaky on the downs. Even so, when you look back at it in a given period of time you find that there weren't any regrets in the experiences as they have changed you for the better. The roller coaster ride eventually reaches some sort of equilibrium where you can simply enjoy the ride and motion. Yet it goes to say that this isn't the same for everyone, after all, it's the unknown right? Hahaha.
6
@likedeeler
I would like to read something about
"Did the ego invent spirituality?"
I see the ego as a response system and a defense system in some cases, depending on the person. Looking at it as structures that have formed since early childhood, gathered as the years passed. The Ego is a collective of conscious and some subconscious responses to given circumstances. Some people look at it as a stand alone figure in the whole puzzle, but looking at it as the aforementioned way I described, makes it a bit more understandable and fluid, well at least for me. These structures form something like a wall that filters some responses and interactions, but out of all honesty, it is still part of us. So in this case scenario, I would say that the Ego did have a major role in the creation of spirituality. Looking back at the roots a.k.a Alchemy, where the whole alchemical process is about refining the ego would indicate that it either started from the Ego itself, or if not at least revolves around it, but I must admit that there is some uncertainty as to the creation of spirituality.
7
@eco-alex
Lovely initiative.. always nice to get everyone thinking!
Here is my question!
"Do you need faith to believe in God?"
Maybe not the most popular question but one that speaks to me.
Verry interesting question. Let me try something here and I'll tell a small story that popped up in my mind.
In ancient times the people knew not of the wonders of the world. They knew how to eat, sleep drink and co-create. One day they noticed how the night brought the darkness which made them travel the universe "dream", and after that, the sun came to bring them warmth and clarity, so they may observe their own world and learn from it. They named the moon "Isis", the goddess of magic, due to the magic she gave to the man, so they may travel the universe. The sun was named "Ra", god of the sun, the one who gave them warmth and light so they may see, learn and create.
There are many gods that represent many things within our world, it is all a matter of your belief. I think that everyone has his own way of perceiving "God", as long as one finds his way and those beliefs bring him happiness. At ancient times, people believed the sun as the God "Ra", they had faith in it and it always brought them warmth, even before they knew of it-him and had planted the faith.
What brings warmth to you? :)
8
@stillgideon
Here's one for you ... How do you know when you're on the right path? Or even, how do you know anything?
(I don’t have an answer for this, but I'd be interested to hear your ideas if you've got any on the subject)
I've always tried to follow my heart, even if at times it has led me to much pain. Sometimes pain helps us grow. Strange as it is, some people don't really know what their heart desires, so they need some time to go through some phases in life in order to find out. It wasn't much different for me either, but let me tell you, once you find that sacred divine love, it goes beyond trust. So yeah, I follow my heart and intuition, intuition leads me to my goals and my heart helps me see clearly how the choices I make are going to help me grow.
9
@jasonshick
Question, what is your biggest regret thus far and why?
This might sound strange but I actually don't have any regrets at the moment being. The way I see regrets is that they hold a key fragment to an inner truth and over the time I've developed a regressive approach towards finding these truths, growing from them so I don't make the same mistakes. As you reach the truth the memory of your regret vanishes along with anything emotional. This gift was given to me as my Kundalini started to transform my mind and body, it kind of forced me to look back, reflect and delete that which didn't serve me in order to make space for positive segments.
These regrets and everything that may weigh down your life is stored as crystalline structures in your etheric, physical, emotional and mental body, but that is looking from the esoteric perspective.
Sadly I can't really tell you the methods I'm using as I can't put them to words, otherwise, you can look at the concept of "Karma" and negative thought cycles, which have some common aspects.
I have plans on making vlog series soon on Dtube, steemit, talking about Kundalini, Mysticism, Esoterics, Psychology, and Philosophy, so at some point in the future, I'll make sure to try and explain this in a more understandable and refined way, as for now, I need to refine it so it can fit words, if even possible.
There is a great difference between that which we learn through experience and that which we learn through reading and my Kundalini was an experience worth living, yet I wouldn't wish it to the greatest of enemies. (WHICH I DON'T REALLY HAVE)
Sorry if this dissapoints you, but thats the truth.
Check out this weeks ecoTrain highlights, with 14 amazing passengers on board!
We Thank You For Re-Steeming!