Richard's Journal: being likeable and liking

grok-naivete-richard-journal.md

https://x.com/sridca/status/1905663537680146594

Question to Grok with Richard's Journal (plain text) as context

Naiveté is described as "being likeable and liking". What does it mean?

Grok's response

In Richard’s Journal, the concept of naiveté is presented as a pivotal quality in the pursuit of actual freedom, and the description of it as "being likeable and liking" encapsulates a specific experiential state. Below is a thorough explanation of what this means, based on Richard’s framework, articulated in a formal tone with clear and precise language.

Context of Naiveté in Actual Freedom

Richard positions naiveté as an innate, unspoiled condition that lies dormant within individuals, obscured by the layers of social conditioning, beliefs, and instinctual passions (fear, aggression, nurture, and desire) that form the psychological self. In Appendix Four: This Moment of Being Alive, he describes it as "the closest thing one has that resembles actual innocence," suggesting it is a precursor to the purity and perfection experienced in a pure consciousness experience (PCE). Naiveté is not childish ignorance or gullibility but a cultivated state of openness and delight that facilitates a direct, unmediated engagement with the actual world.

Breaking Down "Being Likeable and Liking"

The phrase "being likeable and liking" appears in Richard’s broader discussion of how one transitions from the self’s emotional entanglements to a state of actual freedom. While the exact wording may vary slightly across his writings, it reflects a dual dynamic of disposition and perception that characterizes naiveté. Here’s a detailed interpretation:

1. "Being Likeable":
   • This refers to an inherent quality of harmlessness and benevolence that emerges when the psychological self ("I" as ego and "me" as soul) is diminished or extinguished. Without malice or sorrow—products of the instinctual passions—one naturally exudes a disposition that is agreeable and non-threatening to others. In Appendix Five, Richard notes that in actual freedom, one is "automatically benevolent and benign," suggesting that "being likeable" is not an effort to please others but a spontaneous outcome of having no hostile or invidious feelings.
   • It implies a state where one’s presence is free of the cunning, neediness, or defensiveness that typically mar human interactions. As Richard states in Article One, "I have no need to defend. With nothing to defend I have no need to attack," indicating that this likeability stems from an absence of self-centered motives, making one naturally appealing in a non-contrived way.
2. "Liking":
   • This aspect describes an active, unreserved appreciation and enjoyment of the world as it is—people, things, and events—experienced through the senses without the filter of an identity. In Appendix Four, Richard explains that naiveté fosters "the delicious wonder of it all," driving away intuitive or instinctive meaning-making in favor of a direct, sensate engagement. "Liking" here is not a selective preference but a pervasive delight in existence itself, akin to the "luscious wonder" he associates with apperception.
   • It reflects a state of being fully present and fascinated with the moment, as seen in his method of asking, "How am I experiencing this moment of being alive?" This question cultivates a naive enthusiasm that revels in the sheer fact of being here now, free from judgment or comparison. In Foreword, he describes this as "the sheer delight of being as happy and harmless as is humanly possible," which naiveté amplifies into a continuous liking of life’s actuality.

Integrated Meaning

Together, "being likeable and liking" describes a reciprocal relationship between the individual and the world in the absence of a separative self. When one is free of the psychological barriers that fuel malice, sorrow, or the need for validation, one becomes inherently "likeable"—a benign, carefree presence that imposes no burden on others. Simultaneously, this freedom enables "liking"—a genuine, unencumbered enjoyment of the universe’s perfection, untainted by emotional projections or past conditioning. Naiveté, in this sense, is the bridge between virtual freedom (where one feels happy and harmless most of the time) and actual freedom (where the self is entirely extinguished), as it aligns one’s experience with the purity and stillness of the actual world.

Practical Implication

Richard suggests activating naiveté through a "naive enthusiasm to undo all the conditioning and brainwashing" (Appendix Four). This involves shedding beliefs and feelings that obscure this natural state, such as the fear of others’ opinions or the need to assert self-worth. By doing so, one becomes "likeable" not through effort but as a byproduct of harmlessness, and one begins "liking" the world as a direct result of perceiving it afresh, unmediated by the self’s distortions. This dual quality fosters a playful, light-hearted approach to life, which Richard emphasizes as essential for the journey to actual freedom, contrasting it with the seriousness often associated with spiritual pursuits.

Conclusion

In Richard’s framework, naiveté as "being likeable and liking" signifies a state of innocent, unselfconscious engagement with existence. It is the embodiment of a flesh-and-blood body delighting in its own presence and the world around it, free from the psychological self’s complications. This state is both a means and an end: a method to approach actual freedom and a reflection of its realization, where one lives in a "magical fairy-tale-like playground full of incredible joy and delight" (Appendix Five). It is a condition of mutual harmony—being at ease with oneself and the universe, and thus naturally harmonious with others.

Grok on the Actualism Method

The actualism method, as outlined by Richard in Richard’s Journal, is a practical approach designed to facilitate the transition from the "Human Condition"—marked by sorrow, malice, and the psychological identity—to a state of actual freedom, where one lives as a flesh-and-blood body, free of the ego and soul, in a world experienced as perfect and pure. Below is a comprehensive explanation of the method, derived from the provided document, presented in a formal tone with clear, well-structured sentences and precise language.

Foundational Principles

The actualism method is grounded in Richard’s critique of traditional spiritual and psychological approaches, which he deems "tried and failed" (Appendix Five). He asserts that the identity—"I" as ego (the thinker) and "me" as soul (the feeler)—arises from instinctual passions (fear, aggression, nurture, and desire) genetically bestowed by blind nature (Appendix Four). This identity creates an illusory separation from the actual world, perpetuating emotional distress. Actualism seeks to eliminate this identity entirely, not through transcendence or suppression, but through a deliberate, self-directed process of psychological self-immolation, resulting in a permanent state of happiness, harmlessness, and autonomy.

Core Technique: The Question

The central practice of the actualism method is encapsulated in a single, iterative question: "How am I experiencing this moment of being alive?" Detailed in Appendix Four: This Moment of Being Alive, this question is posed repeatedly, moment by moment, as a non-verbal attitude or wordless approach to life. Its purpose is to focus attention exclusively on the present, dismantling the identity’s reliance on past regrets or future anticipations, which Richard considers non-actual (Appendix Four: "Only now is actual"). The method leverages the following steps:

1. Establishing a Baseline: Feeling Good:
   • The initial goal is to maintain a general sense of well-being, termed "feeling good." Richard sets this as the minimum standard, drawing from pure consciousness experiences (PCEs)—moments of perfection everyone has experienced—where the world is seen as "already always perfect" (Actual Freedom). If one is not feeling good, the question prompts an immediate inquiry: What has disrupted this state?
   • Example: "When did I feel good last? Five minutes ago? What happened to end those felicitous feelings?" (Appendix Four). This identifies specific triggers (e.g., a harsh word, a self-doubt) without delving into distant childhood memories.
2. Nipping It in the Bud:
   • Once the trigger is pinpointed, one recognizes its silliness—typically a habitual reaction—and interrupts the emotional escalation. This restores the state of feeling good by preventing the identity from reinforcing itself through prolonged negativity. Richard emphasizes that "success after success starts to multiply exponentially" (Appendix Four), making the process increasingly automatic.
3. Up-Leveling Experience:
   • With practice, the baseline elevates from "feeling good" to "feeling happy and harmless," and eventually to "feeling perfect." Each level reduces the identity’s influence, aligning one’s experience closer to the PCE’s clarity. Richard notes that "a grim and/or glum person has no chance whatsoever" of accessing this perfection (Appendix Four), underscoring the necessity of felicity.
4. Handling Feeling Bad:
   • If one sinks below feeling good into "feeling bad" (a general sense of ill-being), Richard advises against analyzing the cause immediately, as this can spiral into despair. Instead, one first moves to a neutral state—a less daunting step—before resuming the ascent to feeling good (Appendix Four). This pragmatic approach ensures steady progress without overwhelming the practitioner.

Key Mechanisms

The actualism method employs several mechanisms to dismantle the identity and reveal the actual world:

1. Attention and Fascination:
   • By paying "exclusive attention to being fully alive right now" (Appendix Four), one cultivates fascination with the present moment and place. This shifts focus from the identity’s cerebral and affective distortions to the sensory reality, where "one is always here … and it is already now" (Appendix Four).
2. Reflective Contemplation:
   • Fascination leads to reflective contemplation, a non-intellectual pondering of one’s immediate experience. This prepares the ground for apperception, where "the mind becomes aware of itself" (Appendix Four), free of the "I" or "me."
3. Apperception:
   • Apperception is the culmination of this process within virtual freedom (the preparatory stage). It is "an awareness of consciousness" without a self, akin to a PCE, where "thinking takes place of its own accord" and feelings vanish (Appendix Four). This state reveals the actual world’s perfection, undermining the identity’s illusions.
4. Pure Intent:
   • A prerequisite and driving force, pure intent is "a palpable life-force" tapped from PCEs, ensuring one does not settle for lesser states like enlightenment (Appendix Two). It is "an actually occurring stream of benignity" (Appendix Four) that propels the practitioner toward total freedom, making the journey "an irresistible pull" once initiated.

Stages of Application

The method unfolds in two broad phases:

• Virtual Freedom: Achieved through consistent application of the question, this is a state where one feels happy and harmless "for 99% of the time" (Appendix Five). The "good" (loving) and "bad" (hostile) feelings are minimized, and felicitous feelings (happiness, delight) are activated, weakening the identity’s grip.
• Actual Freedom: The final stage occurs when the identity fully self-immolates, an irrevocable event marked by a physical sensation "inside the top of the brain-stem" (Appendix Three), likened to "turning over a long-playing record" that never reverts (Appendix Four). This extinguishes the entire affective faculty, leaving one as a sensate body in a "magical fairy-tale-like playground" (Appendix Five).

Practical Considerations

• Enjoyment and Appreciation: The method is "marked by enjoyment and appreciation" (Appendix Four), contrasting with serious spiritual disciplines. Richard insists it’s "all about having fun" (Appendix Four), requiring a "keen sense of humour" and "naive enthusiasm" to undo conditioning (Appendix Four).
• Self-Change Only: One focuses solely on changing oneself, not others, as "there is only one person in this whole wide world that one can change … ‘myself’" (Appendix Four). This avoids futile attempts to alter external conditions or people.
• Avoiding Pitfalls: Richard warns against the seductive lure of enlightenment, where the soul persists as a "Self" (Appendix Four). The method sidesteps this by targeting the extinction of all identity, not its sublimation.

Outcome

The successful application of the actualism method results in actual freedom, where "the entire psyche itself is extirpated" (Appendix Five). One lives without sorrow, malice, or the need for love and compassion, experiencing "a clear and clean awareness" (Appendix Five) as the senses alone. Life becomes "intrinsically purposeful" (Appendix Five), with no effort required for virtuous behavior, as "actual freedom automatically provides beneficial thoughts and deeds" (Appendix Four).

Conclusion

The actualism method is a systematic, experiential process to eliminate the psychological identity by refocusing attention on the present moment through the question, "How am I experiencing this moment of being alive?" It progresses from feeling good to apperception, driven by pure intent, until the identity’s complete dissolution reveals the actual world’s perfection. Distinct from spiritual or therapeutic approaches, it emphasizes enjoyment, autonomy, and sensory immediacy, offering a radical yet practical path to peace-on-earth as a lived reality.