Leo D.M.J. Aurini - October 25, 2016


How to Stop Loving the Poison： Removing Addiction from your Life [Requested Video]


Episode Stats

Length

17 minutes

Words per Minute

163.44289

Word Count

2,780

Sentence Count

250

Misogynist Sentences

7

Hate Speech Sentences

2


Summary

How to Stop Loving the Poison. How to kick the poison that keeps us addicted to things that are bad for us. How do we stop loving our own self-destruction? And what are the four steps to kick this poison?


Transcript

00:00:00.000 How to Stop Loving the Poison. This is a requested video, and it comes from Nick. Thank you for your support, brother.
00:00:09.500 Now, the battle between corn syrup and cane sugar, between what's good for us and what only pretends to be good for us.
00:00:19.120 This is something we deal with every day, isn't it?
00:00:21.560 You know, every single day, there are people trying to sell us on things that only seem to be good.
00:00:28.920 You've got corn syrup, which really doesn't taste that good, and they've put it into just about everything, to the point where you don't even notice it.
00:00:36.240 You get the McDonald's burger, and you don't realize there's a ton of corn syrup in the bun itself, but you're addicted to it.
00:00:43.220 Where something like cane sugar, cane sugar might not be healthy for you in large doses, but you don't need it in large doses.
00:00:49.800 You don't want it in large doses. It's honest about what it is.
00:00:53.860 You finish off a meal with a bit of ice cream or a chocolate, but the meal itself is wholesome.
00:01:00.120 And the problem we have in the modern day is that there are so many snares.
00:01:04.820 There is so much corn syrup. There is so much stuff we don't even realize it's bad for us.
00:01:10.440 And it's very, very addictive.
00:01:13.560 So what are we supposed to do about this?
00:01:15.320 Well, this is what we talk about all the time on this channel.
00:01:17.960 And philosophy gets us part of the way there.
00:01:22.220 Philosophy, it allows us to determine what's fair and what's foul.
00:01:27.540 For instance, philosophy can help us figure out when we need to be brave, when we need to be courageous and violent,
00:01:36.080 and when we should be discreet, when we should restrain our anger even though our temper is being tried.
00:01:42.760 Philosophy can tell us when to do these things, but simply knowing when is not enough, is it?
00:01:50.200 You need practice. You need to practice virtue to become better at it.
00:01:55.500 Down below, there is an excellent, excellent article by John C. Wright.
00:02:00.040 It's a very long one, so, you know, pour yourself a cup of coffee before you sit down to read it.
00:02:04.020 All about when and how the sexual instinct ought to be used.
00:02:10.120 And it's very inspiring. I think it's very reasonable.
00:02:13.500 It will help us, help you, help me, see what's supposed to be done.
00:02:20.400 But then practicing that, that's a whole other question, isn't it?
00:02:24.940 That requires, you know, effort.
00:02:27.540 You need to develop virtue.
00:02:29.300 You need to know what virtue is in the first place, and then you need to practice it.
00:02:33.060 But, you know, this video, this video specifically isn't about merely practicing what we intellectually understand to be virtuous.
00:02:43.320 And that's hard enough.
00:02:44.660 This video is about something worse.
00:02:47.060 This video is about the, the tanatos urge.
00:02:51.200 The will to self-destruction.
00:02:53.940 And that's in all of us.
00:02:55.160 If you haven't found it yet in yourself, you're, you're probably going to find it soon.
00:02:59.420 It's one thing, and to some extent, we're all a little bit addicted to something that's bad for us.
00:03:04.620 Okay, we're addicted to McDonald's burgers, or we're addicted to Facebook, the cheap ego gratification of Facebook.
00:03:11.920 We're addicted to a teacher giving us an A+, and telling us that we're intelligent.
00:03:17.120 We're addicted to whatever.
00:03:18.420 These, these cheap corn syrup substitutes of what we should be consuming.
00:03:22.680 But, that's not the topic of this video.
00:03:25.760 This video is about addiction.
00:03:29.300 This video is where you understand that something's bad for you already.
00:03:34.380 You know that it's bad for you.
00:03:36.660 That it's killing you.
00:03:38.140 That it's destroying your, your prosperity.
00:03:41.780 It's destroying your future.
00:03:43.640 And you still want it.
00:03:46.140 Part, you partly even want it, because it's destroying yourself.
00:03:53.520 How do we stop it?
00:03:54.900 How do we stop loving the poison?
00:03:57.600 How do we stop loving our own self-destruction?
00:04:01.800 And I'm going to do the best I can with this video, folks.
00:04:04.220 But this is something I still struggle with.
00:04:06.860 Anybody that says they're not struggling with it, it's because they're fully in the grips of it.
00:04:10.740 They've managed to mitigate it so nobody else can tell that they're, they're committing slow suicide.
00:04:16.300 But don't, don't for one second doubt that they are.
00:04:20.000 We've all got this thing in, in us.
00:04:22.680 And so I'm going to lay out the four steps, four steps that you can follow to try and kick this poison.
00:04:30.500 Whatever it might be to kick this poison out of your life.
00:04:35.100 First, develop the eyes to see.
00:04:38.360 This is something I pray for regularly.
00:04:39.940 I pray for the eyes to see things as they actually are.
00:04:46.880 And don't underestimate this.
00:04:47.980 Actually being able to see things, to know a thing for what it is, it's very rare.
00:04:54.740 So pray for the eyes to see.
00:04:56.780 So regardless of what your addiction is, let's say it's pornography.
00:05:01.480 When you click the screen on, what do you have there?
00:05:03.660 You've got a beautiful young lady in all her glory.
00:05:08.100 Is that what you have?
00:05:11.100 Look deeper.
00:05:12.460 Look at it four dimensionally.
00:05:13.840 Look at it a long time.
00:05:15.760 Look at, look outside of the camera angle.
00:05:19.980 Look beyond what the camera is focused on.
00:05:22.300 Look around the set.
00:05:24.260 With the boom mics, the people filming it.
00:05:27.660 Look at all of that.
00:05:28.760 Look at her past.
00:05:29.700 Look at her future.
00:05:30.400 You know, read between the lines.
00:05:33.620 Look at it.
00:05:34.380 What is going on?
00:05:35.880 And you've got a young lady barely out of high school.
00:05:39.940 Maybe she had some abuse in her background.
00:05:42.320 Maybe she's addicted to some sort of, she's addicted to the easy money.
00:05:47.240 She's addicted to whatever it is.
00:05:48.540 And she is destroying her future, videotaping all of this for a few minutes of your vicarious
00:05:55.820 enjoyment.
00:05:57.100 She has cheapened her life so that you can have a bit of corn syrup, which isn't even
00:06:02.120 good for you.
00:06:03.500 Maybe it's not pornography.
00:06:05.100 Maybe it's the desire to be wealthy, to have money.
00:06:09.400 You know, maybe you see people driving down the street in a brand new car and you say,
00:06:13.120 yeah, I want that.
00:06:14.480 I want to drive the new car.
00:06:16.180 Or maybe you are driving the new car and you're buying new clothing all the time.
00:06:20.000 You're spending money on this apartment, you know, on this condo.
00:06:24.700 Again, eyes to see.
00:06:26.280 Look at it.
00:06:27.660 Look at what you're doing to achieve all of this.
00:06:31.060 Are you doing good work?
00:06:32.500 Are you doing fulfilling work?
00:06:34.340 Are you using credit card debt to pay for all of this?
00:06:37.640 When you see that guy driving by in the brand new car, don't look at merely the surface.
00:06:42.620 Have the eyes to see what's actually going on there.
00:06:46.440 See the bigger picture.
00:06:47.660 See the credit card debt.
00:06:49.180 See what he is sacrificing for that lifestyle.
00:06:52.800 See, is this lifestyle, is it rooted in the past?
00:06:56.300 Is it rooted in the future?
00:06:58.900 Does it come from anywhere?
00:07:00.360 Is it going anywhere?
00:07:02.000 Or is this just dust on the wind?
00:07:05.120 If it's the more traditional form of addiction, drug addiction.
00:07:10.880 You know, and you see that you want those drugs.
00:07:14.580 You want that feeling.
00:07:16.160 You want to party.
00:07:17.300 You want to hang out all night.
00:07:19.820 Look at that.
00:07:21.000 Look at that through sober eyes.
00:07:24.120 Think about all those people in the nightclub.
00:07:26.440 You know, all those people.
00:07:27.960 They're high on booze.
00:07:29.140 They're high on cocaine.
00:07:30.200 They're high on heroin.
00:07:31.060 They're high on whatever.
00:07:31.740 And look at how much fun they're having that night.
00:07:34.380 I just want to be there.
00:07:35.900 Don't you?
00:07:36.540 Don't you want to be partying right now?
00:07:38.020 Look at them the next morning.
00:07:41.380 Look at them five years down the road when they've been doing this every single night.
00:07:45.320 Just wasting their life.
00:07:46.640 And look at the night itself.
00:07:48.180 What are they doing?
00:07:49.620 What are they celebrating?
00:07:51.620 Are they celebrating a wedding?
00:07:54.300 Are they celebrating a business deal?
00:07:57.320 An expansion of the business?
00:07:58.560 Is it a home, a housewarming party?
00:08:03.540 You know, that a married couple, they're building their lives?
00:08:06.000 What are they celebrating?
00:08:08.020 And what are they saying to one another?
00:08:10.420 See it for all the ugliness that it actually is.
00:08:15.680 See not just the event itself, but see what led up to it and where it's going.
00:08:21.140 So that's step one.
00:08:21.880 Develop eyes to see.
00:08:22.940 Any time, whatever it is that you're addicted to, whatever poison it is that you love so much,
00:08:29.400 don't just look at the high.
00:08:30.760 Don't just look at the pleasure.
00:08:31.820 Every time it crops up, look at the ugly.
00:08:35.260 Not just intellectually.
00:08:36.200 Don't just recognize that, yes, this goes to an ugly place.
00:08:39.160 But see the ugliness of where it's going.
00:08:43.280 Step number two is develop new habits.
00:08:45.980 Part of the problem with addiction is that you've developed habits.
00:08:51.120 You are locked into this cycle, into this repetitive cycle where you always go back and do the same thing,
00:08:56.380 even though you know it's bad for you.
00:08:58.000 And whenever you do, you reaffirm those pathways in your mind.
00:09:02.320 What you need is new habits.
00:09:04.280 If you're having trouble, like if you drink too much, or if you're addicted to some other substance of it,
00:09:11.040 look at how and when you do those things.
00:09:14.040 When are you most tempted?
00:09:16.280 Maybe it's a group of people that you need to stop hanging out with.
00:09:19.820 You know, if it's something else, maybe there's something you're doing that leads up to it.
00:09:24.480 Figure out the context where all of this happens.
00:09:27.940 It could be something as simple as negative self-talk.
00:09:31.200 You know, it could be something as simple as you beating yourself up all the time,
00:09:35.600 and hating yourself, and creating an excuse for failure in your life.
00:09:39.660 Figure out where and when this happens, and figure out where and when it doesn't,
00:09:43.040 and find new things to replace this.
00:09:46.060 You know, if you are destroying your life once a week on Friday night,
00:09:50.700 you know, spending money you don't have,
00:09:52.720 risking getting an STD by sleeping with women you don't know,
00:09:56.560 whatever, find something else to do.
00:09:59.440 If you're staying up all night playing World of Warcraft,
00:10:03.280 find something else to do.
00:10:05.040 Start reading a book.
00:10:06.540 Go for a jog.
00:10:07.340 Tire yourself out.
00:10:09.300 Figure out where and when the addiction occurs,
00:10:12.220 and avoid those circumstances as much as possible.
00:10:17.940 So first, get the eyes to see what it actually is,
00:10:21.340 and two, avoid it.
00:10:23.860 New habits.
00:10:24.620 Step three.
00:10:26.900 Because right now, right now you're, like, step one and step two,
00:10:30.920 you know, you're an Alcoholics Anonymous.
00:10:33.080 You know, you're not getting drunk anymore,
00:10:34.940 you're not ruining everything,
00:10:36.500 but you still want to get drunk,
00:10:38.060 even though you know it's bad.
00:10:39.480 And the only reason you're not getting drunk
00:10:40.960 is because you're at a meeting with a bunch of other guys
00:10:43.100 that all want to be getting drunk as well.
00:10:45.720 Step number three is lift up your sight.
00:10:49.980 You've been looking at,
00:10:50.880 you've looked at this addiction,
00:10:52.620 and you've seen it for what it is.
00:10:54.900 Now that you've done that, look up.
00:10:57.320 Look around you.
00:10:58.540 Look at the life you are living.
00:11:00.920 The life where this addiction is so tempting.
00:11:04.780 This isn't the life you want.
00:11:06.780 So what is the life you want?
00:11:09.520 What is it that you hope for?
00:11:12.280 What is it that you want to achieve?
00:11:15.160 What, what should you be doing right now?
00:11:18.600 Look up, look around, and look for that solution.
00:11:23.220 The addiction is always the anti-solution.
00:11:26.300 The addiction is,
00:11:27.860 here I am today,
00:11:29.820 and I'm not happy with my life.
00:11:32.080 I'm not happy because
00:11:33.600 I'm living in the wrong place.
00:11:36.780 I'm not happy because
00:11:38.240 I don't like the people I associate with.
00:11:40.560 I don't like the work I'm doing.
00:11:42.580 I, et cetera, et cetera.
00:11:43.720 You don't like where you are.
00:11:45.960 And you're using the addiction
00:11:47.400 to kill that pain
00:11:49.520 through self-destruction.
00:11:51.640 It's no different than cutting.
00:11:53.700 Okay, I think just about every
00:11:55.100 Trent Reznor song was about this.
00:11:57.100 You don't like where you are,
00:11:58.660 and so you hurt yourself
00:11:59.820 to distract yourself from the fact
00:12:01.480 that you hate your environment.
00:12:03.020 So where do you want to be?
00:12:04.420 What sort of lifestyle do you want to live?
00:12:06.360 What work do you want to be doing?
00:12:07.980 Who do you want to be spending your time with?
00:12:11.560 Look up.
00:12:12.600 Look around.
00:12:13.500 Look at the world.
00:12:14.480 Look at the possibilities
00:12:15.340 and figure out
00:12:16.440 which one of those possibilities
00:12:18.220 you actually want.
00:12:20.700 You know, a guy will look at pornography
00:12:22.280 because he's lonely
00:12:23.840 instead of actually going out
00:12:25.540 and finding a woman
00:12:26.840 that he can have a healthy
00:12:28.200 and fulfilling relationship with.
00:12:31.180 Look up.
00:12:32.260 Look for that.
00:12:34.260 And then finally,
00:12:35.420 once you've done that,
00:12:36.600 once you've seen it for what it is,
00:12:39.060 you've started breaking in new habits
00:12:41.840 to change your life,
00:12:43.820 and then third,
00:12:44.460 you've looked up
00:12:45.140 and seen the life
00:12:46.020 that you want to be living.
00:12:47.100 And once you start moving in that direction,
00:12:50.340 find the right place
00:12:52.320 for this addiction in your life.
00:12:54.640 Not the addiction,
00:12:55.980 but the good that comes out of it.
00:12:59.180 Figure out how it fits in appropriately.
00:13:01.820 You shouldn't be eating things
00:13:04.600 that have nothing but corn syrup in them
00:13:06.840 every day,
00:13:07.840 all day,
00:13:08.380 all the time.
00:13:09.040 But there is nothing wrong
00:13:11.720 with having a sweet tooth
00:13:13.220 and enjoying a piece
00:13:14.820 of good quality chocolate
00:13:16.460 or a bowl of ice cream
00:13:17.960 after a meal.
00:13:19.640 If you're addicted to sex,
00:13:22.000 find a wife
00:13:23.340 and have the best sex
00:13:25.060 on the planet with her.
00:13:26.880 If you're addicted to the partying,
00:13:28.940 to the high,
00:13:30.240 go do something
00:13:31.360 worthy of celebration
00:13:33.200 and find people worth celebrating with.
00:13:36.160 If you're addicted
00:13:38.320 to that material wealth,
00:13:41.260 go actually start building
00:13:43.100 something worthwhile.
00:13:45.620 The core to all of this is hope.
00:13:47.900 Okay?
00:13:48.140 Addictions are what happen
00:13:49.560 when you have no hope
00:13:51.280 in your life.
00:13:52.700 When you're not hoping
00:13:53.900 for what you should be.
00:13:54.820 You don't want to admit
00:13:56.020 the way things could be.
00:13:57.940 It's easier to be a loser
00:13:59.860 because then you don't have
00:14:01.200 to risk anything.
00:14:02.220 You never have to risk
00:14:03.260 potentially being happy.
00:14:05.500 Hope.
00:14:06.160 It's really at the core
00:14:07.860 of all of this.
00:14:10.080 If you're going to kick addiction,
00:14:11.780 you need to start hoping.
00:14:14.120 And one final kind of observation
00:14:16.840 on what I've been saying
00:14:17.600 all of this time.
00:14:18.820 I was using the visual metaphor.
00:14:21.740 You know?
00:14:22.080 Look and see.
00:14:23.060 Have eyes to see.
00:14:24.300 Raise your eyes up
00:14:25.540 and look at the world.
00:14:27.340 And that's no accident.
00:14:29.440 Because the faculty of sight,
00:14:33.080 the faculty of sight,
00:14:34.280 it is the least personal
00:14:36.940 of our senses.
00:14:39.480 Scent and taste
00:14:40.580 are very internal things.
00:14:43.600 Even hearing.
00:14:45.020 You know?
00:14:45.500 We don't close our ears
00:14:46.680 at night, do we?
00:14:48.240 You know?
00:14:48.620 We only actually hear
00:14:50.220 what is related to us.
00:14:52.820 Where it is.
00:14:53.240 When you open your eyes.
00:14:54.400 When you just look
00:14:55.220 at the world around you.
00:14:56.440 And try that right now.
00:14:57.900 Listen to this video.
00:14:58.960 Stop just listening to my words
00:15:00.780 and just for a second
00:15:01.560 look around you
00:15:02.800 and be aware of that environment.
00:15:05.520 Sight is the universe
00:15:07.280 imposing itself upon you.
00:15:08.740 It is truth
00:15:09.500 imposing itself upon you.
00:15:11.840 You don't get to choose
00:15:12.600 what you see.
00:15:14.220 Sight always
00:15:15.480 assaults you with the truth.
00:15:18.040 And see,
00:15:18.400 when it comes to addiction,
00:15:19.620 addictions,
00:15:20.080 when you get down to it,
00:15:20.700 they're very,
00:15:21.000 they're obsessive.
00:15:22.440 They're you looking
00:15:23.940 inside yourself.
00:15:26.540 You pursuing yourself
00:15:27.800 for yourself's own sake.
00:15:31.300 And ignoring the truth,
00:15:32.860 the reality out there.
00:15:34.360 Ignoring the hope
00:15:35.320 of the life you could be living
00:15:36.900 and instead
00:15:37.620 obsessing and navel-gazing.
00:15:41.000 Having a rich internal life
00:15:42.280 is good.
00:15:43.520 The unexamined life
00:15:44.460 is not worth living after all.
00:15:46.300 But that doesn't mean
00:15:47.640 that you should allow yourself
00:15:49.020 to become internally obsessed
00:15:51.780 and to never,
00:15:53.220 never branch out,
00:15:54.940 but never engage.
00:15:56.900 So open your eyes
00:15:58.140 to the universe.
00:15:59.480 The harsh and brutal truth
00:16:01.320 of the universe.
00:16:03.020 But also,
00:16:04.160 the infinite possibilities
00:16:05.900 that are out there.
00:16:07.760 If you'll just
00:16:08.660 let go of that thing,
00:16:10.680 that poison,
00:16:11.920 that when you get right down to it,
00:16:13.700 you don't even really want.
00:16:15.880 Thanks for listening, folks.
00:16:17.560 If you've got a requested video,
00:16:19.340 there's a link down below.
00:16:20.640 Just fill out the form,
00:16:21.800 send me a message.
00:16:23.120 I charge you a few Benjamins,
00:16:24.300 but not that many.
00:16:25.680 And as well,
00:16:26.520 if you want to support me on Patreon,
00:16:28.140 if you like the work I'm doing
00:16:29.060 but don't have a question,
00:16:30.360 link's down there.
00:16:31.520 Please,
00:16:32.300 like, comment,
00:16:32.960 and subscribe.
00:16:33.720 All that great stuff.
00:16:35.420 Take care of yourselves.
00:16:36.900 Always keep moving forward.
00:16:38.800 Deus volt.
00:16:40.000 Irini out.
00:16:40.680 Yuk.
00:16:42.280 Is.
00:16:42.560 I.
00:16:45.300 I.
00:16:46.340 I.
00:16:46.580 I.
00:16:47.800 I.
00:16:48.040 I.
00:16:48.480 I.
00:16:52.600 I.