Thank Lal sir and Tetsuo
I can completely relate to the methods mentioned by you both. After coming in contact with puredhamma site. I feel optimistic . I had attended a vipassana session in goenka ji tradition. I wouldnt say that it was completely useless, i was able to let go off my craving for alcohol after that. It pushed me to do more research to find answers to my questions. When one wants to find something they will eventually..
I am now able to observe some very subtle forms of greed, hate and ignorance because i like to contemplate about dhamma concepts and try to observe my thoughts as much as possible . Infact i sleep after reading a post and wake up reading one again :)
I am now able to atleast recognise when i am finding myself getting attached /desire to any sensory input. Sharing some examples from my daily life
I love when my teenage daughter spends time with me. I am sure anyone with teenage kids will know how hard it is .But now i am able to recognise my attachment to that feeling (vedana) when she is close to me but i dont allow my mind to flow in that but be aware of its anicca nature
When i see people , i start observing that there is nothing to actually like about this body. Even while looking at a beautiful woman, i dont forcibly push my eyes away but try to see mindfully that her body is only an aggregation of parts like eyes, nose, ears, hair etc. we all are made of same substance. That male/female would have been my sister/father/mother/daughter in my previous life that actually helps to keep mind sane
I was able to reduce my cravings for good food once i understood food is a fuel nothing more than that . Now i observe my mind and body feelings when feeling like eating a tasty snack even though stomach is full. yes i am not perfect yet at it but atleast better than before :)
What i have understood is that be mindful of your thoughts, intentions as much as possible , look for those subtle ones too and that is meditation
What really astonishes me is the fact that an Arahant just sees in seeing, hears in hearing, etc that means our minds need so so so much of cleaning ( change of habits to attach to sensory inputs) plus absorption of anicca sanna like first nature of mind. That for sure requires loads of work EACH MOMENT. It will be fascinating to know the process behind on how they were able to get in that state of mind
I find myself lucky to find this site and since then have been enjoying my journey