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I do a lotta sittin an watchin

We also have dark retreats in taoism. As for chasing cats, this reminded me of an episode from the The Game of Thrones (which I happened to have read before the TV series appeared). One of the advanced exercises Arya got from her taoist-ish master was to chase cats in dark alleys. The master required proof of her having caught the cat -- she had to bring every captured cat to him. Then the cat was out of the bag. As for me, I'd only had visions of a black jaguar in the Amazon, but far from chasing it, I evaded it... At the get-go ayahuasca makes one blind for something like an hour, by temporarily paralyzing the visual cortex -- which is one reason the shamanic ceremony takes place in complete darkness so that freaking out over it doesn't interfere. So at one point I stepped out of the dark premises into the dark jungle and promptly got lost. I was lost in vast space, funky nonlinear time, and actual physical whereabouts... plus that black jaguar, no telling whether actual or "of the mind." Luckily then I had a vision of AC/DC -- or rather an auditory prompt. I had no memory of which way I turned when stepping out the door, and they sang into my ear, "Our balls are always swinging to the left and to the right" -- and so I knew I had to turn left, then right, to get back.

One of the practices in dzogchen is spending time in a completely dark room, dark retreat. Visions develop and the practice is to stay in the nature of mind, recognizing that all appearances are generated by the mind. I wonder if anyone has had a vision of a black cat in the dark retreat. If you chase it, you fail! 🤣 I remember that because our trajectories were opposite, I got my foundation in Daoist meditation. Yes, dzogchen practice is done with open eyes. Open but not resting or focused on anything in particular, meditation without an object. Bear in mind that it is traditionally preceded by a practice called zhinè, meditation with an object. One spends weeks or months staring at the Tibetan letter A, until the mind has stabilized and a distinction can be clearly made between its content and its nature. So when the transition moves from practice with an object to practice without, one is already accustomed to practicing with the eyes open. I didn’t get the zhinè instruction until I’d already been practicing without an object for about a year due to the timing of when I met my teacher. It was a definite obstacle for a while to practice with eyes open but then the zhinè came more easily.

Depends on what sect you subscribe to. in classical tantric Shaivism, Shiva is considered the supreme being, the source of all existence, and the ultimate reality (Parabrahman).

Cuz !

Benevolent misunderstood virtuous mosquitos biting us only to boost our qi; that is a fabulous concept. There has to be a good purpose for all creatures, right? I can't go for it though. If one's qi is at a high enough level or shen or even jing at high levels the mosquito won't be biting on that one. That applies for naturally occuring mosquitos; perhaps biotech engineered robot mosquitos are another matter. This years mosquitos, are on another level. Some are clad in bullet proof armor and go straight for the jugular. It's as if some diabolical madman was behind the 2025 mosquito invasion. Maybe it's a backdrop for the next Austin Powers sequel. Or it could be Mother Nature reminding us all that she has a tool box beyond our comprehension and she is ready to use it in response for our transgressions. Michael Meyers where are you?

Dao 道 (dao4) the Way = 首 (shou3) ‘head/sky’ + 辶 (chuo4) ‘feet/earth’, i.e. the Way is a harmony of polar opposites.

Equanimity. Stillness. Those qualities are not just developed in your formal practice, but needs to be enforced in your daily life and habits. That clarity that arises from equanimity, will dispell questions about who's energy is from where, and which is what. You will discern and know for yourself. Like choppy waters, nothing is clear, it is all muddy, guesswork, impossible to judge objectively. When you make the energies and mind settle to become clear without ripples, you can see and know. Abandoning alcohol and drugs, stop listening to music passively in the background, decrease your interaction with people who are not involved in your path, abandon harmful people in your life. These are real changes that will make a real difference besides your formal practice.

I believe it's chasing, in a dark room, a black cat who isn't there. As some may (or more likely may not) remember, I came to taoism from dzogchen, many moons ago, and the way I was taught dzogchen meditation, you had your eyes open, looking past the tip of your nose at nothing in particular but placing your awareness in your eyes. I don't know if there's other ways (would have to ask Steve since I didn't take it far with that practice, it was still an experimental stage for me). But even with my eyes open I would occasionally just feel sleepy and, realizing it, proceed straight to bed. I asked my teacher then what I was doing wrong. His response: "Nothing. You must be chronically underslept." Which I was at the time. So he goes, "Then you're doing it right. A sign of meditation done right is, it gives you what you need. Not what you want. What you need." I made a note of it...

Heard this continuation of Zhuangzi's dream.* ...So then the Japanese patrol captured Zhuangzi and interrogated him. Why are you planting explosives all over our military trains routes and derailing our trains, they asked. And he's, like, I have no idea what you're talking about, I'm a butterfly, I don't interfere in your military affairs. -- And what did the interrogators do? -- What could they do, they put him in front of the firing squad and woke him up. -- And then what happened? -- What could happen? He's flying somewhere out there, visiting this flower, then that flower... *from an accomplished martial artist who thinks he's a taoist -- but far as I can tell, the only taoist thing about him is his zhuangzesque sense of the absurd. Which is good enough for me -- better than what many others who think of themselves as taoists have to show to justify the self-identification.

Its a job I have had many times . The last place was in the film industry ... they can get pretty fussy there . " That was great sticky date pudding ! I'll have that again for desert tomorrow ." Me : " Sorry , we make different deserts each day , but you will get that again soon ." {self important glare ) " I said I will have that for my desert tomorrow ... and you will make it tomorrow ! " ( ) Me : " Then you better take it up with my boss ." ( I knew what he would be in for ) Didn't work of course ... but then ; 'Mr Self Important gets on the phone , rings up a restaurant in Melbourne ( we were at Brisbane studios , in another state ) orders a sticky date pudding , gets it air freighted up and taxied from the airport to the studio and brings it into the mess tent and eats it gloatingly in front of me . WTF would I care .... you want to spend $850 on sticky date pudding to 'teach me a thing or two ' ... go for it !

Some beautiful and meaningful expressions Bindi! There is an intelligence of beauty that breaks the lonely heart with its goodness...

The God Particle Within There is an idea in the spiritual traditions of the world that the divine is not separate, not distant, not a figure above, but a presence within. But what if this inner divinity is not only real, but also functional? What if it is not merely a state of mind, or emptiness, or spaciousness, or holiness, but part of our subtle architecture, a refined, intelligent essence working ceaselessly to restore wholeness? This deeper understanding shifts everything. It reframes the divine not as an object of worship, but as a mechanism of transformation, actively embedded in the very fabric of our inner being. Not metaphor. Not abstraction. But an actual medium: subtle, dynamic, and purifying. In this vision, the self is not merely a vessel for thought and experience. It is a structured field, layered, responsive, and capable of immense refinement. At the core of this field lies something subtle yet profoundly intelligent: a filtering presence that tries to separate what is real from what is reactive, what is timeless from what is temporary. It does not force, yet it governs. It does not shout, yet it clarifies. It acts like a crystalline thread, a current of luminous essence that brings truth wherever it flows. This essence is not born of effort. It cannot be constructed by the mind. It is never absent, merely covered over, almost silenced. But it can be uncovered, found beneath the sediment of old impressions. It is not ours to create, but ours to discover, when the more assertive aspects of the self begin to fall quiet and the deeper, subconscious forces awaken. What becomes clear is that this essence is not a static stillness or blank awareness. It is a responsive intelligence, one that gently and systematically purifies distortion. Like a clear stream flowing through a clouded vessel, it enacts transformation not through struggle, but through contact. Its very nature reveals and dissolves what is false. Its flow is the return to sanity. The mind may attempt to name this essence, to contain it within ideas. But I propose it is not an idea. It is a subtle reality, not merely an inner event or a shift, but the unveiling of what may be called the essence of God: a presence so innately pure and intelligent that its activation realigns the entire system of self around what is most real. It is the final key that unlocks the final process. For many, the longing for truth begins with a sense of absence, of something missing. But the God particle within is not technically missing. It is hidden. And it waits, not passively, but quietly, until the self becomes transparent enough to allow contact. What is required is not belief, not even faith, but recognition. The subtle pathways of the self must open, not to ideas, but to actual subtle function, until this ultimate presence is revealed and restored to its rightful place: to cleanse consciously, to filter, to complete the subtle body. In this view, the divine is not separate from the structure of self. It is its deepest layer, its most essential root. And it is useful, not because it offers escape, but because it offers ultimate purification and clarity. It does not require worship, only space. It does not demand sacrifice, only honesty. And it does not ask for distance, but intimacy. This is the inner essence that makes liberation possible, not as a singular event, but as a steady unfolding of what has always been within - not potential or emptiness but a specific causal essence, a liquid diamond consciousness, the God particle within.

I feel like we don't have the same energy anymore, old people left, the ones who stayed don't post that much. Yes I know there are new people carrying the forum on it's back, if it weren't for them to post we would have like only a few posts per week. Cheers to those new members I also used to hype this forum when I started, good times back in 2019, and that wasn't even the peak, I came too late to this forum, envy for those who participated in those times Seems like in the past 3 years we went downhill bro I'm also out of ideas to post so I can't contribute, I tried to annoy people the other day but it wasn't a good idea Recently I started to look for Tantra practices, and I had to PM 2 members here to get answers because no one commented on my post Then I found Reddit, and reddit forum about Tanta, Hinduism and Buddhism are full of people, for vajrayana I found a whole forum dedicated to it, just like this one But the qigong reddit is poor, very poor... And there is no other place like The Dao Bums So the best place for qigong/daoist related topics is still The Dao Bums, but unfortunately for some reason we couldn't incorporate well other traditions, it would be nice to have more people here and everything in one place, but I have no idea how to make this happen, buddhism is quite relevant here too but as I said, in COMPARISON to other places this is not the best unfortunately Oh well I coundn't use all of the emojis Anyways, I feel sad to have to use other forums for other traditions related questions. If I'm wrong please correct me

This is in anticipation of the changes that the 2026 Year of the Fire Horse will bring on Earth: https://www.newsonair.gov.in/russia-raises-aviation-alert-to-red-as-klyuchevskoy-volcano-eruption-intensifies-in-kamchatka/

To me that’s like being inside my own mind. Teaching that thoughts are not real.

The quote above, which is not attributed in the post, appears in a Thelemagick publication, and is from Golden Dawn lectures. The identifying logo displayed is the Seal of Argenteum Astrum, a magical order founded by Aleister Crowley, and closely associated with Thelema, a philisophical and religious system also established by Crowley. A central tenet of Thelema is, "Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law." Golden Dawn was an earlier hermetic magical order, and influenced Crowley.

So to get back to the no you discussion. Starlings fly in patterns that no individual member decides on, I posted a video previously. Imagine that this collective made up of birds developed an ego, an identity, and could communicate with you. When you looked at the individual birds themselves they would have no clue about higher level concepts and language, they are just birds. Imagine collectively such an intelligence emerged from their communication and interaction though. In this scenario, there is no I anywhere in that flock of dumb birds. It is just an emergent property of the flock communicating. As to what reality really looks like. Color doesn't exist, light has a frequency, but not color. Color is something our brain attributes to the frequency of light. In reality nothing has a smell, or a taste. Those are attributes our mind gives to chemicals we interact with. We aren't looking at reality, we are looking at an abstraction of it.

my religion teaches recognizes that women are closer to Divintiy than men are, and that it comes easier for women, it is more natural for women. It is also the reason why men have more visible religious duties and responsibilities and roles than women do. They have more homework because they have farther to go. To reach the level women are already at.

it just dawned on me how "real" is at the core of Realization. an earlier post mentions that, it is about recognizing what is real. i like this very much:

yes. big difference between reacting and responding.

Proactivity vs Reactivity

Yes, and also - not real! They cannot do any harm. Any harm comes from the ‘reacting’.

I tend to favor the simple and straightforward. "Meditation is an exercise that trains attention and awareness. Its purpose is often to curb reactivity to one's thoughts and feelings, which, though they may be disturbing and upsetting and hijack attention from moment to moment, are invariably fleeting." from Psychology Today a secular source, but what it states is at the core of many practices aimed at Realization

oh, OK, thank you. That makes sense. On a different forum i read a lot from someone who posted there, that is where i learned the bit i do know about Hindusim. She talked a lot about Brahman, Atman, Advaita. So it sounds like as you say, a different flavor, a different hierarchy. Thank you.

I am not familiar with Shiva and know very little about Hinduism. But I appreciate that in this forum i learn by hearing people share their own paths and perspective and framework of understanding. My intention is to understand what is being discussed, not to dispute or challenge it. As "the supreme being, ultimate reality" then is Shiva at the top in Hinduism? In my very, very limited understanding of Hinduism I thought Brahman was the source, sustainer, and ground of all being. so i am confused

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I think the Tantric Saivites describe it as removing coverings (malas) as opposed to identification with something new. This is reflected soteriologically as a reversal of course back up through the tattvas including fundamental coverings like time and space. We are all inherently Shiva/sakti who has obscured their true nature with these coverings that result in our identification with the limited self reinforced by our individuated thoughts, emotions etc. Shiva/sakti allows this because they enjoy hiding and then rediscovering themselves (Lila-divine play). I personally relate better to a proto Daoist model than the tantric saivite one but I think both have common tantric elements.

Plus being an incredible Full Moon. To me it felt like a Super Moon one. Very special practice. Can't wait for September's Blood Moon (Sun 7 Sept) which is a lunar eclipse. Start of spring in the southern hemisphere. Edited: TDDF doesn't like images!

It depends what you mean by "animal". If you're saying everyone is a unique creation with unique attributes of the Great Spirit, then yes. Humans are God's creatures like everything else. But if you mean animal nature - the ego. Then no. Ego is just a hallucination born of ignorance. It's not your nature. Same word can be used to point to different things. If the distinction is made not carefully, you can end up validating a delusion.

I am sorry. I have not been able to answer this question. Will keep trying.

There is some truth in your way of seeing things. In a sense that the great spirit indeed can manifest in various diverse forms, each unique in its expression. But you're trying to insert ignorance as one of truthful qualities in there aswell which but your sneaky ego at play.

You probably interpreted that as a validation for ego. Your whole way of thinking is actually just a sneaky ego attempt to give itself a permission slip to stay in ignorance as if that's your natural quality that needs embracing. But it's just ego being afraid of truth in the end because the truth would eradicate ego.

that made my day !

Best take away so far : the Great Spirit can be under the spell of ignorance I hope you realize what that did to your other arguments about 'Great Spirit ' .

A good friend has been teaching tsa lung trul khor at the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Texas for over 25 years as a part of their Integrative Health program. I spent a few years working with a therapist who used a variant of CBT known as ACT (Acceptance Commitment Therapy). It did not use meditation techniques much per se but did use principles and views that inform meditative philosophy and practice in a way that was very effective for me.

In the dzogchen tradition, the core practice is sometimes referred to as "non-meditation" for this reason. Occasionally, I see the word contemplation being used, which comes from the Latin verb contemplatio, referring more to the act of looking or observing rather than thinking or reflecting. Interestingly, as a native English speaker I've somehow come to associate contemplation more with thinking and meditation more with simply abiding or being. Not sure how that interchange came about.

I heard this when it first came out and somehow chanced on it again today, so I decided to share it with any lucky bastard who missed it back then. O Fortuna! This octopus... Let's give him boots... Send him to North Korea... Our perceptions co-create reality. Here's the real Latin lyrics for comparison... Of course the misheard ones are nothing like that -- they don't sound anything like that -- but if you're listening to the misheard version while looking at the English phonetic counterpart on the screen, you hear the English version quite distinctly... O Fortuna velut luna statu variabilis semper crescis aut decrescis vita detestabilis nunc obdurat et tunc curat ludo mentis aciem, egestatem, potestatem dissolvit ut glaciem. Sors immanis et inanis, rota tu volubilis status malus vana salus semper dissolubilis Obumbrata et velata michi quoque niteris nunc per ludum dorsum nudum fero tui sceleris. Sors salutis et virtutis michi nunc contraria, est affectus et defectus semper in angaria. Hac in hora sine mora corde pulsum tangite quod per sortem sternit fortem mecum omnes plangite

Hi Fellow Seekers, I am a long time practitioner of Taoist practices alongside Internal Martial Arts. My body practice am mainly focused on Tai Chi through the Patrick Kelly Huang Xing Xian. I have practiced neidan and neigong and other gongs for many years. I am at a point where I am wandering from place to place exploring for the next steps in my internal cultivation practice with special interest in deepenig my knowledge and experience in internal alchemy. Due to my wandering I am vey interested in seeking out and meeting different practioners in person. I hope to add my findings to this community

No , it isn't . Its there and you are stuck in it whether you like or approve or deny it or not . However in light of what you think and your own practice that may be a teaching , I don't know .... sounds like it denies nature though . Nope . I am an animal , a primate : I got forward facing etes, opposite square set shoulders , body hair , eyes, teeth , nails ..... Yeah sure .... I get some cosmic inspiration and poof ... vanish in a light flash ... really ? Why is being an animal something ignorant or born of ignorance ? Our true nature is dual , denying part of it , any part is illusion and self - deception . And don't preach to me what my true nature is , this thread isn't about that . Its about ; what it means 'for me, in my own practice ' . Neither I or the indigenous are denying this . Its you that seems to take umbrage that some animals realize they are animals as well as manifestations of spirit . They do, it doesn't cause them to deny they are one of the animals as well though . In my practice such a view would be considered egotistical, privileged and rather 'western conscious / Christian orientated . IOne of my teachers will insist to you that yes, he is a man , but also he is a possum , another one will tell you he is a koala ( and he looks just like one to ! ) ,

I am going to declare that I am a human animal of the type primate and of the type that has a vivid and excessive imagination . Also imbued with large amounts of ego I am often forgetting, denying and ignoring this fact and attempting to lift myself up with all sorts of denials of parts of my very real and physical nature and conditions and insisting I am actually ONLY some type of spiritual or fantastic being or 'soul' .... or 'spirit' or some other word that does not seem to have any one meaning that we all can agree upon .

Hi there Ryder, Great to hear that you've taken up FPCK! The general rule about mixing FPCK with other spiritual practices is that it tends to be okay, as long as there is a gap of a few hours between sessions. And yes, after you've done the breathing pattern, just breath normally and naturally through the nose.

One step on the right shore is worth more than a thousand splashes elsewhere!

Hi Kati . I get your post . I do not misinterpret it , nor do I see anywhere in it where it seems an attitude was forced on you or suggested by those around you resulting in an averse understanding of the value of the practice . You seem to have come to it yourself within the context of practice , I could be wrong , but I don't see anywhere in your post where you suggest it was given to you to 'focus and feel' . I suggest you ignore negative responses that focus on things other than what you outlined yourself ( they seem a negative projection towards you ) .... you have discovered a good thing and I suggest you explore it . I would like to respond in sections ; In my opinion those 'resistances' are usually negative forces : ingratitude, ungratefulness, unappreciation, thanklessness, inconsiderateness, rudeness, etc . I agree . A lot of my gratitude is in relation to my environment ; the opportunity to experience a beautiful locale, area , country, planet ... And the whole big 'package' I have been given , on many levels , the gratitude is towards 'that which made it possible or manifested ' is definitely connected with 'unconditional love ' ..... I am constantly thanking ( showing my appreciation ) to 'Big Mum ' ... who made it all possible ... and still does ; my teacher ( in Australian indigenous matters ) advises me to always say, 'Bugglebear' ( thankyou ) for what I have , and for anything I need ; " Just ask Big Mum, she will look after you ." ( that is a specific teaching for me , it isn't a 'magic manifestation for everyone , especially people that don't follow 'Law' ) That point about not forcing change and what that relates to .... I could tell many stories ... most of my life has been like that . I have done a study ( and some writing ) on the essentials of good traditions ; how and why and where they might have started , what are their benefits and how do we simply practice them . Gratitude and making offerings of gratitude is one of the central ones . The rituals (offerings of gratitude ) have existed since at least 1700 bc in the ancient Zoroastrian 'Yasna ' rituals , the ancient Vedic rituals , ( Zoroaster and Tonpa Shenrab Miwoche { The Central Asian Buddha} both reformed the religions of their time by converting 'sacrifice' into 'offerings {and forbidding animal sacrifice } ) many religions , and right through to the private and communal rituals of today . I see it as both . One experience ( one of many ) I recently wrote about here . It looked like I was going to loose my home and land , I started freaking out and panicked and went down the road most do ; tried to find new accommodation , found out and heard there was none , rents not available and crazy expensive , other people telling me I didn't have a chance etc . Then somehow I came to my senses : what the hell are you doing, your life and everything you have have been given to me (in one way or another ) , I always get looked after and I now realize and appreciate this ( with the wrong attitude one may not realize and do the opposite .... complain about what you have - and that of course will manifest the other 'symptoms' ). So I dropped that whole BS mind set , looked on line , saw a nice house in a nearby area and to cut the story short, every step along the way was 'magically accomplished ' ( the owner even skipped me ahead of applications and paid for an initial supply of firewood, two large gas bottles and let me use all their equipment and machinery - it was a small rural property ) . But still there was something familiar about the place and why I felt strangely at ease and at home there , then I realized it was the place I saw when I first came here 30+ years back and at the time I thought 'What a great place , I would love top live there, even if for a few months , to experience it .' Well, that is exactly what happened , it then turned out I wasn't going to loose my house ( a cabin actually ) and now I had a 'lodge' up in the mountains and a cabin down in the valley by the river . It goes on and on , I didn't even by my place ... it was given to me . NO its not a mansion , it simple but functional and has many benefits modern and urban life is missing .... you must know of that dynamic where modern people with all mod cons and distraction suffer depression and other types of related issues ( they are basically DISSATISFIED ...... ) and they wonder why the simple villager or tribal person seems to have an inner happiness or satisfaction (or perhaps gratitude ) . Enjoy it , practice it and enjoy the results of the practice . It can even get to the level of 'gratitude for existence ' , and in that 'the whole Universe rejoices' . Its an aspects on the path to Eudamonia ( which I believe was and should be the 'natural state ' ) .

It can be a metaphorical goal .... or an overall term that 'suffices for this stage ' . For example we had a 'Tracing board ' for use in instruction / as a 'mandala' / 'reminder' . ( Tracing boards are a teaching device and attempt to show the lesson of the degree' or the related 'knowledge lecture' in artistic symbolism eg . Frieda Harris' versions from the first three degrees of Co-Masonry ) It had a large circle with divisions for 'the six paths of magic and yoga ' , each colored accordingly , the color as it sent to the center of the diagram labeled 'enlightenment ' was white , as it went further out from the center to the circumference it darkened until it was black - labelled ignorance . For example the 'Love' sector for 'Invocational Magick / Bhakti Yoga was white in the center , toning into the blue of 'love ' and getting darker until it came to 'obsession ' . So in this simple schemata , 'the light' , at that stage , was what one was 'aiming for ' .