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funny man, but Carlins dead. Getting your science from a late night comedienne might not be the most intelligent way. Carlin flunked out of high school, though he later earned an equivalency. I understand he's your focus, but probably better if you learned from scientists not satirists. addon> Carlin (1937-2009) when he was born Los Angeles had clear skies, they rapidly got worse and worse, cars and industry created choking smog. It's not great now, but its much much better. It was awful. quick read- Photos: L.A.’s mid-century smog was so bad, people thought it was a gas attack Pollution earned the city the nickname ‘Smell-A’https://timeline.com/la-smog-pollution-4ca4bc0cc95d there's a picture from 1958 of people wearing gas masks in public. It was as bad or worse in Pittsburgh which had been the Pneumonia capital of the U.S and all the buildings were stained black from the coal and pollution. Today if you go through it, they kept one building unwashed, blackened as a reminder of how bad it was. It was killing us, back in the 50's. We smartened up. We passed the the Clean Air Act in 1963, we put catalytic converters into our cars, we stopped putting lead into our gasoline. We listened to scientists. Yes it cost money, but it saved lives, it made our cities liveable again. Thank god we did it, otherwise we'd be in gas masks right now. And there are parts of the world that are choking to death. We don't have to. Listening to science, not satirists can make our lives our better, because we have changed things. Without having to sacrifice life quality, matter of fact, without the changes we'd be living in a toilet.

That's the title of a new book by Scott Bradley. Scott is an excellent communicator who has been writing on the Zhuangzi for many, many years. I greatly value his insights, even though I don't entirely agree with aspects of his interpretation. He has a website called Zhuangzi: A site for discussion of the philosophy of Zhuangzi and its applicability in today's world. About himself he writes: "Scott Bradley has long been a student of religion and philosophy. Among his corporeal wanderings was a15-year circumnavigation aboard his 32’ sail boat. His spin on the philosophy of Zhuangzi comes after many years of engagement with Zhuangzi, his contemporaries, antecedents and historical interpreters." About the Book This book presents a personal non-religious philosophy of life inspired by the 4th Century BCE Daoist philosopher Zhuangzi (Chuang Tzu). In the face of our irremediable not-knowing Zhuangzi suggests we abandon all supposedly definitive declarations of Truth and instead follow along with the trustful elan of life itself. This can lead to the deeply mystical experience of releasing oneself in trust into the Mystery that enfolds all things. Identified with Mystery, "hiding the world in the world", one is freed from all fear of loss. When life and death are taken as forming a single string, we can affirm our death just as we affirm our life. When no event or circumstance can happen outside the Great Happening our happiness depends on nothing and we can "wander far and unfettered" through life. If you feel the need for a guru, make one up. Who knows your needs better than your own heart? The author has written many sages and Xudanzi, the sage presented in these lectures, is but the latest. A dao (path) is made by walking it, and we all walk our own. Xudanzi's dao is only meant to inspire; your own authentic dao arises as you walk it. https://booklocker.com/books/10279.html

Sounds like you are in the......" friend zone" at least you can give her good advice on the super hot guys she meets. The Stockholm syndrome came to mind but holding her hostage is very bad advice. Friends with benefits will take a bottle of tequila. Tequila has been lowering woman's standers for a 100 years. Good luck with that or ditch her for a romantic relationship with a different woman and let it all go.

Silence and spaciousness go together. The immensity of silence is the immensity of (Presence) in which a center does not exist. (“the mind” deleted in exchange for Presence) The “center” is the me-ness, positions and habituations that obstruct and constrict and create the gravity of fear and grasping. One’s 10,000 favorite radio stations, thought forms, desires and fears - that mesmerize one’s Presence. In which one’s Presence is held in a-tension. Suspend 10,000 tensions and in the moment you Awaken. meditation is Presence - for those as yet held in tension - it is Presence while practicing non-participation in the noise of one’s tensions.

Liu I-Mings "Cultivating the Tao" translated by Fabrizio Pregadio is a great resource, one of those works which reveals deeper levels of profoundity as you re-read as your practice develops, and while you're at it he released a new anthology of 16 full and part translated Neidan texts a few days ago, which includes another of Liu's works translated into English for the first time. I also found Louis Komjathy's "The Way of Complete Perfection" and Thomas Cleary's "Practical Taoism" and "Secret of the Golden Flower" clear instruction. I posted a newly translated commentary from the 1920's on the golden flower in a new thread several weeks ago which contains a simple key to reveal the 'shining mind' you may find illuminizing. Also one can't go wrong utilising Dr. Glenn Morris' 1-10 brain scrub as an initial method. Cheers

I just wish i’d realized sooner that the basics and those ephasizing the importance of them actually knew what they were doing, instead of fantasizing about the advanced practices. I know today that speaking about these thing with people IRL is going to just be a way to alienate us both. To have a few people to discuss with would be great, i have two, which is enough. Energetic practices are not for everyone, the whole concept of actually shedding expectations and judgement to become intimate with what is real and so close at hand that it’s imperceptible almost is going to be hard to share with someone. Despite the internet this is a lonely road, and growing accustomed to self-sufficency should come earlier. People within and without will look at me funny, like i know deep inside already i should shun them. I’d tell myself: If someone says ”this is highly advanced” you should distrust them. If someone offers praise you should shut your ears and walk away. Only listen to the source and resonate with it. There is no prize, no acceptance, no destination of manifest truth so quit believing it will feel like you’ve arrived one day and just keep going, enjoy life in actuality. Peace

"Good derives its virtue from evil, just as it is the silent pause that gives sweetness to the chant." ~St. Thomas Aquinas

It's better to be a warrior in a garden, than a gardner in a war.

I know I've belabored this point several times in the past. However, I think it still needs to be called out (and perhaps a fruitful discussion will ensue). Techniques/postures/methods are secondary to meditation. They are means to an end. That then begs the question "What is meditation?" Meditation is complete absorption in which there is no separation between subject and object, or, there is only subject, no object. This is also called "samādhī). So, sitting in full lotus, or x,y or z posture, or n-repetitions of any mantra, or breathing technique etc etc, DO NOT constitute meditation. They are preparatory. This includes techniques like neigong, various yogic kriya, etc etc. They are doing. Meditation is undoing (had to use this cliché). Normally, our mind is always reaching out into the objective world, attracted to and attached to objects. My home, my car, my this, my that, and so on and so forth. This phenomenon is called "Chitta viskhépa" in sanskrit. What does "preparatory" imply? It implies that the mind is brought back from external focus/scattered attention to single-pointed attention/focus ( ekāgrachitta) and finally in cessation of the mind itself (manōlaya or better still, manōnāsha). The gate of meditation is entered when the mind becomes single-pointed. It becomes meditation with the cessation of the mind (identification with thoughts). This is the place of stillness. Once a practitioner has stabilized in meditation (stillness), they then can re-enter the world but fully stable in the knowledge of their true nature (empty, infinite, eternal, light). Forget about all the techniques, about being perfect in your forms and your posture, etc. Sit comfortably on a wooden or metal chair, and follow this meditation. It will super-charge your other practices if you do this every day.

One big book: It's what you'll ever need. Dont fall into the beginner's trap of thinking that you'll gain insight and wisdom by reading books. Good luck!

I'm going to channel some Robert Anton Wilson and share my interpretation of the last few months of news I've been reading: Every border between nations does not represent a line of peaceful intent, so much as it demarks the place where two rival gangs grew tired of killing each other and agreed to stop... for now. Seems as a species we haven't grown tired yet. All perception is based on gamble. We do not perceive the world as it is, but as we have been conditioned to interpret it. We interpret the signals of perception through the filter of our familial and social programming and assume that this is reality. It is not. Our family and society (politics/religion), shape our perceptive interpretation. They reinforce, reward and punish our interpretation as it is shaped into a Reality Tunnel. This tunnel is usually finished by age 7 and changing it is nigh on impossible requiring monumental effort and an alarming degree of discomfort and outright pain. Ask anyone diligently devoted to a path of spiritual awakening if confirmation is desired. When our interpretations are in accord with our society, we are called normal. Once the tunnel is formed anything that does not conform to our projected interpretation is refuted as illusory and false. This is the basis of Naive Realism, which has been refuted since the time of The Stoics. Yet the mostly invisible process of intepreting is sub conscious and gives rise to such firm reinforced beliefs that it pre-determines our notions of normal and strange, beautiful and ugly, good and bad in spite of the raw information arising in our environment; and is why facts presented in debate seldom influence the opposition's reality interpretation. Whatever facts presented by nature, or an opponent's argument that do not meet our expectation and interpretation, will be ignored, refuted, or attacked outright as falsehood; while those that reinforce our interpretation are held up as banners of truth and shouted at opponents as 'obvious'. Certitude is siezed by some minds, not because there is any philosophical justification for it, but because such minds have an emotional need for certitude. There is great comfort in certainty. The last years of my practice have brought me a very painful understanding of why some teacher's try and shy potential students away from spiritual pursuits. It's heart breakingly and mind shattering to have one's previously held comforting notions of assumptions, projections and beliefs of reality, of 'how things are' to be relentlessly and unavoidably dissolved, shattered and melted like fog in sunshine. Borders of Nations are imaginary walls just as certainties of belief are imaginary fortresses. Each are built to prop up the illusory notion of safety, and lend the individual a sense homogeny and control. The laws of the tribe are not the laws of Tao. Absolute certainty is the realm of the arrogant ignorant... and of that, I'm absolutely certain. wait... oh shit.

Yes, it is ... and must be, of necessity. Everyone must rely on their own experience ... and no two will match. Lonely ... But not sad.

Those are the 2 by Liu I would recommend and are the only one's I have. There's enough there for a lifetime.

Is not sitting comfortably in a chair a technique. It's called the gateless gate there are many paths to reach it. My taiji shifu, now 99yrs old once remarked " to really fan song, is very difficult" It took many years to understand what he meant, many more to deepen the reality opened by the understanding. Recently I had somebody aske me about the usage of taiji, whether it was real or not. My answer, touching him lightly the arm he bounced out. We both laughed.

Yeah, singing can be uniquely uplifting. When I'm blue, I'll sing tunes from Godspell; Day by Day, Light of the World, Bless the Lord. Or from Rocky Horror Picture Show. We all have to find our own songs. Hopefully like a guitar or any instrument, you listen, you sing, you get back in tune.

to add one ends getting stupid comments like this revealing their true nature instead of a rational discussion, and yet claiming to understand or know whats going on....In the end is it about winning The real problem is not climate change its human population which as the climate changes, it will effect the population. era life expectancy Paleolithic 33 2014 world average[32] 71.5 They don't seem to understand its modern tech that enables longer life for most. As of yet there is no viable alternative for fossil fuels that allow it to be so. one who is very vocal about the "problem" "Gore has been involved with environmental issues since 1976, when as a freshman congressman, he held the "first congressional hearings on the climate change, and co-sponsor[ed] hearings on toxic waste and global warming."[60][61] He continued to speak on the topic throughout the 1980s,[62] and is still prevalent in the environmental community. He was known as one of the Atari Democrats, later called the "Democrats' Greens, politicians who see issues like clean air, clean water and global warming as the key to future victories for their party."[63][212]" " Gore’s mansion, located in the posh Belle Meade area of Nashville, consumes more electricity every month than the average American household uses in an entire year, according to the Nashville Electric Service (NES) . In his documentary, the former Vice President calls on Americans to conserve energy by reducing electricity consumption at home. The average household in America consumes 10,656 kilowatt-hours (kWh) per year, according to the Department of Energy. In 2006, Gore devoured nearly 221,000 kWh – more than 20 times the national average." interesting they want others to conserve asking others to conserve or do with out while they enjoy what they ask others to do with out. . Find it amusing. Guess he needs a big house,,,,maybe everyone should have a big house....

Thank you, I put a nice attribution in there for it.

they are despicable shills, and they know that they enable the destruction of the west by the predatory elite (carbon credits). Except they dont care what happens next. The whole west will be destroyed over the next 100 years. In parallel, the Islamic countries will lob crude nukes at each other till the Islamic zone ceases to exist. After that the world will be split into the starving American continent (one big Venezuela), ghettoized Europe and the thriving Chinese colonial zone. That will be quite the climate change indeed.;)

I largely agree with Zen Pig, Apech and Wu Ming Jen. I had a massive Kundalini experience by doing a lot of Kriya Yoga meditations with out enough foundation. Again, as said above, nature and physical exertion was very helpful. Sometimes though, when the following depressions became too overwhelming to do any activities, I found that guided meditations on the Root Chakra (youtube) was extremely helpful. A caveat though from personal experience, absolutely DO NOT go above that chakra until you feel grounded, secure, safe. (It seems to me that the massive energy through the head had to be reeled back and properly anchored through the root before going back up again.) My heart is with you.

Atlanteans, not Europeans though... And yes, proto-Athenians. Both civilizations getting destroyed in the course of the same cataclysm. Nope. But Athena may have been a Libyan goddess originally. And one way to read Plato implies that Athena, coming from a foreign land, founded prehistoric Athens with an indigenous people. That must have happened some time before Athen's war against the Atlanteans, of course. But there is no archaeological evidence for that, at least until now. The events were inscribed on pillars in the Neith temple at Sais, where the Greek states-man Solon learned them from Egyptian priests. According to Diogenes Laërtius, Solon had a brother named Dropides who was an ancestor (six generations removed) of Plato. Solon's information about Atlantis was supposedly passed on to Plato in the way of a family tradition. Celtic culture as we know it came much later in history. But despite the time gap, there certainly seems to be some connection. I intend to come back to this topic later.

Thanks for the great article. I was just about to launch myself on a review of selected Chinese terms, including Xin. Very timely.

I like you

So funny you have described it spot on. The words you use are perfect. You truely are blessed. It is the lifeforce, aliveness, rejuvination. There are endless words, and you used the perfect most purest most original and authentic of them all. Liquid bliss. To describe the malleable nature of true reality. And aliveness to describe the essence of every single thing that is in creation, has ever been or shall ever will be. From a young age people are often (by good willing and well intentioned parents) taught to block their own aliveness of who they truely are, and they thus then disconnect from infinite intelligence. And after a while, the child begins to realise that the problem is death. This illusion causes one chase an exit, which the chase is actually unto itself is the entire prison and the reason for its own motivation. So while trying to solve death, one all the while becomes more dead. Less alife. And then when they die, they become fully alive again. Thus when you meditate, it is like consciously falling asleep. Which is similar to what the death experience is. Always FULL BLOWN CONSCIOUS AWARENESS. FULL ALIFENESS. NON-PHYSICAL FLOW SOURCE OF ALL CREATION. VIBRANT FIERY PASSIONATE POWERFUL ALIFENESS. ENERGY THAT CREATES WORLDS. EXCITEMENT. REJUVINATION. EVER REFRESHENING. FRESH! EVER NEW! EVER NOW AND EVER MORE AND EVER EXANDING! AND FREE AND FREE TO MOVE AND BE! AND ACT IN SPIRIT INSPIRED! That motion of all life AND ALL OF CREATION. Of all and infinite freedom. The hand of god. The eternal journey. Of bliss, rapturous extacy and evermore and more and more and more than all that will ever be known by us evermore. It is so liquid so loving. So free. So playful. So wise. So powerful. It is like a dao miaow. I'm at loss for words that's why! We often feel like that when we appreciate the animals of our world. That alifeness it is why they are here. To always show us all the ways of being alife. Of becoming truth. Of flowing with the intention of God. Of infinite intelligence. Of being true freedom. And true naturalness. True innocence and true purist and true perfection and true alignment. It is nature. It is all that exists. And it flows through you all of the time. It is the energy of who you truely are. It flows through the path of least resistance at all times. For the benefit of you and everyone. This energy is everywhere, and when you meditate you let it in and you let it flow. You release all resistance towards it, and it naturally flows for you again. You do nothing and you leave nothing undone. You become part of all of creation again. Your life becomes like a surfer on a powerful tsunami, amidst endless billion of powerful tsunami's of well being. Gushing forth, expanding vibrant liquid joy of passions. It is the nature of all creation. You are here to flow this energy more fully to your object of attention and express it in anyway you so wish or want. There is unwavering success for you here. All that you can ever possibly choose for yourself is for the benefit of all, because you live, just for the joy of it. You can't do anything wrong, and you didn't come here to get it done. And so, since you are eternal. Enjoy.

Ahh, but if you really look deeper at what you've stated as fact you will find that just like yin and yang they are complementary in that you can't have one without the other. Life is full of give-and-take or as you're calling it, dominance and submission. Finding that sweet spot, harmony, in all things, is the essence of Tao.

My best guess is that you’ve encountered your Qi. It can happen when your meditative practice is based around either stillness or following the breath. If you follow your breath back to its source you’ll happen onto Qi. This isn’t the source yet - it’s a certain stage where you go past the manifestation of breath (physical breathing) to the underlying phenomenon of breath (the Qi) and then further to the source of breath. Where to go from here? Basically carry on I suggest not using an emotional/mental interpretation (so using sensory information - pressure, temperature, texture etc. - rather than thoughts/feelings like ‘bliss’ and ‘love’ etc ) - because that can lead you down the wrong track. If you’re interested in exploring the use of Qi for cultivation, then I’d suggest using Qigong as an added practice. But I’d suggest not focusing on these sensations during your sitting practice - as again you’re likely to go down the wrong track. And you’re clearly gaining some ground with your practice already

Never test the depth of the river with both feet.

Here is another dynamic that might suggest that some people living in the past AFTER THE EVENT might have memories / developed stories about a better, more advanced time before them . " Down into chaos went the Egyptians and the Babylonians. The Aegean civilizations of the Minoans and the Mycenians descended into a Dark Age. Peoples who had an advanced writing system, seemed to have forgotten it. In fact some scholars suggest that the events described in the Iliad, such as the destruction of Troy and the Odyssey pertain to this period. Hattusa, the capital of the Hittite Empire in the late Bronze Age (found south of the Black Sea, in modern Turkey) and its surrounding towns were burned to the ground and abandoned. Gone were monumental architecture, writing systems, pottery types and familiar settlement patterns." https://www.haaretz.com/archaeology/.premium-1177-bce-the-year-civilization-was-destroyed-1.5350507 - I have had some VERY interesting on line conversations with Dr Cline . /

Very cool !!! You are feeling the end-points or turn-around points in the meridian flow of energy (Qi); Six meridians run through the hands and six run through the feet... I might encourage you to start focusing on some lines of choice, and then find the middle points for energy sensation. Some acupressure might help to just sense certain areas but not that necessary. or maybe focus on the seven chakra energy sources and see if you feel them ? You have lots to explore and wishing you happy energy travels

I appreciate that. In hindsight, I was a little over the top and should have re-re-edited.

On the genetics of the Americas, particularly South America watch from 56 mins. At about 1.02 hr he mentions a population change at about 9000 years ago (unexplained).

yes I do have the feeling of something under the skin, though I would say it's like a flowing liquid bliss or an aliveness.

Only the Self is of lasting and true peace, although a still mind which the Self can work through is (critically) important.

For me, a big realization occurred after having dedicated taijiquan/daogong practice for close to 15 years (around 2015). cultivation needs to evolve from physical/energetic to spiritual. If we follow the path and have a good teacher, we will evolve naturally. These techniques (any cultivation technique being used - qigong, taiji, etc) are means to an end. The objective of cultivation is (or should be) purification of the mind (in that, the tendency of the mind to attach to "this and that", and judge, and take positions, etc etc). A pure mind results in stillness of the ever fluttering veil that hides our true nature from us. The result of all practice should be end of practice and abidance in our true nature, constantly. Most importantly, the cultivation practices should be accompanied by spiritual (jñāna) teachings and study, so that the mind has a proper direction (this can be taoist, buddhist, vedanta, tantra, etc etc, but a proper framework is required). Missed the part about an easy daily set -- I still do the taiji single form/daogong forms. But it has now transformed into dissolving of the physical. A constant bliss always exists (a deep sense of well being, even when I might be physically unwell). Whenever I tried too hard for it (after having a taste), it went way. If I just let go of the desire for the bliss, it came back. Eventually I realized that it never goes away. It, along with the True Nature, is always present. Only the mind needs to be relaxed. Transmission to my younger self -- i was too dumb for any advice. You know our teacher already told us all we needed to know, but it took a long time to get through to me

When I first joined this forum I tried to be perfect in my execution of the various forms I was taught, and thought that by doing them very well I could "max out" their benefits so to speak. Later I painfully learned that how you practice (your mindset) is much more important than how well you execute the various meditations and forms. For example, if you are not relaxed and rush into it, if you do it with a perfectionist mindset, or a confused mind or body. Look honestly at yourself before even starting your form, ask yourself why you are doing it. Are you trying to sedate yourself, to run away from responsibilities, to gain a feeling of safety, to gain power, is it an ego thing ? When you get the "How" part down, when you are sincere and reconnect to your deepest consciousness, then the form won't add that much to your experience. I found. It's just an icing on the cake. Then later on I also painstakingly realized that the time you spend not-practicing is more important than doing a 30 form in the morning and a meditation in the evening. Because there's 23 other hours in the day. If you live an unbalanced lifestyle, no magical form is ever going to compensate for that. And for spiritual matters, I found cultivation is real life. So I found that true cultivation is rough, it's an every day, moment to moment adjustment of your energies. For example, for lower dantian development I don't think it's wise to meditate 10 minutes in the morning and then let your energy float the rest of the day. So at first I was trying to do a lot and fill myself of all kinds of energies. I tried to fill up my container actively. Now I see the reverse. I am already full and take a bottom-up approach. I avoid leaks to the container by appropriate lifestyle changes, you could say correct energetic hygiene. Of course I still practice, but when I do, it's not with the mindset of being a performer. If you are aggressive in the way you view your practices or attach tightly to them, then this energy will also reflect in your form. So you need to work on yourself, as a human being first and as a practitioner. How you move will reflect who you are. That's what I learned.

I'm going to have to disagree with this point. I have a practice that I've done daily for 17 years now. Over the years this practice has given me such wonderful health benefits. I still enjoy doing it. It makes me feel so good. It has grown with me and it is a part of my life. I couldn't imagine NOT doing it. Even though I've tried other methods, I've never strayed from it. There is a saying: "Repetition is the mother of all skills", which, through years of dedicated practice I have to agree with.

Hi All I'll do my best to explain what brought me here. I began having energetic experiences about 3 years ago through the practice of the Wim Hof Method. His method (for those who don't know) combines breath work with progressive cold exposure. During this practice I would experience sensations best described as "magnetic" in my hands, belly and head during the breath holds. I also began to experience light behind my forehead when I had my eyes closed. I continued this practice for a while but at a certain point I felt that it was a little too frenetic and jarring to my system. I kind of modified the breath practices by slowing down the breathing and limited the cold exposure. A year later I went on a 5 day silent meditation retreat in the Insight tradition. My experience on this retreat was profound and afterwards I began to take meditation very seriously. After about 4 or 5 months of diligent practice I began to have extremely intense bouts of crying and emotional release. These experiences were often accompanied by an intense magnetic sensation in my chest. I had a history of trauma and had battled depression for most of my life... steady meditation practice was essentially releasing the valve on my emotional pressure cooker. I was very overwhelmed by these experiences, but I eventually found a buddhist teacher and a therapist that practiced western psychology within a buddhist framework who I am still working with. These experiences really threw a huge curveball into my life, and the last couple of years have been full of really intense transition and emotional release. As I began to gain some confidence with all the energetic experiences I had been having, I wanted to learn a way to work with them, so I started learning to practice Donna Eden's Energy Medicine, and eventually I enrolled at an Eastern Medicine school to learn Massage Therapy. My most recent experience with the subtle energy happened a few months ago during a moment of intimacy with my partner. My body began convulsing, I started sobbing and I was thrown into intense flashbacks from childhood as well as "memories" that I could not recall from this lifetime. This went on for about 4 hours and was accompanied by many intense visual experiences. Since this has happened, my body has continued tremoring and I've felt a build up of energy in my pelvic floor that is sometimes incredibly difficult to manage - either causing a "hemorrhoid" feeling or intense and difficult to manage sexual energy. A few times, I've been able to draw the energy up to my crown and back down through breathing, resulting in some pretty blissful experiences, but I haven't been able to do it consistently and for the most part this energy has been very difficult to manage. So I'm here looking for some recommendations for practice - While I do have a background in the Martial Arts (Kenpo) I don't have a ton of experience with Qi Gong... I've taken a few classes and read some Mantak Chia but I've never dove into the practice, I find it difficult to learn these things through books. I live in the NY area and am definitely interested in meeting teachers or other practitioners who my experiences resonate with. I'm also happy to have a place to share these experiences where people will have more understanding and experience with what I'm going through.

My apologies to some of the more sensitive here but what Enoch has to say about the EU is amazingly accurate. So regardless of what you think of the man it can't be denied that he was aware of the EU's plan from the very beginning.

The sparkles in my lawn on a cold, crisp night are like the stars in the sky. There is beauty everywhere.

That is a nice and funny interpretation, but what I meant was that the refrigerator doesn't consciously try to do anything, it's just a mechanism without the build in ability to reflect on what it is doing. Lots of things in our daily life are done in the same unthinking manner.

Would seem as though Marcus Aurelius and Chungtse are kindred spirits. A son must go whithersoever his parents bid him, East, West, North or South. Yin and yang are no other than a man's parents. If yin and yang bid me die quickly, and I demur, then the fault is mine, not theirs. The Great (universe) gives me this form, this toil in manhood, this repose in old age, this rest in death. Surely that which is such a kind arbiter of my life is the best arbiter of my death. - Chuangtse

When an operation, no matter of what sort, is brought to a close at the right moment, the stoppage does it no harm and the agent herself is no worse for discontinuing her action. So, if life itself (which is nothing but the totality of our operations) also ceases when the time comes, it takes no hurt by its mere. cessation, nor is she adversely affected who thus brings the whole series of her operations to its timely conclusion. But the proper hour and term are fixed by nature: if not by a human's own nature (as for example by old age) then at all events by great Nature herself, by whose continuous renewing of her every part the Universe remains forever young and vigorous. Whatever serves the purpose of the Whole is kept forever young and blossoming. - Marcus Aurelius - ☮️

Try to sing some Hillsong Worship Songs or K-Pop Ballads with all manner of positive loving emotions of joy, happiness, humility, love, forgiveness in your heart, mind, soul every second. As you sing the songs of love, chant any words of mantra along with the songs of love. I sang the mantra "Om Mani Padme Hum" yesterday along to some Hillsong Worship Songs like "Let there be Light" and some energy blockages dissolve into love energies. Try it and see how it works

" Start to stop doing what you know to be wrong. Start stopping today. Don’t waste time questioning how you know that what you’re doing is wrong, if you are certain that it is. Inopportune questioning can confuse, without enlightening, as well as deflecting you from action. You can know that something is wrong or right without knowing why. Your entire Being can tell you something that you can neither explain nor articulate. Every person is too complex to know themselves completely, and we all contain wisdom that we cannot comprehend. " Jordan Peterson

The soul becomes dyed with the color of its thoughts. --Marcus Aurelius

So you think "enlightenment" is a Buddhism word? I think "enlightenment" is obviously an English word. 悟，is a Chinese word. The word 悟 is earlier than Buddhism . Before Buddha was born, 悟 is already there. Nei Jin, was written before Buddha was born. We can see 悟 was mentioned in nei Jin. Nei Jin is not a pure Chinese medicine book. It include dan dao. In old Chinese tradiction, many things is the same thing, the same core. Medicine, yi Jin, dao..... So we can see 悟 in nei Jin. Another book, 說文解字，Shuowen Jiezi，also was written earlier then buddism classics. It mentions about 悟 The concept of 悟 is used a lot in buddism. The speed of 悟 was discussed in buddism, too. I think it doesn't mean 悟 is only used by buddism. This word was created in very ancient china. When buddism was spread to China, the translator used 悟 to translate the concept. It doesn't mean the ancient dao doesnt have the concept. Let see the word 悟 in ancient shape. There are two "五" above the "心" 五 five 心 heart (五,会意。从二,从乂。“二”代表天地,“乂”表示互相交错。本义:交午,纵横交错) 同本义 [cross] 五,阴阳在天地之间交午也。——《说文》 五 was created by its meaning It was formed by two parts 二 乂 二 means 天 sky 地 earth 乂 means crossed 五 means Ying Yang are crossed between sky and earth. And there are two 五 above 心 There are two layers of Ying Yang crossed above the heart This is the word 悟 created Chinese Daoism don't separate Buddhism brom Daoism. Daoism mix buddism into Daoism. We can see the situation in a famous novel, the journey to the west, 西遊記。

You can always find one person claiming something. What I'm particularly reserved against is spiritualizing externals. People want to do that since it is so much easier to confess to a diet, a way of dressing, having sex, washing - whatever - than to get rid of your internal demon and to become a caring and genuinely generous person. People want to appear holy and spiritual (non-materialist) and want to wear it as a badge. For me Daoism has two important take-aways regarding eating: i) Diets are individual, specific for a time, season, state of your body, state of your cultivation etc. There are diets that are good for awhile, when you have a certain illness, a deficiency in one of your phases etc., but these very diets may be detrimental in the long run. ii) Cycles: Nature is cycles, not a top-down pyramid. We die, become soil, the plants grow on that, then herbivores, carnivores, etc. Life and death is natural. Without the carnivores, populations become genetically weak, get inbred, suffer food scarcity, grow weak, get diseases, and all suffer - no one is fit. Morality is not as easy as to die or not to die. Plants may very well have sentience and intelligence in forms and with biological correlates that are very alien to us, but it is handy to turn the blind eye to this. Anyway, since this was about WL and meat, check the search function. I remember conversations about this in the past. Perhaps Taomeow remembers something? All the best, Mandrake