Leaderboard

I believe that ‘Judge not’ warns against ego-based condemnation that feeds separation and karmic entanglement. But there’s a world of difference between reactive judgment and the clear seeing that arises from compassion and alignment with truth. IMO Jesus wasn’t condemning out of wounded pride, he was cutting through hypocrisy to protect and awaken. So we might say real spiritual maturity knows when silence is love, and when fierce clarity is love. It’s not about never discerning, but about where it’s coming from within us.

Whatever practice you are doing, cherishing, holding out as THE way in... isn't. What you are looking isn't the words, or the movements, the visualizations, the breath... any "thing". What you are looking for is what is in between all of those "things". What you are seeking requires no "work" or "doing". I requires learning to stop doing.

Be still and know that I AM God. ---Tehillim 46:11 The Hebrew word רָפָה "rapha" [the Psalms were written in Hebrew] can mean "be still" and it can also mean "cease striving" Other meanings are "be relaxed" and "heal" As in the archangel Raphael

It can be a lot of work to try to do nothing! And when we finally see what @stirling so expertly and consistently points towards, we see how much wasted effort we've expended. It's comical in retrospect but frustrating and very serious when we're in the thick of it. I like how Peter Fenner once put it, 'if we didn't do what we didn't need to do, we wouldn't know we didn't need to do it.' But if we can truly trust in opening and letting everything be just as it is for a moment, we can shortcut the process considerably. How unfamiliar it can be to spend much time just feeling stillness, hearing silence, embracing openness, doing nothing at all, just leaving everything as it is. What a waste of time, it seems, in such a materialistic and productivity based culture. It's very simple but not very easy because we are so familiar with, even addicted to, the movement, the sound, the content and activity of the mind. We are so primed for transactional relationship that anything else seems like a failure. It seems so foreign to think the ultimate method is.... doing nothing at all. But that nothing embraces everything, far more than our limited intellect can readily access or appreciate. I was once talking with a friend at a campfire about these things and he was going on and on, waxing philosophical about the nature of this and that. Something possessed me to break this loop of logic and I spontaneously let out a loud shriek. He looked at me shocked, as was I, and I simply held his gaze. Within a second or two, in the silence that followed the interruption, I could see the dawning of recognition on his face and we both broke into laughter, then just sat together in silence. It was pretty cool. Never did that before or since. Sometimes that stuff just comes out at the right time.

A short thread... about emptiness/Source/Self/Dao/whatever.... on DaoBums.... Yeah, right

Yeah... really "heavy handed censorship"? Do you even realize how many chances we Mods here have given you because we all kinda enjoy your crusty grumpiness? The way that you repay us is to keep pushing the edge and creating more unnecessary work for us. You are out of chances. Next time it's points and a time out as far as I am concerned. There is nothing in the board rules that supports violating them because your "truth" is more important than they are. This is not a platform for free speech.

‘heavy handed’? Really?

Some of the posts on this thread are pretty thinly veiled references. If it continues we'll be locking this thread. Deep thanks to those of you who are refraining. - Mods

Actions that bring us closer to the light... gardening looking at the ocean walking (extra points if done in nature) socializing with friends hugs good books, good art, good music home cooking finally cleaning out the garage pizza (OK, maybe not but this is my bias) Actions that might or might not bring us closer to the light... posting on Daobums

there wouldn’t be much traffic on the forum otherwise.

… 敚[糸禾]， … Silent and still, 独立而不亥，it stands on its own and does not change. … 字之曰道。 … We refer to it as the Dao. (DDJ ch. 25 , Henricks)

One practical aspect/application of the relationship between emptiness and compassion is found in helping others. When you to want to offer help, it's very important to notice what is behind that impulse. So often we try to offer what WE think someone else needs. Of course there are situations where it is obvious, a drowning person needs their head above the water, but very often what they actually need is different from what we think they need and they are not always able to tell us. Sometimes we may even disagree with what they need but who should make that decision? It is easy to make them feel worse or make a situation worse because we are trying to impose something coming from our own pain, conditioning, or ignorance. So when that urge to help comes up there is nothing more important than emptying out our own reactivity, our own assessment and conclusions, and to be very open, inwardly quiet, and really listen and feel what that other person needs. If unsure, best to simply show up with presence, inner stillness and quiet, and simply be there until it is clear what is needed in the situation. No words are more supportive than holding a hand or a warm hug. I was once called to help someone at a retreat who was very ill. I did not speak their language but figured out they needed emergency medical care. Unfortunately we were over an hour from any hospital and had to wait for the ambulance for a long time. I felt so helpless sitting there not being able to do anything so I just sat next to her, holding her hand, gently rubbing her back. We would occasionally smile at each other between spasms of pain. It was one of the most meaningful hours of my life, no exaggeration. Unable to do anything but be open and present for someone else during their intense suffering. The experience completely changed my relationship to how I approach my work and the people I work with. We've felt and stayed connected over a long distance ever since. My teacher is currently leading a retreat on longevity practices from the Bön tradition and one of the things that is being emphasized over and over is the value and importance of human connection for health and longevity. That connection needs no words or agenda. Just catching someone's eyes and offering a genuine smile creates instant connection, provided we are open. The openness is the key and that can only occur when we are quiet and still inside, in other words... empty.

Tell 'em to stop, stirling--make 'em stop! The Master said to me: All the Buddhas and all sentient beings are nothing but the One Mind, beside which nothing exists. This Mind, which is without beginning, is unborn and indestructible. It is not green nor yellow, and has neither form nor appearance. It does not belong to the categories of things which exist or do not exist, nor can it be thought of in terms of new or old. It is neither long nor short, big nor small, for it transcends all limits, measures, names, traces and comparisons. It is that which you see before you–begin to reason about it and you at once fall into error. It is like the boundless void which cannot be fathomed or measured. The One Mind alone is the Buddha, and there is no distinction between the Buddha and sentient things, but that sentient beings are attached to forms and so seek externally for Buddhahood. By their very seeking they lose it, for that is using the Buddha to seek for the Buddha and using mind to grasp Mind. Even though they do their utmost for a full aeon, they will not be able to attain to it. They do not know that, if they put a stop to conceptual thought and forget their anxiety, the Buddha will appear before them, for this Mind is the Buddha and the Buddha is all living beings. It is not the less for being manifested in ordinary beings, nor is it greater for being manifested in the Buddhas. ("The Zen Teaching of Huang Po On the Transmission of Mind", tr. John Blofeld, Part One)

there is a Latin phrase "creation ex nihilo" which translates to "creation from nothing." In Hebrew it is yesh m'ayin "something from nothing." The creation of every "thing" (all the objects, all the things, the universe and everything in it) comes from a Source that is itself not a "thing." Source has no form, no shape, it does not take up any space, it is not bound by time or space or form, it has no beginning and no end, it always was and always will be. Source (which is not a thing, it is a no-thing) creates, or is back of, or gives rise to everything (all the things, the Universe and everything in it). So there is a difference between "nothing" which indicates an utter absence. and the no-thing that is Source. which is very much a powerful presence

also, meditation does not have to be sitting still. stillness can be cultivated in other ways. for instance walking in nature. or deeply absorbed in creative process. daydreaming. listening.

Generally speaking meditation is very badly taught. No one should spend any time worrying about thoughts and certainly not trying to stop them. You should focus on body in the first place - just settling and easing until it rests with a certain presence. There’s more of course but a bit difficult to do it justice typing on my phone.

I agree. 信 心 銘 (xin4 xin1 ming2) precious words from the heart I agree the five aggregates are not the ‘self’ definitely That’s what I notice with the DDJ too. Imo the DDJ is simple and down-to-earth, good advice for living life. But people seem to only be interested in the most bizarre and obscure translations, where they can make anything of it (e.g. that it’s a code for top secret esoteric practices).

People commonly have opinions on all sorts of things they have no business being certain about. Is it better for some random person on the street to be a vegetarian or eat meat? What´s really happening in a country I´ve never been to half way around the world? Should so-and-so still live with their parents, smoke less pot, have more or less sex? I know so much less than I think I do, a fact that I find counterintuitively reassuring. Contemplating my uncertainty brings me closer to "the light."

Imo Every system needs to set boundaries (that’s what I learned from the Original Dao forum).

visiting again? she said through a forced smile that expressed true feelings

Playing the hatchling, my friend?

I have come to see the psyche not merely as a mind in the psychological sense, but as a layered energetic system populated by subtle forces. At the heart of this view are the subconscious emotional and mental currents, and deeper still, two complementary unconscious currents that I’ve come to think of as the Shiva aspects and the Shakti aspects. The emotional and mental currents we’re all familiar with, but the Shiva and Shakti currents are less obvious, so I will go into some detail about them. They can be recognized through many vivid symbolic pairs: Wildfire / Fireplace The dynamic blaze that consumes and transforms. The hearth that holds the fire safely, giving it purpose and warmth. Fish / Fishbowl The darting, elusive vitality moving through hidden depths. The clear bowl that contains, supports, shapes, and protects its motions. Cat / Dog The graceful, sensitive, easily startled nature that seeks comfort. The loyal guardian that stays close, watching over and calming. Fearful / Protector The trembling instinct that recoils from perceived danger. The steady presence that stands firm, offering safety. These pairs are not idle poetry. They illustrate how the unconscious houses instinctual forces that must evolve together. The Shakti aspect represents a dynamic, vital current — the drive toward life, transformation, emotional vitality, subtle creativity. The Shiva aspect provide containment, the instinctive intelligence that knows how to protect, restrain, channel, and nurture what would otherwise be chaotic. In each pairing: The dynamic life-force is untamed, vital, transformative. The caring containment is protective, shaping, enabling that energy to flourish without harm. They are co-arising: the wild needs the safe space to exist meaningfully; the container finds purpose in cradling the life within. If one seeks only to awaken the dynamic energy (as in a blind kundalini pursuit), without fostering the complementary instinct to contain and guide it, imbalance is inevitable. The system can flare into anxiety, delusion, or emotional overwhelm. This is why so many teachings stress that cultivation is not merely about amplifying energy, but purifying and preparing the mental and emotional channels first, so the deeper forces can safely develop. To purify the emotional and mental currents tangled by personal history, they must be witnessed and brought into greater flow. They are the first terrain of inner work, and through methods such as shadow work, dream exploration, deep feeling and understanding etc, their dysfunctions can be gradually resolved. Only then can the deeper unconscious forces, the Shiva and Shakti layers, find their ground. Importantly, it is the Shiva aspect that must awaken the Shakti aspect, otherwise containment will not occur, and the Shiva aspect in its turn has to first be activated by the flowing current of the emotional and mental currents. Recently, my dreams have begun to show me that when these two deep unconscious instinctual layers find each other and start to mature in their interaction, something new emerges. In symbolic terms, this is represented as a smaller, independent vehicle that will one day travel on its own. This resonates with images from Daoist Neidan (inner alchemy) where an alchemical child is born - an autonomous subtle body that eventually can separate from the main system. This smaller independent vehicle or child is the fruit of a long interplay between mature containment (Shiva) and vitality (Shakti). But the picture does not end here. Overseeing all of this is the witness self, the faculty of clear seeing that stands apart from the energies it observes. This witness is the part that learns to trust that the humble, instinctual containment field is capable of guiding the system more wisely than the anxious grasping of the conscious mind. It slowly informs the conscious mind, which may then serve as the executive agent, ruling not by force but by insight. In the end, I see the conscious mind, gently taught by the witness, becoming the wise steward of the system - allowing these deeper layers to do their work, neither interfering unnecessarily nor abandoning responsibility. Thus the entire architecture of psyche - subconscious, unconscious, witness, and conscious mind - becomes integrated. Each layer performs its unique role, culminating in a new life, an independent vitality born of the interplay between our deepest instinctual forces. A compact visual map (Divine / Mother/ Highest Source) ↓ Witness Self (objective seeing, clear awareness) ↓ Conscious Mind (steward) (makes decisions based on witness insight) ↓ ----------------------------------------------- | | Emotional Stream Mental Stream (Subconscious patterns & biases) ↓ ---------------------------------------------------------------- | | Dynamic Vital Force Containment Field (Shakti aspects) (Shiva aspects) - wildfire, fish, cat, fear - fireplace, fishbowl, dog, protector ↓ Interplay gives rise to: Smaller independent vehicle (new independent ‘entity’ directed by the conscious mind)

Turn off your computer and phone, go outside, and enjoy the sunshine.

Leave the garage for another day!

Perhaps at the end of the day we are all sock puppets of the One.

got nothing to do nevertheless, the breath moves with me or without

Should the clear simple list of answers to the opening question be put down yet ..... or do we need a much longer to and fro into obscurity first ?

if you are asking the questions, since you are asking the questions, then there is a part of you that is ready

Mhm, well, I don’t know. When it comes to leadership and social organization troughout history, I think there is an enourmous amount of variety from culture to culture, and that these stick quite a bit deeper than many a comfortable admiting. But I lack in depth knowledge, talking mostly from hunch here. I am also not entirely convinced that constructing a sort of facade is necessarily rooted in us, but I think it very much might be a result of social media and a society that has become insanely materalistic. A society where what you do is valued more than who you are. I mean, think about the people you hold dear in life: you do not like them because they pretend to be something they are not, because of their salary or that they are one dimensional, do you? On the last paragraph, what do you mean by merit? Praiseworthy? Not in my opinion. I don’t doubt that it requires skills of some sort of another, but when the result is a society where half the population has some sort of illness, people literally kill themself, lonleyness is rampant, the food and ocean poisoned and cows get fed on skittles so that McDonald’s can sell cheaper hamburgers… not very praiseworthy in my eyes. Birth rates are plummeting. Even an unborn baby in the womb gets exposed to all sort of toxic shit. It seems like we are constructing humans for society instead of society for humans, which is backwards. To me it feels like the worst people imaginable are in power, but what do I know, perhaps there is a greater plan that I do not see. Also, the magic part is interesting. Do you think there is a sort of… i don’t know, religious quality to this whole money thing?

Lol, I spoke too early. Good to see ‘steve’ back, no doubt still ‘ben way’ [or as I read it, 本道 (ben3 dao4) truth]

a true life-saver but what's a mother to do when the smile runs out?

In the DDJ, ‘nothingness’ is the empty womb. Sinologist Ellen M. Chen, “the Nothingness of Dao is the emptiness of the female womb.” (page 93, ‘In Praise of Nothing’, An exploration of Daoist Fundamental Ontology)

Read this thread paying careful attention to your embodied experience: how do the various posts make you feel? I think you´ll find the answer to your question.

Well, you have mine

reposting again to get approved since last post from a few days ago still not approved Greetings fellow humans, I'm brand new to Qigong (Flying Phoenix) and have some experience with Reiki (Usui Reiki Ryoho). I just finished reading the entirety of the of the Flying Phoenix Chi Kung forum over the past week; it was like a book I couldn't put down I hope I can be of some help on here! Thank you for having me, John

I agree, the DDJ is a prime example of just how simple transformation can be. I am surprised by how many have managed to complicate it, add different cultivations and aspirations to such a clean and simple document. You know when you encounter the real deal when even different translations cannot damage the stainless quality of the dharma contained within. _/\_

Bear in mind that research studies have documented that AI is incorrect 60% of the time. Depending on which AI platform is used, they range in error from 30% to 90% of the time. So that is like using a tutor with grades of D or F. So be aware that AI (a) is incorrect 60% of the time, and (b) can't distinguish between correct information and incorrect information; and (c) performance over time actually DECREASES, it gets worse; and (d) it fabricates information. it makes up fake stuff including people, events, and URLs. Given that, AI is not a credible source, and it is not a reliable source, then it baffles me that it is used at all. For me, if i see information presented in post that indicates AI as a source, then i dismiss it out of hand as not reliable, not accurate, not credible, and 60% incorrect or fabricated. source article 2025 "AI search engines cite incorrect news sources at an alarming 60% rate" article 2023, University of Maryland Research Guide, "What does AI Get Wrong" article 2023, Scientific American, "Yes AI Models Can Get Worse Over Time" AI is "just mimicking reasoning, rather than actually performing that reasoning.” In March an AI tool correctly identified prime numbers from a list 96.7% of the time. Three months later in June of the same year, the same AI platform, the same task, the same list, but only 2.7% were correctly identified. AI is simply not reliable. Oh, and the paid versions of the eight AI platforms tested, had higher error rate than the free versions.

It's actually very simple. Perhaps the clearest instruction I have ever read is the Tsin Tsin Ming: https://terebess.hu/english/hsin.html#3 The short version: Dismantle your belief in your "self" as a separate being that exists in time and space. If you stop feeding the delusion of "self" you can glimpse the underlying reality. How do you stop feeding your delusion? Seek stillness. Meditation, where the mind is still and quiet, is the simplest place to start. Having the stillness pointed out for you is sometimes expedient. It requires no money, beliefs, or reading, really. You probably won't bother. Almost no-one does. It isn't complicated or sexy enough for most.

Things aren't what they seem. Our perceptions have little to do with reality and are instead the outcome of filtering the input through multiple pre-installed prisms that can (and do) do a number on the incoming light. What is worse, the incoming light -- or what we perceive as light, as truth, as reality -- is, in the case of any incomplete, lacking personal participation, indirect, manipulated, or outright fake picture presented to us is pre-filtered for us through someone else's carefully installed prisms. Ulteriorly distorted, mind you. The range of distortion may vary, from slight to total. Yet perceiving a totally distorted picture can be every bit as convincing to the observer as looking at an absolutely accurate one. More so, because distortions tax the brain, it's scientific fact (established in experiments with very young children, too young to have learned to lie) that lies require of our brain the kind of equilibristics and contortions that the rest of what we are can't possibly accept, and that's the beginning of the split, of the fragmentation of consciousness. The outcome may vary -- from mild stupidity to profound mental disorders. (Caption: "The brain doesn't immediately understand what's going on in this picture." )

there is greater clarity, when "opinion" is not conflataed with "truth"

Very common ... well, around my place ... and most places . I had a pet one once, found a little fledgling on the road side and raised him up until he could fly off . A couple years back they hollowed out a termite nest up in a tree right by front door and bought up two babies there . I have at least one resident one ( but sometimes they gather to welcome or farewell the daily sun in a chorus . He usually sits on a branch of the bottle tree outside my kitchen window . When its cold he gets his 'beenie' on When I put food out for the other birds he often sits watching , aloof an uninvolved . Except for two days back , I decided to make Persian roast duck breasts ( with orange and pomegranate glaze ) the duck breasts were over fatty so I sliced it off around the edges , making long fatty strips and put them on the tree stump .... 'I'll have some of that ! " - other birds didn't stand a chance , its a large bird and has a BIG beak ... as the song says " Kookaburra , king of the bush is he ."

No doubt he wasn't a 'snake guy ' . Saving them or not , any interaction with them , you need to understand them . And each type of snake has a different energy and stuff going on for them of course . I've been bitten by a diamond python ... I have also had one curled up inside my shirt and on my lap while I was sitting down . It depends where they are at and what you do ( and where you are at too ! ) . Any snake that needs saving is going to be in a panic or at least disturbed and on edge . I found a big diamond python caught up in bird netting ... what a mess! all around the neck and head and the body had tried to twist and constrict the 'enemy' tying the whole thing up in multi strand twisted chaos . The first part was hectic, snake hissing , trying to strike me , me using one hand to try and hold it still and one hand trying to cut away net with surgical scissors . But after a bit when I started to make some headway and relieved the pressure and the snake realized it was starting to be freed by my actions she was really good, relaxed, became placid and moved to actually help me . At the end , both of us exhausted I carried her off in my arms to a cool underbrush and left some water nearby .

Chapter 24 of the I Ching (as used by Syd Barrett in the great song of the same name based on it nearly verbatim): "The seven is the number of the young light, it forms when darkness is increased by one." Taoist dialectic: extreme yin turns into yang, and vice versa. Of course those who are not familiar with this inevitable cosmic scale dynamic process that is followed by all of the "ten thousand things" will always try to increase light by taking it all the way to its ridiculous, caricature level extremes. Whence it will flip into darkness -- inevitably. In social movements and in "spiritual" pursuits alike it's especially obvious -- the best, most enlightened ideas, trends, intentions inevitably flip into their darkest opposites. (And, less obviously, vice versa. And slower. Yin is slower... yang is always in a rush. That's why light flips into darkness more readily than vice versa.) So, the sensible way to increase light without going overboard is by increasing the nourishing, nurturing dark yin which we all come from (remember the womb?) and return to. A good night's sleep A dark retreat, or at least meditation with your eyes closed, in a dark room Black sesame seeds, blackberries, bilberries (nourish the retina and literally make it more receptive to light, improving night vision while protecting from the irritating effects of excessive illumination) A screens/electronics fast -- limiting one's exposure to all those oh so bright, oh so much light devices that, predictably, darken the soul. And so on. Look for where yin is deficient and increase; look for where yang is excessive and decrease. This is a yang-skewed civilization, in most situations you will find you need less light, not more. And if you do find you need more light, go for the mellow kind -- sunset, sunrise...

Some people and some people at various stages need a 'bubble' around them . Its a fundamentals and basic principle in many systems of magical practice . One practices to actually form this 'bubble' . I would even go as far as to say it is , at first, an essential practice and it goes further than a magical practice visualization - it is actually the first principle of philosophy given out during the first knowledge lecture in the first initiation . Which is basically ; if you are learning to use your energies , how will you control them if you cant contain them ? ( and since I cant repeat the lecture here , I will outline the philosophical lesson into other words ) Consider the steam engine and its massive potential power that can be put to all sports of uses ... how will it work if the pressure is not contained in the first place ... the steam will just waft away as vapor . of course , I don't expect you to agree :Lairg ... or even respond . I put this here as its important for some people at this present time and for some peoples level of development .

I have posted before https://www.thedaobums.com/search/?&q=heart light&author=Lairg Feel free to ask about specific aspects

Logos is Greek for "word". You may recall "In the beginning was the Word" Do your own experiments. It is useful to find a competent observer for feedback

For most humans the emotions are more refined and aligned than the mental processes. Accordingly feeling uneasy about some action/relationship/direction is usually a sign that things need to be reassessed. That is complicated when the human has interfering entities and significant karma. Fortunately the higher subplanes of the heart are cosmic so that working with the light of the heart is usually reliable Most humans do not have enough control of their thoughts to rely upon mental analysis

The human has functions beyond its species - as demonstrated by the geometric Tree of Life fitting on the human and on various continents. Since our god is a god of right relationship the human is expected to carry out that function as a direct impulse from that Logos. If a human loves itself from the heart then it is doing well. Humans that do not love themselves are facing away from the Logos

Thank you, could you elaborate a little on the concepts mentioned, please?

" If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world." From The Hobbit