liminal_luke

We´re all so different. I believe "semen retention" can be a useful practice, but context is important. It´s not good for everybody at all times. Judging from what you wrote it sounds like right now it´s doing you more harm than good. I´d back off a little, concentrate on other aspects of cultivation -- you can always come back to this later. What are you drawn to in spiritual practice, apart, I mean, from the semen retention? There are movement practices like tai chi and bagua. Standing practice. All kinds of sitting meditation. Ideally, I´d find something you can do with other people. Take a class. The whole semen retention thing can be very alluring -- believe me I know -- but it isn´t everything or even the most important thing and certainly not the first place to start. You can get very far finding a class in a spiritual discipline and seeing where it takes you. Semen retention will be there for you at some point down the line if it´s the right thing. Liminal

I like to think of myself as intelligent enough but I haven´t the foggiest what this debate is about. Hopefully following this conversation is not a prerequisite for developing myself as a qi gong/taoist meditation enthusiast. Liminal

Hi Oneironaut, Yes, not only can they be combined but I´d say that´s how they work best. The way I learned was to take at least a few moments after each sound to smile to the associated organ/ organ system. I´m not sure what the party line is on how long to do them, but I think there´s wide latitude for experimentation. The inner smile, in particular, is a beginning level practice (though it morphs into an advanced practice), and it´s hard to mess yourself up very much sending your organs love and acceptance. I would say to do it as long as you like. Experiment and see what works for you. Liminal

Whether it´s necessarily "better" or not is open to debate but in general Mexicans are... more closely connected to the place they were born maintain closer contact with family cook less processed food (also, more offal) more creative in terms of handicrafts, other arts more likely to dance as part of family celebrations kids more able to entertain themselves without technology more encouraging of gringos who don´t speak Spanish than gringos are of Mexicans who don´t speak English more likely to drop in on friends/family unannounced

I think °everyone° should do something moving and something still. Some self-massage or stretching. Everyone should consider the way other areas of life -- diet, exercise, work, relationships -- interplay with spiritual practice and consider making changes as necessary.

I think the most obvious place to look for help is with your Korean teacher. Years ago, I met a guy who practiced a system with a strong taboo against mixing practices. Being a spiritually adventurous sort, he did anyway and ended up in somewhat of an energetic pickle as a result. He didn´t want to seek help from his teachers because this would mean coming clean about breaking the taboo. Not sure if this has anything to do with your situation, but in these cases I´d recommend just laying it all out on the table and getting advice from the people who are in the best position to give it -- the teachers.

I´m wondering about diabetes. If sugar is bad, would the bitter flavor be especially helpful?

On rare occasions "unknown" might actually be accurate, but, in those cases, I´d prefer to go with "ambiguous."

Say the Tao Bums were having a pot luck -- what would you bring? I hope it´s something healthy and nutritious for most constitutions, perhaps something that contribues in some way to the Taoist cultivation practice so many of us here have, something tasty. If you can, a few words about your choice. Recipes, of course, are especially welcome. (And if possible I´d like to avoid dietary bickering -- if you don´t like someone else´s choice don´t eat it.) As for myself, I´d ladle out steaming bowls of pressure cooker chicken bone broth. Normally, bone broth is a multi-hour affair but the pressure cooker gets it done in an hour or so. I like lots of collagen in my broth so I´d use lots of legs, necks, backs, and heads. What are you bringing?

Maybe some people could of lied to get that job without any negative consequences for themselves or others. You, Aetherous, aren´t one of those people. If you hadn´t acted in accordance with your value of honesty I do not think it would of set right with you. Everything is connected. We can´t put spiritual development in one box, integrity in another, pretend they have nothing to do with each other. When people really know that, and are committed to spiritual development, they make unconventionally moral decisions because...what other choice is there? Liminal

Thanks Wilfred. I´m a little leery of just jumping in with the Dragon Herbs products myself rather than getting a custom prescription (do they call it that?) from a doctor of chinese medicine. But that Schizandra/Goji combo is one that I´ve read good things about from other people too, and have long had in the back of my mind. Might give it a go.

HI Wilfred, I´ve been thinking of buying that product for awhile now. If you don´t mind, what benefits have you experienced personally?

Not cheap but quality-wise I´ve good things about Original Swiss Aromatics.

Get your salt shakers ready as I have no idea what I´m talking about....but it seems to me the whole point of experiencing non-duality is to bring that perspective back to this poor seemingly fragmented world. I, for one, do not want to dwell in the oblivion of enlightenment forever. Nor do I care to endlessly experience the pain and lonliness of eternal separateness. I want to be a cosmic interpreter, a bridge between wu wei and the ten thousand things.

Agreed. If a person goes from eating Snickers bars and Dorritos (and lots of people do) to pretty much any hardcore dietary program -- Taoist, Ayurvedic or Macrobiotic, raw vegan or paleo -- health improvement will likely ensue. Yak butter and carrot sticks have little in common nutritionally except for this: they´re both way better for you than a McDonalds happy meal. Liminal

Hi Bits and Pieces, Seems to me you´re thinking about giving up drugs, but you haven´t 100% decided yet. There´s something you don´t like about taking them (or else you´d be happily getting high and the question wouldn´t even come up), but, on the other hand, you´re not ready to take the plunge into total abstinence either. You imagine there´s some circumstance (limited recreational use with friends, say) where you can get the good parts of taking drugs without the bad. That you don´t really have to give it up. This is a stage in a process. Most people who´ve successfully stopped doing anything they felt compulsive about have been where you are at now. Best of luck on your journey through all of this. Liminal

I think it´s useful to consider where the do-it-yourself impetus comes from. Part of it, for me, is just a natural inclination to tinker with my own energy body out of curiosity. When I saw Michael Winn massaged his ears as part of a kidney tonifying routine I thought...hmmm..why don´t I do this for an hour everyday for a week or so and see what happens. Well, that was interesting. But I also recognize a part of myself that rebels against anyone "telling me what to do." There´s a part of my independence that´s not inherent to who I really am, but is a twist in my character. Something to work on and through. Perhaps with the guidance of a good teacher. Sometimes that part of ourselves that resists the structure of an established teaching needs to be tamed. Just sayin´ Liminal

This whole business of calling Wang Liping low level is so, well, low level -- even by Taobums standards. If this were a review of a retreat by someone who´d "been there, done that" that would be one thing. As it is, trying to bring down his reputation feels gossipy, a little malicious. Where´s the heart?

I know this is true, and a necessary reminder for those heaven-bent on ultimate truth. Still, as problems go, one could do worse than attachment to abiding bliss.

Because you´re a narcissist? No, no...scratch that...doesn´t sound right at all.

You know when you are a Tao Bum when...you have a high tolerance for bullying because, after all, you´re "used to being harassed by demons." Priceless.

Hmmm.....I wonder if it would be more useful just to work on developing the qualities we´d like to develop and not worry so much which gender box to put said qualities into. For instance.... I´d like to be more intuitive. I´d like to be more compassionate. I´d like to keep my place neater. I´d like to be a better cook (including, but not limited to, grilling). I´d like to be less irritable. I´d like to procrastinate less. I´d like to be less fearful about facing things that need facing. I´d like to be physically stronger. I´d like to be more emotionally resilient. If I succeed in becoming who I want to be, will that person be more manly or more womanly? Does it matter? Liminal

As long as we´re making popcorn, may I suggest a double feature? First up, a docudrama in which Deci uses her considerable intellectual prowess to coax ShaktiMama back into the fold. Followed by a late-night action flick, Isimsiz Biri versus our own beloved Nungali. Not to be missed. Liminal

Seth, I like what you said here: "start associating with the deeper level of life, where the interconnected nature of the universe is clearly seen, and to once again be in relationship with the forces that surround us." Very intriguing. I´m interested in exploring this more. Are there any resources (books, courses, dvds, etc) that you´d recommend? Thanks, Liminal

At least the banned members have a good excuse for leaving. Theoretically, people are free to beguile us with their charm, nurture us with their giving spirit, dazzle us with their brilliance -- and then just go because, oh, they felt like it. Well, I don´t like it. I say that if banned members want back in lets give them contact information for members who weren´t banned but left anyway. If they can convince someone to return, then they get to come too. I´d assign Yoda to ChiDragon. DeciBelle can tackle ShaktiMama. And so on. Liminal