liminal_luke

If it´s any consolation, you´re of help to me.

Looks like you caught my original reply, Spotless, where I questioned the link between red meat and heart disease. I later edited that sentence out because diet is kinda like religion -- people tend to have pretty fixed ideas and there´s not much use talking about it. And when I say people I mean me. I readily admit that it´s an area of "willfulness" for me. That said, I will mention an intelligent and pretty exhaustive critique of The China Study in case anybody is interested in digging into the science: https://deniseminger.com/the-china-study/.

Interesting. An ayurvedic practitioner recently advised me to give up all dairy except for hard cheeses. Not sure what makes hard cheese an exception.

You guys are probably right but I´d happily sacrifice a few inches for a thick wedge of aged cheddar.

My experience is that judgment of others and judgment of self go hand in hand. When you find yourself feeling negative towards others, that can be a cue to look inside and see if you´re also being a little harsh with yourself. If you have a teacher whose guiding your cultivation practice, perhaps talk with your teacher about this? If you don´t have a teacher, I´d consider slowing down so that you can integrate your growing energy in a way that doesn´t negatively color the way you see others.

This sounds right on to me. Not the most intrepid of Daoist adventurers, I´m happy to allow much of the unseen to remain invisible. Or, at the very least, to open my eyes very, very slowly. That stuff is no joke.

@Spotless Well, better late than never -- I hope. I´d be interested to know what you think constitutes "the basics" and how a person might best go about practicing them. Freeform has put forth his understanding of the basics -- stretching and strengthening the body, getting into the "inner body" with standing and qigong movements. When you say basics is this also what you mean or are you referring to something different?

Three cheers for the sacred clown! (Great phrase, @Fa Xin) We fall so easily into judgment of seeming idiots but there´s a positive aspect to the fool archetype. You´ll know my spiritual practices have finally started to kick in when my posts exhibit less ironic sensibility and less cleverness, when I´m simple and innocent and without guile. Many will disagree, I know, but in my own estimation I´m not yet a fool. There´s still hope for me though.

I agree with Pilgrim´s cautions. Any kind of meditation or breathwork could do more harm than good. What could be good is simple movement. I´m thinking of warmups I used to do in tai chi class. Rotating all the joints in circles -- feet, knees, wrists, arms, etc. Bending down and stretching up. Light shaking. Self-massage of face, ears, etc. Keep things simple and easy, without asking anybody to focus on their internal experience. People with depression may not want or be able to move but this would be the best thing, imo.

After having read through some of the preview, I agree. In fact, the translator explicitly says that the book is no substitute for in-person instruction. There´s a lot of fascinating information but it´s not written in a manner that would allow a newcomer to actually start a practice. At least not this newcomer. That´s my preliminary thinking, anyway. Other readers may conclude differently.

Wow!

I understand many things but not everything. Good to know I´m not alone.

Which is perfectly fine as long as you aren´t using your mind to force the dying. What you´ve got to do is set up the conditions which allow death to happen naturally. Or at least that´s what I read somewhere.

The idea that meditation and thinking are mutually exclusive can be discouraging, especially in the beginning. My mom started a meditation practice for health, discovered that she couldn´t stop her mind, and decided that meditation wasn´t for her.

So the Jews created Christianity and Islam for the purpose of fomenting war, gaining slaves, and possibly stealing gold? Oy vey!

My old Zapchen coach, Laura Lund, used to say that the entire universe was conspiring to help me awaken. Or at least that it would be helpful to me to consider this to be so. I believe the universe is entirely friendly, which is not to say that I´m living some sort of charmed life where nothing "bad" ever happens. Quite the contrary. Bad things aplenty happen to me, seemingly on a daily basis. Here´s the thing though: seen from a big picture view, everything bad that happens is ultimately for my benefit. I´m drowning in absolute perfection that my little egoistic self perceives as absolute crap. The trick to feeling harmonious is to step out of the woe-is-me mentality of the little self and enter into the sublime connectivity of the me that´s beyond the friendly/hostile dicotomy altogether.

I think people vary. And the same person can vary over time depending on mood, hormones, environment -- so many things. Sex can be a powerful motivator for sure but right now I could really go for a slice of chocolate cake.

Perhaps Desmonddf has more personal experience with horniness than constipation?

At times the world seems full of good-for-nothing lying cheaters -- of both genders -- but does this mean we should all hang up the idea of human connection and hightail it to the nearest monastery or nunnery? Of course not. Point of fact, many Bums are happily partnered. (May I see a show of hands.) I´m skeptical of any sentence that starts out "women are..." or "men are...." While it´s possible to make generalizations, the truth is that we´re a pretty varied lot. There´s all sorts of women in the world. Yes, they likely have issues -- as do us men -- and the magic of relationships is that we´re likely to find the perfect partner with just the right issues to help us grow as people. There´s nothing better. Good luck! LL

I´m reminded of the Healing Tao practice of fusion of the five elements, as taught by Michael Winn. Five main organs of the body -- associated with the five elements (lungs/metal, spleen/earth, heart/fire, liver/wood, kidney/water) -- each have their own spirit. These spirits are in turn associated with different emotional states and can have different agendas. One way to think of conflicting voices is to imagine that they are spirits of your different organs that want different things. In fusion of the five elements, these energies are brought together and harmonized, literally fused, in a single pearl in the dan tien.

I used to live in Zacatecas where rata del campo, country rat, was sometimes sold outside the market. Although generally an adventurous eater, I never sampled. The video below is in Spanish but the pictures tell the story.

And the less I seek my source for some definitive, the closer I am to fine. Indigo Girls, Closer to Fine. Heard these words again and was reminded of many of your posts.

I´m typing this post at a cafe that sells what looks to me like really delicious cheesecake. Should I go up to the counter and snag a piece? Hmmm...I´d love to. And isn´t it my right as a free human being to put as much delicious cheesecake in my mouth as I desire? Yes, it absolutely is. It´s also my right to step back and consider: while it´s true that cheesecake tastes good and would provide some short-term pleasure, it´s not really the best choice for me right now. People who love me and are concerned for my health have suggested that I cut down on the cheesecake. If I can´t stop myself I might have to go to Cheesecake Eaters Anonymous. Human beings often struggle between what feels good in the moment and what leads to wellbeing in the longer term. We´re free to give in to temptation and we´re free to find reasons not to.

That´s quite the position statement on drugs, Profounded. The fact that it´s so thoughtful and carefully reasoned leads me to believe that drugs are a big part of your life. You´re obviously questioning whether or not that´s a good thing or you wouldn´t be sharing this with us. I´d suggest talking with an addiction professional to help you evaluate your use and whether or not it´s in your best interest. Just my two cents. Liminal