Trunk

Drink aloe vera juice.

Yeah, if I have a guitar hero, he's the one. The youtube vids of him don't do justice. I rented Gillian Welch in concert on dvd from Netflix, and it deepened my appreciation for David Rawlings' guitar-work. I think he's Gillian's beau, and he plays lead guitar to her rhythm (and voice). Ah!, here's a youtube link to a piece from that dvd. Here's another one. (Hey!, I didn't realize till just now that I could watch youtube vids full-screen!)

I've been diggin' Kelly Joe Phelps for some time. Also Gillian Welch. Dead Can Dance.

Couple of things, here. One, I think its more effective to talk about enlightened states, rather than enlightened people. We all experience some small degree of enlightened, sometimes. Also saying someone is enlightened implies that they're in the enlightened state all the time .. and that's too much of an absolute to live up to. Anyway... The more important point, is that I think there's still a lack of understanding of forward and reverse - in general, and in relation to light. (imo ->) In forward you got your vital winds flowing 'round & 'bout you, and you got your thoughts ridin' on them and as you experience you try and do "warding off stuff" with your winds & thoughts to try and stop the experience, or make it different. When good stuff happens, we do "yummm, gobble-onto" stuff with our thoughts, winds, subtle bodies - in relation to that yummy stuff. And we express ourselves. In reverse, the vital winds gather and concentrate in the central channel (that still center empty throughway), particularly in the deep-center. The bindu becomes illuminated and unifies with The Big Light. Upon that power, all the vital winds (and whatever else is laying around) are spontaneously drawn into the center and refined. The Big Light suffuses the centers: Radiance. imo, fluency in the above is a lot about what our practices are leading to.

No disrespect to you, but I can't find any sense in any of your statements in this post. (Trying to find common ground..) .. A basic fact of ecology is that you can never affect just one thing; there is a cascading weave of relationships that runs entirely through ecosystems. Humans of the last 100 years have been doing serious radical shit at a speed that's unprecedented (not counting meteors) .. It just makes sense (to me) that there's lots of repurcussions. There couldn't not be. I think there's some real wisdom in Amish culture.

My observation is that people are generally not really competent to discern the difference between tangling and untangling, much less the skill to accomplish fluently - to actually do it. And, for me, this has to do with what goes on with the winds and thoughts and reaching/defending and centers' and the central-channel's relation to Openness. "Keeping one's center", and finding that one's center coincides with the Big Nameless. There aren't many places of an intimate relationship where that Return to Suchness is actually regularly co-cultivated. .. or, at least, relationships tend to lose that occasionally and usually the relationship had very little to do with Nothing .. awwww, you know what I'm trying to say. Occasional co-still-standing is has interesting possibilities.

I've explored, some, partner-still-standing. Just standing a couple of feet apart, often not touching at all, sometimes something simple like palms to palms, or hand to heart, or back to back. The main focus is the stillness, just like solo practice, maintaining center while whatever else goes on around. Having a partner there makes it very nourishing and pleasurable .. but there is a distinct lack of engagement (almost a rule) of 'normal' sexual-romantic-attaching stuff, its about maintaining centered alignment, stillness, vastness. Its good practice for a tantric attitude, imo, for both partners. Didn't Ian write about this some time back?

Path to Freedom's video brochure. All that happening on a small residential lot!

Fun to read. Welcome aboard.

I think this should be split into a new thread: white tantra. (Sean?, or other moderator?) Its a rich topic that we really haven't talked about at all, and has a lot to do with the stillness teachings we've been clamoring for.

Sounds like genuine experience, though not especially enjoyable, a nuisance, and maybe unsettling at times. Its a challenge, socially, and of one's maturity, stability. Basically, you can't tell hardly anyone about it: your friends will either not believe you and think that you're nuts, or they'll believe you and always wonder if their thoughts are their private thoughts or do you hear them (are they stripped of the privacy of their internal world). And it separates you, perhaps, from others in a way that you're not used to. Its a typical thing of the path: stuff (sometimes big stuff) happens and you generally deal with it mostly on your own. Of course, its valuable to find friendships where you have this sort of thing in common (that's being kind to yourself). But a significant part of the path, of integrating with most people, is a placid ability to act as if nothing unusual is going on (that's being kind to others, and also practical survival).

I'm curious to hear her descriptive points of a healthy path.

For making a link:There's an icon that looks like a world with a chain-link at the bottom of it. The icon is just above the edit-window when composing a msg. I took the liberty of adding links to your above quote. I noticed that you also spent time with the Karmapa. I don't think that there are words adequate to acknowledge the line-up of teachers that you've been so fortunate to spend time with. Keith

link

I'm finding several things: 1) All of my practices have become richer. Kan & Li, fusion, standing (vertical integration). Impressive improvement with little effort. 2) Some tensions (jing stagnation, basically) are being jostled loose in a way (or area) that's somewhat new. The bound-up tension that gets unbound can sneak up on you. I find its important to be extra attentive to LTT breathing for a day or so following massage of the LTT through the rectum. Also, I've resumed taking cod liver oil (actually bought some shark liver oil, also), as it is effective in circulating (clearing) and nourishing at this layer of energy. I think that both of these (breathing, CLO) are especially important for those just starting this venture - as you're likely to be going into new territory that is potentially loaded with stagnation.

Jon Stewart interviewed Bill Bennett and brought up the topic of gay marraige, and eloquently re-framed the debate. Or, rather, got closer to wording what the debate actually is. Here's the video. Below, a quote.

I disagree! Chia is not an herbalist!

I think this is one of those methods that, in 6 months, everyone will just act like its always been here and its the most obvious thing. Right now: hugely innovative and a big step forward. Thanks Owl!

Those Sonnon exercises really .

by Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., about the 2004 election http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/104...election_stolen

Just wanted to add that now Hard Light is offering regular podcasts of classes. The newest hip way to catch the enlightened vibe.

Whaaa? , "Fluent in modern and classical chinese"?!?!? That helps tremendously in TCM studies. * big sigh of relief * Glad to have you around.

I was already over-whelmed by the raw blends, so I wasn't in a position to notice. The last few days I've been taking a break and eating "regular". Back to it soon.

I've used it for an avacado pit, (I was a little worried dropping it in there but it) works fine.

Welcome aboard, Brett! You might check out my site (all free, and link below in my signature) for a quick over-view of the body-practices part of Taoism.