Apech

I hope your illusions of my literary genius have not come crashing down

Nope that's the wrong Sean I'm afraid.

I am ashamed to say I used grokAI ...

THE DAO OF DECEPTION A Merry Farce of Forum Follies CHARACTERS: NUNGALI: A cunning DaoBums rogue, wielding wit and a sneaky alias. BIGSKYDIAMOND: A passionate lady seeker, besotted with mystical usernames. MODERATOR APECH: A stern overseer of the forums, brandishing bans with a flourish. SCENE: A flamboyant virtual salon in the DaoBums realm, aglow with pixelated orchids and shimmering threads. NUNGALI sprawls on a digital chaise, twirling a virtual incense stick. BIGSKYDIAMOND, her avatar sparkling with cosmic gems, waves a fan of Taoist aphorisms, swooning dramatically. NUNGALI: (idly, flicking ash from his incense) Zounds, BigSkyDiamond, thy sighs could rouse the Jade Emperor himself! What vexes thee, fair one? Hast thou tangled thy chi in the Nei Gong threads, or is it love’s fever that sets thee aflutter? BIGSKYDIAMOND: (waving her fan, plaintive) Oh, Nungali, ‘tis a wound of the heart! I am bewitched by one LimnalLuke, whose name hums with the mystery of the Dao’s twilight. My own—BigSkyDiamond—gleams too gaudily, like a harlot’s trinket, unfit for such a soul. NUNGALI: (grinning slyly) LimnalLuke, sayest thou? A name as common as rice wine in these forums! Why, I don LimnalLuke123 myself when I wish to caper unseen through the Zen boards. ‘Tis a merry ruse to evade the pedants! BIGSKYDIAMOND: (gasping, clutching her fan) Fie, thou knave! A false face in the Dao’s own house? You prance as LimnalLuke while I languish for his true light? O, the perfidy! (Enter MODERATOR APECH, his avatar grim, wielding a glowing ban-hammer like a magistrate’s gavel.) APECH: (icily) Hold, you wayward scribes! This thread stinks of folly. Nungali, thy LimnalLuke123 hath set the Meditation forum aflame with impudent banter. And thou, BigSkyDiamond, cease this fawning o’er usernames! The Dao mocks such vanities. BIGSKYDIAMOND: (pouting) But, good Apech, LimnalLuke’s name sings of the liminal divine! My own is but a tawdry bauble. I’d cast it off, were the forum’s rules not so labyrinthine. NUNGALI: (winking roguishly) Fret not, sweet dame. I’ll part with my alias for a trifle—thy vote in our next clash o’er karma’s weave, perchance? BIGSKYDIAMOND: (indignant, snapping her fan) Blackguard! I’d sooner fast in a cave than trade my virtue for thy guile! APECH: (raising the ban-hammer) Silence, both! Nungali, yield that false name or face a fortnight’s exile. BigSkyDiamond, seek the Dao’s essence, not a screen-name’s glitter. This forum is no stage for your amorous tomfoolery! NUNGALI: (bowing with mock gallantry) Alas, Apech, thy justice stings! Come, BigSkyDiamond, let us flit to the Tea Ceremony thread and leave this dour sentinel to his decrees. BIGSKYDIAMOND: (huffing) I follow, but only to prove my heart’s truth! LimnalLuke shall be mine, ruse or none! (Their avatars dissolve into the digital haze as APECH sighs, polishing his ban-hammer.) CURTAIN

INT. USS ENTERPRISE - OBSERVATION LOUNGE - STARDATE 10327.4 The camera pans across a sleek, starlit room where CAPTAIN PICARD, DATA, TROI, and WORF sit around the conference table, their faces illuminated by the soft glow of a holographic display. The display flickers, revealing a digital nexus labeled “DaoBums.” PICARD: (leaning forward, pensive) This… DaoBums, Mr. Data. A curious phenomenon in the cybersphere. A forum where sentient minds from across the quadrant converge to debate the mysteries of existence—chi, karma, the very essence of consciousness. What do we know of it? DATA: (tilting head, processing) The DaoBums network, Captain, is a decentralized platform, its threads forming a complex matrix of philosophical discourse. Users, much like ourselves, engage in rigorous exchanges, seeking to reconcile empirical knowledge with metaphysical inquiry. Its structure suggests a self-regulating collective, not unlike a Vulcan symposium, yet with a distinctly… human unpredictability. TROI: (eyes narrowing, empathetic) I sense a profound yearning within its users, Captain. A desire to touch the infinite, to understand the Dao as one might seek the Prime Directive’s moral core. But there’s conflict, too—passions flare like disruptor fire, debates teetering between enlightenment and discord. WORF: (gruffly, arms crossed) Hmph. Such a place breeds chaos. Without honor or discipline, these discussions risk descending into Klingon blood feuds. Yet… there is courage in their persistence, facing the unknown with mere words as weapons. PICARD: (nodding, resolute) Indeed, Lieutenant. DaoBums is a frontier of the mind, a place where the Federation’s ideals of exploration and understanding manifest in digital form. Let us monitor its transmissions, learn from its voices. For in their quest for truth, we may yet glimpse the stars within ourselves. Set course for further observation, Mr. Data. Engage. The holographic display pulses, threads of DaoBums’ debates swirling like nebulae as the Enterprise hums forward into the unknown. FADE OUT.

Raymond Chandler The DaoBums website sits like a smoky speakeasy in the dim corners of the internet, a joint where mystics and misfits trade hard-boiled wisdom under the flickering neon of digital dreams. Its forums hum with the low growl of seekers—guys and dames chasing the Dao’s shadow, tossing around koans like loaded dice in a backroom craps game. Every post’s a slug of bourbon, sharp with insight or bitter with dogma, spilling over threads that twist like L.A. alleys after midnight. The regulars, tough as old leather, sling questions about chi and karma with the kind of grit that’d make a private eye nod approvingly, while the mods keep the peace like weary bartenders, ready to cut off anyone who gets too drunk on their own revelations. It’s a place where truth’s always one post away, but nobody’s holding their breath.

Please everyone note: Any political comment will be hidden and if necessary action taken against the poster. We are not going to set up an alternative site or have a special section on here in the foreseeable future. This is because we tried it already but experienced problems. We ( The Mods) have received general support from members for the politics free approach and this will continue for the time being.

Can you access the Women section now? PS. I'm not good on tech stuff

There you are!

Yes …no.

Bobby Bob please don’t!

I’m still in shock at the thought that anyone on here finds you annoying.

Sorry but the rule still stands. (No masturbation at the dinner table I mean of course) 😎

Surely not.

In that case no it’s not a black school.

Knowing that things are empty is a great release from suffering and leads to great joy. what does ‘black school’ mean?

Yes Cobie we have all read your posts 😃

Lala, Your presence on here is very welcome. I hope you get as much from being on here as I have over the years. Don’t be afraid to express yourself - it’s all good. DaoBums has a long history now and at times it was far from being a sea of calm to say the least. What keeps it going is the membership and a flow of new members. Provided the tech doesn’t break down at some point I think we still have a long future of happy debate!

This is a very big subject which will give rise to different interpretations and points of view. I would follow your teachers advice even though I don’t totally agree with it. In the end I just express what I have learned and make no claims to authority.

It means they are empty ( shunya ) .

I can’t speak for Bon but in the case of Buddhism it is deep in its central core and very flexible to outer social and cultural norms. That is why you have so many forms of Buddhism which seem very different outwardly but are all genuinely Buddhist. What is and is not Buddhist is defined by the Four Dharma Seals which are as follows: all compounded phenomena are impermanent. attachment of self to phenomena leads to suffering. Nirvana is perfect peace. all phenomena are pure beyond elaboration. Hope this is helpful.

I practice Vajrayana and it is 100% Buddhist.

adobe abode whitewash walls and shade within mud hut aesthetics

sounds like marshmallow with a squish when I swallow soft but not hollow.

Welcome