steve

Nice post Trevcaru - I think you and I share some common influences. Welcome to the TaoBums!

I think Qi is a very misleading concept the way we use it. We tend to equate it with other things that we think we understand so that it makes sense to us. This is a trap. The mind cannot figure out qi. The mind cannot figure out much of anything beyond relating it to things it already "understands." I would suggest beginning to cultivate Qi then you can reach meaningful conclusions about what it is and isn't and whether it is of any value for you to work with. FWIW, my experience of Qi is more similar to Goldisheavy in terms of it being more of a relationship or a process that occurs between awareness and substance or awareness and being, rather than measurable stuff.

Interesting discussion about annihilation of the self. Of course to have a meaningful discussion of dissolution of the self, can we first define the self? Next, can we determine who or what it is that is doing the annihilating?

RAOTFLMAO! Brilliant post.

Darin, I admire your commitment and perseverence! Bravo!!

I love Nina Simone! I've got my boobies...

An impeccably concise summary of internal Chinese martial arts!

I've run across two users on this forum since I joined whose posts were so consistently unpleasant that I've used the ignore function. One disappeared for a while and returned much more sedate and refined, the other was banned. I probably read less than 20% of threads. I pick and choose only what interests me. There's only so much time I choose to devote to forum discourse.

Nice commentary on a great parable. I see this as a parable for recognizing attachment and trying to live in accordance with wu wei. I see that my lovely horse creates excrement so I save it in a jar. I really have no idea what it is but I am attached to the horse so I hoard it's excrement and consider it valuable. In actuality there is no value to the excrement and certainly no advantage to keeping it in a jar. I am simply interfering with the natural process of waste (as described earlier). Similarly, in my misguided efforts to "help" my horse I swat it's flies and slap it, interfering with wu wei and causing the horse harm or anxiety through my misguided attempts at "helping." Allow the natural processes to carry on as they always do without your "help" is the message I get. I find Wu Wei to be a central theme in so many of his parables.

About a year ago I heard a fascinating experiment described on NPR. Somehow the experimental design was able to measure the exact moment the the brain formulated an intention or thought to carry out a simple physical task as well as the response of the neuromuscular apparatus in initiating the activity. The unexpected observation was that the neuromuscular activity was always observed BEFORE the participant had the thought or intention to intiate the task in question. This suggests that 'we' are memory, not cause. Cause is something which is before memory and is beyond thought. Thought takes a photo of it and memory stores it... that's what we do

Thanks Ian - what, afraid to throw down with us on Ramana?

Something that works for me is the following very simple approach - Sit in a quiet room in a comfortable chair and close your eyes. Turn your attention toward your physical being. Feel your feet touching the floor, explore what that feels like and stay with it for a moment or two. Move that quality of attention systematically through your body. It's particularly easy in body parts that are touching other parts or objects. Next bring this quality of attention to the rythym of your breath. Next, bring that quality of curious interest and attention to whatever it is that you can hear, smell, taste, etc... Once you get to this point you may even open your eyes and do the same with your sight. Spend a few minutes paying attention to all the sensory input and see how that affects your anxiety, stress, etc...

After studying Taijiquan for a few years, my shifu suggested I begin to practice Dao meditation - that was my introduction to Daoism.

Here's one that my 16 year old daughter told me this week: So this baby seal walks into a club.... OK, OK, she's only 16... Here's another one: How many Zen masters does it take to screw in a light bulb? ... ...

Ever come across an old post you made and thought.... It can be an instructive experience.

We're getting close! 36. Only if the thought 'I am the body' occurs will the meditation 'I am not this, I am That', help one to abide as That. Why should we for ever be thinking, 'I am That'? Is it necessary for man to go on thinking 'I am a man'? Are we not always That? This really surprises me. It seems to be a direct response to Nisargadatta Maharaj and his guru. It makes perfect sense, though. Who is it that is saying "I am that"? Surely, 'that' would never need to remind itself what it is, would it?

I once had a very sudden insight that I, as a person, am nothing more (or less) than an aperture through which the universe becomes aware of itself. It was an extremely intense experience. Although the intensity of the experience faded, my perspective was permanently altered.

I had the same experience. Many years ago I practiced Wing Chun which is known for fast hands. Your description is exactly how I trained myself to punch very fast. I'm not a big or strong person but I was able to develop a lot of speed and it served me well in sparring back then. I would simply use my intention to have my hand be at the target. No attention whatsoever to what (if anything) happened between point A and point B. It's just THERE! Good practice.

I've had no experience with Chia or Chang but I love Osho's commentaries on Zhuangzi, no matter how many Rolls Royces and Rolexes he had.

This makes a lot of sense. In the martial arts world, I believe that there is a distinct difference in skill level between people who train for a few hours a day over a long period of time and people who have trained intensively for many hours a day for a shorter time. Examples - 1. The Tokyo riot police and instructor training programs in Yoshinkan aikido are one year intensive programs that really give people a very high degree of skill in a relatively short time - I think they train ~ 6 hours/day, 6 days/week for one year. People who successfully complete the course are formidable aididoka. 2. I've trained under two Asian masters (one Chinese and one Japanese) whose skill levels are well beyond anyone else I've studied with. Each of them were with their teachers for a relatively short time (by that I mean several years but not a decade) but studied 5-6 days/week and 4-6 hours/day during most of that time. These are clearly limited examples but seeing the research you discuss helps me make sense of these observations. Thanks Michael.

Please read Karen's reply thoughtfully - therein lies the solution to many of life's "problems", IMO.

I drink water, tea and very little else. Occasional wine, beer, coffee, juice. To me, diet soda is poison and I think your decision is very intelligent. Good luck.

Another thing about push hands ... All partners are different . As you work with people over time there will be those that challenge your ego with theirs. There will be others who are much more collaborative or submissive than competitive. If you're lucky, you'll get to train with a variety of personalities and maybe even find a partner that is right on the same wavelength as you - that's really a blessing. I've learned a lot about my training partners and myself through pushing. One more thing... footwork is the key! Enjoy