Iskote

Thank you!

I have been doing the Tree posture.

Yea, I mean nothing hurts so far.

I have been doing Standing Meditation for 1 week now.

Things seem to be getting better.

I'm trying to focus on breathing or on mindlessness.

Is that a good idea?

Basically, using the sitting posture meditation

And

Adapting it to my Standing Meditation.

Hi Leon. In my experience you don't have to deliberately try to maintain a blank mind or

anything like that. That's probably not possible for most people anyway. :rolleyes:

Just relax and if your mind starts to wander off into a daydream or the like, just gently

pull it back to just keeping passively aware of what you are doing. If you find it hard to just

stand and relax, some people use the technique of counting breaths (you can count in breaths or out breaths),

up to 10 or maybe 100, and then start over. This may help to keep the mind from wandering too

much if a person finds it hard to just relax and stay passively aware. Hope that helps... :lol:

Best wishes...

December 14, 2009

Here is another result:

Day 6. 12.11.2009

Another Standing Meditation Results:

I stood in Standing Meditation for 10 min.

However, for the first 3 min I was moving around and fidgeting.

I could not hold it still.

My back was aching and my mind was racing all around.

For the last 7 min, I calmed down a bit and held it loose, but kept my body positioned correctly.

My hands were starting to hurt, no burning sensation this time.

Nevertheless, I did get a lot of sweat on my back.

After 10 min; or more like 7 min.

Hi Leon. Which standing posture are you doing?

A few more thoughts. You only need to bend the knees just a little to start, i.e., just letting them out

maybe an inch or two from the fully locked in position is good enough. Once you get comfortable with

that position you can maybe let the knees out a little bit more if you want, but do not extend the knees

beyond the tips of the toes. I have found that just letting out the kness a little bit is already quite adequate

for getting good results. Also no need to push yourself beyond minor discomfort. If it feels too uncomfortable,

you can always stop and do some more later. If it is just somewhat uncomfortable then that is OK, as it takes

some time for your body to get used to the posture.

If you were to ever start feeling effects that are somewhat more than small discomfort then you might

want to consider consulting with an experienced teacher or other experienced practitioners. You should

not ever have any overt ill effects from doing the practice other than minor discomforts and aches and the

like as your body gets used to the standing. These minor discomforts can come and go as your body

opens up more and goes through different 'stages'. Overt ill effects however are not normal and

likely indicate that one is practicing wrong in some way. If you remind yourself often to keep it relaxed

and natural, and don't focus on sensations or effects and keep the mind relaxed and passive as best you

can, I think it is much less likely that you would ever experience any bad effects. Anyway, you haven't

described anything so far that sounds problematic. If sometimes you are having problems settling your

mind, you can always stop for a while and try again later.

Best wishes...

December 13, 2009

Hi,

Li Zheng is the official lineage holder for Funei pai Taiji. I believe he is the 6th Generation lineage holder.

I used to train with a disciple of Li Zheng, He Cheng De and their explaination of Funei pai taiji's claim is that is it the teachings reserved for the imperial body guards taught by the Yang family when they were hired to train the palace guards. Hence the word Fu Nei meaning "within the mansion"

I think it holds truth as they actually have 10 different forms with each form focusing on a particular training technique. Sounds very military like.

However, I believe the history is that the Yang family just taught silly kung fu to the palace guards as they were considered their babarin overlords (Manchurian).

I believe it to be true as I find the funei pai taiji superficial and had no internal content. This is just my personal opinion and my own experience only from my time with them.

mouse

Hi mouse. Thanks for the info on Fu Nei Tai Chi. Different styles of internal martial arts

sometimes take different approaches, yet they are all classified as internal martial arts.

I think one should be careful not to judge the style by the practitioner. Different

practitioners levels of skill and understanding vary. Also sometimes something is different

than what we are familiar with so we may be inclined to think it is inferior, but it may

be that we just don''t recognize the value since the approach is different.

Best wishes...

December 13, 2009

Here's a few more interesting tai chi videos:

Old Master of Chen Style:

Lesser known style: Funei (Imperial) Yang Style - Wisdom Fist Form - by Li Zheng

Nice soft flowing style.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DdscFyAZurI&

Here's an example of other Funei Yang forms (some very different moves in here) - by Li Zheng

Not sure of the exact history of these forms.

Best wishes...

December 12, 2009

ZHAN ZHUANG & THE SEARCH OF WU in Chinese?

I heard this is also written in Chinese? Anyone know where that can be found?

Also, the link for the english version seems to be broken.

Thanks in advance,

Hi bgk. I'm not sure I understand exactly what you are looking for.

Yu Yong Nian wrote his book in Chinese and it was translated into

English by others. I believe the book you are referring to is:

Title:

大成拳站桩与求物

Translates as:

Da Cheng Quan Zhan Zhuang and the Search for Substance (Wu)

Author's name in Chinese:

于永年

Yu Yong Nian

I'm not sure what happened to the website where they were selling the

English translation in PDF format, but the domain is still valid (http://yiquan.chinamartialarts.net).

The website may just be down temporarily but I don't know. If you are looking for the

English translation PDF file, you can try contacting the website contact person

at: chingsouling (at) yahoo (dot) com. I don't know if that email is still valid though.

I have the translation, but the book seems very boring and dry to me going into

much detail about physiology and body mechanics and alignment and that sort of thing. Because of that

I haven't read the book. Just browsed through it. There seems to be much attempt to explain the

whole process in terms of science and physiology specifically. Very, very, dry... :lol:

Maybe that is what you are looking for though.

I find wuji standing meditation more than adequate.

That is of course an understatement.

I think Yu Yong Nian has another book as well called 站桩 (zhan zhuang).

I don't know what is in that book. He may have other books as well. I don't know.

See:

http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/302290460&amp...r=brief_results

and

http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/300184863&amp...r=brief_results

and

http://www.worldcat.org/search?q=au%3A%22Y...p;qt=hot_author

Best wishes...

December 10, 2009

Does this experience, sound like I'm doing the Standing Meditation Correctly?

1. My left leg started getting hot

2. My right arm started producing heat

5 min in Standing Meditation 2 1/2 min 2 times in the same day.

I also did a cool down massage.

Please, let me know. Thank you so much!

Hi Leon. You may feel various kinds of sensations when doing standing meditation or when practicing

other types of qigong as well. This is normal and is nothing to worry about. Such sensations

can give us some feedback that something is going on, but one should try not to focus on the sensations,

as focusing on them will disrupt our practice. Over time it is possible that all kinds of sensations will come and go. Some people feel all kinds of sensations while other people do not feel anything much unusual at all.

One's progress is not dependent on sensations, so whether one feels sensations or not, one should

just relax and continue with their practice.

Regarding the practice, as you have probably noticed, people will often say conflicting things about

what one should and shouldn't do in standing meditation or in qigong in general. As I have

mentioned previously one really just needs to stand in any of the standing postures described

previously and relax the mind and body as much as one is able. In my experience there is no need to

use any visualization, or special focus, or music, or anything else other than just standing and relaxing your

mind and body as much as you can. If you are relaxing your mind and body such things are really

not necessary. You will be able to relax more and more over time with regular practice. You may feel various

sensations that come and go. There is no need to focus on them or anything else, although one can keep a passive awareness of the lower dantian area while practicing, but do not focus strongly on it or on any other point or sensation that may arise. The idea here is passive awareness. You are aware, but not focusing

on anything in particular. Try to remain as relaxed and natural as you can. That's it.

People always want to add other things such as visualization, special breathing, special concentration, etc.,

because many people have the idea, especially in the West, that something that is more complicated

or intricate must be better. In my view, adding of other things to the practice are actually really not necessary

at all and in some cases could actually be a hindrance or could potentially lead to problems, such as the case where people are trying to strongly focus on certain points or centers, or deliberately trying to direct or lead

energy with the idea that they need to do so in order to open certain centers or channels, etc. Again, in my

view this is not necessary at all, and could lead to problems or imbalances. The wuji standing posture is

already such that it will allow/promote cultivation and free circulation and balancing of one's energy in

a very natural and healthy way. Energy centers and channels and what not will start opening on their own

and balancing naturally without any special concentration or mental direction, if one just relaxes and practices regularly.

So why add other things to a system that is already complete and balanced and allows progress to

occur naturally? Perhaps some people feel the need to add extra things to the practice because

they just can't wrap their heads around the idea that by relaxing and 'doing nothing' that much can

be accomplished. Surely if one adds visualizations, special breathing, or special concentrations, etc.,

it will be better?... Well, in my experience I would say no, it is not better at all. IMO, if one could practice

the wuji standing posture daily for at least 15 to 20 minutes a day, one can already potentailly go quite

far in their practice; and if over time one can slowly and naturally increase their overall practice time, one will

continue to progress further and further. IMO, this is a secret that many qigong teachers may not want their

students to know, as it is hard to continue making money off students if they really only need to learn one simple posture and be given some basic guidelines on how to practice for them to already have the

means to be able to go a long way in their practice.

It is good to have a teacher available in case one has questions regarding their practice or experiences and the like, but I do think one can potentialy make good progress by just practicing on their own regularly, as long as they maintain the basic principles of keeping the practice and breathing natural and relaxed and they do not try to consciously intervene in what is going on in the practice; i.e., one just keeps a passive, relaxed awareness and does not try to focus strongly on any points or centers, or try to consciously direct the energy. Depending on one's previous experience, it may be necessary to get guidance and assistance from a teacher

at the beginning, and from time to time, to help correct/check one's posture and to get reassurance that one is progressing in a good way, and some teachers may even be able to assist in other ways to help

with one's progress, but once one understands the basic posture and principles I think it is really

just a matter of keeping up regular practice. Again, that's all just my view, based on my own

personal experience. I have no doubt that others may and will disagree. We each have to make our own

decisions and way based on what feels right to us at the time.

Best wishes...

December 5, 2009

What about lowering the arms to the waste?

Hi Leon. Yes, you can also do the 'embracing the tree' posture with your palms at the approximate

height of your navel. You can also do the wuji posture, which is like the embracing the tree

posture, except you can hang your hands down naturally by your sides, or rest your hands

lightly on the sides of your legs. The wuji posture is a great and simple way to build up energy and

improve health. You asked if standing meditation is a good way to build up qi. In my experience

it is the one of the best ways I have ever come across to build up qi, and to balance the qi in the

body as well. Just three months practice of 10 to 20 minutes a day should be enough to start

really noticing a difference, for many people anyway. If you are doing the embrace the tree

posture, make sure you keep your arms and shoulders as relaxed as possible. The shoulders

should be relaxed right down naturally (you can practice lifting and dropping your shoulders a bit to

get the feeling of what the difference is), and the elbows should also be dropped naturally as well.

You can also practice lifting and dropping the elbows as well to feel the difference.

Really just practicing the wuji posture or the embracing the tree postures is enough to go a long

way in qigong cultivation, if a person can keep with it with regular practice. A person could go two or three

years easy just practicing that. People are always looking for something complicated, with the

idea that the more complicated something is the better it must be, but sometimes the simplest

practices are actually the more superior practices, if people could just let go of their preconceptions

and relax their minds and just keep practicing. By the way, breathing naturally, softly, slowly and

deeply through the nose, is the way to breath when practicing, with the emphasis on keeping the

breathing natural. In my experince, no special breathing or visualizing or the like is required. Just relax the mind and body as best you can and don't force the practice beyond what you can do without straining. Progress will come in due time. That's my view on it anyway.

Best wishes...

December 1, 2009

December 1, 2009

November 30, 2009

Comparing with other writings written /edited by /from those widely recognized Taoist masters Liu Yi Ming (劉一明), Li Xi Yue(李西月) , Liu Hua Yang (柳華陽), Wang Yuan Ji(黃元吉 ) and their teachings in the Ching Dynasty (A.D. 1636~1911), the book "性命法訣明指" is unlikely to be superb ; it appears tedious and trivial ( not because of its conversational form ) ; yet this kind of triviality gives people an impression of detailed and deep. Readers who have /can read other Chinese Taoist writings simply can sense that, so I will not go into details here .

Someday I would like to be able to read more texts in Chinese, but there is only limited time

for studying Chinese. Maybe someday I will get there.

Just mentioned few points : for example, Zhao's method starts from asking people to focus at the position generally called upper dantian , yet what is this method 's( or starting point "起手")relation to the small cosmic circulation is unclear ; Besides, if people start from focusing at it, instead of the general way of starting from the lower dantian , does the route :

" making use of yang in Kan so as to grasp the Yin in Li " still apply ?

I think Zhao does explain the reason he recommends starting off by focusing on the

original cavity of the spirit until one sees its glow. The reason given was that so one can

be able to clearly distinguish its glow from the light given off from circulating the microcosmic orbit.

As described in the book, at a specific stage one must be able to clearly recognize and distinguish

the original cavity otherwise one could make a mistake that could lead to problems or failure.

In the book , he mentions several times the important acupuncture point " 生死竅" (life-death point) , yet never is it really be told to the readers where it is ...

The relation between the so-called " 祖竅"(original "cave") and Magic Gateway "玄關" is also untold...

So, even a master who claims ignoring the old taboo of " punishment from the heaven" ("天譴"), and spreads widely the secrets of Taoist practice , in his puzzle , there are still so many missing blocks..

Well I believe Zhao's book is meant more as a guide to help guide students in their practice, and I

think Zhao states in the book more than once that a student should seek out a good teacher. Zhao even

spends time pointing out how to help distinguish a true teacher from the many frauds.

Apparently even in his day there were many fraudulent or 'misguided' teachers out there.

Personally I think the main value of Zhao's book is it can be used as a guide to a sincere

seeker of 'tao' in seeking out a real and accomplished teacher. Without sone sort of guideline

on what are legitimate practices and what are false practices one would be searching pretty much

in the dark. Based on some people's interpretations of what is written in Zhao's book, I think

that reading the book is no guarantee that a person will be any further along in being able to recognize

true teachings from false teachings, and a true teacher from a false one, but it at least it may

help some people in that respect.

To be clear on my point of view, I personally don't think it would be wise for anyone to seriously attempt

internal alchemy meditation practice without the guidance and assistance of an accomplished teacher.

I do think people can lay the foundation on their own such as opening the microcosmic and

macrocosmic orbit, but there are potential problems in doing just that and having the guidance of good

teacher can help one avoid problems, or to overcome problems if they run into some along the way.

Anyway, I do think that most people can do a lot to help their health through practicing simple quiet sitting

or standing meditation and various types of qigong and internal martial arts, and that is more than

enough for most folks purposes it seems to me. One can seek out a good teacher, but what one can achieve

is limited by their capacity, character, and determination. If we look at history, it seems it is really only the

few that have the capacity to go really far in practices such as internal alchemy or other serious forms

of meditation, and it seems to me, most people are not really interested in such practices anyway.

To each their own. We all have our own purposes and goals in our lives...

Best wishes...

November 18, 2009

In your experience, what are some of the benefits of "jing cultivation", or "semen retention"?

I understand that these are not the same thing, but that is aside from the point...

That is:

I am a beginner looking for encouragement.

I feel in my heart that this is the correct direction for me to take with my life, but I am not convinced of the authenticity of its benefits.

I have started the so-called "100-day" trial. It will be hard for me to resist temptation.

Why is it worth it?

Thanks & Praise,

John Zen

Hi John. I suspect from what you have written here that you already have a pretty good idea of

what the benefits are to conserving jing. Jing is our life essence. When jing is full, we are apt to be

healthy and strong and youthful, and as jing is depleted we will grow weaker and become more prone to

illness, and we will age quicker. How far one wants to go with jing conservation is really dependent

on each person, and what their goals are. If you just want to maintain good health and vitality, and slow down

the aging process, then moderation in sex will do. One Chinese guideline I came across for ejaculation

frequency for men (likely of Taoist origin) is as follows, based on age:

Twenties - not more than once per week

Thirties - not more than once in two weeks

Fourties - not more than once per month

Fifties - not more than once in two months

Sixties - none at all after age sixty four

Moderation although quite helpful in itself, is much more effective if one also practices qigong and other

internal practices such as tai chi or bagua and meditation to increase the process of transforming jing into qi,

and qi into shen. Such practices are said to be more effective the more one can control one's worldly desires

and attachments to worldly things. For those whose thoughts are frequently on sex, then the best approach

is probably just to use moderation as best as they can manage.

For those who are less attached to sexual desires and worldly attachments in general, it is not a problem

to reduce sex to a much lower frequency, or to even become fully celibate. Such people might also

be drawn to doing more practices such as qigong and meditation and related practices that will

allow them to transform the extra conserved essence into qi and shen. Really though, celibacy or even

going for prolonged periods without sexual release should not be practiced by those who can't keep

their minds off sex. Such people need to work on moderation first. So again, it really depends on the person

and where their focus is, and what their goals are, and what they can realistically manage. Thus, going for

three months or more without sex might be no problem at all for some, but might be problematic for others. Such things should not be forced, as that will likely only lead to problems. Some may suggest otherwise, but in

my experience these theories clearly hold true. Ultimately though, we each have have to walk our own

path.

Best wishes from Iskote...

[A few notes added later:]

The sexual frequency numbers suggested above are a guideline for the average person and

individuals will have to adjust to their own constitution and purposes. If one seriously wants to

cultivate health and longevity , and for more serious spiritual development purposes, one would reduce

the frequency somewhat more than the maximums suggested in the guidelines above.

One should also note that just because someone practices energy practices and/or energy healing of some

sort or other and still has fairly frequent sex, this does not invalidate the above theories. Some types of

energy work draw/use energy from outside the self and this energy can be used for healing others and the

self to some extent. However, in my experience the theories regarding jing conservation still hold true,

and one just needs to observe where such people who ignore such theories are at once they reach

65 or 70 years old or so. One will clearly see the difference of where their bodies are at

once this age period is reached. Some people may be able to keep their energy levels up

somewhat using certain qigong practices up to that age range, but the wear and tear on their

bodies will be undeniable by the time they reach 65 or so, regardless. Such theories may not sit so well

with some, but this is valid based on my own experience and observation anyway. Regarding, sexual practices

that involve semen retention, a former taoist meditation teacher of mine commented that such practices

produce a lot of 'steam', and may give the impression of giving results in the short term, but that is all.

For those sincerely seeking to cultivate longevity and spirituality, the guidelines above should

not be taken lightly. That is my view anyway.

Best wishes to all, and may all your thoughts be good ones...

November 16, 2009

Hi ,Iskote,

Try as follows:

我本清虛種

玲瓏貫古今

為厭名利冗

且隠淤泥中

Me (我), originally like a seed( 種) cultivated from pure emptiness(清虛)

delicate and free (玲瓏) , traveling across the times(古今)

Tired of (為厭 )being entangled (冗) by fame and fortune(名利)

Hide(隠 ) myself for a while( 且 ) in dirt and dust (淤泥)

Of course, here "dirt and dust " refers to the world where we live.

Thank you exorcist. I will need to go over the chinese characters and your english translations

for the two poems in more detail to get a better feel for how it translates. It will obviously take a lot of study

to be able to read Chinese well, expecially the older peoetry and writings. Thanks again for

posting them.

Best wishes...

November 15, 2009

It seems at least some people in China are not happy with the commercialization

trend and other policies of Shaolin Temple in recent years. Apparently a bogus letter

was posted on the official Shaolin Temple website by hackers, which claimed to be a letter

of apology from Shi Yongxin, the Abbot of Shaolin, for many transgressions. The Shaolin website www.shaolin.org.cn is now currently offline.

Here's the news story on the Wall Street Journal Chine Real Time Report website:

http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2009/11...-hacker-attack/

This sure is one wacky world we live in... :blink:

Best wishes...

November 15, 2009

Thank all the responses , I am exploring how high a level of Chinese reading ability that members of this forum possess, so all criticisms are welcome ,even harsh ones.

Hi exorcist. What is the translation for the first poem you posted?

Best wishes...

November 14, 2009

MCO has levels, and 3 different forms, level 1 is very simple, you will feel the Qi move in the channel,

Can you provide further details on what the different levels are and what the three

different forms of the MCO are?

I heard someone here talk about move Qi in the spin, Do not do that with out a master watch you.

for now, move the Qi under the skin above the spin.

I am not clear on what you mean here. What do you mean by the 'spin'?

Best Wishes...

November 14, 2009

I am new here. I am teaching Qigong for free in Toronto for now,

my web :

http://www.tianhuacanada.com

I do teach Tao Qigong as well.

and I have a deep understanding of Tao,

but English is not good enough to talk Philosophy

Hello 'TianhuaQigong'. Welcome to the Tao Bums forum!

Best wishes from Iskote...

November 14, 2009

蠻喜歡元代道人李清菴在《中和集》裏的道詩 , 有句云:

我本清虛種

玲瓏貫古今

為厭名利冗

且隠淤泥中

非精神超曠, 遨遊古今者, 不能為也。

Ha ha! Nothing like starting out with ancient abstruse Taoist poetry which even native

Chinese speakers might have trouble understanding and translating! :lol:

I really have no idea what this poem means at all, but I'll take a stab at it anyway for a laugh.

No doubt my translation is not even close. I couldn't make heads or tales out of much of it:

Li Qing Temple Taoist Poetry

Quite fond of the Yuan Dynasty Li Qing Taoist Temple (Chinese Poetry collected works)

in Taoist poem, it is said:

I cultivate the original clear void

Ancient and modern are delicately strung together

In order to become tired of fame and fortune and excess

and further having mud within

the non-spiritual excessive wasteland,

a wanderer through the ancient and modern,

cannot also be.

OK, I know my tranlsation makes no sense. Now if you can please post the

proper translation into English so I can see how it should be translated?

Anyone else want to take a crack at this?

Best wishes...

November 14, 2009

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Posts posted by Iskote

Various Articles on Qigong, Meditation, Internal Martial Arts, & Related Philosophy

DARK POWER

DARK POWER

DARK POWER

DARK POWER

DARK POWER

DARK POWER

Am I doing the Standing Meditation Correctly?

Am I doing the Standing Meditation Correctly?

Anybody with Tai Chi understanding, please check this out.

Anybody with Tai Chi understanding, please check this out.

ZHAN ZHUANG & THE SEARCH OF WU In Chinese?

Am I doing the Standing Meditation Correctly?

Am I doing the Standing Meditation Correctly?

Question to Durkhrod...

Taoist Internal Alchemy and the book 'Taoist Yoga'

Taoist Internal Alchemy and the book 'Taoist Yoga'

In your Experience...

李清菴的道詩

Interesting News Story: Shaolin Temple Website Hacked

李清菴的道詩

What Have You Opened?

Hi , I am a Qigong master in Toronto

李清菴的道詩

Welcome to the new Chinese language forum

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