VCraigP

to me it seems like a great opportunity to have people question the consensus reality. Q: Was it a rocket? Scientist/expert A: Not a rocket. It was a contrail. Q: Why did such an unusual contrail get formed. A: Well, er ...that's what contrails do all the time. Q: Really, then why is this such a big deal and made every body look? A: Well I guess thats why "they" don't usually spray in the evening....ooops, did I say that outloud. Well, maybe it was a rocket after all....gulp

Not to pick on you specifically but OMG...you people are so sensitive. Must be all that meditation stuff you are doing. Does anyone honestly believe this forum to be heavily moderated??? Exact opposite of no moderation?? Didn't Stig say something about hitting the neg button for people who hijack a thread to indicate to stay on topic and that a post is going away from the topic? Anyway...get over it. TTB is NOT heavily moderated. But that's just my opinion of course, not being a moderator. Please feel free to disagree. Carry on with civil discourse. Craig

You mean Yin deficiency? Yes, perhaps. Labelling as such might be helpful and prompts the idea to see a TCM doc to help balance your energy overall. Qigong courses should come with a disclaimer. "Please consult with your Acupunturist to determine if this practice is safe for you" It is possible too that the practice has revealed a layer of underlying imbalance. Continuing to work through discomfort may eventually clear that. My teacher likes to emphasize that one should not stop if "issues" arise, but rather consistently work to clear the issue and peel back to a deeper layer. Of course this refers more often to cold or flu like conditions caused by shaking loose "junk" through the practice. I doubt that a qigong would cause yin deficiency, but rather reveal it more clearly. It is a very common condition and good qigong should help restore balance. Definitely consult with a good TCM doc if you have the possibility to do so. Craig

I am handing you the prize for the most multi layered snarky riposte post I have seen in a month of Sundays. Impressive...and cracked me up.

Knowledge has been transmitted to you via the lineage system. Are you intending to pass the lineage on in the traditional fashion to one or more students? Is this even a possibility for you? If not what are your thoughts about this lineage being passed to you a westerner and not being fully transmitted in the traditional fashion.

All too often this type of conversation goes to the extreme. The view point presented seems to be that you cant learn anything of value without a teacher so don't even try. those who do produce videos are just lining their pockets and not benefiting anyone. I go back to my new favorite concept from Chunyi Lin's interview. good, better, best. It is best to have a master guide you every step of the way and work with you daily in a retreat or even monastic setting. but it would still be good to try any practice. better would be to have some background with a real master who has taught you core principles which might enable you to integrate information from books, videos. I have met a Taoist monk in China who practices many hours daily. He had an attitude towards us western visitors which was somewhat humbling. He was somewhat confused by our adoption of Taoist practice. If you aren't practicing many many hours daily what is the point? This too is extreme. Perhaps he is right in a way. But then he is talking about the ultimate best situation. Should we westerners therefore abandon all hope of progress or benefit? I think not! Craig

A concept which I have been incorporating of late is from the Chunyi Lin interview. There is good, better and best. Best to do full lotus or half lotus. Other than than that it is good to practice at all compared to not practicing. Craig

Wind above the clouds is only done once??? I don't think you say that on the vid. Good tip then. Now I can do it REALLY slow and know I just have to get through it once. BTW - still practicing intermittently the CKFH 2. For some reason Monk gazes at moon with the wrist tweaking is really challenging and energizing at the same time. Need more regular practice. Craig

I am glad you are looking at the ebook of M.Winns. Mixing threads here, but there is def a connection. I advise you to stay with the inner smile work and take up the healing sounds. Its easy to play with sexual energy and easy to create problems when you don't do foundation work. The foundation work is important, as any foundation work. You cant build a tower on mud. Inner smile. the task is to get to know your insides. to create connection to your organs, organ systems and eventually spirits of the organs. First though to follow the "front line" of the inner smile, smiling down step by step helps to carve the channel of the downward movement of the MCO. this practice is initially a mental practice. I found that it solidifies the connection between the brain/mind and the body. this connection is underdeveloped to say the least in most "modern" people. I agree that you should also do a physical qigong practice, but your discussion started with Sexual Kung Fu practices and indicated you weren't doing MCO. schools of qigong are numerous and I hesitate to make a recommendation, especially since I have enjoyed so many and not really stayed on any (with the exception of Taiji I suppose). If staying with the Healing Tao school you could do embracing the tree pose for starters, but I recommend against doing what is in the book Iron Shirt. Rather you would be better off IMO just doing embrace the tree and work on relaxation and breathing into your lower tantien. Just this will bring many benefits. Keep it simple, what I have outlined is plenty to work on, especially since you will probably still be playing with the sexual kung fu Good luck Craig

well at least you have returned to burning intensity with this post. Please...no more jimmy buffet. I am very susceptible to earworms :-) Craig

Michael Winn offers a free e book on the inner smile with registration at Healing Tao USA. www.healingdao.com

Michael Winn offers a free e book on the inner smile with registration at Healing Tao USA. www.healingdao.com

You said does this mean that you are practicing SC, Orgasmic upward draw, testicle breathing etc, but you haven't, or arent doing anything with the orbit. You absolutely should be practicing the orbit. Are you doing inner smile? six healing sounds? These practices work very well taken together. M.Chia's system works rather less well when approached with sole emphasis on the sexual practices. inner smile is the essential practice to develop the downward flow of the orbit. This is the piece usually less easily developed, especially by males. correct me if I inferred too much from the comment of yours, but this is such a common mistake among those, again especially males, who take up the healing tao system. My ideal scenario for this school is for mastery of inner smile and six healing sounds and good sense of circulation throughout the orbit before even contemplating sexual kung fu. Even better to have started working on the basic fusion practice to better recognize and work with the different organ energies. Craig

Cats are like that...

Speaking from personal experience - I have no idea. I like half lotus now. Terry Dunn is merciful and allows it for his Flying Phoenix qigong seated meds. My primary teacher over the last several years always uses full lotus in meditation. I would like to think I can get there, but it hasn't been a priority as of late. initially I just responded to question about Chia system of which I know a little.

later old man. how long suspended? Permanent? Good luck with the addictive personality disorder. I know what you mean. Craig

thank you thank you thank you And the above is why I read TTB. fini Craig

wow how many different things can we all talk about at the same time and think also that we are talking about the same thing...

Yeah, the looping technique is the method of doing the orbit in small sections. example, start at navel go down to perineum and up to door of life then loop back through to lower tantien again. the Wudang method is something else. sorry. It might seem like I am witholding, but I honor Michaels request to not transmit this info in writing. Craig

the above is not a description of M.Winn's so called Wudang method.

the direction is not the relevant issue. It is a technique which has the result IME of moving more "substance" in the practice. Personally MCO is not my bag now, but I can positively recommend M.Winns info. Yes, he is a good marketer but he also gives quality information. I don't think he really says "mine is the best method, all others are inferior." He says, and I think sincerely, "this is the most potent method I have encountered in my searching". Peace Out Craig

Please continue to research. Know the root of what you are studying. Falun gong has "real" qigong techniques. there are many who are sincere and with open hearts. The "real" techniques will have energetic results..... BUT. Please understand the origins of the teacher, from outside the doctrine and propaganda. Please research more about Taoism and it's roots. Your destiny is yours. It's a big world. Keep researching Craig

He teaches it in his audio tape. I am not sure which one. I think he advertises that he goes into even greater detail in person. One factor he mentioned in the tape version I have is that he was instructed to only transmit this information orally. Winn makes a point many times that oral transmission is much deeper and more effective than any written transmission could be because of taking it in through the ears which are connected to the kidney energy. If you want to spend the money I would contact him directly to determine which tape this info is on. If you don't want to spend the money...I cant help you. Craig