Awen

Welcome to the forum Sky_junior We do hope that you stick around.

Option 1: This is not a bad suggestion at all. The cheaper version is doing it for free based off his 10 day "Stand Still, Be Fit" video series that can be found on youtube- though there are many nuances that can be missed on the video. Here's day 1- and the other 9 days are on the YouTube channel. Option 2: If you'd like to try Longmen sitting meditation maybe try https://online.nathanbrine.com/courses/intro-to-taoist-alchemy If you're in university preparing for an illustrious medical career, then a one off payment of $75 shouldn't be a challenge at all. Option 3: Back to freebies Xiang Gong There are a number of warnings with this style-chief amongst them is don't mix practising this style with any other- at all- EVER. However some people have practised it in parallel without facing severe repercussions. Despite this, the advice remains the same- just don't do it. There are some on the board that would also recommend against practising using this video without the instructions the style, as it can be just plain dangerous. There are many, many ways to the top of the mountain, but I am sure if you preserve that you will find yours. Best of luck!

I do not think that Earl Grey could still be considered a supporter of Eric Randolph- in any way- in light of the very extensive thread he created elsewhere regarding his experiences with him ( see here ). It is probably worth noting that there have actually been quite a lot of suggestions of financial irregularities surrounding Eric Randolph by former students (Earl Grey being but one of them), coupled with suggestions of limited knowledge generally. The fact that by far his longest post on this forum (in fact the only one other than his intro that was longer than a sentence or two) was one attempting to justify the charging of extremely high fees by certain teachers, perhaps again is something that does not help the reputation of this individual given the allegations made. It seems that the old saying Caveat Emptor very much applies here.

Welcome River, If you haven't done so already, make sure to check out Jerry Alan Johnson. Based on your intro you might just find resonance there- but then again you might not. Either way, enjoy the journey! Awen

Interestingly, there's nothing to convert to or advocate per se- just as there isn't in a group mindfulness session. "A leading" is an irresistible, internal impulse that pulls you to do, say or realise something- the rest of the time you're sitting waiting for it. Friends who see value in the meeting do not convert- they simply become "convinced" of its value and seek to become a member. Some Friends never join and thats just fine too.

I would rather this thread be deleted if possible. Thank you

The British Yearly Meeting is one of the more Liberal gatherings out there. Whilst still nominally Christian, there have been strong indications that at some stage in the near future all references to Jesus and Christianity may be removed from the Faith and Practice book, which is a summary of Quaker statements used as a guidebook for the community. That said, there is ample room and space given in the silence (and hearts of members and attenders) for both a Christian understanding of the Light (perhaps more consistent with the original message of George Fox), as well as newer, emergent non-Christian theistic or atheistic understandings that have increasingly been discovered to be held by Friends. For this reason, it would perhaps be quite different to many of the Conservative Quaker Meetings or Evangelical Quaker Churches that are also present in the more religiously diverse Quaker milieu of the US (and indeed more particularly Kenya- which has the highest number and concentration of Quakers of any country, but where Quakerism is usually expressed in a profoundly Evangelical Christian understanding and utilising programmed worship- ie a fairly standard evangelical church service). So for anyone interested in experiencing a Quaker meeting, just know that there are various streams. Someone rebelling against Abrahamaic religion may be uncomfortable in a church or find it off-putting when silence is broken to an exclamation that Jesus is Lord and King of Kings, the Good Shephard who enters the hearts of the faithful during the meeting. Similarly those of a more traditional christian perspective may find it difficult if someone else stands up and says that in the silence they were liberated from the need for an archaic concept of Godhead and it's attributed stern scriptural compositions of men. However, usually meetings are nowhere near as polarised as the above, and you'll instead find a lovely bunch of Friends. Thats my experience anyway.

Theres a new book on this topic The 49 Barriers of Cultivating the Dao

A pleasant multi-episode series that is currently on YouTube - once again, introductory level information, but well-produced viewing material. (if this link should go dead at some future date then moderators please delete this post)"

Hi Damla. Lovely meet you, and what a lovely avatar display picture. I do hope that this forum will both meet and exceed your needs. Awen

Welcome Tao-Pai, You're in luck! There is a whole forum for you to look through to learn about various styles of Qi Gong/NeiGong/etc- and decide which sounds the most "powerful" to you. Then obviously you can practice said style(s) and find out if they suit you energetically and your goals. Other members will no doubt be only too happy to assist you- should you require it.

Do you need a college or a practitioner? for a college you can try out the following https://www.atcm.co.uk/education/accreditation - though I'm not sure how they might help you and please also note that the university of middlesex doesn't appear to have a Chinese medicine programme anymore. For practitioner you could try out the Yuji clinic in London- https://www.yuji.co.uk Or our very own Qiway on the forum- https://www.qigonguk.com/contact-us Hope this helps

The following was a really interesting talk given by Bill Porter. Its longer than the above short clips but gives some context to the hermit lifestyle in China. Of note to this thread, he states at around 43 minutes that in one section of the Zhongnan mountains, he had noted around 200 hermits living in a particular area- whereas a few years later there were over 600. Then at the Q&A at 1.01.00, he makes the following very interesting comment: “When I wrote my book Road to Heaven, which was published in 1993…. It’s never sold more than a thousand copies a year here in the States. It came out in Chinese (language) about 8 or 9 years ago and it sold nearly 400,000 copies…. As I said earlier, in the same area where there were 200 hermits there is now 600 and the kind of people who are now hermits are very different… the kind of hermits that I met in 1989- highschool education was rare, but now college graduates are a dime a dozen amongst the monks. Because you are getting people who have finally had a chance to pursue the goals that we think are worth pursuing in our societies- and they are finding them lacking something, so they are all going off to the mountains.”

I came across a few related clips on youtube yesterday which I found extremely interesting- as they seem to suggest a revival amongst millennials of hermit traditions in the Zhongnan mountains. I had seen Amongst White Clouds before, so I was aware that there was a still-existing, historic hermit tradition in the region- but I thought it was a wholly buddhist phenomena and was also surprised to learn of a number of ostensibly quite young people in their midst. I suppose it is inevitable to find a trickle leaving society given the population levels and stresses of life in modern China. Nonetheless, from an outsider's perspective, its nice to learn of initiatives to pursue the Tao that are not the result of government tourist initiatives or created with a view to charging $10,000 for a weekend workshop (including certificate and t-shirt with course logo). anyway here are a few links for those inclined to view them:

A young gentleman that I have kept an enthusiastic eye on over the last few years is George Thompson and his teacher Master Gu. Very much Taoism-Lite, but his videos are uplifting, enjoyable and easily available for public viewing. His channel is here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAGTpcuP8o9_sWzvDGfZYKA/featured Or a sample video: