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Hi my name is Sofia, I'm from Argentina. I've been reading taoism from 15 years till now.. But I have a great problem with texts and sharing experiences with others. In our country there are not a lot of people who reads chinese, I can read in english off course, but sometimes in this matters (as philosophy ) is very hard to understand meanings. The other problem are the classics... impossible to find most of them in spanish, and with the economic problem that we have with importations most of the time is unaffordable to buy from other countries... I found this site, I hope I can share impressions, misunderstandings in readings with you all... Just a persona trying really hard to live in Argentina in a daoist way!! Always trying to improve myself!

Hello everyone, I'm Zyril, a 23 year old engineering student, currently residing in a cold northern country. I've always been fascinated by eastern philosophy, and I have read quite many books on the topic though only a few of them were of the practical sort, i.e. Qigong Teachings of a Taoist Immortal: The Eight Essential Exercises of Master Li Ching-yun http://www.amazon.co...l/dp/0892819456 and The Inner Structure of Tai Chi: Mastering the Classic Forms of Tai Chi Chi Kung http://www.amazon.co...g/dp/1594770581 I now realize that I have alot of questions, and perhaps some of you may be able to help me out and point me in the correct direction. 1. I have for some time now wanted to "go practical" when it comes to my spiritual side, and I am very curious on both tai-chi chuan and qigong. My problem is that I have clue on how to start nor where to start. I've looked up a school near me where I can try out both arts, and I will do so. But how do I know what is best for me, or what it is that I want to do? 2. I am a fit guy, I eat right, I sleep well and I feel healthy in most ways I can think of. I have since about half a year back tried to spend each night meditating for some time, though I cannot say that I progressed very far. In the beginning, I couldn't sit still for more than ten minutes, because my middle back below my shoulder blades would start to hurt. Now, I can sit down and relax for about 30 minutes, before I feel like I'm slowly becoming more restless and contraproductive in the meditation. I write meditation, though I do not believe that I actually have entered a meditative state any of the times that I have done it. I do feel more relaxed and at ease though, so I guess that I am getting something good out of it. I have also read, and I know that this most likely is just opinions from people, that by not ejaculating I can reach a meditative state easier than when ejaculating from now and then. Lately, I have been experimenting with this in the way that whenever I have felt aroused, I have instead tried to meditate, and it has helped me to regain control of my mind and my body. Is there any truth in this? I feel like I am benefiting by doing it this way, so maybe it is how I should do? This turned into a lot of text, so I won't write more right now but instead wait for some replies. Perhaps I need to be clearer on some points. Yours faithfully, Z

I'm trying to figure out how to proceed on this path I've found myself on. I would like to continue my pursuit of truth. It seems like so many of you have particular things you practice every day, books you read, classes you take, and all sorts of things. I know so little. I have my Tao te Ching book, and my dabblings in the Microcosmic Orbit (you can read more about it in my intro thread). I try to meditate sometimes, but my body feels so heavy and so loud and my mind is constantly drifting. My interests are centered around finding truths, connection, healing, awareness. I am not particularly interested in any special 'powers' or immortality (I've seen that come up around here). What are some good beginner first steps? What did you start doing in the very beginning if your spiritual journey?

I'm not really sure how to introduce myself =) I've never been religious, but have always felt spiritual. Agnostic, I guess. In college I took a Tai Chi class and enjoyed it very much, though graduating and moving and life took over for a while. The Tao te Ching has been the only thing I've really felt like I resonated with. I have a beaten up pocket edition (Stephen Mitchell) that I've carried around with me in my bag for years. I kinda fell out of things and got sucked into corporate america and have only recently been trying to deepen my spiritual path. I'm not sure what I am looking for. Healing. Truth. A friend of mine who is into Tai Chi and has been praticing for years now has sort of helped wake up some of my deeper senses. My sense of smell is stronger, my skin is more sensitive. I have inner work on Letting Go. He actually introduced me to the Microcosmic Orbit and encouraged me to try it (I think I've seen you all mention it around here before..). He told me to basically sit and relax, touch my tongue to the roof of my mouth and tighten pelvic floor muscles (like kegels), and be open to energy circling up my back and down my front. It is... very strong and strange to me. When I first tried it, it felt like someone had rubbed IcyHot all over my back. A huge wave of hot/cold went up my back, also upper arms, and circled around my sides meeting at the navel (like a belly hug from the back). It made me feel so hot and feverish, it kind of freaked me out. I even tried it in different spots in my room (thinking the air vent was on me) and in varying stages of undress (maybe I was just hot) and it still continued. Since then it's mostly the same, only not quite as overpowering, and more just Hot than IcyHot. But it doesn't orbit, it doesn't go down my front -- I just feel it go up my back and stop around my head. It's actually kind of uncomfortable for me (getting so warm, feeling a little lightheaded and buzzy) so I haven't been attempting it at all lately. But, I am still curious. I've been doing some reading on the forums here the past couple of days and there's just so much.. it's a little overwhelming. I feel like I need to continue on this path but I have no idea what to do.