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Hi, Since few years , I have become very petty. I am also going through a lot of stress, fear and anxiety due to family troubles. I wasn't always like this. I used to think big, about doing bigger things. Now it is like I have closed my heart. I have become petty, worrying about petty matters and stuff. Is there a qigong which instills this big heart energy in us. So we can embrace ourselves, and the challenges of this world.

My teacher often emphasizes that the reason we come together in retreat is not particularly to learn something new, not to add to our knowledge, those things can be done anytime, anywhere in our digital age. We come together to connect, to share, to be close. We are increasingly isolated in our lives and there is little more harmful to the human organism than isolation. Here is a beautiful quote I found on FB that speaks to this topic…

Internal Practices Suitable for Self-Study It's an interesting question with two complementary answers. There is the perspective of complete formal practice that allows the practitioner to advance from complete naivety to mastery within its self-contained systemic framework. The other view is that of wisdom and insight into what is this thing "self" that we consider as defining, or confining, us. This wisdom aspect is a vitally important element which enables the formal routines to provide abundant benefit and success. Wisdom Wisdom develops heartfelt awareness because it sublimates base desires like greed and fear. How are desires and rejections building into a habit of relating our personal "self" to our experiences? Are we our experiences or actions? This is a call to observe and not an intellectual deduction nor an argument. When a baby is born pretty much all she does is to observe, eat, shit, cry, and smile. The baby doesn't have any functioning conception of self-worth for herself or for others. This doesn't prevent her from experiencing life and reality naturally like a human baby does. Only later in the childhood would she learn that people assign worthiness to their experiences and infectiously project these out on personal level. A labeled world of good and bad phenomena is traded around like a collectible card game, and the only way out of this is to realize that it can be suspended or quit. The path of wisdom is returning to that earlier puerile innocence which didn't see the world through permanent divisive categories or absolute judgments: we could call this practical non-duality. It asks for genuine inquiry, curiosity, and considering the context of experiences. The world and its people reveal themselves as they are: sometimes sweet, sometimes annoying, often helpful, and rarely committed to wisdom its full scope. None of these observations are anything but transitory insights into human condition, which makes no impact to our innate worth and how we are free to evaluate and judge our worthiness or just leave it as undefined like it naturally is. It's about opening up instead of closing in. Please do not see what I described as any sort of nihilism or radical equalization of all experiences. Defaulting views to nothingness or indifference are marks of not having much understanding nor insight. The high point of wisdom is to train and live through a natural relaxed and flexible view that easily defaults to undefined. The real you is spontaneous and true to your own innate goodness underneath those acquired habits that cloud it. There are many ways to purify one's wisdom, but these all have the same flavors of becoming fully aware of our own self-caused suffering and that this narcissism is not the entire picture nor permanent at all. Yogis can go as far as to train heartfelt awareness which connects to everyone or they can offer their selfless service to the world in the face of abuse and scorn, up to the point of martyrdom. Make no mistake: The real challenge of wisdom is in facing all our fears and disdain without taking up victimhood. All the things we would rather avoid and not confront are the very same poisons which when taken in correct doses and with good skill become safe antidotes and healing medicine that sets us free from these compulsions. In the Western world we have relatively little active culture into the study and preservation of universal wisdom. This problem can be solved through studying some living wisdom tradition and looking in what the masters advice over inquiring about one's limiting conceptions of self and how none if has real permanence. An essential part of accessing wisdom is having a stable heart, so we should have awareness and care over our own emotional regulation. First, I would offer good and short videos that talk about compassionate awareness, perceptions of stress, how people themselves can give rise to real life changing skills and realizations. The core offering here is that if you want to change yourself and your sense of self, then you should first have a healthy and happy sense of self. Assorted Videos about Self-Compassion and Emotional Welfare Getting a Clue about Wisdom and Virtue (De) For a good introduction to a wisdom tradition that can take the sincere practitioner all the way to great merits and yogic accomplishment I recommend getting to know about Shanrendao and its virtue healing tradition. It's inspired by the Confucian tradition where the central teachings is that the person should seek to perfect his role and function in the society and within his family — gracefully and gratefully accept all "polishing" others may unkindly serve him — and still remain true to himself and not suppress his emotions nor desires, but work these for everyone's favor. The formula is simple, but difficult to master because people might be unable to express their emotions in a true or meaningful way. More about this later. I personally have a strong liking towards Confucian view of De because it is humanizing and emphasizes that cultivation truly isn't about this or that formal technique but becoming wise and genuine person with a crystal-clear conscience. The lessons of virtue are especially important in our age because, in my opinion, there is growing neglect in teaching classic virtues like patience and self-sacrifice. Unvirtuous behavior such as blaming others, worrying over myriad possibilities, and anxious rationalizations easily lead to escalating tensions in the body and sourness that taints human connections. By avoiding faults and honing ourselves instead of others, we can engage in good speech which is timely and harmonizing, and therefore our words will stay ageless and gentle to the heart. With Confucian healing and wisdom in mind, I highly recommend the books Let the Radiant Yang Shine Forth: Lectures on Virtue by Liu Yousheng and Twelve Characters: A Transmission of Wang Fengyi's Teachings. Below is a diagram that shows Wang Fengyi's Shanrendao tradition's insights into the classic Five Elemental Processes and how they connect to different human frameworks. These can also be useful in diagnosis which is clearly presented in the clinical healing cases of Liu Yousheng's magnificent book. There currently is another English translation of Wang Fengyi's teachings available: Discourse on Transforming Inner Nature. Both this and the Twelve Characters book are among the clearest expositions of traditionally Chinese flavored spiritual cultivation that I have found anywhere. Wang Fengyi skillfully illuminates the similarities and differences in Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism. Teachings about Open Awareness, Meditation and Nondual Wisdom C T's excellent topic is a treasure trove of both Buddhist and universal wisdom: Formal Practices The problem with formal self-study is two-fold: it typically hinders cultivating the peace of heart and de-stressing the body correctly. Without confessing these as the primary factors there is no true cultivation or satisfaction happening, but the genesis of prolonged agitation. Emotions Must Be Addressed First Your heart is the window to your entire being. If you have a lot of wild emotions that are easily stirred, then it's guaranteed that your mind will not know peace, but always search for outflows to spend that restlessness. All practitioners need to cultivate earnest patience that allows feeling stable and unshakable. Don't expect miracles overnight, but work on your expectations and not making a big deal about yourself. The most critical foundation for internal training and safe energetics is that any disruptive emotions must be healed through what could be called a process of acceptance, balance, and integration. The development of patience is crucial: If emotions flare, then the body's vital energies are diverted into excessive tantrums that weaken the whole body-mind complex. This thwarts any healing that is supposed to happen naturally, and strong emotions are a contraindication for formal meditative practices because strong emotions may deviate the how the vital energy operates in a healthy manner. Therefore, it's an incontestable premise that calmness of heart is the way to lasting vitality and energy, but it must happen naturally through wisdom and not by forcing. Suppressing emotions is unhealthy. It shuns the wisdom and awareness of experiences as they are, so it sets the stage for growing psychological and ethical issues if not addressed early enough. These departures from proper practice, if perpetuated, will almost certainly lead to unwholesome trance states that only provide masks of happiness. You see, bliss and pleasure seeking are often convenient masks for not wanting to deal with uncomfortable emotions or traumas. There is nothing wrong in bliss and pleasure as such, but forceful desires and optimism over them will not calm the heart. Please this topic I wrote about psychic trance states that flawed practice and emergence of psychic shadows can cause: How to give a physical boost to improving emotional balance? You could offer sincere and deeply heartfelt personal apologies for every tantrum you have projected onto others; you could try play-acting difficult emotions in a social setting like improvisation theater hobby; and you could do exercises like Trauma Releasing Exercises (TRE) that are designed to unwind traumatic emotions that the human body might suppress and keep inside (see the works of David Bercelli and Peter Levine). Please consult your health care provider before trying the following exercise on your own and decide together whether it suits you. A Simple TRE Flavored Practice Please note that this exercise is not supposed to be Spontaneous Qigong or any other type of energetic exercise. It's just supposed get emotions out and help you relax. A Caveat about Physical Stress Another thing to consider that if you have a lot of stress and tension within your muscles and fascia, this probably is a sign that you have kept emotions inside in a very corporeal sense. In this case spiritual practices can be unsuitable because they might provoke excess irritation, unstable mind, and general disconnect and floating attitude towards mundane activities. TRE is one way to help improve the situation because it removes tension, but there also are other types of exercises designed to foster relaxation and healing like the Dharma Drum's Eight-Form Moving Meditation. Supported by Compassion and Good Words Praying fervently but without hope or fear for the sake of others is a great way of making the heart happy, regardless on of one's religious or spiritual views. For those who are engaged in Mahayana Buddhism of any flavor, I would give additional advice: cultivate bodhicitta continuously! It's my understanding that there are some particularly suitable Buddhist mantras and dharanis that would benefit just about any internal practice, but advising about recitation practice is tricky because the Buddhist path is comprehensive and not a collection of isolated methods that can be offered to just any audience without reservation: Teacher's advice would matter the most to the tenured practitioner, while the beginner would need a learn a large framework starting with the correct view, ethics, taking refuge in the Three Jewels, dedication of merits, etc. to make recitation practices truly useful. Nevertheless, I'm making few references here in case anyone wants to look up their merits: Getting into Cultivating Vitality There are following main factors that make a given internal practice good for self-study: 1. Safety (It's difficult to fumble with the practice. Should be mostly safe even for the pregnant woman and her developing baby.) 2. Effectiveness (Brings good and clear results every time.) 3. Ease (Allows good practice from beginner level to relative mastery.) 4. Completeness (Not a sprawling system, but a clear sense of defined practices and gaining progress through them.) All these together lead to the summit that the practice is self-correcting and can be well traveled without any teacher's supervision, continual corrections, or amending with advanced instructions. It's an evergreen fare that people come looking for practices to satisfy some fixed personal desire. Often this fixity is then channeled as meeting some whimsical aim and urge to take forceful control that deviates from the laid-back wisdom of true contemplative and peaceful heart. Therefore, there's a lot of room for creating errors. Not only are many people dissatisfied with simple and efficient exercises, but they want also to modify what they have previously seen or create their own brand-new fad methods to evoke a sense of external mastery. Some are more modest and only claim high mastery in Kungfu or meditation without modifying the established standards. All these are signs of self-initiation in contrast to an open minded and respectful self-study. Yes, it's entirely possible to train energy in a multitude of different ways, but not all of them are beneficial in the long term nor fostering fair character development. Safety is another factor that can't be neglected especially when learning on your own. Please see the following topic I wrote about Qi deviations: There are simple moving exercises in many Qigong styles, but even in these people may err while learning on their own or forget to uphold the correct physical relaxation. Also, I have witnessed many occasions when a disgruntled practitioner lashes out against his teacher because the physical movement apparently invites overtly critical examination and experimentation. Therefore, I have a bias against recommending very physical practices for people wishing to study on their own. Simplicity invites trust. Visualization practices are an endless mire because they don't easily offer the mind to relax nor shed the desire to imagine new ways to cut the practice short. How could it then result in correct outcomes? The most difficult part really is that no instruction is foolproof for teaching how to not stir the heart, but gracefully accept even difficult emotions and thoughts that may surface and witness them with laid back awareness. If this obstacle is overcome, then the self-study has a chance to bear fruit. Some practices are more forgiving with the ordinary beginner's mind such that Flying Phoenix Qigong doesn't require mental stillness for effectiveness and Fragrant Qigong encourages an idle mind so strongly that it's okay to watch TV while practicing. I really am recommending you to ponder how you would like to practice, what are your lifestyle restrictions, and what you are after. This is good to think through because there are upsides and downsides to every practice. Some styles don't mix well with others and some require adhering to specific precautions for good results. You will have to seek my suggested formal practices from authoritative sources. I have linked the best I could find. Video Instructions Video instructions only rarely feature complete exercises without withholding the internal development and lineage skills as closed secrets, but there are few exceptions. Those that I have found and presented below have in-built safety mechanisms that also reinforce good results, unless deliberately acted against that design. However, the characteristic feature always is simplicity and effectiveness. Flying Phoenix - Features breath sequencing that quickly activates spinal energy, which makes its static standing exercises uncharacteristically very safe and powerful for self-learning. It also features moving and sitting meditations. Fragnant Qigong (Xiang Gong) - Very simple movements and powerful effects, but the practice has a lot of prohibitions. There apparently are flawed public demonstrations circulating in the Internet, so it must be learned from an authentic source. Wu Wei Qigong by George Xu - Supposedly activates an esoteric wheel in the belly to cultivate energy throughtout the day, which is similar to Falun Gong's Qigong but without its limitations. Written Instructions These written instruction often are the best of complete arts that were detailed in popular booklets during the China's booming Qigong craze. These are simple enough instruction that they could be printed out and distributed. Relaxation Qigong (Fang Song Gong) - Relaxation as a way to deep meditation, therefore dismisses forms and takes it the easy way. For advanced practitioners it provides a cool way to do meta-acupuncture for oneself. Longevity Self-Massage (Bedside Baduajin) - A quick and simple set of external massages, but supplements with an internal aspect that is a great way to get into Buddhist flavored Anapanasati meditation. Final Words It's my sincere wish that you find a practice that well resonates with you, and it's not a shame to find such outside of my list of recommended practices. I really wish that I could share more recommendations, but I am quite conservative in that regard because my quality control is strict and I don't want to advertise unfamiliar practices either. Thank you for reading! My special thanks go to @C T, @dwai, @steve, and @freeform for their helpful suggestions and inspiration they have kindly provided.

I started using these products after watching these video lectures by Dr. Jorge Felchas, MD: Boron: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJp7SW1pY2I Boron tells calcium where to go in your body, so especially good for teeth, bones, osteoporosis, and arteries. Silica: (I have used diatomaceous earth for this, which is approximately 85% silica, and is MUCH less expensive than commercial silica supplements). Excellent for collagen support (skin, wrinkles, sagging, blood vessels, heart conditions etc.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=faBAT3hIbGw Dr. Flechas also has YouTube lectures on iodine (he's an internationally recognized expert on this) and on my new favorite supplement, PQQ, which bolsters mitochondria, especially in heart and brain. Mitochondria are the tiny energy turbines in your cells. Encouraging them is a really good idea. Here's Flechas on PQQ: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHQUpNZgFhI&frags=pl%2Cwn&fbclid=IwAR2EDoQ8rUlPBeu2VuGxeoCW-YmcIhhtHmxgbIjp02-fkQYkxnfPaamybOc Here's an article from LifeExtension.org on PQQ: https://www.lifeextension.com/Magazine/2019/8/PQQ-Revitalizes-Cellular-Energy/Page-01?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=organicpost&fbclid=IwAR3XcbpPDPuZCawAw6g7DOqwCvvAwcpUINww_QeyX3HB3cgm46W-Rps5PxI

Dark Night of the Soul An agonizing and liberating experience when one has come to the absolute limit of wilfulness with regard to a situation or situations. When no part of the tools one has used in the past is applicable. It is where the bag of tricks are at a dead end and one is confronted with non-doing. One is presented with a debasing of all positions, past views and exercised contrivances. A feeling of *nowhere to go* at a depth that depletes all grasping to mere folly but without complete release from the trappings of axiety about ones perceived predicament - though even the perception of that predicament is in question. A poisition from which one does not seek help from others for answers - where *answers* are not sought. A state where from one comes to put one foot in front of another and one walks in grace with wilfulness suspended - one step at a time in the present as a child.

Hi I have had some interesting realizations. I have had some experiences with the 'clear light' that comes from the heart and manifests out of the eyes. I have written about these episodes, which I was calling 'satori moments' in various threads. The last post was here: http://thetaobums.com/topic/27071-difference-between-being-in-pure-land-and-clear-light/?p=413974 The jist of it is that, there is a channel which goes from the heart to the eyes. It is called the Kati crystal channel. If you can activate this channel by being relaxed and loving, a phenomenon occurs which can be described as "a waterous radiantly clear liquid-like substance comes out of your eyes and projects itself into the viewable scenery." The phenomenon is characterised by tremendous Bliss, Joy, Peace, the feeling that you are everything and a particular silence of the conceptual mind. So far, nobody has been able to confirm this experience. This is not a 3D visual effect; the world is seen as it appears, not holographic. The world (the scene you are viewing) appears normally except is much brighter, radiant, glistening. The feeling (to me) is like you are God looking into the eyes of God. Everything is love or one or the same taste. Yesterday, I was reading a book called "A Clear Mirror" - Traktung Dudjom Lingpa and I came across this quote: Hmmm! Perhaps my experiences are realizations of 'emptiness's true nature'. ! Dudjom Lingpa's meditation instructions are very similar to the types of practices that I have been doing.. The text that leads into the reference of the kati channel is here: A few days ago, after posting about the 'satori moments' I started contemplating the clear waterous substance that emits from the eyes as bliss, peace, joy, love, brilliant radiance.. I focused on remembering the phenomenon, examining it, remembering each aspect. Recalling the experiences was somehow setting it off again. And, it was right before my regular meditation time, so I went to meditate for an hour. I sat in my usual posture and started with my dedications/prayers. The bells from my "Insight Timer" went off, indicating the start of the hour long session. There were great streams of love and tingles coming from my heart. I could not 'meditate'. I decided to just let it go and sit. (I was going to do 1 hour of breath meditation). As the waves of tingles radiated out from the heart, I noticed that the space had opened up inside. This is the typical space that opens when the senses shut off. It is the space in which one can see the thoughts, visions, colors, lights, chakras.. etc.. However, this time I noticed that the conceptual mind was "behind" again, which was the same positioning of the conceptual mind during the satori moments. I just let it be. The vibrations radiating upwards from the heart grew more intense. There were subtle films or wisps of light moving all about in front of the conceptual mind. I just let it be and watched. Then, all of a sudden, a very clear face appeared in the front of the space, beyond the front of the brow. It was an image of Ramana. Ok. It sure seemed bright. The image did not go away. And then it moved! And then I felt this overwhelming love coming out of it. Could it be? Ramana? His hair was white. My conceptual mind kicked in and starting throwing up all these thoughts.. I was once again plummeting into the war of mind-games.. I fought off the con-mind as best I could and refocused on Ramana. There was one thought that got through.. "What if it wasn't Ramana? " So, I binded the image of Ramana in the name of Jesus Christ and watched. The image of Ramana did not disappear. What happened was very funny. Another vision of Jesus appeared behind Ramana! Now I was looking at Jesus and Ramana. Then, something even stranger happened. The image of Ramana became a full person standing tall, then that image became a full image of Jesus standing tall, and then that image became another outline of another body (who I thought may have been Gandhi) and then another image... That was too much for my conceptual mind to handle.. Thoughts started cascading out.. I re-arranged my orientation, took a deep breath and went back into meditation. There was Ramana again. This time, he was sitting on a wooden bench in what seemed to be a scene from India. There were not many plants, the sky was very blue and there was a small structure in the background that looked like a clay-walled hut. Then Ramana said to me "Come and sit with me". !! By this point I realized that perhaps this was the real thing. I could see the whole scene as if looking through a telescope. I had no idea what I should do. I went and sat with him. It was like being in a dream. He was wearing nothing but a large white cloth around his bottom. I could not think of anything to say! I just sat there, feeling the love and understanding. Then I thought of something.. I had always had dreams that I had lived in India before this present life. I had visions of steam locomotives, and this one strange three-story-building with no center. The building had a main floor and three surrounding balconies. So, I asked Ramana if I had lived there before. At once, I got more visions of India, the colors, the locomotives, the earthen buildings.. Lots of scenery. It appears that I have in fact been in Ramana's presence before.. Back on the meditation seat, I pulled out and started crying. I had no idea. Ramana! King of the heart! It took a few days to get over the initial shock of that experience. The mind must justify by thinking that time and space are only concepts and that the great gurus transcend these phenomenon quite easily. Lots to think about. For the last two days, I have uncovered some new insights. I'm trying to stay away from heart meditations because my conceptual mind is rebelling too much.. However, for some reason, I now realise how to enter the space of the mind quite easily. What you do is this: Focus on the little space just below and inside from the navel. Say the mantra "O" silently (internally) and keep it going.. Just "O".. one long "OOOOOOOO".. not "ou" as in 'you', just one long "O" as in 'bow'. AUM has no begining or end.. Just one long "O". What this does is it causes the lower dantien, the place belowe the navel to activate. It is the center of will. It is what you use when you "really try hard". It is what is starting and stopping the breathing too. It also gives off heat if you let it. Anyway, just keep the "O" going with no breaks in it, and then do breath meditation on the place just below the navel. Watch each breath, while visually/mentally looking at the point below the navel. There is a white light there, which helps you to focus. Within a few minutes of doing that, you will see that the space inside your body really opens up. It opens up like your heart opens up, in a vacuous space. Then, you will see visions very easily, but don't look at them. Keep looking at the point where the "O" is coming out of. Keep watching the motion of the lower abdomen, moving with each inhale and exhale. Listen to the "O". Focus on the breath and don't interfere with the breathing. You will start to notice that with each breath, a sort of membrane expands and contracts around the body, from inside the space. That is a good sign. You are seeing from inside the space. After a while, the dreams/visions come quite easily. It is easy because the "O" is also activating the throat chakra, which is the source of the dream world. You can play about in this meditation.. explore, experience the space. I'm seeing some wonderful colors, brilliant displays of patterns and structures, visions and things I've never seen before.. right at the place below the navel.. I have been doing this meditation for two days now, as my regular practice.. During the last meditation, my whole coarse consiousness collapsed, I swooned and almost successfully passed into the beyond. I failed again, but I'll keep trying. It is so hard just to let go. TI

Muay Thai Documentary 8 Limbs: Life Of A Nak Muay- Born For The Fight- Muay Thai Boran The noble Art- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCSy151WrIg Training- Heavy Bag power training- Head High kicking- Kicking trees-

As human beings become more and more out of touch with Nature and more entrenched in modern society, as they become more and more materialistic in their thinking, as their energy channels and hearts become more closed off, they also lose touch with the phenomena of Synchronicity. Here is a really cool Synchronicity quote generator, based on sayings and quotes by the one and only Edgar Cayce- http://www.all-edgar-cayce.com/edgar-cayce-inspirational-quotes.htm