Formless Tao

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  3. Posted · Edited by Formless Tao

    Monday to Sunday

     

    Morning Yoga / Qi Gong at Sunrise

     

    Organic Breakfast

     

    Mountain Trekking / Jungle Trekking / Nature walk (Discussion with Master along the Way)

     

    Organic Lunch

     

    Spa / Swim / Lemongrass Sauna

     

    Meditation at Sunset

     

    Organic Dinner

     

    Barefoot Shiatsu

     

    Love Making Around Internal / External Fire

     

    Read Chinese Philosophy / Religion / History

     

    Sleep

     

    Dream ;)

     

    Repeat

     

    Peace FT

    • Like 1

  6. Posted · Edited by Formless Tao

    Lol, but the Chinese only used firearms for self-defense, local expansionism and fratricide - not outright global colonialism. Although, this certainly wasn't due to lack of ability to...

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=de9LjXZbGRo

    Zheng He (and possibly other compatriots before him) had already basically sailed around the world before Columbus did in a massive armada that dwarfed all Spanish ships of that era.

    Zheng%20He%20Ship.jpgKQ9xbTC.jpgolmec-man.jpg

    But whereas Columbus cruelly bullied, horrifically abused, sexually poached and exploited all the natives...all the Chinese explorers simply traded with them civilly or sometimes may have peacefully coexisted and eventually assimilated over time...

    figure-111.gif

    This was despite actually possessing far more overwhelming power and force - but choosing not to use it so unhumanely. This is CIVILIZATION vs COLONIZATION.

    One might wonder if this domineering behavior was learned from centuries of military occupation and enslavement under the Moors - which had just ended at the same time Columbus set sail in 1492?

    Anyhow, as these Oriental pearls got cast and carried to swine out further west...they increasingly misused such secondhand technology to ruthlessly conquer and exploit others. Most of which had nothing to do with weapons of warfare:

    You're so right!! :D Backtracking established shipping routes around Africa and India gained from sending spies desperately searching for gold is soooo much more impressive than an orderly, respectful armada pioneering its own trade routes! As is ruthlessly ransacking and killing the locals mercilessly!

    All hail the Conquistadors! :lol:

     

    Too bad they also didn't get the memo on how to prevent scurvy from the Chinese, who had already figured out how to ensure an ongoing supply of nutrients and Vitamin C from sprouting soybeans onboard.

    ice_age_world_map_by_fenn_o_manic-NG-SA.

    Yes Gavin Menzies 1421 and 1434 books are great.

     

    Actaully is Semarang on the island of Java in Indonesia there is a Chinese temple dedicated solely to Zheng He and his worldly travels.

     

    Zheng He actually stopped off in Semarang and there are Anchors from some of his ships on display.

     

    An impressive dedication to Zheng Hes' memory...

    • Like 2

  8. Posted

    Excellent inputs so far.

     

    Philosophical Taoism, for me, is not just sitting at the computer and talking with others about it, it is my Philosophy of Life.

     

    Philosophical Taoism, for me, and yes, I know, others may well disagree with me, are the writings in the Lao Tzu and the Chuang Tzu. These two documents present guidelines for any person by which to live a good life. There are many lessons, especially in the Chuang Tzu, that can be applied to our every-day life which, if used properly, will keep us out of a lot of trouble.

     

    Yes, there are a couple places where Lao Tzu went a little mystical and even more where Chuang Tzu did the same. But there primary emphasis was on how to live with as little conflict as possible with others and our environment.

     

    Philosophical Taoism does not rely on deities, ceremonies, rituals or any of the other complications of life. It speaks to the Manifest (Yu) aspect of Tao. However, both did also speak to the Mystery (Wu). I personally consider the Yu aspect as how I relate with others and my external world and the Wu aspect as how I intereact with myself.

     

    Taoism is my primary philosophy of life. Yes, there are other philosophies mixed in there too because they speak more directly to condition I had to deal with in my life. Others would have needs different from mine.

     

    I have been challenged before to define where in the TTC there are any guidelines for living in today's world. That was a simple challenge to respond to. I enjoy speaking directly to our everyday life problems with examples of guides from Lao Tzu and Chuang Tzu so we can go there if anyone wishes.

     

     

    Anyhow, that's the philosophy. Then we each, depending on our needs, add to that whatever satisfies our needs.

     

    I enjoy reading your posts MH. If only I lived in Florida or you in Melbourne we could have Daoist discussions over some Chinese tea or warm sake :)

     

    Regards FT

    • Like 1

  12. Posted

    Thanks to Vortex for pointing this thread out to me.

     

    As it happens I'm stuck in Yellow Mountain city on my way back to our hospital from a ginseng-buying trip in Korea due to the heavy snowfall here, so for once I actually had the time to read all the way through this thread and I just have a couple of comments, as it appears that despite my best efforts on this forum and elsewhere there are still a number of misconceptions surrounding Shifu, what he does, and why.

     

    Contrary to popular belief Shifu is not in the "business" of convincing skeptics. Nor is he in the "business" of teaching. His calling, his path, is and has always been to heal the sick, and he is incredibly busy doing so (we saw over 1000 foreign patients at the hospital last year, and a far larger number of mainland Chinese patients). Do understand the "sickness" I refer to here includes both the frailties of body and ignorance/delusion (in the Buddhist sense) of the mind. This is how his compassion is made manifest in the world. The bodhisattva ideal "meme" still exerts a strong influence on all Chinese Mahayana buddhist sects, including Chan. The "powers", as you guys like to call them, are used to that end. However he knows we Westerners are fascinated by this stuff, and there is just so much nonsense and outright fraud out there that he feels a certain obligation to those who travel so far to seek him out, so when he has the time and the energy and he's in the right mood, he might demonstrate some aspect of qi manipulation simply to show what is possible, in spite of how exhausting it can be. If you collected every scrap of video ever made public, it would represent less than a tenth of what I have personally witnessed he and my brother students do in my almost six years living full-time here in China.

     

    All that being said, skeptics are welcome (I was quite the skeptic myself when we first met) provided they are open-minded, polite, and most importantly *sincere* in their desire for the truth. Trust me when I say that Shifu can tell in a heartbeat if you are not, and he has very little time for those who are not.

     

    Many websites, forums, youtube channels, facebook pages, linkedin accounts, books, DVD's, you name it, in multiple languages, have been opened in Shifu's name over the years. Some are well-intentioned efforts by Shifu's patients or students to publicize him, like Aurelian's website & book (which Shifu has not read, but he did have me read it and summarize the content for him), while others have had more nefarious purposes. It is important to understand that *NONE* of them represent official publications by Shifu himself. In the past Asian interpreters would often open email accounts using his name and respond to emails in English as if they were Shifu himself, which caused great confusion; Shifu has a command of all of about 3 polite greetings in English, and he understands even less than that. The man barely knows how turn on a computer, and when he wants to find something on the internet (a rare occurrence) he usually asks me to do it for him. His *only* official, personally approved English language web presence is his hospital website here (apricotforesthospital.com) his youtube channel here (www.youtube.com/user/doctorjiangfeng) his facebook page here (https://www.facebook.com/doctorjiangfeng) and his private students forum, access to which I'm happy to provide via PM. Much more information about our sect has been published there than ever was or I suspect ever will be published publicly. I'd love to update all three of the public pages with more media (I have amassed quite the library, which those who have come to visit us here have seen and can attest to), but Shifu often thinks it is “unnecessary” and I don't post anything unless he approves it first.

     

    As for all these speculative questions for Shifu, I think it's best that I let him answer them for himself when you're here, with two exceptions: (1) Yes, he does know of John Chang, and was even willing to meet him once at the request of one of his students when Shifu happened to be in Indonesia, but unfortunately the proposed meeting never took place. (2) The correct character for “Geng” in “Gengmenpai” is 耿, as in 耿门派. It was the surname of Grandmaster’s primary lay teacher, Geng Jingfeng 耿景峰.

     

    PS: FYI, as I was proof-reading this post I got a call from one of my Chinese brothers informing me of the good news that Shifu has finally emerged from his retreat. I'm told he's comfortable and in excellent spirits, and they will be bringing him home from the mountains tomorrow.

     

    As an aside, Happy Valentine's Day to everyone in the US; it happens to also be YuanYe 元夜 here tonight, the 15th day of the first month of the Chinese lunisolar calendar and the official end of the New Year festivities, so now I've got to go outside in the cold and find somewhere to get the sweet sesame-filled glutinous rice flour dumplings that I'm obliged by tradition to gorge on tonight. :)

     

     

    Hi Leandro,

     

    Thanks for the clarity and update.

     

    Peace FT

  13. Posted · Edited by Formless Tao

    Hi CCIII

     

    I hope you have a good translater/interpreter to ask these questions...:)

     

    Out of pure interest I would ask;

     

    1) Have you met/heard of John Chang?

     

    2) If so what do you think of John Chang?

     

    3) If not can you feel a strong presence coming from Java island?

     

    4) What is his sole/main purpose in life?

     

    5) What does he think of an all powerful being?

     

    6) What does he think of the concept of heaven and hell?

     

    7) Does he believe in 1 God, many gods or no god?

     

    8) Does he know when he will die?

     

    9) Has he reached enlightenment or immortality?

     

    10) Has he met God?

     

    11) Does he know where his spirit will go after he dies?

     

    12) Two questions you can personally ask; Tell me of any past, present or future health issues I have had or have?

     

    13) Do you have the potential to reach enlightenment / immortality?

     

    In my opinion the answers to these questions will give an indication of what type of human being master Jiang is.

     

    Peace FT

    • Like 3

  14. Posted · Edited by Formless Tao

    I believe that every antidote and cure can be found in nature, be it herb, plant, animal etc.

    It seems to me that just like yin / yang theory everything has its opposite.

    In my opinion nature screams to me to have an intelligent designer behind it...

    But that is another discussion in itself worth discussing & exploring :)

    Peace FT

  15. Posted · Edited by Formless Tao

    I have 2 related stories I will share.

    1) My cousin is a naturopath and has been studying it for approx 30 years. She diagnosed herself with uterus cancer through looking at spots on her iris. Western doctors (GP's and specialists) did not believe her until they did tests. Her uterus was removed and she made herself herbal cocktails for healing and future well being. She is fine now.

    She also used to mix me herbal cocktails whenever I had earaches when I was young and they always helped but they tasted disgusting ;p

    2) My mother is a traditional Chinese medicine doctor and has been studying for approx 10 years. Last year she diagnosed herself with skin cancer. She went to the GP and they told her its not cancerous but just a growth. She went back a second time to the specialist because she did not believe it and told them she wants a sample taken and tested. Tests came back from the specialist that she had skin cancer on her thigh. First operation took most of the lump out and second operation took the circumference of the skin cancer just in case. Mum also made herself Chinese herbs to take for healing and preventative reasons which TCM is well known for.

    Mums Chinese herbs are also disgusting but work ;)

    Both women specialise in helping women who cant have children and they both have great track records. The mixture of herbs both prescribe seem to play a big part in helping the women fall pregnant and have children.

    Peace FT

    • Like 2

  18. Posted · Edited by Formless Tao

    http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hiroo_Onoda

     

    Photo slideshow below;

     

    http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jan/17/hiroo-onoda-japanese-soldier-dies

     

    Hiroos' biography;

     

    http://www.bookdepository.com/No-Surrender%3A-My-Thirty-Year-War-Hiroo-Onoda/9781557506634

     

    Apart from his survival after nearly 30 years hiding in the Philippine jungle, what also surprises me is the good condition of his army clothing after this time...

    • Like 2

  21. Posted · Edited by Formless Tao

    Quote name="Jock" post="509719" timestamp="1388188937"]Hi everyone I just saw this posted from another forum and thought you might like to read. Im not sure if the guy even knows what he's talking about but it seems legit.-------------------------------------------------------------- Please let me share my experience. Here is an email reproduced with permission from a friend in nevada.I have trained in chen & yang style taichi,qigong, tummo, yoga for over 30 years with little or no result. I have enlisted in new age retreats,breatharian courses with little or no seeable changes in my practice. It wasnt until reading The Magus Of Java that i started searching for other systems that could bring the re. I can say 100% that the method im using right now is very effective in building chi for many purposes. I have not found any stsem that brings results and the feeling of energy so quickly.My understanding is your acupoints or energy points must be activated or filled by a teacher.Many claim to offer energetic adjustments but i just did not see/feel any major change in my energy levels or ability. Apart from that, i dont live in a very safe part of town and wanted something to protect myself. From searching google all about neikung i was able to find Tridaya Inner Power. I dont want to advertise or anything here, But if people are looking for a very powerful system that you can really feel and could bring similar results to mopai, then i would suggest at least looking at it. I did not go for the long distance transmission. I went directly to Jakarta myself and met lukman in person to see what all the hype was about. When he started touching my body and pushing energy inside I thought my hands and stomach were going to explode from the force. Whatever was being done was unlike anything i had experienced before.The crackling and buzzing of energy remained in the centre of my palms for two full days straight. What i have discovered is i can now really sense or feel a persons energy with my palms. Whenever i put my hands close to somebody they can feel buzzing and minute electrical impulses. There is also a heavy pulling or pushing sensation,tingles. I have trained daily for about 6 months using the instructions given to me. I will keep you all updated with any further changes or development. The End. So does tridaya really build super powers like the mopai and is this lukman a real teacher ? Has anybody on the taobums ever practiced this style,and if so what were the results ? Im thinking hitting somebody from a distance would be a cool skill to have. I'm trying to find the innerpower books if anybody has a link to share ? I would be happy to send a few dollars.Maybe it's worth a trip to indonesia.

     

    Jock, see Lukmans thread on TTB's below:

     

    http://thetaobums.com/topic/28169-tridaya-inner-power-website/?hl=%2Btenaga+%2Bdalam#entry427182

     

    Lukmans website/blog is;

     

    http://tridaya-innerpower.blogspot.com/

     

    Peace FT

  22. Posted · Edited by Formless Tao

    It's this system of neigong, where they won't accept anyone but chinese students (how does that work when the teacher looks and lives over in Indonesia??), but where there are youtube vids of the head teacher guy lighting newspaper on fire. Oh alright, there are instructions for the first couple of levels floating around. I think it's the whole "you can't have this" that really makes it so popular.

    BKA, Do you seriously want an answer to your question... :)

     

    It is well known in martial art circles that Chinese used to in the recent past only teach other full blooded Chinese students. Knowadays it doesn't apply as much in the western world, but it doesn't surprise me that its still happening in a country like Indonesia.

     

    JC may be born and live in Indonesia but do not be fooled by the colour of his skin, if you look af his face he does not look like the average Javanese male. I worked very closly with a Javanese builder in the construction of my in laws house in Indonesia and the two ethnicities whilst similar are still very different even though they live in the same country.

     

    My Chinese Indonesian father in law has very similar features to JC but the only thing that the two of them have in common with a Javanese male is the darker skin colour bought on by the Chinese person living in Indonesia for their lifetime.

     

    Peace FT :)

    • Like 1

  24. Posted · Edited by Formless Tao

    Apocalypto

    The last samurai

    Spring, summer, fall, winter & spring

    The bourne trilogy

    The big boss

    Fist of fury

    The way of the dragon

    Game of death (original footage only)

    Enter the dragon

    Kill bill

    A better tomorrow I, II, & III

    Zatoichi

    Rambo I, II & III

    Infernal affairs I, II & III

    Crouching tiger, hidden dragon

    Ong bak

    Schindlers list

    Life is beautiful

    The pianist

    Defiance

    V for vendetta

    The power of one

    Hotel rwanda

  25. Posted · Edited by Formless Tao

    The Little Horn of Daniel 8The Little Horn of Daniel 8 does not literally refer to the Antichrist, but it literally describes the desecration of the Temple by Antiochus Epiphanes. Antiochus' desecration of the temple was to last 2,300 evenings and mornings before its cleansing (8:14). Some have thought this as 2300 days, but it is preferable to interpret this as 2300 evening and morning sacrifices, which would be 1150 days. It was the sacrifices that were interrupted when Antiochus offered a sow on the alter on December 16, 167 B.C. Judas Maccabeus restored the temple and refurbished it in late 164 and on into 163 B.C. when all the Jewish sacrifices were fully restored and religious independence gained for Judah. If the 2300 evenings and mornings referred to 2300 days, then the time period would have lasted from Antiochus incursion into Jerusalem in 170 B.C. until the restoration of the temple in late 164 B.C. by Judas Maccabeus. The 1150 days is most likely the correct interpretation.Even though the Little Horn of Daniel 8 literally refers to Antiochus Epiphanes, he definitely typifies the coming of Antichrist to desecrate the temple in the near future. The Little Horn of Daniel 8 has already been literally fulfilled in Antiochus, but there is yet a prophetic fulfillment in the individual called Antichrist.Antiochus teaches us that (1) Antichrist will achieve great power by subduing others (v. 24). (2) He will rise to power by promising false security to the world and Israel (v. 25). (3) He will be very intelligent and persuasive (v. 23). (4) He will be controlled or empowered by another (i.e., Satan) (v. 24). (5) He will subjugate Israel as its adversary and authority (vv. 24-25). (6) He will oppose the Prince of Princes, or the Lord Jesus Christ (v. 25).(7) His rule will be terminated by supernatural divine judgment (v. 25). Consequently, we see that Antiochus Epiphanes was the literal fulfillment of the Little Horn of Daniel 8, but Antichrist is the type of the Little Horn in Daniel 8.Antichrist will achieve great power by taking over the helm of New Babylon (i.e., the USA) by casting away our Constitution and national sovereignty. He will then link the new dictatorial government of America with the European Union (i.e., the Ten-Horn Beast). There are currently 27 members of the European Union (EU), but there are only 13 members of the group called Schengen. This group utilizes the Euro as currency and the members of these 13 countries are not required to show a passport when traveling from one country to another. Schengen may very well be the group of the European Union that will be reduced to 10 in the turmoil that brings about the reappearance and rise of Antichrist to power. Antichrist is the 11th horn that comes up among the other horns of the EU. He will subdue three of the horns by taking away their power and authority. The empire of Antichrist will consist of ten nations of the European Union and the United States. It is the union of America and the EU that will be so powerful that no country in the world will be able to fight against it for a period of time. Even Russia will be conquered militarily with the fulfillment of Ezekiel 38 and 39. Then at the end of the seven year tribulation period, China and the kings from the East will come against Antichrist and totally destroy America or Babylon the Great, as this destruction has been ordained by God.Antichrist is the beast in the following verse:Rev 17:11 (KJV) And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition. This is perhaps the most revealing verse for identifying the Antichrist. This verse tells us that Antichrist will be the leader of the eighth world power, the revived Roman Empire. The ten toes of iron and clay mentioned in Daniel 2:42-43 represent the empire of Antichrist. This means that he will be the leader of the Ten-Horned Beast, which will almost certainly arise from the European Union. This is also the Ten-Horned Beast mentioned in Revelation 13:1 and Daniel 7. The most intriguing part of this verse is that the Antichrist is also of the seventh power. The seventh power is Babylon the Great, which is the United States of America. This means that Antichrist will have been a President of the United States of America, but he suffered a mortal head wound witnessed by the whole world. The whole world will think that he is dead, but the world will be greatly astonished when it is revealed that Antichrist is still alive. It is confirmed in the following verse that the mortal head wound of Antichrist only appeared to be a death wound. Antichrist will miraculously recover from the mortal head wound to cause the world to be astonished and admire him greatly.(Rev 13:3 NIV) One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been healed. The whole world was astonished and followed the beast.The beast is the Ten-Horned beast, and the head with the fatal wound is the Little Horn or Antichrist. Please note that the fatal wound took place in the past, and the healing took place in the past when Antichrist makes his reappearance. In the same way that Jesus came the first time to die for the sins of the world, Antichrist will mimic Jesus Christ in dying at his first appearance, and then making his reappearance as the conqueror on the white horse. Anyone with just a little knowledge of American history should be able to identify Antichrist from the Biblical description of him. America has only had one leader that the whole world believes died with a mortal head wound. The mortal head wound has been witnessed by literally billions of people in movies and television. One can even purchase his own personal copy of the computer enhanced video showing the mortal head wound. This is the primary reason that the whole world has been greatly deceived into being absolutely certain that Antichrist is dead. Antichrist will be revealed in the very near future with his mortal head wound healed, and the world will be astonished, just as the Scriptures state.

     

    Thanks & blessings to Chegg for the above ;)