silent thunder

I love Wudang: Fire Hands

I've done a fair amount of dark box meditation. Eyes open in a completely dark environment yields quite the light show almost immediately. The majority of the time, it starts with flashing colored light, blues and violets, then quickly I get sacred geometric patterns that kaleidoscope inward and outward. On occasion I'll get full images and scenes that appear as flashes. Sometimes I can see where they are relevant to my life and other times, they just appear random to my waking mind. These days, I'll get the geometric patterns upon closing my eyes any time of day. I find it entertaining and comforting, but other than that, I don't put much into it, other than observe and enjoy it.

My interactions with animals in zoos didn't bring much understanding in terms of behavior and spirit. They're fairly hobbled in their little holes and pits. The only animals I found to be well adjusted to zoo life were the lemurs I spent a summer studying. They appeared pretty well suited to their environment, the big carnivores were shells.

I wonder if the crystallized blood that pfl mentioned are related to the merit crystals supposedly found in the cremated remains of high level practitioners...

I agree. One gem has many facets... none of them are wrong.

I've been doing just this for about a year now. I've been meaning to ask the same question and keep forgetting... thanks for bringing it up. I take my son swimming at least once a week and I got the idea while I was stretching and strengthening a shoulder injury in the water and noticed some interesting energetic impulses. So I began doing wuji where just my head was out of the water and loved it. I do this every time I'm in the water now. It's good stuff. The most rewarding exercise by far, is being able to rest weightless underwater at the end of a tummo breathing sublimation cycle. Twenty seven warrior breaths, briefly swallow the energy to ldt, then after a couple heartbeats exhale 90% and go completely limp under water until the urge to inhale becomes a strong thought. Then slide up and inhale and finish the cycle. The full body awareness is incredible, pure being, it's just awesome. It's really heightened the experience to go completely limp and weightless in a way that cannot be matched seated or lying down, then the fact that sounds are subdued underwater is a great benefit as well. It's a regular part of my process now.

I've had the distinct sensation that I expanded to the dimensions of the room I was meditating in... Good times.

Take great care what you allow yourself to hate. It will become you.

Sometimes it's me sitting down with the intention of gathering/exploring the energy of a particular animal for a purpose/insight. Many more times however, they come to me on their own, without my bidding. Usually it's a gentle tug of awareness that offers a different perspective, other times, it's more like a hammer. lol

mmmm animal medicine... I shift often and with great joy!

ouch... at least it's painfully apparent when you stand in the same room with one of these 'certificate' holders, that they are worth every minute of study...

can't forget

and then some...

I'm in a mind for some pickin this fine mornin.... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YegKYn5yeKM

I've found some mileage in these stretches, especially helping with loosening my hips. http://zenmontpellier.voila.net/eng/lotus/lotuseng.html edit: I particularly appreciate this quote: "DON'T OVERSTRETCH. Whatever you may be told, change position, rather than bear the pain. This is no masochistic contest."

When you fight one thing, you increase the experience of duality. When you support something you increase the experience of duality. When you release, you experience release.

I really like what Chuang Tzu says here... it resonates with my recent (last two years) experience with forgiveness.In the end, with any interaction we feel slighted by, or injured by, it's up to us to let it go. No one else can make it right. I've come to a 180 degree shift in my experience of forgiveness. I find it has near to nothing to do with the person/behavior/issue any longer. It's about letting go of the story in my mind that I replay about the event and then feast on the injustice/resentment emotionally. Even in the face of an apology, there were times I would not forgive, could not, or just plain didn't want to... I was not ready to let go yet. My resentment was about me holding onto the emotions of that event. Forgiveness was about letting go of my attachment to the process of replaying that memory/story. When I let go and forgive, if it's a person's behavior I'm forgiving, there is no need for me to come to some justification, understanding, liking or approval in my mind over the issue. They are who they are and they did what they did. Much like the conditions of nature. The act is entirely internal and stems from a desire to stop re-experiencing the story and feeding that energy system.

yea... duality can be a real bitch from a certain perspective