Birch

I dunno. I think "fortune telling" and "astrology" might be helpful introspective tools for some people. As for the position of stars at birth, I'd dig a bit more into that. To do with cimate and daylight hours and influence on human development. Probably not very useful anymore if folks are gestated and born in temperature-controlled places and artificial light though. My 2 cts is to look at the "weird" stuff and consider what the purpose was (or if we don't know, make some guesses) and then find ways to test the guesses. Anyway, I find Fox News just as useful as the horoscope.

Aliens don't survive below freezing? Then I re-read and realised you meant the cobras. Sigh.

"Did you know that we are born with our energy flowing in the water cycle? If that was our 'original nature', when and why does it change? Did you know older ladies naturally change back to the water cycle?" That's interesting. I remember that my MCO was 'running' 'water' path when I started MCO but now it can go both ways, however when I do it, I do it mainly 'fire' path. What, if anything, does this do to a female? Edited to add: Way back at the start, I tried 'RAB' and it hurt like a mfo. So I stopped.

My thoughts seem to have become 'feelings' more than words. I wonder if I should put the words back on because sometimes I feel too much and actually 'wording' it seems to have a calming effect. Hahaha, reverse-meditation :-)

Are you asking for advice? Or an opinion?

"The closest word they have to it is 'Gom'. Gom means 'getting used to...' ." Which is pretty important, I think :-) Seems like 'desensitization' to me... 'Oh, here it is again, this awful/wonderful thought/feeling. No matter'. Except when it actually does matter!

GIH = the TTB user 'Gold is Heavy' and I can't find the thread but I'm sure you can do a search or maybe GIH will come back with some more perspectives on it. The book is also searchable online (unless you don't have access to search engines for some reason?) I found your ideas interesting but 'There must be some reason that it exists' is IMO pointing more to a 'how' than a 'why' to explain suicide. Reasons/causality are/is IMO/IME quite some more complicated. Or maybe it isn't and GIH's suggestion to consider yourself dead and get on with living is really the most interesting one (and in fact IMO/IME very much at the heart of much cultivation practice:-)) I'm pretty interested in the 'it's there and so must have evolved 'naturally' and must therefore be useful' story. That is an interesting topic all by itself. Physical death can be witnessed. Does that mean the death of the individual? Can we say that this is the 'naturally' and 'evolved' state of affairs? Does everything physically die? There was another post by TaoMeow about spontaneous abortions and their apparent increase. Does that count as 'suicide'? The 'decision' not to incarnate? Sorry, too many questions :-) I don't know any answers.

Finally we get to talk ca$h ;-) One of the best analogies I've read in a long time is to be found in the excellent book "The Value of Nothing". On suicide. I don't see it as an evolutionary advantage, rather a sad reaction to too much pain without the realisation that it will pass and everything changes. I liked GIH's take on what to do in the face of it. It's on general forum.

Just get used by zero-point. Every time I bother paying attention. Otherwise I was trying to make a joke. Stupid onterweb!

Riiight;-) I think there's some truth in that but I don't think it's the whole truth;-) Cause if it were true, our current lamentable state is both wholly self-inflicted AND it's somehow supposed to be that way...I mean any intelligent being would attempt to avoid the sort of repetitive mistakes that seem to be leading us all to hell in a handbasket at varying speeds. I mean if we're god(s) then we're doing a shit job.

I have quite a few qi-gong "cookbooks" (practice recipes). Not so much into the philosophical/spiritual kind, although I had a brief period of "buddhist views on (insert topic)" but I'm done with those it seems. I have a few very complicated Taoist books about correct Iching consultation and interpretation - very tough reading. Deadman's acupuncture manual. Tough reading. Been reading more economics/history/political science recently (not that it helps any). I was thinking I might get back into novels. Haven't read any in over 3 years.

Great to read you back Scott:-)!

"Yup, the fun just never ends, folks" But the buck might just stop here:-) Puts a new spin on "personal responsability" huh;-) ? I think it's commonly believed that DNA is inert. Hence all that "blueprint" referencing. But it would seem it's not inert. What that means for cultivators. That could get really interesting. Guzzi indeed! So we've discovered another "control panel". Let's imagine the degrading environment is leading to ongoing genetic mutation within the term of an individual's lifespan. If that person does not have kids and pass on the mutation, no effects, right? So how can one tweak one's DNA? Especially in the face of pretty poor nutrition, air and water quality?

I'm thinking that philosophy is intimately linked to politics and culture and other things such as the use of resources, relationships between people of different beliefs, healthcare...I guess if I continue I'll end up becoming more "general" than the general discussion:-) Anyway, why bother with philosophy if it's not really part of your concrete living experience? If you're going to be a non-dualist for example then why make distinctions between spirituality and politics or the economy or any "thing" else? I don't think I know the answer.

Cool! I don't think I know any. Maybe 1 perhaps, ok, maybe a few:-)

Hehe I don't reckon Taoists are much bothered by trying to make others see the wrongheadedness of evangelizing. But I agree it's important to correct what's true from what's false in Taoism. Like practices, especially. Given they all go to very specific places. Philosophy also. Certain religions start with very specific premises. Anyway, I figure one is allowed to pick whatever path one wishes. My only caveat would be "do no harm".

Great post! My 2cts is that MCO helps prevent many of the "overheating" issues related to K rising. I feel it (MCO) to be a far safer route in the absence of more formal preparation as per yoga/pranayama. Some folks just aren't prepared but want to cultivate anyway plus our diets and lifestyle generally suck. Well, mine is not so bad but I'm no ascete. I do wonder about the various combinations of practices too. I figure this is advised against because the systems are pretty predictable in terms of results and mixing them up might mean that it's harder to advise if things don't work out as per the system. I'll be reading this thread with great interest! Thanks for it.

I dunno shit but this has to be the best shittest thread on TTBs in like shitloads of ages.

Finally! Someone that gets it! Seth, you're my new favourite person:-) But what seems to be going on is that many people and "especially" folks who have a something here or there to fix or figure out come to meditative practices, culturally obliquely and end up DIY'ing it pretty much. IME/IMO that's sort of what TTB's is for :-) Because we simply (in many cases) don't have the right shamanic culture (my argument is we have one despite itself and it sucks) and so end up taking longer than necessary to heal or find their place. Now how did we fail collectively at this process of integration and what can be done?

As usual, "it depends":-) I haven't read any women's comments on this thread but I guess it must be a bit different for each person. I don't get tired out due to my period. What tires me out is giving too much. I think that's pretty much it. But if you look at female practices (the rare ones that get "out there") many of them deal with pelvic area as well as heart centre/breasts. I think women's reactions to stress are a bit different and I guess until folks understand it, might be some leftover attributions by folks that aren't very helpful. Not to say that folks' attributions to male stress are any better.

Or money.

Damned if I know, but maybe it might be about intention. So if the "globalist" agenda and "information" wars are playing heavily upon folks, i figure, yup, t'is indeed "spiritual". And until one considers all aspects of "spiritual" IME/IMO what's not to say it all is. Indeed separating "spiritual" and "religious" and "political" and "scientific" is I reckon one of the reasons the right people aren't talking with each other and the wrong ones are. Who are the "wrong" ones. Ah yes, that's up for a multifaceted discussion. Just don't mention sex.

Are you talking about more than the quote I included when you say that the reply isn't mine but Adyashanti's? If so, what do you mean by when you say "Adyashanti's" and what would make my reply "mine"? --- I meant your use of the quote:-) It was a neat layered/nested illustration of the whole "mine" in practice, I thought. Anyway, my consideration this morning is whether one can dissassociate ideas from "mind" and if not, then that would make "mind" at least partially distributed and if so it would make it at least partially fragmented. So then i read the posts on awareness and the idea (sic) that this could be free from ideas or thoughts and I thought (hahaha) well that's the underlying fabric isn't it, except it's not underlying, it's more undulating through the 10k things which are distributed and fragmented. Sorry, I'm rambling a bit:-)

Everything except the stories, and then the stories.

Glad you mentioned the swirly stuff:-)