Bindi

As I see it, the subtle reality applies pressure to my ideas, and I follow. I don’t believe there is no yin and yang, even when yin and yang are gone beyond, yin and yang are ultimately our interface with the world. Believing there is no yin and yang might be your misunderstanding of basic reality

I see the pivot of the dao as like the fulcrum of a seesaw, but it’s not yin and yang that sit on each end of the seesaw as I thought earlier. If three seesaws are placed next to each other, and my consciousness shifts from the side seesaws to the central seesaw, then I have managed to shift beyond yin and yang (same as going from ida and pingala to the central channel). With the fulcrum of the central seesaw as the pivot of the dao, it is the dualities of heaven and earth that will then be experienced consecutively, beyond yin and yang.

Does this (that cleansox posted in another thread just now) speak to your thoughts on the matter?

True enough, your dream, for you - what does root chakra work mean to you? Being grounded might be exactly the right place for you to start, were you ‘ungrounded’ at the time of your dream? I’m always a bit wary of deliberate root chakra work myself in case it leads to kundalini in unprepared channels, but that’s just me.

It seems like a very clear guidance dream to me, I see the eagle as your spirit, slowly becoming more and more limited by your physical body, but in the end shown the only way to regain freedom which is by finding the door below and entering through it yourself, ie., by your consciousness entering through the lower door. The dream shows very clearly that there is no other window, gate or door, as seen from the perspective of your spirit itself, apart from the one below, so you are given a head start and don’t need to even try to find one where your spirit has shown that one doesn’t exist. What’s left is what “on the ground” points to, in my experience the starting point is below the navel, equivalent to the lower dantian in Daoism.

How would you describe true yin (note - this is not a yes/no question )

Another question, does the concept of true yang within yin (and true yin within yang) have anything to do with Yang Shen?

I was re-reading JAJ’s article on the three dantians and I read this - Of particular interest to Daoist alchemists is the opening of the center of the Upper Dantian, called the "Crystal Room," as this is where psychic perceptions and intuitive awareness take place. Higher communications, experiences of intense bliss, and perceptions that transcend time and space are associated with the Upper Dantian. Is it reasonable to think that there are different perspectives and value given on what we are considering to be YinShen? Or is JAJ perhaps just coming from a TCM/medical Qigong perspective? Reading further - Medical Chi Kung practitioners strive to gather and balance Yin and Yang energy within the Upper Dantian. My questions seem to be more in line with the answers from Medical Chi Kung.

Why is YangShen not safe?

Is yinshen maybe then associated with the intuitive images of TCM, though not sought after in Neidan?

Yes, I can see the sense of a yang spirit, but I reckon a yin spirit must be developed to a high degree also to bring it to consciousness, but of course that’s just my thinking.

A couple of questions - Is it possible that yangshen is incomplete without yinshen, just as yang is incomplete without yin? So that both have to be developed? If so, would it be reasonable to say that this yangshen/yinshen ‘body’ needs to be brought to consciousness?

I find this post ‘real’, acknowledging a feeling of lack and longing and seeking wholeness rather than spiritual realisation. I read somewhere a while ago a yogi will ask another yogi ‘Do you have prana’, by which I understand something more going on than just a mental realisation. Daoism talks about Jing qi and shen, more than just a spiritual realisation, something that fills the subtle channels and dantians.

I see it as the 3 channels, the central is equivalent to the True Nature, and it ‘nourishes’ the two side channels which are mental and emotional, at least to the extent that they are clear. I’m not personally drawn to the Vedantic explanation, I feel it leaves something visceral undone.

From the Neiye, clean/clear the heart/mind, and the numinous spirit will come. Exactly Agreed, like the full cup if the mind is full it has no room for the True Nature to fill it further.

Does this include the recent controls and regulations limiting covid conspiracy theories on social media?

Same here I do personally believe there is a fundamental truth that is discoverable. Same, so I wouldn’t normally speculate, my path either leads to these sort of outcomes or not, I will wait and see. I’m more inclined to the notion that there is only a higher self, but I don’t completely discount the possibility of there being an external power. I don’t really know what you mean by it reifies you. For me certain thoughts are worth dwelling on, but mainly the ones that come from my subconscious guidance. The main point I was trying to make with the Vijnanamaya Kosha perspective was to say that you are not your intellect, you are deeper or subtler or more eternal than that, which leads to the thought why would you be proud of a layer that is not intrinsically you? It was just an idea I had, if you prefer a daoist approach hopefully someone else might suggest a specifically daoist method.

I believe it’s from Vedanta, just look up the 5 sheaths/Koshas from some reputable sites. It’s one way of looking at things, there must be others, but those Indians know a bit I reckon

Well I think you’re right about it being a hindrance or obstacle, how to go about discarding it is probably quite a complex endeavour if you want to do it properly. Reading about the Vijnanamaya Kosha (Intellect/Intuition sheath) relates directly to ego, that might give you somewhere to start.

So a lot of positive attainments, but you’re unhappy with your continuing egoic ideation of these attainments?

How are you defining spiritual growth?

Please do Lucid dreaming really works against the concept of subconscious messages being brought in through dreams which can then be unpacked. If the conscious mind is present during a dream, then all the conscious mind’s foibles will also be present, as you seem to have experienced with pursuing base desires. I guess I’d ask was there any reason lucid dreaming might have started, and try to reverse it. This is the more useful stuff, feeling attacked is a legitimate psychological issue that can be worked with in dreamwork. Losing your voice sounds like a lack of agency derived from a lack of mental clarity.

‘Mind emptying’ as an initial method sells ourselves short IMO, if there is psychological damage then there needs to be psychological healing before anything ‘spiritual’ can occur. Emotional health should be part of the spiritual journey, any method that ignores psychological health should only be for already perfect people. I chose to work with my dreams as my method for returning to psychological health, and I can highly recommend this approach, emotional reintegration is one of the main purposes of dreams, but I have found over time that the emotional health I have gained from dreamwork underpins the continuing development of a healthy subtle energy body.

I noticed the buffalo in the room but was reluctant to mention it

i don’t know if you’re referring to me as Vaccine Proud, but if so it’s certainly not what I think of myself. Personally I’d prefer to not have the vaccine, we had another death here in Australia from the AZ vaccine, it’s just that my fear of COVID outweighs my fear of the vaccine. I have a doctor friend, I’m thinking of asking her if an ivermectin prescription is possible. What I am against is conspiracy theory around the vaccine and government intentions, as well as the partial repeating of quotes that read differently when presented more fully.