Oneironaut

How is this possible and where did he learn how to do this? Here is the video. http://qigongcentral.net/japanese-qigongkikou-doctor-kanzawa-amazing/ I've seen other videos where the guy puts American Bisons and even tigers to sleep but I cannot find them.

I'm aware that the Buddha spoke against seeking things that are seemingly metaphysical in nature as they were considered to be a part of the world. It is said that most of the actual teachings of the Buddha have been lost and that the Theravadin teachings are closest to the original. I don't plan on abandoning my Theravadin background but at the same time I find that a good portion of the Theravadin teachings tend to be so strict that in order to put them to practice you may possibly need to be isolated from the modern world. Modern times are entirely different from the time of the Buddha and that's one major reason why someone living in todays world may have somewhat of a different version of the middle path as compared to Gautama Buddha. I don't think that the Buddha foresaw many of the changes and possible challenges that were to come for future generations. My question is are there any Theravadins here which find Taoism to be compatible?

How simple can the inner smile practice be made & how long should the meditation be? I was looking through the internet and I found this source as well as this one online: I personally think that keeping things simple can also make it more effective in the long run. Would any of the more experienced folks in here recommend the links I provided above to a complete beginner like myself?

From his healing dao website it states that fundamentals 3 & 4 can be done before fundamentals 1 & 2. In that case I'm assuming they can also be done in conjunction with fundamentals 1 (healing sounds and inner smile). Can anyone here familiar with the material in fundamentals 3 & 4 link me to simplified (but effective) and complete online sources of the information taught in those? I don't really have time to go through hours of hours of the audio and DVD's just yet & it'll probably be another year before I can attend his classes in person to receive direct transmission. Thanks.

I wanted to know if there are any good and effective sources online that boils down and simplifies the core teachings. At the moment I cannot listen to hours worth of audio but I would like to get to the practices straight away.

So if anyone has any sources where I can learn the core and most important information that will help me out once I'm able to reach those parts of the fundamentals I would greatly appreciate it.

I been looking through the Healing Tao USA website which is owned by Michael Winn and there are many things on there which catch my interest. I'm thinking of purchasing his fundamentals 1-4 but before diving in I want to be certain that this person is the real deal and not some typical new age turkey who's ready to run off with my hard earned cash. Does anyone here have any first hand experience with Michael Winn, his products and retreats? Do the end results of following his Taoist methods work as advertised? Thanks.

I've been doing some research in the ancient art of seiki jutsu which is the indigenous energy art of Japan and has it's roots in shintoism. It's been practiced long before reiki made it's way to Japan and was used by the Samurai. Seiki is referred to as strengthened and activated chi and since it is strongly felt it is considered to be non subtle energy. To quote another source: Now here's where things begin to get a little bit interesting. If you search seiki jutsu nearly all of the search engine results pages point to the exact same source. It's IMPOSSIBLE to not bump into Bradford Keeney's website (beautiful website by the way) or his YouTube videos promoting this art. Now on his website he claims to be the ONLY successor to this art as the lineage was passed down to him by the late Ikuko Osumi sensei. I found out from another source that the claim of him being the only successor of this art is false. If I'm not mistaking somewhere in his stupid book he also makes the claim that others (who obviously are not him) who say they practice seiki jutsu are really just doing acupuncture or variations of Chinese medicine or Qigong and not true seiki jutsu. Again, I cannot recall if it's from the book or not but if I decide to dig through that monstrosity I will quote the exact words and page number on here. When I was first introduced to meditation, qigong, reiki and yoga I was warned to look out for teachers or gurus who charge ridiculously large amounts of money. Well guess what? If you look through Bradford Keeneys website under the mentoring section lo and behold. I'll keep that one a surprise for the adventurous of you. That information can be found in the previously posted link. Lastly, the guy must of hired an excellent reputation management firm but I guess even then certain things can slip through the cracks. I'm not trying to trash the guys reputation here for absolutely no reason but I did have a little bit of a conversation with him through email. Once I called him out on the money issue and pointed out the fact that a trip to Japan to learn seiki jutsu (without being watered down with the bushmen stuff which I have 0 interest in) would be much cheaper then he stopped responding. I've already made up my mind about this guy but would also like to hear what others in this forum think.

Simplicity is something Michael uses to sell his products but I'm personally finding the audios and DVD's to be disorganized, very long and maybe a little too much to throw at the newcomers. There is otherwise lots of good material to be had. The issue is that it's too long and there is too much of it.

You're right. It's beyond outrageous.

Are there any techniques that can be used to improve your visualizations without having to get into hypnosis or creative visualization? That book (the one linked to above) seems to have many great promises but I want to be as exclusive to Taoist practices as possible in order to avoid being scattered. I mean... is it even possible to get so good at visualization that one can create a full blown sensory experience (in all 5 senses) through their imagination alone? And one that rivals reality at that?

If only I knew who in Japan is legitmitately knowledgeable in seiki jutsu, their location, if the person(s) is reputable and willing to teach it to me then I'd be more than happy to.

I have yet to go through ALL the material. It's a helluva lot. As of yet I haven't heard Michael say as to why it is done in that specific order.

In the material we are taught the following order: The lung sound The kidney sound The heart sound The liver sound The spleen/pancrease sound The Triple Warmer

Yes he actually does show a seated version. But even those contain movement. He later says that the sounds can be done while driving or laying down. In that case I guess it can be done from a full lotus position involving visualizations and no movements. For now I just want to keep things simple and to be honest the movements, whether seated or standing, just do not resonate with me.

Is outer QiGong a Taoist version of physical yoga? I ask because I used to be a boxer and noticed that I was lightning fast until I stopped and got into bodybuilding/powerlifting for a good 5 years. While I gained very good strength and muscle mass I don't think it was worth the trade off to the physical attributes I had earlier. I'm getting back into the martial arts (boxing, kyokushin karate and judo) and would like to lose the added (mostly unnecessary) muscle mass, stiffness, bad muscle coordination and sluggishness that something as unnatural as weight lifting may bring. I'm getting back into calisthenics and thinking of looking into the Feldenkrais system to regain bodily and somatic awareness but desperately need my speed, reflexes and flexibility back. Is outer QiGong on par with yoga/pliates on helping me to tackle this issue? If so where can I learn more about it? If not, are there people here experienced in yoga/pilates who can show me how I can "normalize" my body again by reversing the effects of weight lifting and perhaps improving on my natural physical capabilities?

Thanks for the replies everyone. Just one more question. What is the length of time one should practice both the 6 healing sounds and inner smile for everyday?

Thank you guys so much for your responses. I've done some Google searches and it seems like the Taoist versions of these practices do exist but are mostly obscure. Lucid dreaming, yoga nidra and Tibetan dream yoga on the other hand are more easily accessible for some reason and I would be more than happy to indulge myself in the latter two. I'm just a little bit weary of mixing different systems togethor. I've watched an interview with Michael Winn and he seems to suggest that the Taoist versions of the practices are much more effortless and extremely effective. I've found some information on Shui Gong but I do not know on how to further pursue the practice. I'm also interested in it as it suggests learning telepathy (something else I'm interested in) can be learned. Does anyone have any more information on this and how I can pursue learning the skill of taoist dream yoga and yoga nidra from teachers who are legit and qualified?

Innersoundqiqong, thank you very much for your very informative response. You seem to have many many years of experiences in taoist practices. May I ask how long you have been practicing for? Gerard, you are very right in your response. I have an addiction to books and it's mostly where I learn many things from. Books should probably be more supplemental and not primary sources of learning material. I should get into the habit of finding teachers in person. Do you have any suggestions?

I have been lurking the forums for a while and have gained an ever increasing fascination with the tao. I am very grateful to have found this community and look forward to immersing myself with the teachings and obtaining a much greater understanding and relationship with this mysterious universe.