blue eyed snake

I am so glad your condition changed and you can now enjoy it. And yes, I agree with that, (although only up to a point)

yes, there are stories of incorruptible catholic saints, their bodies dd not decay after death like thukdam. some of them sound legit, others less so

hmmm...pain, especially pain in the extremities is sort of the 'easiest' to deal with in the range of illness-related things. Shortlived but big pain is 'easier' then chronic, no end in sight sorts of pain. Precisely because you know it will end. That toothache is much better to endure when you know you'll be at the dentist tomorrow. meditation and the like can be of enormous help when dealing with pain and a dysfunctional body, without it I would not be sitting and typing here. But there are things that can happen in bodies that, imho, are not open to be diminished much by the methods you are talking of.

yes, and this is what many chronically ill people like Jeff Foster experience on a daily base, day after day, week after week, year after dreary year. The body gets sensitized to light and sound, a soft voice is perceived as a knife in the brain, as is soft light. So you lay still in a darkened room with hardly any visitors. That's the deprivation part. The gut does not want to function anymore thus apart from pain starvation sets in, systemic inflammation ruins the rest, it's not rare to have bouts of paralysis come. That is the illness part As doctors in general do not believe your illness has an organic base you are left to your own devices. You get told that it's all in your head, that it's psychosomatic, that you should get out of bed and exercise. Not only doctors do that, its most of your surroundings. That's the brainwashing. Many of these patients start to wonder whether they really ' make it all up'. They are gaslighted into believing they are not ill.

some years ago I read the book from P. van Lommel, a cardiologist who systematically asked people who survived cardiac arrest whether something happened during the time they were out. When I remember well there was much overlap between the stories. there's a publication in the Lancet and a book. https://pimvanlommel.nl/en/

what a nice thread this is, also, it's become very clear to me why Sifu told me not to analyze anything that happened. concerning illness and desert, sometime ago I found this: sorry to say I do no have a link for it but think much of it is to be found here. https://fiveinvitations.com/portals-not-problem-solvers/ whatever the relation between the reincarnated angel and the ape, the body is there and its needs will scream louder when the situation becomes dire. When the needs cannot be met, as is the case for Jeff Foster your (smug) feeling of having ' accomplished something' will either become much smaller or vanish. Partly because a sick body spouts all kinds of unwanted chemicals that induce fear. maybe, the road, the insights, the realization is easy as long as the body is comparatively healthy.

yeah, of course and I get that. I had a near death experience as a teen, shortly after the Tibetan book of the dead somehow ended up in my hands. It was beyond me but also there was a yearning to the content so to speak. I wont get much older or wiser so therefore I want to see what happens now, that's the reason I want to read that specific book and not something else. After that, who knows. Th Egyptian book of the dead is a nice book- suggestion, may look into that. Good your ex did not put up with it, whoever talks at the final parting, it should be done with the emotions of the attending loved ones in mind. It's an important moment in time and I am sorry for that lady as her memory of the funeral will always be mingled with (righteous) anger at that priest.

I've become a slow reader in old age so it'll take time to get to the next book, these look interesting though, thank you.

the real interest, hm, lemme see I just want to reread something I read in my younger years, totally not understanding what I read but apparently intrigued. Just a bit of intellectual curiosity feel free to post titles of some books here, answering the request of NickC .

thankyou, that looks like its the version I need, will buy

I've read it even longer ago and concluded I needed to be a bit older and wiser. So now's the time.

Thinking on this I would prefer a translation that keeps closer to the original with a lot of dreary annotations above an easier to read but more distorted version.

yes coffee please, nothing beats coffee in the morning, with a bit of sugar please, thanks dear, that's just lovely. You're so full of questions and full of knowledge too I think. All those books you've read, they do give the answers you're looking for but strangely, you cannot become aware of the answers when only reading and analyzing. But however they appear they will keep on appearing, those synchronistic mysteries as you call them. Many hints have been given already and I heard your crying. The answer lies within yourself and it seems to me you know the answer as you posted it. Young mothers tend to be very aware of their baby, often to the exclusion of everything else which can give you a very unwanted feeling visiting with them. That exclusion thing is a characteristic of young moms I think. I communicate with you using a computer, it works beautifully, not only can I talk to you somewhere in a country far away, but at the same time, in another tab, I can talk to someone else in another forum about a completely different topic. That's magic don't you think? to me it is as I have only a very vague understanding how it works. Same with synchronicity, my understanding of it, if any, is only vague, but somehow it works. earlier in this thread @dwai had a nice post about it. After the coffee I always like tea and while drinking it thought of a guy I once met who sung the virtue of mindfulness, he told me he normally was not aware of his butt touching the chair, not to mention his feet. That mindfulness helped him to feel his body. I was baffled by his story as I could not relate to continuously being unaware of your physical body. I suppose when all your awareness is packed into the head it is sort of trapped there. and that in turn reminded me of the well-known zen story about a cup of tea. https://tomdas.com/2017/09/06/zen-story-a-cup-of-tea/

the snake looked into the book but although she agreed with the insights of the cat she found both versions of the book a bit boring, she dozed of and dreamed of a butterfly, trying to catch it she woke up with a start and realized she was both snake and butterfly.

Turning the talking stick in her hands Blue eyed snake said: We will not tolerate the killing of the living woods on the outskirts of Daobumia. As I am fucking scared of violence in all my appearances, we’ll need to prevent it. I do not know the lay of the lands here but my idea would be to sabotage the roads leading to the forest. First the road leading to the hotel to prevent the loggers to get free beer, then the road leading to the forest itself. Hopefully there are bridges in those roads, that would make thinks easier. Nungali’s idea is good but that little cart will not impress our opponents, besides, that very old and venerable wizard sitting on it will want to keep using it. Although I like his taste in hats, compared to him I am just a babywizard that left training due to things outside the scope of this story. His knowledge and powers may come in useful so we should take care not to anger him. while obstructing the loggers the idea of the former speaker can be executed and hopefully this will keep our woods safe. "If it is indeed illegal in the laws of this beautiful country, wherever we may be, all we need is a interim injunction, or whatever you call it here: make use of the power of the state of the people, pay some lousy advocate and we can sit here and chill evermore. No claustrophobical violence needed, if you can play the state on its own terms."

looks like it's getting more crazy , as I said, what people are doing for kicks

I would like to add @manitou here, but maybe that is unnecessary.

oxen, pitbulls and rhinoceros. who will tame them, that's the question, it looks like Bindi has met the challenge, now for the long struggle to tame the beast and ride it home. 6. Riding the Bull HomeMounting the Ox, slowlyI return homeward.The voice of my flute intonesthrough the evening.Measuring with hand-beatsthe pulsating harmony,I direct the endless rhythm.Whoever hears this melodywill join me.

Blue eyed snake looked around, the companions were well fed and watered, the barrel of honey-mead had been put to good use too. Everybody looked happy and satisfied. Small clumps of people were softly talking to each other, or snoring. She saw some loners as well, they had not yet found their place in the troupe. She looked at the paper she’d wanted to use to fold cranes, but back in Drew’s village she had seen it was a map after all. But not one she could read in this lifetime. Musing on this she thought, we need maps, but the last part of the road we’re mapless, we will be wandering through our own uncharted lands. Seeing a crane flying, her thoughts had gone back to Soaring Crane, he was the one that had welcomed her as she first entered Daobumia as a young cartoonish snake with a goofy smile. Ah, the naivety she had at that time. Crane and Marblehead had put her at ease, Marble, we stil miss him, all of us I think. Between the followers of several paths and the searching youngsters he was always the one with an enormously big, warm, caring heart and a purely philosophical take on the old Chinese wisdom. Chapter by chapter going through the DaoDeChing and ChuangTzu, I learned from that experience … ah… memories. It would have clicked nicely with that young Questionmark. They would have happily analyzed things together, they may well be carved from the same block. I wonder what she would make from the story of the butterfly. Listening to the stories around her she heard someone talking about about being impaled on a rhinoceros. I had somehow expected we would find oxen along the way, those of the hard to catch sort. Well, maybe some people find a wild rhinoceros instead of oxen, one never knows…. These would be even harder to tame though... So many thoughts, I know what is the matter with me she muttered, I need smoke. She poked the fire a bit, drew out a long pipe and a pouch from her cloak, aah there’s still a bit of Old Toby, yes, this is a good moment. Contentedly smoking her pipe she fell into a reverie about the preciousness of comradeship. I really never felt at home anywhere she thought, but since I am back in Daobumia after my long absence, I do feel at home.

Thanks for updating us, it scares me to think of those bushfires. Glad you and and your city came through unscathed but my heart hurts from thinking of the people that lost their homes to the fire.

that's right, and even without taking psychedelics life can hand out a hand of cards that will choke you and make you regret all the things you did not do, all the chances you let pass. I am sorry, things like that hurt, seeing someone you like or love ending in a bottomless pit, acting weird and then weirder is very hurtful. I know that, I've been close with persons who ended up like that. I've even felt responsible ( which I wasn't) Life in a body is full of dangers. But life in a body is beautiful too, I treasure the memories of that year I took the tiny mushrooms. Have been lucky with the people around me who took such good care of me. That's all around 40 years ago. Since that time that same bodymind has produced much more weirdness then the bit of mushrooms in that long lost time. And come to think of it, there have been strange things happening to me before that year as well. There can be many reasons for falling in psychotic episodes, as far as I am aware science has not yet fiddled out the hows and whys. But it's clear some people are vulnerable. At the moment an adopted cousin from me has become psychotic, there are no psychedelics involved. Mom and grandmom ( my sister) are having a hard time with it. But it's always been clear there was something 'not right' with that boy. My sister turned to me for advice. As you write this young man has experimented with several kinds of drugs, probably mixing them. That is very different from the careful use of it as part of a spiritual path. But that does not make your pain and fear less. I do not advise anyone to use psychedelics, but when the question comes I do have some advice on the way to go. You cannot stop people from living and getting experiences, whether that's taking psychedelics, hang-gliding, chanting in a chorus, meditating or bungee-jumping. They will get those experiences regardless of your fear. That is part from being human, to explore new things, what for you sounds like danger, may well be just exiting or beautiful for someone else. I've done things and live to enjoy the memories. My weirdest experiences ever have come from quietly meditating, would you say I should stop meditating? 't was much weirder then the effect from psychedelics and I am pretty sure a psychologist would dub it psychosis or some such term. You can't stop people from living and taking a bit of mushroom once in a while is much less dangerous then several other 'normal' things. Alcohol is very dangerous, look up how many deaths yearly are the result of alcohol-consumption. Think car-accidents, broken families, traumatized women and children due to drunk and aggressive fathers. ( also mothers but they tend to produce less damage by aggressiveness) Add to that illnesses of the liver and Korsakov syndrome. It's not a nice picture. And it can ruin the mind too. My brother was an alcoholic and has been in psych wards many times. Until he could not live further and ended it. Alcohol is decidedly not innocent, will I tell people they have to stop drinking, nope. Will I warn people and help them when they start to drink too much, yes of course. And I like a small beaker of meade myself.

well, some people ingest everything for kicks. with dubious outcomes

Just stumbled on this topic, sincerely hope you recovered well.

When you see plants that can aid the mind to experiences as part of spiritual growth, as a gift from mother earth. Then to me it sounds like we need to use them wisely. That wisdom has become a rarity and looking back, gratefulness is felt toward the guy that introduced me to psychedelics. Some things have changed in me which may have made other, later experiences easier to 'reach'. many use of it is purely recreational, done for the kick or whatever. Also used as a escape from your daily struggle, that can easily lead to abuse of the stuff. Although it's not addictive in and of itself, overuse is not recommended. I will not use psychedelics anymore because I am aware of the fragility of the current bodymind. I never took much as this body has always been overly sensitive to everything. But how many people have that awareness of their own bodymind? so imho some sort of guidance is needed. and yes, I've seen the horrids of misuse, overuse, bad trips whatever you call it. In those cases the true guidance one should follow was never heeded. Quite apart from all these things, I am reluctant to sing it's praise to a random person on the internet, one who I don't know, might be young and vulnerable.

oh wow so much yes on this