Infolad1

Cool!! Red Pine's translation is also excellent. Thomas Cleary's translation of "The Secret of the Golden Flower" is also required reading, and more importantly, required for effective practice. The Secret of the Golden Flower Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Secret-Golden-Flower-Thomas-Cleary-ebook/dp/B0BQYL1ZSB/ref=sr_1_2?crid=OWU1IVIXWNIQ&keywords=secret+of+the+golden+flower&qid=1673398625&qu=eyJxc2MiOiIzLjIzIiwicXNhIjoiMi40NSIsInFzcCI6IjIuNTkifQ%3D%3D&s=books&sprefix=secret+of+the+%2Cstripbooks%2C135&sr=1-2 All of them attempt to help the practitioner grasp the ungraspable. It MUST be directly experienced. Directly realized. This is the only truth. Everything else is illusion and delusion. Enjoy!! Cheers!!

Hi, yugenphoenix, Exactly!! As a teacher, I'm always having to repackage things. The problem nowadays is that people are so busy and preoccupied, they don't have the time, or energy to cultivate (that's intentional!) I can barely get my Tai Chi Quan students to stand for 15 minutes total a week, at home, let alone twice a day! But as you said, it IS all good. Every One in their own time. It may take me a few years, but I will finish this book list. I'm in the US. I live in Philadelphia, PA. Tom Campbell is OUTSTANDING!! I advise folks that are ready to get his new program, with his custom binaural beats: Exploring Consciousness and the Larger Reality with Thomas Campbell https://mysoundwise.com/soundcasts/1639695455662s In the early 1970s, Campbell, along with Dennis Mennerich, an electrical engineer, collaborated with Robert A. Monroe to scientifically study the out-of-body experience (OOBE). (Note: As Tom Campbell himself has noted, the term OBE is inaccurate. You project your consciousness to points other than your body. The truth is that we're never IN the body. The body, brain, etc. are Virtual, aka Samsara, Maya, etc., as we've been told for 1000s of years). This became known as the Hemi-Sync System and is the foundational tech of the Monroe Institute. The Monroe Institute, along with Ingo Swann, Hal Puthoff, and Russell Targ, taught members of the Government's Stargate program how to remote view, as detailed in the excellent "Remote Viewers": Remote Viewers: The Secret History of America's Psychic Spies Kindle Edition by Jim Schnabel https://www.amazon.com/Remote-Viewers-History-Americas-Psychic-ebook/dp/B004JN1CSS/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1673393219&sr=1-1 The CIA had an analyst research the system. His findings became the report that is known as “Analysis and Assessment of The Gateway Process”. Here's a two-part Vice series about it. Be sure to download the report from the second article link below. that has the missing page 25 in it. Part1 - How to Escape the Confines of Time and Space According to the CIA https://www.vice.com/en/article/7k9qag/how-to-escape-the-confines-of-time-and-space-according-to-the-cia Part2 - Found: Page 25 of the CIA’s Gateway Report on Astral Projection https://www.vice.com/en/article/v7e4g3/found-page-25-of-the-cias-gateway-report-on-astral-projection His analysis was based on the science of Itzhak Bentov. The following is from Wikipedia: "Itzhak "Ben" Bentov (also Ben-Tov; Hebrew: יצחק בנטוב; August 9, 1923 – May 25, 1979) was an Israeli American scientist, inventor, mystic and author. His many inventions, including the steerable cardiac catheter, helped pioneer the biomedical engineering industry. He was also an early proponent of what has come to be referred to as consciousness studies and authored several books on the subject. Bentov was killed in the crash of American Airlines Flight 191 shortly after takeoff from Chicago O'Hare Airport in 1979, which remains the worst non-terrorism-related aviation disaster to have taken place on US soil." His most famous book: Stalking the Wild Pendulum: On the Mechanics of Consciousness by Itzhak Bentov https://www.amazon.com/Stalking-Wild-Pendulum-Mechanics-Consciousness/dp/0892812028/ref=sr_1_3?crid=3FITY9U374GKX&keywords=itzhak+bentov&qid=1673392190&s=books&sprefix=itzhak%2Cstripbooks%2C111&sr=1-3 Here's an Interview with Bentov that's on YouTube: Itzhak Bentov ~ From Atom To Cosmos So in summary, Parallel Dimensions, Non-Human Entities, Time Travel, and the esoteric practices and texts of Taoism, Buddhism, Yoga, etc. were all confirmed as having actual "reality" and scientific validity back in the 80s. Current catchphrases and movements like "Disclosure" and "Ascension" are late to the party. The above will be enough for folks to work with, for now. Thanks again for the kind words. Cheers!!

Thanks, Joolian! There are various breathing methods. Wim Hof's is an amalgamation of Bhastrika Breathing, Maha Bhanda, and Kumbhaka (breath holds aka static apnea amongst freedivers). Nothing new under the Sun. Cheers!

Hi, Mig, I've been both reading and practicing these processes for over 20 years. I've been fortunate to have learned Fitness, Qigong, Neigong, Iron Body, Meditation, Neidan, Tai Chi Quan, Theurgy, Anti-Aging Nutrition, and various Esoterica from a Western Scientific paradigm. I'm also a writer, startup founder, commercial Illustrator, and world builder. So I have a pretty extensive skillset, ergo my Handle. It's also why It's been three years since I last posted. Getting a lot of work done, in the middle of surviving the Zombie Apocalypse.Cheers!

Buy the book. As someone who both practices and teaches Qigong, Neigong, Iron Body, Neidan, Tai Chi Quan, Theurgy, and Meditation from various schools, and has done so for 20 years, I can say that Chungtao's book is one of the best practical Neidan books for Westerners out there. He shows you how to do the work. Unfortunately, most people don't want to do the work. The work involves a LOT of standing postures, a LOT of correct meditating (diaphragmatic breathing), learning and doing Tai Chi Quan, developing a disciplined mind, ridding your spirit of animal emotions (Fear, greed, lust, anger, sadness, etc.), becoming a loving person, and accumulating merit by helping, and taking care of, others in need, especially if you don't like them. 95% of people won't do this. This has been the way for thousands of years. Most students won't do 15 minutes, let alone 2 to 4 hours of meditating and Tai Chi Quan. Every day. Remember folks, porn is only a click away. So if you want to sincerely do the work, transcend this world, get rid of all emotions except peace and joy in moderation, then yes, get Chungtao Ho's book. Most folks doing Neidan want superpowers like Goku, Naruto, or Baruto. Actual, literal transcendence is not what they want. Most people still like eating, sleeping, having sex, etc. They've got jobs, friends, kids, spouses, family, hobbies, etc. that they're attached to. People need to be really clear about what they're looking to do. Because once you start this process up, there is no stopping it. Cheers!

And oh yeah. Stay away from Chia, until you have a solid enough foundation that you can filter out most of what he's saying and find things that might be of interest to you. He tends to make things way too complicated. Cheers!

Hi, Ben, Get this book: White Moon on the Mountain Peak: The Alchemical Firing Process of Nei Dan (Daoist Nei Gong) 1st Edition https://www.amazon.com/White-Moon-Mountain-Peak-Alchemical/dp/1848192568/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1544041111&sr=1-1&keywords=white+moon+on+the+mountain+peak Description Explaining the process and energetics of Daoist internal alchemy, the author describes in detail the practice of Nei Dan, the alchemical firing practice of Daoism that has until very recently been a closely guarded secret. Drawing together a huge amount of esoteric material on the hidden aspects of Daoist practice, he presents theory and practice coherently for western practitioners. He offers his own experiences of each stage of attainment, describing the tangible results that should appear, and provides guidance on the practicalities and potential pitfalls of alchemical training. _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ With a few differences, Damo's method is very similar to the one I use. It's very safe, as long as you don't try to jump ahead. This is the most concise and to the point book on the actual practice of neidan in the English language. Period. Eva Wong, Thomas Cleary, Fabrizio Pergadio, Isabelle Robinet, and Richard Bertschinger's books are to be gotten, read, and comprehended, this is true. But Damo's book is all about application and results. And he actually tells you where he's at in his practice and makes clear that the more advanced practices are speculation on his part, at this point. This type of honesty about his current level is truly a breath of fresh air and adds to his legitimacy in my eye. Ego inflation is a common side effect with these practices (along with sexual deviancy) and something to stay ever mindful of so that you avoid it. Due to this book and his excellent website http://lotusneigong.com/ I'll be purchasing his other books. I've been doing neidan for 10 years now, internal arts in general for 20. Damo knows his stuff. Welcome to the forum. Cheers!

Hi Everyone!! Happy Gregorian Calendar New Year!! My resolution is to finally get this booklist done this year. I'll start putting up new listings on Friday. Cheers!

LOOVVEE "Fringe"! Great characters, and concepts. And as a professional creative (comic book artist/writer/illustrator), I'll be the first to say that truth can truly be stranger than fiction. Cheers!

Paul Dong did a book about this: China's Super Psychics Paperback – October 14, 1997 Description "According to Paul Dong, the Chinese health discipline chi gong generates psychic abilities--which may explain China's numerous psychics and why, since 1982, the Chinese government has been studying and supporting the work of psychics for medical and military purposes. Dong is the author of Chi Gong: The Ancient Chinese Way to Health. 25 photos." Another book of his that connects to this subject is the following: Empty Force: The Power of Chi for Self-Defense and Energy Healing Paperback – January 19, 2006 Description "Ling Kong Jing, the "Empty Force," is the highest martial arts skill in China. This extraordinary technique harnesses the power of chi, the body's vital energy, enabling masters of the art to defend themselves against opponents without making physical contact. The book takes readers step by step from theory to the actual practice used to generate Empty Force and shows how to use its remarkable power for healing as well as self-defense." Comments: Lots of fun stories. But the real benefit of this book is in it's teaching new people the basics of standing postures, which is the secret sauce behind a lot of these abilities. Once it's understood that certain tissues of the body (fascia) have semiconductive properties, and I theorize, room temperature superconductive properties, given certain conditions, and that the bones have both piezoelectrical, and pyroelectrical properties, then a number of so-called "magickal" abilities can be explained by current scientific understanding. Cheers!

Well said thelerner. Regarding the OP, the most comprehensive book on the subject is Jim Schnabel's book: Remote Viewers: The Secret History of America's Psychic Spies Kindle Edition Description "Remote Viewers is a tale of the Pentagon's attempts to develop the perfect tool for espionage: psychic spies. These psychic spies, or "remote viewers," were able to infiltrate any target, elude any form of security, and never risk scratch. For twenty years, the government selected civilian and military personnel for psychic ability, trained them, and put them to work, full-time, at taxpayers' expense, against real intelligence targets. The results were so astonishing that the program soon involved more than a dozen separate agencies, including the CIA, the Defense Intelligence Agency, the National Security Council, the FBI, the National Security Agency, the Secret Service, the Navy, the Army, the Air Force, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Drug Enforcement Agency, the US Customs Service, the US Special Forces Command, and at least one Pentagon drug-interaction task force. Most of this material is still officially classified. After three years of research, with access to numerous sources in the intelligence community--including the remote viewers themselves--science writer Jim Schnabel reveals the secret details of the strangest chapter in the history of espionage." Comments: I highly recommend the book, for folks who want an unvarnished history of the program. He gives a complete picture of all the players, warts, and all. Actual cultivators will recognize certain incidents described In the book. In regards to this thread, I refer folks to the 6th Hexagram, Conflict. This is from the Wilhelm / Baynes translation. They get some things wrong, but the majority of what they've written is on the money, from my personal experience I've put certain phrases In bold, for added emphasis: 6. Sung / Conflict above CH'IEN THE CREATIVE, HEAVEN below K'AN THE ABYSMAL, WATER The upper trigram, whose image is heaven, has an upward movement; the lower trigram, water, in accordance with its nature tends downward. Thus the two halves move away from each other, giving rise to the idea of conflict. The attribute of the Creative is strength, that of the Abysmal is danger, guile. Where cunning has force before it, there is conflict. A third indication of conflict, in terms of character, is presented by the combination of deep cunning within and fixed determination outwardly. A person of this character will certainly be quarrelsome. THE JUDGMENT CONFLICT. You are sincere And are being obstructed. A cautious halt halfway brings good fortune. Going through to the end brings misfortune. It furthers one to see the great man. It does not further one to cross the great water. Conflict develops when one feels himself to be in the right and runs into opposition. If one is not convinced of being in the right, opposition leads to craftiness or high-handed encroachment but not to open conflict. If a man is entangled in a conflict, his only salvation lies in being so clear-headed and inwardly strong that he is always ready to come to terms by meeting the opponent halfway. To carry one the conflict to the bitter end has evil effects even when one is the right, because the enmity is then perpetuated. It is important to see the great man, that is, an impartial man whose authority is great enough to terminate the conflict amicably or assure a just decision. In times of strife, crossing the great water is to be avoided, that is, dangerous enterprises are not to be begun, because in order to be successful they require concerted unity of focus. Conflict within weakens the power to conquer danger without. THE IMAGE Heaven and water go their opposite ways: The image of CONFLICT. Thus in all his transactions the superior man Carefully considers the beginning. The image indicates that the causes of conflict are latent in the opposing tendencies of the two trigrams. Once these opposing tendencies appear, conflict is inevitable. To avoid it, therefore, everything must be taken carefully into consideration in the very beginning. If rights and duties are exactly defined, or if, in a group, the spiritual trends of the individuals harmonize, the cause of conflict is removed in advance. THE LINES Six at the beginning means: If one does not perpetuate the affair, There is a little gossip. In the end, good fortune comes. While a conflict is in the incipient stage, the best thing To do is to drop the issue. Especially when the adversary is stronger, it is not advisable to risk pushing the conflict to a decision. It may come to a slight dispute, but in the end, all goes well. Nine in the second place means: One cannot engage in conflict; One returns home, gives way. The people of his town, Three hundred households, Remain free of guilt. In a struggle with an enemy of superior strength, retreat is no disgrace. Timely withdrawal prevents bad consequences. If out of a false sense of honor, a man allowed himself to be tempted into an unequal conflict, he would be drawing down disaster upon himself. In such a case a wise and conciliatory attitude benefits the whole community, which will then not be drawn into the conflict. Six in the third place means: To nourish oneself on ancient virtue induces perseverance. Danger. In the end, good fortune comes. If by chance you are in the service of a king, Seek not works. This is a warning of the danger that goes with an expansive disposition. Only that which has been honestly acquired through merit remains a permanent possession. It can happen that such a possession may be contested, but since it is really one's own, one cannot be robbed of it. Whatever a man possesses through the strength of his own nature cannot be lost. If one enters the service of a superior, one can avoid conflict only by not seeking works for the sake of prestige. It is enough if the work is done: let the honor go to the other. Nine in the fourth place means: One cannot engage in conflict. One turns back and submits to fate, Changes one's attitude, And finds peace in perseverance. Good fortune. This refers to a person whose inner attitude at first lacks peace. He does not feel content with his situation and would like to improve it through conflict. In contrast tot the situation of the nine in the second place, he is dealing with a weaker opponent and might therefore succeed. But he cannot carry on the fight, because, since right is not on his side, he cannot justify the conflict to his conscience. Therefore he turns back and accepts his fate. He changes his mind and finds lasting peace in being at one with eternal law. This brings good fortune. Nine in the fifth place means: To contend before him Brings supreme good fortune. This refers to an arbiter in a conflict who is powerful and just, and strong enough to lend weight to the right side. A dispute can be turned over to him with confidence. If one is in the right, one attains great good fortune. Nine at the top means: Even if by chance a leather belt is bestowed on one,' By the end of a morning It will have been snatched away three times. Here we have someone who has carried a conflict to the bitter end and has triumphed. He is granted a decoration, but his happiness does not last. He is attacked again and again, and the result is conflict without end. I trust that this wonderful advice will help with the dispersion of this current conflict. Cheers!

Thanks, Brian! Cheers!

Thanks, Echo! I'll probably showcase the gems after I list all of Pergadio's work. It's really good stuff. I'll comment on work that I've read, or that I've started reading. I actually want this "handbook" to be as "just the facts" as possible. I'll indicate if I'm giving an opinion, or speculating, to help keep things simple, and drama free. Cheers!

Thanks, Jox! I've actually INCREASED my cultivation time, thanks to the Buteyko breathing method I've been fortunate enough to find out about. It also verifies and validates a number of cultivation effects that are supposed to occur. https://www.breathingcenter.com/ I'll discuss all of this after I'm done with these cultivation texts posts, but here's an excerpt from his bio page, of some of the things that Buteyko could do: Original Link: https://www.breathingcenter.com/Buteyko#KPButeyko "As many famous doctors and scientists have done, Buteyko used his own body to experiment with his method. He practiced what he referred to as “air fasting” and followed a lifestyle that promoted reduced breathing. His own experience, which his advanced students confirmed, showed that breathing normalization leads not only to an improvement of physical health but also to the clarity of mind, inner peace, and calmness. Additionally, it promotes intuition, telepathy, and other types of extrasensory perception. Buteyko started his career as a traditional doctor, but by the final period of his life, he developed characteristics of a highly developed spiritual practitioner. He was known to have some clairvoyant abilities, such as being able to read people's thoughts or to predict the future. He hardly slept, was able to exist without food for 50 days at a time, and was capable of holding his breath for several minutes. Often, the first question he would ask his patients was, "Do you believe in God?" His methods led him to a point when he did not have any doubts about the leading role of the divine, especially when it comes to healing. Buteyko understood that the door to personal evolution could be opened through breathing. This is not a new thought; it is a paradigm that was practiced in many ancient cultures. For example, one of the goals of Pranayama, a type of Indian yoga, is to breathe less. A basic meditation in Tibetan Buddhism, which is called Shine (Peace), provides a step-by-step training for developing reduced breathing. Japanese Samurai would put a feather under their nose and breathe on it. If the feather moved, the trainee would be dismissed from the Samurai army. Russian Orthodox Saints recommended their disciples reduce their breath during prayer, as they believed this would bring them closer to God. Dr. Buteyko’s achievement rediscovered the benefits of breath reduction. He had developed a health improvement method suitable for modern people—one that was especially valuable for those who are severely ill." This has enabled me to help my fiancee with all of my daughter's feedings, and still do my cultivating, art, writing, and hold down three jobs. I'll lay out more of this in later posts. Cultivating has very practical purposes. Thanks again! Cheers!

Hi, Everyone! Finishing up the works of Nan Huai Chin in this post. Diamond Sutra Explained Paperback – January 27, 2005 Description: Master Nan Huai-Chin's discourses on the treasured Buddhist Diamond Sutra bring together a lifetime's personal cultivation experience that crosses into every single school of esoteric and spiritual practice. The great contemporary Master uses the Diamond Sutra as a tool to gauge the understanding that we must have when journeying towards understanding our true selves. The various passages from this beautiful Sutra are used to provide the student with a practical framework that combines understanding with practical cultivation. Master Nan's teachings are uniquely different compared with interpretations given by other contemporary and past teachers. Comments: Haven't read this one yet. I'm planning on reading Red Pine's translation first, then Master Nan's commentaries. Here's a link to the Red Pine (aka Bill Porter) translation: https://www.amazon.com/Diamond-Sutra-Red-Pine/dp/1582432562/ref=pd_sim_14_8?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1582432562&pd_rd_r=F1NX122EVMVCM2W0GENS&pd_rd_w=uxZD3&pd_rd_wg=Ga9BH&psc=1&refRID=F1NX122EVMVCM2W0GENS I'm of the opinion that you should always read the original text first, in the best translation that you can find, before reading anyone's commentaries. I want as close to the original author's words as possible, free of any distortions. This book has a very Interesting history. Here's an article from Smithsonian.com that touches upon it for the layperson: Original Link: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/Five-things-to-know-about-diamond-sutra-worlds-oldest-dated-printed-book-180959052/ Five Things to Know About the Diamond Sutra, the World’s Oldest Dated Printed Book By Jason Daley "No one is sure who Wang Jie was or why he had The Diamond Sutra printed. But we do know that on this day in 868 A.D.—or the 13th of the 4th moon of the 9th year of Xiantong in Jie’s time—he commissioned a block printer to create a 17-and-a-half-foot-long scroll of the sacred Buddhist text, including an inscription on the lower right-hand side reading, “Reverently made for universal free distribution by Wang Jie on behalf of his two parents.” Today, that scroll is housed at the British Library and is acknowledged as the oldest dated printed book in existence. Chances are you know a little something about the Gutenberg Bible, the first book made with moveable type, which came along almost 600 years later. Bibliophiles might also have a working knowledge of other famous manuscripts like the Book of Kells, The Domesday Book, and Shakespeare’s First Folio. Well, The Diamond Sutra should be in that pantheon of revered books, as well. Here’s why: Origins The text was originally discovered in 1900 by a monk in Dunhuang, China, an old outpost of the Silk Road on the edge of the Gobi Desert. The Diamond Sutra, a Sanskrit text translated into Chinese, was one of 40,000 scrolls and documents were hidden in “The Cave of a Thousand Buddhas,” a secret library sealed up around the year 1,000 when the area was threatened by a neighboring kingdom. In 1907, British-Hungarian archaeologist Marc Aurel Stein was on an expedition mapping the ancient Silk Road when he heard about the secret library. He bribed the abbot of the monastic group in charge of the cave and smuggled away thousands of documents, including The Diamond Sutra. The International Dunhuang Project is now digitizing those documents and 100,000 others found on the eastern Silk Road. Content The Diamond Sutra is relatively short, only 6,000 words and is part of a larger canon of “sutras” or sacred texts in Mahayana Buddhism, the branch of Buddhism most common in China, Japan, Korea and southeast Asia. Many practitioners believe that the Mahayana Sutras were dictated directly by the Buddha, and The Diamond Sutra takes the form of a conversation between the Buddha’s pupil Subhati and his master. Why is it Diamond? A full translation of the document's title is The Diamond That Cuts Through Illusion. As Susan Whitfield, director of the Dunhuang Project explains, the sutra helps cut through our perceptions of the world and its illusion. "[W]e just think we exist as individuals but we don’t, in fact, we’re in a state of complete non-duality: there are no individuals, no sentient beings,” Whitfield writes. Why did Wang Jie commission it? According to Whitfield, in Buddhist belief, copying images or the words of the Buddha was a good deed and way of gaining merit in Jie’s culture. It’s likely that monks would have unrolled the scroll and chanted the sutra out loud on a regular basis. That’s one reason printing developed early on in China, Whitfield explains. “[if] you can print multiple copies, and the more copies you’re sending out, the more you’re disseminating the word of Buddha, and so the more merit you are sending out into the world,” she writes. “And so the Buddhists were very quick to recognize the use of the new technology of printing.” What is one quote I should know from The Diamond Sutra? It’s difficult to translate the sutra word for word and still catch its meaning. But this passage about life, which Bill Porter, who goes by the alias "Red Pine," adapted to English, is one of the most popular: So you should view this fleeting world— A star at dawn, a bubble in a stream, A flash of lightening in a summer cloud, A flickering lamp, a phantom, and a dream." Here are excerpts from a Wikipedia article on it: Original Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamond_Sutra "The Diamond Sūtra (Sanskrit: Vajracchedikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra) is a Mahāyāna (Buddhist) sūtra from the Prajñāpāramitā, or "Perfection of Wisdom" genre, and emphasizes the practice of non-abiding and non-attachment. The Diamond sutra is one of the most influential Mahayana sutras in East Asia and is a key object of devotion and study in Zen Buddhism... ..."The Sanskrit title for the sūtra is the Vajracchedikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra, which may be translated roughly as the "Vajra Cutter Perfection of Wisdom Sūtra." In English, shortened forms such as Diamond Sūtra and Vajra Sūtra are common. The title relies on the power of the vajra (diamond or thunderbolt) to cut things as a metaphor for the type of wisdom that cuts and shatters illusions to get to ultimate reality. The sutra is also called by the name Triśatikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra (300 lines Perfection of Insight sutra). The Diamond Sūtra has also been highly regarded in a number of Asian countries where Mahāyāna Buddhism has been traditionally practiced. Translations of this title into the languages of some of these countries include: Sanskrit: वज्रच्छेदिकाप्रज्ञापारमितासूत्र, Vajracchedikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra Chinese: 《金剛般若波羅蜜多經》, Jingang Banruopoluomiduo Jing (Chin-kang Pan-Jo-p'o-lo-mi-to Ching); shortened to 《金剛經》, Jingang Jing (Chin-kang Ching) Japanese: 金剛般若波羅蜜多経, Kongō hannya haramita kyō, shortened to 金剛経, Kongō-kyō Korean: 금강반야바라밀경, geumgang banyabaramil gyeong, shortened to 금강경, geumgang gyeong Mongolian: Yeke kölgen sudur Vietnamese: Kim cương bát-nhã-ba-la-mật-đa kinh, shortened to Kim cương kinh Tibetan: འཕགས་པ་ཤེས་རབ་ཀྱི་ཕ་རོལ་ཏུ་ཕྱིན་པ་རྡོ་རྗེ་གཅོད་པ་ཞེས་བྱ་བ་ཐེག་པ་ཆེན་པོའི་མདོ།, Wylie: ’phags pa shes rab kyi pha rol tu phyin pa rdo rje gcod pa zhes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo"... ..."The Vajracchedikā Prajñāpāramitā Sutra contains the discourse of the Buddha to a senior monk, Subhuti. Its major themes are anatman (not-self), the emptiness of all phenomena (though the term 'śūnyatā' itself does not appear in the text), the liberation of all beings without attachment and the importance of spreading and teaching the Diamond sutra itself."... This article also contains a chronology of the various English translations. The most recent one is by Paul Harrison. Here's a link to it. The English translation is on the far right: https://www2.hf.uio.no/polyglotta/index.php?page=fulltext&vid=22&view=fulltext I provided all of this background because The Diamond Sutra is a primary cultivation text. Always good to have the background, and a decent translation to start with, so that you then have a foundation with which to read commentaries, like the one by Master Nan. Basic Buddhism: Exploring Buddhism and Zen Paperback – November 1, 1997 Description: Hong Kong-based Zen Master Nan Huai-Chin is regarded as one of the foremost experts on Chinese history and culture. He is an expert in Confucianism as well as of Zen, Taoism and Esoteric Buddhism. This comprehensive introduction covers the relationship between Buddhism and the culture of India, the transmission of Buddhism to China, and to the rest of the world, and the changes that have taken place in Buddhism in different parts of the world - in other Asian countries, as well as in America and Europe. Comments: Haven't read yet, but here's the table of contents: CHAPTER 1: Buddhism and the Culture of India The Development of Indian Culture; The Background of Indian Culture; The Religion and Philosophy of Ancient Indian Civi- lization; The Rise of Various Philosophical Trends; The Six Schools of Philosophy; The Buddhism of Shakyamuni versus non-Buddhist Paths; Chapter Summary. CHAPTER 2: Shakyamuni Buddha, the Founder of Buddhism Shakyamuni's Lineage; A Great Man Who Refused to be King; The Dates of Shakyamuni's Birth and Death; The Clan Tradition; Legends of Shakyamuni's Innate Spiritual Unique- ness; A Special Youth of Many Talents; Shakyamuni's Compas- sionate Temperament; Leaving Home and Awakening to the Path; The Young Prince Who Fled the World to Seek Enlight- enment; Shakyamuni Studies the Various Schools for Six Years; Shakyamuni Practices Six Years of Austerities; Shakya- muni Opens through in Sudden Enlightenment and Achieves Buddhahood; The Founding of the Teaching; Shakyamuni's Teaching and His Original Disciples; Preaching the Dharma; The Compilation of the Buddhist Scriptures; Chapter Sum- mary. CHAPTER 3: The Transmission of Buddhism to China The First Period of the Transmission; Indian Buddhism in the Time of King Ashoka; The Initial Transmission of Buddhism to China in the Late Han and Three Kingdoms Periods; Buddhism in the Wei, Jin, and Northern and Southern Dynasties; The Founding of Pure Land Buddhism; Kumarajiva and Sengzhao; Daosheng, Nirvana, and Buddha-nature; The Heyday of Chi- nese Buddhism; The Sui and Tang Periods; The Founding of the Tang Dynasty; The Zen School's Change of System; The Rise of Esoteric Buddhism; The Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing Periods; Chapter Summary. CHAPTER 4: Buddhism in Other Countries Buddhism in Asia; Korea; Japan; Burma; Thailand; Vietnam; Tibet; Other regions of Southeast Asia; Buddhism in Europe andtwo partAmerica; Britain; Germany; France; United States of Amer- ica; Russia; Chapter Summary. CHAPTER 5: Buddhism in the 20th Century The Decline of Chinese Buddhism Since the Qing Period; Sec- tarian Decline; The Change in the Character of Monks and Temples; The Buddhist Revival of the Late Qing and Early Republican Periods; The Revival of Chinese Buddhism; The Development of Chinese Buddhism; Conclusion. APPENDIX: The Zen Monastic System and Chi- nese Society The Different Societies of Eastern and Western Civilization; The Differentiation of Patriarchal Clan Society; The Early Bud- dhist Monastic System; The Origin of the Zen Monastic Sys- tem; The Zen Monastic System: Its Regulations and Guide- lines; The Abbot; The Two Echelons of Monks; The Responsible Posts in a Zen Temple; The Chief Administrators, Visiting Monks, and the Pure Congregation; Variations in the Zen Pure Rules Over Time; The Influence of the Zen Commu- nities; Equality of Status and Collective Living; Equality of Labor and a Prosperous Economy; Equality of Faith and Disci- pline in Speech and Action; Equality of All Sentient Beings; The Zen Halls: Cultivation of Practice; The Scope of the Zen Hall; The Teacher in the Zen Hall; Life in the Zen Hall; Teaching Methods Inside and Outside the Zen Hall; The Transformation of the Zen Hall; The Legacy of the Zen Community Pure Rules; Zen Master Baizhang's Biography; Zen Master Baizhang's En- lightenment; Preface to the Pure Rules of Baizhang by the Song Dynasty Literatus Yang Yi; Twenty Essential Rules for the Zen Community by Zen Master Baizhang; The Treatise of the Samadhi of the Precious King; The Zen Community and Patri- archal Clan Society; The Zen Monastic System and Chinese Culture; The Zen Monastic System and the Secret Societies; Closing Comments. Index About the Author Working Toward Enlightenment: The Cultivation of Practice Paperback – November 1, 1993 Description: In this important and fact-filled treatise for contemporary students, Master Nan Huai-Chin details the principles and practices behind the various schools of self-realization. Many Westerners have biases regarding works by Confucius and Mencius; even contemporary scholars misunderstand the philosophical approach that covers the spiritual cultivation path to enlightenment- the practice involved in attaining realization. Comments: Part one two-part magnum opus on the cultivation process. Haven't completely read yet. Here's the table of contents: TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction...... vii 1 The Path of Cultivating Enlightenment........................ 1 2 Mind and Extemal Form.............................................. 19 3 The Five Skandhas...................................................... 41 4 Liberation from the Skandhas..................................... 57 5 A Talk on The Lotus Sutra........................................... 83 6 Further Lessons from The Lotus Sutra .......................103 7 Cultivation through Refining the Breath...................... 115 8 The Cultivation Path of Mindfulness ...........................131 9 Breathing and Various Ranks of Cultivation Attainment ....................................145 10 Refining the Vital Energy ...........................................163 11 Teachings of the Zen Patriarchs as a Basis for Cultivation..................... 179 12 Correctly Contemplating Mind.................................. 197 13 Stories of Zen Enlightenment.................................... 223 14 True and False Emptiness......................................... 247 Works Cited.................................................................... 279 lndex............................................................................... 283 To Realize Enlightenment: Practice of the Cultivation Path Paperback – October, 1994 Description: This is a series of lectures translated from the Chinese on the cultivation of enlightenment in the Buddhist religion by Master Nan Huai-Chin. Topics include correcting mind, body, and behavior, Samadhi, five Skandhas, etc. Comments: Haven't read this one yet (only so many hours In a day ). Read this one after reading "Working Toward Enlightenment". Here's the table of contents: TABLE OF CONTENTS Preface.............................................................................. vii Eliminating the View of the Body...........................................1 Correcting Your Mind, Body, and Behavior ........................20 Cultivating Genuine Samadhi .............................................47 An Overview of Cosmic Realms..........................................67 The Sequence for Transforming Mind and Body.................83 Samadhi and the Realms Resembling Samadhi.............. 105 Zen School Models for Cultivating Samadhi.................... 129 Entering, Abiding, and Leaving Samadhi......................... 155 The Four Intensified Practices.......................................... 173 Bodhisattva Practices....................................................... 199 The Five Skandhas ............................................................225 Liberation from False Thought........................................... 241 Contemplation on Provisional Existence........................... 261 Carrying Out Vows............................................................ 279 Works Cited...................................................................... 303 Index................................................................................. 305 The Story of Chinese Taoism No Image available Description: If you want to learn Taoism, you truly cannot afford to miss out on this information from the man who re-established Taoist understanding in Taiwan and Mainland China Discover materials on Chinese Taoism that include correct meditation practice principles, the history of Taoism, gong-fu explanations ... and honest advice ... from a recognized Taoist master! Hard to find info on the founders of Taoism, history of Taoism, Taoist religion, Taoist meditation practice and more. China's only surviving tripartite Zen, Esoteric and Taoist master ... who has sold over seven million books in China ... recounts the history of Taoism and the principles of proper Taoist meditation practice. Inside you'll find fully comprehensive explanations of Taoism along with recommended methods and results of body-mind cultivation. For the first time in English, Nan Huai-chin's Taoist breakthrough insights are available to true Taoist seekers. Inside this work, which is the other half of The Story of Chinese Zen, published by Charles E. Tuttle, you will find discussions of Lao Tzu, Chuang Tzu, Wei Bo-Yang, fang-shih (or ancient "magicians" of China), the Yin-Yang school, kundalini, pranayama, chi, Taoism and the sciences, feng shui, Confucianism, medical longevity sciences, I-Ching, popular Taoist meditation methods and all the major topics of Taoism, including a trustworthy history of Taoism with critical analysis (something missing in most texts). You will find information on the battles Taoism fought with Chinese Buddhism and Confucianism. This is a veritable treasure trove of Taoist practice insights and history, and more importantly, it contains the proper road of meditation practice according to the real Taoism that has all but disappeared from the world. What Master Nan teaches is different than any other Taoist information you can find today as he weaves practical experience together with Taoism history of practice, and proper meditation technique. In your hands you'll have Chinese Taoism details - never before available in English - that illuminate a safe and correct road of meditation practice according to the correct Taoist vision. The translator, Dr. William Brown, once spoke to me about this text saying, "I've translated Nan Huai-Chin's works on both Confucianism and Taoism. You know the scholars say one thing about these fields, and he says another, and frankly, to tell you the truth, his revolutionary ideas are right and they're wrong!" That's why the author has sold over 7 million books in Asia, and is widely recognized as the premier Chinese authority on Taoism today. Scholars typically write dry books without any experience of the matter they're discussing, but this one seamlessly weaves a master's interpretations of facts and trends together with meditation principles and personal insights to provide you with guidance for your own spiritual efforts, even if you don't follow Taoism. In fact, the whole purpose of the book is to help you practice better by understanding how body-based cultivation schools (such as Taoism, yoga, Tantra, and Tibetan Buddhism) should be practiced correctly. With this sensational information in your hands you will avoid many of the detours discarded by ancient Taoist practice ... but popularized today by uninformed teachers. Now you can challenge them yourself using this material. Having met dozens of Taoist practitioners who hurt themselves because they thought they understood things, I have to say that what they were lacking was Nan Huai-chin's insights! At last you have a chance to have them yourself without having to learn Chinese, travel to Asia, and then spend years collecting the same sort of information. To understand more about Chinese Taoism and body-mind cultivation -- and even tantra techniques, yoga, kundalini cultivation, pranayama and Tibetan Buddhism because of their similarities of practice and shared materials -- there's nothing better than first grabbing a copy of Tao and Longevity for your own personal practice, and then a copy of The Story of Chinese Taoism to understand the broader principles and framework of Taoist practice along with the evolution of Taoist philosophy and cultivation methods. Inside this work you will find many translated source materials that you won't find in any other English publication. Furthermore, you find Taoist trends and fads put into the right perspective along with discussions of their pros and cons. This is the information that lets you reach the highest stages of Taoist cultivation. Because Taoism focuses on body-mind cultivation, you need this book to deepen your knowledge of practically any school of cultivation that focuses on the body and discusses physiological changes due to climbing the spiritual ladder. It will definitely teach you what you must do in your own spiritual practice to become a "true man," the perfected individual, and to claim all the other benefits and virtues of Taoist practice. Comments: This one is available for free download on Bill Bodri's Meditation Expert website. Original link provided above. Haven't read it yet. Table of contents provided below: Introduction Chapter 1: The Origins of the Learning and Thought of the Taoist School and Those of Huang-Lao and Lao-Chuang · The Relationship of the Taoist School with Huang-Lao · The Relationship of the Taoist School and Lao-Chuang Chapter 2: The Relationship of the Thought of the Recluse and the Taoist School · Counter-Evidence to the Legends of Ancient History · The Relationship of the Thought of Confucius and the Recluse · Relationship of the Recluses and Historical Politics Chapter 3: The Learning of the Fang-shih (Occultist) and the Taoist School · Early Natural Sciences · The Yin-Yang School Evolved Into the Humanities · Theoretical Physical Sciences Chapter 4: Origins of the Learning and Thought of the Fang-shih in the Taoist School · Ancient Traditional Culture and the Taoist School During the Chou Dynasty · Cultural Background of the Northern Chinese States of Ch'i, Lu, Yen and Sung During the Warring States Period · The Culture and Thought of the Southern State of Ch'u During the Warring States Period Chapter 5: Contents of the Learning and Thought of the Taoist School and Taoist Religion · Cosmological Theories of Heaven and Man in the Taoist School and Taoist Religion -- The Concept of the Yin and Yang -- The Concept of the Five Elements -- The Concept of Sixty Year Cycle Using the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches · Learning and Thought of the Cultivation of Immortals in the Taoist School · Estimation of the Meaning of Human Life by the Taoist School and Taoist Religion The Influence of the Thoughts of the "Fang-shih" (A) The theories and methods on the cultivation of the spirit were naturally first advocated by Lao Tzu (B ) The first theories of the cultivation of ch'i and the refinement of ch'i © The reasons for the taking of drugs (D) The two theories related to the taking of alchemical drugs (E) The three types of alchemical drugs ingested (F) The three methods for ingesting alchemical drugs (G) The cultivation and practices of the sect of worship and prayer Chapter 6: The Immortal Alchemical Sect During and After the Han and Wei Dynasties · The Originator of Alchemical Texts Wei Po-Yang · The Alchemical Method of Refining Ch'i and Nourishing Life Through the Combination of the Medical Sciences of the Fang-shih and the Representations and Numerology of the Book of Changes Chapter 7: General Discussion on the Thoughts of the Founders of the Taoist School and Taoist Religion · The Meaning of "Heaven" Prior to the Split of the Confucian and Taoist Schools · The Meaning of "Tao" Prior to the Split of the Confucian and Taoist Schools · Lao Tzu -- The Concepts of the Way of Heaven, Non-Action and Spontaneity in the Thought of Lao Tzu -- Lao Tzu's Views on Benevolence, Righteousness and the Sage -- Misunderstanding of Lao Tzu's Political Thought -- Lao Tzu Has Been Falsely Charged as the Instigator of Schemes and Intrigues -- The Focal Point of Lao Tzu's Political Thought -- Lao Tzu's Theories on the Cultivation of Life (A) The cultivation of quietude begins with attaining utmost emptiness and internal stillness (B ) The cultivation of the spirit proceeds from utmost stillness to being dimly visible as if not present © The cultivation of ch'i is designed to aid the cultivation of stillness and the spirit (D) Realizing that which is shadowy and indistinct (E) The results of the cultivation of life ·The Classic of Purity and Stillness · Chuang Tzu -- The Fables in the Chuang Tzu -- Chuang Tzu's Free and Easy Wandering and the Seven Inner Chapters -- The Style of the Outer Chapters of the Chuang Tzu -- The Mutual Causation of the Ideas of Caring for Life in the Chuang Tzu and the Fang-shih Immortals · The Influences of the Yin-Yang School and Fang-shih of the Warring States Period · The Learning and Thought of Tsou Yen -- The Motives and Aims of Tsou Yen's Theories on Yin and Yang -- The Contents of the Yin-Yang Theory -- The Geophysical Thought of Tsou Yen -- The Prevalent Trend of Learning in the State of Ch'i · The "Fang-shih" of the States of Yen and Ch'i and the Origins of the Thought of Immortals During the Ch'in and Han Dynasties · Emperor Ch'in Shih Huang and the Feng and Shan Sacrifices · The Spirit Way and Spirit Immortals at the Beginning of the Han Dynasty · General Contents of the Learning and Thought of the Taoist School During and After the Han and Wei Dynasties Chapter 8: The Taoist Religion · Reasons for the Formation of the Taoist Religion at the End of the Han Dynasty · The Taoist School and Taoist Religion During and After the Chin and Wei Dynasties · The Taoist Religion During the T'ang Dynasty · The Taoist Religion During the Sung, Yuan, Ming and Ch'ing Dynasties Chapter 9: The Ideas of the Taoist School and Taoist Religion and the Educational Spirit of Chinese Culture The Story of Chinese Zen Kindle Edition Description: The development of Zen in China is really the story of the flourishing of Chinese philosophy, arts and literature beginning as far back as the Han Dynasty and earlier. Master Nan Huai-Chin offers an engaging chronicle of both in this groundbreaking work. The Story of Chinese Zen begins with the premise that the climate during Shakyamuni's founding of Buddhism in India ultimately influence the differences behind Hinayana and Mahayana thought, practice, and methods of seeking enlightenment. From there—beginning with its transmission to China—Master Nan outlines the Zen School, exploring influences on the development of Zen before the early Tang Dynasty, different meanings of studying Zen and pursuing the heart and goal of Zen." He explores the relationship between Zen and new-Confucianism and the inseparability of religion and Zen from Chinese literature and philosophy, especially Taoism. Born in Zhejiang province, China in 1918, Nan Huai-Chin has studied under thirty-two major Taoist and Buddhist masters, including the masters of the Esoteric School of Buddhism in Tibet, from whom he received the title of Esoteric Master. He has published over thirty books and is widely recognized as one of the foremost scholars on Zen and Taoism. Comment: Haven't completely read yet. Here's the table of contents: Table of Contents About the Author 1. Connections Between Buddhism and Historical Chinese Culture 2. A Brief Introduction To The Contents Of Buddhist Study Background of Indian Culture - Situations and Political Conditions of Ancient India 3. Contribution to Humankind Made by Shakyamuni's Leaving Home and Attaining Enlightenment Breaking Up Concept of Caste, Shakyamuni Preached Equality Extending to All Living Beings Shakyamuni Set Up a Phenomenology of Life, Recurring Cycles of Six Courses of Existence Shakyamuni Pioneered Views of the Universe and the World - Shakyamuni Synthesized a Metaphysical Ontology 4. Mahayana Buddhism and Hinayana Buddhism Hinayana Thought - The Practice of Hinayana Buddhism - Hinayana Methods of Seeking Realization 5. Mahayana Thought Mahayana Practice - Mahayana Methods of Seeking Realization 6. An Outline of the Zen School Zen and its Roots - Historical Traces of Zen - Special Transmission of Zen Outside of Buddhist Doctrine - The Work of Zen - Lankavatara Sutra to Seal Understanding of Penetrating Root Basis of Mind and the Universe 7. Influences on the Development of Zen Before the Early T'ang Dynasty 8. The Sixth Patriarch of Zen The First Issue - Step One - Step Two - Step Three - Step Four - Step Five - The Second Issue - The Third Issue 9. The Great flourishing of Zen in the Early T'ang Dynasty 10. Some Keys to Understanding Zen 11. Understanding Some Important Technical Terms Public Cases - Caning and Shouting 12. Important Points in Reading Zen Classics The Necessity of Preparatory Learning in Zen and Literature 13. The Heart and Goal of Zen 14. The Process of Zen: Mental Work and Insight 15. Nirvana and the Aim of Zen 16. Emphasizing Concentration on a Word or Saying Practice of Cessation and Contemplation, and Dhyana - Watching Thoughts - Investigating a Hua-t'ou 17. Doctrine of the Three Barriers and the Realm of Zen Investigative Meditation 18. Sources of Zen Buddhism's Influence on Neo-Confucianism 19. Neo-Confucianism and the Sayings and Doings of the Zen Masters 20. Zen and Chineses Literature 21. Importance of the Relationship of Zen and Literature Grass Mountain: A Seven Day Intensive in Ch'an Training With Master Nan Huai-Chin Paperback – May, 1986 Comments: No description. The title is self-explanatory. Haven't read yet. Here's the table of contents: Contents About the Master, vii Acknowledgments, ix Introduction, xi Prologue, xvii Day One, 1 Day Two, 15 Day Three, 37 Day Four, 53 Day Five, 69 Day Six, 89 Day Seven, 109 Glossary, 115 Bibliography, 131 Chinese Sources, 133 That's it for all of Nan Huai-Chin's books available in English. He has many more available, if you can read Mandarin. Even with my previous caveats, I still consider both his, and Bodri's works must reads, especially if you're new to all of this. Next is the Golden Elixir titles, and papers of Fabrizio Pergadio Cheers!

Hi, Everyone! I'm BACK! 9 months goes by QUICK! Perfect segue way. Infolad 1 is now Infodad! My daughter was born In January. Needless to say, time adjustments had to be made. Her training begins soon ("She shall be the greatest of them all!" LOL! ) Now... Back to the booklist! And wouldn't you know it? Bill Bodri came out with new books! I'll cover them, and the rest of his work, tonight. Easy Meditation Lessons Kindle Edition by William Bodri (Author), Shu-Mei Lee (Author) Description: "Anyone and everyone can meditate. These easy meditation lessons are designed for beginners who want to learn meditation as quickly as possible, and who wish to find the right type of meditation practice that is perfect just for them. These easy how-to lessons will also be extremely useful for those who previously tried to learn meditation but who gave up in frustration because they felt like they were not making any progress at all in learning how to calm their minds. There are several tricks to effective meditation practice. A key principle is to first adjust your body in the right way by taking a few deep breaths with slow exhalations, and then by sitting in a very comfortable position using the correct posture. With your body relaxed, you can then start practicing whatever meditation method you most enjoy. In this book, you will learn several different meditation methods you can use for the rest of your life to quickly calm your mind and enter a deep state of mental quiet and tranquility. These are the most common practices used across the world’s meditation traditions. You will learn the practice of watching your breath (anapana), watching your thoughts, how to recite mantras or prayers, and how to create stable mental visualizations to calm your mind. You will even learn how to activate your internal energies for greater health and vitality, and how to concentrate for longer periods of time without becoming distracted. With these easy meditation lessons, you will quickly learn how to meditate on your own without need of any special teacher, and will learn how these meditation practices can also be used for the popular yoga and martial arts traditions." Comments: This is the beginner's book that Bodri's "The Little Book of meditation" was supposed to be. That book grew to 388 pages, so he did this one as a basic primer for the layperson new to meditation. Visualization Power: How Scientists, Inventors, Businessmen, Artists, Athletes, Healers, and Yogis Can Improve Their Powers of Visualization and Visual Thinking Paperback – February 6, 2017 Description: Visualization skills, which are the power to form stable mental images in your mind, are used everywhere in highly competitive sports by top performing athletes. The best athletes practice their physical movements through mental rehearsal so that optimal neural circuits form in their brain and their actions become effortlessly graceful. Because visualization practice can create and reinforce neural circuits in the brain that equate with perfect skills, athletes are using it to improve their sports performance and win competitions. Mental visualization practice to achieve positive changes in life is also being used by professionals in other fields such as in health, business, the arts and sciences, yoga and spirituality. How do you train to improve your powers of mental imagery and master visualizations? If you are in the sciences, how can you become a better visual thinker? What are the proper practice steps for visualizing correctly and creating optimal neural pathways for performance skills? In what other ways are people using visualization powers? Inside you’ll discover how famous inventors, scientists, and mathematicians have trained step-by-step to use visualizations for break-through discoveries, and how you can develop similar visualization skills for innovative accomplishments. You’ll learn how artists and musicians can use visualization training to improve their performances, and how even people locked away in prison can practice inner visualizations for effective results. You’ll discover how doctors and surgeons are using it in medical training and learn how you can personally use it to heal yourself of sickness and disease. You’ll learn how yoga and spiritual practitioners are training their minds through visualization practice to improve their powers of concentration so that they can master various yogic and tantric practices. Ordinary people are using visualization practice in the fields of business and personal development to mentally rehearse skills for better and more consistent results. You can also use visualization powers to improve your confidence, forge new habits, and achieve concrete goals. Mentally training your powers of visualization will not only develop your concentration skills, such as the ability to ignore distractions but also your powers of discipline and the ability to focus. You can use it to create visions of a future life you want, regain muscle strength after injury, speed surgical recovery, or even seed your subconscious to produce colorful dreams that contain solutions to problems. Martial artists even use it to move their internal energy for feats of physical excellence while yoga enthusiasts use it to improve their stretching. There are countless benefits you can receive from mastering the power of visualization. Comments: This just came out. A basic introduction to the powers of visualization. I'll have a more detailed review of this by May. Look Younger, Live Longer: Reverse the Aging Process in One Year Using Eastern Traditions and Modern Nutritional Science Paperback – February 6, 2017 Description: "What if you could slow or even reverse the aging process and start to look years younger? It’s possible if you combine the latest methods of modern science with the ancient longevity methods of the eastern spiritual traditions. Modern anti-aging science - whether it references the findings of the "Blue Zones" or new approaches to diet and nutrition - shows us how to use the right exercises, diet, and vitamin-mineral supplements to turn back our biological clocks. By doing the right things we can slow or even reverse the process of aging so that we not only live longer but start to look younger and feel better too. There are also ways we can improve our home's environment in order to enjoy cleaner air and water as well as reduce our EMF exposure to support our health and anti-aging efforts. The second approach to anti-aging relies on the eastern spiritual traditions that teach you how to eat right, exercise and reduce stress so as to reverse the aging process. This approach - which comes from the ancient eastern schools of Yoga, Chinese Taoism, Buddhism and other traditions - promotes breathing practices, inner energy work, meditation and a proper diet for staying young and living longer. This road of longevity is centered on building up internal energy so that you can use its benefits for a longer and healthier life. Combining the eastern and western approaches is the premier approach to life extension. It constitutes a new science of anti-aging that takes the best from the east and west to heal your body, extend your life, and benefit your mind. Inside you’ll learn the best vitamins and nutritional supplements to take in order to look younger, feel better, reverse the effects of aging you’ve already experienced and extend your lifespan. You’ll also discover the best eastern practices for increasing health and longevity that - although thousands of years old - not only prepare people for progress on the spiritual trail but are actually proven remedial solutions for the many aging theories proposed by geneticists. In short, you’ll find many approaches for duplicating and even going beyond the healthy anti-aging results found in the long-lived "Blue Zones" communities." Comments: Another new book from Bodri, and one I'm very interested In reading. I'm actually starting a health, fitness, and anti-aging online platform, that also combines Eastern and Western approaches. It'll be interesting to see how our approaches both match up and differ. That's it for Bodri. Next, I finish with Master Nan's books. Then I'll list the works of Fabrizio Pergadio, Thomas Cleary, Eva Wong, and Damo Mitchell, along with a few gems that folks may have missed. Cheers!

My condolences.

Not as much as you would think rainbowvein. Once you get the hang (pun not intended) of the wrapping, and breathing protocols, your Yi/Intent/Imagination is at the Lower Dantian ( or to be more accurate, the area where your Lower Dantian will be, with enough cultivation work). Your Yi is at other areas during other parts of the sequence. There's also a lot of emptiness meditation involved, to keep your energies balanced. Anyone familiar with the alchemical process should be able to grok why this exercise is so effective in turbo boosting the start of the process. The swinging, and lifting are about 1/4 of everything involved, in the system. Cheers!

If they've been sanctioned to teach it to others, then check it out. I don't know what their system, exact exercises, or breathing protocols are though. Your question reminded me that I had bookmarked Master McNeil's site years ago. He seems to know his stuff, although his claim of being one of two teachers in the states that can teach it is incorrect. If he's talking about his system's specific way of doing it, then that might be correct. I don't know what they specifically do. But Grandmaster Tu has been teaching Muscle Tendon Changing/Marrow Washing in the US for years. So in general, L9H isn't the only system that you can learn it from, in the US. Cheers!

He does. He also makes it very clear that the DVD is for educational purposes only, and not to be used as a substitute for in person training, to learn the technique. You do need an Instructor for this. Protect your "best friend". Otherwise, you're asking for an injury. Cheers!

Excellent Jox! Yeah, Bodri has a ton of good data to sift through. Like I said, he can be more than a little repetitive at times, but you learn to sift past it. I think I still have about 3,000 more pages of his work to go through, between "Measuring Meditation, Stages, and What Is Enlightenment?". LOL! And this isn't even factoring in all of the books I've bookmarked from his references, footnotes, and bibliographies. The only thing I love more than cultivating, is researching all of this, so it balances out. Cheers!

Dude, that's crass. And just a side effect of the actual point. The point is health, longevity, and spiritual cultivation, so you can stay awake at transition, and have enough energy to not die the second death, and dissolve into the all, your incarnation being nothing more than a dream. But then again, aren't they all? Cheers!

The training helped kickstart Tai Hsi, which is where the fun starts to begin. Then I began to embryonic breath. Soon after that, the Qi began to pump, first in my LDT, then in my mingmen, lingtai, eventually the whole river chariot, then Chong Mai. Still clearing all the Mai out. This lead to everything else that's happened so far, in conjunction with my Tai Chi Quan, my emptiness meditation, and witnessing meditation training. Nothing beats direct experience as validation for what you're doing. Cheers!

LOL! Good one! Thanks silent thunder! It's cool though. That's the usual reaction we get about this training. I met this MMA fighter one time. We started talking about training. I told him what I did, and he winced! LOL!! I said "Dude, you get in the octagon! You can DO this!" He says "F$%# that Bro! I'd rather get choked out! LMAO!! It's understandable. 'Gotta protect your best friend. Cheers!

LOL! It's a BIT more involved than that CelibacySeeker. And to be more accurate, you swing, and hang, weights off the root of the shaft, and scrotum, using a silk/satin cloth, then once you progress in weight, you swing and hang weights off the shaft. Everyone starts with around 1 lb. I started 6 years ago. Stopped a couple of times, after 4 years hardcore training (I keep a journal). As of this week, I swing up to 50 lbs, and lift 100 lbs. Due to my stopping a couple of times, I'm actually behind schedule. I should actually be at 200 lbs. by now. I'll be there by next year. This type of training is a marathon, not a sprint. My friend, who's 65, swings 50 lbs. 288 times total, and can probably do 200+ lbs. now (we have to get 45 lb. plates, and an olympic loading pin, to check). You have to allow time for the ligaments, fascia, and blood vessels to adapt, and for the skin of the shaft, and scrotum to toughen. You also have to adapt to the energy surges, which get really interesting around 15 lbs. swinging, lifting 50 lbs. There's also an herbal wine that you drink, when you start, to help build the tissues, spleen, and kidney energy systems. As I said, it's a very complete system. And it works. Cheers!