Kar3n

Welcome to the bums

Welcome, happy you have joined us.

Waking up early (usually before 5) is something that I have gotten in the habit of in the past couple of years. I go to bed when I feel tired (about 9), if I wait too long, I get a 'second wind', and it can be hours before I am able to fall asleep, if at all. Being on and sticking to (as life permits) a sleep schedule has helped me tremendously in the quality of sleep I get.

His runny nose was caused by a qi deficiency? Hmmm...

I can't recommend any books, but I can tell you the possibilities are infinite. We do energy work here in chat on Wednesdays and Thursdays and you are welcome to join. If no one is around, hang out, someone will show up. Welcome to the bums

Welcome, Mig

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gY5OW8WjSJU

Sad situation, indeed.

Outdoors has always worked best for me. Go for a walk, do some gardening (my personal favorite), go sit near a body of water, just get outside and take it all in. Barefooted in the grass is another nice one I enjoy.

ego, without Ego... Simply put ego is what makes us get out of bed to go to work to support ourselves and our family. EGO, is what wants MORE, makes us be, to be frank*, self absorbed. *fuck

You know, I am 5 foot nothing and barely over 100 pounds and people in my life have told me I am intimidating. That admission was hard for me to even type, because that is not who I am, or the person I want to be seen as. I asked people who became my friends, their replies were almost always the same, "Different". I have been intimidated by my momma and my grandmother, but not many other people. I do not think that if you are cultivated/inv in a spiritual sense or if you carry yourself in a certain, genuine way they are very far apart. I only ever knew Jesus, I met some people, and dove deeper into myself, and feel more humbled snd whole than ever before. Intimidation is in the eye of the beholder. I have felt intimidated too. Embrace it, be it, what you feel, make it positive for you. No matter, gather your love, carry it with you, it has saved my life, at least once. I see you, smilingone.

Cats.... You have to get to their level before you can even begin to get it. BE the cat...

open

YES!!!!

One question.... Why is there vanity if enlightenment, things are happening? Embrace it! Shave your head! I am a woman, if my hair were falling out and I was having great spiritual experiences, and all test results we good, I'd embrace the heck out of it and shave my effing heard! I have wanted to do the Sinead O'Connor since I was 15-ish. Instead I got my belly button and nipples pierced. None of the above leads to enlightenment, but keeping practices up with and circulating do. Eliminating vanity, makes us more humble if we embrace it and practice with it.

I love you too, Marbles... I feel ya...

Cheers! Happy Thanksgiving.

TDB is not censoring. There are rules here! Joeblast posted links to forbidden material, material that has always been forbidden here. When the material was removed, he could have plead his case in a more constructive manner, however, he chose the path that lead to his suspension. When a person starts cursing, hurling insults and essentially inciting a riot or flame war against staff, it is time to end the conversation. I hope you took notes, Joe left behind some perfect examples of what not to do... Insult Policy Forum Terms and Rules Off Topic and Rules Reminder

Less talking, more gesturing and eating...

Probably a good idea, steve. Thank you. Shady, would you like it to be moved?

Yes, where are all of my lids? And socks, and forks... Mysteries of the universe; unsolved.

I am still having a hard time with victim as a general term, but I do get what you are saying. I think you have to take a step back and not generalize that everyone living in the world today and their exposure to sexuality makes them a victim. At the end of the day, we, as adults, are responsible for our own actions and reactions to what is in front of us. In your OP, you specifically mention victims of pornography. My perspective is based on porn and adult interactions with it. I just do not see how one can be victimized by their own conscious actions. We can not feign the victim when we have placed ourselves in front of something that harms us, and once we realize it is detrimental to our goals and continue, because it feels good or scratches a specific itch. I will take it further to say that one is looking for a scapegoat instead of looking within themselves if they are laying blame on society or anything else. That's like saying the devil made me do it. Ultimately, it all begins and ends with us, and no one else when it comes to cultivation. Once we identify an attachment or obstacle (anything, not only related to sexuality) it is then that we sit with it in meditation or some other practice to release it in a way that fulfills some portion of our set agenda. Being still and quite in a mindful way with ourselves is a pretty powerful thing. Reaching our goals in cultivation is not all sunshine and rainbows, it can be tough, even brutal at times, to face ourselves, take responsibility, to forgive ourselves and move on knowing ourselves more intimately. Personally, this has been some of the most difficult parts of my practice. No matter what is in your way, you can overcome it.

Fascinating. Thanks for sharing this, Wells. At any point in the "light shows" did you ever try to connect beyond what you were seeing or feeling, searching deeper within yourself?

I am having a hard time with the use of the word victim in this instance. How can we call ourselves a victim if we are continually and or consciously returning to something for gratification? Is it someone else's fault that we as humans do not have self-control in a given set of circumstances? Is it the porn star's, web developer's or your ISP's fault that you made your way to some website, or is it your own that you typed and clicked your way there and made the choice to view the material? There is a power button on every electronic device. That being said, a good amount of self-determination is in order to move past habits or addictions to achieve the goals we have set for ourselves. We cannot blame others for our actions, habits or addictions especially if we have the cognition to identify that it is a problem.

Here is a fairly recent thread dedicated to shielding practices and theories.