Aetherous

I don't know about zhineng qigong, but there are a few different ways that I think about this... 1) The toes tend to have energy or light beaming in and out of them similar to the fingers, so the direction that the beams point cause a different effect at that level of the body. The toes are at the lowest level of the body, dealing with our grounding and connection to earth, and the beams are pointing inward rather than being pointed parallel forward, or outward. In contrast to those other two types, the beams cross each other when pointed inward...potentially creating a kind of closed loop of energy. So I tend to think this posture has more of a closing off effect on our physical energy, and also closes off our connection to the earth to some extent...versus if we stand with toes pointed out, we're more open to the outer world and energy is more able to connect our legs and feet with the earth. 2) The symbolism of being pigeon toed has some impact on the effect. It makes us less stable...physically, and also metaphorically. On a positive side, we could say that it's training us to become more capable of dealing with instability, aka, working on our balance, by making us deal with being imbalanced. On the other hand, toes pointed out seems to me to cultivate more confidence, capability of reacting through movement, etc. 3) The stretches on various fascia and muscles, as well as the contractions which are caused in the muscle, has some effect. I've heard one teaching say that this posture stretches open the fascia of the sacrum and lower lumbar in the back, and so it tends to cause more of a du mai opening with yang qi rising effect. For zhan zhuang, depends on what your personal teacher says if you have one...but I tend to think that the standing posture should be pain free. We want qi to flow, not to get stuck, and we don't want to injure ourselves with something so harmless as standing upright. So for me, if I am practicing standing qigong, if there is a pain I adjust the posture to something that works better. This is not to say the pigeon toed type of stance is necessarily so bad that it's forbidden. Every different thing we do has a different effect, and sometimes we want the different effect to happen for some reason. For instance, if someone was doing a method that involved internal work, which required not being so connected to the outside environment, then maybe turning the toes inward could help them with that. If the practice was about raising the yang, maybe if the person was trying to transmute qi physically, then they could do this so that the du mai would be stretched open a little more. If it was someone who was already over confident in life, they could experience feeling a bit more unstable and insecure by going pigeon toed, for the sake of balance...some people are too confident, loud, positive, outgoing, scattered by being connected to outer things, etc. So sometimes if you know what you're doing, it can be good to do different methods that cultivate something you need.

It could've just been a kind of chaos magic, law of attraction, or placebo effect type thing, when Yoda's problems stopped after applying what appeared to be a solution to the problems. Or maybe the talismans etc were legit. I mean, that's truly a possibility too. The source of them is silly, but sometimes silly people can have learned magic, too. Either way, it was unfortunate that he felt like it was bad enough that he had to leave the forum and break contact with his fellow cultivators. Such a thing, in my mind, really looks like the beginnings of joining a dangerous cult. As such, I hope he's not associated with Mak Tin Si anymore, and is carefree and enjoying life.

My view is that a human life begins when the sperm enters the egg, at conception. Some people think that the soul enters at conception due to a microscopic image of it apparently generating a flash of light...but there isn't actually a flash of light that occurs visibly, as you can see in the hyperlinked article. Other people might think the soul enters at the first breath when born, due to the notions of the breath being related to God's spirit...I don't think that, and think that our notion of a soul exists in the baby in the womb. Perhaps such a thing as the soul, if you even believe in it, isn't visible due to being of the spiritual rather than the material, and thus we can never be sure at what time it enters a body...and maybe souls don't "enter" bodies or individual lives, but are an intrinsic connection at all times with the body/life. I recall that ancient Greek philosophers would equate the soul with life itself...so really, any person who has a heartbeat or is alive otherwise has a soul...more of less, whether anyone knows it or not. They also say souls are immortal, so they survive the death of the physical body, and existed prior to it. Finally, there are more perceptive mothers who attest that they're aware of their future babies, as well as their personalities, long before they're born...I might recall even hearing about a mother who knew the child (mentally or supercognitively) prior to conception (we could think of it like the spirit of the child had chosen the mother and the family to join prior to the act). So perhaps it could be said that the baby's soul is there even prior to conception, and during the love making, and the conception is simply the opportunity to become human, and embodied. If we believe in this soul business at all. Aside from souls. At something like 6 weeks after conception, an individual heartbeat can be detected...which is definitely the sign of an individual human life. It's not a useless appendage which the mother grew, but is a little human in development (obviously). Legally speaking, in the US, the standard was set that they think "fetal viability" is when it's a separate human life, worthy of the right to life. This is unscientific to say the least. Prior to viability, it's just that this unique human is dependent on something aside from itself (its mother) to continue living...that doesn't mean it's not a human. If we put an adult on life support, are they no longer human and worthy of living? The obvious answer is no - they're still a person. So, the law is currently dead wrong on this matter, and as such, ethically we are a nation that murders innocent humans for convenience, and arbitrarily decides on who is a person and who isn't. Especially when a fetus resembles a developed human being while still being prior to viability, I think it's undeniable to consider it as a unique human life. Only the most depraved of people would agree to kill such a harmless thing for any reason. Many people are that depraved. Lately, some on the left have gone so far as to suggest that it's okay for a baby to be born, and then the doctors to talk with the mother and decide on whether the baby should continue living or not. See here. Currently that's the more extreme stance, whereas the more "moderate" leftist stance is that late term abortions are okay, as 2020 candidate Beto O'Rourke has clarified as his position. In a decade or two from now, I predict that the left will be arguing that newborns and even toddlers aren't really persons and that they should be allowed to legally kill them...and half of the country will unthinkingly jump on that bandwagon, just as they'll jump on the Virginia governor's bandwagon soon enough. Maybe they'll make the argument that because they're incapable of speaking fluent English, their brains are so undeveloped as to not be human. Better to stick with science, and understand when a human life starts. And better to be ethical, and not depraved.

My first impression of this lonemanpai stuff has been that it was something bogus and a hodge podge of things, created by someone who is probably not good to train with due to being negative. But I 99.99% trust what joeblast says, having met him and knowing of his experience over the years, so my opinion is changing entirely now.

I think it's interesting, and then the writing quickly devolves into something that's destructive to experiment with.

I am very slowly learning about dividend investing, due to having a busy life. The post of mine above wasn't necessarily something good to follow. I've learned recently that with dividend yields, the percentage they pay out as the dividend comes out of the value of the stock...it's not something extra added on to the stock. So when they disperse the dividends, the stock price falls by that same amount, and due to other fluctuations this is just not so noticeable. But the key takeaway is that the yield isn't extra money. You could have a non-dividend paying stock, sell a fraction of it in order to pocket that money, and have the same effect. Finding dividend stocks with a high yield seems smart if you don't know what you're doing, like me...it seems like you get a higher percentage of extra money which you can do with as you please...but in reality, you have to look at the return on investment altogether. You have to know that it's a good stock, and not just a good yield. Example: let's say you invest $100 in a 9% dividend yield stock; you think you're going to make 9% a year, on top of whatever the stock makes...sounds nice! But let's say the stock price plummets by 10%. Even though it will most likely pay out the dividend (that's not guaranteed, but is likely if you've chosen one that has a history of consistently paying out), you still lost 10% of your money even after the dividends were dispersed to you. Learning how to do this is much more challenging than simply investing in the total stock market, or something along the lines of the S&P 500. This book, so far, has been educational in regard to dividend investing. Oh also, a good way to keep track of your investments is the website Seeking Alpha. You can put your stocks in the Portfolio on their site, and it'll send emails regarding all news of your investments.

Maybe there will be times when no one shows up, in which case you could just meditate alone...but I think the longer a program consistently runs in the same area, the more likely people are to attend. Think like 5 years...instead of trying it for just a couple months. Have your friends show up, and entice them with grabbing a bite or drink afterward. Let yoga and martial art studios know, and other places where people would likely be interested in meditation. Sometimes you can leave business cards or flyers at places. I second meetup.com as a way of letting people know you exist. Anyway, I like the idea of your group...non-religious meditation. If it's a kind of fun and laid back atmosphere, and people end up feeling better from attending and practicing, then what would keep them from going each week?

@Harmen, I wonder if you could video record the Chicago yijing diagnosis seminar, and then have it available along with the workbook for people to purchase online? I'd like to attend but don't think I'll be able to, and am interested in the info. Thanks!

Some congee recipes...I didn't look too closely at this website, just saw that it has numerous recipes. https://www.unfamiliarchina.com/congee/?fbclid=IwAR1UBRg2_7Z_6KKbo4TqDoJrIf1HuiNi2f7yOW4fzhOivjKVOqV1FbDvlaE

Here are my random thoughts on these kinds of topics (I don't have a wife): Some people will say that men and women can't be friends, due to the attraction between the sexes. This is untrue. It's entirely possible to maintain friendship with women you're attracted to, or for her to be a friend to a man she's attracted to...just a matter of having a little self control. ... The "friendzone" is something people talk about. This is where a man and woman hang out often, she opens up to him about her life, but if he wants her romantically he gets rejected. It needs to be clearly understood by the man that what's happening here is just that the woman isn't attracted to him. No amount of trying anything will change that, so it's best to move on and look toward other women for romance. Not everyone is attracted to everyone...people have different tastes, different needs, different disqualifiers. Men friendzone women, too...sometimes we just can't be romantic with someone. There are other women out there, so move on. It's possible that you can still be friends with this woman who friendzoned you, but you should ask yourself if she's respectful of you as a person, or if she just uses you (for company, attention, money, venting, etc). If you're being used, you were never truly friends and you should leave the friendship as well. But it's possible to remain friends, respectfully, and move on to find a more fitting woman for you. ... It's very possible to be friends and then become more. I think the best relationships might start that way, because they're established on the foundation of respect. If she was strongly attracted to you in the first place, as a default, it'll be easy...you could screw up and just blurt out "I think yer hot" and then you could be together the next moment. If she could potentially be attracted to you but didn't necessarily already have those thoughts about you, then screwing up like that might just confuse her and make things a bit awkward...but slowly escalating with more trust between the two of you, more physical touch (touching hands, touching shoulder, back rub, head rub, sitting next to each other touching), and more talking about what you want in a relationship, might help. Grooming and being healthy and clean is important. Slightly more eye contact is important. Sometimes she will be surprised to find her attraction for you growing, when she was blind to it previously. I think it's important to respect what she wants for her future, in a relationship...if what she wants isn't something you can provide, to let her go...and to not try and manipulate her into liking you...don't listen to "dating advice" which often tries to manipulate her mind in order to get women in bed. That seduction stuff kind of works, if you're into that sort of thing, but it's not for having good relationships. The attitudes and habits you get from such advice can cause the end of relationships. A good relationship is built on trust. Intimacy is about trust. So be trustworthy, and true. Find out if you're truly compatible, which is even more important than if she has some physical attraction for you. Of course she will have some attraction...it's just natural that women are attracted to men. But can a long term relationship be beneficial and wanted by the both of you? If it turns out that she's isn't genuinely interested in a relationship with you, time to move on to the next one. ...basically, I think you're right: it ultimately won't work if she's not attracted to him.

I don't know if you'd actually get in trouble for something so widely known, and so short...but it's definitely good form to cite sources for any quotes.

If they sing uplifting and moving songs, yes definitely.

Check out https://www.nqa.org/legislation-update Acupuncturists, massage therapists, etc, have tried to legislate so that qigong would fall under their practice acts, which would mean that unlicensed people wouldn't be able to do it. For example, we at the forum all know about Ya Mu's extensive qigong training and skill. Imagine if in his home state (which I think is Missouri), some acupuncturist with zero qigong training could call themselves a qigong practitioner, but he suddenly couldn't. That would suck! The Oklahoma bill seems restrictive, to the point where even Ken Cohen spoke out strongly against it, but it was an attempt by one NQA board member to protect qigong against being regulated under other professions. Since these processes have started, with acupuncturists and massage therapists trying to get qigong for themselves, to me it seems inevitable that qigong will eventually become regulated at least in some places. Especially as some qigong practitioners have gotten in trouble for giving really poor health advice, and states will want to protect the public by regulating them.

https://ruistassociation.org/ This group lays out a pretty extensive course of study for the topic. If I remember correctly, it's totally free (aside from getting necessary reading material).

Boredom is just a stage. Later on, you are enthralled with simply being alive.

With this being the case, perhaps the practice where you do nothing is best, similar to what Fa Xin said. Just be alone in a room, unwind, and finally have a moment to process shit. If you can't help falling asleep during it, then do what Mudfoot said, and stand.

Sometimes it seems that the more I learn, the higher my intelligence seems to operate, the more stupid I realize that I truly am.

That's what was unique about this experience for me, there's zero "air hunger"...for a long period of time. Really, what would cause me to breathe again was fear that my body wasn't breathing.

Every once in a while I find myself trying to figure out what the Eleusinian Mysteries were all about. Sometimes I find sources which are pretty informative - this thread is to collect those, and perhaps for people to discuss these Mysteries. Here's one: http://www.san.beck.org/Eleusis-4.html This book is quite good, considering that it explores other mystery cults alongside Eleusis: https://www.scribd.com/document/235729974/Jan-Bremmer-Initiation-Into-the-Mysteries-of-the-Ancient-World

@ilumairen recently stated, in another thread, that the holy spirit used to be considered feminine. I think this is a potentially rich subject to explore for those who have some interest in digging deeper into the Bible.

Okay, from what you've said I think we've had the same experience. What makes you think breathing is still happening unnoticeably in the LDT, if during this state you're not noticing the breathing/it seems like it has stopped?

Just presenting an alternative view for the consideration of other readers, not wanting to be argumentative...but I can't agree that any form of breathing happens during it. Also, something else happens during it, which if a person spoke of it, it would verify to me that we've experienced the same thing.

I personally go further to say that embryonic breathing is a state in which you don't breathe, and don't need to. We could say that cellular respiration is happening, but any inhale and exhale is not...in my view, it's not a matter of being so subtle so as to be unnoticeable. Experienced it a few times. JMV... I know that some historical writings about embryonic breathing treat it as a method of breathing.

The book of Revelation is just so confusing for me, personally. The Lamb's wife or bride being a new Jerusalem coming down from heaven, etc. ...did I just take some LSD?

To address this...some people say that God isn't a gender, because God isn't created like a human being, but is the Creator. This makes sense, but I don't think we can make the inference based on anything scripturally - there's nothing that really says "God has no gender" in the Bible as far as I'm aware. An argument that God could be either gender or both is made by pointing to Genesis 1:27, where it says "male and female" are created in "the image of God". So God is both? Neither? Are people like two halves of a previous united whole? Maybe the elohim (spiritual beings in the heavenly realm) are either male or female, just like humans became? Also, Genesis is probably best considered to be metaphorical rather than like a history book...so it's hard to come to any definitive conclusion from it. For Christians, there's the fact that Jesus calls God his "Father". For that reason, it'd be difficult to argue that God is a woman if you're a follower of his teachings.