Aetherous

Of course there's an objective world.

You can isolate yourself from your family, and be comfortable. Or you can stay near your family, and be constantly tested. Which do you think provides more opportunity for real spiritual progress?

It was totally amazing on IMAX 3D. Loved the theme of the movie.

Welcome to the forum! I was hoping to attend this past weekend, but it just didn't work out.

No way man, Aladdin is so much better!

Yeah sometimes I must resort to that.

That sounds like an excellent idea! But on a more serious note...I do think that cold stuff going inside your body isn't ideal. It's good to keep it warm. So I just keep the ice cream on my tongue for longer, and kinda swirl it around, so that it's mostly lukewarm when I swallow it. That's better than shoving whole spoonfuls of it down your throat.

Ah yes, I have been into Tool since like 1997. Good band. "As above, so below" is an Egyptian alchemical saying. Funny how it's turned backwards in the Tool song. There is another example of turning a famous phrase backwards, in the song Pushit: "There is no love in fear", turning around the 1 John 4:18 Bible verse, "there is no fear in love." Interesting.

Always do what you think is best, and never do something just because a "Taoist" would do it. Forge your own path.

Cool screen name. Welcome!

Serene, Will you share where you got the idea for the left big toe, and where Buddha said it? It is interesting.

Thanks CowTao, I especially liked the second article, which agrees with what I think: drinking homemade chai is awesome!

That is very interesting!

Funny thing about the Catholic church is that it's nearly entirely composed of pagan magickal themes.

Well I don't know much. But there are 3 main channels, of the supposed 72,000 in the body. The central (sushumna), left (ida/moon) and right (pingala/sun). Some make it look like this. And some make the two channels look like a double helix. About the 5 pranas... "As a simple summary we could say that Prana governs the intake of substances. Samana governs their digestion. Vyana governs the circulation of nutrients. Udana governs the release of positive energy. Apana governs the elimination of waste-materials."

So guys, I just figured out the trick. You gotta put HOT fudge in with the ICE cream, then you have ALCHEMY in your mouth!

I have been completely unimpressed with any Western mysticism I've seen. Maybe I've just never been exposed to the real good stuff?

Samantabhadra, I was hoping others with knowledge would. This is the first time I've heard of apana basically being the problem for spiritual practitioners. It makes sense, due to most experiencing problems from forcing lower energy upwards. ... Goldisheavy, I agree with you. This is it. For those who feel the need to practice this stuff, it's good to keep that in mind. ... Dwai, Interesting. The book gives a chart which says that 2 hours before sunrise the first chakra is most active, so that is why it's the best time to "work on" apana.

Hmm... "Strain on the heart" means the same thing as "exercising the heart". It is just worded to sound bad. Working out also causes a strain on the heart, yet that's been shown to be beneficial for it.

I wonder about the difference in heart rate between jumping in the snow after a sauna and sprinting. Something to experiment with this winter.

That is so cool. There's a soft spot in my heart for skateboarding, having done it for all of my teenage years and then some.

This is a good thing to discuss. Is it actually unhealthy to expose the skin to cold? Especially if the interior is kept warm (like jumping in the snow after being in a sauna for a long time)? It seems to me that if you're already warm, then a little bit of cold on the skin causes the blood to move...you turn red. This is a good thing, I think. I'm interested in hearing what others think of this.

I love to practice outdoors, especially in the snow. But I prefer to bundle up.

Aw no way...we have to heat up our beer?!?

Hey Seth, looking forward to hearing your thoughts.