Aetherous

So true (Trump is actually very centrist or even liberal in his opinions)...but there is still the fact that people on the left and right think and operate in completely different ways. For instance, a liberal friend showed me an article about a year ago which claimed that conservatives are more fear based because their amygdalas are significantly larger than in liberals. At least that was the conclusion of that article. I also wonder about the fact that the amygdalas of diagnosed psychopaths are significantly smaller compared to the normal person... Anyway...people are all different. It's no wonder Sarah Silverman is a liberal, given her demeanor. Conservatives don't behave like that. There's a reason beyond simply choosing a side.

Trunk, you're not doing very well bridging the gap by laughing.

DVDs are now outdated? Wow, our culture is moving too fast. Just in the last decade they were the format of choice. Give teachers some time to catch up to the latest trend...it usually takes a person a year or two at least to put out a good product.

Thanks for giving a glimpse into the show. I think the love portrayed is very superficial, and the purpose of using that family is to defame people she disagrees with. It seems that I was right based on her interview.

I watched the entire interview yesterday, and didn't see where you got that. Maybe because in her show she doesn't openly attack ideas she disagrees with, but rather just presents the people with those ideas and sort of lets the audience come to their own conclusion (I haven't seen her show). Her demeanor and attitude, in addition to her words in this interview about Trump voters for instance, struck me in the exact opposite way of "bridging the gap". I saw a phrase today used to describe Saturday Night Live's liberal cold opens: "self satisfied". I realized that's the best way to describe how Sarah Silverman has behaved, too. In fact, it seems from my perspective that 95% of liberals behave this way. From my point of view, it's as if she thinks she's at the pinnacle of morality and intelligence, and is looking down upon those she disagrees with, and even feigning virtue by making her tv show and including them. Mocking them subtly, and pretending to be inclusive in order to feel more self righteous. I would think every long term spiritual practitioner has developed their wisdom enough to see through the facade of "self satisfaction"...hopefully primarily in themselves.

Just saw this picture of where different phonetics are produced in the mouth, and thought it'd be interesting to some people here. I like how it classifies the locations. Does anyone know of further resources for this?

Yes, it was hard to want to listen to that. It's better to make music that's pleasing to the ear.

Eh, maybe that's true for some.

I would hope that only good happens to them, because life was hard enough. But hope doesn't always match reality.

Long story short...someone paid me for something through PayPal, and then made a false claim of having not received the item. PayPal then made my account negative for that amount, made me explain my side...then took a month to ask me for evidence. I provided it right away, and then they took a couple of weeks to make a decision...in favor of the scam artist, despite the evidence! Now they ask that I add money to my account so make the balance 0...essentially stealing money from an honest customer. Take it from me: don't use PayPal if you're selling or accepting money, because there's the chance the buyer will use this scam and due to PayPal's policies, you'll lose.

I thought they were great for years...up until this happened. Apparently even if your buyer receives your product, and you have proof it was delivered to them, they can still file a false claim and Paypal will side with the buyer automatically. I was reading lots of stories of sellers getting burned this way. Luckily, most people aren't out there trying to scam people.

I contacted the Better Business Bureau right away after this happened, and opened up a case on Paypal, giving all evidence to them. BBB emailed me a couple of days ago saying they never received a response from Paypal to their enquiry, and to send them any communications Paypal made with me. I was busy and didn't send anything else. Just today (as a result of the BBB), Paypal suddenly refunded the full amount. So...if you do use Paypal and get screwed, contact the BBB.

I think for me - knowledge. I want to know the truth about everything.

Schools are for learning. There is a lot of random info in the spiritual marketplace, some good and some not...but without becoming an actual student of any of the various schools out there, our learning isn't as clear and systematic, and we almost completely lack guidance. There are various goals that we could set out for, but without a school do we even have a clear end goal in sight? Practicing aimlessly will bring aimless results. I'm a big fan of finding others to learn from in legitimate ways...a big fan of schools. Also, of doing the work of the school that you choose...be a good disciplined student, obeying the instruction as best you can, so long as its sensible and it brings benefit. At the same time, maintain your objectivity and keep the school's teaching in its place in your life...as just one aspect of who you are, and as counsel to consider rather than something to give up your capacity of reasoning for. So yeah...the use of schools is to learn better than you would otherwise, and then to have a better shot at attaining your (and the school's) goal.

You feel normal when eating meat, because that's the natural human diet. This is evidenced by the fact that vegetarian and vegan diets are lacking in certain nutrients (lysine amino acid, vitamin B12, etc). In our modern age, you can learn what deficiencies there are and supplement them with a vegetarian or vegan diet. See if that makes you feel normal.

https://www.masterclass.com/classes/thomas-keller-teaches-cooking-techniques This looks like the best course ever created for how to cook.

Think if that was you being squashed for the sake of convenience. Maybe a mightier creature than humans will come around and decide to squash us, just because we're not supposed to be here according to it. There's always another way. It might take some deep thought and ingenuity, but I'm sure you can solve the problem of ants existing in your home without continually having to kill them. Not saying it's unacceptable to ever kill anything...but I think this becomes a little problematic when we hate doing it, yet excuse ourselves for doing it. Don't do what you hate and know to be wrong. It's a negative action to do it, and rather than trying to put some money in the good karma bank as a way to selfishly make up for it, I think it'd be better to try anything else other than killing them. Find the way they enter, and seal it up. Attract them to a spot where they get trapped, then release them. Etc. Or just do what's easy and kill them...but at least understand the implications of the act.

What's the complex answer? I think a more complex answer is warranted because: there's the aspect of the production of wei qi being from Kidney yang (yuan qi), the fact that we feel warmth and an increase in exterior qi (our aura) when we do neigong, the fact that it's a yin and yang qiao mai issue when wei qi isn't properly entering the interior at night, that the 8 extra vessels are said to act as reservoirs for excess postheaven qi, etc...

Fresh albizzia flower (he huan hua) tea. It's comforting and relaxing...I guess I'd say it promotes peace in a subtle way. I felt that it made the renmai vibrate...but maybe that was just a one-off experience. Only problem - it requires living where those trees grow. I don't think the dried version of he huan hua is nearly as good for drinking as a tea. I also prefer my white chrysanthemum tea with the fresh flower, rather than dried...and never the yellow kind for making tea. You can also chew on the fresh white flower petals, which are gently sweet, and you'll feel it affecting the eyes and making them tingle. I think this benefits our vision, both physically and metaphorically. Lately I tried reishi prepared in a certain way. I've heard that if you steam it fully then dry it 9 times before using it, it really allows the true "spiritual" effects to come out. Well, I am pretty lazy and only steamed and dried it once...but I think it was much less bitter due to the steaming, and also had an effect on the mind that was stronger. Or maybe that was just me on that day...but I got some pretty strong visions before going to bed. After the steamings, it's beneficial to let it soak in cold water for a good amount of time (like 2 to 24 hours) then low boil/simmer for at least 2 hours. I plan to try the actual 9x steaming, and compare its effects and taste to unprepared, cooked for the same amount of time. ... I think an important (essential!) aspect of drinking various tisanes for longevity purposes is the setting and atmosphere. For instance, you can't expect to drink reishi and become integrated/getting insights/feeling connected to the universe, if you're drinking it on the city bus on the way back to work after lunch break. That's too chaotic. It should be during a time when you've accomplished all of your daily tasks and have nothing more to do except chill, in the evening with the windows open, curled up so that you're gently warm, with the lights low or looking up at the stars, or something...that's much more conducive to experiencing it and actually getting some benefit. I had a good experience when I shared the fresh albizzia flower tea with some friends, as we sat under a covering while it poured rain outside, listening to it and smelling the freshness of the rain. So that's another example of how setting can make the experience life altering. ... Regarding what foods are yin vs yang...perhaps the easiest way is to classify based on the temperature of the item. For instance, hot pepper is obviously "hot" or yang. Aloe is cooling, so it's yin. Interesting about those two, hot peppers tend to be dry and are drying...aloe tends to be moistening...we can also say yang vs yin for those qualities. Other aspects of the food to consider: what is its flavor? This is usually categorized based on five elements, rather than yin vs yang. Sweet/bland/moistening is earth, etc. There are differing ideas about how to classify the flavors, some saying that wood element is acrid, others saying that it's sour, etc...so this requires some deeper study and reflection. Sometimes "flavor" isn't what it tastes like, but merely represents the action it has on the body. So that's another thing to consider...what is this thing known to do for people? For instance, pregnant women use ginger to quell nausea and even vomiting, and others use it to help promote digestion during meals. Then there is the doctrine of signatures, where we see that ginger root is a yellow color, so we can surmise that it impacts the earth element...the stomach (which deals with nausea, digestion, etc). We could also look at the plant itself, and see that it may have a warming effect based on the color. (^ that's a ginger plant! How beautiful!) All things are made up of all of the five elements and yin and yang, more or less. When it's "less", meaning that it's more predominant in some aspects, then it becomes something kind of imbalancing to use as a food item and is more like a medicine. Ginger is a bit imbalancing due to being warming and spicy, but it's not too bad. Not like sichuan pepper, which isn't harmonious due to being quite hot and spicy. When it's "more", meaning that the five elements and yin and yang are more in harmony, then it's good for using as food or drink, and is good for longevity. ... As for what a person knows they need, in terms of yin or yang, etc... diagnosis is very complicated, and there can be seemingly conflicting signs and symptoms. For instance, you can feel hot but actually be cold and in need of warming things. So I think what's most important is: 1) Intuition rather than partial knowledge. What seems most harmonious for you to consume? What feels right? Are you guided toward eating something in particular...maybe you need it? Rather than, "I've heard _____ does _____, so I'm going to have a bunch of it because I know what I'm doing!" or "____ is unhealthy because ____, so I'm going to never have any of it!" 2) Results matter. Your experience determines what's beneficial for you or not. Does it make you feel healthier, make any negative symptoms go away, etc? Then you know that you need that thing for your yin yang balance. These two ideas of intuition and experience supercede the various theories out there.

This sounds nice and idealistic...but in reality, anyone graduating from a school that teaches Chinese herbal medicine and who gets licensed is fully qualified to practice. There is no 10 year barrier. Some random period of time passing, or having any old apprenticeship, doesn't necessarily make one practitioner better than another. I highly recommend sticking with what the professional does, unless it actually has bad effects or isn't working at all for months. Much better to listen to that person, than to some unqualified person on the internet.

That's not at all necessary, since what I said is true.

All of this is conceptual mapping of experience, which is duality. Maybe you can point at the truth with such exercises, but it'll always just be dualism in nature. Even to speak of the concept of "oneness" immediately means that its opposite exists.

Thanks for reporting back with your experience!

I don't know about the veracity of the information on this site: https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2018-04-08/rockefeller-familys-3bn-vc-fund-unveils-plans-invest-crypto but if true, then some big money is going into this stuff right now.

About Gerard's post...you need to see a licensed practitioner to come to a diagnosis. It's not true that liver and kidney yin deficiency are the root of insomnia.