Aetherous

Well...literally everyone is judged, and it's a personal thing of whether we identify as victims, or not but simply dislike when it happens. Sometimes I have a hard time with it too. In the house I currently live, which is filled with gay women, I'm judged and was recently treated like less than shit for simply being a man. It's just the world we live in, where some people can't help but feel negative and cast it onto others from time to time. One can be judged for being too normal, as well. Think about that. Life ain't easy for most of us.

Well, it could be that you are feminine "on the inside", Songtsan...if you really think you are that way, of course it's not my place whatsoever to convince you otherwise. You know yourself best, as well as what you want for your life. People yelling at you to "walk like a man" probably doesn't help with your self-image as a man at all...making suggestions like that can really screw with the psyche. I personally have this impression from my experiences, that men on the inside are what women look like on the outside, and women on the inside are what men look like on the outside. That's not to say that within every man is a woman, or that men are actually feminine, by any means. But for instance, there is the saying "hell hath no fury like a woman scorned". They can be strong, hard, and abrasive on the inside, like how a man looks. Think of a father teaching their kid things...is that not the spitting image of "gentle"? Also, think of how women have friendships versus how men do...men can have best friends, and there is comfort and relaxation on a deep level for years, where you even pick up where you left off...but with women it's generally surface-level short-lasting filled-with-tension-walking-on-egg-shells fake-friendships. If you don't see this in your life take a look around, and you will...although of course there are exceptions to the rule. So yeah, perhaps the genders are opposite on the inside and outside...although this doesn't mean that men normally feel like they are women.

Lifting weights works for testosterone. I was doing the Stronglifts program which worked really well, until I got a knee injury (due to not stretching). I've never thought of you as being feminine at all, Songtsan. So perhaps you don't really need supplements to become who you already are...in which case, any issue you have here is likely just of the mind. Besides lifting weights...I think it's also good to make sure you're getting really good sleep and balanced nutrition. If you can, go to bed at 10pm. Start reading a book so that you're not looking at a computer screen at that time, which is what keeps people up. Fiction books will help take you out of the real world and into your imagination, so it's a good preparation for sleep and dreaming. And in addition to that, if you have a spiritual practice that normalizes or calms the mind, that can help. For instance just take a leaf from a tree, set a timer for 20 minutes, and just look at the details of the leaf as your object of meditation. When thoughts drift, bring your attention back to noticing the leaf's details. That particular meditation will really help make the mind function better...and when the mind is normal, then your natural expression of your true gender comes forward. You want the natural state of your being...not something unnatural like "becoming" more male through supplementation or any other kind of changing. It's not necessary to become what you already are...but it is helpful to heal what you already are, through rest.

I'm with you on that, lifeforce. People can sometimes present huge challenges to our cultivation! It's hard to think of this in the moment it's happening, but perhaps these aren't really obstacles so much as they are things to overcome...things that strengthen our cultivation, if we can figure out in the moment how to navigate them. There is a time when the rage is starting, where we have a choice to make. The easiest choice is to become enraged and think of all the ways we're justified in it...imagining hacking the person to pieces. The harder choice is to walk away and focus on other things. The Buddhists say that we should watch our body speech and mind. Even our thoughts should be good. I say this, despite the fact that I myself imagined killing an offending person multiple ways just this past week. The higher we go, the harder we fall, and the more care and responsibility we have to take. The path can be a choice...are we spiritual beings with noble ideals, or are we merely physical beings who react? Which lifestyle do we choose in those defining moments?

It seems you're confusing zong qi and zhong qi. They are different terms! It's not that someone simply forgot to put the 'h' sometimes. Did you know that ying qi is basically part of both zong qi and zhong qi, or did you think it was some completely separate kind of qi in the body that works with those to make yuan qi? It's theorized that zong qi ends up transforming into zhen qi, which is ying qi and wei qi. Zhong qi is basically a term for how well the middle jiao is functioning. Sometimes in more ancient medical texts these terns are all seemingly used interchangably...for instance it can be said simply that ying qi is coming directly from the Stomach..........rather than the Stomach sending the vivified food essences to the Spleen which sends gu qi up to the Lungs to combine with breath to create zong qi which through yuan qi creates zhen qi which is ying qi and wei qi. They can interchange the terms because they understand them. The source of ying qi is the Stomach ultimately, so they can say it comes from the Stomach, rather than giving the whole theory of how ying qi is created and refined. It's best to develop some humility when trying to understand challenging things...if there's no humility, you'll think you already understand it when you have barely scratched the surface. It's better to be unimpressed with what you know, and have a desire for truth.

Yes, as opendao pointed out, what I said was a direct quote from your link...it was not at all gossip. If you did, you'd realize that the author is wrong.

That link also says, I quote, "yuan qi is the postnatal qi".

Why don't people who frequent forums ever become high level?

That sounds like a credit card company or airline.

This is a great idea if you can get or become a representative of a Daoist sect.

To really say whether jing is full or not, at least in my view it's important to look at signs and symptoms in Chinese medical diagnosis, in addition to spiritual sources of info. Being unable to digest lots of beans after a while and having diarrhea, might not be a sign of full jing...but just a sign that the Spleen qi isn't doing so well because of that diet (maybe, just a guess). It could be excess damp, rather than excess jing. One really easy way to tell whether the kidney and jing are doing okay or not...stick out your tongue and look in the mirror. See the back part of your tongue, where it's said the kidney and intestines areas are...is there a dip in the center in the back? Or does it go flat all the way across? If there's a dip, it indicates a deficiency of substance (kidney yin or jing). I've personally noticed with breathing practice and meditation, if there is a good session, the tongue will be flat across in the back afterward, indicating that the methods have positively impacted the jing and kidney function. If I don't practice for a while and also get exhausted from things, then perhaps there will be a slight dip back there. For normal healthy people there shouldn't be a dip...but not everyone is normal or healthy, and kidneys start taking a hit in most people. We want to always keep our kidney function healthy, and not be tapping into our prenatal jing (shortening our lifespan). Eating what people say are jing increasing foods might not actually increase the jing...for instance if your diet causes the Spleen to become deficient, despite eating those foods as advertised for increasing jing, then that poor digestion will be taxing the Kidneys and somewhat the jing, and also not creating sufficient qi and blood which could otherwise nourish the kidneys and restore the postnatal jing. Not everything that people say regarding various foods or medicines is accurate...what is said to boost the jing might actually have an opposite effect of that based on people's misunderstandings and lack of experience with it. In terms of spiritual ideas about whether jing is full or not...I've heard it said from one source that if you don't desire sex, then it's a sign that your jing has been filled for the time being. I suppose another sign is that you seem to have a healthy glow to your skin. Regarding whether to be celibate or to ejaculate...well, I'm of the opinion that both are extremes. Celibacy is good for all of the time that you're doing okay with it. When you start going nuts, getting super aggressive and overly lustful about any little thing, then perhaps it's time to be sexual. This is just my personal opinion, and is more oriented toward health and functioning in the real world, rather than spiritual pursuit. For the latter, celibacy is probably good...but that must include mind training in order to bypass the lust/aggression etc.

Just show up, tell them congrats, and then leave early to go do something that you actually enjoy. That way they can't give you shit for it and you basically did the right thing, while taking care of yourself too, so you'll feel good.

Sometimes I just walk and breathe fully, feeling the fresh air rejuvenate me as the walking clears the channels. Simple.

Femininity is far from undesirable.

To start, it can mean opposite qualities of these... So, masculinity is not getting rid of those listed qualities, but: rationality/logic taking a high precedence over being intuitive or creative, taking action in life or being proactive instead of just reactive or receptive/going with the flow...and not overly influenced by the external or other people, or one's emotions regarding those things, but having strength in one's own boundaries and general comfort in any situation. Imagine...someone who gets things done as they're supposed to be, without a fuss or any drama. A straightforward person. It's actually a good thing to cultivate masculinity, if you're a man. Our culture is for the most part missing that initiation completely. It's also missing the one where women are taught how to effectively be women...so our culture is shown all sorts of examples in the media of women portraying masculine qualities and vice versa, despite it being entirely unnatural (in my opinion) to them. This is why we're confused and why some people can't even figure out what masculinity might be...we're not told the truth, and we're shown the opposite of the truth constantly for some reason. Some people have woken up a bit, realized some things, and this is why a lot of men are wanting to be more manly these days...for instance with the beard gaining some popularity the last couple of years. It's a good thing. Masculinity is a very beneficial force in our world, despite what many people will say these days (post-feminism, and in spiritual circles especially). Just my views.

I'll be interested to hear how your school is going once you get into it!

I agree with you totally...but what's insanity is also simply human nature. Lets say if my family is tortured and killed right in front of me...I'm pretty sure that healing the perpetrators wouldn't be the first thing on my mind. Not that what's on my mind would be good...but it would be natural, rather than completely unheard of. It's beneficial to be understanding of people at the place they're at.

The Judge has spoken. (hopefully this wasn't taken personally...I meant it as something to reflect upon, that I am guilty of as well. We all judge others, but perhaps that is not a virtuous quality to cultivate within us, despite how easy it becomes the longer we assume the role of cultivator. I assume any truly spiritual type would appreciate the reflection provided...unless they disagree with the idea that judging is a form of negativity.)

Something that struck me about the recent fight...after it was over, Pacquiao told the interviewer that he thought he won the fight. On the other hand, Mayweather was basically talking up Pacquiao saying what a great fighter he was... So we saw the person who prays and is humble, act proud and disrespectful when losing, and we saw the supposedly evil (because of domestic abuse issues) cocky selfish dude congratulate the other guy rather than talk himself up and denigrate the loser. Who is to say what is cultivation and what isn't? It appears to me like Mayweather's behavior was cultivation or a product of it. Pride can get the best of us, and the higher we rise, the harder we fall. I've cultivated for over 15 years now, but today I realize that I'm more negative about how I view other people than ever...more than normal non-cultivators. So what is true cultivation and who is actually cultivating? Life...nobody said it was easy.

I like the teaching that you attain real enlightenment when you are completely free from 1) negative emotions, and 2) concepts, such as the idea of oneself.

Of course.

Most people who are drawn toward spirituality are.

Not the modern Army by any means. ... We're trying to be convinced here that the 3 black officers were in the minority amidst the 3 other officers...and that they weren't able to question their own actions for themselves, because as the minority they just have to follow along with what's obviously racist and murderous? Come on now.