Aetherous

The sky sperm things are definitely not "floaters". But I would agree that they aren't "visions", either (also agree with what Steve said regarding "visions").

It's good to try your best and not do things to hurt your significant other. But at the same time, them feeling emotions of all types is not a bad thing. To feel is to be alive and to be human. So you provided some meaning to her life, or kind of some action and drama to her story, from a certain perspective. This is actually good for the relationship...to develop meaning together. To have some sense of excitement. Better than being completely boring and predictable. But yeah that being said...best to not intentionally do this kind of thing to hurt her; try your best to be good to her. Just my ideas.

At a time when I was seeing these things very often, I would notice that what I saw changed around different people. For instance, one woman walked up nearby me in a bookstore and the things turned orange and darted around a little bit. In another instance, I was driving, and saw a car where I think the driver was agitated, and there were tons of the little sky sperms swarming above and around the vehicle. I think there's more to the story about what this phenomenon is. If I remember correctly, there are practices where you direct these things into different areas, to produce various results. It might have been in one of Jerry Alan Johnson's books, regarding practice with one's own shadow.

It's probably a grey area...not totally right or wrong. Because if we really enjoy doing something, without a doubt, it's at least partly good for us. If it feels very right, it basically is...like how pregnant women get cravings. They need what they're craving, at least in terms of the nutrients those foods provide, but also in terms of the comfort received from them. So if snacking brings you a lot of comfort, then it's good to some extent. But maybe it still creates ama...I'm not totally sure. I think if there is snacking on small light things like berries etc, the digestion is likely done within half an hour, especially if you're active at the time, which increases the agni (or in our terminology, exercise burns calories). It seems unnatural to me that people in such a situation would be snacking after the meat meal, for instance. We tend to follow what seems most right, and only when we're desensitized and living and eating unnaturally, do we not do what seems right...because we're unable to tell. If living in a natural environment, we're able to clearly see the laws of living by how we feel.

I personally am also on a very busy schedule lately, where I basically don't have time to cook or clean anything sometimes for a week. But I sneak in like an hour and a half of practice (on good days...bad days it's more like 45 minutes), because I wake up earlier to get a morning session in, and also have a dedicated night time practice. Morning just after waking up is a good time to get things done that you would otherwise procrastinate. And night time, you can create a few spare moments, because the day is done. It can also help you relax and wind down from the busy day. That amount of time which I aim for isn't necessary. I would say that if you do "calm abiding meditation", just 15 minutes of it will create a lot of good effects in your day.

For ideal health...I believe that going to bed shortly after it turns completely dark outside, waking up shortly before the light begins to rise outside...(or for those of us with alarm clocks, roughly 10pm, and roughly 5am depending on the seasons). 10pm is the beginning of the pitta time at night, and 11pm is the Liver hours, so it's good to sleep during that time in order for the body to restore itself. 5am is the beginning of the large intestine hours, so it's good to defecate then upon rising rather than sleeping through that time. 7-8 hours of sleep is good on average...if you're really exhausted from something, then taking more sleep might be necessary for a while. But for every night, 8 hours might even be a bit too much...a little bit less than a full night actually seems healthiest, whereas more sleep might make you lethargic. About the times...well, just think, before we were civilized, when the night came there wasn't much to do apart from sit around a fire, if you have one. If you venture off, it's scary...so you're basically done with the day once it's dark. Nothing left to do, plus you're probably tired from doing things during the day, so you pass out and sleep like a baby. That's living in harmony with the earth and nature's cycles. It's important to have enough exercise in the day (preferably outdoors in the sun and not overly intense...mostly just walking and doing various tasks, such as carrying items, climbing, chopping, swimming, etc, maybe once in a blue moon going for a sprint because you're being chased by a bear lol), and to not have unnatural lighting, so that you can sleep soundly when the hour comes. If you sit and lay around too much, you'll have too much energy left to use, and won't be able to rest...also your energetic and physical channels will be more closed, which means they won't be working properly...so exercise is important, even if it's just going for walks a few times a day to get places. Modern research warns us of the negative effects of too much sitting...to the point that workaholics are even installing walking treadmills in front of their work spaces. lol As for diet, I believe that eating very light in the morning, eating more at noon hours, and eating lighter for dinner is good. The digestive system wakes up strongly at 11am, since that is the beginning of the daytime pitta hours, or basically when the metabolism (agni) is at its highest. It's best to eat light for breakfast, which is basically during the Spleen and Stomach hours, so that they aren't overburdened by a lot of food, but also aren't starving (lately I've just been having congee...rice and water with maybe some other appropriate stuff added). If the body isn't ready to digest for the day, then forcing it to will create unhealthy results. Speaking of timing of digestion...think back to pre-civilization with hunting and gathering. They might have had some sort of refrigeration nearby, such as storing things in a cold river...or perhaps they kept some fruits near them to have in the morning...but basically, when you wake up, you likely don't have breakfast sitting there. You have to go and get food, so perhaps the morning time before 11am is best suited for more physical activity. Ayurveda tells us that these are the kapha hours, and to balance them it recommends exercise at that time. So perhaps ideally, you'd wake up, chill out and stretch for a bit, get unfoggy, have a very light breakfast, then go for a walk to do something...and only after that, do you eat a bigger meal. You're probably very ready to eat at that point, and will savor the flavors of any foods (such as natural ones that have less flavor than our unnatural ones)...which will make the meal more readily absorbed by your body (in contrast to attempting to stuff food down the throat when it only looks half appealing). Of course, eating organic, non-GMO, fresh from the garden, is best. Fresh means there is prana in it, or that your body will reap more qi from the food. In contrast...eating frozen non-organic foods, is not ideal, due to the extra junk in them as well as the fact that it doesn't even have life force in it. Eating only till satisfied and not past the point of being full, since that will overburden the Stomach and Spleen, and create dampness, or in Ayurvedic terms, ama (internal toxins). Another thing that creates ama is snacking on something shortly after a previous meal...the digestive organs need time to do their digestion, so it's best to just have a meal and then wait until digestion is complete after like 4 hours. You can gauge if your body is ready to eat again by the pulse, at the surface or floating levels, if the kapha/ring finger is strongest, then your body is still digesting something...if the index finger is strongest at those very top levels, then you're likely done digesting and your Stomach is ready for more food. Just some ideas from my learnings.

Yes, I could find post #40, thank you. However, I did not open up a discussion for the Obama administration in years prior...I was only referring to the past year in comparison to former years. In contrast to them...not discussing them. Because this thread is about noticing things or changes "lately" (for instance, this past year)...it's not about politics in the last several years necessarily. Unless that's what "lately" is referring to...but in my post, post #40, it was absolutely not what I was referring to. If you read more carefully, you'll be able to catch my true meaning. I hope this makes sense now.

Hmm...don't know where you saw that...but anyway, this isn't a productive line of discussion.

"Lately" is what this thread is about and is the only reason I mentioned this stuff. And IS was not solely funded and armed by US...it's not that simple, and they are a global threat. While it was an incredibly stupid move to send our help that way, again that was prior to this past year. I'm not talking about how the Obama administration sucks, which is a great topic...I'm talking about the spiritual tides changing this past year after numerous years of bad juju.

Well, if it's for attacking the IS, then it definitely is a step in the right direction. Anyway, I think most of the stuff you listed is from years prior to this one...

Enlightenment is actually not a state.

Maybe so...but just to get an idea of what you mean, what's an example of it?

Tears and the eyes are related to the Liver.

Everything happens for a reason and has its way of working out later on, so don't become discouraged by obstacles or failures...to have these things means that your character is being forged, and they will happen regardless of anything. Try your absolute best in every endeavor, even if you don't need to, and even if it won't make a difference, and always be planning your next steps...aka, set goals constantly. You can't get what you want if you don't know clearly what that is. Who you are and what you do with yourself is more important than what you can get out of life...the meaning you derive from how you live will last much longer than an expensive car for instance. Don't neglect moderate fitness, and sensible nutrition...looking good gives you a big leg up in this world. Be tenacious and persevere.

Well yeah I'm with you, but the administration as well as its supreme court were making noticeably worse decisions previously, compared to this year. Maybe not in all aspects but definitely something I noticed.

The way I see things, the administration (of the US) was quite dark and unenlightened up until recently...and basically our collective luck was quite bad until recently. At least this is the case for myself and most people that I know in my life. This year has been a good one, for those who are trying their best. I think it's the very beginning of another good period, in contrast to the last several years which were pretty much extraordinarily bad. Even just looking at what types of music are being released the past several months...there has been good stuff lately compared to quite a long stretch of nonsense.

Baolin Wu, a qigong teacher, recommends to use your own pulse...inhale for 4, exhale for 4 (no matter what the bpm is). Kind of cool to sync the breath to the heart.

I would think, for little kids, it's best that they not learn to fight. Our society has become very much one where you go and tell the "teacher" (tell a cop, or get a lawyer). If you use physical violence, you will be arrested, as an adult. You are then the enemy of the society. It's taken very seriously...so the first step of self defense in such a situation, is to not get in trouble by the law enforcement/teacher. If your kid fought for himself, even at this age, he could be kicked out of whatever school he's at. You don't want to raise a kid like that...they end up having trouble all throughout life, due to being the outcast. That being said, if there's a fight or flight decision, it's best to fight in life. Aggression is good, if even the aggression is only a matter of standing on his own two feet and being self confident enough to not be pushed around by others. So if I were you, I would find ways to develop the strength of my child, while not teaching him to hurt others. Teach him, on the other hand, to stand up against bullies! Protect the innocent. That's what truly strong people do. One way to do this might be to practice zhan zhuang with him, as weird as it sounds for such a young kid. But if you want him to develop the ability to stand on his own two feet...what better way than actually doing so.

rest

If you can plan to do something for 10 years, and actually follow through with it, then I might suggest that you are beyond the stage of needing celibacy for your cultivation. Also, if it were me, I'd be making love to my girlfriend. I'm not saying this because it's hard to understand celibacy, but because the teachings on sexual transmutation I've been given point to that direction...and away from the direction of denying her the things she needs, such as intimacy. To cultivate at the expense of others is not going to be fruitful cultivation. And there is dual cultivation, which is said to be more effective than celibacy itself, in terms of helping you transmute. So you might want to learn about that instead. But having a plan and following through with it, is a very good thing. Better than creating a plan and then failing to follow through with it.

http://www.amazon.com/Chinese-Nutrition-Therapy-Traditional-Complementary/dp/3131309628/

Aversion to negativity/attachment to positivity is a negative state of mind. Attachment is considered one of the three main "poisons" in Buddhism. Most don't understand that favoring positivity is the cause of their negativity. So actually it helps to overcome negativity, to accept it in some ways. To not fight it. I like to tell myself, "let it wash over you completely"...that helps me to open up my heart to it/in the midst of it. Opening your heart is cultivation of the positive...and when you're positive, negativity doesn't affect you. It's not what you're given to deal with in life, that determines the quality of your cultivation (such as experiencing a negative vibe from a negative person...in this case you're being passive in your being and accepting things the way they seem...just because you feel bad and negative juju, doesn't mean that your cultivation is going bad...actually, challenges are prime opportunities for spiritual growth). It's actually about what you do with what life throws at you, which determines your cultivation (what you do with your mind, how you act, what you say about the supposedly negative person, etc....in this case you're being active in your being...you're cultivating in the midst of life circumstances). The spiritual path is absolutely about positivity. This is not newage...newage is the kind of positivist philosophy that's characterized by being completely ineffective. The type of person that becomes a monster as a result of fighting monsters...the type of person who becomes cruel in order to maintain their own good vibes and inner peace, pushing people in need away. They probably live their life by the equivalent of Marilyn Monroe quotes. They tend to be completely oversensitive, and exist at the whim of celestial movements ("mercury is in retrograde during my saturn return with pluto!" or whatever). This kind of thing is the opposite of the spiritual path. The spiritual path is about making decisions from a place of responsibility...not experiencing weird shit and playing the victim all of the time. You're actually supposed to play the hero, in every sense of the word. And the OP was totally right...the actual spiritual path is harder to live than normal life. There are spiritual trials, and at the same time, you're holding yourself to a certain standard. The real spiritual path will take you beyond who you were, in order to forge you into who you are. It's totally about the dark side of things...such as confronting your fears, facing negativity directly, etc. Diving into the dragon's mouth...to emerge, unharmed. Therefore, it's the most positive thing in the world!

"You can always do a little bit more than you think you can." - Drill Sergeant West (physically demonstrated this principle by using pushups until complete muscle failure...taking a little rest, and then cranking out two more...taking another rest, and cranking out two more...and continuing...)

These kinds of beliefs aren't necessarily held by all who call themselves Christians.

Someone recently posted a video here of various master level practitioners in China (I think of internal styles of gongfu)...one said that his teacher insisted upon his reading the New Testament in order to get rid of violent/killing qi before each training session. If you have that kind of negative qi, it reflects back upon you and harms you when training...so religious or spiritual study can be good. Another example: I think Mantak Chia has said he is Christian.