Songshou

Hi! One more point, or analogy....Let's think of two Trigrams forming a Hexagram on the Tree of Life as a Dao / De (Tao/Te) relationship. So in Hexagram 32, "Returning' (Fu) we have the Trigrams Thunder below, and Earth above. That's Netzah below, and Binah above. I am reading the bottom ("inner") Trigram first, as Dao, then the top ("outer") Trigram next, as De: i.e., Netzah as Dao, Binah as De. Netzah ----> Binah That seems to be the Trigram syntax of the I Ching Hexagrams: bottom (inner) Trigram ----> top (outer) Trigram. If the Trigrams are reversed, Hexagram 16 "Providing" (Yu) then we have Earth (Binah) as bottom (inner), and Thunder (Netzah) as top (outer) Trigram. Here Binah is Dao, and Netzah is De. Binah ----> Netzah What I need to do next is go through the entire 64 Hexagrams, look at them in the same way via the Sefiroth of the Tree of Life, and see what makes sense as well as what doesn’t make sense to me yet! (I’m not about to expect that everything will make sense, by the way! It’s just an experiment. ) Then I’ll do the same thing with the 81 Tetragrams as Yang Xiong named them! (Those read as top Bigram = Dao, then bottom Bigram = De, which is opposite to the Hexagram direction.) Wish me luck!

P.S. I should give an example to help guide anyone interested in interpreting the Hexagrams and Tetragrams on the Tree of Life. It’s an interpretive Art, of course; just like with Astrology. The example I’ll use has, fortunately, the same idea for both a Hexagram (Jie) and a Tetragram (Shi -- as Yang Xiong named it): 40. ䷧ “Liberation” (Jie) 21. 𝌚 “Release” (Shi) For the Hexagram, as I place the Trigams on the Tree, “Liberation” has, below, Trigram “Water” = HESED; then above, Trigram “Thunder” = NETZAH--as Hexagrams are read--which could be interpreted as Hesed’s Compassion/Love/Mercy being empowered and activated by Netzah’s Revolutionary Energy; resulting in Liberation or Freedom. For Freedom is the Power of Love, the Action of Compassion (i.e., blue and red make purple/violet). For the Tetragram, the Bigrams--above and then below as Tetragrams are read--are both Netzah, therefore the full Power of Netzah, which is Dionysian in Energy; and Dionysos is always the Liberator, who releases all bonds. (“They sought to bind Him with rude bonds, but the bonds would not hold Him.” -- Homeric Hymn 7 to Dionysos) It’s also interesting that the number is 21 (7 x 3) -- in the Secret School of Buddhism, the 21st saving power is the “Dharma of Liberation”, the freeing power of the Purple Lotus Flower. I don’t mean to imply that all the Hexagrams or Tetragrams will be this easily interpreted! There are many subtleties to both. Anyway, let all who can--and will--be released, set free, to find, practice and master Flying Phoenix Chi Kung!

Hi! To finish off my primary Taoist/Kabbalist thoughts which some recent words of Sifu Terry here stimulated--my thoughts, after all, being a sideline to the main theme of this FP Discussion--I'll post the image I made today which offers one possible placement of the I Ching Trigrams on the Tree of Life. "A certain point of view", as Obi-wan told Luke. This is a separate matrix from placing the Bigrams (and resulting Tetragrams) on the Tree, which I already posted. There probably are points of correspondence--but I treat them as separate meditations and lines of inquiry and insight. Separate "tracks" engraved on the Tree of Life (as on a CD or CD-ROM), we might also say. For me here, Kether is still above and before the Play, the Lila. And Daath is beyond it (though an aperture of entry into and out of another dimension of integration and transcendence, far beyond my current ability to grasp). Because we have 8 aspects here, I see Malkhuth as a point of convergence and integration, and anchoring, for all the 8 Trigrams: "Heaven" for Hokhmah, "Earth" for Binah, "Water" for Hesed, "Fire" for Gevurah, "Mountain" for Tifereth, "Thunder" for Netzah, "Wind" for Hod, "Lake" for Yesod. So from these Trigrams, 64 Hexagrams of interaction between the Sefiroth can form. Each Sefirah by itself has its Trigram doubled to make a Hexagram (just as each Sefirah alone has its Bigram doubled to make its Tetragram in that diagram). How what results relates to the names given the Hexagrams in the I Ching is another extensive line of inquiry. Also, there's a separate issue of how the 64 Hexagrams might fit on the 32 Paths of Wisdom (32 x 2 -- going down the Tree and then up again?). I'm not trying to address that question here; it would take a lot of intuition and insight. Let me know if someone you know of has done it!!

Hi Aeran, As often as not, the FOOL is placed first in the deck, as # 0 (Zero), with the symbolism that He is the Spirit about to step off into Manifestation and Experience. # 1 then becomes the Magician. [Of course, since the dictum is "as above, so below", and the journey is a circle/spiral, it's natural the Fool could also appear last. See J.S. Bach's Goldberg Variations--which is Tree-of-Life structured, maybe subconsciously, for that, also.] There are 21 Major Arcana in Tarot, while I'm working with 81 aspects or codes. I just chose the FOOL as a symbol for Kether, the Crown, which stays above and before Manifestation in the matrix of 9 x 9 = 81 as interactions between the 9 lower Sefiroth. (Daath stays beyond Manifestation, on another level or dimension.) It's just my own intuition and meditative matrix, which I hadn't found elsewhere but just saw; someone else may see things differently, since as Obi-wan Kenobi told us, it all depends on your point of view! It will be the same with my Trigrams on the Tree of Life which I will post next--it's a certain point of view.

Hi! I wanted to present more visually what I wrote on Sept 17 to Sifu Terry about some correspondences I noticed between Taoist and Kabbalist teachings, in response to some comments of his own. This is just a side issue, which I wrote out mostly for Sifu or a few others interested in such parallels or possible parallels. Feel free to ignore it! Especially as it's just my take on the subject, what works for me. So here are two charts of the Taoist 9 Bigrams (which combine to form 81 Tetragrams) as I see them on the Kabbalist Tree of Life. One chart uses the Chinese characters for Heaven, Earth, and Human (Tian, Di, and Ren). The second chart uses the standard symbols ____ for 1) Tian (Heaven), __ __ for 2) Di (Earth), and _ _ _ for 3) Ren (Human). My prior post contains some thoughts I won't repeat here, since I'm just adding the visuals to make things clearer! I'm also meditating currently on how to place the I Ching Trigrams on the Kabbalist Tree of Life (there is not necessarily just one way, of course!), and later I may share some of that, once I make the diagrams. May all auspicious blessings from the Taoist Immortals and especially Xi Wang Mu and the Er Xian (Twin Immortals) enrich and enhance your FP practice!

Hi Sifu Terry! I like to do things in pairs, or couplets, so I came up with a prayer couplet for the Queen Mother of the West. I'm just sharing it as a gift of positive energy for your Work, okay? Shi Yao Fei Feng Xi Wang Mu, Shi Rao Yi Feng Xi Wang Mu 施藥飛鳳西王母 ䷭ 施饒益豐西王母 ䷊ (䷩ Yi ䷶ Feng) The first line you already know, and it has the Hexagram for "Ascending." The second line uses the one character "rao" that means both "wealth/abundance"; and "mercy, pardon." And the "feng" is a different character, meaning "abundance" rather than "phoenix" as in the first line. (For my meditation, I see "rao" as both "abundance of mercy" and "mercy of abundance"; or "abundant mercy" and "merciful abundance"!) Also for the second line, the words "yi" and "feng" have their own Hexagrams #42 and #55. The overall Hexagram for the 2nd line and invocation--for my own meditation, anyway--is #11, "Harmony." Just as the Immortal Twins who bestow prosperous commerce (com-merce; as well as comm-unication, comm-union, con-jugal, con-gruent, etc.) are also bestowers of harmony: Shi Xi Xi He He Er Xian 施曦喜和合二仙 ䷤ Hope this brings a smile to you, at least!

Hi Sifu Terry! I have long been fascinated by correspondences between Chinese and Kabbalist teachings. For example, I'm sure there's a way (not sure if anyone has fully intuited it yet) to correlate the 64 Hexagrams with the 32 Paths (x 2) of the Tree of Life. One matrix I did notice is how one could place the 81 Tetragrams (which were used and given names by Yang Xiong in his Tai Xuan Jing, but are very much older than that treatise or those names) on the Tree of Life. In this matrix, you see Keter as Above (or Before) manifestation; then the 9 Sefirot below it multiply 9 x 9 with one another. [Daat is Beyond manifestation, in another dimension.] So, seeing the Pillar of Force as Tian (Heaven), the Pillar of Form as Di (Earth), and the Pillar of Equilibrium as Ren (Human), we get these Bigrams, since I've read that the Tetragrams, and their Bigrams, are read from top down according to tradition: [I'm not using the line graphs this time--much as I like them visually--because of an Internet controversy voiced by a few over the once-broken and twice-broken lines--which is Di and which is Ren? None of them refer in their arguments to the original, primary source Chinese, and I would think the Chinese text of the Tai Xuan Jing should have the correct correlation and settle the whole matter. In any case all recent standard articles I've found at this point state: _____ Tian, __ __ Di, _ _ _ Ren. Also see Reference Note Below.] Hokhmah: Tian Tian Binah: Di Di Hesed: Tian Di Gevurah: Di Tian Tiferet: Ren Ren Netzah: Tian Ren Hod: Di Ren Yesod: Ren Tian Malkhut: Ren Di To give 3 examples out of the 81: The Tetragram for Malkhut by itself is the Bigram doubled: Ren Di Ren Di The Tetragram for Hesed energy leading, Malkhut energy following (so to speak) is: Tian Di Ren Di in contrast to Malkhut leading, Hesed following (perhaps Malkhut Yang, Hesed Yin--where each of the Sefirot has both Yang and Yin potential depending on the Tetragram): Ren Di Tian Di Kabbalah indicates that once the Sefirot emanate, they are equal partners with one another in manifestation; and that's why Kabbalists can talk of interactions of their energies in particular persons, groups, and situations. Somewhat the same as astrologers talk of interactions between the 12 zodiac signs. So the 81 Tetragrams of the Sefirot would be 81 aspects of the "Holy Spirit" (or the "Nirmanakaya", in Buddhist terms). Maybe, even, 81 possibilities for the "Fool" (0) after he walks off the cliff at the beginning of most Tarot decks? Anyway, this is just one of many such Chinese/Jewish correspondences (or potential correspondences!), and just my personal take on one aspect. And there are many angles here that I haven't mentioned or even noticed. Certainly the Taoist Heaven/Earth/Human (Tian/Di/Ren) matrix has connections also with the Kabbalist 3 Mother Letters (Shin/Mem/Aleph) and 3 Father Letters (Yud/Hey/Vav), with some differences of emphasis such as Element attributions. Same threefold idea, though! P.S. Maybe the "Tetragram of the Hour" here (for the prospering of FP teaching and practice) would be: Tian Ren Ren Di which I see as Netzah--->Malkhut. (Maybe those 2 Ren lines are even the Twin Immortals multiplying and prospering the whole endeavor , haha, hehe, bringing it from Tian to Di, from Heaven to Earth.) P.S. (5 days later) I'm now starting to compare the names for the Tetragrams given by Yang Xiong in his Tai Xuan Jing, taking care to use the most recent articles and charts, and scholarship, with what I can intuit by placing them on the Kabbalist Tree of Life. I already see some interesting correspondences. ....By the way, a paragraph above I previously spoke of "the Twin Immortals multiplying and prospering the whole endeavor." I just discovered (coming back to revise my post some days after writing it) that the Tian/Ren/Ren/Di Tetragram is called: 𝌟 26Endeavor NOTE: http://www.unicode.org/wg2/docs/n2988.pdf (quotes original Chinese)

Hi! Flying Phoenix is not only quite revivifying but also stimulating. Since I started it again, ideas, and images, and connections, have been coming to me--some of which I have posted here. It's not that any of them are "necessary", because FP works independently of ideas and images; but they are "frosting on the cake", for me on my personal alchemy path. So lately the I CHING has been coming up (or coming down...or coming through!) a lot for me. I keep finding or remembering various Hexagrams that, I think, are also "activation codes." I'll be watching and waiting to see how they activate in my life and my spirit. Yesterday and today I've been thinking of the two Hexagrams that have to do with multiplication. I'll share what's coming to me today for any of you who have an affinity with the I CHING. If you don't, just skip over it, as it may not be useful to you! I saw the two Hexagrams #42 "Increase" and #55 "Abundance" arrange themselves (from below upwards, as is traditional) like so: There's an alchemical progression here: The first (solid) Yang line meets 3 (broken) Yin lines which multiply it into 2 Yang lines. Those 2 Yang lines then represent themselves in the next, upper Hexagram as 1 Yang line, meeting 1 Yin line, causing a multiplication of 2 Yang and 2 Yin. So--multiplication and then multiplication of multiplication! This is just how I (partially, I'm sure) perceive the two Hexagrams in this energetic arrangement--there are many ways of looking at the Hexagrams, of course! So to get (meditatively) practical....We all support Sifu Dunn in his work to expand and increase, and multiply, the teaching and practice of FP. It's a work to benefit others as well as ourselves. We all want to facilitate Sifu's release on video of everything FP-related that can be safely released on video, and additionally his personal teaching of meditations that require personal teaching for safety reasons--as well as his personal coaching for finer points of the video-released meditations. We want opportunities to 益 (yì) increase ䷩ and 豐 (fēng) abound ䷶ for Sifu Dunn to teach FP to more people on video and in person. We want, in general, real Ch'i Kung to be made available to more people, as opposed to watered-down, dumbed-down "ch'i kung" or "qigong". And now that I have the 12-pointed double-hexagram star, I can place each solid or broken line (moving from bottom lines to top lines of the Hexagrams, first ䷩ and then ䷶) around that star, starting at the top point of the star and proceeding clockwise around the points--with the Purple Rose inside, of course, to further empower the whole matrix. So I'm sharing this I CHING thoughtform, maybe even activation code, to help energize this multiplication of FP teaching and practicing, through Sifu and others he will train to teach. It's an extremely important Tao-Te (Dao-De, "Way-Power") that will help so many people. And aside from these visual meditations here, which only a few will relate to, most important is to just practice FP and let its Energy permeate you and everyone around you. That way we may eventually reach that "hundredth monkey" explosion of Flying Phoenix Energy in and through and between-and-among humankind! P.S. The He He Er Xian, the Twin Boy Immortals, as well as sponsoring happy marriages, are also considered to sponsor commerce, i.e., interactions of mutual benefit and profit. So let's ask the Twin Immortals to prosper the spread of Flying Phoenix Ch'i Kung. They are consummate Multipliers! Starting at the top point of the Star and going down clockwise ("12 to 5 o'clock", you might say), the lines for Hexagrams YI can be visualized, or recited as: Yang - Yin - Yin - Yin - Yang - Yang Then starting at the bottom point of the Star and proceeding on up, still clockwise ("6 to 11 o'clock"), the lines of Hexagram FENG are: Yang - Yin - Yang - Yang - Yin - Yin

"As I’ve stated throughout this discussion thread, Flying Phoenix Qigong works without any form of visualization, mental imaging, or any kind of thought-process whatsoever. As long as one does the breath-control sequences and the exactly corresponding posture or posture-and-movements of the FP Qigong System, one will derive the full healing and lasting health benefits and spiritual attunement of this Qigong system, regardless of what one does or where one goes with his mind." -- Sifu Terry Dunn This is what I so love about Flying Phoenix Ch'i Kung. ANYBODY can do it, whatever their culture or religion, and get the benefits. Kind of like rain falling from the sky, or the sun shining. FP doesn't play favorites!

And in the spirit of the Er Xian who are forever playful, I will play again with the image like so....

Here is the double hexagram star I referred to in my last post....

Hi Sifu Dunn! I'm a "water snake", born in 1953, and had my 64th birthday on September 12. I will look forward to any meditative experiences you may share. I feel Xi Wangmu is at least the ultimate bestower of the Flying Phoenix practice; though it's possible She may have sent another female Immortal as a messenger from her to teach it. Anyway I do feel Her very strongly now. You know, since my own connecting with Xi Wangmu was closely followed by a connecting with the Chinese Twin Immortals (as though She opened that door to them for me), I have gotten into the habit of reciting both the invocations in tandem: Shi Xi Xi He He Er Xian : Shi Yao Fei Feng Xi Wang Mu. And then seeing the appropriate Hexagrams below and above each other, respectively: ䷭ ䷤ (One could have an image of the Twin Boys playing and laughing in the field, while Xi Wangmu on her phoenix hovers above them.) And as of tonight, also seeing the horizontal meshed triangles (of the He He Er Xian) merge with the vertical meshed triangles (of Xi Wang Mu) to form a 12 pointed star matrix or double hexagram star. That, of course, is an alchemical matrix for me, which may or may not attract someone else. That Purple Rose of Virgo feels very powerful. I've been absolutely fascinated by it since I first saw the photo. You know, the Pole Star is said to have a violet/purple energy spiritually; but its astronomical physical color (for Polaris, anyway) is yellow. This Virgo Purple Rose is violet/purple physically--and I feel spiritually, too. I meditated on it a great deal Tuesday on my birthday, asked for its Divine or Dao blessings to enter into me to help me in my next round. P.S. The double hexagram star ended up in my next post.

Hi! Well, since I'm in I CHING mode, and found a hexagram for the Twin Immortals invocation I give, I felt the impulse to see if the Xi Wangmu invocation I give has a hexagram, too. Tonight it came on me that the hexagram is: Hexagram 46 is named 升 (shēng), "Ascending". Here we have the syllables (after Shi) Yao Fei Feng, with the trigram "Wind" ☴ (Qi, or Prana/Vitality); and Xi Wang Mu, with the trigram "Earth" ☷ (i.e., here meaning the Ultimate YIN). The hexagram is traditionally read from the ground up. So the Flying Phoenix practice will uplift us in spirit and body as we persist in it! P.S. If poetically inclined, one might even see this hexagram as Xi Wangmu ☷ riding upon her phoenix ☴ , i.e., ䷭ .

Hi! This post is just a general sharing on how intuition and inner listening can lead to insights and connections special to us on our own path. Some days ago I had come up with a prayer to the Daoist twin immortals, which felt powerful for me and which I felt connected me to them. I said previously that the prayer led to the feeling of them coming "through" rather than coming "down" -- a horizontal connection of some sort (maybe inter-dimensional) rather than a vertical connection coming down from Above. Tonight I was praying to or invoking them using the words, and the thought hit me to see if the words might connect to an I CHING hexagram. So setting aside the Shi ("Bestow"), the next 6 words built a hexagram (from bottom to top, as is traditional with I Ching): #37 "Family, People Dwelling Together" In the prayer I give, (Shi) Xi Xi He He Er Xian, the 2 Xi (Light and Joy) can be a Yang and Yin pair, the 2 He (Harmony and Union) can be a Yang and Yin pair, also. And the Er Xian as the Two Boy Immortals are Yang (due here to their masculine nature). This ends up working because the "Harmonizing/Uniting Two Immortals" are sponsors of marriage and family, and children--and the harmony and union and JOY of proper connection between husband and wife and other relationship pairs and groups. You know, it takes me back to the "horizontal" feeling I had with the prayer. These Immortals sponsor and sustain right horizontal relationships that create and preserve Family and Community. A couple years ago I was looking at the vertical meshing of triangles (often called the star of David), and I realized that there is also a separate horizontal meshing that has its own special and separate energy. No one else had put it in any image banks (I looked and looked) so I just made it for myself, for my own meditation on the Communication, Connection and Community, heart-to-heart and ear-to-ear, arm-in-arm, etc., that allow any pair or group of human beings to commune, cooperate, progress and prosper. Of course, Hexagram 37 (or any other) has many dimensions and interpretations. What I just shared is what came to me to enhance my own meditation and personal alchemy. And now I have a Hexagram to go with my prayer! P.S. I've attached the horizontal meshed triangles. In the center I placed the character "shuang" (an alternative traditional character even though now used as the simplified character) meaning "two, pair, twins." And you know, this Forum is a fine example of communication, connection, and communion that is helpful to a lot of people!

Oh...and on the subject of mantra syllables, there are some powerful ones hidden in English. They aren't all just in Sanskrit! Chinese has some incredible syllables, too. But back to English, one of the most intense power-syllables I've experienced is the word FREE. (If it were to be spelled in Sanskrit/Hindi transliteration, it would come out as Frīḥ, or Frī ("frī" was its original spelling in Old English, by the way). FREE, Frīḥ -- rhymes with Hrīḥ! Anyway, FREE generates the exact energy of the Purple Lotus Flower, and the Purple (Violet) Pole Star, and the purple/violet clouds of Xi Wangmu or of Amitabha Buddha, etc. (And in the ancient Greek mystery schools, of the "purple robe" that Dionysos wears, though later on people increasingly debased his image and meaning: "I will tell of Dionysus, the son of glorious Semele, how he appeared on a jutting headland by the shore of the fruitless sea, seeming like a stripling in the first flush of manhood: his rich, dark hair was waving about him, and on his strong shoulders he wore a purple robe." -- Homeric Hymn 7). But to get back to Flying Phoenix! If, as is likely, the practice comes from Xi Wangmu, the Queen Mother of the West, everything that comes from Her is also imbued with her Freedom, her Liberation -- as well as her Healing. You might say that her blue FP energy that heals has a silk lining of energy that sets free.

Hi Cihan, Do you mean musical tones or notes, or else mantric syllables (in whatever language)? I tend to have visual experience rather than auditory (so far) Or else a sensation (of something spiritual touching my energy field). Or a taste (like the taste of a peach I experienced). I don't focus on facing any particular direction at this stage--of course that could change later.

Hi Taoguy, We have been talking about violet/purple here a bit, but not specifically regarding FP, rather in a general Daoist context--because the color does come up a lot. Earl Grey also mentioned having violet/purple come up in practice. As to what exact color of blue FP generates, I think Sifu Terry has mentioned the deepness can vary (whether lighter or darker blue). Also gold can enter in, if I remember right. In Buddhism, the dark blue (lapis lazuli) is considered to be the color of healing, often with gold added.

I forgot to mention previously that the two Buddhist monks in the T'ang Dynasty who were close friends and became identified with the Twin Immortals were also considered to be embodiments of the Bodhisattvas Manjushri and Samantabhadra (Wen Shu and Pu Xian). In Hua-yen Buddhism (based on the Avatamsaka Sutra), Manjushri and Samantabhadra represent the Sambhogakaya and Nirmanakaya, also Dharma and Sangha--while their Buddha, Vairocana, represents Dharmakaya, and Buddha. Also you could say Manjushri and Samantabhadra represent Knowing and Doing, while their Buddha Vairocana represents Being.

It's quite interesting about violet/purple. Aside from the traditions about Xi Wangmu, some Daoist schools teach that the Pole Star emanates a violet/purple spiritual energy which is important in spiritual alchemy. In the esoteric school of Chinese Buddhism (summarized in the Dharani Sutra), the 21st saving power of Kuan Yin is the "Purple Lotus Flower", for freedom from karma and samsara, called the "Dharma of Liberation" -- also connected with Amitabha Buddha (the Purple Lotus Flower is called Amitabha's "Original Body"). In Pure Land Buddhism, violet/purple clouds indicate that someone has been reborn in Amitabha's Pure Land. And Amitabha is said to have "violet eyes" (gan mu). I'm sure there is even more out there I haven't thought of or found yet!

Hi! Here's a (mostly) blue Chinese phoenix I found on Pinterest! It makes a nice Flying Phoenix visualization, I think.

Hi Sifu Terry! I'm certain their qi-lin do fly! I think it's very possible the two Buddhist monks might have caught or embodied the Spirit of the Twin Immortals. I just meant to question the scholars' view that the T'ang Buddhist monks came first. But that's because I'm so versed in "Immortal Twins lore", lol. All the way back to the roots of the Rig Veda and beyond. So these Twins (and my own feel, though of course I can't prove it, is that they are most often the same Twin Spirits, in the Old World at least) have appeared as Divine Beings in several traditions from very ancient times; and have surely overshadowed, sponsored, or infilled human twins, brothers, blood-brothers or close friends. Though most often young men with horses in the other religious traditions, they tend to have the same friendly, happy, helping attitude as the Daoist twin boy Immortals. And are always connected with weddings and all-around fruitfulness and fertility. Same basic personality! A Western analogue to the two Buddhist monks might be the Twin Saints in Christianity, such as Saints Cosmas and Damien, or Saints Florus and Laurus. They may well have been real persons who preached, helped, and healed, and were human embodiment of the Spirit of the Twin Immortals. But in any case, the bottom line is what you just wrote: "I would say that the Twins are real movers and shakers--and prodigies to boot. At any rate, regardless if they were Buddhist monks and close friends in their previous incarnations or not, all signs point to the fact that the twins are highly evolved spirits--riding high in High Heaven." And again, in all the various Traditions where They appear, they are always helpers who are very close to humanity, very friendly, very available. And on that note, I found it interesting that when I said the prayer I made, I felt it express right here, as though They were coming through, rather than coming down from above (as I felt with the Xi Wangmu prayer). But I'm setting no Rule about it; that was just my experience! I am delighted by your response to these Twins, Sifu Terry! P.S. This a a bit far afield from China....but if you want an example of a shamanic verse that flips one into a transcendental dimension with the Twin Immortals, there's an ancient Latvian 4-line folk song. The first 2 lines are on the mundane level with the shaman or singer....(in English translation): "I've made a boat of apple wood, Golden are both ends of it; then suddenly we're in another dimension with the Twins: The Twins of Heaven are oarsmen And they take the Sun Maid sailing." Haha, I love that song! I sing it in Latvian all the time. That and another ancient Latvian song: "Singing came I, singing grew I, Singing have I lived my lifetime; Singing will my soul soon go To Gardens of the Twins of Heaven."

Hi Sifu Terry and everyone! Here is additional information about Xi Wangmu: Around the year 500, Tao Hung Jing systematized Taoist deities into two separate hierarchies, male and female, with Xi Wangmu ranked as the highest goddess. He gave her a lasting title: The Ninefold Numinous Grand and Realized Primal Ruler of the Purple Tenuity from the White Jade Tortoise Terrace. Other sources, such as the poet Du Fu, describe her as descending to the human realm enveloped in purple vapors." [Transcendence and Divine Passion: The Queen Mother of the West in Medieval China, by Suzanne E. Cahill, 33; 24; 168] "Legend said that the Zhou dynasty king Mu (circa 1000 bce) travelled to Kunlun in search of the Western Mother. Many ancient sources elaborated on their meeting beside the Turquoise Pond. The emperor Han Wudi was granted a similar audience in 110 BCE. The Monograph on Broad Phenomena says that the goddess sent a white deer to inform him of her advent, and he prepared a curtained shrine for her. She arrived on the festival of Double Sevens, riding on a chariot of purple clouds. She sat facing east, clothed in seven layers of blue clouds. Three big blue birds and other magical servitors set up the ninefold tenuity lamp. The goddess gave five peaches to the emperor. He wanted to save the seeds for planting, but she laughed and said that they would not bear fruit for 3000 years." [Cahill, 48-55] I put purple in bold, to highlight her connection to that color, which is also generally an important color in Chinese alchemy and meditation, both Daoist and Buddhist. (There is also the mention of her blue clouds and blue birds. And as we know, FPCK has a blue energy.) And since we have gone into Virgo astrologically, I'll share this astronomy photo, which is actually called the "Purple Rose of Virgo." The nebula actually radiates that color as photographed by observatories, it has not been altered. And since "Virgo" means the "Young Woman", I think this Purple Rose might make for an awesome meditation on Xi Wang Mu who is so often depicted as a beautiful Young Woman. (Of course, I'm partial because I'm born under Virgo!) With that, I'll let everyone get back to their FP practice! Myself, I'm going to endeavor to mentally practice inside the spiritual "Purple Rose of Virgo" this month. Perhaps I'll even see the "Purple Rose" as Xi Wangmu's Heart center! http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/03/070329-supernova.html

Thank you, Sifu Terry. These Twins feel ancient, and incredibly archetypal. You'll find scholarly and Buddhist claims that they were two Buddhist (!) monks (close friends--but not brothers, and not children, and obviously not sponsors of happy and fertile marriages, good fortune and abundance) in the T'ang Dynasty who somehow morphed into these twin-boy Daoist (!) Immortals. But that's nonsense. (Nothing at all against Buddhist monks...but they don't ride qi-lin, haha.) It's interesting that Buddhist-style art depicting these two adult friend-monks more and more turned into Daoist-style art showing two (non-monk) twin boys, always laughing and sometimes riding on their qi-lin. The ancient original Shamanic and Daoist archetype came forward! And the real numinous power is in that very ancient, long-before-Buddhist archetype and in Who (Two) come through the images. So for the fun of it, today I'll share for any who are interested, 施曦喜和合二仙 (Shi Xi Xi He He Er Xian, or Shih Hsi Hsi He He Erh Hsien -- "Bestow Light and Joy, Harmonious-and-United Two Immortals") (particularly because I'd really like Them to come and lift me up on one of those qi-lin for a morning ride with Them, lol). P.S. I love the word-plays of Literary Chinese! For "He He", we have: 和合 hé hé ("harmony, harmonious", literally "harmonious-united") 呵呵 hē hē ("gentle laughter") 赫赫 hè hè ("bright, radiant, brilliant") 荷盒 hé hé ("lotus-flower" and "gift-box or bowl", which the He He Er Xian hold, symbolizing fruitfulness and abundance--and joy and fun all-around, of course!)

You're welcome, Sifu Terry. My own small experience of Xi Wang Mu came while doing MSW, as I was counting repetitions while (for the first time) meditating on Her. I had just used the syllables Na and Mo (since I didn't know a strictly Daoist salutation) and followed with Fei Feng Xi Wang Mu. (Na Mo Fei Feng Xi Wang Mu = seven syllables). That's when the image of a peach and the taste of a peach suddenly came strongly to me. All I can say for myself is that I felt She was accepting of my meditation. One thing for sure, according to Daoist tradition, is that She rules all Daoist practices of longevity and immortality, and internal alchemy. P.S. Though now I think I'll switch to a wholly Chinese 7-syllable prayer or invocation, since Daoists probably don't use "Na Mo" so much: 施藥飛鳳西王母 "Shi Yao Fei Feng Xi Wang Mu" (or "Shih Yao Fei Feng Hsi Wang Mu" -- "Bestow Healing Flying Phoenix Western Queen Mother"). [The other gift I feel I got from Her shortly after my initial meditation was my finding the Daoist "Immortal Twin Boys", the He-He Er Xian (Harmony-Union Two Immortals) 和合二仙 who are always smiling and laughing and bestow harmony, happiness, and fruitfulness. Sometimes they are seen riding their Qi-lin animals (see my picture below). Since I have a twin brother, Twin Immortals always attract and fascinate me. That's just a personal sharing, though; it won't interest most of you. But Xi Wang Mu made sure I quickly found and connected with Them! ]

A second Xi Wangmu and phoenix picture!