TimBlack

Has anyone come across this great download? https://spiritual-minds.com/easternrelgions/laotzu/Hua Hu Jing.pdf

Hey all! Some years back I was a member. Beginning in 2009 life went ?? Quite brutal. Four years ago I had a traumatic brain injury. Listening to some music that fell into days be gone, it spurred my memory of Dao Bums. Not sure what my sign in or name was, so it's new! What was once the norm(?) is past. Hope to learn! Thanks!

Under tao1776 I used to come here and? I underwent a traumatic brain injury. New life or a new start. I forgot Dao Bums existed. So, excuse me. I'm going to read and try to learn and practice.... Patience! TimBlack

Well, as it turns out I've been a member since 2005. I remember how to login. Whew! I forgot this place existed!

The interesting thing about people living their lives these days is that everyone believes that they must plan. There is little doing as doing does arrive. Looking behind in an effort to plan today. Looking forward in an effort to design what must be done if we think that we must do something based on our idea formed through ignorance, fear and pure humanness. Following a path is not making a path. In my over thirty years of marriage I suffered and struggled to endure what was placed upon me; what was demanded of me; what was placed before me as obligation. As if dumb and demanded, placed upon a leash and led right or left, standing or sat, happy or sad. My Unicorn - Gaia Girl In several years passed, my attempt was more to follow; not create. Passing along to you my readers, and to you my Unicorn: In beauty and in honor and in tears of happiness, a shared view of Taoismbeing passed along like a comforting hug around your being. An encouraging look followed by a non-judging look. A holding of hands and thus walking the way, Taoism is viewed; 1. The main principle is the belief in the Tao. This can be difficult to explain in English, but it is essentially the path one must follow in life. It is the natural order of all things and the Tao is considered to be the universal life force or the underlying nature of all things that exist in the world. 2. The key to Taoism is that you must first accept yourself and learn to accept what is going on around you. You must accept both the good and bad parts of your life and flow with the path life sends you on. 3. The Three Jewels (or The Three Treasures) should be behind all the things that you do. Compassion, moderation, and humility will lead you to a path of courage, generosity, and leadership. Be patient and gentle. 4. You should live a natural and simple life. It is acceptable to need time to yourself to just sit and listen only to the voice in your head and not to those around you. This will allow you the time to see the real truth in the world. Eliminate anything that is unnecessary or artificial in your life. 5. The world, and everything in it, is in a constant cycle. The cycle consists of coming into your own being, maturing, and eventually, decaying and returning to the Tao. 6. Everything should follow a natural course and you should avoid any action that is not spontaneous or wu-wei. 7. Be patient and see beauty in everything around you and in yourself. 8. Practice love and restraint. “Do not regard weapons as lovely things, for to think them lovely means to delight in them, and to delight in them means to delight in the slaughter of man.” 9. Be true to yourself and you will be happy. 10. Show compassion for others and honor life. In a few weeks let us view the author of, "A Book of Five Rings" - Miyamato Musashi What say you???

You received your body. You may like it or hate it, but it will be yours for as long as you live. How you take care of it or fail to take care of it, can make an enormous difference in the quality of your life. You will learn lessons. You are enrolled in a full-time, informal school called Life. Each day, you will be presented with opportunities to learn what you need to know. The lessons presented are often completely different from those you thought as needed. There are no mistakes, only lessons. Growth is a process of trial, error and experimentation. You can learn as much from failure as you can from success. Maybe more. A lesson is repeated until it is learned. A lesson will be presented to you in various forms until you have learned it. As you have learned, (as evidenced by a change in your attitude and ultimately in your behavior) then you can go on to the next lesson. Learning lessons does not end. There is no stage of life that does not contain some lessons. As long as you live there will be something more to learn. ?There? is no better than ?here?. When your ?there? has become a ?here? you will simply discover another ?there? that will again look better than your ?here.? Don?t be fooled by believing that the unattainable is better than what you have. Observe. Don't judge or imagine. Others are merely mirrors of you. You cannot love or hate something about another person unless it reflects something you love or hate about yourself. When tempted to criticize others, ask yourself why you feel so strongly. What you make of your life is up to you. You have all the tools and resources you need. What you create with those tools and resources is up to you. Remember that through desire, goal setting and unflagging effort you can have anything you want. Persistence is the key to success. The answers lie inside of you. The solutions to all of life?s problems lie within your grasp. All you need to do is ask, look, listen and trust yourself. (anon) And screw your desire to judge. Follow being human. It's enjoyable!!

Mdb - my granddaughter. Amazing girl. And yes.... The pathway never ends And Journeyman.......lets hang out!

Life can travel from birth until death. To quote from Chuang-Tzu; “ The true men of old did not know what it was to love life or to hate death. They did not rejoice in birth, nor strive to put off dissolution. Unconcerned they came and unconcerned they went. That was all. They did not forget whence it was they had sprung, neither did they seek to inquire their return thither. Cheerfully they accepted life, waiting patiently for their restoration (the end). This is what is called not to lead the heart astray from Tao, and not to supplement the natural by human means. Such a one may be called a true man. Such men are free in mind and calm in demeanor.” ...My life's experience as a young man began in the 1970's and drew me into learning, singing and teaching Jesus Christ. Along with the multiple quantity of churches, the members were taught complicated beliefs and were declined self growth. You heard, you listened, you sang and you prayed. You were pressured to believe that your heart was designed to listen, and to follow all that is being told to you. The mind of God, of Christ, and of the church knew the way. We, the followers, were the sheep. And surprisingly, we learned that sheep in the pastures followed their shepherds with blind devotion. Yet being human revealed more than we were being led to believe. We studied and watched. We learned and grew to enjoy our life. We folded away beyond the time of Church spirituality and began to taste, smell, and listen what we knew was universal help in life, in nature, in world and sky. We knew it was present.We listened and learned and read. Our being alive did not state or reveal that we must all be the same. It breathed outward, "Be what you are"? In the 1980's an over exposure from prolonged isocyanates used within an industrial coatings company/laboratory, made asthma began within my lungs. The lab ovens were not releasing their heated air to the outside. And the Spray Paint for applying the test panels and quality control units for computers, machines, lights and hundreds of American items eventually bothered my liver and bodily skin. In months time my cough helped pull my spine until that itself became the most difficult. With the addition of high Ibuprofen, muscle relaxant and alcohol, I completely injured my spine. Work ended. Disability came. And my body and mind pointed down the road of life much like a warrior hinting where I may be able to jump off the mountain side or shot a bullet through my head. Direction introduced me to Feldenkrais ATM. The teacher also introduced me to Taoist Inner smile and Microcosmic meditation. The pathway led towards meditation, Tao Te Ching, I Ching, Yin and Yang. In time, I was beginning to learn to abide in stillness and gradually enter the true way. Known as receiving the Tao. I am now 60 Yrs old. And although the last 15 years were very difficult, cruel and violent due through being married to a Psychopath, everything has changed. Divorce came. Not easy. She assaulted me and was arrested twice. In an effort to protect my children I did not push forward the legal restraining order and moved out with friends until the court would do so. When I came home, the home I bought, it was emptied, hurt and dirty. The last five years have been difficult and my plan to sell has not gone through until one month ago. In almost a beautiful mysterious sense, a universal gesture has just moved forward. My home will sell by 11/24. My love Gaia Girl and I plan on moving to a beautiful, original 1800 one room school, that is now a sweet six room home. In the woods. Near ponds and lakes. Our cats, chickens, and our soon arrival of a Boston Terrier will add to our beauty of life. Friends and families? Blessed joy. Very near the mountain. Chinese year of the Sheep will bless and we plan on getting married on the 1776 4th of July. I'm back to hanging at Tao Bums. And cultivating stillness...............

I've been in and out of here for more years than I care to remember. Poor health and great pain were the teachers that led me into the world of "inner alchemy". A Simple practice led to an undetermined mind; "The art of living...is neither careless drifting on the one hand nor fearful clinging to the past on the other. It consists in being sensitive to each moment, in regarding it as utterly new and unique, in having the mind open and wholly receptive. Life is like music for its own sake. We are living in an eternal now, and when we listen to music we are not listening to the past, we are not listening to the future, we are listening to an expanded present. Tomorrow and plans for tomorrow can have no significance at all unless you are in full contact with the reality of the present, since it is in the present and only in the present that you live. There is no other reality than present reality, so that, even if one were to live for endless ages, to live for the future would be to miss the point. Alan Watts In hindsight, I recall the slow drift from the simple peace of being to the study (stink) of Buddhism. Now I am not criticizing Buddhism, but as it was that I came from a strong Christian fundamentalist background, I believe that a system of religiosity crept in. I am back here, returning if you will, trying to reestablish a simple Qigong practice along with finding some Taoist guidance and support. Gah!!!! http://tao1776.blogspot.com/

I'm going to wander the halls and get myself re-acquainted. Cow Tao - a little bit of the curmudgeon spirit possessed me for a season. When its happening its happening....but once out at the other side it becomes clear how great a hold it had on you. http://tao1776.blogspot.com/

I hoping to enlist fellow wanderers into beginning a daily meditation practice beginning on the first new moon of 2010. Those that commit to the daily practice can choose either one or both of the proposed meditations. I am hoping that we can share/chronicle our experiences. http://compassionproject.blogspot.com/

After being ill and out of work for several years, (86-91) I was introduced to the Microcosmic orbit and the Inner Smile meditations; which I practiced diligently. This opened my eyes to the world of "Chi" and I sought out accupuncture treatment as well. All of this helped improve to my health and I soon turned to mindfulness meditation and looked into becoming a Buddhist. Well, long story short....I now have no practice at all. Knee pain and job fatigue make early rising all too painful...and the lack of a meditation practice has drained my being of any sense of homeostasis....and the thought of setting up an evening practice seems too immense an undertaking. If there was one (or two) Taoist healing exercises or practices that you would most recommend as a way to getting back to where I belong, what would they be?

Ah, Yen Hui, It appears to be as myraid as the sufferings of man. I think that after I learned much after having tasted pain and poverty, like many, when health and prosperity began to return so did the strength of the five mental hindrances http://www.buddhistinformation.com/five_me...s_and_their.htm]Five Mental Hindrances[/url] Since my injury, I remain partially disabled and my range of motion and flexabilty is very poor. Tai Chi helped but I did nor pursue it due to financial constraints. My best weight is 180-185 and my esculation to 210 -215 has helped mold me into a insulin dependent diabetic. Hence the difficulty with Sloth.... But the rest also remain as nipping dogs at my heel. When I was able (and willing) to maintain a daily meditation practice my world was quite different. I guess that I'm hoping for a cosmic slap in the ass....or perhaps I'm just more content whith whining. I just know that I'm spiraling into the sucking vortex of desparation....and frankly, it pissess me off!

This sounds like a good place to start. I remember "embracing the tree" and other such standing meditations and how I would feel not only increased energy but a sense of well being that I have not felt in some time. Thanks....

http://www.budsas.org/ebud/mfneng/mind0.htm]Mindfulness in plain English[/url]

Much of life has been shaped in response to agoraphobia. Many of earliest memories were of insecurity and sensitivity. I disguised it well. As a young boy, it was common to camp out or have sleep overs with friends. My anxiety prevented that. As a teen, I suffered extreme agoraphobia and I was confined to a well developed comfort zone. School, the neighborhood; but even that was very difficult at times. I had no name for what I was experiencing. At times, the flow of adreneline was so high, it was as if I had 20 cups of coffee. It was not mania, the result of bi-polar. It is truly an adreneline disorder. Over time, I have overcome the anxiety. I can even fly with the help of xanax and a little scotch. But I am aware that I have only broadened my comfort zone. I am still limited in some ways. The Internal Medicine Classic warns that if kidney energy is weak, one is prone to fear. It recommends that we boost the water energy that governs the kidney with foods and herbal tonics. However, water is associated with winter and a state of extreme yin, when viewed as one of the elemental energies that govern our bodies. Fire brought into contact with water is extinguished. Blocked fire results in hypertension, fear, heart problems and nervous disorders. The kidneys are the seat of courage and willpower. In contrast, I often see chi gung practices focus on improving the quality of water in their bodies and reducing the quantity of fire. For me, it seems the opposite is true. Can anyone relate to my experience? Can anyone personally recommend a good kidney yang tonic? Has anyone ever used Cordyceps? Are there any specfic chi gung methods that I should cultivate? One of my peers had the followig to say; There are four ways the fire and water energies in our body can be out of balance. 1) Too much fire 2) Too much water 3) Too little fire 4) Too little water Not only do the two have to be balanced with each other, but they all have to be up to a certain level as well. This is where the tricky parts come in: Conditions 1 and 4 produce similar symptoms. So does 2 and 3. If you have one particular symptom which can be 1 or 4, you have to be careful. If you are in condition 4, but you misread it as condition 1 and try to calm the fire, you will die. Your energy level is not high enough. If you have one particular symptom which can be 2 or 3, you have to be careful. If you are in condition 3, but you misread it as condition 3 and try to reduce the water, you will die. Your energy level is not high enough. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- SO BE REALLY REALLY CAREFUL. Even Chinese medicine doctors with manure-loads of experience misdiagnose on the odd occasion. I wouldn't suggest anyone on this board to suggest any tonic or qigong exercise, since Chinese medicine cannot work over distance barriers. You can't diagnose, thus you can't fix, by having the symptoms described. I certainly do not recommend you try and fix yourself, even if you happen to be a Chinese medicine doctor. What say you?

Ahhhhhh, EFT! Looks interesting. I took Feldenkrias (sp?) once. It worked with the brain's hardwiring. I learn so much from you guys! Thanks......... Orgonite? Hmmmmmmmmm. I know some witches. Sounds simular on some levels. Mag has not helped me. Don't get the wrong idea, I have learned a lot from agoraphobia and suffer only low levels of anxiety now. However, I know that there are still unresolved issues and tensions hidden in my body. EFT sounds right.

I found out through experience that many of the allergens (sp?) that we react to make their home in the mucus and hairs of our nasel passages. Using a Neti Pot with a saline solution (1 cup warm water, 1 tablespoon kosher salt) does wonders when used daily.

Hi Guy, When we are faced with the difficulty of suffering in an right in your face kind of way, ie; your wife's illness and the burden of trying to run the farm, we often look for ways to understand and deal with our feelings. Time and again, detachment comes into mind and begin to examine what it all means. We imagine the sage, master or guru who appears able to withstand the suffering of life. We want to be able to be steadfast and even tempered. My favorite quote is from Rumi. .This being human is a guesthouse. Every morning a new arrival. A joy, a depression, a meaness. Some momentary awareness comes as an unexpected visitor. Welcome and entertain them all! Even if they're a crowd of sorrows who violently sweep your house empty of its furnitiure. Still, treat each guset honorably, he may be clearing you out for some new delight... Detachment is not, "not feeling" but feeling without hanging on to it. It resembles the clouds that write themselves upon the sky. They float into view but pass on, allowing the procession of new clouds to enter the sky. Passing through. Zen calls it mindfulness. Tao, wu chi..the uncarved block. I often think of it in Tai Chi terms where one can push forward, pull back or stand still, the flow as water. Not reaction, but flow. When we try to learn, analyze, make a quote, a scripture, a doctrine to memorize and holf forth as something to follow, we miss the mark. I would suggest a period of daily meditation. Something simple. I would gladly send you a book called, "full catastrophe living" as a primer. It may help. Tao1776

I was first introduced to Taoist energy exercises after a life altering disability in the late 1980's. With the slowing of activity, pain, and increased weight, I was diagnosed with Type II diabetes in 1997. Since then, I've been caught in the spiral of oral medications that bring blood sugars down, but increase my weight; which in turn increases my blood sugars. I did manage to reduce my weight to under 185 lbs (I'm 5'11") with a strict carb intake that was pretty unreasonable. 176 - 185 appears to be my healthiest weight. One year ago this week, I lost my job and I'm feeling deep financial pressure. My weight has increased to 208 and I'm exhausted. I've taken various herbal formulas over time, multi vitamins, etc.....but my energy and meditation practice has disappeared. I need to Start......from where I am.......but where, how? I need an energy boost. I need a Chi infusion. I need something. Any suggestions short of a kick in the ass?

Thanks, All! I will try to incorporate several of your suggestions. Your support and inspiration based on your practices is a good motivator. I did get a stationary bike that has the handlebars rowing back and forth. I bought a timer and plan to start with 20 mins at least 3x a week. Once I can get some of my metabolism to jump start and provide me with better blood sugar control and energy, I hope to begin my meditation practice once again. When I use the microcosmic exercises combined with vippassanna and a little standing Chi Kung, the mind clears and helps everything click into place. I have known pain and limitation for too many years. I am very interested in the intu-flow. At this time, the $$ is too low to afford an added expense. I cannot view the website video demo for some reason. Are there alternative places where I might view a demo of the intu flow at work? Be well......

Thought this pretty funny.thought I'd share http://www.wimp.com/yoga/

Is anyone aware of a self conducted Purification Ceremony that I could perform at home? Although I am aware that some practicing Taoists may not believe in the use of such practices, I do believe that not all energy that surrounds us is neutral.

You guys!!!!!! I am married to a witch of the strega tradition and know several others as well. During one particularly rough period of external stress, she placed small mirrors facing outwards on the N,S,E and W sides of the house. We immediatly had several bizzare auto accidents right outside our home. We have used sea salt and sea water and incense as purification tools. I guess what I was searching for, and perhaps not really in need of, was the traditional Taoist purification ceremony. A temple in Boston routinely performs the rite for new initiates looking to cleanse them to better enable their ability to learn and perform Taoist studies. Just alot of hokey? Don't know.......