Giles

No need for any concern. 😊 Cobie was actually relocated to the suburbs on 4th February, 2023. 🤣

So just come straight out and say it instead of trying to snipe from the sidelines.

Who's engaging in sophistry?

Who "declined to answer"?

Cool. 😎👍🏻 In that case, I'll just pop you onto my ignore list next door to Chi Dragon. 😊

I'm unclear about what you're getting at here. Is this a statement, or a question, or perhaps something else? Thanks in anticipation of clarification. 🙏🏻

No problem. 😊 "Spirit" (Shen) is already immortal, as is shakti (Chi/Qi), which you may realise if you stop to consider the matter a little more deeply. Appreciate the gratuitous advice 🙏🏻, however, I don't actually need to do that because I've chosen instead to follow my friend's instructions with a view to validating their practices on the basis of first-hand direct knowledge (as opposed to the theoretical basis upon which you appear to be basing your advice).

Sorry! 🙏🏻 Was a bit preoccupied with needing to empty the dog and get to the shop before it ran out of organic milk. To clarify: the answer to both your detailed questions is: "Yes", but... I obviously need to qualify that with "as far as I'm able to determine at this point" (because I'm still a student of Taoist Internal Alchemy rather than a lineage holder (in this particular school)). However, that still leaves hanging the question of "what is the goal of Taoist Internal Alchemy?" So, having now (hopefully 🤞🏻🙏🏻) answered your question, I'd appreciate a bit of quid pro quo: So, what is your own answer to the question of what is the goal of Taoist Inner Alchemy?

As far as I can tell, s/he's entirely competent to teach me Taoist Internal Alchemy, as I wouldn't be her/his student otherwise, would I?

Who are "them"?

I've no reason to doubt either that assertion (or my spiritual friend's more colourful assertion).

According to the (Chinese) doctor of TCM who's currently teaching me Taoist Internal Alchemy, the number of people who've attempted to walk that Path is: S/he then made the point that phoenixes and dragons don't actually exist. ⚠️ S/he also mentioned that neidanshu/xianshu's an extremely risky endeavour and there's a much safer alternative. ⚠️

Shhhhh.... 🤫🤐

It would be more accurate to state that all matter is chi/qi. Qi is more than energy because, for example, qi also consists of information.

An excellent question. 👍🏻😊 Unfortunately, this thread has expanded to the extent that I don't have the time to read through it all, so can I ask you if you've yet received a satisfactory answer because, if not, I'll attempt to provide it for you.

Yes. 😊 Also agreed. 😊 I know. 😊 I sense that we're still on the same page here. 👍🏻😊 That's not what I'm seeing. My spiritual friend (a term that I thank you for helping me to refine/define 🙏🏻) , who is formally teaching me a profound and effective method of Taoist Alchemy, has attempted to fit (what appears to me to be their their first-hand direct knowledge of ultimate reality) into an Abrahamic Taoist/Buddhist paradigm. However, this in no way diminishes the value of what is being taught to me for reasons that are quite possibly entirely obvious to you. Hope that makes sense? Namaste. 🙏🏻

🤷🏻‍♂️😊

My guess is that you're probably broadly correct about that because it's certainly not necessary to practice anything potentally dangerous enough to need veiling in secrecy in order to realise enlightenment and liberation from suffering.

Apparently, about 2,000 years ago (ca. 100 BC), hundreds of years after the Buddha died, there was already such a huge amount of disagreement about the veracity of the orally-preserved doctrine that the 1st* Fourth Buddhist Council was convened during which the most politically powerful faction committed to writing what they believed to constitute the teachings of the Buddha. * There were two Fourth Councils because they couldn't all even agree on a matter as mundane as their meetups by that point in time.

I'm not here either to defend or to badmouth Christianity. I was brought up in a Christian environment and the version of it that I learned was absolutely invaluable to me. However, on the flipside, I've seen versions of Christianity that have destroyed the children who imbibed it.

Grace doesn't happen from anything. It's always there for everyone because that's Its nature (Love/Ānanda). Yes. Separate and, albeit merely from my perspective, irrelevant.

Indeed. The Vijñānabhairava tantra makes that very point, albeit in a slightly obscure way.

My opinion it is that is that it may or may appear to work for you as an individual in terms of leading to a glimpse of the ultimate really. However, if it does it will be through the mechanism of Grace rather than by the application of any particular method.

The problem here is that Buddha made the cardinal mistake of leaving the door wide open to the appeals to [his] authority fallacy.