Nuralshamal

Hi @Daniel, thanks for your comments! Yes, I realized the post had become extremely long Let me elaborate a bit concerning your comments 1) The Middle East The knowledge of the Greeks were preserved in the Middle East during the "dark ages" of Europe. Only in the "renaissance" did the sciences and philosophies reemerge into Europe. That's one part of the "Middle Eastern" connection. The "lataif" is a unique sufi concept. The sufis are very prominent (albeit also somewhat persecuted in certain places) in both Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and a bit in Jordan and Syria. All Middle Eastern Countries. Almost everything I wrote about lataif comes from the systems used in Iran, Jordan and even Turkey and Cyprus. These systems carry some heritage from ancient Egypt and the Greeks, but much of it is also their own indigenous traditions. That's the second part of the "Middle Eastern" connection. I could have made that more clear in the post, thanks for pointing it out! 2) Ethical component Yes, let me elaborate! I wanted to make the post more focused on the "alchemy" of emotional, psychological and spiritual transformation through continued allowing and mindful inquiry into the present moment. Many people have negative association with the moralism and ethics of Middle Eastern religion and spirituality, so I wanted to focus more on some of the more "palatable" subjects Ethics is what it's all about, "what you sow, you will also reap" (quote: Jesus ) "a soul gets every good that it earns, as well as every bad that it earns" (quote from the "amana rasul" or the last two ayat/verse of Surah Baqara of the Qur'an) I found a very nice description of the seven stages of the soul in sufism I'll post here: "In this answer I’ll use the model of the 7 levels of nafs. However, I’ll draw some parallels between what I’ve said in the earlier answer as well. The first is nafs ul ‘ammarah (craving/desiring self). One is only driven by desire with no regard for morals, ethics, karma or righteousness, one will even self-degrade in order to obtain pleasure. This is like a “hungry ghost” in buddhism or the “infidel” stage described in various religions. Number two is nafs ul lawammah (the complaining self). One blames everything, everyone and even one self, for not being the way things want them to be, yet one does not do any productive actions to improve the state of affairs. What modern day people call “the victim mentality”. Number three is nafs ul mulhima, or the “inspired soul”. One has finally found inspiration in religion and spiritually, and feels it like an experiential truth inside. One is inspired to stop one’s own bad deeds, and work more on doing good deeds. This is like a person becoming interested in spirituality and starting meditation. They feel that meditation, prayer etc. can help their soul develop further. Number four is nafs ul mutma’inna (contented soul). This is after many years of practice, one has successfully stopped one’s bad habits, and created and reinforced good habits. One has become content. In buddhism this is after purifying body, speech and mind. There’s no longer intense craving and desire, nor sickness or bad actions. One is happy and content. This is pretty much seen as the “ultimate goal” of meditation and spirituality, living in peace and contentment, one has escaped suffering. In Islam this is when one has stopped all haram activities, and only do halal activities. No more sin, only virtue (from a Christian perspective). No more generation of papa karma in Hinduism, only punya karma. Number five is nafs radiyyah, the pleased soul. An even higher stage of consciousness, where one is not simply content, but pleased at one’s life and the world. One sees how Divine Intelligence penetrates the entire universe, and governs the cycles of birth and death and karma in a just and righteous way. One also sees that one can escape the suffering by correct practice in thought, word and deed - it’s fair for everyone. By Divine grace and love, every single being has natural sustenance and guidance suitable for their level. Number six is mardiyyah, the “pleasing soul”. This is like a boddhisattva or buddha in buddhism. Everyone they meet feel good in their company, because they’re pure, kind, friendly and compassionate. They could never hurt themselves or others, instead they’re a blessing to all living beings. The final level is “nafs ul soofiyyah” (the pure soul). This is the highest level. Supposedly how “sufism” got their name, sufi meaning purity. They also call it “al insaan ul kamil” or the perfect human being. Most of us when becoming interested in spirituality are usually at level 2 or 3 (the blaming self or the inspired self). The best teachers are at level 4 through 7." (end of quote) As you can see, the connection between spiritual development and morals is profoundly highlighted in the description of the different levels of development. Once again, thanks for your comments Let me know your thoughts and comments if you have anymore, or just questions! Be blessed

Interesting responses When Bodhidharma (a siddha yogi from south india, probably employing ideas similar to Simplified Kundalini Yoga which I've mentioned in other of my post) came to China as a buddhist "missionary" to teach them meditation, he too was appalled to discover the monks exclusively doing sitting practices. They were sick and weakly. According to legend he gave them standing practices (Lohan Hands) as well as YiJinJing and XiSuiGong (which he brought from South India). So even a buddhist from India, the country wherefrom buddhism originated, ALSO thought the chinese buddhists emphasized sitting too much. And you know indian yoga employes a lot of sitting meditation! The daoists employ more standing methods. The "Dun Hou Shi" standing meditation like I mentioned, it's the very first posture you learn. People think it's stupid and boring, and simply a test of patience, so the teacher can see whether the student will stick to it. However, this seemingly simple posture can take you into the void. Standing in the void! Each posture is like a physical yantra or talisman, it has particular characteristics. Simply being in that posture makes the energy flow in a certain way. When you go into the void in a standing posture, these energetic characteristics are more noticeable and very powerful. So, having this as the first posture is very chinese: it's the beginning, yet it's also the end. It builds the foundation, as well as allow you to reach the ultimate. All in one. That's the daoist thought "the one is in all, and all is in the one". But like you mentioned, it's different processes. However, I would be very interested and curious to know now; can you shortly explain your view of the alchemical process in your tradition? Be blessed

Hey @Cleansox, Yes, like you said, there might be some differences in how we view internal alchemy, and how the systems we practice view it. From my point of view, how will you access the your jing from before you were born? How will you access your qi from before you were born? How will you connect with the state of your conciousness from before you were born? You use your current state and work from there. By building and strengthening your foundation (here understood as the health of your physical body), you're strengthening your jing. Through this continued strengthening, you can access, connect to and experienceyour jing from before you were born. This can happen through what this post started with: standing. If you're familiar with the "squatting monkey" or "dun hou shi", that's the very first posture in Dai Family Xing Yi. Through standing in this posture, you can connect to your jing from before you were born. You use your acquired jing (current physical state of health, your body), to access your jing from before you were born. The posture looks somewhat like the fetal position. When you relax in the position and stand for a prolonged time, and if you get the transmission of this state from your teacher, you can enter into and connect with the state of your jing from before you were born. The same goes for qi. You use your current qi, to access the qi from before you were born. You can connect to and access the state of your qi from before birth. Similarly with shen. The good thing about qigong and meditation is that once you're able to reach "the void", you have access to all of these three (jing, qi and shen from before birth) as well as everything else. That's the first thing in daoist cosmology: from the void came the dao, from the dao came the one, from the one came the two, from the two came the three, and from the three everything (the ten thousand things) came. So, when you access the void, everything is already in there: your jing/qi/shen from before birth, the 5 elements in their optimal form etc. You can know everything. That's the big advantage if one is good in meditation. If you can reach the void (through a transmission of it from your teacher), you can start to enter into the void every day. Then everything happens, just like the Dao De Jing says "the sage does nothing, yet everything is accomplished". The yin & yang shen is definitively possible, but I don't personally view it as important, nor the ultimate goal of alchemy. Alchemy's ultimate goal is "RenTienHeYi", or man becomes one with the universe (or Heaven as they call it). It's the same goal most spiritual systems pursue: yoga means oneness, union with or to be in harmony with. Harmony with everything and everyone, i.e. the universe. It's the same in sufism: "la ilaha il allah", there is nothing but God, i.e. even you are part of God. When you realize that and go into that state daily, that's the end goal. It's the same in buddhism, realizing the ultimate truth, "the void", "the emptiness", "nirvana". That's my own personal view, based on my own personal experience, and as taught by my different teachers.

@freeform Thanks for sharing! That's some really good information I completely agree! There are many possible pitfalls if one does not have the correct techniques and methods, and of course the protection and guidance of a true teacher. What I was thinking about when I asked that question, is the following: 1) Through retaining the semen, you consolidate, build and strengthen the jing (of course this is only done if the emotions and the mind are in balance, just like you mentioned). 2) Through fortifying the foundation, you strengthen your jing, thereby making the "jing to qi" step of internal alchemy stronger

Hey @Cleansox, thanks for chipping in Yes, definitively. Warning (in an attempt not to generalize or universalize my viewpoint, I'll say which lineage it comes from): I'm about to share some of my personal viewpoints on this subject. These are in accord with what I've been taught from Master Zhongxian Wu's Emei Zhengong, as well as Wudang Dragon Gate system, and what I've experienced personally. There's a jing, qi and shen component to everything. So "sealing the leakage" on the jing level has to do with the physical body, the semen, the blood, etc. That's what I've been talking about a lot in this thread. "Sealing the leakage" on the qi level has to do with (just like you mentioned) emotions as well as the breath; the emotions of desire, worry, fear etc, as well as proper breathing. "Sealing the leakage" on the shen level has to do with the senses (turning the senses inward instead of outward) and discarding wrong beliefs/worldviews for correct ones (wrong and correct simply implying whether the belief is in accord with objective reality or not). To give an example of the trinity of jing/qi/shen: The liver has a jing, qi and shen component. The jing is the physical part of the liver, the qi is the emotional part (emotions on a spectrum between anger and compassion) as well as the liver energy and the shen part is related to the sense of vision. So, sealing the leakage on the jing level of the liver has to do with blood (especially for women), but also anything which can damage your physical liver (e.g. alcohol). Sealing the leakage on the qi level of the liver has to do with slowly but surely minimizing anger, and slowly but surely cultivating compassion. This is coupled with breathing exercises, mantras and mudras for the liver, strengthening and refining its qi. Finally, sealing the leakage on the shen level of the liver has to do with minimizing looking (the sense of vision) outward, and instead turning the eyesight within, looking within. That's a small "my two cents" about the trinity of jing/qi/shen and it's relation to internal alchemy, as well as the principle of "sealing the leakage" and the alchemical principle of jing to qi, qi to shen, and shen to dao using the liver as a concrete example.

@freeform Tell me then, what happens if someone retains semen? When they stop that leakage of jing, and there is finally accumulated a surplus of semen which has not been evacuated.. What will happen to that surplus of semen in your opinion?

@liminal_luke yes, from the above quote from freeform, we've found the common ground I never talked about mixing systems together, nor "doing one's own thing". Due to @cleansox pointing it out, I clarified this by mentioning the specific methods that employ breath holding as one of their breathing exercises. Again, thanks for that @Cleansox @freeform as I mentioned in some of my previous posts (including to Virtue), I actually don't think we disagree that much. I think it's simply written communication, and what one "reads into" what the other communicates. Again, @freeform, I never said "jing = sperm", in every single post I've specifically mentioned "jing is related to sperm", I didn't say "jing EQUALS sperm" at any point. That's what you're reading into it, but it's never been what I said. There's a big difference between "related to" and "basically equal to".

Hey @Cleansox, I hadn't seen the edit about Zhongxian Wu Yes, Zhongxian Wu also teaches internal alchemy. His two several year programs contain internal alchemy, namely: 1) his 3,5 year training program called "living with the dao" (Jing Dao) as well as 2) the 2 year training program "chinese astrology" (TienGan DiZhi)

Thanks for your quick response! From my point of view, these are all "alchemical" (transformative) from a Chinese viewpoint, or simply tantric/energetically focused from the Indian viewpoint: 1) Tibetan tsa-lung and karmamudra (tibetan tantric buddhist, which of course originated from the Indian sanskrit yoga tradition) 2) All the systems of Zhongxian Wu (which have their roots in daoism and ancient chinese shamanism) 3) Chiao Chang Hung's systems are also rooted in the daoist tradition. 4) The sufi tradition as well (most words starting with the prefix "-al" are of arabic origin... INCLUDING al-chemy, alcohol, algebra etc) 5) All the tantric types of yoga employing focus on energy, prana, kundalini and shakti could in my point of view be characterized as alchemical 6) Even physical fitness training is alchemical; you build more blood, bigger stronger lungs and heart, bigger muscles, stronger immune system etc. That's all transforming your physical body from my point of view. That's of course my point of view However, I would definitively say that these three are accepted as "internal alchemy" from the usual understanding: 1) Tibetan tsa-lung and karmamudra (tibetan tantric buddhist, which of course originated from the Indian sanskrit yoga tradition) 2) All the systems of Zhongxian Wu (which have their roots in daoism and ancient chinese shamanism) 3) Chiao Chang Hung's systems are also rooted in the daoist tradition.

Hi @Cleansox Thanks for sharing your thoughts Yes, you're right! Let me nuance and specify, instead of simply generalizing (thanks for pointing that out by the way!) Holding the breath is important in the following systems I've experienced: 1) Tibetan buddhist tsa-lung and karmamudra (Dr. Nida Chenagtsang, Tulku Lobsang, and Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche are three I've learnt from that all employed breath holding) 2) Wudang Dragon Gate, Emei Zhengong, Dai Family XinYi and Hidden Immortal Lineage TaiJi as taught by Master Zhongxian Wu 3) Genital Weight Lifting, Xisuigong, Daoist meditation, taichi, qigong and lovemaking as taught by Chiao Chang Hung. 4) Sufi meditation, including dhikr (reciting mantras), du'a (reciting prayers) and many others. It can be found in classical texts by e.g. Ibn Arabi, the Badawi tariqa, the Naqshbandi tariqa as well as the Chisti tariqa 5) Yoga, both many Yoga Sutras, the Hatha Yoga Pradipika and many other classical sources (including tibetan texts as well, e.g.6 yogas of Naropa) 6) General fitness training for improving lung capacity, e.g. swimming, diving etc. Those are just some of the systems, teachers and lineages I've trained in, which employ breath holding as a fundamental breathing exercise

@freeform thanks for sharing your thoughts! So the things you disagree with are: 1) "Holding your breath is a key secret ingredient to internal alchemy" 2) "Long periods of standing meditation with breath holding activates and builds your qi" 3) Jing as related to semen, and jing as related to your physical body Let me elaborate or clarify one by one: 1) "Holding your breath is a key secret ingredient to internal alchemy" I shared this as a personal realization confirming what I've been taught by my teachers. They talked about it in the beginning when I studied with them, and I didn't think it was that important. Because it's nowhere in the books, and most don't talk about it. Plus, it's unpleasant and hard work. However, when I actually made an effort to practice like that, I noticed "OMG, it really works!". I wanted to share this personal experience in an effort to help others not simply pass over "breath holding" as unimportant like I myself had done. You find it dangerous, think it's too risky, or simply not true that it's actually an important part of alchemy. Okay, that's your opinion and experience. I have a different one. So, like you said, simply practice what your teachers and systems teach you, and I will practice what my teachers have taught me. I recommend everyone does that. 2) "Long periods of standing meditation with breath holding activates and builds your qi" This is pretty much the same as I've written above. It's what I've been taught, I neglected doing it because it was too hard and unpleasant, and no one else talked about it. However, now I've realized why they said that in the beginning, it really works and its really important. However, each should practice in accord with their own beliefs, their own systems and teachers. 3) Jing as related to semen, and jing as related to your physical body I have not said "jing is basically semen", nor have I said "jing is basically your physical body". In each post I've written "jing is related to semen" and "jing is related to your physical body".

@virtue In most of my responses, you can see I actually agree with many of the things being said. As with most conflicts, I think it's simply a misunderstanding. That's written communication sometimes. Can you sum up in one sentence, what it is you would like me to elaborate on? Because I feel everyone agrees that holding one's breath is simply one breathing method with certain benefits. Once again, it's only the relative importance given to it, that we disagree on. And that's perfectly okay from my point of view - to each his own. Morals, virtue, compassion, loving-kindness and the pursuit of internal and relational harmony is in my opinion the most important part of cultivation. All the meditation etc. is simply to assist us in having the power and patience to treat our neighbor as we would like to be treated. Be blessed

Hi @Vajra Fist, thanks for sharing your thoughts Sounds great that it helped you through Covid! Physical strength (e.g. strong lungs) is no small accomplishment in terms of health Yes, it makes sense not to mix systems! Always practice under the guidance of a true teacher that's the best guidance and protection. Just to clarify, when I shared about the similarities between yoga, meditation and qigong, it was simply to put things into perspective. I don't mix the systems up and try to do "my own thing". I follow the guidance as given by the teachers I've learnt from. The breath holding is a part of the jing to qi step, strengthening and refining your jing (physical body) and cultivating and strengthening your qi (energy). The continous and simultaneous cultivation of both your jing, qi and shen, through body, breath and posture is a very important part of Master Wu's qigong. It's important in every qigong, using your body, breath (including mantras) and your mind. Chunyi Lin mentions it too, using body, breath, mantras and the mind. So, holding one's breath is simply one breathing method, which strengthens and refines your jing, and cultivates and strengthen your qi. The posture and the mind then distributes the above mentioned benefits to particular parts of the body, the 5 organ systems, the 3 dan tien, or whichever part of your body is in need of extra healing. Actually, even my genital weight lifting and sexual qigong teacher also talked about the importance of holding the breath. And how to hold one's breath, focus on the place that needs healing, and simply rub it with your hand, is one of the best and most basic self-healing techniques. So, it's almost every teacher I've learnt from, who has talked about the benefits of this particular breathing method. It's the same in pranayama, the ujayyi pranayama (calming), the nadi shodhi (cleansing), the bhastrika (energizing) and the kumbhak (breath hold - strengthening and harmonizing). These are the fundamental pranayama techniques, kumbhak being one of the staples. I believe even Chunyi Lin has mentioned that the yin and yang harmonizes inside the body, when one holds the breath. And his qigong is one of the most gentle ones out there. Actually, I haven't had a single teacher who has not talked about this particular breathing exercise, namely holding the breath. But from what I can see in this thread, most don't like it, think it's dangerous, or say that it's very rare, and have never been taught this method. I respect that, we're all unique, we all have our own beliefs and preferences, and of course practice different systems. For me personally, it's one of the staple breathing exercises I've seen in every single system I've ever studied, no matter if Indian, Sufi, Chinese, Tibetan or even just western fitness training with swimming and diving. So to me, it's very apparent that it's a good and proven method used widely. But to each his own, of course

Hi @Vajra Fist, thanks for your post! Yes, I completely get where you're coming from. For me it was also an experiment, just to try it out Definitively go with your gut feeling, always! Nice to hear from you. All the best! Be blessed

@freeform Thanks for sharing your thoughts I completely agree that semen is simply one physical manifestation of jing. Yes, I also completely agree that sealing the physical leakages (blood and semen) is simply the physical component. I never said it's the end all and be all of alchemy, I simply mentioned that it's a part of it. So, I agree with you about that as well. This post is all about me sharing my experiences with "the foundation", and jing is the foundation. Semen and blood is also a part of that. Just like you said, it's "the start". The foundation is the start. "The foundation" is what I titled my original post Seems like we've gone full circle. Be blessed

@Cleansox Thanks for your response I feel like we're having a good exchange. It's only sensible to go with what feels to be more in tune with one's body and energy, I just wanted to share my own experience. Be blessed!

@Master Logray as long as it is comfortable, and doesn't leave you feeling out of breath. In the beginning it's only a few seconds. Later, you can hold your breath comfortably for several minutes at a time, while you're in a meditative state during the exercise. @virtue @Cleansox @Master Logray Breathing is related to the qi. Let me give you a basic, western example, just to make it more relatable. If you take a trained athlete, they will have more energy than an untrained person. Why? 1) Because they have more qi, 2) Because they have more blood. Blood is the mother of qi. If you get more blood, it will birth more qi. Qi is the commander of blood. It helps the blood circulate more effeciently. Qi without blood will over time die out. Blood without qi will not circulate will and reach all tissues. Someone who runs a lot will have more blood. Therefore they'll have more qi (compared to an untrained person). Furthermore, their stores of glycogen in the liver and muscles will be larger. That means they can store more glucose (sugar), i.e. more energy from their food in their bodies. Breath and food is always mentioned as some of the main sources of qi. If you can store more energy from your food, you have more energy. If you have bigger, stronger lungs as well as more blood, you'll also have more energy. Someone who can hold their breath for a long time (who holds their breath regularly) will also have build up more blood than a regular, untrained person. It's a training adaptation, just like running or swimming. Therefore they'll have more qi as well. Even from a normal, everyday western perspective, we all know that physically trained people have more energy and blood. I completely agree that one should be sensible and progessive in holding their breath. As always it's not black and white, it's nuanced. It's not "holding one's breath is the devil" or "holding your breath is God". It's more nuanced than that. Holding your breath can provide great benefits - if done right (in a sensible, progressive manner). I'm sure you can also damage yourself, if you don't do it sensibly. That's similar to everything else in our life; e.g. driving a car is a blessing, it takes us efficiently from A to B. Driving a car can also get you killed. However, we don't go around spouting "cars are the devil" or "cars are God". It's simply a tool. If used correctly, it's a blessing. If used incorrectly, it can get you killed. I just wanted to nuance the debate about breath holding a bit, as well as de-mystify it (with an everyday, western, relatable example). I hope it's clear my point of writing on this forum is sharing knowledge and experience, and not fighting or ridiculing others' point of view. I try to make sure every post has a point; it has knowledge and experience, or it has a nuancing of something viewed in a black and white manner. May you all be blessed

@Cleansox Thanks for sharing your thoughts and experiences! Regarding semen and women's cultivation: for women it's blood. Some chinese teachers say "jing, qi and shen" for men, yet "xue, qi and shen" for women (xue is blood). This is to specifically state that women lose jing through blood, e.g. through menstruation and pregnancy. If you've had different girlfriends in your lifetime, you will have noticed they menstruate very differently. I've had girlfriends that menstruate lightly for 2-3 days, and it barely affects their mood, energy levels etc. Then I've had girlfriends that bleed heavily for 5-7 days, and they're completely miserable on all levels; physically, emotionally and mentally. Why is there this difference in menstruation? Firstly, each individual has a unique bodily system. However, it's also health related. The healthier a woman is, the less of a toll her menstruation will take on her. This is something that can be improved with cultivation. That's why they say "xue, qi and shen" to women (some teachers, not all). It's the same for men regarding semen. Everyone is different in their level of semen production and sexual desire. Some can ejaculate a thousand times a day, and it never hurts them. Other people can ejaculate once in a blue moon and get dark under the eyes, get suicidal and depressed, and feel completely lethargic for days. So each individual body is different. However, it can always be improved with cultivation. So the principles are identical for both men and women, it's just a different emphasis, jing/semen vs xue/blood. @freeform Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I agree to a certain extent that forced breath holding done wrong is not necessarily ideal. However, I don't agree about how you say it unmistakenly will damage and deplete you over time. I agree with what you say about jing, that both blood, tears, secretions, cerebrospinal fluid etc are all related to jing. If something is related to jing, it means if you take care of it, you're indirectly also caring for your jing. Since they're related. Regarding blood loss, e.g. through donation, this is quite rare, and definitively within our control. Shedding tears is an activity that only happens every once in a while, and from my perspective not enough to waste away our jing. Similarly, loss of cerebrospinal fluid only happens after an accident, or in case of medical tests or certain operations. However, semen is particular in this regard. It's a surplus product that's habitually "evacuated" willingly. If you waste it away, you're unecessarily eating away at your jing (since semen is related to our jing, just like you also mentioned). That's the only reason I'm specifically mentioning semen, since it's related to our jing, and it's something most willingly waste away to an unecessary degree. If done in a healthy manner, it's all fine and dandy. However, it's one of the things related to jing we can actually control, and by making sure we do it in a healthy manner, it will help guard our jing. Which is good.

@EFreethought I learnt genital weightlifting, lovemaking etc in person (yes, this was an adventure in and of itself..) I learnt all of Master Wu's qigong in person. Spring Forest Qigong I've learnt the first 3 levels online (I bought the bundle). Jiang Yu Shan (Hisham al Haroun) I've bought the online program and have also spoken with him one-on-one via zoom. Simplified Kundalini Yoga I've learnt everything in person, one-on-one, with direct energy transmissions (first through touch, then the eyes, and latest through the mind).

@freeform thanks for sharing your thoughts!!! I agree, in the books, in the classes, it's very seldom anyone talks about the importance of breath holding. From my limited understanding, studies and experience, it's because it's actually one of the secret, key ingredients to internal alchemy. It's seems very simple, almost too simple,. However, from my point of view, it's a treasure hiding in plain sight. Yes, I agree, the yogic vs the qigong vs the neigong approach aim at the same target, harmony with everything and everyone, however, they work towards that aim in a little bit different manners. They share similar principles though (from my point of view), e.g. using the body, the breath, mantras and the mind, and of course upright moral conduct. Yes, jing! It's quite the subject I agree, saying that jing simply equals sperm is an oversimplification. However, from where I see it, sperm is very much related to one's jing. After all, the source of our own life is the joining of the jing of our mother and father in the moment of conception, the sperm and the egg. From that original source of jing, we've built up everything. So, sperm and eggs have the power to create new life. From my perspective, it makes sense to be aware of this valuable treasure hiding inside our genital organs.

That was my understanding of what you wrote. Feel free to correct me. As always, it's the author who knows the exact intended message. Be blessed

@virtue you're of course welcome to have your own opinion and feeling about my writing. I think it's always most beneficial to look at the point of something, the message of it. My message is: holding the breath is a part of tibetan buddhist practice. Your message is: holding the breath is a part of tibetan buddhist practice. So, we actually completely agree on the fundamental message: holding the breath is important. The only thing we can then discuss (if you wish) is whether they do it "a lot" like I firstly mentioned, or whether "it's not common at all" like you mentioned in your post. "A lot" vs "it's not common at all" is of course relative, so I don't feel any need for discussing this further. The reason being, that we agree on the fundamental point, whereas it's merely the adjective we could discuss further. Furthermore, you mentioned muscle locks. Yes, it's true, this is very important in both qigong and yoga, also tibetan buddhist practices. Regarding free divers, due to breath work and calming the mind, they could be viewed as pretty good yogis if you ask me. So, again, it's relative to one's definition of "a yogi". Is it someone with good control of their body, breath and mind? Then a free diver is definitively a stronger yogi than an average person. If a "yogi" is someone who's one with the Universe, God, the Divine, Dao, Brahman, The Cosmic Soul, The Void, The Emptiness, Shunya, then yes, I completely agree with you; we cannot know that from simply observing their breath holding while submerged in the ocean. So, it all comes down to one's definition of things. How I define "a lot" and how you define "not common at all". How I define "a yogi" and how you define "a yogi" (free divers being the investigated case). Personally, one of the definitions of yoga I really like is "harmony". How to be in harmony with everything and everyone. Harmony between body, breath and mind, between oneself and one's family, collegues, society, and in the end all living beings.

@Jaba Yes, exactly. In the beginning it's very short intervals (a couple of seconds). Later you can be in a meditative state while also holding your breath for longer periods (up to several minutes). I know the tibetan buddhists also practice this a lot.

@Jaba Yes! It can be. Just to clarify what I mean by holding your breath: yes, 4 phases of breathing, 1) breathing in, 2) holding your breath with your lungs full of air, 3) breathing out, 4) holding your breath with your lungs completely empty, 5) repeat Standing on one leg for a prolonged time (just as an example) puts tremendous strain on your circulatory system. This alone can make even young and healthy people faint. When you add holding your breath (both with full lungs and empty lungs), this can make people pass out and fall over. Simply standing in place in a particular posture for just 5-10 minutes without movement can also make you pass out. So that's also why it's not emphasized in the usual qigong health class; it can make people faint. When you do the repeated breath holds, you should never feel "out of breath". Furthermore, if you ever feel faint, you should immediately breathe normally and sit down. If very serious, lay down on your back with your legs in the air (to make the blood flow back down to the organs and brain). I had to do this several times during a 4 day intensive workshop. I was very strong and healthy at the time, but I was about to pass out from holding my breath several times. When we worked on the Liver/Gallbladder system I got extremely nauseous and was also close to both vomiting and passing out. I had to sit down for quite some time to rest, because it was just too much. So always be humble and take a sensible, progressive approach

Hi @Rakiel, Thanks for your message Yes of course. Chunyi Lin mentions that there are 4 ways to cultivate, activate and manipulate energy: 1) Body 2) Breath 3) Mantras / sound 4) Mind The small universe in SFQ uses especially 1) the mind and 2) mantras to open and circulate the small universe. It's done in a seated position. Building the lower dan tien and opening the microcosmic orbit or small universe is something every single system of qigong I've ever tried focuses on. What's good about SFQ is that mantras are very powerful, so they will activate and get your energy moving. Over time, when you have practiced it daily for a longer period, the channels "get used" to being open and circulated. Another advantage in SFQ is that because you're in a relaxed, seated position, it's doesn't matter if you're elderly, sick, have bad knees etc. Everyone can do the practice and benefit from it. Compare this to other more strenous, standing, more body oriented methods, and there's a definitive advantage in SFQ. Personally I can feel the vibrations of the qi as I focus my mind on the different energy spots and say the mantras. I can also see/sense the color of the energy. I can also see/sense if some places are more blocked than others, or more open. Finally I can also see/sense the strength of the energy. My perception of energy (being able to firstly sense it as pulsating vibrations, and later being able to see it) started with Simplified Kundalini Yoga (I've written about it in another post). Later when I started qigong, it was very handy to be able to sense the qi as it moves about the body during different exercises. Then you can truly sense which teachers give strong qi transmission, and of course which exercises really work for your body and energy. I personally really like SFQ.