Dainin

To the OP, If you simply want to feel qi, Pangu Shengong, Fragrant Qigong, or the La Qi method in Zhineng Qigong would probably allow you to experience that pretty rapidly (and less expensively) than the methods you've mentioned. On the other hand. if you would like to do something with the energy you would be feeling, one of those more extensive courses could be more beneficial.

Kitty comeback? I hope so. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/rare-endangered-lynx-spotted-in-vermont-for-the-first-time-since-2018-180984970/ https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/rare-ocelot-caught-on-camera-in-arizona-the-first-sighting-in-its-area-for-50-years-180984921/

"Serpent at the gates of wisdom. Where do you belong? Wisdom cannot be transmitted. It keeps you hanging on Do you really serve the Devil If it's all God's plan? Good and evil need each other. Honey I'm your man"

This one is highly regarded by several people that I respect (I haven't read it yet though): Daoist Meditation: The Purification of the Heart Method of Meditation and Discourse on Sitting and Forgetting https://www.amazon.com/Daoist-Meditation-Purification-Discourse-Forgetting/dp/1848192118/

See May 3, 2016 post:

Hello Bums,

That is a good question and I'm not sure of the answer. Apparently while Peter Deunov's father was a Bulgarian Orthodox priest, he (Peter) attended two Christian (Protestant) theological schools in the United States in the 1890s, and went to medical school at BU for a year before returning to Bulgaria. He was also known as Beinsa Douno and published some books under that name. I just looked in Amazon and there is biography on him and a number of his books have been translated into English. Might be worth checking out. "In 1932, he developed Paneurhythmy exercises: a sequence of exercises performed to music, to achieve inner balance and harmonization. This practice promotes the processes of self-perfecting, expanding of the consciousness and attaining of virtues. The circle dance, is a conscious interchange between human beings and the forces of living nature. Each movement is the expression of a thought. The effect should be that the observer picks up from the movements, the thought or the idea they express. The rhythm in the movement of the physical body leads us to one in our spiritual life." [Wikipedia article] I think that was coincidentally around this same time that Gurdjieff was developing his movements, which were also performed to music. At least one of his main disciples was a composer. I don't know if Deunov and Gurdjieff knew of each other or not. I think there were various systems of calisthenics and other exercises (aka "Physical Culture) that were popular in Europe around the time (and earlier), such as Swedish gymnastics, Indian club swinging, Russian kettlebells, and the Turnverein movement in Germany and among German immigrants in the US. It's possible that this type of material may have influenced them but it's hard to say. I noticed that Aivanhov used yogic terminology in the title of some of his books. Apparently he went to India in 1959 and met Neem Karoli Baba, who later became the guru to Ram Dass (Richard Alpert). I find this kind of stuff to be really interesting!

I just remembered another potential candidate for this, the movement and breath practices of Peter Deunov and his student Omraam Mikhaël Aïvanhov. These guys were from Bulgaria and considered themselves to be esoteric Christians. They came out of the Orthodox Church but seemed to incorporate some Indian concepts as well.

I just remembered that two qigong sets that I've studied in the past were transmitted and/or created by Chinese masters who were from Christian and Muslim backgrounds respectively. The Wuji Hundun Qigong popularized by Daisy Lee and Francesco Garripolli was the family qigong of Master Duan Zhi Liang, who a Christian. In a documentary about him, he shows a stele said to talk about his family history. The 24 Posture Therapeutic Qigong developed by Master Helen Wu was based on the 20 posture form developed by her grandfather Master Wang Ziping, who was a Muslim. To my eyes these forms seem to be based on Chinese medical theory and I don't find anything particularly Abrahamic in nature about them. Another thing that came to mind was the Iranian practice of Zhurkane (also transliterated as Zoor Khane and various other ways) or Varzesh i Bastani. This is a sort of ritual practiced by men in a special building (the Zhurkane or House of Power) in an octagonal pit. While sacred music is played and poetry is chanted, they go they through a lengthy series of exercises including calisthenics (including those typically called "Hindu" squats and push-ups in the West), weight lifting with large wooden shields, swinging very large clubs called Meels, and high speed jumping and spinning. I first read about this years ago in a little book called Zen Combat. It may date back to pre-Islamic Persian empire times but has been continued to be practiced post-Islamic conquest. Again, mind , body and spirit are being engaged, but I'm not sure if they have concepts analogous to the meridian system and qi found in the Chinese (and Tibetan and Ayurvedic) system. There is a guy in Australia selling equipment and books about this system under the name of "Persian Yoga." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pahlevani_and_zoorkhaneh_rituals https://medium.com/@dforouznv/house-of-strength-the-history-and-traditions-of-the-zurkhaneh-4c41c58d569a

I was interested in this too, a while back, but didn't wind up following up with it mostly because the location was a bit far from me. I don't think they just allow you to show up (at least for the latihan part), and ask you to do some background reading for awhile to make sure you're really interested in it before you can experience it. I think it is based on a sort of chain of transmission going back to the founder, Bapak. At least as of a few years ago there was a YouTube channel where some of the old timers shared their experiences with the organization. The musician Roger McGuinn (of The Byrds) was associated with the practice in the 60s before finding Jesus. The author J.G. Bennett was also involved and wrote a book about it. Some say President Barack Obama's mom may have been associated with them, which freaked out some fundamentalist evangelicals.

Yes, his courses are online on the Gumroad platform. He usually gives a small discount during the first few days after releasing them. His monthly email earlier today said: "And speaking of rejuvenation, just in time for Lunar New Year look for our Launch Sale of the Muscle-Tendon Change & Marrow Washing Online Learning Program beginning February 8 at 12pm EST. This very complete online program gives you access to the training methods of Shaolin Monks and Daoist adepts that rebuild the body's fascial system to develop flexible and elastic internal strength and healthy bones, tendons, ligaments, and muscles. Look for our email and facebook posts announcing the launch and sale! https://www.internalartsinternational.com/ https://www.internalartsinternational.com/online-programs/

Bumping for two added sections in Tom Bisio's Yi Jin Jing article series above and added release date for his course (February 8, 2024)

One of the older sources may be Zoroastrianism. To quote Wikipedia: " Zoroastrianism, also known as Mazdayasna and Behdin, is an Iranian religion and one of the world's oldest organized faiths, based on the teachings of the Iranian-speaking prophet Zoroaster. It has a dualistic cosmology of good and evil within the framework of a monotheistic ontology and an eschatology which predicts the ultimate triumph of good over evil. Zoroastrianism exalts an uncreated and benevolent deity of wisdom known as Ahura Mazda (lit. 'Lord of Wisdom') as its supreme being and Angra Mainyu as the opposing, destructive spirit and adversary to Ahura Mazda. Historically, the unique features of Zoroastrianism, such as its monotheism, messianism, belief in free will and judgement after death, conception of heaven, hell, angels, and demons, among other concepts, may have influenced other religious and philosophical systems, including the Abrahamic religions and Gnosticism, Northern Buddhism, and Greek philosophy. With possible roots dating back to the 2nd millennium BCE, Zoroastrianism enters recorded history around the middle of the 6th century BCE. It served as the state religion of the ancient Iranian empires for more than a millennium (approximately from 600 BCE to 650 CE), but declined from the 7th century CE onwards as a direct result of the Arab-Muslim conquest of Persia (633–654 CE), which led to the large-scale persecution of the Zoroastrian people. Recent estimates place the current number of Zoroastrians in the world at around 110,000–120,000 at most, with the majority of this figure living in India, Iran, and North America; their number has been thought to be declining. "

Some of these courses sound interesting including one on the Philokalia: https://olfoundation.net/product-category/ae/kallistos/

Nehemiah Gordon did his doctorate on the tetragrammaton at a university in Israel. He has researched and located over 1000 early Hebrew bible manuscripts that give the vowels for YHVH. According to him, these indicated that the correct pronunciation should be "Yehovah." For those interested, he has lots of YouTube videos on this subject. https://www.youtube.com/@Nehemiaswall https://www.nehemiaswall.com/about-nehemia-gordon https://www.nehemiaswall.com/nehemia-gordon-name-god

Besides the five times daily prayers (Salah) posted above, many Sufi orders have additional practices engaging body, breath, and mind (Zikr, whirling, etc.). Practitioners of the Eastern Orthodox Christian Hesychasm do as well (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hesychasm, see section on psychosomatic techniques). Gurdjieff may have combined techniques from those two traditions (and possibly others as well) to come up with his "movements." The ancient Greeks seemed to have similar practices as well (see the interesting books of Peter Kingsley). They would not be Abrahamic but may have influenced them, as they occupied many of the same regions. The books of Idries Shah claim that Sufism had roots in pre-Islamic traditions, but his scholarship seems to be questioned by some people (as does Kingsley's). Although these practices share with qigong the engagement of body, breath, and mind, I'm not sure of the extent to which the concepts of cultivating qi and the meridian system exists in them. I have heard of concepts such as "pneuma" and "ruach" as being similar to qi or prana but don't know enough about them to say. Maybe someone more knowledgeable about this can weigh in. On a related note, the traditional system of Islamic medicine (Unani aka Tibb) uses many modalities in common with traditional Chinese medicine and Ayurveda, including pulse and tongue diagnosis, herbalism, dietary therapy, cupping, and body work/massage, as well as various treatments suggested by Mohammed ("Prophetic medicine"). A lot of the roots of this system lay in the ancient Greek concept of temperaments (or humours), which was also widely used in Western medicine prior to the 1900s. It also seems similar to TCM and Ayurveda, in looking at the individual constitution of the patient as a key to treatment. I'm not sure if they have a map of the meridians (or nadis) in the same way though.

Many of the perpetrators of those atrocities claimed to be followers of Christ's teachings and many believed they were acting on his behalf. If you think he is peaceful and tolerant, read the Book of Revelation. There are some Christian groups who are tolerant and peaceful, for example Quakers, Hutterites, etc. The majority are not. What is the point of peaceful teachings when the actions of the followers of these teachings are extremely hateful and violent, not just to non-believers but also between different denominations of Christianity?

If you don't think Christianity is intolerant please take a moment to consider the Crusades, Spanish Inquisition, Transatlantic slave trade, burning of "witches", genocide of indigenous populations in the Americas and Australia, Holocaust, etc., etc.

Happy New Year, Bums! I hope to continue mostly in the same vein in the new year. I think I managed to do at least some practice everyday in 2023. Some general objectives (not resolutions) would be to accumulate less stuff; to complete some of the courses that I've acquired but never finished (or started!); to keep my brain active with puzzles, writing, etc.; to do more to cultivate my relationship with friends and relatives; and to make better decisions regarding dietary intake, sleep, and other health-related aspects.

Yes, he receives and responds to all manner of questions. This is currently done in private FB groups, but I think he may be transitioning this function to another platform in the future...and there are also periodic live webinars where he takes questions during the course.

I've taken the Flowing Zen Qigong 201 course twice and I'm currently taking the 101 course and can recommend them. The information is presented in a manner and at a pace so that it does not become overwhelming. The teacher is accessible and responds to questions. I've also taken workshops in person from the instructor as well as his ex teacher. If you're new to Qigong, I would recommend taking the 101 first, even though they say you can begin with either one. Regular Qigong practice should enhance your Zazen practice, at least that was my experience.

I don't have a daily chanting practice at the moment, but meet with one of my teachers weekly on Sunday mornings for a 30 minute online chanting session (including preliminary and concluding prayers). These are primarily of Hindu origin, with occasional Buddhist ones as well. When I attend the Zendo, the opening service always includes chanting either the Heart Sutra or Hakuin's Song of Zazen, and sometimes the Sandokai (The Identity of Relative and Absolute) and Kanzeon mantras. Then 3 rounds of the 4 vows at the conclusion of the session. I've done extended daily periods of the Bihar School's 3 mantra morning sadhana (11 Mahamrityunjaya, 11 Gayatri and 3 rounds of the 32 names of Durga) which I really enjoyed (it's energizing) and will probably go back to doing eventually. I've dabbled a bit with the Maha Mantra (Hare Krishna...) and some of the Pure Land mantras (Amituofo, etc.). I'd like to try working with the Threshold Society's 18 minute Zikr at some point also.

I just came across this today. I haven't read any of it in detail yet, but at first glance it looks quite comprehensive and interesting. I believe that he will be releasing an online course on Muscle-Tendon Change early next year (February 8). Muscle-Tendon Change, Marrow Washing & Fascial Training: series of articles by Tom Bisio: https://www.internalartsinternational.com/free/muscle-tendon-change-marrow-washing-fascial-training-part-1-by-tom-bisio/ https://www.internalartsinternational.com/free/muscle-tendon-change-marrow-washing-fascial-training-part-2-by-tom-bisio/ https://www.internalartsinternational.com/free/muscle-tendon-change-marrow-washing-fascial-training-part-3-by-tom-bisio/ https://www.internalartsinternational.com/free/muscle-tendon-change-marrow-washing-fascial-training-part-4-by-tom-bisio/ https://www.internalartsinternational.com/free/muscle-tendon-change-marrow-washing-fascial-training-part-5-by-tom-bisio/ https://www.internalartsinternational.com/free/muscle-tendon-change-marrow-washing-fascial-training-part-6-by-tom-bisio/ https://www.internalartsinternational.com/free/muscle-tendon-change-marrow-washing-fascial-training-part-7-by-tom-bisio/ https://www.internalartsinternational.com/free/muscle-tendon-change-marrow-washing-fascial-training-part-8-by-tom-bisio/ https://www.internalartsinternational.com/free/muscle-tendon-change-marrow-washing-fascial-training-part-9-by-tom-bisio/ Added sections 8-9

Personally I'm pretty skeptical about the possibility achieving of physical immortality. However, I do think that this exercise (and many other qigong methods) could benefit the immune system, thus leading to a longer and more healthy life. I don't think that it's ever too late to start. There is such a wide range of practices that there is probably something for everyone, no matter what their age and current condition is.