freeform

I think the phrase is along the lines of “the sage treats all people as straw dogs”… This phrase is important - and changes completely when one understands the more esoteric meaning of “people”… In fact the “people” are mentioned a lot in the DDJ. If we are to understand the DDJ from an internal perspective - if we understand it to be talking about something deep inside rather than out there in society, then we must find what ‘the people’ represent internally.

How does karma fit into the view of ‘all notions of right and wrong are man made artifice’… maybe karma doesn’t fit?

Interesting - so all good and bad are completely relative… And it’s only the externalised, agreed-upon measures that a society upholds that is the only barometer for good and bad. So all moral measures are simply an artifice of society? Do you think people have no internal moral barometer at all?

Who judges what’s wrong or right? (I agree that they exist by the way - so it’s a genuine question that I’ve studied and curious what others think.) Is there some natural law that does the judging? Is there a divine being that does it? Similar question… what if two perspectives don’t quite agree? How do you know that one perspective is right and another is wrong? Is there ever an ultimate wrong or right that’s beyond perspectives? How does it work?

Not sure? I don’t really know what ‘the right hand path’ means. It’s the view of the teachers I’ve studied with - a couple of Buddhist lines and two Daoist ones. (Though I’ve come across many teachers and practitioners that didn’t have this distinction - generally this group were not far down the spiritual aspects of their path - or were ‘hobby practitioners’) The underlying principle is that although the world is composed of various beings and manifestations, we only ever experience them as reflections within ourself…

Morality is less important in the beginning, much more important in the intermediate and advanced stage - then, as you say, it’s dropped altogether at the very advanced stage (when true, uncontrived virtue becomes the norm). The reason is that in the beginning you’re just learning stuff - you haven’t developed any internal power - so even the normal everyday social norms and laws will keep you in line. In the intermediate to advanced stage - that’s when morality becomes paramount. As your internal power grows it will feed every wayward aspect of your acquired mind. We all know the phenomenon of ‘power tripping’ - well it’s not just American cops and Karens in menial official positions that get this way it certainly happens to cultivators too. They suddenly feel this rush of inner strength and confidence and before they know it they’re easily justifying manipulating people and things to satisfy their craving for some base desire (power, social status, sex, money etc) At the very advanced stage, constraints of morality simply don’t apply anymore. One’s behaviour becomes effortlessly ‘saintly’ - there’s no craving, no need to bolster the self identity - so any notion of selfishness or emotional reactivity falls away and True Virtue shines forth unconditionally from that person. I’d also say that most people think they’re way more advanced than they really are… and are quick to let go of morality waaaay before they’re even close to the advanced stage… That’s why you get so many ‘celibate’ gurus that sleep with their students and embezzle all the money they can - in their mind, they’re enlightened - morality doesn’t apply to them anymore

I imagine discipline is the aim? Martial arts training is what you’re after. Go for a teacher that’s well respected in your area - the style is not so important, it’s more important that the teacher and school are good. Look for schools that value virtue, skill and integrity - not aggression and winning at all costs (totally falling for the Miyagi Do vs Cobra Kai stereotypes here!) Generally wrestling, boxing, kick boxing, bjj etc tend to be popular and will likely have good teachers in your area… the more esoteric martial arts it’s generally very hit or miss. Go for in-person training (not online). Avoid internal stuff until your 18+ Qi based stuff will not be of benefit at your age, not at all - but the strength and discipline from martial arts will be of great benefit - and will set great foundations for qi based stuff when you’re old enough.

There are certain themes - like not causing others to suffer… but each tradition will have its own set of specific morals and ethics to follow. The fundamental shift is from actions directed at satisfying our personal wants, desires and self aggrandisement to that of humility and benefiting others. Not always… I think you’re able to control many desires. For instance you probably have a desire for money - but you repress yourself from robbing someone… and I’m sure you don’t feel like you’re missing out or feeling dissatisfied about that. I suspect a part of you actually craves the feeling of desire and dissatisfaction and so you create the thoughts that bring this up for you. These kinds of desires are driven by your fear of survival and your attachment to physicality and experience - these are the Zhi and Po tendencies. Sung They are the classical virtues in Daoism. They come about as your divine self crosses over into the manifest realm… they slowly devolve into emotions and emotional reactivity (the virtue of wisdom for instance devolves into fear). Daoist practice aims to turn this process around so that the base fears turn back into the classical virtues (De)… and then eventually as you pass the ‘mysterious gate’ you return back into your divine or original self.

Yeah… it’s a funny thing - but the esoteric view is that other people are also ‘yourself’.

Yes - indeed, without emotion clouding things, action taken can be a lot more efficient. If there’s action to be taken at all. But often we think we’ve overcome fear completely - and then a loved one gets a life threatening illness or is hurt or attacked or something, and we discover that there definitely is still preference and clinging after-all. Certainly been the case for me.

That would be my first choice if I was you In-person is always better. Adam is from Australia - so I’m sure he visits too. I’d start there and then see where you want to take things. If you have access to any teachers from Damo’s school in Sydney, I’d check them out too. Damo’s focus is more on cultivation using the Nei Dan path - and taiji is just a side thing. Though I’ve heard Adam say that Damo’s taiji is better than his own (and I’ve heard Damo say that about Adam’s taiji too). Generally from the people I’ve met, it seems their progress is much quicker with Damo - I assume because he does a lot of Neigong which kinda fast-tracks some of the development necessary for taiji. But yeah - I say go and meet some people in these schools first… then orient from there.

Morality and virtue are fundamental in Nei Dan and Daoism. Though unlike Confucianism, the reason for it isn’t to create ideal conditions for a harmonious society - but to create the conditions necessary for inner spiritual cultivation. Very anti establishment these Daoists On a very basic level - think of unvirtuous action as creating a subtle level of guilt that will stop you from experiencing your original spirit. Think of that one big thing you did that you’re not proud of and feel guilty about. The repercussions of that action are like a scar that remains. At the moment of crossing over to the divine, all these subtle scars will be brought to awareness and the remaining guilt and shame will magnetically pull on your awareness and out of the divine realm. You can bypass this stuff from time to time and get a glimpse… but for full transformation every such scar must be let go of… If you keep creating these subtle scars, then you’re basically undoing your cultivation. Now on the other end of the spectrum, virtuous actions and states - like wisdom, compassion, kindness, bravery, patience etc etc create the perfect fertiliser for one’s divinity to bloom. For the basics of qigong - none of this matters. If you want to build and circulate qi - then virtues and morals are only as relevant as being a good person is for you. In fact there’s even a certain inner power that comes from doing the opposite of what is virtuous. There’s plenty of unethical and hugely immoral people with exceptional qi skills in the internal arts world.

Haha - well give some action sports a go maybe… some sky diving or paragliding or something Or apparently even just some stand up comedy at an open mic works too! Growing up poor in a country with lots of earthquakes and war helped to get those first few close calls under my belt. Riding bikes on dirt roads all over Asia and pissing off the local gangsters earned me my next few close calls. Indeed. And this no-preference state is better tested when a loved one is in imminent danger. Though it’s a test I hope no one would have to experience.

They're certainly interrelated and based on the same cosmological principles. Alchemy is the source of these. But because Chinese arts are so context dependent, there are major fundamental differences. Nei Dan is concerned with spiritual transformation and Chinese Medicine is concerned with harmonising pathogenic processes. Yes and no. Sometimes people plug their gaps in alchemical knowledge with information from medicine - and this always creates problems. Equally, genuine Nei Dan practitioners would do well to use Chinese medicine principles to understand things that go wrong. But it’s not a must. Chinese medicine is a huge topic. If you have access to a decent practitioner you don’t need to study it I would say.

i assume you’d be able to talk to them before agreeing to a session - I’d start there… see if you like the person first ask about their approach, ask what a session involves what other therapies they do etc… Not necessarily.

Meditation Hopefully not in your average community centre mindfulness class though Some of the Tibetan and more shamanic traditions have this in a much more direct way (I’m sure fellow bums with a lot more experience in these paths could help). In Daoist alchemy we generally aim for harmony rather than catharsis or extreme experiences - but they certainly do happen spontaneously. There’s also a lot of physical and psychological suffering with many of the practices. Yeah I do understand. I used to think this until I had a very close call… and when imminent death is very much a real thing right there about to take you - there’s something deeper and more fundamental than belief or thought that makes itself apparent. After that I’ve started to notice how there’s an undercurrent of this fear of death that motivates much of my behaviour. But things do change… on a second close call instead of fear I had a moment of great clarity and strength… So I think it’s good to experience this - it just shines a light on a part of you that’s more ancient than your rational mind.

Its one of those theoretical things that can only be tested by a real, visceral possibility of imminent death. Surviving a car crash, experiencing some catastrophic disaster or being shot at - suddenly a part of you that you’re not accustomed to takes centre stage and your philosophy is tested by the much deeper and more powerful animal instinct to avoid death. I think it’s healthy to test that once in a while Maybe not by placing yourself in danger - but there are spiritual practices that feel like imminent annihilation is on the cards.

The big red flag: they do lots of different therapies - chiropractics, TENS machines, lots of other technological stuff, lots of futuristic sounding therapies… maybe some Botox and lip fillers on the side etc etc. When you meet them for your first consultation - they should ask a lot of questions about your lifestyle, food etc. look at your tongue, take your pulse, make notes. If you ask them for the Chinese medicine diagnosis they should be able to give you one. Always ask - and take a note yourself. During treatment - a good sign is if they don’t use the plastic tube guides on the needles as they insert… (though plastic guides is common practice unfortunately these days) another good sign is that they take their time with each insertion. They should not be using more than a few points at one time. They should be taking your pulse regularly throughout the treatment. After the treatment you should feel good - not spaced out or high or extremely relaxed… you should feel generally well and with some energy… It shouldn’t feel extreme in any way (extremely relaxed or extremely energetic etc) If you ask they should have a general plan for the next few treatments. Its very unusual for one treatment to sort everything out - so expect to have a course of treatments… though locking you into 10 treatments without allowing you to see how they work is a bit of a red flag… unless they are exceptionally good, well renowned and with a very good reputation and with lots of clients - and so they just don’t have the time for the curious dabblers…

Pretty much how the majority of modern internal arts teachers do it

It’s very much a hypothetical book Ive discovered that even though I write a lot, I rarely have anything to say - other than in an attempt to help.

Not necessarily… It depends on Causes (what you do) and Conditions (who you are)… As a rule, the process of growth is invariably unpleasurable… waking up at 5am to train before work is not pleasurable… the training process is not pleasurable… earning money is not pleasurable - but vegging out on the sofa with a good movie and some tasty snacks and a glass of wine is indeed very pleasurable… But which of these activities cause growth and which are just coasting along? Similarly, I can do my training in a way that is pleasurable - I literally call it coasting on skill… this means I just let my pre-developed skill express itself and appreciate that expression… that’s very pleasurable - but it doesn’t develop me beyond my skill level. Developing my skill level is always uncomfortable and unpleasant - even though afterwards I may feel good having done it. The other issue is knowing where you’re going. From your personal perspective, you cannot see beyond your level of skill… just as a seasoned weightlifter might know that not aligning your posture in a certain way will trash your knees in 10 years - a novice will have no idea because they don’t have the skill or the experience to understand this. So that’s a long winded way of saying that when it comes to skill development - pleasurable things tend to keep you where you are - at best, and be causing damage without you knowing at worst.

Consider that these traditions aren’t really about your needs - that they were created with a particular path of development in mind. What are your needs? Do they align with the aims of the creators of these traditions? Do they align with the aims of the teachers of these techniques? Get back to the drawing board I’d say. The way up to the top of Everest is dangerous and difficult enough - even if you follow a well trodden path… but the likelihood of harming yourself is almost 100% if you make up your own path as you go. Consider that maybe climbing the Everest isn’t what you actually want. So look at other options and follow the advice of the most competent people in that field. I find that what most people want when they go for esoteric methods can actually be achieved with good exercise, diet and sleep.

Follow your teacher’s guidance… It depends on the process you’re working on. It’s often good to do qigong along with a more internal qi building method… as it helps circulate the qi and avoid stagnation. But don’t make up your own combinations unless you know exactly what you're doing.

In my tradition everyone starts with the lower Dantien. Slaying the red dragon is only recommended for nuns and renunciates… it’s less like menopause and more like going back to a pre-puberty stage. And stopping the leakage of Jing is far more subtle than what you’re suggesting above. Its not spiritual (none of this is spiritual until you penetrate through to the original spirit). Haha - so walking through walls, teleportation, transforming physical substances all pass your BS detector, but this doesn’t? That’s interesting The Blood and the Jing form a key aspect of the Daoist arts. These are not just the physical blood and the semen. This is an often repeated misunderstanding.

I reply using both. I don’t find it much more difficult on one machine or another. The one thing that does affect me is the light from the screen - this is proving to be detrimental for this phase of my training… I’m having to turn the brightness right down - but then I can barely see 😅