innerspace_cadet

I was wondering if anyone in this forum could point me in the direction of good DVDs on Tai Chi. I live out in Colorado Springs, so there aren't many Tai Chi teachers around here. Is Terence Dunn a good resource?

Baduanjin (8 brocades) is probably the only qigong form I've stuck with consistently. Can anyone give me some pointers on how to do it with maximum effectiveness?

I do coordinate the breath with the movements. I also on occasion practice Zuowang sitting meditation.

Though I don't meditate very regularly, when I do it is Zuowang meditation that I choose to practice. It is the only meditation technique that I have stuck with over the years (after too much dabbling in this or that technique). I've gotten to the point that my thoughts slow down from torrent to a trickle, and sometimes there are no thoughts at all. My normal "sense of self" begins to shrink a bit. Is this a common experience?

As a librarian. I've been there almost five years now and I am frankly getting fed up with the way things are being run. Practically 70 percent of my library's materials are outdated because whenever I ask my superiors about being able to spend money all I get are excuses and evasive answers. It is now the middle of February and I've been allowed to spend a grand total of thirty dollars on a single DVD since the beginning of the fiscal year which started last July. Now I am being told that I probably won't be allotted much to spend anyway, because corporate headquarters for some reason did not pay the bill for the library's online databases (which I submitted in September). Now that they are past the deadline for the databases, and because they'll finally be paying for it, less money will be available for other things. I'm starting to freak out because our accrediting body will visit the campus in May or June, and if the library gets so much as a single citation, yours truly will be on the receiving end of a pink slip. Some days I sit at my desk and I have to resist the urge to type up a resignation letter and just walk out, but I only have 1100 dollars in savings. It's not like I'm not doing anything about it; I am sending out resumes, but I fear I won't be able to secure other means of employment before I get canned.

I own two didgeridoos, one of which is made from locally harvested aspen wood. (I live in Colorado.)

Thanks for the advice. Yes I have been practicing standing qigong and socking away as much money as I can. Today at work it seemed like the administration was more amenable to buying the books, magazines and DVDs I submitted, so it probably isn't as bad a situation as I first thought.

Bullshit. It's the fundamentalists who are throwing stones at the theory of evolution and at women's contraception. It is they who are throwing stones at Muslim immigrants, at people who don't worship the "One True God." And please define "sacred" for me. Because according to your logic, I need to have "the most sacred things" to "win" at the end of life. You sound like a Baby Boomer, because you think I need things to "win" something at the end of life. (Except in your case it isn't "toys" but sacred things.) I agree with your contention that living and let living is a good way to go, but that has its limits. If I sincerely believed that God wanted me to kill infidels and I had in my possession a nuclear weapon, somebody out there in the world would be perfectly justified in debunking my beliefs. If I believed that the earth was flat, do you think I would pass high school physics? I'm sorry but when I see b.s. I call it what it is.

I don't think dragons literally exist. But the spiritual archetype of the dragon, representing intense transformation and dynamism, is pretty cool I think.

Though I'm not a Hindu, I have prayed to Ganesha in the past whenever I got into a bind.

I agree. He named his only son "Rahula" which literally translates as "fetter" and he never ended up seeing his wife again after his quest for enlightenment. Life is meant to be enjoyed and experienced fully. With its numerous levels of hell, Buddhism can easily slide into being a fear based religion. The Tibetan Buddhist saint Milarepa's devotion to the dharma was partly based on a fear of falling into the hell realms for having practiced black magic.

I'd recommend a book called "The Richest Man in Babylon". It is written in parable format, but lays down some basic, but very solid personal finance principles.

I've never been there, but meditating at Easter Island would be cool.

I was thinking of walking to work two or three times a week. The only problem is that it is a little over seven miles each way. I do walk at a very brisk pace, so I'm wondering how long it would take me. Is there anyone else here who does anything comparable to that?

I'm coming to the realization that I am utterly incapable of being religious in the usual sense. My beliefs can be counted on one hand. I don't believe in Immortals, Buddhas, reincarnation, bodhisattvas, etc. I am not saying this as a criticism of the members of this forum who do. Is there anyone else on this forum who is somewhat like me? Someone who doesn't put much stock in beliefs, and who questions anything that doesn't make sense? What do I believe, you might ask. Well, I believe in the Tao as a philosophical concept of how the universe works, and I believe in chi, but that is about it. I am completely agnostic about life after death. I sometimes question even enlightenment itself. I think I should just sit and meditate, cultivate Te, and not worry too much about these metaphysical things. For the longest time, I tried to fit the round peg of my mind and soul into the different sized holes of the world's religions and it never worked out. It's just not me. Does anyone else here feel that way?

Sorry to have responded so late, Blasto. Some of the responses do fit the intellectual tradition I'm describing, some not. It is possible to assert that everyone is skeptical about something. For example, a Christian would be skeptical about the truth claims of Islam. But I am skeptical about almost everything, unless there is compelling evidence for it. Other things that are unknowable, such as what happens after death, I am more agnostic about. I won't dismiss the possibility outright though. I hope this answers your question.

Personally, I studied German for six years both at the high school and undergraduate levels. Right now I am considering picking up a middle eastern language like Farsi or Urdu. I know this doesn't have much to do with Daoism, but I think it's an interesting subject.

He can certainly talk the talk, but I wonder how he would react to his wife leaving him, losing his fortune, losing his reputation, the bank foreclosing on his house, and so on. Would it cause mere ripples in his mind, or tidal waves? You can say you're enlightened, or "awakened" or whatever, but life has a way of showing a person what his true spiritual colors are.

A couple of years ago, I was diagnosed with both central and obstructive sleep apnea. The CPAP breathing machine did not agree with me, and the mouthpiece I bought from the dentist is too uncomfortable to sleep with. Does anyone have recommendations for diet, exercises or practices that would alleviate my condition? Would qigong possibly help?

Thanks for the recommendations. Funny that you mention it, I do have a didgeridoo; I just need to play it more. Yes, I do have a few extra pounds I could stand to lose.

I'm starting to learn the hard way that beliefs not lived by or acted on have little value. For example, if I were a Christian, I could believe in being more Christlike, but if I came home from work and beat my wife and abused my kids I would be very far from being Christian, let alone living like Jesus. Now don't get me wrong, I don't do any of those horrible things, but I'm coming to the realization that actions speak louder than beliefs. Money is not discussed much on the TTB, but I realized today that frugality--which is what I'm striving for--is not some snap decision I make one day and live out for the rest of my life. It is a set of habits that I adopt that will take time to develop. Just like anything, it is a process. Personally, I don't "believe" in much, other than non-attachment and the Tao. But I need to focus on PRACTICING those beliefs, rather than just saying that I believe them. By that I mean working to cultivate this microcosm of the universe that I inhabit. Does anyone else feel the way I do?

Here are my resolutions: -Practice my Taiji form at least once a day. -Drink green tea every day. -Exercise (weights, cardio) at least 5 times a week.

America as we know it is finished. Too many people have been traumatized by the current economic meltdown to open their wallets again. But why the fuck should they? They don't have jobs, and their unemployment insurance is going to run out soon. They don't have money to spend to prop up the "consumer economy." Seriously folks, why do you think so many people who grew up during the Great Depression are such unbelievable penny pinchers? Because they had to be, and because they were traumatized by the experience of having so little. My grandmother grew up during the Great Depression, and to this day she absolutely hates to throw anything--and I mean anything--out. It is 2010, and she can't stand throwing something out--even if it is moldy bread. The Great Recession will have repercussions for years into the future, because people these days are too afraid to buy anything. If our economy, as the pundits say, is "consumer oriented" then we are toast, because people are figuring out that they can't afford to be consumers any more. No number of stimulus packages will change this. I for one don't want to serve the economy by buying shit I don't need, especially if that shit was bought with a credit card with a high interest rate. The Glenn Beck rally is symptomatic of the American tendency to lean on politicians and hucksters to solve their problems, but this is a much bigger mess than some ex-Cokehead like Beck can solve.

I try to eat right and exercise on a regular basis, but I still get sugar cravings every day. I was wondering what to do about this. I tried going by the program in "Eat to Live" but I don't like to cook and found it very restrictive and couldn't stick with it. Recently, I bought a copy of "The Primal Blueprint" and have been following it as much as possible, but it is too soon to tell if it will help. Does anyone have any dietary or exercise recommendations to give that will help? I already run and practice Tai Chi, but wonder if I should increase the amount of time I do them. Would going on a fast help?

In my opinion, not being afraid of death is the ultimate immortality. I might catch some flak for this, but I think the Taoists strayed from the Tao when they tried to cheat death via internal alchemy to become immortal. The quest for immortality seems to place life over death in priority, when really we should see both as equal. Feel free to critique this post.