Mandrake

Now did you finish him, or was there Friendship, Friendship? : ) M

A huge caveat here: Very, very important here to state which tradition and lineage we are speaking about here, as what's implied could vary a lot. I wouldn't trust details about what the rainbow body entails in for example Vajrayana from anyone who isn't schooled and instructed in it directly. It is very technical, nuanced, and not easy to grasp. A lot of what I've read online, once the term popped out of the bag has been wrong, or sometimes even delusional. There's a reason a lot of it was (and still is) secret. Take a term such as jhana/dhyana and see what mess and distorsion has been made out of it - and that is only low-level stuff. No offense to anyone. M

When I spoke with the Pa Auk-system monks, and especially the Westerners, they mentioned that many have exaggerated views about the time frame this requires. One should really be comfortable with the idea that it takes 1-2 years of full-time practice, at least. The first Jhana/Dhyana, is extensively mapped out by the Indian shastras and practiced in an unbroken line in Mahayana. There is a tremendous amount of written material on the phenomenology one traverses through while practicing to this goal, but a smidgen is translated to English. The definition of what the Jhanas are, the signs, and stages before full achievement, are written out and corraborated by the Hindu traditions as well. And not unimportantly: the time it takes (spoiler, living in a calm, not as busy world in the mountains 1000 years ago kind of makes this whole thing easier for the mind to achieve). M

Hear! Hear! Very pleasant energy. The stillness is palpable. M

Damn what a ride! Welcome! M

He was in a car accident which messed up his spine, and I guess pelvis. M

Lots of good previous comments here. I too have interacted with some of BKF's students, and some of those have been among the upper awesomer scale of people I've encountered. The system has worked really well for them, and it's not only a matter of shuffling feelings around or imagining/contriving things. I just want to add: Years back, a student of his was on the lookout for other masters in the same lineage. The reason was that Liu Hongjie didn't impart the advanced stages to Bruce, those that would have lead to immortality. Whether that was a deliberate choice of Hongjie's or was a matter of there not being enough time before his departing, I don't know. The instruction and theory alone would have required three years full-time with him. From what I gather form above and BKF's early literature, is that the the parts he was transmitted had the aim of taking an ordinary person to a harmonious, normal state from where she could progress to the spiritual. That included removing emotional and mental afflictions and traumas, and training the physical and energetic bodies into fit vessels. That stronger focus and direct debate on getting rid of emotional and psychological garbage is something unfortunately lacking and ignored in most Eastern lineages. Could be a reason the system gained ground in the West--no matter what Bruce himself displays, accomplished etc. M

Welcome back freeform! Hope all gone well : ) M

Depending on the type of and school of kumbhaka, hand and arm placements do matter. Qigong is irrelevant as this is the Hindu discussion subforum. Different principles, different techniques. M

@Nuralshamal 1) My LD phase was in my early twenties. I journaled extensively and from that, the lucidity just popped up. Part of it I suspect is improving recall of both the LDs you're already having, but also creating a link between the wake up-consciousness and the dream-consciousness. I came to the point where I could easily fill ten pages with dreams every morning and more and more were lucid. Didn't have discipline though so did this in spurts. 3) Not much. Enjoyed myself :3 This was before I had encountered an established spiritual path so didn't have much of significance to do. Today, the situation would be very different. When life permits I would like to do it again and use the lucidity for my current practices. M

Welcome back CarsonZi, Quite an intense decade you've had. Happy you made it. Having others who have walked through ordeals and trials, amongst us, makes it easier for the rest of us who are facing and will face them to go on. M

Zerostao, I hope you didn't take this as an implicit criticism of you or moderators; you're all doing a thankless but important job. But for example, like Nungali already pointed out, the Esoteric Subforum is a mess, and I wouldn't classify most of the threads there as being relevant to classic Western paths. That being said, The Daobums has a history and a vibe to all the people who congregate here. Those seriously interested in Buddhism or the Western arts will go to outside forums that have the requisite specialists and people with experience there. This place isn't aimed at being a Swiss army knife nor a university of All, and I think most members are fine with it. For me, the reward has been the dialogue here--with a strong daoist bent of course--between eclectic people. But keeping that dialogue flowing requires rules, respect and moderation. So thanks for doing what must be done. M

Which defeats the purpose of subforums in the first place - a focused and more indepth discussion relevant to the field of study, with the intent to contribute in honesty and with effort. Don't know if the subforums would be helped by separate moderators and/or guidelines of what belongs there and not, but some kind of sifting would do them good. M

Which I agree doesn't have a place here. M

This is what personal practice forums were created for. It's not the first time we've had a situation like this, and it certainly detracts from the flow of group discussion that makes this place valuable, and occasionally golden. The user may have good intentions so no need to bash but rather use the tools and structures created for these issues. Mandrake

@Jambon The Chiropractor Joe Dispenza, former Ramtha School of Enlightenment teacher? Caveat emptor is my advice. Semen retention is a major misunderstanding of the Daoist and Eastern teachings, and in many ways misses the original point. This forum has loads and loads of discussions on this topic and I would recommend you read as much as you can. "So keeping the microcosmic orbit in mind am I right in saying that by reducing or totally stopping sexual release a males semen is eventually reabsorbed into the "cerebrospinal flow" thus increasing its intensity and thereby nurturing the glands in the brain more than if this extra resource was spent in sexual activity ?" No, you're not. Messing with these things through practices rooted in misinformation can mess with yourself in ways that can take much more time to remedy. M

For a swift moment throughout infinity, our lives crossed on this board. M

Hi fellow bums, I have a friend that recently moved outcountry to an ecovillage, and that got me thinking. There are probably many of us who from time to time would benefit from either living an extended time with a heavier focus on cultivation - or even into stricter retreats - but who can't find the environment and support which would provide that. What about an ecovillage for cultivators, eclectic in styles but where the common ground is some kind of devotion to spiritual pursuit? How would such an enterprise be set up? How would it be operated? What would the rules be? I'd be happy for the collective input and brainstorming. Mandrake

From my experience working with people with mental unhealth, I could bet my house that she would have committed suicide even if she hand't attended that Goenka retreat. They, the Goenka organisation, even have clauses dissuading people with mental issues to attend. I understand that this isn't necessarily counter to what you intend to convey. Some practices are meant for people with a normal psychological build, a sense of stability and resilience. The cultural context also plays a big deal where a person in the East probably have heard and felt the concepts of non-self, nirvana etc. whereas the taste of such may be completely alien to a Westerner with a different cultural baggage. M

Hi Ahyhope, What do you mean with energy? What would you do with that energy? Is it possible that there are other issues that lead to comparatively much larger losses of energy? Mandrake

Never have I said that they are mutually exclusive. Neither have I said that I'm not a scholar. Neither have I mentioned that I haven't studied Shaivist sources and those of other traditions. Cultivation isn't a trivial matter for me, and after two decades of learning and studying and practicing I definitely have heard and processed a large share of the viewpoints out there. So if "plenty of religious people don't like to consider evidence outside of their particular tradition" then it's their issue; I don't consider myself one of them. These posts are a digression anyway as they touch on my own cultivation of which nobody here knows more than a fragment apart from their own projections. My statement was that mantras do not necessarily require empowerment depending on their source. I base this on my experience, on my lineages, and my previous studies including other margas. I can further state that I'm also of the opinion that the source of power of Buddhist mantras is different than that of the non-buddhist Indian lineages. Lastly, I also stated that lamas/gurus don't necessarily know everything, as in my earlier post. M

Forestofemptiness, I'm a cultivator before else, not a scholar. For Daoist cultivation, I got to Daoist masters. For Vajrayana, I go to those masters and the wisdom and experience they embody. And so on. M

Forestofemptiness, The teacher comes first, so you follow your ones, and I'll follow what my Vajrayana and Buddhist teachers have mentioned on the topic. And on that matter, what Shaivist sources say have absolutely no bearing on my traditions, at all. M

For mantras and dharanis found in sutras, no; for mantras in the Mantrayana, yes. M

Indeed. M