gendao

Paramahansa Yogananda also died of a heart attack at age 59.. I think this topic really warrants a comprehensive, statistical study. Compile as many data points out there (various masters & gurus) and plot them out on a graph. Then see if there is any pattern - when compared to the average lifespans in their eras/locales?

What's the secret? Because a lot of the "old schools" believe that healing others does not heal yourself. And in fact, if you lack the requisite skills, could even decrease your own health by draining your own energy or picking up sick qi from your patients. Although, many of the "Newer Age" schools do not subscribe to these beliefs.

One theory is that her and her attacker's Higher Selves both collaborated to create this situation for them "down" here on Earth as a learning experience for both. So, nothing "happens" to us ("Lower Self") without our (Higher Self's) consent - if not, intent. And "good" or "bad" is all subjective here..."up" there, everything is simply seen as helping one to learn. Even bad karmic "payback" would just be...to allow us to taste our own medicine and see how the other side feels, then. Remember, the devil is in the details. And here, the detail is how you define "you," how many layers there are to that...and how many of those may be normally "veiled." Again, just one theory though...

What is the "secret meaning" of the MCO? And, I can't find anything on David Godman's "Nothing Ever Happens"?

Really? So, did this student surpass John Chang? Wow, I'd love to hear more about how this doctor fixed his eyesight using the Silva method. WTF is the Silva method, anyway?

Could you give a brief description of how to do longevity breathing? Yea, from what I've read so far...it appears the basic method for opening the MCO is: 1) Build up the xia dan tian (usually by sitting stillness meditation). 2) Once it's reached a critical mass (often after 100 days), you may feel the dan tian start rotating like a ball (or an eddy current). 3) At this point, you want to make sure it's rotating in the direction of "up the spine, down the front." 4) With a little intention or daigong help (if not naturally), it may then start pushing jing up your spine. At this point, you can help guide it in the Little Orbit as an intermediate step...or the full-on MCO. 5) Later on this can be expanded out to the limbs with the macrocosmic orbit. 6) Opening the kundalini is a similar process, but with a different result. It technically opens the chong mai (sushumna) rather than the du & ren mai (governing & conception vessels). So, I think just focusing on the dan tian will provide the fuel for the body to do much of the rest on its own. But from casual anecdotes so far, this first step alone may easily take ~200-300 hours! And then maybe another 100-200 hrs for the remaining steps. Which is why so few people actually open their MCO. It's a big milestone that takes a lot of work, with very little feedback at first. Although, the big first step appears to be the main hurdle...after which your body may go more on autopilot. So, if you can get to the confirmatory sign where you feel your dan tian rotating, I think you're basically home free after that. PS - Note that since I have not opened mine yet, that all this is basically just speculative conjecture on my part.

Good points teach, thanks. Well, daily practice is what I'm focusing on now. As you said, it's impossible to predict, but based upon some of the anecdotal experiences here - I'm hoping for some breakthroughs by 300-500 hrs of daily meditation. A bit more than I had originally expected, but I'm more than willing to go that distance, and more.. Although if the 3rd eye is part of the macrocosmic orbit, that specifically might fall more into the 600-900 hr range, I dunno? Well, guess I'd rather see nasty sick qi so I can avoid it better, rather than not see it and wallow blissfully in it. Sort of the lesser of evils...

Say, so when you were sitting...were you sitting in lotus, half-lotus or simply cross-legged? And how much do you think that matters? Also, were you simply doing this same meditation the whole time? And could you explain it a bit more in detail? How exactly do you do bone breathing? And, so you kept your focus on your 3rd eye (like Gopi Krishna), rather than down in your dan tian?

Fantastic story and good point. It seems there is an unending stream of firsthand accounts of WLP, and they are all f'n impressive. From what I've heard so far, he is not only a ridonkulously powerful, authentic master - but also a truly compassionate one with high integrity as well. But you see, I should have just kept it simple and left it called qi (I did put "life force" in quotes tho). There's just no full Western equivalent term (but maybe orgone energy?). As you say, it can affect inanimate objects too (as John Chang does as well)...so really I think it's more like a subtle primal energy of the universe that transcends the animate/inanimate duality. It can also be very directly & clearly seen when your 3rd eye gets really open though - which is what I would personally like. That would help take a lot of the guesswork or imprecision out.

I think it would be farrrr more intense than that. Anyhow, has anyone read any of Gopi Krishna's books? He has written so many, I need some help in choosing which ones to buy? Here's just a few from his prolific list: Kundalini: The Evolutionary Energy in Man Living with Kundalini The Awakening of Kundalini Kundalini: The Secret of Yoga Ancient Secrets of Kundalini Higher Consciousness and Kundalini The Way to Self-Knowledge The Biological Basis of Religion and Genius Divine Possibilities in Man The Dawn of a New Science The Wonder of the Brain Three Perspectives on Kundalini Shape of Events to Come Reason and revelation Kundalini: Empowering Human Evolution : Selected Writings of Gopi Krishna Kundalini for the New Age: Selected Writings of Gopi Krishna

When I first REALLY felt powerful qi from a qigong healer, it was an eye-opening experience to discover that it was SIMPLY AS THE ANCIENT CHINESE HAD DESCRIBED IT. It's not metaphorical, breath, oxygen, biomechanical or even bioelectrical...or any other Western scientific rationale. It is a very literal "life force" that can even feel like a "fluid ectoplasm." Again, simply and literally as the ancients described. No need to overcomplicate it. Of course, the catch is that the more open one is, the more one can sense it. But most people aren't very open by default. I hope to get to the point where I can easily see it.

Great post, Yoda! That seems to be one of the main problems with entities - lack of discernment about them. It's like a blind man meeting strangers in an alley. So, I agree that these encounters could be risky until you open your 3rd eye or something to develop better perceptual abilities and see what's really going on. One reason I like the traditional Chinese alchemy right now is that it's all about going deeper inside yourself, and doesn't involve invoking any entities, which could definitely get confusing for a "blind" beginner...

Yea, that's my concern about "fluffy" New Age "mind only" methods that promise big results for little "hardcore" effort. They can lead to some tantalizing glimpses, but often don't seem to result in fundamental, lasting changes. Which is what I'm after right now. "Permanent," biospiritual breakthroughs like opening my MCO, awakening my kundalini, opening my 3rd eye, etc. Not just mental or temporary ones.

Are you sitting in half or full lotus? And is the "small water wheel" the "little orbit?" Or simply the microcosmic orbit? And how long (hrs) did it take you to open your microcosmic orbit?

Just a note - ThetaHealing has recently been subjected to some allegations of impropriety or malfunction...however I don't think anything's been proven for a fact. But such things are difficult to prove, so probably only time can tell. And, I am not indicting ThetaHealing or relating Kunlun to it here, just thought it was interesting that they have both been put under some similar scrutiny lately. Like, maybe it's a passing trend? But everyone can decide for themselves whatever they want to believe... I do think that anyone with common sense can tell when some accusations are transparent proxies for less noble, underlying motives, though. Well, I'm still Gold Dragon Body or bust! PS - Who cares what Bullshido thinks? Obviously, they are not going to believe in any metaphysical art, with controversies or not..

I'm curious, how old is JJ Semple now and how old is this photo? If he is really 70 or 71 now...and that photo is recent...holy cowwwwwwww!!! Maybe he needs to be added as an entry to this thread.

It's interesting, I've just recently heard about similar accusations being leveled against another modality I was involved in, ThetaHealing. Namely, that students were unknowingly dealing with an "imposter" entity and psychic monitoring & attacks were sometimes launched against high-level defectors. Such allegations have caused a rift and some confusion in the community...and it goes back to our ability (or inability) to really discern. I think until we open our channels and 3rd eye sufficiently to see firsthand what all is going on, it can be difficult for us to ever really KNOW...if that is even philosophically possible. Until then, we are forced to rely upon various hearsay ("he said, she said") and observing precedence (lineage). Well, yet another reason to work on opening my MCO, kundalini & 3rd eye now!

1) Have you opened your MCO yet?2) I think it may be more useful to talk about total HOURS practice time, than "days"...as there's a HUGE difference between practicing 1 hr/day vs 5+ hrs/day. I agree, if you're practicing 5 hrs+/day, it shouldn't take you 2 years. Maybe less than 3 months, similar to Blasto. But it all depends on how many hours/day you're talking about! 3) I don't think there's really any harm in skipping ahead...just it may be useless and slow you down by diverting your energy from where it needs to be. 4) I haven't opened my MCO myself yet...so this is admittedly all mostly just speculation on my part.

Very interesting, the deepest I can go right now is holding still enough to feel/hear my heartbeat, and then allowing my breath to sort of escape in rhythm with that.. I'm not saying that's a right or wrong practice though - as I haven't really attained any results yet. And until I do, I'm just "experimenting"..

Well, I don't know how many hrs/day dao zhen's intensive training is - but let's say 8. So, he's saying students might "simply" see the Mysterious Pass by ~80-96 hrs - under constant guidance and with possible help from transmission. That's still a fair chunk of time...with assistance given. Me & Blasto were talking more about timespans for solitary lay practitioners mainly doing it on their own. Also having "fleeting" openings and insights...is not the same as "concrete" steps of attainment like building a critical mass in the dantian and finally opening it. I wonder how many hours it takes (on average) for his students to actually open their MCO? Ditto, this definitely takes practice to attain higher efficiency! I guess real progress still comes down to good, old-fashioned hard work in the end. Certainly, all those who have actually attained some permanent openings (MCO, kundalini, etc.) here have all gone through extended, intense periods of regular practice. Whereas those who just dabble and talk a lot...don't seem to get past those big humps. Or if there's an exception or a good shortcut - I'd love to know! Otherwise, TIME seems to be one of the biggest key factors to success in this!

Ahhh, that's great - and critical - to know! People need to know that this isn't something you just sit down and start visualizing within the first 10 minutes... Noooo, it's something that verrryyy slowly and subtly starts happening only after several months of an hour or more of daily practice! This takes real gong fu with basically no feedback at first - which is why so few accomplish it on their own. Doing some spotty meditation here and there once a week simply isn't going to cut it. In your case, it took probably 270-450 cumulative hours! I myself haven't even reached 150 yet (or only half that, depending on what specific practices actually count). PS - I forgot - were you doing mostly standing, seated or sitting meditation? And, were you sexually retaining?

Wow, nice article! One small cultural correction though - foot-binding was most likely first started by Tang Dynasty Chinese courtesans in imitation of foreign, Western proto-"ballet" dancers wearing "pointe" foot-bindings (so they could dance on their toes). It later spread down to the lower classes and took to an extreme, but was never enforced by men. It was simply another act of female vanity for sexual self-exploitation & personal empowerment. Just like corsets, stilettos, boob jobs & make-up...all voluntary weapons in our sexual arms race.