dwai

I think he’s showing concepts, so focusing on a specific aspect he wants to demonstrate. In our system we train all aspects, from close-range tuishou to the more esoteric. My teacher wants us to focus on the esoteric stuff, and the rationale is that the “normal” stuff ends up becoming more physical and we’ve already spent years on it. But for beginners I would not teach the more advanced concepts before they’ve spent sufficient time working on the foundational skills.

It is, but with tai chi practice the field gets stronger and larger, imho

In our system we work on two “external” qi aspects. One is our personal shield, which extends a few inches to a few feet around our body. The other my teacher calls the “surface” (which permeates throughout all the space). One very interesting exercise we do is holding a thin tissue between two practice partners. One is just holding on, and the other starts to pull the surface from behind the static partner towards themselves. The results are very interesting

You are the most of the type of welcome! 😝

Yes of course

I’m sure it is hard to discern. But if you watch the video it might actually help you

Now, everyone except @ChiDragon, please feel free to comment. Let’s have a discussion Have you experienced this? Are you able to manifest the Tiqi and Lingqi described in the video? I have and I can. It’s especially amazing when you experience the external qi in action.

You should have reserved your comments before making it 🧐

I meant to start a new thread where you can share your thoughts on the subject if you feel strongly about the topic.

If you like to counter him, make a different post countering his perspective. I think its time we put this bickering behind us.

Moderator's Note: Mutual respect needs to be the bedrock of any interaction; otherwise, we will lower the level of discourse very quickly. If members don't like CD's posts, please put him on ignore or use the downvote feature. There is no need for name-calling and/or ad hominem. At the same time, it is not a bad idea for CD to introspect why he is generating such reactions from within the community.

I think it comes down to what one focuses on. Realization of true nature is one and done. There is a permanent switch. But how the mind reconciles with it of course is dependent on the story each person holds on to. Some entirely let go of all stories, so there’s nothing more to be done.

Imho, energetic awakening is not necessary for spiritual awakening. Different paths (could) have various methods, results, and goals. For a Hindu Yogi (Yoga is a broad term not restricted to Patanjali Yoga), the objective is Self-Realization - not profound energetic awakening. However, some take the Kundalini awakening path to it. Others might use the path of self-inquiry to get there. All those things you mention might happen, but they might not. It depends on the sincerity, fortitude, and respect for the tradition and teacher they follow. The rest will fall into place if we take care of those foundational things.

I think it is a fascinating language. I think the English term for Chinese characters is ideogram (an idea symbol?). So maybe it is not so much a meaning field but a symbol representing an idea, perhaps? Indian languages are like that, too, to a certain extent - the same word can mean completely different things based on context. That's why there are so many untranslatable words - e.g., dharma - does it mean duty, religion, or characteristic based on natural law (among others)? All of them, but depending on the context. I had a philosopher friend (sadly, he passed away in 2022) who did some exciting work in what he called "biocultures." His hypothesis was that different cognitive frameworks arose from within different cultural contexts. Some were visual/pictographic, some were sonic (based on sound) while others (modern/western) were word-based. https://www.medhajournal.com/the-biocultural-paradigm-the-neural-connection-between-science-and-mysticism/

I cannot emphasize enough the value and power of self-regulation in human interactions. This is especially true for online interactions (such as on TDB or other social media platforms). I understand that people have different views and opinions, but we need to temper our enthusiasm for expressing our opinions with how they are perceived by our peers. This comes down to the age-old adage - "know your audience." With the right audience, a particular opinion or viewpoint can be downright scintillating—the person expressing said thoughts might be perceived as a rockstar or celebrity. However, if the opinion and the audience are at odds, it can lead to a terrible experience for both. I'm not suggesting we should be disingenuous or pretend to conform to our peers, but how many times does a message that is not well-received need to be repeated to the same audience? Maybe we must introspect and figure out why our message is poorly received. This is where self-regulation comes into play. A skillful communicator will realize that their message is not generating the kind of response they were expecting and either re-evaluate their viewpoint, modify their message, or recognize that their target audience needs to be different.

Looks like you have been using it (I see some pretty Taiji downvotes against my posts 🤣)

Done!

There! Done!

Another reason for the downvote feature (no words required)

Apparently you found the right audience here with me

IMHO, a handful of noisy members are the root cause for that. Often, these members try to pass off their opinions as fact and complain if there's a mechanism for other members to show their disapproval without expending too much energy.

You are welcome not to post anything if it bothers you so much.

Nope. It's not going away. It is best to learn to live with it and control our prose appropriately based on community feedback (if you see more downvotes, it's time for course correction).

See, you started adding "IMHO" to your posts—that shows that it is your opinion. I love that. Looks like the downvote feature is working...

Every system needs checks and balances. I am all for our community's ability to self-regulate—the moderators (as we all know) are volunteers who love this community and want to see it flourish - but one must respect their time and energy expenditure in maintaining the conditions conducive to healthy interactions and exchange of ideas. I recognize that members might have strong opinions on the various topics discussed here, with their own experiences and analyses. However, it is also possible that these very strong opinions can become their blindspots, and they might be unable to see the impact of their vociferous attestations on the community in general. As Lao Tzu says in the Daodejing I look at the down-vote feature as a way to deal with difficult situations while they are still small.