Cameron

The Men vs. Woman argument is sill imo.

I don't like it at all and wish you would just get rid of it!! *sips beer*

edited....

Someone put some Mantak Chia clips on Youtube. Interestingly, I never really saw him before in a teaching enviornment. From the little I can see he looks like a caring and interested teacher. Ime probably not going to fly out for a week long retreat at Tao Garden any time soon but nice to see some of Master Chia in action.

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I have been communicating with Wundang Taoist Master Tseng's student. Seems like a very lovely group. Master Tseng is doing a week long retreat in November that is the foundation for his Alchemy retreats. I don't know if I will be able to go as I am going to be busy but if anyone else was interested in exploring. The retreat costs $2500 for the week. Then the first level of Master Tseng(Chen's) Alchemy training is early 2008. link

Very nice, thanks for the feedback. I may do a 3 day workshop with him and Ken Cohen in Boulder in November. His retreats are pretty pricey so would need to meet him atleast before going. Anyway, thanks for the feedback, and he looks great for his age I agree.

I don't want to make a habit of this but someone was kind enough to just give me "What's Wrong with Right Now" by 'Sailor' Bob Adamson. He has a really good way of explaining stuff. I'll just quote one passage. Question:Is there any way to stop this chatter? Bob:No. Do you chatter? Understand and watch it. If you haven't got a vested interest in it, what is going to happen? It is going to die down. You see, when the chatter starts and I attribute it to 'me' and 'I want this' or 'I don't like that' or 'He said so and so' and 'blah,blah,blah,blah'-I have a vested interest in it. Now, in that vested interest what is happening? The energy of 'I and 'this'. The 'I' is a thought, and the 'this' is a thought. But that energy is opposed to itself. It is a dissipating energy. It is in conflict with itself. But if I understand that there is no centre here and that it is just chatter and I am aware of it, then there is no 'me' that wants anything out of it. There is nothing resisting it. It is just what is. Then there is no energy going into it. Now, can a thing live without energy? No! So, in the watching of it, in the awareness of it without bothering about it, in seeing it for what it is, that it is false, it is going to die down of it's own accord. So, there is no need to try and stop it. In trying to stop it, the mind will be in conflict with the mind. That will get you into all sorts of trouble, which it has done until now.

Ime happy you got the reference...hippy.

I agree with this position as well and consider it fair and balanced.

Taoists are cool IMO.

I don't want to make a habit of this but someone was kind enough to just give me "What's Wrong with Right Now" by 'Sailor' Bob Adamson. He has a really good way of explaining stuff. I'll just quote one passage. Question:Is there any way to stop this chatter? Bob:No. Do you chatter? Understand and watch it. If you haven't got a vested interest in it, what is going to happen? It is going to die down. You see, when the chatter starts and I attribute it to 'me' and 'I want this' or 'I don't like that' or 'He said so and so' and 'blah,blah,blah,blah'-I have a vested interest in it. Now, in that vested interest what is happening? The energy of 'I and 'this'. The 'I' is a thought, and the 'this' is a thought. But that energy is opposed to itself. It is a dissipating energy. It is in conflict with itself. But if I understand that there is no centre here and that it is just chatter and I am aware of it, then there is no 'me' that wants anything out of it. There is nothing resisting it. It is just what is. Then there is no energy going into it. Now, can a thing live without energy? No! So, in the watching of it, in the awareness of it without bothering about it, in seeing it for what it is, that it is false, it is going to die down of it's own accord. So, there is no need to try and stop it. In trying to stop it, the mind will be in conflict with the mind. That will get you into all sorts of trouble, which it has done until now.

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Your judgments are not about others. They are about you and your conditioning. No one has "the right" conditioning. We all have our own, and no one has exactly the same conditioning, which helps explain why getting along is so challenging. To make things worse, we all think our conditioning is the right conditioning, or at least better than someone else's, or we wouldn't judge others and try to change them. This is our stance because we are programmed to have this stance. Like a fish in water, we don't see or examine certain programmed assumptions we have as human beings. One of the deepest and most unconscious assumptions we have is that what we think is true. We live by the unquestioned assumption that if we think it, it must be true. We do not question our beliefs because they are what we think. Since everyone has different ideas (conditioning), this causes a lot of problems in relationships. Much energy is expended trying to convince others of what we believe or defend our ideas when it could be much better spent. Ideas are just ideas. They are not that important, but we are programmed to think they are because ideas create our identity-they create the you that you think you are. Without your ideas, beliefs, opinions, dreams, and memories, who would you be? Who is this you that you think you are if not a composite of your ideas-your conditioning? You can test this out in moments when thinking isn't happening: Where is this you with all of its stories, history, and beliefs? For a moment it stops existing, but do you still exist? Something still exists even when you stop identifying yourself as this you with all its ideas and history. This something that exists beyond thought is the real you-essence. It is present when you are thinking too, but you don't notice it because you are lost in thought (how true that expression is!). And what are ideas? Without your belief in them, they are nothing. In and of themselves they have no power, and the truth they contain is only relative truth, not ultimate truth. Your judgments relate to beliefs you personally hold as true. They are true to you, but not ultimately true. The beliefs you hold as personally true are very different from the ones others hold as true, and no one's are ultimately true, although the ego feels its are. The best thing we can say about a belief is that it has more truth than another, but that also often depends on one's perspective-one's conditioning. Although some conditioned ideas and beliefs appear to be truer and more helpful than others, it is not your business to try to change the conditioning of others unless they ask you to. Even if you are a spouse, lover, parent, sibling, or close friend, it is still not your business. Not only is it not your business to change others, but it is harmful to relationships to try to do this. Ideas are just not worth the price paid in love lost. Love is more important than any conditioned idea or belief, but if you take your conditioning more seriously than love, you will lose love. The other will withhold love from you because it will be too painful for him or her to love you. Conditioning takes this toll time and time again in relationships, and we think the problem is a lack of love. What causes relationships to break down or never leave the ground is often not a lack of love but valuing ideas over love. When we are identified with the ego, we do choose ideas over love because being right is more important than loving. In the egoic state of consciousness, others' differences frighten us, and to feel safe, we feel we need to change them. So, doing this seems very important. In reality, love is always the safest choice, but the ego doesn't see this. Only essence does, and you must drop into essence yourself to realize this. This isn't always easy to do in relationships because differences are so apparent and conditioning is triggered so frequently. Conditioning triggers judgment, and that triggers the desire to change someone, which causes conflict and pain and, consequently, withdrawal from relationship. The easiest place to stop this cycle is at the beginning, when the judgment first appears, because the judgment has the least momentum at that point. You can't keep judgments from arising because that is not under your control or anybody else's, but you can decide to do nothing about your judgment. And that is the best choice you can make if you want love and relationship. Many would say that if someone doesn't conform to what they want, they don't want to be in a relationship with him or her anyway. That is their choice and the reason most relationships dissolve or never get started. Those who make this choice are not likely to find love or lasting and meaningful relationship with anyone because no one will ever meet their stiff and very personal requirements. Those who make this choice don't believe that, so they keep looking and keep rejecting others. They explain their lack of relationship by saying the person was too this or too that, but the question is, Too this or that for whom? Who is it that has these requirements and preferences? It is the conditioned self-the ego-and it will never be pleased. As long as you let the ego choose your partners, you won't have one. The ego is in the business of rejecting others, not accepting and loving them. For love, you need to turn to the real you because that is the one who knows how to love. When essence is evoked in relationships, you find yourself saying yes to love and no to your ideas about how others should be. You choose love instead of your conditioned preferences. Love feels too good to walk away from just because of some differences. But the ego doesn't allow you to feel love. It cuts love off with judgments before you even have a chance to experience it. Those who are entrenched in the ego do not feel much love. Fortunately, love is less than a breath away, if only we turn our attention away from our judgments and onto the moment, which is full of exactly what we are looking for: love that is perfect just the way it is. -From Choosing Love, A guide to Spiritual Relationship by Gina Lake (Available from the Bookstore on www.endless-satsang .com)

BTW..I don't know that I completely agree with the views being presented here. I tend to think having good goals can be of service to the process of awakening and making you a happier person. It's a deep question. I don't see anything wrong with "The Secret" it's pretty much the same exact thing I learned from Matt Furey's course Magnetic Mind Power. Probably the higher truth is happiness lies somewhere between a balance of the 2 perspectives. I personally havent had enough time yet to go deeply into both to comment how it "really" is. And maybe it's more like a personal truth for each person anyway. Cam

I know! Especially people with over a thousand posts on here. They are pathetic! *sips tea*

So your saying your not going to see Rambo 4? link

As long as there is no danger of plagerism it's all good!

Definetly if I do the workshop I'll give feedback on what I learn. Here or in my practice journal. Anyone else who is studying with Master Tseng by all means comment if you feel comfortable in the future.

BACK TO YOUR MEDITATION CUSHION! *Hits Max over the head with stick*

Adyashanti works with people in prison. One of the things he said about visiting with the 'lifers'(people in there forever..you can guess the kind of stuff they did to get there) is 2 profound things(for me anyway). 1. He says when talking with many of the ones that are interested in awakening when they go back to when they did whatever they did most often an unconsciousness arises over them. Especially the ones who are seriously into awakening when they visit the time when they did it it's almost like it wasn't them and it was like a bad dream that occurred. All of the identification and attachment that causes suffering is based on this notion of a seperate 'me'. As soon as the seperate 'me' is seen through the trance of ego is lifted and the 'real you' may emerge(so I here). Adya says from the persective of awakening if you chop someones head off you realize your head is rolling on the floor. 2. He also noticed for the 'lifers' that it wasn't until they really accepted that they were going to be in prison until they died with really no hope of getting out that they could come to peace. The ones that were lifers and still struggling with the thought of getting out someday had the most suffering. Obviously, this is not a situation any of us would ever wish to be in. But from where they were at only after accepting 'what is'..that they were lifers..that they could be at peace and possibly be on the path to awakening.

It's not incompatible at all. They work great together. My understanding of Adya's take on LOA is it's totally appropriate to engage in like the "Secret" talks about. The only real difference would be with awakening he says it's all seen as the dream state. Of course you may still want to have fun in the dream state(why not!) The real transfomation as I understand it-Ime not there yet-is with awakening it's no longer about "me, me, me" and "I want, I want, I want" because the "me" and the "I" are no longer center stage. Life moves you. But as Adya says when your still in the dream state LOA might be necissary and helpful stuff. In addition, the 10 commandments, Buddhist precepts, laws etc are all ways to make people in the dream state act correctly. It's all dream land/ego land stuff. Which is totally approporiate and helpful for all of us living in the dream state.

I most likely won't be doing the full retreat but a 3 day workshop with Master Tseng and Ken Cohen at the beginning of November. I would definetly want to speak with Master Tseng in person, get some teachings with him before committing to a full retreat. I just became aware there are students doing workshops with Master Tseng already on Taobums so we may get feedback from other sources too.

Ok, linked directly to his website above.