Franky

I'm going to go work in Western Sichuan in a Shangri La province soon to teach college students, It's mostly Tibetan, like Tibet but with less red tape (and unfortunately, without the 8000'ers). But it's probably the most authentic Tibetan experience a Foreigner can get in China. Anyways, I'm trying to study up on Tibetan Buddhism, as many of my students will be such, by reading The Tibetan Book of the dead. But I must admit it's making my head spin. It's easier than reading Derrida, but that's not saying much. It's a lot of bow down to peaceful and wrathful deities, again and again. I watched the 1990's video, narrated by Leonard Cohen, which seemed comprehensibly packaged for an uneducated westerner, but this book is almost Greek to me. I want to finish it before going to China, as my copy isn't legal there, due to one person's introduction. The book itself is legal in China, as long as certain people didn't contribute... you can guess who they are. I also don't want to instigate some schism between Tankies and Shangri La believers either (if there are any on this forum, don't take it personal), as I've heard both sides of that story. I just want to know if there are some good resources to prepare me for this book in English. I have the Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition if that helps anybody. Thanks

This system includes some Aikido techniques, and I agree with you. It's not effective against a trained fighter who has control of their center of gravity and also recoils their strikes. But I also agree it's good for throwing around drunks without causing too much damage, in the event of say, a bouncer that wants to avoid lawsuits. It also helps with comprehension of anatomy for healing applications like rehab with the elderly.

My master got his black belt from Ed Parker a long time ago. Then went on to explore other styles and created his own system, mostly based on Ed Parker's Kenpo, with many of his techniques being applied. A lot of quick and nasty stuff like eye and groin strikes, knee kicks etc... Not for sport situations. While he does enjoy the philosophical aspects, the philosophy is auxiliary at best. It seems however, that the new generation of students have inverted these priorities and he expressed concern about it, but he's ready to retire and considers this an omen to do so. I understand that a philosophical martial art would stress spiritual achievements via physical practice, but defense and fitness are his priorities. Hope this makes sense.

I can agree with the aspect of karmic prices and the lack of actual satisfaction in defeating people and that's what spiritual and philosophical martial arts are for.

I train in a martial arts system that most closely resembles Kajukenbo. I've been away for a while but recently returned. I've noticed that while they move well and like the philosophical aspect of martial arts, they admit they'd never be in a fight. I'm not saying anyone should go looking for fights, or even enjoy it, buy why learn techniques of violence and destruction of another's body if one believes in pacifism? I consider it incompatible with pacifism. It seems a desire to express oneself with movement and contemplate paradoxes that attracts them. I don't have anything against being artistic or philosophical, but it seems an inappropriate situation for expression and philosophizing. I like paradoxical philosophes and Taichi, but Kenpo based Karate is very different not soft of esoteric or philosophical. Enlighten me please.

True. I explain how you should try try to coexist by trying to show them how environmentalism is actually in their interests as Christians. And a knowledgable anybody won't fumble on thier own stuff. If they were knowledgeable enough to notice contradictions, then they wouldn't realy be a "Bible Thumper", they'd be a knowledgable Christian.

I never understood how the religious right could be so against the environment. They're so against intoxicants because it pollutes the human body which is a gift. But wouldn't polluting the Earth be the same concept on a much larger scale? Like our bodies, the Earth could be considered a gift. If they consider thier curch a house of god, then wouldn't the Earth be the backyard of god. If the second coming is going to happen before humanity can do any irreversiable damage, then wouldn't a so called Christian want to be on the side of that took care of gods gifts? Next time you hear a Bible Thumper spewing thier ignorance from thier perception of seperation, just bring up these points of view. Hopelfully it will reach them, but if not then have fun watching them fumble over thier own contradictions.

I was wondering what the correct form was for hindu pushups. I've heard that you must be very careful on your form with these. Basically if you do them right, you will get great gains. If you do them wrong, you will get great injuries. While this is true with most exercises, it is especially extreme with hindu pushups. They are one of my favorite exercises, but I have developed a sports injury from them. I have devoloped tendinosis of the long head of my bicep. It's in my shoulder where one of the bicep tendons goes over my rotator cuff. It feels like a line of pain going down the front of my shoulder. Any advice would be appreciated.

Well, there are some misconceptions about ejaculation, both from the celibacy and free love communities. #1 Ejaculation does not deplete testosterone. There is no testosterone in semen. Actually, lack of ejaculation deminishes testosterone. http://www.bodybuildingweb.net/blog/effect...building-gains/ (of course the dumb body builders would think they lose testosterone) http://www.bluelight.ru/vb/archive/index.php/t-144743.html (I believe post #11 is an article) #2 There are various degrees of the quality of blood in your body. The main priority if the best blood in your body is used to make semen. It's something like 40 parts blood to make one part semen. When a guys reserves are full, the good blood goes to other tasks. One of the first places it goes once your loaded is to your brain. This high quality blood helps with memory and concentration. Maybe prolonged exposure of the brain to the good blood can make one feel more spiritually aware. This would explain all religions seaking of celibacy being enlightened. As far as your situation from your habbits, well I think it's from over use. Just like how a sports injury can come from over use of a seemingly harmless excersize, well your sport-wanking has probably given you a sports injury of your nervous, hormonal and reproductive systems. I'd say retain your jing for a long time(months) and let your body and mind heal. once you start to have noctournal emmissions, then maybe you could ease back into the habbits. Never go back to that frequency or intensity of your old habbits.

I think there would be different layers of heaven. Like Tibetan Buddhism speaks of Bardos. Well, I think that that John Changs description of heaven from the book "The Magus of Java" is the most common sensical description. He mentioned a spirit, whom was haunting a house, being a muslim that was offended by the non muslim ways of it's new household. The narrator asked john how a spirit could be a muslim and john explained that the spirit wasn't ready to part with it's earthly ways yet. He later mentioned how he was meditating and was taken through different levels of heaven and hell. One of the layers of heaven had ghosts feasting on imaginary food. John also claimed that God talked to him during that meditation and told John that the purest heaven is when you come to God. God told John that he was not clean enough to go to God. Then he visited spirits in what could be a hell, which he described as a cold dark place. The spirits told john that they hurt. It frightened John and he fled those realms quickly. It's also interesting to note that pretty much every mainstream religion informs that every soul will eventually return to heaven. Even Christianity when read in Greek, which was the origional language of the New Testament. The word for Eternity in Greek actually means ages. Heaven and Hell are just purification processes to make the spirit pure for assimilaiton into the creator. They teach spirits to shed worldly connections. Actually, people probably create these layers themselves with thier addiction to form. Most people cannot understand the truly abstract. That's why god is given names and fomrs, and split into many gods. To graduate to the next level, the spirit must become aware of the illusions. As far as what determines where we go after death, I believe it's determined by a combination of karma and spiritual development. I think we actually go through the layers that we want to, on a subconscious level. The shadow (Jungian) gets what the shadow wants. Insecurities will put you through the hell bardos, whereas good intent and courage puts one through heavenly bardos. I think that most, if not all, will go through both the hells and heavens, because nobody is perfect. But this is just my oppinion based on my logic, Even if I am right, then intellectual knowledge is still just the beginning. One must truly know it.

I believe that understanding sacred sequence (geometry, sound, numbers, ect), that one can get closer to the God. A fractal is one of the major sequences that our universe seems to be structured on. This is a great example. ~Revenge of the Nerds II (not as good as the first movie !!! )~

I use ubuntu 8.1. I decided to reformat my computer (which is 6 years old) and it wouldn't recognize it's own recovery disc. Now, unix software is all my old hp laptop will run. So far, i think it's better for just the basic stuff like internet and text. Gimp should run psd files, open office runs microsoft word files and Document Viewer runs pdf files. Everything on linux tends to run faster then on windows to.

I think we're omnivourous. Most true vegitarian animals have completely flat teeth, except for tusked animals. Grazing animals lack an upper set of incisors. Primate teeth are not as flat as those of grazing animals, but also not as jagged as those of carnivourous animals. They're somewhere in the middle. Alot of herbivourous mammals have claws, like the panda or sloth, ect... Raw meat is actually healthier than cooked meat, if it is from a healthy animal. When meat gets burned, the protien is less bioavaliable. Its the disiases and parasites that humans must worry about. Humans tend to have a weak immune system when it comes to natural occuring bacteria (the new bacteria thats adapted to our lifestyles is a different story). Humans can't eat as many kinds of raw meat as carnivores, but we also can't eat as many kinds of wild plants as herbivores. (Scientists believe the appendix used to be for digesting low energy plant fiber like grass). But yeah, most poeple eat too much meat. anything in excess is bad for you.

from:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hylic Ignorance is bliss only for the "somatics/ylics". I like to think of the tao, and most eastern and american relious beliefs as gnostic. "The Matrix is a system, Neo. That system is our enemy. But when you're inside, you look around, what do you see? Businessmen, teachers, lawyers, carpenters. The very minds of the people we are trying to save. But until we do, these people are still a part of that system and that makes them our enemy. You have to understand, most of these people are not ready to be unplugged. And many of them are so inert, so hopelessly dependent on the system that they will fight to protect it." The way I see it, reaching enlightenment is only half the goal. Once enlightened, you must find a way to enlighten others, and they won't want it. That's the riddle.