thelerner

Not a bad practice, The one I'm familiar with is to rewind your day dispassionately at night. Slowly remember and review your actions without emotion. The one in the thread seems to limit it to a certain scene during the day. Its training in contemplation and to be less reactive. Not so much shadow work, where you delve into motivations behind your actions and speech. Especially the darker side, being both critical and appreciative of it as a source of good, ie will, strength and not so good, selfishness and destructiveness.

Two Maxims I tell myself, maybe they're relevant: 1> Shit happens, it just does, sometimes good things can come of shit. 2>In the face of tragedy, don't ask why, ask how can I help?

When you get strong enough, you can see attacks for what they are and ignore them because they're petty and harmless. When mature enough you don't need to counter attack every perceived slight, you stop playing childish games (or play them less). When wise enough you go around objects instead of hitting against them due to pride. Weakness is a poor label for it. Rather turning the other cheek, letting things go, is another kind of strength, a more mature one. Don't get me wrong, defend yourself when in danger, but see lesser attacks in there true light, no threat, just a minor annoyance we make bigger by focusing on them.

to get experience, you should try being a moderator here.

We probably don't have many shepherds here but I'd assume shepherds were automatically great meditators due to so much time in nature and solitude. Lending them time to become superb at sitting, contemplation, standing zhan zhang. Plus nature and her rhythms are a deep teacher.

I have some tiny side practices I do sometimes. In the shower there's a chant/canticle (Rawn Clarks YHVH). In the washroom (when I'm good) I'll do the Glenn Morris Secret Smile quickly. Late night washroom, I'll stick around a bit and do some of Max Christenson's Kunlun. Driving I'll do isometrics using the steering wheel, but thats not really meditation. When I wake up, I'll do Wim Hof breathing or listen to a hypnotic script. To the question of clashes between. I had a pretty hot and heavy relation. She had an important party planned, I had Aikido, I chose the class over her, and after that the relation went south. I probably should have picked the girl over stellar attendance. Seminars and classes though important are probably less so then family and won't keep you warm at night like a girl friends.

Never been to SE Asia, but from my backpacking days, less is more. Cheap and light is good (as in $1 disposable or buy there). Don't fold clothes, roll them up tightly. Set it up so you can receive a picture sent to you of passport, credit cards-front and back, tickets, receipts and prescriptions. Hit up some used books stores for thin travel guides. Start listening to related travel podcasts. See about gaining language basics before you leave. People who've been there- Does it make sense to rent a moped or small motorcycle for getting around? Or is that too dangerous for a novice there?

Also, what do you want to develop? Any natural affinities or attractions to any art? There's a wide variety out there. At there root, there's a quiet focused mind.

If you want to experience Zen with heart, listen to the zen inspired dharma talks on infinitesmile.org. Excellent instructions on the art of living and awareness, sitting and appreciating the foibles of life. It doesn't seem like Zen includes energy practices, but one can find other arts that do, if interested. Glenn Morris wrote that they did but only at a high level.

The mystical point of view (St. Symeon's) is not necessarily logical or sensical to the tic toc rational mind. I think its valid nonetheless. Often in mysticism we separate the man and even the legend from a powerful otherworldly force, thus the teacher/rebel/rabbi/miracle worker Yshua, is felt as a cosmic Christ consciousness embodied by knowledge and sensations that aren't easily grasped with our normal state of mind.

Bodhidharma is such a legendary figure that its hard to separate truth from fiction. A rock where he 'burned' his image into seems more from the fictional side of things. Mankind loves to turn great teachers into gods. In this case its too bad since Zen is rooted in reality. Speaking of reality if you have a teacher who can do stuff and you study with them diligently, getting feedback, and soaking up there lessons, there wah and traditions, become as hardcore as they are.. follow the path they took, then you may be able to do the things they did or not. Reading books and stories its impossible to tell fact from fiction, especially when its not your native culture. Real arts have minutiae that are subtle and easily missed. I don't think Zen gets mixed up in the 'power' controversies. Its not about siddhis, its about creating a non dualistic mind that sees the world clearly. No magic or powers. More about subtraction then gains. Yet the clarity it gives its practitioners moves them closer to being a whole human being. add on> So if we were Buddhists .. when a sufficiently enlightened person dies their physical body disintegrates and this is the end of the cycle of rebirth (from Wikipedia). If someone wants to become a holy man, great. Lotta asceticism, long hours, study and sacrifice. Maybe over lifetimes, and the payoff is death, completely dead, off the wheel, never to return..? Don't know, not my religion. Wells, you don't want to study Zen because it won't gain you rainbow body, fine. You want to study Tibetan Buddhism? Are you considering putting yourself under the discipleship of someone who's instructor attained Rainbow Body? Would they accept you? Do you consider yourself a Tibetan Buddhist now, or are you hoping to side step the religion and find a meditative practice that gains you the ability without having to follow the actual religion!? I wonder if right now there are Tibetans who want the 'powers' of various saints, seeking some prayer that'll wrangle them from heaven, but don't want to become Catholics. Cause I assume most Catholics know there religion is not about those powers.

There are guided meditations that do that. Relax the body, focus the mind then have you consider what's bothering you, then let it go. Here's a good short one- http://mythoughtcoach.com/?p=272. I think you can download the mp3 there.

Hmnn, in flat earth theory, are any of the celestial objects spheres? Is the moon? Are the planets? Are the planets moons spheres? Orbits and retrograde orbits (ie planets reversing there orbit) is there a cogent theory for there actions beyond 'that's the way god made it?' What aspects of modern astronomy are considered hoaxes? The Milky Way, is our galaxy, the faint light ringing the sky that we see a hoax? That some things that look like stars are actually other galaxies, is that made up? Is virtually every discover in the 20th century astronomy and all astronmers, classifying galaxies, finding planets, mapping the universe and its expansion, every satellite (weather, TV, GPS, Spy), every space mission, every shuttle, every probe from every country all hoaxes? Is none of it real?

In a good relationship there shouldn't be suspicion. Maybe curiosity to find out what inspired those words. If there was suspicion then the best explanation includes hitting *69 and having the person who was being talked to explain it.

Cross the bridge, decide for now, at least for a year or two or three, to focus your energy on yourself, cultivation. You don't need to be in a constant relationships. See what the world offers you. Maybe after a year or two, you'll strike up some friendships with woman and a relationship will happen when you come at it in a more neutral state of mind. Cause right now you're not neutral, you're full of resentment. Not realizing your problem is echoed by tens of millions woman who have the same problem with men. To my thinking, its human nature. Thankfully we're not dating all woman or the majority of them, we're trying to find the one thats right for us and hopefully making ourselves right for them. When frustrated with a path, sometimes its best choose a different one. Be celibate, gain some juice. There's a good chance you'll get what you want in the end or find out, it wasn't what you wanted, rather you were following societies script, not your own way.

what?? you don't get enlightened until you die (& sit immobile 10 years in a cave?) and your body goes up a rainbow? I gotta different definition.

I think the point of zen is insight and enlightenment not rainbow bodies. Its my understanding that its so focused on here and now that searching for powers might be considered just another distraction. I don't think the 9 or 10 years immobile in a cave is part of zen training.

Hypnosis is a close cousin of meditation. In some ways its a crutch, but one that can help you get the feeling until you're able to drop it. For example you can try Yoga Nidra's a way to deeply relax the mind and body. Here's a link- http://www.yoganidranetwork.org/downloads, try a few, start with shorter ones. Or look up Hypnosis on Youtube. Lately I've been trying out some of Jason Stephenson's works. Making them into mp3's. Try a few, and see if they put you under. Ultimately though, they're not a substitute for 'just' sitting with calm quiet mind which takes time and has to be built up gradually, for most of us.

only in my mothers eyes. and not always then.

Here's a story I heard. sorry if it strays too far from the OP. In the West if you say you are god, you're locked up for being crazy. In the East, like India, you say you are god, and they'll say congratulations you've found a great truth. There was an Indian man who had heard that all his life, but it wasn't til he was an adult that the fact of it really struck him. He announced to his family, I am god. They nodded approvingly. He stepped out into in the streets, smiled at the sky, and noticed a work elephant coming towards him. He waved it away, thinking 'I am god, an elephant cannot hurt me' but it kept going and trampled him. In the hospital he called for a holy man, and asked him 'If I am god why did the elephant run over me?' And was answered, the elephant is a very big god, best to keep out of there path.

My god, what next, Credit scores? Ones that'll follow you the rest of your life, impact your employment, insurance and interest rates paid? Please tell the Chinese I sympathize.

FWIW, I'll sometimes imagine a whirlwind (sweeping up thoughts) in my head and feel it descending down to my lower dan tien/ hara. In many ancient cultures the brain wasn't considered the thinking organism. Modern science tells us it is, so we put our attention there when we think. Some cultures don't or didn't.

Hmnn... kindness, humility, empathy, caring for community and humanity.. who needs such 'flawed' virtues..

To gain power without equal measures of virtue makes a person wobble. Maybe this isn't Taoism, but imo without gains in kindness, humility, empathy, caring of community and humanity.. personal power corrupts, the ego blows up and unnecessary tragedy follows. Listening to wisdom, dharma speeches, of my elders and seniors is as important a practice as any meditative art.

Fine, but saying '.. to make one more sexually appealing than that which they really are. It is of course a hopeless fantasy in which people are attempting to cheat reality in order to obtain a value by deception..' seems close to saying no make up or enhancements. Though I give you the point it was aimed at wishful thinking. And I'll agree with you that its not easy and that in my book wishful thinking and chants aren't the way. Spirituality need not be devoid of sexuality. Let's drop the deception that we're not sexual beings. Imo, its not a bad thing that sexual encounters develop into deeper relationships. For many of us, its the reason we're here. I'm stating this from the householders path not the monk one.