thelerner

Lets not get lost in minutiae, its an interesting theory that 72 might not represent a literal number. It'd be interesting if anyone had information, but in the scheme of things its not too important. Numerology is a pretty fuzzy field. Here on the bums Mo Pai's has tended to create way more animosity then it should. Let's point this thread in a better direction. Cause without a bit of positivity it'll end up drifting downward. What are the positives of Mo Pai? What bang for the buck can a practitioner honestly hope for, without the expectation they'll become the next John Chang.

Thanks for joining. It'd be interesting to hear what the trip and its itinerary is like.

I thought SoG's posts about 72 were a bit wordy, but the point is interesting. That '72' is about completion not number of levels. So there's not a book spending 10 pages on how to get from level 56 to 57. There are levels, but 72 is a reference about cycles and completion. It'd be easy for an outsider to miss that. There are a couple examples in the bible where there are numbers that people take literally where its really a code meaning they 'walked with God'. Yet without the understanding its easy to take such numbers literally and supernaturally. It'd nice to have an authority and they're out there. I know GrandmasterP has talked to Changs son and MJ Becker has excellent first hand knowledge. No idea if its true or not, but there is a sense to it. From a martial arts point of view, levels break down after a certain point. Unless you're teaching a kids class and need lots of levels and stripes to keep people going. I simply see it hard getting 72 distinct levels of difference. You'd hope there'd be at least a couple of people at each level walking around. I wish that was the case in Mo Pai, but I don't see it or know that its out there. Especially since levels in the 30's are deemed to be 'immortality'. Sometimes its not so much mix and match, its gaining a wider perspective that comes from study and scholarship of a wide range of relevant material.

hmnn, didn't work that way for me . back to OP, I'd assume you lose more energy worrying about such a thing, then the act itself. Which is true of so many things.

Mod Comment: To Dark Templar Nothing in particular but when taken in total, your comments on this and other Vitalli threads are very close to Trolling. Its probably not the way you see them, but they are a hair away from getting you a warning. The point isn't up for debate. Its time to move on. Perhaps you could start a new thread on an aspect of Taoism that interests you.

I know, but its still 'feelings'. Until there's a better way to quantify it, it'll continue to be a pseudo science.

This is getting mundane, Lets heat it up. What yer take on Yin and yan chi? I think if yin chi was referred to as 'earth' chi in this instance, it'd mean the same thing, but 95% of the controversy would go away. Its not like this stuff is easily seen or measured. For something so hard to describe and measure, some people get foam in there mouth if someone describes it differently. And there's the problem of translations, chi/qi in an Eastern dictionary has a pageful of definitions, or so I'm told. But in the West we hold tightly to just a single one, depending on our school. Again, what your take on yin and yan and how they they mix. Gin, vodka, shaken, stirred or compressed?

Actually, if I was safely in another room, such as in my bedroom and obviously something was going on downstairs, I might well put a couple of rounds into an outer wall, and yell 'Get the Hell out of my house', way before opening the door and poking around myself. I assume the average house burglar wants to grab and run, and isn't interested in shootouts. That's only one scenario, but probably a likely one.

I think the enlightened are still people. They can even be (at times) imperfect people. Like anyone else they can get tired of a world and a crowd that says gimme gimme gimme.

Good points, but science- Western science is about measurement. Your talking about the effects of chi. Can Chi be measured? By a device? Does the chi-o-meter exist?

In my travels I've found Canadians and Australians be good traveling companions and hard drinkers.

This has nothing to do with the OP, but I wanted some input from weapons/gun fans. I've never handled a handgun (did skeet/rifle in boyscout camp). I've got a groupon at a gun range. Thirty minutes instruction, then I can shoot 30 or 40 rounds. I can pick from any hand gun .22, .38. .44 etc., I want to learn how to load and unload safely, where the safety is. What else should I be concerned with and as a beginner who probably won't ever own a gun, any handgun I should concentrate on? For some reason I think I'd be more comfortable with a smaller caliber.

Interesting. How is energy developed and (is it) circulated?

My ceiling still has a dent or two from short staff practice. Note next time use even shorter staff when indoors.

I'm not a big fan of Castaneda, but what he wrote early on about the Big Super Major tyrant will always be Us, our thoughts. All other tyrant and problem makers will be between tiny and little.

I dig the zero gravity position. Laying down, head and upper back slightly up, knees up. There are message chairs and Lazy Boys that get you into the ideal position. Or you can just put a pillow under you knees, a pillow lengthwise under your back to your head, and a third normally positioned for you head. I don't use it for meditation, but for listening to music or guided meditations its very nice. Great with a pointy Spoonk mat underneath too.

Deceptively big question. How is Mo Pai similar to other energy arts. And how is it different?

One of my armors is kindness. The other stiff leather. One of my swords is love. The other folded steel. One of my shields is tolerance. The other is ignoring.

I think everyone should have a mantra, some practice with sacred sounds. Whether its from opera, or Hindu, Shinto etc., I like Rawn Clark's YHVH practice, simple at first, but it runs pretty deep. But any sound you practice long enough acts like a verbal mudra and can help you slip into a particular mindset.

Its (more) acceptable in their culture. Still it happens often, more per capita then most of the world, more then the U.S. rate. Studies have shown that if its put off, more often then not people go on to live good productive lives. Making it too easy, allows random factors to align sending a person very low when time would make things better.

How does energy fit into my practice.. Of late, not so much. The last year or two I've been working on emptiness mostly. But then nothing is really empty, just layers, like an ogre .

George Takei links to many funny things on his facebook page. Usually worthwhile for a laugh.

Well skydog you inspired me copy and paste this: The Sound Of Silence P. Simon, 1964 Hello darkness, my old friend I've come to talk with you again Because a vision softly creeping Left its seeds while I was sleeping And the vision that was planted in my brain Still remains Within the sound of silence In restless dreams I walked alone Narrow streets of cobblestone 'Neath the halo of a street lamp I turn my collar to the cold and damp When my eyes were stabbed by the flash of a neon light That split the night And touched the sound of silence And in the naked light I saw Ten thousand people maybe more People talking without speaking People hearing without listening People writing songs that voices never shared No one dared Disturb the sound of silence "Fools," said I, "you do not know Silence like a cancer grows Hear my words that I might teach you Take my arms that I might reach you" But my words like silent raindrops fell And echoed in the wells of silence And the people bowed and prayed To the neon god they made And the sign flashed out its warning In the words that it was forming And the sign said "The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls And tenement halls And whispered in the sound of silence

Hmnn, I've got no magic answers. But when I was experiencing something like you describe, I joined an organization of with good people in it. One that met regularly, planned things, did things. In some ways it doesn't matter what the organization was, other then good people and meeting regularly. It gave me a sense of belonging, people to talk to, a bit of anchoring in my life. You've got 12 churches nearby, then explore them. Which has the most activities and a congregation you could fit into. Don't look for perfect, look for good, fittable, need.. maybe not a church, but find an active organization and don't be a wall flower. Jump in, volunteer, become a worker and doer in it. Meaning is easier to find in doing, then by thinking. Religious philosophy is a wonderful dessert, but people and community are the main course. Get out of your comfort zone, and explore what's out there close to you. The goal is to start developing roots and relationships. No magic, just a sense of how can I help. That's called Karma yoga, and can quite powerful in changing your life. <fwiw in my case it was during college. I joined APO a service fraternity (co-ed), kind of an extension of the boy scouts. It got me out of a melancholy funk and the social aspects and service projects got me out of my head and into action.>

You talked about the number 72 in your first posts. Were you implying that the number 72 is widely used in religions, myths to show a 'completion'. Are you theorizing the 72 levels of Mo Pai should be seen as allegorical and not literal?