thelerner

I'm thankful for just one good one . My last sex tome was from David Deida. It stressed some of what Mantis talked about- being aware of clenching and tightening as you get close. Simple increased awareness and staying unclenched goes a long way. He had an exercise in his book I was doing today as I walked. Breathing in w/ a deep Hoooohhhh(short O) sort of like a pleasurable moan to get a deep lower vibration. Breathing out w/ Haaah, like pleasurable surrender in order to activate the heart center. I was doing silently and it was really vibing with it. I've been working w/ sounds for a while and doing silently is different and not necessarily less effective then being audible. I find it similar to some chi gung exercises, doing them in my mind w/out moving has a different but at times equally powerful effect.

There is a gulf between learning and integrating, a huge one. Take the TTC, you read and think, that great, very deep, then we walk away and kick the dog. Writing it down, by hand, neatly, with full concentration is an age old mostly ignored tradition. It a way to connect w/ the writings on a deeper level, bridging the gulf. Making it yours. Translating it is egotistic, but forces you to think, to go to bed with the material. . If words are holy, it makes sense to connect deeper to them. Michael Errata I think one of the ancient 613 Judaic Mitzvahs is to write down a torah scroll. Many of the great Martial artists of the past were great calligraphers.

Thanks, it reminds me that sooner or later everyone should translate & write down there holy books (or portions within) by hand. Back to the subject. I like the second abrieviated one more. KISP I always say. Michael keep it short & poetic

You've got a nice site. It reads simple and authentic. Glad you're here. Michael

From my perspective which is mostly Aikido, when you're rooting well the harder a person pushes the more stable you get. By properly relaxing and with proper alignment the force of the push settles down and it feels like it forms a natural wedge, no leaning required. I think good rooting is mostly biomechanical. Not a use of mystical power. But it is amazing how imagination and extension trigger the proper mechanics. Take something as simple as the unbendable arm, ie arm out someone uses two arms to bend it. For beginners without imagining the outflow of water from their fingers or trying to grab something just out of reach, it doesn't work well. Until you've spent years on the mat I find that true of the harder stunts as well. If I'm on a wheel chair and someone pushes me, no amount of imagining forces without and within would keep me from being pushed. I don't think it works that way. But, I could meet the pushers hands redirect his push right, left or down. I could be trickier and roll on my spinal axis just before he made contact. Then one hands receives 50 or 60 #'s of force the other an unexpected give. That sets up the 'missed stair' syndrome that a dynamic imbalance. Michael

Pero's reply is more elegant then anything I could think of. Michael

The unbendable arm is basically an example of relaxed extension, the sort of stuff all good dancers and gymnasts do. The brown belt test wasn't unbendable arm, the person was trying push you over while you were on one leg, pushing against your outstretched arm. One thing that helped my fudoshin was cheating. Then cheating less and less. What I mean is- when pushed I'd follow the 'rules' of ki-aikido, being relaxed, good extension, feeling my center etc. When that wouldn't work I'd drop my center as they tested, ie bend my knees as they pushed. As time went by I'd bend them less and less until it was more of a mental thing. Pretending I was touching the elbows of those who were pushing also helped. (Ofcourse not pretending and lightly touching a persons elbows disrupts the power of their push) Here's an interesting example of the use of pretending in unusual rooting. You stand regularly, someone comes to your side, grabs your arm w/ two hands and pulls you towards them and down. Its a very hard thing to resist. Everyone in class would fail it. My sensei said, imagine the person grabbing your arm is falling off a cliff. Stay relaxed, bend at the elbow and save them. Suddenly most of us could do it, effortlessly. One of the tricks of holding back several pushers is short circuiting the first one. If you take up slack on them as they make contact (move forward half an inch or so as they first touch) people tend to bounce off you. It takes good timing but it has an amazing effect. For me these were tricks I'd do. The higher levels didn't use them or they were so ingrained that they just happened. Vortex, if there's a Ki-Aikido (Shin shin toitsu ki aikido) club anywhere near you check it. Particularly the weekly ki-class. They're all about experimenting w/ rooting and extension. A first (try me) class should be free and hands on. Michael

I like what McCoole wrote. The whole Lightness (which must be me) vs Darkness (those who disagree w/ me) is playing to & propping up the ego big time. I'm not a Buddhists but their writings ring with clear reality. Michael

We did a lot of rooting work in Ki Aikido. There were 5 levels of pushing. Simple push, push w/ follow through, pushing up and over, etc. I was okay at it, the brown belt ki ranking included standing on one leg w/ a hand held out as people pushed against it. The trick wasn't just resisting the push, it was keeping balance when the push stopped. We did the standard games, having many people push against you standing and sitting. There are tricks to those though. They may or may not show deep rooting. Being pushed by 2 is harder then 1, 3 is about the same as 2, as you add more it gets easier because they're unbalanced and uncoordinated. Holding against a dozen people is showmanship. My instructor, John Eley 5th degree (then) really had IT. Instinctive deep rooting. Really phenomenal. More to write but dinner being served. Michael

Yeah, yeah, the West seems predominantly Christian yet we seem to get into a lot of wars? So answer A. Countries and people don't walk the talk. In China's case Taoism is a fraction of 1% of the acknowledged religion(pretty low anyhow). Not that it doesn't have a much wider influence on China's culture, but card carrying taoist are rarer then you might think there, at least compared to the population at large. Random Thoughts- I don't think there's many animal rights doctrines in taoism. You might imply them, but that might be looking at Taoism through your own lense. As far as Human Rights the Taoist religion certainly got the fuzzy end the lollypop during China's cultural revolution. Monasteries burned, monks killed or sent out for re-education at labor camps. Michael

Oh, we burn. But we kick ourselves afterwards M

I think there is value in the spurious. Practiced consciensciously the spurious can lead to the real. We all have to start off somewhere. A first book, a teacher. They're doors that lead to new places of knowledge, whether they're ultimate or not, they get you moving, thinking, doing. Take Americanized Hatha Yoga. An Indian Ascetic might consider it minimalist crap, but its a doorway into the larger world of Yoga. And if it isn't, if you just stay w/ the poses you still become healthier and more flexible then 98% of the public. Spurious compared to the real thing? Sure, but its value can be immeasurable. Michael

We take names and numbers. What styles of Qigong and Neigong? Welcome here Michael

The Tao is an enthusiastic Yes. Michael

I'm in agreement. Too often Westerners get the enlightenment 'itch' and end up stinking of Zen. Hitting each movie stereotype and become insufferable. Michael

The question seems wrapped up in the old existential time waster of 'do I really exist?' some people like to use. Ultimately you have to say to them, fine you don't exist, sit in the corner and don't bother me with your non existence. We all make hundreds(?) of decisions a day. If you're not making the decisions then go sit in the corner and have 'whatever' make them for you and live your life for you in the corner. I think the person who gets the most out of life realizes they have control over themselves. Total Control, is an illusion, but our influence over our life situation is huge. Life is like a poker. You don't control the cards you get, but how you play them is under your control, as well counting cards and watching the other players. Michael

I agree with MythM. Going along shows respect and keeps harmony during meal and better digestion afterwards. Taoism flows, you can find a piece within almost any tradition that will resonate for you. It may not be your prayer, but within it- somewhere, is a meaning and interpretation that you can find sacred. Find it and you can pray right along with them, with full heart and mind. Michael

You shouldn't take advice from people like me, since I haven't achieved. That confessed, I'd say-keep working. It isn't easy. It may take months or years of practice. From what I've read people who have had the best chance are those who have mastered both energy work and lucid dreaming. From there simply waking up absurdly early 4-5 a.m.ish. Staying up for a bit, then going back to bed with strong intention get the best results. Michael P.S. You'll never wake up early if you're up posting at 1:38 a.m.

I've always found the middle of the road gives the most options. Michael Damn the trucks full speed ahead.

I remember a long time ago, Michael Winn writing something like, Castaneda's work was a trap to provide fodder for lower spiritual beings. Where he got that, I have no idea. It was a long time ago. I don't even buy into that whole conceptualization. I don't think there was a DJ. I think Castaneda found out early there was more money in newage/pseudofiction then anthropology (his major, note* first book was his dissertation). He may also have had a depth and genius beyond shear hucksterism, but I wish he could have presented his ideas more truthfully. He probably contributed to his early death by setting himself up as a mysterious master. Michael

This has absolutely nothing to do w/ this conversation, which puts it in alignment w/ Monty Python. I just got the book 'South Park and Philosophy'. The greatest philosophy professors of our generation take on the weighty issues no one (except South Park) dares to confront. It looks like the best philosphy book I've read in the new millenia. Michael P.S I will check it out for Taoist commentary

You're in a sticky situation when you ask that question. There's no pope taoist. Taoism is so old that its philosophy and practice gets pretty diverse. Most people who say they are taoists are those who admire and hopefully practice some aspect of taoist philosophy. Real (formal religious) taoists would not consider most of them (or us)taoists. Few of us do prostrations and prayers to the Taoists pantheon of gods. Here's an article on this point from an American (old neighbor of mine) who works w/ the real guys -http://www.fengshuitimes.com/article/detail.asp?aid=93&cid=9&pg=1 On the other hand if taoism teaches us anything its that words are not the way, the map is not the reality and labels are traps. Michael

I think Vortex hit it on the head. Say in Zen or house building, read 5 books, 10, 100 books. The world moves for those who get off there butt and actually builds the house or in the case Zen onto there butts and puts in time on the mat so that they can bring that state of mind into the busy world. The young builder who reads zero books and apprentices themselves out to a master carpenter goes far. The meditator who never reads and shows up at the Zendo week after week, year after year goes far. The bookly scholar just gets top heavy. Course you can only take that analogy so far. Books good. Never did me no harm. Michael

Here is an impressive website for keeping on track of goals. Its has (free) personalized print out sheets called The Printable CEO. Its great for tracking long and short term goals in easily identifiable and motivating ways. davidseah.com For example, one form is the Concrete Goals Tracker. Its based a daily point system. You list things worth things you want to accomplish and give them points. It tracks how many points you earn a day. 10 points for hard solid completed work. 5 points for hard definite progress. 2 points for doing the work that day. 1 point for easy maintenance stuff. You write your goals in definite terms. Points are computed daily and added up at the end of the week. He has Task Progress trackers where you write your goal, break it down and put keep track of time spend working towards it in 15 minute increments. Very good for procrastinators like myself. Give it a look, print out some of the forms there and see if it connects at all. Michael

Physically-Splashing cold water on the face, a set of fast push ups. Mentally-Intention and surrender. Whats going on is fine. If what you are doing right now would last for eternity, would you be fine with it? If so, you have focus Michael