Upfromtheashes

My experience is still very limited and still trying to determine cause and effect however I have had good results with cordyceps as well and have overdone it with it as well - All of this seems to work much better if the liver is not overburdened so some type of detoxification which may be simple like eating lighter and simpler for a few meals every now and then - IMO fasts may be detrimental if you are very light or vata type - But You know I am still playing - I think a lot of this is finding what works for your body type - I like the ideas of having tools and rhythms which we can adapt to daily life as opposed to some type of crazy practice that isnt practical- For me this is about integrating - Secret Smile and rooting - and well number one for me would be a woman who has very soothing energy - Oh and ejaculation - I Believe it can be very balancing sometimes - Not having a hoarding attitude - Developing an attitude of self love and a postive self image Hormonal balance in general helped by eating quality foods - Having some quality fat and protein in your diet especially - Doing what one is passionate about - Hanging around people who make you feel good - Deep Belly Breathing - Activating the nerves in the feet or getting in touch with them as recomended by Glenn Morris I never thought about the Times of day to exercise - in the past I would exercise at 5-7 PM -sometimes 7-9 What organ is 7-9 ? Very interesting

Yes there seems to be an emptiness aspect and a letting go of control as well -

My point is (and keep in mind I practiced magic for years) that magic in this form doesn't actually exist. The force that these people believe they can manipulate, can't actually be manipulated. It is the raw force of nature that works under laws and principles that we as humans cannot actively manipulate through force of mind alone. As long as you continue to believe in magic, then you leave yourself open to its effects. - Hey good post I am curious though what types of forms of magic acually do work - In my experience intent and concentration and desire does work for manifesting outcomes - and yet on one level it does not seem to be me who is deciding - there have been times when I have been visualizing something and it does occur - I am not certain whether it occured because I visualized it and intended it or it was already bound to happen and this was just a glimpse of the future - Magical thinking to me is based on whim and is very much on the surface - ok I want this - now I want this - Now this is so - However if one adds in chi kung and desire and detailed visualizations it seems to make a whole different ball game - maybe because one is acually altering there own mind and body on a much deeper level - If whims or simple passing thoughts had a ton of power reality would not be very stable - However consistent concentration as well as arousal- desire - a genuine desire - like the desire and fun a kid has on christmas eve - plus a firm belief that it is ok what one is doing and that what one wants is a good thing - oh innocence as well seems to help a lot - faith -

- Hmmm this ia a very interesting topic - I Grew up with a mother who is extremely yang - she is absolutely ferocious - some experience with kundalini- but you know she completely tries to dominate everyone - she is a bully - she has been her whole life - it is funny - but in regards to becoming more yang- My mother would not let me do anything - she was completely suffocating - I ended up wrestling in high school which if you know anything about it is the one of the most yang things you can do - This was my obsession - High intensity weight lifting - complete extreme obsessive control type things with a very strong yang component - One thing I noticed however is that doing these extreme yang activities often make me more shy - I dont know if it because of some type of adrenal burnout or being so fired up that I cant control the juice- so sometimes the more "healthy" activities seem to lead to more shyness- so ironically it seems like I am often very yin out of fear because I cant control all the yang energy I have and it seems very hard in todays society to ex- press certain yang characteristics - and I did so much extreme yang exercise for so many years it can acually be very painful to me to be that yang - Another thing is it seems to shift in me - almost like multiple personalities - one day I may be a more yang type alpha male and much more confident and un self conscious - Next day same situations - terrified and so shy I can barely talk - But u know I have mood and perception abnormalities and what seems like some type of autistic problem It is very nice to be around nurturing females- This is something I didnt think I would ever say but it can be stabilizing to be around very old women- But u know girls in general are just great as long as they are not cynical Ironically I had a dream where I was in the kitchen at home and my father was gnawing on my testicles He was eating them and it was killing me - Then he turned into a demon and my body was being torn apart - I was dying

Hey Susan Thank You for this very much I will tune in and share some energy All the best

Hello I am curious if anyone here has an opinion on weightlifting both its long term effects on the body and how it may affect energy work - Some opinions say that it is a drain on the body - makes the muscles too hard - Many seem to think that energy practices will suffer Opinions ?

Other interesting issues are is having a lot of muscle simply a waste - Does it take away nourishment that could go to fortify the organs/ the brain?

Ok this is interesting because I have noticed using regular dumbells or pretty much any weight I can just use energy and move the weight while keeping my muscles completely soft -(posture and balance) the energy flows very well this way - it is effortless and yet by always doing this is one missing out on not applying tension to the muscle and benefits from this ? I can do hindu squats the same way with a cadence that is almost painfree and doesnt create a burn but I feel like I am not working my muscles this way - I can run just using good bio-mechanics and transfer of energy and yet by doing this could it be so efficient that the muscles dont get worked? Could being too internal and relying too much on chi acually be a detriment? From what I know some say not to create tension even in Tai Chi Movements - Yet there is a magic to tension in the muscle it is grounding and lets me know I am there and not a floating powder puff of disembodied energy -

Agreed yes thank You that is very Helpful

Hey so does this mean that someone may have all seven chakras pierced or have the Greater Kan and the Li and not have a complete understanding of impermanence and the nature of phenomena/reality? Having the heart open Implies a knowing that the "ego" or socialized self is not ones true self? So once this is "seen" it seems one can still choose to indulge the ego or fall back into ego based consciousness- Just glimpsing this and even abiding in it for a while doesnt mean that one cant get caught up in "ego" based consciousness again? Finally do some practitioners achieve great wisdom without ever awakening kundalini ? Say by strong concentration and awareness based meditation? However this type of meditation naturally gets things flowing so it would seem like one always awakens some sort of juice or gets it as a byproduct of focused effort - Tao exudes balance and integrated wisdom in this video - Much Clarity Once one has the full enlightenment is it possible to backslide from this point?

Ok I dont have any scientific data or anything else but from observations of the body if one loads the bones with weight training or really any type of strain bone mass should increase -The body is very adaptable with the right stimulus - I would agree with the weight vest- But heavy compound body movements would prob work very well also - squats/ deadlifts - ever see a powerlifter? My guess also would be that nutritional supplements would be secondary - Sure good nutrition and quality foods will be important but it is the stimulus or the demand that will cause the uptake of those nutrients -

Updated 8/23/10 Thanks to the KAP tribe for the Recent Shaktipat - Took another Butoh Workshop in Ithaca New York With Vangeline - Incredible Combination of Wisdom, Concentration and Physical Practices - $90 for a two day 8 Hour Workshop - This is someone who walks the walk as well as talks the talk -Very challenging and Very rewarding - Thank You ! Thank You Tara for watching over me Hey Updated 5/26/10 This thread is for thanking my teachers that have been helping me out recently Hey Just Took a Butoh Dancing Workshop with a teacher Named Vangeline this weekend - This Class is incredible - She is the Real Deal and Has something Very Valueable to offer - This class will open you up and change You - Bioenergetics- Physical movements, Concentration - Compassion and Connection - Very Intense - Very Effective - Especially Good If you are shy and inhibited - Be Prepared to experience Being REAL http://www.vangeline.com/content/templates/t_main_vangeline.asp?articleid=115&zoneid=9 http://www.vangeline.com/content/templates/t_main_vangeline.asp?articleid=123&zoneid=10 - Anyone please add any teachers who you have found to be effective and helpful First is Santiago Dobles who has been very generous with knowledge as well as healing energy - His energy has been very helpful for me He posts here under the name Vajrasattva and runs the Kundalini awakening Program http://www.kundaliniawakeningprocess.com/index.html Thanks A great Book Filled with Clarity Cuts Through a lot of bullshit and gives many Practical techniques and an honest viewpoint on enlightenment and spirituality Glen's Viewpoint is very inspiring http://www.amazon.com/Path-Notes-American-Ninja-Master/dp/1556431570/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1266531976&sr=8-1 David Radin - He is a Zen Monk in Ithaca New York and is the real Deal Very Present, wise and humble If anyone is ever in Ithaca New York come and sit with us at Cornell University or visit the Ithaca Zen Center Thanks ! http://www.ithacazencenter.org/schedule.htm More Frank Herbert - Amazing Philosopher -Writer -etc http://www.amazon.com/Dune-40th-Anniversary-Chronicles-Book/dp/0441013597/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1263939523&sr=8-1 James Clavell - One of the Best Books of all time Clavell was a prisoner of war During World War 2 The Spirit of His Work is incredible http://www.amazon.com/Shogun-James-Clavell/dp/0440178002/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1263939670&sr=8-1 http://www.amazon.com/King-Rat-James-Clavell/dp/0385333765/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1263939758&sr=1-1 Alan Moore Known Widely for Watchmen and V for Vendetta His Promethea Series Combines Gorgeous Painting- and an exploration of the Kabbalah, The occult, the Wonder of Imagination and Alchemy One who Walks the Path http://www.amazon.com/Promethea-Book-1-Alan-Moore/dp/1563896672/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1263939795&sr=1-1 Daniel Ingram His Level of Clarity, Sincerity and Wisdom is very apparent in everything he Writes Very Helpful for Clarity and Cutting through Crap http://www.interactivebuddha.com/ And thanks to all my friends, girlfriends, the earth mother and everyone else who has been generous with love and grace

And Again!

Up to the Crown!

When we were kids my best friend and I made a vow never to kill spiders What does the spider symbolize?

BORN TO BE BAREFOOT: Quote: Earthing: The Most Important Health Discovery Ever? by: Stephen Sinatra, M.D., F.A.C.C. Throughout practically all of history, we humans have walked barefoot and slept on the ground, largely oblivious to the fact that the gentle surface energies of the Earth harmonize and stabilize the body's fundamental biological rhythms and keep inflammation at bay. In our contemporary Western world, the widespread use of insulative rubber or plastic soled shoes has disconnected us from these nurturing energies and, of course, we no longer sleep on the ground as we did in times past. New research, which I am proud to be involved in, indicates that this physical disconnect from the Earth creates abnormalities in the physiology and contributes to the chronic inflammation, pain, fatigue, stress, and poor sleep that are so rampant in our modern society. Along with the research has emerged an amazingly simple remedy for many health problems, including the chronic inflammation regarded as the cause of most common modern diseases, including cardiovascular disease. The remedy is something right beneath our feet - the Earth itself! The Greatest Health Discovery in My Career During my nearly forty years as a practicing cardiologist, I have encountered and used many wonderful natural treatments and seen first-hand astounding lifesaving technological advances. The greatest health discovery of my career, however, is something totally different and more natural than anything I could ever have imagined. This discovery is called Earthing and it means reconnecting the human body to the Earth's natural and subtle electric frequencies that few people even know exist. The surface of the planet, science tells us, brims with health-sustaining energy, but until recently the extraordinary benefits that it offers were basically unknown. Connecting the human body to this natural resource is utterly simple - just go barefoot outdoors. If you have ever walked along the beach near the surf, or on a grassy field wet with morning dew, you may have felt the energy in the form of gentle tingling or warmth in your feet and legs. You can also connect to this energy by sleeping, working, sitting, or resting on specially designed and inexpensive conductive sheets, bands, or mats that transfer the energy via a wire into your home and office. A Missing Link to Health? The research also suggests that direct physical contact with the Earth reconnects you to the natural electric signal from the Earth governing all living organisms dwelling upon it. The signal restores your body's natural internal bioelectrical stability and rhythms, which in turn promote normal functioning of body systems, including the cardiovascular, respiratory, digestive, and immune systems. It shifts the nervous system from stress-dominated functioning to one of calmness. By reconnecting, you enable your body to return to its normal evolutionary electrical state, better able to self-regulate and self-heal. The Earth's surface energy takes the form of a virtually unlimited reservoir of free electrons, subatomic particles. When "uploaded" into your body as a result of direct physical contact with the ground, these electrons appear to quell the rampage of destructive free radicals at the basis of chronic pain and inflammation. Our hypothesis is that this effect takes place as negatively-charged electrons - like reinforcements swarming into battle - suffuse the body, basically overwhelming and neutralizing positively-charged free radicals. Earthing, we say, remedies a commonplace electron deficiency and thus reduces or eliminates inflammation. I see Earthing as a profoundly simple, practical, effective, and cost-cutting way to combat common illnesses and pain problems, and, from a preventive standpoint, keep people healthy. To me it represents a missing link in the health equation. In my own field of cardiology, Earthing has great promise for improving arrhythmias, blood pressure, circulation, and the vital pumping activity of the heart. I recently participated in a pilot study on the electrodynamics of blood cells that indicates Earthing significantly improves viscosity (blood thickness) and flow. Another study I was involved in showed how Earthing contributes to a de-stressing and balancing effect on the nervous system. It's fascinating to think of the Earth as a medically-significant and natural blood thinner, tranquilizer, and anti-inflammatory. I fully expect many more benefits to emerge with ongoing research. .......Clint had a personal interest in health because of constant back pain. He took painkillers in order to fall sleep and to function throughout the day. Clint knew that the body was conductive, that is, it conducts electricity. So he performed a simple experiment on himself. He rigged up a crude conductive grid with metallic duct tape to fit on his bed. He clipped a wire to the grid, ran the wire out his bedroom window, and fastened it to a ground rod he planted in the Earth outside. He then lay down on the grid and, lo and behold, he fell asleep. The next thing he knew it was morning. He slept soundly for the first time in years, and without taking a pill. He repeated the experiment for a week with the same results every night. Moreover, he also noticed his pain had decreased significantly. He was impressed to the point that he told friends about his experiment. Some of them, with pain and sleep problems, asked if he would rig up their bed the same way. Clint did, and with similar results: better sleep and less pain. A Most Unconventional Scientific Adventure The positive feedback convinced Clint that he had found something with potential significance. He checked medical research databases but came up empty. He contacted sleep researchers but nobody knew anything and nobody was interested in his findings. Undeterred, he decided to try his hand at research himself. He had no scientific training whatsoever, but he had an inquiring mind. Armed with a few tips from students on how to conduct a scientific study, he set off, a non-scientist, on a scientific adventure. Clint's initial studies clearly validated his personal observations of the Earth's ability to improve sleep and reduce pain. For his first study he enrolled sixty volunteers by personally putting up posters in beauty salons. The results were the same as before: falling asleep faster and sleeping deeper and better through the night. The volunteers reported experiencing a reduction or even elimination of muscle stiffness or chronic back and joint pain. A second study was conducted by a skeptical Southern California doctor who actually set out to disprove Clint's findings. What the doctor found instead, to his amazement, was that not only did sleeping grounded improve sleep and pain, but it did so often within the first few days. In addition to the subjective feedback from participants, objective measurements showed that sleeping grounded normalized cortisol, the stress hormone. This meant there was less anxiety and depression - less stress, in other words. The findings were published later in a 2004 issue of The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine. A half-dozen or so additional studies have been published since and more will be published later in 2010. My Personal Experience After meeting Clint Ober, I obtained one of the grounding sleep systems he had developed and started sleeping grounded. The difference was profound. My wife and I were both able to fall asleep faster. I still use that same pad to this day. My exposure to Clint helped me understand things I hadn't really understood before. For years, I suffered with flare-ups of psoriasis, a common inflammatory condition of the skin. It would appear on my lower legs and elbows. I had always noticed that whenever I would go bonefishing in Florida the psoriasis would virtually disappear for weeks afterward. I attributed that to being out in the sun, the vitamin D, the minerals in the salt water, and time off from the daily stresses of a busy cardiology practice. I now realized that there was another reason for the improvement of the psoriasis. I was grounded, barefoot in salt water that is highly conductive. As I was fishing, I was simultaneously giving myself a treatment. Ever since I started sleeping grounded, the psoriasis has rarely appeared, and then very minimally. I had another revelation related to certain patients coming back to their homes in Connecticut, where I practiced, after snowbirding in Florida over the winter months. These patients were taking the blood thinner Coumadin and after their return I had to reduce the level of medication. Their blood coagulability had changed. I had always thought the change was simply a result of going from warm weather to cold weather. I was wrong. After I learned about Earthing, I realized that the reason for the change was because these patients were going barefoot for many hours during the day and swimming in the ocean or in concrete pools. They were grounding themselves! Clint and I stayed in contact over the years as he continued to pursue scientific validation for his discovery. In 2008 he asked me to become involved in his research projects. The research was producing powerful results, he told me, and he wanted to have a cardiologist participate. I was happy to get on board because I felt there was great potential for Earthing as a simple and natural tool against heart disease. The two studies I have subsequently participated in opened my eyes even further as to how Earthing can be of great help, both therapeutically and preventively. Calming the Nervous System Helps the Heart If you reduce stress in your body you do your heart a big favor. Chronic stress triggers excessive stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline. It also disturbs the balance between the sympathetic nervous system and the parasympathetic nervous system, the two branches of the autonomic nervous system (ANS). Too much sympathetic "arousal"- from stress - overwhelms the calming influence of the parasympathetic nervous system. The result, among other things, is a heightened risk of hypertension, arrhythmias, and even sudden death. Clinically, we can determine sympathetic overdrive by measuring heart rate variability (HRV), the beat-to-beat alterations in heart rate. HRV represents an indicator of nervous system balance on heart function and simultaneously a yardstick of both acute and chronic stress. Previous experiments had shown that grounded individuals experience a reduction in stress and a normalizing, balancing effect on ANS function. In 2008, I participated in an experiment to measure the effect of Earthing on HRV. In this new study, data from twenty-eight healthy men and women (average age of forty-eight) showed that Earthing improved HRV. Each participant was measured for forty minutes grounded (via a common electrode patch placed on the bottom of the foot and connected via a wire to a ground rod outside) as well as ungrounded. The results produced additional evidence indicating Earthing's potential for balancing the nervous system and supporting heart health. The study has been accepted for publication in a medical journal. Thinner Blood with Better Flow In the fall of 2008, I invited a group of colleagues to my home to participate in an unusual experiment. The experiment involved taking a drop of blood before and after forty minutes of grounding from the twelve of us present - doctors, medical researchers, nurses, an attorney, two artists, a personal trainer, and Clint Ober. We were grounded while sitting in a chair with our bare feet resting on conductive floor pads that Clint had connected with a wire to outside ground rods. Right after the session, our unstained blood samples were examined under a darkfield microscope, a device used by many doctors particularly in the field of alternative medicine. The microscope diverts light through the optical system so that details appear light against a dark background. This technique allows viewing of "live time" cellular dynamics and conditions of blood not normally analyzed through routine tests. The after-grounding pictures showed that our blood had dramatically changed in just over a half-hour of being grounded. Specifically, there were considerably fewer blood cell formations associated with clumping and clotting. The blood appeared to be considerably thinner. The pictures below tell the story. The reproductions above represent darkfield microscope images of blood taken from three individuals in attendance at Dr. Sinatra's house just before and after forty minutes of grounding. The before image is on the left side, the after on the right. The pictures clearly show a dramatic thinning out of blood cells. The experiment at home inspired a controlled study in 2009 to investigate whether Earthing can indeed influence red blood cell clumping and blood flow. To do this, we measured something called zeta potential, an unfamiliar term for most people, even doctors, that relates to the electrodynamics of blood and specifically the degree of negative charge on the surface of a red blood cell. We selected ten individuals for the study. They sat comfortably in a reclining chair and were grounded for two hours. Grounded electrode patches were placed on their feet and hands just as had been done in previous studies. Blood samples were taken before and after two hours of continual Earthing. Analysis of the blood showed a significant improvement of the average zeta potential from a rather depressed level to a very healthy level. Blood low in zeta potential is more apt to be sludgy and thick, flow less freely, and have a greater risk of clumping and clotting. By comparison, a higher zeta potential translates to a higher negative charge of red blood cells. That means they repel each other more readily and flow smoother. Earthing, our initial study indicated, apparently alters and normalizes blood voltage rapidly, improving the zeta potential and viscosity. We documented our findings and submitted it to a cardiovascular journal. Due scientific diligence must be done in the form of additional and careful study, so I can't say much more at this point other than that the results are extremely promising. After the study, I came across some fascinating research in a 2008 article published in the international journal Biochimica et Biophysica Acta that reported, for the first time, on the zeta potential of red blood cells in diabetics. Researchers from the University of Calcutta described a "remarkable" and progressive deterioration in the zeta potential of red blood cells among diabetics and, at the worst, among diabetics with cardiovascular disease. Their research revealed a parallel between poorer zeta potential and hypercoagulability. "Blood becomes sludge so that it becomes increasingly difficult for the heart to pump, and the system becomes less efficient to perform the usual functions affecting macro and microcirculation," they said. If Earthing indeed affects blood as we have seen, that means connecting with the Earth offers a great potential for not just heart patients and diabetics, but for people with all kinds of health problems. And even healthy people such as athletes. The most dramatic test of Earthing's effectiveness was demonstrated by victorious American-sponsored cycling teams at the Tour de France. In the 2003 to 2005 races, and again in 2007, team cyclists were grounded after every day of competition. They reported better sleep, significantly less illness, practically no tendonitis, dramatic recovery from the day's racing, and faster healing of injuries. Earthing has now been found to be so beneficial that many top athletes - including swimmers, NFL football players, triathletes, and motorcycle racers - routinely ground themselves. Earthing affects the metabolism of the entire body at the cellular level. Our hypothesis, which becomes more obvious with every study, indicates that grounded individuals have a different, hardier, and healthier physiology than ungrounded individuals. As more research rolls out, we may find that we need to rewrite physiology books! For all of the fascinating details, I encourage you to read my book Earthing:The Most Important Health Discovery Ever? that I wrote with Clint Ober and health writer Martin Zucker. It's my opinion that whoever reads this book will never look at the ground beneath their feet the same way.

Yo Kate See what this does to your channels

Up to the Crown For this

And Again Up to the Crown

Thank You Do you know anything about Couatl And Unicorns? To Follow The Horse With The Golden Horn The Heart Must Be Pure Like A Baby Just Born

Hey ShaktiMama Thanks for the Links In regards to Philosophy I was curious as to if it takes a complete backseat to wisdom in relation to someone who is highly advanced - For example one may have a basic philosophy of kindness and generosity - Yet one who is operating from the void? or seeing or a different place that SEES more may take actions that may seem immoral or fly in the face of moral convention-( I mean say your teacher took an action like slapping you but it was just what you needed to free a bond - ok that is a small example - ( Crazy Wisdom maybe ) Or Hatsumi talks about the mind and eyes of god - I guess what I am getting at is does one meld more with a higher power most of the time and let that guide one which would take a helluva lot of courage if what one was doing was against accepted social norms - or does one still rely primarily on a good moral code of conduct which is practical -

Hey Shakti Mama - What Role Does Philosophy play in regards to one who has awakened Kundalini?

It is rude and disrespectful to invoke without permission. Even more so when just to satisfy curiosity. It is evidence of disrespect in the realms of the Void and there are consequences. Susan could you please explain what you mean by invoke ? Thanks

Hey These are a few videos in regards to awakening Kundalini - These Have Helped me a great Deal in regards to Clarity - Enjoy http://kundaliniawakeningprocess.com/

Hey My Take on what he said regarding emotions was to make sure not to repress them - Let em' flow freely -