rex

Hi Dustwalker, I've also had a few experiences in that intermediate state between waking and sleeping. Just a few questions for clarification: 1) Do these experiences in the betwixt state occur only when you do some sort of energy/spiritual exercise? What part of the month do they occur in - at the end, the beginning or fairly evenly distributed? 2) Are you ever woken up in the night with these sensations? If so, do they occur at the same time each night? What are your dreams like just before and after these experiences? 2) Can you identify a time when they first started to occur? Can you link them to any specific practice? Have you always done your enegry/spirtual work in the same house/location? 3) Do you feel specifically threatened? Or is it more of a general anxiety of not being used to unfamilar sensations? Does the intensity of the experience increase with every occurrence? Where are all these questions leading to you may ask? Well depending on the answers it may be possible to hazard a guess as to whether you are encountering some sort of presence or it's your energy body just doing it's thing (or maybe even both). If you feel really threatened when it's happening and have some sort spiritual faith try reciting a prayer/mantra while connecting to your sense of the divine. If the encounter triggers negative feelings in you that try to block/sabotage your access to the divine maintain a sense of distance/humour and continue connecting anyway - a simple faith and a genuine call for assistance while under duress is not a waste of time even if all sorts of hostile feelings to the divine are seemingly rising in you. Dion Fortune's Psychic Self Defence is also good to read, get it here: http://www.merkez-emlak.com/hermetics/pdf/...elf_Defense.pdf I hope this has given you some ideas. Do feel free to ask questions. rex

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Thanks Ron, there must be an esoteric meaning in these phrases. Harry if you're reading this and have got the time please could you share the joke? I for one would be better informed though not necessarily the wiser. Being a dweller in distraction and constantly disregarding my own awareness I like to cling in blind faith to exotic looking scripts in the hope that they may bring benefit . rex

Harry, Here's an article that may help: http://www.beezone.com/karma.html rex

Yet another image that maybe of use. Good to put over doorways. rex

Hi Yoda, without wanting to come out with mind numbing banalities: there does seem to be a morhpic resonnance vibe tripping off some kind of synergy. :wink: rex

Hi Jessica, I pickd up breathing out unwanted energy from tai chi classes and of course all the Healing Tao stuff. Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche in his book Healing with Form, Energy and Light mentions expelling stuff: The book gives a lot of information and some practices on the elements from shamanic, tantric and Dzogchen viewpoints. There's a particularly nice looking shamanic practice of retrieving elemental energies involving visualisation of oneself as an Earth Goddess but it might be too specific to the Bon/Tibetan tradition for most people's liking. B.K. Frantzis' The Great Stillness goes into walking practice and other practices to dissolve inner blockages. There's a detailed summary of this book on the Universal Tao site http://www.universal-tao.com/article/great..._stillness.html. I've only read about this and settle for expelling stuff due to lack of time. However what I'm persistently expelling might be down to blockages so will have to look into this sometime. I recently came across Pranic Healing by Choa Kok Sui (he's wriiten quite a few books) and there's a lot in there about the energetics of the hands and their ability to sense and manipulate patient's energy fields. The guy who reviewed it said cut out the whacky mumbo jumbo and it's quite interesting. Here's an excerpt: The book covers much of the same ground as Chi Nei Tsang and the Emitting,Absorbing, and Healing Qigong chapter in Shou-Yu liang's Qigong Empowerment. Oh yes, Reiki practitioners are keen on grabbing sick energy from people and shaking it into the earth. I 'm beginning to ramble so will stop but I hope this may have been of some use. rex

Funnily enough Yoda it was your praises of Primordial Chi Kung that prompted me to get the video and when reading the handout saw a resonnance with RJ Stewarts work. Practicing outside does seem to awaken what I can only describe as basic instinctual sanity. RJ Stewart says we are the elements. I see from your posts that you used to be into Tibetan Buddhism and this also states that we are the elements - the consorts of the Five Dhyani Buddhas are the elements in their pure form. Finding the wind, sun and stars so grounding and inspiring as you do try checking out RJ's 'The Miracle Tree'. It's a non-dogmatic exhortation to freedom and experimentation full of practical working suggestions. He gives an exercise for walking outside, 'Walking Participation', where the feet, genitals, heart and head are connected with the Earth, Moon, Sun and Stars. This exercise is done after working with the Rising Light Below exercise for about two weeks and seems to enhance this outside instinctual sanity. Anyway glad you liked RJ's stuff. rex

Sorry, typo alert: Should read: From here the energy can stay stored in the solar plexus or it can be trusted to go where it wants breathing out any unwanted energy through the mouth. rex

This is my adapted mish mash from what the established authorities teach so make of it what you will: Grounding and working with the solar plexus can do a lot to harmonise stressy environments. These don't necessarily change the environment or the people in it but they can change our response to them by allowing a small breathing space (usually less than a second) where we can choose to respond or react. Slowing the mind down with quiet sitting practice might also extend this breathing space. I don't know what other people's experience of grounding is but after doing a moving qi gong form outside for three months I noticed that towards the end of each practice session a palpable feeling of body energy sinking into the Earth. Incidently if you're brave try qi qong late at night outside; you can get the feeling that things are checking you out (and I don't mean nosey neighbours or drunks). Basically just relax and allow your energy to sink into the earth. Smile to the Earth from the heart centre allowing the gratitude/respect feeling to flow down the legs and arms and out through the feet and hands into the Earth. Wait for a response to come back though don't expect one or worry if one can't be sensed. Breath in Earth energy through the feet and hands either straight into the navel or trust it to flow anywhere in the body it wants to go (be sure to gather in navel at the end of the session). If you want you can exhale with the heart sound any energy your body doesn't like out through the finger tips and toes into the Earth. This exercise can be be sitting, standiing or walking and is an adaption of Mantak Chia's 5 Pulse Breathing given in his book Awaken Healing Light of the Tao. The solar plexus can be worked with in a similar way except yellow or golden light permeates the air around you and it's breathed straight into the front and back and sides of the solar plexus. From here the energy can stay stored in the solar plexus or it can be trusted to go where it wants breathing out any wanted energy through the mouth. Simple eh? Again this can be done sitting, standing or walking. Once you're used to them these exercises can be done together. When walking sink the energy and connect the navel with the centre of the Earth (Michael Winns Internal Chi Breathing and Grounding series is good for this) while doing the solar plexus breathing. Hope this gives you some pointers. Any questions please do ask. rex

Michael Winn gives the Earth all due honour and respect: This view of Earth is echoed by R.J. Stewart particulary in his books Earth Light and Power within the Land (see http://www.rjstewart.net/rjstewart-books.htm). Other related articles: http://www.rjstewart.org/pubart.html He also gives a good exercise on tuning to the light within the Earth: http://www.dreampower.com/rising_light.html. I've often wondered if Primordial Chi Kung could be enhanced by his Calling in the Elements (http://www.rjstewart.net/tapes.htm & http://www.dreampower.com/vowel_chants.html) and supplemented by his guided visualisations (http://www.dreampower.com/4Cities.html). rex

Came across this article on Taoist principles in internal martial arts: http://www.rso.cornell.edu/sevenspirits/ar.../than_quyen.pdf Other articles on the same site: http://www.rso.cornell.edu/sevenspirits/articles.php Don't know if the information is sound as I don't have the knowledge or experience but they may be worth a look anyway.

Haven't seen any Scott Sonnon videos but I've got a couple of breakdance videos that are an inexpensive way to learn Body Flow type kinetic chains: http://www.howtobreakdance.com/order_video.htm rex

Another food for thought article on new ageism, Narcissism and Spiritual Materialism: The New Age Legacy http://www.dharma-world.com/eng/showart.as...d=233&cat_id=14 People who for whatever reason find themselves unable to relate fully to the established religion and/or dominant culture of their society have to start looking somewhere don't they?

In his introduction to Entry into the Realm of Reality: The Guide Thomas Cleary gives an interesting explanation of the origin of doctrinal dispute within Buddhism and the source of teachings which do not have the weight of recorded history behind them. As interesting and compelling as this is it doesn't 'prove' or 'disprove' anything. As it is said life has more imagination than we can dream so it won't be limited nor constrained by neat classifications and recorded history. This is probably deliberate as it almost seems like some sort or IQ test, that is Inner Quest test is being set - we pay our money and we make are choice. That's enough of the cliches ... rex

Sean, Well I never! What an informative article on the dubious origin of Hinayana. Having been taught from within the Tibetan Rime (non-sectarian) Tradition I had always equated Theravada with Hinayana. At least, as I was taught, there were no negative associations given to the Theravada or Hinayana. Quite recently I attended a teaching by a Tibetan lama in a Theravadan temple with Thai and Tibetan monks sitting together so at least there is some sanity amongst all the bickering. Like Christianity Buddhism is not free from controversy. Even within the Tibetan tradition there are the Shugden and Karmapa controversies and that's not including a not so Shangri-la history of Buddhist armies from one Tibetan sect seeking to destroy another Tibetan Buddhist sect. I was about to quote a nice little ditty from Cleary's introduction to Entry in the Realm of Reality but this will have to wait till later as the kids are creating chaos. :bounce: :bounce: rex

Here's a humorous but pointed exposition on the differences between Hinayana and Mahayana: Taken from http://www.american-buddha.com/what_is_buddhism.htm

Less enlightened folks use Hinayana as a perjorative term however there is no real contradiction between Hinayana, Mahayana or Vajrayana. The so called 'lesser vechicle' refers to the aspiration of the practitioner to reach enlightement for themselves alone while practitioner of the so called 'greater vechicle' seeks enlightenment for themselves and all sentient beings. So the real difference is only in the scope of the aspiration . The terms are descriptive not qualitative. Mahayana is based on Hinayana and Vajrayana has Hinayana and Mahayana as necessary foundations. Some Buddhists say that the different traditions arose from the Buddha's three turnings of the Wheel of Dharma (First turning - Hinayana, Second and Third Turnings - Mahayana) Their essential unity is summed up: Hinayana - not to harm Mahayana - to cultivate a wealth of virtue Varjayana - to tame and train the mind. Buddhism doesn't exist in a vaccum so naturally general worldly and samasric factors effect its expression.

Holographic Universe by Michael Talbot Quantum/Holographic view of mind body relationship, psychic/paranormal phenomena and mystical experience. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detai...=books&n=507846