NotVoid

Did you post this to the wrong thread? I really don't know what you mean. I clearly haven't arrived at any answers period. Surely you would know that if you actually read what I wrote however.

I do not know where Chan/Zen belongs, but I think practices like that can and did fall under many influences, especially when moving from one region to another, or from one country to another, etc. For comparison, I don't think Gautama Buddha passed on much in the way of religious concepts in regards to spiritual worship and related practices, if any at all, at least not that I am aware of, but such practices seem to have become widespread under the banner of Buddhism. All such things can be subjected to heavy influence and change over time, so I think it might be pretty hard to pin down any given long standing cultivation practice (i.e., a practice or tradition that has been around for many centuries) to any certain specific influences and sources. Both Taoism and Buddhism in general have a wide range of sources and influences over the centuries as well. After so many centuries and so many potential influences, who can say for sure what all the exact sources and influences and changes were over the centuries? Just my point of view...

Hello Gerard. Hmm... Well it seems to me that various types of corruption due to greed and self interest in this world is a common as leaves on trees. It is doubtful there is much anything anyone can really do about it. Human nature is human nature. However, as it is said, Lotus flowers still produce beautiful flowers out of the mud and murky waters. We are fairly limited in our control of our environment and the people around us, but we each individually have much potential.

"Tulpa - What exactly is it and how is it recognized in the Taoist tradition?" Your question is a loaded question as, IMO, there is no such thing as "the Taoist tradition". IMO, what is called 'Taoism' is really just a loose collection of different groups and traditions and practices and points of view. From what I have observed, the amount of overlap in point of view and practices and beliefs between these various groups and traditions can vary quite a bit. It can be confusing because not only do many Westerners just assume that there is and always has been some coherent well-formed long standing tradition called 'Taoism', but there are many Chinese as well who seem all too happy to continue to promote such a view. It seems to me that a number of centuries ago in China, that in order for the various native folk and religious and philosophical traditions and groups to have a better chance to survive and 'compete' against the growing strength and influence of Buddhist traditions in China, that these various disparate native traditions and groups had to combine and join forces, so to speak, at least to some extent to try to hold up better against the competition of Buddhism. For example, attempts were made in the past to collect a whole bunch of different 'Taoist' writings from various traditions and groups and times, and combine them all together into one 'Taoist Canon'. The idea seems to have been that this would help to promote the appearance that there really was some cohesive and coordinated and connected body out there called 'Taoisim'. Since those times there have always been those who continue to try to propagate this idea. In modern day China, this effort to promote the idea of there always having existing a single very cohesive body of practices and beliefs called 'Taoism' is going on in earnest by many. Again, from what I have personally observed however, the amount of commonality and interaction seems to have varied widely. However, this can probably apply to other major religions or 'schools of thought' as well if a person looks deeply enough into it.

This is a conundrum for any modern day person who is trying to balance normal life activities and commitments and requirements with self cultivation. How can we maintain a good balance between the two, especially when sometimes we may be experiencing effects from our practices which may make thinking and interacting in the world in a 'normal' way quite a challenge? When a person's world view starts becoming quite fluid and is in a constant state of flux, sometimes interacting with the world as we are required to do can take some real effort. I think we just need to find that balance as best we can, even though it may be a struggle sometimes. A challenge for us all.

Hi Brian. I have a copy of that book (Layayoga: The Definitive Guide to the Chakras and Kundalini), and it speaks of two chakras being 'extracranial' in location, the Guru chakra and the Sahasrara (Crown) chakra. However, here are a few excerpts from that book which speaks further of the locations of these two 'upper' chakras, and it seems it is not so straight forward at all when trying to assign physical locations to chakras. For example, it is mentioned that these two chakras are extracranial, but that they are located in 'void regions'. Here are the excerpts: " Void-region 1 Guru Chakra, lying extracranially Void-region 2 Sahasrara (Crown Chakra), lying extracranially " " SAHASRARA (Crown Chakra) Position: in void-region, as the upper part of the guru chakra The sahasrara lies in the void-region where there are no nadis; it is outside the cranium, but in contact with the top-end of the chitrini nadi, lying intracranially, through wisarga (power-bridge). At the terminal part of the chitrini is the nirwana chakra, which is connected through the wisarga, indirectly with the twelve-petalled lotus, which is the lower aspect of the sahasrara. " This book also contains further comment on the void regions that are mentioned, which I think further illustrates that trying to assign physical locations to chakras may well not be a very productive approach. Here is an example: "The void is a circular process (writta) consisting of Kundali-power around the formless Parama Shiwa. The void has been clearly explained here: Shiwa is in the form of Void and the circumference of the circle (writta) is Supreme Kundali who is splendorous and is in three and a half coils; the Yamala says that the writta is Kundalini Power in whom lies the three primary attributes, and the void aspect (of the writta) is Shiwa, who is the great Ishwara; Kundalini is always there in coils around Shiwa like a snake; Bindu (Supreme Bindu) is in the nature of Shiwa and Shakti (Power) and gives life and liberation; that eternal Divine Power (Kundalini) is the source of all in her Nada (Supreme Nada) aspect (—Shaktanandatarangini, 4.15). This void (shunya) cannot be represented by the bijas Ang, Ang, Khang, Thang and Hang. Hang is the germ-mantra of akasha (void) mahabhuta, so this void is beyond akasha. In this void, there is neither akasha nor mind. So it has been termed supreme void (paramashunya). It can only be designated by Biṅdu. But this bindu is not a point. It is ‘non-magnitudinous’ and ‘non-positional’, and still it exists. Because of this it has been termed Parabindu—Supreme Bindu. This Supreme Bindu is the Supreme Void. It has been stated that Bindu signifies void (Shunya) and also quality (guna) (— Todalatantra, ch. 6, p. 13). The void indicates the absence of magnitude and position; therefore, it is without mind and matter. The void is that in which matter-mind and its source primus are absorbed, and what remains is Shiwa in union with his Power (Shakti). Kundali-power finally absorbs into her prakriti (primus) from which arises the phenomenon of mind-matter, and remains in coils in Shiwa. Because of Shiwa and Power (Shakti) the void is in the nature of a writta or circle. The void aspect is Shiwa and the quality aspect indicated by the circumference of the circle is the Power. So it has been said that Parama Shiwa is immutable and supremely subtle and in the form of Bindu (— Todalatantra, ch. 8, p. 15). The subtle and changeless aspect of Bindu is the void which is Shiwa. Shiwa is also with his Power. This Power is in a state of Supreme contraction. This is Supreme Bindu. So Supreme Bindu is both Shiwa and his Power. Bindu stands in relation to the sahasrara (Goutamiyatantra, 34.54; Dewibhagawata, 7. 35.47). So it has been said that the sahasrara is the centre of Bindu (—Gandharwatantra, ch. 5, p. 28; Mridanitantra, quoted in Amarasanggraha MS). This Bindu is Parabindu. It has been clearly stated that the sahasrara lotus which is all pure is the centre of Parabindu (Supreme Bindu) (— Rudrayamala, Part 2, 27.70). " I think it is a tendency of the modern conceptual mind to want to conceptualize everything in ways which the conceptual mind can get a nice handle on, but alas in regards to self cultivation the reach of the conceptual mind may be quite limited. That is not to say there are not other ways to reach deeper understanding however...

I can't recall running across any texts from the Hindu tradition that mention chakras 'above the head', but you may well find references to such things in some Western derived systems. I am not at all well read on Hindu texts and traditions however. The 'Padaka-Pancaka' is apparently a text that has explanations about chakras and related, and 'Padaka-Pancaka' apparently translates as something like 'fivefold footstool' or 'fivefold footstool of the Guru'. It seems Arthur Avalon (AKA Sir John Woodroffe) translated the Paduka Pancaka and a commentary on it in his book, 'The Serpent Power', first published in 1919, but still available here in a later edition: http://www.amazon.com/Serpent-Power-Secrets-Tantric-Shaktic/dp/0486230589/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1452789818&sr=8-1&keywords=The+Serpent+Power#reader_0486230589 Here is a PDF article on the Padaka Pancaka, which includes some other commentary by someone along with some explanatory diagrams, etc., and which appears to be based on or drawing on the translation by Sir John Woodroffe. http://www.bhagavadgitausa.com/paduka_pancaka.pdf If you search on 'fivefold footstool' or similar in Google, you may get more hits. As a side commentary, in my experience Westerners, or modern people in general, tend to want to take ancient writings or terms and concepts in the areas of self cultivation and related and try to make them fit into our 'modern' way of thinking by often trying to interpret such things in very specific and literal and linear and dualistic definitions and descriptions, and I think this is probably not a very good approach. For example, when people start to talk in absolutes about locations and descriptions of 'energy centers' in relation to the body, I think it is a good idea to take such things with a grain of salt. From one perspective there may be some usefulness to such an approach, but from another perspective you may be at the same time leading yourself further down the garden path. If someone wants to describe 'things' to others in this dualistic world in regards to concepts which may be referring to 'things' which are 'outside' of the grasp of the dualistic conceptual mind, you must still use language that the conceptual mind can at least have a chance of grasping, but there should be an understanding that by using such dualistic conceptual language you are painting a false picture, but the understanding should be that this false picture is only meant as a guide to 'point to something' which may be completely beyond the grasp and analysis of the 'worldly' conceptual mind, if that makes any sense. I think such a consideration is relevant to any study of 'esoteric systems'.

It might be useful to know what Mr. Wang Liping thinks about the following: For a modern person who works full time and has various other responsibilities and demands on their time, what would be the most effective practice to focus on for self cultivation purposes? What is the minimum time a person should practice this practice each day to have any reasonable chance of making good progress in self cultivation?

The physical self defense approaches for the three main ones, taij quan, xingyi quan, and bagua zhang at least are different in approach. Taiji is very much about non-resistance and redirecting the opponent's force, and attacking once the opponent has been lead off balance or when their attack has otherwise become empty, and that sort of thing. Xingyi uses a lot of diagonal and quick forward stepping and hand deflections to avoid attacks while at the same time attacking. Bagua uses continuous stepping and a lot of spinning and twisting and circling to the side and behind to avoid attacks and then subsequently attacking. Bagua is not something I have really practiced, but it appears to me to work on building up and requiring a lot of whole body flexibility to execute well, so it could be hard for older people to start learning. All three of them require building up flexibility and strength in various different ways however. Yiquan, from what I can gather, was apparently built up on the 'inner door' zhan zhuang neigong building practices of xingyi, and by very much de-emphasizing the forms practice to the point that set forms are not practiced. I have come across various sources that state that zhan zhuang was also emphasized as an inner door practice by at least some some taiji and bagua masters, if not many, as well for building the high degree of neigong skill required for these martial arts, so zhan zhuang would appear to be important in building the neigong foundation for the internal martial arts. Liuhebafa, seems to be practiced in various different ways by many teachers these days, some teaching it much like taijiquan, and other teachers having added aspects of bagua and xingyi to the form practice. I have come across one school which claims to be teaching the original liuhebafa system, but the teacher of that school seems to be hunching up and looking down towards his feet area way too much for my liking. The way he practices doesn't look that healthy to me, but it may well still be effective as a martial art. Don't know. As to the internal aspects, no doubt these different arts make use of the internal energy in some different ways, with different emphases, but they are all supposed to be built on developing strong neigong as the foundation, hence the classification of them being internal martial arts, although these days it seems to be getting harder and harder to find teachers who have a high degree of neigong skill them self and who also teach with the emphasis on neigong development. I have encountered teachers of bagua and xingyi who teach these martial arts as if they are external martial arts with no emphasis at all on neigong development, which seems very odd to me, but what they are teaching may still be effective in self defense to some degree. It seems to me however that if you are going to take the neigong foundation out of the internal martial arts, then you are probably better off learning something like karate or taequando or jujitsu or some other external martial art which make effective use of external techniques in self defense. IMO learning these internal martial arts without strong emphasis on developing neigong skill kind of defeats the purpose of these arts as being 'internal' arts, but certainly just practicing the forms itself in taiji, bagua and xingyi can potentially build up some degree of neigong skill if practiced with correct form and with emphasis on proper body relaxation and with using the mind intent to lead movements, etc. I think some schools of xingyi practice xingyi very much like an external martial art, and that might still be quite effective as a martial art, but it seems the roots of xingyi are really as an internal art, although such roots seem to have possibly become lost or at least de-emphasized in some schools. Many of the great internal masters of the past started when they were quite young and practiced for many hours each day, so reaching a high degree of skill level in the internal arts is probably not so easy in modern times where many people don't have a lot of time for practicing the internal martial arts every day. Even if people only practice an hour a day or even less, there can be many health benefits from practicing the internal martial arts however.

All joking aside, in regards to terms like wu wei, from what I can gather the ancient Chinese employed various terms and concepts which seem to have been used very poetically or symbolically, and which may also have been used differently in different contexts and by different people and groups, and which may well have also evolved or expanded in usage over time as well. It seems to me that Westerners and modern people in general often try to impose current Western or modern views and thinking onto such terms and concepts, and therefore try to force exact concrete definitions and very literal meanings onto such terms, which seems to me to be almost a guaranteed recipe for getting off track almost immediately. Just my own point of view on the matter, of course.

This really has little to do with what I pointed out, which was just clarifying what the definition of a vacuum is. That is of course just your opinion the matter, but either way it has little to do with anything I said. What I was really getting at was that in this area of discussion unless someone first clearly defines exactly what they mean by certain terms they are using, then misunderstanding can easily follow. That's all I was trying to point out. It would appear I didn't do a very good job of it.

Actually, you are obviously confused. vac·u·um ˈvakˌyo͞o(ə)m/ noun noun: vacuum; plural noun: vacua; plural noun: vacuums 1. a space entirely devoid of matter. synonyms: emptiness, void, nothingness, vacancy, absence, black hole "people longing to fill the spiritual vacuum in their lives" . a vacuum cleaner. synonyms: vacuum cleaner, vac; More trademarkDustbuster, Hoover "I need to replace the bag in the vacuum" verb verb: vacuum; 3rd person present: vacuums; past tense: vacuumed; past participle: vacuumed; gerund or present participle: vacuuming 1. clean with a vacuum cleaner. "the room needs to be vacuumed" Perhaps you are confusing the word vacuum with the vacuum state, which are two completely different concepts. This is really neither here nor there however, as I believe the OP was referring to 'the void' which is sometimes reported as being experienced as a result of mental/spiritual practices such as certain types of meditation and related. I doubt he was talking about the vacuum of space or the even the vacuum state for that matter.

If that were true, you and I wouldn't be 'here'.

I mentioned this already in another thread recently, but there are several videos with English subtitles on lily lily's youtube channel that explain and demonstrate some of the effects of some dian xue practices, AKA dim mak. Interesting what can be done. It would appear that true dian xue (point striking) involves the ability to send a blast of qi into an acupoint on a person's body. Very dangerous in the wrong hands, it would seem. The youtube channel with the videos is here: http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVEKAEX2LhqRia7Ry-HI1Hw/videos

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My suggestion for someone who doesn't have access to teachers and who wants to learn a very effective and simple form of qigong, would be to look into zhan zhuang practice. For example, zhan zhuang as demonstrated by Lam Kam Chuen should be fairly safe to practice if practiced in a non-forced and natural way. I think it is advisable to take some time to understand how to stand correctly and naturally. Standing in the various zhan zhuang forms and staying as relaxed as you can and breathing naturally, and just being aware of your body and what you are doing as you are standing in the stances is a very effective form of qigong practice in my experience. Here are a couple of links to some of Lam Kam Chuen's stuff, if you are interested: Stand Still Be Fit videos https://www.youtube.com/user/StandStillBeFit/videos " The Way of Energy: Mastering the Chinese Art of Internal Strength with Chi Kung Exercise" http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1451608746&sr=1-1 P.S. I personally think it is a good idea for anyone to take anything they read in internet forums or anywhere else for that matter with a healthy grain of salt....

Does 'the void' have a physical location? If any void has a location it is not void.

Anything could have been accomplished, but nothing would ever have been done...

In my own own experience, what we think and believe and expect at any given point in time isn't always very well in line with what is really going on. I think it is good to have an open mind however. Preconceptions can easily lead a person down the garden path. What seems right can easily be wrong when we are entering into what is for many of us fairly uncharted territory. Best wishes...

Yes, getting vibrations or shaking sensations in the lower abdomen is not an uncommon thing when practicing certain types of meditation and qigong practices. IMO, you should really have a good teacher if you are going to pursue such kind of practices as there is potential there for running into problems if a person wings it on their own, especially if you are doing something other than natural breathing, or if you are adding concentration on the lower abdomen area (lower dan tian area) and that sort of thing. There are some teachers out there who give regular workshops on daoist meditation and on different qigong practices, if you don't have teachers in your area. I can't recommend any teachers however as everyone has their own take on what interests them and what they think is good and what they think is not good. In my experience you should not meditate with strong concentration on the lower dan tian, as that can lead to issues, but keeping a gentle awareness on this area when starting meditating for a few minutes and then forgetting about it is a safer route to go. From what I have seen however, various teachers from different traditions can vary quite a bit on how they approach and practice sitting meditation.

I remember when Encephalon (previously known as Blasto) was posting his stuff here. I would take a lot of what he wrote here with several large grains of salt. From what I recall, he said he was practicing CK Chu's neigong set, and was posting about various weird problems he was having like extreme out of control heat in his arms and hands and that sort of thing, and some people were offering some suggestions to him based on what he said he was practicing and doing. After people had spent a fair bit of time trying to answer various questions from him and trying to help him based on what he said he was practicing, from what I recall, he some time later posted in one comment that he was actually practicing some of Gary Clyman's stuff at the time, although he had mentioned nothing about it previously. The zhan zhuang stance shown by CK Chu looks like like quite a deviation from the standard stance used in zhan zhuang practce. That could potentially mess you up if practiced for any length of time that way. Practice it at your own risk.

Every teacher which I have seen demonstrate the stance demonstrated it with the back as is shown below. The main variation I have seen between teachers is in how the arms and hands are held, and how much bending of the knees there will be. Some will hold the arms as shown, and some with the arms a bit lower, and some with the hands in a bit closer, and that sort of thing. Some show a slight bending of the knees, and some with a bit more bending as is shown in this depiction. Just a slight bending of the knees is enough, in my experience, but bending the knees more as is shown will work the legs a bit more. The body however is held as shown.

16 holes on his back and one on his side means 17 holes right through his body, so 34 holes total if you count the exit holes as well. Then there are the gashes from the one inch or wider sword that was pushed through both sides of his chest, seen towards the end of the video, but I don't see those big gashes in any earlier parts of the video, suggesting that there may have possibly been no such gashes until he made them when inserting the sword into his chest right on camera. Also consider that for any normal person it would be extremely painful and dangerous even to very slowly and carefully make all those big holes through the body, having to bore through various muscles and internal organs with a high risk of cutting through at least some major veins and arteries and nerves in the process. When a person considers all the actual details that would be involved in making all those channels through Dajo's body, it is no wonder the doctors were completely baffled. There really doesn't seem to be any obvious explanation which can account for what he was actually doing that can stand up to any degree of real scrutiny It really kind of looks like the fistule theory is full of holes, so to speak...

Towards the end of the video they zomm in on Dajo's back, and I counted 16 holes in Dajo's lower back, eight per each side of his back, plus the hole he put through his side at his waist makes 17 holes, plus the two big gashes in his chest from pushing the one inch or more wide sword through both sides of his chest starting at around the 10 minute mark in the video. Earlier parts of the video do not show the big wide gashes in his chest from the sword, but you can see those gashes after they stab him through twice with the sword. That's a lot of holes and gashes.

Josama, this qigong healer does remote entity removal sessions. http://www.kootenayqigong.com/contact-medical-qigong-alternative-healing-nelson-bc/ He charges a fee for each session, but not sure how much. I think it is under $100. I can't say how effective he is, but he has a testimonials page on his website. From his testimonial page, you can see that he has supposedly helped other people with similar sorts of problems as you believe you have. He is getting older now, so you will have to email him to see if he is still doing the healing sessions.