VCraigP

Which also applies to Ermei - Ehmei, Wudang, Huashan, etc. Sometimes even practices originating in the vicinity and not connected with any temple or monastic collective would use a Mountain name.

My point exactly. Is there really that much moderation going on??? Back to practice. Craig

Traditional Oriental Medicine can definitely help with yin deficiency. IMO if you have an acupuncture doc who only offers acupuncture then you need to find one who has a more comprehensive approach including but not limited to herbology. They should be qualified to assess your system and see what foods and herbal medicines could assist you. Also many, most qigong systems strengthen and help create balance. This includes strengthening kidney qi which is the essential yin-water source in the body. good luck and don't listen to any diagnostic opinions on line. Get a real doc to take your pulses, etc. Craig

Tianshi I have made no confusion. My crude diagnosis took into consideration the symptom of excess thirst. This can be a symptom of Excess Yang in general. it can also, and this is more likely in the modern people, be a symptom of False Yang. Yin being already depleted relative to Yang causing symptoms of false fire. Your diagnosis of overabundant Yin or excess Yin is also a very general diagnosis. Unless you are good at distance diagnosis (could be possible but I find it unlikely) I see no way you could have enough data to really know ANYTHING. Of course Reishi is red. This in no way means it will automatically overstimulate the heart. A lot of coffee (bitter) and ginseng (hot) would be a much easier way to do so. Reishi is considered a superior tonic because it does not tend to have extreme effects as suspected here. that doesn't mean that it may not have in this particular case. WE just don't have enough data. That is as far as I go here especially since I am not a practitioner. Renegade. Yes your doctor should be able to tell if you are overheated in general and if your heart is overstimulated. It should not be so difficult to diagnose with pulse, tongue, etc methods. If your doc cannot properly tell you what is going on with your system and describe a course of action then he/she is not competent. Tianshi - your rejection of ALL herbs and supplements goes entirely against a HUGE body of knowledge in Traditional Medicine, oriental and others. Renegade I recommend you be as direct with your doc as you have been here in describing your symptoms, supplements, desires and concerns. Craig

WHISKEY TANGO FOXTROT!!!!?????

Tianshi It is IMO not possible to really make a judgement in this case without more data. It is possible but not likely that the Reishi is causing the symptoms of excess thirst described. So many people are yin deficient and this is a classic symptom of such. But even this view is VERY limited and maybe even wrong because I don't know the individiual situation or characteristics of the person in question. I may have some agreeement with you that supplements are not good in the long run if you are referring to taking one supplement to the exclusion of all others over a long period of time. However, Reishi is known as a superior herb and not highly likely to cause an imbalance as described. Definitely safer and better choice than ginseng for example. BTW - good luck finding BLACK Reishi. might be available in some chinese pharmacies though. Craig

I give you a minus for particularly pointless, troll-ish, self-absorbed, hijacking, de-railing comments out of resonance with the spirit of TTB and that add nothing to the discussion or the community

In a word - ridiculous. Who would decide the qualifiScations? Inappropriate for TTB. Also, anyone can get their own personal forum here and moderate it to the extent they like. You can be your own personal dictator. I think actual teachers would be much better served to have forums of their own on their own website to discuss their own practices. I say this even though I participate in the Flying Phoenix Qigong thread. Sifu Dunn may be better served starting his own personal forum section, but I get the sense he doesn't have nearly the amount of spare time to do it. Craig

TTB is not the place for this type of moderation. I doubt one member in 100 would agree to moderating quality of material posted. No one has that kind of discernment, nor should they attempt to exercise it. On the other hand there has been discussion in the past about people hijacking threads. I think that issue deserves looking at. Actually I thought the post rating system would be an excellent way to indicate when you thought thread hijacking was taking place, but too much whining and this tool was taken away before its uses could be properly considered (IMO of course).

Your call for "correct moderation" is not correct. Read the very limited moderation guidlines. This is the moderator "constitution" showing the scope of powers and the limitations. It is not a matter of quality or quantity. It is a matter of civil discourse. Next I urge you to share whatever you feel you have to share for the sake of the many, many who sit on the sidelines and read TTB hoping to glean some kernels of knowledge, wisdom and inspiration. As long as you haven't yet left the world you might as well share your thoughts. If some pedantic boor tries to shout you down then it is a test of your mettle and an oppurtunity to show your merit in the face of ignorance. PS - I will not agree or disagree with you about the list of posters you mentioned which is why I erased that part of your quote Craig

every one has different opinions. Careful of showing any bias "newbie" mod. :-) Craig

Sifu Terry A follow on to the practice advice given above. What does a 30-45 min practice session look like? Lately practicing seated meditations from FPCK 2 I only have time to get through the first three and that takes about 40 min or more (haven't actually set a timer). I get the impression that there is no such thing as going too slow in the movements, but is it OK to go a bit faster in order to fit all six seated meds into one hour? As for the six standing meds I know for sure that it takes at least an hour to get through all 6 at the proper length because it takes over 50 minutes just for the DVD. I think you mentioned earlier in this now monumental thread that it was an OK idea to alternate the qigongs over a couple of practices. It just seems like I would require at least two hours per day to get through all 6 of both the seated and standing of FPCK 1 & 2. So far that's the only drawback I see to the flying phoenix. Other students please respond as well. Craig

two questions in what form are you consuming the Reishi? Other than normal food are you consuming any other supplements or special foods? Have you considered getting a practitioner of TCM to check your system and see what else it might need to help balance? Reishi is a great tonic but taking it exclusively may very well have unbalanced your system. Taking single herbs by themselves is not a balanced approach according to the cultures from which Reishi use comes. With consultation from a TCM/herbologist you could find a way to balance and continue to use the Reishi as well. Good luck. PS - I love Reishi myself but never do I take any supplement exclusively for a long period of time as you have described.

Stig, dude, harsh...I like it. And from GIH" They like the results they get and don't want anything else. I have nothing to say to such people." You sure have a lot to say for someone who has nothing to say... GIH"So it seems you need a lot of years of hard labor to get to my starting point." I think you guys are about as far apart as one can get here. Stigweard is talking about knowledge based upon experience which from my experience and my reading is a basic principle of Taoist practice. GIH - If it takes us poor Qigong practitioners "years of hard labor to get to your starting point" how did you get to your starting point?? were you born that way? You dont have to answer. :-) Craig

The meridian/tantien that can be described is not the true meridian/tantien

Are you a student of Chen style Taiji? I study Zhaobao. I am told, and what history I can find seems to agree that Zhaobao is closely related to the origin point being very near Chen village. Do you know anything about Zhaobao style? While travelling in China I chanced to meet a bear of a man in his late 70's who communicated with my teacher. He was practicing what looked very familiar and when asked he told us that he was practicing Zhaobao and Chen combined. I am sure further investigation with this fellow would have proven very interesting. Of note re Chen style, my first real IMA teacher had been studying chen style for 25 years when I trained with him more than 10 years ago and his form was amazing. I actually got to see a person in China who did the form for Tourists in Beijing and compared to my teacher he had a beautiful form with next to ZERO energy. Craig

Hi Nice threads. Good information. What about you? What do you practice? I practice mostly Zhaobao Taiji, and have learned some basics of Dai Xinyi. Your posts have been very thorough, good resources for people to begin an investigation into various arts. These posts do seem to stand alone so I wouldn't be too surprised that no one has commented further. Craig

Sheesh Pietro. What did Taoist trainee's do before they invented the ipod? Seems a perfect system for the immensely precise academic that you are. Craig

Basic TCM theory, and my experience; Alcohol disperses Qi.

For all those of you who miss the minus you can just post the following after an offensive post; I give you a minus for particularly pointless, troll-ish, self-absorbed, hijacking, de-railing comments out of resonance with the spirit of TTB and that add nothing to the discussion or the community But good on you Sean. anonymous minus giving is probably not a good thing. Craig

Scotty I think your initial response to the OP was an attempt to be helpful. I was attempting to point out to you that your response was superficial and seemed to be based on very little EXPERIENCE. Further you pointed out that you were Biased against BKF. Rolling your eyes doesn't change any of that, nor does employing the argument implying that I said that you shouldn't speak because you are not an expert in each system. I stand by my comment that your response while attempting to be helpful pointed the OP towards Wild Goose with very little basis over the other choice, and I was hoping you would add more depth to your comments. Craig

All I'm saying is that in absence of really providing quality details on why you hold this or that opinion on a particular teacher and/or system then your opinion will not hold much weight. you are of course free to not stir up further controversy as your tact might dictate. My opinion now based upon what you have written is that you are basing your opinion on one BASIC book BKF has written. Comparing that to some very limited experience of wild goose qigong it seems to me still that you have very little basis to make anything but the most peripheral of judgements about either system. cheers. Craig

I am...already...lost any how are you?

Scotty I don't know either system, but your recommendation seems less than informed. Agree either way would probably be "healthy". Perhaps you can provide further info as to why you think BKFrancis teaching is less than... Just Curious as to your opinion and upon what you base it. To Surfing Buddha. Just DO It. Also I suppose you intend to study one or the other system on DVD and/or books? If you have access to a live instructor of either system I suggest you try that route. Good luck.

I am so glad I am not a moderator. It's not an easy job. Also, though I totally disagree with your perspective, I think it belongs in this thread and would therefore not consider giving you a minus. But for the second time in this thread I have to say OMG you have got to be kidding me. In the great volume of text that is TTB how many have stepped over the line to the point of being suspended for even a short period? Of the total volume of activity how many times have people been warned? What fraction of a fraction of 1% of the total activity here? Why do the same people always step up to claim how unfair and oppressive this moderation is. It's not very peaceful of me to say it like this but GET OVER IT. Craig