bailey

I see that he has deleted all of his words; all 1,014 of his posts. Best wishes, friend. May you find the peace you seek.

Enishi, hello, I hold interests similar to yours and enjoyed your post in the buddhist comparision thread. Welcome.

Dot, Nice website! Your Dojo has excellent energy. Are you in any of the pics? I first trained aikido in '81, learned about 'ki' then, and it's been a lost cause ever since. Hello and welcome

Even little bubbles present little bumps. How you deal now can be how you deal later; Lin's suggestion is a good one. Keep true to yourself and the only difference between bubble and real world is the scenery.

11:33 - your attempt to deceive did not go unnoticed. In your last post, you altered mjjbecker's words, and tried to pass it off as his own quoted words. The words "You're not worth talking to." were NOT in mjjbecker's post. Trying to make mjjbecker unseemly by adding those words to his post, you have revealed yourself. ****************** Edit to add: mjjbecker - we posted at the same time. You dont need me to defend you, nor was I. I've a personal dislike for deception. I dont care who is doing it or why; if I see it I shine a light on it. No more, no less. My nature.

SereneBlue - well put. There does need to be a sense of superiority, with or without arrogance (and generally with), to be able to sell the method to others: whether for $$$ gain - or to reinforce their own sense of spiritual-materialism. I agree with seadog though; no need to let what others do crank you up.. but yes it can be hard to watch when we see someone new who is genuinely searching being unnecessarily taken for a ride. Martial Development - gotta love the The Cucumber Sage!! Thanks for that slice of it. It should be mandatory reading for everyone interested in tao. IMO.

DaoChild It is simple, yes. As simple and natural as tao. "Enlightenment" may no longer interest you because you came to understand what it is. To seek having an exclusively non-dual nature is no more balanced than having an exclusively dual nature. Chasing one, at the expense of the other, is only embracing half of the Whole - no matter which half is chased. Understanding the necessity, and joy, found in the blended perspective brings clarity to the Union that you've always perceived. Doesn't sound stunted to me. Sounds more like you're clearly seeing the path that's always been under your feet. Well met and best wishes to you.

The road towards Tao??? How could there even be a road? Where isn't Tao? Look under your feet! Where is Tao that we're not already? The basic belief that a road is necessary, or even possible, might be the greatest underlying error - from which all dogmas flow.

Agree. All options open seems more conducive to spontaneity.

Actually, Taoist81, apologies. My comments would have been better in River Gazer's apocalyptic thread. Your topic is about something else entirely. Sorry. We do have a small Bug Out Bag - but of a different nature. It's lightweight and holds all our treasures: Photo's of and letters from loved ones, a bit of cash, passports, and a few vital documents that would be hell to replace. We keep it out of sight by the door - and always have it with us on our travels. More of a "if your house was on fire and you had 10 seconds to grab something - what would it be?" I'm glad that the only "things" important to us can fit in a small pouch. Anything else we need we'll find on the way. But that's (again) different than the "stocking up for emergencies" your topic is about - so now I'll hush.

Works either way? It works only if everybody does it. Otherwise - it works only as long as someone bigger/stronger/well-armed doesn't come along and take your preparations from you for their own survival. And it works as long as you can turn away hungry people to keep feeding only your own family. Maybe your idea of a "regular" disaster, though, is something small - you know - small enough that there will always be govt or someone willing to come to your rescue. That book, Lucifer's Hammer, was written in the 70's and is pretty much the father of the survivalist movement. Ask anyone who read it back then if it didn't impact on them. Some more than others. No need for you to read it though cause it sounds like you've got all your bases covered! Good luck

Go read Lucifer's Hammer and then see if you still think you're ready enough. The only thing you cant lose is your skills; first of which should be the ability to keep cool, travel light, stay low. Very taoist.

Hey hi - not much to tell about me. Everything changes so fast I cant keep track so I ususally keep quiet unless something comes up that I cant leave alone.

Thanks for the welcome and MAJOR APPLAUSE for your work on the Taoism / TaoBums FAQ - awesome!!!

Everything has its own time. Forcing sadness away might do more harm than letting it run its natural course. Maybe part of you senses this, and prefers a more natural timing.

Well... there once was this woman and she liked riding my ox... so maybe !

What next? I bet there's a big pile of wood that needs chopping, having been neglected while someone was away looking for something that wasn't lost in the first place.

xuesheng, hi I enjoyed your whole post very much and especially agree with the above part of it. I think we all sense something greater than what we've been taught to observe, and it's this subtle yet underlying perception that causes not only the drive for individuals to go out and seek in the first place - but it's what causes the creative explanations and dogmas - that try and explain, to get a handle on, and to express what is generally beyond description. Nothing wrong with all that, imo, until people get so hung up on the terms and explanations that the natural perception of the reality is obscured.

hi fizix My experience is similar! When I was little, I used to follow my mind down through the DanTien using it like a vanishing point - so later when I first learned about qi it made sense that the DanTien could be like an entry point for universal qi exchange. For me now though, qi doesn't need a doorway since the whole body is a gateless gate. I still use the DanTien for other things though.