duncan

Word up Yoda, Just thought I'd reply to your general thoughts on lineage. For me your thoughts bring to mind the interesting desire we all have to say 'I am' this or that. I know I expereince this desire. Yoga postures and pranayama does a lot for me, so part of me would love to hold fast to that system and say 'this is it!' but then I get so much out of Shiatsu and other more Taoist stuff...and then there's Buddhism Perhaps you were thinking around the auspicious-ness of lineages and tapping into that... on that note, I also like the sentiments that you expressed at the end of your post. There is the perspective that says Buddhism, as a way of life passed on person-to-person, is basically an unbroken line of friends dating back to the Buddha. Friendship? Now that's auspicious Duncan

Hi there... like lotusbud, I've been reading the forum for a while now and eventually have decided to join. My main practice is vipassana meditation in the Buddhist tradition, along with some Yoga when I get chance. Have also done some Tai Chi/Qi Gong and Aikido. I feel more and more committed to the dharma/tao, but recently, my mind has been excellent at finding ways to distract itself from meditation practice... like joining forums (excellent though they may be! ) Duncan

Thanks for your question cloud recluse, but Ian has probably replied better than me. The only book of his I've had access to is a herb compendium, which seems perfectly credible. I get the impression he's pretty big over here and that he's been tied to a number of books, some of which are quite 'pop' in feel. That may not be a good thing, but perhaps he's just compelled to share Taoism/TCM with the public. I say if you dig his style, then why not get into his stuff? Come to think of it, I'm always a believer in encouraging people to trust their own judgement when it comes to literature or teaching. By the way everyone, thanks for making me feel so welcome. I hadn't checked back to this section for a while. Duncan

The general gist is that Buddhism traditionally regards the cultivation of insight into reality as of the most importance. You could say [but this is not definitive]: In Taosim, cultivation of Qi features strongly with hints about the Universal Reality [Tao] circulating here and there. In Buddhism, the Universal Reality is of primary importance, with Qi cultivation being a useful by-product of meditation practice. So... you could say that Buddhism and Taoism are the same thing looked at from different directions. [Yin and Yang? ] Word, Duncan

So, forgive me, but I still don't see a link for the vid. Duncan

Hey Derek, Just thought I'd give you a reply. Thanks for your intro. Nice to have you on board. Your point about genuine teachers of taoist arts being rare is probably accurate, but as you suggest, that is probably for a reason... Duncan

Thanks for your reply freeform. Good point. And yes, the ego is terribly creative in the ways of distraction. I recently deemed it essential to watch all of the anime series 'Samurai 7' at the occasional expense of practice... It was good though. And I agree - these forums can be supportive of practice as well as a distraction; that's one reason I joined. Duncan