forestofclarity

Sorry for your loss. No. I think you're referring to the Bardo period in Tibetan Buddhism. I would suggest not suppressing your emotions. Allow yourself to grieve. When the time is right, you might find there is a inner, often heart centered release and you are able to request the person to move on. Sometimes there are rituals that can help this process of release. Typically, we are advised against speaking negatively about some one during this period.

Mark Rasmus has some qi ball exercises that I've been playing with again. He initially starts "externally" to the body and then goes "internal." One thing that helps is developing a sort of relaxed, open awareness. I don't think you feel for qi so much as you just sort of open your awareness and the qi comes into view, so to speak (although this doesn’t mean intention is absent). His videos are kind of unstructured, but he supports a more playful method than others.

I did various martial arts over the years--- Japanese jiujitsu, kickboxing, xing yi, etc. I was often looking for something that was an art but also pragmatic. However, I ended up stopping altogether because I didn't like how the training impacted my mind set and the bodily injuries. It's hard to find a cool old school martial arts instructor--- it seems that everyone nowadays wants to go out and get into fights. People come into class bragging about this fight or that fight. And I'm wondering--- how the heck does a functioning adult even get into a fight? Confrontation is almost always avoidable. A lot of martial artists have a sort of edge or sharpness. Seems more martial and less art. However, I just signed up for yet another Tai Chi class (I think it is my third run through if I stick with it). I don't really see a better way to work with alignment through the body, and IMA body mechanics are unlike anything else. Sort of like meditation, but the body is doing it.

No, that was an honest mistake, you can respond here if you like. In fact, this is the place to respond because your posts are off topic. Or you can PM. If you don't like the forum, feel free to stop using it.

MOD NOTE: Locking topic to prevent slipping into pointless ad hominem. We've had points, counterpoints, rebuttals, counter-rebuttals, counter-counter-rebuttals, etc. If some one has good reason to reopen or additional points to add, PM me or the other mods about reopening.

The word "get" is used in English to mean understand, and specifically to understand sort of in a gut level way. In this case, people don't seem to understand that when they post on a public forum on the internet, many people who are not involved in the discussion may also read their posts, even years later. One should consider their speech in this far ranging context. Public posts, on a public forum are not protected, as far as I know, by any privacy laws.

MOD NOTE: Off topic conversation moved:

Anything you post in an open, public forum can be read by anyone. For example, other people are reading this post besides the two of us. I’m not “perceiving” anything. I have no idea why you seem to think posting on a public part of a public Internet forum should be private, why you think I’m acting as a mod, etc.

I’m not sure what you’re getting at. Are you threatening some sort of legal action?

Something few online posters seem to get. Our conversations here are not private between two people. Who knows how many people read our posts, in the present or sometimes even years in the future?

I would say from a Buddhist POV, the physical, mental, and subtle bodies are all connected. A change in the alignment of the subtle body often has physical and mental components. If it didn't, it wouldn't be useful. Not sure about the Daoists. Untrue, but free to continue to believe that.

It is not unusual for the same terms in spiritual traditions (such as Buddhism and some forms of Daoism) to have more refined and less reified meanings as the student progresses. Which is one reason IMO that strong opinions and ideas literally block progress. I note how carefully he handles this. It is not something you're creating or trying to accomplish, but something you are aware of in the event it arises.

Because it has form.

If I had to guess, because Damo is using "pre-celestial" in a relative way instead of in an ultimate way. Evidently, in the oral tradition, multiple versions are used (not unlike various forms of Buddhism where terms are more refined depending on the context). So some people may listen to this and say it is not neidan it is neigong. Also because it is Damo.

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MOD NOTE: Please refrain from personal attacks and insults.

A few more tips occurred to me. Regarding using the easier sentient beings first, some of the easiest include animals, especially if you have a pet. An interesting thing for me is that by studying oneself, an insight begins to open for other beings. Seeing how our delusions form into hindrances and cause suffering, we get first hand experience of how suffering arises for us, and how we want happiness. At some point, we begin to see these same patterns in others--- but we know that others, like us, are struggling to be happy and free and are only acting out of ignorance. This makes it easier to extend compassion to more difficult people.

I'm not sure what country you might be in, but I've practiced in public all over the U.S. (including in very conservative Christian areas) and have never gotten any of that. One time, a little boy asked his mom what I was doing when I was doing standing practice and she said "He's working out." Other than that, no one has said anything. Most people are too caught up in their own stories to care as much as we think. Also, a lot of people are generally familiar with tai chi, yoga, etc.

Does fajin have a point outside of martial arts?

I don't know any good sources in book or course form personally, but I applaud the effort. I need more metta. I think we all need more metta. From my POV, this is exactly what the board is often missing. The most striking thing about advanced practitioners I've met is the natural radiance of metta. One thing I would suggest is that whatever the source, an important tip is to feel the metta, it whatever form it arises, usually in the heart area. Some people repeat phrases or visualize it, which is fine but I think and have been taught it is more important to cultivate the feeling. It may sometimes be barely felt, but like tending to a little a fire it will expand.

First off, the mind is much more powerful than you think. Second, most lineages have physical changes involved, but many don't talk about them. We are idea making machines. Once formed, an idea may be nearly impossible to remove. Third, it is more important to walk the road than collect other people's signs, in my opinion. But I have no idea how it will unfold for others. The Dao isn't a one trick pony. Gravity applies, even if one is not a physicist.

Yes, I like this version. It is interesting to revisit over the years to see how it deepens.

This: Is not the same thing as this: English words do not have exact meanings. Meaning also depends on context. One word may have several denotations, and additional connotations. Not to mention words definitions drift over time. Linguists have tried to create a more exacting language and failed.

Some one once posted a piece of this, in an effort to point out how confounding the language. It was "good, bad; sick mind." I always thought that was clearer than most translations! This poem cuts to the bone.