Naziri

Jedis before Star Wars = Dawn of the Jedi. 30,000+ years before the movies!

No. That's not exactly what i said. Any reading of the letter combinations of the Torah is valid and correct, even when it seems to contradict others.

In Jewish tradition, we accept that all variant readings of the text are simultaneously correct, even when they contradict. This is the original approach to the Bible. Latter approaches are foreign.

This is what i really dislike about internet forums. People seem to assume that the other person they are talking TO (not with) is ignorant of their theories. You seem to assume: 1. That i am not a "Kabbalist" (this is the assumption in speaking of M'qubalim in the third person), and 2. That i have not studied with Modern Chassidim (in fact, i belong to a branch of Judaism that is a Medieval-era form of Chassidut that predates the Besht and those dynasties emanating from him). In fact, you seem to only be aware of one of half a dozen or more MAJOR variant readings of the first line of Sefer Berashit. You are speaking as though the Zohar only offers one alternative translation. The history of variant readings of this line is something which i have discussed in much detail with Zohar translator Daniel Matt. Perhaps you would gain more insight into the matter if you listened at least as much as you tried to tell me that i don't know what you know.

Furthermore, no one suggested "b" is a word. "B" is a prefix. "B-reshit bara elohim..." etc.

What makes you suspect i am not a Kabbalist? Also, which M'qubalim have said the translation that i offered was incorrect? In Judaism, we don't typically say "i'm a Kabbalist," since that means "i'm a traditionalist" literally. It is just a strange formulation. But truth be told, all Jews who are into the inner dimensions of Jewish practice are "Kabbalists." In any event, my translation was precise, according to Hebrew grammar. There are people who know much more Hebrew than me, but i have learned a lot in taking six years of formal course study, and decades of personal study.

Stop asking for advice for this chronic problem online and get to an OMD and acupuncturist immediately.

Bereshit means ba (in) reshit (a beginning); from the term rishon (first) and thus rosh (head, first; as in rosh ha'shanah meaning "head" or "beginning" of "the year"). There is no definite article, so it is "a" beginning, not "the" beginning. The grammar also indicates that what this beginning is of should be named, but it is not. A correct translation/approximation is thus: "in a beginning of... Elohim created" and so on. Next comes the enigma of the direct object indicator, but that's another story.

What: South Central Ohio Three Temples (San Szu) Internal Martial Arts Seminars! Meditation Qi Kung Healing Nei Jia Internal Kung Fu Systems T'aiji (T'ai Chi) Xingyi (Hsing I) Bagua (Pa Kua) Where: Yellow Springs, and Dayton OH When: The third weekend of May (18th-20th) How long: A total of 12-18 hours of intensive training per seminar. Cost: $313 if you pre-register. $360 at the seminar if you have not pre-paid. Write for more information or to register for the May Seminar. If you are from outside of the Ohio area, lodging will be provided for you! We train together and hang out together. The EXPERIENCE is WORTH THE TRIP! PM me if you're down. Peace in. Peace out.

Two things: 1. Yes, it is well-established in secular scholarship that "666" is simply the Hebrew gematria for "Caesar Nero(n)." This is why the Greek without the final nun was "616" which the earliest Greek manuscripts of the text had spelled out instead of 666 (interesting trivia fact). 2. This is pretty much irrelevant to this forum. It is interesting stuff, and much of my own research focuses on that era and region. Why not shoot me an email and just chat with interested parties instead of clogging up a Tao forum with these topics? Peace.

Very cool. i've been consistently impressed with the kindness of all Lung Men Pai folks i know and have met. i definitely plan to train with Shifu Wang when he ends up making his way to the US.

It is definitely NOT an introductory book. It is apparently for folks who already meditate and are familiar with Taoist meditative practices in general, and Lung Men Pai specifically. For such people, it is very good.

i liked this book quite a bit. i know a little about Lung Men Pai training, but not a lot compared to other systems. i am friends with several practitioners (who recommended the book). i got it in the mail two days after it came out and have read most of it. While there are some criticisms one could make of the translation, i find it to be wonderful and a worthwhile investment. i would ask those who know more about Lung Men Pai training, which of the LMP training levels each of the following correspond to. 1. Yin xian fa 2. Zhi Neng Gong 3. San Xian Gong 4. Tai yi Jin hua zhong zi 5. Nu Dan Xin fa 6. Shui Gong 7. Nei Shi Fa 8. Jin Yang Huo and Tui Yin fu 9. Zi shi gang 10. Guan Shi Mo Xiang and ting fu yi mu 11. Zi Ran Huan Qi Fa 12. Ping Heng Gong 13. Standing Training 14. Capturing the Sun's jing of essence and the moon's light 15. Moving the 5 elements to open the eight extra channels 16. Ba gua yi qiu gong 17. Tian gang ba gua bu 18. Tian gang stars training Maybe it says, i will honestly need to read through this a couple of times more than my initial read on the elliptical trainer in the mornings.

More Pai, you've talked to one who knows what they are talking about.

Willing to move to Ohio to train? PM me for more details if you're interested. $500 a month flat. Covers rent AND training. You would share the newly-renovated house downtown with two other people who would be training as well. i'm looking for a total of three people. Details in PM. Peace In.

No problemo bro. Peace in and out.

Peace bro.

Edward, check out the Jesus Seminar research, which includes assessment of Thomas, in these two works: and

Who is the "Kosher Jesus"? How the Criteria of Historical Jesus Research Can Tell Us Who Jesus Wasn't http://www.amazon.com/Kosher-Criteria-Historical-Research-ebook/dp/B007HOWUHS/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1331825764&sr=1-1 The Dead Sea Scrolls on the Identity of Mashiach, the "Chosen One of God" http://www.amazon.com/Scrolls-Identity-Mashiach-Chosen-ebook/dp/B0053H38X6/ref=sr_1_15?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1331825806&sr=1-15 The Sabaeans, Magians and Zandiqin As They Pertain To Islamic Origins http://www.amazon.com/Sabaeans-Magians-Zandiqin-Pertain-ebook/dp/B004V4AN5S/ref=sr_1_17?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1331825806&sr=1-17 The Significance of the God Fearers in the Environment of Early Christianity: Gentile Sympathizers of Judaism and the Success of the Paulean Meme http://www.amazon.com/Significance-Fearers-Environment-Christianity-ebook/dp/B004ISLS1A/ref=sr_1_26?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1331825916&sr=1-26 Also, Diaspora Essenism is discussed in Revaluating and Interpreting the Sources on the `Isawiyah Jews http://www.amazon.com/Revaluating-Interpreting-%60Isawiyah-%60Issuniyim-ebook/dp/B004OEKHG0/ref=sr_1_25?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1331825916&sr=1-25 i also can send any of these in PDF format. PM me for the info.

Makes sense.

Hey there Edward! Fancy seeing you here The practices of the Essenes are pretty well documented. We have not only key texts from the Dead Sea Scrolls that tell us a LOT about them. But before we had these (most of them, though we did have the Damascus document for some time... maybe even all along in Judeo-Sufi communities, as we found it in the Cairo Genizah), we had folks like Philo, Josephus, Pliny and even later folks (into the second and third centuries CE) telling us about their practices. The Essenes were not restricted to Qumran or a site like it. This is probably the BIGGEST misconception that Pop-Essene researchers have about them. In everything i have written on the Essenes, i ALWAYS make sure to cite historians who explained that while some of them were celibate and unmarried, others married and had children, as well as quotes that they were found "in every town" numbering in the thousands. This is important for understanding what happened to the Essenes in the galut. It is also very interesting, from a Taoist perspective, that right around the same time, the Tien Shi and T'ai Ping movement were engaged in very similar activity, albeit far, far away in China... Seems to have been an interesting time. The Essenes were communalistic in nature. They practiced semen retention and believed that it harmed the community to be around someone who had ejaculated in the past week. It would seem, correlating this with existing Jewish pietistic literature, that they saw this as weakening the individual, as sources speak about retaining semen prior to battle, etc. (that's another subject altogether). They had a three year initiation period. They admitted anyone, Jew or non-Jew, as a full Jew after that conversion process, but they saw non-Essene Jews as non-Jews who required full conversion in the same way that a person from a non-Jewish background would require it. All Jewish sects at the time were engaged in wide-scale proselytizing and convert-making. The activity of John the Baptist seems to be that of an Essene convert-maker. Notably, the chronologically earliest canonical Gospel account was Mark, which begins not with a nativity story, but with vetting Jesus by explaining that he was initiated/converted as an Essene, by none other than John himself (who was probably filling the ROLE of "Moreh Tzedeq" in that generation... Eisenman fails to consider that this was a position, title rather than one single individual). They were, according to some sources, vegetarian, but they seemed to make use of dairy and the leather from dairy animals that died of their own accord. The Talmud notes this - referring to the Essenes as "Chassidim Rishonim" - and says that this is the best leather for tefillin, klafim, etc. Historians contemporary with them said they lived extraordinarily long lives, healed, could see the future, etc. These third party sources about them probably give us the most insight in some ways, as the DSS do not speak about these things, per se. P.S. Username "Thelerner", i am assuming you are talking to the original poster of this topic? i haven't posted anything on this here. i'm replying to a single thread on the subject.

Sorry for jumping in on this topic late, but i normally don't get on this forum much (or forums). i've been vegetarian for 18-19 years and feel great. There can be pit falls, but if you train and meditate, then the yin of a vegetable-based diet will complement your training very nicely. i can't imagine how imbalanced i would feel with all the surface yang from meat.

What URL are Kosta's replies actually on?