Wayfarer64

This communication with others durring our sleep/dreams is a very interesting aspect of our consciousness. There are a few people (and one dog) who I have pretty constant access to in dream states. We used to phone each-other (not the dog)-and check the experiences we shared. I've accepted these sorts of communications for many decades and hope that serious studies have/will be done about these incounters. (any news about this!?) It may be that we should write a book?!- I have had similar experiences with some who have died. The most striking aspect of those incounters was how tired the dead usually seemed to be and how difficult it seemed to be for them to be present in my dream state. One of the strongest was fairly recent, when my dear friend Michael Savage had been dead for about twenty days or so. His mom had been close to Allen Ginsberg through her mom being Allen's mom's very dear friend... Anyway I was sleeping on a couch at my moms when I had a very lucid visitation from Mike who had brought along Allen and Neil Cassady to show-off for me, who he was hanging with in the great beyond... I remember being dissapointed that Kerouac hadn't come too, but it seems there was a problem with JK's abilities or maybe willingness to manifest in my dream. The whole thing was funny, for the most part as if to say don't worry this ain't so bad a deal... It was THE most exciting visitation I have had while dreaming. I usually awoke with and have maintained a pretty strong memory of several of these events. It has helped me develop my ideas of my real life as consciosness being kept and shared through time and space, without the need of a body. But I am of course in no hurry to check THAT theory out any time soon. No matter what shit hits the fan this life is still more interesting than dreams or astral travel or anything else I have even heard of. edit- this next part belongs on another thread but I'll leave it here and add to the other also...it manifested and needs to be moved... The search for esoteric knowledge has been going on for many mellenia, my own for mere decades. I hope that most of the young and cock-sure seekers here, don't fade away or burn-out in the decades to come. There is always more to understand than we will ever know. And knowing is still not understanding. Knowledge is vapid and of no use if the holder of it can not or will not apply the concepts into their reality/dream state and work to make for a better understanding, not a mere accumulation of powerful ideas and states of mind, that bring them self-satisfaction, but do not change how they live and accumulate merit and kharma. When yr kharma hits yr dogma in the great beyond it is what you have done here when you had the chance that counts. Qi turns back to simple wind when blown out of one's ass... It is still just raising a stink.

At last a reference to someone shows up on here with real wisdom, and the sense to make it funny... as any joke could be - about how a few riffs on tits and cocks can make ya mad as hell...it's a gut buster... peregrino- well done! here is the sage of wacky wisdom his-self... http://www.wavygravy.net/

Leverage is a wonderful thing, right uo there with mindfullness when dealing with this world's confabulations!

Yo Thaddeus - This came up on the Now never comes- thread, theLerner suggested a new topic so I ran with it...I doubt I will give much time to experimentation on this. I can not disrupt sleep to experiment at this time, too much to do in "real time" to focus on "dream time" at this juncture...But I almost always drift off with my mind's eye on my hands... a practice I took up a few decades ago via Castanada- I don't think much has been gleaned from this in my ability to remember dreams, but I do seem to know when I'm dreaming much of the time that I dream. I have a distinct impression that when I start to go downward via stairs etc. when dreaming ... bad shit starts to happen and the dream turns "night-marish". I believe that this is due to repressed memory from some very bad experiences that I suffered in reality. Conversly, when I am high-up in my dream state -on a mountain over-looking the sea for instance I am filled with the most wonderful feelings of rapturous joy and a feeling of oneness with the whole of life... If there is a whale in the sea far below I can share a "namaste" with it . In fact such moments have been the high-light of my consciousness of late- reality being something of a grind these days...

I think Kipling said it best- "A woman's breast need only be large enough to fit in an honest man's hand..."

AiWei- Is that Lin's dumplimg house at 25 Pell? I don't know for certain but if it is a place you know and feel at home, I think it a great idea. Timing is tuff for me to figure out right now - my schedule will come clear by tuesday at the earliest... I guess for us all to meet at once may be problematic... I didn't even know Plato is in the NYC area...Aiwei I have yr phone # -and shall call as soon as I know I have a window to get into town- what is the time frame? How long is your stay in the area planned for? Do you get into Manhattan as a rule or do you need an excuse?- The rest of us seem to be city-available as a rule and could meet-up more easily. I hope I am not adding to the confusion! -Pat

As I have entered Denty into the ignore user option I missed his latest -I have no comment .His BS speaks for itself- but thanks Spyrelx for your kindness towards him, I have no more interest in dealing with rampant me-me-meists on the web. I need no defence from him on anyone's part though it is well meant I am sure. I have chosen to ignore him. Others have e-mailed me that they too have added him to their ignore list. I suggest to anyone who feels annoyance/annomosity towards me to add my name to their ignore list. Tolerence of anti-social behaviors is a trait of liberalism that has caused a lot of harm in the world. Sociopathy if humored can manifest in harmful ways. This is an exceptional forum for the most part in that we are kind, tolerant and honest with each-other. And we have been tendered the tools to deal with those who do not measure up to common standards of social discourse in a mature and reasonable manner. Sean O has created a remarkably civil and uplifting place for us to compare our experiences as seekers and questers after greater meaning in our lives etc...I for one expect and accept that gleaning any useful input from my fellow humans will include having left some dross behind in the process.

TaoMeow- that is a very intense way to be as a constant. I for one like to let go and experience the inter-connectedness i get from out of body experiences. I believe it will also help me let go of this physical state of being when it is time for my consciousness to release from the body in death. I am not sure what sleep-walking represents in this. I have known only one sleep-walker who was staying at my apartment, late one night he came into my office space and pissed on a cabinette & then tried to go back to bed but he tripped and woke himself up, which I heard was dangerous for sleepwalkers to do... I was also awakened by his tumble and as gently as possible got him back to the guest room. He remembered nothing the next day of these things. So I think this is an entirely different sort of mental state than the rest we are delving into... I am saddened reading that you are/will not be transformed and liberated by reading as I tried to discribe. This has been a great joy in my life, particularly when I was young and reading the classic adventure books. But I still get it now. I was just reading Will Durant's Mansions of Philosophy and was transported for a few dozen pages of philisophical speculation. I'm half Italian so - si si si express away! I enjoy this thread very much, it reminds me of my " University daze"...

A good friend of mine's wife is having a very difficult transition through menapause these days. She has become very bad tempered and cantankerous. Do any of you know some good herbal treatments to help her adjust? She is Chinese and has no phobias concerning herbalism. With many thanks -Pat

Hi there GrandT, I am an artist and art dealer, my website is@- http://www.pdgart.com - and I just published a book of poetry-the Wayfarer Sonnets -which Sean O. is kindly running as a banner ad here on TaoBums. I see it now as I type this!!! A lot of the salesmanship for the art biz is best done as face to face "shmoozing" at social events. And a good way to get one's poetry known is at readings in places like the Tompkins Square Library and such...So my biz is related to my social life and is very rewarding on many levels. (A quick aside about the art market) - Much is reliant on the economy and it is not in good enough shape right now to support a good art market. So many artists are in hussle mode and looking for day-jobs and new careers. Photography in particular has gone away as a means to make a living for most, and what is available is sold almost entirly as digital images through agencies. If we all get together in the city to greet you, AiWei - it may work out that we can also take in some cultural event or other that I have been invited to. I will try to coordinate that if it is possible/desirable to us each/all. So I guess I group meet-up may be one way to go and it could intail different places and levels of interaction. But a quiet cup of tea in China-town sounds pretty wonderful....And probably the place to meet

Hi Ai Wei, Thank you for the kind invitation, I am in NYC pretty often. I attend poetry readings, parties and art gallery openings etc for biz reasons and lectures etc. for my personal growth ...I would like to meet you and discuss my planned trip to China later this year. Are you staying in the China-town area of Manhattan? I often visit and sometimes stay with friends on E. Broadway, ( a block from the statue of Confucius). Please let me know when a good time to meet for tea would be. I can not know right now when I will be free to come in but perhaps it will manifest, as all that should be, does... Hoping to see you soon-Pat Goldsmith

Intellectualizing is a wonderful experience, so is dreaming and astral projection and ESP or any mental function of brain-power. But there is still a functioning form of existance we call reality that exists in a state of being that we can measure and label and catagorize through scientific means. Sure, molecules exist a very long time in many different places and in many different beings. This does not mean that they do not have time as a part of their being. Any given thing, be it a molecule a tree a man or a star has a life span. Even the universe itself seems to be finite in its potential as we are able to surmise at this time in our history. Any life span is made up of moments, and each have an instance of being a part of the space-time continuum which is known as the present moment. We are able to intellectualize those moments into smaller parts of nano-seconds or conceave of a molecule existing through mellenia. But existance on the physical plane of being has as a part of it the aspect of time. That does not preclude the mind's ability to put itself elsewhere as a result of imagination or meditation. When I read a book and at some point no longer am aware of reading and just end up turning pages for a span of time without being conscious of the process; just absorbed in the book's words and having my mind fill with pictures and the illusion of spoken voices, where am I in time? My body is reading, my consciousness is where the book has taken me. Our consciousness can detatch from our bodies through many different functions, encluding death. But there remains a part of our experience that is alive. If being alive were ONLY an example of being present in this dimentional catagory of potentials we call reality's now, then we would not be having this discussion. But that does not mean there is no actual now to be part of.

Cam, Thank you for your input. Philosophy is about questions and sharing ideas. Once narrow-minded and dogmatic insistance on one's own views enters the arena of discourse it is no longer philosophy, it is argument on a much lower level. That you suppose someone can dictate what they believe as teaching worries me. Knowledge is not wisdom. Sharing what one knows is blowin' in the wind. Extending the meaning and usages of what one knows to help people live is teaching. I have imployed the "ignore user" function on this site for Mr. Denty and expect a much more reasonable experience here from now on. Many thanks to Sean O. for this function's availability here at The Tao Bums.

Mr. Denty, I thought I made it clear to you before that your narrow-minded opinions are of no interest to me. You are the worst example of the loutish boors who populate cyber-space. That you have any standing anywhere bespeaks only of low standards and/or high levels of tolerance. Please refrain from addressing me any further I have no time for your immature crap. Frankly you come across as an infantile character just looking for negative attention. You have just recieved some more. Congratulations.

Hey there Corey, I suggest consulting the I Ching (Yi Jing) with this question and seeing what you get. Think about how the general ideas of your hexagram(s) apply to your situation. Please let us know what the results are! If you have questions concerning the Yi Jing, I would be glad to help you with them.- Pat (in central NJ!)

I have know a Grand Master of Hung Gar Shaolin to "rev up" his iron palm and generate a lot of heat from his hand... and also to crush/crumple the metal of a mercedes benz's dash-board with a tap. I have seen other instances of apparent "mind over matter" as it were - as well. I do not discuss any that were not meant as public examples when they were done. I regret adding any support to the usual snake-oil being sold around these matters. I distrust most who make such claims. Trust is seldom warrented in these claims. That some have knowledge of these techniques and can fake the results as if they were abilities is probably pretty common. I should think a rule of thumb is that anyone trying to push these techniques as something that they will show for a price or teach you for a price - should be doubted, if not avoided. A believable teacher has no inclination to get over on the students who come in search of knowledge. The GM I write of would take no money from his students. We were expected to help him as we were able. Painting his house for example...There were demands of time and effort, but not monitary recompence for the transferal of the teaching. Trust should be hard-won when we are also required to bow and kneel to a master as a sign of respect and humility in the awareness of such connections to the powers of which we write here.

The lack of response has been pretty disheartening. Please reach out and do this small thing for those who need to learn about their rights as they come to help build our great nation. Many are being taken advantage of and can be shown how to protect themselves. You can help us to do this here with a moment of your time.

To see all things as if always in the light of eternity, is to leave the grandeur only to the whole, each part is then so small and transitory that it holds no inspiration or nobility. Sometimes one must not look so intently to find the gifts which the present offers to each of us moment by moment. If we had all knowledge perhaps we would then have no desire to go further and our happiness would be an empty thing indeed. Where is the enthusiasm of youth that age cannot dispell? Happiness may be in the moments that seem very long and momentous ...where is the perfection of a simple moment as it holds eternity. That is a bliss to culture! Life seems to me - happiest when it is lived in health and a trusting vigor that accepts the risks and shuns vapid reward. It is the victorious moments that make up our lives that we learn to treasure as we age, and hope to have and share more of. The angushed moments we hope to learn from and leave behind. Moments are the crux of this life and as real as it gets! Change, constant and indeed quite rapid and too transitory for easy grasping is a vihicle for the now to expand the cosmos. Growth and life is all we got. If we are to count angels dancing on pin-heads we are only counting on ourselves to waste our prescious moments.

An easy explanation of the Tao is that it is what will manifest as life, energy, matter, being and all that may arise in the universe we call home. I'll bet this is not the first, nor last time that this notion crossed our forum's thresh-hold, but it is a simple way to get the newest members into the discussion... A basic notion of The Tao may be thought of as that which manifests as life. It is inexhaustible, ever renewing and never ending. Begining's begining, the source of all and the foundation of all furtherance...And to say this says nothing of the Tao, it is beyond that which can be explained, so it is also in a sense that which seeks itself, beyond our grasp and reach... We are each an integral part of it and when we become conscious of its' nature and power and learn to further its propensities we become more than what we were previously. The more we adapt or allow ourselves to unite with The Way, the more we manifest our own inate abilities and enable ourselves to reach our full potential. This is a major paradox of Taoism, to shed the skin of mundane and selfish desire to then join in the larger dance of life as a part of the greater whole that offers the fullest stretch of our potential as spiritual beings having this human experience... Of course this is only my own (current) interpretation, I am sure there are far more learned ideas to be added hence...

Hi Hannah, I offer a web-page with many links to Taoist sites @ http://www.pdgart.com/lipnf.html I for one am a proponant of the I Ching (or Yi Jing ) - being the root of Taoist thought. It is far more complex and difficult to fathom than the Tao te Ching, but offers the whole universe as well... Most think of it as a book of divination, which it can be, but it is much more than that. It opens up into the Taoist view of how we may become atuned to the Tao in our day to day interactions with the vast experience of this life...I've been studying it for almost 40 years and it still offers new insights into my own mind and how I relate to the world around me... Welcome to the bums!!!-Pat

For a laugh - please visit my JOKES page..@... http://www.pdgart.com/jokes.html I hope you enjoy it !!!

Dear Cloud Recluse, I have been complaining about the lack of sun-shine due to constant cloud-cover the past ten days or so in central New Jersey, but your reappearence here is very much welcomed by me! It is wondeful to hear from you again. I had begun to worry that you weren't interested in the forum so much anymore... I do the angry rant thing once every several hours, both here and in my work as a tenant's advocate. It "agrees with me" - to vent and not contain my anger at the inept self-serving BS that is rife in modern life. As long as this activity remains non-violent I concider myself pro-social as opposed to antisocial... and in fact a little violence has seemed apt from time to time in my travels... So don't get pent-up... vent the rage and sing the blues, curse the cold winds of injustice and kick some ass from time to time. You will not be doing ill to the basic mix- if it comes from compassion or just being fed-up with the crap that comes yr way... I am proud that my enemies make me angry and that gives me a fire in the belly to get the hard work done that is needed to speak truth to power and thwart what evils I can...But it is the calm center that I developed from reading the Yi Jing and other practices that gives me the strength to use that fire's glow and not let it burn up my own energies in frustrated anger... Anger is energy as any other - control and direct it for some good use, don't waste it by internalizing it.--Godspeed CR- I hope you'll rant somemore real soon!

It ain't the meat it's the motion... Unless you've a sledge-hammer or a needle-dick- concern yourself with connecting in a loving/giving open-hearted way and learn what your lover likes. My girth has made me aware that some smaller women had some concern that I would not let them build up proper lubrication before any hard thrusting was engaged in... So I always take it slow, pace and gentle arousal seem much more important than size - as long as one is not massive or puny, put your mind into the partner's responses and indications of pleasure, not how large you are. I have found soft-entry and getting hard while within a lover works best to both prolong the woman's arousal time and with-hold emmission -if that practice is being used. I have found many women achieve orgasm before I become fully aroused. This is optimum for the Tao of Loving techniques some seek to master. My lover is satisfied and I have less need to ejaculate and spend the jing as jizz that I used to think was so very important to retain. I am no longer so very concerned with that, but the techniques are useful to make sure a woman is deeply satisfied. Linking spirit and having out of body experiences that are shared and feel as if we had visited another planet are more my goals now when sharing sexual union. Being a spirit in a human body has some great benifits! Seek your united inner potentials, not your phallic potential and great sexually transmitted experiences will be shared! I seem to remember that Sean has expressed some of these qualities on earlier threads...

Hey there Japhy Ryder - Your on site name caught my eye and I had to laugh! Thanks for keeping the spirit of JK & the pseudoname of GS alive and well... I wish more folks here read the book! Pat

Hey there Xeno et al, I've begun thinking of the Tao as the life force that connects all consciousness, be it in spirit form or corporealy housed in a body. There is unity and a sense of self as well within that part of each of us...Just another way to say the same thing perhaps...