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Not in the usual sense since karma is a concept borne from Hinduism, but it does place some (enough) emphasis on moral retribution (essentially the same thing), especially with respect to obeisance to one's ancestors, and also to the whole pantheon of heavenly & hell gods and deities, and Taoists in general take this with far greater literal seriousness than Buddhists, so its really not as laissez-faire as some would believe. At least in Buddhism the emphasis is directed towards personal moral & ethical responsibility without the added weight of being answerable to gods and demons should there be any faltering.

ya, ya... we are all brainwashed except you.

I think there is a universal soldier (or soldiers) of dzogtune out there near the Mogao Caves in Dunhuang, China. It seems the cave was used as a repository, or as some scholars say, used as a dumping ground for 'sacred waste' - esoteric and exoteric manuscripts from various traditions, not least Daoism, Nestorian Christianity, and of course Buddhism, which forms the bulk of the 'waste'. So its really hard to pinpoint which tradition influenced who, and who, in turn, influenced what. For definitive answers, it would really take someone to go back in time with a hard finger to identify the rip-off artistes. Somehow i doubt Jax would be the one to go. Maybe Wells ought to volunteer in his rainbow suit. If you do, dont forget to bring your designer Thodgal goggles with you

Thank you, Barbara. Re-reading the above, i realized that i should have said 'merit directly refers to affinity'. Meaning that whomsoever feels within a spontaneous, natural openness and relates to the buddhadharma with some degree of seriousness and wisdom, such leanings are appropriately affected with the term 'merit'. As for the Four Seals, i would say that this whole thread is supported by it/them. I try only to share the wisdom of Buddhist masters past and present who inspires my practice daily. I understand your request though, and will do my best to assist where possible.

In this context, merit directly refers to those who find an affinity with the teachings or Dharma. Purists will say Dharma implicitly means the teachings or sutras directly propounded by Buddha Sakyamuni, but there are teachers who are more open and will say that Dharma refers to any body of teachings that 'contain' the Four Dharma Seals, namely, all compounded things are impermanent, all conditioned phenomena and experiences are ultimately unsatisfactory, all phenomena are non-self, and Nirvana is true peace. So it follows that these same teachers will infer that it is possible that other spiritual paths may indeed reflect these four seals, and can therefore be considered buddhadharma. While these four pillars seem quite straightforward at first glance, there's actually quite a substantial depth to each and every one of them, and to reflect on these as a stand-alone teaching may take many years or even lifetimes. Personally i can vouch that this is so.

I loved it when i first read it. Still do

A quote from a friend on relationship: I take good care of me. You take good care of you. Lets just enjoy this. Reading your post brought it to mind.

Yvw This might interest you i think http://www.sevenpillarshouse.org/article/the_odor_of_the_gods

There's speculation of the presence of benevolent entities if the scent is pleasant yet cannot be identified or associated with any of the scents one is familiar with. On the flip side, if the stench is overpoweringly nasty, that would indicate hostile space invaders.

A sailor should cross the ocean if he has a boat; a general should defeat the enemy if he has an army; a poor man should milk the 'cow of plenty' if it is within his reach; a traveler who wants to go to distant lands should pursue his journey if he has an excellent horse. As for you, who have a precious human life for the moment and have received instructions from a spiritual master, the embodiment of all the buddhas of the three times, think with joy and enthusiasm of traveling the great path of the supreme Dharma and getting ever closer to the ultimate goal: enlightenment and liberation. ~ Shabkar Tsogdruk Rangdrol (1781-1851) ~

She might turn out to have a strong affinity with water and swimming, as i have, due to having flat feet. Have you had a chance to bring her to a pool yet?

Oh, and one more thing i forgot to mention: There is a lot more to retention than the mere withholding of semen.

I can see two possible scenarios probably with overlaps so really its not an either/or consideration: One is your friend is confused, even dumbfounded, by the idea that you consent to engaging in sex, yet fail (yes, fail) to consummate the union; Two is that you are confused, even dumbfounded, by the idea that she agrees to have sex with you yet cannot respect your need for retaining your seed. From the viewpoint of transactional analysis, such an uncompromisable tryst is doomed to fail. Men who are predisposed towards pleasuring the partner tend to rationalize that eagerness by being rewarded satisfactorily when the partner achieves multiple orgasms. The more they manage to come, the greater the satisfaction for such a neurotic mindset. What makes you think women in general are somehow different in that respect?

Insightful article on the Buddhist concept of Karma. Sheds light on some often misunderstood concept-related notions. https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/turning-straw-gold/201205/what-is-karma-and-why-should-it-matter-us

The great Longchenpa said, when the moon rises and when there is a clear lake, even though you may not wish it, the moon is reflected in the lake. Likewise, as long as sentient beings have merit, the image of the Buddha and his teachings and his blessing are reflected, even though you don't search for them. But if the lake is murky and defiled and not clear, even though the moon is shining in the clear sky, the reflection of the moon doesn't exist. Likewise, even though the compassion of the Buddha is infinite and ever-present, if there is no merit among sentient beings for the Buddhas to reflect, then the chance of communication with the Buddha probably does not exist. However, judging not just from us, but from everything that is going on regarding the activity of the Dharma, I feel that we sentient beings still have a lot of merit. ~ Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche ~

Thinking that practice and enlightenment are not one is no more than a view that is outside the Way [that is, deluded]. In the buddha-dharma, practice and enlightenment are one and the same. Because it is the practice of enlightenment, a beginner's wholehearted practice of the Way is exactly the totality of original enlightenment. For this reason, in conveying the essential attitude for practice, it is taught not to wait for enlightenment outside practice. ~ Dogen Zenji ~

Celibacy is like a spiritual tool for those who want to learn responsibility, discipline and patience, three of the most vital qualities essential for making significant inroads towards a spiritual destination. In effect, as these qualities take root and eventually bear fruit, the one who has chosen abstinence as a path of renunciation will come to realise the inseparability of practitioner, tool, and result. Like a samurai who finally, after years of dedicated effort, reaches complete union with his sword. This is the highest reward which only few will attain, and fewer still are those who exert vigilance and integrity to hone that union daily to keep idle complacency from creeping in.

Yes, worsening, as in a deteriorating process which is likely severe and distressing, no? Hence i was suggesting perhaps that is not such a helpful view of things because my reasoning, which was not given above, is that the severity and degree of deterioration is very much factored by how tightly we want things to be different, but perhaps you might not agree, which is ok too. I agree the physical body has to be cared for, but do not agree that this caring overflows into the formation of strong emotional attachments to this process of caring, to the extent that we become unable to handle certain realities in relation to the threat of 'disease' and how fragile and sudden the body succumbs to changing health - not just towards ill health, but conversely, towards optimum health as well. Despite all that we think we know, the body knows itself much more and does in fact remain very capable of functioning on its own without having to depend on our experiments and our knowledge and our good intentions towards it, and those who are experiencing reduced health may have temporarily forgotten this, so indeed treading mindfully could well mean learning to trust the intrinsic intelligence of the body to heal itself without needing to impose too much expectations on it to do its own thing. But this proposal or idea can be at times tricky to negotiate due to certain fixations and/or compensatory habits built around the perceived enormity of the debilitation. Yes you have mentioned that before, although as a third party, and not a medical professional, its impossible for me to agree or disagree with the assessment of whether its related to energetic work or not. Not saying it is in your particular experience, but from others whom i am aware of with CFS, the root cause is usually pretty hard to determine, hence nothing could they discount in trying to manage the condition effectively. Nobody wants to experience the effects of a debilitating physical condition, but certain events that occur in various stages of life, despite our best efforts in thinking we have everything in order and neatly arranged, has been known to chuck the odd spanner into the works from time to time and turn what we perceived to be a stable existence upside down, which then disturbs the way the mind view things because the tendency for negativity to set in becomes amplified, and this certainly will not make the recovery process easier - in most cases, it actually makes the opposite of that more apparent. Meditation, well, at least Buddhist meditation, ought not to be confused with therapy. Perhaps in wanting to find rest, your friend involving herself with Zen had misunderstood the purpose of Zen somewhat. It is a mistake to assume that practicing the buddhadharma, regardless of tradition, will lead to an untroubled existence, one pervaded by soothing feelings and serenity and calmness over the disarrayed hecticness which seems to beset a lot of us. The purpose of the Dharma as taught by Buddha is precisely tailored to root out neurotic mental and physical habitual patterns from the inside out, and this is what we sign up for in actuality. Its clear your friend approached the practice least expecting the sort of outcome that time. Well, she did ask for advice. Stupid or not would largely be determined by the sort of expectations we have prior. Assuming she opted not to seek advice from the teacher, what do you reckon her eventual experience will be? By seeking advice, not only has she to deal with her new condition, but the added angst of knowing she met a teacher who gave stupid advice. She would have been better off managing her life without seeking Zen, which requires, as in all the different Buddhist paths, rather strong commitments. Ajahn Chah, a highly respected Theravadin master once said that if we haven't wept, we have not got to the basic understanding of what meditation is. In my tradition, 5 - 10 minutes of resting the mind with minimal to no contrivance, repeated many times, is the preferred approach. Anyway, meditation, imo, ought not to be measured by the length of time we put in while attempting a fixed posture or position. This is like an urban legend kind of idea, like a myth. We sometimes get impressed by stories of so-called meditators who freeze themselves into a fixed zombie state for 5 or 6 hours, or even more... its just plain silly really. The only time we will know for certain how good we are as a practitioner is when we are close to dying. Prior to that, its not really favourable to make too many speculations as to which type of meditation, how long to meditate, or which path is the real thing. Such considerations aren't really conducive to real spiritual growth and positive fruits.

Yes, i am familiar with the process, BES, although i will not personally see any condition as better or worse. The very idea of Transformation says a lot right there. It usually involves necessary trauma, as most healing processes do. Are traumas good? Are they bad? Not fundamentally, i would assert.

When i lived in HK back in the late 80s there used to be a Taoist wizard recluse (but he had taken a handful of students too) who lived and taught at a place called Stanley which was/is where the HK prison is located - its just by the seaside. Lovely place with quaint stalls selling touristy stuff and local delicacies. I used to go watch the classes whenever i had the time - it was very authentic-looking, and he seemed to possess extra-normal powers which was evident from observing his gait, power, etc. If he is still alive he'd probably be in his mid-80s now, cant be certain though. These masters usually hard to tell their age. Might be worth going to Stanley to ask/scout around and see what pops up. Maybe one of his students might still be there teaching. In the East, the master's abode is usually retained where possible due to feng shui reasons.

Btw it was down all day here as well. I wonder why hardly anyone highlights this issue as it occurs to the site's FB page which im guessing will alert Sean immediately.

As mentioned, to resume complete access you will need to clear your browsing history, aka cache.

I suppose this is applicable to all, but would impact greater on those with underpinning health issues.

Karl, I think you are right in suspecting subterfuge. Its subliminal crowd control aimed at garnering subservience to state authority.

Do you think its something thats already taken root? I personally can see/feel a gradual degeneration in the general mood of the people here. An erosion of fundamental goodness has been effected.