zazaza

I've gotten some good results in loosening up my tight ego through the advice of Nisargadatta Maharaj. Click to read nisargadatta's book for free (not 100% complete book but it contains everything that is already in the book. in the book, he keeps repeating himself over and over again because it's not actually a book he has written... they are recordings of talks that have been written down. That link contains the essence of nisargadattas teaching and it has arranged the content much more properly than in the real book.) It won't hurt to study and practice some zen or vipassana as well. Yesterday I have put some information about how to get rid of the ego in the post below: http://www.thetaobums.com/index.php?showto...mp;#entry161507 In yoga they talk about "the Self" in buddhism they talk about "no self", but i believe both states are very much like eachother - just a different terminology that is used. In both states, people get free from suffering... so they "lose the ego" so to speak.

Thought i mentioned it, but now i'm belly breathing. Actually i'm not breathing, the body is breathing. When i try to control the breath, things get messed up. Earlier this month i had to stop breathing through the belly because i made me hyperventillate. But so far i haven't hyperventillated... breaths so subtle it feels like it's going to stop. I guess if my breath would be too slow, my heartrate will go up right? So i would be able to notice it by my heartrate... ?

For good information on kundalini, read Vajrahridaya's post #4 in the thread below: http://www.thetaobums.com/index.php?showtopic=11174&hl=

I looked through the FAQ but it is huge, and I would like to have some recommendations please. 1. So far the only thing I do is being mindfull of my mind, body & environment as well as controlling my breath. Is there any site or free PDF that explains the base of "taoist mindfullness" or anything like that? (I can't buy any books because I'm a bum) According to the taoist view is it necessary to control the breath 24/7? 2. I like to be active in life and thus try keep my spiritual practice simple and non-time consuming, on the other hand I like having good results. Why are "energetic practices" so important? 3. I've read about a really simple energetic practice called "reiki". It involves getting some attunements which "open the chakras", and from then on you can "channel" the reiki without any effort. People often ask a lot of money for these attunements. Is reiki a good "energetic practice" for people who don't want to spend 10 hours per day doing energy exercises? Are there better alternatives?

I think emptiness meditation is when you observe everything that can be observed, and you observe only... without thinking anything about what is being observed, without pushing away what is being observed, without trying to change anything that is being observed by observing in such a manner "our essence" becomes more noticeable into "the observed world", and "our essence" is probably what is meant with the word emptiness. emptiness is our pure awareness (a.k.a. energy of mind?), without anything projected on it by our imagination, thus it is empty of imagined content. In order to experience total emptiness, we have to let go of the idea of self in order to be free from that idea. The idea of self is something we are naturally very attached to, and it is quite intense to let go of that idea. Often more than a little scary. I have experienced it on psychedelics but i believe that the process of reaching egodeath happens so fast on psychedelics, that there is no proper foundation build for it and thus the person (quite possibly always) descends back into the ego after the experience ends. I think that the foundation necessary for observing ideas and self without holding on to even THE SMALLEST BIT is simply faith in the act of pure observing. Under the influence of psychedelics it becomes somewhat intuitive and easy to have faith in pure observing. Sober, it's a bit harder... but probably only as hard as we imagine it to be. It is the role of the demons to make us believe it is hard, and that we can not do it. And while were doing it, the demons scare us into believing that if we go any further we will die. The truth is that it is only once we have died, that we can truely start to live. Click to read nisargadatta's book for free (not 100% complete book but it contains everything that is already in the book. in the book, he keeps repeating himself over and over again because it's not actually a book he has written... they are recordings of talks that have been written down. That link contains the essence of nisargadattas teaching and it has arranged the content much more properly than in the real book.) Nisargadatta says that it is not necessary to try to develop our energy, because as we become more aware of our true nature our energy becomes more and more available to us. I know his teachings contain a lot of truth, because I have experienced everything in the way such as he said it is, under the influence of psychedelics. I would not really advise anyone to do psychedelics as that can be rather dangerous and unhealthy, although they might help give people more insight into the process of enlightenment and how to get there sober. Don't take me on my word for this last bit, and remember that psychedelics can be dangerous! Definately not for everyone. Below is a picture of the yogi named "nisargadatta".

I guess the kundalini energy is keeping his lower pelvic muscles relaxed. If he squeezes his lower pelvic muscles hard it will put pressure on the prostate which feels good. Most men don't have to consciously squeeze the muscles as it happens spontaneously. In those who it does not happen spontaneously, they can probably make it happen by squeezing hard. Basically it's doing a strong kegel and holding it.

Sounds weird but, many people I have encountered in my city seem to be possessed by demons. Some people seem really cool in the beginning. I might spend months with them and they're very respectful and humble. Then suddenly, i see their real nature is one of selfishness or even psychopathy. I need to know which people in my immediate environment are _plain evil_ How do i know when someone can be trusted or not? I cannot afford continuing to keep the wrong people getting involved in my life. It seems that sometimes the people I try to feed want to bite of my arm!

http://www.wright-house.com/religions/taoi...o-te-ching.html i like that one most (mcdonald version) i made a printable pocket version of it here: http://www.megaupload.com/?d=K59U3SEZ fold pages in 3 like this \/\ and print both sides - saves paper and space in your pocket.

lisa gerrard - glorafin dead can dance - the host of seraphim

they sure dont like people to be empowered and blissfully happy. they want us weak and unhappy, so they can manipulate us and so we would consume more. the nwo tries to pollute everything that's pure. but you can recognize a tree by it's fruits. if somethings gives you good fruits, it's certainly not made by the nwo and not polluted completely.

My dear friends and enemies, I will try to be more careful in the future. One of my faults has been that i was being myself too much. It's better to look like a copy of everyone else - this avoids getting attention from the wrong kind of people. Many good advice has been contributed to this topic, thank you for that. I'm not in to too much trouble yet, I think. I just had some experiences the past few days which have been a wake-up call.

care to be more detailed.

Yeah, guess i'll have to think that true. And change my tactics. I'd still like to know about good way to see people's real intentions, when they are very good actors.

I don't feel drained by encounters with anyone. I just have a lot of energy which i want to share to the whole world, although i will probably have to start using this energy in a safer and wiser way.

They live among the crowds and act like regular people. In some of them you can see it easily, in other people you can't cause they disguise themselves really well. Maybe i need a psychic power so i can read peoples minds better. I'm already pretty good, but like i say.. some people are very good actors. A psychic power would be the perfect solution to my needs!

maybe i should indeed change my tactics. with hostiles i mean psychopaths & evil ones. i have met some people like that already, which leads me to doubt several friends and close people i have. how i can be sure of peoples real nature? I think only time can tell.

I have relatively good insight into myself. I don't have expectations per se, yet every person i encounter is unhappy. I have been there, and i know that people can become blissfull if only they take back control of themself. It is too dangerous to preach in these times where many people's hearts have become icecold you mean? I don't seek guru status. People don't need to give me anything. I just offer my advice to people who want to accept it. I want to protect myself from being around hostile people again. You can easily recognize many of the hostiles, but some of them can disguise it VERY well. How can i spot the evil people who have become experts at appearing innocent?

The yin and yang thing is probably true on the physical level. If you want a healthy body, a healthy earth and all that. i believe that the infinitely blissfull happiness can't be found in any thing, place, person or experience tho, i believe it can only be realized as oneself.

When you feel good, some people tend to be more attracted to you.

Another reason why porn is bad is because you place your focus outside yourself. It would be better to masturbate with your focus on your whole body and perhaps the prostate too, that would make sex a more empowering experience.

nevermind

i have the same problem, hyperactive energy is keeping me awake... i wonder if it would be ok to just lay in bed awake all night but try to relax the body as much as possible... and to then just have 3 hours of REM-sleep per night? maybe that's enough sleep? i doubt that's very healthy because the body slows down much better during long sleep. unless you have a very good relaxation technique, hmmm.. i think the reason i'm so hyperactive is because i have not fully let go yet. this might even be causing the adrenalin glands to release adrenalin. maybe we need to make a conscious effort to relax and let go. the problem i see with this though is that this means we need to make conscious effort, and such thing does not really promote sleepiness - i think. it would help the body to calm down though for sure... so maybe it would promote sleepinness after all. the best way i know to promote sleepiness is to descend into the ego. indulge in a warm bath, in a "good tasting" snack, watch a movie... become an energyless-couch potato... the problem is once i feel i'm making progress i don't like to trade it in for becoming a couch potato.

Many people claim that a depression has to do with a chemical imbalance, but as far as i know it's impossible to prove such thing because when taking a brainscan of someone you just dont know whether the amount of chemicals you see on that brainscan, are more or less than what a normal amount for that particular person should be. i'm not even sure if it's possible to see the chemicals in a brainscan, but i've read that many psychiatrists hate the myth of chemical imbalance. maybe a negative way of being causes a chemical imbalance, so it would be better to correct the cause rather than the symptoms? -------------------------------------------- mewtwo i'm not sure whether your problem is a physical one (a true chemical imbalance, something which i believe is rather rare but i guess is possible) or whether your problem is something mental/spiritual. even if your problem was mental/spiritual then it might be a bit risky to go off your meds (which i suspect your on) on the other hand, i would totally recommend to taper of your meds under medical supervision as soon as you've gained a little bit of stability. (which could actually be in just one month or so.) i recommend this because: a) sometimes these meds have unpleasant side-effects (even after discontinuation) if you stay on them, you don't really learn how to handle your feelings. you might logically think some things through, but when you go off the meds then you're back in your sober state and chance is that you haven't gotten any more selfcontrol then before you went on them. but again, be careful about going off the meds too quick. maybe they're the best thing for you right now. maybe. once you're off them, don't kill yourself because you know that in last case scenario, you can go back on your meds the book that got recommended here on buddhism looks worth reading. i suggest you read it, or you could read mindfullness in plain english in my opinion, mastering the mind in the buddhist/taoist way, is a bit like having faith in god. if you have faith in taking and keeping control of the mind, then u will succeed. if you don't believe in it, you will fail. it is the task of the demons to tempt you into desire and fear every moment of your life. if you lose faith in being in control, the demons gain control. the second you renew your belief in self-control, you regain control. to take back control is to let go of your fears and desires and to have faith in doing so. -------------------------------------------- i'm not sure whether your problem is kundalini related. maybe i'm wrong but i think everyone has kundalini active inside them to a certain degree. even people who don't experience the typical sensations in the back might experience powerful emotions being pushed to the surface by the kundalini force. kundalini or no kundalini, i think it's good for people's energy flow to sit with a straight back and to not cross your legs. keep your feet beside eachother on the ground, and most importantly: try to let go of fear of pain/loss and desire for pleasure. i believe that these are the cause of unhappiness. (except in the very rare person with a true chemical imbalance) when you desire pleasure, and you fear pain or loss... then you are obstructing the natural awakening of inner energies and inner bliss. i wouldn't bother about wanting specific things such as girlfriends, psychic powers, pleasures, kundalini awakening, and all these things. the divineenergy is already present within all of us and in fact, we are the divine energy. instead of wanting something which we think we don't have we should focus our mind on what is... and then we would see what really is. The tao te ching says Freed from desire, you can see the hidden mystery. By having desire, you can only see what is visibly real. but i believe nisargadatta describes things more accurately when he says Increase and widen your desires till nothing but reality can fulfil them. It is not desire that is wrong, but its narrowness and smallness. Desire is devotion. By all means be devoted to the real , the infinite, the eternal heart of being. Your longing to be happy is there. Why? Because you love yourself. By all means, love yourself -wisely. What is wrong is to love yourself stupidly, so as to make yourself suffer. Love yourself wisely. Both indulgence and austerity have the same purpose in view - to make you happy. Indulgence is the stupid way, austerity is the wise way. Once you have gone through an experience, not to go through it again is austerity. To eschew the unnecessary is austerity. Not to anticipate pleasure or pain is austerity. Having things under control at all times is austerity. Desire by itself is not wrong. It is the choices that you make that are wrong. To imagine that some little thing - food, sex, power, fame - will make you happy is to deceive yourself. Only something as vast and deep as your real self can make you truly and lastingly happy. (211-2) may i suggest you just try to help yourself and other living beings? try to the best of your ability to help in a wise way. i guess, that is enough. i don't know where exactly to go with my life either. i just look at the possibilities i have at each moment, and try to make the best of it. some people say that the best way to help others is to help yourself, once you have self-realized people will find help just by being around you. although i GUESS that doing little bits of charity work on the side don't hurt. i could be wrong though. _/\_

i'm not sure if it would work for martial arts because the distance the dot travels is smaller than a real life opponent.those exercise will help u train a lot for short distance yet i'm not sure if that automatically means ur training for longer distance as well. i don't see how it would help with growing awareness either because all ur doing is focusing very much on one point, as if you would be playing a first person shooter... by following a dot you're not really gaining a deeper perspective into the nature of your mind.