zerostao

i am not seeking enlightenment. i have other goals to work on . i do wish physical,mental,& spiritual good health. i try to do my part and leave it up to the stars if they will continue to shine on, around, over, or thru me. the happiness,freedom, and peace of mind that i have was attained by giving them to someone else.

i would not rewind time. i would have to look at that as working backwards. certainly there are things i wished i had handled differently. i dont like dwelling on the old things, either bad or good. learn your lessons, take a few lumps along the way, keep growing.

the 5 animal (sports)frolics by Hua T'o is a truly remarkable set of health exercises. especially for the organs and glands. i have the upmost respect for Dr. Yang Jwing-Ming. how i wish i was in miranda right now . my opinion and expectations are so high of YJM that maybe i expected too much on this particular dvd. i dont regret buying it but there are many other versions of 5 animal frolics available that are just as good.

i tend to agree with ralis in that qi is nuetral. neither good or bad. if that is what ralis was saying? but one could have good qi or bad qi but not in a moral way. i dont think qi= spirit. isnt shen closer to= spirit? imo religion is man made and not the same as spiritual.

dvds> 5 animal sports,xingyiquan, tai chi chuan classical form, push hands 3 &4. small circulation, martial arts breathing. books> xingyiquan,bgz theory and applications, adv yang style TCC theory and jing, adv yang style 37 martial postures. i would like to find the original chi kung book IMO YJM will not lead you astray. i do think the 5 animal sports is a little weak. all of the books are treasure his raw silk uniforms are nice too

MH, i wasnt going to willingly stop breathing. i have had enuff NDE happen in the natural flow of events .i am not gonna try and induce one. i just tried to find sth about the taoist who left his body standing. the mantak chia article was the only thing close i could find. i often encounter people who do things that i don't understand not so sure i would do some of them, even if i understood

sister , this sounds like a wonderful idea.

i found this. http://www.universal-tao.com/article/esoteric.html look in the section Taoism and Taoist Adepts

ain't it kewl?! woooooooohooooooooooooo

west virginia ninja vs. steven seagal , who is gonna win?! watch on spike tv " don't go ninja-in no one don't deserve ninja-in" Sloppy Zhang has a nasty choke hold. did lazy cloud ever say what his weapon of choice was? the judey chop?

"wonder what those monks do in the Shaolin Temple all day?" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9k0kjmGkpc i was concerend for the goat at 0:37 of this clip. luckily no monk stared at it. they dance too royce vs. akebono the true champion imo

ponders eating 5 grams of shrooms (depends on the variety) i did post a video dedicated to this thread in the basement/taoist tv

with respect. i do not think this is a "one size fits all" situation. certainly, do your homework and listen to your own intuition over what others may suggest. personally, i feel entheogens can be a very useful tool for some. i also feel they could be quite detrimental to others. IF one chooses to go this route>> have a trusted friend with you. be in a safe place where you feel comfortable. use a small dose. http://www.erowid.org/ it has been suggested to me by friends that i have some of my ability due to use of entheogens. i have also been at a party in florida where a 25 year old mother of 3 died using mdma. i am not a shaman or any type of expert. ketamine and mdma i consider to be risky. perhaps i could almost think of shrooms as safer BUT not knowing the individual or anything of their personality i would not recommend anything. with lsd how does one make sure of the quality controls used in the manufacturing? i have also imo had success with sasafras tea that i made from root bark i foraged . still there is a Lethal dose and health concerns. reishi is another consideration. please trip responsibly. sacred plants should be treated sacredly and with respect.

i have a paperback copy i would sell or trade. pm if interested. i added paperback . i do not have the digital copy.

i agree. imo there are so many styles/systems becoz there are so many diferent types of people. my original thoughts in the beginning were to do xingyi and the 5 animal frolics. i still think this would have been a good choice. living in a remote area i ended up going the bgz route becoz i actually have folks to practice that with. i have done the cheng manching in the past but i dont see any pre-requisites for any of these internal arts. well certain qigongs imo help. i have heard from many people tho, that it is useful to do the taiji first. imo taiji, bgz, xingyi each produce a diferent type of qi. i am just a beginner, but that is the idea i get from my practice.

Interesting thread. All of you seem to agree that by following the principles of The Art of War, you can still remain in harmony with the tao?

Thanks Red Pheonix. I have seen many posts here where folks say that Tai Chi= Yin/Yang. I agree that they are not the same. I have said here that Tai Chi is the parent of Yin/Yang, even if i know that is not exact, but it is the way i understand it. @ lazy cloud, thanks for the topic. @manitou, i like how you put it in a "nutshell" @TaoMeow, wow ...well as lazy cloud said "simple and beautiful"

ni hao!!(howdy)

Dilman's big toe theory

howdy leif

howdy paul

thankyou Friend

red phoenix you are also welcome to visit if you come this way(kentucky). baguazhang fun stuff. is red phoenix indicating you do phoenix bgz? anyways welcome to ttb i see you are already making yourself at home.

I do the walking part one hour a day(at least). In my opinion the walking is the foundation. Baguazhang is a very deep art. I have never considered to master it. My time passes quickly playing BGZ. I only discover its sublties by putting my time in. I would think that if someone put one hour a day in they could get some great health benefits. To use it martially will take more commitment. After an hour of whatever part of BGZ i am playing with I take a break. That is the limit i can stay focused on one part.