FT88

http://www.thetaobums.com/index.php?/topic/17450-kwai-chang-caine-kung-fu/page__p__243747entry243747

Realization imo... 1)See ultimate reality/thru delusion/samsara 2)Get to the root of all problems/Vipassanā 3)Once u realise dont dwell on ur old ignorance 4)rid of duality 5)escape the cycle

You can do a million taoist "things" but if you dont have the tao in ur heart its useless

You become immortal when merging with the void. This cannot be explained in words

Its funny but i have the complete opposite view as the OP... Lao tzu said know the man, but keep the woman.... You cannot be complete in a total Yang fashion...the macho body builder guy who judges people and says ignorant things has little to no yin. The female overcomes the male, therefore yield and overcome. A pebble on the shore, is gradually broken down layer by layer from the tide

So your real motive is too be able to have sex everyday without getting tired?.....idk if TB is the best place for this solution

I have no scientific proof to back up my claims but i personally feel that the only effect of semen retention will be psychologically/emotionally not physical. I think you'd be more voulnurable to violent outburst or physical viloence if you dont know how to control yourslef mentally....my 2 cents

Hey TB's. I dont know how many of you have seen the 70's tv show "Kung-fu" with David Caradie(RIP) but i recently finished watching all three season and i must say it is very relevant, for tao in real life. The show is based on a half chinese/white boy named kwai chang caine http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kwai_Chang_Caine who studied as a shaolin monk. Here are a few samples of wisdom he recieves from his masters along the path. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFJkhV5l5JU&feature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THqSurkgb8c&feature=related

Agreed but sometimes you stumble on some interesting shows... i personally like a show called "survivor man" where a guy simply survives in baren landscapes by himself.

OP you should check out a movie called Equalibrium its pretty interesting. As for repressing emotions i think its best to not be swayed either way by them..simply see them as they are but dont get attatched to them. EX: you go on a roller coaster and you love the thrill, but instead of enjoying that moment you seek the next one..its an endless cycle that way..dont mistake pleasure for happiness/contentment.

Hey TB's. I recently discovered some of Alan Watts audio series and i must say he has some very good insight and was before his time as most of his stuff was recorded in the 50's/60's. I was just wondering if any of you guys are familar with him and what your thoughts were. Heres some torrents of his u can download http://thepiratebay.org/search/alan%20watts/0/99/0 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m8PLp_RX7Ow http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9UAv9tJ-fVA&feature=related

I know exactly what u mean. Its not that theres more thoughts its just that you become aware of them. We as humans depend on external stimuli to keep us "awake". So when it ceases the ego or in buddhist terms "mahra" will throw everything but the kitchen sink at you to try and make u become "busy" again. So meditation will help see things for what they are, instead of the manifestations.

Im at my most content state when im listening to a rainstorm on rainymood.com and playing video games on mute

There is no answer to be found

If ur not used to recieving comments you can react skeptical asking yourself whats this persons motive behind the compliment. But ultimately i think its best to be indifferent to the compliment not swayed either way. When i recieve a compliment im coordial but i dont take any percentage of it into consideration same goes with the negative aspect of insults.

Lately iv'e been working on simply returning to the source during meditation. As the stream does to the river, and the river does to the ocean. I Picture myself as a chalkboard filled with text/defenitions/judgements etc..then i simply grab the eraser and clean the slate. I find it best to have "newborn eyes" and see the world as if u have no pre-concived notions or defenitions. This is the same as lao tzu described returning to the uncarved block of wood, where u step back in stillness and simply observe the manifestations for what they really are. Anyone else do this/tried this? ps: It reminds me of this movie i seen a long time ago called "they live" check it out if u want http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/They_Live

I agree with the majority of ur post twinner but i dont think his answer lies in books/text. Did lao tzu resort to books to realise their was an eternal force right under his nose?

In life one should consider themselves as dead. Doing this puts them in unison with the universe, and they see the manifistations for what they really are. Therfore benefit comes from what is there..usefullness comes from what is not there.

The sage stays behind thus he is ahead - Lao tzu Man at his best is like water he nurishes all things as he goes along-

Its pretty simple really.. your mistaking happiness in pleasure. Wanting to not seem boring to ur friends is a form of yearning so your heart is discontent. Its said a man is 3 things.. 1)What he thinks he is..2)What others think he is...3)What he really is. Ask yourself if Taoism is reallly for u or u just like the carefree naivity aspect of it

Very broad question....imo what you see in Saṃsāra is equivilant too a neverending revolving door in a hotel. Instead of wishing/desiring to change it, it is best to renounce it all together.

Good topic OP. I too know exactly what u mean. Im confident by nature but i seldom feel my ego wanting to judge/discredit/look down upon and i usually supress it right away and keep my mouth closed. I suggest reading the book Silent Power by Staurt Wilde...its pretty short but very powerful.

I know that in buddhism brahmans beleived that u were re-incarnated as something else when u pass and the cycle of suffering/pain/old age was repeated. Thus the buddah set out to avoid being re-incarnated and break the cycle. My question is are those in Taoism who follow the tao/what is natural not doomed to repeat the cycle? I personally think if u become 1 with the universe u will be infinite