Astral_Anima

Hey bums, So I've been around on a few fb groups and forums related to health and spirituality and such, and I've found that there's alot of "dogma" and many interesting topics are prevented from being discussed due to being termed "inappropriate" or against "forum/group rules". In response to this I created a facebook group where we can all discuss things freely (similar to this site) and share experiences/theories/ideas and have construction, uncensored discussions. I'm trying to keep it mainly to health/spirituality, but of course there are no rules. I don't know how many of you even have facebook, but you all certainly have some interesting experiences and ideas and would love to have some of you join. Of course this group will not exclude any opposing sides so be prepared to be challenged, lol. But again, I'd love to have some of you guys join and share some of your experiences or start up some thought provoking discussions preferably related to health/spirituality, but really anything where truth is concerned. Basically I want this to kinda be a "mosh pit" of ideas and experiences, a place where we can help expose others to certain things and also ourselves be exposed to certain things so we can all mutally grow and learn from eachother and hopefully benefit in some way. So again, I'd love to have some of you guys on here and bring your perspective, backround, ideas, etc and share them with other interested people, or discuss certain topics of interest. I won't exclude anyone, all are welcome to join. Here's the link. https://www.facebook.com/groups/319246498155208/ -Astral

Turiya - Yeah man thats the same stuf I got from kunlun. I wondered myself if I was possessed. To be honest I think it just raises awareness. The reason I wondered if I was possessed wasn't just from the shaking and laughter and crying and general heart opening but I began to notice my thoughts and realized a difference between thoughts that I was consciously thinking and thoughts that seemed to be "fed" to me. Once I became aware of this I began to suspect spiritual influence and stopped practicing. In hindsight however I think it just raised awareness, and I (and probably most people) already had issues but I just wasn't aware of them. I think most people have alot of things going on with them that they're not aware of. It may seem that the meditation practices "cause" these problems however I think they just raise your awareness of these problems. Kinda like the matrix. You can take the red pill (awareness) or the blue pill (unawareness), either way your reality doesn't change, only your ability to percieve it. But then again I could be completely wrong, but those are my thoughts. -Astral

Money is how we're controlled. A mass root chakra imbalance. The main system is set into place where the poor follow a paradigm of trading time for money while the rich follow the paradigm of using intellegence to make money. It forces us to constantly worry about survival. Money is nothing but paper with a value that was SUPPOSED to represent a fraction of precious metal. Once upon a time it was paper that represented a fraction of the gold the country had known as the "gold standard". Now that we've dropped the gold standard (for us in the USA) the paper means nothing. Here's basically how is works. If we lived without money we could easily go out into the wilderness and grow our own food, be farmers, have our own land and live our life as we choose. HOWEVER because those with power have power, they have decided that they own the world, they own the land and that people have no right to the land, we have to pay taxes to the owner of the land, thus we need to slave for them in order to live on what was originally free. If we refuse those with power pay others to come and take you away and force you into a prison cell or execute you. Thus we are at the mercy of those who claim ownership of the planet. On top of that we are all in a mindset of the "individual" rather than the "group". When you have a small group, like a village or tribe that all work together for the good of the whole then it's a much better(imo) setup. Getting away from the darker reality of things. Money is indeed a tool for survival. While this "system on self destruct" is still in play, however, we rely on it for the purchase of goods. It has been linked with the root chakra and the worry produced by fear of survival affects the kidneys/adrenals physically which actually leaves us with less energy to spend our time for money. It is, imo, the 'foundation' though, as for all endeavors in this world, it is required. Need food? you need money. Need shelter? u need money. Want to leave the city? U need money. The bright side is that it's actually not that hard to get. The even brighter side is that those "in the gnosis" can use the money earned trading time and labor and leverage that to invest in better opportunities that can make cash the "smart" way. In regards to karma...I don't really beLIEve in the "do good an good comes to you" kind of karma, so...idk what that means to anyone, but if you want to make a difference in the world, you'll need cash to finance it. Cash to me is kinda like "The Force" from Star Wars, it's "alignment" is determined by it's user. But I don't think there's a such thing as "money karma" it just depends on if you're exposed to the methods that make cash and if you choose to believe in them and make them work for you. Why do we need material things? We actually don't (in my mind). As that bangin rap video said..."I'll grow my own food and eat the money". Buy some land, grow your own food and you're golden. Thats what I plan to do anyway. But what about food...do we really need to consume other lifeforms to stay alive? No, we don't, not when we're in our natural state, however the more we fill our bellies with food our body cannot use, the more clogged we become and thus the more we need from the outside. I believe the human vessel is a spiritual thing and comes completely self-sufficient...when it's clean. But from generations of misuse and ignorance, we're born with compromised bodies. If you wish to learn to live without food then I suggest you join the movement and learn to clean out your body. Then you won't even need most spiritual practices and meditation will be effortless. It seems like you intuitively know somewhere inyour heart that all this materialism is...maybe not "wrong" but at least "un-harmonious", that we shouldn't have to do all the things we're doing just to survive. We shouldn't be dependent on material things, we shouldn't need to work or slave just to survive in this world. You can free yourself if you know how. -Astral

It's not our race cause western children usually have that kind of flexibility as well. It's something about our lifestyle. I wager that it's the overeating and high protein, high grain diet of americans. Also you could blame it on our rediculous medical system too. A big part of TCM is herbs, acupunture etc, remember that the kidneys are the most important system in TCM theory. rejuevenate the kindeys/adrenals and I believe flexibility will not be an issue. I wasn't able to get into full lotus until I started fasting and a fruit diet. Think about it...what causes us to be "inflexible" anyway? Until we address the cause we will never properly conclude a solution. It is my theory that weakened kidneys and adrenals prevent proper mineral utilization and hydration, both of which majorly impact flexibility. Of course I'm sure there's other factors but either way, I believe kidney/adrenal health is critical for flexibility. I agree, it's possible to achieve full lotus without spending weeks/months/years practicing stretches, but one has to identify what is inhibiting them from being flexible and remove it, instead of trying to force their body into it. Firepath/waterpath. Instead of trying to break down a door that has been locked, why not just unlock it? -Astral

I read the link but it says the spleen acts a a lymph node and filters BLOOD. And I wiki'd it and it clearly stated... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lymph_node So i'm afraid I'd have to disagree. How I understand it is that lypmh fluid carries cellular waste (namely acids) to the lymph nodes for storage, so the lymph nodes are kinda like spetic tanks and lypmh is the sewage. How I understand it is that the lymph is filtered out the kidneys, they when you pee you should see sediment in your urine or strands of mucus. Maybe I'm wrong but it makes sense in my mind. -Astral

Drew, You've returned! haha, and with a new avatar. How many Yang bodies are you able to make now? -Astral

Wait the SPLEEN filters lymph??? so then the kidneys just eliminate the waste that the spleen filters? Or is there some other eliminative organ that gets rid of lymphatic sewage. I was under the assumption that it was the kidney and bowel's main job to eliminate waste, bowel being more digestive, kidney being more lymphatic? And yeah I know how important the spleen/pancreas is. I had some major digestive issues that were cleared up with an herbal formula for spleen/pancreas. Good stuff. -Astral

Hey all, So I think I'm starting to see a "link" in meditation, energy and health. So i'm going to post some ideas and i'm just curious on people's thoughts. 1.) I've heard that the chakras all correlate with the endocrine glands. Has anyone heard about this? For example the throat chakra would be th thyroid, brow would be pituitary, heart - thymus, sacral - adrenals, etc etc. 2.) If the above is true, I've also read that the sacral or navel chakra is where physical vitality manifests or is stored. If this energy center correlates with the adrenals glands and the kidney system of TCM (which also includes the adrenal glands). I've heard such theories that say one must have super strong kidneys cause they store chi. 3.) Assuming further that the above two are true, Kidneys have the function of filtering lymph and thus acids. Those with strong kidneys are naturally more flexible and can hold positions longer than those with weaker kdineys. It is my unprofessional opinion that the reason children are so flexible is because their kidneys are still strong an yet unburdened by modern lifestyle and eating habbits. HOWEVER it's well known that certain masters require one to be able to sit in full lotus or horse stance for lengthy periods of time. They say that you must have open channels to be able to do this, and that sitting in full lotus or in horse stance for many hours proves that one's energy channel are open. Could this also be a way to test kidney strength? If the kidneys are weak then the lactic acid buildup would cause one to collapse if in horse stance or to come out of lotus. Thus if the kidneys are not strong enough then that would indicate that they wouldn't be able to store much energy, assuming the kidneys energetically are responsible for energy storage. Also if you look at the funtion of the adrenal glands, namely carbohydrate metabolism...if the glucose isn't being metabolized, if you have adrenal fatique, you have no energy or chi. So assuming there some truth to the above, would not strengthening the kidneys/adrenals be a way not only to increase flexibility but to increase chi and chi storage capacity? In TCM the kidneys are always emphasized as the most important system and I"ve always wondered why. Could this be one of the reasons? I know when I started fasting and a fruit diet I could see the kidneys in my iris becoming stronger and noticed I could sit in full lotus for much longer and was generally much more flexible. However I found it funny that my right kidney was weaker than my left and the limbs on the right side of my body were less flexible than the left. What are your thoughts? -Astral EDIT: Also, could this have a link as to why ejaculation for males messes up our energy? Could it have to do with the kidney energy? Might it weaken the kidneys temporarily, thus hindering one's ability to store chi? Is that why celibacy or non-ejaculatory methods are necessary for certain training (MCO)?

This gave it away bro. Obvious troll has now become obvious I actually thought you were serious for a moment too, lol. Oh well. Although you should continue cause apparently ur still gettin alot of people. I wonder how long it'll take everyone to catch on... Try to be less obvious tho. Best of luck -Astral

Acceptance vs repression. I wonder... If you want to change a pattern you must admit you have the problem or else in your mind there's nothing to change, thus the acceptance. But acceptance via complacency (i.e. "I'm only human") never does anything to change the problem. Repression in terms of ignoring the issue can sometime work rather well. I remember in my "battle" to become celibate for MCO training, distractions and short bursts of anger and pride were my best friends. After a long enough time of ignoring the issue the desire went away. Regardless what you don't like in yourself you can always change it. Acceptance, imo, should go no further than recognizing what it is you want to change. You don't have to say it's a part of "you", because you determine what you are. just sum thoughts atm. I've used repression successfully and there are other things i've tried to repress that didn't work so well, lol, I think it takes an understanding of what you're "fighting" or trying to change. -Astral

The hardest part is finding one who keeps things objective. Why do you practice qigong? What do you hope to do one day? Find the people who have attained the results you seek, not the ones full of empty promises and high prices. Unless they can demonstrate the ability they proclaim to teach then they cannot be trusted. Some people claim to have objective ability. John Chang, Jiang Feng and Sifu Hata all claim to be able to produce an energy which can affect ANYONE and anyone can feel (thus making it objective) whereas most others cannot objectively effect anyone or claim you have to be "sensitive" enough to be effected by it or have to "believe" in it. The beautiful thing about objectivity is that it doesn't require belief to prove it's existence. Regardless of whether I believe in gravity or not, it's a reality and law in this universe. Energy is the same imo, and thus if someone has a true mastery of it then belief shouldn't be an issue. I don't rule out the argument of "you're not sensitive enough" or "tuned in" but depending on the goal of that form of development, is that really something worth studying in? If it's for healing or protection I would say "NO". But yeah I think alot of us are after "the goods" so to speak, the real powerful stuff, and we get taken into these "health and exercise" qigong forms thinking, "oh every chinese dude over 40 is secretly a super duper qigong MASTA and he's just testing to see who's really ready for his REAL stuff and everything he says is some kind of cryptic methaphor to teach super secrets". So now all a self proclaimed master has to do is speak really cryptically, be vague and mysterious and they're immediately a MASTER, because anyone who has ANY ability at all isn't allowed to show them because they would be breaking some kind of karmic law. But hey... In the jungle, we gotta rumble with the weak aint nuthing sweet we gotta eat -Astral

Herbs. Nuff said...but to elaborate... If you really want to get well, I"d kick it into high gear and go on a fruit fast or a fruit juice fast and get some herbs in there. I used to have bad digestive issues til I took a "spleen/pancreas" formula which took care of it rather quickly. If you're constantly sick then that means your kidneys and bowels are probably obstructed or aren't 100%. Get some herbs for the kidneys, bowels and the lymph system. You may also want to check glandular function. I can almost guarantee your adrenals aren't "to par". You may also want to take some herbs for that too. Also try to breath plenty of fresh winter air, it will help trigger the elimination of mucus. Re-fruit, grapes are probably one of the best ime in terms of "astringents", as are organges and lemons/limes. Melons like watermelon, honeydew, etc come in second. You want to be eliminating mucus. You should be coughing mucus, have mucus in the stool and have sediment in the urine, that how you'll know when your eliminative organs are online. Until then your body will have "healing crisis" where it eliminates stuff through other means, or if it gets clogged you'll get weak. Oh and drew, it is my opinion that meat won't increase "jing", it WILL overstimulate adrenal function and hormones, but as you age the stimulants will end up weakening you. I'd suggest, rather, using herbs to restore and enhance functioning rather than using stimulants like animal products. But if you're looking for hormones, just drink milk dude. 80+ NATURALLY OCCURING hormones on top of the shit they pump the cows with -Astral EDIT: Also get plenty of rest. Nothing wrong with exercise but you want as much energy to go towards healing as you can.

I thought this was a good question, thought I might add my point of view. I agree with drew that full lotus "burns off" or transmitts sex fluid. I used to have "wet dreams" but I'd wake up and hold it back. Since practicing full lotus I no longer have sex dreams or any noctural urge to ejaculate. So I'd agree that to reconvert "sex energy" to "jing" full lotus is a GREAT technique, i'm rather an enthusiat myself about it. However it doesn't fix having a consciousness stuck in the "lower" centers. When you see a woman, what do you see? I agree the female body is pretty, but so are flowers...do flowers give you a "boner" too? When you can look and admire the beauty of a female without lust then you're good. This, from my experience, comes from having an open heart. My experience is that when my heart is open, or rather when my consciousness is raised to the heart level, it's much like being like a child again. For me when I see a cute girl it's like seeing a flower, it just makes me smile no thoughts like "I want to put my penis in that", it's just like "awwww thats cute lookin...like a puppy or kitten". Sharing heart energy is WAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY more fulfilling, imo, than sharing sex energy, and it's not draining. BUT in order to do that both parties have to have an open heart and have to have a generally healthy emotional body. This is becoming rarer and rarer these days. Anything that suppresses consciousness will keep you stuck in the lower energies. Drew is an avid activist for the full-lotus for it's ability to convert "sex energy" to "jing", and I agree with his emphasis on it and agree with it's importance (although I'd say throw some LDT breathing in there and you're golden).I am an avid activist on a high fruit diet/herbs/fasting because it is a method of raising one's consciousness. I have found with ongoing personal experimentation that diet is related in EVERY way to who and what we are and how we experience this world through this vessel. We don't normally think about this but what is "food"? It's an energy, a vibration that we choose to have a rather intimate relationship with. We "fuse" with it. If the energy is lower than our own then our energy is lowered by it, if the energy is higher than our own, then we are strengthened by it. I have found a fruit diet (including raw lettuce greens and raw green vegetables on occasion) to be the greatest aid in eliminating factors that lower consciousness. Cleansing in general, the removal of obstruction in the physical body, is an incredible tool in allowing one to return to what I believe is man's "natural state". Remember that all bodies, physical, mental, emotional, etc are all related, what effects one, effects the others. It seems alot of people like to do meditation and things like EFT, hypnosis, energy work, etc, and thats a great way to increase energy, but if you're not addressing why your energy isn't high in the first place it's like running to strengthen your lungs while you're smoking. Many people seem to ignore the physical aspect of life, I see alot of overweight, out of shape, unhealthy energy practitioners, and i'm not baggin' on them, they're free to live their life as they wish, but this seems to be a certain "missing link" in cultivation. The relationship between food and mind is an ancient concept that I didn't really believe in until I noticed it in myself. I used to be a MUCH diff person than I am now and I found by simply changing my diet, changing the vibrations that I choose to merge with my own, my body is different, my emotions are different, my THOUGHTS (HUGE for me) are different. And this is the greatest help I've found in terms of "lust" and banishing it from my consciousness. From simply changing my diet my lust has been replaced by admiration/adoration. When I see a cute girl instead of wanting to do anything sexual, the only "urge" i might get is to give them a hug. Instead of my lower centers getting activated, my heart gets activated and it's all "love-based" rather than "sex based", it's all about the heart, not about the sex organs. ( Although to my surprise the feelings don't seem to be mutual 90% of the time, which causes me great sadness ) Drew, Have you ever tried this? I know Chunyi Lin advises fasting and I know you have your own experience where fasting increased your energy, and I've found the same thing to be true. In fact I did about two weeks where I'd go 2 days with no food or water and on the third day I would drink fresh squeezed grape juice. During that time I started working out and was able to at least triple all reps in all exercises, and at the end, for the first time in my life I was able to do handstand push-ups. However I've found that in terms of consciousness and energy, fruit is second best. I've found that meat, grains (<--ESPECIALLY!! There's a reasons ancient daoists said to avoid them) dairy and eggs and all overt fats and stimulating spices, are all "damaging" to energy and all lower consciousness. Also have you ever read the works of Dr. Arnold Ehret? Specifically The Mucusless DIet Healing System? I posted it up for free download here: http://www.thetaobums.com/index.php?/topic/17378-fasting-inedia-and-human-potential/page__view__findpost__p__242518 It poses that man is in fact an "air gas engine", or that we dont run on food, that when the body is internally "clean" we can run indefinately upon breath alone. He also outlines a system to reach this state with various methods and transitions. This too is talked about in daoist texts. Referencing Immortals: The Huainanzi stated, There was another text that said something like "those who eat grains will be foolish, those who eat meat with be angry, those who eat herbs will something and those who eat air will attain the dao" But back to the original point. I believe most people shut their heart off, shut out their emotions, stop feelings and they forget how to have a heart connection, they forget what it was like as a child, being open, loving, accepting of themselves. Much of modern "arousal" is based on what drew calls "lower emotional blackages". These need to be awakened and cleared out/healed. Believe it or not a fruit/herb diet combined with fasting WILL CLEAR OUT EMOTIONAL BLOCKAGES!! I've done it and experienced it on myself. This is especially pronounced on water fasts for me. What will happen is at first one will be hungry and weakened for the first 3 days or so, then hunger disappears (cause it wasn't actually hunger ) and one goes through whatever they must. For me, when I get to day 7-8 emotional detox starts kicking in. I'll get really agitated at first, I'll feel where the blockages are and it'll feel "tense" like...it's hard to explain, but it's almost like I can feel my energy pushing against an obstruction, kinda like a golfball in a hose, the pressure builds up....then there's a release. After this tension (which i'll experience as a craving for food, not for sustenance but to stop the detoxification process) there's a huge release of emotion, I'll usually cry or scream or something...usually ends with crying...then turns to laughing and then it's like "ahhhhhhhh" and everything is light and bouncy and happy This stuff may only seem like "dietary change" to the mainstream consciousness but it "wakes you up", it raises consciousness and helps you heal. Remember that your body is constantly trying to heal itself, it is our mind and our conditioning that says "this grumbling and discomfort in my stomach is caused by a lack of food and I need food to live" instead of "this grumbling and discomfort is caused by toxins in my digestive system from past wrong living, I'm thankful my body is getting rid of this for me". From personal experience I believe lust to be a result of lower emotional blockages and having the consciousness stuck in other areas other than the heart. ANother quick matter that I've noticed occur through fruit/fasting is the awakening of something, that I would call "my higher self". Most of my life I've been a slave to my mind until it began makings for the worst. My character was decaying QUICKLY and I noticed it and felt helpless to stop it...until I discovered fasting. Whenever things felt like I was no longer "in control" I fasted and something miraculous happened...I "woke up", I became the "me" I am now. The mind ( actually I don't believe it was just the mind, I believe there were "things" involved too ), no longer had power over me. This also happened thru a fruit diet. I began to awaken as myself and began to "know" who I was and why I'm here. The only way that I can explain this is that my consciousness was raised, but fasting alone will only raise it, then if you go back to the way you lived before you'll lose it. Thus I maintain it will fruits and use herbs to enhance the effect of healing. I believe this stuff has a direct effect on the "aura" of an individual. Again, I was battling something that wasn't "me" and the only way I was able to overcome it was to regain control of my mind by raising the power of my spirit, or raising consciousness. I now feel like this body is able to "channel" more of "me" and thus more of me resides in this body than "them". This is MUCH more than a simply dietary change, much like full lotus is MUCH more than a yoga position SO finally...the difference between "sex thoughts" and "non-sex thoughts" is the presence of the desire to have sex (duh). The desire to have sex is just like the desire for food or alcohol or drugs or TV...it's to eliminate the uncomfortable sensation of having alot of energy. Becoming immortal (which is our natural state) isn't a "comfortable" process, it's not a walk in the park, it's not easy and it's not always fun. So when you look at a woman like you look upon a bunch of flowers or a furry kitten, then you've eliminated "sex thoughts". How do you get there? Awaken you heart, awaken your inner child, raise your consciousness. I and many others have found that fruits/herbs/fasting does the trick rather nicely. I also do Spontaneous Qigong from time to time because I notice it does the same thing fasting does (via emotional detox, but not on a physical level). Essentially, cry, laugh, scream, FEEL and you wont need the overstimulation of the sympathetic nervous system (ejaculation), to break you out of your unconsciousness numb "stupor" to feel "alive". Anyway that's MY piece, my diarrhea-of-the-mouth rant. Peace -Astral

Vortex, where did you get that quote from? DO you have a link to the article, that sounds rather interesting, I'd like to look into that further. Could explain why so many neurological disorders have responded so well to fasting. ATMA - yea idk man, I don't really have to much theory or philsophy behind it, it's just what I know works for me. I don't think food contains "bad energy" but I know it can drain energy which can alter one's mind and mental defenses which may leave one open to an outward negative influence, but again, i'm not really sure. I'm not really trying to understand it much right now, just kinda working with it and continuing to try to heal and strengthen myself. In regards to spiritually advanced people...i don't even know what it means to be "spiritual" anymore, I don't really care to be spiritual, I just want to be happy and have fun. But Fasting is a tool that I use to increase my awareness and energy. Even "spiritual" people may not be aware of the drain from food or ejaculatory sex and I'm sure people will glamorize them to try to justify their own habits. But I'd say if you were to take food away from someone for a week or two and they got really weak, irritated, emotional, etc then they're not as "spiritual" as they'd like to think. Unless spirituality is just another way to make fame and fortune -Astral

Hey All, So I just wanted to share my observations of myself and how things have affected me in regards to what I perceive to be negative influences. I've been watching my thoughts intensly for the past...geez idk how long, a year or two? And I notice how thoughts and desires come in to me and I would try to trace their origin...and it wasn't from "ME", many thoughts that I have experienced aren't from "me", not from the active thinker. Thus I began to theorize that I was under negative influence because these thoughts were not like me, they weren't from me, I wasn't thinking them. Anyway, so I began to distinguish which thoughts were in line with who I am and which didn't belong in my mind anessentially "waged war" against my mind. I thought I was alone in such a struggle, I thought maybe through some of my spiritual practices maybe I picked up some kind of astral parasite or whatever. I'm really not sure. Anyway fast forward...Its starting to become rather convincing for me that fasting is the ONLY tool for me that has worked in terms of fending off these negative thoughts, desire, feelings and other influences. The first few times I noticed this I wanted to say with certainty that this was true but I still wasn't sure. I have been back and forth between eating "normally" and fasting in combination with a fruit diet and I have watched with absolute LINEAR RESULTS that as soon as I fast these negative influences loose a grip on me and as soon as I begin to eat normally I become more susceptible to these influences. It feels kinda like...When I'm subject to these influences they're "In my head" and I have to fight to keep them out or to ignore them or correct them or whatever. When I'm fasting I feel these things getting farther and farther away from me. It's like an imaginary "bubble" begins to grow and push these things out of me. I can almost feel them at a distance trying to push against it. It seems I gain some sort of personal or spiritual "power" thru fasting. Likewise celibacy from me seems to have a powerful connection with all of this. I am still not certain enough to say "for sure" but it seems the only time I have enough willpower to return to the fasting and fruit diet is when I have been celibate for 5-7 days. Again, that could be coincidence but I figured it was worth mentioning. I am writing my experience because a good friend of mine is suffering with exactly what I was but to a much more severe degree. She is quite suicidal and has many thoughts and influences that I once harbored but was able to protect myself from through what I have mentioned above. She is able to recognize that these thoughts aren't good but instead of viewing it as an attack that she must defend against she believes that these thoughts are HER. She believes that she's evil, that she doesn't belong here, and all of these other disempowering thoughts and beliefs that are no doubt of the same origin as the other strange influences she and I have both experienced. It grieves me much to see her suffer so much and not be able to reach her. So I decided to share what I have experienced in case someone else comes across this and finds it of use. Again, many people seem to be attracted to qigong for healing or tai-chi or some energy art for health and wellness or for power...but in my experience that like trying to buffer a door with termites. We have an incredible power within us as human beings. We are already divine, our blueprint is divine but we keep suppressing our powers via faulty programming. By examining one's lifestyle one can easily make POWERFUL changes that will yield POWERFUL results QUICKLY. My theory is that we are nothing but energy yes? Since energy can only be changed, we must be aware of what energies we are exposed to that can change or influence OUR energy. Our "Aura" is supposed to protect us from outside influence, but if that aura is weak then we will be targets. However even if our aura is strong, it can be weakened. How? From my experience it's by putting energies of outside origin directly into this body we have...you all call it "eating" and seem to pay it no reverence. When you take an energy from outside and put it inside you, it's going to effect you, and if you're constantly...from birth, force fed low vibrations, the your body's vibrations will begin to lower. When you stop putting low frequencies into your body it can rejuvenate and return to its ORIGINAL STATE. However most of us can't do that right away so we must introduce vibrations that are still lower than us but higher then what we've been exposing ourselves to. For me the vibrations of fruit is high enough that the "bubble" (what I believe to be my aura) is still strong enough to protect me, However if i ingest vibrations of other things my power is quickly blocked. So thats my story/experience. I'm not looking for thoughts or opinions really, I just wanted to share and put this out there in case someone can benefit from it. Again the above isn't bashing mantras or qigong or spiritual arts but it has been my experience that thru looking at what is the most powerful influence on us (which is what we put directly into us), we can at least put up a strong "barrier" of our own power, and if that isn't enough THEN maybe go to something else, but imo, going to spiritual arts to fight negative influence while ignoring the influence of what you're ingesting is like trying to buffer a door with termites. I mean it's my belief that we all have the power inside of us and that we don't need to actively fight these influences if our power is uninhibited. Of course then we wouldn't need to rely on the priests or shamans or whatever, so i'm not surprised that what i'm saying hasn't really been said alot, however thru personal experience I'm realizing that I have an amazing passive power (again i like to call it my "aura") and I believe we all have this power but that we suppress it's ability to work thru us. Anyway, I've said my piece, i'm out. -Astral