Ten Thousand Methods

Which internal style should you practice? I think you should talk to people on other forums (that are dedicated to CMA) about the different definitions of internal and what arts are commonly thought to be neijia arts. I think you should consider relocating if you don't have good local teachers and you are serious about wanting to learn. The best places in America have the most CMA teachers. It's not rocket science. I also think you should consider whether you want to learn one CMA style or multiple CMA styles. If you want to learn multiple CMA styles it could affect your choice. All of the neijia arts can help you but some could be better than others at helping you excel in other styles and seeing connections between different CMA styles. I'll say something about Baguazhang. I didn't want to learn Baguazhang at first because I was studying other CMA styles and I thought Baguazhang would not help me with those arts. I didn't understand anything about it. It looked strange and it didn't seem like something that would help me learn other things. I was completely wrong. Baguazhang is unique but it really helped my footwork in a way that no other style could have. If I do circular stepping in another style I don't use the bagua frame (obviously) but my experiene in bagua makes it easy. It taught me a lot about body movement. The coiling and uncoiling motions also helped my kicks a lot. I never did any kicks in my Baguazhang class but my kicking in northern styles improved because of it. It sounds odd but it's true. I realized that it was something that could help me in other areas. It's also a very powerful style on it's own. I think it's a great choice but only if you have a really good teacher. If you have more questions you should try using a CMA discussion forum. Good luck.

I'm assuming that you are talking about Chinese martial arts. TTB is not really a great place to discuss traditional wushu much less internal styles. There are a few experienced people here but this just isn't a martial arts forum. You need a teacher to learn any style. You can't learn on your own. My advice is simple - if you go to a good place you will find good teachers. Are you living in a sophisticated and economically advanced place? If not then consider moving. The most options will always be in the following places: The Northeast Corridor (Boston + NYC + Providence + New Haven + NYC + Philadelphia + Baltimore + Washington DC) San Francisco Bay Area Sacramento Houston San Diego Florida (Miami + Orlando + Tampa) Seattle Vancouver Chicago Los Angeles Atlanta I assume you are American so Vancouver may not be an option for you. Training in this stuff basically comes down to motivation, finding a good teacher, and money. There are good teachers in other places but you will have fewer options. My advice is simple - if you don't live in one of those places you should consider relocating. I'm from the northeast and I love the East Coast. Right now I'm living in China but I miss Boston, Providence, and NYC every day.

I want to be able to enter my WeChat (Weixin) ID on my profile. I live in China and everyone uses WeChat (Weixin). In some other countries (South Korea) Kakao Talk is very important. As I understand it Blackberry will also release an instant messenger app for iOS and Android before the end of summer. Maybe we could have the option of editing the label for an instant messenger field so we could tell other people which service we are using. When I was in the US I didn't know about WeChat but it's very fast and it seems like the standard way to contact people here in China. From what I have heard Kakao Talk is huge in South Korea. They are advertising here in China and I know they are advertising in Indonesia. It could get bigger. Maybe TTB needs to change its profile options.

Well said. Thanks for posting that.

This book looks really interesting. I knew this book was in the works but I didn't know when it would come out. I also had Jerry Alan Johnson's Medical Qigong books and they were very good.

I have the Understanding Qigong series from Y.M.A.A. publishing and I love it.

I'm really excited about this! I am one of the people that has been interested in this material and I plan to get it.

Thank you for posting this! I am also interested to hear more about your experiences with that organization. I read somewhere that the organization has many gongs including an Iron Shirt method. Did you learn any additional practices?

I love this book! For one thing I think it predated TTC showing that Lao-Tzu was not the creator of Daoism. I have the book and I'd be interested in contributing to the discussion, albeit in a small way because I don't have a deep grasp of a lot of things that are in the book. If anyone wants to pick up a copy it's available at Amazon.

Thank you that was very informative.

I started this thread because I didn't want to hijack someone else's thread about retention of sexual energy. Let me tell you something - the process (and it will work for men & women) is explained in Daniel Reid's The Tao of Health, Sex, and Longevity: A Modern Practical Guide to the Ancient Way. This book is also available on Kindle but I don't think it's available for Google eBooks yet. I want to make some points here: The process is extremely simple and is explained in 10 or 20 pages. Anyone can get good at it very quickly. Unlike Mantak Chia's method which I believe to be a birth control method this will actually help you transmute the energy (because it seals the 3 lower gates) in a gentle way and it will work with any qigong movement. Because Daniel Reid gives you the physical keys for this skill it will fit with whatever system you are currently doing. Once you have the information you are all set - you do not need to attend a workshop to learn this skill because you will simply integrate this physical movement into your existing routine. I actually started a thread about this the last time I was at the forum (about 18 months ago) but I removed all my posts under that user name so you can't find it. At that time someone on this board actually accused me of being Daniel Reid. As I said then I'm not Daniel Reid but I would recommend this book to anyone because it delivers something that works. Once you know how to close the 3 lower gates (and his method is NOT like Mantak Chia's methods because he defines the 3 lower gates a little differently) you realize that with practice jing is easily and effortlessly converted to qi. If you buy the book the method is explained around pages 180 to 200. The book actually covers a lot of areas but this technique alone makes it more than worth the price. If you already have a method that works then I'm happy for you. But this method integrates directly with a simple physical movement that easily works with qigong or even martial movement. You won't even need a seperate qigong form to put the technique into. I hope everyone that can benefit from this book buys it. A long time ago (late 90s) I started out in Mantak Chia's system. Like many people I got sick despite having learned directly from him and one of his instructors. I don't want to blame him (because I'm the one that did it)or turn this into a negative discussion about his methods. I will just say this - after I gave up his practices I thought I would have to look elsewhere to learn this skill. When I read this book I couldn't believe how simple it all was. I'll give you a hint - the 3 lower gates as defined by Daniel Reid are the anus, the perineum, and the lower abdomen. They are sealed by the use of 3 seperate muscles. I was already experienced when I picked up this book years ago but I didn't need what I had learned from Mantak Chia's system because this method is done differently and it is explained in purely physical terms. If you have any questions about this then send me a PM.

His method is different than Chia's but you would need to read the book to see that. The muscles that he tell you to use are different and as I've said he actually defines the lower gates differently. I really can't explain any further without posting his method here. I didn't start this thread to explain his technique as it's available in the book.

Hello. It's great to see you here!

It is less detailed than Chia's method but my opinion is that it's nice to not have to worry about various channels. I find that I can use the technique and the energy comes up easily without having to focus on all the various points (ming men etc). I agree it could take some time but the good thing is you can integrate Reid's method into any qigong movement you are already doing. I would recommend that people get used to using Reid's technique during qigong before they try it during sex.

I would say it's the best simply because he shows you how to use the muscles and therefore you don't need any visualizations or any particular qigong form. It's very easy to do. The technique will work during ordinary cultivation and even during sex although you would have to be careful and make you sure you use it before you are close to the edge.

In my experience the closing portion of any practice is the most important. If I were teaching qigong I would not want anyone to leave without doing the closing. If they didn't want to show you the closing then they shouldn't have had you there in the first place. I've heard that there are a few advanced moving forms later in the system. Not sure though. I agree that not all practices are compatible. I would talk to my teacher about it first.

Thanks for posting this! That sounds like an odd way to warm up. Did they do anything in terms of movement (qigong) before they started sucking in air like that? Also I would expect them to warm up with the qigong itself and then move on to hitting. Weird. I appreciate your input. Did it seem like these people knew what they were doing? In other words was there a defined qigong form that went with the practice and did they finish up by gathering and storing the energy in the lower dantien? I'm wondering if maybe they didn't close the practice properly. From your account it sounds like they may not have. I agree that hard qigongs are not the highest human attainment LOL but they can have their place as long as you have a seperate practice that is comprehensive (you can circulate qi in the microcosmic and macrocosmic orbits, you know how to balance energy in your internal organs, and you understand how to properly close a practice). Actually my teacher has several Emei hard qigongs including one for iron palm and another for iron body. I have yet to learn those but what interested me about Jingui was that there were supposed to be higher levels after you finish the Iron Torso, Legs, Arms, and Head. I thought it might get more internal at higher levels. I agree that hard qigongs are inherently dangerous. They are just a side method - assuming you already have a comprehensive practice - and they have to be handled with care. I wouldn't be doing Jingui as my primary or only method of cultivation.

I would love to take up this practice. I've been interested in it for awhile but I live in Providence and there aren't any instructors with an hour or two of my location. The last time I checked the closest instructor was in Philadelphia. As I understand you're supposed to attend two classes per month once you start. I can travel for a seminar but getting to an instructor in Philadelphia twice a month would be difficult. I'd love to hear more about Jingui Qigong.

Excellent contribution. Thanks for posting this.

I would also like to thank you for posting this. You and your family are in my heart. I wish you the best in your cultivation and in your life's journey. It took a lot of courage for you to share this. Thank you. Best wishes strawdog65.

FWIW one of the most prized siddhis that I've heard of is consciousness transference (as in the Phowa practice) which is not really Taoist but is found in several Tibetan schools. I really don't see the value in discussing anything that Robert Bruce says unless he's talking about OBEs. Even with respect to OBEs people should only look at his writings to see similiarities within their own system. I believe Robert Bruce can do OBEs although he may or may not be projecting the yang shen. Robert Bruce has no verifiable training so he really isn't worthy of discussion. I severely doubt that he has ever raised kundalini and I find it funny that he would even discuss kundalini yoga at all. The guy has no background. He is not recognized student in any lineage. Just because you can imagine something doesn't make it real. Robert Bruce has no understanding of internal work. He's just another new age clown that thinks that you can just make a picture in your mind of energy moving along arbitrary pathways. BTW I have no interest in kundalini yoga but I was interested in it in my late teens. I spent a couple of weeks at Yasodhara Ashram but I decided the practice wasn't for me. If you want to read a book about it try The Triadic Heart of Siva or something by Swami Sivananda (of Rishikesh) who started The Divine Life Society. Because kundalini is a well known word there are a lot of new age frauds that claim knowledge of it. If you want to learn kundalini yoga or tantric yoga methods in general I would advise you to find a legitimate teacher - not Robert Bruce LOL!

Some books I would recommend are: The Tao of Health, Sex, and Longevity: A Modern Practical Guide to the Ancient Way The Complete Book of Chinese Health & Healing: Guarding the Three Treasures A Complete Guide to Chi-Gung The Root of Chinese Qigong: Secrets of Health, Longevity, & Enlightenment Chinese Medical Qigong 1 Anatomy & Physiology I hope that helps.

Is that the practice that Larry Johnson (student of Chan Chiu Lim) wrote about?

I'm confused; did you buy a photocopy the handwritten book about Wang Bao's Great Purity Method? Can you read it?

I got interested in taijiquan for two reasons: One of the schools where I train requires me to train both internal & external styles to attain rank I thought it would make me better at northern external (wai jia) styles I guess I'm guilty of using that dichotomy of internal vs. external which I know is not completely true. So-called external styles do have their own way of manifesting power which is not entirely "hard." Taijiquan is not and never will be the main focus of my practice. I do hope that I benefit from it though.