JustARandomPanda

ZhengLi, Go buy some Gymnema Sylvestre supplements. This is a well-known, ancient herb with a long history in Aryuvedic medicine. It's known as the "sweet-killer". Get it ASAP. Because it WORKS. I've used it on plenty occasions and it has never failed to do exactly that. Kill the taste of sweets. There is some sort of biochemical process taking place because after you take the supplement anything sweet suddenly becomes quite bitter. Obviously the herb does something to the tastebud receptors on the tongue. Take GS, wait about 10 - 20 minutes - then try to eat a donut - it takes like cr*p. Talk about giving a big disincentive to eat sweets. GS also has many other health benefits for the body. It helps control insulin levels - basically it smooths them out so you don't experience huge highs followed by crashes that often comes with a typical American diet. It also apparently has some anti-cancer properties. There are other benefits too to long to list. Just thought I'd mention something you can implement immediately. The other suggestions are good but they take time and I gather you need help NOW. So try the GS then relax a bit and try some of the other poster's suggestions too.

I'm wondering if any fellow TaoBummers have had good results using the Adonis Index (or for women - Venus Index) programs? If so how long did it take before you started to see results that made you grin from ear to ear (or conversely got squat for your time and effort).

This is a good question Marble. I'm curious to know if critical thinking is your primary or even only tool for self-investigation. If that is too personal a question please ignore it. Speaking only for myself: One thing actually practicing meditation and energy work has demonstrated that - at least in my case - there's a LOT of stuff going on under the hood of which beliefs are only one part of what's going on. It's been a big surprise to discover some things lurking around emotionally, energetically - hell even trapped in my actual physical muscle memory (how the hell did *that* ever happen?!) - that seems to demonstrate beliefs, will and volitions I have held so long (probably since I was a toddler) no amount of critical thinking or examination will bring them out to full understanding. I think maybe it's because things working on those levels did not start at the level of thought (or even pre-thought) - whether rational or non-rational - and so using critical thinking as a tool will give at best only a one-dimensional understanding of all the things that drive me. And those things that drive me however stubborn they are in being revealed critically are assuredly just as much The Tao (including the stuff that makes me sit here and write on a message board instead of practicing more) as the stuff I like to pat myself on the back for for "being more Tao-esque" (is that even a word? Can one be Tao-esque? Tao-ish?). To be honest I've never been able to convince myself that every belief, will, volition, energy or whatever that drives me will be completely revealed by a critical thinking "hammer". You know that old cliche? When all you have is a hammer everything starts looking like a nail. But then again, maybe me telling myself that is a cop out. I sure have never been able to figure out exactly where *that* belief came from either. *shrug* TaoBums has made me aware of strange things I never dreamed of existing even five years ago. The me of five years ago would be shocked speechless by the me of today who's learned many things as a result of this forum. Meh. Don't mind me...I'm just mumbling out loud.

Thank you Immortal for all these links and info. Maybe you could add some of them to one of the pin topics listing useful resources (if you haven't already).

I think at the moment I am closer to being a Philosophical Taoist than a Religious Taoist. Although I find as I continue reading various sources that at the higher levels they almost become the same thing. Meditation can lead to some interesting things that's for sure. Surely it's part of Tao too.

This is not true. One's third eye can be open and still have blockages in the body's channels. In fact uniting the root chakra energy with the Ajna chakra's energy can and often does creates entities. These entities are emanations of one's own blood karmas. Or to put it in more modern terms - emanations of patterns in one's DNA. Swami Satyananda Saraswati says this lets you know there are still blockages. When the blockages dissolve the entities will disappear.

Hi Ralis. I have a technique that might possibly interest you. I have a book on Bihar Yoga called Kundalini Tantra. It describes a technique using the root chakra to awaken the third eye. For men - focus your awareness on your perineum while doing lots of kegels. For women - focus your awareness on your cervix while doing lots of kegels. Wash, rinse, repeat. Daily. Many times a day whenever you can. Eventually this one simple technique awakens the third eye. The Bihar Yoga book even explains how medical research has discovered some links between the sexual area of the body and the pineal gland. To my delight Taobum's own resident Witch independently re-discovered this ancient technique all on her own. She verified this is what she did (and still does) and it did indeed open her third eye (along with all the psychic powers and new awareness an open third eye brings).

This is what I feel! Throbbing and in/out 'breath' at the brow. I also get the throbbing at my throat. Plus the air right at that spot feels chilly. Can you elaborate more on what this particular center is and what it means? I just assumed this spot was associated with the Ajna chakra and pineal gland but if I understand you correctly this might not be the case?

I can not shake the belief that getting to the highest of Thusness's stages wouldn't happen without changes going on in the brain's neurological wiring. The practices change the brain's wiring.

I'll send you a PM about the truly weird stuff that's happened if you wish. I'd prefer not to mention those publicly as TaoBums is renown for being a hostile place and I've come to see there is validity to that claim. But I can list a few of the lesser things. While meditating something handed me a huge chi ball (which I swallowed since my mouth was open). I felt that chi ball pass down my torso, divide into 2 chi balls and pass down my legs, out through the soles of my feet, reunited into one chi ball and then about a yard out from me literally swept the perimeter of what felt like a giant eggshell. It literally felt like the chi ball was wiping clean the inside surface of this Aura-Egg. I freaked because I could physically feel one of those mystical auras I've always heard and read about. While lying in bed at night about to drift off to sleep a huge chi ball - about the size of a basket ball - fell from the ceiling - hit my heart chakra and then flooded my body. It was cold as hell - like a blast of Arctic wind - which is how I know it was external/environmental chi. Environmental chi - to my knowledge - is cold. It was over 100 degrees outside but this chi was so cold I had to turn off the A/C and crawl under some blankets as I was shivering and my teeth were chattering. Once when just relaxing but not meditating my body seemed to start up on it's own and I began to feel chi sweep in curly-cues and spirals all around my face, feet and legs. Once I HEARD my heart speak to me! As in - with English - with a SEPARATE VOICE coming from my heart region - not my head!!!! When it spoke my heart chakra started up in overdrive. It gave me a lesson about Love! So of course now when I hear or read about someone saying their heart spoke to them - well for me it is literal! I freaked. I suspect for people with fully opened heart chakras it may well be a common occurrence. Now I finally understand why the Chinese say there are separate spirits that inhabit the major body organs. I think those ancient TCM sages were telling people those spirits are literal, not metaphorical or symbolical like I'd formerly thought. I got empirical proof that at least my heart is a separate, aware and highly intelligent something on its own. That's just a little bit. Probably common among qi gong practitioners and meditators but to a noob like me quite mind-blowing. And that's tame. I haven't even touched on the weird stuff.

It might help others better to help you if you explained what you mean by anti-taoist?

Ooh! Good one! I had not thought of that. I have not tried doing the "I am" practices. I have tried a little bit of Noting and it has a similar effect. Try as I might I have not been able to catch a Self/Me in all the attempts I've tried. So where the hell am I?! As I type this I certainly feel like there is a Me. So how come it is so seemingly impossible to find? More importantly - where the hell did my idea that there is a Me come from if upon actual investigation it can not be found? The few times I've tried noting it had a dizzying effect of dissolving the Me out of everything. I was not my emotion because I was watching it. I was not the watching because of what you said. I am not the thoughts because I note those coming and going too. I am not my scratching because I'm watching my finger scratch my leg. But I'm not the scratch because I'm noticing it. I'm not my leg or finger for the same reason. I'm not my body because I'm watching it. I'm not my consciousness because I'm watching that! And that's only from doing Noting very sporadically - like maybe 10 minutes every few days or so. I can't begin to imagine the effect it must have on someone who diligently practices it daily. My question is - is the I a thing which can possibly exist yet never be 'caught'? I love science books. I've heard good things about that book but never gotten around to reading it. I might check it out from my local library if they have it. Very true. Hey beoman this is a little bit off topic but...have you had any weird things happen to you since you began meditation or chi kung practices? I'm very curious about this although you don't have to answer if it's too personal. Right now I'm in a weird place. If you had asked me 5 years ago I would've staunchly stood right by guys like Dawkins and Shermer and their worldview. Not anymore. But I'm in limbo now. Daniel Dennet refuses to explain how Consciousness arose in a Universe that supposedly didn't have it when it began. Not good for an author who has a book that claims to explain Consciousness. The upshot now is that I'm flakey. My views shift and flow with the wind. I question even the Tao now! I'm beginning to think that "that which can not be named" too is a flakey philosophy. But humans don't seem to do well without having something to hold onto to guide their lives - even if they insist whatever IT is can not be grasped.

You know what really boggles me? The idea that consciousness and awareness also possibly have non-inherency. I'm still such a noob at meditating. The thought that if I meditate long enough that I can actually confirm whether the Buddha was right or not certainly piques my interest.

I also have an intellectual understanding of "no-self". Mainly I came to it via several routes. The main one lately is that I started a thought experiment of Buddhist "emptiness". Whenever I saw the word "emptiness" I would substitute the word "non-inherency" since that's how the Buddhist texts I read would often use to help explain it. Well a few days ago I began a thought experiment. Since Buddhism maintains there is nothing in the Universe that doesn't have some other causes and/or conditions I decided to try to see how far out this would go. I quickly came to realize non-inherency has the same tendency as counting numbers. That is...think of the largest number you can but it will never be enough for you can always add one to it and make it larger still. Numbers are infinite in this regard. So too non-inherency. That mountain is empty of inherency. Illusions are obvious examples to non-meditators of non-inherency. That's when I finally understood why Buddhism says reality operates like an illusion. Or as I prefer to think of it - much like virtual reality worlds like MMOs. MMOs are 'worlds' and yet can be traced back to computer code. Which traces back to machine code. Which traces back to numbers. Which traces back to humans...which traces back to... well...you get the idea. It's the idea of non-inherency pushed to it's logical extreme. There's no end in sight. It's not saying that "reality" (or for Marble) or the "mountain" doesn't exist. It's just saying that it exists non-inherently. Try as you might you will never be able to discover an ultimate cause or condition that itself had no prior cause or condition. Edit: When this happened I immediately saw everything drained of it's existence as I traditionally subconsciously understand it. It really *IS* empty if you push non-inherency to the extreme. And getting to the subject of freewill I think it makes such a discussion more interesting. Because our free will is part of this reality Buddhism says it too must fall within this framework of ad infinitum prior causes and conditions. In such a case...do we really have free will at least as most people generally understand it? I confess I'm boggled by my thought experiment.

I wonder what the Buddha said about plants. Do they also experience craving for a Self?

Could someone PM me explaining how to do this Stillness-Movement meditation? I'm really wanting to try it - especially since it fires up the Dantien which is what I'm trying to do.

Hmm...well in my admittedly limited reading of Buddhism I was under the impression it stated ignorance was a root condition of the human race. Alas...the only work of the Buddha I have access to is the Darmapada (sp?). I guess I need to put that on my To Read Pronto list but I've been reading about Taoism lately (I finally got my own copy of the Tao te Ching! Woohoo!) and haven't felt the need to investigate Buddhism so much. Marble...you read any of Lieh Tzu yet?

Oh I'm definitely ignorant! I'll admit that. And yes I'm a cheerleader too. I LIKE MARBLE! YIPPEE_KAI_YAY!!

Well if I recall that thread correctly you stated even after 70,000 years Africans still ended up dimwits. I suspect that is the line that made Scotty snap and report you. Vajra was calling the belief ignorance, not you personally. It was part of his attempt to explain how Buddhism sees the subject 3Bob posted. Buddhism DOES state that ignorance is a root condition of the human race. Your reaction is understandable since people react strongly to things they really disagree with but it's not a reason for action to be taken. Take a chill pill Bro. I like your contributions and you usually have some good insights. I would like to hear your take on 3Bob's posts. If Vajra starts to single you (or anyone else out) he knows what the consequences will be. It's all good in the woods.

***Mod Squad**** Nowhere did I see Vajrahidaya personally single you out Tao99 to say you were ignorant. In reference to Cat's statement above Raymond did specifically call out Cat by name in that other thread. There's the difference. -SB ***Mod Squad Out***

I love it when people post about their personal experiences involving chi, kundalini or meditative states or whatever. I certainly hope the participants of this thread do not become discouraged from posting those experiences. I'm always inspired to practice harder when I read such things.

There are chi fields and then there are Chi Fields. Ya Mu is of the second category. Alas I can feel neither kind of chi field. I don't know how to ground either. Supposedly it's earth energy but since I've never felt earth energy I have no idea what that feels like. My teacher, Tao Semko said my higher chakras are fairly decently developed but my lower ones stunted. I have a hunch the ability to ground and/or feel earth is related to the lower chakras and how well developed they are.

Hi Sloppy I look at your post from a slightly different angle than usual. In short I see you as being in the same boat as me. No money, no job, no transportation, and in my case a medical condition that adds further hurdles to my Internal Alchemy goals. Nonetheless I'm still going for it. Here's what I do and you might have luck with it too. First off - make it a point to attend each and every Global Shaktipat Santi and Susan offer. They're free though if you have some spare change a donation is always welcomed. Second - find a few key practices that generate lots of chi and stick with only those. Third - of the few practices you choose practice the hell out of them. I'm talking practicing with the dedication of a Pro Athlete. Spend hours - yes hours - on practicing. Since you and I do not have the benefit of being in the same room as a teacher who can generate a chi field we're going to have substitute sweat and determination instead. Fourth - this is something I'm going to implement later this year once I have transportation. Volunteer some time to a charity. Since I don't have money to give I'll do the next best thing. Donate my time. If I understand Ya Mu correctly this is yet another way to raise one's chi vibratory rate. It will take several years but I think we'll see results. Whenever I get discouraged I remind myself that even a waterdrop - given enough time - can wear a mountain down.

No, yours is a different story. I liked it very much and it did make a similar point toward the end. Marble would never post a story that featured Buddhism in any way. He makes sure to keep his Taoism "pure" from Buddhist influence. Although I gotta say it is a darn shame he doesn't read the third Classical Era Taoist - Lieh Tzu. Lieh Tzu is also pure Taoism.