Yoda

Michael, Funny you should bring that practice to mind--I had a dream about my childhood dog, Toby, and his death last night. I loved him dearly and that practice that you just described carried me through all that. That happened before I believed in a non-physical realm so the dream revisited his death with me being much more calm about the whole thing, knowing that we'd be pals forever. I did the practice for several months and it was very fortifying and strengthening and I was quite fanatical about it too. Felt like a samurai gathering strength to avenge his death even though enemy was old age. I knew what I was doing didn't make sense. When forgetfulness drifted in, I ditched the practice. -Yoda

Here's the gameplan: while you are grounded put all your eggs into mastering sexual practices including the dreaded finger lock... Then when you get your beemer in a few months, you can go fascist on them! You'll return to America a Nietzschian Uberman! -Yoda

STAR WARS! (up to, but not including the Ewoks making a mockery of the dark side) I was 8 or 9 and it really rocked the boat. Always wanted to be a Jedi after that. -Yoda

Have read many of Osho's books and "Book of Secrets" is definitely the best, most inspired work and very practice based. The emphasis on darkness, exhalation, and letting go really filled out my understanding of "know the light, but stick to the dark" Taoist adage. Also, what he says about the hara was very interesting--that enlightenment is always experienced in the ltt, but is often expressed in the language of the head or of the heart--so that throws off many seekers by inspiring them to look for the answer too high up on the ladder. Plus the many new meditations have really made this book a flagship for me. The tone is so much like Trungpa, it's bizarre. You can read their commentaries on Atisha's Tonglen slogans side by side on the internet, btw. Their respective energies seem so calm in writing yet freaked out in life. The devotion-based explanation is that they were so open to the crazy energies of their followers that they took on themselves. More likely, they were just having a good time. When you have thousands of adoring followers, it's fun to speak ex cathedra 24/7. -Yoda

Pietro, Ron, Plato, Max, Harry Pain, and Tripp have set up shop at taobum.com. It's great to still have access to their thoughts and there have been some great posts already. I'm still patiently waiting for the Tao de Pietro. I thought that eating lots of eggs plus sungazing would allow me to bend the rules. While they help, the path of non-retention hasn't panned out for me. If there's a secret ingredient, let me know, but it looks like our hero will need to hold his sperm for eternity. -Yoda

Found this killer drill on dragondoor-- "I had the honor of being an assistant instructor at the latest RKC. The program has really grown and improved in many ways. Steve Maxwell put the attendees thru an outstanding example of his joint mobility program. It took about 20 minutes, and by the end everyone was warmed up, limbered up and ready to go. This is a list of the exercises that Steve did, with some descriptions. I was furiously taking notes and drawing pictures of stick figures to show what he was doing, but you can't capture everything. I hope Steve will fill in the blanks and correct the order, but I do think I have made it is as accurate as I could. For those who haven't bought Steve's Joint Mobility DVD, SHAME ON YOU!! ;-) Please go to maxercise.com and buy a copy for your penance. It is a follow-along program which takes about 20 minutes. It's filled with great exercises to limber you up. Each exercise was done for 30-60 seconds, at a rhythmic pace. 1) Neck Turns - side to side, looking behind you. 2) Neck Tilts - lean right/left, ear goes toward shoulder. 3) Neck Tilts - Chin up to the ceiling, then down to the chest between the clavicles. 4) Neck Slide - move head to right, then left, while keeping it vertical. 5) Neck Slide - move head front to back, keeping vertical. Like a chicken. 6) Thorasic Bending - Throw chest out and up while bending back, and roll shoulders back and down. Then roll forward, chest collapsing and shoulders rolling forward and then down, hunching over like Quasimodo. 7) "Sideways Scarecrow" - Stand with feet shoulder width and legs straight. Put arms straight out like scarecrow. While keeping your shoulders, hips and head level, lean and reach out to the right, then the left. Imagine your being pulled by a rope. 8) Pelvic Tilt - Stand with hands on hips. Tilt pelvis up, rounding low back and tucking your tail. Then tilt it down, arching your low back. 9) Pelvic Tilt - Side to side, pushing hip out, stretching outer hip. 10) Bend over and Lean Back - Stand with arms crossed on chest, rt. fingertips on left shldr.,left fingertips on rt. Bend over, rounding back and keeping head down and knees slightly bent. Then straighten back out, thrusting hips forward, and stretching backward and upward at 45 degrees. 11) Tai Chi Waist Twisters - Stand with arms hanging loosely at sides. Turn your chest quickly to the left (facing 9 o'clock) and let your arms whip around, and have the back of your left hand slap your right kidney. Then quickly spin right (to 3 o'clock) and your arms will fly around and your right hand will hit your left kidney. Arms should stay loose. Hips should remain fairly stationary while your upperbody quickly twists. 12) Arm circles - keep arms straight, make big circles, leading with thumbs. Go inside/out then outside/in. 13) Swimming Moves - Swing your arms like you're Backstroking, then Crawling (fwd stroke) 14) Figure 8s - Trace figure 8s with arms together, then do them going opposite directions (asymetrically - the arms cross each other) 15) Head Circle - Keep arms bent at 90 degrees and circle them aroung your head, with your biceps near your ears and then your nose. Your forearms will skim your scalp area. 16) Spinal Wave - curl and uncurl your pine as you stand, undulating like a snake. 17) Boot Strappers - Fold over at waist, put palms on ground, shoulder width and two feet in front of feet. Butt is high and head is down. Have feet close together and then bend knees, going up the balls of your feet. Straighten your legs out, putting heels on ground, then return to crouch. Repeat till your hammies scream... 18) Downward Dog with a tilt - while in the pose, tilt your hips to the right and left multiple times, then tilt your pelvis back and front. 19) Downward Dog Reach - while in the pose, pick up right hand and reach for your left ankle, twisting upper body only. Then reach for your right ankle with your left hand. 20) "The Pump" - go from the Cobra to Downward Dog in a rhythmic fashion. Not done like a Dive Bomber Push-up. Just go up and down. 21) Scarecrow Twist - Lay on your stomach, arms out. Lift your right leg, bend it and try to touch your left hand with your foot, twisting your hips, but leaving your upperchest and shoulders on the ground. Then go left foot to Rt. hand. 22) Frog Pose Hip Twists - Get in frog pose, on ground, propped up on elbows, hips low, legs spread with knees out wide and toes pointing down. Then lift your right lower leg, making it vertical, then have your right toes touch your left knee. Your hips will twist a bit, and the femur will really move in your hip socket. Then return your right leg, and then have your left leg go up, then have your toes touch your right knee. 23) Cossacks." I've heard great things about Steve's mobility programs. He's coming out with a Farmer Burns type mobility program with light weights. I just went through this sampler, and it has a great feel to it and a nice progression. -Yoda

Yeah, that's what it is... we all like feeling strong and vital, but that's about where we call off the dogs. Know the light but stick with the dark... -Yoda

they look pretty cool to own, but I wouldn't use them while sungazing and purists don't even wear glasses while sungazing either. You don't want anything that would reduce your sensitivity to light for safety reasons as much as for the efficacy of the practice. The best safety guide is to stay close to the sunrise or sunset--the way you have instinctually enjoyed watching a sunset your whole life, just make doing so a practice if you like. They do sell reusable UV sensor cards online for $5 if you get inspired to track the UV intensity. Or a UV sensing watch for $30. -Yoda

well, we're lovers not fighters... but still good to know about!

from http://www.boxingscene.com/forums/showthread.php?t=33785 7 days a week!!! -Yoda

I didn't do the keysound out loud in front of Mrs Yoda--that's fucking mortifying. There's nothing quite as unsexy as the keysound. It's up there with thinking about dead puppies to back paddle from the edge. Mentally with the breath. Got a great idea: instead of greasing up for daily keysound practice while the little Yodsters are kicking at my door--I'll just do the funny sound while checking out free porn on the Internet. A bit more portable of a practice that way. Where's the best site? I'm into barely legal Asians. -Yoda

Just a backup--got it. Power lock n squeeze is Chia's big draw, yes? Thanks,. Yoda

the keysound practice is KILLER and when I did it regularly it really works. I never had a full blown heartgasm with it, but the effect was always very nice. It's just that I'd need to add **yet another** practice to my life and that's something I'd like to keep to a dull roar. Hmmmm. And you are quite right--it helps you "change gears" and reeducate the body about what sex is for. Also, Mrs. Yoda liked that technique a lot when I got the hang of it. When I stopped practicing it, I left the Krishna zone and reverted to the apeman drill. All in all, though, I think you are right. Thanks for reminding me of it. HUA! -Yoda

durn. sorry to hear that. I'm hoping that it's only a backup system and that I won't use it much... (perhaps.) Still newish with it. Anyone else have trouble with it? -Yoda

Sean, About retention this time around... Ron recently said that the million dollar point that Chia refers to in his book is further back than you think. There's sort of an indentation further back that does a better job at aborting lift off. By figuring that one out, I have minimized any PONR mistakes and I don't have to restart at day one anymore. It feels like it saves over 50% of the energy. For a retention apprentice like myself, that's a million dollar hint. -Yoda

Sean, Our experiences of sungazing are remarkably similar. I've heard this said from HRM as well as Mitchell Gibson that the sungazing learning curve is very predictable with the only real variable being how fast one wants to go through the process. There again, it looks like we are both settling in at the 10-15 minute per day mark. From what I can infer, it sounds like there may be other taobums who are having similar experiences with it, but aren't posting as regularly. It was foggy this morning and I was able to see a sunspot! -Yoda

I'm fine with playing, but I don't know the game very well. I did see "Searching for Bobby Fischer" though.

I just read something to this effect the other day in "Book of Secrets": As with anything else, the result depends on the underlying vibration of the action. If one decides to be celibate out of fear or frustration you'll get more of that. If you do it out of a spirit of passion and enthusiasm you'll get more of that. Osho didn't get into the exact transmutation details, but it sounds like it follows the basic taoist understanding. -Yoda

he also discusses revulsion practices, esp the ones where a man or a woman tries to only have eyes for their spouse--sort of the Christian monogamous variation of Buddhist revulsion practices. Osho says that even that level of revulsion training will backfire on you and on your spouse. -Yoda

I bought the extra strength ones and I haven't died yet! I've heard good things about them, but they didn't do anything for me as far as I could tell. -Yoda

Osho's take on sex is that you keep a mindset of mindfulness and reverence. If you are simply horny, just meditate until the horniness transforms to devotion and then you can be reverently sexual. Move slowly. Don't shoot yer wad. You should slowly become more romantic and devoted until just a look or a touch is an erotic thrill and then the desire for ejaculative love naturally disapears. It's a good policy to always meditate before having sex to get into the right mindset. -Yoda

Hello jsrit: The methods I presented are very safe, this was one of my goals. Having practiced Chinese Medicine for a some years it is clear some methods can be unhealthy and I avoided them in the book, and I do not think they add much anyway. There is no one right way to do these practices, I believe if you know what the goal is then there are many ways to accomplish it. Also, when the channels are flowing well one does not need to do these practices as much, one can do less and less and just sit. The goal of much of the practices in my view is to learn to relax, circulate the Qi that resides in your body and then take more Qi in from around us, the more one relaxes this happens automatically. This is all about emotional health, physical health and vitality. The rest is a liftime of letting go of what has been artifically created to reveal what has always existed. So we float in and out of that experience, hopefully as we cultivate we can stay there more and more each day. After studying Taoist Alchemy, Chinese Medicine, Feng Shui and Chinese Astrology it is clear to me so many take the Taoist literature to literal, just my opinion. I suggest reading some of Cleary's book by Li I-Ming, very revealing, explains a view of what many taoist terms and stated mean. If we follow the guidance of Lao Tzu the path of alchemy becomes clearer , I suggest any practice you do should fit with the guidance of the Tao Teh Ching. It is my experience the basic things are the hardest things to incorporate into one's life; relaxing, emotional balance, physical health, this is the real acheivement that many so called highl level people dont have. I have always beleived some of the Taoists systems become like a competition, to rush to complete each course, let me share something, many of the people around for 20 years ore more end of going back to the basics, everything is really there. regards, david

just post questions on the general conditioning forum at dragondoor--but looks like you are in touch with the man himself. One of the dragondoor guys runs barefoot in the winter, but order a catalogue from Tandy Leather Company and they'll sell you a pair of moccassins for $11-- something like that or just racing flats should take the edge off. -Yoda

Red Fox, Awesome results! If you have specific questions, you can post them on the dragondoor.com forum--there are several barefoot runners there. On my 3rd barefoot, 1 mile run last week, the outside, rear edge of my calf cramped up and quit. So I've been barefoot walking since then with very short runnettes here and there. I'm expecting that there's carryover from the walking to the running. Still, the walking offers a lot of the brain stimulation that the running does and I look forward for my feet and muscles to acclimate. For me, the emotions I feel during barefoot running are very enjoyable and I look forward to running regularly and at greater distances. -Yoda

I started getting grey hairs in my mid 20s and did the 5 (not the 6th) Tibetans for about a year or so and the grey hairs disapeared completely. Now at 36 they are coming back--so I need to get back into them. Maybe I'll just start at a few reps each per day just to kick start the habit. -Yoda