Yoda

I'm in SC and Sean, he's a total hottie btw, is in MS. There are several in NYC, but it "feels" like most everyone here is in the West. I think of Witch as being in the UK for some reason. I think Sean would have a good vibe on east vs west. I grew up in Phoenix... I love the freedom and big mindedness and big skyness of the west and I love the friendliness and rainfall and beautiful, lush trees of the east. I like the low population and the sunshine of the SE and I like the affordability of SC. Which areas in particular are you focusing on?

Trunk, If Jesus, Buddha, and Mohammed couldn't manifest much basic stability in their personal lives, then maybe it should be down the list for the rest of us too. You've jumped into the middle of a totally fucking crazy situation and have done an incredible job of organizing, code breaking, and translating. It's miraculous that a 16 year old can now google their way over to taobums and alchemicaltaoism and save themselves 20 years of hodgpodging. You are a mighty Bodhisattva so wear your battlescars with pride! I'm sure you've given valuable help to dozens and likely many more than that with your site. On another subject, I know that you are trying to keep personal and lineage bias out of your site, but I think it could be very instructive and helpful to include write ups of your personal experiences with Mark, Max, deity meditation, specific mantras, practices, etc. I'd think you could write about such things in a way that the reader wouldn't feel that you are trying to convert them, but rather offer a valuable perspective of what it's like to follow certain teachings and practices, etc. Which could be increasingly helpful as time goes on. Yoda

Awesome saga!!! I'm glad you found your way back!

nice. is good too.

What's that Lao Tzu quote... governing is like cooking a fish... too much poking ruins it.

When I think of black magic in the Tibetan tradition, I think of the life of Milarepa. Marpa would call him "the sorceror". I think he killed a bunch of folks with his magic to avenge wrongs against his family and then his teacher told him to practice the dharma to atone for his actions. Marpa made Milarepa suffer a great deal to burn off his black karma but before the end of the process, Marpa's wife took pity on Milarepa and helped him escape a portion of his suffering. Marpa said that b/c of Milarepa's 'escape' he would have to practice generating good karma for a much longer period of time. Eventually, of course, Milarepa got everything sorted out and lived happily ever after.

A- **Very Cool** thanks for sharing! -Y

troubleshooting tips: In the process of trying to figure out how to take pascalite, I eventually read the directions whereupon I learned that they recommend 1/4 teaspoon doses and not the larger doses that I was getting headaches from. At the lower doses, I get an energy kick immediately and no headache but I often notice a "pre-headache" feeling. By mixing it up and letting it mostly settle out, and not taking it every day, I can strike the right balance, I believe. In contrast, I can take Terramin as much as I feel like and no head effects occur. I'm gravitating towards lots of high fiber with the clays too, especially processes stuff like Metamucil (sp?) Fiber One, etc. That pulls lots of water into the intestines and I'd like to think has subtle body hydrating benefits too. One clay based diet recommends clay, metamucil, and oil (primrose? I forget which kind.) to be taken together as a long term thing.

So the traditional thing in India with eclipses and new moons is to not be outside and to not travel, and to be a bit hunkered down... don't start any huge new projects etc. But practicing is said to be extra auspicious. Interestingly, in India new moons are when people get a bit crazy, not the full moons. Full moons and new moons are the times of the most spiritual progress but also of the most worldly blockages and sexual contact isn't recommended. The energy of a full/new moon lasts a day on either side of the exact date. Full moons are considered generally more auspicious than new moons. I'm sure there are lots of other views out there from different traditions... let me know if you know any cool ones.

So I did 15 minutes of Kunlun while doing my silent mantras earlier today and then later on I had an unusual flash of temper towards my daughter. It reminded me of my yiquan practice... the heightened energy isn't the greatest around kids at least in my case. If Kunlun can be done before bed, then perhaps there wouldn't be any spillover, or maybe I'll just get used to it, or maybe I shouldn't mix it with the mantras.

I'd love to get by on two hours of sleep as seems to be happening with Love Bunny from the Kunlun practice. I would have to buy a Wii, though. Anyone else doing Kunlun experiencing that? I've been dabbling with the Kunlun practice... maybe 10 minutes here and there, but if it could free up extra time, I'd definitely put more into it. Yoda

Here's a fun online book: http://www.strippingthegurus.com/

Having impressive students is a sign that I always look for. Sounds like SeanD was impressive too.

The exiled Ron Jeremy praised the practice of cold water immersion up to the navel (but not above that) for the stimulation of sperm power and hormone release. It's a common practice amongst athletes. Contrast showers are popular on dragondoor.com That's all I know.

The grounding effect of the clay is nice to take on the full moon.

Great story about Lady Moon! It looked like the August Moon was Lady Moon from the article... did I misread that?

I just got my mountainroseherbs.com clay in the mail. The price is right and the stuff has a good vibe but it takes like incense... yuckkers!! I've taken a week or so off the clay and have been trying humic shale flavored water and it's good. The buzz isn't as strong as the clay, but it's easy to just chug a gulp from the bottle. Better on convenience.

The funeral for the Nyingma (sp?) teacher sounds like Dingo Khentse Rinpoche who was the head of the lineage who died several years ago. I don't think Tibetan validation is necessary for the dude especially now that we have the Taobum report back in the file. If you don't feel good about Max then that's a good sign that he's not the right teacher for you. Yoda

Imo, being an enlightened crackhead etc isn't that big of a deal. If you have something to offer the world, you'll get your students. But it would be nice to be open and non-hypocritical about it... maybe they could follow the example of rock stars. I think that with so many examples of cagey gurus, that students have now gotten more sophisticated about the whole thing. Now the situation is more like a professor coming on to a student... nobody is deified too far these days that the situation can't be handled. I've been trying to think of evil female gurus, but haven't come up with any. There must be some out there. Just like MLK or Gandhi had their imperfections, they still had a very positive influence on the planet. In the same way, I'd imagine that Muktananda, Trungpa, Osho, Maharishi, etc had a net positive effect opening up new ideas and practices and possibilities to the world. Btw, what's the dirt on Tolle?? He's due for some about now and I've heard a few rumors... Yoda

fun moon phase software... puts a little moon on the desktop: http://kandynet.net/sound_of_code/drupal/?q=node/5

Optimally, I'll do 30 minutes late morning and 30 mid afternoon, or whatever I can fit in even if it's just a few minutes. and 10-30 upon awakening and before bed while in bed and some exercise late afternoon-evening.

Pumping up energy levels can be destabilizing. Working too high on the chakras is destabilizing. Working too much with the fire element is destabilizing. Teaching strict celibacy and other strict disciplines, especially in America, is destabilizing. Working too much with energy and not enough with meditation is destabilizing. Attracting lots of followers on the very edge is destabilizing. Every angle about 'what went wrong' has something to it, imo. I think the biggest ingredient is that the drifting master has commonly been a genius type who hasn't needed to forge and then later maintain very close ties to their own gurus and lineage. Like Da Free John and Osho being extreme examples. But teachers like Yogananda, Vivekananda and Suzuki Roshi who spoke often and highly of their teachers and lineage seemed to live a lifestyle a bit more in line with their ideals. Of course simply lowering the bar from ideals of lifelong celibacy to simply being considerate would be a good move too.

My Swami says that giving blood is one of the most powerful generators of good karma you can find. If you have good health, it's a great practice to get past blocks and stagnation. I can feel psychic connection with others after I give blood and I've noticed that they do send their thanks on a subtle level. Vampire bats share blood with each other if one has a bad night. I figure if vampires can do it, so can I. But if giving blood isn't appropriate for one's situation, any sort of altruistic service is very freeing too and can also help with stagnation. Yoda

True. But, then again, I'll take what I can get.

I just searched for "Death for Dummies" on amazon and up came "Single Parenting for Dummies". I'm wondering if anyone has any cool exit strategy tips that can help me maximize the pleasure of dying. I'm thinking that the primary practice is fasting... it generates endorphins, and even heroin-like releases in the brain, and enhances an otherworldly focus that will already be well underway during the aging process. Then comes sungazing assuming circumstances permit. I bet amaroli will be another one to include, but I'll have to experiment further on that one. If sungazing is out of the question, then music will be the next item on the list. I'd imagine I'd be in the mood for Rachmaninov or that tune from Brideshead Revisted... a romantic vibe. I'll be very curious to find out what religion I actually am!!! That'll be fun. Vivekananda did not discover his true identity until immediately before he died and I think that is probably more the rule than the exception. Yoda