Shagrath

Hi all, Recently I saw this video of Nathan Brine https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hi16r-tST98 about using the Celestial Eye in Taoist alchemy. That explanation sounded A LOT like Dzogchen's thogal. Slightly different narrative but seeing the lights and light visions are quite the same. It was amazing to see this similarity is different traditions. Does anyone knows something about this? Are there any more Taoist sects next to Longmen sect that have this kind of practice? Longmen sect is part of Quanzhen sect, which incorporated both Buddhist, Confucian and Taoist practices. Can one tell if celestial eye/thogal is historically Taoist practice borrowed by Bon/Buddhists or Bon/Buddhist practice borrowed by Taoists? edit: maybe even both Taoist and Dzogchen came to same practice empirically. Who knows....

Thank you very much for honest answer. My wish is to learn Wang Liping system, but there are many unsurmountable obstacles. Earnings, country I live in, etc and yet I have high interest in those topics. Life can deal strange hands sometimes

Thank you.

Thanks for the insight. How long do those retreats with Master Liping last? Does he have some levels he goes by? For example you need 10 retreats to learn all techniques, and then its to you to practice. Or after first retreat you have homework until next year, then you learn level 2 of the practice?

Thanks freeform, I have couple questions about this. I would really appreciate your take on that. 1) In his online course Nathan Brine says there are taoist practices that are "higher" then neidan. Would you have any idea what it would that be? Some meditations? 2) What is the difference between golden flower and golden elixir? Some say its the same, and that those are just different names for true nature of one self. 3) Where can I find more about those practices? The only resource I know about Shangqing is book by Isabelle Robinet. Can you recommend some teachers, websites, books?

And you can always go to more academic books by Livia Kohn, Eva Wong, Fabrizio Pregadio, Louis Komjathy and Isabelle Robinet. Maybe Stuart A. Olson, Tom Bisio, etc. Just find the authors page on amazon, and search titles about alchemy.

There is a UK based dzogchen and mahamudra teacher James Low. He uploads all of his lectures to vimeo and youtube. Here are the links: http://www.simplybeing.co.uk/ https://vimeo.com/jameslow https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBedQobRrnDDaYUEtPi46pg/

I am more then satisfied with Mingyur Rinpoches online courses Joy of Life. https://tergar.org/ Also there is https://dharmasun.org/tte/ what Aetherous suggested. School of Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche. There is also https://samyeinstitute.org/ This is online platform for teachings of Phakchok Rinpoche. He is grandson of famous Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, and nephew to above mentioned Mingyur and Chokyi. Those schools are both Dzogchen and Mahamudra traditions (nyingma kagyu), and Tulku Urgyen Rinpoches lineage.

I am more then satisfied with Mingyur Rinpoches online courses Joy of Life. https://tergar.org/ Also there is https://dharmasun.org/tte/ what Aetherous suggested. School of Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche. There is also https://samyeinstitute.org/ This is online platform for teachings of Phakchok Rinpoche. He is grandson of famous Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, and nephew to above mentioned Mingyur and Chokyi. Those schools are both Dzogchen and Mahamudra traditions (nyingma kagyu), and Tulku Urgyen Rinpoches lineage.

Hi everyone, Until few years ago I was heavily into qigong, neigong (wudang-pai and longmen-pai) and I have even done some healing sessions with quite interesting (some believable results) but I have never ever succeeded in any psychokinetic ability (moving matchstick, moving folded aluminum foil/paper, bending spoon/fork, etc). I saw in person one guy who was somewhere in Tibet for 15 years and he said that trick is only in concentration and focus. That he had a test after those 5 years to bend the spoon. And that was the test of pure focus and concentration. But he stated that this knowledge was behind doors knowledge, never written only taught in person. Also, I saw bean and wheat grain sprout/germinate in his hand in a matter of seconds. He told me how this is possible with enough practice and he would teach me, but unfortunately he passed away since he was really old. Has anyone ever gone this path? Is there any good material on this topic? Any Tibetan Buddhist exercises on medicine, meditation, healing? Thank you very much in forward S. PS: I am sorry if I missed the subforum but since that guy was Buddhist (Tibetan Buddhist to be more precise) I figured to place the question here.

Honestly, I have never been much into koans.

Thank you very much for this answer. It made a lot of thing much clearer. That guy said that next to those several exercises for concentration, focus and will development, in later stages there is A LOT of meditation, no-thought states, emptiness etc. Thank you once more

I believe that it's like you are saying. I do not have much experience in TB practices nor TB philosophical system. But still I wish to push concentration to those limits, for some deeply personal reasons and plus because if one person could do it and I saw it, why could't I also.

Yes, it definitely would. And would also be really miserable to put one religion on that level. I think you misunderstood me a little bit. I do not want to be able to bend spoons. That is the furthest goal. What I wish is to develop deep understanding of emptiness, and laser like concentration and focus to be able to bend spoon. As I said in original post, I wish that bending spoon, moving some object, or sprouting seeds be the test of my concentration and will and absolutely be not the goal in its self. Anyhow, I am already studying Mahayana buddhism. For now Nagarjuna, Dogen and Paul Williams and practising shikantaza.

Thank you. That is actually great place to start. I will dive into yogic practices to search for an answer. But the true problem is following. I know the drills (there are several of them, and I have never read anything like it, but I never gone deep into yoga), but what later. How can I actually apply the fruits of practice to actually make seeds sprout. Just will it really hard? Visualize? Sing Despacito out loud while I am turned to west to face Puerto Rico and focus on sprouting? I do not have a clue.

I agree with you totally and I am aware of consequences of going that road by myself. Thats why I do not want a teacher nor am I seeking one. I just asked for some possible literature or some advice, nothing else. I am involved in other practices with some authentic teachers, and I just want to try out this a little bit (few years ).

Thank you, but I have nor time nor money for that kind of adventure I thought as solution to be that someone who first handedly experienced or succeeded with that kind of ability to share some resource. It's a long shot, but it's more likely then me going to Tibet.

Does somebody know what made master Wang Xiangzhai, Robert Peng, newly famous John Chang, etc that strong in manifesting and controlling energy and energetic processes, zapping touch, etc? Is it just strong dan tiens or they have activated some parts of mind that other practitioners didn't or couldn't? I know a lot of people that are training some forms of qigong every day for 1-3h for 30 years and nothing, and Master Wang just did Zhan Zhuang and he went really in depth of controlling energy. Every individual with those kind of supreme energy control did different style/approach to training and because of that I cannot see any overlap in what they did except meditation and devotion to energy arts Is there something special that person has to develop as ability or make strong some energy structure to start developing those kind of abilities or you just practice daily energy work and meditation and it will come if you have those kind of potentials inside you? Thanks

As I read over the internet and on this forum, that main differences are that buddhists tend to approach the cultivation from the angle that we should eliminate all inner blockages so the infinite energy can flow through us, while on the other hand taoists tend to strengthen energies inside them in order to eliminate blockages and ultimately connect to infinite energy. Also, as I have understood that buddhists focus more on packaging energy in tendons, ligaments, bone marrow and nervous system (yi jin jing and xi sui jing), while taoists in dan tiens, qi jing ba mai, jing, qi, shen etc. Under 'focus more" I don't mean ignore rest And both have lots of meditations for transcending mind to become one with Tao or to reach Emptiness. It seems to me that all this is ultimately the same just approached through different perspective. What are your thoughts? Please correct me with your deeper understanding, I really want to dive deeper into this.

That means that you need to practice more to have more qi so you don't get tired :D Joking aside. Wudang Pai and Longmen Pai are neigong. But only as a complete systems. Many teachers teach just one aspect of them so students and readers get different impressions of those systems. In both systems you must work heavily on your Jing. That is one hell of a work. It's physically demanding and quite exhausting. And after you buildt solid foundation you move on to yangqi, shen, yuenqi, etc.

Forget books. Practicing on your own can be really dangerous. Go with Lam Kam Chuen if you want to with the books and be completely safe. I would suggest you find some good teacher of Wudang Pai or Longmen Pai PS: as I heard it from one monk Wang Liping books are the closest to the authentic teachings of neidan out of all commercial books. But still the risks of not having someone to guide you and to interpret the theory are high.

Jesus represents a person who is natural and who reached the state of I am (eheieh) or I am that I am (Eheieh asher eheieh). In the flesh he is the same as all of us, hence the name Jesus Christ that we connect to his looks and deeds doesn't mean a thing. His "inside" world, his realization is what truly matters and what we all should strive for. To be ourselfs like he was himself. Not to copy him, not to follow him in his footsteps because then we are becoming him and that is not being authentic. Whenever he says that he is the mystical gate, that you must reach him, you must except him as a leader he doesn't mean him as a Jesus Christ, he alludes to him as a son of God, as we all are. The Bible describes the state of the man on his path toward consiousness, in the psychodramic method of that time, and describes the general way of the people. Also, allegories, associations, metaphors, personifications, symbolism of that time must be understood for bible to truly make sense. All of this only matters if that is what a man recognizes that he is drawn to, as someone is be pulled towards being singer, or football player, pilot, or a pianist. What one holy man from Mount Athos said: "Better genuine baker, then fake mystic."

All in all, it doesn't matter whether he was real or fictional, what matters is what he represents.

Video: https://www.youtube.com/user/StandStillBeFit/videos Books: Peter den Dekker - The dynamics of standing still Master Lam Kam-Chuen - The way of energy Master Lam Kam-Chuen - The way of power

In many books on Shaolin practice I have found that they are talking just about Ba Duan Jin, Yi Jin Jing and Xi Sui JIng. That they focus on clearing energy blockages from body and packaging energy to tendons, ligaments and bone marrow and lower dan tien, mix water and fire, so they become better "conductors" of energy, hence their inner power. As I read about Taoist practices there are much more detailed "energetic anatomy". They focus on strengthening all 3 dan tiens, central channel, 8 extraordinary channels, nourish heaven (stars, sun, moon), earth (soil, water, wind), man (jing, qi, shen), fire-water, whole Mantak Chia program, etc. Ofc there are also meditations included into these practices as primary practice and as the most crucial. Are these correct information? Do you have something to add to this? Is there anything else that I should consider for understanding better these practices? PS: Please do not go off-topic. I don't care who's kung fu better, or should I avoid something. If you do not have any information worth sharing, please do not share anything. I really wish to learn something constructive about these practices, to sort out currently chaotic knowledge, and not to read about just plain arguing without end and without any sense.