Antares

Do you mean this one here: http://www.iherb.com/Dragon-Herbs-Dragon-Drops-8-Immortals-Super-Potency-Extract-2-fl-oz-60-ml/22322 Wow, thanks a lot. Seems to be very good. Did you take it? A bit pricey, but if it is real stuff then may be I would give it a try. Good that it is extract form. Must be very potent One review over there: magic pill?

Which DVD are you talking about? I have found 2CD's audio. Is it really worthwhile to have this audio? For me personally the video would be more helpful. I think to do it as it helps to work with tensions and it is very huge problem for me. Especially in upper part of the body. There are few videos on the tube actually but only some excerpts. Thanks.

Any feedback on it?

Sorry, I wont give info about myself. Only I can say that most important here is intention. As I mentioned before in the past I used to work under big stress. And I did work for 2 people and worked night shifts and my hands were jerking after work. I could not sleep... anger... anxiety.... stress.. But then I decided to change my life. I said to myself that I dont need much money and I want to practice practice and practice. This is not problem to practice 1-2 hours early in the morning. If you go to bed at 10. 2 hours no problem before going to bed. 1 hour during the day. What is hard here? Of course if you have family then you are in troubles... But then you need to decide what you want from life. It's entirely your personal choice between desires and intention

I think that it is OK to mix practices but ONLY after you have mastered ONE certain practice. Any practice is not only movements / breath / attention IMO. It is also connected with certain tradition which has some psychic "entity". For example, if we discern yoga tradition there are not only asanas and breath. Some people regard it as it is asanas but I am sure it is not indeed. Authentic traditional yoga practice begins with yama niyama, talks to Guru, who gives you transmission which is certain type of energy which connects person to the certain subtle energies. And in most cases the transmission is given as certain mantra. And then newbie should evolve this energy, to connect with it this energy. It is also your intention. And practice is the way to evolve this energy and it is like to rewire energy in your subtle body which connected with our mind. If one would start to do it in different ways like in the morning one practice with one attention and intention and later with another then your whole system would not realize where you are going. I was doing it for few years, I was mixing yoga with qigongs and MA, pranayama and neikung, MA, mantras. NO MORE!!! I personnaly fuc...ed up with it. Even last days I was doing different practices in one system (BFP) for 3-4 hours a day. One night I woke up at 3 in the morning after 4 hours of sleep absolutely fresh. And I continued my practice for 3 hours next day. And I could fall asleep only at 2 at night. Almost 24 hours awake. May be I am in some cleansing process of my negative energy and I think it is true but anyway body should adopt to the energy softly. And last days I was thinking to add one another practice akin to 8 brocades and next morning I woke up and started to learn it and I could not. I felt like it is to much and even so the movements are slow and I thought like "okey, it is good for the morning and it is same energy which should help me... " but it is another way to give direction to the energy body. Shortly speaking I realized such mixes in practices and in one's mind are not good at all. I think it made me agitated and only confused me in many ways even when I thought what to practice, what time .... and what is better and blah blah blah... Only when you reached some very tangible results in one system then you can try to add another what you like. I have Jenny's DVD and Max' s book and I will practice it probably but after I have built up good solid foundation in the system I have practiced now. Sifu Terry says one needs 6-8 months or at least 3-4. I tried pranayama too and I was very agitated. I wont add anything else of the exception of some other practice in the same system. Even this not always advisable. I know one very good guru in yoga authentic tradition and once he said that his guru said to him not to go to another guru and not even to listen him in the beginning . All this only creates confusion.

Lloyd, may be it was cleansing of your negative stucked qi in your liver. Last days I was practicing FP for 2-3 hours and Sunn Yee Gung for 1 hour (two times of 30 mins each) plus Xing Yi Neikung (it is only 15-20 minutes exercises akin to 8 brocades) couple times and I was awake for 24 hours with no desire to sleep). But I think it was because I have liver stagnant qi issue too (hot turned into wind) and it may be cleansing process in the liver. I am going to visit my acupuncturist too. And there are good Chinese herbs for it too. Anyway I will continue FP for 3 hours and BFSYG for 1 hour and then I will see. I have liver wind issue which goes up and level 1 of BFSYG is good to bring energy down into lower DT. But breath meditations there 90 80... and 80 70... definitely not going to do them before sleep time as I did last days. I think it's OK to do vol.2 before going to bed. Before sleep I will be doing yin yoga for the liver with slow breath in static asanas followed by vol.2 meds.

Lloyd, but why you simply not doing Vol. 3 & 4? You can do it instead of vol. 1 & 2. .

I did not mean physical heart. This would be nonsense. Heart is Xing. But in taoism once again: Thus, the goal of alchemy - to fuse the soul Xing with the energy Ming and creating a yang Spirit – a Tao fetus, who has the real potential and can move to higher worlds. How to perfect Xing you can understand by yourself or from the books, but how to perfect Ming you can get only in oral precepts of your Teacher. And important question is: Why it is so? Because of the fact that the secret of Ming is the secret of Life and Death! That is what you are against! If you love Buddhism that's FINE. Wu Ji Qigong is not Buddhist's. It was created by Zhang Sanfeng as they believe. No point to mix both philosophies. I think it is one of the common mistakes among practitioners. But there is Buddhist qigong as well with the same conception but different ones. Go and teach then what is correct.

WHY DO PEOPLE DIE? WHAT IS THE ESSENCE OF TAOIST ALCHEMY? XING AND MING. FUSION OF SOUL XING WITH ENERGY MING http://all-dao.com/essence-taoist-alchemy.html Buddhists cultivate the "heart" (xing) mostly. ON THE MAIN PROBLEMS WITH THE PRACTICE OF THE XINGhttp://all-dao.com/xing-problems.html

This is the distinction of the great importance I think. Wuji is fullness. Everything what budists merely are doing is seating quiet and reciting mantas, and doing "goods". There are not so much real yogis in Tibet and Nepal. It is very much broken tradition. IMO. If you like this philosophy it's OK. But I prefer Tao Te Ching.

But what will do it? Of course it is not only doing qigong. It is very much of personal awareness too. To be in the moment. Right thinking, right set of the mind, right diet, right people... I understand it to be LIGHT. Practice of internal MA must help too. So it is complex of diff. things. Qigong is not just waving with hands. It is working with your energy. Energy makes a difference! The more energy the more presence. All other is philosophy for the intellect. What is there in Buddhism so special? Thinking that Life is suffering? Does it help? I like the idea of the path in the book of H. Hesse "Siddhartha".

This is good idea to add one new practice every 35 years.

There is yin yoga by Sarah Powers for kidneys. There is one of the 5 Frolics exercise for kidneys. But it might replenish postnatal qi only. I dunno! As it is qigong systems. I think any authentic alchemy (neidan, neikung) method is good for kidneys as it replenishes PREnatal qi which is the basis of kidneys essence. Everything what builds up lower tan tien is good for kidneys.

But what is enlightenment? Sounds similar to alignment. As far as I know they say Primordial Hun Yuan Qigong replenishes primordial (yuan qi). Is not it foundation for one to become Buddha? Or may be you think it is to seat under the tree? If you read thoroughly the history of Shaolin and their methods and what influences it made on the whole China (as far as Zang Sanfeng ) you will see the difference between tibetan or indian buddhism and chinese. Just different approaches with using the name of Buddha as symbol of enlightened state of mind

I think almost every 8PB qigong is nearly just calisthenics exercises. I have got the book on traditional bagua zhang eight pieces which had been practiced by legendary late Lui Zi Jiang (passed away at age of 119) who received Longmen Pai transmission as well. Yes, brocades look simple there too but they have some "little" distinctions. For example when you do forward strikes you should go as low as you can in your mabu stance and at the end of the strike tense your body and open eyes wide. This is not explained in most calisthenics brocades. The explanation for "wide eyes" is that eyes connected with liver and when you do this your liver is cleansed on the energy level. And there is tree stance along with brocades. But this is only first stage in energy cultivation but I think is vitally important. It is for the jing cultivation. And it is done with meditation and body points massage

Thunder magic? I think one has to go to China and LIVE there for a while and talk to monks and grandmasters and train. And only after some time you will be able to esteem more or less. Interview is nothing at all. Nice book with nice pictures too...

I have suspicion it might be medical qigong techniques with some meditation aspects... Don't forget that in contemporary China there are contemporary taoist teachers authorized by communist government.

Well, it might be good chikung indeed. But does it work with prenatal chi cultivation? I personally have tried few diff. chikung which did not benefit much and I am very aware of every method which I am offered. There are many people who use the name of Shaolin and you can't be sure what is the truth. If this chikung works with postnatal chi it can produce this chi flow but it can be not safe. And on seminar I saw few people who were very indulging in their emotions. I was talking to some people from authentic taoist sects who told me that it is not desirable to start from postnatal chi cultivation and such chi manifestations can lead to different inclinations. But it may be just their approach. I am just not sure in Shaolin Cosmos chikung lineage and what is next there. For example the taichi they teach is mix of different styles and chikung may be such mix as well. And this is not cheap.

I know this. I have Bruce Frantzis's book on Water Method breath method. This seems to be great stuff for some health benefits. But we have to be clear here. This is just some initial level of treatment and cultivation. But it is not sufficient IMO for the general well being and profound health. That is why I personally looking for more detail methods of jing cultivation. And I do continue my breath meditations. But only may be for 30 minutes a day.

But what is the benefit of this breath? I have done it for few months at least every day and I can not say I have benefited much. I do not have any serious health issue but I think I have yang def. kidney too. I am reading Olson's book as I consider to buy his DVD on Taichi Chikung for cultivating chi. As I started taichi practice. But I consider the DVD just have been mentioned above Kidney Breathing as it might be more directed to the kidney jing cultivation. I think Olson points out the prenatal and postnatal chi issue. Breath is assoc. with postnatal chi. It can give just temporary relief and yes it can cure some diseases and it can be helpful but I personally prefer more traditional authentic methods of cultivation. Which health treatment is side effect but not the goal. All this is up to you what you looking for

"Too many people practice T'achi Ch'uan with the idea that breathing low in abdomen will somehow produce chi. The practitioner might gain a little benefit from this, but will certainly not achieve what is called "bright chi", more likely a negative chi called "scorching heat" " Stuart Alve Olson "Cultivating the Ch'i"

Kidneys essence is jing. It is weakened during life. Illnesses, stress, excessive sex or masturbation, alcohol... Chikung (neikung) should help def. But I suppose chikung nourishes postnatal chi and neikung (neidan) does prenatal. Any medicine nourishes only postnatal. When you finish taking it weakness can come back if one does not change life habits.

but you have to agree with facts. and do not diagnose if you have only little knowledge on the subject. i agree that you study and this is good. but when this is about statement on somebody health issue one should be careful. hope it is clear. i am not saying i am saying the truth and i only treat carefully such subtle things. lower back pain can be caused by many diff. factors. that is why there are other factors (symptoms) listed: Did you check a patient with these symptoms? It would be true if there are few of these ones. This might be true but you have to consider other factors which I already mentioned above. First it can be just not proved theory and second psyche might needs to release some excess amount of sperm or to release the tension due to the semen retention for a long time. It depends how often it happens. And there is stated that: i understand that it is kidney issue if it happens without sex. dream. you psyche might need to release the tension. i am not sure it is better to hold it.

I can not agree with you here. Saying this you admit that if example somebody has back pain it means that diagnose is the same - kidney def. LOL. And then you as doctor put this diagnose to a man and who knows how it will affect him. May be he will get drunk and kill somebody. I stand for careful study of such subtle things. You missed some points here IMO. Even this you should consider: This is already not kidneys And But you do not bother LOL

Yeah, but you have to study it very carefully. I could not find any info that NE WITH SEX. DREAM is NOT normal. It is not normal when happens WITH NO sex. dream and along with other symptoms. Such as: http://www.acupuncture.com/Conditions/noctemission.htm