Rara

Then some call his path false and misleading haha. Just an example of Buddhist squabbling. What do we expect? Another religion with schisms just like all the rest! We all have them. I just shut my mouth and get on with it.

I think we are on the same wavelength. It's just so hard to describe with words!

Oh definitely, I have only ever cooled situations before they have reached boiling point ever since I've been practicing. But this reptile brain that we are not even conscious of. It can be quite a vicious thing. Just because we are not consciously getting angry (as we have been cultivating conscious calmness) there is something in us that instinctively needs to neutralise someone if need be. For me, violence is still associated with anger in some way. But I don't want this anger to be confused with the bar-brawl anger, or petty anger...

Sure. Now what I meant was that those that practice, say a hard martial art, need to be conditioned to apply a necessary level of intent into hurting someone. There is no other way to put it...to defend ones self, a fair amount of pain needs to be inflicted. I don't necessarily say it is anger nor aggression, but the mindset is hardly amused and happy...even if we are relaxed when fighting! My question is, does this have a name?

Yes! I once said that here in England, sometimes I meet the perfect Taoist...who's never consciously practiced a Taoist art. If anything, I would say that a religious or ritualistic is necessary for those that have drifted too far away from the Tao. I took up martial arts, meditation and reading of Taoist texts as a therapy. Some others don't need the therapy.

This is the sort of answer that I was expecting/hoping for. I'm actually quite surprised that no one has stepped in to talk about anything magical! Explains a lot why smoking is no good for a cultivator haha. I still have one every now and then in the week and say to myself, "it's ok, at least I will focus more on my breathing most of the time unlike chain smokers". While I see this as damage limitiation, I would much prefer to probably not have to cultivate any more energy than I should have to. I guess it's like hitting myself in the head in order to heal it for fun lol. A bit sadistic looking at it like that! As for cell respiration, I will revise that. Biology was never my strong point in school so I have forgotten a lot of details!

One that has consciously decided to make holistic improvement to themselves by studying and practicing Taoist teachings. I left Christianity because of in-fighting. Someone that goes to church and devotes more time to God is supoosedly better than one that doesn't. I feel that a Taoist doesn't care what others do because they are cultivating themselves. A teacher can always advise, but it doesn't affect them either way if the student succeeds or fails. For example, I'm a kung fu practitioner. Whether I choose to train once a day or once a week doesn't change the label!

So we can cultivate chi (breath) from breathing... Cultivate chi (energy) from eating and sleeping well... (As you can tell, recently, I have been obsessed with getting my concepts correct from translations...I will explain more later. There is a part 2 to this thread coming!)

Interestingly for me, I've seen some warped "Buddhist" head-game warfare...but of course, this all depends on our different experiences and perspectives. Obviously, I've seen it in "Taoisim" too, well, mainly on the internet. Which I take with a pinch of salt. I've Googled and found "real" Buddhas, saints, Jesuses - you name it, they're there. Lol. So I don't think much to "isms", or organised religions of any sort for that matter. FYI, I'm really not fussed about lineages. I walk in to wherever, take what I need, give back what is required then go on my merry way. That's everywhere I go in life. The moment we start stressing about who's lineage and path is best, is the moment we lose Tao for ourselves.

Ok...but what about those with lesser survival instinct? Not all of us manage to pull it out the bag when we need it the most...

Really??

Yeah. The troubles of turning life into a business. *Sighs*

Oh, and that

I've been practicing five years and I still f*** and watch footy.

Yes I found that. Adolescence hehe. The rest of us keep quiet and don't engage. Just ignore those convos

I've had a chat to my Kung Fu teacher about this. If we need to remain calm, yet fight with intent, can we call this anger? What is the difference? It takes some sort of assertiveness to attack, that can be likened to anger. Happiness won't let you hit someone in a self-defence situation. Maybe it's not anger...but the feeling cannot be spoken...

I used to feel guilty for having expectations in the early years of cultuvation. Nowadays, I let myself have them. Even big ones. Dreams and aspirations... The key is, if you start seeing it making you miserable if you don't achieve, then catch it early and take a step back.

The metaphorical way of putting it, right?

I was an angry guy up until 3 years ago. By that I mean, whenever I got angry, I would smash stuff. Taoism (and Buddhism) has helped me to see when I am angry. If I see it first, I can do something about it. Now I am at a level where I can comfortably express it in a "rant". I make a comedy of it...or if something's really bothering me to the point of boiling, I can catch, accept that I'm angry and accept that it will pass. It took a hell of a lot of practice. So yeah, we're still human

Hi all, Those that have read my posts before may be aware that I began meditating due to chronic anxiety and insomnia. Although overall my condition has improved, I notice it comes back in waves. I am going through a change right now with promising yet risky career prospects on the horizon. With this, and Christmas coming up (my parents and siblings are totally disbanded which is sad and difficult for me as I'm therefore responsible for keeping three different branches happy) I know this will be causing it. The interesting thing is, when I shut my eyes at night, I am not conscious of what is causing my anxiety and insomnia. I can be relaxed, and mindful of my breathing, yet my mind is screaming all sorts of things and being very disruptive. Like I say, all sorts of things...nothing particularly related to something I am consciously worried about. That is the background anyway. I don't expect any answers but the context might help people understand where I'm coming from with the next part...my question: ------ So anyway, I am practicing breathing into the Dan Tien. I find that anything else is too advanced for me and I need to return to basic breathing practice. I have noticed that I am doing this successfully, and can gain peace from my motor-mind. However, I also notice accelerating heart-rate. Again, no idea what is causing it, something completely subconscious. But I will sit, and feel good about being sat in meditation, but slightly weirded out by my heart panicking by itself. Is anybody able to give me an insight into what is going on? Thanks in advance.

Thank you I've been quite good, cutting down on my exposure to negative/angry people (forums, media), handling family in small doses haha. Generally, I don't drink much alcohol and quit coffee years and years ago...that said, I notice I have broken that rule recently and had the "odd one". Sugar. Ok, guilty haha. I noticed how playing high intensity computer games was not doing me any favours at night so am mindful of that. Intense career, then intense "down time" is no good. Anyway, two nights ago, I awoke at half 2! I didn't get back to sleep but just breathed calmly, despite all sorts if anxieties flying around, then I got up at half 6 and did a full day of work. Last night, I managed to sit down, watch wrestling on TV with a friend, have a laugh, go to bed at 10, fall asleep at 11 and get 7 hours! Laughter is a great medicine. Where can I find your article?

I couldn't agree more. I've been participating in studies of Zhuangzi on this forum and have learnt so much this year about how semantics make a very big difference in what is actually being portrayed. And if translations differ, what are the chances that anyone with just the English translations have got an accurate grasp on the lessons? Hopefully one day I will, but for now, having access to this, TTC, Zhuangzi, Art of War (all English translations) and Tao of Pooh is serving me well. Chi Dragon on this forum has helped me out quite a lot with things that I may be misinterpreting from my English translations

Wow. I think I've had a "eureka!" moment! Haha. What causes urgency? Panic? Adrenaline? Anxiety? Anger? Paranioa? Being too immersed in the moment. Tunnel vision. Works just fine if you're "winning" your game of football, but we can all get over-excited if we're not careful. And if we're too focused on something negative, we can end up with the above list. Like focusing on your partner intensely to make sure she doesn't cheat...only to find that because you're in the tunnel, it creates the anxiety and paranioa that she's cheating. Meanwhile, she's shopping with girlfriends then popping to her mum's for a cup of tea. Interesting. Contemplation is a big part of meditation, and in times of stress, I seem to forget this and try too hard to find the breath. Trying too hard. After all, I'm absolutey fine when under no stress, so naturally relaxed. I guess it's time for some fine-tuning during this current period of change! If there's a lot on my mind, acknowledge it. Focus on my breath and listen to the noise that is yelling at me in the mind. Don't react, just listen. So this "pressure" that I'm under is a good test for me, and good practice for my cultivation Keep it simple I guess. Just keep calm and carry on. Lol.

Would I be right in descibing this as a sort of "focusing using peripherals?" i.e Having a central focal point, like the breath while not shutting off feeling/listening to the rest of the body? What I think you are saying, is that I could have been doing a meditative equivalent of fixing my eyes to the TV screen trying desparately to ingnore the background noise... That appears to be the case if I've been under some stress. This makes a lot of sense...and it's like a feedback loop when it gets going. What came first, the chicken or the egg? Or in this case, the intense focus (i.e on strategic career moves, family affairs etc) or the anxiety? They seem to feed each other, if I'm anxious or have adrenaline, then the tunnel vision arrives...and if I'm too much in the tunnel, it's hard to escape with the mind going 100 mph. The mind just wants to say "stop trying to drown me out while I'm focusing" and becomes anxious because it isn't getting its own way (desire?)

Haha thanks, but I don't think I will be able to keep up!