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It appears that you are playing with a stacked deck. To continually quote only the framework of Buddhism as your authority doesn't cut the mustard. The unenlightened Christians here in the Midwest (I seem to have landed right in the middle of the bible belt pocket when we moved here 5 years ago) will continually quote the bible to prove their point, their point being "only through accepting Jesus Christ as your personal savior can you reach salvation". What makes your structure any better than that of the Islamist, the Christian, the shamanic path? They all are sure they have the answer too. My personal experience (which is the only lens I can see through) is that by understanding and transcending the structure of any of the religious paths, one can see the communal overlay of the essence of Love, Forgiveness, developing a heart of kindness and mercy, and the consciousness that We are the Creator. This overlay will bring us closer to enlightenment than tightly grasping onto any of the cages. I'm pretty sure that a dream I had last night directly relates to this lengthy discussion we've been having on this thread. I dreamt that there were divers diving down into the water attaching explosives to certain things under the water and blowing them up. Obviously the water is symbolic for the subconscious and our own personal dives down into it to remove that which needs to be removed for clarity. After several explosions, there was one huge fireball of an explosion that went up into the sky. We (I had the impression that it was all of us Bums) were all sitting together in this restaurant across the street from the lake and we were all watching the fireball go up. The funny thing is that there was a path leading from the lake to the restaurant, ending at the restaurant. The path was paved by strips of duct tape, of all things. If you think of what duct tape does, it patches things together, binds that which needs binding. Is this not symbolic of separate paths finding the point of unity, the restaurant in which we all sat? I'm coming to the understanding that our dreams are the face of our Original Nature giving us clues as to what needs to be done for total liberation. Love you, Alwayson. You have been a mighty catalyst for a fabulous discussion. This thread is no accident, despite the fact that it started in The Pit as a conversation between two people about Buddahood Without Meditation and dzogchen. We just wanted to avoid the occasional drive-by shooting, and yet it is the drive-by's that have made this a tremendously lively and informative thread.

I was thinking of Ösel (tib. hod-gsal; 'od gsal), the Yoga of the Clear Light (often translated as 'Radiant Light' (Sanskrit: prabhasvara), referring to the 'intrinsic purity' (Tibetan: ka-dag) of the substratum of the 'mindstream' (Tibetan: sems-rgyud) is a sadhana found in Vajrayana and Bön centered on the state of luminous clarity. Many versions, derivatives and accretions of the sadhana are extant. Ösel is generally included amongst the Six Yogas of Naropa and its sister tradition the Six Yogas of Niguma. Ösel is also an experience of 'rigpa' the 'reflexive apperception' (Sanskrit: Svasaṃvedana, Wylie: rang rig pa) of the mindstream. In a key scholarly collaborative Nyingmapa translation work published in 2005, furthermore notable as the first complete rendering of the Bardo Thodol into the English language from the Tibetan, this technical term was configured into English as "Inner Radiance".[1] Fremantle (2001: p.199) states: Luminosity is often translated as "clear light," which is a literal rendering of the Tibetan rather than the Sanskrit. Trungpa Rinpoche did not like that term, although he did sometimes use it in his talks, which form the basis of his books, because it is so well known. He felt it had become inextricably associated with such notions as the light at the end of the tunnel in near-death experiences, and that it gave too much of an impression of ordinary, visual light, whereas what is meant is an extremely subtle concept that he thought would be conveyed better by "luminosity."[2] The original Sanskrit term, prabhāsvara,[3] has been translated as "translucent"[4] and "luminous clarity."[5] In the tradition of Namkha'i, it is held that Ösel reveals the natural luminosity of emptiness, the 'true nature of Mind' (Sanskrit: cittatva).[citation needed] Ösel is taught as one part of the six yogas of Naropa. Keown, et al. (2003) identify the Ösel or "clear light", as that by which the natural luminosity (Five Pure Lights) of emptiness (Śūnyatā) is apprehended. [7] Berzin, in the Berzin Archives Glossary, identifies the "mental continuum" (Sanskrit: citta santana) as constituted by the "clear light awareness" which is his rendering of ‘od-gsal (Wylie). Berzin defines ‘od-gsal thus: The subtlest level of mental activity (Mind), which continues with no beginning and no end, without any break, even during death and even into Buddhahood. It is individual and constitutes the mental continuum of each Being. It is naturally free of conceptual cognition, the appearance-making of true existence, and grasping for true existence, since it is more subtle than the grosser levels of mental activity with which these occur. IT is named the Light. [8] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%96sel_%28yoga%29 /// I guess that would be maybe the closest explanation of it... Relation with Taoism? // Practice Mother and child luminosities A fundamental distinction in the Dzogchen literature of 'od gsal (Wylie) is that of 'inner radiance of the ground' (Wylie: gzhi'i 'od-gsal) and the 'inner radiance of the path' (Wylie: lam-gyi 'od-gsal); otherwise known as the mother and child luminosity respectively. Fremantle (2001: p.198-9) states: The luminosity experienced in meditation is called the path luminosity, simile luminosity, or child luminosity. The true luminosity of our awakened nature is called the basic luminosity or mother luminosity; it dawns at the moment of death, and if it is recognized, the mother and the child meet and become one in liberation.[10] Patrul Rinpoche et al. (1994: p.406) define 'Clear light of the moment of the ground' (Tibetan: gzhi dus kyi 'od gsal)' as the: >>>> ...nature of the mind of all beings, pure from the beginning and spontaneously luminous; fundamental continuum (of awareness), potential of Buddhahood...It can be "introduced" by a realized master to a disciple, who then stabilizes and develops that experience through the profound practices of the Great Perfection. Ordinary beings perceive it only for a flash at the moment of death.[11] For further discussion on the 'pointing out instruction' refer Esoteric transmission. Luminous liminalities Cuevas (2003: p.63) conveys how the luminosity is significantly associated with states, portals or continuums of 'liminality' (Sanskrit: antarabhāva) such as 'completion phase meditation': "...the far-ranging tantric concept of luminosity or clear light ('od-gsal) said to be experienced briefly by all human beings at the moment of death, by advanced yogic practitioners in the highest levels of the completion phase meditation, and unceasingly by all buddhas. Interestingly, this very subtle radiance is believed also to be experienced, though rarely noticed, in more mundane moments such as fainting, sneezing, and orgasm, as well as in the first instant before and after dreaming."[12] Dream[less]work The sadhana of Ösel may subsume elements of lucid, conscious sleep without dreams and therefore may be engaged as a complement of Milam and Gyulu. Practitioner will not lose consciousness on the onset of sleep/death, but awakens instantly into the Clear Light. This state is reachable and sustainable only for advanced meditators. hmm... // In my experience celibacy make this easier to achieve... It says though rarely noticed, in more mundane moments such as fainting, sneezing, and orgasm, So if one builds that orgasmic/sexual energy such things should become more tangible? Starting to link into "how to think about sex thread" ... http://thetaobums.com/topic/31050-wwhat-is-the-best-way-to-think-about-sex/page-2 Is this description of clear light lacking yang aspect?

The best way to eat the fruit is to plant the trees yourself. It takes work and a whole lot of patience though. Similarly the truth of the Matrix was life was hard, most people dressed in rags and worked fixing machines in Zion. In nature, animals and insects often beat us to the wonderful fruit, unless you work hard to protect it. Without cultivation (spiritual and physical) you don't get abundance. There's no free lunch, even in nature. Still you can go to places where its easier to accomplish, but don't expect it to be given without hard work. You want fruit, start planting then protect and wait. Berry bushes should start providing in as little 2 years. Time, patience and protecting. Here is a blog on people who've created there Dream. Cool blog on alternative lifestyles: http://www.messynessychic.com/2013/07/26/the-real-life-waterworld-project/

Banks are a business that provides a service to us. People tend to forget this. They think, "my money will be safe in a bank." That's what I was taught as a kid. Want to save your money? Put it in a bank. But banks are a business. My family was fairly conservative and from a poor background, so we didn't get taught growing up about all of the ways you can use "finance" to grow your money. All of the things you can "invest" in. We just learn spend less than you make, spend wisely, always read the fine print, always get a second opinion, don't feel pressured to do anything, never make a decision in the heat of the moment, sleep on it for a few days. When I started to get into college and starting to spend money on my own, I didn't really get sold on a lot of extra bank features. I knew what I wanted and I just went with simple stuff. A lot of my other friends got sold the dream by their bank rep. In any case, as I learned more about business and banks, and how banks actually make their money, I took a fresh look at what banks were doing. Banks are a business, and they are looking out for THEIR interests, not yours. They are providing a service- they give you a place to store your money and access your money when you need to use it. That is what you are getting from them very simply. Everything else they do is an extension of the fact they are a business looking to make a profit. They will charge you fees for this or fees for that. They may offer to do various services to your money- make it grow faster- as long as you agree to certain terms- not being able to access it for a certain amount of time. You may be able to get different cards with different rates, different rules, different requirements, this or that. Always look at what it's giving you, but always ask yourself: what is this for profit business getting in return? Representatives at the bank are paid because they make the bank profitable. That is their job. Remember this. As with all companies, not all will play nice. Some "sales reps" may be more "strongly encouraged" than the sales reps at another bank to "close more business" (get you to sign on the dotted line). One rep might say that you need such-and-such service, but a rep down the street at another bank will tell you that you don't need the service, but instead need another. Your friend's banker uncle might tell you that you need neither, and may tell you to do something else. Or he may agree with a previous rep. The goal isn't to find someone who isn't working an angle. Because in the real world, EVERYONE has an angle (even your local Buddha- his angle is to get you to enlightenment!) The goal is to find someone working an angle that dovetails with the angle you are working (at the very least, security for your money, at the very greatest, profit for your money). Treat banks like a business.

Well let's get un-romantic and realistic, otherwise you're just going to unplug yourself from one Matrix to plug yourself in to another one. What are you studying now? Are you in school in a business program? Pre-business program? High school about to go into college? In the workforce working a shitty job? What are you doing NOW? Have you ever been to the tropics/island/beach and lived off of the fruit? Or are you just imagining how nice it would be? What happens if you get sick? Will you have access to treatment (as in, will you be in a region/country that has good medical practitioners) and will you be able to pay for it (money or insurance?)? Let's say you meet someone and have kids and start raising a family. How would you provide for them and educate them? Your hippy dippy dream might be good for you, but what about for other people? Please consider that your actions can affect others and force them into scenarios that might limit their ability to make choices down the line in their own life. My suggestion? Money is not evil. Money is a tool. You can either make money work for you can work for the money. What is it going to be? You can either run the business, or have the business run you. The law can either be on your side, or you can be on the other side of the law. The secret comes to education. If you are uneducated about money, business, government, the law, technology, etc, those things will control your life and you will not be able to choose your own destiny. Educate yourself, master these areas (or at least gain some proficiency) and make them work for you. Someone made another thread about business/sales and about how it encourages you to lower your morals. YOU determine how far you are willing to go in your own business. Don't want to be a vulture? Don't. But if you are forced to work a job for other people, you have no choice. If they say "be a vulture or you're fired," then you can either be a vulture or get fired. And if you are locked into your life because of financial/educational/business/life decisions (or lack of decisions) that keep you locked to your job, you must do what your boss says, you must lie, you must compromise yourselves, and this is how people get screwed over by their jobs. When you create independently of others, you can do whatever the hell you want. Here are your steps: 1) Get educated. If you're in school, finish. Network like crazy when you are a student. Doors are open to students that are not for non-students (internships, interviews, benefit of the doubts, lack of employment history, etc). Use that to get a job, and from there, still network like crazy. Hang out with professionals who do what you want to do, express interest, always be learning. They will see you are an interesting and intelligent person, and want to work with you and will want their friends to work with you. People will introduce you to opportunities you didn't even know existed, because you are trying to be SMART. 2) Don't be afraid of money. 3) Use your success to take vacations on the beach and not have to worry about where the next meal/paycheck/doctor's appointment is going to come from. Hey man, that nomadic lifestyles sound uber romantic and fun. But it's pretty stressful as well I've had my share of nomadic experiences and met a few nomadic folks. You always think "yeah, I'll live in nature, it will be awesome." But as soon as you notice an empty space on the floor of their living room that looks like it can fit you, someone always utters the question "hey would it be okay if I stayed here tonight?" or some such other question I don't want to be a moocher and honestly I don't want people moochin off me. But maybe that's just how I was raised by a conservative family that believed in self reliance and not asking favors of people. I get that we should all be one and share the wealth and all that good stuff... but, you know... I don't know, maybe I'm just a jerk. I like having my own place, my own money, and yes, if I want to take a vacation to the tropics, I like being able to do that without having to be a beach bum for life.

Everytime you go to sleep in deep dreamless sleep then you don't know that you exist - nor the universe exists. So consciousness remains since we wake up and say - wow I had a good sleep. We still existed in our deep dreamless sleep even though our mind was not aware of it. Consciousness is not the mind. Consciousness creates spacetime and energy-mass. So consciousness is always aware of itself but energy-mass and space-time are always transforming into different levels of awareness. So the Emptiness is not the mind's awareness but it is the direct experience of impersonal consciousness - infinite mind. The Emptiness is the space between our thoughts - or the deep dreamless sleep. Our awareness of the Emptiness is the light consciousness - like a dream state. We have different levels of our mind's awareness - just as we do so much instinctively or subconsciously without being aware of it. If we can have consciousness during our dreams then we can have even more awareness of the Emptiness - just like the very first breath on waking up - it is that first thought before actually waking up - we have conscious awareness of our dream state just at that moment. So then as there is deepening of conscious awareness of the Emptiness then we realize the Emptiness is less and less Empty and instead more and more filled with light energy that is aware of itself. To do this we have to shut off the waking left-brain language awareness with writing - and silence that mind - and then go deeper into silence that creates the dream visualization state of awareness through mind concentration at a high frequency of energy. So the Emptiness is the zero point energy in quantum physics - only we can go there directly with our minds and then it's the fundamental level of the universe that is non-local and holographic - everything is interwoven. Spring Forest Qigong Master Jim Nance calls it the fabric of life - saying that what we think of as three dimensional reality is actually one dimensional and the appearance of the three dimensions of space exist within that one dimension - this is how a holograph works. And so all the information is contained within the Emptiness like a black hole of a higher dimension that is smaller since it's higher frequency of energy. That is why the Emptiness is called a golden light of awareness that transforms all of energy-mass and space-time. We get to it deep through the heart.

Man, the fruit makes me want to go to nature maybe even back to the dawn of time but in the modern world I will stay dodging the materialism, trash and grime Walking around in the tropical wilderness picking ripe fruits to eat everyday what a romanticnotion, but how ideal is it, no way, can’t be done some say Now I see the world as an illusion just like in The Matrix the movie everything I thought was natural is fake even down to a simply smoothie My mind is changing I want to get away from my modern culture I don’t want to study business so I can learn to swindle people like a vulture I want to walk in the sand enjoying the sun and perfect health not stressing out about how broke I am and how I am not building mega wealth So what do I do, do I relocate and go somewhere hot or do I stay here in this concrete jungle, this beautifully diverse melting potI just don’t know, I’m broke and as it is I’m just getting by would I survive in the tropics, hey, I will never know if I don’t try It sure is a tempting, romantic, idealistic thought though will it ever happen, hey, you know it just might, I guess I’ll never know I’ll just continue to dream of tropical trees, fruits and the sun in the sky and sort out later all the when’s, how’s, maybe’s, what for’s and why.

Alwaysoff, I think your problem is that you fail to recognize what is actually happening. Alan Wallace gives Dzogchen retreats where he teaches the basics of shamatha, and then gives the oral transmission from Padmasambhava out loud, then leads guided meditations to enforce the teachings including awareness of awareness all the way up to loving kindess meditation. Here is a link to the retreat: http://archive.org/details/IntroductionToDzogchenRetreatWithAlanWallace2012 Here is a list of notes that I have put together from that retreat: ( I skipped 1 to 3, have to go back and do those too when time permits) 4 two guided meditations. Compares life to a dream. Mode of existence. Three mundane jewels: wealth power and fame... Valueless at death. People on retreat 5 One guided breath meditation. General talk about minor benefits of meditation, watching the breath, no breathing during cell phone- checking email, dalai lama and soft cushion on chair. 6 Talks about relaxation, stability and vividness Anti-effort The 8 concerns -abandon hinderances 7 shavasana corpse posture One silent meditation 25 min. 8 two silent sessions are skipped Talk is about questions and answers. Dissolving coarse mind during meditation. Personal identity is dissolved. Fear and get over it. Death and the substrate consciousness. Length of sitting times Background of Theravada Sleepitate 　 9 start of watching thoughts as per Dzogchen Two good guided meditations Architecture of dharmadatu rigpa, microcosm, macrocosm 　 10 wonderful visualization meditation eyes partially open Space of the mind 11 two meditations Talk about shamatha All practices have limitations Defines Dzogchen as beyond stages of generation and completion 12 silent meditation only 25 min 13 2 meditations cut off Questions and answers Substrate dissolve into Prana accumulates in heart, throat xfor dreams, etc Senses dissolve Tummo, dissolving into central channel, subtle mind, Do absolutely nothing then the winds will dissolve into the central channel and go to the heart drop but it is not easy. Path: shamatha vipassana trecko thodgal rainbow body How to check out past lives by using the substrate Remember what u had for lunch a year ago Buddhagosa 　 14 five obscurations whole path Lots on path (if you had to listen to just one, I would pick this one). 15 can't practice Dzogchen from a coarse mind, first gear One meditation silent session 16 history and commonality of rigpa, arahats science luminous bliss unborn unceasing Vidyadata unborn unceasing resting in rigpa Prajnamitra the nature of existence is clear light Franklin Merrell-Wolff There is no Buddhism in Dzogchen 17 pointing out instructions meditation 18 getting the view. Dreams clarity emptiness. First insight is often dull. A spacious path to freedom Karma Chagme. Stories about reincarnation and mundane psychic powers 19 two silent meditations Spaced out danger: Must be a flow of knowing Lucid dreaming Really excellent talk about bliss, shamatha, stability, rigpa, the progression... 20 calichakra tantra Rainbow body Stories about masters Industructible drop at the heart 21 awareness of awareness on second meditation Invert and expand awareness From padmasambhava. Book called Natural Liberation Develop introspection Do you need a guru? Relationship to the guru 22 one guided meditation on being aware of being aware Center then release and repeat 23 No meditations Question and answers Stories about rainbow body and cremation Talks about continual knowing, Vividness luminosity, subtle thoughts, Insomnia- 24 two meditations second is guided. Phase 2 of awareness of awareness. Talks about Richard Geer and reifying gurus 25. One silent session Talking starts at 26 minutes questions and answers Cultivating introspection By stage 8 you don't introspect anymore question about prayer 26 two meditations : second is guided 27 one meditation session silent Q&A location of awareness 28 Two meditations are cut Q&A Levels of practice Rumination is grasping Cat and elephant in a pool of water 29 general advice two meditations, one silent Second is "shamatha without a sign" guided -starts at 34:50 Meditation: calm mind with breath, focus awareness without an object up, then return, then right, return, left, return then take an elevator down to the heart. Then expand awareness in all directions without an object Then come back to the center. Meditation is from padmasambhava "natural liberation" Talks about death 30 loving kindness meditation

Thanks Albert : ) As most of you know I am a practitioner who is an avid disciple of the conventional JING QI SHEN route of transformation, so I am really looking forward to experiencing the method by which the essence is extracted from the JING without having to cook it. To illustrate my thinking, please consider the following: JING is not semen, but the essence of semen contributes to the complex of JING energies. The JING complex includes other energies originating from places like the Kidneys, Testicles, Prostate, Bladder, Liver etc. You may have strong sexual JING, but you may have a failing Liver or a failing Kidney and thus be in bad health. Having JING is the condition of being in general health and maintaining a system whose organs are in balance and functioning optimally. Everything is vibration. The way we and things within and without us vibrate defines how are classified and how we classify. When we gather JING in the LDT it is akin to dropping grains of rice and drops of water, one at a time, into an empty pot. When there is enough rice and water to cook in the pot, we place the mind mind/heart under the pot. The water is a necessary ingredient, because without the water we cannot extract the essence from the coarse JING. The fire of the mind/heart is a necessary ingredient because without the fire we cannot begin to heat the JING to a boil. If we perform strenuous physical activity that tolls the bodys' organs and energy reserves, then we deplete JING. By doing this we continuously scoop out some of the rice water and never get what we need to meet the requirements of this recipe. This is body celibacy. It does not just mean celibacy of the sexual activity, but celibacy of physical activity in order to maintain optimal energetic capacity in all areas, not just testosterone. If anyone has ever been on a long term water fast, you'll be familiar with the profound effects of conserving ones energy. This type of body celibacy conserves and compounds JING, but it does not necessarily refine it into QI, because energy continues to leak out of the system from other outlets preventing the JING from accumulating to max capacity. There is a saying. When the body is still it produces JING, when the breath is still it produces QI and when the mind is still it produces SHEN. One can accumulate JING, but still deplete QI. One can accumulate QI, but still deplete SHEN. And we must not forget that san bao interact with each other JING QI SHEN and SHEN QI JING. One nourishes the other, but one can also deplete the other since they are in a constant process of transmutation. One can sit still and be celibate of the body and thus accumulate JING, but can deplete QI through incorrect breathing or excessive talking. If the QI is depleted the JING and SHEN will support it and thus the JING and SHEN will also be lost. Please bear in mind that when I use the word LOST, I do not mean that capacity drops from 100 to 0, but rather a percentage is transmuted up or down the vibrational ladder in order to support the other energy and achieve balance in the body again. This means, you can still lose energy regularly, but progress, albeit slower. If JING becomes too weak, it cannot support the QI and the SHEN will disperse causing death. One can also accumulate QI faster through Qigong practices, without even being celibate, one can do so. You can have sex and practice Qigong, and you will have more QI, but the QI will also transmute downwards to support the JING and thus you will deplete the accumulated QI in order to bring the system to balance. One can absorb high vibrational energies to nourish the SHEN, yet deplete the QI and the JING with other activities and thus force the SHEN to transmute down to support them. In other words, what I'm trying to say is that a disciple with the right method, can begin and support the alchemical process from either JING or QI or SHEN. It's a delicate balancing act. The most effective practice will be that which conserves energy on all three of the planes simultaneously for maximum efficacy. You don't necessarily have to start from JING or from SHEN or from QI specifically. Each will support the other and vice-versa. Here is a little diagram on the interrelationship of the San Bao: So, the pot is filled with rice and water, what now? This RIGHT HERE, is the point at which a lot of conflict arises with different schools. If you keep filling the pot with rice, one grain at a time and with water one drop at a time, soon you will just get raw rice and water spilling up and out the pot and unto the stove and you'll make a mess. Ha, does that remind you of anything? Maybe? What's normally messy, watery and white? That's right, man juice! Millions of future babies! Keep accumulating JING and sooner or later the energy complex will reach the maximum capacity of the pot and when you go to sleep one night, you will wake up with wet pants in the morning : ) The crude, unrefined physical form of the rice and the water can only be contained so much until it starts looking for the point of least resistance to exit from. Normally that is the penis and the anus. This reminds me of a time when I was having a debate with a friend of mine whose religious practice claimed that you must not have sex for around 90 days, after which when you go to sleep, God (of all things) will come to you at night and grant you the bliss of orgasm while you sleep. A gift from God he said. SMH! All I could think to myself as a Taoist was... man.. what a waste haha. I tried to make him understand that this is a crucial phase during which he needs to practice the proper meditation methods to help refine the accumulated JING energy in order to transmute it to QI, but he screamed BLASPHEMY. GOD he said, the wet dream is GODS gift! How dare I even entertain the idea of interrupting the divine process of God coming to your bed at night and giving you a helping hand? God after all is a loving God is he not? lol : ) Fair enough. I let it be as there was too much resistance. THIS PHASE, really is crucial, because this is where the celibacy of the body reaches its peak. The JING reaches capacity. The pot is full of raw rice and water. But now we must intensify another aspect of the practice in order to bring this alchemical process to it's next step of progression. What is that? MIND celibacy. (You like that one do you Drew ) Mind celibacy is crucial. The heart mind is the element FIRE. The spirit resides in the heart and manifests through the eyes. This is why when the eyes attach to beautiful things, the heart is stirred, the spirit attaches to the desire of the visual formation and leaks out of the eyes. This is one way to deplete SHEN energy. Ok, Ok. But what does this have to do with the JING in the Lower Dan Tien that is about spill over because of the tiny pot we have down there? Well... This is what happens. The Qi follows the Mind and the heart mind is FIRE. At this time we have one imperative goal. Stop the rice and water in the pot from overflowing and making a mess. How? BY COOKING THE RICE and changing its property! Ok. So we have rice and water in a pot. What do we do now? Well, what do you normally do to make a deliciously yummy bowl of rice? - You turn the stove on and apply FIRE. Have a look at this image: Can you see the JING in the pot? It's just staying there, like our rice and water, just filling up, soon to spill over. Now, look at the heart. Can you see the fire? THAT's what we need to get our RICE and Water cooked! But, how do we get that fire down under the pot, it seems like quite a distance? Remember what I said before? - The FIRE of the spirit resides in the Heart, but manifests through the two eyes!!! Where the eyes go the fire of the heart follows and passions arise. We see something sexy and our heart beats, we see something beautiful and it skips a beat. When the eyes attach, the heart moves and the passions stir, giving birth to desire and emotions. The KEY are the EYES. That is how we get the FIRE to sit below the pot so we can get cooking! Ok, so what do we do that? Simple! Relax the eyes, look down gently with both your intention and your eyes, right under the pot, and the gaze will lead the FIRE from the heart under the pot. VOILA! You now have LI under KAN. Whats so magical bout this? It's important because, once the FIRE starts to heat the pot the WATER will begin to boil, once it boils the rice transformed and it's essence is extracted and carried up into the steam. As long as the FIRE of the heart/mind is kept under the Lower Dan Tien, the WATER will boil and the JING will not SPILL. THIS, is the crucial effect of MIND CELIBACY. Without restraining the mind, you cannot guide the FIRE of the heart, as Spirit will constantly leak out of the eyes to chase worldly images. Without Mind Celibacy, the JING will overflow and sooner or later you will make a mess. The FIRE is needed to cook the WATER and make it EVAPORATE to prevent the ingredients from spilling out of the pot. Kan needs Li to produce Qi. It is as simple as that. No Fire = Spilled JING and a waste of time. Fire = Transmuted JING into QI The process by which the fire heats the water and the water boils and transforms into STEAM or Yang QI is the process of TRANSMUTATION. JING transmutates to QI and QI transmutates to SHEN and vice versa. So what happens to the Steam we have just created? Well. It too will seek to find an outlet for release. If you do apply the mind incorrectly at this stage, the hot steam can shoot through the wrong meridians in the leg, through the Hui Yin or out of the Penis or out of the Anus or up the Central Channel or Up the Ren Mai or Up the Du Mai. So what must you do? This is debatable. You can often not do anything and the Steam will find the correct path on it's own or you can gently guide it along the right path. How do we know when the water is boiled and ready to be moved? Well, you will experience heat in the Lower Dan Tien, you will then afterwards also experience Vibration and you will then experience the sensation of movement in the LDT. Once you feel that property of movement in the LDT after the vibration occurs this means the cooked JING has began to steam up and needs to rise. At this point, you must gently use the mind to direct it down to the Hui Yin followed by the tip of the Tail bone where it can pass through the first gate and proceed up the Fire path of the Microcosmic orbit along and up the DU Meridian of the spinal chord. This is the first phase of the JING QI SHEN transformation process. What is really important here is to realize that the essence of the JING can be extracted by other methods OTHER than cooking it with FIRE in the Lower Dan Tien. It is extraction we are looking for regardless of the process. I would like to submit the theory that it may be possible to extract the essence from the JING by other methods, different than what we are used to. If we do not eat or drink or breathe our body and organs will become weak and our JING will become weakened and we will die. In other words we need YIN nourishment to support our organs in order to produce, accumulate and transmute JING along the conventional JING > QI > SHEN route. And once we have enough JING we need to use mind celibacy to transmute that JING to QI. Now.. Look at the picture again. Can you see how the arrow goes up the back, but down the front as well? Remember how I said you can start the process from any of the three treasures? Some systems rather than using Yin nourishment, absorb higher vibrational Yang nourishment from the moon, sun, stars, planets or other sources of energy which vibrate faster than JING and even QI. This type of energy nourishes and builds the SHEN, just like eating food, drinking water or breathing nourishes the JING, but there is no COOKING process required here as the energy being accumulated is already of a high vibration and does not require to move up any higher at this point. We don't have to work to build up the JING we simply let the SHEN energy naturally transmute down into QI and then into JING in the REVERSE order of transmutation. Building JING to transmute it into QI and SHEN is like picking up a rock and using physical force to throw it up into the sky. It requires more Gong. Building JING out of QI derived from SHEN, is like dropping the rock from a roof top, no force is required, you needn't throw it down. You simply let go and gravity will do the rest of the work. Jumping requires force, Falling requires that you let go. Everything that comes from the heavens and above can reach the earth without any effort. While everything on earth takes effort to reach above and into the heavens. (Heavens from a cosmological stand point not religious or spiritual) I have studied and practised the conventional method of transmutation from JING to QI to SHEN for a long time. In fact, to me it is blasphemous for someone to claim anything otherwise. Yet, how can I call myself a Taoist if I don't investigate these claims? I've received several different viewpoints that have challenged my beliefs and I'm eager to investigate them and looking forward to sharing my finds here after I put the Xiao Yao Pai system to practice.

Crude? What is crude? is that a dualist idea ? Hmm yes it is. But thats OK isnt it , having dualist ideas, like a division between form and emptiness , thats another polemic view! seems to me. In fact Taoism is rife with dualistic ideas as soon as 'one becomes Two'. Now some people take their interest way back all the way to a unity situation where they try to view everything all the same , undifferentiated , of exactly unbiased unformed purity... fine , but you cant live like that, you , the humanoid ,are not the completeness of the eternal Tao,, it is an impossible dream to successfully imitate the eternal Tao. IMO Because if one equates hot and cold , they burn up or freeze,, and ,, If they have no preference , there is nothing to direct them, they have no meaning or purpose unto themselves. again IMO ,,, In the mental stillness of meditation one can find relief though , from the stresses of having biases , and one can see the absurdity of some of their own opinions or sentiments. This aspect of unity therefore may interact with the world of polemics, neither really opposing. The amount of attention one gives to the unity idea or the polemic world varies , and thats all OK too.

Sure I'll travel. I prefer to use DMT for the time machine though. Unless you have something better? Anyone else want to come along? I have to warn you of a couple things first, make sure you are prepared for the voyage. Dimensional Elevator Similar to a terrestrial elevator, this is a small space that travelers can find themselves in, or purposefully use, which seems to rise at great speed through a multitude of higher & extra dimensional spaces. At various intervals, it opens up on a new vista or room where one can choose to get out and interact, or stay in the elevator and continue to ascend. The feeling of rising is often accompanied by a rising Carrier Wave. Carrier wave Just after a launch, travelers often hear a ringing tone or vibration somewhat resembling a carrier wave. As the ringing sensation continues one can even feel that this vibration is 'resonating in every cell of the body'. The frequency of the tone often seems to cause (or be caused by) the dissolution of the current environment, and may be a perceptual artifact of the actual raising of one's vibratory rate to levels where access to Hyperspace is possible. Sounds like a high pitched tinntinitis tone right out of the range of consensual reality hearing (maybe what a dog hears with a dog whistle) - sometimes steady state, sometimes warbling up and down, like a siren. Hyperspace Jesters: Could also be called Harlequins or fools. They truly resemble medieval jesters and harlequins... however, they are not silly or foolish in any way. They tend to be hyper-intelligent and might be the male versions of the Flirty Fairies. They have a fundamentally different nature that they are trying to show off, though. They like to show you things... objects. Often flashing Hyperspace tarot cards at you which, on their own, can impart reams of information to you when you look at them. They are similar enough to the "Machine Elves" that they could be the same species, only these guys tend to not be operating the machines... perhaps they are on break or vacation (essential nature - CRAFT). Geniuses or Genii: These guys tend to be sitting in fanciful chairs and observe you with a much more dour and reproachful manner than either of the above types. They tend to lean back with their head tilted somewhat disdainfully to the side, stroking their chin or fingering their noses slowly. If they decide they have energy for you, they will get out of their seats, and move lightning quick. Immediately appearing behind you, and wherever you turn your head or your attention, they will already be there. They seem to enjoy demonstrating how pathetic you are, and often answer your questions before you even ask them. Very humbling. Though they don't have horns necessarily, and are usually neon rainbow opalizing on ebony, rather than red... they do have something in common with popular conceptions of devils or "the devil." They are far more genteel than the above two types (essential nature - GUILE & LOGIC). Circus Ringleaders: Not at all aloof like the Genii, these guys are all about showmanship. They are very much like the archetypal circus ringleader... often with coat and tails and a ridiculously cool top hat to boot. They may even have a baton, wand or fancy cane they use to direct your attention to one or another of Hyperspace's awesome vistas or announce a show being put on for your entertainment. They are shamelessly promotional, but like the other natives of Hyperspace... they are also hyper-intelligent, telepathic, and frankly miraculous. If you are treated to a performance with a ringleader to help you take in the 3 ring (10 ring x 10 dimensions more likely) show, sit back and be ready to be amazed. (essential nature - ENTERTAINMENT & SHOWMANSHIP) Morphos: This class of beings tend to have fairly unstable forms and can rise and subside out of the Jim Jam like waves. They are aware, though... and are capable of solidifying into phantastic phorms if they so choose. These forms are often straight out of mythology only far more colorful and multi-dimensional. Here you find dragons, tritons, sphinx, harpies, roc, phoenix, mock turtles, jabberwocky, minotaur, dryads, quetzelcoatl, yeti, octopii etc. There are no limits to what might crest out of the Jim Jam and sail past you... They tend to have vast awareness and consciousnesses that contain peculiar and unique gems of wisdom (essential nature - GUIDANCE & WISDOM). Plant & Object Devas: The Devas are living, often hyper-intelligent, beings that often resemble plants or objects more than they do what we might normally recognize as sentient beings. They can be very helpful and are always interesting to observe as they unfold, wiggle, transform & flower. An interesting note is that if they do unfold entirely for you, they seem to have erogenous zones like pistils and stamen which can experience something akin to orgasm. Due to the telepathy inherent in hyperspatial contacts, the traveler is able to experience some of this cosmic ecstasy as well. (essential nature - MYSTERIES & ECSTASY) Extra-Dimensional Beings that don't live in Hyperspace In addition to Hyperspatial Beings, there are beings that one can perceive by peeking out of Hyperspace and into other tangential realms. Sometimes it is akin to peeking out of mirrors in the Hyperspace "Hallways Of Always" and into other real places with entities who don't live in Hyperspace per se. Other times, it is more like a high speed elevator that stops at various dimensional "floors" where the doors open, and you can pop out and interact with the denezins for a period of time (often very short) before the door closes and you rocket up to even higher levels. The myriad sorts of beings that one encounters this way are too vast to even attempt classification, but some of the ones that seem easiest to encounter are: Dream Wizards Dream Wizards: These guys tend to be classic Gandalf types with far more trippy and cool robes. They inhabit monasteries, castles, and even Roger Dean-ish cities. They tend to ignore you, but might deign to give you a slight indication that they are aware of you. The most intelligent human being of all time is a rank idiot next to them. Gods & Goddesses Gods & Goddesses: These beings actually do resemble various cultural archetypal godheads. There are Hindu, Egyptian, Mayan, Celtic, African and plenty of un-recognizable types. They tend to be more sci-fi than you would imagine them from only reading sacred books. They are capable of taking a keen interest in you, and despite being oceanic in comparison to the Genii or the Wizards... they don't usually judge you, but rather have a kind-of infinite compassion... although you can't always count on that. They are of different temperments and personalities, and it is rare to see more than one of them on any given journey. Elementals Aliens: While all of these beings are technically aliens, these guys strike you immediately as being alien. They are so different from us as to be outside of our myths, or at least their minds feel far more foreign than other sorts of entities you encounter. Often you come to them in their own realms when you pop out on the other side of a Hyperspace journey. Equally often, they might come to you. They are generally not as scary as they look, but more interested in studying how far we humans have come. These guys include the insectoids (like the Praying Mantis), the reptilians (of various sorts), and more amorphous and nebulous intelligences. Hehe sorry couldn't help it. And I was only kidding no I don't want to travel I have too much work and cultivation to do right here on Earth.

It'd be more impressive coming from an engineer or actual scientist. Just watching TV and movies doesn't cut it. Stargate & Star Wars are a piss poor substitutes for actual scientific inquiry and study. They may spark an interest, but anyone can watch a movie and dream of being a Jedi or finding a portal in the desert. Science is hard. It takes study, from real books by experts in there field. Its not watching a movie or surfing the net for the juicy distraction du jour. If you want to traverse the universe then turn on Dr. Who. If you want science go to a university, talk to a professor, enroll or audit a class. You can even take courses on the internet. No aliens to fight, but you can take baby steps into understanding why your computer works, the sun shines, and myriad life forms living inside you.

The moment we try to turn the Tao into a 'thing that exists' we create the concept of something that 'isn't the Tao'...and then we get into a muddle because the tao is meant to be the ultimate category that contains everything. The Tao can only be understood with our spiritual wisdom. We must know it in a whole other way, a way that can't be talked about. How do we know if we know it? Here is how... The knower of the Tao knows that he is not a mortal being who can suffer death or misfortune. He knows with absolute conviction that misfortune is just a transient dream, that in a second passes away into nothingness. He is therefore confident. Everything that happens is fine by him. He trusts exactly what is before him and rejects nothing. It does not occur to him to call anything good or bad, he therefore does not dwell on whether things are of the Tao or not of the Tao. Because he does not question he does not deviate from anything. All is accepted, even his non-acceptance. The average man thinks that to call things bad suggests a non-accepting attitude. He therefore thinks himself bad for thinking things bad, and goes round in circles. Only when we spiritually realise that we are not the thinker thinking these things can we truly accept all that comes our way. Until we make that realisation we cannot help but distrust certain aspects of our existence. If we are totally under the illusion that we are mortal, and buy into all the ideas about what is good and bad for mortals, then we will distrust. To distrust some things and to trust in others is what the sages call being far from the way...but as it is through the pain of distrust that we learn the truth about ourselves then to be far from the way is to be squarely on it. I hope this makes sense. For what its worth, the paradox over what is or isn't the Tao is an incredibly fruitful philosophical exercise, and even if it feels like you go round in circles, you will know when you have solved it for yourself. And you have to solve it for yourself, because the spiritual realisation needed to solves the question has to come from you. best wishes

Lotta food for thought here. <So much so I put in in my Best of Tao Bums log> On one hand its 'feels' right for me to state 'The world is real' is more valid then 'The world is a dream'. Still the world is a dream is very useful concept. As events move further from my sphere of influence so that I have no Real factual first hand knowledge of what has happened, it is to some extent as fictional as a made up story. A very transcendentalist viewpoint. That's probably not the point you're getting at. Just a flavor I'm chewing on right now.

Hi Stosh The philosopher doesn't transcend the world. He transcends the concept 'world'. The philosopher discovers that 'the world' is a kind of one-sided opinion...and that it is equally true to say that there is no world. Just as the coffee cup is not intrinsically right-handed, things and events in the world are not intrinsically real. The world both does and does not exist in the same way as things can be both left and right handed. The philosopher has the flexibility to take the world as real or as a dream. Both are valid appraisals and he will find himself switching between them as appropriate. He sails through life skilfully because he has options. The ignorant person has no options when the world lets him down. Misfortune is misfortune, no two ways about it. But the philosopher can enjoy good fortune as being real and tangible, and then disregard misfortune as a mere meaningless trifle. He is able to make every situation a winning situation. You say that "I as an individual have an existence". Well, guess what... I say there's another side to this coin: you as an individual do not exist. East and West, the best philosophical argument to illustrate this point I have encountered is Buddha's teaching on impermanence. It's a breathtakingly radical argument that goes widely misunderstood, perhaps because most don't realise just how deep it goes. If you want to talk more about this we can do so. Best wishes

... from where I am laying in bed, I'm not getting up. Convenience has become an addiction, a source of desire even. We do things in our daily lives that we think nothing of, take for granted, and rely on so heavily that alternatives are not only unthought of, but virtually inconceivable! How many Americans can consider tomorrow without any combustion engines? I cant imagine most of us here on the bums can even do it! It is because convenience has grown on us, like a parasite, and we're the host. Convenience is what keeps us trapped in this dream world, reinforcing its hold by preying on our fears and our ego's irrationality. "wash rinse repeat" caters to the irrationality of the ego. indoor plumbing caters to the convenience factor. So the fear of losing our daily showers locks us in place. How hard it would be to get washed up in the wild with no running water or heating! SCARY THOUGHT! And it traps you in convenience, convinces you to stop thinking and go back to sleep. you don't need to get up right now anyways, it's convenient enough, you'll do it when you want: That's why I have to hide my alarm clock from myself, otherwise, it's too convenient to shut it off and go back to sleep.

I have a book "Tibetan Book of Dream Yoga" Also another one I gave away after I read it about "positive thinking and tibetan buddhism" By Tibetan masters, You may tell me according to your perception they are not masters, but whatever they have 30 years experience, since a child. They say Buddhism came to the region and the empire/country was trying to make the country buddhist, but they made it more integrated with the previous religion of Bon. Well shamanism is a lot older than religion is so it make sense to me.

I wonder if anyone will venture into Detroit for those incentives? there was a time when many left the hills here to go find their American dream in Detroit,,,, seems long ago now

I have Wonders of the Natural Mind, The Tibetan Yogas Of Dream And Sleep, and Healing with Form, Energy and Light. I read them a few years ago. Would do me well to read them again as I didn't understand most of stuff in them back then as I had limited experience with meditation.

Hi TJL I think your statements are confusing and indicative that you don't have a clue. You ask where the Infinite Universes are and then you ask "Where are they when you still the mind?" ? ? ? If you knew how to still the mind, you would have become omniscient. Were you to experience omniscience, you would have realized that there are infinite universes, beings, planes etc. In your other post, you speak of clarity: http://thetaobums.com/topic/30749-bias-against-new-age/?p=460094 Clarity does not produce a 'holistic and healthy existence and environment'. Nisargadatta died of throat cancer. Buddha died from eating bad pork. And we all know how Jesus died. Or perhaps your kind of clarity is not the real thing? There are teachings, Buddhist teachings which talk about the illumined clarity of enlightenment. Your 'clarity' seems to have the purpose of rearranging samsara into a palatable dining experience whereas true clarity reveals that there is no difference between nirvana and samsara. It is fun posing as an enlightened being, isn't it? Throw out a few concepts like "still the mind" and "clarity" and before you know it you might even convince youreself of your own deceptions. Sorry to sound so blunt, but I dislike posers and deceivers, and I think you are just posing. From "Buddhahood Without Meditation" by Dudjom Lingpa: So, according to Dujom Lingpa, maker of 13 students whom all attained rainbow body, clarity knows no difference between samsara and nirvana. There is no reason to construct a "a holistic and healthy existence and environment". Therefore, well you can see where that takes you. And then, Dudjom Lingpa writes that attaining timeless awareness is attaining 'omniscience'. Do you even know what that means? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omniscience Omniscience /ɒmˈnɪʃəns/,[1] mainly in religion, is the capacity to know everything that there is to know. In particular, Hinduism and the Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam) believe that there is a divine being who is omniscient. An omniscient point-of-view, in writing, is to know everything that can be known about a character, including past history, thoughts, feelings, etc. In Latin, omnis means "all" and sciens means "knowing". Life is just a display, an illusion, a dream. Comprende'?

Ribbit..RIbbit Should write something here. Or should I? I like heart writing, writing in a poetic, musical way. So yeh. Did a lot of memory healing recently.. Like 50 memories, started out with making a painting or plan for a painting which I havent properly drawn until now, and it set the stage for doing lots of healing work for money. I walk around trees and do spontaneous movements, communicating with the tree, receiving guidance, asking questions. One day I started spontaneously doing prayers all about money for about half an hour. "I pray that all known and unknown negative images, beliefs and destructive cellular memories relating to xyz be found out opened up and healed by filling me with the love, life and light of god, I also pray that the effective of this healing be increased by 100x or more" So I started the beggining of that prayer and found myself channeling or speaking without exact delibarate thought the perfect prayer for my weaknesses. Beliefs that are bad for money- basically- Being poor is noble, virtous, kind, spiritual, Being rich means your greedy, corrupt, have no challenges, arragant, always stressed, hated, i cant make rich friends, money doesnt come to me easily, I hate money, money is the root of all evil, rich people are materialistic etc etc one can use their own intuition to come to their own conclusions. If one has 30 beliefs about money which cause scarcity and these rate a scale of 9 out of 10 in intensity, if one reduces the intensity to a two and implants positive beliefs to stop the negative from forming, it is almost guaranteed to strongly affect behaviour, and actions and manifestations. Its not magic, its science Imo. That morning like 2 hours later, my mum tells me that my nan left £1000 for me she passed away a while ago, and Ill get that soon, Im looking to go to mexico soon (very illogical urge) anyways, I also found very cheap flights, and came to realise I could use couchsurfing for a few weeks until Im sorted. Anyways, I used the prayers to find out past life memories related to being cheated as clarity mentioned, or poverty and wrote them down on a piece of paper. I go through them 1 by 1 and tap on them, sometimes this memory is related to 5 other ones, and those other ones are very connected to other weaknesses I have, I also gain immense wisdom and insight from this practice, imagine if there are extraterrestrials who live for 900 years, do you think it would be a big deal for them to spend a few years going over these kind of things to make them have immense wisdom and power. I dont even want more power at the moment, I have enough I feel (possibly) wisdom is a greater aim, and compassion. Also the more I tap on these memories the more insight I gain, Im pretty sure I realise some memories which are coming from extraterrestrial lifes, insectoids, reptilian, grey, tall grey, etc etc, also memories of being planets/gods, these are hazy, but still they come up, its what buddha said right? I havent really tapped on animal memories but occasionally interesting stuff comes up in dreams, had my first proper lucid dream after doing 6 hours of memory healing one day, where I could just watch tv programs of peoples lives, and change into goku etc was pretty amazing, I never even believed lucid dreaming was real. While I was going through these memories I did really come to my conclusions that life really is suffering, and enlightenment is really a noble goal, because even the god realm creates much karma, but I do not feel this way now, I wonder which of these ideas is more accurate. Also I realised some stuff comes from ancestors, I specifically realised memories eg fear of being beaten, told what to do, coming from both lines of ancestors, and removed their memories for them. So anyways, I ended up going to one entrepreneur meeting, after randomly adding a friends, friend on facebook my intuition told me to speak to, something I dont feel would happen so easy if I wasnt energetically stronger for money or abundance. The next day I fasted for one day, made my energy more natural, and was about to paint a tree and receive guidance, but ended up getting a great idea, Im still planning how to use it, did some more memory healing. I think removing blocks/weeds is great but also it can be good to be a little positive because dwelling on removing the negative is leaning towards the negative so for example watching a short visual video on abundance is quite nice. Also when it comes to changing behaviour/memories, the feelings or intensity of the feelings drop, but ones habits, and reactions and mind may bring up the intensity of the feelings again, if one is not aware, so good to use the yuen method and be watchful of what happens during the change process, change is not linear, it goes up then stagnates, then down, then up, most of the time which is a slow process. But has to happen this way. Went to a psychometry/remote viewing workshop my friend gave me as a birthday gift, and it was exciting to know that my accuracy of what was in the envelope of certain pictures was sometimes 60-80% correct. This was amazing to know whats in a piece of paper to such accuracy...eg a plate with chopped oranges in the middle and salad, I guessed a big orange, and plants, or a golden mustang, I guessed, wolf, moon, sun, golden, thunder, or a cemetary, sleepy, pillow, calm, bed, etc etc. I dont think Im bragging/I try not to, although in some ways its natural and part of yin and yang cycles so shouldnt repress too much, but it kind of shows that these things Im talking about are not completely out of touch with reality, talking to trees, spirits, past lives etc etc Anyways also I dont know still channeling, I kind of finished 155 days retention or my attempts at it. I wouldnt call it semen retention since I had a fair amount of wet dreams, but I had a strong attempt at no porn/orgasm/masturbation. I had a message, kept occuring about making a painting with naked sexy women in so I did this today, and this seemed to temporarily finish this particular challenge hahah how funny, also bad eating habits passed few days, anyways, I realised that the energy from retaining is what allowed me to delete weaknesses so easily. I dont even do Qigong anymore barely just walk in the park, and delete some weaknesses here and there, sure I may do some more qigong and plan to, but its interesting I used to do hours and hours a day, with retention it is the energy, one just becomes godlike (for lack of humble reference) and zaps away their weaknesses and beliefs, reducing the intensity of feelings. But it can also be a little bit of a drug, since ones so pumped with energy, one doesnt see their weaknesses so much, but if ones not, one gets stressed a little easier (perhaps a belief there) but in a way it can be equally helpful to not retain. Ive been doing healing about not struggling and work, and just like an argument, anything that causes me to go weak. yh I would also say while I respect all people with very high intuition, I would never give away all my faculties to their intuition, I have had a few people predict things for me, that havent come true and were not pleasant predictions, or if they make a faulty prediction, they will tell me that it wasnt faulty because of xyz to justify themself and keep their ego in check, basically I am saying do not give away all your power or life plans (unless you really want to) someone having high intuition is great, but it does not make them a god, even spirits do not seem to know everything, just give their own suggestions based on who they seem to be.

Hi TJL Let us scrutinize the belief and 'knowledge' that you hold as 'true'. You say that the "the Universal constant is change", or it is the old saying that "Nothing is permanent except change". If it were true that "Nothing is permanent except change" then the axiom that "Nothing is permanent except change" would itselft be subject to the same truth and therefore, would change. The snake bites its own tail. When that axiom changes, it might produce truths like "Some things are permanent and some things change". Or perhaps "All things are permanent". Is that enough of a change to support that false truth? Yet you say that "the Universal constant is change" is "accurate". Then, you claim that the "absence of change is stagnation, death..." I can think of a few things that are permanent: - The mathematical formula 1 + 1 = 2. It will never change. It is pure and permanent. - The Buddhists claim that we have an indestructible drop in the heart, which carries on from life to life. "Indestructible" in my vocabulary means that it is imutable, incapable of being destroyed or changed. - Many spiritual teachers proclaim that awareness/emptiness, the cognizant luminous 'space' that we are was never born and will never die. Is not something that is never born and will never die permanent? According to your belief system, "The Universe/Cosmos has not yet finished creating itself". How do you know this? If, as Buddhists proclaim, everything is empty because of dependant origination, and that everything derives from a dependancy, then that dependancy is the formula for realizing that the future is predictable. Everything, all events are just predictable logical progressions, including thoughts, feelings, sensations... What if everything was permanent, past, present, future and it is just us who are knowing the story, the dream in a sequential construct which makes it seem like it is moving and real, but in fact, all is already written in stone. Perhaps we are just needles on the phonograph record, resonating with whatever position in the groove we happen to be in, yet, the whole record has already been set. Something to think about. TI

Greetings.. It's not either/or, new age vs traditional, right/wrong.. it's about finding the clarity to see/experience what is actually happening, rather than what is thought/believed to be happening.. Life in not a dream, dreams are dreams and Life is Life.. some of the problems in Life are sourced from misuse of language, redefining words to mean what we want them to mean, and failure to honestly scrutinize the beliefs and knowledge we hold as 'true'.. The Universe/Cosmos has not yet finished creating itself or discovering its potential to do so, so it is irrational to assume that any 'truth' is immutable.. some wise person once accurately observed that "the Universal constant is change", and it is my experience that the absence of change is stagnation, death.. Knowledge and belief are the lenses through which what is actually happening is seen/experienced.. if, and it is very likely, you have been conditioned by the socio-religious processes to see and experience within a context designed to perpetuate those socio-religious processes, it is essential that you find the clarity to see/experience reality.. if you cannot see/experience what 'is', it is not possible to understand your relationship with what 'is', or to navigate through the deceptions and illusions that are designed to separate you from that clarity.. If we are distracted by labels like right/wrong, new-age vs traditional, either/or, we will not be paying attention to what is actually happening.. i find elements of workable understanding in almost every perspective, but i couldn't if i was attached to 'this' or 'that'.. at some point, if you are honestly pursuing reality, it becomes necessary to let go of all beliefs and knowings, to allow what is actually happening to reveal itself independent of the prior socio-religious conditionings.. That which remains consistently present after we no longer believe in it, after we have exhausted all efforts to disprove it, and which maintains a reasonable and plausible working relationship with what is actually happening, is worthy of consideration as something 'understood' to be valid within the current context of human consciousness.. speculation and 'stories about' what is directly experienced distort clarity and create ambiguity for those seeking their own authenticity and clarity.. Still the mind's active thinking processes, so that beliefs and knowings do not distort what is experienced, in this way labels like 'new-age' and 'traditional', and 'truth' do not influence the experience.. no evaluation or analysis is valid if it begins with distorted data or conditioned beliefs.. Be well..

A knife made out of synthetic diamond that has a synthetic ruby laser (or whatever gem that creates the most intense heat with charge + electronics) in the handle with a huge burst of power that can be activated when needed to shoot the laser from the knife. lol This is no teen dream the technology exists nowadays to create such a weapon. You may ask why i want to create new weapons - I want to destroy old weapons. No guns! We should become sword/knife/staff/etc. masters! Outlaw guns, only use hand weapons.. Crazy stuff. Not talking about killing people, but instead re-shape military to become less explosive and more ninja-like. Less people will die in wars if everyone adopts my philosophy. Also, people will become healthier and more skilled in ninjitsu/gongfu/etc. and we will all be cooler people.... It will never happen unless I am elected as the World President.. Vote for me!

Hi MPG Well if you can't get past the superficial empirical level at which you stuck, perhaps there is no point in talking to you. Sarcasm never goes over well in written words. Judging by your statement "What you believe about reality in no way affects how reality behaves or actually is." I guess you have never heard about the double slit electron experiment, where it is said that the very act of observing the path of the electron alters its path. We are inextricably bound to our realities, there is no separate reality from us. Pehaps one day science will ketchup. But to answer your question: "How does a realization help you change the situation you are in?" When you finally realize that you are dreaming you can do several things: You can wake up, or you can remain in the dream and start flying around, you can marvel at the clarity and brightness, you can walk through walls, you can make things appear, like flowers or scary animals, you come to realize that you are the creator in your dream and you can create anything you'd like. Life is a dream. Some people have woken up. They woke up by learning to unlock the secrets of the heart through the acquisition of knowledge and insight. TI