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Dear Dao Bums, I'll do this in 4 parts: Intro Practices and personal experiences Conclusion on practice Questions for you Intro Last night I finally managed 3 lucid dreams in a row!!! I am over the moon I've been wanting to lucid dream since I was a teenager. I've gone to several tibetan buddhist workshops with renowned dream yoga lamas, read more than 3 books, watched countless interviews and read countless accounts online. Furthermore, I've been practicing daoist sleeping qigong for more than 4 years (not daily, but in practice cycles). I never felt I got anything from it! It only disturbed my sleep! I had 2 lucid dreams as a teenager. I knew I was dreaming, I knew it was all a dream, yet I could neither control myself nor the dream. This was with buddhist dream yoga and "western scientific" lucid dream (setting an intention, getting up during the night to reset intention etc). In my twenties I managed 3 lucid dreams, when I started to seriously meditate and dream journal. It was simply a byproduct. Here I could not control the environment, but I knew I was dreaming, and I could control myself. For the past 2 weeks I remembered my almost life long desire to lucid dream, and decided to give it a go again Practices and personal experiences What I've been doing buddhist wise is the purification breathing before sleep, visualising a red flower in the throat chakra, chanting the syllables of each petal and also visualising them (Om Ah Nu Ta Ra). None of it gave me anything. Daoist sleeping qigong, I learnt from master Wu. There are 2 sleeping positions, flat on the back with a mudra on your navel, and on your side with one hand on the navel and the other holding a mudra on your ear. You then visualise certain things. No matter how much I tried it, it has only been about 5 or 6 times I felt better sleep from it. All the other times, it simply feels like a qigong. You can feel the qi and blood circulating in your body. There was only 2 times in a particular retreat, where he shared 2 new visualisations he never shared before, that on the first night with the first visualisation, something really happened, and the second night with the second visualisation, I got really deep and restful sleep immediately. However, after I got back home and continued the practice, it didn't have the same effect. Lastly, the past 2 weeks, I gave it a go again with tibetan buddhist practices.... And last night it paid off!! The game changer for me was a bön method from Dr Nida Chenagtsang (I got it from his book "tibetan art of dream analysis"). It's a 5 step visualisation before sleep. This was what allowed me to finally experience lucid dreaming! And it was awesome! I was aware I was dreaming, I could control myself and the environment. It was super dope Conclusion on practice I feel there are 3 things which led to me finally experience lucid dreaming: 1) pure and open channels and energy centers (after 9 years of daily meditation and 7 years of daily qigong, now adding 14 days of daily tibetan practice, finally opened my channels and centers sufficiently) 2) sufficiently strong energy (I could actually feel that in the 3rd dream, the environment was a bit less responsive to my desired changes, I think the reason is that it actually takes some energy to control the dream) 3) I finally accumulated sufficient good karma (never hurt yourself or others, physically or mentally, help alleviate the suffering of others when you can, love and forgive) The tibetan practices I did for the last 14 days were: 9 purification breaths, breath holding meditation from the first steps of karma mudra meditation (the non sexual ones) and the bön visualisation before sleeping. Questions for you Would you like to share your experiences? 1) How did you get to be able to lucid dream? 2) Which practices did you follow, and for how long? 3) What do you do, during lucid dreams? 4) What are your greatest "pro tips" for lucid dreaming? 5) Anything you would like to add on the subject of lucid dreaming? May you all be blessed!

Dear Dao Bums, Qigong and astral travel... Let me ask you some questions 1) Have you astral travelled? If yes, could you elaborate how you got to be able to do that, as well as share some experiences 2) Do you know any trustworthy stories (about friends, teachers etc) about astral travel? If so, please share 3) Do you know any qigong or meditation methods for astral travelling you could share? 4) Do you know any qigong or meditation teachers (trustworthy and authentic) who teach astral travel? Let me share some of my own answers to the above questions a) I'll start with SKY (simplified kundalini yoga). b ) After, I'll share about my sexual qigong and daoist lovemaking teacher. c) Then, I'll share from my indian-village-mountain-cave-yogi guru, who has a student who has shared stories about "sukshma sharir ki yatra" (subtle body travel or subtle body pilgrimage). d) Subsequently, I'll share the story of a white, atheist european boy, who accidentally got the power of astral travel through tibetan buddhist mandala visualisation meditation. e) finally, I'll share a short story from a qigong master from Australia SKY In SKY (Simplified Kundalini Yoga), Vethathiri Maharishi (the guru and founder) was taught astral travel by one of his own gurus. In the beginning of SKY, astral travel was taught as one of the meditations, freely available to everyone. Later, they changed it so only masters would learn it during the masters course. Latest... they completely stopped it. Therefore, alas, I have not been able to learn it yet.. However, I've heard face-to-face trustworthy accounts of high level teachers and masters in SKY, personally telling me about their experiences. The method used is meditating on the navel chakra. After that, I don't know what the next step is (yet.. I hope to learn someday, somehow). Other things they said: how they used to learn it. It would be on full moon morning. They would all have eaten a light dinner the night before, and meditated on the navel chakra before bed time. They would then meet at 4AM. They would all lie down with white sheets on top of them. Vethathiri would be seated, guiding it all. They would meditate on the navel chakra while lying down, and Vethathiri would use his yogic power to take them out of their body, one by one. Once all were out of the body, he would take them to the moon, all together. After returning to the meditation hall, he would stay there. He would then allow everyone to go and do what they want to try; e.g. visit their families, visit mountains or faraway lands, go on pilgrimages to temples etc. Lastly, he would put everyone back in their body. They could then practice this meditation on full moon mornings back home, whenever they wanted. They should just follow the same instructions; light dinner the night before with navel chakra meditation before bed etc. Sexual qigong and lovemaking teacher He told me that the end goal of all daoism and qigong is astral travel. "The One" spoken about in alchemy is actually our spiritual fetus, spiritual body, whatever you want to call it. "Return to the One", "Merge three into One", "From spirit to the One", "Merge with the Emptiness and attain the One" etc. He said the couple would do their qigong and meditation. They would then make sweet, sweet love. They would then leave their bodies. Once out of the body, they would use all the energy from the lovemaking to heal the physical bodies. They would then travel to another planet in our Galaxy, the one from where qigong originates. Here you can be taught higher teachings and achieve higher levels of mastery than using the qigong physically available on Planet Earth. Teachings which have slowly been lost over time, since given to the Planet Earth by "the Gods". Indian Village, another student of my guru He got the siddhi of sukshma sharir ki yatra through the following steps: 1) attain mantra siddhi of a kavach mantra (tantric protection mantra) 2) tratak on the sun and moon to build the energy sufficiently strong 3) meditating on the navel chakra with neck lock until prana and apana merge, after which they rush up through the sushumna, naturally break your neck lock, and go to the crown chakra 4) the prana will then pulse in your crown chakra. You meditate on this pulse of energy for 60 minutes with no other thoughts in your mind 5) then you will feel your sukshma sharir leave your physical body (don't become shocked, then you will have to restart the 60 minutes) 6) after the first succesfull leaving out the crown, you can do it very quickly (because the path has been opened) 7) then you can lie down on the back more comfortably and simply leave out the crown 8) then you will see your physical body sitting or lying there, and you will see spirits around you, trying to mess with you, trying to get you to freak out. Don't let them distract you from your goal, remember that you have put the kavach and trust in it 9) go to your destination, do what you need to do, come back (just by thinking about your body, you automatically return instantly, no matter where you are or the distance) He himself personally went to "Vaikunth", the planet or place where Lord Rama resides. He then did puja to Rama and Sita. Then he returned. After this first journey, he would venture out and journey, doing pilgrimages or simply visiting interesting places, every night during his sleeping time. White atheist boy At one point in my life, I stayed 6 months in a Hindu Ashram in Europe. The resident indian swami told me the following story about this swiss boy, who came to ask for advice. He was a white, swiss, atheist boy, who had never been interested in religion nor spirituality. In his 20s during his university education, a girlfriend of his convinced him to try to meditate, as a way to cope with stress. He agreed (I think he liked the girl ) He was taught a tibetan buddhist mandala visualisation. He would visualise the mandala in 4 steps: lower part of the mandala, middle part of the mandala, upper part of the mandala, the whole mandala together. If you lose the visualisation, you start over. He actually felt some stress relief from this method, so he continued it all throughout university, and also after starting work. After 7 years, one day while meditating, he heard a huge pop. He opened his eyes and saw the wall moving towards him. He was very surprised. As he tried to move, he noticed it was actually him, flying towards the wall. He turned around, and shockingly saw his body sitting in the chair. He was out of his body! He didn't know what to do, so he decided to go visit his dad back home in the countryside of Switzerland. He flew slowly all the way, following the roads and signs. He found his dad out in the garden, working. He tried to talk to him, but his dad didn't react. After some time, he flew all the way back, and went into his body again. He called his dad and asked "dad, did you work on the kale in the garden around 3 o'clock this afternoon?", "Why, yes son, I did". The swiss boy was shocked. The leaving of the body would then happen every single time he meditated. As an atheist, he was so confused by this experience, that he stopped his meditation, and went on google to try and find some hindu or buddhist centers in his city. He found the ashram I would later live in for 6 months, and asked the resident swami to explain what was happening to him, how it was possible, and what he should do. Qigong Master from Australia He was born into a chinese qigong family. At 4 he was forced to do long standing. As a teenager, his teacher took him astral travelling. He took him all the way down to the "realms of hell", and all the way up to the highest levels of "divine realms" they could go to. Conclusion I have heard many bogus and untrustworthy accounts of astral travel in my life. However, the ones above, I can all vouch for. They were told to me by trustworthy friends, in a natural and unforced manner. There were no reason or anything to gain for them, cooking up these stories. It was simply a natural part of the conversations I shared with them during my time with them. I consider them quite "juicy" and interesting I hope to also learn astral travel someday Now please, what do you have to say about my 4 initial questions: 1) Have you astral travelled? If yes, could you elaborate how you got to be able to do that, as well as share some experiences 2) Do you know any trustworthy stories (about friends, teachers etc) about astral travel? If so, please share 3) Do you know any qigong or meditation methods for astral travelling you could share? 4) Do you know any qigong or meditation teachers (trustworthy and authentic) who teach astral travel?

So lately I have been changing it up and practicing, using the Buddhist Pocket Shrine app. I can't afford a physical shrine yet but until then this seems to work and I learn how it works. Are there any objections or ideas towards Dharma practices on this topic? Any staunch traditionalists here?

THIS IS VERY INTERESTING.IF U MAKE COMPARISONS ON THEIR LIFE, CHARACTERISTICS & RELATIONSHIPS, U WILL FIND INCREDIBLE SIMILARITIES !!!THE SAME CREATOR GODS PRESENTED THEMSELVES (APPEARED/INCARNATED) IN DIFFERENT CULTURES WITH DIFFERENT NAMES.NIBIRUAN / Annunaki / Egyptian / SUMERIAN GODS = HINDU / Vedic / Jain / Persian GODS = GREEK / Roman GODS AND SOME VATICAN (Elohim / Nephilim) AND BUDDHIST GODS AS WELL !!!SEKHMET = DURGA = ARTEMIS = Mut = Athena = Frigg = White Jaguar Lady = White Buffalo Calf Woman = Vaishno Devi = DevanaALCYONE = SATYANARAYANA = APOLLO = Vishnu(1) = Rama = Amen RaEnlil = Garbhodakasayi = JEHOVAH(1) = Vishnu(2)Leontocephalus = Narasimha = Merlin = Vishnu(3)Amun Ra = Krishna = Vishnu(4)ANAT = ERESHKIGAL = KALI = BLACK MADONNA = BLACK TARA = Demeter = Hecate = Ceres = Lilith = Nuit= Nepthys = Baba YagaBaphomet = Ardhanareshwara Astarte = Parvati = White Tara = Madonna = Mandodari = Shekinah = Uma = Kamakhya = Naamah = Goddess of Spring = Lalita = Kamakshi = Meenakshi = Kamakhya = Persephone = Rudrani = Proserpina = Bhairavi = Flora = ClorisMaia = Sati = Dakshayani = Damkina = Goddess Of The MountainsEnki = SadaShiva = Mahadeva = Holy Spirit = Chakrasamvara = Avalokiteshwara = Ptah = Chenrezig = Lucifer = Ea = Geb = Adonai = Hadad = Cain = Ba'al = Esu/Ishwara = HaraHades = Rudra = Boreas = Aquilo = Logi = Loki = Veles = SetAgni = VaishRavas = VaishvanaRa Raphael = Uranus = Varuna(1) = Guardian of the WestCronus = MahaKaal= Khandoba = Neptune = Varuna(2) = Poseidon = Nu = Yamm = Nechtan = Nethuns = Apam Napat = AegirApep = Kalasura = Ahriman = ChoronzonPluto = Pavan/VayuDev = Anubis = Mot = Kala Bhairava = Favonius = Zephyrus = KariMoon God = Chandra = NannaUriel = Dharma Dev = Yama = Guardian of the SouthAmphitrite = Salacia = Ran = Ganga = Goddess of Salt WatersAn = Anu = Adam = BRahma = Ra = Yahveh = Allah = Ahura Mazda = SvetovidThe One = PaRa BRahma = The Force = Source of All That Is!The Great Ra = Atum Ra = PRakash BRahma = Father Of The GodsEnoch = Metatron = Marichi (1 of 10 Prajapatis, Mind Born Sons of Brahma)Methuselah = KashyapaAnsar = Abzu = Abba = Apsu = Helios = Aditya = Surya = Sun God = Sol = Shamash = Utu = Aten = Aton = Rod = Lamech = Vivasvan = SwayambhuDuas Pita = Vywamus Noah = Satyavat/Vaivasvat Manu = UtnapishtimNoah's Arc landing site Mount Kardu/Godash = Malayan HillsChaya = AaAshwins = DioscuriGaia = Aditi = Bhu = Bhoomi Devi = Koumudhi = Kamadhenu = Ninhursag = Ki = Uras = Cybele = Rozanica =Earth GoddessJupiter = Brihaspati = Zeus(1) = SvarogNergal = Orion = Narakasura = Agdistis = AttisTiamat = TarakaTyphon = PulomanGabriel = Consus = Kubera = THOTH = GANESHA = HERMES = Mercury = Wodan/Wotan = Bud(d)ha = Progenitor of the Lunar Dynasty (Chandravamsi) = Dažbog = Guardian of the NorthIla = Tiresias = Djehuty = Jehuti = Tahuti = Tehuti = Zehuti = Techu = Lord of the KhemenuKalki = Maitreya = Vishnu(5) = Imam MahdiEmperor of Atlantis = Ravana = MundakeshaMarduk = Murugan = Karthikeya = Nimrod = Ares = Mars = Tyr = Svetovid = Jarovit = Jehovah(2)Osirius - Horus = Krishna - Pradyumna = Abraham - Isaac = Dionysus - Eros = Bacchus - Cupid = Wesir - Heru = Amun - Min = Narayana - Nara(da)Christ Michael = Shem = Ikshvaku = Progenitor of Solar Dynasty (Suryavamsi) = Ancient Of Days = Mithra = Siva Goraksha Babaji = Sanat Kumara = Dazbog = Dipankara = El Khdir = Asar = Ausir = Guardian of the EastAbel = Tammuz = Min = Freyr = Kamdev = Pradyumna = Adonis = Thotmes = Indra = Odin = Pan = Vajrapani = Zeus(2) = PerunSheshnag = Thor = Balram = Laxman = AnantaParasuram = Gilgamesh = Hercules = Narayana = Vishnu(6) = Iolaus = PirithousHeracles = Enkidu = Arjuna = Nara = Narada = Perseus = Theseus = Paris(Apollonius of Tyana) Jesus Christ = Sananda Kumara = Jeshua Emmanuel = Baldr = Aniruddha = Asclepius= Dumuzi = Damu = BragiAyyappa = ImhotepInanna = Selene = Mohini = Iðunn = MahalasaSiddhi= TycheIsis = Mary = Mariamma = Koumari = Venus = Freyja = Aphrodite = Semiramis = Hathor = Mayavati = Kanyakumari = Tripura Sundari = Rati= Sarah = Zorya = Gerðr = 16 Year Old Goddess = Mary Magdalene = Ishtar = Lakshmi = Fortuna = Aset = Tyche = Ninlil = Goddess Of GrainHera = IndraniEos = Savita/Sandhya/SaranyaPsyche = Radha = LadaÞjazi = Brahmasura = SurpanakaShani = Saturn = Wrathful Tibetan Deity7 ArchAngels = 7 SaptaRishis = 7 Amesha Spentas = Council of SevenAtlas = Himavan = Daksha = El = Shukra = Dhadhichi = PenurPleione = Menaka7 Pleiades' sisters = 7 krittikas = 7 sapta matrikasIliad = MahabharataDeianira = Draupadi = Andromeda = Ariadne = HelenHecuba = KuntiEurytion = JayadhrataAlcmene = kunti = Danae = Aethra = HercubaAmphitryon = Pandu = Aegeus = PriamPolymester = DhritarashtraMenelaus = DushasanaTroilus = AbhimanyuHector = YudhishtirParis = ArjunaAchilles = karnaAgamemnon = DuryodhanaWild Cow Goddess = Ninsun = Nininsina = RenukaHumbaba = Trishanku = KalmashapadaSaraswati = Seshat = SophiaEve = Kheba = Nuit = Ninti = NinkiAurora = Usha = GayathriMoses = AkhenatenZipporah = NefertitiMithra = ZoroasterDivine Architect of the Universe = VishwakarmaTvastri = Haphaestos = Bunene = SvarogAesir = Annunaki = Seraphim = SiriansVanir = Venusians = Cherubim = Lyrans Asteroid Belt = MaldekAtala = Antartica/MarsVitala = VegaSutala = LyraTalatala = RigelRasatala = BetelgeuseMahatala = OrionPatala = DracoBhuloka = 3D Earth PlaneBhuvaloka = 4D Astral Plane - Astral travel, OBE and NDE experiences, spirits, pisachas (vampires) and dis-incarnatesSwahaloka = Lower 5D Plane - Angels / Aliens / ZetasMahaloka = Higher 5D Plane - Devas /Aliens/Extra Terrestrials - Sirians/Pleyades/Arcturus/AndromedansJanaloka = 6D Plane - Devas / SaptaRishis/ArchAngels / RA Group / Cassiopaeans / Future Earth Humans/Over SoulsTapaloka = 7D Plane - Swayambhu / Linga RoopaSatyaloka = 9D/12D Sagittarius A/ II Octave / Nirvana / Anti-Matter UniverseAnnamaya Kosha = Physical Body - Governed by EarthPranamaya Kosha = Life Force Body (Tachyons) - Governed by Shiva (Holy Spirit)Manomaya Kosha = Mental / Emotional Body - Governed by Brahma (Father)Vignanamaya Kosha = Intellectual Body - Governed by Vishnu (Son)Anandamayakosha = Bliss Body - Governed by Devi/ParaShakti (Mother Goddess)Holy Grail = Amritam = Ambrosia = Soma = Life Elixir = Nectar Of Immortality....................................The list is endless!The Annunaki gods ( Nibiru = Nebadon = Vulcan = Vaikuntha = Planet X = Wormwood from Sirius B ) have always been here.All the religions (Ra's (& Ka's) Legions) have the same source !( bible -> by-bal -> by Ba'al( Enki))( quran -> Qur-an / Anu )MANY OF THE COMPARED CHARACTERS/INCIDENTS MIGHT HAVE HAPPENED AT ONE PLACE AND THEN IMPLANTED INTO ANOTHER CULTURE FOR THEIR BENEFIT.

Wondering if anyone has studied into Tengri-Buddhist shamanic experiences from the Eurasian Steppes. If anyone would feel comfortable expressing themselves, feel free to.

Does anyone practice Zazen and in particular the style closely resembling Shikantaza ("nothing but precisely sitting")? This is a method of practice that lineages like the famous Soto Zen tradition of Kōdō Sawaki & Kōshō Uchiyama are famous for. Famous monasteries and training locations like Antai-ji, Gyobutsuji Zen Monastery, and Sanshin Zen Community all belong to this school. I would be interested to know how Daoists approach and view this practice in their own words. Then if some are interested I`d love to dialogue a bit about on it

I would like to know the Buddhist view on Taoist practices like the Microcosmic Orbit, the Six Healing Sounds and/or the Inner Smile and other Taoist Neigong Practices in general. Do Buddhists use them, too or do they rather abstain from such kind of training? If so, why? Thank you!!

I am sitting, expericing stress and pain, is that normal? Change without change, sounds normal. I feel that it is my training in science was rather intense. Has anybody else seen this in their practice?

I finally got accepted into my Vipassana retreat in early August!!! For those of you that don't know what Vipassana is it's basically an ancient Buddhist ritual where you meditate for ten or more hours a day, for ten days straight. I was just wondering if anyone in the forum has done this before or done anything similar so I know what to expect. Btw, I got the idea for this from an old post on Mantak Chia's stuff. The person reccomended this as a way to start a spiritual path.

Has anybody heard about magnolia grove monestary? It is in batesville Mississippi. I would like to know more than whats on the internet, please. I very interested in it.

Hey, So, I know there're a lot, if not majority of practices that involve just watching the breath (in the whole body, just at the belly, at the upper lip, etc), but, doing some reading, I'm just wondering if there're any practices that would be called meditations that involved being mindful of the breath whilst intentionally doing deep breathing. Some of what I've read is unclear. If you could post examples, preferably with references, of controlled mindful breathing, that would be much appreciated. Just as one can be mindful when you do anything that YOU'RE DOING (walking, eating etc), I don't see why you can't be mindful when controlling your breathing, and, if one is doing deep, embryonic or longevity breathing and being mindful of the practice, then, that has the added benefit of slowing metabolism, relaxation response, calming body mind, etc. Thoughts are appreciated.

A public school in Louisiana allegedly advised a Buddhist family to change their beliefs if they didn’t want their child to face harassment from zealous teachers. The American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Louisiana on Wednesday filed a federal lawsuit against Negreet High School in Sabine Parish on behalf of two parents, Scott and Sharon Lane, and their son, “C.C.” The lawsuit claims the school has “a longstanding custom, policy, and practice of promoting and inculcating Christian beliefs,” including the teaching of creationism. Sixth-grade teacher Rita Roark has told her students that the universe was created by God about 6,000 years ago, and taught that both the Big Bang theory and evolution are false, according to the lawsuit. She told her students that “if evolution was real, it would still be happening: Apes would be turning into humans today.” One test she gave to students asked: “ISN’T IT AMAZING WHAT THE _____________ HAS MADE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” The correct answer was “Lord,” but C.C. wrote in something else. Roark responded by scolding the boy in front of the entire class. When informed that C.C. was a Buddhist and therefore didn’t believe in God, Roark allegedly responded, “you’re stupid if you don’t believe in God.” On another accusation, she allegedly described both Buddhism and Hinduism as “stupid.” When the outraged parents confronted Sabine Parish Superintendent Sara Ebarb about the incidents, she allegedly told them “this is the Bible belt” and that they “shouldn’t be offended” to “see God here.” Ebarb advised that C.C. should either change his faith or be transferred to another District school where “there are more Asians.” The parents, “hoping to save him from suffering additional psychological harm,” decided to transfer their son to another school, according to the lawsuit. The school is 25 miles away from their home. “The treatment this child and his family have endured is not only disgraceful, it’s unconstitutional,” said Heather L. Weaver, senior staff attorney for the ACLU Program on Freedom of Religion and Belief. The lawsuit claims that other teachers and faculty members also push Christian beliefs on their students. Prayer is often lead by teachers in classrooms and during school events. Religious literature that denounces evolution and homosexuality has been distributed by faculty members to students. The school’s hallways are filled with Christian iconography and electronic marquee in front of the school scrolls Bible verses. “Public schools should be welcoming places for students of all backgrounds,” said Marjorie Esman, executive director of the ACLU of Louisiana. “No child should be harassed and made to feel like an outsider in his own classroom, and students should not have to endure school officials constantly imposing their religious beliefs on them while they are trying to learn.” http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/01/23/dont-want-to-be-hassled-by-creationist-teacher-give-up-buddhism-louisiana-public-school-says/

Hey guys! Lately, I've been struggling about what my belief falls under. I have made a post in my introduction to this site that stated this question, and I will quote it below: I've been looking things up and it is pretty confusing. I also associate myself with atheist pages on facebook and they do say I can be a Buddhist Atheist but not a Taoist Atheist because apparently Taoists look up/worship deities? Also while I'm at it, I do have a question regarding homosexuality. What is the general view of homosexuality to Taoists? I will struggling following a belief that condemns love. I know Buddhism is rather alright with it albeit there is no firm statement about it. Thanks in advance!

Hi I am interested in any information regarding who are the premiere Buddhist/Taoist masters in or around the LA area. I am curious as to who is revered, considered the best, and who is real, no fakers. I am looking for a potential teacher, I appreciate any information provided. Thank You.

Hi I am interested in information regarding Buddhist or Taoist masters (or both) in the LA area. I am curious as to who is revered, considered the best, and who is real, no fakers. I appreciate any information provided. Thank You.