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Hi everyone! I'm so glad I found this forum. I've been looking for a place to discuss Taoism with fellow enthusiasts and practitioners. I am someone of Chinese/Taiwanese descent who grew up in the West. Growing up, my household was bicultural, meaning that we watched both eastern & western movies, were bilingual and celebrated both eastern & western holidays. As an adult, I've now moved back to Asia and rekindled my interest in Taoism, which was always in the background of all the movies I watched growing up. I now live in Southeast Asia with my wife. A few years ago, I had my first ever supernatural experience, where I saw a ghost. Intrigued, I turned to learning more about the supernatural and the occult. A few months ago, I began to take the study of Taoism more seriously. I've been reading the Tao De Jing and getting into the I Ching. Looking forward to connecting with fellow enthusiasts!

I’d like to start an open discussion about Taiwan. Generally really. Have you visited or lived there, what are some of your experiences? Did you visit the east side of the Island where it is still more tribal? Anything you can say about Martial Arts over there? Any cool old stories about the distant past that spring to mind you could share? I’m aware there have been secret Taoist sects over there so I’m not really asking people about that, but it would be cool to know more about them if anyone thinks it’s appropriate to share… Thankyou 🙏

What country are most of the "high level" martial artists/fighters at? I want to know so I can learn their language and go there eventually. By high level I mean like Grandmaster Wolf, I dont care about the style I'm looking for martial artists/fighters that know stillness in action.

How about muscle testing or pendulum dowsing in general or to fix physical ailments, and problems, or improve life in general? Are they against nature/Buddhism to be used? These tools are supposed to help get rid of pain and suffering or help one not to be emotionally volatile or imbalanced (helps us not to create more bad karma) but I'm unsure if there are any karmic risks to using these things or any long-term or unseen harm to myself as an exchange since it is energy work. I am hoping someone who is both Buddhist and has experience in this area can answer, but anyone can feel free to answer. 🙏 EDIT 1: To clarify, I'm asking to see if it aligns with Buddhism and what Buddhists have a say on it as to whether it is a proper practice or tool to help relieve suffering or to improve one's ability to practice Buddhism indirectly/directly, and if there any risks to using these tools or healing modalities or similar.

I've been studying some of Tom Bisio's Ba Gua and meditation materials. I've also studied with Bruce Frantzis. There seems to be quite a bit of crossover. For example, the use of the kwa, sinking chi, and dissolving blockages. Some of https://www.internalartsinternational.com/free/daoist-meditation-lesson-six-theory-dissolving-clearing-blockages/ sounds a lot like what Bruce teaches in dissolving meditation. This is very interesting to me, as over the years, I've really wanted some cross-references for Bruce's teachings, and I've found almost none. But with Tom Bisio, there appears to be some "corroboration." The question is, for me - is the overlap in material due to a shared common source, or did one of these teachers learn (some of) the material from the other, without explicitly stating this?

I have finally understood why I was angry and frustrated of Taoists denying my ideas and made-up technique. I failed to understand what we search for was different and our understanding of Internal Alchemy was never really the same. Classic Taoism & Internal Alchemy Classic Taoists are just fans of the Tao Te Ching, like old Chinese philosophy/poems and maybe even have a bit of religious believe in talismans and shamanism. Classic Internal Alchemists, however, believes in meditation where one think of deep, sometimes dark, things to overcome their traumas and inner demons. Their version of "spiritual" is psychological rather than supernatural. They use Qigong in hope of, not immortality or true longevity like living for 1000 of years, but to heal their mortal body and mind. I, however, was searching for the Xian immortal version of Internal Alchemy. To live for as long and how young I want, to become strong enough to split mountains and seas, like in the Xianxia novels. Before you say that was childish, yes it was, however, in my defends I do have and am diagnosed with atypical autism so I have all the right to be a bit childish and dream about the impossible. Also that buzzing feeling that keep take the shapes of the meridians on the acupuncture maps did make me believe of was right and you were wrong, blinding me with arrogance. I'm sorry for my outbursts and being mean. Totally not because my mom forced me as punishment for my arrogance... Joke aside. I will still leave this community because this community doesn't support my search of the Xian immortal art or whether it is real or not. Thank you for the experience of understanding arrogance. P.s. please delete my account as I will not be back. P.s.s. My Yin Yang Lotus technique wouldn't have caused Qi deviations since it focuses on moving/generating that (physical) buzzing feeling (not emotionally) rather than your inner thoughts and demons like classic meditation does. Bye.

Hi, I'm new to Taoism. I read the Tao Te Ching and researched about it. I really surprised by this way of thinking and I think I found my way of living by that. Before I know about Taoism, My lifestyle and my philosophy were very close to Taoism. That's why I'm so surprised by knowing about it! I'm an atheist, In my country, It's not very safe to be a part of anything instead of Islamism (unfortunately). So there is no community, there is no master, no temple and not many resources for practicing Taoism. I mean I really want to know and practice Taoism, Tai Qi, I really want to find the way and find the spirituality in myself. I feel like I can't do it by myself, with no resource or anyone who guide me. How can I continue?

Hello again everyone! I hope everyone is having a wonderful day today. I wanted to ask around today to see if anyone had any favorite places, music/sounds, smells, techniques, etc. for meditating. More specifically I'd like recommendations for meditation that will help me build up humility, ridding myself of the illusion of control, and generally being still and thinking on the sections of the Tao Te Ching (as I've been going back over the audiobook to take notes). I'm sorry if this isn't the proper place to ask this question but I'm still finding my way around the forum and haven't interacted with many forums before this one. Have a great day everyone <3

I heard this from someone but I don't know anything else about this. Sometimes I lack energy or am sick and want or need something to lean on to meditate. If it's true, does it have to do with how the energy/qi interacts with the thing/wall we're leaning on and is this an issue only in deep or advanced meditation, or simply at any stage? Also, any sources on this if possible? I appreciate any help on this. 🙏

I am a Daoist. Is there any Taoist Temple in the UK?

i found some good documentary about taoism

I've been involved with mediation for many years. Initially I was involved with Buddhist meditation but then I got involved with Taoist meditation through the teachings of Bruce Frantzis. Bruce often mentioned Dzogchen with high regard, so when Lama Lena (a highly esteemed Dzogchen teacher) came to teach for several years in a row very near to my home, I went along. I also came across Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche (a Bon Dzogchen teacher) mainly through his online content, although I did travel to see him once. I have some curiosity concerning two apparently different categories of meditation practice. With Inner Dissolving (Taoist meditation from Bruce Frantzis), and Dzogchen both from Lama Lena and Tenzin Rinpoche, there is a notion of "progression" in the sense that we have obscurations/blockages/"pagchas"(like neuroses in Tibetan), and that through practice over time we can resolve these to move closer towards "enlightenment"/clarity/healing etc... In all these traditions, there is the possibility of using an agenda to work with specific issues in our lives, with a view to dissolving/resolving them at some root energetic level. This makes sense to me, and gives some kind of sense of structure/progression to my practice. I am aware that there are certain paradoxes that come from the idea/reality that we are "already there" (non-duality teachings etc.), and yet there is a firm understanding from the teachers I follow that we do actually need to meditate to attain(?) the fruits of meditation. Like the last lesson of Marpa to Milrepa - to show the callouses on his arse to emphasize the need for practice! In other traditions I've come across, such as the teachings of the FWBO (whatever they are now know as), Zen, Mindfulness etc. there seems to be a conspicuously different attitude towards "progress". You do the practice, whether it's mindfulness of breathing or body scanning or even working with emotions by "simply being" with them - but there is no sense in the practices I have come across of working with specific issues/blockages and resolving them at a root or energetic(?) level. It's more like "here we are again looking at our minds and sensations...." with no particular sense of direction or need to attain/achieve anything. I know that the need to achieve anything is seen as a hindrance in both categories of practice, but this is in some ways something of a contradiction. While of course grasping will not lead to freedom, nonetheless there is an implicit intention to get somewhere/something, in the very decision to become involved in meditation in the first place. So these are some of the observations and thoughts I'm having around my practice at the moment. Partly wondering which practices to emphasize to help me navigate a chronic illness, and also wondering about the notion of progress and achievement in relation to meditation. Very curious to hear your thoughts on all this.

Hello everyone! is there anyone here who is or has practiced with Max and can train me online? I am already a member of primordial alchemist but I would like to learn more from other students who have been studying with him. I'll pay you for your time if you'd like as well. Thank you!

Hello my name is Ste. I have recently discovered Taoism and the beautiful Lee Style Tai Chi. I hooe to learn alot from you guys.

Good whatever time of day and night there it is where you are , I have come to this site in order to find answers to answers to the following questions: 1. can qigong fix scoliosis 2. can qigong really help you grow taller 3. can qigong really fix and change your bone structure (particularly the face)? 4. can qigong really be used to heal the body? After coming across this video on YouTube below along with another video with an older woman stating that her scoliosis was healed, I have a deep routed curiosity to know if chi can really heal the body this way. The video below is by a man named master Wong but I cannot find anything else by this man. In the video, he says that the bones are harder to change but the joints are easier, so the bones can changed? I'm curious. I have come across qigong in the past a long while back but was not in a position to really delve as deep as I would like into the subject. I spoke to a person that taught qigong and said in the chi world, anything is possible? I want to know more about qigong for the purpose of and I do not like to use this word in fear of sounding off my rocker but shape shifting. I do not believe that I can magically change into another person but to me it makes sense that certain parts of a person can change and heal. I do not think the story about the woman who used this practice to fix her scoliosis is far fetched. I have read many stories of the amazing things the body can do. I want to know to what extent qigong can be used to change and heal the body. This whole search could be in vain but for a long time, I have had the feeling that it is not and the only way to really find this out to leave no stone unturned. I will read whatever material I have to, and do whatever qigong practice I have to. So hello to anyone who is reading, I want to know all I can about qigong.

Hey everyone

I recently learned about an interesting website called The Book of Xian and Shen (BOXS), which catalogs information and pictures for Chinese gods from all over the world. There are currently 2,000 listings and counting. https://www.bookofxianshen.com/ It is based on the work of religious scholar Keith Stevens (d. 2016), who wrote the amazing Chinese Gods: The Unseen Worlds of Spirits and Demons (Collins & Brown, 1997) (fig. 1). I recently volunteered to help the project. So far, I’ve written two articles (see reference no. W1001 and W1011) and updated two other existing listings with information and pictures (see the bottom of W8620 and W9305). Fig. 1 – My well-worn personal copy of Chinese Gods (larger version). Due to the great number of listings, there are no direct links. Instead, the site has adopted a somewhat confusing (but necessary) cataloging system based around reference numbers, pinyin, Mandarin, and Wade-Giles. However, it’s easy to use once you get used to it. For example, if you were going to search for Sanqing, the “Three Pure Ones“, using, say, Pinyin, I recommend first getting the reference number (RefNo). Deities —> Tabular Listing of Xian Shen Deities —> Field: Pinyin —> Type: Contains —> Value: San qing (you may have to play around with the spacing like I did here) —> Filter —> Then look for the correct listing (since other listings mentioning them might appear in the list) —> ☰ —> copy the “RefNo”, in this case W5540 (fig. 2) —> Deities —> Deities Page with Full Listing Side Bar —> Field: RefNo —> Type: Contains —> Value: W5540 —> Filter (fig. 3) —> The listing (fig. 4) If you know the Mandarin or Wade-Giles for the deity you are looking for, the process would be similar. You would just need to change the field to “Mandarin” or “Wade-Giles”. You could just jump to “Deities Page with Full Listing Side Bar” to search using pinyin, mandarin, and Wade-Giles, but it’s been my experience that a different listing will pop up first based on a higher RefNo or Romanized spelling. First finding the reference number seems to be the easiest method for me. I can’t recommend this website enough. New gods, as well as new stories or beliefs associated with more established deities, are appearing all the time, so it is very important to catalog everything as soon as new information becomes available. If you would like to volunteer in some way, please contact Ronni Pinsler using the “contact” form on the BOXS website. Fig. 2 – How to acquire the reference number (RefNo) (larger version). Fig. 3 – How to navigate to the listing (larger version). Fig. 4 – The listing as seen from the top of the page (larger version).

In the Hindu tantric tradition, there is a concept of transmission of power via touch or a glance -- known as Shaktipat. There is also the concept of lineage transmission in Daoist traditions wherein the master will plant a seed or transfer the lineage to the student via touch. If you are at liberty to share, please do share your experiences. I'll start with my own. My teacher initiated me when I met him for the first time by placing his index finger on my forehead (third eye region). He asked me to inhale 3 times from there into my lower dan tien after he disconnected his finger. After I did, there was a flow from my third eye to my lower dantien and the room started "swimming". I felt a little light-headed and sat down for a couple of minutes. After that, when I reached home, in the night, a huge pressure started to build in my forehead. The only way to relieve it was via meditation and doing Taiji forms. So ended up meditating on and off for 3 days multiple times a day. Then for another 12 days, I would go into very spontaneous and intense meditative states and start performing Taijiquan forms 'automatically'. After the initial 15 days or so, where I was experiencing great bliss and large releases of energy, I started to feel like there was fine silk under my skin, covering my entire body. And a very clear separation happened in my consciousness -- with a permanent witness (which was there for a few years before I met my teacher too) forming, that would observe all happenings/activities - physical, mental, energetic. This witness awareness was completely at peace, at ease and unaffected by the ups and downs. If something happened in 'regular life' to shake things up in terms of equanimity and equilibrium, this other mind (my teacher calls it the Spiritual mind) would simply swallow the happening up -- and then life would continue to unfold spontaneously. Along with that, my practice deepened too. I started waking up between 3:30 and 4:30 every morning but would be in a state of hypnagogia. The mind was awake but the body asleep. I'd find vortices opening up over my being, pulling stuff out, cleansing, etc, etc. Beings would visit me and I would have spiritual conversations with them. Sometimes some would come to challenge me, but I seemed to know inherently how to deal with those challenges... Martially, abilities started to manifest exactly how my teacher told me they would. He had said to me, "It seems very difficult to comprehend now...but when you walk through that door, you'll look back and think...is that all there was to it?" I attended class twice a week with my teacher and each time he'd give me something new to work on, and it would manifest tangibly usually a week or so after he taught me. For example, he told me about how there was energy all around us, and that we could simply connect with it and harmonize with it...not needing to expend our own energy to do things like healing/martial techniques, etc. One day, as I was practicing in my family room, the room seemed to be filled with grayish-white smoke or fog. I thought my eyes were playing a trick..but there it was...a heavy fog up to my chest and all over, but most apparent from the ground up to my chest height. When I told my teacher about it the next time I met him, he said with a smile, "that's what I was telling you about..." I had also embarked on picking up Advaita Vedanta studies which I had put aside several years ago as unintelligible. This time when I picked it up and started my studies again, everything seemed to make perfect sense. That same spiritual mind recognized the truth in the teachings and realization followed realization...like a cascading chain reaction. But there were no fireworks...like a rapidly progressing series of little 'a-aha moments' (I think the zen Buddhists call these flashes kensho). In fact, anything spiritual that I picked up made perfect sense -- stuff that seemed crazy or simply stupid to me before! Along with these little realizations, little by little, old behavior patterns started falling away...and a sense of freedom started to grow. Eventually, there arose the realization that there was nothing that needed to be done...only just remain as I am...undoing happening on its own. That realization was such a relief and was so hysterically funny to me, that I sat and laughed like a madman. And every time I'd think about it, I'd burst into laughter

Hello there Im taoxingzhi, young adult from from northern europe glad to have found this site. I first got introduced into taoism through as i recall it, Samurai Jack. It was a cartoon I used to watch before going to school, it had fighting and the samurai theme was edgy for a kid. In one episode, moreover, i remember there being a yinyang symbol on an amulet. Life continued and in my teens i battled through serious existential crises, nihilism, and i can only say that these things will stay with my my whole life. I remember seeing the yinyang symbol once or twice again, but due to my surroundings at the time it was unimaginable to allow such radical thought (compared to where i was then) into my life. Then, finally, when im at another city during early adulthood i have a particularly bad patch of life and partly because of that i start to gather information from eastern philosophies and religions, whatever you want to call them. Traditions of wisdom, i guess? Taoism seems to resonate with me most strongly, after comparing it to buddhism, confucianism and shinto. Im really a novice at this all, and scientific or textual knowledge is not why i find taoism so great. Its just a tradition of wisdom that time after time has the tendency to make my life a little bit better, usually it happens through these tiny snippets from daodejing, or work of alan watts, or just reading what someone else has said about it. I can only say that my life is a little bit better because of taoism, im grateful for it and pleased to find a place where people talk about it. Nice to meet you! -taoxingzhi

Hi all, I'd like to remain semi-anonymous but I am a new user interested in looking where Taoism and Hermetics meet. I have an internal chinese martial arts teacher in NYC and I am reading up on hermetics to understand that side of things. Nice to meet you all!

Hi everyone, this is my first post, I'm glad I found this forum. It seems to me there is some confusion around light body/rainbow body and mostly how to develop it. Anyone cares to say something/give some tips and mostly to suggest some real practice to do that? I've been into other traditions and had lots of benefits to say the least, but I've never been into Taoism until recently. It seems there is more than a way to achieve light body in this tradition. Apparently it all comes around building up the energy in the 3 dan tiens. However, as I said and as far as I know, there are different lineages, drama, politics, and the outcome is that it's not clear at all what are the most effective practices to walk the path towards light body. It also seems this is a good place where to ask, so here I am! Of course the best scenario would be to find a good teacher, but as you know it's not that easy and there is a lack of taoist teachers, at least in Europe. I believe we could help each other though! Thank you!

Hey Dao Bums - One of my friends currently studying in Taiwan at NTU is currently 1/3rd through translating Professor Ge Guolong's (戈國龍) 2010 book, "Ten Discourses on Daoist Alchemy". It's a an enlightening commentary on alchemy texts written by a professor of religion at the China Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing. It's a major undertaking for my friend because the book is over 140,000 Chinese characters long. He has the backing of Red Pine, who most people on DaoBums will know, being the author of the best selling translation of the Tao Te Ching in English. Because this would take months of dedicated work, most likely in seclusion, he recently set up a Gofundme page in case anybody was interested in backing the project, and enjoying early access perks, things like that. Personally, I'm very excited about it because the book is a bridge between philosophy and practice. From the samples I was shown, I found Professor Guolong's writing to be super clear, and a breath of fresh air compared to other esoteric alchemy manuals like "Taoist Yoga" for example. Instead of making you feel more confused, the text reads like an elucidation and makes alchemy directly understandable and accessible to the modern Chinese and now Western mind. I can also highly recommend my friend as an outstanding translator (having lived in China for a decade), and a wonderful spiritual cultivator. I can also vouch for the value of these texts for your own cultivation. Here is an outline of the chapters for example, but you will find more information on his official page. Chapter outline 1. Unsurpassed Destiny 2. Illuminating the Mind to See Its True Nature 3. The Portal of the Mysterious Pass 4. Advancing the Fire and Gathering the Medicine 5. Empty, Nonexistent Qi 6. Dual Cultivation of Xing and Ming 7. Primordial Jing and Primordial Shen 8. Two Heavens and Earths 9. Going Back to the Root, Returning to the Source 10. Universe and Individual, Interconnected As was posted in the Daoist sub-section, we really need more translators of Chinese texts like this. Think about how many of Master Nan Huai Chin's books still haven't been translated in English for example, and how valuable each and everyone is to our community at Dao Bums. The truth is there are no translators working on them. And the reason is that you need a very high level of Chinese and you also to be an advanced practitioner of these arts. The market is so small that it's not even worth the time and effort from a financial standpoint for the people who meet this criteria. So when someone is motivated to take months out of his life to complete a project like this, just so we all benefit, I think we should encourage it, at least as Dao Bums. Thumbs up from me.

Namaste friends, I have had this site bookmarked for a couple years and come here sometimes to read, tho recently had the urge to be more involved, so I made my account and am making this post now in the Newcomer section. What got me into Taoism was my instructor for Yellow Dragon Kung fu, he recommended some books on Taoist philosophy, and from there I had read more books and resonated with their content. Some of the books I like are the following: The Chronicles of Tao 365 Tao Fourth Uncle in the Mountain Bones of the Master Enter Mo Pai etc. Some of these books may not fall into the strict genre of Taoism (tho technically we can say everything falls into Taoism...) I got similar stories and vibes from all of these books, however. I look forward to discussing these subjects with all of you! Eternal Love & Light, Arya

I want to talk about my experience with Heartfulness. Now, I'm not talking about the form from Mindfulness in the book "Cultivating Heartfulness" that I've seen spoken about around Daobums, but something different that has completely changed the way I cultivate. Most of us are practitioners or at least know of the refining processes of cultivating and internal alchemy. We all know it to be an excruciatingly long and arduous process to refine our internal energies in order to produce measurable results. I have always been drawn to daoist practices from a young age and would meditate without even really knowing what it was, it just felt nice. But i didn't start officially Cultivating until just after college but i was underwhelmed by how little return you get for so much effort. I had processed far enough to have formed my Dantian and refined my senses enough to be able to detect spiritual energies and their movement. However, then i encountered a practice called Heartfulness that utilizes Yogic Transmission and this put my cultivation into hyperdrive! It would normally take me about two weeks to take in qi, extract the impurities, refine it into a higher form, and condense it into a pearl to draw up into the second dantian. But with Heartfulness, i was able to complete that entire process in One Day while i was At Work! I don't sit behind a desk, i work at UPS. I'm constantly moving and i was able to refine a pearl almost Passively while i was constantly busy. It felt like as long as i was doing Heartfulness, the energy would move Intelligently on its own to complete work within me, automatically. After a week of this, my body became stronger. I was able to walk around in 40 degree weather in shorts and a teashirt without getting cold and things that would normally hurt or bruise me would hardly hurt at all. I wanted to share this with my brothers here on Daobums so that you all could give it a try and share your results here! It's completely free, all the teachers are volunteers. https://heartfulness.org/us/masterclass/- This is the three-part video series that introduces the practice and helps you experience the transmission. https://heartfulness.org/us/experience-heartfulness/- You can follow this link and scroll down to “Try Heartfulness with Assistance” for a more personal experience with a real person rather than a video series, though I do recommend the video series first.