five element alchemy

[Trixter Streetcat]

hey,

 

i know kunlun has become taboo over time.

 

i was just wondering to what extent are the basic postures of the five elements representative of five element alchemy in taoist internal cultivation.

 

is this a good place to start five element cultivation practice?

 

is there anything else/more I should know, or somewhere else I could learn about balancing/using the energy of the five elements in internal practice?

 

thank you for your replies,

 

trixter.

[Siliconvalley1]

is this a good place to start five element cultivation practice?

 

Not sure if this answers your question, but is related.

 

I feel the need to make one final post to wrap this up for me.

The Kunlun practice can be very intense, no if and or but's about it. You have to monitor as a practitioner how much you can take. There are other practices in the book-namely I Jong standing-that are there to be employed when things are going too fast or getting too intense.

 

My advice to anyone who's doing Kunlun and things are getting unbalanced is drop the practice and focus on I Jong and physical excercise for a few months.

 

I Jong is one of the main practices Max teaches at the seminar and it is also considered the foundation of qigong training by some well know qigong teachers. The most important thing is to be balanced and breathing deeply into the lower abdomen.

 

I would not say to focus on 5 element standing if your unbalanced. The 5 element standing can be just as powerful as Kunlun and creates very intense energy. So focus on I Jong for a few months and build up to 5 elements and Kunlun.

 

Edited June 25, 2009 by Siliconvalley1

[Lucky7Strikes]

The details on the 5 elements standing practice are all in the new book. The whole creation cycle, how it helps Kunlun level 1, how each position relates to the organs, benefits to physical strength/focus, etc. Accordingly, it "builds" qi, and like Cameron mentioned, shouldn't be taken lightly.

 

Which 5 elements practice are you specifically referring to? Chia's fusion practices? There is a great section in Trunk's site regarding 5 elements: http://www.alchemicaltaoism.com/

[Aetherous]

is there anything else/more I should know, or somewhere else I could learn about balancing/using the energy of the five elements in internal practice?

 

It's balancing to flow through each posture for each breath, while doing the "one breath" (where you inhale and exhale the same without pauses inbetween)...like a simple moving qigong.

 

It's good to "close down" after practice, by putting the hands over the navel...because it's true that the postures generate a lot of energy. That's one way of using the energy. Another way is K1.

 

is this a good place to start five element cultivation practice?

 

I think these postures may be good for clearing the organs, especially if you know the focus points. Not sure what you mean when you say cultivating the five elements...

[Trixter Streetcat]

Not sure what you mean when you say cultivating the five elements...

 

well actually, I'm wondering myself.

 

number 5 keeps coming up. i've gone through all the numbers before that, i have to understand 5 now. i thought the standing postures were supposed to "balance" the five elements within you. my first introduction to the elements was kabbalah, where fire was dynamics, water was emotion, air was thought, and earth was material (roughly). there is now a fifth element, void/ether. I'm just kind of delving into all of this. i know there are five elements to taoist alchemy, and I roughly know the pathways, thought some clarification would be greatly appreciated.

 

i feel the five elements balance/transformation is a very elemental cycle in the make-up of things. I'm trying to get this clearer. i thought maybe oing the standing postures would bring some clarification.

 

what DO you know about five element alchemy?

[Aetherous]

I think practicing reveals every answer, and knowledge from books or people is usually misleading.