There be Dragons

[Starjumper]

Once upon a time, not so long ago, about six months, I was meditating and something came to see me. Usually it's people but this one was not human. I drew a sketch of what I saw and someone told me it was the head honcho Taoist god. This god is a dragon. I though "that was interesting" and left it at that.

 

Today my practice buddy came over to do chi kung, he's also a Taoist sorcerer, and each week we take turns leading. For some reason I brought this subject up and decided to show him my sketch.

 

He focused through me he was able to feel the dragon. He said it was definitely an entity, it is male, and that it had a very strong presence. He said it had been watching him for many years but he never sensed it before. Making the connection filled him with joy (which I didn't expect, as he is a Christian mystic - A Taoist sorcerer who is a Christian mystic =) He said that it wanted to teach him, and since it was my buddy's turn to lead he let his new teacher lead him. It was a very nice chi kung practice, and you need really strong shoulder muscles to be able to pull this kind of stuff off, but just between you and me, he was mostly doing stuff that I had been showing him lately when I was leading.

 

A lot of strong energy, as usual, and it was a nice blissful kind of energy.

 

We do a lot of research.

 

I am the Lizard King,

I can do anything

Edited July 20, 2010 by Starjumper7

[fizix]

Wrong forum.

[RiverSnake]

It truly is a blessing to have friends you can talk and share your practices with. Cool stuff.

Edited July 20, 2010 by Tao Apprentice

[Marblehead]

Yeah, wrong forum but good dragon. I like the Chinese dragons.

 

Peace & Love!

[DarthBane]

Okay yeah, definately the wrong forum. But just for curiosity I did a google search on symbols and got this from:

 

http://www.dreammoods.com/dreamdictionary/d2.htm

 

Dragon

 

To see a dragon in your dream, represents your strong will and fiery personality. You tend to get carried away by your passion, which may lead you into trouble. You need to exercise some self-control.

 

In the eastern cultures, dragons are seen as spiritual creatures symbolizing good luck and fortune.

 

To dream that you are a dragon and breathing fire, suggests that you are using your anger to get your own way.

 

Dragons are not usually the epitome of calmness. Taoism meditations usually focus on calmness. Leave you to your own conclusions. Yeah Chinese dragons look cool.

 

Pink Light

Edited July 20, 2010 by Guest

[gendao]

Once upon a time, not so long ago, about six months, I was meditating and something came to see me. Usually it's people but this one was not human. I drew a sketch of what I saw and someone told me it was the head honcho Taoist god. This god is a dragon. I though "that was interesting" and left it at that.

 

Today my practice buddy came over to do chi kung, he's also a Taoist sorcerer, and each week we take turns leading. For some reason I brought this subject up and decided to show him my sketch.

 

He focused through me he was able to feel the dragon. He said it was definitely an entity, it is male, and that it had a very strong presence. He said it had been watching him for many years but he never sensed it before. Making the connection filled him with joy (which I didn't expect, as he is a Christian mystic - A Taoist sorcerer who is a Christian mystic =) He said that it wanted to teach him, and since it was my buddy's turn to lead he let his new teacher lead him. It was a very nice chi kung practice, and you need really strong shoulder muscles to be able to pull this kind of stuff off, but just between you and me, he was mostly doing stuff that I had been showing him lately when I was leading.

 

A lot of strong energy, as usual, and it was a nice blissful kind of energy.

 

We do a lot of research.

 

I am the Lizard King,

I can do anything

Cool!

 

You know, there's another practice often connected with dragons/snakes/nagas that you might want to experiment with then...

 

*cough* Byron Katie *cough*

Edited July 21, 2010 by vortex

[Mokona]

There are all types of spirits, it is always interesting when a "new" one comes along.

[VCraigP]

Cool!

 

You know, there's another practice often connected with dragons/snakes/nagas that you might want to experiment with then...

 

 

toooo Funny.

 

too much subtle humor in this thread for relative newbies, but I like it.

 

Craig

[Starjumper]

It truly is a blessing to have friends you can talk and share your practices with. Cool stuff.

 

Yes it is, he and I were students together of our teacher, so we have a long history. As we take turns leading each week we give each other ideas about the practice that we explore and research alone and together so it sort of builds on previous research. We've discovered some awesome stuff hidden within the framework of our system!

[Starjumper]

[Birch]

The cow visual on my bathroom mirror changed to:

 

- Head eating hand

 

And

 

- Cartoon dog changing to wolf if I stare at it...Oh, also to be found there was a certain G Morris (in the shaving mirror of all places!)

 

So I do stare at such things, quite often. Question now being is are actual spirit cows, hand-eating heads, cartoon dogs and wolves and G Morris actually inhabiting my bathroom mirror OR...is something else going on?

 

I suspect there is a reason a few traditions suggest to not make too much of the "scenery".

 

To all intents and purpoises, the cows, heads, hand, cartoon dogs, wolves and Glenn are "there", but...you get my point...and some understanding?

 

Now when I met a red-skinned, red-eyed, blazing female "goddess", THAT was weird shit. Knowing I have her (and the cows, heads, hand, cartoon dogs and wolves and G Morris) in me is even MORE weird shit - and awesome.

 

People live some crazy stuff. Well, this one anyway

[Starjumper]

It sounds like you've been doing some soul gazing in the mirror, Kate. It's bound to be a wild ride. Doing that has caused some people with too much negativity to go down the tube but it sounds like you're having fun with it. A long time ago I had a young feller (teenager) for a student for a little while and he did the mirror gazing, saw himself as evil, and then he became what he saw; and I had read that it can be dangerous so I never got into it.

 

However, my kung fu teacher suggested I do some soul gazing in the mirror, and after what I've been through I don't think anything would upset me now. I sort of already know I am like everyone else, I mean not all at once, but I have pieces of all character types in me that I can access; when I see any character type, from the good to the bad, I feel a part of me feels alignment with it.

 

So I think I'll go for some of that mirror soul gazing. I think dim lighting is best. What sort of lighting set up do you use Kate?

 

There is also soul gazing with another person, but it can be dangerous so it is best to have an outside observer who is very psychic supervising the first time you do it.

[Starjumper]

Thanks for sharing Starjumper.

 

Funny to hear you bums say that this is the wrong forum. While we have others going MAD about a Buddhist harping amongst our threads. Here we have a high level Taoist practitioner sharing. To learn about others Taoist cultivation practices -- this is the prime reason I joined this forum.

 

Edit: So there's a running joke about Kunlun from way back, eh?

 

Well welcome to Tao Bums! It's nice to make your acquaintance.

 

The thing about Kunlun isn't exactly a joke between us, but the ribbing may never end

[Martial Development]

Wrong forum.

 

This is the right forum, and I appreciate it when people share their personal experience.

 

Unless it's wrong, just because it wasn't mentioned in your translated copy of the Tao Te Ching???

 

Don't worry, another expert thread on the topic of secular humanist pseudoscientific psychobabble will come up shortly.

[Mokona]

How is soul gazing into a mirror done?

[Starjumper]

How is soul gazing into a mirror done?

 

Just look at yourself in a mirror, look yourself in the eyes, which are the windows to your soul. Take some time, it can take a while at first, best think of it as a type of no mind meditation. I think moderately low light would be ideal, not real bright or too dark. After awhile the face in the mirror will change into something you don't recognize as part of yourself.

 

Be prepared to see some scary and possibly disappointing stuff, and whatever it is, just accept it and then let it go. Warning: This is heavy duty shit, and people with weak egos have really screwed themselves up with it by fixating on a negative aspect. They then change into the negative thing they fixate on including taking on the expression that matches it. Their face actually changes. So be kind to yourself, and forgiving, and understanding.

[fizix]

This is the right forum, and I appreciate it when people share their personal experience.

 

Unless it's wrong, just because it wasn't mentioned in your translated copy of the Tao Te Ching???

 

Don't worry, another expert thread on the topic of secular humanist pseudoscientific psychobabble will come up shortly.

Your ego-anger is your ruin.

 

Namaste.

[Marblehead]

The new age take on dragons appears to be pretty different than the Taoist ones, ...

 

I agree. I really don't watch stuff like that on TV but now and then I see a clip and it is my opinion that the new age dragons are based on the European concepts, not on the Chinese/Taoist concepts. Two very different animals, these two.

 

Peace & Love!

[Ninpo-me-this-ninjutsu-me-that]

Just like to say I'm enjoying this thread.

[Ninpo-me-this-ninjutsu-me-that]

Starjumpers direct experience of some form of entity. That always interests me. It's nice to read some direct experience.

 

And, as you said, the mirror gazing also.

[DarthBane]

The new age take on dragons appears to be pretty different than the Taoist ones,

 

Your practice didnt seem like anything I had heard of as an eastern tradition. Thus, I just thought it might be new age. If it is, can I ask where you got this soulgazing from?

 

Google Search - Only shows "New Age" type meditations.

 

Hence the reason I thought you were getting into some type of New Age dreamwork type stuff.

 

Search results return: roman soul gazing, Tantric Soulgazing(for couples), Couple Soulgazing, Celtic Soulgazing, Wiccian Soulgazing (Shadowgazing)

 

Of course the internet, with the exception of there being many similar new age practices, is not the end all be all of all spiritual traditions.

 

The only thing remotely similar seems to be Tantric Soulgazing (eye gazing) to eastern thought. This requires a love partner as a couple meditation. This is a Hindu Tantra meditation.

 

Do you have a reference in rare and obscure literature on Taoism you would like to share?

 

Pink Light

[Birch]

I ought to be clear and explain that I'm not looking at myself in a mirror, I'm looking at the shapes formed by the steam on the mirror from an angle, much like one might look at clouds and discern faces, animals etc in them.

 

As far as I can tell, us humans have this pattern recog thing down pat and we just forget we're doing it until we come up with weirdo practices like this to show us- especially for things that "look" like they could be living entities. Snake/rope/snake?

 

The "mirror" in this case is just my own perception. I haven't played with any of the "soul gazing" stuff other than associative meditation, or just sitting and watching what comes up. Mind-material sometimes does take on scary forms, which I guess is why one is told to pass on by. Trying to work out what is "real" vs "not real" is just a potential head-frying pan. Fun to relate to other people on TTB's but I probably wouldn't start trying to explain what I'm doing to anyone who doesn't practice (consequences )

 

Still, I find it funny sometimes when there's a huge disparity between how I think I "look" to other people and what they actually give me in terms of feedback. The classic one is that I get up in the morning and feel great, think I look radiant and then the first comment I get is "Wow, you look tired".

[Mal]

[Mark Foote]

Once upon a time, not so long ago, about six months, I was meditating and something came to see me. Usually it's people but this one was not human. I drew a sketch of what I saw and someone told me it was the head honcho Taoist god. This god is a dragon. I though "that was interesting" and left it at that.

 

I am the Lizard King,

I can do anything

 

The Chinese depictions of dragons usually show the dragon reaching for the sun; my understanding is that the dragons are trying to understand the sun's mystery, how it does what it does, as it were. I love that.

Edited July 22, 2010 by Mark Foote

[Starjumper]

That's neat!

 

I agree. I really don't watch stuff like that on TV but now and then I see a clip and it is my opinion that the new age dragons are based on the European concepts, not on the Chinese/Taoist concepts. Two very different animals, these two.

 

I just goggled chines and Taoist dragons. They are seen as kind and benevolent gods that bring good fortune and stuff like that. There are various Western scientific theories as to how they originated, that they were originally crocodiles, but I know the reality of it is different.

 

Over the millenia the Chinese found some fossilized skulls and bones of large dinosaurs, and they also found large dinosaur footprints. Imagine a big dinosaur running across the ground, and then the ground with the fossilized tracks was geologically tilted up a a sixty degree angle. People didn't know the tracks were millions of years old, they assumed that some giant creature with bird like feet could make footprints in solid rock and go racing up steep rock faces, they also assumed that this creature was probably alive at the time and for all they knew it may have been hiding in the bushes watching them, and that must have been thrilling.

 

In any case, gods are created by human belief, and the mutual combined power of the belief gives power to the god, and this can be real power, and it can be accessed by some.

 

Keep in mind that I was not trying to summon any entity, this creature came to me unbidden. I drew a quick sketch of it earlier but I will draw a better one, including a side view, and post it here later.

Edited July 22, 2010 by Starjumper7