Kekkai, barriers

[Sloppy Zhang]

So in western traditions and groups like the golden dawn, there are methods and rituals like the lesser banishing ritual of the pentagram which simultaneously clear and purify a space, and create a barrier of sorts in which to carry out your magical operation/meditation in such a way that you know that other stuff isn't going to get in.

 

I'm wondering if anyone knows Buddhist or Taoist methods of doing the same thing, or something similar? Creating a "safe zone" for meditation or some other type of work, or creating a barrier which prevents outside disturbances from messing you up or passing through the barrier you've created.

Edited October 12, 2010 by Sloppy Zhang

[Pero]

So in western traditions and groups like the golden dawn, there are methods and rituals like the lesser banishing ritual of the pentagram which simultaneously clear and purify a space, and create a barrier of sorts in which to carry out your magical operation/meditation in such a way that you know that other stuff isn't going to get in.

 

I'm wondering if anyone knows Buddhist or Taoist methods of doing the same thing, or something similar? Creating a "safe zone" for meditation or some other type of work, or creating a barrier which prevents outside disturbances from messing you up or passing through the barrier you've created.

 

There is something like that in Vajrayana, a component of some practices, I don't know about the rest of Buddhism.

 

Are you Japanese?

[Sloppy Zhang]

No, but I do speak a bit of Japanese, studied in Japan during high school, and know a bit about the culture.

[Pero]

No, but I do speak a bit of Japanese, studied in Japan during high school, and know a bit about the culture.

 

I see. Is there then a particular reason you used the Japanese word for barrier? Have you found something like this in one of the Japanese traditions? I'm just curious.

[Sloppy Zhang]

I see. Is there then a particular reason you used the Japanese word for barrier? Have you found something like this in one of the Japanese traditions? I'm just curious.

 

The first time I heard it was in Japanese. I thought I'd distinguish it from just "any" type of barrier. Like there are barriers people make in western magic, in psionics, in New Age psychic stuff. But I'm trying to be clear that I'm looking for something that's connected to some kind of spiritual tradition. Preferably taoist, but buddhist and other stuff would be interesting as well. And since I kinda like Japanese culture, something else originating from some other Japanese traditions (like onmyodo, shinto, etc etc) would be interesting as well

 

It's usually pretty hard to find stuff like this on english speaking sites, but the taobums has a knack for turning up some very interesting things, so I figured I'd float the question and see what came up!

Edited October 12, 2010 by Sloppy Zhang

[Aetherous]

I really like the upward moving prana tsa lung exercises in this book.

 

It's from the Bon tradition.

[Friend]

Edited November 16, 2011 by Friend

[Aetherous]

Friend,

 

I have the book and could share the passage, but I'm not sure which one you're speaking of?

[Friend]

Edited November 16, 2011 by Friend

[Birch]

There are a couple I recall in that book.

 

You want the "spirit" at your side if you're doing things to it it won't like. Not head on. I'm now thinking "which side"? And I'm thinking it because of something else I read about sides of the brain.

I'm not being "brain reductionist" with this, just trying to figure out why one side might be more useful for dealing with this stuff than the other.

i won't guess it, I'll have to go reread the book.

 

Another passage in the same book mentions making a "bag" out of trigrams to put the spirit in for transport offsite (remember the vaccuum cleaner in Ghostbusters;-)?)

 

Joel Seigneur's "Chinese Shamanism" www.chineseshamanism.com has some very neat stuff about entities and exorcisms.

 

I think old European geomancy also has "threshold" barriers of sorts.

 

"Native American" vision questing I believe involves the drawing of a circle threshold inside which the initiate sits.

[rex]

Vajrayana buddhism has the Vajra Tent.

[The Observer]

I don't think anything elaborate is needed, just a little prayer like: "I'm guarded by a harmonious white light from all negative influence" or anything asking for protection/help from whatever diety/god you subscribe to. I like to do mine as positive confirmations (for ex. : "My meditation is deep and insightful") plus I mentally salute my spiritual teachers.

Edited October 14, 2010 by The Observer

[Sloppy Zhang]

Vajrayana buddhism has the Vajra Tent.

 

Wow, that is very awesome! Thanks so much for that, rex.

 

Exactly the kind of stuff I'm looking for

 

Not to say prayer and calling on white light and stuff isn't good. It's just that, if you aren't at a point in your practice where you can use stuff like that to a good effect, well, you can't use it to good effect. In the meantime, other stuff is nice to have.

 

Thanks again, rex!

[Taomeow]

I'll have to go reread the book.

 

If you do, could you look up something else too -- I haven't seen the book except for the index page following the link posted, and saw a few unfamiliar concepts mentioned and a few suspicious ones. E.g., a suspicious chapter I recall was titled "Your Wealth Position" or something like that, which made me think the feng shui of this book is BTB, Lin Yun's legacy, which was developed specifically for Western consumers and uses fixed "life stations" or "positions" within the home -- for Fame, for Health, for Wealth, for Love and so on, to a total of eight, linked to specific "sectors" of the home and used as such once and for all. This is much easier to do than real FS but this is, unfortunately, bogus FS. In the real thing, the dynamics of the Flying Stars are phased in, which change in a major way every year and then in lesser ways every month. The Stars are indeed conductive (or counterproductive) to these kinds of influences in your home, but they are dynamic and follow the pattern of qi motion in the universe (which I mentioned in another thread, by the way, "Qi is not energy," and posted the sequence of changes, which, of course, was ignored -- somehow I find that any real "secrets" of taoism can be revealed safely to the Western community, hidden in plain sight, so to speak...) Anyway, my question is, is this what the book offers? fixed "stations" or "positions"? If you could look that up, I'd be grateful -- I'm trying to determine whether I want that book or not.

[Taomeow]

As for barriers, I use Budo (Fudo for the Japanese slanted ) and Stone Warriors, and clear the space fivefold -- with incense/smudging, with sound (bells and rattles and Tibetan singing bowls), with water (scented with something bad dudes don't like, like frankincense and myrrh), with talismanic symbols, and with the sword.

[Birch]

"(which I mentioned in another thread, by the way, "Qi is not energy," and posted the sequence of changes, which, of course, was ignored -- somehow I find that any real "secrets" of taoism can be revealed safely to the Western community, hidden in plain sight, so to speak...)"

 

I will go look at that thread again.

 

"Anyway, my question is, is this what the book offers? fixed "stations" or "positions"? If you could look that up, I'd be grateful -- I'm trying to determine whether I want that book or not."

 

The "your wealth position" is in two parts. One is indeed a fixed position, but it's not a "bagua" position like I've seen in other books, well it might be, but it's too close to centre to seem definitively in where other FS books I've read put the "wealth position". The other is "coin seeding" and is linked with "magical thinking" and sympathetic magic (which a lot of FS I've seen seems to be, nothing wrong with that, is there? There might be...)

 

The rest of the book seems to illustrate 5E and some qi-gong and meditation techniques that many of the TTB's could be familiar with.

 

I think it's an interesting book. I have another one about learning to use the I Ching. The basic exercise is weather prediction...

 

Ping me if you want a loan of this one.

[rex]

Wow, that is very awesome! Thanks so much for that, rex.

 

You're welcome Sloppy Zhang