Wanting some advice on my practice

[Unseen_Abilities]

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Edited January 31, 2014 by Unseen_Abilities

[Seeker of Wisdom]

I'm not familiar with the practices you've listed, but it sounds like you're doing some good stuff for your chi.

 

Doing something for your mind would definitely round out your approach. I would advise putting some sitting meditation in your routine.

 

Ultimately the roots of the delusion, etc which obscures our realisation of Tao are mental. So unless you directly work on your mind at some point, you can only go so far. Chi stuff alone is incomplete, because the actual causes of kinks in both chi and mind are mental.

 

If you add some sitting meditation, that will work at a deep level in your mind, with the side effect of your chi naturally healing. This will speed up your chi work, which will in turn produce well-being and alertness which will greatly benefit your mind work.

 

Mindfulness of breathing is a sensible method to start with. The Attention Revolution by Alan Wallace is an excellent guide for this, and two more advanced practices.

 

Try doing your more gentle exercises first, then mindfulness of breathing, then do more challenging exercises last.

 

Hope that helps.

[de_paradise]

Its just a little morning routine to get the blood flowing, the order doesnt matter as long as you are not over-straining yourself. I would add a 9 bottled breath in there to balance the mind, the left right and central channels, and clear the nasal passages; Also some sun salutations to get the sacral-cranial waves going for a sense of well being. Horse stance does not seem like the same warm-up type of thing as the others.

[Thunder_Gooch]

I don't have a teacher

 

 

 

My advice is spend some time figuring out what it is you want from your practice, otherwise you'll just be a spiritual impulse shopper for the rest of your life.

 

 

Let me quote you something I think you might like from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

 

 

Alice: Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?

 

The Cat: That depends a good deal on where you want to get to

 

Alice: I don't much care where.

 

The Cat: Then it doesn't much matter which way you go.

 

Alice: …so long as I get somewhere.

 

The Cat: Oh, you're sure to do that, if only you walk long enough.

 

 

 

 

 

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

 

Charles Lutwidge Dodgson aka Lewis Carroll

 

 

 

 

 

 

"What are you doing?

 

Why are you doing it?

 

Where is this going?

 

If you know, you’ll succeed.

 

If you don’t, you won’t.

 

That’s not just pretty talk, that’s the law."

 

 

Jed McKenna - Spiritual Enlightenment The Damnedest Thing

[Unseen_Abilities]

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Edited January 31, 2014 by Unseen_Abilities

[Thunder_Gooch]

Good health is a good goal to have, certainly more realistic than mine

 

 

Thanks.

 

Seeker of Tao: I have recently started a sitting meditation practice, thanks for your input

 

de_paradise: I'll have to look up the 9 bottled breath, thanks.

 

More_Pie_Guy: I understand what you're saying about the importance of having a clear goal...For me, this seems to be unfolding as I go - Right now, my primary goal is to maintain the good health I've achieved, and to cultivate physical, mental and spiritual well-being/strength, balance my energies, and become more mindful on a day to day basis, thereby promoting a high level of skill development in the various arts/interests I'm pursuing. Higher levels of spiritual development will, I think, come later on. Thanks for helping me clarify that, haha

 

Peace.

[Seeker of Wisdom]

Personally, I find it helpful to set short-term, mid-term and long-term goals. It keeps the whole path in perspective without being too overwhelming - as short-term goals are achieved, you can feel satisfied ticking them off and aiming at another goal/s closer to your mid/long-term goals.

 

So using my goals as an example, my short-term goals right now are to reach stage 4 shamatha and to realise no-self. My mid-term goal is achieving access concentration. Long-term, my goal is full enlightenment.

[Unseen_Abilities]

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Edited January 31, 2014 by Unseen_Abilities

[Flolfolil]

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Edited March 6, 2015 by Flolfolil

[Jetsun]

happiness

 

Yeah you and everyone else, the irony being the more we do to try to gain it the more we reinforce the idea its not already present

[Flolfolil]

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Edited March 6, 2015 by Flolfolil

[joeblast]

happiness partially results from streamlined endocrine function. working out contributes towards it. also focusing the spirit at the seat of awareness does it - when you streamline breath well and everything gets very very quiet, energetics established at the lower dantien from proper breath mechanics, then focusing at the niwan in very deep stillness, you establish and harmonize the two ends of the taiji pole and the abundant energy spills forth.

[Jetsun]

if i just pretended i was already happy i would be lying to myself

 

sorry, but that stuff just feel likes clever playing with words to me :/

 

“Don’t you see that your very search for happiness is what makes you feel miserable?”

- Nisargadatta Maharaj

 

Searching for happiness reinforces the idea which is rampant in our self-improvement culture that there’s something wrong with you as you are, and you need to become a better you before you can be the real happy you.

[joeblast]

Good health is a good goal to have, certainly more realistic than mine

 

 

it is the first manifestation of pretty much any successfully applied practice