"Taoist Yoga" by Charles Luk

[Jade02]

How far exactly - in terms of meditation - can one go with the book "Taoist Yoga" by Charles Luk? Does anyone have any advice for someone going it alone?

[soaring crane]

Well, I'd say you need to be pretty damn far to begin with or you're just going to be confused and wondering what half the book is about. Make that three quarters.

 

You have it already? What are your goals? What experience have you got?

 

Basically, though, with due respect to Mr. Luk, there have been umpteen hundreds of more accessible books written in the meantime. His was a pioneering work back in the day when information was hard to come by, and the audience for a book like that was minuscule.

[Green Tiger]

Is this the first sort of meditation practice you have ever attempted?

[adept]

That book is about as clear as mud !

There are more accessible teachings around.

[NotVoid]

Basically, though, with due respect to Mr. Luk, there have been umpteen hundreds of more accessible books written in the meantime. His was a pioneering work back in the day when information was hard to come by, and the audience for a book like that was minuscule.

 

Charles Luk (Lu Kuan Yu) was actually just the translator, and he also added lots of useful clarification notes to his translation. There are few books in English that go into much detail about authentic internal alchemy practice. The original book which Charles Luk translated was written by Zhao Bichen in Chinese, and was originally entitled something along the lines of "The secrets of Cultivating Essential Nature and Eternal Life".

 

The book was probably not written to try to appeal to the general population, but was probably meant as

as an overview and guide for people seriously interested in pursuing internal alchemy meditation.

I doubt this book was ever intended as a complete guide to practicing on your own however, but meant more as an overview of the practices and teaching approach so a potential student had something to judge by when trying to find an authentic teacher. The author, Zhao Bichen stated in this book that he himself encountered some fake teachers when he was looking for a teacher, and his book may be used as a guide to give an idea what authentic teachings on internal alchmemy would entail. I think most people with internal alchemy experience would agree that authentic internal alchemy training requires a good teacher. Also, there are different branches and lineages in internal alchemy, so not all lineages will be teaching practices similar as are described in this particular book.

 

Edit:

For a little more about Zhao Bichen and his teachers and lineage, see this web page (thanks to Adept for originally posting the link):

http://chanbuddhismuk.proboards.com/thread/511

Edited January 28, 2014 by NotVoid

[Jade02]

I'm a beginner in terms of meditation of all sorts. I'd like to become a Heavenly Immortal. lol I'm 25. I have a obsession with immortality. Which is a more accessible book to read. I've been thinking of finding a teacher, but where I live there's only tai chi instructors and qi gong gurus - is it acceptable to learn from them? What should I look for in a good teacher? Thank you.

[Gerard]

Low level book, stay away from that sort of advice. Exercise your legs and do a little bit of sitting meditation, not much though. Running, martial arts, hiking, wood chopping, lifting sandbags, etc.

 

Note: There is so many irresponsible people on this "spiritual" business. All those books should be removed from the market due to the damage they can cause to beginners and the consequences are carried on like a "hump" you carry on your back for the rest of your life.

 

Don't read any books on Yoga, Enlightenment, anything that has the words "advanced practices", ultimate, Qigong books, etc. It is just scary, spiritual materialism that makes people even more imbalanced/ungrounded to start with. It feels good for a while but later on is when problems start to arise.

 

No books, try to learn from someone who has learned following a solid oral transmission.

Edited January 29, 2014 by Gerard

[thelerner]

I'm a beginner in terms of meditation of all sorts. I'd like to become a Heavenly Immortal. lol I'm 25. I have a obsession with immortality. Which is a more accessible book to read. I've been thinking of finding a teacher, but where I live there's only tai chi instructors and qi gong gurus - is it acceptable to learn from them? What should I look for in a good teacher? Thank you.

At 25 and a beginner I'd stick with the local Tai chi and nearby gi gong gurus. Get a solid practice going which includes sitting, movement and standing exercises. Learn the fundamentals so you'll ready for a great teacher when they come.

 

Put the powers and immortality on the back burner for a while, couple years, maybe a decade or two, and learn some solid fundamentals. Quiet mind, controlled body, flowing energy, bright awareness. Master these things.

[NotVoid]

I'm a beginner in terms of meditation of all sorts. I'd like to become a Heavenly Immortal. lol I'm 25. I have a obsession with immortality. Which is a more accessible book to read. I've been thinking of finding a teacher, but where I live there's only tai chi instructors and qi gong gurus - is it acceptable to learn from them? What should I look for in a good teacher? Thank you.

 

Tai chi is definitely a good practice in my experience. Much potential. A complete mind - body - spirit practice in itself.

 

Also see these videos on the zhan zhuang style of qigong.

Both tai chi and zhan zhuang can be a life long practice with potentially no limit on what can be achieved.

Zhan Zhuang:

http://www.youtube.com/user/StandStillBeFit/videos

The guy doing these videos has some books on his zhan zhuang practice as well.

 

Whether you practice tai chi or zhan zhuang or both, my advice would be to keep it as relaxed and natural as you can. What do I mean by natural? It means no attempt to control anything or deliberately move energy or to deliberately breath in a certain way, etc. You relax as much as you can and allow progress to occur naturally, without any interference or attempt to direct or control your breath or energy on your part. Mind is relaxed and body is relaxed. Breath is relaxed and natural.

This is the way to proceed. Natural.

Sometimes referred to as dao.

 

Best wishes in your practice.

Edited January 30, 2014 by NotVoid

[dawei]

You should contact the member

Neophyte

[SonOfTheGods]

so everyone said the book stinks and there are better books

 

but no one told you which "other books" to get

 

I love TaoBums!

 

lol

 

lol

--------------

Check These Out:

 

T'AI CHI CLASSICS
By Waysun Liao

 

QiGong Empowerment

Shou Yu Liang

 

Then move on to:

 

NeiGong

Damo Mitchell

 

 

Happy Trails

[BaguaKicksAss]

skip the qigong empowerment

[soaring crane]

Roots of Chinese Qigong

 

The Healing Power of Qi

 

There. Two links. Bolded and colored for your reading enjoyment

[Green Tiger]

I'm a beginner in terms of meditation of all sorts. I'd like to become a Heavenly Immortal. lol I'm 25. I have a obsession with immortality. Which is a more accessible book to read. I've been thinking of finding a teacher, but where I live there's only tai chi instructors and qi gong gurus - is it acceptable to learn from them? What should I look for in a good teacher? Thank you.

 

If you have lots of money, you might try buying immortality from Jerry Alan Johnson.

 

Book

 

March Seminar

 

If you're broke, like most 25-year-olds I know, just read Gerard's post 108 times.

 

Low level book, stay away from that sort of advice. Exercise your legs and do a little bit of sitting meditation, not much though. Running, martial arts, hiking, wood chopping, lifting sandbags, etc.

 

Note: There is so many irresponsible people on this "spiritual" business. All those books should be removed from the market due to the damage they can cause to beginners and the consequences are carried on like a "hump" you carry on your back for the rest of your life.

 

Don't read any books on Yoga, Enlightenment, anything that has the words "advanced practices", ultimate, Qigong books, etc. It is just scary, spiritual materialism that makes people even more imbalanced/ungrounded to start with. It feels good for a while but later on is when problems start to arise.

 

No books, try to learn from someone who has learned following a solid oral transmission.

[Uroboros]

skip the qigong empowerment

 

Why do you think QiGong Empowerment by Shou Yu Liang should be skipped?

[gj551]

.

Edited February 24, 2014 by gj551

[Gerard]

Why do you think QiGong Empowerment by Shou Yu Liang should be skipped?

 

It is another book (a better one but still a book); it offers stuff more suited to practitioners living "in the wild"; it presents some information that is broken as in doesn't give the whole picture. It is great as it gives you a good insight of what is really involved in this business (the theory/intro section of Buddhist, Daoist and Medical practices. It doesn't help you gain wisdom...this only comes with personal practice and spiritual realisation as a result of mindful practice and moral virtue.

 

I gained more insight more from walking the circle in two months than reading that book a 108 times.

[zerostao]

the qigong empowerment book is a decent book imo, when i first got it i was in love with it. but, i already had a qigong foundation, and it was filled with many choices. i will add that i felt the energy(of the book) very strong when the book was handed to me.

once i started the XYP i basically put aside all my books. i do have a nice collection of books/dvds.

like gerard says some information is left out. (of the higher practices)

it makes subtle distinctions between medical qigong and healing qigong. it talks about Shen gong but doesnt provide what is needed for Shen Gong. so, even tho i have stepped away from books, i think for the right person, this is a really good book.