A Proposed Generic Outline of the Internal Path

[Trunk]

Thought I'd start a thread to bat around ideas this super-concise generic outline of the internal path (slightly longer version here):
- opening the tissues and channels
- centering (personal basis: deep-centers / bindus along the central channel, bigger basis: luminous emptiness)
- vertical integration (personal basis: continuum of connective tissue, bigger basis: heaven ~ human ~ earth interplay)

It's so short that it might not look like much, but there is a lot in there to be unpacked, has broad application.


~ later edit ~
See thread Deep-Centers for more extensive discussion of that topic.

Edited April 7, 2018 by Trunk

[GrandmasterP]

Can't find a ' Jade Sutra' in the canon.

Any links please Trunk?

Edited August 4, 2014 by GrandmasterP

[Trunk]

This is something I wrote; it's not a classic quote. It's based on 30 years involvement in the internal arts, various schools, teachers, books, practices, and conversations with brothers and sisters on the path.

[GrandmasterP]

Looks good.

I like that meld of Buddhism and Taoism there.

[Uroboros]

I agree with opening the channels and tissues as the first step. Healing the organ systems, releasing trauma, etc. All of that is like clearing the muddy water.

 

The second part is where I am iffy as I have little experience there.

 

The third I have more experience with. From my current understanding, the way I am trained is to go at it from the 1st and 3rd, utilizing them to enter the 2nd. Thereby ending in completion.

 

Opening the channels is a big deal. Learning how to press the channels and cavities is vital to developing. Slowly working them out over time does allot.

 

What else do you consider to be in the 1st category, Trunk?

[Trunk]

the first step

You could look at them as sequential steps, or as integral, both useful. I'd caution against separating them too far. Don't look to perfect one aspect before moving on to the other; it's impossible. Improve from different angles, over and over again, deeper, deeper ... the different aspects support each other. I didn't write them with a sequence in mind, but you might legitimately find sequence in your training.

 

All your observations, good; we're all unpacking.

[GrandmasterP]

Excellent stuff Trunk.

To me anyhoo you've encapsulated some key ideas from Yin Fu bagua* but in a very easy to follow and concise way.

Shall you be fleshing this out with some practical pointers?

That would be good.

 

* Really looooonnnnnggggg Yin Fu interview here, worth skimming if interested but he does tend to ramble on...

http://www.chusaulei.com/martial/articles/articles_bagua_interview.html

Edited August 4, 2014 by GrandmasterP

[Trunk]

.. go at it from the 1st and 3rd, utilizing them to enter the 2nd. Thereby ending in completion.

 

Opening the channels is a big deal. ...

 

What else do you consider to be in the 1st category, Trunk?

I think that "blood circulation" might also be in the first category. Like what you get from any exercise, esoteric or not (jogging etc). And, yup, what you said earlier, opening the tissues and channels is a big long term project, could include all sorts of body work, explorations into acupuncture/pressure, lots and lots of different modalities.

 

Shall you be fleshing this out with some practical pointers?

While it might get a little longer, it's meant to stay concise and generic ... by "generic" I mean not about a specific technique / modality ... but as an outline guide to understanding whatever path / method you're in. It's not about teaching/promoting a specific method/path. Along that line some basic questions might be appropriate:

- Does my current work make me feel well blended? .. centered? .. vertically integrated? (... and different ways to ask those same questions)

- is my current work opening the channels / tissues in an even harmonious way? vertically integrating in even harmonious way?

- and breaking it down: just observing whatever it is in current practice that fosters (or disrupts) those ideals.

 

It's an outline that provides a basis of inquiry, of orienting to, more effectively utilizing whatever internal path / method you've taken up. Lots of answers from that process... as you and Uroboros already started to do in your posts above.

 

There are a few pieces that should be clarified further ...

I think "heaven" is an ambiguous term, and I like "sky" better for this meaning. The Chinese have (at least) two meanings for "heaven":

1. A spiritual realm (which is not what I'm referring to here)

2. Sky, basically, which is what I'm talking about. For instance, the prenatal time (in the womb) is often translated as "pre-heaven" but it is really "pre-sky", before you've seen the sky (before birth).

 

And we can *feel* the earth and sky through our bodies. The earth is "heavy", the sky is "lofty". Heavy and lofty course through the body, blend. That's what a lot of the IMA's (internal martial arts), and many moving qigongs, are about.

 

There are some simple specifics about the mechanics of refining into the deep-centers that I'll clarify, a simple outline process about Big Light integration. It's basically concentration and refinement. The key Tibetan phrase is "enter, abide, dissolve". Cleary's Secret of the Golden Flower also refers to this process ... which is essentially very simple to understand if it's described in simple english with maybe a drawing or two. But in Tibetan Buddhism it's surrounded by such a complex system that it tends to get lost on most of us, and in Taoism, such poetry. I'm working on an essay that includes method to illustrate that process ... but "centering" is a concept and feeling that everyone can immediately relate to and it's in the right direction. I'll have to boil down that process to just a few words for this generic outline, I suppose.

 

Kicking around these ideas with you guys helps me see angles I'm missing in the writing.

Edited August 5, 2014 by Trunk

[Trunk]

p.s.

I do think that if members start to inquire with those three basic ideas in mind ...

 

- opening the tissues and channels

- vertical integration

- centering

 

... that it'd show up in more effective practice, and also that the deconstructing of methods in conversation here on TTBs would result in more cascading clarity. ... from lots of people, with lots of different experiences, methods, etc

Edited August 5, 2014 by Trunk

[Uroboros]

You could look at them as sequential steps, or as integral, both useful. I'd caution against separating them too far. Don't look to perfect one aspect before moving on to the other; it's impossible. Improve from different angles, over and over again, deeper, deeper ... the different aspects support each other. I didn't write them with a sequence in mind, but you might legitimately find sequence in your training.

 

All your observations, good; we're all unpacking.

 

I agree with your view there. Its not a stage of development, even though it may sometimes be. Separation is useful as far as delving into each aspect is concerned. After that, you play with it and you see how they blend and merge.

 

Sometimes you need more channel/ tissue opening, then integration. You will still be integrating by doing channel opening, even if its not your main focus.

 

Blending, merging, focusing, blending...

[Trunk]

- opening the tissues and channels

- centering

- vertical integration

 

Another thing I like about this is that you can say the above to *any*one ... people who have no experience in the eastern internal arts, an atheist, a psychotherapist, a Christian, any body ... and it's something that they can immediately relate to, (to some degree) already know, and agree with, even already apply as part of just being human.

 

And at the same time it is resting on deep principles that are integral, essential, to esoteric internal arts. Deeply woven through what TTBs are generally studying. Bedrock even.

 

Broadly, immediately understandable. Esoteric foundations yet not sensationalized. Healthy. Super simple yet applicable to very specific practices and situations.

 

... and it encapsulates 'the path'.

So, in just a few words, a weirdo like us can talk to anyone about what we're doing ... and relate.

 

... relate authentically, on a well oriented basis ... on a basis that if that other person took up the esoteric internal arts that they'd immediately have some healthy orientation that would serve them long term.

 

It's pretty f'in nifty.

Edited August 6, 2014 by Trunk

[liminal_luke]

Thanks Trunk. What's been interesting in my experience is the way the three (opening, centering, vertical integration) play off each other. Certain practices seem to emphasize one aspect or the other, but ultimately you can't go deep into one without the other two coming into play.

 

Take a standing practice like "embracing the tree" for instance. If I had to sort, I'd put it in the vertical integration pile with opening and centering in a crucial, perhaps supporting role. Sitting in silence? Centering comes to my mind first. Again though, the other two players come along for the ride. Self massage is a shoe-in for opening, and again, out of that openness comes a deep centering and vertical connection.

 

In a similar way, practices undertaken with a purely personal focus evolve naturally to include transpersonal dimensions. Something ridiculously simple like smiling at your liver eventually evokes the wood element on a cosmic scale, and from there pre-heaven energies of vast emptiness are a hop, skip, and a jump away.

 

Personally, I'm a little skeptical of this happening in reverse. If one starts with a super big transpersonal focus does the process eventually grind down to include the nitty gritty of the physical tissues?

 

This brings me to a useful, for me anyway, way to evaluate possible new practices. The more fluidly a practice that appears at first glance to focus on one of the Big Three calls up the other two, the more I like it. The more fluidly a practice morphs between personal and transpersonal levels, the more I like it.

 

Just my thoughts.

 

Liminal

Edited August 6, 2014 by liminal_luke

[Trunk]

- opening the tissues and channels

- centering (personal basis: deep-centers / bindus along the central channel, bigger basis: luminous emptiness)

- vertical integration (personal basis: continuum of connective tissue, bigger basis: heaven ~ human ~ earth interplay)

 

A thought re: the above within the context of initiation into higher energies (whether spontaneously or formally), which might include kundalini awakening.

 

Kind of a primary dynamic of higher energies, higher states of consciousness, is that they act as a solvent. Things, aspects of consciousness, dissolve as a result of being soaked in higher states. Some of that is pleasant and helpful: refinement. However, there is also a need to skillfully "bring one's self together". As the high energy states become deeper and more sustained, imbalances typical of dysfunctional mysticism sometimes occur.

 

[soaring crane]

Mechanical manipulation of the fascia e. g. foam roller and other massage equipment, any experience? Thoughts? Tips?

[spiraltao]

 

A thought re: the above within the context of initiation into higher energies (whether spontaneously or formally), which might include kundalini awakening.

 

Kind of a primary dynamic of higher energies, higher states of consciousness, is that they act as a solvent.  Things, aspects of consciousness, dissolve as a result of being soaked in higher states.  Some of that is pleasant and helpful: refinement.  However, there is also a need to skillfully "bring one's self together".  As the high energy states become deeper and more sustained, imbalances typical of dysfunctional mysticism sometimes occur.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Awesome post Trunk!  Very succinct. Enthusiasm is contagious. 

[yugenphoenix]

On 8/4/2014 at 9:16 PM, Trunk said:

 

I think that "blood circulation" might also be in the first category. Like what you get from any exercise, esoteric or not (jogging etc). And, yup, what you said earlier, opening the tissues and channels is a big long term project, could include all sorts of body work, explorations into acupuncture/pressure, lots and lots of different modalities.

 

While it might get a little longer, it's meant to stay concise and generic ... by "generic" I mean not about a specific technique / modality ... but as an outline guide to understanding whatever path / method you're in. It's not about teaching/promoting a specific method/path. Along that line some basic questions might be appropriate:

- Does my current work make me feel well blended? .. centered? .. vertically integrated? (... and different ways to ask those same questions)

- is my current work opening the channels / tissues in an even harmonious way? vertically integrating in even harmonious way?

- and breaking it down: just observing whatever it is in current practice that fosters (or disrupts) those ideals.

 

It's an outline that provides a basis of inquiry, of orienting to, more effectively utilizing whatever internal path / method you've taken up. Lots of answers from that process... as you and Uroboros already started to do in your posts above.

 

There are a few pieces that should be clarified further ...

I think "heaven" is an ambiguous term, and I like "sky" better for this meaning. The Chinese have (at least) two meanings for "heaven":

1. A spiritual realm (which is not what I'm referring to here)

2. Sky, basically, which is what I'm talking about. For instance, the prenatal time (in the womb) is often translated as "pre-heaven" but it is really "pre-sky", before you've seen the sky (before birth).

 

And we can *feel* the earth and sky through our bodies. The earth is "heavy", the sky is "lofty". Heavy and lofty course through the body, blend. That's what a lot of the IMA's (internal martial arts), and many moving qigongs, are about.

 

There are some simple specifics about the mechanics of refining into the deep-centers that I'll clarify, a simple outline process about Big Light integration. It's basically concentration and refinement. The key Tibetan phrase is "enter, abide, dissolve". Cleary's Secret of the Golden Flower also refers to this process ... which is essentially very simple to understand if it's described in simple english with maybe a drawing or two. But in Tibetan Buddhism it's surrounded by such a complex system that it tends to get lost on most of us, and in Taoism, such poetry. I'm working on an essay that includes method to illustrate that process ... but "centering" is a concept and feeling that everyone can immediately relate to and it's in the right direction. I'll have to boil down that process to just a few words for this generic outline, I suppose.

 

Kicking around these ideas with you guys helps me see angles I'm missing in the writing.

 

Trunk,

I think you hit on a key connection between the Six Yogas and Secret of the Golden Flower.  Can't wait to dig into that meaty bit.  I practice Chu Nei kung and definitely feel the 3 areas of your general path in it.  I also do a lot of body weight exercise, specifically core work that I think is hugely important in increasing the energy and musculature of the abdomen to assist in the deep dan tian breathing.  At least for me personally having a very developed core has made me "feel" my dan tian easier.  I dabble in bagua as well, and see it as an inexhaustible well that Gerard does as well, but I'm just fooling about in the weeds with it so far. Great thread here, simple and deep.

[yugenphoenix]

Opening of the channels/clearing of obstructions

            -Chi Kung, external exercise

Integration of sky/earth

             -Zhan Zhuang and circle walking

Concentration in center (Dan Tian)

              -Heart/Mind (let the Yi tame the Xin)

              -Core strength allowing the coming alive of all the visceral and ligament, etc connection to dan tian

              -Reduction in Food (we need so much less than we think we do, the less I eat the better I feel and am able to feel my

               center easier and able to utilize energy from air (still somewhat impure but less so) and Jing (most pure essence

               source).

             -Conservation of Jing (have found not the absolute denial of emitting Jing but finding a personal balance)

this is so simple but is the foundation of all I do just didn't realize so succinctly until this thread.  Thank you Trunk!

[Trunk]

20 hours ago, yugenphoenix said:

this is so simple but is the foundation of all I do just didn't realize so succinctly until this thread.  Thank you Trunk!

 

Yup.  I felt, or rather: went through the same cognitive process that you're describing.  Recognition of those principles, sort of explained a whole bunch of things all at once.  Like a rosetta stone, kind of mind blowing especially if you've been chewing at it for a while, lol.  It's a *really* useful concise template to look at *any* spiritual path, imo.  (And I'm not saying that I came up with it, lol, though I am saying it in a certain way right now... but the classics, the teachers I've studied with, and - I've gotta say - I've been *really* fortunate to 've made friends with some senior brothers and sisters along the way, significant mentoring.)  ... The principles are really very simple, very foundational, very few ... and serve to organize, or orient one's self, in which ever of the 10,000 methods you happen to be involved in.

Edited January 1, 2018 by Trunk

[Trunk]

P.s.

And I’m moved to restate: you can look at *any* tradition / method through this prism and it will increase functionality of your understanding, orientation, absorption, on that path.  I know that’s a pretty bold statement, so go ahead and knock me around on it if you want, lol.

 

It really goes down to STRUCTURE.  We are BUILT a certain way.  Function follows form.  It’s mechanics.

 

I really invite you to blow your own mind this way re: your own path, and over time you’re likely to continue to see more how it connects to various aspects of the path in general.  It’s a real *whew!* kind of stress reliever, lol.

[Trunk]

~edit~

Oops!  Post meant for an entirely different thread, lol!

Edited January 1, 2018 by Trunk

[Toni]

On 2/1/2018 at 12:16 AM, Trunk said:

~edit~

Oops!  Post meant for an entirely different thread, lol!

in my case i am at level 1 of your classification: opening the tissues and channels

 

what do you think is the best way to open them up? as of lately i am doing a lot of walking, as i think it is one of the best exercises for my body. some time ago i did a lot of qigong, particularly fragrant qigong

Edited May 6, 2020 by Toni