Breathing comes from his heels?

[Marblehead]

Just now, Aletheia said:

 

That's not how it works. There are a lot of fakes about with no real energy, not a drop of wisdom in their words. There are so many that they drown out people who really know what they're talking about. As such, everyone loses out.

I won't disagree with that but then I think it is the student's responsibility to test their teacher before getting too financially involved.

 

That means the student has to do their homework.

 

 

[Aletheia]

Well whatever. I've personally learnt that it's best not to get involved. If people really wanted to know then they'd get it. The simple fact is most people are not interested. They're content playing mind-games with language.

Edited June 20, 2018 by Aletheia

[Marblehead]

I can't argue with that.  But still, some people are not self-starters.  Most of these need a teacher of some sort else they will never "get it".

 

On the other hand, if you get a teacher that cannot speak to your needs you will likely only add to your problems.

 

Test and try before you buy.

 

And take deep breaths.

 

[Aletheia]

I found doing "lifting the sky" followed by horse stance to be really beneficial. I did it followed by moving yin and yang and then quickly followed that with the rest of the elements from SFQ today! My moving yin and yang was over 1 hour. But the point is I was in a different state of consciousness than normal so it was really easy. Then I just had a shower and I don't like cold water but i did the same breathing and concentration under just cold water and I had to check to see if the hot water was running because it wasn't cold with the breathing I was doing!

 

I added "lifting the sky" to my morning routine and changed my horse stance to this guy's -

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=lifting+the+sky

 

 

https://www.wongkiewkit.com/forum/showthread.php?5757-Amazing-result-doing-horse-stance

 

 

 

 

[Aletheia]

There's horse stance moves in this routine, after the moving yin and yang, which I guess helps open the yin channels in the legs -

 

 

 

[Marblehead]

19 minutes ago, Aletheia said:

I found doing "lifting the sky" followed by horse stance to be really beneficial. I did it followed by moving yin and yang and then quickly followed that with the rest of the elements from SFQ today! My moving yin and yang was over 1 hour. But the point is I was in a different state of consciousness than normal so it was really easy. Then I just had a shower and I don't like cold water but i did the same breathing and concentration under just cold water and I had to check to see if the hot water was running because it wasn't cold with the breathing I was doing!

 

I added "lifting the sky" to my morning routine and changed my horse stance to this guy's -

At the end of the first video it looked like he was hyperventilating because of too much deep breathing.  But yes, that is an excellent way to start practicing deep breathing.

 

In the second video the horse stance had the legs too far apart for me.  I would never be able to keep my balance.  For me, shoulder width apart is best.

 

[Marblehead]

19 minutes ago, Aletheia said:

There's horse stance moves in this routine, after the moving yin and yang, which I guess helps open the yin channels in the legs -

I liked the birds singing in the background.

 

[Pavel Karavaev]

2 hours ago, Marblehead said:

I liked the birds singing in the background.

Yes, I also really liked the sound of birds.

Practicing in nature in places like this is just a great pleasure.

 

[cheya]

@wandelaar...

You can experience this palpable chi yourself... one of the easiest ways I've found is a practice called Tai Chi Ruler. I used the method offered here:

https://www.amazon.com/Tai-Chi-Ruler/dp/B004QOAKRO/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1529531554&sr=8-1-fkmr0&keywords=Tai+Chi+Ruler+dvd+Masterworks

 

There are other versions, many even available free online, but I like this one especially because it activates the 8 extraordinary channels which JoeBlast referred to above.

 

You might enjoy reading some previous DB threads focusing on breathing from the heels: (it's one of my favoritist topics )

 

https://www.google.com/search?ei=8s0qW_L7GeXUjwT3h4TQBA&q=site%3Athedaobums.com+breathe+from+the+heels&oq=site%3Athedaobums.com+breathe+from+the+heels&gs_l=psy-ab.3...54625.57169.0.65490.9.8.0.0.0.0.1202.2324.7-2.2.0....0...1c.1.64.psy-ab..7.0.0....0.QJCvaczYZvo

[EmeraldHead]

But what really is breath?

 

Physically it's air inside and outside. Energetically it also circulates chi. Does it circulate/affect jing or shen? Why do we die when we stop breathing? If someone dies now, it takes a while for the chi to leave their bodies.

[wandelaar]

@ cheya

 

I don't plan to do internal alchemy myself. I just wondered how much of it would be approved by Chuang tzu himself.

[cheya]

Hi wandelaar,

Interesting, I hadn't thought about feeling the energy as being internal alchemy, but I guess it is, sort of a baby step.  It feels so good, I'd be doing it regardless of whether Chuang Tzu approved... 

 And I'd be willing to wager that, if you ever start to feel that energy rising up from your heels, you will never again question whether that's what Chuang Tzu meant when he wrote that true men breathe from their heels..

 

 

[wandelaar]

I tried yoga lessons (including visualizations) a long time ago, but it didn't work for me.

 

As to Chuang tzu, I take his advise very seriously but in those cases where I can find no sensible interpretation of his words I follow my own way.

Edited June 22, 2018 by wandelaar

[Daemon]

It's invariably wisest to walk your own Path (as a mature, independent, self-reliant adult).

 

☮️

 

[wandelaar]

1 minute ago, Daemon said:

It's invariably wisest to walk your own Path (as a mature, independent, self-reliant adult).

 

☮️

 

Yes - but there are people that I consider wiser than myself, and in those cases I put much more time and energy than usual in trying to make sense of what they have to say.

[joeblast]

6 minutes ago, wandelaar said:

I tried yoga lessons (including visualizations) a long time ago, but it didn't work for me.

 

As to Chuang tzu, I take his advise very seriously but in those cases where I can find no sensible interpretation of his words I follow my own way.

a practitioner wont really understand some things before accomplishing some things.  there's many levels of it, really.  keep following the fundamentals, practiced rigorously, and then that makes other things unfold.  its like going back and reading a textbook after you've completed the course, its a much easier read, you might notice different things...

[Daemon]

 @wandelaar

 

I'm wondering if what you mean by wisdom is something that you would view as specialist knowledge?

 

☮️

 

 

[wandelaar]

5 minutes ago, Daemon said:

 @wandelaar

 

I'm wondering if what you mean by wisdom is something that you would view as specialist knowledge?

 

☮️

 

No. It's not pure factual (or even specialist) knowledge. Chuang tzu (and Lao tzu) give the impression of being ahead of me as regards their view of life, and I appear to be heading in their direction. The things that I gradually come to discover about and value in life are already in their books. So that is what I meant by "there are people that I consider wiser than myself". They have progressed further along the road.

[Marblehead]

Yeah, but they were born before you were so they had a head start.

 

[Daemon]

From what you (@wandelaar) have written, I have the impression that you're saying that you're refining your inate wisdom (and discovering that your own outlook is confirmed by the writings to which you referred)?

 

☮️

[wandelaar]

No - it's more dynamic than that. My own wisdom is developing as I grow older, and at the same time I come to understand more and more (but still not everything) of the wisdom of Lao tzu and Chuang tzu.

Edited June 23, 2018 by wandelaar

[silent thunder]

On 6/19/2018 at 3:49 AM, cheya said:

It is not just breathing air... which of course does not make any sense. It is drawing a palpable energy flow up from the heels as you breathe, energizing the whole body. This is easiest to learn, or feel, when you breathe in at the same time, but eventually you can just start and maintain that flow with intention. 

This is very close to how I experienced the expansion of sensitivity to energetic flows, to grounding of loose energy and the widening of the MCO.  It was neither intentional, nor sought out.  It played out some months into daily Ting Jue Qi Gong when awareness began repeatedly being drawn and then resting in yong chuan and the bottoms of my feet.

 

The heels and feet had been crackling with hyper electric impulses for some time as the yong chuan opened up through increased flow of the daily form play.  Once the body had acclimated to the new flow, a new sensitivity was consistently bringing awareness to the feet as practice played out and then eventually when not practicing, throughout the day while going about 'normal life'. 

 

The reflections of this awareness reverberate through my body, through the other vessels.  Awareness on the feet now brings a cascade effect, engaging the entire body in light charged and grounding awareness.

 

It continues to play out years later often with no direction by my local mind.  Once the pump is primed so to speak... it seems it's a natural function and very little if any direction ever seemed needed by local conscious mind for the process to engage, or to expand.  Though i can also willingly engage it by placing awareness there wilfully.

 

Seems like this process is built into the fabric of the practice and is inexorably linked, fed and charged by deep, relaxed breathing and sung.

 

Gently placing awareness on my feet, has become a mainstay grounding and rejuviating practice as years pass, gaining in effectiveness and while the intensity increases, the effect of sung does as well.  As wandelaar mentioned, i experience it as a very effective means of quieting a manic monkey mind when I actively use it, though by far, most often it arises of itself, effortless, unsought, yet thoroughly relished.

 

Almost instantaneous evaporation of extraneous and volatile thinking occurs when I rest awareness in the sensations of my feet.

 

 

 

[cheya]

@silent thunder

That was a GREAT post!  Thank you!