Experiences with sexual qigong and daoist lovemaking

[Shadow_self]

6 hours ago, liminal_luke said:

Of course people do, as you say, become ensnared by the senses as well.  There's a word for that ensnaring process: addiction.  Addiction happens when people attempt to fill a perceived hole in their inner being with stuff from the outside; it doesn't work and causes a lot of pain.  But here's the thing -- addiction isn't pleasurable.  The food addict stuffing his face with cake isn't savoring the subtle flavor;  the sex addict bedding woman after woman every night isn't having "fun."  Don't let them tell you otherwise.  Addiction is one thing and honest pleasure quite another.

 

For those, like yourself, engaged in a program of alchemical transformation, I'm sure there are phases where it's important to turn away from the external, to eat bland food or fast, sit long hours in a dark room.  Asceticisim is valid too.  But for others, some of life's most transportive moments come from engagement with the senses.

 

Because I'm not an experienced practitioner to all of this I could throw a less knowledgeable light on it

 

Anytime I have approached anything "spiritual" in my practice, it has always struck me as unlike anything else. Its not something I like to post about, seems a bit too intimate, but ill try to give a sense of my own feeling if it adds to the discussion

 

I say approach because any of my experiences were as far as I can tell, on the peripheries and edges rather than engulfed in it

 

The experiences, while they left me dumbstruck, awestruck, terrified, There was a commonality amongst them

 

This didnt even hit me fully until afterwards

 

It was terrifying because my ego was not ready to approach it (It still isnt)

It left me in awe because it answered doubts I had about what the nature of reality is (A lot of them have left)

It left me dumbstruck because I didnt try to make it happen, (I still dont what mechanic I triggered for it to arise)

 

Also I need to be honest, these were experiences, not "progress", not at all.

 

But something interesting @freeformmentioned and I think it speaks to the nature of spirit

 

The main takeaway I had from it all, was that that discrimination is pointless, because underneath the cover of what we perceive as reality is a constant, lets call it 1

 

Everything is of that constant 1

 

If you can experience beyond the layers of the sense faculties and your mind, you will come to approach this.

 

Its quite scary if you arent ready for it.

 

I know I couldn't approach it even if I wanted to beyond even a cursory view of the edges.

 

My mind can just about process it intellectually, but in no way am I ready to experience it

 

So when people start discriminating bad from good, tasty from disgusting and so forth.

 

A person who has realised and embodies the original self, they have no such capacity for this distinction

 

And there are some very unusual means of expressing , or even approaching this

 

The Aghoras of India...take a look at how they live...Its baffling, but an example of how they practice non discrimination

 

 

I should add, I dont endorse or support the Aghori practices,

 

I was just illustrating the point about non-discrimination  

Edited November 8, 2022 by Shadow_self

[liminal_luke]

1 hour ago, Shadow_self said:

 

So when people start discriminating bad from good, tasty from disgusting and so forth.

 

A person who has realised and embodies the original self, they have no such capacity for this distinction

 

 

Maybe you're right but this is hard to wrap my mind around.  I think of someone like Rumi.  Obviously he could discriminate bad from good when it comes to his own poetry.  Did he embody the original self?  I can't know for sure but most would agree he was a spiritually advanced practitioneer.  Maybe there's a paradox here.  Perhaps it's possible to appreciate everything, to take life totally as it comes without preference, and still be able to discriminate esthetically.  

[zerostao]

Mod presence notice

 

if you’ve had posts of your’s hidden and you didn’t request that—-

And you’ve had recent posts hid by mods on other threads—-

I suggest some reflection

bc I could at a whim drop a sixty day suspension 

[MetaDao]

Even if you could vampirically steal yuan Jing from your partner or generate Yuan Jing while having sex, causing maximum amount of pleasure while minimizing loss, you’d still move further away from any sort of spiritual growth.

 

If you choose sensory maximization over spiritual growth, you move away from the path of Neidan. It is a trap. A distraction. 
 

You must choose one or the other. Attachment or detachment. For those interested in the deepest part of the path, it seems nonsensical to sacrifice spiritual immortality for something as simple as sex.

 

What do you feel? Temporary satisfaction. Incredible pleasure with the most beautiful woman you can imagine followed by a temporary satisfaction when you orgasm. This all depletes your Yuan Qi and moves you further and further from the destination that your soul seeks.

 

One is not better than the other. Masculinity, power, sexuality, pleasure, satisfaction. Is this not what everyone in materialistic society strives for? You feel so great when you achieve all those right? Yet, there is

always something you yearn for. Some hole to fill. Also, once you reach a certain age, sex goes out the window. 
 

Daoist lovemaking is an illusion. You want to maximize pleasure? You’re moving away from Dao.

 

My advice: forget about it. I am an attractive male with plenty of potential

partners out there. I’ve only had sex a few times in my life. It is simply a fact that temporary satisfaction of desire does

not fill the void in my soul. You can look

like a Hollywood movie star and give all your partners multiple orgasms, but you’ve only satisfied a deep-rooted insecurity. You’re going to die and go through the same process over and over. Nothing long-lasting will be accomplished. It’s worthless. A waste of time. A waste of effort. A waste of spiritual potential

 

Desire is a trap. You must end all attachment to desire to succeed in a spiritual path. If you’re aiming to be a master of Neidan, looking like a Hollywood movie star is not a blessing. It is a curse.
 

Sure, you date Megan Fox and give her multiple orgasms every night with all your Daoist techniques. Great, your desires are satisfied and you’re an “alpha.” You’re not escaping karma. You’re not bringing value to the world. You’re not gaining siddhi. You’re not becoming immortal. You’re moving away from Dao. You will die. You will be reborn according to your karma. The world will continue on. 
 

If sex is all you strive for, sure, go for it! Just know there are just as many people as good at sex and as attractive as you out there. So, You’re not special and nothing you achieve through Daoist lovemaking is noteworthy.

 

Does not meant there is anything wrong with sex and pleasure. It is just not the routes towards helping the world. The deepest desire for anyone serious about spirituality and spiritual growth is to create harmony between Heaven and Earth. Sexual mastery is about creating harmony between you and a partner for maximum pleasure and minimum loss. Sure, that’s fine. But, you will never contribute to the wider whole of humanity through that route. It is cowardly. Selfish. Wasteful. If you know of the path of Neidan and choose the path of sex instead, I would label you as a waste of potential. Choosing sexual maximization over spiritual maximization is a wasteful path leading nowhere but an early grave and another rebirth. Do reality a favor and contribute something meaningful instead.
 

 

 

 

Edited November 9, 2022 by MetaDao

[Lairg]

There are various beneficial levels to sex activity:

 

- continuation of the species

- efforts of the systemic logos to manifest its body (the solar system)

- anchoring intergalactic flows including bandwidth for galactic intent

- processing of group karma

- facilitating transcendental relationship

 

There are also adverse effects in some situations including:

 

- excessive loss of biological energy

- spirit possession

- generation of adverse karma

 

I am inclined to consider each sexual relationship on its merits and demerits

 

 

[mcoolio]

But isn't it a little bit simplistic to reduce sexuality to 'a loss of jing which could have been used to cultivate spirit'?

 

How does the full qi mechanism in sexuality work? Simply from a qigong point of view, without all this talk of desire and pleasure? Somebody who is interested in qigong, perhaps there is something interesting to understand and experience in the sex? Exchange of energy between two people? Seems interesting. Could it be used to build qi? Is there any other gain?

 

As far as I know, daoists are pragmatic lot that seem to find uses for all sorts of stuff ...

 

So the male loses jing, and spirit cultivation becomes harder, but what does the female gain? Life is not only about ourselves right? 

[Master Logray]

8 minutes ago, mcoolio said:

But isn't it a little bit simplistic to reduce sexuality to 'a loss of jing which could have been used to cultivate spirit'?

 

How does the full qi mechanism in sexuality work? Simply from a qigong point of view, without all this talk of desire and pleasure? Somebody who is interested in qigong, perhaps there is something interesting to understand and experience in the sex? Exchange of energy between two people? Seems interesting. Could it be used to build qi? Is there any other gain?

 

As far as I know, daoists are pragmatic lot that seem to find uses for all sorts of stuff ...

 

So the male loses jing, and spirit cultivation becomes harder, but what does the female gain? Life is not only about ourselves right? 

 

Taoist deals with sex from different angles.  In the previous posts, it is more about sexual health - how to do it better, more effective (more pleasure), more efficient (less damage to the body).   It is for most people include qigong practitioners.  For alchemical cultivators, it is better to minimize sexual activities and thoughts at all.  There is also a faction, using sexual activities to cultivate Neidan (as you say they are pragmatic lot that find uses for all sorts of stuff).  It is not about pleasure at all.  Finally there are many who makes money out of such, providing advice, teaching, medicines or other means - often involve cheating and regarded as swindlers.  It is not easy to tell which is which.

[Apech]

10 hours ago, zerostao said:

Mod presence notice

 

if you’ve had posts of your’s hidden and you didn’t request that—-

And you’ve had recent posts hid by mods on other threads—-

I suggest some reflection

bc I could at a whim drop a sixty day suspension 

 

If you hid my post,

Then like a ghost,

I'd haunt the board,

Silently,

Without a word.

 

[MetaDao]

3 hours ago, mcoolio said:

But isn't it a little bit simplistic to reduce sexuality to 'a loss of jing which could have been used to cultivate spirit'?

 

How does the full qi mechanism in sexuality work? Simply from a qigong point of view, without all this talk of desire and pleasure? Somebody who is interested in qigong, perhaps there is something interesting to understand and experience in the sex? Exchange of energy between two people? Seems interesting. Could it be used to build qi? Is there any other gain?

 

As far as I know, daoists are pragmatic lot that seem to find uses for all sorts of stuff ...

 

So the male loses jing, and spirit cultivation becomes harder, but what does the female gain? Life is not only about ourselves right? 

Any sort of desire leads to a loss of Yuan Qi. This is the opposite of what you want for spirtual growth. There is a harmonization of Yin and Yang and some karmic exchange, but ultimately, if the goal is spiritual growth, it still harms both parties if it is an act of desire.

 

If you do not want to grow spiritually, sex is fine. It is an expression of love. But, you are not truly free if your mind is caught up in desire. I believe there exist vampiric techniques, which have been scrubbed from the records because of the harm they cause. It is a trap best avoided. True spiritual growth requires the elimination of sex and desire. If your goal is something Qigong related, yes, I believe there exist techniques with such benefits. Though, you will never learn them from anyone. They are lost to all but a few. And, for good reason.

 

If you want sex, have it. If that is your goal, go for it. Just know that it is not the route to spiritual growth and never will be. As Freeform says, there are other ways to experience bliss with a partner. Any so called benefits that can be gotten from sex, can be had from genuine practice. Pleasure should be exchanged for bliss. Seeking pleasure is the same as moving away from Dao. Creates Karma. This is simply the way of the universe.

Edited November 9, 2022 by MetaDao

[chidaruma]

I hope I'm not too off topic, but there were many claims made here about the inability to combine spiritual practice and sex, and that might be the case in terms of Daoist practices, I know too little about them to be a judge of that, but from my understanding this is far from any universal law in spiritual cultivation. In the Tantrik traditions such practices are present (Tantrism as a whole has become overly associated with sex in the public's eye, but case in point - such teachings are present in authentic lineages). With all respect to the people who shared their view in this topic, I just want to put it out there, to present an alternative point of view if nothing else.

 

Below is podcast with Dr Nida Chenagtsang - an authentic teacher of Yuthok Nyingthig lineage, answering some questions about sexual partnered practice. Dr Nida is an author of a book "Karmamudra: the yoga of bliss", which I recommend to anyone interested in getting further information about this type of practices.

 

While Dr Nida is the only person I know of that presents these practices in such an open way, partnered sexual practice is present not only in his lineage, but in many other streams of Tantrik practice, Buddhist as well as Hindu, where desire is approached as a path to liberation, through the application of skilful means.

 

 

[zerostao]

2 hours ago, Apech said:

 

If you hid my post,

Then like a ghost,

I'd haunt the board,

Silently,

Without a word.

 

that’s right

 

I’ve never hid a post of your’s

ever.

I have a strong bias favoring your blazing brilliance.

keep on keeping on and thank you

 

[freeform]

20 hours ago, chidaruma said:

Dr Nida Chenagtsang

He’s the one that talks about the culture of sexual abuse among high level tantric Lamas, right?

 

I mean there’s a clue right there…

 

But yes…

It’s possible to use sex as a method… actually it’s possible to use all manner of stuff as a method - corpses and entrails is a big one…

 

The aim of this sort of thing isn’t to increase pleasure (or disgust) - but to rise above the attachment and aversion that pleasure (or discomfort) can create.

 

The vast majority don’t rise above it… any hint of attachment or aversion - and they’ll get pulled into the pursuit of satisfying base desires.

 

Some are pulled into this pursuit, but have so much self control that they manage to control themselves… so they don’t become a monster.

 

I knew this guy I used to work with. I really liked him - very interesting dude. One day he stopped coming in to work - so I went to his home to try and see if he got fired or something.

 

At his flat was his daughter - turns out he died of an overdose. He’d been a fully functional heroin addict for over 20 years. Hardly anyone knew. Not even his daughter…

 

Then there are the others who really do succeed with sexual tantra - that are able to be in a state of complete equanimity… so whether presented with sex or with feces, they’ll partake either way - with no attachment or aversion.

 

(and yes - eating shit is also a ‘spiritual practice’… I wonder why it hasn’t blown up like the sexual variety!  )

 

If there’s even a slight subconscious tinge of ‘now that sounds good’ at the thought of sexual practice, then you don’t have the equanimity for it.

 

If you feel a preference for sex with someone attractive over taking a big ol bite into a gnarly poop… then you’re not able to use sex as a spiritual practice.

[freeform]

And about great art and how it relates to spirituality.

 

Great art (music/sculpture/dance) can move you deeply… it can move you to such an extent that you forget yourself… now that’s a pretty good thing for spiritual practice…

 

But

 

You don’t forget yourself as a result of touching spirit… what you actually forget is the outer veneer of yourself… the part of self that is conscious or slightly subconscious.

 

Great art can move you deep into parts of you that are normally unconscious… even what some call ‘collective unconscious’.

 

This is a deep and profound experience… and in a way, yes - it’s closer to spirit.

 

Actually a lot human activities that get you absorbed have this power… films, books, martial arts practice… any sort of Gong - from butchery to mountain climbing… they all have this power to release the self for just a little while - which in that space of time removes one extra vail the conceals your original spirit.

 

But being closer to something that exists on a very different plane of existence is still worlds apart…

 

Its like how really cold water is closer to ice than really hot water is… but ice is fundamentally and completely different to cold water…

 

Theres a gate that you cross that creates a radical transformation - like the transformation of water into ice… the same substance - but a radical transformation.

 

Using the senses in this outward way (outward doesn’t mean out into the world… looking inwardly is still considered ‘outward’… (the big misconception of ‘turning the light around’ is based in this!)) - using the sense outwardly will not allow you to pass through the gateway.

Edited November 10, 2022 by freeform

[Master Logray]

4 hours ago, freeform said:

(and yes - eating shit is also a ‘spiritual practice’… I wonder why it hasn’t blown up like the sexual variety!  )

 

I read a book called Extreme Spiritualism.   It mentioned burying seekers into human?/animal excretions.

[refugeindharma]

17 hours ago, freeform said:

Using the senses in this outward way (outward doesn’t mean out into the world… looking inwardly is still considered ‘outward’… (the big misconception of ‘turning the light around’ is based in this!)) - using the sense outwardly will not allow you to pass through the gateway.

 

So is the deeper meaning of 'turning the light around' to touch upon, merge, or place one's attention on spirit, or whatever it is that represents ice in the analogy you used?

If not, could you please elaborate further on this concept? My basic understanding of that phrase comes from the misconception you have outlined

[freeform]

6 hours ago, refugeindharma said:

 

So is the deeper meaning of 'turning the light around' to touch upon, merge, or place one's attention on spirit, or whatever it is that represents ice in the analogy you used?

If not, could you please elaborate further on this concept? My basic understanding of that phrase comes from the misconception you have outlined

Good question

 

I’ll need to check how much I can say before responding.

[freeform]

15 hours ago, refugeindharma said:

 

So is the deeper meaning of 'turning the light around' to touch upon, merge, or place one's attention on spirit, or whatever it is that represents ice in the analogy you used?

If not, could you please elaborate further on this concept? My basic understanding of that phrase comes from the misconception you have outlined

 

You were close… it’s using the awareness in such a way that allows the Shen to be perceived.

 

Ok - so I’ll need to explain it in such a way that doesn’t go into certain details… and it’s quite an involved thing - and too much to unpack in a post (or even many posts).

 

As always with Daoist theory just a couple of throwaway words are pointing something quite profound and intricate. 

 

Turning the light around isn’t the same as looking inwardly…

 

your sensory faculties carry with it your sense of self…

 

So your perception will always be ‘self-shaped’… whether you look out at a candle flame, or you sense your third eye or your Dantien internally - this act of perception is born of and therefore will always carry with it your sense of self.

 

Turning the light around is turning your awareness in on itself. It’s not just a change in direction of focus. It’s awareness becoming aware of awareness itself. There are methods for developing the capability to achieve this - it’s not something you can just do.

 

When done correctly, your sense of self disappears and becomes light… This is sometimes called the light of Shen. There’s something that happens when one can regularly rest in this light that would be considered the deeper aspect of turning the light around.

It’s one of the major aspects of Shen Gong.

[blue eyed snake]

56 minutes ago, freeform said:

 

You were close… it’s using the awareness in such a way that allows the Shen to be perceived.

 

Ok - so I’ll need to explain it in such a way that doesn’t go into certain details… and it’s quite an involved thing - and too much to unpack in a post (or even many posts).

 

As always with Daoist theory just a couple of throwaway words are pointing something quite profound and intricate. 

 

Turning the light around isn’t the same as looking inwardly…

 

your sensory faculties carry with it your sense of self…

 

So your perception will always be ‘self-shaped’… whether you look out at a candle flame, or you sense your third eye or your Dantien internally - this act of perception is born of and therefore will always carry with it your sense of self.

 

Turning the light around is turning your awareness in on itself. It’s not just a change in direction of focus. It’s awareness becoming aware of awareness itself. There are methods for developing the capability to achieve this - it’s not something you can just do.

 

When done correctly, your sense of self disappears and becomes light… This is sometimes called the light of Shen. There’s something that happens when one can regularly rest in this light that would be considered the deeper aspect of turning the light around.

It’s one of the major aspects of Shen Gong.

 

That is a nice way of putting it.

Thank you.

[Shadow_self]

3 hours ago, freeform said:

 

You were close… it’s using the awareness in such a way that allows the Shen to be perceived.

 

Ok - so I’ll need to explain it in such a way that doesn’t go into certain details… and it’s quite an involved thing - and too much to unpack in a post (or even many posts).

 

As always with Daoist theory just a couple of throwaway words are pointing something quite profound and intricate. 

 

Turning the light around isn’t the same as looking inwardly…

 

your sensory faculties carry with it your sense of self…

 

So your perception will always be ‘self-shaped’… whether you look out at a candle flame, or you sense your third eye or your Dantien internally - this act of perception is born of and therefore will always carry with it your sense of self.

 

Turning the light around is turning your awareness in on itself. It’s not just a change in direction of focus. It’s awareness becoming aware of awareness itself. There are methods for developing the capability to achieve this - it’s not something you can just do.

 

When done correctly, your sense of self disappears and becomes light… This is sometimes called the light of Shen. There’s something that happens when one can regularly rest in this light that would be considered the deeper aspect of turning the light around.

It’s one of the major aspects of Shen Gong.

Damn it @freeform, Im trying not to post  

 

Even when I know what you're talking about,

 

You always somehow find a way to slip a nugget in there that sets off a chain reaction of understanding  

 

You managed to give the missing piece of the puzzle with this

 

Quote

your sensory faculties carry with it your sense of self…

 

and this (which I do understand)

 

Quote

There’s something that happens when one can regularly rest in this light that would be considered the deeper aspect of turning the light around.

 

I wont say what you just taught me, because it may cause you to have to delve into something you aren't allowed discuss..

 

You've already been overly generous

 

But thank you!

 

That was an important lesson I didnt expect to learn today  

[Barnaby]

Yes, very interesting.

 

I'd always taken "turning the light around" to be connected with the small circulation/MCO.

 

I'd never thought of it as an aspect of Shen Gong.

 

The stuff on the senses in this thread really resonates, great stuff...

[Miffymog]

11 hours ago, Shadow_self said:

Damn it @freeform, Im trying not to post  

 

Even when I know what you're talking about,

 

You always somehow find a way to slip a nugget in there that sets off a chain reaction of understanding  

 

You managed to give the missing piece of the puzzle with this

 

 

and this (which I do understand)

 

 

I wont say what you just taught me, because it may cause you to have to delve into something you aren't allowed discuss..

 

You've already been overly generous

 

But thank you!

 

That was an important lesson I didnt expect to learn today  

 

 

 

If you've picked up that point from @freeform 's post then I highly recommend watching this video. Here Damo alludes to it by means of attention and intention. What is the difference between them and, more importantly in regards to your post, what does each one carry?

 

 

[Shadow_self]

4 hours ago, Miffymog said:

 

 

 

If you've picked up that point from @freeform 's post then I highly recommend watching this video. Here Damo alludes to it by means of attention and intention. What is the difference between them and, more importantly in regards to your post, what does each one carry?

 

 

 

 

Oh I've seen this my friend  

 

This has to do with something different, something a bit more "esoteric",

 

It is related to transmigration  

 

Sometimes you hear something phrased in  just the right way and certain bits of knowledge are pulled together into a much more coherent understanding  

Edited November 12, 2022 by Shadow_self

[Creation]

On 11/11/2022 at 1:08 PM, freeform said:

Turning the light around is turning your awareness in on itself. It’s not just a change in direction of focus. It’s awareness becoming aware of awareness itself. There are methods for developing the capability to achieve this - it’s not something you can just do.

 

I continue to look outside of Daoism for methods to do just this, in large part because the Longmen Daoists I'm familiar with don't talk about it (you, Damo, Nathan, WLP), but somehow I am certain of it's crucial importance.  Here is finally some confirmation that it is important and a part of Longmen Daoism.  Tibetan Buddhism, for instance, is much more up front about it.

[Creation]

On 11/8/2022 at 2:24 PM, freeform said:

But it’s being dragged out of me.

Thanks for letting us drag things out of you here.  Due to your postings over the years since your return, and reinforced by what I've learned from Damo, I've realized the way I was viewing sex was harmful.  Yet I'm still somehow not quite sure how to view sex instead.  For instance, for you say attachment to sexual pleasure takes you in the opposite directions of spirit, so why not be celibate if you are a cultivator?  Is there some benefit to the cultivator, assuming some level of detachment has been reached, for instance like in the personal story you shared?  Something like the potential for this:

On 11/8/2022 at 3:36 AM, freeform said:

If you really ting - at a deeper level - not on the sensory or body level then uniting with your partner can happen on a ‘soul level’…

 

What builds is not sensual pleasure but blissful love.

On 11/8/2022 at 8:33 AM, freeform said:

This connection is far more profound and blissful in a way that goes beyond the self - and I’ve had my fair share of pleasurable experiences to compare this with. Completely different. What happens physically actually matters very little.

Could you say any more about the prerequisites, mechanism, and benefit of this, vs. celibacy?

 

And for those of us who haven't been through a torturous retreat with a teacher who knows what they are doing to develop detachment from sensation, what hope do we have of making any progress? 

[Nuralshamal]

I made love to my beloved every day these past few weeks. My streak is almost one month now. And brothers...

You have no idea where daoist lovemaking can take you. The states of body, energy, mind and soul to be reached are incredible.

It's like the most profound meditation, yet the body and energy are also involved.

Love in all its shapes and forms, pleasure, joy, satisfaction, peace, power, strength, vitality and fulfillment, all circulating through your body.

I can see this thread is starting to move towards "detachment", "sex is not spiritual", "sex is harmful" etc, I just want to tell you all, this is not the only way.

Actually, from what I've seen in my life, this attitude leads to problems; physically, emotionally, mentally, energetically and spiritually. Making love is the most natural thing there is. If you try to deny it, you'll get problems. Just like the myriad sex scandals with monks, nuns, priests etc (in both Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism and Islam, as well as Daoist sects).

If you deny sex, it's going to destroy you.

If you become obsessed with it, it's also going to destroy you.

So tread carefully my dear brothers, don't go to either of these extremes. Live naturally.

Desire is not your enemy, it's a tool to further your soul's natural development. Just like you desire health, enlightenment, healing, spirituality, alchemy etc. It's the driving force of life and manifestation. Your parents created you out of desire. You started on the spiritual path out of desire.

Satisfy all your desires. Supressing desire makes your body and spirit weak. Not fulfilling your desires slowly weakens you on all levels.

Just make sure to: 
1) Never produce thoughts, words nor deeds which can hurt yourself or others, physically or mentally, now or in the future,
2) Help alleviate the suffering of others when possible,
3) Employ limit and method when satisfying your desires (too much is bad, too little is bad, staying within the natural limit is healthy. Similarly, employing a wrong method in satisfying your desires is also harmful, use the correct method).

Experiment and see for yourself. I've practiced strict and complete celibacy for 6 months, yes, it helps to focus on ONLY spirituality, but it damaged by body. My prostate and erection power grew weaker, and you become "a one trick pony". You only cultivate one side of your being. You are a sexual being, as well as a spiritual being. 

Then I've practiced "normal sex" with as much sex and masturbation as desired, and ejaculating every single time. This I found to be the most natural and healthy. However, losing so much sexual fluid will affect your system (depending on your strength and age). For me, I felt like my spiritual energy actually went down a bit, even though I felt that my physical energy went up and my emotions became much more balanced.

Lastly, through the above experimentation, the best method I found for my body is as much sex and masturbation as wanted, yet regulating the ejaculation. It's healthy and natural for my body, keeps my mind relaxed, and strikes a balance between strengthening my physical body yet also strengthening my spiritual energy. I satisfy both my body and soul, as well as allow the energy to build up instead of just shooting it out every time.

For me personally, this is the best method. Experiment and see for yourself. Don't just follow what others say blindly, putting it on a piedestal and worshipping it as superior and judging other ways as inferior. We're all different, our bodies, energies and minds are different, we all need something different to move towards our own unique balance of health. So experiment and see for yourself.

God bless you