Jasper Lake Maoshan (Jason Read Daoist Magic)

[Nuralshamal]

Dear Dao Bums,

Question for you guys
Do you have any interesting experiences with Jason Read and his Jasper Lake Maoshan Daoist Magic?

I have seen a few posts here on Daobums about his books on daoist magic, but none about the actual daoist magic training with him.

My own few observations
A fellow qigong brother here on the forum that I'm corresponding with notified me about Jasper Lake Maoshan daoist magic training. I checked out his webpages and read all that I could, and am now reading through his book "Practical Daoist Magic".

Webpages:
I found the webpages extremely interesting, and I definitely felt what he's sharing to be real, authentic and substantial. I tried meditating on a talisman he's posted to connect with the energy of "the fire star" or Mars, and within 5 minutes I felt heat pouring into my body and getting heated up. I was extremely suprised how fast and powerfully it worked. I took this as a sign that what's he's sharing is truly legit!

Book so far:
The book is the same story in the sense that it feels very legit and authentic. All the history and mythology he's sharing is perfectly in line with what I've been taught by Master Zhongxian Wu (who I've learnt from for more than 6 years), as is his explanation for yin/yang, 5 elements, 8 trigrams (bagua) stems, branches etc. of course with some slight variations in their personal interpretations.

His beginning practices "to cultivate magical power" is also similar to what I've learnt from Master Wu, namely building the lower dan tien, purifying & strengthening the 5 organ system, "retriving" or calling back the spirits of your organs as well as daily mantras for purification (mind, mouth, body, surroundings, pacifying spirits, calling upon the golden light etc).

The idea of jing/qi/shen as well as mantra, mudra, visualisation and posture is also similar.

All in all I feel it to be very real. What I especially enjoy is that as a westerner he explains things very clearly so that it's easy to understand from a western viewpoint. He also divulges the "secrets" of how things really work and explain the whole process as well as the end result. This is something my chinese teachers never do, they simply encourage you to practice, shoot down your questions, and never explain linearly and in a straight-forward way what things are, how they work, what the process is like, what the result will be or how to measure your progress along the way.

The only thing that really made me stop and wonder, was that at some point in the book he says that 30 minutes before and after practice you shouldn't eat or drink (pretty standard advice), however then immediately after he says drinking "only cool water" is allowed. This is a huge shocker! Everyone knows that Chinese never suggest cold water, it should be either hot or lukewarm. This was a big suprise for me, and made me wonder and question how everything could be feel so real and authentic, yet this one basic thing was completely "off" for how Chinese qigong/TCM/cultivation usually rolls. Actually it was such a great shock that it made me question the authenticity of everything. Even though the fire star talisman worked (which I felt to build his credibility), and the explanations feel legit too (which also builds credibility) the advice to drink cool water was so off that it made me wonder and question everything about his whole story of training in China & Malaysia etc.

This is what made me write a post here on the forum, I wanted to speak to my dao brothers and sisters and hear your experiences (if any) with Jason Read and his Jasper Lake Maoshan Daoist Magic training.

I look forward to hear from you! 

Edited July 26, 2023 by Nuralshamal

[Nuralshamal]

Dear Dao Bums,

In the past couple of days I've continued my research.

I've now read 2 out of 3 of his books (Practical Chinese Magic and Thunder Magic), as well as watched 3 out 4 interviews on YouTube with him.

I must say I'm now fairly convinced that he's legit. 

I would still love to hear from you guys if you've had any experiences with him and his teachings.

Edited July 28, 2023 by Nuralshamal

[Taomeow]

On 7/26/2023 at 8:52 AM, Nuralshamal said:

The only thing that really made me stop and wonder, was that at some point in the book he says that 30 minutes before and after practice you shouldn't eat or drink (pretty standard advice), however then immediately after he says drinking "only cool water" is allowed. This is a huge shocker! Everyone knows that Chinese never suggest cold water, it should be either hot or lukewarm. This was a big suprise for me, and made me wonder and question how everything could be feel so real and authentic, yet this one basic thing was completely "off" for how Chinese qigong/TCM/cultivation usually rolls. 

 

Taoist magic is very different from qigong/TCM.  Maoshan, in its turn, is very different from other types of taoist magic.  I wouldn't be surprised if the advice was to drink hard liquor before the practice, as some shamans do, or animal blood, or a psychedelic brew.  Perhaps cool water after practice has to do with the temperature of the spirits invoked, which may overheat the body, which may need a cooling-down.  Or perhaps it's a red flag.  I'm only familiar with Jason Read's offerings via a book of his, so I don't know for sure.  But I wouldn't dismiss him on the basis of this one statement alone, I would need more evidence of un-authenticity.       

[Nuralshamal]

5 hours ago, Taomeow said:

 

Taoist magic is very different from qigong/TCM.  Maoshan, in its turn, is very different from other types of taoist magic.  I wouldn't be surprised if the advice was to drink hard liquor before the practice, as some shamans do, or animal blood, or a psychedelic brew.  Perhaps cool water after practice has to do with the temperature of the spirits invoked, which may overheat the body, which may need a cooling-down.  Or perhaps it's a red flag.  I'm only familiar with Jason Read's offerings via a book of his, so I don't know for sure.  But I wouldn't dismiss him on the basis of this one statement alone, I would need more evidence of un-authenticity.       

Hey @Taomeow, thanks for chiming in and sharing your thoughts, I appreciate that 

Could you share some of your insights and experiences using his "offerings"? And which book of his was it?

I look forward to hear from you! All the best  

Edited July 28, 2023 by Nuralshamal

[Nuralshamal]

Dear Dao Bums

UPDATE:

I've joined MaoShan and cultivated daily for almost 6 months now, slowly but steadily working my way through Jason Read's Jasper Lake Maoshan curriculum.

It is legit!

The only thing I would say if you're going to join, is to pay attention to the following points:

1) make sure you do physical exercise daily,  ideally things like physical yoga, taichi or a moving qigong form to circulate your qi and maintain and strengthen your physical body. I understand why Jason has not included much of this on the online part, seeing that the physical aspect of qigong is very widely available on the market today, whereas the secret, magical and more esoteric aspect he so freely shares is not. So just make sure you tick this off and commit to a daily physical regimen.

2) don't cheat yourself, actually do the exercises in 49 day practice cycles, take your time, feel it, get into it, document it. Go at it with respect, dedication, commitment and as a true, authentic and commited quest for your own personal, spiritual journey.

 

If you pay attention to these 2 points, you are set

I am personally extremely happy and thankful for having found MaoShan - the way Jason teaches and explains complicated chinese metaphysics are simply unparalleled. It's so clear and crisp, I've never seen it explained in a way so easy to understand before. Further, the things he shares are pretty much impossible to find anywhere else.

Lastly, the man is simply incredible - he works a normal full day job besides maintaining the school, and he still finds time to make new lessons for the students, translate chinese works, write and publish books as well as regularly posting never-seen-before bits on magic on his twitter and facebook. And joining MaoShan is a flat rate fee of 108gbp FOR LIFE! For all lessons.

He is truly a giving and sharing person, God bless him

Thank you Jason! 

Edited February 27 by Nuralshamal