Who is trained in Micro Cosmic Orbit?

[YMWong]

What happend to "where the mind goes chi follows"? The mind does it all and is everything.

 

The 'mind' in chinese is the 'heart' not your brain/imagination

 

If you think 'the mind does it all and is everything' try to jump out of the window and begin to fly: can you do that ?

If you want to do that, you need the develop wings first, then use your 'heart/mind' to move your wings in the proper way.

If we were born with wings, like the birds, we would all be flying already - would we ?

 

YM

 

EDIT: Needless to say, the body has 'qi' flowing around so if any practice can make that 'qi' flow better and more balanced of course that could bring positive results. In this sense, getting an acupuncture treatment, doing Taiji or growing flowers - when done with the right mindset/heart - can all be useful.

But, to get back to my 'flying' example before, these practices can only lead to 'walk better' which of course is a good thing

Edited May 21, 2009 by YMWong

[xenolith]

...So, briefly put, the method prevalent in the west uses the mind and moves a little Qi. The method outlined in Lingbao Bifa, among other classics, is achieved through long term practice and moves a lot of Qi.

Yep.

 

Feel Something vs. Understand All MCO.

[WhiteTiger]

Edited May 22, 2009 by WhiteTiger

[宁]

What happend to "where the mind goes chi follows"? The mind does it all and is everything.

 

 

What mind? What Qi? And in what quantity? What about the quality?

Depending on the answer to these question...............

 

 

It seems that for them mind is qi, so they train the mind. but it's different than western mind training.

[三江源]

 

Even more so, i think that there is always a matter of destiny, regarding who is to get a grasp of different levels of the practice, AND regarding the results acheived.

 

 

This does appear to be the case.

[松永道]

Here is a problem where translation is important.

 

Mind, in the case of "where the mind goes, Qi goes," is called Yi. Yi, 意, is related to the spleen or central network in traditional philosophy. The character breaks down into 音 which means sound or image over 心 which means heart. So Yi is the images of the heart. Sound like something familiar? Yi dao, Qi dao - where the Yi goes, Qi goes.

 

Mind is also a common translation of Shen, 神, which also gets translated as Spirit and perhaps is most accurately translated as consciousness.

 

Now it's my understanding that for most people Shen and Yi are pretty much undifferentiated in waking life. Meaning that we are pretty much being conscious of the sounds and images of our mind. However in cultivation, the two need to be distinguished.

[sheng zhen]

Here is a problem where translation is important.

 

Mind, in the case of "where the mind goes, Qi goes," is called Yi. Yi, 意, is related to the spleen or central network in traditional philosophy. The character breaks down into 音 which means sound or image over 心 which means heart. So Yi is the images of the heart. Sound like something familiar? Yi dao, Qi dao - where the Yi goes, Qi goes.

 

Mind is also a common translation of Shen, 神, which also gets translated as Spirit and perhaps is most accurately translated as consciousness.

 

Now it's my understanding that for most people Shen and Yi are pretty much undifferentiated in waking life. Meaning that we are pretty much being conscious of the sounds and images of our mind. However in cultivation, the two need to be distinguished.

This is a very interesting discussion! The way I understand it, coming from a new age spiritual upbringing, this misunderstanding might be the reason why people dont get any effect, or at best a temporary effect, from techniques like The Secret and visualizations. Qi does not really flow where "mind" - that we understand as "thought" or "mental images" - goes, it flows where we put our heart and soul into.

 

This is a completely different level of integration, reality interaction and transformation, compared to visualization.

[lino]

But again, that's not to discredit "qigong masters" who lack these characteristics. Qi has many qualities and the Qi issued and stored by the Lower Dantian has a different quality than the Qi of the Middle and Upper Dan Tian. But, in Dan Dao practice, the Lower Dan Tian is cultivated first and only once firmly established, used to nourish and practice the Middle and Upper Dan Tian.

 

I would still be skeptical since in one Santiago's ebooks, he does weighted breathing with one of those huge water cooler bottles.

[Creation]

Here is an article by B.K. Frantzis about Yi vs. Shen (which he translates intent vs. hear-mind). It appeared in 3 parts and can be found on his website:

http://www.energyarts.com/Articles/Bruce-s...t-2-Intent.html

http://www.energyarts.com/Articles/Bruce-s...bconscious.html

http://www.energyarts.com/Articles/Bruce-s...-Your-Life.html

I think it is pertinent so I have posted all three parts for the convenience of TTBs.

The Heart-Mind is an important concept in both Taoism and in Buddhism. To understand the Heart-Mind, we must first understand the nature of intent in relation to Taoism.

 

There are two levels of intent in everything you do in Taoism and Chinese chi work. The first one is ordinary intent. The second level of intent is the place from which intent arises originally. That is, the place where intent is born.

 

Any level of intent has both a yin and yang component. If you want to walk across the street, that's a yang action because you have to go and do something. If you want something to come toward you, that's a yin form of intent. But then there's this question of where the intent comes from to begin with. Where do all your thoughts come from? Where do all your emotions come from? Where is the birthing room of yin and yang?

 

Classic Chinese philosophy says that in the beginning there was the undifferentiated void called wu chi (wu ji). Wu chi held within itself all possibilities but was beyond needing to take form. However, in order for creation to come into existence, there needed to be a creative force. This force was called tai chi (taiji).

 

Tai chi gives birth to yin and yang. Tai chi is neutral, neither, both, or. It has no qualities of its own, but it allows any yin and yang to take form. It is a level of emptiness that produces manifestation. The interplay of yin and yang is called liang i by the ancient Chinese.

 

So, where does any thought, any emotion, any phenomena come from? If you have a psychic perception, where does it come from? If a thought comes into your mind, or an emotion comes into your body, where does it originate? The thought itself, the emotion itself, the psychic perception itself, or even the way karma occurs itself you could say always has a yin or a yang quality. It could be more yin and less yang or more yang and less yin, but one or both are always involved. You can break anything down from the most finite things that exist in quantum physics to the biggest things in the universe.

 

The subconscious--a place that has thought--is still yin and yang. The place in the subconscious from where it is born, that's the Heart-Mind. It is not the subconscious itself rather the place that gives birth to the subconscious.

 

On a human level, intent is normal intent but then the Heart-Mind is a phrase that is used both in Buddhism and Taoism. Taoism sometimes doesn't use the word Heart-Mind and sometimes uses the word spirit (shen). Buddhists always use Heart-Mind, Taoist sometimes use Heart-Mind and sometimes use spirit, but the fact is that they're interchangeable. I tend to use the term Heart-Mind because Buddhism is better known in the West, and I prefer to use common terms.

 

 

We've been talking about the place from which intent and thoughts come from, the Heart-Mind. How do you get there? What is the method?

 

Let's take the process of Inner Dissolving, Lao Tse's 2,500-year-old tradition of ice to water, water to inner space. When you go from ice to water that's a yin-yang relationship; tension to relaxation is a yin-yang relationship. Now, if you want to go to the place where both of these energies originate, you effectively will move through two levels.

 

If you're talking about the level of human perception to arrive at relaxation (or water) you will move through the subconscious whether you realize it or not. But that in and of itself has more to do with the transparency of recognizing the deeper implications of what's involved with a specific yin and yang. It's much more about becoming aware of the subtle nuances associated with that yin and yang, which aren't normally terribly obvious.

 

 

Now, if you go one step further into what really allows the subconscious to generate yin and yang then you hit the Heart-Mind. You hit what can be called spirit.

 

So you're playing around with words to a certain degree when you say the Heart-Mind is the subconscious. Well, it isn't really, but given the fact that the West uses the conscious and subconscious dichotomy you could say the subconscious is the Heart-Mind. It's more accurately that which allows the thought that ends up in the subconscious to arise to begin with. It has no qualities, or you could say it has every quality. It's not yin and yang, or you could say that it has every possible yin and yang that could ever exist.

 

This place is then where you start going ice to water, water to inner space (Inner Dissolving). The process of going to inner space is the process of going to emptiness. Emptiness only arises once the Heart-Mind is activated to a strong enough degree. How strong is the emptiness? To what degree is the emptiness? When you start looking at emptiness to a finite enough degree, then you find that there are stages of emptiness and qualities of emptiness. The point is each of those stages-when they finally arrive-comes from the Heart-Mind. If the Heart-Mind isn't activated sufficiently you can't go to the various degrees of emptiness.

 

In the Western frame of thought there are only two things: the conscious mind and the unconscious mind. In Eastern thought there is a very distinct continuum that goes from gross yin-yang to subtle yin-yang to no yin-yang. The subtle is where the subconscious comes in. There's obvious intent and then there's the Heart-Mind, which is the place where intent ultimately comes from. Awakening and engaging the Heart-Mind ultimately is a keystone of all higher level chi gung/qigong and TAO meditation.

 

 

When you start learning chi gung/qigong, you have the intent for your chi to move. However, this is not the same thing as becoming directly aware of the chi itself, where it's a felt, living quality.

 

It's not that you have the idea, the imagination, or the ability to think about chi but that you actually feel it. It's the difference between the idea of eating and actually eating-having the juices in your mouth and tasting the food. The idea will produce some facsimile of the real thing and you might go so far as to salivate, but when the real deal is present the taste and sustenance of the food is either there or it's not. There's little thought involved.

 

Similarly, in order to actually feel chi directly you have to go through the Heart-Mind. You have to have a direct experience of moving chi in the body. To do this the body requires that the Heart-Mind be opened, if only to the tinniest degree.

 

Gods Playing in the Clouds is a bridge between chi gung/qigong and mediation since it starts from awakening the Heart-Mind and working with directly feeling and consciously moving chi. So, I'm going to start emphasizing this aspect in all of my courses. Gods is different from other chi gung/qigong sets. The beginning level of Dragon and Tiger, for example, can be done without actually feeling chi; you could visualize or have the idea of the chi moving. But, at some point, when to get to the next level, you are no longer dealing with the idea of it, you're dealing with the reality-you're tasting the chi, the juices and the food is going into your stomach. All chi gung and meditation starts at the level of intent and arrives at the Heart-Mind.

 

Take the idea of inner dissolving. You want a release, you have the intent for a release, but then it goes past a certain point where you start awakening the Heart-Mind. It sits there with the willingness for something to happen, but then it shifts into something that becomes very real. This is where Lao Tse's water tradition and the fire traditions part company. Many of the fire methods are very strongly based only upon ordinary intent.

 

To enter the real world of chi gung/qigong you have to access the Heart-Mind. At the level of intent, only a small percentage of your being is involved. To the degree to which you attach the Heart-Mind-surface-level or deep involvement-is the degree to which your being is involved. If you want to awaken the latent parts of the brain, it can only be done after the Heart-Mind is functioning really well.

 

Whether you're using only intent or you're accessing the Heart-Mind, normally you'll be doing the same things, the same transactions or techniques. The only difference being that once you awaken the Heart-Mind, there are specific methods and practices down stream that you can attempt that without the active use of the Heart-Mind simply aren't possible to accomplish otherwise.

 

You can get great benefits from intent. But that said you're going to find that people with intent alone are not normally resolving their deepest psychological and emotional issues, their sense of being connected to life. You're not going to find that genuine satisfaction arises solely out of intent. "Om Coco Cola" or whatever.

 

If human beings truly want to tap into something bigger than them, they cannot do it without tapping into the Heart-Mind.

 

I knew that at some point in my second phase of my 10-year-teaching program that the Heart-Mind was going to really start coming up. I just didn't know when. My first 10-year program was much more about teaching people how to use intent. If you can't crawl you can't walk. I got the flash last winter as to how to teach it. You could say my internal view went from fuzzy to clear. The Heart-Mind will henceforth be emphasized in my teachings as a result.

 

For Gods Playing in the Clouds it's very important. You can make energy move through your body to gain certain benefits, but if you add the Heart-Mind into it there's more that comes out of it:

 

A ) You perform functions dramatically better; metaphorically 100 vs. 1,000 horsepower.

 

B ) The Heart-Mind is really what allows humans to integrate their experiences, and become smooth with them during practice and our daily lives.

 

Ordinary intent doesn't do that. Ordinary intent can give you high performance in external tasks, but no more. What you will never get-no matter how much intent you use-is feeling whole inside. Ordinary intent will not make you smooth inside yourself. By its nature intent breeds the next intent because no intent can be complete. It always leaves you with what's missing. Integration occurs where everything comes together and where it truly is "all good." Something has to create continuity in your life, and basically that is what happens through the Heart-Mind.

 

The simplest definition-albeit partial-of the Heart-Mind is: Where your emotions and your rational mind come together. From an Eastern perspective it's not only to do with the mind. It's to do with the spiritual consciousness and emotions that reside in the heart and your rational capacity to figure out what's going around you. For example, you can be completely cool inside if your heart is open, but conversely you might not be able to walk down the street without getting lost if your intellectual mind functions poorly.

 

You don't have to have a Heart-Mind that's completely open to be more integrated inside. It's the same as the difference between being stark-raving mad, to being kind of okay, to being mostly okay, to being absolutely okay. Life exists along a continuum.

 

Classically Gods Playing in the Clouds is the bridge between chi gung/qigong and meditation. A central element is the Heart-Mind. Presuming you have all the earlier nei gung, they truly come together in Gods with the Heart-Mind and take it to the next level.

 

See you next time!

Bruce

[宁]

This is a very interesting discussion! The way I understand it, coming from a new age spiritual upbringing, this misunderstanding might be the reason why people dont get any effect, or at best a temporary effect, from techniques like The Secret and visualizations. Qi does not really flow where "mind" - that we understand as "thought" or "mental images" - goes, it flows where we put our heart and soul into.

 

This is a completely different level of integration, reality interaction and transformation, compared to visualization.

Yes indeed. And M Winn has a really neat interpretation of how can practice pass from houtian level, impermanet, to xiantian level, permanent... If we would search for the answers within our reach, we may spare a lot of time of seeking inside a different mindset, that it's difficult to understand, it may take years or more.

[gendao]

This is a very interesting discussion! The way I understand it, coming from a new age spiritual upbringing, this misunderstanding might be the reason why people dont get any effect, or at best a temporary effect, from techniques like The Secret and visualizations. Qi does not really flow where "mind" - that we understand as "thought" or "mental images" - goes, it flows where we put our heart and soul into.

 

This is a completely different level of integration, reality interaction and transformation, compared to visualization.

Yea, that's my concern about "fluffy" New Age "mind only" methods that promise big results for little "hardcore" effort. They can lead to some tantalizing glimpses, but often don't seem to result in fundamental, lasting changes. Which is what I'm after right now. "Permanent," biospiritual breakthroughs like opening my MCO, awakening my kundalini, opening my 3rd eye, etc.

 

Not just mental or temporary ones.

[JustARandomPanda]

 

 

I am concerned. From the descriptions here it sounds like the kind of MCO taught in KAP 1 is the fake MCO. Is this why I'm not getting any results from it even after many weeks?

[Eternal_Student]

the MCO is a real thing.

it can happen on many levels.

 

when you use the mind to move the qi, you are moving the outer du channel which is primarily superficial cutaneous nerves. it is still part of the MCO, so calling it false is not exactly accurate. it can still provide some general health benefits. it is safe and will not damage anything since the charge is low.

 

if you are truly accessing the hormones and steaming the qi in the lower dantien first, there are very specific physical sensations that are to be felt. very specific. not the ambiguous feelings of mild tingling or perceived changes. you FEEL the movements rooted in physicality.

 

to train the deep orbit is slow. you don't move past the lower dantien for almost 10 months. very few people really take the time to do this, but it will change your whole metabolism and qi levels. qi becomes extremely dense and can feel like a thick, viscous fog in your belly. then after you cook the qi, it becomes extremely hot and can be condensed into a viable source.

 

then, as a couple of individuals already mentioned, you move to the next circuit in line.

jumping to the head off the bat, is okay for the outer orbit to help balance the whole body's qi levels,

but it is not the deep orbit. just know, there is more...

[voidisyinyang]

There's been mention of the West practicing the "false" water wheel or microcosmic orbit -- that the "real" water wheel is when the mind is in emptiness instead of dependent on visualization, imagination, etc. YES this is true but Chunyi Lin states that when the microcosmic orbit is achieved then it moves on its own! The link was given to Wang, Liping's student who indicated the same -- his MCO moved, circulated on its own rapidly, even in sleep.

 

Chunyi Lin then states that when in full-lotus padmasana the microcosmic will circulate automatically -- this is also because of the

 

MACRO-cosmic orbit -- when the 3rd eye opens up then there is a larger orbit based on transmitted chi and shen for 3rd eye healing while taking in, sucking up jing or electrochemical energy from the full-lotus.

 

The book "Taoist Yoga: Alchemy and Immortality" trans by Charles Luk is solely focused on the small universe as the means to turn to total body into shen light for immortality and then the final return to

 

"eternal nature"

 

or the empty awareness of Buddhism.... again where there's no visualization! So the source of the chi and shen is the "empty awareness" that is formless and can not be visualized.

 

The west is fixated on visualization for thinking and models, etc. Spirit or shen also relies on visualization but ultimately the Tao can not be visualized -- the Emptiness -- and so the micrcocosmic orbit rotates on its own without visualization once it is successfully opened for the macrocosmic orbit. Does visualization help? Yes immensely yet it is limited as well.

 

Chunyi Lin's "small universe" c.d. and Level 1 sitting meditation 1/2 hour small universe are excellent practice tools for the microcosmic orbit. http://springforestqigong.com

[JustARandomPanda]

I may try the Spring Forest. Tao had us physicalize the MCO with our hands. The problem is that that never worked for me. As soon as I use my hands my 'awareness' goes into my hands and stays there. I was never able to transfer it to what I was touching.

 

As for the other things mentioned by Eternal Student..no...I've never experienced the sensations described. I have no idea what this means.

 

to train the deep orbit is slow. you don't move past the lower dantien for almost 10 months. very few people really take the time to do this, but it will change your whole metabolism and qi levels. qi becomes extremely dense and can feel like a thick, viscous fog in your belly. then after you cook the qi, it becomes extremely hot and can be condensed into a viable source.

 

What does it mean to

• not move past the dantien for 10 months
  
• cook the qi
  

I know I certainly don't have hot, viscous Chi! I'm cold as hell in my interior all the time. That's why I've been taking ginger and tumeric lately in the hopes of eventually this correcting.

 

Also...I have no clue how someone moves their "heart-mind" as opposed to using their brain to move Chi. How does one use Heart-Mind to move chi? And how do you tell the difference?

[lino]

I may try the Spring Forest. Tao had us physicalize the MCO with our hands. The problem is that that never worked for me. As soon as I use my hands my 'awareness' goes into my hands and stays there. I was never able to transfer it to what I was touching.

 

As for the other things mentioned by Eternal Student..no...I've never experienced the sensations described. I have no idea what this means.

 

 

 

What does it mean to

• not move past the dantien for 10 months
  
• cook the qi
  

I know I certainly don't have hot, viscous Chi! I'm cold as hell in my interior all the time. That's why I've been taking ginger and tumeric lately in the hopes of eventually this correcting.

 

Also...I have no clue how someone moves their "heart-mind" as opposed to using their brain to move Chi. How does one use Heart-Mind to move chi? And how do you tell the difference?

 

I think that other practices that Santi suggested might help (try the thin aura thread) say for purification...7x7x7 Figure if you are running with more energy and less obstructions it might help. Check with Santiago though.

 

One suggestion that I saw on the "thin aura" thread, the one about exercise. Don't neglect it, things might a lot easier if I was stable in an exercise regiment THEN started cultivating. One session of cardio a few years back opened a channel in the right side of my brain, down my chest, and I felt a sort of "clean" magnetism in my stomach.

 

cooking the qi might be using the tummo breath that Santiago and Tao teach. Again, check with Santiago.

 

I felt what I think was a "dirty" orbit before since the energy was so hot.

Edited October 15, 2009 by lino

[JustARandomPanda]

I'm still curious how one uses Heart-Mind to move chi as opposed to using the brain.

 

Can anyone explain how to do it the Step-by-Step / Paint-by-Numbers way?

[voidisyinyang]

You are moved by love! The heart-mind is the inner visualization through feeling. We have brain neurons in the heart -- the heart is the biggest magnet of the body -- the heart-mind is not activated in left-brain dominance. So when we relax and the emotions open up, when the body is cleansed, then the heart-mind opens up. This is through internal bliss and requires an environment of deep relaxation without being stressed so that a rest from left-brain dominance is allowed.

 

Heart-mind means moral purity -- kindness, forgiveness and love.

 

http://www.heartmath.org/research/research...eart-brain.html

 

http://subjected2subjectivity.blogspot.com...king-heart.html

 

http://www.healingtaousa.com/cgi-bin/artic...mp;articleid=97

 

In 1994, I was introduced to the practice of the Yan Xin Qigong. Then, on September 9, 1994, I interviewed Dr. Yan Xin for Heart to Heart on Health Issues on Brookline Cable Access Television. Dr. Yan Xin now comes to America to teach the secrets of this advanced ancient form of Qigong. He has modernized it to fulfill our current needs. In China, he has conducted many scientific experiments. Emitting external Qi, Dr. Yan Xin has caused measurable changes in the properties of several types of living -- and non-living -- materials.

 

Immediately, I was impressed by the power of his energy field. During his interview by Lester Strong of Channel 7, he sat at a table in the center of a room. Dr. Yan Xin was able to focus a wave of warm, vibrating energy all the way across the room directly to me. I suddenly felt this invigorating power surge through my body as though I had plugged myself in to a powerful source of light. I felt like a floor lamp that had been plugged into a wall outlet. I was 'awakened', revived, and excited. That night, I attended his weekend workshop in Cambridge.

 

Healed and stronger on every level, not just the physical, I acknowledge that this is all anecdotal evidence, but I know that it is proof for me; as it also is for all those who daily enjoy the power of learning as they actively participate in their own healing, and become students and teachers of The Way.

 

So it is that I invite, encourage, and implore you all to continue to raise your own level of consciousness, while thinking creatively, and researching diligently so that we may better quantify these experiences. The human energy field, the power of the mind, and consciousness are the new frontiers that we must now focus on. We must research and develop better systems of medical diagnosis and treatment. We must continue our quest for the expansion, exploration, and experience of the human potential. And finally, we must become more virtuous, peaceful, and practice productive living so that we may reach full recognition of our universal interconnectedness -- our super-luminal connectedness.

-- Gloria Alvino, 1-10-96, [email protected]

R.Ph., B.S. in Pharmacy, M.S., Health & Human Sciences

Edited October 15, 2009 by drewhempel

[z00se]

You are moved by love! The heart-mind is the inner visualization through feeling. We have brain neurons in the heart -- the heart is the biggest magnet of the body -- the heart-mind is not activated in left-brain dominance. So when we relax and the emotions open up, when the body is cleansed, then the heart-mind opens up. This is through internal bliss and requires an environment of deep relaxation without being stressed so that a rest from left-brain dominance is allowed.

 

Heart-mind means moral purity -- kindness, forgiveness and love.

 

Many people will say things like this, and it could well be right but it's not important at all if you want results. To me this stuff might be real but very theoretical, not practical. You don't need to know how or why it happens, only that it happens, and the only way to do it is through practice, then it will reveal it's self so you can understand. Until then you can only TRY to understand, you never can.

 

Eventually MCO will move it's self. You don't need to do anything, you just sit, relax and watch it go around. You surrender your head thoughts and just let your body operate on it's own. When you do healing sounds, after you get better you don't use your head to do the meditations, you let each organ do it on it's own. It has it's own intelligence, it knows what to do and is the most efficent at doing it by it's self, you just need to let it and not interfere with your head brain.

 

Later (who knows if i'm doing it right? ) but instead of watching MCO go around it changes from like a ball going around to the whole thing like a hose and filled with water and going around. You can put lots of energy in... the energy needs to move the MCO is just a way of keeping the energy in your body. You could circulate it any way but MCO is easiest and most natural. When you have enough energy all your other channels will open you needn't do anything other than bring in as much energy as possible to your dantien, then let it do it's self and flow around all chanels simultaiusly. Now i don't even see it go around, everything is speeding so fast - i have zero thoughs, just aware of it all. You don't have to see all the qi moving where and how all so close up, u just know it's happening.

 

Just spend time practicing, but not too hard

[宁]

nice post, bravo!

 

 

the MCO is a real thing.

it can happen on many levels.

 

when you use the mind to move the qi, you are moving the outer du channel which is primarily superficial cutaneous nerves. it is still part of the MCO, so calling it false is not exactly accurate. it can still provide some general health benefits. it is safe and will not damage anything since the charge is low.

 

if you are truly accessing the hormones and steaming the qi in the lower dantien first, there are very specific physical sensations that are to be felt. very specific. not the ambiguous feelings of mild tingling or perceived changes. you FEEL the movements rooted in physicality.

 

to train the deep orbit is slow. you don't move past the lower dantien for almost 10 months. very few people really take the time to do this, but it will change your whole metabolism and qi levels. qi becomes extremely dense and can feel like a thick, viscous fog in your belly. then after you cook the qi, it becomes extremely hot and can be condensed into a viable source.

 

then, as a couple of individuals already mentioned, you move to the next circuit in line.

jumping to the head off the bat, is okay for the outer orbit to help balance the whole body's qi levels,

but it is not the deep orbit. just know, there is more...

[JustARandomPanda]

You are moved by love! The heart-mind is the inner visualization through feeling. We have brain neurons in the heart -- the heart is the biggest magnet of the body -- the heart-mind is not activated in left-brain dominance. So when we relax and the emotions open up, when the body is cleansed, then the heart-mind opens up. This is through internal bliss and requires an environment of deep relaxation without being stressed so that a rest from left-brain dominance is allowed.

 

Oh hell. Now I understand why Secret Smile is stressed so heavily and the first thing taught. It's KAP's Qi Gong exercise that activates the Heart-Mind to open up all that follows.

 

Great...and it's the one KAP exercise I suck at like no other.

 

*heavy sigh*

[lino]

Oh hell. Now I understand why Secret Smile is stressed so heavily and the first thing taught. It's KAP's Qi Gong exercise that activates the Heart-Mind to open up all that follows.

 

Great...and it's the one KAP exercise I suck at like no other.

 

*heavy sigh*

 

 

You can try the Inner Smile, the "Robert Peng Way". You can chant your name. Instead of doing it "Name" breath, "Name" breath,... <---this is the Robert Peng Way

This is my way -----> Chant your name repeatedly like if you had your own cheerleading section

[Ya Mu]

...

As for the other things mentioned by Eternal Student..no...I've never experienced the sensations described. I have no idea what this means.

 

What does it mean to

• not move past the dantien for 10 months
  
• cook the qi
  

I know I certainly don't have hot, viscous Chi! I'm cold as hell in my interior all the time. That's why I've been taking ginger and tumeric lately in the hopes of eventually this correcting.

 

Also...I have no clue how someone moves their "heart-mind" as opposed to using their brain to move Chi. How does one use Heart-Mind to move chi? And how do you tell the difference?

 

No one can simply tell you this. You have to experience it for yourself. Something tells me you will. I know you will if we can get a qigong workshop together in your area that you can attend.

 

(sheng zhen @ May 22 2009, 12:45 PM) * This is a very interesting discussion! The way I understand it, coming from a new age spiritual upbringing, this misunderstanding might be the reason why people dont get any effect, or at best a temporary effect, from techniques like The Secret and visualizations. Qi does not really flow where "mind" - that we understand as "thought" or "mental images" - goes, it flows where we put our heart and soul into. This is a completely different level of integration, reality interaction and transformation, compared to visualization.

 

I too am not fond of visualization as it is of the mind (remember brain waves are measurable) and has finite rather than infinite implications and applications.

 

(松永道 @ May 18 2009, 05:54 PM) * According to orthodox practice most, if not almost all, MCO (xiao zhou tian) methods in the west are false practices. However, false may not be the best word, because these practices still may have health benefits. More accurately, they are simply different practices. Using the mind, the orbit that can be achieved in a very short period of time. But this is a different practice from the orbit that occurs automatically through filling the Dantian. From my experience, the second "real" MCO practice is much more similar to the Kundalini rising phenomenon - if not the same thing. Energy begins at the base of the spine and, over time through practice, pushes it's way up. Specifically, it needs to build and push through the three gates (sacrum, between the shoulders, and the cerebellum area). So, briefly put, the method prevalent in the west uses the mind and moves a little Qi. The method outlined in Lingbao Bifa, among other classics, is achieved through long term practice and moves a lot of Qi.

QUOTE(松永道 @ May 18 2009, 05:54 PM) *

Yes!

 

...

steaming the qi in the lower dantien first, there are very specific physical sensations that are to be felt. very specific. ...

you don't move past the lower dantien for almost 10 months. very few people really take the time to do this, but it will change your whole metabolism and qi levels. qi becomes extremely dense and can feel like a thick, viscous fog in your belly. then after you cook the qi, it becomes extremely hot and can be condensed into a viable source.

 

Good!

 

Chunyi Lin states that when the microcosmic orbit is achieved then it moves on its own!

[Eternal_Student]

If you are cold and you are still practicing qi gong, you need to try something else.

You should be able to build up a fire in your belly quickly, if not immediately.

Since its turning winter, what about collecting solar radiation?

 

Qi is a combo of interstitial pressure, fascial pressure, blood flow, thermodynamic movement and nervous system sensations. You should not only be able to control all of these aspects, but pinpoint individual sensations for different therapeutic results. If a patient is freezing cold, I use the thermodynamic aspect of qi to warm them up. If they have neuropathy, its time for a little nervous system electric movement. You get the idea.

 

Cooking the qi is something absolutely essential to making higher concentrations and levels of energy.

Movement of qi is wonderful, but relatively ineffective in the long run if you want more energy. You may be really good at moving a small stream of qi, but you want people to feel a tidal wave!

 

The orbit I am trained in, takes approximately 12 years to complete.

I myself am only 5 years into it.

[Art]

Not trained, only know about MCO from this site, and very new to Taoism, Taoist methods. I've "taught" myself energy work and have been doing for some time.

 

Only reason I am posting is because just last night it happened, with no effort (aside from longevity breathing to just relax). I wasn't intentionally focusing energy or trying to even get it to move. Once learning about the Dan Tian I began to work on filling and that was it. Have been working on Dan Tian for some time.

 

Became aware of an energetic flow, up the spine on inhale, down the front on exhale, just like described here. Was a very wonderful energetic experience. Did not try to control, just was aware and enjoyed.

 

Another poster said this was a lesser energetic experience than kundalini rising. Maybe so, but not by much. Have experienced two kundalini "shots" upward on separate occassions.

 

My reason for posting is simple.

 

I was not trying to circulate MCO, create it, or anything along those lines. I was simply focusing on my breathing using the longevity method when I became aware of energetic flow. Once I became aware of it, I had a good idea of what it was based upon research here, but did not try to move it or play, just let it be. Spent duration of time enjoying the experience, not trying to analyze it or control it while it was happening.

 

Similar experience with my first kundalini shot. Sitting there, breathing, relaxing, then all of the sudden a huge burst of energy ran from bottom of spine up to crown. Startled me, so I became fearful and it stopped. Again, was not intending or concentrating, just happened.

 

I use the term "just happened" loosely. These two experiences, similar but very different, happened after some basic research and focusing on calming the mind, breathing, and relaxing. Possibly subconscious intent, but was not "trying". Many times I have tried to replicate the kundalini experiences and was met with failure. As another poster wrote, I'm pretty sure I was "over-concentrating" which would best describe my failures. I am hoping that the lesson learned from that will NOT be the same with the energetic sensation I experienced last night, explained best by MCO.

 

Maybe false water wheel or something else, but was definitely not my imagination. Very powerful experience and I am thankful I came to a state of being where I could allow it to happen, become aware, and enjoy it.

 

Am going to continue breathing practices and filling Dan Tian; am happy with that. If MCO happens again, great, but not going to try to force it or replicate it. May have been a one time thing, and if so, then I was lucky enough to have been blessed to experience it first hand.