Buddhist Meditation + Methods, Taoist Meditation + Methods + Alchemy

The following are a mixture of Buddhist and Taoist methods and tips that I've found useful for meditating. If you meditate too or are thinking about starting, maybe one or more of these will be able to remind you of a way of doing it, give you ideas for a different meditation to try out if you want to change, or help you learn. There's also parts about Taoist methods towards the end that a few people might want to check out for whatever reason, so have added some writing on them too.


Tips/Methods


Try not to attach to sensations, feelings, emotions or thoughts. Don't try to shut them out or get distracted by them either, just let them arrive, notice them, then let them pass without attaching. It takes time, sometimes quite a lot of time, but it can be done.

Breathe naturally. Don't try to breathe slowly, short or long, unless your meditation type specifically requires it. When you've breathed out, wait for your body to naturally breathe air back in. Don't think about breathing in or decide when to, let the body do it naturally. Same with breathing out, don't decide when you should breathe out, let it be natural.

When you've finished meditating, don't just go back to your normal everyday self, try and take the naturalness, concentration, awareness, and non-attachment and/or whatever else of the meditation with you. When you have problems and get stressed, remember the meditation you've done and how you didn't let problems stick with you. Let them pass, don't cling to them.

Don't create opposites. Ask yourself why you make a boundary between the outside world and yourself. Also, if nothing stays around forever, then how real is it? And if everything depends on something else to be in what's called reality, how can anything be separate?

"If the mind differentiates, its nature and manifestations become separated from one another. But so long as it does not differentiate, its nature and manifestations do not become separated." - The Zen Teachings of Master Lin-Chi

Emotions can control you and drain energy, and if you want to be better at meditating and have better results from it, letting emotions sap away energy at all different times in the day can cause big losses as time passes. Don't allow emotions to control you as much and they begin to lose their power over you.

With perceptions, whatever you perceive is tied to what you've previously learnt about it and what memories you have. So even if something isn't good or bad, your memories from when you've previously been in contact with whatever it is (and it turn, the state of mind you were in at the time.) cloud the reality of it. Also, whatever you've learnt about it might not have been the truth about what it is, so that clouds it too.

One Buddhist technique is to be sensitive to and then calm perceptions, and if you practice at it, the falseness of certain perceptions can kind of dissolve in seconds, leaving clearer perceptions there instead. That can lift your moods, clear away negative associations and thoughts, and also leave you wondering what you could be like if you did actually concentrate on perceptions more and cleared up most of the problems that come with them.

If the doors of perception were cleansed, everything would appear as it is, infinite. - William Blake

Another Buddhist one is making mental notes. It sounds strange at first, but you start to learn about how your mind and body works if you do it for a certain amount of time. Basically if you have a sensation, say an itch, or a bit of pain somewhere, you make a mental note. So say your arm itches, you could simply make the mental note "itch", or "sensation", or you could have pain somewhere and note "pain", "pain in (area.)", or again, "sensation." Then you can go on for thoughts, feelings, perceptions, etc.

So for example, you could have a chain over a few minutes like this : "thought", "good memory", "bad memory", "itch", "sound", "thought", "pain in right leg", "calm feeling", "sensation", and so on. Decide how detailed or simple you want the notes to be and try it for a while. Then when you've finished meditating maybe try carrying it on for the next half or or so, then maybe longer, etc. Eventually you can start to see the ways in which your mind works to some degree, and possibly work out patterns or habits that were previously unconscious.

A final Buddhist method is awareness of things arriving, being, and then passing away. It's all tied to understanding impermanence and can basically be done by being aware of the types of things mentioned with mental noting. With this method you could either mental note it, or just use your awareness. So for instance a thought arrives, sticks around for however long, then passes. You make sure to notice each of the three steps, and do the same for feelings, sensations, etc.



One last thing : don't crave results with whatever you're doing, or start thinking about some type of awakening. Just let the whole process be as natural as possible, whatever meditation you're doing.


Edit : At the request of LifeIsEnergy from one of the replies below, walking meditation. To point out that meditation doesn't just have to be about sitting, it can basically be done anywhere. With walking meditation you learn to develop a better awareness of the body, it's energy, movement, and at the same time become more mindful of what you're doing as you would in other meditations. There's several different ways of doing it, and this is a quote from a page LifeIsEnergy linked :

You can do the walking meditation at different paces: brisk, normal, and very slow and meticulous. The idea is not to walk slowly; the idea is to move mindfully. As your mind begins to quiet, you will see how we notice more when we move slowly. More becomes clear, we get to feel the inter-relationship of mind and body.

You are being really detailed, you are not assessing, you are not evaluating. It is a bare awareness, feeling the flow of sensations. When you lift, move, place, notice the shift of weight, the heel peeling off the toe, even the ground. Or you might notice the knee bending, the calf tensing, or the thigh being taut...sometimes you may notice the whole leg simultaneously, another time you might focus on tingling in the toe. Lifting, moving, placing.

Link : www.contemplativemind.org...

Next is a list of various Buddhist factors, skills, and meditation areas from the Tharavada school. Not because I'm saying Buddhist meditation is best, it's just what I've personally tried to learn more of. It's basically for anyone wanting to go further than what I've mentioned and start learning specific sets of things. If you take the title of any of these and google them you should find your way to more information on it. (that's why there's pali/sanskrit titles next to some of them too, so they can be found easier.) There's also links further down to sutras that cover most of what's here.

Finally, some of these might seem religious,(!) but to me Buddhism is about meditation, I'm just listing stuff that might help give ideas.


5 Aggregates (Skandhas.)

Form, Sensation, Perception, Formations (Mental Formations.), Consciousness

5 Hindrances

1) Sensuality/Lust/Desire
2) Anger/Ill Will
3) Sloth/Drowsiness
4) Restlesness/Anxiety
5) Doubt

To counter the 5 hindrances :

1) Focusing on what Buddhists refer to as bodily foulness. The negative aspects of the body.
2) Loving kindness - Metta
3) Perception of light (and analysis/analysis of qualities I think, tied to 7 Factors further down.)
4) Serenity (5th of 7 Factors further down, also Uppekha, 10th of the 10 Perfections further down.)
5) Conviction/Belief

Also with this is something I hadn't thought of, but that seems like a great idea and probably a way to work with hindrances a lot better. From LifeIsEnergy in one of the replies to this thread :

Also in regards to the counter measures for the hindrances mentioned, one may need to counter the counter measures or they may also become hindrances. It's all about finding the Middle (or balance). For example: if we seek to counter thoughts of anger with loving/kindness (metta) and become to attached to loving/kindness (metta) then when these thoughts leave us, or thoughts of anger again arise, this will create suffering for us in the form of disappointment or dissatisfaction. The Middle Way is the path.

4 Frames of Reference (tied to 16 steps of meditation below.)

Body, Feelings, Mind, Mental Qualities

16 Steps of Meditation (Anapanasati Sutta: Mindfulness of Breathing.)

Body

Breathing in or out short
Breathing in or out long
Sensitive to the entire body
Calming bodily fabrication. (the breath.)

Feelings

Sensitive to rapture
Sensitive to pleasure
Sensitive to the mental fabrication (feelings and perception.)
Calming the mental fabrication

Mind

Sensitive to the mind
Calming the mind
Steadying the mind
Releasing the mind

Mental Qualities

Focusing on inconstancy
Focusing on dispassion (translation I use adds : "literally, fading." Not exactly clear on why though, sorry.)
Focusing on cessation
Focusing on relinquishment


4 Bases of Power

Desire (in the sense of having desire to have the right effort, to focus on getting better at whatever meditation/aspect is being worked on.)
Persistence - Viriya (right effort, eightfold path.)
Intent
Discrimination

4 Right Exertions (right effort, eightfold path.)

Guarding against unskillful, Abandoning unskillful, Developing skillful, Maintaining skillful

5 Strengths/Faculties

Conviction
Persistence - Viriya - (right effort, eightfold path.)
Mindfulness (same as eightfold path.)
Concentration (same as eightfold path.)
Discernment - Panna

7 Factors for Awakening

Mindfulness (same as eightfold path.)
Analysis
Persistence - (right effort, eightfold path.)
Rapture
Serenity - Upekkha
Concentration (same as eightfold path.)
Equanimity - Upekkha

Eightfold Path

View
Intention
Speech
Action
Livelihood
Effort
Mindfulness
Concentration

10 Perfections

Dana - Generosity
Sila - Virtue, Discipline
Nekkhamma - Renunciation
Panna - Discernment, Insight
Viriya - Persistence, Energy, (right effort, eightfold path.)
Khanti - Endurance, Patience, Acceptance, Tolerance
Sacca - Truth
Adhitthana - Determination (related to effort.)
Metta - Good Will, Loving Kindness
Upekkha - (Equanimity and Serenity of 7 Factors for Awakening.)

10 Paramitas

Dana - Generosity
Sila - Virtue, Discipline
Kshanti - Patience, Tolerance, Forbearance, Acceptance
Virya - Energy, Diligence, Vigor, Effort (right effort, eightfold path.)
Dhyana - One-pointed concentration, (Ekagra.) Contemplation
Prajna - Wisdom, Insight
Upaya - Skillful Means
Pranidhana - Vow, Resolution, Aspiration, Determination
Bala - Spiritual Power
Jnana - Knowledge


10 Kasinas

Earth
Air
Fire
Water
Red
Yellow
Blue (also listed as purple, brown, and green in some places.)
White
Space (open or enclosed.)
Light. (also listed as consciousness.)

Finally some Taoist methods, or explanations of what those methods are.



The 5 Elements, or Wu Xing





Equivalent to the 5 classical western elements of Earth, Air, Fire, Water and Spirit, but said to be better translated as phases or steps, Wu Xing is a way of explaining the relationships between energies.

Cycles

Generation :

The relationships between the 5 are explained by cycles, and one of the main cycles is from the order listed and seen above, so one way to remember it would be by saying that :

Wood feeds Fire, Fire turns to Earth (as in ash.), Earth mined can produce Metal, Metal turns to Water when heated, and then Water is used to nourish trees.

Control :

The controlling cycle is paired with the generating cycle as being one of balance, so this cycle could be explained as :

Wood parts Earth (as in roots cracking earth from underneath.), Fire melts Metal, Earth soaks up Water, Metal splits Wood, and Water quenches Fire.

Overacting :

This cycle is one of two cycles of imbalance that are easier to remember. In this case the same order as the generating cycle is used, but when too much of one element is being generated it then overacts the next.

Insulting :

Finally for the insulting cycle, the opposite of the control cycle is used, and the elements related through the control cycle reverse influence and insult instead of maintaining balance, so Earth insults Wood, and so on.


There's more here with a detailed diagram that also goes into the diurnal cycle, which is something that plots out the influence of each element at certain times : www.tingjing.co.uk...

There's also relations between different organs and parts of the body and the elements, but that's not something I know hardly anything about so won't go into that.


Xingyi


This is a martial art from China that's classed as an internal art, along with two others, Bagua and Tai Chi. Other names for them are Taijiquan, Baguaquan and Xingyiquan. Each focuses on energy instead of physical strength, something that people experienced at it over a long time say is an advantage, because people can actually get better at it and stronger instead of weaker. It also works with health and the five elements. So in the chart above you can see :

Exploding - Pao
Crossing - Heng
Splitting - Pi
Drilling - Zuan
Crushing - Beng

And they're five of the main moves in Xingyi, often called the five fists.


With Bagua there's the Bagua itself that it's based on, which is a philosophy based on the eight trigrams. Those trigrams have moves associated with them, and the style has a lot of circular movements in it.

Wiki page has more here : en.wikipedia.org...

And the trigrams are also related to the I-Ching, something that's used for divination, and that Terrence McKenna is so well known for using in his work.


Neidan, or Inner Alchemy

This is where things get weird and often beyond me, so will try to keep it brief. Don't get me wrong I think Alchemy is an amazing groups of ideas, but too often it seems surrounded by obscure and not well enough explained concepts, and have never really felt like spending years trying to work it out when I could just meditate instead. For some reason I still get back into trying to learn parts of it every now and then though, and Taoist Alchemy is something that I probably prefer because it can be kind of mixed in with meditation. (the aspects of it and explanations are usually too obscure for me to work with properly though.)

These three concepts are as far as I know, central to both Taoist and Chinese Alchemy, Medicine and some Martial Arts :

Jing - Essence or Vitality
Chi - Qi or Energy
Shen - Spirit


And although I don't know anything about Chinese medicine apart from it's relation to Yin, Yang and Wu Xing, there's a lot of writings about the three in alchemy. The problem is that I don't think much of it has been translated, or that it's only been translated by one or two people who've made some of the writings available in the west. One of the most well known is Thomas Cleary, and one of my favourite books for Taoist meditation is called Vitality, Energy and Spirit, A Taoist Sourcebook, which also goes into alchemy a lot.

One part of the book focuses on quite a bit is The Hundred Character Tablet. It'a said to have been written by Ancestor Lu, who's also Lu Dongbin, one of the 8 Immortals, and in Cleary's book this also has commentaries by the Taoist master Chang San-Feng (who's believed by many to have created Tai-Chi.) and Liu I-Ming :

Nurturing energy, forget words and guard it.
Conquer the mind, do nondoing.
In activity and quietude, know the source progenitor.
There is no thing; whom else do you seek?
Real constancy should respond to people;
In responding to people, it is essential not to get confused.
When you don't get confused, your nature is naturally stable;
When your nature is stable, energy naturally returns.
When energy returns, Elixir spontaneously crystallizes,
In the pot pairing water and fire.
Yin and yang arise, alternating over and over again,
Everywhere producing the sound of thunder.
White clouds assemble on the summit,
Sweet dew bathes the polar mountain.
Having drunk the wine of longevity,
You wander free; who can know you?
You sit and listen to the stringless tune,
You clearly understand the mechanism of creation.
The whole of these twenty verses
is a ladder straight to heaven.

Clearly there's alchemical speak in that for anyone who's researched alchemy, and also for people who know a bit about alchemy there's probably a certain amount that can be worked out or guessed at when it comes to trying to understand it. With Cleary's book though you have this explained by Chang San-Feng and Liu I-Ming. Some of it can be confusing because they're still using alchemical concepts to explain sometimes I think, but a lot of it is clear as far as I can remember.

The book is here : www.amazon.com...

Just realised you can also have a look inside which is cool, but can also be hugely confusing, because in the introduction Cleary is talking about how Vitality relates to sex, sexual yoga, etc, but doesn't mention anything else, which doesn't really make any sense, because sex is hardly even mentioned in the rest of the book. So no idea why he did that, and don't let it put you off getting the book for whatever reason if you're thinking about it.


The Secret Of The Golden Flower

This is where we get back to meditation in a big way, but alchemy is also here.

This ancient esoteric treatise was transmitted orally for centuries before being recorded on a series of wooden tablets in the eighth century. It was recorded by a member of the Religion of Light, whose leader was the Taoist adept Lu Yen (also known as Lu Yen and Lu “Guest of the Cavern”). It is said that Lu Tzu became one of the Eight Immortals using these methods. The ideas have been traced back to Persia and the Zarathustra tradition and its roots in the Egyptian Hermetic tradition.

The quote is from the intro on this page, which also has the full text and images/diagrams : www.alchemylab.com...

This was also really important to Carl Jung, who was inspired in a big way by it, and it was his friend Richard Wilhelm that actually translated it. More can be read about its history and methods on its wiki page : en.wikipedia.org...

Finally the methods in that text are also related to a meditation called the Microcosmic Orbit. It's supposed to be a type of meditation where you breath in and send energy around one part of the body, then out and around another part, which links back to where you started. It's not something I've tried more than a few times though so I don't really want to go into detail about it. There's also a quote on it's wiki page giving a kind of warning :

These types of exercises are best practiced under the guidance of suitably qualified teachers who can help the beginner avoid any pitfalls and misunderstandings along the way rather than copied from books, especially if the subject may have a history of mental illness or emotional imbalance. For example according to Lu Kuan Yu:

It is harmful to pinpoint places in the body, the very idea of which should be relinquished since it hinders the course of the inner fire and of vitality.

en.wikipedia.org...

Just adding it incase anyone wants to research more into it or maybe even try learning it from somewhere, that's if anyone can be found to teach it anyway!

To finish all this off a final note about how Taoist meditation is linked to Buddhist meditation. When Buddhism arrived in China it's supposed to have influenced how Taoism progressed in a big way, and several Taoist schools were formed that worked differently and on different areas. Some would concentrate on the religious, formal and ritual side of things, others on alchemy and visualisation techniques, others on meditation, and obviously some would merge some of those things together in certain ways.

It's been said by some people though that Zen Buddhism was in turn influenced by Taoism to a certain extent, and in the writings of the early Zen masters, or Patriarchs, people who were tasked with keeping the lineage going in it's earlier days, the similarities can be seen in some ways. This also seems clear in a lot of the Taoist writings, where things are kept simple in their explanation and style.

Will end with a final part from Cleary's book, which is in the section titled Discourses on Wang Che, and is attributed to Chang Sang-Feng. For those wanting to know who Wang Che is, I think he's Wang Chongyang on wikipedia, and was one of the founders of the Complete Reality School of Taoism, one of the biggest Taoist movements in history. That's also on wikipedia and is called the Quanzhen School. (linked further down.)

And for anyone wanting to research further into the actual history of Taoism, its schools and its texts, Early Daoist Scriptures by Stephen R. Bokenkamp goes into a ton of detail and it also has several texts translated.


Chang Sang-Feng - Discources on Wang Che

The mind is used to resting on objects and not used to independence. If it is not placed on anything for a while, it finds it difficult to be at ease. Even if it is peaceful for a while, it again reverts to distraction, now aroused, now quiet. If you purposefully cause it to be undisturbed, taming it perfectly over a long period of time, it will naturally become peaceful and at ease.

The Tao has a profound power that gradually transforms the body and the spirit. One who has attained this is called a spiritual person. The essence of spirit is open and fluid; its substance never changes or disappears. Because the body is mastered through the Tao, it has no birth or death. In concealment, the body is the same as spirit; revealed, the spirit is the same as energy. This is how it is possible to walk on water and fire without harm, to cast no shadow in the sunlight and moonlight. Whether to remain alive or disappear is up to you at this point; there is no gap between leaving the world and entering the world.

By steeping oneself in the Tao for a long time, one can transform substance so that it is the same as spirit, refine the body into something subtle, and merge with the Tao.

Source already linked, and is also linked below.





Links

Buddhist :

Anapanasati Sutta: Mindfulness of Breathing - www.accesstoinsight.org...
Wings to Awakening - www.accesstoinsight.org...
Maha-satipatthana Sutta: The Great Frames of Reference - www.accesstoinsight.org...



Taoist :

Theory of Five Elements : www.tcmstudent.com...
The Secret Of The Golden Flower : www.alchemylab.com...
Neidan/Inner Alchemy - Wiki : en.wikipedia.org...
Quanzhen - Wiki: en.wikipedia.org...
Wang Choyang - Wiki : en.wikipedia.org...
Microcosmic Orbit : en.wikipedia.org...


Books :


The Zen Teachings of Huang Po, On the Transmission of Mind - John Blofeld
The Zen Teachings of Master Lin-Chi, A translation of the Lin-chi lu - Burton Watson
The Diamond That Cuts Through Illusion, Commentaries on the Prajnaparamita Sutra - Thich Nhat Hanh
The Way Of Zen - Alan Watts
The Zen Teaching of Bodhidharma - Translated by Red Pine
Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind - Shunryu Suzuki
The Book Of Chuang Tzu - Translated by Martin Palmer with Elizabeth Breuilly
Vitality, Energy and Spirit, A Taoist Sourcebook - Thomas Cleary
Early Daoist Scriptures - Stephen R. Bokenkamp

reply to post by Hitoshura


Wow, nice! I was working on something very similar that I was going to post but you did such a great job never mind.

I would just like to reinforce something that Hitoshura said, which is: try your best to not be attached to anything at all, even the methods that Hitoshura has so beautifully laid out for us. Once meditation becomes a forced action, it is no longer meditation (although it is tricky, because you may need to force it a little in the beginning, but once you notice a sense of balance or tranquility within you then let go of all desire/forced action and just be.)

S&F!

ETA: Also in regards to the counter measures for the hindrances mentioned, one may need to counter the counter measures or they may also become hindrances. It's all about finding the Middle (or balance). For example: if we seek to counter thoughts of anger with loving/kindness (metta) and become to attached to loving/kindness (metta) then when these thoughts leave us, or thoughts of anger again arise, this will create suffering for us in the form of disappointment or dissatisfaction. The Middle Way is the path.

Originally posted by LifeIsEnergy
reply to post by Hitoshura

 

Wow, nice! I was working on something very similar that I was going to post but you did such a great job never mind.

I would just like to reinforce something that Hitoshura said, which is: try your best to not be attached to anything at all, even the methods that Hitoshura has so beautifully laid out for us. Once meditation becomes a forced action, it is no longer meditation (although it is tricky, because you may need to force it a little in the beginning, but once you notice a sense of balance or tranquility within you then let go of all desire/forced action and just be.)

S&F!

ETA: Also in regards to the counter measures for the hindrances mentioned, one may need to counter the counter measures or they may also become hindrances. It's all about finding the Middle (or balance). For example: if we seek to counter thoughts of anger with loving/kindness (metta) and become to attached to loving/kindness (metta) then when these thoughts leave us, or thoughts of anger again arise, this will create suffering for us in the form of disappointment or dissatisfaction. The Middle Way is the path.

edit on 16-4-2011 by LifeIsEnergy because: (no reason given)

Hi there, and thanks! And I hope you add your own thread too if it's got other things added that aren't here. Thanks especially for the part about countering the counter measures, I'd not even thought about that and have been focusing more on hindrances than almost anything else for a while now. Will start trying that out asap, and also add your comment under the hindrance part in the post if that's ok as I think it's really useful.

Was going to have a break but stayed for a while longer, definitely off for a break now....

reply to post by Hitoshura


Yes, go ahead, anything that is mine is also yours my friend.

Also, I was thinking you may want to add a bit about walking meditation, if you are unfamiliar here is a link that does a good job describing it. www.contemplativemind.org...

I think it is very important for people to understand that meditation is not just limited to sitting in a certain position, remaining quite and watching our thoughts. It can also be done as we walk or drive or bike somewhere, as we cook or clean, as we work, and so on.

Peace.

Originally posted by LifeIsEnergy
reply to post by Hitoshura

 

Yes, go ahead, anything that is mine is also yours my friend.

Also, I was thinking you may want to add a bit about walking meditation, if you are unfamiliar here is a link that does a good job describing it. www.contemplativemind.org...

I think it is very important for people to understand that meditation is not just limited to sitting in a certain position, remaining quite and watching our thoughts. It can also be done as we walk or drive or bike somewhere, as we cook or clean, as we work, and so on.

Peace.

Awesome, thanks, and yep, will have a go at adding walking meditation too, that's definitely a great idea. Thanks again!

Well was going to sort the links out and another few errors that I'd found before the 4 hours were up, but the forum seems to think the 4 hours have already passed, so will have to leave it. Will maybe message a mod and see if they can help edit a couple of minor things later on.

The link at the end of the 5 Elements/Wu Xing part is wrong by the way, sorry. This is the proper one : www.northernshaolinacademy.com...

Here is a little more info on countering counter methods for hindrances, as this can get very confusing.

First, here are the hindrances and counter measures to those hindrances that hitoshura described with a few of my own additives marked with a (*):

5 Hindrances
1) Sensuality/Lust/Desire
2) Anger/Ill Will
3) Sloth/Drowsiness (*laziness*)
4) Restlesness/Anxiety
5) Doubt

To counter the 5 hindrances :
1) Focusing on what Buddhists refer to as bodily foulness. The negative aspects of the body. (*impermanence/death*)
2) Loving kindness - Metta
3) Perception of light (and analysis/analysis of qualities I think, tied to 7 Factors further down.) (*quick and short breathing and/or repeated flexing of muscles*)
4) Serenity (5th of 7 Factors further down, also Uppekha, 10th of the 10 Perfections further down.) (*slow and deep breathing and/or relaxation of muscles)
5) Conviction/Belief (*faith*)

Now here are counter methods to those counter methods, in case attachment arises to the first counter methods, again it is kind of confusing but it is all about finding the Middle (balance). Only use these in small/short amounts when needed and then let go of them:

1) Imagining the body as a pure temple of energy (be careful with this as it can easily create illusions/attachment and increase the ego)
2) Carefree-ness
3) Number four of the first counter measures
4) Number three of the first counter measures
5) Questioning/skepticism and/or no conviction/belief/faith

Again, these counter-counter methods should only be used in small 'doses' when the first counter methods create attachment and thus hindrances.

Peace.

reply to post by Hitoshura


Nice post!
I haven't got to look over all of it yet....just wanted to say thanks for the work you put into it.
Will subscribe and read this after some much need sleep.
Thanks again,
Peace

Allow me to be the 3rd to say outstanding job! Star and Flag for you.
.
As a Bodhisattva myself due to a cultivation of practices spanning numerous lifetimes, allow me to make my most precious offering:
.
www.falundafa.org...
.
This document is alive and has some very amazing things in it. I would just recap what is in it, but this is not allowed.
.
May it have the same effect on everyone who reads it as it had on me.
.
Namaste
.

Back in 2000 I was in an accident and hurt my back

I had a trapped nerve which caused areas of my right leg to be numb and I was in a great deal of pain and could hardly walk, after some x-ray’s it was found that I had damaged the lowest section of my spine and the situation was I would be on pain killers for the rest of my life

I decided this was unacceptable and looked around for some alternatives and decided to try (thanks to my love of Chinese martial arts movies)
Zhan zhuang
en.wikipedia.org...

And after a few weeks my back problems cleared up (I am now free of any back problems)

Now it could be that making an effort to correct your posture and improve your breathing will have huge health benefits, but I decided to look into the “chi” claim of the method

My first attempt was with:
Inner smile
taoism.about.com...

and thanks to this my health improved enormously – so I have a great respect for this kind of teaching

one thing – I didn’t want to spend years learning how to meditate so I used binaural beats
en.wikipedia.org...
to get down to Zen master like states

I actually got quite far with the Taoist alchemy thing – but had to stop thanks to work/life ect

Very nice. Thank you for posting.

Luis, your post is also great.

The other day I happened across an acquaintance who is Buddhist. She is from Viet Nam. She once had given me a picture of a certain Jade Buddha which had been taken around to different localities and finally went to rest in its permanent home in a temple in Viet Nam. She invited me to her home and offered me cookies and something to drink. A very gracious hostess was she. She has an altar set up with a pic of the Green Buddha. She keeps incense nearby, and asked me if I would like to light one, which I did. She said to light incense every day for Buddha. She had two cups of water, one on each of two shelves near the picture. Next to the picture of Buddha, she has a fairly large statue of Kwan Yin. Then we went to the outside porch where she kept another cup of water and more incense. She said to offer rice to your dead relatives, and you can throw the water out into the grass or ground around the outside, and ask your relatives to help you. Then she showed me some home vids of her visit back home. I got a nice glimpse inside the temple where the Jade Buddha lives. Also the vid showed offerings of fruit, and flowers. She said apple and grapes are good to offer Buddha. And also papaya.
Strangely, it occurred to me that as Viet Nam is a buddhist country, perhaps that was one reason for invasion by the communists, as the commies destroy all the beautiful temples wherever they go. They have done this in Tibet as well.
It was a nice experience during a weekday. I had a feeling Buddha was enfolding me.

Ah I just found a website and it has a pic of this Jade Buddha. Here it is and from what the website says, it was in VIet Nam then will go on tour and then finally rest in Australia
www.jadebuddha.org.au...
Oh yes, about the five elements. I have been studying Feng Shui lately, and found a very nice website which discusses what are called Flying Stars. It is different for each year, and you can celebrate the Chinese New Year by setting out your "cures". It is usually around Feb 4 or thereabouts. www.fengshuiweb.co.uk...

Thanks for the links all, will be having a read of them over the next few days hopefully.

Originally posted by LuisCyfer
This document is alive and has some very amazing things in it. I would just recap what is in it, but this is not allowed.

Was just wondering why it's not allowed? Have been meaning to read some of that for a while now though, so will hopefully get around to it shortly, thanks again.

Originally posted by LifeIsEnergy
Here is a little more info on countering counter methods for hindrances, as this can get very confusing.

Awesome, thanks, will try working with those asap.

reply to post by Hitoshura


Well basically as I understood it the author put a lot of advanced thought into the document so if I were to recap with my unadvanced mind I might mislead someone. I can't say that I disagree either.
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Originally posted by LuisCyfer
reply to post by Hitoshura

 

Well basically as I understood it the author put a lot of advanced thought into the document so if I were to recap with my unadvanced mind I might mislead someone. I can't say that I disagree either.
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Sorry I didn't get back to this quicker, have been doing other stuff. Sounds like a good reason though, and thanks.