Stillness In Taoist Meditation Options

For the hand full of Taoist students who work in the esoteric tradition who might wander though here, I will post these epiphanies. First, your dantien and yellow court (roughly equivocal to the solar plexus chakra) are not simple spots that hold energy. They are in fact gates that open to the wuji (infinite). Energy can be stored here, but to do so requires force of will. This is perfectly fine in many other systems but becomes limiting as you progress in Taoist sorcery. By opening the gates and drawing the energy in to the wuji though/in the dantien you may access that energy as simply as you do with working it in to your system by circulations, force of will, or chi gong. The difference is in the effort needed to cultivate the dantien. Water will pour in to emptiness far more simply than it will be compressed. The energy is always there; known to you, and can be summoned it will. This is not an easy way, indeed it is much harder and other ways I know to use the dantien. It is a very hard thing for you must cultivate stillness before the gate can be opened – when you think you’re sitting still, you’re not still enough.

This leads me to the second epiphany. The breathing methods you may or may not run across (“two minute breath technique”, “belly breathing”, “reverse breathing”, and “turtle breathing”) seem very odd, poorly described, unlike the Indian ones and much less useful. This is because they where intended for use in stillness while the Indian system was not. You will get no use of any –except for reverse breathing being that chi gong uses it – until you have sufficiently master meditation skills of Nei Gong. The old books have many skills you can learn. It does not matter at all which one you start with as they all lead to each other and growth in one is growth in all. The import part is to gain effortless concentration. You should not have to bring you thoughts back to some task, nor deal with unrelated mental images. Rest your mind on the task like putting your feet up, relax into it, use no force and stir no emotion. A lot of esoteric Taoism and more particularly the associated sorcery has methods for this.

I however, recommend a Japanese off-shoot of esoteric Buddhism (Shingon) and Kunji-In to start. This is a meditative exercise that is both quick to learn and see (or rather feel) results in, as well as being based on Taoist transformational yoga, sometimes known as Karma Transmutation, which the Indians also have but, again, not suited for our uses. It takes about two weeks to make it thought the “initiation” wherein you will develop energy centers of both Indian and Taoist conception and start to transmute your karma. Transmute your karma involves openness and assimilation of parts of yourself and past, emotions, and more besides into a more integrated soul. This dislodges blockages that are caused by not accepting things for what they are. The result being your acuteness increases and you can feel chi as something separate from the physical sensations by which most know it. Like guessing at brail when you should be reading, having direct access to chi makes things easier.

This post has been edited by fatherjhon: Jan 31 2011, 06:58 PM

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Would you describe the specifics of the meditations? BTW don't say you do "kunji-in" to someone who speaks Tamil; kunji means "penis" in that language.

Would you describe the specifics of the meditations? BTW don't say you do "kunji-in" to someone who speaks Tamil; kunji means "penis" in that language.

LOL. Yes, it is actually "kuji-in" or "kuji-kiri" although I think the implication you mean it for is Kuji-in; Kuji-kiri seems usually associated with sorcery, vs. the former being associated I think with more spiritual/meditation/enlightenment aims.

peace

I agree with most of this. However the Chinese system of breathing techniques perhaps are not described properly in books, but real live teachers do teach them in great detail. In Chinese culture they seldom describe the details in books in plain language. It is usually coded in symbolic language. The reasons for this are rather long and maybe boring, so just understand that this is how they do this.

I'm not very familiar with Shingon or kuji-in--other than descriptions I've come across. But there are other methods and schools which do something similar in effect. How they compare in effectiveness I can't say.

I had to read it over a few times before I knew what you meant exactly. It was written a bit awkwardly, but I'm not going to criticize that too much. Until about the 1930s the term neigong was used the way we generally use the word qigong. Now they have slightly different meanings, qigong being the more superficial techniques, and neigong the deeper ones. This has a sort of logic, being that the "nei" in neigong means 'internal' or 'deep'. You have demonstrated awareness of some of the more sophisticated techniques.

I might also suggest that as well as the act of transmuting karma results in removal of blockages, removing blockages helps to transmute karma.

Brightest Blessings

I agree with most of this. However the Chinese system of breathing techniques perhaps are not described properly in books, but real live teachers do teach them in great detail. In Chinese culture they seldom describe the details in books in plain language. It is usually coded in symbolic language. The reasons for this are rather long and maybe boring, so just understand that this is how they do this.

Agreed. That I think is partly why it reads awkwardly, I have only the language from books to help articulate what was a vary recent epiphany. So I thank you for not criticizing it. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)
Perhaps, you could do me the honor of describing it in plain language so I need not use such obtuse language.

As to the breathing, perhaps it is just the way it was described to me, but I was never able to reach a very deep state of meditation while using the breathing methods listed. I have always had to just breath normal, slowly but normally. Only when quite recently, I reached a depth where I remained awareness of my body, the room, the visualization, mantra, and mudra, and still was.... still. Sorry I have no words for it. Thought without thought, and effortless relaxing concentration that is what if felt like. It was actually very hard to come back from the meditation, I had to try to do so.

I'm not very familiar with Shingon or kuji-in--other than descriptions I've come across. But there are other methods and schools which do something similar in effect.

I might also suggest that as well as the act of transmuting karma results in removal of blockages, removing blockages helps to transmute karma.

I have heard the same thing, but being inclined to parse things out I find that having two techniques helpful.

This post has been edited by fatherjhon: Feb 6 2011, 03:50 PM

Sorry to have taken so long in getting back on this but I've been having computer problems. You were wondering about examples of the symbolism used to describe different techniques. Generally you have read the flowery descriptions of what to expect but only after you have practiced and experienced it that the lightbulb goes off over your head and you know that you are on the right track and what the description truly means. The description may be is likely to be of the energy flow when you are doing the technique correctly. For example there is the saying that a gentleman breaths from his heels. umm in Chinese they used to use a word meaning something like elder brother that I'm translating as 'gentleman.' When you are doing what they call the macrocosmic orbit, or large heaven's breathing, you send energy down your legs and into the earth then pull up energy from the earth and up your legs using your breath. You can feel the energy most easily in the ankle area. You can feel it flowing up and down the body but the sensation is particularly strong around the ankles and heels, hence the idea of breathing with your heels.

There are different breathing techniques but pretty much always you make sure that you are in a comfortable stable position and that you are able to expand your belly and breath easily without being constricted. Breath from deep down in the body rather than from the chest, breath through your nose with your tongue touching the roof of your mouth just behind the tongue. Breathing should be done slowly and smoothly, that is you shouldn't hesitate between breaths but one breath blends smoothly into the next. It is like a thread being pulled slowly and smoothly. umm they use the imagery of silk reeling. When you are pulling a thread of silk off of a silkworm cocoon you have to pull it slowly and smoothly or it will break. While you do this you feel your breath. Feel your breathing. Become conscious of your breath. Become conscious of your breathing, the process of breathing. Eventually you will your thoughts will become consumed by your breath. You become your breath. You become the action of breathing. Nothing else exists except for your breath. The rest of the world disappears. At that point your mind is focused on one point.