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Weeki Wachee Springs is a natural tourist attraction located in Weeki Wachee, Florida, where underwater performances by "mermaids," women wearing fish tails as well as other fanciful outfits, can be viewed in an aquarium-like setting in the spring of the Weeki Wachee River. A waterpark, Buccaneer Bay, river boat rides, kayak and paddleboard rental are some of the other activities offered at Weeki Wachee Springs.
The spring was named "Weeki Wachee" by Seminole Indians, which means "Little Spring" or "Winding River" in their language. The attraction was created in 1947 by stunt swimmer and attraction promoter Newt Perry, who based the show on underwater air hose breathing techniques. First an 18-seat theater, then later a newer theater with a capacity of 50, were embedded in the lime rock of the spring with viewing windows below the surface of the water, to allow visitors to watch the mermaids perform in the spring. In 1982, Buccaneer Bay was opened with water slides, a lazy river, and a white sand beach for visitors to enjoy alongside the theater with the mermaid shows.
Guests to the park have included Elvis Presley, Don Knotts, Esther Williams, Arthur Godfrey, Kevin Smith, and Larry the Cable Guy. Hollywood has occasionally used the attraction and its mermaids in the filming of movies such as Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid (1948), Neptune's Daughter (1949), and many television shows like Bobcat Goldthwait's Misfits & Monsters (2018). At one point, the attraction was owned by broadcast network ABC, and this led to an increase in publicity for the attraction. Currently, the park is owned by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, and is a member of the Florida State Park System.
In 2005, English rock band Supergrass filmed their video for their song "Low C" at the Springs. They filmed a short documentary about the spring, as well as playing at a local bar and swimming with the mermaids.
In summer of 2006, stand up comedian Thomas J. Kelly became the park's first ever male mermaid. His adventures were chronicled in a Web television series called "The Little Merman".
On November 1, 2008, the state of Florida took over Weeki Wachee Springs as a state park.
From May 22 until August 30, 2007, the discharge level at Weeki Wachee spring dropped to a level that allowed for cave divers to gain effective entry into the cave system at the spring. The Karst Underwater Research team successfully executed exploration dives and the necessary in-water decompression to explore approximately 6,700 feet in multiple passages at an average depth of 265 Feet Fresh Water (ffw) with a maximum depth of 407 ffw. The 407 ffw depth makes the cave system under Weeki Wachee springs the deepest known freshwater cave system in the United States.
Scenes from Kelly Clarkson's video "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)" include the mermaids of Weeki Wachee Springs.
Key scenes from Amy Seimetz's directorial debut Sun Don't Shine take place at the Springs and include the mermaids.
The 2017 documentary Mermaids featured the attraction as well as a number of former and serving mermaids.
Weeki Wachee Springs is a natural tourist attraction located in Weeki Wachee, Florida, where underwater performances by "mermaids," women wearing fish tails as well as other fanciful outfits, can be viewed in an aquarium-like setting in the spring of the Weeki Wachee River. A waterpark, Buccaneer Bay, river boat rides, kayak and paddleboard rental are some of the other activities offered at Weeki Wachee Springs.
The spring was named "Weeki Wachee" by Seminole Indians, which means "Little Spring" or "Winding River" in their language. The attraction was created in 1947 by stunt swimmer and attraction promoter Newt Perry, who based the show on underwater air hose breathing techniques. First an 18-seat theater, then later a newer theater with a capacity of 50, were embedded in the lime rock of the spring with viewing windows below the surface of the water, to allow visitors to watch the mermaids perform in the spring. In 1982, Buccaneer Bay was opened with water slides, a lazy river, and a white sand beach for visitors to enjoy alongside the theater with the mermaid shows.
Guests to the park have included Elvis Presley, Don Knotts, Esther Williams, Arthur Godfrey, Kevin Smith, and Larry the Cable Guy. Hollywood has occasionally used the attraction and its mermaids in the filming of movies such as Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid (1948), Neptune's Daughter (1949), and many television shows like Bobcat Goldthwait's Misfits & Monsters (2018). At one point, the attraction was owned by broadcast network ABC, and this led to an increase in publicity for the attraction. Currently, the park is owned by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, and is a member of the Florida State Park System.
In 2005, English rock band Supergrass filmed their video for their song "Low C" at the Springs. They filmed a short documentary about the spring, as well as playing at a local bar and swimming with the mermaids.
In summer of 2006, stand up comedian Thomas J. Kelly became the park's first ever male mermaid. His adventures were chronicled in a Web television series called "The Little Merman".
On November 1, 2008, the state of Florida took over Weeki Wachee Springs as a state park.
From May 22 until August 30, 2007, the discharge level at Weeki Wachee spring dropped to a level that allowed for cave divers to gain effective entry into the cave system at the spring. The Karst Underwater Research team successfully executed exploration dives and the necessary in-water decompression to explore approximately 6,700 feet in multiple passages at an average depth of 265 Feet Fresh Water (ffw) with a maximum depth of 407 ffw. The 407 ffw depth makes the cave system under Weeki Wachee springs the deepest known freshwater cave system in the United States.
Scenes from Kelly Clarkson's video "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)" include the mermaids of Weeki Wachee Springs.
Key scenes from Amy Seimetz's directorial debut Sun Don't Shine take place at the Springs and include the mermaids.
The 2017 documentary Mermaids featured the attraction as well as a number of former and serving mermaids.
Weeki Wachee Springs is a natural tourist attraction located in Weeki Wachee, Florida, where underwater performances by "mermaids," women wearing fish tails as well as other fanciful outfits, can be viewed in an aquarium-like setting in the spring of the Weeki Wachee River. A waterpark, Buccaneer Bay, river boat rides, kayak and paddleboard rental are some of the other activities offered at Weeki Wachee Springs.
The spring was named "Weeki Wachee" by Seminole Indians, which means "Little Spring" or "Winding River" in their language. The attraction was created in 1947 by stunt swimmer and attraction promoter Newt Perry, who based the show on underwater air hose breathing techniques. First an 18-seat theater, then later a newer theater with a capacity of 50, were embedded in the lime rock of the spring with viewing windows below the surface of the water, to allow visitors to watch the mermaids perform in the spring. In 1982, Buccaneer Bay was opened with water slides, a lazy river, and a white sand beach for visitors to enjoy alongside the theater with the mermaid shows.
Guests to the park have included Elvis Presley, Don Knotts, Esther Williams, Arthur Godfrey, Kevin Smith, and Larry the Cable Guy. Hollywood has occasionally used the attraction and its mermaids in the filming of movies such as Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid (1948), Neptune's Daughter (1949), and many television shows like Bobcat Goldthwait's Misfits & Monsters (2018). At one point, the attraction was owned by broadcast network ABC, and this led to an increase in publicity for the attraction. Currently, the park is owned by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, and is a member of the Florida State Park System.
In 2005, English rock band Supergrass filmed their video for their song "Low C" at the Springs. They filmed a short documentary about the spring, as well as playing at a local bar and swimming with the mermaids.
In summer of 2006, stand up comedian Thomas J. Kelly became the park's first ever male mermaid. His adventures were chronicled in a Web television series called "The Little Merman".
On November 1, 2008, the state of Florida took over Weeki Wachee Springs as a state park.
From May 22 until August 30, 2007, the discharge level at Weeki Wachee spring dropped to a level that allowed for cave divers to gain effective entry into the cave system at the spring. The Karst Underwater Research team successfully executed exploration dives and the necessary in-water decompression to explore approximately 6,700 feet in multiple passages at an average depth of 265 Feet Fresh Water (ffw) with a maximum depth of 407 ffw. The 407 ffw depth makes the cave system under Weeki Wachee springs the deepest known freshwater cave system in the United States.
Scenes from Kelly Clarkson's video "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)" include the mermaids of Weeki Wachee Springs.
Key scenes from Amy Seimetz's directorial debut Sun Don't Shine take place at the Springs and include the mermaids.
The 2017 documentary Mermaids featured the attraction as well as a number of former and serving mermaids.
Respiratory problems Occupational and environmental exposures.The respiratory tract comes into contact with approximately 14 000 litres of air during a standard working week. The quality of the air we breathe has major implications for our respiratory health. Any part of the respiratory tract, from the nose to the alveoli, may be adversely affected by exposure to airborne contaminants.Some of the effects of exposures may be immediate, whereas others such as asbestos-related lung disease may not present for many decades. Airborne contaminants may be the primary cause of respiratory disease or can exacerbate pre-existing respiratory conditions such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Clinicians should have a high index of suspicion and question their patients with breathing problems about occupational and environmental exposures, especially in the setting of new onset symptoms.Identification of occupational and environmental causes of respiratory disease is important because control of these exposures may lead to a cure for some people and prevention of disease in others. In Australia and other developed countries, effective occupational health and safety legislation has resulted in protection of workers from traditional causes of occupational lung disease, such as asbestos and silica. Current exposures may be subtle and require a high index of suspicion from the treating clinician.Air contaminants may be dusts, gases, vapours or fumes. Any part of the respiratory tract can be adversely affected by poor air quality, from the nose to the alveoli. The site affected within the respiratory tract depends on the integrity of defense mechanisms and the properties of the air contaminants (Figure 1). Other determinants include individual susceptibility and the intensity and duration of the exposure.. If a patient presents with new onset respiratory symptoms it is useful to ask about recent changes in their environment, such as whether they have a new pet at home or if they have commenced a new job. It is also useful to ask whether symptoms improve when away from an exposure. Symptoms of recent onset occupational asthma may improve over a weekend but are more likely to improve over a week or when on holidays. Longstanding or severe occupational asthma may not improve until many months after removal of the cause, if at all.
www.racgp.org.au/afp/2012/november/respiratory-problems/
Breathing Off , daylight; same people that can't breathe clean air, drink potable water.
Environmental Sensitivities, also known as Environmental Illness or Environmental Disease is a name that says it all. A person who is ill because of his environment (food, drink, air) has Environmental Sensitivities. Some people consider Multiple Chemical Sensitivities as another name for the same illness, but it is actually a subset of Environmental Illness. The body cannot deal with all the toxins it comes into contact with every day. Immune System Dysfunction happens. Auto-immune Disease is the body mistaking a part of itself as the enemy and attacking it.The things that trigger reactions can be chemicals, natural and manmade, at very low concentrations. A lot of these manmade chemicals were developed after World War II (including pesticides, cleaning products, etc.) and are petroleum based (petro-chemicals). Some of the natural substances that cause problems are grass, pollen, animal hair, or mould.TOTAL LOAD refers to the different impacts on your system. Think of your immune system as a rain barrel, all of the stresses fill it up. The total load is reached but you may not be aware of the different things making you ill.According to Drs. Rossenbaum and Susser, Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (Environmental Sensitivities) is progressive in nature. Because scents are such a serious problem let's look at them more closely (over 4000 chemicals used in the fragrance industry).We usually do not smell many of the scents we and others are emitting until we become hypersensitive. These chemicals could be causing minor problems for years but we do not see the cause/effect. However, as time passes our bodies become weakened from constant exposure. Overloaded passageways in our bodies, the back up of chemicals in the blood stream, muscles, nervous system, organs, etc. leads to a variety of symptoms. Poor air quality, the length of time the chemical clings to clothes, closed in buildings, etc. hold these chemicals and our bodies absorb them.The doctor can send you for allergy tests. These are generally skin tests. Small amounts of known allergens are placed under the skin. Your skin welts up into bumps that are measurable. This tells you what you are allergic to and the seriousness of the allergy. However, there are times when the reactions are not suggestive of allergies but of Environmental Sensitivities. These tests are a starting point and can be used to give you a direction. However, they are not as reliable as other tests (i.e. RAST).There are several things you can do to treat ES depending on what affects you.Avoiding the offending substances is critical. There are steps you take to do this (a) clean the bedroom, take out clothes, books, comforters, cushions/pillows, etc.; (b) wear a mask or take oxygen in public; (c) get rid of chemical cleaners, personal care products, and synthetic clothing.Eat foods that are not harmful (avoid those you react to), clean foods thoroughly, eat organic.
www.nsnet.org/idacan/enviro.html
The Stimulating Breath (also called the Bellows Breath).The Stimulating Breath is adapted from yogic breathing techniques. Its aim is to raise vital energy and increase alertness.Inhale and exhale rapidly through your nose, keeping your mouth closed but relaxed. Your breaths in and out should be equal in duration, but as short as possible. This is a noisy breathing exercise.Try for three in-and-out breath cycles per second. This produces a quick movement of the diaphragm, suggesting a bellows. Breathe normally after each cycle.Do not do for more than 15 seconds on your first try. Each time you practice the Stimulating Breath, you can increase your time by five seconds or so, until you reach a full minute.If done properly, you may feel invigorated, comparable to the heightened awareness you feel after a good workout. You should feel the effort at the back of the neck, the diaphragm, the chest and the abdomen. Try this diaphragmatic breathing exercise the next time you need an energy boost and feel yourself reaching for a cup of coffee.
www.drweil.com/drw/u/ART00521/three-breathing-exercises.html
COP21.Americans Rank Climate Change as Top Environmental Problem.Americans now rank climate change as the country’s most pressing environmental concern, a new survey reveals. m.livescience.com/4287-americans-rank-climate-change-top-...
The important point to remember is that natural fluctuations in the climate system will continue with global warming, but the baseline will climb higher and higher. This means that scientists can't confidently predict, for example, the first year it will be too hot to grow wheat in Kansas or the first summer the Arctic will be ice-free. But crossing both thresholds is assured unless we reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
www.polarbearsinternational.org/about-polar-bears/climate...
DAN: My way has been playing with breath energy: Shakti’s way is playing with sexual energy. When we bring those two energies together—not between or among us—but within us, something quite magical can happen. It’s impossible for me to go to sleep in Shakti’s presence. It’s very hard to remain unconscious when I am in her presence. That’s the main reason I chose to work and play with her.
You can wake up in the world and then very quickly fall asleep again, because most people in the world are sleeping, unconscious. At some point in my life I woke up; and I like being awake. But it’s a constant conscious process, a real challenge to stay awake. It is very easy to fall asleep and go unconscious in the world. There are so many distractions so many things that distract us, that pull us out of our selves. And so what we need are people and places and ways to keep us awake, to keep us on the path of going deeper and reaching higher. That is why I am working and playing with Shakti.
SHAKTI: When I met Dan I knew that we could do beautiful things together, because Dan has such a deep knowledge and understanding and experience of the breath. For me, whenever I breathe in, it feels like I am making love. So try it now. When you breathe in, feel the caress of the breath, feel the way that the breath touches you from the inside out, feel how it softens you, how it makes you soft inside, how it makes you expand. The breath is so simple, and yet every time we breathe we can open up more, to feel more, to love more, to love ourselves more, to become more open to others.
DAN: When you breathe, everyone and everything, all the energies of the world come into you; the all and the small touches every cell in your body. When you breathe out, something of you, your essence, something from every cell in your body goes out and mixes with everything else in the world. It is not just a pretty idea. It’s a fact in reality: the breath connects us to everyone and everything. The breath that’s inside of you now, was in someone else just a minute ago. We can’t hide from each other. Separation is an illusion—a sometimes useful and convenient illusion—but an illusion none the less.
The breath that is coming in and out of us carries information. We can take from it what we want and let the rest come and go. Everything is available to us with every breath. When the breath comes into you, you have an opportunity to give that breath a signature, to impress it with some intention, some energy before it leaves you again.
So what is important? If you could send some energy out into the world, what would it be? What quality? What frequency? What is the deepest part of you? What is the highest part of you? What is your deepest or highest aspiration in life? You share that with the world with every breath. If the breath brings to you all the energies of the world, which energies do you choose to focus upon? Which do you drink in? How about the energies of love? How about the energy of peace and joy? How about consciously breathing that kind of energy!
SHAKTI: Many of us have been taught that loving is not safe, if we open our hearts to love, we might get hurt. And we have learned that sexual energy is not safe. When I love someone sexually, I might get hurt. Sexual energy causes a lot of separation for many people. If we could open our hearts to sexual energy, it could open our hearts to the realm of love. It could help us to wake up sexually and spiritually.
For most people our sexual experience is confined to our genitals. For most people you can hope for 45 seconds of sexual orgasm. Imagine an orgasm continuing for 8 hours! Imagine it beginning in your genitals and going up through your whole body. Imagine connecting your genitals to your heart—cycling, circulating energy between the two, building up life force, and from there rippling through your whole body. This is possible for all of us if we want to wake up. If you want to stay asleep then it’s better to simply continuing with your 45 second orgasms.
DAN: Some people are always trying to protect their heart—like our heart is so sensitive, so delicate, so easily broken. In fact it sensitive and it’s also the strongest part of us—the part that least needs protecting! It’s possible to wake up to our heart in the middle of an orgasm, and then stay awake. When something in you opens, if you can relax with it, it remains open. But we’ve been taught that when you walk around in this world, when you live in this world, you have to be on guard, a part of you must remain closed. It’s is a reflex, a habit.
We can create a sacred space here, a safe place in which to open our hearts together. We can learn to keep our heart open. And we can learn to quickly open it again when it closes due to old habits and fears. As we do this, we discover that an amazing thing happens. Every time your heart opens, if it closes again, it cannot close all the way. (It hurts too much to do that.) The fear comes back and we close, but not completely, not all the way. And gradually we learn to live freely and safely with an open heart. And a few days is enough. 2, 3, 4 days is plenty of time to master the art of opening your heart, if that is your intention.
SHAKTI: So Dan and I will give you a chance to be with us for a few days. We will tell you about that later. For now, you can enjoy the time with us now. I have found that the breath also makes space in us. When you think of how we usually breathe, we are not paying attention to our breath. If we can start to really enjoy our breath, then something beautiful can happen. In the Tantric practice there is a beautiful breath:
Follow the curve of the breath as you breathe in; follow the curve of the breath as you breathe out. Find that moment when the curve of the in-breath becomes the curve of the out-breath. Find that moment when the curve of the out-breath becomes the curve of the in-breath. Find the pause between the two. If you sink deeply into that pause… in that moment you can wake up.
Breathe with me. Breathe in with me and feel the pause. Breathe out with me and feel the pause. In the silence between the out-breath and the in-breath—in that moment, nothing exists and yet everything exists.
Now let your body move with the breath. Breathing in, your spine opens and arches; breathing out, the spine relaxes. Breathing in, opening the spine; breathing out, relaxing the spine. How does that feel? Does it feel good? When you breathe in, the whole body expands, so the spine also curves. I will show you now. For many of us our spines are not very flexible because we hold ourselves very tight. When we learn to relax very deeply and allow the movement in the body, the breath can go deeper.
In Tantra, when my partner breathes in, I breathe out. When he breathes out, I breathe in his breath. When I breathe out, he breathes in my breath. You can see and feel that even without touching we are building up orgasmic energy.
[Shakti and Dan model “making love” with the breath in public. The audience gets turned on.]
SHAKTI: Many years ago, I had a couple come visit me. The man and the woman were almost 80 years old. Their sexual life was not very good. I taught them to breathe like this. They didn’t want to touch each other. So I gave them each a chair, facing each other. They made love to each other with their breath. It changed their relationship. They couldn’t believe that they still desired each other so much. And that was even without their bodies touching.
DAN: You know, young children are filled with sexual energy, it’s not localized. Every cell lives an orgasmic experience, and children are in touch with that. That’s why they can’t sit still, they can’t be quiet. That’s why they shine. That’s why they are so joyful. There is too much ecstatic energy flowing thru them. Then as we grow older, culture and family and religion and tradition and society stifle and inhibit this life-energy in us. We are taught that only in certain places, only at certain times, and only with certain people are we to allow an experience of that energy.
This creates not just a spiritual problem, but also physical problems. Because that is how illness and disease take root in the body. The life force is not allowed to flow fully and freely, and so parts of us begin to die. Waking this energy up again and filling your whole body with it can reverse the aging process, it can make you younger!
I am really grateful to Shakti, because she has brought a certain playfulness back into my work. I had become very serious about my practice. I’m a serious guy, and she is definitely neither!
[A question from audience about which breathing technique Dan uses in daily life.]
DAN: I have discovered that any technique can have a hypnotic effect. It’s a good to practice various techniques. However, if the technique becomes more important than the one who practices it, then that is not so good. My basic practice is to simply bring awareness to my breath as often as possible and in as many situations and activities as possible. In addition to “breath awareness” I practice “conscious breathing.” I practice breathing fast, breathing slow, breathing high, breathing low. The two techniques are watching the breath and playing with the breath. There are a few basic or core techniques that everyone can benefit form, and so I teach and practice those. I encourage people to explore the basics, to build on those core techniques, and to do so in their own way.
[A question from the audience about sex and spirituality, about the evils of the body and physical pleasure, about the necessity of celibacy.]
DAN: They don’t understand life. They don’t see the whole picture. They just don’t get it. They are buying into a philosophy. They have been taught to deny their sacred nature. They are living out of a spiritual ego. This ego lives in sinners and saints, monks and murderers. It takes over and runs them. It hides in those monks who suppress and deny their natural feelings and desires. That’s the purpose and the role of a dakini, a tantrika.
SHAKTI: I will tell you two stories: One story is about a monk who is a student. He has been sitting on the mountain for 30 years, meditating. He has been celibate for 30 years, drinking no wine, eating no meat. Then his teacher looks at him and decides he is ready to wake up. So he sends a dakini to the student. A dakini is a woman like me who teaches the sacred sexual practices of tantra. So the dakini goes to the monk, seduces the monk. The monk cannot resist her, he makes love to her. The monk as he makes love to her, his spiritual ego has such a big shock, and this last powerful but very subtle ego is shattered.
If he doesn’t wake up, then she will give him meat to eat and wine to drink. She will seduce him into breaking all his spiritual rules. If still the shock has not been big enough to break his ego, then she will start to teach him the sexual practices of Tantra. She will teach him how to wake up his sexual energy, how to take it up his body, how to wake up every cell in his body. She will teach him how to let his heart have an orgasm, so that his heart is blown open to the whole world. She will teach him how to let his sexual energy explode through his crown chakra, so that he can feel that he is at one with everything. When your orgasmic energy goes through the crown of your head, you will know unmistakably that you are one with everything and everyone, that there is no separation. The beloved is everywhere.
2nd story: Somebody goes to the Dali Lama and asks him: “Don’t you miss having an orgasm because you don’t have sex?” The Dali Lama looks puzzled. He says: “My dear, I am having orgasms all the time!”
DAN: You see I don’t think we have the luxury of time any more. We are no longer in the age when you could sit in a cave for 30 years and seek enlightenment at a snail’s pace. We don’t have that kind of time anymore. Things are accelerating on the planet, they are intensifying. Maybe you’ve noticed it. Something is happening.
There was a time when there was only one Buddha walking the earth, one Jesus, one Moses, one Mohammed, one Krishna, one Lao Tsu. Today there are tens of thousands, maybe millions of Buddha’s on the planet! Something is happening. It’s getting easier to wake up. You could pass a Buddha on the street and not know it. You could sit on the side of a Buddha on the metro and not know it. You could live next door to a Buddha and not know it. And if you are not careful, you could be a Buddha and not know it!
Time does not enter into the process of awakening. Time is not a factor. The ancient monks had the right idea. They pulled themselves out of the world because no one around them wanted to wake up. They put themselves in a place where everyone around them wanted to wake up, and so it was easier. But then they practiced these rituals and then they developed an identity linked to these rituals, and so their practice at some point became the obstacle to the very thing they wanted to achieve. And this is true of everything.
Something that is meant to help us can actually get in the way. And something that the priests and politicians say is bad and will hurt us can actually set us free. If you are ready, whatever you do will work. The next book you read, the next teacher you meet, the next technique you practice, will bring your liberation. It has nothing to do with the book, the technique or the teacher. Well, it has something to do with that. But the real thing, the thing that matters most, is your readiness.
One breath is enough if you are truly, genuinely, and totally ready. You breathe ten to twenty thousand breaths per day. That’s ten to twenty thousand invitations, ten to twenty thousand opportunities. How many of those breaths do you use? How many do you take advantage of? How many do you put toward your liberation?
Become conscious of your breath right now. Feel it, watch it, listen to it. Be with it moment to moment, totally. Disappear into that moment when the in-breath and the-out breath touch, when they come together. Becoming free might be a lot easier than we have been led to believe. A good friend of mine, Leonard Orr who invented rebirthing, once said: “Most religions make it so hard to get to heaven, that even God couldn’t make it!”
More and more people are waking up. The vibrations on this planet, the energy of the planet itself is getting higher, and this is lifting people up. And the energies in people are getting higher, and this raises the vibrations of the planet. Everything is coming together, creating a great acceleration.
SHAKTI: And we don’t have time to waste anymore. For many thousands of years we walked around with clubs—cavemen with big sticks. We killed animals with big sticks and we ate the meat. Everything was about survival. Then we discovered each other… that if we do things together, we are safer. We learned that we could plant seeds and grow our own fields. Men thought that women were divine. They sensed that God, the Source, was a woman (because women gave birth).
Men did not realize that they had anything to do with it. (Men did not connect sex with babies, they didn’t have a clue.) So in those years, God was seen as being a woman. And the priests/priestess were women. Men would pay to have sex with the priestess in the temple, because they understood that through entering the priestess they could have direct access to the Goddess. They understood that women’s sexuality was the gateway to the Divine.
But then the world changed. About five thousand years ago was the beginning of patriarchy. That was the time men took over, and they made a new story. The symbol of the Goddess which was the snake became the symbol of the Devil. They say that Eve ate the apple, and because she bit the apple, everyone got thrown out of the Garden of Eden. So it is because of woman’s desire that everybody got thrown out of paradise.
We created a split between the sacred and the sexual form. Either you are a virgin or you are a whore. A split we still struggle with that today. The world has lost the beauty and the power of the feminine. It is time for woman to reclaim their beauty and their sacredness. It is time for us to accept again that our sexuality is a gateway to the divine.
I know that men want to love and worship the feminine… that men want to love and adore women. They are waiting for women… for us to be willing to accept ourselves, and to celebrate our own sexuality. When a man enters a woman and she deeply opens to her own divinity, she can take him into the deepest mystery. And that is what all men are waiting for. So that the time we are living in now, is a time when the masculine and the feminine have to marry inside of us. It is the time of deep merging of the masculine and the feminine.
It is the age of the waking up of the heart. Patriarchy is over, the old structures are not working any more. We have to live in the way of the heart, and to get there we have to connect with our desire and our devotion to the divine, that lives in all of us.
[A question from audience about the loss of sexual power, energy, about menopause]
SHAKTI: There comes a time in a woman’s life when she stops menstruating it is called menopause. I have worked with many women who are menopausal. Many of those women have lived most of their sexual lives suppressed. In fact for many women, the only sex they have ever had has been to please a man, doing what the man needs. Many women have not discovered the real pleasure of sex. Many women are not in touch with their own bodies.
So in my work, I teach women how to connect with their pleasure again. Just through the breath, just through relaxing, just from starting to feel from the inside out. And I see women who are menopausal or older becoming orgasmic. Even without touching themselves, even without touching anybody else. They become exquisitely beautiful because they are opening to their own energy.
DAN: This Buddha nature we are talking about is within us. Everyone is carrying it. When we begin to recognize our own Buddha nature, we begin to notice it in other people. It’s like looking at water. You can look at the surface and see your reflection or you can look through and see the fish swimming underneath by adjusting your focus. And then we have these photographs now that everyone has seen where you look at it, it’s a bunch of chaotic patterns, but if you do something with your eyes there is an image there.
So something happens in us. You are looking at the ugliness, the pain and suffering of the world, and then suddenly something happens, suddenly… this amazing beauty is right there, right here. Or you are looking inside at your own confusion, and your problems and your emotions and your negative thoughts. And then suddenly the real nature of those things is seen, something happens. If you try and strain to make it happen it gets further away. So it is interesting. We have this paradox.
We have this yearning, this longing to wake up. It’s like being so thirsty. It makes us look and seek and try and work. It’s like trying to remember where you put your glasses, then you stop trying and ah hah! They are right here! So there is something about opening up and simply letting go. We can use the breath to do that, we can use each other to do that. And we can use this beautiful play of male and female energies to do that, and in the process of playing something happens.
Question from the audience: “how to use the breath to wake up?”
DAN: You combine breathing with thought, sound, visualization, movement. You can develop a conscious relationship to the basic elements of life: earth, air, water, fire, space. You use the breath to embody the essence of those elements. We play with a couple of basic things. You know the philosophy, the stories. We are in a bookstore here, surrounded by answers. But how do you translate information into a real, actual experience. Every system offers a different approach. For every idea or method there is an opposite idea or method. So if we draw from our own nature, if we take from what we are naturally given to enjoy, and begin to work with that, things become simple…
For example, a simple sigh of relief. When you let go of the breath, you can let go of many other things. And when you pull in air, you not only pull in air, you pull in energy. Every breath can be a prayer; every breath is a blessing. When you let go of the breath, you can let go of whatever is holding you back. If you practice letting go of the breath, you develop the ability to let go of many other things. And if you can let go completely, just for a moment, then everything opens up to us.
If you cannot let go of the breath, don’t be surprised if you cannot let go of pain. If you cannot let go of your breath, don’t be surprised if you cannot let go of fear, or negative thoughts that bother you, or habits or behaviors that are not serving you. If you learn to let go of the breath quickly and completely, then you can build on that skill. There is tremendous organic pleasure in a sigh of relief. If you focus on it, you can generate joy.
[Dan demonstrates a big soothing, pleasurable “coming home breath”]
Is it possible to be in pain and breathe like this? Have you ever seen anyone who is in pain breathe like this? No. It’s impossible—unless you really practice! Can you be afraid, can you be frozen in fear and breathe like this? [again demonstrating another coming home breath] You cannot.
Notice that whenever you are in pain and the pain goes away, you breathe like that… something happens to the breath. You don’t think about it, you don’t make it happen. It’s not a technique: it is a natural reflex. When you move from one state to another state, from pain to no pain, that breath happens by itself. The same thing happens when you are afraid and then the fear goes away: that breath happens.
That’s not an accident of nature. That breathing response is hard-wired into us. If you practice that breath consciously, you prompt the system to moving from one state to another. And the fact is you now have pain. Just because you are not conscious of it, does not mean that it’s not there. And you carry fear. Just because you do not feel fear in this moment, doesn’t mean it’s not there.
And so what we have discovered is, if you make this breath a habit of your system; expanding, opening, letting go, relaxing. If we make it a habit of our system, so that it happens automatically, something amazing happens. It’s like making music. If you have to think about where to put your fingers on the piano, you might be able to make it through a little song, but you really can’t make music. It has to be automatic. It has to just flow from you unconsciously. Then you make real music!
So in the beginning you practice certain things, you develop the skill. With deep practice it becomes second nature, an unconscious ability. Then real music happens! So it is with this sigh of relief, this coming home breath. Do the math. We have been practicing math at my seminars. If you breathe 20,000 times a day and you make use of just 1/10th of 1% of those breaths… Any math professors here? How many conscious breaths is that? 200? If you make use of just 200 breaths per day for 5 days and don’t begin to wake up to your Buddha nature, I’d be shocked! You must be avoiding it!
200 conscious breaths each day. That’s an easy way to begin. Focus on your heart as you open and expand and let go. If you do that 200 times a day for one week, and your life does not begin to change, I won’t believe it.
If afterward you say: “I tried breathing 200 times a day for one week, each time consciously focusing on my heart and generating love, and nothing happened.” I would have to say: “You are lying. You could not have practiced it.” It’s not possible, because with every one of those intentional breaths, you are waking up and you are falling into your nature. You can only walk a path so many times before the path becomes a big wide highway. Soon, the heart connection is open all the time. And it hurts to close it, so you have no interest in closing it. Just the opposite: more and more, every breath becomes orgasmic!
But you actually have to do it. It’s not a philosophy, it is a practice. That’s what I love about Shakti, she doesn’t let people live in their heads, she makes people breathe and move and feel into their heart and body. So please don’t come to the training if you don’t want to wake up, if you don’t want to actually practice. Just read another book. Put more information in your head. Satisfy your mind.
SHAKTI: I want to respond to your question about fire. The element of fire is interesting, because you can use the element of fire to wake up. You can use the heart fire of sexual energy to wake up your sexual identity. It’s like this. Breathe like this:
[Shakti models the fire breath, then Dan models it, then he invites others to practice it.]
Encouraging people to make pleasurable sounds on the exhale, breathing out thru the mouth. Breathing in thru the nose… hold your breath… Do you feel the heat? Let go. Feel the warmth. [Demonstrating a natural body movement with the breath] Do you recognize this movement? No wonder making love feels so good!
SHAKTI: If you do this movement all the time when you are making love, the man will ejaculate. It is too exciting. It is too stimulating- the man gets too hot. His sexual energy gets too hot. He gets too excited, so he ejaculates. And that’s the end.[Dan mimics going right to sleep after sex, snoring]. Now the woman has just started making love (because we can go for a long time) so we get frustrated. We start thinking sex is not about our pleasure.
But it is possible for the man to learn how to ride the wave of his sexual energy. In the beginning you can build up the heat, but when the man gets very aroused he has to notice before it is too late, and slow down, hold the beloved closer, and breathe deeply. He can still be in penetration, but now we are going into the deep rhythm of the body. We are letting the heat ripple through the whole body.
And that quality I call the “Rippling Blue Flame.” Have you ever see pictures of Indian Gods, like Krishna or Shiva? Have you noticed that they are often portrayed as blue? I think it is because they understand the secret of sex. I think it is because those gods understand the secret of sex. I think they understand that if you keep holding your sexual energy, if you don’t throw it off… what happens is the fire starts rippling over your skin. Every part of your body gets set alive. It gets set on fire. But it is a cool fire. It is a fire that can go on and on.
If you have a lot of wood and you make a big bonfire, you light the match, you light the fire, you burn up all the wood. 5 minute, 10 minutes, 11minutes. How long do people make love? 11 minutes tops. Then the man ejaculates and it’s all over. But another way is to build a small fire, to build up the heat slowly. When it gets too hot, you slow down. You add one log at a time. You go deeper, you go slower. You recycle the breath with your partner. You let the fire spread through your whole body. You feel it rippling through your skin. That is how you build the fire.
When the man is ready, you can build a hot fire again, then you can go fast again, then when it gets too hot you slow down, you ride the wave. Then you build the sexual energy, till just before it gets too hot… then you ride it again, then you build it again, then you ride it again, that’s why you can go on forever.
The first time I experienced this was with my teacher, the orgasm went on for the whole weekend. Then it only stopped because I had to go home. So in Tantra, the only question we ask is how much bliss can you stand? Can you cope with more pleasure, or do you have to throw it off by having an ejaculation? Can you open to more pleasure? Can you keep building the bliss?
DAN: You see, at some point the body cannot tell the difference between intense pain and intense pleasure. It’s the same: intense. All the body knows is that it is too intense. So when you approach your limit to pleasure, your system reacts the same way as it does to pain. The muscles get tense, you hold your breath, and you try to escape and withdraw from the intensity. So you have to train your body to relax into intensity. Pain is not the problem. Everybody is very good at tolerating pain. And I think the Russians hold the world record! No doubt! So pleasure is the real problem. You can watch your body react as you approach ecstasy. If you haven’t practiced breathing and relaxing into intensity, it isn’t going to be fun. That’s why I love Shakti, she helps people gently open to the ecstasy that is already within us.
[Question from audience about having children]
SHAKTI: What happens when you wake up is that your personal world and the divine world become one. You have no personal desire, but the desire of existence moves through you. So if it is meant to be that you will have children, you will.
DAN: And when you are free, you do things consciously, not because it is an unconscious program. I know two awakened people who recently had a child, Ivonne and Toby. They had a child. His name is Iam (“I am”). And he chose them.
[Question about breathing through the mouth]
SHAKTI: I teach breathing through the mouth: “ahhh…” It is relaxing, breathing through the mouth is good for dropping control. There is too much control, so I teach breathing through the mouth- especially good for women- relaxing.
DAN: Do what feels good, then practice the opposite until it also feels good. Breathe the energy of the moment. When you see or hear or feel something, breathe it in, connect to the energy of it with the breath.
[Question about using sacred geometry in tantra]
SHAKTI: The master of the practices would go into deep meditation and the energy of the practice would run through his body. Students would write down what they see, then they would make calculations and draw diagrams. They would develop a system based upon what they saw happening in the master. Then it became all about the system. They forgot that the master did it naturally.
All you have to do is get everything out of the way of the natural. It is natural for your body to want to wake up. It is natural for your body to be orgasmic. All you have to do is get out of the way, let your ego get out of the way. Be with people who experience this. By spending time with us you have the chance to experience this in your own body.
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Weeki Wachee Springs near Spring Hill in Hernando County, Florida is famous for its mermaids. In fact it is the only state park in the United States, that I know of, that advertises mermaids. Even without mermaids the spring is a stunning natural wonder. Weeki Wacheei Springs rises from a extensive underwater karsted cave system. The caves have been explored to a depth of more than 400 feet. A spring shed of over 260 square miles feeds the underground river system. The spring itself is about 150 feet (46 m) wide and 250 feet (76 m) long. 170 million gallons (644 million liters) flows from the spring on average each day. The water temperature flows out at a steady temperature of 79.2 °F (26.2 °C) year-round.
The story of the mermaids makes Weeki Wachee one of Florida’s most unique roadside attractions. The mermaid story begins when Newton Perry, a swimmer and dive instructor, who came to the springs in 1946. He found the remote spring full of junked refrigerators, wrecked cars and, of course, alligators.
Perry cleaned up the spring and came up with the idea of an underwater mermaid show in the springs. Perry invented a method of breathing underwater from a free-flowing air hose supplying oxygen from an air compressor, which made it look like someone was thriving twenty feet underwater with no breathing apparatus. He then carved out an 18-seat theater some six feet below the spring’s surface, so viewers could peer directly into the depths of the spring. He then trained pretty local girls to do aquatic ballets using his breathing techniques. The beautiful young women became his mermaids. They learned how to perform feats like eating bananas and drinking Grapette underwater in order to impress the audience.
The first show opened 1947. As with any new business there were slow times The girls would stand next to the road in their bathing suits to lure passerbys into the parking lot. Yet the attraction thrived, ranking among the nation’s most popular tourist stops in the 1950s, and receiving worldwide praise for its mermaid shows, orchid gardens, jungle cruises, Indian encampment and new beach.
In 1959, The American Broadcasting Company (ABC) purchased Weeki Wachee. They built a 500-seat theatre, nestled in the side of the spring 16 feet below the surface, and developed elaborate props, lifts, music, and story lines for the underwater shows. Now in its heyday, the springs had applications from girls from all over the world to be glamorous mermaids As many as half a million people a year came to Weeki Wachee,
Weeki Wachee’s glory faded over the years, but in 2008, it became one of Florida's state parks, and the dream was reborn. The focus has changed a little toward the natural features but the highlight of the park is the Mermaid show featuring beautiful and talented mermaids
Weeki Wachee Springs near Spring Hill in Hernando County, Florida is famous for its mermaids. In fact it is the only state park in the United States, that I know of, that advertises mermaids. Even without mermaids the spring is a stunning natural wonder. Weeki Wacheei Springs rises from a extensive underwater karsted cave system. The caves have been explored to a depth of more than 400 feet. A spring shed of over 260 square miles feeds the underground river system. The spring itself is about 150 feet (46 m) wide and 250 feet (76 m) long. 170 million gallons (644 million liters) flows from the spring on average each day. The water temperature flows out at a steady temperature of 79.2 °F (26.2 °C) year-round.
The story of the mermaids makes Weeki Wachee one of Florida’s most unique roadside attractions. The mermaid story begins when Newton Perry, a swimmer and dive instructor, who came to the springs in 1946. He found the remote spring full of junked refrigerators, wrecked cars and, of course, alligators.
Perry cleaned up the spring and came up with the idea of an underwater mermaid show in the springs. Perry invented a method of breathing underwater from a free-flowing air hose supplying oxygen from an air compressor, which made it look like someone was thriving twenty feet underwater with no breathing apparatus. He then carved out an 18-seat theater some six feet below the spring’s surface, so viewers could peer directly into the depths of the spring. He then trained pretty local girls to do aquatic ballets using his breathing techniques. The beautiful young women became his mermaids. They learned how to perform feats like eating bananas and drinking Grapette underwater in order to impress the audience.
The first show opened 1947. As with any new business there were slow times The girls would stand next to the road in their bathing suits to lure passerbys into the parking lot. Yet the attraction thrived, ranking among the nation’s most popular tourist stops in the 1950s, and receiving worldwide praise for its mermaid shows, orchid gardens, jungle cruises, Indian encampment and new beach.
In 1959, The American Broadcasting Company (ABC) purchased Weeki Wachee. They built a 500-seat theatre, nestled in the side of the spring 16 feet below the surface, and developed elaborate props, lifts, music, and story lines for the underwater shows. Now in its heyday, the springs had applications from girls from all over the world to be glamorous mermaids As many as half a million people a year came to Weeki Wachee,
Weeki Wachee’s glory faded over the years, but in 2008, it became one of Florida's state parks, and the dream was reborn. The focus has changed a little toward the natural features but the highlight of the park is the Mermaid show featuring beautiful and talented mermaids
With photos of mermaids past looking down on then, a group of current mermaids at Weeki Wachee Springs in Florida pose for a picture. These beautiful mermaids are the latest in a line of mermaids that have swam in the spring over the last 70 years. in fact, Weeki Wachee Springs near Spring Hill in Hernando County, Florida is famous for its mermaids. It is the only state park in the United States, that I know of, that advertises mermaids. Even without mermaids the spring is a stunning natural wonder. Weeki Wacheei Springs rises from a extensive underwater karsted cave system. The caves have been explored to a depth of more than 400 feet. A spring shed of over 260 square miles feeds the underground river system. The spring itself is about 150 feet (46 m) wide and 250 feet (76 m) long. 170 million gallons (644 million liters) flows from the spring on average each day. The water temperature flows out at a steady temperature of 79.2 °F (26.2 °C) year-round.
The story of the mermaids makes Weeki Wachee one of Florida’s most unique roadside attractions. The mermaid story begins when Newton Perry, a swimmer and dive instructor, who came to the springs in 1946. He found the remote spring full of junked refrigerators, wrecked cars and, of course, alligators.
Perry cleaned up the spring and came up with the idea of an underwater mermaid show in the springs. Perry invented a method of breathing underwater from a free-flowing air hose supplying oxygen from an air compressor, which made it look like someone was thriving twenty feet underwater with no breathing apparatus. He then carved out an 18-seat theater some six feet below the spring’s surface, so viewers could peer directly into the depths of the spring. He then trained pretty local girls to do aquatic ballets using his breathing techniques. The beautiful young women became his mermaids. They learned how to perform feats like eating bananas and drinking Grapette underwater in order to impress the audience.
The first show opened 1947. As with any new business there were slow times The girls would stand next to the road in their bathing suits to lure passerbys into the parking lot. Yet the attraction thrived, ranking among the nation’s most popular tourist stops in the 1950s, and receiving worldwide praise for its mermaid shows, orchid gardens, jungle cruises, Indian encampment and new beach.
In 1959, The American Broadcasting Company (ABC) purchased Weeki Wachee. They built a 500-seat theatre, nestled in the side of the spring 16 feet below the surface, and developed elaborate props, lifts, music, and story lines for the underwater shows. Now in its heyday, the springs had applications from girls from all over the world to be glamorous mermaids As many as half a million people a year came to Weeki Wachee,
Weeki Wachee’s glory faded over the years, but in 2008, it became one of Florida's state parks, and the dream was reborn. The focus has changed a little toward the natural features but the highlight of the park is the Mermaid show featuring beautiful and talented mermaids.
The only request these beautiful young ladies made while I was taking there photo was "don't show our feet er fins". After all, they are the mermaids of weeki Wachee.
A man playing Didgeridoo at Varanasi.
Didgeridoo (didjeridu) is one of the oldest wind instrument in the world. It was used by Australian Aborigines as their musical instrument and now popular all over the world. The instrument is made from a long wooden tube that is blown into to create a low drone. The instrument creates a unique haunting (vibrating) sound and it can carry for miles.
The didgeridoo is played with continuously vibrating lips to produce the drone while using a special breathing technique called circular breathing. This requires breathing in through the nose whilst simultaneously expelling stored air out of the mouth using the tongue and cheeks. By use of this technique, a skilled player can replenish the air in their lungs, and with practice can sustain a note for as long as desired. One needs really special skills to play this contieously. I could see this man playing for almost 30 miinutes contineously, without even pausing for a breath.
Detail of the bell of a Wix Stix didgeridoo.
The Didgeridoo (or Yidaki) stems from and is used by Aboriginal Australians (especially from the North-East Arnhem Land) for traditional ceremonies and rituals.
It is a cylindrical or conical wind instrument, traditionally made from the stem of an eucalyptus tree that has been hollowed-out by termites. Nowadays, other tree sorts are used and other construction techniques developed.
It is played by vibrating lips against the mouthpiece to produce a continuous drone while using a special breathing technique called circular breathing.
Weeki Wachee Springs is a natural tourist attraction located in Weeki Wachee, Florida, where underwater performances by "mermaids," women wearing fish tails as well as other fanciful outfits, can be viewed in an aquarium-like setting in the spring of the Weeki Wachee River. A waterpark, Buccaneer Bay, river boat rides, kayak and paddleboard rental are some of the other activities offered at Weeki Wachee Springs.
The spring was named "Weeki Wachee" by Seminole Indians, which means "Little Spring" or "Winding River" in their language. The attraction was created in 1947 by stunt swimmer and attraction promoter Newt Perry, who based the show on underwater air hose breathing techniques. First an 18-seat theater, then later a newer theater with a capacity of 50, were embedded in the lime rock of the spring with viewing windows below the surface of the water, to allow visitors to watch the mermaids perform in the spring. In 1982, Buccaneer Bay was opened with water slides, a lazy river, and a white sand beach for visitors to enjoy alongside the theater with the mermaid shows.
Guests to the park have included Elvis Presley, Don Knotts, Esther Williams, Arthur Godfrey, Kevin Smith, and Larry the Cable Guy. Hollywood has occasionally used the attraction and its mermaids in the filming of movies such as Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid (1948), Neptune's Daughter (1949), and many television shows like Bobcat Goldthwait's Misfits & Monsters (2018). At one point, the attraction was owned by broadcast network ABC, and this led to an increase in publicity for the attraction. Currently, the park is owned by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, and is a member of the Florida State Park System.
In 2005, English rock band Supergrass filmed their video for their song "Low C" at the Springs. They filmed a short documentary about the spring, as well as playing at a local bar and swimming with the mermaids.
In summer of 2006, stand up comedian Thomas J. Kelly became the park's first ever male mermaid. His adventures were chronicled in a Web television series called "The Little Merman".
On November 1, 2008, the state of Florida took over Weeki Wachee Springs as a state park.
From May 22 until August 30, 2007, the discharge level at Weeki Wachee spring dropped to a level that allowed for cave divers to gain effective entry into the cave system at the spring. The Karst Underwater Research team successfully executed exploration dives and the necessary in-water decompression to explore approximately 6,700 feet in multiple passages at an average depth of 265 Feet Fresh Water (ffw) with a maximum depth of 407 ffw. The 407 ffw depth makes the cave system under Weeki Wachee springs the deepest known freshwater cave system in the United States.
Scenes from Kelly Clarkson's video "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)" include the mermaids of Weeki Wachee Springs.
Key scenes from Amy Seimetz's directorial debut Sun Don't Shine take place at the Springs and include the mermaids.
The 2017 documentary Mermaids featured the attraction as well as a number of former and serving mermaids.
Weeki Wachee Springs is a natural tourist attraction located in Weeki Wachee, Florida, where underwater performances by "mermaids," women wearing fish tails as well as other fanciful outfits, can be viewed in an aquarium-like setting in the spring of the Weeki Wachee River. A waterpark, Buccaneer Bay, river boat rides, kayak and paddleboard rental are some of the other activities offered at Weeki Wachee Springs.
The spring was named "Weeki Wachee" by Seminole Indians, which means "Little Spring" or "Winding River" in their language. The attraction was created in 1947 by stunt swimmer and attraction promoter Newt Perry, who based the show on underwater air hose breathing techniques. First an 18-seat theater, then later a newer theater with a capacity of 50, were embedded in the lime rock of the spring with viewing windows below the surface of the water, to allow visitors to watch the mermaids perform in the spring. In 1982, Buccaneer Bay was opened with water slides, a lazy river, and a white sand beach for visitors to enjoy alongside the theater with the mermaid shows.
Guests to the park have included Elvis Presley, Don Knotts, Esther Williams, Arthur Godfrey, Kevin Smith, and Larry the Cable Guy. Hollywood has occasionally used the attraction and its mermaids in the filming of movies such as Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid (1948), Neptune's Daughter (1949), and many television shows like Bobcat Goldthwait's Misfits & Monsters (2018). At one point, the attraction was owned by broadcast network ABC, and this led to an increase in publicity for the attraction. Currently, the park is owned by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, and is a member of the Florida State Park System.
In 2005, English rock band Supergrass filmed their video for their song "Low C" at the Springs. They filmed a short documentary about the spring, as well as playing at a local bar and swimming with the mermaids.
In summer of 2006, stand up comedian Thomas J. Kelly became the park's first ever male mermaid. His adventures were chronicled in a Web television series called "The Little Merman".
On November 1, 2008, the state of Florida took over Weeki Wachee Springs as a state park.
From May 22 until August 30, 2007, the discharge level at Weeki Wachee spring dropped to a level that allowed for cave divers to gain effective entry into the cave system at the spring. The Karst Underwater Research team successfully executed exploration dives and the necessary in-water decompression to explore approximately 6,700 feet in multiple passages at an average depth of 265 Feet Fresh Water (ffw) with a maximum depth of 407 ffw. The 407 ffw depth makes the cave system under Weeki Wachee springs the deepest known freshwater cave system in the United States.
Scenes from Kelly Clarkson's video "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)" include the mermaids of Weeki Wachee Springs.
Key scenes from Amy Seimetz's directorial debut Sun Don't Shine take place at the Springs and include the mermaids.
The 2017 documentary Mermaids featured the attraction as well as a number of former and serving mermaids.
Weeki Wachee Springs near Spring Hill in Hernando County, Florida is famous for its mermaids. In fact it is the only state park in the United States, that I know of, that advertises mermaids. Even without mermaids the spring is a stunning natural wonder. Weeki Wacheei Springs rises from a extensive underwater karsted cave system. The caves have been explored to a depth of more than 400 feet. A spring shed of over 260 square miles feeds the underground river system. The spring itself is about 150 feet (46 m) wide and 250 feet (76 m) long. 170 million gallons (644 million liters) flows from the spring on average each day. The water temperature flows out at a steady temperature of 79.2 °F (26.2 °C) year-round.
The story of the mermaids makes Weeki Wachee one of Florida’s most unique roadside attractions. The mermaid story begins when Newton Perry, a swimmer and dive instructor, came to the springs in 1946. He found the remote spring full of junked refrigerators, wrecked cars and, of course, alligators.
Perry cleaned up the spring and came up with the idea of an underwater mermaid show in the springs. Perry invented a method of breathing underwater from a free-flowing air hose supplying oxygen from an air compressor, which made it look like someone was thriving twenty feet underwater with no breathing apparatus. He then carved out an 18-seat theater some six feet below the spring’s surface, so viewers could peer directly into the depths of the spring. He then trained pretty local girls to do aquatic ballets using his breathing techniques. The beautiful young women became his mermaids. They learned how to perform feats like eating bananas and drinking Grapette underwater in order to impress the audience.
The first show opened 1947. As with any new business there were slow times The girls would stand next to the road in their bathing suits to lure passerbys into the parking lot. Yet the attraction thrived, ranking among the nation’s most popular tourist stops in the 1950s, and receiving worldwide praise for its mermaid shows, orchid gardens, jungle cruises, Indian encampment and new beach.
In 1959, The American Broadcasting Company (ABC) purchased Weeki Wachee. They built a 500-seat theatre, nestled in the side of the spring 16 feet below the surface, and developed elaborate props, lifts, music, and story lines for the underwater shows. Now in its heyday, the springs had applications from girls from all over the world to be glamorous mermaids As many as half a million people a year came to Weeki Wachee,
Weeki Wachee’s glory faded over the years, but in 2008, it became one of Florida's state parks, and the dream was reborn. The focus has changed a little toward the natural features but the highlight of the park is the Mermaid show featuring beautiful and talented mermaids
“The successful adept must be endowed with a knowledge of the material of the Great Work; also with faith, silence, purity of heart, and prayerfulness. After passing through the gate surmounted with the hieroglyph of philosophic mercury he traverses the seven angles of the citadel, representing the chief operations of the Great Work - calcination, dissolution, purification, introduction into the sealed Vase of Hermes, transference of the Vase to the Athanor [furnace], coagulation, putrefaction, ceration, multiplication and projection. And even upon reaching the Petra Philosophalis, he finds it is held in custody by a formidable dragon.”
Amphitheatrum sapientiae aeternae, Heinrich Khunrath
Saturn is related to Mercury in alchemical text, and is given the same ambiguous sexuality, or androgyny, and named it ‘Mercurius senex’.In Tiphareth, the geometric symbol is the interlaced triangles of water and fire, or the Star of David. When expanded to connect the planetary sepheroth of the Tree (with Saturn being attributed to Daath), the Triangle of Water connects the spheres of Mars, Jupiter, and Luna. The Triangle of Fire connects Saturn, Venus, and Mercury.
Just as Ouroboros is cosmic energy (the serpent) limiting itself (Saturn), Venus is the creative cosmic force multiplying itself in life (its vegetative nature) as a prism splits the light of the sun. Mercury, like Saturn in many respects, is androgynous, and controls the fire of creation, directing it in the creation of the Philosopher’s Stone. Mercury holds the Caduceus, or winged staff with two serpents intertwined around it. The Wings represent sublimation, the serpents the basic forces of creation. There crossing over is the psychic centers, often given as seven in number, here representing the colors in the spectrum, plus white (Venus). Central to the diagram is Sol, which is the cosmic creative forces which unify, enliven, and harmonize creation, and which we can hope to contact. It is central, and directs and controls all of the other planets, psychic centers, or aspects of Cosmic energy.By contacting the fire of the Sun, we can open the fire of the other psychic centers (via Venus), and more easily direct the restrictive and enlightening energy of Saturn, through the powers of the Mind, or Mercury.To understand these multi-faceted aspects of the planets, particularly Venus and Mercury, it is important to have done the Pathworkings up to Tiphareth. While this is not required to perform the techniques later in this monograph, it is a help for an understanding of the theoretical part.However, we can begin to understand the relationship of the Spheres to each other by undertaking a series of meditations based on the following idea:Venus is the regenerating, sensual, active life force in its vegetative and unconscious manner. It responds to heat, light, and emotion. On the Path of the Decent, Venus splits the singular rays of the Sun into the many facets of the color spectrum, and as such, can lead us to a better understanding of the relationship between multiplicity and unity, the psychic centers and planets, and their unique natures. On the Path of Ascent, Venus re-unites the divergent energies, both planetary and personal (psychic centers) and harmonizes it into a singular force, although still multi-colored, until it returns to the Sun as pure light.
“This Stone rises in growing, greening things. Wherefore when the Green is reduced to its former nature, whereby things sprout and come forth in due time, it must be decocted and putrefied in the way of our secret art.” Splendor solis, Trismosin.The Stone is made through the greening of nature (Netzach) and it returning to its source (Tipahreth) by putrefaction (Death card of the path connecting them).Mercury gives form and meaning to the diverse energies made by the splitting actions of Venus, and re-unites them as fundamental forces, symbolized by the Caduceus. Mercury is Psychopomp, or Guide of the Soul, and directs the energies that Venus represents. Since both Venus and Mercury sit at the base of the Pillars of kabbalah, they access the material, astral, and mental realms, and can influence all three to some degree. On the Descent, Mercury creates form and structure, for the body, the mind, or the soul, and on the ascent, Mercury helps free us from the limitations of form, without forgetting its lessons.The serpent is primordial force or energy, fire and water being the principle two of creation, with air and earth following them. Because it shed it’s skin, it is seen as a symbol of regeneration and renewal. It is also dangerous, deadly, can be found often in ‘guardian’ roles near springs or water as well as deserts. When controlled or mastered, it is seen as mastering a powerful and deadly, yet regenerating force, basic to creation, or possibly from which creation came.
The Secret Fire is directly linked to the sexual, (i.e. principle and most basic creative forces) in humanity. Here, the relationship between ‘bliss’ ‘ecstasy’ and the erotic impulse can be clearly seen and experienced. The development of a host of ‘sexual yogas’ and ‘sex magic(k)’ practices bear this out to some degree. However, it is the sexual desire in humanity that acts as its basic drive and evolutionary force. It also suggests that the ability and need for mystical experience is biologically rooted. Only by ignoring the most basic of pleasures, sex, can we ignore the drive to ecstatic union on some level. The ‘little death’ or petite morte, is a forerunner of the ‘big death’ as we let go and experience divine oblivion.Sexual power, linked to our innate drive for mystical experiences, is also linked to human evolution, and some kind of predetermined point or state to which we are being directed.This is a significant point, in that almost all of modern Western societies psychological illnesses are focused around sexual repression and obsession.If the Secret Fire flows freely, or with greater strength than before, without the proper purification of the Vital Energy of the physical body, it is possible that it will result in what appears to be extreme physical, but more likely psychological, illness in the form of schizophrenia and psychosis, instead of psychic gifts, genius, and either transpersonal states, or simply altered states of consciousness.Wilhelm Reich, the father of Orgon Therapy states that the basis for all mental-emotional disturbances are anchored in the physical body, and that these anchors can be released through breathing techniques, somewhat similar to pranayamana. Since the body is the “Salt” of alchemy, and partially composed of accessible unconscious elements through its “Watery Element” all of our emotional and physical experiences become indelibly marked, associated, or stored in our physical body. If these blocks, or energy concentrations of emotional and physical trauma (composed of Vital Energy) are not removed before the Secret Fire begins to flow more intensely, the so-called negative side effects of ‘Kundalini phenomena’ will appear.
Abuse of drugs, alcohol, and sexual extremes only worsen the condition in that they inadvertently release the Secret Fire by weakening the physical body and its link to the astral, thereby damaging the etheric substructure, and create energy blocks in the end rather than diminish them, when the mind and body attempt to make repairs.A nervous system damaged by substance abuse makes a tricky vehicle for the clear, clean, and powerful expression of the Secret Fire. It is through our nervous system (under the domain of Yesod-Luna) that we engage both the physical world, as well as out interior world. It links the body (Malkooth) with the Mind-Intellect (Hod) as well as instinctual, creative, and sensual urges (Netzach). If it is damaged, our ability to relate fully, creatively, and productively to these psyhco-physical-spiritual parts of our self becomes endangered. If it is damaged, then our most direct and important link to our Holy Guardian Angel, and means of releasing the Secret Fire safely (via Tiphareth) is threatened in this incarnation.
“Listen, then while I make known the Grand Arcanum of this wonder-working Stone, which at the same time is not a stone, which exists in every man, and may be found in its own place at all times…. It is called a stone, not because it is like a stone, but only because by virtue of its fixed nature, it resists the action of fire as successfully as any stone….If we say that its nature is spiritual, it would be no more than the truth; if we describe it as corporeal, the expression would be equally correct; for it is subtle, penetrative, glorified, spiritual gold. It is the noblest of all created things…it is a spirit or quintessence.”
hermetic.com/stavish/essays/secret-fire.html
The American artist Mark Dion invests Fine Arts in Paris which he is invited in 2016. It offers a labyrinthine exhibition consisting of works from the heritage collection of fine arts, contemporary works and his own productions. The theme of the supernatural, they open to a reinterpretation of the collections and the historic site of Fine Arts.Extending the exhibition, two exceptional nocturnal journey in the Fine Arts in Paris will be offered during the night of the opening (Tuesday May 17) and as part of the Museum Night (Saturday 21 May).Since the 1990s, Mark Dion speaks regularly at the heart of cultural and scientific institutions such as museums and natural history museums which it involves typologies and scenic codes. In his speech to the Fine Arts, he will hold a series of works chosen for their report more or less allegorical in the supernatural.Extranatural, large immersive installation, will engage older pieces (drawings, prints, photographs, sculptures ...) and contemporary works, some produced by students and graduates of Fine Arts in Paris, which will result in an original narrative form close of the investigation.Chosen for their enigmatic power, and the power of suggestion, not reducible to a genus, the works assembled by Mark Dion is an opportunity to probe the report to the strange and the supernatural, which passes through art and creation: magic and alchemy, hybrid, and grotesque monsters, witches and sabbaths, unusual objects, morphological elements ...The issue of representation, that of anthropological works and their resonance, form the issues of the work of Mark Dion, whose scenography thwarts the traditional codes, sometimes diverting objects from their original meaning and function.The central device, the Palace of Fine Arts, each room corresponds to one of the four elements (earth, water, air, fire), will mingle including Dürer and Goya, and Kawanabe Goltzius and contemporary works by Jimmie Durham , Extra Lucid, Matt Mullican, morgane tschiember ...Both nocturnal journey to the heart of Beaux-Arts in Paris will allow visitors to discover surprising places, some of which opened for the first time to the public. From the room Melpomene, the course will provide access to lounges and hotel garden Chimay, library, collections, to the cellars of the Palace of studies.Extranatural result of a collaborative process of reflection and research, conducted in close collaboration with the curators of collections of Fine Arts. Particularly significant in the eyes of the artist, the historical continuity of the collection, closely linked to his vocation of transmitting artistic practices, echoes his visual approach and the fact archaeologist museum. The choice of institution and venues that will host this specific work, then makes sense.The works collected by Mark Dion invite the viewer to renew his experience of curiosity through 500 years of history.
Happy Easter for all the people who celebrated it today!
My family is Christian Orthodox so we celebrate next Sunday. Therefore, today I went for driving lessons, took this photo in the harbour, afterwards, my parents helped me organize the invitations and then we started watching Alias Grace on Netflix.
I have been pretty exhausted lately but no matter how tired I feel, I simply cannot fall asleep. I am so stressed about my driving exam that as soon as I doze off I suddenly panic about roundabouts or parking and then I’m awake for hours! I tried everything: breathing techniques, visualisation, stories before going to bed, no screens, relaxing herbal tea, and so on. Nothing works!
What do you do for relaxing or falling asleep?
#91of365
During my Hawaii visit, I dedicated a day for diving and snorkeling activities. I dived some 30-40 feet to see the breathtaking beauty of the corals and the beautiful fish around the Kona's Pacific coast. It was my first dive and it was little difficult initially to adjust to the diving equipment and a different breathing technique but it was just exhilarating once I was inside and started exploring.
I was with Kona Honu divers from Kona, Big Island, Hawaii. They have a really good crew who are professional and very knowledgeable about the surroundings and the whole diving operation. Kona Honu divers have quite a number of dive sites, the list is here.
I took this shot of my diving instructor somewhere around 35 feet with a $20 35-mm under-water film camera.
The Kona coast is home to over 80 dive sites within a short 15 to 20 minute boat ride and several more "long distance" sites within an hours ride. Lava tubes, pinnacles, and swim through arches characterize many of the sites we dive on a regular basis. Manta Rays, Humpback Whales from December into April, Dolphins, and the occasional Whale Shark and unique endemic creatures make diving in Hawaii a very rewarding experience.
Jan 5, 2010, Big Island, Hawaii, Diving in the beautiful coasts of Hawaii.
Weeki Wachee Springs near Spring Hill in Hernando County, Florida is famous for its mermaids. In fact it is the only state park in the United States, that I know of, that advertises mermaids. Even without mermaids the spring is a stunning natural wonder. Weeki Wacheei Springs rises from a extensive underwater karsted cave system. The caves have been explored to a depth of more than 400 feet. A spring shed of over 260 square miles feeds the underground river system. The spring itself is about 150 feet (46 m) wide and 250 feet (76 m) long. 170 million gallons (644 million liters) flows from the spring on average each day. The water temperature flows out at a steady temperature of 79.2 °F (26.2 °C) year-round.
The story of the mermaids makes Weeki Wachee one of Florida’s most unique roadside attractions. The mermaid story begins when Newton Perry, a swimmer and dive instructor, who came to the springs in 1946. He found the remote spring full of junked refrigerators, wrecked cars and, of course, alligators.
Perry cleaned up the spring and came up with the idea of an underwater mermaid show in the springs. Perry invented a method of breathing underwater from a free-flowing air hose supplying oxygen from an air compressor, which made it look like someone was thriving twenty feet underwater with no breathing apparatus. He then carved out an 18-seat theater some six feet below the spring’s surface, so viewers could peer directly into the depths of the spring. He then trained pretty local girls to do aquatic ballets using his breathing techniques. The beautiful young women became his mermaids. They learned how to perform feats like eating bananas and drinking Grapette underwater in order to impress the audience.
The first show opened 1947. As with any new business there were slow times The girls would stand next to the road in their bathing suits to lure passerbys into the parking lot. Yet the attraction thrived, ranking among the nation’s most popular tourist stops in the 1950s, and receiving worldwide praise for its mermaid shows, orchid gardens, jungle cruises, Indian encampment and new beach.
In 1959, The American Broadcasting Company (ABC) purchased Weeki Wachee. They built a 500-seat theatre, nestled in the side of the spring 16 feet below the surface, and developed elaborate props, lifts, music, and story lines for the underwater shows. Now in its heyday, the springs had applications from girls from all over the world to be glamorous mermaids As many as half a million people a year came to Weeki Wachee,
Weeki Wachee’s glory faded over the years, but in 2008, it became one of Florida's state parks, and the dream was reborn. The focus has changed a little toward the natural features but the highlight of the park is the Mermaid show featuring beautiful and talented mermaids
Tech. Sgt. Christopher Genuardi goes through breathing techniques during a gas mask fit test Nov. 21, 2014, at Incirlik Air Base, Turkey. The fit test is used to ensure the mask will work properly during emergency situations. Genuardi is a 39th Civil Engineer Squadron heating, ventilation and air conditioning section chief. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Cory W. Bush/Released)
无为，是《道德经》中的重要概念。道家所宣扬的“无为”无不为，不争是老子对君王的告诫，不是普遍性的道德准则，而是指君主不与民争。
《道德经》中有十二处提到无为。第三章称“为无为，则无不治”。《南华经》中有六十八处提到无为。《庄子·应帝王》称“顺物自然而无容私焉”。
道家的无为是指要君主不与民争，顺应民众，不妄为的意思。杜光庭《道德经注疏》称：“无为之理，其大矣哉。无为者，非谓引而不来，推而不去，迫而不应，感而不动，坚滞而不流，卷握而不散也。谓其私志不入公道，嗜欲不枉正术，循理而举事，因资而立功，事成而身不伐，功立而名不有。”
由此可见，道家的无为，并非要君主不求有所作为，只是指君主凡事要“顺天之时，随地之性，因人之心”，而不要君主违反“天时、地性、人心”，不能仅凭主观愿望和想象行事。
《云笈七签·七部语要》引《妙真经》轶文:：“欲求无为，先当避害。何者？远嫌疑、远小人、远苟得、远行止；慎口食、慎舌利、慎处闹、慎力斗。常思过失，改而从善。又能通天文、通地理、通人事、通鬼神、通时机、通术数。是则与圣齐功，与天同德矣”。
道家的“无为”，并非要君主消极避世，而是应该努力学习，积极进取，通晓自然和社会，善于处理人际关系。
所以说，“无为”并非要君主无所作为，什么事情都不做；而是要君主应该按“道”行事，处世立命，君主必须摒弃妄自作为，远祸慎行，追求朴素节俭、清静寡欲的境界。
庄子多方面地思考了人所面临的生存困境。庄子认为，人的生命异常短促，在短促的生命过程中，又会受到各种社会事物的束缚和伤害。特别是在庄子生活的时代，残暴的统治者使人民大量地受刑和死亡：“今世殊死者相枕也，桁杨者相推也，刑戮者相望也” （《庄子·在宥》）。庄子强调的“无为”是君主“顺物自然而无容私焉”。(《庄子·应帝王》)就是说，庄子除了强调君主的作为必须因循事物的自然本性及其发展趋势之外，还强调要做到不夹杂君主个人的私心和成见。所谓“私心”主要是指私欲之心，逞强争竞之心，好大喜功之心。老子说的“圣人常无心”(四十九章)的“心”，大抵就是指的这种“心”。这一点也是很重要的，因为如果夹杂君主个人的私心和成见，就难以做到因循事物的自然本性及其发展趋势而为，甚至难以认识和把握事物的自然本性及其发展趋势。在今亦是如此，比如有的领导干部在有些问题上之所以不能做到实事求是，其中一个重要的原因恐怕就是考虑到其结果与个人的或单位的或部门的或地区的利益相抵触。
“善恶若无报,乾坤必有私。”总之，作为老子政治哲学范畴的“无为”，是指君主的一种指导思想、行为原则和行为方式。他把这种行为方式也叫做“为无为”，{六十三章)即以无为的方式去“为”。作为行为方式的“无为”有三个要点:一是要因循事物的自然本性及其发展趋势而为，要做到这一点，则必须以正确地认识和把握该事物的自然本性及其发展趋势为前提(比如人的自然本性是一要求生存，二要图发展，只是有思想、不愿受奴役，这是必须认识、不可违逆的);二是要“以辅万物之自然而不敢为”，即按照因循事物的自然本性和总的发展趋势的基本要求，以道所体现的柔弱的方式加以辅助或引导，使其向着有利于事物和实践主体的方向发展;共是在这个过程中要出以公心，并尽力涤除君主个人的主观成见，以客观公正的态度去作为。因此，如果给“无为”下一个定义的话，似乎可以这样讲:作为老子政治哲学范畴的“无为”，绝不是无所作为之意，而是指人的这样一种行为原则和行为方式，即按照因循事物的自然本性和总的发展趋势的基本要求，以客观公正的态度。以道所体现的柔弱的特点和方式加以辅助、引导或变革，使其向着既有利于客观事物又有利于实践主体的方向发展。
应当看到，老子当初提出“无为”概念，主要针对的是侯王等统治者的”有为”。当时的情况是:列国争城掠地，贵族骄奢淫逸，苛政甚于猛虎，法令多如牛毛，人民怨声载道，暴动彼伏此起，这些都是统治者的“有为”所致。所以老子说:“民之饥，以其上食税之多，是以饥:民之难治。以其上之有为，是以难治;民之轻死，以其上之求生之厚，是以轻死。”(七十五章)可见老子在此所说的“有为”(在《老子》书中，’‘有为”只此一见)，与我们今所理解的“有所作为”根本不同，它是指统治者从自己和本阶级的私利出发，根本违逆人民的利益、愿望和要求，倚仗武力和权势的强行所为，恣意妄为。老子提出’‘无为”的概念，旨在告诫侯工等统治者不要违逆人民的利益、愿望和要求而强行所为和恣意妄为，期望他们能够效法道的无为和圣人的“以辅万物之自然而弗敢为”，从而为人民的自为、自化、自成即人民和社会自治的实现创造良好的社会环境和条件。因为在老子看来，“我(按:指贤明的君王)无为而民自化，我好静而民自正，我无事而民自富，我无欲而民自朴。”(五十七章) [2-3]
春秋战国时期中国较早的演化到了“全球化”的阶段，地缘政治上早于全世界。所以尚未覆盖全球的各种费米大过滤器，在概率上几乎必然更早的覆盖中国。像一二战这样全民动员的总体战在春秋战国已经出现、像核大战这样导致人口十不存一的毁灭性战争在汉末三国已经出现。而儒家思想统治下的中国在“突破”一个个大过滤器的时候发生了什么。三国人口十不存一，东晋人口十不存一，五代人口减半，宋亡人口减半，明末人口减半。中国从来没有真的突破大过滤器，而是一次次冲击大过滤器失败，然后卷土重来。——直到遇到工业革命。
汉唐是农耕社会发展的顶峰，到了宋朝以后整个儒家理学社会反过来造就了中国内卷化，直到工业革命。
“去人之廉以快号令，去人之耻以崇高其身，一夫为刚，万夫为柔”。此语出自是清代龚自珍《古史钩沉论》一文。自由出强悍，专制出奴才。为自己人当奴隶和为侵略者当奴隶并没有本质的区别，如果统治者不把老百姓当人看待，纷乱就会层出不穷，主权也是保不住的，如元末、明末、清末。
工业革命出现是在半农半牧半商的商业发达的航海地区，这些条件战国时期齐国道家和秦汉道家就已经提出，齐国、燕国、秦汉也有了很好实践。 [4] 商业发达的前提是工业，殷商的工艺已经够了：失蜡铸造的青铜器，油浸棉纱(麻布)盘根密封，滑动轴承，这些一直用到20世纪。但还要下游产业应用环境：大量普及的水力生产机械、马车+木轨道的“铁路”、帆船大航海，或者大型战舰。而把技术视为奇技淫巧的儒家即使到了后世的朝代也没富到过使用马车“铁路”。而儒家不止反对科技还反对民众自组织，导致北方民众遇到漠北骑兵不能和当地守军协防，儒家的华夷、防民立场反对民众学习漠北的自组织与骑射。
与儒家相反，道家却提出了《六韬·六守》 ：“太公曰：‘大农、大工、大商谓之三宝。’”此以农、工、商为国之三宝。黄老道家的另一部巨著《管子》更是对无为而治下的自化过程和动力机制进行了生动的阐述：“夫凡人之情，见利莫能勿就，见害莫能勿避。其商人通贾，倍道兼行，夜以续日，千里而不远者，利在前也。渔人之入海，海深万仞，就彼逆流，乘危百里，宿夜不出者，利在水也。故利之所在，虽千仞之山，无所不上；深渊之下，无所不入焉。故善者势利之在，而民自美安，不推而往，不引而来，不烦不扰，而民自富。如鸟之覆卵，无形无声，而唯见其成。”司马迁亦认同黄老道家的说法：“人各任其能，竭其力，以得所欲，道之所符、自然之验。故待农而食之，虞而出之，工而成之，商而通之，此宁有政教发征期会哉？严复：夫黄老之道,民主之国所有也,故长而不宰，无为而无不为;君主之国,未能用黄老者也。汉之黄老，貌袭而取之耳.君主之利器,其惟儒术乎！
法家提倡君本位，注重强君弱民，其君主专制的结果就是一夫为刚万夫柔，面对君主专制对百姓的压制，儒家认为君主不宜行苛政，应当约法省刑、轻徭薄赋、举贤任能、推重德治，使君主和百姓都有良好的德性和担当，道家则认为君主不应有任何仁义礼的作为，而应彻底的无为，所谓天地不仁以万物为刍狗，圣人不仁以百姓为刍狗，圣人是君主的理想化人格，君主要效法天地不对万物（百姓）有任何的干预，而只是任百姓如刍狗般自相演化，所谓我无为而民自化，就是这个道理。
单就“无为”而论本无所谓对错。强者对弱者“无为”可以理解为宽容，弱者对强者“无为”就沦于苟且。权力对权利“无为”意味着自由，而权利对权力“无为”则意味着奴役。弱者对强者无为这就把无为等同于苟且了，犬儒而已。
首先，道家无为非常注重君主的德行，认为作为君主，最重要的是要遵循为君之道。正如《吕氏春秋·似顺论·分时篇中所说:“武王取非其有，如己有之，通乎君道也。”而遵循为君之道的首要任务就是遵循“道”。《管子·心术上》中有:“道也者，动不见其形，施不见其德，万物皆以得，然莫知其极。”它们都承认“道”是天地万物的根本，也是君主所应遵守的最为重要的准则。关于“道”，《吕氏春秋·慎大览·下贤》篇中有:“莫知其始，莫知其终，莫知其门，莫知其端，莫知其源。其大无外，其小无内。”《审分览·君守》篇中有:“得道者必静。静者无知，知乃无知，可以言君道也。故日中欲不出谓之扁，外欲不人谓之闭。既扁而又闭，天之用密。有准不以平，有绳不以正。天之大静，既静而又宁，可以为天下正。”《管子·心术上》中有“道在天地之间也。其大无外，其小无内。”对于“道”的“其大无外，其小无内”的特质的概括，在这两部典籍中是相同的。
如何才能够正确地遵循“道”呢?《吕氏春秋》与《管子》又给出了相同的答案，即取法天地。《吕氏春秋·序意》中写道:“爱有大圈在上，大矩在下，汝能法之，为民父母。盖闻古之清世，是法天地。”《管子·版法》篇中也有:“法天合德，象地无亲，参于日月，伍于四时。”《管子·内业》篇中也有“能戴大圈而履大方”。“大方”即为“大矩”。可见这两部典籍中对于天、地的称谓都是统一的。
这两部古籍都一致认为，只要君主取法天地之道，天下就会自然而然地治理好了。而且，取法天地之道的关键在于君主本人身体力行“德”、“义”、“仁”等准则。《吕氏春秋·季秋纪·精通》篇中说:“圣人形德乎己，而四方咸饰乎仁。”《离俗览·上德》篇中写道:“为天下及国，莫如以德，莫如行义。以德以义，不赏而民劝，不罚而邪止”，又有:“故古之王者，德回乎天地，澹乎四海，东西南北，极日月之所烛，天覆地载，爱恶不减，虚素以公。”天下万物纷纷纭纭，万民熙熙攘攘，归根结底，治理天下根本还是君主自行修身。如果君主自己修养好了，天下就治理好了。所以《吕氏春秋·审分览·执一》篇中写道:“为国之本在于为身，身为而家为，家为而国为，国为而天下为。故曰以身为家，以家为国，以国为天下。此四者，异位同本。故圣人之事，广之则极宇宙、穷日月，约之则无出乎身者也。”《管子·君臣下》中也表达了同样的思想:“君之在国都也，若心之在身体也。道德定于上，则百姓化于下矣。戒心形于内，则容貌动于外矣。正也者，所以明其德。知得诸己，知得诸民，从其理也。知失诸民，退而修诸己，反其本也。”
君主自身的修养是决定性的因素，君臣之间的“名”与“分”也至关重要。《吕氏春秋·先识览·正名》中有“名正则治，名丧则乱”，《审分览·审分》篇中有“故至治之务，在于正名”;《管子·枢言》中有“有名则治，无名则乱。治者以其名”。与“名”相对应的另一个极为重要的词就是“分”。“名”就是所谓的“职称”，而“分”就是具备各种“职称”的人应该担当的“职责”。关于君臣的“名”与“分”，两部著作都给出了近似的界定，即《吕氏春秋》与《管子》中反复倡导的“方圆”之论。《吕氏春秋·季春纪·圈道》中写道:“天道圆，地道方，圣王法之，所以立上下。何以说天道之圆也?精气一上一下，圈周复杂，无所稽留，故曰天道圆。何以说地道之方也?万物殊类殊形，皆有分职，不能相为，故曰地道方。主执圈，臣处方，方圆不易，其国乃昌。”《管子》强调“君处圆而臣处方”，如“君臣下”中有:“主劳者方，主制者圈。圆者运，运者通，通则和。方者执，执者固，固则信。”
两部典籍都由“方圆”之论引申到了“规矩”之论。“规矩”可以理解为法制而非儒家的人治，儒家人治即是秩序 [5] 。法律是维护任何国家政权的最为有力的武器。《吕氏春秋·似顺论·处方》篇中写道:“今有人于此，擅矫行则免国家，利轻重则若衡石，为方圆则若规矩，此则工矣巧矣，而不足法。法也者，众之所同也，贤不肖之所以其力也。谋出乎不可用，事出乎不可同，此为先王之所舍也。”这就是说，法律是裁断一切是非曲直的依据，因而一定要依法行事。如果不依照法律行事，哪怕能取得实效，也是断然不可取的。《管子》中也表述了同样的思想。《法法》篇中有:“规矩者，方圆之正也。虽有巧目利手，不如拙规矩之正方圆也。故巧者能生规矩，不能废规矩而正方圆，虽圣人能生法，不能废法而治国。”依法治国在任何时候、任何地方都是维护政权、维持统治的关键。
作为君主，应该寻求贤人，委以重任，而避免事必躬亲。《吕氏春秋·季冬纪·士节》中有“贤主劳于求人，而佚于治事”，《审分览·勿躬》通篇讲述了圣明的君主应该充分利用贤人进行发明创造，治理国家。《似顺论·分职》篇中写道:“夫君也者，处虚素服而无智，故能使众智也;智反无能，故能使众能也;能执无为，故能使众为也。无智、无能、无为，此君主所执也。”也就是说，只要君主能做到摒弃自己的智慧、才能与作为，就能够充分调动众人的智慧、才能与作为。《管子·形势解》中也有:“明主不用其智，而任圣人之智，不用其力，而任众人之力。故以圣人之智思虑者，无不知也。以众人之力起事者，无不成也。”
君主还应该广开言路，察纳雅言。《吕氏春秋·不苟论·自知》篇中写道:“尧有欲谏之鼓，舜有诽谤之木，汤有司过之士，武王有戒慎之靶，犹恐不能自知。”《管子·桓公间》中有:“黄帝立明台之议者，尧有衙室之问者，舜有告善之族，禹立谏鼓于朝，汤有总街之庭，武王有灵台之复。”傅山响亮地提出“市井贱夫最有理”的观点,认为“市井贱夫可以平治天下。讲究一点强者对弱者的“无为”，权力对权利的“无为”，讲究一点宽容与自由，决不能借“兼济”之名对“天下”滥用强制，要记住：再高尚的人，其权力也要有制约；再平庸的人，其权利也应受保障。
道家不反对保卫人民与国家的战斗。《道德经》第67章：天下皆谓我道大，似不肖。夫唯大，故似不肖。若肖，久矣其细也夫！吾有三宝，持而保之。一曰慈，二曰俭，三曰不敢为天下先。慈故能勇；俭故能广；不敢为天下先，故能成器长。今舍慈且勇，舍俭且广，舍后且先，死矣。夫慈以战则胜，以守则固。天将救之，以慈卫之。又如，在讲到“义兵”时，《吕氏春秋·季秋纪·怀宠》篇中写道:“故义兵至，则邻国之民归之若流水，诛国之民望之若父母，行地滋远，得民滋众，兵不接刃而民服若化。”“行地滋远，得民滋众”《管子·小匡》:“是故天下之于桓公，远国之民望如父母，近国之民从如流水。故行地滋远，得人弥众。”老百姓“望之若父母”、“从之若流水”。
强者对弱者的无为是宽容，弱者对强者的无为，就是沦于苟且。权利对权力无为，意味着奴役，权力对权利无为，意味着自由。所以道家要君候无为而臣民有为，从而民众发展出自组织，相辅相成。
为什么当时会出现这两支主张呢？显然当时的社会有非常严重的弊病。就是一方面有些人不守规矩，为所欲为，蛮不讲理，随便乱来，造成很多问题；另一方面，老百姓又被束缚得很厉害，举手投足，动辄得咎，很多事情都不准他们做。那么这两种意见当然是冲着这两种东西来的。那么大家知道，多一点自由也好，多一点管束也好，跟道家有为无为一样，就看你是对谁而言。其实很容易理解，最大的问题就是统治者太自由，他的权力不受制约，可以为所欲为，而老百姓太不自由，他们被管束得无所措手足，被束缚得很厉害。
胡适：最高领袖的任务是自居于无知，而以众人之所知为知；自处于无能，而以众人之所能为能；自安于无为，而以众人之所为为为。凡察察以为明，琐琐以为能，都不是做最高领袖之道。1932年3月29日，蒋介石和胡适、陈布雷、陈立夫、顾孟馀等人晚餐，胡适送了一本《淮南王书》，此书不一定适合蒋介石的胃口，蒋介石喜读韩非子、墨子以及儒家经典，《四书》中的《大学》、《中庸》等。胡适于1935年7月26日致罗隆基的信中，谈了他送蒋介石《淮南子》书的意图：说据他观察，蒋管的事太多，“微嫌近于细碎，终不能‘小事糊涂’”。送蒋《淮南王书》“意在请他稍稍留意《淮南》书中的无为主义的精义”
胡适发掘《淮南子》政治思想的三大要义，最注重的是“充分的用众智众力”，他说“众智众力”的政治，“颇含有民治的意味”，于是以《主术训》为个案，对《淮南子》的民治主义精神作了精辟论述。胡适论《淮南子》“民治主义”有四大特色，即发见其“民治主义”四大基本要义：一是将《淮南子》与《吕氏春秋》作比较，《吕氏春秋》不主张民主政治，而到了《淮南子》时期，封建社会已完全崩溃了，故此书对群众的知识能力，比较有进一步认识，所以书中屡屡指出“积力之所举无不胜也，而众智之所为无不成也”，胡适说“这便是民治主义的基本理论”。胡适发现民治主义的第二个基本要义即是“无愚智贤不肖，莫不尽其能”，贤主用人“无大小修短，各得其所宜，规矩方圆各有所施。”民治主义的第三个基本要义，即是尊重人民的舆论，《主术训》说：“人主者，以天下之目视，以天下之耳听，以天下之智虑，以天下之力争。是故号令能下究，而臣情得上闻。……聪明光万里不弊，法令察而不苛，耳目达而不暗。善否之情日陈于前而无所逆。是故贤者尽其智而不肖者竭其力。”民治主义第四个基本要义是承认统治者与被统治者是对等的，只有相互的报施，而没有绝对服从的义务。〔3〕胡适发掘《淮南子》无为主义政治，民治主义思想之要义，并在30年代出版此书。
谈论《淮南子》的政治思想，可能用“无为”来概括之，但“无为”有哪些精义呢？胡适认为：“此书的政治思想有三个要义：一是虚君的法治，一是充分的用众智众力，一是变法而不知故常。”《泛论训》、《修务训》、《齐俗训》中都有主张变法的议论，强调“与时推移，应物变化”，而这个变化要靠民众的努力，同时变法应反对崇古的迷信，“绝圣弃智，大盗乃止”。
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Wu wei (Chinese: 無為; pinyin: wúwéi) is an ancient Chinese concept literally meaning "inexertion", "inaction", or "effortless action"[a].[1][2] Wu wei emerged in the Spring and Autumn period, and from Confucianism, to become an important concept in Chinese statecraft and Taoism. It was most commonly used to refer to an ideal form of government, including the behavior of the emperor. Describing a state of unconflicting personal harmony, free-flowing spontaneity and savoir-faire, it generally also more properly denotes a state of spirit or mind, and in Confucianism accords with conventional morality. Sinologist Jean François Billeter describes wu-wei as a "state of perfect knowledge of the reality of the situation, perfect efficaciousness and the realization of a perfect economy of energy", which in practice Edward Slingerland qualifies as a "set of ('transformed') dispositions (including physical bearing)... conforming with the normative order"...Sinologist Herrlee Creel considers wu wei, as found in the Tao Te Ching and Zhuangzi, to denote two different things. An "attitude of genuine non-action, motivated by a lack of desire to participate in human affairs" and
A "technique by means of which the one who practices it may gain enhanced control of human affairs". The first is quite in line with the contemplative Taoism of the Zhuangzi. Described as a source of serenity in Taoist thought, only rarely do Taoist texts suggest that ordinary people could gain political power through wu wei. The Zhuangzi does not seem to indicate a definitive philosophical idea, simply that the sage "does not occupy himself with the affairs of the world". The second sense appears to have been imported from the earlier governmental thought of "legalist" Shen Buhai (400 BC – c. 337 BC) as Taoists became more interested in the exercise of power by the ruler. Called "rule by non-activity" and strongly advocated by Han Fei, during the Han dynasty, up until the reign of Han Wudi rulers confined their activity "chiefly to the appointment and dismissal of his high officials", a plainly "Legalist" practice inherited from the Qin dynasty. This "conception of the ruler's role as a supreme arbiter, who keeps the essential power firmly in his grasp" while leaving details to ministers, has a "deep influence on the theory and practice of Chinese monarchy", and played a "crucial role in the promotion of the autocratic tradition of the Chinese polity", ensuring the ruler's power and the stability of the polity. Only appearing three times in the first (more contemplative) half of the Zhuangzi, early Taoists may have avoided the term for its association with "Legalism" before ultimately co-opting its governmental sense as well, as attempted in the Zhuangzi's latter half. Thought by modern scholarship to have been written after the Zhuangzi, wu wei becomes a major "guiding principle for social and political pursuit"[9] in the more "purposive" Taoism of the Tao Te Ching, in which the Taoist "seeks to use his power to control and govern the world"....Sinologist Herrlee G. Creel believed that an important clue to the development of wu wei existed in the Analects, in a saying attributed to Confucius, which reads: "The Master said, 'Was it not Shun who did nothing and yet ruled well? What did he do? He merely corrected his person ("made himself reverent" – Edward Slingerland) and took his proper position (facing south) as ruler'". The concept of a divine king whose "magic power" (virtue) "regulates everything in the land" (Creel) pervades early Chinese philosophy, particularly "in the early branches of Quietism that developed in the fourth century B.C." Edward Slingerland argues wu wei in this sense has to be attained. But in the Confucian conception of virtue, virtue can only be attained by not consciously trying to attain it.The manifestation of Virtue is regarded as a reward by Heaven for following its will – as a power that enables them to establish this will on earth. In this, probably more original sense, wu wei may be regarded as the "skill" of "becoming a fully realized human being", a sense which it shares with Taoism. This "skill" avoids relativity through being linked to a "normative" metaphysical order, making its spontaneity "objective". By achieving a state of wu wei (and taking his proper ritual place) Shun "unifies and orders" the entire world, and finds his place in the "cosmos". Taken as a historical fact demonstrating the viable superiority of Confucianism (or Taoism, for Taoist depictions), wu wei may be understood as a strongly "realist" spiritual-religious ideal, differing from Kantian or Cartesian realism in its Chinese emphasis on practice. The "object" of wu wei "skill-knowledge" is the Way, which is – to an extent regardless of school – "embodying" the mind to a "normative order existing independently of the minds of the practitioners". The primary example of Confucianism – Confucius at age 70 – displays "mastery of morality" spontaneously, his inclinations being in harmony with his virtue. Confucius considers training unnecessary if one is born loving the Way, as with the disciple Yan Hui. Mencius believed that men are already good, and need only realize it not by trying, but by allowing virtue to realize itself, and coming to love the Way. Training is done to learn to spontaneously love the Way. Virtue is compared with the grain seed (being domesticated) and the flow of water. On the other hand, Xun Kuang considered it possible to attain wu wei only through a long and intensive traditional training.Following the development of wu wei by Shen Buhai and then Mencius, Zhuangzhi and Laozi turn towards an unadorned "no effort". Laozi, as opposed to carved Confucian jade, advocates a return to the primordial Mother and to become like uncarved wood. He condemns doing and grasping, urging the reader to cognitively grasp oneness (still the mind), reduce desires and the size of the state, leaving human nature untouched. In practice, wu wei is aimed at through behaviour modification; cryptically referenced meditation and more purely physical breathing techniques as in the Guanzi, which includes just taking the right posture.
When your body is not aligned [形不正],
The inner power will not come.
When you are not tranquil within [中不靜],
Your mind will not be well ordered.
Align your body, assist the inner power [正形攝德],
Then it will gradually come on its own.
Though, by still needing to make a cognitive effort, perhaps not resolving the paradox of not doing, the concentration on accomplishing wu wei through the physiological would influence later thinkers. The Dao De Jing became influential in intellectual circles about 250 BCE (1999: 26–27), but, included in the 2nd century Guanzi, the likely older Neiye or Inward Training may be the oldest Chinese received text describing what would become Daoist breath meditation techniques and qi circulation, Harold D. Roth considering it a genuine 4th-century BCE text
When you enlarge your mind and let go of it,
When you relax your [qi 氣] vital breath and expand it,
When your body is calm and unmoving:
And you can maintain the One and discard the myriad disturbances.
You will see profit and not be enticed by it,
You will see harm and not be frightened by it.
Relaxed and unwound, yet acutely sensitive,
In solitude you delight in your own person.
This is called "revolving the vital breath":
Your thoughts and deeds seem heavenly.
Verse 13 describes the aspects of shen "numen; numinous", attained through relaxed efforts.
There is a numinous [mind] naturally residing within [有神自在身];
One moment it goes, the next it comes,
And no one is able to conceive of it.
If you lose it you are inevitably disordered;
If you attain it you are inevitably well ordered.
Diligently clean out its lodging place [敬除其舍]
And its vital essence will naturally arrive [精將自來].
Still your attempts to imagine and conceive of it.
Relax your efforts to reflect on and control it.
Be reverent and diligent
And its vital essence will naturally stabilize.
Grasp it and don't let go
Then the eyes and ears won't overflow
And the mind will have nothing else to seek.
When a properly aligned mind resides within you [正心在中],
The myriad things will be seen in their proper perspective.
Shen Buhai argued that if the government were organized and supervised relying on proper method (Fa), the ruler need do little – and must do little. Apparently paraphrasing the Analects, Shen did not consider the relationship between ruler and minister antagonistic necessarily,[31] but still believed that the ruler's most able ministers his greatest danger, and is convinced that it is impossible to make them loyal without techniques. Sinologist Herrlee G. Creel explains: "The ruler's subjects are so numerous, and so on alert to discover his weaknesses and get the better of him, that it is hopeless for him alone as one man to try to learn their characteristics and control them by his knowledge... the ruler must refrain from taking the initiative, and from making himself conspicuous – and therefore vulnerable – by taking any overt action."Emphasizing the use of administrative methods (Fa) in secrecy, Shen Buhai portrays the ruler as putting up a front to hide his weaknesses and dependence on his advisers.[35] Shen therefore advises the ruler to keep his own counsel, hide his motivations, and conceal his tracks in inaction, availing himself of an appearance of stupidity and insufficiency. Shen says:
If the ruler's intelligence is displayed, men will prepare against it; if his lack of intelligence is displayed, they will delude him. If his wisdom is displayed, men will gloss over (their faults); if his lack of wisdom is displayed, they will hide from him. If his lack of desires is displayed, men will spy out his true desires; if his desires are displayed, they will tempt him. Therefore (the intelligent ruler) says 'I cannot know them; it is only by means of non-action that I control them.' Acting through administrative method (Fa), the ruler conceals his intentions, likes and dislikes, skills and opinions. Not acting himself, he can avoid being manipulated. The ruler plays no active role in governmental functions. He should not use his talent even if he has it. Not using his own skills, he is better able to secure the services of capable functionaries. Creel argues that not getting involved in details allowed Shen's ruler to "truly rule", because it leaves him free to supervise the government without interfering, maintaining his perspective.[38] Seeing and hearing independently, the ruler is able to make decisions independently, and is, Shen says, able to rule the world thereby. The ruler is like a mirror, reflecting light, doing nothing, and yet, beauty and ugliness present themselves; (or like) a scale establishing equilibrium, doing nothing, and yet causing lightness and heaviness to discover themselves. (Administrative) method (Fa) is complete acquiescence. (Merging his) personal (concerns) with the public (weal), he does not act. He does not act, and yet the world itself is complete.
— Shen Buhai
This wu wei (or nonaction) might be said to end up the political theory of the "Legalists" , if not becoming their general term for political strategy, playing a "crucial role in the promotion of the autocratic tradition of the Chinese polity". The (qualified) non-action of the ruler ensures his power and the stability of the polity....Shen Buhai insisted that the ruler must be fully informed of the state of his realm, but couldn't afford to get caught up in details and in an ideal situation need listen to no one. Listening to his courtiers might interfere with promotions, and he does not, as Sinologist Herrlee G. Creel says, have the time to do so. The way to see and hear independently is the grouping together of particulars into categories using mechanical or operational method (Fa). On the contrary the ruler's eyes and ears will make him "deaf and blind" (unable to obtain accurate information).[43][44][45][46] Seeing and hearing independently, the ruler is able to make decisions independently, and is, Shen says, able to rule the world thereby. Despite this, Shen's method of appointment, "Ming-shih", advises a particular method for listening to petitioners in the final analyses, which would be articulated as Xing-Ming by Han Fei. In the Han Dynasty secretaries of government who had charge of the records of decisions in criminal matters were called Xing-Ming, which Sima Qian (145 or 135 – 86 BC) and Liu Xiang (77–6 BC) attributed to the doctrine of Shen Buhai (400 – c. 337 BC). Liu Xiang goes as far as to define Shen Buhai's doctrine as Xing-Ming. Rather than having to look for "good" men, ming-shih or xing-ming can seek the right man for a particular post by comparing his reputation with real conduct (xing "form" or shih "reality"), though doing so implies a total organizational knowledge of the regime. More simply though, one can allow ministers to "name" themselves through accounts of specific cost and time frame, leaving their definition to competing ministers. Claims or utterances "bind the speaker to the realization a job (Makeham)". This was the doctrine, with subtle differences, favoured by Han Fei. Favoring exactness, it combats the tendency to promise too much. The correct articulation of Ming ("name", "speech", "title") is considered crucial to the realization of projects. Shen resolved hair-splitting litigation through wu wei, or not getting involved, making an official's words his own responsibility. Shen Buhai says, "The ruler controls the policy, the ministers manage affairs. To speak ten times and ten times be right, to act a hundred times and a hundred times succeed – this is the business of one who serves another as minister; it is the not the way to rule."[52] The correlation between wu wei and ming-shih likely informed the Taoist conception of the formless Tao that "gives rise to the ten thousand things."
Yin (passive mindfulness)
Adherence to the use of technique in governing requires the ruler not engage in any interference or subjective consideration.[54] Sinologist John Makeham explains: "assessing words and deeds requires the ruler's dispassionate attention; (yin is) the skill or technique of making one's mind a tabula rasa, non-committaly taking note of all the details of a man's claims and then objectively comparing his achievements of the original claims."A commentary to the Shiji cites a now-lost book as quoting Shen Buhai saying: "By employing (yin), 'passive mindfulness', in overseeing and keeping account of his vassals, accountability is deeply engraved." The Guanzi similarly says: "Yin is the way of non-action. Yin is neither to add to nor to detract from anything. To give something a name strictly on the basis of its form – this is the Method of yin."Yin also aimed at concealing the ruler's intentions, likes and opinions.
Shen Dao
Shen Dao espouses an impersonal administration in much the same sense as Shen Buhai, and argued for wu wei, or the non action of the ruler, along the same lines, saying. The Dao of ruler and ministers is that the ministers labour themselves with tasks while the prince has no task; the prince is relaxed and happy while the ministers bear responsibility for tasks. The ministers use all their intelligence and strength to perform his job satisfactorily, in which the ruler takes no part, but merely waits for the job to be finished. As a result, every task is taken care of. The correct way of government is thus. Shen Dao eschews appointment by interview in favour of a mechanical distribution apportioning every person according to their achievement. Linking administrative methods or standards to the notion of impartial objectivity associated with universal interest, and reframing the language of the old ritual order to fit a universal, imperial and highly bureaucratized state,[60] Shen cautions the ruler against relying on his own personal judgment,[61] contrasting personal opinions with the merit of the objective standard as preventing personal judgements or opinions from being exercised. Personal opinions destroy standards, and Shen Dao's ruler therefore "does not show favoritism toward a single person". When an enlightened ruler establishes [gong] ("duke" or "public interest"), [private] desires do not oppose the correct timing [of things], favoritism does not violate the law, nobility does not trump the rules, salary does not exceed [that which is due] one's position, a [single] officer does not occupy multiple offices, and a [single] craftsman does not take up multiple lines of work... [Such a ruler] neither overworked his heart-mind with knowledge nor exhausted himself with self-interest (si), but, rather, depended on laws and methods for settling matters of order and disorder, rewards and punishments for deciding on matters of right and wrong, and weights and balances for resolving issues of heavy or light...The reason why those who apportion horses use ce-lots, and those who apportion fields use gou-lots, is not that they take ce and gou-lots to be superior to human wisdom, but that one may eliminate private interest and stop resentment by these means. Thus it is said: 'When the great lord relies on fa and does not act personally, affairs are judged in accordance with (objective) method (fa).' The benefit of fa is that each person meets his reward or punishment according to his due, and there are no further expectations of the lord. Thus resentment does not arise and superiors and inferiors are in harmony. If the lord of men abandons method (Fa) and governs with his own person, then penalties and rewards, seizures and grants, will all emerge from the lord's mind. If this is the case, then those who receive rewards, even if these are commensurate, will ceaselessly expect more; those who receive punishment, even if these are commensurate, will endlessly expect more lenient treatment... people will be rewarded differently for the same merit and punished differently for the same fault. Resentment arises from this."
Han Fei
Devoting the entirety of Chapter 14, "How to Love the Ministers", to "persuading the ruler to be ruthless to his ministers", Han Fei's enlightened ruler strikes terror into his ministers by doing nothing (wu wei). The qualities of a ruler, his "mental power, moral excellence and physical prowess" are irrelevant. He discards his private reason and morality, and shows no personal feelings. What is important is his method of government. Fa (administrative standards) require no perfection on the part of the ruler. Han Fei's use of wu wei may have been derivative of Taoism, but its Tao emphasizes autocracy ("Tao does not identify with anything but itself, the ruler does not identify with the ministers"). Sinologists like Randall P. Peerenboom argue that Han Fei's Shu (technique) is arguably more of a "practical principle of political control" than any state of mind.[64][65] Han Fei nonetheless begins by advising the ruler to remain "empty and still": Tao is the beginning of the myriad things, the standard of right and wrong. That being so, the intelligent ruler, by holding to the beginning, knows the source of everything, and, by keeping to the standard, knows the origin of good and evil. Therefore, by virtue of resting empty and reposed, he waits for the course of nature to enforce itself so that all names will be defined of themselves and all affairs will be settled of themselves. Empty, he knows the essence of fullness: reposed, he becomes the corrector of motion. Who utters a word creates himself a name; who has an affair creates himself a form. Compare forms and names and see if they are identical. Then the ruler will find nothing to worry about as everything is reduced to its reality.
Tao exists in invisibility; its function, in unintelligibility. Be empty and reposed and have nothing to do-Then from the dark see defects in the light. See but never be seen. Hear but never be heard. Know but never be known. If you hear any word uttered, do not change it nor move it but compare it with the deed and see if word and deed coincide with each other. Place every official with a censor. Do not let them speak to each other. Then everything will be exerted to the utmost. Cover tracks and conceal sources. Then the ministers cannot trace origins. Leave your wisdom and cease your ability. Then your subordinates cannot guess at your limitations. Han Fei's commentary on the Tao Te Ching asserts that perspectiveless knowledge – an absolute point of view – is possible, though the chapter may have been one of his earlier writing
Every Chinese Doctor I have been to says that I have cold energy in my stomach. So I am always willing to try anything to get rid of this cold energy. Rather than living a healthy life of constant physical activity, restricted computer use, and all the other modern things that we do to make us unbalanced creatures - I chose to put myself through ancient practices - like STOMACH FIREBURNING or MOXA (mugwart) steaming!!!!
So the philosophy behind fireburning is that the fire's heat will warm up your stomach - it will start moving the cold energy out and help you restore your yin energy. After 5 times of lighting a fire and putting the fire out on my stomach - I felt so wonderful. In between each fireburning, the doctor massaged my stomach - it's the best feeling in the world. It felt as if he was caressing every part of my large and small intestinal track and giving it lots of love and care. And the best part is that in the end- when the fire burning is done correctly - he takes off the saran wrap, medicine cloth, and starts Doggy Paddling down from the top of my stomach to the very bottom of my intestines - you can HEAR A RIVER of activity going on inside! it's totalllly FREAKY - I could hear a river gurgling - as if he was totally giving me a full plumbing system overhaul!
he said that when performed with the right type of fire shapes, the doggy paddling takes all the released coldness and moves it out.
the whole entire time I focused on using qi gong breathing techniques - because I am super sensitive to energy I could feel the cold air flowing out of the bottom of my feet.
But then for a few min before or after the process - sometimes I feel that I am inadequate as a human being when I do these things because it reminds me of how out of touch I am with my body, the earth, and the stars. So going to the Chinese doctor for me is like a form of rebirth and a bit of self-punishment (for not being healthy when I am living in the states). But then I think - is it only when I travel - when I'm farthest away from everything and everyone that I intimately know - is that the only time I feel that I can take care of myself without feeling guilty? Is it only when I am unreachable that I recover from everyday life in the states - when my family stuff is so far away that it is absolutely out of my control? Then I start thinking that's stupid tricia - peace is where you are - but sometimes I feel that the only way to really extract myself out of my own life is to leave the country and cross an ocean away. I wonder if this is a pattern of modern life now - middle class people overworking and then leaving for a few months every year or few years to prevent burn out and just to re-balance. It certainly has become a pattern in my life - is the amount of traveling we do equivalent to the amount of stress we have at home? sometimes I think so...
well anyways this is seriously the best form of self-punishment - when the doctor tells me that my yin-yang isn't balanced - it actually makes me really excited to become more balanced again. I am always excited for them to say - "ok here your energy is blocked, so that's why your hair is turning white or that's why your bowel movements aren't regular." When they tell me how unbalanced I am, I start thinking about how I can take better care of myself.
AFter fireburning, the doctor told me of all the herbs and foods that I should eat to heal my body. for example, I need to eat more lemon peels. This time the doctor told me that my health was pretty good, but my back and neck is messed up from years of sitting in front of a computer. Plus I haven't been meditating or dancing as much lately :(
So I love this herbal/ancient practice - only in china...only in china. In India I tried going to the medicinal doctor - I actually went to 3 of them because I really wanted to give it a chance - well each on told me that I was too much of a "pita" and they threw my naked body on a slap of hard wood and started dumping herbal oil on me and then the woman rubbed the oil on me forcing my bones into the wood table and I slid around like a dead fish - I tried to grab onto the wood but it was impossible! - may sound wonderful-(hmm hands + oil) BUT NOT!!!!!! it was painful and the worst part was that I didn't feel more balanced afterwards. SO I've decided China is the place for me to go for medicinal care.
History of the Shaolin Temples
There are few historical entities that engender as much debate, confusion, and acrimony as the nature and reality of Shaolin. We have heard distinguished university professors categorically deny the existence of either Shaolin or its problem-children Tongs; that only authenticated accounts by the Communist Chinese government are to be trusted; or that the temples are fictitious, based on stories in old novels.
The following accounts are taken from sources who 1) practiced the specific kung fu styles to Master level from the "supposed" temples, 2) learned their arts AT those temples before the temples were destroyed, or 3) were taught by practitioners from those temples. Also, our sources were corroborated by at least three individuals (standard rule of evidence accepted by most professional journalists). The masters, however, have declined to be named for the reasons that 1) they do not want to engage in controversy--the information is here to accept or reject as you like (as directed by the last lesson of the Buddha), 2) they have assumed new names after leaving China because, as refugees, did not want their families to suffer for their actions. Having said that, and agreeing in advance to protect the confidentiality of our sources, we have been told that...
The Shaolin order dates to about 540 A.D., when an Indian Buddhist priest named Bodhidharma (Tamo in Chinese), traveled to China to see the Emperor. At that time, the Emperor had started local Buddhist monks translating Buddhist texts from Sanskrit to Chinese. The intent was to allow the general populace the ability to practice this religion.
This was a noble project, but when the Emperor believed this to be his path to Nirvana, Tamo disagreed. Tamo's view on Buddhism was that you could not achieve your goal just through good actions performed by others in your name. At this point the Emperor and Tamo parted ways and Tamo traveled to the nearby Buddhist temple to meet with the monks who were translating these Buddhist texts.
The temple had been built years before in the remains of a forest that had been cleared or burned down. At the time of the building of the temple, the emperor's gardeners had also planted new trees. Thus the temple was named "young (or new) forest", (Shaolin in Mandarin, Sil Lum in Cantonese).
When Tamo arrived at the temple, he was refused admittance, probably being thought of as an upstart or foreign meddler by the head abbot (Fang Chang). Rejected by the monks, Tamo went to a nearby cave and meditated until the monks recognized his religious prowess and admitted him. Legend has it that he bored a hole through one side of the cave with his constant gaze; in fact, the accomplishment that earned his recognition is lost to history.
When Tamo joined the monks, he observed that they were not in good physical condition. Most of their routine paralleled that of the Irish monks of the Middle Ages, who spent hours each day hunched over tables where they transcribed handwritten texts. Consequently, the Shaolin monks lacked the physical and mental stamina needed to perform even the most basic of Buddhist meditation practices. Tamo countered this weakness by teaching them moving exercises, designed to both enhance ch'i flow and build strength. These sets, modified from Indian yogas (mainly hatha, and raja) were based on the movements of the 18 main animals in Indo-Chinese iconography (e.g., tiger, deer, leopard, cobra, snake, dragon, etc.), were the beginnings of Shaolin Kung Fu.
It is hard to say just when the exercises became "martial arts". The Shaolin temple was in a secluded area where bandits would have traveled and wild animals were an occasional problem, so the martial side of the temple probably started out to fulfill self-defense needs. After a while, these movements were codified into a system of self-defense.
As time went on, this Buddhist sect became more and more distinct because of the martial arts being studied. This is not to say that Tamo "invented" martial arts. Martial arts had existed in China for centuries. But within confines of the temple, it was possible to develop and codify these martial arts into the new and different styles that would become distinctly Shaolin. One of the problems faced by many western historians is the supposed contraindication of Buddhist principles of non-violence coupled with Shaolin's legendary martial skills. In fact, the Shaolin practitioner is never an attacker, nor does he or she dispatch the most devastating defenses in any situation. Rather, the study of kung fu leads to better understanding of violence, and consequently how to avoid conflict. Failing that, a Buddhist who refuses to accept an offering of violence (i.e., and attack) merely returns it to the sender. Initially, the kung fu expert may choose to parry an attack, but if an assailant is both skilled and determined to cause harm, a more definitive and concluding solution may be required, from a joint-lock hold to a knockout, to death. The more sophisticated and violent an assault, the more devastating the return of the attack to the attacker. Buddhists are not, therefore, hurting anyone; they merely refuse delivery of intended harm.
The Shaolin philosophy is one that started from Buddhism and later adopted many Taoist principles to become a new sect. Thus even though a temple may have been Taoist or Buddhist at first, once it became Shaolin, it was a member of a new order, an amalgamation of the prevailing Chinese philosophies of the time.
Other temples sprung from Henan. This happened because the original temple would suffer repeated attacks and periods of inactivity as the reigning Imperial and regional leaders feared the martial powers of the not-always unaligned monks. Refugee Shaolin practitioners would leave the temple to teach privately (in Pai) or at other Buddhist or Taoist temples. In rare cases, a new Shaolin Temple would be erected (Fukien, Kwangtung) or converted from a pre-existing temple (Wu-Tang, O Mei Shan). Politically and militarily involved monks (such as the legendary White Eyebrow and Hung Tze Kwan) would be perpetual sources of trouble for the generally temporally aloof monks.
The Boxer rebellion in 1901 was the beginning of the end of the Shaolin temples. Prior to that, China had been occupied by Western and Japanese governments and business interests. The British had turned the Imperial family into an impotent puppet regime largely through the import and sales of opium and the general drug-devastation inflicted upon the poor population. This lead to the incursion of other European powers, including Russia, France and Holland, and later the Japanese and Americans. By the late 1800s, China was effectively divided into national zones, each controlled by one of the outside powers (similar to post World War II Berlin, on a hugely larger scale). The long standing animosities between China and Japan worsened, and extended to include all other "foreign devils" as well. Coupled with the now almost universal disdain by the Chinese for their Empress, a Nationalist movement with nation-wide grass-roots support was born. Among the front line soldiers of the new "order" were the legendary and near-legendary martial artists--many Shaolin--known as Boxers (remember how Bruce Lee, in his films depicting these times, refers to himself as a Chinese boxer...). Though their initial assaults on the military powers of the occupation governments were not entirely successful (many believed in Taoist magical spells that would make them impervious to gunfire), their temporary defeat would lead to a more modern reformation that included adopting modern military weapons and tactics.
The withdrawal of western forces was prolonged over many years, and by the end of World War I saw China in an almost feudal state of civil war. Not only were national troops fighting loyalists, but both sides had to fight the Japanese (who still held much of the northern Manchurian region of China) as well as many powerful, regional warlords. Many parts of China were virtually anarchies, but by 1931 almost all non-Asian occupants had been successfully driven out (with the interesting exception, in the late 1930s, of the volunteer American airmen known as The Flying Tigers, who helped repel Japanese forces prior to World War II), and the major combatants within China were the Nationalists and the Communists. Both sides displayed the typical jingoistic attitudes of forces in mindless warfare--if you aren't with us, you are against us. Neutrality meant nothing except the possibility of a later enemy. Consequently, Shaolin and other monks were routinely murdered by soldiers from both sides. One result of this program of murder was the exodus of many monks into the hills, or abroad, with the hope that Shaolin knowledge might survive even if the temples themselves did not.
The temples were unfortunate victims of war in a land that had abandoned its historical practice of respecting posterity and ancestors. All were ransacked and looted by various armed groups. O Mei Shan Temple ("Great White Mountain"), in Szechuan Province, was situated on a mountain top and deemed by Chinese officers to be a fitting target for artillery practice. It was shelled in turn by Nationalist and Communist armies. In a fitting twist of fate, this one-time site of medical and natural history knowledge was rebuilt by the Communists in the mid 1970s, and now stands as the National Park and Research Headquarters for the panda preserve.
There are various stories coming out of China today referring to the history of Shaolin, particularly over the past 300 years. However, many of these stories are suspect (compare Chinese accounts of Tiananmen Square with CNN news coverage), with the more commonly "authenticated" versions coming from government records. The fact that Chinese authorities outlawed Shaolin and martial arts practices makes any story about their history from such sources suspect. The prevalent wu-shu styles originated as a result of a compromise between the post-World War II governments and the national need and history of having a martial arts tradition. Wu-Shu, however, was not designed as a martial art (strictly illegal), and claims to the contrary date back only a decade or so, following on the popularity of Kung Fu.
What is Karate?
"True karate is this: that in daily life one's mind and body be trained and developed in a spirit of humility, and that in critical times, one be devoted utterly to the cause of justice."
--Gichin Funakoshi
Karate can also be described as a martial art, or fighting method, involving a variety of techniques, including blocks, strikes, evasions, throws, and joint manipulations. Karate practice is divided into three aspects: kihon (basics), kata (forms), and kumite (sparring).
The word karate is a combination of two Japanese characters: kara, meaning empty, and te, meaning hand; thus, karate means "empty hand." Adding the suffix "-do" (pronounced "doe"), meaning "way," i.e., karate-do, implies karate as a total way of life that goes well beyond the self-defense applications. In traditional karate-do, we always keep in mind that the true opponent is oneself.
To understand this we must first review our concept of Karate. Karate appears fearful and destructive to many people. Movies have contributed to popularizing Karate in the wrong way. There are also many people who think that Karate is only a type of calisthenics or, perhaps, even a type of dance. This shows undeniably the lack of a proper view of what Karate really is.
Karate is a martial art, for many people it is a way of life, and it shares the common aim with Judo, Kendo, Aikido, the tea ceremony, calligraphy, and Japanese flower arranging of cultivating through physical and spiritual training. It is also within reason to claim that Karate, as the original martial art, through physical and spiritual training and discipline, makes the impossible possible, even to the unarmed, and helps one in pursuing the aim of his life. A physical training so strict naturally involves a demanding psychological training as well. Karate is a method of unifying the body and spirit and of making human life at once broader and deeper.
"Karate" is a combination of two Japanese words, "Kara" meaning empty or open and "Te", meaning hand, and is therefore used to describe a style of unarmed combat. Karate not always had this meaning of empty hands, this modern phrase started in a meeting of the Okinawan masters sponsored by an Okinawan newspaper, at which the use of the T'ang character in the word Karate was discussed. The ideograph for Kara was altered to erase the Chinese connection for political reasons. So, the character " T'ang" (Kara) was replaced for "Empty" (Kara).
It is generally accepted that the origins of karate are to be found in India (525 A.D.). The credit is given to a Buddhist priest named Daruma Taishi,also known as Bohdidharma, who was the third child of a king and a brilliant student of Zen. Daruma studied the attacking techniques of animals and insects and the forces of nature, and, combining these with a special breathing technique, he created the basis for a legendary system of weaponless fighting and mental concentration. Daruma created in China the Shao-Lin temple in the province of Honan and in that monastery he instructed other monks in his particular style of unarmed combat.
The system developed at the temple gradually disseminated throughout Asia, spreading to Okinawa, Korea and Mongolia. By 1130 A.D., aspects of this system had even been incorporated into the indigenous military disciplines of geographically and culturally isolated Japan.
The Asia fighting arts were historically taught and refined in secrecy, as their practice was routinely prohibited in different regions. Consequently, various regionally and family-based styles and schools evolved, one of these being the Kempo style of Okinawa.
By 1901, Kempo was being taught openly in Okinawa, and in 1916, was demonstrated in Japan by master Gichin Funakoshi. There, under the name of Karate, practical applications of the system were further refined and united with the Zen-based philosophy of the Japanese disciplines. The popularity of karate as both a martial art and a sport spread quickly in Japan and beyond, contributing to the development of diverse systems and schools.
Kyokushin Karate is a discipline through which practitioners may find clues to assist them in their own spiritual development and self-exploration. It is also, importantly, a martial art, encompassing philosophical considerations of life and death, struggle and survival. It is a practical form of self-defense, emphasizing (at the initial stages) kicks, punches, blocks and body movement. It is an intense physical activity, which directly benefits mental conditioning.
"Kyokushinkaikan" is comprised of four Japanese words:
Kyokushin Karate is characterized by requiring of its participants, tenuous training, conditioning and realistic contact while sparing. Kyokushin karate-ka believe this contact is necessary in order to fully appreciate the resiliency of the human body and spirit and to prepare for any serious confrontation. The word "OSU" and the phrase "osu no seishin" (perseverance under pressure) succinctly summarize the essence of the Dojo Kun, written by Sosai Mas Oyama and Eiji Yoshikawa.
Kyokushin philosophy is further reflected in the following maxim:
"... One Thousand days of training, A beginner; Ten thousand days of training, A master."
Masutatsu Oyama
Master Funakoshi
Gichin Funakoshi is widely considered the primary "father" of modern karate due to his efforts to introduce the Okinawan art to mainland Japan, from where it spread to the rest of the world. Born in 1868, he began to study karate at the age of 11, and was a student of the two greatest masters of the time, Azato and Itosu. He grew so proficient that he was initiated into all the major styles of karate in Okinawa at the time. For Master Funakoshi, the word karate eventually took on a deeper and broader meaning through the synthesis of these many methods, becoming karate-do, literally the "way of karate," or of the empty hand. Training in karate-do became an education for life itself.
Master Funakoshi was the first expert to introduce karate-do to mainland Japan. In 1916 he gave a demonstration to the Butokuden in Kyoto, Japan, which at that time was the official center of all martial arts. On March 6, 1921, the Crown Prince, who was later to become the Emperor of Japan, visited Okinawa and Master Funakoshi was asked to demonstrate karate. In the early spring of 1922 Master Funakoshi traveled to Tokyo to present his art at the First National Athletic Exhibition in Tokyo organized by the Ministry of Education. He was strongly urged by several eminent groups and individuals to remain in Japan, and indeed he never did return to Okinawa.
Master Funakoshi taught only one method, a total discipline, which represented a synthesis of Okinawan karate styles. This method became known as Shotokan, literally the clan or the house of Shoto, which was the Master's pen name for his poetry, denoting the sound of the wind blowing through pines.
So Nei Chu
The defeat of Japan and the subsequent indignity of Occupation almost proved to be too much for Mas Oyama, who nearly despaired. Fortunately for all of us, So Nei Chu came into his life at that time. Master So, another Korean (from Oyama's own province) living in Japan, was one of the highest authorities on Goju Ryu in Japan at the time. He was renowned for both his physical and spiritual strength. It was he who encouraged Mas Oyama to dedicate his life to the Martial Way. It was he too who suggested that Oyama should retreat away from the rest of the world for 3 years while training his mind and body.
MAS OYAMA
Masutatsu (Mas) Oyama was born Yong I-Choi on the 27th of July, 1923, in a village not far from Gunsan in Southern Korea. At a relatively young age he was sent to Manchuria, in Southern China, to live on his sister's farm. At the age of nine, he started studying the Southern Chinese form of Kempo called Eighteen hands from a Mr. Yi who was at the time working on the farm. When Oyama returned to Korea at the the age of 12, he continued his training in Korean Kempo.
In 1938, at the age of 15, he travelled to Japan to train as an aviator, to be like his hero of the time, Korea's first fighter pilot. Survival on his own at that age proved to be more difficult than he thought, especially as a Korean in Japan, and the aviator training fell by the wayside.
He did however continue martial arts training, by participating in judo and boxing, and one day he noticed some students training in Okinawan Karate. This interested him very much and he went to train at the dojo of Gichin Funakoshi at Takushoku University, where he learned what is today known as CyberDojo home pages.
His training progress was such that by the age of seventeen he was already a 2nd dan, and by the time he entered the Japanese Imperial Army at 20, he was a fourth dan. At this point he also took a serious interest in judo, and his progress there was no less amazing. By the time he had quit training in Judo
Mountain Training
When he was 23 years old, Mas Oyama met Eiji Yoshikawa, the author of the novel Musashi, which was based on the life and exploits of Japan's most famous Samurai. Both the novel and the author helped to teach Mas Oyama about the Samurai Bushido code and what it meant. That same year, Oyama went to Mt. Minobu in the Chiba Prefecture, where Musashi had developed his Nito-Ryu style of swordfighting. Oyama thought that this would be an appropriate place to commence the rigours of training he had planned for himself. Among the things he took with him was a copy of Yoshikawa's book. A student named Yashiro also came with him.
The relative solitude was strongly felt, and after 6 months, Yashiro secretly fled during the night. It became even harder for Oyama, who wanted more than ever to return to civilisation. So Nei Chu wrote to him that he should shave off an eyebrow in order to get rid of the urge. Surely he wouldn't want anyone to see him that way! This and other more moving words convinced Oyama to continue, and he resolved to become the most powerful karate-ka in Japan.
Soon however, his sponsor informed him that he was no longer able to support him and so, after fourteen months, he had to end his solitude.
A few months later, in 1947, Mas Oyama won the karate section of the first Japanese National Martial Arts Championships after WWII. However, he still felt empty for not having completed the three years of solitude. He then decided to dedicate his life completely to karate-do. So he started again, this time on Mt. Kiyozumi, also in Chiba Prefecture. This site he chose for its spiritually uplifting environment.
This time his training was fanatical — 12 hours a day every day with no rest days, standing under (cold) buffeting waterfalls, breaking river stones with his hands, using trees as makiwara, jumping over rapidly growing flax plants hundreds of times each day. Each day also included a period of study of the ancients classics on the Martial arts, Zen, and philosophy.
After eighteen months he came down fully confident of himself, and able to take control of his life. Never again would he be so heavily influenced by his society around him. (Though it is probably safe to say that his circumstances were also probably never again as traumatic!)
Bulls, Challengers, and the Godhand
In 1950, Sosai (the founder) Mas Oyama started testing (and demonstrating) his power by fighting bulls. In all, he fought 52 bulls, three of which were killed instantly, and 49 had their horns taken off with knife hand blows. That it is not to say that it was all that easy for him. Oyama was fond of remembering that his first attempt just resulted in an angry bull. In 1957, at the age of 34, he was nearly killed in Mexico when a bull got some of his own back and gored him. Oyama somehow managed to pull the bull off and break off his horn. He was bedridden for 6 months while he recoverd from the usually fatal wound. Today of course, the animal rights groups would have something to say about these demonstrations, despite the fact that the animals were already all destined for slaughter.
In 1952, he travelled the United States for a year, demonstrating his karate live and on national televison. During subsequent years, he took on all challengers, resulting in fights with 270 different people. The vast majority of these were defeated with one punch! A fight never lasted more than three minutes, and most rarely lasted more than a few seconds. His fighting principle was simple — if he got through to you, that was it.
If he hit you, you broke. If you blocked a rib punch, you arm was broken or dislocated. If you didn't block, your rib was broken. He became known as the Godhand, a living manifestation of the Japanese warriors' maxim Ichi geki, Hissatsu or "One strike, certain death". To him, this was the true aim of technique in karate. The fancy footwork and intricate techniques were secondary (though he was also known for the power of his head kicks).
Kyokushinkai Karate
Martial art created by Sosai Masutatsu Oyama in 1955. It is a style of karate focuses on strenuous physical training, especially kumite and tameshiwari, though it also inludes kihon, kata, self-defense techniques, and weapons. It is the utilization of circular movement in the execution of techniques that distinguishes Kyokushin Karate from the traditional styles of Karate that rely on simple linear motion. Kyokushin Karate is characterized by requiring of its participants, strenuous training, conditioning and realistic contact while sparring. Kyokushin karate-ka believes this contact is necessary in order to fully appreciate the resiliency of the human body and spirit and to prepare for any serious confrontation.
The kanji (Japanese characters) calligraphy, worn universally on the front of the gi, simply means "Kyokushinkai", which is the name given by Sosai Mas Oyama to the karate style he created. It is composed of three characters:
Kyoku meaning "Ultimate".
Shin meaning "Truth" or "Reality".
Kai meaning "Society" or "Association".
Kan = Building, School
Kanku
The symbol of Kyokushin Karate is the Kanku, which is derived from Kanku Kata, the Sky Gazing Form. In this kata, the hands are raised and the fingers meet to form an opening through which the sky is viewed. The top and bottom points of the Kanku represent the first fingers of each hand touching at the top and the thumbs touching at the bottom, symbolizing the peaks or ultimate points. The thick sections at the sides represent the wrists, symbolizing power. The center circle represents the opening between the hands through which the sky is viewed, symbolizing infinite depth. The whole Kanku is enclosed by a circle, symbolizing continuity and circular action.
K-1 Kickboxing
While the sport of Boxing having its long history since the age of Roman Empire and a very large population base in its amateur and professional practitioners, with its techniques having been thoroughly experienced, researched and evolved, it makes us to think that the "Sweet Science" is almost coming to be at a point of its perfection.
In comparison, while Muay Thai has its own history, Kickboxing is a new sport now gaining a world wide popularity, and the population is still small. The world of Kickboxing is also not as unified yet, as there are many organizations in the world having their own championship tournaments with different rules. Also the lines are thin between this sport and other full-contact or semi-contact fighting tournaments. There are still many new ideas and techniques coming out in Kickboxing, with a large help from the variety of already existing Martial Arts such as Karate, Tae Kwon Do, Kung Fu and many others.
Kickboxing has taken into a form around 500 years ago (some say it's longer) in the country of what's now Thailand, called Muay Thai or Thai Boxing. Most of the kickboxing styles in the world is based on Muay Thai, including Japan, Europe, and Australia. In Muay Thai match, the fighters are allowed to:
Kick and knee to the leg, body, head
Punch to the body, head
Elbow to the body, head
Back spin punch
(They used to allow head butts and throws)
What's dominant in America is the American-style kickboxing, which is started out as a full contact Karate tournament with the basis of boxing. It allows kicks to the waist above only, and there is no elbow and knee strikes. There are many Kickboxing organizations in the world having their own championship tournaments. The organizations are, to name a few: W.K.A., W.K.C, I.K.K.C., K.I.C.K., P.K.F., P.K.A, I.S.K.A., etc. Savate is a French version of kickboxing. San Shou is a Chinese kickboxing started out from Kung-fu, allowing throws in addition. And so is Draka from Russia. Shoot-boxing is started out in Japan and is a combination of Muay Thai with throws.
Out of what seems to be an disorganized situation in present kickboxing world, there came a kickboxing event called K-1. Originally a full-contact Karate event that became a huge success in Japan, it is now considered sort of a unified tournament of striking Martial Arts where any styles and organizations can freely compete in it --- as long as they adhere to its rule. It's tournament rule is similar to that of Muay Thai without elbow strikes. So far the champions from many styles of striking-based Martial Arts have competed in it, such as Karate, Boxing, Muay Thai, Kung-fu, Taekwondo, American Kickboxing, Draka, Capoeira, Shootfighting and No Hold Barred (UFC, Vale Tudo). It has been a huge success in Japan and in Europe, and now it is also becoming big in the US.. It is said that the idea of K-1 event is a very important step in the development of Kickboxing and the Martial Arts in general.
Rishikesh Yoga Retreats invites you to join their yoga teacher training in the yoga capital of the world. Set in a stunning location and with modern facilities, near the beach of holy river Ganga. Our 200-hour yoga teacher training in Rishikesh offers intimate class sizes for personalized monitoring and a very rare opportunity for you to fully immerse yourself into the yogic life. This Hatha & Ashtanga yoga teacher training on the foothills of Himalayas is a traditional style of yoga, comprehensive and genuine knowledge of philosophy, yogic life, asana-pranayama, anatomy, meditation-breathing techniques, mantra-chanting, spiritual life, and much more. You will learn from enthusiastic yoga teachers who have studied yoga, meditation, and spiritual techniques from yoga universities (Gurukulam) since their childhood.. The focus of this yoga training is on practicing, embodying, and sharing the practice of yoga. Away from all the normal distractions that often disturb your yoga practice, this training will bring your skills to a whole new level.
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Power yoga is a vigorous workout that builds muscles and gets you sweating. More fast-paced than other forms of yoga, it emphasizes balanced development of your body through core strength, flexibility, and awareness. Power yoga moves help you develop willpower and stay energized. The workout is known to burn calories, improve the muscle tone, reduce fat, and increase metabolism. Through centering, concentration, control, precision, and breathing techniques you’ll find yourself more fit in no time!
Detail of a Wix Stix didgeridoo.
The Didgeridoo (or Yidaki) stems from and is used by Aboriginal Australians (especially from the North-East Arnhem Land) for traditional ceremonies and rituals.
It is a cylindrical or conical wind instrument, traditionally made from the stem of an eucalyptus tree that has been hollowed-out by termites. Nowadays, other tree sorts are used and other construction techniques developed.
It is played by vibrating lips against the mouthpiece to produce a continuous drone while using a special breathing technique called circular breathing.
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Power yoga is a vigorous workout that builds muscles and gets you sweating. More fast-paced than other forms of yoga, it emphasizes balanced development of your body through core strength, flexibility, and awareness. Power yoga moves help you develop willpower and stay energized. The workout is known to burn calories, improve the muscle tone, reduce fat, and increase metabolism. Through centering, concentration, control, precision, and breathing techniques you’ll find yourself more fit in no time!
For Project Flickr Week 47 (15th-22nd November 2014) Religion
More philosophy and something spiritual than what we think of as organised religion - Tai Chi combines meditation and movement in formalised pattern of physical moves called The Form. It is the early morning exercise routine that you often see people performing in parks in China.
The Form is performed slowly, with one movement flowing into the next - the moves all have names, and this figurine is doing the move called "the snake creeps down". Tai Chi is a great way to slow down and get in touch with the universal, the spiritual, with nature, with what we may think of as "the divine".
Tai Chi is linked to Taoism, the ancient Chinese philosophical system that we probably recognise most readily from the Yin/Yang symbol of balance and harmony. It uses breathing techniques too, and can be used as a martial art.
My Project Flickr set is here: Elisa Project Flickr 2014
Arne Daniëls (°1984, Wilrijk, Belgium) is an Antwerp based action painter. Essential to his artwork is the process, which aims at reducing the influence of the artist as a filter on the creative energy, enabling this energy to freely manifest itself on the canvas. Cosmic expressionism as he calls it.
For this to be possible, the mind must be quiet and the process uninterrupted. Several preparatory techniques help him to get into this state of (no)mind, including yoga poses, breathing techniques and meditation. The artist is experience-oriented self-taught. The wide range of actions applied, came about in a playful dance with the canvas.
Ariell Fallen demonstrated her fire-breathing technique at the Renaissance Festival Travelers Camp.
See the rest of my 2021 Renaissance Festival photos at: www.flickr.com/photos/138805757@N04/albums/72157719895172406
September 2021
Well hello February 1st, where the hell did you come from? I had quite a bit of down time tonight, and it got me thinking, as I often tend to (OVER) do. I wouldn't have pictured my life here, the way it is today, even a month ago. It's strange the things we take for granted. Take the sunrise for instance. Many of us simply squint and slam our visor down while we're trying to practice our breathing techniques in morning traffic. We don't always get to choose everything life throws at us, but we're very capable of making the very best of the cards we're dealt. I'm grateful for today. I looked out my window this morning, smiling as my dog whined in his sweet, pathetic way for me to play with him. I changed, wrestled and then cursed my internet for refusing to connect correctly. But today is so much better than yesterday. It's better because I'm choosing to make it so. My life isn't perfect, and it may never be. But, I'm really, truly happy today. So, yeah...here's to today =)
View Large On Black if you REALLY want to =)
7th Regiment Cadets practice breathing techniques at PMI during Advanced Camp at Cadet Summer Training on Fort Knox, Ky on July 2, 2021. | Photo by Marissa Wells, CST Public Affairs Office.
Tech. Sgt. Christopher Genuardi goes through breathing techniques during a gas mask fit test Nov. 21, 2014, at Incirlik Air Base, Turkey. The fit test is used to ensure the mask will work properly during emergency situations. Genuardi is a 39th Civil Engineer Squadron heating, ventilation and air conditioning section chief. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman Cory W. Bush)
Tantrism is a quest for spiritual perfection and magical power. Its purpose is to achieve complete control of oneself, and of all the forces of nature, in order to attain union with the cosmos and with the divine. Long training is generally required to master Tantric methods, into which pupils are typically initiated by a guru. Yoga, including breathing techniques and postures (asana), is employed to subject the body to the control of the will. Mudras, or gestures; mantras or syllables, words and phrases; mandalas and yantras, which are symbolic diagrams of the forces at work in the universe, are all used as aids for meditation and for the achievement of spiritual and magical power.
During meditation, the initiate identifies herself or himself with any of the numerous Hindu gods and goddesses representing cosmic forces. The initiate visualizes them and takes them into her or his mind and so she or he unites with them, a process likened to sexual courtship and consummation. In fact, some Tantric monks use female partners to represent goddesses. Also, in left-handed Tantra (Vamachara), ritual sexual intercourse is employed as a way of entering into the underlying processes and structure of the universe.
Yab-yum is generally understood to represent the primordial (or mystical) union of wisdom and compassion. In Buddhism the masculine form is active, representing the compassion and skillful means (upaya) that have to be developed in order to reach enlightenment. The feminine form is passive and represents wisdom (prajna), which is also necessary to enlightenment. United, the figures symbolize the union necessary to overcome the veils of Maya, the false duality of object and subject.
So here I go, from the bus stop to the Police Academy, a glass and steel box that takes up the better part of a city block. I have to lean into the wind and driving rain. Well, it's November, so what do you expect? But more than the weather, the question foremost on my mind is: what the hell am I getting myself into?
Once my mind is set on pursuing a law enforcement career, I take the Chicago Police entrance exam in June of 1985. Other tests follow at regular intervals: psychological, physical, drug screening, and a criminal background investigation;. At one point they tell me I'm anemic: apparently I've been running too many miles and not eating enough red meat. Well, I'm not about to stop running, so I'll just have to eat steak for a month before I go back for another blood-test.
Then, just as I'm wondering what other kinds of delaying tactics they'll think of next, just this past Friday night, less than 72 hours ago:
"If you still want the job, you'll report to the Training Academy this Monday, the 17th of November at oh-seven-forty-five hours," the voice growls.
I mumble something about having to give notice at my job, but the voice is not impressed, and the topic is obviously not up for discussion. The voice repeats his one-liner a second time, before ending the call.
Obviously, this is just another test to screen out those who are not fully committed to a career with the Chicago Police Department.
Working at a large supermarket at the moment, I have to go in that same night and supervise the crew that restocks the shelves while normal people sleep. Saturday morning, at the end of my shift, I go and see Joe Grassi, the store manager, a stocky, feisty little guy with a distinctly military bearing: he'd served under Simon Bolivar Buckner in the bloody struggle for control of Okinawa.
Joe hears me out. He understands that this is an opportunity that must be seized with both hands, or it will be lost forever. Technically, I'll be using up my vacation time, but we both know that I won't be coming back.
I'm soaking wet by the time I open the heavy steel door, and take my place in line with a dozen others, also dressed in conservative business attire. After they check us in, we are herded into the gym hall, and take our seat in the bleachers.
For the next two hours, we are officially welcomed, lectured, and barked at by a whole cast of characters. Ultimately, they split us up into six groups of 33 or 34 recruits each, and march us off to the classrooms that will be ours for the next four months or so.
I pick a seat in front, along the outside wall. When seated, we get to fill out a stack of forms. The first official document is one listing our beneficiaries, in the event of our untimely demise. We learn that our official designation is Class 86-8A: the A-troop of the 8th class to enter the Academy in 1986.
A few more forms, and then it's off to the cafeteria, where we must line up to receive a check for $1,500, a loan towards the purchase of our uniform and equipment. Chicago is the only department I know of, that requires officers to buy their own duty-weapons.
In the coming months, we learn that the Chicago Police Department is a paramilitary organization, and, like its full-fledged military brethren, it is mired in tradition, rules, regulations, and red tape.
Our homeroom instructor is a self-serving little shyster, primarily interested in making a buck by selling us CPD T-shirts and trinkets. He wastes little time getting his own little admiration society going, holding court at a local watering hole each night, where his disciples buy him drinks and blow smoke up his ass.
Our class is somewhat representative of the Chicago population: White, Black, Hispanic, and about a third female. Few will admit that they have relatives on the job, but some do have prior law enforcement experience themselves, and a handful come to us via the Illinois Department of Corrections and the Cook County Jail, as former guards of course. One of them will have his return ticket punched a few years down the road, to end up on the other side of the bars.
When we enter the Academy, it is filled to the rafters with more than a thousand recruits, in various stages of training. When we go for out daily dose of PT, we have to fight for every inch of locker-space. Usually, we find ourselves sharing a locker with a guy who has just finished: dripping sweat, he is pulling his clothes out as I am putting mine in. The stench from all those sweat-drenched bodies in such a confined space is simply overpowering.
Once inside, we are taught various pain-compliance techniques, which must be applied to defeat different levels of resistance. In other classes, we learn to classify and report evbery conceivable crime and ordinance violation, write traffic citations, and march in formation.
We are taught how to shoot, when, and when not to... We are taught the Criminal Statutes of the great State of Illinois, how to spit-shine out shoes, how to fall in for roll-call and the weekly weapons inspection, and on and on.
About halfway through the program, we are issued our Stars, and we've earned the right to wear the regulation blue uniform, instead of the Khakis we've been wearing thus far. When we're dressed in the Field Uniform, we must also carry our duty-weapon. To me, it feels like strapping a boat-anchor onto my hip: its actual weight magnified by the responsibility that comes with it.
This is a dangerous time for those who think they can now act like they're the "real police." In the process, they end up forfeiting the job they so desperately want. Only then, they realize that this was just another test to see if they can resist the temptations that are now within their grasp. In the case of 86-8A, this is just another hurdle we clear without a hitch.
At the ripe old age of 34, I am one of the dinosaurs in our class, but still in pretty good shape, and ahead of the pack when it comes to running and firearms proficiency. I do my best to help some of classmates who have trouble with the run: usually a matter of teaching them proper breathing techniques. Fortunately for them, the Department only expects us to run a mile and a half, in twelve minutes or so, which is a leisurely pace.
Somehow we manage to tip-toe through the various mine-fields, both as individuals and as a group. Nobody is left behind... well, almost nobody. One recruit suffers a torn tendon when we are doing a punitive set of 1,500 jumping jacks out of the parade ground, in front of the Academy.
We often bring these things on ourselves, especially now that we are getting a little cocky, taunting our PT instructor, Gus T., the real brother of "Mr. T" that we are the real "A-team."
The Department - ever fearful of lawsuits and bad press - decides to keep our injured classmate on until she heals, and she'll be able to graduate with the next class.
For a long time, I never used my tripod. I got used to having just my camera with my nifty 50 and all was happy and nice. I was pumped up to use it for this photo series together with my Sigma 70-300mm Macro DG but when I arrived at the famous garden, I did not even bothered to set it up and just use my breathing technique to keep the camera steady. Hahaha! I just felt tired and annoyed to level the tripod head, adjust the legs, etc. It was too much work for me and I had no patience for that haha! So this is the reason why most of the photos in this series in not so sharp.
Keep watching this space, my harmonica workshop coming soon: “KiddieBop Harmonica Circle” ... as adapted from my
Mission Harmonica Circle™
The basics of playing the harmonica using popular tunes such as "Amazing Grace," the Beatles' "Love Me Do," "This Land Is Your Land." You will learn to express yourself on this simple instrument which is tons of fun, therapeutic, promotes great breathing techniques and is socially a crowd-pleaser.
For two years I taught a harmonica workshop for the City of Mission Viejo's Cultural Affairs department. See below, one of the courses in my Mission Harmonica Circle™ (Making Your World Better With Music ... and Harmonicas!), which I describe as a drum circle with harmonicas.
KiddieBop harmonicas
These KiddieBop harmonicas will be available before taking my course ($10 + $3 shipping = $13 via PayPal to PayPal.Me/NoeGold/13) at my blog:
DoctorNoemedia.blogspot.com.
Course title: KiddieBop Harmonica Circle
Description: Ages 8 - 13&11 - 16
A weekly workshop for kids in the basics of playing the harmonica, using popular tunes such as "Amazing Grace," the Beatles' "Love Me Do," "This Land Is Your Land" and fun novelty tunes by Woody Guthrie, Doctor Demento and Jack Elliott In a communal "call and response" format, with audio-visual cues that teach a little bit about the social currents that are associated with the harmonica – the Civil War, the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression. We will also understand the notes and keys on the harmonica and the basics of playing along with a guitar or piano.
The class will be fun and playful in nature and by the end of the session kids will be total harmonicats and kitties.
“Doctor Noe” Gold, Headmaster of the College of Musical Knowledge and Mission Harmonica Circle™, is setting up a home-school music site using the harmonica as the benign yardstick on the international Outschool.com platform.
Stay tuned to my Mission Harmonica Circle™ FB page for details and leave me ideas of classes and how to get the word out.
Noë the G
Founding Editor of Guitar World and Managing Director
Mission Harmonica Circle™ (Making Your World Better With Music ... and Harmonicas!)
and author of the forthcoming
Hendrix Now!
Backstory of a Legend
A Visual Spiritual Odyssey
Thank you,
Noë
Noë Gold
#missionharmonicacircle #outschool #musicucansee #noemedia #middlewalter #littlewalter #bigwalter #tonyglover #paulbutterfield #vanmorrison #ericBurdon #steviewonder #bluesharp #teaching #musicheals #harmonicasarefun #onlinelearning #funindoors
HIDDEN KNOWLEDGE, Revealing the Hidden Nature of Human Being as a bridge in the Awakening of the Consciousness of the Universe is a knowledge that was hidden from the human race all through history.This blog is dedicated to the awakening of self-knowledge of the universe manifested in us that will reveal our hidden powers that can help the man to discover his true identity and to save THE EARTH and our civilization from self-annihilation. In acest site sunt evidentiate traditiile prin care omul redevine puntea prin care universul redevine constient de el insusi si isi descopera adevarata sa identitate de fiinta spirituala manifestata in corp material;acest proces de trezire a universului conduce la manifestarea puterilor divine ale omului care poate sa restabileasca armonia si sa repare matricea energetica si informationala a Terrei si a universului.The greatest of all religious teaching is inside you,in your Heart;You can discover your treasure using love and awareness to awake yourself.This process of awakening to our true identity is taking place in a state beyond duality known as mystic trance or samadhi(trance,that state of mind which remains with its object without distractions; superconscious state, ecstasy, meditative or concentrative absorption, union).The term trance is defined as an altered state of consciousness which individuals can enter through a variety of techniques, including hypnotism, drugs (aushadhi, potions, herbs, consecrated plants;see the Nahuatl– Maya’s traditions revealed by Carlos Castaneda or The Shamanic Traditions revealed by Dr. Andrija Puharich in “The Sacred Mushroom (pub. 1959),sound (particularly music ,percussive drumming-remember Mantras,(recitation of incantations,words of power, chanting,sacred chants, prayer, auto and hetero suggestions;see the King Arthur's instruction"in chant,spells and incantations" received from the druid Merlin etc.), sensory deprivation, physical hardships (eg. flagellation, starvation, exhaustion, tapas:intense desire, ascetic disciplines,purificatory acts ,austerities) and vigorous continuous rhythmic exercise (particularly dance).People can also use trance, particularly in the context of ‘ritual’ events, to learn new strategies of thinking or of relating to one another.There are different types of learning: for example what Eric Jantsch calls ‘conscious learning’ is a transaction between consciousness, the environment and memory. Jantsch also identifies ‘superconscious learning’, which takes place with the addition of ‘outer’ and ‘inner’ ways of learning. These arise through the interaction of consciousness with transpersonal mass/collective consciousness (eg. Jung’s "collective unconscious")There are other techniques which can be used for such ‘tuning in’, for example magical or shamanic practices such as visualisations, breathing techniques and ritual. Particular technologies can also be used to enhance such learning capacities, for example the ASCID (Altered States of Consciousness Induction Device) developed by Robert Masters and Jean Houston (1973). The modern electronic music dance party is one such ‘pscycho- technology’ because it is an information system, consisting of visual, auditory and sensual elements.Princeton
Jackson Elementary School divided into three sections of about 140 students to take yoga sessions in their gym from Ben Spellman of Good Vibes Yoga on Wednesday, December 11th. Spellman worked with the classes on breathing techniques as well as how to remain calm and quiet during the yoga lessons.
August 19, 2010: "RIDD" - Didgeridoo, Drums, Percussion, Player - outside Eaton Centre - Toronto, Canada
droning out the urban noise view
The Didgeridoo (also known as a didjeridu or didge) is a wind instrument developed by Indigenous Australians of northern Australia at least 1,500 years ago and is still in widespread usage today both in Australia and around the world. It is sometimes described as a natural wooden trumpet or "drone pipe". Musicologists classify it as a brass aerophone.
A modern didgeridoo is usually cylindrical or conical, and can measure anywhere from 1 to 3 m (3 to 10 ft) long. Most are around 1.2 m (4 ft) long. The length is directly related to the 1/2 sound wavelength of the keynote. Generally, the longer the instrument, the lower the pitch or key of the instrument.
The didgeridoo is played with continuously vibrating lips to produce the drone while using a special breathing technique called circular breathing. This requires breathing in through the nose whilst simultaneously expelling stored air out of the mouth using the tongue and cheeks. By use of this technique, a skilled player can replenish the air in their lungs, and with practice can sustain a note for as long as desired.
Watch a clip of these 3 and 5 year old brothers from Australia playing the didgeridoo (yirdaki) at home.
Om Shanti Om Yoga Ashram is one of the classical and oldest Yoga Ashram in Rishikesh, India. It was established in 1999 by world-famous Swami Yogananda Maharaj Ji who achieved Maha Samadhi on 3rd January 2015, he had been alive for 106 years. Yogi Dinesh Ji is a long-term student of Swami Yogananda Ji and the Director of Ashram now along with E-RYT 500 from Yoga Alliance USA. Om Shanti Om Ashram is a Registered Yoga Ashram certified by RYS 200, 300 & 500 with internationally recognized Yoga Alliance USA and has 10+ professional teachers who are very keen to expand their knowledge in the world. We organizing Yoga Courses for the last 10 years from short term courses to advance levels. Our achievement is to cultivate students deeply in the spiritual and holistic teaching of traditional practice along with breathing techniques, awareness, and meditation to utilize body and soul in the life of Yoga.
Yoga Teacher Traning Course in Rishikesh,India, 100 Hours Yoga Teacher Traning in Rishikesh,India, 200 Hours Yoga Teacher Traning in Rishikesh,India, 300 Hours Yoga Teacher Traning in Rishikesh,India,, 500 Hours Yoga Teacher Traning in Rishikesh,India, Hatha Yoga Teacher Training Course in Rishikesh,India, Ashtanga Yoga Teacher Training Course in Rishikesh,India, Pranayama & Meditation Yoga Teacher Traning Course in Rishikesh,India 3 Days Yoga Retreats in Rishikesh, India, 5 Days Yoga Retreats in Rishikesh, India, 7 Days Yoga Retreats in Rishikesh, India, 10 Days Yoga Retreats in Rishikesh, India
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Power yoga is a vigorous workout that builds muscles and gets you sweating. More fast-paced than other forms of yoga, it emphasizes balanced development of your body through core strength, flexibility, and awareness. Power yoga moves help you develop willpower and stay energized. The workout is known to burn calories, improve the muscle tone, reduce fat, and increase metabolism. Through centering, concentration, control, precision, and breathing techniques you’ll find yourself more fit in no time!
Chinese alchemy is an ancient Chinese scientific and technological approach to alchemy, a part of the larger tradition of Taoist body-spirit cultivation developed from the traditional Chinese understanding of medicine and the body. According to original texts such as the Cantong qi, the body is understood as the focus of cosmological processes summarized in the five agents, or wu xing, the observation and cultivation of which leads the practitioner into greater alignment with the operation of the Tao, the great cosmological principle of everything. Therefore, the traditional view in China is that alchemy focuses mainly on the purification of one's spirit and body in the hopes of gaining immortality through the practice of Qigong and/or consumption and use of various concoctions known as alchemical medicines or elixirs, each of which having different purposes.
Pao zhi (Pao chi) cites the pharmacological processing (of Chinese materia medica) as used in the practice of Traditional Chinese Medicine, such as honey or wine frying and roasting with toxic metals such as mercury, lead, and arsenic.[1]
According to J.C. Cooper's Chinese Alchemy: The Taoist Quest for Immortality, Taoism had two distinct parts, the classical Tao Chia, which was mystical and stemmed primarily from Laozi and Zhuangzi, and the more popular Tao Chiao, which was the popular, magical and alchemical side of Taoism. Cooper states that a common viewpoint is that "classical Taoism [Daoism] was the original but was too austere and rarefied for the general populace ... [but] Tao Chiao fulfilled the day-to-day needs of the people."
Process and purpose
By refining bases into gold, the alchemist believed that immortal life would be delivered if the "fake" or synthetic gold was ingested. The idea that fake gold was superior to real gold arose because the alchemists believed the combination of a variety of substances (and the transformation of these substances through roasting or burning) gave the final substance a spiritual value. It possesses a superior essence when compared to natural gold. (Cooper, 1990. Pg. 65) Gold and cinnabar (Jindan in Chinese) were the most sought-after substances to manipulate and ingest. They were believed to have longevity and could elongate the life of the consumer. Cinnabar is a mineral with a reddish-brown colour and is the most common source of mercury in nature.[2] It was used in the search for immortality because of the special significance of its colour, and the difficulty with which it was refined.
The colour of the cinnabar is significant to symbolic belief as well. The colour red in Chinese culture is considered to be the "zenith of the colour representing the sun, fire, royalty and energy." (Cooper, 1990. Pg 70) Cinnabar could also be roasted which produced a liquid form of silver known as quicksilver, which we know to be mercury. This substance was ingested but it could also be combined with sulphur and burned again to return to its natural form of cinnabar. "Cinnabar was the yang to quicksilver's yin" (Cooper, 1990. Pg 70). In China gold was quite rare, so it was usually imported from other surrounding countries. However, cinnabar could be refined in the mountains of Szechuan and Hunan Provinces in central China.
Although the majority of hsien (immortality) elixirs were combinations of jindan, many other elixirs were formed by combining metallic bases with natural herbs or animals bi-products. The rhinoceros' horn was commonly used in medicines and elixirs and was held to have fertility-increasing abilities. Elixirs were composed of metallic compounds such as gold and silver, but they could also be made of more lethal components like arsenic, and sulphur.
Eastern vs Western views
Further information: Alchemy
Both the Eastern practice of alchemy and the later Western practice are remarkably similar in their methods and ultimate purpose. To be sure, the desire to create an elixir of immortality was more appealing to the Taoists, but European alchemists were not averse to seeking out formulas for various longevity-boosting substances. The secret of transmuting one element into another, specifically base metals into gold or silver, was equally explored by both schools for obvious reasons.
In the European outlook, the ability to turn relatively worthless materials into gold was attractive enough to allow medieval alchemy to enjoy extensive practice long after the Chinese form had been forgotten. Alternatively, transmutation was also a means of accruing the precious metals that were key in making life-extending elixirs, and were otherwise expensive and difficult to obtain. Alchemical knowledge in the East and West favor different opinions of the true form of alchemy due to different theological views and cultural biases, however these disputes do not lessen the integrity of alchemy's canonical nature.
Chinese alchemy specifically was consistent in its practice from the beginning, and there was relatively little controversy among its practitioners. Definition amongst alchemists varied only in their medical prescription for the elixir of immortality or perhaps only over their names for it, of which sinology has counted about 1,000. Because the Chinese approach was through the fundamental doctrine of Yin and Yang, the influence of the I Ching, and the teachings of the Five Elements, Chinese alchemy had its roots considerably more in obtaining a higher mental-spiritual level.
In the West there were conflicts between advocates of herbal and "chemical" (mineral pharmacy), but in China, mineral remedies were always accepted. In Europe there were conflicts between alchemists who favored gold-making and those who thought medicine the proper goal, but the Chinese always favored the latter. Since alchemy rarely achieved any of these goals, it was an advantage to the Western alchemist to have the situation obscured, and the art survived in Europe long after Chinese alchemy had simply faded away.
Origins
Despite much research, many scholars are still unable to marshal conflicting evidence in order to determine when exactly Chinese alchemy started. It was thought that China was making gold about one thousand years before Confucius' time, but this is contradicted by other academics stating that during the 5th century BCE there was no word for gold and that it was an unknown metal in China (Sivin 1968. Pg. 21.)
However, despite the uncertain origins, there are enough similarities in the ideas of practices of Chinese alchemy and the Daoist tradition so that one can conclude that Laozi and Chang Tao Ling are the creators of this tradition. In her article, Radcliffe tells that Chang Tao Ling rejected serving the Emperor and retreated to live in the mountains. At this time, he met Laozi and together they created (or attempted to create) the Elixir of Life (Radcliffe, 2001), by creating the theory that would be used in order to achieve the making of such an elixir. This is the starting point to the Chinese tradition of alchemy, whose purpose was to achieve immortality.
One of the first evidence of Chinese alchemy being openly discussed in history is during the Ch'in's First Emperor's period when Huan K'uan (73-49BC) states how modifying forms of nature and ingesting them will bring immortality to the person who drinks them (Pregadio. 1995.) Before Huan K'uan, the idea of alchemy was to turn base metals into gold. Conflicting research on the origins of alchemy are further demonstrated by Cooper, who claims that alchemy "flourished well before 144 BCE, for at that date the Emperor issued an edict which ordered public execution for anyone found making counterfeit gold" (Cooper, 1991). This suggests that people were well aware of how to heat the metals in order to change them into a desired form. A further counter to Pregadio from Cooper is the latter's contention that an emperor in 60 BCE had hired "a well-known scholar, Liu Hsiang, as Master of the Recipes so that he could make alchemical gold and prolong the Emperor's life." All of these conflicting origins considered, it is nearly impossible to claim any absolute knowledge on the origins of Chinese alchemy. Today, if one looks at the teachings in Daoism one can find alchemical practices in these texts. Most of which posit the existence of an elixir or the Golden Elixir that when ingested gives the drinker eternal life. Since one can make a direct and certain connection between Daoism and Laozi, it is a fair statement to suggest that he played a major role in the creation of Chinese alchemy.
Tsau Yen is said to have written many of the alchemical books although none of them have ever been found, nor have the existing ones been credited to him (Sivin 1968. Pg. 22.) The likeliest proponents of Chinese alchemy are as previously stated, Laozi, and Chang Tao Ling as well as Zhuangzi. Each of these men are major icons in Daoist teachings. Although these three are credited with the creation of alchemy, there is no definitive proof to suggest or dispute that they were responsible for its creation.
Chinese women alchemists
With the rise of alchemy in the Chinese civilization, it was seen as an art. Among many practitioners, there were a significant number of women who mastered this art. The earliest recorded woman alchemist had the family name of Fang (Chinese: 方), and she lived about around the first century B.C.[3] Being raised in a scholarly family who were skilled in the alchemical arts, she was able to have studied alchemy with one of the Emperor Han Wu Ti's spouses, and therefore had access to the highest levels of society. Fang was credited with the discovery of how to turn mercury into silver. It was believed that she may have used the technique of silver extraction from ores using mercury, the pure silver residue is left behind from the boiled mercury. Fang's husband, Chheng Wei (simplified Chinese: 程伟; traditional Chinese: 程偉), physically abused her, because he was trying to obtain the secret procedure from Fang, but she refused to give it to him. With the constant abuse and torture, Fang eventually went insane and killed herself. It was noted that there were detail of Fang's life through the writing of Ge Hong, an author and alchemist.[3]
Moving on to A.D. 975, Keng Hsien-Seng[4] is another female figure who according to the science writing of Wu Shu "mastered the art of the yellow and white [alchemy] with many other strong transformations, mysterious and incomprehensible".[3] The science writing of Wu Shu also described Keng as being acquainted with Taoist techniques and could control the spirits. Some of the chemical transformation skills that Keng was able to transformed was mercury to silver, mercury and "snow" into silver, probably using the technique of mercury for the extraction of silver from its ores.[3] As well as using a primitive type of Soxlet process to continuously extract camphor into alcohol.[3][3]
Some of the other women alchemists that have been recognized in Chinese literature are Pao Ku Ko (3rd century A.D.), Li Shao Yun (11th century),[5] Thai Hsuan Nu[6] (uncertain), Sun Pu-Eh (12th century), and Shen Yu Hsiu (15th century).
Yin and Yang
See also: Yin and yang
Yin-Yang is an important concept in the ideas of Chinese alchemy. Cooper points out that the idea is pervasive throughout alchemical theory, as the metals were categorized as being male or female, and mercury and sulphur especially were thought to have powers relating to lunar and solar respectively.
Davis posits that, prior to the Taoist tradition, the Chinese already had very definitive notions of the natural world, especially involving the Five Elements, which were Water, Fire, Earth, Metal and Wood. These were commonly thought to be interchangeable with one another; each were capable of becoming another element. The concept is integral, as the belief in outer alchemy necessitates the belief in natural elements being able to change into others. The cyclical balance of the elements relates to the binary opposition of yin-yang, and so it appears quite frequently.
Outer and inner alchemy
Chinese woodblock illustration of a waidan alchemical refining furnace, 1856 Waike tushuo (外科圖説, Illustrated Manual of External Medicine)
Chinese woodblock illustration of neidan "Cleansing the heart-mind and retiring into concealment", 1615 Xingming guizhi 性命圭旨 (Pointers on Spiritual Nature and Bodily Life)
Chinese alchemy can be divided into two methods of practice which are waidan or "external alchemy" and neidan or "internal alchemy". Doctrine can be accessed to describe these methods in greater detail; the majority of Chinese alchemical sources can be found in the Taozang, the "Taoist Canon".
Outer alchemy (Waidan)
The meaning of waidan derives from wai (outside, exterior) and dan referring to alchemical operations, such as the preparation of chemical elixirs, made from cinnabar, realgar, and other substances generally involving mercury, sulfur, lead, and arsenic or else the animal and botanical products which are found in Chinese herbology and Traditional Chinese medicine. Waidan refers to practices relating to the process of making an elixir often containing herbal or chemical substances found outside of the body. This process involves esoteric oral instructions, building a laboratory, kindling and sustaining the special fires used in the production process, rules of seclusion and purification for the alchemist to follow, and various practices including the performance of ceremonies to protect the self and the ritual area. Waidan can also include following a dietary regimen which prescribes or proscribes certain foods. Preparing medicines and elixirs can be referred to as outer practices or waidan as these practices occur outside of the body until they are verified by the ingestion of medicines, herbs, and pills to bring about physical changes within the body, separate to the soul.
Inner alchemy (Neidan)
Main article: Neidan
The term Neidan can be divided into two parts: Nei, meaning inner, and Dan, which refers to alchemy, elixir, and cinnabar (mercury). Neidan uses techniques such as: composed meditation techniques, visualization, breathing and bodily posture exercises. Breathing exercises were used to preserve jing or "life essence" and bodily postures were used to improve qi or "energy" flow in the body. Neidan comprises the elixir from the principles of Traditional Chinese Medicine and the cultivation of substances already present in the body, in particular the manipulation of three substances in the body known as the "Three Treasures".
The three treasures are:
Jing which can be translated as "life essence". A person is born with Jing and it governs the developmental growth processes in the body. Since people are born with a certain amount of Jing, it is taught that a person can increase their Jing through dietary and lifestyle practices.
Ch'i which can be translated as "energy" or "vital energy". Ch'i energy results from the interaction of yin and yang. A healthy body is constantly circulating Ch'i.
Shen can be translated as "spirit" or "mind". Shen is the energy used in mental, spiritual and creative functioning (Lu, 30).
The three treasures are also associated with locations in the body where the alchemical firing process can take place, known as the three dantians (Lu, 10):
Jing or "life essence" is found in the Kidneys and possibly the adrenal glands; the Lower dantien is also associated with Jing
Qi or "vital energy: elixir field is the heart
Shen or "spiritual energy" is found in the upper dantien located between the eyebrows, also known as the Third eye (Jefferson (1982)).
Comparison with Yoga
Cooper writes that "the aspirant neither renounces life in the world nor is caught up in the realm of the senses" essentially reiterating the yin and yang values of balance that Daoism and Chinese alchemy were originally derived from. [clarification needed] The name yoga means "yoke"; it uses practices that cultivate health of both the psyche and physical body. Drawing on Mircea Eliade, Cooper states that "yoga requires perfect discipline of body and mind, the object being to rouse the spiritual powers... and to attain realization or immortality." [clarification needed]
"Chinese alchemical yoga" depended on exercises, breathing techniques, and an ordered and balanced diet which was designed to increase longevity. The diet was often vegetarian, and some diets removed onion and garlic, others removed grains, and still other removed fish and other meat (Cooper, 109).
Associated risks
Main article: Chinese alchemical elixir poisoning
When ingested, these compounds did not always result in the desired outcome. Many individuals died or had psychological difficulties after taking certain elixirs. However, the loss of life may not have seemed a large risk, when compared with the promise of the afterlife. Although these elixirs were lethal or dangerous, there is some contention that these individuals were not ignorant of the fatality of some of the materials they were ingesting.
There were certain grades of immortality, so if the practiced alchemist died, the level of immortality they achieved was determined by their corpse. If their corpse was sweet-smelling, it was said that they had achieved immortality in an ephemeral state. Likewise, if their corpse disappeared, leaving behind only the clothes, such as in the death of an adept named Ko Hung, this was another form of immortality known as shih chieh hsien (corpse-free immortals) (Cooper, 14).
Conception of medicine
Main article: Traditional Chinese medicine
Medicines can be used to heal ailments on the exterior or interior of the body, to control the ageing of the body, or even to prevent death. The term medicine and elixir are virtually interchangeable because of the array of ailments they can influence. The difference between defining an elixir from a medicine was that many medicines were composed mainly of all natural products like herbs and animal products. Never the animals themselves, only their products, which could consist of dung or fur. Although metal compounds are more potent when curing ailments, herbs were used because they were easier to combine and more abundantly available. To make medicines one would use ingredients like: Kolo nuts, which would be used in famous longevity pills like "Fo-Ti-Ti"; Asparagus, which was used because it was known to increase strength; sesame, which prevents senility; and pine which has over 300 different uses. (Cooper, 1990. Pg. 62) Mushrooms were and still are very popular, they are known as the "magic fungus" (Ganoderma) and have thousands of purposes within Chinese alchemy.
The Space Needle cloaked in fog.
Holding your breath amplifies the heart beat and muscle movement so the breathing cycle is just like at a gun range: shoot during slow exhale. That 5 second window of steady tranquility is enough in most circumstances but this was during low light out in the open with no support using a small sensor camera. Kneeling and sitting was out of the question since the changes in view will ruin the shot and surprisingly there weren't any incredibly attractive women that were willing to lend some back support; they were too busy shooting the fog themselves.
The ISO could be bumped up from 160 to 320 but HDR tonemapping and general post-processing will naturally increase the noise. Moving around in the dark my feet suddenly felt grounded and things were easier. Not wasting time to question it I immediately took the bracketing shot. As the camera cache buffer slowly empties I look down and my feet are not in the familiar sideways shooting stance from the gun range. The back feet is pointing off-angle of course, but the forward feet is pointing straight ahead instead of off-angle and my back is straight instead of hunched over against some invisible metal storm. This is a longsword stance.
I am the Elephant and have a castle for my load.
I do not fall on my knees, nor miss my step.*
The Italian masters had a great deal more to say but the current lesson is enough for now. The foot position change obviously limits forward and backward motion but it also creates a natural brace against twisting motion of both feet and body towards the front. This brings the head more in line with the forward pointing feet which drags the arms holding the camera with it.
While the rear arm is still resting against the chest, the forward arm is resting close to the armpit where breathing no longer affects it. The eyebrow is the final point of contact for the camera's view finder. So for a brief time as long as the body is in a relaxed but rigid state, controlled breathing is the only conscious movement variable. With practice even that will eventually become second nature.
There is one related shooting technique I used for years that I didn't bother with tonight. One of the medieval German longsword guard position is Ochs or "Ox". But move the hands directly over the forward shoulder and instead of a sword a camera is held on its side against the shoulder by both hands clasped on top of each other. Breathing techniques still applies but it's done mostly to calm muscle movement.
It's a bit ironic since Ochs is an unstable guard in fencing. This only really works if the camera body is large, it's resting on its side against the shoulder, and the shooting angle doesn't deviate too much from the horizontal, none of which were applicable during this shoot.
The main lesson here is focusing too much on photography can cause lost opportunities to apply useful knowledge gained from other fields. This is partly why the wide gaps in my photography schedule are filled with other activities. It's a luxury that non-professionals enjoy and it's something that should be taken advantage of.
None of this invalidates the standing side shooting position for photography though. For example because the front foot isn't pointing directly at the target it's a lot easier to get into and out of position for mobility and the range of movement for horizontal panning with the body is more stable. We're all lazy at various times falling back on techniques and habits for efficiency. It's good to be reminded to work against that natural inclination.
The image is probably not suitable for large prints but considering the conditions that's not the point. The fact that an acceptable image can be made without support in very low light and the confidence and awareness that comes with it greatly expands shooting opportunities. The rest of the shots during the night were done using the same shooting technique.
*Excerpt from The Swordsman's Companion by Guy Windsor, 2nd edition, p. 39.
TCM "holds that the body's vital energy (chi or qi) circulates through channels, called meridians, that have branches connected to bodily organs and functions." Its view of the human body is only marginally concerned with anatomical structures, but focuses primarily on the body's functions(such as digestion, breathing, temperature maintenance, etc.):"The tendency of Chinese thought is to seek out dynamic functional activity rather than to look for the fixed somatic structures that perform the activities. Because of this, the Chinese have no system of anatomy comparable to that of the West."— Ted Kaptchuk, The Web That Has No WeaverThese functions are aggregated and then associated with a primary functional entity – for instance, nourishment of the tissues and maintenance of their moisture are seen as connected functions, and the entity postulated to be responsible for these functions is xuě (blood).These functional entities thus constitute concepts rather than something with biochemical or anatomical properties.The primary functional entities used by traditional Chinese medicine are qì, xuě, the five zàng organs, the six fǔ organs, and the meridians which extend through the organ systems.?These are all theoretically interconnected: each zàng organ is paired with a fǔ organ, which are nourished by the blood and concentrate qi for a particular function, with meridians being extensions of those functional systems throughout the body.
Concepts of the body and of disease used in TCM have notions of a pre-scientific culture, similar to European humoral theory.– TCM is characterized as full of pseudoscience. Some practitioners no longer consider yin and yang and the idea of an energy flow to apply.Scientific investigation has not found any histological or physiological evidence for traditional Chinese concepts such as qi, meridians, and acupuncture points.[a] It is a generally held belief within the acupuncture community that acupuncture points and meridians structures are special conduits for electrical signals but no research has established any consistent anatomical structure or function for either acupuncture points or meridians.The scientific evidence for the anatomical existence of either meridians or acupuncture points is not compelling.Stephen Barrett of Quackwatch writes that, "TCM theory and practice are not based upon the body of knowledge related to health, disease, and health care that has been widely accepted by the scientific community. TCM practitioners disagree among themselves about how to diagnose patients and which treatments should go with which diagnoses. Even if they could agree, the TCM theories are so nebulous that no amount of scientific study will enable TCM to offer rational care."TCM has been the subject of controversy within China.In 2006, the Chinese scholar Zhang Gongyao triggered a national debate when he published an article entitled "Farewell to Traditional Chinese Medicine," arguing that TCM was a pseudoscience that should be abolished in public healthcare and academia.The Chinese government however, interested in the opportunity of export revenues, took the stance that TCM is a science and continued to encourage its development.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traditional_Chinese_medicine#Qi
In Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism, a chakra (Sanskrit: Cakra, Pali : Cakka, Tamil: chakra ) is thought to be an energy point or node in the subtle body. Chakras are believed to be part of the subtle body, not the physical body, and as such, are the meeting points of the subtle (non-physical) energy channels called nadi. Nadi are believed to be channels in the subtle body through which the life force (prana) (non-physical) or vital energy (non-physical) moves. Various scriptural texts and teachings present a different number of chakras. It's believed that there are many chakras in the subtle human body, according to the tantric texts, but there are seven chakras that are considered to be the most important ones.
In the yoga theory, nadis are said to carry life force energies known as prana. In the physical body, the nadis are channels carrying air, water, nutrients, blood and other bodily fluids around and are similar to the arteries, veins, capillaries, bronchioles, nerves, lymph canals and so on.In yoga theory, the physical body is often referred to as "the gross body" (Sanskrit Sthula sarira).
In the subtle and the causal body, the nadis are channels for so called cosmic, vital, seminal, mental, intellectual, etc. energies (collectively described as prana) and are important for sensations, consciousness and the spiritual aura.Yoga texts disagree on the number of nadis in the human body. Hatha Yoga Pradipika and Goraksha Samhita quote 72,000 nadis, each branching off into another 72,000 nadis, whereas Shiva Samhita states 350,000 nadis arise from the navel center.
All nadis are said to originate from one of two centres; the heart and the kanda[disambiguation needed], the last being an egg-shaped bulb in the pelvic area, just below the navel.When awakened, kundalini travels upward within Sushumna.The Ida and Pingala nadis are often seen as referring to the two hemispheres of the brain. Pingala is the extroverted (Active), solar nadi, and corresponds to the right hand side of the body and the left hand side of the brain. Ida is the introverted, lunar nadi, and corresponds to the left hand side of the body and the right hand side of the brain (there is a contralateralization). These nadis are also said to have an extrasensory function, playing a part in empathic and instinctive responses. The two nadis are believed to be stimulated through different Pranayama practices, including nadi shodhana, which involves alternately breathing through the left and right nostrils, which would theoretically stimulate the left and right sides of the brain respectively. The word nadi comes from the Sanskrit root nad meaning "channel", "stream", or "flow". Special breathing techniques are supposed to influence the flow of prana within these nadis. According to this interpretation, these techniques will purify and develop these two energetic currents and may lead to the awakening of kundalini.
Have you experienced stubborn fatigue, low mood or consistent emotional instability? While it may seem normal, these emotions could point to a more serious problem deep within the energy body: blocked chakras. Residing in the astral body (energy body), chakras are energy centers that are responsible for our physical, emotional and spiritual well-being. Just like the heart pumps blood to other organs in the body, so chakras spread prana, or life-force energy, to these vital regions, ensuring good emotional and physical health.
Learning how to unblock chakras is therefore critical for the healthy functioning of the mind, body and spirit. But healing chakras is not as simple as treating a headache or a swollen ankle as chakras do not exist in the physical body, so we cannot see or touch them. Instead, we have to use holistic practices like meditation, mudras, affirmations or chanting to activate and stabilize these swirling wheels of energy. Whether you’d like to help others find stability or want to gain control of your own life, chakra balancing can help you tap into unknown energy, awaken mental control, and gain optimal physical health. How to Unblock Chakras: Beginner’s Guide to Chakra Meditation & Affirmations
How to Unblock Chakras
December 22, 2022
Ram Jain
Dr. Ram Jain, PhD (Yoga)
Table of Contents
Have you experienced stubborn fatigue, low mood or consistent emotional instability? While it may seem normal, these emotions could point to a more serious problem deep within the energy body: blocked chakras. Residing in the astral body (energy body), chakras are energy centers that are responsible for our physical, emotional and spiritual well-being. Just like the heart pumps blood to other organs in the body, so chakras spread prana, or life-force energy, to these vital regions, ensuring good emotional and physical health.
Learning how to unblock chakras is therefore critical for the healthy functioning of the mind, body and spirit. But healing chakras is not as simple as treating a headache or a swollen ankle as chakras do not exist in the physical body, so we cannot see or touch them. Instead, we have to use holistic practices like meditation, mudras, affirmations or chanting to activate and stabilize these swirling wheels of energy. Whether you’d like to help others find stability or want to gain control of your own life, chakra balancing can help you tap into unknown energy, awaken mental control, and gain optimal physical health.
Below, we explore the 7 chakras, the effect of a blocked chakra on the body, as well as how to unblock chakras with meditation and affirmations. Ground your sitting bones into the earth, clear your mind and let’s dive into chakra balancing.
What Is a Blocked Chakra?
Woman showing position to unblock chakras
Chakras move at a particular frequency to spread prana in a local region. Each chakra is surrounded by a certain element, like the Root Chakra is surrounded by the earth element. When the element around the chakra becomes blocked, it restricts the movement of the chakra causing it to slow down. When the chakra movement slows down, it does not spread enough prana in the local region, causing numerous problems to arise.
What Does a Blocked Chakra Feel Like?
Blocked chakras can manifest themselves in different ways. You could experience an emotional imbalance through negative feelings of insecurity, loneliness, and greed, or physical issues like headaches, indigestion, and colon problems.
Sometimes, it can be difficult to determine if your Third Eye Chakra is imbalanced, or you’re just dehydrated. Fortunately, blocked chakras have telltale signs that you can easily pick up with active awareness. It’s also wise to familiarize yourself with the location of each of the 7 chakras in the body, as the area of your issue can usually be linked to chakra that resides there. A blocked Third Eye Chakra, for example, is located in the middle of the brain between the eyebrows, and can cause physical problems like regular headaches, blurry vision, and eye strain.
Ultimately, if you’re feeling off, emotionally unstable or disconnected from the world around you, it’s usually a sign that there is a blockage or imbalance in your energy system. By being aware of your body and taking notice of sudden changes in your mood, you can determine which chakra is blocked and clear and balance it with regular practice.
What Causes Chakras to Become Blocked?
There are many reasons why a chakra can become blocked, but the most common cause is an unhealthy lifestyle. Too much stress, negative thinking, a lack of physical exercise, not enough sleep and an unhealthy diet are all leading contributors of a blocked chakra. And at the same time, too much of something good can also cause an imbalance in the energy body with an equally harmful effect on your health and well-being.
One or all of these factors can cause your chakras to enter into either a hypoactive or hyperactive state. When hypoactive, your chakra distributes an insufficient or reduced amount of prana to the area. A hyperactive or imbalanced chakra means there is too much energy flowing into that particular region, causing an imbalance in the entire chakra system.
Why Is It Important to Unblock Your Chakras?
The 7 chakras are strongly tied to the organs and glands that surround it. If just one chakra is hypoactive or hyperactive, it can have a ripple effect on the entire body, negatively impacting your physical, emotional and spiritual well-being. If not tended to, a blocked chakra may also lead to more serious physical illnesses and mental health challenges like depression or anxiety.
Knowing how to unblock chakras is therefore important to maintain good health and keep your energy body in check. When your chakras are clear and aligned, you are your best Self. You will naturally have a more positive outlook on life and feel more energized and confident. On the mat, you’ll also notice a healthy progression in your performance.
How to Unblock Chakras with Meditation and Affirmations
So, how do you unblock chakras? You can purge the 7 chakras in the body through chakra meditation, mudras, affirmations, pranayama and yoga poses.
Meditation for balancing chakras is similar to traditional meditation, except that your intention for the practice is to open and clear the body’s energy centers. You’ll focus all your attention on the blocked chakra and drive energy to the area using mantras, mudras and breathing techniques. Affirmations are positive phrases that can remove mental blockages and help you channel energy to where it's needed most.
Below, we explore how you can balance and clear all 7 of chakras in the body with meditation and affirmations.
1. Root Chakra – Muladhara Chakra
Root Chakra - Muladhara Chakra
Root Chakra Meditation
Practice this grounding meditation to clear and realign the Root Chakra:
Find a comfortable seated position, spine long and shoulders relaxed.
Close your eyes gently and take slow, natural breaths.
Bring your focus inwards, towards the Muladhara Chakra.
Chant the seed mantra for the Root Chakra – ‘Lam'.
Continue to chant for several minutes, focusing energy in the base of your spine.
Once unblocked, rub your palms together and place them over your eyes.
Root Chakra Affirmations
When your Root Chakra feels blocked or out of balance, repeat the following affirmations to yourself:
The earth provides a safe place for me.
I have abundance in my life.
I love my body and trust its wisdom.
2. Sacral Chakra – Svadhishthana Chakra
Sacral Chakra – Svadhishthana Chakra
Sacral Chakra Meditation
This meditation practice encourages your mind to focus on the positive and discard the negative. It’ll also help you drive life force energy to the Sacral Chakra.
Come into an easy seated position, grounding your body into the mat.
Relax your shoulders and as you breathe, bring your attention to your Sacral Chakra.
Chant the Svadhishthana Chakra mantra ‘Vam’ for 5-15 minutes.
Notice the vibrations enter your sacrum as you channel energy here.
To complete the meditation, rub your palms together and place them over your eyes
Sacral Chakra Affirmations
Some affirmations that clear and heal the Sacral Chakra include:
I am fulfilled in my passions.
I embrace change as a healthy part of life.
I have an abundance of creativity.
3. Solar Plexus Chakra – Manipura Chakra
Solar Plexus Chakra – Manipura Chakra
Solar Plexus Chakra Meditation
Practice this centering meditation to clear the Solar Plexus Chakra: www.arhantayoga.org/blog/how-to-unblock-chakras-beginners...
Need for a Strong Immune System:
A fully functional immune system is important for optimum health. There are many things that affect the immune system’s efficiency. We are surrounded by environmental pollutants, toxins, non nutrient dense diets and constant stress all of which affect our immune system causing it to weaken and be susceptible to disease. Yoga is an integral part of Vedic sciences propagates the entire cultural, spiritual and natural wisdom of cultivating our body and mind. Adding yoga into your life is an awesome way to build a strong defense system for your body.
Yoga for Immune System:
There are specific yoga postures that can help cleanse your body and release toxins, germs and infections. Our immune system consists of cells, tissues, and organs that work together to protect the body. These defensive cells are located in our white blood cells. They are transferred around the body by the lymphatic system. The lymph nodes move through the body by muscle contractions, unlike blood, which is pumped naturally by the heart. And Inversions do a great job in helping the heart pump blood more effectively.
Yoga provides holistic approaches for living life to its fullest. Yoga is all about harmonizing the body with the mind and breath through the means of various pranayama (breathing techniques), asanas (yoga postures) and dhyana (meditation) techniques.
Yoga includes physical, mental & spiritual practices or disciplines that aim to transform body and mind
Through Yoga, one aims to increase one’s awareness, self-centeredness and emotional intelligence, and bring about the blossoming of consciousness. Many people who practice Yoga do so to maintain their health and well-being, improve physical fitness, relieve stress, and enhance quality of life. In addition, they may be addressing specific health conditions, such as back pain, weak immune, neck pain, arthritis, and anxiety.
Few Yoga Practices to Improve your Immune System:
1. Pranmudra:
Pran Mudra
Pran Mudra
- Sit in padmasna or sukhasana.
- Your spine should be straight and eyes closed.
- Now join the tips of your thumb, ring finger and little finger. This is called pran mudra.
- Practice for minimum 5 minutes to 45 minutes. (anytime of day).
2. OM MANTRA:
Om Mantra Dyan
Om Mantra Dyan
- For practicing ‘OM MANTRA’ take position in Padmasana or Sukhasana.
- Close your eyes and bring both the hands in Gyan Mudra and touch the tip of thumb with the tip of index finger.
- Back and the neck should be straight. Keep all the muscles of the body relaxed. Body should be in a still position.
- Take deep breath and without pausing pronounce the word “OM“. Concentrate on pronouncing OM. Start with five minute duration and then slowly increase daily to 20 to 25 minutes.
Benefits:
- This cures high blood pressure, migraine, constipation, gas, indigestion, mental tension, heart ailments etc.
- By practicing OM Mantra, the problem of stammering is also cured.
- The chanting of OM Mantra improves the internal brightness. OM is the highest name of almighty God and by chanting it; we will remember Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh.
3. Vajrasana: (Thunderbolt pose)
Vajrasana
Vajrasana
- (Thunderbolt pose) Sit on the floor in kneeling position bring the big toes together and heels spread out lower the buttocks so that they rest comfortably on the seat made out by the feet.
- Keep your head, neck and shoulder straight. Keep the eyes closed. Hands on the knees palms facing down, Do it every day after your meal for minimum 5 minutes.
Benefits:
- This is the only asana in yoga which we can do after meals, preventing gastric problems.
- It is very good for high blood pressure, migraine, tension, heart diseases, and pain in the knees, legs and calves.
4. Dhanurasana (Bow pose):
Dhanurasana
Dhanurasana
- Lie flat on your stomach , with the legs and feet together and the arms and hands beside the body.
- Bend the knees and bring the heels close to the buttocks.
- Place the chin on the floor clasp your hands around the ankles.
- Take a deep breath and raise your head, trunk, and legs above the ground. In order to lift legs, pull hands and legs in opposite direction.
-Hold the position for as long as is comfortable and then slowly relaxing the leg muscles lower the legs, chest and head to the starting position. Do it minimum 3 times daily.
Benefits:
- This asana helps to improve digestion by stimulating gastric secretions.
- The liver, abdominal organ and muscles are massaged.
- This asana is recommended for the management of diabetes, menstrual disorders and neck pain. .
Caution: Patients of colitis, hernia and slipped disc should avoid this asana. Heart patients and hyper tension patients should do this asana under the guidance of yoga guru.
5. Nadi Shodana Pranayama:
Nadishodhana Pranayama
Nadishodhana Pranayama
- Sit in comfortable meditative posture. Keep the head and spine upright. Relax the whole body and close the eyes.
- Then with help of right hand thumb close the right nostril.
- Now breathe in through left nostril.
- Then close the left nostril with right hand (same hand) ring finger and release the pressure of the thumb on the right nostril while exhaling through the right nostril.
- Next inhale through the right nostril, close it with thumb and remove ring finger from the left nostril and exhale through left nostril.
This one round of Nadi Shodhana Pranayama. Do it minimum 20 rounds.
Benefits:
- This pranayama ensures that the whole body is nourished by an extra supply of oxygen, Carbon Dioxide is efficiently expelled and blood is purified of toxins.
- This pranayama increase vitality and lowers stress levels and anxiety by harmonizing the prana.
- Nadi means channel or flow of energy and shoudhana means purification. This pranayama is very good for stress and mental depression.
6. Shavasana: (Corpse pose)
Shavasana
Shavasana
- Lie down on your back. Keep the legs straight on the floor, with both the feet apart as shoulder width.
- Toes should be turned outward as far as possible. Let the fingers curl up slightly.
- The head and the spine should be in a straight line.
- Relax the whole body and stop all physical movement. Close your eyes gently.
- Now mentally, watch your breathing and allow it to become rhythmic and relaxed. Duration should be minimum 5 minutes.
Benefits:
- This asana relaxes the whole Psycho-physiological system.
- This asana is very good for stress management, reducing the body’s energy loss, lowering the respiration and pulse rule, and resting the whole system. This asana is also known as mritasana (mrit means corpse).
To know more about Suneel Singh- visit www.yogagurusuneelsingh.com
Costumi di Cagliari
Cagliari e il capoluogo di regione della Regione Sardegna con circa 150.000 abitanti, ma con un' area metropolitana di 500.000 abitanti. è una città con una storia plurimillenaria, il suo porto è classificato internazionale per via della sua posizione al centro del mediterraneo.
Curiosità:
Il suonatore che si intravede nella foto, suona (las Launeddas), antico strumento di origini antichissime di origne sarda è composta di tre canne che producono un suono polifonico: basso, canto ed accompagnamento con una tecnica di respirazione molto complessa che produce un suono simile alla zampogna,
Costumes of Cagliari
Cagliari is the capital of the region of Sardinia Region with about 150,000 inhabitants, but with a 'metropolitan area of 500,000 inhabitants. is a city with an ancient history, its port is classified internationally because of its location in the center of the Mediterranean.
Trivia:
The player that you see in the picture, it sounds (las Launeddas), an ancient Sardinian instrument of ancient origin, is composed of three rods that produce a polyphonic sound: bass, singing and accompaniment with a breathing technique very complex that produces a sound similar to bagpipe,
Trajes de Cagliari
Cagliari es la capital de la región de Cerdeña Región con cerca de 150.000 habitantes, pero con un "área metropolitana de 500.000 habitantes. es una ciudad con una historia milenaria, su puerto se clasifica a nivel internacional debido a su ubicación en el centro del Mediterráneo.
Trivia:
El flautista que se ve en la foto toca (las Launeddas), un antiguo instrumento de los antiguos orígenes de la Cerdeña se compone de tres barras que producen un sonido polifónico: bajo, canto y el acompañamiento con una técnica de respiración muy complejo que produce un sonido similar la gaita,