Spirit: The Intangible Instinct

Science is clearly one of the most profound methods for discovering truth, while religion remains the single greatest force for generating meaning.
-Ken Wilber, The Marriage Of Sense And Soul

It seems like common sense.

We know we have a body, and we know we have minds. But it often feels like there's something more to life. It feels like there's some almost intangible instinct within our minds and bodies that wants to lead us beyond the physical into the world of spirit.
Sometimes we call that a soul, but it seems safer to call it spirit, a word derived from the Latin word for breath. Just as a body is informed with breath, so body and mind are informed with spirit.

So, it follows that if the body seems to produce our minds, and our body is the product of the reproduction of our mother’s and father’s bodies, then our spirits are the product of something beyond. A first Father or Mother or both, or, in any case, a first
Spirit or Spirits of some sort.

We're not only told we have spirit by those in authority, but it certainly helps make sense of things. Our bodies die, and sometimes our minds go before our bodies. Do we exist for nothing? Is there something that remains of us after death beyond a corpse or ashes?

Religion and spiritual teachings comfort us. A comforted and meaning-filled spirit and mind certainly feel good in human bodies.

Still minds wonder about other things.

For instance, minds wondered about the sun.

For some races of early humans the sun was God, or at least, like Apollo in Greek myth, a god.

We would not exist without the sun. However we would not exist if our planet was closer to the sun, or further away. The sun is our main source of energy.

Early humans didn't need science to realize that.

They looked up and they saw the sun's progress across the sky. Since things seemed to pretty much stay still, it was easy to assume that the sun, and the stars, moon and planets traveled around us.

Earth, after all, was the center of the cosmos.

The Immortal Embryo

SPIRITUAL OR IMMORTAL EMBRYO.  In Chinese culture the Spiritual Embryo is the core energy in a human being, the original energy of the body’s conception. It is this energy, when led through various practices, to the center of the brain (the pineal gland, or nihuan point in the Chinese medical system) that results in full-realization enlightenment. Through various breathing techniques, one can return to the original embryonic breathing pattern, which is the union of yin and yang and the basis of the realization of the Tao. The cultivation of the Spiritual Embryo is the central metaphor for the evolution of mind and body in Chinese culture.

This idea of the Immortal Embryo (sheng tai) goes very far back in Taoist internal alchemy practices. The basic idea is that through continually practicing internal alchemy, one develops an immortal, spiritual embryo. Then, after further practice and refinement, this spiritual embryo actually emerges from the body of the practitioner, out through the crown or Heavenly Gate point at the top of the head. We can see illustrations from ancient China of the practitioner sitting in meditation with a small fetus floating above his head. The Immortal Embryo is also described as a form of pure yang spirit. Upon death thispure yang energy will live on outside the body.

 

In Taoism it is believed that not all people achieve reincarnation. For the vast majority of people who do no spiritual practice, upon their death their hun and po souls separate and they are basically “recycled back into the Tao.” But those who do cultivation have an opportunity to come back into the world again for further teaching or to help others along the Way.

Here is a description of the nine stages involved with creating the Immortal Embryo.

(1) the living ch’i circulates freely and unimpeded throughout the body; (2) the essence, the semen (ching), collects in the lower cinnabar field; (3) the sacred embryo begins to assume the form of a human embryo; (4) the two souls of the sacred embryo come into being; (5) the embryo is fully formed and has various supernatural powers; (6) inner and outer yin and yang reach their highest intensity and the embryo merges with the body of the adept; (7) the five internal organs are transformed by the power of ch’i into those of an immortal; (8) an umbilical cord develops, through which the breath is channeled during a practice known as embryonic breathing; (9) form and Tao combine and clouds form below the feet of the practitioner, on which he ascends toward Heaven thereby completing the metamorphosis.

- The Shambhala Dictionary of Taoism

Now whether this is an actual physical experience or if it is more of an inner spiritual or energetic one, the spiritual attainment is the same. There will be physical and energetic experiences connected with this. Just as with a mother carrying a child, much care must be taken to nourish and strengthen both the body and the spirit of the practitioner. It is only in this way that a successful birth of the Immortal Embryo can happen.

Is enlightenment elitist?

The concept of the chakras, or energy wheels within the body, is common to both Chinese and Indo-Tibetan subtle body theoretical frameworks. The Chinese describe the energy as moving in circular patterns in the body. The Indo-Tibetan systems describe a central channel with a solar and lunar set of parallel meridians, which must be united to fully open the central channel. When these energies are integrated, there is said to be realization. Similarly, the kundalini theory describes the energy as traveling from the base of the spine to the top of the head.

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The nihuan point, which corresponds with the pineal gland, represents the third, or wisdom eye. The human body is actually a universe which can be described in alchemical terms as "as above, so below" which sees the human body as both the microcosm of the multiverse and the fundamental source of the design of the cosmos.

According to Taoist alchemical theory, the pineal gland of the enlightened adept becomes equivalent to the North Star because everything between heaven and earth has become one being. The mind and body of the adept is identical to the mind and body of the universe simultaneously. This idea that the inner dimensions are actually more real than our conventional third-dimensional reality is based upon the ability of advanced practitioners who travel between inner worlds. The other basic idea is that the reproductive energy of the lower body can be taken to the head to activate the brain and increase the luminosity of the mind. 

Chinese alchemy is based on the idea that aging can be dramatically reduced if the original pre-birth energy of the body is restarted by natural breathing practices. The basis of Taoism is that embryonic breathing results in a kundalini activation, the Golden Flower, or the union of the individual with heaven and earth, the higher and lower dimensions of reality being unified into a single whole. This single whole is the Tao or universal void. 

The goal of meditation is for the individual to open the third eye by systematically cultivating the mind and body, using variations of heat yoga. All of these alchemical systems describe the human body as a crucible, which can be heated by specific practices, both internal and external, which greatly increase the overall luminosity of the mind/body continuum.

Is enlightenment elitist? To get good at something one must study and practice. There is more access to information about the various practices used to achieve enlightenment through the globalization of our information systems. The nirvana meme has gone into the advertising industry, as well as commercial sports, which use Zen concepts like the Zone or Peak Performance to enhance an athlete's psychological condition. The end result is that a spiritual, non-religious dimension is recognized in Western science as normal. What do you think?

 

 

The Tantric Shaman

Continued from Mind-Altering Practices...

From an Asian perspective, there are certain classes of non-physical beings that thrive on the energy that is generated by warfare and killing. The Tibetans have up to eight classes of beings that affect humanity in different ways. Epidemic disease is associated with a specific class of being which feeds off of the energy of the dying.

In many of the traditions of China, India and Tibet, the tantric shaman has the ability to fulfill any of these aforementioned functions when fully trained. These shamans become mahasiddhas who have united the Three Bodies. This is the highest level of power. In many civilizations, the first king or ruler was a tantric shaman. In China, this includes the Yellow Emperor and Lao Tzu.

Tantric shamans have attained power through successful practices that often include fasting and sensory deprivation, as well as sexual yoga. This type of shaman employs dreams, visions, and inter-dimensional travel in order to retrieve useful information from other realms for all the members of the tribe, clan, or community.

Shamans serve as intermediaries between the worlds of the dead and the living. Shamans have the ability to guide the souls of the departed to their next destinations. Shamans translate the inner meanings of dreams for the benefit of the tribe.

The majority of descriptions of ascending or descending (journeys to an "upper," "middle" or "lower" world) are based on shamanic intervention on behalf of a student or patient. A shaman's journey is the defining practice of shamanic visionary experience.

In many tribes in Siberia, the shaman has to have experienced eight dismemberments of the subtle body. This is one of the key characteristics of shamanic initiation. This experience of dismemberment is also the basis of the Chod practice of Tibetan Buddhism, wherein the practitioner visualizes dismembering him/herself and offering the body parts to various "guests” at the ritual feast.

Until the latter decade of the twentieth century, Western science did not include the concept of multiple worlds, but this has been the basis of the shamanic worldview for thousands of years. The Western physicists' discoveries that echo Buddhist billion-world theory have confirmed the essential shamanic worldview: there are many parallel dimensions, and our waking reality obscures our perception of these other worlds. They are always present, but most of us cannot observe or visit them. Shamans can.

Mind-Altering Practices

Shamanism is a collection of archaic mind-altering practices existing worldwide. It is associated with the origins of human civilizations. The war shaman was the leader, the king. In China, the Mandate of Heaven is originally the concept of the war shaman being permitted to enter the Tao and create a kingdom.

The shamanic path contains the original, or native medical traditions and knowledge of humanity. It also gives us the model of the ruler of the people as a warrior- philosopher-king. War, healing and bewitching are the functions of a shaman.

The war shaman is a military archetype that pervades both Eastern and Western cultures. It represents power through conquest. It is also an ancient model for leadership in many cultures.

The healing shaman is the archetype for medicine and curing. It represents power through benefiting others. It is also an ancient model for those who retrieve information from other worlds or realms that can be used for healing. Healing shamans are guided by visions, dreams, and practices that use sacred plants.

The bewitching shaman is the negative magical archetype. It represents power through coercion, deception, and illusion. Bewitching shamans parasitically prey on weaker beings. Bewitching shamans are guided by malevolent deceased ancestors.

To be continued...

Shen Spirit

The last of the Three Treasures is shen. Shen is also called spirit or consciousness. It is what gives our lives meaning and links us with our divine source. The shen is said to reside in the heart and to open through the eyes, as in, “The eyes are the mirrors of the soul.”

A doctor of Chinese medicine can tell the seriousness of a condition by looking into the patient’s eyes. Bright or clear eyes indicate that the shen or spirit is strong; then the chances of recovery are good. Clouded, glazed or unfocused eyes indicate a more doubtful prognosis.

The shen is also the seat of the mind. Cognitive thinking, short-term memory and the ability to reason are all qualities of the shen. Shen is also formed at conception, but is replenished continually thereafter.

Shen disharmonies appear as psychic or psychological problems. In Chinese medicine it is called a “restless or disturbed spirit.” Insomnia, memory loss, inability to concentrate, too much dreaming, and confused thinking are all also signs of a disturbed shen.

To the Chinese, the mind also resides in the heart. “Follow your heart, learning by heart, listening to your heart”—these all come from this belief. As these sayings are also used in the West, could it be that somewhere long ago we Westerners also knew something about this heart/mind connection?

Chi: Basic Life Force

The second Treasure is chi (qi). Chi can be thought of as basic life force. Other terms would be prana, orenda, or vital energy. It is what animates us, what gives us life. It warms us, keeps our organs in place and directs all our movements. There are different kinds of chi, including organ chi, and protective, or wei chi. The Chinese, even today, refer to the weather as a kind of chi.

One of the more familiar types of chi, at least for those of us who have experienced acupuncture, is meridian chi. This type of chi travels throughout our body in specific pathways or meridians, linking organs to each other. This is what acupuncturists tap into when they insert needles.

We get chi from the air we breathe, the food we eat and the water we drink. This is why it is so important to eat fresh, healthy food. Poor eating habits—eating too many processed foods with little chi in them will, in turn, produce poor chi in our bodies.

By understanding that all things in the universe are just different expressions of chi, one can see why the sages have always said, “All things are one, and the one is all things.”

The Three Treasures

A major practice of Taoist internal alchemy is the transformation of jing, chi and shen, often translated as essence, energy and spirit, also known as nadi, prana, and bindu in Sanskrit and tsa, lung, and thigle in Tibetan. It is in refining these three energetic areas of the body that the Taoists reached enlightenment or what they called Immortality.

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THREE TREASURES. In Taoist internal alchemy (nei dan) the Three Treasures are jing, said to reside in the kidneys and rule sexual and creative energy as well as the body constitution; chi or life energy, which has many functions in the body—circulation, digestion, breathing, holding the organs in their place, the immune system etc.; and shen or spiritual energy, which is said to reside in the heart and also regulates cognitive function as well as consciousness. The goal in internal alchemy is to transform the jing into chi, the chi into shen and then the shen back to wuji (primordial void) and then to Tao. This is done by a combination of meditation, visualization, breathwork and various chi gong practices, including sexual yoga.
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The first of the Three Treasures is jing. This is sometimes referred to as prenatal chi and is a combination of the chi of both of our parents at the moment of conception. Jing regulates our hormonal and reproductive systems, controls our growth throughout life, and regulates our central nervous system, including the brain, spinal cord and bone marrow. It also governs our constitution.

It is said that it takes seven mouthfuls of food to make one drop of blood. It then takes seven drops of blood to make one drop of jing. This is why it is called essence and considered extremely precious. This is one of the reasons that, in Taoist thought, sexual activity is not advised if both or even one of the parents is under the influence of alcohol, seriously unhealthy, or even emotionally overwrought. This will result in the baby being born with poor jing, and hence a poor constitution. Jing is said to reside in our kidneys and is also the repository of our creative and sexual energy. To the Chinese, sexual essence governs not only our sex drive and the reproductive system but our creative energy as well. Someone with strong jing will also have strong kidney energy, which translates to a solid energy body with lots of creative juices flowing.