Enlightenment through qigong practice

[Asger]

Lately there has been a lot of bean spilling with regards to qi and it's nature. I hope ddj will reply to this as it is mainly his words that have inspired me to ask these questions, but obviously, any reply is greatly appreciated (yes, even zach's small out-of-the-issue remarks are bid welcome)

My main request is for a short and, if possible, tangible description/destinction of Jing, Qi and Shen. I know I am better off reading a book, that is why I only dare to request a short account. I will get to reading later.

From the thread about ejaculation, it is my understanding, that in order to achieve enlightenment, one has to preserve the Jing which reside in the abdomen, then transform it into qi, which occurs above the navel, then let it rise to the head to become Shen, where it is your objective to "crush" it into emptiness.
Could you also please elaborate on "crushing"?


Oh, by the way, can one practise qi in outer space (where there is no gravity) ?? Just occured to me since i feel qi as a sort of directed gravity....

[daodejing]

So humanity has these three treasures. They are jing, qi, and shen. Jing is the most substantial of the three, it is raw and unrefined, often translated as essence. Jing is said to be stored in the kidneys (or mingmen, the gate of vitality on the spine between the kidneys, also name of a cavity inferior to the lower border of L3). Jing governs growth, development, and reproduction.

Qi is more refined than jing, it could be said to be the eternally dynamic phenomenon which is between matter and energy, but is often translated as simply energy. Qi is qi. We could right books about anyone of the three treasures for years.

Shen is often translated as spirit or mind, but I prefer to think of it as the totality of your individual consciousness.

These are the three treasures, more to come soon. Incidentally, there is not much written, and I've read written which describes in depth the stages of refining the shen into emptiness, or crushing the emptiness. I've only personally experienced as far as energizing my shen, if you bother to limit my experiences to this particular model. However, I presume this is one of many situations where, if you are capable of transcending the dillemma, you will do so.

Peace, and I apologize if I'm brief, I just came from a tequila luncheon.

[zachsan]

mmm... tequila....

[Asger]

It's all very clear to me. I'll come back when I've done it and tell you how it's like to be enlightened.

Only Kidding.

Thanks for info, gotta read more and drink more tequila... yikes!