Thracian Bard
Fri, 22 Jun 2001 17:01:16 -0700
Dear Rasheed, I am excited to find some of my fellow colleagues in the study of the MOQ, also drawn to the I Ching. As library material the I Ching can seem quite vague and not particularly viable. The reason seems to be that the I Ching is a dynamic and living text which lies dormant like the trapped opossum, until it is set free of the shackles of academia. To realize its true potential I recommend the following activities. 1. From your post it appears that the translation that you have been studying is that of Wilhelm or a derivation his original translation. I prefer the translation by Taoist Master Alfred Huang entitled THE COMPLETE I CHING. Upon obtaining that translation, I recommend reading all of the prefaces, the introduction, Flying with the I Ching, and the chapters concerned with the first two gua, Qian and Kun, which represent Heaven and Earth, respectively. 2. Before proceeding further, obtain 50 yarrow stalks (these will aid you in your studies as the I Ching must be read in a cyclical fashion and never from beginning to end if it is to come alive.) 3. Each day at sunrise, manipulate the yarrow stalks as described in your reading while emptying your mind through breathing, vocalizing mantras, or any other technique that you may have developed. 4. As you read from the chapters of the I-Ching that result from that day's practise with the stalks, in accordance with Master Huang's instructions, focus on the fact that nothing is naturally static. As you embark on your daily journey, open your mind to all possibilities, observing how the morning's lessons might describe what you are experiencing. In every moment of the day, try to feel yourself connected to everything around you as if the natural universe is just one interconnected life form. 5. Each evening at sunset, review your experiences of the day consulting that morning's studies. I hope that by employing these methods and others which you will certainly discover on your own journey, that you will find the I Ching as mind-blowing as I have. The Bard p.s. I too have found much of OSHO's writing extremely lucid. The man had a profound understanding of human nature. ----- Original Message ----- From: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Friday, June 22, 2001 5:16 AM Subject: Re: MD mescaline > Thracian, David, Matt, everyone else, > > first off i really liked Thracian's post. i think it was the Zen monk Osho > who compared enlightenment to an island only reachable by boat; many types of > boats, ie, different methods. He said the problem was when too many people > burdened themselves with their boats after they had been enlightened, > ignorant of the fact that the boat is meaningless when enlightenment is > reached. Ive never used drugs before and im also pretty sure i haven't been > enlightened yet, tho i have lots of time left (that sounds a little too > anti-Buddha, doesn't it?). However, im still against drugs as gateway to the > essence of existence simply because i see enlightenment as a goal to be > struggled for for years, not just something to be experienced in an instant > thru a pill or injection. well, maybe David wasnt necessarily talking about > enlightenment, but it's still a personal belief that meditation and prayer > can better bring about lasting satori as well as clearer perceptions of > reality. and that's not to say that i think drug users are bad and misled; i > have absolutely no problem with it at all (half my friends do it) and im > definitely not the preachy type, as i hope im not sounding in this post. > Drug use to me, however, seems kind of like an explosion of DQ with no static > latch with which to progress. It seems like this euphoric experience for a > few hours before reality hits and then one finds he is back where he started. > but who knows, maybe i need to try some drugs to actually have any grounds > to talk about this stuff. > > Rasheed > > PS. Thracian, im in the middle of the I-Ching right now- #50, The Cauldron- > and i want to ask how you can incorporate most of that stuff into a > practical, day-to-day context. i know that's a general question, and a > general answer will do. it's very insightful, i just struggle with > statements like 'preserve the yin energy, while advancing the yang' (that's > not an actual excerpt) and while i understand their meaning, i dont know how > to practically use them. > > > MOQ.ORG - http://www.moq.org > Mail Archive - http://alt.venus.co.uk/hypermail/moq_discuss/ > MD Queries - [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > To unsubscribe from moq_discuss follow the instructions at: > http://www.moq.org/md/subscribe.html > > MOQ.ORG - http://www.moq.org Mail Archive - http://alt.venus.co.uk/hypermail/moq_discuss/ MD Queries - [EMAIL PROTECTED] To unsubscribe from moq_discuss follow the instructions at: http://www.moq.org/md/subscribe.html