Moon Muses

Are We Forgetting How to Think?

Jakob Nielsens Alertbox article titled Write Articles, Not Blog Postings made me realize how common it is to talk about what other people are talking about, with the result being more watered down and significantly less focused.

What’s a Blue Moon?

First I discovered that it might have actually been MAY that had the blue moon, and not June, as my Qigong calendar shows. Now I find out that the working definition of “blue moon” is actually based on a mistaken interpretation from an old Farmers Almanac.SkyandTelescope.com – Moon – What’s a Blue Moon? So a “blue moon” is not the second full moon in a calendar month, but rather the third Full Moon in a season which has four. According to the trendy definition, there won’t be another blue moon until December 2009. But by the original definition, there will be one in either February or May (depending on how you calculate the start of the season using the Maine Farmer’s Almanac’s rule or the astronomical seasons’ rule). Still have questions? Check out Blue Moon Frequently Asked Questions.

Coach-Two-Win

Some people I know are really good at coaching. My perfectionist family was not, so I’m having to learn how from other people who are willing to share the information. This guy came highly recommended by Bill Harris, from Centerpointe , so I’m going to give this a try on a few things: Coach-Two-Win.

Can Our Intentions Influence Reality?

Yesterday we received a paperback edition of The Intention Experiment, by Lynne McTaggart. The book describes some practical methods for learning to focus your intention. One that I like involves trying to get your child to do the dishes – now there is something that has immediate value for me! They are performing group experiments over the web where they try to get thousands of people to focus their intention on changing reality somewhere else, with the eventual goal of changing reality in a positive way. It should be interesting to see how this develops…

Flip-Flop Cake » Pink Cake Box

I saw this url in a WordPress plugin example, and wondered if it was a real site. Sure enough, they’ve got amazing cake designs! It would be fun to do The Scream for Aaron’s birthday, or Starry Night for Molly’s. Flip-Flop Cake » Pink Cake Box Wedding Cakes & more

Qigong & Women’s Health

Darci spoke at today’s Spring Forest Qigong guild meeting on the topic of women’s health. She has been studying qigong with Master Chunyi Lin for 10 years, and she is one of the healers at the Spring Forest Center for Health, Wellness & Empowerment. Darci recommended these active exercises as being particularly helpful for women:

1. Breast massage – do this in the morning and in the afternoon (or at night). Rub your hands together. Close your eyes, smile, and place your intention in your heart. Put the middle of your palms on your nipples, then massage quickly but gently in circles inward toward your heart. Do this 36 times. Then change direction and do it again 36 times. You can repeat this two more times. Then raise your hands slightly above your breasts and take 3 deep breaths.
2. Tap sacral area with open fist. This is a good thing to do every time you get up from your desk at work. It can help menstrual cramps.
3. Bottom of the torso (perineum) massage. This one can help fibroid tumors, problems with ovaries, help with conception, and provide better lubrication. When this point opens, there will be a dip between the genital area and the anus. Put your middle finger (which is a heart point) on the area and massage clockwise 36 (or 101) times, then massage counter-clockwise the same number of times.
4. Link your hands together and massage abdomen back and forth below the lower dantien.
5. Moving of the yin and yang. This opens the front and back channels, can heal the spine and all the organs connected to it. It also clears the front channel (heart). Darci said that unhealthy emotions in women go directly to their ovaries. The benefits of this one are that it makes you more grounded and it clears the heart, which can also help menstrual cramps. Start with your right hand over your heart and your left hand over your lower dantien. Slowly bring your left hand up along the energy channel in front of your torso and bring your right hand down on the outside. Then bring your right hand up on the inside and your left hand down on the outside. Do this slowly for a long time. Women should finish with their right hand in on their stomach and their left hand on the outside. For men , it is the opposite.
6. Small universe sitting meditation. This one should be done daily. The twelve points were chosen because it is easy for blockages to occur there and/or there are lots of energy channels there. (The twelve points are: lower dantien, bladder, bottom of the torso, bottom of the spine, lower back, kidney area, C7 vertebra in the spine, base of the skull, top of the skull, third eye, throat, heart) The small universe is good for the bladder, which helps with lubrication, the bottom of the torso and sacral area.

She said that when women are menstruating or pregnant that they are more vulnerable to blockages and infection, so those are not good times to have sex. Darci said that it is not a good idea to fast during those times either, for the same reasons.

Breast cancer is an emotional and spiritual issue for many women today. We need to practice more love, kindness, and forgiveness. We may have negative messages at a cellular level that we have picked up from our society, family, or spiritual community. It is important to clear ourselves of these messages on spiritual, emotional, physical, and mental levels. Women need to practice more self nurture, self love. Americans avoid touching their own bodies, because of shame or guilt (where do these come from?).

Darci practices active exercises for two hours every morning. She also recommends doing small universe every day.

“You don’t have to look like a guru, you don’t even have to look cute. You just have to show up.”

Sex uses kidney energy. It is extremely important to warm the body up before having sex. Foreplay is needed physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. So it is important that you be with someone you love. Your qi will be depleted if you don’t warm up. We are all energy beings. Sex is a time when you are uniting two energies, so it is incredibly important who you choose to be with.

Choosing exciting places is not a good message, because it introduces fear of getting caught and shame if you do get caught. Aggressiveness can be very hurtful to the other person, and can cause prolapsed uterus/anus. Having an orgasm releases kidney energy, so it is harmful to have sex 3-4 times per week. [What about sexual ankhing?]

If you are trying to conceive, don’t try every night. Once per week is best. Find a safe and comfortable place. It should be a time when you will not be rushed, e.g. 10pm-1am. Avoid times when it is stormy or there is bad weather.

Sound healing:

• Kidney sound is who (visualize energy going to your kidneys)
• Liver sound is she (visualize energy going to your liver)

You’d think I’d know how to sit by now

Turns out, all these years of practice have only reinforced bad technique:
Meditation posture, technique and instruction describing sitting technique which brings optimal results from your sitting practice, whether kneeling, seiza, lotus, or burmese positions. seiza benches

Go Fish!

Yesterday I started reading the Fish! book, which made me want to see the video. A fish video is available, but it is incredibly expensive (sadly). No wonder John Cleese went into doing business videos…

Animated Knots by Grog

If I ever need to know how to tie a double windsor tie knot, or any other kind of knot, I’m going to check out Animated Knots by Grog, which has videos demonstrating how to tie all kinds of stuff.

Happiness Hypothesis

Finding Modern Truth in Ancient Wisdom