Summary:
Daoist Meditation is an interesting and effective field of study with a track record of 2000+ years of effectiveness, but it is also shrouded in obscurity and difficult to study without clear guidance.
In this three month series we will investigate the core ideas of each of the major Daoist Meditation traditions including:
Zuo Wang/Sitting in Forgetting,
Cun Xiang/Visualization,
Tu Na/Breathing Practices,
Neidan/Internal Alchemy,
and other health cultivation schools such as Dao Yin.
This course will follow a chronological approach to show how Daoist self cultivation practices developed from the earliest philosophy of Laozi and Zhuangzi all the way to the contemporary intersection of Qigong, Taijiquan and Daoist Meditation practices while teaching you the essence of each of the major schools of thought.
The classes will be based both on primary source materials from the Daoist Canon as well as the contemporary research of scholars such as Chen Yingning and Hu Fuchen.
While not textual in nature, our classes will draw on a number of key texts from each of the major genres we cover and show not only how these important health and spirit nourishing methods are performed but also how to integrate ancient and medieval ideas into today’s world.
This course is designed with beginners in mind, but it may also be interesting if you want to understand the differences between the categories of Daoist practice as well as their intersections.
Our classes will blend lecture and practice so you can get direct experience in class while receiving sufficient instruction to know how to obtain benefit from the practices in a clear way.
We will learn how modern Daoism uses each category of practice in both secular and religious contexts to clearly understand the teleology of different Daoist methodologies, since ultimately being clear about our goals can help us decide which part of Daoism to focus on in study.
Option 1: Take the whole 3 month course for $300 USD (Course is currently running, new classes released each week):
https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/meditationforbeginners
Option 2: Study each class according to your interest ($45/class including class docs, videos and any supplemental materials):
Chapter 1: Daoist Practice in the Warring States Period:
https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/daoistmeditationforbeginnersweek1
Chapter 2: Dao Yin, Breath Work and Meditation from the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC – 9 AD):
https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/daoistmeditationforbeginnersweek2
Chapter 3: Anatomy, Physiology, Metaphysics, and Visualization of the Eastern Han and Cao-Wei Dynasties (25 – 266 AD):
https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/daoistmeditationforbeginnersweek3
Chapter 4: Neo-Daoism of Wang Bi and Guo Xiang and Baopuzi’s energy cultivation exercises (283-334 A.D.)
https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/daoistmeditationforbeginnersweek4
Chapter 5: the Dao Yin and breathing techniques of Tao Hongjing (456-536 A.D.)
https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/daoismforbeginners5
Chapter 6: Sun Simiao and his Daoist Yang Sheng Methods (581-682 A.D.)
https://immortalitystudy.gumroad.com/l/daoismforbeginners6
Week 7: Early Daoist Meditations of the Sui and early Tang period (581-635 A.D.)
Qigong Project 