Celibacy ?

[Zantesuken]

is it really important to be celibate? so that means no girlfriend, no solo, no nothing? just wondering cause this one guy's post says ejaculating regularly is good for you but another said that you need to be celibate to accumulate jing (not jin).

please respond!

[Nexus]

This is a controvercial debate and I have stood at both sides of it. My feelings now are that semen retention and non-semen retention are both equally effective methods which are completely based on the needs of the individual more than on a certain system of thought.

Here is something from my experience:

I practiced the method of no ejaculation for quite a while. I "felt" like I was building up sexual energy and chi and what not from the practice of doing so. This all takes place in the mind. It is a method of learning sacrifice, discipline and non-attachment. I would say that it would be healthy to give up ejaculation for a while for the mere purpose of seeing that it actually can be done and learning to control ones sexual urges.

The idea deep beneath all of the fluff and detail is that by giving it up you learn self-control. It may be very well true that you have a lot of self-control to begin with, however for the average male giving up ejaculation is exceptionally difficult. If you can do it however, you realize that you can do a lot of things if you put your mind to it.

One of the 'dangers' in giving up sex and such is that it can snare your mind. If you 'believe' that sex and ejaculation is a hindrance on your performance than it will be. As I said I practiced semen retention for a while and felt benefits from it, however those benefits were in response to the fact that I 'belived' I would be getting benefits.

I actually do practice semen retention still for the most part, but the reasons are different now. I realize that ejaculation will not hinder my fighting ability unless I believe it will. I do practice it however because I am no longer attached to the need to ejaculate. By practicing semen retention you will learn to break the habit of ejaculation or the need to ejaculate on a frequent basis. It will be able to take place more naturally and as the body sees fit.

It entirely depends on what aspect of taoism or practices you take on. Some practices will say that semen retention is necessary. The school I study with actually tells it's members for the most part to practice semen retention, and it has good reason for doing so. I am very glad I took on the practice, for the mere ability to know that I could do so. One of the problems is people become convinced that in order to gain this you must do that, and to do this you must do that. So in order to become super-human they give up sex, avoid woman altogether and practice their martial art obsessively believing that all of these are necessary to become a super-soldier =)

If you take on those beliefs, then the tools (those beliefs) in which you are using begin to control you. I still practice the internal arts, and my methods are no less powerful than they were before.

[dfedorko@mindspring.com]

I would like to give my two cents and echo what Nexus explained to you and add that being moderate is the best common sense approach. I also try not to ejaculate as often as I would like. My training is important to me and that's why I practice a regimen given to me by a Qigong Master. The formula is: (your age) x .2(quotient thought out by Taoists)= the number of days between ejaculation.
For example, I'm 55 yrs. old x .2 = 11.0 which means I can play with the baby's mama once every 11 days. And talk about moderation, but if your training is important to you as mine is to me, you just might try it. Not that hard to do. Peace and harmony to you.

Damian

[Nexus]

I will go into some detail on the metaphysical/western explanation side of things.

My perception of what happens when a person chooses to retain semen is that in the beginning they will ideally feel an increased sexual appetite. This is what one might call increased sexual energy, as before they had very little due to their consistent ejaculation.

If a person chooses to align mentally the act of retaining semen with some sort of energy source, call it 'jing', then every day that they retain semen is another day in the mental clock that they believe they have accumulated a little more jing. Over long periods of time, the persons mental clock will tell them that they have accumulated a large amount of this sexual energy and this will have developed a willpower in the individual. This willpower, which is essentially the most pure power a human can wield is that one would use in a martial sense.

If however willpower is an area you can improve upon and need work with then this practice would be exceptionally worthwhile.

- Nexus

[dfedorko@mindspring.com]

Nexus/Zantesuken - I never thought I was building up my "jing". My perception was that I was improving my internal organs and chi circulation. Never thought of "jing' until you mentioned it
and, now that I think about it,you are correct. Since abstaining from "the dirty deed" and drinking Si Jun Zi Tang everyday for 100 days there is improvement. Now when I finish the "dirty deed" I don't feel like I have lost anything (jing etc.)and I am not tired.

[TenTigers]

both my parents were celibate.

[TenTigers]

Can a nun give up celibacy for lent?

[TenTigers]

an' another thing; is sterility inherited? I mean, that if both your parent were sterile, what are the odds that you would also be?

[TenTigers]

did'ja ever notice that Rabbis are never in the news for molesting kids? That's cuz they aren't celibate! (Jews are kewl,uh huh-huh)-said in ******** voice

[TenTigers]

-Dang! They put asterisks in place of ...um Beavis' friend's name!
censoreship ****s!

[TenTigers]

um..... I should probably stop now......

[circle_walker]

I saw a sex study on a news program where it was stated that ejaculation up to 3 times per week(they spoke of sex, nothing was mentioned of masterbation) would elevate the immune system. more than 3 x per week had no added benifits, but no harmful effects were mentioned either. I have also heard that since the male body is constanly producing sperm, and those sperm have a finite 'shelf life' your body will instictively 'purge' itself instinctively, to make room for the new guys(so to speak).

[dfedorko@mindspring.com]

I realize that this all seems funny but it works. In order to achieve anything requires work so don't knock it if you haven't tried it. Try abstaining for 100 days. I'm 55 years old and if helps me imagine what it could do for you. Disciplining the body just might be what you need. Peace and harmony to you, Ten Tigers.