Damo Mitchell is an author, teacher, and student of the internal arts of Asia including Tai Chi and Daoist Inner Alchemy.

Damo recounts his childhood of fear, inadequacy, and martial arts. And recalls how his rage, born from childhood trauma, was healed by the direct energetic intervention of a Daoist master.

Damo shares his adventures throughout Asia, seeking authentic teachings of inner spiritual alchemy and internal martial arts, baiting teachers into fights to test their skills, and eventually discovering hidden lineages of spiritual and energetic transmission.

Damo also explains the Taoist theory of the Dan Tien, why this crucial idea is so often misunderstood even by advanced practitioners of spiritual alchemy, and reveals his own encounters with paranormal powers such as electrokinesis and pyrokinesis.

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Video version: https://www.guruviking.com/podcast/ep174-daoist-inner-alchemy-damo-mitchell

Also available on Youtube, iTunes, & Spotify – search ‘Guru Viking Podcast’.

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Topics include:

00:00 - Intro

00:57 - From martial arts to inner alchemy

03:35 - Childhood fear and inadequacy

05:39 - The limits of martial arts for personal growth

08:20 - The pros and cons of martial arts

09:51 - UFC vs traditional martial arts

11:53 - Practical combat vs spiritual development

14:48 - The problem with Chinese martial arts

17:14 - Confusion of the purpose of training

20:37 - Geoff Thompson and radical combat effectiveness as a spiritual portal

23:16 - Damo’s rage stemming from childhood trauma

25:38 - Early meditative experiences

27:49 - Damo’s childhood meditation system

29:36 - Two types of practitioner

31:00 - Leaving school and travelling to Asia

33:03 - Dead ends when seeking teachers

34:12 - Secrecy in Chinese arts

35:10 - Reflecting on the dead ends

37:34 - Baiting teachers into fights

38:25 - How Damo found real siddhi and internal power

40:41 - The truth about Fa Jin

43:34 - How a controversial master healed Damo’s rage and trauma

48:27 - Damo analyses his chi healing

50:10 - Damo’s life fell apart

52:03 - Full engagement with the spiritual path

53:27 - Calibrating breakthrough experiences

55:14 - Damo on the Self

59:23 - Daoist inner alchemy

01:03:35 - Damo’s inner alchemy journey

01:07:05 - Misconceptions about the dan tien

01:09:20 - Building and filling the dan tien

01:11:04 - Breath work in inner alchemy

01:13:52 - Optimising efficiency

01:14:40 - Enlightenment in Daoism vs Buddhism

01:18:03 - Immortality in Daoism

01:19:34 - Meeting immortals

01:21:15 - Siddhi as evidence of progress

01:22:39 - Electrokinesis and pyrokinesis siddhi

01:24:45 - The importance of morality

01:27:43 - How Damo’s teacher challenges his morality

01:29:35 - How to improve one’s morality and conduct

01:34:03 - Sex and Daoism

01:38:31 - Learning Chinese

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To find out more about Damo Mitchell, visit:

- https://damomitchell.com/

For more interviews, videos, and more visit:

- www.guruviking.com

Music ‘Deva Dasi’ by Steve James