Nope. It really is Over 8,000 in the original comic. Read the report to find out more.

I’ve put together a brand new special report that will help you learn all the details on the Dragon Ball internet phenomenon “Over 9,000!” that is found all over the web, and I’m giving it away for free with The Dao of Dragon Ball book.

Included in this over 9 page bonus item is an in-depth analysis of the pop cultural history of “Over 9,000!” and it’s connection to the Japanese DBZ source material as well as its connection to ancient Chinese, Indian, and Japanese cultures.

The report cannot be found elsewhere and is yours free just by giving The Dao of Dragon Ball a shot. If you decide the book isn’t for you, then you still get to keep your bonus item.

You can pick up a copy of the report at the main DBZ Book website.

Post from: The Dao of Dragonball Blog

Over 9,000! Bonus Item Just Added to DBZ Book

Goku Stands in the Shadows

A visitor to the site wrote to me recently asking, “By charging people money for this information aren’t you undermining everything it stands for?”

That’s a forthright and important question.  It’s also one I’ve struggled with for years.

Truth be told, he meant no disrespect by the question, as he was coming at it from a Buddhist perspective of compassion which I completely agree with.

I’ve practiced Shaolin Gong Fu for 10 years, and have taught it for free ever since I was capable enough to do so. My family and friends have sometimes said I’m a fool to give it away for free, but for me, Shaolin Gong Fu is sacred.

Shaolin Gong Fu originates in Buddhism and is (or at least used to be) a martial art that can enable someone to attain the level of Arhat, as taught by Bhodidharma. To charge for that just seems disrespectful. Of course I can understand if it’s your business and livelihood. That’s a different situation.

It’s my understanding that the lower the level, the more complicated and expensive. A great way is simple and free. The only thing you lose is karma, and what you gain is priceless… how could someone put a price on eternal enlightenment?

Buddha Shakyamuni didn’t charge money. He asked you to let go of your attachment to money altogether. Charging money for salvation is the complete opposite of the teachings being promulgated, and is a great hypocrisy.

So that’s the battle I faced when I decided to charge for the book. I rationalize it by saying that I’m not offering salvation to people or trying to start a practice. Just, possibly, lead people to an upright practice that can truly improve their lives or even save them from a downward spiral toward somewhere they don’t want to go. But that’s up to the reader, and it isn’t the main focus of the book.

There’s still a part of me that contests, and I can see both sides of the equation. I kind of feel like I’m damned if I do and damned if I don’t, so, as the Buddha Law suggests, I try to walk the Middle Road.

Free to Perceive

Super Saiya-jin Goku

Regarding the ‘getting stuff for free’ thing. Sometimes people don’t value the lessons because they are free.

I taught a Shaolin Gong Fu class at University a few years ago. Sometimes I’d get students and sometimes I wouldn’t, even though they liked the class. They wouldn’t come because they didn’t lose anything by not coming. I imagine that if there were already a financial investment that they’d feel more obligated to show up.

On the other hand, in my senior year I had one faithful student that showed up every time. He was thin and weak in breath but loved Shaolin and wanted to become strong. He valued our time together more than anything and he reciprocally motivated me to work harder.

It essentially comes down to perceived value. What you receive might be the greatest in the universe, but if you don’t value it like the rarest diamond then you might disrespect it or even throw it away like garbage. You might figure that if you lose it, so what? But if you paid for it, even if it was a pet rock, well, by golly you’re going to value it. And the more your money means to you the more you’ll value it.

I would think that a true sage could pick a rock up off the ground and peer into its inner dimensions, the microcosmic matter and life that lay within, and truly value what’s inside, while a normal person thinks that rocks are useless and walks right by.

So it’s this little game we play here on planet Earth, giving people something they value in a way that they will perceive it as valuable. If you don’t do it like that then it’s completely up to the other person whether or not they want to value it, and it takes a lot of patience and compassion to continually wait for the person to come around. Of course, that’s what all great masters have.

The Eye of Ones’ Heart

A Blind Boy Offers a Coin to Majin Buu

I’m reminded of a scene in the Majin Buu arc of Dragon Ball Z where the Fat Majin Buu, an evil being who had a spirit of a holy and high level deity inside him (a Kaio-shin), comes across a young blind boy.

He asks if the boy is afraid of him, as everyone else in the world was terrified of his very image.  The blind boy says no, because he can’t see like other people can.

After Majin Buu realizes what’s wrong with his eyes, he places his hand on the boys face and projects energy into his head.  You think that he’s going to kill him like he does everyone else.  But he doesn’t.

After removing his hand the boy opens his eyes and can see!

The young boy receives the gift of light.  More grateful than anyone he had ever met, the boy reaches into his pocket and pulls out his only item of value, a small coin, and offers it to Majin Buu with all his heart.

Majin Buu doesn’t value money at all, but he loves food.  So he picks up the coin, bites it, and spits it out.  “Tastes yucky,” he says.  He then tells the boy to wait there and flies away.

Majin Buu travels to a nearby town where the villagers are afraid of him as usual.  He blasts one of the villagers with his energy beam and transforms into a carton of milk!  He then flies off and returns to the boy.

Majin Buu Gives the Boy Some Milk

He offers the boy the milk and and the boy is grateful for the food.  He sits with Majin Buu on the cliff for a while and they chat.  He is genuinely unafraid and enjoys the time with his new friend.

Now granted, what the boy was drinking was “made of people,” but that’s beside the point!  I chalk that up to the evil that controlled Buu’s actions and the wacky humor of Akira Toriyama.

It’s a notable moment because this was the first compassionate act that Majin Buu ever performed.  And it happened because of the boy’s perception.  His perception was different than all others, and it was the first step toward driving out the evil inside Majin Buu’s mind.  The subsequent reaction of events led to a climactic battle between good and evil that changed the world.

The Awareness of Value

A Victorious Goku Gives the Thumbs Up

In Goku’s case, he understands how to value something right from the start!

Not a single one of his masters ever charged him a penny, and what he received was priceless.  He cherished and valued every moment of it and took full advantage of their time together to learn and improve as much as possible.

Goku himself is essentially penniless and cares not for money.  He occasionally wins cash prizes from the martial arts tournaments but he doesn’t enter the tournaments for the money, he enters because he loves to fight.  Chi-Chi handles the money after he’s earned it.

From Master Roshi, to Kami, North Kaio, Kaio-Shin, Dai Kaio-Shin, all the way from bottom to top, never once do any of these teachers ask for money.

What do they ask for?  Goku’s heart.

They want him to perceive their training as valuable.  And when he does, incredible things happen.

Goku becomes their greatest student of all time.  Each teacher, in sequence, one after the other, is amazed at Goku’s progress and ability to rise up, to break down his own internal barriers and defeat himself.  That’s what makes Goku #1.

In all truth, Goku perceives everything as valuable, not just his martial arts training.  He even perceives his opponents as valuable, which is why he tries not to take away their lives.  He gives them chance after chance to redeem their wicked ways and turn around.  Whether or not they choose to do that, again, comes down to perceived value.

Could you imagine a Goku that didn’t perceive everything and everyone as valuable?  He’d either be fat and lazy like Oolong or vicious and selfish like his brother Raditz.

And Goku had been this way throughout his entire life, not just when he matured and had his own family.  Goku could see the inner beauty in even the ugliest of creatures.

Perhaps that is what made Goku the greatest master of all.

Post from: The Dao of Dragonball Blog

Perceived Value and True Masters

Goku with Angel Wings and Halo

Have you noticed divine aspects in Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z or GT?  How about similarities between Goku and a certain spiritual teacher?  Or perhaps the way in which good always triumphs over evil?

If you did notice these it’s because they’re in there!  If you didn’t, then read this to learn more.

Here are 9 specific ways in which the divine shows up in Dragon Ball:

1.   Mythically Buddhist Origin’s

Loosely based on Journey to the West, a Chinese tale of pilgrims on a holy quest for the Buddhist sutra’s of India, Dragon Ball is rife with spiritual references of an East Asian perspective.  Sun Wukong (Japanese: Son Goku), The Handsome Monkey King, is the character that Goku is based on, and Sun Wukong himself is most likely based on Hanuman, the Indian deity and warrior.

King Enma, lord of the afterlife, is based on a Chinese and Japanese deity that weighs the amount of virtue and karma on a person’s soul to determine where they should be sent, Heaven or Hell, and we find that same character in Dragon Ball.

There are a multitude of other examples and references to the Buddhist stories that Japanese children like Akira Toriyama (the creator of Dragon Ball) would have been taught while growing up.

2.  Heaven and the Afterlife

Heaven plays a big part in Dragon Ball Z as Goku spends a lot of his time up there!

After sacrificing himself to save his son’s life (and the planet himself) Goku is sent to the afterlife where his soul is judged by King Enma.  The King determines that he is pure hearted enough to ascend up to Heaven, but Kami requests a special favor of the King and asks for Goku to be trained by North Kaio, Lord of the Northern Galaxy.  King Enma agrees and allows Goku to keep his physical body, now tricked out with a super spiffy halo.

3.  Pilgrimage

The Z Warriors, with Goku in particular, travel around the world (and even other star systems) in search of the dragonballs.  They embark on a pilgrimage to find holy relics that contain the power to alter the known world, reverse life and death, grant immortality, provide untold fortune, wealth, or fulfill almost any human desire.

While on this quest they meet many new people, face and overcome countless difficulties and improve themselves with every step.  But after they achieve their goal and summon the dragon, for the most part they do completely unselfish things with them.  The underlying message is that the quest is not about finding the relics… it’s about finding your true self.

4.  Shugyo and Spiritual Ascension

Shugyo is the Japanese word for ‘training,’ but its original usage refers to ‘spiritual training,’ most notably by monks or martial artists on a path of enlightenment.

The concept found in battle manga like Dragon Ball of fight-lose-train-fight-win is endemic to the spiritual path itself, with innumerable failures experienced before success.

The act of shugyo is to physically and spiritually train oneself to overcome an external or internal demon.  You’ve only completed the training when you’ve reached a high enough level to do so, and often times the true battle comes from within, in an ever constant attempt to defeat the self, revealing the true self deeper within.

5.  Good Vs. Evil

Good and evil play an important role in many Shonen battle manga, and Dragon Ball is a perfect example.  Demon’s and the warriors to fight them always seem to spring up out of nowhere, and the dichotomy of good and evil will invariably result with good as the victor; Perhaps not in the short term, but always in the long term.

But these are not absolute values, as previously demonic characters can learn to shed their wicked notions, attachments and behaviors to become a force of good, with plenty of gray area in-between.  Lessons such as right and wrong and that it is wiser to follow a path of righteousness are as clear as day.

6.  Redemption

Redemption is a key principle in Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z.  Goku’s opponents are sometimes (though not always) able to find the error of their ways, correct their behavior and go on to lead a better life.

Piccolo is an excellent example.  By interacting with Goku and his family across a period of decades his previously demonic heart becomes soft and compassionate.  The breadth of his compassion expands so far that he ends up saving the earth and is forgiven for his crimes and allowed to ascend into Heaven.

7.  Immortals

Immortals and the quest for immortality are seen a couple of different times in Dragon Ball.  Spiritually enhanced long life has often been a sign of divine beings on earth.

Goku’s first master, Muten Roshi, is an immortal who is already over 300 years old the first time we meet him.  His life force never diminishes even though he becomes outclassed by all of his students.  His spirit, like his love of the ladies, stays ever potent.

8.  Spiritual Warriors

Almost the entire warrior cast of Dragon Ball is a spiritual warrior.  As practitioners of the martial arts, the hero’s such as Goku, Krillin, and Gohan, as well as the villains such as Vegeta, Piccolo, and Frieza employ some type of higher power in achieving their goals.  Whether that’s virtue, karma, sin, or what have you, they use a force that goes beyond normal, and by combining their mind and body with their supernormal factors they become spiritual warriors.  How far they progress on this path is limited only by their own determination and spiritual potential.

9.   God / Kami

God is the guy’s name!  Kami (the Japanese word for God, or Divine) is the title of the guardian of earth, and he watches over the planet and makes sure things stay balanced.

Much like the clockmaker analogy of the Judeo-Christian God, he doesn’t really do too much active work, sort of just keeping an eye on things, but he is always willing to lend a celestial hand when necessary, or call out to higher powers when things escalate beyond his control.

Bonus!:  Supernormal Powers

Supernormal powers are so commonplace in DBZ that the term almost loses all meaning.  Flying through the air, shooting energy beams out of the body and having enough power to destroy entire planets… All par for the course when it comes to the DBZ universe.

The Spirit Bomb (Japanese: Genki Dama) is a great example that comes to mind, where Goku summons a bit of spiritual life force from all beings within his realm of influence and combines it into a gigantic ball of virtue.  He then throws the ball at his intended target and the pure white energy works its magic.

It’s only when the everyday people of society catch witness to these powers that we are reminded that they are anything but normal.

There are several more examples that come to mind.

Have you noticed any other divine aspects that weren’t listed here?  Leave a comment with your thoughts and suggestions!

Post from: The Dao of Dragonball Blog

9 Divine Aspects of Dragon Ball Z

Piccolo and Gohan - Master and Disciple

You cannot force someone to change their heart.  The most effective long-term way to change others is to change oneself.

A common way to change someone is to directly inform, persuade, or force another person to align themselves with the way in which you desire them to change.  Barring any personal reasons for resistance, a willing and intelligent person will usually comply with the requirements of the request.

However, this direct method is primarily one of short-term change, because it is only the external behavior that has changed, not the underlying mindset or mechanisms that led to such a behavior.  Usually it will take 3 or more applications of such a method for it to ‘stick.’

In order for a person to truly change for the long-term they have to change their mindset, be willing to let go of their current notions or methodologies and make a conscious effort to change on their own behalf because it is what they want, for themselves and for others.

I have noticed adverse effects with the short-term method and subsequently avoid this method to change others directly, because doing so can be rather ineffective or even produce the oppositely intended result.  It may also produce a scenario where it’s always the ‘other person’s fault,’ which is an unnecessary judgment that often leads to stagnation in my improvement.

Rather, upon seeing what I perceive as a character flaw in others I will look within and alter or eliminate any trace of what I may see in others that I feel needs to be changed within my own character.  In so doing I become the living embodiment of a higher standard.  I look within, find any character flaw that may be present, change or eliminate it, and improve myself in the process.  I believe that this is truly ‘looking inward.’

Consequently, living in such a way will reflect onto others, in so doing I provide the person within my area of effect with an opportunity for self initiated change.

How?  They’ll see the change in character, behavior and the disparity between their behavior and my own.  Like a light that clears away the fog of their mind it will reveal the truth that was always there but once again lies before their eyes, and in a compassionate, honest and respectful way they will have a chance to change and improve.

A change at this point will be one of long term ramification because the person will have made a fundamental change in their own personal character.  Their mindset will have shifted, and that’s a big deal because any future thoughts that arise within a mind that has been altered will thus follow a different path.

It’s like construction on a road way, with cars running through it.  A road was going one direction and thoughts (cars) could only go from location 1 to 2, but now construction has occurred, and a new avenue has opened up.  The thoughts may still travel from 1 to 2, but now they can also go to three 3.  And perhaps in the future the thoughts will only travel from 1 to 3.

The idea is that this new destination is a better place, a more positive and uplifting place with a higher standard. The thoughts couldn’t reach this place before because there wasn’t a way for them to do so and they didn’t meet the standard for that realm… that realm of thought.

The most effective way to change a person’s heart is by showing them how you have changed your own.  An honest and openly direct short-term approach can work well too, and is certainly useful and necessary in many situations, but a long-term approach is most often the best approach, and it starts with changing oneself to live up to a higher standard.

Look within, work on improving your own character and take your realm of thought to a higher place.  From that moment on wherever you go you will make an impression on others and it will be an indirect, compassionate, as well as honest approach that will change their lives for the better.

Post from: The Dao of Dragonball Blog

How to Change Others for the Long Term

SSJ4 Gohan

I recently started reading a book called The 10 Natural Laws of Successful Time Management, by Hyrum Smith.  So far it has been very engaging and informative.

I’m only on the 4th chapter, but I’ve already learned (or re-learned) some of the reasons why I procrastinate on my writing for the DBZ book, or any of my other various projects.

The essential point I’ve understood is that if I don’t prioritize my life according to my own intrinsic values, and live according to those values in everything I do, that I’ll never make progress on my projects or find satisfaction in my work.  In a larger scope…  I won’t find happiness in life.  So determining what my core values are is really important.

To that end I spent some time looking within and came up with a list of core values, a law or principle I wish to live by and live up to, including what each value means to me:

• Truthfulness: The embodiment of honesty, to be true, do true actions, be upright, youthful, noble and open, to seek the truth and become a true man, my real self.
• Compassion: The embodiment of kindness, to be compassionate and merciful, genuinely aware of others in mind, speech, and body, to think of how to ease the suffering of others and take active steps toward that direction.
• Forbearance: The embodiment of forbearance, to be tolerant and enduring, to walk the middle road of temperance, be disciplined, focused, and centered in both passive and active states of life.

1. Ideals: To strive toward a higher ideal and become that which I believe is better.  To continually defeat my current self so that a greater and more true self can be revealed, to be broad minded while still attending to details, and to endure the hardships of a fool while becoming a sage.
2. Integrity: Once an ideal or standard has been met, to maintain that standard in the face of all adversity, temptations or conflicts.
3. Accomplishment: A sense of triumph, satisfaction and contentedness with life and work, grateful for the valleys that accompany the hills.  An inner harmony that is expressed outwardly and subsequently reflected back, to bask in the warmth and glow of my own existence and self-worth yet without any sense of ego.
4. Spirituality: To practice and embody my spiritual beliefs in an open, kind and respectful way.
5. Health: To maintain my state of health, be fit and free of illness.
6. Financial Independence: To be free of debt, with sources of primary and secondary income, both active and passive, using generated funds to further worthwhile endeavors within the guidelines of my other values.

What do you think?  I kept it concise and simple so as to create a constitution of my life.

The items in this list are ranked according to their priority in relation to one another.

The top 3, Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance are the highest ideals and are equal in priority and value, and I can’t just live up to one without living up to the other.

Truth contains Truth, Compassion and Forbearance.  Compassion contains Truth, Compassion and Forbearance, and Forbearance contains Truth, Compassion, and Forbearance.  To the best of my ability I have to embody all three simultaneously.

The other values are important to me as well but are numbered in order of their priority and sequence of action.  For example, I believe that financial independence is something I need to achieve and maintain, but not at the expense of my integrity or health.

What do you guys think of these values?  What are your personal values?  Do you have any personal values that you would add to this list or feel are missing?

Perhaps you’ll spend some time looking within and create a list of your own personal values to live by.  If you do, that’s awesome!  Please share it by leaving a comment below.

Post from: The Dao of Dragonball Blog

A List of 9 Personal Values I will Live By

Forbearance

I’m going to give you a hint that you may not like to hear. During your training, as you cultivate your physical body, you’re going to simultaneously increase your power and self awareness. In addition, this body will swell up with energy and drive, along with desires. The desires will seemingly come out of nowhere and you’ll want to satiate them. But I assure you that if you do satiate these desires that your improvement will be drastically hindered.

To ultimately ascend to your highest level, you must let go of these desires.

The truth of the matter is that these desires are not you. They may have been created by you at some point, or handed down to you by your ancestors, but they are not the true, original you.

Think about it: Where do your desires come from? One moment you are living life as you normally do, when all of a sudden this desire springs forth like an itch that you want to scratch. If you scratch the itch it will go away, you’ll feel relief, and come back to normalcy, but you’re not guaranteed that you won’t have another.

It is like a dog that comes to your house barking and clawing at the door for food. That dog puts up quite a racket, and it wants you to feed it. It knows you very well, and will use whatever means it has at its disposal to get you to open the door and feed it. But I’m telling you, and you know from personal experience, that when you feed that dog you may feel better in the short term, but not the long. After a certain amount of time that dog will come back and bark for more food. What will you do? Will you feed it again, and continuously do so for the rest of your life?

The more you feed the dog the bigger it gets and the more food it needs next time to be full. This food is meant for you, not the dog, and it’s a drain on your physical and mental well being.

The only solution is to starve the dog.

No matter how much it barks, claws, or cries, you cannot feed it. The dog will become angry, and you’ll have to endure the pain of its yelps, but all the while the dog will become weaker and smaller. As it fears for its life it will come up with crafty and subtle ways to trick you into opening the door. You have to resist.

If you can do so completely, then the dog will vanish and you will be liberated.

The reality is that this beast is not your responsibility, and it never was. You did not come here to feed it and make it happy. It came to you to make its self happy. You came here to return to your original, true self, and attain complete liberation. Where you’re going you cannot take that beast with you. It’s only a matter of when, not if, so you might as well forbear and speed up the process. Just like putting down a large weight that you’ve been carrying for too long, you’ll feel relief in the lightness of your mind and body.

So stop feeding the beast. Stop scratching that itch. Forbear!

Post from: The Dao of Dragonball Blog

Stop Feeding the Beast – A Lesson on Forbearance

Goku Smiles

How do you know what you know is the truth?  Because you believe it to be.

Those who cannot enlighten to higher truths believe that the truth at their level is the highest, and they believe in all that they can see at their level and below them, with the presumption, based on observable information and incite, that their current level is the highest.

If you don’t believe that there may be a higher truth than the one you currently know then you will forever be positioned at that level.

Saying “I do not know” opens the door for potential improvement.

It does not necessarily mean that one will improve, rather, it implies that the walls built up around a person’s current understanding of truth are not insurmountable.  The easier it is for a person to let go of their preconceptions the easier it is for them to understand that their may be higher truths.

In other words, the more doggedly a human beings clings to their notions the more difficulty they have in breaking into new grounds and achieving higher levels.  The more attachments weigh them down, the heavier their minds and bodies, and the more difficult it is to rise up.

It’s not wrong for a human being to have notions.  It is one of many things that make us human.  But if a person can take one step back they will see a boundless new perspective.  Continue stepping back and at each level they will witness an even grander truth.

At this point one may think “That previous truth may be true at that particular level, but not entirely so at this level.  What I now see is the truth.”

They may have a faint glimpse that there is something beyond even this, but they will not fully understand it.  Just as man gazes into the endless starry night–the swirling galaxies and universe–and ponders the heavens, his realm of thought is still stuck within the terrestrial… Within this little box.

To drop our preconceived notions and continue stepping back is to open our mind to greater wisdom, to enlighten to principles and standards that are above our current position.  If a person can truly do this then he has the potential to ascend.

A person who does not come with preconcieved notions has the potential to enlighten quickly.

Post from: The Dao of Dragonball Blog

“I Do Not Know” and Ascension

Goku Faces Towards the Light

I recently received a question from a visitor to the main Dao of Dragonball Book site.  He asked “What of Falun Dafa is similar to Dragon Ball?”  This post reveals the relationship between personal cultivation, Goku, and Falun Dafa.

As visitors to the site may know, Dragonball is what actually led me into the martial arts.  I started with Shaolin Gong Fu, progressed into Tai Qi, and then Qi Gong, and eventually Falun Dafa.

As I practice Falun Dafa I am able to gain a higher understanding of the three universal principles of Truth, Compassion, and Forbearance.  Looking through these three principles at Dragonball, and Goku especially, I see a lot to relate to in my own life.

If you look at Goku through this lense, for example, you can see all three principles.

He is a completely True person, and he is very honest and genuine.  His mind is simple and straightforward and he does what he feels is right.

Goku is a very Compassionate person even when he fights his opponents, because he does not fight to win… He fights so that he does not lose.  The only reason he fights at all is to protect those who cannot protect themselves, and to simultaneously raise his level and improve himself.  Training and sparring allow both himself and his training partner to improve, and he places more of the emphasis on his partner, so that in time he will also rise up.  He thinks of others first and is so sensitive and broad minded that he can fight for the salvation of the entire universe and all sentient beings.

He is also a very Forbearing and tolerant person who can go through the most extreme examples of pain and suffering and come out the other side a savior, and he always gives his opponents more chances to redeem themselves.  This tolerance to allow their redemption even while enduring blows is what turns TenShinHan, Piccolo, Vegeta, Majin Buu, and others, into his allies.  He looks past the character flaws and directly into their hearts, and gives them time to turn around and walk an upright path.

Throughout Goku’s life he always takes the road of personal cultivation.  During this process he struggles with his inherent Saiya-jin emotion, compassionate human upbringing, balances his personal aspirations with responsibilities, and fights against external interference.

At each stage of his journey he faces greater and more challenging opponents and trials, and each one causes him to look inward and rise up to meet the challenge.  Goku is able to quickly and consistently improve because he is always looking inward at how to better himself in response to the higher standards suddenly placed on him.

On the other hand, Vegeta is always looking outward.  He constantly strives to defeat Goku, his rival.

When Vegeta pushed harder and harder to attain Super Saiya-jin, in a jealous and competitive response to Goku’s progress, it is noteworthy that no matter what he did he was not able to reach that level.  It is only while on the asteroid, facing life and death, alone, that he gave up his attachment to this pursuit and finally focused inward.  When Vegeta let go, enlightenment followed.  The void within was filled with something greater.  He lost the attachment, and he gained first level enlightenment.

Falun Dafa is a complete cultivation system that helps practitioners focus on looking inward, let go of attachments, correct incorrect notions, and eliminate karma.  Practitioners do so in the midst of society and do not shy away from conflict.  It is an extremely quick way to improve one’s character because it focuses directly on the mind.

As I walked the path of cultivation and watched Dragonball at the same time, I could not help but notice the similarities, and that is where the idea for The Dao of Dragonball originated.

The difference of course is that Falun Dafa is a cultivation system to be practiced by real people, and Dragonball is a cartoon show.  Dragonball cannot be used as true spiritual guidance, only perhaps for reflection upon your own path.  It’s simply that Falun Dafa was so powerful in helping me better understand the show.

Falun Dafa also helps a person better understand East Asian culture, which allowed me to see Goku’s beginning as Son WuKong, and his alterations from an Indian deity, to Buddhist hero, to Japanese pop culture icon.  Furthermore it is a grand awareness of all spiritual cultivation paths, including those of the West.

The Dao of Dragonball is a vehicle for explaning higher level principles and the meaning of life, and it does so through the medium of Dragonball, a pop cultural phenomenon that millions can relate to.

Post from: The Dao of Dragonball Blog

How Does Dragonball Relate to Falun Dafa?

The Dragon Ball Z Legend

The Dragon Ball Z Legend: The Quest Continues

The Dragonball Z Legend: The Quest Continues says right on the cover “An essential source for every anime fan”. To that, book cover, I say you are wrong. Entertaining perhaps, but certainly not essential, even for Dragonball nuts.

The books design is a series of Q & A. Fifty-Four (54) questions related to series’ trivia are posed and then answered in a couple of pages each. Unfortunately while the answers tend to be fairly on target, more hardcore fans will recognize numerous errors, and this gets frustrating after a while. Luckily the questions are varied and the answers are comical.

Every few pages there are advertisements for Dragonball paraphernalia, such as action figures, statues, and collectibles. They are kind of nice to see as they shine the spotlight on Dragonball’s incredible marketability and success, but it begins to feel more like a toy catalog than a book about Dragonball.

The books layout is quite nice. The arrangement of the pages, the silhouettes of the dbz characters and the page art combine to make it feel unique and easy to read. It should be noted here that aside from the action figures and toys there are no pictures from the series itself, only silhouettes of the characters. I presume this is for legal reasons, as the book is not authorized by the owners of the Dragonball license.

The Quest Continues is filled with trivia, but after completing the book it just doesn’t feel complete. It’s not an easy task to create something that contains the entirety of Dragonball Trivia (thousands upon thousands of facts), so it’s not as if I expected it to be a tome, but it kind of let me down. However if you go in knowing that the book is just the tip of the iceberg than I think you’ll be satisfied.

The Dragonball Z Legend is written for casual fans of the series. It is not an essential Dragonball guide, and it is written more for insiders who already know this stuff, so it’s somewhat fan service-esque. It’s got just enough to keep you interested and reading but is filled with inconsistencies and trivial errors that will annoy you as you do, creating a weird situation where I wonder just who this book was written for.

For the pickier types of fan I say stay away, and read about the trivia elsewhere, but for casual fans it will prove to be entertaining and thought provoking.

DBZ Book Information:

By Satoshi Ikeda & Martin Foster
Published by Cocoro Books and DH Publishing
Price: $11.95
Pages: 188
ISBN: 0-9723124-9-8

Post from: The Dao of Dragonball Blog

Dragonball Book Review - The Dragonball Z Legend: The Quest Continues

Pojo's Unofficial Dragonball Z Cards Simplified

The Dragonball Z Collectible Card Game (CCG) premiered in 2000 with the Saiyan Saga starter decks and booster packs. There are now over eighteen expansions and several rare and promotional cards to play around with. The CCG’s purpose is to play mock battles in Dragonball with your favorite DBZ characters and abilities, mixing and matching fighting styles and combat techniques to come out the victor. Pojo’s Unofficial Dragonball Z Cards Simplified: A Player’s Guide details the origins of the game, the various cards, and strategies from winners of national tournaments.

The book starts off with a nice introduction to the Dragonball series and is a suitable primer for those unfamiliar with the topic. Of course there’s no substitute for watching the show or reading the comic book, but it sets you up for the rest of the contents. It follows with a description of the various card types, such as Physical Combat, Energy Combat, Non-Combat, Dragon Ball’s, Battle Grounds and Locations, and Mastery cards. It then breaks those down into different fighting styles, including Red, Blue, Black, Orange, Saiyan, and Namekian along with descriptions of what makes each one unique.

Overall it gives a pretty good idea of what the game contains, but it doesn’t actually include the rules, so you’re left trying to piece together how the game is played from the descriptions of cards and strategies therein. I suppose this is because the rules change frequently with each new release of cards, and it would have been difficult to summarize all of the rules into a few pages, but it would have made a lot more sense to me if they had tried.

Layout and graphic design of A Player’s Guide is excellent, with full color pictures of all the DBZ cast members, sections laid out in different colors, and an overall DBZ theme throughout. There are a few minor complaints, like the typesetting in certain places, but that doesn’t affect the content in any way. The large pages are pleasing to the eye and pull you in deeper.

Near the conclusion they list all of the cooler cards that were released over the three year period since the game started and the book’s release. It includes a top 10 list of each Saga (Box Set), and provides really great (and useful) information for any player of the game.

In the end I was really pleased with Pojo’s Unofficial Dragonball Z Cards Simplified: A Player’s Guide, and it actually got me thinking about starting to play the CCG myself. There are probably tournaments still going on in the neighborhood hobby shop, and it might be fun to drop by and throw down a few Kahemameha’s.

DBZ Book Information:

Editor in Chief - Bill Gill, AKA “Pojo”
Published by Triumph Books
Price: $9.95
Pages: 96
ISBN: 1-57243-600-X

Post from: The Dao of Dragonball Blog

Dragonball Book Review - Pojo’s Unofficial Dragonball Z Cards Simplified: A Player’s Guide