Sun Su-Mu tells us that a man should 'become acquainted' with Taoism by the time he is 30 and 'gain a complete working knowledge'of it by 40.Priorto age 40,most men are still extremely potent and vigorous.By the time they are 40,however,they notice their potency decreasing.At the time that his potency declines,numerous ailments will come upon him.Unchecked.he will quickly find himself beyond cure.Dr.Sun
gives repeated warnings to his male patients of the dangers associated with excessive ejaculation.He makes an analogy with a sputtering oil-lamp which,just prior to being spent,suddenly flares up brightly,then dies.Whenever a man restrains himself and holds onto his semen,it's like adding new oil to a lamp that is about to go out.But if a man ejaculates each time he has sex,it's like taking oil from a lamp that is already nearly burnt out.Sun su-mu sums by saying that 'if a man wastes his semen,he will soon die.For men this is the most significant thing to remember about sex.'

By the same token,and in agreement with the PLain Girl,Dr.Sun counsels against total abstinence.The man who has no sexual intercourse
with women is prone to restlessness and longs for female companionship.
Suppressing the natural urge to expel semen on occasions not only requires great effort but in fact makes it easier to lose semen.This can come during sleep through nocturnal emissions or so-called wet dreams.A single ejaculation is equivalent to one hundred emissions during normal intercourse.Sun su-mu suggests regulating ejaculation according to one's age.

1) By 30,a man begins to lose viotality and should stop wasting semen in a reckless manner.Masturbation should be forsaken and the man should be acquainted with the Tao of Yin and Yang.(female and male energy.)

2) By 40 a man has reached a pivotal point in his life.To prevent quickly going downhill straight to the grave,which undisciplined sex causes at this stage in life,ejaculation control shoul become a habit.

3) By 50,his ejaculation should be reduced to no more than once every 20 days.

4) At 60,most men should curtail ejaculation ( but not intercourse).A man who is very healthy and has strong libido,however,can continue ejaculating about once a month,or,even better,once in every 100 coitions.

5) This program can continue right on through the 70s.Ejaculation control is important for strong,healthy males as well as for those who are elderly or not so strong.Beginning such a program early in life helps avoid the worst ravages of old age,including the loss of vital energy( for most details see books: Taoist's Secrets of Love and Multi-Orgasmic Man by Mantak Chia).

Total celibacy for most men is equally as harmful as excessive emission.It creates a strong desire for sex,which causes an imbalance of essensce,energy and spirit.Furthermore,it ultimately causes even more loss of sexxual essence and energy through the uncontrollable,intense emissions during 'wet dreams'.For those who wish to determine their own emission schedule,the methods of semen retention
introduced below must be mastered.Next,follow the guidelines given already using a trial-and-error assessment of your own vitality.A man should feel as light and refreshed after ejaculating as a woman feels after orgasm.He should not be exhausted,drained and uninterested in more sex.An ejaculation of this sort may be experienced only when the semen supply is what the Chinese term 'full' and 'flourishing'.If an emission leaves a man tired and depressed,he should add to the interval
between ejaculations.

A man may also help reduce the loss of essence and energy because semen emission by training himself to 'come lightly' on those occasions when he chooses to ejaculate.Instead of rushing headlong to a fury just before ejaculatio,advance to the edge slowly and softly and enjoy the wonderful senstion of release.Following that...