《太上保真养生论》

The Taishang Baozhen Yangsheng Lun states: The principle that establishes Heaven is Yin-Yang; the principle that establishes Earth is the yielding and the firm; the principle that establishes humanity is humaneness and righteousness. Heaven and Earth are vast, and humans are the most spiritually endowed among the myriad things. Humans receive the Qi (vital energy) of Yin and Yang, and therefore ought especially to value their own nature and life.

The two forces of Yin and Yang of Heaven and Earth work in concert with each other, and the four seasons continually succeed one another. Placed within this, human life is as fleeting as a flash of lightning: a thought has barely arisen before it vanishes in an instant; life does not come again, and the time that has passed cannot be recaptured. Therefore, one must open the ears and eyes, expand one’s knowledge, refine the mind, sweep away heterodox thoughts, and harmonize and circulate the Ying-Wei Qi (the nutritive and defensive Qi referred to in Chinese medicine, which concern the nourishment and protection of the body).

No one becomes accomplished without study, and no one benefits themselves without practice. The Zhenren often says: “I was not born knowing these things, but acquired them through learning.” Thus, in seeking the Dao (the Way), I invariably study and hold fast to the thousand Jing (scriptures) and myriad classics; the essential lies in concentrating the mind with sincere will.

Laojun said: Heaven and Earth send down Jing (essence) and Qi (vital energy). Yin-Yang alternate to transform and nourish the myriad things, and thus the myriad things come into being. Humans also bear the karmic affinities accumulated from their own past; each is endowed with spiritual nature, and from this they gather into the various transformations of life.

When a person is conceived, the first month is called “bao,” at which time Jing and blood congeal; the second month is called “tai,” when the physical form begins to appear; in the third month, Shen (spirit) consciousness becomes active, forming the three hun souls, and life thereby begins to stir; in the fourth month, yin spirits form the seven po souls, which stabilize and sustain the body. In the fifth month, the Qi of the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water) is distributed to the five viscera, settling the mind and spirit; in the sixth month, the six pitches correspond with the six bowels, providing a support for spiritual nature; in the seventh month, the seven orifices open, allowing perception to become unobstructed; in the eighth month, the gods of the Eight Scenes are complete and the true spirit descends; in the ninth month, the palaces throughout the body are fully arranged, and life is thereby made secure; by the tenth month, Qi is abundant and every aspect of the physical form and of life has fully developed.

The Taiyi Xuanzhen resides in the head and is called the Niwan Jun (Lord of the Mud Pellet), who commands the host of gods and the hundred spirits in order to resist evil Qi, harmonize body and mind, and stabilize a person’s true original essence. From this it can be known that the Dao of cultivating the true lies in remaining quiet and holding fast, with a mind that is tranquil, simple, and peaceful; in this way life can be nourished and preserved.

The Zhenren said: Those whose Shen-intent is robust can enjoy longevity, while those whose Qi-momentum is excessive have short lives instead. Gentleness and knowing how to revere awesome power are manifestations of robust Shen-intent; stirring up anger and indulging the will are manifestations of excessive Qi-momentum.

The Perfected One said: Those whose Shen (spirit) is robust and vigorous can enjoy longevity, while those whose original Qi (vital energy) is excessively exuberant tend instead to have short lives. A gentle temperament and an attitude of reverence allow the Shen to settle in peace; raging anger, agitation, and unrestrained will cause the Qi mechanism to become hyperactive. Whenever innate gifts and abilities fall short yet one forces oneself to ponder something to the very end, this injures the will of the heart-mind; whenever physical strength cannot manage a task yet one insists on lifting a heavy load, this injures the body; whenever the capacity for planning is insufficient yet one painstakingly schemes, this injures the intellect; whenever authority is inadequate to accomplish a matter yet one stubbornly contends in anger, this injures the original Qi.

Sorrow that accumulates without dispersing weakens the hun-Shen; malicious thoughts that pile up without cease scatter the po-Shen. Excessive joy and anger make it difficult for the Shen to settle; love and hatred that fluctuate without constancy make it difficult for the Shen to remain housed in the body. Eagerly chasing desires throws the Shen into turmoil; clinging to thoughts without rest depletes the Shen. Prolonged talking and laughing injure the heart-Qi; sitting or standing for too long injures the sinews and bones; irregular sleep and daily rhythms injure the liver and gallbladder; running and leaping until panting for breath injure the stomach viscera; shouting loudly, cursing, and flying into a rage injure the gallbladder-Qi. When Yin-Yang Qi is uncoordinated, sores and warts readily appear; when sexual activity is unrestrained, fatigue and emaciation readily ensue.

A person living in this world, even if lifespan is quite long, has no more than a little over thirty thousand days. On which day is there no nourishing and repairing, and on which day is there no depletion? If one merely blames the Shen for failing to remain settled and the body for lacking robust health, yet walks backward while hoping to catch up quickly with those ahead, how could this ever succeed?

The essentials of nurturing life are as follows. Do not spit too far, do not walk too hurriedly; do not let the ears listen for too long, do not let the eyes look for too long; do not sit until exhausted, do not lie down until weary. Add clothing when you feel cold, remove clothing when you feel hot. Do not wait until extremely hungry before eating, nor eat until overly full; do not wait until extremely thirsty before drinking, nor drink too much. Overeating readily produces accumulations and swellings; excessive drinking of wine readily gathers phlegm-fluids and masses.

Do not be overly idle, nor overly toil; do not let sweat flow too abundantly, nor inhale cold air fiercely against the wind. Do not drive a carriage when drunk, nor gallop on horseback when full. Do not eat too many raw and cold foods, nor fill yourself with rich, fatty, and savory dishes. After drinking wine, do not stand facing the wind; after washing the hair, do not expose the head to wind. In winter do not dress too warmly, in summer do not indulge in coolness and catch a chill: excessive warmth in winter easily leads to epidemics in spring; excessive cold in summer easily leads to malaria and dysentery in autumn.

Do not sleep exposed under the stars and moon, do not go on an empty stomach to a place where a coffin is laid out; when sleeping do not fan yourself, nor eat with the head uncovered. When suffering intense heat do not drink cold water, when suffering severe cold do not immediately approach a stove; after bathing do not face a strong wind, when extremely hungry do not set out through dense fog.

When the Five Flavors (sour, sweet, pungent, salty, bitter) enter the mouth, one must not have preferences: too much sour injures the spleen, too much sweet injures the kidneys, too much pungent injures the liver, too much salty injures the heart, too much bitter injures the lungs. These dietary preferences disturb the Shen, hun, and po, and damage the five viscera. The injury may not appear immediately, yet over the days and months it causes the body to decline. They deplete a person’s lifespan more fiercely than an axe felling a tree; they erode a person’s life more ferociously than wolves and tigers. Their effects correspond to the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water) and secretly connect with the transformations of the four seasons. Tracing their manifestations is not without basis, and investigating the principles involved makes them even clearer; therefore one ought to treat them with caution in order to preserve a person’s original authenticity.

Eating when not hungry or drinking when not thirsty both invite injury. Forcing oneself to eat when not hungry wearies the spleen; forcing oneself to drink when not thirsty distends the stomach. The body should regularly engage in moderate activity, and diet should be regulated; labor should not reach the extreme, nor should fasting be so severe as to weaken the body. In winter do not go hungry in the morning, in summer do not eat too fully in the evening. In spring and summer one should rise early, in autumn and winter it is appropriate to retire late. Rising early should not be earlier than the birdsong, rising late should not be later than sunrise.

When the mind is clear and still, the inner true spirit can remain in its proper place; when the Qi Sea (a term in Daoism and traditional life-nurturing referring to the place in the human body where Qi gathers) is quiet, pathogenic Qi will leave the body. Acting with deceit and hypocrisy causes the Shen to grieve; flattering and fawning cause the Shen to be dejected. Envying and hating others diminishes fortune and longevity; killing living beings inevitably damages lifespan. Performing one good deed makes the hun-Shen joyful; performing one evil deed makes the po-Shen pleased. The hun governs life, the po governs death.

Therefore the heart is the ruler of the five viscera, and Qi is the force that governs the entire skeletal frame. The heart should be quiet in Wuwei (non-action), while Qi should circulate unimpeded without blockage. Thus daily activity and rest should accord with the four seasons, and mornings and evenings should be arranged with care; diet should harmonize the six fu-organs (the six digestive and excretory organs within the human body) and suit the body’s needs for cold and heat. Action takes Taihe (the state of harmonious balance) as its driving horse, and penetration takes Xuanji (the state of profound stillness) as its carrying vehicle. When the four limbs are uncomfortable from labor, one regulates and eases them through bending and stretching; when the Qi mechanism in the chest is obstructed, one dredges it through Tu-na (conscious exhalation and inhalation). One blocks the source of illness by frequently employing methods of supplementation or drainage; one expels pathogenic Qi while also maintaining a quiet and settled state of mind. Therefore when angry one should restrain oneself so that Yin Qi is not injured; when overly joyful one should gather oneself so that Yang Qi is not disordered.

The Niwanjun (the spirit of the brain in Daoism) enjoys frequent hair-combing, and the Heavenly Drum (a Daoist health-cultivation term referring to the ears) enjoys frequent ringing, here meaning massage or tapping of the ears. The eyes should look frequently, the saliva in the mouth should be swallowed regularly, the heart-mind should always be kept harmonious, and the Qi (vital energy) should always be kept in balance.

If one can persist in practicing in this way, herbal medicines may then be taken to first regulate the body’s deficiencies. After diligent and unceasing cultivation, mineral and metallic medicines may be taken to fortify the body and preserve the true Qi. Nourishing life has its own order, and preserving longevity has its methods; this is truly a wondrous technique for regulating body and mind, a profound teaching for extending years and benefiting life.

If one merely indulges the passions and desires, pursues galloping pleasures, exhausts the Shen (spirit) and labors the thoughts on cunning and deceitful affairs, greedily clings to wealth and favors, neither studying methods of protecting and nourishing the body nor carefully upholding the principles of life-cultivation, then a person may swiftly exhaust Jing (essence) and Qi amid strife and anger, and also grow increasingly haggard amid the enjoyments of sound and color. Viewed thus, it is indeed worthy of warning.

People often do not know that only when the mind is clear and still can the Shen and hun-soul be at peace; when cravings and desires arise, the inner true ling dissipates. With anxiety and unrest in the heart and the body toiling all day, it is like a swallow carrying twigs to put out a fire—the busier one is, the more futile it becomes, quickly depleting Jing and Qi and withering the physical form, which is truly lamentable.

Therefore the Zhenren (True Person, one who has attained the Dao) composed a verse saying: “Unwilling to draw near to indifference and purity, instead accompanying wild abandon and indulgence of desires. Even if it does not injure the body, it will still harm the spirit. When the spirit is damaged and original authenticity lost, this is precisely the root of injury and disability. Is the root of injury and disability empty talk?”