《玄珠心镜注(衡岳真子)》

The so-called “One” is the root before Heaven and Earth took form. Qi (vital energy) is the profound source of the generation and transformation of the myriad things; Laozi reluctantly gave it the name “Dao” (the Way). The origin of the life of all things is precisely the initial stage when chaos has not yet differentiated: deep, dark, and obscure, without name and without form—this is what is called “nature.” It has neither a traceable beginning nor an end, so remote that it cannot be exhausted, so profound that it is hard to fathom; it contains Yin Qi, exhales and inhales Yang Qi, causing the sun, moon, and stars to appear, vast enough to encompass Heaven and Earth, and subtle enough to enter the finest hair-tip. If anyone in the world can comprehend it, they may be said to have understood the origin of the “One.”

Lord Lao said to the Perfected Yin: “The Dao I contemplate originally arises from the deep darkness and obscurity; the ignorant cannot recognize it and merely think they happen to have been born into the world.” He also said: “I embrace the primordial Qi and guard the ‘One,’ and thus I transcend the mundane world and become an immortal.” These words all come from the Xisheng Jing.

The Neiguan Jing explains the origin of the “One” as follows: “The Dao cannot be seen; it is made manifest by relying on the prolongation of life; life cannot last eternally and must be protected by relying on the Dao. If life and the Dao can unite as one, the immortal can endure forever.” The so-called “unity of life and the Dao” means that body and mind enter the formless realm and merge into one with the Dao.

The Huangdi Yinfu Jing says: “One who understands this principle and cultivates it is called a sage.” It also says: “Observing the Dao of Heaven and following the laws of its operation is sufficient.” And further: “The principle of Yin-Yang mutual constraint is already clearly manifested in the images of the myriad things.” These are all words spoken by those who truly understand the profound origin of the transformations of life.

This origin of the “One” is not something received from Heaven.

This sentence states that if anyone in the world comprehends and attains the fundamental Dao (the Way) of the “One”—that is, the origin of the Dao—they will be able to endure hardship and content themselves with solitude, concentrating the mind and gathering the Shen (spirit) while cultivating the physical form. In this way the spirit naturally coalesces, the body seems to dissolve, and the bones and flesh appear as if melting; the person unites with the primordial source that generates all things, becoming able to shed the old form, differentiate the bodily shape, pass in and out between being and non-being, remain present or vanish while seated, and fly through Taixu (the Great Void). Once this principle has been understood, one should hold to it with firm resolve. After prolonged practice the effects will gradually appear, like an echo answering a sound or a shadow following a form; there is no need to wait for celestial beings to arrive as teachers and transmit ritual methods before beginning cultivation.

Nevertheless, if there is an enlightened master in the world who has thoroughly grasped this method and reached the realm of “transforming into nothingness” (hua wu)—causing the physical form to return to emptiness—who can likewise appear or vanish while seated and fly through Taixu, then one may take such a person as teacher, receive the teaching in faith, and cultivate accordingly. The essential point lies solely in the quality of one’s own aspiration. When success in cultivating the Dao is achieved, one will associate with immortals and sages; at that time further ritual methods will be transmitted or numinous medicines bestowed. These matters cannot be predetermined in writing.

The Perfected of Great Nonbeing

This sentence states that among the ranks of celestial Perfected the status attains the very highest.

The Unsurpassed Immortal

This sentence states that among celestial immortals the status attains the very highest. If people of the world obtain the root of the “One,” embrace and guard the primordial Qi (vital energy) while cultivating with single-minded concentration, then upon succeeding in the Dao, with the Shen concentrated and settled, they may shed the old form and ascend to Yuqing (Jade Purity, one of the highest heavenly realms spoken of in Daoism); or they may be granted the title of “Perfected of Great Mystery,” or conferred as “Unsurpassed Immortal.” The specific functions of cultivation and the corresponding responses will be recorded in detail below.

Light Containing, Shadow Concealing

This statement means that when a practitioner is about to attain the rank of a high Zhen (a high-ranking immortal true being), cultivation has already reached a certain degree, and the state of “light contained, shadow hidden” first appears: the bones and flesh seem as if melting, and the spirit (Shen) condenses within the bodily form. This is called “heavenly light illuminating from within.” In other words, the pure Yang Shen-Qi (spirit and vital energy) fills the body, so that naturally no shadow is shown, and this is therefore called “shadow hidden.” Once practice has accumulated to this stage, even if one wished once more to be stained by worldly dust and defilement, there would be no means of becoming stained.

On this path of cultivation, results come sometimes swiftly and sometimes slowly. It is regrettable that few in the world possess the endowment of a high immortal; who then can devote themselves wholeheartedly to the practice? If one has such endowment and moreover meets an enlightened teacher, this too is a natural opportunity. The presiding officials among the immortals will secretly assist and bring the matter to fruition; the Great Dao (the Way) will not fail those who resolve to cultivate the Dao.

Form Arises Naturally

This statement means that the practitioner of Shouyi (guarding the One, that is, single-mindedly holding to the Dao within the body), after undergoing arduous cultivation, will naturally manifest the state of “light contained, shadow hidden”; in the deep and indistinct trance, the physical form will also naturally condense and be accomplished. Therefore the Xisheng Jing (Scripture of Western Ascension) says: “Suddenly form takes shape from the midst of nothingness; one must know this is not ordinary generation and transformation.” It further says that before the form has condensed, it resides in the obscure darkness, where pure Yin and pure Yang unite and have not yet each manifested and separated. The scripture also says: “From within the formless, form is generated; within the obscure darkness appears the light of Xi-Yi (the subtle Dao that cannot be seen or heard).”

Upon reaching this realm, one can enter and exit being and non-being, and divide the body into a hundred million; upward one may have audience with Yuqing (Jade Clarity, the celestial realm where the honored deities of Daoism dwell) and dwell serenely in Taiji (the Supreme Ultimate, a celestial domain according to Daoism); in the human world one can conceal one’s traces, keep far from worldly turmoil, and feel no vexation.

True Peace Is Not Sought

This statement means that after the Dao is accomplished, the form condenses within the body, not brought about by external force, nor something that can be achieved through cleverness. The practitioner must let the heart-mind return to profound stillness, without attachment, and let the body likewise no longer cling to the physical form; if one still clings to body and mind, the spirit cannot condense.

The Prolonged Residence of the Spirit

(The original text at this point consists only of the heading, with no corresponding commentary provided.)

When the practice of guarding the One—that is, concentrating on protecting the primordial spirit and unifying the mind-spirit—reaches a certain degree of accomplishment, the Shen (spirit) condenses, and the true form (the true body that manifests in cultivation) comes to reside stably in the “Ziguan.” The so-called Ziguan refers, for men, to the Qihai (the sea of Qi (vital energy) in the Dantian (energy center) region) and, for women, to the sea of blood. When the true form dwells in the Ziguan, this is called the long-term residence of the Shen. This occurs not through clever stratagems or external force, but solely through concentrated guarding of the spirit and long, arduous accumulation; only after many years does the form become visible.

In summary, the Xisheng Jing (Scripture of Western Ascension) states: “If the Shen does not leave the body, then lifespan has no limit.” It further says: “Hide the person within the person without revealing it, hide the body within the body without showing form; thus the heavenly Dao (the Way) flourishes.” And again: “The heart that is without heart, the body that is without body—this is called Dao (the Way).” So long as a person can keep the Shen from departing the body, they naturally remain in lasting companionship with the Dao. The scripture also declares: “The Shen generates the physical form, and the physical form in turn generates the Shen; thereafter form and Shen unite.”

The phrase “when beauty and goodness are present, there is truth” refers to the moment when Yin-Yang are in harmonious and beautiful balance: the Shen has just begun to condense, the true form appears clearly, and it transforms with complete freedom. The Dao’s generation and transformation of the myriad things proceeds in the same way, except that it cannot remain so indefinitely.

The phrase “the nature of the body is both hard and soft” describes how the Dao condenses to become a Zhenren (a perfected person who has attained the Dao). Its physical form appears formless yet possesses form, and its nature combines both hardness and softness. As for softness, nothing in the world is more yielding than darkness, and darkness itself has nothing more yielding than the Dao. The Dao can also be hard and strong because it encompasses heaven and earth and penetrates all things. Even metal and stone, though hard and strong, are thoroughly permeated by the Dao. Therefore it is said that nothing in the world is softer than the Dao, and nothing is harder than the Dao. The body accomplished by the Dao can likewise penetrate metal and stone: in its greatness it encompasses heaven and earth; in its smallness it enters a speck of dust.

“Danxiao Bixu” designates the region of the Three Pure Ones (Sanqing, the three pure realms of Daoism) and also the Jade Capital and Golden Towers (Yujing Jinque, the dwelling of Daoist immortals). The body accomplished by the Dao can likewise penetrate metal and stone, great enough to encompass heaven and earth, small enough to enter a speck of dust.

This sentence explains that “Danxiao” and “Bixu” are the realms governed by the Three Pure Ones (Sanqing) and the location of such heavenly palaces as Yujing and Jinque, where the various Celestial Worthies, Emperors, and Sovereigns all dwell. Those who attain “the One” (the fundamental Dao spoken of in Daoism) and steadfastly persevere in cultivation until the Dao is accomplished and the Shen (spirit) coagulates will all return to this place and take their rank among the heavenly officials; those who reach the highest levels of practice will even become honored Emperors and Sovereigns.

Companions of the Supreme Sages

This sentence states that this is an honorific title of the various Celestial Worthies and Emperors as well as a general designation for the Celestial Perfected Great Immortals. Those who cultivate the Great Dao, complete their merit, and liberate the physical form (leaving the mortal body and ascending to the immortal realm) can rise to Yuqing and stand together with the Celestial Worthies, Emperors, and Sovereigns rather than associating with immortals of lower rank.

After a Hundred Years, Only Empty Grave Mounds Remain

These two sentences indicate that this method of the Dao is of an extremely high order, surpassing that of ordinary immortals. Once cultivation is complete, one naturally possesses far-reaching insight, refuses to display oneself before worldly people, and will not deliberately adorn oneself to seek fame.

Ordinary mid-level immortals ride dragons and clouds and fly up in broad daylight—this is no more than that. Higher divine immortals value concealing their traces and transforming quietly: some leave a medicinal staff in place of the body, others leave sword and shoes behind as the shed physical remains. Relatives and friends take them for dead, and even enemies and blood kin weep as if facing a corpse; in reality the true body has long since hidden itself and ridden away to the grotto-palace immortal realms. Later the Supreme Deity sends jade maidens to bestow numinous medicines, after which they completely slough off and depart. Is this realm not even more wondrous?

What is lamentable is that worldly people, having done a little good, feel ashamed if others do not know of it and immediately cheer and leap as if they would otherwise be neglected. Their thoughts are like insects on the ground or fungi born in the morning and dead by evening—brief in lifespan and limited in insight; even if they wish to force their way toward immortality there is no path to such a realm. Moreover, even lower-level immortals still treasure the physical form, do not connect with external things, and do not mix with the mundane world—how much more those whose forms have already transcended ordinary appearance?

A hundred years later, when people open the graves they find only leftover relics such as clothing, swords, and staffs that were shed; the true immortals have long since ascended above Yuqing, becoming daughters of the Celestial Emperor (here referring to perfected immortals rising into the heavenly realm and taking their place among the immortal ranks).

The Precious Chapter of Guarding the One of the Great Dao

The Dao takes Wuwei (non-action) as its foundation.

The Daojing says: “The highest Dao (the Way) is Wuwei (non-action).” Here “Wuwei” means maintaining a state of emptiness and naturalness, entering a realm of profound seclusion, quiet leisure and solitude, remaining unattached to any things, and allowing the mind to settle and concentrate.

Therefore the Nanhua Zhenjing (another name for the Zhuangzi) says: “Let go of the limbs and body, discard cleverness and artifice, leave behind the constraints of physical form, abandon discriminating intellect, and communicate with the Great Dao.” After reaching this state, inwardly one does not perceive the self and outwardly one does not perceive heaven and earth; the inner mind is silent and detached, hearing no sounds and seeing no forms. This is genuine Wuwei.

The Laojun Dingguan Jing (a Daoist classic on stilling the mind to contemplate the Dao) says: “Uphold the Dao of Wuwei and naturalness. As soon as a thought is noticed arising, it should be eliminated. Eliminate only the restless thoughts, not the clear illuminating mind of observation; let the mind abide only in empty brightness, without allowing it to become stagnant or attached.”

The Laojun Xisheng Jing says: “Superior cultivators of the Dao are skilled at nurturing the root. By constantly being able to nurture the root, the body can last long.” The Dao takes “emptiness” as its mother, “emptiness” takes “Wuwei” as its mother, and “Wuwei” in turn takes “naturalness” as its mother. Naturalness is the root of the Dao. Only by constantly nurturing the root can one truly comprehend the Dao of emptiness and Wuwei.

“Nothing is left undone”: attaining Wuwei does not mean doing nothing at all; by according with the natural Dao, all things can each attain their proper place.

The Dao (the Way) is a state of Wuwei (non-action), but “Wuwei” does not mean doing nothing at all. If one deliberately clings to “Wuwei,” that itself becomes a form of action. What is meant here is not chasing after those things that have nothing to do with the Dao. External things deplete a person’s Shen (spirit) and harm a person’s life. Whether poor and lowly or rich and honored, people often fail to notice that their body and mind are being driven by external things, and they ultimately proceed toward aging, illness, and death.

Therefore the Xisheng Jing (Scripture of Western Ascension) says: People of the world take sounds, colors, and fine flavors as the greatest pleasure, yet they do not know that these are precisely the root of great calamity. The sage understands this, and therefore does not indulge in desire but returns to desirelessness. The Huangdi Yinfu Jing (Yellow Emperor’s Hidden Talisman Scripture) says: The myriad things are for people to enjoy and to employ, yet they in turn steal and deplete a person’s Jing (essence) and Qi (vital energy), causing one to age. Laojun said to Yin Xi: The reason people treat life lightly and die early is not that Heaven and Earth wish to kill them, nor that ghosts and spirits harm them, but that they themselves bring it about through excessive craving and the desire to lavish care upon life. To be able not to cling to nurturing life and seeking to live is in fact wiser than one-sidedly valuing life. The Nanhua Jing (that is, the Zhuangzi) says: One who understands the true condition of life does not pursue those things that bring no benefit to life; one who understands the true condition of destiny does not cling to investigating those things that cannot be changed.

Nourishing the body cannot at first do without external things; yet there are also people who possess many things whose bodies are not thereby nourished. Does this situation occur only among the ignorant who do not understand the Dao? There are many in the world who talk about penetrating the Great Dao, yet few who truly put it into practice. Therefore the sage values practice and does not value empty talk. All of the above is to explain that one should not chase after things that are not in accord with the Dao.

These principles must be experienced and verified with the heart; they cannot be understood by means of worldly cleverness and intelligence.

“What is meant by knowing? What is meant by verification?” These two sentences continue from the preceding text and pose a question.

“Knowing by dismissing knowledge” means that after one has already attained some understanding, one must still set aside the clever intelligence that discriminates and calculates, restrain one’s sharpness, and conceal one’s reputation. People of the world value the sage’s display of sagely brightness; the sage, however, does not prize this, but instead values inner simplicity and Wuwei.

“Verification of empty response” means that by holding to empty stillness and Wuwei, over time the efficacy will become apparent, just as an echo follows as soon as a sound is uttered, and a shadow appears along with the form.

When cultivation of the Dao (the Way) reaches its utmost depths, responses and effects have no fixed source. This is what is meant by “responses have no origin.” The sage does not regard dullness as valuable; rather, this refers to understanding the principle of emptiness and acting through Wuwei (non-action).

To verify empty response means that by abiding in the state of emptiness and Wuwei, after a long time marvelous effects will manifest: just as a sound produces an echo, or a shadow follows the form as it moves.

“Responses have no origin” means that the responses and effects of the Great Dao arise from an unknown source; one cannot explain why they occur as they do, yet they happen of themselves. The cultivator of the Dao, dwelling in Wuwei and naturalness, will experience spiritual powers and unhindered freedom.

The heart-mind is what penetrates. Lord Lao teaches people to cultivate the Dao precisely by teaching them to cultivate the heart-mind; cultivating the heart-mind is itself cultivating the Dao. The heart-mind is the master of the body. When the heart-mind is returned to emptiness and Wuwei, over time one comes to understand the Great Dao; understanding the Great Dao, one attains unobstructed penetration. The path of practice must be walked by oneself; when the appropriate realm is reached, understanding arises of itself.

“Penetrating the One, all affairs are completed.” Lord Lao said to the Perfected Yin (Yin Xi): “If you can know the One, then all affairs can be fully comprehended.” Here the “One” is the root of the Great Dao. “Penetrating the One” refers to embracing the origin and guarding the One (holding fast to the original essence of life and the Great Dao), enabling oneself to enter the formless realm and merge completely with emptiness, void, and naturalness. The commentary employs transformations of bodily form as a metaphor: when vast, one can encompass all existence and innumerable worlds; when minute, one can enter a single grain of dust, within which innumerable worlds may likewise be contained. Reaching such a realm of spiritual powers is termed “all affairs completed.”

The One is the root. The so-called “One” is the foundation of the Great Dao.

Affairs are the gate. To obtain and recognize this root requires actual cultivation; “affairs” constitutes the gateway of guarding the One and entering the Dao.

Affairs return to the One, the One constantly abides. These two lines indicate that the myriad things arise from the “One” and return to the “One”; gain and loss, coming and going, never depart from the “One.” When the work of guarding the One is brought to completion, the practitioner unites with emptiness, void, naturalness, and the formless Dao, and thus the “One” constantly endures.

Store without having, provisionally called guarding. In guarding the One, it appears as though there is something being held and preserved; yet this merely borrows the expression “guarding,” for there is not truly any concrete object that can be grasped.

These two sentences mean that one should constantly maintain a dim and silent state in the heart, without allowing any disturbance. What is called “guarding” is merely borrowing the term “guarding”; in fact, it is not about deliberately grasping hold of something and refusing to let go.

The Huangting Neijing Yujing (Jade Scripture of the Inner Landscape of the Yellow Court) says: “Emptiness and stillness, empty brightness and purity; keep the body in this state, uncontaminated, and then one can fly freely, entering the path among the clouds.” These lines are used here to illustrate the above meaning.

“Guarding emptiness, one naturally lasts long” means that as long as one peacefully abides in emptiness and stillness, the physical form and Shen (spirit) can naturally endure long, in accord with the Dao (the Way).

The Laojun Dingguan Jing (Scripture of Lord Lao on Stabilizing Contemplation) also says that the mind of one studying the Dao has five moments of contamination; the subsequent lines in the original such as “one’s actions then soar freely into the cloud path” likewise serve to explain the principle of holding to emptiness.

If one simply maintains a mental state of empty stillness and Wuwei (non-action), the physical form and spirit will naturally endure together with the Dao (the Way). The Scripture of Lord Lao on Stabilizing Contemplation (Laojun Dingguan Jing) states that the mental condition of those who cultivate the Dao proceeds through five stages. In the first stage, distracting thoughts are many and moments of stillness are few. In the second stage, moments of stillness are many and distracting thoughts are few. In the third stage, arising thoughts and stillness each occupy half. In the fourth stage, the mind can remain still when nothing occupies it, yet thoughts arise again as soon as it is stirred by external things. In the fifth stage, whether the mind is occupied or unoccupied, it remains unmoved even when touched by external things.

Only when the fifth stage is reached can one still the mind’s thoughts and concentrate on the mysterious Dao, embrace and guard the primordial Qi (vital energy) in undivided concentration without scattering, and bring body and mind into a state of empty stillness. Only then can one be said to have formed the aspiration to cultivate the Dao. Thereafter, even when stirred, one is able to maintain awareness, and the functioning of the Dao becomes increasingly manifest day by day.

For those who attain the Dao, after the mind has passed through the five stages described above, the body will further undergo seven levels of transformation. At the first level, long-accumulated illnesses generally recede, and body and mind become light and at ease. At the second level, deficiencies incurred in earlier years are replenished, so that vitality is restored, lifespan exceeds ordinary human limits, and the appearance returns to youth. At the third level, lifespan is prolonged to a thousand years; such a person is called an immortal. At the fourth level, the physical form is refined and transformed into Qi, and one is called a Perfected Person (zhenren). At the fifth level, Qi is refined and transformed into Shen (spirit), and one is called a Divine Person (shenren). At the sixth level, Shen is refined and united with the Dao, and one is called an Ultimate Person (zhiren). At the seventh level, one transcends the Three Realms (which Daoism commonly uses to refer to the Realm of Desire, the Realm of Form, and the Formless Realm), occupies the rank of the Lord of Jade Dawn of the Great Dao of the Vacuous Sovereign, and is able to communicate with spirits and numinous powers, with wisdom extending throughout all things.

By comparing these levels, one can clearly perceive the situation of certain people among the world today. They study the Dao throughout their lives yet fail to attain even a single level; their lives are brief, their forms decline, and in the end the physical body perishes, yet they claim already to have attained the Dao, even asserting that they have reached the realm of transcending the Three Realms, occupying the rank of the Lord of Jade Dawn of the Great Dao of the Vacuous Sovereign, communicating with spirits and numinous powers, and possessing wisdom that extends throughout all things. Examined according to principle, such self-claims are truly without foundation.

Commentary on the Mysterious Pearl Heart Mirror (Xuanzhu Xinjing Zhu)