《大还心鉴》

The Hanshanzi Zhijue states that once one grasps the true meaning of “lead,” the medicinal substances naturally reveal their divine marvels; once one recognizes the orthodox sense of “mercury,” the medicines attain sagely wonder. Cultivating in this manner, one may approach the sagely realm, and Heaven and Earth themselves will celebrate together. Receiving transmission from a master constitutes the very gateway to cultivating the Dao (the Way).

The ancient sages did not set forth these principles in plain language, because shallow people would readily hold them in light esteem. They therefore expressed them by means of the Zhouyi, the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water), and talismanic tallies. Of all things that accord with the true wondrous principles, nothing is more divine and marvelous than the Great Elixir. Ordinary folk, upon hearing of the Great Elixir, are typically beset by doubts; those of insight, once they understand, can devote themselves wholly to practice. Thus the principles appear easy yet are presented as profound, for the precious methods of the Dao cannot be treated casually.

In former times three sages left writings inscribed upon golden tablets, known as the Cantong Qi. The world copies them, yet those who truly comprehend them are few. Even those who grasp the inner principles dare not act rashly; even those who know the methods of cultivation often hesitate and delay. Doubts consume the years in an instant; glory dazzles the eyes, gold and jade stir the thoughts, wealth and desire linger in the breast, and a hundred years slip away in vain. Few give heed to the way of longevity. People do not realize that worldly pleasures deplete Jing (essence) and Shen (spirit), nor that the years pass unnoticed, and so their doubts only multiply.

Some, hearing the ancients speak of elixir cultivation, think only of Qin Shi Huang and Emperor Wu of Han. Qin Shi Huang outwardly sought longevity while inwardly drowning in desire; Emperor Wu, though he admired the immortal Dao, set his mind on sensual pleasures. How could they attain deathlessness? Why not speak of the Yellow Emperor and the people of high antiquity? The Yellow Emperor received from the Mysterious Maiden the method of the Returned Elixir, which concerns the harmonizing of lead and mercury within the Dantian (energy center). Later generations failed to grasp its true purport and mistook it for the arts of the bedchamber. The so-called immortal maiden of Mount Tai would never pair with humans out of sexual lust. The ignorant have been confused by this, and the error has persisted to the present. Related verses appear in the Jindan Lun; those who obtain it will understand of themselves.

From youth I admired the arts of the Dao and was fortunate to receive true transmission, revering the immortal masters and personally receiving instruction. The master spoke only of the marvels of lead, mercury, dragon and tiger, pointing out that mixing the four yellow medicines into the work is a grave error and that the eight kinds of mineral admixtures should likewise be excluded. Lead and mercury accord with the fundamental order of Heaven and Earth and contain the essences of sun and moon; above they correspond to the Heaven of the Qian trigram, below they follow the Earth of the Kun trigram. They command the essences of seventy-two minerals, gathering the Jing and Qi (vital energy) of Heaven and Earth to refine the elixir. After ingestion it can extend years and prolong life; is this not worthy of belief?

The five grains can save human lives, so the divine elixir naturally deserves reverence. Ingesting huangjing prolongs years, while ingesting gouweng brings death; these facts are visible to the eye. True sages revere the divine elixir because they have long since accorded with the marvels of the Dao and have cultivated with dedicated mind over many years, something that cannot be accomplished overnight. Yet however numinous the Returned Elixir, it cannot avert disasters caused by self-injury; however compassionate the sagely methods, they cannot erase another’s karmic retribution from previous lives. Everything depends on whether a person sincerely promotes the purport of the Dao and follows the cultivation; one must not lightly credit arrogant claims, or one will be misled by so-called divine arts.

I now write the Dahuai Xinjian in order to clarify the state of mind of those who cultivate the Dao: only when the thoughts of the heart are clear and upright does one know the elixir to be the supreme treasure and remain unconfused by other things. If the medicinal substances are not the correct materials, the elixir will not be efficacious; if the heart does not accord with the Dao, even a successfully refined elixir may invite calamity. This point deserves earnest reflection and should be used to examine and urge oneself in practice.

Regarding the Great Elixir, the essential lies in the conjunction of Yin-Yang, which corresponds to the pivot of Heaven and Earth’s operation; combining metal and stone to refine the elixir likewise symbolizes the meeting of Heaven and Earth. Metal refers to true lead, also called the White Tiger; mercury refers to the quicksilver within cinnabar. Perfected Tao Tan said, “If one uses ordinary worldly mercury, it will turn into white smoke.” This is a crucial warning. Perfected Ma said, “Mercury and quicksilver are not the same; the confused employ the wrong method.” Thus the “mercury” of cultivation cannot simply be equated with the mercury of everyday life.

The principle of cultivation is to pass from the mundane toward the sagely realm, yet the sagely does not depart from the mundane: one enters the sagely from the mundane, the mundane contains the sagely, and the sagely itself emerges from the mundane. Quicksilver originally resides within cinnabar; the principle of life must accord with lead and mercury. Once mercury is refined into the supreme treasure, its color reverts to cinnabar. If the elixir transforms further and returns to quicksilver, it becomes true mercury. Reaching the level of true mercury, one can pass from the mundane into the sagely and command the myriad numina. This is the meaning of Perfected Ma’s distinction between mercury and quicksilver. Later students of the Dao, being of shallow insight, often fail to grasp this layer.

If Perfected Tao’s words are taken to mean that elixir refining never involves worldly mercury at all, the reading is insufficiently careful. He also said that cinnabar arises from metal and mercury is born from lead; the reader should examine the wondrous purport therein. From antiquity the perfected who cultivate the Dao have all entered the sagely from the mundane, according with the principles of the Great Elixir, and have ultimately ascended as immortals; the confused, however, repeatedly misunderstand.

The elixir is constituted of one Yin and one Yang, that is, the two medicinal substances of dragon and tiger. Lead belongs to Water and is called the River Chariot of the North; metal is born from Water, metal’s number being four and Water’s one, which together make five. Mercury belongs to the Green Dragon, positioned in the East and belonging to Wood; Wood’s number is three, Wood generates Fire, cinnabar is the essence of Fire, Fire’s number is two, and three plus two likewise make five. Five belongs to Earth; Earth has no fixed direction but is named after the four seasons. Thus Water and metal combine as five, Wood and Fire likewise combine as five; this is called the “Three-Fives Dao Returned Elixir,” the mysterious wonder of the Dao. Few truly understand the marvels of the elixir; those who do seem able to grasp creation-transformation and freely transmute the myriad things.

Without the true oral secrets, even repeated recitation of elixir scriptures and verses, lacking master-disciple transmission, will never yield the wondrous principles. I recall my own early years of error, fruitlessly traversing mountains and rivers, accomplishing nothing and wasting resources. Later I suddenly awoke, as from a drunken dream. The Great Dao is actually right before the eyes, not distant.

The principles are presented as hidden and difficult because of the fear that foolish people, obtaining them too easily, would instead diminish their fortune and lifespan and even incur punishment from the gods. The Zhenren Cheng Jing says that people of the world all wish to extend their years, yet often, because of thin fortune and short destiny, they are gradually invaded by yin realms and ultimately proceed toward death. This being so, how can one fail to do good and cultivate De (Virtue/Power), instead harming people and injuring things while still vainly hoping for longevity? Even if one meets a person of high attainment, if their hearts of the Dao do not accord, the high person will not transmit the Dao to an unsuitable recipient.

The Keyi (liturgy) states that those who seek longevity and the Great Elixir must know the furnace and tripod (the vessels of refining and their symbolic conditions); knowing the furnace and tripod, they must understand the fire timing; to understand the fire timing they must further know their own heart. Even then they must consider whether layers of obstacles and karmic retribution from previous lives remain; even if they know their own conditions to be complete, they cannot casually transmit the methods to others. If the methods of the Dao are not transmitted they may be lost; if transmitted to the unsuitable they invite disaster. Thus all wondrous principles are inseparable from the inner heart: the heart is the root of transcending the mundane, the elixir the medicine of longevity. After ingesting the elixir one returns to the yang realm and is struck from the registers of the yin officials; even if later changes occur, one can be liberated by spiritual consciousness and become an immortal. These are the teachings of the true sages; one should not be confused or doubtful.

I have read the true transmissions of the ancient worthies, including the Cantong Qi, the Jinbi Jing, the Guwen Longhu and other leftover writings of the three sages, together with numerous verses of the perfected, and found that none of them can be separated from the true wondrous principles of lead and mercury. So that those of later times who still harbor doubts may find answers, I have again set these principles down in the Xin Jing, making the radiance of the Great Dao and the true origin manifest, dissolving the obstructions of students of the Dao so that all may understand. If anyone can awaken from foolish and arrogant sayings and accept the truth, it may be said there is hope of reaching a lofty realm, like blue clouds that can be ascended, a bright moon always shining. I write these explanations in the hope that more people may no longer remain confused.