《混元阳符经》

The practice of concealing one's traces in cultivation leaves behind effects that are not truly real. The clear Primordial Qi (Qi 炁, the Daoist term for the original vital energy of life) rests in a state of simplicity, undivided and chaotic. As the talismanic methods (Fulu) circulate, light and shadow flow; within stillness, one cuts off stray thoughts and discerns the Shen (spirit) from the hun-soul. Holding its essence within, and carried along by the transformations of passing years, the Primordial Qi at times gathers and at times surges forth.

The fire burns fiercely and without interruption, with no end and no boundary to its turning. At dusk a spiritual radiance flashes, illuminating the Jing (essence) and souls hidden in the darkness. Blood and Qi fill the whole body, and the divine talismans accord with the timing of the fire. The brain is nourished by the Flowery Fluid (a term in cultivation for internal substances such as seminal fluid and bodily fluids), and the embryonic breathing (a term in cultivation for the state in which inner vitality condenses) is supported and returns to the true realm. The body's gates and passes settle into stillness, and Shen and Qi fill the Gate of Life (the Mingmen, in Neidan teaching the root and foundation of life).

Within each breath one seems able to sense wind and rain; the mind is vast and silent, yet does not lose its source. Amid all transformations, it keeps firmly to the root. Three transformations settle into stability, and at nine transformations the spiritual marvel reaches its utmost. At the beginning one bears the image of the sun, and then the image of the moon appears. The clear and numinous Qi merges and returns to unity; one sheds old habits and strives diligently in cultivating the truth. Single-minded and steadfast in purpose, one dwells in seclusion in a quiet place.

Passing beyond coverings and obstructions, one moves swiftly as thunder. The Emperor's cycle passes through the years, and the Yang talisman (a talismanic method or inner-cultivation principle symbolizing the movement of Yang energy) becomes the core of practice. The myriad things and affairs of the world change ceaselessly, yet through the calamities of the ages one may still endure.