《渔庄邂逅录》

Recorded by Ziranzi, Recluse of Mount Gaogai:

In the mid-autumn of the renchen year of the Qiandao era, the eighth year (1172), I, Ziranzi (自然子), the Recluse of Mount Gaogai, went boating on West Lake with Yu Zhongmou, a native of Jinling. Following our whim, we came to the Fisherman's Lodge, where we happened to meet Master Liu, the Registrar (Dulu). I had called on him once in the dingmao year, and now we met again at this gathering.

Master Liu said that the day before he had dreamed of the Perfected Wang of Fuzhou, and the conversation in the dream had not yet finished. Today, as Ziranzi spoke of the methods of the Dao, what each of us said matched the other's like the two halves of a tally. When I was a child, I once dreamed of the Three Mao Lords (the Daoist immortals revered as the Three Maos), who imparted to me the secrets of refining the elixir. Ten years later I met Master Wang and heard him explain the essential teachings of the Jinbi Jing (Scripture of Gold and Jade). Master Liu, moreover, had long and devoutly made offerings to the Three Mao Lords, so I suspect that my dream of those years may well have been a response from them.

The essence of the Jinbi Jing is the secret of the Great Elixir of the Dragon and Tiger, handed down from Shennong. Among the immortals of every age, none has failed to follow this path. Later, people wrote scriptures of their own, many more than a hundred of them, and all were passed down from the ancient sages from one generation to the next, to enlighten later students. Even people today ought to be free of shame in their hearts and upright in their conduct, deceiving neither Heaven nor their fellow men and never going back on their word. How, then, could the sages and perfected ones of old have fabricated false words to deceive later generations? It is a pity that people of this age are dull in their innate capacity, cling to mistaken understandings, and are foolish and confused, which is truly lamentable. The ancients said, "There are no muddled immortals in Heaven." These words are indeed true.

In every cultivation of the elixir method, three people must work together with one heart before the undertaking can succeed. I sought the great Dao among the multitudes and searched everywhere for a kindred spirit for nearly twenty-eight years, yet found no one with whom to practice together. An immortal of old said, "Only when three people share the same aspiration and the same Dao can they cultivate the elixir." Li Qiliang and Wang Jifu, who once pursued the Dao with me, have died one after the other, and only Hu Ruogu remains. He joined me in some attempts and saw a few results, but his strength was insufficient and what he gained was limited, so in the end we did not succeed.

Now that I have chanced upon a kindred spirit, and my dream has borne such an omen, can this not be a bond from a former life? So we became companions of the elixir and fixed the day after Bailu (White Dew), the dingwei day, as our starting date. Ziranzi would be responsible for compounding the ingredients, Master Yu for managing the water and fire (the regulation of heat and related operations in the refining process), and Master Liu for writing the record of the firing times.

The next day Master Liu said, "This can now be written down." I understood the Master's intention, which was also the same as that of the perfected people of antiquity: he wished to pass on to later generations what we had tested for ourselves and seen to bear fruit, in order to guide later students. So I took up the brush to record it, and titled this text A Record of the Encounter at the Fisherman's Lodge (Yuzhuang Xiehou Lu).

Laozi said: The Returned Elixir and Golden Liquid (the method of refining and nurturing the Golden Elixir through the Golden Liquid) accord with the Way of Heaven. Although there are several hundred methods of making the Golden Elixir, the crux of all of them lies in the "divine water" and the "flowery pool" (the key substance used in alchemy and the part of the furnace and cauldron where it is refined). Only once the divine water is obtained can white metal be produced; white metal is transformed into yellow gold, and yellow gold in turn into purple gold. The purple gold then yields a liquid, which is steamed, condensed upon the cauldron, and thus becomes the elixir. The line in the Jinbi (Golden Verdant), "Yin-Yang mingle and join; essence-fluid enfolds primal Qi (vital energy)," speaks of precisely this process, which cannot be compared to ordinary physical substances.

When ordinary physical substances enter the human stomach and intestines, they cannot undergo this transformation and steaming, and if taken for long they will instead cause illness. The Golden Liquid is therefore precious because it is regarded as the primal Qi of Heaven and Earth, able to steam its way into the five viscera, dispersing like mist and moving like wind and rain. The Wei Gong Cantong Qi (Master Wei's Token for the Agreement of the Three) records this in great detail.

As for the name "Returned Elixir," the Taiqing Jing (Scripture of Great Purity) explains: mercury is originally refined from cinnabar; now one refines the mercury again so that it reverts to being an elixir, and hence it is called "Returned Elixir." The Primal Lord said that cinnabar contains the creative transformations of Heaven and Earth, and when the Qi of Yin-Yang is abundant, an elixir forms of itself. Within the elixir are chalcanthite-green (zengqing) and blue vitriol, eastern realgar, western orpiment, southern cinnabar, and northern mercury; the elixir is light and clear, and rises upward. Those in the world who attained the Dao were those for whom the Supreme Emperor sent celestial officials to gather elixirs and bestow them; after taking them, they ascended to the Cloud Han (the celestial realm). Now, when one follows the Way of Heaven in refining the elixir, components corresponding to these five substances will likewise be generated within it, as a result of the transformations of the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water). If one refines it from the miscellaneous things of the world, this effect of returning to the root and restoring the source cannot arise.

Therefore, those who cultivate the mind and nature must cut themselves off from worldly affairs, whereas those who refine the elixir may still keep a wife and children and hold official posts. When cultivation of nature succeeds, the benefit reaches only oneself; when the elixir is accomplished, the whole family can ascend to Heaven. The Great Dao is vast beyond measure and is transmitted only to the worthy, which is why the "herbal elixir" is placed first. Even so, whether one obtains the opportunity and achieves great effect also depends on one's allotted fortune. The scriptures say: if one accumulates much goodness, auspicious stars will protect one; when one sees a good deed, one does it, and one will surely accomplish something. If one's evil deeds are many, one is governed by malign stars; if one does not believe in the way of goodness, the road to immortality will be distant.

Laojun said: If there is something that can be offered to a ruler, people will offer it to their ruler; if something can be presented to one's kin, people will present it to their kin; if something can be taught to one's brothers, people will teach it to their brothers; if something can be passed on to one's descendants, people will pass it on to their descendants. In this way, everyone under Heaven could become an immortal. Therefore, one should approach this Dao with care and reflection.

The First Turn: Joining Yin and Yang, known as "Grand Beginning" (Taichu, the state in which the myriad things begin to take form).

The Yijing says: "One Yin and one Yang: this alternation is the Dao (the Way); when Yin and Yang lean toward one side only, illness arises." Yin and Yang must be joined, and they must also be of like kind to respond to one another. This is the natural order of things. From this the sage observed the primal Qi (vital energy) of Heaven and Earth, gathered the essence of the sun and moon, took two substances, "red" and "white," and combined them in the shape of a hen's egg as an emblem of the undivided chaos. When the Jinbi says, "The egg joins and a divine thing is born," this is what it describes.

The proportions in which Yin and Yang divide and unite are lodged in the "two quarters" (the two phases of the moon's waxing and waning); when they meet, it is like the sun and moon joined as one jade disc. The practitioner follows the hexagram lines to move Water and Fire, and uses the passing of days and hours to mark the months and years, so that Yin and Yang unite and produce "black lead" (a Neidan term, internal alchemy, referring to a refined essence spoken of in cultivation). When the Most High said, "To pass from red into black is true cultivation," this is the process he meant.

Caoyizi says: A person has a body because they receive the primal Qi passed down from their parents; it is not generated spontaneously from blood and flesh. The medicinal substances are the same. Kan the male and Li the female (hexagrams symbolizing Yin and Yang) depend on one another, and in their union they coagulate into Qi. The sage, too, was born from a womb, and so cultivation is a process of "passing from the ordinary into the sagely." Yet the primal Qi one receives must be abundant. Zhenren Zheng said that those who receive abundant Qi are intelligent, and those who receive insufficient Qi are dull. This must not be overlooked.

The "lead of prior Heaven" carries the same meaning. Before Heaven and Earth had formed, in the first chaos of the myriad things, lead was the first to obtain the "One" and take shape, and this "One" is the primal Qi of Heaven and Earth. Zhenren Peng said that the length of a person's life and the strength of their body are all determined by the primal Qi received from their parents. But the human body is turbid and mixed, and its span is limited. The Great Elixir, by contrast, is a spirit embryo conceived by the Sage Mother, condensed from the primal Qi of Heaven and Earth, and therefore has no end. If one uses inexhaustible Qi to extend a finite life, how could one fail to live as long as Heaven and Earth?

This "lead" did not originally exist in the world; it arises along with the process of creation and transformation. The Daodejing says: "The Dao is born from non-being." The "being" spoken of here is the beginning of Heaven and Earth, and for this reason it is also called the mother of the myriad things. It also says: "The Dao gives birth to One; penetrate the One, and all affairs are complete." Black lead belongs to Water, and its number is one; if a person can penetrate this "One," the cultivation of the Great Elixir can be completed. Those who discuss the Dao today often take "non-being" to mean mere emptiness. How could they know that within the deep and indistinct there lies a subtle and genuine reality?

The Second Turn, "Radiance of the Chaotic Embryo," is called Taiji (Supreme Ultimate).

The scripture (Jing) says: "The transformations of Yin-Yang are beyond measure; this is called Shen (spirit)." The "lead" spoken of here is a naturally marvelous substance, different from the five metals and eight minerals of the ordinary world. It contains the principles of heaven and earth, sun and moon, Yin-Yang, the Bagua (Eight Trigrams), the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water), and all things. Fuxi's Book of Changes and Shennong's Scripture of Gold and Jade both record this principle.

The thirty-six characters discussed here form the outer and inner sides of the eight trigrams of the Changes. The sun, the Dragon and Tiger, the Vermilion Bird, and the Black Tortoise together are called the Four Images. Sun and moon are Kan and Li; fire, water, earth, wood, and metal are the Five Phases. Azure, white, black, jade-blue, green, yellow, red, and purple correspond to the Nine Palaces. Heaven and earth are Qian and Kun. Xun represents the eldest daughter, Gen the youngest son, Zhen the eldest son, and Dui the youngest daughter. Jia, Bing, Wu, Geng, Ren, Yi, Ding, Ji, Xin, and Gui are the markers of the transformations of the Five Phases. Through these, the Dao (the Way) of the Great Elixir becomes clear; this is the "lead" spoken of here.

Today's students of the Dao each set forth their own theories and let their fancies run free. Without a master's transmission, how could they thoroughly investigate the principle, fully illuminate their nature, and so reach the state in which both nature and life are complete? The elixir arises from the mutual influence of sun and moon, which is why the form of the character for "elixir" (丹) itself contains the idea of sun and moon fused together. The Changes draws on the meaning of sun and moon, and places the two hexagrams Qian and Kun at its head. Qian is pure Yang, symbolizing the Qi (vital energy) of white metal; it is strong and dwells above, representing heaven. Kun is pure Yin, symbolizing the substance of water and earth; it is yielding and dwells below, representing earth. When heaven and earth, above and below, influence one another, the Yang of Qian enters Kun and is called Kan, while the Yin within Kun enters Qian and is called Li. Kan and Li are the sun and moon, and also the man and woman between heaven and earth. The crow in the sun and the hare in the moon symbolize Yang within Yin and Yin within Yang. This "lead" is the essence of sun and moon, the spirit-souls of heaven and earth.

Guangchengzi said: "Purely smelt and refine the essence of heaven and earth, Yin and Yang." The cultivation of the Great Elixir should begin from here.

The Third Turn concerns "the separation of the Two Forms" (liangyi): Heaven and Earth part, and Yin-Yang becomes manifest.

The scripture (Jing) says: "Heaven attains the One and becomes clear; Earth attains the One and becomes stable; humans attain the One and become spiritually numinous." The "One" here means the True One. Place lead in the cauldron and refine it with mercury (quicksilver), and the golden flower will appear on the surface. The light, clear Qi symbolizes the Qian trigram, which represents Heaven. The sandy earth that wraps around it symbolizes heavy, turbid substance and stands for the Kun trigram, which represents Earth. The Record of the Armillary Sphere (Hunyi ji) says that Heaven encloses Earth as an eggshell encloses the yolk, and the principle of Heaven and Earth can be seen in this.

Pure Yang is an accumulation of Qi, so it must move and rise. Pure Yin clings to physical form, so it must remain still and settle below. In this the principle of Yin-Yang is made clear. The Daoist scriptures say that pure Yang makes an immortal and pure Yin makes a ghost. Humans live between Heaven and Earth, receive the Qi of Yin and Yang, and pass through life and death. What is called the "elixir" (Dan) is the medicine of long life and deathlessness. If one refines this elixir and then, with mercury, brings it through the fire phases until the heat is complete, the primal chaos will separate. The yin line within the Li trigram, which symbolizes fire, comes forth of itself, while the yang line within the Kan trigram, which symbolizes water, is preserved. The elixir finally returns to the substance of Qian and becomes a thing of pure Yang. That a person who takes it becomes an immortal is simply the natural result. The Book of Changes (Yi) says, "What originates in Heaven draws near to what is above." The body growing light and ascending also happens of its own accord.

Only such an elixir deserves the name "cinnabar" (dansha), and it is not the ordinary cinnabar of the world. An ancient song says: "White horse sprout, true cinnabar. The Prince of Huainan refined autumn mineral; the Yellow Emperor prized the golden flower." It also says: "Lead is the mother of the sprout, and the sprout is the child of lead. Once the golden flower has been seen, lead is cast aside and no longer used." Since the golden flower is pure Yang, it keeps company with Heaven. The lead shell belongs to the realm of Yin, and once the River Cart (a Neidan image for transporting Jing and Qi) has completed its circulation, the shell is no longer needed. This is why it is called "leaving Yin and entering Yang, transcending the ordinary and entering the sacred." After this, only the one ingredient of mercury remains, dwelling alone in the realm of the profound and mysterious.

The Fourth Turn: Gathering the Five Phases and Transforming the Four Spirits

An ancient song says: "Use no drugs; work with the Five Phases (Wuxing). The dragon is born from fire; the tiger emerges from water." The "white horse sprout" mentioned here is the Golden Flower White Tiger, which arises from the water that black lead has been transformed into. Then, fine cinnabar is refined to yield mercury, and this is what is meant by "the dragon is born from fire."

The two substances are placed together and ground three thousand times with a jade pestle and mortar, so that they fuse with one another. This is called "bathing." The Mirror of the Elixir (Yaojing) says: "The red dragon is endowed with the strength of Qian, and the white tiger likewise follows the natural order. Grind the dragon until it is like powder, and the tiger will of itself cling to it and unite." This describes precisely this process. Afterward, the mixture is washed and refined in clear spring water, and the water that runs off is a bluish-green hue, as though merging with the sky. This too is called "bathing."

The four colors discussed in the Jinbi (Gold and Jade Classic), namely white, black, green, and jade-blue, together with their proper sequence, can be seen at this point. The refined substance is then placed in the cauldron and the fire is applied further. Once the fire phasing (huohou) is complete, the five-colored appearance of the substances naturally emerges: azurite, chalcanthite, realgar, orpiment, cinnabar, and mercury. The blue-green one is mercury, representing the wood essence of the Azure Dragon; the white one is the Golden Flower, representing the metal essence of the White Tiger; the red one is cinnabar, representing the fire essence of the Vermilion Bird; and the black one is black lead, representing the water essence of the Black Tortoise (Xuanwu).

These four substances are so wondrous that they cannot be fathomed, and so they are called the "Four Spirits," also known as the "Sage Who Knows Nothing." This name means that although they possess sacred powers of transformation, ordinary knowledge cannot grasp them. Master Caoyizi says that when the alchemical work reaches the stage at which the Four Spirits appear, the deities of heaven and earth and all people alike must revere them. They are like heaven, earth, the sun, and the moon: they must not be offended, or the divine powers will surely send down punishment.

The Fifth Turn: All Transformations Arise from the Earth Virtue of the Central Palace

"The Earth Virtue (De) of the Central Palace" refers to Earth among the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water), which occupies the center and governs the other four directions. The title means that the transformations that follow are all brought about through the nature and function of Earth.

The scripture says: "Heaven's number is five, and Earth's number is also five. The five positions correspond to one another, and each finds its own union." Five occupies the center and belongs to Earth (Tu); it is the root of the generation and completion of all things. Thus, Water joined with Earth yields the completion number six; Fire joined with Earth yields seven; Wood joined with Earth yields eight; Metal joined with Earth yields nine; and Earth joined with Earth yields ten.

In refining the elixir, the Four Images (the four forces corresponding to the transformations of Yin-Yang) are already in place, but one must still obtain Earth before the work can be completed. Hence the Perfected Ziyang said: "Each of them holds True Earth within, and only then can the Golden Elixir return." The saying "the dragon comes out of the fire" means that the Wood number three joins the Fire number two to make five, which revolves to the left and forms Wu Earth. The saying "the tiger is born in the water" means that the Metal number four joins the Water number one to make five, which revolves to the right and forms Ji Earth. The dragon and the tiger each hold True Earth within, and in the end return to five and unite with it. This is the principle at work.

The key to refining the great elixir lies entirely in the operations of Metal and Fire, and in the way of reversion and return represented by the numbers seven and nine. Once the completion numbers of Metal and Fire are fulfilled, the principle by which all things are generated in the River Chart (Hetu, a diagram that expresses the generation and transformation of Heaven and Earth through numbers) can also be seen. The Perfected Lord Taiyi, in his "Ode of the Jade Flask," says: "The Chamber is the Azure Dragon, the Three Stars of Shen are the White Tiger; the Sun is the Vermilion Bird, and the Moon is the Dark Warrior. If you wish to know how the great medicine lays its foundation, you must obtain the central Wu and Ji Earth."

Next, take the four spirits described above, bathe them by the method given earlier (an alchemical term meaning to harmonize and purify the ingredients), and place them in the cauldron. When the fire has been carried to a sufficient degree, the medicine will transform into True Earth, and the Golden Flower will naturally appear within it. Once the Golden Flower is seen, it can be tested by the methods of "hooking" and "flowing." Master Cui said: "Dry mercury must be able to hook; moist mercury must be able to flow; in either state, it should cling together and not scatter." When the state of "hooking" and "flowing" is achieved, it serves as the proof of verification. The Zhouhou says: "To see this Earth is to see the elixir." Master Cui also calls it the "Great Medicine of the Dragon Embryo," because the body of the elixir has already been formed within the Earth, like a child conceived in its mother's womb.

Caoyizi said: if the practitioner's great work and merit are not yet complete and they are not yet able to ascend, then they should stop the practice at this point. This elixir can help ward off illness and extend life, allowing a person to remain in the world as an Earthly Immortal. However, once this medicine has been refined to the third transformation, the ordinary embryo has already been converted into a body of pure Yang, becoming something light, clear, and able to soar. If Water and Fire are not properly regulated, the primal Qi will be dispersed and the medicine will lose its efficacy. Even if the Earth is seen, it may have only form and substance without spiritual quality; when taken, the medicinal Qi may become stagnant and unresolved, lodging in the intestines and stomach. Though it can cure illness, prolonged use will give rise to illness of its own.

Yin Changsheng said that success or failure depends on the timing of the fire phases at the Mao and You hours, and that the changes of Punishment and Virtue (De) must be understood. Practitioners past and present have regarded these as vital keys of the practice. The original text is garbled in places here, especially in its description of the medicine lodging in the intestines and stomach, which cannot be read with certainty; the above is only a coherent reading based on context.

Caoyizi, in discussing the fire phasing (huohou), said: The first cycle begins at the winter solstice in the eleventh month. At midnight, the hour of Zi, one receives the qi of the first stirring of Yang, which corresponds to the lowest line (nine at the beginning) of the Fu hexagram, namely the "hidden dragon." At this time one should wait for the right moment before acting, keeping one's foundation firm and unshakable.

The twelfth month corresponds to the nine in the second place of the Lin hexagram: the dragon appears in the field, symbolizing the manifestation of the noble person's virtue (De). The first month corresponds to the nine in the third place of the Tai hexagram: the noble person advances in virtue and can foresee the first signs of things. The second month corresponds to the nine in the fourth place of the Da Zhuang hexagram: the dragon sometimes leaps and sometimes remains in the abyss, signifying the need to seize the moment; at this point the mercury in the elixir fluctuates up and down and is not yet stable. The third month corresponds to the nine in the fifth place of what the original text calls the "Yang hexagram" (yang gua): the flying dragon ascends into the sky, symbolizing the fulfillment of one's aims; the Yang qi in the elixir gathers and forms "Heaven." The fourth month corresponds to the top line of the Qian hexagram, "the arrogant dragon has cause for regret" (the dragon has risen too high and may bring regret upon itself). By now the elixir is complete, the firm Yang body of Qian is fully formed, and no further transformation should be pursued.

Thereafter one should accumulate merit and virtue, and fast and bathe in a pure place, such as a famous mountain or an auspicious site, before beginning the next step. The cauldron and furnace, the symbolic principles, and the fire phasing used at this stage are all different from before. In the laboratory, water and fire must not be separated even for a moment, and incense smoke must burn without interruption, because what is being refined is a thing of pure Yang, whose efficacy can match the creative transformations of Heaven and Earth.

Works such as the Baopuzi all say that at this point one should hold a ceremony of offering to the furnace, sacrificing to Taiyi and other deities, inviting them to come, oversee the work, and assist in the refining of the medicine. The practitioner must not harbor evil thoughts at this time, nor allow anything impure to offend the elixir furnace and cause obstruction, which is why the text says "there is regret." Those who cultivate must not fail to heed these warnings. In the past many people failed in their alchemy: some could not complete the elixir, some completed it but could not take it, and some took it without effect, and so supposed that demonic obstructions were at work. In fact cinnabar belongs to Yang, and ghosts and spirits fear it; and when it has been refined to pure Yang, how could Yin demons come near? The principle is clear, and one must be careful.

If one can observe the prohibitions, one will gradually attain spiritual communication and be able to refine "yellow and white" substances (the art of transmuting base materials into gold and silver), continuing all the way through the ninth cycle. When the fire phasing of the Ziyang Palace is sufficient and the work is accomplished, a single pill can transform a parrot into a phoenix and a dog into a dragon after taking it, and can also transmute metals and stones into supreme treasures. Seekers of the Real may investigate this for themselves by consulting the various scriptures (Jing) and oral instructions; Yuzhuang cannot record it all here.

An old song says: "Even wanting to speak, I cannot say it all; in the quiet of the forest we shall discuss it in detail." It also says: "If someone now asks me about the scenery of Jiangnan, I would only say: go there yourself, and you will know." Formerly, after finishing his commentary on the Longhu Jing, Huang Zhenjun left these lines: "Because no one knows its fragrance, all things are taken as lowly; the more subtle and profound the words, the more easily they are scorned. Last night I leaned on the railing and gave a long whistle: for whom, after all, does the autumn moon shine?" This laments how hard it is to find one who truly understands. Now that I have the chance to exchange verses, recording these things is not in vain, and so I gladly compose four rhymes and append them at the end of the volume.

(Translator's note: the original contains several repetitions and suspected corrupt characters; "央卦" has been retained as it appears in the original.)

Among the practitioners of Neidan (internal alchemy), many study such notions as the "divine water" (shenshui; a term of cultivation referring to the refined fluids generated within the body) and the "flowery pool" (huachi; the place in the mouth where saliva gathers), yet few truly grasp their meaning.

If one regards only Qi (vital energy) and Jing (essence) as the whole of creation and transformation, how could one know that lead and mercury (terms used symbolically in Neidan) hold profound and subtle principles? Those who lose the right path will in the end develop deviant views. Then who is there to guide the great Dao (the Way) and show where to return?

That we meet today is due to bonds formed in a former life; that I can disclose the heavenly mystery to you so readily is because we share this affinity.

On the eighteenth day of the eleventh month, the furnace was opened, and the prenatal lead (a Neidan term for the primordial, subtle substance referred to in the course of the alchemical work) was obtained. I therefore record the actual circumstances:

When Yin-Yang are brought into mutual harmony and follow the natural course, one can obtain this prenatal substance.

Its mysteries are layer upon layer, truly beyond description; they are profound upon profound, so deep and obscure that they can hardly be fathomed.

To begin the practice, the work lasts one hundred days in all; yet the transformative power it seizes equals what Heaven and Earth accomplish in several thousand years.

Having examined the teachings of the Yuzhuang lu (Record of the Fishing Village) closely from the beginning, I came to believe that the principles handed down by the immortals are not empty words.

On the thirteenth day of the second month, the ash pool (a zone within the furnace used for nurturing in Neidan practice) burned fiercely, and the chaotic embryo (hundun peipi; a Neidan term for the newly arisen, still-undifferentiated subtle elixir) was obtained.

The intensity of the fire in the ash pool determines whether the ingredients float or sink; only after seeing it with my own eyes did I understand how deep the principles of creation and transformation run.

Nothing of this kind exists ready-made in the world; even if someone asks, one seldom meets anyone who truly understands.

Dim and indistinct, its root lies in the Li palace (a Bagua, or Eight Trigrams, directional term symbolizing south and fire); hidden and obscure, its refined gold lies in the Kan gate (a Bagua directional term symbolizing north and water).

Having gained a single spark of true mechanism, do not boast that the cultivation is complete; continue to practice diligently, so that your own conduct accords with the Way of Heaven.