《真一金丹诀》

In former times, Zhongli Quan (a legendary Daoist immortal) was a recluse from the region of Jinghu North Circuit, who spent many years wandering among mountains and rivers. He later settled on Jade Maiden Peak of Mount Kongtong, southeast of Zou City in the state of Lu. On the first day of the first month of the year Gengshen, the fifth year of the Xianqing reign of Emperor Gaozong of the Tang, he met an immortal, who led him into a cave and gave him the secret method of alchemical refining. After he cultivated it, he became inwardly complete and attained immortality. Later he traveled west to the Wei River region and, using trade as a cover, lived in seclusion in Luoyang.

Later, on the twenty-fifth day of the third month of the first year of the Linde reign, Lü Dongbin (a legendary Daoist immortal), a jinshi scholar from Ezhou, sat for the civil service examinations but failed repeatedly. Hearing that Zhongli Quan was versed in the methods of the Dao (the Way), he went to visit him and asked about his successes and failures in the examinations. Zhongli Quan then taught him "the Way of refining the body through the True Unity Golden Elixir" and passed the secret instructions to him. Lü Dongbin afterward practiced on Mount Zhongnan, and in the end his body, mind, and spirit were all transformed: his mortal body became an immortal body, and the ordinary man became a Perfected Person (zhenren). When his cultivation and merit were complete, he became an earthly immortal. The text repeatedly praises how he received Zhongli Quan's wondrous method and brought his practice to fulfillment.

The Supreme Emperor conferred on Lü Dongbin the title Grand Marshal of the Southern Peak, with the honorific "Perfected Person of Utmost Sagacity." Shi Jianwu (a Tang-dynasty Daoist, said to have compiled the accounts of Lü Dongbin's life) did not wish Master Lü's cultivation secrets to be lost. He therefore found a way to preserve them and had the relevant contents engraved and drawn in a stone chamber on Zou Mountain in the sea, so that later generations would know that a person of the Dao should not carelessly disclose the precious secret methods of Heaven, and that the secret methods of the Golden Elixir must not be passed on to the unworthy.

What is called "the immortals' Way of Embracing the One" is the practice of maintaining "Embracing the One" (single-minded guarding of the root), which is also the method of refining the Shen (spirit) through purity, stillness, emptiness, and nothingness, in accord with what is natural.

If one can, like the butcher in the story of "seeing no whole ox," stop clinging to the partial appearances of things, one can return wholly to the genuine and perfect the Great Dao (the Way). "Great Void" (Taixu) is the vast, formless emptiness; even when a person is in a trance-like state that words can hardly describe, Shen (spirit) still remains. Dwelling within emptiness, one joins oneself to the source of the Dao. The Dao is the root of one's nature, and one's nature in turn is the wellspring of the heart-mind. "Fire" refers to the thoughts of the heart-mind, and the "ox" refers to the will; when thought and will unite and are focused on the two eyes, this is called "eye-ox." One then entrusts one's aspiration to the Way of Heaven and enters "embryonic breathing" (a state of quiet, subtle breathing like that of a fetus). Within clear and pure emptiness one refines Shen, surpassing ordinary states, passing in and out and ascending to Heaven, until one finally fulfills one's nature and becomes a true infant of Heaven (a person restored to primal purity).

In the course of cultivation, as the movement of Qi (vital energy) circulates and interlinks, it gathers at the Northern Sea (a Neidan term, often referring to the region of the lower Dantian). True Qi merges with golden light and rises to the Empty Cavity; it then proceeds forward to the Jade Capital (the celestial palace of Daoist cosmology), and descends again to the Heavenly Valley (a Daoist term for a site where Qi circulates within the body), coming and going freely. The practitioner remains clear and lucid throughout and moves with ease and freedom; this is what is called an immortal.

This is the so-called Way of "enriching the state and giving peace to the people": through embryonic breathing one nourishes primal Qi, so that the movement of Qi returns to its root and comes back to its original source. Human beings receive the original Qi of the Great Void and take primal Qi as their mother; this maternal Qi is called prenatal Qi, and it causes the Five Spirits (the spirits of the five organs in Daoist thought) to gather and not scatter within the body.

The human body is like a state: the heart is the ruler, and Jing (essence) and Qi are the people. When Jing and Qi are settled, the body is at peace; this is called "enriching the state and giving peace to the people." The immortals embrace the "One" (hold fast to the root), following the Way of clarity, stillness, emptiness, and naturalness; they take embryonic breathing and the nourishing of primal Qi as the method of cultivating life, and this is returning to the root and restoring the origin.

When Qi enters the body, it can give rise to spiritual illumination; thus the movement of Qi is connected with life itself, and this is called the "Dao." Qi is the mother of Shen, and Shen is the child of Qi; taking Qi as the root of Shen is what is meant by true nature. Let Qi and Shen meet and join, so that Shen does not leave Qi and Qi does not lose Shen, each guarding the other. When the spirit is gathered inward and the primal Qi below the navel has its master, the physical form can be preserved for a long time. If one can settle the thoughts and breath in the Dantian (the place in Neidan practice where primal Qi is gathered and nourished), would the path to longevity not be easy to approach?

Once thoughts and breath have settled, the Dantian has its master, the Five Spirits keep their posts within the body, and the myriad sages turn toward the place where primal Qi gathers.

The ears do not listen to outer sounds, the eyes do not gaze on outer forms, and the nose does not chase after fragrances. The mind becomes like cooled ashes, and the body as settled as withered wood. In this way the six sense faculties (eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, and mind) are no longer stirred by the outer world, and the heart naturally stops producing clever schemes and deluded thoughts. Perverse and illusory images dissolve with them, the six desires no longer arise, the three poisons of greed, anger, and delusion are removed, and even the subtlest desires are cut off entirely. At this point body and mind are inwardly complete and luminous, nature and life (xing and ming) unite, and the breath settles of its own accord. Once the breath has settled, the sensations of hunger and cold gradually fade. When they have faded, one can remain still for a long time, and in long stillness there is lasting calm.

This is called "the strong army wins the battle": just as a powerful army overcomes its enemy. Fighting with ten times the force, repeated three times through day and night, achieves the effect of ten thousand times the force. The scripture (Jing) also says that spirits are hidden between Yin-Yang, and that the art of victorious assistance appears from there. This is the interleaving of Metal and Wood, the union of Dragon and Tiger (in Daoist Neidan, the joining of the Yin and Yang qi), which refines the "Black Water Golden Elixir" and finally accomplishes the "Way of the Complete Horn."

The three Foot Yin meridians (the three Yin channels of the human body) all converge at "Ji Earth." The Six Geng, the Heavenly Talisman, and Ji Earth also correspond to the art of victorious assistance. This is the interleaving of Metal and Wood, the union of Dragon and Tiger, which refines the Black Water Golden Elixir and finally accomplishes the Way of the Complete Horn.

The three Foot Yin meridians all converge at Ji Earth. The Six Geng and the Heavenly Talisman join with Ji Earth at Geng, and bring Metal into the union. Metal is the Yin Tiger, and belongs to lead. The original root of Ji Earth is intention (yi), which arises together with the heart. It gazes at the eyes like an ox, and this is called the "eye-ox."

The three Hand Yang meridians (the three Yang channels of the human body) all converge at Wu Earth. The Six Jia and the Heavenly Talisman join with Wu Earth at Jia, and bring Wood into the union. Wood is the Yang Dragon, and belongs to mercury. Wu Earth dwells in emptiness, the place where spirit (Shen) and intention travel, which is the Niwan (the Daoist term for the inner alchemical site in the head). Jia Wood is mercury, and Geng Metal is lead. This is the interleaving of Metal and Wood, the union of Dragon and Tiger, which refines the Black Water Golden Elixir and finally accomplishes the Way of the Complete Horn.

This passage likens the human body to a cauldron and furnace. Drawing on the generative and restraining cycles of the Five Phases (Wuxing), the circulation of the meridians, and the transformations of Yin-Yang (阴阳), it explains the process of inwardly refining Jing (essence) and Qi (vital energy) and harmonizing water and fire. The original text contains many repetitions and some gaps in its wording, so what follows is interpreted according to its general sense.

Wood and Metal both return to Wu and Ji Earth (Wu and Ji both belong to Earth), and Earth is the root of life. The phrase "Heaven's Black Water" refers to the source Qi hidden deep within the body. Like the foundation of a cauldron and furnace, it bears on the beginnings of heaven, earth, the cosmos, and all generation and transformation. This source lies in the lumbar region at the center of the body, called the "Hall of Light and Abyssal Bone"; there is a deep cavity there known as "Heaven's Black Water."

The text then offers a metaphor: the divine tortoise in the Northern Sea, the "Green-Eyed Barbarian Child," which can circulate the spirit spring and breathe true Qi, sending the breath through all the meridians of the body. The human body has twelve regular meridians, fifteen collaterals, and eight extraordinary vessels, and Qi and blood flow through them in continuous communication. The vessels are distributed above and below, left and right. The vessel on the left connects to the left kidney; it belongs to Yin, to the moon, and to water, and its number is one. The vessel on the right connects to the right kidney, called the Gate of Life (Mingmen); it belongs to Yang and to the sun, governs the three Hun souls, corresponds to the color red and to fire, and its number is seven. Other vessels rise upward to reach the Void Cavity, and descend to the Foot Taiyang Bladder meridian and the Sea of Qi, after which the breath passes on to the tailbone gate (Weilü), the Golden Gate, the Jade Chamber, and the Dantian (energy center) below the navel.

The text uses colors and the Five Phases to describe how Qi is distributed: red above and black below, green on the left and white on the right, yellow at the center. The Five Phases generate one another in this order: Wood generates Fire, Fire generates Earth, Earth generates Metal, Metal generates Water, and Water generates Wood. The generative numbers of Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water are three, two, five, four, and one respectively. The Qi of the Yin stems Yi, Ding, Ji, Xin, and Gui rises to assist their circulation. The Foot Yangming meridian belongs to Wu Earth and is like a storehouse able to hold grain. Grain Qi combines with the clear and turbid Qi of the body and rises, driving the comings and goings of Shen (spirit) through the Valley of Heaven (a term in Daoist inner cultivation for the region of the brain), and takes part in refining the cauldron.

In practice, one must make the flames of the lower body rise and move upward like a red fire, using the golden cauldron as the furnace in which to refine Qi. The text describes the circuit of one celestial cycle in terms of 13,500 breaths in a day and night, 384 lines of the hexagrams, Qi and blood traveling 810 zhang, and the vessels circulating through fifty rounds. One round is called one "turn," and only when the circulation reaches nine turns is the work of refining the fire phases complete. In moving the Qi, one first draws the fire of the Hand Jueyin Pericardium meridian, called the Left Chancellor, with the number two. Next one draws the fire of the Hand Taiyang Small Intestine meridian, called the Right Chancellor, with the number seven. Then one draws the Qi of the Foot Taiyin Spleen Earth. This is the method of refining Shen and transcending Shen. To this is added the Yang fire of the Gate of Life, with the number seven, so that the fire Qi flows throughout the whole body.

In refining the elixir, the black water within the Gate of Life must meet the rising fire Qi: the fire is refined in the golden cauldron, while the water sinks down to the Celestial Pivot. The method of water is to send the Primordial Qi of the Great Void downward while raising the black water to the Void Cavity, then to let the water descend into the cauldron, where it coagulates together with the Metal Qi. When water and fire are harmonized, it is just as the Book of Changes (Zhouyi) calls "Already Completed" (Jiji). Water meeting Metal takes form, and when Metal and Water unite, they are like mother and child concealing one another: the mother hides the child's embryo, and the child is hidden within the mother's womb. The practitioner should "know the white and keep to the black" (understand the principle of clarity and hold fast to the deeply hidden root), and the divine light will then manifest of itself.

Finally, the text lists once more the colors and completed numbers of the Five Phases: black above and red below, white on the left and green on the right, yellow at the center. The completed numbers of Metal, Water, Earth, Wood, and Fire are nine, six, ten, eight, and seven respectively. Ren belongs to Water, Jia to Wood, Geng to Metal, Wu to Earth, and Bing to Fire.

The Golden Essence (Jin Jing) that is produced is called "gold within water." Its shape resembles a flower stamen, or a golden pellet, and some call it the "cherry." Its substance is like fresh blood, reddish-purple in color, and its radiance is dazzling enough to illuminate the open countryside; the golden light is bright and blinding, and the white light blazes. All of these are signs that the Golden Elixir is about to be completed and that the body is about to be transformed into a golden form.

First Return: The qi (vital energy) of white metal transforms the lungs, returning them to Yang Geng, and penetrates the Large Intestine of the Hand Yangming.

Second Return: The qi of black water transforms the kidneys, returning them to Yang Ren, and penetrates the Bladder Meridian of the Foot Taiyang.

Third Return: The qi of yellow earth transforms the spleen, returning it to Yang Wu, and penetrates the Stomach Meridian of the Foot Yangming.

Fourth Return: The qi of green wood transforms the liver, returning it to Yang Jia, and penetrates the Gallbladder of the Foot Shaoyang.

Fifth Return: The qi of red fire transforms the heart, returning it to Yang Bing, and penetrates the Small Intestine of the Hand Taiyang.

Sixth Return: The fire qi returns in full to the Mingmen (Gate of Life; in traditional Neidan (internal alchemy), the region associated with the root of life) and returns to Yang Earth. The Triple Burner of the Hand Shaoyang is regarded as the storehouse of all the Yang, and as the source of the qi of the six fu organs.

Seventh Return: The hair, skin, sinews, and flesh are all nourished, and at last return in full to the bone marrow.

Eighth Restoration: The twelve meridians return in full to the Eight Vessels and the Three Origins (the related channels and system of primordial qi in Daoist inner cultivation).

Ninth Restoration: Qi and blood return in full to the essence and marrow, and the body is made whole and firm.

The Method of Refining Shen (Spirit)

This is the method of cultivating shen (spirit) and qi so that they become rounded, harmonious, empty, and luminous.

The breath at the tip of the nose grows gradually finer, slower, and more expansive, as though the breath were rising from the position of the Nine-Five into the Upper Palace. It is also like the moonlight symbolized by the toad, able to go out and come in and circulate; the breath lifts gently and is gathered back into the flask.

The Method of Refining Qi

This is the method of restoring the original qi at the navel and returning to the original source.

The breath at the tip of the nose is fine, slow, and prolonged, and the Tianshu (Celestial Pivot; an important point associated with the navel) is settled and clear, with no smoke or vapor rising. The intention of the shen (spirit) enters the Dantian (energy center), the Yin qi is exhausted, and the Kan male and the Li female (terms in Neidan for the two qi of Yin and Yang) come to rest in Qian, the Heaven.

The Method of Refining the Body

This is the method of forming the inner elixir within the body, taking the Source of Life, the black water, and the Golden Elixir as its foundation.

In cultivating the body, one must recognize the heaven within the body; with the gaze one guides the dragon and tiger (symbols of Yin and Yang qi in Neidan) to meet, and so accomplishes the state of a superior immortal. When the qi of Wu and Ji joins and returns to one place, one tempers the inner elixir field with the Samadhi true fire (in Neidan practice, a metaphor for the fire phase that effects refining and transmutation).

Essentials of Embryonic Breathing

If one desires longevity, one should cultivate the root of life itself. The root of life begins with Jing (essence) and Qi (vital energy); when essence and Qi coalesce, they form the body. From this we can see that the body is the foundation that receives Qi, while Qi is the source from which the physical form comes to exist: without a form, Qi has nothing to attach to, and without Qi, a form cannot take shape.

The transformations of essence and Qi are therefore difficult to fathom. They blend Yin-Yang; at their vastest they can encompass heaven and earth, and at their subtlest they can enter into the tiniest of places (the finest and most minute recesses). When the heart-mind is clear and still, life can flourish; when the Shen (spirit) is turbid and restless, life will decline. When the mind is bright and clear, it can illuminate all directions; if it becomes lost in a single corner, it will be trapped in one place. So long as one can remain empty, still, and tranquil, the Dao (the Way) will arise; by holding fast to Wuwei (non-action), one can keep life long preserved and the body vigorous. Misfortune and fortune, auspiciousness and calamity, all come from this.

One who has attained success in cultivating the Dao (the Way) uses the intent of Shen (spirit) to govern the breath of Qi (vital energy). On the exhalation, the Qi is guided downward; on the inhalation, it is moved upward, so that it travels from the Niwan above (the cultivation site within the crown of the head) to the "yang extremity" below (the place the lower yang Qi reaches). The scenes of the upper and lower sites interpenetrate, and this is said to reverse the condition of aging and frailty.

If every breath can be made to accord with the intent of Shen, taixi (embryonic breathing, the manner of breathing of a fetus in the mother's womb) will take shape in stillness and concentration, and the breath will in turn be steadied by this inner state. Once this stage is reached, life can be nourished for a long time. If the breath is regulated by the intent of Shen, the breath at the nose will not become disordered, which is an auspicious sign.

The scripture (jing) also cites the Daodejing: "When the myriad things are about to arise and change, I settle them with the simplicity of the nameless." This explains the marvelous function of embryonic breathing. It also says: "Concentrating the vital breath and making the body supple, can you be like an infant?" This is the essential point of embryonic breathing: to transform Jing (essence) into Shen. The principle has now been fully explained. The root of the Dao lies in a single Qi; one who grasps the true root attains the Dao, and one who attains the Dao can endure.

Shen is linked with Jing. When Jing is full, the radiance of Shen appears; when that radiance is abundant, long life follows. To follow this method of cultivation is to practice the Dao, and to preserve Jing and Qi is to fill the root. As Qi is drawn in, it rises; as it is expelled, it flows downward. The practitioner feels Qi circulating throughout the whole body, the body as loose as a garment that has been taken off, and the Qi moving within like clouds. The scripture holds that the way of nourishing life lies precisely here.

The numinous is Shen, and fullness is Jing. Clasp the hands firmly in the wogu posture (the cultivation posture of tightly gripped fists) and hold the breath, so that Qi is transformed into Shen. The chest is clear and free of clutter, the mind does not waver, the will continues like flowing water, and the heart is as empty and still as a deserted city. "Flowery Pool," "Jade Blossom," "Sweet Dew," and "Body Spring" are all Daoist terms for the fluids that arise within the body. When these fluids are naturally produced, their source is transformed into Jing, Jing is transformed into Shen, and Shen is in turn transformed into a state of life like that of an infant.

Jing is like the flow of the blood vessels, and it is also the vital spirit that guards the bones. When Jing is dissipated, the bones wither; when the bones wither, a person dies. Therefore Jing and Qi must be kept full. The summoning of yang Qi is answered by yin Qi, and the summoning of yin Qi is answered by yang Qi: on the exhalation yin Qi rises, and on the inhalation yang Qi descends. If the Qi of Yin-Yang cannot be harmonized, vitality will decline. Joy makes yang Qi expand, sorrow makes yin Qi contract, anger makes Qi flow counter to its course, and worry makes Qi knot and stagnate. Yin Qi sinks like the roots of a plant; yang Qi flows freely like its trunk; when the essence disperses, it is like blossoming, and when the essence gathers, it is like bearing fruit.

From this we know that the myriad things are all produced from a single Qi: first there is one Qi, which then nourishes, grows, and transforms, and finally coalesces into form. Within emptiness lies the source from which the myriad things arise, and within particular things there is no form that remains forever unchanged. If one can grasp the boundary between being and non-being, one can bring the two together within the measures of cultivation.

Qi condenses out of emptiness and takes form, while Shen manifests its marvels through the Jing and Qi accumulated in the womb. When Qi is abundant, life endures; if Qi cannot circulate, its refined essence cannot function; and if Shen cannot be put to use, the true scenes within will not become clear. Moving Qi requires mastery of method. When the breath is held, Qi rises to the head and face; when it is expelled, Qi flows downward, and the practitioner feels it pass swiftly through the body and legs, traveling all the way to the soles of the feet.

Drawing in Qi through the nose and expelling it through the mouth, guided gently and at length, is called "long breath." There is only one way of inhaling, which is simply drawing in; but there are six sounds for exhaling: hu, he, xu, yan, chui, and xi, all of them sounds that accompany the breath. The ordinary person's breathing is merely exhaling and inhaling, without these distinctions.

To practice the long-breath method of exhalation, one may use different exhaling sounds according to the condition of the body: chui for cold and hu for heat; xi can be used to regulate wind Qi and can also relieve pain; he is used to dispel vexation and bring Qi downward; xu is used to disperse stagnation; and yan is used to relieve extreme fatigue. When people are utterly exhausted, they often make the xu or yan sound repeatedly. However, Daoist Qi practice generally avoids xu and yan, since they are unsuited to long-breath cultivation. The scripture says this is a method of becoming an immortal that both men and women may practice. The phrase "eating the living and spitting out the dead" means that drawing breath in through the nose is "the living," and expelling breath through the mouth is "the dead."