《种芝草法》

The Yellow Emperor asked, "I would like to learn about the method of planting zhi (the divine mushroom) recorded in the Stone Chamber texts. Could you explain it to me?"

Laozi said, "All of you know that living is a joy and death is something to fear, yet none of you knows how life comes into being. Hundreds and thousands of medicines may enter the body, but at best they only prolong life. Even if a person lives a thousand years, or several hundred, they still cannot ascend as an immortal or attend the court of the Celestial Emperor.

"Among wood-type medicines, the best is pine resin. The pine grows in the land of Xialing (as in the original; probably a place name or the name of a medicine), and because its resin is so rich, the fruit it bears can be taken as medicine. Among herbal medicines, the best are rong hua, huangjing (Solomon's seal), tianmendong (asparagus root), and shanji (atractylodes). These are suited to daily use, and not a single day may be missed. After a hundred days they restore the original Qi (vital energy), but they cannot give a person a lifespan equal to that of Heaven and Earth.

"Later practitioners embellished these teachings and spread them widely, misleading those who study. I feel deep pity for this. With the eight minerals and nine elixirs (elixirs refined from minerals) and the mica jade fluid, one must also abstain from sexual relations and from meat and strong-smelling foods, yet even then they cannot make the body light enough to ascend and ride the clouds. I have heard that immortals take ziying (purple blossom, a divine medicine in Daoist texts). Could that be mere empty talk?"

The original text ends with a passage on "mica jade fluid" that appears twice; the translation above merges the two and interprets them according to their sense.

On the shaded north side of famous mountains, above springs where the essence of Yang qi (气) gathers, or beneath trees and rocks, zhi herbs (芝草, numinous immortal plants described in Daoist scriptures) also grow. The scripture says that the zhi herbs in such places receive the vital essence of the mountain, the water, the trees, and the earth.

Zhi herbs can also grow upon cinnabar, gold, zengqing (曾青, a mineral used in ancient alchemy), and realgar. However, unless a person of supreme De (德, Virtue) is able to move the spirits and win their response, one will not see the herb even when standing before it; and even if one sees it, one cannot gather it for consumption.

The reason this herb can enable a person to attain the Dao (道, the Way) and become an immortal is that it absorbs the essence of these four substances, contains the harmonized qi of Heaven and Earth and of Yin-Yang (阴阳), and is nourished by the fluids produced as medicinal materials are steamed. It therefore accords with the principle by which all things are generated. Its medicinal power far surpasses that of the four substances themselves.

If one now simply takes these four substances, pounds them, processes them, and consumes them, what one obtains is only the thinnest part of them. Instead, they should be cut and prepared, placed in a furnace and cauldron, and heated so that their essence rises as vapor, which is then collected and taken. In this way, the herbal and mineral medicines are not merely ingested directly; they also draw upon the pure and abundant qi of Heaven and Earth, causing the essential fluids of the four substances to ascend and, above them, to transform further into zhi herbs. The scripture continues that another cauldron should be set above, so that the vapor and the essence gather within it. It adds: "I am about to depart, and when I think that all living beings will in the end return to dust, I cannot help but sigh at decay and sorrow."

I now write the Tianwen Zhi (《天文芝》). Only one whose fate includes the bones of an immortal will receive this text. If a person's ancestors committed offenses, that person will not see the promise of long life fulfilled, nor will they obtain my book. This book should be hidden in a famous mountain, placed beneath nine layers of stone chests, and not transmitted carelessly. Be careful, be careful.

On the day of Lichun (the Beginning of Spring), dig out a clear patch of ground at the yin position of the dwelling site (according to the traditional assignment of directions to the Earthly Branches, the yin position lies to the northeast). The spot must be free of any other objects, both inside and around it. Choose soil of good quality, neither ashy soil nor sandy soil. Dig a pit three chi deep and three chi wide. Grind one jin of zengqing (a mineral used in Daoist alchemy and medicine) into a fine powder, wrap it in sheepskin, and pour over it one sheng of qingxiangzi (a plant or medicinal substance named in the original text). Then fill the pit with earth and pack it down firmly. After seven days, a blue-green vapor is said to appear; after a hundred days, a zhi fungus (lingzhi, the "mushroom of immortality") resembling a young seedling will grow from the ground.

On a yin day or a mao day, begin harvesting from beneath the zhi. For the harvest, use three chi of blue-green silk, hold a bone knife, and perform the Steps of Yu (a ritual walk in Daoist ceremonies that follows a prescribed pattern of steps); a blue-green vapor is said to appear. When picking the zhi, turn the face to one side and take it without looking back. After bringing it home, dry it in the shade for a hundred days, then grind it into a fine powder. Take one daogui (a very small measure in ancient times) at a time, swallowed with water drawn just as a well begins to well up, taking three zhi each day. The scripture states that in the daytime one will become light of body and rise high, and spirits will come to receive one; after a hundred days one ascends to Heaven and thereafter lives as long as Heaven and Earth.

On the day of the Beginning of Summer (Lixia), dig a pit on the southern slope of the southern mountain, eight chi deep and eight chi wide. Take two jin of cinnabar and grind it into a fine powder. Then take red realgar, pound and grind it finely, remove any stony impurities, and mix the cinnabar powder into it. Pour two sheng of black ginseng (xuanshen) over the top, then cover it with earth, level it, and tamp it down firmly.

After twenty-eight days, the pit should be shrouded in red clouds. After eighty days, a red vapor like smoke will rise from the ground and join the red clouds. By the hundredth day, a red lingzhi (spirit mushroom) will grow from the pit, shaped like a young sprout.

Choose a si day or a wu day, face the direction of the sun, and walk around it using the Steps of Yu (Yubu, a ritual pace in Daoism). Wrap the lingzhi in eight chi of deep crimson silk and cut it with a wooden knife. After harvesting, bow twice and leave without looking back.

Dry the lingzhi in a cool, shaded place for one hundred days, then grind it into a powder, taking a portion the size of a square-inch spoon (fangcun spoon) once a day. Each morning, just as the sun has risen and is not yet a foot above the ground, take it with "well-flower water" (jinghua water, the first water drawn from a well at dawn). According to the scripture (Jing), the Three Corpses and Nine Worms (sanshi jiuchong, impure and harmful entities said in Daoism to dwell within the body and hinder cultivation), the seven ailments, "wild lung," lumps and accumulations, and a hundred other illnesses within the body will, during the day, all transform into turbid blood and be expelled through the nose and mouth. Then wash with well-flower water, and you will be able to walk on water, remain unburned by raging fire, forgo food and drink, and depart from the human world. Do not let anyone bring the lingzhi into a house, and also abstain from meat, strong-smelling foods, and blood-based foods; afterward, dragon chariots and the host of immortals will come to welcome you.

If you wish only to remain in the human world, be careful not to plant this lingzhi.

On the day of the Beginning of Autumn (Liqiu), dig a pit on the northern slope of Western Mountain, six chi deep and six chi wide. Melt one jin of gold over a fire and pour it into the pit. Then add one jin of Xushan crane-knee herb, one hu of clear wine, and one hu of duckweed, spreading them over the top, and fill the pit with earth, packing it down firmly.

After six days, a white cloud will come to rest above the pit. After sixty days, a yellow vapor will rise from the ground like steam and join the white cloud above. After one hundred days, a yellow lingzhi (divine fungus) will grow from the earth, shaped like a young seedling.

Harvest the lingzhi during the shen or you hour, on a shen or you day. When gathering it, spread out a six-chi length of white silk, walk the Steps of Yu (Yubu, a Daoist ritual gait), and cut the yellow lingzhi with a golden knife. Bow twice and leave without looking back. Dry the lingzhi in a cool, shaded place for one hundred days, then grind it and take it. Each dose is a pinch held between three fingers, and this is continued until it is all consumed. The scripture (Jing) says that the elderly will become young again, and the young will have a radiant complexion. White hair will turn black, fallen teeth will grow back, and one will be able to spring up, fly into the heavens, and gather whatever one wishes. At that time, immortals and jade maidens will attend one, and one may ask them about matters of one's destination and conduct.

"Shen day" and "you day" are days in the sexagenary day-count; the "shen hour" and "you hour" refer roughly to 3 to 7 p.m.

In the last days of winter, dig a pit five chi deep on the shaded side of the northern mountain. Take three jin of realgar (xionghuang, a mineral drug commonly used in Daoist cultivation and refining), process it, and place it in a vessel of refined copper. Pour in two jin of sesame oil, sprinkle on one jin of powdered realgar, cover the vessel, then fill the pit with earth and pack it down firmly.

It is said that after five days a black cloud will hang over the pit; after fifty days a purple vapor will rise and join with the black; and after one hundred days a purple zhi (lingzhi, the divine fungus) will grow, resembling a young seedling. At night, the light it gives off can illuminate the area within a li, and even on overcast days a faint glow can be seen. The zhi must be gathered on particular days and by particular methods: on renwu and guiyou days, it is cut with a horn knife beneath the sun; on bingwu and xinyou days, it is gathered with five chi of black silk. After gathering it, bow twice and leave without looking back.

Dry the purple zhi in a shaded place for one hundred days, then grind it into powder on a zi day or a hai day. Take five fen each time, and seven days later, at midnight in the zi hour, swallow it while facing north. The scripture (Jing) claims that after taking this zhi, the body will return from old age to the state of a child, and women may take it as well. Siming Taiyi (the deity who governs lifespans) will send immortal officials to receive the one who takes it, making their lifespan equal to that of Heaven and Earth. Blade and fire cannot harm them, floodwater cannot wet them, the five poisons keep away, and hunger and thirst are no longer felt. All who take this kind of zhi herb achieve long life without death; and when the appointed time arrives, celestial officials will also bring food, so one may go without eating. The zhi herb should be hidden among the mountains and marshes, where it is used to nourish the dragon and tiger mounts, and ghosts and spirits will come to pay homage. The scripture closes with a warning that the one who receives this method is charged to keep it secret.

The commentator remarks: judging from these words, all who take this kind of zhi herb achieve long life without death; and when the appointed time arrives, celestial officials will also bring food, so one may go without eating. The zhi herb should be hidden among the mountains and marshes, where it is used to nourish the dragon and tiger mounts, and ghosts and spirits will come to pay homage, and the one who receives the method should keep it secret.

The ancients argued as follows: seen in this light, the laws governing the transformations of Heaven, Earth, and Yin-Yang (阴阳) enable the myriad things to change and come into being, and one cannot say that these laws do not exist. Consider the yangsui (阳燧), a bronze mirror used to draw fire from the sun, and the yinsui (阴燧), a vessel used in ancient times to gather water. Fire can even arise from within bamboo. Are these not all cases of response to an influence? Cinnabar (丹砂), when placed in a furnace or cauldron, can also be refined into mercury, which is precisely the outcome of the resonance of essential Qi (气) and the transformation of matter. What, then, in this world cannot be transformed, and what cannot be brought into being?

One may draw on analogies among things to explain the principle of transformation, and then store it away in a golden chest. Do not divulge it. Only those whose destiny includes the bones of an immortal and who possess a bond with the immortals will come across you. Cultivate diligently and accumulate merit, and the Director of Destiny (司命), the deity who governs human lifespan, life, and death, will strike your name from the register of the dead. Then you will exist alongside Heaven and Earth, roam above the Nine Heavens, and travel freely among the Six Realms. Your spiritual powers will be unobstructed, and you will enjoy boundless blessings and longevity.