《紫元君授道传心法》

Commentary by Zhenren Yin (Yin the Perfected): In transmitting the arts of the Dao (the Way), one must first transmit the heart-mind of cultivation. When the heart is sincere, the Dao does not go astray; when the heart harbors falsehood, the Dao one seeks is not genuine. A person's aspirations and thoughts affect the movement of Qi (vital energy) within the body, and when thoughts are confused, the Qi loses its stability. The transmission of the Dao rests, at root, on the heart of the teacher.

To receive the methods of the Dao, one should contemplate them with the heart and practice them sincerely. The teachers' intentions are never divided; in the end they all take the Dao as their foundation. Before taking a teacher, one must first offer sincerity. To agree in words yet refuse to practice in earnest is to fail the teacher's instruction. In practicing the Dao, one must first look inward at one's own heart; if the heart is restless and scattered, conduct can hardly take root. If speech comes from falsehood, the study of the Dao loses its foundation. One who merely talks about the arts of the Dao and deceives others will in the end deceive himself as well. The heart of the Dao was never apart from the Dao, and this holds in every place.

In seeking the Dao through a teacher, what matters is to receive instruction with an open, humble heart. If one merely drifts about like floating clouds, busy all day to no avail, one will never escape birth and death. The Dao must be cultivated within the heart, and what one thinks inwardly should accord with what one says aloud. May you guard your heart well, and the gate of the Dao will reveal itself to you. If your own heart wavers constantly, who would be willing to follow you sincerely? It is like a person who serves many teachers at once: their opinions clash, and confusion follows. A true master need not be far outside the gate, whereas a false teacher throws the household into disorder, unsettles people's minds, and causes them to lose the real work of cultivation. The foolish will deceive the discerning with words, and shallow views can cloud a clear-sighted eye. The teachings transmitted by the Perfected are profound, yet the Dao itself is not distant. In transmitting the teaching, one first transmits the heart of cultivation; those who cultivate the Dao must not be scattered.

After a thousand words and ten thousand, there is only one true gate of the Dao. This gate symbolizes the Three Powers (Heaven, Earth, and Humanity). The Three Powers give rise to the Three Elixirs (in Daoist practice, the Neidan, or internal alchemy, teaching on Jing, Qi, and Shen: essence, vital energy, and spirit), the Three Elixirs originate in the Three Sovereigns, and the Three Sovereigns originate in primal chaos. Chaos gives birth to Heaven and Earth, Heaven and Earth divide the four directions, the four directions bring forth transformation, transformation brings forth the myriad phenomena, and the myriad phenomena bring forth all things. All things return to one gate, and that gate lies within a single heart.

Those who study the Dao should know the supreme purpose of our immortal teaching: among ten thousand, scarcely one truly grasps it. The wise can awaken to it, while the foolish find it hard to accept. If this Dao is to be passed on to others, the teacher should speak of it to the worthy and not hand it carelessly to the ignorant; otherwise the listener will turn and slander it, and the fault lies with the teacher.

Since the opening of Heaven and Earth, the method I transmit has never changed, and its root lies in the primal Qi of chaos. Ordinary people vainly pursue external techniques and so lose the root of my Dao. Those who, generation after generation, have not known this Dao and have therefore lost their vitality number in the tens of billions, and the cause is that they lost the root of the Dao. Now I wish to discuss the source of the heart in depth, so that this teaching may be handed down to later ages. The Dao is in the heart and is employed like an elixir; through repeated refining, the medicinal fluid is harmonized and condensed. Such expressions as "white snow subduing one another," "stirring Qi to form a dragon," "clouds rising in transformation," and "seven returns of refining" describe the process of circulating Qi and refining the elixir. It can transform the Qi of the five organs, make the bones solid and the will strong, let Qi and blood flow freely through the whole body, and leave body and mind as clear as a mirror.

This passage has some missing lines, and its terms of cultivation are rather obscure. The text says that the medicinal substances seem to lie in the west and the east, that the Qi of south and north subdue one another, that sun and moon rise, and that what is refined can be held in the hand; if it is lost, the fault lies in the heart. The teacher is like a parent, and the practitioner should treasure the bond with fellow seekers. This practice is inseparable from the Four Images (the basic interacting elements such as Yin-Yang), and one must guard against mutually conflicting Qi overpowering one another. When the teacher nurtures and guides, the practitioner benefits; if the teacher stays silent and does not teach, practice too will sink. When the Qi-dynamics of teacher and disciple accord, one resonates with the Dao and communicates with the teacher's heart.

Having written this far, may Heaven send down cloud-dragons so that this Dao may be passed on through the generations. Students of the Dao should apply their hearts and remember: teach others through the heart, and when the heart is true, the Dao is upright. Cultivate perfection with devotion, bring the Three Elixirs back into unity, and enter the Gate of the Nine Turnings (in Neidan, the stages of progressive transformation), where the divine talismans prove efficacious. If Tianyi attains its Dao, knotted cords serve as the proof. All the essential secrets are inseparable from the heart; grasp the key arts and errors will be fewer. Yuanshi (the Primordial Beginning, a supreme Daoist deity) transmitted the teaching through the heart, and by this the Three Powers were settled. To bow in reverence and entrust one's life is to know the heart and to know one's destiny.

Next, the text will continue its exposition with the Song of the Dragon and Tiger.

These four kinds of qi (vital energy) blend into chaos (hundun), which is the root of the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water).

The first is called "Zeng": Zeng becomes the "envoy" (shi), the envoy becomes qi, and qi becomes the sinews. The second is the Yang within Yin: Yang is the ethereal soul (hun) of the Great Yang, the hun is the jing (essence) of the Great Yang, and this jing transforms into Yang. Yang is the father, and the father is the placenta. The third is formed when white fluid turns into solid ice. Solid ice is Yang within Yin, and this Yang transforms into bone. Bone relies on qi to produce white fluid, which is called marrow. The fourth is mercury. Mercury is the jing of flesh, and this jing transforms into Yang. Yang is the father, and the father is the placenta. The qi of the flesh transforms into blood, and blood transforms into hair. Hair depends on the skin, and the skin acts as an outer wall, until at last the bodily form is complete.

From this we know that three months form the body, ten months bring it to maturity, and two further months of bathing and nurturing complete a full year. The body finally takes shape by receiving its heavenly endowment, then moves through the Five Phases in turn and in cyclical motion, and becomes the supreme treasure between Heaven and Earth. If a person receives the true qi of Heaven and Earth, that person too can become a Perfected One (zhiren).

The immortal medicines and treasures of my Dao are unlike the priced treasures of the world, such as gold, silver, coral, agate and pearls, which can only be ranked as precious or humble by their use and value. Only my immortal elixir shines as clearly as the sun and moon, and it is a treasure modeled on Heaven and Earth. Those who take it will live long, as lasting as Heaven and Earth. All of this is achieved by relying on the natural qi of chaos to attain the Dao (the Way).

The qi of chaos appears in the sky as mist and dew, and on the earth as springs and sources. When it settles into stillness, its color is like a deep green pool. This is the natural Dao. Immortal adepts must not misuse their intentions and recklessly take those drugs said to transmute base materials into yellow and white (gold and silver). If a Daoist obtains this natural Dao of mine, together with the supreme medicine formed from the chaos of the four qi, then after taking it for a thousand days, that person will know that the Dao of spiritual transformation is not far away. If the four qi are insufficient, spiritual transformation has nothing to rely on, just as a Perfected One who lacks the qi of the sun and moon cannot become a Perfected One.

From this we know that the Perfected accord with the laws of Heaven and Earth and become sages, while ordinary people follow the laws of their age and its affairs and become men of wisdom. Can such wise men therefore call themselves sages? They merely make themselves understand affairs, act in accordance with the circumstances of the times, and rely on their achievements to establish their principles. To measure what a person does, one must also look at the depth of that person's root nature. When the moment arrives, everything turns to ashes in the end.

Only the divinely transformed medicines and treasures of my Palace of the Three Pure Ones (Sanqing), the abode of the Daoist deities, can preserve a person's life and bring long life without aging, as lasting as Heaven and Earth. This method should not be transmitted casually. If it is to be transmitted, it should go to those who are truly suited to it.

The Dao originally has no form, and takes the mutual interaction of the qi of the Five Phases as its foundation. A person originally has no so-called supreme state, and must take the heart-mind as the root for reaching it. If evil thoughts dwell in the heart, the words spoken will be harmful. When words are harmful, conduct strays from the right path, and when conduct strays from the right path, the Dao cannot be cultivated. Therefore the three grades of elixir should be passed on to the worthy and not to the foolish. The foolish have clouded minds, and even if they read immortal formulas and secret instructions all day long, they may still not attain Dao-nature, for Dao-nature arises from the heart-mind.

Abstaining from grain (bigu), swallowing qi, guiding and stretching (daoyin, methods of regulating the body and circulating qi), and other forms of practice, as well as forgetting worldly affairs, nourishing the Valley Spirit (the spirit-qi within the human body), visualizing the hun and po souls, and concentrating the spirit and stilling thought, are all merely the empty gates of the Dao. They are not the true principle of long life.

The Nine-Tripod Elixir (an elixir refined in a tripod) must employ the fire phases of the four seasons, arranging mild fire (wenhuo) and martial fire (wuhuo). The firing must not be interrupted, and refining takes a long time to complete. A great vessel makes no sound, and a precious treasure is so valuable that it is hard to trade; even the Perfected find it difficult to recognize.

Lead serves as the outer frame of the alchemical furnace. The methods described above are only shallow gateways into the pursuit of the Dao (the Way), and are not the true path to long life. To refine the Elixir of the Nine Tripods, one must draw on the different intensities of heat suited to the four seasons, arranging the gentle fire (wenhuo) and the forceful fire (wuhuo) so that the heat is sustained without interruption; only after a long time can the elixir be completed. A truly great vessel often carries no reputation, treasures are hard to obtain, and a person who has attained the Dao is not easily recognized.

Lead forms the outer frame of the furnace, encircling it on all sides to protect and support it. Qingyao (here referring to a material used in alchemy to assist in harmonizing the ingredients) serves as the envoy ingredient, able to regulate the qi (vital energy) nature of the other substances, much as one harmonizes wind and rain.

Zengqing (a mineral substance used in alchemy) can serve as the envoy ingredient for all kinds of Golden Elixirs, helping the other substances take effect. The envoy ingredient drives qi, qi nourishes the sinews, and when the sinews are strong, a person has great strength. When a medicinal substance fails to take effect, it is often because it lacks an aid such as zengqing. It is like a person who does not eat and so has no strength: food is transformed into qi, qi is like the envoy ingredient, and the envoy ingredient is in turn like food. Without food there is no strength, and undertakings naturally struggle to succeed. All efficacy depends on strength in order to arise and grow. If a substance has no strength, it will not manifest its spiritual effect, and it cannot settle the body either.

When the White Liquid joins with the Golden Flower, it is as though a dragon and a tiger were born within ice.

The dragon and tiger (symbols in alchemy of the two forces of Yin-Yang) originally arise from the qi of emptiness, receiving and transforming one another. This transformation follows the resonance and generative influence of the Dao of Heaven, and once set in motion, it forms vessels that correspond to the four seasons, Heaven, and Earth. Each receives its own generative nature, just as the climate of the four seasons steams and nurtures the myriad things, each finding its place, and in doing so opens the transformations of life and death. The original qi of the Dao is called the dragon and tiger. The dragon and tiger embody the two natures of Yin-Yang; they are the qi of two forces that unite, swallow, and subdue one another. From this we know that material forms arise from the qi of emptiness; by cultivating goodness and removing evil, one can bring this transformation to completion.

When the "Three in One" (Sanyi, in Daoism the unity of three into one) rises and circulates, it must follow certain rules. The transformations of life and death are opened by this. The original qi of the Dao is called the dragon and tiger; the dragon and tiger embody the two natures of Yin-Yang, and are formed by the union of Yin-Yang qi as they swallow and subdue one another. From this we know that material substance arises from the qi of emptiness; by cultivating goodness and removing evil, it can be brought to completion.

When the "Three in One" rises and circulates, it must follow rules.

"Three Ones" (San Yi, the threefold practice in Neidan (internal alchemy) that governs Jing (essence), Qi (vital energy), and Shen (spirit)) corresponds to the upper, middle, and lower Dantian (energy centers). Each has its own method for settling the hun and po souls and for concentrating the Shen (spirit) in guarding the One. When it comes to the medicinal substances and the methods of cultivation, the way sinews and bones, blood and Qi, and muscle and flesh coordinate with one another must be handled with care and precision, without the slightest error, and without missing the right moment in the movement of Yin-Yang.

At the start of each month, when the fire is first circulated, one counts from the first day and calculates according to the "nine-nines" method. This Three Ones method belongs to inner cultivation. The fire phasing of the twelve months must govern the twelve double-hours and correspond to the twelve directions, while also moving through the Nine Palaces, drawing its imagery from the Bagua (Eight Trigrams), and aligning with the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water). Tradition holds that the Yellow Emperor once asked the Perfected Huang about the Three Ones gateway, and so the method has been passed down as oral instruction, transmitted by immortals of successive generations from mouth to ear and never permitted to be written in books. The oral instructions require cultivation in accordance with the rules of the Three Ones, the Bagua, and the Five Phases. If one does not follow these rules, then even if one has mastered many minor arts, or can even refine yellow and white (alchemical gold and silver) and accumulate wealth, one still cannot escape death. These are, in the end, not methods for preserving life. Only by learning this and understanding it can one be said to have gained something.

When the Returned Elixir is perfected, vivid signs appear, as though the sun and moon were shining down and the stars were brilliantly clear, or as though one saw a road through the clouds. Once the Returned Elixir (the elixir or fruit of practice that coalesces in Neidan cultivation) is accomplished, its radiance is distinct, like fire hidden within wood: the fire is not visible, yet a reddish aspect lies within the green. After it has been taken for a thousand days, the physical body is transformed, the ordinary frame is shed and the bones are remade, and one becomes spiritually attuned. It also steadies the mind, Shen (spirit), and the hun and po souls, turns the old back into the young, and, with the aid of celestial spirits, brings one into communion with the divine.

What is gained through cultivation should not be carelessly disclosed. Even if one has not yet fully attained the Dao, one can continue to cultivate the Dao by this means; and even if one's hidden merit is not yet complete, it is said that one may still transcend the world and be spared death. From this we know that the great Dao is without form or trace, yet cultivation must not lose its root. One should not forget the root of life bequeathed by one's parents. Apart from this, rashly refining and subduing mercury to turn it into gold is not a true method of cultivating the Dao.

The meaning of the oral instructions is profound, and few truly grasp it. They speak of the principle by which life and death change without cease across a hundred years. Immortals have transmitted them orally from generation to generation, guarding them for one another. The saying about the "single double-hour" being passed down is probably only hearsay, with no other reason behind it. Rashly refining and subduing mercury to turn it into gold is, in the end, not a true method of cultivating the Dao.

The meaning of these oral instructions (jue, 诀) is profound, and few truly grasp it. People keep asking for a lifespan of a hundred years, yet life and death do not pause on their account. Immortal masters have handed the instructions down and guarded them from generation to generation. Many accounts circulate in the world, but there is no other reason for them than this.

The instructions speak of the "supreme medicine" (zhiyao, 至药, regarded in Daoist cultivation as a substance that helps one attain longevity), which teaches the gateway to long life. The supreme medicine is unlike the treasures of the world. The medicinal treasure the immortals describe, though refined a thousand times and transformed ten thousand times, still keeps its original form. One who takes it can thereby come to know the Way of longevity attained through the spirits (Shen). So I treasure time and value life, and I do not hold wealth in high regard. Fools, by contrast, prize worldly riches. They think only of the moment, chase wives, concubines, and glory, and live like walking corpses and wandering ghosts. They despise life, waste their days, and finally bring about their own ruin. People ask for a hundred years, while countless others have died.

For this reason the Primordial Lord (Yuanjun, 元君) pitied the people of the world. The marvelous Way within the medicine now circulating in the world has already transformed people into Perfected Persons (zhenren, 真人, those who have attained the Dao and become immortals). Do not act rashly. Let each return to their own proper work, keep to the Dao (Way) and be content with poverty, and together bring this life-preserving medicine to completion. It is also called "You Two-Eight" (酉二八). Two and eight together make one jin, and what it refers to is the white liquid, the white snow, which in turn is like hard ice. Hence it is said that when "You Two-Eight You" is joined with the "two natures," it becomes like cinnabar. This method must not be made known to ordinary people.

The fire phasing (huohou, 火候, the regulation of heat and timing in refining) is governed by the number nine, and nine times nine corresponds to the noon position. The Three Ones (《三一》) says: "Three days make one phase, and three threes join to make nine." When the number nine is complete, the medicine takes on a purple-black color, which the Primordial Lord praised. It is regrettable that the songs and formulas discussed by later immortal masters are so obscure. May they be explained clearly by an enlightened teacher. If the mind is single-minded and undivided, long life will be fully attained.

Know that Heaven has no favorites and treats the human heart as its own kin. Heaven has no selfishness and takes the human heart as its own self-interest. Heaven has no calamities; calamities are brought on by people and are not sent down upon them by Heaven. If students of the Dao do not betray their teachers, and children do not defy their parents, then the Way of Heaven will endure, and the teacher's transmission will be complete. Therefore the highest principle admits no duplicate, and the supreme medicine is one and unique. When Heaven and humanity are united in the Dao, blessings will naturally increase.

If there is too much bone, the flesh is lacking; if there is too much flesh, the bones cannot support it. Bone and flesh both depend on the sinews, and only when the sinews are strong can strength be robust. Strength, moreover, must keep growing. Without strength, it is like having a bag that cannot hold anything. How then could one stand upright? No infant is unattached to its mother; when an infant loses its mother, it is like a medicine that has lost its sinews. A medicine depends on its main strength to take effect, and without strength it naturally lacks the power of wondrous transformation.

One who understands hears a single phrase and sees the many branching meanings within it. One who does not understand remains a fool, even after reading a thousand scrolls and ten thousand oral instructions. There are those who devote themselves wholly to turning stone into gold and refining gold and silver (huangbai zhi shu, 黄白之术), yet neither read the immortals' books nor investigate the supreme treasure. Busy seeking gold and silver, they often fail to obtain even a single liang and lose their own lives. The wise value the supreme medicine, and even before they have glimpsed the mysterious gateway to the medicine, they first accumulate good deeds.

When the heart harbors no greed or desire for profit, and one keeps to the Dao and accepts poverty, Heaven will naturally send no punishment. Good deeds bring blessings and celebration, and the teacher will also sense the disciple's sincerity. Since the ancient emperors Xi and Xuan, people have continually sought the Way of becoming immortal.

The original text contains some repetitions and apparent errors or omissions; the translation above follows the meaning of the text as it stands.

When Yang qi (vital energy) accumulates to the number one hundred and eight, and Yin qi condenses, the two fuse into a single body and show a vivid purple color. This becomes the Returned Elixir (huandan, the internal or external elixir spoken of in Daoist cultivation). Taking it brings long life, and its subtle wonder is hard to put into words. There is only this one kind of cinnabar and nothing else; Yin and Yang generate each other like mother and child, circulating without cease.

Ordinary people do not understand the principle within it and waste their wealth in vain, while those who have awakened to the Dao (the Way) treat it as the key to refining the Great Returned Elixir. The key exists, yet it is not openly displayed; the sequence exists, yet it is not set out in detail. Only after one has grasped and realized it can it be transmitted and explained.

It is called first the "Father of Earth," second the "Mother of Water," third the "Yellow Sprout," and fourth the "Seventy-Two Stones." A lustrous substance cannot form the Yellow Sprout unless it is joined with the right ingredients. Heaven and Earth naturally give birth to the myriad things, and mother and child blend with one another without ever abandoning each other: the mother appears from within the child. The profound principle lies right before one's eyes. When Yin contains Yang, the way of Yin-Yang is complete. When Yin and Yang unite without separating, and one refines and takes the elixir, one can become an immortal.

It is also called "Completion within the Standard," and also the "Great Dao." Gathering, refining, and continuing must not be interrupted; with steady additions, the elixir will show its spiritual efficacy. In Heaven it appears as mist and dew; on Earth it appears as the source of springs. When the numbers of Yin-Yang transformation reach fullness, those who have attained the Dao finally have no more to say.

On a jiazi day the fire is first applied (the firing process in cultivation begins), following the season and heat of a ten-day period. Mastering the heat allows mother and child to unite. One must still follow the corresponding ten-day period, and only when the numbers are complete and the cycle is fulfilled may the substance be divided into two parts. It is also called "True Source Autumn Mineral" and "Essence-Spirit of the Great Dao." Gathering and refining the Returned Elixir must accord with proper method; only then can one leave the dust of the world behind and become an immortal living in the mortal realm.

The sun and moon are not my body; Yin and Yang naturally condense into form and substance. Within the creative transformations of Qian and Kun (Heaven and Earth), the six directions (Heaven, Earth, and the four quarters) finally return to unity. The altar and the "ao" serve as the palace, covered layer upon layer. Gathering and refining the Returned Elixir must accord with proper method; only then can one leave the dust of the world behind and become an immortal among mortals. The sun and moon are not my body; Yin and Yang naturally condense into form and substance. Within the transformations of Heaven and Earth, the six directions return to one. Layer upon layer is covered, and one ten-day period counts as a single cycle of heat; after the bathing, it is covered again. When the numbers are complete, one reaches a state of spiritual wonder and sacredness, and the qi of Qian and Kun flows through everywhere.

The "shi," "mei," "li," "ran," and other items used in the altar above are all my Shen Shi (spirit chamber, the furnace or place of inner cultivation where the elixir is refined).

The original text contains several passages that appear corrupted, repeated, or incomplete, especially the final line "右坛谥楣俚染洌" and the phrase "坛鳌为宫,蒙之," which are difficult to interpret with certainty. The translation above follows the existing wording as literally as possible.