《还丹显妙通幽集》

Those who devote their minds to alchemy often keep the "Yellow Sprout" (huangya, a key term in alchemy for the crucial substance or stage in which the elixir forms) constantly in their thoughts, wearing out their spirits in contemplation. Yet if they do not understand the principle of lead and mercury (qianhong, alchemical terms symbolizing the two substances or forces of Yin-Yang), they will only squander precious materials. Some gather the frost and dew of all manner of plants and trees, hoping thereby to grasp the method of refining; others place the five kinds of alum into their vessels and single-mindedly seek to make them transform. In this way they merely waste their days and never grasp the essential meaning of the Way of lead and mercury.

From around the age of twenty, I earnestly sought instruction from relatives and friends; only after thirty did I encounter the true Dao (the Way). Having grasped the meaning of the "faint and subtle" (xi yi, a profound realm that can hardly be heard, seen, or held), I came to understand the principles I had asked about amid the indistinct and elusive. The Yellow Emperor (Xuanyuan) withdrew and the world was at peace; Liu An (the legendary King of Huainan who attained the Dao and ascended as an immortal) became an immortal and left the vermin behind. These accounts are not empty tales, and clear proof of them has appeared in recent times.

Thus, a person of penetrating understanding pointed out to me: the dragon and tiger are metal and water; metal and water are lead and mercury; lead and mercury are Yin-Yang; Yin-Yang are Kan and Li (names of hexagrams in the Zhouyi, often used to symbolize water and fire); Kan and Li are husband and wife; and husband and wife are man and woman. These names originally came from a single source and later divided into many designations; it is one and the same fundamental principle, differing only in name.

I know well that people commonly look for the tiger toward Gengxin (the Heavenly Stems belonging to Metal) and seek the dragon in Jiayi (the Heavenly Stems belonging to Wood), without realizing that the dragon is in Gengxin and the tiger is in Jiayi; that fire is in Renkui (the Stems of Water), and water is in Bingding (the Stems of Fire). Since ancient times the sages have not written out this principle plainly, because the teaching appears extremely simple. Hence it is said: "The dragon emerges from fire, and the tiger is born in water." It is also said: "The dragon is not in the east, and the tiger is not in the west." And again: "Suddenly, the place of Wood becomes Metal." This is the essential point of the Great Elixir.

Now, fortunate to be able to study these profound scriptures, I venture to offer my meager abilities and, following the manner of Yuanyangzi's Collection of the Golden Liquid (Jinye ji), have composed thirty poems titled Poems Revealing the Subtle and Penetrating the Obscure, to be left for later people who share this aspiration and who may join me in testing and verifying them.

Preface by Qianzhenzi of Mount Shaoshi.

In the first cycle, the Tiger is placed first. In practice, one must first enter deeply into the "Water," and after about ten days of focused effort, remove impurities such as lead and mercury. Then the "River Cart" (heche, a metaphor in Daoist Neidan, or internal alchemy, for circulating Jing and Qi) is refined with fire, and what is needed is sought at the Jia position.

In the second cycle, a single spiritual substance is prepared and then placed into the "Water" to be cooked and refined, carefully worked inside the Yang Cauldron (a vessel used for yang-natured refining). It is then clothed in green and married to Geng Metal. This uses marriage and directional correspondences of the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water) as a metaphor for how the ingredients combine.

In the third cycle, one must labor diligently in the north, from which point Yin-Yang is brought into union. Steamed by water and refined by fire seventy-two times, Ren Water and Gui Water, the "husband and wife" pair, are said to emerge as though stepping out of the bridal chamber, signifying that the transformations of the refining are complete.

In the fourth cycle, before a hundred days of cultivation have passed, the furnace must be opened and the cauldron unsealed, and the changes within them seem to disperse like drifting clouds. At this point the vessels must be washed clean and clean clothing put on, so that no dust or impurity may touch them.

When lead and mercury are refined to the fifth cycle, they display a rich, flower-like radiance, pale red and light. The furnace is opened and the water taken out, fire is added and the refining continues, and then the ingredients are arranged anew and placed in the Kan position (the trigram in the Bagua, or Eight Trigrams, that represents water).

The sixth cycle requires continuous, unbroken refining for more than five months. The Geng husband and the Jia wife are now close and in harmony, so the furnace and cauldron must be sealed tightly and firmly, allowing no water to leak from the furnace.

When Metal and Water unite, they are no longer in their original two states; where Dragon and Tiger meet, a new form is produced. The immortals left behind this method of the Divine Elixir so that people might grasp the pairing symbolized by the directions east and west and the colors white and green.

A single ingredient, spiritual cinnabar, belongs to the Four Divine Beings, and within the furnace a small universe forms of its own. The Cantong qi (Zhouyi Cantong Qi, a classic of Daoist alchemy) makes this plain: the Divine Water and the Flower Pond each have their own place within the furnace.

Since ancient times, aspirants who refined cinnabar have known that they must first recognize the "Horse Tooth" (maya, an alchemical term whose specific referent varies by method). When Dragon and Tiger unite, no other ingredient is needed; who would have thought that what the Yellow Emperor treasured was precisely the Golden Flower?

The sages entrusted their intentions to these veiled expressions. Lead and mercury both originally belong to the east. What is yin in nature appears hard and strong, while what is yang appears soft and tender; once the two are briefly harmonized, they enter the Central Palace (the central position).

The principle of spiritual cinnabar is the most profound. To seek the "One Yang," one must begin from within the Water. Do not try to burn and refine the hard, stubborn substances of the ordinary world, for that will surely fail and only waste resources.

The Maiden of the West (Laonü, a feminine medicinal substance in alchemical metaphor) conceives the embryonic origin within fire, enveloped by the waters of Zhunan that gather around her. Only the Central Palace (the central Earth position) can blend them and return them to unity, never touched by a speck of dust.

The supreme Dao (the Way) must not be forced upon the understanding of ordinary people. Who has ever seen the Azure Dragon dressed in azure robes? The Yellow Sprout (an alchemical term for the first signs of the medicine's emergence) is not completed in the black quarter of the north; that maiden will in the end rise and fly upward with the fire.

There is more than one method for the Golden Liquid Divine Elixir, and the subtle principle of the Flowery Pool (an alchemical term often referring to the place where the medicine is nourished) is hard to put into words. The relations among the medicines, such as ruler and minister or father and son, all return in the end to the central Earth position. The Azure Hun-soul's counterpart, the Azure Po (an alchemical metaphor for feminine essence-Qi), takes many years before it joins with the Hun.

Lead and mercury are by nature one and the same true substance; it is only students who have confused and darkened their own minds. Examine the southern and northern positions with care: Water and Fire each appear distinctly, and this is the very root from which the medicine is produced.

There is more than one method for the Golden Liquid Divine Elixir, and the subtle principle of the Flowery Pool is hard to put into words. The relations among the medicines, such as ruler and minister or father and son, all return in the end to the central Earth position. The Azure Po takes many years before it joins with the Hun.

Lead and mercury are by nature one and the same true substance; it is only students who have confused and darkened their own minds. Examine the southern and northern positions with care: Water and Fire each appear distinctly, and this is the very root from which the medicine is produced.

When pure Yin Qi (vital energy) has only just been exhausted, pure Yang Qi comes into view; it is conceived within Earth and lies hidden within Water. If one cannot grasp how the Five Phases (Wuxing: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water) combine and correspond, how can one refine the king of medicines, the Golden Elixir (Jindan)?

Ordinary practitioners who wish to refine the Golden Elixir must first recognize the formula of the Nine Reversions (a process in the Way of the elixir in which the medicine turns and returns to its origin). Do not fiddle with the Four Yellows, the Eight Minerals, and other mineral ingredients, or you will never reach the Three Mountains (a term for the realm of the immortals) in all your life.

At the start of the refining, the Flowing Pearl (an alchemical term often referring to mercury) is transformed into cinnabar sand, and is then placed in the cauldron to unite with the Golden Flower (an alchemical term for the essence of the medicine). If worldly people do not believe in the art of long life, do not boast of it even after the Nine Transformations are complete.

I have heard that there are a great many recipes for the Divine Elixir, but sparrows cannot give birth to phoenixes. Apart from true lead and true mercury, all the rest fail to accord with the rules of alchemy.

The Dragon of Jia and Yi emerges from the Li trigram (representing Fire), and the Tiger of Geng and Xin arises from the Kan trigram (representing Water). They keep to each other like husband and wife, never altering their original nature and substance.

The immortals left words in praise of the Yellow Sprout: Metal and Water join in a single cauldron and form its essence. Once they have transformed into Dragon and Tiger, Kan and Li enter together into the Purple River Chariot (an alchemical metaphor for the place of gestation).

Before Kan the man and Li the woman became husband and wife, they had long since been matched by Heaven itself, symbolizing the two forms of Heaven and Earth. After they have transformed into husband and wife, they are instead called "the sage who knows nothing."

In every household the Dragon and Tiger lie hidden where they are hard to notice, and everywhere Kan and Li lurk in obscurity, difficult to make out. People have always failed to recognize them because of their confusion, so how would the sages lightly reveal this subtle Dao that is so hard to express?

After long refining in the furnace, there will appear…

Every household hides a Dragon and a Tiger (symbols of the two forces of Yin-Yang in Neidan, or internal alchemy), and every place conceals Kan and Li (representing water and fire, Yin and Yang), yet people have always been confused and fail to recognize them. How could the sages readily reveal a truth so subtle and hard to express?

Only after long refining in the furnace does the essence of lead appear. It is as fine and light as red frost. Even jewels worth a fortune cannot compare with it; from this one learns that the road to the realm of the immortals lies right before one's eyes.

Take one grain at a time, grind it into powder, and then slowly mix it with mercury over the fire. Who would still envy a hall full of pearls and jade? Shedding the vulgar world, one may become a Zhenren (True Person, one who has succeeded in cultivation).

When people meet to discuss the Dao (the Way), their words multiply like clouds. Who among them can find the true Dao? If one merely wastes effort combining the "four yellows" and "eight stones" (minerals used in ancient alchemy), how could one understand the way the White Tiger and the Azure Dragon (symbols in Neidan of lead, mercury, and other ingredients) draw close and unite?

From the water of Ren-Yin, draw out the Tiger of Geng-metal; in the furnace of Wu-Ji, subdue the Dragon of Jia-wood. Fortunately, in the south there is "Wuji" (meaning unclear here), diligently guarding the red form of the elixir.

The middle son and the middle daughter meet and unite, and the years of the "two eights" are regulated by the same principle; a general is also needed to act as go-between. The work of harmonizing and joining lies entirely in "Jinzhu" (possibly an alchemical term, its exact meaning unclear).

Secretly refining the essence of lead, the work is completed after nine transformations; even a man of a hundred years can return to youth. The White Tiger no longer goes back to the north, and the Azure Dragon no longer departs to the east.

Take Geng-Xin as the cauldron and fire as the matchmaker; the pure Yang Qi (vital energy) of Bing-Wu is hidden in the Zi position (symbolizing Yang concealed within Yin). Nourish it without interruption for three hundred days, yet one does not know where this method ultimately comes from.

Ziyan Zhenren's Commentary on the "Ode to the Great Elixir"

Where do people go to recognize the Yellow Sprout (the term in alchemy for the first appearance of the elixir)? This thing is in my own home, hidden within the lead. Lead and mercury together coagulate the Qi of Heaven and Earth, and after shedding the womb, the Purple Radiant Cinnabar (the name of an elixir) appears.

The cinnabar formed by the two Qi of Yin-Yang is the most numinous and wondrous; the truly condensed pure Qi is the Yellow Essence (here referring to the essence obtained through alchemy). Within mercury there is something that must be obtained from lead; yet people are lost on side paths and have gone in the wrong direction.

The Great Dao is plainly before them, but people do not understand it, and even after death they fail to awaken to it. The Yellow Sprout is the Qi of Heaven and Earth; the root of one's nature and aspiration is connected to mercury.

To return to and unite with the Dao is to go back to its source. When Child and Mother meet (referring to the joining of principal and auxiliary ingredients in alchemy), the mystery within is hard to put into words. Take mercury first and lead afterward: this is the true Great Dao. Do not lose your companion, lest a lone bird come flying and lose its mate.

"This medicine" comes entirely from the union of the two numbers of Yin-Yang (阴阳); it must be placed in the furnace on an auspicious day in an auspicious month. Over a thousand days, one must know how to command the heat and the proper timing. The medicinal sprout must not be allowed to wither, nor the mercury to go unrefined.

As sun and moon turn, people grow steadily older, and in the end everyone dies. The true principle is perfectly plain, yet it cannot be gained by forcing. Every household has lead and mercury, so why do some people still lose themselves on side paths and waste their whole lives?

Lead and mercury are found in the rivers, not on the mountains. One should seek day and night the "Three Fields" (San Tian), meaning the upper, middle, and lower Dantian (丹田), the sites of Daoist cultivation within the body. Even if one once indulged in wildness, one must now change gradually. Otherwise the complexion will wither day by day, until one looks like a ghost.

The Great Dao (Dao, 道) left behind only two scrolls of scripture, which can naturally serve as the rule for coordinating one's cultivation. Since ancient times, heaven and earth have joined female and male, so why go elsewhere to ask the names of the medicines?

When using lead, one must blend it with mercury. Two different medicines become one body, like two families joined in marriage, with the bride singing for joy. When the practice reaches the "Purple River" (Zi He), a symbolic stage in Neidan (内丹, internal alchemy), one must rein in one's wild nature. Otherwise the complexion will wither day by day, until one looks like a ghost.

The Great Dao left behind only two scrolls of scripture, which can naturally serve as the rule for coordinating one's cultivation. Since ancient times, heaven and earth have joined female and male, so why go elsewhere to ask the names of the medicines?

When using lead, one must blend it with mercury. Two different medicines become one body, like two families joined in marriage, with the bride singing for joy. When the "Purple River Chariot" (Zi He Che), a stage in Neidan symbolizing the circulation of the elixir embryo, shakes heaven and earth, white clouds will keep company and immortal cranes will come flying.

The spirit of Jia-Yi (the deity symbolizing the Wood qi of the east) drives the transformations of creation. The Azure Dragon represents the lead of the Zi hour. The principle of refining is perfectly plain and not hard to grasp, yet some claim that the immortals are deceiving people like us.

The true dragon joins with the white tiger and forms the elixir embryo. After ten months of nurturing, the embryo ripens. This is the true oral instruction on the lead sprout. Where, then, will worldly people go to look for the "Three Powers" (San Cai), meaning Heaven, Earth, and Humanity?

When the Maiden (Yao Nü), an Neidan term for the medicine that forms during the refining process, is first born, she is drunk, limp as a lump of clay. She must be nurtured for a thousand days in a dark chamber, without slackening. One should be sincere and attentive, diligently adding fire and nourishing the process day and night, and never let the mercury fall out of harmony.

The medicinal sprout lies in the Central Palace, and the mercury in the south. In everyday blending, do not be greedy for quantity. The Returned Elixir is not hard to obtain; it is only that people usually lack the essential keys and cannot keep their mouths shut.

The whole marketplace is full of Yellow Sprout (Huang Ya), a symbol for the medicine used in alchemy, yet no one knows where it should return. People despise it and treat it as dust. High officials all know that it is the true spirit-medicine, but because of their greed, they mix it with other things.

When heaven and earth had only just divided, the sun and moon hung high, and the qi of Yin-Yang (阴阳) was like a parrot's egg, or like a peach. The true qi of Yin and Yang moves according to the seasons, and one must wait three years before it can leave the womb of its mother.

The Great Dao (大道, Dao, the fundamental Way of the universe) has never failed anyone. Lead and mercury (symbolic terms in alchemy) are plainly the key, yet people throw them away like dust. Ordinary people, simply because they do not understand the distinctions, regard the two qi of Yin-Yang, cinnabar, and water and fire as things that naturally attract and unite.

This substance is innate, yet people do not know it. The true qi of Yin-Yang is such that Dui dwells within Li, and Kan sits amid the five colors. Only by recognizing their true names can one know the Yellow Sprout (黄芽, a Neidan term for the subtle qi generated in cultivation) and return to the sacred Way.

The workings of qi can plainly be traced. The Yellow Sprout is born in the Central Palace (中宫, the central position in the body or in Neidan practice), not in the heart. If one can take original qi (Qi) as the Great Dao, one must know that the Dao must not sink into murkiness and be lost.

Do not say that the human heart has no way of being sought from the start: the lead sprout and the sun and moon are all in the Central Palace, and the maiden of the north is the spirit medicine. If one can keep company with her and travel together, one may journey to Dapeng (大蓬, name of an immortal realm).

The doctrine of lead and mercury has circulated for tens of thousands of years, yet how many have truly understood and cultivated it? If even ordinary people could be made to recognize the spirit medicine, immortals on earth would be as numerous as flowing water.

Commentary on "Qinyuan Chun"

The cultivation of the Seven-Fold Returned Elixir (七返还丹, using Neidan to return jing and qi to their origin) is carried out within the human body. One must first refine the self (炼己, cultivating the mind and nature and restraining body and mind) and wait for the proper moment.

The work of the seven returns is hard for people to grasp. Cultivation means returning to the root and going back to the source, refining step by step and gathering Yang qi back into the Dui position. So long as one follows the course of the six Yin positions, why worry that the Three Peaks (三峰, parts or passes of the body spoken of in cultivation) are as cold as heaped snow? One can still enter stillness in peace. In practice one must set one's resolve firmly, refine according to the proper time, and not let the Shen (spirit) wander outward. Keep body and mind clear and calm, untouched by defilement or stray thoughts; constantly irrigate with the Divine Water (神水, a Neidan term for the essence, qi, and fluids of cultivation), and a different, sweeter taste will arise of itself.

When the first Yang stirs, that is, when Yang qi begins to sprout as symbolized by the Fu hexagram, it is deep night, when the water-clock's hours run long. After the Zi hour, the practitioner throws on a robe, makes the Firm Grip (握固, clenching the fists to gather in and steady body and mind), and sits upright in stillness. The Mysterious Female (玄牝, what the Daoists call the gate of generation) sets the qi in motion and sends it rushing upward through the neck. When the qi surges through the Three Passes (三关, three key passes in cultivation), one feels the effect of the practice clearly. The sap of wood-lead and the fire of metal-mercury, amid the mutual refining of water and fire, leave a true Yang, like an infant, outside. In the deep night, with the water-clock's hours running long, this is the very time for cultivation.

The first Yang's initial birth corresponds to the Fu hexagram (the image in which Yang qi begins to return among the six lines). After the Zi hour has passed, put on your clothes, hold your hands in the "firm grip" (wogu, a posture of folding the fingers and settling the mind), and sit upright. Let the "Mysterious Female" (xuanpin, a Neidan term for the source within the body that gives rise to Yin-Yang transformation) move upward, rising through the neck and striking the Three Passes (the bodily gateways spoken of in cultivation). Only then will you sense that your practice has made clear progress. In the fluid of Wood and lead, and the fire of Metal and mercury, amid the meeting of Water and Fire, there is still a hidden "Infant Exchange" (yingdui, a Neidan term for the inner spiritual body formed in cultivation). The deep night is long, and even the stars seem to turn. Simply concentrate on perceiving the workings of Heaven, and do not let the movement of Yin-Yang fall into disorder.

Gently nourish it within the lead cauldron; its radiance passes through the curtains, as though the transformations of nature were at work inside.

As soon as the fire rises, draw it back to the Jade Chamber (yuhu, a Daoist term for an inner cultivation gateway in the body). When the cauldron is warm and full, the heat spreads through the whole body. The adding and withdrawing of Water and Fire must follow fixed measures; once the work reaches the Dantian (energy center), the fire's timing must be steadied. Light will then arise of its own accord, brighter even than day, and its radiance passes through the curtains as if it could shine a thousand paces away. The Returned Elixir (huandan, a Neidan term for the elixir obtained through cultivation) nourished within must be refined by your own effort. The work of creation and transformation is wondrous, as though secretly guarded by the spirits.

After the union of Dragon and Tiger (a metaphor for the joining of Yin-Yang), continue to feed the fire and refine, with the work resembling a struggle against a perilous terrain.

Gold is born from within the Water; the fire in the Yin soul (the Yin-natured vital essence) grows gradually stronger, and the ethereal soul of the Azure Dragon (symbolizing the Wood qi of the east, or Yang force) moves from the liver. The "Mao three-seven" is the numerical art of Yin-Yang union; regardless of quantity, simply make the two follow and accompany each other, all the way to the Niwan (the cultivation site in the head). As the fire's timing is continually advanced and the work grows subtle, one may seek long life and lasting youthfulness, subdue demons and heterodox paths, live free and unbound, and receive the title of an immortal.

Above the Qujiang, the moonlight is clear, as though a crow were flying past.

The light is brilliant, and the Milky Way curves; within the oyster shell there is a glow, and a sal tree (here a poetic image) grows inside. The Mao hare (symbolizing the Yin essence in the moon), after a thousand years, has fur like jade. Yin gives birth to Yang if one understands its principle; the three-legged crow in the sun shows that Yin is hidden within Yang, dwelling by nature in the image of the Li trigram (symbolizing fire and Yang). These two things, Yin and Yang, must be gathered together in one place. When observing form before an appearance, do not let stray thoughts and impurities intrude. In due time you will take the "knife-spoon of the elixir" (daogui, a Daoist term for an elixir or a measure of elixir) with your own hands, yet who will believe that a "child" (an inner spiritual body produced by Neidan cultivation) can be nurtured out of emptiness?

When the moment is right, you must grasp it yourself; once you recognize the daogui, you will sense a faint fragrance in the palm of your hand. Drink often of the jade nectar (an image of the immortals' drink) and it is as though you will always be sated; diligently refine the Great Medicine, and do not let the chance pass in vain. The Dragon moves to the left, the Tiger to the right; things arise from emptiness, yet the deluded find it hard to understand. The Zi and Wu hours are best for stilling the mind and applying effort; if you do not know how to cultivate, you only speak empty words of ten thousand principles.

To discern whether the source of the water is clear or turbid, one must also understand the relationship between Wood and Metal.

From Mount Kunlun (the legendary sacred mountain) rushes a torrent. One stream winds downward through nine bends, so turbid it seems to sink all the way to the bottom. The water flows on, yet it seems blocked, finding nowhere to rest. Once it settles, clear and still, it can reflect the true body of the divine light. Metal and Wood follow the subtle essentials, bringing Dragon and Tiger together (an alchemical term for the union of the two forces of Yin-Yang). Why, then, cling to talk of "shared origin"? I only fear that people will find it hard to grasp, so I speak once more of the principles of Yin-Yang, earnestly urging everyone to feel humility and reflect with care.

Without a master's guidance, this matter is hard to know, for the essentials of the Dao (the Way) are profound and obscure.

Kan and Li are the root of lead and mercury (Kan and Li stand for water and fire, and are also used as metaphors for Yin-Yang; lead and mercury are symbolic terms in Neidan, or internal alchemy). Even if one reads a thousand chapters, it is hard to grasp the Xi and Yi (the subtle, barely visible, ineffable truth). I am fortunate to have met my teacher and received the wondrous teaching, which lets me penetrate ten thousand scrolls of scripture, and my heart is naturally full of joy. Having understood the principle within, I should feel all the more humble and examine myself with modesty.

Without a master's guidance, this matter is hard to know, for the essentials of the Dao are profound and obscure.

Kan and Li are the root of lead and mercury. Even if one reads a thousand chapters, the principle of Xi and Yi is hard to grasp. After meeting my teacher and receiving the wondrous teaching, ten thousand scrolls of scripture can be understood as one, and my heart is especially glad. Being contains Non-being, and Non-being arises from within it. The large can encompass heaven and earth, and the small can hide within a strand of hair. Yuanshi (the Daoist deity, the Celestial Venerable of the Primordial Beginning) once said that the Dao is like a grain of millet. Lingbao (the name of a Daoist scripture tradition and its deities) makes this plain, and only now do I understand the exact principle in it.

The workings of Heaven run deep, so one should begin cultivation at once, and not delay by thinking there is still time.

When earth's qi (Qi) rises and heaven sends down rain, the myriad things begin to sprout. This is the very image of the workings of Heaven. On a mountaintop is a spring many fathoms deep, but the rope is too short, and one who wants to draw water cannot reach it. Those who cultivate in youth have a strong foundation. In old age the lead is weak and the mercury scarce (a Neidan term for the decline of the essence and qi needed for cultivation), so what is to be done? If sight and hearing have already declined, the spirit is scattered, and the original source has run dry, how can one attain the highest Dao?

The road to Penglai (the legendary immortal mountain) depends on completing three thousand merits and practices. Only when these are fulfilled can one ride the clouds away alone.

Speak of the sea, and one thinks of the isle of Penglai. Very few can go there even after their practice is complete and their merit achieved. There is no road and no boat, only the vast and boundless sea. Even Master Li Shi would probably find it hard to arrive. The cultivation of harmonious qi should begin early, and a spirited man should hold fast to the profound and mysterious Dao. Though the blue sea may turn into mulberry fields, the one who cultivates the Dao will not have grown old. When the Jade Emperor learns of this, he will bestow a golden writ bearing his decree.

Immortal Maiden He's Ode to Patriarch Lü, to the tune "Qinyuan Chun"

The Sevenfold Return of the Elixir (a Neidan term for the repeated transformations of Yin-Yang and the Five Phases during the refining process, which finally yield the elixir).

Refining and nourishing the returned elixir again and again yields the most striking results. One must rely on the directions of south and north, west and east, and on the relations of Yin-Yang, with the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water) and the Four Images all contained within it...

After the last sentence, the original text seems to have omissions or errors, so the translation can only go as far as the surviving words.

Seven rounds of refining complete the Returned Elixir (huandan, a Neidan term for the inner elixir produced through cultivation).

Repeatedly refining the Returned Elixir is the most crucial task, and it requires the coordination of the southern, northern, and western directions. The Five Phases and the Four Images all return in the end to Earth, back to the original root and source, and then one's inherent nature becomes fully open and penetrating.

The practitioner must first "refine the self and await the time." To "refine the self" means to rectify body and mind and to nourish one's inner nature; to "await the time" means to wait for the right moment. Refining the self begins with setting body and mind in order, and when the moment ripens, the elixir forms. Within this lies a profound and subtle principle: as Yin-Yang join and circulate back and forth, the Dragon and Tiger (symbols in Neidan for the two forces of Yin and Yang) appear, and the Black Tortoise Child (a symbolic expression from Neidan poetry) is refined.

Just as the first stirring of Yang begins, it is already deep night, and the sound of water in the clepsydra stretches long.

The night is deep and long, and the change of Yang's first arising continues. One must follow the law of the hexagrams and enter the position of Li (the Li trigram in the Bagua, often associated with fire). After the fire phases of three times three and nine times nine have been verified, once the numinous elixir enters the belly, the heart grows naturally cool and clear.

The lead cauldron (a symbolic vessel in Neidan) grows warm, and its radiance shines through the curtain.

As the lead cauldron is gently nourished, the elixir's Qi enters the Central Palace. Place it among the Three Officials (the Heaven Official, Earth Official, and Water Official of Daoism) and nurture an auspicious lotus. When the lotus matures, one naturally comprehends the sacred and subtle principle, and the spirit's radiance illuminates the realm of the immortals step by step.

The transforming powers of Heaven and Earth move in turn, and Dragon and Tiger, Yin and Yang, unite.

In the seven rounds of return-refining, what the furnace and cauldron fear most is missing the right moment. When the elixir is successfully fired, the practitioner will know it for themselves. Grasp the true transformations of Qian and Kun (Heaven and Earth, Yin and Yang): of the twelve double-hours, the crucial one is only a single hour.

The work of advancing the fire (jinhuo, circulating true Qi according to the fire phases to refine the elixir) demands special caution, as though one were fighting on perilous ground.

Advancing the fire has its own proper timing. The elixir in the cauldron dances like snowflakes. If anyone asks what I cultivate, I will say: by the nine-bend river, I drink from the emerald pool.

Above the Qu River, one watches the moon, cold and clear, as a crow flies past.

The Golden Crow (the legendary sun-bird, often a figure for Yang Qi in Neidan poetry) flies into the emerald pool, dives to the sea floor, and seizes the Wood Dragon (an image in Neidan for the Wood phase and the Yin force). Having won a night-shining pearl, one sees five-colored radiance light up the immortal officials.

At that very moment, one takes the daogui (an ancient measuring spoon for medicine, here meaning a small dose of elixir) with one's own hand.

When the daogui enters the mouth, even ghosts and spirits are startled. Sitting alone in a quiet chamber, one finds the whole room bright; no longer does one go to the courts of the underworld to suffer at the hands of ghosts and spirits, but one waits single-mindedly for one's name to be written in the registers of the immortals.

And who would believe that, out of emptiness, an infant could be nurtured (in Neidan, a symbol of the completed "sacred embryo")?

When the daogui enters the mouth, even ghosts and spirits are startled. Sitting alone in a quiet chamber, one finds the whole room bright; no longer does one suffer in the underworld realms of ghosts, but one waits single-mindedly to be listed among the immortals. And who would believe that, out of emptiness, an infant could be nurtured?

The practitioner must cultivate within the self an "infant" (a term in Neidan, or internal alchemy, for the elixir embryo). This infant is untroubled by cold or heat and feels no hunger. Practice must then continue until it transforms further and gives rise to "a pair of son and daughter" (a symbolic expression in Neidan whose exact referent varies according to lineage interpretation). These processes are not readily disclosed to outsiders.

One must discern whether the source of the water is clear or turbid, and also make clear the relationship and the barriers between Wood and Metal. Here, Water, Wood, and Metal are elements of practice explained in Neidan through the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water).

The relationship between Metal and Wood extends to all four directions; if one can see through its transformations at the center, one grasps the complete principle of the Five Phases. To understand the root, one need only seek out the ancestral source; once one understands the transformations of Yin-Yang, one can grasp the moment of "before the afternoon" (a phrase that refers to a specific timing in the practice). These words mean that Neidan practice requires discerning Yin-Yang, the Five Phases, and the timing of their transformations, and their specific meaning must be understood according to a master's transmission.

Without a master's guidance, this matter is hard to understand.

To seek longevity, one must find a master and receive the transmission. Earnestly seeking the celestial mechanism is not difficult: the secret is passed from master to disciple by oral instruction and mind-to-mind transmission, and is not written down in words. Even if one meets a master who is learned and clear, it also depends on whether the two share a destined affinity from past lives.

The essential principles of the Dao are profound and subtle, and the celestial mechanism is far-reaching. Once one begins to cultivate, one should apply effort as early as possible, and need not think it too late. The road to Penglai (the legendary realm of the immortals) depends on the completion of merit and practice; once merit and practice are complete, one may set out alone on the road of returning clouds.