《还丹歌诀》

People of the world do not understand the depths and shallows of cultivating the Dao (the Way), and rashly trust superficial signs. Such belief is unreliable to begin with, and if hearsay is mistaken for evidence, one departs from the right path. Spreading rumors and believing them lightly leads in the end to a wrong road. As for the profound gate of life and death, who can easily see through it? The principles of the great Dao have sixteen thousand avenues, including the refining of the soul, the refining of the body, and the refining of the medicine. Only the broadly learned, who understand the principles of heaven and humanity, can hope to attain completeness, and Heaven selects such people for office. For the shallow and ignorant, becoming a heavenly immortal is no easy matter.

Even if one happens to hear of a method, one may not understand even a single gate among the ten thousand arts of the Dao. Since ancient times, most of those who failed to attain immortality did so because their methods were mistaken. Do not readily trust the Daoists idling about the marketplace. Some swallow and exhale dairy curds and gulp down saliva. Some use "river cart guiding" (hechedaoyin, a practice that combines the circulation of breath with guiding movements of the body) to show off their beginner's skill, yet do not grasp the principle of "xiyi" (the subtle Dao, hard to see and hard to speak of), and merely bend and stretch their bodies in vain. Others boast of the marvelous effects of gathering and circulating Qi (vital energy) through the bedchamber arts, but this is not true "turning yellow back to black" (restoring youth). To work against the movement of Qi recklessly will surely harm the original Qi, and the movement of the hexagram Qi will also violate its proper law. If the fire is too intense, it may scorch the ears and eyes. Without the elixir, simply driving Qi forward with force is also useless. Fewer thoughts and fewer desires naturally bring fewer illnesses, and when the various techniques are misused, they instead harm the body.

Some fast for a long time, believing that once food and drink are stopped, medicine and Qi can be kept unbroken. But this is not the fundamental way of escaping death, and prolonged depletion of the five viscera will in the end exhaust the body. Some spit out something red from the mouth and take it for the substance of the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water) within the body, yet do not understand how Yin-Yang condenses into the true elixir, and so their life and death remain under the control of the "Three Peng" (the Three Corpses, as the Daoists call them). Others feed on rosy clouds and swallow the essence of the sun and moon, only to damage their eyesight and suffer ceaseless dizziness. Those who practice Qi circulation often have many rules, yet fail to notice that they are inviting wind-evil upon themselves.

Some draw Fulu (talismans and registers), recite incantations, and command ghosts and spirits, but without having met the Golden Elixir, they merely preserve this illusory body in vain. After the hundred bones disperse, they still return to the earth, and nothing outside the body can be taken along. Some speak of projecting the spirit and of quiet-sitting contemplation, yet have not understood "wondrous being and true emptiness." Even if they speak of borrowing a dwelling to be reborn, they will still enter the four modes of birth according to the movements of their minds, and the cycle of rebirth never ends. Some have enormous appetites, and some have astonishing capacity for wine. With ruddy faces, strong bodies, and voices like thunder, the world praises them as possessing immortal arts. In truth, this may be nothing more than a naturally abundant Yang Qi. Others lie drunk in wind and rain, thinking the strength of wine is a way to resist the cold, but when they sober up they still shiver, and in a single thin garment they suffer no differently from ordinary people.

Some talk emptily of Neidan (internal alchemy) and are lost in illusory appearances. Though lustful thoughts arise, they cannot in the end produce offspring out of nothing, like a hen laying unfertilized eggs, which bring no real result. Some claim to come from another dynasty and to be immortal, saying that they received sword secrets from Lü Dongbin, and use this to deceive the ignorant, drinking and making friends with people morning and evening. Others claim to be able to refine "yellow and white," that is, to use techniques to turn metals into gold and silver, and accounts of all kinds of herbs, plants, and minerals appear without end, bewildering people. Though the medicines of the immortals lie within the Five Phases, how many people have the fortune and the ability to obtain them? These people do many things, but they merely manage to escape hunger and cold and pass their years in vain. They do not understand the root of the great Dao, and in the end they age and die like everyone else.

The ancient immortals also had times when they repaid debts from former lives, hiding their traces and quietly begging for alms. Outwardly they were indistinguishable from mud and tiles, yet inwardly they held treasures of their own. Some people falsely borrow the name of the Daoist gate to imitate such conduct, but nothing in their words or bearing inspires respect. They know neither letters nor cultivation, and simply because they are poor, they call themselves people who have attained the Dao. To cultivate immortality, one must first accumulate merit and practice. Only when merit and practice are complete can one nourish one's nature and life and become a heavenly immortal. Those who admire the Dao only with their mouths and do not cultivate the heart will still die because their thoughts were never made pure.

There are also those who, having gained only a little knowledge, hurry to build hermitages for cultivation, seeking fame and reputation by imitating Chen Tuan. Having achieved nothing, they turn around and die, and only earn the mockery of later generations. Some know a little Chan talk, yet cannot let go of the myriad thoughts in their hearts, and when they suddenly die, people say they have "transformed" or achieved "shijie" (liberation from the corpse, as the Daoists call departing the physical body). The true principle of the great Dao is not like this. The ascensions to heaven handed down from ancient times to the present, including whole households rising up together with their dwellings, are the true manifestations of the immortals. Those who are lost in superstition and misuse techniques still end in death, and to call such an end immortality is wrong, for their bodies did not in fact become immortal. Consider those weird and illusory arts: flying through the air and walking on water are things some people can do. Why, then, would the true Way of immortal transformation be unable to restore youth and preserve the body?

To cross over life and death, one must rely on the Golden Elixir, which transforms the Five Phases and perfects both Qi and form. Only with the Golden Elixir can one obtain the lifespan of a heavenly being, while other techniques can only extend life for a time. The immortal formulas are plainly handed down in the human world, and the texts of the "Three Caverns and Four Supplements" (the classification system of Daoist scriptures) are beyond counting. Among the eminent immortals of old were princes and nobles. How could ordinary people, with narrow views, easily be saved? In the past the Celestial Master (Tianshi) Zhang met Laojun and received scriptures and celestial secret writings. Ge Hong wrote ten thousand scrolls and still felt it was not enough, and Sun Simiao, living in seclusion to cultivate the Dao, was also broadly learned. The ancients gained understanding by comprehending the meaning of texts, while people today stubbornly follow teachers of shallow knowledge. The wise begin with the scriptures, and so have a chance of meeting an enlightened master. Those of lesser capacity may find that even seeking out teachers and searching for the Way is not easy.

Seekers of the Dao, past and present, all study the Zhouyi Cantongqi (an important classic on the principles of alchemical refining). Its meaning is profound and presents principles at different levels. Without knowing the source, one may read until old age and still be at a loss. To take the "cauldron" and "furnace" in the book entirely as physical objects is to view Neidan too superficially, while to say they exist only in external things still makes it hard to understand how form is born from the formless. The intent of the Cantongqi is clear in itself, but without a master's transmission and guidance, one easily comes to believe one understands when one in fact does not. Heaven's will passes the subtle Dao to those with the right affinity. Only on meeting an enlightened master and receiving the oral instructions can one see the "true lead." True lead is the metal within water, born in the indistinct, nameless state before heaven and earth divided.

The north belongs to Yang and the south to Yin. Terms such as yellow silver and white gold correspond to the two Qi of Yin-Yang. The dragon and tiger fight, symbolizing the union of Metal and Wood. First there is liquid, which afterward congeals into a paste. The true Kan and Li (the Yin-Yang that symbolizes the mutual aid of water and fire) have eighty-one transformations, the medicine is born from creation and transformation, and the three and five return to one. Someone asks a fellow practitioner, "Who can understand the pivotal mechanism of the White Tiger's smelting?" The Yellow Bell pitch is matched with the Taicou pitch, and the officers on duty move according to the hours of the stars. Wuyin and Shen palace correspond to the stages of the solar terms, and Jiazi and Jisi mark the cycles. The fire phases of the hexagrams wax and wane, circulating nine times, and the colors of blue, yellow, red, and white change in turn.

Within the furnace is another universe, where cold and heat, dawn and dusk follow their own rhythms. The crux of creation and transformation is hard to state openly, as the Five Phases both generate and overcome one another. One day in the furnace may be compared to one year outside, and within a year each month corresponds to another. When the moon reaches the Ding position, the nature of the medicine rises and falls, and this is the stage where Metal enters the land of Fire. When the moon reaches the Bing position, the returned elixir lies hidden, and when it reaches the Si position, Metal is born and the nature of mercury perishes. From the hour of Zi to the hour of Si, the body of the Qian hexagram is full, and from Wu to Hai the cycle ends and begins anew. As Yin and Yang wax and wane and return to the root and origin, who can truly recognize the Way of Metal and Wood?

At the hours of Mao and You, one can see the alternation of Wood and Metal, and the substances of Jia and Geng by nature float and sink without fixed place. The circuit of the heavenly cycle is like the spokes of a wheel around its hub, and by tracing out the seasonal markers of a month, one can see the pivot at the center. In the second month the handle of the Dipper turns toward the west, Yang Qi grows stronger, and the elm trees blossom. In the eighth month the head of the Dipper points due west, and shepherd's purse and wheat sprouts show the Wood Qi in the autumn air. If the elixir is completed during the time of the Bo hexagram, it may instead harm a person, whereas the method of the Nine Returns can bring a person back to life and restore the soul. Have you heard how Wei Boyang's white dog died for a time and then came back to life?

After taking the elixir, old illnesses may appear one by one, and then the skin, hair, and marrow also change. The skin becomes smooth and the teeth white, as though one had returned to childhood and become a new person like an immortal of the Peach Blossom Spring. With a small dab of medicine as a catalyst, mercury can be transformed into gold, and lead and tin turn deeper in color once touched by it. The secret art kept at the elbow is marvelous. It lets one travel in all directions, passing over mountains and seas, and ghosts and spirits are awed and obedient.

The true divine elixir is not a physical thing. The words of the three volumes of the Cantongqi do not point to some simple doctrine. One must recognize the essence of the sun and the splendor of the moon, which are clearly not ordinary substances of this world. Those who misunderstand take cinnabar, mercury, and metals and minerals to be the true elixir. But when true gold is about to be completed, it looks dull like ash and dust, and so it is called "dust in a bright window." During my time in seclusion, I received my master's guidance and learned that this is the true divine water in the Flower Pool. Attaining the Dao depends wholly on fate and appears naturally. Among the gates of wealth and rank, who would be willing to believe this?

When people see that my body is weighed down by illness, they say these words cannot be trusted. They do not know that this is a trial set for me by heavenly demons, and that once the great medicine touches the body, illness will naturally be dispelled. Only here have I come to understand one aspect of it, and I have deliberately stopped pursuing those petty arts. This heart has already reached the gate of the immortals, and the ordinary body merely has ordinary illnesses for the time being. Becoming a sage or an immortal is the highest opportunity, in which everyone has a share. But the Three Poisons (greed, anger, and delusion) arise from illusion, and what is fated by the Three Palaces (the palaces within the body where cultivation takes place), who can fathom? Things come and go with the rise and fall of fortune. Where are the people of the past now? People of the world are burdened by form and appearance and cannot freely and unconstrainedly cultivate their nature. The glitter of all things is originally empty, and in the end only a round of glory, disgrace, and death remains.

I lived for a long time in a plain life of few desires, and only when I was about to master the scriptures did I meet an enlightened master. The precious pearl flowing from the cauldron is a medicine of heaven. When the grapes ripen into wine, one may look forward to the gathering on the immortal mountains over the sea. Have you not heard that to become a heavenly immortal, one must choose the Dao that heavenly immortals study? A jade tablet must be carved from fine jade. Heaven does not hurry the dull-witted, and a skilled craftsman does not choose broken bricks and tiles. I urge you to read widely and seek far and wide, for with a single arrow one cannot at once establish the Imperial Forest Guard. An immortal master must possess the learning of a heavenly being in order to recognize the true red sphere and the blue cloth collar.

The art of the immortals is truly hard to encounter. Even if one spends great effort pursuing it, hardship cannot be avoided. One should accumulate hidden virtue (acting kindly and quietly, without seeking fame) while searching out the scriptures (Jing); when the work is complete, one may suddenly awaken to understanding one day.

The Great Returned Elixir (Dahuan dan, the highest grade of elixir in Daoist alchemy) is no small matter, and those who take it are said to roam freely through heaven and earth. Do not mistake useless, dead matter for material that can be refined into living gold; ordinary mercury and lead are not the true ingredients that elixir-making requires.

If you wish to know the mystery within, there are in fact clues in the world, if you ponder them as carefully as one brews wine: take "wood essence" as the rice and steam it repeatedly, seven times; take "metal liquid" as the ferment and refine it over a long time. "Wood essence," "metal liquid," "rice," and "ferment" are all alchemical code words, borrowing the process of brewing to describe the blending and repeated refining of the ingredients. The earth of the west, joined with the waters of the Flower Pool, has been regarded since ancient times as possessing divine power. Seal the furnace and cauldron tightly and let it complete one full celestial cycle; after taking it, one sheds the mortal frame and is transformed.

If you can recognize the "yellow sprout ferment" (an alchemical term for refined elixir raw material), it will look like chrysanthemum blossoms once completed. Ordinary people do not understand the refining of "worldly lead," whose root is in fact not the same as common lead. "Wood essence" and "metal liquid" are not two simple substances; when the Qi of Yin-Yang reaches its extreme in circulation, the two blend harmoniously of their own accord. Although lead, mercury, rice, and ferment may look alike, one must still rely on the "four yellows" and use "firewood and water" to refine them; without firewood and water, transformation can hardly occur. The so-called "nine turns and seven returns" then cannot be carried out at all.

The immortals of old often spoke of two medicines, yet said nothing of how to refine and subdue them. Now that the matter is spoken plainly, there is little left that is secret; the key lies in seeking the rules of the fire phases according to the "nine origins." Even a master who has read a thousand scrolls must understand what this song says before he can be said to grasp the true meaning.

Wood represents the Azure Dragon, and metal the White Tiger; the sun is the Vermilion Bird, and the moon the Black Tortoise. When these four images (symbols of the relations among Yin-Yang and the Five Phases) join and enter the central palace (the middle position), the path of long life is not hard to find in "ji-wu." "Ji-wu" is an alchemical term referring to the position of Earth, or the central palace. Metal, wood, water, and fire all finally turn to dust; if one does not understand who governs them, one cannot grasp the key to transformation. Worldly people do not understand the words of the wise, and simply follow old teachings day after day according to their own ideas, even pointing the wrong road out to the confused, never knowing that they themselves will end as dust. Therefore, I urge those who refine medicine to recognize clearly the meaning of the "Tiger."

When Yang and Yin unite and interact, the three hundred sixty (a number symbolizing the circulation of the celestial cycle) condense into one body, and the gentle "maiden" in turn becomes the root of long life. The work of refining is completed by means of the "Nine-Fold City" (an alchemical code term for the furnace and cauldron, or the place of inner cultivation); after a thousand days of taking it, one can rise up and soar.

Ode on the Three and Five of Lead and Mercury

Lead is born from within lead, and all of it shares the nature of lead, yet its qualities are not the same. If one can distinguish the true from the false among them, one may become an immortal official in broad daylight. The first kind is red.

When using water, do not add silver; this lead must not be handled lightly. Once the Azure Dragon (an image symbolizing Wood-qi or Yang-qi) appears, transformation will manifest of its own accord. The second kind is black.

Fire's number is two and water's number is one; combined they return to three, gathering in the east. When the dragon rises, rain descends, and one waits for the tiger to bring forth wind. The third kind is green-blue.

The fifth kind dwells in the position of Earth and functions as Wu and Ji (the Heavenly Stems of the Earth phase). Like a sovereign commanding the myriad things, it penetrates everywhere. Fire's number is two and water's number is one; combined they return to three, gathering in the east. When the dragon rises, rain descends, and one waits for the tiger to bring forth wind. The third kind is green-blue.

The fifth kind dwells in the position of Earth and functions as Wu and Ji (the Heavenly Stems of the Earth phase). Like a sovereign commanding the myriad things, it penetrates everywhere. The fourth kind is yellow.

Within one there is yet another one. True One (the primordial qi in Daoist teaching) belongs to Yang and is the root of Wood, taking its place in the west. The fifth kind is white.

The Perfected Zhenxiao said: when Metal and Water combine, the white one is silver, which is mercury; when white, water, and Earth combine, it is gold, which is cinnabar. Yin-Yang and the Great Medicine are all decocted and refined here. The Four Images and Five Phases (the system of Yin-Yang transformation and the movements of the Five Phases) are all contained within it. When these two substances have been transformed and refined, one becomes a master of the Three Pure Ones (Sanqing) (one who has attained the sublime realm spoken of in Daoism).

Song of the Perfected Wei

Zhen, Li, Kan, and Dui (four of the Eight Trigrams, or Bagua) each display a different image; in refining the elixir, one must first discern the true from the false in lead and mercury. The dragon leaves the east, and though it hides its traces, the tiger takes leave of the west and only then begins to penetrate the numinous. In the south, the fire phase subdues and refines the ingredients; in the north, a spring wells up and opens the gate of transformation. Only these two forces constitute creation and transformation; do not carelessly mix the Eight Minerals (the mineral materials used in alchemy) with ordinary things.

Xiaoyao Zi, Collected Writings on the Returned Elixir

Xiaoyaozi (逍遥子) compiled the Huandan Gejue (Songs and Formulas of the Returned Elixir). Using the marriage of a man and a woman as a metaphor, it explains how the elixir medicines are refined: the substances are divided into ruler, minister, host, and guest, they respond to and match one another, and in the end all of this comes down to three things.

If one listens carefully, one will hear a "thing" within. This "thing" is deep and unfathomable, chaotic and undivided, yet subtle and alive. Heaven cannot harm it, and Earth cannot punish it. Where does it come from, and by what is it formed? Once it has been refined, it does not perish, and so it is called "long life." The turtle must undergo nine transformations, and the chicken seven returns. The bones and joints grow strong, the flesh is firm, the spirit (Shen) is clear, and the complexion remains as it is. These sayings borrow terms such as the "nine transformations" and "seven returns" to describe the repeated changes of elixir refining and the ripening of the medicines' properties.

Know, then, that a young woman is ready to be married out and a young man ready to take a wife. A good matchmaker brings them together, with Heaven and Earth as the go-between, and an auspicious day is chosen. Relatives and friends gather and feasts are laid out. Guests crowd both inside and outside the house, and the scene is lively and splendid. Gold is spread as the mats and white jade as the cushions, and everyone sits in order of rank. Lu Ren, bold of heart, sits straight down beside the fierce tiger, and the other heroic guests take their seats one after another. The banquet is festive and the hall is full. The White-Headed Old Man holds the center, and the Azure Dragon's Son guards the door. Carriages and horses come and go before the gate, purple clouds wreathe the courtyard, and incense burns in golden censers, its fragrance rich and rising to the Nine Heavens.

In the kitchen there is boiling, simmering, and frying, and at the table the guests are called upon without pause. Brother Lu the Ghost pours the wine, the sons of the Shu family refill the cups, Young Master Daizhe keeps the beat, and the young men of each household tune their strings to accompany. The music is long and lingering, like the tune "Spring Willows." Everyone dances together, as if purple mist and smoke were rising. The Two Yellows and Four Whites are also all present. Guests come and go, hurrying up and down, with guides before them and attendants behind. Among them some are breathing in and out, swallowing saliva, and regulating the breath to nourish Qi. All observe propriety and righteousness and form no cliques or private factions. Some cry out "Ten thousand years!" and others chant of a thousand years of long life. Songs and music fill the banquet, everyone is delighted, and the host is at ease.

The host calls on Buhuizi to feed the furnace fire, and tells Yugan-zi to wipe the tables and plates, add vegetables, and balance the salty and the sour. He then has the wine warmed so that it does not go cold. He also asks someone to keep careful watch at the door, and raises his cup to urge the guests to drink. "The days before the lovers part are few," he says, "so let no one complain that the night is late." The host speaks gently to comfort his guests and invites all the worthy to share in the joy.

"The feast of a poor household," he says, "is a bond formed in a former life. The host has nothing with which to repay you, and can only thank you deeply for your care." The guests rise and decline modestly. Some say they are drunk, thank the host for his generous hospitality, and apologize for the disturbance of the revelry. For three days and six nights no one has slept in peace, and entertaining these poor brothers has been a source of shame too great to put into words. The host says: "A person growing up is like a tree, and brothers share one root. When a daughter has grown, she should be married out, and when a son reaches the age to start a household, he should take a wife. Since today you have witnessed this union, I ask that you remember this kindness in days to come."

The host stays behind as the guests depart, though their hearts still cling to him. For eight or nine days afterward the host keeps his door shut, and only today opens it a little. The rites are finished, the music has stopped, the relatives have dispersed, and the women have gone home. Only the man and the woman remain, side by side, like the sun and moon accompanying each other through long years.

This method is the root of the Dao. Only sages can fathom it, and only the gods can know it. Only I and Shizi Yue have obtained it. It should be practiced with care and in secrecy, and if the secret is kept without loss, one will not depart from the Great Dao. Do not reveal it to three people, and do not let five people know of it. Only in this way can one be in accord with the Dao, and so it must be kept deeply secret. This method is so profound that it is beyond thought.

Xiaoyaozi says: "Zeng is in the Xuan, and the male is in the Tiger. Pity the Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth. Among them is a White-Headed Old Man, who all day long points the way to the azure sky. Daoists who have the affinity to meet him must practice diligently and gather him in with earnest care." He adds: "What is right should be spread abroad, but the secret method must be guarded, for only then will the Way of Heaven flourish. Those who wish for long life should be filial to their parents."

Master Dou (Zhenren, an honorific for realized immortals in Daoism) composed the "Nine Transformations Poem" on Mount Emei:

An old man living in seclusion among the mountain crags, favored by the emperor, refines elixirs within the palace precincts. The various substances in the furnace undergo change, and mercury vapor rises above it. The elixir takes on the pale luster of autumn frost, its radiance bright as the moon at night. All this is because an enlightened ruler is attuned to the Dao (the Way), and so the mysteries of the art are made manifest.

The elixir is then taken out and refined into mercury, and burned again until it turns back into cinnabar. The method handed down by the high immortals is deeply secret, and it is also the essence of the palace's medicines. The elixir is purplish-black, holding its true color within, and it also gives off a vermilion glow like morning clouds. If one wishes to fuse them into one, one must still use fierce fire to refine the "Three Flowers" (an alchemical term for the essences or special states that form during refining).

Through one transformation and then another, one gradually probes its subtleties; layer by layer one enters a realm profound and unfathomable. Taking the cinnabar as a base, one changes it again and again until it turns into the form of mercury. The black merges with the frost-like whiteness, and the vermilion rays resemble stars falling from the night sky. In this way the so-called "Chanü" (an alchemical term whose precise referent depends on the context of the technique) will naturally be produced. Why worry that it will not commune with the spirits?

The white tin has only just begun to change, while the Yellow Sprout (an alchemical term for an important substance or essence produced in refining) has already congealed after being prepared. At first it is like snow fallen from the heavens, and in the light it is like ice formed on a pond. The earth is ground fine, dried, and stir-fried together; the ashes are sifted, then moistened, mixed, and steamed. One must also watch whether it turns black, and wait for the saltiness in the brine to settle and clear.

The heat is adjusted by alternating mild and fierce fire, so that the Qi (vital energy) of Yin-Yang gathers steadily in the furnace. One observes whether the substance in the cauldron changes from black to another color, and in the pot one distinguishes the true from the false, the empty from the full. One wraps it repeatedly with "torch stone" and tends it gently to guard against error, and coats and protects it with the "Six Medicines." The elixir has grown as solid as a pair of jade discs joined together. Where, then, is there still any flowing mercury to be sought?

Saltpeter is drenched with hot broth, and borax is soaked and simmered in water. When the brine increases, it only causes the substance to keep changing; alum need only be ground fine, with no need to grind it further. The originally white substance begins to congeal and harden, but the newly formed yellow portion is not yet firm. If one were to put it into the furnace fire for further burning, one would worry about mercury vapor rising.

When the fire is stopped, the furnace is opened and the elixir is taken out, the clinging mud removed. Its auspicious radiance links the sun and moon, and its true Qi is mingled with rainbow hues. Its form surpasses what is refined in a golden cauldron, and its essence gathers at the "horse hoof" (a term in alchemy for a particular shape). One must still complete the Nine Transformations (the process of repeated burning and refining), and only then take a single knife-point measure (an ancient unit of measure, also meaning a small amount of medicine).

The elixir is ground into powder and refined once more, and one draws near the furnace to see whether it has in the end succeeded or failed. It is as fine as dust, half purple and half yellow, a startling sight. The auspicious Qi transforms into three stalks like ears of grain, and the spiritual light contains the five colors. When the golden toxins within it have been fully refined away, the elixir is reverently presented beside the jade steps.

Spring has just arrived, and the jade pitch-pipes (yulü, musical tones that mark the seasons) sound in answer to the time; the Golden Elixir, too, responds to the will of Heaven and is perfected. May life be as long as Mount Zhongnan, and may the world be as clear and peaceful as the Eastern Sea. Blessings come from the generous Virtue (De) of Xuanyuan (the primordial source of the Dao), and merit is made manifest through the Supreme Dao (the highest Dao). Though your humble servant has mastered this art, he respectfully offers it to the immortal Mao Ying.

The Perfected One Luo of Qingcheng presented the "Song of the Small Returned Elixir of White Metal" to Emperor Minghuang:

Emperor Minghuang asked the Perfected One: "The root of the Dao is only one, and in the end all paths return to the same place. Though medicinal substances have many different effects, can they truly aid the body? I hope you will take pity on me and swiftly heal what remains of my life."

The Perfected One replied:

The human body exists within the harmony of Yin-Yang, and medicinal substances likewise communicate with primordial Qi (vital energy). If the use of the body and the use of the medicine accord with the patterns of Yin-Yang transformation, then weakness and aging can gradually be improved. Do not covet the great medicine, for it requires a long wait; with a single white metal alone, one can still extend life and increase longevity.

Immortals treasure and guard these secret instructions and do not transmit them falsely or carelessly. So long as you can keep them, do not reveal them lightly.

What follows comprises twelve poems in all.

The transformations of the lawful medicines, in the end, all depend on the water essence (shuijing, a subtle substance associated with water). The Six Zhi (six kinds of immortal medicines of the lingzhi type) moisten the body and increase its radiance, allowing one to prolong life.

Immortals treasure and guard these secret instructions and do not transmit them falsely or carelessly. So long as you can keep them, do not reveal them lightly.

What follows comprises twelve poems in all.

The transformations of the lawful medicines all depend on the water essence. When the Six Zhi nourish and moisten, the Yellow Sprout (huangya, an alchemical term for the refined essence generated during cultivation) arises of itself; Yang Qi does not show agitation, and the movement of Yin Qi is silent and without sound. The methods of the Dao seem easy, yet truly mastering them is difficult.

Having nurtured the Yellow Male (huangnan, an alchemical term for yang essence), one must first restrain the household ghosts (jiagui, impure factors that obstruct cultivation). Exhaust the qi of decay in order to support the Metal qi, and use the remaining living qi to restrain the Water qi. If people in the world can understand these principles, they will penetrate deeply into their rules. To follow the Perfected One's teaching in person, and whether one can truly accomplish it, is not easily judged by oneself alone.

The bottom of the vessel must be left hollow, so as not to be pressed by the fire phase. Know the white while keeping to the black (understanding the manifest side while guarding the obscure), so that the pure and yellow qi unite as one. If one can avoid Yin impurity, cultivation will take no more than a hundred days. The great Dao that prolongs life is easy to understand, but hard to truly master.

When the Yellow Child (huangzi, an alchemical term for yang essence) is pure and substantial, it can unite with the Dark Consort (xuanfei, an alchemical term for yin essence). Once the Golden Elixir is perfected, its potency is complete, and the one who takes it will gradually become full and solid in body. The Earth dwelling is divided into three places, and the fire phases are separated into the Two Modes (liangyi, the two states of Yin and Yang). Through supreme De (Virtue), Yin Qi is dispelled, and the principle of pure Yang within is profound and subtle.

With a single white metal alone, one can restore a weakened and aged body to firmness. The nature of medicines is complex and hard to guard against; a mind of single purpose is easy to keep. Take a thousand pills, and for a hundred days you will be free from harm; all illnesses will gradually recede, and life can be extended.

The Dao (the Way) of elixir refining must follow the oral formulae, and one should especially value drawing close to one's teacher and receiving the transmission in person. After seven days the substances settle of their own accord, and after long refining they become firm and unchanging. Whether refined a thousand times or boiled ten thousand, everything depends on the "Five Worthies" (the five elements or aids spoken of in the refining process). Store the golden vessels with care, and keep the Mysterious Gate (Xuanguan; the key aperture or gateway used in refining) open and unbroken.

Smear the four walls with red ochre. The elixir must be kept within a circular underground chamber so that it may be preserved for a long time.

The Dao of elixir refining must follow the oral formulae, and one should especially value drawing close to one's teacher and receiving the transmission in person. After seven days the substances settle of their own accord, and after long refining they become firm and unchanging. Whether refined a thousand times or boiled ten thousand, everything depends on the "Five Worthies." Store the golden vessels with care, and keep the Mysterious Gate open and unbroken.

Smear the four walls with red ochre, and keep the elixir within the circular furnace door. In one place set the fire chest (a furnace fitting used to seal in and regulate the heat), and in another the ash pit (a place for gathering ash and tempering the furnace's temperature). The Five Toads can protect the elixir, and the Three Crows are indeed indispensable. "Five Toads" and "Three Crows" are alchemical terms for symbolic arrangements in the movement of the furnace fire and the substances. If the intent of the Dao has not yet quickly appeared, keep adding days, and the transformations will grow ever more wondrous.

Take one part yellow substance and two parts white, three zhu in all (an ancient unit of weight), and divide it into two portions. Nurture it until it is round and full like the full moon, and a soaring crane will be born. In elixir work, outside interference is forbidden, and the cultivator finds peace and joy of their own. If the oral formulae are passed to the wrong person, calamities of heaven and earth will follow.

The sprouting of the substance returns to the "Yellow Man," while its nature lies with the "Dark Maiden" (both are Yin-Yang symbols in alchemy). External aids are indispensable, among them jade fungus and clear vinegar. Worldly people often hear much yet understand little, while the Lord of the Dao says very little. If the materials used do not meet the standard, one will suffer toil in vain.

Copper and iron damage the body of the substance, and elixir ash also weakens its potency. To test the substance's efficacy, it must retain its original color. When one Yin and one Yang are joined, the matter becomes easy to observe and grasp. Things of different kinds gather together yet each grows on its own, and the changes within are like planting thorny brambles.

To subdue the "Azure Dragon" (in alchemy, a symbol of a certain substance or force), one must rely on the "White Tiger" (the counterpart symbol paired with it), and the two naturally respond to each other and transform. Elixir ash harms potency; to test efficacy, the substance must keep its original color. When one Yin and one Yang are joined, matters are easy to observe. Things of different kinds gather and each grows on its own, and the changes are like planting thorny brambles.

Once the Azure Dragon is subdued and the White Tiger enlisted, transformation arises naturally, untouched by wind or rain. Snowflakes dance, snowflakes dance, and the hun and po souls have both returned.

Gathering and scattering are all governed by Ren-Gui water (water as represented by the heavenly stems Ren and Gui). The Jade Spirit and the Canopy of Splendor (symbolic names in alchemy) present the substance of Wuwei (non-action). The spring wells up, the spring wells up, and through spring, summer, autumn, and winter its depths cannot be fathomed.

If you wish it to circulate throughout the world, you must let it be tempered naturally under thick, warm conditions.

Song of the Fire Record (Huo Ji Ge), by Han Yunzhong of Taibai.

The Great Dao (Way) is vast and profound, and the transformations of Yin-Yang are hard to fathom. How creation operates and how the myriad things come into being are beyond the ordinary person's ability to measure. Some people spend their whole lives in empty talk about voidness and nothingness; others invent elixir methods at random and squander their wealth for nothing. They hoped to prolong life, but instead harmed their bodies and shortened their years. From ancient times to the present, countless devotees of this path have died because of it. They often cling to mistaken practices and fail to grasp the fundamental aim. When they come to open the furnace and refine the elixir, they know only how to refine cinnabar and extract mercury; or they combine so-called yin substances with yellow stone, or pair lead with mercury and "fly the mercury into a flow," or transmute earth into gold and take "crow's milk" as honey. They smelt lead and cast in mercury, calling it "Yellow Sprout"; they send mercury into the geng and xin positions and call it "Dragon and Tiger." To treat mercury as the Dao is entirely mistaken. If one takes such practices seriously merely because they promise profit, then the refining of the elixir has gone gravely wrong.

For many years I have loved seeking the Dao, yet I never grasped its true source. I have personally tried all of these methods of refining and taming. Seeing people die of epidemics, I was deeply grieved; reflecting that life and death pass in the blink of an eye, I wondered where the Dao could be found. So I have written down the essential points, hoping that students of the Dao may understand the transformations of Yin-Yang and reflect on them carefully, so that all may come to awaken to the Dao.

What is called "lead" is the yang element within the Kan trigram, belonging to the Ren and Gui water. Through refining, melting, and nine rounds of transformation, it is made to float and sink, changing in turn; when the number is complete it becomes Qian, and so it corresponds to the west. People often witness these phenomena without understanding their true source. What is called the "Tiger" also takes visible form: hard, sharp, and black in color. It ascends to heaven and becomes clouds and rain; it descends to earth and becomes a spring. After nine cycles of returning and refining, the "Metal Lord" (an alchemical term for the essence of the metal nature) causes the fire's force to subside, and this depends entirely on symbolic substances such as "White Snow."

What is called "mercury" is the yin element within the Li trigram, belonging to the Bing and Ding fire. All things grow and flourish by receiving its nourishment. Upward, it answers to the "Azure Yang" of spring, moving in due season; downward, it is stored within the energy of the white, hidden autumn, lying concealed and unseen. What is called the "Dragon" rises into the heavens and appears as the essence of Wood; when spring arrives, flowers, grasses, and medicinal substances sprout. Its transformations are dim and indistinct, yet seem to be right before one's eyes. "Seven Returns and the Returning Soul" and the "Wondrous Flower and Green Water" are all esoteric terms used in alchemy to describe transformation. If one can grasp them, the subtle and profound principles will gradually become clear; but those who merely close their eyes and meditate will find it hard to truly see.

Therefore, one must use the Po-Tiger (white soul) in the moon to refine the Hun-Dragon (ethereal soul) in the sun, causing the Dragon to lie hidden within the shadow of the cassia tree. The two energies (Qi) respond to each other and unite like husband and wife. The three essences within the Kan trigram, when joined, form the supreme principle. I have set down these essential points for those who can understand them. There are also the thirteen poems of the "Heavenly Talismans"; later students who read them carefully will surely accord with the true source. Having obtained this text, please do not reveal it carelessly.

The Yang Qi (vital energy) has only just begun to stir, and it follows the seasonal cycle as it shifts onward. The dragon lies hidden and has not yet found its moment to rise; the tiger crouches too, its voice barely audible. The two black Qi meet, and the Three Flowers (signs that appear during cultivation) herald that the time is about to open. The firing phase swells to the number nine, then gradually wanes and returns to its beginning.

With the second nine-day period comes the time to approach the furnace and refine the elixir, when the Qi of Qian and Kun (Heaven and Earth, Yin-Yang) join together. The Golden Boy (a symbol of Metal Qi) subdues the Wood Qi, and Earth Qi guards the womb of Water. The many responses unite and absorb one another, and the key lies in harmony and balance. When advancing the fire, one tracks the hours moment by moment; when withdrawing it, one follows the changes of the hexagram lines.

The season of fortune is open and smooth, and one personally receives the firing phase as the warm, harmonious Yang Qi begins to arise. The cycle turns to the [missing character] first month of the season, and the handle of the Big Dipper moves toward the Yin position. The practitioner should be as watchful and cautious as a noble person, while Yin-Yang stirs with the season. When thirty days have passed, the elixir is taken from the furnace, then pounded and prepared (processed and put in order) before being returned to the furnace for further refining.

When the elm withers, the Kui star stands over the Mao position, and the "Three Absences" mark the proper time. The essences (Jing) of the sun's hun-soul and the moon's po-soul unite to form the Great Dao (the Way), and the Qi of dragon and tiger hold fast to each other. The Dazhuang hexagram (symbolizing flourishing Yang) establishes the rule, and flowers open toward the cassia branch. At this point the furnace is halted and the fire stilled, and the green turns to brightness.

All trees hold Yang Qi within, and flowers bloom across the land, their fragrance drifting everywhere. The Golden Rooster rides the Great Fire, and the vermilion fire essence (the essence of the red firing phase) is at its height; the Jade Rabbit, meanwhile, gradually wanes, and the water essence changes with it. The accomplished practitioner (one who has achieved the Way) grieves over the uncertainty of life and death, for high and low, noble and humble, pass away in a moment. Once the elixir is complete, one has an audience with the Great Emperor, and taking the elixir dispels calamity.

Only through arduous perseverance can the pure Yang of Qian be refined; in cultivating the Golden Elixir, firmness of purpose is what matters. The tiger's Qi wounds the dragon, and the dragon's Qi carries blood; Metal Qi overcomes Wood, and the Wood Qi disperses without a wisp of smoke. After Yang Qi reaches its fullness, Yin Qi draws near; after flourishing, decline naturally follows. Strike, and the sound answers like a chime; contemplate the principles of cultivation, and one may prolong life.

At the sixth day of the beginning, one has an audience with the Great Emperor, and taking the elixir dispels calamity.

Only through arduous perseverance can the pure Yang of Qian be refined; in cultivating the Golden Elixir, firmness of purpose is what matters. The tiger's Qi wounds the dragon, and the dragon's Qi carries blood; Metal Qi overcomes Wood, and the Wood Qi disperses without a wisp of smoke. After Yang Qi reaches its fullness, Yin Qi draws near; after flourishing, decline naturally follows. Strike, and the sound answers like a chime; contemplate the principles of cultivation, and one may prolong life.

At the first Yin line, the cycle arrives at the Southern Palace, and Yin Qi rises, conceiving and opening the sprout. The water clock (a timekeeping device) keeps moving, and the pitch-pipes (the ancient standards for tuning notes and marking the seasonal nodes) shift along with it. The practitioner keeps to the season and adjusts accordingly, so that the various forces act upon one another in turn. After five days, the Yang Qi begins to wane, and the Three Flowers appear in accordance with the cycle's numbers. Bring the elixir close to the furnace door and examine it: layer upon layer of blood-colored spots can be seen.

Xiaoji (the auspicious spirit among the twelve spirits) approaches the Celestial Talisman. Yin qi (vital energy) gradually arrives, gathering and lying hidden. The Metal Lord (referring to the metal or yang ingredient in alchemy) joins the sinews and marrow, while the Vermilion Crow (referring to the fire or yin ingredient in the alchemical method) holds the pivotal mechanism. The substance of the Dao (the Way) is the same as that of Heaven and Earth, and the ingredients that harmonize Yin-Yang are being refined in the furnace. Do not regard this as merely a change of form: by taking the elixir, even the dead may revive.

When blockage prevails, the qi of the three yin descends, and the fierce, murderous qi of the General is especially heavy. The Cowherd star meets the Milky Way, and the Weaver Girl crosses the Heavenly River. The qi of Jia and Yi transforms, and the Wood qi is wounded. The qi of Geng and Xin is like a sword, and it begins to be whetted. Act in accordance with the order of the seasons, and pass through every turn of cold and heat.

The moon joins Tiangang (the direction to which the handle of the Northern Dipper points), the wind rises, and shepherd's purse and wheat begin to sprout. The Earth Lord (a spirit who governs earthly affairs) comes to receive sacrifice, and in the altar of the Xian platform (the ritual platform set up during alchemical refining), golden sand is nurtured and refined. The shadow of the cassia fills the night sky, and Xihe (the legendary driver of the sun's chariot) travels with the glow of purple mist. The wild geese arrive and the Dark Crow (the black crow) departs; soon one will see plants and trees growing from the water.

Cold and gloom harm the myriad things of the season, and when yin qi arrives, plants and trees wither. When the Earth qi of Wu and Ji is at its height, seek out the chrysanthemum, and with crimson blood sever the dragon's waist (a symbolic expression in alchemy, referring to subduing the dragon-type ingredient or the movement of qi). What is peeling and decaying will turn to earth, and as soon as the Li lead (the lead-type ingredient or corresponding qi in the alchemical method) appears, it will disperse. Cultivate the great Dao with painstaking effort, and do not lament because the road is long.

The topmost line stands in the position of the Kun hexagram, and the changes of Yin-Yang, from beginning to end, are all contained within it. The Emperor's Son (the yang ingredient in the alchemical method) congeals into marrow, while the Li Maiden (the yin ingredient in the alchemical method) carries bright red blood. When the number two-eight reaches the time of union, the three each carry a different meaning. Open the furnace and examine the supreme treasure within; once it is taken, the aged can be transformed.

Pass again through the land of pure origin, where yang qi lies hidden and produces six kinds of cold qi. After three decades of days, continue the refining without pause, and the elixir is completed only when the number six-nine is reached. Write your name on the golden roll and set up a Jiao altar (an altar for Daoist rites of petitioning the deities) in the palace of the immortals. Weary of the sorrows of the human world, you will ride a luan bird and ascend as a feathered immortal. Take salt, bile, and rice; with the "left flavor," boil the Emperor's Son and the Emperor's Daughter for three days and three nights. Then blend yellow with the left flavor and make a casket (a vessel in which medicines are held and elixirs are nurtured), and nurture and refine for seven days.

People in the world all love the medicines of alchemy, yet no one has truly found them. Some say lead must be used, others say it must not; and even when lead is actually used, the work still goes wrong. There is no need to be angry at failing to find it, for no one has obtained the true "Yellow Sprout" (an alchemical term for the key ingredient or core material sought in the elixir work).

Only those who have both faith and the will to practice are worthy of being given the formulas and methods. One who is not stained by wealth or lust is a true practitioner of the Dao (the Way). Help others in secret, and do not make a show of it. Those who set out seeking long life may instead end up shortening it. Never curry favor with the powerful in the name of seeking the Dao; practicing medicine, divination, reading scriptures, and pursuing the Dao should all be done quietly and without display. If one cannot yet live in seclusion and has no tranquil dwelling, one should first seek out medicines that keep people free from illness. If one pursues long life and finds peace in cultivating the Dao, there is nothing to worry about. One who is not stained by wealth or lust is a true practitioner of the Dao; help others in secret, and do not make a show of it. Those who set out seeking long life may instead end up shortening it. Never curry favor with the powerful; practicing medicine, divination, reading scriptures, and pursuing the Dao should all be done quietly and without display. If for the time being one cannot live in seclusion and has no tranquil dwelling, one should first seek out medicines that keep people free from illness. So long as one pursues long life and finds peace in cultivating the Dao, what is there to worry about?

Lead is the sovereign, mercury (quicksilver) is the minister, and fire is the envoy. The "Red-Blooded General" is an alchemical term for the fire phase or force that plays the decisive role in the refining; it guards Yin-Yang (Yin and Yang), and it controls and subdues the medicine. Once the medicine is complete, it is first used to transmute mercury; once the mercury has been transmuted, it may be taken. In this way the messengers of the underworld will not come in pursuit, and the person will not die. If people of the world can obtain this medicine, they may live long and at ease; but the search for it should be carried out in a quiet place, not by currying favor with the powerful. The oral formulas must be transmitted with care, and the practical procedures must also be demonstrated by hand. The key to subduing the medicine lies close to the Yellow Sprout. If one's mind and intent do not accord with the oral formulas, or if the essentials of the procedure have not been personally transmitted, and one also indulges in wine and lust, then one has no affinity with the Dao.

When the water in the Dantian (energy center; in cultivation, the region where essence and qi are held to gather) congeals, the Yellow Sprout will arise; after a hundred days of nourishing and refining, the medicine can subdue fire. What is made by placing a Yin substance within a Yang cauldron is the Golden Elixir; after ten months of nourishing, it may be taken. It is said that taking the elixir preserves one's complexion, keeps the hair and temples from decline, and steadies the Shen (spirit). If an alchemist sells elixirs and medicines among people in the world, their lifespan may reach a thousand years, yet they remain unknown to the world.

The elixir of long life and the pill of immortality are what people dream of day and night, yet truly finding them is exceedingly difficult. The heart wavers and the mind hesitates. Since antiquity there have been eight methods of alchemy, so why not choose one of them and come to understand it? Two people may deliberate together, thinking day and night on how the elixir of long life and the pill of immortality are refined. If one uses "black lead" and the "old maiden" (alchemical terms referring to yin-natured substances or raw materials for the elixir), one can rise bodily into the heavens and soar freely. One belongs to the left, the other to the right; when both Yin-Yang aspects are complete, the Returned Elixir is formed. If one truly cultivates in this way, one can attain long life and dwell at ease and carefree in the realm of the immortals.

The world is noisy with carriages and horses, and people bustle about; rosy complexions and glossy black hair cannot stay youthful forever. The art of refining the medicine has been handed down for ten thousand years, yet those who study the Dao (the Way) busy themselves searching and often fail to find the true method. If everyone understood the "yellow sprout" (an alchemical term referring to a key substance needed for refining the elixir), how could there still be poverty in the world?

An old man and an old woman refine the great medicine together, and both metallic substances, lead and mercury, are used appropriately. The substances are boiled in water and refined in fire, and the one refining them expends much effort; whether it will succeed is hard to know, as the two substances work in concert. This union is said to require a full sexagenary cycle (sixty years), so that the Yin above and the Yang below blend with one another. If people of the world could obtain this method, they would be free from the seizure of the spirit officials and exempt from birth and death. Lead is simply lead and mercury is simply mercury, and everyone knows how to use them; as for the "yellow sprout" produced from herbs and trees, everyone claims to understand it. Yet since ancient times the true method has been transmitted only by word of mouth and never written on paper; those who refine blindly labor in vain and even exhaust their family fortunes.

The White Emperor of the West dwells in Wudu, where the "parrot crown" (an alchemical term whose precise referent is unclear) that people need is found. The "Flowery Pool" is used to seal the alchemical vessel tightly, and mercury is refined for seven days; the "maiden" finds a husband with the help of a matchmaker. While tending the furnace, one must carefully observe the changes of the four seasons and attend to the heat and cold of the fire, worrying day and night and never sleeping soundly. Offerings and rites to the immortals must be complete, and once the refining is accomplished, gold will cover the ground.

Lead (qian) and mercury are two Yin substances, and they are the key to refining the returned elixir. They restrain one another, and the method is not difficult; it is only that people of the world are confused and do not seek it. A student of the Dao who receives no guidance will squander a thousand pieces of gold in vain, whereas one who has the chance to receive transmission can accumulate merit and relieve the poor. If the alchemical method is used in this way, Heaven, Earth, and people will not blame the practitioner; but if it is applied to unrighteous ends, it will anger Heaven and bring foul illness, lawsuits, and punishment.

Black substances of different kinds cannot be mixed together, for each has its own relationship of mother and child, dependent on one another. Without lead and the "yellow sprout" (huangya, the yellow substance produced in the course of refining), they cannot be subdued. The yellow sprout lies hidden within Yin, while "white snow" (baixue, an alchemical term for the white essence) is born within Yang. Put them into the furnace fire and refine them, so that Yin and Yang are bound to each other and restrain one another. Mother and child cannot be separated, just as life and death cannot be pulled apart.

Cinnabar (danshа), O cinnabar, can save a life and also preserve a household. It can save my life and help my family; it can also give rise to the "Maiden" (chanü, an alchemical term often referring to mercury or Yin-natured medicines), who is joined with the yellow sprout. In serving her husband she is pure and plain, without swings of joy or anger; her observance of ritual and music accords with propriety, and her comings and goings, morning and evening, keep their proper measure. If the refining succeeds, gold too can be made and one may pass through the human world in peace; if the gold is not achieved, one can only wait in vain.

My life can be saved and my household preserved; the Maiden can also be brought forth and joined with the yellow sprout. In serving her husband she is pure and plain, without swings of joy or anger; her observance of ritual and music accords with propriety, and her comings and goings, morning and evening, keep their proper measure. The making of gold may yet succeed, and the world may be passed through in peace; if the gold is not achieved, one can only wait in vain.

The root of mercury's coagulation lies in the Dantian (energy center; the region of the abdomen where internal cultivation is practiced). From there it enters the "Yang cauldron" (yangding, an alchemical term for the Yang-natured vessel) and communicates with the black substance. After three days of blending, the medicine becomes stable. Know that the root of the Great Medicine lies in lead. First it is placed in the Yin furnace and refined into the "Great White" (dabai, the white elixir or the essence of the medicine), and then it is put into the Yang cauldron and transformed into the Golden Elixir. If people of the world can grasp this principle, subduing mercury is not difficult.

Cinnabar and mercury are placed into the lead pool, and the yellow sprout is gathered without the world knowing of it. This is an oral formula left by the immortals; when one meets with the right affinity, one must still receive it from a master. The master must explain the formula clearly, yet it should not be broadcast widely in the world. In seventy years it is passed to only one person, and that person must possess immortal bones (xiangu, a constitution suited to the Dao).

People of the world seek the Dao yet indulge in wine and meat and remain ignorant; as their lives draw to a close, they still do not understand its principle. Once the "Metal Lord" (jingong, an alchemical term often referring to lead) has been subdued, one can obtain a dose of the returned elixir. Cinnabar refined with proper control of the fire can be used to treat illness. From this one may hope for long life, and the foundation will be secure; no more sorrow, no more aging, one may stand shoulder to shoulder with Pengzu (a legendary figure of great longevity).

The ancient immortals refined the essence of red copper (the purest part of the crimson copper material). They took one liang of mercury and one liang of copper essence, added half a liang of cinnabar-sand (naosha), and simmered them in a sour fermented liquid. After refining from morning until evening, the elixir body becomes solid. When it is added to copper or iron to cast a mirror, the mirror gains the power to subdue ghosts and spirits, and they fear it so much that they dare not make a sound. If one obtains the oral instructions of an accomplished master of the Dao, one must treasure and guard them, and only then can one prolong life and extend one's years.

When the Yang essence (Jing) is firm, the hun soul can stand on its own; when the Yin essence is firm, the po soul can establish itself. When the hun and po are strong, the heart-spirit (Shen) can reach the realm of the sages. The principles within this cannot be spoken of lightly. If one obtains the oral instructions of an accomplished master of the Dao, one must treasure and guard them, and only then can one prolong life and extend one's years.

When the Yang essence is firm, the hun can stand on its own; when the Yin essence is firm, the po can establish itself. When the hun and po are strong, the heart-spirit takes on a numinous, sagely nature, and red lead and cinnabar mercury (names of substances in alchemy) become even more efficacious. If one meets an immortal who transmits this method, the hun-spirit and the po are both firmly established, and one thereby attains long life.

If one can recognize the "Young Maiden" (an alchemical term for Yin-natured substances), one can surely make the essence and Qi return; if one can subdue the "Cinnabar Child" (an alchemical term for cinnabar and similar substances), one can surely make the elixir firm. The Golden Essence and Stone Marrow are the root of the hun-spirit's numinous subtlety. One who can cultivate this may become a sage, and one who can subdue the substances will manifest numinous power. The officials of the realm of ghosts will not come to seek such a person, and their name will be recorded on the registers of the immortals.

At fifty or sixty years of age, one may transmit this art to a suitable person; from this point on, cultivation can be considered truly secure. One must also understand medicine and divination, and conceal one's traces. Whether walking, standing, sitting, or lying down, one can be at ease and free from worry.

Since ancient times, countless people have harmed their bodies and lost their lives because of this art. One must therefore study the transformations of Yin-Yang and also understand divination and physiognomy. At the same time, one should blend into the ordinary world, make a living through trade, and outwardly maintain an appearance of poverty.

This art may be transmitted, and it may be passed down from generation to generation; it was originally a method used by the Daoist community to aid people. If one carelessly passes it to an unsuitable person, the one who transmits it will suffer disaster, and even father and son and kin will become estranged. For this reason, it should not be discussed casually.

If one wishes to seek the root within the Dantian (energy center), the key lies in lead; once cinnabar has been refined, the elixir body becomes firm. As long as one obtains the oral instructions of an accomplished master of the Dao, when red lead enters water, the complete Great Elixir can be refined.

Every detail must be committed to memory and demonstrated by the master's own hands and transmitted in person. When the "River Chariot" (a cultivation method for guiding the movement of elixir Qi) turns and covers the Dantian, any error will bring disaster; father and son and kin will become estranged, so it should not be discussed casually.

If one wishes to seek the root within the Dantian, the key lies in lead; once cinnabar has been refined, the elixir body becomes firm. As long as one obtains the oral instructions of an accomplished master of the Dao, when red lead enters water, the complete Great Elixir can be refined.

Every detail must be committed to memory and demonstrated by the master's own hands and transmitted in person. The River Chariot turns and envelops the Dantian, and the subduing of fire (controlling the heat so that the substances are subdued and become elixir) takes place all around the Yellow Sprout (an alchemical term for the key substance or stage in which the elixir is formed).

The Golden Lord (an alchemical term often referring to lead) is able to hold back water, and within black lead there is the Yellow Sprout. Refine the Yellow Sprout into water, and then use this water to drive the River Chariot.

The essence of the Vermilion Emperor of the South (symbolizing the Fire deity of the south) was originally the finest part of Taiyin (the great Yin, or Yin qi). The immortals of old were able to seize it, strip it away, and transform it into the form of mercury.

When the two essences (Jing), Yin and Yang, unite, this is the key to refining the Returned Elixir. Once you understand this principle, there is no need to seek it far away. From black lead one takes the Yang nature, and from cinnabar the Yin nature.

End of the first volume of Songs and Formulas of the Returned Elixir.

Songs and Formulas of the Returned Elixir, second volume. Compiled by Yuanyangzi.

The song says: True Yin and true Yang are the real Dao (the Way). The true Yin and true Yang spoken of here refer to genuine water and fire, not the ordinary water and fire of the world. It lies right before your eyes, so why search far away? People see the principle at work every day, yet they have not grasped it. Ordinary people burn and refine their "divine elixirs" year after year, and when the substances turn blue-green or yellow, they assume they have made something precious. The people of that age did not understand the correct Way and knew only to treat lead and mercury as alchemical materials, which is a pity.

Those who aspire to cultivate the Dao should seek the correct method. They must understand the proper standards and practice in accordance with them. Do not...

People see the principle at work every day, yet they have not grasped it. Ordinary people burn and refine their divine elixirs year after year, and when the substances turn blue-green or yellow, they assume they have made something precious. The people of that age did not understand the correct Way and knew only to treat lead and mercury as alchemical materials, which is a pity.

Those who aspire to cultivate the Dao should seek the correct method. They must understand the proper standards and practice in accordance with them. Do not damage your Shen (spirit) and mind, wasting your days until old age. If you have not obtained the true secret, then even with white hair you will gain no benefit. If you only learn how to obtain the true Yellow Sprout (the fundamental medicine in Neidan, or internal alchemy), and a person is able to take it, their lifespan will be beyond measure. If you can obtain the true Yellow Sprout, then after taking it you will naturally attain the Dao.

The Azure Dragon pursues the White Tiger, and the White Tiger in turn seeks the Azure Dragon. The Azure Dragon refers to mercury, and the White Tiger to lead. Mercury easily scatters and moves about, while lead can restrain it so that it no longer flies off. When they meet the Red Bird, a responding sound rings out. When mercury is swallowed by the Vermilion Bird (the divine bird symbolizing fire), it makes a sound like an infant's cry.

Regulate the breath (Qi) and the fire phases. That is, when working the furnace fire, one must not miss the proper moment. Turn the Li Palace (the position symbolizing fire). The Fire deity within the Li Palace is in charge of the flame. When the numinous medicine enters the belly, the body is invigorated and its channels flow freely. When the numinous elixir enters the mouth, a person becomes a Zhenren (a Perfected One, one who has attained the Dao).

The Yellow Sprout is not the ordinary lead of the world. The Yellow Sprout is the root of the Great Medicine, and worldly people find it hard to understand.

Turn the Li Palace (the position symbolizing fire). The Fire deity within the Li Palace is in charge of the flame. When the numinous medicine enters the belly, the body is invigorated and its channels flow freely. When the numinous elixir enters the mouth, a person becomes a Zhenren (a Perfected One, one who has attained the Dao).

The Yellow Sprout (huangya, the key ingredient needed for alchemical refining) is the foundation of the Great Medicine, and it is not the same as the "lead" spoken of in the common world; ordinary people find it hard to grasp. If one merely wastes one's spirit and mind (Shen) without seeing any result, one will be like someone keeping a futile vigil in an empty room until the hair turns white. Where, then, could one ever hope to roam at leisure in search of Chisongzi (a legendary immortal)?

The Divine Water and the Flowery Pool (shenshui and huachi, alchemical terms for important ingredients or refining conditions) are rare in the world and are the root of the Great Medicine; they are not the lead and mercury of popular speech. Their transmission is withheld from ordinary people. The Baopuzi says that if those who do not understand the immortal Way (Dao) were allowed to learn this wondrous method, immortals would become so numerous under heaven that they would gather in flocks.

The various immortals have jointly guarded the secret, borrowing only the common talk of ordinary lead and mercury as a cover, so that those who hear it find it plausible. The profound principles of the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water) are hard to fathom, and such expressions as the hidden Dragon and concealed Tiger, along with the primordial Kan and Li, likewise conceal the hidden workings of alchemy.

There are many methods for the Returned Elixir (huandan, an alchemical term for refining the elixir), but the most important is to obtain the Golden Flower Pool (jinhuachi). The source of the Yin-Yang way is very hard to exhaust; if one trusts only the formulas handed down from antiquity, one will in the end be unable to complete the refining. The Can (a reference to the relevant alchemical classic) says, "The Yellow Emperor praised the Golden Flower," and so, although lead is black on the outside, within it contains the Golden Flower.

The place of cinnabar does not lie in the color red itself; it is arranged according to the four seasons and dwells in the south. Although cinnabar is said to belong to the south, people of the world still find it difficult to learn its true source. Flowing Vermilion (liuzhu, an alchemical substance of the cinnabar kind) has by nature no fixed position; if one wishes to know its source, one must look to Autumn Mineral (qiushi, an alchemical term for a certain substance). To refine the Great Elixir one must obtain Autumn Mineral, which is why the Prince of Huainan once refined it.

The Soul of the Sun and the Spirit of the Moon (rihun and yuepo, alchemical terms using sun and moon as metaphors for two kinds of essential qi) are the essence of the sun and moon, and people find them hard to understand. They nurture and form an embryo and conceive the elixir, with wondrous effect. When the transformation is about to be completed, they will naturally appear, as clear as if turning into fine dust before a bright window. The Can says that its form resembles the dust before a bright window.

The theory of lead and mercury cannot be relied upon, and the secret of the Golden Elixir may not be known even to sages. The word "sage" here is merely what people of the world call salt, and does not indicate that they understand the secret method of the Golden Elixir.

Do not discuss the alchemy of ordinary metals and minerals of the world, and do not merely count years and shift the firing times (huohou), arguing endlessly with one another.

If one takes the common lead and mercury of the world and refines them, then even with cultivation there is no benefit.

This medicine arises naturally and accords with the Dao (the Way) of emptiness and nothingness. It is formed from the condensation of subtle Qi (vital energy) and is not made by human fabrication. It has no form and no awareness, yet it responds to Yin-Yang, like a wife, like a child, and also like a husband.

This medicine is like ruler and minister, mother and child, husband and wife, and also like fish and water: they unite with one another and cannot be separated.

The "Gate of Three and Five" refers to the crucial point at which Yin-Yang join, symbolized by the sun and moon. Mao and You are the directions and times corresponding to the beginning of the refining and nurturing. If one understands "Three and Five," one will be free of worry for the whole of life. Mao and You are also regarded as the positions of long life: Yang Qi is generated at one, and Yin Qi is settled at the other.

Qian and Kun (Heaven and Earth, Yin-Yang) cannot turn away from each other, and the root of all affairs ultimately returns to Heaven and Earth. Heaven and Earth are the great Dao, yet people live within them every day without understanding this.

It is like a mother carrying a child for ten months, after which mother and child each take their own form. How could a sage repeatedly cast away both mother and child? This saying means that after the refining has passed through its proper cycles and the numinous medicine is complete, to keep only the medicine and discard its root is to abandon the mother and take only her child. Therefore the sage does not repeatedly discard the root.

This medicine holds and nourishes the most genuine Qi of the natural endowment, and it congeals into form through the Qi of harmonious balance. The Cantong qi says: "Heaven gives birth to the Dark Maiden; Earth brings forth the Yellow Youth."

It is noble and endowed with the five colors; how could it be confused with ordinary lead and mercury? This medicine has received the pure Qi of the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water), and people today call it "Hu lead."

Its mystery and the principle of the yellow center are profound and hard to discern. People do not recognize the lead and mercury spoken of here, nor do they understand the meaning contained in the gate of lead and mercury. The lead and mercury spoken of here refer to Yin-Yang.

People do not understand how to fix the root; if they observe the Five Phases carefully, they will see that each is received and contained within itself.

The Five Phases (Wuxing) are Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth.

The infant here symbolizes a state of cultivation that has not yet matured. A person in this state is restless in mind and spirit and finds it hard to grasp the teaching; they merely expend their Shen (spirit) in vain and add to their own hardship.

Ordinary people do not understand the subtle key at the heart of this matter, so even when they ponder and strain with all their effort, they see no results.

Once one learns to take in the words of the sages, one can understand the principle within them, and that is precisely the road that leads to the Dao of Heaven.

The Five Phases of Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth dwell together in a single chamber.

The "dragon and tiger" mentioned here refer to what the numbers three and five point to.

One husband paired with two wives forms a single pairing. The "one" and "two" here refer to the numbers of Water and Fire, while "five" refers to Earth.

A suitable go-between is needed for the two sides to draw close, and so they associate with one another and their feelings come into accord.

The principle by which Yin-Yang join is profound and hard to fathom, and it requires a suitable go-between. The "good matchmaker" here refers to the "divine water" (an alchemical term for the key substance used to harmonize Yin and Yang). With this matchmaker, Yin and Yang will naturally come together in harmony.

The transformations of Yin-Yang are profound and difficult to discern; the Azure Dragon and the White Tiger (alchemical terms often used to symbolize opposing Yin and Yang forces) restrain one another.

When the dragon and tiger enter the cauldron (the vessel used in alchemy), their transformations are hard to explain.

At the year's end, the Qi of Yin and Yang transform and swallow one another. The White Tiger restrains the Azure Dragon, and the dragon's strength gradually wanes.

When the year ends, the cycle of change is complete; the mercury appears to dry up little by little, and the transformations of Yin-Yang remain profound and hard to discern, with the Azure Dragon and White Tiger restraining one another.

The dragon and tiger enter the cauldron, and their transformations are hard to explain.

At the year's end, the Qi of Yin and Yang transform and swallow one another. The White Tiger restrains the Azure Dragon, and the dragon's strength gradually wanes.

When the year ends, the cycle of change is complete, and the mercury seems to dry up little by little, until at last a precious treasure is refined.

Qian, Heaven, represents Yang, while Kun represents the Old Mother (symbolizing Yin).

This is to say that the alternation of one Yin and one Yang constitutes the Dao.

The south corresponds to the Vermilion Bird (symbolizing Fire), and the north corresponds to the Dark Warrior (symbolizing Water).

The south is the spirit of Fire, and the north is the spirit of Water.

After a long period of transformation, both finally turn into Earth. Where, then, will people go to look for the dragon and tiger?

This means that Water and Fire in the end both become Earth.

Three people with shared aims join together to form a single body. The "three people" here refer to the three legs of the cauldron.

One should constantly let the sun and moon shine within it.

The "sun and moon" mentioned here refer to two kinds of breath (Qi); once they enter the cauldron, they dissolve and merge into it.

One has already met the Three Flowers (here referring to Fire), and now they turn once more into liquid; when the Nine Turnings are complete, one has passed through a long span of cultivation. The "Nine Turnings" here refer to the Yang number reaching its fullest extent.

The Azure Dragon originally belongs to the east: the east corresponds to Jia-Yi Wood, and also to mercury; the Zhen trigram symbolizes the Azure Dragon. Once the Azure Dragon enters the cauldron, it dissolves and merges into it.

One has already met the Three Flowers, and now they turn once more into liquid; when the Nine Turnings are complete, one has passed through a long span of cultivation.

"Nine Turns" means that the Yang number has reached its extreme, arriving at nine. The "Three Flowers" refers to fire.

The Azure Dragon originally refers to the east. The east belongs to Jia and Yi, the Wood, and represents mercury; the image of the Zhen trigram is the Azure Dragon. The Azure Dragon joins with the Si branch, and is formed by borrowing a position between Qian and Kun. The White Tiger appears only after this. The White Tiger represents lead, and the Yellow Sprout is its symbol.

"Flowing Cinnabar" is also mercury. By nature, mercury likes to fly and scatter; once it is restrained by lead, it no longer disperses in all directions.

If you wish to know that cinnabar is the essence of Wood, you must move it to the western position, where it joins with Metal. Cinnabar belongs to the essence of Wood, and when it unites with lead and Metal, the great Dao is accomplished. Where would an ordinary person go to find its trace? It appears only within the indistinct and the profound. The Laozi says: "In the dim and obscure, there is essence (Jing); in the indistinct and uncertain, there is something real."

When the Dragon and Tiger reach the fifth turn, their strength gradually grows, and from within the furnace one slowly begins to smell a fragrance like chrysanthemum. This means that a chrysanthemum-like fragrance will arise in the elixir cauldron. Now is the very time for cultivation; do not complain that the years are long. When practicing and circulating the process, one must pay close attention to the timing of the fire.

One who has awakened to the Dao seems able to return along the path by which they came; one who is lost will find it hard to discover any trace. Awakening to the Dao is not difficult, yet those who are confused do not easily understand.

The "Three Persons" circulate and converge, returning to one common source; how could a person's nature ever have departed from its ancestral root? The so-called "Three Persons" refer to three medicinal substances, namely Water, Fire, and Metal.

One thing originally exists, while the other originally does not. The White Tiger of the west belongs to being, and the Azure Dragon of the east belongs to non-being. The Metal direction belongs to Yin and is like the wife; the Wood direction belongs to Yang and is like the husband.

The great Dao is profound and mysterious, beyond measure; its crucial point cannot be fully explained by diagrams. Heaven is dark and Earth is yellow, and the two essences (Jing) join in harmony.

Xuanming (the profound and subtle principle) is deep and hard to fathom. The Great Dao (Way) is far-reaching and faint, and cannot be measured by any standard. How could its most essential principles possibly be made clear by drawing a diagram? The Great Dao is kept secret and is not proclaimed, and it cannot be illuminated through pictures.

Heaven is dark and Earth is yellow. When the essential Qi (vital energy) of Heaven and Earth unite, they return to the "inner chamber" (a term from alchemy for the place where essence and Qi are refined), which is to say that they enter the cauldron together. The white liquid in the furnace changes with the sun and moon. When people take it, their Shen (spirit) becomes clear and settled, and it can dispel all illness.

Metal and Wood overcome one another, yet who can explain the source of their transformations? Qian and Kun (Heaven and Earth) move and join together, and so they are naturally linked to each other. Metal overcomes Wood, Wood generates Fire, and Fire in turn can melt Metal. Things generate and overcome one another, but people do not understand the root of it.

Everyone keeps the "Great White of Yin" close at hand, yet who can penetrate the meaning of the Yellow Sprout and Lead? The Yellow Sprout is not an ordinary thing of this world, and so people find it hard to fathom. The eleventh month belongs to the position of Ren and Gui, the Water phase, and at this time one Yang first arises. It originally dwells within Yin, yet it is nonetheless called the "Great White of Yin."

The crux lies in Kan and Li (names of trigrams, which in alchemy often refer to Water and Fire). What is called true Water and true Fire is the Yellow Sprout spoken of here, not the ordinary water and fire of the world. The lead and mercury of the world cannot be attached to it or confused with it. If one takes worldly lead and mercury to be the materials of the elixir, grave harm will result. Worthy people grasp and practice its methods, which is why ordinary people cannot see it and find it difficult to obtain.

The Prince of Huainan (Liu An, the Han dynasty Prince of Huainan) once refined the Golden Flower Pool, using thirty-six kinds of water to transform the five metals, and in the end all became treasures. When the refining of lead essence reached the point of the ninth cycle nearing completion, he opened the furnace and suddenly saw the substance displaying the color of a red flower. This means that when the Great Elixir completes its nine cycles of refining, its color is like a red lotus blossom.

After the transformations of Water and Fire, everything turns into Earth. Where, then, will people look for the Metal Lord (an alchemical term often associated with lead)? If, at the ninth cycle, Water and Fire are held in standoff, the result will only be ash and dust, and the true color will not appear. This kind of refining, in which lead and mercury are passed on to one another, is rarely found in the world.

If you come upon a spirit elixir (lingdan), you must never pass it carelessly to an unsuitable person. To violate the precepts of Taishang (the Supreme One) brings punishment, and may even bring suffering upon seven generations of one's ancestors.

Where in the world will people go to find the "Golden Lord" (Jin Gong, an alchemical symbol for lead)?

If an elixir is refined through nine cycles and in the end turns into dead ash, then it is not a true elixir.

The pairing of lead and mercury has been handed down, yet few in the world truly understand it.

Cinnabar is jade-like in substance, and its surface appears draped in white snow.

After cinnabar turns white, some cultivators of the Dao call it "Autumn Mineral" (qiushi, an alchemical term).

It is in your home every day, and you see it daily, yet you do not know its true nature.

People see it every day, yet do not know from what principle it arises.

After taking the returned elixir (huandan, a refined elixir), the body becomes light.

When the Great Elixir is taken into the mouth, it is said to make the body light, as though one were sprouting feathers and ascending as an immortal.

It can cure long-standing illness, and can also drive away demons and spirits.

When the Great Elixir is taken, it is said to subdue the Three Corpses and Nine Worms (the spirit-worms that Daoism holds dwell within the body and hinder cultivation), harmonize the five viscera and six bowels, and leave illness with no way to invade.

From then on, greed and attachment no longer bind one, and even the dull-witted can transform their temperament and mind.

After taking the Great Elixir, one is said to no longer be troubled by serious illness; the foolish can become wise, and take their place alongside the immortals of antiquity.

The nature of the medicines, sinking and floating, is elusive and hard to discern; if one takes the wrong substances, the mind will be thrown into confusion, and many years will be wasted.

If you wish to know when the spirit medicine will be complete, the Yin-Yang qi must pass through the full nine cycles.

Who would have imagined that spirit cinnabar could be refined out of the dusty world? The Three Flowers (sanhua; Jing, Qi, and Shen in Neidan practice) converge, and the Dragon and Tiger (long hu, symbols of the two forces of Yin and Yang) join in harmony.

Look at those who have refined elixirs, past and present: through mistaken refining, they have caused the deaths of hundreds, thousands, even tens of thousands of people.

The nature of the medicines is hard to discern; if one takes the wrong substances, the mind will be thrown into confusion, and many years will be wasted.

If you wish to know when the spirit medicine will be complete, the Yin-Yang qi must pass through the full nine cycles.

Who would have imagined that spirit cinnabar could be refined out of the dusty world? The Three Flowers converge, and the Dragon and Tiger join together.

Look at those who have refined elixirs, past and present: through mistaken refining, they have caused the deaths of hundreds, thousands, even tens of thousands of people.