《玄品录》Vol. 3

Zhu Taochui was from Chengdu, Yizhou. He was indifferent to worldly concerns and had few desires. Keeping his distance from society, he wore animal skins, and no one could fathom his ways. He once built a hut in the mountains, where he made clothes from leaves to cover himself. He refused everything people offered him and wanted no dealings with anyone.

He often left straw sandals he had woven himself beside the road. When people recognized them as the sandals of Layman Zhu, they would prepare a vegetarian meal and leave tea in exchange, placing it where the sandals had been. Zhu Taochui would see the tea and take it. His sandals were soft and finely woven, and many people eagerly sought to wear them.

The senior official Dou Gui once sent him clothing, then pressed him to serve as a local headman and handle regional affairs. Zhu Taochui refused. Later, when Gao Shilian became senior official, he went to invite Zhu in accordance with proper etiquette, stepped down from the stairs, and spoke with him. Zhu only stared at him without replying, then walked away. Gao Shilian bowed twice and said, “Perhaps the libationer”—an ancient honorific for a teacher or a person of virtue—“wishes me to govern Shu through Wuwei (non-action).” He therefore cut back on administrative regulations and reduced taxes, and Shu was governed well as a result. The authorities sent people several times to visit and offer their regards, but whenever Zhu Taochui saw them, he fled to hide among the woods and grass.

Wang Xiyi was from Teng County, Xuzhou. He was orphaned and poor from an early age, yet loved Daoist arts. After his parents died, he tended sheep for others and used his wages to arrange their funerals.

Wang Xiyi was a native of Teng County in Xuzhou. His family was poor, and he enjoyed cultivating the Dao. After his parents died, he herded sheep for others and used his wages to arrange their funerals. Once they were buried, he withdrew to Mount Song, where he became a disciple of the Daoist Huang Yi. He studied for nearly forty years, mastering the breath-retention, daoyin, and health-cultivation methods Huang Yi taught him. After Huang Yi died, Wang Xiyi moved to Mount Zulai in Yanzhou and lived in seclusion with the Daoist Liu Xuanbo.

He loved the Book of Changes and the Laozi, and often took powdered preparations made from pine and cypress leaves and various flowers and herbs. During the Jinglong era, when he was already over seventy, his body and strength had grown even more robust. The regional inspector Lu Qiqing came to visit and asked him how best to govern the people. Wang Xiyi replied, “Confucius said: ‘Do not impose on others what you yourself do not wish to endure.’ One can put this saying into practice throughout one’s life.”

Later, when Emperor Xuanzong toured the eastern regions, local officials formally summoned Wang Xiyi to appear before the emperor. He was then ninety-six years old. Xuanzong asked Zhang Yue, the Chief of the Secretariat, to inquire of him about the Dao and its principles, and ordered eunuchs to help him into the palace. The emperor was greatly pleased by their conversation.

In the fourteenth year of the Kaiyuan era, the emperor issued an edict: “Wang Xiyi, a recluse from Xuzhou who has not entered official service, has set aside elaborate learning and clever artifice, remaining steadfast in singleness of purpose and dwelling in the right way. For a long time he has kept apart from the world, living alone in the mountains and forests. As I prepare to perform the Feng and Shan rites and honor worthy men, he has gladly answered my summons. Though his life in seclusion differs from that of Qili Ji, he is older than Fu Sheng. This edict appoints him Court Gentleman for Audience and Service and Acting Erudite at the Imperial College, in order to honor a Confucian scholar. He is also permitted to retire and return to the mountains, so that he may preserve the quiet life befitting one of advanced years. Each spring and autumn, the prefecture and counties shall send him silk, wine, and meat. He is also granted a set of clothing and one hundred bolts of silk.”

Wu Youxu was the son of Wu Weiliang, the elder brother of Wu Zetian. Quiet and detached by nature, he had few desires and enjoyed reading the Book of Changes and the Zhuangzi. As a young man, he changed his name and made his living telling fortunes in the markets of Chang’an. When he received payment, he would toss it aside and leave.

After Wu Zetian changed the dynasty and became emperor, she enfeoffed him as Prince of Anping Commandery. He firmly declined, saying that he wished only to live in seclusion. At first, Wu Zetian suspected that his refusal was feigned. She granted his request to see what he would do, and Wu Youxu duly moved into a thatched hut beneath a rocky slope, living like an ordinary recluse. Wu Zetian sent his elder brother Wu Youyi to persuade him, but he remained unwilling to leave the mountains. Only then did Wu Zetian come to regard him with respect.

Wu Youxu lived for many years in the area around Longmen and Shaoshi. In winter he stayed in a small hut made of thatch; in summer, in a stone cave. He set aside the gold and silver vessels and fine clothes bestowed on him by the court, along with the deerskin cloaks, plain curtains, and slender paulownia wood sent by princes and nobles. He let dust gather on them and never used them. In old age, he grew thin, and a purple light shone in his pupils; he could see the stars even in daylight. In the eleventh year of the Kaiyuan era, he died without having been ill. Wu Youxu lived at the height of the Wu clan’s power, yet never readily entered official service, and in the end escaped the calamities that befell the clan.

Qin Xi, whose courtesy name was Gongxu, was from Kuaiji in Yuezhou. During the Tianbao era, he came to Nan’an in Quanzhou to escape the turmoil of war, and lived there for nine years. More than a hundred great pine trees stood on the mountain; according to legend, they had been planted during the Eastern Jin dynasty.

Beneath the pines, Qin Xi built a thatched hut and carved a stone into an inkstone. He annotated the Laozi and did not leave the mountain for many years. The regional inspector Xue Bo visited him many times and sent him sheep and wine during festivals, but Qin Xi never once went to the city gate. Later, he crossed eastward to Moling and lived in seclusion on Maoshan. He died there in his eighties. The people of Nan’an, remembering him, built a pavilion in his honor and named the mountain “Peak of the Worthy Recluse.”

Zhang Yun, courtesy name Cangzhen, was from Jinyang. He lived in the mountains of Hongzhou and therefore called himself Master Hongya. He was seven chi and five cun tall, with strikingly handsome brows, eyes, and beard. He excelled at playing the qin, calligraphy, and long, resonant calls.

During the Kaiyuan era, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang summoned him to the Zhanlu Hall and appointed him Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices. Later, he was gradually promoted to Grand Minister of State. Zhang Yun declined, saying, “Why will Your Majesty not let me keep to a hill and a valley, following recluses such as Chao Fu and Xu You?” He then returned to the mountains, where he practiced breath cultivation and fasting, and took pleasure in collecting antiquities.

He once rode a mule named “Snow Essence,” accompanied by five attendants. His everyday garments and belongings were made from orange, chestnut, and kudzu materials, as well as the wood of the kudzu tree. He also often carried a cloud-draped bamboo hat, a hexagonal fan, a square wooden mirror, a kudzu-wood ruyi scepter, and a Wei-Hui pot. When he went out wearing red and a straw hat, people watching from afar thought he looked like an immortal.

He wrote commentaries on the Laozi and the Zhouyi, a complete edition of the Rites of Zhou, the Yili, and the Liji, a commentary on the Guliang, the thirty-volume Records of Hedong, and the ten-volume Great Zhou’s Words of Counsel. The Records of Yuzhang says that during the Kaihuang era of the Sui dynasty, Yuzhang was renamed Hongzhou. It describes Master Zhang as a man of the Dao from high antiquity who reappeared between the Sui and Tang dynasties. According to the Zhengao, Master Hongya later became the Perfected of Qingcheng, and his tomb is in Guzang County, Wuwei.

Five Dynasties

Words of the Dao

Zhang Jianming studied Confucian learning in his youth and once traveled through the Hedong and Hebei regions. Later, he left secular life and became a Daoist. He was well versed in the teachings of Laozi and Zhuang Zhou. Emperor Gaozu of Jin summoned him and asked, “Can the Daoist Way be used to govern the state?”

Zhang Jianming replied, “The Dao is mysterious and profound. All things can serve to illustrate it. One who truly grasps the utmost of the Dao can govern Heaven and Earth even while lying motionless on a mat like a corpse.” Emperor Gaozu thought his words profound, invited him into the inner palace to explain the Daodejing, and made him his teacher.

When Zhang Jianming heard the palace drum being struck, he said, “Your Majesty, do you hear the drum? Its sound is singular and belongs to none of the five tones or twelve pitch standards, yet the harmony of the five tones and twelve pitch standards is brought into accord and guided by the drum. ‘One’ is the root of all things; if one can hold fast to ‘One,’ one can govern the world.” Emperor Gaozu admired him even more and bestowed on him the title “Master Who Penetrates the Mysterious.”

Zheng Ao, whose courtesy name was Yunshou, was from Huazhou. He was quick-witted and talented in literature. During the reign of Emperor Zhaozong of the Tang, he sat for the jinshi examination but did not pass. Seeing that the realm had fallen into disorder, he turned away from public life and became a Daoist on Mount Shaoshi. He heard that a kind of pine resin on Mount Hua, if buried underground for a thousand years, would transform into a medicine capable of expelling the Three Corpses—spirits said in Daoism to dwell in the human body, lead people to wrongdoing, and shorten their lives. He therefore moved to Huayin to seek it.

Zheng Ao was close friends with the Daoist Li Daoyin and Luo Yinzhi. Zheng Ao farmed, while Luo Yinzhi sold medicine, and they made their living this way. Li Daoyin had a fishing rod with which he could catch fish without bait on its hook; he could also turn stones into gold. Zheng Ao once tested these abilities and found them genuine, but never asked Li Daoyin to share them with him. People called the three of them the “Three Eminent Recluses.”

The military governor Liu Ning offered Zheng Ao precious gifts, but he refused them all. Emperor Mingzong of the Later Tang summoned him to serve as Left Reminder, and Emperor Gaozu of the Later Jin summoned him to serve as Remonstrance Official, but he answered neither summons. Later, the court bestowed on him the title “Master of Free Roaming.” In the fourth year of the Tianfu era, Zheng Ao died at the age of seventy-four.

Zheng Ao enjoyed drinking and playing chess, and he also wrote poetry, setting his poems down on silk. Those who asked him for poems treasured them as precious objects; others painted his portrait on the walls of their homes and paid their respects before it. Though he had passed away, his fame grew ever greater, unlike that of figures such as Hesun of Shimen.

Qiu Fangyuan, whose courtesy name was Dafang, was from Susong in Shuzhou. Bright and eloquent from childhood, he studied the Book of Changes with Chen Xuanwu on Mount Lu, then asked Zuo Xuanze of Xianglin to explain its general meaning. Zuo held him in high regard. Later, Qiu lived at Hidden Truth Cliff on Mount Xiandu, where he followed Liu Chujing in practicing Daoist arts for transcending the secular world. He also often read the masters’ writings, histories, and other classical texts. He once said, “Ge Zhichuan and Tao Zhenbai were both my teachers and friends.”

Qiu arranged and annotated the Taiping Jing in thirty chapters, explaining its central teachings in detail. In the second year of the Jingfu era of the Tang, Qian Liu visited him at Great Purity Grotto on Mount Dadi in Yuhang, built him a residence, and submitted a memorial to the court describing his virtue and spiritual cultivation. Emperor Zhaozong of the Tang summoned Qiu to court several times. From celestial signs, Qiu inferred that the Qin region would fall into warfare and that the Tang dynasty would be replaced. He also believed that recluses like Yuan Gong and Qili Ji would not leave their retreats, so he too remained in the mountains rather than answer the summons to serve at court.

Emperor Zhaozong issued an edict praising him and bestowed official robes and the title “Master of Wondrous Being, Adept in Mysterious Unity.” From then on, Qiu’s Daoist reputation spread widely through the regions of Wu and Chu, and he had more than two hundred disciples. Cheng Zixiao of Guangping answered a summons to the Qin palace; Nie Shidao of Xin’an spread the Dao in the state of Wu; and Hu Qian’guang of Anding and Kong Zonglu of Lu also grasped the essential principles of his Daoist teachings.

On the fourteenth day of the second month in the second year of the Tianfu era, Qiu bathed, sat upright, and died. He was buried at White Deer Grotto on Mount Dadi. King Wusu Qian once dreamed that he rode a crane to bid Qiu farewell.

“Daozhi” is the signature or marker listed at the end of this passage.

Nie Shidao, courtesy name Zongwei, was from She County in Xin’an Commandery. Naturally intelligent and good-hearted, he was modest and cautious in speech and conduct, and was known for his devotion to his parents. After hearing of Qiu Dafang, he built a retreat called the Wenzheng Mountain Lodge on a mountain east of the commandery town.

He once read the Daoist text Inner Traditions and came across a method of cultivation involving pine resin. He then went to Mount Baizhang to gather it. In the mountains, he met the father and son Cai Zhenren and Peng Zhenren. Though Shidao had been away for only a day and a night, people outside believed he had been gone for more than a month. He wondered whether this might be a fortunate encounter brought about by his dedicated practice.

He often gathered firewood and medicinal herbs in the forest. Tigers and leopards followed him, sometimes carrying the wood and herbs on their backs, and left only after escorting him home. It was said that wild animals in the mountains around She County did no harm to people because Shidao had transformed them through his influence.

His mother asked what he had gained from traveling and studying abroad, and he recounted his experiences to her in detail. She said happily, “You honor me as your mother and also provide for me through the Daoist arts. I am truly fortunate to be your mother. This must be the blessing and De accumulated in a past life.”

Later, Shidao traveled through Mount Heng in the South and the Jiuyi Mountains, intending to seek Mei Zhenren and Attendant Xiao at Yusun. Mei Zhenren was Mei Fu, who had once served as commandant of Nanchang. Attendant Xiao was Xiao Ziyun, courtesy name Jingqiao, a prince of the Liang dynasty. He had served as governor of Dongyang. To escape the Hou Jing Rebellion, he and his entire family withdrew into the mountains, where he later attained the Dao alongside Mei Fu.

One day, while traveling through Yumukeng, Shidao met Xie Tongxiu. Xie said he had originally lived on Mount Heng in the South and had once withdrawn there with Peng Zhenren and Cai Zhenren. He took Shidao to his dwelling and passed on a scroll of the Plain Book. Shidao then returned to Wenzheng Mountain and lived there for more than thirty years. Whenever he burned incense and practiced cultivation, he would gaze upon and bow to portraits of the three Zhenren: Peng, Cai, and Xie.

When Emperor Taidi of Wu heard of Shidao’s reputation, he summoned him to Guangling, built the Xuanyuan Palace for him to live in, and bestowed on him the titles “Master of Untroubled Wandering” and “Master of Wenzheng.” Shidao lived in Guangling for another thirty years and had more than five hundred disciples. Later, he withdrew from the world and disappeared. People could no longer discover his whereabouts and could only remember him. Clouds and celestial cranes appeared repeatedly on Wenzheng Mountain. The people and relatives of She County believed that Shidao had returned to his homeland, just as Ding Lingwei had returned in the form of a crane and alighted on a huabiao pillar.

The court issued an edict praising and posthumously honoring him: “The regulations governing posthumous honors have been examined, and they have long been part of our institutions. Such honors have their reasons; why should they not be granted?” He was therefore posthumously appointed as the Daoist ritual authority for the Huai, Zhe, Xuan, and She regions, and awarded the titles “Master of Untroubled Wandering” and “Master of Wenzheng.” In recognition of his merit in burning incense and practicing cultivation on behalf of the state, he was granted a purple robe.

The edict further stated: “Nie Shidao understood the profound mysteries from an early age and early on accorded with the true spirit of Daoism. Like a wild crane, he did not follow worldly ways; like a lone cloud, he was free and unrestrained. When the Great Ancestor established the dynasty, Shidao had already been commissioned to burn incense and practice cultivation. At the beginning of the court’s service under the ministers who aided the state, he too received the court’s respect and honor. The achievements of his lifelong practice were truly outstanding among Daoists. Although many years have passed since his death, his legacy of De has become ever more widely known. Now the Daoist community has submitted a petition, and the ministers assisting the regency have also reported the matter to the throne. The court will reopen the mysterious sanctuary and welcome him back to his homeland. He shall therefore receive a high official rank and an honored title, in recognition of the court’s favor and to make known the merit he displayed in life. He is posthumously appointed Grand Master of the Silver and Azure Light and Minister of Ceremonies, and granted the title Master of Wenzheng.”

When Chen Tuan (styled Tunan, a native of Qiao Commandery) was a child, he was playing beside the Wo River when an old woman dressed in blue picked him up and breastfed him. She said, “May you be free of desires for all time, and wiser than ordinary people.”

During the Changxing era of the Tang, Chen Tuan failed the jinshi examination. He then withdrew from the world and lived in seclusion on Mount Wudang, abstaining from food and cultivating his breath. He wrote eighty-one poems, entitled The Treatise on Pointing to the Mysterious.

Later, Emperor Mingzong of the Later Tang bestowed on him the title “Recluse of Clarity and Emptiness,” meaning a hermit who lived in stillness and Wuwei (non-action). Before long, Chen Tuan moved to Yuntai Temple on Mount Hua. He often shut himself away and would not get up for several months. Emperor Shizong of the Later Zhou summoned him to the palace and examined him personally, confirming that this was indeed his way of life.

Toward the end of the Xiande era, Chen Tuan set out for the Eastern Capital riding a white mule. When he heard that Emperor Taizu of the Song had ascended the throne, he laughed and said, “The realm is at peace.” During Emperor Taizong’s reign, Chen Tuan was summoned to an audience. He submitted a memorial declining the invitation: “Your servant’s nature is as free as that of apes and birds, and my heart is like cold ash. I know nothing of the depths of benevolence and righteousness; how could I understand the rules of proper conduct? I wear a tattered garment of lotus leaves and a hat made of worn cloth. Blue hair grows on my body, and I have not even straw sandals on my feet. If I came before the palace steps, I would only make Your Majesty laugh.”

Emperor Taizong then sent a palace messenger to insist that he come out of seclusion, and sent him this poem:

“Once, in the former dynasty, you rode the clouds away;

Since then, no word of you has reached me.

If now you will accept my summons,

I will give you all three mountain peaks.”

Tunan was compelled to travel to the imperial court. Wearing a Huayang cap, straw sandals, and a Daoist robe with its sash hanging loose, he paid his respects to the emperor as a guest. The emperor bestowed on him the title “Master Xiyi.” He then had Tunan summoned to the Secretariat and instructed Chancellor Song Qi and the others to convey these words: “Chen Tuan cultivates himself in solitude and does not pursue power or profit. He has lived in seclusion on Mount Hua for forty years and is thought to be nearly a hundred years old. He has come to court this time because the realm is at peace, and his circumstances deserve our consideration.”

Song Qi and the others then asked him about the way of self-cultivation. Chen Tuan replied, “His Majesty has the bearing of the sun and moon. With ruler and ministers working together to govern the realm, this is precisely the time to devote yourselves to cultivation. What could be more important?” The scholar-officials came each day to seek his advice. He would always answer, “Do not linger too long in places where you are at ease and content. Do not return to places where you have already fulfilled your ambitions.” Those with insight wrote down these sayings.

Chen Tuan was well versed in the various classics, and especially skilled in the study of the Classic of Changes. He passed this learning to his disciple Mu Xiu, who passed it to Li Zhicai, who in turn passed it to Master Kangjie, Shao Yong. He also passed on the Taiji Diagram, an account of the Supreme Ultimate and the transformations of Yin-Yang, to Zhong Fang. Zhong Fang passed it to Mu Xiu, who then passed it to Master Lianxi, Zhou Maoshu (Zhou Dunyi). Chen Tuan was therefore often able to foretell events and later explain their causes. It was said that he excelled at discerning people’s character and destiny, and that this ability was first passed on to Master Kangjie, Shao Yong.

While Taizu was still living in obscurity among the common people, he once said, “Zhao Zhongxian and I were spending time together on a street in Chang’an when Chen Tuan met us on the road and asked, ‘May I join you for a drink?’ Taizu replied, ‘I’d be glad to go with Scholar Zhao.’ Chen Tuan glanced sideways at him and said, ‘That will do.’ When we reached the tavern, Zhao Zhongxian, whose legs were numb and weak, hurried to take the seat on the right. Chen Tuan rebuked him: ‘How dare a minor star in the Purple Tenuity Enclosure take the seat of honor?’ As he spoke, he pulled Zhao down from it. Later, Zhao Zhongxian was summoned to court.”

Taizong ordered Chen Tuan to visit the Prince of Shou. When Chen Tuan reached the entrance to the prince’s residence, he turned around and left, saying, “Even the servants in the prince’s household have the talent to become ministers or generals. Why bother to meet the Prince of Shou?” From then on, Taizong began to pay attention to Zhenzong.

In the second year of the Duangong era, Chen Tuan foresaw that his life was drawing to a close and submitted a memorial saying, “A person’s allotted years must eventually run out; even in a wise and enlightened age, one cannot remain forever.” He instructed his disciple Jia Desheng to carve out a stone chamber in Zhangchao Valley. Once it was completed, Chen Tuan died. For a full month afterward, clouds of five colors hung over the valley and did not disperse.

Daoist and Confucian

As Wang Zhaosu approached death, he lamented that it was difficult to part from an age of enlightened rule. He asked his disciple Jia Desheng to go to Zhangchao Valley and carve out a stone chamber. Once it was completed, Wang Zhaosu died. A month later, clouds of five colors covered the valley and lingered there for a long time.

Daoist and Confucian

Wang Zhaosu was from Suanzao. In his youth, he studied Daoist arts and became especially well versed in the Book of Changes. He once said, “The Kun hexagram represents the tenth lunar month. Though in the tenth month Yin energy is at its height and governs the season, Yang energy remains within it. Thus shepherd’s purse and wheat begin to sprout at the end of the Kun hexagram. The Book of Changes also speaks of dragons contending, and the dragon represents Yang. From this we can see that Yang energy is never entirely stripped away. Yin and Yang are the alternating activity of firmness and yielding; their changes renew themselves day by day. This is the foundation on which all things continually grow, and so it has no end.” He had a profound understanding of the Dao.

People in his community respected his character. When disputes arose, they went to him for a judgment instead of taking them to the authorities. In the second year of the Kaibao era, the court summoned him to the capital to explain the Book of Changes. Some time later, he asked to return home. The court specially appointed him as a Doctor of the Directorate of Education and sent him off with honors. By then, he was already old. He died in his nineties, with his head drawn into his abdomen. People said he knew the art of tortoise breathing: gathering the breath inward and nourishing the body’s Qi, as a tortoise does.

Daoist Words

Chengyin, whose courtesy name was Qizhen, was from Changshan. He was versed in both inner and outer learning: Daoist cultivation and ordinary scholarship. After Taizu returned from his campaign to conquer Taiyuan, he visited Qizhen at his residence. Qizhen was then eighty years old, yet his appearance was youthful.

Taizu asked him how to cultivate health and longevity. Qizhen replied, “In cultivating health, I simply focus my thoughts and refine my breathing. The way an emperor cultivates health, however, is different. The Laozi says: ‘When I practice Wuwei, the people transform themselves; when I remain calm and still, the people put themselves in order. Without action or desire, I gather my spirit in the realm of Great Harmony.’ The Yellow Emperor and Taotang—Yao, the legendary ruler—were able to reign for a long time and enjoy longevity precisely because they attained this Dao.”

Taizu was delighted to hear this. The author suggests that Chengyin may have been a figure like Sun Simiao.

Zhang Wumeng, courtesy name Lingyin, was from Zhengwu in Fengxiang. He was friends with Zhong Fang and Liu Haichan in a bond beyond worldly concerns. Later, he traveled to Mount Tiantai and Chicheng and lived at Qiongtai. He once said, “‘One’ is the root from which the Dao works. The essence of the Dao is to have no direction, no form, no function, and no action; through Wuwei (non-action), there is nothing that cannot be accomplished. All kinds of living things, from flying insects to crawling creatures, contain the nature of the Dao. One who has attained the Dao can transform into anything. A small example: a dung beetle’s larva can become a cicada. A great example: a person can cultivate and become an immortal.”

He therefore observed the transformations of Heaven and Earth, the flourishing and decline of plants, the gathering and dispersal of wind and clouds, the movements of the sun and moon, the interaction of water and fire, and the patterns of Yin-Yang (yin and yang) resonance. He wrote one hundred chapters of Returning to the Origin. Emperor Zhenzong of the Song summoned him and asked about the principles of change in Heaven and Earth and the flourishing and decline of plants discussed in Returning to the Origin. He also asked about the purpose of long life and enduring vision. Zhang Wumeng replied, “I live in the mountains and only recite the Yijing and the Laozi. I know nothing else.”

The emperor ordered him to explain the Yijing, so he spoke about the Hexagram of Humility. The emperor asked, “Why speak only about the Hexagram of Humility?” Zhang replied, “We are now in a time of Great Possession, of abundance and prosperity, and so humility is all the more necessary to preserve what we have.” The emperor deeply agreed and then asked him to explain a chapter of Returning to the Origin. Zhang Wumeng said, “A state is like the human heart. When the heart acts through Wuwei, Qi is at peace; when Qi is at peace, the essence of all things can gather. When the heart acts with intention, Qi becomes disordered; when Qi is disordered, essence disperses. This is the main principle of returning to the source.”

The emperor praised his extraordinary insight and appointed him Gentleman of the Secretariat, but Zhang declined and firmly asked to return to the mountains. He later died in Jinling at the age of ninety-nine. Chen Jingyuan, known as Master Bixu, was his disciple.

Daoist Sayings

Liu Lie was from Jiujiang. As a child, he was fond of Daoist arts and encountered an extraordinary person. During the Jianlong era, he became one who had attained the Dao. He later built a thatched hut on Mount Lu and lived in seclusion, secretly cultivating Daoist methods, taking the name Master Xugu. In the past, there was a certain Tan Nineteen.

Chen Jingyuan, known as Master Bixu, was his disciple.

Daoist Sayings

Liu Lie was from Jiujiang. He loved the Dao from childhood and later met an extraordinary adept. During the Jianlong era, after attaining the Dao, he built a hermitage on Mount Lu and lived there in seclusion, practicing in secret under the self-chosen name “Master Empty Valley.” Long ago, Tan Jingsheng had written The Book of Transformation. Liu Lie drew out its essential teachings:

The Great Void—the vast, boundless sky—seems without limit, yet it too has boundaries. The Supreme Dao is vast and without limit, yet it too has a destination. Understand how to gather and contain the breath, and you can draw in the root. Know where the Original Spirit is stored, and you can let it hold its radiance within. It is like a clam concealing a pearl in its body, or a stone containing jade: when hidden, it is Original Essence; when put to use, it can transform into countless numinous wonders. When contained within, it is called the Great One, the source in which all is undivided; when it shines forth, it is called Great Clarity, a state of lucid purity.

His practice took as its guiding principles the teachings of “the one beneath the pillar” (Laozi), “the one in the lacquer garden” (Zhuangzi), and the Scripture of the Yellow Court. He often said that those who cultivate the Dao should not let external things alter their nature. Their minds should be clear, still, and at ease, free of distracting thoughts. By guiding the breath within the body at the proper time, they could bring ease to the whole body. If they held fast to pure whiteness—the nature unstained by impurities—and nurtured the Great Mystery, without being drawn in by external things, they would understand how the spirit abides, where Qi arises, and how Essence is restored. With such practice, what could one fail to accomplish?

Zhang Qianyao was the twenty-fourth-generation descendant of the Han Celestial Masters. In the eighth year of the Tiansheng era, he was summoned to court, where Emperor Renzong asked him about ascending to heaven in broad daylight. Zhang Qianyao replied, “That is not what one should do in order to support governance and instruction. If Your Majesty can return to simplicity, govern by clear and easily followed measures, and keep your intent upright and lucid, then your spirit and Qi will naturally become full and harmonious. Why pursue ascension?” The emperor praised his reply and bestowed on him the title “Master Pure Clarity.”

Fu Lin was from Qingzhou. In his youth, he studied alongside Zhang Yong, who was later granted the title Duke Zhongding. After Zhang Yong rose to prominence, he searched for Fu Lin for thirty years but never found him. He often spoke with longing of his old friend and wrote poems to express his feelings.

In his later years, while Zhang Yong was serving in Wanchou, a man dressed in coarse cloth and riding a donkey came to the gate of the government office. Knocking on the gate halberd, he called out loudly, “Tell the Minister that Fu Lin of Qingzhou has arrived.” An official hurried inside to report this. Zhang Yong grew angry and said, “Mr. Fu is a renowned scholar throughout the realm. Who are you to address him by his given name?”

Fu Lin laughed and said, “We have been apart for a whole generation, yet you are still this childish. Do you not know that I am still in the world?” Zhang Yong asked, “Why did you live in seclusion before, and why have you come out now?” Fu Lin replied, “You are close to death, so I came especially to tell you.” Zhang Yong said, “I know that myself.” Fu Lin answered, “If you already know, what is there to say?” He then took his leave without saying where he was going. A few months later, Zhang Yong died.

Shuai Zilian was a farmer from Hengshan, simple and honest in character, and unconstrained by formal etiquette. People therefore called him “Ox Shuai.” In his later years, he entered Nanyue Temple and became a Daoist. Seven li southwest of the temple stood the Zixu Pavilion, said to be the altar site of Lady Wei. The place was remote and quiet, and the Daoists were all unwilling to live there. Only Zilian was happy to stay, usually sitting quietly and saying little. No one knew what he was doing.

Zilian loved wine. He often drank until he was drunk and then lay down among the mountain woods, unaware even of violent winds and rain. Tigers and wolves passed by him without harming him.

When Wang Ku, Vice Minister of Rites, took up an appointment as a local official in Changsha, he received an imperial order to offer prayers at Mount Heng and pay his respects at Lady Wei’s altar. At the time, Zilian was too drunk to get up and only stared at Wang Ku. Zilian said, “I’m a country Daoist who loves wine but often can’t get any. When I do get some, I simply drink until I pass out, and officials get angry with me for it.” Wang Ku sensed that he was no ordinary man and took him home, where he stayed for over a month. Zilian remained silent and taciturn throughout. Wang Ku then sent him back to the mountain, saying, “Your Reverence conceals his radiance and cultivates inwardly. I truly cannot fathom you.” Wang Ku said he would compose a poem for him, but later forgot.

One day, while taking an afternoon nap, Wang Ku dreamed that Zilian had come to ask for the poem. He then wrote two quatrains, copied them onto a wooden board, and placed it in Zixu Pavilion. The other Daoists read them and were astonished. “How could Ox Shuai write poems like these?”

On the twenty-seventh day of the sixth month in the fifth year of the Taiping Xingguo era, Zilian suddenly said to the people at the temple, “I’m going elsewhere. The pavilion can’t be left without anyone, so hurry and find someone to take my place.” They were even more surprised. “In this heat, where could Ox Shuai be going?” They hurried to check and found that Zilian had already died. Deeply astonished, they said, “Could Ox Shuai really have known the day of his own death?” They buried him at the foot of Mount Heng.

Not long afterward, Shoucheng, a monk from Nantai Temple, was returning from the capital when he met Zilian outside Nanxun Gate. Zilian looked clear and bright, and moved with an air of freedom. Shoucheng asked why he had left the mountain. Zilian smiled and said, “Just out for a leisurely stroll.” He also asked Shoucheng to carry a message to the people on the mountain. Only after returning did Shoucheng learn that Zilian had died. When they checked the message, they found that it gave the very date of Zilian’s death. Later, people opened his grave and found nothing inside but his staff and shoes.

Daoist Arts

Zhao Ji was from Daizhou. After attaining the Dao, he often begged in Gao’an, deliberately making himself look unkempt. In the third year of Yuanfeng, Su Zhe, whose courtesy name was Ziyou, was exiled to Gao’an. Zhao Ji suddenly came to see him and said, “I know you are fond of the Daoist arts, but you have not yet grasped their essentials. The Yang Qi in your body cannot descend, and the Yin Qi cannot rise. That is why you are fleshy and puffy, your face is flushed, and you have sores. I will teach you a method of guiding water Qi to nourish the bones throughout your body. Do it for ten days in a row, and all manner of illness will disappear. If you keep at it without slackening, you can transcend the ordinary world.”

Ziyou did as he said, and the method proved effective. Later, he asked Zhao Ji about the art of nourishing life. Zhao Ji asked, “You dream too, don’t you? When you dream, do you still know whether you are alive or dead, worried or happy?” Ziyou replied, “That is indeed so, but I cannot remain in that state all the time.” Zhao Ji smiled and said, “Since there is a distinction between dreaming and waking, your nature is not yet complete.” Ziyou was astonished by these words and concluded that Zhao Ji truly was a man who had attained the Dao.

Zhao Ji said that in his youth, while living in Guangling, he had been poisoned by a fellow student named Jiang, which clouded his eyes. At times, however, the clouding would clear, and he could see a bright-eyed child with green eyes. His body was also strangely formed: the bones above his navel resembled a tortoise shell, while those below his heart were as sharp as blades. The two sets of bones met but did not join; the gap between them was about the width of a finger. By then, he was probably already 127 years old.

Later, Zhao Ji went to Xingguo Army, where the prefect Yang Hui, whose courtesy name was Yuansu, took him in. After a short stay, Zhao Ji was kicked by a family mule and died. Yang Hui buried him. In the first year of Yuanyou, the Shu monk Fazhen came to see Su Shi, whose courtesy name was Zizhan, and said, “At a wine shop in Yun’an, I saw a beggar. He said his surname was Zhao, that he once knew Lord Su, and asked me to send his regards to Lord Su in Huangzhou.” When Ziyou heard this, he was astonished and asked what the man looked like. He recognized him as Zhao Ji. Zhu Yanbo’s son, whose father was then prefect of Xingguo Army, was also present. When he got home, he told his father. The two opened Zhao Ji’s belongings and found inside only a staff and two scriptures.

Daoist books say that one of the lesser forms of corpse liberation—a Daoist term for a practitioner leaving behind a body while departing in liberation—leaves behind a bone from the foot. Zhao Ji’s belongings were so few. Could this be the sort of thing the books describe?

Li Hao was from Jianzhou and was skilled in talismanic prohibitions (using Fulu, talismans and registers, and ritual prohibitions to drive away evil spirits). Chen Shugu knew that ghosts often haunted the official residence in Chenzhou, so he cleared out an empty hall and asked Li Hao to live there. After Li Hao moved in, the ghosts stopped appearing.

Su Zhe, whose courtesy name was Ziyou, asked Li Hao, “How did you manage that?” Li Hao replied, “Chen Shugu has too many desires, so the ghosts dare to torment him. I gave up desire long ago. There is no other reason.” Su Zhe then asked about methods of nourishing life. Li Hao said:

“People are born by receiving the Qi of the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water) from Heaven and Earth. The Five Phases within the body move just as they do in Heaven and Earth. The cycles of Heaven and Earth continue without end, yet people do not live beyond a hundred years. This is because people damage their own lives.

From the moment people are born, they learn to distinguish themselves from external things: they regard what is within as themselves and what is outside as things. Their minds cannot let go of this distinction between self and things. In this way, self and things become two separate entities, and the Qi of the Five Phases they receive is cut off from the whole movement of the Five Phases in Heaven and Earth. A person’s lifespan is then limited by how abundant or scant the Qi of the Five Phases they received at birth may be. When that Qi is exhausted, life ends. This is why some live long and others die young.

If one can truly forget the distinction between self and things, and make the body one with Heaven and Earth, then the Qi of the Five Phases can flow without end between within and without. How could such a person fail to live forever?”

Daohua

Zhu Ziying, whose courtesy name was Yinzhi, was from Gouqu. Daohua.

Zhu Ziying, whose courtesy name was Yinzhi, was from Zhuyangli in Jugu. He was born in the first year of the Taiping Xingguo era. At eight or nine, he followed the shepherd boy Guo Gancun and could play the flute to summon cranes. His parents took this as an ill omen and abandoned him. Later, he became a disciple of Zhu Yuanji of Maoshan and put on Daoist robes. He was twelve at the time, in the early years of the Duangong era. Afterward, he lived with the ritual master Zhang at the summit of Jijin Mountain and tried the practice of fasting, a Daoist method of cultivation that involves reducing or stopping food intake. Gradually, people began to follow him, and he decided to travel far and wide.

He reached Xiangyang, where he met the extraordinary Chen Tiejiao, who took him to Mount Qingcheng. Later, passing through Laixiang, he examined ancient collections of Daoist scriptures at the Taiqing Palace and met Wu Xian, the Youth of the Water Star. Wu Xian’s childhood name was Baoyi. He took Zhu Ziying to Hezhong Prefecture and said that the journey had brought him to the stage of “refining the form through Great Yin,” a Daoist practice of nourishing and refining the body with the Qi of Great Yin. Along the way, Zhu’s movements and conduct were also marked by many wondrous transformations.

In the first year of the Jingde era, Zhu Ziying inherited Maoshan’s registers of scriptures and became its twenty-third-generation successor. Emperor Zhenzong of Song sent an envoy to the mountain to pray for an heir; the following year, Emperor Renzong was born. The related events are recorded in the History of Song. By imperial command, Zhu Ziying became the abbot of the Yuqing Zhaoying Palace. He oversaw the extensive construction of the Qianyuan and Tiansheng Abbeys and was granted the title “State Preceptor.” Empress Dowager Ming Su transmitted to him the Great Cavern and the Perfect Method, and further bestowed on him the title “Master Who Contemplates the Wondrous.”

After returning to Maoshan, he received a letter from Baoyi, sent from Shu. The letter seemed to warn and reproach him: his name and reputation had become too conspicuous, and he had revealed the secrets of Heaven. Zhu Ziying wept without pause as he read it, while his disciples could not understand why.

In the eleventh month of the seventh year of the Tiansheng era, Zhu Ziying sat in meditation at Qianyuan Abbey and passed away, holding the jade ruyi bestowed on him during the Xiangfu era. His whole body was drenched in sweat, and beadlike substances had formed on his forehead. The scriptures say that this was a high level of corpse liberation, the Daoist transformation by which one leaves the mortal body and becomes an immortal.

Daoist rank

Liu Hunkang, whose courtesy name was Hunkang, was from Jinling. In the fifth year of the Jiayou era, he passed the examination in the Confucian classics and became a Daoist. One night, he dreamed that a divine being said to him, “If you wish to study the Dao, you should choose a famous mountain.” He was often concerned that there were no worthy teachers in the world, so he would let his hair fall loose and climb an altar, taking Heaven as his teacher. Later, he heard that Mao, a Daoist master on Mount Mao, possessed the Dao. When Liu first paid him a visit, Mao transmitted scriptures and Fulu (talismans and registers) to him.

Liu Hunkang built a thatched retreat on Jijin Peak and lived there. One day, three feather-robed Daoists came to his dwelling. Pointing to its eastern corner, they said, “Make your home here. Gather your spirit and guard the center, and benefit others through your virtue. Then you will be worthy of the great adepts of antiquity.” They looked at his forehead and said, “This is a place of Wuwei (non-action), a place honored by the Dao. It should have no blemish.” With that, they touched his forehead with their hands. The next day, the scar on it had disappeared.

In the first year of the Yuanyou era, Emperor Zhezong heard of Liu Hunkang’s reputation and summoned him to court, appointing him abbot of Shangqing Chuxiang Palace. In the fourth year of the Shaosheng era, the court rebuilt Qianshen Retreat, where Liu lived in Jiangning Prefecture, as Yuanfu Abbey. It also ranked the Maoshan ordination altar alongside Mount Longhu in Xinzhou and Mount Hezao in Linjiang Military Prefecture as the “Three Mountains of the Scriptures and Registers.” Emperor Huizong later expanded Yuanfu Abbey, renamed it Yuanfu Wanning Palace, and bestowed on Liu a jade seal of the Lord of the Immortal Capital of the Nine Elders, a jade couch, the Jingzhen sword, imperial writings, and precious objects. He also granted Liu the title “Master Who Is Not One.”

Liu Hunkang repeatedly submitted memorials reporting omens and disasters. Though the emperor praised them, he did not act on Liu’s advice. In the second year of the Daguan era, the court again summoned Liu from his retreat. A herd of deer blocked the road, and one struck the carriage and died. Liu ordered it buried beside the road. Earlier, when the crane he kept learned that he was to enter the capital at the emperor’s summons, it had flown away. Liu said, “The crane has flown off and the deer has died. I fear I will not return this time.”

In the fourth month, he reached the capital and stayed at the newly built Yuanfu Detached Palace. That night, he dreamed that the Celestial Emperor summoned him. The next morning, the emperor came in person, and Liu presented him with the Great Cavern Scripture, which he had recited and studied. On the seventeenth day, the Dingyou day, Liu suddenly died at the age of seventy-two. The court built Cangzhen Abbey at his burial site. Later, it further honored him with the title “Master of Preserving Truth, Contemplating the Wondrous, and Harmonizing with the Unfathomable,” posthumously granted him the rank of Grand Master for Thorough Administration, and gave him the posthumous name “Stillness and Unity.”

Zha Zhengzhi, courtesy name Qingyuan, was from Jinling. His father brought him to Maoshan, where Master Liu saw that he was extraordinary and said, “This child will one day become a Celestial Master (Tianshi) among the people.” Delighted and moved, Master Zha vowed never to return home and became Master Liu’s personal disciple.

During the Yuanyou era, Master Zha accompanied Master Liu to court. By imperial command, Master Liu resided at Chuxiang Palace, and the emperor ordered Master Zha to return and take charge of Yuanfu Palace.

On the third day of the seventh month in the third year of Zhenghe, Master Zha summoned his disciples and said, “I am forty-six this year. My former master once foretold that I had received too many favors from the court, and that I would probably not live beyond this age.” He then ordered someone to draft a final memorial to the emperor and personally wrote these words at its end:

“Your Majesty is endowed with sagely wisdom and honors the Dao and De. Among emperors since antiquity, none has surpassed Your Majesty. Yet the way emperors practice righteousness differs from that of their subjects: when every word and deed accords with Heaven’s will, the people throughout the realm share in its blessings. The Taishang Wuqianyan, or Daodejing, teaches people to cast off extravagance and avoid excess, placing compassion and frugality first. It is a precious guide for Your Majesty in cultivating the self and practicing the Dao, and a bridge leading to the Great Dao. I earnestly beseech Your Majesty to quiet the mind and body and lessen desires, thereby preserving your sacred health; to restrain expenditure and practice frugality, thereby strengthening the foundations of the state; and to listen to and accept the counsel of loyal and worthy officials, so that the channels for remonstrance may be opened wider. The people throughout the realm will benefit from this.

“I am ignorant and obstinate, and should not have risked death to speak out. But mindful of the weighty trust my former master placed in me, and of his charge that I put loyal service to the country first, I know that if I fail at this time to offer counsel that helps Your Majesty advance your sagely virtue, I will defy Heaven’s will and betray my former master, and even in death I will regret it below. As I take up my brush to set down what is in my heart, I am overcome with grief. Your servant Jingzhi speaks once more.”

After completing and signing the memorial, he died. It was presented to Emperor Huizong of Song, who mourned him deeply. The emperor ordered the memorial placed in Cangzhen Temple and engraved on a stone stele in the mountains.

The transformation of the Dao.

Xu Shouxin was a native of Hailing who worked as a laborer at Tianqing Temple. He wore worn-out cloth clothes and dragged his feet in straw sandals, sometimes walking unsteadily. He had no other work to do all day: he simply carried books, swept the temple, and continually recited the Scripture for Deliverance (Du Ren Jing), a Daoist classic.

A Daoist named Xu Yuanji came to the temple from elsewhere, suffering from severe leprosy. The others shunned him and refused to live with him, so they drove him into a thatched hut behind the temple. Only Xu Shouxin cared for him attentively. Later, when Xu Yuanji died, Xu Shouxin begged for money to prepare his body for burial and bury him. After returning to the hut, he wept for three days. Then he went out and pretended to be mad. Gradually, he began to show unusual behavior, and people came to regard him as a person of divine powers, calling him “Divine Elder.” Only then did they realize that he had attained the Dao from the leprous Daoist.

From then on, people came from all directions to ask him about misfortune and good fortune. When Emperor Zhezong fell ill, the court sent incense to be offered before the Divine Elder’s shrine in prayer. The Divine Elder wrote the two characters “auspicious person” and presented them. Before long, Huizong ascended the throne. Early in the Chongning era, the court summoned him to the capital, but he refused to set out. Later, he was carried by force to the Eastern Capital, Kaifeng, the capital of the Northern Song, yet they still could not keep him there. The court therefore sent him home with honors and built the Palace of Immortal Origin and Ten Thousand Longevity in Hailing for him to live in.

In the second year of the Daguan era, the court summoned him to the palace again. On the seventeenth day of the fourth month, he heard that Master Liu of Maoshan had died at the Separate Temple of Auspicious Preservation, and said, “Master Liu has gone; I too must go.” On the twentieth day, the gengzi day, he passed away. Accordingly, the emperor’s edict declared: “Sincerity moved Heaven to respond, and a remarkable man came from afar; with clear understanding, he followed the transformation, and the two departed without having agreed to do so.” The court posthumously bestowed on him the title Grand Master for Central Service, with an imperial decree identical to the one issued in honor of Master Liu.

Zhang Jixian was the thirtieth-generation descendant of Zhang Daoling, the Celestial Master of the Han dynasty. At the age of nine, he inherited the Daoist arts. Quiet and sparing of words, he was slender, fair-skinned, and finely featured, seeming like an immortal from heaven.

Emperor Huizong of Song sent an emissary to summon him. When Zhang entered the palace, the court bestowed on him the title “Master of Jade Void,” but he was only thirteen and declined it. In the fourth year of the Chongning era, Huizong summoned him again and ordered him to deal with strange occurrences at the salt lake in Jiezhou. After the matter was resolved, the court bestowed on him the title “Master of Emptiness and Serenity.”

During the Zhenghe era, a fire broke out in the palace. Zhang was ordered to conduct a Jiao ritual, a Daoist rite in which an altar is established for prayer and offerings to avert disaster. He also reported an impending “calamity of the Red Sheep and Red Horse,” a belief that certain combinations of the cyclical signs foretold disaster. The report’s contents were secret and were not recorded.

At the beginning of the Jingkang era, the Jin troops withdrew beyond the frontier. The court again sent an emissary and the regional governor to Zhang’s residence with an edict summoning him to court and insisting that he set out this time. When he reached Yuhang, his expression was sorrowful and he seemed deeply troubled; no one could guess why. Soon afterward, people heard that the Jin troops had invaded again, and the court urgently summoned him to the palace. Zhang reached the Tianqing Abbey in Sizhou, sat upright, and died. He was thirty-six years old. It was the year Dingwei.

Later, the Daoist Sa Shoujian encountered Zhang Jixian again at Mount Qingcheng. Emperor Gaozong of Song ordered a statue of him to be installed in a palace shrine. His works, Song of the Great Dao and On the Mind, have been passed down to the present day.

Liu Gaoshang was from Anding in Binzhou, and his family had farmed for generations. From the age of nine, he stopped eating meat and fish. Later, he gradually ceased speaking; when people asked him questions, he wrote his answers down. At first, his words seemed difficult to understand, but they often came true afterward. His family built him a separate house to live in. As time passed, everything he said proved true, and people near and far came to regard him as a divine being.

Emperor Huizong of Song sent messengers three times to summon him to court. Each time, Liu pleaded illness and declined, refusing to obey the summons. The emperor bestowed on him the title “Recluse Gaoshang” and had a Daoist temple built for him to live in. His disciples named the temple after that title. During the Jingkang upheaval, Jin soldiers who encountered Gaoshang dismounted and lined up to pay their respects; they did not dare enter the place where he lived.

Gaoshang once said, “People harm themselves by coveting pleasures, harm their descendants by coveting wealth, harm others by carrying out government affairs, and endanger the world through doctrines and schemes.” Later scholars considered these words profound. After Zhou Shaoyin wrote Gaoshang’s biography, he further explained them, saying that they expressed the teaching of the great perfected ones of antiquity, who rescued the drowning, brought people back from the dead, and restored them to their original nature. Such words, he said, could never have come from an ordinary person skilled only in rhetoric and writing. The master came from a farming family, had never studied books or learned from a teacher, yet could speak this way. Could he have been one of the immortals who deeply understood the Great Dao? His attainment was far beyond that of those who year after year practiced methods such as “the bear’s movements and the bird’s stretches”—exercises that imitate animals’ physical movements—and “exhaling the old and inhaling the new,” breathing out turbid Qi and drawing in clear Qi, all in the hope of having their names recorded in the registers of immortals.

Words on the Dao

Wang Daojian was a Daoist priest of Longhu Mountain. During the Zhenghe era, he was summoned to the capital and assigned to live at the Taiyi Palace. Emperor Huizong of Song asked him about methods of cultivation and the art of prolonging life.

Wang Daojian was a Daoist priest from Mount Longhu. During the Zhenghe era, he was summoned to the capital and lived at the Taiyi Palace. Emperor Huizong of Song asked him how to cultivate himself to prolong his life. Wang Daojian replied, “Quietude and Wuwei (non-action) were the methods by which the Yellow Emperor Xuanyuan governed the realm. The desire to become an immortal was why Emperor Wu of Han labored in vain. Cultivation is not something an emperor should undertake.”

At the time, the court was revising the Daoist Canon, the collected scriptures of Daoism. Wang Daojian was granted the title “Master of Great Simplicity” and appointed to collate texts at the Hall of Concentrated Spirit, where he took part in revising Daoist scriptures. Huizong foresaw that calamity would befall the state and ordered him to avert it through ritual. Wang Daojian said, “Cultivating Virtue can turn Heaven’s intent around. I dare not let prayers to avert disaster delay the affairs of state.” He firmly requested permission to return to his mountain.

Early in the Shaoxing era, Emperor Gaozong again sent an envoy to summon him. The day before the envoy set out, Wang Daojian beat a drum to gather everyone and composed a farewell ode. It included the lines, “Please tell Chang’an not to seek me on the sea’s immortal mountains again.” When the envoy arrived, Wang Daojian had already died.

“Daoist Arts”

The text following “Liuyongguang” repeats the earlier account of Gaozong sending an envoy to summon Wang Daojian, Wang Daojian composing a farewell ode, and his death.

“Daoist Arts”

Liu Yongguang was from Guixi in Xinzhou. He had an unusual, rustic appearance and a dark complexion, and remained obscure throughout his adult life. Later, as he traveled toward Mount Heng in the south, he met a Daoist on the road near Linchuan County in Fuzhou. The Daoist called himself Zhang Fuyuan and accompanied Liu Yongguang on his journey. As they traveled, Liu carried Zhang’s luggage; when they stopped, he cooked for him.

When they arrived in Changsha, Zhang Fuyuan said to him, “You have served me with great diligence and care. I deliberately treated you coldly earlier to see how you would respond, but you became even more respectful. Now I am going into Shu, and I entrust this writing to you. Guard it carefully.” With that, he left. Liu Yongguang opened it and found the Book of the Five Thunders, a Daoist text on ritual arts concerning the thunder methods.

During the Qingyuan era, Quzhou suffered a drought. One night, the prefect Shen Zuoli dreamed that a black dragon was coiled at the entrance to the City God temple. The next day, he saw Liu Yongguang lying drunk outside the temple. Shen asked him to pray for rain, and rain duly fell. The prefecture reported the event to the court, which then also asked Liu Yongguang to pray for rain. His prayer was again answered.

Liu Yongguang was then nearly forty and had not yet formally received ordination as a Daoist. Later, Emperor Ningzong bestowed a Daoist crown and robes on him at court and granted him the title “Master Chongjing.” Ningzong also allocated funds from the imperial treasury to renovate and enlarge the Shangqing Palace. After Emperor Lizong ascended the throne, he summoned Liu Yongguang again. Liu told the envoy, “To govern the realm, the five thousand words of the Dao De Jing are enough. What benefit could come from a recluse like me leaving the mountains to attend?” In the end, he died on Mount Longhu.

As for Zhang Fuyuan, whom he had met earlier, some say that he was the Celestial Master of the Han dynasty.

End of volume five of the Xuanpin lu.

Editorial note: In the original, the character “bo” has been emended to “bo” on the basis of the context.