《终南山祖庭仙真内传》

Biographies of Immortals and Daoists at the Ancestral Court of Mount Zhongnan recounts the lives of immortals and Daoist priests from successive generations at Mount Zhongnan’s ancestral court. It is included in the Biographies of Immortals and Eminent Daoists category of the Chinese Daoist Canon.

The contents are divided into three volumes. The upper volume records the lives of Perfected Jade Toad, Perfected Lingyang, Liu Tongwei, Shi Chuhou, Yan Chuchang, Yao Fa, Cao Suo, Lai Lingyu, Lei Datong, Liu Zhenyi, Li Dacheng, Zhao Jiuyuan, Su Xuan, Yu Tongqing, Zhao Wuxuan, and Duan Mingyuan. The middle volume records Liu Kaiwu, Ren Shouyi, Yang Mingzhen, Zhou Quandao, Qiao Qiandao, Li Chongdao, Zhao Jiugu, Tao Yanming, Wang Zhida, Xue Zhiwei, Chen Zhiming, Song Mingyi, Lü Dao’an, and Bi Zhichang. The lower volume records Perfected Qinghe, Perfected Zhenchang, Perfected Dongzhen, Perfected Piyun, Perfected Baiyun, Perfected Wuyu, and Perfected Yuanming.

The final section, “Preface to Biographies of Immortals and Daoists at the Ancestral Court of Mount Zhongnan,” is the title of the book’s preface.

Although Zi Jing sat quietly in meditation, serene and forgetful of himself, people would not have known he was a man of the Dao had the Nanhua Jing not praised him. Although the Mountain Recluse of Taibai had the bearing and bones of an immortal, people of the world would not have recognized him as an extraordinary person had Sima Ziwei not discerned his worth.

Those who study the Dao often live in seclusion among mountain crags and hidden valleys. They keep to humble dwellings, wear coarse clothes, and harbor virtue within. Though capable of governing worldly affairs, they are not appointed to serve in the world, and so they calmly cultivate themselves. After hundreds or thousands of years, no one knows how many such recluses there have been. Many, in the end, remain unknown to the world, vanishing without a trace and decaying like plants and trees—a real pity. Fortunately, some have taken care to record their deeds and write their biographies. Yet sometimes their stories are made too wondrous, making it harder for later generations to believe them. I suspect that the recluses’ true intent was surely not to rush after fame for their seclusion, nor deliberately to do strange things to startle the world.

What people of the world value in those who cultivate immortality should be their steadfastness in upholding the Great Dao, their aid to others through merit accumulated in obscurity, their upright bearing that inspires others, and their ability to adapt to circumstances and live at ease. Must one really ride clouds and winds, mount the stars Ji and Wei, enter water and fire, command crows, uproot one’s dwelling and ascend into the sky, or leave the body while sitting or standing, in order to count as having attained the Dao? I once read old works said to be the Biographies of the Immortals, the Collected Biographies of Immortals, and the Biographies of Eminent Daoists, and found that none failed to speak of such things. These books no longer exist today.

When he had some leisure, the Perfected One of Heavenly Joy, Lord Li, compiled accounts of the Daoist conduct of successive masters and perfected ones who had once lived at the ancestral temple, and made a separate biography so that later generations would know whom to honor and emulate. His writing is plain, his records reliable, and his account frank and clear, without anything bizarre or exaggerated. Such a biography can indeed bring hidden virtue to light again and set an example for later students. His purpose was no shallow one.

In the past, Academician Liu wrote on a stele recounting the immortal deeds of the ancestral masters that their manifestations of spirit in dreams, their casting away of umbrellas and throwing aside of caps, and their other acts of soaring into the air and vanishing were expedient displays of wisdom, not the foundation of the masters’ teaching. Alas, if later students of the Dao can understand the masters’ painstaking intent, cultivate virtue, spread their teaching, and save people, thereby fulfilling themselves and others, then in time there will naturally be writers to record their deeds and deliver a fair judgment. There is truly no need for us of the ancestral temple to favor them with inflated praise.

On an auspicious day in the second month of the jia-shen year of the Zhiyuan era (1284 CE), under the Yuan Emperor Shizu, Wang Daoming wrote this preface at the request of Master Zhichang Shengde, who oversaw the affairs of Yuxian Palace in Ganhe Town on Mount Zhongnan.

Inner Biographies of the Immortals and Perfected Ones of the Ancestral Court on Mount Zhongnan, Volume One

Compiled by Li Daoqian, the Daoist of Tianle on Yishan

Perfected One Yuchan

The Perfected One Yuchan’s surname was He, and his personal name was Dejin. He was from Ganquan County in Qinzhou. He was naturally upright and handsome. When he reached the age to set his mind on learning…

The master’s surname was He and his given name Dejin. He was from Ganquan County in Qinzhou. Naturally upright and refined, he devoted himself to study at the age of fifteen, working on writing and composition. As an adult, he lived in seclusion. Later, he served as a minor clerk handling official documents and carried out his duties impartially. Though he worked in government, he kept moral principles in mind and never took money that was not his to take. Whenever he encountered a person who had attained the Dao, he went to seek their guidance.

During the Tiande era, he was preparing to enter the official ranks through his clerical position. Suddenly, a Daoist came to his door. The master invited him inside, set out wine, and spoke with him about the mysteries of the Dao. The two found much common ground. Before long, the Daoist departed. Later, he returned with an owl perched on his arm and said to the master, “Though this creature has large eyes, it cannot recognize people at all.” Only then did the master realize he was an extraordinary person. He asked the Daoist where he was from and what his name was, but the Daoist left without answering.

More than a month later, the Daoist came again, gravely ill, and stayed at the master’s home. His body was filthy with pus, blood, and sweat, and almost no one could bear to go near him. The master summoned physicians to treat him, but none of their methods worked. A year later, the Daoist died, and the master prepared the proper rites and buried him.

Several months afterward, an old woman came to the door, weeping. “I have a son who loves to roam the world and has no wish to manage a household. I recently heard that he was staying at your home, so I have come to find him.” The master told her that her son had fallen ill and died. The old woman cried bitterly. “My son and I had only each other. Now that he is dead, who can I depend on?” The master invited her to stay and cared for her as he would his own mother.

One day, the old woman said, “I want to open the grave and see my son once more. Then I could die without regret.” She pleaded repeatedly, so the master dug open the grave for her. But the coffin was empty, with only a secret instruction left inside. The old woman had vanished as well. The master sighed, “Now that I have encountered a true immortal, why do I still remain sunk in the mundane world?” He left his wife and children, put on Daoist robes, and took up the religious life.

At that time, he heard that Patriarch Chongyang had also encountered an awakened master and was living on Mount Zhongnan. The master went to pay him a visit, and they became companions in the Dao. In the third year of the Dading era, he built a thatched hut in Liujiang Village and lived there with Li Gong of Lingyang and two others. Before long, his mind became clear and complete, and he deeply grasped the subtle principles of the Daoist teachings. In the seventh year of Dading, the year Dinghai, Patriarch Chongyang traveled east to the coast. The master and Lingyang lived together and discussed the Dao.

In the spring of the tenth year of Dading, the year Gengyin, the four perfected masters Ma, Tan, Liu, and Qiu were about to arrive. The master and Li Lingyang were then staying at Taiping Palace on Mount Zhongnan. In advance, they left money at a shop selling soup and told the proprietor, “Today four immortal guests, Qiu, Liu, Tan, and Ma, will arrive. Please give them a good welcome.” A short while later, the four arrived. The proprietor invited them in, asking, “Could you be Qiu, Liu, Tan, and Ma?” The four looked at one another and smiled. “How did you know?” The proprietor replied, “Masters He and Li have already left money here for the soup.” The four were greatly astonished. After eating, they went to visit the master, and the two parties met with joyful accord.

The master once had an artist paint his portrait. In the painting, he leaned against a tiger as he slept, and no one understood what it meant. At the beginning of the ninth month in autumn, the master suddenly felt unwell. Perfected Master Danyang asked Perfected Master Changchun to attend him. On the fourteenth day, the master peacefully accepted his allotted end and passed away. The four perfected masters buried him beside the Liujiang hermitage. The portrait of him “sleeping against a tiger” signified that he had foretold his return to the Dao in the year Yin.

After the master ascended to immortality, a man named Zhang in Lintong, who had long suffered from a wind disorder, could not be cured by any physician. His condition became critical. One day, he dreamed that the master came to his door and told him how to treat it. Zhang asked the master’s name, and he replied, “I am He Yuchan of Mount Zhongnan.” When Zhang awoke, his condition had improved somewhat. He took the medicine prescribed in the dream, and the illness soon disappeared. Zhang then held a purification rite at the master’s hermitage and built a pavilion to express his gratitude. The master’s posthumous title was “Perfected Master Yuchan Puming Chengji.” Stone inscriptions at the ancestral court still survive today.

Perfected One Lingyang, whose surname was Li, came from Zhongnan County in Jingzhao. Exceptionally intelligent and widely learned, he met an extraordinary person during the Tiande era and, after receiving his guidance, stopped attending to family affairs and began living freely and unconventionally. He regarded wealth and rank as passing clouds, and fame and profit as shackles. He often wandered at ease among mountains and waters, taking delight in cultivating the Dao. He kept his abilities hidden and did not want others to know who he was, so he never told anyone his name. People in his home district knew him only as Perfected One Li.

In the third year of the Dading era, he and Patriarch Chongyang and Master He Yuchan built thatched huts and lived together at Liujiang. Perfected One Li studied the arts of lead and mercury and the Dragon and Tiger teachings, terms used in Daoist Neidan cultivation, and often received guidance from Patriarch Chongyang. In the summer of the seventh year of Dading, the year Dinghai, Patriarch Chongyang traveled east toward the sea, while Perfected One Li and Master He remained at Liujiang, cultivating themselves and serving others. After Patriarch Chongyang reached Bianjing, he sent them a poem of greeting. The poem shows that Master He and Perfected One Li shared his aspirations and were close friends of Patriarch Chongyang.

In the spring of the tenth year of Dading, Patriarch Chongyang passed away in immortality at Bianliang. When the four Perfected Ones—Qiu, Liu, Tan, and Ma—entered the pass, they served Perfected One Li and Master He Yuchan with the respect due to uncles. That autumn, Master He Yuchan also manifested his immortal passing, and Perfected One Li then lived alongside the other Perfected Ones.

In the first month of the twenty-eighth year of Dading, Lord Qiu Changchun was summoned to court. As he took his leave, Perfected One Li urged him: “Chongyang once said that you would surely spread the profound teaching far and wide. Now the time has come. Be cautious and take good care of yourself. Return early next spring; I will wait for you to come back and preside over my funeral.” In the eighth month, Lord Qiu Changchun returned to Mount Zhongnan by imperial order. That winter, he stayed in the region of the mountains’ southern slopes, the Huai River, and the Luo River. In the second month of the following spring, he headed west. When he passed through Qindu Town on the outskirts of Ezhou, the Daoist community repeatedly urged him to stay.

Until more than ten days before his death, Perfected One Li had been in good health. Then he began fasting. When people asked why, he said, “You need not worry about me. I am only waiting for the person who will preside over my funeral.” He then sent someone to urge Lord Qiu Changchun to return quickly. When Lord Qiu arrived, he paid his respects to Perfected One Li at his bedside, and Perfected One Li presented him with a writing brush. Lord Qiu understood his meaning and ordered craftsmen to make a coffin. Before it was finished, Perfected One Li passed away peacefully, on the first day of the third month. In accordance with ritual, Lord Qiu buried him in the Immortals’ Cemetery beside the hermitage and bestowed on him the posthumous title “Perfected One Lingyang Huiyao, Who Shines Forth and Transforms.”

Master Liu Tongwei was surnamed Liu and named Tongwei. His courtesy name was Yuedao, and his Daoist name was Moran Zi. He was from Yecheng in Laizhou. His family had been a prominent local clan for generations. He was bold and forthright by nature, and did not like restraint. In his youth, he enjoyed hunting, playing chess, and cockfighting, and was also fond of drinking and seeking pleasure.

One day, he suddenly fell gravely ill and nearly died. In a dream, he entered an immortal realm. When he awoke, his illness gradually began to heal. He came to understand that worldly affairs were like an illusion, and began to devote himself to seeking the Dao and cultivating the truth.

In the summer of the dinghai year of the Dading era (1167), Patriarch Chongyang (Wang Chongyang) was about to travel along the coast. Passing through Yecheng, he saw that Liu Tongwei had a bright and open bearing and seemed quite exceptional, so he spoke with him. The two found much common ground, and Patriarch Chongyang taught him the essentials of cultivation and bestowed on him a Daoist name. After receiving the teachings, Liu Tongwei left home and traveled to Guanzhong. Near Gangu in the Zhongnan Mountains, he built a thatched hut and practiced cultivation. He listened to the wind and admired the moon, using stone for a pillow and rinsing his mouth with stream water, while keeping his mind and spirit far from worldly life.

In the spring of the gengyin year, the four patriarchs Qiu, Liu, Tan, and Ma traveled west and arrived in the area. They got along well with Liu Tongwei and together built Liujiang Hermitage. Later, the four patriarchs went to Bianliang and brought back Patriarch Chongyang’s remains, burying him beside the hermitage. Liu Tongwei guarded the tomb for three years, then traveled north through the areas of Lanzhou and Guanzhou. He cultivated the wonders of the Dao inwardly while adapting outwardly to worldly circumstances. People came to seek his instruction in an unending stream. In time, he established Daoist temples and guided people toward the Dao, bringing Daoist practice to flourishing across the western mountains.

Liu Tongwei’s reputation spread far and reached the capital. At the beginning of the Mingchang era, Emperor Daoling summoned him to the palace and asked about “the nine returns and seven reversals,” a term used in Neidan (internal alchemy). Liu Tongwei replied, “These are matters that hermits in the mountains and forests enjoy. Your Majesty occupies the imperial throne and rules over the people of the realm; there is no need to set your mind on such things.” He then spoke to the emperor about the Huang-Lao tradition’s emphasis on clarity, stillness, and Wuwei (non-action), as well as the essentials of cultivating oneself and governing the country. The emperor was pleased and ordered him to reside at Tiancang Abbey. Later, Liu Tongwei moved to Yongshou Daoist Monastery. He established a teaching altar and lectured on the Dao. People of all kinds came to seek his guidance in an unending stream, filling the area outside his gate. Before long, he received an imperial order to return to the mountains, and the emperor sent him off with a gift of calligraphy in his own hand.

Afterward, Liu Tongwei traveled through the Qi and Lu regions and came to Nie Family Village in Shanghe County, Qiuzhou. He told his disciples, “This is where I will retire and rest.” He repaired the dwellings and settled there. One day, after burning incense and paying respects to the sacred immortals, he gathered everyone and gave them instructions on cultivation. He said, “The perfected masters have summoned me to return, so I must leave.” With that, he passed away peacefully. It was the fifteenth day of the second month in the first year of the Cheng’an era (1196), the time of the Zhenyuan Festival.

The poems and lyrics Liu Tongwei composed during his life were titled Complete Dao Collection and have been handed down. A temple called Chaoyuan Palace was later built at the place where he attained immortality.

Master Shi Chuhou was originally from Liquan County in Qianzhou. His surname was Shi and his given name was Gongmi. From a young age, he admired the Great Dao. In the renwu year of the Dading era under the Jin (1162), he heard that Patriarch Chongyang had encountered an immortal and received secret instructions, and was cultivating the Dao on Mount Zhongnan. He hurried there to pay his respects and ask to become his disciple. Patriarch Chongyang agreed. He taught Shi the Quanzhen methods for cultivating nature and life, gave him the name “Chuhou,” and the sobriquet “Dongyangzi.” From then on, Shi lived by begging for food and tempering his mind, traveling between Mount Zhongnan and the area around Hu County.

In the spring of the dinghai year of the Dading era (1167), Patriarch Chongyang was preparing to travel east and wanted Shi Chuhou to accompany him. Citing his mother’s advanced age, Shi politely declined the long journey. Patriarch Chongyang then painted a picture: a Daoist with three topknots standing among the clouds, with a pine tree and a crane beside him. He handed it to Shi and said, “Keep this carefully. In the future, this picture can serve as proof by which we recognize one another.”

In the spring of the gengyin year of the Dading era (1170), Patriarch Chongyang passed away in Bianliang. The master Danyang (Ma Yu) and three fellow Daoists entered the pass and arrived at Kongxian Hermitage in Chang’an. Shi Chuhou went to pay his respects. Seeing that Danyang happened to be wearing three topknots, he brought out the picture Patriarch Chongyang had left with him. Danyang was greatly astonished. The four masters told him how Patriarch Chongyang had taught the Dao at sea and ultimately passed away in Bianliang. Their accounts confirmed one another, and they felt an immediate affinity. Shi then joined the four masters in repairing Liujiang Hermitage and took up residence there.

Danyang repeatedly instructed Shi Chuhou through poems, guiding him step by step. Within a few years, Shi had attained a profound level of cultivation. Later, he returned to Liquan, concealing his brilliance and adapting easily to the world around him. He did not bind himself to formal rules, and the local people called him “Mad Shi.” One day, he suddenly began singing and dancing in the marketplace, saying only, “I am returning to Pengzhuang.” No one understood what he meant. After three days of this, he went straight back to the hermitage and peacefully sat down and died. This was the fifteenth day of the sixth month in the jiawu year of the Dading era (1174). Officials, scholars, and local people all came to pay their respects.

Shi Chuhou was first buried in Liquan. The following year, Danyang moved his remains to the Immortals’ Cemetery at Liujiang. When the coffin was opened, his appearance was still lifelike. Danyang wrote this four-character encomium for him:

Master Shi was fortunate to meet Chongyang,

who passed on to him the wondrous principles of the Dao.

The primal mysteries of Heaven and Earth are profound;

cultivators of the Dao should keep them ever in mind.

Cultivate inwardly and hold fast within;

outwardly, cut off turmoil and the afflictions of cold and heat.

Water and Fire aid one another; Sun and Moon shine together.

The Dragon roars in the Li position, the Fire trigram;

the Tiger howls in the Kan palace, the Water trigram.

Wood and Metal stand apart; the Old Mother and Maiden are round and square—

symbolic language of Neidan cultivation.

Swallow a small measure of the Elixir,

and you will know its taste and smell its fragrance.

The divine Elixir congeals in purity, shining with radiance.

The Immortal Feng, Wang Chongyang, came to guide him,

revealing auspicious signs.

He sang and danced for three days, bidding farewell to the neighbors,

saying only that he was returning to Pengzhuang, the immortal realm.

Then he returned to the hermitage and peacefully sat down and died.

Onlookers gathered; what they witnessed was extraordinary.

His single numinous, true nature entered the ranks of the immortals.

The master’s attainment in the Dao can be understood from this encomium.

Shi Chuhou lived to the age of seventy-three. In the guihai year of the Zhongtong era under Emperor Shizu of the Yuan (1263), his grave was moved again. When it was opened, nearly a century had passed since his death. Although his bones lay scattered, they were golden in color and hard as stone. The author says he saw this with his own eyes and found it most astonishing.

Master Yan Chuchang, whose surname was Yan and given name Chuchang, was also known as Master Changqing. He was from Liyang County in the Jingzhao region and was a relative of Patriarch Chongyang. From childhood, he studied the Confucian classics and aspired to stillness and emptiness. Because his parents were still alive, he could not immediately leave the world to cultivate the Dao. He served as a county judicial officer and often acted with compassion in carrying out his duties.

One evening, on his way home, he found a lost scroll titled “The Sacred Book of Jade Luminosity: Whoever Obtains It Becomes an Immortal.” He burned incense and prayed: “I am now twenty-nine. I vow that when I reach forty, I will purify myself and enter the Dao.” After praying, he collapsed in a drunken sleep inside a basin used for ritual offerings. A sound like distant thunder seemed to come from within the basin, and his family found it most strange.

Twelve years later, his parents died one after another. He then suddenly developed an eye disease, which grew worse despite treatment. Silently, he reproached himself: “When I found the sacred book, I vowed to leave home and cultivate the Dao at forty. That time has now passed. As soon as this eye disease improves a little, I will take up the Dao.” Before long, his sight returned to normal. He then went to Liujiang Village on Mount Zhongnan to visit Patriarch Chongyang, seek his instruction, and become his disciple. This was in the Guiwei year of the Dading era under the Jin dynasty.

After Patriarch Chongyang accepted him, Master Yan devoted himself to cultivating the Dao. A few years later, the Patriarch taught him the essentials of cultivation. In the summer of the Dinghai year, the seventh year of Dading, the Patriarch traveled east. Master Yan then lived among the springs and rocks of Mount Zhongnan, quietly nourishing his body and mind and cultivating his original Qi.

In the spring of the tenth year of Dading, the four Perfected Ones—Qiu, Liu, Tan, and Ma—entered the mountain passes. The master of the Danyang lineage then gave Master Yan his recognition, confirming his attainment in cultivation, and presented him with a ci poem titled “Willow Branches”:

“One tiger and one dragon sleep together, circling one another. One inhalation and one exhalation complete a circuit of the heavens, reaching the three fields. One grain of wheat and one strand of hemp join to form a single thread, winding amid auspicious Qi. Coming and going, they return to the source and give rise to the immortal embryo.”

In the poem, “tiger” and “dragon” are symbols in Neidan (internal alchemy). “Breath,” “circuit of the heavens,” and “three fields” are also cultivation terms, describing the movement of breath through the body and the nurturing of Jing (essence), Qi, and Shen (spirit). After receiving the poem, Master Yan had no more doubts.

He lived at the ancestral sanctuary for more than ten years, his Daoist resolve joined with the Way of true constancy. On the eighth day of the fourth month of the Guiyou year, the twenty-third year of Dading, he burned incense and bade farewell to everyone. He died without having been ill, at the age of seventy-three.

Mr. Yao Gai, surnamed Yao and given the name Xuan, was known as Master Yunyang. He came from Jiangxia Village on Mount Zhongnan. His family had been a prominent local lineage for generations. His father and forebears were glad to aid the poor, accumulating much hidden virtue—good deeds done without expectation of reward—and thus Mr. Yao was born. He was handsome and poised, with an exceptional bearing, as if he had transcended the world. By nature, he was kindhearted and compassionate; whenever he heard that someone was in urgent distress, he went to help. He was related by marriage to Patriarch Chongyang.

In the fourth month of the Dinghai year of the Dading era (1167), Patriarch Chongyang came to the Yao household to take his leave. Mr. Yao asked where he was going. Chongyang replied that he would travel by sea and try to guide Qiu, Liu, and Tan back to the Dao. Mr. Yao had always regarded Chongyang as a “madman”—a common term at the time for someone thought to be mentally ill—so he laughed as he bid him farewell.

Not long afterward, Chongyang sent Mr. Yao from Bianjing a poem whose lines concealed a wordplay, hinting at the opportunity through which Mr. Yao would one day attain the Dao. Several years later, Danyang and the others came to live at the Liujiang Hermitage, only a few miles from Mr. Yao’s home. Hearing of their arrival, he went to ask what had happened. When he saw Masters Qiu, Liu, Tan, and Ma, each seeming like an immortal soaring above the clouds, he exclaimed in wonder, “What Chongyang said when he took his leave has indeed come to pass. I always thought he was mad—how foolish I was!” He came to a sudden realization, abandoned his family estate and worldly burdens, and asked Patriarch Danyang to teach him the Dao.

Danyang taught him the essentials of cultivating the Real and bestowed a religious name upon him. He also gave him a poem: “Let your heart grow cold to wealth and rank, and be content with poverty; willingly become a carefree traveler, keeping your mind free of restraint for the long term. Cultivate the true Qi within Qi, and nurture the spirit within Shen. Only by taking on not the slightest trace of falseness can you attain the utmost truth.” Mr. Yao served Danyang with reverence and received many teachings from him.

After receiving the teaching, Mr. Yao devoted himself to cultivation. For more than ten years he worked diligently without pause, deeply comprehending the wondrous Great Dao. In the renyin year (1182), Danyang returned to Ninghai to visit his family, and Mr. Yao accompanied him, remaining with him until Danyang’s death. Afterward, Mr. Yao traveled through the areas around Cizhou and Xiangzhou. He was drawn to Lanyang’s simple, honest customs, so he built the White Cloud Hermitage and made his home there. He taught each person according to their needs, spreading the teachings and guiding the people.

One day, he said to those gathered around him, “The perfected master has already given the order; I will probably be going back.” He then bathed, changed his clothes, and sat cross-legged in stillness. At noon, he passed away peacefully. A rich fragrance filled the air and lingered for a while before dispersing. He was seventy-two years old. His poems and lyrics were collected as Collection for Dispelling Delusion, which has been handed down to the present day.

Mr. Cao Tian, whose religious name was Fenfu, passed away not long afterward at the age of seventy-two. His poems and songs were collected in The Collection for Breaking Delusion, which has been handed down to the present day.

Mr. Cao Tian, whose religious name was Chaoxuzi, was from Fangzhou in Shaanxi. His family was very wealthy, and his nephew Huimeishu earned the jinshi degree at a young age. As a young man, Mr. Cao studied the classics, and people in his hometown praised him for honoring his parents and showing affection for his brothers. He was honest, modest, and openhearted. In his prime, he sat for the civil service examinations and repeatedly achieved excellent results.

In the Jiawu year of the Dading era (1174), he came across immortal scriptures and Daoist classics during his leisure time. Closing the book, he sighed: “Life in this world passes like a flash of lightning; in the blink of an eye, it is gone. If we do not investigate the root of life and the wondrous principles that free us from the mundane world, what is the point of pursuing lofty aims?” Though he aspired to study the Way and cultivate himself, he did not know where to begin. Hearing that the patriarch Danyang—the disciple of Wang Chongyang, Ma Yu—lived in a humble hut at the ancestral temple on Mount Zhongnan, he went straight there to pay his respects. The two took to each other at once and understood one another, as if bound by an old affinity.

The patriarch Danyang accepted him as a disciple and taught him the essentials of cultivating the Way. Guided by his teacher, Mr. Cao understood how rare a true master was. He therefore set aside his hopes of success in the civil service and resolved to follow Danyang for the long term. Danyang recognized his exceptional bearing and keen understanding.

One day, Mr. Cao sat in meditation in a quiet room, concentrating on how to attain stillness. Danyang came to him and asked, “Have you made progress in your practice?” Mr. Cao knelt before him and replied, “I want to make progress, but I have not yet managed to.” Danyang said, “Stillness is the source of Heaven’s mandate and the foundation of immortals and sages. Making progress through practice is like using wings to rise into the sky. Turning back to reflect and investigate is like sitting in a hall and already seeing the steps before the door. Do not treat stillness as something to pursue deliberately: when the mind settles of its own accord, it will not be disturbed. Nor should you treat truthfulness as something to manufacture: when your conduct is free of pretense, that is truthfulness.”

Mr. Cao bowed in gratitude and said, “I understand. One should believe firmly, without doubt, and understand clearly, without confusion. This must be what the unbroken transmission of the Dao through the ages means.” Danyang nodded in approval. Mr. Cao bowed once more and withdrew. Later, Mr. Cao became one of the “Ten Jieyuan” of the Daoist community, and was the first to receive this title. Among newly initiated disciples, the patriarch Danyang often presented Mr. Cao as their senior fellow disciple.

In the Renyin year (1182), the patriarch Danyang returned east to Ninghai, and Mr. Cao accompanied him. The following year, when Danyang passed away, Mr. Cao took his teacher’s place, spreading the Way and guiding people in the coastal region. During the Mingchang era, at the command of his uncle-master Changchun, Qiu Chuji, he went with Master Su of Yunzhong and Master Liu of Wuran to Wuyan and the Ji region to spread the Way and save people. They guided those they encountered according to their affinities, and over more than ten years Daoist teachings spread widely.

In the summer of the Dingmao year of the Taihe era (1207), in the fourth month, Mr. Cao was living at Yongshou Abbey east of the city of Yandu. He suddenly told those around him, “It is time for me to return.” A few days later, after showing mild symptoms of illness, he passed away. The Daoist community buried him according to the rites on the east side of the abbey. After the turmoil of war, in the winter of the Yisi year, his remains were reinterred on Mount Wuhua. In the twelfth month of the Gengxu year, the court bestowed on him the posthumous title “True Person Chaoxu, Benefactor of the Mysterious,” at the request of the presiding master, the True Person Zhenchang, Sun Deyu.

Master Lai Lingyu was born into a prominent family in Jingzhao, in the area of present-day Xi’an. His surname was Lai, his given name Lingyu, and his Daoist name was Zhenyangzi. He studied the Confucian classics from childhood, and people in his home district called him “Jieyuan,” the title given to the top candidate in the provincial imperial examination. During the Dading era, in its tenth year, he became a disciple of the Perfected Man Huizheng Chaoxu, an introduction arranged at the invitation of the presiding master, the Perfected Man Zhenchang.

Master Lai later took the Danyang Patriarch as his teacher and left home to pursue the Dao. When the Danyang Patriarch packed his belongings and returned to the coast, Master Lai accompanied him. No reliable records of his later life have survived, so for now only this brief outline can be given. If new sources come to light, a fuller account can be written.

The master’s surname was Lei and his given name was Datong; his Daoist name was Hongyangzi. His ancestors had lived for generations in Fuzheng, Yan’an, and were a prominent local family. He stood six feet tall, with a refined and tranquil temperament, and paid little heed to life’s petty details. His eyebrows were well spaced, his eyes clear, his ears large, his nose straight, his lips ruddy, and his beard long and fine. As a boy, he studied the Confucian classics and once placed among the top candidates in the prefectural examinations with his poetry and prose. For this reason, people of his time called him “Jieyuan,” the first-ranked candidate in the prefectural examination.

One spring night in the yiwei year of the Dading era under the Jin dynasty (1175), the master was reading. His lamp burned brightly, the moon shone clear, and the night breeze was cool. As the third watch drew near, he suddenly heard someone outside the window scratching words into the ground with a stick, then reciting: “Alas, the deluded waste their efforts in vain; worldly splendor is a dream that vanishes in an instant. Better to set one’s heart on cultivating immortality and ascend, dwelling forever in the highest palace of the Three Mountains.” The master hurried outside to look, but saw no one. He took a candle and examined the ground: the four lines had been written there with a stick, followed by the two characters “Chaxi.” From then on, he understood that worldly honor and wealth were no more than fleeting illusions, and at once resolved to study the path of the immortals and cultivate the Dao.

That autumn, the master traveled to Chang’an to sit for the examinations. Hearing that the Danyang Master (Ma Yu) was teaching the teachings of the Quanzhen school at its ancestral temple on Mount Zhongnan, he went to pay his respects. The two took to each other at once, as if bound by an old affinity. The master wrote two quatrains expressing his thoughts and presented them to the Master. The Master replied in the same rhyme:

“Even if your fame surpasses Su Qin’s, it is better to rein in your brilliance and conceal your name. To transcend the dusty world and roam at ease—that is true openness; the principles of Baiyi and Chuyi will reveal themselves naturally. Stillness and purity are the secret of long life; the matter of leaving wife and children cannot be taught in words. Once you awaken to the Dao, you will know emptiness and no longer cling to existence; good connections will come of themselves.”

The master burned incense, bowed, and asked to serve the Master as a disciple. The Master kept him close, taught him how to cultivate the Dao, and gave him a Daoist name. The master sought instruction morning and evening and made considerable progress in cultivation. In the summer of the renyin year, after the Danyang Master returned east, the master remained at the ancestral temple and continued to advance in his practice. In the spring of the jiachen year, he heard that the Danyang Master had passed away and went to pay his respects at the grave.

In the early years of the Mingchang era under the Jin dynasty, the master traveled west by way of several places. Passing through Teng Prefecture, he was drawn to the secluded cliffs, streams, and valleys of Feng Mountain, and built the Xiangshi Ravine Monastery, a retreat for cultivating the Dao. There he cultivated his nature, spread the teachings, and guided people toward the Dao. In time, several hundred people came to learn from him and became his disciples. Lingzhenzi Ma Liao and Daoqingmingzi Wang Zhizhuan were named as his inner disciples. Each established a place for cultivation and welcomed later seekers of the Dao.

In the autumn of the xinwei year of the Daan era (1211), the master said to his disciples, “The allotted span of the great calamity is nearly at an end, and disaster is about to come. The people will suffer slaughter; I cannot bear to remain in the world.” Not long afterward, he showed slight signs of illness and died. His disciples buried him beside the Xiuzhen Monastery. Soon after, warfare broke out repeatedly and fires of conflict spread everywhere. Only after the Yuan dynasty had brought the region under control did people gradually begin to gather there again.

In the gengxu year, the master’s foremost disciple, Perfected Master Qingxu Zhang Zhidong, came from Wuchuan. Seeing that the master’s grave beside the Xiuzhen Monastery lay in a low, cramped place, with a modest mound and a few simple trees, he summoned fellow disciples from across the region and gathered burial garments, a stone coffin, and other funeral goods. They held a reburial ceremony and moved the master to the Lingdu Palace in the Immortal Cemetery on Snow Mountain. Zhang also had the disciples Ma Lingzhen and Wang Qingming take their places on either side, and built a hall with statues for the offering of incense and ritual observances.

Liu Zhenyi, whose surname was Liu and given name was Zhenyi, had the Daoist name Langranzi. His family had been a wealthy and prominent clan in Huang County, Dengzhou, for generations. His father and grandfather established the family through Confucian learning, accumulated virtue, and cultivated the Dao, earning considerable respect in their community. Liu Zhenyi lost his father in childhood. He could read a text once and remember thousands of characters, and his writing was learned and wide-ranging. Around the age of twenty, he sat for the civil service examinations administered by the Ministry of Rites and ranked among the highest. People of the time called him a “Jieyuan,” the top candidate in his prefectural examination.

Yet he often felt little attachment to worldly affairs, and always harbored an ambition to leave the mundane world and journey far beyond it. Later, he suddenly developed chronic diarrhea. The illness persisted for years and became critical; every treatment failed. In the autumn of the year jichou during the Dading era, Patriarch Chongyang passed by his home with the three perfected ones Danyang, Changzhen, and Changchun. Liu Zhenyi’s mother prepared a vegetarian offering for them and told Patriarch Chongyang about her son’s illness. Looking at Liu Zhenyi, the patriarch said, “This is a great adept of our Daoist tradition, not your son. All that is needed is for you to allow him to enter the Dao.” His mother burned incense and bowed before the patriarch, saying, “If this illness can truly be cured, I am willing to let him serve you and follow you in cultivating the Dao.” The patriarch gave Liu Zhenyi a drink. After taking it, he sweated profusely, and his condition gradually improved.

The following year, Patriarch Chongyang ascended to immortality in Bianliang. Liu Zhenyi entered the pass and traveled to Liujiang Village on Mount Zhongnan, where he paid his respects to Master Danyang. After leaving home to become a Daoist, he served Danyang. Some time later, Liu Zhenyi received the esoteric teachings transmitted by Danyang. In the summer of the renyin year, he accompanied Danyang on his return east. In the winter of the guimao year, as Danyang was about to ascend to immortality—that is, to leave this world through cultivation—he summoned Liu Zhenyi and instructed him: “If you wish to become immortals, you must accumulate merit and cultivate virtue. Even if you encounter a thousand demonic obstacles and ten thousand hardships, never abandon your resolve to cultivate the Dao. Only then will you understand my words. When my eyes are open, I can see; when they are closed, I can see as well. An immortal’s sight does not depend on the eyes. As long as the heart is clear, there is nowhere one cannot see.” Danyang added, “Your destiny lies in the north. You may go.” Liu Zhenyi bowed in gratitude.

After Danyang ascended to immortality, Liu Zhenyi traveled north, passing through the Pingluan region. People came from far and wide to seek his instruction, and shoes crowded the space outside his door. One day, he arrived in Funing County. Delighted by its clear, beautiful landscape, he built Chongyang Temple and made his home there. In time, he guided thousands of people and brought them into the Dao, and founded nearly three hundred palaces and temples, large and small. Daoism flourished in the north in large part through his efforts to spread the teaching.

On the sixth day of the second month in the bingyin year of the Taihe era, Liu Zhenyi summoned his principal disciples, including Di Daoming, into his room and said, “I am about to return. Do not forget the words Danyang entrusted to me before he ascended to immortality, urging me to continue cultivating the Dao. The Jade and Gold Collection is a book that no one entering the Dao should neglect to read. Have it carved and printed, and circulate it widely.” Not long afterward, he passed away peacefully. His collected songs and poems, composed during his life, were titled Collection of Responding to Affinities and circulated among the people.

Mr. Li Dacheng’s family had lived for generations in Huating County, Pingdong Prefecture, where they were one of the prominent local clans. From childhood, he studied the Confucian classics and became skilled at writing. In his early years, he passed the provincial examination, but in middle age he failed the imperial examination. He then resolved to withdraw from public life and live in seclusion among the mountains and forests.

In the autumn of the Wuxu year of the Dading era (1178), the Danyang Patriarch—Ma Yu, founder of the Quanzhen school of Daoism—came west to preach the Dao. Mr. Li invited him to his residence and took him as his master. Danyang spoke each day about the mysteries of the Dao. Mr. Li then left his wife and the burdens of family life, changed his clothes, and served Danyang according to the rites of a disciple. Danyang gave him the name Dacheng and the religious title Lingyangzi. Each day, Mr. Li received the true transmission and gained a deep understanding of its subtle meaning.

On the fifteenth day of the second month in the Jihai year (1179), Danyang built an enclosed wall around Mr. Li’s flower garden and took up residence there with him, agreeing to stay for one hundred days. He also presented a poem:

“In the northwest, at Tingchuan, stands a small walled retreat,

Just the place to settle down and live in seclusion.

The green bamboos before you are like several gentlemen;

The pines across the way, like two senior ministers.

The flowing water and artificial hill are but children’s play.

Do you understand what the breeze and bright moon convey?

If you can grasp why I have planted chives,

You may yet send your numinous light up to the Jade Capital.”

At the time, the Patriarch planted chives inside the enclosure as a symbolic gesture.

Danyang also noticed an apple tree in the garden that had long since withered. On the fourteenth day of the fourth month, he ordered it transplanted inside the enclosure and wrote a poem:

“Heaven has thirty-six; Earth has thirty-six.

Heaven and Earth are contained within the precious vessel;

The seventy-two seasonal periods are thus complete.”

On the twentieth day of the fifth month, green shoots appeared on the dead tree, and it flourished again. Danyang told Dacheng, “The fourteenth day of the fourth month is the day Pure Yang was born, and it is also my birthday. Thirty-six days have passed since then. Heaven and Earth have joined in day and night, completing the seventy-two seasonal periods.” Mr. Li recorded the event in his Record of the Strange Tree and had it inscribed on a stone stele.

Not long afterward, Danyang took Mr. Li to the ancestral seat at Zhongnan, an important ancestral center of Quanzhen Daoism. They lived there for several years, and Mr. Li repeatedly earned Danyang’s approval. In the Renyin year (1182), as Danyang was preparing to return east, Changchun—Qiu Chuji, a founder of the Quanzhen school—said to Mr. Li, “Our Dao lineage is to be transmitted eastward.” At the time, Liu Wujie, a native of Guantao, held an official post in Eyi and had long been on friendly terms with Mr. Li. After completing his term, Liu repeatedly received Mr. Li’s approval and invited him to travel east together. When Mr. Li arrived at Liu’s home, Liu built a retreat for him and provided for his needs. Liu also entered the Dao and became his disciple.

After this, Mr. Li’s Dao affinity flourished, and disciples gathered around him. Several years later, he showed signs of illness briefly and passed away peacefully. His body was as light as a cicada’s cast skin, astonishing all who came from near and far to see it. His disciples buried him beside the retreat according to ritual. After warfare broke out in the Guanzhong region, Daoist followers built a large temple complex in Mr. Li’s walled garden at Huating and named it the Taiqing Temple.

Zhao Jiuyuan, whose surname was Zhao and given name Jiuyuan, was styled Jidao and known as Master Zhanran. His family had lived for generations in Long’an County, Longzhou, and was a prominent local clan. From childhood, he differed from other children and had little interest in games and play. As he grew older, he was cautious and sincere, and usually spoke little. Tall and broad-minded, he had once studied the Confucian classics and ranked among the highest in the provincial examination. The people of Longzhou therefore called him “Jieyuan,” the title for the top candidate in that examination. He was not keen on fame or office and often aspired to leave the secular world and cultivate the Dao in seclusion. He remained unmarried into his thirties.

In the autumn of the Wuxu year of the Dading era under the Jin (1178), the Patriarch Danyang—the Quanzhen patriarch Ma Danyang—preached the Dao in Longchuan, and many people came to join him. When Zhao Jiuyuan met him, he felt deep admiration and said, “This is where I will settle and live in seclusion.” He then prepared a vegetarian offering, burned incense, and asked to be admitted among his disciples. The Patriarch Danyang accepted him. The following year, when the patriarch returned to the ancestral temple, Zhao Jiuyuan went with him. He sought instruction morning and evening, studying the teachings on Dao and De, and the cultivation of nature and life, and gained much from them.

In the Renyin year (1182), after the Patriarch Danyang returned east and passed away, Zhao Jiuyuan traveled between Mount Zhongnan, Fengxiang, and Longzhou, living at ease. When Zhang Bangzhi, a native of Henei, served as county magistrate of Fufeng, he often invited Zhao to his home to discuss the principles of the Dao. Zhao would stay for months at a time, and the two became Daoist companions, unbound by worldly formalities.

Zhao Jiuyuan’s prose favored plainness and quiet elegance, while his poetry was refined and vigorous, in the style of Tao Yuanming and Xie Lingyun. Every day he recited the Laozi, the Zhuangzi, and the Huangting Jing, a Daoist scripture for cultivation. He never said anything contrary to principle. When he heard others criticizing someone’s faults, he would close his eyes and refuse to listen, saying only, “Criticizing others harms one’s De and invites resentment. Reflecting more on oneself and blaming others less is the teaching of the sages.” For this reason, wherever he went, he was respected and admired.

Toward the end of the Zhengda era under the Jin, warfare broke out around Fengxiang and Longzhou. Zhao Jiuyuan carried his book case into the depths of the Long Mountains, and from then on his whereabouts were unknown. Later, after the Yuan dynasty had brought the region under control, Perfected Dongzhen Master Yu received an imperial order to oversee the ancestral temple at Mount Zhongnan. While searching for Zhao Jiuyuan’s surviving writings, he found them with Master Zheng Lian, whose Daoist name was Zizhou, at Youde Abbey in Longzhou. He gave the collection the title Collected Writings on Contemplating the Mystery.

In the early years of the Zhongtong era under the Yuan, Zhao Jiuyuan’s disciple Zhao Zhichong, a Daoist priest at Haotian Abbey in Jingzhao, selected a site north of the prefectural city. He asked Meng Panlin, a Hanlin Academician-in-Waiting, to write Zhao’s epitaph, built a tomb for him, and buried his robes and cap there. He also arranged for sacrifices to be made each spring and autumn.

Su Xuan, whose surname was Su and given name was Xuan, was known as Master Cloud-in-the-Middle. He was from Pucheng in Huazhou. By nature, he was generous and kind, humble and courteous. Whenever he came upon a secluded mountain or stream with beautiful scenery, he would often linger there, reluctant to leave.

In the spring of the xinhai year of the Dading era, he went to the ancestral temple on Zhongnan Mountain to visit the Patriarch Danyang and ask to be received into the Dao. The Patriarch Danyang kept him by his side and taught him the rites and bearing required of one entering the Dao. For a long time, Su Xuan served him diligently and never slackened. The patriarch taught him the essential subtleties of Daoist practice and repeatedly used poetry to encourage him to advance in his cultivation. In time, Su Xuan’s mind grew clear, and he understood the Dao’s fundamental nature. His manner and bearing also became calm and open. His fellow disciples called him “Little Danyang,” a testament to the depth of his cultivation.

Later, he took leave of his master and traveled along the coast, adapting to circumstances as he went, supporting the Daoist tradition and spreading its teachings. In the summer of the renyin year, when the Patriarch Danyang returned east, Su Xuan went back to serve him and remained at his side until the patriarch’s death. Afterward, he stayed for a time in the areas around Dengzhou and Laizhou. At the beginning of the Mingchang era, the Patriarch Changchun ordered him to lecture on Daoist teachings in the regions of Yan and Ji, so he took up residence at Chongfu Abbey. The number of people who came to study with him steadily increased.

One day, he said to his disciples, “When will the worldly ties and mundane affairs ever come to an end? It is time for me to return.” As soon as he had spoken, clouds of many colors surrounded the sky. He rested his head on his arm and passed away peacefully. In the winter of the yisi year, the first year of the Zhida era, the Perfected Qinghe arranged for his reburial in the immortals’ cemetery on Mount Wuhua. By imperial order, the Perfected Zhenchang posthumously bestowed on him the honorific title “Perfected Cloud-in-the-Middle, Supporter of the Teachings and Embodiment of the Origin.”

Yu Tongqing, whose surname was Yu and given name was Tongqing, had the courtesy name Taining and the Daoist name Master True Radiance. He was from Dizhou in Hedong. His mother first dreamed that a divine being gave her a pill of cinnabar. After she swallowed it, she conceived. On the day the child was born, a red radiance filled the room and did not fade for half a day. From childhood…

The Master was from Dike Prefecture in Hedong. His surname was Yu, his given name Tongqing, his courtesy name Taining, and his Daoist name Master Zhen Guang. Before his birth, his mother dreamed that a divine being gave her a pill of cinnabar. After she swallowed it, she conceived. On the day the Master was born, a red light filled the room and took half a day to fade.

His father died when he was young, and the family lived near the Shenxiao Palace. When he was a few years old, his mother took him to burn incense at a Daoist temple. Pointing to the statues of Daoist deities, he asked her, “Can people cultivate themselves until they become like these perfected beings?” His mother replied, “Only those who resolve to practice the Dao can draw near to them.” He remembered her words and from then on often visited the temple. Whenever he saw Daoist priests reciting a scripture, he would sit upright nearby and listen attentively, staying until the recitation was finished.

As he grew older, the Master was upright and forthright. He did not attend to the family business and often longed to leave the ordinary world and travel in search of the Dao, though he did not know where to go. When he was nearing adulthood, his mother died. He completed her burial and the customary rites of sacrifice. In the year Jihai of the Dading era, a Daoist priest suddenly came to his door begging for food. The Master fed him and asked where he was going. The priest said he was bound for Mount Zhongnan to visit his master. The Master went with him to the ancestral sanctuary and paid his respects to Patriarch Danyang. Danyang asked about his life, and the Master answered truthfully. Danyang accepted him as a disciple. For many years, he served his master, taking on such tasks as handing him a towel and bringing him water.

One day, Danyang wrote out a set of principles for cultivation and conduct and gave them to the Master, saying, “Put these into practice, and you will ascend the ranks of the immortals.” Danyang also taught him the essential methods of Daoist cultivation on several occasions, and the Master thereby gained insight into his nature and mind. Later, Danyang returned east, leaving the Master at the ancestral sanctuary. In the year Xinhai of the Mingchang era, Perfected Changchun also returned east to the coast. The Master followed him and stayed at Taixu Abbey in Qixia. Several years later, Perfected Changchun told him, “The teachings of the sages are now to be spread far and wide. You may go to Beijing and other places to share our Daoist teachings.” He then gave the Master a handwritten letter and entrusted him with the teachings. Following his instructions, the Master went to Liudu and lived there for three years. His divine radiance appeared many times, and local officials and common people earnestly urged him to come out. Countless people came to inquire into the mysteries and ask about the Dao, and all left feeling they had gained something.

After this, the Master’s connections with the Dao grew ever stronger, and more than a thousand disciples entered his community. Among them, only Lu Rouhe and Ding Zhiyi became close disciples who received his personal instruction. Officials and local residents selected a spacious, well-lit site in the northeastern corner of the capital and built Huayang Abbey to honor the Master. He also took the name Recluse Tuyang.

In the year Jisi of the Daan era, Perfected Yuyang came north with his retinue and stayed at Huayang Abbey. Soon afterward, he took the Master to Yandu and petitioned the court to bestow on him purple robes and a title as a Daoist master. From then on, the Master’s reputation grew, and his circle of disciples continued to expand. In the year Jiaxu of the Zhenyou era, the Master received a letter from Perfected Changchun summoning him back to Taixu Abbey in Qixia to oversee its affairs. In the first year of the Xingding era, bandits rose in rebellion, and he moved to Xiuzhen Hermitage in Xingshan Village, Fushan County.

One day, the Master suddenly summoned everyone and said, “The sky is clear today, and the fighting in the north has temporarily subsided. It is time for me to return.” He then bathed and changed his clothes, and wrote this poem of farewell: “Today I topple the rootless tree; in a moment, I turn over the furnace where the elixir is refined. I depart alone, unhindered, dragging my staff behind me as I hasten to Penghu.” When he had finished, he cast down his brush, closed his eyes, and died. He was fifty-six years old. At the time, auspicious clouds in five colors swirled around and covered Xiuzhen Hermitage, remaining there for a full day without dispersing.

After the turmoil of war, the Master’s Dharma grandson Li Zhifang, a disciple of Tianqing Palace in Zhangde Prefecture, moved his remains to the Immortal Cemetery in Wangyu Village, northwest of the prefectural city. He built a hall there in his honor, where people could burn incense and make offerings.

Zhao Wuxuan

Mr. Zhao’s personal name was Wuxuan and his courtesy name was Zifu. He was a Dharma successor of Li Zhifang, a Dharma grandson of the Tianqing Palace community. Later, people moved his remains to the Immortal’s Tomb in Wangyu Village, northwest of the prefectural city, and built a hall there where incense could be offered in his honor.

Zhao Wuxuan

Mr. Zhao’s personal name was Wuxuan, his courtesy name was Zishen, and his Daoist name was Master Liaozhen. He was from Lintong in Jingzhao, where his family had farmed for generations. He remained in his mother’s womb for twelve months and was born on the second day of the fifth month in the first year of Tiande. At his birth, auspicious light filled the room, and his relatives all took it as an extraordinary sign.

As he grew up, he valued quiet and simplicity and had little interest in worldly life. In the spring of the gengyin year of the Dading era, the patriarch of the Danyang tradition—Ma Yu, a founder of the Quanzhen school of Daoism—entered the pass with three Daoist companions, Qiu, Liu, and Tan, and passed through Lingkou Town. When Mr. Zhao saw them, he recognized that they were no ordinary people and invited them to his home for a vegetarian feast. He then set out for the Zhongnan Ancestral Hermitage with his mother, Lady Wei, his siblings, his wife, and his nephew. The six of them became monastics together and took Danyang as their master. At the time, Danyang was busy guiding people and establishing the religious community. He accepted them and separately taught them the essentials of cultivating the true Dao. He later instructed and supported them many times through Daoist methods, and they all became accomplished figures in the tradition. Mr. Zhao remained with Danyang longer than anyone else.

After receiving the teachings, Mr. Zhao lived for several years in the encircling quarters at Liujiang. In the gengzi year, Zhao En, a resident of Jingzhao, donated his home and built Penglai Hermitage, inviting Mr. Zhao to serve as its abbot. He gladly accepted and practiced seated meditation there for more than ten years. Later, the Daoist companion Li, from Chunhua County in Hezhou, built a residence and invited him to come. Mr. Zhao stayed there for another full cycle of twelve years, until his heart finally accorded with the Great Dao.

Mr. Zhao broke off four cypress branches and planted them in the residence, hoping they would flourish. During the Taihe era, Zhui Xiyi, a native of Fanchuan in Xianyang County, heard of Mr. Zhao’s attainment and built a residence for him to live in. One day, Zhui Xiyi’s younger brother, Du Xun, met a Daoist begging for money in a teahouse in Jingzhao and casually gave him a coin. More than a month later, Du Xun returned home and went to pay his respects at Mr. Zhao’s residence. On seeing him, he exclaimed, “This is the Daoist who begged in the teahouse that day!” He asked his elder brother whether Mr. Zhao had ever gone out, and his brother replied that he had not. Du Xun then burned incense and bowed in reverence. He gave Mr. Zhao the family’s ancestral cypress grove at Zhuyang Village to build Quandao Hermitage, a blessed place where Daoist practitioners could be supported.

Mr. Zhao once said to his disciple Ran Yi, “The Taibai Temple in Jingzhao is a place where the Daoist patriarch Xuanyuan manifested his presence. Danyang previously built a hall beside the temple. In time, this place will surely become a thriving Daoist center. You can live there.” Mr. Zhao himself often traveled to and from the site. Today, it has indeed become a renowned Daoist temple.

After living there for several years, Mr. Zhao returned to Chunhua. On the seventeenth day of the third month in the third year of the Daan era, he died without illness at the age of sixty-three. During his life, he wrote Daoist poems and lyrics, which he compiled as the Collected Works of the Immortal Ladder. They have been passed down to this day. He guided several hundred disciples, of whom only Wang Deyu and Ran Yi could be considered inner-chamber disciples. Later, Mr. Zhao was reburied in the cypress grove at Quandao Hermitage in Fanchuan. Yang Tingxiu, an assistant prefect of the local government, wrote his epitaph, recording his Daoist practice and achievements. After the wars of the Tianxing era, people undertook extensive construction of temples and halls on the former site of Quandao Hermitage, naming it Cuiwei Palace. In the renzi year, the Perfected One Zhenchang, a senior Quanzhen Daoist, burned incense at the ancestral center and posthumously bestowed on Mr. Zhao the title “Perfected One Who Broadens the Mysterious.”

Mr. Duan Mingyuan’s family had lived in Pingshui for generations. His Daoist ritual name was Guangpu, his courtesy name Mingyuan, and his Daoist sobriquet Zhenyangzi. Clever from childhood, he grew into a generous man with a strong sense of honor. After accidentally injuring someone while drunk, he was forced to flee punishment and make his way to the Guanzhong region.

One day, he happened upon the ancestral temple on Zhongnan Mountain and heard the master Danyang expound the Dao. Deeply moved, he burned incense, bowed respectfully, and earnestly asked to become a Daoist priest. Once Danyang agreed, he took on menial tasks with deference and served his teacher. Over the next few years, he gradually came to understand the teachings. One day, kneeling before his master, he asked for guidance. Danyang taught him to lessen his desires and clear his mind, while restraining his forcefulness and concealing his sharpness. With his master’s approval, Mr. Duan practiced according to what he had learned. Within a few years, his mind had become clear, and he had attained a subtle and wondrous state of the Dao.

Later, leaning on a staff, he returned to Hedong and built the Zhen Hermitage north of Jishan County town. He lived in a humble dwelling, and from then on more and more people came to follow him. In the summer of the renyin year, he suddenly said to his disciples, “Master Danyang is about to return east. Prepare incense and a letter of respect, and come with me to pay him a visit.” He then set out with them. When they reached Tong Pass, Danyang’s procession arrived, just as he had predicted. Danyang asked what he had gained from his practice, and Mr. Duan answered truthfully. Danyang exclaimed, “Guanzhong now has Zhao Wuxuan, and Hedong has gained Duan Mingyuan. My teaching has found its successors.”

After taking leave of Danyang, Mr. Duan returned, his reputation now greater than before. Yang Mingzhen of Sanyuan heard of his renown and came to visit and seek instruction, receiving much guidance. Mr. Duan also gave him a poem titled “The One Beyond the World.”

On the twenty-eighth day of the second month in the first year of the Mingchang era, Mr. Duan summoned his disciples and said, “I am going to travel among the Three Mountains.” After bathing, he wrote this deathbed poem:

“For years I have delighted in Xiyi’s mystery;

the light of my nature shines like a lamp.

My spirit finds its way to the Three Isles;

my Qi gathers into a robe of six ounces.

Free and expansive, bound by nothing,

I roam at ease beyond right and wrong.

Silent, with not a single concern,

I ride the crane home on colored clouds.”

When he had finished writing, he bent his arm, rested his head upon it, and passed away peacefully. Even after death, his eyes remained bright and shining for several days. His disciples buried him beside the Zhen Hermitage, in accordance with the rites. The poems he composed throughout his life were collected as the Mingyuan Collection and handed down to later generations.

Inner Biographies of the Immortals and Perfected Ones of the Ancestral Court on Mount Zhongnan, Upper Volume

Inner Biographies of the Immortals and Perfected Ones of the Ancestral Court on Mount Zhongnan, Middle Volume

Compiled by Li Daoqian, the Daoist called Heavenly Music of Mount Yi

Liu Kaiwu

Master Liu was from Fangzhou in western Shaanxi. His surname was Liu, his personal name Kaiwu, and his courtesy name Jiji. His Daoist name was Wuranzi. Naturally bright and quick-witted, he spoke little in his youth. Though his family was wealthy, he disliked fine clothes and ornament. He initially aspired to pursue the civil service examinations. Widely learned and possessed of a strong memory, he was also skilled at writing. After taking the court examinations twice, he returned to his hometown. In recognition of his outstanding learning and talent, he was appointed registrar of the prefectural school.

In the spring of 1172, during the Dading reign period, Master Liu traveled to Chang’an and met the Danyang patriarch, Ma Yu, a master of the Quanzhen tradition. After they spoke, the Danyang patriarch also composed a poem for him. Master Liu came to an understanding and gave up his family estate to follow the patriarch in cultivation. He spent ten years at the Liujiang Ancestral Hermitage, making great progress in the Dao.

Cao Xu, Lai Lingyu, Liu Zhenyi, Li Dacheng, Lei Datong, Li Dajing, Zhao Jiuyuan, and others also cultivated under the Danyang patriarch. At the time, people called them the “Ten Select Scholars of the Mystery Gate.” When the Danyang patriarch returned east, Master Liu and the others accompanied him.

After the Danyang patriarch’s death, Master Liu was sent by the Changchun patriarch, Qiu Chuji, to spread the Dao and teach in the Yan-Ji region during the Mingchang reign period. Before long, he moved to the Qixuan Hermitage in Gu’an. He died at the beginning of the Chongqing reign period.

After the turmoil of war, in the winter of the Yisi year, in the tenth month, Perfected Qinghe, Yin Zhiping, had his remains reburied on Mount Wuhua. In the winter of the Gengxu year, Perfected Zhenchang, the head of the tradition, acted on imperial command to posthumously bestow on him the title “Perfected One of Illuminated Mystery, Exalted De, and No Defilement,” and composed an inscription for his tombstone.

Ren Shouyi

Master Ren, whose personal name was Shouyi and whose religious name was Ziranzi, came from a family that had lived for generations in E County, Jingzhao, making their living by farming. He was tall and powerfully built, broad-minded and unconcerned with minor formalities. By nature, he loved hunting.

One night, he dreamed that underworld officials were leading him into the realm of the dead. There he saw with his own eyes sinners being interrogated and tortured. When he woke, he came to his senses. He destroyed his bow and arrows and swore to Heaven that he would mend his past wrongs.

He changed his ways and went to the Liujiang Patriarchal Hermitage, where he sought to study the Dao under the Danyang master. At first, Danyang sent him away. Several days later, seeing that his resolve to seek the Dao had grown firmer, Danyang accepted him and had him live in a humble hut, doing odd jobs. For three years, Ren Shouyi served meals and carried out hard labor with constant care and effort, never once slackening.

Seeing his worth, Danyang taught him the essentials of cultivation: how to endure disgrace, discipline his thoughts, and nurture and cultivate Shen and Qi. After a long time, his mind gradually grew clear, and he began to understand. One day, kneeling before his master, he said, “I am dull and unremarkable. You have guided me, yet I have nothing with which to repay you. I beg you, in your compassion, not to reject me for my clumsiness. Let me spend another three years carrying water and cooking.”

Danyang refused. “Before you had gained understanding, you were right to serve diligently and temper yourself. Now that you have made progress, you should continue your cultivation with greater dedication and guide and teach those who come later to study the Dao.”

Ren then bowed farewell to his master and went to the Hedong and Hebei region, begging for food as he cultivated. His ties with the Dao grew ever stronger. In the winter of the guimao year of the Dading reign, he heard that Perfected Danyang had died and kept vigil at his master’s tomb for three years. Not long afterward, he suddenly summoned his disciples and said, “Last night my master appeared in a vision and commanded me to accompany him to the Daoist mountains.” He then bathed, changed his clothes, and passed away peacefully. The date was the fourteenth day of the fourth month in the first year of the Mingchang reign.

After the wars, his disciples moved his remains to Bai Jian Village in Penglai County, Dengzhou, and reburied him there. They built a hall and set up his image for worship.

The Perfected Yang Mingzhen received an order summoning him to accompany the assembly to Dao Mountain. He bathed, changed into clean clothes, and passed away peacefully on the fourteenth day of the fourth month, after the reign era had been changed to Jinmingchang. After the turmoil of war, his disciples moved his remains to Chongyang Abbey in Baijian Village, Penglai County, Dengzhou. They built a hall, made a statue, and enshrined him there.

Yang Mingzhen

Mr. Yang’s family had lived for generations in Sanyuan County, Yaozhou. His father was named Yang Fan, and his mother’s surname was Liu. He was born on the eighteenth day of the eleventh month in the gengwu year of the Tiande era. At the time, auspicious signs appeared: blue clouds filled the house. He lost his parents in childhood and was solitary by nature, keeping apart from children his own age. As he grew older, he often lamented that life was as fleeting as a flash of lightning, and resolved to seek the Way of the immortals.

In the fourteenth year of the Dading era, he heard that the Patriarch Danyang—the Quanzhen master Ma Yu—was teaching the Quanzhen tradition at its ancestral sanctuary on Mount Zhongnan. He left home to become his disciple and asked him for guidance and spiritual transformation. Seeing Yang’s strong build and broad-minded bearing, Danyang praised him: “Here is truly excellent material for cultivating the Way of the immortals.” He gave him the name Mingzhen, the religious name Bixuzi, and taught him the formulas for cultivating Neidan (internal alchemy).

After receiving these teachings, Yang Mingzhen let his hair grow wild and his face go unwashed, living on alms. At times he sang and danced, affecting a wild and unrestrained manner. People called him “Yang the Madman.” He often carried a ladle as a drinking vessel and lived among beggars in seclusion, sometimes without speaking for years. His resolve was as firm as metal and stone, and he stayed for a long time around E She on Mount Zhongnan.

Later, hearing that the Perfected Danyang had ascended to immortality, he traveled east to the coast to sweep Danyang’s tomb and make offerings. He also paid visits to the two masters Changsheng and Yuyang, receiving much instruction from them. Then he gradually made his way west. On the road, he heard that Duan Jun, the Master Zhenyang of Jishan County, had earned Danyang’s approval, so he went out of his way to visit him. Duan Jun secretly transmitted the essentials of the Daoist teachings and gave him a poem titled “The One Beyond the World.” After taking his leave, Yang Mingzhen returned to the Qin region, his doubts from then on dispelled.

He went straight to the former Imperial Proclamation Hall in Jingzhao Prefecture and sat quietly. Even amid the bustle and splendor around him, he never turned his gaze to look. His mind was still and clear, and his body grew thin. It was as though he had practiced in the mountains and forests for twelve years, ultimately attaining a profound level of cultivation.

In the jimao year of the Cheng’an era, the transport commissioner Gao Deqing suddenly suffered heart pain, and none of the many physicians could cure him. When his condition became critical, he dreamed that Yang Mingzhen sprinkled water over him. At once, sweat poured from his body, and he awoke; within a few days his limbs had recovered. He went in person to the Proclamation Hall to burn incense and give thanks, and presented Yang with a great deal of gold and silver. Yang refused to accept it and instead gave him ten poems.

On the day of the Dragon Boat Festival, Yang Mingzhen drew a stove on the ground inside Qingzhen Hermitage and used a handful of earth in place of incense. Blue smoke rose and curled into a canopy more than ten feet high, lingering for a long time. Several immortal cranes flew and called above the smoke. Everyone gazed upward in wonder. The commander-in-chief, Lord Wanyan, then provided funds to build a Daoist abbey, which is today called Danxia Abbey.

An old man named Su from Pucheng had both knees contracted and could not walk. Yang Mingzhen sprinkled water over him, and the old man was soon running about as before. After that, sick people from the surrounding villages came in droves to ask for water. Finding that too many people were asking, Yang poured a cup of water into a well. A sound like thunder rang out from within it. From then on, the sick drank water drawn from the well and recovered. To this day, it is called the Well of Sacred Water.

Not long afterward, Yang Mingzhen returned to the ancestral sanctuary on Mount Zhongnan to live in seclusion. He summoned his disciples to gather for a purification rite. He transmitted the lineage to Master Wuyu, Li Gong, and asked Bi Zhichang to oversee the abbey, also instructing him to arrange for his remains. Before his death, he left this verse:

“For eighty years, life passed like a flash of lightning;

A heap of stinking rot, abandoned in the wasteland.

Once I have gone, I shall be free of every hindrance;

Letting go, I return to emptiness, in accord with nature.”

After speaking, he set down his brush and died peacefully. Song Zhaoran of Fushan had never been on good terms with Yang Mingzhen. Once, Yang bade him farewell from outside his window. Song hurried out to greet him, only to hear someone report that Yang Mingzhen had already transformed and ascended to immortality. It was the eleventh day of the sixth month in the wuzu year of the Zhengda era. Yang Mingzhen was seventy-nine years old.

He had spiritually guided several hundred disciples. His collected writings were known collectively as the Chang’an Collection and circulated among the public. Yang Mingzhen was buried in the Immortal’s Transformed Remains Garden at Liujiang. In the winter of the gengxu year, the Perfected Zhenchang, then head of the tradition, received an imperial order bestowing on him the title “Perfected Bixu, Resolute and Valiant.”

Master Zhou Quandao, whose surname was Zhou and given name Quandao, came from a family that had been prominent in the ancient Bin region for generations. He was born on the twenty-second day of the twelfth month in the Yichou year of the Huangtong era under the Jin. From childhood, he spoke little and carried himself with the composure of an adult. His appearance was unusual and plain, and his expression calm and detached. He lost his father at an early age, and the family was poor, but he did everything he could to care for his mother. When she suddenly fell ill with a strange disease, none of the treatments helped. Master Zhou cut flesh from his own thigh and gave it to her with medicine. She recovered, and people throughout the village came to know of his filial devotion.

When Master Zhou reached adulthood, villagers sought to marry their daughters to him, but he politely declined. When his mother died, his grief was so intense that it nearly cost him his life. He reflected, “I once heard the Daoists say that when one person succeeds in cultivating the Dao, nine generations of ancestors can attain the Dao and become immortals. There is no better way to repay my mother’s boundless kindness.”

This was the Guisi year of the Dading era under the Jin. The Danyang Patriarch, a Quanzhen Daoist master known by the Daoist name Master Danyang, was living at the ancestral monastery on Mount Zhongnan, where he taught the teachings of Quanzhen. Master Zhou went to see him and earnestly asked to learn the essentials of cultivation. Danyang accepted him as a disciple and assigned him the daily chores of carrying water, gathering firewood, pounding grain, and cooking. Master Zhou carried them out with diligence and respect, never slackening for several years. Seeing his resolve to seek the Dao, Danyang summoned him one day to a quiet chamber, taught him the Zhengao (a Daoist classic), and gave him the name Master Quanyang.

After receiving the teachings, Master Zhou held himself to strict standards, tempered his character, and practiced according to what he had learned. A few years later, all the fellow cultivators at the monastery admired his practical discipline. Before long, Danyang told him, “The Bin region lies near the frontier, and it is difficult for the teachings to spread there. You should go and live in that area and make my Dao teachings known.” Master Zhou obeyed. He chose a site below Mount Yufeng and built a hermitage, where he cultivated his spirit, nurtured his Qi, and taught the Dao, guiding people toward salvation. He adapted his guidance to each person’s nature and level of understanding, helping everyone gain insight. He also took in poor, sick, disabled, and otherwise unsupported people and cared for them at the hermitage. The local people came to respect him more and more, and the people of Bin gradually turned toward goodness.

In the Renyin year, Danyang returned east. From then on, every year at Qingming, Master Zhou personally went to the ancestral monastery to pay his respects, without fail. During the Zhenyou era, the Qiang people captured the Bin region, and Master Zhou was taken prisoner. Even in captivity, he continued his Daoist practice without wavering. Recognizing him as a cultivator unlike ordinary people, the Qiang released him. So many people came from far and near to seek his instruction that they could not be counted. He had them establish separate Daoist centers, where they continued teaching later generations.

Toward the end of the Yuanguang era, Zhang Xinfu, Left Vice Director of the Department of State Affairs, took office as governor of Bin Commandery. He had never been convinced by Master Zhou’s reputation, so he went to Mount Yufeng in person to ask him about his practice. Master Zhou explained the principles of Dao and De, and of nature and life. Zhang Xinfu appreciated his sincerity and, after leaving, told people, “Zhou Quanyang is a man of the Dao.” The next day, he hosted a vegetarian offering for Master Zhou and presented him with robes and shoes. After that, he often sent people to inquire after him. Master Zhou also visited him from time to time and once stayed at the Temple of Emperor Gaozu of Han in Chang’an. General Wanyan treated him with the respect due a teacher.

In the Wuzi year of the Zhengda era, Master Zhou returned to Bin. On the seventeenth day of the tenth month, he asked everyone to prepare a vegetarian offering and summoned his disciple who would carry on the Dao teachings, Master Yuanming Li Zhiyuan. He told him, “Nanshi Village on Mount Zhongnan is where the founding master taught and cultivated the truth. I wanted to build it up there to honor the traces of the immortals, but the times are as they are, and we cannot force matters. Once the realm is at peace, you must do your best to fulfill my wish.” He then had an attendant burn incense and asked everyone to recite the Qingjing Jing (“Scripture of Clarity and Stillness”). Master Zhou sat upright and listened quietly. After the group had recited it three times, he rested his head on his left arm and passed away peacefully. He was eighty-four years old. He was buried beside Yufeng Hermitage.

The scholar Wang Caiqing was a close friend of Master Zhou and was serving in Qingyang at the time. When enemy troops surrounded the city and the situation was dire, he suddenly dreamed that Master Zhou appeared, drifting toward him. “I have come especially to say farewell to you,” he said. “However deep our ties in this world may be, we cannot remain attached to them forever. Once this body is lost, it is very hard to obtain another. Please take good care of yourself.” Master Zhou then departed. Soon afterward, the siege was lifted. Only when Wang Caiqing made inquiries did he learn that the day Master Zhou had appeared in his dream to say farewell was the very day he died. Wang Caiqing promptly resigned from office, left his wife and children, and devoted himself to cultivating the Dao for the rest of his life.

In the Wuwu year of the Cheng’an era under the Jin, a man from Zou County in Donglu named Zhang Zhiyuan, Master Dongxu, twice dreamed of a divine being holding a gleaming blade and rebuking him: “Your allotted years are nearly at an end. Why have you still not sought out a master and learned the Dao teachings, so that you may avoid dying so soon?” Zhang Zhiyuan awoke deeply unsettled and went for a walk in the western outskirts of Guo City. Before long, he saw a Daoist coming from the west, tall in stature, wearing hemp clothes and straw sandals. The Daoist told him, “You and I are bound by a connection from a former life, so I have come to guide you.” He then taught Zhang Zhiyuan the secrets of cultivating the truth by the roadside and gave him a hemp rope. “Honor these teachings and do not forget them,” he said. “In thirty years, one of my disciples will come here to meet you. Then you will form a deep bond with a true master.” When Zhang Zhiyuan asked his name, the Daoist replied, “I am Zhou Quanyang from Guanzhong.” Then he vanished.

Zhang Zhiyuan thereupon gave up his worldly clothing, left home, and took up Daoist cultivation. Later, he founded White Cloud Abbey in Jizhou, received several hundred disciples, and established many hermitages and monasteries throughout the Qi-Lu region. In the Renchen year, when the six armies marched south into Henan, Li Yuanming led a group north across the Yellow River and settled at Qizhen Monastery in Shu’a County. Hearing of this, Zhang Zhiyuan went to visit him and recounted how he had met Zhou Quanyang. Li Yuanming brought out a portrait of Master Zhou. Zhang Zhiyuan burned incense and bowed, saying, “This is exactly the master I met back then.” From that time on, he regarded Li Yuanming as a fellow Daoist elder brother.

In the Yiwei year, after Guanzhong had been pacified, Li Yuanming remembered Master Zhou’s final charge and led more than a hundred disciples west. They completed a Daoist palace at Nanshi Village. Master Zhang Dongxu repeatedly donated money to support its construction. In less than ten years, the palace had grown into a spacious and impressive complex, with tall towers and fully finished buildings. In the spring of the Xinchou year, Perfected Qinghe ordered disciples to carry Master Zhou’s remains and bury them in the Immortals’ Transformation Garden at Liujiang. In the Renzi year, the Quanzhen Master Li, known as Zhenchang, was acting head of the teaching. By imperial order, he posthumously bestowed on Master Zhou the title “Perfected One of Broad De, Who Spreads Transformation as Quanyang.”

Master Qiao Qiandao was originally from Pingyang. His surname was Qiao, his given name Qiandao, and his religious name Chongxu Zi. By nature he was quiet and reserved, and had long been drawn to the mysterious, empty stillness of the Dao. In the renchen year of the Dading era of the Jin dynasty (1172), at the age of thirty-six, he traveled to Mount Zhongnan with his fellow townsman Li Chongdao. They called on the Patriarch Danyang, the Quanzhen master Ma Yu, and asked to study the teachings of the Quanzhen school. Afterward, Qiao lived at the Liu-Jiang ancestral court, one of the Quanzhen school’s ancestral sites, where he gathered firewood, carried water, and served the Daoist community. He endured great hardship and never dared to slacken.

One day, the Patriarch Danyang taught him the mysterious principles of the Dao and gave him two poems:

“Follow Heaven’s mandate and be content with your lot; then poverty need not trouble you. The body and mind you hold within are like hidden jade, unlike those of ordinary people. To refine and nurture the inner elixir requires mastery born of practice. The substance in the crucible, like frost and snow, must be refined into a red elixir.

“The mysteries of the Dao—who can fathom them to their end? When kindred spirits meet, a conversation brings understanding. Keep to darkness and simplicity, without letting the heart itself sink into gloom. The elixir’s red glow surpasses the flush of a healthy face.”

After receiving this instruction, Master Qiao and his like-minded companion Li Chongdao supported one another and devoted themselves to the Dao for more than ten years, reaching profound levels of attainment. In the renyin year (1182), when the Patriarch Danyang returned east, Qiao and Li traveled together, living on alms in the areas around Heyin and Heshui.

Later, Liu Haoqian, an official in the Ministry of Revenue, told others: “In the past, Liezi lived for forty years in a vegetable garden in Zheng, and the world did not know that he had the Dao. Those who carry the Dao and embrace De are like skilled merchants who keep their goods hidden away, fearing only that others might discover them. In my view, the two immortals Qiao and Li are just like this.” When local people heard this, they held the two in even greater esteem. They built the Taiqing Abbey in the northeastern corner of the old city and invited them to live there.

In the bingwu year (1186), the Patriarch Changchun, the Quanzhen master Qiu Chuji, preached at the ancestral court. Qiao and Li came to hear his teachings and draw near to him. After observing their cultivation, Changchun suddenly said to those present, “Masters Qiao and Li diligently cultivate the Dao; they truly understand its principles and are accomplished members of our school.” From then on, their reputations steadily grew.

In the xinhai year of the Mingchang era (1191), at Changchun’s command, Master Qiao went with Li Chongdao to spread the teachings in Hedong. They built the Chongxu Abbey in Linfen and lived there. In the renxu year of the Taihe era (1202), he returned to Heshui to cultivate in stillness and nurture his true nature, while also receiving visitors and keeping company with others.

In the dingchou year of the Zhenyou era (1217), in the third month, Master Qiao was chatting with the scholar Wang Keda when he suddenly said, “There is something I would like to trouble you with. I hope you will prepare a robe for me to use on my journey.” A few days later, he died without having been ill. He was eighty-one years old. When Wang Keda came to offer condolences, he understood that the “robe” Master Qiao had mentioned meant a coffin.

At the time, his disciple Li Daoyin was living elsewhere. One day, Master Qiao suddenly appeared at his home and privately offered him some admonitions and advice. As he was leaving, he said, “You can come by tomorrow. There is something else I need to tell you.” The next day, as Li Daoyin was on his way, he met someone bringing the news that Master Qiao had undergone feathering the day before—the Daoist term for an immortal’s passing. Only then did he understand that the visitor had not been Master Qiao in person, but his external manifestation.

Master Li Chongdao, whose family name was Li and whose personal name was Chongdao, was known as Master Qingxu. His ancestral home was Pingyang. He was resolute by nature, skilled at writing, and deeply devoted to his parents. In the renchen year of the Dading era, when he was nearly forty, he became close friends with a fellow townsman, Qiao Qiandao, who shared his aspirations. Together they traveled to Mount Zhongnan in western Shaanxi to pay their respects to the Danyang Patriarch and study the Dao.

The Danyang Patriarch judged Li Chongdao fit to be taught and kept him as a disciple. For years, Li diligently pounded rice, cooked, swept, and served the community. The longer he stayed, the greater his reverence for the Patriarch became. One day, the Patriarch taught him the secret essentials and gave him this poem:

“Beyond the world of things, there is joy without end; yet one must also know how to blend one’s light with the dust and live among ordinary people. Alas, worldly affairs are like drifting clouds and fleeting dreams, like withered leaves tossed about by the autumn wind. Let others gossip as they please, saying that those who practice the Dao live in poverty; those single-mindedly seeking immortality have a different purpose. Though midsummer’s heat fills the world, frost and snow fall in the grotto-heavens; the wondrous shoots grow all the more vividly red.”

After earning the Patriarch’s approval, Li Chongdao devoted himself to cultivating the Dao. It is said that for ten years he scarcely lay down to sleep, and his mind became clear and still. One night during the Tàiding era, divine light filled his room, bright as daylight. Later, he and Qiao Qiandao traveled to Heyang, practicing by begging for food and spreading the teachings of Daoism.

In the bingwu year, Perfected Changchun came from Mount Long to the ancestral monastery. Li Chongdao went to pay his respects again and continued to seek instruction in the highest methods of the Dao. In the xinhai year of the Mingchang era, as Perfected Changchun returned east, he sent Li Chongdao and Qiao Qiandao to spread the Dao in Hedong. The two settled at Chongxu Abbey, which they built west of Linfen County. They initiated several hundred disciples and established dozens of hermitages and abbeys.

Li Chongdao often wrote long poems and short verses that hinted at subtle Daoist principles. Qiao Qiandao rebuked him, saying that those who cultivate the Dao should restrain their brilliance and keep their light concealed. Since truly accomplished teachers were still alive at the time, everyone needed only to advance in their own practice. Li Chongdao admitted his mistake, apologized, and burned his manuscripts.

One day, he told everyone to prepare hot water for his bath. “My time in this world has come to an end,” he said. “Now it is time for me to return.” He gave his disciples a few final words urging them to commit themselves to cultivating the Dao, then passed away peacefully. At that moment, smoke and clouds filled the sky above the courtyard and spread over the surrounding area, remaining for three days. Local monks, laypeople, and villagers came to pay their respects, all struck with wonder. Li Chongdao was later buried at Chongxu Abbey, where a hall was built and a statue of him installed so that people could offer incense and make offerings.

Mr. Zhao Jiugu, whose surname was Zhao and whose given name was Jiugu, bore the Daoist name Xujingzi and came from Tanzhou. His ancestors had served as officials for generations and were known for their distinguished records. His father once served as prefect of Zizhou, then was transferred to serve as assistant prefect of Pingdong Prefecture, so the family moved there. Zhao Jiugu was born in the guiwei year, the third year of the Dading era. By nature, he was detached and serene. Someone who read his face said that his bearing was clear and refined, and his bones unusually formed: he was not someone the life of this world could hold. He lost his father at an early age and often aspired to transcend the world, cultivate the Dao, and become an immortal.

In the dingyou year, the seventeenth year of the Dading era, his mother wanted him to marry, but he refused and repeatedly asked to leave home and cultivate the Dao. She rebuked him again and again, but eventually saw that his resolve could not be changed and gave her consent. Hearing that a Master Cui, known as “Cui Sheephead,” had attained success in Daoist cultivation at the prefectural residence, he went to become his disciple. Master Cui assigned him kitchen duties and instructed him each evening to prepare five or seven dishes, with a different flavor each time. Once the food was served, however, Master Cui ate little and would not let him prepare more, keeping him awake through the night. After three years of this, Zhao Jiugu became even more respectful and showed not the slightest arrogance. People called him “Master Inner Attendant.” Seeing that he was ready to be taught, Master Cui sent him to Huating in the jihai year, the nineteenth year of the Dading era, to pay his respects to Perfected Danyang and seek instruction. Perfected Danyang accepted him as a disciple.

In the gengzi year, Perfected Danyang returned to Zhongnan Mountain and ordered Zhao Jiugu to go to Longmen and serve Perfected Changchun, Qiu Chuji, who instructed him personally. Perfected Changchun gave him the new name Daojian and often traveled through the Pingdong area. In the bingwu year, Perfected Changchun moved to the ancestral monastery at Zhongnan. In the wushen year, Zhao Jiugu remained behind to serve Lord Li Lingyang. In the xinhai year of the Mingchang era, Perfected Changchun returned east toward the sea. On the way, he took Zhao Jiugu through Yecheng and had him pay his respects to Perfected Changsheng. Not long afterward, Perfected Changsheng sent him back to Qixia. Perfected Changchun was pleased by his return and appointed him as a literary attendant, in charge of scriptures and religious affairs. Officials in the Daoist order and ordinary Daoist priests who came to pay their respects had to see Zhao Jiugu first before entering the inner chamber to meet Perfected Changchun.

Zhao Jiugu’s writing was elegant and classical, and his calligraphy resembled the style of the “Inscription for the Burial of a Crane.” In the jimao year, when Perfected Changchun received an imperial summons to travel to the Western Regions, he chose Zhao Jiugu as the chief attendant in his party. When they reached Sairam, Zhao Jiugu said to Perfected Qinghe, Yin Zhiping: “When I reach Xuande, I feel that I will soon pass away. I once received my master’s teaching: those who cultivate the Dao do not take life and death to heart; any place will do. You must serve our master well.” After saying this, he died at the age of fifty-nine. He was buried in the fields east of the city, where local people still make offerings to him.

Earlier, when Perfected Changchun passed through Mount Abuhan, he left Song Dao’an and eight others to build Qixia Monastery and await his return. In the renwu year, a troublemaker named Tuoji brought a lawsuit, leaving everyone fearful and unsettled. While sleeping during the day, Song Dao’an dreamed that Zhao Jiugu descended through a skylight and said, “A letter from my master has arrived.” Dao’an asked where it had come from, and Zhao Jiugu replied, “From heaven.” When Dao’an took it and looked, he saw only the two characters “Taiqing.” After waking, Song Dao’an told everyone what had happened. The next day, a letter from Perfected Changchun arrived, and the lawsuit before the authorities was soon settled. The group believed that Zhao Jiugu had secretly protected them.

In the guiwei year, Perfected Changchun was returning east and passed Zhao Jiugu’s grave. His companions wanted to take the coffin back with them, but Perfected Changchun stopped them, saying: “The human body is only a shell borrowed for a time, and in the end it becomes discarded. The true spirit, by contrast, is free and unbound. Why cling to this discarded body?” The next day, Perfected Changchun continued eastward. After reaching the lands of Han China, people in more than ten places, from Yunzhong and Wuchuan to Jinyang and Yanjing, saw Zhao Jiugu riding a horse to announce in advance that Patriarch Changchun was returning east and to urge them to go out and welcome him. His miraculous deeds are too numerous to record in full. Here we have included only one or two, to show that although he had died, his spirit had not perished.

In the gengxu year, Perfected Zhenchang was ordered to commend the virtue of the Daoist masters. Zhao Jiugu was posthumously granted the honorific title “Perfected Zhongzhen Xujiao Xuanying.” His hat and shoes were buried on Mount Wuhua, where offerings were to be made each year.

Master Tao Yanming was from Xiangling County in Pingyang. As a child, he was already drawn to Daoist arts, and was renowned for his filial devotion. When he was in his thirties, his parents died one after the other. His grief was so profound that he mourned beyond the period prescribed by ritual. When mourning ended, he resolutely gave up his family estate, crossed the Yellow River and traveled south. He settled temporarily in Lingbao County, hoping to find a teacher and learn the Dao, but not knowing where to turn.

In the guisi year of the Dading era, Xu Zijing, a native of Hejian, took office as magistrate of Lingbao County. Seeing that Master Tao was sincere and upright in temperament, he said to him, “If you truly aspire to the Great Dao and seek to cultivate into an immortal, then without a teacher’s guidance you will only waste your life. I have heard that Perfected Danyang, Ma Yu, is spreading the Quanzhen teaching. He is now living on Mount Zhongnan. You could go to him and become his disciple.” Xu Zijing also composed a poem to see him off. Master Tao then set out directly for Liujiang Village.

When Perfected Danyang met him, he felt that the two of them seemed bound by an affinity from long ago. He kept Tao close by, gave him the name Yanming, and the courtesy name Mingfu. Master Tao spent a long time at his side, listening to his instruction and learning the principles of cultivating body and mind, nature and life. Perfected Danyang taught him day after day until his mind opened and all his doubts vanished. He then sent him out to travel and visit different places, to investigate deeply the original nature that existed “before one’s parents were born”—the innate nature sought through Daoist cultivation.

Master Tao later lived in Weinan, keeping to a simple life and often subsisting on coarse food and clear water. He continued to practice exactly as his teacher had taught him, as though he meant to do so for the rest of his life. After a few years, Perfected Danyang summoned him back to the ancestral sanctuary and asked about his daily practice. He exclaimed, “Perhaps Tao Mingfu alone is pure and unadulterated.” He then bestowed on him the title “Nameless Master.”

Later, when Perfected Danyang returned east, Master Tao also left the Guanzhong region and settled on Mount Baodu, west of Luoyang. Before long, he moved to Mount Taohua and lived in seclusion. More than twenty years later, he suddenly told his disciples, “Yesterday, while I was in meditation, I happened to remember that in a former life I lived in Lingguang Cave. But now I do not know where it is.” Later, while traveling on Mount Nüji, he saw the three characters “Lingguang Cave” carved into a cliff. The stone formations and iron mortar inside the cave were still there, so he repaired the dwelling and settled in it. When people examined the site, they found that his account was indeed true, and their respect and trust in him grew.

After more than ten further years in seclusion, he suddenly moved to Changyuan, though those around him could not fathom his reasons. Within a few days, northern troops swept past Mount Nüji, bringing calamity to many of the local people. Not a single horseman came to Changyuan. People were all the more impressed by Master Tao’s foresight in anticipating disaster.

Though Master Tao was already very old, he still walked with a steady gait and remained vigorous in spirit, showing the effects of his lifelong cultivation and care for health. In the autumn of the bingxu year of the Zhengda era, the disciples Di Baoyuan and Wang Baozhen of Yunxi Hermitage invited him to spend the winter there. Master Tao declined, saying, “Everything for winter has already been arranged here. I will go there next spring and make it my place of retirement and rest.”

On the sixth day of the third month in the dinghai year, he arrived at Yunxi Hermitage leaning on his staff and smiling. He spent the whole day talking and laughing with the Daoist assembly. The next morning, he changed his clothes, sat upright, and asked for paper and brush to write a verse. He then passed away peacefully at the age of eighty-six. His coffin remained in place for seven days, yet his cheeks were still rosy and the crown of his head still warm; he looked as if he were fast asleep. He was later buried in the quiet chamber where he had lived. The following year, Lord Li Feng moved his remains to the western foot of Mount Fengyi. When the coffin was opened, his body had not changed in appearance. Fragrance filled the mountain valleys, and ten thousand people came to gaze upon him and bow in reverence, all marveling at the sight. Yao Shu, former Left Chancellor, composed his epitaph and recorded these wondrous events.

Wang Zhida came from Dacu, Yan’an. His surname was Wang, his given name Zhida, and his Daoist name was Master Xuantong. He was born on the twenty-ninth day of the tenth month in the Gengwu year of the Tiande era. His father died when he was very young. Even as a boy, he had a clear understanding of things and often lamented the illusory nature of worldly affairs. He aspired to transcend the ordinary world.

When he came of age, his family’s wealth led people to recommend him as village head, a local official responsible for community affairs. He collected taxes with fairness and integrity, and the villagers all respected him.

In the Dingyou year of the Dading era, one of his friends fell ill. A few days later, his body turned into a giant snake, though his head and face remained unchanged. The friend told Wang Zhida and the others, “You can prepare a basket and some tools and take me into the mountains. Otherwise, I fear even my head and face will change, and I may harm the living.” Wang Zhida lifted the man’s clothing and saw that his body below the neck had indeed become a python. He and his family carried the friend to the foot of a mountain, then left him there to depart among the plants and trees. Shaken by what he had witnessed, Wang Zhida left home and traveled far away. He never returned.

On the road, he met an extraordinary person who taught him wondrous Daoist methods and said, “Master Danyang is now teaching the Dao on Mount Zhongnan. You can go and ask to become his disciple.” With that, the stranger vanished. Wang Zhida went straight to Master Danyang and begged him to accept and liberate him. At first, Master Danyang refused, and for several days scolded and humiliated him. But Wang Zhida’s resolve to seek instruction never wavered. Moved by his sincerity, Master Danyang finally let him stay, assigned him chores alongside the other followers, and taught him to refine his character through enduring insult.

Wang Zhida lived there for several years. He worked diligently and frugally, remained humble and yielding, and never faltered. Later, Master Danyang passed on to him the essential teachings of Daoist cultivation concerning De, nature, and life. After receiving the teachings, Wang Zhida settled in a humble dwelling in Yunyang County. He sat in silent cultivation for thirteen years, until inner understanding dawned and he wrote works that accorded with wondrous Daoist principles. He guided several hundred disciples and later returned to Yan’an.

During the fifth month, a severe drought struck the region. Officials and local people asked him when it would rain. He said, “There will be a light rain today, but it will not be enough to soak the ground. In three days, the rain will be plentiful.” When the day came, events unfolded exactly as he had said.

During the Taihe era, the Qiang people invaded, and everyone was in a panic. Wang Zhida calmly said, “There is no need to worry. Yesterday, while I was in meditative absorption, I saw three thousand headless men driving five hundred great beasts here.” A few days later, news of victory arrived: the army had indeed taken three thousand enemy heads and seized more than five hundred camels. People across the region heard of this and honored him all the more.

One day, while having a little wine in a shop at the market, he stepped outside and gazed up at the sky. Then he returned to his seat, took paper and brush, and wrote this verse:

“A red sun shines in the middle of the heavens; five-colored clouds circle above my head. I say with care: I am going home. Riding backward on a dark crane, I fly toward the eastern sea.”

When he had finished, he cast down his brush, folded one arm beneath him, and lay down. He died at noon on the second day of the twelfth month in the Gengwu year of the Daan era, at the age of sixty-one.

His collected writings, titled the Xuantong Collection, were passed down through the generations. He was buried southeast of the prefectural city. After warfare during the Tianxing era, his disciples built the Xuantong Temple at his grave and offered incense there.

Master Xue Zhiwei’s family had lived for generations in Hejin County, Heshu. He was a distant descendant of Xue Rengui, the Tang dynasty general who led campaigns against Goguryeo. His Daoist name was Zhiwei, his courtesy name Daoyuan, and his sobriquet Master Bixiao. He was born in the gengwu year of the Tiande era. As a child, he had little interest in playing; as he grew older, he longed for a quiet, untroubled life. He was reserved and spoke little. Shortly after turning twenty, he developed a deep interest in the arts of health cultivation and the cultivation of nature and life.

In the xinmao year of the Dading era, the patriarch Danyang—the Quanzhen master Ma Danyang—was teaching the Dao on Mount Zhongnan, and his fame had spread far and wide. Master Xue therefore left his wife and children and went respectfully to pay his respects. He served at the master’s side, attending to him with a ceremonial whisk. He served for three years, remaining steadfast throughout. Recognizing that Xue was fit to receive the Daoist teachings, the patriarch Danyang entrusted him with the secret essentials of cultivating the Dao and attaining truth.

After receiving the teachings, Master Xue returned to his hometown, built a hermitage, and devoted himself to quiet cultivation, regulating his breath and nourishing his Shen (spirit). After six years, his mind was settled and his nature clear. In the xin-chou year, he returned to the ancestral monastery to continue his training under his master. One night, with the sky clear and the moon bright, he suddenly got up and moved the firewood beneath the house. The others thought his actions strange. By dawn, the snow lay a foot deep. Everyone admired the stillness of his mind and his ability to sense events in advance.

In the gui-mao year, several fellow cultivators invited him to visit the Temple of Heaven. Master Xue said, “I have long wished to visit the grotto-heaven of Mount Wangwu, an immortal’s abode and blessed place. We can stay at the Lodge of Tranquil Delight.” When they arrived, their host welcomed them into an elegant, bright room with open windows. The words “Lodge of Tranquil Delight” were inscribed above the door. The others looked at one another and exclaimed, “The master truly is a man of the Dao.”

At the time, the patriarch Danyang was traveling east toward the sea. That winter, his junior fellow disciple Wang Zhiyi prepared to go to Ninghai to visit their master. As he said farewell to Master Xue, Xue wept bitterly, leaving everyone puzzled. Only when Wang Zhiyi reached Ninghai did he learn that the patriarch Danyang had died twenty days earlier.

Not long afterward, Master Xue returned to his hometown. When Wang Rulin came to visit, Master Xue said, “Why didn’t you find a good doctor sooner to treat this illness?” Wang Rulin was in good health and paid no heed to the remark. Within a month, however, he suddenly suffered a stroke and died.

During the Chongqing era, the scholars Hao Shijie and Xue Guobao asked Master Xue what the autumn examination topic would be. He replied, “The Three Kings governed the realm through rewards and punishments, bringing peace to the state.” When the examinations were held, the topic was exactly as he had said, and both men passed. On another day, Du Zhongmin was chatting at the hermitage when Master Xue said with a smile, “Go home quickly. There’s still time to save the woman who fell into the well.” Du hurried home, and the event proved to be just as Master Xue had said. There were many other instances of his foreknowledge.

Later, Master Xue traveled south across the river, journeying through the Mount Song and Mount Shaoshi region before settling in Neixiang. He loved the local people’s simple customs and the beautiful scenery, so he built a thatched retreat and lived in seclusion. He also welcomed and instructed many people. On the third day of the tenth lunar month in the winter of the renchen year of the Zhengda era, he died without illness at the age of eighty-three.

His collected poems and lyrics were titled The Collection of Clarity and Emptiness. He had several hundred disciples, but only Hou Zhiren, Liu Zhichun, Tang Zhi’an, and Fan Zhichong were counted as close disciples. All four established Daoist monasteries in Heshu and guided people toward the Dao, becoming renowned Daoist masters of their time. After the upheavals of war, people moved Master Xue’s remains for reburial in the Hall of Gathered Truth at the Palace of Wandering Immortals in Hu County, at the foot of Mount Zhongnan. The presiding master, Li Jun Zhenchang, received an imperial command to posthumously bestow on him the title Perfected Person Who Ascended to the Mysterious.

Master Chen Zhiming, surnamed Chen and given the name Zhiming, bore the Daoist name Cha Zhenzi. He was from Yuan Village in Zhongnan County, neighboring Liujiang Village. Patriarch Chongyang came many times to teach and guide him, but Master Chen’s family was wealthy, and for a time he could not let go of his worldly obligations.

Later, when the four Perfected Ones, including Danyang, took up residence at the Patriarch’s Hermitage, Master Chen gradually developed a wish to enter the Dao. One day, Grandmaster Danyang gave him a blue headscarf and composed a poem:

“Cut from azure clouds, this headscarf was made;

Look closely, and you will see that you, Lord Chen, are destined for it.

I think of the bond we formed in a previous life;

May you join me in roaming freely.

Seek the Golden Elixir along the road to long life;

Gather jade shoots in the immortal realm, where night never falls.

You alone will not transcend and ascend to heaven:

You can also bring the Nine Dark Ones and Seven Ancestors—your forebears and kin—to the heavenly realm.”

Moved by this guidance, Master Chen exclaimed, “In the past, Patriarch Chongyang came many times to teach me, but I was foolish and failed to follow my master in cultivating the Dao. If my allotted span should one day come to an end, could these few possessions really keep me alive for even one more day?” That very day, he became Danyang’s disciple, changed into Daoist robes, and formally entered the Dao.

Seeing that Master Chen had a talent for managing affairs, Danyang appointed him head of the Patriarch’s Hermitage, where he could accumulate De through good works and build merit. For ten years, he often saved people with medicine and quietly carried out many good deeds, extending his protection to numerous members of the Daoist community. Danyang also frequently instructed him through poems, guiding him in cultivating the Dao and keeping still and tranquil. His progress in the Dao was considerable.

Not long afterward, Master Chen relinquished his post and retired to cultivate. Danyang appointed Lü Dao’an to succeed him as head of the hermitage. From then on, Master Chen devoted himself to cultivation. In the Ding-si year of the Cheng’an era, he suddenly patted Lü Dao’an on the back and said, “Your affinity with the Dao and your merit run deep. When this hermitage is rebuilt as a Daoist temple, you will guide several hundred people into the Dao and take them as disciples. By then, our teachings will be spreading widely, and you will have arrived at just the right time. Take good care of yourself. It is time for me to return.”

Having spoken, he took leave of everyone in turn and passed away peacefully at the age of eighty-one. After his coffin had rested for three days, his body was still soft and light, and his eyes remained bright and alert. The following year, Grandmaster Yuyang purchased the Patriarch’s Hermitage and rebuilt it as Lingxu Temple. He bestowed on Lü Dao’an the title “Master Chongxu,” placed him in charge of official appointment certificates, and entrusted him with running the temple. Later, Lü Dao’an indeed guided nearly three hundred people into the Dao, just as Master Chen had foretold.

Mr. Song Mingyi, whose given name was Mingyi and whose courtesy name was Zhaoranzi, was from Fushan County in Dengzhou. His grandfather and father had served for generations as county clerks. They were honest and fair, and earned the praise of the local community through their accumulated virtue and good deeds. As a child, Mr. Song studied Confucian learning; as he grew older, he became skilled in writing. He often felt that worldly life was not worth lingering over, and so resolved to leave the dust of the world behind and study the Dao. After turning thirty, he took leave of his family and went straight to Guanzhong, where he became a Daoist disciple under the Danyang Patriarch. Through years of hardship, his resolve became as firm as metal and stone. Alongside his daily work, he steadily advanced in the practices of self-cultivation and quiet nourishment.

The Danyang Patriarch passed on to him the instructions for cultivation and bestowed on him a Qinghua Yang headcloth, a kind of Daoist headwear. Mr. Song accepted it respectfully and treasured his master’s gift for the rest of his life. On the first and fifteenth days of each lunar month, he would wear the headcloth and pay homage to the perfected and the sacred.

In the spring of the Renyin year of the Dading era, the Danyang Patriarch rode eastward on a crane. Mr. Song accompanied him to the coast and urged his mother, elder brother, elder sister, nephew, and two other family members to pay homage to the Danyang Patriarch and enter the Dao. The following winter, after the Danyang Patriarch passed away, Mr. Song returned to Guanzhong and took up residence at the ancestral monastery. In the Bingwu year, he led a group to Mount Long to invite the Changchun Patriarch back to Zhongnan Mountain, where he vigorously promoted the teachings of the ancestral masters. In the Xinhai year of the Mingchang era, the Changchun Patriarch also traveled east on an immortal procession. Mr. Song received the lineage’s instructions and served as a senior and respected elder at the ancestral monastery. From then on, whenever anyone entered the Dao, Mr. Song served as the guiding master who led them into the tradition.

In the Bingxu year of the Zhengda era, northern armies entered the Qin River region. The people were terrified and fled to the southern mountains. The Daoist community took refuge in Bigu Valley, but Mr. Song refused to leave. When others urged him to go with them, he said, “How could I escape the debts from past lives that I must repay? You may leave; I will stay here alone and keep watch.” A few days later, patrol soldiers arrived. The Lingxu Hall and the other halls were burned to ashes, and Mr. Song was killed.

The next day, the Daoists descended the mountain to investigate and found that no fat or blood had flowed from Mr. Song’s body. The record says that he had attained a body of pure Yang, and compares him to figures such as Ji Kang and Luo Gongyuan. It was the thirteenth day of the tenth month, and Mr. Song was eighty-four years old. In the spring of the Renzi year, the first year of the Zhida era, the True Constant Perfected Li, head of the teaching, received an imperial decree conferring on Mr. Song the honored title “Perfected One Free of Worry.”

Master Lü Dao’an came from a prominent family whose generations had lived in the Ninghai region. Exceptionally intelligent from childhood, he yearned to study the mysteries of Daoism and seemed born with the gifts needed to cultivate the Dao. He was devoted to his parents, and his reputation spread throughout the surrounding villages. When he was thirty-two, his parents died one after the other. After burying and honoring them according to ritual, he resolutely left behind secular life and entered the Daoist path.

At that time, the four masters Ma Yu, Tan Chuduan, Qiu Chuji, and Liu Chuxuan were keeping vigil over Wang Chongyang’s tomb on Mount Zhongnan. Dao’an traveled west alone to pay his respects to the patriarch Ma Yu of the Danyang lineage. Ma Yu was from the same region and had long known that Dao’an came from a respectable family, so he asked him to serve at his side. After following Ma Yu for a long time, Dao’an absorbed his teachings and gradually grasped the mysteries of the Dao.

In the Gengzi year of the Dading era, Ma Yu appointed Dao’an as abbot of the ancestral monastery, where he was to care for the Daoist community. Li Jun of Lingyang was still alive at the time and, on several occasions, also benefited from Dao’an’s guidance. In the Bingwu year, the patriarch Qiu Chuji of the Changchun lineage came from Longmen to live at the ancestral monastery. For several years afterward, Dao’an spent every day near him, asking questions and listening to his profound teachings, until all doubts had left his mind.

In the Xinhai year of the Mingchang era, Qiu Chuji led his disciples away from the ancestral monastery. Dao’an cultivated himself with reverence and treated others with generosity, keeping the ethos of the Daoist community as strong as it had been when his master was alive. In the Yimao year, the court revoked the monastery’s official grant of status, and government offices took over the monasteries and hermitages, including the ancestral monastery. From then on, the Daoist community declined, and its practitioners scattered.

In the Dingsi year of the Cheng’an era, the Perfected Jade Yang, Wang Chuyi, was summoned to the palace. He sent someone to summon Dao’an as well. The following spring, Wang Chuyi arrived in Yandu, purchased the ancestral monastery, and renamed it Lingxu Abbey. He recommended Dao’an to the court, which bestowed on him the title “Master Chongxu” and charged him with overseeing the official charters and managing the abbey. Wang Chuyi said that the Patriarch Chongyang had walked thousands of miles to teach and transform them in order to ensure the Daoist tradition’s lasting transmission. Though he himself could not visit often, Dao’an had deep ties to the ancestral monastery, and Wang hoped he would take good care of it. He then presented him with this poem:

“After great awakening, radiant light shines through the vast emptiness;

the true auspicious sign of the primordial heaven suddenly appears.

Emptiness and stillness run through past and present;

the Great Dao is transmitted, and the lineage kept upright.

The three realms and ten directions are connected from the beginning;

the myriad scriptures and treatises hold inexhaustible meaning.

When emotional attachments are forgotten, the sovereign of Heavenly Origin appears of itself;

beyond the transformations of Yin-Yang, the source of creation is revealed.”

After Dao’an returned to the ancestral monastery, the conditions for the Daoist community to flourish came together once more. Within a few years, all who received ordination and entered the Daoist path took him as their master; he had about three hundred disciples. Dozens of Daoist monasteries in the Shaanxi region also received official grants of status from the court.

On the thirteenth day of the second month in the Xinsi year of the Xingding era, Dao’an urged his disciples to cultivate the Dao and advance in De (Virtue). He appointed his fellow disciple Bi Zhichang to succeed him in managing the abbey, then passed away peacefully at the age of eighty. He was buried at the Immortal Cemetery, beside the tombs of the masters. In the spring of the Renzi year of the Great Yuan, the chief patriarch, the Perfected Zhenchang Li Jun, acted on an imperial order to posthumously bestow on Dao’an the title “Perfected Ningxu.”

Master Bi Zhichang, whose surname was Bi and given name Zhichang, came from a prominent local family that had lived for generations in Liquan, Qianzhou. He had four brothers, all devoted to the teachings of stillness and Wuwei (non-action). In 1172, during the Dading era of the Jin dynasty, they heard that the Patriarch Danyang was propagating Daoism at Zuan on Mount Zhongnan, and together they entered monastic life under him. Danyang taught each of them secret methods and, over time, guided them in their studies and practice through poems, leading them ever deeper into the mysteries of the Dao. The brothers all became respected teachers. Zhichang was the youngest, and Danyang kept him at his side to attend to his daily needs and perform household tasks, instructing him day and night. In time, Zhichang gained particular insight into the essentials of cultivating the body and nurturing one’s nature, and of cultivating nature and life.

In the summer of 1182, during the Renyin year of the Dading era, Danyang set out east and instructed Zhichang to travel west into the Longshan Mountains and serve Master Qiu Changchun. Zhichang chopped wood and fetched water there for five years. Whenever his tasks were done, he sat upright in quiet cultivation, often staying awake all night to practice stillness and concentration. In 1191, during the Xinhai year of the Mingchang era, Master Qiu Changchun also traveled east, leaving Zhichang and Lü Dao’an to jointly oversee Zuan. Although Zhichang and Lü Dao’an were peers, Zhichang treated him with the respect due a teacher.

In 1195, during the Yimao year of the Mingchang era, the court promulgated new laws. As Zuan had not obtained an exemption, it was confiscated by the authorities under the regulations. In 1197, during the Dingsi year of the Cheng’an era, Zhichang went to the coast to pay his respects to the masters. Master Qiu Changchun handed over all his possessions to him and personally prepared a fundraising appeal, sending him to various places to preach and solicit donations for Zuan’s reconstruction. The following spring, Zhichang arrived in Yandu. At the time, Master Yuyang had been summoned to serve at court. He called Lü Dao’an to Yandu, purchased the ancestral temple, and converted it into Lingxu Abbey. He also petitioned the court to grant Zhichang the title “Master Tongzhen” and appointed him to help oversee the abbey. Zhichang and Lü Dao’an returned together to the ancestral temple, restoring the vitality of Daoism in the area.

Zhichang was especially skilled in medicine. Whenever he heard that someone was ill, he went to treat them, regardless of whether they were rich or poor. In 1221, during the Xinsi year of the Xingding era, Lü Dao’an died, and Zhichang succeeded him as abbot of Lingxu Abbey, taking responsibility for its worship and daily affairs. He built and expanded many halls and covered walkways, and the abbey’s reputation in Daoism grew steadily. Within a few years, more than a hundred people had joined his community. Before long, he resigned his position and withdrew to Dongzhen Abbey at Wuxing in Qishan County, where he lived in seclusion, got along easily with others, and cultivated body and mind. From time to time, he continued to return to Lingxu Abbey to oversee its affairs.

In 1231, during the Xinmao year of the Zhengda era, warfare broke out in Guanzhong. Zhichang and the local people took refuge together in a ravine on Mount Taibai. On the sixteenth day of the third month, he told his disciples, “Yesterday, while I was in meditation, the mountain god secretly told me that this is no place to stay for long and that we should move elsewhere. With the world in such a state, I cannot bear to witness it myself.” He then burned incense and took leave of the deities. The next morning, he died peacefully. His disciples buried him in a stone chamber at the place where he had lived. Those who had followed his advice and left escaped the calamity; a few days later, the troops arrived, and the residents who had stayed behind all suffered disaster.

In the winter of 1240, the Perfected One of Dongzhen, Master Yu, came to the ancestral temple by order of the court to take charge. Remembering that he and Zhichang had both studied under Danyang and had been close friends for many years, he said to those present, “Bi Tongzhen lived here for more than fifty years and spread the teachings of the patriarchs. He was indeed an outstanding figure in our Daoist community.” He therefore ordered the disciples to move Zhichang’s remains and rebury them in the Immortals’ Cemetery at Liujiang. In the spring of 1252, Master Li, the True and Constant Patriarch, petitioned the court to posthumously grant Zhichang the title “Perfected One of Broad Compassion.”

Inner Traditions of the Immortals at the Ancestral Court of Mount Zhongnan, Middle Volume

Inner Traditions of the Immortals at the Ancestral Court of Mount Zhongnan, Lower Volume

Compiled by Li Daoqian, the Heavenly Music Daoist of Mount Yi

Perfected One Qinghe

Perfected One Qinghe’s surname was Yin, his given name was Zhiping, and his courtesy name was Dahe. His distant ancestors lived in Cangzhou. During the Northern Song dynasty, one of his ancestors served as an official in Laizhou and later settled there. His distinguished great-great-grandmother had seven sons, all of whom passed the jinshi examinations. They later rose through official ranks to serve as…

Yin Zhiping, surnamed Yin, was given the name Zhiping and the courtesy name Dahe. His ancestors lived in Cangzhou. During the Northern Song, one of them served as an official in Laizhou and settled there. His illustrious great-grandmother bore seven sons, all of whom passed the jinshi examination; five went on to serve as prefects. His grandfather, Lord Yin Zhi, and his father, Yin Hongyi, both possessed deep virtue but sought no fame.

Yin Zhiping was born on the twentieth day of the first month of 1169, in the ninth year of the Dading era under the Jin. On the night of his birth, his mother had just fallen asleep when she dreamed of attendants in ceremonial dress entering the house. She awoke in alarm to find that the child had been born. People in the village heard that the Yin home was on fire and hurried to help put it out, only to see the courtyard illuminated with light. They then realized that a child had been born in the Yin family. Everyone said that the Yin family’s accumulated hidden virtue had moved Heaven, and that this child would surely be extraordinary.

By the age of three, Yin Zhiping was exceptionally bright and had a remarkable memory. He began school at five, reciting more than a thousand characters each day and grasping the underlying principles deeply. Even as a child, his bearing differed from that of other children. Once, while attending a sacrificial rite, he contemplated the meaning of life and death so intently that he seemed to forget everything around him.

At fourteen, he met the Patriarch of Danyang—the Quanzhen patriarch Ma Yu—and at once resolved to leave home and cultivate the Dao. His father disapproved and took him back home. When Yin Zhiping was nineteen, his father again forced him to return. Though confined several times, he managed to escape each time and eventually became a disciple. He went to Lingxu Abbey in Wuguan and paid his respects as a disciple to the Patriarch of Changsheng—the Quanzhen patriarch Liu Chuxuan. Before long, he settled at the Western Hermitage in Changyi County, where he often sat alone beneath a tree until dawn. One night, as he sat in meditation, he saw the Patriarch of Changsheng drift toward him, cut off his head, open his chest and remove his heart, then put his head and heart back in place. When he awoke, he had gained great insight. Later, while living at a hermitage in Fushan County, he spent several years aiding the poor and earned the respect of many.

In the early years of the Mingchang era, he heard that the Patriarch of Changchun, Qiu Chuji, had returned to Qixia, and went to serve him. Qiu Chuji held him in especially high regard and passed on everything he knew. The Patriarch of Yuyang, Wang Chuyi, also clasped his hands and discussed the Dao with him on several occasions, imparting oral teachings. Yin Zhiping also studied the Book of Changes with the Patriarch of Taigu, Hao Datong, and learned things rarely heard of among ordinary people. From then on, his cultivation of the Dao grew ever deeper, his reputation spread widely, and people seeking the Dao came from all directions to revere him.

At that time, the Wanyan family of the Hu family in Weizhou was powerful and arrogant, yet admired Yin Zhiping’s virtue. They donated a garden plot to build Jade Purity Abbey for him. Yin Zhiping lived there for several years. The concubines and servants who attended him never saw his face and did not know his name, a sign of how strictly he upheld purity and self-restraint.

In the winter of 1219, the jimao year of the Xingding era under the Jin, Genghis Khan, the Great Ancestor of the Yuan, sent Liu Zhonglu from the Western Regions to summon the Patriarch of Changchun. Liu Zhonglu and Lord Li, known as Zhenchang, from Yidu (Li Zhichang), believed that Qiu Chuji was then living in Donglai, and that this important mission would be difficult to accomplish without first calling on Lord Yin. Liu Zhonglu went to Jade Purity Abbey in Weiyang to meet Yin Zhiping. Seeing his dignified and composed bearing, Liu was overcome with respect and became solemn and self-disciplined. When they discussed the imperial summons, Yin Zhiping was pleased and said, “To use the Dao to awaken the people—now is the right time.” He then accompanied Liu Zhonglu to visit Qiu Chuji at Haotian Abbey in Laizhou.

Previously, both the Jin court and the Southern Song had repeatedly sought to appoint Qiu Chuji, but he had declined. After discussing the matter with Yin Zhiping, Qiu Chuji decided to travel north. Eighteen people went with him, all respected for their virtue at Haotian Abbey in Laizhou, with Yin Zhiping as their leader. They set out in spring 1220, the gengchen year, and returned in autumn 1223, the guiyou year. Over those four years they crossed mountains and rivers and endured many hardships. Qiu Chuji met the Great Ancestor of the Yuan in Western India and answered the emperor in a way that pleased him. After returning to Yunzhong, Qiu Chuji heard that war was raging in Shandong and that the Yuan army was about to move south. He said that the lives of the local people were in danger and that only Yin Zhiping could go to their aid, so he sent him to persuade and comfort them. Many people accepted the offer of reconciliation, and numerous lives were saved.

In 1224, the court ordered Qiu Chuji to preside over Taiji Palace, later known as Changchun Palace. Yin Zhiping was Qiu Chuji’s most trusted disciple, and increasing numbers of people came from all directions to pay him their respects. But Yin Zhiping said he had no merit or virtue and dared not accept such offerings. He resigned from his residence and moved to Longyang Abbey in Dexing. Qiu Chuji wrote to him several times, expressing his intention to entrust him with important responsibilities, and bestowed on him the Daoist title Qinghezi. After Qiu Chuji’s death, Yin Zhiping lived in seclusion at Yanxia Abbey in Shanggu. He had hoped to withdraw from worldly affairs, but people earnestly asked him to lead the religious community, so he had to return to Changchun Palace and take up leadership of the Quanzhen order.

Later, disciples gathered around him, and the courtyard filled with people bringing gifts and gladly offering support. In spring 1232, the renchen year, after returning from his southern campaign, Emperor Taizong met Yin Zhiping at Shuntian and granted him a warm reception. The emperor also ordered the empress and members of the inner palace to burn incense and make offerings at Changchun Palace on his behalf, and bestowed generous rewards.

In summer 1233, the guisi year, Yin Zhiping traveled to Mu-wen Mountain. Li Xuxuan of Taixuan Abbey told people that the previous year a green vapor had circled the abbey for many days in succession. Diviners had said that an extraordinary person would arrive. Now Yin Zhiping had come, and the prediction had proved true. His accounts of teaching and spreading the Dao around Bailiu, along with related sites and remains, are recorded in the Record of the Northern Journey.

In spring 1234, the jiawu year, Yin Zhiping returned south. When he reached Yutian, people were delighted and urged him to stay for a few days. One evening, he suddenly pressed everyone to set out. They traveled fifty or sixty li through the night and stopped in a place thick with grass, though no one understood why. After they returned to the authorities, they learned that while they had been at Yutian, several dozen bandits had planned to rob them. The bandits pursued them as far as Dahe Plain but failed to catch up. His companions all said that without Yin Zhiping, they would probably not have escaped.

That summer, the court sent officials to pacify the Guanzhong region. Just then, Lord Li Wuyu arrived from Weizhou in the Yan region and came to offer sacrifices at the Hall of Honored Attainment. Yin Zhiping instructed him to enter the pass, gather Daoists, and restore the ancestral temple at Liujiang Village on Zhongnan Mountain. In autumn, an envoy from the palace came to convey greetings and bestowed on Yin Zhiping a complete set of Daoist scriptures.

In spring 1235, the yiyi year, Du Dekang, the magistrate of Qinzhou, invited Yin Zhiping to preside over a Yellow Register Jiao, a Zhaijiao purification rite performed to pray for blessings and avert calamities. Yin Zhiping traveled south from Yunzhong, and each day tens of thousands of people waited at a distance along the roads and across the fields to greet him and bow. Qianyu Jade Void Abbey, Shending Abbey in Dun County, Chongyang Abbey in Dingxiang, Xingguo Abbey in Pingyao, and others all asked to enter his lineage. During the rite, the region was suffering from a long drought and there was wind. The Zhaijiao lasted three days and nights, and the lamps and candles used in the ceremony remained steady and still, though the wind continued elsewhere. Du Dekang offered the state’s Divine Empyrean Palace to Yin Zhiping and served him with reverence. Yin Zhiping credited the widespread teaching of the Dao to Patriarch Chongyang, the founder of the Quanzhen tradition, and began devoting himself to restoring the ancestral temple on Zhongnan Mountain.

That winter, Tian Decan, the governor-general of Jingzhao, sent officials together with Lord Li Wuyu to invite Yin Zhiping by letter. This was just what Yin Zhiping had hoped for. In the first month of 1236, the bingshen year, he arrived at Zhongnan Mountain and surveyed the grounds of the ancestral temple. Patriarch Chongyang had cultivated the Dao at Liujiang Village. After completing his cultivation, he burned down his hermitage and headed east, writing in a poem that later generations would rebuild it. Earlier, during the Dading era, the two patriarchs Danyang and Changchun had established abbeys there, but nearly all had been burned in the wars at the end of the Jin. Yin Zhiping expanded the ancestral temple and also left poems about carrying on the Patriarch’s work and rebuilding the site. On the abandoned, level ground, he built walls and buildings, making a preliminary restoration of the abbey. He also assigned the sites of Zongsheng Palace at Louguan, Taiping Palace on Zhongnan Mountain, Taiyi Palace in Tan Valley, Huaqing Palace on Mount Li, and Yuntai Palace on Mount Taihua to respected Daoists in each area for reconstruction.

At that time, the Shaanxi region had only just been pacified. The people had not yet recovered their livelihoods, and the Daoist community struggled to obtain food. Yin Zhiping comforted them through moral teaching and the principles of karmic retribution for good and evil. In summer, the court ordered him to select Daoists of strict discipline to serve as abbots at Helin and pray for the state’s good fortune. In autumn, Yang Weizhong of the Secretariat summoned him back to Yanjing. On the way, a group of bandits bowed to him and, after listening to his instruction, all became law-abiding citizens.

In spring 1238, the wuxu year, Yin Zhiping said, “I am old and have long been weary of burdensome affairs.” On the first day of the first month, he gathered respected Daoists from all regions and transferred his office to Lord Li Zhenchang (Li Zhichang), appointing him to lead the religious community. Afterward, Yin Zhiping expanded the Daoist quarters in the western courtyard of Changchun Palace and at Wuhua Hall, making them places where he could rest in his later years.

In the winter of 1240, the gengzi year, Yilie Baojian, Grand Preceptor of Jingzhao, and Governor-General Tian Decan asked Yin Zhiping to preside over the burial rites of Patriarch Chongyang. He gladly went, undeterred by the cold and the long journey. He often said, “I am going to repay the Patriarch’s kindness.” At the time, Qin was suffering a severe drought, but snow began to fall as soon as he arrived. He held a solemn burial ceremony, which was completed on the twenty-fifth day of the first month of the following year, 1241, the xinchou year. Many construction projects were underway, and several thousand monks, Daoists, and local people often came to help and attend the funeral rites. Their many discussions left people unsettled. Fortunately, Yin Zhiping used his standing to calm the crowd, and the ceremony was completed successfully.

Yin Zhiping often traveled freely among the palaces and abbeys at Louguan with senior Daoists, teaching and spreading the Dao. In the tenth month of that winter, he returned to Yanshan with a ceremonial procession of Daoist immortals and stayed around Yuhua Hall. Officials and ordinary people from near and far all revered him. In spring 1245, the yisi year, he appointed Pan Chonghe to lead the religious community at Chunyang Palace in Yongle, Hedong, so that the palace could be rebuilt. Before long, the empress sent attendants to present him with a golden crown and robes, and ordered officials to escort and protect him. He also sent disciples to repair Jade Purity Abbey in Weiyang; within a few years, the abbey had been transformed.

On the fifth day of the second month of 1251, the xinhai year, Yin Zhiping said to his attendants, “I have always loved the quiet, secluded places of Fangshan, which is why I have lived there. Now sweep the halls for me and prepare the Immortality Ascent Purification Rite, a Daoist Zhaijiao ceremony for praying that the deceased ascend to immortality.” The next day, after burning incense and bowing to the deities, he told everyone, “I am about to leave this world.” Everyone was astonished. He said nothing more, only asking that his funeral be kept simple. He then stopped eating and drank only water and tea. Sitting upright, he spoke of the Dao in a voice as clear and strong as ever. That night, he straightened his clothes, lay on his side with one arm bent, and passed away at the age of eighty-three. His disciples wept in grief as if they had lost their parents. The room filled with fragrance, and people from far and near came continuously to mourn him.

Yin Zhiping had said that he wished to be buried at Dafa. His successor, Lord Li Zhenchang, considered Dafa too far from the capital for people to visit and tend the grave easily, so he arranged for Yin Zhiping to be reburied at Wuhua. A hall called “Return to the Real” was built there, and incense was offered in his honor. During his lifetime, Yin Zhiping wrote the Collection for Preserving the Light, which has been passed down to this day. In the autumn, in the ninth month of 1261, the second year of the Zhongtong era, the court issued an edict posthumously granting him the title “Perfected Person of the Clear and Harmonious, Wondrous Dao, and Broad Transformation.”