《葆光集》

Before heaven and earth had formed, the true essence of heaven and earth was already contained within them; when pure Qi and turbid Qi were about to separate, the mystery of Yin-Yang transformation began to operate. Thus the Three Powers (Sancai) of heaven, earth, and humanity were established, the myriad things transformed and came into being, every kind of thing grew and flourished, and extraordinary people continually appeared in the world.

This Perfected Person (Zhenren), surnamed Yin, had a family that for generations lived in Cangzhou. It is said that one of his ancestors was one of nine sons born to a single mother; seven of them held important posts and were each enfeoffed with eight counties. Thereafter the family became prominent and flourishing, and to this day steles still record it. By the generation of the Zhenren, the family’s prestige had become even more notable.

In childhood the Zhenren could already enter meditative concentration, probing the roots of heaven and earth’s creation; as a youth he left household life and understood the methods of cultivating nature and life, transcending the world, and ascending as an immortal. He guided people and aided all beings, examining ancient affairs while comparing them with the present, investigating the beginning and end of all matters, and ordering the sequence of worthy figures through the ages. He spread teaching widely and treated others generously, acting without contention and not taking offense when others transgressed. His heart held benevolence, and benevolent virtue naturally appeared; even when he met unwholesome people, he embraced them with good will.

He understood the trends and deviations of human feeling, and he also understood the principles of the hidden and the manifest. What had already happened in the past he no longer pursued; what lay in the future could still be remedied by effort. He knew the ways of advance and retreat, survival and destruction, and could make allowances for differences of great and small, many and few. Rumors could not shake him, nor could slander or praise alter his mind. Rich in experience, he could calmly meet the ups and downs of life. He followed worldly customs without being bound by them and merged with the dust of the world without revealing himself; even when in the midst of turbidity, he could settle himself and use words to awaken others.

He wrote elegant poetry and prose, hoping to transmit his intention to later generations; he expounded beneficial teachings, hoping to be of help to the people of his time. His teaching could continue the transmission of the Quanzhen (Complete Perfection) Dao, clarify the orthodox tradition, open the mysterious methods and gates, and guide the path toward the Three Pure Ones (Sanqing), the three highest deities honored in Daoism. He raised high the light of wisdom to pierce evil darkness, revived the tradition of the school, cleansed fierce evil and defilement, made the Daoist gate pure and the realms peaceful, and led people out of dark, deluded paths toward the blessed realm of pure cultivation represented by Changchun Zhenren.

It was as if he would open a numinous pond and plant ten thousand golden lotuses; or as if he rode a spirit boat through the sky, carrying a bright moon. From this one may know that the human mind is hard to tame, and that cultivation of the Dao cannot be imposed by force. Sometimes the Zhenren treasured the Dao-mind like a precious jewel and sat in stillness, forgetting himself; sometimes he dispelled anxious thoughts and was leisurely content. Though he dwelt in one corner, his mind and spirit could travel through distant places; and he could gather the vast world into the minute.

His mind-ground was bright and clear, able to illumine the root before seeing, hearing, perceiving, and knowing arise; his nature-sea—his pure inherent nature—was deep, vast, and clear, and he saw clearly the processes by which things pass through formation, abiding, decay, and destruction. When responding to stimulus he responded; when not needed he withdrew. He was detached in the realm of non-arising and roamed freely within quiescence. Body and mind were immovable in suchness, beyond the long kalpas; awareness was clear and ever-present, constantly abiding in the present. He could see through all matters and principles, perfect and harmonious everywhere; he could use what was at hand and also release it with a turn of thought. He was familiar with all methods and gates and understood that the myriad phenomena ultimately return to the original mind; after many kalpas of cultivation, he realized the realm of the One Truth and was united with the Dao.

Therefore he had long since left the dusty world and dwelt for long in the immortal realms, roaming freely in the azure sky and quietly enjoying hidden scenes in Qingdu, the immortal palace of Daoist tradition. In the higher realm a meeting with his master was appointed a thousand years apart; in the lower realm a day was set, and on the following day he descended to be born into the world. This is the highest propriety not bound by form and the highest humility needing no words; his virtue is difficult to name with ordinary fine titles, and it accords exactly with the ancient ideal of not claiming virtue for oneself. His causes and conditions brought blessings, yet his actions were without selfish intent.

He harbored the profound intention of promoting the Great Dao and made himself a model for teaching the world. He never failed in the smallest details of conduct and ultimately achieved great works; his character was pure and lofty, and he rightly deserved a fair reputation. I venture to write these immature words to praise the Zhenren’s profound feeling for the Dao; disregarding the fault of offending against the rules, I privately proclaim the Master Perfected Person’s boundless merit.

The Baoguang Ji (Collection of Guarded Radiance) was composed by a Quanzhen (Complete Perfection) Perfected One. During the thirteen years in which he received and upheld the teaching, he constantly resided in the Baoguang Studio within Baoxuan Hall of the Great Changchun Palace. Every day scholar-officials of the capital and elders from distant places came to seek instruction and benefit, and some also asked for poems in exchange. Sometimes he gave expression to his feelings and entrusted his interests to verse; sometimes he wrote poems to encourage and admonish others; and when traveling through various places and viewing scenery, he also wrote inscriptions and chanted praises. These poems, lyrics, songs, and encomia were arranged in order and divided into three juan, with the name of the studio where he lived used as the book’s title.

Some explain that “bao” carries the sense of covering, concealing, and protecting, meaning to gather in the numinous and luminous mind-consciousness so that it does not scatter outward; even while responding to ten thousand transformations, one does not lose the inner substance of empty quietude. “Guang” is illumination, meaning to illuminate and pierce through darkness, to proceed calmly and without falling into confusion, and ultimately to enter “Xiyi,” the subtle and hardly perceptible realm of the Dao-body. “Ji” is gathering, meaning to collect many treasures such as pearls and jade and to apply them to relieve the poor and suffering. This roughly explains the title and the purpose behind compiling the book.

Others say that in writing poetry there are four kinds of refinement: refining words is not as good as refining lines; refining lines is not as good as refining poetic form; refining poetic form is not as good as refining poetic meaning. Poetic meaning is the expression of aspiration and the destination of poetic thought. Therefore, when aspiration is stored in the heart and then expressed, it becomes poetry. Poetry need not have ingenious wording and forceful diction; what is valuable in works such as the “Airs of the States” and “Minor Odes” in the Classic of Poetry lies in their virtue and aspiration. Aspiration is grounded in the Dao; when stirred, it lodges in words, and after harmonization and restraint it forms a literary composition. Literary composition is expressed through speech; as long as what is said accords with the upright way and is free of fault, inner thoughts will not become perverse.

Poetry should rectify temperament and nature, clarify gain and loss, and take loyalty and trustworthiness as primary; it should guard against scheming, stop violence, uphold softness and weakness, value compassion and frugality, remove extravagance, and promote lofty integrity and good teaching. The Perfected One’s poems deeply grasp these essentials. For example: “Truly cultivating in the heart is the real treasure; empty words in the mouth are not worth calling wondrous.” It also says: “Once the source of wisdom is muddied by selfish desire, wickedness will grow; the more conspicuous the forms of courtesy, the more virtue may decline.” It also says: “Of those with violent temperaments, one often hears that they turn into tigers; those with compassionate hearts truly see wood turn into a flying dragon.” It also says: “No matter how the external demonic obstructions change in a thousand ways, a single true heart will not be frightened.” It also says: “Neither favor nor disgrace disturbs the nature of the noble person, nor can right and wrong shake the body and mind of the Dharma King, an honorific in Buddhism and Daoism for the awakened.” Examples of this kind appear in every poem, and I hope readers will take note and appreciate them. If one is lazy and does not read them, or careless and does not understand them, that is truly to be lamented.

Du Dekang, the magistrate of Qinzhou, was a worthy man of the time. As soon as he saw this collection, he wished to make it available to everyone, so he provided funds to have it block-printed and circulated in order to broaden its transmission. In this way, he hoped that people of talent and insight and those of like aspiration, upon reading the text, would understand its true principle and grasp its purport; suddenly cast off the entanglements of the dusty world, transcendently tend toward true emptiness, have their names recorded on the Dantai (Cinnabar Terrace, the dwelling of immortals in Daoist lore), and forever transcend birth and death. This may truly be called the mind of a benevolent person.

On the Double Ninth Festival of the Jihai year, the disciple Yanxia Yiren (the Free Man of Mist and Clouds), having bathed and burned incense, respectfully wrote this.

Baoguang Ji, Volume One, composed by Qinghe Zhenren Yin Zhiping.

Seven-Character Quatrains

Jinshan

From Xuan Dezhou to the camp of Lord Tian is about seven or eight thousand li; that place is precisely north of Jinshan.

After traveling northwest for nearly eight thousand li, the route turned south and passed through Jinshan. Looking again to the southwest, I then saw Yinshan faintly appearing in the distance.

Another

I once traveled west with transcendents, going more than five thousand li to where the river forks. People know only that the Eastern Sea receives the rivers flowing east, but they do not see that the great river comes from the northwest.

Another

Going west out of Yinshan, there are still ten thousand li of road; beyond one range of mountains lies another river. I myself crossed the great river five times; apart from this, I have not seen other mountains and rivers with my own eyes.

Passing Through the Khitan State of Dashi Linya

“Dashi” is a Khitan word and also the title of a scholar; “Linya” was his childhood name. The people of the Central Plains used “Dashi Linya” as the state name for the regime he founded.

After the Liao state was conquered by the Jin state, he lost his homeland and fled west into lands of other peoples, trudging ten thousand li. For ten years he built and expanded his domain, yet was never able to settle it; finally he came here and devoted himself to farming and sericulture.

Another

Only by the fighting strength of the assembled heroes was he able to obtain land for farming and sericulture. Dashi Linya made himself king here. For several generations its rulers amassed a million troops; by now the state has declined, and only desolate cities remain.

Produce in the Western Regions Ripens Early

The season when produce ripens in the Western Regions is earlier than in the Central Plains, so I record this matter.

When thirsty, I had already tasted yellow plums; when hungry, I took white mulberries to stave off hunger. At this time the Central Plains had only just entered the Xiaoman solar term; early summer had just arrived, while in the Western Regions the mulberries were already ripe and the plums and wheat had turned yellow.

While the Master Was Away

It happened that the Master had gone out on business, and only one or two cloud-and-water adepts—Daoist cultivators who wandered from place to place—came to call each day, so I wrote this poem.

After the Master left, visits among friends became fewer. Even those who knew each other in heart seemed, in their dealings, not to know each other after all. With my aspirations held in my breast, I forget worldly feelings; those who can communicate with my mind are precisely the people who best suit my heart.

The Li Controller, who managed affairs in the prefect’s household, came once every day.

This road of cultivating the Dao (the Way) is hard to walk; each step must climb higher. When worldly people see it, they often only waste their strength; the Daoist friend from Longxi understood what it meant, and so was always able to snatch leisure from busyness and come once each day.

Self-Chant

Worldly distracting thoughts no longer arise now; I only worry that my cultivation of the Dao and De (Virtue/Power) is not yet sincere enough. Having received my master’s hundreds and thousands of instructions and teachings, in the end there is no other secret: it is simply arduous practice.

Lord Duan Finds a Small Fish and Releases It

He obtained a tiny fish by asking for it, to save it from being cooked, and returned it to the stream to let it swim freely. Do not say that it will become a great whale in the future; just look at the present—swimming at ease, it is already delightful.

Written at Baoxuan Hall

Stepping outside and raising my eyes, I see the Western Mountains; only because my karmic affinity is shallow, I still cannot return into the mountains. Though while at Baoguang (the name of a Daoist temple) my life is relaxed and free, this heart constantly longs for the mountain forests among the white clouds.

Harmonizing with Academician Chen

The Western Mountains are wrapped in clouds and mist all day, only because the human heart has not yet fully understood. Whoever is willing to turn back and seek instruction in the mountain forests, to recognize his original face, is a true immortal.

Harmonizing with Lecturer Zhao

Do not let even the slightest distracting thought hang in your mind. I solemnly entrust four lines to you: among people, do not pick at others’ faults; only by doing this can one be called noble in Dao and De.

Commissioner Liu, Ill, Asks for a Poem

If you wish your body to be light and healthy, secure and free from illness, you might try following Changchun (the Perfected Qiu Chuji of Changchun) to Baoxuan for practice. If you can persist for a hundred days and gradually eliminate old habits and accumulated defects, then in days to come your bones will be strong and your spirit complete.

By My Master’s Command I Went to Shandong; Parting from Yanjing, I Happened to Compose a Quatrain

Returning from the Western Regions, I have already traveled ten thousand li, yet I still have not found a quiet place for seclusion. In the future, if I can reach a place of ease and leisure, I will quietly close the brushwood gate and no longer go out.

Harmonizing with Wang the Daoist Registrar

Seeing through all things as empty, let them come and go; in all encounters one can perceive in the heart as a flower opens. Words of right and wrong, once heard, are done—there is no need to ask again and again; throughout life, keep Dao and De in the heart.

The influence of moral instruction spread widely, and it happened to coincide with Changchun Zhenren (Qiu Chuji, patriarch of the Quanzhen school of Daoism). Regardless of whether they were officials, scholars, or common people, he guided them all toward the Purple Mansion (Zifu, the immortal realm) and awakened them to leave the red dust (the secular world).

The Zhenren had both celestial immortals and human cultivators, and these four quatrains were written in harmony with the original rhymes.

The true immortals in heaven are occupied with the affairs of Wuwei (non-action), while people in the human world are ignorant and entangled with one another. They do not know that the mind is the root of all things, and all day long they vainly worship the gods of the ten directions.

Another poem:

The minds of the immortals in heaven are originally interconnected, while the various methods in the human world are ultimately like emptiness. People do not understand the mystery of Dao and De as an undifferentiated whole, and still argue over west and east.

Another poem:

The solemn realms in heaven are formed through the power of Dao, while the dharma images in the human world (enshrined divine statues) are carefully constructed. People do not understand that the Supreme Sage (the highest sage) reveals expedient methods, yet they cling to fixed views and remain benighted—how many can wake up?

Another poem:

Those who truly penetrate cultivation are very few; statues are set up in the human world so that people may have something to rely on. If someone suddenly awakens to the principle of non-arising (transcending birth and death and realizing one’s original nature), that person is the highest vessel for cultivation within our Daoist tradition.

The assembly leader in Yanjing (the person presiding over Daoist gatherings) asked how to accumulate blessings.

Accumulating blessings must begin with harming oneself to benefit others; cultivating truth simply requires being willing to let go of selfishness. The worthy and accomplished from ancient times to the present have not had many complicated methods; to possess both merit and wisdom—that is the foremost kind of person.

Self-description:

I know myself that my body is weak and that I am often ill, yet ordinarily my five viscera remain peaceful and harmonious. Although I have not yet ascended to the blue sky (the high celestial realm), I am fortunate that in this life I have avoided bitter struggle with the demons of the mind.

Another poem:

People envy strength and regard it as talent; I instead believe that only softness and weakness can preserve life. Look at those in the world who crave fame—they usually fall into bitter struggle within the dusty world.

Another poem:

I have received my master’s teaching and cultivated for thirty years now, and my master has several times rebuked me for not being thorough enough in what I do. Secretly and swiftly correcting myself, I can gradually mature; yet even up to death, cultivation may still not be complete.

I obtained two rooms below Baoxuan Hall.

Two quiet rooms, one of them left empty; a single mat for peaceful sleep, and joy naturally within the heart. Do not blame me for forgetting poverty and being content with things as they are—it is only because my cultivation of the Dao is not yet proficient.

Another poem:

I sleep in a warm and bright room, and recall that many people in the world are still suffering from cold. Throughout the three winter months (the whole winter), who can pass the days safely? Many people year after year endure the bitterness of war.

The Baoguang Collection

Dwelling quietly in a quiet chamber, the light within the mind becomes clearer; ordinarily one does not provoke the passions and desires of the world. Let external scenes and demonic hindrances disturb one a thousand or a hundred times—the one true heart remains undisturbed.

Again

Originally one . . .

Again

Dwelling quietly in a quiet chamber, the light within the mind becomes clearer; ordinarily one does not provoke the passions and desires of the world. Let external scenes and demonic hindrances disturb one a thousand or a hundred times—the one true heart remains undisturbed.

Again

The original spark of spiritual nature is most solitary, lofty, and wondrously numinous; once it is stained by human feelings and worldly affairs, all kinds of matters arise in succession. If one wishes to return to the source and attain purity and quietude, one should return to simplicity and enter the realm of completeness.

Again

When there is purposeful activity, one practices the Dao (the Way) and cultivates, learning the Way of Changchun; when affairs are set aside, one devotes the mind to quiet cultivation and silently realizes the true Dao. Once one’s nature is penetrated, there is no distinction between inner and outer; the waxing and waning changes of Yin-Yang likewise admit no distinction of close or distant.

Again

Laboring over clever verses, what after all is there to contend for? When inspiration comes, one freely jots and chants. Expressing one’s temperament and saying what is in the heart is only for freely discussing principle; when inspiration arises naturally, one simply finds joy in it and does not seek fame.

A Chan Monk Shows an Ink-Bamboo Painting and Asks for a Poem

Receiving a few stalks of Huangshan bamboo, I unroll the painting for a Daoist to admire. Let worldly time rush past—I pay no heed to flourishing and withering, nor do I care about cold winter or the year’s end.

A Daoist Friend Asks for Tea

Clear, refreshing Qi (vital energy) arises naturally; the mind is often free and bright. Drowsiness is driven away, and body and mind feel cool and clear. Purposeful undertakings ultimately return to arising, perishing, and change; the state of no affairs and Wuwei (non-action) is naturally stable and enduring.

Climbing High

When white dew falls, autumn is already deep; red leaves drift one by one among the cold woods. At the Yellow Flower Pavilion I enjoy several pleasures—raising my cup and drinking freely, singing aloud, thereby giving vent to inspiration.

Self-Reflection on Loving Quiet

I have always wanted to argue before others; whenever matters arose, I would search everywhere and seek out wondrous principles. Only today do I understand that my former way was wrong: forgetting words and forgetting the self, one’s original nature can appear complete.

Again

I often see indulgence in passions bring unexpected disaster, yet I have never heard that the supreme Dao brings calamity. From ancient times to the present, by what have people obtained the opportunity to become immortals? Always because they could keep the mind pure and quiet.

Listening to Geese Under the Moon at Baoxuan Hall

The Yanshan mountains are vast and open, and the night is especially clear; sitting quietly, I hear one or two calls of the journeying geese. The bold gallant is busy all day, with attachments in his heart; the recluse in secluded dwelling, sitting quietly alone, finds his hearing all the more keen.

Again

After the beginning of autumn, the colors of Baoxuan Mountain become ever clearer and brighter. In the deep stillness of night, one can hear the calls of wild geese. I sit quietly in silence, and sleep is hard to come by; moonlight shines upon my heart, as if both were extraordinarily bright.

Looking at Cockscomb Flowers

The red cockscomb flowers, after blooming for ten days, mostly wither; the pure purple ones, even into late autumn, can still withstand the wind. Do not regard all flowers as the same; their innate dispositions and foundations are not identical.

To Scholar Chen

Worldly discussions each have their own views, yet do not necessarily understand the actual situation.

The talk of the human world is noisy like beating a drum, never exhausted; only transcendent, otherworldly pure conversation can be said to touch its true meaning. Who can understand that a window seems separated by only a layer of paper, yet the wind outside and the wind inside are not the same?

Matching Scholar Wu’s Five Poems Presented to the Perfected One (Zhenren)

Fortunately born a man and raised in the Central Plains—the ancient name for the Central Plain region—one should resolve to become an outstanding person on the immortal path. Learn from the examples of Mr. Pang and the Xu family, so that the whole family may together ascend in lightness, escaping burial in a desolate mound after death. Mr. Pang and the Xu family are figures in Daoist legend who cultivated the Dao as a family and thereby ascended to immortality.

Again

I am content with my lot and delight in a quiet life, and thus avoid having a vain reputation in the human world. With a tranquil nature, one can naturally penetrate the true Dao; with a leisurely mind, why bother to read books so strenuously?

Again

In cultivating and seeking the truth, one lacks firm resolve and merely hopes that everything will come naturally; one puts things off until next year, and next year puts them off until the year after. One only waits for Lord Yin—the divine clerk in charge of affairs in the underworld—to send definite news, but when that time comes, where will one seek the immortals?

Again

If a person lacks decisive and firm resolve, he cannot truly be at leisure. Day after day, the hair at the temples gradually turns gray. Everyone says that mountains, forests, and springs are suited to cultivating the Dao, but from ancient times to the present, how many people have truly succeeded in cultivation and returned to the mountains?

Written at Tianchang Abbey

If one lightly becomes tainted by fleeting fame, one is easily drawn along by it as if possessed; how much more so when human feelings and worldly affairs grow more numerous by the day. Indulging in the scenes before one’s eyes and delaying without decision, if this goes on for long, what will become of one’s future?

Poem on Scholar Chen’s Request for a Crown and Hairpin

In my dealings with others, I value treating them with sincerity; the crown and hairpin—the cap and hairpin worn by Daoists—are not casually given away. Your physiognomy and bearing are not like those of a worldly person; when would you be willing to come again to the mountains and forests to meet?

Poem on Scholar Chen’s Request for a Crown and Hairpin

In my dealings with others, I value treating them with sincerity; the crown and hairpin—the cap and hairpin worn by Daoists—are not casually given away. Your physiognomy and bearing are not like those of a worldly person; when would you be willing to come again to the mountains and forests to meet?

To Liu Huishou (Assembly Leader Liu), head of the Daoist community in Yanjing: after he renounced household life and wished to reside at Yunfeng Abbey above the Western Hills, I composed two poems to present to him.

Daoist teachings have already spread widely throughout the Youyan region, and many people with karmic affinity have come to listen and practice. Only you have truly grasped their meaning; in your heart you awakened long ago. Now that you dwell quietly in the Western Hills, you should be all the more firm in cultivation and not turn back.

Another

You have a karmic bond with the Dao and entered the Dao as early as in Pengcheng. With single-minded devotion you submitted your written vows and bowed to the mysterious Dao. Now you have become the abbot of Yunfeng Abbey; before you have even reached the immortal realm of Penglai, you already seem like an immortal.

Occasional Composition at Baoxuan Hall

Seeing through the truth that the body is originally empty, all dharmas of the world are empty as well. The mind is peaceful and unmoved, yet it can resonate with all things and connect with them. The eternal and true Dao responds to things without the slightest obstruction; wondrous transformations thereby reveal the sage’s cultivation and merit.

Another

The sun rises in the east and sets in the west each day; fleeting time passes ceaselessly like floating clouds. Now I am past sixty and gradually growing old; I can only cherish every moment of time in a quiet dwelling.

Catching Ignorance

Do not let the fire of ignorance (Wuming, unenlightened delusion) blaze unchecked; the very place where ignorance arises is also where true nature is revealed. When encountering things, if you see through the wondrous point of ignorance, you can transform delusion into clear awakening.

Verses on Cultivation at the Five Watches

When the night’s meditation and cultivation are over, just at the first watch, gather in the mind and spiritual clarity, and let the heart return to emptiness and stillness. The ears no longer hear the disturbances of the dusty world; the disposition is quiet and clear, and the heart is filled with peace and joy.

Another

At the second watch, all is silent and at ease—truly free. The one Qi (the continuous breath in cultivation) circulates back and forth naturally. When cultivation and practice are complete, the yin and malevolent qi in the Three Fields (the upper, middle, and lower Dantian) disperse; once the work is accomplished, one may be ranked among the immortals.

Another

At the third watch and third point, the first yang is newly born; the Six Jia, Three Primes, and Five Qi all become clear. If one’s original nature and foundation did not transcend creation and transformation, how could one perfect the precious treasure of life through cultivation?

Another

At the fourth watch, demonic hindrances retreat, as if troops and weapons have been driven away. One sleeps peacefully, as if great peace has arrived. In dreams one is clear and lucid, unattached to anything; after waking, the heart still retains a limpid clarity.

Another

As the fifth watch draws to an end, the resolve is firm as a mountain. Do not say that immortals are nowhere to be found; the root of longevity lies right in the square-inch heart.

Bitterly Taking Leave of the Perfected One to Go to Mount Jin

The great calamities and turmoil continue without cease, and the world is still not at peace. I take leave of my master and the assembly, my resolve firm as iron and stone. How should one describe the cultivator’s resolute departure? Even at the final hour, to accomplish this is truly difficult.

On the twentieth day of the eleventh month of the Jiashen year, a question arose in my heart.

Painfully Taking Leave of the Zhenren (Perfected One) and Heading for Mount Jin

The great kalpa was in turmoil, and the world was not yet at peace; when I took leave of my master and bade farewell to everyone, my resolve was firm as iron. How should one describe the resolve of a cultivator who decisively departs? Even knowing that this journey might bring death, when the moment actually came it was still a difficult choice.

On the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month of the Jiashen year, I took leave of my master. Liu Bianyi urged me to stay for several days, and afterward sent several horsemen to escort me to the Daoist abbey at Mount Jin.

The several horsemen briskly escorted me as I bade farewell to the ancient Yan region; after crossing the Northern Pass, my heart suddenly felt expansive. I traveled as if floating, at last fulfilling a lifelong wish; on horseback I leisurely chanted poems and entered the immortal realm within the mountains.

Again:

A favorable wind brought me to Mount Jia; I pillow on stone and lie among the clouds, free and at leisure. No clamor of the dusty marketplace reaches my ears; my spirits rose with keen interest, and I thought of the Western Pass.

Again:

In the depths of the coldest winter, snow lay thick over the mountains; an east wind carried me across Yong Pass. The ties of affection in the human world are exhausted; fortunately Heaven has shown its protection. Could it be that my road ahead may still hold a span of free and quiet days?

Written at Qiuyang Abbey

I have heard that the scenery of Qiuyang Abbey is pure and secluded; immortals once came in person to this rocky height. The verses left by Changchun Zhenren (a Daoist figure) are truly like a painting, recited everywhere—when will they ever cease?

Again:

Now I stroll at leisure, chanting poems and composing verses, my interest still unexhausted. Think of those travelers whose fame has spread far and who are held in high esteem—how many of them can ever return to this rocky height?

Again:

I have visited many famous mountains, yet in the end it was still hard to exhaust my delight.

Again:

Now I stroll at leisure, chanting poems and composing verses, my interest still unexhausted. Think of those travelers whose fame has spread far and who are held in high esteem—how many of them can ever return to this rocky height?

Again:

I have visited countless famous mountains, but none had a setting as pure and secluded as Qiuyang Abbey. Last year a true immortal (one accomplished in cultivation) came here; this winter, I, a carefree idler, have also come to visit.

Spring Day

Qiuyang Abbey is remote and far from the capital; I had not yet noticed how secludedly beautiful was the transformation brought by the god of spring. Do not be surprised that the light of spring comes late—the gentle spring wind is in fact already close at hand, blowing upon the rocky height.

Again:

In this life I have no attachments; I let myself wander to the ends of the earth, like tumbleweed before the wind and duckweed following the water, passing the years. I no longer ask whether my homeland is peaceful and happy; wherever there is a karmic affinity to settle in a quiet place, that place is my home.

Written at Longyang Abbey on Qingming Day

To act in response to the ten thousand things without being moved by emotion, with the six sense faculties (eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, and mind) peaceful and harmonious, body and mind are naturally calm and balanced. When the Qi of the Three Fields (the upper, middle, and lower Dantian, the gathering places of the body’s Qi in Daoist internal cultivation) is abundant, a thousand demonic obstacles dissolve; when a single thread of numinous light penetrates through, the ten thousand principles of the Dharma become clear.

Again:

Leisurely Chants Transcending the Dusty World

Leisurely chants that transcend the dusty world have a clear and elegant tone, opening the heart and dispelling confusion. When the wind of wisdom blows past, the obscuring mist and clouds scatter, revealing the originally bright moon. Here, wind scattering the clouds and the bright moon appearing describe a clear and limpid state of mind.

Late-Spring Snow Behind the Mountain

Spring was nearly over when thunder suddenly sounded from the cold clouds. Snowflakes on the northern mountain piled up like jade dust. The lovely peach blossoms were gone, no one knew where; one saw only several pear trees in bloom.

Outside the Western Pass, Selecting a Hermitage Site with Ambassador Hua Zong

Several riders came briskly from beyond the pass and roamed in a Dongtian (the fairyland spoken of in Daoism), unfolding their hearts. I do not seek deep affection from relatives and friends; I only wish that those who know me may open the Dao-eye (the vision that recognizes the great Dao).

Another

Living at leisure beyond the pass, the scenery is profoundly clear and secluded. The mountains are deep and the waters far; the river flows long onward. I need not wash my ears like Xu You—my mind is naturally calm—nor do I expect my reputation to catch up with Xu You (the legendary recluse).

After the New Completion of Longyang Abbey

Longyang Abbey had just been completed. Its garden was about five mu, with an old pine tree in it. The poet planted melons around the pine, weeded and tended the seedlings each day, then rested beneath the old pine and presented the poem to fellow practitioners of the Dao.

I followed my teacher in cultivation, yet my blessings are shallow, and I could not fit into dusty worldly affairs; receiving support from others was truly hard for me to bear, so I withdrew. I laugh at myself for being unable to become a great vessel, and at Longyang I am content to be a melon grower.

Behind Longyang Abbey stood an old pine. Mr. Feng praised it as solitary, lofty, upright, and outstanding, unchanged over the long years.

The ancient pine of Longyang is enviable: through winter its branches and leaves remain green and unchanged. Solitary, lofty, and upright, it is worthy to be a companion—how could it be like flowers and grasses, which flourish only for a time?

From □yang East to Jinshan, About Two Hundred Li: Its Products Are Unmatched Elsewhere

From □yang eastward to Jinshan is about two hundred li. The products of the place are hard for other regions to match.

Huailai has jade liquid; Dexing has famous flowers; they are not inferior to the fine scenery of the Central Plains. Moreover, the person of leisure truly knows how to enjoy it: a stretch of valley planted with hemp and wheat is a stable livelihood.

On the Double Fifth Day, Visiting Lingjing Temple on Baitie Mountain with the Daoist Community of Dexing Prefecture

On the day of the Double Fifth Festival, I joined the Daoist community of Dexing Prefecture in visiting Lingjing Temple on Baitie Mountain.

To seek transcendence from the dusty world, I climbed the western peak, passing along sixty winding mountain paths. Coming to a secluded grotto-heaven (dongtian, the cave abode or blessed realm where immortals dwell), utterly removed from the dust, one feels especially calm in mind and spirit.

Again

My hair is already white, yet I am still a student of the Dao, able to enjoy mountains and waters at ease. In youth I worked hard and diligently within my teacher’s school; in old age, body and mind have finally found freedom.

Only by not clinging to gaining anything can one truly employ the mind in accord with natural spontaneity.

What I most love is to chant poetry facing the moon and greeting the clear wind; lines are written down at random and set aside just as freely, without laboring the mind. I know that what I utter is all empty appearance (kongxiang, phenomena without fixed substance); only those who truly understand will appreciate these lines.

In midsummer I passed through Wuchuan, and a Daoist friend kept me there to spend the summer. I replied: “In Longchang, by the seventh month, the melons before the hall are already ripe.” So I wrote this poem.

Wherever karmic conditions bring one is where life is lived. When merit and practice are complete, it is as if solid flowers and fruit have formed. In former days I made an agreement with Longyang: after the roof beam was raised, we could taste the new melons.

At the residence of the Fifth Lady I saw a strange cypress and a meditation bed; they felt familiar, so I wrote this poem.

Wherever karmic conditions bring one is where life is lived. When merit and practice are complete, it is as if solid flowers and fruit have formed. In former days I made an agreement with Longyang: after the roof beam was raised, we could taste the new melons.

After seeing the strange cypress and meditation bed at the Fifth Lady’s residence, I composed a poem:

The meditation bed beside the ancient cypress is a place for pure Daoist cultivation; to meet here is truly a rare good affinity. We sat together all day, forgetting words and discussion, each upholding purity and integrity, peacefully passing the years.

Politely declining a Daoist friend, I planned to go to Longyang:

Spending the summer in Wuchuan is more comfortable than in Longyang. In the sixth month, cool breeze naturally comes before the window. I only fear that before my work is accomplished I may leave too early and fail to wait to taste a good melon.

When I had retired to a rocky cave, one day Pan Shi brought the master’s title and granted me the title “Qinghe Dashi” (Great Master of Clear Harmony). After the messenger returned, I wrote a poem to express my thanks.

Calming deluded thoughts, I study the Dao and its methods and escape the troubles of the dusty world; resolving to cultivate the truth, I would fly up to Daluo (the highest immortal realm in Daoism). For thirty years my cultivation has still not succeeded, yet I have been graciously granted the empty name “Qinghe”; I am ashamed in my heart.

Again

In the past I once held a purple office in the Jade Clarity realm (Yuqing, an immortal realm in Daoism); now I am willing to wear a Daoist robe beneath the mountain cliffs. Let worldly affairs undergo a thousand changes; I only seek to preserve leisure and keep my primordial Qi (yuanqi) peaceful.

Again

By restraining myself and cultivating the true Dao, I may suffer fewer disturbances from demons; having always kept to my proper station, I can also find some scope for action. Now I am old and disappointed in my hopes, yet I have gained the title “Dashi”; I am truly ashamed before the immortal Zhang Zhihe. I only wish to dwell at leisure by myself and preserve a body of harmonious Qi.

Restraining selfish desires and cultivating the true nature will reduce the obstacles one encounters. In life, if one simply keeps to one’s proper station, one can manage affairs well. Now I am down and out and disappointed, yet I have also assumed the title of master; I am truly ashamed before the immortal Zhang Zhihe.

Again

Coarse food can fill the belly and also enable one to overcome the demons of the mind; worn clothes can cover the body and are better than wearing silk and satin. Hollow fame and profit make people lose their way amid bustle; true cultivation and practice are accumulated more in purity and stillness.

Enjoying the Moon After Rain in the Mountains

After the rain stops, the western mountains look especially clear and bright beneath the lucid, silent sky. In the azure sky a full moon hangs high like a bright precious mirror. The Daoist sits late at night admiring the moonlight, loving that single point of perfect, numinous radiance.

Again

After the rain the moon over the western mountains is especially bright; enjoying the moon together at Mid-Autumn best conveys a serene and secluded mood. The cool clear moonlight shatters the boldness of the benighted inner demons, leaving one sleepless all night, the whole body feeling fresh and limpid.

Again

In the mountains all is still; the clouds and mist disperse, and the night is clear. The moonlight is limpid and illuminates the high, distant sky. Moonlight shines into one’s heart, leaving no other anxiety; in the heart there is only poetic feeling and Daoist feeling.

Written Following the Rhyme of Lord Duan, the Daoist Registrar

I have walked over thousands and tens of thousands of mountains, yet nowhere my eyes saw could make me smile. Only that expanse of misty, rosy clouds beyond the passes still remains in my heart, yet it seems to exist in a vague, ethereal realm.

The western study of Baoxuan Hall is named Guanmiao Hall. Following the rhymes of Lord Duan’s poem, I casually composed a quatrain.

Sitting alone in Guanmiao Hall within the Mysterious Palace, silent and wordless, I gather my mind and nurture the inner light. If one day I cultivate a nature of undivided wholeness, it will fill heaven and earth, as though there were nowhere it could be contained.

Harmonizing with the Rhymes of the Worthies on Red Stone

The ochre-red stone, ground again and again, is not inferior in color to cinnabar. By unraveling difficult passages, one can grasp the joy of Zhenru (the realm of true reality, true and undeluded). Simply because I have analyzed the meaning of the Caojing, a single point of spiritual nature can penetrate the classics of all ages.

Harmonizing with the Rhymes of the Worthies on Red Stone

The ochre-red stone, ground again and again, is not inferior in color to cinnabar. By unraveling difficult passages, one can grasp the joy of Zhenru. Simply because I have analyzed the meaning of the Caojing, a single point of spiritual nature can penetrate the classics of all ages.

Again

Stones like fine jade and refined gold both come from the mountains, but they cannot replace the vermilion red of this thing. When what is clear and evident in the Yujue (Jade Instructions, referring to Daoist oral formulas or secret essentials) is pointed out, the doubts right before one’s eyes all dissolve.

Lamenting: What Good Is Empty Fame to Oneself?

Yesterday my reputation was low, and I was unhappy; today my reputation has grown heavy—what difference does it make? People do not understand that it is enough to be ordinary and content; they only vainly invite greed and accumulate many karmic offenses.

Singing of Past and Present

What was the mysterious Daoist wind of remote antiquity really like? It was Wuwei (non-action) and non-creation, naturally clear, still, and peaceful. Alas, in this declining age human desires are deep and heavy, planting boundless karmic obstacles and inner demons.

Someone asked me to inscribe “The Perched Falcon” (a painting of a falcon set on a perch):

Numinous and alert, vigorous and strong, it dashes straight into the clouds; it subdues cunning and deluded thoughts and preserves the Great Harmony (the harmony of Yin-Yang and the peace of primal Qi (vital energy)). It often seems to rest right before the eyes, yet one should not casually let slip any new opportunity.

Going deep into the gorge, I wrote a poem at the Tuanshan Daoist Abbey:

The rolling Long River rushes from a thousand li away; among range upon range of mountains, the gorge gate suddenly opens. The water races along the winding terrain, changing without end, and finally merges into the Eastern Ocean, flowing back and forth who knows how many times.

Again:

The two gorges are high, steep, and magnificent, their atmosphere grand; Tuanshan seems soaked in water, like a painted screen. This wondrous scenery before my eyes is far removed from the dusty world, making one suspect that this is the first palace of the Penglai wonderland.

At Wuchuan, after seeing a Daoist friend off to Fanxian County and returning, I composed three quatrains:

After parting at Wuchuan, I returned to the Yan region. Thereafter, meeting again would probably be hard to arrange by fate alone. The Lin Palace (a Daoist monastery) has long been urging me urgently; how could I withstand the smoke-and-fire turmoil of burning coal?

Again:

It is only because my teacher is buried in the ancient Yan region that I have delayed, responding to worldly affairs as conditions allow. In cultivating the truth, the greatest taboo is to harm the Qi of peace and harmony; cultivate the mind-nature, and do not let anger and agitation arise.

Again:

The snow ridges are white with accumulated snow and connect southward to the Yan region; my crossing mountains and waters is all drawn by karmic conditions. Once I arrive, I will be subjected to prolonged and urgent urging; how could I withstand the smoke-and-fire turmoil of burning coal?

Again:

It is only because my teacher is buried in the ancient Yan region that I have delayed, responding to worldly affairs as conditions allow. In cultivating the truth, the greatest taboo is to harm the Qi of peace and harmony; cultivate the mind-nature, and do not let anger and agitation arise.

Again:

The snow ridges are white with accumulated snow and connect southward to the Yan region; my crossing mountains and waters is all drawn by karmic conditions. Once I reach the Changchun Realm (the Changchun wonderland), fragrance will fill the Lin Palace and auspicious mist and rosy clouds will rise.

On the first day of the first lunar month in the Gengyin year, I leisurely composed ten poems in one rhyme:

Discussing the profound principles and wondrous Dao (the Way), the words sound clear; but if the mind is crooked and the spirit confused, one will instead grow ever more uncomprehending. People all say that benefiting others is the highest De (Virtue/Power), but who has ever truly done so without harming himself in the slightest?

Again:

The wounds caused by the kalpa of calamity have not yet subsided; only after the Dao of Heaven opens do the various good things gradually become manifest. May all beings receive teaching everywhere and turn toward the true teaching; may all things radiate splendor and walk according to the proper principle.

Again:

All sounds are hushed, and the Qi of heaven and earth is clear and harmonious; the Three Yang (the season or state in which Yang Qi gradually flourishes) are brilliant and radiant, and the Nine Lights (the sacred radiance spoken of in Daoism) are bright. Worldly glory and prominence are not my wish; I would rather preserve and nurture my original mind and cultivate in a pure and quiet place.

When the mind is not deluded, Jing (essence) and Qi (vital energy) can remain clear and tranquil for long, and the state of mind gradually becomes bright. Universally teaching sentient beings, leading them to return to the true Dao (the Way) and its teachings; all things shine with radiance, each following its proper measure in the order of things.

All sounds become still, and throughout heaven and earth a single Qi is clear and harmonious; the Three Yang (a season or state in which yang Qi is abundant) blaze forth, and the Nine Radiances (a common image of brightness in scriptures of the immortal path) shine brilliantly. I do not long for the glory and eminence of the human world; I prefer to guard my original mind and cultivate in a place of clarity and stillness.

When the mind is not deluded, Jing and Qi can remain clear and tranquil for long; when thoughts arise without selfish intent, the Dao-mind gradually becomes bright. After ten years of cultivation, one’s traces reach throughout the Three Realms; once one’s merit and practice are complete, one may ascend to the Nine Heavens.

Far from the dusty world, chanting leisurely, one naturally has a clear realm; sharpening the blade of wisdom makes the Dao-mind even more limpid. Even amid a profusion of flowers, one can drape a robe and rest at ease; when cultivation reaches the top of a hundred-foot pole, one must still continue advancing.

The highest Dao is plain and natural; as far as the eye can see, all is clear and bright; in every direction there is unobstructed passage. People of the world still do not believe in the path to true emptiness (a state beyond attachment, returning to stillness and emptiness); they might as well try traveling in company with those who are clear and at leisure.

The immortal palace, the Purple Mansion (the dwelling place of immortals in Daoist legend), is deeply serene, and Langyuan and the Jade Terrace (legendary towers of the immortal realm) open onto a bright vista. Passing before the Six-Six Caves, one rides a phoenix; in the Three-Three Heavens, one walks on clouds. “Six-Six” and “Three-Three” are numerical images in the poem depicting the layered realms of the immortal world.

The sky has no cloud shade to obscure it, bright and clear; the sage emperors and true kings are radiant as the sun and moon. Everyone rejoices that white-haired elders can also enjoy peace and walk freely in a land of great peace.

The scenery of Changchun is naturally clear and secluded; from the West Pavilion and East Terrace, all four directions look bright. Feathered Guests (those who cultivate the Dao and become immortals) and immortal officials mingle as they come and go, while tousled-haired boys with topknots also pass back and forth.

The true immortals who understand the great Dao have, through all ages, remained clear and unstained; they hand down teachings and establish the Dharma to instruct those with wisdom. Those of profound cultivation, once they have grasped the meaning of the Dao, can forget words and sit in stillness, cultivating alone at ease all day long.

In the Gengyin year, after completing the Jiao ritual (a Daoist ceremony of setting up an altar and offering prayers) at Tongxian Monastery (a Daoist temple), on the way back I composed a poem to bid farewell to my Daoist friend, the Marshal. Tousled-haired boys with topknots came and went without cease.

The true immortals who understand the great Dao have, through all ages, remained clear and unstained; they hand down teachings and establish the Dharma to instruct those with wisdom. Those of profound cultivation, once they have grasped the meaning of the Dao, can forget words and sit in stillness, cultivating alone at ease all day long.

In the Gengyin year, after completing the Jiao ritual at Tongxian Monastery, on the way back I composed a poem to bid farewell to my Daoist friends, the Marshal and the Army Supervisor.

Long since weary of life in the human world, I greatly love the mountains and forests; but my blessings in the mountains are shallow, and I must return east again. The work of cultivation is not yet complete; I can only follow conditions and drift from place to place, still rushing about for worldly affairs, unable truly to find leisure.

After lingering for several days in the Western Mountains, I was invited by letter and had no choice but to return at once. I sigh that my temples have turned white and my years are growing old, yet worldly obligations still do not permit me to spend my days at leisure.

Another:

Traveling a thousand li, ever turning and turning, the mountain roads stretch on and on. For many years I have attentively sought out such places, coming and going countless times. On my journeys I do not avoid rugged and dangerous paths, hoping only that in this life I may long remain at peace and leisure.

Again

Someone in the Yan region invited me to Jiashan; several riders set out briskly eastward and then returned together. It is not because the white clouds linger here and the incense smoke is cold and sparse that I leave; I simply wish to wander as my heart pleases and enjoy quiet freedom.

Again

Range upon range of mountains stretch beyond sight, and the Daoist wanders among them, not knowing when he will return. If one has not yet understood the marvels of Quanzhen (Complete Perfection) cultivation, who can truly be free and untroubled, at peace and without care?

Again

I have newly composed a five-character quatrain to take leave of this mountain; after departing, I do not know when I may return. If one can set aside both movement and stillness, then wherever one may be, the mind can be free of hindrance and naturally at peace.

Taking Leave of the Daoist Congregation and Assembly Leaders of Heshan (written when parting from the Daoist community and leaders of Heshan)

The sound of water and the colors of the mountains are in themselves without feeling; yet amid mountains and waters, one’s spirit becomes instead clear and quiet. It is not because human affairs here are busy and entanglements too many that I leave; when I come again in the future, I will still miss the life here.

Again

To delight in the Dao (the Way) and forget clever schemes and calculations is exactly in accord with my original mind. When roaming the mountains and enjoying the waters, my vision becomes especially clear. Yet in my later years I still cannot obtain a place of peace and leisure, and can only run east and west, rushing about in all directions.

Again

The Mysterious Teaching (Xuanjiao, Daoism) awakens people from confusion and leads them away from worldly feelings; when worldly feelings are utterly cut off, the Dao-mind becomes clear and bright. After I first came here, there was not much else to do—only to investigate the principles of emotion and nature, and of life and death.

Colophon to the Picture of Ten Elders (a colophon written for The Picture of Ten Elders)

The ten leisurely figures are each clear, quiet, and at ease, and their gaze sees things very clearly. Please try sitting quietly within leisure and experience it for yourself: what exactly is the practice within this leisure?

Summer Retreat at the Xiantian (Prior Heaven) Abbey on Fanshan: Exhorting the Assembly According to the Times (written while spending the summer at the Xiantian Abbey on Fanshan, exhorting the congregation in accord with the circumstances)

In the southwest there is still great warfare and famine, while in the northeast one may dwell in peace, and the summer is also relatively cool. It is fitting to do good and accumulate merit in this place, diligently cultivate moral virtue, and offer incense with sincere devotion.

Again

In the great kalpa of turmoil, every place suffers famine and disorder; fortunately, here one can still find coolness and peace. I urge you to take this opportunity to exhort one another.

In the southwest there is still great warfare and famine, while in the northeast one may dwell in peace, and the summer is also relatively cool. It is fitting to do good and accumulate merit in this place, diligently cultivate moral virtue, and offer incense with sincere devotion.

In the turmoil of the great kalpa, the world is desolate everywhere; fortunately, in this place one may enjoy purity and tranquility. I urge you to firm your resolve, cultivate and accumulate true blessings, and gradually you will come to experience the beauty of Wuwei (non-action) and purity.

I once followed my late master through vast and desolate lands; after returning, I loved only the purity and tranquility here. The fighting has not yet subsided, yet I have already attained health and peace—perhaps because people’s hearts are sincere and their virtue is moving.

Everyone has not yet awakened to the Dao (the Way), and their minds and natures are mostly disordered. How then can their inner state become carefree and cool? See through the world’s cunning, transcend the dust of custom, and naturally the fragrance of Dao and De (Virtue/Power) will appear.

Cultivate the mind and penetrate the true Dao, and the heart will no longer be disordered. Let creation bring cold and warmth to worldly affairs as it will; when cultivation is accomplished, one may ride a crane to the immortal island of Penglai and leave a fair name that flows for ten thousand ages.

Farewell to a Daoist Friend of Fanshan

Roam free beyond the dusty world, far from worldly demonic disturbances; guard purity and peace through Wuwei and non-doing. I have come here several times, and my ties with people have gradually deepened; investigating affairs, I find that there are many good people.

Farewell to a Daoist Friend of Fanshan

Hold fast to the Dao of pure oneness, wander beyond the dusty world, and drift alone in the great divine boat. In the vast sea of suffering there are countless suffering people; who is willing to let go of attachments, take the hook, and accept being ferried across?

Another

With loyal words I exhort everyone to turn back early; if exhorted but unwilling to turn back, they will fall into the Nine Dark Realms—the dark, deep underworld. Even a great sage cannot save people without cause; only by recognizing the right path before one’s eyes and willingly accepting guidance early can one be saved.

On the Pool of Surging Gold Behind the Hall of Xiantian Abbey

A wooden sign was set up at the pool, warning people not to let anything touch the pool water and pollute it.

The numinous spring rolls on, through long ages; do not let the slightest filth intrude. Worldly people see only the boundless expanse of pool water; only I see within it inexhaustible golden radiance.

Passing Through Qingshui Village in Yantai, Staying at Mr. Ma’s Home, Detained by Rain

Fufeng invited me, and my heart and spirit were stirred. Overnight clouds gathered and rain fell, bringing a heavy downpour. All things are about to ripen for harvest—there are already signs of it; yet a thousand pieces of gold cannot buy a single true friend who understands.

Expressing My Thoughts

After many years of studying the Dao, I have only begun to have some realization, as though I have fathomed all its profound wonders.

Passing Through Qingshui Village in Yantai, Staying at Mr. Ma’s Home, Detained by Rain

Fufeng invited me, and my heart and spirit were stirred. Overnight clouds gathered and rain fell, bringing a heavy downpour. All things are about to ripen for harvest—there are already signs of it; yet a thousand pieces of gold cannot buy a single true friend who understands.

Expressing My Thoughts

After many years of cultivating the Dao and seeking the fundamental principle, I finally attained some achievement. Each time I pass through a demonic hindrance (a trial or obstruction encountered in cultivation), I gain a new realization. Even when encountering such hindrances repeatedly, the mind should not waver; only when they are exhausted will that single point of true nature become manifest.

The seven Perfected cultivated their virtue and moved the heavenly court; with one gesture they raised the mysterious Daoist wind and crossed the Jade Pass. What the tune Shuidiao Getou says about fellow Daoists gathering has also been fulfilled; therefore the gates are thrown wide open, and one leans and gazes toward Yanshan.

Three Quatrains on Going to Offerings in Guozhou

Living in Changzu (Constant Sufficiency) Pavilion, I happened to complete a full year, and body and mind gradually settled. The teaching made me understand that one cannot evade matters when they arise; therefore I did not fear the long road and went to attend the Zhaijiao (purification ritual) feast.

North of the ridge has since ancient times been known for wind and cold; in deep winter one must still travel far, trudging across Yanmen Chuan. The Daoist’s compassionate heart and bestowal of grace are most precious; delivering the dead and pitying the living both form good karmic connections.

Temporarily leaving Chushun Hall in Yancheng, I go in place of my master to propagate the Dao elsewhere. It was not originally my intention to seek connections…

North of the ridge has since ancient times been known for wind and cold; in deep winter one must still travel far, trudging across Yanmen Chuan. The Daoist’s compassionate heart and bestowal of grace are most precious; delivering the dead and pitying the living both form good karmic connections.

Temporarily leaving Chushun Hall in Yancheng, I go in place of my master to propagate the Dao elsewhere. It was not originally my intention to seek connections, but the sincere heart of the Zhaijiao sponsor (the person who presides over or funds the ritual) cannot be forgotten.

Inscribing Ink Bamboo

When the ink bamboo is painted, it seems all four seasons hold spring; every leaf and every branch transcends the dusty world. It is as if one holds the power of creative transformation in one’s hand; each time the brush is raised, a new meaning is produced.

Self-Description in Changzu Pavilion

In Changzu Pavilion, mountains and seas seem all present, and clear wind and bright moon accompany the passing years. When someone comes seeking an audience, I have nothing else to say but to call this place “the Little Grotto-Heaven of Eternal Spring.”

This small pavilion seems to contain mountains and seas; I name it “Constant Sufficiency” and spend my later years here. It is best to be leisurely and at ease right here—why seek a fairyland elsewhere?

Passing South Xinzhuang in Jin’an Prefecture, Given to Daoist Du

I left home at six and am now ninety-one; the Dao of One Truth (the pure and true principle) is fully understood, and the numbers four, three, and seven are also thoroughly penetrated. Meeting today by good fortune must come from deep karmic ties from former lives; all methods have been set aside, and all worldly affairs are concluded.

Impromptu

Put away the fishing pole, lay down the hook, and from now on fish no more; all entanglements suddenly cease, and one can rest securely. When emotional thoughts fade and intentions stop, there are few vexations; to reach the other shore (the state of liberation from affliction), no boat is needed.

Not deluded by fragrant bait nor swallowing the hook, one becomes leisurely and free, with all matters stilled. Often accompanied by a rain hat and misty rain-cape, one steadily pilots a lone boat on the clear river.

One must always wipe out all the various worldly attachments in one stroke; in cultivating the Real, one must apply oneself diligently while still alive. The boundless sea of suffering surges with waves; only by turning back early can one find the boat that reaches the shore.

Instructions to the Assembly

At Tuchuan (a place name), it was as if one had swallowed a fishhook; from then on all matters were put down, and one was peaceful and at ease. One often takes a rain hat and straw cape as companions, steadily steering a lone boat along the clear river.

Again

One must always wipe out all the various worldly attachments in one stroke; in cultivating the Real, one must apply oneself diligently while still alive. The boundless sea of suffering surges with waves; only by turning back early can one find the boat that reaches the shore.

Instructions to the Assembly

At Tuchuan one sits peacefully in midsummer, cool and at ease; at Suiyi one sleeps peacefully in cold winter, unhurried. Simply because one has always cherished Dao-thoughts, wherever one roams like a cloud, one can be peaceful and content.

Again

There is no need to worry that as years grow longer one’s practice is not yet complete; when cultivation reaches the point where it should be completed, things will naturally fall into place, as when water arrives a channel forms, and even sleepiness is forgotten. Cultivating the Real is no ordinary matter; one must grasp the profound meaning indicated by “the suchness within suchness, and the not-such.”

Again

I broadly encourage insightful younger seekers who aspire to study immortality not to cling to cravings and desires or indulge in untroubled sleep. One should constantly investigate and inquire into Dao and De in relation to one another, personally realize the primordial nature, and bring the mind into accord with nature.

Harmonizing with the Rhyme of Layman Jitong

The fruits of cultivating the Real are like a shuttle on a loom: moving back and forth, they are gradually accomplished. This is no empty talk; it is simply how it should be. When one suddenly awakens to the realm of no-desire spoken of by Layman Jitong (the layman whose sobriquet is “Jitong”), the principle therein naturally becomes thoroughly understood.

Written at Tongxian Abbey and Sent to Mr. Feng and Others at Yanshan

The whole stretch of the Western Hills belongs to Yan territory; Yanshan is just right for spending one’s remaining years in peace. Those of us in the Daoist gate are originally practitioners cultivating the Real; coming into the mountains, we are as if we have become immortals.

Again

With neither fragrant bait nor fishhook, I simply leave the fishing rod propped empty beside the fishing boat. If one sees it with one’s own eyes, one can grasp its meaning without words; why bother to waste breath persuading those of like aspiration?

To Shi, Palace Examination Graduate

I have a share of leisure that I would like to give to another; but if the other has not sufficient capacity, how dare I entrust the Way of Quanzhen (Complete Perfection) to him? Jade hidden in stone can still remain intact; transcending the dusty world and roaming freely, there is naturally another spring.

Passing Gaojiapu

Deep in the great mountains hides a small hermitage. I was only passing through temporarily and had thought I would not stay even a day; but I loved the secluded purity here, untouched by human traces and like a grotto-heaven and blessed land, so I lingered and stayed for many days.

A few children, walking two or three together, would also raise their fists in greeting. Wherever one goes, one meets good karmic connections, as if all things follow Heaven’s will; the road ahead is not far, and peaceful days areabout to arrive.

Another

It is only because in a quiet place I saw the infant; I ask the travelers on the road, when will they understand the principle within? Only when the merit and virtue of cultivation have accumulated to three thousand does one meet the opportunity; when cultivation reaches eight hundred, one can encounter the good time. “Three thousand” and “eight hundred” are expressions in Daoist cultivation for the accumulation of merit and practice.

Passing Through Luanling Pass in Hunyuan

One day at the end of winter I set out from Fanshan; on the ninth day I started and passed through Luanling Pass. Crowds came to see me off and welcome me; many sighed with reluctance. Though the Daoist was in difficult circumstances, a smile remained on his face.

Another

After many long years, I traveled through the Western Mountains; scarcely had I passed one pass when another came. The cold made my beard seem especially aged; the north wind blowing on my face seemed instead to restore a child’s complexion.

Crowds came to see me off and welcome me; many sighed. Though the Daoist was in difficult circumstances, he could still smile.

Another

After many long years, I traveled through the Western Mountains; scarcely had I passed one pass when another came. The cold made my beard seem especially aged; the north wind blowing on my face seemed instead to restore a child’s complexion.

Another

The severe cold reached its extreme, and accumulated snow covered the mountains, a scene just like Han Yu crossing Lan Pass. The accompanying Daoist community looked like a painting: temples snow-white, beards frost-white, faces showing age. Han Yu once passed through Lan Pass in wind and snow; here his experience is borrowed to describe trudging through the snow.

Two Poems on the Small Pavilion at Yueshen Mountain

Before a high peak ten thousand ren tall stands a small pavilion. Whether one lies stretched out or sits upright in the pavilion, the scenery before the eyes is clear and bright. The great truth right before one’s eyes is hard for people to see; all day one roams free and at ease, joyful at heart.

Another

Before the ten-thousand-ren peak is a thatched hut; sitting in it all day, one finds a relish of its own, sweet as honey. When someone comes to talk about worldly affairs, I close my eyes and say nothing, until evening, sitting quietly in contemplation.

Written on New Year’s Day in Huairen County

Last year I welcomed the New Year in Chongyi County; now in Huairen County I bid farewell to the old and welcome the new. Another twelve circuits of the celestial cycle have passed; when the New Year is celebrated, I do not know where we may gather again.

At Ziwei Abbey in Nanyang Village, Zhangzhou: Matching the Rhymes of Chen Xiuyu, Secretariat Official of Yila

Although the Three Teachings are mutually connected, people’s understandings differ. Since one says the west is west, one cannot call it east. The principle before one’s eyes is in fact clear: once one realizes True Oneness, one can reach the state of Non-duality. “The Three Teachings” usually refers to Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism; “True Oneness” and “Non-duality” are Daoist terms expressing the state of pure unity and non-discrimination.

Lecturer Liu of Chongzhen Abbey Invites Me to a Vegetarian Feast

At first, crossing Crow Gate, I came to the ends of the earth; gradually approaching the Hu River, I gazed toward the horizon. Now this place has again become land of the Central Plains; the four seas are at peace and in communication, as if one family.

In late spring of the Yiwei year (a year in the sexagenary cycle; the specific year depends on the context), while passing by Xiuye Garden in Jiaocheng County, I composed three quatrains to add to the garden’s refined charm.

Xincheng, where Xiuye Garden is located, was then caught in the chaos of war, yet Mr. Qin was so hospitable and refined—most rare. The flowers and trees in the garden were all extraordinary, and every child in the household could compose poetry.

Another

In late spring, Xiuye Garden is at its best. That vivid red beneath the mulberry tree has a peculiar wonder all its own. If one regards these two things as neither leaning to one side nor mixing with each other, who can grasp the principle therein? Few know the tidings of Perfect Illumination (the state of perfect harmony and clear insight).

Another

While visiting Xiuye Garden, I passed the sparse fence; at a glance, the flourishing flowers and trees, like brocade, were truly delightful. If one can grasp the meaning of Old Wang east of the village, then please do not forget the Hundred Flowers Poem.

Another

While visiting Xiuye Garden, I passed the sparse fence; at a glance, the flourishing flowers and trees, like brocade, were truly delightful. If one can grasp the meaning of Old Wang east of the village, then please do not forget the Hundred Flowers Poem.

Later I obtained Qingxu Abbey in Pingyao County.

I had always sought plainness and few desires, wishing to retire into the deep mountains, but unexpectedly I obtained Qingxu Abbey and was able to enjoy a leisurely old age in peace. Quietly admiring the ancient cypresses was enough for companionship; with no ties or worries in my heart, I could pass all four seasons at leisure.

At the mouth of Wu’er Valley northeast of Luzhou, the chiefs and assembly heads (those who preside over gatherings or affairs) of Li County and She County received and sent off travelers with thoroughness and propriety, without omission; together they also built an abbey and accumulated blessings and merit. Someone sent a letter, and I composed a poem in thanks.

North and south, crosswise and lengthwise, for a thousand li all is mountains. You are situated on a vital route, between She County and Li County. Since you have the opportunity to act through your authority, you should make good use of it to guide travelers safely through the dangerous passes.

To Zhan Baotong

Zhan Baotong, with his hair disheveled, firmly guards the Dao-mind in daily life; he is suited to accompany Master Gao in cultivating the Dao and to become a minor immortal. In external learning, one should, according to circumstances, remove the “Four Marks” (attachments to self and related notions in cultivation); in inner cultivation, one relies on nurturing the vital work of life and preserving the “Three Fields” (the upper, middle, and lower Dantian in Daoism).

Zhang Tongzhi of Xinzhou (a local official) sent a letter of invitation; I could not agree at once, and composed a poem in reply.

I had briefly left Pingyao and arrived in Pingyang, yet this one body had to rush about to several places. I often regretted that my cultivation was not yet complete, so that I could not transform freely and illuminate all quarters.

In the last month of autumn in the Yiwei year, I went to Mingxia Abbey on Hongshan in Jiexiu County and composed a poem.

The scenery of Hongshan is beautiful, its cave-heavens deep and secluded; below the mountain are clear crags and flowing waterfalls. Going another three or four li up onto the high plateau, when the mood came over me, I strolled leisurely to the spring.

Staying in a Cave Dwelling at Lingyuan Abbey in Yichang Village, Fenzhou

The earthen cave was crooked and narrow, yet it was just right for avoiding the disturbances of the outside world. In the cold winter I slept in the abbey until the sun was high; sometimes, when my mood was cheerful, I followed the high plateau for three or four li and strolled leisurely to the spring.

Staying in a Cave Dwelling at Lingyuan Abbey in Yichang Village, Fenzhou

The earthen cave was crooked and narrow, yet it was just right for avoiding the disturbances of the outside world. In the cold winter I slept until the sun was high. Sometimes when visitors came specially to look for me, I hid in a deeper earthen cave and did not come out to see them.

Traveling Back and Forth Between Taiyuan and Pingyang

Going back and forth between the two places, throughout spring and autumn there were always people seeing me off and welcoming me, without interruption. Their affection was like the flowing water of Fenyang, accompanying me southwest all the way to the end of my journey.

Inscribing Laojun Peak of Zijing Mountain in Hejin

I came here myself and recorded this part of my journey. Looking around, mountains and rivers interlace; this is an important transportation hub. Zijing Mountain has been known since ancient times for the pure tranquility of its immortal realm, and to this day people still call it Laojun Peak.

Passing Through Hejin, Scholars and Commoners Ask Me for Poems

The surging river encircles the mountains on three sides; Hejin city was built among sites associated with Yu the Great and Houji. When I passed through, the local people repeatedly sent letters inviting me with great warmth; throughout the river plain the common folk burned incense and waited to welcome me, everyone joyful.

Chatting with Zhang of Xiyan

There is no need to ask about forest springs, and no need to ask about mountain dwellings; the realm of purity, quietude, and emptiness lies within each person’s mind. If one can constantly keep aloof from the entanglements of worldly feelings and completely let them go, then one attains leisure and ease.

Inscribed at the Hermitage in Xinzhaang Village

When body and mind are light and quick, there is no need to worry that the road is long; when one’s nature is quiet, there is no need to worry that the place is remote. In midsummer I returned from Jingzhao (the present-day Xi’an area of Shaanxi) and felt comfortable and at ease in the quiet hermitage until the sun declined in the west.

Reply to Yang Hanqing

If one can truly climb, then there is a road to the blue sky; but one must understand that true leisure is not ordinary idleness. Temper one’s disposition and nature so that the mind becomes clear, and break free from the “four marks” (a Buddhist term referring to attachment to the marks of self, person, sentient beings, and lifespan); harmonize the true breath (the inner breathing regulated in cultivation) so that the breath penetrates the Three Passes (the bodily gateways spoken of in Neidan, internal alchemy).

Inscribed at Guanyin Pavilion in Magu

In late autumn I came to Magu; the stream flowed aslant, and the scenery was as pure and secluded as clouds and water—a fine journey.

Inscribed at Guanyin Pavilion in Magu

In late autumn I came to Magu; stream and cloud colors reflected one another, and it was a place suited for setting out on a journey. The crowd did not understand why I was so joyful; after eating, I calmly climbed the pavilion alone.

The Confucian Scholar Mr. Guo Asks in Verse for the Method of Peace and Happiness

The Confucian scholar Mr. Guo wrote a poem and sent a letter asking me about the method for obtaining peace and happiness.

That noble, upright Qi in the breast, though only a single point, can fill heaven and earth; if one cultivates with integrity and is utterly free of selfishness, it can pervade the vast cosmos. When cultivation reaches the realm of transformative coming and going, beyond the Three Realms, why worry that at the age of sixty, when the ear is attuned, one still cannot prolong life and increase longevity?

Climbing Qiangao Mountain

The scenes at the ends of heaven and earth seem all to lie before the eyes; the scenery of Qiangao Mountain is enough to be painted into a scroll and passed down through the world. If someone comes to ask my name, I am only a wandering immortal deep in the pine forest.

At Qiangao Mountain, Pressed by Officials for a Writing, I Send This

I recently came to Qiangao Mountain, which lies west of Guo; among the pines and rocks the grasses and trees are so dense that they are hard to count. Since childhood I have longed for life in the mountains; now in old age I dwell here at leisure, exactly as I wished.

Three Quatrains on Retirement, Sent to Fellow Daoists in Yanshan

With the mind withdrawn, one should be able to enjoy the years in peace; now both body and mind have retired into quietude. The profound and mysterious principle need no longer be discussed in words; pure clarity alone accords with nature.

Another

Thanks to your instruction, I have cultivated according to conditions for several decades, and the Daoist abbeys in Yanshan have mostly been built and completed. That I went again to Zhongnan Mountain was entirely heaven’s arrangement; now I have just returned, and all matters are clear.

Another

I have followed my master in learning the Dao for thirty years, yet my practice is still not complete, and to this day I have not accomplished it. On the worldly road I have passed through a thousand hardships and ten thousand dangers; who can understand that my heart has always remained calm?

To the Assembly

The clear wind among the pines enters the ear and makes one less dull; yet worldly affairs constantly disturb the heart and spirit, leaving one’s thoughts turbid and confused. Fortunately we have met with a grotto-heaven (dongtian), a pure and secluded wonderland; I urge you not to indulge sleep and let it cloud your spirit.

Another

Do not ask only whether the practice is shallow or deep. What a cultivator is like is seen both in his conduct and in his inner heart. Since one has already understood the principle, one should cherish time all the more; alas, some carelessly indulge and waste each inch of time for nothing.

Sent to Ma, the Association Head of Pingyao County

Mr. Ma is already nearing old age and should see clearly the road ahead in life; since he has seen through human affairs, he should timely withdraw his heart and rest. For now, seek a long and stable life in this peaceful age, and with people at leisure accompany them through the springs and autumns.

Sent to Ma, the Association Head of Pingyao County

Mr. Ma is already nearing old age and should see clearly the road ahead in life; since he has seen through human affairs, he should timely withdraw his heart and rest. For now, seek a long and stable life in this peaceful age, and with people at leisure accompany them through the springs and autumns.

Sibaoce of Changchun Palace rode his horse to the foot of Qiangao Mountain and was stopped by snow, so I composed this quatrain and sent it to him.

The profound and limpid realm of pure void cannot be expressed in words; in responding to people’s dispositions, one should be without partiality. From a thousand li away, someone comes to visit; heavy snow piles up at the mountain gate, so that even a horse cannot go forward.

Going to the High Mountains, Where It Snowed for Days, I Playfully Composed This Poem

The snow and mist stretch vast and endless. Even the green pines and cypresses seem to have taken on a touch of sorrow. Then, urged by a letter hurriedly sent from the east, in a single night I saw the green mountains all turn white-haired.

Visiting Guishan in Qincheng and Composing Three Quatrains While Resting

In Tongchuan I have already seen a delightful scene: the people of the whole prefecture dwell at peace among the mountains and waters. There are also quiet, refined places worth enjoying; when inspiration comes, I stroll up Guishan.

Again:

Climbing Guishan, the scenery on all four sides is bright and clear, as if seeing through the world and freely discerning human feelings. I am fortunate now to have come to this cool and refreshing place; I only wish that all regions may soon be at peace.

Again:

Each time I climb Guishan, I gaze in all directions; among the four directions, where is there no desolate place? From now on, if one can awaken to and see through the affairs of the human world, then when fierce heat arrives, the heart will also be cool.

Idle Living

Human nature is profound, empty, and still; when it encounters things, it can resonate and connect. If one can respond to stimuli, the mind becomes agile and transparent. By cultivating this spiritual transparency, one can realize the wonder within the void; although the wondrous substance is true emptiness, it is not nothingness.

Again:

In cultivating the truth, one must understand the root of the Ancestor and the Source. The merit of the Ancestor and the Source manifests at all times. Where, then, are the Ancestor and the Source? They are precisely within the nature that can speak, that is spiritually bright and transparent.

Again:

In silence one gains understanding, and thus can know the Ancestor and the Source. The four patriarchs Qiu Chuji, Liu Chuxuan, Tan Chuduan, and Ma Yu handed down an excellent Daoist tradition. Those in the gate who aspire to cultivate the Dao, heed my advice: cultivate diligently and persevere to the end.

In the Mid-Autumn of the Dingyou Year, Sent from Qincheng to Daoist Friends in Yanshan

It has been exactly three years since I left Yanshan; after passing through ten thousand fathoms of wind and waves, I have now finally reached the shore. I must also thank the Zhenren (True Persons) for taking pity on my old age. The rice and wheat of Tongchuan are better than elsewhere.

On Seeing Zizhan’s Inscription on the Wall, I Happened to Compose a Quatrain

It has been exactly three years since I left Yanshan; after passing through ten thousand fathoms of wind and waves, I have now finally reached the shore. I must also thank the Zhenren (True Persons) for taking pity on my old age. The rice and wheat of Tongchuan are better than elsewhere.

A Daoist cultivator drinks alone, his expression abstracted; a Chan practitioner sleeps in a drowsy haze. Matters seem so and yet not so—who can distinguish them clearly? I advise you not to trust the talk of worldly people.

To Ma, Head of the Assembly

When I meet others, before I speak, they say my appearance has grown old; but those who have seen me first praise my moral cultivation as lofty. An empty and still mind is fit only for dwelling always at ease and peace; with a heart like dead ashes, indifferent and plain, do not cling to the slightest thing.

On the Double Fifth Day, Parting from Li the Wine Commissioner of Pingyao County

My body and mind are still, coming and going freely like a cloud, leaving worldly people to suspect as they please. Just at the Double Fifth Festival I leave the immortal cloister, yet among the mallows along the railings throughout the courtyard, not one has opened.

Reply to the Invitation from Daming Prefecture: I Fell Ill on the Road and Did Not Attend

I once heard that the master encountered demonic obstructions; now he transmits the Daoist teachings to old Qinghe. Ahead there are still endless realms of true transcendence where immortals roam, but one is not permitted to give up halfway—otherwise there will be no chance to see them.

To Niu Xian

Studying the Dao requires lofty insight; even when encountering demonic obstructions, one must not retreat but remain firm throughout. If one can awaken to the truth of no birth and no extinction, one may avoid undergoing another turn in the human world.

While living in Weiyang, there was Qingyi Hermitage. Many times I went with Xianshang to seek out quiet and leisurely places, over a period of thirty years. Later I led the community in Daoist meritorious affairs; now at seventy, I have finally returned to original truth.

Formerly I lived in Weiyang for thirty years; this year I am seventy and no longer discuss the wondrous Dao. When quiet, I recall the place of true leisure and ease, and it seems still to be the Qingyi Hermitage of those early days.

The Daoist Liu Zhixi Offers Small Carved Wooden Icons of the Seven Perfected

A single spark of numinous light—its wondrous function is real. Exhausting the myriad subtleties, one naturally penetrates the divine. If one can go further and awaken to the wondrous principle of the primordial beginning, one can carve that original substance which is inherently formless and without marks.

Daoist Cloister at Wuhua Mountain

Wuhua Mountain is originally a place where forests and springs reflect one another; ten thousand trees stand tall, and water sources stretch on and on. Ask those who come and go traveling: how many hermitages in these mountains are as complete and pleasant as this one?

Another

Everyone who sees Wuhua Mountain feels joy arise. Walking along the level road, one is already within the mountain. The Daoist cloister is pure and secluded, just like an immortal realm; living amid the quiet of woods and springs surpasses the dusty world of men.

Another

Above Jade Lotus Pond stands Jade Lotus Pavilion, facing the water and backed by the mountain, with an open and clear view. Having traveled all over the human world, the plan to retire has come too late; Wuhua Mountain is enough to entrust the remainder of my life.

Accompanying my master on an imperial summons, we set out from the Weilai region, and my master's teachings were gradually spread in the Yan Mountains. I once cultivated and refined the elixir here, and now I return to this old place as a leisurely guest.

Green lotuses rise stalk by stalk from the square pond, just making up for the regret that Tao Qian's chrysanthemum hedge had not yet appeared. Planted and nurtured in midsummer, their fragrance slowly spreads, and by the Double Ninth Festival, when one returns to admire them, it will not be too late.

The land of Wuhua has passed through many changes and now seems like an immortal's palace. Before my eyes all is cool, and the heart feels open and at ease. Heaven has granted me this age and still I can live in leisure and comfort. By the Wuhua Pond, I truly enjoy the clear breeze to the full.

Who can attain the inner wandering of the spirit? One who roams across heaven and earth and the eight directions is not troubled by it. Within the pure and still realm lies boundless wondrous principle. I ask you, where does the starting point of cultivation lie?

When the entanglements of human affairs are cut off, one's realization of the Dao (the Way) emerges, yet "Daoqing" (the emotion of the Dao) is ultimately only a name provisionally established. If someone can awaken to the wondrous principle of non-birth, they can transcend the Nanhua Zhenjing (the Daoist honorific title of the Zhuangzi) and the immortal realm symbolized by Mount Chicheng.

In Praise of the Qingjing Jing (Scripture on Clarity and Stillness)

The Qingjing Jing elucidates three principles of purity, and one who understands them can awaken to the true reason of things. Those of lofty virtue are originally without self, while the ignorant constantly delight in strife.

When the mind is clear, it does not cling to what it illuminates, and when facing external things, one sees all the more clearly. Where does the supreme principle begin? Simply return to the ordinary and guard one's original nature, and the mind will naturally become calm and harmonious.

Against Insufficiency

With clothing one can resist the cold, and with food one can satisfy hunger. If either clothing or food is lacking, the mind easily becomes uneasy.

Even when clothing and food are already sufficient, people may still indulge in greed and delusion. When evil karma has accumulated to fullness, and calamity arrives, whom can one blame?

Written at Chushun Hall on the Mid-Autumn Festival

At the time of the Mid-Autumn Festival, all is quiet within Chushun Hall. Fellow practitioners gather, and the harmonious atmosphere grows stronger. The evil qi retreats to the edge of the sea, and the bright moon rises over the mountain peaks.

People of myriad lands admire it together, and countless households also rejoice and gaze upward. Keeping one another company, they sit in stillness through the night, and each feels their nature settle into peace.

Written at the Xiantian Guan (Temple of Prior Heaven) on Mount Fan

Though I had visited before, my heart still held some attachments; now, facing the clouds and waters, I am truly free of distracting thoughts. I hide my traces, seeking only to stay far from the mortal world; I conceal my name, regretting only that I have not hidden it thoroughly enough.

In autumn I bid farewell to my cherished friends, and in the warmth of spring I visit my kindred spirits. Because I admire the stillness of the Western Hills, I wish to be spared the disturbances of worldly affairs.

Also:

I hold fast to the Dao and forget the troubles of the mortal world; I dwell at ease, taking as my neighbors those of exemplary virtue (De). No vulgar guests sit in my company, and everyone at the table is a person of noble character. Cultivate the breath as the tortoise does, deep, still, and long; discipline the body until its grain is as firm as stone. To attain a true realm, one must recognize one's original face.

Recorded at the Autumn Sun Monastery on Mount Jin, on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month of the Yiyou year, by Mu Lingjiang.

Hundreds of willow branches hang white, and ten thousand lanterns glow red. Heaven displays rare auspicious signs, and the earth reveals marvelous transformations. Green trees bloom with jade-like blossoms, and the blue mountains seem to have become white-haired elders. Among the rocks across the mountain, every plant has turned into lucid, delicate jade.

From the sixth month of the Yiyou year to the eighth day of the fourth month of the Bingxu year, there was still no rain. At that time I was at the Longyang Monastery behind the mountain, and so I wrote this poem:

Autumn brought not three inches of rain, and spring brought winds of ten-tenths force. Winter snow was scarce, so how could the summer crops yield a harvest? When have people ever examined their own faults? They only blame the gods. I have already left the Western Pass, yet I still sigh over the failed harvest.

I had been apart from the Old Man of Longxi for twenty years. When we met in those days, we had not yet truly understood each other's hearts; only after conversing today did I come to know his inner mind. We journeyed together to the Western Hills, and so I recorded this poem:

We met once before, and today we spoke of our inmost thoughts. We agreed to travel to the Western Hills and together climb the northern ridge to chant poems. Leaving the capital at ease, I entered the forest with an unconstrained heart. Layered peaks stretch away into the distance, and the path before us leads deeper into the mountains step by step.

Many people petitioned the court to present memorials on my behalf and added the title "Zhenren (Perfected Person)" to my name. By chance I composed a poem in five-character lines and sighed deeply:

Because I admire the traces of the Zhenren, others call me Zhenren. If one truly possesses the Zhenren's cultivation, why worry about being unable to preserve one's youth? Learning the Dao is not empty talk; the cultivation of the Perfected still depends on…

Admiring the cultivation of the Perfected (Zhenren), people therefore call me "the Real" (Zhen). If one's cultivation of the Real (xiuzhen) is truly complete, why worry about failing to attain longevity? Studying the Dao is not empty talk, and cultivating the Real must rest on a genuine foundation. If one constantly holds the aspiration of the Seven Ancestors, how could good causes ever fail to bring good returns?

Poem Sent in Illness by Chan Master Wang

The principles of the ancients may still be followed, and they remain workable today. If one's cultivation accords with the essential points, body and mind will naturally be at peace and sound. When one's arts reach completion, the body becomes light and transcendent; if the work of the elixir is not accomplished, the body may weaken and fall ill. When the inherent perfect form manifests, not a speck of dust can obscure it.

Inscribed at the Nan Hermitage

Strolling leisurely, I arrive at the Nan Hermitage, and nothing here gives me greater ease. Before the gate the stream runs green, and beyond the window the bamboo breeze is cool. Even in hardship, one often knows contentment; when greed is forgotten, one no longer contends with others. Only because body and mind are at ease does the mind of the Dao grow bright.

Old Mulin has been ill for many years and has passed the year. This year, the xinmao year, I completed the Lower Primordial Ritual Offering (Xiayuan jiao).

Though this transformed body has long been ill, the mind of the Dao has grown ever more sincere. The yellow registers (Huanglu, documents used in Daoist offerings) penetrate the realm of the dark netherworld, and the vermilion writings (Chishu, Daoist scriptural documents) ascend to Upper Clarity (Shangqing, the heavenly realm in Daoist teaching). The departed souls rejoice in being delivered, and the living celebrate the completion of merit. The great Dao does not depend on the scale of the ritual, so how then can one transcend birth and death?

Old Mulin has passed away; I mourn him with a poem.

You have already returned to the realm of truth, and now I come to see you off. We have known each other for over ten years, and we have walked the Dao together for two. While alive, the body was like a dream; upon returning, it ends like flame turning to ash. Life and death are the constant order of things, so why grieve excessively?

Discussed the mysteries at the Shenqing Daoist Temple in Guozhou with Daoist Judge Zhuang; the poem was offered to stir his thinking.

We talked through the night about profound principles, sitting until the second watch at the Shenqing Temple. There was no Liezi in the temple, yet at the banquet I found Master Zhuang (Zhuangzi). When one's nature is still, worldly dust finds it hard to stain; when the mind is open, practice comes easily to completion. If one can penetrate the principles beyond the mundane world, the mind of the Dao will grow bright.

Rain Rejoiced at Wuhua Mountain

Fourth month, sitting at the banquet, I see Master Zhuang.

A still nature is hard for dust to stain; an open mind makes practice easy to complete.

Penetrating the meaning beyond the mundane, the single mind of the Dao grows bright.

The fourth month's wind had only just stilled, and the five-colored flowers still held the rain. All things rejoiced, and I too dwelt in peace. The seedlings sown in summer had grown nearly to maturity, and the autumn harvest would surely not come to nothing. Coming and going at leisure, I roamed for pleasure, sometimes riding out in a small cloud-chariot.

In the fourth month of the year Jihai, clouds and mist lingered for seven days before I began to see the light of sun and moon again.

In the fourth month, yang qi (vital yang energy) was at its height, yet yin qi suddenly rose. Heaven and earth grew dark, nothing could be made out, and the gloomy, dismal scene made even gods and spirits tremble. For seven days, heaven and earth seemed to have returned to primordial chaos, and the Great Yin (here referring to the moon) remained unclear and obscured. One morning the clouds and mist dispersed, and sun and moon shone bright once more.

Reply to Wang Zizheng

That I have been fortunate enough to encounter the true Way is due to deep roots laid in former lives. Do not follow the external traces of the ancients; seek only within your own heart. The principle before your eyes is in fact easy to grasp, whereas searching outward for it will in the end never succeed. To understand thoroughly the two words "stillness and purity" (qingjing) is worth more than gold weighing ten thousand yi.

Long Poem in Five-Character Lines

In the year Xinmao, I held a jiao ritual (a Daoist rite of setting up an altar to present petitions) at the salt fields on the eastern road, and on the way through Jingzhou I presented this to the Daoist community of the East.

I was unable to go to the Western Mountains; it was Heaven's will that I take the eastern road. My heart is empty and still, and often accords with the Dao; yet my nature is stubborn, and I have not fully understood the principle. To contemplate the mysterious principle is to enter formlessness (wuxiang, a state transcending concrete form and distinction); to chase after the edges and shapes of things is to remain bound by emotion and consciousness. To cultivate Quanzhen (the Daoist tradition of Complete Perfection), one must nurture genuine virtue; to cling to the false and covet empty fame is to stray from the Way.

When you see forms and colors, understand that form and color are empty by nature; when you hear sounds, perceive stillness within sound. In action, nothing is lacking; in quiescence, clarity is better preserved. Indulging desire makes it hard to awaken to the Dao; gathering in the spirit makes cultivation easy to bring to fruition. The illusory body is impermanent by nature, and the true nature is originally calm. Do not seek the methods of refining elixirs from lead and mercury, nor stir up furnace fires and smoke. Fellow practitioners, listen to my earnest counsel: there is another, better path ahead for cultivation.

Written on Leaving the Capital, Sent to the Daoist Community of the Changchun Palace

Fifty days after leaving the capital, I have written hundreds upon hundreds of sheets of paper. Believers in the Dao came out to welcome me in the countryside, and incense smoke curled along the road. Wherever I go, I can carry out the transforming influence of the Dao; every place can become a land of immortals. By cultivating the heart-mind, one may pass through the three realms (the realms of desire, form, and formlessness, as described in religious cosmology); one's reputation spreads through the ten directions. If the heart sincerely seeks purity and stability, one will not cling to renown and fame. In practicing the Dao, one must follow the instruction of teachers and elders; in establishing oneself in the world, one must rely on one's own firmness and self-discipline.

When the common people are at peace, they can take up the path of cultivating goodness; when the state is tranquil, one may recite the scriptures. Carrying out orders does not distinguish high from low; one proceeds according to circumstance, regardless of whether the journey is long or short. The Seven Perfected (the seven patriarchs revered by the Quanzhen school) founded the orthodox teaching, and the myriad sages have aided the enlightened sovereign (a wise ruler). Whether walking or resting, all depends on Heaven's will; for I have no place left to hide.

Revised Wuhua Abbey Inscription

This place was once a courtyard for refining elixirs, and it has now been turned into a hermitage for old age. My love of mountain dwelling is not only a delight in scenery, and my longing for quiet is not a form of greed. The clouds and waters everywhere have settled, and I feel that retiring to Wuhua Mountain suits me well. I cut firewood at the foot of the north wall and draw water at the stove to the south. A bowl of congee warms the whole body, and a cup of tea leaves the mouth fragrant and sweet. If the mind holds fast to its pure and undivided true nature and stays free of delusive thoughts, what else among the myriad things is worth investigating? When guests come, I need not greet or see them off; when no one comes, I need not engage in idle conversation. Let others find it strange. I am content to spend my old age in quiet.

Replying to Zhou Gu's Letter from Ge Hong Mountain, in Verse

After we parted at the old city of Yan, I rode my horse into Shandong. I had hoped to seek out Wang Lie (a legendary recluse), but I never found my way to Ge Hong Mountain (a mountain traditionally linked with the cultivation of Ge Hong). Your letter tells me that you have chosen seclusion. Though you have gone away, your traces and your conduct still show through the lines. You cultivate your mind beneath the green pines and dwell in the true Dao within the azure heavens (in Daoist usage, the blue sky and the realm of immortals). You have formed the character of a lofty scholar and cultivated the breadth of one who has penetrated the Way. In time, when your merit is complete, you should be able to transform beyond the ordinary, like a bamboo turning into a dragon, and ascend as an immortal.

Pan Mountain Qiyun Abbey

The road up Pan Mountain is not steep or treacherous, and the abbey stands at the heart of the mountain. In the valley a thin stream flows slowly, and pines across the hills cast deep shade. In front of the hermitage one leisurely lets down one's hair, and on the pavilion one quietly opens one's robe. At dawn the Daoist pounds medicinal herbs, and at night the recluse plays the qin. Rising mist adds to the auspicious scene, and a clear breeze carries melodious sounds. Here lies the full joy of Quanzhen (Complete Perfection) cultivation, and I know it is worth more than ten thousand in gold.

Five-Character Quatrains

Duan, the Daolu (a Daoist official in charge of temple affairs), came to see me only after many years. He brought out the poem scrolls of the company and asked me to continue in the original rhymes, composing two poems.

First

Do not search for scenery in the dust of the mortal world; seek instead the spring of the realm beyond the world (the Daoist state of transcendence over worldly concerns). Gather in your radiance, and great virtue will be achieved; open your mouth to speak, and people will naturally be amazed.

Second

It seems we only just parted, yet several springs have already passed. All my feelings for wind and moon I entrust to one who truly understands their meaning.

Ten Admonitions from the Changchun Palace, Selected

Calamity and the changes of Yin and Yang follow fixed patterns, but natural disasters are brought upon themselves by people. If one keeps good intentions in the heart and constantly does what is auspicious, the many misfortunes will lie hidden and gradually dissolve.

When the heart-mind is upright, speech is straight; when the inner mind is biased and self-serving, the words that come out are naturally crooked. Whether one is right or wrong is determined by oneself, so why bother arguing about it?

When the mind is calm and at peace, hatred and partiality are few; when thoughts are not upright, disputes over right and wrong multiply. To follow evil thoughts is to sink into dark realms, while to return to one's original true nature is to be able to dwell hidden in the Great Luo Heaven (Dàluó Tiān), the highest heaven in Daoist teaching.

By restraining the mind, one comes to understand the causal relationship between transgression and blessing; by indulging one's nature, one falls into the path of demons. Those of high cultivation have few worldly thoughts, while the ignorant have many desires.

Those who love argument and scheming come to poor ends, while those who do not contend or fight find that the flavor of their inner life lasts longer. Deception and concealment bring the suffering of hell, whereas treating others with equality is like dwelling in heaven.

When desire fills the heart, one clings stubbornly to whatever one does; when the heart is free of hindrances, many matters can be let go. Clarifying the mind and indulging the nature belongs to the path of demons. Those of high cultivation have few worldly thoughts, while the ignorant have many desires.

Those who love argument and scheming come to poor ends, while those who do not contend or fight find that the flavor of their inner life lasts longer. Deception and concealment bring the suffering of hell, whereas treating others with equality is like dwelling in heaven.

When desire fills the heart, one clings stubbornly to whatever one does; when the heart is free of hindrances, many matters can be let go. Understanding the inner mind allows one to know the profound mystery of the Dao (the Way), and realizing one's original nature allows one to grasp true cultivation.

Within stillness there is originally no attachment, yet when one is confused, feelings and thoughts arise on their own. Once awakened, one transcends the Four Images (sìxiàng), the Daoist categories used to describe the forms of cosmic transformation; once enlightened, the Three Pure Ones (Sānqīng), the three highest deities revered in Daoism, who also name the highest heaven where they dwell, appear before one.

When the ground of the heart is murky everywhere, yet the words are clear in every phrase, one oppresses others when in power and bears heavy guilt, and when out of power, the calamities one encounters are not light either.

Clarifying jing (essence) and shen (spirit) makes one aware of how vast the Dao is, and cutting off stray thoughts makes the body and mind feel empty and luminous. To thoroughly grasp the profound mystery of the original beginning is to have the light of wisdom reach everywhere.

When the Upper, Middle, and Lower Dantians (dāntián, body centers that are visualized and nourished in Daoist cultivation of jing, qi, and shen) are filled with precious elixir, one's fame naturally spreads throughout the four seas. The Dao I cultivate is rarely encountered in a thousand years, and I have traveled ten thousand li to seek out my former master.

On a Mountain-Water Inkstone Screen

The profound existence penetrates divine transformation, and within emptiness dwells the highest spirituality. When one can understand the beginning of heaven and earth, primordial Qi naturally divides and takes form.

Demonstrating to the Assembly Through Demonic Obstacles

When one meets the obstacles of demons, do not waver in thought; when facing affairs, it becomes easy to be at peace. I admonish the cultivators within our school to cherish time again and again.

Within emptiness dwells the highest spirituality. When one can understand the beginning of heaven and earth, primordial Qi naturally divides and takes form.

Demonstrating to the Assembly Through Demonic Obstacles

When one meets the obstacles of demons, do not waver in thought; when facing affairs, it becomes easy to be at peace. I admonish the cultivators within our school to cherish time again and again.

Heavenly demons cannot change a person's resolve, yet the affairs of the human world easily wear down the mind. I admonish the cultivators within our school to cherish time again and again.

The deeper the demonic obstacles, the more one must re-establish one's resolve; the smaller a matter appears, the more carefully one must apply the mind. I admonish the cultivators within our school to cherish time again and again.

Again

Having passed through trials and tribulations, one should use them to perfect true virtue. Encountering all kinds of circumstances, one can also use them to see clearly one's original mind. I admonish the cultivators within the school to cherish time again and again.

Again

To subdue demonic obstacles, one must rely on wisdom. To remove attachment to the self, one must use the method of no-mind. "No-mind" means holding no fixed thoughts and not being led by private intentions. I admonish the cultivators within the school to cherish time again and again.

Again

Though a thousand demonic obstacles come, do not let your conduct be stained by defilement. After a hundred trials of refinement, all worldly distracting thoughts can be washed away. I admonish the cultivators within the school to cherish time again and again.

Three Quatrains Sent from Mount Wuhua to Wang Zizheng

I have not yet understood when the appointment at the Three Islands (Sandao, the legendary sea-mountains where immortals dwell) will be fulfilled, yet for now I rejoice in the spring colors of Mount Wuhua. Though it is not far from the human world, fortunately I have already transcended its dust.

Again

In my later years, I have come to know how brief time is, and with each passing day I give thanks for the time that remains for cultivation. "Changchun" here refers to a long life of Daoist practice. My teacher taught me to keep far from the Three Poisons (greed, anger, and delusion) and to transcend the Six Dusts (the six external realms that give rise to attachment in the mind: form, sound, smell, taste, touch, and phenomena).

Again

Though the Wuhua Abbey is plain, it is spring in all four seasons. All day I sit at ease, and not a speck of worldly thought stirs in my mind.

Ancient-Style Poem

Traveling with a Daoist Companion to Dashan Temple

Mountain upon mountain rises in layers, and the river winds around in bends. My fellow Daoist invited me to climb the great mountain. The cloud hermitage (a quiet Daoist retreat in the mountains) above should already have transcended the Six Dusts.

Again

Though the Wuhua Abbey is plain, it is spring in all four seasons. All day I sit at ease, and not a speck of worldly thought stirs in my mind.

Ancient-Style Poem

Traveling with a Daoist Companion to Dashan Temple

Mountain upon mountain rises in layers, and the river winds around in bends, as my fellow Daoist invited me to climb the great mountain. Atop it stand several cloud hermitages, and those who sit within them all wear smiling faces.

Passing Jinci Temple on Qingming, Yiwei Year

Today's Taiyuan is also the Taiyuan of ancient times. Past and present interlace, and the events of the past have long become hard to trace. Only the water before the Jinci Temple still flows clear as ever, having passed through who knows how many years.

Sending Bean Porridge to a Daoist Companion in Yanjing

Bitter lettuce cooked until tender, and thin, pale bean porridge: these two foods have always been especially dear to me. Keep to your pure original nature, and you may be at peace for a long time. After eating, the body and limbs feel harmonized and at ease; when satisfied, the Six Shen (a general term for the activities of the human spirit) also rejoice and become invigorated. To enjoy these in one's later years is to forget all the affairs of the world.

Recorded Sayings

Instructions to the disciple Tianzhen Daoren (given as teaching to the disciple Tianzhen Daoren).

The Quanzhen (Complete Perfection) school is especially concerned with the profound principles of xingming (nature and life, encompassing body, mind, and vitality) and of moral cultivation. Many students today, however, have not integrated these principles into a unified understanding.

I studied for thirty years under several enlightened masters, Qiu, Liu, Tan, and Ma. I received from them, orally and through close personal attention, many mysterious teachings as well as the principles of transgression and merit in everyday life, so many that they cannot be counted. Even when one understands these principles, actual practice and realization often fall short, and it is therefore difficult to transcend the mundane and reach the realm of the sages.

Now the Gentleman of Longxi has long been a renouncer, and we happened to meet. He earnestly asked me to compile the subtle teachings I received from my masters, both for his own cultivation and for the instruction of later students. I could do no more than record a few of them here.

Dao is not far away; people themselves have estranged themselves from it. Many know that one should unite nature (the innate disposition of a person, xing) with life (the fundamental root of existence, ming), yet many also misunderstand this. They do not realize that cultivation and maintenance have a subtle inherent nature that has no fixed place to rest. Wisdom-life (huiming, the wisdom and vital force that arise in practice) must support one another, helping nature enter true stillness, passing into the boundless and unobstructed gate of the Dharma, and merging into the One. Only then can one forever transcend birth and death, attain spiritual penetration and freedom, and see the proof of it before one's eyes. This is the wondrous Dao.

If a student of the Dao persists with a firm heart yet has not reached the state of penetration, it is because the effort of past cultivation was lacking. If one can concentrate wholeheartedly and not retreat even unto death, then when one next receives a human body, one will be able to take up the practice of the previous life, see its results, and become a person of penetrating understanding. The sages do not abandon such people; with a slight word of guidance, their minds will open, and attaining the Dao will not be difficult.

The master said: "One must understand the myriad dharmas, yet not cling to them. To not cling to the myriad dharmas is to understand the empty nature of all dharmas (that the myriad things have no fixed, unchanging self-nature). To cling to the dharmas is like gazing only at the finger that points to the moon; not to cling to them is to understand the direction the finger points. Once one understands what is pointed to, one knows that all dharmas are empty. Having understood in this way, one becomes a person who is unconstrained, at ease in oneself, speaks little, and preserves one's life."

In handling worldly affairs, one must also respond flexibly and make decisive judgments, being open and resolute, unstained by external things, with inner and outer harmonized, and must continually accumulate merit and practice good deeds. Doing so day after day, even if one does not ascend to immortality, one will become a person who transcends ordinary custom and possesses insight, whose heart remains undisturbed in every circumstance.

Even if a person is clever and eloquent, if he merely declares that he does not cling, it will be difficult for him to receive true guidance. To achieve something, one must not let the years of one's life pass in vain; not a single inch of time is to be wasted. Since one has chosen to study the Dao, one must investigate down to what is real and essential; the teachings of masters and companions must not be lacking for a single day. Even when one has already penetrated and understood, one should still exchange insights and cultivate together until results are achieved. Only then can one stand alone without change and move through the world without weariness.

Now I have briefly recorded several matters, all subtle teachings that adepts of the Dao once spoke to me. I hope that those of like mind will practice them together, crossing from this shore to reach the other shore.

Plain Words

To the Daoist adepts of Chongyang Palace and Youde Temple:

The Ancestral Court (zuting, the principal site where the Daoist tradition originated and was transmitted) has a special karmic connection that ordinary places cannot match. This is where Heaven has allowed the many sages to proclaim their teachings and lay the foundations of the Daoist school. Since you dwell within the gate of the Dao (the Way), the work of rebuilding here must be carried out with sincerity and undivided effort, and you must not shrink back or grow lax when obstacles arise. Only by concentrating your will and accumulating merit and good deeds can you be equal to the affairs of this place.

If Daoist practitioners grasp the principle here, the merit they accumulate in this place will exceed by tenfold what they could gain elsewhere, and the same holds for their faults. If the merit is great, there is no need to let me know; I only wish the sages to know it. If the sages truly respond and send me to inspect the work in person, then your labor in petitioning and your hope for my arrival will have found their purpose. If merit is slight and transgressions many, then when calamity comes it will be no small matter. Now someone has brought back these sincere words to convey to the Daoists of Chongyang Palace and Youde Temple, so that all may know them. I hope that adepts with aspiration for the Way will examine these words repeatedly, for they will truly benefit you. Do not harbor doubts; set to work with sincerity and do not delay. The assembled true sages will certainly not disappoint you.

Seven-Character Quatrains

Written as the Chongyang festival approached, when Perfected Yuan met the company at Wuhua Temple and composed a poem to present to them.

Though Wuhua Temple is lovely in the spring scenery of the third month, it cannot match the leisurely outings of the ninth month.

The forest trees are dyed in full color, and the mountains are like brocade; where the assembled immortals gather, it is like Little Penglai (a legendary immortal realm).

Sent to the gentlemen of Duan Zhenqing's circle.

Ten thousand golden lotuses bear fruit together, and Wuhua Temple stands in the deep autumn season.

The auspicious gathering of Qiyang (a phrase from the original text, perhaps meaning a fortunate assembly) is rarely met; quickly tell the fellow adepts among the clouds, so they may know early.

In Reply to Wang Zizheng

To quiet the mind, why must one deliberately stop reading? Once you have seen through the affairs of the world and forgotten attachments, you can return to Taichu (the primordial state before Heaven and Earth divided and before the myriad things arose).

Contemplating and penetrating the unobstructed principles of the scriptures, one naturally sees ten thousand golden lotuses bear fruit together. Wuhua Temple stands in the deep autumn season.

The auspicious gathering of Qiyang is rarely met; quickly tell the fellow adepts among the clouds, so they may know early.

Sit quietly, and why be bound to reading books? Once you have seen through the feelings of the world and let go of its many attachments, your mind can return to the Taichu (the primordial state, before heaven and earth had divided and before the myriad things had taken form).

When you thoroughly grasp the principles of the scriptures, which penetrate everything without obstruction, your inner mind will naturally become pure, clear, and empty.

End of Volume One of the Baoguang Ji

Baoguang Ji, Volume Two

Composed by Yin Zhiping, Perfected of Qinghe

Ci Poetry

Twenty-five pieces to the tune "Xijiang Yue"

Written at Qiuyang Guan in early autumn

I love Qiuyang Guan for its quiet and seclusion, where few people come and go among the pines and rocks. There is no need to force oneself into sitting meditation. The mind naturally sets down its cleverness and its cares, and one feels at ease, as if slightly intoxicated.

Sitting here, one can see the mountains and waters, and the mind is free of right and wrong, of disturbance. Every day white clouds drift by, and I linger here to enjoy them, my heart open and content.

Again

I love the scenery of Xiyan, with its continuous ridges and rich soil. The green pines and willows are tender and soft, and many precious flowers and herbs grow here.

The spring water flows slowly with a faint sound, and the autumn sunlight shines bright and brilliant. Here one need not climb the stairs that lead to heaven, for the scene before one's eyes is already like an immortal's realm.

Again

I love the Daoist community of Qiuyang Guan, where each person is humble and courteous and they live together in harmony. All day their hearts are open and joyful, and they sing freely. In daily life they make no distinction between "mine" and "yours" and do not quarrel over who gains.

They dwell at peace in this blessed land and live at ease, strolling leisurely among the pines and walking through the wisteria wreathed in mist. They put others before themselves and accumulate much merit, and so they stay far from calamity and unforeseen misfortune.

Again

I love the beauty of Xiyan, where the yang energy stirs in this immortal garden. The mountains wind and rise like a crouching dragon ridge. This is a good place of freedom in the human world.

They stroll leisurely through the pines, passing among the wisteria wreathed in mist. Putting others before themselves, they accumulate much merit and so stay far from calamity and unforeseen misfortune.

Again

I love the beauty of Xiyan, where the yang energy stirs in this immortal garden. The mountains wind and rise like a crouching dragon ridge. Here it is nearly like the human world and heaven at once.

Thatched hermitages nestle among the mountain forests, and immortal flowers and rare fruits give off their fragrance. Travelers who come from the towns find coolness and peace here, and on seeing the scenery they naturally raise their hands in reverence and feel admiration.

Again

I love the climate and scenery of Qiuyang Guan. It is as though one finger could reach the clouds, and the road ahead is clear and free of confusion. Why must one seek outside oneself for Caoxi (the ancestral temple of the Buddhist Chan school, here used figuratively for an external method of practice)? Here one can understand the three bodies and four wisdoms (Buddhist terms referring to the three bodies and four kinds of wisdom of the Buddha).

Do not chase after the profound and unfathomable secrets of Heaven, nor seek the empty Great Way outside. If you first recognize these principles as they are, you are already a successor of Quanzhen (the Complete Perfection school of Daoism).

Written at Longyang Guan at the winter solstice

The moon's light shines across the four seas, and the breath of Longyang Guan fills the three fields (three sites of inner alchemical practice). A single peal of thunder shakes the mountains and rivers, and it bursts forth in flying flashes of light, like lightning.

Dharma rain (a metaphor for the nourishing power of the teaching) often descends upon those who follow the Dao (dào), and compassionate clouds spread across the boundless heavens and earth. When this happens, a true age of peace appears, and the wish of my whole life is thereby fulfilled.

The immortals in heaven are not deluded, but among people there are those whose nature is stubborn and ignorant. Yang qi (qì) of the dragon (a Daoist term for the yang energy cultivated in practice) fills the Three Fields (sāntián), that is, the upper, middle, and lower Dantian (dāntián), the three points in the body where qi gathers in cultivation. A single peal of thunder shakes the mountains and rivers and bursts forth in flashes of lightning.

Dharma rain often descends upon those who follow the Dao, and compassionate clouds spread across the boundless heavens and earth. When this happens, a true age of peace appears, and the wish of my whole life is thereby fulfilled.

The immortals in heaven are not confused, yet people on earth are stubborn and foolish by nature. Those who are fortunate enough to enter the gate and read the scriptures can have their majestic Dharma-nature (fǎxìng, the clear and luminous original nature we already possess) suddenly awakened.

Once one thoroughly understands principles, one can truly grasp the "wondrous existence" (miàoyǒu). By contemplating emptiness (kōngxìng), body and mind merge with the void. Wisdom that penetrates to Lingbao (língbǎo, a divine lineage and scriptural system of Daoism) realizes the original state. Who can understand this? Without relying on words, one can still liberate all beings.

Cultivating the Dao requires firm resolve, gathering the mind and spirit, and above all not indulging the will or wandering about. I earnestly urge my fellow practitioners not to delay until old age and then regret it.

Jet-black hair and rosy complexion change easily, and youth and daylight are hard to hold on to. Why not awaken early, turn back toward the Dao, and heed the sincere advice and kind guidance?

A Daoist monastery has been rebuilt behind the mountain, while fighting still continues in the region south of Yan. The merit that Daoist practitioners have accumulated over many years can spare people from calamity and misfortune.

Each day I recite scriptures to serve the nation, and all day I chant the Dao to subdue demons. Blessings increase, misfortune recedes, and one cultivates a calm and gentle qi. Once one reaches stillness and clarity, one can attain the fruit of the Dao.

[Written on Returning to the Mountain]

This was written at a time of the long, sweltering days of midsummer. Upon returning to the mountains, I found it was already autumn.

In midsummer the days are long and the heat is oppressive. Entering autumn and returning to the mountains, I feel a refreshing coolness. The fields are a deep green, and it is already clear that a harvest is in sight.

Why bother with reckoning distances to the ends of the earth? Let the remote mountains beyond the pass be as wild as they may. With no worries before me, this is a land of immortals. For now I follow circumstance and let my heart unfold.

Again

Do not envy the noise and splendor of the city, nor disdain the plain life of the mountains. The harvest is in sight.

Why bother with reckoning distances to the ends of the earth? Let the remote mountains beyond the pass be as wild as they may. With no worries before me, this is a land of immortals. For now I follow circumstance and let my heart unfold.

Again

Do not envy the noise and splendor of the city, nor disdain the plain life of the mountains. The calls of apes and the cries of cranes only add to the delight. A serene and cool state of mind is a priceless treasure.

Through the night, with the clear breeze and the bright moon, and at dawn, with the green cypress trees and the clouds and mist to admire. Hair loose and hair tied in topknots: this is ordinary daily life, and such a scene is enough to be painted on a quiet screen.

Outside the window the mountain ridges lie across the view like a painting, and the flowing water at the door is pleasant to hear. The Dongtian (grotto-heaven, the immortal realm described in Daoist tradition) is deep and secluded, rarely visited, and it is not a road of the mortal world.

Alone, I enjoy the clear breeze and the bright moon in quiet places, far from the social exchanges of a noisy world. The mind is clear and luminous, and the Liushi (six consciousnesses: the senses of eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind) settle naturally, so I may sing and chant at ease as I please.

The golden crow in the moon (the sun-bird of myth) announces the dawn, while the jade hare in the sun (the divine hare that pounds medicine in the moon) is just about to sleep. Who would imagine that the ordinary state of all things in the world could be so inverted? The principle here is neither deep nor shallow.

To recognize the original true nature is to understand that no-affair and no-action (Wuwei, non-action) is true Chan. Everyone possesses this nature, complete and without lack. It is only because it cannot be set in motion and made to shine forth that it becomes obscured.

Shallow views cling to having knowledge and awareness, while those who penetrate deeply do not cling to either awakening or delusion. Once this is understood, one awakens suddenly and enters Yixi (the state in which the Great Dao is soundless and formless, as Daoist texts describe it). This is the correct view of one who has resolved to pursue the Way.

To comprehend the Dao, how could one ever leave the square inch of the heart? Clarifying the mind does not lie in the distant Western Heaven. Sit quietly all day, examine and ponder carefully, and turn the pivot within the heart. This is the key.

If there are desires, it is hard to transcend aging and illness; if the heart is free of attachment, the countenance also readily returns to youth. Empty the heart and fill the belly (calm the mind-spirit and keep the qi full within the abdomen), let the Liushen (six spirits, a general term for the body, mind, spirit, and qi) become settled, and step by step proceed toward the cool shore of liberation.

Practice for nine years and you can remove the Sixiang (four marks, such as the marks of self, others, sentient beings, and lifespan). Persist for ten years and you will surely reach the Sanshan (three sacred mountains of Daoist legend). Roam freely in Penghu and Langyuan (legendary immortal realms), and be spared the suffering of the cycle of birth and death in the human world.

Offered to one who is ill: when the heart is free of attachment, the countenance readily returns to youth. Empty the heart and fill the belly, let the six spirits settle, and step by step proceed toward the cool shore of liberation.

Practice for nine years and you can remove the four marks; persist for ten years and you will surely reach the three sacred mountains. Roam freely in Penghu and Langyuan, and be spared the suffering of the cycle of birth and death in the human world.

Offered to Daoist Tian: in action, do not let your temperament become agitated; in stillness, do not harbor doubt or fear. Let what is before you be upright and steady, without cleverness or contrivance. True stillness and clarity lie within this.

When the qi fills the three fields (the upper, middle, and lower Dantian, the places where jing, qi, and shen are stored in Neidan practice), it becomes naturally full, and when shen-qi passes through the eight vessels (the channel system within the body), one begins to have understanding. Once this is clear, one awakens suddenly and enters the realm of Wuwei, and wherever one is, the heart remains at peace.

Offered to the assembly of the Wanlian Society: when you understand all things, the heart is content; when you let go of everything, the body is light. Cultivate the single point of original true nature to completion, and the mysterious words are worth listening to carefully.

When one acts without restraint, one often forgets the self; only when one gathers in the thoughts does one notice Wuming (ignorance, the delusion that obscures true nature). When Wuming is extinguished completely, mundane emotions and thoughts also cease. This is what is meant by recognizing the mind and seeing the nature (knowing the original mind and manifesting the original nature).

The road into the Western Mountain.

Entering the Western Mountain Path

Stone-step paths and ladders among the clouds are exceedingly steep, and even clinging to wisteria and grasping creepers, one can scarcely make progress. The key lies in perseverance until one finally attains completion. Subtle and profound words are worth attending to with care.

When one indulges the mind's intentions, one forgets one's own existence. Only after gathering the thoughts does one perceive the obscurity within the heart. When that obscurity is completely dispelled, the affections of the mundane world are cut off as well. This is what it means to understand one's own mind and see one's original nature.

Entering the Western Mountain Path

The stone-step path and the ladder among the clouds are exceedingly steep, and even clinging to wisteria and grasping creepers, one can hardly go forward. Deep within the dongtian (grotto-heaven, the immortal realms described in Daoism), the mountains and waters are pure and clear. Once one has left the dust of the world behind, what the eyes see and the ears hear also becomes tranquil.

Sleeping securely in an earthen cave and sitting quietly in stillness among the pines and rocks, one keeps the ears unclouded and the heart luminous. There is no need to envy the fame of Xu You (a legendary recluse). In this way, one has already transcended the ordinary and drawn near to the sacred realm.

Again

It is not that one covets the green mountains and clear waters. One simply wishes to dwell in the hills and conceal one's name. Wearing coarse cloth and eating plain grain, cutting off worldly obligations, one cultivates the original root that was present from the beginning.

Let the breath gather and the spirit settle, empty the heart and fill the belly, and one can attain longevity. Once cultivation is complete, one may manifest before the Three Pure Ones (Sanqing, the highest divine realms revered in Daoism). This is the upright nature that male practitioners aim to accomplish.

Exhorting Companions to Reduce Sleep

In summer, diligently cultivate the jeweled palace (here referring to the body and mind used in practice). In winter, well temper the resolve until it is firm and unyielding. Even at the third watch of the night, do not let drowsiness overtake you. This is the discipline kept by the Daoist master.

Do not indulge in delusive fancies while studying the Dao, and do not leave the cloister (the monastic community where Daoist practitioners live and cultivate together) while pursuing true cultivation. Once the effortless work of Wuwei (non-action) is accomplished, one may chant freely, lie down in peace, and sleep soundly without worry.

Constant Contentment and Open Heart

Contemplating and practicing all day is also the discipline kept by the Daoist master.

Do not indulge in delusive fancies while studying the Dao, and do not leave the cloister while pursuing true cultivation. Once the effortless work of Wuwei (non-action) is accomplished, one may chant freely, lie down in peace, and sleep soundly without worry.

Taking in the mountains and waters all day long, one remains content and free of care from morning to night. In old age, one can rest at ease and find joy. What more is there to seek? One only wishes to preserve this yang-harmonious vital qi (Qi) and keep it full and abundant for a long time.

Fortunate to be born a human, and able to understand the great Dao, one finds a true resting place within the Dao. Once the work and conduct are complete, one may ride the clouds toward Yingzhou (a legendary mountain of the immortals in the sea), and one's fame will be transmitted for ten thousand ages.

Presented to Master Zhang

Daily, like the head of the great turtle (a legendary giant turtle said to bear the immortal mountains on its back), kindle the furnace fire, and keep the stove free of smoke at all times. To hold steadfastly to a single, diligent aspiration is better than rushing back and forth in vain.

Set aside the tangled affairs of the mundane world and comprehend the clear and profound principles of the mysterious. Once cultivation reaches completion and the nature is harmonized, one is as if chosen by Penglai (a legendary immortal mountain).

Sent to a Fellow Daoist in the Capital

It is only because one's merit and practice are not yet complete, and one's cultivation still falls short, that one cannot avoid wandering east and west. Since we parted, two years have passed. The road has been winding, and the dust of travel stretches ten thousand li.

To the Daoist community of Yanshan (roughly the present-day Beijing area), I offer this admonition: listen to my words and do not doubt them. Though external affairs may still entangle you, let your heart forget cleverness and calculation, lest you come to regret it later.

This is why one cannot avoid wandering east and west. Since we parted, two years have passed, and along the way I have traveled ten thousand li and endured the dust of the road.

To the Daoist community of Yanshan, listen to my admonition and do not doubt it. Though external affairs may entangle you, let your heart forget cleverness and calculation, lest you regret it later.

Also:

Worldly affairs may long have wearied a person, yet how could a cultivator of the Dao (Dao, the Way) be content to return empty-handed? Had I not practiced diligently and come to Guanzhong in the west, how could I have arrived in time for the assembly of Perfected Master Chongyang?

Tell those among our followers who aspire to the Dao that the ancestral court (zuting, the root site where the founding masters transmitted the teachings and practice) has already revealed its foundations. Mount Zhongnan has been wondrously beautiful since antiquity, and those advanced in years may take this place as a lasting foundation for their cultivation.

A Gift to the Confucian Scholar Wang Zizheng

The original nature of human beings is empty, still, and undifferentiated, yet desire and emotion tangle and disturb it. If a person can suddenly awaken to the principle of cultivating the Dao, they will see clearly that the myriad things of the world are nothing but illusion.

One must further penetrate the profound principle, and then cast off self-regard and self-boasting. Gather in the light and quietly nurture the budding spirit within. This is the way of creation, in which things are accomplished through following nature and wuwei (non-action).

Nineteen Stanzas to the Tune "Wu Shan Yi Duan Yun"

Composed at Qiuyang Abbey

The nineteen immortal maidens followed their master on his travels through the four quarters. Journeying west, they reached the great cities of the Huihe (an ancient people of the Western Regions), and everywhere along the way they saw fields and mulberry trees.

A Rare Melon, to the Tune "Wu Shan Yi Duan Yun," Nineteen Stanzas

Composed at Qiuyang Abbey

The nineteen immortal maidens followed their master on his travels through the four quarters, and journeying west they reached the great cities of the Huihe, where everywhere they saw fields and mulberry trees.

Among the rare melons, one is especially sweet, yet how many in Chixian (the Central Lands, China) have ever tasted it? The great chiliocosm (a term in Buddhist and Daoist texts for the vast world) displays countless different scenes. The immortals ride cranes and mount clouds, and once more they turn east for home.

Also:

Having cultivated for three years in the northern frontier, they then returned ten thousand li from the far west. The cloud-borne immortal carriages moved lightly and gracefully, gradually coming eastward, and people all rejoiced and beamed with delight.

Virtue (De) and cultivation stood out with brilliance, and their merit was vast. When practice is complete, one can transcend the Three Realms. When immortals throughout the ten directions complete their achievements, the age of great peace will arrive.

Also:

When the Supreme Old Lord (Taishang Laojun) arrived at Hangu Pass, it was then that our Dao lineage received the Dao. Amid the warring of the Seven Kingdoms of the Warring States, from where would compassion arise?

Only when the Old Lord went west to teach did the great Daoist teaching spread widely throughout the world. Across past and present, many things are alike, and this makes the demeanor of the Dao of Daoism all the more evident.

Also:

There were true persons who cultivated the Dao by the Northern Sea, and there were free and unfettered people by the Western Cliffs. They went far from their masters, crossed passes and perilous roads, and were not stained by worldly dust.

Cultivating the Dao (xiudao) requires a resolute and determined will, and a sincere heart as firm as iron and stone. Once nine years of practice are complete, one may rise upon the clouds and mists, and the three Immortal Isles will be my home.

Another saying goes: the candle of spiritual nature (xingling) shines through to the heavenly eye, and the lamp in the heart releases the light of wisdom. A clear and tranquil spirit is true and constant by nature, and wherever one may be, one can attain harmony and penetrating understanding.

Living in the mundane world, one does not covet glory and wealth, and in dealing with others one often acts with kindness and does good deeds. Once cultivation is complete, one rides the clouds back and journeys alone to Yaochi (the Jade Pool), the abode of the immortals.

Sent to the Daoist companions of Tianchang (the Daoists of the Tianchang region):

Beyond the mountain, the spring is nearing its end, and the scenery around Longyang is gradually growing lovely. In the East Garden the bālǎn blossoms are opening. Accepting one's circumstances, there is also a life to be lived here.

Fellow Daoists should steadfastly cultivate the heart over the long term, and when they meet, they should often greet one another with the proper bows and salutations. Natural stillness and detachment bring a peaceful and tranquil life. Transcending worldly concerns, one naturally finds purity within the heart.

Walking with a staff up Chanfang Mountain:

I am a carefree wanderer of the Three Mountains, and also a guest who roams the four seas. Wherever I walk alone, I preserve my true nature, and the clear breeze and bright moon remain my constant companions.

Having seen through the vanity and falseness of the world, who would still envy those who ride the clouds to gaze at the stars or travel on horseback? A single staff surpasses a carriage drawn by dragons, and with steady steps I climb the high mountain.

Composed at the Xiantian Temple:

Today I have come to Zhuolu, where the battles of Chiyou have long since ceased. The waters of the Banquan flow through winter and summer, and who knows how many springs and autumns have passed since ancient times.

Therefore, those who win by relying on mighty armies still struggle without end even today. A lifetime of slaughter and warfare creates enmity and grievance. When will this cycle finally come to an end?

[Presented to a Daoist companion]

My Daoist friend insists that I stay in this sacred place through the winter. There is a damaged section to the northwest, and repairing it would take a great deal of effort. It cannot be fixed for the moment and must wait until the warmth of spring, when it can be completed. Since the conditions are not yet ripe, I will set it aside for now.

I love the life of mountain forests and springs, yet you have no heart for mending the damage. This is a sacred place of profound seclusion, and beyond the mundane world we have become kindred spirits.

When spring arrives, the repairs will be complete. That will be the time for the gathering of the Quanzhen (Complete Perfection) companions. When cultivation and achievement are fulfilled, in some future year we will ascend together into the heavens.

Written at Longyang Temple on the Double Ninth Festival:

White wine lifts the spirit, and the yellow chrysanthemums (huanghua) give off their fragrance. This is exactly the state of mind I find here. This is a sacred place of profound seclusion, and beyond the mundane world we have become kindred spirits.

When spring comes and all things are complete and fulfilled, it is the fitting season for fellow adepts of the Quanzhen (Complete Perfection) school to gather. Once their cultivation and merit are perfected, they will arrange to meet again next year and ascend together to the clouds.

Double Ninth at Longyang Abbey

Strong wine loosens the chest, and yellow chrysanthemums send out their rich fragrance. Such genuine flavor is just right for celebrating the Double Ninth Festival. The mind-nature, like a bright moon, is naturally full and complete.

Behind the mountain, autumn deepens and the scenery shows no change. By the quiet railing, several clumps of flowers are in full bloom. The blossoms before the windows on either side are fresh and lovely, and the view is so refined that it surpasses the cavern-heavens of the immortals.

Admonitions to the World

Daoism reveals the clear emptiness and profound mystery of the Dao, while Buddhism expounds broad and deep wisdom. The benevolence and righteousness taught by Confucius have remained valid from antiquity to the present. Although the three sages taught by different methods, their intentions were the same.

Some people do not understand the practice of forgetting fame, stilling the mind, and turning the gaze inward to awaken. They only know how to divide themselves into sects and set themselves apart from one another. Only when they close their eyes and leave this world do they see their own path ahead. By then, regret comes too late for them to attain completion.

Choosing a Dwelling

I have chosen a home in Xiguan. There, mountain ridges rise one behind another, and a river winds through them, bending and curving for more than twenty or thirty li up and down its course. The muddy waters surge in waves, and mulberry trees and crops on both banks gleam against the sunlight. The local people are simple and honest, and the place is secluded, suitable for spending one's later years in peace. I named my dwelling "Yanglao Hermitage" (Nourishing Old Age Hermitage) and wrote this short lyric to express my feelings:

Ten thousand mountain peaks stretch across the land, their green hues unbroken. The mountain paths wind and turn, extending far. The villagers are content with their homeland and happy to tend their mulberry and hemp. Streams murmur on, and fallen blossoms drift in fragrance.

I have chosen to settle here and spend my old age. Let the body gradually grow old, and let the mind gradually grow calm and detached. Untroubled by external things, I will pass the rest of my life here. Why would I need to seek another realm of immortals elsewhere?

Ten thousand mountain peaks stretch across the land, their green hues unbroken. The mountain paths wind and turn, extending far. The villagers are content with their homeland and happy to tend their mulberry and hemp. Streams murmur on, and fallen blossoms drift in fragrance.

I have chosen to settle here and spend my old age. Let the body gradually grow old, and let the mind gradually grow calm and detached. Untroubled by external things, I will pass the rest of my life here. Why would I need to seek another realm of immortals elsewhere?

Inscription for Tongxian Abbey

Layer upon layer of green peaks rise in beauty, and the abbey, like an immortal's realm, has a clear and luminous air. The Three Yangs stand upright, their forms like jade sea-turtles. The primordial Qi between heaven and earth naturally gave rise to this scene.

Deep within the ten thousand clouded mountains lies another quiet garden of immortals. Who could live here in leisure for long? Its purity and ease ask for nothing more.

Hurry, Padded Robe

Last night the west wind was bitter, and this morning the autumn chill has deepened. Though a Daoist can subdue the stirrings of the mind, the cold of summer and winter still finds it hard to resist.

The patched robe (a garment of mended cloth worn by monks and Daoists) is best made wide and loose, so it can be worn over the shoulders by day and used as a blanket at night. If a single garment is still feared to be insufficient against the cold, what else could one possibly look for?

Moon-Viewing with Elder Zhai by the Longmen River Stream

The stream meets the frost-laden air and looks cold and clear. Mountain flowers, wet with dew, remain as bright as ever. Good friends share the round moon together, and the joy of their gathering has no end.

I often recall the vast scenery of West Lake, where the pale moon shines clear and bright and heaven and earth seem to become one. Tonight we part, exactly three years since we met, and it feels like roaming among immortals in a dream.

Presented to the Lady of the Dragon and Tiger

The work in the Northern Sea is not yet complete, yet the journey to Red City has already been traveled. The body is purely still, and sorrow is forever forgotten. Where could idle melancholy still arise?

At forty, one reaches the age of no more confusion, and the affairs of the world are all familiar and clear. Delighting in Heaven's decree and accepting one's lot, one keeps to tranquility and peace. Truth, after all, was never abundant to begin with.

Written at Qingshui

The orthodox teaching rises in its proper time, and the precious altar appears whenever the moment calls for it. Many true immortals descend into the human world, yet they must still be counted among the ranks of the immortals.

They teach and deliver countless beings, so that each may attain awakening. Once merit and practice are fulfilled, one may reach Penglai and escape the Three Calamities (jiénàn, ordeals) of the kalpa.

Self-Chanting

The land south of Yan is damp and hot, yet beyond the mountains it is cool, like a heavenly realm. The principle of Yin-Yang is hard to grasp, and its inversions and confusions still bind me to the karmic ties of past days.

Over two years I set out through the scorching summers, silent all day long. In my leisure, my merit and practice remain incomplete, and this only strengthens my resolve to cultivate the Way.

Admonition Against Ignorance

The single light of numinous awareness is vast, yet the three thousand karmic obstructions are deep and heavy. I urge you to examine yourself carefully and early, and not wait until calamity is upon you before you awaken.

When confronted with affairs, turn your thoughts back upon yourself, and wisdom will give rise to the means of response. If you understand these principles, they are the ladder that leads to the heavenly realms.

Eleven Songs to the Tune "Phoenix Perching on the Wutong"

Written at the Qiuyang Abbey

The orthodox teaching has been transmitted, rare for a thousand years. Among the bustling people of the mortal world, how many truly awaken? Suddenly waking to the suffering of transmigration, one seeks a path of escape; turning back toward the Dao, one is met by the true immortals who deliver.

When merit and practice are complete, one may journey to the isle of Penglai, roaming freely and carefree in the company of Changchun Zhenren (the Perfected of Eternal Spring), a Daoist immortal. There are also thousands upon thousands of marvelous flowers and trees. Yet those who have not yet left the dust of the mortal world, who among them can see them?

Replying to a Request from Xuande Prefecture

The three yang stages of inner cultivation (sanyang, the stages of yang energy in Neidan practice) have all been passed through. Traveling to Xuande to pay homage to the Heavenly Worthy of Primordial Beginning (Yuanshi Tianzun) is not too late, and one day we will surely meet. For many years I have stayed by my teachers' side, but I have grown weary of worldly affairs, so I can only go alone, drifting with the wind.

Over the long years I have often made this vow: to eat coarse food, wear plain clothes, and keep apart from the entanglements of worldly human relations. I have no attachment to wealth and high rank. It is better to cultivate single-mindedly beneath the mountain cliffs.

Alone, drifting with the wind.

Over the long years I have often made this vow: to eat coarse food, wear plain clothes, and keep apart from the entanglements of worldly human relations. I have no attachment to wealth and high rank. It is better to cultivate single-mindedly beneath the mountain cliffs.

The spring light on the cliffs is about to fade. Spring is beautiful, yet it cannot be held back. Spring goes and autumn comes, the four seasons alternate, and cold and heat turn back and forth with them.

People let a year's time slip away in vain, and often fail to notice it. Gain and loss, sorrow and joy, all belong to the cycle of transmigration. I wish to leave these words as a warning to the world, but while people's minds remain unenlightened, they will find it difficult to find the path that frees one from birth and death and leads to the state of non-birth.

Written at the Xiantian Temple

Where is the finest scenery behind the mountain? Shanggu has numinous and ancient sites, and since antiquity it has had the Xuanyuan Temple. Clear springs well up and wind their way along; dense green cypresses grow thick and tangled, past counting.

Today I have come here and wander at leisure among the clouds and waters. I brush off poems and verses at will and laugh freely. The myriad sights cannot stir a heart that accords with the Dao, and the wondrous body of Quanzhen (the Complete Perfection state of cultivation in the Quanzhen School) is full and luminous.

Lyrics Written in Reply to the Bixu Altar

The supreme Dao is profound and subtle; where should one seek it? Delusion and wicked thoughts are precisely what lead people astray, like demonic beasts. Reduce desire……

Wandering through the four quarters, I have arrived here today. I recite poems as they come to me and laugh freely from an open heart. None of the myriad sights of the world can disturb my mind, for my mind has already merged with the Dao. The wondrous body of Quanzhen (Complete Perfection, the state sought in Neidan, or internal alchemy) is also complete and luminously clear.

In Response to the "Lyrics of the Bixu Altar"

The supreme Dao is profound and subtle; where should one begin to seek it? Deluded thoughts and wicked intentions are the demonic obstacles that lead people astray. If one wishes to achieve results in cultivating the Upper, Middle, and Lower Dantians (Dantian, the energy centers where Jing, Qi, and Shen are refined), one must maintain true constancy and true stillness, and so reach the state of imperishability.

When the Qi of the five viscera converge and return to the Origin, it is like the sounding of the True One. Thousands of words must wait until Yin qi recedes and Yang qi begins to stir. Since ancient times, the deluded have never seen through this principle. Even one who possesses extraordinary skills may, in the end, turn in vain into mere rotting matter.

Another

One should turn inward to seek that single point of numinous awareness (the inner spirituality). Dispel all kinds of demonic obstacles and drive away the Western Mountain beast (a symbol of wicked thoughts or desires that obstruct cultivation). Ten thousand trees bloom with jade-white blossoms like brocade, and the realm of everlasting spring long occupies body and mind, no longer troubled by the decay of the rootless.

Cloud companions from the four quarters, which is to say fellow adepts, gather and come and go, exchanging the ways of cultivation. The Qi above and below gradually harmonizes, and one slowly feels Yang qi rising. A single ray of light passes through the marrow of the whole body, and body and mind seem to shed an old shell, giving off a fresh and clear fragrance.

Expressing My Feelings

I am about to travel through all under heaven. For ten years I have practiced with diligence, fearing only that I might fail the hopes of my late master. Now that I am old, I am also willing to set aside worldly affairs, to keep away from the entanglements of human relations, and to wander among mountains and rivers as circumstances allow.

I tell these words to those who truly understand, and urge you to listen: calamity and war are things everyone has seen with their own eyes. Yet people still crave without end and cling to worldly life. The road ahead is so perilous, so how could one avoid disaster?

Written at Taiping Xingguo Abbey

The ancient sites and Daoist abbeys here are enough to lodge body and mind. The green cypress and juniper seem to carry the breath of everlasting spring. Only when cultivation and merit are complete can one truly save and deliver the world; cultivating silently without intention allows one to accord with the will of Heaven.

Fortunately, I have found this peaceful and quiet place. I roam at ease all day with no worries in my heart. Since I am advanced in years and my strength of mind is failing, it is natural to withdraw. When will the endless turmoil of worldly affairs finally come to an end?

Remembering My Late Master

My master once often said, "Yanshan is the finest place under heaven." Later, my master was indeed buried here. I write this short lyric to record this sentiment.

Where under heaven is the scenery most beautiful? The vital currents of the mountains and the sea secretly connect, and no Daoist sanctuary in the land of Yan can compare. The cloud companions from the four quarters gather around, and my master had long since quietly understood that one would eventually be laid to rest here.

Having already entered the gate of the Mystery (xuanmen), the Daoist path, one should awaken to it early. Who truly understands the cultivation of the Perfected (xiuzhen)? This matter must not be taken lightly. Heaven's intention is clear: it permits the building of temples, and the Yan Mountains a thousand li away seem to have come within one's embrace.

Lin Jiang Xian, Ten Pieces

Presented at Chaoyuan, with a request for a lyric reply

Since leaving the capital, the affairs of the world have grown fewer, and the mind no longer dwells on even a trace of worldly concern. In idle hours I sing and chant, quietly nourishing the spirit. When the mind clings to something, it is all delusion; when the mind is empty of attachment, the complete true nature (zhenxing) appears.

Following one's nature, one roams freely, like a traveler among clouds and water. Detached and without entanglement, one is a man of leisure. Content wherever one is, one makes no distinction between near and far. The Three Yang (the stage when yang qi is at its height) are about to spread everywhere, and the Five Qi (the five vital energies within the body) naturally turn toward gathering in the Original Qi (yuanqi).

Presented to Madame Yuan

Madame Yuan lived for ten years in the desert. Later she took up the religious life and returned to the capital, and this lyric was written for her.

For ten years she tasted the bitterness of desert life, and now one morning she has returned to the capital. Whenever she recalls those past years, her heart grows heavy with grief. Do not go and read the Biography of Su Wu, and do not speak of Han Zhaojun.

Let go of both past and future. Fortunately, she has met the Perfected Changchun (Qiu Chuji, patriarch of the Quanzhen school). I know that her faith in the Dao grows firmer by the day. How could Heaven fail one who possesses De (virtue)? And how could the earth wrong such a person?

Sitting in Stillness on the Western Hills

Sitting in stillness on the Western Hills brings great benefit; ordinary worldly affairs rarely reach me. After a full meal each day, one is at ease and content. Cultivating a clear and quiet body and mind, the true master (the inner true nature) reveals itself.

For thirty years I wandered in confusion, searching in every direction, and only now have I recognized my true face (true original nature). When the wild emotions are exhausted, all forms and appearances also return to emptiness. Nothing was ever really there to begin with, yet I spent so much effort on it.

Again

Originally it was one and the same solitary, self-standing being, yet once stained by external things it became hard to find. Now I have recognized my true face. When the wild emotions are exhausted, all forms and appearances also return to emptiness. Nothing was ever really there to begin with, yet I spent so much effort on it.

Again

Originally it was one and the same solitary, self-standing being, yet once stained by external things it became hard to comprehend. As the clouds of confusion scatter, the wind of wisdom rises. Why seek outside oneself? Sitting upright in quiet cultivation, one can penetrate the Dao of Heaven.

Though countless words are spoken, one still does not awaken in the end; when true understanding comes, even a single word becomes superfluous. At the threshold of going further, do not hesitate. Let go of every attachment, and the many entanglements will fall away of their own accord.

Again

Penetrating the Quiescent Gate of Quanzhen (Complete Perfection, the core practice principle of the Quanzhen school of Daoism), why would one still need to strain outward in search of it? Look for the clues right here in this very place. Do not give rise to confused attachments or fixed views, and do not cling to them without returning.

How can the true nature reach stillness and freedom from disturbance? Do not seek it outside the true emptiness. When the mind has no desires, then one is truly cultivating. Follow the moment as it comes, and constantly keep to stillness and stability. When responding to external things, let each response arise naturally, complete and harmonious.

Public Instruction

The myriad scenes before the eyes are all different, and none of them need to be grasped. When the mind is at leisure and calm, and concentrated on a single state, then it has something to rely on. Keep the true constancy unobscured, and the Valley Spirit (gushen, a Daoist term referring to the empty and tranquil substance that can nourish and give birth to all things) will naturally become clear. The demonic obstacles that disturb cultivation then recede, and the inner numinous awareness reaches its full manifestation.

To transcend the dust of the world and chant alone brings its own joy. What is there to fear in the honors and humiliations of the world?

I urge you to awaken quickly and look at the path of cultivation ahead. Pursue the true realm, and do not talk about empty cleverness.

Feelings Stirred

Provincial Administrator Li (an official title) invited me to the Shushan Mountains to bury the three masters. The Daoist community, as well as the common people and scholars of Yanjing, were all unwilling to let me go.

More than ten years have passed since I left Weiyang. I have wandered to the ends of the earth and even reached the Western Rong (an ancient name for the western regions). Now I have returned to the state of Yan and dwell in an immortal palace, clarifying the teachings of our patriarch, expounding the methods of practice, and continuing the lineage of my master.

What Heaven intends is difficult to fathom from the start, and the depths of human feeling are likewise inexhaustible. I have always been fond of leisure and quiet, yet I have been arranged to dwell north of the sea, and I am not permitted to cross beyond Shandong.

Something Gained

When one discusses profound principles, people readily understand them, but true stillness is very difficult to maintain. The affairs of the world are truly not worth clinging to. Practitioners with clear eyes in all ten directions should learn from me to remain unforced and at ease in non-action.

Having realized the simple and unadorned Way, one should return to plainness and let a sincere life accompany one at all times. Gather in the brightness, keep silent, and let the outward appearance seem foolish and dull. When the mind is clear and bright as the full moon and the temperament is serene, one then accords with the daogui (an internal alchemy term in Daoism, often referring to methods of refining and nourishing).

Again

Where there is form and appearance, it is easy to find. The realm of non-action without traces is hard to attain. It follows a person all day long like a shadow, keeping company with them. The foolish do not perceive it, but the penetrating have already understood it.

Study it diligently, and only then will you comprehend this principle and walk the correct path. This is the great road that does not lead one astray. I urge you to awaken quickly and not hesitate. Often forget sight and hearing, do not be drawn along by the outside world, and abide in the realm of non-action.

Diligently investigating this correct principle, one finally finds the right path and no longer loses the way. I urge you to awaken quickly and not hesitate. Often let go of attachment to what the eyes see and the ears hear, and step by step enter Xiyi (the realm of the Dao, which cannot be seen, heard, or spoken).

[Presented to the Daoist Community]

While I was staying on Wuhua Mountain to escape the summer heat, I met several Daoist practitioners and wrote lyrics to give them.

Over the years I have wandered across the world and endured many hardships, and now I am fortunate to arrive among forests and springs. When hungry I eat, and when tired I sleep. This place is no more than one she (about thirty li, the distance an army traditionally marched in a day) from the city, yet it seems to be a separate small world of quiet and ease.

The mountains and waters before me at the banquet are lovely and bright, and the ponds are full of blue lotuses. As my years advance, it is not easy to bring one's cultivation to completion. I cannot yet journey to the Three Islands (mountains of the immortals said to lie in the sea), so for now I will be a carefree immortal on Wuhua Mountain.

Eight Poems on Dispelling Worldly Thoughts

The Daoists of Longyang Abbey asked for these lyrics.

Clarifying the mind is a method of cultivation. Grasping the subtle principle that transcends the Three Vehicles (the Buddhist paths of the Śrāvaka, the Pratyekabuddha, and the Bodhisattva) is what truly frees one from the cycle of birth, death, and change. Understanding that all things are empty, one no longer clings to seeking. Wisdom's original nature is bright and clear. In stillness there is a heaven and earth of its own; in leisure there is a sun and moon of its own. These truths may be told to one who understands. Returning to the original home, one will naturally savor the boundless clear breeze and bright moon.

That single formless Zhenru (Suchness, the true and unchanging nature of all things) is clear, profound, and still, with no distinction between inner and outer. To comprehend where the Xuanyuan (the mysterious origin of the Dao) truly lies, one must not indulge in confused emotions that lead one astray from the proper way. Diligently explore the profound principles, often practice the inner secret methods, and thoroughly penetrate the secret formulas of Heavenly Mechanism. If one still cannot awaken at this point, when will one ever rest?

Again

The myriad differing things all arise from the primordial chaotic Qi (vital energy) and return to Wuji (the limitless origin, beyond any bounds). The restless multitude clings to the self, yet the still Zhenkong (True Emptiness) cannot be obtained through possession. Seeking the non-being within being, and seeking being within non-being: who can understand the message in this? The Perfected, through skillful means, have proclaimed the mysterious and exact principle.

This deep and hidden gate must be entered through wisdom and by maintaining stillness, and only then does the heart open. To see clearly the original true face, why envy a showy appearance? Though the body dwells among people, the name is already inscribed in the registers of the immortals, so do not let a single worldly thought confuse you. When the spirit is settled and unmoving, the mysteries of heaven and earth are naturally hard to fathom.

Again

Winter is cold and summer is hot, and spring flowers and autumn moons are alike year after year. Only the human face changes day by day, while one does not notice that life is being hurried toward decline. Lost in confusion through myriad kalpas, once one awakens, one should truly hold onto…

Winter is cold and summer is hot. Spring brings flowers and autumn brings bright moons, and the seasons repeat year after year without any real change. Only human appearance shifts from morning to evening, yet people do not notice that life is being hurried along toward its end. Having passed through countless kalpas (jie) still lost in drowsy confusion, if one awakens even for a moment, one should let the mind rest and stop chasing after things. When not a single speck of dust-like thought clings to it, the original clarity within naturally appears.

Sitting at leisure, facing the tortoise, the crane, the pine-covered peaks, the forest springs, and a quiet garden, one feels at ease and joyful within. When one's cultivation (gong) is complete, one may pay court to the immortal perfected beings of the upper realms and show the true heroic spirit. This principle is not profound, and its mysterious key is not far away. It is only that, without awakening, it is hard to put into words. Yet in the world, how many understand it? Many let their years slip away unnoticed.

Wherever one stands, even at the edge of heaven or the ends of the sea, one can travel freely in every direction, with a spacious and unhurried heart. To see through worldly affairs is like wind passing by one's ears, and it brings its own kind of delight. Refining with the Jade Cauldron (yuding) and the Golden Furnace (jinlu), one forms the cinnabar elixir (danshа). After taking it, one departs and, transformed, ascends beyond the dusty world.

The principles of the immortal Way (xiandao) are mysterious and deep, yet once one transcends the mundane, one can journey together with the immortal perfected. To penetrate the principles, accord with the true Dao, and complete one's merit and cultivation does not necessarily require living hidden in deep mountains and secluded valleys. By wearing away the Four Marks (sixiang), which in cultivation refer to four kinds of attachment, and causing the Three Corpses (sanpeng), the spirit-worms said in Daoism to dwell within the body, to withdraw and hide, one naturally becomes indifferent to worldly desires. The orthodox teaching transmitted by Quanzhen (Complete Perfection) requires a upright mind that does not stray from the correct path.

Composed in Rhyme with an Earlier Poem

Living among ordinary people, one can still grasp the profound meaning of the Great Way of the Mysterious Origin, and investigate the principles of the Zhuangzi and the Liezi. Befriending fellow seekers who are like clouds, together they support the orthodox teaching and continue the methods of their former masters, without distinction among them. Outwardly gentle and humble, inwardly upright and austere, one truly appears like someone plain and clumsy. With a quiet gate and a mind free of disturbance, purity naturally shines forth.

The realm of Eternal Spring (changchun), the state of lasting life and enduring vision, is boundless, and its cool clarity is held for a long time. One may find rest for body and mind everywhere. Beyond the dusty world lies a pure place set apart from ordinary life, like the heaven within a gourd, where one can wander freely between the white clouds and the golden gates of the immortal palaces. The body dwells in the world while the nature reaches beyond the heavens, and no affairs can burden it. When the Six Roots (liugen), the six senses of eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind, are not stirred by external circumstances, one has transcended birth and death.

Viewing the Autumn Moon at the Mid-Autumn Festival, Qiyun Abbey, Daian Mountain

Composed at the Tongxian Abbey (Tongxian Guan, a Daoist temple)

Tongxian Abbey lies remote, deep in the Western Mountains, backed by the ruins of a cloud tower. Looking down on countless layers of peaks, it seems to cut off all news of the mortal world. Strolling unhurriedly through wisteria vines wreathed in mist and quietly chanting of wind and moon, who could understand such a life? Where else could a lofty adept of the Dao go to seek?

A range of mountains and rivers stretches without end, and its deep grotto-heavens and blessed lands (dongtian fudi) are home to immortals. Whoever is bound by fame and profit will find it hard to reach this place, and harder still to keep company with those who are quiet and at ease. Lying at rest in an azure cavern, seated calmly on a serene rock, why would one envy the mansions of kings and lords? I have come here several times, and each time I have lingered for a long while.

On Xing (Nature)

This numinous awareness nature (lingming juexing), which pervades past and present, is originally complete and lacking nothing. Everyone possesses it, yet who is willing to acknowledge it? People chase after external objects and are thereby deluded and inverted. Myriad deeds and a thousand constructions all, in the end, arise from the movement of the mind. Such a profound principle: ask yourself, when will you understand it?

Without entering the Gate of Formlessness (wuxiang xuanmen), the Daoist path that transcends attachment to form, one will find it hard to abandon hollow fame and will still be drawn to the flowers and fine scenery before one's eyes. With the mouth one speaks of pure and mysterious principles, yet the heart has not awakened, and without realizing it one falls into the cycle of rebirth. If one accords with the true opportunity of the Dao, one will be startled awake from the dream of illusion and roam freely among the Three Isles (legendary immortal mountains in the sea). Everyone has the possibility of longevity and can forever transcend the aging of the human world.

End of the Baoguang Ji (Collection of Preserved Light)

Baoguang Ji (Collection of Preserved Light), Volume Two

Composed by Qinghe Zhenren (Perfected of Qinghe) Yin Zhiping

Fourteen Pieces to the Tune Jiangchengzi

Harmonizing with the Rhymes of Scholar Guo of Cang Gai (sung in response to the rhyme-words of Scholar Guo's poems)

Riding back on the dream of illusion, I roam freely among the Three Isles; with a share of longevity, I forever transcend the aging of the human world.

Baoguang Ji, Volume Two

Composed by Qinghe Zhenren Yin Zhiping

Fourteen Poems to the Tune "Jiang Cheng Zi"

In Response to the Rhymes of Scholar Guo of Cangai

Riding carriages and horses, one travels to the four corners, discussing the mysterious principles and probing their subtle depths. The affairs of the world are many and varied, and each person should proceed step by step according to his or her own circumstances. Our teaching spreads throughout the world, protected by Heaven and Earth, and people rejoice in it and accept it with faith, so that in the end all come to take refuge in it.

With whom could one arrange to discuss its hidden wonders? One must learn to forget cleverness and calculation and recognize stillness and non-action (Wuwei). Friends of mist and companions of cloud (fellow practitioners of the Way) should keep their hearts calm and settled. Guard the simple, return to the authentic, and understand that cultivation lies within ordinary daily life. The spirit (Shen) will then naturally grow clear, and the numinous nature will shine forth.

Written at Longyang Monastery on the Winter Solstice

At the winter solstice, the yin qi (Yin-Yang) is exhausted and the yang qi (Qi) begins to stir. The yang qi gathers in the dark and gradually emerges, and snowflakes drift lightly down. The nine-day stretch of deep winter is severe, and rivers, lakes, and seas all freeze over thick with ice. Yin and yang circulate without ever stopping, and once the yang has accumulated fully, it rises up as a dragon.

Once one returns to the root and restores the original nature, the numinous nature becomes clear. It passes beyond the celestial court and enters the realm of no-form. Following the turning of heaven's mechanism, the essence (Jing) as clear as moonlight rises and falls and flows around. When one seizes the true springs of Heaven and Earth's transformation and completes the merit of cultivation, one goes forth to Penglai and Yingzhou, the legendary immortal isles.

Another

The life of a Daoist cultivator is one in which one's days unfold in joy. The heart is generous and gentle, and the six spirits are at peace. Hide your traces, gather in your radiance, and do not let worldly affairs disturb the mind. Nurture the numinous nature of luminous awareness that has existed since time immemorial. Those who chase fame and profit will in the end never equal those who live at leisure and at ease.

How much joy can a human life truly hold? Old age brings weariness, and the crossroads of life and death cannot be avoided. Beings wander through the six paths of rebirth (the six destinies in which living beings circulate according to karmic force), and they suffer great hardship. One should understand how to gather in one's radiance and dwell in the heart's stillness, letting nothing disturb the mind, and nurture the numinous nature of luminous awareness that has existed since time immemorial. Those who chase fame and profit will in the end never equal those who live at leisure and at ease.

How much joy can a human life truly hold? Old age brings weariness, and the crossroads of life and death cannot be avoided. Beings wander through the six paths of rebirth and suffer great hardship. One should recognize the supreme Dao transmitted by our school, cut off desire, and transcend the mundane world.

Another

The light of the Dao shines everywhere, and so the teaching flourishes. It came forth from Tianchang and entered Longyang. Since the precious hall was completed, incense has been offered in reverence morning and evening. Friends of mist and companions of cloud need not search outside; if the heart is steady, then this very place is paradise.

Yan in the south and Hebei in the north are a source of sorrow. This is a remote and impoverished land, battered by wind and frost. The calamities of the age keep turning, and when will one reach the realm of immortals? Who can understand the intention of one who lives in seclusion beyond the mountain? □□ Xiu, annotated by Xiaopeng.

Snowflakes like jade-white blossoms swirl and drift down, scattering like fragments of jade over the long embankment and gathering around the brushwood gate. Inside, the stove's warmth has lit the windows until they glow, so who needs embroidered curtains? When night deepens and the clouds disperse, the bright moon hangs high like a silver mirror, and the whiteness of the snow and the moonlight shine on each other.

To receive such auspicious snow in the depths of winter has been regarded as extraordinary since ancient times. It deepens the chill of the winter days and also portends a bountiful harvest in the coming year. The snowscape moves the poet, so that the soul seems to enter a state of tranquil stillness and profound remoteness. Even "Lady Xie" (Xie Daoyun, celebrated for her quick wit and talent) could not exhaust words to sing of this scene, so let me, a Daoist practitioner, be left to savor this sentiment.

[Jiao ritual encountering fair weather] refers to holding a jiao ritual, a Daoist zhaijiao (purification ritual), on a day of clear skies.

West Mountain of [text ends here]