《太上三辟五解秘法》

The Method of Playing with the Spirit and Emerging from the Body, from the Grandee of Chu’s Orthodox Dao (the Way) of Passage to Immortality through the Eight Unfoldings of the Hidden Earth

These five methods are all held to enable a person to transcend the ordinary and enter the realm of the sages. If one cultivates through the first two gates, one can attain longevity, so that cold and heat cannot harm the body. Cultivating through the third gate, one can return to the root and restore the origin—that is, although one passes through death, one does not lose one’s lifespan. Cultivating through the fourth and fifth gates, one can escape the constraints of the Five Phases and reach a state of neither birth nor extinction. This is what is meant by knowing that “emptiness” is not wholly empty, and knowing that “form” is not solidly real.

Whoever attains this Dao within the five gates must, throughout the twelve double-hours of the day, turn away from external conditions and contemplate the mind within; in this way, lifespan has no limit.

To practice the “Method of Playing with the Spirit and Emerging from the Body,” one must first bathe and change clothes on a jiazi day. At midnight, in the zi hour, enter a quiet chamber and sit in stillness, burn incense, and face south. Once the sitting is settled, form the wogu (the health-preserving posture of clenching both hands tightly), click the teeth twenty-four times, and then sound the Heavenly Drum twenty-four times (the seated method of covering the ears with the hands and tapping the back of the head with the fingers). Then draw the feet together and sit level, and imagine that in the lower Dantian (energy center) there is a pearl of Qi (vital energy) one cun and three fen in size, within which is a being called the “infant.” Imagine that the infant suddenly emerges from the pearl of Qi, rushes upward through the Huagai, passes through the twelve-tiered Chonglou (referring to the region of the throat), crosses two barrier-orifices, and arrives at the Niwan (the upper Dantian within the head); it then parts the crown gate at the top of the head, comes out, and stands outside.

Next, imagine purple clouds and yellow mist spreading and surrounding this figure. Then slowly have him walk until he stands before you, gradually growing into the likeness of a child one or two years old, with features the same as your own. Do not gaze at him for long, lest mind and spirit be drawn off by external conditions. Then visualize once more that he rises and enters the body through the Niwan at the crown of the head, passes again through the two barrier-orifices, the Chonglou, and the Huagai, and returns into the mysterious pearl. This counts as the first round. Thereafter, whether walking, standing, sitting, or lying down, one may continue the practice.

In cultivation one must always regard Qi as the mother of Shen (spirit), and Shen as the child of Qi, so that Shen and Qi do not scatter, like a mother and child keeping watch over each other, or a hen brooding on her eggs. After one month, one may imagine this figure grown as tall as oneself, gradually able to go out and come in, to walk back and forth, and even to speak with people. If one can also practice embryonic breathing and breath retention (inner-refinement methods of regulating and arresting the breath), it is said that progress will be faster, and that longevity can also be attained.

Once this method has been practiced to proficiency, one may, on a gengshen day, cast a large mirror five cun wide and often use it to reflect the body, visualizing that the form, features, and clothing of the person in the mirror are all the same as one’s own. Practice once at the zi hour and once at the wu hour each day, imagining that one’s own form is already in the mirror. When the practice has become thoroughly familiar, one can reach the realm in which form and spirit are both wondrous and one divides the body and transforms the form, as though one had another body outside oneself, united with the Dao.

At noon on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, take a piece of wood three cun long. The wood must be firewood left after a fire in the home of a household of one of the five surname groups. Facing north, set out five portions of wine and five portions of dried meat, and make an offering announcement to the wood. The invocation says: “On this auspicious day and at this auspicious hour, I take the Jing (essence) within the wood and the numen within the fire, and carve a wooden figure whose form and features match yours and mine. Colored garments and a red pouch are prepared, and wine and meat express my sincerity. By the aid of your numinous power, stand in place of my name and surname, so that I may transcend life and death and that together we may secure longevity. Swiftly, swiftly—let this be carried out by the command and decree of the Most High (Taishang), the Three Officials, and the Five Emperors.”

Once the wooden figure is finished, recite the foregoing incantation seven times according to one’s own age, then face north, draw in three breaths of Qi (vital energy), and blow them onto the wooden figure. Grasp the figure in the hand and shake it, then, following the method already described, place it in the red pouch. Day and night in ordinary life, visualize that one’s own bodily form, speech, and conduct are all entrusted to the wooden figure. On each of the three natal days (days whose earthly branch matches that of the year of one’s birth), recite the incantation and practice as before, and the wooden figure will gradually become spiritually responsive. The scripture states that thereafter one may command the wooden figure to come and go, moving like a spirit; and if the day arrives when one’s allotted lifespan is exhausted, the wooden figure can die in one’s place.

The scripture further states that this method can enable a person to become invisible and withdraw from the world, unseen by humans or ghosts; water and fire cannot cause harm, and one can pass through clouds and pierce stone, uniting with the Dao (the Way) in perfected truth. To release this method, however, one must act according to the Way of the Five Phases (Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth). When the Way of the Five Phases is complete in every part, one will not die, and will naturally be able to leave life and death behind. This passage is repeated in the original; the meaning is the same.

This method may also be practiced together with a bamboo staff. The staff must be taken at noon on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month: go into a dense grove and cut a length of bamboo equal to one’s own height. Either green bamboo or purple bamboo may be used. Filthy and unclean places must also be avoided; it is said that this makes success easier. The remaining procedures are the same as in the wooden-figure method described above.

Entering the Womb and Changing Dwellings

The foremost aim of cultivation is to lengthen life, gather the spirit, and steady primordial Qi (vital energy); only then is it possible to speak of attaining immortality and realizing the Dao (the Way). If the body gradually declines, and Jing (essence), Qi, and Shen (spirit) scatter and drain away as death draws near, how could one ever achieve changsheng jiushi—enduring long in life while remaining clear?

Alas, in remote antiquity there were those who had transcended birth and death and brought deliverance to the world. In later times, people’s understanding grew shallow. They clung to sensual pleasures and desire, injuring the body and losing their lives, yet never knew it. The sages therefore bequeathed methods for leaving the ordinary round of birth and death, passing them on to students of later generations, so that these might rise above the common and enter sagehood, transform their bodily form, and transfer the body itself. Thus one can go on passing through the ceaseless generations and transformations of life, while one’s own clarity abides without end; and when a response is stirred, one can follow it and come through freely.

As the scripture states, if one wishes to enter a womb and be reborn, one should, before a woman has been pregnant three months and the fetus has not yet formed, first harmonize with her by means of speech, so that the mother’s mind is joyful and willing to accept one’s entering the womb; the mother, moreover, should not be suffering from illness. After this, one must morning and evening practice cunxiang—holding the mind in concentrated visualization—and guard the warming and nurturing that takes place within the womb. When the ten months of pregnancy are complete and delivery is at hand, one then stirs one’s own Shen, so that spirit-consciousness leaves the original body and, seizing the moment of birth, departs in peace, to receive life in another place.

The scripture stresses that the earlier discipline of regulating the body and sending the spirit forth must be fully mature, so that Shen and Qi neither scatter nor fall into disorder, but stay quiet and firmly settled throughout. Only then can sympathetic communion proceed smoothly and without error. Once rebirth is accomplished, so long as one remains clear and at rest, there will naturally be nothing to regret. Of ways to transfer one’s dwelling—that is, to transform the form and enter a womb to be reborn—none is better than this.

The foregoing is the “Five Methods of Liberation” (wujie fa)—five ways of liberation and of avoiding death—namely seated liberation, standing departure, bending one’s course, withdrawal from the world, and avoidance of death. Within the human body, the Azure Dragon is on the left, the White Tiger on the right, the Vermilion Bird in front, and the Dark Warrior behind. All these spirits are beside me; do not stray far away. If I complete my cultivation and attain the Dao (the Way), I will take you with me to ascend to Heaven.

Next, stroke the forehead three times with the hand and tap the teeth three times, calling upon the Upper Corpse, Peng Zhi; stroke the chest seven times and tap the teeth seven times, then call upon the Middle Corpse, Peng Ju; stroke the waist ten times and tap the teeth ten times, then call upon the Lower Corpse, Peng Jiao. All of you dwell within my body; do not stray far away. If I attain the Dao, I will take you with me to ascend into the Mysterious, and we will naturally become immortals.

Tap the teeth twenty-one times, and silently recite in the mind: In my body there are three hundred and sixty spirits of the bones and joints, eighty-four thousand spirits of the hair and pores, thirteen thousand spirits of the radiance of Jing (essence), twelve thousand spirits of bodily form, and the spirits who govern the seventy-two seasonal periods and water, fire, wind, and earth. Together with the Envoy of Taiyi, they guard me. Within the navel is Lord Taiyi; the three hundred and sixty spirits of the bones and joints, the eighty-four thousand spirits of the hair and pores, the thirteen thousand spirits of the radiance of Jing, the twelve thousand spirits of bodily form, and the spirits who govern the seventy-two seasonal periods and water, fire, wind, and earth are all guarded by the Envoy of Taiyi. In the upper Dantian (energy center), the upper site of cultivation, is the Lord of the Infant; in the middle Dantian is the Lord of Numinous Perfection; in the lower Dantian is the Perfected Lord Who Nurtures the Infant. You divine perfected ones, ever keep the path of my Dao unobstructed, and do not let me grow dull and muddled; ever make my discernment clear as a mirror, so that my ears hear no evil sounds, my nose smells no foul odors, and my tongue tastes no vile flavors, and let me ascend to Heaven in broad daylight.

Now my allotted span is drawing to its end. I rely upon you divine perfected ones; each of you, guard me. When the incantation has been recited, tap the teeth forty times. Then settle the mind and gather in wandering thoughts. Visualize in the Dantian a crimson Qi (vital energy), passing in and out through the mouth like a phoenix; a fire chariot bursts forth from the left flank and circles along the left side. Then visualize a black dragon in the navel, from whose mouth a water chariot streams forth, likewise bursting out of the body and circling along the right side. The fire chariot and the water chariot cross and circle about the body, like a mountain of fire and a sea of water, enclosing the whole body.

If one can cause the spirits to emerge from the crown of the head and stand there, one simply gazes into the empty sky. The spirits then return into the body, and thereafter neither go out nor come in, while the breathing continues long and unbroken. Shen (spirit) and Qi keep watch together within the body. Should those two demons come, they will see only the fire chariot and the water chariot, vast as the Iron Enclosure Mountains; they will neither see the practitioner nor make him out. They may charge again and again, yet on hearing a loud rebuke and seeing the fire and water chariots racing and surging, they cannot draw near, and so they withdraw. When the foregoing is repeated in this way, that is the first round.

After this has gone on for seven days, abdominal pain will again be felt, and one should continue to practice according to the method already given. If one is able to perform talisman rites and to enter the registers—Fulu (talismans and registers)—it is better to invite the talismans of the divine clerks and generals to come together and keep guard. In this way, within fourteen days, calamity is avoided on three separate occasions. This method is called the “Cicada Limit” (chanxian). Each time, its effect lasts for one ji-cycle; afterward one proceeds again by the previous method. If, within one ji-cycle, one cultivates the Dao (the Way) and circulates Qi (vital energy)—that is, moves the breath within the body—the yin ghosts will withdraw of themselves. Done three times, this can remove the troubles of the journey and strike one’s name from the registers of the Southern Palace; the name inscribed among the living then accords with the Northern Dipper, and one forever becomes a True Official, free for the rest of one’s life from the calamities of the world, united with the Dao and bound in responsive covenant with the True Ones of the Dipper.

Metal Liberation Talisman

The scripture prescribes that in a geng or xin month, on a geng or xin day, and at a geng or xin hour, one burn incense in a quiet chamber, stand facing west, write the talisman in cinnabar, recite the incantation, draw in Qi, blow that Qi onto the talisman, and then fumigate the talisman with incense smoke. One next closes the mouth and retains the Qi, drinks the so-called “zheng shui” (contending water), and swallows it. The sense of the incantation is: the spirits of geng and xin conceal the name of the White Tiger; the majestic virtue of the west hides and subdues ghosts and specters; this whole body of mine is the numen in which fire is firm and metal is cut off. Quickly, quickly—obey the command and seize it.

When the incantation is finished, one takes the Qi of the south and blows it upon the sword, recites the incantation and works the rite by pointing with the sword, then leaves at once and must not look back. The scripture claims that one thus leaves no trace, and that others will only see the practitioner as if he had cut his own throat and died; this, it says, is the “method of metal liberation.” The scripture further requires that one observe the fast according to rule and cultivate with a sincere mind for forty-nine days, and it warns that one must not let others see, lest the divine generals be disclosed.

Wood Liberation Talisman

The scripture prescribes that in a jia or yi month, on a jia or yi day, and at a jia or yi hour, one burn incense in a quiet chamber, prepare water and a lamp, stand facing east, click the teeth thirty-six times, and recite the incantation seven times; one writes the talisman in cinnabar, closes the eyes and retains the Qi, swallows the talisman, then drinks water and swallows it down. The sense of the incantation is: the spirits of jia and yi in the east, Yinghuo (Mars), the Azure Dragon, and the other substitute names, together with the Qi of the wood essence, are full and abundant; my body belongs to metal, and the radiance of my metal is bright and flourishing. Quickly, quickly—act in obedience to the command.

(The passage on “metal liberation” includes a description of using a sword to produce the appearance of suicide. What is given above only outlines what the text claims for the method, and does not set out concrete steps of practice.)

After the incantation has been recited in full, draw in one breath of the Qi (vital energy) of the West and blow it upon the wooden staff. Any wooden staff may be used to carry out this ritual art. Carry it on your person every day; a staff of pear wood is especially effective. Tradition holds that in this way one may avail oneself of the Qi of wood essences such as Yinghuo and the Azure Dragon (Qinglong). The incantation further says, “My body is the golden radiance of Jinwu.” At the end one recites “quickly, quickly, in accordance with the statutes and ordinances” (jiji ru lüling), and closes with the character quan (“exhort”).

After the incantation has been recited in full, draw in one breath of the Qi of the West, blow it upon the wooden staff, and then carry the staff with you. A pear-wood staff is especially efficacious, and it must not be allowed to pass through a woman’s hands. After the practice has been maintained continuously for forty-nine days, stand facing the southeast and visualize one of your three hun souls, “Youjing” (one of the three hun souls spoken of in Daoism), appearing, identical to you in form and wearing your own clothes. Then visualize it as resembling the pear-wood staff. After that, go to the ground in the Geng-Xin direction and run with your back toward the direction of the Kui star of the Northern Dipper (Beidou), without looking back. After you have gone a hundred li, call out: “Youjing, Youjing, conceal my body. Hearing my call, come quickly and manifest your power.” Called upon in this way, the ritual art will take effect.

The Water-Dissolving Talisman (Shuijie fu): in a Ren-Gui month, on a Ren-Gui day, and at a Ren-Gui hour, burn one censer of incense in a quiet chamber. Following the method already described, stand facing south, click the teeth thirty-six times, draw one talisman, and recite the incantation seven times. Draw in one breath and blow it upon the talisman, close the eyes and gather the Qi, then swallow the talisman. After that, drink seven mouthfuls of pure water and recite the incantation:

“The North, Ren and Gui, bears the name and title Dark Warrior (Xuanwu). Spirit of the Water Bureau, Lord Huang gives birth to Earth. The seat of the Lord of Earth guards the source of the waters. Quickly, quickly, in accordance with the statutes and ordinances. By decree.”

Carry out this method according to the procedure above. When the method must be undone, stand in the direction that represents Water, face the corresponding direction in the stance set out earlier, and recite the incantation seven times. Draw in one breath of the Qi of the central direction and blow it upon the shoes. Visualize the three hun souls appearing and attaching themselves to the shoes, then walk toward the north while reciting, “Quickly, quickly, in accordance with the statutes and ordinances. By decree.”

When using this set of methods, and following the preparations already described, one proceeds as follows whenever the “method of release” (a technique of getting free and of concealment) is to be performed. One stands at the Water position, facing the Ding direction (the Fire position of the south), recites the incantation seven times, draws in one mouthful of central Qi (vital energy), and blows it onto the shoes, visualizing the three hun-Shen (spirit; the three kinds of soul of a person) responding and attaching themselves to the shoes. The shoes are set with the front to the north and the back to the south; one then departs from the front by the Yubu (the Daoist pacing method). One must not look back along the way, and one can then travel a thousand li without leaving a trace. On the day one needs to get free, one sinks the right shoe into the water and may then set out. As one sets out, one calls the hun-Shen and has it accompany one to where those who have come are waiting; onlookers will only see that one has fallen into the water and died.

Fire-Liberation Talisman: In a Bing-Ding month, on a Bing-Ding day, and at a Bing-Ding hour (the month, day, and hour marked by the heavenly stems Bing and Ding), one burns incense in a quiet chamber, faces due south, and stands at the Ding position. One clicks the teeth thirty-six times, recites the incantation seven times, writes one talisman and swallows it, then swallows seven mouthfuls of pure water. The incantation is:

“Fire Shen of the South, taking Bing and Ding as your name. I bring with me the Four Numina (the divine spirits of the four quarters); Yinghuo (the spirit of Mars, as the ancients called it) stands guard among them. Wherever my person arrives, the flames cause me to conceal my form and traces. Quickly, quickly, in accordance with the statutes and commands.”

The methods above are to be cultivated with a heart of utmost sincerity and maintained for forty-nine days. When one needs to get free, one uses a staff of pear wood, which must likewise be kept for forty-nine days. If one meets with the calamity of armed violence, one releases the sword held in the left hand, grips the pear-wood staff in the right, stands at the Kan position (the Water position of the north), and faces due south. One recites the incantation seven times, draws in one breath, and blows it onto the pear-wood staff. One then casts the pear-wood staff into the fire and, with the point of the sword directed downward, chops within the fire, thereby cutting away the harmful malign Qi and performing the art of getting free. In this way, even if one enters the fire in person, the fire cannot injure one; onlookers will only see that one has thrown oneself into the fire and died. In the original text, the phrase “remove the pear-wood staff and cast it into the fire” is repeated once, before and after.

Earth-Liberation Talisman: In a Wu-Ji month, on a Wu-Ji day, and at a Wu-Ji hour, one burns a single censer of incense in a quiet chamber, stands at the Xun position (the southeast), faces southeast, writes one talisman in cinnabar, and recites the incantation seven times. Following the method given above, one passes the talisman once over the incense, closes the eyes and regulates the breath, and then swallows it. The incantation is:

“The center, Wu and Ji: the myriad Shen come to pay court and offer homage. The name and title is Gouchen (the earth spirit of the center); gathering and dispersing alike meet with no obstruction. I now transform my bodily form and conceal myself between Heaven and Earth. Quickly, quickly, in accordance with the statutes and commands.”

Whenever one carries out the foregoing ritual methods, one must cultivate according to the procedures already described, for a full forty-nine days. If one wishes to rely on this method to get free, one holds a sword in the left hand and stands facing the Ding position due south, clicks the teeth twenty-four times, and recites the incantation seven times. One then takes a mouthful of one’s own stomach Qi (vital energy)—the vital energy within the human body, as Daoism understands it—and blows it toward the place one intends to go. One then casts the sword upward above the crown of the head in front of oneself, and the sword flies of its own accord. At that moment one visualizes the three hun spirits—the three soul-spirits that Daoism holds a person to possess—and, following the method given earlier, has them cover and protect oneself. One must not look back. Within a hundred li, if one calls the three hun spirits, they come to one’s side; after one departs they also return, so that the calamity one has encountered may be resolved.

The ritual methods and talismanic incantations set forth before and after are all secret arts of the immortals and must not be transmitted to others at will. If one wishes to use them in person, one must write the Fulu (talismans and registers) in cinnabar and swallow one each day according to the method already described. This is done in a pure, quiet place where incense is burned, with sincere prayer and invocation. One passes the brush above the incense and then writes the Fulu, reciting at the same time:

“The divine brush is efficacious and reports upward to Shangqing (the celestial realm where the revered deities of Daoism dwell); the Six Jia spirits stand guard, and the Six Ding spirits lend their aid. I now write the Fulu and conceal my own bodily form. Encountering metal, the metal follows me; encountering fire, the fire is stilled; even within the earth one can remain hidden. By decree of the Heavenly Sovereign, the holy spirits protect. Quickly, quickly, in accordance with the statutes and ordinances.”

Each time before writing a talisman, one first breathes upon the brush seven times, then passes the brush above the incense, and only afterward writes the talisman. This is a secret text and must not be transmitted to those unsuited to receive it; otherwise the culpability will implicate seven generations of ancestors. It should be observed with caution.

The Celestial Robe Dao (the Way).

What is called the “Heavenly Garment” is the placenta of a male born on the fifth day of the fifth month—the original text writes “taiyi.” If none is available, one may simply take clothing from the fifth day of the fifth month. In either case it must be washed clean with freshly drawn clear water and hung in a shaded place on the north side. Before the seventh day of the seventh month, take a bitter gourd, a gourd of bitter taste, wrap it in this garment, and hang it again in the northern shade to dry. On that same day one must also write, in cinnabar, a Fulu (talismans and registers) on crimson silk seven cun wide; once it is written, wrap it up and place it together with the bitter gourd back in the original spot. After a hundred days, take it out and keep it in the bosom. Walking through the human world, one will not be recognized by anyone. When wearing it one must be strictly careful: do not place it where Yin-Yang taboos are violated or where there is defilement, and do not let unclean persons see it.

Entering the Unseen through the Two Concealments, of the Supreme Thearch of Vast Heaven at the Golden Portal of Grand Tenuity

In former times the Perfected Lord Taiyi and the Holy Mother of the Nine Heavens descended upon Mount Kongtong and transmitted this method to the Primordial Sovereign. The Primordial Sovereign then commanded the ministers to ascend together into the Nine Heavens. They thereupon left this writing, passing the teaching on to the people of the world.

If one wishes to cultivate the Dao (the Way), one must refrain from taking life, cast off treachery, wickedness, and vain falsehood, and also rid oneself of jealousy; one must further avoid foods of the kind called the “five rank meats and three abominations.” Apart from these, other matters are not included among the prohibitions. Thus the sage says: “The highest principle is not elaborate; once the principle is understood, one has penetrated the Dao.” Should one encounter this book, one will be able to pass in and out between life and death.

In former times the Yellow Emperor received from the Holy Mother of the Nine Heavens the methods of concealing the form—those of the River Chart board, of Taiyi, and of the Ding and Jia spirit-officials—and came to understand the essentials of Yin-Yang configurations, together with the two concealments, the gates, and the extraordinary stems. Cultivating thereafter according to these, one can achieve the body of a divine immortal.

Note: The preceding passage of the original concerning the “Heavenly Garment” is repetitive; the above has been combined and restated according to the sense of the text. Expressions such as “northern shade” and “northern garment” are retained with the directional meaning of the original; precisely what they refer to is unclear.

The “Yang Dun method” (yangdun fa) says: Choose the noon hour on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month. Take one gallbladder of a yellow ox and a piece of fine cassia wood; shape the wood to the measurements given in the text and remove any splinters. On that day, facing the ox gallbladder, recite the incantation three times toward the sun; then turn north, draw in three breaths of Qi (vital energy), and blow them onto the cassia wood and the ox gallbladder. Insert the cassia wood into the gallbladder and set it in a quiet chamber to dry in the shade. During this time it must not be seen by people, livestock, or women. After one hundred days, take out the cassia wood and carve it into a human figure one cun and two fen long. Apply powder to its face, eyes, mouth, and nose, leave it for fourteen more days, and then place it in a brocade pouch.

When it is to be used, recite the incantation three times, inhale one breath of Qi, and blow it onto the wooden figure; then carry the figure into the formation. The scripture (jing) says that in this way many people will be unable to see you. The incantation is:

“Great Yin, dark and hidden, cause my bodily form to vanish; let clouds and mist cover my body, so that I may keep clear of the sunlight. Quickly, quickly, in accordance with the statutes and ordinances.”

If one wishes to conceal still more people, follow the scripture by placing wooden figures that stand for different images at the crown of the head, in the eyes, in the ears, in the nose, on the forehead, on the chest, on the back, at the Weilu, and at other sites, corresponding respectively to an old man, an old woman, a young girl, a burial mound, a child, a flying bird, oxen and horses, a clear mountain stream, and water flowing inside a cave. The scripture also says that placing the wooden figure beneath the feet enables one to travel a thousand li in a day; on returning, put it back into the brocade pouch. Whatever is done afterward should likewise be carried out according to these correspondences.

Here “cassia figure” means cassia wood carved into a small human shape, and “Weilu” is the part of the body below the lower back. Through the rites of choosing the time, reciting incantations, gathering Qi, making ritual objects, and storing them in secret, the text forms what is called the “Yang Dun method.”

The Method of Yin Concealment (Yin Dun): Select white poplar wood free of insect damage and cut it at the wu hour on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month; some willow wood must also be gathered from the northwest. All the timber is to be cut, as required, to the same shape: one cun in length and one cun in diameter. While it is being gathered and prepared, women and persons in mourning dress must not be allowed to see it.

Place the wood in a quiet room until the summer solstice. Ask a carver to observe ritual abstinence beforehand and, in a secluded chamber, carve a wooden figure one cun and two fen long, about the size of a little finger. The figure should be made to appear neatly clothed and dressed, its outward form modeled on the practitioner. Make clothes for it from brocade, place it in a brocade pouch, and ordinarily carry it at the left side of the body.

On a yiyou day, at the chou hour, rise with a robe thrown on, face east, regulate the breath and settle the Qi (vital energy), and click the teeth thirty-six times. Holding the wooden figure in the left hand, recite the incantation:

“Heaven is round and Earth is square; I stand at the center. Taiyi (the Great Unity) commands me and hides together with me. Follow my actions; coming and going brings no hindrance. Conceal form in the world, and ever attend at my side. Quickly, quickly, in accordance with the statutes and commands of Taiyi Zhenren (the Perfected One of the Great Unity).”

Recite the incantation seven times, then put the wooden figure back into the pouch. Thereafter, proceed in the same way on every yiyou day. After seven successive yiyou days, it is held that one can cause one’s own bodily form to be concealed. The “yiyou day” here is a date calculated according to the stem-and-branch reckoning of days.

When one wishes to hide the body, recite the incantation:

“Heaven grants me the secret pivot; together with you I keep company. You conceal and I hide, so that others do not come to know. Let me not be seen; there is only I and only you. Taishang (the Most High) causes me to hide at once within myself. Quickly, quickly, in accordance with the statutes and commands of Taiyi Zhenren.”

Recite it three times; according to the Jing (scripture), the bodily form may then be concealed. Afterward, place the wooden figure back in the pouch as before.

If one does not wish to continue using it, or if an emergency arises, take the wooden figure in the right hand and recite the “Incantation for Concealing the Form”:

“Heaven above, vast and teeming; earth below, august and radiant. I hide within them and move you to follow along. The concealment of form reaches the utmost subtlety; my traces ought to be restored. By the thought of the Most High, do not be hasty.”

At the end of the scripture a passage from earlier is repeated, and the final sentence is textually incomplete; the above is rendered according to what can be discerned.

The heavens above are vast and boundless, the earth below broad and expansive. I conceal myself between heaven and earth and call you to follow and come. After the wondrous method of hiding and withdrawing the bodily form has been put into effect, I should be made to reveal my traces once more. One must carefully abide by the will of the Most High (Taishang) and must not act in haste. This matter is to be carried out at once, just as a command issued by the Perfected One of Taiyi (Taiyi Zhenren, a revered deity of Daoism).

After silently reciting it three times, place the wooden figure into the bag. Then perform the procedure once more according to the method given earlier.