《云笈七签》Vol. 21

Refine the nine kinds of primordial Qi until the breath harmonizes with the Vermilion Infant, a term in Daoist cultivation symbolizing the original spirit or inner sacred energy. Let the spirit roam among the Jade Carriages, at ease in Purple Clarity, a name for the celestial realm. Set the Eight Seasonal Nodes in motion, following the changes of the year, and connect with the Way of Heaven. In this way, one can erase one’s name from the register of the dead, preserve life, ride the flying radiance of Qi, and command the green carriage. When the practice is complete, tilt the head back and swallow the Five Qi; then cultivation may cease.

This is the Way of Clear Radiance. After eight years of cultivation, a Jade Carriage will come to receive the practitioner and carry them up to Great Clarity. The secret words of the Eight Ways of Clear Radiance must not be passed on to those who have not yet become immortals.

When one practices the Eight Secret Methods of the Eight Radiances Flying Scripture, the Jade Emperor of the Highest Sovereign will command the heavens, the saints of the ten directions, and the numinous immortals of the Five Sacred Peaks to protect the practitioner and send down a mysterious flying carriage. This enables the practitioner to ascend to Highest Clarity together with the Perfected. The True Sovereign guards the practitioner’s life, while the Great One protects their body, so that they may come and go without encountering danger or calamity. Even if someone’s name is already recorded in the Jade Register and they are listed among the palaces of Purple Court, without receiving revelation through this scripture, they cannot use it to ascend to Highest Clarity with the Perfected or comprehend its hidden meaning. Once a practitioner receives this scripture, the Eastern Florescence Immortal Office will enter their name in its register, granting them the same standing as the Perfected. It must be treasured and kept safe, and must not be spread carelessly. If one recklessly reveals its secret words, one will bring one’s own immortal path to an end.

◎ The Supreme One’s Elixir Radiance: The Eight Arts of the Way’s Essence for Concealing Oneself in the Earth (also called The Jade Talisman of the Eight Transformations of Purple Empyrean Flying Spirits)

The mysterious arts of the eight transformations for concealing oneself in the earth: first, hide the body and conceal the shadow; second, ride the void and travel through the air; third, …

The Arts of Concealment and Flight through the Heavens include: fourth, entering and leaving the realm between being and nonbeing; fifth, flying and roaming freely in all directions; sixth, dissolving the body and changing form at will; seventh, circling within the Qi of dawn and setting the wondrous Dao in motion; and eighth, concealing one’s form and dancing through the heavens. These are all wondrous arts kept in secret at the Golden Terrace and Jade Chamber of the Highest Clarity. They are stored in jade caskets, sealed with golden talismans, and attended by eight hundred jade youths and guarded by eight hundred jade maidens.

The Most High Jade Dawn High Sage Lord received these arts from the Realm of the Nine Mysteries. After seven thousand years, he transmitted them to the Perfected of the Supreme Ultimate, the Great Spirit of Donghua, the Azure Youth of Fangzhu, the Divine King of Fusang and Yanggu, and the Perfected of Clear Emptiness. In the realm of Highest Clarity, they swore an oath of alliance, breaking gold as a pledge. Those who bear the corresponding talismanic markings on their bodies can make themselves invisible and travel unseen in all directions; those who practice these arts can ride the void and soar through the air.

These secret methods may be passed on only by word of mouth and must not be disclosed casually: a son may not transmit them to his father, nor a minister to his ruler. They may be inscribed only on golden slips and recorded in jade books. Carelessly revealing the secret texts will bring calamity upon seven generations of one’s ancestors, while the revealer will become a ghost in the lower realm and crowd the source of the river. One should follow the true instructions of the immortals and practice them with care.

The first is the art of concealing the body and becoming invisible. On the morning of the Beginning of Spring, enter a room and sit facing its northeast corner. Visualize dense purple clouds descending from the northeast corner, the Gen Palace, and covering the entire room until everything inside and outside grows dark. After a while, the purple clouds transform into a nine-colored spirit beast, shaped like a qilin, which appears before you. Then click the teeth thirty-six times and quietly recite the invocation:

The method called “Returning to the Origin and Changing One’s Appearance” is practiced at dusk. Visualize a deep orchid-colored glow covering your own purple barrier and golden city walls, until you merge with your breath and your form is no longer visible. When you have finished, swallow your breath in nine portions, then close your eyes. Wait for the cloudlike Qi to disperse, then take the Numinous Flying Jade Talisman (a talisman used in cultivation). After a year of practice, your form will often be able to disappear into the void.

When danger arises, stand in the Gen Palace (the northeast direction in the Eight Trigrams), take some earth corresponding to your birth destiny, and hold a pinch of it in your hand to conceal yourself. Pray and visualize as you do when observing the cloudlike Qi disperse at the Beginning of Spring, then take the Numinous Flying Jade Talisman. The scripture says that after a year of practice, your form will be able to disappear into the void. In danger, if you perform the method in this way, cloudlike Qi will naturally cover you and make you invisible.

The second method is called “Riding the Void and Commanding the Sky.” At noon on the day of the Spring Equinox, enter a room, face east, and close your eyes. Visualize dense, surging blue-green cloudlike Qi descending from the east, from the Zhen Palace (the eastern direction in the Eight Trigrams), like a flying wheel. Let it fill the entire room until everything inside and outside grows dark. After a while, the blue-green Qi transforms into a black dragon, which coils around your body beside your left ear. Then click your teeth thirty-six times and pray softly:

“Ascend to the wondrous realm of mystery and command the breath, so that its wheel turns through the eight directions. Seated, I seem to be among people; rising, I enter the room. Let blue-green cloudlike Qi cover me, and let the divine dragon guard me. Let my form appear and pass through the deep and shadowy realm. Swallow the Nine Spirits and gain boundless power forever.”

When you have finished praying, swallow your breath in nine portions, then open your eyes and take the talisman. After two years of practice, you will be able to ride the void and travel through the sky. When danger arises, stand in the Zhen Palace, take some earth corresponding to your current year of life, and hold a pinch of it in your hand to conceal yourself. Perform the method as you did with the prayer and visualization at the Spring Equinox, then swallow your breath, open your eyes, and take the talisman. The scripture says that cloudlike Qi will naturally cover you, so that others see you as though you were a mass of Qi.

The third method is called “Concealment and Flight through the Heavens.” At noon on the day of the Beginning of Summer, enter a room, face southeast, and close your eyes. Visualize red cloudlike Qi, like smoke, surging in from the southeast, from the Xun Palace (the southeastern direction in the Eight Trigrams). Let it fill the entire room until everything inside and outside grows dark. After a while, the red Qi transforms into a black hare, which settles over your chest and abdomen. Then click your teeth thirty-six times and pray softly:

The “Mysterious Rabbit’s Numinous Flight” (the mysterious rabbit may be a spirit creature visualized in meditation) reports to the Three Dawn Deities. It removes the turmoil and obscurity of the mundane world, allowing pure Qi to flow freely through the self. Divine light rises into the clouds, while Qi descends as purple mist. All spirits bow down to me and prostrate themselves before me. When the visualization is complete, swallow Qi nine times in succession, then stop, open your eyes, and ingest a Fulu (talisman). After three years of practice, you will be able to become invisible, withdraw from the world, and soar into the clouds. In a time of danger, stand in the Xun position (the southeast direction in the Bagua) and use your left hand to draw in fourteen breaths of Qi and cover yourself with them. Then you will be able to move together with the Qi.

Fourth, the art of going out of existence and entering nonexistence. At noon on the day of the summer solstice, enter a room, face south, and close your eyes. Visualize dense red Qi surging from the south, from the Li position (the southern direction in the Bagua), until it fills the entire room and makes everything inside and outside dim. After a while, the red clouds transform into a phoenix and perch above your head. Then click your teeth thirty-six times and softly recite:

Red rays of rosy light illuminate the hidden mystery; Qi and bodily fluids flow freely. Nine transformations become a phoenix; grant me a true talisman and bestow the jade elixir. I emerge through the Gate of Heaven and enter the Li position; summon the cloud chariot, and let me ride through emptiness and light.

When the invocation is complete, swallow Qi nine times in succession, then stop, open your eyes, and ingest the talisman. After four years of practice, you will be able to come and go freely, without obstruction. In a time of danger, stand in the Li position and use your left hand to draw in nine breaths of Qi. Then open your eyes and ingest the talisman. Swallow Qi nine times in succession, and take some earth from the direction corresponding to the current month to cover yourself. Following the method of invocation and visualization used at the Beginning of Summer, imagine red Qi covering your whole body; your body will then transform into a blaze of fire.

Fifth, the art of the Numinous Flight in the Eight Directions. On the day of the Beginning of Autumn, enter a room at dusk, face southwest, and close your eyes. In your mind, visualize dense white Qi, like mist in the sky, surging from the southwest, from the Kun position (the southwestern direction in the Bagua), until it fills the entire room and makes everything inside and outside dim. After a while, the white Qi transforms into a qilin, a divine beast.

The fifth method, the Art of Flying Spirit to the Eight Quarters (Feiling Bafang zhi Shu), is performed on the day of Lichi (Beginning of Autumn). Around the shen hour (roughly 3 to 5 p.m.), enter a quiet chamber and, facing southwest, close the eyes. Visualize a dense white qi, like mist in the sky, rising from the Kun Palace (the southwest position of the Bagua) and filling the entire room until the interior and exterior both grow dim and obscure. After a while, the white qi transforms into a qilin that appears before you. Then knock the teeth together thirty-six times and softly recite the prayer:

"Reverently receiving the mysterious and subtle jingqi, I swallow the Yellow Flower (the name for jingqi), so that feathers grow upon my body. Lightly I rise into the clouds and mists, roaming and feasting in the Eight Palaces, unhindered for a long time."

When the prayer is finished, swallow the breath nine times, then stop, open the eyes, and take the fulu talismans. After five years of practice, one can ascend and travel to the Eight Quarters. When faced with danger, stand in the direction of the Kun Palace, tilt the head back, and swallow the breath thirty-six times. Take the earth from above the Chen position of the day as a shield. Follow the prayer and visualization of the Lichun practice, letting the white qi envelop the body, and the body can turn into mist and dew, unseen by others.

The sixth method, the Method of Dissolving the Form and Transforming (Jiexing Dunbian zhi Fa), is performed on the day of Qiufen (Autumnal Equinox). Around the shen hour in the afternoon, enter a quiet chamber and, facing west, close the eyes. Visualize white clouds rising from the Dui Palace in the west (the western position of the Bagua) and filling the entire room until the interior and exterior grow dim. After a while, the white qi becomes a white tiger that constantly stays at your right side. Then knock the teeth together thirty-six times and softly recite the prayer:

"Dissolve the form, hide and transform, chase the flight and tread over the floating clouds. First pay respects to the Jade Emperor, then withdraw to the distant edges of the Eight Quarters. Divide the body and transform it into tens of thousands. As the heart desires, in an instant, traverse all the Eight Palaces."

When the prayer is finished, swallow the breath nine times, then stop, open the eyes, and take the fulu talismans. After six years of practice, one's form can change like a shadow, moving freely through the Eight Quarters, withdrawing to their distant edges, dividing into tens of thousands of forms, and traveling anywhere at will, as the heart desires, traversing all the Eight Palaces in an instant.

When faced with danger, stand in the center of the Dui Palace and visualize fire-qi surging up to burn the body. Tilt the head back and swallow the breath nine times, then take the earth above the Bing position as a shield. Practice according to the prayer method described above, and others will be unable to see you.

The seventh method, the Art of Turning Back the Dawn through Mystery (Chenzhuan Xuan Zhi Shu), should be practiced at the Zi hour on Lidong (Beginning of Winter). One enters a quiet chamber, faces northwest, and closes the eyes to visualize black clouds rising from the Qian palace (Qian Gong), the northwest trigram of the Bagua (Eight Trigrams) associated with Heaven. The clouds fill the room until both inside and outside are dark. After a while, they turn into a mist serpent (fen she) that coils beneath the left foot. One then knocks the teeth thirty-six times and softly recites:

"Taiwei's Nine Mysteries, transform into a mist serpent. Turn the five planets in their circuit and set in motion the seven pivots. Ascend to feast in the Palace of Mystery, where the eight luminaries shine together. Swallow essence and gulp qi, and be forever free of decline."

After the recitation, one swallows qi nine times in succession, opens the eyes, and takes the fulu (talismans and registers) according to the prescribed method. After seven years of practice, one is said to be able to turn back the five dawns and move freely without obstruction.

In a moment of danger, one should stand in the direction of the Qian palace, visualize the black clouds enveloping the whole body, lift the head, and swallow qi thirty-five times. Then one takes earth from the Celestial Gate (tian men) to shield oneself, reciting the same incantation as at Lidong. In this way one can conceal oneself and escape, becoming invisible to others.

The eighth method, the Art of Hidden Radiance and Dancing in Heaven (Yinjing Wutian Zhi Shu), should be practiced at the Zi hour on the Winter Solstice (Dongzhi). One enters a quiet chamber, faces north, and visualizes layers of black vapor descending from the Kan palace (Kan Gong), the northern trigram of the Bagua associated with Water. The vapor covers the room until inside and outside are dark. After a while, it becomes a Mysterious Tortoise (xuan gui) that rests beneath the right foot. One knocks the teeth thirty-six times and softly recites:

"Eight Paths of Concealment, hide in the earth and dance in heaven. Flee by means of the six Yin, reveal the body upon the jade wheel, ride the dragon and drive the mist, and ascend to create the Imperial Dawn."

After the recitation, one swallows qi nine times, opens the eyes, and takes the fulu. After eight years, one is said to be able to ascend to the Palace of Jade Clarity (Yuqing Gong).

In a moment of danger, one should stand in the direction of the Kan palace, visualize the black clouds enveloping the whole body, lift the head, and swallow qi thirty-five times. Then one takes earth from the Earthly Gate (di hu) to shield oneself, reciting the same incantation as at the Winter Solstice. In this way one can hide and escape.

◎ Supreme Method of the Purple Radiance Observatory of Jade Mist of Great Clarity (Taiqing Yuxia Ziying Guan Shangfa)

Usually, one should choose an auspicious day in the first ten days of one's birth month, bathe, fast, and put on clean garments. At dawn, one enters the quiet chamber and, with the inner...

Visualize the "Kaiming Jade Talisman" (kaiming yufu, a sacred talismanic sign used in visualization) and the "Qinghua Water" (qinghua zhi shui, a pure numinous water seen in visualization). Use the water to wash the eyes, then rinse the mouth and the belly, so that body and mind are purified within and without. No lingering taste should remain in the mouth, no turbid qi in the abdomen, the eyes should stop chasing after external sights, and the body should be free of dust and grime. In this way one becomes calm, tranquil, and still, so that only the Dao fills the self.

Then turn to face south, sit upright with the eyes closed, and visualize purple qi (zi qi) rising from the crown of the head, surging straight into the sky, enveloping the self inside and out and spreading into profound depths. Next, draw the purple qi upward, tilt the head back, and swallow thirty-nine times, each time visualizing the qi descending into the mouth and belly. When the swallowing is complete, open the eyes and let the mind become bright and open. Then click the teeth together three times, tilt the head back, and recite the following prayer:

"The flowing rosy clouds of Shangqing (Highest Clarity) shine upon the auspicious dawn of the True Dao; purple clouds illuminate the numinous realm, and essential qi rises in mutual radiance. Numinous qi abides within the Golden Gate, and the Jade Door receives the visualization; the precious shen-qi is harmonized and stored, so that the hun and po do not scatter. The Bright Sovereigns and the Nine Perfected spread goodness through the eight directions; climbing the clouds to summon the spirits, the spirits descend in joy and penetrate the deep and mysterious realm. Three morning stars feast together, the body rises and floats to the Jade Hall, and one bows upward to the pavilions of the Lord Emperor."

When the prayer is finished, tilt the head back and swallow three more times, then stop.

This practice should be carried out on the first ten days (shangxun) of the month of one's birth. If one was born in the jiazi decade, take the jiayin day as the first day of the shangxun; the other decades follow by analogy.

According to the Zishu Jue (Secret Formulas of the Purple Writ), the practice of "Inner Observation of the Upper Clarity Jade Mist and Purple Radiance" (Shangqing neiguan, an inner-observation method of the Shangqing school that uses visualization of the sun's essence) requires that on the first day of each month one collect three sheng of water flowing toward the west, place it in a bronze vessel, and add one liang of pearl. The text calls this pearl "the luminous jade embryo, the essence of gold, the stone scenery, and the water mother." The vessel is left in the center of the courtyard, and the water is taken at noon on the fifteenth day.

At that time, sunlight shines upon the pearl within the water. Facing east, one visualizes the flowing rosy light and a clear, luminous scene, and then casts a jade talisman into the water. Turning to the south, one knocks the teeth together sixteen times, lifts the head, and intones: "Sun-soul pearl-scene, shining on the hidden green; crimson mist, vermilion youth, dark flame and flying image." Once these sixteen characters are recited, one closes the eyes and visualizes five-colored radiance streaming down from the sun, covering the whole body until it is bright and transparent within and without.

Next, one visualizes an immortal within the sun, eight cun in height, wearing a vermilion crown, crimson brocade robes, and a cinnabar-colored skirt, standing above one's head. He draws cinnabar, golden essence, and the stone-scenery water-mother luminance from the sun and pours them into the body. At this point, the image of the immortal is made to appear in the vessel of water, and facing the sunlight, one softly recites the invocation:

"Radiance shines over the Cinnabar Yang, and the primordial scene of the Beginning unfolds. The vermilion cinnabar furnace is bright and vast; the nine qi unite into the True. The qi of the three and five circulates its essence, and the forms of sun and moon coil about one another. A jade embryonic womb and a stone body refine the old substance and return to renewal. The flowing rosy light seeps in quietly, and the essence of the water mother gathers the spirit. Harmonize the hun and po souls so that inside and outside become one. Raising the head to take in the cinnabar blossom, the mouth draws in the root of the sun; the lingzhi qi fills the body, and the face takes on the likeness of a golden immortal. Unite with qi, abide with the sun, ride the sunlight into the air, and ascend to the Imperial Dawn."

After the invocation, one again faces the sun, swallows qi sixteen times, and then stops. The pearl is removed from the water, the eyes are washed facing the sun, and the whole body is bathed with the water. The remaining water is allowed to flow away to the west.

The text states that if one practices this method for nine years, the face will take on a golden lustre, the body and mind will be clear within and without, one will shine with the light of the sun, and one will be able to fly through the mysterious void and ascend to the realm of the sun. The scripture closes with a warning that this method is sublime and must not be transmitted to later generations. Anyone who carelessly divulges the secret will be punished by ghost soldiers, will be made to serve ghost officials, and will bring calamity upon their ancestors.

The "Cunxuan Bai Fa" (Method of Visualizing the Mysterious and White) describes two methods of visualization. The first is called the "Inner Method of the Black and White Central Scenes of the Embryonic Essence" (Taijing Zhongjing Heibai Neifa). It may be practiced each morning, either seated or reclining. The practitioner visualizes black qi within the Mud Pellet Palace (Niwan Palace, the head's internal dantian in Daoist terminology), with soldiers in the heart and spirit officials commanding the body. The scripture warns that this practice brings calamity upon the practitioner's seven generations of ancestors.

The second method is likewise practiced each morning, seated or reclining. The practitioner visualizes black qi in the Niwan Palace, white qi in the heart, and yellow qi in the navel. The three qi rise together and envelop the whole body like clouds. At first they are visualized as the size of beans, then gradually grow until they surge toward the sky. The three qi wind around the body, merge into a single mass, and transform into fire, whose flames encircle the body until the interior and exterior are fully illuminated and seem to become one. The practice is performed in the morning and ceases at noon, after which the practitioner ingests qi one hundred and twenty times (fuqi). The scripture claims that sustained practice for thirty years allows one to conceal the physical form and to travel five hundred li each day.

The "Method of the Three Plain Clouds" (Sansu Yun Fa) uses visualization of three-colored clouds to nourish the eyes. It is usually practiced after waking at night, though it may also be done upon rising, and it need not be restricted to nighttime. The scripture states that it may be performed any time after the Zi hour and before the Wu hour, with the period after the Chou hour and before the Mao hour being most suitable.

The practitioner sits facing east with eyes closed, presses the base of both thumbs against the eyes, and then rubs toward the ear gates. The hands are then crossed behind the neck, and the sequence is repeated twenty-seven times. The practitioner visualizes purple, azure, and crimson clouds within each eye, which appear before the eyes. These three clouds are called the "Three Plain Clouds," and the practitioner must visualize them pouring into the "youthful lads" (tongzi), a Daoist term for the pupils or the eyes' spiritual radiance, so that the gaze becomes bright and clear. With each pressing, the practitioner visualizes the clouds before the eyes returning into them. When the hands are removed, the clouds reappear, and the practice continues until the prescribed number of repetitions is complete. The practitioner then silently recites the incantation: "Eye youth, three clouds; two eyes, true lord; wise and bright, pour into essence; open and clear the spirit; great mysterious cloud ritual..."

From the chapter on Efficacy (Língyàn piān): "May the spirits protect my two eyes and two ears, so that the nine orifices of my body are unobstructed and the hundred joints of my four limbs respond in harmony. When the morning fluids gather in the Niwan Palace (Mud Pellet Palace, the upper Dantian in the head, as Daoists call it), the body rises into the Jade Palace, the dwelling of the immortals, and takes its place among the True Lords." After the prayer, swallow the saliva in the mouth fifty times while visualizing it entering the liver. Persist in this practice for one year and the ears will become keen and the eyes bright. With long practice, it is said, one can see very far, perceive the spirits, and hear the faintest sounds.

Another method is recorded in the Scripture on Returning to the Embryo Through Massage (Fǎn Tāi Ànmó Jīng): choose yang days for this practice, counting the first day of each lunar month as a yang day. On the morning of a yang day, after waking in the night and before rising, first close the eyes tightly and face one's birth-direction, the direction determined by the year's stem and branch. Rub the palms together until they grow warm, then use them to press and smooth the eyes and the ear openings in turn. Finally, bring the palms together behind the neck. Repeat this nine times. At the same time, visualize three-colored clouds of purple, red, and yellow within each eye, each descending into the corresponding ear.

After a while, silently recite the incantation:

"Three-colored clouds in the eyes, Lord of Bright Sight, grant clear perception, gather the essential qi, and open the gate of the spirit. Taixuan Yunyi and Yuling Fupian, protect my two eyes and two ears, let the nine orifices of my body be fully open and the four limbs respond in harmony. Let the fluids return to the Niwan Palace, lift my body into the Jade Palace, and enroll me among the Supreme Perfected."

After the silent recitation, swallow the saliva three times, then open the eyes and rise. Practicing this regularly, morning and evening, is better still. After three years of practice, it is said, one's ears will be keen and one's eyes bright.

Volume 54: Part One of the Section on the Spirits of the Hun and Po

On the Hun and Po

The Perfected Zhengyi (Zhengyi Zhenren) lived in a cave on Mount Heming and said to Zhao Sheng: "The human body contains three souls. The first is called the Embryonic Light (Taiguang), the qi of Grand Clarity (Taiqing) and yang harmony. The second is called the Spiritual Brightness (Shuangling), formed by the transformation of yin qi. The third is called the Dim Essence (Youjing), formed by the mingling of yin qi. When yin qi overpowers yang qi, the human mind loses its clarity. Turbid yin qi clouds the mind and spirit and weakens the vital energy. The kidney qi cannot be sustained, and the qi of the spleen, stomach, and five viscera fails to circulate. Illness then takes hold, and the end of one's allotted lifespan arrives. If this persists day and night, the body will lie down like a corpse and decline in a moment. How could this not be lamentable? A person should constantly keep the clear yang qi abundant, so that it is not suppressed by the three souls. Then the spirit will be clear and bright, unbound by the Five Phases, and unassailed by a hundred evils. Illness will not take hold, and the Way of longevity can be cultivated."

Zhao Sheng bowed deeply and, bending forward, asked: "How can one subdue the turbid yin qi so that the pure and harmonious qi may descend? I respectfully wish to practice accordingly, so that the living may be guided and sustained, made firm and enduring, and so that those in decline may be spared the disturbance of the dim spirits."

The Perfected said: "Sit back down, and I will explain. The human body is extremely precious, formed from the three primal qi between Heaven and Earth. If these three qi can be brought into harmony with the hundred spirits (baishen), a person will not easily walk toward death.

"Among the three souls, the Embryonic Light belongs to Heaven. It constantly wishes a person to remain pure and tranquil, and it helps one extend one's years. If one cuts off defiled and disordered thoughts, the Embryonic Light will remain in the body for a long time, and the conditions for longevity will be complete.

"The Spiritual Brightness belongs to the Five Phases. It constantly makes a person scheme over myriad affairs and labor the hundred spirits. It also brings about matters of fortune and misfortune, calamity, decline, punishment, and harm.

"The Dim Essence belongs to Earth. It constantly makes a person crave beauty and indulge in desire. The mind becomes muddled and dark, and one also sleeps greedily without waking.

"The Spiritual Brightness causes one to scheme without end, and scheming wearies the mind. A weary mind sets the hundred spirits to labor, and laboring the hundred spirits disperses the qi. Once the qi has dispersed…"

When the Taiqing one qi (the primordial qi that generates the myriad things) cannot remain stable and in circulation, a person begins to decline. The Youjing (one of the three hun souls) wants people to indulge in disordered and immoderate desires. Once they do, they become attached to sensual desire and gradually exhaust their jing (essence). When the jing is spent, one is entered in the Black Registers of the netherworld, the record of one's offenses becomes evident, and death draws near.

If a person is excessively attached to sensual desire, the shen (spirit) is bound to become confused, and conduct becomes perverse and defiled. Even under the watch of the sun, moon, stars, thunder, and the gods, such a person does not restrain themselves. They are then recorded by the Four Bureaus (the divisions that register human good and evil), receive punishment from the Five Emperors, and may implicate the Nine Mysteries and Seven Ancestors (ancestors near and far) and their parents, leaving them trapped in the netherworld for a long time. In this way, they will never again see glory, prosperity, or the Way of long life.

After Zhao Sheng woke with a start, he respectfully asked the Perfected to explain the reasons from the beginning. The Perfected then said that even someone who has already fallen into ruin can come to understand the principle of preserving life.

The Zhengyi (Orthodox Unity) Perfected said: the Taiguang (the soul that governs the root of life) was originally born in the palace of the Holy Mother, Lady of the Primordial Azure Origin, and descends to the human world on the seventh day of the first month. The Shuangling (the soul that governs one's spiritual nature and thought) was originally born in the Taiyi Palace and descends on the seventh day of the seventh month. The Youjing was originally born in the Yin Palace of the Taiji (Supreme Ultimate) and descends on the fifth day of the tenth month. Each returns to its own palace on the day of its descent to receive its orders and report on the person's good and evil. These days are called the "Three Souls' Assembly Days."

Beyond these, the three souls also report on fixed schedules. The Taiguang returns to its palace on jiazi days, the Shuangling on gengshen days, and the Youjing on the person's own birth-day, reporting that person's good and evil as well as their calamities and misfortunes. If the three souls no longer restrain one another and each returns to report, and all of them say that the person is pure, upright, and has done no evil, then the hun and po souls will remain constantly at the person's side. Their spirit and qi will be full and vigorous, and the gods will follow and protect them. Their undertakings will readily fulfill their good wishes, dark and defiled beings cannot intrude, the Four Bureaus cannot record their offenses, and calamities, malign qi, and disease will not dare to approach. The Perfected said that he had explained these principles fully to Zhao Sheng, and that so long as he carefully practices them, the true Dao methods will manifest.

The Perfected of Orthodox Unity (Zhengyi Zhenren) said: Those who cultivate the Dao and nourish life should, every morning before sunrise, click their teeth together and call upon the three souls (sanhun) three times in succession. In the evening, just before sleep, they should call upon them three times again and then chant the incantation: "Fetal Light prolongs life, Bright Spirit increases blessings and emoluments, and Dim Essence removes the peril of death. This incantation must be practiced according to the statutes so that it takes effect swiftly."

Practicing this every day is said to keep the souls from leaving the body, to protect against accidents, malevolent ghosts, and evil deities, and to prevent strange visions from appearing in dreams. Before and after the relevant rite, that is, for three days on either side, one should be pure and reverent on the night before, observe a three-day fast, and, after bathing, submit a memorial (baizhang) to the gods, reporting one's merits, confessing one's faults, and doing good works. In this way, the Bright Spirit and Dim Essence cannot suppress the True One Primordial Qi (zhenyi yuanqi), the original vital energy spoken of in Daoism, and cultivation becomes easier.

The Perfected of Orthodox Unity cautioned Zhao Sheng: One must not practice this method intermittently, and one must not be distracted while visualizing. Constant focus and diligence are the true aspirations of one who cultivates the Dao.

The Perfected then said to Zhao Sheng: Seek...

The Perfected of Orthodox Unity once more admonished Zhao Sheng: One must not practice this method intermittently, and one must not be distracted while visualizing. Constant focus and diligence are the true aspirations of one who cultivates the Dao.

The Perfected of Orthodox Unity said to Zhao Sheng: The human body contains three souls, called the "Three Destinies" (sanming). One soul governs lifespan, one governs wealth and emoluments, and one governs calamity and decline. Each soul has its own dwelling: one always resides in the star mansion corresponding to one's birth destiny, one dwells among the Five Marchmounts of the netherworld, and one dwells in the Water Prefecture. On the day corresponding to one's birth destiny, one of the souls returns to its original place, and at such times only the seven corporeal souls (qipo) remain constantly in the body without dispersing. If, when it reaches...

On a person's own life-day (benming ri, the day corresponding to their birth year), one of the hun (ethereal souls) descends from its ruling constellation to observe the person's conduct. Together with the po (corporeal soul, understood as the yin spirit of a person), it examines whether the body is weak or strong. If the three hun can keep returning in turn, the person will remain calm and seldom fall ill.

On the life-day, one should keep body and mind pure: refrain from drinking wine and from sexual relations, wear new clothes, burn incense, and do good deeds. If one wishes to sleep, one may rest briefly, so that the hun and po can join together before departing. If one indulges in wine and sensual pleasure on this day and becomes muddled and disordered, the hun will be struck by foul, polluted qi when it returns, and will halt a few paces from the body. Unable to unite with the po, it will eventually leave and never return. If the hun fails to join after three attempts, the po will abandon the body, and the person will lose their spirit-lord (shenzhu).

The po is yin and constantly wishes the hun would not return. If the hun does not come back, the po will commune with ghosts. The hun wishes the person to live, while the po wishes them to die. The hun grieves and the po rejoices, and the po says: "If the hun does not return, I have nothing to rely upon, and the five ghosts will invade the house." When the three hun are cut off and never return, the po keeps company with the five ghosts. The person's dreams become strange and frightening, and they become a "wandering soul" (youhun). With the body having lost its master, they act in confusion, sleep excessively, and misfortune piles up until even attempts at remedy are difficult to reverse.

Throughout the year, every sixty days, the hun returns to the body about six times. This restrains the yin po and keeps it from communing with yin evils, so that the hundred spirits gather and the body is spared from calamity. If sixty days pass and the hun still has not returned, the po will seize the opportunity to conspire with yin ghosts, and the person will die.

On each life-day, one hun descends from its constellation, and the other two come down together with it. Four officials oversee this matter, twelve in total, and on the life-day itself the person's parents also descend with the hun. Therefore, one should prepare money, wine, and dried meat at the life-day hour and offer them in twelve portions. Afterward, the officials in charge will not block the po's return, the hun will descend on schedule, and the blessings received cannot be fully described. Practicing this regularly is the gate to longevity (changsheng zhi men).

Master Wang said: "I have heard my late teacher, the Perfected, explain that at the beginning of primordial chaos, all things were born from a single Qi that transformed and spread outward. The so-called thirty-six thousand spirit-Qi (shenqi) are a rough count of the Qi as it circulates and turns. The spirit-Qi between heaven and earth renews and succeeds itself without pause, so how could it be confined to a fixed number? The hundred rivers never cease because of Qi, heaven and earth endure because of Qi, and the Northern Dipper (Weidou) keeps turning without exhaustion once it obtains Qi. Its breath extends and continues, and so all things grow."

The Sage pointed out that one should take the One Qi as the root to which all things return, and that through the joining, descent, and gathering of Qi, a person can live long and not die. Ordinary people, not understanding how to nourish Qi, only chase after desires and in the end walk toward death.

Heaven and earth complete one circuit of day and night, passing through thirty-six thousand moments of climatic alternation. When the joinings of climate are free of error, the sun and moon are bright and upright, the wind and clouds move without disorder, the four seasons are all nourished, and all things can grow. If the climate loses its proper timing and the breath cannot continue, the number of cycles falls short, and above and below no longer correspond. Then thunder rages, the sun and moon become abnormal, the stars shift from their places, and unusual drought, heat, and flooding arise, so that all things cannot grow normally.

The human body follows the pattern of heaven and earth. According to this regimen, when one circuit is completed in a day, the kidney Qi rises to the spleen and stomach. Over one day and night, thirty-six thousand breaths continue without interruption, and Qi responds mutually between above and below, flowing through the channels, irrigating the five viscera, and moistening the nutritive and defensive Qi (yingwei qi), the Qi that moves inside and outside the vessels and guards the body. In this way, a person becomes light in body and healthy, clear in spirit, strong in memory, and seldom ill, and cultivation of the Way is likewise more readily fruitful.

If the three Qi, five Qi, and ten Qi cannot continue, disease will spread along the channels, causing high fever and loss of appetite, the hun and po (the ethereal and corporeal souls) to become frightened and unsettled, and the spirit-Qi to fall into disorder. Once any one of the viscera cannot bear the strain, illness arises.

If one receives only the territorial correspondence (fenye) that matches oneself, and regulation and tending are not carried out in time, a person will grow weary and depleted. For this reason, practitioners of cultivation (xiuzhen) must continually take in fresh qi and expel stale qi, so that shen and qi remain vigorous and the essence (jing) does not dissipate. In this way one does not age, does not fall ill, and even ghosts and spirits will stand in awe. The Five Spiritual Numina (wuling), the spirits that protect the person, will guard the body's interior, and jing and qi will be full, enabling one to resist every kind of noxious and malignant pneumatic influence. When jing and qi are strong and sharp, there is no evil qi they cannot subdue. Here shen-qi is likened to a general: it is robust and valiant, able to crush weapons, like a fierce commander leading his troops.

Method of Restraining the Three Hun Souls (sanhun) (the practice of gathering and binding the three souls)

On the third, thirteenth, and twenty-third nights of each month, the three ethereal souls (sanhun) are especially prone to unrest. The Shuangling soul wanders, the Taiguang soul leaves the body, and the Youjing soul is disturbed. Shuangling, Taiguang, and Youjing are the names of the three souls.

During these nights, all three souls leave the body and roam about, drifting from their dwelling like a swift wind. They may be seen and detained by other souls or by outside ghosts and demons, or they may be carried off by spirits and goblins. Sometimes they cannot return to the body, and the soul separates from the physical form. At other times they encounter foreign souls or come into conflict with the two breaths of Yin and Yang. Each of these situations agitates a person's mind and spirit and tangles their thoughts. The souls come and go without form, and one feels grief and vexation. For this reason, the Daoist priest should restrain the three souls so that they do not wander.

The method of restraining the three souls is as follows. Lie down calmly with the head resting on something low, stretch out the legs, clasp the hands, and lie supine with the eyes closed. Hold the breath three times and click the teeth together three times. Visualize a ball of red qi the size of an egg within the body, rising from inside and leaving through the eyes. Outside the body, the red qi transforms into flames that burn around the whole body, making it bright within and without, like charcoal burning. When finished, one should feel a slight warmth in the body, and then click the teeth three more times.

Next, visualize the three souls and silently recite their names: Taiguang, Shuangling, Youjing. Petition that the three souls settle at once, and then softly intone the prayer:

"Taiwei Xuangong, Youhuang Shiqing. Inwardly refine the three souls, and let the Taiguang soul be tranquil. The Shenbao Yushi dwells with me and shares my birth. Do not move recklessly; the Discerning One is most spiritually aware. If you wish to fly, you may only go to the Supreme Pole and the Highest Clarity. If you feel hunger or thirst, you may only drink from the Huishui and the Jade Essence."

The meaning is this: may the three souls be at peace within the body, remain with me, and not leave on their own. If they wish to fly, they may go only to the Supreme Pole and the Highest Clarity. If they feel hunger or thirst, they may drink only Huishui and Jade Essence.

Method of Restraining the Seven Corporeal Souls

On the first and fifteenth nights of each month, and on the last night of the month, this is what happens: a person's seven po (qi po), the seven kinds of soul-breath within the body in Daoist teaching, wander off. They enter filthy places, consort with blood offerings and ghosts, or commune with corpses. They may also bewilder young children, gather in groups to do evil, and destroy dwellings. They may recount a person's transgressions and denounce them to the Three Officials (the deities who govern heaven, earth, and water) and to He Bo (the Earl of the Yellow River). They may transform into wangliang (spirits of the mountains and rivers), causing people to suffer nightmares and fright, or they may lead ghosts into the house and summon evil spirits, harming the living and leaving them sick and crippled. These are the transgressions of the seven po. They delight in people's deaths and feed on their decline.

The Daoist priest should subdue these spirits and restrain them strictly. He should set out the rules that transform them, control and correct them through ritual techniques, and gather them in until they submit in awe.

The seven po are named, in order, as follows: the first is Shi Gou (Corpse Dog), the second Fu Shi (Hidden Arrow), the third Que Yin (Sparrow Yin), the fourth Tun Zei (Swallowing Thief), the fifth Fei Du (Non-Poison), the sixth Chu Hui (Removing Filth), and the seventh Chou Fei (Foul Lung). These are all names of the seven po, which are regarded as turbid, filthy ghost-qi within the body.

The method for restraining the seven po is as follows. Lie on your back, remove the pillow, and straighten your legs. Rub your palms together to warm them, then cover your ears with them, fingertips touching. Cross your hands at the center of the crown of your head and hold your breath seven times.

Next, visualize a puff of white qi, about the size of a small bean, appearing at the tip of the nose. Within a moment it grows larger and covers the whole body in nine layers, from the soles of the feet up to the crown of the head. When this is complete, visualize the white qi suddenly transforming into celestial beasts. Two Azure Dragons lie within the eyes, and two White Tigers lie within the nostrils, all facing outward. A Green Tortoise sits over the heart, facing the direction of the mouth. Another Green Tortoise lies beneath the left foot, and a Numinous Serpent lies beneath the right foot. In each ear stands a Jade Maiden in dark brocade robes, positioned at the ear gate and holding a fire-light in each hand. Visualize these figures for a while, and then the rite is complete.

Then swallow your saliva seven times, knock your teeth together seven times, and call the names of the seven po aloud. After doing so, recite the blessing formula:

The pure qi circulates through the body nine times, serving to bind the Seven Po (qī pò) souls and to suppress evil, deceitful, and reckless thoughts. A celestial beast guards the gate, and a beautiful maiden keeps the pass. When the Seven Po are settled, gentle, and compliant, at peace with the practitioner, they must not move at will. One should observe and discern their traces and their roots.

If the Seven Po feel hunger or thirst, one may allow them to drink the elixir-qi transformed from moonlight and the essence of the sun. In this way the Seven Po will gather and be concealed within the body, guarding and constraining one another. If one cultivates in this manner regularly, the turbid and evil po-qi will gradually dissipate, return to their good nature, and unite with the physical form. Above, they correspond to the Three Palaces and become one with the primordial Qi (yuán qì).

The human body contains the Three Primal Palace Spirits, the Great Lord of the Mysterious Gate at the Life Gate (mìng mén), and the spirits of the Three Hun (hún) souls. Together these seven spirits all dwell within the physical form. The Daoist scriptures hold that spirits who are benevolent and possess great merit can enable a person to attain longevity. The Seven Po likewise dwell in the body, yet they contend with it and become harmful thieves that injure the person, and so they must be restrained. Daoist adepts seek only the methods of attaining immortality without understanding the way of subduing the Seven Po, and their efforts are therefore inevitably in vain.

The Three Palaces are located as follows. The Upper Primal Palace lies within the Muwan (Mud Pellet, ní wán), the spirit mansion in the head, and its palace spirit is the Red Infant (chì zǐ), courtesy name Yuanxian, also called Lord Emperor (dì qīng). The Middle Primal Palace is in the Scarlet Chamber (jiàng fáng), that is, in the heart, and its palace spirit is the Perfected Person (zhēn rén), courtesy name Zidan, also called Guangjian. The Lower Primal Palace is in the Dantian (dān tián) palace, three cun below the navel, and its palace spirit is the Infant (yīng ér), courtesy name Yuanyangzi, also called Gu Xuan.

These are the Spirits of the Three-in-One (sān yī zhī shén). When restraining and subduing the Hun and Po souls, one should first silently recite the names of the three spirits in the heart, and visualize all three as jade-colored, emitting golden light, with the forms of infants. The spirits of the Upper and Middle Palaces wear red garments, and the spirit of the Lower Palace wears yellow. The head is also visualized in the form of a newborn infant.

Method of Visualizing the Three Hun Souls Facing the Sun

Master Taixu Zhenren said: My late teacher instructed me that on the "Five Penetrating Days" (a particular class of days used for cultivation), when the sun has risen about three or four zhang high, one should stand upright facing the sun and visualize the spirits of the Three Souls (Sanhun) entering the heart together with the sunlight. After a while, hold the breath three times, swallow the saliva in the mouth three times, and then recite the incantation:

"The sun scatters its radiance, letting fall its purple-green light. Enter my Three Souls and illuminate my Five Forms (the human body). Drive away the intrusions of ghosts and evil upon the Shen, so that the mind is calm and upright. Inwardly, penetrate the Nine Qi; outwardly, communicate with the fetal life. May I ascend to Upper Clarity (Shangqing), the realm of the immortals, and may the Jade Register (Yulu), the registry of names and talismans, assign me my immortal rank."

When the incantation is finished, rub the eyes fourteen times with the hands, then knock the teeth together fourteen times, and the rite is complete. This method brings the Three Souls into concentrated clarity and keeps the heart upright, so that evil arts cannot take effect and malign spirits cannot disturb the Shen. It is an important method of Dao cultivation. Those who regularly practice it should, on the "Five Establishing Days" (days associated with the Five Phases and the Establishing day-officers), face the sun and try to induce a sneeze. If none comes, they may gently stimulate the inside of the nose with something soft, held toward the sun, until they sneeze. After sneezing, recite the incantation:

"Celestial light enters the body and causes the Six Wombs (liutai), the inner spiritual qi associated with human life in Daoist accounts, to pass upward and through. The Three Souls guard the Shen, and the Seven Po (qipo), the inner qi that sustains the spirit and vital activity, do not disperse. I receive the sunlight and sneeze, joining with the Sun Spirit and ascending to Upper Clarity to become a True Duke."

When the incantation is finished, rub the eyes fourteen times with the hands. This means that the inner Jing and qi meet the sunlight, the Three Souls become manifest within the body, the orifices of the heart open, the thoughts of the Shen become penetrating, and the various qi circulate throughout the body. On days other than the Five Establishing Days, this set need not be performed.

On the Five Establishing Days, one should also face north and bow five times, silently recite the name of the Lady Consort of the Supreme Perfected Lord three times, and then knock the teeth five times. After finishing, loosen the headcloth, kneel long on the ground, and respectfully report:

The Method of Worshipping the Nine Heavens and Summoning the Soul for Seeking Immortality

On the third, ninth, and sixteenth days of each month, at dawn, face the sun and perform nine prostrations and nine bows, or perform them in the mind alone. Raise the head, click the teeth together twenty-four times, and then recite:

"The Heavenly Soul is nine times entwined. Supreme Emperor, Honored Spirit, the essence of the sun, the Golden Gate transforms into immortality. Your little disciple, [name of practitioner], respectfully offers these humble words. Today is an auspicious day, and I present eight wishes, earnestly requesting the granting of these petitions and looking up to the mysterious grace. May the Azure Dragon and the Vermilion Phoenix draw the carriage and lead the way, with the purple chariot following behind. May five-colored auspicious clouds cover one another, and may the Six Qi (the six vital breaths of Heaven and Earth) sweep away the dust. I earnestly ask that the Exalted Divine Ones turn their gaze upon me and that the Three Lights (the sun, moon, and stars) descend their True Qi. May the two luminaries of sun and moon encircle and protect me. May my Dao-heart rejoice, my mind be clear and bright, my ears keen and my eyes sharp, my complexion glowing, my body light, my bones seem to rise, my appearance radiant, and my form grow feathered garments, so that I ascend directly to the Heavenly Dawn."

After the recitation, look up at the sky, draw in the essence Qi of the sun, and swallow it forty-five times before stopping. The scripture says that if one practices in this way for three years, one's eyesight will become penetrating and able to see into distant places, the face will appear golden, and the body will produce a jade-like fluid. After nine years of practice, one's body will cast no shadow, and one will be able to fly through the mysterious realms of the spirit. On cloudy days when the sun is hidden, one may concentrate in a quiet inner chamber, visualize the sun, and follow the same method, and one will still be able to respond to the natural world.

On the fifth, fifteenth, and twenty-fifth days of each month, in the still of deep night, face the moon and perform nine prostrations and nine bows, or perform them in the mind alone. Facing upward toward the moon, click the teeth together sixteen times, and then recite:

"Soul and essence, spirit and numinous power, born together in the Nine Heavens, Stone Scenery, Water Mother..."

Soul, Essence, Corporeal Soul, and Numinous Spirit are born together with the Nine Heavens. Shijing and Shuimu, Taiyin shines bright. I wander in the Palace of the Moon (Gongyue) and refine myself in the Golden Court (Jinting). The two radiances of sun and moon join at their source, at the auspicious and clear moment when the spirit-qi (lingqi) of the eight directions converges and connects. I pray that this method may be accomplished, that it may bring luster and bearing, brightness and flourishing, that I may become a spirit and an immortal, and ascend to Highest Clarity (Shangqing). When the invocation is finished, raise the head and draw in the essence-qi (jingqi) of the moon, swallowing forty-five times before stopping.

The Method of Soul-Essence (Hunjing Fa)

The Lord of Soul-Essence (Hunjing Dijun) is the Siming of the Nine Heavens, the divine lord who governs the souls and fates of the Nine Heavens and, in the lower realm, controls the destinies of later students. He guards the Golden Court within the Gate of the Sun. The Lord of Corporeal Spirit (Polin Dijun) is the Prime Minister of the Nine Heavens, who governs the corporeal spirits of the Nine Heavens and, in the lower realm, manages the registers of later students, the ledgers recording their names and cultivation records. He guards the Capital of Linlang in the Palace of the Moon.

Whether they practice in the morning or evening, sitting, rising, lying down, or resting, those who cultivate the Supreme Way should visualize within their minds the sun above the head and the moon in the mouth. The Lord of Soul-Essence resides in Niwan (the upper dantian, the central region of the head), and the Lord of Corporeal Spirit resides in the Mingtang (the area between the eyebrows). Concentrate the mind, hold these images in the eyes, and let the scenes appear faintly and frequently. After more than a year of this practice, one will be able to see the true forms, with the blue and white hues clearly distinct. After nine years, one can ride the air in flight, ascend to the Hall of the Dawn Lamp, and feast on the Mountain of Rainbow Reflections.

The Shangqing Flying Steps of the Seven Stars, Method of Soul and Corporeal Spirit (Shangqing Feibu Qixing Hunpo Fa)

The oral instructions of the Perfected of Taisu (Taisu Zhenren) say that the first star of the Northern Dipper is named the Divine Spirit of Soul of Tianshu, the second is named the Divine Spirit of Soul of Tianxuan, the third is named the Essence of Soul of Tianji, the fourth is named the Essence of Corporeal Spirit of Tianquan, the fifth is named the Numinous Spirit of Corporeal Spirit of Yuheng, the sixth is named the Essence of Corporeal Spirit of Kaiyang, and the seventh is named the Great Brightness of Yaoguang. Each of these seven stars bears a name of soul or corporeal spirit, and together they are called the "Numinous Brightness of the Seven Origins." When walking the steps, one visualizes one's own soul and corporeal spirit moving upon the stars and holds the seven stars in mind. This is called "flying as an immortal," also known as "flying immortal steps on the Dipper." After the soul and corporeal spirit have circled the stars three times in visualization, face the Yangming Star, hold the breath, and silently recite the words of invocation:

Before walking the steps, one offers a prayer. The first step places the left foot upon the star Yangming (Yangming Xing), visualizing the star's spirit shining brightly while imagining one's hun soul (hun) walking among the stars. This pacing method is called "Flying Immortal Pacing the Dipper" (feixian bu dou), and one circles the stars' positions three times. Upon completion, facing Yangming, hold the breath and silently recite the incantation in the mind.

The steps then follow in order: the left foot treads Yangming; the right foot treads Yinjing (Yinjing Xing); the left foot treads Xuanming (Xuanming Xing); the right foot treads Danyuan (Danyuan Xing); the left foot treads the North Star (Beiji Xing); the right foot treads Kaiyang (Kaiyang Xing); and finally the left foot joins the right to tread Yaoguang (Yaoguang Xing). At each step, the incantation is recited once. When all the steps are complete, one restores the breath and recites aloud:

"Gold, wood, water, fire, and earth transform one another in turn; the Seven Stars blaze with light, and the Celestial Cord (tiangang) stands in awesome majesty. The Assisting Star steadies what is great, and the Auxiliary Star supports what is weak. Nine Perfected—

Taishang, Taiji, and Taiwei, the Three Palaces (the celestial mansions of Daoist cosmology), and the Three Venerables of the Jade Emperor drive away evil and wrongdoing. Heaven turns and earth spins; the hun and po follow, so that I may ascend and become an immortal. True light encircles me, causing my name to be entered among the Golden Authority. The Assisting Star steadies what is great, and the Auxiliary Star supports what is weak. Nine Perfected—

Taishang, Taiji, and Taiwei, the Three Palaces, and the Three Venerables of the Jade Emperor drive away evil and wrongdoing. Heaven turns and earth spins; the hun and po follow, so that I may ascend and become an immortal. True light encircles me, causing my name to be entered in the Golden Chamber, and the Jade Gate opens before me. I ride the dragon into the sky, shining together with the sun and moon, and roam through Taiqing (the pure celestial realm of Daoist cosmology). I wear robes of jade-green and wear bells that chime; my left foot treads the lightning, and my right hand drives the swiftly racing stars. All the myriad evil spirits on earth prostrate themselves and perish. Should anyone with malice follow or spy upon me, let them be cut down and destroyed. The Heavenly Emperor commands the Jade Maidens to console and attend me and to escort me home. The hun unites with the zhen, the po unites with the shen, and form and spirit rise together in flight. The rite ends here."

Scroll 55, "Section on the Hun and Shen," Part Two

"Siyuan Jue" (Method of Contemplating the Spirits)

Dao is the root of all things that have form. It is still and inactive, empty and without shape, yet when it is responded to, it can pass through all things and manifest its marvelous functions. Looking at it, one cannot see its form; listening to it, one cannot hear its sound. For this reason, the Dao has no shape and no name, and neither words nor images can fully express it. And yet it truly exists, and it has reliable regularities, through which the transformations of the myriad things come about.

The arrival of life is the result of the marvelous Qi condensing, and the yin part of the body is formed from the congealing of yang Qi. When the two fundamental forces of Yin-Yang separate, the myriad things come into being. Heaven and earth move and change, and the sun and moon thereby shine forth. All of this arises from the marvelous operation of the Supreme Dao, and through it the Primordial One (the common origin of all things) comes to possess spirituality.

Among the myriad things, human beings are the most intelligent. Their appearance can manifest the reality of things, their thoughts are pure, and their ears and eyes are clear. Outwardly the body responds to the Six Qi, and inwardly the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water) circulate within it. The physical form itself is quiet and empty, while the spirit (Shen) arises from what is deep, dark, and profound.

The Dao, being without form, is able to respond and give birth to Primordial Qi, and this is called "One." The One divides and becomes "Three." These three are the clear Qi, the turbid Qi, and the harmonious Qi. Once condensed, they form Heaven, Earth, and Humanity, also called the "Three Primes," corresponding to upper, middle, and lower. In the heavens there are three luminaries: sun, moon, and stars; on the earth there are three treasures: gold, jade, and pearls; in the human body there are three vital elements: ears, eyes, and heart; and the Dao has three Qi: Xuan, Yuan, and Shi. In addition, there are the Three Heavens, namely Qingwei, Yuyu, and Dachi, and the Three Realms: Yuqing, Shangqing, and Taiqing.

Another account holds that the clear Qi rises to become Heaven, the turbid Qi sinks and congeals to become Earth, and the harmonious Qi gathers in the middle to become Humanity. Heaven belongs to yang and Earth belongs to yin. The transformations of Yin-Yang give rise to the Five Phases, namely Wood, Fire, Metal, Water, and Earth, also called the Five Qi, which are represented by the numbers nine, three, seven, five, and one, respectively. In the heavens the Five Phases correspond to the Five Planets: Jupiter, Mars, Venus, Mercury, and Saturn; on the earth they correspond to the Five Sacred Mountains: Mount Tai, Mount Heng, Mount Hua, Mount Heng (north), and Mount Song; in the human body they correspond to the Five Viscera: liver, heart, lungs, kidneys, and spleen. They also correspond to the Five Colors: blue-green, red, white, black, and yellow; and the Five Tones: jue, zhi, shang, yu, and gong.

The five flavors refer to sour, bitter, pungent, salty, and sweet, and they also correspond to five virtues (De): benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and trustworthiness. Taken together, the five flavors and five virtues form the "Three-Five" (sanwu), which through circulation, guidance, and transformation brings about the generation of the myriad things. Each has a presiding spirit, and together they are the foundation through which Heaven and Earth function. Heaven moves by them, Earth is stabilized by them, and humans live by them, all depending on their spirits.

Heaven is divided into 500,055,555 layers, and each layer has a Heavenly Venerable (Tianzun), a Most High (Taishang), a Heavenly Emperor (Tiandi), and a Celestial Master (Tianshi). Earth is divided into thirty-six layers, and each has an Earth Sovereign, generals, Vajra guardians, divine kings, and Numinous Officers (Lingguan). The human body contains three palaces (three divine mansions within the body), five spirits, three hun (ethereal souls) and seven po (corporeal souls). The immortals, officials, and soldiers between Heaven and Earth are too numerous to count. The transformations of spirits are plainly visible, yet the foolish cannot perceive them. They appear and vanish at times, and their changes and movements are elusive. They assist the myriad things and give them form, and their numinous function lies within this.

Thus it is said: "Heaven obtains the One and becomes clear; Earth obtains the One and becomes stable; spirits obtain the One and become numinous; valleys obtain the One and become full." Here, "the One" (Yi) refers to the fundamental principle that allows each of the myriad things to attain its proper place and operate in good order.

The sun is the hun of Heaven, and the moon is the po of Earth, and the two are called spirits. The left eye of a person corresponds to the sun and the right eye to the moon, and the eyes are the dwelling places of the spirits. Therefore, spirits rest in the sun and moon and are hidden within the transformations of Yin-Yang.

The sun rises at the hour of Mao and is Yang, while the moon rises at the hour of You and is Yin. The sun and moon each undergo three transformations through which they complete their De. The sun first changes at Mao, with the number six, and six times five is thirty. It changes midway at Chen, with the number five, and five times five is twenty-five. It finally changes at Si, with the number four, and four times five is twenty. The three numbers together total seventy-five, so the "Seventy-Five Generals of the Supreme Immortals" are called the Yang spirits. The moon first changes at You, with the number six, and six times five is thirty. It changes midway at Xu, with the number five, and five times five is twenty-five. It later changes at Hai, with the number four, and four times five is twenty. The three numbers likewise total seventy-five, so the "Seventy-Five Generals of the Supreme Numinous" are called the Yin spirits.

The Three Primes and the Five Virtues combine, and the total number is eight. Each Prime has its own Upper Immortal, Upper Spirit, and Yin Xu, five positions in all, so five multiplied by five gives twenty-five. Later the count moves to the Hai position, whose number is four, so four multiplied by five gives twenty. Therefore the Upper Spirits have seventy-five Yin Spirit Generals.

The Three Primes and the Five Virtues combine, and the total number is eight. Each Prime has Upper Immortals, Upper Spirits, Yin Officials, and Yang Officials, totaling 1,200. Since the Three Primes each have eight groups, the total is 3,600. Yin and yang are each counted fivefold, for a total of 36,000. Of these, 18,000 belong to yang and are the outwardly manifest spirits, called "outer spirits" (waishen). The other 18,000 belong to yin and are the inwardly manifest spirits, called "inner spirits" (neishen). The inner is activated by the outer, and yin is made evident through yang. Therefore the human body has 18,000 "rooted spirits" (benfen shen) and another 18,000 "shadow-reflecting spirits" (yingzhao shen). Without yang, yin cannot take form; without yin, yang cannot arise. Yin is formed from yang, yang is born from yin, the inner becomes manifest through the outer, and the outer is clarified by the inner. When yin and yang clarify and join together, life can come into being.

"Shenming" (shénmíng, spirit-brightness) means that because there are spirits, light appears. Thus when the sun, moon, and stars shine in the sky, the myriad things become visible, and when the hundred spirits dwell in the human body, the Qi (qì) of the five phases flourishes. That the ears and eyes function properly, that vital strength is abundant, and that the body is healthy are all manifestations of Shen (shén). Heaven treasures spirit and therefore rises high; Earth holds spirit within itself and therefore is stable; the Five Sacred Peaks are steadied by spirit. A person who follows this principle can attain great peace.

The upper part of the person has Eight Radiances corresponding to Heaven, the lower part has Eight Radiances corresponding to Earth, and the middle part has Eight Radiances corresponding to the void. Across the upper, middle, and lower parts, the spirits of the Eight Radiances total seventy-two, and each of these images has five further positions, for a total of 36,000...

From sixteen thousand up to the hundred and eight thousand that accord with Heaven and Earth. Beyond this number, even the spirits have no limit, and all are reckoned by such numbers. The immortals, generals, and attending officials in the scriptures of the Three Caverns (Dongzhen, Dongxuan, and Dongshen, the classification of Daoist scriptures), together with their respective ranks, all take these numbers as their starting point. Once one knows the numbers, one must also know the directions; once one knows the directions, one must distinguish the outer from the inner. When outer and inner are clear, one can discern Yin-Yang. Where inner and outer differ, left and right also differ: forms belong to the five colors, and positions are arranged by the four directions. The distinction between male and female can be recognized through Yin-Yang, and the distinction between civil and martial can be discerned through the firm and the yielding.

Every method of visualization (cunsi, the practice of concentrating the mind to envision spirits or the inner scenery of the body) takes the self as its root. Within the human body are the three hun souls, the seven po souls, the three yuan, the five zhen, the one Shen, the hundred spirits, and thirty-six thousand spirits, all of which dwell in the heart. When the heart is upright, the spirits are upright; when the heart is deviant, the spirits are deviant. The difference between right and wrong depends on whether one awakens: awakening leads one onto the right path, while confusion returns one to the path of error. The awakened person has found the gate, while the confused person has lost the road and so sinks into darkness, dwelling in the most obscure of places. Those who study the Dao should examine these principles carefully. Cultivation begins with counting the breath (shuxi) and visualizing the various parts of the body, and it ultimately reaches a state of constant abiding and clear stillness. The key truly lies in one's own mind.

Method of Visualizing the Spirits in the Body (Cunshen Shenfa)

Sit upright facing east and knock the teeth thirty-six times, swallowing the saliva once after every nine knocks. Then recite the incantation:

"Jade Clarity, Most High, Nine Heavens, Nine Numinous Ones, transform into the Profoundly Mysterious, descend into the Clear Stomach; gold and jade reflect one another, the heart opens and the Shen becomes bright, consuming the essence of the sun, and the golden flower fills to overflowing."

When the recitation ends, swallow the saliva, and at the same time visualize a red child within the throat. Tilting the head back and opening the mouth, the child catches the saliva and sends it down into the stomach.

After the rite is complete, visualize the Four Divine Beasts. Imagine the youth within the lungs, dressed in white and wearing a white crown, exhaling white qi to the right, which transforms into the White Tiger. Next, imagine the youth within the liver, dressed in green and wearing a green crown, exhaling red qi to the left, which transforms into the Azure Dragon. Then imagine the youth within the heart, dressed in red and wearing a red crown, exhaling red qi forward, which transforms into the Vermilion Bird. Finally, imagine the youth within the kidneys, dressed in black and wearing a black crown, exhaling black qi backward, which transforms into the Black Tortoise (Xuanwu).

The incantation reads:

Azure Dragon Mengzhang (the name of the Azure Dragon deity, with the courtesy name Mengzhang), who dwells in the Jiayin direction; White Tiger Jianbing (the name of the White Tiger deity, with the courtesy name Jianbing), who dwells in the Jiashen direction; Vermilion Bird Lingguang (the name of the Vermilion Bird deity, with the courtesy name Lingguang), who dwells in the Jiawu direction; Black Tortoise Zhiming (the name of the Black Tortoise deity, with the courtesy name Zhiming), who dwells in the Jiazi direction. May the Four Spirits encircle and guard the front and back, so that no external evil spirits may disturb the body. Hasten, and act in accordance with the statutes!

Next, visualize the qi of the heart and lungs condensing into a round, luminous canopy that covers the crown of the head. Once this is complete, hold the Woguo (a visualization hand seal in which the fingers are curled inward into a clenched fist), close the eyes, and recite the Incantation for Ordering the Body:

Respectfully command the True Officials of the Five Bodies (the deities who govern the various parts of the body), the Five Viscera and Six Palaces, the Nine Palaces (the abodes of the spirits within the body), the Twelve Chambers, the limbs and five bodily forms, the sinews, bones, marrow, and brain, the flesh, skin, blood, and vessels, the orifices and the nourishing and defensive qi (the bodily openings together with the ying and wei qi), the one hundred and eighty joints, the three hundred and sixty bones, the one thousand two hundred shapes and shadows, the twelve thousand luminous essences, and the thirty-six thousand spirit qi, that each remain steadfast in its own place. The Three Souls on the left, namely the Youjing, Shuangling, and Taiguang, each guard their own palace; the Seven Souls on the right, namely the Shigong, Fushi, Queyin, Tunzei, Feidu, Chuhui, and Chousi, likewise each perform their own duties. The Azure Dragon precedes and welcomes, the White Tiger follows and escorts from behind, the Vermilion Bird leads the way in front and holds the banners, and the Black Tortoise guards the bells and drums at the rear.

May my body not be invaded by evil, my liver not be afflicted by disease, my lungs not be assailed by treachery, my kidneys not be disturbed by sweetness, my spleen not be unsettled by change, my gallbladder not be stricken by fear, my stomach not be defiled, and my heart not be violated. May my spirit qi be abundant and overflowing, with officials, soldiers, and divine generals standing guard beside me. May my body not be invaded by evil, my liver not be afflicted by disease, my lungs not be assailed by treachery, my kidneys not be disturbed by sweetness, my spleen not be unsettled by change, my gallbladder not be stricken by fear, my stomach not be defiled, and my heart not be violated. May my spirit qi be abundant and overflowing, with officials, soldiers, and divine generals standing guard beside me. Hasten, and act in accordance with the statutes!

Next, click the teeth together five times and silently recite the names of the Five Viscera Spirits. First visualize the Lung Spirit, clad in white robes and wearing a white crown, residing within the lungs. Its name is Haohua, with the courtesy name Xucheng, and you call it three times. Next visualize the Heart Spirit, clad in red robes and wearing a red crown, residing within the heart. Its name is Danyuan, with the courtesy name Shouling, and you call it three times. Then visualize the Liver Spirit, Longyan, with the courtesy name Hanming; the Gallbladder Spirit, Longyao, with the courtesy name Weiming; the Spleen Spirit, Changzai, with the courtesy name Hunting; and the Kidney Spirit, Xuanming, with the courtesy name Yuying.

Then close your eyes and look inward, letting the five viscera appear clearly. See the youth within the liver, clad in green robes and wearing a green crown, exhaling green qi as he emerges from the left side of the ribs and transforms into the Azure Dragon. Next, see the youth within the lungs, clad in white robes and wearing a white crown, exhaling white qi as he emerges from the right side of the ribs and transforms into the White Tiger. See the youth within the heart, clad in vermilion robes and wearing a vermilion crown, exhaling red qi as he emerges from the heart and transforms into the Vermilion Bird. See the youths within the two kidneys, clad in black robes and wearing black crowns, seated atop the kidneys, exhaling black qi as they emerge from the kidneys and transform into the Black Warrior (Xuanwu). The Black Warrior is one of the Four Emblems (Sixiang) of Daoism, usually represented by the tortoise and snake.

Next, visualize yourself wearing a headcloth adorned with the Seven Stars, seated upon clouds of green, yellow, and white. The Seven Stars are positioned above your head, and beneath them a golden light spreads like a parasol, covering the crown of the head. Your entire body glows golden, and your face is golden as well. Then visualize the Black Warrior, and afterward visualize yourself wearing the Seven-Star headcloth, seated upon the three-colored clouds, with the Seven Stars and golden light above your head, your whole body and face shining gold. Next, visualize the white qi of the lungs emerging from the right side, encircling the head and forming a round halo of light. The sun and moon, on the left and right, appear before your eyes, and their light illuminates the entire chamber. Attendants, soldiers, and jade maidens fill the space front and back, holding tallies and ceremonial banners, offering incense and presenting flowers. Constantly keep in mind that you have become a Flying Immortal, rising together with the assembled immortals to stand before the Golden Gate (the palace where the Celestial Emperor resides), and forever become a subject of the Celestial Emperor.

◎ Method of Receiving Life from the Celestial Soul

Human beings receive life from the Celestial Soul. Life is accomplished by the Primal Numinous (Yuanling), circulates through the Nine Qi, and is established in accordance with the Supreme One (Taiyi).

When the Three Passages (sandao, the three channels in the body related to cultivation) are opened, shen-qi (spirit-qi) gathers in the Hidden Palace (youggong, the deep, secluded palace within the body). From this, the Mysterious Fluid (xuanye, the subtle inner fluid) circulates and coils, and its moisture spreads through the body to nourish it. The light of the sun and moon shines upon the Six Voids (liuxu, the four directions and the realms above and below), while the mouth and ears also move the shen-qi within the body. The movement of Qi (vital energy) is like clouds drifting and rain falling, and the De (Virtue) it embodies can be compared to that of heaven and earth.

When a person is formed in the womb, the Five Causes (wuyin, the inner factors that constitute the human body) are already present. The establishment of the Three Passages in the body and the gathering of shen-qi in the Hidden Palace also occur in this way. The Five Causes are the Five Spirits (wushen), and the Three Passages are the Three Truths (sanzhen).

The Heavenly Venerable (Tianzun) said: The various breaths follow one another and give rise to all manner of transformation. Good and evil, misfortune and blessing, each have their own roots. They are not determined by Heaven, by Earth, or by other people, but depend on one's own mind. The mind is the shen (spirit, the human spirit and inner numinosity), and the body is not truly one's own.

I received life from the empty and natural void. Through dependent conditions I was entrusted to the womb, nurtured, and born. The parents who gave me birth are not the fundamental parents of my life's beginning. The true parents are the most honored and exalted, the original source of all things. The parents of this life were only the conditions that entrusted me, enabling me to take form and be born. Their kindness in raising me should be repaid with ritual propriety, which is why I call them father and mother.

The body I have received is also not my true body. It is only a temporary dwelling, lent so that I may find rest. One who attains the Dao no longer clings to form. When the physical form dissolves and the shen returns to oneness, body and spirit unite, becoming the true body. Then one returns to the original source of life and attains the Dao.

Ordinary people do not know how to nourish the shen within themselves. Their actions and conduct follow their whim, their thoughts are foolish and their deeds perverse, so the shen-qi scatters and the physical body decays along with it. The immortals and sages, by contrast, constantly guard their shen-qi without slackening, and often visualize their own bodies. For this reason they attain long life, and their names are recorded in the "Left Register" (zuoqi), the celestial document that certifies an immortal's standing.

Those who resolve to cultivate the Dao should know that the human body contains thirty-six thousand spirits. On the left are the three hun souls, and on the right are the seven po souls. Yin and Yang pair together to assist and protect the conscious spirit (shishen), which governs cognition and awareness, as well as the sovereign spirit that commands the Five Phases. They surround and guard the one thousand two hundred bodily images and the twelve thousand essential lights within the body, and they also guard the body from without. One should visualize these bodily spirits every day, continuously and without interruption, keeping them always in mind. Then one can attain long life and not die.

If one cannot visualize them at all times, one should at least not neglect them during the eight seasonal junctures (the solar terms of the start of spring, the spring equinox, the start of summer, the summer solstice, the start of autumn, the autumn equinox, the start of winter, and the winter solstice). By thinking of the spirits within the body, one can strengthen the body and reduce illness. When sick, one should call upon the bodily spirits three times, praying that they will always protect the self.

Each night before sleep, place the left hand on the heart and the right hand on the navel, pressing each fourteen times. Then silently recite the following incantation:

Here is the translation, which covers the first two paragraphs and the section on the Three Souls, along with the "Spirit" entry.

To make the bodily gods complete, one may begin visualizing from the head, moving through the limbs in turn down to the ankles. After the prayer is finished, one should continue to contemplate these gods. When the images of the gods within the body are visualized thoroughly and in fine detail, and one then goes to sleep, one will obtain an auspicious dream, as though one had seen the gods themselves.

If there are faults within oneself, they may bring calamity upon one. The gods will then come to inform the person, either by manifesting their forms or by using some object to convey their message, prompting the person to reflect on its meaning. In this way one can understand the signs of fortune and misfortune, good and evil, avoid calamity, move toward blessing, and find that one's affairs proceed smoothly.

Three Souls (Sanhun) (the three kinds of spirit-souls within the human body, as described in Daoist teaching):

The first is the Embryonic Light (Taiguang), the second is the Clear Spirit (Shuanglíng), and the third is the Hidden Essence (Youjing).

Jingshen (Essence and Spirit)

Jingshen is like the relationship between ruler and minister.

Spirit (Shen) and essence (Jing) are the "ruler and ministers" of the person. The Secret Record of Yuqing (Yuqing Milu) says: Shen is like the sovereign, and vital energy (Qi) is like the subjects. When the mind-spirit stirs, Jing is disturbed, and when Jing is disturbed the body cannot find rest. If Shen, Qi, and Jing are each allowed to keep to clarity and Wuwei (non-action), then body, mind, and affairs will naturally settle.

The Way of cultivating the self is the way of nourishing the root of life. The body contains three treasures: Shen, Jing, and Qi. These connect with the Qi of Heaven, Earth, and humanity, depend on one another, and together form the Dao of life. Shen travels by means of Qi, Qi is the condition on which Shen's movement relies, and Jing dwells within both, so the three assist one another. Therefore, one who wishes for long life should cherish Qi, respect Shen, and guard Jing.

Jing can transform into Shen, and Shen can give rise to clear awareness. The Secret Record of Yuqing says: Qi generates Jing, Jing generates Shen, and Shen generates clarity. Human life has its source in the Qi of Yin-Yang. Qi becomes Jing, Jing becomes Shen, and Shen in turn becomes clear awareness. Therefore, one who wishes to delay aging should concentrate on preserving one's own Qi and nourishing Shen, not letting them scatter beyond the form, so that body and mind become one. In this way one gradually gains self-awareness, the body grows lighter and more vigorous, and the mind becomes more focused. This is the sign that numinous light is about to appear, and the inner heart will also become tranquil and joyful.

In practice, one may close the eyes and lie down, focusing the mind on the inside of the body and not letting one's intentions scatter outward. The scripture holds that by persisting in this, one can train the physical form and transform the state of body and mind, achieving the effect of nourishing the self, so that inwardly one attains longevity and outwardly one attains stability. No forcing is needed; it is achieved naturally.

"The spring of spiritual wisdom" is a metaphor for a Shen that is clear and an intellect that is bright. When Shen is clear, wisdom appears. Wisdom is the master of the heart, and when wisdom is impartial, the heart is at peace. People do not use flowing water as a mirror but use still water to reflect images, because water must be clear, and if dust and sand enter, it becomes turbid. The human heart must likewise be pure, yet if desires arise throughout life, it becomes difficult to keep it upright. Therefore, when the mirror's surface is bright, dust does not easily adhere, and when the mind is still and clear, desires cannot easily intrude. The sage regards worldly fame and profit lightly, so the spirit is not burdened; regards the myriad things with detachment, so the heart is not confused; regards life and death as equal, so the intention is not frightened; and accords with change, so wisdom does not become disordered.

On the Method of Entering the Chamber and Contemplating the Chizi (Infant) describes a practice of cultivation through stillness and visualization (cunsi). "Chizi," literally "red infant," refers to the infant image visualized during practice. It also symbolizes the jing (essence), qi, shen (spirit), and yi (intention) that remain undisturbed.

Laozi says: "My Dao (the Way) arises from within obscurity and formlessness. Look for it and it cannot be seen; listen for it and it cannot be heard. Follow it and you cannot see its back; face it and you cannot see its front. It extends beyond heaven and earth, yet it can gather itself into the finest places. Divided, it becomes sun and moon, Yin-Yang. Held within, it takes the form of male and female. It unfolds and moves through the Bagua (Eight Trigrams), with Qian and Kun at the head. Yin and Yang give birth to one another in turn, like a womb and its child, and their transformations proceed in sequence."

A human being is carried in the mother's womb for ten months, during which the body gradually takes shape and the shen and qi become complete. In the void, it is as if a spirit who governs life records the name and manages the span of years. Yang jing forms the dwelling of the body, and the physical frame is established upon it. Yin and Yang qi respond to and nourish one another, causing jing to open and close, gather and store. Clear qi rises to form the head, and concentrated jing gathers to form the "child." The text further uses astronomical terms such as "Xuanji" (Turning Pivot) and "Yuheng" (Jade Balance) to compare the structures of the body, and it likens the nose to a bridge.

The practitioner should observe body and mind in all eight directions, so that paired opposites cooperate with one another. Jing should converge in the temporal positions of zi and wu, and be gathered and stored in those of mao and you. "Mingtang" (Hall of Light), "Dongfang" (Inner Chamber), and "Dantian" (Elixir Field) are terms used in visualization practice for different interior regions of the body. The Mingtang lies in front, the Dongfang lies behind it, and the Dantian is described as an inner palace. The text also describes the movement, convergence, and storage of jing using the heavenly stems, the earthly branches, the double hours, and the directions.

The text repeatedly mentions the heavenly stems jia, gui, yi, ren, bing, xin, ding, geng, wu, and ji, along with the earthly branches chen, si, yin, mao, wu, shen, hai, you, wei, xu, and zi. According to the commentary, on jia and gui days, when the hours are chen, si, zi, or chou, the practitioner should attend to the timing of practice. On yi and ren days, when the hours are yin, mao, wu, or shen, one should likewise wait for the corresponding moment. On bing and xin days, when the hours are hai, you, wei, or xu, if the "old man" (laogong) described in the text appears, one should not be alarmed, since this is regarded as the manifestation of the Dao's transformations. Ding and geng days at zi or wu hours, and wu and ji days at mao or you hours, each have their own correspondences as well.

The text warns that if these moments are missed, the practitioner loses contact with the Dao being visualized and felt, and may even harm their lifespan. The mutual union of Yin and Yang, and the mutual nourishment of jing and qi, is what is called "nourishing the Chizi." Practice should therefore follow these corresponding times closely.

Stay far away. Be exceedingly cautious.

Laozi said: "To cultivate my Dao, one should first stabilize the pinmu (female and male). Pinmu refers to the kidneys, that is, the primordial qi within the gate of the kidneys. The primordial qi constantly moves downward, while the primordial spirit (yuanshen) constantly rises. The primordial spirit is red, and the primordial qi is white. When the primordial spirit rises into the heart, the heart is stirred; once the heart is stirred, the primordial spirit descends."

Laozi said: "The primordial spirit must stabilize the female and male. The female and male refer to the heart, which is also called the Mingtang (the place where the heart-spirit resides). Once the primordial spirit is obtained, let the two nourish one another together, and they will form the Chizi (the Red Infant, a subtle image formed in inner cultivation). The Red Infant is naturally formed. Intention causes it to rise, up to the Zhenren (the True Person, the true spirit referred to in inner cultivation). The Zhenren is the attendant minister who stands guard at one's side. Once the Red Infant arrives, one must settle the heart-mind, unify the intention, and calmly dwell in the Dongfang (the Cavern Chamber, the inner-cultivation site between the two eyes)."

Laozi said: "Once the Red Infant arrives, one must draw the intention back into the Cavern Chamber, which lies between the two eyes. The Zhenren arrives without clothing and stops below to observe the Red Infant; only after the Red Infant has arrived does the Zhenren stand up. Why does the Zhenren come and stay? It is so that the Red Infant may ascend. When the Red Infant rises, the Zhenren returns; if the Red Infant cannot rise, the Zhenren will not return. If it cannot return in time, it will soon vanish."

Laozi said: "When the Red Infant is about to rise, its shape resembles a red serpent, its radiance illuminates people, and it suddenly comes before a person like a torch. This is the appearance of the Red Infant's arrival."

Laozi said: "When the Red Infant is about to rise, its shape is like a red serpent. As long as the mind remains as tranquil as usual, it will suddenly disappear after a short while."

Laozi said: "The red serpent is the essence (jing) of the sun. The solar essence transforms into the form of a flame and comes before a person. As it draws near, the human heart is easily shaken; once the heart is shaken, the Red Infant cannot rise, and it will become even harder to reach afterward. If it becomes ever more difficult to reach, it will eventually grow dim and be cut off."

Laozi said: When, during practice, a "red serpent" (danshe) appears, if the mind remains calm and unafraid, you may converse with the perfected beings (zhenren), the immortals who have attained the Dao. If a vast field of pure yellow light suddenly appears before the eyes, boundless and without any definite form, this foreshadows changes in the body. If you see the Queen Mother of the West (Xiwangmu), a goddess revered in Daoism, riding a phoenix carriage with six red dragons yoked behind it and three vermilion birds (red divine birds) in front, you may be startled at the sight, but the vision will disappear after a short while.

Laozi said: When the Queen Mother of the West comes into view, the image appears only faintly and vanishes abruptly, even though she rides in her phoenix carriage. The three vermilion birds in front and the six red dragons behind disappear in the same way.

Laozi said: When you see the Queen Mother of the West, if someone speaks to you, do not answer under any circumstances. Even if the person presses you with further questions, do not reply. If the person becomes angry because of your silence, do not be frightened. If the anger does not subside, a perfected being will speak in your place and, once the exchange is finished, will leave on their own. Laozi repeats this instruction: when you see the Queen Mother of the West, do not respond to the visitor's words. Even if they question you or grow angry, do not be afraid, for in the end a perfected being will speak on your behalf and then depart.

Laozi said: After the Queen Mother of the West has departed, the Great Dao (the supreme Way) will manifest. When the Great Dao appears, the body seems open and expansive, bright and immense, yet it has no visible trace. Looking upward, one sees the sun, moon, and stars, as if present yet not quite there. At this time, Celestial Masters (Tianshi) and perfected beings may appear, accompanied by various musical sounds. Do not look at them. Do not gaze at the immortals or the jade maidens (yunü, female immortals) either. When dragons, tigers, or other beasts appear, do not be alarmed.

Laozi said: These musical sounds, the Celestial Masters, the perfected beings, the immortals, the jade maidens, and the beasts are not real external existences. They are only images produced by the essence, qi, and spirit (jing, qi, shen) within the body's organs and viscera. They are not the true Great Dao.

Laozi said: When the Celestial Masters and perfected beings appear, settle your mind and fix your intention, and speak carefully with those who come. I have seen that your intention is sincere, so I will tell you the Dao. I have already spread the net and set out the governing threads, and I have seen you in full.

Laozi said: Enter the chamber and practice the formula "Cancheng Wuzi" for one hundred days. When the spirits can perceive one another, the practice reaches a stage of completion. Afterward, the spirit moves freely without obstruction, and a single step can carry you ten thousand li. When the essence and qi have matured, reduce food and drink, observe abstinence, purify the heart, and bathe. Your movements will be swift, taking the form of wind and rain.

Laozi said: The head is where the Dao (the Way) comes and goes and comes to rest, and so it is called "Yin-Yang." The Yin-Yang here refers to the two eyes. The two eyes are the assistants of "Dao One" (referring to the fundamental unity of the Dao) within the person, and they are also organs the Dao honors. They regulate and govern the jing (essence) and luminosity within the eyes, so it is said that the two together form a single whole.

"One" dwells in the Mingtang (Bright Hall), the place between the two eyes. The light of yang essence appears at the hours of zi and wu and withdraws at mao and you. The place of zi and wu is called the Dongfang (Cavern Chamber), and the place of mao and you is called the Mingtang. Each of these locations is roughly one cun square and lies between the eyebrows. One cun further inward from the Mingtang is the Dongfang, also roughly one cun square. One cun further inward again is the Dantian (energy center). The Mingtang, the Dongfang, and the Dantian are the three places where the Dao moves, transforms, and frequently comes to rest within the body.

This passage regards the head and eyes as the places where the Dao-qi moves and gathers. Through directional and temporal names such as zi-wu and mao-you, it explains how the light of jing in the eyes appears and withdraws. The Mingtang, Dongfang, and Dantian are names of bodily locations within the Daoist concept of internal cultivation.

Scroll Fifty-Six: Section One on the Qi Methods of the Various Schools

Treatise on Primordial Qi (with Preface)

Before the formless state of heaven and earth, there was a condition of emptiness without form, beyond description, called Taiwu (the Great Nothingness). When chaos first arose, Taihe qi (harmonized qi, the primordial energy not yet divided) dwelt within it. Then all was still and vast, with no direction and no inclination. The Three Ones and the Six Ones combined into the original source qi. Things had no shape yet, dim and obscure, and this was called Taiyi (the Great Beginning), when qi had not yet become visible.

Afterward, the primordial qi slowly began to stir, and this was called Taichu (the Great Initiation). When form and qi first showed their beginnings, this was called Taishi (the Great Commencement). When form and qi took on substance, this was called Taisu (the Great Substance). When that substance changed and gave rise to qi, this was called Taiji (Supreme Ultimate). When qi had not yet differentiated into concrete bodies, it condensed into shapes like an embryo or an egg. When qi was full and form complete, this was called Taiyi (the Great One).

The primordial qi, being clear, rose and became heaven. Being turbid, it sank and became earth. Thus the empty Dao of Taiwu was made manifest. The Dao itself was not born of anything. It is the root of naturalness (ziran), and it is difficult to name or explain in words. Therefore, naturalness is the parent of the Dao and the root of the primordial qi.

Naturalness, the Dao, and the primordial qi were originally one. "One" is the purest and most complete source, pure Yang qi. It is united with Taiwu, shares its heart with the Great Dao, and shares its nature with naturalness. For this reason it has no beginning and no end, and no shape or image. Clear and turbid were still fused together, in chaos and not yet formed into substance, so its limits could not be measured.

Later, the primordial qi became vast and boundless and began to sprout. Heaven and earth then separated, and qian and kun (heaven and earth) were established. Yin and Yang responded to one another, the primordial qi spread outward, and it gave birth to a harmonizing qi, from which humankind arose.

The first being produced was Pangu. At the end of his life, his body transformed into the myriad things. His qi became wind and clouds, his voice became thunder, his left eye became the sun, and his right eye became the moon. His limbs and torso became the four extremities of the world and the Five Sacred Peaks. His blood became rivers and streams, his sinews became the veins of the earth, and his flesh became the fields and soil. His hair and beard became the stars, his skin and fur became grasses and trees, his teeth and bones became metals and stones, his marrow became pearls and jade, and his sweat became rain.

The various insects upon Pangu's body, moved by the influence of the wind, transformed into the common people. Humans, because they were born of heaven, are called the "green multitude" (cangsheng). Because their hair is black, they are called the "black-headed ones" (qianshou), also known as the "black-haired multitude" (qianli). People of low standing are called "green-headed" (cangtou). Today people call themselves "black-headed creatures" (heitou chong), and some call themselves "naked creatures" (luo chong).

Ancient people called the black-haired folk "Qishou" (Black Heads) and "Qili" (Black-haired Multitude), since their hair was black, while those of lower standing were called "Canghou" (Grey Heads). Today people also refer to themselves as "heitou chong" (black-headed creatures) and sometimes as "luo chong" (naked creatures). It is likely that from the time after Pangu and before the Three Sovereigns, people went about naked. Only in the age of the Three Kings did they begin to cut and make clothing, weaving grass to cover their bodies, and to build nests and dig caves to dwell in. They mostly ate the fruits of plants and trees, and also the flesh of birds and beasts, drinking blood and eating raw meat, ignorant and unenlightened, with no worries in their hearts.

Later, people developed cooked foods such as roasting millet and butchering piglets. They used unfired clay to make vessels, hollows in the ground as wine vats, and bundles of grass as drumsticks to beat earthen drums. Fire was used to cook food, silk and hemp to make garments; they smelted metals, fired pottery, and built towering palaces. They set up double gates, beat wooden clappers to keep watch at night, and constructed doors, windows, and kitchens. They used roasting, boiling, and grilling over fire to nourish the living, bury the dead, and sacrifice to spirits and gods. From the era of Tai Wu and Tai Gu down to that time, the events were too many to record one by one.

From Fuxi until today, more than four thousand years have passed. In that time, human affairs have undergone the transformations of life and death, and people gradually formed ethical bonds, giving rise to ruler and minister, father and son, and also experienced the rise and fall, gain and loss, advance and retreat, success and failure of states. Confucian scholars of earlier ages recorded these events, and Confucian scholars of later ages continued to compile them. The content is so abundant and intricate that it cannot be fully exhausted in a short time.

After heaven and earth first opened and chaos had not yet divided, humankind was born from the transformed body of Pangu. Pangu's corpse dispersed and transformed into the warp and weft of the heavens, the patterns of the earth, the astronomical and geographical features, the Five Luo and Two Luminaries (the stars, sun, and moon), the intersection of the Yellow Path and the Celestial Equator, the Five Sacred Peaks, and the hundred rivers. Day and night alternate, and from this the myriad things arise, and heaven and earth nourish all the kinds of beings in the world. Flying birds, running beasts, scaly creatures, and shelled creatures each number three hundred and sixty kinds, totaling one thousand eight hundred categories. Humans are the leaders among all living beings, and yet they are also one kind among them.

Humans and all things grow by receiving the same primal qi (the fundamental qi from which heaven, earth, and the myriad things are generated). Among all things that are born, grow, and are nourished, the most noble is the qi of humans. I am also fortunate to be counted among humankind, and thus to take part in the "Three Powers" of heaven, earth, and humanity. I have widely explored the teachings of the hundred schools, examined the classics of past and present, discussed the primal qi in detail, and traced the roots of the myriad things. Entrusting my body and mind to nature, I have turned wholeheartedly toward the Dao, sought its profound principles, compiled its mysterious discourses, recorded the various scriptures of the perfected, and passed them down to the worthy of later generations.

Those aspiring to the Dao who encounter these contents must treasure their lives, diligently cultivate and practice the Dao's methods day after day, moment after moment. Do not wait until your hair is white as crane feathers in old age, when regret will be too late. Fellow practitioners of the Way should receive these teachings and keep them close.

Lao Zi's commentary says that the Primordial Qi (yuanqi, the original qi from which all things are formed) had no name before it gave rise to the myriad things, and only acquired names after it transformed into them. While the Primordial Qi enveloped all things, they had not yet shown any differences; after transformation, each thing took on its own category. While all things were together within the Primordial Qi they had no concrete form, and so it was called "the One Qi" or "the Origin" (yuan). Once things separated and each displayed a body of its own, many names arose, used to identify their outward appearances.

Thus, the nameless is the beginning of heaven and earth, and the named is the mother of the ten thousand things. Those who often observe without desire can perceive the subtle interior of things; those who often observe with desire can see only their outer boundaries and forms. "Jiao" (the manifest surface) is the outer appearance, and "miao" (the subtle) is the inner essence. The inner essence is the One Qi, and so it is called "yuan"; once the ten thousand things separated and took on forms, people established many names to identify their outer appearances.

Therefore, the inner essence is the root, and the outer appearance is the origin of beginnings. The beginning may be called the Father, and the subtle essence may be called the Mother; this is the Dao. A name that can be spoken is only a nameable name. Father and Mother have different designations yet share the same source in the Dao; taken together they are called the "Dao," and taken separately, their depth is unfathomable and they are called the "Xuan" (the Mysterious). The Mysterious is profound and far-reaching, the gateway from which all the manifold wonders arise.

It is further said: there is a single, undifferentiated existence that was formed before heaven and earth appeared. It is still and empty, stands alone without changing, circulates without ceasing, and can serve as the root of all things under heaven. I do not know its proper name, so I call it the "Dao." It arises naturally. Once the Dao exists, it generates Yin and Yang; Yin and Yang generate heaven and earth; heaven and earth generate father and mother; father and mother generate my body.

Human emotion, nature, form, and life all receive their endowment from the Primordial Qi. Nature is identical to the Primordial Qi and originally shares the same unity; life, however, differs among individuals and appears in different kinds. Nature is inseparable.

All things receive the primordial qi (the fundamental vital energy from which they are generated) and are transformed and born according to their kinds. Therefore the five fundamental principles, Dao (the Way), De (Virtue/Power), benevolence, righteousness, and ritual propriety, must not be separated from even for a moment. Whatever can be separated from them is not truly Dao, De, benevolence, righteousness, or ritual propriety.

Dao represents trustworthiness, so it occupies the center and is called the Dao of the Yellow Emperor. De represents wisdom, so it occupies the north and is called the De of the Black Emperor. Benevolence represents the proper way of human conduct, so it occupies the east and is called the benevolence of the Azure Emperor. Righteousness represents fitness to the time, so it occupies the west and is called the righteousness of the White Emperor. Ritual represents standards and measures, so it occupies the south and is called the ritual of the Red Emperor. What the Three Sovereigns spoke of is called the "Great Dao," and what the Five Emperors spoke of is called the "Constant Dao." The two differ in name, but their source is the same.

Primordial qi is originally one body, yet it can transform and give birth to the myriad things. The myriad things must obtain "One" in order to complete their generation. If they lose "One," they immediately move toward death, so "One" must not be lost. The "One" here refers to Taiyi (the Grand One, the original source of the cosmos). Taiyi divides into Heaven and Earth, which are called the "Two Forms" (erYi). The Two Forms further divide into the Three Powers, namely Heaven, Earth, and Humanity. Therefore it is said that when the Three Powers are complete, humanity is made complete.

Humans are born in accordance with the four seasons, and the four seasons correspond to the Five Phases. The Five Phases then extend into the six pitch standards, the seven governances, the eight winds, and the nine qi. The six pitch standards (liulü) were ancient standards for fixing musical pitch. The seven governances refer to the movements of the sun, the moon, and the five visible planets. The eight winds are the winds arriving from the eight directions, and the nine qi are nine categories of qi. From one to nine are yang numbers, and from two to eight are yin numbers. Nine times nine is eighty-one, the ultimate extension of the yang numbers. Eight times eight is sixty-four, the ultimate extension of the yin numbers.

A single origin contains the five qi, and all things originally issue from one and the same body. This is called "co-enveloping" (tongbao). The origin transforms and gives birth to the myriad things, and these things each differ from one another. This is called "differentiated kinds" (yilei). Although the myriad things divide into three categories and ten thousand kinds, they never for a moment depart from this single primal qi (yuanqi). The five qi take on different natures according to their innate endowments. Through contact with external things they further alter one's intentions and are steeped in customs and climate, so their transformations are inexhaustible, far more than ten thousand. Hence it is said, "the wandering hun-soul transforms" (youhun wei bian), meaning that the hun-soul qi flows and changes, and the physical form changes along with it. For instance, an old man of Wudu became a woman, the grandmother of the Jiang family became a soft-shelled turtle (a great turtle), a pig in the Heitai clan's household became a human, and Kuai Wu'an became a tiger. These cases are all cited to illustrate the circumstances of the wandering soul's transformations.

A single origin contains five qi: the soft qi forms water, which is numbered one in the Five Phases (wuxing); the warm qi forms fire, numbered two; the mild qi forms wood, numbered three; the hard qi forms metal, numbered four; and the wind qi forms earth, numbered five. Before the five qi have manifested bodily form, before Heaven, Earth, and Humanity, the three powers, have been differentiated, and before yin and yang, the two modes, have been established, this state is called "chaos" (hundun). It is also called "primal fusion" (hunyuan) or "the primordial lump like an egg" (yuankuai ruluan), meaning that the origin is undivided as a whole, like an egg not yet differentiated. The five qi mixed as one. Later the origin divided and arranged itself into the five qi. When qi becomes manifest, it takes on form and image, and so it is called "qi-image" (qixiang).

Zhang Heng, in his Lingxian and his armillary sphere treatise, states: "The root on which the turning of Heaven and Earth depends is nothing earlier than the primal qi; the root of the sun, moon, and stars is the celestial phenomena formed by the division of the primal qi." The ancient sage kings observed the courses of the heavenly bodies in order to establish their regularities. In tracing their origin, they took the spherical celestial model as the standard. This is the method for crafting astronomical instruments and fixing measuring standards. Afterward, the norms by which rulers governed the realm were established, and the rotation of the heavenly bodies had a basis for examination. These are the foundations for ordering Heaven and Earth and determining celestial phenomena.

The sage originally has no mind of deliberate clinging, yet thoughts arise from this. The mind arises because of external things, and it also perishes because of external things. The crux lies in the subtle incipient movements that the mind and the eye perceive.

Everything in the world's changes, including success and failure, gain and loss, coming and going, stopping and staying, is bound up with the mind's intentions and the way one looks at things. Death belongs to Yin, and life belongs to Yang. Within the transformations of Yin and Yang, there are methods for preserving life, yet if a person does not know how to cultivate them, they will constantly walk the path between life and death. Mo Di grieved over white silk being dyed, and Yang Zhu wept at a fork in the road: these examples speak precisely to this principle.

Before Taisu (the primordial state before heaven, earth, and the myriad things took form), Heaven and Earth were deep, pure, and silent, without any image to speak of. There was only emptiness within and only non-being without. This state, enduring for a long time, is called mingjie (the undifferentiated state of chaos), and it is the root of Dao.

Later, there arose direction and form, and Taisu began to stir, though no signs yet appeared. The myriad things dwelt together within a single Qi, their colors blended and undivided, and so it is said, "Something was formed in confusion." Although Qi had already come into being, it could not yet display any definite shape, nor could one discern the speed of its changes. This state again lasted a long time and is called panghong (the vast, chaotic condition of the newly opened heavens and earth), and it is the trunk of Dao.

Afterward, Yuanqi (the original Qi that constitutes the myriad things of Heaven and Earth) differentiated, and hardness and softness began to be distinguished. Yin and Yang joined together, and the clear Qi and the turbid Qi each took their proper places: Heaven took form outside, and Earth settled within. Heaven belongs to Yang and embodies the trunk of Dao; the myriad things take on their forms through it, and, like a round canopy, Heaven covers and nourishes them, using motion to initiate life. Earth belongs to Yin and embodies the root of Dao; through a nameless power, the myriad things acquire their substance, and, like a square carpenter's rule, Earth bears and gives birth to them, using stillness to bring life to completion. Thus Heaven covers and Earth supports, each accomplishing its own station.

Heaven moves and transforms, while Earth is still and nurtures change; breath mingles, Yin and Yang gather, and in their proper seasons they give birth to all kinds of life. This is called Tianyuan (the root from which Heaven and Earth transform and nourish the myriad things), and it is the actual embodiment of Dao.

Heaven appears as celestial patterns, and Earth takes on physical form. Heaven has nine layers and Earth has nine regions. Heaven contains the sun, the moon, and the three luminaries of the stars, while Earth contains mountains and rivers. Between Heaven and Earth there are images that can be imitated and forms that can be measured. The conditions and natures of the myriad things differ, yet they respond to and connect with one another, naturally giving rise to one another in countless ways. Therefore, what follows gives only a rough outline of the essentials.

The farthest reaches of the four directions and the eight quarters mark the boundary of the great earth. The circumference of the earth is said to be 200,032,517 li. North to south, it is said to measure a thousand li less than this, and east to west a thousand li more. The distance from the ground to the zenith is equal to half the scale of the earth, and the distance from the ground down to the earth's center is likewise. "Half" here means half of the diameter or circumference. By this reckoning, Heaven and Earth are 100,010,258.5 li apart, a thousand li less north to south and a thousand li more east to west. Multiplying this scale four times gives the great number of Hunyuan (Primordial Chaos), the vast scale of the time when Heaven and Earth had not yet separated and were still one undivided whole.

The Way of Heaven (Tiandao) turns leftward, opposite to the motion of the myriad things. Therefore, the qi-dynamics (qiji) of Heaven and humanity are full on the left and contracted on the right. Heaven belongs to Yang and moves in revolving motion, while Earth belongs to Yin and remains still to bear all things. Heaven moves and spreads its breath and light, while Earth stays still and carries out the seasonal changes over long spans of time. Because Heaven follows its motion without losing its brightness, the four seasons alternate in their proper times, and cold and heat do not go astray. Because Earth follows its stillness without losing its form, the myriad things flourish and grow, and birth and death each keep their own order. Thus, the forming of the myriad things depends on the smooth operation of Heaven and Earth.

Nothing is greater than Heaven, nothing thicker than Earth, and nothing more abundant than Water. Nothing is emptier than Earth, nothing more flourishing than Wood, nothing firmer than Metal, and nothing more insubstantial than Fire. Nothing is brighter than the sun and moon, and nothing darker than "Anxu" (dark void), a term the ancients used to explain celestial bodies or regions where the sun and moon lose their light. Although the sun and moon are the brightest, they grow dim when they meet Anxu, and even suffer eclipses. How much more so for humankind?

On the earth there are mountains and peaks, valleys and ravines, wells and springs, rivers and streams, caves and grottoes, lakes, ponds, and marshes...

Lakes, marshes, channels, and valleys all serve to release and channel the Earth’s Qi. In the heavens are 348 constellations and stars, formed from the concentrated vital essence of Heaven and Earth. When this essence condenses and becomes bright, it appears as stars. The stars’ physical forms have their roots in Earth, while their vital essence comes from Heaven. Their spread and arrangement, each in its proper place, is called the “suspended images”—the star patterns appearing in the heavens; some versions read “mysterious images.”

The sun and moon each have a circumference of 700 li and one thirty-sixth of a li, while the distance between Earth and the moon is 200 li and one thirty-second of a li. The sun governs Yang essence: vital energy gathers and takes form, and that form transforms into birds such as the Golden Crow and the Fire Bird. Both are said to have three legs, symbolizing the Yang category and its odd number. The moon governs Yin essence: vital energy gathers and takes form, and that form transforms into beasts such as the Jade Rabbit and the toad. Both are said to have four legs, symbolizing the Yin category and its even number. Thus, odd and even numbers and the Qi of Yin and Yang can remain bright and undiminished because they all arise from primordial Qi, the fundamental Qi from which Heaven, Earth, and all things are generated.

Human beings receive the original Qi of Heaven and Earth. At the beginning, the father’s vital essence and the mother’s blood and Qi combine; Yin and Yang meet, and above and below come into harmony. The parents’ Shen and Qi separate from them, and they forget themselves. Then the child’s nature is born, and life begins. Over ten months, the fetus develops in the mother’s womb. In fact, from conception to birth, it passes through thirty-eight “la”: each la is about seven days, and a change occurs every seven days, for a total of thirty-eight changes. Only then does the child leave the womb and come into the world.

When birth is near, some are said to have calm spirits, intelligence, and a gentle nature, as though they were in a royal palace, enjoying ease and comfort. They enter the world without difficulty, as if coming from Heaven. Mother and child are safe and suffer no pain; relatives and friends rejoice, and neighbors congratulate one another. Others, by contrast, are said to be fierce, rebellious, and violent, as though imprisoned and enduring great suffering. The lives of both mother and child hang in the balance; their kin are distressed, and their neighbors alarmed. Though conception and birth follow a set course, ordinary people fall into two kinds, good and evil. How, then, can children rebel against their parents and commit the Five Rebellious Acts?

Today, when a child reaches thirty days of age, the family celebrates together what is called the “full month.” This has become a custom. By then, the child’s original Qi is abundant, the body is taking shape, and all its vital functions are in place. This is like the differentiation of Yin and Yang into the Three Powers of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity. The body takes Earth as its model and follows Heaven, with Yin at the back and Yang held close. Like a ripe melon dropping from its stem, or a fledgling pecking from inside the egg as its mother pecks from outside, both at just the same moment, the child is born and becomes an infant.

Those who attain the Dao hold Dao and De in their hearts. Their feelings and nature are clear, still, and untroubled. They preserve the One, the root of all things in Daoist thought, and maintain emptiness, stillness, and peace. Body and mind accord with emptiness, while the mind rests in “fetal breathing,” the deep and subtle state of breath cultivated in Daoist practice. Thus it is said that those of profound De resemble infants. The infant’s heart is connected to that of the perfected person: within, De is preserved; without, divine powers offer protection, as a loving mother guards her child.

The infant’s foundation is the preservation of its natural, harmonious Qi; the sage’s is the preservation of De. Neither harbors thoughts of distinction or calculation toward the outside world, nor any intent within to harm the myriad things. Because the infant’s harmonious Qi is abundant, its fist closes firmly and naturally. As the Dao De Jing says, “Its bones are weak and its sinews soft, yet its grip is firm.” Though an infant does not yet know sexual union, its reproductive Qi can become erect; this is a sign that its vital essence is abundant. Though it cries all day, its voice does not grow hoarse; this is a sign that its harmonious Qi is abundant. The infant’s grip is firm because its original Qi is full, and it is precisely this abundance of Qi that allows its bones to be weak and its sinews soft.

The source of the growth and activity of all things lies in Jing and Qi being pure and abundant. Yin is the feminine, yielding aspect; Yang is the masculine, vigorous aspect. “Xiao” refers to the source of Qi and life—in other words, the root of primordial Qi, the fundamental energy that constitutes life.

An infant has no desires in the heart, and the mind makes no distinctions or judgments. Although Qi stirs within the body, it is not drawn along by external desires. There is therefore no need to worry that Jing and Qi will drain away like water through field channels or the Weilü, the legendary place where water flows out. The infant’s Qi and Jing are pure and true, free of impurities. They flow naturally and smoothly, at ease; left to move freely while remaining true to their original nature, they are pure to the utmost. Though an infant cries all day, its voice does not grow hoarse. This, too, is harmony at its utmost, and so it is called “harmony perfected.” “Sha” means that the voice is damaged or hoarse. An infant has abundant primordial Qi, firm true Jing, and complete harmonious Qi, and so does not suffer damage or depletion.

The Shangqing Dongzhen Pin says: “At birth, a person receives the primordial Qi of Heaven and Earth, from which spirit and body take shape. The person also receives the Qi of primordial unity, the Qi at the source of life, from which bodily fluids and Jing arise. When the Qi of Heaven is depleted, spirit disperses; when the Qi of Earth is depleted, the body falls ill; when primordial Qi is depleted, life declines.”

Therefore, practice the Dao of Di Yi Huifeng, a method of cultivation that guides the movement of primordial Qi, so that Qi flows upward in reverse through the hundred vessels, nourishing the Niwan—the brain’s inner-alchemical palace in Daoist tradition—from above, and replenishing primordial Qi below. When the brain is replenished, spirit is whole; when spirit is whole, Qi is abundant; when Qi is abundant, the body is sound. When the body is sound, its joints and channels are harmonized, and external pathogenic influences dissipate. When primordial Qi is abundant, the marrow can consolidate into bone, and the internal organs can transform into sinews. By relying on pure, true Jing to nourish the Niwan above and replenish primordial Qi below, and by keeping the primordial spirit and primordial Qi united with the body, one can attain long life.

In his Discussion of the Difficulties in the Yellow Emperor’s Classic of Difficulties, Qin Shaoqi says: Men are born at the Yin position. Yin belongs to Wood and is Yang; women are born at the Shen position. Shen belongs to Metal and is Yin. Original Qi begins at the Zi position, and human life arises from there. A man moves thirty steps to the left from Zi, while a woman moves twenty steps to the right. When both reach the Si position, they become husband and wife and conceive, receiving the fetal Qi there. The man then moves ten steps to the left from Si to Yin, and the woman ten steps to the right from Si to Shen. After ten months, the fetal Qi is complete and the body has taken shape. Yin and Shen are therefore the positions from which men and women are born.

The man moves thirty steps to the left from Yin to Wei. Wei is called “Minor Auspiciousness” and is where the man’s annual cycle arrives. The woman moves twenty steps to the right from Shen to Chou. Chou is called “Major Auspiciousness” and is where the woman’s annual cycle arrives. Only then may the man’s marriage and the woman’s marriage be arranged. If this pattern is followed over time, Original Qi will no longer be depleted and Jing and Qi will not disperse, allowing one to attain long life.

The Original Qi of Heaven and Earth rises from the Zi position. Zi belongs to Water, which corresponds to the Kan trigram and lies in the north. Mount Heng, Mount Yue, and Ji Province all belong to the regional divisions associated with this direction. Human Original Qi is likewise rooted in the kidneys. It has the subtle principle of natural stillness and contains a fundamental nature that is pure, tranquil, empty, deep, and mysterious. Profound beyond profound, subtle beyond subtle: this is called the “Gate of the Myriad Subtleties,” and it is also the path by which Original Qi reaches the mysterious.

The essence of the mysterious is called “spirit” (Shen); spirit is wondrous and unfathomable, and is called the Dao. The Dao gives rise to the natural body, thereby enabling people to attain long life. The root of life is Original Qi.

The kidneys are the dwelling place of spirit. If spirit has no dwelling, it cannot be at peace; if the dwelling has no spirit, how can a person…

One must be diligent in cultivation so that body and mind become strong and stable; only then can the spirit dwell securely within. In this way, ordinary people can be transformed into sages, and the spirit will naturally attain wondrous insight.

Even if the spirit cherishes life, it cannot dwell securely if the body is not strong enough. The body, as a “house,” then lies empty and decays, and the person will ultimately move toward death. Some think they are skilled at caring for the body and making it supple and vigorous. In fact, they must also practice diligently, purifying the mind, quieting the outer self, and cutting off all forms of pollution and desire. Only then can they repair and fortify the body as a “house,” allowing the spirit and soul to dwell in it at peace.

The spirits and deities will always guard the body; body and spirit, in turn, cherish and protect one another. This is what it means for the body to attain the Dao and the spirit to attain it along with it; for the body to become an immortal and the spirit to become one along with it. Body and spirit depend on each other, so cultivation can continue without end.

Primordial Qi—the fundamental Qi underlying the body’s life activities—is the source of the Qi of life. It is the Qi set in motion between the kidneys. It is the foundation of the five zang organs and six fu organs, the basis of the twelve meridians, and the gateway of breathing as well as the source of the Triple Burner, the passageway that links the organs and circulates Qi. It is also called the “spirit that guards against evil,” meaning the power that protects the body and resists pathogenic influences. The ancients used trees to explain this: a person’s Primordial Qi is like a tree’s roots, while the organs and sinews and vessels are like its branches and leaves. When the roots wither and decay, the branches and leaves wither too.

Question: What is the moving Qi between the kidneys? Answer: The right kidney is called the Gate of Life, or Mingmen, an organ region associated with the root of life. The Qi of the Gate of Life stirs within it. “Between” suggests a central place, while “moving” suggests the emergence of life. Thus, it is where Primordial Qi is rooted and where the spirit resides. Within the Gate of Life is the spirit of true Jing, which can firmly protect the body and resist the entry of pathogenic influences; hence it is called the “spirit that guards against evil.” Without this protection, pathogenic influences can enter and put a person’s life in danger.

People are able to preserve their lives because Primordial Qi belongs to Yang and governs nourishment, while the blood vessels belong to Yin and serve a protective function. Life continues because nutritive Qi and defensive Qi—the Qi that circulates within the body to nourish and protect it—flow without interruption. When these two forms of Qi are abundant, they are like a flourishing tree: they nourish the organs and protect the spirit and Qi, allowing the body to remain vital.

Another account holds that clear Qi is nutritive Qi and turbid Qi is defensive Qi: nutritive Qi circulates within the vessels, while defensive Qi moves outside them. By day, they circulate throughout the body; at night, they enter the organs. They move day and night, completing fifty circuits in the course of one hundred ke. At daybreak, they meet at the cun, guan, and chi positions of the pulses in both hands. Yin and Yang Qi communicate with one another, moving back and forth without end like a ring. When Qi and blood flow, life continues; when their movement ceases, life ends. Therefore, one should care for the body and cherish Primordial Qi, so that nutritive and defensive Qi continue to circulate and the spirit and Qi do not run dry. In this way, life can be preserved for a long time.

After heaven and earth separated from primordial chaos, three kinds of primordial Qi arose: the Qi of Heaven, the Qi of Earth, and the Qi of Water. They give life to humanity and nourish all things. The human body follows this same pattern, calling the Triple Burner the upper, middle, and lower Dantian—the places within the body where Daoist cultivation refines and stores Jing, Qi, and Shen. Each part of the Triple Burner has its own location, but none corresponds to a single fixed organ. They extend throughout the body and each governs different physiological functions.

The upper burner follows the pattern of the Qi of Heaven and is called the upper Dantian. It extends from above the entrance to the stomach, above the diaphragm beneath the heart, up to the Mud Pill, a place of cultivation inside the head. The upper Dantian receives the Yang Qi of Heaven and acts upon the Central Chest, warming and nourishing the skin and muscles, like mist and dew moistening all things.

The middle burner follows the pattern of the Qi of Earth and is called the middle Dantian. It extends from the diaphragm beneath the heart to the navel. The middle Dantian receives the Yin Qi of Earth and acts upon the stomach, digesting grains and transforming fluids. It converts food and drink in the stomach and generates blood to nourish the organs and body, like the earth’s Qi rising to nourish all things.

The lower burner follows the pattern of the Qi of Water and is called the lower Dantian. It extends from below the navel to the bladder and the Leaking Spring. The lower Dantian receives the Yang Qi of Water, acts upon the Sea of Qi, located an inch below the navel, and gathers at the Qi Junction, a passage through which Qi moves. Since all three burners govern the movement of Qi, it is said that Qi gathers at the Qi Junction. “Junction” means a great road with routes leading in every direction.

The lower burner governs the circulation of Qi and blood and the free flow of the channels. It also governs the gathering of Shen and Jing. It sets movement and stillness, Yin and Yang, in motion together, like water flowing downhill and irrigating the fields in its season: after clouds rise, they turn to rain and descend.

The Immortals’ Scripture says: “My life is in my own hands. If I preserve my Jing and Qi and gather the primordial Qi, my life can endure without end.”

The Immortal Scripture says: “My life and destiny are in my own hands. If I nourish my Jing and Qi and receive the primal Qi, my lifespan can have no end.” It also says: “Do not overstrain the body or dissipate the Jing and Qi. Keep the mind settled and still, and you can extend your years and attain longevity.”

The root of life lies in this Dao. Even if one can regulate the breath and practice guiding and stretching exercises, cultivate merit and do good, learn all kinds of methods, or even take elixirs, without understanding the Dao of primal Qi one is like a tree with luxuriant branches and leaves but no roots. How could it survive for long?

If one gives oneself over to the pleasures of sights and sounds and the delights of desire through the long night, present enjoyment may seem abundant, but in the end one faces the sorrow of an early death and the pain of lying buried forever. What one gains is truly meager. By contrast, if one labors diligently at cultivation for many years, studies methods for extending life, follows the practices of the Jade Scripture, observes dietary prohibitions, grasps the essentials of primal Qi, gathers in the hun and po souls, preserves embryonic breathing, and halts the dissipation of Jing and Qi, the practice may seem austere. Yet if one ultimately enjoys long life and dwells forever in the celestial realm among the clouds, what one gains is truly abundant.

A person’s life has its limit, while desire is by nature endless. To pursue endless desires with a finite life is to bring about one’s own ruin. Mud can cloud a river, but it cannot cloud the sea. Wind can uproot trees, but it cannot shake a great mountain. Desire can disturb those of shallow attainment, but it cannot sway those who are cultivated. Why? Because the noble person is settled and still, while the petty person’s mind and spirit wander.

People should understand that the life bestowed by Heaven has its limits, and that life is difficult to preserve for long. Unless someone points out the essentials of cultivation, transmits the key instructions, explains them with care, and passes on the vital teachings, a person may read a scripture until their hair turns white and still never hear the Great Dao throughout their life.

What is meant by “Dao”? Dao is primal Qi. Primal Qi is the root of life and destiny; cultivating primal Qi is inner work. Cultivation takes the preservation and nourishment of the Dao as its method, and the transformation of Jing and Qi as its wondrous application, allowing the breath to flow and circulate without obstruction. Thus it is said: “Running water does not grow foul; a door pivot is not eaten by worms.” If one can grasp the Dao’s profound and mysterious principles, men and women can cultivate together, and husbands and wives can both become immortals. This is called the wondrous Dao.

Note: Several phrases in the original, including “the noble person is a recluse; the petty person is a wanderer,” are repeated, corrupt, or missing in places. The translation above follows the general sense of the surrounding context.

The Immortal Scripture says: “One Yin and one Yang are called the Dao; the union of the Three Origins in pairs is called the Elixir. Reversing the downward course of essence and Qi and replenishing them in the brain is called ‘returning’; transforming essence into Qi is called ‘turning.’” Each transformation brings the body a new benefit. Each turn extends life by one cycle, or twelve years. After nine transformations, it is said, life can be extended by 108 years.

The Queen Mother of the West says: “Breathe in the Qi of Great Harmony and preserve your natural nature. First make your Qi abundant, for Qi is the root of life.” The so-called “Way of Change and Increase” means that “increase” is to replenish essence and Qi, while “change” is to alter the body. Those able to replenish essence and Qi and change their bodies are entered into the register of the Highest Immortals; those who cannot do so are unable to escape the threat of death.

Those who practice this method should often keep “Numinous Treasure” in mind: “numinous” refers to Shen (spirit), and “treasure” to Jing (essence). They should cherish Qi and Jing, clench their hands, close their mouths, and swallow breath and saliva. Practitioners hold that saliva transforms into Jing, Jing into Qi, and Qi into Shen; Shen then transforms into saliva, saliva into Jing, Jing into Qi, and Qi once more into Shen. Repeating this cycle seven times and undergoing nine transformations and changes replenishes essence and Qi, while the body changes in turn.

The “change” spoken of here does not mean death. It means that while a person is alive, the body changes: from old to young, from young to child, from child to infant, and then from infant to newborn. One who reaches this state is called a “True Person.” When the Dao’s work is complete in this way, it is called “embryonic breathing”—what practitioners describe as the breath hidden deep within, as though one had returned to the state of a fetus. Through unremitting practice, Shen and Jing become abundant and the original Qi grows strong; the brain and marrow become firm, and the bones are renewed as well.

The Scripture of the Immortals says: In the workings of Yin and Yang, seminal essence is a precious foundation and must be carefully guarded to delay aging. It also says: To seek long life, begin at the root from which life arises. Keep daily habits and movements moderate, make each advance and retreat appropriate, follow proper principles in both activity and quiet repose, and exercise restraint in what you take up or set aside. In this way, life can be prolonged and illness eased.

It also says: Only when gold is refined with gold can it be called true gold; only when human nature is cultivated through the human way can one be called a true person. People often stray from the Dao themselves; the Dao does not abandon them. They often turn away from the way of life themselves; life does not forsake them. The key is to nurture the spirit continually and not go against the principles of nourishing life. Let the Dao and life remain joined for a long time, and let spirit and life guard one another; then both body and spirit can endure.

The Queen Mother says: Regulating the breath is like a dragon governing the flow of water. Qi returns to its natural state, Shen to emptiness, and Jing gathers in the Muddy Pellet, an important site for cultivation in the head. Water issues from its high source, reaches up to the River of Heaven, flows down into the Yellow Springs, runs across a hundred rivers, and at last gathers in the four seas. Like water, Qi circulates between Heaven and Earth and flows through the human body, repeating its course without ceasing. If people can regulate and cultivate their breath, they can accord with the patterns of Heaven and Earth and share the radiance of the sun and moon.

The Gu Shen Ji says: “A person’s original Qi, the vital energy at the root of life, is food for the spirit and soul. This is why it is called ‘the Purple Elixir offering a proper meal of yellow delicacies.’” The spirit is nourished by original Qi, while the body is sustained by the five flavors—sour, bitter, sweet, pungent, and salty. When original Qi is clear and balanced, the mind and spirit are refreshed; when it is muddied, the spirit is harmed. One should therefore regularly regulate and cultivate the breath, keeping original Qi clear and balanced. This is what is meant by refining the spirit and soul, driving away ghosts and malign influences, and subduing the Yin soul, so that both body and spirit may be at peace.

The soul ascends to Heaven and is called a spirit; the corporeal soul has its roots in Earth and is called a ghost. Ghosts belong to Yin, and spirits to Yang. By cultivating the soul and spirit and taking in original Qi, one can live forever and ascend bodily to Heaven. But indulging in the five flavors and inviting malign ghosts and Yin souls brings death in the end, with the body returning beneath the Earth. The soul flies up to the heavens, while the corporeal soul sinks into the dark springs. Water and fire separate, each returning to its source. In life, the two dwell together in one body; after death, they are far apart, one ascending and the other descending. This is the natural order.

Why does this happen? It is like a piece of wood burning: smoke rises and ash falls. That, too, is simply the way of nature.

The Nine August Sovereigns’ Upper Scripture says: “Beneath Beginning Blue, the two halves, Moon and Sun, rise together and join to form one thing. It passes from the Jade Pool into the Golden Chamber. It is as large as a pellet, yellow as an orange, and sweet as honey. If you can obtain it, guard it carefully and do not lose it.”

The commentary explains that the mating pears and fire dates grow within the human body. They are as large as pellets, yellow as oranges, and sweet as honey. They are neither far away nor close at hand, but within the chamber of the heart. The heart chamber is where the spirit dwells and Qi gathers; it governs Jing and is where the souls reside. The Jade Pool refers to the saliva that forms in the mouth, beneath the tongue. When saliva and spirit Qi combine, this is what is meant by “the two halves joining to form one.”

The Taiping Gao says that Xu Yuanyou wrote to Wang Xizhi: “Mating pears and fire dates are immortal medicines that enable a person to ascend. If you can clear the thorns from your heart, let go of attachment to the ‘self,’ and do away with distinctions between right and wrong, you can attain this state.”

The Taiping Gao records that Xu Youyou wrote to Wang Xizhi: “Jiaoli fire dates”—legendary elixir fruits said to enable ascension—are medicines for rising to the immortals. If you can cut away the brambles in your heart, abandon your attachment to distinguishing self from others, and put an end to disputes over right and wrong, then Jiaoli trees and fire date trees will grow in your heart, their branches and leaves flourishing, and bearing flowers and fruit. If you can eat even one branch’s worth of fruit, you will be able to ride the clouds and travel ten thousand li. This is the “Yin Elixir,” an inner elixir formed through the cultivation of body and mind.

In cultivation, all that is needed is to nourish the spirit, harmonize the original Qi, swallow the saliva in the mouth, and stabilize Jing and Qi within the body. In time, signs of flourishing will arise. This is like a tree with firm roots, luxuriant branches and leaves, flowers and fruit, and precious fruit coming to maturity. The many changes in the heart refer to a person’s form and spirit. Yin-Yang is like the sun and moon, and rainwater; warm breezes and dew are like nourishing irrigation. The circulation and harmonizing of the breath are like the growth of branches and leaves. Clarity of nature and a joyful heart are like flowers in bloom. Guarding Jing and Qi and keeping them within is like bearing fruit. The circulation of saliva is like the sweetness of ripe fruit.

The ancient immortals solemnly vowed to pass this Daoist method on only by word of mouth. Now that it is being taught in writing, it should be entrusted to those who are suited to it and destined to receive it.

Daolin says that this method is also called the “Jade Nectar and Golden Syrup Method,” a cultivation practice centered on refining and swallowing the saliva in the mouth. Jade nectar and golden syrup refer to the saliva taken in through cultivation. The human body has six fluids: Jing, tears, saliva, mucus, sweat, and urine. They all arise from original Qi and are distributed through the five viscera and six bowels, the nine orifices, and the limbs. Those who understand this method can prevent Jing and Qi from leaking out over a long period. Even after repeated sexual intercourse, they do not lose Jing, and so can become immortals who cultivate in solitude. One should also try not to spit out saliva throughout the day, but instead keep it in the mouth and swallow it often. It is said that this preserves Jing and Qi, keeps the body’s fluids within, and gives the face a radiant glow.

The Laozi Jiejie says: When saliva fills the mouth, it gathers into a liquid like sweet spring water. Spread through the mouth, it is called the “Flowery Pool”; when it disperses, it becomes saliva and other bodily fluids, and when swallowed, it is like sweet dew. Rinsing the mouth and swallowing the saliva can moisten the Five Viscera, nourish the body, help Qi and blood circulate throughout the body, and nourish the spirit. It also benefits the limbs, joints, and hair, strengthening the body and preserving youthful vigor. This is what is called the “Inner Golden Elixir Syrup,” which protects the spirit and replenishes primordial Qi.

If pure jade is used to make a liquid like sweet spring water, and gold is refined into a syrup, the materials change from their original forms and become soft rather than hard, bright as ice and snow, and more fragrant than perfume. Drinking a cup can bring longevity. This is what is called the “Outer Golden Elixir Syrup,” which strengthens the body and fortifies the viscera.

One should also regularly avoid sweating without cause. Sweat is regarded as an indicator of the state of one’s spirit and body. When primordial Qi is balanced, slight sweating after activity is a sign of moderation; at such times, do not expose yourself to a cold wind. If excessive exertion depletes Jing and Qi and sweat flows without stopping, both spirit and body become utterly exhausted. Relax the body and move slowly; work without becoming completely worn out, and do not wait until utterly exhausted to sit or lie down. Whether walking, standing, sitting, or lying down, remain composed and nourish yourself at the proper times. Use methods such as Daoyin exercises and massage to regulate the breath and care for the body, so that on rising you feel light, strong, and refreshed.

One should also pay attention to urination and defecation: do not force yourself to hold them in, and do not let them become uncontrolled. Difficult elimination, excessive coldness, or too much leakage can all damage primordial Qi and endanger life, bringing misfortune quickly. This is the way of the sage, who understands when to advance and withdraw, and knows how to preserve life.

What sages and ordinary people alike cherish is life; what the wise and foolish alike prize is the body. Therefore, sages use the Dao and De, benevolence and righteousness, humility and compassion, respect and frugality, as well as auspicious signs that appear in advance in the heavens and among human affairs, to instruct the gentleman. They also use ritual and music, punitive expeditions, laws and penal codes, ghosts and spirits, divination, dreams, and various warning signs to instruct the petty person. The essentials of nourishing life are to guard first against external harm, then carefully tend to what is within; both inner and outer should be kept tranquil...