《体真山人真诀语录》Vol. 3

What Qu Tang says about “Heaven and Earth having the Changes within themselves,” and about “the matter lying not with the Four Sages but within my own body,” concerns the subtlest aspects of the firing process. Sadly, you do not understand. In discussing the “Circular Diagram of Lai Zhide” in the Zhouyi, he says, “That which governs is principle.” This is like Laozi’s “the nameless is the beginning of Heaven and Earth”: it refers to the independent, as yet unmanifested source. “That which stands in relation is number” means “the named is the mother of the myriad things”: it refers to the mutual relation and interaction of Yin and Yang, that is, the interdependence and correspondence of mind and breath. “That which circulates is Qi” refers to the firing process. These three statements are concise and profound.

If Meng Jun can grasp what I mean now, then after practicing for a few more months he will be able to eliminate the medicinal liquid completely. The poem in the Wuzhen pian that begins “Common sayings often accord with the sages’ Way” makes a great deal of sense; it too speaks of the firing process. Take the familiar saying “a calm and even mind and Qi”: Daoist cultivation amounts to no more than this. Thus the scripture says that if one can turn one’s gaze inward and work in reverse, “the earth, its mountains and rivers, will all become treasures.”

Life and death are separated by a hair’s breadth: following the ordinary course leads to death, while reversing it leads to becoming an immortal. This principle is subtle and profound, and difficult for ordinary people to understand. That is why Shi Xinglin said, “The Great Dao is right before you.” The Baopuzi discusses the firing process in many places, with great subtlety, but sadly you do not know how to read it.

Leaving home is only an outward appearance. The body is the dwelling place of Shen; if one searches only within the physical body formed after birth, one will never reach the Great Dao. One must therefore leave this physical body and cultivate Shen within the void. When Shen leaves the body and settles beyond it, that is true “leaving home.”

Entering the mountain is a symbol. In the Bagua (Eight Trigrams), “mountain” corresponds to Gen, which signifies stillness and coming to a stop. To settle the spirit outwardly, quiet body and mind, and cease restless activity: this is true “entering the mountain,” as in the legend that the Yellow Emperor attained the Dao after entering Mount Kongtong.

In ancient times, Daoists often lived amid the bustle of the city without letting their minds be disturbed. Only after worldly affairs had been settled would they go further in cultivating Xinggong (the work of nurturing one’s nature); only then were they ready to enter the deep mountains. No one ever rushed into the mountains while family matters remained unresolved or before their cultivation had reached two-thirds completion. The master also said: when cultivation has brought the six senses—the eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, and mind—to rest, so that no deluded thoughts arise in response to external conditions and the heart-mind remains steadily calm and still, this is true entering the mountain. Once the heart-mind has entered the mountain, the body may live in the marketplace.

In cultivation, one enters a hazy, profound state of emptiness and undifferentiated chaos, forgetting external things and even the body, while settling the heart and spirit amid external conditions. The longer this continues, the more subtle and wondrous the state becomes. This is called gathering the pre-Heavenly (the term for absorbing primordial Qi through cultivation). When the work has deepened, one can ultimately attain the Dao. The ancient immortals said, “A year or two of hard work brings joy through a thousand or ten thousand kalpas.” This is indeed true. The Cantong qi compares it to raising a pole and immediately seeing its shadow, or calling into a mountain valley and hearing an echo. The image describes a method of cultivating the Dao whose effects come swiftly and are difficult to fathom.

The Mysterious Female’s single aperture, a subtle and wondrous portal in Daoist Neidan (internal alchemy), is the most obscure and profound. From the various methods of alchemy through to the transformation of the spirit after leaving the womb, all depend on this aperture. The saying “Attain the One, and all things are complete” means that once this key is mastered, everything else can be understood. That I have received this secret is truly thanks to the accumulated virtue of my ancestors; it was no easy thing.

Notes on the True Meaning of Ancestor Wang’s Recorded Sayings

When beginning cultivation, the first task is to become clear and still. “Clear” means purifying the heart and mind—that is, letting thoughts empty out. “Still” means calming the breath: making it even, without haste or disorder. Once the breath is calm, use just a little attention to notice the movement of the breath outside the nose. Keep the mind focused outside the nose, without stray thoughts, and let go of all concerns. After a while, the breath will naturally settle.

Once the breath is steady, its coming and going can be noticed naturally outside the nose. This is called “seeking Shen through Qi,” not “seeking Qi through Shen.” The former follows what happens naturally; the latter uses conscious effort to chase the breath. Chasing the breath deliberately engages only acquired awareness—the ordinary, thinking mind—not the Original Spirit, the innate and authentic spirit. It therefore cannot bring about true coordination of Yin and Yang, nor the bellows (a metaphor for mobilizing the movement of Qi) or the furnace and vessel (metaphors for the bodily and mental conditions of cultivation). Instead, it falls into the acquired, deliberate mode of action.

For this reason, counting breaths should not be treated as a method of cultivation. Forcing yourself to count makes the breath hurried, leaves the mind unsettled, and causes bodily discomfort. This is the wrong approach. If you have already noticed the breath moving gently in and out outside the nose, let it proceed naturally, then release that awareness too. Maintaining awareness should not be deliberate, and forgetting awareness should not be deliberate either. Whether aware or unaware, let it happen naturally, without the slightest effort to force it. During cultivation, let yourself fall asleep if you do, and remain awake if you do not. Do not cling to either presence or absence; simply let the mind rest in a hazy, easeful state.

If you feel a slight softening in the body, immediately turn your attention outside the nose and naturally observe the breath as it moves.

When you sense even a slight softening in the body, immediately turn your awareness outward and follow the breath as it moves outside the body. When you notice even a slight pulsing, do the same: turn outward and follow the breath. As you gradually become still, the breath grows finer and the body softer. Even if, while sitting in meditation, you notice pulsing in different parts of the body, continue to turn your awareness outward and follow the breath. Practice until this becomes a natural habit.

Whatever movement or stillness arises within or around the body, however slight or pronounced, simply notice it. There is no need to deliberately form a thought: awareness will naturally turn outward and follow the breath. That is enough. With practice, the feeling of softness in the body becomes more distinct, and the breath grows ever finer, until it seems that no breath enters or leaves. At this point, Shen (spirit)—your awareness—rests in the empty space outside the body. This is what is called the “Celestial Heart.”

If the external yang—the term used in cultivation for an erection—shows even the slightest movement, settle both awareness and breath outside the body. The scripture holds that once Shen and Qi are united, they are still together in stillness and move together in motion. Thus, when the external yang stirs, Shen perceives it. As yang Qi moves, Shen follows; Qi, too, shifts from stillness into motion, and breathing through the mouth and nose resumes. When you notice this change, immediately turn your awareness outward so that Shen and Qi unite again. When Shen perceives something, the mind and Qi leave their former state of stillness and turn toward the breathing through the mouth and nose. Because Shen and Qi are united and move and rest together, the external yang will naturally subside; there is no need to interfere deliberately.

Continue following the breath outside the body. The body will gradually soften again, becoming hazy and indistinct, and then settle into stillness. If the external yang stirs again in that stillness, turn your awareness outward and follow the breath once more. Repeat this practice until, when the external yang stirs, your intention no longer intervenes and your awareness naturally turns outward to follow the breath. At that point, the practice has become familiar. Shen is now responsive and can turn toward the breath on its own, without deliberate instruction. Make stillness your priority: whether in the macrocosmic orbit or the microcosmic orbit, whenever you feel anything in the body, turn outward and follow the breath.

As your practice deepens, stillness lasts longer. Continue until, when the external yang stirs in stillness, you remain as calm as before you noticed it: it moves on its own, while you remain undisturbed. The scripture says that in this way the yang gate, the aperture through which yang Qi enters and leaves, will gradually close. When the external yang no longer stirs at all in stillness, this is called “the complete transformation of Yin essence,” also known as “returning to childhood.”

The Patriarch said, “Ultimately, the Great Dao comes down to a single word: ‘stillness.’ In truth, ‘stillness’ is itself only a symbolic expression. Put it another way, and it comes down to ‘forgetting’—but ‘forgetting’ is symbolic too. Put it still another way, and it is ‘sincerity.’ Thus the Jing of Entering the Medicine says, ‘With utmost sincerity, one accords with nature.’ The most subtle realm of utmost sincerity and accord with nature cannot be expressed in speech or recorded in writing. Therefore I say that anything written with brush and ink is merely a fish trap or a rabbit snare—an instrument for pointing toward the principle, not the Great Dao itself. Who in the world is willing to believe this?”

The Patriarch said, “Before Yang Qi begins to arise, remain still; after Yang Qi begins to arise, remain still as well. This stillness is indispensable. The key to alchemical practice truly lies in the work of ‘true emptiness’; ultimately, it comes down to a single word: ‘stillness.’ If you can sustain stillness for three hours, then, after entering the realm of true emptiness, continue to deepen your practice and gradually extend the time spent in that state. Restoring the body to its original childlike condition will then be no problem. The various signs of efficacy in practice will emerge step by step, as water naturally gathers in a channel, and you will have grasped eight or nine tenths of the alchemical art’s secrets.”

The Patriarch said, “Every step of alchemical practice must be guided by the Heavenly Mind, not the human mind. The human mind and the Heavenly Mind differ, but you should understand that mind is originally one. When thoughts arise and disappear in relation to the body, and awareness moves back and forth in a waking state, this is the human mind. When one lets go of attachment to the body, the mind is still yet constantly aware: there are no thoughts, but awareness remains. This is the Heavenly Mind. In general, having thoughts and clinging to outward forms means that the human mind is in control. Having no intention toward outward forms, letting go of attachment to the body, and resting in stillness and emptiness—forgetting distinctions while awareness shines through, with the movement of Qi harmonious and unimpeded—is like moonlight in water: illusory, yet manifest. It is like a bright mirror reflecting things: it reflects without intention, sees all things, yet remains utterly empty and still. This is the Heavenly Mind in control. Such practice can be accomplished only through actual cultivation.”

When refining Jing, forget the body, and Jing will not leak outward. When refining Qi, forget the breath, and Qi will not scatter or dissipate.

When refining Jing, forget the sensations of the body, and Jing will be less likely to leak away. When refining Qi, forget its movement, and Qi will be less likely to disperse. The key to cultivation lies in mastering the firing process.

In the initial stage of refining Jing, one must know how to use martial fire—that is, more active, intentional work with the breath—to cook and refine it. When Yang Qi stirs, immediately apply martial fire for a time: amid outward mental activity, let the mind and breath follow and accompany one another. Then gradually shift from martial fire to civil fire, a gentler, quieter process of nurturing. This means ceasing to regulate the breath deliberately and entering a state of meditative stillness. Civil fire serves to warm and nourish. From meditative stillness, move into a state of forgetting. When body and mind, within and without, are deeply forgotten, the fire is stopped. Stopping the fire means withdrawing and resting; it is also the key to sealing and securing what cultivation has produced.

The master said: “When breathing is present and mind and breath accompany one another, that is martial fire. When you no longer regulate the breath deliberately and remain settled in stillness, that is civil fire. After remaining in stillness for a long time, when body and mind gradually enter a state of undifferentiated, self-forgetting awareness, that is stopping the fire. The essentials are contained in these three statements.”

The editorial note says that this record describes the cultivation method of Patriarch Li Hanxu of the Qing dynasty. After passing it to Wu Tianzhi, Li’s method was transmitted by Wu to Wang Dongting. In the fifth and sixth years of the Republic of China (1916–1917), Wang taught it to disciples including Xu Haiyin, leaving behind records of their questions and answers. Xu compiled these into a volume. In 1980, Mr. Chen Yuzhao, known as Tianlezi—Wang Dongting transmitted the teachings to Cai Qiangu, who in turn transmitted them to Chen Yuzhao—copied the records. The text runs to more than 41,600 characters, but it is incomplete; the full version can no longer be found.

Two works are appended: one volume of The Female Elixir Instructions of the True-Body Mountain Hermit, Wang Dongting.

The practice of cultivating Xing and life is the same for men and women; there is no difference. In general, its essentials are summed up in four words: utmost sincerity, focused attention, and careful discipline. The Book of Documents says, “Only the most sincere person under Heaven can transform all things.” A scripture says, “Only when attention is wholly focused can one heed the Mandate of Heaven.”

For a beginner, the first essential is “refining the self”: regulating and training one’s mind and spirit. To understand this practice, one must first bring mind and spirit into accord with the breath: the mind attends to the breath, and the breath settles as the mind grows calm. The most important thing here is harmony. The Cantong qi (Scripture of the Joining of the Three) says, “Only when they are harmonized can they accompany one another.” It also says, “Each in its own way can attain harmony.” Harmony cannot be separated from centrality and correctness, and centrality and correctness cannot be separated from harmony. Are centrality and harmony one or two? Joined as a single whole, they are called the “Yellow Matron” (a Neidan term for the force that harmonizes Yin-Yang and brings spirit and Qi together). Once the Yellow Matron has harmonized them, spirit and Qi naturally draw close and unite, as though in love: they inhale and exhale into each other, blending without end. The practitioner need only let this unfold naturally, neither forgetting it nor forcing it.

Laozi said, “By concentrating the Qi and making it supple, can you become like an infant?” This describes harmony brought to its utmost. Bai Yuchan, a Neidan master, said, “When husband and wife meet in old age, their affection naturally lingers.” A scripture also says, “They form a single mass, mingle together, and fuse as one, tempered in a single furnace.” It further says, “The Cowherd and Weaver Girl meet, Yin and Yang accompany one another; the crow and the jade hare share a nest, the sun and moon dwell together; the hun and po souls mingle, and Metal and Fire combine.”

In the end, the practical key to cultivation is that spirit never leaves Qi, and Qi never leaves spirit: mind and spirit never leave the breath, and the breath never leaves mind and spirit.

Spirit is one’s nature; Qi is one’s life. A scripture says, “The root of nature is planted in the heart, while the root of life is tied to the breath.” We must understand that nature and life together give rise to transformation. When nature and life unite, it is like the two principles of Yin and Yang returning to a single Taiji (Supreme Ultimate). This is called the dual cultivation of nature and life.

Dual cultivation of nature and life means allowing the mind and spirit and the breath to depend on one another, never parting even for a moment. Patriarch Bai said, “To refine the medicine with fire and form the Elixir is to govern Qi with Shen and cultivate the Great Dao.” In daily practice, let the mind and spirit attend to the breath, and let the breath settle within the mind and spirit. Continue for a time. Once the breath becomes even, you will naturally enter deep concentration and gradually reach a profound, indistinct state, forgetting heaven and earth and the things around you, and forgetting the body.

The Qiyue says, “The eldest son inherits his father’s form and takes his foundation from his mother.” It also says, “Know brightness, yet keep to darkness; then the numinous spirit will come of itself.” These words describe precisely this moment. The practitioner may feel the body and mind grow soft and easeful, with a joy too deep for words. Zhang Sanfeng likened this feeling to a mute eating honey: though he tastes its sweetness, he cannot describe it. Shao Yong, too, said that in a hazy, indistinct moment Yin and Yang begin to transform, and the breath of heaven and earth first stirs. The subtle wonder within this cannot truly be put into words. The Qiyue also says, “Golden sand enters the five organs and spreads like mist; the Qi that gently nourishes passes through the limbs, bringing a lustrous glow to the complexion.”

At this time, the primordial Qi of before-heaven—the original Qi that arises from emptiness before acquired form and substance—appears from emptiness. Shao Yong said, “At midnight on the winter solstice, the Heavenly Heart does not change; when the first Yang begins to stir, the myriad things have not yet been born.” Alchemical texts call this moment the “living Zi hour,” while Perfected Ziyang calls it “the urgent gathering when Gui is born.” Shangyangzi explained the word “gathering” as “gathering without gathering.” This “gathering without gathering” means “splitting open primordial chaos,” as if opening a state in which chaos has not yet divided. I take this to refer to the moment when emptiness and stillness reach their utmost. To bring emptiness to its limit and maintain stillness to its depth is to return to the state of Kun.

Kun represents the southwest. It is also the land where the medicine is born, the place of undivided chaos, and the aperture of the Mysterious Female—the Daoist source of generation and transformation. Mi Yuanzi said, “To seek the true seed of before-heaven, one must establish its foundation in chaos.” Once the foundation is established, the Valley Spirit—the spirit that is empty and still yet capable of giving rise to transformation—will not perish. How, then, could a person die easily?

The foregoing concerns refining the self, establishing the foundation, and gathering the great medicine of before-heaven. The methods for this stage of cultivation are the same for women and men. Thus it is said, “The Great Dao makes no distinction between women and men; the principles of Yin-Yang and the Five Phases are always the same.” What follows will explain how the methods differ for women and men in later-stage cultivation.

Liu Wuyuan’s Dan Jue says: “Only by grasping the true formula for beginning practice can one understand how different methods produce vastly different results. Refining Qi through the sun is the method practiced by men; refining the body through the moon is the path practiced by women.” Men belong to Yang, whose number is odd. The Dao De Jing says, “Heaven generates water as One,” so men begin at the Kan palace, one cun and three fen below the navel—the lower abdominal site of cultivation. Women belong to Yin, whose number is even. The Dao De Jing says, “Earth generates fire as Two,” so women begin at the Li position between the breasts, the site of cultivation in the chest. These are the fixed principles stated in the book. The “Breast Stream” in medical texts and the “Breast Chamber” in alchemical scriptures both refer to this location.

Long ago, when Lü Zu (Lü Dongbin) gave Zhang Xiangu guidance, he composed these lines: “Kan, Li, Zhen, and Dui represent directions such as Zi and Wu; recognize the root within yourself. Earth’s thunder stirs, and rain falls on the mountain peak. When the Yellow Sprout has been washed clean, it breaks through the soil. Seize the Golden Essence and seal it firmly; cultivate Geng and Jia, and the Dragon and Tiger will be born. If anyone asks who taught you, say your master’s surname is Lü.” The passage emphasizes that one must first thoroughly cultivate the self—refining one’s nature and purifying one’s thoughts—before gaining mastery over the process. One must also gather and refine the Yang of Heaven and Earth each day, and continually warm, nourish, and bathe the practice with the breath within, for it to have an effect. Whether cultivation takes one or two months, or three or four, depends on how deeply the practitioner applies themselves.

Sometimes, during formal practice, one may feel Qi surging from an aperture and dividing into two streams that rush directly to the breasts, making the nipples firm. Alchemical scriptures call this phenomenon the “active Zi hour” of the birth of the medicine, the moment when the alchemical substance begins to stir during Neidan cultivation. Shao Yong says: “Suddenly, at midnight, a clap of thunder sounds, and the doors of a thousand households open one after another. If you can understand that forms are contained within the formless, you can behold Fuxi with your own eyes.” At this stage of practice, the breath is harmonized, the channels flow freely, and all the apertures open, just as the poem says: “Spring fills the heart; life stirs everywhere.”

“After the hour of the Pig and before the hour of the Horse” refers to the transition between the hour of the Pig and the hour of the Rat. The verse says, “The truest moment lies between Pig and Rat.” “Settling the breath” means making the breathing even. “Sitting” refers to being arranged on the left and right, just as troops and their commanders are deployed in ranks on either side. “One Earth stands in the center” means that each side holds True Earth, which in Neidan (internal alchemy) symbolizes the fundamental Qi at the center. True Earth is brought back to the center so that the One Qi may circulate; this is why the text next speaks of the “Jiaji Pass,” the energetic opening between the vertebrae of the back. “Passing over Kunlun” is a metaphor for reversing the flow of the breath so that the channels of Qi become connected.

At this point, one should contemplate the “I.” Here, “I” is a metaphor for pure Yang Qi, and also refers to the achievement of cultivation and attainment of the Taiyi Golden Immortal, a high level of Daoist immortality. “Taiyi contains True Qi” means that it contains primordial True Qi. First establish the four directions of Kan, Li, Zhen, and Dui, then align them with the timing of Zi, Wu, Mao, and You. “Recognize your own ancestral source” means tracing back to the source of the primordial Qi received at birth and recognizing that single point of ancestral Qi from before birth. “Washing” here means cleansing body and mind, clearing away thoughts, and nourishing both through refining the self—that is, cultivating one’s nature.

“Yellow” is the color of Earth, while “sprout” symbolizes vitality. “Emerging from the soil” is a metaphor for the springtime sprouting of all things, when the earth is renewed. This Yang Qi rises to communicate with Heaven, surging like a fierce fire or swift wind, so it must be gathered promptly and sent into the Central Palace, the site of Neidan cultivation in the middle of the body. Thus the verse says, “Seize the Golden Essence and keep it firmly concealed.” Zhang Sanfeng also said, “Seize the Golden Essence, guide it carefully, and send it into the Dantian.”

“To refine Jia and Geng so that the Dragon and Tiger arise” means that both Jia and Geng must be brought forth: when their Qi stirs, the Dao begins from there. As for “If he asks who taught you, just say the master’s surname is Lü,” the character Lü is used to suggest “mouth to mouth, aperture to aperture” in the transmission of the Golden Elixir formula. It emphasizes the transmission of intent from heart to heart and the passing on of oral instructions.

Taken as a whole, these passages explain drawing Fire to press the Metal, circulating the microcosmic orbit, and the rising and falling exchange of the Qi of the two Dragon and Tiger cords. With diligent cultivation, the scene described by Zhang Sanfeng will appear: a point of True Qi returns to rest of its own accord; within the body, it is as though all four seasons were spring. The breath grows long and continuous, the body and mind become settled, and the Yin essence throughout the body gradually vanishes, transforming into pure Yang Qi. From this point onward, the work of cultivation is the same as for men.

Among the methods of Neidan (internal alchemy) for women, this song formula is the most direct and simple. Patriarch Lü (Lü Dongbin) spared none of Heaven’s treasures, stating the essentials all at once. Sadly, people in the world do not understand its true meaning. I will now explain it clearly: the phrases “one inch and three tenths below the navel” and “the point between the breasts” use tangible parts of the body as symbols. Under no circumstances should they be taken as actual, tangible acupoints to be located by touch.

A scripture says, “To cling to this body is not the Dao; to leave this body is also a deviation.” It also says, “Everything within and outside the body belongs to Yin.” And it says, “Truth is right before our eyes, yet people cannot see it.” Moreover, the stages and timing of alchemical cultivation are exceedingly subtle. Only through direct instruction from a true teacher, passed from mouth to mind, and through grasping the meaning behind it, can one find where to begin. Shangyangzi said, “How could oral instructions be made clear from the written page alone? Never force an interpretation or grope blindly, lest you bring harm upon yourself.”

In the autumn of the twenty-fifth year of Guangxu, the Jihai year (1899), while I was staying in Shenjiang (Shanghai), I heard that in Sanshui County, Guangdong, there was a woman of the Li family known as Lady Cao. She was chaste and self-possessed, widely learned, and surpassed men in scholarship. When I met her, we exchanged questions and answers about alchemical books, and she proved every bit as accomplished as I had heard. I said with delight, “Most people in the world who are exceptionally talented and widely learned give little thought to cultivating nature and life. Why is Lady Li alone so sincere in this?” I therefore wrote this piece and presented it to her.

Wang Dongting said: The Song of the Great Dao is also known as The Song of Perfect Truth, composed by the Patriarch Liu Haichan. Reasoning from its meaning, I believe that among the alchemical books from past dynasties that we can read today, those written by female practitioners mostly speak only of “Mercury,” not “Lead”; only of “Water,” not “Fire.” This is because female practitioners belong to the Kun body, which symbolizes the receptive and yielding nature, and so it is not fitting for them to discuss Yang Fire. They speak only of Yin Talismans, the formulas associated with Yin cultivation.

This song alone expresses these teachings with particular purity: not a single word in the whole text mentions “Lead”; it speaks entirely of True Mercury. The scripture says that the “numinous source” is the spring cavern, the source of the divine water. The song says, “Divine water is hard to speak of; few are those who understand it.” It also says, “Stirred by heat, sorrow, thought, or wind, it moves and flows in every direction, moistening the whole body; in the end, it all comes from divine water.” These statements carry forward the meaning of the Wuzhen pian: “Originally it is one substance, mercury, flowing through all the celestial markers; when the measures of Yin and Yang are complete, it naturally connects with the spirit; entering and leaving, it never departs from the Mysterious Female, the source from which all things are born.” The Mysterious Female is the numinous source, the spring cavern.

The scripture also says that “Perfect Truth” refers to the most perfect Yang Qi. Yet this song speaks from beginning to end only of pure Yin substance. What connection does it have with the words “Perfect Truth”? I believe it was indeed written by the female immortal Wen. Besides, in the Patriarch Liu’s Treatise on Returning the Gold and Song of Returning the Elixir, Lead and Mercury are always mentioned together. Why, in this song alone, does he speak of Mercury but not Lead?

Someone asked, “In that case, is this not solitary Yin?” The reply was that when Perfected Li explained the Yinfu Jing, he said, “The Yin Talisman refers to Yang Fire.” He also said, “Though it speaks of Yin Talismans, Yang Fire is contained within them.” If we trace things back to their origin, what was everything like before our parents gave birth to us? Perfected Li explained the Yinfu Jing by saying, “The Yin Talisman refers to Yang Fire,” and, “Though it speaks of Yin Talismans, Yang Fire is contained within them.” At the root of it all, before our parents gave birth to us, there was nothing at all. The sages could only use a diagram to represent it: a circle, 〇, called the “Limitless.” It is also said to be “unseen, unheard, untouchable, and beyond all questioning.”

Alas! Though there are ten thousand volumes of alchemical writings, with teachings expressed in many different ways, they all rely on symbols to convey their meaning. If you stop at the words on the page, what you see is only the surface, like a castle in the air. Without meeting a true teacher, where would you begin your practice?