《参同契阐幽》Vol. 5

This passage continues to use the movement of celestial bodies and rivers flowing into the sea as metaphors for the timing of the fire and the movement of Qi in Neidan practice. If practitioners can grasp the key and gradually dispel the turbid Yin residues throughout the body, the Qi in the hundred channels will return to the Primordial Sea, the place within the body where true Qi gathers, like rivers flowing into the sea without overflowing. The chapter as a whole uses celestial phenomena to explain the furnace and cauldron and the timing of the fire: if they are handled improperly, the process may become uncontrolled; if they are handled well, the movement of Qi can return to its root.

Zi and Wu symbolize the times when Yang Qi begins to revive and Yin Qi begins to revive, respectively, and also correspond to the junctures where Water and Fire meet. The alchemical path calls for regulating the ascent and descent of Water and Fire between Zi and Wu: when Yang Qi first arises, it should be gathered and nurtured; when Yin Qi first appears, it should be carefully protected. Yin and Shen symbolize the gateways through which Yin and Yang Qi truly enter and depart, grow and develop. The handle of the Dipper—the handle of the Big Dipper, which the ancients used to mark seasonal directions—turns with the seasons and sets the order of celestial time. Practice, too, must follow this rhythm, so that the changes of Water and Fire, Metal and Wood each occur at the proper time.

The passage then uses images of steaming and boiling, and of dragons and tigers battling, to describe the union of Qian and Kun and the forging of the Elixir. In Neidan, true Qi travels upward along the River Cart, a metaphor for the movement of Qi, from the coccyx, passing through the spine and reaching the crown of the head, like steam rising to the top of a steaming vessel. The White Tiger, Azure Dragon, Vermilion Bird, and Black Tortoise are Daoist terms symbolizing the movements of Qi associated with Metal, Wood, Fire, and Water. They check and join with one another in the cauldron: first undergoing intense change, then coalescing into the Elixir. The scripture’s images of a boiling cauldron, flying dragon scales, and transformations of the five colors describe symbolically the meeting and blending of Qi. Once the ingredients have congealed, the fierce forging must stop and give way to gentle warmth and nourishment. The practitioner should quietly guard the process without forcing it, allowing the true Qi formed from the union of Yin and Yang to stabilize.

The Azure Dragon, White Tiger, and Vermilion Bird correspond respectively to Wood in the East, Metal in the West, and Fire in the South. Together with the Black Tortoise in the North and Earth in the Center, they make up the Five Phases. The scripture says that they ultimately come together and return to unity. This means that the workings of Yin-Yang and the Five Phases arise from the transformations of a few fundamental kinds of Qi; the aim of practice is to return them to the primordial One Qi and gather it in the Yellow Court, the part of the body that symbolizes the center and the harmonizing of body and mind. The Elixir first appears white, then turns yellow, and finally becomes red. “The size of a millet grain” is a metaphor for the tiny form of the newly formed Elixir.

The Way of the Reverted Elixir is said to arise naturally. Its key principle is that things of the same kind respond to one another and Yin and Yang unite. Mountains and marshes communicate, giving rise to clouds and rain; boiled hides become glue, and fermented grain becomes wine. These are examples of things of the same kind following their nature to produce a result. Neidan practice, too, is understood as the natural matching of true Yin and true Yang, without forced manipulation or extraction and supplementation through heterodox methods.

The author emphasizes that these principles are true and exacting. Readers should reflect on them repeatedly, comparing passages from beginning to end until they understand them inwardly. The first traces and pathways of the Great Dao can be sought through this teaching, but Daoist methods are transmitted only to suitable people. Though the chapter discusses the timing of the fire and the symbols of practice, it also brings together the book’s teachings on governing, cultivating nature, and ingesting the Elixir.

The Three Paths Return to One

The Cantong qi uses the Zhouyi, the teachings of Huang-Lao, and the art of the furnace and fire to explain one and the same Great Dao. The author holds that the earlier parts of the book offer only a general outline and leave some subtleties unexplained, so he wrote this chapter to show how the three paths converge in one.

“Nature and disposition in the Great Changes” refers to the root of Yin-Yang transformation. Huang-Lao cultivation of nature means returning to one’s original nature, holding to the center, and embracing the One. Ingesting the Elixir through the furnace and fire uses the alchemical furnace as a metaphor for the union and cultivation of body and mind. The three may appear different, but all aim to harmonize body and mind and return to the root. Branches, stems, flowers, leaves, and fruit each have their own forms, yet all grow from the same root. In the same way, the three teachings differ in expression but share a single source: the Dao. Practitioners must move from outward symbols back to the root, or they may mistake the three traditions for unrelated paths.

The Four Images Return to the Root

This chapter uses the image of plants and trees withering in midwinter to explain how all things contract, return to their roots, and revert to emptiness. At the winter solstice, Yang Qi begins to arise, yet remains deeply hidden in stillness, like a ruler who stays within and does not appear, while merchants and travelers cease their activity. Practitioners should follow the season by gathering in body and mind, keeping to the center, and cultivating stillness, while avoiding restless action and excessive speech.

The Way of Heaven is vast and mysterious. When all things return to concealment, their forms and boundaries become invisible, as if Heaven and Earth, the sun and moon, Qian and Kun, and Kan and Li all dissolve into emptiness and stillness. The author reminds readers that the Four Images described in the book have form and names only as explanatory stages; in the end, one must return through these symbols to the formless and nameless root. If readers cling to the words and numerical symbols, they may misunderstand the Great Dao. But if they make no distinctions at all, later students will have no way to discern its meaning. The author therefore explains the symbols in sequence to guide beginners, while ultimately pointing beyond words and images.

Author’s Account and Guidance for Later Readers

Wei Boyang describes himself as living in seclusion and simplicity, seeking neither power nor fame. He writes quietly, explaining the teachings left by the Three Sages through the Zhouyi. He holds that governing the world, cultivating nature, and refining the Elixir may each be discussed in different terms, but their roots all lie in following principle and harmonizing Yin and Yang. Governance has its own order; cultivating nature means guarding one’s original nature, embracing the One, and returning to the root; ingesting the Elixir through the furnace and fire uses symbols such as the female and male, Lead and Mercury, to explain the union of Yin and Yang and the process of cultivation. Here, “ingesting the Elixir” does not mean taking Waidan medicines; it uses alchemical terminology to express internal practice.

The book describes three paths separately, but their branches and leaves are connected, and they all come from the same source. That is why it is called the Cantong qi: the three traditions are brought together and ultimately accord with the same Great Dao. Wei Boyang also concealed his name in the text at the end of the work, leaving a clue for later generations. He wrote the book to convey the essentials of Daoist cultivation and hoped that later readers would examine it carefully and understand the root behind its words.