《性命圭旨》Vol. 4

The Buddha said: “From the very beginning, I have never obtained any Dharma. Only after long and focused reflection did I understand what is called ‘no-mind.’ When you reach no-mind, you see that all things have no fixed, unchanging forms. Thus you attain the supreme, true Dao.”

The Buddha also said: “The fundamental reason people cannot attain the Dao and escape the cycle of birth and death is that deluded thoughts become the seeds of rebirth.”

When deluded thoughts arise, calamities follow. When they cease, the original true source—the root of life and spirit—comes to light. For this reason, Daoists take the cessation of deluded thoughts as the foundation of cultivation, while Buddhism takes no-mind as its central teaching.

Here, no-mind means having no erroneous thoughts; it does not mean having no thoughts at all. Clinging to existence or nonexistence is an erroneous thought; not clinging to either is right mindfulness. Clinging to good or evil is also an erroneous thought; not being led by distinctions between good and evil is right mindfulness. Distinctions such as suffering and pleasure, arising and ceasing, grasping and rejecting, enemies and kin, hatred and love—all belong to erroneous thought. Not clinging to these distinctions is right mindfulness. When things arise, the mind is not held captive by them; it clings to nothing, anywhere. This is no-mind. Within no-mind, awareness remains; this is called right mindfulness.

A Buddhist scripture says: “Good sons, when we abide in the Dharma of no-mind, we can attain the thirty-two golden marks—the thirty-two excellent features of a Buddha’s body—and radiate a great light that illuminates every world without exception.”

Chan Master Gaofeng said:

“Maitreya (Cishi), through the merit of attaining Buddhahood in this very life, does not depart from the ocean of nature, the realm of a single thought that does not arise—the vast, still state of original nature.”

Chan Master Zhichang said:

“Suchness—the true, unchanging nature of all things—is no-mind. If you still cling to thoughts, you cannot reach reality, the true nature of things. Since there is no arising, how could a mind of attachment arise? To reach the thought that is no-mind is to realize suchness; arising without birth is to manifest reality.”

Li Zhicai said:

When thoughts accord with the principles of Heaven, they are like the bright moon suspended in the sky. When thoughts fall into human desires, they are like floating clouds covering the sun.

Master Hanshan said:

Even if Heaven and Earth were overturned and mountains shaken, the heart could remain forever still. Once a thought is settled, it will not change for ten thousand years.

Master Tianyin said:

Though seeing and hearing cease, preserve the innate nature of awareness. With no thoughts or intentions in the heart, use this state to nourish the “fetal immortal” within—the symbol of a practitioner’s achievement in internal cultivation.

The Baoji Jing says that a bodhisattva abides in “thought that abides nowhere”—clinging neither to memories nor deliberately trying to forget them. Such abiding is called the Dharma realm, the true state shared by all phenomena. From this we can see that, since ancient times, Buddhas, patriarchs, sages, and immortals have all attained the wondrous Dao by stilling the mind and quieting thoughts.

Thus the Book of Documents says: “Even a reckless person can become a sage, so long as they restrain their thoughts.” Yet restraining thoughts requires personal practice before progress can be made. Otherwise, even if the heart is as vast and empty as the Great Void, the path of cultivation remains long; without taking each step, one cannot reach the destination.

The ancients said that without sufficient effort, nothing can be brought to completion. When cultivation reaches its utmost, one naturally enters a state without thought. Once one has truly attained thoughtlessness and constancy, the infant within the Mysterious Orifice—the crucial aperture in internal cultivation—becomes still and secure, no longer disturbed.

Liu Xugu said:

To accomplish the great work takes three thousand days; the wondrous function must be sustained without loss through all twelve double-hours of the day and night.

Chen Chaoyuan said:

Nourishing the embryo requires ten months; nurturing the infant and caring for it as a nursing mother would takes one thousand days.

The Old Man of the Muddy Pellet said:

Even a brief period of practice can bring results into view, but for the work to mature, three years are still required.

When the three years of practice are complete, the gentle nurturing is also finished. This is just as the Wuzhen Pian says: “In a fleeting instant, flames leap up, and the realized person appears of themselves.” After the realized person appears, one must rise from the Great Mystery to the Celestial Valley, a site of cultivation within the head. Then, by further stilling the mind and extinguishing thoughts, one can attain the wondrous power of spiritual communion and transformation.

Liu Haichan said:

After the trigrams have revolved and the firing times—the timing and progress of internal cultivation—have extended throughout the circuit of Heaven, the infant is nurtured in the lower Dantian. Suddenly, a thunderclap rises from the earth; the Gate of Qian, the aperture symbolizing the opening of Yang energy, swings wide, and light shines for ten thousand miles. The practitioner turns and pushes through the Pass of Great Mystery. Only then do they truly become an immortal.

Principles of the Method for Refining the Form in True Emptiness

(Diagram of Refining the Form in True Emptiness)

Pu Zhaofoxin said:

Some heterodox teachings treat the “self” as an object of contemplation, yet lament that people are always like someone trapped in a jar, going round and round. The highest level of cultivation is subtle and profound. One must seek a vast realm through the Mysterious Aperture (the subtle pivot through which one realizes the connection between body and mind and the Great Dao).

The method of refining the body through true emptiness—using stillness and quietude to bring body and mind into a state of lucid emptiness—is like moving a jar. If you are inside the jar, how can you move it? You must stand outside it. To be outside the jar is what Buddhism calls transcending oneself and dwelling in the midst of emptiness.

Thus Laozi says, “By standing beyond oneself, one can cultivate body and mind; by forgetting the body, one can preserve it.”

Xue Daoguang, a Daoist practitioner of internal alchemy, says, “If you can empty this illusory body, you can personally receive the true teachings transmitted by a sage master.”

Zhang Quanyi, a Daoist practitioner, says, “Take the Great Void—the boundless expanse of emptiness—as yourself, and first make your own being empty and still. When your being is empty, Heaven and Earth are empty too; when Heaven and Earth are empty, even the vast sky is empty. Only when there is nothing left to empty is emptiness truly complete.”

The Qingjing Jing says, “Look inward at your own mind, and see that it has no fixed, unchanging mind; look outward at your own body, and see that it has no fixed, unchanging form.” To have no fixed, substantial form is to have an empty body; to have no fixed, substantial mind is to have an empty mind. When the mind is empty and unimpeded, the spirit grows more responsive through cultivation; when the body is empty and unimpeded, the form grows purer through cultivation. Only when form and spirit permeate one another and body and mind become one can one attain the wondrous union of form and spirit and accord with the Great Dao.

The ancient immortals said: The human body is preserved by relying on the Dao, while the lifespan can be extended through methods of cultivation. These methods draw vitality from the inexhaustible Original Qi (the primordial energy described in Daoism) to sustain the finite body. The boundless Original Qi is the life-giving true essence contained in the Yin-Yang of Heaven and Earth, like the spiritual Qi generated by the true parents (a symbol of the fundamental power through which Heaven and Earth bring all things into being). The finite body, by contrast, is formed from the brief and mixed energies of ordinary parents. Thus, one should use the Qi of the true parents to transform the body born of ordinary parents, making it a form of pure Yang true essence; then one can live as long as Heaven and Earth.

The Venerable Sundarananda said: The World-Honored One (the Buddha) taught me to contemplate the white at the tip of my nose. I concentrated on this for twenty-one days and saw the breath entering and leaving my nostrils like smoke. My body and mind grew bright within, as though the whole world had become clear and transparent, filling empty space and a realm of purity like crystal. Gradually the smoky appearance faded, and my breath became white light. My mind suddenly opened; my afflictions were extinguished. All the breath entering and leaving became light, shining on the worlds in the ten directions. In this way, I attained the state of arhat (a state of liberation attained through Buddhist practice).

Zhu Yuanhui said:

There is whiteness at the tip of the nose; I simply contemplate it.

Mo Zhen said:

All my life I have prized elegance and ease, and often laughed at people who seek outside themselves. Among the myriad differences, there is nowhere to find it. What is truly attained turns out to be right at the tip of the nose.

Before a person is born, every inhalation and exhalation is connected to the mother’s body. After birth, every inhalation and exhalation is connected to Heaven and Earth. Heaven and humanity share a single Qi, linked and ceaselessly circulating, like a saw moving back and forth. Heaven and Earth bestow Qi upon a person, who can receive it; when Qi is abundant, one lives. Heaven and Earth reclaim this Qi, and the person loses it; when the breath stops, one dies.

Thus, the sages observed the patterns of the Dao’s (the Way’s) movement and investigated the workings of Heaven and Earth. They would often sit in stillness, focused and composed, when Yin and Yang were changing places, before Yang Qi (vital energy) had begun to rise, and all things lay quiet. With minds empty and still, they waited for the right moment: they gathered their thoughts inward, let go of every outward concern, and seemed to forget Heaven and Earth, no longer even mindful of the body’s form.

At such a time, a little Yang Qi seemed to arise from the void, subtle and full of life like dew or a flash of lightning. It entered through the Mysterious Gate—the subtle opening described in cultivation—passed along the body’s channels, and rose to the Mud Pill, the site of internal alchemy at the crown of the head. There it became sweet dew and descended into the Five Inner Organs. The cultivator then stirred the Xun Wind, the inner Qi moved by breathing or intention, to drive out stagnant impurities from the Three Passes and Nine Orifices, the important checkpoints and openings through which Qi moves in the body, and to clear the filth from the five viscera and six bowels. Through refining and nourishing, the body was tempered and its impurities gradually dissolved, as though turning into sweet dew that flowed into the five viscera. In this way, filth was gradually expelled and the body transformed from Yin to Yang. With long and sustained cultivation, the physical form could be transformed and one could become an immortal.

Chen Cuixu said:

“Golden light penetrates the whole body, and even the marrow seems to give off a fragrance; sinews and bones are transformed into pure Yang. When cultivation has turned red blood white and Yin Qi has been exhausted, the body becomes naturally healthy.”

Qiu Changchun said:

“If, with every breath, you continually turn your attention inward and remain mindful, you can gradually transform the physical form and set Jade Liquids flowing.”

Zhang Ziqiong said:

“Heaven and humanity originally emerge from the same Qi. Only the barrier of physical form keeps them from communicating. When cultivation brings form and spirit into union, one understands that visible forms are, in their essence, emptiness.”

Xue Fuming said:

“Before one understands, one calls it ‘Qi’; once one has truly attained it, one naturally knows what it is.”

Dong Hanchun said: “Gold must be smelted from ore before it can appear; the physical form, too, must be refined and nourished through Qi—the vital primordial energy spoken of in Daoism. There are six methods for refining the form in all…”

Xue Fuming also said:

“Before one understands, one calls it ‘Qi’; once one has truly attained it, one naturally knows what it is.”

Dong Hanchun says: When metal is smelted, its dross is removed. The human body, too, must be refined through Qi—the vital energy that forms the body and sustains the workings of Heaven and Earth. There are six methods of refining the body: refining it with Jade Liquid, with Golden Liquid, with Great Yin, with Great Yang, through inner observation, and through true emptiness. The first five have not yet reached the realm of the Great Dao of emptiness, and so cannot merge with the Great Void. Only the method of refining the body through true emptiness is the genuine way to do so. Though it appears to involve deliberate action, in essence it is Wuwei (non-action); though it is called refining the body, in essence it is refining the spirit. It begins with the body while cultivating the inner spirit at the same time.

After a hundred days of practice, the seven po—the traditional Daoist souls associated with the body—no longer appear; the Three Corpses, spirits believed to dwell within the body and hinder cultivation, vanish; the Six Thieves, a metaphor for the six sensory desires that disturb the mind, lie hidden; and the Ten Demons, a general term for the many obstacles that arise in cultivation, retreat far away. After a thousand days, the Four Great Elements that constitute the body—earth, water, fire, and wind—seem to become a crystal tower, clear and translucent inside and out. The heart shines brilliantly, and the numinous light appears. This “numinous light” is the light of wisdom. Hence the saying: “Where numinous light appears, the flower of awakening blooms.” Only through refining the body with profound subtlety, until body and mind merge mysteriously with the Dao, can one attain this state of wisdom and awakening.

The Shengshen Jing says: “When the spirits of the body unite as one, the inner and outer become transparent; the heart shines brilliantly, and the numinous light appears.” Numinous light is the light of wisdom. Hence the saying: “Where numinous light appears, the flower of awakening blooms.” Such wisdom and awakening can arise only when the body is refined with profound subtlety and merges mysteriously with the Dao.

The Shengshen Jing says: When the body and the divine spirit unite as one, the result is a true body. When the physical form joins with the divine spirit, it can move in accordance with the Great Dao. When the divine spirit withdraws from view, it guards the physical form and makes it strong. When the divine spirit appears, it joins with Qi. Thus, a person can walk across water and fire without hindrance and stand before the sun and moon without casting a shadow. The person controls life and death, departure and return; coming and going are unobstructed. Some keep their physical form and dwell in the world for a long time, while others shed their fleshly bodies and ascend to immortality.

Some ascended in broad daylight yet left their physical bodies behind; the Yellow Emperor is cited as an example. Some kept their physical forms and lived among people, like Peng Zu. Some received a mandate from Heaven and served in celestial offices, like Celestial Master Zhang. Some ascended to Heaven with their entire families and homes, like Xu Shiyang. Some appeared to be ill and died in old age, like Wang Chongyang. Others entered the world and served as officials, like Dongfang Shuo.

Some, like Laozi, served as archivists; Xin Heng became a minister, Yin Xi served as the commandant of Hangu Pass, and Bo Ji held the rank of high minister. Tang Dian lived in seclusion at Kunling, while Jiexiu governed the garden at Qiyuan. Four emperors took them as teachers, and the Four Elders of Shangshan assisted Emperor Hui of Han. Qiu Sheng served as an official in the Yin dynasty, Fu Guang in the Han, Ma Zhou in the Jin, and Haichan in the Yan. Zhengyangzi gave up office to cultivate the Dao, while Chunyangzi took the civil service examinations. Some had once held the reins and driven carts for others; others, like Qin Gao, carried a tablet of office—the hand board officials held when appearing at court. Examples like these are too numerous to count.

Alas! When immortals conceal themselves or appear, when they depart or remain—how could ordinary people in the world possibly fathom it? As for Liezi riding the wind through the air, and Bodhidharma crossing the river on a reed, how could they have become so light and risen aloft without cultivating and refining the physical form? This is a way of cultivation in which both physical form and divine spirit attain a wondrous state; it is beyond the understanding of those who die sitting or standing. Hence the error of abandoning one’s original body and entering another.

Therefore, practitioners of the immortal Dao or Buddhist Dharma who regard refining Shen (spirit and mind) as the essential practice, yet do not understand the importance of refining the body, may become pure, luminous, and benevolent spirits, but they still cannot be compared with high immortals. In general, nurturing and refining the body are inseparable: although the scriptures discuss them in two different places, they express the same principle. Inner and outer cultivation can proceed at the same time without hindering one another. If you can devote yourself wholeheartedly to practice for ten uninterrupted days, the time will come to let go of all attachments.

At that point, you will naturally reach a state beyond words and beyond the grasp of thought: both the mind that observes and the object it observes disappear, and form and emptiness are extinguished together. The mind is free of obstruction, untouched by attachment to external things. The body is like a wild goose in flight, impossible to confine; the mind is like a lotus, untouched by water. Inwardly, it is bright and pure; in one’s conduct, easy and unrestrained. One moves in accord with nature and becomes a carefree person, free from affairs and from contrived action.

At this stage, the infant—a metaphor in Neidan practice for the newly born original spirit—gradually appears, with a form no different from that of an ordinary person. The closer one comes to this stage, the more one must conceal one’s radiance and keep the mind calm. If joy and self-satisfaction arise, they will invite disturbances from the external world.

Chen Niluan said:

“I once practiced for a year. The six pulses had ceased, and Qi had returned to its root. In my Dantian was an infant, with a form just like mine.”

When the infant grows, the Dantian can no longer contain it. It will naturally break through the gates and rise out through the crown of the head. This is called leaving the sea of suffering and reaching the other shore.

Chan Master Yongming Yanshou said:

“While in the sea of suffering, I was fortunate to rely on this iron Arhat. Once free of that sea, I cast aside the raft used to cross the river and stepped onto the other shore.”

Perfected Person Chen Guanwu said:

“Having left the waves of this shore behind, one reaches the other shore and learns that life can be prolonged. Once one has been able to return, one should preserve what one has gained forever; the raft used to cross the river has become a ladder to heaven.”

Turn the awareness inward to the inner courtyard—the tranquil realm of inner cultivation—sit upright and still, and gather the mind and spirit.

(Diagram of Sitting Upright with Hands Folded and Mind in Deep Stillness; Diagram of the Fivefold Transformation of the Body; Diagram of Riding the Phoenix into the Heavens; Diagram of the Yang Spirit Appearing)

At the beginning of cultivation, one must act: gather the medicines and refine the elixir to complete the cultivation of life. At the end, one must act through Wuwei (non-action), hold fast to the One, quiet the mind, and enter meditation to complete the cultivation of nature.

The Wuzhen pian says:

At first, intentional effort is easy for everyone to recognize. When one reaches the state of Wuwei, people begin to understand. They see only that Wuwei is the Dao’s subtle mystery, and do not know that active cultivation is the foundation of practice.

The Zhengdao ge says:

Reaching the state of Wuwei does not mean doing nothing at all. Only then do I understand that the Dao I speak of is profound, subtle, and difficult to express.

Those ordinary people who remain fixated on outward appearances, and those who leave home to cultivate the Dao but stray from the right path, know only one side of cultivation and not the other. They know the wonders at hand but not the profound principles on the other shore; they know only quietude and stillness, but not that cultivation also involves rare and subtle work; they know only Wuwei, but not the methods of active cultivation. They know one side but not the other: they cultivate nature but not life.

Before the Daoist alchemical path is complete, if one does not understand that practice must begin with foundational active work, but clings instead to emptiness and stillness, one is called a “person fallen into emptiness.” After the alchemical path is complete, if one does not understand how to advance further into Wuwei, but clings to bodily form, one is called a “corpse-guarding ghost.”

Shi Xinglin says:

Though there is something real, one does not cling to it as a solid thing. Even within Wuwei, there is active cultivation.

Chen Niluan says:

I have heard that the sage masters of old accomplished everything through Wuwei.

Yin Changsheng says:

The realized person of Wuwei dwells in the upper realm, in tranquil emptiness, where nothing of the mundane world can obstruct them. First complete the work of active cultivation, then enter Wuwei. Even upon reaching Wuwei, there is still work to cultivate.

To say that “the realized person dwells in the upper realm” means what Yin Changsheng describes: the realized person of Wuwei abides in a tranquil, lofty realm, beyond the obstruction of worldly affairs. First cultivate the work of active practice to completion, then enter Wuwei; even within Wuwei, cultivation continues.

“The perfected person dwelling in the upper realm” refers to the infant’s leaving the sea of suffering and moving to the Celestial Valley. “Empty stillness and a tranquil mind” describes what Lüzu called the method of quieting stray thoughts in a state of dark stillness, so that the true mind may unite with the Dao.

Shi Jianwu said, “Bodhidharma faced a wall for nine years before he could ascend to the Inner Court and draw near the World-Honored One; he quieted his mind for six years before he could escape the bonds of the mundane world.”

“To quiet the mind” means dwelling deep within a silent room, sitting upright and unmoving, keeping silent, untouched by even a speck of dust, and forgetting every concern. Do not think deliberately or act deliberately; let things follow their own course. Neither look nor listen; guard the spirit and keep the mind calm. Do not cling to what is within or what is without; do not seek deliberately or respond deliberately. Cling neither to forms nor to emptiness, and keep clear of delusion and false thoughts. Let body and mind rest in emptiness and stillness while remaining lucid and clear. Simply observe the original mind in this quiet way, bringing all things into unity. Then the infant can dwell securely in a realm of pure clarity and rest in a place of stillness: physical things cannot obstruct it, and emptiness cannot bind it. Body and mind are like empty space, at ease and free.

Thus the Chan Master Daguan said:

“Forms cannot bind it, and emptiness cannot obstruct it. Quiet the stray thoughts and observe the original mind in stillness, and you will be free. All things throughout the vast universe return at last to nothingness; when the world is destroyed, it too will remain undestroyed.”

Tan Changzhen said:

“The infant moves to the upper Dantian (the Neidan practice site above the head), where it sits upright and quiets its mind, in harmony with the Dao of Nature. Continue the practice until the three thousand meritorious deeds are complete; whether one becomes a Buddha or ascends to immortality, let it be.”

This describes a practice of pure, undivided concentration. How could it allow even the slightest trace of emotional attachment or delusive thought? If the mind still hopes to become an immortal or a Buddha, it falls straight into the threshold of life and death and cannot escape them.

Thus Guan Yinzi said, “If the mind recoils from life and death, or single-mindedly seeks to transcend them, that can only be called demonic, not the Dao.”

Therefore, in a state of clarity and stillness, the mind should be open and spacious, lucid and bright, clinging to nothing and abiding in no thought.

This is the essential teaching of the mind method.

When stillness and purity are maintained, body and mind are empty, clear, and transparent. There is nothing to grasp at, and nothing to which they remain attached.

The Essentials of the Mind says:

“Let the mind return to a state of non-attachment, and it will become perfectly open and unobstructed, beyond measure.”

The Diamond Sutra says: “One should not give rise to a thought by clinging to forms, nor by clinging to sounds, scents, tastes, touch, or any kind of idea. One should give rise to a mind that clings to nothing.”

The sutra names a figure “Bodhisattva Vajra Equal,” who says: “I rely neither on abiding somewhere nor on abiding nowhere. This is how I abide.”

Sengzhao says: “The sage’s mind abides in non-abiding. This abiding is ‘sitting in forgetfulness’”—letting go of attachment to external things and the self, so the mind returns to emptiness and stillness.

A treatise says: “The mind relies on no thing, yet remains constantly at rest.”

The Scripture on Understanding the Mind says: “The mind clings to nothing, and does not turn ‘non-abiding’ into a new object of attachment. Only when grasping has been completely relinquished can true nature emerge in non-abiding.”

The Vimalakirti Sutra says: “All dharmas have non-abiding as their root. To abide in Wuwei (non-action), a state free of contrivance and grasping, is true abiding. Non-abiding means that the mind has no fixed place of reliance; the mind that abides nowhere is the true mind.”

The Anthology on the Source of Chan says: “‘Mind’ is the name given to the mind; ‘knowing’ is the mind’s essence.”

Heze, the name of a Chan school, says: “The mind’s essence has awareness; awareness is the mind. The mind’s nature is empty and still, yet also open, quiet, and luminous. Awareness that arises naturally from this empty stillness and openness is called ‘prior knowing’; discernment that arises naturally from it is called ‘prior awakening.’ To discern without deliberation is right awakening; to know without reflection is true knowing.”

Thus the patriarchs say: “Within the empty and still essence, wisdom is present from the beginning, able to know.” This empty, still, and aware mind is the pure mind transmitted by Bodhidharma. The mind’s constant stillness is the essence of its own nature; its constant awareness is the function of that nature.

Thus the Sixth Patriarch Huineng said, “All phenomena are inseparable from one’s own nature—the mind-nature one has had from the beginning. One’s own nature can know, see, and awaken to itself. Once awakened to one’s own nature, one can deliver oneself.” Awakening to one’s original nature is relatively easy; fully understanding this mind is difficult. To “understand the mind” means to know this mind. When the mind is truly understood, one no longer clings to the idea that there is a fixed, unchanging “mind.” Only when there is no clinging mind can it be called the true mind. The true mind is one’s original nature, and one’s original nature is the mind.

The Supreme One said, “Understand the mind, and you will see your true nature; understand your nature, and you will know the true mind. Only when emptiness is so complete that there is nothing left to cling to as empty is it truly understood.” This is what is meant by “true emptiness is not empty”: within emptiness there is nothing to cling to as “emptiness,” and only then can one truly see the original mind.

Layman Pang said:

“People from the worlds in all ten directions gather here, each learning Wuwei (non-action): not acting recklessly and not clinging. This is the place where Buddhas are chosen. Those whose minds are empty of clinging return as though they had passed the examination.”

Furthermore, when awakening and emptiness are brought to perfection, even the distinction between “emptiness” and “that which is empty” disappears. This is seeing one’s original nature completely.

The Avatamsaka Sutra (Huayan Jing) says:

“The nature of the Dharma—the fundamental nature of all things—is originally empty and still. There is nothing to grasp and nothing to behold. The empty stillness of one’s own nature is Buddhahood; it cannot be grasped through thought and discrimination.”

Ultimately, one’s own nature is originally empty and still, and the mind’s essence is originally settled. To cling neither to “emptiness” nor to “the absence of emptiness” is called ultimate emptiness. To cling neither to “stillness” nor to “the absence of stillness” is called true concentration. In cultivating emptiness, one does not treat “emptiness” as a state to attain or deliberately dwell on it; this is true emptiness. In cultivating concentration, one does not treat “concentration” as a state to attain or deliberately dwell on it; this is true concentration.

When emptiness and concentration reach a balanced perfection, all things can be understood without obstruction. Once the inner conditions come to light and wisdom shines clear, it is like a lotus suddenly opening, or awakening from a dream: the natural state appears at once, filling heaven and earth without end. The mind-nature is then constantly bright, clear and undimmed, illuminating heaven and earth and shedding light on past and present. Its transformations have no fixed pattern, and its wonder is beyond measure. Even while still using ordinary eyes, one can reveal the radiance of the wisdom eye—the insight that penetrates one’s true nature. This is not the view that an ordinary mind is simply exchanged for a Buddha’s mind; it is a thorough seeing of one’s own nature, joined with meticulous and profound cultivation. In this way, one can bring one’s own nature to complete clarity and instantly possess the six spiritual powers, the six extraordinary forms of wisdom and ability described in Buddhism.

What does “the six powers transform without limit, their spiritual wonders impossible to fathom” mean? It means that although a practitioner still has ordinary eyes, the clear perception of the wisdom eye can manifest. This does not mean turning an ordinary person’s mind into a Buddha’s mind. Rather, it is because the practitioner has seen into their nature with complete clarity and advanced in practice to a subtle and profound state. When the mind and nature are fully realized and clear, all six spiritual powers can be present at once.

What are the six powers? According to Master Yuyang, while sitting in meditation, a light may suddenly appear within the mind: inwardly, one can see the internal organs; outwardly, one can see one’s own eyebrows and beard. The mind becomes lively, as though one could write ten thousand words in a day and speak at length without pause about profound principles. This is called “the power of mental insight.” Without leaving home, one can know what will happen in the future; while in a room, one can see objects through a wall. This is called “the power of spiritual movement.” While sitting upright, one may suddenly grow drowsy and bewildered, as though Heaven and Earth had not yet separated. After a while, the mind’s aperture opens wide, and mountains, rivers, and the lay of the land become as clear as the lines on one’s palm. This is called “the power of the heavenly eye.” One can hear sounds from distant places as though they were right beside one’s ear; one can recall events from past lives as though seeing them with one’s own eyes. This is called “the power of the heavenly ear.” By day or by night, upon entering deep meditative absorption—a state of practice in which the mind and spirit are unified, quiet, and unmoving—one can see Heaven above and Hell below, and clearly perceive the destinies of one’s past lives across countless kalpas, or immensely long spans of time. This is called “the power of knowing past lives.” One’s spiritual powers and transformations become free and unhindered: one can perceive beings in all ten directions and know the hidden thoughts in other people’s minds. Before another person’s thought has even arisen, one already knows it; before it has begun to take shape, one has already perceived it. This is called “the power of knowing others’ minds.”

Zisi said, “The subtle essence of the mind is sagehood.” Thus, when the mind is settled, wisdom arises; when it is still, it responds to all things; when it is quiet, it sees clearly; when it is empty and open, it penetrates; when it is sincere, it understands; and when it is calm and vacant, it perceives.

The Fourth Patriarch Daoxin said, “All spiritual powers and functions arise through the responsiveness of one’s own mind.”

The Yingluo Jing says: Shen is also called the “Heavenly Heart” and is commonly known as “innate wisdom”—the numinous clarity present from birth. This natural wisdom sees through all things without clinging to anything, and so it is called “spiritual powers.” Once these powers are fully present, one should become still and contain them, drawing their radiance inward and not displaying one’s wisdom. If one lets it shine outward, one may become tainted by demons.

An old saying goes, “The Dao rises one foot; the demons rise ten.” When practice enters right concentration—a state in which the mind and spirit are settled and undisturbed by external conditions—one may sometimes hear voices of all kinds, good and bad, or see scenes that are pleasing or troubling. These are all demonic obstructions; do not cling to them. One should also restrain one’s wisdom and keep it from showing. If it is allowed to shine outward, one may become tainted by demons.

One should also look back upon oneself: the body is temporarily formed from the coming together of the “Four Great Elements”—earth, water, fire, and wind. It is not real, but like a dream or illusion; the body as a whole has no true substance. Simply guard this mind, and the demonic obstructions will naturally disperse.

An old saying goes, “If you see a strange thing and do not regard it as strange, the strangeness will vanish; if you see a demon and do not recognize it as a demon, the demon will naturally disappear.” Sometimes the mind may seem to ring with thunderclaps, brilliant golden sparks may flash before the eyes, red clouds may swirl above the head, or a round radiance may emerge between the brows. These are only illusions. Do not let them move your mind; simply continue your practice and do not take them as signs of attainment.

Thus the ancient immortals said, “A light appearing below the neck is still an illusion; clouds rising beneath the feet do not mean you have become an immortal.” While sitting in stillness, you may suddenly see towers and pavilions, pearl and jade ornaments, singing and dancing, or a round radiance rising among strange flowers and plants. These too are illusions. Do not cling to them; simply continue your practice and do not take them as proof that you have succeeded.

In stillness, you may also see towers and pavilions, pearl and jade ornaments, singing, dancing, and wind instruments, or strange flowers and plants, with the scene before you seeming like a painting. If practitioners do not understand that these are illusory realms and mistake them for having arrived in a celestial palace, they may take the “inner courtyard” within themselves—their inner realm of cultivation—to be a real heavenly realm. They may become absorbed in it and unable to transcend it. In such a situation, use the “contemplation of emptiness”: contemplate body, mind, and surroundings as empty, and let awareness expand into boundless space. Allow the mind and its surroundings to expand continually, so that the spirit of the “Heavenly Valley”—the inner seat of spirit—rises into the Great Void and becomes one with it.

The “Contemplation of Emptiness” means contemplating one’s own original mind. The original mind neither arises nor perishes. Its innate nature is complete: it is originally empty and still, yet its light shines everywhere, like the clear, pure, boundless expanse of the void. This light is white and bright like a full moon, vast enough to match the void, without any limit.

Next, contemplate your own being: the emptiness within the mind connects with the emptiness within the body; the body’s emptiness connects with the emptiness of Heaven and Earth; and the emptiness of Heaven and Earth connects with the emptiness of Taiji (the Supreme Ultimate). Layer upon layer, these expanses of emptiness interpenetrate and become one, vast and without bounds. Through this contemplation, do you not merge with the Great Void—the boundless substance of the cosmos?

First bring the mind to emptiness and stillness; then bring the body to emptiness and stillness; then go further and contemplate Heaven and Earth as empty and still. Reach the state of “being empty without clinging to emptiness, and being unempty yet able to become empty.” You no longer notice yourself as empty, nor as unempty. Then the Yang Spirit—the spiritual body spoken of in cultivation—can surge into the void and move freely in and out without obstruction. Only then can one be said to share the De of Heaven and Earth and the same substance as the Great Void, becoming a person merged with the void.

What is described here is only a step on the path to the realm of the Great Void; it has not yet reached that realm itself. It may be called “refining the spirit,” but not yet “emerging as spirit.”

To ascend to the higher realm of the Emperor, one should refine and nourish the Grain Spirit—the subtle, numinous spirit described in Daoist teachings. One should remain in a state of lucid calm and silent awareness, keeping the mind like the void without clinging to it. One should also contemplate and hold fast to the root, allowing life to return to its source and to Taiji. Through continued effort on this foundation, one advances until there is no higher place to reach. The realm becomes so wondrous that it has no form to describe, yet it manifests naturally. At that point, the wondrous workings of a single numinous spirit extend throughout the Dharma Realm—the total realm on which all things depend—and flow seamlessly through Heaven, Earth, and the Milky Way, rising until they unite with the firmament. This is the most consummate and subtle state of cultivation of the Heavenly Valley Original Spirit, the innate numinous spirit within.

Thus Zhang Silian says: When you realize the complete nature of Taiji (the Supreme Ultimate), the source of the universe, you can see your original face. The single spark of innate true nature is the real foundation; the body formed after birth is merely like a house.

Yingchanzi says: Once you have refined the Yang Spirit, the pure Yang spiritual form attained through cultivation, and sent it forth from the body, you can transcend the Realm of Form, the world of material things, and enter the Formless Realm, beyond material form. Having realized the wondrous Dao, you should conceal yourself in ordinary life, live among people without showing off your abilities. Though you dwell in the mortal world, do not go along with its currents; though you live amid turmoil, let others find your conduct and depth difficult to fathom. In daily life, keep your identity hidden and quietly accumulate hidden merit by doing good without seeking reward. Open your heart, offer the nourishment of the Dharma to teach and sustain others, guide those who come after you, and deliver all beings from suffering. Repay the Buddha’s grace above, and aid all beings below.

The Diamond Sutra says: “All kinds of beings—whether born from eggs, wombs, moisture, or transformation; whether with form or without form, with thought or without thought, or neither with thought nor without thought—I will lead them all into the nirvana without remainder, the liberation of complete quiescence, and deliver them.” Yet after delivering immeasurable, innumerable, boundless beings, in truth not a single being has been delivered. The scripture therefore says that when the World-Honored One, Shakyamuni Buddha, attained the Dao, he awakened great compassion for delivering all beings and declared: “First deliver all beings; only then become a Buddha.”

Master Zhao says: Our nature never arose, and so it does not perish. This is the true mind recognized by saints through the ages. Only after all beings have been delivered does one enter nirvana; this too is the true realm toward which saints through the ages ultimately turn.

Wang Fangping says:

When the luan birds and immortal cranes arrive, I ride the purple clouds; the Jade Emperor issues an edict, summoning me to ascend the immortal path. Once the nine generations of ancestors, near and distant, have ascended to heaven, and all beings have been delivered, then I will deliver myself.

Alas, consider the ancient Buddhas and great immortals: how vast their aspirations were! Today, some people obtain a single teaching or formula and keep it secret, afraid it might be revealed. Compared with the ancients, should we not feel deeply ashamed?

For a long time, my mind has been free of distracting thoughts. Yet before I had first liberated myself, I was already thinking of liberating others. I have carried this thought in my heart and could not let it go. I now set these words down and have revealed all the mysteries I know; only the final layer of meaning remains unexplained. I will discuss it now.

Daoist texts say, “The Yin spirit can see others; the Yang spirit can be seen by others.” Those who cultivate only one side, either nature or life, refine a Yin spirit. The Yin spirit has a shadow but no substance; this is what people call a “ghost immortal.” Those who cultivate nature and life together refine a Yang spirit. The Yang spirit has both shadow and form; this is what people call a “heavenly immortal.” Thus, the Dao has no form in itself, and the worth of becoming an immortal lies in manifesting form.

However, the alchemical scriptures sternly warn against emerging from the body too soon. Once the Yang spirit has been refined, it should be allowed to return to its root. Practitioners should constantly gather their awareness within the “Heavenly Valley” (the inner spirit chamber in the head), returning to the state of an infant: knowing nothing, deeply still and quiet, and letting the Yang radiance escape neither outward nor away. In this way, the Yang spirit will grow ever larger through nourishment, becoming more profound and luminous. Transformation and the generation of spirits will arise naturally. Spirit will give birth to spirit without end; transformation will follow transformation without limit, bringing forth countless generations.

Zhang Ziyang said:

Each year, one son is conceived. Every one of them can radiate light and naturally transform, generating spirit. Spirit gives birth to spirit without end; transformation follows transformation without limit, bringing forth countless generations.

Zhang Ziyang said:

Each year, one son is conceived, and each one can ride a crane.

Chen Niluan said:

After a year of gestation, one son is born. The son then has a grandson, and the grandson gives rise to further branches.

Bai Yuchan said:

One original body can manifest in many places, like the bright moon reflected in a thousand bodies of water, seeming to have many forms.

He also said:

Enter into a bright mirror, and the light will abide in the forms of the myriad things.

Daoist practitioners call this level of cultivation “separation of the spirit body,” while Buddhists call it “transformation body.” For example, although the World-Honored One (the Buddha) remained beneath the Bodhi tree, he could travel everywhere to the heavenly palaces and preach the Dharma. And although the youth Sudhana never left the grove of śāla trees, it was as if he had journeyed through 210 cities, visiting all the wise teachers.

The Sovereign Lord of Donghua said:

The Dharma body—the true body realized through cultivation—is vigorous and vast, reaching through Heaven and Earth. True nature is perfectly integrated and luminous, connecting past and present. Until the crown gate has opened and the true eye of wisdom has been attained, one should not let one’s form and shadow disperse and divide.

Though the separation of spirit and dispersal of shadow is wondrous, if one remains bound by the illusory, transformed fleshly body, one has not truly transcended. To seek a thousand transformations at this stage would only injure one’s original body. One must cultivate for nine years until the work is fully ripened; even then, one should not rush to leap beyond the Five Phases and return to the primal beginning of the Limitless. First, one must realize the true and mysterious state, bringing true achievement to ever greater perfection, until at last one attains an indestructible Vajra body and becomes one who does not die. One awakens oneself and enables others to awaken, carrying on and spreading the seed of the Buddha’s teaching. When three thousand merits are complete, a white crane comes to welcome one; when eight hundred good deeds are fulfilled, the Celestial Emperor issues an edict written in cinnabar, commanding one to ascend to the Golden Pavilion and return to the imperial homeland.

Elder Zhongli said:

After nine years of cultivation, the work is accomplished and worldly affairs are settled. From then on, one may range freely through Heaven and Earth, no longer constrained by the human world.

Xiao Zixu said:

After the work is accomplished, one must still cultivate the method of spirit emergence. Even while dwelling amid the splendor of the inner court, one is not entangled by external things. One must grasp the methods by which the ancient immortals transcended, then ride a crane in carefree flight and behold the realms of the Three Pure Ones.

The immortals each left their bodily shell in a different way: some emerged from a pagoda, some from a red tower; some emerged while gazing at the moon, others while looking into a mirror, and still others burst forth through the crown gate.

Thus the Collection of Profound Mysteries says:

Block the road leading to the Yellow Springs and force open the gate of the Purple Mansion, the spirit palace within the brain. How did Master Hǎichán transform into a crane and emerge from the Mud Ball, the spirit palace in the head?

The Anthology of Central Harmony says:

When cultivation is complete, an aperture opens at the crown of the head. Within it lies another world.

Where is the "Dingmen yiqiao" (dingmen yiqiao, the cultivation aperture at the center of the crown) easiest to open? One first circulates the "Sanmei fire" (sanmei huo, an inner fire used as a metaphor in neidan, or internal alchemy) to break through it, but it does not open. Then one gathers the "Taiyang fire" (taiyang huo, a yang-natured fire that likewise refers to practice) and strikes it, and only then does it open slightly. The two fires keep rising and surging against each other. In an instant, red light fills the space, as though another world had come into being.

Where the Dingmen yiqiao opens most easily is a question of fire timing. First one circulates the Sanmei fire to break through, but it does not open. Then one gathers the Taiyang fire and strikes, and only then does it open a little. The two fires keep rising and clashing. In a moment, red light fills all around, purple flames cover the sky, and suddenly a thunderclap sounds and the crown gate opens.

Therefore Lü Chunyang (Lü Dongbin) said:

"After nine years of refining the fire timing, the Celestial Gate suddenly breaks open at the crown of the head. The True Person appears, possessing great spiritual powers. From then on, one may celebrate becoming a Celestial Immortal (tianxian)."

Once the True Person appears, he mounts the clouds and rides the flying dragon, ascending to the Jade Capital (the immortal palace) and roaming the Celestial Gates (the gates of heaven). He floats lightly among the clouds and soars through the void. Holding the golden writ sealed in phoenix script, he goes to the Hall of Nine Yang to pay court, partakes of immortal peaches and jade nectar, and takes his seat at the feast of the myriad sages. When he wishes to travel at will, luan birds drive the carriage ahead; when he climbs into the clouds, dragon chariots come forward to greet him. Should he wish to visit the Turtle Palace of the Purple Mansion, a crane dances overhead; should he prepare to tour the Cinnabar Terrace and Jade Garden, clouds rise beneath his feet.

Even if kalpa fires burn across the earth, he remains at ease in the realm of suchness (zhenru). Even if the vast sea turns into mulberry fields, he roams freely in the land of supreme bliss. When gathered, he can take human form; when dispersed, he can become breath. He appears and vanishes beyond reckoning, transforming without end. He enters water and fire without being drowned or burned, and walks between the sun and moon without form or shadow. Blades cannot harm him, nor can tigers and rhinoceroses. Yin and Yang cannot change him, and the Five Phases cannot shape him. Yama, the King of the Dead, cannot govern his death, and Indra, lord of the heavens, cannot control his life. He moves freely in all directions and comes and goes without hindrance. Truly so!

Zi Yang (Zhang Boduan) said:

"Once a single spirit pill is swallowed into the belly, only then does one know that one's life is not ordained by Heaven."

This is the moment when a great man attains his wishes and achieves his merit. When a person reaches this stage, how could they not be exhilarated?

Heroes of the world mostly pursue fame and rank, exhausting their strength, only to end in emptiness. Only the Golden Elixir (jindan, the result of Neidan, or internal alchemy, cultivation) is truly numinous, enabling a person to manifest spiritual powers in the Great Luo Heaven (the supreme celestial realm in Daoist cosmology).

The Essential Guide to the Dual Cultivation of Nature and Life (Xingming Shuangxiu Wanshen Guizhi), Section Nine: Oral Instructions

The Original Substance Is Void and Transcends the Three Realms

(Diagram of Transcending the Three Realms; Diagram of Attaining Fruition through Vairocana)

The Zitong Huashu (Transformations of the Zitong) records: "I once served at court, and upon hearing the teachings of those who cultivate the Way beyond the mundane world, I resigned my honors and turned toward the Daoist path. Later I met a recluse who transmitted to me through mind-seal (xinyin, the heart-to-heart transmission of essential teachings between master and disciple) and told me the oral formula, saying: 'This is the method by which the Great Western Sage (referring to the Buddha) entered stillness. If you can keep it in mind and practice it, you will transcend birth and death. When the body dies, the true nature does not perish, and in the end you will attain perfect enlightenment (zhengjue). If you abandon the practice halfway, you can still choose a place to dwell in peace and may become an immortal.'"

Accordingly, I examined the immortals of the Han and Tang periods and found that many departed at exactly this stage. Is this not what the Huashu means by "abandoning the practice halfway"? I then read Longya's verse: "Studying the Way is like drilling wood for fire; one who sees only smoke must not stop." When I examined the immortals of the Song and Yuan periods, I found that many were liberated and departed at this same stage. Is this not what Longya meant by "stopping upon seeing smoke"?

Although these individuals did become immortals and departed, they lacked the final stage of effort, and so their attainment remained somewhat insecure. As Fu Dashi (Layman Fu) said, "Even after cultivating for eighty thousand kalpas, one may still ultimately return to emptiness." Perhaps they did not realize that their lifespan was limited and so ran out of time to cultivate further; or perhaps they did not know this method and therefore could not continue the practice.

Daoist practitioners who cultivate life stop after "refining jing (essence) into qi, refining qi into shen (spirit), and refining shen to return to emptiness," and so they ultimately omit the stage of "refining emptiness to unite with the Dao." Therefore, the Unsurpassed Master says: "To nourish the Golden Elixir like a full moon still leaves the inevitability of both fullness and waning; it is better to refine it into the state of the red sun..."

Therefore, the Unsurpassed Master says: "Cultivate the Golden Elixir until it is as full as the moon, and you still cannot escape the fact that a full moon must wane. Why not go further and refine a single red sun, so that the Three Realms and the Ten Directions (all the worlds and spaces within the Buddhist and Daoist cosmology) are made bright and transparent?"

When a sage cultivates to the highest attainment, the lack of this stage means the work is not complete. The alchemical manuals and most Daoist writings do not reach this final step; only Li Qing'an (Qingan) spoke of the matter.

Someone asked Qing'an: "After the sloughing of the embryo (tuotai), is there still transformation and change?"

Qing'an replied: "There is still transformation. The sage said that having a body beyond the body is not yet extraordinary; only when the void is shattered does the complete and true nature appear. Therefore, after the sloughing of the embryo, one must press on with solid, practical cultivation until one merges with the void, and only then is the matter truly concluded."

He also said: "There is still the stage of refining the void (lianxu), which must be realized beyond words." His insight may be said to surpass that of many immortals.

Yet he never stated plainly what one should actually do. How to refine the void and where it finally leads were described in vague and evasive terms. I do not know whether he failed to grasp the intention of the patriarchs and therefore could not explain it, or whether he feared to reveal the heavenly secret and so dared not speak.

For this reason, Shuiqiuzi sighed: "Break through the void and dissolve a hundred million kalpas; having already reached the other shore, one should abandon the ferry. Having read thousands of alchemical books, no one has spoken that final sentence."

This secret treasure of the mind-seal (xinyin, a method of cultivation transmitted mind to mind) is said to have been personally transmitted by the Buddha and passed down through successive patriarchs. When the transmission of the robe and bowl ended with the Sixth Patriarch, it was no longer handed on to the later buddhas, and the secret treasure was sealed away. From then on, few came to know of it, which is why it is said: "Even now there is no Seventh Patriarch."

Then came my teacher, Master Yin. Because he had long possessed a deep spiritual root and received the principle transmitted separately outside the teachings, one day he penetrated the barrier of Chan, and was suddenly and thoroughly enlightened. Thus the thousand buddhas' secret treasure was reopened in our own time.

Thus the Verse on Awakening to the Dao (Wudao Ji) says: "When the doubts within the mind are thoroughly broken, the seal-flower of the mind of the thousand Buddhas blooms right here. At the very top of a tall pole, one must still step forward; the True Lord in the void is the teacher of heaven and of humanity."

Now that I have received my teacher's instruction and obtained this method, it is like acquiring a priceless pearl. As the monk Jiannan said: "Since I obtained this bright pearl, I have not wished for the lofty positions of Shi (Shakyamuni, as the Buddhists call him), Brahma, or the Wheel-Turning King (the ideal universal monarch)." Yet the realm of the Buddha is extremely high, and one must reach the substance of the Great Void. Only by realizing the substance of the Great Void can one attain unsurpassed, complete and perfect enlightenment (the highest awakening) and enter Nirvana (the state of liberation from birth and death).

Therefore Shao Yong (Shao Kangjie) said: "The sage shares one substance with the Great Void and shares one function with heaven and earth." People of today, seeking the meaning of this saying and failing to grasp it, sigh and say: "Take the substance of the Great Void as one's own substance, and take the function of heaven and earth as one's own function." This is like looking at the sun through a window and seeing nothing but its light and shadow.

If we take the substance of the Great Void as our substance, we treat the Great Void as a ready-made object and cling to "substance." How then could we reach the Great Void? If we take the function of heaven and earth as our function, we treat heaven and earth as a ready-made object and cling to "function." How then could we merge with heaven and earth? Yet, does the Great Void know that it has a substance, or does it not know? Does heaven and earth know that it has a function, or does it not know? The Great Void does not know itself as having a substance, and yet the function of heaven and earth lies within the substance of the Great Void. Heaven and earth do not know themselves as having a function, and yet the substance of the Great Void lies within the function of heaven and earth. To realize the substance that one realizes is to realize its function; to apply the function that one applies is to apply its substance. Only when the void itself is utterly shattered is the matter truly concluded. Why is this so?

Cultivation must return to the root realm of emptiness. This original substance is fundamentally empty of any thing. If one clings to the image of "emptiness" (xukong), it is no longer the true emptiness of the substance. It also cannot be grasped, and if the mind still holds the thought of "shattering everything and returning to void," then one has not truly emptied. Therefore, only when one does not cling even to the recognition that "there is an empty substance" can one speak of the substance of Taixu (Great Void) heaven and earth, and only when one also lets go of the single thought of "shattering" can one speak of the emptiness of Taixu. At this point, though one has seen through the substance of emptiness, one has not yet truly settled oneself within it.

The Huayan Jing (Avatamsaka Sutra) says: "Fa xing ru xukong, zhufo yu zhong zhu" ("The nature of dharmas is like empty space; all buddhas dwell within it"). Arriving here, one understands that emptiness is the substance and the substance is emptiness. Still, one must keep working and press upward without pause, until at the point where the mountains and waters end, one turns and moves forward again, crosses the top of the hundred-foot pole, and finally reaches the root that neither arises nor perishes, abiding in the awakened state of non-arising and non-ceasing. This is the ultimate of cultivation. Its essential meaning is nothing more than letting oneself return to non-being and revert to nothingness. What is called "fanfu" (returning and reverting) is simply turning back to the direction and occasion of cultivation.

Hence it is said: "Yi nian hui ji, bian tong ben de" ("With one thought the mechanism turns back, and one is at once identical with what one originally obtained"). A person's original beginning comes from non-being: non-being transforms into shen (spirit), spirit transforms into qi (vital energy), qi transforms into form, and following this direction of development, one is born as a human. Now cultivation runs in reverse. Form returns to qi, qi returns to spirit, and spirit returns to emptiness. By cultivating against the direction of generation, one can become an immortal.

Ancient practitioners said: "What is higher than heaven? It is the root that gives birth to heaven." [The original text here immediately repeats the earlier discussion of birth as a human through forward generation and of becoming an immortal through reverse cultivation.]

Ancient people who attained the Dao (Dao, the Way) said: What is higher than Heaven? The root that gives birth to Heaven. What is vaster than the void? The root that moves the void. The Great Dao is the root of the void, the void is the root of Heaven and Earth, and Heaven and Earth are the root of the myriad things. Heaven and Earth are broad, so they can nourish the myriad things. The void has no boundary, so it can give birth to Heaven and Earth. Yet within the void there is a root that appears empty but is not empty, and so even the void is generated by it. Everything said to generate Heaven, Earth, and the myriad things is ultimately governed by this root of "emptiness that is not empty."

Because it is "empty yet not empty," this root can penetrate into the nature of the myriad things and govern and harmonize them. It can likewise penetrate into the nature of Heaven and Earth and govern and harmonize them, and it can penetrate into the void and govern and harmonize that as well.

"Emptiness that is not empty" is true emptiness (zhenkong), and true emptiness is the Dao. The true emptiness spoken of here does not mean nothingness. It refers to a root that transcends the ordinary distinction between emptiness and existence, and that is able to generate and operate the myriad things. The practice of "refining the spirit to return to emptiness" (lianshen huanxu, refining the spirit so that it returns to stillness and void), as cultivators speak of it today, still belongs to a shallower level. It has not yet reached the realm of truly comprehending and transforming the void.

"Refining emptiness to unite with the Dao" (lianxu hedao, further uniting stillness and void with the Great Dao) is what the Sage Emperor called the foremost principle, and what Buddhism calls the supreme vehicle (zuishang yisheng) teaching. The scripture quotes the Huayan Jing (Avatamsaka Sutra): "Even if, through countless ages to come, one travels through every Buddha land, if one does not obtain this wondrous Dharma, one will ultimately be unable to accomplish bodhi (awakening)."

This method mainly involves refining the Yang Spirit (yangshen, the pure yang spirit described in cultivation practice) once more so that it returns to its origin, the Vairocana Sea of Nature (Pilu Xinghai, a symbol of the vast and complete state of one's original nature). Accordingly, one must recall the consciousness that has scattered outward and return it to the original substance, then gather the spirit of that substance into the Celestial Valley (Tiangu, the place within the head where the mind and intention reside), and then cause the spirit of the Celestial Valley to withdraw and be stored in the Ancestral Aperture (Zuqiao, the fundamental orifice in cultivation practice). One must guard it strictly, as a dragon protects the precious pearl beneath its chin or a hen shields the egg in her nest, so that it does not scatter outward again.

One must also cast whatever cultivation attainments and realms one has already gained down into the "Land of No Antecedents" (Wuxian Guo, a symbol of a state beyond any distinction of before and after), and by means of the Samadhi of Cessation (Miejin Ding, a meditative absorption in which thought and sensation come to rest), bring everything to stillness and extinction. This is like Shakyamuni secluding himself in his chamber in the kingdom of Magadha, or like Vimalakirti remaining silent in the city of Vaishali. In this way one accords with the transformations of nature, returns to nature and life, and then returns to emptiness; each of these stages is indispensable. At this point, nature and life and emptiness have each undergone one more return, and five transformations have been completed. The transformations may still deepen layer upon layer, until spiritual transformation reaches its utmost.

Therefore, spirit becomes more subtle and marvelous when it has been refined a hundred times, and gold becomes purer when it has been refined a hundred times. Through repeated refining, it is like a furnace of flame smelting emptiness itself, until it turns into a boundless realm of ice, in which the world reflected within the vessel is no larger than a grain of millet. At this time, spiritual light gradually fills the orifices of the body, rising as flame and passing from the inner orifices to the outer ones. There are nine major orifices, and each of them contains spiritual light; there are eighty-four thousand minor orifices, and each of them also contains spiritual light. The brightness penetrates the body inside and out, above and below, and appears everywhere. It is as if hundreds or thousands of lamps illuminated a single room, each lamp reflecting the others and each light merging with the rest, so that people and all things are bathed in the radiance of spiritual light.

Yet even when this state is reached, it cannot yet be called the ultimate of cultivation. If the spiritual light cannot fill the space between heaven and earth, one has not yet attained the vast realm that the Sage of Eastern Lu, Confucius, described as "the primal force of Qian governing heaven" (Qian Yuan Tong Tian, the principle by which the origin of the Qian hexagram comprehends the Way of Heaven).

Yet if this divine light cannot fill the space between heaven and earth, one has not yet reached the state the Sage of Eastern Lu (Confucius) called "Qian Yuan governing all under heaven" (qianyuan tongtian). One must then gather the spirit once more, conceal the radiance, and return it to the Ancestral Cavity (zuqiao), the aperture regarded in internal alchemy (neidan) as the root of life. Untouched by external things, one enters stillness in accordance with the Samādhi of Complete Cessation (miejin ding), a meditative state in which thought and sensation come to rest. Once this stillness has been sustained, the divine light bursts forth like lightning among the clouds, piercing from the middle cavity to the upper cavity, so that every great and small cavity manifests the divine light. Its brilliance shines in all four directions, rising to the heavenly realm, descending to the earthly realm, and reaching the human realm. Within the Three Realms of heaven, humanity, and earth, divine light is present everywhere. The lights reflect one another like the Qin mirror that shows images, or like the jewels of the emperor (pearls said to reveal all things) that contain and mirror each other. Layer upon layer of luminous reflections interlace, and everything appears with perfect clarity. Spirits and ghosts are also reflected within this divine light. Such a state is already remarkably wondrous, yet it is still not the ultimate realm.

If the divine light still cannot pervade the dust-sand Dharma realm (a world as vast as countless grains of dust, without boundary), one has not yet reached the state represented by the Western Sage Vairocana (the Great Sun Buddha of Buddhism). Once again one gathers the spirit, conceals the radiance, returns it to the Ancestral Cavity, and, untouched by external things, enters stillness in accordance with the Samādhi of Complete Cessation. After this stillness has been sustained, the transformation of the Six Dragons (here referring to the changes of yin and yang qi in cultivation) is complete, and the divine light becomes the light of śarīra (the luminosity symbolized by relics). It is like a blazing sun welling up from the Ancestral Cavity, sending forth countless rays that surge straight up to the Nine Heavens. It is also like a thousand suns emitting great light that shines universally over the three-thousandfold great chiliocosm. Sages, worthies, and all the myriad phenomena of the universe all appear within the light of the śarīra.

Therefore Zen Master Dajue said: "A single radiant relic-light shines, illuminating countless eons without end. The great chiliocosm turns to it in homage, and the Thirty-Three Heavens all lie within its sway."

The light of the śarīra (crystalline relics left behind after a practitioner's cremation) had already filled the three thousand great thousand worlds (the vast world-system of Buddhist cosmology), yet it had not reached the limit of what it could fill. The light then radiated out from the three thousand great thousand worlds and filled the Land of Ultimate Bliss (Jile shijie). It rose further to the Kasha-banner realm (Kepo-chuang jie) and the Realm of the Wheel of Sounds (Yinsheng lun jie), then streamed straight toward the Victorious Lotus World (Shenglianhua shijie), where it finally met the Tathāgata Xiansheng (the Virtuous Victor).

They had been separated since beginningless time, and only now at last came face to face. Their śarīra shone upon each other, merged into one, and became naturally and seamlessly undifferentiated, vast and boundless.

Therefore the verse of the scripture says: "The buddhas are like a complete great round mirror, and my body and mind are like a mani pearl (a jewel that reflects all phenomena). The dharmakāya (the true body of the Buddha, the essence of awakening) of the buddhas enters into my body, and my body constantly enters into the buddhas." Patriarch Hongren said: "One buddha, two buddhas, up to thousands and tens of thousands of buddhas, are all ultimately inherent in oneself; there is nothing else." Because good roots were planted long ago, awakening is now attained through their power. Chan Master Heze said: "The original face is suchness (the unchanging true nature of all things), and in the light of the śarīra one recognized it." Having lost one's self-nature for ten thousand years, one has at last awakened and realized that self-nature has been Mañjuśrī (the bodhisattva who symbolizes wisdom) all along.

The self-nature (zìxìng, the originally pure true mind that all sentient beings possess) is pure, and this is the Immaculate Buddha. When the self-nature is constant and unchanging, it is the Self-Mastering Buddha. When it is bright and clear without darkness, it is the Buddha of Light. When it is firm and indestructible, it is the Indestructible Buddha. The merits of the various Buddhas are all possessed by each person. They cannot be fully described, yet in the end there is only this one self-nature: your self-nature is the mind, and the mind is Buddha.

The new Buddha and the old Buddha are in fact not two different substances. To have the reward body (bàoshēn, the merit-body through which the Buddha manifests for sentient beings) rely on the dharma body (fǎshēn, the Buddha's fundamental true body) is like an image cast out of a mold. The image seems to have just been made, yet the mold has always been there, and the two are one and the same with no difference. Therefore the newly attained Buddha and the long-existing Buddha are essentially the same. Conversely, to have the dharma body rely on the reward body is like a golden Buddha image cast from gold. The gold was not yet an image, and only now has it been cast into one. The Buddha after the image is formed is like gold that has already become a Buddha image, while sentient beings are like gold ore that has not yet been cast. It seems that there is a before and after between having been cast and not yet cast, yet the essence of the gold has never differed from beginning to end.

Therefore the Yuanjue Jing (Sutra of Perfect Enlightenment) says: "Once gold has been refined, it will not return to ore; even through endless ages, the nature of gold will not be destroyed." From this we know that this golden nature is originally possessed by everyone, and no one lacks it. The sentient beings of the ten directions all have the vajra-like indestructible Buddha-nature, and the myriad things of heaven and earth are also contained within the dharma body of the Tathāgata. Only when one reaches this state does one understand that heaven and earth share the same root and that the myriad things are one body with oneself. The entire dharma realm is the Tathāgatagarbha (rúláizàng, the true suchness nature that contains all things), and the entire earth is the body of the Dharma King (fǎwángshēn, the Buddha's dharma body). The true substance admits no difference: together with the Buddhas of the past, present, and future, one attains enlightenment at the same time. In true emptiness and equality, one enters nirvana on the same day as the ten kinds of sentient beings.

The dharma body is so vast that even empty space cannot contain its substance, and the true mind is so mysterious that even ghosts and spirits cannot fathom its workings. It regards the endless future as a single day and night, and the boundless worlds of dust motes as a single instant. From ancient times to the present, nothing is not penetrated by this one all-embracing principle (zǒngchí, the total-retention that unifies all things), and from heaven above to earth below, nothing is not filled by it.

Its operation is beyond measure. It regards the boundless future as a single day and night, and a world filled with countless motes of dust as a single instant. From remote antiquity to the present, there is nowhere it is not gathered under this one fundamental source, and from the heavens above to the earth below, there is nowhere it does not fill.

The Second Patriarch of the Chan school, Huike (Huike), said: "It is complete and undivided, and it does not change through all generations." Therefore Taishang (Taishang, the honorific title for the Dao in Daoism) said: "Heaven and earth will be destroyed, but this alone will not be destroyed."

This is the true self, zhenru (true suchness, the unchanging true nature), the true xingming (nature and life) and the true substance. This is the true emptiness and shixiang (the true appearance of all things, their original real face). This is the putidaochang (bodhimanda, the place of awakening) and the niepan shidi (the real ground of nirvana, the fundamental state of liberation). It is also the realm that is neither defiled nor pure, neither form nor emptiness. It is zijue shengzhi (self-awakened sacred wisdom) and the wushang falun (supreme wheel of the Dharma, the highest teaching). Its nature is empty yet has a real substance, and it is the constant true mind that abides forever and can be at ease as the mind wills.

This is also the subtle function of the Buddha, bringing immeasurable joy. Afflictions and karmic obstacles are purified here and are empty and still from the start. All causes and effects are like dreams and illusions, and when arising and ceasing come to rest, quiescence itself is ease. It is the real substance, firm as vajra and unchanging and indestructible, and it is also the yuanshen (primordial spirit) that has never been born and will never be extinguished since beginningless time. It possesses boundless merit that cannot be measured, named, or conceived. It is the fashen (dharmakaya, the Dharma body), the baoshen (sambhogakaya, the reward body), and the hundreds of millions of huashen (nirmanakaya, transformation bodies). It is Piluzhena Fo (Vairocana Buddha), the Buddha who illuminates everything.

The verse says: Among all in heaven and on earth, no one can compare with the Buddha, and in the ten directions of the world, no one can rival him. I have seen everything in the world, and not one thing can be compared with the Buddha.