《玄谭全集》

Zhang Sanfeng said: What is called the Dao (the Way) turns, above all, upon the “center.” Thus the Confucians speak of “attaining the center,” the Daoists of “guarding the center,” and the Buddhists of “emptying the center.” The “center” of which Neidan (internal alchemy)—the Daoist alchemical method centered on inner cultivation—speaks is the “aperture within the aperture,” that is, the true “center.”

What I feel most keenly is that people of the world do not know how to recognize this “center.” Some search for it in the middle of the body’s Nine Palaces (jiugong, a Daoist term for the different sites within the human body), calling that place the Mud Pellet (niwan, the site of cultivation within the head), yet they cannot find it. Some search one cun and three fen below the navel, calling that place the Dantian (energy center, the site in Neidan cultivation where Jing (essence) and Qi (vital energy) gather), and they cannot find it either. Some reckon the distance between the heart and the navel as eight cun and four fen and take the point one cun and two fen along it to be the “center,” or they search between the two kidneys, directly opposite the navel—and in none of these places can they find it.

If one looks among the tangible parts of the body, one will never find it. People therefore turn and reason the other way, calling the crucial aperture the Mysterious Pass (xuanguan, the pivotal place in cultivation where one realizes the mysterious Dao) and calling the portal of yin “xuanhua” (subtle and mysterious transformation). But since it is an empty valley of nothingness, can it really be found by anything that has form? To seek it through what has no form is still not to find it. They then reverse their reasoning once more: it is called “non-being,” yet one must not cling to “non-being”; it is called “being,” yet one must not cling to “being.” Is this not neither being nor non-being, something that cannot be fixed between being and non-being? Even if one’s wisdom surpassed that of Yan Hui and Min Ziqian, it would still be hard to force out a guess.

That I now say these things, at the risk of divulging what is forbidden, is not my own wish, but something I cannot avoid. For at this time many immortals have been born into the human world in order to save its people. Some hold office, some pursue learning, some engage in trade, and some cultivate the Dao or put their faith in the Buddha. I write this piece to guide them, so that they may understand how to save the world and then return to the celestial realm, and not sink into the dusty world. This is my intention.

What is called the “outer scene” is to regard the body as something outside oneself and return it to emptiness; one must first understand original nature.

Zhang Sanfeng said further: If Buddhists are to awaken to original nature, they must observe fasting and the precepts; therefore one must take the Great Void as oneself and first let the body become empty. When the body is empty, heaven and earth are empty as well; when heaven and earth are empty, the vast void is empty too. Only when nothing remains that can still be emptied is this the true “true emptiness.”

He also said: On reaching the realm of “non-nonbeing,” one can transcend heaven and earth; one must realize “non-nonbeing” by way of a realm that surpasses emptiness.

"Inner Landscape" (neijing) means drawing the heart and spirit back within oneself in order to practice embryonic breathing (a method of cultivation in which the breath becomes so subtle and still that it resembles a fetus breathing in the womb). The practitioner must first understand the principles of nature and life set out in the Daoist Inner Landscape Diagram.

Zhang Sanfeng said: "The embryo is nourished by breath, and breath settles because of the embryo." The "aperture within the aperture" spoken of in practice is the crux of how immortals cultivate embryonic breathing and settle the breath. Vast as heaven and earth are, they too can be regarded as a single embryo. The movement of sun and moon and the turning of the Dipper's handle all resemble the true breath circulating between heaven and earth.

The Yijing (Book of Changes) says, "Perfecting nature and preserving it, again and again, is the gateway of the Way and of righteousness." The Daodejing says, "Mystery upon mystery, the gateway of all wonders." The Buddhist Sutra of the Bequeathed Teaching says, "Restrain the mind in one place, and no task is left undone." All of these point to the principle of gathering in the heart and spirit and cultivating with single-minded focus. When I read, I do not cling to the letter of the text, and so I came to understand that sages and ordinary people share the same nature, and I was not misled by blindly superstitious people. In pursuing the Dao (the Way), one should sweep away side paths and miscellaneous doctrines, rein in the scattered "monkey mind," set one's resolve anew, apply oneself with humility, endure hardship, strive to seek out an enlightened teacher, and probe deeply into the root of how the teaching is transmitted.

What is called the "Beginning" is the primordial source and ancestral origin. It contains a point of true Yin and true Yang, and it arose before heaven and earth, at the very start of the undifferentiated chaos. It is like a luminous pearl the size of a millet grain, suspended in the midst of utmost emptiness and perfect rectitude, clear and limpid. If one does not grasp its essential point, one easily goes astray; if one departs from this root, one falls into side paths. This luminous pearl hangs in the void, contains all phenomena, and gives birth to the myriad things. In the text it is represented by the symbol "⊙".

Daoists call this source "true lead and true mercury." Once obtained, it can be kept for a long time. One must not take outward images such as Qian and Kun, sun and moon, or man and woman as the objects of cultivation; rather, one should set up the furnace and establish the cauldron within and throughout one's own body. After refining the self, steadying the heart, understanding principle, and seeing one's nature, one gathers Qi (vital energy) and circulates the fire, and in a moment a dark pearl the size of a millet grain can form, appearing above the "Winding River" (a Neidan term for a region of the body involved in the practice). The text goes on to describe how, once the key aperture opens, all the other apertures open with it, and true Qi stirs in the four limbs, as though all the sinews, bones, blood, and flesh of the body had turned to quicksilver. At this point one must still keep up the work for another hundred days before its marvelous effects appear. Once the work is complete, it can be preserved permanently, and one refines Shen (spirit) and returns to emptiness, becoming one with the Dao.

From the Buddhist perspective, this source is called "true emptiness," "suchness," or awakened nature. If one knows the correct way to begin, subdues deluded thoughts, and understands the mind and sees one's nature, then in an instant one can kindle the "true fire of samadhi" (in meditation, the inner fire of concentration and wisdom) and return to the root and the origin. At that point subject and object, heaven and earth, all return to stillness and emptiness, and all kinds of radiance appear. One attains the "five eyes and six supernormal powers" and other stages of Buddhist practice, and refines an adamantine body that cannot be destroyed.

From the Confucian perspective, it is "Wuji gives rise to Taiji (Supreme Ultimate)." Speaking in terms of heaven and earth, Wuji is the chaotic state before the sun and moon have formed and before above, below, and the four directions have been distinguished. Only when the movement of Qi is full and Yin and Yang stir against each other does Taiji arise. Taiji here refers to the first separation of sun and moon. The practitioner should observe the laws by which heaven, earth, sun, and moon move; the aim is not to go out and gather the sun and moon Qi of the cosmos.

Once sun and moon exist, heaven and earth also become distinct: the clear Qi rises to become heaven, and the turbid Qi sinks to become earth. The stars and spirits in the sky each have their own courses and positions, and the myriad things on earth grow according to the four seasons and eight festivals, all of them rooted in emptiness. The sun and moon are the essence of heaven; they travel and shine above and below, bringing about the changes of cold and heat. The sun is pure Yang, yet it contains a point of true Yin, and it is called the Azure Dragon, the Maiden, Jia wood, quicksilver, the Golden Crow, the three hun souls, and so on. The moon is pure Yin, yet it contains a point of true Yang, and it is called the White Tiger, the Infant, Geng metal, cinnabar, the Jade Rabbit, the seven po souls, and so on. These names are symbols used in Neidan (internal alchemy) to describe the workings of Yin-Yang and of body and mind; they do not refer to the actual sun and moon or to animals.

The creative transformations within a person are the same as those of heaven and earth, so the body too contains a true sun and moon. The Dao is by its nature close at hand, yet people tend to seek it far away. The three hun souls symbolize nature, and nature seems to lie at the edge of the sky; the seven po souls symbolize life, and life seems to lie at the bottom of the sea. If one links inner and outer, one can understand the two words "nature and life" (xing and ming), and thereby grasp the essence of ten thousand volumes. The text says that nature belongs to Shen and is Yin, while life belongs to Qi and is Yang, which is why it is said, "One Yin and one Yang is what is called the Dao." If one does not even recognize the essence of true Yin, how can one reach true Yang? Those who study the Dao today understand neither true Yang nor true Yin; but if one can recognize true Yin, true Yang can be recognized through it.

Without meeting an enlightened teacher, one only guesses and doubts in vain, and in the end will find it hard to understand this Dao; even though the Dao exists between heaven and earth, heaven and earth themselves do not explain it. Those who cultivate the Dao should investigate the subtleties of the "three powers" of heaven, earth, and humanity within the body, and the true signs of the changes of Yin and Yang within and without themselves. If one has not grasped the essential points of the transmission, then on encountering the different terms in various books one easily loses one's own judgment, clings to side paths, and cannot discern the principle. When principle is unclear, the heart cannot be clear; when the heart is not clear, the heaven of one's nature cannot shine like a bright moon; and if one cannot see one's nature, how can one know one's life? Alas, since the alchemical classics have not handed down the oral instructions, where are people to go to form the spirit embryo?

Outer: precelestial true Yang (the original Yang innate in the human body). This circular diagram represents the creative transformations of the whole person, within and without. It is called the “aperture that communicates with Heaven,” and is also known as the “furnace for refining the elixir,” the “path for escaping birth and death,” and the “place where the body is engendered.” It is said to be the place before one’s parents gave birth, where the Five Phases (Wuxing: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water) have not yet come into operation. That single point of precelestial true Yang plainly lies outside the bodily form, and yet also exists in secret within the body. What is known of it is mysterious and profound.

This numinous, luminous precious pearl resides in the human body. It forms one whole with the heaven, earth, sun, and moon outside, and is the root of the entire person. The saying, “Today the true father and mother are revealed; tomorrow one need not fear death or life,” was spoken out of the compassion of the Most High, and it also makes clear the intent of the Outer Landscape chapter of the Huangting Jing (Scripture of the Yellow Court).

Middle: within the body. This circular diagram represents the place where the creative transformations of heaven and earth gather and condense inside the human body. How the sword is cast as female and male, and how the medicinal substances are distinguished as old or tender, must all be judged from here; the settling of heaven and earth likewise cannot do without this place. An opportunity spanning myriad kalpas turns on receiving the correct transmission. Its position is as if heaven descends yet does not reach the earth, and the earth rises yet does not reach heaven—suspended in empty space. The meaning is the hardest of all to grasp, and so it is said: “In the middle there is one aperture; few people know of it; it must be transmitted by word of mouth from an enlightened teacher.” The conjunction of Qian and Kun and the conjunction of Kan and Li (trigrams of the Bagua, the Eight Trigrams) also both take place here.

Inner: the lord of life-destiny at the bottom of the sea (the crucial site of Neidan, internal alchemy, regarded as what sustains the root of life). This circular diagram indicates the Metal essence (Jing) and the numinous tortoise of the “sea bottom,” and also such symbols as Dui Metal and Wu Earth belonging to oneself and to the “other household” (in Neidan terminology, the counterpart set over against oneself). The channels of the whole body, together with the five viscera and six bowels, all depend on it for their governance. Cultivation toward immortality or Buddhahood, and transcendence of birth and death, are likewise held to rely on what is arranged here. It is the place where life is secured and protected and original Qi (vital energy) is nurtured. It bears on avoiding illness and on sustaining the root of the myriad things, and it is also the Taiji (Supreme Ultimate) within the human body. This is precisely the intent of the Inner Landscape chapter of the Huangting Jing, as spoken in the compassion of the Most High.

Heaven, Earth, and the human being—the three elements that constitute the world—may in fact also be spoken of in terms of the person themselves. Viewed on the level of the Later Heaven (houtian), each has a corresponding form and place within the body; inquired into on the level of the Prior Heaven (xiantian), they are the root that generates Heaven, Earth, human beings, and the myriad things, possessing neither concrete form nor any fixed position.

Adepts of the immortal path say: “The Prior Heaven cannot do without the Later Heaven, for otherwise there is no way to attract and gather; the Later Heaven cannot do without the Prior Heaven, for otherwise no transformation can take place.” The Heaven, Earth, and human being spoken of here exist both within and outside the self, and correspond to the three levels of upper, middle, and lower. They are three genuine messages in cultivation and three furnaces and cauldrons (the sites or functions in which Jing (essence), Qi (vital energy), and Shen (spirit) are refined and nourished). They may also be linked with the Three Teachings (Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism) and the Three Vehicles (methods of practice at different levels). The Three Powers of Heaven, Earth, and the human being outside the body, together with the still broader classics of the Three Teachings, may all likewise be used to corroborate the principle of the Prior Heaven.

A person’s Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water) are all contained within nature and life (xing and ming); what need is there to seek them in another person’s body? The Wuzhen pian (Awakening to Reality) says: “‘Three, five, one’ is nothing more than three characters; from ancient times to the present, those who truly understand are indeed few.” I am not exaggerating. Setting aside for the moment such subtle work as the timing of the fire and the gathering of the medicines, and speaking only of these three Five Phases, among a million people there may not be even one who understands. If one can grasp how the Three Powers transform into one another and are drawn upon for mutual use, returning to the root and reverting to the original source, and if one understands the methods of transmitting Jing, circulating Shen, and refining Qi, together with the method of inverted gathering, then for a person who dares to take this on and put it into practice, attaining the state of immortal or buddha is no difficult matter.

All who study cultivation must first inquire deeply into the true furnaces and cauldrons within and outside themselves. If one does not recognize the inner and outer furnaces and cauldrons, there is nowhere to begin. Once one understands how to set the furnace and establish the cauldron both within and without, and also understands the principle of the coming and going of Yin-Yang, the next step is to inquire deeply into the medicinal materials: what, after all, is being refined within the furnace and cauldron?

The latter half of the scripture (jing) shows obvious repetition and is incomplete. The surviving text mentions such terms as “outer,” “true lead and true mercury,” “this aperture,” “the cauldron of nine yang,” and “the sword of wisdom,” and its general sense still concerns the inner and outer furnaces and cauldrons, the medicines used in cultivation, and holding fast to the proper moment by means of the sword of wisdom (a cultivational image symbolizing wisdom and decisiveness).

“Outer” refers to “true lead and true mercury” (alchemical terms, used figuratively for the Yin-Yang Jing (essence) and Qi (vital energy) required in cultivation). This aperture is the true furnace and cauldron, where the inner and the outer of one’s own person meet—the foundation and site of elixir refining. Here one must set the “Cauldron of Nine Yangs” and forge the sword of wisdom (symbolizing the wisdom that cuts away stray thoughts), so as to seize the proper moment for cultivation; open and close in gathering the medicine, so that cinnabar and mercury transform into each other; then assemble the medicinal substances and nurture them by the method of the ice bath, until water and fire stand in mutual completion (the harmony of Yin-Yang). Guarding empty stillness and nourishing the void likewise all take place in this aperture. A little true cinnabar and mercury lie stored here. Their place is plainly within oneself, yet it does not fall on any solid spot inside or outside the body, and ordinary people can hardly recognize it. Apart from this essential point, cultivation becomes blind groping. This is the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water) outside the self, the outer furnace and cauldron, and external creative transformation—that is, the Cauldron of Nine Yangs which, according to legend, the Yellow Emperor Xuanyuan cast.

“Middle” refers to the “Kun-earth cauldron” (the furnace vessel symbolized by the earth of Kun). This aperture is precisely where Jing and Qi gather and the embryonic origin is formed. The arising and transformation of heaven and earth, of persons and things, and of wind, clouds, thunder, and rain all take it as the proper seat of the central palace. It is the precious cauldron of the spirit chamber (the crucial place for refining and nurturing Shen (spirit) and Qi). It can produce the inner and outer medicines, forge the female and male swords, and serve in extracting lead and adding mercury while one awaits the moment to transmute the elixir. Hence it is said: “The one aperture in the middle is known to few.”

“Position” still refers to this precious cauldron of the spirit chamber: it produces the inner and outer medicines, forges the female and male swords, and is used to extract lead and add mercury while one awaits the moment to transmute the elixir. And so it is said again: “The one aperture in the middle is known to few.”

“Inner” refers to the governor of life below the navel (the site that sustains the root of life). This aperture is the foundation on which cultivation begins, and also the ladder by which the Dao (the Way) is attained. Setting the furnace and establishing the cauldron must both rest on inner cultivation. Through the tempering of water and fire, the conditions required for cultivation are made complete, and Shen and Qi become full and whole. Only when the seven apertures of the head manifest light is the moment ripe; only then may one gather the medicine of the furnace and cauldron outside oneself and match it with the female and male within the body. The whole process still depends on this acupoint. Only when the regulation of Shen has become fully mature, the various spirits obey and can be put to use, and the movements of the celestial signs respond in turn, can one grasp the hidden workings of heaven and earth outside.

The upper aperture belongs to a substance of pure Yang, and hidden within it is a single point of true Yin Jing (essence). It is something within my own body, yet it seems to come from the household of the other, and so it is called “the other.” This point of Jing and Qi (vital energy) appears between the two kidneys and stirs outward; “the other” is therefore used as a metaphor for it. The lower aperture belongs to a substance of pure Yin, and stored within it is a single point of true Yang Qi, something originally inherent in my own body, and so it is called “the self.” It is like that which flows from the Qian palace (the site symbolizing Yang) into the Kun position (the site symbolizing Yin), and “the self” is therefore used as a metaphor for it.

Inside the upper aperture is a female body, and outside it a male; inside the lower aperture is a male body, and outside it a female. For this reason the immortal elders often use male and female, other and self, as metaphors. The aperture in the middle is the Central Palace, also called the “Yellow Dame’s matchmaking lodge,” like a matchmaker who mediates from between them. Only one who understands how to invert and join Yin and Yang here can hope to become a sage.

The life-treasure required for cultivation—the fundamental Jing and Qi in the cultivation of nature and life—is said to come from outside oneself, yet in fact it is still something within one’s own Kun position. It lies within the dharma-body (the inner body and mind spoken of in cultivation) and inside the form-body (the flesh), and yet it is called “a thing of the other’s household.” Thus, when the immortals say that “gathering and taking never depart from one’s own primordial Shen (spirit),” they mean precisely this.

If people in the world who study the Dao (the Way) have not received the orthodox transmission, they will not know where to begin: to cling to one’s own body is wrong, and to seek by leaving one’s own body is also wrong. Who can understand that this single point of primordial Yang (the pure Yang true Qi originally possessed) is clear and manifest, lying in a lofty place of mystery and profound subtlety within one’s own body, hidden in a secret spot that belongs neither to the inside nor to the outside? Inner and outer breaths are connected. This is a secret that has rarely been transmitted through the ages.

In truth, the human body, just as it is, already possesses two genuine signs, corresponding to the movements of Heaven and Earth, the sun and the moon, without the deviation of a hair. Heaven and Earth are the greatest of the myriad things, and the human being is the most numinous and refined among them. Heaven and Earth are like one great person, and a person is like a small Heaven and Earth; therefore human creative transformation communicates with Heaven and Earth. One need only awaken to this: everyone has an aperture that opens through to Heaven, a medicine of long life without death, a furnace for refining the elixir, and a ladder leading to the celestial realm, and each also has a self not yet recognized. Yet people do not believe that there is a method of long life without death, nor that there is a path of ascending to Heaven in broad daylight; they would rather walk toward death. This is truly a cause for grief and regret.

To cultivate the Great Reverted Elixir, one must first make good the body’s depletion. Only when the marrow has been filled may one go on to refine the Golden Liquid Great Reverted Elixir. At the start of practice, one gathers from the upper orifice the “true Yin within Yang,” guiding it into the inner golden cauldron and the Sea of Qi, and then joining it with the Qi (vital energy) of the kidney channel. The practitioner must hold firmly to resolve, even setting life and death aside—this describes the steadfast will that cultivation calls for.

The so-called “true Yin within Yang” refers to the true form of one’s original spirit, corresponding outwardly to the three hun souls; the “true Yang within Yin” refers to the original Qi within the body, corresponding inwardly to the seven po souls. When these two kinds of pre-heaven Qi meet, Kan and Li—the two forces symbolizing water and fire—conjoin; the hun and po souls merge as well, Shen (spirit) and Qi coalesce, and embryonic breathing, that inner and subtle state of respiration, naturally settles. Each day the practitioner feels the breath moving with ease, as if Yin-Yang were in union, yet one should not deliberately pursue this sensation. Once water and fire are harmonized, Qi circulates into the four limbs, like an outer flame burning vigorously; so long as water and fire remain in balance, this is the firing schedule of the Lesser Celestial Circuit.

One then further regulates the Qi that steams and moves within the body, so that the true breath at the throat returns to the Primordial Sea. The kidney Qi draws inward, true fire naturally reaches the four limbs, and the whole body feels soft and comfortable. In the abdomen it is as if a living dragon coils, rising and descending, with all manner of changes. The scripture uses “infant” and “maiden” to name the Qi of Yin and Yang, which unite of themselves. This stage is called “gathering Yang to supplement Yin, laying the foundation and refining the self,” meaning to harmonize Yin-Yang, secure the basis of practice, and cultivate oneself.

Cultivating the Golden Liquid Great Reverted Elixir also requires broadly accumulating inner and outer “dharma wealth”—the inner skill and outer provisions needed for cultivating the Way. To remain content in ordinary life and to keep mind and spirit clear day and night is what the scripture calls the Way of long life and lasting vision. Ordinary people depend on the five grains to sustain life; go a few days without food, and their Qi fails. In old age the Lower Origin, the fundamental Qi of the lower body, is depleted and the marrow is weak, so one can hardly bear the Qi of the five grains. Thus the five grains can nourish a person, yet they may also become a burden when the body is frail and cannot transform them.

If water and fire within the body can be harmonized and Qi and blood made to flow freely, the Qi of the five viscera will be coordinated and the functions of spleen and stomach will open out. Once food enters the abdomen, it can be transformed into Qi and nourish Jing (essence) and Shen. If one grasps the essentials of practice and continues until the marrow is full and the abdomen is as rounded as that of a pregnant woman, the scripture explains that this is not the actual appearance of a fetal form, but that Qi, Jing, and Shen are all abundant. When the three are complete, one then tempers them with true fire, regulating Shen and refining Qi, and cultivation may be expected to reach completion.

The author urges people to seek a teacher’s method, to understand the essentials of cultivation both within the body and outside it, and to begin practice early—refining the self while awaiting the proper time. When the moment is ripe, one chooses a suitable place, enters the chamber, and cultivates the Great Elixir of Dragon and Tiger. The place of practice should be secluded, beyond the sound of chickens and dogs; outside, only like-minded companions of the Way are kept, and idle persons are not allowed in, lest they disturb mind and spirit. The scripture first speaks of “harmonizing one’s light with the dust”—dwelling in the ordinary world without showing one’s edge—and then says that one should cultivate in a quiet, secluded place, because refining the self may be carried on amid the dust of everyday life, whereas nourishing Qi is best done in the stillness of mountains and forests.

The Golden Liquid Reverted Elixir (a term of Daoist Neidan [internal alchemy], referring to the refining of Jing [essence], Qi [vital energy], and Shen [spirit] so as to form the internal elixir) is a path of cultivation from the ordinary to the sacred. It must not be confused with what other immortal adepts call “harmonizing one’s light with the dust” (drawing in one’s sharp edges and dwelling among the worldly). Someone asked me why I say one should live in a secluded place. It is because one must temper oneself amid the dust of the world and nurture one’s primordial Qi in the mountains and forests.

Cultivating the Golden Liquid Reverted Elixir is a way of transcending the ordinary and entering the sacred; it cannot be compared with other pursuits. The practitioner must remain unstained by worldly dust, forget every kind of anxious thought, cut off all entanglements, and harbor no lingering attachment in the heart; stay long away from homeland and former life, and never give rise to a mind of retreat or regret. One must also wait until Qi and blood are abundant, the sinews and bones supple, and the body free of wrinkles, like a spider (the original text uses this image to describe a certain bodily condition), while the seven orifices of the head and face (the apertures of the eyes, ears, nose, mouth, and the like) give off a light that shines constantly day and night, and the state of mind is like the Great Void (vast, unobstructed emptiness). Only then is the time ripe, and one may seek immortality.

Thereafter one must still cultivate with single-minded devotion, until the use of spirit and thought is fully mastered, able to take form and submit to one’s direction, attaining a realm in which the stars move in their courses and transformations occur at will. Only at this stage—when Qi is full and Shen is complete, and one’s methods and resources are ample and vast—may one refine the Great Elixir, and only then may one be called a danke (a person who cultivates Neidan).

Once the work of cultivation begins to operate, signs appear that are spoken of as “light born in the seven apertures” and “the three yang opening in good fortune,” and the spirit sword seems, as it were, to take form. At this point one should go along with the momentum, like using water to push a boat or riding the wind to feed a fire. Only when a single yang is born within the body can one grasp what is called the “external celestial mechanism” and begin opening the passes and gathering the medicine: taking in the Golden Elixir (jindan) from outside oneself, and pairing “dragon” and “tiger” so that they become husband and wife. The “dragon,” the “tiger,” and the “Golden Elixir” here are all symbolic expressions within Neidan (internal alchemy).

If one knows how to gather the medicinal substances together, one can, in stillness and stability, draw in the “gold of the sea floor,” then open the Jiaji pass, connect through to the Niwan, and let it fall into the Crystal Palace to be matched with “wood-mercury.” In less than half a double-hour the gathering is already complete. True fire rushes into the four limbs, and the bones and flesh of the whole body seem burned by fire and cut by knives, almost impossible to bear. Even the strongest person, on reaching this point, will be at a loss. One must therefore guard with care, keep body and mind cool and clear, and bring water and fire into harmony.

A short while later the whole body crackles as if beans were being roasted. The hundred apertures open together; Qi (vital energy) and blood seem to congeal into forms, even as if speaking and quarreling with each other inside the body. Beneath the root of the tongue are two further points: the one on the left is called the “Elixir Well,” and the one on the right the “Sweet Spring,” also known as the “True Surging Point.” As the bones and vessels open, kidney-water surges into the mouth faster than it can be swallowed. Its flavor is exceedingly strange, nothing at all like granulated sugar.

After thirty double-hours, that is, two and a half days, the so-called “wild water” is used up, and one then only waits for “tiangui” to descend. At that moment a speck of “true lead” suddenly comes down, cool as borneol, and it must at once be met with a speck of “true mercury.” Once they have joined, body and mind grow settled, yet one hears a tremendous roar like hundreds and thousands of war drums and a million peals of thunder. This, the author says, is produced by changes in the Qi and blood of all the vessels of the body; one should not be alarmed. At this time one must pace the stars of the Dipper, hold the sword and form hand seals, and repeatedly perform the rite to summon the generals. The danger lies precisely here. In the void one may see the union of dragon and tiger, the harmonious joining of heaven and earth, and the sun and moon sharing a single palace; one may also see immortals and all manner of realms. These illusions must on no account be taken as real, lest one be disturbed by external deviant influences. Only three days after true lead and true mercury have been obtained is the “Great Medicine” born.

When the two medicinal substances join and contend, if no one has explained the circumstances in person, nine out of ten people will likely be terrified. Once fear arises in the heart, one meets with demonic obstacles. The author further says that after the primordial original yang has been refined, a person’s mortal remains may also turn into spirits and come back to do one harm. Although they display forms, they belong to yin spirits (yin shen). They are skilled at transformation and can produce all kinds of scenes in order to injure people, and they are not necessarily easy to subdue. As the common saying has it: “Only if you can master the six supernatural powers can there be any talk of life and death; if you cannot master the six supernatural powers, do not think of subduing ghosts and spirits.” If one cannot subdue ghosts and spirits, one should not hope to attain the Dao (the Way). Yet if ghosts and spirits cannot show themselves, how could they cause harm?

After another thirty double-hours, two and a half days, the mechanisms of Qi connect with one another and reach the extreme of fullness. Suddenly a lively, numinous “flowing pearl of the sun” is brought forth, leaves its shell, and enters the mouth. The author says that at this moment a million dragon spirits all shrink back in fear. This is the true elixir medicine of the original seed. Only when it is swallowed into the mouth does one understand that “my life depends on me, not on Heaven.” The immortal adepts say: “Only after passing through a great death this time does one truly come alive.” They also say: “After a single battle, all under heaven is at peace.” Only on reaching this stage has one truly arrived at the harmonious joining of heaven and earth and the sun and moon sharing one palace. The moment the medicine of true yang arrives, the firing process throughout the body is set in motion at once. The bony embryo seems to dissolve into a pulp of flesh; the yang spirit leaves the body, and its movement is no longer hindered. So long as one single-mindedly guards emptiness and stillness, one can transform according to the intent of Shen (spirit). The author says that the myriad things are born through the transformations of heaven and earth, and that all the spirits will come to pay homage and submit.

If one wearies of the dusty world, one may roam freely to Penglai, attended by three thousand jade maidens, drinking immortal wine and wearing immortal flowers all day long at the banquet of the peaches of immortality. The four great constituents of the body—earth, water, fire, and wind—seem intoxicated and at ease, and the whole body is crystalline and translucent. The turtle and snake of the sea floor also coil of themselves. The author says that only this is the true “Great Hibernation Method of the Five Dragons.”

After a hundred days of cultivation the Mysterious Pass opens of itself. The image of an infant appears, turtle and snake manifest, and the spirits obey commands. Only then do true lead and true mercury join in reversed union. Purple mist and fine rays of light fill the body, auspicious Qi winds about it, and red light mantles the form. Only when cultivation reaches this stage does the so-called “mercury” appear in the mouth. After six months of cultivation the body seems like silver paste, the blood turns into a white fluid, fragrance issues from the whole body, and the breath exhaled is like clouds. The author says that this is the numinous elixir brought to completion: once a person takes it, one can live long without dying, and it can even restore the dead to life.

After ten months of cultivation the yang spirit can leave the body, and one body can transform into a hundred thousand. When twelve months are reached, one is reckoned to have seized the full number of heaven and earth. The yang spirit is completed, and all eighty-four thousand yin spirits upon the body are shed. Thereafter one walks beneath the sun and moon without casting a shadow, enters metal and stone without obstruction, does not sink in water, is not burned by fire, and cannot be wounded by weapons. Ghosts and spirits cannot fathom one’s transformations, and in the end one becomes a Perfected Person. The author also says that the breath and Qi of the body are entirely true medicine: a chicken that eats it can turn into wind, a horse that eats it can turn into a dragon, and a person who eats it can become an immortal. Even ghosts and spirits find this principle hard to understand. Without having seen it with one’s own eyes and undergone it in one’s own person, who would believe it?

The refining of the Great Medicine and the Golden Elixir contains the work of the creative transformations of heaven and earth. The firing process passes through many conversions, fine and subtle. The oral formula for gathering the medicinal substances is said to lie only between “five and seven,” and to be capable of overturning the order of heaven and earth. These changes seem to come about of themselves, yet the cultivator must still know how to observe the laws of heaven and earth’s creative transformation before any attainment is possible. This is not to say that one must cultivate the Dao outside heaven, earth, the sun, and the moon in order to attain the Dao.

In cultivating the “Great Medicine”—a term, in the practice of Neidan (internal alchemy), for an important inner attainment—the passage from its entering the mouth to the natural transformation of body and mind must proceed through practice, personal experience, and repeated verification, until one finally reaches a state of natural spontaneity. The whole course of cultivation may last a year, yet the most subtle phase of huohou (the grasp of timing and progress in cultivation) falls within a hundred days, and the phase in which the changes of movement and stillness are most intense falls within ninety days. Once the Qi (vital energy) within and without has gathered, clarity and settled calm can arise in a moment; the sacred embryo—a metaphor, in Neidan practice, for the fruit of cultivation—is brought to completion and condenses into a pearl the size of a grain of millet. When it is swallowed into the abdomen, the fire of the celestial circuit is set in motion, as though one had shed the old body and been remade in bone and flesh. Thereafter, so long as one maintains emptiness and stillness and nourishes the mind and Shen (spirit), everything will gradually come about of itself.

If one can now truly meet a discerning teacher for guidance, one must first temper mind and nature amid ordinary worldly life, and accumulate in the life of the streets and markets the foundation that cultivation requires, building it up layer by layer through years, months, days, hours, and moments. When one enters deep meditative absorption, the decisive point may lie in a single instant—not even half a double-hour—and can bring a fundamental change in the working of the celestial mechanism. The practitioner must apply huohou, complete a discipline comparable to ten months of gestation, and take as a model the natural order of heaven and earth. If one cannot find the opening onto life at the critical pass of life and death, how can one transcend the “three calamities and eight difficulties”—a Daoist summary of all manner of disasters and afflictions?

People of broad learning and keen intelligence can, in their reading, infer ten things from one, and can also expound the Jing (scriptures and classics) of the Three Teachings—Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism—yet they often understand only the doctrines of nature and principle and the meanings of the words. As for the transformations of the Golden Elixir (jindan), the mysteries of the great Dao (the Way), and the crucial indications of both the inner and the outer, they may not be able to grasp them. If one truly meets a person of the Dao who transmits the teaching in person, one can gradually fathom the principles of things to the end, fully recognize one’s own nature, and awaken, like water flowing home to the sea. Looking again at the various elixir texts, whether one reads them across or down, nothing they say fails to point toward the Dao. When earlier writers composed elixir books, they did not set brush to paper at random; every sentence and every character has its reference—it is only that the reader has not comprehended it.

When, for example, an elixir text says, “The Golden Elixir is swallowed into the belly,” those who do not understand its intent take it for a literal matter of mouth and stomach; how could they know that what is spoken of is a subtle and mysterious crux of cultivation? Likewise, when the books speak of heaven and earth, sun and moon, male and female, one must not guess freely according to the letter. If one clings to the talk of sound and appearance that belongs to side paths, holds others at a great distance, and is unwilling to seek instruction with humility, awakening will in the end be hard to attain; if instead one picks at faults and slanders persons of high attainment, how can one obtain the method of cultivation? To act in this way only brings upon one the shared aversion of human beings and spirits—truly lamentable.

I therefore urge the people of the world: if you meet a truly enlightened teacher who possesses the Dao, do not cling stubbornly to your own views. You should visit and inquire with an open mind and seek instruction in sincerity, so as not to hold yourselves back.

What is discussed here is the Du Mai (Governing Vessel) and the Ren Mai (Conception Vessel). The du of Du Mai means to lead and to govern as a whole, taking command of the Qi (vital energy) channels of the entire body. The scripture presents it as the innate primordial-Yang ancestral Qi—the fundamental primordial vital energy—that already existed before Heaven and Earth were distinguished and before the body was born. It has passed through long kalpas and, from ancient times to the present, has never been destroyed.

What is also discussed here is the Ren Mai. Ren is borrowed to indicate engendering and continuance, and it symbolizes a primordial Qi that generates without cease. With expressions such as “pure and limpid, round and full, crimson and fresh, keen in essence, bright and lovely, blazing with light, and lively and vivid,” the scripture portrays this Qi as clear and complete, substantial and spiritually animate. It is said to have existed even before the Celestial Emperor appeared; it is the source of the myriad spirits, embraces all phenomena, and brings the myriad things into being. Buddhism calls it the mani pearl; Daoism calls it the “millet-grain mysterious pearl” (symbolizing a subtle inner true origin that contains the spark of life); physicians call it a lively mass of true spiritual elixir. The scripture regards this as a secret meaning rarely transmitted through the ages. Without understanding the principle within it, one can hardly grasp the subtlety to which the two words “inner” and “outer” refer. The Ren and Du vessels contain the mystery between the pre-heaven and the post-heaven, just as the old saying has it: ordinary people make use of it every day and yet may not know it themselves.

The “aperture” of which the Du Mai speaks is the root of life: before the body has taken form, this aperture already exists. It is not an ordinary orifice of the body, but a mysterious pivot. The scripture holds that this is precisely the sign of that single point of innate primordial Yang Qi from before one’s parents had given birth.

The “aperture” of which the Ren Mai speaks is the governor of the five viscera of the whole body; the workings of the inner and the outer are all under its charge. If one knows how to cultivate by means of “diandao cuanzu” (inversion and clustering—a phrase in Daoist internal cultivation for adjusting and condensing the Jing (essence) and Qi of body and mind), then it is the root from which the five viscera are generated: before the five viscera have formed, this aperture already exists; before the body is born, it likewise already exists. The scripture calls this level of principle the method of nurturing life, and the foundation that sustains life.

If one receives the authentic transmission concerning the true mechanism of the three places—upper, middle, and lower—and understands how to cultivate by the method of inversion and clustering, one can recognize that this aperture is the root from which the five viscera are generated, and also the root and stem by which life is nurtured and sustained.

If the three kinds of “true messages”—upper, middle, and lower—can be correctly transmitted, life may return to its root and recover its original state. The four Qi (vital energies), that is, the four kinds of primordial qi, are gathered into the lower origin, the root of vital energy in the lower body; the hun and po souls do not scatter; and water and fire are brought into harmony. What illness could then remain?

If the primordial yang, the innate yang qi, has already been clearly transmitted, yet one meets obstacles such as the net of the law, cannot break free, and cannot attain the Dao (the Way), then, when no other course remains, one may take the life-governor of the sea floor—the lower part of the body, regarded as the root of life—as the source of the four Qi, set that life-governor in motion, and let the primordial Qi return to its origin without dispersing. Then, with the single move called “letting go without obstruction,” one releases every tie. Even if this opportunity for cultivation is given up, one may still begin anew to study the Dao. This is a mystery that even ghosts and spirits can scarcely fathom.

The primordial Qi of Prior Heaven is also called the “mysterious pearl the size of a grain of millet.” If one can truly comprehend it and receive its transmission from mind to mind, and if one cultivates it diligently until a sudden great awakening, the Jing (scriptures) of the Three Teachings—Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism—will appear clearly before the eyes; without deliberate pondering, one will understand them of oneself.

Speaking broadly, the blood and qi of the body, above and below, within and without, all belong to the turbid yin formed after birth; only the single point of primordial yang in the secret place is pure yang. The “true form” spoken of here belongs to the heart, yet this heart is the “heart of true emptiness,” not the heart of flesh and blood. Such a true heart is recognized by very few in the world, and within it lies another world of Qian and Kun. The author will discuss the three hearts, inner and outer, in what follows.

The outer heart is the heavenly heart: this heart is the heart of true emptiness, also called the Mysterious Pass. It is the aperture that opens through to the heavenly orifice, and the crucial site where the inner and outer Five Phases gather and are refined and nourished. Opening the apertures, stirring the firing process, pacing the stars (performing the ritual according to specific steps), wielding the sword, holding the seal, and mastering secret methods that even ghosts and spirits can scarcely penetrate—all of these depend on this place, and so one must understand the corresponding ritual regulations.

The central heart is the human heart: this is the aperture that occupies the middle, the dwelling place of the Yellow Dame. The Yellow Dame is a metaphor in Neidan (internal alchemy) for harmonizing and bringing things together. The gathering of the various inner and outer Qi (vital energy), the watching of the right moment, and the control of the firing process all rely on the Yellow Dame. Setting the furnace and cauldron in place, refining and nourishing the inner and outer medicines, and distinguishing whether the firing is overripe or still tender and whether the medicines are genuine or false are all directed by this central aperture.

The inner heart is the earthly heart: this is where the master of life at the bottom of the sea resides, and it is the root of the myriad spirits. “Bottom of the sea” refers, in the terminology of cultivation, to the region of the lower Dantian (energy center). Before cultivating the Great Vehicle, one must first cultivate the Lesser Vehicle. Laying the foundation and refining the self, accumulating dharma-wealth, and preserving mercury Qi all take place at this aperture. In cultivation one must also understand the use of the firm and the yielding.

Of the three hearts above, the passage on “the inner heart, that is, the earthly heart” appears again at the end of the original text, and the wording is somewhat fragmentary.

These three minds are manifested as three kinds of transformation, within the body and outside it. If one can grasp the principle in them, one can reverse the ordinary order of the Yin-Yang of Heaven and Earth, open that lock which has no seam, and with a single phrase settle the great matter of life and death from antiquity to the present.

These three minds are a mystery that since ancient times has not been lightly transmitted. Besides the heart of flesh and blood, a person also has three true minds; these three minds penetrate vacuity and the true void. Once the true mind is understood, all the myriad things of Heaven and Earth are contained within this empty mind. The empty mind holds true Yin and true Yang (the inner Qi [vital energy] of Yin-Yang). Yet the transformations of the true void are like a seamless lock and remain, in the end, hard to open; and where, then, could life and death hide? An immortal said: “The golden needle is easy to obtain; the jade thread is hardest to pass through. To know the road of life and death is as difficult as rolling a mustard seed so that it enters the eye of a needle.” This is a metaphor for Yin-Yang. Yin-Yang bears upon a person’s nature and life; who truly understands it?

If a person can discern the differing moments—three days, five days, or one period of seven days, two such periods, three such periods, and the like—and turn back to seize hold of life so as not to die, one must guard water, fire, and wind (terms in cultivation that designate the movements of Qi within the body) so that they do not scatter, and return them to the “master of life of the other household’s Dui” within oneself (a term of Neidan [internal alchemy], referring to the root in the body that concerns Yin-Yang and nature and life). At that moment one must not recklessly stir up thoughts; this is the method of seeking not to die.

If a person has grown old and can no longer continue cultivation so as to fulfill the Dao (the Way), one must return in good time to the correct path. It is like a melon which, once ripe, drops from the stem: everything depends on grasping these transformations. Once the moment is known, one must arouse the master of life at the bottom of the sea (the fundamental power of life within the body) and return it to the original nature in the emptiness above (the primordial true nature). In this way the hun and po (ethereal and corporeal souls) will naturally not disperse; only when all is under one’s own mastery will one not go astray.

Jindan Poyi Zhizhi (Direct Pointers for Dispelling Doubts about the Golden Elixir)

There are people in the world of shallow capacity and dim understanding who, seeing what the immortals of former generations said about external Yin-Yang, the external furnace and cauldron, and external medicinal substances, cling in delusion to taking a woman as the vessel for refining the elixir. This is truly pitiable. How could such ignorant people know that within the pure and quiescent Great Dao there are also the three bodies and the four wisdoms, together with the profound principles of inner and outer furnaces and cauldrons, inner and outer medicinal substances, and inner and outer firing times? How could they know that the myriad things are all complete within one’s own body, and that the creative transformations of Heaven and Earth communicate with oneself and are equally vast?

If a practitioner with the right affinity meets a true teacher, that practitioner should first cultivate the “Jade Liquid Inner Returning Elixir” (a stage of Neidan [internal alchemy]), gathering the mind’s thoughts and uniting them with light, and, through sustained guarding and nourishing together with “returning the light to shine back” (turning inward to observe one’s own thoughts), reach the state of illuminating the mind and seeing one’s nature.

As for the “Golden Liquid Returning Elixir,” it brings emotion back to nature until one enters the realm of “true emptiness,” so that wondrous function manifests of itself. The scripture uses “the Dragon Maiden revealing a precious pearl” as a metaphor: only when cultivation reaches this point can one be said truly to have gained something, and what is gained can be preserved for a long time.

At the transition between the Hai hour and the Zi hour, the practitioner, within the “Kun abdomen,” begins the work at the moment of “the first stirring of the single Yang” (the initial arising of Yang Qi [vital energy]). The scripture uses such expressions as “the hands probing the moon’s cavern, the feet treading heaven’s root, and the returning wind mixing and blending” to describe the coordination of body and mind and the harmonization of inner Qi in practice. Only after one hundred days will signs appear that the cultivation is taking effect. The “Golden Liquid Returning Elixir” is a great matter that runs through the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water).

The scripture finally emphasizes that, apart from this path of the dual cultivation of nature and life, which takes clarity and stillness as its foundation, all the rest are merely minor arts of the side gates.

In cultivating both the inward and the outward aspects of myself, I had already grasped the knack of settling the furnace and establishing the cauldron, and I understood the oral formula for gathering the Five Phases (Wuxing). I had also gained some understanding of the details of the medicines and the timing of the fire. But I did not yet understand the proper measures of the Void. I rashly shut myself in a chamber to practice, intending to refine the external medicine into the abdomen, set the firing in motion, and begin the work.

When cultivation reached a hidden pass, it seemed as if the myriad spirits of the Void came to pay homage, and the immortal embryo seemed to be conceived and taking form at the crown of the head. Even ghosts and spirits would find such a state hard to explain. The problem was that I had not yet been able to refine and transform myself within the life of the dusty world, nor had I, amid the marketplace of human society, accumulated “lead”—a term of Daoist Neidan (internal alchemy), commonly referring to the Jing (essence) and Qi (vital energy) that must be gathered and refined in practice. The channels of Qi were not yet fully settled, and the foundation of cultivation did not yet meet all its conditions. Although the principles seemed already thoroughly understood, mind-nature had not yet truly appeared. Visions of the myriad spirits therefore arose, and dangers followed one after another. My mind and Shen (spirit) grew dazed, and I could not remain my own master.

There was, moreover, no companion in the Dao (the Way) outside who understood the inner situation and could watch over and protect me. Disturbed by sensual sounds and sights, I was startled into scattering my primordial Yang (the original, fundamental Yang Qi). The furnace and cauldron were thrown into disorder; the mind-monkey and the will-horse ran out of control; spirit could not rest securely in its place, and Qi could not return to its primordial source. I thus encountered yin demons. What are yin demons? I will not speak of them in detail; later students often do not understand them. Once true Yang is lost, Yin Qi seizes the opportunity to take charge, and the ghosts and spirits within the body make mischief day and night. Whether the eyes are open or closed, the ears seem to hear ghosts and spirits clamoring. By day one can still barely endure it, but at night it is especially hard to bear, and not even a moment of quiet can be maintained. In cultivation, what are called “the lord of life at the sea floor of the other household within my own body” and “the wu-earth of Dui metal,” once set in motion, throw the five viscera and the hundred vessels into disorder, sending blood and Qi surging upward, until one even feels the whole body lifted and both feet leave the ground, placing life itself in danger. This is the condition in which ghosts and spirits exploit a vacancy to work their mischief.

I temporarily set aside my former practice and, following my teacher’s instruction, lived in seclusion amid the marketplace, accumulating and refining “lead” within ordinary worldly life, gathering in passion and desire and returning them to mind-nature, so that the impulse of killing and contention would return to the heart within. From childhood to old age, a person is continually robbed of original heavenly nature by Heaven and Earth, by other people, and by external things. Now, however, within both emptiness and the dusty world, the lost innate genuineness must be seized back and restored to one’s own nature. Only then can primordial Jing, primordial Qi, and primordial Shen be made complete again. Recovering these “three completions” depends entirely on reaching a state of utmost emptiness and utmost stillness. After the myriad things have grown in abundance, each returns to its root. When the root is restored, the lines of principle come together, mind-nature appears, body and mind are settled, and the Five Phases gather. Only then may one cultivate practices of a higher order and at last attain the Dao.

Among the sages of antiquity, many stopped halfway in their cultivation. In every case it was because they had not first refined and nourished body and mind, nor held fast to their mental intent, so as to return the golden Qi (vital energy) to original nature. When the second phase came for obtaining the medicine and the fourth phase for advancing the fire, they again did not know how to grasp the proper measure within the void, and they worked carelessly and negligently. Thus Bai Gong sighed and said, “One must still cut away the nodes of pine and bamboo.”

Movement and stillness within the void are exceedingly subtle, and peril lies hidden in them; if one cannot take hold of them, they will harm the practitioner without the least mercy. If a student of the Dao (the Way) can clearly recognize the two kinds of movement and stillness, inner and outer, with no obstruction in the mind, and from then on maintain and nurture this state, cast off selfish thoughts, and restore mind and nature to the principle of Heaven, the work of refining the elixir becomes simple and easy. Holding all day to the “yellow flower” outside the body, while awaiting the descent of the “jade nectar” of the precelestial and the postcelestial, is precisely the mystery spoken of in “drinking wine and wearing flowers, one awakens to long life.”

In cultivating the way of Hunyuan (Primordial Unity), however, one should be without contrivance, without forcing, without obstinacy, and without self-assertion. One accepts life and death alike as they come, and forgets the distinction between self and other; even while spending the whole day in a busy marketplace, viewing the scenery and gladdening the mind, one can still keep the original heart. Yet if one sits alone in brothels and wineshops talking idly and recklessly, one will hardly avoid the astonishment, ridicule, and slander of onlookers. If one wishes to draw in external conditions and accumulate “lead” (an important symbol in Neidan [internal alchemy]), while at the same time employing both the methods of the Dao and material wealth, one may also invite the deception and mockery of ordinary people, or even bring calamity upon oneself. The practitioner should therefore rely on influential households in flourishing cities as an outer protection, personally beholding the Dao while keeping the Dao in the heart, and at the same time concealing one’s sharpness and leaving no trace.

The immortals said, “If you wish to obtain the treasure of Heaven, you must use the wealth of the world.” What is meant here by “the great treasure of the Nine-Yang cauldron of Heaven” is the treasure of supreme Yang that lies stored within the practitioner’s own person.

Human beings are but sojourners in the cosmos. That men and women can go on living and not die before their time depends on nothing other than this one point of “Yang Jing” (yang essence; in Daoist Neidan, or internal alchemy, it refers to the Jing, or essence, and Qi, or vital energy, that sustain life). How can anyone say that a man cultivating the Dao (the Way) must rely on a woman, and a woman cultivating the Dao must rely on a man? Such talk corrupts the morals of the age and the human heart; it is nothing short of the conduct of beasts. Alas! If one will not even listen to these principles and remains obstinately deluded, how can one be counted a disciple of the immortals and the Buddhas?

If those who cultivate the Dao can truly hold fast to body and mind and nurture De (Virtue/Power), then even in haste, in hardship, and amid wandering and displacement they do not lose the settled strength of the inner heart. Only then do they seek to cultivate the higher stage of “outer medicine entering the abdomen” (a Neidan term, meaning to take into the body the Jing and Qi obtained by gathering and refining what lies outside). At that moment the state of mind becomes clear and limpid in an instant, as if one had shed the embryo and changed the cauldron; the whole body turns into a single ray of golden light, the great earth seems to vanish, and outside the body there is yet another body. The Yang Shen (the pure-yang spiritual form of which Daoism speaks; Shen, or spirit) departs from the flesh, and one then guards emptiness and nourishes the void. This is the “Great Hibernation Method of the Five Dragons” (a method of Daoist Neidan cultivation). The immortals say: “If the Neidan is not achieved, there is no basis on which to speak of Waidan (external alchemy).”

Those whose words can be trusted and who have received the orthodox transmission should first accumulate Jing and Qi, and also accumulate the provisions of merit within and without, nurturing them until Qi is full and Shen is complete, the golden light appears, and day and night are bright and undimmed. Only then is the Neidan reckoned complete, and only then does the phenomenal appearance of the “Waidan” outside the body manifest. In reading and cultivating the Dao, one cannot seek mechanically by following a diagram. The practitioner must wait until day and night are bright and the medicinal sprout first emerges before gathering and refining the so-called “medicine outside my body,” and matching it with the female and male Qi of one’s own person. When the golden light enters the mouth and the fire-timing of the celestial circuit is set in motion, the mind becomes clear in an instant, and one can slip free of the body without any hindrance. Only this is called the “Great Shell-Shedding of the Golden Cicada.”

Before meeting an enlightened teacher, the cultivator should be cautious and humble, accumulating merit and piling up good deeds; meeting hardship, one does not shrink back; meeting slander, one does not give way to anger; and one prizes the Dao while making light of wealth. After meeting a true person of high attainment, one must fix one’s resolve, seek instruction with sincere earnestness, and thoroughly clarify the two crucial true messages inside and outside oneself, suddenly awakening to the true place to which cultivation returns. The saying “my body is one heaven and earth” means that the human body is itself like a heaven and earth.

Yet although this true locus of cultivation is said to exist without depending on any concrete form, could the “aperture within the aperture” (a Neidan term, referring to a still deeper crucial point in cultivation) be wholly without form? An object may be borrowed here to explain it. Take a forked opening, for example: when the inside is braced apart, it opens; when the inside is loose and empty, it slackens and draws closed. That an aperture can open, or slacken and draw closed, is just the same.

When cultivation first begins, one must gather the mind and Shen (spirit) so that Shen enters the “aperture within the aperture” (in Neidan [internal alchemy], the deep place where breath and Qi [vital energy] converge). With every breath one returns to the root, and the inner Qi grows full; when the inner Qi is full, the elixir embryo increases. Yet Shen is originally born within the aperture within the aperture and only takes lodging in the palace of the heart (the dwelling of mind and spirit). As I have said, this was always one’s own possession; now it is merely a return to oneself.

The aperture within the aperture is the chamber of Shen; the chamber of Shen is also the cavity of Qi, and it is also the Central Yellow (a Neidan term for the Yellow Court at the center of the body, the place where Qi gathers). When inner Qi returns to the root, the Qi cavity becomes full; when the Qi cavity is full, the elixir embryo grows.

“Yellow” is the proper color of Earth and also stands for the intent of Earth. Thus the Wu-earth within Kan (Wu-earth, symbolizing Yang earth) keeps its intent ever in Li, while the Ji-earth within Li (Ji-earth, symbolizing Yin earth) keeps its intent ever in Kan. This is their original disposition, and they naturally possess the opening for mutual accord. If one can grasp this opening of mutual accord and guide it by intent, settling the mind and Shen and letting the breath come to rest, a single point of the Golden Elixir will form of itself. The process is exceedingly simple and is not a matter of deliberate contrivance. This is because the mother Qi lies hidden and harbors the child Qi, and the Qi of mother and child cling to one another within the aperture within the aperture; this being so, how could the Golden Elixir fail to form?

Two pieces from the Zhengdao ge (Song of the Correct Way)

I have a set of oral instructions, and I often lament that there is nowhere to speak of them. I have searched the whole world and still cannot find such a place; they cannot be uttered before anyone. To cultivate by going along with the elixir method is the ordinary way of common mortals; only by cultivating against ordinary principle can one become an immortal—and this is the true oral instruction. If one merely wastes one’s thoughts to no purpose, then every action one takes is nothing but reckless contrivance.

One must know the Wuzhen pian (Awakening to Reality), a Daoist classic of Neidan (internal alchemy), thoroughly by heart, and carefully discern and seek out an enlightened master. In this way one can naturally grasp a little of the subtlety within; that hidden mechanism is wondrous and unfathomable. The quintessence of Heaven and Earth fuses together, and one must choose the right time and gather it with care. In cultivation one must understand the “treasure beneath the earth” and the “moon in the sky”: the former refers to the root required for refining the elixir, the latter to the crucial point that must be grasped in practice. One must also observe whether the Qi (vital energy) rises or sinks and whether it has matured, and distinguish whether the “water source” is clear or turbid.

If one enters the stage of the “field battle” (a metaphor, in Neidan cultivation, for the congress of Yin and Yang), the mind-monkey and the will-horse must not grow restless. The relation of guest and host must also be clearly distinguished: when the guest comes, first act as host; when the host comes, then act as guest. The Yellow Dame (a metaphor for the mediator) harmonizes the Lovely Maiden (a Neidan term, often referring to yin Qi); after their union, the elixir congeals of itself.

The elixir medicine is black as lacquer on the outside and white as snow on the inside, while the middle shines in brilliant yellow and purple; there is also a description of its form as “flesh blue-green, skin like blood.” Once the elixir has formed, it is called the “Five Outstanding Elixir,” and it can destroy the Three Corpses (yin spirits which, as Daoism teaches, lodge in the human body and harm body and mind). One who has completed the cultivation is limpid and thoroughly open, yet appears foolish, deaf, mute, and clumsy: in the heart there is nothing to ponder, and in the mouth there is nothing to say.

In refining the elixir one must use both “civil fire” and “martial fire,” and gather and refine according to the season. The golden cauldron should always be kept warm; the jade furnace must not be heated too fiercely. The joining of Yin and Yang lasts only a moment, after which one must still warm and nurture it for ten months. A man can actually “give birth,” bringing forth a “guest of the Three Isles” (an immortal). Swallow one grain of the elixir alive, and celestial immortals come to welcome you. When nine years of meritorious practice are fulfilled, one can ascend in safety to the Golden Portal (the dwelling of the Celestial Emperor).

And

The sentiment of one who cultivates the Dao (the Way) is no ordinary sentiment. Once the mysteries of cultivation have been grasped, they must not be treated lightly. First set aside worldly attachments, then devote yourself to the subtle principles within. Before refining the Returned Elixir (the state sought in Neidan, internal alchemy), first cultivate mind and nature; before refining the Great Medicine (an important term in the art of Neidan), first cultivate the inner heart.

When the mind is settled, the foundation of the elixir naturally appears; only when mind and nature are clear and lucid do the medicinal materials arise. At this time one hears thunder faintly shaking the void, and the Yellow Court (Huangting—in Daoist internal cultivation, the related sites within the body) seems wrapped in purple clouds and mist, profound and unfathomable. If practice reaches this stage, do not be alarmed; simply guard the Original Spirit (Yuanshen—a person’s fundamental spirit), as if guarding the gate of a grotto abode.

While guarding the grotto gate, remain alert and concentrated, like a cat, a rat, or a rabbit facing an eagle. The various visions that appear in cultivation are not the root of the correct Way; only a single streak of red light is the true sign. Within this red light strange scenes further appear, like floating dust on a bright window; contained in it is a point of pre-heaven Qi (vital energy). From afar it looks like a grape; up close it looks like gold. Once it is obtained, it must be carefully guarded; if even a thread of stray thought arises, innate genuineness is lost.

When the Qi of the first Yang (the newly arising Yang Qi) returns to the Dantian (energy center), the interior of the body is like spring among the four seasons, with living force in circulation. It is as if a stretch of white cloud appears, and a moment later it is like clear weather after rain, wholly renewed. All day the breath continues unbroken, and one’s manner is hazy as if drunk; one need only serenely guard this springtime within the body. When the Yin Jing (essence) throughout the body is gradually exhausted, a body of pure Yang is refined, like one whole piece of gold.

At this point the breath is faint, as if in a small death; yet once it coalesces into one, the realm of Quanzhen (Complete Perfection) is reached. Only when cultivation arrives here is the work complete; afterward one must return to the world to accumulate merit. When merit is fulfilled and practice complete, one is summoned by Heaven’s mandate; the Yang Spirit (Yangshen—the form of pure Yang spirit of which cultivators speak) appears, and the true numen is revealed.

These words must not be spoken to unsuitable people. If one rashly leaks the secrets of Heaven, severe punishment will follow. I earnestly charge immortal friends and companions of the Dao: unless you meet someone who has truly penetrated the teaching, do not speak of this lightly. Every sentence in this piece contains what is mysterious and subtle; apart from this truth, there is nothing more real. Please treasure these words and keep them strictly preserved, so that in later practice they may be used to verify what lies in the heart.

Please remember these fifty-two sentences. If there is any false word among them, I am willing to meet a violent death; if I mislead you, may I be whipped to pieces by the spirit officers (Lingguan—in Daoism, the divine generals who oversee inspection and protect the teaching).