《男女丹工异同辩》

A Disquisition on the Similarities and Differences in the Elixir Work of Men and Women

Compiled and set forth by Nüshi Yan Zehuan and Yan Qing of Zhuyang; collated by Nüshi He Weilie and Quan Zhen of Xianjing; re-edited and revised by Chen Yingning of Wanjiang.

Notes for the Reader

This book was written in the guimao year of the Guangxu reign, that is, eight years before the first year of the Republic (1912), namely 1904.

The author was a woman who never married throughout her life and served her mother with great filial devotion. Her mother, once widowed, did not remarry, and she herself preserved her person and likewise did not marry. Mother and daughter both delighted in the Daoist teaching, yet they had no master to instruct them and could only search the Daoist books of various schools for the formulas of cultivation. Later, at her mother’s command, the author compiled this book. Its contents are all excerpts drawn from other elixir Jing (scriptures/classics), not compositions of the author’s own making.

Of the teachings of the various schools excerpted in the book, some are sound and some are not. The theories in the book are therefore occasionally contradictory, and the writing also tends to be lengthy and diffuse. Although the compiler made slight cuts and revisions, the general sense of the original still had to be preserved. Readers should judge and discriminate for themselves.

The appellations that appear in the book, such as “Xiangyi Gumu,” “Xuantian Shangdi,” “Jinque Dijun,” “Yaochi Wangmu,” and “Yuanming Daomu,” are all divine names borrowed from other works. The editor holds that, in an age devoted to casting off superstition, such names ought not to have been used; yet because they were already present in the original book, they have been retained exactly as they stood.

The book states that after a woman succeeds in cultivating nüdan—a term for one form of Daoist Neidan (internal alchemy)—she must wait for others to guide and deliver her. The editor considers this account insufficiently sound, probably under the influence of the older custom of esteeming men and slighting women. Inequality between men and women is quite widespread in the institutions of various religions and is not unique to China; only when outstanding women appear is there hope of breaking this established precedent.

The text cites a passage attributed to the Imperial Lord of the Golden Portal: some hold that unless a woman “slays the red dragon,” the elixir cannot form and the Dao (the Way) cannot be cultivated. What is not understood here is that if the blood is exhausted, Qi (vital energy) declines along with it. This is the same principle as when a man’s Jing (essence) and Qi are depleted and the elixir is likewise hard to refine. Neither a man’s Jing nor a woman’s blood should be excessively worn down. Once Qi leaves the blood, it loses the root of generation and transformation; only when blood is transformed into Qi can Jing and Qi circulate. If one claims that the blood must first be exhausted before the elixir can be refined, why does a young woman fall ill after her blood has dried up? This shows precisely that cultivation cannot, in the end, do without blood.

The author then draws a distinction: “slaying the red dragon” means bringing menstruation to a stop through the work of cultivation; it does not mean causing a woman’s blood to wither away. If one takes slaying the red dragon to mean the cutting off, exhaustion, or drying up of the blood, would that not amount to an illness of the “dry-blood consumption” type? Should a woman truly suffer from such a condition, she must, through special regulation and medical treatment, restore her menses to normal so that they return each month and her body regains its health; only then may she follow the oral instructions for slaying the dragon and gradually cultivate until menstruation ceases. This is the order that ought to be followed. The author regards it as a serious error to confuse the results of cultivating the slaying of the red dragon with the disease of dry-blood consumption.

The methods with which men and women begin cultivation differ because of physiological differences. If a woman wishes to cultivate the Dao, she should first acquire a basic knowledge of medicine and only then begin practice, so that she is less likely to take the wrong path.

The initial methods of cultivation differ for men and women, and this difference arises from physiology. A woman who wishes to cultivate the Dao (the Way) should first acquire a basic knowledge of medicine and only then begin practice; only in this way is she unlikely to go astray. Among those who cultivate immortality and study the Dao, there is none who does not study the principles of medicine. This is a concrete lesson of experience, not something that empty talk of abstruse theory or loose discussion of mind and nature can match.

Whether man or woman, if one does not oneself possess the capacity to conceive and bring forth life, there can be no hope of forming the “immortal embryo” (xiantai). Ordinary human procreation and the cultivation of immortality are, in their underlying principle, originally of one accord; the crux is whether one follows or reverses the natural order. What is called “slaying the red dragon” (zhan chilong) names a woman’s practice of reversing physiological creation so that menstruation ceases. If the body lacks the function of generating and transforming life, and one merely mistakes the stopping of menstruation for having already “slain the red dragon” and thus being able to become an immortal, then would not women over fifty, whose menses naturally come to an end, all be qualified for immortality? If the aged are said to be a separate case, then in modern times young women, too, ask physicians to remove the uterus and ovaries by surgery, after which menstruation likewise ceases of itself—can this be called “slaying the red dragon”? The essential reasoning here cannot but be examined in depth.

The tenth month of the twenty-fourth year of the Republic of China (October 1935), the 4,632nd year of the Yellow Emperor’s era. Noted by Chen Yingning of Wanjiang. This passage is the preface to A Disquisition on the Similarities and Differences in the Elixir Work of Men and Women (Nannü dangong yitong bian).

From childhood Ze Huan had lost her father. Her mother lived as a widow, and the household had no son, only the three sisters. Before long the two younger sisters died young, and the third sister had already been betrothed and was waiting to be married. Unable to bear the thought of her mother remaining a widow alone, lonely and wretched, Ze Huan resolved to keep her chastity and support her mother, vowing never to marry all her life.

At the age of twelve she began, together with her mother, to observe a vegetarian fast, and the two often chanted the Quanshan Ge (Song of Exhortation to Goodness) for their own enjoyment. She frequently admired the beauty of cultivation described in morality books and the exalted dignity of immortals and Buddhas, yet she regretted that she had no enlightened teacher to show her the secrets of practice, nor any Danjing (alchemical scriptures) by which to test her own cultivation. She therefore prayed in silence for a favorable opportunity, and waited, all told, for nearly ten years.

In the summer of the gengzi year, disorder broke out in the capital. On her mother’s orders, Ze Huan withdrew in advance to Eshan. Only then did she learn that Buddhism possessed a number of texts on women’s cultivation, such as the Maya Furen Jing (Scripture of Lady Maya), the Modengqie Nü Jing (Scripture of the Matangi Woman), the Geigu Zhangzhe Nü Jing (Scripture of the Daughter of the Elder Anathapindika), the Biqiuni Zhuan (Biographies of Bhikshunis), the Shan Nüren Zhuan (Biographies of Virtuous Women), and the Moni Zhukun Ji compiled by Hainan Yishao. The last of these gathers more than seventy texts and was assembled by a person styled Rushan Furen (“Madam Rushan”), whose name was Shan Yi Youpoyi (“the Upasika Shan Yi”).

Buddhist scriptures, however, are profound in content. They speak more of the principles of xing (nature) and less of the cultivation of ming (life), so that beginners cannot easily take them as a place to begin practice. As for Daoist writings on women’s Neidan (internal alchemy), they are mostly scattered through the Daozang (Daoist Canon). They have neither an arranged order nor any dedicated compilation; the material is vast, and one does not know where to start reading.

Knowing her own learning to be shallow, Ze Huan nevertheless excerpted the relevant passages from Daoist texts section by section and compiled about a hundred and more pages of materials on Nüdan (women’s alchemy), which she explained to her mother—both to relieve their loneliness and to encourage one another to devote themselves wholeheartedly to practice. In the time left after waiting upon her mother, she also, at her mother’s bidding, selected from the materials she had gathered the points on which the methods of cultivation for men and women are the same and those on which they differ, and copied them into a separate volume of more than five thousand characters. She entitled it Nannü Dan’gong Yitong Bian (A Discrimination of the Similarities and Differences in the Alchemical Work of Men and Women) and kept it beside her seat for ready consultation, so as not to confuse the methods of practice, harm the body, or even bring on unusual illnesses.

She knew that a compilation of this kind would inevitably be mocked as merely picking up the scraps of others’ words; still less did she presume to seek instruction openly from fellow devotees.

In the spring of the guimao year of the Guangxu reign (1903), Yan Zehuan of Zhuyang, courtesy name Yanqing, a woman scholar, recorded this herself.

A Discourse on the Similarities and Differences in the Alchemical Work of Men and Women

Compiled and set forth by Yan Zehuan (Yanqing), woman scholar of Zhuyang; collated by He Weilie (Quanzhen), woman scholar of Xianjing; re-collated and revised by Chen Yingning of Wanjiang.

Collected Explanations

Yuanjun Sun’s Commentary on the Kun Formula says:

The Commentary on the Judgments (the section of the Zhouyi that explains the images of the hexagrams) says: “How vast is the primal Kun! The myriad things depend on it in order to grow.” Kun belongs to old Yin. When Yin Qi (vital energy) reaches its extreme, Yang Qi arises. In accord with the Dao (the Way) of Heaven, one can bring forth and nourish human beings and the myriad things; in accord with one’s own cultivation, one can attain the Dao and become an immortal.

Ancient Mother Xiangyi says:

Men’s cultivation always begins with the preliminary work, laying a foundation through circulation and refinement. The methods of women’s cultivation differ from those of men: a man’s Yang Qi leaks away from the lower body, while a woman’s Yang Qi rises from the upper body; a man’s constitution is firm and strong, a woman’s soft and gentle.

A man takes as the basis of cultivation the Yang Jing (essence) of the Dantian (energy center)—the place where, in the practice of Neidan (internal alchemy), the movements of Qi are said to gather. He must guard it at all times so that it does not drain away outward. After long accumulation, he further tempers it by the firing process, so that Jing is transformed into Qi, Qi into Shen (spirit), and Shen into emptiness, advancing step by step. When the work is complete, he can fulfill the Dao and ascend in flight.

Women are different. The text holds that a woman is still a body of turbid Yin, a frame of blood, and must rely on the “numinous fat” in the breasts (what the original text calls a woman’s endowment for cultivation, or the substance of her cultivation) in order to transform her constitution. Through prolonged circulation and refinement, she can turn from red to white, so that blood is transformed into Qi. After blood has become Qi, she further tempers it by the “fire tally” (the standard, in Neidan practice, for regulating the firing process), and can likewise turn Qi into pure Yang, finally fulfilling the Dao and returning to the True.

In women’s cultivation, the first step is to train the physical form, and only then to cultivate the original root (the foundation of life). This differs from the method followed by men: men first cultivate the original root and afterward train the physical form. Because the constitutions of men and women are not the same, their methods of cultivation naturally differ as well. If separate pathways of practice are not established, how can Yin and Yang (Yin-Yang) be harmonized so that both men and women receive the benefits of cultivation?

Since the physical form already belongs to oneself, why must it still be trained? A woman’s body is regarded as belonging to Yin and as relatively turbid, while a man’s body is regarded as endowed with the firm Qi (vital energy) of Yang. Unless a woman undergoes regulation and refinement, she cannot transform blood into Qi. If blood cannot be transformed into Qi, she cannot nurture the Qi of Prior Heaven or generate true Qi. Without true Qi, the body remains purely Yin—how, then, can the reverted elixir be formed (the elixir body condensed in Neidan, or internal alchemy) and the Great Dao (the Way) thereby attained? A woman must therefore first train the physical form before she can continue her cultivation.

The methods by which nüzhen (female cultivators of the Dao, the Way) practice have always differed greatly from those of men. For men, cultivating the Dao centers on refining the medicine, so the work of the earlier stage must be explained point by point. If one can keep to the practice every day and apply oneself with devout effort, so that the blood of the five viscera within the body is entirely transformed into Qi (vital energy), Qi will arise of itself. Once true Qi stirs unseen and the body of turbid Yin has been transformed into a body of pure Yang, and the work has reached this stage, one may then employ such Neidan (internal alchemy) methods as fire timing (huohou) and phase correspondence (fuhou). Only at this point does a woman’s practice become the same as a man’s. If the paths of cultivation for men and women are not set forth separately, how can practice bear fruit? Men, then, first refine the medicine and afterward refine the form; women first refine the form and afterward refine the medicine. The two differ in constitution, and so the sequence of their cultivation differs as well. In now laying down a method to teach others, I must make these distinctions clear, so that students will not be left wanting.

The principles of Nüdan (women’s alchemy) are not inherently complex, and carrying them out in practice is not especially difficult. Many elixir scriptures do not transmit methods of cultivation for women, because those methods could not yet guide both men and women. I transmit these methods now in the hope that men and women alike may cultivate, and therefore, in the latter part of this elixir book, I go on to set forth the Ten Principles of the Women’s Dao (Nüdao shize), to guide those who share the affinity.

Why is the Dao of Nüdan concise rather than elaborate? The author holds that a woman’s temperament is comparatively pure and complete, and that her body and mind are comparatively settled; once she has grasped even a little of the work, she can enter deeply and bring the cultivation to completion. A man’s thoughts, by contrast, tend more often to be partial and mixed. Because their bodily and mental traits differ, a woman’s cultivation proceeds more readily than a man’s. In Nüdan, the portion of the work that runs from nurturing the true to embryonic breathing (taixi)—in Neidan, the return of the breath to deep stillness, as if one were a fetus within the mother’s womb—already completes about two-thirds of the practice. A man must pass through many steps before reaching the stage of regulating Shen (spirit). For this reason, once a Nüdan text has moved from nurturing the embryo to embryonic breathing and that stage is finished, it next records the cultivation of outward conduct (practice undertaken in daily life and behavior). Only when this outward cultivation has room to spare may one go on to the stage of regulating the spirit.

Men’s cultivation involves many stages of practice before one can reach the realm of regulating the spirit (Shen). For this reason, the texts of women’s alchemy (nüdan) usually move from nurturing the embryo to embryonic breathing. Only after this stage is completed do they go on to describe external cultivation. When external cultivation has been accumulated sufficiently, one can then proceed further to refine and nourish the regulation of the spirit.

After a female perfected one has succeeded in her cultivation, why must she still await deliverance? It is because a woman’s body is comparatively soft and frail, and she must rely on internal alchemy (Neidan) to refine her yin-weak body into a yang body. Although the body has already been transformed into a yang body, the congealed yin of her inborn nature has not yet been entirely refined away. In women’s alchemy, the work of the stage of returning to emptiness (huanxu) is often rather limited, so she has not yet exhausted the mysteries of the creative transformations of heaven and earth. She cannot ascend beyond the world precisely because her physical form is not yet firm enough. A man is different: his physical form has already been refined into a diamond-indestructible body, the work of returning to emptiness has also been brought to maturity, and the radiance of his spirit fills heaven and earth. He therefore need not wait for another to deliver him; he can complete the Dao (the Way) and realize perfection, personally have audience with the Supreme Emperor, and freely roam and dwell in Penglai. A woman is not like this. After she has succeeded in women’s alchemy, she must still widely practice meritorious deeds. When her merit is complete, the superior sages see her and take pity, petitioning the Supreme Emperor on her behalf. Only then is an imperial edict issued, and she is selected and summoned by a golden writ, so that she realizes the supreme fruit of the Dao in both the human world and the heavenly realm; otherwise, she can become only a scattered immortal (sanxian).

Patriarch Lü says: “Refining the Form of Great Yin (Taiyin lianxing—the practice of transforming the female yin body) is broadly the same as the methods of men’s cultivation, with only slight differences. The initial practice one undertakes is called ‘beheading the red dragon’ (zhan chilong—using Neidan to stop menstruation). After ten months of cultivation following this, the yang spirit (yangshen—the pure yang spirit formed through cultivation) manifests, and one can then shatter the void. From that point on, the path of cultivating perfection is the same as for men, with no distinction.”

The Daoist of Suishan says: “After the red dragon has been beheaded, the nipples naturally retract, the body becomes the same as a man’s, and the Qi (vital energy) of true yin is also transformed into true yang. Cultivation thereafter does not differ from that of men. A woman, however, belongs to the still body; although the four subsequent levels of practice are applied in the same way as a man’s Neidan, attainment comes more quickly.”

Patriarch Lü (Lüzu) said: “In a man’s cultivation, one first subdues and transforms away the yin substance within the body, turning it into true yang; the methods of practice thereafter are then the same as those for men. Women, however, have a constitution inclined toward stillness. Although the latter four stages employ the same methods as male elixir cultivation, the results they yield come more quickly.”

Patriarch Lü also said: “Men’s cultivation is called ‘subduing the white tiger,’ and women’s cultivation is called ‘slaying the red dragon.’” The “white tiger” and the “red dragon” are esoteric terms in Neidan (internal alchemy). They refer respectively to the states of body and mind that men and women must address in their practice, and they do not denote real animals.

The Sanming pian (On the Three Destinies) says: “A man’s root of life lies in the Dantian (energy center); the Dantian is the foundation in which the Neidan is brought to gestation. A woman’s root of life lies in the breasts; the breasts are where the quintessence of the maternal body’s primordial Qi (vital energy) condenses.” The text further says: “For a woman, blood serves as the kidneys, and the aperture of the blood lies within the body. After the age of forty-nine, the waist loses its nourishment, the blood dries up, and vitality declines along with it. If she nurtures herself over a long period, she can again generate primordial blood, as though restored to the condition of a woman not yet married. This is the mystery of bringing something forth from nothing. Once she perceives that the primordial blood has already formed, she immediately slays and transforms it, and the foundation of life can be established anew. From this point on, the work of cultivating nature and life is the same as for a man.”

The Lazy Daoist (Lan Daoren) said: “Why is a woman’s root of life said to be threefold? Because it is divided into upper, middle, and lower sites: the upper site is the yang aperture, the middle site is the yellow chamber, and the lower site is the Dantian. In youth one begins from the upper site; in old age one begins from the middle site; and when the practice has matured, one begins from the lower site. Moreover, because a woman is yang within and yin without, she must first slay the red dragon so that the body is restored to wholeness. In this way Kan is transformed into Qian. She then cultivates according to the methods used by men, and within a year she may succeed, for the Golden Elixir (Jindan) lies within.” Here “Kan” and “Qian” are figures from the Zhouyi (Book of Changes). They are also used in Neidan, where they symbolize yin and yang respectively.

In the Xiuzhen biannan (Discerning Difficulties in Cultivating Perfection), someone asks: “The point at which men and women begin their practice…” The latter half of this quotation repeats the Lazy Daoist’s words above. It means: first transform into Qian, then cultivate according to the methods for men, and within a year one may succeed, for the Golden Elixir lies within.

Someone asked, “When men and women cultivate, how do their methods of beginning differ?”

The reply was: “Men’s cultivation emphasizes the refining of Qi (vital energy); women’s cultivation emphasizes the refining of form. What is called refining Qi means subduing one’s own Qi and causing it to turn back. Once the Qi has turned back, one can reach a state of empty stillness and profound depth, return to the root, and restore the original source of life; thus the ‘White Tiger’ is subdued. The ‘White Tiger’ here is a term of Neidan (internal alchemy), referring to a man’s Jing (essence) and Qi no longer leaking outward.

What is called refining form means causing the bodily form to withdraw. The cultivator takes the dissolution of form as the goal. What is called the extinction of form means that the four limbs and the hundred bones of the body seem to return to empty stillness, and the limbs seem as if they peel away and decay; thus the ‘Red Pulse’ is severed. The ‘Red Pulse,’ also called the ‘Red Dragon,’ is a term of Neidan, referring to the vessel of a woman’s menses.

After a man’s White Tiger has been subdued, it is as though he has recovered the body of a boy; the acquired Jing and Qi naturally leak no longer, and in this way he can form the elixir and prolong his years. After a woman’s Red Dragon has been severed, it is likewise as though she has recovered the body of a girl; the turbid yin blood naturally descends no longer, and in this way she can cast off death and enter new life. Therefore men’s cultivation is called ‘Taiyang (Great Yang) refining of Qi,’ and women’s cultivation is called ‘Taiyin (Great Yin) refining of form.’

Someone further asked, “In a woman’s refining of form, must she not also subdue Qi?”

The reply was: “A woman’s endowed nature belongs to yin, so her Qi is comparatively easy to subdue; yet the Red Pulse most readily obstructs cultivation of the Dao (the Way), and the crux of practice lies precisely here. Therefore, at the outset one must apply effort at the most crucial point. Once the Red Pulse is severed, the Qi will naturally become docile. This is unlike a man, whose endowed nature belongs to yang and whose Qi is harder to subdue. For example, a man needs three years to subdue Qi, whereas a woman can do so in one year.

If she is a woman of outstanding capacity and has moreover received her teacher’s oral instructions, and she practices the method of Taiyin refining of form, she may attain the Dao within three to five years, with less effort than a man. Yet a true ‘hero among women’ is extremely hard to encounter. What is meant here is that only one whose will is firm and strong, and whose effort surpasses that of men a hundredfold, may achieve anything; if she merely exerts herself as a man does, success is absolutely impossible.”

Someone asked, “The Great Dao (the Way) originally makes no distinction between male and female. Why, then, must men and women still be distinguished?”

The reply was: “The principle itself is the same, yet the methods applied in cultivation differ. Because the innate nature and bodily structure of men and women are not the same, although both cultivate the Dao of nature and life—the Daoist work of cultivating mind-nature and life—the concrete methods of practice are quite different.”

The Supreme Emperor of Mysterious Heaven (Xuantian Shangdi, a revered deity of Daoism) said:

The Classic of Changes calls Qian the father and Kun the mother, and from this the principle of Yin-Yang can be clearly traced. Only after Heaven and Earth took form did male and female come into being, and the Way of Yin-Yang is likewise plain to see. From this it may be known that the specific methods by which men and women cultivate are indeed greatly different.

The Classic of Changes (Yijing) says, “Qian is the father, and Kun is the mother,” and the principle of Yin-Yang is clear and can be verified. Only after Heaven and Earth appeared did male and female come into being; the Way (Dao) of Yin-Yang is thus self-evident, and between Heaven and Earth there plainly cannot fail to be male and female. The man receives the transformations of Qian and Kun and thereby forms a body; the woman is likewise endowed with the working of the joining of Qian and Kun and thereby comes to have a body. All who possess such a body are furnished with the Qi (vital energy) of Qian and Kun, and dwell together within the cosmos.

Now is precisely the time for the universal deliverance of all beings, and the moment has come to board the Dharma boat together and ferry across the world. Methods of cultivation for men are already numerous; how could women be disregarded? Works that discuss the subtle mysteries of male cultivation are too many to count, while exemplary models that set forth methods of female cultivation are very few. I am deeply moved by compassion, and therefore speak specifically of this matter.

The man uses the Qi within Jing (essence) to penetrate the xiezi—in the cultivation of internal alchemy (Neidan), the minute yet crucial point—while the woman uses the Qi within the blood to warmly nourish the xiezi. When the xiezi is full, the lianqiao (a technical term in the scripture, referring to an aperture within the body) is full; only when the lianqiao is full does one begin to set choutian in motion (a Neidan term referring to the regulation and the increase or decrease of the movement of Qi in cultivation); and only after choutian is in motion does sweet dew descend (a name, in Neidan cultivation, for the body’s fluids or a particular physiological sensation).

The man’s Jing and Qi are comparatively abundant, while the woman’s blood and Qi are comparatively weak; the man is therefore called Yang, and the woman Yin. Those who cultivate this Way should take the cutting off of the seven emotions as the foundation, and the elimination of the six desires as the first concern. If they can do so, the woman’s originally subtle Qi, on the contrary, often increases more readily than the man’s. Why? A man’s thoughts are easily agitated, while a woman’s thoughts are relatively quiet; when there is agitation, Qi is easily dissipated, and when there is quiet, Qi readily grows. A man’s “seven lotuses” (a technical term in the scripture, referring to apertures related to cultivation) are easy to draw inward and hard to open; a woman’s seven lotuses are easy to open and hard to draw inward. If one cultivates with a true heart and perseveres without cease, one need not wait three or five years: sweet dew may descend constantly, and the seven lotuses may stay constantly open. Since opening is the easier of the two, how could gathering and refining be difficult? The differences between the cultivation of men and of women lie, in general, just here.

Speaking in general terms, the vacuity, emptiness, mystery, subtlety, Shen (spirit), and transformation discussed in the text are principles of cultivation shared by men and women alike. A man’s cultivation is called the “embryo,” while a woman’s is not called the “embryo” but is referred to simply as “breath” (respiration, vital breath). This is for fear that people of later generations would misunderstand the word “embryo” and attach to it explanations that have no basis.

When a man cultivates to the point at which Shen-consciousness leaves the body, he must reach the state of pure Yang before the opportunity to separate from the physical form appears; this is because Yin is still contained within Yang. The manner in which a woman’s Shen-consciousness leaves the body differs from a man’s. According to the present text, when a woman cultivates to the “Three Yangs,” her Shen-consciousness can travel out as far as a hundred li; when she cultivates to the “meeting of pure maturity and the Two Yangs,” she may depart once and not return, without perishing midway. The “Three Yangs” and the “Two Yangs” here are Neidan (internal alchemy) terms used in the text, and their specific meanings depend on the system of cultivation to which they belong. The few sentences in the scripture (Jing) concerning the departure of a woman’s Shen-consciousness are repeated once.

This is because the man is one in whom Yang contains Yin, while the woman is one in whom Yin contains Yang; in the man Yin is inside and Yang outside, while in the woman Yin is outside and Yang inside. When Yang Qi (vital energy) holds the advantage, the various kinds of Yin Qi readily recede. I do not now begrudge transmitting the true essentials of cultivation, and I set these matters forth only in the hope that more people will resolve to complete the practice at an early day.

The Imperial Lord of the Golden Portal (Jinque Dijun, a title of a revered deity in Daoism) says:

Seen on a large scale, the hundred vessels of the whole body all differentiate from Wuji (the undifferentiated primordial state); seen in their subtlety, they are again without form and without image, yet they contain the root of the transformations of the myriad things. Men and women alike possess this supreme treasure, but they rely respectively on “blood” and on “Jing (essence)” as the basis of cultivation. A man causes Jing and Qi to move in reverse, and by this means cultivates to become an immortal; a woman causes blood and Qi to course straight upward, returning into the aperture of the heart (the place where the Shen of the heart dwells). Therefore men and women each have their own methods of cultivation and their own ways of inner contemplation.

In a man’s cultivation of Neidan (internal alchemy), Jing (essence) is transformed into Qi (vital energy), Qi into Shen (spirit), and Shen in turn into emptiness. When the state of utmost stillness is reached, the elixir naturally congeals. A woman’s cultivation proceeds by transforming blood into Qi, Qi into Shen, and Shen into emptiness. When the state of empty stillness and naturalness is reached, the elixir naturally forms.

Some say that unless a woman “slays the red dragon” (a term of Daoist cultivation meaning the cessation of menstruation), the elixir cannot congeal and the Dao (the Way) cannot be attained. This view overlooks the relationship between Qi and blood: when the blood is depleted, Qi is depleted as well. The principle is the same as when a man’s Jing and Qi are damaged and lost, so that Neidan is likewise difficult to accomplish. Neither a man’s Jing nor a woman’s blood may be arbitrarily cut off. Once Qi leaves the blood, it loses the root from which it is generated; only after blood has been transformed into Qi can Jing and Qi circulate. If one had to wait until the blood was entirely exhausted before beginning to refine the elixir, why is it that a young woman falls ill once her blood dries up? This shows precisely that cultivation can never be separated from blood.

The Queen Mother of the Jade Pool (a female immortal in Daoist legend) said: “A woman’s work of cultivation corresponds to a man’s; only the stages differ. The fundamental principle of cultivation is not abstruse, and the various transformations within it do not differ from those of men. You must grasp this carefully. It has already been recorded in full in the texts, without error. Each person should practice with attentive care in their own way.”

The Daoist Mother Yuanming (an honorific title in Daoism) said:

“I will now make the principle plain, lest you incur fault through misunderstanding. The paths of cultivation for men and women each have their own allotment of Yin-Yang. The distinction between men and women spoken of here is only one link in the process.

“A man’s ancestral Qi (the innate primordial Qi) is distributed within Jing and blood. A woman’s ancestral Qi joins with Yin Qi. What is called Yin Qi is spoken of with reference to the Sea of Blood (the physiological region in a woman’s body associated with menstrual blood). A man has the Yang Pass (a gateway related to the circulation of Yang Qi). The principles of moving with the current and moving against it need not be explained in detail here, lest misunderstanding arise. A woman has the region of the Northern Sea; when it stirs, it is as though the waters surge.”

The Perfected of the White Lotus (a Daoist title) said:

“Although the sites at which men and women cultivate the Golden Elixir (Jindan) are not the same, the principle of Yin-Yang is in fact continuous between them. A clear mind and few desires are the root of cultivation. In laying the foundation (establishing the basis of practice), one must first slay the red dragon.”

Wuxinzi said:

A man’s seminal fluid, his Jing (essence), belongs to “the Yin within Yang,” while a woman’s seminal fluid belongs to “the Yang within Yin.” One must quickly seek out an enlightened teacher and ask him to point out the crucial points; only then can one reverse aging and return to youth, recovering one’s original authenticity. If the “heavenly heart” (the original mind spoken of in cultivation) can be restored within seven days, this is a wondrous method of the highest order. Thereafter the practice is the same as a man’s methods of cultivation, and the various oral formulas all require a teacher’s transmission.

Patriarch Lü said:

A woman’s cultivation is the same as a man’s; the difficulty lies in keeping body and mind pure and still. One should know that a woman’s desires are sometimes stronger than a man’s. After the menstrual flow (that is, menstruation) is discharged, the state of mind is like a lotus just beginning to open; only by drawing on the nourishment of the rain and dew of heaven and earth does it form fruit. If a woman is not joined with a man, she is like solitary Yin, and completion is hard to attain.

Zhenyizi said:

The great Dao (the Way) makes no distinction between men and women; both can succeed in cultivation. A man who succeeds in cultivating the Dao is called a “Zhenren” (one who has attained the Dao); a woman who succeeds is called a “Yuanjun” (the honorific Daoism gives to a woman who has attained the Dao).

Through the ages, the Danjing (alchemical Jing, or scriptures, that set forth the practice of Neidan, or internal alchemy) have explained men’s methods of cultivation in great detail, while saying very little about women’s cultivation. When they mention it at all, they usually offer only a brief account. This is not because female practitioners are slighted. Some hold that men and women share the same nature and life—what Daoism means by the innate character of life and the root of life—and that their methods of cultivation are likewise the same; since the methods for men have already been explained, those for women need not be set out separately.

Yet a man is Yang on the outside and Yin on the inside, while a woman is Yin on the outside and Yang on the inside (Yin-Yang). Their endowments differ, and their bodily forms differ as well; so although both cultivate nature and life, the actual methods of practice differ greatly. The Xiuzhen Biannan says: “When a man begins the work of cultivation, refining Qi (vital energy) is essential; when a woman begins, refining the bodily form is essential.” Ancestor Xu (Xu Xun, revered in Daoism) said: “The sign that a man has completed cultivation is that his Jing (essence) does not leak outward; the sign that a woman has completed cultivation is that her menstrual blood does not flow outward.”

Thus men and women already differ clearly at the first stage of cultivation. When one reaches the stages of lianji (cultivating mind and nature), deyao (obtaining the “medicine” of which Neidan speaks), huandan wenyang (condensing and warmly nurturing the Neidan), and jietai chushen (forming the sacred embryo in Neidan practice and then bringing forth the Shen, or spirit), the process is the same as for men, yet in concrete details and steps it remains broadly the same while differing slightly in the finer points.

In the spring of the renchen year, a woman cultivator happened to come and inquire about the Dao. Because I had read many ancient books, I drew on the Danjing to verify what was transmitted. From this point the original text seems incomplete, and the final sentence cannot be fully expressed.

In the spring of the renchen year, a woman happened to come and inquire about the Dao (the Way). Having read a good many ancient books, I used the records in them to corroborate what I was transmitting. The alchemical scriptures, however, devote very little space to women’s cultivation, and it is hard to determine where the cultivation of men and women is the same and where it differs. I therefore set aside the blame of divulging Heaven’s secrets and wrote out, point by point, what they share and what sets them apart, as a path for beginners seeking the Dao, so that one might grasp the meaning by relying on the scriptural text and not confuse the genuine with the false. If one can truly comprehend this and practice it with diligence, one may perhaps accomplish the supreme great Dao; then, taking part in the immortal assembly at the Jasper Pool, a woman too may, together with the male immortals, pay homage to the Wood Duke and have audience with the Metal Mother.

Heaven belongs to Yang and Earth to Yin; Qian stands for firm vigor, and Kun for yielding compliance. Without Yang, Yin cannot grow; without Yin, Yang cannot come into being. Only when firmness and yielding aid one another can water and fire be harmonized; only when Yin-Yang are matched can the myriad things be brought forth. Thus both Qian and Kun are endowed with the primordial Qi (vital energy) of Heaven and Earth, and both men and women possess the foundation upon which an undying body may be cultivated. Qian is called “great engendering” and can cultivate the Dao to the attainment of true awakening; Kun is called “vast engendering” and can likewise be cultivated into a Primordial Lady. If it is said that women can hardly enter the way of the immortals, why has the Queen Mother long dwelt on Kunlun? Chang’e stole and swallowed the elixir kept among the beams, and has long dwelt in the Moon Palace as its mistress. Xiaoyao, having read the Zhuangzi (the book of the Lacquer Garden), declared herself an immortal of the Jasper Pool banished to the human world. The goddess of the Luo River and the shamaness of Wu have been recorded since ancient times; the Purple Lady and the consorts of the Xiang are still celebrated to this day. All these deeds are set down in the histories and can be looked up. Women are endowed with the De (Virtue/Power) of the Dao of Kun—how could they be unable to cultivate the Dao and become immortals?

A woman’s life is of three kinds, appearing as lights of three colors—purple, white, and yellow—and differs from that of men. The conditions of the upper, middle, and lower correspond respectively to the stages of youth, decline, and maturity. If the crucial passes of cultivation are mistaken, the consequences are grave; they must be understood in depth.

(The final section discusses the “three kinds of life” and the different stages in women’s Neidan (internal alchemy), but the original text does not further explain the specific meanings of the purple, white, and yellow lights or of each stage; only a literal explanation is therefore given here.)

The “Qixue” is the “Xueyuan,” that is, the region where the breasts lie. It is located at the midline of the body, about one cun and three fen inward, and is not the left and right breasts. A man’s Qixue is in the Dantian (energy center); thus, when male cultivation is discussed, the lower Dantian is often called the Qixue. A woman’s Qixue is at the breasts, and so the breasts are called the Qixue.

Menstrual blood belongs to Yin; when Yin reaches its extreme, it transforms into Yang. Menstrual blood is transformed into blood at the Qixue and discharged outward. Therefore, if a woman is to cultivate what is called “slaying the red dragon”—Neidan (internal alchemy) practice that brings menstruation to a stop—she should begin at the site where menstrual blood is produced. After prolonged cultivation, the menstrual blood will cease of itself. To take the man’s Qixue, about one cun and three fen below the navel, as a woman’s Qixue is a mistake.

Patriarch Xu said: “When a man’s cultivation succeeds, semen no longer leaks outward; when a woman’s cultivation succeeds, menstruation no longer comes.” A woman’s menstruation is regarded as the first sign of the engendering of life. Cultivation causes menstrual blood to revert and transform into Qi (vital energy); the breasts then shrink until they resemble a man’s, and menstruation also stops. A man, by refining Jing (essence) into Qi, causes the penis to contract until it is like that of a young boy, and semen no longer leaks outward. Only after semen or menstruation has ceased can one hope to prolong life.

Patriarch Xu also said: “After a woman has cultivated to the point that menstruation stops, the subsequent work of cultivating nature and life is largely the same as that cultivated by men, differing only in minor details. It is a pity that no one has explained the essential knack clearly.”

Those of a yielding constitution cultivate the Dao (the Way) by a method different from that of the firm and strong, and the yielding often succeed more readily. The firm require three years to subdue Qi, while the yielding can do so in one year. This is because the elixir lies within the body.

Primordial Lady Sun Bu’er said:

Men and women originally arise from one and the same Qi (vital energy); they differ only in clarity and turbidity, and in movement and stillness. If a woman wishes to cultivate the true, the key lies in bringing the true primordial to coalescence.

Within the Yin nature, primordial Yang is also contained. One should preserve its pure and quiescent aspect and not cast it aside. Once this is understood, one knows that sensual desire does not of itself necessarily become a burden. Eliminate greed, anger, and delusion; cut off sorrow and anxious thought; remove turbid notions and cultivate the pure and still nature, and one will not fall into the various evil paths.

Abide in stillness and hold to Wuwei (non-action)—according with what is natural and not acting willfully—and I thereby come to possess the Yang Dao (the Way) symbolized by the male. Within the formless there is still form, and where there is conscious thought there is also its intent. Turning inward to observe, one knows that visible form and sound are both empty, and does not let the mind and Shen (spirit) be caught by the slightest entanglement. Taking Earth as the foundation of the Kun Dao (the Way that symbolizes the Yin), the Qi of the single Yang arises, from the very beginning, out of the earth.

Although lead and mercury bear different symbolic meanings, the principle indicated by Qi and Shen is one and the same. A mind that is empty, luminous, and profound can govern and hold the heart and spirit. Cause the one Qi to turn back and restore a springlike harmony and ease, and one may ascend into the clouds and roam with you in Taiqing (the pure, void realm of the immortals of which Daoism speaks). This is the gatha of true suchness (a verse that sets forth the true principle).

The Qian Dao (the Way that symbolizes the Yang) governs movement; the Kun Dao (the Way that symbolizes the Yin) governs stillness. Whoever wishes to cultivate nature and life must begin from stillness. You already belong to stillness—how, then, are you to cultivate? The Kun Dao is turbid and the Qian Dao is clear; whoever wishes to cultivate nature and life must seek clarity. To be able to turn from the turbid to the clear is precisely the path of entering the Dao and realizing the fruit.

The Changsheng Taiyuan Shenyong Jing (Scripture on the Divine Use of the Embryonic Origin of Longevity) says: “After cultivation has succeeded, the Qi of a man’s Guanyuan (the sea-of-Qi region in the lower abdomen) gathers and becomes Jing (essence); a woman’s taize (the vital essence bound up with the embryonic origin and the root of life), however, does not congeal into an infant. Even if passion and desire are stirred, they cannot contend with Shen.” What is spoken of here is that, after the embryo has formed, true Jing is transformed into Shen. This is Shangqing (a higher realm of clarity and purity).