《元始天尊說生天得道經》

Interpretation of the Scripture on Ascending to Heaven and Attaining the Dao, as Spoken by the Celestial Venerable of Primordial Beginning

The Celestial Venerable of Primordial Beginning (Yuanshi Tianzun, the supreme deity of Daoism) expounded this sacred scripture on attaining the Dao and ascending to immortality within the Jade Capital Mountain of the Great Canopy Heaven (Daluo Tian, the highest celestial realm in Daoist cosmology). Addressing the assembled celestial immortals, the Venerable declared: "I shall now briefly reveal the essential principles of cultivation. All realized immortals across the ten directions attained enlightenment by following the profound truths of this scripture."

Whether devoted men or women, all must take purification rituals (zhaijie, Daoist practices for cleansing body and mind) as the foundation of practice. All conditioned methods serve as pathways to truth—yet only by realizing their ultimate nature can one truly embody cultivation. Sever external entanglements, eternally eradicate greed and attachment, allowing no distracting thoughts to enter the mind nor deluded conceptions to arise.

When right mindfulness is maintained, one experiences the five viscera cooling in clarity and the six bowels harmonizing. All blockages within the body’s three hundred sixty joints dissolve, along with the ten evil karmas (killing, theft, etc.) and one hundred eighty afflictions—the roots of all suffering vanish. At this stage, the Supreme Harmony’s primordial Qi (Tahe Zhenqi) nourishes the entire body. Through inner observation, one perceives the five viscera and six bowels illuminated by pure, luminous Qi—translucent and radiant, inwardly and outwardly lucid—entering the profound stillness of the Mysterious Darkness (Yaoming).

In this state of hushed oblivion (hunmo, thoughtless tranquility), one directly attains Wuwei (non-action), abiding eternally in pristine clarity beyond past or present. Upon this awakening, the power of the Dao and the "Dharma medicine" (metaphor for cultivation methods) support the practitioner. Further, moderate food and drink to expel inner Yin-pathogens, stabilize the six roots (eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, and mind), purify the eight consciousnesses (Buddhist concept of deep awareness), empty the five aggregates (form, sensation, perception, volition, consciousness), and realize the wondrous state of the Three Origins (Jing, Qi, and Shen). Ultimately, one attains the Dao and ascends as an immortal.

Hearing this, the celestial immortals bowed, proclaiming: "From the beginningless past until now, we have never encountered such a supreme scripture. That we meet this teaching ensures our fulfillment of the Dao’s fruition." The scripture concludes with a gatha:

"Profound stillness is the pure path;

Hushed oblivion merges with the Great Void.

Intrinsic clarity dwells nowhere—

Body and mind in silence return to the True Source."

(Note: This scripture integrates Daoist Neidan (internal alchemy) with Buddhist cultivation concepts, emphasizing purification, severing external ties, inner observation of Qi, and other methods to realize the Dao.)