---
title: "修真十書雜著指玄篇 – English Interpretation | Daozang"
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lang: "en"
source: "Kanripo 漢籍リポジトリ（京都大学）"
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# 《修真十書雜著指玄篇》

Dongzhen 洞真部 · 8 volumes · 25,028 characters

## Vol. 1

修眞十書金丹大成集卷之一　珎七

紫虚了眞子蕭廷芝元瑞述

无極圖說○者道也形而上者謂之道斯乃道之體也无極而太極舍三爲一中具五十五數中○者乃其本體也太極一判兩儀生焉之動根乎隂也之靜根乎陽也此陽變隂合而生水火土金木也水生數一成數六火生數二成數七木生數三成數八金生數四成數九土生數五成數十此五行生成之數也天一地二天三地四天五地六天七地八天九地十天地之數五十有五此陽竒隂偶之數也一隂一陽之謂道生生不窮之謂易一者竒數也二者偶數也陽竒隂偶即二以生三也純乾性也兩乾而成坤命也猶精與氣也乾再索坤而成坎坎中之陽乃元氣也所謂乾道成男是也坤再索乾而成離離中之隂乃眞精也所謂坤道成女

心有九竅謂之金鼎金金形如彈丸鼎丹色同朱橘圖圖

黃帝鑄九鼎者此也

兩箇一般無二樣神嬰室(離種種邊/壺中有天)兒圖(玄之又玄/入衆妙門)圖

始知功滿出塵埃刀玄

三花聚頂玄牝之門圭(飲刀圭者/味道之𦚤)牝玄牝

五氣朝元是謂天地根圖圖攅偃簇月三點如皇勢五鑪橫鈎似月斜行鑪圖和合四象圖

丹法叅同三十對偶

**Interpretation**

From The Ten Books on Cultivating Perfection: Collected Writings on the Great Completion of the Golden Elixir, volume 1, “Zhen Seven,” as set forth by Zixu Liaozhenzi Xiao Tingzhi (courtesy name Yuanrui). Explanation of the Diagram of Wuji (the Ultimateless): the circle represents Dao (the Way); that which is above form is called Dao; this is the substance of Dao. Wuji gives rise to Taiji (Supreme Ultimate); the three are gathered into one, and within it are fully present the fifty-five numbers; the circle at the center is its substance. Once Taiji divides, the two modes (Yin-Yang) come into being; its movement is rooted in Yin, its stillness is rooted in Yang; this is Yang transforming and Yin joining to generate Water, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Wood. Water’s generative number is one and its completion number is six; Fire’s generative number is two and its completion number is seven; Wood’s generative number is three and its completion number is eight; Metal’s generative number is four and its completion number is nine; Earth’s generative number is five and its completion number is ten; these are the generative and completion numbers of the Five Phases. Heaven one, Earth two, Heaven three, Earth four, Heaven five, Earth six, Heaven seven, Earth eight, Heaven nine, Earth ten; the numbers of Heaven and Earth total fifty-five; these are the numbers of Yang odd and Yin even. One Yin and one Yang are called Dao; ceaseless generation is called Yi (Change); one is an odd number; two is an even number; Yang is odd and Yin is even, so from two, three is generated. Pure Qian is nature; two Qian forming Kun is life; it is like Jing and Qi. Qian’s second seeking of Kun forms Kan; the Yang within Kan is original Qi; this is what is meant by “the Qian Dao completes the male.” Kun’s second seeking of Qian forms Li; the Yin within Li is true Jing; this is what is meant by “the Kun Dao completes the female.” The heart has nine apertures and is called the Golden Cauldron; the golden form is like a pellet; the elixir color is like a vermilion orange; two diagrams accompany it; this is what is meant by the Yellow Emperor casting the nine cauldrons. The two are exactly the same, with no difference. The Shen-infant (Shen and infant, a metaphor for the elixir embryo). The “chamber” of the Shen-infant must be free from all kinds of partial views; within the gourd there is naturally heaven and earth; the “child” is accompanied by one diagram inscribed “the mystery of mysteries, entering the gate of all wonders,” and by another diagram; only then does one know that when the work is complete one rises above the dust. Knife and mystery; gui; female and the Mysterious Female; the Three Flowers Gathering at the Crown (Jing, Qi, and Shen gathering at the crown) is the gate of the Mysterious Female; one who drinks the knife-gui (daogui) savors the richness of its flavor; the Five Qi Returning to the Origin (the Qi of the five viscera returning to the source) is called the root of heaven and earth; two diagrams accompany it. Gathering and the Crescent Moon: the three dots of the clustered moon have the configuration of the character huang; the horizontal hook of the five furnaces resembles a slanting moon; one Moving Furnace diagram. One diagram of Harmonizing the Four Images (the images of Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and the like). The elixir method in the Cantong (Zhouyi Cantong qi) has thirty sets of paired correspondences.

清濁　盈虧　衰旺　存亡　有無　吉凶悔吝　生剋　刑德　動靜　進退　消長賔主　沉浮　升降　老嫰　文武　剛柔離合　聚散　徃來　上下　雌雄　黑白守戰生殺　剥復　深淺　抽添　寒暑

丹法叅同七鑑

華池(心源性海/謂之華池)神水(性猶水也/謂之神水)

黄芽(心地開葉/謂之黄芽)白雪(虚室生白/謂之白雪)

河車(一氣周流/謂之河車)巽風(巽者順也/順調其心)

金丹(清浄光明/圓通廣大)

丹法叅同十九訣

一採藥(収拾身心/歛藏神氣)二結丹(凝氣聚/念不動)

三烹錬(玉符保神/金液錬形)四固濟(忘形絕念/謂之固濟)

五武火(奮迅精神/驅除雜念)六文火(專氣致柔含光默默/溫溫不絕綿綿若存)

七沐浴(洗心滌慮/謂之沐浴)八丹砂(有無交入/隱顯相符)

九過關(果生枝上終期熟/子在胞中豈有殊)十分胎(雞能抱卵心常聽/燀到成彩殻自分)

十一温養(知白守黑/神明自來)十二防危(一念外馳/火候差失)

十三工夫(朝収暮採/日錬時煎)十四交媾(念念相續/同成一片)

十五大還(對景無心/晝夜如一)十六聖胎(存其神於中/藏其氣於内)

**Interpretation**

All things in heaven and earth exist in relationships of opposition and unity: clarity and turbidity, fullness and depletion, decline and prosperity, being and non-being, substance and emptiness, auspiciousness and inauspiciousness. These paired concepts mutually depend upon and transform into one another, forming the fundamental principles of spiritual cultivation.

During practice, adepts must master these key dynamic states: repentance and attachment, growth and restraint, punishment and grace, movement and stillness, advancement and retreat, diminishment and increase. These relationships balance each other like guest and host, sinking and floating, ascending and descending, maturity and youth, civil governance and martial prowess, strength and flexibility.

The concrete manifestations of cultivation include: separation and union, gathering and dispersing, coming and going, rising and falling, the pairing of feminine and masculine, the mutual generation of black and white. Practitioners must grasp the measures in the transformations of yin and yang - guarding and attacking, stripping away and returning, depth and shallowness, extraction and addition, cold and heat.

Seven core concepts of Neidan (internal alchemy) practice:

- Hua Chi (the "Blossoming Pool" representing the source of the heart-mind, like a pond nurturing immortal medicine)
- Shen Shui (the flowing, unfixed divine water of innate nature with miraculous efficacy)
- Huang Ya (the sprouting vitality in the heart-field, like tender new shoots)
- Bai Xue (the luminous clarity born from empty stillness, pure as white snow)
- He Che (the ceaseless circulation mechanism of genuine Qi within the body)
- Xun Feng (the gentle, harmonious guidance of intention)
- Golden Elixir (the ultimate perfected fruit of the Dao)

Nineteen crucial stages of Neidan practice:

First, gather body and mind, collect primordial Qi (caizhong - gathering the medicine); then concentrate breath and stabilize consciousness (jiedan - forming the elixir); next refine and purify through spiritual discipline (penglian - smelting); reaching the state where self and objects are both forgotten (guji - consolidation). Alternate between intense focus to eliminate distractions (wuhuo - martial fire) and gentle sustained awareness (wenhuo - civil fire), periodically cleansing impurities (muyu - bathing) to fuse substantial and insubstantial (dansha - cinnabar purification).

When breaking through critical phases (guoguan - passing the barriers), it resembles fruit ripening naturally; entering new realms (fentai - embryo separation) is like a hen incubating eggs requiring sustained focus. During the nurturing stage (wenyang), maintain luminous clarity (zhibai shouhei - knowing whiteness yet guarding blackness), remaining vigilant against disruptive thoughts (fangwei - guarding against danger). Through daily persistent practice (gongfu - skillful effort), achieve continuous intention (jiaogou - harmonious interaction), ultimately reaching the state of unity between self and world (dahuan - great return), finally cultivating transcendent life forms (shengtai - sacred embryo).

十七九轉(火候足時/嬰兒自現)十八換鼎(子又生孫/千百億化)

十九太極(形神俱妙/與道合眞)

金丹捷徑指玄圖三忘形忘氣忘神關圖養氣養神養虛性神是性屬離(坤之/中陰)命圖氣是命屬坎(乾之/中陽)産藥薬在西南是本鄉川源蟾光終日照西川圖藥物是火火屬心心爲汞火是薬薬屬身身爲鉛候眞

黃房黃婆戊己土

黃庭土釜是圖○○四象圖龍身是虎(劎身東魄充虎飢/虎來食噉生髓脂)受氣虎圖心是龍(凝心息念任龍蟠/龍蟠潭裏珠光寒)鍊神金液還丹

金丹捷徑　葉和叔夫金丹者以内鉛外汞而錬之非金石草木也七返九還而成變化飛升之藥也紅中而見黄知白而守黑此金丹之鉛汞也華嶽山頭之風扶桑海底之浪此金丹之龍虎也神室之鸞鳯丹房之雲雨此金丹之夫婦也日魂漏天髓月魄運地脂此金丹之烏兔也二氣之循環一元之斡運此金丹之龜蛇也文火以温養武火以煆錬此金丹之火候也若夫丹道之沐浴也坤水坎水丹道之吹嘘也巽風離風噫金丹之妙不傳也抽添按日月盈虧象天地刑徳法卯酉交會併金木至如

**Interpretation**

Seventeen, Nine Cycles: When cultivation reaches the nine cycles (the stage of repeated refining and nurturing in Neidan, internal alchemy) and the fire times (huohou) are sufficient, the infant—a Neidan metaphor for the Golden Elixir (jindan) or primordial Shen (spirit)—naturally appears. Eighteen, Changing the Cauldron: After replacing the furnace and cauldron (a shift in the cultivation stage), it is like a child begetting a grandchild, able to transform into hundreds, thousands, and billions. Nineteen, Taiji (Supreme Ultimate): Reaching Taiji (the final realm of the Great Dao, the Way), form and Shen are both wondrous, and one unites with the Dao in truth.

The Diagram Pointing to the Mysterious—A Shortcut to the Golden Elixir: This is a diagram indicating the shortcut and mysterious essential points of Golden Elixir cultivation.

Diagram of the Three Passes: It discusses forgetting form, forgetting Qi (vital energy), and forgetting Shen, and also discusses nurturing Qi, nurturing Shen, and nurturing emptiness.

Diagram of Nature: Shen is nature, and it belongs to the Li trigram (one of the Bagua, Eight Trigrams, outer yang and inner yin, the central yin of Kun). Diagram of Life: Qi is life, and it belongs to the Kan trigram (one of the Bagua, outer yin and inner yang, the central yang of Qian).

Diagram of the River Source Where the Medicine Is Produced: The medicine is in the southwest; the southwest (the Kun direction) is its native place; the toad light (moon radiance) shines all day on the Western River.

Medicine and Substance: The “thing” is fire; fire belongs to the heart, and the heart is called mercury (in Neidan, a metaphor for Shen); fire is medicine; medicine belongs to the body, and the body is called lead (in Neidan, a metaphor for Qi).

Diagram of True Fire Times: The Yellow Chamber and Yellow Mother are Wu and Ji Earth (central Earth); the Yellow Court and the earthen cauldron are also central Earth.

Diagram of the Four Symbols: The dragon’s body is the tiger; it must receive Qi (commentary: the sword body and the Eastern Po fill the tiger’s hunger; the tiger comes to eat and thereby produces marrow and fat). The Tiger Diagram says the heart is the dragon; it must refine Shen (commentary: settle the heart and stop thoughts, allowing the dragon to coil and lie hidden; when the dragon coils in the pool, the pearl’s radiance is cold).

Golden Liquid Returning Elixir (jinye huandan): This is the work of returning the golden liquid to become the elixir.

The Shortcut to the Golden Elixir, by Ye Heshu: This is the shortcut to the Golden Elixir as described by Ye Heshu.

The Golden Elixir is refined using inner lead and outer mercury (Neidan terminology: lead and mercury symbolize Jing, essence, Qi, and Shen within the body, not metals and minerals), not metals, minerals, herbs, or wood. Through seven returns and nine reversions (the repeated process of returning to the prenatal through refining and nurturing), it becomes a medicine capable of transformation and ascent. Seeing yellow within red, knowing white while guarding black—these are the lead and mercury of the Golden Elixir. The wind on the summit of Huayue (Mount Hua, the Western Marchmount) and the waves beneath Fusang (the divine tree of the East)—these are the dragon and tiger of the Golden Elixir. The phoenixes of the Spirit Chamber (the place within the body where Shen is stored) and the cloud and rain of the Elixir Chamber (the chamber for refining the Dantian, the energy center)—these are the husband and wife of the Golden Elixir. The sun’s soul leaks the marrow of Heaven; the moon’s Po moves the fat of Earth—these are the crow and hare (sun and moon) of the Golden Elixir. The two Qi (Yin-Yang) circulate; the one primal (prenatal one Qi) revolves—these are the tortoise and snake (metaphors for water and fire, Yin-Yang) of the Golden Elixir. Gentle fire (soft fire times) warms and nurtures; martial fire (fierce fire times) calcines and refines—these are the fire times of the Golden Elixir. As for the bathing in the Dao of the Elixir, it is Kun Water and Kan Water; the blowing and breathing of the Dao of the Elixir is Xun Wind and Li Wind (the images of wind and fire among the Bagua). Alas, the wondrous purport of the Golden Elixir is not readily transmitted. Extracting and adding (increasing or decreasing the fire times) must follow the waxing and waning of the sun and moon; one takes as image the punishment and virtue of Heaven and Earth (the life and killing of Yin-Yang), emulates the meeting of Mao and You, and combines Metal and Wood. As for actual application, it too must accord with these cosmological images.

水源之清濁火候之遲速藥材之老嫩交媾之終始胎仙之變化又不可不知也知此則讀群仙珠玉廓然一悟恍然釋然如蕙蘭之正春風似梧桐之乍秋雨似松林之夜雪似竹徑之夕陽此金丹之味也澹然如春空之白雲皎然如秋潭之素月冥然如嬰兒之未孩晦然如耆叟之欲耄此金丹之得處也金丹如此修錬藥物如此採取水火如此運用丹道如是而交結如是而成就也群仙珠玉一帙古今所未有也胡胎仙何如人棄儒拔俗之夫未委其仙與否也其命意如此亦古人也

金丹論蓋聞太極未判之先混然虚寂清濁未分形如雞子一氣既判二儀生焉故清靈之氣浮之爲天濁重之氣降而爲地沖和之氣結而爲人故三才定位萬物乃生古之聖人仰以觀於天文俯以察於地理中敘其人倫故伏犧始畫八卦以推窮天地之物象以明其造化之源流以乾坤合天地之動靜以坎離同日月之循環以五藏分爲五行上應五星之連珠内明五氣之相制乃知肝藏其魂位居其東而有青龍之號肺藏其魄位居其西而有白虎之稱心藏其神位居其南而有朱雀之名腎藏其精位居其北而有玄武之喻脾藏其志位居其中而有土徳之尊故水得其土則潜其形火得其土則隠其明金得其土以增其色木得其土以溢其潤於是龍虎交

**Interpretation**

The cultivation of the Golden Elixir (Jindan, the core concept of Daoist internal alchemy) hinges upon mastering several crucial phases: the purity of the water source (symbolizing primordial Qi), the rhythm of fire regulation (referring to the intensity of practice), the maturity of medicinal ingredients (representing the refinement of Jing, Qi, and Shen), the initiation and completion of Yin-Yang union (the circulation of vital energy within the body), and the transformational patterns of the embryonic immortal (the energy body formed at advanced stages). Understanding these principles before studying the scriptures of various immortals brings sudden enlightenment—like catching the fragrance of orchids in spring, hearing autumn rain on wutong leaves, contemplating snow in pine forests, or admiring twilight in bamboo groves—revealing the true essence of the Golden Elixir.

The supreme state of the Golden Elixir manifests four characteristics: the detached white clouds of a spring sky, the crystalline clarity of autumn moonlight on a pond, the natural simplicity of an infant before speech, and the return to primordial purity akin to an elder nearing transcendence. This represents the ultimate achievement of the Golden Elixir path—achieved through precise timing in gathering medicinal ingredients, mastery over water and fire dynamics, and the laws of Yin-Yang interaction. These essential techniques are synthesized in *The Pearl-Jade of Immortals*, a compendium of ancient and modern wisdom. Hu Taixian, a recluse who abandoned Confucianism for Daoist cultivation, though his immortal status remains uncertain, profoundly grasped these ancient truths.

The *Treatise on the Golden Elixir* begins with cosmogony: before the division of the Supreme Ultimate (Taiji), the universe existed as formless chaos, resembling an egg. Upon differentiation, the clear and light Qi ascended to form heaven, the turbid and heavy Qi descended to create earth, while the harmonized Qi condensed into humanity—thus establishing the triad of heaven, earth, and man. The ancient sage Fuxi, observing celestial patterns, terrestrial configurations, and human relationships, created the Eight Trigrams (Bagua) to reveal cosmic principles: Qian and Kun symbolizing heaven's dynamism and earth's receptivity, Kan and Li corresponding to the moon and sun, with the five viscera (liver, lungs, heart, kidneys, spleen) aligning with the Five Phases (Wood, Metal, Fire, Water, Earth) and five directions.

Specific correspondences are: the liver houses the ethereal soul (Hun) as the Azure Dragon of the East; the lungs contain the corporeal soul (Po) as the White Tiger of the West; the heart harbors the spirit (Shen) as the Vermilion Bird of the South; the kidneys store essence (Jing) as the Black Tortoise of the North; and the spleen anchors intention at the central Earth virtue. In Five Phase interactions: Water-Earth union conceals forms, Fire-Earth pairing internalizes radiance, Metal-Earth meeting enhances luster, while Wood-Earth blending fosters lush vitality. These generative and restrictive cycles form the foundational principles for the dragon-tiger (Yin-Yang Qi) intercourse within the body.

媾於玉鑪水火旣濟於金鼎飛眞精於肘後運河車於玉京玄珠降於華池黄芽長於靈谷三尸奔逸六賊逃亡陽神聚而成仙金汞結而爲寳始可超凡入聖與天齊年僕兹見白先生纂集丹書以内象造化分别五行推排八卦指陳丹竈明其火候隂陽升降龍虎交馳物象敷陳畫爲圖像以示好道之流庶幾一見而昭著無疑得以坦途而入若按圖而行何惑之有

修眞論嘗謂大道眇冥人不易知是故聖人將奥旨藏於經典隠於萬物寓言立像無非欲度其迷昔抱朴子言水之有源其流必逺木之有根其葉必茂屋之有基其柱必正人之有精其命必長九子丹經曰人之可保者命可惜者身可存者氣可重者精太上玄鏡曰純陽上升者謂之氣純隂下降者謂之液氣液相交於骨髓之間者謂之髓氣髓相交於膀胱之外者謂之精心氣在肝肝精不固目眩無光心氣在肺肺精不實肌肉瘦弱心氣在腎腎精不固神氣減少心氣在脾脾精不堅齒髪浮落玉臟之中腎爲精樞心爲氣館眞精在腎餘精自還下田眞氣在心餘氣自歸元府故人之氣有八百一十丈九九八十一純陽之數過此巳徃走失其精耗散元氣疾病隨生死亡隨至六廣成子授道於黄帝指其長生之術曰出入不離玄牝徃來只在谷神

**Interpretation**

Yin-Yang conjoins in the Jade Furnace, and water and fire mutually assist each other in the Golden Cauldron (the Jade Furnace and Golden Cauldron are metaphors for the alchemical furnace and cauldron); true Jing (essence) ascends behind the elbows (a Neidan [internal alchemy] term for the microcosmic orbit). The River Chariot turns at the Jade Capital (the River Chariot is a metaphor for the circular movement of Jing and Qi through the orbit; the Jade Capital is a metaphor for the crown of the head); the Mysterious Pearl descends into the Flower Pool (a metaphor for the fluids in the mouth), and the Yellow Sprout grows in the Spirit Valley (a metaphor for the vitality of the Dantian [energy center]). The Three Corpses (the three corpse spirits within the body) flee, and the Six Thieves (the desires of the six senses) escape. The Yang Shen (the spirit of pure Yang) coalesces and becomes immortal; gold and mercury (metaphors for the Jing-Qi medicine) congeal and become a treasure. Only thus can one transcend the ordinary and enter sagehood, and share the lifespan of Heaven. I have seen that Mr. Bai compiled and collected alchemical books, using internal images (the scenes of inner cultivation in the human body) to correlate with natural transformation and thereby distinguish the Five Phases, deduce and arrange the Bagua (Eight Trigrams), point out the elixir stove (the furnace for alchemical practice), and clarify the fire timing (the timing of firepower). Yin-Yang ascends and descends, Dragon and Tiger (metaphors for Yin-Yang, water and fire) race together; each image and phenomenon is laid out one by one and drawn into diagrams, to be shown to those who delight in Daoist arts, hoping that at first sight they will be clear and evident without doubt, and that one may enter by a broad and level road. If one cultivates according to the diagrams, what confusion could remain?

The Treatise on Cultivating Perfection says: It was once said that the Great Dao is deep and vast, and people do not easily know it; therefore the sages stored profound meanings in the scriptures and concealed them in the myriad things, using parables to establish images—nothing more than wishing to deliver deluded people. Formerly Baopuzi (Ge Hong) said: Water has a source, and its flow must be far; a tree has roots, and its leaves must be luxuriant; a house has a foundation, and its pillars must be upright; a person has Jing, and his life must be long. The Jiuzi Danjing (Nine Masters Elixir Scripture) says: What a person can preserve is life, what can be cherished is the body, what can be stored and nourished is Qi, and what can be valued is Jing. The Taishang Xuanjing (Supreme Mystery Mirror) says: What ascends as pure Yang is called Qi; what descends as pure Yin is called fluid; when Qi and fluid intersect within the marrow and bones, it is called marrow; when Qi and marrow intersect outside the bladder, it is called Jing. When heart Qi is in the liver, if liver Jing is not firm, then vision blurs and loses luster; when heart Qi is in the lungs, if lung Jing is not solid, then the muscles become thin and weak; when heart Qi is in the kidneys, if kidney Jing is not firm, then Shen and Qi diminish; when heart Qi is in the spleen, if spleen Jing is not firm, then the teeth and hair loosen and fall out. Among the five viscera (the jade viscera), the kidneys are the pivot of Jing, and the heart is the lodging of Qi. When true Jing is in the kidneys, the remaining Jing naturally returns to the lower field (the lower Dantian); when true Qi is in the heart, the remaining Qi naturally returns to the Origin Mansion (the mansion of primordial Qi). Therefore a person’s Qi measures eight hundred and ten zhang, matching the pure Yang number of nine times nine, eighty-one; after exceeding this number, Jing is lost, primordial Qi is dissipated, illness follows and arises, and death follows and arrives. Guangchengzi (the ancient immortal) transmitted the Dao to the Yellow Emperor and pointed out the art of long life, saying: Going out and coming in never departs from the Mysterious Female (a metaphor for the gate of generation and nourishment); coming and going is only in the Valley Spirit (a metaphor for the empty and wondrous place).

杳杳冥冥其中有精恍恍惚惚其中有物知白守黑可以長生矣又觀虚靜先生曰大道不逺在身中物即皆空性不空性若不空和氣住氣歸元海夀無窮欲得身中神不出莫向靈臺留一物物在心中神不清耗散其精損筋骨夫道人則易知而難遇易遇而難成余昨訪師友叅問金丹大藥火候抽添之法皆不言下手工夫人不得其蹊徑而入伏覩海南白先生所著修眞養命之圖設象以明大道之奥庶幾同志之士依圖而行之則誠爲捷徑幸毋忽諸歳在淳祐甲辰暑月廖正敬書修眞十書雜著指玄篇卷

**Interpretation**

This passage elucidates the core principles and precautions of Daoist cultivation. It reveals that within the seemingly void and chaotic state (yaoyao mingming) lies the essence of life (Jing); in the indistinct realm between existence and non-existence, there exists the true substance of the Dao. Understanding this truth and maintaining inner purity ("knowing the white yet keeping the black") leads to longevity.

Master Xujing (a Daoist adept) taught: The Great Dao is actually very close to us, residing within our own bodies. External phenomena are illusory, yet our intrinsic nature (xing) remains truly substantial. As long as this nature isn't lost, the primordial Qi (harmonious Qi) can return to the Dantian (the ocean of origin), granting limitless lifespan. To prevent the dispersal of our spiritual essence (Shen), the crucial point is to keep the mind (the spiritual platform, lingtai) pure and undisturbed by external matters. A cluttered mind obscures the spiritual essence, leading to dissipation of Jing and Qi, ultimately damaging the body's sinews and bones.

The author reflects: While the principles of Dao cultivation may sound simple, encountering a true master is exceedingly rare; even when finding one, attaining the Great Dao remains profoundly difficult. He recounts his own journey seeking masters and companions, inquiring about methods for refining the Golden Elixir (referring to Neidan practice) and mastering "fire times" (the regulation of mental focus during cultivation). Yet most only discussed theories without revealing practical entry methods.

Later, upon seeing Master Bai Hainan's Illustrated Guide to Cultivating Truth and Nourishing Life, which used diagrams to illuminate the Dao's mysteries, he recognized their great value for practitioners. Following these illustrated methods provides a direct path. Liao Zheng respectfully recorded these insights during the summer of 1244 (the Chunyou reign of Southern Song).

(Note: Here "Golden Elixir" refers to Neidan practice—cultivating Jing, Qi, and Shen through breath and mental regulation. "Fire times" metaphorically describes the intensity control of mental focus during practice. "Ocean of origin" denotes the lower Dantian, considered in Daoism as the crucial reservoir of primordial Qi.)

之一

## Vol. 2

修眞十書雜著指玄篇巻之二　珎二

還源篇序

杏林眞人石泰得之撰泰素慕眞宗遍遊勝境叅傳正法願以濟世爲心專一存三尤以養生爲重蓋謂學仙甚易而人自難脫塵不難而人未易深可哀哉古云迷雲鎖慧月業風吹定海昔年以驛中遇先師張紫陽先生所簡易之語不過半句其證驗之效只在片時知仙之可學私自生歡喜及其金液交結聖胎圓成泰故作還源篇八十一章五言四句以授晚學早悟眞筌莫待老來鉛虚汞少急須猛省尋師訪道修錬金丹同成仙果變化飛升乃所願望

還源篇(八十一章以/按純陽之數)

一鉛汞成眞體隂陽結太元但知行二八便可錬金丹

二汞是青龍髓鉛爲白虎脂掇來歸鼎内採取要知時

三姹女騎鉛虎金公跨汞龍甲庚明正令錬取一鑪紅

四蛇魄擒龍髓龜魂制虎精華池神水内一朶玉芝生

五白雪飛瓊苑黄芽發玉園但能知偃月何處錬紅鉛

六藥材開混沌火候錬鴻濛十月胎仙化方知九轉功

七龍正藏珠處雞方抱卵時誰知鉛汞合正可飲刀圭

八沐浴資坤水吹嘘頼巽風嬰兒無一事獨處太微宫

九紫府尋離女朱陵配坎男黄婆媒娉處太極自函三

十

**Interpretation**

Volume Two of the Xiuzhen Shishu Zazhu Zhixuan Pian, with the inscription “Zhen Er.” The preface to the Huanyuan Pian (Returning to the Source) was written by Xinglin Zhenren, the Perfected One of the Apricot Grove, Shi Tai, courtesy name Dezhi. Shi Tai had long admired the True Teaching, traveled throughout famous sacred places, studied and transmitted the orthodox Dharma, and wished to take saving the world as his heart. He devoted himself single-mindedly to cun san—visualization practices such as guarding the Three and One—and especially valued nourishing life. He held that learning to become an immortal is originally very easy; it is people themselves who make it difficult. Transcending the dusty world is not hard; it is people themselves who find it hard to do—truly lamentable. The ancients said: clouds of delusion obscure the moon of wisdom, and the wind of karma stirs the sea of the mind of original concentration. In former years, at a post station, he met his late master, Master Zhang Ziyang. What the master transmitted—the simple essential words—was no more than half a sentence, yet its verifying effect came in but a moment. From this he knew that the immortal Dao (the Way) can be learned, and he rejoiced privately. When the Golden Liquid had conjoined and the Sacred Embryo was perfectly accomplished, Shi Tai therefore composed the Huanyuan Pian in eighty-one chapters, each with four five-character lines, to transmit to later students so that they might quickly awaken to the essentials of cultivating perfection. They should not wait until old age, when lead is empty and mercury scant—a metaphor for the depletion of Jing (essence) and Qi (vital energy)—but should urgently awaken, seek a teacher and inquire into the Dao, cultivate the Golden Elixir (Jindan), and together accomplish the immortal fruit and transform in ascent. This was precisely his wish. The Huanyuan Pian has eighty-one chapters in total, arranged according to the number of pure Yang—nine times nine, eighty-one.

The first chapter states that lead and mercury—metaphors for Jing, Qi, and Yin-Yang (Yinyang)—condense into the true body; Yin and Yang coalesce into the original source and the Great Origin. One need only know how to circulate the two-eight—the numbers of Yin-Yang pairing—and then one can cultivate the Golden Elixir.

The second chapter states that mercury is the marrow of the Azure Dragon; lead is the fat of the White Tiger. Take them and return them into the cauldron; in gathering the medicinal substance, one must understand the timing.

The third chapter states that Channü, the maiden—a metaphor for Yin-mercury—rides the lead tiger; the Golden Lord—a metaphor for Yang-lead—straddles the mercury dragon. Jia and Geng—Wood and Metal, Yin and Yang—clarify the proper command, and one refines a furnace of red elixir.

The fourth chapter states that the snake’s po-soul captures the dragon’s marrow; the turtle’s hun-soul controls the tiger’s essence. Within the divine water of the Flowery Pond—alchemists’ metaphor for fluids or the elixir pond—a single jade mushroom is born.

The fifth chapter states that white snow flies in the jade park; yellow sprouts emerge in the jade garden. If only one knows the wonder of the crescent moon—an image of the firing times in alchemy—where can one not refine red lead, the medicinal substance refined by alchemists?

The sixth chapter states that the medicinal ingredients open chaos; the firing process forges the primordial Hongmeng. After ten months the embryo immortal transforms; only then does one know the merit of the nine revolutions.

The seventh chapter states: just where the dragon hides the pearl, just when the hen broods the egg—who would know that when lead and mercury unite, it is exactly the moment to drink the daogui, a small quantity of elixir?

The eighth chapter states that bathing relies on Kun water; blowing and breathing depend on the Xun wind. The infant has not a single affair; it dwells alone in the Taiwei Palace—the spirit chamber, the upper Dantian (energy center).

The ninth chapter states: in the Purple Mansion seek the Li maiden; at the Vermilion Mound pair with the Kan youth. Where the Yellow Dame—the medium that harmonizes Yin and Yang—acts as matchmaker, the Taiji (Supreme Ultimate) naturally contains three.

The tenth poem takes “ten” as its heading, marking this chapter as the tenth in sequence.

乾馬馳金户坤牛入木宫阿誰將姹女嫁去與金翁

十一姹女方二八金翁正九三洞房生瑞氣歡合産初男

十二昨夜西川岸蟾光照碧濤採來歸玉室鼎内自煎熬

十三離坎非交媾乾坤自化生人能明此理一點落黄庭

十四丹谷生神水黄庭有大倉更無飢渴想一直入仙郷

十五意馬歸神室心猿守洞房精神魂魄意化作紫金霜

十六一孔玄關竅三關要路頭忽然輕運動神水自然流

十七制魄非心制拘魂豈意拘惟留神與氣片餉結玄珠

十八口訣無多子修丹在片時温温行火候十月産嬰兒

十九夫婦初歡合年深意轉濃洞房交會處無日不春風

二十驟雨紙蝴蝶洪鑪玉牡丹三更紅日赫六月素霜寒

二十一海底飛金火山巔運土泉片時交媾就玉鼎起青煙

二十二鑿破玄元竅衝開混沌關但知烹水火一任虎龍蟠

二十三娑竭水中火崑崙山上波誰能知運用大意要黄婆

二十四藥取先天氣火尋太易精能知藥取火定裏見丹成

二十五元氣如何服眞精不用移眞精與元氣此是大丹基

二十六儒家明幻理釋氏打頑空不識神仙術金丹頃刻功

二十七偃月鑪中汞朱砂鼎裏鉛龜蛇眞一氣所産

**Interpretation**

The Qian horse (in Neidan, or internal alchemy, Qian is yang; the horse figures the heart or yang Qi) gallops at the golden door; the Kun ox (Kun is yin; the ox figures the kidneys or yin Jing) enters the wood palace (an orifice position of the Five Phases and viscera); who is it that marries the Channü (the maiden, figuring the yin and soft medicine) to the Jinweng (the Golden Old Man, figuring the yang and hard medicine)?

The Channü is just at two-eight (sixteen, figuring the yin medicine at its height), and the Jinweng is just at nine-three (figuring yang Qi in proper measure); in the bridal chamber (the place where Shen and Qi meet) auspicious Qi arises, and after their joyful union the first boy is born (figuring the first formation of the yang elixir).

Last night on the bank of the Western River, the toad light (moonlight, figuring true yin) shone on the jade-green waves; gathered back into the jade chamber (figuring the pure Dantian), it is naturally simmered in the cauldron (figuring the firing process, Huohou, of refining).

Li and Kan (fire and water, yin and yang) are not the postnatal union of man and woman; Qian and Kun (heaven and earth, yin and yang) naturally transform and generate. If a person can understand this principle, a single point of elixir source falls into the Huangting (Yellow Court, the central palace).

In the elixir valley (the place where the medicine is generated) divine water (true water, saliva and fluids) is produced; the Huangting is like a great granary. Then there are no more thoughts of hunger or thirst, and one enters directly into the immortal realm.

The intention-horse returns to the spirit chamber (where the heart-Shen is guarded within), and the heart-monkey keeps watch in the bridal chamber (the Dantian); Jing, Shen, hun (ethereal soul), po (corporeal soul), and intention (the five Qi and five spirits) transform into purple-gold frost (figuring the condensation of elixir splendor).

The single opening is the Xuanguan cavity (the key cavity in cultivation), and the three passes (the critical passes in Neidan practice) are the main gate of the essential path; when it suddenly stirs gently, divine water flows out naturally.

Subduing the po is not a matter of intentionally subduing it, and binding the hun is hardly a matter of using intention to bind it; simply leave Shen and Qi, and in a moment they form the mysterious pearl (figuring the Neidan).

The oral instructions are not many; cultivating the elixir lies in a moment. Gently apply the Huohou (using intention to regulate the breath and refine the medicine), and in ten months give birth to the infant (figuring the completion of the elixir as the sacred fetus).

When husband and wife first join in joy, as the years pass their feeling grows deeper; in the place of their union in the bridal chamber, not a day is without spring breeze (figuring the daily harmony of the two Qi of yin and yang).

A paper butterfly in a sudden rainstorm, a jade peony in a great furnace, a red sun blazing at midnight, white frost cold in the sixth month—these anomalous images figure the extraordinary states of water-fire and yin-yang transformation in elixir practice.

From the seabed (the lower Dantian, the kidneys) golden fire flies up; on the mountain peak (the upper Dantian, the heart) earth-spring moves; in a moment the union is complete, and from the jade cauldron (the Dantian furnace-cauldron) blue smoke rises.

Chisel open the Xuanyuan cavity (the innate mysterious cavity), burst open the Hundun pass (the pass of life’s primal chaos); one need only know how to cook and refine water and fire, and then let the tiger and dragon (figuring original Jing and original Shen, the yin-yang medicine) coil and knot.

In the waters of Suojie (Sāgara, figuring water and the sea) there is fire; on Mount Kunlun (figuring the mountain and the crown of the head) there are waves. Whoever can understand their use—the great key lies with the Yellow Dame (central true intention, which acts as matchmaker).

The medicine takes prenatal Qi; the fire seeks the Jing of Taiyi (the undifferentiated Jing of the Great Change, figuring prenatal Huohou). If one understands the taking and using of medicine and fire, then in the state of stillness one sees the elixir completed.

How is original Qi to be ingested? True Jing need not be moved about; true Jing and original Qi—these are the foundation of the great elixir.

Confucians understand the principle of illusory transformation, and Buddhists break through obstinate emptiness; but they do not know the art of immortals, and the Golden Elixir shows its effect in but a moment.

The mercury in the crescent-moon furnace (a half-moon-shaped elixir furnace, figuring the Dantian furnace-cauldron), the lead in the cinnabar cauldron (mercury and lead figure water and fire, yin and yang); turtle and snake (figuring water and fire, yin and yang) both return to the Qi of true unity—this is precisely the root of what is produced.

在先天

二十八朔望尋弦晦抽添象缺圓不知眞造化何物是眞鉛

二十九氣是形中命心爲性内神能知神氣穴即是得仙人

三十木髓烹金鼎泉流注玉鑪誰將三百日慢慢著工夫

三十一玉液滋神室金胎結氣樞只尋身内藥不用揣丹書

三十二玉鼎烹鉛液金鑪養汞精九還爲九轉温養象周星

三十三火棗元無核交梨豈有查終朝元火候神水灌金花

三十四欲錬先天氣先乾活水銀聖胎如結見破頂见雷鳴

三十五錬氣徒施力存神枉用工豈知丹訣妙鎭日翫眞空

三十六氣産非干腎神居不在心氣神難捉摸化作一團金

三十七一竅名玄牝中藏氣與神有誰知此竅更莫外尋眞

三十八脾胃非神室膀胱乃腎餘勸君休執泥此不是丹樞

三十九内景詩千首中黄酒一撙逍遥無物累身外有乾坤

四十烏兔相煎煑龜蛇自繞纏化成丹一粒温養作胎仙

四十一萬物皆生死元神死復生以神歸氣内丹道自然成

四十二神氣歸根處身心復命時這般眞孔竅料得少人知

四十三身裏有玄牝心中無垢塵不知誰解識一竅内涵眞

四十四離坎眞龍虎乾坤正馬牛人人皆具足因甚不知修

四十五

**Interpretation**

In the prenatal: the discussion is established from the prenatal original truth.

28. New moon, full moon, quarter moon, and dark moon are phases of the moon; withdrawing and adding (the advance and retreat of the fire phase) takes its image from the moon’s waning and waxing; not knowing true creation and transformation; what thing is true lead (the prenatal true medicine).

29. Qi (vital energy) is the life within the physical form; the mind is Shen (spirit) within original nature; to know the aperture where Shen and Qi unite; such a person is one who attains immortality.

30. Use wood marrow to cook and refine in the golden cauldron; a spring stream pours into the jade furnace; who is willing to spend three hundred days; patiently applying effort.

31. Jade liquid nourishes the spirit chamber; the golden embryo congeals at the Qi pivot; only seek the medicine within the body; no need to ponder alchemical texts.

32. The jade cauldron cooks and refines lead liquid; the golden furnace warms and nourishes mercury essence; the nine returns are the nine revolutions (repeatedly returning and refining); warm-nourishing takes its image from the stars of the celestial circuit.

33. Fire dates originally have no pits; how could crossing pears have residue; all day guard the original fire phase; divine water irrigates the golden flower.

34. If you wish to refine prenatal Qi; first refine the living quicksilver (a metaphor for the medicine that is easily stirred); if you see the signs of the sacred embryo forming; the crown of the head opens and you hear thunder.

35. Refining Qi is wasted effort; preserving Shen is wasted effort; how can one know the wonder of the elixir formula; all day delighting in true emptiness (the realm of empty clarity).

36. The generation of Qi is not a matter of the kidneys; the dwelling of Shen is not in the heart; Qi and Shen are difficult to fathom; they transform into a mass of gold.

37. One aperture is named Xuanpin (the Mysterious Female, the wondrous place of generation); within it are hidden Qi and Shen; who can recognize this aperture; moreover, do not seek the true outside.

38. The spleen and stomach are not the spirit chamber; the bladder is the surplus organ of the kidney; I advise you not to cling stubbornly; this is not the pivot of elixir refining.

39. A thousand poems on inner scenery (the scenes of inner observation); a goblet of Central Yellow wine (the central palace in Neidan, internal alchemy); carefree and unentangled by things; beyond the body there is another heaven and earth.

40. Sun and moon (the crow and hare) cook each other; turtle and snake (water and fire, Yin-Yang) naturally entwine; they transform into a single elixir pellet; warm-nourish it into an embryo immortal (becoming immortal within the embryo).

41. All things have birth and death; the primordial Shen (prenatal Shen) dies and is reborn; let Shen return into Qi; the Dao (the Way) of elixir is naturally accomplished.

42. The place where Shen and Qi return to the root; the time when body and mind return to their mandate (return to the root of life); such a true aperture; I imagine few people know it.

43. Within the body there is Xuanpin; within the heart there is no dust or defilement; I do not know who can understand and recognize it; within one aperture is contained the true.

44. Li and Kan (the trigrams of fire and water) are the true dragon and tiger; Qian and Kun (the trigrams of heaven and earth) are precisely horse and ox (Qian is horse, Kun is ox); everyone possesses them in full; why do they not know to cultivate?

魂魄爲心主精神以意包如如行火候默默運初爻

四十六心下腎上處肝西肺左中非腸非胃腑一氣自流通

四十七妙用非關意眞機不用時誰能知此竅且莫任無爲

四十八有物非無物無爲合有爲化權歸手内烏兔結金脂

四十九虎嘯西山上龍吟北海東捉來須野戰寄在艮坤宫

五十復姤司明晦屯蒙直曉昏丹鑪凝白雪無處覓心猿

五十一黒汞生黄葉紅鉛綻紫花更須行火候鼎裏結丹砂

五十二木液須防兔金精更忌雞抽添須沐浴正是月圓時

五十三萬籟風初起千山月乍圓急須行正令便可運周天

五十四藥材分老嫰火候用抽添一粒丹光起寒蟾射玉簾

五十五蚌腹珠曽剖雞窠卵易尋無中生有物神氣自相侵

五十六神氣非子毋身心豈夫婦但要合天機誰識結丹處

五十七丹頭初結處藥物已凝時龍虎交相戰東君緫不知

五十八旁門并小法異術及閑言金液還丹訣渾無第二門

五十九貴賤并高下夫妻與弟兄修仙如有分皆可看丹經

六十屋破修容易藥枯生不難但知歸復法金寳積如山

六十一魂魄成三性精神會五行就中分四象攅簇結胎精

六十二

**Interpretation**

The hun and po souls govern the heart-mind (Shen), while essence and spirit rely on intentionality for regulation. When practicing the fire times (the methods of Jing-Qi circulation in Neidan/internal alchemy), one should maintain a natural state, silently operating the initial transformations of Yin-Yang (the first stirrings of primal forces).

Below the heart cavity and above the kidneys, to the west of the liver and left of the lungs—neither intestine nor stomach—there flows a current of Qi circulating naturally. True mystery operates beyond deliberate intention; genuine opportunity arises beyond contrived timing. Who can comprehend this essential key? And yet, one must not cling to forced Wuwei (non-action).

In cultivation, there exists both physical substance and transcendence of form; the state of Wuwei actually encompasses purposeful practice. The authority of creation lies within the practitioner's grasp, much as the essences of sun (crow) and moon (hare) condense into the Golden Elixir. The White Tiger (lung metal Qi) roars from western mountains; the Blue Dragon (liver wood Qi) chants in northern seas. When gathering medicinal ingredients, one must engage in "field combat" (the internal landscape's Yin-Yang interaction) within stillness, ultimately returning to store them in the positions of Gen (mountain) and Kun (earth)—referring to the lower Dantian (energy center).

The Fu (return) and Gou (meeting) hexagrams govern light and dark transformations, while Zhun (difficulty) and Meng (youthful folly) correspond to dawn and dusk. Within the alchemical furnace, essences condense like white snow—here the heart-mind (monkey of the mind) must not scatter. Black mercury (kidney Jing/essence) generates yellow sprouts (primordial Qi); red lead (heart fluids) blossoms into purple flowers (alchemical phenomena). Most crucially, one must regulate the fire times to crystallize cinnabar within the crucible.

The essence of wood (liver Qi) must guard against metal's (lung Qi) conquest; metal's essence must likewise avoid wood's interference. Practice requires mastery over extraction-addition (fire regulation) and bathing (gentle nurturing), optimally timed with the full moon (Yin-Yang balance). When all sounds of heaven and earth fall silent beneath a thousand mountain moons, promptly enact the orthodox method and circulate the celestial orbit.

Medicinal ingredients must distinguish maturity and tenderness; fire times require understanding increase and decrease. When a single Golden Elixir's radiance flashes, it resembles clear moonlight piercing jade curtains. Pearls once grew within clamshells; eggs in a hen's nest are easily found. Cultivation means generating marvelous being from non-being, letting Shen and Qi merge spontaneously.

Shen and Qi share no mother-child relationship; body and mind aren't husband-wife counterparts. Aligning with heaven-earth's profound mechanisms—who truly understands the elixir's coalescence? When the elixir's seed first forms and medicinal substances condense, the dragon (kidney Qi) and tiger (heart Qi) secretly battle while the master (consciousness) remains oblivious.

Those heterodox paths and petty techniques, along with idle gossip, pale before the secrets of golden-fluid reverted elixir (supreme alchemy)—there exists no second path. Regardless of noble or common status, like marital or fraternal bonds, all with immortal destiny may study the alchemical classics.

A crumbling house repairs easily; exhausted medicines revive without difficulty. Mastering the method of returning to primordial origins accumulates elixir treasures high as mountains. Refining hun and po achieves the three natures (original Jing, Qi, and Shen); harmonizing spirit gathers the Five Phases. From these emerge the four images (greater/lesser Yin and Yang), ultimately condensing into the embryo of sainthood.

定志求鉛汞灰心覓土金方知眞一竅誰測此幽深

六十三造化無根蒂隂陽有本原這些眞妙處父子不堪傳

六十四留汞居金鼎將鉛入玉池主賔無左右只要識嬰兒

六十五黄婆雙乳美丁老片心慈温養無他術無中養就兒

六十六絳闕翔青鳯丹田養王蟾壷中天不夜白雪落纎纎

六十七琴瑟和諧後箕裘了當時不須行火候又恐損嬰兒

六十八長男纔入兊少女便歸乾巽宫并土位關鎖自周天

六十九弦後弦前處月圓月缺時抽添象刑徳沐浴按盈虧

七十老汞三斤白眞鉛一點紅奪他天地髓交媾片時中

七十一火候通玄處古今誰肯傳未曾知採藥且莫問周天

七十二雲散海棠月春深楊柳風阿誰知此意舉目問虚空

七十三人間無物累天上有仙階巳解乗雲了相將白鶴來

七十四心田無草穢性地絶塵飛夜靜月明處一聲春鳥啼

七十五白金烹六卦黑鍚過三關半夜三更裏金烏入廣寒

七十六丹熟無龍虎火終休汞鉛脫胎巳神化更作玉清仙

七十七塞斷黄泉路衝開紫府門如何海蟾子化鶴出泥丸

七十八江海歸何處山巖屬甚人金丹成熟後緫是屋中珍

七十九

**Interpretation**

Settle the mind and stabilize the will to seek lead and mercury (in Neidan [internal alchemy], a borrowed reference to the prenatal medicine), and extinguish deluded thoughts to seek earth and metal (earth symbolizes the true intention of the central palace; metal symbolizes primal Jing [essence]); only then will one know the “single true aperture” (the crucial gate in Neidan)—who can fathom its profundity?

Sixty-three. Creation seems to have no root or stem, yet Yin-Yang has its source; these truly subtle points are difficult to transmit lightly, even between father and son.

Sixty-four. Place mercury in the golden tripod (a metaphor for the alchemical furnace and tripod within the body), and send lead into the jade pool (a metaphor for the place where medicine is refined in the body); host and guest need not be divided left and right—one need only recognize the infant (a metaphor for the nurtured elixir embryo and true Shen [spirit]).

Sixty-five. The Yellow Dame (Huang Po; a metaphor for the true intention of the central palace and the power of matchmaking) has lovely breasts; Old Ding (a metaphor for gentle fire timing [huohou]) is wholly kind-hearted; for warming and nurturing there is no other method—only nurture the infant in emptiness and nonbeing.

Sixty-six. In the crimson palace (a metaphor for the heart palace and upper Dantian [energy center]), a blue phoenix (a metaphor for wood Qi [vital energy] and liver Qi) flies; in the Dantian one nurtures the jade toad (a metaphor for lunar essence and the true essence within the kidneys); within the gourd (a metaphor for the inner cosmos of the body), the sky is ever bright without night, and white snow (a metaphor for Jing-Qi and fluids) falls in fine flakes.

Sixty-seven. After the lute and zither (a metaphor for Yin-Yang) are in harmony, the ancestral craft (a metaphor for carrying on the work) is settled at that very moment; at this point one need not apply fire timing again, lest the infant be harmed.

Sixty-eight. The eldest son (the Zhen trigram, symbolizing wood and Yang) has just entered Dui (metal, Yin); the youngest daughter (the Dui trigram, symbolizing metal and Yin) then returns to Qian (metal, Yang); the Xun palace (the position of wind and wood) joins with the earth position (the central palace); with the locks secured, the Zhou Tian (celestial cycle) circulation naturally comes about.

Sixty-nine. At the place after the crescent and before the crescent (around the first and last quarter moon phases), at the time of the full moon and the waning moon; drawing out and adding (advancing and retreating in fire timing) take their image from punishment and virtue (the killing and life-giving aspects of Yin-Yang); bathing (stopping fire for warm nurturing) follows waxing and waning.

Seventy. Old mercury is three catties of white; true lead is a single speck of red; seize the essence of Heaven and Earth—it is accomplished in a moment of copulation (the union of Yin-Yang).

Seventy-one. The place where fire timing penetrates the mysterious—who past or present would transmit it lightly? If you do not yet understand gathering the medicine, do not ask about Zhou Tian.

Seventy-two. Clouds scatter, the crabapple moon appears; spring deepens, willow winds blow; who knows this layer of meaning? Lift your eyes and ask the void.

Seventy-three. In the human world there is no entanglement with external things; in heaven there are immortal ranks; once you understand riding the clouds, white cranes follow and come.

Seventy-four. When the field of the heart has no weeds or filth, and the ground of the nature cuts off flying dust; where the night is quiet and the moon bright, a spring bird gives a single cry.

Seventy-five. White metal is refined through the six trigrams; black tin passes the three gates (the three crucial passes in Neidan cultivation); at midnight, in the third watch, the golden crow (a metaphor for the Yang spirit and solar essence) enters Guanghan (a metaphor for the Yin palace and moon palace).

Seventy-six. Once the elixir is mature, one no longer discusses dragon and tiger (a metaphor for the Yin-Yang medicine); when fire timing ends, mercury and lead also cease; having shed the embryo and already undergone spiritual transformation, one further becomes a Jade Clarity immortal.

Seventy-seven. Block the road to the Yellow Springs (a metaphor for cutting off the downward path of death); burst open the gate of the Purple Palace (a metaphor for opening the immortal palace and brain palace); how was it that Hai Chanzi (Liu Haichan, a patriarch of Neidan) transformed into a crane and flew out from Niwan (the Niwan palace at the crown of the head)?

Seventy-eight. Where do rivers and seas return? To whom do the mountain crags belong? After the Golden Elixir matures, all are treasures within the house (a metaphor for the treasure formed within the body).

Seventy-nine. This number indicates the order of the verse formula.

呂承鍾口訣葛授鄭心傳緫没閑言語都來只汞鉛

八十汞鉛歸一鼎日月要同鑪進火須防忌教君結玉酥

八十一採藥并交結進火與沐浴及至脫胎時九九陽數足修眞十書

**Interpretation**

Lü (Lü Dongbin) inherited Zhong’s (Zhongli Quan’s) oral instructions; Ge (Ge Xuan) transmitted the mind-to-mind teaching to Zheng (Zheng Yin); there is no idle talk at all—it concerns only mercury and lead (metaphors for original Shen [spirit] and original Jing [essence]). Chapter Eighty: Mercury and lead return into a single cauldron (the Dantian [energy center] furnace-cauldron); sun and moon (Yin-Yang) must share the same furnace; advancing the fire (yang-fire refining) requires guarding against prohibitions and taboos; this causes you to form jade butter (elixir liquid). Chapter Eighty-One: Gathering the medicine and conjoining it; advancing the fire and bathing (withdrawing the fire for gentle nourishment); when it comes to shedding the embryo (completion of the elixir), the nine-times-nine yang number (the course of pure-yang cultivation) is full and sufficient. From The Ten Books on Cultivating Perfection, “Miscellaneous Writings: Pointing to the Profound,” volume 2.

雜著指玄篇卷之二

## Vol. 3

修眞十書雜著指玄篇巻之三　珎三

庭經

翠　虚　眞　人　述絳宫天子統乾乾乾龍飛上九華天天中妙有無極宫宫中萬巻指玄篇篇篇皆露金丹旨千句萬句會一言教人只去尋汞鉛二物採入鼎中煎夜來火發崑崙山山頭火冷月光寒曲江之上金烏飛嫦娥旣與斗牛歡採之錬之未片餉一氣渺渺通三關三關來徃氣無窮一道白脉朝泥丸泥丸之上紫金鼎鼎中一塊紫金團化作玉漿流入口香甜清爽遍舌端呑之服之入腹内藏府暢甚身康安赤蛇蒼龜交合時風恬浪靜虎龍蟠神水湛湛華池靜白雪紛紛飛四邊七寳樓臺十二層樓前黄花深可觀即此可謂鉛汞精化作精髓盈關源但去身中尋周天前弦以後後弦前藥物平平氣象足天地日月交會間虚空自然百雜碎嚼破混沌輭如綿飜來覆去成一錢遍體玉潤而金堅赤血換兮白血流金光满室森森然一池秋水浸明月一朶金花如紅蓮此時身中神氣全不須求道復叅襌我今知君如此賢知君有分爲神仙分明指示無多語默默運用而抽添年中採月不用年月中取日月從然日中取時時易日時中有刻而玄玄玄之又玄不可言元來朔望明晦弦金翁姹女奪造化神鬼哭泣驚相喧雲収雨散萬籟靜一粒玄珠種玉田十月

**Interpretation**

The Ting Jing in “Zhen San” (Precious Three) of Volume Three of the Miscellaneous Writings Pointing to the Mystery from the Ten Books on Cultivating Reality, transmitted by the Perfected Man Cuixu.

In the Crimson Palace—the heart palace and upper Dantian (energy center)—the Son of Heaven governs the vigorous, ceaseless Qi (vital energy) of Qian-yang. The Qian dragon, the yang Qi, flies upward to the Nine Splendors Heaven. Within that wondrous realm in heaven lies the Wuji (Limitless) Palace. In the palace are stored ten thousand scrolls of Pointing to the Mystery. Each scroll reveals the essential purport of the Golden Elixir. A thousand words and ten thousand phrases come down to a single phrase: it teaches people only to seek lead and mercury—the medicines of pre-heaven Jing (essence) and Qi.

Take these two substances and gather them into the cauldron to cook and refine. In the quiet of night, the fire timing (huohou) is activated from Mount Kunlun—borrowed to mean the Qi mechanism high in the head. At the mountain peak the fire is cold, and the moonlight is clear and chill. Above the winding river—borrowed to mean the water fluids and Qi channels—the Golden Crow (sun/yang Shen, spirit) flies. Chang’e (moon/yin Jing) rejoices together with the Dipper and Ox (star lodges/Qi cavities). The gathering and refining last no more than a moment. A single Qi, vast and faint, penetrates the Three Passes—Weilü, Jiaji, and Yuzhen. Through the Three Passes the Qi comes and goes without end.

A single white channel ascends toward Niwan (Mud Pill, the upper Dantian). Above Niwan is a purple-gold cauldron. In the cauldron is a lump of purple gold—the elixir embryo. It transforms into jade nectar and flows into the mouth. Sweet, fragrant, clear, and refreshing, it fills the tip of the tongue. Swallow it into the abdomen. The viscera and bowels become comfortable and smooth, and the body is healthy and at peace.

When the Red Snake (heart-fire/yang) and the Azure Turtle (kidney-water/yin) unite, the wind is calm and the waves are still; the Tiger and Dragon (nature and emotion, lead and mercury) coil and knot. The Shen water (spirit water) is clear, and the Hua Pond (mouth/saliva) is quiet. White Snow (metal Jing/lung Qi) flies in profusion all around. The seven-jeweled tower has twelve stories—the stacked towers and palace gates within the body. Before the tower, the yellow flower (golden flower/elixir scene) is very much worth beholding. This is the Jing of lead and mercury. It transforms into essence and marrow, filling the roots of the passes and apertures.

Only within the body does one seek the fire timing of the celestial cycle. It is after the first quarter and before the third quarter—the phases of the moon serving as an image of fire timing. The medicine is steady, and the signs are full. At the moment when heaven and earth, sun and moon, meet, emptiness naturally causes the hundredfold miscellany—random thoughts and dullness—to disperse. Chew through Hundun (primordial chaos), and it is soft as floss. Repeatedly cook and refine it into a single point of elixir. The whole body becomes jade-smooth and gold-hard.

Red blood is exchanged, and white blood circulates—the transformation of the fetus and changing of the bones. Golden light fills the room and is vividly visible. A pool of autumn water immerses the bright moon. A single golden flower is like a red lotus. At this time the Shen and Qi in the body are fully complete. There is no need to seek Dao methods outside and again practice Chan meditation. I know you are thus worthy and capable. I know you have the lot to become an immortal.

Clear instructions are given, with no need for many words. Silently apply drawing out and adding—the advance and retreat of fire timing. In the year, gather the moon, not counting by the year. Within the month, take the sun, following what is natural. Within the day, take the hour; as the hour shifts, the sun turns. Within the hour there are further divisions into marks, and the mystery goes deeper. Mystery upon mystery—it cannot be spoken. Originally it lies in the new moon, full moon, bright, dark, and quarter phases—the changes of the lunar phase.

The Golden Old Man (true yang) and the Beautiful Maiden (true yin) seize creation. Ghosts and spirits cry out in alarm and clamor in mutual fright. The clouds withdraw and the rain scatters; all sounds become still. A single mysterious pearl is planted in the jade field (Dantian). “Ten months” points to the ten-month process of warming and nourishing the elixir.

火候聖胎圓九轉七返相廻旋初時夾眷關脉開其次膀胱如火燃内中兩腎如湯煎時乎挑動衝心原心腎水火自交感金木間隔誰使然黄庭一氣居中宫宰制萬象心掌權水源清清如玉鏡孰使河車如行船一霎火焰飛燒天烏魂兔魄如微塵如斯默默覓眞筌一條徑路入靈眞分明精裏以氣存漸漸氣積以生神此神乃是天地精純陽不死爲眞人君知如此宜修仙修仙惟有金丹門金丹亦無第二訣身中一畒爲家園唾？精津氣血液七件隂物何取焉坎中非腎乃靈根潭底日紅牝馬奔七返九還在片餉一切萬物皆生成惟此乾坤眞運用不必兀兀從無言無心無念神巳昏安得凝聚成胎仙胎仙只是交結成交結惟在頃刻間君還知有大腸回正在冬至幾日前又言金精旣降時復以何物復金精金精只是坤宫藥坤主西南爲川源蟾光終日照西川只此便是藥之根以時易日刻易時一滴甘露名靈泉呑入心經衝肺腧落在膀胱而成丹丹頭不在膀胱結元在膀胱却在肝肝爲木液遇金精逢土交結成大還莫言此是有爲功又恐斯爲著相言始於著相至無相錬精化氣氣歸根氣之根本凝成神方曰無爲而通靈譬如夫婦交媾時一點精血結成嬰彼之以情而感精尚且嬰兒十月成何況宇宙在乎手身中虎

**Interpretation**

When the fire timing (huohou, the timing and intensity of alchemical firing) is properly regulated, the sacred embryo (shengtai), the pure-yang inner elixir of Neidan (internal alchemy), becomes complete. The work of ninefold turning and sevenfold return (jiuzhuan qifan) circulates back and forth within the body. At first, the pass at the Jiaji Gate (Jiajiguan, the crucial pass on the Governing Vessel, Du Mai) opens. Then the bladder burns like fire; within, the two kidneys are seethed as if in hot broth. At times the Qi (vital energy) mechanism is stirred and surges upward to the source of the heart. Heart-fire and kidney-water naturally resonate with each other. Among the Five Phases (wuxing), who creates the separation between lung-Metal and liver-Wood? The single Qi of the Yellow Court (Huangting, the middle Dantian [zhong Dantian, energy center]) dwells in the central palace. The heart-mind holds the reins in governing the myriad phenomena. The source of water is clear as a jade mirror. Who makes the river chariot (heche, the circulation of true Qi) move like a traveling boat?

In an instant, flames leap up and burn the sky. The crow-soul and hare-spirit (wuhun tupo, images of the sun and moon souls) are as fine as motes of dust. Thus one silently seeks the true gateway (zhenquan). A single path enters the realm of spiritual truth. Clearly it is within Jing (essence) that Qi is stored and nurtured. Gradually, as Qi accumulates, Shen (spirit) is generated. This Shen is the essence of Heaven and Earth. Pure Yang and deathlessness—this is the Zhenren (true person).

Knowing this, you should cultivate immortality. Cultivating immortality has only the one gate of the Golden Elixir (Jindan). The Golden Elixir has no second secret. The one-acre plot within the body is the homeland—the Dantian. Nasal mucus, saliva, Jing, bodily fluids, Qi, blood, and liquid are the seven Yin substances. What is there to value in these seven Yin substances? Within the Kan trigram (Kan gua) is not the physical kidney but the spiritual root (linggen). At the bottom of the pool a red sun appears; the mare (pinma, true Yang within the Kun trigram) gallops. The sevenfold return and ninefold restoration are accomplished in an instant. All the myriad things are generated from this. There is only the true functioning of Qian and Kun. There is no need to sit dull and blank, silently doing nothing. Having no heart-mind and no thoughts makes Shen grow dull. How then can one gather and congeal the embryo immortal (taixian, the immortal embryo)?

The embryo immortal is formed only by the union of Shen and Qi. Their union occurs only in an instant. Do you know the “return through the large intestine” (dachang hui, the turning back of the Qi mechanism)? It occurs just a few days before the winter solstice. It is also said that when the golden essence (jinjing, the essence of true lead) has already descended, by what is the golden essence restored? The golden essence is simply the medicine of the Kun palace (the lower Dantian). Kun governs the southwest and is the source of rivers. The toad light (changuang, moonlight, the image of true lead) shines all day over the western river. This is the root of the medicine. Replacing days with hours and hours with quarter-hours is the conversion of fire timing.

A drop of sweet dew is called the numinous spring (lingquan). Swallowed into the heart channel, it rushes past the lung Shu (Feishu, the lung transport acupoint). It falls into the bladder and congeals into the elixir. The elixir head (dantou, the root of elixir formation) does not congeal in the bladder. It originally passes through the bladder, but its reality is in the liver. The liver belongs to Wood and its liquid; it meets the golden essence. Meeting Earth, they unite and form the Great Return Elixir (Da Huan Dan). Do not say this is the work of youwei (intentional action). Yet one fears such a statement becomes talk attached to form (zhuoxiang, clinging to appearances). Beginning from clinging to form, one reaches formlessness (wuxiang). Refining Jing into Qi, Qi returns to its root.

The root of Qi congeals into Shen. Only then is it called Wuwei (non-action) that communicates with the numinous. For example, when husband and wife unite, a drop of essence and blood forms an infant. They use feeling to resonate with essence. Even so, it takes ten months to complete the infant. How much more so when the whole universe is held in the hand. The “tiger” (hu) in the body (symbolizing yuanjing, original essence, and true lead) is also central to cultivation.

嘯龍呤聲雖然不見龍之呤波浪高湧千萬尋雖然不見虎之嘯夜深風聲吼萬林自乎丹道凝結後以至火候烹錬足及於十月霜飛時神鬼奔走安敢爭一年都計十二月卯酉沐浴誰敢行所以十月入神室金鼎滿滿龍精盈縛雲捉月之機關得訣修錬夫何難果然縛得雲在山又解捉住月之魂點對此語知古人何慮不把身飛昇身之鷇兮心之肉心中自有無價珍可以生我亦死我旣能飢人亦飽人尋眞揣路求其原逍遥快樂無飢寒似此境象與證驗緫在一日工夫間工夫如此譬似閑藥之不逺採不難誰知火焰萬丈紅接殺三尸玉鑪寒丹田亦能生紫芝黄庭又以生紅精紅精一餐永不飢紫芝一服常童顔滿身渾是白乳花金筋玉骨永不死不死自此得功成功成行滿鶴來至一舉便要登雲端

隂符髓夫神仙抱一之道者上天所祐也世不可得之乃太乙含眞之元太乙者太極太淵之源是虚無錬神之道一者氣也人能將太乙眞氣與我眞氣相濟包含太和久而錬之乃爲大丹丹者純陽也陽者天道也故神合道聚則成形散則成風故與道相通通者道養氣養氣者神保神天道也故曰精氣相濟久而用火乃眞氣戰退隂魔是謂純陽錬形以身爲國以心爲君以精爲民形者鑪也首者鼎

**Interpretation**

The Zhixuan Pian, Miscellaneous Writings from the Ten Books on Cultivating Perfection (the miscellaneous “Zhixuan Pian” within the Ten Books on Cultivating Perfection)

Though one does not hear the dragon roaring in the sound of the dragon’s roar, the waves surge high for a thousand xun (xun, an ancient unit of length). Though the tiger’s howl cannot be seen, deep in the night the wind roars through ten thousand forests. From the moment the elixir path congeals, until the fire regimen of refining is sufficient. When the tenth-month frost flies, spirits and ghosts flee—how would they dare come to contend? In the year there are twelve months in all; at the Mao and You bathing (in Neidan (internal alchemy), the practice of stopping the fire and bathing at the Mao and You periods), who dares to carry it out? Therefore in the tenth month one enters the spirit chamber (the inner room for refining Shen (spirit) and entering samadhi); the golden tripod (in Neidan the body is the tripod; here it refers to the vessel for refining the elixir) is full, and the dragon Jing (essence) is abundant. The mechanism for binding clouds and seizing the moon—once one obtains the oral formula and cultivates it, what difficulty is there? If one can indeed bind the clouds in the mountains and also knows how to seize the moon’s soul. By checking these words, one knows why the ancients need not worry that the body cannot ascend. The body is like a fledgling’s shell (kou, a nestling), the mind like the flesh inside the shell; within the mind there is naturally a priceless treasure. It can give me life and can also kill me; it can make one hungry and can also make one full. Seeking the true and probing the path, pursuing its source, one becomes free and joyful, without hunger or cold. Such visions and signs of verification are all concentrated within a single day’s practice. When practice reaches this stage, it seems very leisurely; the medicine is not far, and gathering it is not difficult. Who would know that the flames blaze red for ten thousand zhang and kill off the Three Corpses (the three corpse-spirits in the human body in Daoism, a metaphor for the roots of yin turbidity), while the jade furnace is clear and cold. The Dantian (energy center; the vital site for refining and nurturing Jing and Qi) can also produce purple ganoderma, and the Huangting (the inner site of cultivation in the body) can also produce red Jing. Eat the red Jing once and one is never hungry again; take the purple ganoderma once and one keeps a child’s face forever. The whole body is covered with white milk-flowers; with golden sinews and jade bones, one never dies. From not dying, one then attains completion of the work; when the work is complete and conduct is full, immortal cranes arrive. With a single lift one is about to mount the clouds.

The Marrow of the Yin Fu (the essence of the Way of the Yin Fu)

The way of the immortal embracing the One (holding fast to the One) is protected by Heaven above; it cannot easily be obtained in the world. It is the original source of Taiyi’s containing and storing of true Qi (vital energy). Taiyi is the source of Taiji (Supreme Ultimate) and Taiyuan (Great Abyss; a name for the origin of the cosmos); it is the way of refining Shen within emptiness. The One is Qi. If a person can mutually join Taiyi true Qi with one’s own true Qi, contain and embrace the Qi of Great Harmony, and cultivate over a long time, then it becomes the Great Elixir. The elixir is pure Yang. Yang is the Way of Heaven. Therefore when Shen joins with the Dao (the Way), gathered it forms shape, dispersed it becomes wind; thus it communicates with the Dao. What is called communication is the Dao coming to nourish Qi; what is called nourishing Qi is Shen preserving Shen—this is the Way of Heaven. Therefore it is said that when Jing and Qi mutually assist and join, and one uses fire for a long time, true Qi battles back the yin demons (the demonic obstructions of yin turbidity); this is called refining the form with pure Yang. Take the body as a state, the mind as the ruler, and Jing as the people. The bodily form is the furnace. The head is the tripod.

也精滿於腦故用火錬火者陽也息者風也以風吹火錬形神形神俱妙故曰鍊形鍊形者先須存心於内眞氣沖和火乃丹陽之氣純粹之精運行不絶升沉徃還周而復始包含萬類故乃丹陽也天地者隂陽之精也天氣降而復升地氣升而復降天之陽晶爲日地之隂晶爲月若得斗柄之機自然斡動日月運行而無休息乃純陽鍊神之道天樞之上天元一氣注之天樞之下地元一氣注之天樞之中隂之與陽人能混之上下無窮與天齊年今之人而不能知者貪慾忘精用心失神勞形散氣以故冥然而死故謂五賊之敗也所謂見之者昌不見則亡五賊者五行之正氣也天眞者道之元也長養萬物生殺機權造化之本久而滿於體内精與天眞相濟天氣降於地地氣接之而不相離若能識之故不死矣廣成子曰吾一萬二千歳皆因五行正理也五行者五藏也水得一氣人腎屬於水人未生之前以道爲本但人命門上應北方太乙之源造化之根次生左腎此中生日脉脉湧騰朝元下至巽坤中有元基聚四時之氣入於中宫併而朝於頂上故施行於天頭圓象天足方象地中理五行之正氣也聚入絳宫散而達於筋骨上下而復湧泉混合萬神故乃青陽至首群隂皆散更用天之五行正氣内降五行共處入鼎修鍊成丹

**Interpretation**

When Jing (essence) is full in the brain, fire is therefore used to refine it; fire belongs to Yang, while breath (xi, respiration) belongs to Wind. Using Wind to blow Fire in order to refine form and Shen (spirit), both form and spirit reach a wondrous state—this is called refining form. One who refines form must first keep the mind held within the body, causing true Qi (vital energy) to be harmonious. This Fire is the Qi of Danyang (the Qi of pure Yang elixir medicine); it is pure Jing, circulating without interruption. It rises and descends, goes back and forth, cycling without cease and encompassing all categories; therefore it is called Danyang. Heaven and Earth are the Jing of Yin-Yang. Heavenly Qi descends and then rises; earthly Qi rises and then descends. The Yang crystal of Heaven is the sun; the Yin crystal of Earth is the moon. If one obtains the mechanism of the Dipper handle (the revolution of the Big Dipper), it naturally rotates and activates. The sun and moon move without resting; this is the way of pure Yang refining Shen. Above Tianshu (the central pivot of Heaven), the single Qi of Tianyuan pours in. Below Tianshu, the single Qi of Diyuan pours in. Within Tianshu are Yin and Yang; if a person can blend them, then above and below are inexhaustible, and one shares the lifespan of Heaven. People today cannot know this principle because greedy desires cause them to forget and lose Jing, and excessive use of the mind causes them to lose Shen. Toiling the body dissipates Qi, so they die in darkness and confusion; hence it is said they are ruined by the depredations of the Five Thieves. What is called “seeing it, one prospers; not seeing it, one declines.” The Five Thieves are the upright Qi of the Five Phases. Tianzhen (Heavenly Truth) is the root source of Dao (the Way); it nurtures all things, holds the pivot of life and death, and is the root of creation. After a long time it fills the body, and Jing and Tianzhen mutually assist one another. Heavenly Qi descends to Earth, and earthly Qi receives it without separating. If one can recognize this principle, one will not die. Guangchengzi (an ancient immortal) said: “I have lived twelve thousand years, all because of the correct principle of the Five Phases.”

The Five Phases are the five zang (five viscera). Water obtains the single Qi; the human kidneys belong to water. Before a person is born, Dao is taken as the root, but the human Mingmen (Gate of Life) above corresponds to the source of Northern Taiyi (North Pole primal Qi) and is the root of creation. Next, the left kidney is generated. From within this, the sun pulse is produced. Pulse Qi surges upward toward the Origin and descends into the midst of Xun and Kun (the southeast and southwest directions), where there is the Yuanji (original foundation). It gathers the Qi of the four seasons and enters the Central Palace (the central position; in Neidan, internal alchemy, it often refers to the middle Dantian, energy center). United, it converges at the top. Therefore it is applied in Heaven. The head is round like Heaven; the feet are square like Earth. In the middle one regulates the upright Qi of the Five Phases. It gathers into the Jianggong (Heart Palace), scatters and reaches the sinews and bones, then goes up and down and again returns to Yongquan (the sole of the foot), blending the ten thousand Shen. Therefore when Qingyang (Yang Qi) reaches the head, all Yin disperses. Then one again employs the upright Qi of Heaven’s Five Phases and causes it to descend inward. The Five Phases together reside in the Ding (elixir cauldron, a metaphor for the Dantian, energy center), where they are cultivated into the elixir.

故不死矣天以斗爲機人以心爲機天機運於隂陽人機則成大道大道者無爲也無爲性不亂性不亂則神不移神不移則精不散精不散則氣不蕩氣不蕩則精火相隨精火不散萬神聚於神郷在於崑崙之内朝於頂上始得一氣之造化也故道生一一生二二生三三生萬物一者天地之根隂陽之本萬物頼此以生成千靈資之以舒慘至於高天厚地洞府神仙玄象靈宫神眞聖像未有一物不同元氣而生者也夫未生之時先受天氣故爲人性然後二氣相合故乃成形人能澄心如天不動故同天地人心者機本也人能存其心守其神以心爲性以氣爲命而不能行者氣絶命亡皆因亂性散神天道者清氣也人受一氣體養萬神純陽之理故謂天之道殺機者造化也龍者氣也蛇者火也若運精氣上下徃來奪天地造化故曰機也若去五慾動於機權如天之作人腎中青陽之眞爲之龜蛇上通天元之氣呼吸而上下相應起而離陸地也廣成子曰臍下一寸三分氣海中有眞精一合内有二經左曰丹陽經右曰靈陽經二經上通於腦其中有府名曰靈陽府府中有二穴左曰太極穴右曰沖虚穴上通天氣下至海元故曰呼吸天氣下降而養眞精上者爲龍青陽之本下者爲蛇則元氣始也二氣相交而成大藥久錬成丹故

**Interpretation**

For this reason, one can attain deathlessness. Heaven takes the Northern Dipper as the pivot of its turning; humans take the heart-mind as their pivot. Heaven’s pivot operates through Yin-Yang; when the human pivot operates, it brings the Great Dao (the Way) to completion. The Great Dao is Wuwei (non-action). When Wuwei is realized, nature is not disordered. When nature is not disordered, Shen (spirit) does not shift. When Shen does not shift, Jing (essence) does not dissipate. When Jing does not dissipate, Qi (vital energy) does not wander. When Qi does not wander, Jing and fire accompany each other. When Jing and fire are not scattered, the myriad spirits gather in the realm of Shen. The myriad spirits within Kunlun hold audience at the crown of the head. Only thus does one attain the creative transformation of the One Qi.

Therefore the Dao produces One, One produces Two, Two produces Three, and Three produces the myriad things. The One is the root of heaven and earth and the source of Yin-Yang. The myriad things depend on it for generation, and the thousand numina rely on it for their unfolding and closing, flourishing and declining. As for the high heavens and thick earth, cave-dwelling immortals, celestial-image spirit palaces, and sacred images of divine perfected beings, not one thing is generated without being equally endowed with primordial Qi. Before a person is born, they first receive heavenly Qi; this becomes human nature. Only then do the two Qi of Yin-Yang combine to form the physical body. If a person can clarify and still their heart-mind so that it is unmoving like heaven, they become identical with heaven and earth. The human heart-mind is the root of the pivot. If a person can preserve their heart-mind and guard their Shen, taking the heart-mind as nature and Qi as life, then they can practice this. If they cannot practice and uphold this Dao, Qi will be cut off and life will perish; this is always because nature has been disordered and Shen scattered. The Dao of Heaven is clear Qi. Humans receive the One Qi and use the body to nurture the myriad spirits; this is the principle of pure Yang, and so it is called the Dao of Heaven. The mechanism of killing is precisely creative transformation. The dragon is Qi; the snake is fire. If one circulates Jing and Qi upward and downward, seizing the creative transformation of heaven and earth, this is what is called the mechanism. If one removes the five desires and operates through the expedient transformations of the pivot, this is like the action of heaven. The true Qingyang (Green Yang) in a person’s kidneys becomes the turtle and snake. It connects upward to the Qi of Heavenly Origin; during breathing, above and below respond, and it rises and leaves the land. Guangchengzi said: In the Qi Sea one cun and three fen below the navel there is one he of true Jing. Within it are two meridians: the left is called the Danyang Meridian, the right the Lingyang Meridian. The two meridians connect upward to the brain, where there is a palace called the Lingyang Palace. In the palace are two cavities: the left is called the Taiji (Supreme Ultimate) cavity, the right the Chongxu cavity; they connect upward to heavenly Qi and downward to the Sea of Origin. Thus it is said that in breathing heavenly Qi descends and nourishes true Jing. What is above is the dragon, the root of Qingyang; what is below is the snake, the beginning of primordial Qi. When the two Qi intersect, the Great Medicine is formed; with long refining and nurturing it becomes the elixir. This is precisely where the principle lies.

不死矣久錬神趨物外故曰起陸人發殺機守於陽神隂陽升降天以冬夏二至人以一呼一吸呼則至於根吸則至於蒂一吸天氣下降一呼地氣上騰我以眞氣運下元地氣上於天故曰天地返覆天性不可亂神氣不可移能與精氣交而生萬神若天地安和而長萬物聖人内默聦明外屏嗜慾靜居太始之先未始有巧拙之辨三要者玄牝玉户金關上通於天下通於地切勿眼觀心動耳聽神移口談氣散故三要動之神散也但人心中有二竅左曰玄右曰牝下入氣海上通泥丸此眞相通玉户金關夾眷相湊過三關而朝北極陽穴動而養眞廣成子曰木去火則不灰人去性則不死火出神散神散氣離氣離身亡國有奸久而破身有邪久而死去奸則寧去邪則安天地盜太虚人蠱盜天地蠑虰者人腹之蟲爍我魂魄亡我神氣散我精血若能還隂陽造化之機勿能害耳聖人以機籌運法造化之機如是修錬天界天以一氣長養萬物人受一氣而生萬神散一氣以盜而死古聖人食天氣自有時自調百脉暢飲太和眞氣注想身田即得五臟清凉六府調泰關節元氣精神安也廣成子曰氣之柔弱穿筋骨安精神皆使關節通流豈不理乎神機内用千變萬化天運機而養萬物人運機而化不窮人知外象有吉凶之兆即壽而

**Interpretation**

One can attain deathlessness. Prolonged refining of Shen (spirit) causes Shen to tend beyond things, and so this is called “Qilu” (rising from the land); when a person activates the killing mechanism (shaji, the key that impels internal transformation), and guards the yang Shen, Yin-Yang then ascends and descends. Heaven takes the winter and summer solstices as the junctures of ascent and descent; humans take one exhalation and one inhalation as the junctures of ascent and descent. Exhalation reaches the root; inhalation reaches the stem (root and stem refer to the foundation of the Qi, vital energy, mechanism). With one inhalation, heavenly Qi descends; with one exhalation, earthly Qi rises. I use true Qi to circulate the lower origin, causing earthly Qi to ascend to heaven; this is called “Heaven and Earth Returning and Reversing” (Tiandi Fanfu). Heavenly nature must not be thrown into disorder; Shen and Qi must not be displaced. If one can bring [Shen] into intercourse with Jing (essence) and Qi, the myriad Shen are generated. Just as heaven and earth are peaceful and harmonious and grow the myriad things, the sage inwardly contains intelligence and outwardly rejects cravings and desires. Quietly abiding prior to the Great Beginning (Taishi), originally there is no distinction between cleverness and clumsiness.

The Three Essentials (Sanyao, key apertures in cultivation) are Xuanpin (the Mysterious Female), the Jade Gate (Yuhu), and the Golden Pass (Jinguan); above they connect with heaven, below with earth. Never let the eyes seeing move the mind, the ears hearing shift the Shen, or the mouth speaking scatter the Qi. Therefore, once the Three Essentials stir, Shen scatters. In the human heart there are two apertures: the left is called Xuan, the right is called Pin; below they enter Qihai (the lower Dantian, energy center), above they connect to Niwan (the upper Dantian, the brain). When this true Qi communicates, the Jade Gate and Golden Pass converge in mutual support, pass through the Three Passes (Sanguan, cultivation apertures), and proceed toward the North Pole (Beiji, the upper Dantian). Once the yang aperture (yangxue) stirs, one nurtures the true.

Guangchengzi (an ancient immortal) said: “When wood leaves fire, it cannot become ash; when a person departs from nature, he does not die. When fire goes outward, Shen scatters; when Shen scatters, Qi departs; when Qi departs, the body perishes.” A state with traitors will in time be broken; a body with evils will in time die. Remove traitors and there is peace; remove evils and there is safety. Heaven and earth steal from the Great Void (Taixu); the parasites in the human belly steal from heaven and earth. Rongding (a kind of belly worm) are worms in the human belly; they melt and consume the Hun and Po souls, cause loss of Shen and Qi, and dissipate Jing and blood. If one can return to the mechanism of Yin-Yang creation and transformation, they cannot harm the person. The sage uses the mechanism to plan and operate the method; the mechanism of creation and transformation is cultivated in this way. The heaven of the celestial realm uses the one Qi to nourish and grow the myriad things. Humans receive the one Qi and are born; when the myriad Shen scatter and consume the one Qi, they die because it has been stolen.

The ancient sages ingested heavenly Qi at regular times and regulated themselves so that the hundred vessels flowed freely. Drinking the true Qi of Great Harmony (Taihe) and focusing the mind on the body field (the Dantian within the body), they attained coolness in the five viscera, harmony and well-being in the six bowels, and stability of the joints, original Qi, and spirit. Guangchengzi said: “Although Qi is soft and weak, it can penetrate sinews and bones and calm the spirit; all of this is to make the joints flow freely—is this not the principle?” The Shen mechanism operates within, with a thousand transformations and ten thousand changes. Heaven operates the mechanism and nourishes the myriad things; humans operate the mechanism and transform without end. If a person knows that external signs contain omens of good and ill fortune, this will be connected with lifespan.

應而不知自巳有神乃爲神仙所爲神也日月者隂陽之至晶也周遊八極寒暑相推剋天地之意定於日月周遊之道也日出月入在於數中數者一也一者氣也聖人得之通天地隂陽地理固氣養神不失於道萬變始也君子可以固窮下士聞笑而輕命三返在於三元天元眞氣居首靈元眞氣居中本元眞氣居下精者師也心者王也身者形也三陽循於内久而神自朝元故不死矣以天道而化下方萬物受道所生自然而然乃大恩生不以色慾緃其心安其心而保其氣造化自恩生也剪其慾正其心定其氣守神抱一至靜而日新必達於源至於神隂陽之本也目不視色神不移神不移其氣内藏至樂天眞終無所擾廣成子曰禽者南方之鳥也人能致伏眞精力久如禽飛騰太虚不過以氣而作飛仙損有餘而補不足有餘者心不足者精有餘不能損則其不足不能補補不足者是害也節慾潜形物束無味有恩存焉害中恩也天地之理聖人之機至道之苗萬物之本隂陽之宗故造化無窮聖人於至道之精我之有也道之勃然萬物自物我哲耳隂陽非勝我之用勝之者我神我靈而隂陽同勝天地者二氣結而萬物皆同也哲同神氣聖人也而異於人故作神仙矣

内三要(出黄帝/隂符經)第一要者頭太淵也天谷神所居之位是也

**Interpretation**

To respond to affairs without becoming deluded or attached, and to know that within one’s own body there is Shen (spirit)—this is precisely what makes immortals divine. The sun and moon are the purest manifestation of Yin-Yang. The sun and moon circulate through the eight directions to the farthest reaches; cold and heat alternate and shift, accord with the intent of Heaven and Earth’s transformative operation, and their patterns are fixed in the Dao (the Way) of the sun and moon’s circuit. Sunrise and moonset are both within “number”; number returns to its root as one, and one is Qi (vital energy). The sage obtains this “one,” understands Heaven, Earth, Yin-Yang, and terrestrial order, firmly guards Qi and nurtures Shen, does not deviate from the Dao, and from this all myriad transformations begin. The noble person can remain secure in poverty; those of inferior capacity hear this and laugh, making light of nature and life. Returning to the root and restoring the origin (the Three Returns) lies in the Three Primes: the true Qi of the Heavenly Prime comes first, the true Qi of the Numinous Prime is in the middle, and the true Qi of the Original Prime is below. Jing (essence) is like the teacher, the mind is like the king, and the body is the form. The Qi of the Three Yangs circulates within the body; over time Shen naturally returns to the primordial station, and therefore one does not die. Heaven’s Dao transforms and nurtures the lower realm; the ten thousand things receive the Dao and are born, naturally and spontaneously—this is how great grace arises. Do not indulge the mind because of sexual desire; settle the mind and preserve its Qi, and creation naturally produces grace. Cut away desires, rectify the mind, stabilize Qi, guard Shen and embrace the One (maintaining undivided focus), reach ultimate stillness and daily renewal, and one will surely penetrate the source. As for Shen, it is the root of Yin-Yang. If the eyes do not greedily look at forms, Shen will not waver; when Shen does not waver, its Qi is stored within, and one reaches the heavenly truth of supreme joy, ultimately without disturbance. Guangchengzi (an ancient immortal) said: Qin is the bird of the south. If a person can summon, absorb, subdue, and tame true Jing, and apply effort over a long time, then like a bird soaring into the Taixu (Great Void), one merely relies on Qi to become a flying immortal. Reduce the surplus and supplement the deficient: what is surplus is the mind, what is deficient is Jing. If the surplus is not reduced, the deficient cannot be supplemented; to supplement only the deficient without reducing the surplus is harmful instead. Restrain desires, conceal one’s traces, be constrained by external things and bland without flavor—within this there is still grace preserved; within harm there is also grace. This is the pattern of Heaven and Earth, the mechanism of the sage, the sprout of the ultimate Dao, the root of the ten thousand things, and the ancestor of Yin-Yang; therefore transformation is inexhaustible. The sage sees the essence of the ultimate Dao as something originally present in himself; the Dao runs vigorously, the ten thousand things each become themselves, and I merely observe with clear awareness. Yin-Yang cannot govern what I use; what can govern Yin-Yang is my Shen, my spirit—and Yin-Yang likewise returns to this principle. Heaven and Earth are formed by the condensation of the two Qi, and the ten thousand things all share these same two Qi. One in whom clear awareness and Shen-Qi are united is a sage; they differ from ordinary people, and therefore can become immortals. The three essentials of inner cultivation come from the Huangdi Yinfu Jing (Yellow Emperor’s Classic of the Hidden Talisman). The first essential is Taiyuan in the head, also called Tiangu (Heavenly Valley), which is the place where Shen resides.

上應玄都萬神會集之郷人能開此谷神自居眞息自定飢渴自除矣第二要者心絳宫也人能虚心凝神得神氣俱定息不徃來謂之大定矣夫神者天地之元性命之本日月之祖龍虎之首隂陽之根每一息動四至太上言二十四動爲一刀二百四十動爲一圭故聖人謂之刀圭第三要者在兩腎之間水火之際謂之地户此關有神謂之桃康上通九天下通湧泉眞氣聚散皆從此關故聖人言天門常開地户永閉人能會此三要神氣自然交結(隂符經/曰九竅)(之邪在此三/要正此意也)

外三要外三要者玄牝之門也口通五臟出者重濁之氣屬隂一切百榖諸咪皆地之精從口而入與地相接謂之地根鼻通六腑出者輕清之氣屬陽搂其天此乃天根太上言玄牝之門是爲天根

鼻有兩竅口有一竅共三竅此是神氣徃

來之門陽神爲玄隂息爲牝此門中有天

魂地魄與我神氣混而爲一故强名曰玄

牝二物也修眞十

**Interpretation**

Above, it corresponds to Xuandu (the celestial capital where the myriad gods assemble in Daoism), the realm where all gods gather. If a person can open this pass and cavity, the Valley Spirit (Gushen—the empty and numinous spirit) will naturally abide, the true breath (zhenxi—the innate natural breathing) will naturally settle, and hunger and thirst will naturally disappear.

The second essential is the heart, which is the Jianggong (Crimson Palace; the heart is red and belongs to Fire, hence the name). If a person can empty the heart and concentrate the Shen, causing both Shen and Qi to settle and breathing to cease coming and going, this is called Great Stability (dading). Shen is the primal source of Heaven and Earth, the root of nature and life, the ancestor of the sun and moon, the head of Dragon and Tiger (symbolizing Yin-Yang, water and fire), and the root of Yin-Yang. Each breath has four movements. Taishang (a Daoist honorific) says that twenty-four movements make one dao, and two hundred and forty movements make one gui; therefore sages call it daogui (an ancient unit for measuring medicine, borrowed in Neidan to gauge the fire times). The third essential is between the two kidneys, at the place where water and fire meet, called the Earthly Door (Dihu; the door of earth). This pass has a deity named Taokang (a deity in Neidan). It connects upward to the Nine Heavens (the highest reaches of heaven) and downward to Yongquan (the Bubbling Spring point on the sole, symbolizing the earthly spring). The gathering and dispersing of true Qi all arise from this pass. Therefore sages say the Heavenly Gate is always open and the Earthly Door is forever closed. If a person can understand and connect these Three Essentials, Shen and Qi will naturally unite and congeal. The Yinfu Jing says that the disturbances of the nine orifices lie in these Three Essentials—this is exactly the meaning.

Outer Three Essentials: the Outer Three Essentials are the gate of Xuanpin (the Mysterious Female; Xuan refers to yang Shen, Pin to yin breath). The mouth connects to the five viscera; the heavy, turbid Qi exhaled from the mouth belongs to yin. All the hundred grains and various flavors are the Jing and Qi of earth; entering through the mouth, they connect with earth and are called the Earthly Root (digen). The nose connects to the six bowels; the light, clear Qi exhaled from the nose belongs to yang and receives from heaven; this is the Heavenly Root (tian’gen). Taishang says the gate of Xuanpin is the Heavenly Root. The nose has two openings and the mouth one, three openings in all; these are the gateways through which Shen and Qi come and go. Yang Shen is called Xuan, yin breath is called Pin. Within this gate are the heavenly hun and earthly po, which blend with my Shen and Qi into one; therefore it is tentatively named the two, Xuan and Pin.

書雜著指玄篇卷之三

## Vol. 4

修眞十書雜著指玄篇卷之四　珎四

修仙辨惑論海南白玉蟾自糿事陳泥丸忽巳九年偶一日在乎巖阿松隂之下風清月朗夜靜煙寒因思生死事大無常迅速遂稽首再拜而問曰玉蟾事師未久自揣福薄縁淺敢問今生有分可仙乎陳泥丸云人人皆可況於汝乎玉蟾曰不避尊嚴之責輒伸僣易之問修仙有幾門錬丹有幾法愚见如玉石之未分願得一言點化陳泥丸云爾來吾語汝修仙有三等錬丹有三成夫天仙之道能變化飛升也上士可以學之以身爲鉛以心爲汞以定爲水以慧爲火在片餉之間可以凝結十月成胎此乃上品錬丹之法本無卦爻亦無斤兩其法簡易故以心傳之甚易成也夫水仙之道能出入隱顯也中士可以學之以氣爲鉛以神爲汞以午爲火以子爲水在百日之間可以混合三年成象此乃中品錬丹之法雖有卦爻却無斤兩其法要妙故以口傳之必可成也夫地仙之道能留形住世庶士可以學之以精爲鉛以血爲汞以腎爲水以心爲火在一年之間可以融結九年成功此乃下品錬丹之法旣有卦爻又有斤兩其法繁難故以文字傳之恐難成也上品丹法以精神魂魄意爲藥材以行住坐臥爲火候以清淨自然爲運用中品丹法以肝心脾肺腎爲藥材以年月日時爲火候以抱元守一爲運

**Interpretation**

Bai Yuchan of Hainan had followed his master Chen Niwan in cultivation for nine years. One night he sat in quiet meditation beneath a pine tree on a rocky mountain. The breeze was clear, the moon bright, and the night quiet. Suddenly he reflected on the impermanence of birth and death and the brevity of human life, and he respectfully asked his master, “This disciple has not followed you for long, and I know my blessings are shallow. I do not know whether in this life I will have the chance to cultivate the immortal Dao to success.”

Chen Niwan replied, “Everyone can become an immortal—how much more so can you?”

Bai Yuchan continued, “May I venture to ask you, Master, how many paths are there for cultivating immortality? How many methods are there for alchemy? This disciple is dull, like uncarved jade, and hopes to receive your guidance.”

Chen Niwan explained in detail, “Cultivating immortality can be divided into three grades, and alchemy also has three levels of attainment. The highest is the Way of the Celestial Immortals, which can transform the physical form and ascend to the heavenly realms. Those of superior spiritual capacity can practice it: they take the body as lead (the material basis of cultivation), the mind and intent as mercury (the spiritual element of cultivation), meditative concentration as water, and wisdom as fire. In a short time they can congeal the elixir, and in ten months they can accomplish the immortal embryo. This is the highest alchemical method. It does not emphasize hexagram-and-line calculations, nor does it concern itself with quantities large or small. The method is simple, can be learned through mind-to-mind transmission, and is easy to succeed with.”

“The middling is the Way of the Water Immortals, which can conceal the body and manifest form. Those of middling capacity can practice it: they take breath as lead, the original spirit as mercury, noon as fire, and midnight as water. Within a hundred days they can blend it into the elixir, and in three years they can accomplish the immortal body. This is the middling alchemical method. Although it emphasizes times and hexagram-lines, it does not concern itself with quantities. The method is subtle, can be learned through oral transmission, and will certainly succeed.”

“The lowest is the Way of the Earth Immortals, which can preserve youthful appearance and prolong life. Ordinary people can practice it: they take Jing (essence) as lead, blood and Qi as mercury, kidney water as the root, and heart fire as the motive force. Within one year they can fuse it into the elixir, and in nine years they can attain success. This is the most basic alchemical method. It requires both hexagram-and-line calculations and precise control of quantities. The method is complex and difficult, must be transmitted through texts, and is relatively hard to succeed with.”

Chen Niwan concluded, “The superior alchemical method uses Jing, Shen, Hun, Po, and Yi as its medicinal materials, daily behavior and conduct as its fire timing (the timing of cultivation), and purity and naturalness as its application. The middling alchemical method uses the five viscera as its medicinal materials, years, months, and times as its fire timing, and focused guarding of the One as its application.”

用下品丹法以精血髓氣液爲藥材以閉嚥搐摩爲火候以存想升降爲運用大抵妙處不在乎按圖索駿也若泥象執文之士空自傲慢至老無成矣玉蟾曰讀丹書許多年如在荊棘中行今日塵淨鑑明雲開月皎緫萬法而歸一包萬幻以歸眞以未知正在於何處下手用功也陳泥丸云善哉問也夫錬丹之要以身爲壇鑪鼎竈以心爲神室以端坐習定爲採取以操持照顧爲行火以作止爲進退以斷續不專爲防隄以運用爲抽添以眞氣薫蒸爲沐浴以息念爲養火以制伏身心爲野戰以凝神聚氣爲守城以忘機絶慮爲生殺以念頭起處爲玄牝以打成一塊爲交結以歸根復命爲丹成以移神爲換鼎以身外有身爲脫胎以返本還源爲眞空以打破虚空爲了當故能聚而成形散則成氣去來無礙逍遥自然矣玉蟾問曰勤而不遇必遇至人遇而不勤終爲下鬼若此修丹之法有何證驗陳泥丸云初修丹時神清氣爽身心和暢宿疾普消更無夢寐百日不食飲酒不醉到此地則赤血換爲白血隂氣錬成陽氣身如火熱行步如飛口中可以乾水吹氣可以煑肉對景無心如如不動役使鬼神呼召雷雨耳聞九天自視萬里徧體純陽金筋玉骨陽神現形出入自然此乃長生不死之道畢矣但恐世人執著藥物火候之說以爲

**Interpretation**

This scripture primarily discusses the methods and verification criteria for cultivating Neidan (internal alchemy).

When practicing the lower-grade alchemical methods, one uses Jing (essence), blood, marrow, Qi (vital energy), and bodily fluids as the medicinal ingredients. Techniques such as breath retention, swallowing, and massage serve as the "fire regulation" (methods of control during cultivation), while focused visualization and the rising and descending of breath facilitate circulation. The key does not lie in rigidly following textual instructions—those who stubbornly cling to words often become arrogant and fail to achieve anything even in old age.

Bai Yuchan (one of the Five Patriarchs of the Southern Lineage of Daoism) said that for years, reading alchemical texts felt like walking through thorns. Only now has he suddenly grasped the principle that "all methods return to one." He then asked Chen Niwan (a revered Daoist master) how to begin cultivation in practice.

Chen Niwan replied: The essential secret of alchemy lies in treating the body as the furnace and cauldron, and the heart as the "divine chamber" (abode of the spirit). The specific methods are as follows:

- Sitting upright in meditation serves as gathering the medicinal ingredients.
- Maintaining awareness serves as applying the fire (cultivation energy).
- Balancing movement and stillness serves as advancing and retreating.
- Preventing interruptions serves as reinforcing the dikes.
- Regulating the breath serves as "adding and subtracting" (adjusting respiration).
- The circulation of true Qi serves as purification.
- Cessation of distracting thoughts serves as nurturing the fire.
- Subduing body and mind serves as the "battlefield."
- Concentrating spirit and gathering Qi serves as "guarding the city."
- Letting go of conceptual thinking serves as "life and death."
- The arising of thoughts serves as the "mysterious female" (the union of Yin and Yang).
- The unity of body and mind serves as "binding and knotting."
- Returning to the origin serves as the completion of the elixir.
- Shifting consciousness serves as "changing the cauldron."
- The emergence of the Yang spirit serves as "shedding the mortal shell."
- Returning to the source serves as "true emptiness."
- Transcending emptiness serves as perfect fulfillment.

Upon achieving success, one can gather and disperse freely, come and go without hindrance, and roam in natural ease.

Bai Yuchan then asked about the verification criteria for cultivation. Chen Niwan said: In the early stages, one may experience clarity of spirit, the disappearance of chronic illnesses, no need for sleep or food, and the ability to drink without intoxication. At higher levels, the blood turns white, Yin energy transforms into pure Yang, the body radiates heat, one can walk swiftly, hold dry water in the mouth, cook meat with exhaled breath, remain unmoved by external circumstances, command spirits and ghosts, summon wind and rain, possess extraordinary vision and hearing, embody pure Yang throughout the body, develop golden sinews and jade bones, and allow the Yang spirit to come and go freely. This is the true path to longevity. However, he feared that people would cling to superficial techniques like medicinal ingredients and fire regulation.

有形有爲而不能頓悟也夫豈知混沌未分以前烏有年月日時父母未生以前烏有精血氣液道本無形喻之爲龍虎道本無名比之爲鉛汞若是學天仙之人須是形神俱妙與道之合眞可也豈可被隂陽束縛在五行之中要當跳出天地之外方可名爲得道之士矣或者疑曰此法與禪法稍同殊不知終日談演問答乃是乾慧長年枮兀昏沉乃是頑空然天仙之學如水精盤中之珠轉漉漉地活潑潑地自然圓陀陀光皪皪所謂天仙者此乃金仙也夫此不可言傳之妙也人誰知之人誰行之人若曉得金剛圓覺二經則金丹之義自明何必分别老釋之異同哉天下無二道聖人無兩心何況人人具足箇箇圓成政所謂處處緑楊堪繫馬家家門閫透長安但取其捷徑云耳玉蟾曰天下學仙者紛紛然良由學而不遇遇而不行行而不動乃至老來甘心赴死於九泉之下豈不悲哉今將師傳口訣鋟木以傳于世惟此漏露天機甚矣得無譴乎泥丸云吾將點化天下神仙苟獲罪者天其不天乎經云我命在我不在於天何譴之有玉蟾曰祖師張平叔三傳非人三遭禍患何也泥丸云彼一時自無眼力又況運心不普乎噫師在天涯弟子在海角何況塵勞中識人爲甚難令但刋此散行天下使修仙之士可以尋文揣義妙理昭然

**Interpretation**

Clinging to what has form and appearance, to doing and contrivance, one cannot attain sudden enlightenment in the present moment. Who realizes that before primordial chaos had differentiated, there were fundamentally no years, months, days, or hours? Before one’s parents gave one birth, there were also no substantial forms such as Jing (essence), blood, Qi (vital energy), and fluids. The Dao (the Way) is originally without form; it only borrows “Dragon and Tiger” (longhu, a Daoist metaphor for Yin-Yang) as an analogy. The Dao is originally without name; it only borrows “lead and mercury” (alchemical terms, comparing the prenatal medicine with Yin-Yang) as a comparison. Those who study celestial immortals (tianxian, the highest rank of Daoist immortals) must make both form and Shen (spirit) wondrous and become one in truth with the Dao. How can one be bound by Yin-Yang within the Five Phases (Wuxing)? One should leap beyond heaven and earth; only then can one be called a person who has attained the Dao.

Some doubt and ask: this method is somewhat similar to the Chan (Zen) method. Yet they do not know that discussing and performing question-and-answer all day is merely “dry wisdom” (Qianhui: verbal, empty wisdom, not wisdom from actual realization). Sitting withered for years and sinking into torpor is merely “stubborn emptiness” (Wankong: dead, one-sided emptiness, not true emptiness). But the learning of celestial immortality is like a pearl in a crystal dish: it turns round and lively, vividly alive, naturally perfectly round and radiantly clear. What is called a celestial immortal is the Golden Immortal (Jinxian). This is a wonder that cannot be transmitted in words. Who can know it? Who can practice it?

If people understand the Jingang Jing (Diamond Sutra) and the Yuanjue Jing (Sutra of Perfect Enlightenment), the meaning of the Golden Elixir (Jindan) will naturally become clear. Why must one distinguish the similarities and differences between Laozi’s teaching and Shakyamuni’s teaching? There are not two Daos under heaven; the sage does not have two minds. Moreover, every person is originally complete in themselves, each originally perfect. Just as green willows everywhere can tether a horse, and every household’s threshold leads to Chang’an, one merely takes that shortcut.

Yuchan (Bai Yuchan, a Southern Song Daoist) said: Those under heaven who study immortality are numerous and multitudinous. It is only because they study the Dao but do not encounter a true master; or having encountered a true master, they do not practice; or having practiced, they cannot truly activate it and produce results. Even to old age, willingly going to death beneath the Nine Springs—is this not lamentable? Now the master’s transmitted oral formulas are carved in woodblocks and printed for circulation in the world. But leaking heaven’s secrets to such an excessive degree—will this not incur condemnation? Niwan (Niwan Zhenren) said: I wish to transform all people under heaven into immortals; if I incur guilt because of this, can heaven still be called heaven? The scripture says, “My fate lies with me, not with heaven.” What is there to condemn?

Yuchan said: The patriarch Zhang Pingshu (Zhang Boduan, courtesy name Pingshu) transmitted the Dharma three times to unsuitable people and three times met with calamity. Why? Niwan said: At that time he himself lacked discernment, and moreover his intention was not universal and broad. Alas, the master is at the edge of heaven, the disciple at the corner of the sea. Moreover, amid the toil and bustle of the dusty world, it is extremely difficult to recognize people. Now we only publish and distribute this book throughout the world, so that those who cultivate immortality can rely on the text to infer its meaning, and the wondrous principle will be clear and evident.

是乃天授矣何必乎筆舌以傳之哉但能凝然靜定念中無念工夫純粹打成一片終日默默如雞抱卵則神歸氣復自然見玄關一竅其大無外其小無内則是採取先天一氣以爲金丹之母勤而行之指日可與鍾呂並駕矣此乃巳試之效念學仙者無所指南謹集問答之要名之曰修仙辨惑論云

谷神不死論谷者天谷也神者一身之元神也天之谷含造化容虚空地之谷容萬物載山川人與天地同所禀也亦有谷焉其谷藏眞一宅元神是以頭有九宫上應九天中間一宫謂之泥丸又曰黄庭又名崑崙又名天谷其名頗多乃元神所住之宫其空如谷而神居之故謂之谷神神存則生神去則死日則接於物夜則接於夢神不能安其居也黄粮未熟南柯未寤一生之榮辱富貴百歳之悲憂悅樂備嘗於一夢之間使其去而不還遊而不返則生死路隔幽明之途絶矣由是觀之人不能自生而神生之人不能自死而神死之若神居其谷而不死人安得而死乎然谷神所以不死者由玄牝也元者陽也天也牝者隂也地也然則玄牝二氣各有深旨非遇至人授以口訣不可得而知也靈樞内經曰天谷元神守之自眞言人身中上有天谷泥丸藏神之府也中有應谷絳宫藏氣之府也下有靈谷關元藏精之府也天谷元宫也乃元神之

**Interpretation**

This was originally a bestowal from Heaven; why must it be transmitted through pen and ink or mouth and tongue? One need only become still and composed, with no-thought within thought, and refine the practice purely until it is forged into a single whole, silently all day like a hen brooding on eggs. Then Shen will return and Qi will recover, and one will naturally see the single aperture of the Mysterious Pass (xuanguan yiqiao; the crucial opening in Neidan [internal alchemy] where Shen and Qi unite). It is so great that nothing lies outside it, so small that nothing lies within it. This is the gathering of prenatal One Qi (xiantian yiqi) as the mother of the Golden Elixir. Practice it diligently, and before long you may ride abreast with Zhongli Quan and Lü Dongbin. These are already verified effects. Concerned that those who study immortality lack a guide, I have respectfully compiled the essential points of questions and answers and titled them “A Treatise on Resolving Doubts in Cultivating Immortality.”

On the Valley Spirit (gushen) Not Dying

“Valley” refers to the Heavenly Valley. “Spirit” refers to the Primordial Spirit (yuanshen) within the body. The valley of Heaven contains creation and embraces the void; the valley of Earth contains the myriad things and bears mountains and rivers. Humans, sharing the same endowment as Heaven and Earth, also have valleys. This valley stores the True One (zhenyi; the prenatal True One Qi) and houses the Primordial Spirit. Thus the head has nine palaces, corresponding above to the Nine Heavens. The central palace is called Niwan (the brain Dantian [energy center]); it is also called Huangting (Yellow Court), Kunlun, and the Heavenly Valley. It has many names. It is the palace where the Primordial Spirit resides. It is empty like a mountain valley, and the Spirit dwells within it; hence it is called the Valley Spirit. When the Spirit remains, a person lives; when the Spirit departs, a person dies. By day the Spirit engages with external things; by night it engages with dreams; thus the Spirit cannot dwell securely in its abode. Before the Yellow Millet Dream (Huangliang meng) is cooked and before the Nanke Dream is awakened, a lifetime’s honor and disgrace, wealth and rank, and a hundred years of sorrow, worry, joy, and delight are all fully tasted within a single dream. If the Spirit departs and does not return, wanders and does not come back, then the road of life and death is cut off and the paths of the hidden and the visible are severed. From this we see that people cannot give themselves life; it is the Spirit that makes them live. They cannot cause their own death; it is the Spirit that makes them die. If the Spirit dwells securely in the valley without dying, how can the person die? Yet the reason the Valley Spirit does not die is due to the Mysterious Female (xuanpin). Yuan is Yang and Heaven; pin is Yin and Earth. Thus the two Qi of Xuanpin each have profound significance. Without meeting a perfected person who transmits the oral formula, one cannot know this. The Lingshu Neijing (Huangdi Neijing: Lingshu) says, “When the Heavenly Valley and Primordial Spirit are guarded, they naturally become true.” This means that within the human body, above is the Heavenly Valley Niwan, the mansion that stores the Spirit. In the middle is the Yinggu (Response Valley) Jianggong (Crimson Palace; the heart palace, middle Dantian), the mansion that stores Qi. Below is the Linggu (Spirit Valley) Guanyuan (lower Dantian), the mansion that stores Jing. The Heavenly Valley is the Yuan Palace (Yuangong), the palace where the Primordial Spirit resides.

室靈性之所存是神之要也聖人則天地之要知變化之源神守於元宫氣騰於牝府神氣交感自然成眞與道爲一而入於不死不生故曰谷神不死是謂玄牝也聖人運用於玄牝之内造化於惚恍之中當其玄牝之氣入乎其根閑極則失於急任之則失於蕩欲其綿綿續續勿令間斷耳若存者順其自然而存之神久自寧息久自定性入自然無爲妙用未甞至於勤勞迫切故曰用之不勤即此而觀則玄牝爲上下二源炁母升降之正道明矣世人不窮其根不究其源便以鼻爲玄以口爲牝若以鼻口爲玄牝則玄牝之門又將何以名之此皆不能造其妙非大聖人安能窮究是理哉

隂陽升降論天以乾道輕清而在上地以坤道重濁而在下元氣則運行乎中而不息在上者以陽爲用故冬至後一陽之氣自地而升積一百八十日而至天陽極而隂生在下者以隂爲用積一百八十日而至地隂極而陽生一升一降徃來無窮人受沖和之氣以生於天地之間與天地初無二體天地之氣一年一周人身之氣一日一周自子至巳陽升之時故以子時爲日中之冬至在易爲復自午至亥隂降之時故以午時爲日中之夏至在易爲媾隂極陽生陽極隂生晝夜徃來亦猶天地之升降人能效天地橐籥之用沖虚湛寂一氣

**Interpretation**

The abode of human spirituality lies at the core of one's vital consciousness (Shen). The sages emulate the patterns of heaven and earth, understanding that the origin of transformation resides in this principle: the spirit must be anchored in the lower Dantian (the Primordial Palace), while the Qi must ascend from the lower abdominal region (the Feminine Repository). When spirit and Qi intermingle harmoniously, they naturally give birth to the True Self, achieving unity with the Dao and the state of neither birth nor death. Hence the saying "the valley spirit never dies"—this is what we call the "Mysterious Feminine" (referring to the fundamental union of Yin and Yang).

Within this Mysterious Feminine, sages circulate their vital energy, creating and nurturing through a state of seeming presence and absence. When the Qi of the Mysterious Feminine reaches its root, excessive restraint will stifle its vitality, while complete neglect leads to dissipation—the key lies in maintaining an unbroken flow of Qi. The phrase "seeming to exist" refers to nourishing it through natural spontaneity; when the spirit is nurtured over time it achieves tranquility, when Qi is cultivated over time it achieves stability, ultimately entering the realm of Wuwei (non-action). This wondrous function never requires forced effort, hence "its use is inexhaustible." Thus we understand the Mysterious Feminine serves as the fundamental passage for the ascending and descending movements of Qi between the upper and lower bodily regions.

Worldly people, failing to investigate these roots, simplistically regard the nose as "Mysterious" and the mouth as "Feminine." If this were so, what then would be the "Gate of the Mysterious Feminine"? These are manifestations of failing to grasp the profound subtleties—how could those who aren't true sages possibly comprehend this principle?

Regarding the patterns of Yin-Yang ascent and descent: Heaven follows the Qian (Creative) principle of lightness and clarity above, Earth follows the Kun (Receptive) principle of heaviness and turbidity below, while primordial Qi circulates ceaselessly between them. The upper realm employs Yang's function, so after the winter solstice Yang Qi rises from Earth, reaching heaven's zenith after 180 days where Yang culminates and Yin is born; the lower realm employs Yin's function, reaching earth's depth after 180 days where Yin culminates and Yang is born. This cyclical rising and falling continues perpetually.

Humans are born receiving the harmonious Qi between heaven and earth, originally one body with the cosmos. Heaven-Earth's Qi completes its cycle in one year, while the human body's Qi completes its cycle in one day. From the Hour of Zi (11pm-1am) to Si (9-11am) marks Yang Qi's ascending phase—the Zi hour representing the winter solstice of the day, corresponding to the Fu (Return) hexagram in the Yijing; from the Hour of Wu (11am-1pm) to Hai (9-11pm) marks Yin Qi's descending phase—the Wu hour representing the summer solstice of the day, corresponding to the Gou (Encounter) hexagram. When Yin culminates Yang is born, when Yang culminates Yin is born, as day and night alternate like heaven and earth's rising and falling. If humans can emulate heaven-earth's bellows-like operation, maintaining emptiness and stillness, they may commune with the One Qi.

周流於百骸開則氣出闔則氣入氣出則如地氣之上升氣入則如天氣之下降自可與天地齊其長久若也奔驟乎紛華之域馳騁乎是非之場則眞氣耗散而不爲吾之有矣不若虚靜守中以養也中者天地玄牝之氣會聚之處也人能一意守之而不散則眞精自朝元炁自聚谷神自接三尸自去九蟲自滅此乃長生久視之道也以是知眞息元氣乃人身性命之根深根固蒂乃長生久視之道人之有生禀大道一元之氣在毋胞繫與母同呼吸及乎降誕之後剪去臍蒂一點元陽棲於丹田之中眞息出入通於天門與天相接上入泥丸會於元神下入丹田通於元氣莊子云衆人之氣爲喉聖人之息爲踵踵也者深根固蒂之道人能屏去諸念眞息自定身入無形與道爲一在世長年由是觀之道之在身豈不尊乎豈不貴乎

丹房法語(白先生與/胡胎仙)吕先生鶴頸龜腮適有鍾離之會石居士鹿鼻鼠耳偶逢平叔之來歎夤縁時節之難豈名利是非之比金丹大藥古人以萬劫一傳玉笥靈篇學者之十迷丸昧月裏烏日裏兔顚倒坎離水中虎火中龍運用復姤採先天一氣作鉛中之髓奪星象萬化爲汞裏之精惟弦前弦後之時乃望缺望圓之際知之者癸生須急採昧之者望逺不堪甞精半斤氣

**Interpretation**

This passage elucidates the essential method of "guarding the center and nurturing Qi" in Daoist cultivation. The innate Qi (primordial vital energy) within the human body circulates through all meridians like the breath of heaven and earth. Exhalation resembles earthly Qi ascending, while inhalation resembles celestial Qi descending—this attunement enables one to share heaven and earth's longevity. However, becoming entangled in worldly affairs dissipates this genuine Qi.

The "center" refers to the crucial intersection point (mysterious feminine) where celestial and earthly Yin-Yang energies meet within the body. By steadfastly focusing on this center without distraction, one naturally accumulates true essence (primordial Jing), coalesces primordial Qi, manifests the valley spirit (Dantian's divine presence), and eliminates the Three Corpses (malevolent spirits believed to reside in the body) and Nine Worms (parasites). This constitutes the fundamental method for attaining immortality.

At birth, humans carry the primordial breath of Dao—in the womb, they share their mother's respiration. When the umbilical cord is severed after birth, that spark of original Yang (life's foundational energy) becomes stored in the Dantian (lower abdominal energy center). True respiration connects through the heavenly gate (Baihui point at the crown) to the cosmos: ascending to meet the original spirit in the Niwan Palace (upper Dantian), descending to connect with primordial Qi in the lower Dantian. Zhuangzi observed that ordinary people breathe through their throats, while sages breathe through their heels—this illustrates the cultivation method of "deep roots and firm foundation."

By eliminating distracting thoughts, true respiration naturally stabilizes, and the body merges with formless emptiness, uniting with Dao to achieve enduring existence. Thus we see how precious Dao manifests within the human form.

The subsequent "Alchemical Chamber Sayings" section describes the meeting between Lü Dongbin (Master Lü) and Zhongli Quan (Zhongli), revealing the mysteries of cultivating the Golden Elixir. The supreme medicine of the Golden Elixir (ultimate achievement of Neidan practice) was considered by ancients as rarely encountered even across myriad kalpas, while the profound Jade Case scriptures often remain incomprehensible to scholars. Cultivation requires mastering the patterns of sun and moon movements, the harmonious interaction of water and fire (the union of Kan and Li), and balancing the tiger in water (true Yang in the kidneys) with the dragon in fire (true Yin in the heart). At precise celestial moments (between lunar phases, during waxing and waning), one gathers the primordial breath to refine the marrow within lead (essential Jing) and the essence within mercury (original Shen). The awakened recognize the opportune moment when Gui water (kidney Qi) arises for collection, while the unenlightened can only lament their incomprehension. This practice demands perfect equilibrium between essence (half-pound) and Qi (eight ounces).

半斤緫在西南之位砂一兩藥一兩實居東北之郷収金精木液歸於黄庭錬白雪黄芽結成紫粉悟眞篇所謂華池神水知命論又言地魄天魂採之錬之結矣成矣如夫婦最初一點十月成胎似君臣共會萬機百官列職遇日中冬至則野戰遇時中夏至則守城都來片餉工夫要在一日證驗九三二八筭來只在姹女金翁七六十三窮得無過黄婆丁老更不用看丹經萬卷也只消得口訣一言子之來意甚勤知汝積年求慕非夙生有此半骨豈一旦用是身心自採藥以至結胎從行火而及脫體包括抽添之妙形容沐浴之機無金木間隔之憂有水土同鄉之慶但須温養都没艱辛十二時中只一時三百日内在半日丹田有物行住坐臥以無愁紫府書名生死輪迴而不累了然快樂自此凊閑這工夫向閙裏也堪行論玄妙只頃中都交結聚而不散錬之尤堅朱砂鼎偃月鑪何難尋之有守一壇中央釡惟自巳而求宜識隂陽要知玄牝龍精滿鼎遣金童下十二層樓鳯髓盈壷令玉女報三千世界此時丹熟更須慈母惜嬰兒不日雲飛方見眞人朝上帝修眞十書雜著指玄篇卷

**Interpretation**

The number of half a catty always returns to the southwest position (the Kun position). Cinnabar and medicine, one liang each, actually reside in the northeast position (the Gen position). Gather the golden essence (Jing) and wood liquid and return them to the Yellow Court (Huangting, the central palace). Refine White Snow and Yellow Sprout until they congeal into Purple Powder (alchemical images of medicinal substances). This is what the Wuzhen pian (Awakening to Reality) calls the divine water of the Floriate Pool (Huachi Shenshui), an alchemical metaphor for medicinal substances and fluids; it is also what the Zhiming lun (Treatise on Knowing Destiny) calls the earthly Po and heavenly Hun (the Yin and Yang souls). Gather and refine them, and they congeal into accomplishment. It is like a husband and wife first joining at a single point and, after ten months, forming a fetus; it is also like ruler and ministers meeting, with the myriad affairs handled by the hundred officials each attending to his office. At midday and the winter solstice, one practices “field battle”—the fire phase of active gathering; at the middle of the hour and the summer solstice, one “defends the city”—the fire phase of gentle nurturing and firm guarding. The whole takes no more than a moment, yet it must be verified within a single day. Reckoned by nine-three and two-eight, it lies only with the Chanü (the Maiden, Yin water) and the Jinweng (Golden Old Man, Yang lead); investigated to the end through seven, six, and thirteen, it is no more than the Huangpo (Yellow Dame, central palace earth) and Dinglao (Old Ding, fire). There is no need to read ten thousand scrolls of alchemical Jing (scriptures); a single oral formula is enough.

Your purpose in coming is most earnest, and I know you have sought and admired this for many years. Had you not carried this half-portion of immortal bone from a former life, how could you in a single morning devote body and mind to cultivation? From gathering the medicine all the way to forming the embryo, from circulating the fire all the way to shedding the body (transcending spirit and form), it contains the wondrous function of withdrawing and adding (increasing and decreasing the fire phase) and describes the timing of bathing (halting the fire and gently nurturing). There is no distress of metal and wood being kept apart; there is the auspicious joy of water and earth belonging to the same place (coming together). One need only nurture gently; it is not arduous at all. Of the twelve double-hours, only one is used; within three hundred days, only half a day is used. There is something within the Dantian; walking, standing, sitting, and lying down, one is without worry. One’s name is recorded in the Purple Palace (Zifu, the immortal abode); the cycle of birth and death cannot drag one down. How clearly blissful! From then on, one is pure and at leisure.

This work can be practiced even in a bustling marketplace; as for its mystery, it lies only in joining together in an instant. Gather it and do not let it scatter; refine it until it becomes ever more firm. Where is it hard to find the cinnabar tripod and the crescent-moon furnace? The altar of guarding the One and the central cauldron are sought only within one’s own body. One should recognize Yin-Yang; one must know Xuanpin (the Mysterious Female, the gate of Yin-Yang). When dragon essence (Jing) fills the tripod, send the Golden Boy down the twelve-storied tower (an alchemical metaphor for the passes and openings within the body); when phoenix marrow fills the vessel, command the Jade Maiden to announce it to the three thousand worlds. At this time the elixir is already mature; one must further nurture it gently, as a loving mother cares for an infant. Before long, one flies up on the clouds; only then does the Zhenren (Perfected One) pay court to Shangdi (the Heavenly Emperor). This is the title of the piece in juan four of the Zazhu Zhixuan pian in the Xiuzhen shishu (Ten Books on Cultivating Perfection).

之四

## Vol. 5

修眞十書雜著指玄篇卷之五(六同/卷)　珎五

金丹四百字(并敘)

紫　陽　張　眞　人　撰七返九還金液大丹者七乃火數九乃金數以火錬金返本還源謂之金丹也以身心分上下兩弦以神氣别冬夏二至以形神契坎離二卦以東魂之木西魄之金南神之火北精之水中意之土是爲攅簇五行以舍眼光凝耳韻調鼻息緘舌氣是爲和合四象以眼不視而魂在肝耳不聞而精在腎舌不聲而神在心鼻不香而魄在肺四肢不動而意在脾故名曰五氣朝元以精化爲氣以氣化爲神以神化爲虚故名曰三花聚頂以魂在肝而不從眼漏魄在肺而不從鼻漏神在心而不從口漏精在腎而不從耳漏意在脾不從四肢孔竅漏故曰無漏精神魂魄意相與混融化爲一氣不可見聞亦無名狀故曰虚無錬精者錬元精非淫佚所感之精錬氣者錬元氣非口鼻呼吸之氣錬神者錬元神非心意念慮之神故此神氣精者與天地同其根與萬物同其體得之則生失之則死以陽火錬之則化成陽氣以隂符養之則化成金精故曰見之不可用用之不可見身者心之宅心者身之主心之猖狂如龍身之獰惡如虎身中有一點眞陽之氣心中有一點眞隂之精故曰二物心屬乾身屬坤故曰乾坤鼎器陽氣屬離隂精屬坎故曰烏兔藥物抱一守

**Interpretation**

This is the “Zhenwu” section of juan 5 (bound in the same juan as juan 6) of the Xiuzhen Shishu Zazhu Zhixuan Pian. The title is Jindan Sibaizi (with Preface), and it includes an attached preface. It was written by the Zhenren Ziyang, Zhang Boduan.

The Seven Returns and Nine Reversions (Qifan Jiuhuan), the work of Neidan (internal alchemy) return, and the Golden Liquid Great Elixir (Jinye Dadan), an upper-grade internal elixir: seven is the number of Fire, nine the number of Metal. Refining Metal with Fire and returning to the root and source is called the Golden Elixir.

Body and mind are divided according to the moon’s first and last quarters. Shen (spirit) and Qi (vital energy) are used to distinguish the two solstices, winter and summer. Form and Shen are matched to the Kan and Li trigrams (the water and fire trigrams of the Bagua, Eight Trigrams). The hun-soul (hun) of the east is matched with Wood, the po-soul (po) of the west with Metal, the Shen of the south with Fire, the Jing (essence) of the north with Water, and the yi (intention) of the center with Earth; this is called gathering the Five Phases (Wuxing; cuan cu wuxing). Withdrawing and gathering the light of the eyes, stabilizing the ear’s resonance, harmonizing the breath through the nose, and silencing the qi of the tongue: this is called harmonizing the Four Images (Sixiang; the four images of eyes, ears, nose, and tongue).

When the eyes do not look outward, the hun-soul settles in the liver. When the ears do not listen outward, Jing settles in the kidneys. When the tongue makes no sound, Shen settles in the heart. When the nose does not chase fragrances, the po-soul settles in the lungs. When the four limbs do not move recklessly, yi settles in the spleen. This is therefore called the Five Qi Paying Homage to the Origin (Wuqi Chaoyuan; the qi of the five viscera returning to the original source). Let Jing transform into Qi; let Qi transform into Shen; let Shen transform into emptiness. This is therefore called the Three Flowers Gathering at the Crown (Sanhua Juding; Jing, Qi, and Shen gathered at the upper origin). The hun-soul settles in the liver and does not leak out through the eyes; the po-soul settles in the lungs and does not leak out through the nose; Shen settles in the heart and does not leak out through the mouth; Jing settles in the kidneys and does not leak out through the ears; yi settles in the spleen and does not leak out through the limbs and apertures. This is therefore called No-Leakage (Wulou; Jing, Qi, and Shen not leaking outward). Jing, Shen, hun-soul, po-soul, and yi blend mutually and transform into one body of Qi, which cannot be seen or heard and has no name, form, or appearance; this is therefore called the empty void (Xuwu).

Refining Jing means refining Yuanjing (prenatal original Jing), not the postnatal Jing stirred by sexual desire. Refining Qi means refining Yuanqi (prenatal original Qi), not the breath of mouth and nose. Refining Shen means refining Yuanshen (prenatal original Shen), not the Shen of thoughts and deliberation. Therefore this Shen, Qi, and Jing share the same root as heaven and earth and the same body as the myriad things; obtaining them gives life, losing them gives death. Using yang fire (the yang-fire firing phase of Neidan) to refine them, they transform into yang Qi. Using the yin tally (the yin-tally firing phase of Neidan) to nurture them, they transform into golden Jing. It is therefore said that what can be seen cannot be used, and what can be used cannot be seen.

The body is the dwelling of the mind; the mind is the master of the body. If the mind is wild and reckless, it is like a dragon, hard to control; if the body is fierce and unruly, it is like a tiger, hard to subdue. Within the body there is a bit of true yang Qi; within the mind there is a bit of true yin Jing. These are therefore called the Two Things (Erwu; true yang Qi and true yin Jing). The mind belongs to the Qian trigram and the body to the Kun trigram; they are therefore called the Qian-Kun cauldron-vessel (Qiankun Dingqi; using body and mind as the alchemical cauldron-vessel). Yang Qi belongs to the Li trigram and yin Jing to the Kan trigram; they are therefore called the crow and hare medicine (Wutu Yaowu; using the crow and hare of sun and moon as metaphors for elixir medicine). Embracing the One and guarding it (baoyi shou) means holding fast to the True One, guarding it without loss, so that the unified state of Jing, Qi, and Shen can be maintained.

中錬元養素故曰採先天混元之氣朝屯暮蒙晝午夜子故曰行周天之火候木液旺在卯金精旺在酉故當沐浴震男飲西酒兊女攀北花巽風吹起六陽坤土藏蓄之數故當抽添夫採藥之初也動乾坤之橐籥取離坎之刀圭初時如雲滿千山次則如月涵萬水自然如龜蛇之交合馬牛之步驟殊不知龍爭魂虎爭魄烏戰精兔戰神恍惚之中見眞鉛杳冥之内有眞汞以黄婆媒合守在中宫鉛見火則飛汞見火則走遂以無爲油和之復以無名璞鎭之鉛歸坤宫汞歸乾位眞土混合舍光默默火數盛則燥水銖多則濫火之燥水之濫不可不調勺故有斤兩法度修錬至此泥丸風生絳宫月明丹田火熾榖海波澄夾眷如車輪四肢如山石毛竅如浴之方起骨脉如睡之正酣精神如夫婦歡合魂魄如子毋留戀此乃眞境界也非譬喻也以法度錬之則聚而不散以斤兩錬之則結而愈堅魂藏魄滅精結神凝一意沖和肌膚爽透隨日隨時漸凝漸聚無質生質結成聖胎夫一年十有二月也一月三十日也一日百刻也一月緫計三千刻十月緫計三萬刻行住坐臥綿綿若存胎氣旣凝嬰兒顯相玄珠成象太乙含眞故此三萬刻之中可以奪天上三萬年之數何也一刻之工夫自有一年之節候所以三萬刻可以奪三萬年之數也

**Interpretation**

Refining the primal Qi (vital energy) within and nurturing plain simplicity—this is called gathering the pre-heaven primordial unified Qi. In the morning employ the Zhun hexagram, in the evening the Meng hexagram; by day take the noon hour, by night the midnight hour—this is called practicing the Huohou (fire phases: the timing of advance and retreat in cultivation) of the heavenly circuit. Wood fluid flourishes at the Mao hour, metal essence at the You hour, so one should bathe (stop the fire and warm-nourish). The Zhen male drinks the wine of the West, the Dui maiden climbs the flower of the North, the Xun wind stirs up the six yang, and Kun earth has the number of storing and accumulating, so one should draw and add (regulate advance and retreat).

At the beginning of gathering the medicine, activate the bellows of Qian and Kun (metaphor for the opening and closing of the breath) and take the daogui (knife-spatula measure) of Li and Kan (metaphor for the water-fire medicine). At first it is like clouds filling a thousand mountains; then like the moon reflected in ten thousand waters. Naturally it is like the tortoise and snake coupling, like the horse and ox pacing. Yet one may not realize that the dragon contends for the Hun-soul, the tiger for the Po-soul, the crow battles for Jing (essence), and the rabbit battles for Shen (spirit). In the indistinct haze one sees true lead; within the dark profundity there is true mercury (true lead and true mercury are metaphors for pre-heaven medicine). Take the Yellow Dame (metaphor for true intention) as matchmaker and keep guard in the central palace. Lead, seeing fire, will fly; mercury, seeing fire, will run. Therefore use the oil of Wuwei (non-action; metaphor for natural harmonization) to blend them, and then use nameless uncarved jade (metaphor for the uncarved subduing object) to stabilize them. Lead returns to the Kun palace, mercury returns to the Qian position; True Earth blends them, and light is withdrawn in silence.

When the fire count is excessive it becomes parched; when the water grains are too many it becomes flooded. Fire parching and water flooding must be evenly adjusted, and so there are the standards of jin and liang (precise measures of the fire phases). When cultivation reaches this point, wind arises at Niwan (the crown of the head), the moon is bright in Jianggong (the heart region), fire blazes in the Dantian (energy center), and the waves are clear in the Valley Sea (the Qi sea of the lower Dantian). Jiaji (the spinal pass) is like a wheel; the four limbs are like mountains and rocks; the pores are like just after rising from a bath; the bones and vessels are like deep slumber; Jing (essence) and Shen (spirit) are like husband and wife in joyful union; Hun and Po are like mother and child lingering. This is the true realm, not a metaphor. Refining according to the standards, it gathers without scattering; refining according to jin and liang, it congeals and becomes ever firmer. The Hun is stored and the Po dissolved; Jing congeals and Shen coagulates; a single intention is harmonious; skin and flesh are fresh and transparent. As days and hours pass it gradually congeals and gathers; from no substance, substance is born, forming the sacred embryo (the embryo of Neidan, internal alchemy).

A year has twelve months; a month has thirty days; a day has one hundred ke. A month totals three thousand ke; ten months total thirty thousand ke. In walking, standing, sitting, and lying down, one is continuous and as if present. Once the embryo Qi is congealed, the infant (metaphor for the sacred embryo newly formed) manifests its appearance, the mysterious pearl (metaphor for the Golden Elixir, Jindan) takes shape, and Taiyi (the pre-heaven true unified Qi) contains the real. Thus within thirty thousand ke one can seize the number of thirty thousand years in heaven. Why? The work of one ke inherently contains the seasonal nodes of one year; therefore thirty thousand ke can seize the number of thirty thousand years.

故一年十二月緫有三萬六千之數雖愚暗小人行之立躋聖地奈何百姓日用而不知也元精喪也元氣竭也元神雜也是以三萬刻刻刻要調和如有一刻差違則藥材消耗火候虧缺故曰毫髪差殊不作丹也是宜刻刻用事用之不勞眞氣凝結元神廣大内則一年錬三萬刻之丹外則一身奪三萬年之數大則一日結一萬三千五百息之胎小則十二時行八萬四千里之氣故曰奪天地一點之陽採日月二輪之氣行眞水於鉛鑪運眞火於汞鼎以鉛見汞名曰華池以汞入鉛名曰神水不可執於無爲不可形於有作不可泥於存想不可著於特守不可枯坐灰心不可盲修瞎錬惟恐不識藥材出處又恐不知火候法度要須知夫身中一竅名曰玄牝此竅者非心非腎非口鼻也非脾胃也非榖道也非膀胱也非丹田也非泥丸也能知此之一竅則冬至在此矣藥物在此矣火候亦在此矣沐浴在此矣結胎在此矣脫體亦在此矣夫此一竅亦無邊傍更無内外乃神氣之根虚無之谷在身中而求不可求於他也此之一竅不可以私意揣度是必心傳口授苟或不耳皆妄爲矣今作此金丹四百字包含造化之根基貫穿隂陽之骨髓使錬丹之士尋流而知源舍妄以從眞不至乎忘本逐末也夫金丹於無中生有養就嬰兒豈可泥

**Interpretation**

The twelve months of a year together total thirty-six thousand ke. Even a foolish and unenlightened petty person who puts this into practice can immediately ascend to the holy realm; yet the common people use it every day without knowing it. Original Jing is lost, original Qi is exhausted, and original Shen is thrown into disorder. Therefore, within the thirty thousand ke, every ke must be harmonized; if even one ke goes wrong and violates the pattern, the medicinal ingredients are consumed and the fire timing (huohou) becomes deficient. Thus it is said that a difference as fine as a hair prevents the elixir from forming. One should apply effort in every ke, employing it without feeling toil; true Qi congeals and original Shen becomes vast. Internally, in one year refine the elixir of thirty thousand ke; externally, within one body seize the number of thirty thousand years. In the greater operation, one day forms the embryo of thirteen thousand five hundred breaths; in the lesser, the twelve double-hours circulate Qi for eighty-four thousand li. Therefore one seizes the single point of Yang from Heaven and Earth and gathers the Qi of the two wheels of Sun and Moon; in the lead furnace circulate true water, in the mercury cauldron revolve true fire. When lead meets mercury it is called Huachi (Flower Pond); when mercury enters lead it is called Shenshui (Divine Water). One must not cling to Wuwei (non-action), must not manifest Youzuo (intentional action), must not be bound by Cunxiang (visualization), must not fixate on special guarding, must not sit withered with a mind like dead ashes, and must not practice blindly. The only fear is failing to recognize the source of the medicinal ingredients, and also failing to know the laws of fire timing. One must know that within the body there is one aperture called Xuanpin (Mysterious Female). This aperture is not the heart, not the kidneys, not the mouth or nose, not the spleen or stomach, not the rectum, not the bladder, not the Dantian (energy center), not the Niwan. If one knows this aperture, then the winter solstice is here, the medicine is here, the fire timing is here, bathing is here, forming the embryo is here, and liberation from the body is here as well. This aperture has no sides and no inner or outer; it is the root of Shen and Qi, the deep valley of emptiness. It should be sought within the body and must not be sought outside. This aperture cannot be conjectured by private intention; it must be transmitted from mind to mind and mouth to mouth. If not, all is delusive action. Now, in composing this Four Hundred Words on the Golden Elixir, I have encompassed the foundation of creation and threaded through the marrow of Yin-Yang, so that alchemists may follow the stream and know the source, abandon the false and follow the true Dao, and not forget the root while pursuing the branches. The Golden Elixir is the generation of being from nonbeing and the nurturing of the sacred embryo like an infant; how could it be rigidly fixated upon?

象執文而溺於旁蹊曲徑然金丹之生於無也又不可爲頑空常知此空乃是眞空無中不無乃眞虚無今因馬自然去講此數語汝其味之眞土擒眞鉛眞鉛制眞汞鉛汞歸眞土身心寂不動

眞土者身中之土也鉛汞者身中之水火

也以土剋水則鉛可擒矣以水剋火則汞

可制矣鉛水汞火皆爲眞土之擒制者何

哉蓋縁身心俱合寂然不動而後土水木

三者可以混融爲一此乃是採藥物歸鑪

鼎之内也虚無生白雪寂靜發黄芽玉鑪火温温鼎上飛紫霞

白雪須要虚空而生以其無中生有黄芽

須待火養而生以其火能生土正如天地

之間當子丑之月陽氣未萌是物泯於無

也則白雪自天而下及寅卯之月陽氣漸

盛是靜中有動也則黄芽自地而出矣白

雪黄芽旣見發生則玉鑪之火但要温養

自然鼎上紫霞騰空而飛若火大武則衝

散矣華池蓮花開神水金波靜夜深月正明天地一輪鏡

華者花也花猶火也神者心也心屬火也

金丹之要在乎神水華池即是水火旣濟

之理水中有波瑩然潔靜則火裏生蓮自

然開花矣若則夜半子時一陽初動其月

正明透體金光照見天地之間如一輪之

明鏡朱砂錬陽氣水銀烹金精金精與陽氣朱砂而水銀

陽氣者身中一點眞陽之氣金精者心中

**Interpretation**

Clinging to the surface meaning of words leads one to sink into heterodox byways. Yet the Golden Elixir (Jindan) arises from nonbeing, and one must not fall into the dead silence of inert emptiness. One should always know that this emptiness is true emptiness, and that within nonbeing there is not absolute nothingness—this is true voidness. Now, borrowing Ma Ziran, a Daoist figure, to speak these lines, you should savor them carefully.

True earth (zhen tu)—the earth within the body—captures true lead (zhen qian)—the water within the body. True lead controls true mercury (zhen gong)—the fire within the body. Lead and mercury both return to true earth. Body and mind are utterly still and unmoving. What is called true earth is the earth within the body. What are called lead and mercury are the water and fire within the body. Using earth to control water, lead can be captured. Using water to control fire, mercury can be controlled. Lead, water, mercury, and fire are all captured and controlled by true earth—why is this? It is because body and mind both accord with utter stillness and unmoving. Only then can earth, water, and wood blend and merge into one. This is gathering the medicinal ingredients back into the furnace and cauldron.

From emptiness and nonbeing white snow is born; in stillness the yellow sprout emerges; the fire in the jade furnace is gently warm; above the cauldron purple mist flies up. White snow must arise from empty space, because it is something produced from nonbeing. The yellow sprout must wait for the gentle nourishment of fire before it arises, because fire can generate earth. Just as between heaven and earth, when the Zi and Chou months—the eleventh and twelfth lunar months—arrive, yang qi has not yet sprouted and the myriad things are extinguished into nothing; thus white snow descends from heaven. When the Yin and Mao months—the first and second lunar months—arrive, yang qi gradually flourishes, and within stillness there is movement; thus the yellow sprout emerges from the earth. Once white snow and yellow sprout have arisen, the fire in the jade furnace need only provide gentle nourishment. Naturally, purple mist rises into the sky above the cauldron. If the fire timing is too fierce—martial fire—it will scatter them.

In the Flower Pool (Huachi) the lotus opens; the golden waves of Spirit Water (Shenshui) are still; deep in the night the moon is perfectly bright; heaven and earth are a single round mirror. “Hua” means flower, and the flower is like fire. “Shen” means the heart; the heart belongs to fire. The key to the Golden Elixir lies in Spirit Water and the Flower Pool. This is the principle of Water and Fire Already Completed (shuihuo jiji), that is, water and fire mutually assisting. Where there are waves in the water, yet it is luminous and clean, the lotus is born within fire and naturally blooms. At midnight, the Zi hour, one yang first stirs, and the moon is just bright. Golden light penetrates the body, illuminating all between heaven and earth as if in a round bright mirror.

Cinnabar refines yang qi; mercury smelts the Golden Essence (Jinjing); Golden Essence and yang qi are cinnabar and mercury. What is called yang qi is a single point of true yang qi within the body. What is called Golden Essence refers to the Golden Essence within the heart.

一點眞隂之精以陽火錬之則如朱砂以

隂符養之則如水銀朱砂水銀乃外物也

以外藥而比内丹神仙不得巳而語矣日魂玉兔脂月魄金烏髓掇來歸鼎中化作一泓水

魂主木木能生火故神者魂藏之魄主金

金能生水故精者魄藏之苟能吸風以養

神吸氣以養精精神混合調和於鼎内則

化爲一泓水藥物生玄竅火候發陽鑪龍虎交會時寳鼎産玄珠

藥物者烏肝兔髓紅汞黑鉛也皆生於玄

竅之中若能奮三昧之火發陽鑪之内則

龍虎交會錬金木生黄芽而後産一粒之

玄珠此竅非凡物乾坤共合成名爲神氣穴内有坎離精

玄牝之竅非凡間物未有此身先有此竅

不在上不在下不在中間所謂先天一竅

是也方其生身之初乾父之精坤母之血

相共合成乃神氣之穴而藏水火之精木汞一點紅金鉛三斤黑鉛汞結丹砂耿耿紫金色

紅者汞色紅爲一點黑者鉛也色黑重三

斤金中之鉛木中之汞兩者凝結便成丹

頭更加九轉火候則其色如紫金家園景物麗風雨正春深犂鋤不廢力大地皆黄金

家園者身中之眞土也景物者身中之藥

物也迨夫一陽來復之後有風以吹之有

雨以潤之及至三陽交泰之時雖犂鋤不

廢其力而大地皆黄芽自土中而迸出也

以黄金言之取其黄芽之色如金也

**Interpretation**

This scripture elucidates the core principles and process of Daoist Neidan (internal alchemy) practice. It first mentions how the "true yin essence" (primordial Jing) transforms into cinnabar when tempered by yang fire (the fire of intention), while nourished by yin fu (natural laws) it becomes like quicksilver. Though using external substances like cinnabar and mercury as metaphors, these actually refer to internal cultivation.

The key to practice lies in harmonizing the "sun soul" (yang energy) and "moon pneuma" (yin energy), gathering them into the Dantian (cauldron) where they merge into "a pool of water" (pure energy). Here, the hun-soul belongs to Wood (which generates Fire and stores Shen-spirit), while the po-pneuma belongs to Metal (which generates Water and stores Jing-essence). Through regulated breathing, one nurtures these spiritual energies until they blend within the Dantian.

The so-called "alchemical ingredients" refer to "crow's liver and hare's marrow" (the quintessence of yin-yang) and "red mercury with black lead" (the qi of water-fire), all produced within the mysterious cavity (Dantian). When tempered by samadhi fire (pure yang fire) in the yang furnace (lower Dantian), the dragon and tiger (heart and kidney energies) unite to produce "yellow sprouts" (embryonic golden elixir) and "mysterious pearls" (perfected golden elixir).

Particular emphasis is placed on the "mysterious feminine cavity" (Dantian) as the prenatally existing key orifice, formed from parental essence-blood and containing spiritual qi quintessence. Within it, the "wooden mercury" (liver's yang qi) appears as a red dot, while the "metal lead" (lung's yin qi) weighs three pounds in black form - their union creates "cinnabar" (foundation of golden elixir), which through repeated refinement becomes purple-gold.

Finally, agricultural metaphors illustrate the practice: the body resembles a homestead, while cultivation materials mirror its landscape. At yang qi's initial emergence (the returning of first yang), it requires "wind and rain" (regulated breathing) for nourishment; when three yang energies harmonize (abundant yang qi), it's like fertile fields yielding golden "yellow sprouts" after diligent farming - the gold symbolizing both the elixir's hue and priceless value.

眞鉛生於坎其用在離宫以黑而變紅一鼎雲氣濃眞汞産於離其用却在坎姹女過南園手持玉橄欖

眞鉛者北精之水而上升於離宫眞汞者

南神之火而下降於坎户鉛之與汞合而

爲一近觀則有紅黑色逺看則如玉橄欖

姹女過南園而乗龍嬰兒徃北地而騎虎

龍蟠金鼎虎遶丹田雲從龍風從虎其一

鼎之内藹然雲氣之薫蒸矣震兊非東西坎離不南北斗柄運周天要人會攅簇

震兊坎離非凡間之東西南北乃天地之

卦氣也正如斗柄之指月建一日一周天

身中之起火符頃刻一周天若不能攅簇

五行則何以同斗柄之運轉火候不用時冬至不在子及其沐浴法卯酉時虚比

大凡火候非子時冬至午時夏至也及其

沐浴非卯時春分酉時秋分也人之一身

纔起火周天自有抽添沐浴非可拘泥於

四時也烏肝與兔髓擒來歸一處一粒復一粒從微而至著

烏肝者日魂也兔髓者月魄也擒制爲一

處而以火錬之日生一粒如黍米大自微

至著積錬而成兩三十日重三十八銖四

絫三百日重三百八十四銖方圓一寸而

重一斤矣混沌包虚空虚空括三界及尋其根源一粒如黍大

夫混沌者隂陽交媾也乃是攅簇五行合

和四象則量同虚空而虚空可包矣神遊

**Interpretation**

True lead—a Neidan (internal alchemy) term for the true Yang within the kidneys and the water essence of the north—is born in Kan (north/water, the lower Dantian (energy center)); its function is exerted in the Li palace (south/fire, the heart). As black transforms into red, within a single cauldron the cloud vapor becomes dense. True mercury—a Neidan term for the true Yin within the heart and the fire essence of the south—arises in Li but functions in Kan; the Maiden (a metaphor for true mercury) passes through the southern garden, holding a jade olive in her hand.

True lead is the Jing (essence)-water of the north, yet it rises to the Li palace. True mercury is the Shen (spirit)-fire of the south, yet it descends to the Kan gate. When lead and mercury unite as one, seen close up it has a red-black color; seen from afar it resembles a jade olive.

The Maiden passes through the southern garden and rides the dragon. The Infant (a metaphor for true lead) goes to the northern land and rides the tiger. The dragon coils around the golden cauldron; the tiger encircles the Dantian. Cloud follows the dragon, wind follows the tiger, and within that single cauldron there is a full steaming of warm cloud vapor.

Zhen and Dui are not east and west; Kan and Li are not south and north. The Dipper’s handle turns through the celestial circuit, and one must know how to gather and cluster (accumulate) the Five Phases (wuxing: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water). Zhen, Dui, Kan, and Li are not the ordinary world’s east, south, west, and north, but the hexagram Qi of Heaven and Earth. Just as the monthly establishment indicated by the Dipper’s handle makes one complete circuit of the celestial sphere in a day, the fire-starting tally within the body likewise circles the entire celestial circuit in an instant. If one cannot gather and cluster the Five Phases, how can one accord with the turning of the Dipper’s handle?

Fire timing (huohou) does not depend on fixed hours, and the winter solstice is not at the Zi hour; as for the method of bathing, speaking of the Mao and You hours is only a provisional analogy. Generally, fire timing is not fixed to the Zi hour or winter solstice, nor to the Wu hour or summer solstice. As for bathing, it is also not the Mao hour or spring equinox, nor the You hour or autumn equinox. Once the fire is ignited and the celestial circuit begins in the human body, there will naturally be withdrawal and addition, bathing, and one must not rigidly adhere to the four seasons.

The crow’s liver and the rabbit’s marrow are seized and brought back to one place; one grain after another, from the subtle to the manifest. The crow’s liver is the sun’s hun-soul; the rabbit’s marrow is the moon’s po-soul. Seize and control them into one place and refine them with fire. Each day a single grain is produced, the size of a millet seed. From the subtle to the manifest, through accumulated refinement and nourishment it becomes “two” (Yin-Yang paired and united).

In thirty days it weighs thirty-eight zhu and four lei (the zhu and lei are ancient units of weight); in three hundred days it weighs three hundred eighty-four zhu. It is one inch square or round and weighs one jin (in ancient times one jin was three hundred eighty-four zhu). Hundun (primordial chaos) envelops the void, and the void envelops the Three Realms; traced back to its root, it is no more than a single grain the size of a millet seed.

Hundun is the union of Yin and Yang—that is, gathering and clustering the Five Phases and harmonizing the Four Images. In this way its measure equals the void, and even the void can be contained. Shen (spirit) roams within it.

三界而三界可括矣推究其根元之所在

則起於玄牝之門大如一粒之黍天地交眞液日月含眞精會得坎離基三界歸一身

心液下降腎液上升則天地交眞液矣魂

是烏之精魄是兔之髓則日月含眞精矣

若人曉得坎離交媾之基則天門開地户

閉日照崑崙月生滄海而三界在吾一身

矣龍從東海來虎向西山起兩獸戰一場化作天地髓

震爲青龍來從東海兊爲白虎起向西山

若使龍吟雲起而下降虎嘯風生而上升

二獸相逢交戰於黄屋之前則風雲慶會

自混合爲一塊髓矣金花開汞葉玉蒂長鉛枝坎離不曾閑乾坤今幾時

金花者金精也上有金花能開汞葉玉帝

者玉液也下有玉蒂能長鉛枝人能使坎

離之運用不至閑散則一刻之工夫可奪

天地一年之數能要幾多時候沐浴防危險抽添自謹持都來三萬刻差失恐毫釐

沐浴乃超脫之法七層寳塔三級紅樓自

下而升要防危險抽添乃朝元之法陽起

子初隂生午後若不謹持終須有失夫一

日百刻也一月三千刻刻刻用事用之不

勞則十月三萬刻可奪三萬之數若毫髪

差殊不作丹矣夫婦交會時洞房雲雨作一載生箇兒箇箇會騎鶴

坎宫嬰兒離宫姹女若得黄婆媒合而結

爲夫婦洞房交接雨散雲収便成聖胎及

**Interpretation**

The Three Realms (Sanjie—the realms of desire, form, and formlessness as described in Daoism) can all be encompassed within it. If we trace back to its source, it arises from the gate of the mysterious female (Xuanpin zhi men; in Neidan, internal alchemy, the pass that is the root of life). Its magnitude is like a single grain of millet. Heaven and Earth unite and generate the true fluid; the Sun and Moon contain the true essence. When one understands the foundation of the union of Kan and Li (Kan-Li: Kan water and Li fire; in Neidan, kidney water and heart fire), the Three Realms gather into one body. The heart fluid descends and the kidney fluid ascends—this is the true fluid of Heaven and Earth’s union. The hun-soul is the essence of the Golden Crow (the sun); the po-soul is the marrow of the Jade Rabbit (the moon). This is the Sun and Moon containing the true essence. If a person understands the foundation of Kan-Li union, then the Heavenly Gate opens and the Earthly Door closes (in Neidan, the opening and closing of the upper and lower passes), the sun shines on Kunlun, the moon is born over the vast sea, and the Three Realms are within my own body.

The dragon comes from the Eastern Sea; the tiger rises from the Western Mountain. The two beasts fight once and transform into the essence of Heaven and Earth. The Zhen trigram (east) is the Azure Dragon, coming from the Eastern Sea; the Dui trigram (west) is the White Tiger, rising from the Western Mountain. If the dragon roars and clouds rise as it descends, and the tiger howls and wind arises as it ascends, the two beasts meet and fight before the Yellow House (the central Huangting, Yellow Court); then wind and clouds joyously converge and naturally blend into a single mass of essence.

Golden flowers open the mercury leaves; jade stems grow the lead branches. Kan and Li are never idle. At what hour have Qian and Kun now arrived? The golden flower is golden essence; above, the golden flower can open the mercury leaves. The “Jade Emperor” here refers to jade fluid; it is jade fluid. Below, the jade stem can grow the lead branches. If a person can keep the operation of Kan and Li from becoming idle, then in the work of a single ke he can seize a year’s allotment of Qi from Heaven and Earth. What need is there for much time? Bathing (in Neidan, warming and nurturing, “bathing”) must guard against danger; drawing out and adding (the advance and retreat of the fire phase) must be carefully guarded by oneself. Altogether there are thirty thousand ke; error is feared to lie only within a hair’s breadth.

Bathing is the method of transcendence: the seven-story pagoda and the three-tiered red tower rise from below, and one must guard against danger. Drawing out and adding is the method of chaoyuan (returning to the Dantian, energy center): Yang Qi (vital energy) arises at the beginning of the Zi hour, Yin Qi is born after the Wu hour; if one does not carefully guard it, there will ultimately be mistakes. One day has one hundred ke; one month has three thousand ke. In every ke one must apply effort, using it without laboring. Then in ten months—thirty thousand ke—one can seize the number of thirty thousand. If there is the slightest discrepancy, the elixir cannot be formed.

When husband and wife unite, clouds and rain rise in the bridal chamber. Each year a child is born; every one will ride a crane (a metaphor for becoming immortal). The infant in the Kan palace and the young maiden in the Li palace, if they get the Yellow Dame (Huangpo; central earth, a metaphor for true intention) to match them and become husband and wife, then in the bridal chamber they join; the rain scatters and the clouds withdraw, and it becomes the sacred embryo (Sheng Tai; the embryo formed in Neidan), and thereby is accomplished.

至一載生兒便跨鶴自泥丸宫出矣夫十

箇月懷胎兩箇月沐浴共成一載矣

子註金丹四百字後口占律詩五首按金

木水火土四首言命基末一首言性基性

是命之體命是性之用蓋取其四象五行

全籍土也所謂鼎器藥物符火法度抽添

沐浴結胎脫體皆在其中矣用陳瑕纇句

尚頼琢磨工是予有望於先達者也再序

一人身何物是金丹恍惚眞陽向内觀天上風吹清浪沸地中雷起紫雲蟠玉鑪夜夜烹鉛伏金鼎時時製汞乾息火不差七百二泥丸霹靂覺生寒

二鵲橋有路透玄關立鼎安鑪自不艱四象合和憑籍土三花會聚返還山子初運入崑崙去午後周流滄海間更待玉壷點化後頂門迸出換仙顔

三要識五行顚倒顚龍居山下虎居田巽宫吹起乾天火離位開通坤地泉復姤抽添宜謹愼屯蒙沐浴要孜專若能識得生身處十月胎完出世仙

四得道來來未有年玄關上面打鞦韆金烏偏好山頭宿玉兔常居海底眠一氣薫蒸從北起三軍搬運向東邊吾非漏泄天機事切恐迷人愛亂宣

五曹溪教外别流傳悟者何拘後與先性地混融成一片心珠圓朗照三田釋迦寂滅非眞死達麽西歸亦是仙但願世人明

**Interpretation**

This passage elucidates the core principles of Daoist Neidan (internal alchemy) practice. After ten months of "gestation" (the incubation phase in internal cultivation) and two months of "purification" (the cleansing stage of body and mind), totaling one year, the practitioner can facilitate the emergence of "True Yang" (primordial Qi) from the Mud Ball Palace (upper Dantian) at the crown of the head.

The five regulated verses correspond to the Five Phases (Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, Earth) theory: the first four discuss the "foundation of life" (vital essence), while the final verse addresses the "foundation of nature" (spiritual essence). The author emphasizes that the relationship between nature (Xing) and life (Ming) is like that of substance and function, with all Five Phases relying on the central Earth virtue (the Qi of the spleen). Key alchemical components are encompassed here—the crucible (the body), medicinal ingredients (Jing, Qi, and Shen), firing times (practice rhythm), balancing techniques (adjusting Yin-Yang), and purification methods.

The first poem reveals that the Golden Elixir within the human body is discovered through inner contemplation (introspective vision). "Heavenly winds" metaphorically describe breath regulation, while "earthly thunder" depicts the activation of genuine Qi. The Jade Crucible (lower Dantian) refines Lead and Mercury (Yin and Yang energies), undergoing 720 firing adjustments (symbolizing celestial cycles) before achieving transformation in the Mud Ball Palace.

The second poem outlines the cultivation path: crossing the Magpie Bridge (tongue connecting the Governing and Conception vessels) to enter the Mysterious Pass (practice gateway). The Four Symbols (celestial animals) harmonize through central Earth Qi, as the Three Flowers (Jing, Qi, Shen) converge toward Kunlun (the crown). At Zi hour (Yang Qi's birth), true Qi ascends; at Wu hour (Yin Qi's birth), it circulates throughout the body. When the Jade Vessel (Dantian) is perfected, complete physical and spiritual renewal occurs.

The third poem explains the Five Phases inversion technique: the Dragon (liver Wood) dwells below mountains, the Tiger (lung Metal) resides in fields—signifying Metal-Wood interaction. The Xun position (southeast) stirs Qian's heavenly fire, while the Li position (heart Fire) opens Kun's earthly spring, highlighting Yin-Yang communion. Careful balancing through Fu and Gou hexagrams and focused purification during Zhun and Meng hexagrams are essential. Understanding life's origin enables immortal attainment through ten-month gestation.

The fourth poem describes adepts perpetually cultivating at the Mysterious Pass. The Golden Crow (sun) rests on mountain peaks while the Jade Rabbit (moon) sleeps beneath seas—symbolizing heart-kidney communion. Primordial Qi rises from the North (kidney Water) as the Three Armies (Jing, Qi, Shen) move Eastward (liver Wood). The author clarifies this isn't divine secret leakage but concerns about misinterpretation.

The fifth poem transcends alchemical terminology, introducing the mind cultivation of Caoxi (Chan Buddhism). Enlightenment knows no sequence—when mind-nature becomes perfectly rounded, it illuminates all Three Fields (upper, middle, lower Dantians). Śākyamuni's Nirvana wasn't literal death, nor was Bodhidharma's western return mere departure. The author hopes all may comprehend this truth and transcend suffering.

此理同超彼岸不須船修眞十書雜箸指玄篇卷之五

## Vol. 6

修眞十書雜箸指玄篇卷之六

謝張紫陽書　白玉蟾某稽首百拜上覆祖師天台悟眞先生紫陽眞人張君門下即日伏以入春風雨萬象翠寒恭惟水草谷神天丁左右龍精溢體火候沖寂滿室金花歸根復命甞聞天下無二道聖人無兩心道之大不可得而形容若形容此道則空寂虚無妙湛淵默也心之廣不可得而比喻若比喻此心則清靜靈明沖和温粹也會萬化而歸一道則天下皆自化而萬物皆自如也會百爲而歸一心則聖人自無爲而百爲自無著也推此心而與道合此心即道也體此道而與心會此道即心也道融於心心融於道也心外無别道道外無别物也所以天地本未甞乾坤而萬物自乾坤耳日月本未甞離坎而萬物自離坎耳緬惟我道祖太上老君曉天下以此道明聖人以此心此道之在天下不容以物物不容以化化故凡物物化化之理在天下而不在此道也此道如如也以此心而會此道可也此心之在聖人不容以知知不容以識識之理在聖人而不在此心也此心如如也以此道而會之此心可也道此道以脉此心心此心而髓此道吾亦不知孰爲道孰爲心也但見恍恍惚惚杳杳冥冥似物非物似象非象以耳聽之則眼聞以眼視之則耳見吾恐此而名之曰隂陽之髓混沌之精虚空之根太極之蒂

**Interpretation**

The sixth fascicle of the *Zhixuan pian*, a miscellaneous work in the *Xiuzhen shishu*, is Bai Yuchan’s “Letter of Thanks to Zhang Ziyang” (Zhang Ziyang is Zhang Boduan, styled Ziyang zhenren). I bow my head a hundred times and submit this letter to report to our patriarch, Master Wuzhen of Tiantai, Ziyang zhenren, Mr. Zhang. Now I respectfully report: since spring arrived, wind and rain have made all phenomena verdant, cold, and moist. I respectfully contemplate water and grass and the Valley Spirit (the empty, numinous spirit within the human body); heavenly guardians (protector deities) stand to left and right. Dragon essence (the primal essence of Neidan, internal alchemy) overflows the body; the fire times (the alchemical timing of breath regulation) are harmonious and still. The whole room is filled with golden flowers (luminous visions of Neidan); one returns to the root and restores life (returning to the source and recovering one’s original truth).

I have heard that under heaven there are not two Dao (the Way), and the sage does not have two minds. The vastness of the Dao cannot be described. If one describes this Dao, it is empty, still, void, and nothingness; wondrously clear (subtly pure), profoundly silent (deeply still). The vastness of the mind cannot be compared. If one compares this mind, it is pure, still, numinous, and bright; harmonious and warm-pure (gentle and pure). Gathering the ten thousand transformations back into the one Dao, the world naturally transforms and nurtures, and the myriad things are naturally in suchness. Gathering the hundred activities back into the one mind, the sage is naturally in Wuwei (non-action), and the hundred activities are naturally without attachment. Extending this mind until it unites with the Dao, this mind is the Dao. Realizing this Dao until it meets the mind, this Dao is the mind. Dao merges into mind, mind merges into Dao. Outside the mind there is no other Dao; outside the Dao there is no other thing. Therefore heaven and earth were originally never fixed as Qian and Kun (heaven and earth, yin-yang); the myriad things simply manifest Qian and Kun naturally. The sun and moon were originally never fixed as Li and Kan (Li is fire and sun; Kan is water and moon); the myriad things simply manifest Li and Kan naturally. Thinking afar of our Daoist ancestor Taishang Laojun, he used this Dao to enlighten the world and this mind to illuminate the sage.

This Dao in the world cannot use things to delimit things, nor transformations to delimit transformations. Therefore all the principles by which things are things and transformations are transformations belong to the world, not to this Dao; this Dao is suchness (true suchness, unmoving). It is enough to unite this mind with this Dao. This mind in the sage cannot use knowing to know, nor consciousness to be conscious. Those principles of knowing and consciousness belong to the sage, not to this mind; this mind is unmoving suchness. It is enough to unite this Dao with this mind. Taking Dao as Dao to penetrate this mind, taking mind as mind to nourish this Dao to the marrow, I do not know which is Dao and which is mind. I only see it vague and indistinct, dark and deep; like a thing yet not a thing, like an image yet not an image. Listening with the ear, one hears with the eye; looking with the eye, one sees with the ear. I fear I can only name it the marrow of Yin-Yang, the Jing (essence) of Hundun (primordial chaos), the root of emptiness, and the stem of Taiji (Supreme Ultimate).

也前輩不知强名曰道以今觀之虹喚虹作惚蝀也玉指玉作碔砆也此而非金丹乎今夫知金丹之妙也夫何用泥象之安鑪著相而造鼎謂如黄芽白雪非可見之黄芽白雪神水華池非可用之神水華池喻之爲鉛精汞髓比之爲金精木液何處烹偃月之鑪何處錬朱砂之鼎知此則曰日烏月兔也天馬地斗也乾坤本無離坎之用離坎亦無乾坤之體紅鉛黑汞非龍虎交媾之物乎白金黑鍚非龜蛇交合之象乎二八九三皆隂陽之異義斤銖兩數乃混沌之餘事要之配合而調和抽添而運用故此藥物非金石草木之料此火候非年月日時之數父母未生以前儘有無窮活路身心不動以後復有無極眞機昨以夙縁針芥枯骨更生久侍師傍幸沾法乳謂夫修錬金丹之旨採藥物於不動之中行火候於無爲之内以神氣之所沐浴以形神之所配匹然後知之中自有無限藥材身中自有無限火符如是而悟之謂丹如是而修之謂道鑿石以求玉陶沙以取金錬形以養神明心以合道皆一意也所謂鉛中取水銀砂中取汞之旨也依而行之夫歡婦合以此理而質之儒書則一也以此理而質之佛典則一也所以天下無二道也天之道旣無二理而聖人之心豈两用耶形中以神爲君神乃形之命也神中以性爲極性乃神之

**Interpretation**

Our predecessors did not know its original name and merely provisionally called it Dao (the Way). From today’s perspective, a rainbow is simply called a rainbow, and is also called hudong (another name for a rainbow). Jade is pointed to as jade, yet it may be taken for wufu (a stone resembling jade). Is this not the Golden Elixir (Jindan)? Now that the marvel of the Golden Elixir is known, why be bound by physical images to set up a furnace, or fixated on forms to fashion a cauldron?

What are called “Yellow Sprout” and “White Snow” (Neidan, or internal alchemy, metaphors for medicinal substances) are not the Yellow Sprout and White Snow visible to the naked eye. What are called “Divine Water” and “Flower Pool” (Neidan metaphors for medicinal substances) are not a Divine Water and Flower Pool that can be physically taken and used. It is compared to the essence of lead and the marrow of mercury; it is likened to the essence of metal and the liquid of wood. Where does one cook and refine it in the Crescent-Moon Furnace (a Neidan metaphor for the furnace and cauldron)? Where does one smelt it in the Cinnabar Cauldron (a Neidan metaphor for the cauldron vessel)? Once this principle is understood, it is called the Sun Crow and Moon Hare (images of sun and moon, Yin and Yang); it is also called the Heavenly Horse and Earthly Dipper (images of Heaven and Earth and the firing times).

Qian and Kun (the Heaven and Earth trigrams) originally have no function of Li and Kan (the Fire and Water trigrams), nor do Li and Kan possess the body of Qian and Kun. Are Red Lead and Black Mercury (Yin-Yang medicinal substances) not the product of the copulation of Dragon and Tiger? Are White Gold and Black Tin not the image of the union of Tortoise and Snake? Two, eight, nine, and three are all different names for Yin-Yang. The measures of jin, zhu, and liang are merely leftover matters of Hundun (primordial chaos). The key lies in coordinating and harmonizing, in drawing out and adding, in applying them.

Therefore the medicinal substances are not materials of metal, stone, grass, or wood; the firing times are not numbers of years, months, days, and hours. Before one is born of father and mother, there is an inexhaustible living path; after body and mind become still, there is again the true mechanism of Wuji (the Limitless). In former times, through karmic affinity, we were drawn together like a needle and a mustard seed; dry bones were revived. For long I attended at the teacher’s side and was fortunate to receive the milk of Dharma (the teacher’s transmission of Dharma meaning).

The purport of cultivating the Golden Elixir is to gather the medicinal substances within stillness, to practice the firing times within Wuwei (non-action), to bathe them with Shen (spirit) and Qi (vital energy), and to match form and spirit to each other. Then one knows that within it there are inherently limitless medicinal ingredients, and that within the body there are inherently limitless fire talismans (tokens of the firing times). To awaken thus is called the elixir; to cultivate thus is called the Dao.

Chiseling stone to seek jade, washing sand to obtain gold, refining form and nurturing spirit, illuminating the mind and merging with the Dao—all are a single intention. This is the purport of what is called extracting quicksilver from lead and mercury from cinnabar. Practice according to this, like husband and wife in joyful union. Apply this principle to Confucian texts, and it is also consistent; apply it to Buddhist scriptures, and it is also consistent. Therefore under Heaven there are not two Daos. Since the Way of Heaven has no two principles, how could the sage’s mind operate in two ways?

Within the form, Shen (spirit) is the ruler; Shen is the life of the form. Within Shen, nature (xing) is the ultimate; nature is precisely the ultimate standard of Shen.

命也自形中之神以合神中之性此謂之歸根復命也斯道甚明矣此心不惑矣如七返九還之祕世所不傳夫七返九還者乃返本還源之義也七數九數者皆陽數也人但能心中無心念中無念純清絶點謂之純陽當此之時三尸消滅六賊乞降身外有身猶未竒特虚空粉碎方露全身也流俗淺識末學凡夫豈知元始天尊與天仙地仙日日採藥用而不停藥物愈採而無窮也又豈知山河大地與蠢動含靈時時行火候而無暫停火候愈行而不歇也只此火候與藥物順之則凡逆之則聖古語有云五行顚倒大地七寳五行順行法界火坑此義也先師泥丸先生翠虚眞人出於祖師毗陵和尚薛君之門而毗陵一線實自祖師杏林先生石君所傳也石君承襲紫陽祖師之道以今日單傳而觀則曩者天台一夜西華之夢無非後世蒙福萬靈幸甚耶頃年泥丸師挈至霍童洞天焚香端拜杏林祖毗陵祖極荷呼喚撫身持耳以還愈增守雌抱一之意昨到武夷見馬自然口述諄諭出示寳翰凡四百言字字藥石仰認愛育甘露灑心毛骨豁然比因妙道昭著久居支提茲來渠以嬰兒離毋之故欲到青城山省覲偶縁道過石鷰洞遂發一念附此尺書但述金丹大藥之體如此至於蕉花春風之機梧枝秋雨之祕碧潭之夜月青山之暮雲以

**Interpretation**

This passage of scripture discusses the core meaning of “returning to the root and recovering one’s mandate” (guigen fuming) in Daoist cultivation. “Returning to the root and recovering one’s mandate” means that through cultivation, the primordial spirit (yuanshen) within the physical form merges with one’s innate original nature. The mystery of the Seven Returns and Nine Reversions (qifan jiuhuan)—referring to the specific number of cycles through which Jing, Qi, and Shen circulate during cultivation—is seldom known to people in the world; its essence is simply to return to the source. Seven and nine are both yang numbers, and when a cultivator can make the mind free of distracting thoughts and pure and unstained, that person attains the realm of pure yang.

When cultivation reaches an advanced stage, the Three Corpses (sanshi)—which Daoism regards as three malign spirits within the human body—will disappear, and the Six Thieves (liuzei)—the desires of the six senses: eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, and mind—will also be subdued. At this point, even producing a yang spirit (yangshen; a body beyond the body) is not considered extraordinary; only by reaching the shattering of emptiness (xukong fensui)—a state in which clinging is thoroughly broken—can one reveal the true self and original nature. It is very difficult for ordinary people to understand that the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning (Yuanshi Tianzun), celestial immortals, and earth immortals in fact gather medicine (caiyao, a cultivation term meaning to gather prenatal Qi) every day, and the more they gather, the more there is; mountains and rivers, the great earth, and all living beings are also constantly practicing fire timing (huohou, the breath-regulation work in cultivation) without ever stopping. To follow this pattern is to remain an ordinary person; to cultivate in reverse is to become a sage.

The text quotes an ancient saying: “When the Five Phases (Wuxing) are reversed (reverse cultivation), one obtains the seven treasures of the earth; when the Five Phases proceed in their ordinary order (drifting with the current), one falls as into a pit of fire.” It then recounts the transmission of the Daoist lineage: Master Niwan, the Perfected Cuixu, studied under the monk Xue of Piling, and Piling’s transmission came from Mr. Xinglin, Shi Tai, who in turn inherited the lineage of the Perfected Ziyang, Zhang Boduan. The author recalls that in former years he followed Perfected Niwan to Huotong Dongtian (a famous Daoist mountain), burned incense and paid homage to the patriarchs, and received patriarchal initiation. Later, in the Wuyi Mountains, he met Ma Ziran and received a precious four-hundred-character instruction, every word like good medicine, which suddenly opened his blocked understanding.

Finally, it mentions that because of cultivation causes and conditions, he was to go to Mount Qingcheng, and while passing Shiyan Cave he wrote this letter, mainly expounding the fundamental principle of the great medicine of the Golden Elixir (Jindan dayao)—the core of Neidan (internal alchemy) cultivation. As for the more subtle mysteries of cultivation—such as the wonders contained in natural scenes like plantain blossoms meeting spring, wutong leaves encountering autumn, the night moon over a jade-green pool, and evening clouds over green mountains—these require separate discussion.

此深妙莫敢顯露也以有天機之故祖師一點頭否杏林毗陵泥丸三師想參鶴翼自愧仙凡路隔何日温養事畢飛神御氣叅陪飛舄之下以備呼鸞喚鶴之役臨紙不勝依戀涕落筆端恍失所措敢乞泛紫筏駕丹梯儲積金砂垂手群蠢不備

謝仙師寄書詞夫金丹者採二八兩之藥結三百日之胎心上工夫不在呑津嚥氣先天造化要須聚氣凝神若要行持須憑口訣至簡至易非色非空無中養就嬰兒隂内錬成陽氣使金公生擒活虎令姹女獨駕赤龍乾夫坤婦而媒假黄婆離女坎男而結成赤子一鑪火焰錬虚空化作微塵萬頃冰壷照世界大如黍米神歸四大即龜蛇交合之時氣入四肢是烏兔鬱羅之處玉葫蘆迸出黄金之液金菡蓞開成白玉之花正當風冷月明時誰會山青水緑意聖師口口歷代心心即一言貫穿萬卷仙經但片餉工夫無窮逸樂先明三五一行九陽眞火以錬之後至萬百千到嬰兒寳物則成矣銀山鐵壁一錐直下打開金鎖玉關舉步自然無礙見萬里是無塵之境作千年永不死之人海變桑田我在逍遥遊之摬衣磨劫石同歸無何有之郷玉蟾素志未回初誠宿恪自嗟蒲柳之質幾近桑榆之年老頰猶紅如有神仙之分嫰鬚再黑始歸道徳之源嘆古人六十四歳將謂休得先聖八十一

**Interpretation**

This profound and wondrous principle I dare not reveal, because it touches on heavenly secrets. Could the Patriarch nod in approval? With the three masters Xinglin, Piling, and Niyuan (patriarchs of the Southern School) above me, I wish to stand in attendance beside the immortal carriage, yet I am ashamed that the paths of immortals and mortals are separated; when will the work of warmly nurturing the sacred embryo be complete, so that I may fly in spirit and ride Qi, attend beneath the immortal’s shoes, and be assigned to summon phoenixes and call cranes? Facing the paper I am overcome with longing; tears fall on the brush tip, and I am at a loss. I make bold to ask the immortal master to ride the purple raft and mount the elixir ladder, to accumulate golden sand (the medicinal substances for alchemy), and to reach down and guide the deluded multitude; writing cannot fully express my meaning.

The “Xie Xianshi Jishu Ci” is a text thanking the immortal master for sending a letter.

The so-called Golden Elixir means gathering the medicine of “two-eight liang” (where Yin and Yang are evenly balanced) and forming an embryo over three hundred days. The cultivation of mind and nature does not consist in swallowing saliva and gulping Qi (vital energy); the pre-heaven transformation necessarily requires gathering Qi and concentrating Shen (spirit). If one wishes to put cultivation into practice, one must rely on oral instructions. It is exceedingly simple and easy, and is neither form nor emptiness. In emptiness and nothingness one nurtures the infant (the sacred embryo); within Yin one refines Yang Qi. Cause the Golden Lord (lead, a metaphor for primordial Jing [essence]) to capture the fierce tiger alive, and make the Maiden (mercury, a metaphor for primordial Shen [spirit]) ride the red dragon alone. The Qian husband and Kun wife borrow the Yellow Dame (true intention) as matchmaker; the Li maiden and Kan youth unite to become the newborn child (the sacred embryo). A furnace of flame refines the void and turns it into fine dust; a vast ice-jade vessel mirrors the world as something as large as a millet grain. When Shen returns to the four great elements (the body), that is when the turtle and snake couple (when water and fire have achieved mutual completion); when Qi enters the four limbs, that is where the crow and hare (sun and moon) are in Yuluo (the immortal realm). The jade gourd bursts forth with golden liquid; the golden lotus bud opens into white-jade flowers. Just when the wind is cold and the moon is bright, who can grasp the meaning of green mountains and blue-green waters? The sage masters transmitted it from mouth to mouth; generation after generation their minds have been sealed in mutual accord; a single phrase runs through ten thousand scrolls of immortal Jing (scriptures). With only a moment’s effort, there is boundless ease and joy. First understand the Nine Yang True Fire of the “three-five-one” process (a term for the fire phase) and use it to refine; afterward, through the accumulation of ten thousand, one hundred, and one thousand, the infant treasure (the sacred embryo) is achieved. A silver mountain and iron wall are opened straight through with a single awl; golden locks and jade gates—lift a foot and naturally there is no obstruction. To see ten thousand li as a dustless realm and to become a person who does not die for a thousand years. Though the sea turns into mulberry fields, I remain in the realm of free and easy wandering; though clothing wears away the kalpa stones (passing through long kalpas), together we return to the land of Nothing-Whatsoever (the realm of emptiness and nothingness). Yuchan (the author Bai Yuchan’s self-designation) has not changed his original aspiration; his initial heart is sincere and reverent. I sigh that my constitution is as frail as rushes and willows and already near the mulberry-and-elm years of old age; my old cheeks are still red, as if I have a share in the immortal lot; only when my soft beard turns black again will I return to the source of Dao (the Way) and De (Virtue/Power). I sigh that the ancients at sixty-four thought cultivation could be rested from, while the former sages at eighty-one had their own profound meaning.

章來受用拊膺落涕緘口捫心從來作用功勞捕風捉影此日虚無訣法點鐵成金恭惟聖師泥丸翁翠虚眞人拓世英雄補天手叚心傳雲雨深深旨手握雷霆赫赫權顧王蟾三代感師恩千年待眞馭說刀圭於癸酉秋月之夕盡坎離於乙亥春雨之天終身懷大寳於杳冥永劫守玄珠於清淨先覺詔後覺巳銘感於心傳彼時同此時愈不忘於道念忽承鶴使擲示鸞牋戒回會於武夷有身被沮溺將捐軀於龍虎無翅可飛行雨臥風飡奔歸侍下且此山瞻斗仰甚切愚衷擢犀角磨象牙當效行持之力攀龍鱗附鳯翼願叅沖舉之雲先貢非詞少伸素志匪伊聽譴感激何言大宋丙子閏七月二十四日鶴奴白玉蟾焚香稽首再拜修眞十書雜著指玄篇卷

**Interpretation**

The teachings in your letter have benefited me; I beat my breast and wept, closed my mouth, and pressed my hand to my heart. All my former arduous efforts seem like chasing the wind and catching shadows; today, having obtained the oral method of emptiness and nonbeing, it is like turning iron into gold. The Holy Master Niwan Weng, the Perfected One Cuixu (that is, Chen Nan, sobriquet Cuixu, teacher of Bai Yuchan), is a hero who opened up the world and has the means to mend the heavens. He transmitted mind-to-mind the profound purport of cloud and rain (a metaphor for the Yin-Yang alchemical method), and in his hand he holds the illustrious authority of thunder and lightning (the Thunder Rites, leifa).

Reflecting that I, Wang Chan (the author’s self-reference), have for three generations been grateful for the master’s grace and for a thousand years awaited the true master’s arrival: on an autumn moonlit night in the guiyou year you expounded the daogui (the alchemical medicine and fire timing, a byword for the alchemical method), and in the spring rain of the yihai year you plumbed to the full the wonders of Kan and Li (water and fire, Yin and Yang). For my whole life, within the dark and obscure, I cherish the Great Treasure (a metaphor for the Dao or the Golden Elixir); through eternal kalpas, in purity and stillness, I guard the Mysterious Pearl (a metaphor for the Dao or the Golden Elixir). Those who awaken first teach those who awaken later; I have engraved the master’s transmission in my heart. That time and this time are the same, and all the more I do not forget the resolve for the Dao.

Suddenly I received from the crane messenger a phoenix-paper letter (a letter), commanding me to return to Mount Wuyi (a mountain) to meet. I am beset and sunk by obstacles, and am about to commit my body to Dragon and Tiger (which may refer to Mount Longhu or metaphorically to the alchemical method); with no wings to fly, I can only walk through the rain, lie down in the wind, eat in the wind, and hurry back to serve before the master. Moreover, from this mountain I gaze at the North Dipper and look up in admiration at the master’s countenance; my foolish sincerity is utterly earnest.

I wish to emulate the work of practice and conduct as if extracting a rhinoceros horn and polishing an elephant tusk; climbing the dragon’s scales and attaching myself to the phoenix’s wings, I wish to join the cloud journey of soaring ascension (feather-flight). I first offer these unadorned words to express a little of my ordinary aspiration; it is not to await reproof—how could my gratitude ever be fully expressed? On the twenty-fourth day of the intercalary seventh month of the bingzi year of the Great Song, Crane Slave Bai Yuchan burns incense, kowtows, and bows twice.

From the Ten Books on Cultivating Perfection, Miscellaneous Writings: “Pointing to the Mystery,” juan 6.

之六

## Vol. 7

修眞十書雜著指玄篇卷之七(八同/卷)　珎六

垂世八寳

西　山　許　眞　君　述

忠則不欺孝則不悖

修身如此可以成德

廉而罔貪謹乃無失

寛則得衆裕然有餘

接人以此怨咎滌除

容而翕受忍則安舒

醉思仙歌玉皇有勑分仙職龍吐露兮鳯借力須臾立下看華夷仙花未遇人未識吾上大羅觀世界世界如同手掌大當時不是上昇忙一齊携向瀛洲邁若將此藥作丹田烏兔交加一二年神水纔乾枝萬丈早知身巳屬神仙醉思仙醉思仙無事閑來謁洞天鸞鳯别來經歳月多時不跨赤龍軿雲思島鶴思天萬物通生本自然華池會飲顔如玉飛躍金精臉似蓮神思主氣思元無爲造化不可言玄珠閣上収白玉水精宫裏採紅蓮鉛思汞汞思鉛奪得乾坤造化權性命都來兩箇字隱在仙經萬萬篇天思地地思天天地包含萬象全雞抱卵時須日定無中識有幾人觀水思海海思源衝開牛斗要循環？璣玉衡皆有緒誰人搬運入泥丸心思妙意思玄臍間元氣結成丹谷神不死因胎息長生門户要綿綿朝思道暮思仙暗行隂隲萬神安内交眞氣存呼吸自然造化返童顔常思善莫思寃善惡分明在眼前積善之家昇天去積惡漂流苦海邊靜思哲動思賢若無功行豈輕傳純陽篇裏

**Interpretation**

The Xiuzhen Shishu Zazhu Zhixuan Pian (one text in a Daoist collectanea), juan 7, in the same juan as juan 8, Zhen 6. Eight precious maxims left to the human world, expounded by True Lord Xu of Xishan (Xu Xun, patriarch of Jingming Dao). With loyalty, one does not deceive; with filial piety, one does not defy. Cultivating oneself in this way, one can bring De (Virtue/Power) to completion. Be incorruptible and not greedy; only with caution is there no fault. Being generous and magnanimous, one gains the support of the multitude and is ample with surplus. Treating others by these means, resentment and blame are all washed away. With tolerance and harmonious acceptance, and with patience, one is peaceful and at ease.

The “Song of Drunken Longing for Immortality” (a song of intoxication with longing for the immortal Dao, the Way). The Jade Emperor (Heavenly Sovereign) issues edicts assigning immortal offices. Dragons spit sweet dew; phoenixes lend their strength. In a moment it is accomplished. Looking down on the Huaxia heartland and the four border peoples, the immortal flower has not met a kindred connoisseur, and worldly people do not recognize it either. I ascend to Daluo Heaven (the highest heaven) to gaze upon the world; the world is as small as the palm of a hand. Had I not at that time been busy ascending to heaven, I would have taken you along to Yingzhou (an immortal island in the sea). If this medicine is used for Dantian (energy center) cultivation, when the crow and hare (sun and moon, Yin-Yang) conjoin, within one or two years the divine water will just dry, and the branches and trunk will already rise ten thousand zhang high. Had I known earlier that this body already belongs to the immortals, I would be drunk with longing for the immortal Dao. Drunk with longing for the immortal Dao.

When free of affairs, I leisurely visit the Dongtian (grotto-heavens, immortal abodes). Since parting from the luan and phoenix, many years have passed. For a long time I have not ridden the red dragon carriage (a curtained vehicle). Clouds long for the immortal islands; cranes long for the high heavens. The myriad things arise through mutual communication, which is originally natural. At the Hua Pond (saliva in the mouth; a Neidan, internal alchemy, term), gathering and drinking the liquid, the face becomes like jade. Leaping through the Golden Jing (essence of metal; a Neidan term), the face resembles a lotus. Shen (spirit) longs for the ruler; Qi (vital energy) longs for the original source. The creation of Wuwei (non-action) cannot be described. At the Xuanzhu Pavilion (a Neidan image), gather white jade; in the Shui Jing Palace (Water Essence Palace, a Neidan image), pick red lotuses. Lead (in Neidan, a metaphor for Yin and the medicinal substance) longs for mercury (a metaphor for Yang and the medicinal substance); mercury longs for lead. Seizing the power of Heaven and Earth’s creation, Xing and Ming (nature and life) in the final analysis are just two words, hidden within tens of thousands of immortal Jing (scriptures/classics).

Heaven longs for Earth; Earth longs for Heaven. Heaven and Earth contain the myriad phenomena completely. When a hen incubates eggs, it must wait until the days are fulfilled before it is settled. Who can recognize being within non-being—how many can actually see it? Water longs for the sea; the sea longs for its source. Rushing open the Ox and Dipper (Niu and Dou lunar mansions), it must circulate. Xuanji and Yuheng (the Northern Dipper; also astronomical instruments) all have order and sequence. Who can transport Jing (essence) and Qi into the Niwan (Niwan Palace, the upper Dantian in the head)? The heart longs for the wondrous; intent longs for the profound. The original Qi at the navel congeals into elixir. The Valley Shen (the Shen of the Dantian, the Shen of emptiness) does not die because of Taixi (embryonic breathing, breathing like a fetus). The gate of long life must be continuous and unbroken.

In the morning long for the Dao; in the evening long for the immortals. Secretly practice Yinzhi (hidden virtue), and the ten thousand Shen are at peace. Within, unite true Qi and preserve and guard the breath. Natural creation makes one return to a child’s complexion. Always long for goodness; do not dwell on grievances. Good and evil are clearly distinguished right before one’s eyes. Families that accumulate goodness ascend to heaven; those who accumulate evil drift by the shore of the sea of suffering. In stillness long for the wise; in movement long for the worthy. If there is no practice of merit and virtue, how could it be lightly transmitted? What is recorded in the Chunyang Pian (the chapter of Lü Chunyang) is precisely this principle.

分明說一法傳人索教難感上帝謝神仙祕傳玄妙離凡縁三清殿裏添香火日有清風掃古壇檜因嫰細盤龍易梧桐枯朽斷琴難藤蘿引蔓成華蓋玉笋殊無半點斑嶺上煙雲風浩浩洞前流水響潺潺一聲長笑清雲漢步虚詞徹王京山龍吟鳯舞紅霞遶虎嘯猿啼紫霧盤青龍到關徐甲放白虎西昇尹喜看師吟道徳教人悟丹經須是口相傳貪名貪利何年盡争似飲酒抱琴眠清霄良夜月當年又聞師訓五三言虚度一日無一日過了一年少一年浮漚浪打能長久石中迸火豈爲堅龍會翫珠方脫骨蜣因飲露化爲蟬鶴因朱頂三千歳龜飲瑶池不計年露漿醖就逢人飲仙藥長供野客飱萬物歸根皆復命爲人學道不修丹芭蕉雨打驚仙夢覺來海水變桑田人生幻化如春夢性命隨風瞬息間犬猶舐鼎隨龍變雞飡大藥化成鸞擇福地揀名山無爲清淨轉心閑符篆玉簡搜神鬼剱射牛光慘慘寒鑪懸古鏡看新火玄霜滿鼎化紅蓮大藥錬時須九轉靈砂養就待三年纎銖分兩神仙訣抽添沐浴入寒泉一粒飡了天地夀死生生死不相干丹成自有沖天志惟留祕訣在人間頓悟醉思仙島去洞門微掩小童看鸞鶴來時昇紫霧玉皇有勑登仙路九玄七祖盡升天更兼骨肉全家舉身披六銖頂簮冠足履昇雲待移步

**Interpretation**

This poetic passage depicts the profound challenges and mysteries of Daoist cultivation in pursuit of immortality. Attaining genuine methods requires karmic affinity to receive true transmission, much like offering incense at the Sanqing (Three Pure Ones) Hall demands devout perseverance. Natural imagery illustrates the cultivation process: tender branches easily coil into dragon shapes, yet withered phoenix trees rarely yield fine qin wood; vines may form splendid canopies, while jade bamboo shoots struggle to remain flawless.

The cultivator must emulate the carefree clouds and flowing waters of mountain valleys, comprehending the Dao through scripture recitation (the "buxuci" being a Daoist liturgical genre) and alchemical practice. The verses emphasize how fame and wealth prove illusory—far better to enjoy wine and zither music amidst clear breezes and bright moonlight. Cultivation demands urgency, for each wasted day means one less opportunity, just as ocean waves cannot endure nor sparks from struck stones last beyond an instant.

The text enumerates creatures transformed through cultivation: dragons shed mortal forms by playing with pearls, dung beetles drinking dew become singing cicadas, cranes gain three thousand years through crimson crowns, while divine turtles achieve eternal life in the Jade Pond (a celestial pool). Alchemists refine elixirs (terms like "dew liquor" and "great medicine" denote alchemical preparations), ultimately returning to life's primordial source. Human existence resembles dreams and illusions, yet by ingesting elixirs (alluding to legends where dogs lick tripods and chickens consume medicines), one may ascend like phoenixes.

Practice requires selecting sacred sites of purity, employing talismanic arts (fulu) and sword rituals. The alchemical process involves nine cyclical refinements, with three years needed to nurture the elixir while maintaining precise fire regulation (measuring by the slightest weight). Upon ingestion, one transcends life and death—when the elixir completes, celestial aspirations naturally arise. The conclusion portrays the ascension scene: after awakening to immortality in drunken epiphany, phoenix-drawn carriages arrive through violet mists as the Jade Emperor issues the summons. Nine generations of ancestors and entire households rise together, clad in celestial robes (the "six-zhu garments" of immortals), crowned with jewels, and treading auspicious clouds.

千年絲竹徹雲霄霓曲遍仙鸞鶴舞上朝三清謝聖毋久住人間度寒暑較量功行可眞如姓名巳録仙籍簿

丹訣歌　鍾離與呂公知君幸有英靈骨所以教君心恍惚含元殿上水晶宫分明指與神仙窟大丈夫遇眞訣須要執持心猛烈五行匹配自刀圭執取龜蛇顚倒訣三尸神須打疊進退天機憑六甲知之三要萬神歸來駕火龍離九闕九九道至成眞日三清四御朝天節氣翱翔兮神烜赫蓬萊便是吾家宅群仙會飲樂喧喧雙童引入朝元客道心不退故傳君立誓盟言親灑血逢人兮莫亂說遇友兮不須訣莫怪頻發此言辭輕慢必有隂功折執手相别意如何今日辭君遂作歌說盡千般玄妙理未必君心信也麽子後分明說與汝保惜吾言上大羅

丹髓歌(三十/四章)　薛道光錬丹不用尋冬至身中自有一陽生龍飛赤水波濤湧虎嘯丹山風露清

二初時有如雲出洞次則有如月在潭又似金蠶如玉笋好將火候錬三三

三嬌如西子離金閤美似嫦娥下玉樓日日與君花下醉更嫌何處不風流

四井底泥蛇舞柘枝䆫間明月照梅梨夜來混沌顚落地萬象森羅緫不知

五昔日遇師親口訣只要凝神入氣穴以精化氣氣養神錬作黄芽并白雪

六一年沐浴更防危十月調和須謹節服了丹

**Interpretation**

A thousand years of immortal music resounds to the clouds. The Rainbow-Skirt immortal melody fills the immortal realm. Luan birds and cranes fly and dance, ascending to pay court to the Three Pure Ones (Sanqing). We give thanks that the Holy Mother (Shengmu, a Daoist goddess akin to a holy mother figure) has long dwelled in the human world, passing through years of cold and heat. We weigh whether meritorious practice can accord with Suchness (the state of true reality that is not illusory); one’s name has already been entered in the register of immortals. The “Song of the Elixir Formula” was transmitted by Zhongli Quan and Lord Lü (Lü Dongbin). Knowing that you are fortunate enough to possess the heroic spirit-bone (the immortal root for cultivating the Dao), I therefore teach you to let the mind enter huanghu (a focused realization that is as if present and as if absent). In Hanyuan Hall and the Crystal Palace, it clearly points out the grotto-heaven of the immortals. When a great man encounters the true formula, he must hold fast to his will and advance with courageous diligence. When the Five Phases (Wuxing: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water) are coordinated, one naturally conforms to the daogui (the measure of medicine and firing times in Neidan [internal alchemy]). Grasp the formula of the inverted turtle and snake (the method of inverting and conjoining Yin-Yang and water-fire). The Three Corpses (Sanshi: the three malevolent spirits within the body) must be purged. The heavenly mechanism of advance and retreat depends on the Six Jia (Liujia: the Six Jia spirits and the stem-branch firing times). Understand the Three Essentials (Sanyao: key cultivation elements such as Jing [essence], Qi [vital energy], and Shen [spirit]), and the ten thousand spirits return to their positions. Ride the fire dragon to leave the Nine Gates (the nine heavens and nine palaces). When the nine-times-nine cycles complete the Dao and the day of becoming true arrives, there will be the festival when the Three Pure Ones and Four Sovereigns (the highest gods and the Four Sovereigns) pay court to Heaven. Qi soars aloft, and Shen is radiant. Penglai (the immortal mountain in the sea) is my home. The assembled immortals drink together, joyous and bustling. Two youths lead in the guest who pays homage to the Origin (the immortal guest who worships the Original Beginning). Because your Dao-mind does not retreat, I transmit it to you. Make vows and pledges, personally sprinkling blood (smearing blood to seal the oath). Do not speak carelessly to everyone you meet; nor should you lightly divulge the oral formula to friends. Do not blame me for repeatedly uttering these words; disrespect will surely diminish hidden merit. Holding hands as we part, what feelings arise? Today I take leave of you and so compose this song. I have fully spoken of a thousand kinds of profound and wondrous principles; I wonder whether your heart can believe them. Later I will explain them clearly to you. Cherish my words, and you may ascend to Daluo (the highest immortal heaven).

The “Song of the Elixir Marrow” consists of thirty-four chapters and was composed by Xue Daoguang. In refining the elixir, one need not seek the winter solstice (the season when Yang Qi first arises); within the body, one Yang naturally arises. The dragon flies in the Red Water, waves surging; the tiger roars in the Elixir Mountain, wind and dew clear. At first it is like clouds emerging from a cave; next, like the moon reflected in a pool; then again like golden silkworms and jade shoots. It is good to use the firing times to refine the three-three (the number of three-three and the regulation of firing times). Charming as Xizi (Xi Shi) leaving the golden pavilion; beautiful as Chang’e descending from the jade tower. Day after day I get drunk with you beneath the flowers; what place could still be thought lacking in romantic charm? A mud snake at the bottom of the well dances the Zhezhi dance; the bright moon at the window shines on plum and pear. At night, Hundun (undifferentiated chaos) falls upside down to the ground; the myriad phenomena in dense array are all unknown. In former days I met my master, who personally transmitted the oral formula: simply concentrate the Shen and enter the Qi-cave (the Dantian, energy center). Use Jing to transform into Qi, and use Qi to nourish Shen. Refine into Yellow Sprout and White Snow (Neidan medicine and visions). For a year of bathing (warm nurturing), one must especially guard against danger; for ten months of harmonization (like pregnancy and regulating the fire), one must be cautious and restrained. When the elixir is taken, one consumes the refined Golden Elixir (Jindan).

砂朝玉帝乗雲跨鶴登天闕

七烏無影兔無形烏兔只是日月精烏兔交時天地永

八牛無角馬無蹄馬牛只是乾坤髓乾坤運用坎和離

九龜無象蛇無跡龜蛇只是隂陽形二氣交會混爲一

十龍無翼虎無牙龍虎本來同一體東隣即便是西家

十一鉛非鉛汞非汞鉛汞元在身中求要使身心寂不動

十二無白雪無黄芽白雪乃爲神室水黄芽便是氣樞花

十三夫眞夫婦眞婦坎男離女交感時虚空無塵天地露

十四眞交梨眞火棗交梨喫後四肢輕火棗吞時萬劫飽

十五夏至後冬至前隂陽不在此中取自有神氣分兩弦

十六水眞水火眞火依前應候運周天調和錬盡長生寳

十七日之魂月之魄身中自有眞乾坤煅錬丹一通透赤

十八天之尊地之卑便把天魂擒六賊又將地魄制三尸

十九藥非物火非候分明只是一點陽錬作萬劫無窮盡

二十金非兊木非震從來眞土應五行金木自然解交併

二十一黒中黒白中白但能守黑白自现黑白本來無二色

二十二金眞金銀眞銀金銀錬作紫金丹自然無一斧鑿痕

二十三偃月鱸朱砂鼎須知抱一守沖和不必透關提玉井

二十四

**Interpretation**

Cinnabar pays homage to the Jade Emperor: cinnabar (a metaphor for the alchemist’s medicinal substances) pays homage to the Jade Emperor (the Daoist heavenly emperor), riding clouds and mounting a crane to ascend to the heavenly palace (the Heavenly Gate).

Seven: The sun crow has no shadow, the moon hare no form; the crow and hare (the golden crow and jade hare, representing the sun and moon) are only the Jing (essence) of the sun and moon; when sun and moon conjoin, Heaven and Earth endure forever.

Eight: The ox has no horns, the horse no hooves; ox and horse are only the essence of Qian and Kun (Heaven and Earth, Yin-Yang); the operation of Qian and Kun lies precisely in Kan and Li (water and fire, Yin-Yang).

Nine: The turtle has no fixed form, the snake no trace; turtle and snake are only the forms of Yin-Yang; when the two Qi (vital energies) meet, they blend into one.

Ten: The dragon has no wings, the tiger no teeth; Dragon and Tiger (Yin-Yang in alchemical method) are originally one body; the eastern neighbor is none other than the western household.

Eleven: Lead is not ordinary lead, mercury is not ordinary mercury; lead and mercury (symbolizing the prenatal medicinal substances within the body) must originally be sought within the body; one must make body and mind still and unmoving.

Twelve: There is no fixed White Snow, nor any fixed Yellow Sprout; White Snow is the water in the Spirit Chamber (the chamber of the mind and Shen [spirit]); Yellow Sprout is the flower produced by the operation of the Qi pivot (the pivot of the Qi mechanism).

Thirteen: The husband is the true husband, the wife is the true wife; when the Kan male and Li female (symbolized by water-fire and Yin-Yang) interact; the void is without dust, and the true mechanism of Heaven and Earth is revealed.

Fourteen: True jiao pears and true fire jujubes (immortal fruits, symbolizing the fluids of Neidan [internal alchemy]); after eating the jiao pears the four limbs become light and vigorous; after swallowing the fire jujubes one is satisfied for ten thousand kalpas.

Fifteen: After the summer solstice and before the winter solstice; Yin-Yang cannot be taken only from this seasonal period; naturally there is Shen and Qi dividing into the two strings (the upper and lower strings, symbolizing fire timing/phases).

Sixteen: Water is true water, fire is true fire; following the aforementioned fire timing, circulate the celestial circuit (the circulation of the Qi mechanism); harmonize and refine thoroughly, accomplishing the treasure of long life.

Seventeen: The sun is Hun (ethereal soul), the moon is Po (corporeal soul); within the body there is naturally the true Qian and Kun; calcine and refine the elixir into oneness, thoroughly penetrating with a crimson color.

Eighteen: Heaven is honored and noble, Earth is low and humble; then use the heavenly Hun to capture the six thieves (the six roots: eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, and mind); further use the earthly Po to subdue the Three Corpses (the three corpse spirits within the body).

Nineteen: Medicine is not a material thing with form, fire is not a fixed hour; clearly it is only a single point of Yang Qi; once refined, it is inexhaustible through ten thousand kalpas.

Twenty: Metal does not refer only to the Dui trigram, Wood does not refer only to the Zhen trigram; from of old true Earth has corresponded with the Five Phases; Metal and Wood naturally can intersect and merge.

Twenty-one: Within black there is black, within white there is white; if only one can guard the black, white will naturally appear; black and white originally have no two colors.

Twenty-two: Gold is true gold, silver is true silver; when gold and silver are refined into the purple Golden Elixir (Jindan); naturally there is not a trace of axe or chisel.

Twenty-three: The Crescent Moon Furnace (a metaphor for the furnace and cauldron in alchemical method), the Cinnabar Cauldron; one must know to embrace the One and guard harmonious balance; there is no need to forcibly penetrate the passes and draw up the Jade Well (a metaphor for the water-fluid passes and apertures).

Twenty-four: This is the entry marker for the twenty-fourth item.

中央釜守一壇金鼎常令湯用暖王鑪不要火教寒

二十五玄眞玄牝眞牝玄牝都來共一竅不在口鼻并心腎

二十六眞神水眞華池元氣虚無難捉摸元氣恢漠本無爲

二十七錬朱砂錬水銀眞死朱砂匱水銀水銀錬作明䆫塵

二十八眞黄礜眞紫粉分明内鼎内鑪中變化瓦石成九轉

二十九眞關鎖眞河車鐵鎖金關牢固守河車運用結丹砂

三十眞金精眞王液金精滿鼎氣歸根玉液盈壷神入室

三十一眞金翁眞姹女金翁姹女結親姻洞房深處眞雲雨

三十二眞丁翁眞黄婆丁翁運火錬金花黄婆瓶裏養金鵝

三十三眞嬰兒眞赤子九轉錬成十月胎純陽無隂命不死

三十四眞隂陽眞隂陽隂陽都只兩箇字譬喻丹書幾萬章後序夫錬金丹之士須知冬至不在子時沐浴亦非卯酉鉛汞二物皆非唾㖒精津氣血液也七返者返本儿還者還源金精木液遇土則交龍虎馬牛揔皆無相先師悟眞篇所謂金丹之要在乎神水華池者即鉛汞也人能知鉛之出處則知汞之所産旣知鉛與汞則知神水華池旣知神水華池則可以錬金丹金丹之功成於片時不可執九載三年之日程不可泥年月日時而運用鍾離所謂四大一

**Interpretation**

The Zazhu Zhixuan Pian of the Xiuzhen Shishu is an anthology of the miscellaneous writings that point to the mysterious in the Ten Books on Cultivating Perfection. In the central cauldron, guard one altar (the altar of guarding the One); the golden tripod should constantly keep the hot water warm; the royal furnace (the jade furnace) should not let the fire timing turn cold. The twenty-fifth says: Mysterious Truth, the mysterious female, and the true female—when they return to the root, all share a single gate and opening; they are not in the mouth and nose or in the heart and kidneys. The twenty-sixth says: true divine water and the true Hua Pond (Huachi; a Neidan elixir substance, not saliva); primal Qi is empty and void, hard to grasp; primal Qi is vast, empty, and still, and is originally Wuwei in itself. The twenty-seventh says: refining cinnabar and refining mercury (terms from Waidan; in Neidan they are borrowed metaphors for Shen and Qi); truly make cinnabar transform and die, gather mercury into the cabinet, and refine mercury until it is as fine as dust in a bright window. The twenty-eighth says: true yellow alum-type mineral (a yellow alum-type drug) and true purple powder (a purple medicinal powder) clearly transform within the inner tripod and inner furnace; even tiles and stones can become ninefold cycled (refined through nine cycles). The twenty-ninth says: true gate locks and the true River Chariot (Heche; the circulation of Jing and Qi); guard them firmly with iron locks and golden passes, and when the River Chariot turns, it can condense cinnabar (the Golden Elixir).

The thirtieth says: true golden Jing and true jade liquid; when golden Jing fills the tripod, Qi returns to the root; when jade liquid brims the vessel, Shen enters the inner chamber. The thirty-first says: the true Golden Old Man and true Channü (the beautiful maiden; metaphors for Yin-Yang elixir substances); the Golden Old Man and Channü form a marriage bond, and in the depths of the bridal chamber they perform true cloud and rain (a metaphor for the union of Yin and Yang into one). The thirty-second says: the true Ding Old Man (a metaphor for fire timing) and the true Yellow Granny (a metaphor for the true intention of the central Earth); Ding Old Man operates the fire to refine the golden flower, and Yellow Granny nurtures the golden goose in the bottle (a metaphor for gently warming and nourishing the elixir). The thirty-third says: the true infant and the true newborn (metaphors for the elixir embryo and primordial Shen); through nine cycles of refining, the ten-month embryo is completed; pure Yang without Yin, and life attains longevity. The thirty-fourth says: true Yin-Yang, true Yin-Yang; Yin-Yang are merely two words, yet the tens of thousands of chapters of alchemical books are all metaphors.

Postface: Those who refine the Golden Elixir must know that the winter solstice (the image of the first arising of one Yang) is not at the zi hour, and bathing (the practice of warming and nourishing, not washing the body) is also not at the mao and you hours. Lead and mercury (Neidan elixir substances, not metals) are both not tangible things such as saliva, nasal mucus, Jing, body fluids, Qi, blood, or liquids. Seven Returns means returning to the root; returning means returning to the source. When metal Jing and wood liquid (Five Phases metaphors for elixir substances) meet Earth (a metaphor for true intention), they unite; metaphors such as dragon and tiger, horse and ox, have no fixed form or appearance at all. The former teacher’s Wuzhen Pian (Zhang Boduan’s classic of Neidan) says that the essential point of the Golden Elixir lies in divine water and the Hua Pond; divine water and the Hua Pond are lead and mercury. If one can know the origin of lead, one will know the place where mercury is produced; once lead and mercury are known, divine water and the Hua Pond are known; once divine water and the Hua Pond are known, one can refine the Golden Elixir. The accomplishment of the Golden Elixir is completed in a moment; one must not cling to a schedule of nine years or three years, nor rigidly adhere to years, months, days, and hours in its application. What Zhongli Quan (a patriarch of Neidan) called “the Four Great Ones as One” also refers to the root of cultivation.

身皆屬隂也如是則不可就身中而求特可尋身中一點陽精可也然此陽精在乎一竅常人不可得而猜度也只此一竅則是玄牝之門正所謂神之華池也知此則可以採取然後交結其次烹錬至於沐浴以及分胎更須温養成丹成丹可不辨川源知斤兩識時日者耶泰自從得師訣以來知此身不可死知此丹必可成今旣大事入手以此詔諸未來學仙者云杏林石泰得之序修眞十書雜著指玄篇卷

**Interpretation**

The physical body is entirely Yin, so one cannot seek it only within the fleshly body; one can only seek and obtain the single point of Yang Jing (yang essence; the Qi of pre-heaven true Yang) within the body. This point of Yang Jing lies in a key orifice (guanqiao, a critical aperture in Neidan, internal alchemy) that ordinary people cannot fathom. This key orifice is the Gate of Xuanpin (the Mysterious Female, the portal where Yin-Yang transforms and gives birth), precisely what is called the Huachi (Florid Pool) of Shen (spirit; the gathering place of Shen and Qi). Knowing this orifice, one can then gather and take the medicine (caiyao, gathering the medicine); next comes union (the joining of Yin-Yang); after that, cooking and refining (refining through huohou, fire timing); as for bathing (the warm washing stage) and dividing the embryo (the differentiation stage), one must further warm-nurture it to complete the elixir. How could one complete the elixir without discerning the source of the stream (the source of the medicine), knowing the catties and ounces (the measure of fire timing), and recognizing the time and day (the proper timing)?

Ever since Shi Tai (sobriquet Xinglin) received the master’s secret instructions, he has known that this body will not die and that this elixir will surely be completed. Now that the great matter has already been taken in hand, he issues this to inform future students of immortality. This is the preface written by Xinglin Shi Tai after receiving the instructions. The juan title is “Xiuzhen Shishu (Ten Books on Cultivating Perfection): Miscellaneous Writings Pointing to the Mysterious, juan 7.”

之七

## Vol. 8

修眞十書雜著指玄篇卷之八

修眞十戒一者不得隂賊潜謀害物利巳當行隂徳普

濟群生二者不得殺害含生以充滋味當行慈惠以

及昆蟲三者不得淫邪敗眞穢慢靈炁當守節操毋

使缺犯四者不得敗人成功交離親族當以道助物

令衆雍和五者不得讒諛賢良露才揚巳當稱人之善

不自伐其功能六者不得飲酒過差食肉違禁當調氣性專

務清虚七者不得貪婪無厭積財不散當行節儉惠

恤貧窮八者不得交遊非賢居處穢雜當務勝巳棲

集幽閑九者不得不忠不孝不仁不信當盡節君師

推誠萬物十者不得輕忽言笑舉動非眞當常懷廉謹

以道徳爲務

凡能持此十戒昇爲仙官

衛生歌(并敘)　西山先生世言服靈丹餌仙果白日而輕舉者但聞而未見也至如運氣之術甚近養生之道人禀氣血而生攝生論云攝生之要在去其害生者此明言也予所編去病歌藎採諸家養生之要而爲言能依而行之則獲安樂若盡其要妙亦長年之可覬歌曰萬物惟人爲最貴百歳光隂如旅寄自非留意修養中未免病苦爲心累何必飡霞餌火藥妄意延齡等龜鶴但於飲食嗜慾間去其甚者將安樂食後徐徐行百步兩手摩脇并腹肚須臾轉手摩腎堂謂之運動水與土仰

**Interpretation**

The *Miscellaneous Writings on Pointing to the Mystery* from the *Ten Books on Cultivating Perfection*, Volume 8, records ten precepts for spiritual cultivators and a longevity song.

**Ten Precepts for Cultivating Perfection**:

First, never secretly scheme to harm others for personal gain. Instead, accumulate hidden virtue (good deeds done in secret) and universally deliver all beings.

Second, never kill living creatures to satisfy cravings. Maintain a compassionate heart, showing care even for the smallest insects.

Third, never indulge in licentiousness and defile your true nature, tainting the primordial Qi (innate vital energy). Preserve your integrity and uphold the precepts.

Fourth, never undermine others' achievements or sow discord among kin and friends. Assist others with righteous means, fostering harmony.

Fifth, never slander the virtuous or boast of yourself. Praise others' good deeds without glorifying your own merits.

Sixth, never indulge in excessive drinking or consume forbidden meats. Regulate your breath and focus on attaining purity and emptiness.

Seventh, never hoard wealth greedily without giving. Practice frugality and self-discipline, aiding the poor and needy.

Eighth, never associate with the unvirtuous or dwell in filthy, chaotic places. Draw near to the wise and reside in tranquil spaces.

Ninth, never be disloyal, unfilial, unkind, or untrustworthy. Revere teachers and elders and treat all beings with sincerity.

Tenth, never act frivolously or behave improperly. Maintain humility and reverence, taking Dao and De (Virtue) as your foundation.

By upholding these ten precepts, one may ascend to become an immortal official.

**Longevity Song (with Preface)**:

People often claim that consuming elixirs, miraculous herbs, or celestial fruits can lead to daytime ascension, but these are merely rumors—none have witnessed it. Breath-circulation techniques (daoyin and breathing exercises) are far more practical for nurturing life. Humans rely on Qi and blood to live, and the *Treatise on Preserving Life* states that the key to longevity lies in eliminating life-harming factors. My *Song of Dispelling Illness* compiles essential longevity teachings from various schools. Practicing them brings peace and joy; mastering their subtleties may prolong life.

The song goes thus:

Among the myriad beings, humans are most precious, yet a hundred years pass like a traveler’s brief stay. Without cultivation, suffering and illness will surely plague you. Why chase after immortality drugs, dreaming of a tortoise or crane’s lifespan? Simply restrain excess in food and desires, and peace will follow.

After meals, stroll a hundred steps, massaging your ribs and abdomen with both hands. Then gently rub the kidney region (lower back)—this is called "moving water and earth" (harmonizing the spleen and kidneys).

面仍呵三四呵自然食毒氣消磨醉眠飽臥俱無益渴飲飢飡猶戒多食不欲粗并欲速乍可少飡相接續若教一飽頓充腸損氣傷脾非爾福生飡粘腻筋韌物自死牲牢皆勿食饅頭閉氣不相宜生膾偏招脾胃疾鮓醤胎卵兼油腻陳臭醃醲盡隂類老衰莫欲更食之是借冦兵無以異炙煿之物須冷喫不然損齒傷血脉晚食常宜申酉前向夜徒勞滯胷膈

注云脾好音樂夜食則脾氣不磨爲音響

斷絶故也周禮樂以侑食蓋脾好音聲絲

竹耳纔聞脾即磨矣是以音聲皆出於脾

而夏月夜短尤宜忌之恐難消化故也飲酒莫教令太醉太醉傷神損心志渴來飲水兼飲茶腰脚自茲成重膇

註云酒雖可以陶情性通血脉自然招風

敗腎爛膓腐脇莫過於此飽食之後尤宜

戒之飲酒不宜粗及速恐傷破肺肺爲五

臟之華蓋尤不可傷當酒未醒大渇之際

不可喫水及啜茶多被酒引入腎臟爲停

毒之水遂令腰脚重墜膀胱冷痛兼水腫

消渴攣躄之疾大抵茶之爲物四時皆不

可喫令人下焦虚冷唯飽食後喫一兩盞

不妨蓋能消食故也飢則尤宜忌之常聞避風如避箭坐臥須當預防患況因飲後毛孔開風纔一入成癱瘓

注云凡坐臥處始覺有風宜速避之不可

强忍且年老之人體竭内踈風邪易入始

**Interpretation**

Continuing to face forward, perform the he-exhalation method three or four times in succession (he is a type of breathing practice for expelling Qi and preserving health); this will naturally wear away the toxic Qi of food. Sleeping after drunkenness and lying down after a full meal are both of no benefit. When thirsty, drink water; when hungry, eat—but one must still guard against overeating. Eating and drinking should be neither careless nor rushed. Better to eat small amounts and replenish continuously than to let a single full meal suddenly fill the stomach and intestines; that would damage Qi and injure the spleen (the organ governing transformation and transport in Chinese medicine), and it is not your good fortune.

Avoid raw, sticky, greasy, sinewy, hard-to-digest foods. Do not eat livestock that has died on its own (shenglao refers generally to livestock). Steamed buns block Qi and are unsuitable. Raw fish slices and raw meat slices especially invite spleen-stomach illness (kuai refers to finely cut raw meat and fish). Avoid salted fish paste, embryos and eggs, and greasy foods; stale, foul, heavily salted, and concentrated foods all belong to the Yin category (Yin-stagnant substances). The aged and weak should not still want to eat these again; this is no different from borrowing enemy troops (invading soldiers). Fried and roasted foods should be eaten only after they have cooled; otherwise they damage the teeth and injure the blood vessels.

Supper should be before the Shen and You hours (Shen and You are roughly 3 to 7 p.m.). Eating near night is merely futile and will stagnate and block the chest and diaphragm. The commentary says: the spleen likes music. If one eats at night, the spleen’s Qi will not transform and transport, because sounds and music have been cut off. The Rites of Zhou uses music to assist meals (youshi means assisting a meal); presumably the spleen delights in sound. Only when the ear hears the sound of string and bamboo instruments (sizhu refers to string and wind music) does the spleen transform and transport. Therefore all sound issues from the spleen. In summer, when nights are short, one should especially avoid nighttime eating; this is because it is feared to be hard to digest.

In drinking wine, do not let one become too drunk. Excessive drunkenness damages Shen (spirit) and harms the mind and will. After wine, when thirst comes and one drinks water and tea, from this the waist and legs develop heaviness and swelling (zhongzhui means swollen, heavy feet). Although wine can cultivate and refine the temperament and can open the blood vessels, it naturally invites wind pathogens. It injures and ruins the kidneys, rots the intestinal tract, and nothing corrodes the flanks more than wine. After a full meal one should especially abstain from wine. Drinking should not be rough, violent, or hurried, for it is feared it will injure and rupture the lungs. The lungs are the canopy of the five viscera (a covering umbrella above), and they especially must not be injured. When the wine has not yet worn off and one is very thirsty, one should not drink water or tea; much of it is carried by the wine into the kidneys, where it becomes stagnant toxic water. Thereupon it makes the waist and legs heavy and sagging, causes cold pain in the bladder, and also triggers edema, wasting-thirst (a condition involving excessive drinking and urination), and contracture and lameness (spasms of the sinews and inability to walk).

Generally speaking, tea is something that should not be drunk in any of the four seasons; it makes the lower burner deficient and cold (the lower burner refers to the lower abdomen). Only after a full meal is drinking one or two cups not a problem, because it can dissolve food. When hungry, one should especially avoid tea.

One often hears that avoiding wind is like avoiding arrows. When sitting or lying down, one should guard against wind troubles. Moreover, after drinking wine the pores are open; as soon as wind enters, it becomes paralysis. Wherever one sits or lies, if one first feels wind, one should quickly move away; one must not force oneself to endure it. Furthermore, in the aged the body is depleted and the interior is loose, so wind pathogens easily invade; one must guard against them from the outset.

初不覺久乃損人故雖暑中不可當風取

涼碎後操扇昔有人學得壽之道於彭祖

而苦患頭痛彭祖視其寢處有穴當其腦

户遽令塞之後遂無患不問四時俱暖酒太熱又須難向口五味偏多不益人恐隨臟腑成殃咎

注云五味稍薄令人爽稍多隨其臟腑各

有損傷故酸多傷脾辛多傷肝鹹多傷心

苦多傷肺甘多傷腎此乃五行自然之理

初傷不覺久乃成患視聽行坐不必久五勞七傷從此有

註云久視傷心損血久坐傷脾損肉久臥

傷肺損氣久行傷肝損筋久立傷腎損骨

孔子所謂居必遷坐以是故也四肢亦欲得小勞譬如户樞終不朽

注云人之勞倦有生於無端不必持重執

輕仡仡終日惟是閑人多生此病蓋閑樂

之人不多運動氣力飽食坐臥經脉不通

血脉凝滯使然也是以貴人貌樂而心勞

賤人心閑而貌苦貴人嗜慾不時或昧於

忌犯飲食珍羞使乃寝臥故常須用力但

不至疲極所貴榮衞通流血脉調暢譬如

流水不腐户樞不朽也臥不厭踧覺貴舒飽則入浴飢則梳梳多浴少益心目點寝暗眠神晏如

注云臥宜側身屈膝益人心氣覺宜舒展

則精神不散蓋舒臥則招魔引魅孔子寝

不尸蓋謂是歟髪多梳則去風明目故道

家晨梳常以百二十爲數浴多則損人心

腹令人倦怠寝不言者爲五臟如鍾磬然

**Interpretation**

At first one does not notice it, but over time it injures the person. Therefore, even in hot summer one should not cool oneself by facing the wind. After becoming drunk, one should not wave a fan. Once a man learned the way of longevity from Pengzu (the long-lived figure of ancient legend), yet he suffered from headaches. Pengzu examined the place where he slept and saw that there was a hole directly facing Naohu (an acupoint at the back of the head). Pengzu quickly had it plugged up. After that, he was no longer troubled by headaches.

Regardless of the season, wine should be warmed. If it is too hot, however, it is hard to drink. An excess of the five flavors is harmful to people; it is feared that, according to the organ each enters, it may cause harm. The commentary says: When the five flavors are slightly bland, they make one clear and refreshed. When they are slightly excessive, each causes damage according to the viscus or bowel it enters. Thus, too much sour injures the spleen; too much pungent injures the liver; too much salty injures the heart; too much bitter injures the lungs; too much sweet injures the kidneys. This is the natural principle of the Five Phases. At first the injury is not noticed; over time it becomes illness.

Looking, listening, walking, and sitting should none be prolonged too long. From this arise the five strains and seven injuries (the exhaustion of the five viscera and seven kinds of damage). The commentary says: Looking too long injures the heart and damages the blood; sitting too long injures the spleen and damages the flesh; lying too long injures the lungs and damages Qi; walking too long injures the liver and damages the sinews; standing too long injures the kidneys and damages the bones. Confucius’s saying, “When dwelling, one must change one’s seat”—that is, one must vary one’s sitting place—refers to this.

The four limbs should also receive mild activity, just as a door hinge, constantly turning, never decays. The commentary says: Some fatigue in people arises without any clear cause. It is not necessarily from lifting heavy objects or carrying light ones, nor necessarily from exerting strength all day without pause. It is simply that idle people often develop this illness, because those who are idle, at ease, and comfortable do not use their strength much. After eating their fill, they sit or lie without moving; the channels and vessels do not flow freely, and the blood vessels become stagnant—this is how the condition arises. Thus high-status people appear happy outwardly but labor inwardly, while the poor and lowly are inwardly at leisure but outwardly toil. High-status people do not restrain their appetites and desires in timely fashion; sometimes, not understanding the prohibitions, they transgress them. They eat rare delicacies and fine foods, and when full they lie down to sleep. Therefore one should regularly exert oneself in moderation, but not to the point of extreme exhaustion. What matters is that Ying and Wei (nutritive and defensive Qi, referring to the circulation of Qi and blood) flow freely and that the blood vessels are harmoniously unobstructed, like flowing water that does not become stale, or a door hinge that never rots because it turns constantly.

For sleep, lying on one’s side with the knees bent is acceptable; on waking, it is best to stretch out. After a full meal one may bathe; when hungry, one should comb the hair. Combing the hair often and bathing seldom benefits the heart and eyes. Extinguish the lamp when going to bed and sleep in darkness; then the spirit and mind are calm and at ease. The commentary says: Sleeping on one’s side with the knees bent benefits heart Qi. On waking one should stretch, and the spirit will not scatter. This is because spreading out the four limbs while sleeping will attract demons and specters. Confucius’s saying, “Do not sleep like a corpse”—that is, do not lie straight and stiff as a corpse—probably refers to this. Combing the hair often can dispel wind and brighten the eyes; therefore Daoists often make one hundred and twenty strokes the standard for morning combing. Bathing too often damages the heart and abdomen and makes one weary and languid. One does not speak during sleep because the five viscera are like bells and chimes—ancient instruments that require quiet and must not be shaken by speech.

不懸則不可發聲睡留燈燭令人神不安四時惟夏難將攝伏隂在内腹冷滑補腎腸藥不可無食物稍冷休哺啜

注云夏一季是人脫精神之時心旺腎衰

腎化爲水至秋乃凝及冬始堅尤宜保惜

故夏月不問老少悉喫暖物至秋即不患

霍亂吐瀉腹中常暖者諸疾自然不生蓋

血氣壯盛也心旺腎衰何所忌特忌踈通泄精氣寝處尤宜綿宻間宴居靜慮和心意

注云月令仲夏之月君子齊戒處必掩身

毋躁止聲色毋或進薄滋味毋致和禁嗜

慾定心氣沬浴盥漱皆暖水臥冷枕涼俱勿喜

注云雖盛暑衝熱若以冷水洗面手即令

人五臟乾枯少津液況沐浴乎凡枕冷物

大損人目瓜茹生菜不宜人豈獨秋來多瘧痢

注云茹性至冷菜瓜雖治氣又能暗人耳

目驢馬食之即日眼爛此等之物大抵四

時皆不可食不獨夏季老人尤宜忌之伏陽在内三冬月切忌汗多陽氣泄

注云天地閉血氣藏緃有病亦不宜出汗隂霧之中無逺行暴雨震雷宜速避

注云昔有三人冒霧早行一人空腹一人

食粥一人飲酒空腹者死食粥者病飲酒

者徤蓋酒能禦霜露辟邪氣故也路中忽

遇飄風震雷晦暝宜入室避之不爾損人

當時未覺久則成患道家更有頋生旨第一令人少嗔惠秋冬日出始求衣春夏雞鳴宜早起

**Interpretation**

If a thing is not suspended, it cannot produce sound; keeping lamps or candles lit while sleeping unsettles the spirit. Of the four seasons, summer is the hardest in which to regulate health: Yin Qi lies hidden within, the abdomen easily becomes cold, and stools easily become loose or slip out, so one should supplement the kidneys and intestines. Medicines are indispensable; once food has become slightly cold, one should stop eating and drinking it. The commentary says: summer is the time when people dissipate their spirit, when heart fire is exuberant and kidney water declines. The kidneys transform into water; by autumn it congeals, by winter it becomes firm and solid, and one should especially cherish and care for it. Thus in summer, old and young alike should eat warm, hot foods; then in autumn they will be less liable to cholera, vomiting, and diarrhea. Those whose abdomens are constantly warm naturally do not develop the various diseases, because their blood and Qi are strong and abundant. When the heart is exuberant and the kidneys declining, what is most taboo? Especially the draining away of Jing and Qi. Sleeping and dwelling places should be especially well enclosed; in leisure one should quiet the mind and reflect, harmonizing the heart and intentions.

The commentary says: The Yueling (Monthly Ordinances) states that in the mid-summer month the noble man fasts and purifies himself; his dwelling must screen and cover his body; he is not restless; he ceases music and sensual pleasures; he does not recklessly indulge; his food and drink are bland and weak in flavor; he does not seek rich, highly seasoned tastes; he cuts off cravings and desires; and he stabilizes heart Qi. Bathing, washing the face, and rinsing the mouth should all use warm water; do not take pleasure in sleeping on cold pillows or craving cool mats. The commentary says: Even when one is rushed by the heat of full summer, if one washes the face and hands with cold water, it will cause the five viscera to dry out and the body fluids to decrease—how much more so with bathing? Whenever cold objects are used as pillows, they greatly damage the eyes. Melons and raw vegetables are not beneficial to people; it is not only that autumn has more malaria and dysentery. The commentary says: Vegetables are extremely cold in nature; although vegetable melon can regulate Qi, it can also make the ears and eyes dim; if donkeys or horses eat it, their eyes ulcerate the same day. Such things generally should not be eaten in any of the four seasons, not only in summer; the elderly especially should avoid them.

In the three winter months Yang Qi lies hidden within; one must strictly avoid excessive sweating, which causes Yang Qi to leak out. The commentary says: Heaven and Earth are closed and storing, and blood and Qi are stored within; even if one is ill, it is not fitting to induce sweating. Do not travel far in dark fog; in violent rain and crashing thunder one should quickly take shelter. The commentary says: Formerly three men set out early in fog—one on an empty stomach, one having eaten porridge, and one having drunk wine. In the end the one with an empty stomach died, the porridge eater became ill, and the wine drinker remained healthy, because wine can withstand frost and dew and repel evil Qi. If on the road one suddenly meets gusty winds, crashing thunder, or darkness, one should enter a room and take shelter; otherwise it harms people, and though not felt at the time, in time it becomes a malady.

The Daoist tradition has further essential principles for nourishing life; the first is to make people reduce anger (the character for “kindness” is used interchangeably with the character for “anger”). In autumn and winter, add clothing only after the sun has come out; in spring and summer, one should rise early at cockcrow.

注云春夏宜早起秋冬任晏眠晏忌日出

後早忌雞鳴前子後寅前睡覺來瞑目叩齒二七回吸新吐故無令誤嚥漱玉泉還養胎

注云水之在口曰華池亦曰玉泉黄庭經

曰玉泉清水灌靈根子若修之命長存達

磨胎息論曰凡服食須半夜子後牀上瞑

目盤坐面東呵出腹内舊氣三兩口然後

停息便於鼻内微納清氣數口舌下有二

穴通腎竅用舌柱上腭存息少時津液自

出灌漱滿口徐徐嚥下自然灌注五臟此

爲氣歸丹田矣如子後丑前不及但寅前

爲之亦可臥中爲之亦可但枕不甚高可

也漢蒯京年百二十歳日甚丁壯言朝朝

服食玉泉扣齒二七名曰錬精後漢王眞

常漱舌下玉泉嚥之謂之胎息孫眞人曰

髪宜多櫛手宜在面齒宜數叩津宜常嚥

氣宜精錬此五者即黄庭經所謂子欲不

死修崑崙爾熱摩手心慰兩眼

注云每慰二七遍使人眼目自然無障翳

明目去風無出於此亦能補腎氣也仍更揩擦額與面

注云頻拭額上謂之修天庭連髪際二七

遍面上自然光澤䵟點者宜頻拭之中指時將摩鼻邊

注云鼻莖兩邊揩二三十數令表裏俱熱

所謂灌漑中嶽以潤於肺左右耳眼筌數遍

注云筌耳即摩耳輪也不拘遍數所謂修

其城郭以補腎氣以防聾瞶也更能乾浴遍身間按䏶時須紐兩間緃有風

**Interpretation**

The commentary says: in spring and summer it is suitable to rise early; in autumn and winter one may rise later. But rising late should not go past sunrise, and rising early should not be earlier than cockcrow. After the zi hour and before the yin hour, when one wakes from sleep, close the eyes and click the teeth fourteen times; inhale fresh qi and exhale old qi without error; swallow and rinse-refine the Jade Spring (Yuquan, the saliva in the mouth) to return and nourish the fetal origin (taiyuan). The commentary says: water in the mouth is called the Hua Pool (Huachi), and is also called Jade Spring. The Huangting Jing (Yellow Court Scripture) says: “The clear water of Jade Spring irrigates the spiritual root; if you cultivate it, your lifespan can long endure.”

Bodhidharma’s Taixi Lun (Treatise on Embryonic Breathing) says: whenever one practices taking food (here meaning taking qi and swallowing saliva), one must do so after the midnight zi hour, sitting cross-legged on the bed with eyes closed, facing east, and with a he sound breathe out the old qi from the abdomen two or three times. Then pause the breath and gently draw several breaths of clear qi in through the nose. Beneath the tongue are two points that connect to the kidney orifices; press the tongue against the upper palate, hold the intention and regulate the breath for a moment, and saliva will naturally emerge. Rinse the whole mouth with the saliva and swallow it slowly; it will naturally permeate the five viscera. This is qi returning to the Dantian (the Dantian is the key place of cultivation in the lower abdomen). If there is not enough time to do this after the zi hour and before the chou hour, it is also acceptable to do it only before the yin hour; it may also be done while lying down in sleep, but the pillow should not be too high.

Kuai Jing of the Han dynasty lived to one hundred and twenty and was still robust. He said that every morning he took Jade Spring and clicked his teeth fourteen times; this was called refining Jing. Wang Zhen of the Later Han often rinsed his mouth with the Jade Spring beneath his tongue and swallowed it; this was called embryonic breathing (taixi). Sun Zhenren (Sun Simiao) said: the hair should be combed often, the hands should frequently massage the face, the teeth should be clicked often, saliva should be swallowed frequently, and qi should be refined. These five practices are what the Huangting Jing means by “If you wish not to die, cultivate Kunlun” (Kunlun here refers to the head and face).

Rub the palms of both hands until warm and warm them over both eyes. The commentary says: do this fourteen times each session, and naturally the eyes will be free of obstruction and film. For brightening the eyes and dispelling wind, nothing is better; it can also supplement kidney qi. One should also wipe and rub the forehead and face. The commentary says: frequently wiping the forehead is called cultivating the Heavenly Court (Tianting, referring to the forehead). Wipe together with the hairline fourteen times, and the face will naturally become smooth and radiant; those with dark spots or blemishes should wipe often.

From time to time, use the middle fingers to massage beside the nose. The commentary says: rub and massage both sides of the bridge of the nose twenty or thirty times until both the exterior and interior feel warm. This is what is meant by irrigating the Central Peak (Zhongyue, here referring to the nose) to moisten the lungs. Perform the quan method several times at the left and right ears and eyes. The commentary says: quan ear means massaging the ear helix, without counting the repetitions. This is called repairing the city walls, to supplement kidney qi and prevent deafness and dullness of hearing.

One can also perform dry bathing, covering the whole body. When pressing the thigh (bi, a variant word for thigh), one must make a twisting movement between the two corresponding places. Even if there is wind (wind pathogen, fengxie), one should treat it by the methods of dry bathing and massage.

勞諸冷氣何憂腰背復拘攣

注云大凡人坐常以兩手按䏶左右紐肩

數十嘘呵呼嘻吹及呬行氣之人分六字果能依用口訣中新舊有痾皆可治聲色雖云屬少年稍知撙節乃無愆閉精息氣宜聞早莫使羽苞火中燃

注云古人以色慾之事譬之凌杯以盛陽

羽苞以畜火有能操履長方正於名無貪利無竸緃向歌中未盡行百行周身亦無病

注云老子云善攝生者陸地不遇兕虎此

道德之助也修眞十書

**Interpretation**

As for strain injuries and various cold Qi (vital energy), why worry that the waist and back will again become tense and cramped? The commentary notes that when ordinary people sit, they often press both hands on their thighs (bi) and twist their shoulders left and right several dozen times. Xu, He, Hu, Xi, Chui, and Si—the Daoist Six-Character Qi Formula (Liuzi Qijue)—are applied separately by those who refine Qi. If one can truly apply them according to the oral instructions, both new and old illnesses (e) can be cured.

Although the pleasures of sound and color are said to be matters for the young, if one understands a little restraint (moderation), there will be no fault. One should learn early to close and store Jing (essence) and Qi and to regulate the breath, and should not let the fire inside a feather wrapping (a bundle wrapped in feathers) blaze up. The commentary notes that the ancients compared the matter of sexual desire to an ice cup (lingbei) holding yang or a feather wrapping storing fire. If a person can conduct himself and act while always keeping to uprightness and propriety, not greedy for fame and not contending for profit, then even if one does not fully carry out everything in the chanted formulas, when all kinds of good practices are complete within oneself, one will not become ill. The commentary notes that Laozi said that one who is good at nurturing life, when walking on land, will not encounter the rhinoceros or tiger (si and hu); this is an aid to the cultivation of Dao (the Way) and De (Virtue/Power). This is volume eight of the Zazhu Zhixuan Pian (Miscellaneous Writings Pointing to the Mysterious) in the Xiuzhen Shishu (Ten Books on Cultivating Perfection).

雜著指玄篇卷之八

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原文底本：Kanripo 漢籍リポジトリ（京都大学），CC BY-SA 4.0。  
Source text: Kanripo Chinese Classics Repository (Kyoto University), CC BY-SA 4.0.  
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