《茅山誌》Vol. 16

This records several extraordinary individuals who cultivated the Dao at Mount Mao. First was the recluse Xiahou, whose origins remain unknown. During the Dazhong era of the Tang dynasty, he arrived at Mount Mao carrying only a cloth sack and bamboo staff. Though he ate like ordinary people, he always dwelled alone, sometimes even sleeping outdoors among altar grasses or beneath trees. When people tried to spy on him, they would only see swirling clouds and mist obscuring his form. He could traverse thirty or fifty li of mountain paths with closed eyes, snoring while walking yet never stumbling, awakening naturally upon reaching his destination. Contemporaries called him the "Sleeping Immortal," and he later disappeared without trace.

Zhou Yinyao, styled Xiyuan, once practiced cultivation at the Chongyuan Shengzu Temple in the Southern Cavern, a retreat specially established for him by Chancellor Li Deyu. He also dwelled at Baoshan near Lake Dongting, maintaining no distinction between day and night in his routine, wearing the same clothes regardless of season. Though he ate sparingly, his energy remained abundant, and he could drink water without excretion. The Tang statesman Linghu Chu composed his biography.

Zhang Shaoying, a native of Danyang, became a Daoist priest in childhood without entering worldly affairs. When Emperor Renzong of Song sought instruction in Daoist cultivation, he and his friend Zhu Ziying (Master Guanmiao) were summoned together. While Zhu responded to the summons, Zhang declined on grounds of illness. The following year when chancellors recommended him again, imperial envoys came to invite him, yet he still claimed illness. Later the emperor sent eunuch Ren Gui bearing an edict to the mountains, conferring upon him the title "Master of Luminous Truth" (Mingzhen Xiansheng) and renaming his humble hermitage as the Tian Sheng Guan (Celestial Sanctity Abbey). At seventy-five, after morning ablutions and changing clothes, he ascended the altar to bow in all directions, then closed his door to sit in meditation. When disciples sensed something unusual and opened the door, they found he had already shed his mortal form and ascended as an immortal.

Wang Quan, styled Zizhen, came from an official family where all his brothers pursued civil examinations, while he alone loved Daoist cultivation. Once while resting at a melon field in the suburbs, he met a widowed woman begging for melons. Noticing her breasts grew from her abdomen—a strange sight—he nevertheless gave her melons. After eating, she offered him the leftovers and happily declared: "You can be taught! I am Xiao Sanniang, and the immortal Liu Haichan dwells here." The next day she introduced him to Liu Haichan, through whom he received authentic transmission of alchemical practice.

This passage records the cultivation achievements of several Mount Mao Daoists from the Song Dynasty:

The first account describes the deeds of Master Chongzhao (his Daoist name). He paid daily morning and evening devotions to the Three Pure Ones (the highest Daoist deities: Jade Pure, Upper Pure, and Supreme Pure) while spending long periods secluded in recitation of the Huangting Jing (Scripture of the Yellow Court). Later traveling to famous mountains, he gained the admiration of Duke Fu Zheng in Chengdu and resided under his patronage for eight years. Chancellor Lü also held him in high esteem, and though some wished to recommend him for an official post like Chong Fang's advisory position, he declined due to his disinterest in government service. During the Yuanfeng era, the court bestowed upon him the title "Master Chongzhao." Originally intending to visit his clansman in Taizhou, he instead ascended the mountain to study Shangqing (Highest Clarity) scriptures with Master Liu after his relative's death. During his initiation ritual, wondrous signs appeared: thunder rolled over Zhongmao Peak, the Heavenly Gate opened, and celestial music sounded in the sky. Later he dreamed of two celestial beings leading him through the Heavenly Gate where Lord Mao (founder of the Mao Shan tradition) informed him of his appointment as Assistant Director of the Bureau of Destiny and bestowed a golden ruler. Upon awakening, he predicted his own passing date and eventually achieved feathered ascension while seated upright at Ge Chong's home at age sixty-one. Living austerely, he ate like an infant, often meditated through the night, and maintained nimble movements in old age.

The second account concerns Zhongling Daoist Tang Yongming (courtesy name Huizhi). A scholar of profound learning, he specialized in Neidan (internal alchemy) and zuowang (sitting-in-forgetfulness meditation). In the early Yuanyou era, though in his prime, he traveled a thousand li to study scriptures with Master Liu, forming close bonds with fellow practitioners. When Master Liu received imperial summons, both Tang and fellow Daoist Tang Daoyuan declined, instead building hermitages on Golden Mushroom Mountain where they lived in contented poverty. He passed without illness in the early Daguan era.

The third narrative follows Chizhou Daoist Feng Taishen (courtesy name Yuedao). He ascended the mountain with ten fellow cultivators, but when successive famines struck, only he remained steadfast. Later taking over a heavily indebted temple project from Master Lu, Feng cleared the debts using incense offerings before achieving ascension on the mountain. His disciples Shao Cishan and Ge Zhenyi likewise maintained pure discipline, earning widespread respect.

Chen Xiwei, courtesy name Yanzhen, was a native of Gusu (present-day Suzhou). Originally named Boxiong, his father Chen Zhicai once served as Chaofeng Lang, overseeing the Grain Depot Administration of Jiangning Prefecture. During the Yuanyou era of Emperor Zhezong of the Song Dynasty, Boxiong fell gravely ill. In critical condition, he sought out Master Liu and requested healing through ritual water (fulu). Miraculously, he recovered completely. His wife was the younger sister of the wife of Vice Director of the Chancellery Xue Ang, but she passed away first. Thereafter, he retreated to the mountains to become a Daoist priest, changing his name to Xiwei. He built a dwelling by Liuyuan Spring. When Emperor Huizong heard of his reputation and summoned him repeatedly, Xiwei declined each time. The emperor then decreed his residence be named Baoyuan Abbey and granted him the title "Master Dongwei." During the Xuanhe era, while performing a petition ritual (baizhang) on behalf of others, he passed away the following morning.

Huang Cheng, a native of Piling (modern Changzhou), cultivated the Dao at Xiantai Abbey in Danyang. In the early Chongning era of Emperor Huizong, an imperial edict renamed Yuchen Abbey as Chongning Wanshou Palace, with Huang Cheng appointed as its abbot. Soon after, the emperor personally summoned him to the capital and appointed him abbot of Jinshan Shenxiao Wanshou Palace. He was later ennobled multiple times, eventually rising to the rank of Grand Master of Taisu with the honorific title "Master Chongsu Jingyi," while concurrently serving as Jade Hall Eminent Scholar and Metropolitan Daoist Registrar (du daolu) of the Left and Right Streets, overseeing Daoist affairs. He was granted a fief of 1,200 households and bestowed with a purple-gold talisman (zijin fangfu). In his later years, he requested retirement and returned to the Eastern Hermitage he had established at Yuchen Abbey, where he passed away. Initially, the scriptural registers (jinglu) of the Three Mountains—Longhu Shan, Gezao Shan, and Lingbao Shan—each preserved their own lineage traditions. Huang Cheng petitioned to unify them. The Shangqing Bi Method (Shangqing Bifa) transmitted today at Longhu Shan and Gezao Shan traces its origins to this reform.

Yang Xizhen, courtesy name Yuandao, came from a family of rice merchants in Yizhen (modern Yizheng, Jiangsu) known for their hidden virtue (yinde). Born in the first year of Emperor Huizong’s Jianzhong Jingguo era, he did not speak until age six. As he grew older, he devotedly venerated the statues of the Four Saints (Si Sheng Zhenjun). One night, he dreamed of a divine being who said: "I am the Northern Heavenly Auxiliary Marshal. Moved by your sincere devotion to the Dao, yet your body remains impure. I shall replace your bones at Huayang Immortal Abode and impart sacred texts to you." Thereafter, he frequently experienced divine visitations, behaving as if seized by madness—running wildly and disappearing without trace. In the gengzi year of Xuanhe 2 (1120), he entered Huayang Cave and did not return. The following year, he emerged and went home, astonishing his neighbors. He explained: "My former madness was not real—it was for the sake of seeking the Dharma. Now I have obtained the Tongchu Great Method (Tongchu Dafa) and can save the world." When Emperor Huizong sought extraordinary individuals, Yang presented scriptures such as the Jiuling Yuying Shenbian Jing and the Lingxu Miezhi. The emperor ordered Huang Mian to collate and archive them.

This passage records the biographical accounts of two Daoist masters from the Song Dynasty.

The first is Shen Ruoji (courtesy name Zizhou), whose ancestors served as advisors during the Wu-Yue Qian dynasty period. In his early teens, he renounced worldly affairs and became a Daoist priest at Yuanzhen Temple. By age thirteen, he had begun studying Daoist scriptures while synthesizing various schools of thought, with particular expertise in medical arts. Later, he gained the appreciation of Wang Hanzhi (Academician of Yankang Hall), with whom he collaboratively researched both Waidan (external alchemy) and Neidan (internal alchemy) practices. Emperor Huizong of Song summoned him twice to court, bestowing the title "Master of Dongyuan," though Shen declined official positions citing poor health and returned to mountain seclusion. At sixty-two, he achieved the state of "corpse liberation" (a Daoist concept of immortality through physical transcendence) through elixir ingestion.

The second figure is Tang Youcheng (courtesy name Daoyuan), who took monastic vows alongside his elder brother Tang Youzhi. He trained under the renowned master Xu Shenweng of Taizhou before studying scripture and ritual with Master Liu. The brothers once retreated to build a Crane Temple, and were later invited by Wang Hanzhi to participate in alchemical practices. During the Xuanhe era when the court sought extraordinary talents, they maintained their reclusive lifestyle. When warfare erupted in the Jianyan period, Tang Youzhi fled deep into the mountains, while Tang Youcheng maintained solitary cultivation for over fifty years. In his final days, he accurately predicted his passing date, departing on the fifth day of the sixth month in the Guihai year of the Shaoxing era.

The term "corpse liberation" (shijie) mentioned herein refers to a Daoist technical concept denoting an immortalization process where the physical body is transcended while the spirit ascends. "Internal and external alchemy" (neidan/waidan) represent two distinct cultivation approaches—one through ingestible elixirs, the other through inner transformational practices.

In Guangling Jiangyang (present-day Yangzhou, Jiangsu), there lived a rice merchant named Li Jue who made his living selling grain his entire life. His business was exceptionally fair—he always allowed customers to measure the rice themselves using standard scoops. Even in his eighties, he persisted in this humble trade. Later, when the military governor of Huainan, also named Li Jue, took office, the elderly rice merchant changed his name to Li Kuan to avoid confusion.

A few months after the governor's arrival, he dreamed of entering a celestial cave where golden characters over a foot tall inscribed "Li Jue" gleamed on the stone wall. Delighted, he assumed this foretold his impending immortality, given his high office in a prosperous era. But suddenly, two azure-clad youths emerged from the cave walls and informed him: "This is Huayang Grotto-Heaven (one of Daoism's Thirty-Six Grotto-Heavens), yet the name here refers not to Your Excellency, but to an ordinary man sharing your name in Jiangyang County."

Upon waking, the governor immediately dispatched officials to locate the man, discovering the renamed rice merchant Li Kuan. He invited the elder to a quiet chamber and reverently addressed him as "Daoist brother." It turned out Li Kuan had been taught embryonic respiration (a Daoist cultivation technique) by a Daoist priest at sixty and later mastered prolonged fasting. When the governor sought esoteric methods, the old man demurred: "I'm but a coarse rice peddler—what would I know of such arts?" The governor marveled: "A lifetime of scrupulous fairness—such hidden virtue (unseen goodness) surpasses even formal cultivation!" Li Kuan lived past a hundred in robust health until one night he departed abruptly. Three days later, his coffin split open, revealing only an empty husk—a cicada's molt marking his ascension.

Fu Xiao, styled Zi'ang, hailed from Jinling and was originally a classical scholar renowned for his mastery of ancient texts, particularly clerical script. Transitioning from Confucianism to Daoism, he cultivated at Tianqing Abbey in Changzhou. Though Emperor Gaozong of Song summoned him to oversee Taiyi Palace, he petitioned to return to Maoshan instead, receiving the honorific "Master Mingzhen Tongwei" and stewardship of the mountain's affairs. For forty years he resided at Yuchen Abbey, establishing Leiping Cloister, collecting rare Daoist scriptures, and aiding the poor. He recompiled Tao Hongjing's Secluded Scholar's Anthology and revised Maoshan's historical records, though many works were lost. On the solar term of Beginning of Spring in 1159, he achieved feathered transformation.

Yang Rendong, styled Danjia, was a striking figure from Xiangzhou, Hebei. In 1160, he resigned his official post to dwell beneath Biaolun Peak, where his hermitage earned him the joint epithet "Harmonious Lord Yang" alongside another Daoist surnamed Yang.

Mount Mao (a renowned Daoist mountain) records the life stories of several cultivators. One hermit had a thatched hut built and declared, "In this life I've never sought human trust, only heaven's trust," thus naming it "Heaven's Trust Hut." This recluse mastered the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water) concealment arts (Daoist invisibility and transformation techniques) and was a true hidden sage. Born in the second year of Emperor Taizong's Chunhua era (Song Dynasty), he lived until the fifteenth day of the second month in the fifth year of Emperor Xiaozong's Chunxi era, reaching the remarkable age of 184.

Liu Daohuai, from Enzhou, was known as the "Straw-Cloak Master" and resided at Qiyun Hut. Emperor Gaozong personally issued an edict summoning him, with Grand Guardian Chao Gongqianzhi delivering the imperial decree. After much persuasion, he reluctantly went to the capital. When the Jin Dynasty's Prince Hailing Wanyan Liang's army threatened the borders, the anxious emperor consulted him about state affairs. He replied bluntly: "No matter—it's just that both northern and southern houses will change masters." Shortly after, Prince Hailing was assassinated, and Emperor Gaozong abdicated. At eighty-four, the Straw-Cloak Master passed away peacefully at Qiyun Hut.

Tao Yuanjing, from Caozhou, lived south of the mountains and was summoned simultaneously with the Straw-Cloak Master. He firmly declined the invitation and returned to the mountains in the eighteenth year of the Shaoxing era. People at the time referred to them collectively as "The Two Masters Tao and Liu."

Chen Jue, from Jingkou, bore the Daoist name "Master Jingzhen." During the Shaoxing period, while serving as a court attendant, he resolutely resigned to pursue reclusion. East of Mount Mao's caves, he built the Eight Trigrams (Bagua) Platform—the stone chamber and statue remain preserved today.

Liu Zhixiao, from Xiantongli, lost both parents in his youth and wore mourning hemp clothes his entire life, earning him the name "Utmost Filiality." He cultivated at White Crane Temple for years. While constructing a hall beneath a pomegranate tree, he discovered a peach-like fruit—an impossibility in winter. When others discarded the seedless oddity, he ate it and found it extraordinarily delicious. That night, he found another strange fruit with red skin and green flesh the size of a fist, followed by a palm-sized one the next day with even more exquisite flavor. Thereafter, he abstained from mundane food, wandering famous mountains until his whereabouts became unknown. This was likely celestial reward for his pure filial piety—encountering lingzhi mushrooms and immortal fruits. The Daoist Canon's Records of Spiritual Responses documents this account.

Liu Shang, from Pengcheng, earned the jinshi degree in Chang'an and rose to court official rank. Obsessed with Daoist arts, he often lamented worldly glory's emptiness, noting how ancient sages abandoned office to seek the Dao and transcendence. After arranging his children's marriages, he immediately resigned to pursue cultivation, refusing to be burdened by mundane affairs.

After resigning from his official post, Xu Yuanyou donned Daoist robes and journeyed eastward, arriving in Guangling (present-day Yangzhou). In the marketplace, he encountered a Daoist selling medicinal herbs who immediately recognized Xu's extraordinary bearing amidst the crowd and promptly packed up his stall. The two men clasped hands and ascended a tavern, discussing Qin and Han dynasty affairs as if they had witnessed them firsthand. Xu held this Daoist in profound esteem. At dusk, as they descended the stairs, the Daoist suddenly vanished without a trace. The next day, Xu searched the entire city and reunited with him in a bustling street, where they drank and conversed joyfully. At parting, the Daoist presented Xu with a small medicine pouch, reciting a poem: "By chance I came to Yangzhou town / Sharing wine with you, our cups cast down. This herb pouch I leave with no demand / We'll meet again in a thousand-year span." Though Xu later sought the Daoist repeatedly without success, upon opening the pouch he discovered nine elixir pills. Following the oral instructions, after consuming them he felt his spirit invigorated—free from hunger or thirst, his body light as a swallow—and thus crossed the river to live in mountain seclusion. Woodcutters occasionally spotted him by lakeshores, addressing him as "Physician Liu," though none knew his exact dwelling place.

Wen Decheng, styled Shaosou and self-titled "Master of Eastern Mist," was a native of Changle in Fujian. He associated with great scholars like Zhu Xi (Huian) and Lu Jiuyuan (Xiangshan), serving as abbot of Yuchen Abbey for thirty years and participating in compiling the Daoist Canon. Initially ordained at Shengyuan Abbey on Jichou Mountain in Wuxing, he returned there during the Jiatai era (1201–1204) of Southern Song to assume abbacy. He passed away in April 1216 (Bingzi year of Jiading) at seventy-two and was buried west of Jiaochi in Wukang County. Fifteen years later (1230), witnesses saw him traveling by sedan chair past the mountain's Bagua Terrace, recognized by the abbey caretaker. Wen explained he was en route to Dongyue Temple to inspect ritual archives of Jiangdong's zhaijiao (Daoist purification ceremonies), passing through old haunts. As twin cranes cried greetings, he requested brush and paper to inscribe a poem before departing. The next day, the caretaker showed the manuscript to Abbot Bao Shouming of Chongxi Abbey, who verified it as Wen's authentic hand—to the astonishment of all. Shengyuan Abbey's extant Collected Works of Eastern Mist includes this poem as its final entry.

Jin Yuanfan, a monk of Ningshen Hermitage, was simple and straightforward by nature, originally unversed in profound Daoist arts. In 1253 (Baoyou era of Southern Song), when the Qiantang River tides raged catastrophically, Jin dreamed for three consecutive nights of Lord Mao (immortal Mao Ying) transmitting flood-control talismanic spells—yet awoke each time forgetting them. After the third dream, he voluntarily reported to authorities and was ordered to test the method. As tidal surges approached, Jin flung talismans while incanting, sternly rebuking the waters until they miraculously receded. Henceforth the floods ceased. Though the court offered him official Daoist rank and silver rewards, he declined all but tax exemption for Ningshen Hermitage's fields.

This account chronicles the lives of two eminent Daoist masters from Mount Mao.

First is Yang Zhiyin (Daoist name Kongjing), a native of Ezhou who left home as a child, drifting downstream on a raft to the eastern regions. In adulthood, he became a Daoist priest at Yuanfu Temple, known for his love of books yet peculiar appearance. He encountered an extraordinary master who taught him the art of summoning wind and rain. During the early Yuan dynasty, he employed these Daoist methods in service to Emperor Shizu. His responses to the emperor's questions were always straightforward and unadorned, unafraid of offending, yet the emperor treated him with tolerance. Soon after, he requested to return to the mountains for cultivation, carrying an imperial decree to oversee Daoist affairs at Mount Mao, where he resided at Qianyuan Temple. He maintained a strict daily routine: each night during the Zi hour (11 PM–1 AM), he would recite the Huangting Jing (Scripture of the Yellow Court) once before sleeping. With white hair cascading down his head, he sometimes wandered the mountains with a small topknot tied in colored ribbons, utterly unconcerned with others. One evening, he asked fellow practitioners to perform a Lingbao Zhai (a Daoist ritual for salvation), burned all his treasured scriptures, and passed away peacefully the next day.

The other master, Lin Dafu (Daoist name Zixuan, self-styled Mutongsheng), hailed from Pingyang in Yongjia. After traveling through eastern Zhejiang with Master Jiang Yuhai, he entered the mountains for cultivation and was formally accepted as Jiang’s disciple in the Bingzi year. Fond of wine and free-spirited by nature, he walked with seemingly unhurried steps yet could cover a thousand li in a day, journeying through all Five Sacred Peaks. In his later years, he dwelled in a thatched hermitage at Xuanzhou Retreat. On the eighteenth day of the second month in the Wuxu year of the Dade era, he bid farewell to all his friends, announcing his return east. The next day, while burning incense and chanting scriptures in his hut, he suddenly let out a great shout. The attending acolyte watched in astonishment as he sat upright reciting scriptures amid flames, soon vanishing—leaving behind only auspicious clouds. This is what Daoism calls "fire liberation" (huojie), one of the five forms of transcendence. As the crowd marveled, Xue Daomin happened to return from Yangzhou, reporting that he had met Lin Dafu at Guazhou and that the master had since appeared several times in the human realm, delivering messages to the mountain. He was sixty-one at the time of his "fire liberation."

(Note: The Huangting Jing mentioned is a key Daoist scripture on Neidan (internal alchemy) practice; Lingbao Zhai is a Daoist ritual for salvation of the deceased; and "fire liberation" is one of the five methods of transcendence in Daoist belief.)