《雲笈七籤》Vol. 66

The Cantong qi (The Seal of the Unity of the Three), an important classic of Daoist Neidan (internal alchemy) and Waidan (external alchemy), says that there are many methods of refining the elixir, with over ten thousand entries. From this it can be known that the mystery of the Great Elixir lies in the two medicines, lead and mercury; these are the most important medicinal materials, and it is not necessary to use all kinds of minerals.

If substances with mineral medicinal properties are mixed into lead and mercury, the elixir produced will be highly toxic. The saying that “dead mercury can stabilize the form and make one long-lived” actually still requires the Qi of Yin-Yang and the union of water and fire; only after the Great Elixir has been refined and taken can one speak of long life. If minerals such as alum (fanshi/mingfan), sulfur, and sal ammoniac (naosha) are repeatedly calcined to make medicines, taking them will be highly toxic, and long-term use will also damage the body. Sal ammoniac can corrode iron and steel, and alum even has the power to kill a tiger; these should all be taken as warnings.

Some who study the Dao learn only a little minor technique and then consider that few in the world can compare with them; they give elixirs to others to take, instead causing premature death, which is truly lamentable. Later, some people therefore developed an aversion to elixirs, saying that taking elixirs and minerals causes sores and swellings. This is a fallacy of misled people, and one must not therefore disparage the efficacy of the Golden Elixir (Jindan). Mineral medicines such as stalactite are best not taken if possible; one must not force oneself to take them in order to show off strength or satisfy a momentary whim, for otherwise there are indeed cases in the world of people who have needlessly lost their lives because of this, and one should carefully discern this.

The scripture also says that an antidote must be able to disperse and expel the toxicity of the medicine; one may take a decoction of fang kui and licorice, so that the toxic substances are gradually discharged, and only afterward may one take the great medicine. The Great Elixir is the mysterious, hidden, and fundamentally true upright Qi of Heaven and Earth, the food of the assembled immortals of Taihuang (the Great August). It encompasses the Four Images (Yin-Yang and the four basic forces derived from them) and takes form; it naturally transforms according to the Way of Qian and Kun and condenses into a red-purple elixir. It is also called “Zhengyang” (Rectified Yang), “Zhuanyang” (Concentrated Yang), and “Yuanyang” (Original Yang); it is also called “Huandan” (Returned Elixir). How could ordinary people easily comprehend such an elixir? Those who uphold the Dao should examine it carefully, guard it properly, and transmit it to suitable people, so that the Daoist method will not be lost.

Refining the elixir follows the creative transformation of Heaven and Earth and accords with the Three Powers of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity; one arranges the furnace and cauldron according to the hexagram images of the Yi (Book of Changes), follows the Qi of Yin-Yang, and refines the elixir according to the fire timing of the year and the degrees of the sun and moon’s movement. The scripture says that the immortals of antiquity all became immortal by this means. Ordinary people, upon hearing of long life and enduring vision, often clap their hands and laugh; those with wisdom, upon hearing it, can immediately grasp its profound meaning.

Zhenyuan Yu, the author’s self-designation, knew that his talent and learning were insufficient, so he cited the songs and mnemonic verses of three holy true immortals to substantiate the doctrine of the Golden Elixir. The principle has already been stated very clearly, and no further explanation is necessary.

What is called “Huandan” (Returned Elixir) means using the changes produced by the movements of the sun and moon to make cinnabar return to its original source and once again become the original cinnabar. Cinnabar appears dark black, hence it is called “returned elixir.” The elixir has three grades: the first is called Zhengyang Dan and belongs to the Upper Prime; the second is called Zhuanyang Dan and belongs to the Middle Return; the third is called Yuanyang Dan and belongs to the Origin. The three are fundamentally one body, merely divided into three grades, and all are the foundation of the Great Huandan.

Without understanding its subtleties, one cannot understand the art of elixir refining. If one merely boils and refines cinnabar with bittern and subdues it, or subdues mercury alone, none of it is fit to ingest. Why? Because it has only Yin and no Yang. Long-term ingestion harms the body and also fails to accord with the Way of Zhengyang. Some also treat mercury with Lu Kong Sha, or refine it with male and female substances; these too are unsuitable for ingestion. These methods are passed down among people, but they are not the true good medicine used by the sages. Why? Because the Eight Minerals are all toxic. The Jinbi Jing says: “Remove the five alums; do not use the Eight Minerals.” The Bashi Jue says: “Do not use drugs; apply the principle of the Five Phases.” This is the key.

Chapter Two: Clear Discernment

Three liang of sulfur can subdue one jin of mercury; hence one knows that the power of mercury is less than that of sulfur. The power of one liang of mercury equals that of an ox; from this one knows that one liang of sulfur can subdue five liang of mercury, and the power of mercury is not as great as that of sulfur. (According to this account, sulfur’s efficacy is stronger; but in refining the Great Elixir one does not use sulfur, but true lead.) Five liang of true lead can subdue two jin of mercury; hence one knows that the power of mercury is less than that of lead. Therefore Yin can subdue Yang, but Yang cannot subdue Yin; this is precisely the reverse side of the principle.

Those who pursue the Great Dao and hope for long life and to nourish their aspirations will ultimately find it difficult to reach their goal if they do not obtain the Great Elixir. If one happens to encounter this secret formula, it is usually because one has accumulated much merit and blessing that one is permitted to know this secret text. If it is transmitted to unsuitable people, it will bring disaster upon seven generations of ancestors and also implicate one’s descendants.

For anyone refining the Great Elixir, the key does not lie in the kinds of ingredients, but in diligently studying the principles of the Five Phases, understanding the hexagrams and images of the Yi, clearly discerning the patterns of the movement of the solar terms, mastering the degrees of the sun’s and moon’s movements, and making Yin and Yang mutually combine. This is the essential formula for immortal cultivation and the foundation that accords with the Great Dao.

Therefore, one must not readily believe that the Eight Minerals and Four Yellows are wonder drugs for long life. Lead and mercury are the foundation of the Great Elixir and the root of the Five Phases, governing the Eight Minerals. Metal is cold in nature yet occupies the Yang position (the Kan trigram contains one Yang line); that mercury is born within cinnabar refers to this. Stone is warm in nature yet occupies the Yin position (the Li trigram contains two Yin lines); lead….

The “central gold” (zhongjin) spoken of here is true lead (zhenqian; an alchemical term referring to lead-class substances used in elixir refining). Thus it is said that Yin-Yang unite: Yang is the ruler and Yin is the minister. Stone floats and metal sinks—this principle is quite clear. When ruler and minister are in accord and floating and sinking are properly ordered, the medicinal substances can be harmonized; this is the essential subtle principle for becoming an immortal.

If one does not understand the mutual cooperation of ruler and minister, nor distinguish the proper classes of ingredients, then even if one spends a thousand pieces of gold, in the end nothing will be gained. One must understand the essentials of ruler and minister in accord and Qian and Kun—Heaven and Earth, Yin and Yang—before the method of refining the Great Elixir can be understood. Moreover, taking lead as ruler, it can activate the five viscera; taking mercury as minister, it can subdue the “Three Thieves” (san zei; a cultivation term for factors that obstruct cultivation), penetrate through to the divine brightness, and illuminate the four directions.

Therefore the Zhenren Jue says: “Use lead, yet do not use lead; the Five Metals are born within lead. Use lead, yet do not use lead; the Five Metals come forth from within lead.” These are extremely profound words. The worthy should ponder them carefully; only then can they know that the Daoist arts can be cultivated to success. “Use lead, yet do not use lead”: the lead here is the essence of the Five Metals and a good medium for the Seven Treasures.

The nature of the Great Elixir is the same as that of Heaven and Earth, yet the Five Metals are most averse to lead. If one does not use lead, then with what can one blend the Five Metals? The Wujin Ge says: “Take Yellow Sprout as the root.” What sort of thing is Yellow Sprout (huangya)? And with what ding vessel should it be refined? Yellow Sprout is not lead, yet it cannot be generated apart from lead.

Hu Gangzi asked, “With what is it refined into being?” The other replied, “If one does not use the Five Metals and Eight Minerals, then with what else is it generated?” Wei Sheng answered, “To plant grain one must use millet seed; things of different kinds cannot grow into one another. To refine with the Five Metals and Eight Minerals would be like a fox or rabbit suckling a horse, or a swallow or sparrow giving birth to a phoenix. How is that different from patching a cauldron with glue or treating illness with wild kudzu? How can things of different kinds be combined into one body?”

To transmute gold one must use gold; to transmute it into silver one must use silver. Yellow Sprout is obtained from lead; only then does one know that it is closely akin to lead. If one obtains true lead, the divine lead in one’s household will not lose its authenticity; if the lead is not true, the mercury within it will not unite with it. “White Tiger” (baihu) is the brain; “Yellow Sprout” is the root. “Azure Essential Envoy” and “Red Blood General” refer to the fact that azure mercury contains cinnabar; they do not mean that ordinary blue-green materials are used.

If anyone obtains this method, they should treasure and guard it. If it is leaked abroad, lifespan will be cut short and disaster will extend to one’s descendants. The Yinfu says, “The teacher says: keep it secret from those who do not share the Dao.” This is out of fear that disaster will thereby be invited. Those who admire the Daoist arts—only with utmost sincerity can they move and communicate with the divine brightness and comprehend the principle within. Only then will they understand that the Great Dao is hard to seek and that few in the world can comprehend it. Ignorant and deluded people cannot understand its meaning; even if they accumulate and read many formula books, they will achieve nothing. Why is this? The reason lies in their…

If one does not encounter a truly knowledgeable true teacher (one who has received authentic transmission) to explain the principles sentence by sentence, one will make guesses out of thin air and grope along by oneself. There are many such people. I once met Sima Xiyi on Mount Song refining the Great Elixir (the elixirs spoken of in Daoism), and I was delighted; so I asked him for instruction. He said the refining fire had already been carried on for five months. When I questioned him again, Xiyi still would not explain in detail. Even if one wished to understand this Dao, I fear it would be wasted effort: after observing for a long time, I still could not see that his method produced any result.

Xiyi also said: “The uses of the Great Dao are of three kinds; among them, the inward use is one that must be observed by a single person.” Thereupon he added realgar to lead and mercury to subdue the medicinal substances. In fact, this is not the wondrous method for refining the Great Medicine; it is merely following the text and groping by oneself on the basis of vague conjecture. I also saw the Venerable Teacher Li Zixu add sulfur to the two medicinal substances, and he too said this was the method of “inward use observed by one person.” Neither of these men had truly grasped the correct method, and the transmission they received was also erroneous. I pity them: the spiritual capacity of both was not yet mature, what they learned did not reach the true meaning, and in the end they would achieve nothing.

What is called “inward use by one person” means observing the Cauldron of Wu and Ji (with Wu and Ji symbolizing central Earth). If one does not understand its meaning and only makes guesses out of thin air, then even if one exhausts a whole lifetime there will be no result. If in the end one does not meet a true teacher, it is not my fault; one can only say that one and the Dao are not in accord with each other.

The Wujin Ge (Song of the Five Metals) says: “Do not worry that the medicines are not wondrous; only fear that what is used is not correct. Do not worry that the medicines lack divine efficacy; only fear that they are not true medicines.” If a person of wisdom can understand this principle, that person is a Zhenren (True Person) who is truly penetrating and communicates with the spirits; why then worry that the dragon-tiger Great Elixir cannot be refined? It may be said that the sun and moon are held in one’s hands, and that creation and transformation proceed according to the mind. This is indeed a saying that is real and not empty.

The Longhu Zhenwen (True Writ of Dragon and Tiger) says: “The tiger is true lead; the dragon is true mercury. Transform lead into Yellow Sprout (huangya, a term for a medicinal substance in elixir practice), and transform quicksilver into true mercury. True lead will not dry up; true mercury will not fly away.” What is spoken of here is not ordinary quicksilver in the world, but something that has already transcended the dusty and commonplace.

The Maziran Jue (Verse of Ma Ziran) says: “Mercury is born from quicksilver; lead appears through the numinous sprout. These are all things beyond the world, used to refine the Returned Elixir.” Deluded people cannot distinguish “mercury” from “quicksilver,” mistakenly take the two as the same, and thus fail to use them correctly. If one understands their true source, one can transcend the ordinary dust. Among later generations of Dao-learners, most find it difficult to encounter transmission from a true teacher.

The oral formula says: use eight liang of lead, which belongs to Yang, to Qian, and to the tiger; use eight liang of quicksilver, which belongs to Yin, to Kun, and to the dragon. These two substances are able to transform into each other. Lead belongs to Yin and is the black water; water has the number one, and one belongs to Yin. The other line belongs to Yang. Quicksilver belongs to Wood, whose number is three; cinnabar belongs to Fire, and the number of Fire is two; within Fire there is Yin concealed. Therefore, the medicines themselves each have Yin…

The Qi of Yin-Yang mutually restricts and interacts, and only then is the supreme elixir formed. The two numinous substances spoken of here are the true images of Heaven and Earth and Yin-Yang; how could they be the worldly so-called Eight Stones and Four Yellows? The wise should carefully comprehend this.

Many Perfected since remote antiquity have called them “Zhenjing” (True Realm) and “Zhenmu” (True Mother). Thus it is said that Qian and Kun, firm and yielding, are paired; Dragon and Tiger (which in alchemy symbolize the two Yin-Yang medicinal substances) each weigh eight liang: eight liang belong to Qian, and eight liang belong to Kun. One liang is divided into four fen, and one fen has six zhu; one fen corresponds to one hexagram, and one liang corresponds to four hexagrams. Eight liang total thirty-two fen and correspond to thirty-two hexagrams; Kun’s eight liang likewise correspond to thirty-two hexagrams. Together they make sixty-four hexagrams, which are the root of the Great Dao.

The two eight-liang portions combine into one jin, corresponding to the sixty-four hexagrams. The total number of zhu is three hundred eighty-four, corresponding to the seasonal changes of the year’s three hundred sixty days. The ancient immortals observed the hexagrams of the Yi (Classic of Changes), joined them with Qian and Kun, and correlated them with the solar terms and seasons of the year; when a year’s fire-refining is completed, it exactly accords with the heavenly numbers. Apart from this, how could the Four Yellows and Eight Stones accord with the image of Qian?

The oral formula says: “Huangya (Yellow Sprout, an alchemical term) is one; mercury is two; Wood is three; Fire is two; Water is one; Metal is four; Earth is five.” The cosmological images of Heaven and Earth are contained therein. Solitary Yin cannot accomplish the work, nor can solitary Yang accomplish the work.

The oral formula also says: “White Metal is the master; it is originally the essence of Black Metal.” White Metal refers to the position of the West and the essence of the sun. The Jinbi Jing (Scripture of Gold and Jade, a Daoist alchemical classic) says: “Refine silver within lead, and the divine substance is naturally generated. When smelted with fire in the ash pool, lead sinks and silver floats; the pure white treasure appears, and it can then be used to make gold.”

“Huangya” is also concealed under the name “Huangqing,” and is also called “Autumn Stone.” The West belongs to Dui; stone is the name governed by the Dui trigram. Stone is Yin by nature, but within Yin there is Yang; it is the supreme medicine for long life. The so-called “sprout” refers to the state in which the myriad things first arise, hence it is called “sprout.” White substances turn yellow after being refined by fire, so it is called Huangya (Yellow Sprout). The King of Huainan called it Autumn Stone; after Wang Yang obtained it, he called it Huangya; the Perfected of remote antiquity called it huandan (Returning Elixir).

The Zhijue (Supreme Formula) says that the two numinous substances are supremely wondrous and can be refined into the Great Elixir. The Perfected says: “Gold, after nine refinements within lead, receives the Qi of Water and Fire and appears as mercury; receiving Qi within the Great Yang, it appears as another numinous substance.” These two things each absorb Qi within Yin and Yang; when they are complete, the sage gathers them as the Great Medicine. After blending them and placing them in an earthen vessel, cause Water and Fire above and below to rise and descend; when the work is complete, there will be a thousand transformations and ten thousand changes.

When different things meet, they resonate with one another according to similar natures: when the dragon intones, clouds arise; when the tiger roars, wind is born. This is the sympathetic resonance of the Dao; if their natures are different, they cannot resonate. If other kinds of stone are used…

Jindan Lun (Treatise on the Golden Elixir), Third

If one mixes the medicinal ingredients indiscriminately, with a mind that is not single-minded, and still hopes to refine them into a treasure, then even if one spends many years and months, success will be difficult. These two medicines are a secret method of the Zhenren (Perfected) of Remote Antiquity—those who attained the Dao in high antiquity. Even for a thousand pieces of gold they should not be lightly transmitted. They pertain to the verification of the Golden Elixir (Jindan), the wondrous medicine and attainment spoken of in Daoist cultivation.

Cinnabar is the essence of Taiyin (Great Yin, the Moon), and originally receives the true Qi—pure Qi—of Taiyang (Great Yang, the Sun). Refined by fire, its color turns white; it occupies the foremost place under the Green Emperor (Qingdi, the deity of Wood in the East), and thus it has the name “mercury.” This is Wood born from Fire; cinnabar itself contains virtue, and therefore it is numinous and extraordinary. Lead is originally the black Jing-Qi (essence and vital energy); after transformation it becomes the proper position of Gengxin in the West—the direction and heavenly stems corresponding to the virtue of Metal. Thus Metal generates Water, and Water generates Wood. These two medicines match and balance each other; if one is not utterly numinous and sage-like, how could one refine the elixir?

Ordinary ignorant people sometimes say, “How could there be such a thing as taking the Golden Elixir and attaining immortality?” I often regret such statements. Since antiquity, Zhenren and sages who refined medicines and attained long life number in the hundreds, thousands, and tens of thousands. Everyone has heard of these matters; how could they not believe? They merely keep bringing up Qin Shi Huang and Emperor Wu of Han. Yet the spiritual efficacy of the Great Elixir cannot save one from disasters one has brought upon oneself.

Formerly, Liu Xuanmu followed Master Wei and watched over the elixir furnace for a year. Later he gave rise to doubt, and in the end did not receive the transmission; he died young. Xu Jingxiu, by contrast, was diligent in practice and accumulated virtue day and night without slackening. His master transmitted the medicine to him, and he thereby attained long life and became an immortal. He is still on Mount Taibai and is already over a thousand years old. These two men—one had doubt, the other had none—lived in circumstances no more than a foot apart, yet their outcomes were as different as heaven and earth: one received the transmission, the other did not. Using this affair to explain the principle is already enough to make people believe.

Consider again how when spring arrives and the seasons proceed, the myriad things receive the Qi of spring: flowers fall and fruit forms. The fruit, responsive to the seasonal Qi, ripens and can be eaten by people. Is the action of this Qi not something visible right before our eyes? The five grains can also sustain human life—is this action not visible? How much more so the numinous medicine and Golden Elixir: after being ingested, they can transform a person’s very substance and make one a Zhenren.

It is only that worldly people are deluded and forget their intention to cultivate the Dao: they neither believe nor practice, and therefore have no opportunity to encounter a transmission and cannot succeed. They waste a lifetime in vain and sink down through many kalpas—truly a pity. They covet glory, splendor, and prominence; pursue sounds, colors, and desires; are fettered by fame and profit; and in the end their form declines and their body decays. The Three Officials (Sanguan—Heaven, Earth, and Water in Daoism) take away their lifespan, and the underworld offices punish them—how then could they attain long life?

Moreover, to employ cunning schemes and act contrary to the right Dao only harms oneself; to seize others’ possessions to advance one’s own affairs—how could one then encounter a Zhenren and receive the transmission? Only by cultivating one’s nature, stilling one’s thoughts, gathering in the Shen (spirit), and turning toward the Great Dao can one possibly meet someone who transmits the Dao. If one slanders former worthies and harasses the innocent, how could one possibly hear the Great Dao? The five grains can still nourish Jing and Shen and foster Qi—how much more those medicines refined from decaying substances…

All things can still prolong human life and enhance vitality; how much more so the divine elixir—how could it lack the effects brought by mysterious De (Virtue/Power)?

It can restore the skin, make illnesses recede, keep the countenance youthful, and prolong lifespan. These principles I can explain to you in detail; when you see them with your own eyes, you will understand.

I do not wish to lay out every minor detail, for that would seem cumbersome. The remaining subtle meanings and the Dao (the Way) of purity, stillness, and emptiness have all been written in the golden slips (precious records of Daoist methods). Lord Xu, Mr. Wei, and Master Chunyu—these three each mastered the highest Daoist arts and were all figures of the immortal class. Recently Xie Xuanchong and Su Dan were also people who ingested and refined the Golden Elixir (Jindan) and ascended to immortality; everyone knows these matters, so there is no need to repeat them.

Moreover, among famous mountains and in city markets there are often transcendent people who withdraw among the crowds and do not even wish to reveal their surnames. If they were not people of shared aspiration who jointly seek the Great Dao, how could anyone know them? Please treat these words with care; do not lightly disclose them or treat them with contempt. Otherwise you will bring guilt upon yourself and cause others to slander the Golden Elixir and the sages, plunging you into difficulties for a thousand kalpas.

Have you not heard what the Cantong qi says? “Gold and cinnabar” are the principal ingredients; receiving the harmonization of mercury, the two substances naturally reveal their spiritual nature. It also says that one does not use medicinal substances but uses the Five Phases (Wuxing; Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water); the Five Phases are simply metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. You have also heard of “white horse’s teeth,” “fine cinnabar,” “You Two-Eight,” and “the two families,” have you not? The King of Huainan refined Qiushi (Autumn Stone), and the Yellow Emperor treasured Jinhua (Golden Flower); lead is not ordinary lead but True Lead. True Lead and True Cinnabar, these two substances, match each other; after fulian (sealed refining by prescribed methods), they become one. As the fire timing advances and approaches the ninefold transmutation (repeated refining stages), Yellow Sprout (Huangya) is naturally refined. Fire transforms the white medicine into red-flower flowing mercury; Autumn Stone communicates with them, and the flowing pearl enters the body as if a tiger were swallowing it. As for where to recognize the Jingong (Metal Lord), not everyone knows.

Since ancient times, the number of elixir refiners has been too great to count; if someone understands the principles of lead and mercury transformation, then cultivation and preparation can reach spiritual subtlety. Solitary Yang cannot transform and generate alone, and single Yin cannot achieve completion alone; these two things, originally compatible, each possess the mechanism of transformation. When Dragon and Tiger meet—when will that time come? They join with each other and mutually ingest white liquid, as if becoming husband and wife; following transformation they refine Yellow Sprout, and according to seasonal order they return to Houtu (the Earth that sustains all things). If one can obtain the “Ziheche (Purple River Chariot)”—a term in elixir methods—one may thereby receive the aid of immortals.

If one obtains the oral instructions for cultivating the elixir, marvelous effects can be mastered by the person; the mechanisms of life and killing are also in my hands. Only after careful investigation and verification can one determine that the method is true. If one cultivates the elixir without obtaining the essential instructions, one will exhaust mind and spirit all year long; do not refine that withered, ruined lead and mercury, or the results of your labor will ultimately be as useless as dust.

The elixir medicine between heaven and earth, sun and moon is called the “Metal Lord.” The Metal Lord is lead; it is originally hidden within lead. I have told you plainly, yet deluded people still hastily drop mercury into lead and refine golden flower...

Broadly speaking, it is the same as this. If one takes flowers as medicine, one merely wastes effort. This is the cultivation art of immortals—why not understand it thoroughly? One should read the Cantong qi (Can Tong Qi, the classic that discusses the Dao of alchemy) thoroughly and act according to the ancient methods. As long as one grasps the principle of true lead (zhen qian) and persists in cultivation, one will eventually see results.

Lead and mercury (gong) combine, symbolizing the union of heaven and earth; on this basis one refines the Great Reverted Elixir (Da Huan Dan), the elixir spoken of in Daoist Neidan (internal alchemy). After the elixir is formed, tooth-like signs will naturally appear. Without this, success is truly very difficult. The Perfected of High Antiquity (Taigu Zhenren) said: Now that I can see this transformation with my own eyes, I know that the divine spirits have not deceived people. It should be said that when the elixir is about to settle into form, within it there will be transformations of five-colored numinous light, concealed in that place.

After ten months, the elixir embryo emerges, and it is wondrous to behold. By this, remind those who pursue glory and splendor: after a hundred years, glory too will wither and decline. Why vainly throw away this dusty world, remaining muddled all day, until the time for cultivating the Dao is nearly exhausted? Even if these words are explained clearly, you will still slander them as false; one can only sigh in vain. Look at the southern mountain: dust accumulated over the years will eventually pile into hillocks; in the vast sea of suffering, birth and death rise and fall like waves. In the places where emperors have dwelt since ancient times, what is there worth seeing now?

It further says that the white liquid in the furnace transforms into a yellow “tooth” (huangya, the sign when the elixir first forms) and gradually takes shape. Recalling when they first met, the form of quicksilver was difficult to recognize: when yang qi reaches its utmost, yin arises; when the fire’s force wanes, yang qi gathers and transforms into the “Purple River Chariot” (Ziheche, here referring to a kind of transformation or substance in Neidan cultivation). By consuming it, one may seek long life.

In the first month, the white liquid has just coagulated, like snow. In the second month, it gradually congeals together, like butter. In the third month, within it is a stamen-like shape, and the hanging pearl drops are still faint. In the fourth month, the two substances embrace, like a drop of blood. In the fifth month, the embryo body seems to soar, clings to the mother, and emits whimpering sounds. In the sixth month, it moves to the womb, yin qi is cut off, and its color is like a gosling. Examine it carefully. In the seventh month, the yin region hangs downward, it receives breath, and its hands and feet grow cold. In the eighth month, it is about to take form, and within its viscera is coagulated blood. In the ninth month, little by little it congeals into pearl-like forms, and hair grows. In the tenth month, mother and child are about to separate.

At this time the mother is weary, the fetus is already complete, and its appearance looks white as snow. (After lead leaves the embryo, the flesh attached to the lead is white as snow.) It must still be placed in the furnace to be warmed and nourished; this is called “feeding on milk” (shiru), and the skin and flesh will become moist and glossy. Afterward, according to the oral instructions, one must remove the toxic qi from the emerged elixir embryo; when the medicine is completed it turns red, and after another sixty days the toxic qi can be removed.

Taking this medicine is like an infant still in the mother’s womb: the spirit is clear and refreshed, and muscle and bone are mysteriously differentiated. Practitioners are urged to be meticulous and cautious, not to let time slip away in carelessness. The mystery within cannot be fully told, but it has a definite order; nothing may be omitted or skipped. Once cultivation brings the yellow tooth (huangya) to completion, the work of transformation must continue without cease. After taking it, one may seek long life and reverse white hair; with white silver one can aid the orphaned, the suffering, and the destitute. The benevolent…

After you have obtained this cultivation method, you must persist in practicing it without interruption; only then can you unite with the Dao (the Way). If your karmic affinity is deep, transmit it to a suitable person, and only then can it truly take effect. For those whose hearts are not turned toward the Dao, obtaining it instead brings guilt and disaster, and harm will enter along with it.

This method is not easily obtained and must not be transmitted carelessly. The ancients said that if a secret method is recklessly transmitted, it may bring disaster upon one’s ancestors for seven generations; this saying should be believed, not doubted. The wise and penetrating will eventually obtain it. Today I solemnly entrust these contents to you; you must firmly remember them, and after swearing an oath and forming a covenant, you must keep the agreement even more strictly.

Yang Qi begins to recover from the winter solstice (in the eleventh month one begins to use “applying fire,” xiahuo—that is, during elixir refining, regulating the firing regimen according to the seasons); Yin Qi begins to arise at this time (from the eleventh month use the corresponding firing regimen until the fourth month; in the fifth month, when Yang Qi reaches its utmost and the first Yin is born, the firing regimen must then be changed). The furnace is set in the center, symbolized by Wu and Ji Earth (the heavenly stems representing central Earth among the Five Phases); the upper and lower parts of the cauldron correspond to each other. Carefully guard the elixir and do not let it disperse. Pay attention to changes in the firing regimen and do not miss the seasonal nodes.

In the furnace there are dragon and tiger, chasing one another; the infant grows quietly, with a tender face, and needs the mother to nurture it. The mother grows thin day by day from feeding the child, and when the child grows up the mother is exhausted; mother and child support each other. When Yang Qi reaches its extreme, it is Qian; when Yin Qi reaches its extreme, it is Kun. Qian and Kun together with the Four Images are the gateways of change in the Yijing (Classic of Changes); the principles of the sixty-four hexagrams should also be honored in cultivation. Dragon and tiger interact and swallow one another; thereby Yin-Yang each establish their positions and continue within them. Water and fire serve as the medium, harmonizing Yin-Yang, so that my hun and po souls and Shen (spirit) are nourished and darkness gradually fades.

The eight solar terms turn, and cold and heat change accordingly. Observe carefully, and the elixir gradually reveals the foundation of the “Yellow Sprout.” Sun and moon hasten the transformations, as if the mother were mindful of the grace of nurture; thereby the elixir fruit is formed and the true gateway of cultivation is established. Through a thousand autumns and ten thousand years, it remains ceaselessly generative. Store it carefully, guard it cautiously, and do not speak of it casually. This principle is profound and subtle and should not be explained lightly. The minds of worldly people are turbid, and they often ridicule those who cultivate the Dao; better to dwell deeply in the marketplace or countryside than to show the wondrous medicine to ordinary people, lest one meet with slander and noisy gossip. Be sure to remember to keep it secretly stored in a golden casket. The art of long life should be transmitted to those who cultivate the Dao; they have their names recorded by heavenly officials.

The Main Tenets of the Great Huandan (Return Elixir), Chapter Four

The so-called “Return Elixir” is the elixir consumed by immortals. Since ancient times, heavenly beings have left this technique, transmitting it to the human realm and then to later generations. After the Yellow Emperor obtained it, he ascended to immortality in broad daylight at Ding Lake. As for other immortals of antiquity, they will not be enumerated here one by one.

When speaking of the Return Elixir, it is refined from the most precious substances, including the mysterious pearl contained in cinnabar and the numinous, extraordinary properties of gold and mercury. Naturally formed Return Elixir grows on mountains with shaded backs and sunlit faces. Cinnabar is always produced in the south, not in the north; naturally formed Return Elixir, however, will spontaneously flow...

Mercury is conceived by relying on the Metal Lord (Jingong, the alchemical name for lead). Wherever cinnabar is found, lead and silver are also present. After 4,320 years the elixir is completed: male on the left, female on the right; cinnabar above, Luqing (a mineral) below; they embrace the Qi of the sun and moon and of Yin-Yang. After another 43,243,200 years, one becomes an upper immortal.

The Huandan (Reverted Elixir) of the immortals of the upper realm was originally refined in the lower world. Cultivating lead and mercury can be completed in one year: starting the fire at the “Birth of One Yang” in the eleventh month, by the eleventh month of the following year the elixir is completed. This imitates the Reverted Elixir consumed by upper-realm immortals, heavenly beings, and sages. The so-called “Natural Reverted Elixir” is the elixir taken by upper-realm immortals, heavenly beings, and sages; cultivators today who imitate it according to its pattern can also refine it. If one consumes it according to the number of a great chiliocosm (a vast quantity in Buddhist cosmology), one can also attain longevity and feather transformation, sharing the merit of Heaven.

Someone asked: “Why use one year to imitate the Heavenly Dao in generating the Reverted Elixir?” The answer: “One day and night in the upper realm equals five years in the human world. In the human world, one year has twelve months and 360 days; one month has thirty days, and one day has twelve double-hours, so one month has 360 double-hours, totaling 4,320 double-hours in a year. This is precisely the cycle by which the Heavenly Dao naturally generates the Reverted Elixir.”

This is also the method transmitted from the true immortals of the upper realm to the human world. If one follows the rules and accords with the essence and Qi of the sun and moon and the turning of the four seasons, then refines and consumes it, all can prolong life and ascend on high. Higher adepts who cultivate truth and awaken to principle can undergo feather transformation and fly up; middle adepts who consume it can become earth immortals; lower adepts who consume it can extend their years, attain longevity, and not die. There are separate specific methods for the process of consuming it.

The Mysterious Record of Master Chisongzi, Chapter Five

Master Chisongzi said: The essence of cinnabar has white and vermilion colors. The white kind, which contains the nature of Fire, is called the “Tiger”; the vermilion kind is the Fire Elixir. Mercury is born from the elixir; these three are originally one body. The White Tiger symbolizes Metal and belongs to the Gen position of the west; it contains the five-colored auspicious omen and harbors the wondrous essence of the Eight Stones. Lead is the White Tiger, paired with mercury. The two substances, lead and mercury, serve as ruler and minister to each other; they are also like Heaven and Earth, husband and wife, and can transform to produce the spirit of child and mother. Their wondrous function is the same as that of the Sanhuang (Three Yellows), yet utterly different from ordinary Eight Stones minerals; through transformation and refining, they can be made into an elixir.

In the past I met a Daoist and received a transmission. I cultivated in accordance with the talismanic correspondence and have already reached the realm of feather transformation; therefore I dare to sing the essential formula:

The wonder of immortals is hard to fathom; worldly people do not recognize lead and mercury.

Lead and mercury are the essence of Heaven and Earth, the power of Yin-Yang and Heaven and Earth.

Their efficacy returns to Wu and Ji (the Earth position), able to produce all kinds of food;

All things cannot be separated from Earth…

Gongtu (the function of earth) is the state in which the mother of all things reaches ultimate perfection. The mother nurtures all her children, and the children in turn rely on the mother to multiply and flourish. When the three substances of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth resonate with one another, spiritual efficacy becomes manifest; when the three Qi (the three primordial energies that constitute all things) return to the Xuanyuan (the profound and mysterious source), their function is direct and evident.

Whether a city wall is sturdy depends on how solidly it is built; whether it is sparse or dense also depends on its tenacity. The understanding of things lies with the person; the level of accomplishment likewise depends on one's intentions. When the mind and spirit are bright and numinous, medicines naturally reveal their spiritual efficacy; when the mind and spirit are confused, the effects of medicines become difficult to fathom. The Supreme Dao lies in a state of mental emptiness and profound mystery, whose wonders are difficult to fully comprehend. The wise person who grasps the fundamental source will thereafter attain a state of ascent like rising clouds.

The Verses of the Four Lords of the Liang Dynasty

In the Liang dynasty there were four lords who were transcendents beyond the mundane world. They roamed the eight distant extremities, traversing the four quarters and above a thousand realms, ascending to the heavenly realms and descending into the Nine Darknesses (the deepest underworld).

The four said: "The sage left behind this song:

Lead and mercury combine to accomplish the wondrous work, returning to the decree of the Great Mystery. Though metal exists within the Five Phases, its principle is entirely contained in the wisdom of the Three Talents (heaven, earth, and humanity). The immortals left behind a gateway to the realm of transcendence; consuming elixirs can elevate a person beyond the ordinary. If one can obtain the true gateway of lead and cinnabar, one will naturally become a transcendent."

Yunji Qiqian (Seven Slips from the Cloud Satchel), Volume 66