《抱朴子內篇》Vol. 11

Chapter 11 of the Inner Chapters of Baopuzi, titled "Divine Medicines," documents the effects and methods of consuming various immortal-grade herbs. According to the Shennong Four Classics (ancient medical texts), superior divine medicines can bring health, prolong life, and even enable flight and ascension to immortality, allowing one to roam the heavens and earth, command spirits, grow feathered wings, and summon delicacies at will.

Specifically, the Five Mushrooms (five types of lingzhi), cinnabar (dansha), jade tablets, malachite, realgar, orpiment, mica, and Taiyi Yu Yu Grain can each grant flight and immortality when taken alone. Medium-grade medicines nurture one’s temperament, while lower-grade ones cure illnesses, ward off evil, repel venomous creatures and fierce beasts, and shield against malevolent qi.

The Xiaojing Yuanshenqi (a Han Dynasty apocryphal text) records that Sichuan pepper and ginger protect against dampness, calamus enhances hearing, black sesame (jusheng) extends life, and the fungus weixi deflects weapon injuries. These are verified accounts from ancient sages, yet people still doubt them.

Divine medicines are ranked by potency: the finest is cinnabar, followed by gold, silver, various lingzhi, the Five Jades, mica, luminous pearls, realgar, Taiyi Yu Yu Grain, yellow stone cores, cassia stone, quartz, stone marrow, sulfur, stone honey, and malachite. Others include pine and cypress resin, poria cocos, rehmannia, ophiopogon, black sesame, Paris polyphylla, coptis, pyrrosia, and paper mulberry fruit.

For instance, the plant xiangchai has many names: Chunlu, Immortal’s Staff, Queen Mother of the West’s Staff, Celestial Essence, Age-Reverser, Earth’s Bones, and wolfberry. Asparagus root is also called Earth’s Asparagus, Yan’s Asparagus, Summit Thorn, Goat’s Delight, and Pipe Pine. The best quality grows on high ground, with short, sweet roots and a fresh scent; inferior varieties grow in low wetlands, with thin, yellow, grass-like leaves, long bitter roots, and a foul odor. Though still usable, their effects are slower. After a hundred days of consumption, they strengthen the body more effectively than atractylodes and Solomon’s seal. When entering the mountains, they can be steamed or boiled as grain substitutes. Ideally, they should be powdered, juiced for wine, or taken as a powder—the latter being most potent. In Chu, asparagus is called baibu, though baibu is actually a different herb.

This passage discusses several precious medicinal herbs used in Daoist cultivation, with particular emphasis on carefully discerning their authenticity and proper usage.

First, it mentions Baibu (Stemona root), whose roots all look similar, but whose sprouts have subtle differences. The genuine Baibu sprout resembles a certain plant (possibly "baxie"), and it can only be used to treat coughs and kill parasites—it should not be ingested directly. Similarly, Huangjing (Polygonatum rhizome) is also called Baiji, but it is not the same as the Baiji used to make paste. The Compendium of Materia Medica records many herbs with identical names, and only those with deep expertise can distinguish them accurately.

Huangjing also goes by other names, such as "rabbite bamboo," "rescuer of the poor," and "hanging pearls." Consuming its flowers is better than consuming its fruits, and consuming the fruits is better than consuming the roots. However, the flowers are extremely difficult to gather—ten hu (an ancient unit of volume) of fresh flowers yield only five or six dou when dried. Taking three ge (about 0.3 liters) daily requires long-term persistence to see effects, and a full decade of consumption is needed to achieve its greatest benefits. Although Huangjing can substitute for grain, its effects are inferior to zhu (Atractylodes). Zhu can make a person strong and vigorous, but it is not as sweet and pleasant as Huangjing. In times of famine, Huangjing can serve as food for the elderly and children, as its taste resembles rice cakes.

Next, it discusses the Five Sacred Mushrooms (wuzhi), which include stone mushrooms (shizhi), wood mushrooms (muzhi), grass mushrooms (caozhi), flesh mushrooms (rouzhi), and fungus mushrooms (junzhi), each with hundreds of varieties. It particularly describes the stone-elephant mushroom (shixiangzhi): it grows on rocks along famous coastal mountains or on islands, shaped like an animal with a head, tail, and limbs, clinging to steep cliffs. Their colors vary—red like coral, white like fat, black like lacquer, blue like kingfisher feathers, yellow like purple gold—all translucent like ice. At night, their glow can be seen from three hundred paces away. The larger ones weigh over ten jin, while smaller ones weigh three or four jin. However, unless one has undergone prolonged fasting and cultivation or carries Laozi’s "Lingbao Five Talismans for Entering the Mountains" (rushan lingbao wufu), one will not be able to see this immortal herb.

When discovering a sacred mushroom, one must first use the "Talisman for Opening Mountains and Warding Off Harm" (kaishan quehai fu) to stabilize it, preventing it from vanishing into invisibility. Then, on an auspicious day, one should perform a zhaijiao (purification ritual), offering wine and meat in prayer before gathering it. One must tread the Yubu (Daoist ritual steps) under sunlight, holding one’s breath while plucking it. After obtaining the stone-elephant mushroom, it must be pounded 36,000 times, and each dose should be a fangcunbi (an ancient measurement unit), taken three times a day until fully consumed.

In the Inner Chapters of the Master Who Embraces Simplicity (Baopuzi Neipian), Ge Hong describes the properties and miraculous effects of various divine elixirs. These numinous mushrooms (Lingzhi) all grow in extraordinary environments and possess the wondrous ability to prolong life.

The Jade Fat Mushroom (Yuzhi Zhi) grows on cliffs in deep jade-producing mountains. When jade marrow (the essence of jade) flows for over ten thousand years, it congeals into forms resembling birds or beasts, displaying varied colors but mostly resembling deep greenish-blue jasper, translucent like crystal. After gathering, it is ground into powder and mixed with juice from the "Heartless Grass" (Wuxin Cao), immediately liquefying. Consuming one liter grants a lifespan of one thousand years.

The Seven Luminaries Mushroom (Qiming Zhi) and Nine Lights Mushroom (Jiuguang Zhi) are both stone-based Lingzhi, growing on high mountain cliffs near water, shaped like bowls or plates, some with stems and leaves attached. Those with seven apertures are called Seven Luminaries, while those with nine apertures are called Nine Lights. At night, their glow can be seen from a hundred paces away, shining like starlight. Collected during the autumn equinox, a single spoonful, when pounded and ingested, warms the entire body with a sweet taste. Consuming one jin (approx. 500g) grants a thousand-year lifespan and causes the body to emit light, glowing like moonlight in darkness.

The Stone Honey Mushroom (Shimi Zhi) grows deep within the caves of Mount Shaoshi, where impassable chasms lie inside. About ten zhang (approx. 30m) from the cave entrance stands a stone pillar, atop which a mushroom-like honey continuously exudes from its canopy-shaped platform—yet none can retrieve it. Inscriptions in tadpole script on the cave walls record that consuming one dou (approx. 10 liters) grants ten thousand years of life.

The Stone Cassia Mushroom (Shigui Zhi) grows in stone crevices of famous mountains, resembling a cassia tree but made entirely of stone, standing over a foot tall, glowing with a pungent taste. Ingesting one jin after grinding extends life by a thousand years.

The Stone’s Yellow Core (Shizhong Huangzi), a yellow mineral, is especially abundant in Mount Qinshui, hidden within massive rocks. These stones remain perpetually moist, requiring chiseling through dozens of layers to extract. These accounts reflect the Daoist cultivation principle of "borrowing external substances to fortify oneself" (jia waiwu yi zi jian’gu), asserting that certain minerals and herbs contain the refined essence of Heaven and Earth.

This passage describes several miraculous "zhi" (芝) fungi used in Daoist cultivation practices and their extraordinary effects.

The text mentions a liquid resembling flowing egg yolk (石中黄子, shizhong huangzi) that must be consumed before it solidifies into stone—once hardened, it becomes inedible. When breaking open the rock, one may obtain up to a liter or as little as a few deciliters (an ancient unit of measurement) of the substance, which should be consumed in a single dose. Though large quantities are rare, accumulating three liters over time is said to grant a thousand-year lifespan.

Another type, called 石脑芝 (shinao zhi), is concealed within talc stones—one must shatter a thousand pieces to find a single specimen. Upon breaking it open, the fungus emits multicolored light and moves spontaneously within the stone. Consuming a liter of it also promises longevity of a thousand years. There is also 石硫黄芝 (shiliuhuang zhi), found across the Five Sacred Peaks but most abundant on Mount Ji. Legend claims the sage Xu You achieved immortality by ingesting this substance.

The text further describes 木芝 (mu zhi), formed when pine or cypress resin buried underground transforms over a millennium into poria fungus (茯苓, fuling). After ten thousand years, a lotus-like growth called 木威喜芝 (mu weixi zhi) emerges from the poria. This fungus glows at night, remains impossibly smooth, and cannot be burned. Wearing it repels weapons—an experiment with chickens demonstrated invulnerability to twelve simultaneous arrows. It must be gathered from specific directions, processed through esoteric methods, and consuming one piece grants three thousand years of life.

Lastly, millennial catalpa wood (栝木, gua mu) develops roots resembling seated human figures that bleed when cut. Applying this blood to one's feet enables walking on water without sinking; smearing it on the nose parts rivers for deep diving; anointing the body confers invisibility; and ingesting it cures internal ailments.

This passage discusses various types of miraculous fungi and elixirs used in Daoist alchemy (Waidan), along with their extraordinary effects. They are primarily categorized as follows:

Topical remedies: For external swelling or pain, one can scrape a minute amount of medicinal powder (using the ancient measurement "knife-guǐ" - an extremely small unit) and apply it to the affected area with massage for immediate relief. For instance, if the left foot is afflicted, the medicine should be applied to the left foot.

Treasure-finding techniques: By crafting candles from mixed jùshèng (a specific plant) and lighting them at night, if there are gold, silver, or treasures buried underground, the candle flame will turn bluish and droop downward. Digging at such spots will reveal hidden wealth.

Longevity-enhancing divine fungi:

• Flying Knot Fungus (Feijie Zhi): Grows within the bark of three-thousand-year-old pine trees, shaped like dragons, with large specimens weighing up to ten jin. Consuming ten jin grants a thousand-year lifespan.
• Peach Fence Fungus (Fantao Zhi): Tree-shaped like flying dragons, with flower-leaves resembling red gauze and fruits like kingfishers, never exceeding five chi in height. Found in shaded areas of famous mountains. Collected at the start of summer, consuming an entire plant grants five thousand years of life.
• Triune Fungus (Sancheng Zhi): Glows red, with branches that produce metallic sounds when struck and automatically rejoin when broken.
• Wood Channel Fungus (Muqu Zhi): Parasitic on large trees, growing in clusters of nine stems like lotuses, with a sweet yet pungent taste.
• Pillar Fungus (Jianmu Zhi): Grows on the mythical Mount Duguang, with bark resembling snakeskin and fruits like phoenixes. Consuming any of these three fungi enables daytime ascension to immortality.

Other divine elixirs:

• Yellow Deer Seed, Seamless Blossom, and Dark Nectar Blossom: Found around Mount Tai, granting a thousand-year lifespan when consumed.
• Yellow Corktree Fungus (Huangbo Tanhuan Zhi): Roots beneath thousand-year-old cork trees, shaped like three ancient hú containers, located one or two zhang from the main trunk and connected by fine roots. Eating one piece transforms the consumer into an earthbound immortal (dixian).
• Self-Shaking Fungus (Duyao Zhi): Moves without wind, with finger-thick red stems and amaranth-like leaves. Its root has a large central mass the size of a dou container, surrounded by twelve smaller egg-sized nodules arranged like the twelve double-hours. Grows in high mountains and deep valleys where no other vegetation thrives nearby. Consuming the large portion grants a thousand years, while smaller portions confer a century of life.

The text concludes by noting there are 120 such divine medicines in total, all documented with illustrations. These descriptions reflect the Daoist pursuit of immortality through consuming special fungi and elixirs as part of cultivation practice.

This scripture introduces several miraculous lingzhi mushrooms (sacred herbs in Daoism with longevity-enhancing properties) and the medicinal effects of extraordinary creatures.

The Ox Horn Lingzhi grows on Tiger Longevity Mountain and Wu Slope. Resembling a scallion, it stands alone like an ox horn, three to four feet long and green in color. Taking a small spoonful (an ancient unit of measurement) three times daily for a hundred days allows one to live a thousand years. The Dragon Immortal Lingzhi takes the shape of a flying dragon, with leaves like scales and roots coiled like a serpent—consuming just one piece grants a millennium of life.

The Hemp Mother Lingzhi resembles hemp, but its stems are red and its flowers purple. The Pearl Lingzhi bears yellow blossoms, red leaves, and fruits like purple plums, with twenty-four branches cascading like strings of beads. The White Talisman Lingzhi stands four to five feet tall, resembling plum blossoms, blooming in heavy snow and bearing fruit in deep winter. The Vermilion Grass Lingzhi has nine bends, each with three leaves, and each leaf produces three fruits. The Five Virtues Lingzhi is shaped like a pavilion, with a square stem, leaves of five distinct yet harmonious colors, and a canopy-like top, often enveloped in purple mist several feet high.

The Dragon-Holding Lingzhi typically grows in pairs during mid-spring, with three nodes and twelve branches, its roots resembling a seated figure. There are one hundred twenty varieties of these mushrooms; dried and consumed, they allow one to live as long as heaven and earth, some granting a thousand or even two thousand years.

Among the flesh-based sacred creatures is the Ten-Thousand-Year Toad, a legendary long-lived toad with horns on its head and red markings forming the character "eight" on its chin. If captured at noon on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, dried for a hundred days, and its left foot used to draw on the ground, it can summon flowing water. Wearing its left forelimb repels weapons, causing enemy arrows to rebound. The Thousand-Year Bat is pure white and hangs upside down to roost. Both creatures, when dried and powdered, extend life to forty thousand years.

The Thousand-Year Spirit Turtle has multicolored patterns, with males sporting two protruding bones on their foreheads like horns. After washing it in goat’s blood, its shell is removed, roasted over fire, ground, and consumed—three doses daily from a whole turtle grants a thousand years of life. Spotting tiny figures seven or eight inches tall riding horse-drawn carriages in the mountains also indicates flesh lingzhi; capturing and consuming them leads to immortality.

Another creature, the Wind-Born Beast, resembles a marten—blue in color and the size of a wildcat—inhabiting the great forests of the Southern Sea. Even if caught in nets and burned under piles of firewood, it emerges unscathed once the flames die down.

This marvelous beast can lie in ashes without burning—its fur remains unscorched, blades cannot pierce it, and strikes feel like hitting a leather sack. Only after hammering its head thousands of times with an iron mallet will it die. Once dead, if its mouth is left open to the wind, it revives shortly and escapes. To kill it permanently, stuff its nostrils with Acorus calamus (Shi Changpu). Consuming its brain marrow mixed with chrysanthemum, ingesting ten jin (catties) of it, grants a lifespan of five hundred years.

There is also the millennium swallow, whose nests all face north, with predominantly white feathers and curved tails. Dried in the shade and ground into powder, consuming just one of these swallows extends life by five hundred years. These creatures belong to the 120 types of "flesh zhi" (animal-form lingzhi).

Fungal zhi (mushroom-form lingzhi) grow in deep mountains, beneath great trees, or by spring waters. Their shapes are wildly varied: some resemble palaces or houses, others chariots or horses, dragons or tigers, human figures, or flying birds, with colors shifting unpredictably. There are also 120 varieties of these fungal zhi, all documented in illustrated manuals. To harvest them, approach using Yu Steps (a Daoist ritual gait), cut with a bone knife, dry in the shade, and grind into powder. A dose the size of a fangcunbi (an ancient medicinal spoon) of the finest grade can elevate one to immortality for millennia, while lesser grades still confer a thousand years of life.

When entering mountains to seek zhi, choose the third or ninth lunar month—when the "mountain gates" open and divine medicines manifest. Avoid days when mountain deities are wrathful; the ideal time is Tianfu (an auspicious hour), especially if coinciding with the convergence of the Sanqi (the Three Marvels: Yi, Bing, Ding). Arrive at the mountain during the Mingtang hour (another auspicious time) on a Liuyin day (a specific propitious date), carrying a Lingbao talisman, leading a white dog, holding a white chicken, and bringing a peck of white salt. Place the Mountain-Opening Talisman on a large rock and enter holding a stalk of Wutang grass—this pleases the mountain deities, ensuring success in finding zhi.

Harvesting and consuming zhi should align with Wangxiang days (auspicious dates), ideally when celestial stems and earthly branches harmonize. These zhi exist in famous mountains, but mediocre Daoists—distracted, impure in conduct, shallow in virtue, and ignorant of mountain-entry rituals—fail to recognize them even with manuals, thus never obtaining them. All mountains, great or small, are guarded by spirits; if these spirits withhold the zhi, one could tread upon them and still not see.

Additionally, mica comes in five types, difficult for ordinary people to distinguish. The correct method is to hold it up to sunlight to observe its hues—only careful scrutiny reveals the differences. In shadow, impurities remain invisible. The five varieties are:

• Yunying (Cloud Essence): predominantly bluish, suited for spring consumption.
• Yunzhu (Cloud Pearl): reddish, for summer.
• Yunye (Cloud Liquid): whitish, for autumn.
• Yunsha (Cloud Sand): blackish, for winter.
• Pure yellow Yunmu (Cloud Mother): for the transitional months between seasons.

This passage primarily explains the methods and effects of ingesting the five types of mica (an important mineral substance in Daoist cultivation). The five micas are named differently based on their colors and have corresponding seasons for consumption: the red-dominant type is called Cloud Pearl (Yunzhu), suitable for summer; the white-dominant type is Cloud Liquid (Yunye), ideal for autumn; the black-dominant type is simply called Mica (Yunmu), best taken in winter; the blue-yellow variety is Cloud Sand (Yunsha), recommended for late summer; while the pure white type, Phosphorescent Stone (Linshi), can be consumed year-round.

There are various refining methods: dissolving in scallion-infused cinnamon water, boiling in dew within iron vessels, mixing with saltpeter and burying underground, blending with honey into a cheese-like paste, soaking in autumn dew for a hundred days before pounding into powder with leather pouches, or combining with Wudian grass and ailanthus blood. Consistent consumption for one year can cure all ailments; three years will rejuvenate the elderly; five years grants supernatural abilities—such as commanding spirits, immunity to fire and water—ultimately enabling meetings with immortals.

The text highlights mica's unique properties: while other substances rot when buried or char when burned, these five micas remain unharmed by fire and undecayed in earth, thus conferring longevity. After ten years of ingestion, cloud-like vapor will envelop one's head. A caution is given—mica appearing pure black when viewed against sunlight must not be consumed, as it causes illness. All micas must first be soaked for a hundred days in eave-drippings or east-flowing water to remove impurities.

The passage concludes with the example of Wei Shuqing of Zhongshan, who gained cloud-riding abilities after prolonged mica consumption and sealed the formula in a jade casket. Later, both his son and the Han envoy Liang Bo achieved immortality by following this recipe. Additional notes specify that realgar for alchemy must be sourced from Wudu Mountain, exhibiting rooster-comb red brilliance—merely yellow varieties without red glow are only fit for ordinary medicine. Realgar consumption methods include steaming, wine ingestion, saltpeter dissolution, or steaming with animal casings.

This passage describes ancient methods of using jade as an elixir of immortality. In Daoism, jade was revered as a divine medicine, but its application required precise techniques.

Some practitioners would mix jade with pine resin or combine it with two other materials in alchemical processes, producing jade as soft as cloth. Consuming this substance was believed to make one's skin white as snow and ice, grant immortality, cure all diseases, eliminate the "Three Corpse Worms" (three malevolent spirits believed to reside in the human body according to Daoist thought), remove scars, restore black hair, and even regrow lost teeth. After consistent use for a thousand days, jade maidens (immortal beings) would allegedly come to serve the practitioner, who could also summon "traveling kitchens" (a Daoist magical ability to materialize food). Authentic jade maidens would leave a yellow jade mark the size of a millet grain on one's nose—those without this mark were impostor spirits.

While jade truly possesses divine medicinal properties, obtaining its benefits is challenging. The Jade Scripture states: "Those who ingest gold live as long as gold; those who ingest jade live as long as jade." "Xuanzhen" is another name for jade—consuming it could not only make one an earthbound immortal but also enable celestial ascension, though the effects manifest slowly, requiring ingestion of one to two hundred jin (approx. 50-100kg) before becoming apparent.

Specific methods included dissolving jade in black rice wine or sanguisorba wine, converting it to paste with scallion juice, forming it into pills, or burning it to ashes for consumption. Consistent use for over a year purportedly granted supernatural abilities: remaining dry in water, unburned in fire, invulnerable to weapons, and immune to all poisons. Crucially, one must use raw, uncarved jade rather than worked pieces, with white jade from Khotan (an ancient Central Asian kingdom) being most prized, followed by jade from Xushanting in Nanyang or the Lurong waters of Rinan.

The ancient immortal Chisongzi would soak jade stones in the blood of mysterious insects to create a drinkable liquid, enabling him to ride clouds and mists. Consuming jade powder produced effects similar to drinking jade water—both could confer immortality—though jade was less effective than gold and prone to causing heat sensations, much like the ancient cold-food powder remedy. When taking jade powder, it was recommended to supplement every ten days with small doses of realgar and cinnabar (measured in ancient daogui units), followed by loosening one's hair, bathing, and walking in the wind after a cold rinse to prevent overheating.

A certain Dong Junyi reportedly restored a blind man's sight within ten days using a jade elixir. Another seeker named Wu Yanzhi collected numerous jade artifacts for longevity purposes before realizing his methods were flawed, lamenting: "One must master a practice thoroughly—not only was it useless, it nearly brought disaster." Silver had similar properties, though...

This scripture discusses Daoist methods for achieving longevity and immortality through ingesting various medicinal substances. It mentions numerous rare herbs and their preparation methods:

Gold and jade can transform a person into an earthbound immortal (one who attains longevity but hasn't ascended). These should be dissolved in wheat broth, taken with vermilion herb wine, or refined with dragon fat. Each dose should be the size of a pellet, though such elixirs are difficult for ordinary impoverished Daoists to obtain.

Authentic pearls over one inch in diameter can be taken long-term. When soaked in fermented milk, they transform into mercury-like liquid. They can also be combined with floating stone water, honeycomb, and serpentine yellow to make pills three to four feet long. After ingestion, one can practice grain avoidance (bigu) without dying.

Pure lacquer (unadulterated) grants spiritual communion and longevity when ingested. Taken with ten large crabs, mica water, or jade water, it expels intestinal parasites and corrupted blood. After one year, the practitioner gains the "Six Jia Traveling Kitchen" (a type of supernatural ability).

Cassia can be steamed with scallion juice, taken with bamboo sap, or ingested with turtle brain. After seven years, one can walk on water and achieve immortality. Sesame prevents aging and resists wind-dampness. Peach resin soaked in mulberry ash water cures all ailments—long-term use makes the body light and agile, emitting moonlight-like radiance at night.

The text records how the Daoist Liang Xu began taking certain medicines at age seventy, rejuvenating to appear forty. At 140 years old, he could write at night and run like a horse before becoming an immortal in the mountains. Sophora seeds sealed in new jars for over twenty days nourish the brain and prevent graying hair.

Finally, it mentions over three hundred herbs like rehmannia and coptis that extend life when taken individually. Elixirs like the Lingfei Powder and Weiyang Pill preserve youthful appearance. Notably, the sweet water of Nanyang's Gan Valley owes its flavor to chrysanthemums falling from its banks—hinting at nature's importance in cultivation.

These methods reflect the Daoist pursuit of immortality through alchemical ingestion, though the text implies many rare ingredients are hard to obtain, suggesting material prerequisites for practice.

This passage records several miraculous cases related to longevity. In Gangu Valley, the inhabitants never dug wells but drank instead from the valley's sweet spring water. Those who drank this water commonly enjoyed extended lifespans—the oldest living to 140 or 150 years, while even the shortest-lived reached 80 or 90, with no cases of premature death. High-ranking officials such as Wang Chang, Liu Kuan, and Yuan Wei, while serving in Nanyang, dispatched people monthly to transport forty hu (an ancient measure) of water from Lixian County for their personal consumption. This cured their rheumatism and dizziness, though the effects were not as pronounced as for the locals who had drunk the water since childhood.

The text particularly notes that Gangu water contains the essence of chrysanthemums (referred to by poetic names such as "Solar Essence," "Rebirth," and "Full Cycle"). True chrysanthemums have a sweet taste, unlike the bitter mock chrysanthemum (yihua), but genuine specimens are rare, mostly growing near water, with Mount Goushi and Lixian County being the most abundant sources. Many who consume chrysanthemums today see no effect because they cannot obtain the authentic variety.

The author Ge Hong recounts that his grandfather, while serving as magistrate of Linyuan County, discovered that the Liao family had enjoyed generational longevity, with members living to 80, 90, or even 100 years. After they moved away, their descendants often died young, yet when others occupied their former residence, they too began living longer. Eventually, it was found that the well water had a reddish hue, and upon excavation, dozens of hu of cinnabar (a crucial ingredient in Daoist alchemy, dan) were unearthed near the well. The cinnabar had seeped into the water over time, explaining its life-extending properties.

Another account tells of Zhao Ju, a man from Shangdang who suffered from leprosy for years and was abandoned by his family in a cave. As he wept day and night, an immortal (xian) took pity on him and gave him a packet of medicine. After a hundred days of taking it, he was completely cured—his hair turned black again, and his skin regained its luster. He was said to have lived 170 years. This story illustrates that even ailments deemed incurable can be reversed with genuine medicine.

This passage records two stories about attaining longevity through consuming pine resin. The first tells of a man named Qu who encountered an immortal and received a pouch of medicine. After taking it for a hundred days, not only were his sores healed, but his complexion became radiant. The immortal revealed this was simply pine resin, abundant in the mountains—properly refining and consuming it could grant immortality. Returning home, Qu took pine resin long-term until his body grew light and his strength multiplied. At 170 years old, his teeth and hair showed no signs of aging, and at night he could see strange lights and two small celestial maidens playing on his face. Finally, he entered Baodu Mountain (a sacred Daoist site) and became an earthbound immortal (a lower-ranking transcendent being).

The second story occurred during Emperor Cheng of Han’s reign, when hunters found a wild woman covered in black hair in the Zhongnan Mountains. Upon capture, she claimed to be a palace maid from the Qin dynasty who fled into the mountains when the dynasty fell. Starving, she met an old man who taught her to eat pine needles and pine nuts. Though bitter at first, she adapted and thereafter felt neither hunger nor thirst, remaining unaffected by winter cold or summer heat. Calculating the timeline, she would have been a palace maid during the reign of Ziying, the last Qin ruler—meaning she had lived over two hundred years by Emperor Cheng’s time.

The author, Ge Hong, reflects that while pine resin’s life-extending properties are known, few persist in consuming it. Most abandon the practice after a month without dramatic results. These stories illustrate how spiritual cultivation demands perseverance—a discipline worldly people often struggle to maintain.

This passage records several ancient accounts of individuals attaining miraculous effects through consuming specific medicinal herbs. During the Yellow Emperor's era, one man lived over three hundred years. When he later returned to human society and ate grains, the smell made him vomit for days before he adapted. Two years later, his hair fell out and he aged rapidly to death—had he not returned to the mortal world, he could have achieved immortality.

The ancestor of the Wen family in Nanyang fled to the mountains during the chaos of the late Han dynasty. Starving and near death, he encountered someone who taught him to eat Atractylodes (a medicinal herb), after which he never felt hunger again. Decades later, when he returned to his hometown, his face appeared younger, and his strength had increased. While in the mountains, his body became so light that he could effortlessly climb steep cliffs and walk through snow without feeling cold. He once saw several people sitting high on a cliff playing chess and reading books. Among them, one discussed whether he should be summoned upward, but another replied that the time was not yet right.

The text lists multiple cultivators who ingested different herbs with extraordinary results: the Eight Immortals each consumed a specific herb and lived for centuries; Han Zhong ate calamus for thirteen years until hair covered his entire body, granting him perfect memory and resistance to winter cold; Zhao Tazi took cinnamon for twenty years until hair grew on his feet, enabling him to walk five hundred li a day; Yimenzi consumed schisandra for sixteen years until his skin became jade-like, impervious to fire and water; Chu Wenzi ingested rehmannia for eight years until he could see in the dark as if it were daylight; Lin Ziming ate Atractylodes for eleven years until his ears elongated and his body became light as a swallow; Du Ziwei consumed asparagus root and fathered 130 sons; Ren Ziji took poria cocos for eighteen years until he could turn invisible and his scars vanished; Lingyang Zizhong ingested polygala for twenty years and had thirty-seven children.

These records illustrate that different herbs possess unique effects, but one must also consider their mutual interactions—some reinforcing, others conflicting.

The Inner Chapters of Baopuzi primarily discusses precautions regarding medicinal consumption. Ge Hong (Daoist name Baopuzi) points out that while herbal medicines may prolong life for several hundred years, only the refinement of divine elixirs (shen dan) can lead to immortality. Vegetal medicines merely sustain life temporarily and are not true longevity agents.

Regarding timing, Ge Hong cites Zhonghuangzi's view: Disease-treating medicines should be taken before meals when the stomach is empty, allowing their potency to take full effect. Life-nourishing medicines, however, should be taken after meals to prevent their efficacy from being diluted by food. His teacher Zheng Jun further explains that pre-meal dosing concentrates medicinal power for healing, while post-meal administration enables gradual release of nourishing effects.

On the compatibility between medicines and constitutions, Ge Hong references the Five Phases (wuxing) correspondence theories recorded in Yu Ce Ji and Kai Ming Jing: A person's birth year corresponds to one of the Five Phases (Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, Earth), and medicine colors that overcome one's phase should be avoided. For example, Earth-phase individuals shouldn't consume green medicines (Wood overcomes Earth), nor should Metal-phase persons take red medicines (Fire overcomes Metal). However, such restrictions don't apply to supreme Golden Elixirs (jindan).

Specifically: The earthly branches of birth years correspond to Five Phases attributes (e.g., zi and wu branches belong to Geng Metal, mao and you to Ji Earth), while syllable counts in names correspond to the Five Tones (gong, shang, jue, zhi, yu). For instance, single-syllable names associate with the gong tone (Earth), three-syllable names with the zhi tone (Fire). This intricate system reflects Daoism's unique integration of astronomical calendars, musical theory, and life-nourishing practices.

This passage primarily discusses two aspects: the practice method of Yu Steps (a Daoist walking technique) and the preparation and effects of several elixirs.

Regarding the Yu Steps practice method: Begin by stepping the left foot forward past the right foot, then bring the right foot alongside the left. Next, step the right foot forward past the left foot and bring the left foot alongside the right. Then step the right foot forward past the left again, bringing the left foot alongside. These three steps should cover a total distance of two zhang and one chi (approximately 7 meters), leaving nine footprints on the ground. This walking technique forms the foundation of minor spirit arts.

The elixir section details several immortality elixir preparations:

The first method combines three jin of true cinnabar (Zhen Dan) with one jin of white honey. After sun-drying, the mixture is decocted into pills. Taking ten sesame-sized pills each morning can turn white hair black and regrow lost teeth within a year, while making skin radiant. Long-term use rejuvenates the elderly, and perpetual consumption grants immortality.

The second is the small-dose gold formula: Melt gold and immerse it in clear wine, repeating the process two hundred times until boiling. Successful preparation is achieved when the gold becomes malleable like clay between fingers. If it doesn't boil or remain pliable, remelting is required. After forming bullet-sized pills, divide them into smaller doses. Thirty days of continuous consumption summons divine beings and jade maidens. Silver can be similarly prepared. After taking both substances, one year of cultivation in mountain stone chambers enables ascension. Earthbound consumption makes one an Earth Immortal (a terrestrial transcendent), though this method shouldn't be casually transmitted.

The third method uses lard to refine gold: Simmer three jin of lard with one dou of bitter wine and five liang of gold, immersing the gold in the wine one hundred times. Consuming one jin of this gold grants lifespan equal to heaven and earth; half a jin gives two thousand years, while five liang provides two thousand two hundred years. Preparation must occur on auspicious days, or the efficacy fails.

Finally, to eliminate the Three Corpses (Daoist concept of parasitic body demons), one should ingest cinnabar. The preparation involves pounding one jin of cinnabar with three sheng of bitter wine and two sheng of pure lacquer (alternate versions mention two sheng of honey), simmering the mixture into pills over low heat for consumption.

When taking this elixir, consume two pills the size of hemp seeds each time, twice daily. After persisting for forty days, all abdominal ailments will be cured, and the Three Corpse Worms (the three harmful parasites believed in Daoism to reside in the human body) will be expelled. Continuous use for one hundred days will strengthen muscles and bones. Upon completing a thousand days of ingestion, the Director of Fate (the deity overseeing life and death) will erase your name from the register of mortality, enabling you to share the longevity of heaven and earth, coexisting with the sun and moon. At this stage, your physical form will undergo wondrous transformations—you may alter your appearance at will, walk under sunlight without casting a shadow, and your body will naturally emit radiance.

(Note: This passage describes the miraculous effects of Daoist alchemical cultivation, reflecting ancient aspirations for immortality. Modern readers should approach its mystical elements with discernment, focusing instead on the underlying health-preservation philosophy.)