《女丹合編》Vol. 2

There are both men and women between heaven and earth. Yet since ancient times, many men have attained the Dao and become immortals, while few women have. Why is this?

Men can travel freely in search of renowned teachers, whereas women find it difficult to leave home to seek instruction. Danjing, Daoist alchemical texts for men, are piled high and available everywhere, while those for women are scattered and lack a systematic dedicated work. Seven or eight men in ten can read and understand principles, but scarcely one or two women in a hundred can do so. If women also had their own cultivation texts, could all read and understand them, and were allowed to travel freely in search of teachers and the Dao, they might attain immortality in numbers no smaller than men.

However, women's cultivation also faces many problems. Some slander practitioners; some belittle practice itself; some become irritated at its very mention; some prevent others from practicing; and some have no understanding of its benefits. Some know it is good but cannot let go of worldly ties. Some leave worldly life and enter religious communities, yet seek only comfort and leisure rather than diligent practice. Some, without support in childhood or security in old age, are driven by hardship to seek a livelihood in Buddhist institutions. Some rush ahead recklessly without following the stages of cultivation. Some confuse men's and women's methods. Some know only men's Danjing and not women's. Some take refuge in Buddhism and know only how to recite the Buddha's name and cultivate Xing, their inner nature, without understanding the techniques of women's alchemy, which cultivates Ming, the life foundation. Some mistake the male Qixue, one cun and three fen below the navel, for the Xuanguan, the crucial gateway in women's practice. Some join charitable halls and know only vegetarian observance, worship, releasing animals, and good deeds to seek blessings and avoid misfortune, without knowing that women's first task in this system is Zhan Chilong, "slaying the Red Dragon," or stopping menstruation. Some rush into Ming cultivation without first repenting of wrongdoing, building virtue, doing good, and clarifying the mind to perceive their true nature. Some are kind-hearted but burdened by bad habits, too proud to learn from a true teacher, and attempt Zhan Chilong on their own. Some stubbornly fix their attention on the Xuanguan, causing Qi to become blocked and leading to illness or even death. Some complete Zhan Chilong but do not understand the stages and Huohou, or timing of refinement, in men's alchemy. Others, when faced with trials of cultivation such as war, epidemics, lawsuits, and rumors...

Women practicing the Dao encounter many obstacles and misconceptions. Some give up when a teacher who supports their practice or a fellow practitioner becomes ill or dies, or when their group falls into conflict or breaks apart. Others learn a little and become self-important, assuming that this superficial knowledge is the true meaning of the Great Dao.

Some practitioners are entangled in everyday affairs and cannot concentrate on cultivation. Others have restless minds and excessive desires. Although they appear to practice, they are inwardly torn between spiritual aspiration and worldly impulses, and struggle to find true stillness. Some women practicing chastity are obstructed by their birth families; some widows practicing while remaining faithful to their late husbands are rejected by their in-laws.

There are also many mistaken ideas. Some admire immortals and Buddhas but keep postponing practice, always saying, "I will start next year." Some want to save enough money first. Others remain greedy, angry, and full of sexual desire: they cannot let go of romantic and family attachments, yet want to become immortals. Some have blocked Qi channels and lumps in their bodies, yet dream of ascending to heaven. Some behave improperly and spread gossip, yet expect celestial immortals to come and guide them.

Certain approaches are even more absurd. Some kill living beings and excuse themselves by saying, "Lay down the butcher's knife and become a Buddha at once." Others refuse to abstain from meat and alcohol, deceiving themselves with the saying, "Wine and meat pass through the gut, while the Buddha sits in the heart." Some outwardly follow a vegetarian religious diet but are as fierce as wolves and tigers inside, treating their parents-in-law and sisters-in-law as enemies.

Others stray onto harmful paths. Some mistakenly trust unorthodox teachings. Some believe spirit mediums and witchcraft and are led into places of sexual misconduct. Some trick respectable women into serving as Luding, or "furnaces and cauldrons," in improper cultivation practices, ruining their own reputations. Some women are deceived by corrupt teachers and willingly serve as Luding in pursuit of immortality, only to end in disgrace.

On pilgrimages to burn incense at sacred mountains, some women casually form relationships with monks and Daoists, planting the seeds of romantic attachment. Some Buddhist and Daoist nuns claim to transmit teachings while using talismans, enchanted water, and similar methods to extract money. Others receive authentic instructions but either rush to teach them without practicing themselves or pass them to unsuitable people, revealing heavenly secrets and bringing heavenly punishment upon themselves.

This passage mainly discusses pitfalls and essential points in women's practice of Neidan, or Daoist internal alchemy. It first lists several common mistakes. Some receive an authentic transmission but never pass it on, causing the teaching to die out. Some trust dubious alchemical methods and buy large quantities of furnaces and equipment, hoping to make an elixir that will let them ascend to heaven, only to lose their entire fortunes. Some recklessly gather the essence of the sun and moon, swallow clouds and breathe out mist, or ingest plants, minerals, and metals, developing serious illnesses that cannot be cured. Others believe their bodies are defective and abandon practice. All these errors obstruct cultivation.

The author stresses that real achievement requires studying Danjing, alchemical scriptures, comparing their teachings with one's own experience, and consulting knowledgeable teachers and fellow practitioners to distinguish sound methods from harmful ones. Those who have gone astray should repent promptly; those who have not should remain careful. The central point is that the Great Dao is found within one's own heart, rather than outside the body.

The passage then explains three major differences between women's and men's cultivation.

First are differences in disposition. Men belong to Yang and are described as forceful, impatient, and full of scattered thoughts. Women belong to Yin and are described as gentle, unhurried, and pure in mind. Men tend toward activity and readily expend Qi; women tend toward stillness and readily gather it. Men's cultivation cycle is compared to the sun completing a circuit in a year, and women's to the moon completing one in a month. Men's Jing and Qi are difficult to bring under control, while women's Qi and blood are easier to regulate.

Second are bodily differences. Men have prominent Adam's apples and small, flat breasts without milk, while women have no prominent Adam's apple and have full breasts with milk. Men's reproductive organs project outward, while women's lie inward. Men's Jing and Qi are stored in the lower Dantian, the Qixue or Qi cavity; women's are stored in the breasts. For men, the waist serves as the "kidneys" in this system; for women, blood does. Men's white reproductive essence is called Baihu, the White Tiger; women's red menstrual blood is called Chilong, the Red Dragon. Men are described as having abundant Jing and Qi, and women as having weaker blood and Qi.

Third are differences in method. Men first refine their innate Yuanqi, or original Qi, and then refine the body. Women must first nurture the body, Qi, and blood. These fundamental differences mean that women require specific methods and cannot simply copy men's alchemical practices.

The fundamental principles of cultivation differ between men and women. In men, yang qi (vital energy) dissipates downward from the lower body, while in women it ascends upward. Male practitioners must prevent semen loss, known as "subduing the white tiger"; female practitioners must cease menstruation, called "beheading the red dragon."

Men achieve immortality through reverse cultivation of jing (essence) and qi, while women redirect menstrual blood upward to the heart cavity. The seven emotions are harder to control but easier to restrain in men, whereas women find them easier to indulge yet also simpler to rein in. Male practice is termed "solar qi refinement," female practice "lunar form refinement." What men cultivate is called the "embryo," while women develop "breath."

In terms of results: After subduing the white tiger, a man's genitals shrink to childlike proportions; after beheading the red dragon, a woman's breasts contract to resemble a man's. Men manifest yang shen (spirit projection) more slowly and attain the Dao gradually, while women achieve both more swiftly. Men can ascend independently; women require assistance. Men must undergo "wall-facing" (prolonged seclusion), whereas women need only brief "return to emptiness" (meditative absorption). Male adepts are called "Perfected Persons" (zhenren), female adepts "Primordial Ladies" (yuanjun).

These are differences in method, but the fundamental principle of dual cultivation of nature and life (xingming shuangxiu) remains identical. Female practitioners should first understand these distinctions before seeking common ground. The crucial dividing line is whether the red dragon has been beheaded—before this point, male and female practice differ greatly; afterward, they become essentially the same. This truth remains unchanged through the ages.

For women's post-dragon alchemical stages, they may consult male alchemical classics like Wu Shouyang's Celestial Immortals' True Principles or Liu Huayang's Treatise on Golden Immortal Attainment. With proper understanding, correct methods, and gradual progress, one avoids spiritual pitfalls. Initially I too knew little about the advantages and disadvantages of female cultivation. Coming from a family where father and brothers practiced Buddhism and Daoism, I recall my father telling my mother: "Young maidens in cultivation can transform qi and blood; elderly women can dispel illness and prolong life; widows can strengthen their resolve to preserve chastity." As for achieving immortality or Buddhahood, that depends on the magnitude of virtue and depth of practice.

Later, my mother devoted herself tirelessly to practice for nearly thirty years, followed by sisters-in-law, nieces, concubines, daughters, and female relatives. Some upheld precepts, others cultivated concentration...

After attaining a certain level in my cultivation practice, I wished to progress further in refining the life-force techniques (the Daoist practice concerning vital energy), yet found myself lost in confusion. My mother, deeply concerned, advised me to first relinquish all mental and physical attachments. During this period, whenever I encountered practitioners from the Confucian, Buddhist, or Daoist traditions, I would inquire about classics and secret methods of female inner alchemy (Neidan techniques for women). Yet after years of searching, I had not found what I sought.

Later, I obtained a text titled The Collected Works of the Mani Lamp for Women from the venerable Xuecen, which compiled over seventy female alchemy classics. However, most of the content emphasized spiritual cultivation (Xinggong, the refinement of nature), while discussions on life-force techniques (Minggong) remained obscure and difficult for ordinary practitioners to grasp. Fearing I might disappoint my mother’s hopes, I grew restless with anxiety.

In the year Gengzi (1900), while secluded on Mount Emei, I combed through the Daoist canon day and night, extracting every passage related to female alchemy. Eventually, I compiled more than ten texts, naming the collection The Combined Female Alchemy Manual. My mother was overjoyed upon reading it and instructed me to preserve it carefully as a secret manual for the women of our family.

In the winter of Guimao (1903), while collating the Daoist canon at the Two Immortals Abbey in Chengdu, I discovered that the Path of Awakening for Women, published by Daoist Masters Yan and Peng, contained only two classics—Kun Yuan and Kun Ning—which matched our family’s manuscript. Indeed, though there are many women with the potential for cultivation, specialized texts on female alchemy remain scarce. Masters Yan and Peng truly shared my aspirations. Delighted to find kindred spirits, I presented them with The Combined Female Alchemy Manual for their review and refinement. They praised it highly and encouraged its publication to benefit fellow practitioners. Though I dare not withhold such knowledge, I recognize my own limited understanding and hope those with superior versions may offer guidance—fulfilling my mother’s wishes while also inspiring further contributions.

A special admonition for female cultivators: Those who follow this manual must sever the seven emotions and six desires, eradicate the three poisons of greed, anger, and delusion, and transcend the four marks of self, others, sentient beings, and lifespan. Abandon all attachments, perceive the emptiness of the five aggregates (form, sensation, perception, mental formations, and consciousness), and remain unshaken by setbacks or demonic obstacles. Proceed through the stages of refining blood into Qi (vital energy), Qi into Shen (spirit), Shen into emptiness, and emptiness into nothingness—ultimately attaining the indestructible Golden Immortal fruition. Then, you may ascend to pay homage to the Queen Mother of the West (Xi Wangmu, foremost among female immortals) or descend to deliver sentient beings. At the Peach Banquet of the Immortals, I believe female transcendents will prove no less accomplished than their male counterparts. May all women practitioners strive together! These humble words are offered in hopes of correction by the wise—may they not invite ridicule.

Preface by He Longzhou of Jingyan, Autumn of the Yisi Year (1905), Guangxu Reign.