meditation, several Warring States texts allude to or describe breath-control meditations, but none directly mention xingqi (行氣). Good examples are found in the Zhuangzi and the Guanzi Neiye ("Inner Training") chapter. One Zhuangzi context criticizes breath exercises and daoyin "guiding and pulling" calisthenics: "Blowing and breathing, exhaling and inhaling, expelling the old and taking in the new, bear strides and bird stretches [熊經鳥申]—all this is merely indicative of the desire for longevity." (15, tr. Mair 1994: 145). Another context praises "breathing from the heels: "The true man of old did not dream when he slept and did not worry when he was awake. His food was not savory, his breathing was deep. The breathing of the true man is from his heels [踵], the breathing of the common man is from his throat [喉]." (6, tr. Mair 1994: 52). The Zhuangzi translator Victor Mair notes the "close affinities between the Daoist sages and the ancient Indian holy men. Yogic breath control and asanas (postures) were common to both traditions," and suggests that "breathing from the heels" could be "a modern explanation of the sirsasana 'supported headstand'". (1994: 371). Neiye Verse 24 summarizes Inner Training breath control, which "appears to be a meditative technique in which the adept concentrates on nothing but the Way, or some representation of it. It is to be undertaken when you are sitting in a calm and unmoving position, and it enables you to set aside the disturbances of perceptions, thoughts, emotions, and desires that normally fill your conscious mind." (Roth 1999: 116). Expand your heart-mind and release it [大心而敢]. Relax your qi and allow it to extend [寬氣而廣]. When your body is calm and unmoving, Guard the One [守一] and discard myriad disturbances. You will see profit and not be enticed by it. You will see harm and not be frightened by it. Relaxed and unwound, and yet free from selfishness, In solitude you will find joy in your own being. This is what we call "circulating the qi" [是謂雲氣]. Your awareness and practice appear celestial [意行似天]. (24, tr. Komjathy 2003: n.p.). Translating "circulating the qi" follows Guanzi commentaries that interpret this original yún (雲, "cloud") as a variant Chinese character for yùn (運, "transport; move"), thus reading yùnqì (運氣, "control the breath; move qì through the body"). Besides the Warring States-era received texts that mention breath circulation techniques, the earliest direct evidence is a