## 1. Early Daoist Texts



It would hardly be possible to identify a school or a lineage in the
history of Daoism which denies that the entire Daoist tradition, in
the forms in which it has been transmitted for about two and a half
millennia, ultimately derives from Laozi and from the work that is
ascribed to him, the *Daode jing* or *Book of the Way and
Its Virtue*.



As shown below, neither has Daoism evolved exclusively on the basis of
this work, nor does evidence exist of a historical continuity between
Laozi and the *Daode jing*, on the one hand, and the different
forms in which Daoism has developed, on the other. Equally
significant, however, is the fact that, in a traditional doctrine such
as Daoism, history in the ordinary sense of the term can be altered at
will to frame a "sacred history" of the teaching. The main
point is establishing and exhibiting a bond between an integral
exposition of the doctrine--which Daoists find in the *Daode
jing*--and the particular teachings and practices of the
individual schools or lineages. To give a few examples, this can be
done by asserting that a particular "Way" (*dao*)
derives from a revelation by Laozi, either in his human or in his
divine aspect; or by placing Laozi at the origins of (or within) a
"pre-historical" line of transmission; or simply by using,
in textual sources, key sentences or terms from the *Daode
jing*. In these and several other ways, Laozi and the *Daode
jing* are, for the Daoists, one of the main vehicles used to
declare their identity as Daoists.



Among early works, the Daoist tradition usually places the
*Zhuangzi* immediately after the *Daode jing*. A third
text, the *Liezi*, has fallen into a sort of limbo, especially
after A.C. Graham demonstrated that parts of the received text are not
authentic and date from not earlier than the 2nd century CE (instead of the
4th century BCE, as was supposed earlier; Graham 1961).
Recently, however, there have been efforts to rehabilitate this work
(Barrett 2011), also motivated by the fact that it appears to contain
lost fragments of the *Zhuangzi*.


### 1.1 Laozi and the *Daode jing*



Current Western scholarship is virtually unanimous in asserting that
there was no historical Laozi. The reputed author of the *Daode
jing*, whose name means Old Master, might be best seen as a
"collective entity" who embodies the nameless
tradition--mainly oral, as far as we know--that is behind
the text and the ideal of sainthood that the text describes.



While the author and his work are traditionally dated to the
6th century BCE, the Mawangdui and especially the Guodian manuscripts
(discovered in 1972 and 1993, respectively; Henricks 1989 and 2000)
have helped to establish that early exemplars of the *Daode
jing*--shorter than the current versions and different from
one another--circulated by the latter half of the 4th
century BCE. It is also usually acknowledged, though, that the text
incorporates earlier oral traditions. While this makes the issue of
dating virtually impossible to solve, it also suggests that at first
there was no "original" and "complete"
exemplar of the text, which probably existed in several versions of
varying content and length until, probably in the late 3rd
century BCE, it was compiled in a form close to the one we know today.
(For overviews of the *Daode jing* and its exegetical
tradition, see Chan 2000 and Robinet 1999, respectively.)



The *Daode jing* discusses three main subjects: the Dao, the
saint (or the realized person), and the ruler and his government.
Several early Chinese traditions speak of a Dao, or "Way",
but the *Daode jing* is the earliest source that uses this word
to designate the origin and source of existence. As the absolute
principle, the Dao is beyond description or definition. It does not
even have a name: the word *dao* is used only because one
"is forced" to refer to it (sec. 25). [Here and below,
references are to the number of section in the 81-section editions of
the text, a subdivision also adopted in most translations into
Western languages.] Being formless, the Dao is "constant"
(*chang*, 1), does not undergo change (41), and is
"invisible", "inaudible", and
"imperceptible" (14). Yet the Dao contains an
"essence" (*jing*) that is the seed of its
self-manifestation (21), which occurs without intention and through
"non-doing" (*wuwei*; 37). The faculty through
which the Dao manifests itself, and generates and nourishes all
individual entities, is its *de*, or "virtue,
power", the second term in the title of the *Daode jing*.
Under this aspect, the Dao is called the "beginning" of
the world and its "mother" (1). The two aspects of the
Dao--the absolute and its manifestation as the
relative--"come forth together", and their
coexistence is "mystery and then again mystery" (1).



The highest realized person in the *Daode jing* is the
*shengren*, a term that, in a Daoist context, is sometimes
translated as "saint" to distinguish it from the Confucian
"sage". While the Confucian sage embodies the highest
ethical standards of benevolence (*ren*) and righteousness
(*yi*), the Daoist saint operates in the world by taking the
operation of the Dao as his model: according to the *Daode
jing*, benevolence, righteousness, and the other qualities of the
Confucian sage emerge only "when the Dao is abandoned"
(18). The Daoist saint does not act on the basis of personal interest,
advantage, or desire; he does not take initiative; and he does not
intend to lead others (3, 7, 22, 37, 57, 67). Instead, he is in the
front by placing himself "behind", and acts only by
responding to what external circumstances require. This is his
"non-doing" (*wuwei*), the perfect action in which "there is
no doing, yet nothing is not done" (48; the same is also said of
the operation of the Dao, 37).



Although the reciprocal tasks are different, the ruler is supposed to
operate in the kingdom in the same way as the saint operates in the world. The
*Daode jing* expresses this view in words analogous to those
quoted above for the saint: "Do non-doing, and there is nothing
that is not governed" (3). This involves that the ruler should
issue few laws and prohibitions (57) and instead allow the people to
operate by themselves (37). Since the Confucian virtues arise
"when the Dao is abandoned" and "when the country is
in confusion" (5, 18), the saintly ruler should not use them as
principles of government.


### 1.2 Zhuangzi



Zhuangzi--whose name was Zhuang Zhou--probably lived between
370 and 280 BCE. He wrote the "Inner Chapters" (1-7)
of the eponymous work, which form the first of its three main parts.
The two other parts, namely the "Outer Chapters"
(8-22) and the "Miscellaneous Chapters"
(23-33), contain writings by different groups of authors. (For
overviews of the *Zhuangzi*, its textual layers, and its
commentaries, see Graham 1989: 170-211; Mair 2000; and Roth
2014.)



Zhuangzi's view of the Dao is in agreement with Laozi's
view: 



> 
> 
> The Way has its reality and its signs but is without action or form.
> You can hand it down but you cannot receive it; you can get it but you
> cannot see it. It is its own source, its own root. Before Heaven and
> Earth existed it was there, firm from ancient times. (ch. 6; trans.
> Watson 1968: 81) 
> 
> 
> 



However, Zhuangzi repeatedly brings forth the issue of whether and how
the Dao can be known. As the Dao is the absolute, it cannot be made an
object; therefore its knowledge cannot be attained by the ordinary
mind, which functions by establishing distinctions between "self
and other", "this and that", "right and
wrong", and other relative concepts (ch. 2; Watson,
36-49). Zhuangzi's analysis of the human mind is in fact
an epistemology: since the Dao is ultimately unknowable through the
ordinary mind, there is only one way to know it: through "the
knowledge that does not know" (ch. 4; Watson, 58).



The human ideal of Zhuangzi reflects this view: 



> 
> 
> The True Man (or realized person, *zhenren*) of ancient times
> did not rebel against want, did not grow proud in plenty, and did not
> plan his affairs ... [He] was able to climb all the way up to the
> Way ... [He] knew nothing of loving life, knew nothing of hating
> death. (ch. 6; Watson, 77-78) 
> 
> 
> 



In the *Zhuangzi*, the theme of "inner freedom"
receives more emphasis compared to the *Daode jing*: freedom
from social rules, from ingrained patterns of thought, from
"essentialism" (the belief that things have permanent
characteristics that make them what they are), and from conventional
"self-identity".



In the "Inner Chapters", the refusal to elevate ethics to
a primary principle follows the views of the *Daode jing*: 



> 
> 
> The way I see it, the rules of benevolence and righteousness and the
> paths of right and wrong are all hopelessly snarled and jumbled. (ch.
> 2; Watson, 45-46) 
> 
> 
> 



In agreement with this view, Zhuangzi is disillusioned about the
possibility of using ordinary ethical virtues as a basis for politics
and government: 



> 
> 
> To try to govern the world like this is like trying to walk the ocean,
> to drill through a river, or to make a mosquito shoulder a mountain!
> (ch. 7; Watson, 93; see also 66-67) 
> 
> 
> 



For Zhuangzi, the enlightened ruler is the one whose achievements
"appear not to be his own doing". Thus "the people
do not depend on him ... [and] he lets everything find its own
enjoyment" (ch. 7; Watson, 94). The speaker of this passage is
Laozi himself, whose views on "non-doing" in government
are accepted by Zhuangzi.



The *Zhuangzi* began to have a noticeable influence on the
later Daoist tradition from the 4th century CE, when it
became one of the sources of inspiration for the Shangqing (Highest
Clarity) school of Daoism (see
 SS3.3).
 Since then, this work has contributed an impressive number of ideas,
concepts, and terms to later Daoist works (Robinet 1983). These
include the "fasting of the mind" (*xinzhai*; ch.
4; Watson, 54-58) and the "sitting and forgetting"
(*zuowang*; ch. 6; Watson, 90-91), two expressions that
in later Daoism denote methods of self-cultivation, but in the
*Zhuangzi* describe the inner state of the realized person.
(For the view that they refer to actual practices also in the
*Zhuangzi*, see Roth 1997.)


## 2. Origins of Daoist Religion



In addition to the teachings of the *Daode jing* and the figure
of Laozi, several other major components contributed to the early
development of Daoism. Only a few of the most important ones can be
surveyed here.


### 2.1 Exorcism and "Shamanism"



We may begin by mentioning exorcism, a set of diverse practices based
on the belief that illnesses and various other disturbances are caused
by malevolent entities, including demons. The officiant who takes
charge of these phenomena is the *wu*, a term that denotes a
male or female medium or healer but is often translated as
"shaman". The *wu* is capable of dealing with the
realm of demonic creatures and administers proper remedies--for
example, protective talismans (*fu*) and herbal
medicines--to those affected by such creatures. While these and
analogous practices have continued to exist throughout the history of
Daoism, it should be noted that the typical shamanic
"trance" has never been part of Daoist practices.


### 2.2 "Far Roaming"



Some scholars have suggested that "shamanism" is related
to another theme developed by later Daoist traditions: the "far
roaming" (*yuanyou*), or imaginary journeys to the
extremities of the world or to the farthest regions of the cosmos
(Kohn 1992: 96-104). Best known among these accounts is the
"Yuanyou" (Far Roaming) poem, dating from the
2nd century BCE (Kroll 1996). Here the author describes an
"ecstatic journey" during which he visits the remotest
regions of the earth, encounters realized beings, ascends to celestial
palaces, and finally enters the realm of the Great Beginning
(*taichu*). Later Daoist traditions have used the "far
roaming" imagery in different contexts: breathing techniques for
the absorption of the pure energies (*qi*) found at the
boundaries of the cosmos, meditation practices that involve walking on
constellations in the heavens, and accounts of initiatory journeys to
the four directions of the world made by saints and immortals, who
find texts and receive teachings from divine beings (see
 SS9.3).


### 2.3 The Fangshi, or Masters of the Methods



Besides the *wu*, a quite different class of practitioners is
known under the collective name of *fangshi* ("masters of
the methods" or "of the recipes"). While they also
operated within society as a whole, many *fangshi* were
employed by rulers from the 4th century BCE onwards. Their
fields of expertise included different cosmological and esoteric arts:
astronomy and astrology; divination and hemerology; medicine and
healing; alchemy; and sexual, breathing, and other longevity
practices. In Anna Seidel's felicitous definition (1983a: 294),
the *fangshi* were people who had the "know-how".
In a broader perspective, it is important to note that several methods
originally associated with the *fangshi* were later
incorporated into Daoist practices. With this class of practitioners,
we are in fact much closer to what Daoism would become in later times:
as noted by John Lagerwey (1986: 282-83), not the
"shaman" (with his or her ecstasies and trances), but the
"diviner" (who fashions a "rational" world
relying on images and emblems with precise meanings and functions)
is the predecessor of the Daoist master and the Daoist priest.



Unlike those of the *wu*, several practices associated with the
*fangshi*--in particular, their mantic arts--were
based on the Chinese cosmological system, which took shape in the
3rd and 2nd centuries BCE (Harper 1999;
Csikszentmihalyi 2000; Kalinowski 2004). Notes on the main features of
this system and its uses in Daoism will be found below
 (SS4.3).
 Here we should briefly note two points. First, Chinese cosmology is
not tied to any particular intellectual or technical legacy. Its
creation can be seen as the result of an effort to create a
comprehensive system open to application to a large variety of fields,
with contributions from specialists of various traditional
sciences--especially diviners, astronomers, and
physicians--and from thinkers of different currents. Second, as
was noted by Isabelle Robinet (1997b: 260), "unlike other
religions, we must look for the fundamental structure, the unity, and
the continuity of Taoism in its cosmological discourse and not in its
pantheon". While Daoism has had different pantheons in different
times and places (see
 SS5.2),
 its views on the relation between Dao and cosmos have remained
substantially unchanged throughout its history, and these views have
usually been formulated on the basis of the standard Chinese
cosmological system.


### 2.4 Huang-Lao Daoism



With regard to Daoism *per se*, Huang-Lao dao (Way of
the Yellow Emperor and Laozi) is the name under which one part of the
tradition was known in the early Han period (2nd century
BCE). The precise contours of this "Way" are unclear, but
it may be equivalent to the early meaning of the term *Daojia*
("lineage(s) of the Dao") as defined by Sima Tan (fl. ca.
135 BCE) in the *Shiji* (Records of the Historian; see Roth and
Queen 2000). The Huang-Lao adepts saw Laozi as the master who set
forth the principles of government in the *Daode jing*, and
Huangdi (the Yellow Emperor) as the ruler who applied them for the
first time in human history. Huangdi continued to play the role of the
perfect "Daoist" ruler in later times: having received
teachings in various disciplines--medicine, alchemy, sexual
practices, dietetics, etc.--from different gods, goddesses, and
immortals, he would become the patron of some of them. In later times,
Laozi and Huangdi were even associated with one another as a single
deity under the name Huanglao jun, lit., Yellow Old Lord.



In addition to the central notion of government by
"non-doing" (*wuwei*), the Huang-Lao dao
appears to have promoted not only other teachings of the *Daode
jing*, such as the requirement of self-cultivation by the ruler,
but also--displaying the first hints of the integration of
*Daode jing* teachings and cosmological thought--the
regulation of political and social life according to cosmic cycles,
such as those of the seasons. The Huang-Lao ideology enjoyed some
success at court during the early decades of the Han dynasty, but
quietly disappeared after Confucianism was adopted as official state
doctrine by Emperor Wu of the Han (r. 140-87 BCE). Nevertheless,
its political views continued to form one of the bases of the Daoist
teachings.



In the past few decades, scholars have described some excavated
manuscripts as Huang-Lao sources (e.g., Yates 1997), but no firm
conclusion has been reached on this point. The same is true of the
*Huainan zi* (The Master of Huainan), a major work completed in
139 BCE under the patronage of Liu An (180-122 BCE), the ruler
of the southern kingdom of Huainan (in present-day Anhui). The
*Huainan zi* contains sections devoted to thought, government,
self-cultivation, ethics, mythology, hagiography, astronomy,
topography, music, military affairs, and other traditional sciences
(Le Blanc and Mathieu 2003; Major et al. 2010). Its aims of
synthesis are also shown by more than 800 quotations drawn from other
texts, including about one hundred from the *Daode jing* and
over 250 from the *Zhuangzi*. Yet, although the *Huainan
zi* is included in the Daoist Canon and later Daoist hagiography
has welcomed Liu An as an "immortal", the text as a whole
can hardly be described as Daoist. In a historical perspective, the
*Huainan zi* is, rather, the main source that documents the
integration of early Daoist thought with cosmology and with several
cosmological sciences. More broadly, as was noted by Nathan Sivin
(1995), it is one of a series of important texts, written between the
3rd and the 1st century BCE, that provide
extensive overviews of cosmology, government, and self-cultivation in
view of the creation of a comprehensive ideology that would serve as
the foundation for a newly created Chinese empire. These works also
include the *Lushi chunqiu* (Springs and Autumns of Sire
Lu; Knoblock and Riegel 2001), the *Chunqiu fanlu*
(Luxuriant Dew on the Spring and Autumn Annals; Queen 1996),
and--with focus on medicine, but sharing the same
foundations--the *Huangdi neijing* (Inner Book of the
Yellow Emperor; Unschuld and Tessenow 2011).


### 2.5 The Divinization of Laozi



In addition to the components outlined above, the process that, in the
second half of the 2nd century CE, led to the formation of
the first major Daoist religious movement (see
 SS3.1)
 could not be understood without paying attention to the political
ideologies of ancient China. These ideologies are synthesized in the
concept of the Great Peace (*taiping*), which was shared by
different traditions including Confucianism (Seidel 1983b; Espesset
2009). With regard to Daoism, the main source that documents these
views is the *Taiping jing* (Book of the Great Peace),
originally dating from the 1st or the 2nd
centuries CE (Hendrischke 2006). The central idea in the *Taiping
jing* is the advent of an era of "peace"
(*ping*, also meaning "equity") in which a perfect
ruler would establish a perfect society. This era would follow
calamities designed to eliminate the corrupted ones, but would come
only if the ruler governs according to the principle of
"returning to the Dao".



The views of the *Taiping jing* are the first important example of
Chinese millenarianism, which would become a further major theme in
the Daoist tradition from the 2nd until at least the
7th centuries (Mollier 2008b). Amid the social tumults and
the natural calamities that marked the last part of the Han rule,
expectations and prophecies of a forthcoming messiah--often
predicted to be surnamed Li--grew during the 2nd
century of our era (Seidel 1969-70 and 1983b).



That savior turned out to be Laozi himself--one of whose names was Li
Er--who became a deity under the name of Laojun, or Lord Lao (Seidel
1969). In 165 and 166, rites were celebrated in Huxian, Laozi's
supposed birthplace; and in 166, Emperor Huan (r. 147-168)
performed--for the first and only time in Chinese history--a
ceremony in his honor in the imperial palace. However, the deification
process may have begun even earlier, and the possibility that the
"secular" Laozi was already the object of cults is
suggested by one of the main sources on his deification, namely the *Laozi
ming* (Inscription for Laozi; Seidel 1969: 43-50 and
121-28; Csikszentmihalyi 2006: 105-12). This work, written on the
occasion of Emperor Huan's ceremony, contains a biography of
Laozi, an account of the events that led Huan to perform the rite, and
a poetical eulogy of Laozi as a saint who follows the doctrines of
"non-doing" and eliminating desires. Significantly, in
this source Laozi is not yet called "god" (*shen*)
and not even "lord" (*jun*).



The *Laozi bianhua jing* (Book of the Transformations of
Laozi), dating from the late 2nd century and possibly
originating from a popular cult in Sichuan (Seidel 1969: 59-75),
enjoins recitation of the *Daode jing* and confession of sins,
and is the first of several works that mention one of the main
features of Laozi as a deity: in addition to personifying the Dao and
to being a model of the Daoist sage, Lord Lao periodically descends to
earth in order to bestow teachings to humanity and especially to
rulers. This has two important consequences. First, from this time
onwards the Dao takes an active role in the human world, either
through its divine emissaries or by granting revelations to certain
adepts. Second, the "historical" Laozi--the author of
the *Daode jing*--is only one of the different forms that
Lord Lao has taken in order to guide humanity.



## 3. Main Schools and Lineages



This section does not intend to provide a historical overview of the
Daoist tradition, but only brief notes on its principal schools and
lineages. (The only book-length study of the history of Daoism in a
Western language is Robinet 1997b, which however only covers the period from the
origins to the 14th century. Shorter, reliable historical surveys
include Schipper 2000 and Bokenkamp 2005a.)


### 3.1 Tianshi dao (Way of the Celestial Masters)



In one of his transformations, Laojun (Lord Lao) appeared--in 142
CE, according to the traditional date--to Zhang Daoling and
established with him the Covenant with the Powers of Orthodox Unity
(*zhengyi mengwei*). Zhang Daoling, who may have been a healer,
was named Celestial Master (*tianshi*), and he in turn pledged
to establish a community that would follow Daoist principles. His
grandson and third Celestial Master, Zhang Lu, created and presided
over a politically and economically autonomous "theocracy"
in Hanzhong (in present-day Sichuan), subdivided into 24 *zhi*
("administrations", sometimes rendered as
"parishes" by scholars who see analogies with the early
Christian Church).



Since its origins, Tianshi dao, or the Way of the Celestial
Masters, proposed to provide an exemplary and comprehensive model of
religious and social organization (Hendrischke 2000; Schipper 2008;
Kleeman 2010 and 2016). The population was organized and governed on the basis
of "registers" (*lu*), which existed in two forms:
household registers (recording births, marriages, and deaths) and
individual registers (conferring rank in the social and celestial
bureaucracies, and listing the spirits under a person's command,
whose number increased according to age). Healing rites were one of
the main practices. Importantly, illnesses were seen as owed neither
to demonic influences (as in exorcism) nor to imbalance of cosmic forces (as in classical medicine), but to moral
faults. As part of the healing ritual, an officiant submitted
petitions--reporting the petitioner's fault, confession,
repentance, and request for aid--to the Officers of Earth, Water,
and Heaven, the three main original Tianshi dao deities. An analogous
emphasis on ethics and morals is the main feature of the best-known
early Tianshi dao text, a partially-preserved commentary to the
*Daode jing* (Bokenkamp 1997: 29-148).



The diaspora of the Celestial Masters' communities after the end
of the Han (early 3rd century) had the unintended result of
spreading the religion throughout China. Under the name Way of the
Correct Unity (Zhengyi dao), Tianshi dao is in the present day one of the two
main branches of Daoism, where it takes charge of
the main forms of communal ritual.


### 3.2 The "Southern Tradition"



After the period of the Three Kingdoms (220-80), China was
reunified by the Jin dynasty. Unification, however, lasted only for a
few decades. The southward migrations that followed the fall of the
capital Luoyang to the Xiongnu in 311 involved not only members of the
court and the aristocracy, but also representatives of Tianshi dao. As
a result, the religion of the Celestial Masters reached Jiangnan, the
region south of the lower Yangzi river, and apparently for the first time came in
touch with the traditions of that region. The events that followed
left a permanent mark on the history of Daoism.



The native "Southern tradition" comprised methods for
summoning benevolent deities and expelling demonic entities, various
types of "longevity practices", as well as meditation and
alchemy (Andersen 1994; Campany 2002: 18-97; Steavu 2015). A
survey of these traditions is given by Ge Hong (283-343) in the
"Inner Chapters" ("Neipian") of his *Baopu
zi* (Book of the Master Who Embraces Spontaneous Nature, ca. 320).
This work (trans. Ware 1966; part. trans. Che 1999) provides a comprehensive overview of
religion in Jiangnan shortly before the arrival of the Celestial
Masters, seen through the eyes of a member of one of the main families
of Jiangnan aristocracy.



According to Ge Hong, three textual bodies incorporated the higher
religious traditions of Jiangnan. The first consisted of scriptures
based on talismans (*fu*), mainly represented by the
*Sanhuang wen* (Script of the Three Sovereigns; Steavu 2019). Owning them,
or even holding them in one's hands, granted protection against
assaults of demons, dangers brought by external forces, and even
death. The second and third textual bodies were based on meditation
and alchemy, respectively, described by Ge Hong as the highest forms of
self-cultivation. The main meditation practice is "guarding the
One" (*shouyi*), which consists in visualizing the god
that represents Unity in its multiple residences within the human
being. Alchemical elixirs, instead, were superior to herbal drugs:
while the "medicines of herbs and plants" can only heal
illnesses and grant a long life, the elixirs grant immortality.


### 3.3 Shangqing (Highest Clarity) and Lingbao (Numinous Treasure)



Against this background, the representatives of the religious legacies
of Jiangnan responded to the newly-imported cults and rites of the
Celestial Masters by reformulating and recodifying certain aspects of
their own traditions in ways that also admitted elements of the new
religion. This led to the creation of two major new
"schools", which actually consist in two textual corpora
and the related practices. The first one is Shangqing
(Highest Clarity), based on revelations that occurred from 364 to 370
near present-day Nanjing (Strickmann 1977; Robinet 2000). Its main
scripture, the *Dadong zhenjing* (True Book of the Great
Cavern), describes visualization methods of the inner gods, including
illustrations, chants, and talismans (*fu*). This and other
works make clear that Shangqing incorporates earlier traditions, but
reorganizes and ranks them in a different way compared to the past:
meditation is now the main practice, and even alchemy is modified to
include processes that cannot take place in the laboratory but only
within the adept's own person.



While the main function of the Shangqing master is to transmit texts
and oral instructions, the priest is at the center of the second
corpus. The Lingbao (Numinous Treasure) revelations occurred
in the years 397-402, when Ge Chaofu--Ge Hong's
grand-nephew--received another set of scriptures (Bokenkamp 1983;
Yamada 2000). The Lingbao synthesis of different traditions is even
more visible compared to Shangqing: it incorporates elements of
Tianshi dao ritual and pantheon, as well as certain aspects of
Shangqing itself (including visualization, performed for instance by the
priest when he sends off his own inner gods to submit petitions to the
highest celestial deities). In addition, Lingbao shows the first
substantial signs of the integration of Buddhist elements into Daoism:
in particular, its notion of "universal salvation"
(including a version of the "Bodhisattva vow") and also
its cosmology, reflected in a system of ranked "heavens"
(see
 SS5.1).
 At the center of Lingbao lies communal ritual. The new codification
by Lu Xiujing (406-77), which followed the original revelations
by a few decades, served as the blueprint for several later ones, and
clear traces of it are still apparent in present-day Daoist
ritual.


### 3.4 The "Three Caverns"



With the creation of the Shangqing and Lingbao corpora, Daoism for the
first time clearly defined its two main poles, which consist of both
individual practices (codified in the Shangqing corpus) and communal
practices (codified in the Lingbao corpus). In the 5th
century, the relations among these corpora and the other traditions of
Jiangnan were formally defined in the system of the Three Caverns
(*sandong*), which is traditionally attributed to Lu Xiujing
but clearly reflects the perspectives of the Daoist community as a
whole (Schipper and Verellen 2004: 14-17). In this system, the
main Daoist traditions and scriptural corpora of southeastern China
are arranged into three hierarchical groups, namely (1) Shangqing, (2)
Lingbao, and (3) *Sanhuang* (Three Sovereigns, understood as
the *Sanhuang wen* and related textual materials). Each Cavern
corresponds to a heaven and is ruled by one of the three highest
Daoist gods: Yuanshi tianzun (Celestial Venerable of the Original
Commencement), Lingbao tianzun (Celestial Venerable of the Numinous
Treasure), and Daode tianzun (Celestial Venerable of the Dao and Its
Virtue, another name of the deified Laozi). The Three Caverns also
provided a model for other aspects of doctrine and practice, including
the ranks of priestly ordination and the classification of scriptures
in the future Daoist Canons (id., 17-37). (On the Daoist Canon
see Schipper and Verellen 2004; a shorter survey is found in Bokenkamp
and Boltz 1986.)


### 3.5 Tang and Five Dynasties



The founding of the Tang dynasty (618-907) was accompanied by
millenarian prophecies about the advent of a sage-emperor surnamed Li (Bokenkamp
1994). As we saw before
 (SS2.5),
 this was also the surname of the Han-dynasty messiah; four centuries later, the
powerful Li clan claimed to belong to Laozi's lineage, and its
rise to the throne was supported by representatives of the Shangqing
lineage. The Shangqing patriarch Wang Yuanzhi (528-635) predicted the
rise of the Tang, informed Li Yuan that he would become the next
emperor, and secretly transmitted to him the "registers"
of the Celestial Mandate (*tianming*). Li Yuan--the future Emperor Gaozu--finally founded
the Tang dynasty. These events marked the beginning
of the ascent of Shangqing to a status similar to "state
religion", which it maintained throughout the first half of the
dynasty (Barrett 1996; Kohn and Kirkland 2000). The support of the
court culminated in ca. 740 with the compilation of the *Kaiyuan
daozang* (Daoist Canon of the Kaiyuan Reign Period), the first of
a series of imperially-sponsored collections of Daoist texts.



While the disastrous An Lushan rebellion of 755-63 put an end to
the glory of the Tang dynasty, for Daoism as a whole the Tang was an
age of consolidation, but also of major changes and innovations. With
regard to ritual, the Tang period and the successive decades of the
Five Dynasties (907-60) were marked by two important new
codifications, respectively created by Zhang Wanfu (fl. 710-13;
Benn 1991) and by Du Guangting (850-933), one of the foremost
"court Daoists" of all times (Verellen 1989). After its
introduction in the 1st century and its development during
the Six Dynasties, in the Tang period Buddhism became substantially
"sinified" with the rise of new schools, the most
important of which are Tiantai and Chan (Jpn. Zen), and with the
spread of "popular" Tantric practices. (On Daoism and
Buddhism see Zurcher 1980 and Mollier 2008a; for an overview of
the main points, see Bokenkamp 2004.) This led to two phenomena that
became constant in the second millennium: competition for state
patronage, on the one hand, and repeated attempts to synthesize the
"Three Teachings" (Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism), on
the other. Intersections of Daoist and Buddhist thought and religion
are visible in doctrines (Robinet 2004), cults (with several shared
deities, e.g., Avalokitesvara/Guanyin; Mollier 2008a,
174-208), and meditation practices (see
 SS9.4).



Finally, this period marked not only the highest stage of development
of *Waidan* (External Alchemy), but also the beginnings of
*Neidan* (Internal Alchemy; see
 SS10).
 The first clearly identifiable Neidan lineage is the Zhong-Lu
(named after the two immortals, Zhongli Quan and Lu Dongbin),
which appears to have developed from the second half of the Tang
period.


### 3.6 New Lineages in the Song Dynasty



After China was reunified by the Song dynasty (960-1279), major
changes in society--in particular urbanization, the creation of a
market economy, and the rise to prominence of new classes, especially
in the southeastern regions--led to major transformations in
religion. The institution of "lay associations", whose
main function was (in addition to performing various meritorious
actions) supporting the local temple, was especially important in the
development of Daoism, and at the same time in furthering the
incorporation of cults to local deities and saints into the Daoist
pantheon and liturgy.



The Way of the Celestial Masters (then based at Mount Longhu, in
present-day Jiangxi) was officially assigned the task of ordaining
priests, but a series of revelations resulted in the creation of
lineages that, in several cases, claimed to have been
originated by Zhang Daoling himself. Between the mid-10th
and the mid-13th centuries, five main lineages were
established: Tianxin (Celestial Heart), Shenxiao
(Divine Empyrean), Yutang dafa (Great Rites of the Jade
Hall), Lingbao dafa (Great Rites of the Numinous Treasure),
and Qingwei (Pure Tenuity). All of them were based on
different codifications of ritual--including exorcist
rites--but with little variation in the basic practices (Boltz 1987:
26-49; Skar 2000). Local communities, in addition, had their own
ritual specialists, known as *fashi* ("ritual
masters"), a term that designated, as it still does in the
present day, lay officiants who specialize in exorcist practices
(Davis 2001).



The Song dynasty and the successive Mongol Yuan dynasty
(1271-1368) also saw important developments in the traditions of
Internal Alchemy (Neidan), especially with the creation of
Nanzong, the Southern Lineage, which is ascribed with one of
the main codifications of the alchemical practice (see
 SS10.3).


### 3.7 Quanzhen (Complete Reality, or Complete Perfection)



In 1127, the Jurchen Jin dynasty (1115-1234) captured Kaifeng,
and the Song dynasty was obliged to move its capital to Hangzhou,
establishing the Southern Song dynasty (1127-1279). It was under
the Jin rule that Quanzhen (Complete Reality, or Complete Perfection)
was created (Yao 2000; Goossaert 2001; Marsone 2010). This monastic
order is, with the Way of the Celestial Masters, the main branch of
present-day Daoism.



Quanzhen was founded by Wang Zhe (1113-70), who was active as a
preacher in Shandong in the late 1160s, and by his seven main
disciples, among whom Ma Yu, Sun Bu'er (the latter's
wife), and Qiu Chuji deserve mention. Five "lay
associations" were established to support the teaching, which
spread rapidly. Controversies with Buddhism led to proscriptions in
the second half of the 13th century, which included the
burning of a Daoist Canon recently compiled by Quanzhen
representatives. Quanzhen, however, maintained a strong local
presence, and after the reunification of China under the Yuan dynasty
it obtained again the favor of the court. While the Ming dynasty
(1368-1644) gave priority to the Celestial Masters, Wang
Changyue (1592-1680) gained the support of the newly-established
Manchu Qing dynasty (1644-1912). Since then, his
Longmen (Dragon Gate) lineage has been the main branch of
Quanzhen (Esposito 2004). In the present day, Wang Changyue's temple, the Baiyun
Guan (Abbey of the White Cloud) in Beijing, is the
seat of the China Daoist Association (Zhongguo daojiao xiehui).



Unlike Tianshi dao, whose priests are married and live with their
families, Quanzhen is a celibate monastic order, and under this form
it has propagated mainly in northern China. In addition to certain
forms of ritual, the main practices of Quanzhen monks include
meditation and Internal Alchemy (Eskildson 2004). However, the overall
image of Quanzhen (and Longmen) is complex, as it also includes
non-institutional and non-monastic forms. At their origins lies the
fact that Wang Zhe and his seven disciples are also identified as the
so-called Beizong, or Northern Lineage, of Neidan; and especially the
fact that Longmen as a whole traces its origins to the above-mentioned
Qiu Chuji, who is traditionally known as a Neidan practitioner. From
the Yuan period onwards, therefore, several masters and adepts of
Neidan have claimed affiliation to Quanzhen and/or Longmen, and have
created innumerable sub-lineages throughout China with little or no
connection to the central institution.


## 4. Dao and Cosmos



This and the following three sections are concerned with subjects that
are relevant to Daoism as a whole: cosmology, gods and rituals,
soteriology, and the views of the human being and the human body. In
different ways and to different extents, all of them have contributed
to frame doctrines and practices of several Daoist schools or
lineages.


### 4.1 The Dao and the "Ten Thousand Things"



Whether it addresses itself to the community or the individual, Daoism
purports to provide ways and methods for "returning to the
Dao" (*fandao*, *huandao*). Discussing the main
points of doctrine before approaching their particular subjects
is--in addition to references to Laozi and the *Daode
jing*, already noted above--the other main way used in Daoist
texts to declare their affiliation to Daoism.



In the Daoist view, the Dao is both the "ultimateless" (or
"limitless", *wuji*, a term akin in meaning to
"absolute" or "infinite") and the "great
ultimate" (*taiji*). In the first sense, the Dao is
devoid of definition, determination, form, name, attributes, and
qualities. Yet, it comprises all definitions,
determinations, forms, etc., none of which could exist outside it.
From the perspective of the "ten thousand things"
(*wanwu*, the objects and phenomena that exist and occur in the
manifested world), all that can be said is that they come about
"within" the Dao, but the Dao is not the same as any of
them, or else it would be subject to, and limited by, their
individuality, form, change, and transitoriness. When the Dao, in the
second sense, is understood as the "great ultimate", it is
seen as the supreme principle of Unity. This Unity, or Oneness, is
meant as the transcendent unity both beyond multiplicity (1 as the
origin of numbers, but itself not a number) and as the origin of the
many (1 as the first number).



In the *Daode jing*, these two aspects of the Dao correspond to
the Dao as "absolute" and as "mother". The two
main ontologic and cosmogonic stages respectively prior and posterior
to the *creatio continua* of the cosmos are often referred to
as *xiantian* (precelestial, "before Heaven") and
*houtian* (postcelestial, "after Heaven").


### 4.2 Essence, Breath, Spirit



With its self-manifestation, the Dao gives birth to the three main
components of the cosmos. Collectively called the
"three treasures" (*sanbao*), these components are
*jing*, or Essence, *qi*, or Breath, and *shen*,
or Spirit.[1]
Each of them has two aspects, related to their unmanifested or
"precelestial" natures and to their
"postcelestial" forms in the manifested world. The same
three components are also seen as the primary components of the human
being.



In their precosmic aspects, *shen*, *qi*, and
*jing* (in this order) represent three consecutive stages in
the process of the generation of the cosmos, from the initial state of
Non-Being and Emptiness (*wu*, *xu*) to the coagulation
of the Essence that finally generates the "ten thousand
things". *Shen* is the principle that presides over
non-material entities (including the celestial deities, which are also
called *shen*, "spirits" or "gods");
*jing* is the principle that presides over material entities;
and *qi* is the principle that maintains the whole cosmos for
its entire extent and duration and throughout its continuous changes.
Under these aspects, *jing*, *qi*, and *shen* are
usually prefixed by the word *yuan*, "original"
(*yuanjing*, *yuanqi*, *yuanshen*). In certain
cases, Original Breath (*yuanqi*) is also seen as a principle
prior to the emergence of Essence, Breath, and Spirit; when it is used
in this sense, it is also called Ancestral Breath (*zuqi*) and
is equated to the Dao itself.



In the manifested world, the three components take on different
aspects. With regard to the human being, *shen* emerges as the
mind (the "cognitive spirit", *shishen*, or
"thinking spirit", *sishen*); *qi* appears
as breath; and the main materializations of *jing* are--in
addition to other liquid components of the body, such as saliva and
tears--semen in men and menstrual blood in women.


### 4.3 Cosmogony



To explain the relation between Dao and cosmos, the *Daode
jing* describes a sequence of states taken on by the Dao,
including the Dao itself, unity, duality (Yin and
Yang), and finally multiplicity: "The Dao generates the
One; the One generates the Two; the Two generate the Three; the Three
generate the Ten Thousand Things" (sec. 42). This basic sequence
is always respected even though other texts or authors may mention
additional intermediate stages or exclude them (as does the
*Zhuangzi*: "The ten thousand things come forth from
Non-Being"; ch. 23; Watson 1968: 257). The vertical arrangement
of the stages illustrates the process of descent from
the Dao to the cosmos, but also implies--and often explicitly
outlines--a corresponding process of ascent from
the cosmos to the Dao, to be performed gradually and with the support of suitable
practices.



When this hierarchical arrangement is represented as a sequence of
metaphoric time stages, the discourse shifts from ontology to cosmogony. In
addition to the one mentioned above, Daoism has elaborated several
other accounts of cosmogony during its history (Robinet 1997a). Many
of them focus on *hundun*, a term usually rendered as
"chaos" or "the inchoate", in the sense of
something that has just begun to be and therefore is not yet fully
formed or developed, but from which the cosmos finally emerges (cf.
*Daode jing* 25: "There is something inchoate and yet
accomplished, born before Heaven and Earth"). In a famous
passage of the *Zhuangzi*, this state is represented by an
emperor called Hundun who ruled "on the Center". As his
body had no openings, the Emperors of the North and of the South
decided to make him look similar to a human, providing him with eyes, ears, nostrils, and mouth. "Each day they
bored one opening, and on the seventh day Hundun died" (ch. 7;
Watson 1968: 97). As shown by Norman Girardot (1983: 113-33),
this story attributes the cause of Hundun's death and the shift
from chaos to cosmos not only to the emergence of duality--the
Emperors of the North and the South--but also to the creation of
social institutions. What brings the harmony of the "chaotic
order" to an end is the emergence of the "social
order".



Among later accounts (Kohn 1998: 179-97; Robinet 2002), Laojun
(Lord Lao) began to be seen as the "body" of the Dao, from
which the cosmos is generated (Seidel 1969: 84-91). The Way of
the Celestial Masters (Bokenkamp 1997: 188-92; Seidel 1969:
79-84) and Lingbao Daoism (Lagerwey 1981: 104; Bokenkamp 1997:
380-81; Robinet 2002: 148-55) also created their own
cosmogonies.


### 4.4 Cosmology



After the cosmos is generated, it is subject to the laws of cosmology.
The Chinese cosmological system--often called "correlative
cosmology" by Western scholars--is a structured and
coherent corpus of knowledge that uses abstract emblems
(*xiang*, lit. "images") to analyze and explain the
features of the cosmic domain and the relations that occur among its
components (Schwartz 1985: 350-82; Graham 1989: 319-56;
Kalinowski 1991). Among the main emblems are the following:


1. The Northern Dipper (*beidou*, Ursa Major), which
represents the center and the unity of the cosmos. Through its
apparent rotation around itself, the Dipper distributes its vital
energy (or "breath", *qi*) throughout the compass
of space and the cycles of time.
2. Yin and Yang, which are the main emblems of
duality. They denote the two complementary forces--one
"positive", the other "negative"--that
perform two main functions: they generate entities and phenomena
through their conjunction, and they regulate the functioning of the
cosmos through their cyclical alternation.
3. The five agents (or five phases, *wuxing*), which serve to
classify and relate items belonging to different domains to one
another. Their names are Wood (*mu*), Fire (*huo*), Soil
(*tu*), Metal (*jin*), and Water (*shui*). The
agent Wood, for instance, classifies the direction east, the season
spring, the numbers 3 and 8, the color green (or blue), the planet
Jupiter, the organ liver, and the acoustic phenomenon *jue* in
the same category. Four of the five agents also represent different
states of Yin and Yang: "minor
Yang" (Wood), "great Yang" (Fire),
"minor Yin" (Metal), and "great
Yin" (Water). In the Daoist view, the five agents
emblematize different modes or states taken on by the Original Breath
(*yuanqi*) or the One Breath (*yiqi*) of the Dao in the
cosmos. The function of the fifth agent, Soil, is especially
important: being placed at the center, Soil stands for the source from
which the other four agents derive, and guarantees the conjunction of
the world of multiplicity to Unity.
4. The eight trigrams of the *Yijing* (Book of Changes),
which are formed by different combinations of three broken
(Yin) or solid (Yang) lines. Their names are
Zhen , Li , Dui ,
Qian , Xun , Kan ,
Gen , and Kun . The trigrams are
related to divination practices, but their primary use in Daoism is
purely emblematic; in particular, they represent different states of
Yin and Yang. With regard to space, for instance,
the trigrams refer to the directions; in this case, four of them
represent the cardinal directions (just like four of the five agents),
and the other four represent the intermediate directions.



In addition to those mentioned above, Daoist traditions draw several
other images, concepts, and terms from the standard Chinese
cosmological system, but one point requires mention. Cosmology
provides Daoism with tools to represent the unfolding of Unity into
multiplicity; to express the relation between Dao, cosmos, and human
being; and to frame practices supported by microcosmic
frameworks--the ritual area, the alchemical laboratory, or the
human body itself. These practices aim to provide means for
"returning to the Dao". This implies that, while the
emblems of cosmology are suitable to represent the differentiation of
Unity into the "ten thousand things", they also serve as
pointers for reverting from the "ten thousand things" to
Unity. To give one example, alchemists often represent the return to
Unity as the reduction of the five agents to three and then to
one.


## 5. Gods and Rituals



In China, the boundaries among Daoism, Buddhism, and the common
religion are much less marked compared to those among monotheistic
religions. According to individual needs and circumstances, lay
persons may perform cults and address prayers and petitions
indifferently to Daoist, Buddhist, or popular deities.



This has placed Daoism in close touch with the common religion, but
has also been the reason for a controversial relation. Daoism attempts
to undertake the dual task--by no means always
successful--of drawing people closer to the deities that
represent the Dao, while at the same time responding to their
immediate religious demands. As a consequence, in the words of Peter
Nickerson (2008: 148), 



> 
> 
> Taoists, precisely because they relied upon traditions of practice
> they claimed to have superseded, were compelled to try to distinguish
> themselves from their popular predecessors and competitors. 
> 
> 
> 



Demonizing the gods of popular religion was one of the options
(Mollier 2005): in the course of its history Daoism has prohibited
cults to minor deities and spirits, just like it has proscribed
acupuncture (healing is supposed to occur by confession of sins or
other ritual means overseen by a Daoist officiant) and divination
(performed by lay specialists who do not belong to Daoist schools or
lineages). Yet, plenty of examples show that the opposite attitude was
also applied. To quote Nickerson again, 



> 
> 
> already in early medieval times, Taoism was including in its rites a
> number of prohibited practices, and the popular cults themselves were
> beginning to employ Taoist priests. (Nickerson, id.; on this subject
> see also Stein 1979; Lagerwey 1987: 241-52).
> 
> 
> 



One reason at the basis of these divergent--more precisely,
contradictory--attitudes may be the intent of exploiting the
popularity of certain cults and the demand for certain basic religious
services. Another reason may be the attempt of not alienating lay
persons and of paying tribute to local religious traditions. In any of
these cases, Daoism incorporates certain practices of common religion
into its rites and includes certain gods of common religion into its
pantheon. Yet, the stated purpose of Daoism remains the one of
"transforming" (*hua*) the people, a term that in
this context means educating them to venerate the deities that
impersonate the Dao, instead of relying on cults to minor deities and
spirits and on rites performed by other officiants--in
particular, the spirit-medium. Such cults and rites are defined in
Daoism as "vulgar" (or "profane", *su*)
and "excessive" (or "illicit", *yin*),
and have been condemned throughout its history (Kleeman 1994). As
has been noted, the first competitor of the Daoist priest within local
communities, in past and present times, is not the Buddhist monk or
the Confucian officer, but the spirit-medium (Seidel 1997: 62; see
Lagerwey 1987: 216-18, for an amusing but revealing
episode).


### 5.1 Daoist Heavens



Daoism represents the celestial realm as different systems of
"heavens", usually arranged hierarchically. In several
cases, these domains are not only the residences of deities, but also
correspond to degrees of priestly ordination and to inner spiritual
states, and are associated with revelations of teachings and textual
corpora. The existence of multiple systems reflects the development of
the religion. Different traditions created their own systems in order
to demonstrate that the respective methods derive from a superior
celestial domain compared to those of other traditions, and therefore
are more effective or grant access to a higher spiritual state.



The thirty-two heavens of Lingbao are arranged horizontally, with each
heaven occupying one sector of an imaginary circle. At their center is
the Grand Veil (*Daluo*), the highest celestial domain. The
language spoken in these heavens is based on sounds represented in a
form of pseudo-Sanskrit called Secret Language of the Great
Brahma (Bokenkamp 1997: 385-89). The thirty-six heavens of
Shangqing, instead, are arranged vertically. This system was created
after the Lingbao model and draws in part from it. In one of several
lists, the highest heaven is again the Grand Veil. Below it are the
heavens of the Three Clarities, followed by the four heavens of the
"Seed People" (*zhongmin*, who survive beyond the end
of the present cosmic cycle) and further below by the four heavens of
Formlessness, the eighteen of Form, and the six of Desire.



As mentioned above
 (SS3.4),
 the Three Clarities (*Sanqing*) reflect the systematization of
Daoist traditions after the Shangqing and Lingbao revelations. The
term itself defines both the three highest deities and the heavens in
which they reside. While this became the classic Daoist model of the
celestial realms, it could be modified in several ways. Different
systems were devised in later times; these include the Shenxiao
cosmography, which places the eponymous Divine Empyrean
(*shenxiao*) at the center of nine celestial realms (Boltz
1987: 26-33; Despeux 2000: 513).


### 5.2 The Pantheon



The supreme Daoist deities are the Three Clarities (or Three Pures, *Sanqing*),
each of which rules over one heaven (for their names, see
 SS3.4).
 They are associated with different pre-cosmic eras and are deemed to
be at the origins of the textual corpora associated with the Three
Caverns. Along the history of Daoism, the Three Clarities have been
supplemented, but never replaced, by other deities that effectively
might share with them the title of "highest Daoist
deities". Most important among them are Taiyi, or Great One, who
represents the fundamental Unity of the cosmos in a deified form; and
Yuhuang, or Jade Sovereign, the highest god of popular religion before
his incorporation in the Daoist pantheon in the Song period.



Several other gods, such as the "emperors" (or
"thearchs", *di*) of the five directions, represent
cosmological principles. In addition, a multitude of deities, most of
which originate from local cults and are shared with the common
religion, contribute to form a pantheon that is impossible to describe
in full, as it takes different forms in different places and times
(Lagerwey 2010: 19-55; iconography in Little 2000, Delacour et
al. 2010, Huang 2012, and Fava 2013). To give a few examples, these
deities include the Queen Mother of the West (Xiwang Mu, an ancient
goddess of the immortals); the Mother of the Dipper (a deity of Indian
origin, especially associated with children and childbirth); Mazu (a
woman who lived in the late 10th century and was deified as
the protector of sailors and fishermen, but also of women seeking
children); Zhenwu (the protector of the Ming dynasty, related to the
Northern Dipper and provided with exorcist and healing powers);
Marshall Wen (Wen Yuanshuai, who gave up his life to prevent
"plague spirits" from poisoning local wells); and the
"plague spirits" themselves, who are appeased in Daoist
rituals called Plague Offerings (*wenjiao*).


### 5.3 The Function of Writing



The highest gods reveal texts, teachings, and methods either directly
or through their representatives. For instance, the Shangqing and
Lingbao scriptures are deemed to have taken shape from self-generated
graphs coagulated from Original Breath (Robinet 1993: 21-24), or
from sounds generated by its vibration (Bokenkamp 1997: 386-87),
in the early stages of the formation of the cosmos. They were
transmitted in Heaven until a "divine being" or an
"immortal" transcribed them into characters understandable
to humans.



Just like the gods usually grant revelations in the form of
scriptures, the typically Daoist form of communicating with the gods
is by writing: as Anna Seidel remarked, the Chinese deities
"neither speak nor listen, but write and read" (1997: 43).
In Daoist ritual, the priest delivers a "memorial" (or
"statement", *shu*) to the gods in order to
announce the ceremony performed in their honor, declare its purpose,
specify its program, and list the names of those who sponsor it
(Schipper 1974). The so-called talismans (*fu*, a word almost
exactly corresponding to the original meaning of Greek
*symbolon*) are traced on paper or other supports in graphs
hardly comprehensible to humans but intelligible to the gods (Despeux
2000; Mollier 2003). Like the revealed scriptures--some of which,
in fact, are deemed to have evolved from them--talismans have
counterparts in Heaven, and thus serve to identify and authenticate
their possessors in front of the gods. They confer the power to summon
certain deities and to control demons, but also protect space and heal
illnesses; they are worn on one's body, affixed at the four
directions, placed along the path that leads to one's dwelling,
or made into ashes and drunk with water.


### 5.4 Rituals



The two main Daoist ceremonies in the present day are the Offering
(*jiao*) and the Merit (*gongde*) rituals. (On their
history and on earlier forms of ritual see Benn 2000; Andersen 2008;
Lagerwey 2010: 58-93). The Offering ritual (Lagerwey 1987:
51-167; Schipper 1993: 72-99; Dean 2000: 670-77) is
performed to renovate the bond between a community--from the
village to the empire--and its gods. The Merit ritual (Lagerwey
1987: 169-237) is a funerary ceremony performed to ensure that
the deceased is not kept in the netherworld but may ascend to
Heaven.



The communal ritual is requested and organized by the representatives
of community via the local "lay association", which is
also in charge of the local temple or shrine. The main officiant is
the Daoist priest, or *daoshi* (lit. "Daoist
master"), a function typically transmitted within families. When
he receives a request to celebrate an Offering, the *daoshi*
convenes his assistants to perform the ritual. The celebration
typically lasts one, two, three, five, or ten days, but arrangements
(especially the preparation of the necessary paperwork) require a much
longer time. While the Offering is celebrated in the temple, a
festival is performed in the streets outside, with
processions--the statue of the local tutelary god is carried
through the neighborhood--music, and theatrical performances. In
addition to this dual "outer" and "inner"
aspect of the celebration, another important distinction is the one
between the portions of the ritual that are public and those that are performed
behind closed doors, in which only the priests and selected representatives of the
local community can participate.


## 6. Soteriology



Terms meaning "long life" (*shou*,
*changsheng*) and "immortality" (*busi*,
etc.) are among the most recurrent ones in Daoist literature. Both
have been understood in different ways according to the perspectives
of the respective texts and authors. In general, liberation has been
represented in Daoism according to two main models: "union with
the Dao" (*hedao* and similar terms) and incorporation
into the celestial bureaucracy (not as a deity, but as an officer of
that bureaucracy). The highest form of liberation is often described
as "ascension to Heaven" (*shengtian*), attaining
"celestial immortality" (*tianxian*), or in
analogous terms, but the general concept of immortality has been
construed in many ways.


### 6.1 The Immortals



According to hagiographic works, the Daoist immortals are historical,
semi-historical, or entirely legendary persons who transcend the
limits of ordinary human existence, sometimes by birth but usually by means of their practices. As
described by Benjamin Penny (2000: 125-26), their powers include
the ability to transform themselves into different creatures or
objects; the possession of extraordinary bodies, devoid of signs of
aging and capable of stunning feats; the skill of controlling people,
animals, and objects by means of mastery of *qi* (the
life-giving "breath"); the gift of healing; and the
faculty of predicting the future. The main power possessed by the
immortals, however, is certainly the ability to reach indefinitely
long lifespans. It is especially in hagiographic works that the idea
of human "perfectibility" is understood in a sense that
is, at the same time, most elementary and most idealistic: not only an
exceptional longevity, but also the immortality of the physical
body.



The earliest extant hagiographic collections are the *Liexian
zhuan* (Biographies of Exemplary Immortals; Kaltenmark 1953),
probably dating from the 1st century BCE, and the
*Shenxian zhuan* (Biographies of Divine Immortals; Campany
2002), traditionally attributed to Ge Hong although no conclusive
evidence is available about his authorship (Penny 1996). With the
exception of works devoted to a single deity (in particular, Laozi in
his divine aspect; Kohn 1998: 7-36), hagiographies contain
exemplary stories about men and women who have risen to a saintly
state (but not a "godlike" state: the immortals are not
gods). These stories are often related to local cults and reflect oral
traditions, but are typically composed by literati, including some who
do not have much to do with Daoism but are interested in the
"extraordinary" and the unusual, or in the preservation of
local traditions. More importantly, hagiographic works are intended
for open circulation and are not the object of transmission among
initiated or ordained Daoists. One may read them as
"introductions to Daoism" addressed to the general public,
whose knowledge of their subject matter often would not go much beyond
what they read there.


### 6.2 "Feigning Death"



When we look at other sources, belonging to the various traditions
that have evolved during the history of Daoism, a different picture
emerges. These sources show that Daoist adepts did not intend to reach
immortality in their physical body; they intended, instead, to make
use of their physical body in order to generate a new
"person" (*shen*) that is not subject to death. The
related views and practices cover a wide spectrum of Daoism: from the
early Way of the Celestial Masters to late Internal Alchemy
(Neidan).



Some Daoist texts describe liberation as a rebirth that takes place in
life, but only after one forsakes one's mortal body. In the
earliest account of this process, related to the Way of the Celestial
Masters, the adept goes through a "feigned death"
(*tuosi*) and moves to a region of Heaven called Palace of
Taiyin, or Great Darkness, where his physical body is
refined. This process culminates in a "rebirth", or
"second birth" (*fusheng*), in a body that
preserves itself indefinitely (Bokenkamp 1997: 46-48 and
102).



No details are given on how this process actually occurs.
"Refining the bodily form in Great Darkness", however, is
similar and for some aspects identical to what many later Daoist texts
call *shijie*, "release from the mortal body" or
"from the corpse" (Robinet 1979: 57-66; Seidel 1987:
230-32; Cedzich 2001; Campany 2002: 52-60; Pregadio 2004:
121-26). After once again going through a "feigned
death", the adept departs, only to return to live in the world,
typically on a mountain but at times among other human beings, in a
perfected body that subsists indefinitely. A rare description of a
relevant practice, found in a source originally dating from the late
3rd century, suggests that "release from the
corpse" occurs in meditation. The adept is instructed to draw a
talisman and to visualize himself as "being dead". Then he
takes off his clothes--an act symbolic of his forsaken
personality--and walks into the mountains, never to return where
he was born or lived (Cedzich 2001: 27-28; Campany 2002:
54-55). Ritual elements are also involved. The adept stages his
death, and his associates (family or Daoist companions) participate in
the performance: they state that his corpse has disappeared and has
been replaced by other objects--typically a sword (signifying a
higher form of release), a staff (signifying a lower one), or a pair
of sandals (on which see Kaltenmark 1953: 40 and 52).



The adept who performs "release from the mortal body" is
also said to change his name, so that he could escape the spirits
belonging to the bureaucracy of the underworld that manage the
"registers of life and death". For this reason, this
practice has been called "deceptive", in contrast to
direct ascension to Heaven, which would be a "nonillicit method
of transcendence" (Campany 2002: 59). Yet, Daoist texts never
define *shijie* as illicit, and state instead that this form of liberation is lower because of its temporary nature: those who
undergo "release from the mortal body" have not yet
attained a state sufficiently advanced to attain complete liberation
in life, and need a further period of refinement that cannot occur in
the bodily form in which they presently dwell. Significantly, the
Chinese term for "changing name" (*gaiming*) is
homophonous of the term for "changing destiny".


### 6.3 Re-Generation in Life



Shangqing (Highest Clarity) scriptures are the first ones to describe
meditation methods for the creation of an immortal body, or an
immortal self, through the generation of a new inner embryo. An
account of "refining the bodily form in Great Darkness",
found in a Shangqing source, adds an important detail to what we have
seen above, saying that the adept receives his second birth by going
again through his embryonic development (Robinet 1979: 63-66;
Strickmann 1979: 182-83; Pregadio 2004: 124-25). Another
example is the practice of "untying the knots"
(*jiejie*). In the Shangqing view, human gestation accounts for
the creation of "knots" and "nodes" that serve
to support the five viscera, but are ultimately responsible for
one's death. To untie them, the adept is instructed to create a
new embryo through a complex meditation practice (Robinet 1993:
139-43; on the "change of destiny" involved in this
practice see Bokenkamp 2005b, 160-62).



Shangqing texts also describe meditation practices performed in order
to save one's ancestors confined in the netherworld, who are
transformed into immortals by first returning to the embryonic state
(Lagerwey 1981: 206-8; Robinet 1984: 1:170-73). Lingbao
sources describe ritual practices performed for the same purpose
(Bokenkamp 1989: 7-14). Several centuries later, these practices
would evolve in two main ways. The first is the method of Salvation
through Refinement (*liandu*), in which a priest descends
into the hells to release the souls of the deceased and lead them to
the realm of Jade Clarity. Combining ritual and meditation, the entire
practice takes place within the officiant: the celestial and infernal
regions correspond to loci found within his own person, and the
deities involved in the practice are enabled to perform their salvific
work through his own body (Lagerwey 1987: 232-35; Boltz 1983).
The second development is Neidan, or Internal Alchemy, whose
practice is often described as the conception, gestation, and delivery
of an immortal embryo (see
 SS10.3).


## 7. Views of the Human Body



It is virtually impossible to distinguish the Daoist understanding of
the human body from its understanding of the human being as a whole,
and this point constitutes on its own a central aspect of the Daoist
way of seeing. Daoism is not interested in anatomy or physiology. The
physical body performs a different function: it supports various sets
of metaphors that express the relation of the whole person to the
ultimate principle, the Dao.



The emphasis given to the symbolic aspects of the body is also the
main aspect under which Daoism differs from Chinese traditional
medicine: Daoism sees the body as an instrument for "returning
to the Dao". Catherine Despeux draws attention to this point by
noting that Daoists 



> 
> 
> have considered the body in its practical ends, in its uses,
> developing all kinds of body techniques that intend to liberate the
> individual from the constraints of the physical body, and consequently
> to entrust a major role to the symbolic body. (translated from Despeux
> 1996: 87-88)
> 
> 
> 


### 7.1 Terminology



The ordinary Western understanding of the body as physical frame or
structure cannot convey the complexity of the premodern Chinese view.
This view revolves around three main terms. The first, *ti*, or
"body", refers to the corporeal frame as an ordered whole
made of interdependent parts; it denotes the physical body made of
skin, flesh, limbs, bones, muscles, tissues, vessels, and all other
material components. The second term, *xing*, or
"form", is best understood--at least in a Daoist
perspective--in contrast to the idea of
"formlessness" (*wuxing*), which pertains to the
Dao. In this sense, "form" refers to the embodiment as the
feature that identifies each entity in the "world of
form", distinguishing it from--and relating it to--all
other entities. Therefore the "form", rather than the
"body", is the principle of individuality at the physical
level. The third term, *shen*, is the most comprehensive: it
denotes the human being in all of its physical and non-physical
aspects. *Shen* often is best translated as
"person" and at times can also be rendered as
"oneself". For example, an expression such as
*xiushen* means "cultivating one's person" or
"cultivating oneself"; it refers to cultivating not only
the body, but the entire person. (Explications of these terms, some of
which differ from the understanding suggested here, are found in Kohn
1991: 241-47; Sivin 1995: 14; Despeux 1996: 88-89;
Engelhardt 2000: 95-96.)



Each facet of the "body" mentioned above requires the
other two, but the variety of concepts embraced by these terms raises
the question of which among them is at the center of the Daoist
discourse. It could hardly be said that Daoism focuses on the physical
body: as shown below, several loci at the basis of Daoist
practices--for instance, the three Cinnabar Fields
(*dantian*)--do not even exist at the purely physical
level. In other cases, the loci at the basis of Daoist practices have
corporeal counterparts, but their emblematic functions are more
significant than those performed by the body parts themselves. The
main example is the five viscera (*wuzang*). In its discourse
on the viscera, Daoism shows little or no interest in the physical
organs *per se*; the viscera serve, instead, as material
supports for the network of correspondences that tie the human being
to its immediate and remote surroundings: society and cosmos.


### 7.2 Models of "Symbolic Body"



A merely anatomical view of the body, therefore, is the least of all
concerns in Daoism. Rather than *ti* (the physical body), the
Daoist discourse and practices focus on *xing* (the
"form") and *shen* (the whole person). Maintaining
the physical body in good health is not an end in itself; it serves to
ensure that the body and its parts and organs may fulfill their
emblematic functions.



These emblematic functions pertain to what Kristofer Schipper has
called the "symbolic vision" of the body (1993: 104 ff)
and Catherine Despeux has called the "symbolic body"
(1996: 98). This view is centered on several key notions and
representations, which receive more or less emphasis according to the
individual cases. Five different models of the body can be
distinguished within Daoism as a whole:


1. The cosmological model, where the human being is seen as a
microcosm that contains and reproduces all of the main features of the
macrocosm.
2. The political model, where the human being is likened to an
administrative system, which in turn parallels the bureaucratic
systems of the state and of the heavens.
3. The theological model, which sees the body as the residence of
inner gods visualized and nourished in meditation (see
 SS9.1
 below).
4. The natural model, which pertains to representations of the body
as a landscape--in particular, a mountain--with peaks,
watercourses and other features corresponding to specific internal
loci or to "flows of energy" (for graphic representations,
see Huang 2012: 78-81).
5. The alchemical model, where the body is seen as containing the
ingredients of the elixir and the tools required to compound it,
including furnace, tripod, and fire.



These five representations are not competing models, and in fact often overlap
one another. For instance, the principles that operate in the cosmos
and the inner deities that personify those principles are to a large
extent equivalent: one may understand and represent those principles
in abstract terms, in deified forms, or simultaneously in both ways.
Certain aspects of the cosmological and the alchemical models are
identical. Similarly, illustrations of the body as a landscape also
include the palaces that function as headquarters for the
administration of the body (Huang 2012: id.).


### 7.3 Main Components and Loci



In addition to the different models outlined above, the Daoist view of
the body is grounded on several components and loci that are not
physical in the ordinary sense, or that perform functions going beyond
those of the corresponding physical organs. The three main
components--*jing* or "essence", *qi*
or "breath", and *shen* or
"spirit"--have been discussed above
 (SS4.2).
 Only a few of the others will be mentioned here.



The center of the human being is represented in different ways; and
not being material, it may have different symbolic locations and
names. Most important among them is the Heart (*xin*, a word
also meaning "center"). Related images and terms include
the Yellow Court and the Mysterious-Female. The Yellow Court
(*huangting*, where "yellow" is the color of the
central agent Soil, and the "court" is the central
courtyard in traditional Chinese houses) has different
definitions. When the framework of reference is the three Cinnabar
Fields, it may denote any of them, and especially the central one,
corresponding to the heart; when it is the five agents, it denotes the
spleen, which is placed at the center of the five viscera and
corresponds to Soil. The Mysterious-Female (*xuanpin*, a term
derived from the *Daode jing* and often translated as
"mysterious female") is the immaterial locus of the
conjunction of Yin (the "female") and Yang (the
"mysterious").



The three Cinnabar Fields (*dantian*) are the lower Cinnabar
Field (the *dantian* proper), which is found in the region of
the abdomen and is the seat of the Essence (*jing*); the middle
Cinnabar Field, which is found in the region of the heart and is the
seat of Breath (*qi*); and the upper Cinnabar Field, which is
found in the region of the brain and is the seat of Spirit
(*shen*). In meditation practices, the three Fields are the
residences of the Three Ones (Sanyi), who represent the One and its
subdivision into the Two. In Neidan (Internal Alchemy, on which see
 SS10.3),
 they are the loci of the conception, nourishment, and delivery of the
alchemical embryo.



Important symbolic functions are performed by the five viscera
(*wuzang*), namely the liver, heart, spleen, lungs, and
kidneys. They are related, in this order, to the agents Wood, Fire,
Soil, Metal, and Water. This makes the viscera the main support for
the macrocosm-microcosm doctrine in Daoism. The three Cinnabar Fields
and the five viscera respectively reproduce the vertical and
horizontal dimensions of the cosmos within the human being.



Many Daoist texts also refer to the *hun* and the *po*,
two untranslatable terms often rendered as "spiritual and
material souls", "celestial and
earthly souls", or in similar ways. The *hun* stands for
the Yang and lighter components of the human
being that pertain to Heaven and return there after death. The
*po* stands for the Yin and grosser
components that pertain to the Earth and return there when death
occurs. According to different views, the *hun* and the
*po* may be single or multiple; in the latter case, the
*hun* are three, and the *po* are seven.



Finally, the human body also hosts two sets of parasites: the
"three corpses" (*sanshi*), which reside in the
head, the chest, and the legs; and the "nine worms"
(*jiuchong*), which live in different parts of the body. All of
them cause weakening, diseases, and death. The "three
corpses" are also said to report periodically one's
transgressions to Heaven, which results in the shortening of
one's life span. As these parasites feed on cereals,
"abstaining from grains" (*bigu*) was one of the
ways to expel them.


## 8. "Nourishing Life"



Daoist self-cultivation teachings and practices can be subdivided into
three main groups:


1. Yangsheng (Nourishing Life), including such methods as
*daoyin*, breathing, sexual practices, and dietetics
2. Meditation, including visualization of the inner gods, meditation
on Unity, "inner journeys" to constellations or to the
remote corners of the cosmos, and methods focused on contemplation and
insight
3. Alchemy, including Waidan (External Alchemy) and Neidan (Internal
Alchemy)



While Confucianism saw the cultivation of ethical and moral principles
as the highest pursuit in a person's life, Daoism deems those
principles to be the foundation of one's self-cultivation. In
the Daoist perspective, ethics and morals therefore are not a branch
of "philosophical thought", but also pertain to the basic
field of Nourishing Life. (On Daoist precepts see Schipper 2001, and
the translation of a representative text in Hendrischke and Penny
1996.)



This and the next sections are concerned with the three main groups of
teachings and practices mentioned above.


### 8.1 Practices



Yangsheng or Nourishing Life is the general designation of a
variety of practices designed to benefit the body (Engelhardt 2000).
The term is so indefinite that no precise list can be drawn of what
pertains to "nourishing life". Nevertheless, relevant
methods would certainly include *daoyin*, breathing, and sexual
practices. Present-day practices often defined as
"Daoist", such as Qigong and Taiji quan,
may also be seen as belonging to Yangsheng.



*Daoyin* (lit., "guiding and pulling"; Despeux
1989; Kohn 2008) can be defined, in Western terms, as a sort of
gymnastics, in the sense that it grants physical agility and
coordination. In a different reference frame, its formal features and
its place in Daoism bear analogies to what *hatha yoga* is in Hinduism.
The purpose of *daoyin* postures and movements is to allow the
unhindered flow of *qi* within the body. The practice is known
to have existed at least by the 3rd or 2nd
century BCE (trans. of a Mawangdui manuscript, Harper 1998:
310-27). Only one text on *daoyin* is found in the Daoist
Canon (trans. Kohn 2012, in a chapter oddly entitled "Internal
Alchemy").



Breathing practices exist in many varieties. The most common general
terms are *xingqi* ("circulating breath") and
*tuna* ("exhaling [the old] and inhaling [the new
breath]"). Particular practices include *biqi*
("retaining breath"), *buqi* ("spreading
breath"), *lianqi* ("refining breath"), and
*tiaoqi* ("harmonizing breath"). Another celebrated
term is *zhongxi* ("breathing through the heels"),
used in the *Zhuangzi* to designate the spontaneous breathing of
the realized person, which does not stop at the lungs but circulates
throughout the entire body (ch. 6; Watson 1968: 78). Two especially
important practices are the ingestion of the "breaths" of
the four directions (Raz 2013), and the so-called "embryonic
breathing" (*taixi*), which purports to replicate the
breathing of an embryo in its womb (Maspero 1981: 459-505).



Sexual practices are commonly defined in Chinese as *fangzhong
shu* or "arts of the bedroom" (Maspero 1981:
517-41). The large amount of literature existing on this subject
shows that these arts are, with few exceptions, primarily addressed to
males (another common term that defines them is *yunu*,
"riding women"). Their main purpose is to avoid
ejaculation: semen should be prevented from being emitted and should
instead be "returned to the brain" (which is deemed to be
the origin of the marrow, in its turn the source of semen). This
method is known as *huangjing bunao*, "reverting the
essence to replenish the brain".


### 8.2 Criticism



While in Chinese popular culture and in the Western re-invention of
Daoism the "arts of the bedroom" are often seen as Daoist,
sexual practices performed in the history of Daoism are of a different
kind. They include the *heqi* ("joining breaths" or
"pneumas") ritual, practiced in the early *Tianshi
dao* (Way of the Celestial Masters) between married couples in
order to generate the "seed people" (*zhongmin*),
who would survive the impending end of world (Raz 2012: 186-202;
Kleeman 2014; Mollier 2016). Certain traditions of Neidan (Internal
Alchemy) also involve sexual conjunction, performed in order to enable
the male practitioner to collect the True Yang from the
Yin (represented in this case by the sexual essences produced
by the female). In Neidan, these practice are contrasted with
*qingxiu*, literally meaning "pure
cultivation".



Several Daoist texts emphasize that the Yangsheng methods should not be
performed as the only way for "returning to the Dao".
Others--beginning with the *Zhuangzi* (ch. 15; Watson
1968: 167-68)--express criticism towards them. While some
scholars have looked at these contrasts as examples of competition
taking place in a sort of "self-cultivation market",
Daoist authors take into account the state of realization afforded by the Yangsheng methods, which in their view is lower compared to other practices.


## 9. Meditation



Daoist meditation practices can be divided into four main types: (1)
Visualization of inner gods; (2) Meditation on Unity, or the One; (3)
"Excursions" to astral bodies and constellations, or to
the remotest poles of the cosmos; (4) Inner contemplation.


### 9.1 Inner Gods



According to Daoist traditions documented from around 200 CE, the
human being hosts a veritable pantheon of gods. These deities perform
multiple roles related to one another: they allow the human being to
communicate with the corresponding gods of the celestial pantheon,
serve as administrators of the human body, and guard the balance of
the body's main functions.



Several texts describe the features of the inner gods. One of the main
sources, the *Huangting jing* (Book of the Yellow Court; ca.
200 CE; Robinet 1993: 55-96; Despeux 2012: 128-49),
mentions, for instance, a major series of gods that live within the
five viscera. Significantly, each of these organs is called a
"department" (*bu*), the same term that denotes a
government "ministry", and each of these gods is said to
reside in a "palace". These and other details, such as
names, appearances, dimensions, and garments of the gods, are
mentioned as supports for meditation practices. In agreement with the
classical Chinese views on the fateful separation of the spirit
(*shen*) from the body, several works warn that if the inner
gods (also called *shen*) leave their residences, a person dies.
"Maintaining one's thoughts" (*cun*) on them
enables one to keep them in their corporeal dwellings.



These deities are not deemed to possess physical existence in the
ordinary sense of the word. They pertain, instead, to a domain that
lies midway between formlessness and form; as noticed by Isabelle
Robinet, they are "images" (*xiang*) that play an
intermediary function "between the world of sensory realities
and the world of the unknowable" (1993: 50). The person in whom
the gods reside is neither possessed by them nor is
"deified" by their presence (for a different view, see
Puett 2002:
226-27). The practitioner, instead, becomes the focus of a
divine representation, of which he is the lone creator and the lone
spectator. The organs and loci in which the gods reside cease to be
mere "body parts", and become the supports that make that
representation possible.



The inner gods are literally innumerable and different texts describe
different pantheons (Pregadio 2005: 131-41), but here only the
most important one can be mentioned. Known as the Red Child (Chizi),
he is featured in the *Laozi zhongjing* (Central Book of Laozi;
probably ca. 200 CE; Schipper 1993: 100-12; Schipper 1995;
Lagerwey 2004a). The speaker of this text is Laozi; in fact, the Red
Child is no other than Laozi himself, now playing the role of
"true self" (*zhenwu*) of each human being. He
defines himself as "the child of the Dao", adding that he
resides in the stomach (another symbolic center of the person) where
he is nourished by his mother and protected by his father. Like other
inner gods, however, the Child should also be nourished by the person
in whom he lives: in particular, a "yellow essence"
(*huangjing*) and a "red breath" (*chiqi*),
respectively associated with the Moon (Yin) and the Sun
(Yang), should be delivered to him by the adept in
meditation.



As an image of the "true self", the Red Child is the main
precursor of the "embryo" that, several centuries later,
adepts of Neidan would generate and nourish by means of their own
practices
 (SS10.3).


### 9.2 The One and the Three Ones



Meditation practices focused on the principle of Unity are known as
"guarding Unity" or "guarding the One"
(*shouyi*), an expression analogous in meaning to
"embracing Unity" (*baoyi*) found in the *Daode
jing* (sec. 10 and 22). In his famous speech to the Yellow
Emperor, recorded in the *Zhuangzi*, Guangcheng zi says,
"I guard this Unity and thus abide in this harmony" (ch.
11; Watson 1968: 120).



While in these examples "guarding Unity" refers to the
constant awareness of the One as the principle of the many, in later times the
same expression designates meditation practices based on the
visualization of the One as an anthropomorphic inner deity. A
classical description is found in the *Baopu zi*, where Ge Hong
reckons "guarding the One" as the superior way of
transcendence together with the ingestion of elixirs. The main
practice consists in visualizing the features that the One as a god
takes within the human being as it moves among the three Cinnabar
Fields. Meditation on the One as an inner god is also described in the
*Laozi zhongjing* and in the *Dadong zhenjing*.


Later,
this practice evolved into "guarding the Three Ones"
(*shou sanyi*), which again exists in several varieties
(Andersen 1979; Robinet 1993: 119-38). For instance, the Three
Ones are represented as three children who live in the
Cinnabar Fields. Another practice combines external and
internal aspects: after visualizing the descent of the
Northern Dipper above his head, the adept sees the Three Ones emerging
among its stars; he breaths three times, and each time one of the
Three Ones reaches its residence in the respective Cinnabar Field.


### 9.3 "Pacing the Celestial Net"



Shangqing Daoism also developed meditation practices that take adepts
to the extremities of the cosmos or to the Sun, the Moon, and other
astral bodies (Robinet 1993: 171-85 and 187-230). For some
of their features, these practices are related to the
"far roaming" described in pre-Han and Han literary works
(see
 SS2.2).
 The Dipper, in particular, is the heavenly residence of the Great One
(Taiyi); it is made of nine stars, two of which are said to be visible
only by advanced adepts. One of the nine stars, called Heavenly Pass
(*tianguan*), allows the adept to exit the cosmos and access
the domains placed above and beyond it. The meditative walk on the
stars was called Pacing the Celestial Net (*bugang*). It
incorporated the ancient ritual practice of the Steps of Yu
(*yubu*), which imitated the lamely way of walking of the
mythical Emperor Yu, but also included cosmological and numerological
elements (Andersen 1989-90).


### 9.4 Contemplation



From approximately the 7th century, the meditation
practices outlined above were largely replaced by methods of
contemplation and introspection (Kohn 2010). While their closeness to
Buddhism is manifest, their roots also lie in early teachings and
practices such as those described in the *Neiye* (Internal
Training), dating from the second half of the 4th
century BCE (Kirkland 2004: 39-52; Roth 1999; Graziani 2001),
and in the above-mentioned speech of Guangcheng
zi to the Yellow Emperor (*Zhuangzi*, ch. 11; Watson 1968:
118-20).



One of the main sources on contemplation (*guan*) methods is
the *Neiguan jing* (Book of Inner Contemplation; Kohn 2010:
179-87), another text spoken by Laozi in his deified aspect.
This work emphasizes that the original state of clarity and purity is
lost when the mind is overcome by passions and attachments caused by
sensual cravings. When the mind is stabilized, disordered thoughts do
not arise; one then does not only reach the state of quiescence, but
the state in which both movement and quiescence are transcended.



The *Qingjing jing* (Book of Clarity and Quiescence; Kohn 1993:
24-29) is another influential work, also dating from the Tang
period and also spoken by Laozi. It states that the innate clarity and
quiescence of the mind and the spirit are defiled by passion and lust
owed to the separation of original Unity into the two complementary
principles. Only by realizing that mind, forms, and individual objects
are devoid of an underlying nature is it possible to awaken to their
fundamental emptiness. This is attained by contemplation, and leads
one to the recovery of the "clarity and quiescence"
mentioned in the title (an expression derived from the *Daode
jing*, sec. 45). Among the main uses of this work was, and still
is, its daily recitation by Quanzhen monks, nuns, and adepts.


## 10. The External and the Internal Elixirs



Alchemy developed in China in two main branches. Waidan, or External
Alchemy, is based on compounding elixirs through the manipulation of
natural substances--primarily minerals and metals--which
release their essences when they are submitted to the action of fire.
Neidan, or Internal Alchemy, aims to produce the elixir within the
alchemist's person according to two main models of doctrine and
practice: first, by
causing the primary components of the cosmos and the human
being--Essence, Breath, and Spirit--to revert to their
original states; and second, by purifying one's mind of defilements and
passions, in order to "see one's Nature"
(*jianxing*), which is equated to the elixir.


### 10.1 Waidan or External Alchemy



In the Taiqing (Great Clarity) tradition of Waidan, which
developed from the 3rd century CE, the alchemical practice
is framed as a complex ritual sequence (Pregadio 2006). The initial
stage is the ceremony of transmission, followed by a period of
retirement and purifications. Then, having protected the ritual space
by means of talismans (*fu*), the alchemist builds the
laboratory, or "chamber of the elixirs" (*danshi*).
At a time deemed to be suitable according to traditional hemerology,
the alchemist performs a ceremony for kindling the
fire--including a request of assistance addressed to Laojun (Lord
Lao) and other deities--and only then does he devote himself to
the compounding. The process is concluded by the consecration and the
ingestion of the elixir. It is this entire sequence, and not only the
work at the furnace, that constitutes the alchemical practice.



The main tool, from both a ritual and a technical point of view, is
the crucible. To reproduce the state of the cosmos at its inception
(*hundun*; see SS4.3), the vessel
should be hermetically sealed so that the vital "breath"
(*qi*) is not dispersed. Under these conditions, the elixir
ingredients "revert" (*huan*) to their original
state. This refined matter is equated with the Essence (*jing*)
that is hidden within the Dao and gives birth to the world
("Vague and indistinct! Within it there is something. Dim and
obscure! Within it there is an essence"; *Daode jing*,
sec. 21). The elixir therefore is a tangible sign of the seed that
generates the cosmos.



Ingesting an elixir is said to confer, in the first place,
transcendence, immortality, and admission into the ranks of the
celestial bureaucracy. One also gains the ability of summoning
benevolent gods and obtains protection from demons, spirits, and
several other disturbances, including weapons, wild animals, and even
thieves. Remarkably, in order to provide these benefits, the elixir
does not need to be ingested: it may simply be kept in one's
hand or carried at the belt as a powerful apotropaic talisman.


### 10.2 Alchemy and Cosmology



Early Waidan sources do not rely on the system of correlative
cosmology. This system, instead, becomes essential in the
later Waidan traditions and in virtually the whole of Neidan. The
foundations of this new model of doctrine and practice were provided
by the *Cantong qi* (Seal of the Unity of the Three),
traditionally said to be written in the 2nd century CE but
dating from between the mid-5th and the mid-7th
century (Pregadio 2011). Scores of texts both within and outside the
Daoist Canon are related to this work. Although its views have been
understood mainly in relation to Neidan, they also apply to
Waidan.



The *Cantong qi* and its tradition use several sets of emblems
that represent different aspects of the relation of the cosmos to the
Dao. The main set is formed by four trigrams of the *Book of
Changes*, namely Qian , Kun ,
Kan , and Li , which represent the
modes taken on by the Dao in its self-manifestation. *Qian*
stands for the active (Yang) aspect of the Dao, and *Kun* stands
for its passive (Yin) aspect. Their permanent conjunction in
the precosmic domain gives birth to the cosmos. The Yang of
*Qian*  moves into *Kun* , which becomes
*Kan* ; in response, the Yin of *Kun*
 moves into *Qian* , which becomes *Li*
. In the cosmos, therefore, the Yin contains True
Yang (the inner solid line of *Kan* ), and the
Yang contains True Yin (the inner broken line of
*Li* ).



On the basis of these principles, the only form of alchemical practice
sanctioned by the *Cantong qi* and by the works that follow its
system is the one that enables the conjunction of *Qian* and
*Kun*, or True Yang and True Yin. According
to the *Cantong qi*, only True Lead and True Mercury are
"of the same kind" (*tonglei*) as *Qian* and
*Kun*. The Yin and Yang entities that
contain these authentic principles are "black
lead" (i.e., native lead) and cinnabar, respectively. In the strict sense of
the term, alchemy therefore consists in extracting True Lead from
"black lead" and True Mercury from cinnabar, and in
joining them to one another. This is accomplished in Waidan by using
the corresponding minerals and metals, and in Neidan by operating on
various components of the human body--both physical and
non-physical--which are symbolically denoted by the same
terms.


### 10.3 Neidan or Internal Alchemy



Although the *Cantong qi* forever changed the history of Daoist
alchemy, by no means are all Waidan works written in the Tang period
(7th-9th centuries) inspired by its doctrines
(Sivin 1968; Needham 1976: 132-74). During this period, however,
Waidan methods increasingly tend to mirror features of the
cosmological system (Sivin 1976 and 1980).



The shift of focus from ritual to cosmology also paved the way for the
development of Neidan. However, the roots of Neidan are multiple, and
it would be reductive to see it as a mere transposition of Waidan to
an "inner" plane: Neidan owes its origins to meditation
methods on the inner gods more than it does to Waidan (Pregadio 2005).
To summarize a complex phenomenon, Waidan terminology and imagery were
combined with concepts and emblems drawn from the cosmological system
according to the model of the *Cantong qi*, and with elements
inherited from the early meditation practices. This necessarily caused
the disappearance of the inner gods themselves: incorporating them
into Neidan would require an impossible "re-mapping" of
the inner pantheon onto a different cosmological model. The only, but
major, exception is the Red Child, the innermost deity of early Daoist
meditation (see
 SS9.1).
 When he reappears in Neidan, however, the Red Child is no longer a
god possessed by all human beings: he is now an image of the
"embryo" generated by means of the alchemical
practice.



Especially in its forms that integrate elements defined (or
re-defined) by Buddhism and Neo-Confucianism, Neidan focuses its
discourse and practice on *xing* and *ming*, two
cardinal concepts in its view of the human being (Robinet 1995:
165-95; Pregadio 2014). *Xing* denotes the "inner
nature", which is related to Spirit (*shen*) and pertains
to one's "heart" or "mind"
(*xin*). Neidan texts often discourse on *xing* by using
Buddhist terms and expressions, such as "seeing one's
nature" (*jianxing*), and even use the term "Buddha-nature" (*foxing*). *Ming*, an even more complex
term, is related to Breath (*qi*) and pertains to the
"body" (*shen*). The term means in the first place
the "command" or "mandate" conferred by
Heaven, but its senses also include "life",
"existence", "lifespan", as well as
"destiny". While one's *xing* is unborn and
is therefore free from death, everything in the domain of
*ming* has a beginning and an end.



As far as we know, Neidan developed from the early 8th
century onwards. Two of its main branches, which emerged between the
12th and the 13th centuries, are traditionally
ascribed with the creation of models of self-cultivation based on the
concepts summarized above (Yokote 2015). The first model, associated
with the Nanzong (Southern Lineage), gives initial priority
to the cultivation of one's *ming* (existence), gradually
shifting to the cultivation of *xing* (inner nature) as the
practice progresses. The second model, associated with the
Beizong (Northern Lineage), emphasizes instead the
cultivation of one's *xing* by means of "clarity
and quiescence" (*qingjing*); this is also said to
involve the cultivation of one's *ming*. Despite the
differences between these two models, Neidan as a whole insists that
both *xing* and *ming* should be cultivated, a view
reflected in the term "conjoined cultivation of nature and
existence" (*xingming shuangxiu*).



In its most widespread codification, which originates in the Southern
Lineage, the Neidan practice consists of three main stages (Despeux
1979: 55-82; Robinet 1995: 147-64; Wang Mu 2011). Its
purpose is to lead an adept from the postcelestial to the precelestial
domains through the gradual reintegration of each of the three main
components of the human being--Essence, Breath, and
Spirit--into the one that precedes it, culminating in the
reversion to the state of Non-Being (*wu*), or Emptiness
(*xu*, *kong*). While this is the function of alchemy
*per se*, certain authors indicate that the process of
ascent to the precelestial domain should be followed by
a new descent or return to the postcelestial domain, in
order to merge them with one another.



The practice outlined above is often described as the generation of
"a person outside one's person" (or "a self
outside oneself", *shen zhi wai shen*), defined as the
"true person" (*zhenshen*; compare
 SS6.3).
 In this case, the main stages of the practice are portrayed as the
conception, gestation, and birth of an embryo, which personifies the
practitioner's realized state (Despeux 2016). In another view,
the Internal Elixir is seen as already possessed by every human being
and as identical to one's own innate realized state. Liu Yiming
(1734-1821) expresses this view by saying: "All human
beings have this Golden Elixir complete in themselves: it is entirely
realized in everybody". Other authors of Neidan texts state in
their works that "the Golden Elixir is in front of your
eyes".