Ziqing Zhixuan Ji (The Purple Clarity Collection on Pointing to the Mystery) was authored by Bai Yuchan. Born Ge Changgeng, he was adopted by the Bai family, hence also known as Bai Yuchan. His courtesy names included Ruhui, Ziqing, and Baisou, and his literary names were Haiqiongzi, Hainan Weng, Wuyi Sanren (Wanderer of Wuyi), and Shenxiao Sanli (Free Officer of the Divine Firmament). A native of the Southern
Song Dynasty, he traced his ancestral roots to Minqing in Fujian and was born in Qiongzhou (present-day Qiongshan, Hainan).
Bai Yuchan was intelligent from a young age: he was well-versed in the Nine Classics, skilled in poetry and prose, and proficient in calligraphy and painting. He once passed the imperial examination for child prodigies. In adulthood, however, "he acted chivalrously, killed a man, and fled for his life to Wuyi Mountain." Deeply committed to metaphysical studies, he left home to travel widely in search of renowned masters, dedicated himself to cultivation, and journeyed across various regions. In Huizhou, he encountered the Real Person Niwan, after which he returned to Luofu Mountain, where he was taught the methods of the Golden Elixir and fire phases. Later, he attained the
Dao while residing in Wuyi Mountain and was titled "Qiongwan Ziqing Zhenren" (True Person of the Jade Pendant and Purple Clarity).
He subsequently became a Taoist monk and studied under Chen Nan for nine years. After Chen Nan's passing, Bai Yuchan traveled across the land before retiring to write and dedicate himself to spreading the teachings of the Elixir Dao. As the fifth-generation inheritor of the Southern School, he was the fifth of the "Five Southern Patriarchs." It was during his time that the Southern School formally established a Taoist community for the Inner Alchemy Southern School. After his ascension, he was posthumously titled "Ziqing Mingdao Zhenren" (True Person of Purple Clarity and Bright Dao) and was commonly known as "Master Ziqing."
Ziqing Zhixuan Ji is a work on alchemy, containing over forty texts, including:
Xuanguan Xianmi Lun (On Revealing the Secrets of the Mysterious Gateway),
Xiubian Huo Lun (On Cultivation and Dispelling Doubts),
Xingming Riyue Lun (On Nature, Fate, Sun, and Moon),
Gushen Busi Lun (On the Valley Spirit That Never Dies),
Yinyang Shengjiang Lun (On the Rise and Fall of
Yin and Yang),
Jinyehuan Dan Fu (Ode to the Golden Fluid Reverting Elixir),
Xuedao Zimian Wen (An Essay on Encouraging Oneself in Learning the Dao),
Donglou Xiaocan Wen (A Small Discourse at the East Tower),
Dongzhi Xiaocan Wen (A Small Discourse on the Winter Solstice),
Danyu Fayu (Elixir Sayings and Dharma Words),
Ti Zhang Ziyang Xue Zixian Er Zhenren Xiang (Inscription on Portraits of the Two True Persons Zhang Ziyang and Xue Zixian),
Xie Chen Xianshi Jishu Ci (A Note of Thanks to Immortal Master Chen for Sending Books),
Helin Wendaopian (Discourses on the Way at Helin), as well as poems like
Bijing Pingdi Ge (The Song of Ultimate Reliance) and
Kuaihuo Ge (The Song of Joy). It ranks among the important Taoist works.
