Daoist Alchemical Discernment 学仙辨疑诀

No author was originally indicated for this text.

History of the Song Dynasty·Treatise on Arts and Literature records One Scroll of The Secret Instructions for Distinguishing Truth in Cultivating Immortality by Zhang Wumeng—this refers to the very work here.

The existing version is included in the Jade Instructions Category of the Dongzhen Section within the Daoist Canon (The Daozang).

Daoist Alchemical Discernment

Zhang Wumeng was a Taoist priest of the Huashan School in the early Northern Song Dynasty, a disciple of Chen Tuan, and proficient in the study of Internal Alchemy. The book is divided into five chapters: Distinguishing Truth, Distinguishing Treasures, Distinguishing Mercury, Distinguishing Cinnabar, and Comprehensive Distinction, with an appended Song of Mother and Son at the end.

Each chapter quotes Taoist texts such as Cantongqi (The Unity of the Three) and Jinbi Jing (The Golden and Jade Scripture) to clarify the meanings of common alchemical terms in elixir scriptures, including gold, lead, mercury, and quicksilver. It holds that alchemists should follow the principles of heaven and earth’s changes, unify the three into one (essence, Qi, and spirit), cultivate emotions to harmonize nature, so as to return to the root and restore simplicity, revive the soul and revert to the primal state, and transcend from intentional action to non-action.