Record of Divine Seclusion 神隐志

Attributed to Immortal Xing.

Immortal Xing was the self-styled sobriquet of Zhu Quan, Prince of Ning in the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Quan was the eighteenth son of Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty, and was initially enfeoffed as the Prince of Daning. He was coerced by the Prince of Yan; when the Prince of Yan's army marched south for the "Jingnan Campaign" to seize the throne, Zhu Quan drafted the proclamation for him. After the Prince of Yan ascended the imperial throne, Zhu Quan was reassigned as the Prince of Nanchang. Subjected to slander and calumny thereafter, he withdrew from political life to study the ways of Laozi and Huangdi, naming his abode "the Divine Seclusion"—from which the book derives its title.

Record of Divine Seclusion

Divided into two volumes, the book mostly expounds on the ways of immortality, seclusion and health preservation. It gives concise explanations of the daily life of Taoist practitioners and recluses, including their residence layout, clothing and food, wandering journeys, daily routines, productive labor, and even the prevention and treatment of various illnesses with medicine and health remedies. It also touches on life tastes and seasonal customs incidentally.

The book is recorded in the Daoist School Category of the Existing Catalog in Volume 47 of the General Catalogue of the Complete Library of the Four Treasuries, and is included in the Biographies of Immortals category of the Extra-**The Daozang* Canon*.