The Alchemical Formulas of Baoyizi & Elder Sanfeng 抱一子三峰老人丹诀

Compiled by Jin Yueyan and transmitted by Huang Gongwang in the Yuan Dynasty.

It is a single volume included in the Alchemy Section of The Dongzhen Section within The Daozang.

The Alchemical Formulas of Baoyizi & Elder Sanfeng

This book compiles the oral instructions for Internal Alchemy cultivation, cultivation diagrams and seven-character jueju poems passed down by the Three Peaks Elder, the Embracing One. It states that those who study the immortal way must first discern the origin of life and innate nature, and that there are false and true manifestations of life and nature. The false life and nature refer to the spirit and qi within the heart and kidney of the mortal mind; the key to their cultivation lies in calming the heart and stabilizing the will in the dantian below the navel. With prolonged practice, one can manifest the yin spirit, which only enables reincarnation and seizure of mortal vessels, making one a pure and empty ghost—this is the method of minor attainment.

The true life and nature refer to the genuine lead and genuine mercury within Kan and Li; the key to their cultivation, building on the method of minor attainment, is to gather the medicine and ignite the alchemical fire at the Hour of Zi, extract lead and add mercury, and guide the genuine qi to surge from the lower dantian into the upper dantian. Once cultivated to perfection, the yang spirit manifests itself—this is the method of great attainment for celestial immortals.

The book provides a relatively detailed account of the three cinnabar fields, alchemical fire, the circulation of qi through the three passes, Kan and Li, genuine lead and mercury, and the Earth of Wu and Ji. It also includes a diagram of the coccyx and sixteen seven-character jueju poems to elucidate the alchemical way.