The Fan Yuanxi 范圆曦

Fan Yuanxi (1178–1219) was a native of Ninghai in Shandong (now Muping District, Shandong Province) during the Jin and Yuan dynasties, and he styled himself Xuantong.

As recorded in Volume 4 of Ganshui Xianyuan Lu (Records of Immortal Origins from Sweet Waters), Fan Yuanxi was endowed with innate wisdom and had a quick memory for recitation. He was known in his hometown for his filial piety. From a young age, he studied Confucian classics and enjoyed reading books of the Three Teachings (Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism). At the age of 19, he became a Quanzhen Taoist monk by studying under Hao Taigu (a key figure of the Quanzhen School). Hao highly valued him, secretly imparting to him the essential secrets of Quanzhen Taoism and entrusting him with all internal and external affairs of the Taoist temple. After Hao Taigu passed away, some other Taoists, coveting the temple’s property, plotted to harm Fan. Upon hearing this, Xuantong (Fan’s self-styled name) laughed and said, “I am safeguarding these for everyone—how could things come to this?” He then handed over all the keys (to the temple) and left with a flick of his sleeves.

Later, Fan Yuanxi went to Jiaoxi, where he abandoned all worldly worries and devoted himself to practicing Quanzhen Taoist doctrines and methods. He then traveled to Mizhou to teach and guide Taoist disciples.

In the early years of the Zhenyou era (1213), when wars and chaos broke out, Fan made great efforts to defend the city walls, and a large number of elderly people and children were spared from harm.

After the bandits retreated, the imperial court appointed him as a local magistrate, but he declined the position. Instead, the court bestowed upon him the title “Great Master of Universal Illumination” and appointed him as the Taoist Administrator of the prefecture.

As chaos intensified in Shandong, Fan Yuanxi traveled from Dongping to Qinhuai, climbed Mount Taihang, descended Mount Liao, reached Xingtai, and finally moved to Zhaozhou. There, he built a simple earthen-walled hut to live in and never ventured out again from that point on. The following year, upon hearing that Qiu Chuji (a renowned Quanzhen Taoist master) had been summoned by the imperial court to travel south, Fan went to Yanshan to pay his respects. He was then appointed as the Supervisor of Taoist Affairs for circuits including Hejian and Zhending. During the Wuxian Uprising, he took his disciples and fled to Mount Tai.

In the third year of the Zhengda era of Emperor Aizong of the Jin Dynasty (1226), Yan Gong, the Grand Administrator of the Dongping Military Circuit, invited Fan to oversee the construction of Shangqing Wanshou Palace (Palace of Highest Purity and Longevity). Fan was also appointed as the Chief Supervisor of Taoism.

After twelve years of work, the palace was completed. Fan then traveled east to the coastal areas, visited Hao Taigu’s memorial temple, and subsequently oversaw the construction of Taigu Guan (Taigu Taoist Temple) in Zhending and Tianning Guan (Tianning Taoist Temple) in Zhaozhou, shuttling between these two temples.

In the third year of the Dingzong era of the Yuan Dynasty (1248), the imperial court further bestowed upon him the title “Xuantong Guangji Puzhao Zhenren” (Immortal of Mysterious Penetration, Broad Beneficence, and Universal Illumination) and appointed him as the Supervisor of Chongyang Wanshou Palace (Palace of Double Yang and Longevity). Fan Yuanxi passed away in the fourteenth year of the Dingzong era (1249) at the age of 72.

In the fifth year (1250) [of the Yuan Dynasty, likely a historical record notation], his disciple Wang Yuzhong buried him at Shangqing Wanshou Palace in Dongping.