The Qi Zhicheng 祁志诚

Qi Zhicheng (1219-1293) was a native of Yangdi, Junzhou (present-day Yuxian County, Henan Province) during the Jin and Yuan dynasties. His courtesy name was Xinfu, and his Taoist title was Dongmingzi.

As recorded in The Stele of Qi, the Real Person of Clear Perception Who Preserves Spirit and Responds to Transformation, Great Master of the Taoist Community, written by Li Zhiqian: Qi Zhicheng’s family had been farmers for generations, and through this occupation, they became wealthy.

After the Yuan army invaded, Qi Zhicheng was captured by soldiers. When he was taken to Zhaoxianli, Qixian County, Taiyuan, a prominent local family surnamed Qiang took him in and adopted him as their son. When he reached the age of twenty (the "Weak Crown" in traditional Chinese culture, a coming-of-age milestone), he refused to marry.

At that time, the Quanzhen School of Taoism was widely popular. Upon hearing that Song Piyun resided on Xilong Mountain in Taiyuan, Qi Zhicheng went to study under him. Song bestowed upon him the Taoist title "Dongmingzi". Later, Qi Zhicheng left his teacher and built a simple earthen house in Xishen Village, Baozhou, and rarely stepped out of his home.

In the fifth year of the reign of Emperor Dingzong of the Yuan Dynasty (1250), he traveled out of Juyong Pass to Yunzhou, where he built Lequan Nunnery to live in. On a daily basis, he used Taoist talismans and incantations to treat people’s illnesses. He also enjoyed traveling to scenic mountains and rivers, and later built Yunxi Taoist Temple in Liujiagu, Jinge Mountain, to reside there.

In the third year of the Zhongtong era (1262), Prime Minister Antong invited Qi Zhicheng to his residence, and the two formed a friendship between a government official and a hermit (a relationship beyond secular ties).

The Prime Minister asked him about the ways to cultivate one’s moral character, manage one’s family, and govern a country. Qi Zhicheng replied: "If one’s conduct is upright, their influence will be upright; if one’s conduct is corrupt, their influence will be corrupt. A man of virtue focuses on the fundamental and substantial, not the superficial and trivial; he values sincerity and reality, not vanity and ostentation. Governing a large country is like cooking small fish (meaning it requires gentle handling and minimal interference)."

The Prime Minister was deeply impressed by these words and regarded them as wise maxims for life. In the seventh year of the Zhiyuan era (1270), Qi Zhicheng requested a posthumous title for his teacher Song Piyun. The imperial court granted Song the posthumous title "Real Person Piyun of Profound Unity and Spreading the Dao", and renamed Yunxi Taoist Temple "Chongzhen Palace". In the eighth year of the Zhiyuan era (1271), Qi Zhicheng was appointed Chief Supervisor of Taoism for All Circuits.

In the ninth year of the Zhiyuan era (1272), he succeeded as the "Real Person in Charge of the Taoist Community", and the imperial court issued a sealed edict to protect the Taoist faith.

In the eighteenth year of the Zhiyuan era (1281), a debate broke out between Taoism and Buddhism, and the Taoist community faced numerous troubles. Qi Zhicheng stepped forward courageously and persisted unyieldingly through all hardships.

In the twenty-second year of the Zhiyuan era (1285), he recommended Zhang Zhixian, the Supervisor of Taoism, to succeed him. After that, he returned to the mountains and lived in Pengshan Taoist Abbey.

In October of the thirtieth year of the Zhiyuan era (1293), Qi Zhicheng passed away due to illness at the age of seventy-five.

He authored Collected Works of Xiyun in three volumes, which were passed down to later generations.

When Emperor Chengzong of the Yuan Dynasty ascended the throne, Qi Zhicheng was posthumously awarded the title "Real Person of Clear Perception Who Preserves Spirit and Responds to Transformation". Accounts of his life can also be found in Biographies of Buddhist and Taoist Monks in The History of the Yuan Dynasty and Volume 6 of A Study on the Origin and Development of the Changchun Taoist Tradition.