Zhang Yiming (1767–1811) was a native of Jixi County, Anhui Province during the Qianlong and Jiaqing reigns of the Qing Dynasty. His original name was Daheng, with courtesy names Yizheng and Jingzhai, and he styled himself Shizhaoshanren (Hermit of Stone Reflection Mountain).
His father, Zhang Lushan, was devoted to metaphysics, possessing pure virtue and integrity. He was well-versed in the "Renqi" (a form of ancient Chinese divination), astronomy, geography, and the knowledge of various schools of thought (including Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism, and other folk traditions).
Yiming began his education at the age of seven and aspired to carry on his father’s legacy. However, he failed to achieve success in the imperial examination system. Later, due to family poverty, he traveled around the Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions, making a living through his scholarly and technical skills.
At the age of fifteen, he met Jin Huaihuai, who taught him the basics of Taoist doctrines and practices.
At the age of twenty-seven, he met Jin Huaihuai again and formally became his disciple. He once studied numerology and the "Five Escapes" (a set of Taoist esoteric arts for concealment or transcendence) under Daoist Xiyang, and thus mastered the "Liuke" (another ancient Chinese divination method, literally "Six Classes").
He passed away in the sixteenth year of the Jiaqing reign (1811) at the age of forty-five.
He authored Secret of the Pillow (in one volume) and personally annotated three volumes of Taoist formulas and mnemonics.
He was the Eleventh-Generation Master of the Vinaya in the Longmen (Dragon Gate) Sect of Taoism.
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