The Zhao Wuxuan 赵悟玄

Zhao Wuxuan (1149-1212) was a native of Lingkou, Lintong (now part of Shaanxi Province) during the Jin and Yuan dynasties.

His courtesy name was Zishen, and he styled himself Liaozhenzi (Master of Attaining Truth).

After reaching adulthood (at the age of 20, the traditional coming-of-age age in ancient China), he studied books and grasped their essential meanings. At that time, the Quanzhen Sect had just begun to flourish, and Zhao Wuxuan yearned for it wholeheartedly.

It happened that Wang Chongyang (the founder of the Quanzhen Sect) had passed away, and Ma Danyang was escorting his coffin back westward. When passing through Lingkou, Zhao Wuxuan went to meet him and showed the utmost courtesy in accordance with etiquette. Ma Danyang observed that Zhao had the aptitude to receive Taoist teachings, so they formed a close spiritual bond. Zhao then led his entire family to embrace Taoism and became a disciple of Ma Danyang in Liujiang Village at Zhongnan Mountain. Ma taught him the methods of calming the mind and nurturing one’s nature, and Zhao made remarkable progress in his Taoist practice.

Zhao Enxu, a native of Chang’an, donated his residence to invite Zhao Wuxuan to live there; thus, the residence was renamed Penglai Guan (Penglai Temple), where Zhao and his disciples resided.

During the Taihe era (1201-1208), Fan Chuan Ya Liulang became a disciple of Zhao Wuxuan. He donated his villa in Zhuyang Village to build Quandao An (Quandao Hermitage) and invited Zhao to live there. Zhao Wuxuan devoted himself to studying metaphysics (Taoist philosophy)—the so-called theories of "cultivating the Golden Elixir (a core concept in Taoist inner alchemy) and nurturing one’s nature" and "the inner and outer visions of the Huangting Jing (a classic Taoist scripture)". He comprehended these theories deeply in his heart and expressed them orally, all in the form of songs and verses.

He authored Ninety-Nine Poems and Ode to Imperishability, which were all compiled into Xianti Ji (Collection of the Immortal Ladder) and circulated within the Taoist community. People in various prefectures of Shandong called Zhao Wuxuan "Little Danyang" (in reference to his master Ma Danyang, signifying his high prestige comparable to Ma’s).

His work Xianti Ji was circulated among the public. He passed away due to illness at Quandao An in the first year of the Chongqing era (1212) at the age of 63.

The Real Person Li Zhenchang (Li Zhichang) was ordered by the imperial court to posthumously confer upon Zhao the title "Hongxuan Zhenren" (Real Person of Expansive Mystery). Zhao had hundreds of disciples, among whom the most famous were Wang Deyu (styled Qingpinzi, Hermit of Poverty and Purity), Ran Yiqi (styled Xidengzi, Master of Cleaning the Lamp), and Wang Zhiqing (styled Mingweizi, Master of Bright Purity).

Details of his life can be found in the first volume of Zhongnan Mountain Ancestral Court Immortals and Real Persons Internal Biography.