The Xiang’er Commentary: Birth of Religious Daoism

As a pivotal classic during the initial establishment of Taoism, the Xiang'er Commentary (a commentary on the Daodejing) is the earliest text to explicitly use the term "Taoism" (Daojiao). When Zhang Daoling, the First Heavenly Master, founded Taoism, he selected Laozi’s Daodejing from the vast corpus of ancient texts as the supreme theoretical foundation of Taoism. By interpreting the Daodejing (Jie Lao), he transformed Taoist philosophy into religious theology. Its core ideological theories can be summarized in three aspects:

(I) Unity of the Dao and the Divine: Establishing the Dao as the Core Doctrine and the Supreme Lord Lao (Taishang Laojun) as the Cornerstone of Faith

It is well-known that the "Dao" (Way) as a philosophical ontology was first articulated in Laozi’s Daodejing. The Dao described by Laozi is not the ordinary "path" or "principle" understood by most people, but a substantial entity that is both "nameless" and "named." Similarly, the "name" (ming) in Laozi’s work does not refer to a common title or label, but to a form or configuration corresponding to "shape" (xing). Chapter 21 of the Daodejing states:

"The Dao, as a thing, is vague and indistinct. Vague and indistinct, yet within it there are images; vague and indistinct, yet within it there are substances. Deep and dark, yet within it there is essence—this essence is utterly real, and within it there is faithfulness."

Zhang Daoling, Zhang Heng, and Zhang Lu—three generations of the Heavenly Masters—founded Taoism in the Bashu region (modern Sichuan and Chongqing). Their primary goal was to propagate the Dao and salvation of humanity, so they did not focus on interpreting the Daodejing purely from a philosophical ontological perspective. Instead, they took the Daodejing’s idea that "the Dao gives birth to all things" as the theoretical basis for establishing the religion. The Xiang'er Commentary also regards the Dao as the supreme, primal ontology, but its focus lies in "believing in the Dao" and "revering the Dao"—specifically, believing in the "true Dao." Its interpretation of the Dao centers on two points:

Analogy with Qi (Vital Energy): The Dao’s qi is an invisible substance, and all living beings depend on qi for existence. Here, qi is not equated with the Dao itself; rather, it is used as a metaphor to illustrate the Dao’s "vagueness and indistinctness" through the formlessness of qi.
Identifying "One" (Yi) with the Dao: "One" is the origin of all phenomena, existing between "being" (you) and "non-being" (wu). Its theoretical origin can be traced to the Daodejing’s assertion that "the sage embraces the One and becomes a model for the world."

The Xiang'er Commentary skillfully integrates "One," "Dao," and "the Divine." Chapter 10 of the commentary states:

"The One is the Dao… The One does not reside permanently in the human body; all those that cling to the body are merely ordinary, false techniques, not the true Dao… It only moves to and fro within the human body, pervading the entire body beneath the skin, not confined to a single part. When the One disperses, it becomes qi; when it converges, it becomes the Supreme Lord Lao (Taishang Laojun)."

In early Taoist theology, the Supreme Lord Lao was the highest deity. With this integration, the ideological system unifying the Dao, the One, and the Supreme Lord Lao was finally established. The commentary claims that "the One does not reside permanently in the human body"—yet people often say the Dao gives birth to all things and exists everywhere, while "the One" only "moves to and fro within the human body." Is this a misinterpretation? In fact, this is a profound insight in the Xiang'er Commentary. It infers that all things (not just humans) are in constant motion. Even Chapter 11 of the Daodejing—which uses examples like "thirty spokes converging on a hub: the emptiness within makes the cart useful" and "clay molded into a vessel: the emptiness within makes the vessel useful"—refers to functionality in a state of movement. The Dao can only manifest its existence and efficacy when it is in motion.

As mentioned earlier, the true purpose of the Xiang'er Commentary is not to elaborate on philosophy, but to establish the Dao as the theoretical foundation of religion. The Supreme Lord Lao, formed by the convergence of the One, endows the Dao with transcendent personal characteristics—as a divine being who knows all things in the world. Hence, Taoism is also called "the Teaching of the Supreme Lord" (Taishang zhi Jiao).

(II) Revering the Dao and Observing Precepts: Establishing Taoist Ethical Norms and Behavioral Guidelines

Every religion in the world has its own commandments; without them, it cannot form a religious community. The Xiang'er Commentary uses "precepts" (jie) to unify the beliefs and behaviors of practitioners, referring to them as "Daoist precepts" (Daojie).

Emerging at the founding of Taoism, these Daoist precepts played a positive guiding role for the religious community, focusing on three key principles:

1. Taking Purity and Tranquility as the Foundation

The commentary states: "A Daoist should value their vital spirit and take purity and tranquility as the foundation." It requires practitioners to avoid overworking their bodies or craving wealth, to not be bound by fame and fortune, to maintain a pure heart and minimal desires, and to refrain from competing with the mundane world—all in pursuit of longevity.

2. Encouraging Goodness and Discouraging Evil

The original text of the Xiang'er Commentary asserts: "The nature of the Dao does not engage in evil deeds, so it can be divine and accomplish all things; Daoists should emulate this."

Notably, unlike Laozi’s teaching that "I treat the good with goodness, and I also treat the ungood with goodness," the Xiang'er Commentary (as a religious theory) argues:

"Heaven and earth imitate the Dao—they show benevolence to the good, but not to the evil."

It further states:

"If one practices good, the Dao will follow; if one practices evil, harm will follow."

"The Dao establishes life to reward the good, and death to awe the evil."

These ideas laid the theoretical groundwork for the later Taoist concept of Chengfu (Karmic Retribution), which holds that individuals inherit the consequences of their own and their ancestors’ actions.

The Xiang'er Commentary admonishes:

"A Daoist should prefer giving to others over receiving from others; prefer avoiding others over being avoided by others; prefer teaching others to do good over being taught by others; prefer being angered by others over angering others; when distributing things, prefer giving more to others over receiving more from others."

In other words, the Heavenly Master urged Daoists to perform more good deeds, give more to others, endure humiliation, be humble, and maintain a transcendent character. For "evil people," the Heavenly Master’s principle was twofold: on the one hand, to strive to educate them—"When seeing an evil person, admonish them to do good; if they listen to reason and submit, they can be reformed"—and on the other hand, to "awe them with the majesty of heaven, so that they reform themselves."

3. Emulating Nature and Practicing Loyalty and Filial Piety

Regarding the Dao of Nature, Laozi argued that "the Dao emulates nature" (Daofa ziran), where "emulates" (fa) means to follow or adhere to. The Xiang'er Commentary, however, states:

"Nature is the Dao."

It further explains:

"Nature and the Dao share the same title but are different in form; they mutually emulate each other, and both ultimately emulate the Dao."

And:

"If people act without fearing or revering the Daoist precepts, they lose the intent of the Dao, and the Dao will depart from them—this is the way of nature."

The core takeaway here is to emulate heaven and revere the Dao.

The Xiang'er Commentary inherits Laozi’s idea that "when the great Dao is abandoned, benevolence and righteousness arise." It argues that in ancient times, "people were named for their virtues, and all practiced benevolence and righteousness." "Now that the Dao is not practiced, people have all become corrupt and shallow; when one person practices righteousness, everyone singles them out for praise." Loyalty, filial piety, benevolence, and righteousness are inherent in human nature and do not need deliberate glorification—for deliberate praise breeds selfish desires, and when "wisdom emerges," "great hypocrisy" follows.

The Xiang'er Commentary contains many more discussions on revering the Dao and observing precepts, which can be summarized as: purity, doing good, forbearance, humility, upholding the One, and loyalty and filial piety. By "teaching others with the good Dao," the commentary played a crucial role in the organizational development of Taoism.

(III) Valuing Life Above All: Reflecting Taoism’s Ideal of Cherishing and Celebrating Life

The Zhuangzi contains many fables about immortals, referring to beings like "true persons" (zhenren), "perfect persons" (zhiren), and "divine persons" (shenren). Belief in celestial deities dates back to humanity’s ancient times, as evidenced by ancient totem worship and shamanistic cultures. As a Taoist classic, the Xiang'er Commentary inherits and develops this ancient theological system. Instead of debating whether divine beings, immortals, or true persons exist, the commentary focuses on explaining the paths through which humans can cultivate themselves into "immortal scholars" (xianshi). Its key points are as follows:

1. Unity of Life and the Dao

The commentary holds that the Dao is inherently life, establishing the theory that "longevity is attainable" and "immortality can be cultivated." In its annotation to Chapter 25 of the Daodejing, it states:

"The Dao is great, heaven is great, earth is great, and life is great. Among these four greats, which is the greatest? The Dao is the greatest. Within the cosmos, there are four greats, and life is one of them."

It further clarifies: "Life is a distinct manifestation of the Dao." In other words, for humans, the "Dao" refers to the Dao of sustaining life.

Cherishing life and fearing death is human nature, so "those who can emulate the Dao will be able to sustain themselves and live long." The Xiang'er Commentary emphasizes the importance of cultivating one’s mind and character for longevity, with numerous discussions on doing good deeds—such as "The sage emulates heaven and earth, showing benevolence to the good and not to the evil," "The Dao establishes life to reward the good and death to awe the evil," and "The nature of the Dao does not engage in evil, so it can be divine." These have been discussed earlier and will not be repeated here.

At the same time, the Heavenly Master repeatedly admonished people to eliminate selfish thoughts: "Do not let mundane affairs distract your mind." He pointed out:

"Daoists all understand mundane matters—high official positions, generous salaries, fine clothing, delicious food, and the taste of treasures—but none of these can lead to longevity."

"Daoists seek life, not fame and glory. Today, nobles inherit fame and glory from their ancestors; Daoists do not strive for it, but follow the Dao. They only seek to uphold the Dao and observe precepts, and not to be arrogant or excessive."

These theories in the Xiang'er Commentary later developed into the doctrines of "dual cultivation of nature and life" (xingming shuangxiu) and "cultivating the mind and nurturing nature" (xiuxin yangxing).

2. Harmonizing the Five Elements to Consolidate Essence into the Divine

Although harmonizing the Five Elements (gold, wood, water, fire, earth) and consolidating essence (jing) into the divine is a method (or "technique") for cultivating longevity, it is also a theory of health preservation. The rise of later internal alchemy (neidan)—which regards the human body as a "cauldron" (luding), vital essence (jingqi) as "medicinal ingredients," and aims to unify essence, qi, and spirit (shen) for longevity—has deep roots in the Xiang'er Commentary.

The commentary states:

"The reason the five viscera (heart, liver, spleen, lungs, kidneys) are injured is that the qi of the Five Elements is disharmonious. When harmonious, they generate one another; when conflicting, they overcome one another—this is triggered by angry emotions and desires."

It further explains:

"The Dao of Yin and Yang uses the convergence of essence to sustain life… Those who can practice this Dao should attain immortal longevity."

There are many more such discussions in the Xiang'er Commentary. In summary, they all revolve around the core idea of celebrating and cherishing life, and valuing life above all else.