Arcane Chapters of Taoist Cultivation
Author unknown.
Consisting of one scroll, it is included in the Tai Xuan Section of The Daozang.
The book is divided into ten chapters, expounding the way of cultivating nature and life in the school of Internal Alchemy. Its doctrines inherit Zhang Boduan’s theories of the Golden Elixir, and also absorb the theories of nature and vital energy from Song Dynasty Confucian scholars, presumably compiled by a Taoist priest in the Song or Yuan Dynasty.
Arcane Chapters of Taoist Cultivation
Its fundamental thesis is based on the principles of nature and life in the human body, stating that the spirit is the nature and Qi is the life; the Niwan Palace at the crown of the head is the root of nature, and the Dantian in the navel is the foundation of life. Both nature and life have innate and acquired aspects.
Practitioners of the Dao must not neglect either nature or life: cultivating nature without nurturing life will fail to solidify the physical form, while nurturing life without cultivating nature will leave the spirit in ignorance. Thus, one must cultivate both nature and life, with the cultivation of nature preceding that of life.
It also states: "Those who refine the Golden Elixir compare the physical form to the cauldron and tripod, Qi to the medicinal ingredients, and the spirit to the fire work in elixir refining."
The essential of cultivation lies in abandoning cunning and stilling all worries to stabilize the cauldron and tripod, concentrating the mind and unifying it as one to gather the medicinal ingredients, and keeping the spirit from wandering outward to regulate the fire work. "Forget the physical form to nurture Qi, forget Qi to nurture the spirit, forget the spirit to nurture emptiness; when both form and spirit reach the state of subtle wonder, one unites with the Dao and attains the true reality."
The so-called "forgetting" is not muddled ignorance, but being agile and clear, pure in both inner heart and outer conduct: "Letting the mind go yet not allowing it to stray outward, restraining it yet not confining it inward, keeping the chest always empty and open"—this is what is meant by true forgetting.
In short, the key lies in having an empty mind and a non-attached heart. If one can empty their heart and "keep a single thought unmoved", the spirit will return and Qi will be restored, responding to the Dao naturally. "When one ultimately achieves spiritual transformation through embryo separation, attains a body outside the physical body, takes form when concentrated, and dissolves into Qi when dispersed, they will become one with emptiness and nothingness."
Its doctrines were greatly influenced by Tang Dynasty Taoist priests such as Sima Chengzhen and Wu Yun.
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