Harmony of Void and Suchness 道禅集

Composed by Xia Zhitan, a Taoist priest of the Quanzhen Dao during the late Jin and early Yuan Dynasty. Consisting of one scroll, it is included in the Tai Xuan Section within the The Daozang.

This work contains 74 seven-character quatrains, all discussing the practice of Chan meditation to attain enlightenment and the essence of illuminating the mind to perceive nature. It extensively cites Chan Buddhist koans and allusions, such as "talking of dreams within a dream," "placing a head on top of a head," "opening eyes at the crown chakra," "a stone woman playing the sheng," "a white ox in the open field," and "breaking through emptiness and form." Its ideological realm is also similar to Chan Buddhist gathas.

Harmony of Void and Suchness

Roughly speaking, it holds that the human mind is inherently pure, and Buddha-nature is intrinsic—originally complete and sufficient, requiring no external pursuit: "Within the body lies the realm of immortals and Buddhas; illuminating the ten directions is right before one’s eyes." Its cultivation method focuses on comprehending emptiness, declaring: "When both mind and circumstances are forgotten, all realms manifest clearly," "Upon enlightenment, all things align with the true and eternal," "Serenely illuminating the realm of true emptiness," and "When the mind is empty and insight penetrates, one attains Tathagata-hood."

However, one must not cling to emptiness or fixate on the notion of Suchness; instead, emptiness itself must be shattered, and all words and thoughts must cease—this is the supreme path. Hence, it states: "Yesterday I broke through the Palace of Great Emptiness, Recognized the old master who has always been there; Then gathered up the emptiness, And placed it back in the obscure darkness."

Understanding that true emptiness is not mere non-existence enables one to respond to all things spontaneously. Living daily life in ordinariness, one attains naturalness—and this is the Dao , requiring no strenuous pursuit elsewhere. This book can be called a representative work of the Quanzhen Dao’s integration of Daoism and Chan Buddhism.