Wang Chongyang (1112 - 1170) was a Taoist priest in the Jin Dynasty, the founder of the Quanzhen School of Taoism, and a Taoist alchemist. His original name was Zhongfu, with the courtesy name Yunqing. Later, he changed his name to Shixiong, with the courtesy name Dewei. After becoming a Taoist, he changed his name to Zhe, with the courtesy name Zhiming, and the Taoist title Chongyangzi.
In the process of founding Quanzhen Taoism, Wang Chongyang left many works with rich contents, including special discourses, poems, and epigrams. Among all his surviving works, Chongyang's Fifteen Theories on Establishing the Religion is the most prominent.
The main contents of Chongyang's Fifteen Theories on Establishing the Religion are as follows:
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- All those who become monks must first join a nunnery to settle their bodies and calm their minds;
- Travel around to visit teachers and explore the nature of life;
- When studying books, one should absorb the essence and understand with the heart;
- Study medicines carefully to save people's lives;
- Take the Taoist temple as the foundation of one's life;
- When meditating, one's mind should be as stable as Mount Tai, and one should eliminate thoughts to concentrate;
- Harmonize the five elements and vital energy in one's body, and match them with the five qi correctly;
- Cultivate one's nature and life;
- The way to become a sage requires accumulating merits and good deeds;
- Transcend the desire realm, the form realm, and the formless realm;
- The method of nourishing the body lies in attaining the Tao and nourishing more;
- Transcend the mortal world; and so on, totaling fifteen articles.
Chongyang's Fifteen Theories on Establishing the Religion is the foundation of Quanzhen Taoism. It contains many innovations and provides a theoretical basis for the development of Taoism in later generations. Although the full text is short, it includes many valuable theories and ideas, which can be called concise words with profound meanings. There are still many valuable things in it worthy of further exploration and research.
In short, this book expounds the basic tenets of the founding of Quanzhen Taoism, stipulates precepts similar to those of Buddhism, integrates the theories of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism, and is an important document for studying Quanzhen Taoism.
