Collected Works of Balanced Cultivation 中和集

Compiled in the early Yuan Dynasty by Li Daochun and collated by his disciple Cai Zhiyi, it consists of six volumes and is included in the Method Section of The Dongzhen Section in The Daozang.

Collected Works of Balanced Cultivation

This work is a collection of Li Daochun's poems and prose, containing twelve treatises, more than a hundred poems, odes and verses, plus two pieces of Enigmatic Sayings, all expounding the essence of life, nature and Internal Alchemy. Its doctrines are characterized by the unity of the three teachings, holding that Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism all originate from the Taiji. Taiji is the heavenly principle, the true spirit and innate nature of humans—referred to as the Golden Elixir in Taoism and Perfect Enlightenment in Buddhism. The movement of Taiji generates spirit and qi, which constitute human life and nature. Life and nature, though inherently one, function as two separate entities: nature cannot stand without life, and life cannot exist without nature. Therefore, those who cultivate the Dao must practice the dual cultivation of life and nature, prioritizing nature before life, following the principle of "first upholding precepts, concentration and wisdom to empty the mind, then refining essence, qi and spirit to preserve the body".

The book denounces alchemical elixir ingestion, visualization and daoyin, breath circulation and sexual cultivation as heretical and heterodox practices, affirming only the dual cultivation of life and nature through Internal Alchemy as the orthodox way. The Internal Alchemy methods are divided into two types: the gradual method and the sudden method. The gradual method is suitable for practitioners with shallow foundations, starting with the cultivation of life and progressing step by step; the sudden method is for those with innate profound foundations, who only need to fully realize their nature to naturally attain the fulfillment of life, making it the supreme way of cultivation. It also states that those who successfully refine the inner elixir achieve the unity of body and mind, returning to their original state, and the harmony of yin and yang, reverting back to Taiji. The sequence of returning to one's original nature and primordial state lies in reversing the process of the generation and transformation of all things in heaven and earth: refining essence into qi, refining qi into spirit, refining spirit into emptiness, and ultimately shattering the void to unite with the Dao.

Exploring the Elixir Dao from the perspective of the Heavenly Dao, this work establishes a unique school of thought and stands as an important document in the history of Taoist thought during the Yuan Dynasty.