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Mapping the Daoist Body
Part One
The Neijing tu in History *
LOUIS KOMJATHY
Abstract
ThisarticleexaminesthehistoryandcontentoftheNeijingtu (Diagram
of Internal Pathways), a late nineteenthcentury stele
currentlyhousedinBaiyunguan
(WhiteCloudMonastery;Beijing).ThediagramisoneofthemostwellknownillustrationsoftheDaoistbody,thoughitshistoricalprovenancehasnotbeensufficientlydocumentedtodate.
Thepresent article providesamorecomplete account of its context
ofproductionanddissemination,namely,withinthecontextofBaiyunguan,thelateimperialLongmen(DragonGate)lineageoftheQuanzhen
(CompletePerfection)monasticorder,andeliteimperialcourtculture.IthenturntoasystematicstudyofitscontentsandtheDaoistmethodsexpressedinitscontours.Withinitstopographicallandscape,onefindsaspecificvisionoftheDaoistbody,abodyactualizedthroughDaoistalchemical
*
ThepresentarticleispartofmyongoingresearchprojectonDaoistbodymapsandDaoistviewsofself.IamgratefultoLiviaKohn,LiuXun,JiangSheng,andtheanonymousreadersoftheJournalofDaoistStudiesfortheirhelpfulcomments.
I alsowish to thankKate Townsend for hermany insights into
DaoistcultivationandChinesemedicine.
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praxis. As such, the Neijing tu and its various rubbings were
more thanlikelyintendedasvisualaidsforDaoistreligioustraining.
Forreadability,thearticlehasbeendividedintotwoparts.Thecurrentsection
discusses the diagrams historical and terminological
dimensions.Thesecondpart,scheduledtobepublishedinthenextissueoftheJournalofDaoistStudies,focusesoncontentandincludesacompletebilingualtranslationwithillustrations.
ThroughoutthehistoryoftheDaoisttradition,Daoistshavebeenexpertand
extraordinary cartographers.Whether through textual
descriptionsorvisual representations,Daoistshavesought tomap
thepatterns
andconstituentsofbothinternalandexternalworlds.Theyhavechartedthecosmos
through star diagrams, including the forms of the five planetsand
the twentyeight lunarmansions. They havemapped the
layersoftheheavens,thesubtlerealmsoftheuniverse,andthestellarabodesinhabitedbythePerfected(zhenren).Theyhavediagramedthemountain
peaks of this terrestrial landscape and the hidden
grottoheavens(dongtian) branching out like veins through the earth.
They havecharted the geomantic contours and qualities of place.
They havemapped the internal spirits associated with the various
orbs1and
theprocessbywhichonerealizesthegivennessofcosmologicalsituatedness.Theyhavediagramedthealchemicalprocessofselftransformationandthe
subtle physiology of human aliveness.2 In short, Daoists
havemappedtheuniverseinitsvariouslayersandmutualinfluencesauniverse
which is simultaneously cosmos, world, landscape,
community,andself.
1Onthetranslationofzang/asorbseePorkert1974.Althoughzanghasbeentranslatedinnumerousways(organ,viscera,depot,etc.),orbseemsthebestchoiceasitincludesthelargerprocessoriented
qi theory.
2Examples of these variousmapsmay be found throughout thepages
ofNeedhametal.1983;Despeux1994;2000;Little2000.OntheimportanceofspecificgeographicallocationsintheDaoisttraditionsee,e.g.,NaquinandYu1992;Verellen1995;Hahn1988;2000;Qiao2000.
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Komjathy,MappingtheDaoistBody/69
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TheNeijingtu(Diagramof
InternalPathways;seeFigure1)isonesuchdiagram.3TheNeijingtuisamapoftheDaoistinternallandscapeandastorehouseofDaoistcultivationpractices,specificallyvisualizationandalchemical
techniques.Thediagramdepicts
theheadandtorsooftheDaoistbodyasseenfromthesideandinseatedmeditationposture.Itillustratesmorecommonlyrecognizableaspectsofthehumanbody
in combination with Daoist subtle anatomy and physiology.
Thespinalcolumn,framedontherightandconnectingthelowertorsowiththe
cranial cavity, draws ones immediate attention. The
conventionalrepresentationofthespinalcolumnissupplementedbyspecificallyDaoist
realities: oncloser examinationonenotices three templeswithin
the
3The rubbing in my personal collection was acquired at Baiyun
guan
in2002.Likeothermodernrubbingsfromtheextantstonestele,itlackstheguangxu
inscription in the upper righthand corner (see Eichman 2000a),
which
isdiscussedbelowasakeytothehistoryofthediagram.Oflate,theNeijingtuhasbecomeasortoflogoforDaoistStudiesintheWest.Ithasappearedin
numerouspublications,withvaryingdegreesofreflectiveconsideration.Forexample,ithasappearedonthecoverofThomasClearysTheInnerTeachingsofTaoism,
inLiviaKohnsTheTaoistExperience
(Kohn1993,177),inJohnLagerweysTaoistRitualinChineseSocietyandHistory
(Lagerwey1987,289),andinSchippersLecorpstaoste(Schipper1982,143)withoutanyexplanation.ThemostdetailedstudiestodateareRousselle1933;Sakade1991;Wang1991/92;andEichman2000a.AdditionalcommentsmaybefoundinChia1995;Cohen1997,15255;Despeux1994,4448;2000;Li2003;Liun.d.;Needhametal.1983,11416;Schipper1978,356;Skar2003.Rousselle
andWangprovide fairly systematic accounts,withWang translatingmuch
of thediagram, but froman art historicalperspective. Both
alsoprovidesomeinformationontherelationshipbetweenarubbingoftheNeijingtu
andanunidentified painting. Eichmans comments are included in the
art
catalogueTaoismandtheArtsofChina,and,likeNeedhamandDespeux,arefairlygeneral.Needham,DespeuxandSkaralsoprovidesome
insights into
thehistoricalanddoctrinalrelationshipbetweenvariousDaoistbodymaps,
including theNeijingtu.Here it perhapsdeservesmentioning thatmost
of thediscussions
ofDaoistbodymapsrelyonandoftencloselyfollowNeedhametal.1983.NotealsothattheNeijingtu(andmanyoftheoriginalimages)wasnotreproducedintheEnglish
translation of Schippers Lacorpstaoste,wherewe find the
followingnote:Seethe imageofthe InnerLandscapeonpage000,wherethe
lowerCinnabarField (hsia tantien) is represented by an irrigated
rice field being tilled by ayoungbody(Schipper1993,235,n.24).
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Komjathy,MappingtheDaoistBody/71
spine,corresponding to theThreePasses (sanguan)
throughwhichDaoistadepts engaging in theprocessof alchemical
transformation
endeavortocirculateqi.Inaddition,thethreeelixirfields(sandantian
)4withtheloweronecorrespondingtotheox(abdominalregion),themiddle to
the Cowherd (heart region), and the upper to the old
man(headregion)areclearlydiscernable.Onealsonotes
theheadasaseriesofmountainpeaksandthepresenceofbridgesandpagodas
insidethe body. In addition, streams are flowing throughout the map
(andthroughout thebody).Thesevariousdetails, aswell as the textual
andvisualcontoursyet tobementioned,reveal theNeijing tu as
adetailedmappingoftheDaoistbody.ItrevealstheinternallandscapediscoveredandactualizedthroughDaoistcultivation,specificallywithincertaincircles
of late imperial Daoism and branches of Daoist internal
alchemy(neidan ),5 notably the Longmen (Dragon Gate) branch
ofQuanzhen (Complete Perfection) at Baiyun guan
(WhiteCloudMonastery;Beijing)inthelatenineteenthcentury.Althoughsuchhistorical
qualificationsmust, perhaps, bemade, in its textual content,visual
representations, and praxisbased concerns, the Neijing tu
findsclear precedents in both SongJin (tenththirteenth century)
lineages ofinternal alchemy and late imperial internal alchemy.6 In
addition, thediagramhasretainedacentralplaceof
importancewithinDaoistcom
4Elixir fields (dantian), discussed inmore detail below, are
subtle,oftenmystical,energeticlocationsinthebody,whichfrequentlyincludeanonspatialdimension(e.g.,mysticalcraniallocations).Theyareplacesinwhichthebodysphysicalandenergeticaspects,theingredientsforthealchemicalmedicineandthefoundationforimmortality,arestoredandtransformed.Theessentialmaterials
for elixirformation are vital essence (jing) associatedwith
thekidneys, qi
associatedwiththelowerabdomen,spirit(shen)associatedwiththeheartandbrain,andbodilyfluids(jinye),whichhaveavarietyofassociations.
Some internal alchemy systemsalso place emphasis on the
etherealsoul(hun)andthecorporealsoul(po
).ForanattempttomapDaoistelixirformationintermsofChinesemedicaltheoryseeKomjathy2007,ch.6.
5For some insights into the history and practice of internal
alchemy seeBaldrianHussein1983;Needham et al. 1983;Robinet 1989b;
1995; PregadioandSkar2000;Skar2003;Komjathy2007.
6TheexactlineageofinternalalchemydocumentedintheNeijingtuawaitsfutureresearch.WhileImakesomesuggestions,acompletestudyoflateimperialneidan
andLongmenmayclarifytheseandrelatedhistoricalissues.
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munitiesintothetwentyfirstcentury,atestamenttotheenduringpowerofitsmappingoftheDaoistbodyandDaoistreligiouspraxis.7
Inpartoneofthisarticle,IdiscussthehistoricalbackgroundoftheNeijingtuaswellasthelayersofmeaningembeddedinitstitle.Inparttwo,whichwillappearinthenextissueoftheJournalofDaoistStudies,adetailedstudyof
thegraphicandtextualcomponentsof thediagramispresented. I also draw
attention to three specific Daoist cultivationmethods illustrated
in the Neijing tu, namely, praxisoriented
applicationsofclassicalChinesemedicalviewsofthebody;visualizationmethodswhichdrawtheir
inspirationfromtheHuangtingjing(Scriptureon
theYellowCourt;DZ331;332)8andwhich findclearhistoricalprecedents in
early Shangqing (Highest Clarity) Daoism; and thealchemical
technique known as the Waterwheel (heche) or
MicrocosmicOrbit(xiaozhoutian ).
Theprimaryfocusofthepresentstudyisthetextualandvisualcontentof
thediagram itself, especially as onedepictionof theDaoist
alchemical or mystical body (see Komjathy 2007) and as onemap
ofDaoist religious praxis as undertaken in the late imperial
period.
Themajorcontributionofthispaperis,inturn,threefold.Itprovidesthefirstcomplete
translationof theNeijingtu, includingbilingual renderingsofthe
diagram as divided into three sections. Second, it supplies
greaterspecificitythananypreviousstudyconcerningtheactualhistoricalcontext
in which the original stele was commissioned and in which
theoriginal versionmay have been produced. Finally, I argue for
readingtheNeijingtu as
amapofDaoistcultivationasunderstoodandundertakeninthecontextoflateimperialDaoismandintheLongmenbranchofQuanzhen,specifically
atBaiyunguanduring the
lateQingdynasty(16441911).Onthemostbasiclevel,thediagramisanaestheticallypow
7Some claims have also been made concerning the Neijing tu as
part
ofChinesemedicalhistory.SeeFuetal.1999;Li2003.Whilepurelymedicalexplanationsproveunsatisfactory
in terms of thediagramscontent, the
overlappingcontoursofBuddhism,Daoism,andChinesemedicinemaygiveonepauseatthereifiednatureofthosecategories.TheNeijingtu,likecontemporaneous
sources, reveals a complexpattern of interaction, adaptation, and
transformationoftraditionsinthelateimperialperiod.
8Daoist texts are cited according toKomjathy2002,with numbers
for theMingdynastyDaoistCanonparallelingSchipperssystem.
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Komjathy,MappingtheDaoistBody/73
erful depiction of the human body, and thus of the aspiring
Daoistadeptsownpsychosomaticpossibility.9Onanother level, it is
thebodyas actualized through meditative praxis, and thus points
towards twoadditional dimensions: seated meditation becomes
represented as thenormative andnormalizingposture forhumanbeings;
and, like
earliermappingsofDaoistcultivation,theNeijingtuwasmorethanlikelyused(andcontinuestobeused)
asavisualaidformeditation.
Historical Contours
ThereceivedNeijingtuisastonestelehousedatBaiyunguaninBeijing.Baiyunguan
is theseatofcontemporaryQuanzhenDaoism,theofficialstatesponsored
Daoist monastic tradition in mainland China, and theheadquartersof
theChineseDaoistAssociation (Zhongguodaojiaoxiehui).10
ItisalsothechiefmonasteryoftheLongmenbranchofQuanzhen,traditionallysaidtohavebeenestablishedbyQiuChuji
(Changchun [Perpetual Spring]; 11481227), but historicallytraced to
Wang Changyue (Kunyang [Paradisiacal
Yang];16221680)(Esposito2000,628;seealsoEsposito1993;2001).
The receivedNeijingtu stele is a reproductionof a
latenineteenthcenturyengraving.Accordingtotheinscriptionintheupperrighthandcornerofatleastsomerubbingsofthe
Neijingtu(seeEichman2000a),theengravingoftheoriginalsteleoccurredinthefirstthirdofthesixthlunarmonth
in 1886 (guangxubingwunianheyueshanghuan
),thatis,towardstheendofthelateimperialperiodandoftheManchuQingdynasty(16441911).Theguangxuinscriptiononlyoccursinsomeextantrubbings,andthishistoricaldetail,frommyperspective,providesan
importantclue into thehistoryof thediagramnowknownas theNeijingtu.
Incontrast, the extantNeijingtu stonesteleofBaiyunguan,similar
reproductionsdistributed tovariousDaoist temples (e.g.,
9 In this respect, theNeijingtu is not simplyan artifact, a
trace of somelost historicalmoment or amonument to disappearing
tradition. It remainsanenduring presence in various Daoist
communities and in the lives of
specificDaoists.Cf.Eichman2000b:231.
10ForinformationonQuanzhenDaoismseeYao
1980;Tsui1991;Qingetal.1996,vol.3;JournalofChineseReligions29(2001);Eskildsen2004;Komjathy2007.ForastudyofthehistoryofBaiyunguanseeMarsone1999.
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Baxiangong,Chongyanggong,Qingyanggong),
andmodernrubbingslackthisinscription.This,inturn,pointstoanearlierengraving,regardingwhichitscurrentstatus(extantornot),possiblelocation,andoriginalmaterial(wood,stoneorbronze)remainamystery.
TheoriginalengravingwascommissionedbyaLongmenmonkandcourteunuch(taijian)namedLiuChengyin
(d.1894),whoseDaoistnamewasSuyun(PureCloud).11LiuChengyinwasborninDongguang
county, Zhili province (presentday Hebei), anareaknown for
itspoverty andhence its steady supplyof youngboyswho were often
sold by their parents to be castrated and trained aseunuchs for the
imperial household. Little else is known about
Liusearlylifeandhiscareer.AsLiuXunpointsout,
11The most readily available biographical information appears in
a
steleinscriptionwrittenbyXiyou,aManchubannerman,andentitledLiuSuyundaoxingbei(SteleontheDaoistActivitiesofLiuSuyun;dat.1886).
It seems that this stelewas originally located in thewestern front
of
theNanjidian(ShrineoftheSouthernPolestar),whichisnownamedLeizudian
(Shrine of the Patriarch of Thunder).Wang Chiping
(pers.comm..);authorsfieldobservations(cf.Goossaert2007,224).ForreproductionsseeKoyanagi1934,15859;Li2003,714.Other
important, relatedsteles includetheSuyunzhenrendaoxingbeiji
(dat.1895),SuyunzhenrenLiuxianshibeiji(dat.1895),LiuSuyuntaming
(dat.ca.1900),andBaiyunguanChangchungonghuibeiji (dat.
1886).OntheseandcontemporaneousstelesseeGoossaert2007.Most of
thepresent biographical information onLiuChengyin comes from
thefirstinscriptionandfromLiuXunsstudy(2004a)ofaseriesofpaintingshonoringBixiayuanjun
(PrimordialGoddessofCeruleanMists),whichhadbeen commissioned by Gao
Rentong (18411907), twentiethgenerationabbot of Baiyun guan (see
also Liu 2004b). The relevant information on LiuChengyin appears on
pages 8494. Lius article also provides the
interestedreaderwithafullerappreciationofthecomplexinteractionamongtheQingimperialelite,powerfulLongmenclerics,andcourteunuchsduringtheendoftheQingdynasty,withspecialattentiontothelatenineteenthcenturyBaiyunguanenvirons.
See also Vincent Goossaerts The Taoists of Peking (2007), which
providesamorecompletepictureofthereligioculturalcontextofBeijingduringthelate
imperial and earlymodern periods.OnGao Rentong see especially
pages17275;informationofLiuChengyinappearsonpages21823.
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Komjathy,MappingtheDaoistBody/75
OfficialQingsourcesgenerallyneglectthehistoryofeunuchslikeLiuwhoseprofessionandsocialclasswerewidelystigmatized.
Nonetheless, circumstantial evidence found in
nonofficialsourcesatteststoLiuspowerfulinfluenceandconnections at
Qing court, and to the immense personal wealth
hegarneredfromtheseconnections.(Liu2004a,85)
LiuChengyinwasapowerfulcourteunuchtoEmpressDowagerCixi
(18351908)andagenerouspatronofBaiyunguan.12HebecameoneCixismosttrustedchiefeunuchsfollowingtheexecutionofAnDehai
(d. 1869). More germane to the present study, Liu Chengyin received
formal Longmen ordination under Zhang Yuanxuan (Gengyun [Tilling
Clouds]; 18281887), one of the most famousQuanzhen monastic leaders
of his era. This ordination ceremony occurred in 1871 and included
several hundred ordainees, one of whomwas Gao Rentong (Shoushan
[LongevityMountain]; 18411907),13 who would become the
twentiethgeneration abbot of Baiyunguan after the death of Abbot
Meng Yongcai (d. 1881). As
aLongmenmonkatBaiyunguan,LiuChengyinservedasanaltarattendant
(hutanhuazhu)
(MinandLi1994,482);asapatronofBaiyunguanandcourtconfidante,hewasagenerousdonor
toandadvocateforthemonastery.
12
Itseemsthatamajormotivationforcourteunuchinterestinandsupportof
Quanzhen Daoism centered on a popular imagining of Qiu Changchun.
Incirculationsinceatleastthesixteenthcentury,thoughwithouthistoricalsupportin
terms ofQius actual life, this legend claimed thatQiu castrated
himself
inordertoresistsexualfavorsbestowedonhimbyChinggisQan(GenghisKhan;ca.11621227;r.12061227),theMongolruler.RemembranceofQiuslegendaryselfcastrationbecamecentralduringfestivitiessurroundinghisbirthday.Occurring
from the firstdayof the firstmoon through thenineteenthdayof the
firstmoon, these festivities culminated in the celebration of Qius
birthday on thenineteenthday,whichwaspopularlyknownasYanjiu .
SeeLiu2004a,8891.OnQiuChangchunseeYao1980;1986;Zheng1995;Zhao1999.
13GaoRentong,aswastraditionallythecaseforDaoistclerics,hadanumber
of names, includingYuntong, Tongyuan, Yunxi,
andMingdong[tong][].Liu2004a;MinandLi1994,825.The lattersourcealso
includesbriefentriesonLiuChengyin(482)andZhangYuanxuan(586).
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Between 1871 and 1890, he helped the monastery raise a total
ofsome44,000taelsofsilver,morethanhalfofwhichcamefromLiuhimself.Mostofthefundswenttopayforordinationceremonies,includingthe
one that occurred in 1871, and the renovation and construction
ofmonasticbuildings.LiuChengyinwasalso instrumental
infundingthecarvinganderectingofseveralmajorsteleinscriptions.Amongthese,hecommissionedtheengravingoftheNeijingtu,whichwaserectedatBaiyunguanin1886.LaterthisstelewasinlaidtogetherwiththeXiuzhentu
(Diagram for Cultivating Perfection) (see Despeux 1994;
Skar2000),another,morecomplexdiagramoninternalalchemy,onawallinthereargardenof
themonastery compound in1890.The engravingoftheXiuzhentu
stele,likethatoftheNeijingtu,wascommissionedbyLiu.As is evidenced
from such patronage, LiuChengyinwas interested
inthepracticeanddisseminationofinternalalchemypractice,atleastpartiallythroughthecirculationofrubbingsoftheNeijingtuandXiuzhentu(seealsoGoossaert2007,28593).Inadditiontostudyingandpracticingunder
Zhang Yuanxuan, Liu allegedly built a small selfcultivation
retreatcalledZizhudaoyuan(DaoistCloisterofPurpleBamboo),located in
themodernparkofthesamenamein thewesternsuburbofBeijing, where he
engaged in neidan training after his retirement fromcourt.
Outside of the internal textual dimensions, the only known
available historical information on this diagram comes from
inscriptions
intheNeijingtuitself.AccordingtoLiuChengyinscolophoninthelowerleftcorner(seeFigure1):
This diagram has never been transmitted before. The fundamental
reason for this isbecausetheWayoftheElixirisvastandsubtle, and
thereareobtusepeoplewhodonothave
theabilitytograspit.Consequently,itrarelyhasbeentransmittedintheworld.
Ihappenedtoobservethediagramamongthebooksandpaintings in the
study (zhai) of Gao Songshan.
Bychance,itwashangingonawall.Theskillusedinitspaintingtechniqueisfinelyexecuted.Theannotationsofthejointsandarticulations
(jinjie),meridians and vessels
(mailuo)areclearlydistinguished,andeachonecontainsspecific
cavities(qiao ).
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Komjathy,MappingtheDaoistBody/77
Iexamined[thediagram]foralongtimeandrealizedthatmycomprehensionwasgrowing.Ibegantorealizethatexhalation
and inhalation (huxi) aswell as expelling and ingesting (tuna ) of
the human body are the waxing
andwaningaswellastheebbandflowofthecosmos.
Ifyoucandivineandgaininsightintothis,youwillhaveprogressedmorethanhalfwayonyour
inquiry into thegreatWayoftheGoldenElixir(jindandadao ).
In truth, I did not dare to keep this for myself
alone.Therefore, I had it engraved on a printing block [so that
itmightbe]widelydisseminated.
Engravedwithdeep reverence as an inscribed
recordbyLiuChengyin,theDaoistSuyun
PrintingblockpreservedatBaiyun guaninBeijing
WithregardtotheGaoSongshanmentionedintheabovepassage,ithasmost
often been taken as a geographical name (Needham et al.
1983;Despeux1994;2000;Eichman2000a;Wang199192),butmorethanlikelyreferstoapersonalname.Withregardtotheformer,GaoSongshanhasbeen
translated conventionally as tall Pine Mountain or as loftyMount
Song. If these characters refer to a geographical location,
themountain mentioned here remains unidentified. There are
numerousmountains called Songshan (Pine Mountain) and
presumablyseveralofthemorthepinesonthemwerehigh.14DespeuxsuggeststhatitreferstoSongshan
inHenan(1994,44;2000,521),butthecharacter song(lofty) in
thefamedSongshan isdifferent fromthat in
theNeijingtu.15LiuXunhasrecentlysuggestedthatGaoSongshanisaper
14See,e.g.,therelevantentryintheZhongwendacidian
.15ThefamedSongshandoes,ofcourse,receivethedesignationSong
gao inapoembythatnameintheShijing (ClassicofPoetry)(see
Legge189395, vol. 4, 535).However, the context of the
originalNeijingtu engraving,that is, amongQingdynasty court elite
and by a court eunuch and Longmenmonk,wasmost likely theurban
environment of Beijing. There is no evidencethat Liu Chengyin went
mountainhopping or cloudwandering duringwhich hehappenedupon
thediagram,orthathe
receivedsomeesoterictransmissioninasecretmountaincave,asmuchassuchdetailswouldprovesatisfyingtoWesternromanticizedideasaboutDaoism.Herewearedealingwithasocioeconomic
and religiohistorical context of imperial patronage
andDaoistparticipation,which is substantiated by the fact that the
original paintingwas
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sonal name and most likely refers to Gao Rentong. This
conjecture
isbasedonthefactthatLiuChengyinhadacloserelationshipwithAbbotGaoandthatGaoRentongsDaoistnamewasShoushan(2004a,94,n.
51). Moreover, historical contextualization, the fact that Liu was
aLongmenmonkatBaiyunguan,anassociateandfellowordinandofGao,andachiefeunuchinBeijing,supportssuchareading.However,ifthisis
thecase, thenwhydoes song replace thecharacter shou
inGaoRentongsDaoistnameasengravedintheNeijingtustele?OnepossibilityisthatSongshanwasanicknameusedbysomeoftheLongmenDaoists
atBaiyunguan, although Ihave foundno evidence tosupport
thisconjecture.Another,complementarypossibilityisthatthetwocharacters,thoughvisuallyunrelated,wereseenassynonymousinaDaoistcultivationalcontext.Howwouldthisbethecase?Becausepinetrees(song),asevergreens,areatraditionalsymboloflongevity(shou).
Based on Liu Chengyins testimony, the Neijing tu stele was
produced from a painting or hanging scroll: I happened to observe
thisdiagramamongthebooksandpaintingsinthestudioofGaoSongshan.Bychance,itwashangingonawall.Thisscantpieceofinformationisintriguingintermsofthephysicallocationofthepaintingandthepossiblecontextofitsuse.Liuscomments,implyinghappenstanceandfortunateness,perhapssuggestthatthepaintingwasoutofplaceorobscuredbyotheraspectsofDaoistandelitematerialculture.Wasitjustoneitemamongother
literatiparaphernaliaandthussimplypartof theenvironment of late
imperial court culture, an aesthetic representation of
thehumanbody?Ifso,howcanoneexplaintheclearembodimentofDaoistcultivationalcultureinthediagram?
Thecontent,specificallytheChinesemedicalandDaoistalchemicaldimensions,pointinadifferentdirection:asavisualaidforDaoistreligiouspraxis,bothasanoverallexistentialapproachandasadistinctivesetofmeditativetechniquesbasedonalchemicaltransformation.Underthisreading,thepaintingmayhaveonlybeentakenoutandhungduringspecificpractice
timesithappenedtobeoutbecauseGaoSongshan eitherhadbeen studying the
diagram,was about tobegin seatedmeditation, had just completed a
training session, or had not put
thepaintingawayaftermeditation.Thispossibility,incombinationwiththe
most likely executed by a highlevel artist in the service of
theQing imperialhousehold(below).
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Komjathy,MappingtheDaoistBody/79
specificallyDaoistcontentofthediagram,give
furtherpauseforreflection:WastheoriginalNeijingtupaintingspecificallymadeforGaoRentong,
perhaps under his personal direction regarding content andgraphic
depiction? Or, was it perhaps a gift from the Qing
imperialhousehold upon his ascent to the position of abbot of
Baiyun guan
in1881(fiveyearsbeforetheengravingoftheNeijingtu)?Ifso,thefactthatGaoRentongpossessed
such apainting tells us something
noteworthyabouttherelationshipamongtheQingrulingelite,Baiyunguan,andtheLongmenlineageinthelatenineteenthcentury:BaiyunguananditsabbotwererecognizedasanintegralandnecessarydimensionofQingimperialpower(seeEsposito2000;2001;Liu2004a;2004b;Goossaert2007).
Beyond such conjectures, Liusbrief remarkspoint us towards
anearlierpaintingthatwastheoriginalversionoftheNeijingtuandservedasthebasisforthecommissionedandreceivedNeijingtustele.OnesuchpaintingiscurrentlyhousedintheZhongguoyishibowuguan
(MuseumofChineseMedicalHistory)inBeijing,andthispaintingappearstobetheoriginalQingdynastyone(seeFuetal.1999,200;also
Rousselle 1933;Wang 199192, 143; Li 1992, 85;Despeux 1994,
44;Liu2004a,94,n.51).Itisgenerallyheldthatthispaintingwasaproductof
the Ruyi guan (Ruyi Studio), theQing imperial art
academyandpartoftheQingImperialHouseholdDepartment(neiwubu).IttoothusdatestotheQingdynasty,thoughtheexactdateandarchitectofproductionarecurrentlyunknown.
In
textualandvisualcontent,theextantpaintingdirectlyparallelstheNeijingtusteleofBaiyunguanwithsomeminordiscrepancies.16
16AsbothJosephNeedhametal.(1983)andCatherineDespeux(1994)havepointedout,atleastsomeoftheinspirationfortheNeijingtu
derivesfromearlierDaoistdrawingsandillustrationsofthehumanbodyfoundintheMingdynastyDaoistCanon.ItisbeyondthescopeofthepresentstudytodocumentalloftheearlierprecedentsfortheNeijingtu,bothintermsoftextualandvisualcontent.Frommyperspective,
themost significant earlier diagrams are as follows:
thelateTang(618907)Shangqingdongzhenjiugongzifangtu(DZ156),whichincludesparalleldiagramsofthebodyandpavilions,withthelatterresemblingthedepictionofthefirstpassinthelowersectionofthe
Neijingtu;thethirteenthcentury Huangdi bashiyinanjingzuantujujie
(DZ1024),whichcontainsdiagramsentitledneijingtu(4a5b),thefirstofwhichcloselyresemblesthereceivedXiuzhentu;theZazhujiejing
,ascontainedintheearlyfourteenthcenturyXiuzhenshishu(DZ263),
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80/JournalofDaoistStudies1(2008)
Certainfeaturesalsostandout.First,thecolorsusedinthepaintingincreasetheaestheticpowerandenergeticquality.Thegreenandbrownsections
of thepainting create a heightened contrast andvisual
impactwiththewhite,red,andbluesections,withthelatterbeingsomeofthemost
important locations for alchemical transformation. The
paintingalsosubstantiatesthefactthatthetwocirclesintheheadregionaretheeyes:theleftoneisred,representingthesun,andtherightoneiswhite,representingthemoon.Inaddition,theenergeticmovementdepictedinthepainting,
andperhapsbeingactivated in theviewers ownbody, iseven stronger
than in the extant stele and related rubbings.Themovement clearly
begins at the base of the torso,moves up the spine,
andaroundthehead.TheconnectionbetweentheRen(Conception)andDu(Governing)vessels(below)receivesgreateremphasisthroughthetwo
sets of fivebandsbeingmulticolored in thepainting. Finally,
thepaintingcontainsanadditionalvisualdimension:twocompletecirclesofwhite
light. The first surrounds the torso and represents the
joiningoftheRenandDuvessels,with thepeakof theheadclearly
emphasized.Thesecondsurroundsthehead.Bothsuggesttheformationoractivationof
the Daoist subtle body, including the emergence of pure white
orgoldenlightasasignofalchemicaltransformation.
which has not onlydiagrams and an essay entitledneijingtu
(18.2b3b)butalsoessaysoninnerobservation(neiguan),
theNinePalaces(jiugong ),threefields(santian ),fiveyinorbs(wuzang
),andsoforth(18.5b9b);and the Jindandayaotu, DZ 1068,which contains
a diagram of
thehumanbodyasamountainthatincludessomeparallelcontentwiththeNeijingtu.Intermsofextracanonicaltexts,thereareimportantdiagramsintheearlyseventeenthcenturyXingmingguizhi(ZW314),
lateeighteenthcenturyHuimingjing(ZW131),earlytwentiethcenturyXingmingfajuemingzhi
(ZW872),andofcoursethereceivedXiuzhentu.Mostofthesewereincirculationand/oraccessibleintheBaiyunguanenvironsofthelatenineteenthcentury.
However,onecleardifferencestandsout:theNeijingtuissolelyamappingoftheDaoistsubtleoralchemicalbody,lackingfleshandabodyasconventionally
understood. It is the body within the body actualized through
alchemicalpraxis.Foranattempttotracethehistoryofdiagramsrelatedtocultivatingperfection(xiuzhen
)seeSkar2000.ForachronologicalchartofsuchmapsintermsofChinesesciencesee
Zhu 1995,343.
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Komjathy,MappingtheDaoistBody/81
Terminological Contours
ThetitleoftheNeijingtuhasbeenrenderedintoWesternlanguagesinavarietyofways.17
Mostcommentatorsagreeon thestandardrenderingof nei as inner,
interior,or internal, though
neimayalsohavetheconnotationofesoteric.Similarly, tu
posesrelatively littledifficulty, and is commonly translated as
illustration, chart, map,
ordiagram(seeReiter1990;Despeux2000;Strassberg2002).Thecruxofthetranslationenterpriserestsonjing
,mostfrequentlyencounteredinthesenseofscripture,classic,ortext.Thecharacteriscomposedofthesilk(si
)radicalandthephoneticjing
.Takeninthisway,variousmeaningsbranchout:text/classic,topassthrough,toregulate,to
arrange, the warp (of a fabric), and meridians or
arteries.Equallyplausible,andimpliedbysomeoftheseconnotations,isthatthejing
phoneticelementisalsoameaningcarrier.Etymologicallyspeaking,it
refers to streams running underground or flowing water. Thus,
onecouldtranslatethejing oftheNeijingtuaswatercourse;theNeijingtu
mightthenbeunderstoodastheDiagramofInternalWatercourses.
Whilemyownpreferred translation is Diagramof
InternalPathways,avarietyofmeaningsareintended.Ononelevel,itisadiagramof
the inner currents or innermeridians.Here onemay recall
thefollowingpassagefromchapteroneoftheHuangdineijinglingshu
(YellowThearchsInnerClassic:NuminousPivot;DZ1020):
Generallyspeaking,thetwentyseven[locationsthroughwhich]qiascends
and descends are as follows: where it [qi] emerges iscalled wells
(jing); where it flows is called brooks (ying
);whereitrushesforthiscalledrapids(shu
);whereitproceedsiscalledstreams(jing);where itdisappears is
calledconfluences(he ).(DZ1020,1.3b;seealso Nanjing
ch.68;Unschuld1986,577)
17The title of the Neijing tu has received the following
translations:
DieTafeldesInnerenGewebes(Rousselle1933,207);DiagramoftheInternalTextureofMan(Needhametal.1983,114);DiagramoftheInternalCirculationofMan
(Wang 1991/92, 141); Carte de la vision intrieure du corps
(Despeux1994,47);andIllustrationofInnerCirculation(Eichman2000a,350).
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82/JournalofDaoistStudies1(2008)
Theprecisemedicalmeaningofthispassageremainsopentoavarietyofinterpretations,
but jing is clearly present in the sense of stream andforms part of
the technical description of the width and depth of thebodys
qiflow. In contemporary Chinese medical usage, these
jingstreamareasaretheplaceswheretheqiofthemeridiansisbigger,wider,anddeeper.Intheseplaces,theflowofqiresemblesalargecurrent.Theyarecommonlyusedincontemporaryacupunctureastreatmentpoints.18
Whilethe
Neijingtuobviouslyisnotamapofthejingstreamlocations,itnonethelesscarriesthesenseofsuchtechnicalmedicalterminology.Itisadiagramofthemeridians,theenergeticpathways,ofthehumanbody.These
views are confirmed by Liu Chengyins own comments in
thecolophon:Theskillusedinitspaintingtechniqueisfinelyexecuted.Theannotations
of the joints and articulations, meridians and vessels areclearly
distinguished, and each one contains specific cavities. In
additiontoDiagramofInternalWatercourses,onecouldthustranslatethetitleastheDiagramofInternalMeridians.
TheabovecommentssuggestthatmultiplelayersofmeaninghavebeeninscribedandencryptedintheNeijingtu.Inadditiontothevariousconnotationsof
jing as streamor meridian,
Ialsowouldarguethattwoadditionalcharactersareimpliedbyandembeddedinthetitle.ThisargumentisbasedontheactualcontentsoftheNeijingtu,theintertextuality
implied in its images and passages, and earlier
historicalprecedents found in related Daoist body maps. The two
characters towhich I am referringarehomonyms/cognatesof
jingpathway.Theyarejinglandscapeandjingluminosities.Withthisimplication,theNeijing
tu is an illustration not only of the meridians of qi
runningthroughthebody,butalsooftheDaoistbodyasterrestrialandcosmo
18For a discussion of these points in the context of Traditional
ChineseMedicine(TCM)see,e.g.,Maciocia1989,33553;Ellisetal.1989;Deadmanetal.2001.
In thepresent article, I use thephraseTraditionalChineseMedicine
torefer to themedical systemdeveloped inCommunistChinaduring
thesecondhalfofthetwentiethcentury,specificallyundertheinfluenceofallopathicmedicine
and a Western scientific and materialistic paradigm. Classical
Chinesemedicinereferstotheworldviewandpracticesdocumentedintheearlyclassics.ForthemostcomprehensiveEnglishlanguagesourcesonthehistoryofChinesemedicineseeLu1980;Unschuld1985;Eck1996,37195;Needhametal.2000;alsoSivin1987.AcademicstudiesofChinesemedicineduring
theQingdynastyareonlybeginningtobeundertaken.SeeUnschuld1998.
-
Komjathy,MappingtheDaoistBody/83
logical landscapeandas thedwellingplaceof inner luminositiesor
effulgences. From aDaoistperspective, thehumanbody corresponds
to,embodies,variousexternalpresencesmountains,altars,colors,rivers,constellations,temples,spirits,forests,andsoforth.TheNeijingtumapsthe
landscapewhich is thehumanself; in this sense,
jingpathwayalsoalludes to the character jing meaning region or
landscape.TheNeijingtumaybeunderstoodastheInternalLandscapeMap.Thisargument
is supportedby the fact that the titles of earlierdiagrams
thatalsoillustratetheinternalregionsofthebodycontainthephraseneijingtu
(see Zazhu jiejing, DZ 263, 18.2b3b; Nanjing zuantujujie
,DZ1024,5a6b;Needhametal.1983,10910;Despeux1994;Skar2003).
Alongwithmappingthewatercoursesormeridiansof
thehumanbody(jingstreams),andthelandscapewhichisthehumanbody(jing
landscape), the Neijing tu also alludes to the jing
luminositieswhich reside invarious areasof
thebody.TheNeijingtumapsvariousdimensionsoftheHuangtingjing(ScriptureontheYellowCourt),whichsurvives
in a neijing (DZ331) andwaijing version (DZ332) (see Schipper 1975;
Robinet 1984; Huang 1990; Kroll 1996).19
AlthoughinthetitlesoftheHuangtingjing
thesedesignationscanandperhaps should be read as esoteric or inner
view and exoteric
orouterviewrespectively,inShangqingDaoismandasaDaoisttechni
19The technical terminology of the Huangting jing, especially
its variousesotericnamesfortheDaoistsubtlebody(e.g., mingmen ,yuchi
,sanguan,santian,jianggong,etc.)wasutilizedbyinternalalchemylineagesfrom
the lateTangonwards (seeRobinet1989b;PregadioandSkar2000;Komjathy
2007). The Yellow Court (huangting ) of the title and
mentionedthroughoutthescriptureismostoftenreadasreferringtothespleenregion.See,e.g.,theeighthcenturyHuangtingwaijing
jingzhu ,DZ263,58.1b2a.However,
itmayalsorefertothelowerelixirfield,associatedwiththeabdominalregion.Inthisrespect,itcorrespondstothelocationoftheOceanofQi(qihai)insomeneidanlineages.See,e.g.,thetenthcenturyChuandaoji,DZ263,
15.14b; and the seventeenthcentury Xingming guizhi , ZW
314,9.518.Variousattemptswerealsomade
intheTangdynasty(618907)tocreatevisual representations based on the
Huangting jing. See, e.g.,Huangting neijingjing zhu , DZ 402; also
DZ 1032, 11.1a12.27b; DZ 263, 5560; andHuangtingneijingtu
,DZ432;alsoDZ263,54.
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84/JournalofDaoistStudies1(2008)
caltermjing
alsoalludestotheluminositiesoreffulgencesinthebody(seeHomann1971;Robinet1989a;1993).Thesearetheinnerbodygodsorradiantspiritswhichresideindifferentcorporeallocations,specifically
in the five yinorbs, and which have associations in the
FivePhase(wuxing
)systemofcorrelativecosmology,specificallyanimal,directionandcolorassociations
(seebelow).
InthecentralregionoftheNeijingtu,thesebodygodsareidentifiedaccordingtotheesotericnamesoftheorbspiritsasfoundintheHuangtingjing.Inthissense,theNeijingtumaybeunderstoodas
theDiagramof InnerLuminosities,
addingyetanotherpossiblelayertoalready multiplemeanings.
Topographical Reflections
The history of the received Neijing tu, a stone stele housed in
theQuanzhenmonastery of Baiyun guan, is as complex as itsmapping
ofthe Daoist body.Historical evidence, both internal and external
to
thediagramitself,suggeststhatthereceivedstele(anditsvariousrubbings)wasbasedonanearlierstele,whichwas
in
turnproducedfromastillearliercolorpainting.ThatpaintingmaybeconsideredthesourcetextandispossiblystillextantintheMuseumofChineseMedicalHistoryofBeijing.TheoriginalpaintingoftheNeijingtuwasmostlikelyproducedwithintheRuyiStudio,theQingimperialartacademy.ItmayhavebeenmadefororgiventoGaoRentong(18411907),thetwentiethgenerationabbot
of Baiyun guan, upon his ascension to abbotship in 1881.
Thispaintingwassubsequently seenbyLiuChengyin
(d.1894),aLongmenmonkandchiefeunuchtoEmpressDowagerCixi.AsamajorsupporterofLongmenandBaiyunguan,andasafellowordinandandclosefriendofAbbot
Gao, Liu Chengyin was instrumental inmaintaining connections among
theLongmen lineage,BaiyunguanandtheQing
imperialhouse.HealsocommissionedtheengravingtheNeijingtustele.Thisoccurredin1886,andthestelewaslaterinlaidinthemonasticcompoundofBaiyunguanwithanotherLiucommissionedsteledepictingtheDaoistbody,namely,the
Xiuzhentu (DiagramonCultivatingPerfection).
ThesevariousdetailsnotonlyprovideawindowintolateimperialChinesereligionandsociety;theyalsosuggestaDaoistcultivationalcontextinwhichseatedmeditationandalchemicalpraxisoccupiedacentralposition.ThereceivedNeijingtuisamapoftheDaoistbody,theDaoist
-
Komjathy,MappingtheDaoistBody/85
internallandscapeutilizedandactualizedinDaoistpractice.Assuch,itistheMapofInternalPathways,charting
thecontoursoftheDaoistbodyas envisioned within the context of late
imperial Daoism,
especiallywithintheLongmenandWuLiuneidanlineagesandwithintheBaiyunguanenvirons.Theterminological
layersof its title,considered inconcertwith its contents,
aremultifaceted: itmaps thebody as alchemicalcrucible, as
landscape, as cosmos, as soteriological locus. 20 Itmaps themany
dimensions of Daoist conceptions of self, including,
naturalistic,cosmological, theistic and alchemical visions. These
incorporate earlierDaoist views, practicemodalities, and parallel
diagrams as well as dimensionsofChinesemedicine andBuddhism.Within
itscontours,
onefindsmountainpathstobetraversed,summitstobeascended,fieldstobe
tilled, numinous presences to be awakened, andmystical
corporealspaces tobeentered. In thisway,
theNeijingtuisonerepresentationoftheDaoistbody,abodyactualizedthroughDaoistalchemicalpraxis.
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64
MAPPING THE DAOIST BODY
PART TWO
THE TEXT OF THE NEIJING TU
LOUIS KOMJATHY
Abstract
PartOneofthepresentarticle,publishedinJDS1(2008),presented
thehistoricaland terminological contours of theNeijingtu (Diagramof
InternalPathways).Asa latenineteenthcenturystelecommissionedby
theLongmenmonkandcourteunuchLiuChengyin (Suyun,PureCloud;d.1894),
it iscurrentlyhoused intheBaiyun guan (WhiteCloudMonastery;
Beijing).ThisinstallmentfocusesonthecontentofthediagramaswellastheDaoistcultivationmethodsembeddedinitscontours.
I
firstprovideathoroughanalysisofthetextualandvisualdimensionsofthe
Neijing tu, including a complete translationwith the diagram
divided
intothreesections.ThearticlealsoclarifiessomeinfluencesonthisDaoistbodymapanditscorrespondinginternalalchemysystem,specificallyindicatingapossibleconnectionwiththeemergingWuLiu
sublineageofLongmen.
Thisanalysis is followedbya
reconstructionofDaoistalchemicalpracticeasexpressedintheNeijingtu.Iemphasizethreemethods:praxisorientedapplicationsofclassicalChinesemedicalviewsofthebody;visualizationswhichdrawtheir
inspiration from theHuangtingjingand find clear historical
precedents inShangqingDaoism; and thealchemical techniqueknown as
theWaterwheel
orMicrocosmicOrbit.Thethreetechniquesformaninterconnectedsystem,whereinthe
adepts overall psychosomatic health is maintained and strengthened,
hisbody is osmicized, and he awakens the mystical body, the
bodybeyondthebody or yangspirit, i.e., the culmination of
alchemical transformation and
thepreconditionforpostmortemtranscendence.
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Komjathy,MappingtheDaoistBody/65
Textual and Visual
ContoursThemajortextualcomponentsoftheNeijingtuaretwopoemswritteninregulatedverse
(lshi),or eight sevencharacter lines.Theyare located above andbelow
the strand of trees on the lefthand side of thediagram.Sincevarious
lines fromthesepoemsaredistributedthroughout
thediagram,attentiontothem isaprerequisite for
furtherexploration.Themost significant convergencebetween the
linesof
thepoemswiththevisualcontentoccursinthefollowinglocations:theabdominalregion,
where the ox is plowing the lower elixir field (poem 2, line
1,abbr. 2.1); the heart region, where the Cowherd is stringing
togethercoins to form the Northern Dipper (2.2); and the head
region,
whereLaozisitsinmeditationabovetheBuddhistmonkwithupstretchedandsupportingarms(2.56).
Other more general descriptions are also found, including
referencestothebodyasfields(tian)intheabdominal,heartandheadregions(1.1,2.1);thewhitepearlabovetheheadasthegrainofmilletthatcontainstheworld(2.3);andtheheadregionortheRenandDuvesselsasthelocationwherethemysterybeyondmysteryisrealized(2.78).Finally,thereareanumberofstreamsflowingintoandthroughthehead,whichparallelthereferencetothespringintheUpperValley(1.6).Certain
sections ofNeijing tu thus seem to have been executed as
specificillustrationsoftheselines.
ThepoemsthemselvesarefoundinthefifteenthcenturyLzuzhi (Records
of Patriarch L; DZ 1484). 1 They are attributed to LDongbin
(Chunyang[PurifiedYang];b.798C.E.?),thesemilegendary patriarch of
various internal alchemy (neidan)
lineages.NumerousneidantextshavebeenattributedtoLDongbinandhissupposedteacherZhongliQuan,whichformthesocalledZhongLtextualtradition(seeBaldrianHussein1984,especially2331;Boltz1987,
13943). L Dongbin is also recognized as a patriarch of
bothQuanzhenandthesocalledNanzong(SouthernSchool).Theinclusionof
thesepoems intheNeijingtupointsto its internalalchemycon
1Numbers forworks appearing inDaoist textual collections
followKomjathy 2002, with those for the Mingdynasty Daoist Canon
(DZ) parallelingSchipper andVerellen 2004.Other abbreviations
include JH (Daozang
jinghua),JHL(Daozangjinghualu),JY(Daozangjiyao),andZW(Zangwaidaoshu).
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66/JournalofDaoistStudies 2(2009)
text,thoughtheexactlineageoflateimperialneidaniscurrentlyunclearand
awaits further research. Does the Neijing tu embody a
distinctivesynthesis,whichinsomerespectrepresentsanewneidanlineage?Ordiditemergeasoneexpressionofaspecificlineageofinternalalchemy?Asdiscussed
in theprevious installmentof thepresent article
andbelow,therearesomeclearandintriguingparallelswiththeemergingWuLiu
sublineageofLongmenandwith thesubsectof theWuLiu lineage called the
Qianfeng lineage, 2which was established in
earlytwentiethcenturybyZhaoBichen(Shunyi[AttunedUnity];18601942)andwhichcametooccupyacentralplaceinmodernDaoism.In
terms of the Neijing tu, the former, as an identifiable lineage,
isroughlycontemporaneous,whilethelatterisslightlylater.
Theupperpoemreads:
IamproperlyandattentivelycultivatingmyownfieldInsidetherearenuminoussproutsthatlivefortenthousandyears.Theflowersresembleyellowgold,theircolornotuncommon;Theseedsarelikejadegrain,theirfruitsperfectlyround.CultivationcompletelydependsontheearthoftheCentral
Palace;IrrigationnecessarilyreliesonthespringintheUpperValley.ThepracticeiscompletedsuddenlyandIattainthegreatDaoIwandercarefreeoverlandandwaterasanimmortalofPenglai.(Seealso
DZ1484,4.16a)
Theemphasishereisonselfcultivationandalchemicaltransformation.
The central metaphor is agriculturaljust as the
horticulturalistmustattentively
tendhisorhergarden,sotheDaoistadeptmust
focusonspecificelixirfields(dantian
)throughoutthebody.IntheNeijingtu,thesefieldsareidentifiedbyname:themiddleelixirfieldjustbelowthe
heart is Genmountain earth (gentu),3while the lower elixir
2ThissublineagederivesitsnamefromtheMountQianfeng(Hebei),andZhao
Bichen was directed to found it by his teacher Liaokong
(RealizedEmptiness;fl.1895),whowasaChanmonk.
Interestingly,Liaokongclaimed tohavereceiveddirect
instructionunderLiuHuayang in1799.SeeXingmingfajuemingzhi,ZW872;
Weishengsanzifajuejing;ZW873;Lu1970;Despeux1979.
3Thephrase Genmountain appears in theNeijingtunear
theCowherdandreferstothetrigram
designatingmountainaswellastohexagram52,
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Komjathy,MappingtheDaoistBody/67
fieldnear the level of the navel is called the correct
[standard] elixirfield(zhengdantian
).4Liketilling,planting,andharvestingcrops,the process of internal
alchemy involves a cultivation cycle; one
mustpreparethegroundanddeveloptheappropriatephysiologicalandcosmologicalaspects,forwhichtheNeijingtuservesasamapoftheDaoistinternal
landscapeandasavisualaid foralchemicaltransformation.
Intheabovepoem,thefruitsofDaoistcultivationareflowersthecolorofyellowgoldandseedslikejadegrain,bothpoeticdescriptionsofspecific
alchemical experiences. Planted as a seed in the lower elixir
field,and nourished through consistent attentiveness (yi) and
dedication(zhi
),qiaccumulatesandexpands.Withyellowbeingassociatedwiththe Earth
phase in Chinese correlative cosmology (see, e.g.,
Unschuld1985;Major 1993), and as one of the esotericnamesof the
lower elixirfield is theYellow Court (huangting), the poem suggests
that theperfect qi (zhenqi), the qi activated and circulated in
internal alchemypractice,becomesastrongerpresence in
thebody.Thebodybecomesrarified.
Genmountain .InDaoist
internalalchemy,thetrigramsrepresentvariouspsychophysiological
aspects of the human being and stages in selftransformation. The
Genmountain trigrammay, in turn, express thestate ofstillness
aswell aspractices that helpnourish such a condition. In
thepresentcase,thereferencetotheheartregionasthefieldofGenmountainearthsuggeststhatexcessemotionalandintellectualactivityhasbecomestilled.Anexample
of this type of Daoist exegesis on the Yijing maybe found in Liu
Yimings (Wuyuan [Awakening to the Origin]; 17341821) Zhouyichanzhen
(TrueExplanation of the Yijing), collected in hisDaoshushierzhong
(TwelveDaoistBooks).TheZhouyichanzhenappearsinZW245andhas been
translated inCleary 1986. In terms of thepresent discussion,
seeespeciallyCleary1986,1035,19497,and2079.
4
Itshouldbenotedthatthelocationsoftheupper,middle,andlowerelixirfields
change depending on the system of alchemy being employed.As in
theNeijingtu,themostfrequentlocationsareinthehead,solarplexus/heartregion,andthelowerabdomen.See,forexample,theeleventhcenturyYunjiqiqian,DZ1032,59.2a;alsoLi1991,70,80,139;MinandLi1994,70,110,125,272;Hu1995,482,745,1141,1449,1675,1681.Insomecontemporaryformsofneidan,thethreeelixirfieldsarethehead,lowerabdomenandperineum,withthelatterreferredtoasHuiyin
andassociatedwithvitalessence.Authorsfieldobservations.
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68/JournalofDaoistStudies 2(2009)
This is one manifestation of the golden elixir (jindan )
mentioned in thepoemand inLiuChengyinscolophon.The earthof
theCentralPalacemost likely refers to theScarletPalace
(jianggong),theareajustbelowtheheart.This
interpretationreceivessubstantiationbytheplacementofthepoemintheNeijingtuinlinewiththeCowherd(the
heart region). Following the mapping of Daoist cultivation in
theNeijing tu, the Daoist practitioner must still the emotions and
nourishspirit, both associated with the Fire phase and thuswith the
heart.
Inaddition,thepoememphasizesthepracticeofswallowingtheJadeDew(yuye;saliva),acentralcomponentofformingtheelixirofimmortality
(seeKomjathy2007,ch. 6).At the endof thepoem,wealso
findanallusiontochapteroneoftheZhuangzi (BookofMasterZhuang;DZ670),
entitled Xiaoyao you (Carefree Wandering); the
Daoistadept,likethegreatPengbird,wanderseffortlesslythroughthetroublesof
the world and maintains a more allencompassing perspective.
According to the authorof thepoem,dedication to such cultivation
techniqueswill lead to attunementwith theDao and immortality,
symbolizedasentranceintotheeasternparadiseofPenglaiIsland.
Thesecondpoemagainorientsonetowardstheimportanceofcultivation.Throughalchemical
transformation,theDaoistadeptcomes toencompass and be encompassed
by the entire universe. The mutualresonance between the human body
and the cosmos, and the embodiment of the cosmos within and as the
human body, becomes realized(seeSchipper1978;1993;Kohn1991a).
Theironoxplowsthefieldwheregolden
coinsaresown;Engravingthestone,theyoungladholdsastringofcash.Asinglegrainofmilletcontainstheentireworld;Mountainsandstreamsaredecoctedinahalfsheng
cauldron.TheeyebrowsofwhiteheadedLaozihangdowntotheearth,Andtheblueeyedforeignmonkholdsuptheheavens.OrientyourselftowardsthemysteriousanditisrealizedOutsideofthismysterythereisnoothermystery.(seealsoDZ1484,5.11a)
The first line emphasizes the practice of tending to the bodys
fields.Whilethisinvolveseffortandprolongedpractice,symbolizedbytheox(cf.Needhamet
al. 1983, 100;Wang199192, 151;Eichman2000a, 351),
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Komjathy,MappingtheDaoistBody/69
theoutcomewillbegoldencoins.Basedontheillustrationsofthe
Neijingtuandtheplacementofthepoem,theprimarybodylocationbeingemphasized
is that of the lower elixir field.Again taking into account
theabovementionedassociationsofyellowandgoldwith theEarthphaseand
with the lower elixir field, the sowing and gathering of
goldencoinsindicatesanincreasedlevelofenergeticpresenceinthelowerabdominalregion,theprimarystorehouseofqiinthebody.Liketheprevious
encounterwith flowersof yellowgold, and like
thediscoveryofgoldingeneral,thisfruitisarareandpreciousoccurrenceintheworld.
AgrainofmilletcontainstheworldalludestothefamousYellowMilletDream
(huangliangmeng) ofLDongbin.Accordingto one hagiography, found in
the Yuandynasty (12601368) Zengxiangliexianzhuan
(IllustratedBiographies ofArrayed
Immortals;seeKohn1993,12632;cf.Chunyangshenhuaji,DZ305,1.3a5a),untiltheageofsixtyfourLDongbin,althoughpracticingDaoistcultivation,stillharboredpoliticalaspirations.Havingfailedtopasstheimperialexamination
twice, one day L encounters Zhongli Quan, an
accomplishedDaoistadept.ZhongliQuaninturninvitesLtoaninnforameal,duringthepreparationofwhichLfallsasleep.Hethendreamsofanentireofficialcareer,beginningwithsuccessandfameandendingwithfailure,humiliation,
anddespondency.Whenhe awakens fromthisdream,
themilletisstillbeingcooked.Inevenlesstimethanittakestocookmillet,Lexperiencesonepossiblelifeandthedissipationinvolvedinseekingfameandreputation.He
in turnbecomes thediscipleofZhongliQuan(who knew of the dreambefore
L toldhim), and eventually commitshimselfsolely
toDaoistcultivation, thuscomingtorepresent
theaspiringDaoistpractitioneringeneral.
Throughsuchdedication,mountainsandstreamsaredecoctedinahalfsheng
cauldron.Oneengagesintheactualizationandrefinementofinternalpresences
andcomes toreside in a largermatrixofbeing.Theentire universe is
the context for ones cultivation and ones very
existencebecomescosmicized.Asillustratedinthecontoursofthe
Neijingtu,theadeptengaginginalchemicalpraxisdiscoversthatthebodycontainsstreams,
mountains, fields, forests, temples and constellations. Onesbody is
thecosmos, andthecosmos is onesbody.Although
suchconventionaldistinctionslikecosmosandself,orinternalandexternal,arepotentiallynecessaryatthebeginningofalchemicalpraxis,the
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70/JournalofDaoistStudies 2(2009)
finaloutcomeofalchemicaltransformation,rarificationandperhapsselfdivinization,
results in the activation of the Daoist mystical body (seeKomjathy
2007), a body which is transpersonal and infused with
theDaosnuminosity.This involvesorientingyourself
towardsthemysterious.Thefinallinesofthepoem,withthefrequentrepetitionofmysterious(xuan
),invokechapteroneoftheDaodejing
(ScriptureontheDaoandInnerPower):Mysteriousandagainmoremysteriousthegatewaytoallwonders.TheDaoistadeptmergeswiththetwofoldmysterywhichistheDao.Heorsheliterallyshiftsontologicalconditions,abiding
in a stateofmysticalpervasionwith theDaoas amysterybeyond mystery,
as a mystery simultaneously present and absent in itsown
mysteriousness. It is this presenceabsence that also
circulatesthroughtheadeptsownbodyasnuminouscurrents.Hereoneencounters
perhaps one of the most significant Daoist challenges to
conventional understandings ofhumanbeing: onesphysiology literally
is sacred. One embodies the Dao, and one may experience the
Daothrough/in/asonesownpsychosomaticandenergeticbeing.Thebifurcation
of transcendent divine and mundane material
processesbreaksdowninthisDaoistvisionofself.
Beyondthetwopoemswhichprovideageneraldescriptionofthealchemical
endeavor, thediagramas awholecanbeseen todepict theDaoist
alchemical practice of reversal in combination with the
MicrocosmicOrbitmethod. Here I concentrate on the textual and
visual
aspectsoftheNeijingtu,whileinthesubsequentsectionIprovideamoresystematic
explanationof thepractices in thecontextofDaoist
internalalchemypraxis.Theaspiringadeptmustsealhimselforherselfofffromvarioussourcesofdissipation,includingsensoryandemotionaldistractions.Heorshemustturninwardthroughmeditativepraxistorealizeareturn
topsychosomatic andcosmological integration. Formaleadeptsin
particular, they must prevent dissipation of their core vitality,
vitalessence (jing ), which occurs through sexual activity and
resultingseminalemission.Oneofthefoundationsofthealchemicalprocessistheretention,
circulation and transformation of the body fluids (see Komjathy
2007). In the Neijing tu, this isdepicted asmovement of vital
essence, the water of the body, being reversed and transferred
upward.
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Komjathy,MappingtheDaoistBody/71
Beginningatthefirstpass,onenoticesaboyandagirlworkingatreadmill,representingyangandyinrespectively(see
Fig. 2).
Thecaptionnexttothemreadsthemysteriousyinyangtreadmill.The
longertextualcomponentexplains,
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72/JournalofDaoistStudies 2(2009)
Repeatedly,constantly,[thetreadmill]ispeddledincycles;Whenthemechanismrevolves,thewaterflowseastward.Thewater,tenthousandfathomsdeep,isseenstraighttoitsbottom;Asweetspringbubblesup,risingtothesummitofSouthern
Mountain.
By using the intent and sealing the lower gate, theperineum,
theadeptreverses the flowofvital essence. Insteadofmovingoutward
inthe form of seminal emission formale adepts andmenstrualblood
forfemale adepts, bothprimary forms ofdissipation, the vital
essencebecomes conserved, stored, circulated and transformed.
Reference to theeastwardflowof thevitalessence
(jing)alsomakessensewhenreadin relation toWeil (TailboneGate; the
coccyx) as the firstpass.5Accordingtothe Zhuangzi,
Considering thewatersoftheworld,none isgreaterthan theocean. Ten
thousand streams flow into itthere has
neverbeenatimewhentheyceased,buttheoceanisneverfull.ThewaterleaksoutatWeiltherehasneverbeenatimewhenitstopped,
but the ocean is never empty. (17/42/68; cf.Watson1968,176).
The occurrence of Weil in the Neijing tu also adds an
additionalmythological component to itsmapping of the Daoist body
and
theDaoistinternallandscape.JustasthewatersoftheoceanareturnedintovaporattheWeilrock,sotoothebodyhasacorrespondingplaceinthecoccyx,
identified as the first point on theGoverning vessel (GV1)
incontemporary Chinese medicine (see Ellis et al. 1989; Deadman et
al.2001). The lower section of the Neijing tu informs the viewer
that
theKanwaterflowsinreverse,thatis,thevitalessence,associatedwiththe
5The Three Passes (sanguan) are usually identified as
TailboneGate(weil; the coccyx),Narrow Ridge (jiaji; midspine), and
Jade Pillow(yuzhen; occiput). See, for example, the
thirteenthcentury
Jindandachengji,Xiuzhenshishu,DZ263,10.6b;thethirteenthcenturyDadanzhizhi
, DZ 244, 1.4a, 1.5a, 1.12a; and the seventeenthcentury
Xingmingguizhi,ZW314,9.518.
-
Komjathy,MappingtheDaoistBody/73
trigram Kanwater and the kidneys,6 is redirected upwards. In
contrasttothenormalflowofessenceoutwardasasourceofdissipation,the
Daoist adept, using his or her intent, guides vital essence and
qithroughWeiland initiates thereversion
(fan;huan)ofvitalessencetorepairthemarrowandbrain(seebelow).
WithregardtotheascentofthebubblingspringtoSouthernMountain,Wang
suggests that SouthernMountain should be
themountainrangeofthesamenameinthesouthofXinjiang,whichisregardedasamajorbranchofMountKunlun(Wang199192,150).Astheheadisfrequentlyreferred
toasMountKunlun
inDaoistcultivation,7SouthernMountainsuggeststhemovementofthevitalessenceandqifromthelowerregionsofthebody(north)intotheupperregions(south),specificallyintotheheadarea.MountKunluninthewest,inadditiontoPenglaiIslandintheeast,isaterrestrialparadiseandhometovariousimmortals
(xian ). In chapter eleven of the Shanhai jing (Classic
ofMountainsandSeas),amajorsourceofChinesemythologywhichcontainsmaterial
from the thirdcenturyB.C.E. to thesecondcenturyC.E.,MountKunlun is
described as an epicenter of the universe,where
theheavensandtheearthareperfectlyharmonized(seeBirrell1999a,13941;1999b,18385).ThisaspectofthemaphintsattheDaoistgoalofattaining
immortality, realizing complete cosmological alignment,
mystical
6
InDaoistneidanpraxis,theeighttrigrams(bagua),commonlyassociatedwiththeYijing
(ClassicofChange),havevariouscorrespondences.Thetrigramsareasfollows:(1)Qianheaven(qian
) ,(2)Kunearth(kun ) ,(3) Lifire (li) , (4) Kanwater (kan) , (5)
Duilake (dui) , (6)Zhenthunder(zhen ) ,(7)Sunwind(sun )
,andGenmountain(gen )
. See the tenthcentury Chuandao ji, DZ 263, 14.11b; and
thirteenthcenturyJindandachengji ,DZ263,10.12b.
7OneoftheearliestusagesofKunlunasareferencetothehead,andthustothe
interiorization of paradise and immortality, appears in the
thirdcenturyHuangtingwaijing jing , DZ 332, 1.1b, also 2.1b. See
also the eighthcenturyHuangtingwaijingjingzhu,DZ 263, 58.7a;
Jindandayaotu,DZ 1068, 3a; Xingming guizhi, ZW 314, 9.318. For some
classical references toKunlun
inDaoismseeLi1991,339;MinandLi1994,637;Hu1995,1164,1176,1381,1644.
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74/JournalofDaoistStudies 2(2009)
pervasion and/or selfdivinization.8 In addition, the reference
to thespringbubblingup(quanyong
)maybeaninversionofYongquan(BubblingSpring),locatedinthecenterofthesoleoffootandidentifiedasthefirstpointonthekidneymeridianincontemporaryChinesemedicine.9This
reading adds additional support for the connection ofKanwater
withvitalessence,asthekidneyshousevitalessence.
Abovethemysteriousyinyangtreadmill,therearetwofurnaceswithflamesflaringup,fourTaijidiagrams,andaploughboytendinghisox(seeFig.2).Basedontheirlocationinthediagram,thefurnacessymbolizetheelixirfieldswherevitalessenceandqiarestored,transformedandcirculated.10AccordingtothecontoursoftheNeijingtu,theaspiringDaoist
adept must focus his or her intent on various locations in
thebody,especiallyonWeil(TailboneGate;thecoccyx),Qihai(OceanofQi;theabdomen),andMingmen(GateofLife;betweenthekidneys)
to increase the fire and circulate qi.Asnoted,
agriculturalmetaphors abound, and theploughboyandoxsuggest
focusedattentionontheprocessofalchemicaltransformation,especiallyontheconservation,transformationandcirculationofvitalessenceandqi.
8Themeaning of xian (immortal or transcendent) varies
accordingtothespecificDaoistsubtraditionandhistoricalmoment.IntheNeijingtu,
immortalitywouldseemtorefertolonglifeandalchemicaltransformation.Italsoseems
tobetakenasparalleltoenlightenmentorrealization
inChanBuddhism.InthecaseoftheDaoisttradition,whetherornotbecomingaxianren
orzhenren
meanspersonalcontinuationafterdeathisanopenquestion,andonethatrequirescriticalreflectionandmoreindepthhistoricalresearch.
9WithinDaoism,acleardepictionofYongquanaslocatedinthecenterofthesolesofthefeetappearsintheXiuzhentu.
SeeDespeux1994;2000.
10 In
neidanlineages,adistinctionisoftenmadebetweenthestoveorfurnace (lu)
and cauldron or tripod (ding). E.g., the
fourteenthcenturyYuqingdanjue ,DZ240,2.16a;cf. Xiuzhen
shishu,DZ263,10.2b.
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Komjathy,MappingtheDaoistBody/75
The fourTaijidiagramsmaybe interpreted in avarietyofways.11
Underonereading,andtheonethatIwouldsuggestisprimary,thediagrams
symbolize the harmonization of the Five Phases through
attentivenesson lower elixir field, thecentral storage location
forqi. In thiscase, the fourdiagramswouldrepresent allof thephases
(Wood [east,azure, liver, ethereal soul], Fire [south, red, heart,
spirit], Metal
[west,white,lungs,corporealsoul],andWater[north,black,kidneys,vitalessenceorwill])exceptthatoftheEarth,whichoftenoccupiesthecenter,orstillness,
inDaoistcultivation.Stillness,sometimesspokenofasPerfect Earth
(zhentu), unites all of the other phases.12An
alternativereading,proposedbySchipper,suggeststhattheseTaijidiagramsrepresent
the qiphases of the elixir field (Schipper 1978, 356).13There is
noreasontobelievethatsuch
interpretationsaremutuallyexclusive;theselayersofmeaning,alongwithothersunmentionedhere,mayallbeembeddedinthissectionoftheNeijingtu.Themostimportantthingtonoteisthecentralityofthelowerelixirfieldinthe
Neijingtu,initsmappingoftheDaoistbody,andinitssystemofalchemicaltransformation.
Movingupthespinestillfurther,onearrivesattheflamesbetweenthevertebraebelowof
the secondpass.This isMingmen
(GateofLife),whichisagainconnectedwithvitalessenceanditstransformationintoqi.14Chartedaccording
to function incontemporaryChinesemedi
11Thehistoryofthestandard,modernTaijisymbol,andtheonesdepictedintheNeijingtu(i.e.,acircledividedintointerconnectedwhite[yang]andblack[yin]aspectsthatcontainadot[seed]ofthealternatecolors[yinyangaspects]),is
currently unclear. For some insights see the relevant entry on the
CriticalTermspageoftheCenterforDaoistStudieswebsite(www.daoistcenter.org).ItshistoricalusageinChinesecultureandamongDaoistsiscomplex.
12ThereareavarietyofextantdiagramscalledZhentutu(DiagramofPerfectEarth),whereinperfectearthisassociatedwiththeYellowCourtandintent,orthinking(yi).See,e.g.,Zazhuzhixuanpian,DZ263,1.5a;Xingmingguizhi,ZW314,9.523.Thelatterdiagramemphasizesstillingtheheartcenter.
13Unfortunately,Schipperdoesnotprovideadetailedexplanationoftheseqiphasesofthedantian.SuchtechnicalinformationmightaddadeeperunderstandingofDaoistcultivation.
14ThetermappearsasearlyasthethirdcenturyHuangtingjing.SeeDZ331,11b;
DZ 332, 1.1a. According to the eighthcentury Huangting neijing jing
zhu,TheGate of Life is the lower elixir field (DZ 402,
3.19b).However, both the
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cine,where it is identifiedas the fourthpointon
theGoverningVessel(seeEllisetal.1989;Deadmanetal.2001),MingmenasanenergeticlocationinthebodyhastheabilitytoregulatetheGoverningvessel,to
tonifythekidneys,tpnourishthespineandmarrow,andtostrengthenthefiveyinorbs
(wuzang). Ascending still higher, there are two
captions:cavityofthetwokidneystorehousesandmountainsandstreamsaredecoctedinahalfsheng
cauldron(seeFigs.3, 4).
ComparingtheNeijingtustelewiththeQingdynastycoloredpainting(seeFuetal.1999,200),thefirstcaption,whichreadscavityoftheleftandrightkidneystorehousesinthepainting,shouldhavebeenengravedatthe
levelof
theWeavingMaiden(thekidneyregion).Itobviouslyreferstothekidneysandtheircorrespondinglocationinthelowersectionofthemap.HereisonedirectconvergencebetweenthismappingofDaoistalchemicaltransformationandclassicalChinesemedicalviews:thekidneysarethestorehouseofvitalessenceandthus
the
foundationofonescorevitality(seeHuangdineijingsuwen,chs.3,8,9,10,
23; Ross 1985; Maciocia 1989, 67110; Unschuld 2003, 12444;
alsoNeedhametal.1983,22;Wang199192,150;below).ThusonecanmaketheargumentthatthecentralityofMingmenandthekidneysinthissectionoftheNeijingtuand
in itscorrespondingsystemofselfcultivationstrengthens the
adeptsphysical constitutionandprepares theway formore advanced
training, specifically rarification through
alchemicaltransformation.
Ascendingthemountainpathstillfurther,therearetwoadditionalphrasesinlinewiththethirdtempleorhutinthespine:upperpassofjadeperfectionandcavityofthenuminouspeak.Theselinesrefertothe
upper pass known as Yuzhen (Jade Pillow). Passing
throughthesevariouslocations,thevitalessenceandqieventuallyenterthehead.AttentionisdrawntotheThreePassesastheyareareasthroughwhichitisdifficultfortheqitopassandthustheintentisoftenusedtohelpopenthem.
Xiuzhen tu and Xingming guizhi (ZW 314, 9.518) clearly
placeMingmen in thekidneyregionalongthespine.
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Passing throughthefinalpass,onearrivesat themountainpeaks
that,fromaDaoistperspective,arethevariousenergeticlocationsinthehead(see
Fig. 4).While the upper section ofNeijing tu contains avariety
oftextualcomponentsthatcaneasilyleadtoconfusion,anattempttonegotiatethemofferssignificantcontributions.Firstandforemost,onenoticesthegraphiccomponentdepicting
theNinePeaks (jiufeng), someofwhich are in the center of the head.
Sometimes synonymous with theNine Palaces (jiugong), thesepeaks are
associatedwith
traditionalDaoistsubtleanatomyandphysiologyandareutilizedinDaoistmeditationmethods.15
The second most elevated peak, corresponding to Baihui
(HundredMeetings;GV20), the crownpoint in
contemporaryChinesemedicine, is identified as the Niwan Palace
(niwan
gong),16atermthattransliteratesnirvanaandliterallymeansmudball.Thepointis
also known as prefecture of rising yang (shengyang fu
),showninthediagramasapearlorballoflightandrelatedtothelineagrain
ofmillet contains theworld from the LDongbinpoem.All ofthis,
incombinationwith thephrasetoprolong longevity and
[attain]immortalityandBuddhahood,suggeststhefinalgoalofDaoistinternalalchemythecreationofanimmortalembryo(taixian
),alsoknownastheyangspirit(yangshen
)orbodybeyondthebody(shenwaishen)(seeKomjathy2007).
Itmayalsobeunderstoodasnothingmorethanrecoveringtheseedoforiginalyang(yuanyang)
thatwaswithin thepractitioner all along.The fact that
thediagramequates immortality and Buddhahoodmay add support for
thesuggestion that it
15SeetheYuandanshangjing ,DZ1345,2b8a;also
Zazhujiejing,DZ263,18.6ab.ThefourteenthcenturyJindandayaotu
containsanearlierDaoistmapofthebodyasamountainthatincludessomeofthenamesoftheNinePalaces.SeeDZ1068,3a;alsoNeedhametal.1983,105;Despeux1994,41;Komjathy2007,chs.4and6.
16
IntheNeijingtu,niwanislocatedabovethehead,andseeminglyreferstoBaihui
as the location where the yangspirit exits the adepts
body.However,Niwanisoftenassociatedwiththeupperelixirfield.See,forexample,theJindandachengji,DZ263,10.3b.ForsomedepictionsoftheexitoftheyangspiritfromthecrownpointseeXingmingguizhi,ZW314,9.585,9.590;Huimingjing,
ZW131,5.881; Xingmingfajuemingzhi,ZW872,26.114,26.119,26.120.
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Komjathy,MappingtheDaoistBody/79
derives fromtheWuLiu sublineageofLongmen (below), as
thatcommunityhasatexttitledXianfohezong(CommonLineageofImmortalsandBuddhas;ZW843).
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Hereonealsonoticesthenuminousplatformofthicklymeshednet,aphrasewhichalsooccursinthefourteenthcenturyJindaodayaotu(DiagramofGreatEssentialsoftheGoldenElixir;DZ1068),adiagramdepictingtheDaoistbodyasamountainandaclearprecursortothereceivedNeijingtu.Eichmansuggeststhatthisphrase(anditscorrespondinggraphicdepiction)impliestheultimategoalofalchemy,anaudience
with representatives of the celestial hierarchy (2000a,
350).Likehisorherterrestrialbureaucraticcounterpartinrelationtotheterrestrialemperor,theDaoistpractitionerseeksanaudiencewiththehighest
realms of spirit beings, the gods and Perfected (zhenren).
Thissectionofthediagram,then, invokeshigher
levelsofalchemicalrefinement, ending (orbeginning) in an
energeticmergingwith theDao.
Ifyouorientyourselftowardsthemysterious,themysteriousmayberealized(seealsoWang199192,14546).
In the upper section of the diagram there is an oldman sitting
inmeditation (seeFig.4).Hewears a robewith the stylizedcharacter
forlongevity (shou ), and above him there is the following
inscription:The eyebrowsofwhiteheadedLaozihangdown to the
earth.Belowhim is a figurewithupraisedarmsandthecorresponding
inscription:Theblueeyedforeignmonkholdsuptheheavens.BothoftheselinescomefromtheLDongbinpoems.Themoststraightforwardinterpretation
of the two figures identifies them as Laozi and Bodhidharma,
respectively (see Rousselle 1933; Needham et al. 1983, 116).
However,Wang, in a fairly convincing art historical discussion,
argues that
theiconographyoftheoldmanfiguresuggeststheImmortalOldManof
theSouthern Polestar, the eighth spirit of the brain (Wang 199192,
146).This interpretationmay partially derive from the
figuresplacement atthe energetic location corresponding to higher
levels of
consciousness,eitherMingtang(HallofLight)and/orZuqiao(AncestralCavity).17Wangalsochallenges
the identificationof
theblueeyedmonkasBodhidharma,arguinginsteadthatheshouldbeunderstoodasacombi
17 As mentioned, in certain forms of Daoist meditation, Mingtang
is included as one of theNinePalaces and identified as amystical
cranial
location.ReferencestoZuqiaoasanothermysticalcraniallocationatthecenteroftheheadappearsintheXingmingguizhi(ZW314)andthroughoutthepagesoftheXingmingfajuemingzhi
(ZW872).
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Komjathy,MappingtheDaoistBody/81
nationoftheLaughingBuddhaandtheelementmercuryand/orasMaitreya,thefutureBuddha(Wang199192,149).
Whileconvincingfromanarthistoricalperspectiveandaccountingfor
certain iconographic features, this reading fails to provide an
adequateexplanationof the twofigures intermsof the largerDaoist
traditioningeneralandneidanlineagesassociatedwithLDongbinandlateimperial
Daoism in particular. Why would the person or
communitywhooriginallyenvisioned,commissionedandproducedsuchamappingoftheDaoistbodyincludetheLaughingBuddhaand/orMaitreya?
If one follows a relatively straightforward reading that
recognizesthepotentialconnectionbetween the
textualandvisualcontoursof theNeijingtu,then these
figuresareLaoziandBodhidharma. In thepoemsattributed to LDongbin,
Laozi ismentionedbynameand theblueeyed foreignmonk (biyanhuseng )
is a standardname forBodhidharma (a.k.a.Damo; seeXingyun1989,5848;
alsoDing1939).Inaddition,withregardtolatemedievalneidan
lineages,onefindsthesetwofiguresassymbolicreferentsforalchemicalingredients:theoldmansymbolizes
lead(qian),while themonkrepresentsmercury
(hong)(seealsoWang199192,147;Eichman2000a,351).TheyarereferredtoassuchintheDanfangbaojianzhitu(DiagramofthePreciousMirroroftheElixirChamber),whichiscontainedinXiuzhenshishu
(Ten Works on Cultivating Perfection; DZ 263, 26.5b6a),
ananthologyoftheearlyfourteenthcentury.Heremercury(Bodhidharma)issaidtocorrespondtothejadeyefluids(yuye),spiritwater(shenshui),
theMaiden (chan),white snow (baixue), and
theazuredragon(qinglong),amongotherthings;lead(Laozi)issaidtocorrespondtothegoldyefluids
(jinye), JadePond(yuchi),theChild (yinger), yellow sprouts
(huangya), and thewhite
tiger(baihu),amongotherthings.Inotherneidandiscussionsofthesealchemicalsymbols/ingredients,leadmayrefertovitalessence(jing)ororiginalspirit(yuanshen
),whilemercurymayrefertospirit(shen)ororiginalqi(yuanqi ).18
Basedonthesecorrespondences,anumberofreadingsarepossible.First,
andmostbasic, theadept accumulates andgatherssaliva, theye
18Cf.Ershisijue,DZ1158,1bandDanyangyulu ,DZ1057,15b.Seealso
Chuandaoji,DZ263,15.11a15a.
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fluidsassociatedwithBodhidharma,inthemouth,theJadePondassociated
with Laozi. These fluids are then swallowed down to purify
theheartandeventuallycomminglewithoriginalqiinthelowerelixirfield.Inthisrespect,onemayagainreflectuponthesymbolicmeaningofBodhidharmaandLaozi
asonesownphysiology.Anotherpossiblereadingisthatoriginalqi,associatedwithmercuryandthefigureofBodhidharma,andoriginalspirit,associatedwith
leadandthefigureofLaozi,becomecommingledintheadeptsupperelixirfield.
ReadingtheupperfigureintheNeijingtuasLaozialsomakessensebecause
Laozi is frequently recognized as the founder of the
Daoisttradition and as the high god Laojun (Lord Lao).19 In the
lives
ofspecificDaoistsandDaoistcommunities,healsocametosymbolizetheculminationofDaoistcultivation.Hehimself,afterall,transformedintotheuniverse:
Laozi transformedhis form.Hisleft eyebecamethesun,andhis right
eye became the moon. His head became MountKunlun.Hisbeardbecame
theplanetsandconstellations.Hisbones becamedragons; his
flesh,wildanimals; andhis intestines,snakes.Hisbellybecame
theocean;hisfingers,the
fivesacredmountains;andhishair,grassesandtrees.Hisheartbecame the
Flowery Canopy. Finally, his two kidneys
wereunitedandbecamethetruefatherandmother.(Xiaodaolun
,T.3102,52.144b1315;cf.Yunjiqiqian,DZ1032,10.7b8a;seeMaspero1981,340;Schipper1993,114;alsoKohn1995,5455)
20
Laoziisthesupremelylonglived,forheisthecosmosandthecosmos is he.
The Neijing tu suggests that Laozi represents the Daoistadepts
ownpossibilityeach persons eyes, the two circles in thediagram, are
thesunandthemoon, andeachpractitionersconsciousnesscontains
thenuminouspresencewhichLaoziembodied,at least from
19ForarevisionisthistoricalanalysisoftheconstructionofLaoziasahistoricalpersonageseeGraham1998(1986).ForstudiesofthesomeofthewaysinwhichhehasbeenrepresentedintheDaoisttraditionseeSeidel1969;Kohn1999.
20HereLaozitakestheplaceoftheprimordialbeingPanGu
(seeBirrell1999;Kohn1993,16869;1995).
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certainemicperspectives.Accordingtothediagram,theessenceoftheDao
and the Daoist tradition is literally contained in ones own
brain.Thehumanbeing,fromthisDaoistperspective,isacosmologicalbeing:onesveryownbodycontainsmountains,temples,constellationsand
thelocus for immortality andperfection. Insome formsofDaoist
religiouspraxis, specifically visualization (cunxiang) and inner
observation(neiguan) forms ofmeditation during the early and
latemedievalperiods,theDaoistadeptturnsthelightofthesunandmoon(theeyes)inward,thusilluminatingtheinternallandscapewhichishisorherownbody(seeKohn1989;Robinet1989a;alsobelow).Onecanalsoarguethat,iftheNeijingtu
originatesinaLongmencontext,thesignificanceofLaozifindssubstantiationinthefactthatheisidentifiedasoneofthesocalledFivePatriarchs
(wuzu) of earlyQuanzhenandasoneof theThreePurities (sanqing) in
later Quanzhen. This, at the very least, mayhelp to explain the
enduring power of the Neijing tu as amapping
ofDaoistexistentialandontologicalpossibility.
ThesignificanceofBodhidharmaisabitmoredifficulttodetermine.One
interpretation is that Bodhidharma, paralleling Laozis place
inmanysectorsoftheDaoisttradition,representstheoriginandessenceofChan(Zen)Buddhism.Thatis,theChantradition,consideredasawhole,identifieshimas
thefounder (Dumoulin1988,8594).21 Inaddition tothe abovementioned
alchemical symbolism, the inclusion of
Bodhidharmamayhavebeenawayofgainingculturalcapital,suggestingthatneidan
practiceandChanmeditationledtothesamegoal.Ifthisreadingis
convincing, the Neijing tumay also be suggesting the importance
ofcrosstradition cultivation practice. Here one thinks of
Bodhidharmasmythic nine years of meditation, or wallgazing (biguan
), as
asymbolofintensiveanddedicatedreligiouspraxis.22Chaninspiredemp
21Critical and revisionist historiography on the Chan tradition
in
generalandBodhidharmainparticular,parallelingsuchresearchonDaoismandLaozi,questionsthehistoricityofBodhidharma.SeeBroughton1999;alsoFaure1993.
22 In this respect, ones interest ispeaked by thepresence of the
fourdiagrams onChanpractice (walking, standing, sitting, and
lyingdown)
thatareincludedintheXingmingguizhi,DZ314,9.554555.Inthechartonmeditationpractice,
one is urged to engage in prolongedperiods of seatedmeditation.
Inaddition,Liaokong(fl.1895),oneoftheteachersofZhaoBichen(founderoftheQianfenglineage),
wasaChanmonkwhopracticedneidan.ZhaoBichenis,in
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tinessmeditationbecomesrepresentedasthe
foundationforalchemicaltransformation,whichalsotakesplaceinaseatedmeditationpostureasrepresentedintheNeijingtu.Atthesametime,theremaybeapolemicaldimensiontheBuddhistisplacedbeneathandinsupportoftheDaoist.It
isalsoplausible to interprettheblueeyed
foreignmonkholdinguptheheavensasan