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Taoist Spiritual AlchemyBy Patrick Manfred Kanzler Serving here as the ultimate disclaimer, the first chapter of the Tao Te Ching seeks to somehow describe the meaning of Tao. But the statement that an accurate description is necessarily impossible is itself the most accurate description. How does one explain something that is so all encompassing, omnipresent, and omnipotent? It simply cannot be done because it lies so far beyond the limiting world of words. This did not, however, stop people from trying. The above quote is the first line of eighty-one chapters dedicated to knowing the Tao. In mercifully simple language, Lao Tzu, a contemporary of Confucius, shares his wisdom of the Tao, the Way. Simply, though, was not always the desired method. Of Taoists who actually wrote anything down, many described things in metaphorical, often coded language. The reasons for this could be many. They could simply have wanted their teachings to remain secret to prevent powerful knowledge from falling into the wrong hands. They could have wanted to weed out the weak minded by putting forth seemingly simple words that could be applied on many levels of function. Or they may have found that to explain these things accurately they needed to describe something other than what they actually meant. The use of metaphor is an extremely effective means of conveying ideas, feelings or states of existence that lie in the realms beyond the typical human experience. Aristotle believed that metaphors gave way to a sort of “transference” of meaning, that the power of the metaphor lies not in the likeness between the word and the subject but rather the un-likeness. It is this un-likeness that reduces conceptual thoughts into feelings, sensations and experiences which are the ultimate basis of true comprehension[2]. But the explanations and laws of the nature of things as well as the teachings of how to gain understanding and unity with the primal source are so universally basic and underlying that no matter how they are explained they apply to all things. And during Taoisms life span of over three-thousand years many different explanations and interpretations arose to meet the challenge of transmission of knowledge. Corresponding to the differing levels of interpretation emerged practitioners of the Tao who spanned the spectrum from physical alchemists to spiritual masters. The common aspiration of Taoists is the attainment of immortality. However, the definition of this immortality and the road to it is where the differences emerge. The physical alchemists sought to achieve physical, bodily immortality through the discovery of herbal concoctions and the achievement of turning lead into gold. Although their science was based on Taoist cosmology and eventually led to many significant scientific discoveries, these alchemists were often considered by more spiritually aimed Taoists to be chasing their tales. The yogic Taoists sought to achieve relative immortality by altering their bodies’ chemistry. Although many succeeded in living far longer than the normal human life span, this route, too, was scoffed by the true Taoists. Immortality for the true Taoist lay not in achieving a state in which one’s body could remain impervious to the endless passage of time, but in achieving a state in which time as well as the physical world and existence as a human were completely transcended by the consciousness of the individual.[3] The Tao is the ultimate. It is all things while it is nothing. It is a total void while it is the unity of undifferentiated spirit. It flows through and permeates all things, it is the essence that is common in all beings. It is the primal source of the universe. Reality as we know it exists as an illusion. The apparent distinction between things we perceive is caused by the interplay of yin and yang. These dual characteristics are born of the singularity as the beginning of distinction. Yin is the female, the passive. It yields, gives way and receives; it is the mother, the Earth. It is darkness and stillness and death. Yang is the male, active and giving. As the father, it plants the seed of life; as heaven it gives energy to the spirit. Yang is light, it is movement and it is life. As yin and yang undulate and seethe back and forth and around in all directions they oppose each other, they defeat each other and they give rise to each other Their interaction gives birth to the existence of all things and their forces are apparent in all things. The Tao is both; it is all things, yet it is the ultimate void. In order to know it one must also know the nonexistence of it. It is nothing. It is unknowable.[4] The distinction of yin and yang gives rise to the distinction of time and the illusion of its passage into a nonexistent end. The Taoist mystics sought to ultimately realize the truth behind the illusion. In so doing, they would transcend the limits of this state and achieve immortality. Many schools arose of this idea proffering a wide variety of teachings and methods aimed at attaining this state. Among them, the Complete Reality School gained much prominence due to its down to earth nature and shunning of supernatural aims. In the eleventh century, an adept known as Chang Po-tuan became a very significant figure when he wrote Understanding Reality. This classic taught the process of spiritual transformation to people who were sincere and dedicated. He also wrote Inner Teachings of Taoism which condensed much of the teachings into the alchemical format. This text contains many verses containing alchemical directions that one would follow in order to reach immortality. However, like many others, it was interpreted in a variety of ways. Many attempted to interpret it literally and it was not until Liu I Ming provided a commentary in 1808 that the teachings became clear to all. Liu I Ming felt that the Taoists before him put too much emphasis on hiding their knowledge in esoteric, coded language that was often misinterpreted. He believed that much great knowledge was being lost by this practice and he sought to reveal Chang Po-tuan’s teachings in plain language. This was a very important step in the development of proper Taoism as a spiritual movement.[5] “True earth arrests true lead; -Chuang Po-Tuan This passage is the first in Chuang Po-Tuan’s Inner Teachings of Taoism. It speaks of earth, lead and mercury but it contains the introduction to spiritual alchemy. In this example alchemy may be considered a metaphor. Where a physical alchemist would seek to create gold from base materials, the spiritual alchemist seeks to create the Golden Pill (immortality) within himself. These three elements are called the Triplex Unity. They represent the three elements of the self that, when realized, combine to form ultimate reality within the individual. In the pure state, the three elements do not exists independently. But through the contamination of the human mind they are degraded and therefore separated. Earth lies at the center of the universe, it is where life and essence are nurtured and protected. Earth is where birth and death take place, therefore it controls life and spirit. According to Liu I Ming, the earth referred to here represents true intent of the human being. True intent, like earth, is truthful and whole; it possesses the pulse of life and it is at the center. The Chinese classic I Ching discusses true intent as innocence. Known as Wu Wang , innocence is the unadulterated, natural purpose of man. It is present when movement or action follows the law of heaven and nature. Without ulterior motive or conscious purpose the way of nature runs its course. Plants and animals possess it in their instinctual behavior; a plant leans toward the light through true intent. Man, however, has departed from the natural way. His true intent is clouded with conscious thoughts and motives. He reflects on his actions, investigates their outcomes and develops a purpose. He conspires and alters things around him in order to achieve his premeditated goals. Wherever conscious purpose has arisen, the truth and innocence of nature have been lost.[6] Lead is an element that is solid, heavy and dense. It lasts long and keeps its form. Lead represents the true sense of real knowledge. Solid and unbending it persists through time. True sense is true knowledge of the nature of reality. It underlies all perception and is a great mass upon which all other knowledge rests. It is the reality that all things are illusory reflections caused by the interplay of yin and yang. The true universe is one and there is no true distinction within it. But there does exist the polarity, the duality of yin and yang and this gives rise to the illusion of reality as we know it. This true knowledge is accepted by all Taoists. However, to accept it is a matter of faith, but to know it is a matter of union between true knowledge and conscious knowledge. Mercury is always moving. It flexes and yields and it is lively and active. Mercury represents the spiritual essence of conscious knowledge. Conscious knowledge is what one knows to be true. It is not merely what one accepts as truth but what one fully realizes. There are certain things that we know as truth such as the reality of our existence. We know that the day will end and the night will come. We know that if we do not eat we will become hungry. What we think of our existence is based on what we have accepted as truth because knowledge on this level is fully realized and integrated into every corner of our reality. We use it to define ourselves and the universe we exist in because these things are the basis of our entire lives. They are the basis of spiritual essence because they are the logical foundations on which spiritual existence and growth are built. These three things, known as the three jewels, combine to create a complete, primordial unity of being, the Triplex Unity, true existence in the original state. In this state, one is unified with the Tao. One has returned to the Source. The flow of the universe is no longer perceived, it is experienced because the former perceiver has fully realized the absence of distinction between himself and everything else. He has come face to face with his true self and realized that it is not his possession but it is itself the Tao. His perception of self has dropped away and his consciousness has expanded to an infinite level and he actually becomes the true universe. This mystical state is what true Taoists consider to be immortality. The three jewels do not exist in this state for they are unified into one reality. But through “temporally acquired conditioning” and the rising of distinction of yin and yang within the individual, the one divides into three. Once the division is made, false knowledge seeps in and the three jewels are contaminated with habitual energies and the mundaneness of routine life. Desire takes hold and true intent is grown over with confusing motives. Conscious knowledge is filled with apparent truths. And true knowledge has sunk to the depths of the mind. Taoist teachings seek to show the way to cultivate the three jewels. It begins with stillness and detachment. One must step back from the universal facade and be still and watch. Nothing drastic must be done, only observation and non-intrusive behavior. Desire must be allowed leave quietly, attachment will hold one in the present state. The concept known as wu wei is employed. Wu wei means non-action. Through stillness, one allows things to settle to an overriding calm. Once this has been achieved, the truth can be seen and the way of the universe can be observed. One cannot seek to understand something if one is constantly interfering with it. And the way of nature is so subtle that the slightest movement will cause endless ripples in the matrix of reality. In everyday existence, Taoists seek to live in harmony with nature. Nature follows the laws of the universe, it flows along its course with no effort, the ultimate example of wu wei. Through harmonization with nature, one comes into harmony with the Tao. The Taoist must align his personal rhythm with the rhythm of the nature. Only this will allow him to fully experience the nature of Tao. If one maintains an external perspective, always trying to examine it and explain it, the separation is innate and communion is not possible. Once harmonization with nature has been realized, then conscious purpose and ambition will be shed and true intent will surface. In his stillness, the Taoist will begin to recognize the true knowledge in all things around and within him. He will see the interplay of yin and yang as clouds move in and the sky gives way, receiving them. The rain will give to the ground filling empty pockets and dried streams. The clouds will empty and the sky will emerge again. As the sun reaches higher and higher into the sky, and the still, cold winter gives way to warmth and activity, the ground will give birth to grain. He will take the grain and fill his empty coffers. And when it comes time, the grain’s death will give him life. Thus he will experience the beginning of the combination of true knowledge and conscious knowledge, essence and sense. He will remain calm and slowly but persistently he will cultivate this union paying close attention to maintaining the balance and remaining at the center. Unquestioning, the Taoist will exist and live moment to moment, one instant to the next, in complete union with the directional flow and the rhythmical undulations of the universe. Although the origins of Taoism reach back over three-thousand years, the commonalities it has with other enlightenment - seeking - religions are prominent. Union with the universe and the primal source are the basis of higher level Indian religions. Yogis seek a similar union with the universe. Common practices among Taoists and Yogis suggests either an exchange of ideas or the spread of early Vedic doctrines. Indeed, the discovery of a clay seal from the Indo-Aryan tribes that dates back to around the second millennia B.C.E. suggests that ideas such as these may very well have originated in the Indus Valley Civilization. This seal depicts an early form of the God Shiva sitting in a yogic meditation posture. The Indus Valley Civilization thrived from around 2500 B.C.E to about 1500 B.C.E. It experienced massive expansion toward the end of its reign. However, this does not eliminate the possibility that a simultaneous development in cosmological thought occurred. Either way, Taoism was unquestionably influenced by the introduction of Buddhism at the end of the Han Dynasty in the second century B.C.E. During this period a parallel growth of the two traditions occurred. and continued for the next two millennia Buddhist influenced ideas are evident such as the overcoming of desire and the negation of the ego. The primary difference lies in the Buddhist emphasis on compassion, for Taoists more often than not, secluded themselves in nature and did not seek to save the whole of humanity. Eventually, however, the innate individuality of Taoism led to its subjugation by Confucian governmental forces. The ultimate free-sprits were driven into obscurity and eventually virtual extinction by the Chinese Cultural Revolution.[7] Today, there are no known Taoists delineated from established schools in Mainland China. A few remain in surrounding islands where the adepts fled to. These remaining pockets, however, are mostly remnants of the Taoist folk traditions and resemble nothing of the spiritual schools. Regardless, Taoist thought still permeates the Chinese culture. A land cannot turn its back on a way of thinking that stretches back farther than written history. And today, Taoism, like many other traditions, is experiencing much attention in the United States. I have had the good fortune to hear from a friend who has been living in China for four years that while he was on a hike in the mountains he came upon a small cave where he discovered a Taoist priestess living humbly in the forest communing with the Tao. I, personally, would like very much to see this beautiful tradition provide people with peace and harmony as it did for so long in ancient China. [1] Lao Tsu, “Tao Te Ching” translated by Gia-Fu Feng and Jane English; Vintage Books, 1972 [2] Savant, John; “Of Sacrament and Poetry,” America; March 20 1999 [3] Blofeld, John; “Taoism; The Road to Immortality,” Shambhala, 1978 [4] Blofeld, John; same as 3 [5] Liu I Ming; “The Inner Teachings of Taoism,” translated by Thomas Cleary; Shambhala,1986 [6] Wilhelm Baynes; “I Ching; Book of Changes” Princeton University Press, 1977 [7] Blofeld, John; “Taois Mysteries and Magic,” Shambhala, 1973
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