영성, 몸-마음, 젠더, 생태, 평화 Scapbook: Komjathy. Daoist Tradition: 9. Health and Longevity Practice

2023/08/12

Komjathy. Daoist Tradition: 9. Health and Longevity Practice

Komjathy, Daoist Tradition:

An Introduction 2013
by Louis Komjathy

Table of Contents

Part 1: Historical Overview

1. Approaching Daoism

2. The Daoist Tradition

Part 2: The Daoist Worldview

3. Ways to Affiliation

4. Community and Social Organization

5. Informing Views and Foundational Concerns

6. Cosmogony, Cosmology, and Theology

7. Virtue, Ethics and Conduct Guidelines

Part 3: Daoist Practice

8. Dietetics

9. Health and Longevity Practice

10. Meditation

11. Scriptures and Scripture Study

12. Ritual

Part 4: Place, Sacred Space and Material Culture

13. Temples and Sacred Sites

14. Material Culture

Part 5: Daoism in the Modern World

15. Daoism in the Modern World

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9 Health and longevity practice

Daoist health and longevity practice primarily involves specific techniques aimed at strengthening vitality, increasing wellbeing, and prolonging life. Traditional Daoist health and longevity practice is designated by a variety of technical terms, with Yangsheng (“nourishing life”) and Daoyin (“guided stretching”) being most common. Yangsheng is a more encompassing umbrella term. Daoist Yangsheng tends to focus on conserving vital essence (jing) and cultivating qi, both as physical respiration (breathing techniques) and as subtle or vital breath. There is thus some overlap with internal alchemy practice (see Chapter 11). Daoist Yangsheng practice involves physiological, psychological, and behavioral principles and includes daily behavior (see Chapter 8), dietetics (see Chapter 9), massage (anmo), qi circulation practices (xingqi ), qi ingestion methods (fuqi ), and respiratory techniques. Daoyin is usually used in a more restrictive sense to designate physical practices involving stretching and breath-work, although there can also be cosmological, energetic, purificatory, and exorcistic dimensions. The technical term daoyin literally means “guiding and pulling” or “to guide and direct” (see also Kohn 2008a: 11–12). It has been translated as “gymnastics” and “calisthenics,” and more recently as “healing exercises,” and most problematically as “yoga.” None of these is satisfactory, so I will leave the term untranslated, but believe that “guided stretching” would be the best rendering. In a contemporary context, Daoists tend to designate moving, sequential, and qi circulation practices as Yangsheng; they tend to designate seated or stationary postures that involve stretching and breath-work as Daoyin.

1] Historical origins

Similar to Chinese and Daoist conceptions of disease (see Chapters 6, 8, and 9), Daoist views concerning and approaches to Yangsheng practice are complex. There is a tendency either to ignore Daoist Yangsheng practice or to conflate it with Yangsheng practice more generally, especially in terms of contemporary forms of Qigong and Taiji quan (see Komjathy 2006, 2011b). However, as Livia Kohn has pointed out, we must consider these as distinguishable traditions (Kohn 2008a: 10), and there can be no doubt that practicing Chinese health and longevity techniques is not a requirement for being a member of the religious tradition which is Daoism.

The earliest extant texts related to Chinese health and longevity practice date from the Early Han dynasty and were discovered in two key archaeological sites: Mawangdui (near Changsha, Hunan) and Zhangjiashan (Jiangling, Hubei). The Mawangdui discoveries include the Daoyin tu (Diagram of Guided Stretching), while the Zhangjiashan discoveries include the Yinshu (Book on Stretching) (see Kohn 2008a: 29–61). Here we must note that the title Daoyin tu was given to the text by modern Chinese archaeologists. In addition, while these texts are most often categorized as “medical manuscripts,” more research needs to be done on their actual context of composition and practice.

The Yinshu is divided into three parts: a general introduction on seasonal health regimens, a series of about a hundred exercises in three sections, and a conclusion on the etiology of disease and ways of prevention. About a quarter of the text is dedicated to naming and describing basic routines. The second section of the text first presents forty exercises, which can be divided into five groups according to the body parts and types of movements: legs and feet (9), chest and neck (7), lunges (4), forward bends (8), and shoulder openers (12). The text then moves on to the medicinal use of the practices. Beginning with the condition to be remedied, it contains a total of forty-five items, some of which include more than one possible treatment. The third and last part of the Yinshu has some additional information on the Eight

Meridians Stretch and the use of breathing in the prevention and cure of diseases (Kohn 2008a: 41–58). Most of these practices appear to be practiced as sets, as integrated and complementary systems.

This stands in contrast to the Daoyin tu, which consists of forty-four techniques that were practiced as separate, self-contained exercises. As the name indicates, the Daoyin tu is an illustrated manual; it consists of fortyfour diagrams with captions identifying the associated ailment. The majority of figures appear in standing postures, but four are kneeling or sitting. A few postures are named after animals, and it is here that we find one of the earliest references to three animal postures (Bear [#41], Bird [#32], and Monkey [#35 and #40]) that would later appear in the famous Five Animal Frolics (see below). As mentioned, the Daoyin tu also contains captions identifying specific ailments or areas of the body to be treated. Conditions mentioned include pain in the ribs, legs, neck, and knees, as well as inguinal swelling, abdominal problems, deafness, fever, upper side blockages, internal heat, warm ailments, and muscle tension. Also noteworthy is posture #37, which aims “to enhance qi flow in the Eight Extraordinary Vessels” (Kohn 2008a: 36–41). Thus a therapeutic perspective is clearly documented in both the Yinshu and Daoyin tu.

2] Daoist views and approaches

Moving to specifically Daoist materials, the earliest explicit Daoist reference to health and longevity practices appears in Chapter 15 of the Zhuangzi, which instructively is titled “Ingrained Opinions.” As I have suggested, the chapter provides key evidence for a self-conscious religious community, the classical inner cultivation lineages, that may reasonably be labeled “Daoist.” Here health and longevity practice is discussed as one of five lower-level forms of self-cultivation (cf. Kohn 2008a: 14).1

CLASSICAL DAOIST VIEWS ON HEALTH AND LONGEVITY PRACTICE

To practice chui, xu, hu and xi breathing, expelling the old and ingesting the new (tugu naxin), engaging in Bear-hangs and Bird-stretches, longevity one’s only concern—such is the approach of the adept who practices Daoyin, the person who nourishes his body, who hopes to live to be as old as Pengzu.

(Zhuangzi, Chapter 15; see also Daode jing, Chapter 29)

In terms of the above discussion, the passage is significant on two accounts. First, it has a reference to the same type of stretching routine (Bear-hangs and Bird-stretches) as documented in the Daoyin tu. Second, the text distinguishes Daoyin practice from Daoist practice per se. Daoyin is explicitly named as a distinct approach and stands in contrast to the practices of the inner cultivation lineages of classical Daoism.

CLASSICAL DAOIST SELF-CULTIVATION

To attain loftiness without limiting aspiration; to become cultivated without humaneness and righteousness; to be regulated without accomplishment and reputation; to find leisure without rivers and oceans; to attain longevity without relying on Daoyin; to forget everything and lose nothing, at ease in Non-differentiation (wuji ) and according with everything beneficial—this is the Way of Heaven and Earth, the inner power (de) of the sage.

So it is said, limpidity, silence, emptiness, and nonaction— these are the levelness of heaven and earth, the substance of the Dao and inner power. So it is said, the sage practices cessation. With cessation comes stable ease. With stable ease comes limpidity. With stable ease and limpidity, care and worry are unable to enter, and deviant qi (xieqi ) is unable to afflict. Thus one’s inner power is complete and one’s spirit is unhindered. (Zhuangzi, Chapter 15; see also ibid., Chapter 3; Baopuzi, DZ

1185, Chapter 5; Despeux 1989: 246)

This text emphasizes apophatic meditation with the goal of mystical union with the Dao and “longevity without relying on Daoyin.” From this we can see that although classical Daoits recognized the value of Daoyin, they considered this to be an inferior practice.

Despite this, there can be no debate that throughout Chinese history Daoists have concerned themselves with vitality, longevity, and immortality, and have engaged in Daoyin and Yangsheng practice often as a foundation for more advanced practice. The Daoist interest in health and longevity practice is attested to by the sheer volume of related texts in the Daoist Canon (see Kohn 2008a; Schipper and Verellen 2004). Here two representative examples will suffice.

Two major Tang dynasty Daoists recognized the importance of health and longevity practice. These were Sun Simiao (581–682), an ordained Tianshi priest and a famous herbalist and physician later deified as the God of Medicine (see Chapter 6), and Sima Chengzhen (647–735), the 12th Patriarch of Shangqing Daoism. Both of these Daoists discuss health and longevity practice within a larger framework of Daoist training. In his Fuqi jingyi lun (Discourse on the Essential Meaning of Absorbing Qi; DZ 277; DZ 830; DZ 1032, j. 57), Sima Chengzhen advocates specific practices for specific ailments.

SIMA CHENGZHEN ON YANGSHENG PRACTICE

If you have an aching or sore head, loosen your hair and comb it with vigor for several hundred strokes. Then turn the head to the left and right several ten times. Next, inhale deeply, place the hands on the neck and hold tight. Then lift the head up, pressing it against the hands.

In addition, visualize qi flowing into your brain. Let it push any wayward qi out through the top of your head and other body openings. Allow the wayward qi to dissipate and disperse. Following this, release the hands, move the qi evenly through the entire body, and repeat the exercise. Once you feel sweat erupting on the head and notice that the ailing area becomes open and permeable, you have reached your goal. (Fuqi jingyi lun, DZ 1032, 57.23b–24a; adapted from Kohn 2008a: 151)

***

In general, to treat ailments, practice right after sunrise and preferably when the weather is calm and mild. Sit up straight, face the sun, close your eyes, curl the hands into fists, and tap the teeth nine times. Then visualize the scarlet brilliance and purple rays of the sun. Pull them into the body as you inhale, and then swallow them. Envision this beneficial qi entering the inner organ or area of the body that is affected by the ailment.

(ibid., 57.23ab; adapted from Kohn 2008a: 151)

Sima Chengzhen, the leader of Shangqing and the individual who had attained the highest level of ordination in the Tang-dynasty monastic system (see Chapter 4), advocates health and longevity practice with a therapeutic orientation. However, it is essential to remember that Sima was an ordained Daoist priest who practiced Daoyin and Yangsheng within the context of a larger Daoist religious system. Within this system, which included ethics, chanting, qi ingestion, visualization, investiture training, scripture study, and so forth, the health and healing techniques are identified as basic practices. In order to engage in more advanced Daoist practice, health, vitality, and wellness were prerequisites. The ultimate goal of the system was immortality, that is, to become a member of the Daoist spiritual elite and celestial elect.

Another noteworthy text is the Daoshi jushan xiulian ke (Guidelines on Cultivation and Refinement for Daoist Priests and Mountain Hermits; DZ 1272), a Tang-dynasty manual. As Daoyin and Yangsheng practice became more established dimensions of Daoist practice, they were also formalized in the clerical hierarchy of Daoism, introduced with ritual formalities and transmitted in ordination-type ceremonies (see Chapter 13). The text focuses on the physical cultivation of Daoist practitioners, culminating in the transformation of their bodies into vehicles of the pure Dao that are independent of food and drink and can live on qi alone. In terms of Daoyin and Yangsheng practice specifically, the text describes a variety of stretches with coordinated breathing patterns as well as qi-ingestion methods (Kohn 2008a: 158–61). Once again, health and longevity techniques are located in a larger Daoist religious and soteriological system. This system involves precept study and application; formal ritual, including altar maintenance, incense offering, bowing, and transmissions; Daoist cosmology and theology, including the invocation of deities; as well as special practice chambers. Here we find a central dimension of religious practice that I have been emphasizing throughout the present book: the complex interplay among view, practice, and experience.

From these brief comments on Daoist views of and approaches to Daoyin and Yangsheng practice, we can discern a number of basic insights and patterns. A distinction must be made between health and longevity practice as such and the Daoist employment and understanding of such methods. Most of the methods are not Daoist, and Daoists have tended to engage in such practice within larger Daoist training regimens.

There are also different Daoist views concerning the appropriateness and relevance of Daoyin and Yangsheng. While some Daoists have engaged in such practice, many Daoists have not. For those who have utilized Daoyin and Yangsheng methods, they have often done so at a particular moment in their training. There are varied rationales, motivations, and conceptions involved. Daoists have tended to understand Daoyin and Yangsheng practice as remedial, preliminary, and/or foundational. As we saw in the Zhuangzi, Daoists have tended to locate health and longevity practices in a larger religious and soteriological framework, a framework that may or may not involve such methods. In the case of the larger Daoist tradition, Daoyin and Yangsheng have tended not to be seen as a sufficient or advanced practice. They have been placed within larger ascetic, alchemical, and monastic training regimens. They are, perhaps, necessary for health, vitality, and longevity, but deficient in terms of immortality and mystical modes of being.

3] Respiratory practice

Depending on the context, Daoist respiratory or breathing practice may fall into the category of Yangsheng or meditation. There are a wide variety of indigenous Chinese names for breathing practices. The most common is huxi (lit., “exhaling and inhaling”), which may simply refer to breathing more generally. Daoist technical terms include tiaoxi (“harmonizing the breath”); zhongxi (“heel breathing”), which is contrasted with houxi (“throat breathing); taixi (“embryonic respiration”); and so forth.

The most common Daoist approach to breathing is naturalistic. One simply allows the breath to find its own natural rhythm without manipulation or interference. This is the application of the Daoist principle of wuwei to breathing. Generally speaking, as one returns to a state of harmony and ease, one’s breathing patterns become long, slow, and deep. This occurs naturally. Daoists also generally emphasize inhaling and exhaling through the nose, with the tongue touching the upper palate. However, Daoists sometimes utilize exhaling through the mouth as a way to release tension and to expel impure qi. This is also one of the reasons behind the Daoist proscription against blowing out incense or candles.

Daoists have also recognized the deeper psychosomatic connection between breathing patterns, physical tension, and psychological states. Changing the body changes the mind; changing the mind changes the body; changing the breath changes body and mind; and so forth. As anyone who has observed the breath knows, breathing becomes shallow and/or irregular when one is agitated, upset, or tense. So, while “natural breathing” is the foundational Daoist approach, attentiveness to and intentional modification of respiration patterns also play a role in Daoist practice. We may refer to this as “Daoist breath-work.” Such methods are sometimes practiced on their own, but breath-work is also utilized in Daoist Daoyin, Yangsheng, qiingestion, and internal alchemy. For example, in many Daoyin systems, one exhales while stretching. This allows one to deepen and lengthen the stretch, and to increase flexibility.

One of the most well known Daoist breath-work practices is heelbreathing. The term first appears in Chapter 6 of the Zhuangzi.

HEEL BREATHING

The authentic person (zhenren) of ancient times slept without dreaming and woke without care; he ate without savoring, and his breath came from deep inside. The authentic person breathes with his heels; the masses breathe with their throats. Crushed and bound down, they gasp out their words as though they were retching. Deep in their passions and desires, they are shallow in the workings of the heavens. (Zhuangzi, Chapter 6)

There are various Daoist interpretations of the practice. On the most literal level, one breathes down to and up from the heels. In certain Daoist Yangsheng and internal alchemy contexts, this is often associated with a qiingestion practice that focuses on the Yongquan (Bubbling Well; KI–1) point, the center of the balls of the feet, and on terrestrial qi (diqi ). That is, one inhales the qi of the earth through the soles of the feet, the primary entry-point of terrestrial qi in the body. Another, more symbolic Daoist interpretation understands heel-breathing as whole-body breathing, that is, the phrase directs the Daoist adept to breath with and through the entire body. The physical breath, and thus the qi, penetrates throughout the limbs, even to the fingertips and toes. For Daoists, heel-breathing is thus one way to complete embodiment, to total presence.

Another important Daoist breath-work practice involves “embryonic respiration” (see Maspero 1981: 459–505). Recalling classical Daoist ideas such as the Child and “being nourished by the mother” (Daode jing, Chapter 12), embryonic respiration draws one’s attention to a state of cosmological integration and unitary being. Sun Simiao (581–682), an ordained Tianshi priest and a famous herbalist and physician, explains: “In the practice of embryonic respiration, one does not use the nose or the mouth. Instead, one breathes in the manner of an embryo inside the womb. One who realizes this has truly attained the Dao” (Sheyang zhenzhong fang, DZ 1032, 33.9b; adapted from Englehardt 1989: 287). According to the Tiaoqi jing (Scripture on Regulating Qi; DZ 820), the aspiring adept is advised to enter a state of deep relaxation, and then practice breath regulation. This involves holding the breath in various ways. The practitioner slows down, stores, and apparently discontinues physical respiration, that is, breathing patterns that require the lungs, nose, and mouth. “After a long time, the breath exits through the hundred hair follicles, rather than through the mouth” (20a). The practitioner thus enters a state of mystical abiding. Like the higher Daoist dietetic state of living on qi (see Chapter 9), one understanding of embryonic respiration is the cessation of physical respiration, the end of the necessity for actual inhalation and exhalation. Like food, physical respiration is a form of “post-natal qi.” It is required because we have separate identities. A central Daoist view is that when one merges with the Dao, one no longer needs post-natal qi or even personal qi. In a state of mystical union, one lives through original qi (yuanqi ), which is often referred to as the “qi of the Dao” (daoqi ) in the Daoist tradition.

A final representative and highly influential respiratory technique utilized by Daoists is the “Six Sounds” (liuzi jue), which literally means “instructions on the six characters” and which conventionally appears in English-language presentations as the “Six Healing Sounds” (see Despeux 2006). This practice involves performing specific postures while exhaling six sounds, which derive from modern pronunciations of six Chinese characters. Based on Chinese historical phonetics, in archaic and ancient Chinese the characters probably would have been pronounced something like *χio (xu), *χâ (he), *g’o (hu), *siəd (si ), *t’wia (chui ), and *χiər (xi ) (Karlgren 1964). Early historical precedents appear in Chapter 15 of the Zhuangzi and in the Yinshu. As discussed above, the Zhuangzi mentions chui, xu, hu and xi. The Yinshu discusses chui, xu, and hu (Lo forthcoming; Kohn 2008a: 56–8). These facts indicate that the practice most likely originated in Yangsheng or therapeutic circles, rather than in a Daoist context. In addition, it is currently unclear when the actual Six Sounds practice became integrated and fully systematized. In the earliest historical examples, they appear to be separate and distinct practices, even though they have family resemblances with respect to the use of breath-work and sound. A relatively early Daoist discussion appears in the Daoyin jing (Scripture on Guided Stretching; DZ 818), a Daoist text on Daoyin possibly dating to the seventh century. According to the Daoyin jing, the Six Sounds is a sequential practice utilizing the sounds (in modern Mandarin pronunciation) of xu, he, hu, si (xi ), chui, and xi, though the sequence varies. The text identifies each breath-sound with an associated organ: xu (liver), he (heart), hu (spleen), si (lungs), chui (kidneys), and xi (Triple Warmer). Each exercise, in turn, relates to specific ailments and corresponding conditions viewed through traditional Chinese cosmology and medical diagnostics (see Kohn 2008a: 101–2). Interestingly, the text clearly understands the practice as remedial, as a method to rectify imbalances and heal illnesses. “If you practice this beyond being cured, however, it will cause renewed diminishment” (16a). As the Daoyin jing is not illustrated, we do not know how this version of the Six Sounds was practiced, specifically with respect to posture. In more contemporary forms, there are specific postures utilizing the associated meridians. Moving through the given posture, one exhales through the mouth while pronouncing the associated sound.

4] Yangsheng: Nourishing life

Daoist Yangsheng (“nourishing life”) practice frequently overlaps with Chinese medical and therapeutic views and practices and might best be considered as a shared repertoire of traditional Chinese culture. On the most basic level, Yangsheng refers to health and longevity techniques, specifically to methods that increase health and vitality, with vitality usually associated with qi (see Chapters 6 and 7). Yangsheng practice focuses on the body, with particular attention to its physical and energetic dimensions. Here vitality and longevity are connected: Yangsheng practitioners want extended lifespans, but if and only if vitality remains throughout one’s later years of life. This is the overall goal of Yangsheng practice: to be vital and alive throughout the entirety of one’s life.

Before we examine specific Daoist Daoyin and Yangsheng practices, we should also recognize that Yangsheng may have a larger meaning. While Yangsheng practice is most often equivalent to health and longevity techniques, and while this is the way that it is being used in the present section, Yangsheng may refer to a larger existential approach that overlaps with dietetics, hygiene, lifestyle, and so forth. In this framework, Yangsheng extends to diet and nutrition, including principles such as walking after eating and not eating to fullness (see Chapter 9), as well as various hygiene practices, such as bathing and brushing one’s hair and teeth. For some Daoists, it would also require the cultivation of virtue (see Chapter 8). That is, while it is possible to isolate Yangsheng practice from other Daoist pursuits and convictions, many Daoists hold that Yangsheng practice absent of virtue, meditation, and ritual will not result in health and longevity. Also noteworthy is the fact that sheng refers to “life,” the totality of sentient existence, as a whole. If this is the case, then one’s individual life participates in a larger context of being, in which other beings suffer and strive for fulfillment. Nourishing one’s own life may, in fact, lead to the diminishment of “life” more generally. This expanded view of Yangsheng encourages one to reflect on the deeper dimensions of “nourishing life,” including the possibility of ethical embodiment (see Chapters 5 and 8).

On a broad level, Yangsheng involves moderation, conservation, and non-dissipation; it involves preserving one’s foundational vitality and tending to one’s health and wellbeing. The Yangsheng lun (Discourse on Nourishing Life; DZ 842) proposes similar guidelines to those listed above, which it supplements with a set of six exhortations to release mental strain and sensory engagement. These include letting go of fame and profit, limiting sights and sounds, moderating material accumulation and wealth, lessening smells and tastes, eliminating lies and falsehood, and avoiding jealousy and envy (1b). The text then repeats the set of twelve “lesser” activities (1b–2a) as found in the Yangsheng yaoji and moves on to echo Pengzu’s warning against wearing “heavy clothes and thick sleeves,” against eating “meats, fatty foods and sweets and getting intoxicated,” and against enjoying “sexual infatuation, engagements with the opposite sex, and overindulgence in the bedroom” (Kohn 2008a: 70–3; see also Englehardt 1989). Within these various Yangsheng principles and commitments, we notice the classical and foundational Daoist emphasis on simplicity, including decreasing sensory engagement and desire-based existential modes (see Chapter 5).

DAOIST GUIDELINES FOR NOURISHING LIFE

The method of nourishing life involves not spitting far and not walking hastily. Let the ears not listen excessively; let the eyes not look around extensively. Do not sit down until tired; do not sleep beyond your needs. Wait until it is cold before you put on more clothes; wait until it is hot until you take them off. Do not get too hungry, because hunger harms qi, and when you eat beware of overindulging. Do not get too thirsty before you drink, and do not drink too heavily at a time. If you overeat, your bowels will be blocked and obstructed to the point of illness. If you drink too heavily, phlegm will accumulate into lumps. (Pengzu lun, DZ 840, 2a; see also DZ 842, 2a; DZ 1185, Chapter 13)

Returning to Yangsheng in the more narrow sense of health and longevity techniques, Yangsheng is movement-based practice. It usually involves moving through different postures, often in sequence. In terms of Daoist Yangsheng, there are various types of practice as well as specific methods. With respect to the former, typical types include walking, orchestrated physical movements, often with attention to the organ-meridian system, qi ingestion (fuqi ), and qi circulation (xingqi ).

With respect to dimensions of Yangsheng practice, beyond the qi ingestion techniques discussed in Chapter 9, the Yangsheng yaoji (Essential Compilation on Nourishing Life; partially lost) and the Yangxing yanming lu (On Nourishing Innate Nature and Extending Life-destiny; DZ 838) are helpful. Once again, these texts locate health and longevity techniques within a larger Daoist training regimen. As outlined in the Yangxing yanming lu, there are ten fundamental elements of Yangsheng practice: (1) Strengthening spirit; (2) Cherishing qi; (3) Nourishing the body; (4) Daoyin; (5) Proper speech; (6) Eating and drinking; (7) Bedchamber arts (sexual practices); (8) Rejecting mundane concerns and habits; (9) Herbal medicine; and (10) Taboos and prohibitions (DZ 838, 1.9b).

5] Daoyin: Guided stretching

Daoist Daoyin (“guided stretching”) practice is characterized by stretching and breath-work. It usually involves holding specific postures. Some Daoyin routines are undertaken in standing positions, while others utilize seated or supine positions. There are also systems that combine all three. In general, Daoyin does not involve flowing or sequential (one after another, without pausing) movements. In the context of integrated Daoist training, Daoyin is most often used as a supplement to seated meditation. While the potentially harmful and dangerous aspects of meditation practice are rarely discussed, especially in a modern therapeutic context, religious contemplatives, Daoist and otherwise, have frequently recognized and documented such possibilities. These include physical injuries, energetic stagnation, medical problems, psychological disruption (e.g. hyper-emotionality, nervous breakdown or psychosis), and, in certain cases, possession. This is one of the reasons why experienced and trustworthy teachers as well as holistic training are necessary. Many modern practitioners engaging in intensive and prolonged seated meditation have experienced various physical and medical issues, including knee and lower back pain as well as prolapse of the organs. For Daoists, practices such as Daoyin, including self-massage (see below), help to relieve stagnation and support continued practice.

The Daoyin jing is the only known text in the Daoist Canon that deals exclusively with Daoyin. The text is attributed to the fourth-century Master Jingli or Jinghei, who is also associated with the Shenxian shiqi jin’gui miaolu (Wondrous Record of the Golden Chest on Spirit Immortals’ Eating Qi; abbr. Jin’gui lu; see Kohn 2008a: 72–88). The text dates to possibly as early as the seventh century, with some material perhaps going back to the fourth century. It stands out from earlier medical practices and animal forms in that it presents exercise sequences associated with four major ancient immortals, all with first biographies in the Han-dynasty Liexian zhuan (Biographies of Arrayed Immortals; DZ 294). Important legendary figures often associated with the Daoist tradition, they are Pengzu (Ancestor Peng), who allegedly ate only cinnamon and lived for hundreds of years through the Xia and Shang dynasties; Chisongzi (Master Redpine), the Lord of Rain under the mythical Shennong (Divine Farmer), best known for his magical powers of riding the wind; Ningfengzi (Master Ningfeng), the Lord of Fire under Huangdi (Yellow Thearch), who was immune to heat and burning; and Wangzi Qiao (Wangzi Jin), who could travel through the universe at will.

As the Daoyin jing ascribes different methods and sequences to these four, it is possible that they were seen as representatives of different schools (Despeux 1989: 230; Kohn 2008a: 98–9). Integrating various forms of exercises and modes of guiding qi, the Daoyin jing brings the tradition of health and longevity practice to a new level of development, characterized by certain key features. They are the refinement and variation of medical exercises and animal forms, the organization of healing practices into integrated sequences and their ascription to legendary Daoist immortals, and the use of meditation techniques that integrate qi circulation with various body imaginings and Daoist visualizations. The text accordingly has three major kinds of instructions: (1) methods for medical relief that constitute a development of those first found in archeological manuscripts; (2) integrated sequences of practice that can be used to facilitate healing but more dominantly marked as methods of long life and immortality, and (3) meditative ways of guiding qi and visualizing the body that put the practitioner into a more divine and spiritual context. Within these three areas, the Daoyin jing first shows the systematic progress from healing through longevity to immortality, which becomes central in most later Daoist Daoyin forms and systems (Kohn 2008a: 101, also 101–27). Here we also find an earlier example of associating specific methods with particular immortals. This may be one possible defining characteristic of Daoist health and longevity techniques. However, it is important to remember that Daoist immortals also became part of Chinese culture and the Chinese literary tradition, specifically in theatrical performances (see Hawkes 1981; Idema 1993) and popular Chinese novels (see Wong 1990). That is, there are many examples of Chinese literature utilizing Daoist themes and characters, and none of these were written by Daoists or within Daoist communities. This begs the question as to what degree they are purely fictional, however inspiring or entertaining they may be.

In contrast to the Daoyin jing, most pre-modern Daoist presentations of Daoyin practice appear in texts that cover a wide variety of practices. Some key Daoyin practices utilized and/or developed by Daoists include the Five Animal Frolics (wuqin xi ), Seated Eight Brocades (baduan jin), Twelve Sleeping Exercises (shier shuigong), and Twenty-four Nodes Daoyin (ershisi qi zuogong daoyin). Here I will briefly introduce the Five Animal Frolics and the Twelve Sleeping Exercises, and then provide a more detailed discussion of the Seated Eight Brocades and Twenty-Four Nodes Daoyin.

As the name suggests, the Five Animal Frolics involves taking the postures and imitating the movements of five animals, namely, tiger, deer, bear, monkey, and bird (crane) (see Yangxing yanming lu, DZ 838, 2.7b–8a; Berk 1986: 57–62; Despeux 1988: 102–11; 1989; Zong and Li 1992: 68–80; Wang and Barrett 2006; Kohn 2008a: 163–9). Associated with the semilegendary physician Hua Tuo (ca. 145–208 CE), the integrated sequential practice is first attested to in the official biography of Hua Tuo. According to the third-century Sanguo zhi (Record of the Three Kingdoms), “The practice of the frolics aids the elimination of diseases and increases the functioning of the limbs and joints … In due course the body becomes lighter and more comfortable, and a healthy appetite will return” (29.2a; cited in Kohn 2008a: 165). Here we again see a Daoist recognition of animals as teachers. Modified versions of the Five Animal Frolics continue to be a central practice in contemporary Qigong circles.

Not surprisingly, the Twelve Sleeping Exercises are a series of twelve sleeping exercises (shuigong) (see Takehiro 1990; Zong and Li 1992: 201–8; Kohn 2008a: 184–9), which are practiced primarily just before going to sleep while reclining on the right side. In this way, they parallel the preferred Daoist sleeping posture, namely, lying on the right side with the right hand under the right ear and the left hand resting on the outer leg or between the thighs of one’s slightly bent legs. A contemporary Daoist explanation for the posture emphasizes the way in which the posture facilitates the liver’s function of purifying the blood and ensuring the smooth flow of qi throughout the body.

The Twelve Sleeping Exercises might also be categorized as “Daoist sleeping meditation,” as they include contemplative and inner alchemical dimensions. They are recorded in a section of the late sixteenth-century Chifeng sui (Marrow of the Crimson Phoenix; ZW 320; QYC 13), which is titled the Huashan shier shuigong zongjue (Comprehensive Instructions on the Twelve Sleeping Exercises of Mount Hua). The exercises are attributed to the Daoist immortal Chen Tuan (Xiyi [Infinitesimal Subtlety]; d. 989), who is the patron saint of Huashan (Huayin, Shaanxi) and co-patriarch, with Hao Datong (1140–1212), of the Huashan lineage of Quanzhen Daoism.

FIGURE 13 Mao Xuanhan Commingling Dragon and Tiger

Source: Chifeng sui

The Seated Eight Brocades is a series of eight stretches utilizing seated postures (see Berk 1986: 48–56; Zong and Li 1992: 105–9; Kohn 2008a: 180–83). The earliest presentation of the sequence appears in the thirteenthcentury Xiuzhen shishu (Ten Books on Cultivating Perfection; DZ 263). They are also reproduced in other influential works such as the Chifeng sui and the seventeenth-century Neiwai gong tushuo jiyao (Collected Essentials and Illustrated Descriptions of Internal and External Exercises; JH 20; QYC 59). Like many Daoist Daoyin and Yangsheng practices, including the Twelve Sleeping Exercises, they are attributed to a Daoist immortal, in this case Zhongli Quan (Zhengyang [Aligned Yang]; 2nd c. CE?). Zhongli Quan is most often identified as the teacher of Lü Dongbin (Chunyang [Pure Yang]; b. 798?). Like Lü, Zhongli Quan is a central figure in the Daoist tradition, perhaps most importantly for his association with the Zhong-Lü lineage of internal alchemy and as a patriarch of Quanzhen and a member of the Eight Immortals (see Chapters 2 and 6), figures who also became part of popular Chinese culture. The Seated Eight Brocades crosses the conceptual categories of meditation, ritual, Daoyin, and self-massage, as it exhibits characteristics of each of these. The exercises are said to stimulate qi flow and facilitate alchemical transformation. According to descriptions that accompany the diagrams, the Eight Brocades are a mixture of qi-circulation and simple physical movements executed on the basis of deep concentrative meditation and serving the purpose of “burning the body” (fenshen), an internal alchemy practice aimed at eliminating illnesses or demonic influences. The technique involves swallowing qi in the form of a mixture of breath and saliva and guiding it into the lower elixir field where, in conjunction with the fire of the heart, it turns into a wheel of fire that gradually expands and burns throughout the body. This eliminates various demonic and psychological problems, such as anxiety, nightmares, and hallucinations. Moreover, the practitioner becomes free of negative desires and attachments, such as to wealth and success, passions and amorous relationships, military and political prowess, and quick progress and supernatural powers. This allows the aspiring adept to focus fully on internal alchemical practice and transformation (Baldrian-Hussein 1984: 160–2; Kohn 2008a: 180–83).

FIGURE 14 Seated Eight Brocades Source: Xiuzhen shishu, DZ 263

INSTRUCTIONS ON THE SEATED EIGHT

BROCADES

1. Tapping the Teeth and Concentrating Spirit. Tap the teeththirty-six times. Then place both hands on your head and beat the Celestial Drum [the occiput] twenty-four times.

2. Rotating the Celestial Pillar. Rotate the Celestial Pillar [theneck] to the right and the left twenty-four times each.

3. The Crimson Dragon Churns the Ocean. Move the tongue[Crimson Dragon] around the mouth right and left, reaching upward to the gums. Repeat thirty-six times. Swallow the saliva in three gulps like a hard object. After that you may circulate qi in accordance with the proper firing times.

4. Massaging the Kidney Hall. Massage the Kidney Hall withboth hands. Rub the kidneys thirty-six times. The more you do this, the more marvelous the results will be.

5. Single-pass Rotation. Rotate the torso at the single pass [shoulders] like an axle to the right and left. Repeat this thirtysix times.

6. Double-pass Rotation. Rotate the torso at the double pass[waist] like a pulley to the right and left. Repeat this thirty-six times.

7. Interlocking the Fingers on Top of the Head. Rub the handstogether and exhale with he. Repeat five times. Then interlock the fingers, palms facing outward, and raise the arms above the head to support the heavens. Then press the hands against the top of the head. Repeat nine times.

8. Hands and Feet Hook Together. With both hands formed into hooks, bend forward and press the soles of the feet. Repeat this twelve times. Then pull the legs in and sit cross-legged with the back straight. (Xiuzhen shishu, DZ 263, j. 19; adapted from Kohn 2008a: 181–2)

The Seated Eight Brocades continue to be practiced in contemporary contexts and by Qigong practitioners and self-identified Daoists (see Olson 1997; Shijing 1999; also Ni 1991; Chia 1999), though the latter claim deserves critical scrutiny (Komjathy 2006; also Chapter 16 herein). The Seated Eight Brocades stand in contrast to the Standing Eight Brocades, which preliminary research indicates probably originated in Shaolin Gongfu (Kung-fu), rather than Daoist or medical, circles and may be of quite recent provenance (see Komjathy 2006; Kohn 2008a: 190–2). One indicator of this is that the figures appear with shaven heads (Buddhist monks), rather than with topknots or long hair (ordained Daoists). The Standing Eight Brocades have fairly wide circulation in contemporary Qigong circles.

Another important and influential Daoist practice is the Twenty-four Nodes Daoyin (see Berk 1986: 19–47; Zong and Li 1992: 24–47; Kohn 2008a: 170–2). The sequence is first attested to in the above-mentioned Neiwai gong tushuo jiyao, a collection of health and longevity practices possibly dating from the seventeenth century. Interestingly, like the Twelve Sleeping Exercises, the Twenty-four Nodes Daoyin is associated with Chen Tuan. The Twenty-four Nodes Daoyin is a set of twenty-four seated postures correlated to the twenty-four nodes, that is, the key seasonal and energetic times of the year. Here we must acknowledge that the twenty-four nodes are not specifically Daoist, but are best understood as part of “traditional Chinese culture.” Like correlative cosmology and the stem-branch (ganzhi ) system, the nodes are not Daoist in origin or essence; rather, Daoists, like most Chinese people in pre-modern China, utilized the system. The various postures of the Twenty-four Nodes Daoyin involve stretching with attentiveness to the associated time, season, organ and meridian, and seasonal imbalances that may appear. That is, this is a practice aimed at seasonal and cosmological attunement.

CHART 10 Twenty-four Nodes Daoyin

Source: Chinese Healing Exercises, Livia Kohn, 171

The ailments that they propose to heal tend to be associated with qiblockages (one of the main sources of illness in Chinese medicine), including joint pain, digestive problems, and muscular weakness. The corresponding time for the practice is during the hour of zi (11 p.m.–1 a.m.) during winter (10th, 11th, and 12th exercises), and after sunrise, during the hour of mao (5–7 a.m.), at the beginning and into the height of summer (4th and 5th exercises). During the remainder of the year, it is ideal to practice them at dawn. One is advised to alternate the postures to the right and left and to practice them on each side for a given number of repetitions.

One distinguishing feature of contemporary Daoist meditation is the use of self-massage at the completion of practice. Usually referred to as Anmo (lit., “pressing and rubbing”), many of the methods utilized have a precedent in the earliest Daoist Daoyin materials, and some of them appear to derive from, or at least parallel, the Seated Eight Brocades. Self-massage might thus be understood as one expression of Daoist Daoyin practice. As the name suggests, Daoist self-massage involves massaging the body, especially after meditation practice. Following meditation practice, many Daoists tap the teeth together thirty-six times, swirl the tongue around the mouth, gather saliva, and swallow the saliva down to the lower elixir field (see also Chapter 9 herein). The most frequent explanations for this practice involve strengthening the teeth, conserving vital essence in the form of fluids, and forming the elixir of immortality. Another dimension involves “beating the Celestial Drum.” During this part of self-massage, the Daoist adept places the palms over the ears and flicks the index and middle fingers on the occiput, referred to as Yuzhen (Jade Pillow; GV–16). Common explanations include strengthening the ears and kidneys, opening the Upper Pass (the occiput), so that qi may complete its upward circuit, accessing the Ancestral Cavity (center of the head associated with original spirit), and awakening divine presences (“gods”) associated with the brain. Self-massage as such includes moving the hands, and specifically the Laogong (Labor Palace; PC– 8) points, the palms of the hands, over the entire body. The Laogong points are one of the main places where qi moves to the surface of the body, and this point is often used in external qi healing. Typical regimens include rubbing the face, torso, lower abdomen, kidneys, legs, and arms. Particular attention is given to the Eight Extraordinary Vessels. The practice usually concludes with storing qi in the lower elixir field, the lower abdomen, with the palms joined on the navel (see Komjathy and Townsend 2010b).