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57-568: Little is known about the life of Heshang Gong; however the impact of his writing is extensive in regards to the understanding and translation of the Dao De Jing, and is considered one of the earliest proponents of Taoist meditative practices which cultivate the “ three treasures ” of vitality , energy , and spirit , and the "dual cultivation" of spiritual nature ( Chinese : 性 ; pinyin : xìng ) and life-and-destiny ( Chinese : 命 ; pinyin : mìng ). Heshang Gong's name

114-537: A Warring States era jade artifact could be an earlier record of breath meditation than the Neiye , Tao Te Ching , or Zhuangzi . This rhymed inscription entitled xingqi 行氣 "circulating qi " was inscribed on a dodecagonal block of jade, tentatively identified as a pendant or a knob for a staff. While the dating is uncertain, estimates range from approximately 380 BCE ( Guo Moruo ) to earlier than 400 BCE ( Joseph Needham ). In any case, Roth says, "both agree that this

171-435: A form of Daoist neigong , meditation and mindfulness to cultivate jing (essence) and direct and refine qi , the internal energy of the body according to traditional Chinese medicine . These exercises are often divided into yin positions (lying and sitting) and yang positions (standing and moving). The practice of daoyin was a precursor of qigong , and blended with the introduction of Indian yoga into China with

228-566: A means for rulers to achieve effective government. Internal evidence reveals that the Huainanzi authors were familiar with the Guanzi methods of meditation. The text uses xinshu 心術 "mind techniques" both as a general term for "inner cultivation" meditation practices and as a specific name for the Guanzi chapters. The essentials of the world: do not lie in the Other but instead lie in

285-912: A post" techniques. The opposite direction of adoption has also taken place, when the martial art of Taijiquan , "great ultimate fist", became one of the practices of modern Daoist monks, while historically it was not among traditional techniques. The Chinese language has several keywords for Daoist meditation practices, some of which are difficult to translate accurately into English. Livia Kohn distinguishes three basic types of Daoist meditation: "concentrative", "insight", and "visualization". Ding 定 literally means "decide; settle; stabilize; definite; firm; solid" and early scholars such as Xuanzang used it to translate Sanskrit samadhi "deep meditative contemplation" in Chinese Buddhist texts . In this sense, Kohn renders ding as "intent contemplation" or "perfect absorption". The Zuowanglun has

342-566: A section called Taiding 泰定 "intense concentration" Guan 觀 basically means "look at (carefully); watch; observe; view; scrutinize" (and names the Yijing Hexagram 20 Guan "Viewing"). Guan became the Daoist technical term for "monastery; abbey", exemplified by Louguan 樓觀 "Tiered Abbey" temple, designating "Observation Tower", which was a major Daoist center from the 5th through 7th centuries (see Louguantai ). Kohn says

399-421: A stable mind at your core, With the eyes and ears acute and clear, And with the four limbs firm and fixed, You can thereby make a lodging place for the vital essence. The vital essence: it is the essence of the vital energy. When the vital energy is guided, it [the vital essence] is generated, But when it is generated, there is thought, When there is thought, there is knowledge, But when there

456-500: Is called “mysterious integrity.” Three of these Tao Te Ching phrases resonate with Neiye meditation vocabulary. Baoyi 抱 一"embrace unity" compares with shouyi 守一 "maintain the One" (24 above). Zhuanqi 專氣 "focus your vital breath" is zhuanqi 摶氣 "concentrating your vital breath" (19). Dichu xuanjian 滌除玄覽 "cleanse the mirror of mysteries" and jingchu qi she 敬除其舍 "diligently clean out its lodging place" (13) have

513-518: Is clear that one will not be able to mount the clouds and ascend on the vapors. The (c. 2nd century CE) Tao Te Ching commentary attributed to Heshang Gong 河上公 (lit. "Riverbank Elder") provides what Kohn calls the "first evidence for Daoist meditation" and "proposes a concentrative focus on the breath for harmonization with the Dao". Eduard Erkes says the purpose of the Heshang Gong commentary

570-643: Is knowledge, then you must stop. Whenever the forms of the mind have excessive knowledge, You lose your vitality. Neiye Verse 18 contains the earliest Chinese reference to practicing breath-control meditation. Breathing is said to "coil and uncoil" or "contract and expand"', "with coiling/contracting referring to exhalation and uncoiling/expanding to inhalation". For all [to practice] this Way: You must coil, you must contract, You must uncoil, you must expand, You must be firm, you must be regular [in this practice]. Hold fast to this excellent [practice]; do not let go of it. Chase away

627-506: Is only known as the epithet Riverside Elder ( Chinese : 河上公 ; pinyin : héshàng gōng ), being an early form of anshang 岸上, meaning on the bank or shore. What we know of Heshang Gong comes from the preface written by Ge Xuan 葛玄, a Taoist of the third century AD. According to Ge Xuan, Emperor Wen of Han , a keen student of the Tao Te Ching , had heard that Heshang Gong was an expert on that text, and sent for him to come to

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684-566: Is revealed in the ascending; The dynamism of Earth is revealed in the descending. Follow this and you will live; oppose it and you will die. Practicing this series of exhalation and inhalation patterns, one becomes directly aware of the "dynamisms of Heaven and Earth" through ascending and descending breath. Tianji 天機 , translated "dynamism of Heaven", also occurs in the Zhuangzi (6), as "natural reserves" in "Those whose desires are deep-seated will have shallow natural reserves".Roth notes

741-485: Is supremely soft, can you be like a baby? Cleanse the mirror of mysteries, can you make it free of blemish? Love the people and enliven the state, can you do so without cunning? Open and close the gate of heaven, can you play the part of the female? Reach out with clarity in all directions, can you refrain from action? It gives birth to them and nurtures them, It gives birth to them but does not possess them, It rears them but does not control them. This

798-635: Is the earliest extant evidence for the practice of guided breathing in China". The inscription says: To circulate the Vital Breath: Breathe deeply, then it will collect. When it is collected, it will expand. When it expands, it will descend. When it descends, it will become stable. When it is stable, it will be regular. When it is regular, it will sprout. When it sprouts, it will grow. When it grows, it will recede. When it recedes, it will become heavenly. The dynamism of Heaven

855-466: Is the earliest known physical exercise chart in the world, and illustrates a medical system which does not rely on external factors such as medication, surgery or treatments, but utilizes solely internal factors to prevent disease. The images include men and women, young and old. Their postures and movements differ from one another. Some are sitting, some are standing, and still others are practicing Daoyintu or exercising using apparatuses. Translation of

912-483: The qi , relaxation of the abdominal muscles and the diaphragm, training of the "second brain" in the lower abdomen, improvement of health and structural alignment. The Spiritual aspects of Wuxingheqidao, Daoyin practice are outlined by Chinese Buddhist's and medical practioner Xieen as a way to unify the three centres or the mind allowing the body to relax becoming internally emotionally and spiritually stronger and outwardly softer and more flexible towards changes in

969-611: The Jixia Academy in Qi composed the core Guanzi , Neiye meditation techniques are technically "Daoistic" rather than "Daoist". Neiye Verse 8 associates dingxin 定心 "stabilizing the mind" with acute hearing and clear vision, and generating jing 精 "vital essence". However, thought, says Roth, is considered "an impediment to attaining the well-ordered mind, particularly when it becomes excessive". If you can be aligned and be tranquil, Only then can you be stable. With

1026-514: The Warring States period (475–221 BCE), when the philosophical Hundred Schools of Thought flourished. Four chapters of the Guanzi have descriptions of meditation practices: Xinshu 心術 "Mind techniques" (chapters 36 and 37), Baixin 白心 "Purifying the mind" (38), and Neiye "Inward training" (49). Modern scholars believe the Neiye text was written in the 4th century BCE, and

1083-467: The "emptying of all images (thoughts, feelings, and so on) rather than concentration on or filling the mind with images", comparable with Buddhist nirodha-samapatti "cessation of feelings and perceptions" meditation. Verse 10 gives what Roth calls "probably the most important evidence for breathing meditation" in the Tao Te Ching . While you Cultivate the soul and embrace unity, can you keep them from separating? Focus your vital breath until it

1140-480: The "first evidence for Taoist meditation" and "proposes a concentrative focus on the breath for harmonization with the Tao ." Eduard Erkes says the purpose of the Heshang Gong commentary was not only to explicate the Tao Te Ching , but chiefly to enable "the reader to make practical use of the book and in teaching him to use it as a guide to meditation and to a life becoming a Taoist skilled in meditative training." Most of

1197-564: The Dao. Cun 存 usually means "exist; be present; live; survive; remain", but has a sense of "to cause to exist; to make present" in the Daoist meditation technique, which both the Shangqing School and Lingbao Schools popularized. It thus means that the meditator, by an act of conscious concentration and focused intention, causes certain energies to be present in certain parts of the body or makes specific deities or scriptures appear before his or her mental eye. For this reason,

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1254-698: The One and discard the myriad disturbances. You will see profit and not be enticed by it, You will see harm and not be frightened by it. Relaxed and unwound, yet acutely sensitive, In solitude you delight in your own person. This is called "revolving the vital breath": Your thoughts and deeds seem heavenly. (24) Several passages in the classic Tao Te Ching are interpreted as referring to meditation. For instance, "Attain utmost emptiness, Maintain utter stillness" (16) emphasizes xu 虛 "empty; void" and jing 靜 "still; quiet", both of which are central meditative concepts. Randal P. Peerenboom describes Laozi's contemplative process as " apophatic meditation",

1311-518: The Transformational Thoroughfare. This is what I mean by 'sit and forget'." "If you are identical," said Confucius, "then you have no preferences. If you are transformed, then you have no more constants. It's you who is really the worthy one! Please permit me to follow after you." (9) Roth interprets this "slough off my limbs and trunk" ( 墮肢體 ) phrase to mean, "lose visceral awareness of the emotions and desires, which for

1368-532: The Way that one can gather emptiness, and emptiness is the fasting of the mind." (4) In the second, Yan Hui explains zuowang meditation. Yen Hui saw Confucius again on another day and said, "I'm making progress." "What do you mean?" "I sit and forget." "What do you mean, 'sit and forget'?" Confucius asked with surprise. "I slough off my limbs and trunk," said Yen Hui, "dim my intelligence, depart from my form, leave knowledge behind, and become identical with

1425-414: The Way, or some representation of it. It is to be undertaken when you are sitting in a calm and unmoving position, and it enables you to set aside the disturbances of perceptions, thoughts, emotions, and desires that normally fill your conscious mind." When you enlarge your mind and let go of it, When you relax your vital breath and expand it, When your body is calm and unmoving: And you can maintain

1482-530: The apophatic meditative process, all distinctions and ways of distinguishing are "forgotten" in the sense of eliminated: they cease to exist. Another Zhuangzi chapter describes breathing meditation that results in a body "like withered wood" and a mind "like dead ashes". Sir Motley of Southurb sat leaning against his low table. He looked up to heaven and exhaled slowly. Disembodied, he seemed bereft of soul. Sir Wanderer of Countenance Complete, who stood in attendance before him, asked, "How can we explain this? Can

1539-409: The body really be made to become like withered wood? Can the mind really be made to become like dead ashes? The one who is leaning against the table now is not the one who was formerly leaning against the table." "Indeed," said Sir Motley, "your question is a good one, Yen. Just now, I lost myself. Can you understand this? You may have heard the pipes of man, but not the pipes of earth. You may have heard

1596-431: The early Daoists, have 'physiological' bases in the various organs". Peerenboom further describes zuowang as "aphophatic or cessation meditation." One does away with sense perceptions, with all forms of cognition (thoughts, knowledge, conceptions, idea, images), with all valuations (preferences, norms, mores). Cognate to and a variant of wang ( 忘 —to forget) is wang ( 亡 —to destroy, perish, disappear, not exist). In

1653-487: The emperor to teach him. The hermit declined the invitation to teach the emperor, saying, "Tao is esteemed and Te honored, one cannot ask much about them." Annoyed, the emperor went to the hermit and sternly informed him that as he resided within the bounds of the Empire, and the emperor had the power to make him rich or poor. Heshang Gong immediately rose into the air and replied, "above: "Now above I have not reached heaven, in

1710-414: The excessive; abandon the trivial. And when you reach its ultimate limit You will return to the Way and its inner power. (18) Neiye Verse 24 summarizes "inner cultivation" meditation in terms of shouyi 守一 "maintaining the one" and yunqi 運氣 "revolving the qi ". Roth says this earliest extant shouyi reference "appears to be a meditative technique in which the adept concentrates on nothing but

1767-518: The exercises act as a means of sedating, some as a stimulant or a tonification, whilst others help in the activation, harnessing and cultivation of internal Ch'i energy and the external Li life force. Through the excellent health that is gained thereby, they all assist in the opening up of the whole body, enhance the functioning of the autonomic nervous system, increase the mental capacity of the brain, give greater mind control, increase perception and intuition, uplift moral standards, and give tranquillity to

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1824-516: The final line's contrasting verbs, xun 訓 "follow; accord with" and ni 逆 "oppose; resist", were similarly used in the (168 BCE) Huangdi Sijing Yin-yang silk manuscripts. As Daoism was flourishing during the Han dynasty (206 BCE–220 CE), meditation practitioners continued early techniques and developed new ones. The (139 BCE) Huainanzi , which is an eclectic compilation attributed to Liu An , frequently describes meditation, especially as

1881-408: The first dialogue, Confucius explains xinzhai . "I venture to ask what 'fasting of the mind' is," said Hui. "Maintaining the unity of your will," said Confucius, "listen not with your ears but with your mind. Listen not with your mind but with your primal breath. The ears are limited to listening, the mind is limited to tallying. The primal breath, however, awaits things emptily. It is only through

1938-410: The forehead". Xuanlan occurs in the line 滌除玄覽 that Mair renders "Cleanse the mirror of mysteries". Erkes translates "By purifying and cleansing one gets the dark look", because the commentary says, "One must purify one's mind and let it become clear. If the mind stays in dark places, the look knows all its doings. Therefore it is called the dark look." Erkes explains xuanlan as "the Daoist term for

1995-480: The meaning, applicability, and cultural context of the Tao Te Ching throughout Chinese history. He was the first to explain, in written form, its many paradoxical idioms and place them in context of the time and culture in which they were written. Every subsequent commentary, re-editing, and translation of the Tao Te Ching has absorbed some degree of influence from his work." Heshang Gong provides what Kohn calls

2052-548: The middle I am not bound to men, below I am not staying on earth. How do I belong to the people? How could your Majesty want to make me rich and honored or poor and despised?" The emperor realized that he was speaking to a divine emissary, repented of his brusque manner, and begged of the hermit to be instructed in the work. Thereupon Heshang Gong presented his commentary to the emperor. Dan G. Reid says, "Heshang Gong’s insights into Taoist wisdom, history, cosmogony, and meditative practices, have been an essential aid to understanding

2109-581: The mind, thereby creating harmony between internal and external environments, which relaxes, replenishes and rejuvenates the body, developing in its practitioners a vital and healthy spirit. A painted scroll on display at the Hunan Provincial Museum and known as the Daoyin Tu found in tomb three at Mawangdui in 1973 and dated to 168 BC shows coloured drawings of 44 figures in standing and sitting postures performing daoyin exercises. It

2166-422: The mind, which in turn confers inner harmony and greater happiness. As time goes by, these exercises slowly open up the functional and control channels that feed and activate the energy, nervous and psychic centres, enabling the individual to have a deeper understanding, consciousness and awareness of the spiritual world. According to Mantak Chia the practice of daoyin has the following effects: harmonization of

2223-465: The nostrils. To open means to breathe hard; to shut means to inhale and exhale." The (c. 1st century BCE to 2nd century CE) Taiping Jing "Scripture of Great Peace" emphasized shouyi "guarding the One" meditation, in which one visualizes different cosmic colors corresponding with different parts of one's body. Daoyin Daoyin is a series of cognitive body and mind unity exercises practiced as

2280-421: The old and internalizing the new. They cast off form and abandoned wisdom; they embraced simplicity and returned to genuineness; in roaming with the mysterious and subtle above, they penetrated to the clouds and Heaven. Now if one wants to study their Way and does not attain their nurturing of the qi and their lodging of the spirit but only imitates their every exhale and inhale, their contracting and expanding, it

2337-481: The others were derived from it. A. C. Graham regards the Neiye as "possibly the oldest 'mystical' text in China"; Harold Roth describes it as "a manual on the theory and practice of meditation that contains the earliest references to breath control and the earliest discussion of the physiological basis of self-cultivation in the Chinese tradition". Owing to the consensus that proto-Daoist Huang-Lao philosophers at

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2394-486: The pipes of earth, but not the pipes of heaven." (2) Victor Mair presents Zhuangzi evidence for "close affinities between the Daoist sages and the ancient Indian holy men. Yogic breath control and asanas (postures) were common to both traditions." First, this reference to "breathing from the heels", which is a modern explanation of the sirsasana "supported headstand". The true man [i.e., zhenren ] of old did not dream when he slept and did not worry when he

2451-408: The position of the eyes during meditation, when they are half-closed and fixed on the point of the nose." Tianmen occurs in the line 天門開闔 "Open and close the gate of heaven". The Heshang commentary says, "The gate of heaven is called the purple secret palace of the north-pole. To open and shut means to end and to begin with the five junctures. In the practice of asceticism, the gate of heaven means

2508-472: The same verb chu "eliminate; remove". The Taodejing exists in two received versions, named after the commentaries. The "Heshang Gong version" (see below) explains textual references to Daoist meditation, but the "Wang Bi version" explains them away. Wang Bi (226–249) was a scholar of Xuanxue "mysterious studies; neo-Daoism", which adapted Confucianism to explain Daoism, and his version eventually became

2565-729: The self; do not lie in other people but instead lie in your own person. When you fully realize it [the Way]; in your own person, then all the myriad things will be arrayed before you. When you thoroughly penetrate the teachings of the Techniques of the Mind, then you will be able to put lusts and desires, likes and dislikes, outside yourself. Several Huainanzi passages associate breath control meditation with longevity and immortality. For example, two famous xian "immortals": Now Wang Qiao and Chi Songzi exhaled and inhaled, spitting out

2622-523: The spread of Buddhism and was practised in Chinese Taoist monasteries for health and spiritual cultivation. Daoyin is also said to be a primary formative ingredient in the yin aspects of Chinese martial arts including the well-known " soft styles " of the Chinese martial arts , of tai chi , and middle road styles like Wuxingheqidao . The main goal of daoyin is to create flexibility of

2679-518: The standard Tao Te Ching interpretation. Richard Wilhelm said Wang Bi's commentary changed the Tao Te Ching "from a compendiary of magical meditation to a collection of free philosophical aperçus ". The (c. 4th–3rd centuries BCE) Daoist Zhuangzi refers to meditation in more specific terms than the Tao Te Ching . Two well-known examples of mental disciplines are Confucius and his favorite disciple Yan Hui discussing xinzhai 心齋 "heart-mind fasting" and zuowang "sitting forgetting". In

2736-689: The subtitles of each chapter of Yang Jwing Ming's English translation of the Tao Te Ching were borrowed from Heshang Gong's commentary. He states that this "was the earliest, most widespread, and most influential book in Chinese scholar society..." Solala Towler's interpretation of the Tao Te Ching ("Practicing the Tao Te Ching: 81 Steps on the Way"), acknowledges a heavy dependence on Heshang Gong's commentary, and quotes from it frequently throughout. Taoist meditation Taoist meditation ( / ˈ d aʊ ɪ s t / , / ˈ t aʊ -/ ), also spelled Daoist ( / ˈ d aʊ -/ ), refers to

2793-438: The texts covering the document show that the early Chinese were aware of the need for both preventive and corrective breathing exercises. The exercises can be divided into three categories: A typical daoyin exercise will involve movement of the arms and body in time with controlled inhalation and exhalation. Each exercise is designed with a different goal in mind, for example calmative effects or expanded lung capacity. Some of

2850-587: The traditional meditative practices associated with the Chinese philosophy and religion of Taoism , including concentration, mindfulness, contemplation, and visualization. The earliest Chinese references to meditation date from the Warring States period (475–221 BCE). Traditional Chinese medicine and Chinese martial arts have adapted certain Daoist meditative techniques. Some examples are Daoyin "guide and pull" breathing exercises, Neidan "internal alchemy" techniques, Neigong "internal skill" practices, Qigong breathing exercises, Zhan zhuang "standing like

2907-412: The two basic forms of Buddhist meditation: zhi is a concentrative exercise that achieves one-pointedness of mind or "cessation" of all thoughts and mental activities, while guan is a practice of open acceptance of sensory data, interpreted according to Buddhist doctrine as a form of "insight" or "wisdom". Guan meditators would seek to merge individual consciousness into emptiness and attain unity with

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2964-419: The vacant wilderness, fishing and living leisurely—all this is merely indicative of nonaction. But it is favored by the scholars of rivers and lakes, men who flee from the world and wish to be idle. Blowing and breathing, exhaling and inhaling, expelling the old and taking in the new, bear strides and bird stretches—all this is merely indicative of the desire for longevity. But it is favored by scholars who channel

3021-400: The vital breath and flex the muscles and joints, men who nourish the physical form so as to emulate the hoary age of Progenitor P'eng [i.e., Peng Zu ]. (15) Mair previously noted the (c. 168 BCE) Mawangdui Silk Texts , famous for two Tao Te Ching manuscripts, include a painted text that illustrates gymnastic exercises–including the "odd expression 'bear strides'". Some writing on

3078-515: The word guan , "intimates the role of Daoist sacred sites as places of contact with celestial beings and observation of the stars". Tang dynasty (618–907) Daoist masters developed guan "observation" meditation from Tiantai Buddhist zhiguan 止觀 "cessation and insight" meditation, corresponding to śamatha-vipaśyanā – the two basic types of Buddhist meditation are samatha "calm abiding; stabilizing meditation" and vipassanā "clear observation; analysis". Kohn explains, "The two words indicate

3135-498: The word is most commonly rendered "to visualize" or, as a noun, "visualization." Since, however, the basic meaning of cun is not just to see or be aware of but to be actually present, the translation "to actualize" or" actualization" may at times be correct if somewhat alien to the Western reader. Within the above three types of Daoist meditation, some important practices are: The earliest Chinese references to meditation date from

3192-496: Was awake. His food was not savory, his breathing was deep. The breathing of the true man is from his heels, the breathing of the common man is from his throat. The words of those who unwillingly yield catch in their throats as though they were retching. Those whose desires are deep-seated will have shallow natural reserves. (6) Second, this "bear strides and bird stretches" reference to xian practices of yogic postures and breath exercises. Retiring to bogs and marshes, dwelling in

3249-451: Was not only to explicate the Tao Te Ching , but chiefly to enable "the reader to make practical use of the book and in teaching him to use it as a guide to meditation and to a life becoming a Daoist skilled in meditative training". Two examples from Tao Te Ching 10 (see above) are the Daoist meditation terms xuanlan 玄覽 (lit. "dark/mysterious display") "observe with a tranquil mind" and tianmen 天門 (lit. "gate of heaven") "middle of

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