The Sanfeng School

The Kongde Sanfeng School, also known as the Zhang Sanfeng School. The Zhang Sanfeng referred to here is Zhang Sanfeng, a Taoist scholar of Wudang during the Yuan and Ming dynasties. Note: There were three Zhang Sanfengs (peaks) in history. One is that Zhang Sanfeng of the Liu Song Dynasty, whose courtesy name was Pu Yangzi, was recorded in the "Immortal Mirror". He passed on to his concubine Sanfeng the art of warfare. The orthodox alchemists detested him deeply because Zhang Sanfeng of the Yuan and Ming Dynasties was originally named Sanfeng. Later, they learned that he avoided using "Sanfeng" and changed his name to Sanfeng. The second one was Zhang Sanfeng, the founder of the Wudang Neijia School during the reign of Emperor Huizong of the Northern Song Dynasty. The third one is Zhang Sanfeng, a renowned alchemist of Wudang during the Yuan and Ming dynasties. He was a master of alchemy and initiated the "Tai Chi Dan Gong" school, and was also the founder of Tai Chi Chuan. This school is widely spread and has a considerable influence, thus it is called the Sanfeng School. Zhang Sanfeng, a native of Yizhou, Liaoyang (now Tayingzi Township, Fuxin Mongolian Autonomous County, Liaoning Province), was born in the second year of Dingwei during the reign of Emperor Dingzong of the Yuan Dynasty (1247). The year of his death is unknown. (Note: In the "Preface" of the "Biography of Mr. Sanfeng" compiled by Wang Xiling of the Qing Dynasty, it is mentioned that when he was inspecting Jiannan, Sichuan Province, he once met Zhang Sanfeng in person to issue a warning and presented him with a pill tablet.) By this calculation, Zhang Sanfeng was nearly 450 years old at that time. The fifth son of Zhang Zhong 'an, a wealthy man from Yizhou, was born with an unusual appearance. He was often ill in his childhood and was sent to the Biluo Palace to become a monk, and then recovered. When teaching the Taoist scriptures, one can recite them at a glance. At the age of twelve, he returned home and devoted himself entirely to the study of Confucianism. In the first year of the Zhongtong era (1260), MAO CAI Yi Yi was promoted and his name was listed to the higher authorities for selection. In the autumn of the Jiazi period of the Zhiyuan era (1264), he visited Yanjing and his reputation grew day by day. Lian Xixian, the magistrate of Pingzhang, recognized his talent and submitted a memorial to supplement the order of Boling in Zhongshan (which is now Anping, Shenxian, Raoyang and Anguo in Hebei Province). Later, due to the death of both of his parents, he gave up his intention to take office and returned to his hometown in accordance with the taboo to study the Dharma. From time to time, a Taoist priest named Qiu enlightened him, so he packed his clothes and went out to visit the Taoist road. Having traveled to famous mountains and rivers for thirty years without encountering a true master, I have been living in the mountains of Baoji, Shaanxi Province. In the first year of the Yanyou era (1314), at the age of 67, he entered the Zhongnan Mountains and met the Fire Dragon Immortal, a disciple of Chen Tuan (some say his surname was Zheng, while others say it was Jia), who passed on the true Dharma of the Three Elements. In the spring of the Jiazi period of the Tai Ding era (1324), he traveled to Wudang and spent nine years adjusting his mind. Finally, the Tao was completed. From then on, he settled in Wudang and secluded himself in the world. In the 19th year of the Zhizheng era (1359), he settled in Nanjing and taught Shen Wan the art of yellow and white in the three regions. Again, they went on an outing to the Yangshen Temple in Jintai, Baoji. At the end of the Yuan Dynasty and the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, he lived in Wudang, wrote the Elixir Classic, studied Tai Chi techniques, and later had many disciples. Zhou Zhende, Yang Shancheng and others were known as the "Four Immortals of Taihe", and Sun Biyun, Li Suxi and others founded the "Wudang Langmei School". And he passed on Tai Chi to his folk disciples such as Zhang Songxi (who later entered the Wudang Taoist School) and Zhang Cuishan, and widely spread it in Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions, developing it into the southern School of Tai Chi. It was passed down by the next generation of disciples to Wang Zongyue in Shanxi, and then to Jiang Fa in Fubao, Wen County, Henan Province, which evolved and developed the Northern School of Tai Chi such as Zhao Bao, Chen, Yang, Wu, Wu, Sun, Hao and Li. In this mountain, there have been generations of local Tai Chi Chuan such as "You Long", and it was not until the 1920s that Xu Benshan, the Taoist master of Wudang, brought it to its peak. After Zhang Sanfeng, more than ten branches of his Dan School emerged, including the Sanfeng School, the Sanfeng Nature School, the Sanfeng Laodao School, the Sanfeng Penglai School, the Youlong School, and the Langmei School. After Zhang Sanfeng achieved enlightenment, he became renowned throughout the land for his inner cultivation of Golden elixirs and outer display of divine Fist. Since the reign of Emperor Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang of the Ming Dynasty, several generations of emperors have sought him out but never met him. He was given many titles and a special Yuzhen Palace was built on Wudang Mountain to honor him. Taoist alchemy is divided into three elements: heaven, earth and human. Throughout history, many alchemists have mastered only one of them, while those who have mastered both are rare. It is even rarer to have mastered all three. Therefore, throughout history, many alchemists have become stubborn in their views because they have only grasped one aspect. They always regard what they have gained as supreme and often reject the methods of other schools. According to research, after the Wei and Jin Dynasties, only Xu Jingyang, Lu Dongbin, Chen Tuan, Zhang Sanfeng and others mastered it all. Regarding the Three-Element Elixir method, although the classification methods have varied throughout history, the content is generally the same. The "Three Elements" referred to in this article, "Ren Yuan", means both pure cultivation and the dual cultivation of Yin and Yang. The "Di Yuan" refers to the animal and plant elixir and the golden Stone Elixir. Tianyuan refers to the great elixir obtained by extracting the essence of the sun, moon, heaven and earth from the medicinal gold refined from metal and stone as the sacred chamber, which has substance but no form. Zhang Sanfeng mastered all of it precisely because of this Three-Element Elixir method. The great pill obtained by the Tianyuan Pill Method is "like a grain of millet, when it falls to the ground, it emits a golden light that illuminates the sky" (Zhang Sanfeng, "On Taking Great Pills"). It has substance but no form, and everyone can take it. When taken, the body immediately 炁 transforms; when gathered, it takes shape; when dispersed, it transforms 炁. The technique that Zhang Sanfeng passed on to Shen Wansan back then was the Earth Essence Yellow and White Art, which could be used as a material for the Dao and to build a divine room, but it was not edible. Later, Shen Wansan was killed and exiled to Yunnan, where he met Zhang Sanfeng. Zhang Sanfeng bestowed the elixir upon his entire family, who all ascended to immortality with ease. This was the Tianyuan Great Pill. This elixir technique has now become a thing of the past and no longer exists in the human world. However, its objective facts cannot be denied. When Dr. Joseph Needham, a British scientist, was writing the history of world science and technology, he specifically mentioned the great contributions made by Zhang Sanfeng of the Ming Dynasty in China to mankind in the field of chemistry. The Earth Essence Elixir Method can be roughly divided into three categories. One type is the single-ingredient type, which is made by slightly processing a single rare object from nature for consumption. Such as thousand-year-old ginseng, Polygonum multiflorum, or certain fungi, gallbladder, etc. One type involves mixing and processing certain parts of precious and rare plants (such as animals like musk and rhinoceros horn; plants like polygonatum odoratum and poria cocos) to make elixir for consumption. One type is to make elixirs by burning various minerals (such as cinnabar, mercury, sulfur, Rong salt, etc.) for consumption, or to burn drugs or metals that can turn stones into gold to enrich Taoist resources and build divine chambers. Regarding the Earth Essence Elixir technique, only a small amount is touched upon in the "Complete Works of Zhang Sanfeng", and there are no detailed instructions. Because the Human primordial elixir method can be written in writing, without cultivation and verification, obtaining writing is like the blind men touching an elephant. Only the Earth Element and the Heaven Element can be technically operated from outside the body. If conditions permit, everyone can do it. But when it comes to the great principles and the secrets of heaven, they cannot be put into words, and outsiders find it hard to understand them in detail. Even the disciples within the sect must pass through numerous tests to confirm that they are the ones who carry on the teachings. Only then can they swear to teach and pass it on orally without leaving any written words. Or they store incantations in peculiar symbols or characters, which outsiders have no idea about when they see them. Regarding the Human Essence Pill Technique, since Zhang Sanfeng was already 67 years old when he first obtained the true formula, approaching old age, the Fire Dragon Immortal passed on the method of cultivating both tranquility and Yin and Yang. First, he refined himself to forge a sword, then cultivated both Yin and Yang to receive the life room, and finally achieved enlightenment through tranquility. Apart from the fact that the Tianyuan and Dianyuan obtained by the Zhang family are not well known in detail, Zhang Sanfeng can be said to have unique theoretical attainments and innovative developments in the human Essence elixir. First, it advocates the theory of the integration of the three teachings from the perspective of alchemy theory and elaborates on alchemy with the theory of Taiji. As the "Treatise on the Great Way" states; The Dao is named after all living things that give birth to heaven, earth, human beings and all living beings. It contains the mechanisms of Yin and Yang, movement and stillness, and embodies the profound principles of creation. Unifying the boundless, giving birth to the Taiji. The nothingness is the nameless; the nameless is the beginning of heaven and earth. Tai Chi is extremely famous, and the famous is the mother of all things. It is believed that Tai Chi is the fundamental cause of the occurrence of all things. When the sun is in motion, Yang also moves. Thus, Yin and Yang push each other, hardness and softness rub against each other, and the eight trigrams sway against each other... It is believed that only the movement of Tai Chi is the natural creation tending towards continuous vitality. If a person can lead his (Taiji) nature to restore his heavenly mandate, this can be called the way. Then why is it impossible to achieve the way in the practice of the Way? Taiji contains one Yin and one Yang. "The combination of one Yin and one Yang is called the Dao." Those who practice Taoism cultivate the way of Yin and Yang. One is Yin and one is Yang, one nature and one life. Zhang Sanfeng's theory of Tai Chi is suitable not only for pure cultivation but also for similar dual cultivation of Yin and Yang. Secondly, in terms of alchemy, it not only integrates pure cultivation with the combination of Yin and Yang to achieve quick results, but also carries forward the Taoist tradition of combining movement and stillness for health preservation, and establishes a distinct system and school characteristic. This combination of movement and stillness is a blend of the health preservation techniques passed down by predecessors in Taoism, such as breathing and guiding exercises, and self-defense martial arts. It also draws on the theories of martial arts for health preservation and meridians from Buddhism, Confucianism, and medicine, creating a boxing style that embodies the philosophical essence of Tai Chi. As a dynamic exercise for establishing the foundation of internal alchemy, it avoids the drawbacks of some Taoists who practice internal alchemy and immediately sit still, resulting in blocked meridians and uncomfortable blood vessels, which may lead to diseases. At the same time, this boxing style, without violating the principles of health preservation and moral conduct, could also play a role in defending against enemies and self-defense. Later, it even became a relatively independent martial arts system outside of Dan Dao, known as Tai Chi Chuan. It has now become a popular fitness and health preservation activity for people all over the world. Thirdly, regarding the alchemy techniques, especially the practice of pure cultivation, the explanations are presented in a simple and understandable way. If he proposed the following technique of "regulating the breath and concentrating the mind, concentrating the mind and regulating the breath", it would be very simple and effective, and would not go astray. The proposition that one must "dismount with one shot" to enter the state of power and avoid further battles is indeed a profound statement and a piece of advice from experience. For the operation of the "river car", there are various proposals such as asking scholars to distinguish between the "initial movement of the river car" and the "actual movement of the river car". It seems that the era of Zhang Sanfeng, with Zhang Sanfeng as the representative, initiated a new trend of explicit and implicit explanations in the study of immortals. The Yin-Yang dual cultivation method of the Sanfeng School, although not publicly passed down through the ages, was also not publicly and centrally included in his collected works. However, there are clues in many of the Dan poems in Zhang Sanfeng's "Complete Works". The Twenty-Four Taoist love poems "Rootless Tree" are widely recognized as the elixir of cultivating both Yin and Yang. For instance, in the "Middle Chapter of the Great Way Treatise", it is stated, "This golden elixir is neither absent from the world nor unattainable from heaven; it can only be sought among one's own kind and is an inherent thing of the human body." "Therefore, the way of making the golden elixir is the same as that of the human body." But when one follows the right path, one becomes a person; when one goes against it, one becomes an immortal. Between the right and the wrong, heaven and earth are separated. As long as one uses Yin and Yang in reverse, one will naturally achieve success. It is not a heremic path. In the "Xuan Yao Chapter: Song of the Great Way", it is written: "The sword is complete, true lead is taken, and the primordial chaos is not yet judged." If the weather still gets better, it will only prolong his life. At 2:7, there is a real opportunity. The Red County of China should seek it. If one can achieve the dual use of Dharma and wealth, it is necessary to think carefully and distinguish them. Pink clouds, pheasant color, lips as if painted red, skin as white as snow... ; The "Song of Golden Liquid Returning Elixir Breaking Mystery" states: "Although this medicine was obtained from the room, the matter of golden elixir and great liquid is different." "Dragon and Tiger Return the Elixir to the Mysterious Song" says; "Man and woman, Yin and Yang, have a clear and intense copulation battle." "Note<九皇经> The song "Three Returns and One Return of the Soul Golden Pill in March" says: "There is no need for spiritual communication or physical separation; just a couple of breaths of inhalation and exhalation and speaking." In the "Thirty-Six Poems of the Golden Elixir", under the section "Refining Oneself by Taking Action", it is said: "Grasp the dragon's head to gather the purple mist, and break through the tiger's tail to reveal the golden light." The "Primordial Great Medicine" says, "When people ask me questions, I find it hard to answer. I point at the moon rising in the distance," and so on. All of these are the secrets of the Yin-Yang Elixir method. The elixir instructions publicly disclosed by the Sanfeng Sect are not as systematic as the "Life and Nature Decree" and the Wu and Liu Dharma Lineage. Apart from the disciples within the sect who can obtain all the instructions, the rest are all imparted according to circumstances. However, Zhang Sanfeng's casual lectures on elixirs, elixir secrets, and elixir poems are all epoch-making in terms of their quantity, content, and the enlightenment they reveal about elixir secrets. If a meticulous person links these essays in sequence to form a system, the mystery of the pure cultivation method will be revealed without a doubt. All rights reserved. Any infringement will be prosecuted. This article is exclusively authorized by Mr. Kong De to be published on this website.