Chen Qingjue

Chen Qingjue (1606-1705) was a Taoist priest in Wudang during the late Ming and early Qing dynasties. He is also known as Yanxia Zi and Han Song. According to the "Brief History of Taoism on Wudang Mountain" citing the "Concise Dictionary of Taoism", Chen Qingjue passed the imperial examination and entered Shuchang at a young age. Later, seeing the changes in the world, he resigned from his official position and retired to Taizi Slope on Wudang Mountain, where he became a disciple of Zhan Tailin, a Taoist priest of the Quanzhen Longmen School, to practice Taoism. In the eighth year of the reign of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty (1669 AD), he entered Sichuan to visit the Dao. When he reached the Celestial Master Cave on Qingcheng Mountain, he saw the mountains and rivers were extremely beautiful, but the palaces were in ruins. So he stayed there and made every effort to save it. Several years later, he went down the mountain to the Qingyang Palace in Chengdu to rest and recuperate. In the 34th year of the reign of Emperor Kangxi (1695 AD), Zhao Liangbi, the governor of Chengdu Prefecture, went to the Qingyang Palace to study Taoism. By chance, he met Qingjue and Yan Zuo. He couldn't help but sigh and said, "Master, you are an extraordinary person. You seem to have the air of a transcendent being!" In accordance with the teacher's courtesy, he donated his salary and built the Erxian Nunnery, inviting Chen Qingjue to preside over it. Later, Chen was summoned to the capital by imperial decree and was personally summoned by Emperor Kangxi. In the 41st year of the reign of Emperor Kangxi (1702 AD), he was posthumously honored as the "Immortal of Bi Dong" and was inscribed with the plaque "Bi Dong Dan Tai" by the emperor. From then on, the Quanzhen Longmen Sect, the Bi Dong Sect, was founded in Sichuan and has been passed down to this day. Chen Zhi died in the 44th year of the reign of Emperor Kangxi at the age of ninety-nine.