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CLOSING TIPS FOR CULTIVATING IMMORTALITY

I realize how difficult it can be to wade through the cryptic and complex passages of Taoist manuals such as this one in order to find “the method.” Much, however, can be gained from both study and practice. As Master Liang advised me, “Never discourage the critical need for a student to both study and practice.”

Most of us probably will not undertake the task of forging the metallurgical components of the Eight Minerals to create the Pill of Immortality, nor wander the mountains searching for the herbal components toward the same end. It is also highly unlikely Western Royal Mother will descend and confer a Peach of Immortality upon all of us. Therefore, we must seek out the alchemical process in which to create the Elixir of Immortality, refining the essences of ching, qi, and shen within ourselves, and the beginning of this process is meditation (or tranquillity practices).

Hopefully, I can in some small measure make the task of meditation a bit more understandable and practical. For the beginner the best method of meditation is counting the breaths. This consists of concentrating solely on the tan-t’ien, or lower stomach, and mentally counting each exhalation. When you reach the count of ten exhalations, start over and count to ten exhalations again. Continue in this manner.

Once you are able to do this proficiently, begin mentally acknowledging each inhalation, not just the exhalation. After a period of time the counting and acknowledgment may be dropped and you will be able to sit and focus on the tan-t’ien without any thoughts. Whenever you have difficulty concentrating, simply direct both eyes to the tip of the nose, with the eyes slightly open. This will help you concentrate more steadily.

Some suggest that you can enhance your meditation practice by employing the practice of Pa Tuan Chin (Eight Brocades Seated Qigong). This is an internal set of Taoist yoga exercises performed while seated that can be beneficial to your meditation practice. (See my book Qigong Teachings of a Taoist Immortal: Eight Essential Exercises of Master Li Ching Yu for complete instructions, background, and commentary on these ancient, incredible exercises.)

When sitting (meditating), just sit. Don’t have false thoughts or discriminations about good sitting or bad sitting—just sit. If your schedule allows you to meditate only a few minutes each day, then sit for those few minutes each day. If possible, make it the same time each day. Repetitious practice is a true key to success.

The art of sitting relies on three basic approaches: 1) Constantly be mindful of your posture and adjust the part of the body that feels awkward; 2) focus all your attention on the tan-t’ien in the lower abdomen, not on the breath (unless using the counting method); 3) when thoughts arise, let them go and return to focusing on the tan-t’ien.

In time, sitting becomes a very natural and comfortable experience. Before that happens, however, two states of mind can occur that cause most people to stop their practice. The first is distraction, wherein thoughts arise and lead you far away from your focus. The second is obscurity, which is sleepiness, dullness, and exhaustion. Only time and patience can cure these problems. Just sit every day, and eventually these obstacles disappear.

Never attempt to make the breath slow, deep, and long. Let this happen of its own accord. The breath will settle if you allow it to do so. Once it is settled you will experience what is called “true breath,” which means that your yi (mind-intent, or will) controls it, not your thoughts. At this point you will not be aware of the breath, much like a baby who just breathes naturally.

It is very important to first restore and refine the ching—namely, the physical constitution, but the male must learn to guard his semen and the female must learn to lessen her menstrual flow. Neither should engage in excessive sexual intercourse, overeating and bad diet, or physical laxness, as these will result in the damage and dissipation of the ching. Ching is restored through physical activity, diet, and sexual disciplines. Qi is accumulated from engaging in methods of tranquillity, meditation, and Tao Yin exercises. Shen is the result of the full development of the ching and qi.

If the above can be accomplished and linked with daily sitting, the gathered qi will further refine the ching. Through the tranquil effects of sitting, the mind is gradually purified. Like the settling of the breath, this will occur naturally over time. Neither purity nor tranquillity can be forced into the mind; otherwise, you will have the same result as an ant trying to eat a watermelon in one bite—failure.

Rely on tranquillity to affect your nature and behavior. This is like Buddha’s analogy in the Shurangama Sutra of letting the debris in a glass of water settle by not agitating the water. Our minds and bodies are no different—the dirty water is like the ching and needs to be restored and purified. The qi is like the settling of the debris in the water, sinking naturally into the tan-t’ien. The shen is like the perfectly clear and still water after all the debris has settled. Gradually you will reach a state called “no outflows.” Then the energy we normally put into inappropriate expressions of sexuality, conduct, and comsumption is not expressed externally or dissipated. Instead, the energy is returned and retained internally to do the work of refinement. If you really want to understand how much energy is expended externally, try not speaking for one month. Words cannot describe how vital you become internally from doing this.

In more traditional Taoist practice the novice would first focus all her efforts on restoring and refining her ching, sometimes for as long as three years. Afterward she would begin engaging in meditation practices to achieve tranquillity and accumulation of qi. Once the ching and qi are fully developed she would proceed to methods for forming the Elixir of Immortality. But nowadays everyone rushes through the progressive stages and so fails, just as the ant does when attempting to eat the entire watermelon in one bite.

With the continued practice of restoring ching and accumulating qi, you will eventually be able to unite these with the shen and turn your hearing and sight inward. This stage is called accumulating light. Nothing external can disturb your tranquillity, even when you’re not sitting. When you close your eyes and look inward there will be light and you will be able to see your internal functions. Upon turning your hearing inward there will be perfect silence. You may also have some or all of the following three experiences. These do not always occur when sitting, and do not happen in any specific order. They can occur in any relaxed situation, and can be either intense or mild.

In the first case, you internally see what appear to be a thousand tiny lamps inside of the top of your head. In the second instance, you see a flash of bright white light followed immediately by a loud, thunderous sound, and in some cases experience a profound sense of lightness of the body. In the third experience, an all-encompassing soft, white, cloudlike light fills you, along with a warmth generated in the lower abdomen.

The first experience is accompanied by an incredible sense of joy; the second, a sense of absolute cleanliness; and the third, perfect ease. Don’t attach yourself to any of these states. Just continue sitting and letting go of the sensations. Otherwise, you’ll just stagnate.

Depending on the Before Heaven (inherited) Qi, some will experience these states, in part or in whole, with very little practice. For others it takes longer, as they need to further develop their After Heaven (cultivated) Qi. There is no guarantee that everyone will experience the same thing. Each of us is different, and you may or may not have these experiences in the exact manner described.

These experiences are usually preceded by horrifying dream states, migrainelike headaches, a sense of uneasiness or paranoia, or an intense desire for sex or food. If you are aware of such obstacles, they will pass relatively quickly and thus are not of real concern. They are the negative aspects (p’o) reacting to the awakening of hun, just like the flaring of a candle before it goes out.

Contrary to the above, some experience dream states that are incredibly enjoyable, like visiting heavenly realms. Or they may feel giddiness in their daily activities, seeing raindroplike images floating about in the air or hearing mumbled voices off in the distance. Again, let these go, and they will pass quickly. These are just the yang aspects (hun) releasing themselves from the bonds of yin (p’o). Simply put, your spiritual nature is waking up and breaking out of its shell. The more proficient you become at meditation, the less you will dream. This is the result of an increased state of tranquillity.

The real challenge for anyone who undertakes the practice of meditation is patience. We want results quickly, and the aforementioned obstacles usually cause frustration, so we halt our practice. Many people also have difficulty understanding the concept of emptiness and why it is the goal of meditation. Lu Szu-hsing quotes in his appended verses, “The term emptiness embraces the entire teaching.”

Emptiness is not empty. It is full of light. If we don’t empty ourselves, light cannot enter. The obstacles of distraction and obscurity block the light of our true nature. In our Western society many psychologists have expressed their fears about the idea of emptiness or no-thought. Their mistake (and lack of experience) in this matter has been their inability to understand that it is not thought that is cut off, for the very nature of nonthinking requires thought. Rather, it is the attachment to thought that ends. The six senses are not cut off, but the attachment to them is. It is not that the Seven Emotions are eradicated, but that they no longer control your actions. Emptiness is therefore achieved through nonattachment to thought and sense data. There is an enormous difference between the idea of no-thought (extremist view) and that of nonattachment to thought.

If you can steadfastly sit, illumination will occur. There is no secret other than patience. Our minds are no different from the clouds and rain. If we are patient, they will pass and the bright sun will shine. The deep blue skies are then filled with light. This sky is like the empty mind, and the shen is the light.

The real work will then begin with Returning the Light and Reflecting the Illumination, which is the work of mindfulness, of just sitting and turning the sight and hearing inward until a thunderous type of noise is heard coming from deep within the lower abdomen. Continue your practice, just sitting, without backsliding, until . . .

Unfortunately, my knowledge and experience do not go beyond this. I dare not make the pretense of more accomplished states, lest the immortals look down in dismay and report me to the Jade Emperor with the accusation of false speech, and the god Erh Lang is sent to arrest me. Just keep sitting until the Elixir is formed and let your Spirit Fetus grow. This is the advice left to us by all immortals and sages; it is called “patient endurance.”

Avoid being like the farmer in the Sung dynasty who couldn’t wait for his crops to grow. He went into his fields at night and pulled all the shoots upward, only to find his entire crop withered and dead in the morning.