Xian (Chinese: 仙/仚/僊; pinyin: xiān; Wade-Giles: hsien) is a Chinese word for an enlightened person, translatable in English as: It has been suggested that Pinyin method be merged into this article or section. ... Wade-Giles, sometimes abbreviated Wade, is a Romanization (phonetic notation and transliteration) system for the Chinese language based on Mandarin. ...

• "spiritually immortal; transcendent; super-human; celestial being" (in Daoist/Taoist philosophy and cosmology)
• "physically immortal; immortal person; immortalist; saint" (in Daoist religion and pantheon)
• "alchemist; one who seeks the elixir of life; one who practices longevity techniques" or by extension "(alchemical, dietary, qigong) methods for attaining immortality" (in Chinese alchemy)
• "wizard; magician; shaman" (in Chinese mythology)
• "genie; elf, fairy; nymph" (in popular Chinese literature)
• "sage living high in the mountains; mountain-man; hermit; recluse" (folk-etymology for the character 仙)
• "immortal (talent); accomplished person; celestial (beauty); marvelous; extraordinary" (metaphorical modifier)

Xian semantically developed from meaning spiritual "immortality; enlightenment", to physical "immortality; longevity" involving methods such as alchemy, breath meditation, and Tai Chi Chuan, and eventually to legendary and figurative "immortality". For other uses of the words tao and dao, see Dao (disambiguation). ... The elixir of life, also known as the elixir of immortality or Dancing Water and sometimes equated with the Philosophers stone, is a legendary potion, or drink, that grants the drinker eternal life or eternal youth. ... Qigong (Simplified Chinese: ; Traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: chi4 kung1; or Energy-Cultivation, is an aspect of Chinese medicine involving the coordination of different breathing patterns with various physical postures and motions of the body. ... For other uses, see Alchemy (disambiguation). ... Chinese mythology is a collection of cultural history, folktales, and religions that have been passed down in oral or written form. ... // [edit] Classical texts Main article: Chinese classic texts China has a wealth of classical literature, both poetry and prose, dating from the Eastern Zhou Dynasty (770-256 BCE) and including the Classics attributed to Confucius. ... Folk etymology or popular etymology is a linguistic term for a category of false etymology which has grown up in popular lore, as opposed to one which arose in scholarly usage. ... Tai Chi Chuan, Tai Chi Chüan or Taijiquan (Traditional Chinese: ; Simplified Chinese: ; pinyin: ; literally supreme ultimate fist), commonly known as Tai Chi, Tai Chi, or Taiji, is an internal Chinese martial art. ...

The xian archetype is described by Victor H. Mair. Victor H. Mair is Professor of Chinese Language and Literature in the Department of East Asian Languages and Civilizations at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, United States. ...

They are immune to heat and cold, untouched by the elements, and can fly, mounting upward with a fluttering motion. They dwell apart from the chaotic world of man, subsist on air and dew, are not anxious like ordinary people, and have the smooth skin and innocent faces of children. The transcendents live an effortless existence that is best described as spontaneous. They recall the ancient Indian ascetics and holy men known as ṛṣi who possessed similar traits.

– 1994:376

This comparison is apt. According to the Digital Dictionary of Buddhism, Chinese xian (仙) can mean Sanskrit ṛṣi (rishi "inspired sage in the Vedas"). The project of the Digital Dictionary of Buddhism (usually referred to by the acronym DDB) was initiated by Charles Muller (a specialist in East Asian Buddhism) during his first year of graduate school--upon his realization of the dearth of lexicographical works available for both East Asian Buddhism and classical... In Hinduism, a Rishi ( ऋषि) is a sage and/or seer who heard (cf. ... Veda redirects here. ...

"The Eight Immortals Crossing the Sea", from Myths and Legends of China, 1922, E.T.C. Werner.

Image File history File links Eight Immortals Crossing the Sea - Project Gutenberg eText 15250 From http://www. ... Image File history File links Eight Immortals Crossing the Sea - Project Gutenberg eText 15250 From http://www. ... The Eight Immortals crossing the sea, from Myths and Legends of China, 1922 by E. T. C. Werner. ...

The word xian

The most famous Chinese compound of xiān is Bāxiān (八仙 "the Eight Immortals"). Other common words include xiānrén (仙人 "immortal person; transcendent", see Xiānrén Dòng "Xianren Cave" and Japanese sennin), xiānrénzhăng (仙人掌 "immortal's palm; cactus"), xiānnǚ (仙女 "immortal woman; female celestial; angel"), and shénxiān (神仙 "gods and immortals; divine immortal"). In linguistics, a compound is a lexeme (a word) that consists of more than one other lexeme. ... The Eight Immortals crossing the sea, from Myths and Legends of China, 1922 by E. T. C. Werner. ... Xianren Cave (Fairy cave) is a small cave in Wannian County, Jiangxi, China, where historically important finds have been made of prehistoric pottery shards and rice grains. ... Sennin (sage ninja/hermit/immortal) is the word for the people who were the first ninja, along with the gyoja (hermit warriors), yamabushi (mountain ascetic warriors) and the shugenja (shugendo). ...

Xiān can be written with three Chinese characters 仙, 仚, or 僊, all of which combine the logographic radical rén (亻or 人 "person; human") with phonetics that have semantic significance. The usual character for xiān in both Traditional Chinese and Simplified Chinese is 仙, which, like its rare variant 仚, has a shān (山 "mountain") phonetic. This means, says Schipper (1993:164), "'the human being of the mountain,' or alternatively, 'human mountain.' The two explanations are appropriate to these beings: they haunt the holy mountains, while also embodying nature." The archaic xiān 僊 character uses a xiān ("rise up; ascend") phonetic supposedly because xiān could "ascend into the heavens". Xiān is cognate with qiān (遷 "move to/into; transfer; change"), which logographically combines the motion radical with the same phonetic. 漢字 / 汉字 Chinese character in Hànzì, Kanji, Hanja, Hán Tá»±. Red in Simplified Chinese. ... The left part of mā, a Chinese character meaning mother, is a radical that means woman A radical (from Latin radix, meaning root) is a basic identifiable component of every Chinese character. ... Phonetics (from the Greek word φωνή, phone meaning sound, voice) is the study of sounds and the human voice. ... In general, semantics (from the Greek semantikos, or significant meaning, derived from sema, sign) is the study of meaning, in some sense of that term. ... Traditional Chinese (Traditional Chinese: 正體字/繁體字, Simplified Chinese: 正体字/繁体字) refers to one of two standard sets of printed Chinese characters. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Cognate (Latin: cognatus co+gnatus, ie. ...

The Shijing (220/3) contains the oldest occurrence of xiān, reduplicated as xiānxiān (僊僊 "dance lightly; hop about; jump around"), and rhymed with qiān (遷). "But when they have drunk too much, Their deportment becomes light and frivolous – They leave their seats, and [遷] go elsewhere, They keep [僊僊] dancing and capering." (tr. James Legge)[1] Shamanistic dancing is one interpretation of this ancient Shijing ode describing ancestral sacrifices. Shī Jīng (詩經), translated variously as the Classic of Poetry, the Book of Songs or the Book of Odes, is the first major collection of Chinese poems. ... Ezra Pounds annotations on his copy of James Legges translation of the Book of Poetry (Shih Ching), in the Sacred Books of the East. ... Shamanism is a range of traditional beliefs and practices that involve the ability to diagnose, cure, and sometimes cause human suffering because of a special relationship with, or control over, spirits. ...

Two early Chinese dictionaries provide linguistic insights into xiān. The 121 CE Shuowen Jiezi, which surprisingly does not enter xiān (仙) except in the definition for Wo Quan (偓佺 "name of an ancient immortal"), defines xiān (僊) as "live long, move away" and xiān (仚) as "appearance of a person on a mountaintop". The circa 200 CE Shiming defines xiān (仙) as "to get old and not die," and etymologizes with a punning definition of qiān (遷 "moves into"), a xiān "moves away into the mountains, thus the character combines person and mountain." Chinese dictionaries date back over two millennia to the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, which is a significantly longer lexicographical history than any other language. ... a version of Shuowen Jiezi Shuōwén JiÄ›zì (說文解字, Explaining Simple and Analyzing Compound Characters) was the first Chinese character dictionary, compiled by XÇ” Shèn between 100 CE and 121 CE in Han Dynasty China. ... The Shìmíng (Chinese: ; Wade-Giles: Shih Ming; Explaining Names or Explanation of Names) is a Chinese dictionary that employed phonological glosses, and is believed to date from c. ...

Textual references

This section chronologically reviews how Chinese texts describe xian "immortals; transcendents". While the early Zhuangzi, Chuci, and Liezi texts allegorically used xian immortals and magic islands to describe spiritual immortality, later ones like the Shenxian zhuan and Baopuzi took immortality literally and described esoteric Chinese alchemical techniques for physical longevity. On one the hand, neidan (內丹 "internal alchemy") techniques included taixi (胎息 "embryo respiration") breath control, meditation, visualization, sexual training, and Tao Yin exercises (which later evolved into Qigong and Tai Chi Chuan). On the other hand, waidan (外丹 "external achemy") techniques for immortality included alchemical recipes, magic plants, rare minerals, herbal medicines, drugs, and dietetic techniques like inedia. Neidan, a Chinese method of internal alchemy. ... Tao Yin (Chinese: 導引; pinyin: guide and pull) exercises were an ancient precursor of qigong, specifically practised in Chinese Taoist monasteries for health and spiritual cultivation, attested from at least 500 BC. Tao Yin is also said to be (along with Shaolin Chuan) a primary formative ingredient in the martial... Qigong (Simplified Chinese: ; Traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: chi4 kung1; or Energy-Cultivation, is an aspect of Chinese medicine involving the coordination of different breathing patterns with various physical postures and motions of the body. ... Tai Chi Chuan, Tai Chi Chüan or Taijiquan (Traditional Chinese: ; Simplified Chinese: ; pinyin: ; literally supreme ultimate fist), commonly known as Tai Chi, Tai Chi, or Taiji, is an internal Chinese martial art. ... Inedia is the alleged ability to live without food. ...

The earliest representations of Chinese immortals, dating from the Han Dynasty, portray them flying with feathery wings (the word yuren 羽人 "feathered person" later meant "Daoist") or riding dragons. In Chinese art, xian are often pictured with symbols of immortality including the dragon, crane, fox, white deer, pine tree, peach, and mushroom. Later Han redirects here. ... Chinese art is art that, whether ancient or modern, originated in or is practiced in China or by Chinese artists or performers. ...

Xian riding dragons, from Myths and Legends of China, 1922, E.T.C. Werner.

Besides the following major Chinese texts, many others use both graphic variants of xian. Xian (仙) occurs in the Chunqiu Fanlu, Fengsu Tongyi, Qian fu lun, Fayan, and Shenjian; xian (僊) occurs in the Caizhong langji, Fengsu Tongyi, Guanzi, and Shenjian. Dragon gods - Project Gutenberg eText 15250 From http://www. ... Dragon gods - Project Gutenberg eText 15250 From http://www. ... The Luxuriant Dew of the Spring and Autumn Annals (chÅ«n qiÅ« fán lù ,春秋繁露) is the only work that has survived to the present that is attributed to Dong Zhongshu (Tung Chung-shu). ... Fengsu Tongyi (風俗通義, pinyin: feng1su2 tong1yi4), or Penetrating Customs, is a book written in about 250 AD, by author Ying Shao, who lived during the Eastern Han period and the Three Kingdoms period. ... Qian fu lun (Comments of a Recluse) is a political-metaphysical text by the Later Han philosopher Wang Fu. ...

Zhuangzi

Two circa 3rd century BCE "Outer Chapters" of the Zhuangzi (莊子 "[Book of] Master Zhuang") use the archaic character xian 僊. Chapter 11 has a parable about "Cloud Chief" (雲 將) and "Big Concealment" (鴻 蒙) that uses the Shijing compound xianxian ("dance; jump"): Zhuāngzǐ (pinyin), Chuang TzÅ­ (Wade-Giles), Chuang Tsu, Zhuang Tze, or Chuang Tse (Traditional Chinese characters: 莊子; Simplified Chinese characters: 庄子, literally meaning Master Zhuang) was a famous philosopher in ancient China who lived around the 4th century BCE during the Warring States Period, corresponding to the Hundred Schools of Thought...

Big Concealment said, "If you confuse the constant strands of Heaven and violate the true form of things, then Dark Heaven will reach no fulfillment. Instead, the beasts will scatter from their herds, the birds will cry all night, disaster will come to the grass and trees, misfortune will reach even to the insects. Ah, this is the fault of men who 'govern'!"

"Then what should I do?" said Cloud Chief.

"Ah," said Big Concealment, "you are too far gone! [僊僊] Up, up, stir yourself and be off!"

Cloud Chief said, "Heavenly Master, it has been hard indeed for me to meet with you — I beg one word of instruction!"

"Well, then — mind‑nourishment!" said Big Concealment. "You have only to rest in inaction and things will transform themselves. Smash your form and body, spit out hearing and eyesight, forget you are a thing among other things, and you may join in great unity with the deep and boundless. Undo the mind, slough off spirit, be blank and soulless, and the ten thousand things one by one will return to the root — return to the root and not know why. Dark and undifferentiated chaos — to the end of life none will depart from it. But if you try to know it, you have already departed from it. Do not ask what its name is, do not try to observe its form. Things will live naturally end of themselves."

Cloud Chief said, "The Heavenly Master has favored me with this Virtue, instructed me in this Silence. All my life I have been looking for it, and now at last I have it!" He bowed his head twice, stood up, took his leave, and went away.

– 11, tr. Burton Watson 1968:122-3 Burton Watson (born 1925) is one of the worlds best-known translators of the Chinese and Japanese literary works. ...

Chapter 12 uses xian when mythical Emperor Yao describes a shengren (聖 人 "sagely person"). Emperor Yao (Traditional Chinese:å ¯, Simplified Chinese:å°§) (2337 - 2258 BC) was a semi-mythical Chinese ruler, one of the Three August Ones and the Five Emperors. ...

The true sage is a quail at rest, a little fledgling at its meal, a bird in flight who leaves no trail behind. When the world has the Way, he joins in the chorus with all other things. When the world is without the Way, he nurses his Virtue and retires in leisure. And after a thousand years, should he weary of the world, he will leave it and ascend to [僊] the immortals, riding on those white clouds all the way up to the village of God.

– 12, tr. Watson 1968:130)

Without using the word xian, several Zhuangzi passages employ xian imagery, like flying in the clouds, to describe individuals with superhuman powers. For example, Chapter 1, within the circa 3rd century BCE "Inner Chapters", has two portrayals. First is this description of Liezi (below).

Lieh Tzu could ride the wind and go soaring around with cool and breezy skill, but after fifteen days he came back to earth. As far as the search for good fortune went, he didn't fret and worry. He escaped the trouble of walking, but he still had to depend on something to get around. If he had only mounted on the truth of Heaven and Earth, ridden the changes of the six breaths, and thus wandered through the boundless, then what would he have had to depend on?

Therefore I say, the Perfect Man has no self; the Holy Man has no merit; the Sage has no fame.

– 1, tr. Watson 1968:32

Second is this description of a shenren (神人 "divine person").

He said that there is a Holy Man living on faraway [姑射] Ku-she Mountain, with skin like ice or snow, and gentle and shy like a young girl. He doesn't eat the five grains, but sucks the wind, drinks the dew, climbs up on the clouds and mist, rides a flying dragon, and wanders beyond the four seas. By concentrating his spirit, he can protect creatures from sickness and plague and make the harvest plentiful.

– 1, tr. Watson 1968:33

The authors of the Zhuangzi had a lyrical view of life and death, seeing them as complimentary aspects of natural changes. This is antithetical to the physical immortality (changshengbulao 長生不老 "live forever and never age") sought by later Daoist alchemists. Consider this famous passage about accepting death.

Chuang Tzu's wife died. When Hui Tzu went to convey his condolences, he found Chuang Tzu sitting with his legs sprawled out, pounding on a tub and singing. "You lived with her, she brought up your children and grew old," said Hui Tzu. "It should be enough simply not to weep at her death. But pounding on a tub and singing — this is going too far, isn't it?"

Chuang Tzu said, "You're wrong. When she first died, do you think I didn't grieve like anyone else? But I looked back to her beginning and the time before she was born. Not only the time before she was born, but the time before she had a body. Not only the time before she had a body, but the time before she had a spirit. In the midst of the jumble of wonder and mystery a change took place and she had a spirit. Another change and she had a body. Another change and she was born. Now there's been another change and she's dead. It's just like the progression of the four seasons, spring, summer, fall, winter."

"Now she's going to lie down peacefully in a vast room. If I were to follow after her bawling and sobbing, it would show that I don't understand anything about fate. So I stopped.

– (18, tr. Watson 1968:191-2)

Alan Fox explains this anecdote about Zhuangzi's wife.

Many conclusions can be reached on the basis of this story, but it seems that death is regarded as a natural part of the ebb and flow of transformations which constitute the movement of Dao. To grieve over death, or to fear one's own death, for that matter, is to arbitrarily evaluate what is inevitable. Of course, this reading is somewhat ironic given the fact that much of the subsequent Daoist tradition comes to seek longevity and immortality, and bases some of their basic models on the Zhuangzi.

– 1995:100

Chuci

The 3rd-2nd century BCE Chuci (楚辭 "Lyrics of Chu") anthology of poems uses xian 仙 once and xian 僊 twice, reflecting the disparate origins of the text. These three contexts mention the legendary Daoist xian immortals Chi Song (赤松 "Red Pine", see Kohn 1993:142-4) and Wang Qiao (王僑, or Zi Qiao 子僑). In later Daoist hagiography, Chi Song was Lord of Rain under Shennong, the legendary inventor of agriculture; and Wang Qiao was a son of King Ling of Zhou (r. 571-545 BCE), who flew away on a giant white bird, became an immortal and was never again seen. This page meets Wikipedias criteria for speedy deletion. ... Shennong (Traditional Chinese: 神農; Simplified Chinese: 神农; pinyin: Shénnóng), sometimes known as the Yan Emperor (炎帝), is a legendary Emperor of China and culture hero of Chinese mythology who is believed to have lived some 5,000 years ago and who taught ancient China the practices of agriculture. ... King Ling of Zhou (ch. ...

The "Yuan You" (遠遊 "Far-off Journey") poem describes a spiritual journey into the realms of gods and immortals, frequently referring to Daoist myths and techniques.

My spirit darted forth and did not return to me,

And my body, left tenantless, grew withered and lifeless.

Then I looked into myself to strengthen my resolution,

And sought to learn from where the primal sprit issues.

In emptiness and silence I found serenity;

In tranquil inaction I gained true satisfaction.

I heard how once Red Pine had washed the world's dust off:

I would model myself on the pattern he had left me.

I honoured the wondrous powers of the [真人] Pure Ones,

And those of past ages who had become [仙] Immortals.

They departed in the flux of change and vanished from men's sight,

Leaving a famous name that endures after them.

– tr. Hawkes 1985:194

The "Xi shi" (惜誓 "Sorrow for Troth Betrayed") resembles the "Yuan You", and both reflect Daoist ideas from the Han period. "Though unoriginal in theme," says Hawkes (1985:239), "its description of air travel, written in a pre-aeroplane age, is exhilarating and rather impressive."

We gazed down of the Middle Land [China] with its myriad people

As we rested on the whirlwind, drifting about at random.

In this way we came at last to the moor of Shao-yuan:

There, with the other blessed ones, were Red Pine and Wang Qiao.

The two Masters held zithers tuned imperfect concord:

I sang the Qing Shang air to their playing.

In tranquil calm and quiet enjoyment,

Gently I floated, inhaling all the essences.

But then I thought that this immortal life of [僊] the blessed,

Was not worth the sacrifice of my home-returning.

– tr. Hawkes 1985:240

The "Ai shi ming" (哀時命 "Alas That My Lot Was Not Cast") describes a celestial journey similar with the previous two.

Far and forlorn, with no hope of return:

Sadly I gaze in the distance, over the empty plain.

Below, I fish in the valley streamlet;

Above, I seek out [僊] holy hermits.

I enter into friendship with Red Pine;

I join Wang Qiao as his companion. We send the Xiao Yang in front to guide us;

The White Tiger runs back and forth in attendance.

Floating on the cloud and mist, we enter the dim height of heaven;

Riding on the white deer we sport and take our pleasure.

– tr. Hawkes 1985:266

The "Li Sao" (離騷 "On Encountering Trouble"), the most famous Chuci poem, is usually interpreted as describing ecstatic flights and trance techniques of Chinese shamans. The above three poems are variations describing Daoist xian. Li Sao (Chinese:離騷; Pinyin: Lí São) is one of the most famous poems in Chinese history. ...

Some other Chuci poems refer to immortals with synonyms of xian. For instance, "Shou zhi" (守志 "Maintaining Resolution), uses zhenren (真人 "true person", tr. "Pure Ones" above in "Yuan You"), which Wang Yi's commentary glosses as zhen xianren (真仙人 "true immortal person").

I visited Fu Yue, bestriding a dragon,

Joined in marriage with the Weaving Maiden,

Lifted up Heaven's Net to capture evil,

Drew the Bow of Heaven to shoot at wickedness,

Followed the [真人] Immortals fluttering through the sky,

Ate of the Primal Essence to prolong my life.

– tr. Hawkes 1985:318

Liezi

The Liezi (列子 "[Book of] Master Lie"), which Louis Komjathy (2004:36) says "was probably compiled in the 3rd century CE (while containing earlier textual layers)", uses xian four times, always in the compound xiansheng (仙聖 "immortal sage"). Nearly half of Chapter 2 ("The Yellow Emperor") comes from the Zhuangzi, including this recounting of the above fable about Mount Gushe (姑射, or Guye, or Miao Gushe 藐姑射). Lie Zi or Lieh Tzu is a famous legendary Taoist sage mentioned several times in the Zhuang Zi. ... Yellow Emperor The Yellow Emperor or Huang Di (Traditional Chinese: , Simplified Chinese: , pinyin: huángdì) is a legendary Chinese sovereign and cultural hero who is said to be the ancestor of all Han Chinese. ...

The Ku-ye mountains stand on a chain of islands where the Yellow River enters the sea. Upon the mountains there lives a Divine Man, who inhales the wind and drinks the dew, and does not eat the five grains. His mind is like a bottomless spring, his body is like a virgin's. He knows neither intimacy nor love, yet [仙聖] immortals and sages serve him as ministers. He inspires no awe, he is never angry, yet the eager and diligent act as his messengers. He is without kindness and bounty, but others have enough by themselves; he does not store and save, but he himself never lacks. The Yin and Yang are always in tune, the sun and moon always shine, the four seasons are always regular, wind and rain are always temperate, breeding is always timely, the harvest is always rich, and there are no plagues to ravage the land, no early deaths to afflict men, animals have no diseases, and ghosts have no uncanny echoes.

– tr. Graham 1960:35)

Chapter 5 uses xiansheng three times in a conversation set between legendary rulers Tang (湯) of the Shang Dynasty and Ji (革) of the Xia Dynasty. King Tang of Shang of China, in chinese:湯, born Zi Lu, in chinese:子履,(1617 BC - 1588 BC). ... Bronze vessel Beast Face Flat Feet Ding (兽面扁足鼎) dated early Shang Dynasty, 1600 - 1350BC. Remnants of advanced, stratified societies dating back to the Shang period have been found in the Yellow River Valley. ... This article is about the extremely ancient Chinese dynasty whose existence has yet to be thoroughly confirmed by archaeology. ...

T'ang asked again: 'Are there large things and small, long and short, similar and different?'

—'To the East of the Gulf of Chih-li, who knows how many thousands and millions of miles, there is a deep ravine, a valley truly without bottom; and its bottomless underneath is named "The Entry to the Void". The waters of the eight corners and the nine regions, the stream of the Milky Way, all pour into it, but it neither shrinks nor grows. Within it there are five mountains, called Tai-yü, Yüan-chiao, Fang-hu, Ying-chou and P'eng-Iai. These mountains are thirty thousand miles high, and as many miles round; the tablelands on their summits extend for nine thousand miles. It is seventy thousand miles from one mountain to the next, but they are considered close neighbours. The towers and terraces upon them are all gold and jade, the beasts and birds are all unsullied white; trees of pearl and garnet always grow densely, flowering and bearing fruit which is always luscious, and those who eat of it never grow old and die. The men who dwell there are all of the race of [仙聖] immortal sages, who fly, too many to be counted, to and from one mountain to another in a day and a night. Yet the bases of the five mountains used to rest on nothing; they were always rising and falling, going and returning, with the ebb and flow of the tide, and never for a moment stood firm. The [仙聖] immortals found this troublesome, and complained about it to God. God was afraid that they would drift to the far West and he would lose the home of his sages. So he commanded Yü-ch'iang to make fifteen giant turtles carry the five mountains on their lifted heads, taking turns in three watches, each sixty thousand years long; and for the first time the mountains stood firm and did not move.

'But there was a giant from the kingdom of the Dragon Earl, who came to the place of the five mountains in no more than a few strides. In one throw he hooked six of the turtles in a bunch, hurried back to his country carrying them together on his back, and scorched their bones to tell fortunes by the cracks. Thereupon two of the mountains, Tai-yü and Yüan-chiao, drifted to the far North and sank in the great sea; the [仙聖] immortals who were carried away numbered many millions. God was very angry, and reduced by degrees the size of the Dragon Earl's kingdom and the height of his subjects. At the time of Fu-hsi and Shen-nung, the people of this country were still several hundred feet high.'

– tr. Graham 1960:97-8

Penglai Mountain became the most famous of these five mythical peaks where the elixir of life supposedly grew, and is known as Horai in Japanese legends. The first emperor Qin Shi Huang sent his court alchemist Xu Fu on expeditions to find these plants of immortality, but he never returned (although by some accounts, he discovered Japan). It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Horai. ... The elixir of life, also known as the elixir of immortality or Dancing Water and sometimes equated with the Philosophers stone, is a legendary potion, or drink, that grants the drinker eternal life or eternal youth. ... Horai is a place in Japanese mythology. ... Qin Shi Huang (Chinese: ; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Chin Shih-huang) (November / December 260 BC – September 10, 210 BC), personal name Ying Zheng, was king of the Chinese State of Qin from 247 BC to 221 BC (officially still the Zhou Dynasty), and then the first emperor of a unified... Xu Fu Xu Fu (Chinese: 徐福) was a court sorceror in Qin Dynasty China. ...

Holmes Welch (1957:88-97) analyzed the beginnings of Daoism, sometime around the 4th-3rd centuries BCE, from four separate streams: philosophical Daoism (Laozi, Zhuangzi, Liezi), a "hygiene school" that cultivated longevity through breathing exercises and yoga, Chinese alchemy and Five Elements philosophy, and those who sought Penglai and elixirs of "immortality". This is what he concludes about xian. Chinese Wood (木) | Fire (火) Earth (土) | Metal (金) | Water (水) Hinduism and Buddhism Vayu / Pavan — Air / Wind Agni / Tejas — Fire Akasha — Aether Prithvi / Bhumi — Earth Ap / Jala — Water In traditional Chinese philosophy, natural phenomena can be classified into the Five Elements (Chinese: ; pinyin: wǔxíng): wood, fire, earth, metal, and water (木, 火, 土, 金, 水; mù, hu...

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Shenxian zhuan

The Shenxian zhuan (神仙傳 Biographies of Spirit Immortals") is a hagiography of xian. Although it was traditionally attributed to Ge Hong (283-343 CE), Komjathy (2004:43) says, "The received versions of the text contain some 100-odd hagiographies, most of which date from 6th-8th centuries at the earliest." Hagiography is the study of saints. ... Ge Hong(葛洪) (284-364, also known as Zhichuan) was a minor southern official during the Jin dynasty (263-420), best known for his interest in Daoism, alchemy, and techniques of longevity. ...

According to the Shenxian zhuan, there are four schools of immortality:

Qì (气 - “Pneumas”) – Breath control and meditation. Those who belong to this school can Qi, also commonly spelled chi, chi or ki, is a fundamental concept of everyday Chinese culture, most often defined as air or breath (for example, the colloquial Mandarin Chinese term for weather is tiān qi, or the breath of heaven) and, by extension, life force or spiritual energy...

"...blow on water and it will flow against its own current for several paces; blow on fire, and it will be extinguished; blow at tigers or wolves, and they will crouch down and not be able to move; blow at serpents, and they will coil up and be unable to flee. If someone is wounded by a weapon, blow on the wound, and the bleeding will stop. If you hear of someone who has suffered a poisonous insect bite, even if you are not in his presence, you can, from a distance, blow and say in incantation over your own hand (males on the left hand, females on the right), and the person will at once be healed even if more than a hundred li away. And if you yourself are struck by a sudden illness, you have merely to swallow pneumas in three series of nine, and you will immediately recover.

But the most essential thing [among such arts] is fetal breathing. Those who obtain [the technique of] fetal breathing become able to breathe without using their nose or mouth, as if in the womb, and this is the culmination of the way [of pneumatic cultivation]."

– Campany 2002:21

Fàn (饭 - “Diet”) – Ingestion of herbal compounds and abstention from the Sān Shī Fàn (三尸饭 - “Three-Corpses food”)—Meats (raw fish, pork, dog, leeks, and scallions) and grains. According to the book To Live As Long As Heaven and Earth: Ge Hong’s Traditions of Divine Transcendents, the importance of 'grain avoidance' was told in a story by Ge Hong: Leek is a placename in more than one country: Netherlands: Leek, Netherlands United Kingdom: Leek, Staffordshire Leek is also a vegetable: Leek (vegetable) This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Chopped up Spring Onion The common name scallion is associated with various members of the genus Allium that lack a fully-developed bulb. ... The word grain has several meanings, most being descriptive of a small piece or particle. ...

"During the reign of Emperor Cheng of the Han, hunters in the Zhongnan Mountains saw a person who wore no clothes, his body covered with black hair. Upon seeing this person, the hunters wanted to pursue and capture him, but the person leapt over gullies and valleys as if in flight, and so could not be overtaken. [But after being surrounded and captured, it was discovered this person was a 200 plus year old woman, who had once been a concubine of Qin Emperor Ziying. When he had surrendered to the 'invaders of the east', she fled into the mountains where she learned to subside on 'the resin and nuts of pines' from an old man. Afterwards, this diet 'enabled [her] to feel neither hunger nor thirst; in winter [she] was not cold, in summer [she] was not hot.']

The hunters took the woman back in. They offered her grain to eat. When she first smelled the stink of grain, she vomited, and only after several days could she tolerate it. After little more than two years of this [diet], her body hair fell out; she turned old and died. Had she not been caught by men, she would have become a transcendent.". Emperor Cheng of Han (51 BC–7 BC) was an emperor of the Chinese Han Dynasty ruling from 33 BC until 7 BC. Under Emperor Cheng, the Han dynasty continued its slide into disintegration while the Wang clan continued its slow grip on power and on governmental affairs as promoted... Qin or Chin (Wade-Giles) (秦), pronounced something like Shin, (778 BC-207 BC) was a state during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States Periods of China. ... Ziying (子嬰 zi5 ying1) ( ? - end of January 206 BC) was the last ruler of the Qin Dynasty of China, ruling as King of Qin (秦王) from mid-October to the beginning of December 207 BC. He was the son of Fusu (扶蘇), who was the eldest son...

– (Campany 2002:22-23)

Fángzhōng Zhī Shù (房中之术 - “Arts of the Bedchamber”) – Sexual yoga. (Campany 2002:30-31) According to a discourse between the Yellow Emperor and the immortaless Sùnǚ (素女 – “Plain Girl”), one of the three daughters of Hsi Wang Mu, An ancient Chinese print depicting The Joining of the Essences. ... Yellow Emperor The Yellow Emperor or Huang Di (Traditional Chinese: , Simplified Chinese: , pinyin: huángdì) is a legendary Chinese sovereign and cultural hero who is said to be the ancestor of all Han Chinese. ... Xiwangmu near Kaohsiung, Taiwan Xi Wangmu (西王母), in Chinese mythology, literally Queen Mother of the West, is the ruler of the western paradise and goddess of immortality. ...

“The sexual behaviors between a man and woman are identical to how the universe itself came into creation. Like Heaven and Earth, the male and female share a parallel relationship in attaining an immortal existence. They both must learn how to engage and develop their natural sexual instincts and behaviors; otherwise the only result is decay and traumatic discord of their physical lives. However, if they engage in the utmost joys of sensuality and apply the principles of yin and yang to their sexual activity, their health, vigor, and joy of love will bear them the fruits of longevity and immortality.

– Hsi 2002:99-100

The White Tigress Manual, a treaties on female sexual yoga, states,

“A female can completely restore her youthfulness and attain immortality if she refrains from allowing just one or two men in her life from stealing and destroying her [sexual] essence, which will only serve in aging her at a rapid rate and bring about an early death. However, if she can acquire the sexual essence of a thousand males through absorption, she will acquire the great benefits of youthfulness and immortality.”

– Hsi 2001:48

Dān (丹 - "Alchemy", literally "Cinnabar") – Elixir of Immortality.(Campany 2002:31) For other uses, see Alchemy (disambiguation). ... Cinnabar, sometimes written cinnabarite, is a name applied to red mercury(II) sulfide (HgS), or native vermilion, the common ore of mercury. ... The elixir of life, also known as the elixir of immortality or Dancing Water and sometimes equated with the Philosophers stone, is a legendary potion, or drink, that grants the drinker eternal life or eternal youth. ...

Baopuzi

The 4th century CE Baopuzi (抱朴子 "[Book of] Master Embracing Simplicity"), which was written by Ge Hong, gives some highly detailed descriptions of xian. Ge Hong(葛洪) (284-364, also known as Zhichuan) was a minor southern official during the Jin dynasty (263-420), best known for his interest in Daoism, alchemy, and techniques of longevity. ...

The text lists three classes of immortals:

Tiānxiān (天仙 – “Celestial Immortal”) - The highest level.

Dìxiān (地仙 - “Earth Immortal”) – The middle level.

Shījiě xiān (尸解仙 - "Escaped-by-means-of-a-stimulated-corpse-simulacrum Immortal", literally "Corpse Untie Immortal") - The lowest level.This is considered the lowest form of immortality since a person must first “fake” their own death by substituting a bewitched object like a bamboo pole, talisman or a shoe for their corpse or slipping a type of Death certificate into the coffin of a newly departed relative, thus having their name and "allotted life span" deleted from the ledgers kept by the Sīmìng (司命 - "Director of allotted life spans", literally "Controller of Fate"). Mortals who choose this route have to protect themselves from heavenly retribution by inacting the Ling bao tai xuan yin sheng zhi fu (靈寳太玄隂生之符 - “Numinous Treasure Talisman of the Grand Mystery for Living in Hiding”). (Campany 2002:52-60) Talisman can refer to: An amulet sometimes believed to have mystical, and amazing powers The Talisman board game from Games Workshop Talisman - Sacred Cities, Secret Faith by Graham Hancock and Robert Bauval Talisman (band) - a hard rock band. ... Death Certificate is the critically acclaimed second solo album from rapper Ice Cube, released on October 29, 1991. ...

However, this is not a true form of immortality. For each misdeed a person commits, the Director of allotted life spans subtracts days and sometimes years from their allotted life span. This method allows a person to live out the entirety of their allotted lifespan (whether it be 30, 80, 400, etc.) and avoid the agents of death. But the body still has to be transformed into an immortal one, hence the phrase Xiānsǐ hòutuō (先死後脱 - “The ‘death’ is apparent, [but] the sloughing off of the body’s mortality remains to be done.”)

There are three levels of Shījiě immortals:

Dìxià zhǔ (地下主 - “Agents Beneath the Earth”) – Are in charge of keeping the peace within the Chinese underworld. They are eligible for promotion to earthbound immortality after 280 years of faithful service. Feng Du (pronunciation: Fung Doo) is the realm of the dead in Chinese mythology. ...

Dìshàng zhǔzhě (地上主者 - "Agents Above the Earth") - Are given magic talismans which prolong their lives (but not indefinitely) and allow them to heal the sick and exorcize demons and evil spirits from the earth. This level was not eligible for promotion to earthbound immortality.

Zhìdì jūn (制地君 - "Lords Who Control the Earth") - A heavenly decree ordered them to "disperse all subordinate junior demons, whether high or low [in rank], that have cause afflictions and injury owing to blows or offenses against the Motion of the Year, the Original Destiny, Great Year, the Kings of the Soil or the establishing or breaking influences of the chronograms of the tome. Annihilate them all." This level was also not eligible for promotion to immortality.}}

These titles were usually given to humans who had either not proven themselves worthy of or were not fated to become immortals. One such famous agent was Fei Changfang, who was eventually murdered by evil spirits because he lost his book of magic talismans. However, some immortals are written to have used this method in order to escape execution.(Campany 2002:52-60)

Ge Hong wrote in his book The Master Who Embraces Simplicity, Ge Hong(葛洪) (284-364, also known as Zhichuan) was a minor southern official during the Jin dynasty (263-420), best known for his interest in Daoism, alchemy, and techniques of longevity. ...

The [immortals] Dark Girl and Plain Girl compared sexual activity as the intermingling of fire [yang/male] and water [yin/female], claiming that water and fire can kill people but can also regenerate their life, depending on whether or not they know the correct methods of sexual activity according to their nature. These arts are based on the theory that the more females a man copulates with, the greater benefit he will derive from the act. Men who are ignorant of this art, copulating with only one or two females during their life, will only suffice to bring about their untimely and early death.

– Hsi 2001:48

Zhong Lü Chuan Dao Ji

The Zhong Lü Chuan Dao Ji (鐘呂傳道集/钟吕传道集 "Anthology of the Transmission of the Dao from Zhong[li Quan] to Lü [Dongbin]") is associated with Zhongli Quan (2nd century CE?) and Lü Dongbin (9th century CE), two of the legendary Eight Immortals. It is part of the so-called “Zhong-Lü” (鍾呂) textual tradition of internal alchemy (neidan). Komjathy (2004:57) describes it as, "Probably dating from the late Tang (618-906), the text is in question-and-answer format, containing a dialogue between Lü and his teacher Zhongli on aspects of alchemical terminology and methods." Zhongli Quan (鐘離權 or 鐘离權 in pinyin: Zhōnglí Quán), or Chung-li Chüan in Wade-Giles, is one of the most ancient of the Eight Immortals (the oldest is Iron-crutch Li) and the leader of the group. ... LÇš DòngbÄ«n (呂洞賓) (sometimes seen spelled Lu Tong-Pin) is a Chinese deity revered by Daoists. ...

The Zhong Lü Chuan Dao Ji lists five classes of immortals:

Guǐxiān (鬼仙 - "Ghost Immortal") – A person who cultivates too much yin energy. These immortals are likened to Vampires because they drain the life essence of the living, much like the fox spirit. Ghost immortals do not leave the realm of ghosts. (Wong 2000:page?) It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Taijitu. ... Further reading Christopher Frayling - Vampyres: Lord Byron to Count Dracula 1992. ... nine-tailed fox, from the Qing edition of the Shan Hai Jing Huli jing (狐狸精 hÇ”lijÄ«ng) in Chinese mythology are fox spirits that are akin to European faeries or to the Japanese yōkai known as kitsune. ...

Rénxiān (人仙 - Human Immortal”) – Humans have an equal balance of yin and yang energies, so they have the potential of becoming either a ghost or immortal. Although they continue to hunger and thirst and require clothing and shelter like a normal human, these immortals do not suffer from aging or sickness. Human immortals do not leave the realm of humans. (Wong 2000:page?) There are many sub-classes of human immortals, as discussed below under Shījiě xiān.

Dìxiān (地仙 - “Earth Immortal”) – When the yin is transformed into the pure yang, a true immortal body will emerge that does not need food, drink, clothing or shelter and is not effected by hot or cold temperatures. Earth immortals do not leave the realm of earth. These immortals are forced to stay on earth until they shed their human form. (Wong 2000:page?)

Shénxiān (神仙 - "Spirit Immortal") – The immortal body of the earthbound class will eventually change into vapor through further practice. They have supernatural powers and can take on the shape of any object. These immortals must remain on earth acquiring merit by teaching mankind about the Tao. Spirit immortals do not leave the realm of spirits. Once enough merit is accumulated, they are called to heaven by a celestial decree. (Wong 2000:page?) Taijitu This article is about the Chinese character and the philosophy it represents. ...

Tiānxiān (天仙 – “Celestial Immortal”) – Spirit immortals who are summoned to heaven are given the minor office of water realm judge. Overtime, they are promoted to oversee the earth realm and finally become administrators of the celestial realm. These immortals have the power to travel back and forth between the earthly and celestial realms. (Wong 2000:page?)

See also

• Alchemy
• Immortality
• Journey to the West
• Sun Wukong
• Transcendence (philosophy)
• Way of Infinite Harmony
• Xi Wangmu

For other uses, see Alchemy (disambiguation). ... For the Celine Dion song, see Immortality (Celine Dion song). ... The four heroes of the story, left to right: SÅ«n Wùkōng, Xuánzàng, ZhÅ« Bājiè, and Shā Wùjìng. ... This article or section is incomplete and may require expansion and/or cleanup. ... In philosophy, transcendental/transcendence, has three different but related primary meanings, all of them derived from the words literal meaning (from Latin), of climbing or going beyond: one that originated in Ancient philosophy, one in Medieval philosophy and one in modern philosophy. ... The Way of Infinite Harmony is a Taoist, see Taoism, sect that worships Her Holiness Princess Ma Gu, Goddess of Hemp (Immortal Xu Miao). ... Xi Wangmu (西王母), in Chinese mythology, literally Queen Mother of the West, is the ruler of the western paradise and goddess of immortality. ...

References

• Akahori, Akira. 1989. "Drug Taking and Immortality," in Taoist Meditation and Longevity Techniques, ed. Livia Kohn. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan, pp. 73-98. ISBN 0-89264-084-7
• Blofeld, John. 1978. Taoism: The Road to Immortality. Boston: Shambhala. ISBN 1-57062-589-1
• Campany, Robert Ford. 2002. To Live As Long As Heaven and Earth: Ge Hong’s Traditions of Divine Transcendents. Berkeley: University of California Press, pp. 18-31, 52-60 and 75-78. ISBN 0-520-23034-5
• DeWoskin, Kenneth. 1990. "Xian Descended: Narrating Xian among Mortals." Taoist Resources 1.2:21-27.
• Fox, Alan. Zhuangzi, in Great Thinkers of the Eastern World, Ian P. McGreal ed., HarperCollins Publishers, 1995, 99-103.
• Hawkes, David, tr. 1985. The Songs of the South: An Anthology of Ancient Chinese Poems by Qu Yuan and Other Poets. Penguin Books. ISBN 0-14-044375-4
• Hsi, Lai. 2001. The Sexual Teachings of the White Tigress: Secrets of the Female Taoist Masters. Rochester, Vermont: Destiny Books, pp. 48. ISBN 0-89281-868-9
• Hsi, Lai. 2002. The Sexual Teachings of the Jade Dragon: Taoist Methods for Male Sexual Revitalization. Rochester, Vermont: Destiny Books. pp. 99-100 ISBN 0-89281-963-4
• Kohn, Livia. 1993. The Taoist Experience: an anthology. Albany: State University of New York Press. ISBN 0-7914-1579-1
• Komjathy, Louis. 2004. Daoist Texts in Translation.
• Mair, Victor H. 1994. Wandering on the Way: early Taoist tales and parables of Chuang Tzu. New York: Bantam. ISBN 0-553-37406-0
• Robinet, Isabel. 1986. "The Taoist Immortal: Jesters of Light and Shadow, Heaven and Earth" Journal of Chinese Religions 13/14:87-106.[2]
• Schipper, Kristofer. 1993. The Taoist Body. Berkeley: University of California. ISBN 0-520-08224-9
• Watson, Burton, tr. 1968. The Complete works of Chuang Tzu. New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 0-231-03147-5
• Welch, Holmes. 1957. Taoism: The Parting of the Way. Boston: Beacon Press. ISBN 0-8070-5973-0
• Wong, Eva. 2000. The Tao of Health, Longevity, and Immortality: The Teachings of Immortals Chung and Lü. Boston: Shambhala.

David Hawkes (1923- ) is a British Sinologist. ...

External links

• "Transcendence and Immortality", Russell Kirkland, The Encyclopedia of Taoism
• Chapter Seven: Later Daoism, Gregory Smits, Topics in Premodern Chinese History
• Immortals and Immortalism, Taoist Culture & Information Centre
• Xian, Encyclopedia of Religion