damdao

Or, maybe the poem speaks about the moment and place of springing the one spark of true yang. Maybe you can read in it the body location and the time for practice. Maybe... I will reread the whole work later.

Agreed, I was referring to this meaning. I thought this kind of etymology was common knowledge but I can see it is not (TT surely knows it but choses to twist words) even when either in english as in spanish we say tha a musician is vituous not if he helps people in an earthquake but if he plays an instrument very very well. So,the problem here is not if we translate De as virtue but if we understand virtue merely and only as moral virtue or as a kind of inner power (even carismatic innature). We can add that the latin vir is related to sankrit vīra, hero, vīrya manly strenght from the root vīr to be powerful. About Barnwell being anamateur, well, this is partly ad hominem, I said tha analysis is good. "Other translations/glosses have been offered, such as Power, Potency, Excellence, Integrity, Nature, Moral Charisma, Kindness, Generosity, Rewards and Gratitude. De has similarities not only with ancient Greek Aretê and Latin Virtus, but also Greek Ethos, Kharis, Kalokagathía, Dunamis, Eunoia, Chrēstotēs and Latin Bonitas, Bonum, Indoles, and Mores. All of these are accurate in some contexts, but there have been misguided attempts by many to choose a single translation or gloss and use it in every single passage, sometimes across numerous texts. This paper argues against such a simplification."

LOL "I learned from a guy called Israel Regardie, who happenned to know some guy called Crowley who in turn learned from an uncle called Mathers..." What a band of acquaintances!!! I second NaturaNaturans.

The meaning of 德 dé is richer and more complex than "virtue" so, what @Antares said is correct, from certain point of view (and alchemy support that view, imo). For those interested in a linguistic analysis here we have a good one https://sino-platonic.org/complete/spp235_de_character_early_China.pdf And, from a philosophical point of view, 德 dé was regarded as the active and creative power of the Dao since the beginning of daoism, not merely as "virtue". For more about this you can read the partial translation of Sima Chengzhen's treatise Daoti Lun or Embodimet of the Dao by Livia Kohn in her The Taoist Experience, page 19. Here is an excerpt: "The Tao is all-pervasive; it transforms all from the beginning. Virtue arises in its following; it completes all beings to their end. They thus appear in birth and the completion of life. In the world, they have two different names, yet fulfilling their activities, they return to the same ancestral ground. They are two and yet always one. They are two and yet always one. Therefore there is no Tao outside of the omnipresence of Virtue. There is no Virtue different from the completion of life through the Tao. They are one and still appear as two. The Tao is found in endless transformation and pervasive omnipresence. Virtue shines forth in the completion of life and in following along. They are always one; they are always two. Two in one, they are all-pervasive. All-pervasive, they can yet be distinguished. Thus their names are the Tao and the Virtue."

It is 养生功 Yangsheng gong and means "Training in Nurturing Life" and it is part of the traditional daoist systems for healing and longevity. It has many schools but always aiming at cultivating and overall wellbeing.

There are postures in the Zhan Zhuang training designed to build qi but they have a lot of requisites (depending on the goal of the posture, stage of training, etc.). The main one being a low stance, the idea behind this is that if you keep the posture long enough you (somewhat) transform marrow from the legs into qi. If you have a dantian you store it there, otherwise it circulates in the system.

Immortals (it is said) are immortals because they have accomplished the fusion of xing (inner natur) and ming (life force) so, probabley there is a huge difference between them and humans, from the point of view of jing and shen too. Regarding the OP, it depends on what your discipline is (qigong, yangshen or neidan). Post heaven jing depends on nourishment so every day you expends and generates it. Preheaven jing is another story but it is said that jing can be replenished.

Regarding best translations: Livia Kohn, for instance The Zhong-Lü System of Internal Alchemy https://threepinespress.com/2020/08/01/the-zhong-lu-system-of-internal-alchemy-2/ or Louis Komjathy too. Extensive translations (not always best, though) Eva Wong The Tao of Health, Longevity, and Immortality: The Teachings of Immortals Chung and Lu Harmonizing Yin and Yang Nourishing the Essence of Life: The Outer, Inner, and Secret Teachings of Taoism Holding Yin, Embracing Yang: Three Taoist Classics on Meditation, Breath Regulation, Sexual Yoga, and the Cir culation of Internal Energy

I don't know if this is what you are looking for, but this references may help you: This first is about karman properly speaking "Between karmic retribution and entwining infusion", Maeda Shigeki in Daoism in History https://books.google.com.ar/books?id=PAUg-Xelo-IC&pg=PA101&lpg=PA101&dq#v=onepage&q&f=false Then, you have another chinese concept of cause and effect, more akin with magia sympathica, and that is 感应 or resonance, response, etc. Huai-nan Tzu: Philosophical Synthesis in Early Han Thought, Charles Le Blanc https://books.google.com.ar/books?id=iWjqAQAAQBAJ&printsec=copyright&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false and the Chapter VI of Huainan Zi that is the source of that concept.

The thing is that the writing of the historical records was commended to his father Sima Tan. As his father could not fullfil the project he finished it. But... he had his setbacks due to political issues, he was even castrated. Although he was confucian (so to say) his adversary were the legalist not the daoists. If I not mistaken, he devised the distinction between philosophical Daoism (Dao Jia) and religiuos Daoism (Dao Jiao). This helped to safeguard the philosophical books such as Daode Jing, Lie Zi, Zhuang Zi and others. Besides, he was who depicted the first emperor as a sadistic tyrant (because he was a legalist ruler). Truth is a little debatable though. So, I think that the reference to Laozi is neither particularly relevant here nor accurate (in the modern sense). It seems to me that he collected traditions and more or less composed a text. His more powerful endeavour was to depict the dynastic system, the characterization of leaders, etc. Political things.

Here we have another translation that matches the first possibility ofered by @Cobie that of a question, it is from The Grand Scribe's Records, volume VII, Nienhauser, ed., Cheng, Lu, Nienhauser and Reynolds, transl.:

Sorry , but I think that you are mistaken. In Classical Chinese more than in Modern Chinese, there are no word classes per se, so position is all important in determining if you are before a verb, a noun or an adjective (or any other class). So, if you change the order you change the meaning, the function and the class, even the pronunciation can change. What it is more free are the coordinations, sometimes you cannot say if it is a word or two words, classical examples are 神仙, 鬼仙 that could be interpreted as two words coordinated or one word.

The modifier comes before the modified, so we can leave aside the meaning "malefic", "deleterious", etc. I think that it could be interpreted as a rhetorical question: "Is he not, perchance, like a dragon?" Implying a "yes" as an answer. I don't know what the OP was asking, but the wording could have a different meaning depending on the context. In a Daoist book, it is something definitely positive. Riding the clouds and winds is a favorite occupation of immortals (maybe alluding to an ethereal quality in their bodies).

If you like Wang Liping system better begin with Nathan Brine books, as Shadow_self said. But, it is always better to have a teacher, either online or in presence (this is better, of course). Regarding the foundational training you may consider the Wuliu Pai lineage.

Welcome to the forum, it is great to have a daoist priest and teacher as you in the forum.