"Sudden enlightenment" in daoism

[Marblehead]

Just as a side-note;  My Daoism prefers "Awareness" as opposed to "Enlightenment".

 

We become aware of the existence of the mountain and never pretend it doesn't exist.

[Marblehead]

  On 1/10/2017 at 9:55 AM, Wells said:

"Valley spirit" imo points towards the empty nature and base (ground) of the mind,

which would make it equivalent with the buddhist term of dharmakaya.

 

I like my Valley Spirit.  I rest with her oftentimes.

[YiYinYiYang]

.

Edited August 13, 2017 by YiYinYiYang

[awaken]

Why are The people who don't know anything about 悟 are talking about 悟?

 

When did 悟 become a knowledge?

 

The people who know 悟 won't attack people in groups.

 

The people who know 悟 won't talk like making a war.

 

The people who know 悟 have a deep feeling and a lot of good chi.

 

Let's see what Chinese talk about 悟，not a Russian.

 

 

 

This part is from ancient Chinese

 

Too difficult to translate for me

 

悟彼蟋蟀唱。——《文选·谢混游西池诗》

慧然独悟。——《素问·八正神明论》 wise , along, 悟，have the wisdom to 悟

 

This book is nai Jin , the oldest Chinese medicine classic, Su-woon

 

 

未悟见出,意不自得。——《后汉书·张酺传》

悟已往之不谏。——晋· 陶渊明《归去来兮辞》悟 the past is not ....

闻而悟之。——明· 刘基《诚意伯刘文成公文集》 listen and 悟 it

悟前狼假寐。——《聊斋志异·狼三则》

悟大光明法。——清· 全祖望《梅花岭记》悟 the method of the big bright

 

----------

 

(3) 又如:觉悟(由迷惑而明白;由模糊而认清);悟心(悟性。对事物理解和分析的能力);悟宗(明了、会通佛理之宗旨);悟悦(因了悟而喜悦);悟理(领会道理);悟物(了悟物理);悟明(了悟真言);悟佛(了悟佛理);悟禅(参悟禅理);悟道参玄(宗教语。领会和推究宗教中玄妙之理)

 

From confused to understand

 

 

 

(4) 觉醒;觉悟。通“寤”。睡醒 [awake]

 

Awake

 

Awareness

 

行事,适有卧厌不悟者,谓此为天所厌邪?——王充《论衡·问孔》

凄凄节序高,寥寥心悟永。——江淹《杂体诗》

怛惊悟兮无闻。——《文选·潘岳·寡妇赋》

(5) 又如:悟觉(觉悟);悟门(觉悟的门径)

(6) 启发;使觉悟 [arouse]

冀悟迷惑之心。——《论衡·对作》

(7) 又如:悟主(使主上觉悟);悟发(启发)

(8) 通“晤”。相对 [meet]

过耳悟目之交。——《潜夫论·明忠》

悟言不如罢,从夕至清朝。——《文选·谢惠连·泛湖归出楼中玩月》

(9) 又如:悟对(聚会)

(10) 通“牾”。抵触 [conflict]

大意无所拂悟,…。——《韩非子》

国无刑罚,则百姓之悟相侵也立见。——《吕氏春秋·荡兵》

人不敢悟视。——《战国策·燕策三》

大忠无所拂悟,辞言无所击排。——《史记·老子韩非列传》

今人卒得鬼刺痱悟,杀雄鸡以傅其心上。——《风俗通议·雄鸡》

 

 

There are a lot of meaning about 悟

 

悟 is not a patent of Buddhism

 

悟 is from ancient China

 

 

The Daoism is from ancient China.

 

Of course, 悟 is a part of the Daoism.

Edited January 10, 2017 by awaken

[awaken]

岐伯曰：請言神。神乎神。耳不聞。目明心開。而志先慧然獨悟。口弗能言。俱視獨見。適若昏。昭然獨明。若風吹云。故曰神。

 

 

Chi-Bo said, please talk about Shen, what Shen is, no hearing, eyes are bright and the heart is open. And willing 志 first , have the wisdom to wu 悟. Can not talk by mouth. All the sight is only seeing. Like dazed, but very clear and bright . Like the wind blowing. This is What Shen is .

 

In nei Jin, we can see wu 悟 is the first step to cultivate.

 

And it described what is Shen.

 

Breathe skills are not always the first step of cultivation in ancient China.

 

Daoist cultivation changes a lot from min dynasty , practicing chi and Mco became the first step of daoist cultivation.

 

Many ancient Chinese cultures changed in the late China.

 

But in the ancient China, daoist cultivation is very different from now.

 

We can see this point from Su-woon.

Edited January 10, 2017 by awaken

[awaken]

頓悟，suddenly wu, is from zhang zon 禪宗

 

In fact, there is no 漸悟 gian-wu in zhang

 

Zhang zon talk about 頓悟 because many people we're mislead by a lot of "methods"

 

Yes, secret methods again.

 

So suddenly wu is wu

 

Zhang zon try to tell people to 悟 your real heart is the first step of cultivation

 

The secret methods are not the first step of cultivation.

 

In daoist, we can see in nei Jin and the preface of 悟真篇 that 悟 is also the first step of cultivation

 

The people who like to chase the secret methods don't think 悟 is the first step and the most important part of cultivation.

Edited January 10, 2017 by awaken

[Wells]

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Edited March 2, 2017 by Wells

[Arkady Shadursky]

  On 1/10/2017 at 12:06 PM, awaken said:

Why are The people who don't know anything about 悟 are talking about 悟?

When did 悟 become a knowledge?

The people who know 悟 won't attack people in groups.

The people who know 悟 won't talk like making a war.

The people who know 悟 have a deep feeling and a lot of good chi.

Let's see what Chinese talk about 悟，not a Russian.

Please calm down, being emotional harms your practice. We just having a friendly discussion here, nothing to worry about

 

Anyway, thank you for your posts. It once again show us 悟 is mostly related to Xing stuff (wise, awake, wisdom, work with heart etc.)

Lets wait for more ideas from fellow members.

 

  On 1/10/2017 at 12:06 PM, awaken said:

This part is from ancient Chinese

 

Too difficult to translate for me

BTW, Just curious how do you study ancient daoist texts then?

 

---

Best Regards,

Arkady

Edited January 10, 2017 by Arkady Shadursky

[SeekerOfHealing]

There is no "mind" here in this description. Dharmakaya is not mind, it's just empty, you can not say that "dharmakaya is that" because is not. If you reach dharmakaya then it will be clear what it is and you could recognize who have this and who do not understand it. You have no idea what dharmakaya is - and if you state it before yourself you will eventually find.

[Antares]

Here is some article about the difference between 

"Immediate" and "Gradual" Realization

and difference between 

  Beizong, or Northern Lineage and Nanzong, or Southern Lineage

 

http://www.goldenelixir.com/jindan/nanzong_beizong.html

 

  Quote

 

The Northern and Southern lineages have performed the historical function of providing Neidan with two exemplary modes of self-cultivation.

Beizong/Quanzhen originally did not include only Neidan among its practices. From the point of view of the history of Neidan, however, its importance consists the establishment of a major type of Neidan self-cultivation. Beizong places emphasis on Xing (one's inner Nature, which is innately perfected), and accordingly focuses on practices meant to purify one's mind ("emptying the mind," "extinguishing the mind," "ending thoughts"). The underlying doctrines make use of Buddhist notions and terms — in particular, of the doctrine of "seeing one's Nature" (jianxing).

The Nanzong mode of cultivation, instead, places initial emphasis on Ming (one's life as an individual being, including one's "destiny" or function in existence as a whole, and one's endowment of "vital force"), and focuses on practices that intend to compound the Elixir by purifying the main components of the human being: Essence, Breath, and Spirit (jing, qi, shen). These practices follow the sequence Essence → Breath → Spirit → Dao, and consist of a process typically arranged into three main stages, the last of which lies in cultivating one's Xing, or inner Nature. The three main stages are usually called:

(1) "Refining Essence and transmuting it into Breath" (lianjing huaqi) 
(2) "Refining Breath and transmuting it into Spirit" (lianqi huashen) 
(3) "Refining Spirit and returning to Emptiness" (lianshen huanxu)

 

So may be seeing one's Nature" (jianxing) is the right term for enlightenment? 

[Marblehead]

  On 1/10/2017 at 3:32 PM, SeekerOfHealing said:

There is no "mind" here ...

And the True Man (Woman too) has no mind of his/her own.

[YiYinYiYang]

.

Edited August 13, 2017 by YiYinYiYang

[Marblehead]

  On 1/10/2017 at 4:15 PM, YiYinYiYang said:

... that something is left missing.

I have a lot of pieces missing.

[YiYinYiYang]

.

Edited August 13, 2017 by YiYinYiYang

[Wells]

.

Edited March 2, 2017 by Wells

[Wells]

.

Edited March 2, 2017 by Wells

[johndoe2012]

Mind in Dzogchen / Buddhism doesn't mean ordinary mind but I think Wells knows that.

 

Mind = Original Awareness = Original Nature before the conditioning process.

[SeekerOfHealing]

Funny thing, a person talking "oh it's seems incomplete" realize at least first level or even inch of what they are talking about.

[Daeluin]

Sudden enlightenment in daoism? I wonder if it is related to this:

 

  Reveal hidden contents

 

  Quote

 

Opening the Dragon Gate, tl Thomas Cleary

 

Under the protection of the three old wizards, Wang Liping swallowed a grain of "gold elixir" that they had brought from Mount Lao. He took it on an empty stomach, and the "gold pill" gradually melted inside him, permeating his whole body through his circulatory system. The three teachers had him sit crosslegged and commence inner work, using the power of inner exercise to push the liquefied elixir inside his body out to the surface of his skin.

 

The night was very quiet. The abode of the wizards, so far out of the way, was totally silent. Under the dusky light of a lamp, Wang Liping quietly worked, surrounded by his three teachers. The expression on the old wizards' face was most solemn. All three of them and their student were engaged in a sacred task, a grand experiment.

 

Again the mentors tied up Liping's legs with rope to ensure that he remained in a cross-legged position. This was the first time this had happened since he had been cultivating the three realms. He knew the seriousness and gravity of the situation. Based on his present degree of accomplishment, in ordinary situations, under normal conditions, the rope would not have been necessary anymore. Settling his spirit, Liping circulated his inner energy and worked on the method indicated by his teachers, holding firm as hour by hour ticked by.

 

A day passed. As the toxicity in the gold elixir gradually began to act, Wang Liping felt as if his insides were burning. He became dizzy, and his vision blurred. Finally he lost control and collapsed unconscious. Because his legs were tied up, however, he didn't lose his cross-legged position. The Wayfarer of Pure Serenity doused him with cold water to revive him, and helped him up. All three wizards also employed certain techniques to assist their apprentice invisibly. Wang Liping continued to hold on, performing the exercise.

 

The night passed. On the second day, the three wizards saw that Liping's skin had gradually changed colors, from sallow to ruddy to dark. In their judgment, based on their experience, the period of danger had passed. They breathed a sigh of relief.

 

Through the action of the gold elixir, the toxins in Liping's body had been pushed to the surface of the skin; this was what caused the changes in skin color. Liping's life was no longer in danger, but he could not conclude the exercise just yet. If he stopped now, the toxins would crystallize in his skin, causing the hair to fall out all over his body and spoiling the work already done.

 

Although Wang Liping's attainment was already quite profound, after this depletion of inner energy he had reached the limits of his endurance. The burning pain in his gut was gone, but now the skin all over his body was experiencing a variety of inexplicable sensations that were difficult to bear, burning and aching, swelling and itching. He wanted to scratch himself all over, but his mentor told him to keep still and not move at all.

 

Another difficult night passed.

 

On the afternoon of the third day, Liping's body became quite comfortable and relaxed, and the color of his skin went through an extraordinary change. The darkness, ruddiness, and sallowness changed to a healthy rosy white, and each pore became a crystalline point of brilliance, such that his skin glistened under a strong light. The gold elixir had completed its circulation throughout the body and all of it had been ejected. The "energy routes" of Wang Liping's body, from outside to inside, had all opened up freely.

 

After making a careful examination of the youth's condition, the grand master pronounced the results excellent. All of them were so happy they cried and danced about, congratulating each other.

 

Now the old wizards took Wang Liping into the mountains. As they passed through grassy glades into the woods, the evening scenery was extraordinarily beautiful. They decided to do some deep breathing facing the evening sun in the fresh mountain air. The old masters were very much at ease in mind. Liping was at ease too, but now he had an unusual feeling. He no longer needed to use his nose and mouth to breathe as usual; all that was necessary was a slight movement of the abdomen, whereupon the energy of heaven and earth poured into his whole body from all directions through his pores, clear and cool, fluid and easy, thoroughly penetrating. Once the energy was circulating in his body, it seemed as if he had merged with the universe.

 

Making a careful examination of Wang Liping's eyes and skin, the old wizards realized that his body had undergone a fundamental change, inwardly and outwardly. Now they considered conditions ripe to transmit the fourth step of the work to their apprentice, abstention from grain.

 

Wang Liping was unusual from birth in having been naturally vegetarian without even having been taught about it. His diet was plain, consisting of grains and vegetables. Now that Liping had learned some of the techniques of the Spiritual Jewel capacities, he was able to absorb power directly from Nature. His teachers had planted cereals and vegetables around their camp, and their garden yielded enough to sustain them. Sometimes when he was engaged in exercises, moreover, Liping didn't even think of eating for days on end. When his mentor began teaching Liping how to abstain from grain, he got into it gradually, so it wasn't terribly hard. He hadn't realized, however, how much there was to be explained about this practice.

 

---

 

Taoists say there are three harmful morbidities in the human body. One morbidity is attached to material wealth; another is attached to fine flavors; the third is attached to sexual pleasure. Taoists also say there are three parasites in the body: one lives in the brain, one in the chest, and one in the belly. These are also harmful to the human body. The three parasites live on the energy of grain, so if you want to get rid of them it is necessary to stop talking in energy from grain. If you want to destroy the three morbidities, it is also necessary to abstain from grain.

 

The practice of abstention from grain evolved from the ancient Qin dynasty practice of ingesting energy. In his Elegies of Chu, the famous Taoist poet Qu Yuan wrote, "Eating the six energies and drinking the fog, I gargle with the first sunlight and swallow morning mist. Preserving the clarity of spiritual luminosity, vital energy is absorbed and coarse pollution is ejected." Qu Yuan was already practicing energy ingestion when he left court to live a life of freedom.

 

By the end of Han, and on into the Wei and Jin dynasties, the arts of spiritual immortality flourished, so the practices of ingesting energy and abstaining from grain became very popular. There are many references to abstention from grain in the dynastic histories. The chapter "Traditions of Methodology" in Documents of the Latter Han Dynasty says, "Mengjie could ingest date stones and go without eating for five or ten years. He could also freeze his breath and remain immobile as death for as long as a hundred days, or even half a year."

 

In the inner chapters of The Simpleton, it says, "I have seen a number of people who abstained from grain, many of them for as long as two or three years. There bodies were light, their complexions were good, and they could endure wind and cold, heat and humidity. None of them were fat." Also, "There is someone who relies on Life itself, who only ingests energy and has abstained from grain for three years already. He can climb a mountain with a heavy load and never get tired all day. From time to time he practices archery, but he hardly speaks. When he does speak, he won't raise his voice. Questioned about this, he says that when abstaining from grain one should utterly avoid losing one's vitality and wasting one's breath." Nowadays there are still sometimes news reports of people who can do without grain.

 

---

 

The method of grain abstention transmitted by the Dragon Gate wizards to Wang Liping is divided into three successive stages of training.

 

The first step is not eating grains, just consuming enough fruit and vegetables to maintain life.  This practice greatly reduces the burden of the digestive tract and purifies the internal organs; it must be continued for at least two months, preferably longer. While working on this step, Liping went to school and pursued ordinary activities as usual. He used to go off to a densely wooded area rich in flowering plants to do his regular inner exercises at dawn, noon, dusk, and midnight, in order to strengthen the true energy in his internal organs. He carried out this step in ninety-eight days, just over three months. Afterward he felt physically comfortable and mentally clear.

 

The second step is fasting, or abstention from all food, just drinking a cup of cool water in the morning and evening. When practicing this exercise, there is no filth in the body; there is hardly even any urine. With the mind already clean, the body is purified. One only exchanges true energy with Nature, feeling as if the body has been put in a totally different realm. Wang Liping persevered in this exercise for more than fifty days.

 

After completing the first two steps, Wang Liping's body had a rosy glow and a crystalline sheen, as if he had just come from a bath; his spirit was clear, his mood refreshed, thoroughly clarified from inside out. The old wizards were overjoyed to see him like a reborn infant, having refined his flesh and blood into a body pure as ice and jade, cleared of years of accumulated worldly pollution. They had spent four years of total devotion to raising this resplendent flower, completely absorbed in carving and polishing a raw jade into a gem.

 

Liping was now ready for the third step, "suspended animation." The day they started this step, the wizards told Liping, "Just sit here without rising, and without even drinking water. Just do the inner work properly."

 

At this time, it was autumn of the year 1966, when turmoil arose throughout China. The Dragon Gate wizards and their apprentice paid no mind to the unrest, but they made more urgent use of what time they had to practice their exercises. Every day at dawn, noontime, and in the evening, a mentor poured some pure water on the floor to humidify the air in the room somewhat. Wang Liping was supposed to moisten his whole body with this little bit of water vapor, while using true energy to sustain his life. Both mentors took turns watching over him.

 

One day passed, then another. A third day passed, then a fourth and a fifth. Liping sat like a stone statue, completely immobile, his mind as still as death. The sun, moon, stars, and planets; the mountains, rivers, lakes, and seas; the flowers, plants, and trees; his parents and siblings, his teachers and classmates, the grand master and the mentors; the four seasons; day and night; north and south; up and down; right and left; heat and warmth, cold and cool, birth, old age, sickness, and death; joy and sorrow, sourness, sweetness, bitterness, and piquancy -- everything he had ever seen, heard, felt, or imagined in his life in this world disappeared from Liping's brain and body. In a state of profound abstraction, he gradually lost all sense of himself. There was no more time and space; all was empty, utterly void.

 

Ten days passed. Wang Liping remained stable. Seeing his complexion rosy and moist, and noting that the other changes in his body were right, the grand master and the mentors were much relieved. The two mentors still took turns pouring the water on the floor every day and watching over the youth.

 

Fifteen days passed.

 

Twenty days passed.

 

Wang Liping seemed completely normal; he sat there quietly like an immortal, mentally and physically calm and composed. The three wizards observed him carefully.

 

The twenty-fifth day passed. That night, there was a fierce rainstorm, with lightning and thunder. The wizards hurriedly shut the windows; aware of the emergence of an abnormal condition, they changed into Taoist garb, took up ritual swords, burned incense, and performed a rite. The senior master conveyed a spiritual message to Liping: "Since ancient times the Transmitters of our Dragon Gate sect of Complete Reality Taoism have sought the Way with their minds and accepted the Way with their bodies. Fasting and suspended animation is the border pass between life and death. As a Transmitter of the Dragon Gate sect, you should do as our ancestral teachers did, and put life and death out of your mind, and do not distort your own future."

 

In a trance, Wang Liping saw a vision of a realized man instructing him. Remembering everything, he continued to sit silently, spirit and soul clinging to their abode.

 

The twenty-sixth day passed.

 

The twenty-seventh day passed.

 

The twenty-eighth day passed. It stormed again that night, with frightening ferocity. In the mountain shack there was only a dim lamp. The atmosphere was tense; the three wizards surrounded Liping, ritual swords in hand, totally oblivious to the roar.

 

Suddenly the lamp flickered. Wang Liping slowly toppled and collapsed; his legs unlocked and stretched out, and both hands lay limply at his sides. He looked completely calm, not stirring at all.

 

The wizards checked on Liping's pulse and respiration; both had stopped. They knew he was dead. Immediately they sat in a battlefront formation, held their precious swords upright, and performed an esoteric rite. the grand master first caused the wind and rain to stop in the area, and saw to it that the spirits did not interfere; he also forbade pure yin entities from approaching. The two younger masters both exercised their extraordinary arts to create a protective seal around Wang Liping's body. The three wizards worked unremittingly, keeping careful watch day and night.

 

Earlier on, the grand master had placed a memorial tablet for Wang Liping by the memorial tablets of the ancestral teachers, burning incense before it on an altar in a traditional gesture of respect for the dead.

 

As for Liping himself, after fasting and entering suspended animation, he felt all was void; subsequently even the feeling itself disappeared. His body had suddenly begun to float, and he was no longer aware of anything familiar in his daily life. Although he had just been through an excruciatingly painful experience, it had already faded from his memory. Now he just felt lightness and plenitude, extremely comfortable.

 

In an instant, there was absolute blackness all around, empty and silent, vacant and cold. Feeling he was about to plunge into an abyss, Liping began to struggle desperately, as if to climb out, but he could find no handhold or foothold; he was powerless as a floating strand of thread.

 

Then, all of a sudden, a dazzling brilliance appeared. Seeing it was an open road, radiant with light, Liping began to follow it. Breezing airily along, all he could see were green mountains on both sides of the road, with rushing valley streams and masses of aromatic grasses and fragrant flowers. The scene was thoroughly tranquil, clear, and fresh, without a trace of worldliness.

 

Wang Liping had no idea where he was going. Suddenly he saw a number of people on the road, coming toward him. All of them were dressed in old-fashioned clothing and were very proper in manner. They greeted Liping smilingly. The one who seemed to be the eldest, an old man with flowing silver sideburns, came up smiling and took Wang Liping by the hand, leading him to a cluster of houses in the shade of a mountainside wood. All the houses were simple and clean. The elder led Liping into a room and indicated that he should sit down. The others in the group filed in courteously, taking their seats in an orderly manner.

 

Now the elder had people bring tea and wild fruit for Wang Liping. Liping didn't refuse, thinking to himself that this was just what he wanted. He held up the cup and drank, but he got no feeling of warmth or coolness, only a sense of fragrance bathing his lungs and chest. Then he picked up a piece of fruit and ate it. He heard no sound, but only sensed the freshness and fineness of the flavor enriching his spleen and moistening his liver.

 

Everyone was delighted to see Wang Liping so frisky, but the elder seemed to have something on his mind. "Your life has a long way to go yet," he finally said to Liping. "Why are you here now?"

 

Wang Liping didn't understand what the old man meant. He just kept gobbling up fruit, totally absorbed. Seeing that Liping didn't answer, the old man didn't ask again. Instead he began to introduce everyone, beginning with himself.

 

The moment he heard the old man explain that he was Liping's own ancestral forefather, Wang Liping put the fruit down and immediately bowed to him in respect. The others, it turned out, were some of his ancestors. He also paid respects to them one by one.

 

Wang Liping realized that he was still young. Here he was roaming around visiting the homes of his ancestors and relatives, and even the homes of their friends, as if he already knew them. How could he have ever seen his ancestors before? Now that he was seeing them, he was happy without consciously realizing why. Liping had been cultivating refinement for several years, his nature was free, and he had now reached this splendid resort. But how could he have ever seen it in the past? In this realm not only was the scenery beautiful and elegant; the human relations were also very fine, and the organization of the settlements was orderly, with nice buildings and houses. People were all sitting at leisure, conversing or playing chess.

 

Liping had no idea how much time passed. All he sensed was having interacted with numerous people and having learned many things from them. In terms of terrestrial time, his experience was equivalent to several decades in our world.

 

The only things that Want Liping couldn't understand during this time were that no one worked, no one fought or held grudges; and even though he spent quite a long time there, he never noticed any births or deaths, nor did he see any sickness or aging. This was all quite strange to him.

 

Now one day as Liping was watching a couple of elders playing chess under an enormous ping tree on the mountainside, the eldest ancestor suddenly showed up, took him by the hand, and said, "You have to go back. You can't stay here too long." Then a bunch of people came and escorted Liping back to the luminous road and bade him farewell.

 

In the darkness, Liping heard an insistent rustling by his ear, and his physical sensations gradually returned. Slowly opening his eyes, in the dimness of the lamplight in the room he saw the three Dragon Gate wizards sitting stock still, the pale shine of their ritual swords glimmering. Realizing he was still inside the room, Liping hurriedly sat up. The whole experience seemed like one long dream.

 

Seeing him revive, the wizards stopped their inner work and rose to bow to the sky. Then they embraced Liping, weeping with joy and relief.

 

Only when he had heard his three teachers relate what had transpired did Liping know that he had been in suspended animation for twenty-eight days, and then had been dead for three days and three nights, during which time the three wizards had all kept up a relentless, exhausting vigil over him.

 

As he listened to their story, Wang Liping wept until tears streamed from his eyes.

 

 

 

6

 

Returning to Life

After Death

 

Having fought a life-and-death battle for days on end, and having finally won complete victory, the wizards and their apprentice sank into a complex mixture of feelings -- hardship and toil, happiness and rejoicing, fatigue and relaxation.

 

The Wayfarer of the Infinite was the first to dry his eyes. He personally ladled out a cup of hot water and gave it to Wang Liping to drink. Immediately Liping felt refreshed and relaxed. The old masters also drank hot water to help their bodies recover from their ordeal.

 

Now the Wayfarer of the Infinite took Wang Liping to a makeshift altar and had him kneel before it in respect to the ancestral teachers. When he rose, the Wayfarer said to him, "See what's written on this particular memorial tablet," indicating one of the markers on the altar.

 

Taking a close look, Liping found the tablet was inscribed with these words:

 

IN MEMORIAM

WANG YONGSHENG

"LINGLINGZI"

EIGHTEENTH GENERATION TRANSMITTER

DRAGON GATE BRANCH

COMPLETE REALITY PATH

 

Seeing this, Wang Liping couldn't help being startled -- now he realized he had died. When he thought back to what he had just experienced, it all seemed as if it were still right there before his eyes. When he told his teachers what had happened, they all nodded in affirmation. All of them had been through the same thing.

 

Later, in his adulthood, Master Wang Liping described his experience to us in these terms: "This was the most unforgettable experience of my life. It was so real that there is no way to forget it. People living in the world all know there is birth and there is death, but people have no way to remember what it felt like to be born, and only the dead have personally experienced what it feels like at the moment of death, and what it is like after death. When people die, though, they don't come back to life, so they can't tell you about the experience of death.

 

"Birth and death are critical stages in human life, but still little research has been done in this area by modern science. Taoist culture has done quite a bit of research and accumulated a lot of literature on the subject; but there is no way to apply this literature usefully without a change in mode of thought, and so no way to pursue deep investigation of this critical issue.

 

"I myself am a man who has died several times, and this first experience made me come to an understanding of a number of questions. In terms of the questions of time and space as usually considered, for example, my knowledge became quite unlike that of ordinary people. This established a stable basis for my later Taoist studies."

 

Master Wang Liping also said of his unforgettable experience: "The moment of death was certainly extremely painful; even when I tried to break free, I had no strength whatsoever. Had I had any strength, of course, I wouldn't have been dying.

 

This sensation, however, very soon disappeared, followed by a rapid flow of time in reverse and a corresponding transformation of space. Everything I ever experienced, whether I had remembered it or not, now appeared before me. Finally someone came and led me to a completely unfamiliar place, with very beautiful scenery, where I met deceased relatives. In three days of terrestrial time, I spent several decades there. After reviving, I clearly remembered the things I learned there. I had never seen the old folks there before, but when I described them to my parents, they confirmed their identities. My father and mother were also amazed, because that showed I had actually seen those people and wasn't making it up."

 

---

 

After returning to life, Wang Liping's mind was clear, yet he was in a sort of a trance. Looking around, he found his room small and dark -- where is there room for people to live? How boring! Then he thought about the vast masses of humanity all in this enormous yet tiny space, working all day for a living, struggling for their future, exhausting their vital energy. What are they to do? Boring!

 

Seeing this seventeen-year-old youth in a daze, quite different from before, the three wizards knew the reason. He had already understood certain things and realized certain truths. The Wayfarer of the Infinite said to him, "Now you are a different person; the former you has died. The person who died turned sincerely to the Way and tried the Way with his own being, without hesitation or fear. He was, however, still a denizen of the lower three realms; the work he left unfinished is up to you to bring to completion, so you should proceed bravely into the middle three realms."

 

Wang Liping understood the old master's admonition, but his emotional state was still unsettled for the time being. Perhaps too much of the true energy in his body had been expended in the last half year; though he had been reborn and "changed his bones," his constitution was still weak, and he was somewhat prone to depression.

 

It was a late autumn night; the cold wind blew Liping's shirt open and tousled his hair. Paying no mind, the youth wandered aimlessly. It was extremely dark and cloudy; Liping had no idea where he was going, nor did he care. He walked into a frigid valley stream, wetting his clothes to the waist. Unminding, he just walked on. Liping had no sense of fear; life and death were no different to him.

 

Rain began to fall, thoroughly soaking and chilling the youth. What a thrill! Finally he wound up lying down in the grass and falling into a deep sleep.

 

In the course of human life, in the struggle to reach the goals they have set for themselves, people may exhaust the energy of half a lifetime, only to feel, when they have reached their goal, a sense of anticlimax. Everyone has this kind of experience, and in this Wang Liping was no exception. He had traveled even further than most people on the road of life; he had gone beyond time; he had gone through death, had seen many things that cannot be seen in the human world, and then had returned. Nothing could fool him anymore, so he had even more right than most people to feel a sense of anticlimax, a sense of the  limitations of human life.

 

Wang Liping was no a living dead man. He was alive, yet he had died; he was dead yet still living. Only seventeen years old, he had just gone through a heart-wrenching life-and-death struggle; he had died and then returned to life. Now that he had shared the joy of his victory with his teachers, things settled down; back in ordinary life, he had only one thought, a dislike for this humdrum existence, a feeling of disinterest and ennui.

 

Wang Liping was beginning the fifth stage of his Taoist training, that of the "living dead."

 

Having gone through it themselves, the master wizards knew that the stage of the "living dead" is psychologically very painful, and one needs some time to gain strength. So they generally kept close by and slowly helped their apprentice shape up.

 

For the next two months, Liping was like a different person. He hardly talked, and his behavior was not as usual; a bystander might have thought him somewhat mad. Winter had arrived, the trees were bare, and the wind was cold; Liping wandered around in a ragged old jacket, not even buttoning up. The whole country was in turmoil, and everyday life had already lost its normal order; people watched out ofr themselves, and no one thought anything of it when they saw Wang Liping in such a state. People had all they could do to look out for themselves; they asked after others as little as possible.

 

Wang Liping had no idea where he was going; sometimes he'd sit by the road, or under the eaves of a house, and simply cry, weeping piteously. Sometimes he'd go back home and not speak a word. When asked a question, he'd speak in such a disjointed manner that no one could make heads or tails of what he was saying.

 

On one occasion during this period, when Liping's mother sent him out to buy some oil, he went out and got on the bus without buying a ticket. Seeing the youth's ragged appearance and eccentric air, the ticket taker kept an eye on him. Finally, after going round and round on the bus route, Liping came back  and got off at a little grocery store not far from his home. In front of the store there was a long, long line of people waiting to purchase their ration of oil. Liping walked right to the head of the line, as if he didn't even see the other people waiting, and said he wanted to buy some oil. People who had been in line for half the day got upset and began to tussle with him; a civil patrol guard standing nearby tried to take him away, but Liping refused to go. When the guard brandished a gun at him, this emboldened the youth even further. Striking his chest with his oil jar, Liping cried, "Go ahead and shoot! Shoot me right here! Rebel or right, dead or alive -- it's all the same to me!"

 

Seeing him in this state, the people didn't contend with him anymore, but just let him buy his oil and get out of there, to avoid provoking an incident.

 

As for Wang Liping, he again went off somewhere in a melancholy moon for half the day. When he got home, and his mother asked where the oil was, he couldn't say. It was as though he'd never been sent on the errand at all.

 

Liping's mother found it very trying to see her son in such a state. She went to find the "old doctors" to ask them what caused it and to have them cure him. Zhang Hodao, the grand master, laughted and said, "The boy is fine. He's not ill. 'Who can become a spiritual immortal without going mad?' Your son is destined for greatness, so put your mind at ease." Trusting in what the old man said, Mother Wang let Liping do as he wished.

 

The strange thing was that even though Wang Liping spent the days wandering around aimlessly, still he went to visit the old wizards regularly every day. And every day the wizards had him pay respects to the memorial tablet of Wang Yongsheng -- himself, that is -- seeking help.  Liping didn't understand why he had to bow to himself and seek his own aid; after all, he was dead and yet still alive.

 

Seeing he didn't understand, the Wayfarer of Pure Emptiness told Liping, "You are a living dead man. Though alive, you are dead. Yet though dead, you are alive. Now you are not the same as other people. Now all you need in this world is a bowl of food to eat. The rest is all extra. Understand?"

 

This made no sense to Liping, so the Wayfarer had to guide him patiently. "There are three realms in this world," he began. "After death, some people go to the lower realm; some go to the higher realm. The higher realm is a thousand times better than the lower realm. If you want to go to the upper realm, you'll have to work hard at further training and refinement. Later you'll understand all this on your own."

 

Although he couldn't get over a feeling of upset, Wang Liping continued to follow his teachers' instructions, paying respects to his own memorial tablet every single day.

 

One day, after Liping had finished the usual rite before his memorial tablet, the grand master sat him down and talked to him about the training of their spiritual ancestor Chongyang, hoping thereby to inspire an awakening in the youth.

 

The old wizard related, "Master Chongyang was forty-eight years old when he was initiated by Master Chunyang. The next year, he met another realized immortal, who transmitted several esoteric works to him. Now he began to cultivate refinement seriously. After a year, he dug a grave, raised a mound, and hung up a tablet on which he had written his own name: 'In Memoriam: Mr. Wang.' Then he took up residence in the grave, which was over ten feet deep, living in it for more than two years. He personally composed a number of verses entitled 'Living Dead Man' to commemorate this event." Then the old master recited a few of the poems.

 

A living dead man, Wang Che's strange;

Rivers and clouds are a special happy harmony.

His Taoist name is Chongyang,

His joking name is Buried in the Ground.

 

The entry of the road to life is not forgotten,

but on interment it's necessary to hang up a tablet.

This is not to delude people for profit,

But to make them aware

assemblage is followed by dismissal.

 

Living dead man, living dead man!

Finding death in life is a good cause.

In the grave is peace and quiet,

true emptiness and calm,

Quite apart from the dust

of the ordinary world.

 

There is a free man roaming;

Simple, natural, he alone knows why.

Minding the spirit, nurturing energy,

keeping true essence complete,

His material body temporarily

mixes with the world.

 

Humanity can spread the Way,

the Way is close to humanity;

The Way of humankind has always

been the highest cause.

If you make the dark clouds all recede,

You free the mind-moon to shine

on this complex world.

 

Who knows this man in a grave?

He goes along with how things are,

Neither artificial nor contrived.

White clouds take him

along with wind and moon;

Shedding material toils,

he leaves the dust of the world.

 

The old wizard went on, "Master Chongyang's verses are very deep in meaning, very clear in expression. Now that you are a living dead man yourself, you should understand what he meant."

 

With these instructions, Wang Liping suddenly woke up; immediately he bowed in thanks to the wizards for teaching him the Way. Renewing his commitment, Liping began a whole new life, continuing his upward ascent.

 

 

7

 

Practicing

the Way

 

The sixth step of Wang Liping's training was called "practicing the Way." Although he had already been studying the Way for four years, had firmly established the basic foundation, and had accomplished something in both inner and outer work, nevertheless Liping had still only accomplished the attainments of an ordinary mortal. Anyone can learn to master these practices, provided they use the proper method and do the work consistently.

 

Wang Liping's learning of the Way was, however, superior to that of ordinary people in two respects. For one thing, he was learning the Way while still very young. Wang Liping was naturally bright and pure of heart, an essential condition for Taoist learning. The curriculum of the Dragon Gate branch of Complete Reality Taoism emphasizes twin cultivation of essence [xing] and life [ming], employing both inner and outer exercises, but especially valuing cultivation of inner work. "Repentance" and "gathering the mind to nurture essential nature" are both practices for cultivation of essence [xing], requiring considerable time and energy to establish a good foundation. Even these two steps are hard for most people to master, but Wang Liping had accomplished both very thoroughly.

 

The second condition favoring Liping's Taoist learning was the fact that he was personally instructed by enlightened masters. All three of his teachers were highly experienced and very accomplished. The opportunity to transmit the knowledge and arts of three wizards to one individual is very rare in the history of Taoism. Lacking these conditions, most people would not be able to accomplish the preliminaries to fasting in just a few years.

 

These attainments, however, are no more than preparatory stages for even higher work. Having gone through death, Wang Liping was now a new person, and the wizards were ready to give him a new curriculum.

 

On the second day of this new phase of study, seeing Liping outwardly crazed but now inwardly sober, the grand master told him, "When you have gone through the border pass of life and death, you have shed ordinary limitations, but you are still quite far from the Way.

 

"The Way is divided into three vehicles. You should start practice from the lower vehicle, progress from the lower to the middle, and from the middle to the higher, advancing step by step. Only thus can you achieve great success.

 

"Many people practicing the Way do it in the morning but then change their minds at night; they do it while sitting but then forget it when they stand up, enjoying it momentarily but tiring of it in the long run, starting out diligently but winding up slacking off lazily. their learning is not clear, their work is not earnest, their hearts are not calm, and their spirits are not true. Although they study for years, after all they do not attain; and yet they say the Great Way has turned away from humanity. In reality, it is not that the Great Way turns away from anyone; but people themselves turn their own backs on the Way."

 

Wang Liping listened quietly as the grand master continued.

 

"Master Chongyang dug himself a grave, put life and death out of his mind, and practiced quiet cultivation inside the grave for two years, thus completing the great work. You should go a step higher, again beginning with building the foundation. This is true practice of the Way."

 

The grand master went on to talk to Liping about Chongyang's work Fifteen Statements on the Establishment of a Teaching, discussing several critical passages in considerable detail. This famous document includes the following essays:

 

 

 

The awakening described here seems similar to what is described in other traditions, flash through all memories, transcendence of time and space, life and death, etc. To me it is interesting how detailed the experience is, from a daoist perspective. Extraordinary measures are taken to prepare his body and energy, presumably to make the experience very complete and to avoid dangers from impurities.

[awaken]

Courious, confused, misunderstand, etc

 

I saw a better guess, 見性, Jian-xin

 

勸君門外修身者

端念思維此道心

 

Advise the people who cultivate the body outside

 

Upright the thoughts , the heart of dao

 

From Lu-don-bin

[Sudhamma]

Sudden Enlightenment is the key objective of Tibetan Buddhism. The Historical Buddha, in the suttas, spoke of his numerous rebirths(500) and the practice of Perfections (Paramitas) in the cycle of births before coming to his final birth. In  the Tibetan tradition, the practice requires the total annihilation of karmas in one's current life-time so that there is no more rebirth. An Arhant is a non-Returner. The process of enlightenment requires knowing what is Ignorance, the opposite to being enlightened,  how it (ignorance) can be removed and be replaced with greater wisdom. The Buddha spoke of 7 factors of Enlightenment and can be referred to if you wish to have more information on this fascinating subject on the path to emancipation.

[LaoZiDao]

  On 1/11/2017 at 8:55 AM, Sudhamma said:

Sudden Enlightenment is the key objective of Tibetan Buddhism. The Historical Buddha, in the suttas, spoke of his numerous rebirths(500) and the practice of Perfections (Paramitas) in the cycle of births before coming to his final birth. In the Tibetan tradition, the practice requires the total annihilation of karmas in one's current life-time so that there is no more rebirth. An Arhant is a non-Returner. The process of enlightenment requires knowing what is Ignorance, the opposite to being enlightened, how it (ignorance) can be removed and be replaced with greater wisdom. The Buddha spoke of 7 factors of Enlightenment and can be referred to if you wish to have more information on this fascinating subject on the path to emancipation.

Sure, but it's also important to consider that many Buddhists thought achievement of Yinshen (gui xian) to be escaping the Wheel of Samsara and stopping the rebirth. Which I think is not shedding the karama, it's like permanent death..no rebirth, no chance to achieve Yangsheng. Worse than death even.

[Wells]

.

Edited March 2, 2017 by Wells

[SeekerOfHealing]

  Quote

Sure, but it's also important to consider that many Buddhists thought achievement of Yinshen (gui xian) to be escaping the Wheel of Samsara and stopping the rebirth. Which I think is not shedding the karama, it's like permanent death..no rebirth, no chance to achieve Yangsheng. Worse than death even.

 

You are follower of certain ideas and conceptions without any proof in hand same with those buddhist.

 

Escaping wheel of samsara is not attaining anything. If yangshen would be possibile Buddha would speak about it and way to realize it but yang sheng is not permanent. Entering jhanas you attain yang sheng for X milions of billions of years but then you need to go cultivate further.

[LaoZiDao]

  On 1/11/2017 at 11:23 AM, Wells said:

I doubt that.

Sources?

Hmm it's not doubtful at all. Many Buddhists work with Xing, Xing without Ming, result is a strong Xing, weak Ming, hence why it's possible to release a Yin spirit, because of the Yin state of the body from long time sitting, compare it to dying person..

 

What allows Yin spirit to release and cause death to regular man? Because of weak Ming - i.e. depleted yuanqi)

 

As for sources, how about Zhongliquan.

 

He mentions about it. You can check it in first chapter of Zhong lu chuan dao ji.

 

If I have a moment I'll provide a quote.