Essays on Taoism and Taoist Alchemy: Volume 1

This book brings together a collection of studies on the doctrines, practices, and history of Taoism and Taoist alchemy. Based on original Taoist sources, it supports its discussions with a large number of quotations from texts belonging to different schools and historical periods, providing access to the language and ideas of the tradition.

After an introduction to Taoist alchemy, the essays explore the history and methods of Waidan (External Alchemy); the role of Taoist meditation practices in the rise of Neidan (Internal Alchemy); the relationship between Dao, cosmos, and human being; the Taoist ways of liberation; the views of ordinary and inner time in the alchemical traditions; and the teachings of Liu Yiming (1734-1821), one of the greatest Neidan masters.

Combining rigorous reading of texts with attention to their doctrinal and historical backgrounds, these studies explore several key themes in the Taoist paths of self-cultivation.

Additional studies on related topics are collected in Volume 2, available separately.

Contents:

Introduction: The Way of the Golden Elixir

Essays

1. Waidan, or External Alchemy
2. Early Taoist Meditation and the Origins of Internal Alchemy
3. Creation and Its Inversion: Cosmos, Human Being, and Elixir in the Cantong qi (Seal of the Unity of the Three)
4. Form, Formlessness, and Ways of Liberation in Taoism
5. Views of Time in Chinese Alchemy
6. Discriminations in Cultivating the Dao: Liu Yiming (1734-1821) and His Xiuzhen houbian

Appendix: Taoist Alchemy: An Annotated Bibliography

The Author

Fabrizio Pregadio has taught Taoism and related subjects in Italy, the United States, Canada, and Germany. He is the editor of The Encyclopedia of Taoism and the author of Great Clarity: Daoism and Alchemy in Early Medieval China, of Dictionary of Taoist Internal Alchemy, and of The Taoist Tradition: An Introduction to Teachings, Schools, and Practices.