Elaborating Correlation with Space–Time in the Daoist Body: Following and Reversing Nature

Abstract

This article examines Daoist ritual and meditative practices, primarily developed between the fourth and twelft centuries, as cosmotechniques: methods for engaging, recalibrating, and occasionally overturning the spatial and temporal order. It first outlines the cosmological framework of the pre-Qin and Qin–Han periods, in which space and time were conceived as correlative and qualitative, forming the grounds of Daoist practice. Daoist foundational practices elaborately aligned with this framework but also introduced subtle disruptions that discover the singular space–time for transformation. Through the investigation of bodily cultivation and communal rituals, this study argues for attention to the performative aspect of Daoist practices, aiming to access and enact alternative space–time, and suggesting a dynamic interplay between alignment and disruption. The study further analyzes internal alchemy and visionary practices that engage in radical reversals of natural rhythms—employing fire, dissolution, and systemic negation to reconfigure cosmic flow. As shown here, Daoist practice is not merely contemplative but performative, reconstituting space–time and body. Though not articulated in ecological terms, such practices demonstrate ways of modeling and modulating lifeworlds attuned to the rhythms of nature—pointing to the possibility of reshaping life under unplugged conditions.

1. Rethinking Daoist Nature

It has been continuously emphasized in Daoist studies that Daoism envisions a resonance between the microcosm and the macrocosm, situating human life as part of an organic continuum within the natural world. Unsurprisingly, many scholars have drawn attention to the ecological implications of Daoism. The Center for the Study of World Religions at Harvard University, under the direction of Mary Evelyn Tucker and John Grim, launched a project exploring the relationship between religions around the world and ecology, reexamining worldviews and ethics. As part of this scholarly initiative, the 1993 symposium on “Daoism and Ecology” was held and bore fruit in the publication (Girardot et al. 2001). Approaches and interpretations, however, have varied widely. At one end of the spectrum, Russell Kirkland cautioned that ecological or salvific readings of Daoist texts may be misleading and fundamentally incompatible with the classical Daoist rejection of interventionist ethics (Kirkland 2001, pp. 292–93). At the other end, James Miller proposed that Daoist cosmology offers alternative frameworks capable of reshaping ecological thought (Miller 2001, pp. 358, 359, 407; Miller 2017). Taking one step further, the Chinese Daoist Association issued a declaration on global ecology and called for ecological activism (Zhang 2001).

Advocating for Daoist ecology or issuing a call to action is beyond the scope of this study. However, revisiting Daoism amid today’s climate crisis presents a meaningful turning point. In 2009, more than a decade after the Daoism and Ecology symposium, the United Nations launched the “Harmony with Nature” program and incorporated ecological and environmental concerns into the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015. Yet, from the perspective of Daoist textual scholarship, the phrase “Harmony with Nature” sounds inadequate or misleading. While the program aims to move beyond anthropocentrism, the term nature still refers to the non-human as an objectified external environment; alternatively, it refers to entities such as mountains, rivers, and organisms, which are recognized as legal subjects. This is precisely where a rupture exists between modern ecological discourse and premodern East Asian conceptions that are commonly translated as ‘nature’ (ziran 自然).

In the context of the Laozi 老子 and broader Daoist thought, including the so-called philosophical Daoism and the later religious Daoism, ziran, is performative and adjectival rather than a noun denoting objectified natural things. It means a mode of being and doing ‘so of itself.’ From this perspective, the phrase ‘Harmony with Natures’ more aptly captures the plurality and dynamism of ziran—encompassing not only the tendencies of non-human beings, both animate and inanimate, but also the evolving nature of the human itself, including its civilizational and technological transformations.

If each existence manifests its own ziran—its own inherent way of being and becoming—then the myriad natures of inorganic and organic matter, plants, animals, and humans may align or clash, harmonize or conflict. The whole of diverse natures—the Dao, then—is the dynamic interplay of countless existents, within which life and death, desire and restraint, conflict and peace, construction and destruction all coexist.

From this standpoint, this study focuses on Daoist practices—both individual meditative techniques and communal ritual acts. As Kristopher Schipper and others have shown, the Daoist tradition provides frameworks for living that shape human relationships not only with people in suffering and need, but also with animals, plants, and minerals—foregrounding an integrative vision of interconnectedness that is compatible with ecological concerns. Schipper further emphasized “inner transformation” as a means of overcoming external crises such as environmental degradation (Schipper 2001, pp. 91–92). However, the foundational concepts of space and time on which Daoist transformation is premised have not yet been fully explored.

Focusing on how Daoist practitioners seek to attain unity with the Dao, rituals and visualizations reveal themselves as forms of cosmopraxis or cosmotechnique—methods of engaging with, altering, and rebooting the structure of space and time through a dynamic interplay between alignment and disruption.

In this article, cosmos refers to the totality of space and time as textured by the Chinese numerological system of the ten heavenly stems and twelve earthly branches. The Chinese term yuzhou 宇宙, found in pre-Qin texts such as Zhuangzi 莊子 and Gengsangchu 庚桑楚, is later glossed in the Huainanzi 淮南子 (2nd century BCE) as follows: “The four directions and above and below are called yu; the past and future are called zhou” (四方上下謂之宇, 往古來今謂之宙).1 Yuzhou thus refers the integration of structured spatial dimension (yu) and the flow of temporal sequence (zhou). The emphasis on spatial centrality is significant, insofar as temporal concepts are structured through the concrete, cyclical traversal between spatial loci (Huang and Zürcher 1997; Wu 1997).

Whereas the foundational word for modern ecology, oikos, designates the dwelling of human beings within the system of rational household governance, yuzhou refers to the dwelling of all beings within a system of resonance (ganying 感應) aligned with the expansion and circulation of space and time. The former inclines toward anthropocentric management, the latter toward cosmic attunement.

Such conception of spatiotemporal totality aligns more with the ancient Greek kosmos, introduced by Pythagoras (ca. 572–492 BCE) to describe the universe grounded in numerical order. Rooted in this shared vision, I adopt the term cosmos, allowing Daoist techniques of attuning space–time to be framed as cosmotechniques. The term cosmopraxis refers to a mode of practice that engages with, responds to, and transforms the cosmos, whereas cosmotechnique denotes a more specific, prescribed method characterized by guided procedures. While art may be considered an alternative to technique, the term cosmotechnique is employed here to encompass a set of practices that include artistic self-cultivation, liturgical procedures, and alchemical operations aimed at manipulating the structure of space and time. These practices are characterized by sustained mental focus and the deliberate use of various material and biological substances.

Given the inherently performative characteristic of Daoist scriptures,2 the hierarchical structure of the Daoist Canon served as a guiding map for the progressive embodiment of Daoist worldviews. During the Tang–Song period, the transmission system of scriptures among institutional Daoist priests reflected an officially sanctioned cosmology. While classical texts like the Laozi and Zhuangzi formed a perennial interpretive base,3 full mastery of The Three Caverns (sandong 三洞) of the Daoist Canon—Three Sovereigns (Sanhuang 三皇), Numinous Treasure (Lingbao 靈寶), and Highest Clarity (Shangqing 上清) scriptures—marked the completion of a Daoist adept’s cosmopraxis.

In order to clarify the intention of Daoist practices, this article distinguishes the framework of space and time established during pre-Qin and Qin–Han period, upon which both everyday life and Daoist practices were grounded. The first part analyzes the sinogram-based space–time framework, illustrating that what later came to inform the broader East Asian understanding of ‘natural order’ was itself a culturally elaborated construction in early Chinese thought. The next part explores how foundational Daoist practices align with this framework while simultaneously attempting certain interventions and rectifications. The final part turns to advanced techniques of visualization and internal alchemy, in which Daoist adepts perform a radical inversion of natural rhythms to reset cosmological order.

Framing the question of ‘Daoism and ecology’ entails the risk of reifying the many strands of Daoist lineages into a singular entity imposed to answer modern concerns (Miller 2001, p. 410). This study, too, cannot avoid such a risk, as it seeks to trace a certain flow or tendency by focusing more on how space–time is configured and manipulated within Daoist traditions. Nevertheless, by illustrating the Daoist adept’s practice as a process through which the body—no longer merely an individual or an object—is made to resonate with, and transform spatiotemporal coordinates, this study aims to explore how the Daoist oikos or cosmos is constituted and reconfigured.

2. Engaging the Web of Space and Time

2.1. Elaborating Resonance Systems of the Natural World

This section explores how the signs of ganzhi 干支, known as celestial stems and earthly branches, were conceptualized in ancient China as a fundamental category or representation of space and time, drawing inspiration from seasonal winds and their impact on living phenomena. It traces the development of the sexagenary cycle as a structured space–time framework, which was later integrated into the Yin-Yang 陰陽 and Wuxing 五行 (Five Phases) system. The fundamental premise here is that the rhythm of nature, as perceived through celestial movements, was codified into a universal cosmic order.

While most of Daoist canonical scriptures have a speculation of ‘chaotic oneness’ (huncheng 混成/渾成 in Laozi or hundun 渾沌 in Zhuangzi) as the primordial and ultimate state of being, Daoist practices embraced a structured concept of space and time, deeply rooted in ancient Chinese civilization. One of its most enduring expressions is the sexagesimal system, used to represent cyclical time.

The sexagesimal calendrical system consists of ten stems (shigan 十干) and twelve branches (shier zhi 十二支), derived from temporal and spatial divisions based on celestial orbits. The ten stems—jia 甲, yi 乙, bing 丙, ding 丁, wu 戊, ji 己, geng 庚, xin 辛, ren 壬, and gui 癸—correspond to ten solar days; the twelve branches, also referred to as the twelve constellations (shier chen 十二辰), represent twelve divisions along the celestial equator—as will be discussed later. Since the Shang period (17th–11th century BCE), these stems and branches have been combined to express sixty-days and a system that was originally employed in divination (Figure 1).

The association of the twelve branches with seasonal cycles is further illustrated in The Records of the Grand Historian (Shiji 史記), where the branches are linked to seasonal transformations, encompassing phases of creation, growth, fruition, decline, death, and storage (

Table 1. Seasonal meaning of stems and branches in “Treatise on Tuning”.

Branch 干	Direction and Month	Season	Meaning	Stem 支	Meaning
Hai 亥	NW 10	Winter	[gai] Enclosure (該), Closer (閡), Storage (藏塞)	Ren 壬	[ren] Pregnancy, Entrust (任)
Zi 子	N 11		[zi] Underneath Growth (滋)	Guai 癸	[kui] Estimate (揆)
Chou 丑	12		[niu] Binding, Congestion (紐)
Yin 寅	NE 1	Spring	[yin] Emergence like earthworms (始生螾然).	Jia 甲	Hatch, Sprout (剖符甲而出)
Mao 卯	E 2		[mao] Prosperity, Flourish (茂)	Yi 乙	[yaya] Struggle to be born (軋軋)
Chen 辰	3		[shen/zhen] Lick (of clam’s foot), Vibration (蜄)
Si 巳	SE 4	Summer	[yi] Consumption of Yang qi (陽氣之已盡)	Bing 丙	Shine, Brightness (of Yang way) (陽道著明)
Wu 午	S 5		[jiao/wu] Interaction, Interchange of Yin-Yang (陰陽交/仵)	Ding 丁	Health (丁壯)
Wei 未	6		[wei] Completion, Fruition (萬物皆成, 有滋味)
Shen 申	SW 7	Autumn	[shen] Extension of Yin’s function to injure (陰用事, 申賊萬物)	Geng 庚	Strengthen (by Yin qi) (陰氣庚萬物)
You 酉	W 8		Aging, Senility (老)	Xin 辛	Stab, Renew (辛生)
Xu 戌	9		[mie] Quench, Extinguishment, Dying (滅)

).4

The “Treatise on Tuning” (Lüshu 律書) presents the twelve branches as perceptual markers in connection with the seasonal characteristics of the twelve months and phonetic resonance. Each branch was associated with specific directions of wind and consonantal sounds, regulating the birth and death of living beings:

The Wind of Dictation resides in the Northeast and governs the emergence of myriad beings. … In the first lunar month, the pitch pipe is tuned to the key of “Great Cluster”. … In the twelve branches, it corresponds to yin 寅. The term yin signifies the beginning of life, likened to earthworms (yin 螾) emerging from the soil.

The Wind of Illuminating the Multitude resides in the East, … and illuminates all beings as they come forth. In the second lunar month, the pitch pipe is tuned to the key of “Intermingle and Affection”. … In the twelve branches, it corresponds to mao 卯. The term mao is derived from mao 茂, signifying the flourishing of all beings.

In the system of the ten stems, this period corresponds to jia 甲 and yi 乙. Jia signifies sprouting, as all things break through their shells and emerge. Yi 乙 signifies the struggle of life, as all things push forth with a creaking sound (yaya) as they are born.

(Shiji, pp. 1245–46)

條風居東北, 主出萬物……正月也, 律中泰蔟……其於十二子爲寅. 寅言萬物始生螾然也……明庶風居東方……明衆物盡出也. 二月也, 律中夾鍾……其於十二子爲卯. 卯之爲言茂也, 言萬物茂也……其於十母為甲乙. 甲者, 言萬物剖符甲而出也. 乙者, 言萬物生軋軋也.

These examples highlight the intricate organization of seasonal properties within the stem–branch system, which was originally unrelated to animal symbols or the Yin-Yang and Wuxing taxonomy. Instead, the interpretation of each sign was based on phonetic similarity, reflecting an ancient belief that resonance in sound—produced by identical vibration patterns in the air—creates an intrinsic connection between objects and events. Such associations imply that early space–time notation emerged from sensorial experience and atmospheric attunement rather than from metaphysical taxonomies.

As the different names of the stems and branches suggest, each represents a unique property, yet suggesting all function as specific phases within a continuous fluid—qi 氣, the breath or energy, the universal vital force of all beings. Throughout the fourth to second century BCE, the soft dualism of Yin and Yang—literally meaning the shadowy and sunny sides of a hill—had evolved into the two opposite aspects of qi and permeated cosmology, calendrical science, medicine, and even ethics and theory of human nature. As Yamada Keiji eloquently describes it, Yin and Yang became “principles of ceaseless oscillation occurring within a continuous fluid, encompassing the processes of vaporization, liquefaction, and solidification.” Similarly, Wuxing denotes phases (xiang 相) of transformation that appeared in the different stages of circulation within the continuous qi fluid (K. Yamada 2002, p. 143).

From the Warring States to the early Han dynasty, the stem–branch cycle coordinated with the Yin-Yang and the Five Phases. Works such as the “Records of Twelve Months” (shier ji 十二紀) in The Spring and Autumn Annals of Master Lü (Lüshi Chunqiu 呂氏春秋), the “Monthly Decrees” (Yueling 月令) in The Records of Rites (Liji 禮記), and the “Teachings on Celestial Patterns” (Tianwen xun 天文訓) in The Master of Huainan, illustrate how the phases of seasonal qi were incorporated into the Yin-Yang and the Five Phases system.

For instance, the first and second stems, jia and yi, were classified as wood, with jia representing the Yang and yi the Yin. The overarching synthesis of the stems, branches, Yin-Yang, Five Phases, directions, and numerology is detailed in Xiao Ji 蕭吉 (fl. 529–614)’s Great Meanings of the Five Phases (Wuxing dayi 五行大義) (

Table 2. Association of the stem–branch with Yin-Yang and Five Phases (Wuxing dayi 1:31).

Five Phases	Wood		Fire		Earth		Metal		Water
Yin-Yang	Yang	Yin	Yang	Yin	Yang	Yin	Yang	Yin	Yang	Yin
Ten Stems	Jia 甲	Yi 乙	Bing 丙	Ding 丁	Wu 戊	Ji 己	Geng 庚	Xin 辛	Ren 壬	Gui 癸
Twelve Branches	Yin 寅	Mao 卯	Si 巳	Wu 午	Chen 辰 Xu 戌	Chou 丑 Wei 未	Shen 申	You 酉	Hai 亥	Zi 子

).

The Five Phases of qi, marked by the interplay of Yin and Yang, are deeply entwined with space and time—five directions and seasonal properties, making all beings responsive to temporal–spatial changes. Under this web of space and time, the rhythm of the seasons—generated by the waxing and waning of Yin and Yang—was understood as a universal principle governing birth and extinction: at the winter solstice, when nights are longest, Yang qi withdraws underground in preparation for renewal; at the summer solstice, when daylight peaks, Yin qi begins to rise, initiating decline.

This conception also permeated medical theory, which shared the same foundation of resonance between heaven and the human body (K. Yamada 1999, pp. 364–69). Medical texts from the Han period such as The Materia Medica (Bencao 本草) and The Simple Questions (Suwen 素問) elaborated a resonance system between mind–body processes and seasonal climate. The latter states: “Heaven has the four seasons and five phases, through which arise birth, growth, harvest, and storage, and through which cold, heat, dryness, dampness, and wind are generated. The human body has five internal organs that transform the five qi (as emotions), generating joy, anger, sorrow, worry, and fear. Thus, emotions such as joy and anger injure the internal qi, while climatic conditions such as cold and heat injure the physical form. Sudden rage harms yin, and sudden joy harms yang.”5

2.2. Celestial Markers and the Formation of Space–Time Concepts

Within this framework, qi functions as a link between seasonal shifts and biological life, spanning both terrestrial and celestial realms. The cyclical conception of time is closely tied to astronomical patterns observed in the Northern Hemisphere. Two key celestial markers—Jupiter’s orbit and the Northern Dipper—helped shape ancient East Asian space–time concepts.

Jupiter and its symmetrical counterpoint Taisui 太歲 divide its orbit in the celestial sphere equally with the twelve branches, because their revolution around the sun takes approximately twelve years. Thus, the twelve branches also serve as the signs of the space-division. The third-century natural thinker Yang Quan 楊泉 summarized in his “Discussion on the Patterns of Things” (Wuli lun 物理論), “[Because] Jupiter moves to the one position [per year], we call it the year star (suixing 歲星). In twelve years, the star completes one cycle on the celestial sphere.”6

Meanwhile, the Dipper functioned as a seasonal compass: its handle pointed to the East in spring equinox, the South in summer solstice, the West in autumn equinox, and the North in winter solstice. This coincidence made the Dipper the seasonal clock and compass in the middle of night sky.7 This led to imagine its Seven Stars as the chariot of Heavenly Thearch as well as the tool to create four seasons. The Huinanzi states, “The Thearch unfolds four directions, turning them with the Dipper. The Dipper moves one chen (30 degrees) per month and returns its place [where it started].”8 The “Treatise on the Celestial Administrators” (Tianguan shu 天官書) also describes, “The Dipper serves as the chariot of the Thearch, moving at the center and governing the four directions. It divides Yin and Yang, establishes the four seasons, balances the Five Phases, shifts seasonal transitions, determines various cycles, and all regulations are linked to the Dipper.”9

These celestial markers as clock-compass reinforcing the belief that space–time were woven together in a continuum of qi. However, unlike modern conceptions of time as uniform and quantitative, each phase or node in this continuum was qualitatively distinct. No moment repeated itself identically. Time–space was not measured in fixed units but experienced as a shifting texture of vital influences. Thus, life itself was understood as a body intricately shaped by, and responsive to, the dynamic qualities of this qi-infused continuum.

As a consequence, the idea that human activities should be attuned to the qi configuration of time was thoroughly embedded in everyday life. A large body of archaeological evidence—including the Date Books (rishu 日書)—demonstrate that everyday actions such as marriage, moving, travel, legal, and military decisions were expected to align with auspicious days and hours determined by the combination of stems and branches. During the Qin period (221–207 BCE), local administrators relied on the Date Books for carrying out their official functions, and it gradually become a standard manual for bureaucratic practice (Harper 2009; Ebine 2017). Aligning with qi-configured moments was not a matter of superstition but normative timekeeping.

The stem–branch system and the Yin-Yang and Five Phase correlations offered a shared cosmological logic across early East Asian traditions. The above section clarified its structures while setting the stage for analyzing how Daoist practices uniquely reconfigured this temporal–spatial matrix.

3. Daoist Practices Aligned with the Natural Rhythm

3.1. Ritual Protocols and the Discovery of Singularity

The codified system of cyclical time and cosmological resonance served not only as an abstract framework but also provided the operational basis for Daoist ritual and practice. Given the Daoist premise that the human body is embedded in a cosmic continuum of qi, aligning ritual activity with the seasonal movement of qi was essential for accessing divine power and ensuring successful communication with the celestial realm.

Daoist masters and practitioners, inheriting the framework of the Han dynasty, believed that the transmission of Daoist scriptures and the performance of related practices should accord with the patterns of time.

Ge Hong 葛洪 (283–364 CE) emphasized that transmitting Daoist scriptures—particularly those concerning alchemical elixirs—to an unworthy recipient could prevent the successful completion of the elixir and obstruct its divine efficacy. He also stressed that the transmission of Daoist scriptures, as well as the entire process of selecting, preparing, and consuming the medicinal ingredients used in alchemy, must take place on specific, auspicious days. He wrote, “one should take it (the elixir) on a day of wangxiang 王相 (King or Minister, i.e., flourishing or administrating).”10 When receiving the formula of practice, Ge Hong states, “each transmission includes written instructions. One must sip the blood of a white sacrificial animal and receive it on a day of King or Minister.”11 When collecting the minerals and fungus for the immortal medicine, “One must select a day of King or Minister, conduct a ritual offering with wine and dried meat, pray, and then harvest it.”12 In short, the days of wangxiang refer to times when the practitioner’s environment or personal life force (qi) is at its peak and supported by favorable cosmic alignments.

In relation to Daoist ritual practice, a system of divinatory date selection was developed to guide practitioners in choosing the proper time and place. Among the extant date-selection texts preserved in the Daoist Canon, the oldest is Almanac for Petitions of Master Red Pine (Chisongzi zhangli 赤松子章曆). This collection of Daoist manual prescribes the appropriate dates and times for the ritual of Ascending Petitions (shangzhang 上章), in which Daoist masters submit prayers to celestial authorities (Verellen 2004; Kim 2019a).

In performing Ascending Petitions, the compatibility of space and time was considered crucial. It was believed that there were specific times when a petition could successfully reach the deities of the celestial realm—and times when it could not. The text specifies the “hours when the celestial gate is open” (tianmen kaishi 天門開時), allowing petitions from the earthly realm to ascend to heaven, and the “hours when the celestial gate is closed” (tianmen bishi 天門閉時), during which submissions are blocked.

According to the text, on the days of Zi, Yin, Chen, Wu, Shen, and Xu, the celestial gate opens during the hours of mao (5–7), si (9–11), wei (13–15), you (17–19), hai (21–23), and chou (1–3). Conversely, the hours of chen (7–9), wu (11–13), shen (15–17), xu (19–21), zi (23–1), and yin (3–5) are considered times when the celestial gate is closed and rituals should not be performed (see

Table 3. The opening and closing hours of celestial gate (Almanac of Master Red Pine, 1: 19a–20a).

Date	Opening Hour of the Celestial Gate (Three Harmonies)	Closing Hour of the Celestial Gate (Three Clashes)
Zi 子	Hai 亥, Mao 卯, Wei 未 Si 巳, You 酉, Chou 丑	Shen 申, Zi 子, Chen 辰 Yin 寅, Wu 午, Xu 戌
Chou 丑	Shen 申, Zi 子, Chen 辰 Yin 寅, Wu 午, Xu 戌	Hai 亥, Mao 卯, Wei 未 Si 巳, You 酉, Chou丑
Yin 寅	Mao 卯, Wei 未, Hai 亥 Si 巳, You 酉, Chou 丑	Mao 卯, Wei 未, Hai 亥 Si 巳, You 酉, Chou 丑
Mao 卯	Shen 申, Zi 子, Chen 辰 Yin 寅, Wu 午, Xu 戌	Hai 亥, Mao 卯, Wei 未 Si 巳, You 酉, Chou 丑
Chen 辰	Mao 卯, Wei 未, Hai 亥 Si 巳, You 酉, Chou 丑	Mao 卯, Wei 未, Hai 亥 Si 巳, You 酉, Chou 丑
Si 巳	Shen 申, Zi 子, Chen 辰 Yin 寅, Wu 午, Xu 戌	Hai 亥, Mao 卯, Wei 未 Si 巳, You 酉, Chou 丑
Wu 午	Mao 卯, Wei 未, Hai 亥 Si 巳, You 酉, Chou 丑	Mao 卯, Wei 未, Hai 亥 Si 巳, You 酉, Chou 丑
Wei 未	Shen 申, Zi 子, Chen 辰 Yin 寅, Wu 午, Xu 戌	Hai 亥, Mao 卯, Wei 未 Si 巳, You 酉, Chou
Shen 申	Mao 卯, Wei 未, Hai 亥 Si 巳, You 酉, Chou 丑	Mao 卯, Wei 未, Hai 亥 Si 巳, You 酉, Chou 丑
You 酉	Shen 申, Zi 子, Chen 辰 Yin 寅, Wu 午, Xu 戌	Hai 亥, Mao 卯, Wei 未 Si 巳, You 酉, Chou 丑
Xu 戌	Mao 卯, Wei 未, Hai 亥 Si 巳, You 酉, Chou 丑	Mao 卯, Wei 未, Hai 亥 Si 巳, You 酉, Chou 丑
Hai 亥	Shen 申, Zi 子, Chen 辰 Yin 寅, Wu 午, Xu 戌	Hai 亥, Mao 卯, Wei 未 Si 巳, You 酉, Chou 丑

).

This temporal system is grounded in the idea of the lifecycle of the Five Phases, articulated through their correlation with the twelve branches. It employs a method of selecting three significant conditions, in which the qi of the Five Phases undergoes the stages of generation (sheng 生), flourishing (wang 王/旺), and burial (miao 墓 or zang 葬). (Kim 2019a, pp. 156–57). Additionally, it adheres to the principle of employing the Three Harmonies (sanhe 三合) while avoiding the Three Clashes (sanchong 三衝) (see

Table 4. The twelve stages in the lifecycle of the Five Phases (Great Meaning of the Five Phases, 2: 50). The shading highlights the set of ‘Three Harmonies’ corresponding to each Five Phase.

Five Phases	Conception 受氣	Embryo 胎	Cultivation 養	Birth 生	Bath 沐浴	Garment 冠帯	Occupation 臨官	Peak 王	Decline 衰	Disease 病	Death 死	Burial 葬
Wood 木	Shen 申	You 酉	Xu 戌	Hai 亥	Zi 子	Chou 丑	Yin 寅	Mao 卯	Chen 辰	Si 巳	Wu 午	Wei 未
Fire 火	Hai 亥	Zi 子	Chou 丑	Yin 寅	Mao 卯	Chen 辰	Si 巳	Wu 午	Wei 未	Shen 申	You 酉	Xu 戌
Earth 土	Hai 亥	Zi 子	Chou 丑	Yin 寅	Mao 卯	Chen 辰	Si 巳	Wu 午	Wei 未	Shen 申	You 酉	Xu 戌
Metal 金	Yin 寅	Mao 卯	Chen 辰	Si 巳	Wu 午	Wei 未	Shen 申	You 酉	Xu 戌	Hai 亥	Zi 子	Chou 丑
Water 水	Si 巳	Wu 午	Wei 未	Shen 申	You 酉	Xu 戌	Hai 亥	Zi 子	Chou 丑	Yin 寅	Mao 卯	Chen 辰

).

Daoist transmission rituals were also shaped by an acute awareness of the mutual generation (xiangsheng 相生) of qi embedded in specific moments of time. Its principle is founded on the old Scripture of Numinous Treasure (Lingbao jing 靈寶經), preserved in Ge Hong’s collection. The Scripture states, “What is referred to as a precious day (baori 寶日) is a day on which the upper stem generates the lower branch. For example, using days such as jiawu 甲午 or yisi 乙巳 qualifies. Jia represents wood, and wu represents fire. Likewise, yi is also wood, and si is also fire. Fire is generated from wood.”13 Therefore, these combinations are considered auspicious.

During the Tang dynasty (618–907 CE), Daoist master, Zhang Wanfu 張萬福 (fl. 713) reorganized the ritual system of scripture transmission by differentiating the date selection according to the scriptural hierarchy (DZ1240). He carefully systematized existing calendrical rules already embedded in the individual scriptures. According to his framework, the transmission of The Scriptures of Orthodox Unity (Zhengyi jing 正一經) was permitted only on 26 days within the 60-day cycle—those in which the Yin-Yang and Five Phases of the ten stems and twelve branches were in a mutually generative relationship.

The Scriptures of Cavern Spirit (Dongshen jing 洞神經) could only be transmitted on specific days, including: the original destiny day (benming ri 本命日), flourishing and ministerial days (wangxiang ri 王相日), and the days of jiazi 甲子, jiashen 甲申, and jiayin 甲寅, amounting to a total of 13 days within the 60-day cycle.

As for The Scriptures of Cavern Mystery (Dongxuan jing 洞玄經), transmission was limited to 6 days, chosen according to the Five Phases corresponding to each of the four seasons.

Finally, the highest-ranking corpus, the Scriptures of Cavern Perfection (Dongzhen jing 洞眞經), could only be transmitted on the “days of ninefold opening of the celestial gates” (tianguan jiukai ri 天關九開日), just 2 days out of the 60 days (DZ1240, 2a–5b).

The final set of days was originally designated for meditation and prayer dedicated to the Goddess of the Three Primal Origins of Great Simplicity (Taisu sanyuan jun 太素三元君), the mother of the Three Primary Qi of the three-cubed, Nine Heavens. It is implied that the gates of the Nine Heavens open simultaneously on only one specific day each month (DZ1016, 9: 14b–15a). The Declarations of the Perfected (Zhengao 眞誥) newly provided such a list of ritually potent days for the invocation of deities in the Highest Clarity Heaven. The numerological system underlying this calendar was unique to the Highest Clarity scriptures and does not align with conventional Chinese calendrical frameworks.

Zhang’s predecessor, the Daoist master Zang Zongdao 臧宗道 employed this calendrical set for transmitting the entire corpus of the Three Cavern Scriptures (Sandong jing 三洞經). Later, as noted above, Zhang Wanfu limited its use exclusively to the transmission of the Cavern of Perfection, that is, the Highest Clarity scriptures. The key principle underlying Zhang Wanfu’s date selection lay not only in cosmological compatibility—specifically, the harmonious alignment of qi—but also in the effort to formalize a hierarchical structure within the Daoist Canon (Kim 2019a, p. 162). This hierarchy was expressed through the frequency and degree of ritual restriction imposed on different classes of scriptures. Notably, a certain economy of frequency control was at work in both the performance and preparation of these rituals.

3.2. Bodily Practices in Tune with Celestial Bodies

Most Daoist techniques of bodily cultivation consist of breathing and visualization designed to absorb the qi of celestial bodies—such as the sun and the moon, and the five planets and stars—that generate the order of nature and the cosmos.

These practices can be traced back to the fangshi 方士 (masters of esoterica) traditions of the Han dynasty. Gu Yong 谷永 (fl. 7 CE) criticized those traditions of “the Cultivation and Weeding of the Five Virtues” (gengyun wude 耕耘五德), a method of absorbing the five types of qi through the five grains planted in the five directions; and “The Technique of the Five Granaries” (wucang zhi shu 五倉之術), a technique that involves meditating on colors of the body’s five internal organs and absorbing their qi.14

The basic bodily practices found In the Highest Clarity Scriptures consist of variations on such techniques. The Scripture of Inner Phosphors in the Yellow Court (Huangting neijing jing 黃庭內景經) instructs: “Visualize rinsing with the Five Sprouts, and there will be no hunger or thirst” 存漱五牙不飢渴 (DZ402, 23a). Bai Lüzhong 白履忠 (fl. 729 CE) explained this technique as follows:

In the Lingbao tradition, there is a method of ingesting and controlling the Five Sprouts. The Five Sprouts are the generative qi of the Five Phases, which correspond to the original essences of the five internal organs. The scripture states, “Always, on the day of Beginning of Spring, at the dawn, enter the chamber, make nine bows to the East. Sit upright, click the teeth together nine times, and visualize the Green Numinous qi of the Florescent Forest of Pacified Treasure in the East—like the Venerable Lord Thearch and 90 million deities descending into the chamber, dense like clouds, covering your entire body. They enter through the mouth and descend directly into the liver and viscera.”

(DZ402, 2: 22a–22b)15

靈寶有服御五牙之法. 五牙者, 五行之生氣, 以配五臟元精. 經云: 常以立春之日, 雞鳴時, 入室, 東向禮九拜, 平坐, 叩齒九通, 思存東方安寶華林青靈, 如老帝君九千萬人下降室内, 鬱鬱如雲, 以覆己形. 從口中入, 直下肝腑.

After invocation, Daoist adepts breathe in the green qi and ingest the talisman of the East. As for the other directions—south, west, north, and center—each practice is carried out for ingesting the Five Sprouts. The practice of refining the Five Internal Organs was placed as the very beginning for attaining immortality.

The Inner Biographies (Neizhuan 內傳), which compile both old and new methods of practice, outline a structured progression for ascending to the status of a Perfected of Highest Clarity (Shangqing zhenren 上清眞人). This progression is depicted as a threefold ascent: beginning with the lower stage, which involves attaining physical immortality; progressing to the middle stage, which entails pilgrimage to sacred sites and mountains; and culminating in the upper stage, in which one becomes a Perfected in the celestial realm (Kim 2014).

Most Inner Biographies suggest incorporating the essential qi of the Five Phases—via visualization of the five organs or planets—to form an immortal body. In order to advance to higher stages, Daoist adepts must undergo a ritual of repentance and purification. This method of repentance (xiaguo fa 謝過法) also should be performed on specific days. The Inner Biography of Hai Xunren 裴玄仁 (DZ1032, juan 105) prescribes the Eight Seasonal Nodes (bazhieri 八節日), when the deities of the celestial realm revise and inscribe the registers of both mortals and immortals.

The eight dates were considered to be special time throughout the year, in which the Perfected of the celestial realm govern the order of heaven from their respective administrative stations (zhisuo, 治所). Their cosmic operation manifests in the human world as the lifecycle of all living beings and the smooth progression of the seasonal cycles (

Table 5. Eight seasonal nodes and the celestial bureaucracy (DZ1032, 105:5a–6a).

Seasonal Node	Celestial Palace and Perfected Beings	Duties in the Celestial Realm
Beginning of Spring	Palace of Grand Pole at North Pole (Beiji taiji gong 北極太極宮) and Perfected of the Grand Pole (Taiji zhenren 太極眞人)	Carving jade registers and recording the names of immortals
Spring Equinox	Jade Terrace in Kunlun (Kunlun yaotai 崑崙瑶臺) and Perfected of Great Simplicity (Taisu zhenren, 太素眞人)	Reviewing and correcting Daoist scriptures
Beginning of Summer	Purple Tenuity Palace (Ziwei gong 紫微宮) and Five Thearchs of the Highest Clarity (Shangqing wudi 上清五帝)	Evaluating the merits and faults of Daoist adepts
Summer Solstice	Celestial Bureau, Three Officials (Sanguan, 三官), Director of Fates (Siming 司命), and River Lords (Hehou, 河侯)	Judging the sins and blessings of all beings, adjusting lifespan and destiny registers
Beginning of Autumn	Yellow Chamber in Mt. Cloud Garden (Huangfang yunting shan 黄房雲庭山), Central Yellow Venerable Lord (Huanglao jun, 黄老君), and the Perfected Lords of the Five Sacred Peaks (Wuyue zhenren 五嶽諸眞人)	Determining the divine charts and spirit medicines of the human realm
Autumn Equinox	Numinous Gate (Palace) of Jade Clarity (Yuqing lingque 玉淸靈闕), Watchtower of Great Tenuity (taiweiguan太微觀), Great Thearch of Supreme Sovereign (Shanghuang dadi 上皇大帝), Perfect Sovereign of Nine Heavens (Jiutian zhenhuang 九天眞皇), Three Elder Lords of Most High (Taishang sanlao jun 太上三老君), The Perfected and Dukes of the North Pole (Beiji zhen gong 北極諸眞公), Great Gods of Eight Oceans (Bahai dashen, 八海大神), Revered Spirits of the Five Peaks (Wuyue zunling, 五嶽尊靈)	Deliberating the fate and blessings of all beings and evaluating the diligence of Daoist practitioners
Beginning of Winter	The Perfected of the Sun Terrace (Yangtai zhenren 陽臺眞人), The Perfected of Clarity and Void (Qingxu zhenren 淸虛眞人)	Deciding those newly attaining the Dao and entering the registers of immortals
Winter Solstice	The Grand Palace of East Florescence in Fangzhu (Fangzhu donghua dagong, 方諸東華大宮) and The Lord of Azure Youth of the Eastern Sea (Donghai qingtong jun, 東海靑童君)	Carving and confirming the registers of all immortals, inscribing celestial names in golden script

).

Among the various methods for completing this transformative path, the cultivation techniques associated with The Central Scripture of the Nine Perfected (Jiuzhen zhongjing 九眞中經), a fourth-century text from the early Highest Clarity corpus,16 emphasizes on specific days and at ritually designated times.

According to them, practitioners must complete a series of preliminary steps before engaging in the core meditation. The first involves a visualization technique in which the Five Planets are envisioned within the Grotto Chamber (dongfang 洞房) located in the head: Western Venus (Taibai 太白) is visualized at the eyebrows; Northern Mercury (Chenxing 辰星) at the center of the forehead; Eastern Jupiter (Muxing 木星) behind the eyes; Southern Mars (Yinghuo 熒惑) at the inner corners of the eyes; and Central Saturn (Zhenxing 鎭星) at the philtrum (DZ1377, 1a–3a).17 This practice is to be performed at midnight (yeban 夜半), the hour associated with generative qi (shengqi 生氣).

Either following the planetary visualization or concurrently with it, the practitioner engages in a repentance, titled the Secret Way of the Return to the Origin (Huiyuan yindao 迴元隱道). This meditative practice is designed to eliminate wrongdoings and moral offenses committed not only by the practitioner, but also by their ancestors across seven generations.

This repentance practice is also associated with specific dates. On the Six Ding days (liuding 六丁)—every fourth day in each ten-day cycle—and on the final day of each lunar month (yuehui 月晦), the practitioner performs a visualization of the seven stars of the Dipper. The Ding days were regarded as moments of generative qi, when the root energy of the seven stars becomes activated and works to eliminate the karmic registers associated with the three hun 魂 and seven po 魄 souls. During this practice, the Daoist adept recites the names of the seven star-deities and offers prayers of atonement. The adept then visualizes the Dipper stars descending from the center of the night sky, entering through the mouth, and moving directly to the internal organs—the heart, lungs, liver, spleen, stomach, kidneys, and eyes.

One should retain the starlight so that both the interior and exterior of the body become thoroughly illuminated, and maintain unwavering concentration throughout the visualization. This contemplative act is referred to as “releasing the (Dipper’s) starlight to weave the net (of subtle qi)” (jiechen jiela 解晨結羅), a process through which the inner and outer dimensions of the body become void and luminous (neiwai xuying 内外虚映), thus achieving alignment with the higher path.

Additionally, using the Six Jia (liujia 六甲) days—every first day of ten-day cycle, the practitioner visualizes hidden eighth and ninth stars of Dipper to purify one’s brain with purple radiance (DZ1377, 4b–10b).18 (

Table 6. The dates and time of practicing the Return to the Origin (DZ1377).

Ten-Days Cycle	Day	Hour	Direction	Northern Dipper	Inner Organ
Ten-days starting with Jiazi 甲子之旬	Dingmao 丁卯之日	midnight 夜半之時	North	The first taixing 第一太星	heart 心
Ten-days starting with Jiaxu 甲戌之旬	Dingchou 丁丑之日	midnight	North	The second yuan xing 第二元星	lung 肺
Ten-days starting with Jiashen 甲申之旬	dinghai 丁亥之日	midnight	North	The third zhenxing 第三眞星	liver 肝
Ten-days starting with Jiawu 甲午之旬	dingyou 丁酉之日	midnight	North	The fourth niuxing 第四紐星	spleen 脾
Ten-days starting with Jiachen 甲辰之旬	dingwei 丁未之日	midnight	North	The fifth gangxing 第五綱星	stomach 胃
Ten-days starting with Jiayin 甲寅之旬	dingsi 丁巳之日	midnight	North	The sixth jixing 第六紀星	kidneys 腎
The last day of lunar month 月晦之夕	The first day of lunar month 月朔	Before dawn 未雖鳴之前	East	The seventh guanxing 第七關星	pupils of eyes 目瞳・兩眼
	Six Jia days	midnight	Free	The eighth dixing 第八帝星 The ninth taixing 九尊太星	brain 泥丸紫房

).

Following the contemplation on the palaces and the nine male–female pairs of Dipper deities, Daoist adepts proceeded to the core visualization practice, in which the Nine Souls of the Thearch (Dijun jiuhun 帝君九魂) are transformed into the Nine Perfected (Jiuzhen jun 九眞君), each residing within one of the nine inner organs—heart, bones, essence and blood, liver, spleen, lung, kidneys, gall bladder, and brain. Due to the widespread popularity of this meditation, multiple versions of temporal regulation were developed. One prescribes its performance over the course of an entire year, specifying particular months, days, and hours; another condenses the practice into a single day, from the daybreak until midnight.19

The Highest Clarity tradition gave rise to a range of imaginative conceptions and bodily practices centered on singular moments in time. Rather than adhering to a uniform calendrical system, it discovered esoteric temporal frameworks that identified specific days as cosmologically charged and ritually efficacious. One example is the “Days of Ninefold Opening of the Celestial Gate,” as discussed above. Another is the observance of the “Days of Five Penetrations” (wutong ri 五通日), auspicious days designated for the elimination of sins and misdeeds. Such extraordinary times occur once a month on a single, precisely designated day and hour (DZ426, 19b–21a).20 These twelve distinct temporal nodes were believed to open unique channels of resonance between the celestial realms and the human body, mediated by the five corporeal agents corresponding to the five planets.

Although Daoist meditative practices are undoubtedly situated within the pre-established stem–branch framework, they also entail a creative dimension. As exemplified in the Highest Clarity tradition, practitioners identified specific temporal junctures at which the human body could engage in more efficacious communication with the celestial bodies. During these singular moments, the body was refined and transformed through the vital energies of celestial bodies that generate the temporal order of nature, thereby enabling the cultivation of a subtle body liberated from its constraints.

3.3. Collective Rituals of Rectification

A closer examination of history of Daoist ritual as well as Daoist Canon challenges the modern philosophical tendency to bifurcate the philosophical Daoism (daojia) and the religious Daoism (daojiao)—a conceptual binary often inherited from modern disciplinary frameworks (Girardot 2011). Daoist soteriological rituals aim to purify the transgressions of both individuals and communities, and to restore the harmonious flow of qi that sustains the collective body.

Lu Xiujing 陸修靜 (406–477 CE) categorized Daoist rituals based on the scale and scope of salvation, ranging from individuals to the entire state (Verellen 2019, pp. 123–24). A crucial point to note is that Lu Xiujing defined Daoist rituals specifically as ‘Retreat’ (zhai 齋), drawing a clear distinction from Confucian sacrificial rites. In doing so, he constructed a new ritual hierarchy that overturned the conventional binary between the individual and the state. Zhuangzi’s concept of “retreat of heart-mind” (xinzhai 心齋) underlies as the Lu’s demarcating criterion between the Retreat of Highest Clarity (Shangqing zhi zhai 上清之齋) and the Retreat of Numinous Treasure (Lingbao zhi zhai 靈寶之齋). He positioned the retreat of Numinous Treasure within the sphere of ‘action’ (youwei 有爲), corresponding to salvific services for both individuals and society in the ordinary sense, while reserving the retreat of Highest Clarity for the dimension of non-action (wuwei 無爲) and the unification of body and spirit that brings forth the extraordinary mode of scripture chanting (混合形神, 諷經有異)—a realization of ultimate transformation (DZ1278, 4b).21

Within the framework of salvific action, the Golden Register Retreat (Jinlu zhai 金籙齋) and the Yellow Register Retreat (Huanglu zhai 黄籙齋) represented large-scale collective rituals targeting the highest levels of social body. The difference between the two lies in the range and scale of qi influence on living bodies.

The Golden Register Retreat aims to “harmonize Yin and Yang” (tiaohe yinyang調和陰陽), and “deliver the state to righteousness” (qiudu guozheng 救度國正), making it appropriate in scale for kings or emperors governing a state or all under heaven (DZ1278, 5b).

In contrast, the Yellow Register Retreat was designed to “absolve the sins of the nine ancestors” (ba jiuzu zui 拔九祖罪), focusing on the salvation of the deceased and removal of ancestral sins (DZ1278, 6a).22 Regardless of whether one belongs to the imperial family, the aristocracy, or the common people, the scale of the ritual is suited to a single household.

Both rituals require the installation of a three-level altar, symbolizing the three heavens, in an open-air setting. At the center of the altar stands a ritual lamp, nine chi (approximately 2.7 m) in height, with nine flames at its summit, symbolizing communication with the Nine Heavens. Surrounding the altar on all four sides are numerous colored lamps, representing the celestial stars. At the heart of the ritual is the preparation of five talismans—the Celestial Writs of the Five Directions (wufang tianwen 五方天文)—each written-on silk of one of the five colors and placed upon five ritual tables, each guarded by a golden dragon. At the climax of the ritual, the talismans are burned, and it is believed that the golden dragons will carry the petitions upward, conveying the participants’ wishes to the celestial realm (DZ1278, 5a–5b).

Various Daoist rituals are fundamentally based on this ritual setting organized by Lu Xiujing (Lü 2010, pp. 1306–10; Verellen 2019, p. 223). This archetypal structure can be observed in later developments by Du Guangting 杜光庭 (850–933 CE) and in many other liturgical texts of the Song dynasty (960–1279 CE).

John Lagerway noted that the Daoist religion gives the priority of space over time and of ritual and bodily practice over theoretical discourses (Lagerway 2022, p. 289). While spatial design and construction remain central to Daoist ritual, temporal concern—such as attunement with seasonal rhythms and identification of auspicious moments for liturgical rectification—are no less painstakingly cultivated.

In this light, foundational Daoist practices endeavor to attune with the inherited cosmological rhythms of seasonal and celestial cycles, yet also reveal subtle departures from them. Through the liturgical protocols that align with time, bodily practices absorbing the celestial energies to attain an immortal body, and collective rites aimed at rectifying degradation, Daoist practitioners not only respond to the given orders but find creative interventions that operate within and upon them.

Timed according to Yin-Yang and Five Phase correlations, these practices seek assimilation in order to recalibrate the flow of qi. By transforming space and time from within their cosmological structure, Daoist practice reveals its generative potential. This dynamic orientation—at once aligned with and disruptive of the natural order—opens the way to the themes of reversion and transformation that will be explored in the next section.

4. Reversing and Rebooting the Natural Order

4.1. Internal Alchemy and the Inversion of Time

Internal alchemy (neidan 內丹) presents a distinctive cosmological orientation in which the body becomes both the site and the instrument for reversing the natural order. While Daoist practice, as discussed in the previous chapter, emphasizes attunement with natural rhythms, internal alchemy employs a deliberate strategy of inversion—aiming to return the practitioner to a pre-cosmic unity of primordial qi. This paradoxical tension, as previously noted by other scholars (Robinet 2011; Pregadio 2006, 2009, 2019), reflects the dynamic structure of Daoist cultivation, wherein aligning with nature simultaneously entails transcending it.

The principle of inversion (diandao 顛倒), central to Daoist internal alchemy, appears in diverse forms. As one oft-cited maxim states: “Those who go in the ordinary sense give birth to human beings; those who go backward find immortality.”23 Reversal is not merely rhetorical, but a transformative orientation. Zhang Boduan 張伯端 (987–1082 CE) versified:

Look upon the gate of death as the gate of life,	但將死戶為生戶
Cling not to the gate of Life, calling it death.	莫執生門號死門
One who understands the mechanism of causing death
and sees the reversal,	若會殺機明反覆
Will come to realize: within harm, grace is born.	始知害里卻生恩
(DZ140, juan 6, 10a)

Weng Baoguang 翁葆光 (fl. 1174–1189 CE) put it this way: “Yin-Yang and the Five Phases—following them leads to life, opposing them leads to death—this is the constant Way,” yet “If one can understand clearly the mechanism of this reversal, then kindness arises from within harm, and even a man may become pregnant.”24 Thus, the reversal of the natural order—such as “inverting the Five Phases” (diandao wuxing 顛倒五行) and “water ascending, fire descending” (shuisheng huojiang 水升火降)—was a key theme in the alchemical process.

From this perspective, alchemy emerges as a language of paradox—what Isabelle Robinet calls “a rationality traversed by irrationality”, a system that expresses unity through the “reciprocal encasing of all images”, wherein “the child generates its mother and the contained is the container”. Thus, internal alchemists employed a highly structured symbolic language, only to transgress it by “introducing a negation of their own system” (Robinet 2011, p. 2). Such experiments reveal a worldview in which temporal, cosmological, and ontological hierarchies are momentarily suspended to access a primordial wholeness beyond conventional structure. Robinet also emphasized that “inner alchemy is a method of finding illumination by returning to the fundamental order of the cosmos,” and it always goes with “a regeneration of the individual, both—individual and cosmos.” (Robinet 1989, p. 299).

Such a cosmopraxis, grounded in a dialectic of negation and regeneration, finds its roots in early visualization techniques in the Six Dynasties period. Already glimpsed in the previous chapter, fourth-century Daoist cultivation began by ordering the body in accordance with Yin-Yang and Five Phase correlations, yet ultimately moved toward dissolving these very constructions.

Among the preliminary bodily practices in the Highest Clarity corpus, the Scripture of Inner Phosphors in the Yellow Court is well known for its active visualization techniques and the corporeal mapping of body gods to realize the coincidence of the microcosm and macrocosm. In the later passages, the practice incorporates the internal circulation of qi around the three cinnabar fields (san dantian 三丹田), thereby initiating a reversal of the cosmological process of creation (Schipper 1978; 1993; Kim 2023).

Rising winds from the Three Mysterious [centers]
bring forth the primordial green;	揚風三玄出始青,
In the midst of formlessness, the pure numinous state is reached.	恍惚之間至清靈.
At the Whirling Terrace, amid swirling play, red life is glimpsed
—the birth of the Perfected.	戲於飈臺見赤生,
Beyond all realms, true radiance shines forth,	逸域熙眞餋華榮.
Nourishing the blossoms of immortal vitality.
Inward gazing in silent stillness, refining the Five Forms within.	内盼沉默鍊五形,
As the Three Qi revolve and circulate,	三氣徘徊得神明.
Numinous clarity is attained. (DZ402, 43a-43b)

“Whirling Terrace” symbolizes to a vortex of qi generated by winds rising from the center of the cinnabar field, possessing chaotic power capable of dissolving the boundaries between bodily regions. The birth of “red life” denotes “red infant”(chizi 赤子) of the Perfected self; in other words, the “embryo of the Transcendent” (taixian 胎仙).25

The whirlwind and infant symbolize the dissolution of space and inversion of time, respectively. They are magnified in the Authentic Scripture of Great Cavern (Dadong zhenjing 大洞眞經), which prescribes an intensive practice of visualization of the deities residing within and without—both corporeal and celestial space. Through this process, the hundreds of spirits (baishen 百神) are fused into the infant form of the Thearch One (diyi 帝一), and ultimately condensed into a unified state of primal qi. This unification is represented by the whirlwind (huifeng 回風)—a returning wind that drives all things back toward the undifferentiated origin of cosmic generation (Robinet 1993; Kim 2015, 2023).

The practice of “Inward gazing in silence” also evolved into more refined notions, such as “returning the radiance to invert the illumination” (huiguang fanzhao 回光反照) and “silent audience” (mochao 默朝) in internal alchemy texts. The “unification of the whirlwind” (huifeng hunhe 迴風混合) was also adapted and transformed within the internal alchemical context, where essence (jing 精) is refined into breath (qi 氣), breath into spirit (shen 神), and spirit returns to emptiness (DZ13, 1a).26

4.2. Cosmotechniques of Dissolution and Reconfiguration

The apocalyptic worldview that cast a dark shadow over China from the end of the Later Han through the Six Dynasties period also had a pronounced influence on the Daoist scriptures, which convey a deep fear of the cataclysmic disasters believed to accompany the end of the time-cycle. These anxieties, rooted in prolonged social instability, prompted Daoist texts to frame the disintegration of both human society and the natural world as the consequence of cosmic imbalance—that is, a disordering of qi.

At this moment, purple glow enshrouds the peaks;	於是, 紫霞靄秀
Waves surge, mountains collapse.	波激嶽頽
Drifting vapors veil the forms;	浮煙籠象
Radiant chariots vanish into flight.	淸景遁飛
The Five Phases slaughter and clash;	五行殺害
The four seasons hurl and tangle.	四節交擲
Metal and earth embrace as kin;	金土相親
Water and fire lock in strife.	水火結隙
Forest and grasses fall flat;	林卉停偃
Hundreds of rivers burst and blocked.	百川開塞
Lightning rages, flashing in all directions;	洪電縱橫而呴沸
Thunder quakes the east and west, splitting the land.	雷震東西而折裂
The sign of Tun 屯 appears in the heavens,	天屯見矣
Becoming the calamity of the extreme Yang (yangjiu 陽九).	化爲陽九之災
The earth takes the form of Pi 否, closed and obstructed—	地否閡矣
Foretelling the encounter with the extreme Yin (bailiu 百六).	乃爲百六之會
(DZ1016, 6: 1b–2a)

In this context, environmental crises were understood not merely as historical contingencies but as symptoms of a deeper ontological imbalance—conditions requiring ritual and meditative intervention. Daoist practices demonstrate the capacity to actively manipulate and redirect the potent, and sometimes destructive, energies of nature. Celestial bodies—particularly stars and planetary forces—are regarded in Daoist cosmology as repositories of qi that can be summoned, redirected, and even weaponized to transform both internal and external conditions. This dimension of cosmic intervention is pronounced in Daoist meditation, where the adept visualizes celestial light, fire, thunder, or flood as agents of purification and renewal.

A particularly vivid examples is the image of the “Fire Bell of Flowing Metal” (liujin huoling 流金火鈴), in which celestial fire is visualized as a sacred force—capable of burning away corruption and clearing the path for spiritual transformation (Kim 2011).

The term liujin, or ‘melting metal’ refers to catastrophic drought caused by the heat of the ten suns in the legend of Yi 羿, capable of melting ore and stone: “Ten suns rise in turn, they liquefy metals and melt stones (十日代出, 流金鑠石).”27 During the Tang dynasty, Cheng Xuanying 成玄英 (fl. 631–655 CE) glossed “the calamity of liquefying metal caused by the extreme Yang, Yangjiu (陽九流金之災)” and “the flood disaster sinking the Heaven caused by the extreme Yin, Bailiu (百六滔天之禍).” (DZ745, 1:13b).

This symbolic image of the Fire Bell unfolded diversely in Highest Clarity texts. While it is portrayed as an ornament carried by the Perfected, illuminating the celestial palace, as well as a weapon of cosmic warfare and purification. The Declaration of Perfected stated: “In the Way of the Transcendent, there is a Bell of Flowing Metal, by which subdues ghosts and spirits.” (DZ1016, 5: 4a).28 This suggests that the bell was conceived as a potent tool for subduing demonic forces.

The apocalyptic aspect of the Fire Bell is vividly illustrated in visualization of The Talisman of Eight Phosphors (Bajing yulu 八景玉籙):

There appear [the ghost army]	爰有
armored in fire and blazing cypress,	火甲赫柏
Diagrammed troops arrayed in dense formation.	圖兵森羅
Wielding halberds a hundred zhang long,	執戈百丈
They trample hills and overturn rivers.	蹹阜傾河
Heavenly guards and martial troops,	天丁武卒
Surge like countless coils of writhing snakes.	萬萬蜲蛇
Divine horse-women ride a thousand miles,	女騎千里
Dropping their feathers, drifting through the void.	落羽浮虚
Then—the Fire Bell is hurled aloft,	仰擲火鈴
Leaping into space in a burst of radiance.	躍空晃流
Flowing metal sweeps in reverse,	流金逆激
Splitting and dazzling the eight horizons. (DZ1389: 14a–14b)	煥裂八嵎

Such imagery of furious cosmic fire is rooted in internal visualization practices. In the early instruction of the Highest Clarity tradition, a technique is prescribed for treating illness: the adept envisions the three gods of the Luminous Hall (mingtang 明堂) located in the upper brain. These deities exhale radiant red qi that penetrate the adept’s body. The practitioner then inhales this red qi and transforms it into a fiery blaze, which burns through the entire body until it becomes pure light, inside and out. This practice, known as “Refinement of Body with the Sun and the Moon” (reyue lianxing 日月鍊形), signifies a form of self-immolation (xiaoshen 燒身) followed by rebirth (gengsheng 更生).(DZ421)29

Importantly, this logic of fiery refinement extends beyond the transformation of the individual body to encompass human society and cosmos at large. As illustrated in the Scripture of Righteous Method for the Three Heavens (Santian zhengfa jing 三天正法經), the Daoist master enacts the destruction of the world through the visionary practices in order to catalyze cosmic regeneration. In such expansive meditative visions, the adept imagines not only the dissolution of the self, but also the incineration of the entire world.30

In this process, the Daoist body becomes an agent of cosmic fire. Exhaling qi, it is transformed into a Radiant Fire with Flowing Essence (huaguang jingliu 火光精流), which floods the heavens and sets ablaze the four directions—consuming mountains and forests, trees and grass, earth and land, spirits and humans, all living beings beneath the sky—until nothing remains. Once all the fire is exhausted, a mist of residual qi spreads. In its wake, there is no heaven above or earth below: all things return to original void and emptiness (xuwu 虛無). (DZ1203, 7b–8a)31

Such meditative cosmology does not operate in isolation; rather, it is embedded within a broader Daoist logic of correlation, where time, space, body, and universe are dynamically entangled. The destruction of the defiled world and the emergence of a purified order mirror the cycles of inversion and renewal that govern both celestial rhythms and internal alchemical processes. As a cosmotechnique to delete and reboot the web of space–time, Daoist vision aligns the practitioner with a deeper continuity between inner transformation and cosmic restoration.

Although it may appear as a distant evolution from pre-Qin classical Daoism, this meditative technique—of erasing and reconstructing the cosmos—can be understood as a performative elaboration of what Zhuangzi described as “deliverance from the bindings” (xuanjie 縣解) of space, time, and existential entanglement.

5. Conclusions

This article has traced how the Daoist praxis emerged from, adapted, and subverted the inherited space–time logic of ancient Chinese civilization. Across internal cultivation of visualization and inner alchemy to the external services of collective ritual, the Daoist body emerges as an entity to perform the cosmotechnique that engages with space and time not only by aligning but by negating and creatively reconfiguring them.

In the Daoist course of mastery of the Three Caverns, a transformative bodily discipline grounded in non-action (wuwei) and the effacement of the mundane self lies at the core of this cultivation. Through the refinement of internal organs and vital forces, practitioners aimed to embody cosmic qi. Zhang Wanfu described this process as “entering the subtle from the coarse” (congcu rumiao 從麤入妙), and ultimately, “returning to emptiness by refining one’s phosphors (lianjing guiwu 鍊景歸無) and reverting to the One source (huanyuan fanyi 還源反一)” (DZ1242, 2: 8a).

Temporally, this path enacts a reversal—retracing from worldly time to the cosmological origin. Spatially, it begins from an infinitesimal inner point and expands perception toward cosmic vastness, ultimately dissolving spatial order itself. As the thirteenth century compendium of internal alchemy—Diagram of Cultivating Perfection through the Great Ultimate and Original Chaos (Xiuzhen taiji hunyuan tu 修眞太極混元圖) articulates, the body encapsulates the cosmos: internal organs correspond to the Nine Provinces and the Eight Trigrams. As internal qi of the Daoist body is refined, corresponding cosmic regions are restored to balance, becoming saturated with life force (DZ149, 13).

Though not directly engaging modern ecological discourse, Daoist practice articulates an alternative relational mode of life. If the structure of space and time is understood as an energy-infused continuum, Daoist techniques offer ways to attune to its flows, identify singular junctures, and enact transformation. Such reconfiguration demands attentiveness to correlation and full meditative concentration. Such practices demonstrate ways of modeling and modulating lifeworlds attuned to the rhythms of nature—pointing to the possibility of reshaping life under unplugged conditions.

This study expands on earlier theories of “internal transformation” (Schipper 2001, p. 92) and the “physiological and meditation techniques” of inversion (Robinet 2011, p. 98) by elucidating the stem–branch system as the shared cosmological code of premodern East Asia. I tried to further demonstrate that Daoist practice—while emerging from this framework—creatively reconfigures space–time through its cosmotechniques. In doing so, it reveals a performative praxis that transforms both body and cosmos through the endless oscillation between attunement and negation.