The Kinship of the Three (Zhouyi Cantong Qi)

1 Qian and Kun are the gates of the Changes and the parents of all the hexagrams. Kan and Li form the frame; the wheel turns around its true axle. These four hexagrams, female and male, serve as the bellows. They cover the workings of yin and yang. A skilled driver follows a measuring line, holds the reins, keeps to rule and square, and follows the tracks. He stays at the center to control what is outside; the numbers are recorded in musical measures and the calendar. Each month has five groups of six days. Its crossing lines obey the sun's direction; together they make sixty, with firmness and softness both inside and outside. At the new moon's dawn, Zhun takes charge; by evening Meng takes over. Each day and night has its own hexagram, applied in order. Even before the dark end of the month and the next dawn, an ending becomes a new beginning. Sun and moon set the measure of time; activity and rest have their early and late hours. Spring and summer occupy the inner body, from zi through chen and si; autumn and winter work on the outside, from wu through xu and hai. Rewards and punishments answer to spring and autumn, darkness and light follow cold and heat, and the words for the lines speak of kindness and justice. Joy and anger arise as the time requires. When these answer to the four seasons, the five phases keep their proper order.

2 Heaven and earth take their places, and the Changes move between them. Heaven and earth are images of Qian and Kun. Taking their places means setting out the paired places of yin and yang. The Changes here means Kan and Li, the two functions of Qian and Kun. These two have no fixed line-places. They circulate through the six empty places, going and coming without fixed course, above and below without settled position. Hidden deep, they change within, contain all things, and form the framework of the Way. What has no substance controls what has substance; the usefulness of a vessel lies in its empty space. So when you trace waxing and waning, Kan and Li disappear. These words are not made up lightly, nor are these arguments invented without grounds. Observed results serve as tests; measures are checked against the divine order. Reasoning is set down in words, and the underlying principle supplies the proof.Kan has wu and the essence of the moon; Li has ji and the sun's light. Sun and moon make up the Changes, with hard and soft matched. Earth is strong in all four seasons, weaving through beginning and end. Blue-green, red, black, and white each occupy a direction; all depend on the center, the work of wu and ji.

3 The Changes are images. Of the bright signs hung in the sky, none is greater than the sun and moon. Probe the mysterious to understand change: when yang goes, yin comes. They gather at the hub and the wheel turns, entering and leaving, folding and unfolding in turn. The Changes has 384 lines; from the lines one selects the tallies, that is, the sixty-four hexagrams. Between the month's last dark day and the new moon's dawn, Zhen comes to receive the tally. At this point heaven and earth join their essences, and sun and moon support each other. Male yang spreads its dark seed; female yin changes it into a yellow covering. They meet in a confused mass and lay the first foundation. They tend and nourish its boundaries, gather its spirit, and form its body. Everyone is born by this path; everything that crawls comes from it.

4 Thus Confucius praised the original undivided state. The power of Qian and Kun reaches through empty space. Studying antiquity leads back to the first ruler; the mating ospreys mark the beginning. The coming together at marriage binds their energies, and in the first year the sprout grows. The sage does not arise for nothing: he looks up to see the signs of heaven. Heaven's signs advance and withdraw, bending and stretching with the time. Thus the Changes express heaven's purpose. Fu begins the first sprout; the eldest son takes over his father's body and receives the first foundation through his mother. Waxing and waning follow the central measure; rising and falling follow the pivot of the Dipper. On the third day the light emerges: Zhen with geng receives the west. On the eighth day Dui receives ding; the first-quarter moon is level as a line. On the fifteenth Qian's body is complete, full in the east with jia. The toad and the rabbit's moon-spirit accompany the light of sun and moon. The toad marks the stages of the hexagrams; the rabbit sends forth growing light. After seven and eight the course is finished and bends downward. On the sixteenth the succession turns: Xun with xin appears at dawn. Gen stands with bing in the south; the last quarter falls on the twenty-third. Kun with yi comes on the thirtieth day; in the northeast it loses its companion. As one stage ends it hands over to the next; the dragon is born again in its successor. Ren and gui pair with jia and yi; Qian and Kun enclose beginning and end. Seven and eight make fifteen; nine and six correspond too. The four together make thirty, when yang energy is sought but lies hidden and extinguished. The eight hexagrams set out their lights, moving without losing the center. The original essence is too slight to see, but calculation and the tallies give evidence. At rest, observe its images and use its shapes as a model. Set up a measuring post to serve as a standard; watch signs to determine good and bad fortune. Give orders according to the season, without missing the time when a line changes. Above, inspect the patterns of the River; below, set out the forms and currents of earth; between them, examine the human heart. Compare these three powers together. In action follow the hexagrams' stages; in rest follow the judgments. When Qian and Kun carry out their work, the world is governed.

5 The first step in government is to replace the old with the new. Control what is small and hidden, and open up and spread the treasures. Hold the chief handle of the essential Way, the central bond that governs change. When the images of the lines move within, good and bad fortune arise outside. The five planets move with and against one another, responding to the time. The four and seven go out of order, separating and dipping or rising. Wenchang oversees the records, questions the chief ministers and their aides; the officials each manage their assigned departments. The sun joins the essences of the five phases; the moon follows the six musical measures. Five times six makes thirty degrees; once these are complete they begin again. Trace the beginning and attend to the end, the course of survival and destruction: a ruler may be proud and idle, overfull and contrary to the Way, or a minister may be corrupt and flattering, acting outside the proper track.At the quarter and full moons, waxing and waning may go astray and cause harm. The officials charged with enforcing the law criticize faults and report them to their ruler. The pole of heaven receives the correct alignment and freely delegates matters below. Government is proclaimed in the Bright Hall, and the state has no path to harm.

6 Within, nourish yourself in quiet and emptiness. Seek the root hidden in the light and shine inward on the body. Close your openings and firmly secure the living root. The three lights sink from view; gently nurture the child, the pearl. It cannot be seen, though it is close and easy to seek. Yellow at the center gradually opens its channels, and moisture reaches the skin. Set the beginning right, and the end will be sound; once the stem stands, it cannot yet be held. The One conceals it, and ordinary people do not know it.

7 The highest virtue does nothing; it does not seek by investigation. Lesser virtue acts, and never stops applying itself. When the upper opening closes, it is called presence; when the lower closes, it is called absence. Absence serves what is above, where presence holds the spirit's power. This is the method of the two openings; the energy of metal also waits for its counterpart. Know white but keep to black, and the spirit's light will come by itself. White is metal's essence, black is water's foundation. Water is the pivot of the Way: remove the numbers and call it One. At the beginning of yin and yang, the dark contains the yellow sprout. The chief of the five metals is the northern river cart. Thus lead is black outside but holds golden brilliance within. It wears coarse clothes but carries jade inside; outwardly it looks like a madman. Metal is water's mother, and the mother hides in her child's womb. Water is metal's child, and the child hides in its mother's belly. The realized person is wonderfully subtle, as if present and absent at once, like a great deep, now sinking, now floating. When they withdraw and spread apart, each stays in its own region. Gather it and it looks white; prepare it and it turns red. Refined, it becomes a protective outer layer, with the real white inside. It is square and round, an inch across, mixed and held together. Born before heaven and earth, it stands high and honored. Beside it are walls and gates, shaped like the isle of Penghu. Closed all around, it nevertheless has passages in four directions. Guard it closely and securely; bar anything harmful. Its winding doors connect, ready for the unexpected. You may approach it without thought, but not through anxiety or toil. Spirit and energy fill the room; no one can hold them there. Keep it and you thrive; lose it and you die. In movement, stillness, and rest it is always with a person.

8 This is not the method of touring the inner organs and thinking about what you see within, walking in the steps of the Dipper's stars, or tracking the six jia by days and hours. Secret yin practices that suppress nine and one only stir up disorder and cloud the original womb. Eating breath makes the bowels rumble; breathing out the right energy draws in harmful energy from outside. You stay awake day and night and never rest, even on the last and first days of the month. Each day the body grows tired, dazed and seemingly foolish. All the blood vessels surge, with no chance to settle and clear. You pile up earth to make an altar and perform reverent rites morning and evening. Ghosts and spirits show their forms and trouble your dreams. Delighted, you think your life will surely be prolonged, but suddenly you die before your time, your body exposed to rot. Everything you do goes wrong; you go against the essential principle. There are very many such techniques, thousands upon thousands. They depart from the teaching of the Yellow Emperor and Laozi and twist away from the nine regions. A clear-minded person considers their meaning and plainly sees why. Practice the right way diligently, day and night without stopping. After three years of taking the prepared medicine, you rise lightly and travel far: fire does not burn you, water does not wet you; you can appear and disappear and live happily without worry. Once the Way is achieved and virtue complete, you stay hidden and wait for the time. The Great One summons you to live in the central land. With your work complete you rise above, receive the imperial command and the heavenly chart.

9 The schedule for fire is not made up: it is explained through the Changes. The crescent moon gives the model for furnace and cauldron; the white tiger is the pivot of heating. Mercury, the sun, is the flowing pearl, accompanied by the blue-green dragon. Bring east together with west, and the soul and bodily spirit hold each other. At the first quarter Dui's number is eight; at the last quarter Gen's is also eight. Join the essences of the two quarters and the body of Qian and Kun is formed. Twice eight corresponds to one jin in weight; the Way of the Changes then stands straight and does not tip.

10 When gold enters fierce fire, its color does not lose its brightness. Since the first opening of the world, sun and moon have not lost their light. Gold does not lose its weight, and sun and moon retain their forms. Gold originally grows from the moon; at the new moon's dawn it receives the tally from the sun. Gold returns to its mother; at the dark of the moon, sun and moon enclose each other. It hides its outlines and sinks and floats in deep emptiness. Gold recovers its former nature, and the cauldron glows with brilliant light.

11 The numbers of zi and wu add up to three; wu and ji are called five. When three and five are in harmony, the eight stones are properly ordered. Breathing in and out nurture one another; settled thought makes them husband and wife. Yellow earth is the father of metal; the flowing pearl is the child of water. Earth is water's enemy; earth holds water down so it cannot rise. The red bird is the essence of fire, keeping the balance between what wins and what loses. When water grows strong, fire goes out; both die and return to thick earth. The three natures then come together and share the same original ancestry. Sesame seed can prolong life, but the returned elixir can be taken by mouth. Metal does not decay, so it is valued among all things. An adept prepares and eats it, and gains a long life. Earth travels through the four seasons, keeps the boundaries, and sets the rules. When the golden cinnabar enters the five inner organs, mist spreads like wind and rain. Its warmth and vapor reach the limbs, and the complexion becomes fresh and healthy. White hair turns black, and teeth grow again where they fell out. An old man grows strong and young again; an elderly woman becomes a young girl. Their forms change and they escape the hardships of the world: they are called realized people.

12 Put white lead powder into fire, and its color is ruined as it turns back to lead. Bring snow and ice to warm water and they melt into dark water. Metal takes cinnabar as its master and comes into balance with mercury. The change follows their true nature; end and beginning depend on each other. If you want to become an immortal by taking a prepared medicine, use things of the same kind. Plant grain to grow grain, and set a hen on her own eggs. Things of a kind make up what is natural, and can readily be transformed. Can a fish's eye be a pearl? Mugwort cannot become a catalpa tree. Like things go together; things at odds cannot make a treasure. Swallows and sparrows do not give birth to phoenixes, and foxes and rabbits do not nurse horses. Flowing water does not blaze upward, and moving fire does not moisten what is below. Many scholars today have talent and fine abilities. But when they do not find the right encounter, they waste fuel and lose their money. They follow written instructions and recklessly act on words. They have no grasp of the starting principles and lose control of their measurements. They pound and prepare mineral gall, mica, alum, and magnetic stone; burn sulfur with camphor wood; and refine mercury sealed in clay. They blow the bellows beneath the five-stone bronze, treating it as an aid and pivot. These mixed natures belong to different kinds: how could they live in one body? Try a thousand times and fail ten thousand; trying to be clever, you become foolish. From youth to white-haired age, you begin to doubt halfway through. Turning your back on the Way, you remain on the wrong road, leaving the right path for a crooked one. Looking through a tube, your view is too narrow to judge what is coming.

13 The greatest sage is Fuxi: he first drew the eight trigrams, modeling them on heaven and earth. King Wen, ancestor of kings, arranged their bodies and developed the words for the lines. Confucius, a sage among men, gave them support with the Ten Wings. These three leaders arose in succession, each ruling his time by heaven's gift. Their work came in stages, but their merits are not different. Each made his work by following what came before and calculated and checked even the smallest measures. What has form is easy to estimate; what gives no sign is hard to plan for. They made practices others could follow and set down the writings for the world. Without prior knowledge, I learned from a teacher and understood. It became bright as if a cold curtain opened and I climbed a high platform with eyes wide open.The Record of Fire has six hundred chapters, all directed toward the same end. Its words say important things, but people do not think them through. Trace the source and course of the teaching: what is hidden and what is visible have always lived together. I speak privately for wise people; how would I dare write lightly? But if I kept my tongue tied and silent, I would cut off the Way and deserve punishment. If I wrote down my thoughts, I would fear revealing heaven's signs. Hesitating, I sigh again and again, then put together these simple words. Refining has its rules, but I cannot lay them all out. I give a brief account of the main principles, so their branches can be seen spreading out.

14 Make metal the embankment so water can enter and move freely. Metal's number is fifteen, and water's number is the same. At the furnace, determine their weights in zhu and liang; water has five parts more. Take the two as the true ingredients; the metal remains as heavy as before. Its earth does not leave; it accompanies both of them. The three substances receive one another, changing almost miraculously. Beneath them is the sun's energy, steaming them for a short while. They first turn liquid, then set; this is called the yellow carriage. When the full cycle is nearly finished, their nature is destroyed and their life worn away. Their body turns to ash and earth, like dust on a bright window. Pound and prepare it, combine it, and place it in the red gate. Seal its joints and make sure they are strong and secure. Light a hot fire underneath: dragon and tiger sound vigorously. At first use gentle fire and let it rest; at the end, strong fire completes it. Watch the process closely and adjust the cold and heat carefully. Go around the twelve stages, and when the stages are complete give it even closer care. Its energy runs out and its life comes to an end; body and spirits die away. Its color turns purple and then it becomes a bright red elixir. Take a pill's worth of the powder, a tiny knife-tip measure: it is especially powerful.

15 Work out the numbers of the five phases: this can be kept simple. Bring water against fire and suddenly the light goes out. Eclipses occur when sun and moon press against each other, around new and full moon. When water is strong, Kan invades yang; when fire is weak, Li's daytime grows dark. Yin and yang consume and nourish each other; their interaction follows nature. Names identify their state; written characters describe their nature. When metal returns to its original nature it can be called the returned elixir. I do not dare make empty claims; I follow the writings of sages. An old record is titled Dragon and Tiger; the Yellow Emperor praised golden brilliance. Huainan refined autumn stone, and Yuyang added the yellow sprout. A worthy person can put this into practice; do not share it with someone unworthy. The Way was one in ancient times and is one now; in conversation we state our plan openly. Students should make a greater effort and think about it deeply. The key words are very plain and clear; they do not deceive us.

16 Qian and Kun, firmness and softness, are matched and enclose each other. Yang gives, yin receives; male and female need each other. Through their union they produce change and their essential energy spreads. Kan and Li come first and shine out before the rest. Their hidden depths are hard to measure and cannot be drawn. The sages estimated them and arranged the original foundation in sequence. These four mingle in a formless mass and enter emptiness directly. Sixty hexagrams complete the cycle, spread out like a carriage. Dragon and horse are harnessed and a wise ruler directs the time. In harmony, they follow; the road is level and straight. The crooked way is dangerous and puts the state at risk.

17 When a good person speaks well from his room, a response comes even from a thousand miles away. This refers to a ruler of ten thousand chariots, living within nine courts. He issues commands in step with the stages of yin and yang. He keeps his tools stored until their time and does not go against the hexagrams and the months. Zhun uses zi and shen; Meng uses yin and xu. Each of the other sixty hexagrams has its own day. I offer just these two images; I cannot explain everything. Set intentions and establish punishments; show kindness and give benefits at the right time. Going against this brings harm; following it brings good fortune. Observe the calendar and its rules with complete sincerity and close attention. Watch the day and hour, and carefully study waxing and waning. If even the smallest detail is wrong, regret and trouble do harm. At the two solstices the measure changes and becomes twisted and wrong.There is great heat in midwinter and frost and snow in midsummer. At the two equinoxes things go awry and do not match the water clock. Flood and drought attack each other; wind and rain are out of season. Locusts swarm, and strange events appear everywhere. Heaven displays its omens; mountains fall and earth splits. A devoted child's thoughts can move even the highest power. A word leaves one's own mouth nearby and travels to distant lands. It may bring disaster or blessing, create peace or produce war. These four outcomes arise in the mind. Let movement and rest follow steady rules and fixed measures. The four seasons then keep their proper order and agree with the energy. Firm and soft remain distinct and do not intrude on each other. The five phases keep their boundaries and do not swell or shrink without reason. The Changes continue their course, bending, stretching, and turning back.

18 Between the month's end and its new beginning, the matching tallies come together and move through the center. In the formless beginning, female and male follow each other. Moisture nourishes them and transformation flows. The powers of heaven and earth are beyond measurement. Use them to make yourself secure; conceal your form and remain hidden. It begins in the northeast, the region of the Winnowing Basket and Dipper stars. Turning right, the wheel brings forth a sprout. An image appears in the deep pool and spreads its bright essence. Above the Mao and Bi stars, Zhen comes out as the sign. Yang energy begins: the first nine is the hidden dragon. Yang is established by three, yin passes through eight. On the third day Zhen stirs; on the eighth Dui moves. The second nine is the dragon appearing; peace brings light. At three times five the power is complete and Qian's body forms. The third nine is watchful at night: the divine tally begins to wane. Growth and decline gradually change, then return to their beginning. Xun takes over and holds the boundary securely. The fourth nine may leap: advance and retreat are dangerous. Gen controls advancing and stopping; one must not go beyond the proper time. The twenty-third day governs the time of the moon's quarter. The fifth nine is the flying dragon, honored in heaven's place. Kun's fifth six receives it and binds end to beginning. She nurtures her many children, mother of their kind for generations. The top nine is the dragon too high, battling in the field over its power; using the nines in their flight gives a rule for the Way. Once yang's number ends, it begins again. Their states and natures fit and pass back and forth. The turning celestial mechanism rises and falls, above and below. It moves through all six lines and is hard to see. Because it has no fixed position, it is the source of the Changes.

19 At the new moon's dawn comes Fu, Return: yang energy begins to flow. It goes in and out without trouble, showing the faint first sign of firmness. The Yellow Bell's note establishes zi, and the first signs grow clear. It spreads mild warmth, and the people find their normal life. At the furnace, apply the rules and open a path for proper light. The brightness gradually grows and the days get longer. At chou comes Da Lü, the Great Companion, setting rise and fall in order. Rising, it makes Tai, Peace, where firm and soft both flourish. They meet after traveling far: what is small goes and what is great comes. They gather at the hub of yin, moving with the season. It gradually reaches Da Zhuang, Great Strength, arrayed at the gate of mao. Elm seeds fall and return to their roots. Punishment and virtue confront each other, and day and night first divide. In Guai, Breakthrough, yin withdraws and yang moves forward and upward. Wash the feathers and shake away old dust. Qian is strong and bright, reaching widely in all four directions. Yang ends at si; in the middle they meet. Their union begins the sequence, with walking on frost as its first sign. At the bottom of the well is a cold spring; wu brings the note Rui Bin. The guest hides in yin, and yin is the host. Dun, Withdrawal, leaves the world and its position, gathering its essence. Keeping its virtue, it waits in the dark. Pi, Obstruction, closes the passage, and no shoots grow. Yin extends and yang contracts, hiding even yang's name. Observe their measure and the conditions of autumn. Nurture what is young and small, and what is old and dry grows green again. Shepherd's purse and wheat put out shoots beneath the covering. Bo, Stripping, destroys the limbs and reduces the body. When the transforming energy runs out, the highest spirit is lost. At the end of the path it turns back to Kun, the original earth. Constantly follow earth's pattern and receive and spread heaven's will. What is dark and distant is joined across the divide. In season it raises seed, the origin of yin and yang. It is vast and dim; no one knows where it begins. At first it loses its way; afterward it takes charge. No level ground stays without a slope: that is the Way's natural course. Change grows strong again, waxing and waning in succession. Kun ends and Fu begins, like links in an endless ring. Rulers follow this course and endure for a thousand years.

20 If you want to nourish your nature and prolong your life, consider the end carefully by thinking first about the beginning. The body we receive begins in nothing. Original essence spreads like a cloud and finds its beginning in energy. Yin and yang provide its measure and a dwelling for the soul and bodily spirit. Yang's spirit is the sun-soul; yin's spirit is the moon's bodily spirit. Each of these makes a home for the other. Inner nature stays inside, marking out its boundaries. Outer feelings work outside, building walls around it. Once the walls are whole, those inside are safe. Then feelings are in harmony with Qian and Kun. Qian moves straight, spreading energy and making essence flow. Kun is still and receptive, a home for the Way. The firm gives and withdraws; the soft transforms and nourishes. Nine returns and seven comes back; eight goes home and six remains. The male is white and the female red; metal and fire hold one another. Then water steadies fire, at the beginning of the five phases. The highest good is like water, clean and without a blemish. The Way's form, the true One, is hard to depict. It changes and spreads, each part dwelling apart. It resembles an egg, with white and black fitting together, an inch across at its beginning. Its four limbs, five organs, sinews, and bones take shape. After a full ten months, it leaves the womb. Its bones are soft enough to bend, its flesh smooth as lead.

21 A burning mirror draws fire, but without the sun it gives no light. How could a water-drawing mirror gather water without the stars and moon? The two energies are mysterious and far away, yet they respond to one another in change. How much more can what lies close within the body respond? The key is in the heart. Yin and yang correspond to sun and moon; water and fire show the effects.

22 Ears, eyes, and mouth are three treasures: close their gates and do not let anything out. The realized person hides deep in the water and moves while staying within the circle. Turning to see and hear, opening and closing, all follow the same pattern. They become your central controls, never exhausted by movement or stillness. Li's energy guards and nourishes within; Kan does not use sharp hearing. Dui closes instead of talking; speaking little follows the first undivided state. Once all three are shut, relax the body and remain in an empty room. Let your will return to emptiness and make freedom from thought your normal state. The proof cannot be shifted about; keep the mind fixed rather than moving from one thing to another. In sleep the spirits embrace; awake, watch whether they remain or depart. The complexion slowly grows moist and the joints grow stronger. Drive out all harmful yin, then establish proper yang. Practice this without stopping, and many energies travel like clouds and rain. They flow like spring rain and melt like thawing ice, passing from head to foot, then rising again. They come and go through boundless space, gently filling the body. Returning is the sign of the Way; softness is virtue's key. Cultivate away old impurities, and the smallest parts will work smoothly. What is cloudy can become clear; after long darkness comes light.

23 People like minor techniques and do not judge how deep the Way goes. They abandon the right path for a crooked shortcut; in their hurry, they block the passage. They are like blind people refusing a staff, deaf people trying to hear musical notes, people diving into water to catch pheasants and rabbits, climbing a mountain to seek fish and dragons, planting wheat and expecting millet, or using a compass to draw a square. They wear out body and mind and see no results for a whole year. If you want to know the method of preparing and taking the medicine, it is simple, not complicated.

24 The sun's flowing pearl always tries to escape. When it finds golden brilliance, they turn together and depend on each other, changing into a white liquid that sets hard. Golden brilliance calls first; in a moment it dissolves into water, like toothed crystals of beautiful stone. Yang then joins it, following their natural inclinations. Pressed by the passing hours of yin, they are held inside the barred gate. A loving mother nourishes her child; a devoted child repays his mother. A strict father gives orders and instructs his children and grandchildren. The five phases take turns in power and generate one another. Fire melts metal, while metal cuts back the flourishing wood. Three, five, and one are the finest essence of heaven and earth. This can be taught by word of mouth but is hard to pass on in writing.At zi turn right; at wu the wheel turns. Mao and you are the dividing line between the two named host and guest. Dragon calls to tiger and tiger draws in essence. The two feed upon each other, each eager for the other. They seize, swallow, chew, and consume one another. Mars guards the west; Venus crosses the heavens. Where killing energy reaches, nothing can remain standing. A cat and dog watch a mouse; small birds fear a hawk. Each has its own power; how dare it make a sound? Without understanding the principle, it is hard to speak about it carelessly. People exhaust the family wealth, leaving wife and children hungry and poor. From ancient times to now, hundreds of millions have sought it, but hardly any meet with success; few complete it. They search widely for famous drugs, which are far from the Way.

25 If you carefully meet the right conditions, you will see how it begins. Compare things by their kinds and study their beginnings and ends. The five phases overcome one another and become parents in turn. The mother holds nourishing fluid; the father provides and gives. Their essence takes shape, and metal and stone do not decay. Keep careful focus without letting it escape, and you can complete the Way. Set up a pole and see its shadow; call into a valley and hear the echo. Isn't this marvelous? These are great signs from heaven and earth. But if you swallow an inch of wild kudzu or one liang of croton seeds, your body stiffens as soon as they enter your throat and you cannot bend or straighten up. At that point, could King Wen cast yarrow stalks, Confucius read the images, Bian Que wield his needle, or Wu Xian beat his drum and bring you back to life, running about again?

26 The young woman by the river is wonderfully powerful. Given fire, she flies away without leaving a trace of dust. Hidden like a ghost or dragon, no one knows where she is. If you want to control her, the yellow sprout must be the root. Things consist of yin and yang; to violate heaven is to turn against the origin. If a hen lays eggs by herself, her chicks will not develop fully. Why? The mating has not taken place; three and five have not joined, and hard and soft are separated. The essence that brings about change comes naturally from heaven and earth. Fire rises as it burns, water flows down and moistens. No teacher has to tell them to do it: the forces governing their proper courses cannot be changed. Look at male and female as they mate: hard and soft bind inseparably. They have the right timing, not a craftsman's clever way of directing them. A boy is born face down, a girl face up. This happens at the first breath received in the womb; it is visible not just at birth but even at death. Their parents did not teach them to do this. It was established at their conception from the start.

27 Kan is the male moon, Li the female sun. The sun gives its power and the moon sends forth light; the moon receives change from the sun without injury to its body. When the sun loses its match, yin encroaches on its brightness. At new moon and month's end an eclipse covers them; they overwhelm each other. The sun's form diminishes and harm arises from yin's dominance. Male and female need each other, nourished by earth inside them. The sexes mix and seek others of their kind. Metal changes into water and water wanders widely. Fire changes into earth, preventing water from moving. The male moves and gives outwardly; the female rests and holds within. When he exceeds the limit, she holds him back. The moon's bodily spirit restrains the sun-soul so that it cannot run wild. Neither cold nor hot, their movements accord with the time. Each finds harmony, and together they issue the signs that govern them.

28 Cinnabar is the essence of wood and joins with metal when it finds it. Metal and water meet together; wood and fire become companions. These four are mixed in the formless beginning and arranged as dragon and tiger. The dragon is yang, with odd numbers; the tiger is yin, with even numbers. The blue-green liver is the father, the white lungs the mother, the black kidneys the son, red Li the daughter, and the yellow spleen the ancestor. Zi and wu are the beginning. The three substances are one family and all return to wu and ji.

29 Hard and soft rise in turn and each takes its place. Dragon is in the west and tiger in the east, setting the crosswise line through mao and you. Punishment and virtue meet and are happy to see each other. Punishment governs suppression and death; virtue governs birth and growth. In the second month elm seeds fall as the Dipper's bowl points at mao. In the eighth month wheat grows as its handle rests at you. Zi lies to the south and wu to the north; they give each other their guiding measures. The numbers one and nine end and begin again. The original energy is contained in the Xu and Wei stars and spreads its essence at zi.

30 “Ospreys call to one another on the island in the river. A graceful, good young woman is a fitting partner for a good man.” The male does not live alone and the female does not dwell by herself. In the Dark Warrior, tortoise and snake coil together and support one another. This shows that female and male need each other. Suppose two beautiful women live together. Let Su Qin speak for them and Zhang Yi arrange the match. Let them argue skillfully, use fine words, speak from the heart, and try to make them husband and wife. Even when their hair is worn out and their teeth rotten, they will never come together as a couple. If the medicinal ingredients are not of the same stock, if their names and kinds differ and their measured portions do not match, their proper order is lost. Even if the Yellow Emperor attended the furnace, the Grand Duke tended the fire, the Eight Lords pounded and refined the ingredients, and Huainan mixed them; even if they built a lofty altar with jade steps, offered unicorn meat and phoenix fat, knelt holding ritual tablets, prayed to the gods, pleaded with ghosts, bathed and fasted in hope of success, it would be like mending a pot with glue, treating a wound with sal ammoniac, adding ice to take away cold, or using hot water to remove heat. A flying tortoise and a dancing snake only make the error more obvious.

31 The sages of old kept the hidden truth close. They prepared medicines in the nine cauldrons, concealed their traces, and lived unseen. They held their essence and nourished their spirits, shared the power of the three lights, brought nourishing fluid into the pores, and strengthened sinews and bones. They drove out all harmful forces and kept the right energy alive. Over a long time they changed form and became immortals. They cared for later students who loved the Way. They followed old patterns and pointed to ancient writings, producing illustrated collections to show future generations. They revealed the branches but hid the root; they gave things many names and obscured them in confusing texts. Students got these writings and kept them boxed up all their lives. Sons took over their fathers' work and grandsons followed their grandfathers. This legacy of confusion gave no real understanding. Officials left office, farmers neglected their fields, merchants gave up their goods, and ambitious men impoverished their households. This pains me deeply, so I have recorded this text carefully. Its words are brief and easy to think through; its procedure is simple. I list its steps and show the facts clearly. The portions have fixed measures and follow one another. So I have made these final verses to open a door into it. Wise people should think carefully and compare their meanings.

32 No model is greater than heaven and earth; the dark channel runs for tens of thousands of miles. When the River Drum star comes near the Star Marker, everyone is alarmed. The sundial's shadow moves wrongly forward and back, and nine years suffer disaster. The emperor sees it and changes his ways. The pivot rises and falls, and harmful energy runs off. The Yangtze and Huai rivers dry up, while their waters flow into the sea. Heaven and earth's female and male move back and forth between zi and wu. Yin and shen are the ancestors of yin and yang: they enter and leave and begin again. Following the Dipper, the turning handle holds the balance and sets the first calendar. The substance rises and cooks in the mountain-shaped steamer, with a fierce fire lit below. White Tiger leads and calls from the front; blue-green liquid joins from behind. Red Bird flies about at play, showing five colors. Caught in a net, it is pressed down and cannot rise. It cries pitifully like a baby longing for its mother. Turned upside down into the boiling pot, its feathers are broken and torn. Before half a water-clock measure passes, fishlike scales and bristling fins appear. Five brilliant colors dazzle the eye and keep changing. The liquid boils and bubbles in the cauldron, surging without rest. Layers heap on layers, interlocking like a dog's teeth. They look like midwinter ice, with clusters of crystalline stone sending out stalactites. They stand high in a tangled heap, propped up against each other. Yin and yang find their partners and hold together gently. Blue-green Dragon occupies the sixth station of the Chamber, like spring flowers in Zhen's eastern mao. White Tiger occupies the seventh station of Mao, like autumn awns in Dui's western you. Red Bird occupies the second station of Zhang, the full yang mingled with southern wu. The three come to court together, close as members of a family. At the root there are only two things; at the end there are three and five. Three and five combine with one and all gather in two places. Treat them according to the rules above, taking the number of days from the beginning too. White comes first, then yellow, while red and black reach inside and outside. This is called the first cauldron; take a portion the size of a large millet grain. It is nature's own work, not a false or crooked method. Energy rises between mountain and marsh, making clouds and rain. Mud dries and becomes dust; fire dies and turns to earth. Amur cork tree dyes yellow, and indigo makes a green cord. Boiled hide becomes glue; fermented grain and starter turn to wine. Working with things of the same kind is easy; no skill can force different kinds. This marvelous technique is true when examined closely; its words are no lie. Passed down for hundreds of millions of generations, it will remain clear enough to test. It shines like stars across the Milky Way and gathers like rivers in the sea. Study it until you know it well, looking over it from beginning to end again and again. After a thousand readings it will shine clearly; after ten thousand, you may see it. Perhaps a spirit will tell you, or understanding will suddenly come from your own mind. Search out its beginning and trace its threads, and you will find the entrance. There is no favoritism on the path into the Way; it is always passed to worthy people.

33 Round, three and five; an inch and one part. Its mouth, four and eight; its lip, two inches. Its length is one foot and two inches, its thickness even. Its belly matches three, and it sits hanging over warmth. Yin is above, while yang rushes below. Use strong fire at beginning and end, gentle fire in the middle. Begin with seventy, finish with thirty; make three hundred and six, adjusting them evenly. Yin's fire is white, and the yellow sprout is lead. Two sevens gather and give support. Nourish and tend the brain, settling the rise of the dark principle. The child remains in the center and rests safely. It moves back and forth without leaving the gate. Slowly it grows large, its nature and feelings pure. It returns to the One, to its original source. Treat it with loving respect, like ruler and minister. A full cycle takes great care. Protect it closely; do not become confused or careless. The road is long and hidden deep. If you get through it, Qian and Kun will meet. Then a small dose touches you and cleanses the bodily spirit and soul. You gain long life and dwell among immortals. Whoever loves the Way should seek its root. Study the five phases and fix the weights in zhu. Think it through carefully; there is no need to argue. Hide it well and guard it; do not pass it on in writing. Ride a white crane, drive a scaled dragon, roam the vast emptiness, visit the lord of immortals, be entered on the heavenly chart, and be called a realized person.

34 The Cantong qi sets out a general account. It cannot be entirely consistent, and speaks broadly; the finest details are not complete, and some parts are left vague. Now I have written more, filling in omissions, clarifying what was obscure, and linking the parts. The meanings are consistent and directed to the same end. So I have written this supplement, called Three Things of the Same Kind. Then the nature of the great Changes is fully explained.The great Changes have their own nature and proper measures. The teachings of the Yellow Emperor and Laozi can be studied, compared, and applied. The work of furnace and fire has a real basis. The three paths follow one principle and emerge from a single road. Branches, stems, flowers, leaves, and hanging fruit all come from the root and do not depart from their original nature. I speak sincerely; examine this and you will find no error. Think of midwinter, when bamboo and trees are damaged. Support yang, question the traveling merchants, and let the ruler hide deep within. Follow the season and keep your mouth closed rather than talking. Heaven's Way is vast, and the deepest mystery has no visible form. Empty and still, it cannot be seen; its outlines disappear. Mistakes lose the thread of the work, and one's own words then bring harm. I have set these four images out separately to bring light to blind students of the future.

35 I am a humble man from Kuaiji, an old and worn-out man in a secluded valley. I keep a simple heart and do not love power or fame. Living quietly in an out-of-the-way place, I ignore profit and reputation. I hold to a peaceful, modest life and hope for calm times. At ease in my free time, I wrote this work. It tells of the great Changes and the words left by three sages. I study their meaning and explain them together as one. Do not depart from the proper principle; let the spirit shine. Divine change moves freely, and peace spreads across the four seas. Set it out as a calendar for people to follow for all time. Arrange it for governing: it is not hard to put into practice. Draw on it inwardly to nourish your nature, following the natural Way of the Yellow Emperor and Laozi. Keep virtue in full measure and return to your root and origin. It is close, in my own heart, never apart from my body. Hold fast to the One and do not let go, and you may live long. Combine this with the medicine to be prepared and eaten, setting out male and female. Remove Wudu and throw out the eight stones. Use the things that really work, which the world values. I have set out three strands with branches and stems joined. They have different names but come from the same source and one gate. I have not simply piled up lines or made rhyming pairs: the truth in them is substantial and plain to see. If I spread falsehoods, I would instead incur blame. I call it the Cantong qi: look briefly at its beginning. Its words are few but its meaning large; later generations should respect it. Leave the harmful times behind and find refuge in the hills. Travel through the vast emptiness, dwelling near spirits. Change your form and become immortal, silent and unseen. After a hundred generations, wander among people again, spread your wings and lean to east and west and south. Tang met with disaster: flood and drought struck together. Branches and leaves turned yellow, losing their blossoms and beauty. Good people support one another, and in safety may live long.