Sixty-Four Quatrains, I (1-32)

18 First make Qian and Kun the cauldron and vessel; Next cook the crow and hare as the medicine.When you have driven both back to the yellow path, How could the golden elixir fail to form?

19 Set furnace and cauldron according to Qian and Kun; Temper their essence and govern spirit and soul.Gathering and scattering, mingling, they transform; Dare one speak lightly of such mystery?

20 Do not cling to an alchemy stove and waste your toil; To refine the medicine seek the crescent-moon furnace.Its natural, true fire nourishes all by itself; What need of charcoal, firewood, and bellows?

21 In the crescent-moon furnace the jade blossom grows; In the cinnabar cauldron the quicksilver settles.Once the force of fire is brought into harmony, The yellow sprout you planted slowly grows to fullness.

22 Swallowing saliva and drawing breath are human deeds; Only with the medicine can creation come to birth.If there is no true seed within the cauldron, You might as well boil an empty pan with water and fire.

23 To make the elixir, harmonize lead and mercury; Neither great nor small is harmed: both realms remain whole.If you ask what substance true lead is, The toad's light shines all day over the western river.

24 Until you refine the returned elixir, do not hide in mountains; Within and without the mountains, nothing there is lead.Every home possesses this supreme treasure; People today simply fail to know it fully.

25 A split bamboo is best repaired with bamboo; To hatch a chick, one must use an egg.A thousand mismatched things only waste your strength: What can compare with true lead joined to the sacred key?

26 To use lead, you must not use ordinary lead; Once true lead has served its purpose, cast it away as well.This is the true and wondrous secret of using lead: “To use lead is not to use it”—these words are true.

27 “Empty the heart, fill the belly”: both meanings run deep; To empty the heart, first you must know the heart.Better to refine lead and fill the belly first, And keep the gold that fills the hall secure.

28 In a dream I visited Western Splendor in the ninth heaven; A True Person gave me a chapter pointing to mystery.Its message was simple, its words were few: It only taught people to refine mercury and lead.

29 The Way gives birth to one breath out of empty nothingness; From that one breath arise yin and yang.Yin and yang unite again to form the three bodies; The three bodies give rise anew to all things flourishing.

30 In Kan, lightning boils and roars in the realm of metal and water; Fire erupts from Kunlun: yin and yang.If these two substances are brought into union, The elixir ripens of itself, scenting the entire body.

31 If Li and Kan lack Wu and Ji, Though holding the four images, they cannot form the elixir.Because each of them contains the true earth, The golden elixir can return once more.

32 The sun dwelling in Li becomes the woman instead; Kan joined to the moon palace is the man.If you cannot grasp this reversal within them, Do not pronounce grand judgments from a narrow view.

33 Take the solid heart from Kan's station And transmute the yin within Li's belly.It changes then into Qian's vigorous body: Its hiding and soaring both follow the heart.

34 Zhen dragon, mercury, emerges from Li's domain; Dui tiger, metal, is born in Kan's realm.Both substances show the child giving birth to its mother; All five phases must enter the center.

35 The moon's half-wheel has only just shone at heaven's edge, Yet already dragon sings and tiger roars.This is the moment to work upon the two eights: Within a single two-hour watch the elixir will form.

36 On Mount Hua's summit the male tiger roars; Beneath Fusang's sea the female dragon sings.The Yellow Matron each day knows how to join them, Making husband and wife of one heart.

37 The white tiger of the western mountain rages wildly; The azure dragon of the eastern sea is irresistible.Seize them with both hands and make them fight to the death; They change into a single mass of purple-gold frost.

38 Red dragon and black tiger stand each to west and east; Four images meet within Wu and Ji.If you can now put Fu and Gou to work, How could the golden elixir fail to succeed?

39 First observe heaven and discern the five thieves; Then survey the earth and bring peace to the people.Only when the people are safe and the state rich, seek battle; Only after battle will you see the sage.

40 When deploying generals, distinguish the left and right armies; Let the other be host and myself the guest.I urge you, do not slight your foe upon the field, Or our family's priceless jewel may be lost.

41 Fire is born from wood, where its blade lies hidden; If you cannot drill and probe, do not attack by force.Disaster will flare and bring harm upon yourself; You must master it and seek Lord Metal.

42 Lord Metal was originally a child of the eastern house, Sent to dwell and grow embodied with the western neighbor.Recognize him, call him home and nurture him; Wed him to the lovely maiden in affection.

43 The lovely maiden wanders by her appointed course; The journey forward must be short, the journey back long.On returning she enters the Yellow Matron's house, To marry old Lord Metal as her husband.

44 Though you know cinnabar and black lead, Without the fire's timing your knowledge is idle.All chiefly depends upon the strength of cultivation; A hair's breadth of error will prevent the elixir's birth.

45 Treatises, scriptures, and songs expound the highest truth, But do not set down the fire's timing in writing.To know where oral teaching reaches the mystery, You must examine it closely with divine intelligence.

46 On the fifteenth of the eighth month, delight in the toad's glow: This is the hour when metal's essence is fullest.When one yang rises and the Return begins, Feed the fire at once; do not delay.

47 The instant one yang stirs is the hour to make the elixir; The leaden cauldron glows warmly upon curtains and drapes.Receiving the breath at the beginning is easily done; Beware the dangers of drawing off, adding in, and working the fire.

48 The dark pearl takes form and grows with the yang; As yang reaches its height, yin wanes and loses form.When frost falls in the tenth month the elixir ripens; Even spirits and ghosts must tremble then.

49 After the first half-moon, before the second half-moon, The medicine's flavor is balanced, its vital signs complete.Gather it and bring it home for firing within the furnace; Once refined, nurture it gently as it cooks of itself.

18 First make Qian and Kun the cauldron and vessel;Then cook the medicine of sun-crow and moon-rabbit.Once you drive these two things onto the yellow path,How could the golden elixir fail to form?

19 Set up furnace and cauldron on the model of Qian and Kun;Refine the essence and control the moon-soul and sun-soul.Gathering, dispersing, and mingling bring about change;How could one discuss such mystery casually?

20 Don't cling to a physical elixir stove and waste your effort;To refine the medicine, seek the crescent-moon furnace.It has its own natural, true fire to nurture it;Why use charcoal, firewood, or a bellows?

21 A jade blossom grows inside the crescent-moon furnace;Mercury settles in the cinnabar cauldron.Once the strength of the fire has been adjusted,The yellow sprout you planted gradually grows.

22 Swallowing saliva and taking in breath are human actions;Only with the medicine can nature's transformation arise.If there is no true seed in the cauldron,It is like boiling water and fire in an empty pan.

23 To make the elixir, you must join lead and mercury;Keep both kingdoms, great and small, unharmed.If you ask what true lead is,The moon's light shines on the western river all day.

24 Don't hide in the mountains before refining the returned elixir;Nothing in the mountains, inside or out, is lead.Every household has this most valuable treasure;People today simply fail to recognize it fully.

25 To repair split bamboo, you should use bamboo;To hatch a chicken, you must use an egg.Everything of the wrong kind makes for wasted work;True lead is what fits the sacred process.

26 Use lead, but do not use ordinary lead;After using true lead, discard even that.This is the real secret of using lead;Using lead yet not using it is the truth.

27 “Empty the mind and fill the belly” has a deep meaning;To empty the mind, you must understand the mind.Better first refine lead to fill the belly,And keep the gold that fills the hall.

28 In a dream I visited the western flower in the ninth heaven;A true person gave me a text pointing to the mystery.Its instructions were simple and brief:It only told people to refine mercury and lead.

29 From emptiness the way produces one energy;That one energy then produces yin and yang.Yin and yang join again to form three bodies;The three bodies produce all the thriving things.

30 Thunder and lightning in Kan cook metal and water with a roar;Fire rises at Kunlun, with yin and yang.If these two things come together,The elixir naturally ripens and fragrances the whole body.

31 If Li and Kan lack wu and ji,Even with the four forms they cannot make the elixir.Because each holds true earth,The golden elixir can return.

32 The sun occupies Li's place but is instead female;Kan pairs with the moon's palace but is male.If you don't understand this reversal,Don't speak proudly on the strength of your narrow view.

33 Take the solid center from Kan's positionAnd transform the yin inside Li's palace.It then becomes Qian's strong body;Hiding, flying, or leaping all depend on the mind.

34 The dragon of Zhen, mercury, comes from Li's country;The tiger of Dui, metal, is born in Kan's region.Both come from children giving birth to mothers;All five phases must enter the center.

35 When just half a moon appears on the horizon,Dragon calls and tiger roars can already be heard.This is the right time to work on the two eights;Within a single two-hour period the elixir will surely form.

36 The male tiger roars on Mount Hua's summit;The female dragon calls beneath the Fusang sea.The Yellow Woman can always bring them together,Making them husband and wife with a single heart.

37 The white tiger of the western mountain runs wild;The green dragon of the eastern sea cannot be held back.Catch them with both hands and make them fight to the death;They turn into a single mass of purple-gold frost.

38 Red dragon and black tiger stand west and east;The four forms meet within wu and ji.If you can now use Fu and Gou, the returning hexagrams,How could the golden elixir fail?

39 First observe heaven and understand the five thieves;Then examine earth to settle the people.Only when the people are safe and the country is rich, seek battle;Only after the battle will you see the sage.

40 When you deploy generals, distinguish left and right armies;Let the other be host and yourself the guest.I urge you not to underestimate the enemy in battle;You may lose your family's priceless treasure.

41 Fire is born in wood, where its sharp point is hidden;Don't try to force it if you can't drill it out.Disaster will arise and harm you;You must subdue it by seeking the Metal Lord.

42 The Metal Lord was originally the eastern family's son;He was sent to the western neighbor to live in another body.Recognize him, call him home, and raise him there;Pair him with the young woman in marriage.

43 The young woman's movements each have their own direction;Her forward journey must be short, her return long.When she returns, she enters the Yellow Woman's houseAnd marries the Metal Lord as an older groom.

44 Even if you know cinnabar and black lead,Without knowing the timing of the fire it is all useless.Everything depends on the effort of careful practice;A difference as small as a hair prevents the elixir from forming.

45 Treatises, scriptures, and songs discuss the deepest truths,But do not put the timing of the fire into writing.To know the oral instructions and understand the mystery,You must discuss them carefully with one who has divine insight.

46 Enjoy the moonlight on the fifteenth of the eighth month;That is when the essence of metal is at its fullest.When the first yang comes back and begins to rise,It is time to increase the fire. Do not delay.

47 The elixir work starts as soon as the first yang stirs;The lead cauldron glows gently on the curtain.Taking in energy at first is easy;Guard against danger when removing, adding, and tending the fire.

48 The dark pearl takes shape as yang grows;As yang reaches its peak, yin dwindles and its form is stripped away.When frost falls in the tenth month, the elixir finally ripens;At that point even spirits and ghosts are startled.

49 After the first half-moon and before the second,The medicine is balanced and its energies are complete.Gather it and bring it back to refine in the furnace;Once refined, nurture it gently as it cooks.