The Taoist Master Liu Yiming (1734–1821)

Fabrizio Pregadio

Summarized from the Introduction of:

Cultivating the Tao

Liu Yiming (1734–1821)

Cultivating the Tao: Taoism and Internal Alchemy

Golden Elixir Press

2. Works

The main collection of Liu Yiming's works is entitled Daoshu shi'er zhong (Twelve Books on the Dao). His best-known works—all found in this collection—consist of commentaries to Neidan texts and of independent works on Neidan, including the following.

Main Commentaries to Neidan Texts

  1. Cantong zhizhi (Straightforward Directions on the Unity of the Three), on the Zhouyi cantong qi (The Seal of the Unity of the Three)
  2. Wuzhen zhizhi (Straightforward Directions on the Awakening to Reality), on the Wuzhen pian (Awakening to Reality)
  3. Yinfu jing zhu (Commentary to the Book of the Hidden Agreement), on the Yinfu jing (Book of the Hidden Agreement)
  4. Jindan sibai zi jie (Explication of the Four Hundred Words on the Golden Elixir), on the Jindan sibai zi (Four Hundred Words on the Golden Elixir), with additional poems by Liu Yiming

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Main Works on Neidan

  1. Xiangyan poyi (Removing Doubts on Symbolic Language)
  2. Xiuzhen biannan (Discriminations on Difficult Points in Cultivating Reality)
  3. Xiuzhen houbian (Further Discriminations in Cultivating Reality, translated into English as Cultivating the Tao: Taoism and Internal Alchemy)
  4. Wudao lu (Accounts of an Awakening to the Dao)
  5. Xiyou yuanzhi (The Original Purport of the Journey to the West), containing a Neidan interpretation of the Ming-dynasty novel Journey to the West

Other Works

In addition, Liu Yiming wrote:

  1. Several books on the Yijing (Book of Changes), including the Zhouyi chanzhen (Uncovering the True in the Book of Changes)
  2. Little-known commentaries to the Daode jing and to Buddhist texts
  3. Six works on medicine

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