Let's take a look at the Hui Ming Jing (慧命經) by Zen master Liu Huayang.
Want to read the text? The Huiming Jing : a translation and discussion, available as a PDF from the Open Library.
Here's a small portion of it:
If you wish to complete the diamond body of the End of Leakage,
Diligently decoct the roots of huiming.
In samadhi, illuminate and never leave the joyful terrain,
And in time the perfect self will secretly reside.
Now, of the subtleties of the Tao, none can compare to xing and ming. And in the cultivation of xing and ming, nothing can compare to returning them to one. The ancient sages and high worthies took the objectives of returning xing and ming to one and cleverly illustrated them using external phenomena, but were unwilling express themselves clearly and speak directly. Because of this, there is no one in the world who practices such dual cultivation.
The charts I have linked here are not reckless divulgence. They adhere to the End of Leakage of Surangama, express the misterious intent of Avatamsaka, and unite the scattered words of the various sutras, thereby yielding an accurate illustration so that one may then know that huiming is nothing beyond the Opening (竅). In fact, I have set forth this chart because I want fellow-practicioners to understand these heavenly Inner Workings of dual cultivation and not descend into deviant teachings. They will then know that proceeding from this the True Seed is kept, that proceeding from this the End of Leakage is realized, that proceeding from this Sarira [body] is cultivated, and that proceeding from this the Great Tao is attained.
Indeed, this Opening is in fact the cavern of emptiness and non-being. It has no shape and no image. When the qi [炁] is expressed the Opening is complete. When its Inner Workings rest, it is far and indistinct. It is in fact the storehouse of perfection and the altar of cultivating huiming. We call it the "Palace of the Dragon-King at the Bottom of the Sea", the "Realm of the Himalayas," the "Western Lands," the "Primordial Pass," the "Kingdom of Ultimate Bliss," and the "Village of the Limitless." Although its names are many, it is nothing but this very Opening. If those who practice do not understand this Opening, in one thousand lifetimes or ten thousand ages they will not find huiming.
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Something rather interesting to fans of Carl Jung:
One of the students of Liu was Zen master Liao Ran (了然). And Liao Ran was one of the masters of Zhao Bichen 趙避塵 author of the famous text Taoist Yoga (仙宗性命法訣) translated by Charles Luk, who was a Zen practitioner himself with one of his masters being a lineage Patriarch of Zen Buddhism, the famous Xu Yun (虛云) who was persecuted during the Cultural Revolution (and was reported that, after being beaten up seriously, laid unconscious for a few days and woke up again in good general health conditions!). Incidentally, it was Carl Jung who encouraged Charles Luk to translate classic texts on the subject (as mentioned by Charles Luk). - source
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What is neidan (inner alchemy)? Let's look at this short passage from Contemplative Literature: A Comparative Sourcebook on Meditation and Contemplative Prayer by Louis Komjathy:
[..]From this perspective, the psychosomatic transformation facilitated by neidan practice leads to a more spiritually beneficial ontological condition. These dimensions of Daoist internal alchemy may inspire us to give more attention to conceptions of the body and the way in which they inform and are expressed in specific forms of religious practice. Contemplative practice may, in turn, be considered as a "somatic discipline."
Liu Huayang's Huiming jing also brings the issue of "influences" and "syncretism" to our attention. As mentioned, syncretism, which is a problematic category on a number of levels, generally refers the process of combining elements from supposedly distinct traditions or systems into a new expression or hybridization. In this respect, the Huiming jing is fascinating in a variety of ways. First, foundational Chan Buddhist meditation was influenced by classical Daoist apophatic meditation. Second, certain forms of Daoist neidan incorporated Buddhist views of self, especially with respect to reincarnation. Finally, Liu Huayang was a Chan Buddhist practicing "Daoist" internal alchemy methods in combination with Chan Buddhist meditation. In the Huiming jing, Liu primarily locates neidan practice in a Chan Buddhist worldview, while simultaneously utilizing Daoist maps of the subtle body. We thus find that categorizing the Huiming jing is a complex exercise. Is the text really about "Daoist" practice? There can be no debate that the methods and some of the views are Daoist. However, Liu is a Chan Buddhist primarily utilizing a Chan Buddhist, or at least Buddho-Daoist syncretic, soteriology. Perhaps "cross-pollination," rather than "syncretism," is a better characterization. Liu Huayang's Huiming jing inspires us to be attentive to the various cultural, historical, and religious influences on particular practices. It may be that meaning, purpose, and practice of specific methods changes depending on sociohistorical context and changing cultural influences. This depends on the degree of fluidity within and between traditions.
Submitted July 12, 2017 at 10:48PM by Dillon123 http://ift.tt/2ueYKjw
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