 |
Long de er yin zhe ye 龍德而隱者也 The virtue of a dragon is hidden.
This calligraphy by Master Wu represents the spirit of the Hidden Immortal Lineage. |
|---|
Hidden Immortal Lineage
It is said that Xiwangmu 西王母 (Queen Mother of the West), of Kunlun 崐崘 Mountain, was the first person to start teaching Qi cultivation techniques to help others become immortals. In the Daoist tradition, she is addressed as Jinguang Xuanmu 金光玄母 (Golden Light Mystical Mother). Historically, the next important teacher of shamanism and Daoism is Xuanyuan 軒轅, otherwise known as the Yellow Emperor. He passed down secret cultivation techniques of immortality after he became immortal. More than 2,000 years after the Yellow Emperor, another very important teacher appeared in the Zhou dynasty (1027–256 BCE). This was Laozi 老子, whom we also call Taishang Laojun 太上老君 (the Most High Lord Lao). Although many people benefited from Laozi’s teachings, two stand out: Shaoyang Zushi 少陽祖師 (whose original name was Wang Xuanfu 王玄甫) and Wenshi Zhenren 文始真人 (whose original name was Yin Xi 尹喜). These masters started two immortal cultivation teaching lineages: Shaoyang Lineage and Wenshi Lineage.
The Shaoyang Lineage is also called Quanzhen Pai 全真派, and is commonly known as the Complete Reality Lineage. Shaoyang Zushi taught Zhengyang Zushi Zhong Liquan 正陽祖師鍾離權, one of the Eight Immortals of Daoism and Chinese folklore, during the Han dynasty (206 BCE-220 CE). Zhengyang Zushi taught Chunyang Zushi Lu Dongbin 純陽祖師呂洞賓, another of the Eight Immortals, during the Tang dynasty (618-907 CE), and Haichanzi Liu Cao 海蟾子劉操, during the Five dynasty (907-960 CE). Chunyang Zushi Lu Dongbin taught Chongyang Zushi Wang Yunzhong 重陽祖師王孕中 during the Song dynasty (960-1279 CE). It was Chongyang Zushi Wang Yunzhong who founded the Northern Complete Reality School. He had seven great students, six men and one woman: Ma Danyang 馬丹陽, Sun Buer 孫不二 (wife of Ma Danyang), Qiu Chuji 邱処機, Wang Chuyi 王処一, Liu Chuxuan 劉処玄, Tan Chuduan 譚処端, and Hao Datong 郝大通. We call them Beiqizhen 北七真, which means “Northern Seven Real Humans.” These seven ZhenRen 真人 (Real Humans) all had their own schools and Qiu Chuji’s Dragon Gate School became the largest and best-known school.
In contrast to the Northern Complete Reality School, Haichanzi founded the Southern Complete Reality School. He taught Zhang Boduan 張伯端, who was 83 years old when they first met. Zhang Boduan had spent many years seeking a teacher and he finally had a great opportunity to study internal alchemy. His Daoist name is Ziyang Zhenren 紫陽真人. He wrote the famous internal alchemy book Wu Zhen Pian 悟真篇 (Understanding Reality) and made the Southern Complete Reality School famous. He had five great students: Shi Xinglin 石杏林, Xue Zixian 薛子賢, Chen Niwan 陳泥丸, Bai Yuchan 白玉蟾, and Peng Helin 彭鶴林. We call them Nanwuzu 南五祖, which means “Southern Five Ancestors.”
The Wenshi Lineage is also called Yin Xianpai 隱仙派, the Hidden Immortals Lineage, or Youlong Pai 猶龍派, the 'Just Like a Dragon Lineage' as the masters in this lineage were hermits, just like hidden dragons. Wenshi Zhenren taught Yijing prediction techniques and internal alchemy cultivation secrets to Mayi Daozhe Li He 麻衣道者李和. Mayi Daozhe passed his practice on to Xiyi Xiansheng Chen Tuan 希夷先生陳摶. Haichanzi Liu Cao, from the Complete Reality Lineage, passed his internal alchemy practices on to Chen Tuan 陳摶. Then Chen Tuan passed his lineage to Huolong Zhenren 火龍真人.
Huolong Zhenren was so deeply hidden deep that no one knew his real name. He did not teach his secrets to anyone until he met Zhang Sanfeng Zushi 張三丰祖師, who had been praying intensely for a teacher for over 30 years. At that time, Huolong Zhenren finally passed his secrets on to 67-year-old Zhang Sanfeng ZuShi. SanFen ZuShi passed his secrets on to several different students, including passing his knowledge of Taiji Quan 太極拳 to Wang Zongyue 王宗岳. My master, Yang Yongji 楊永積 was the 12th generation student of Wang Zongyue. The Taiji form I have passed to western students comes directly from his teachings.
Please find the generation masters of the Taiji Hidden Immortal Lineage from Wang Zongyue‘s 王宗岳 teaching listed below:
Jiang Fa 蔣發
1. Xing Xihuai 邢喜懷
2. Zhang Chuchen 張楚臣
3. Chen Jingbai 陳敬百
4. Zhang Zongyu 張宗禹
5. Zhang Yan 張彥
6. Chen Qingping 陳清萍
7. He Zhaoyuan 和兆元
8. He Jingzhi 和敬芝
9. He Qingxi 和慶喜
10. Zheng Wuqing 鄭悟卿
11. Yang Yongji 楊永積
12. Wu Zhongxian 吳忠賢
