Chapter Fourteen: The Origin and Flow of Spiritual Roots

Meng Fan listened as Yue Huyang spoke slowly: "The book Journey to the West actually conveys the path of the Golden Elixir, the way of creation, and the principle of primordial convergence."

"It expounds upon the knowledge of yin and yang, the five elements, the timing of alchemical processes, medicinal substances, and the relationships among heaven, earth, and humanity."

"A discerning reader can perceive that Tang Sanzang, his three disciples, and their mount symbolize the principles of yin and yang and the five elements; their brocaded kasaya, the golden hoop staff, the nine-ringed monk’s staff, the crescent moon staff, and the nine-toothed rake all represent the power of primordial convergence."

"The myriad demons and obstacles, mountains, rivers, and countries signify the hardships of spiritual cultivation; the passes and official documents, along with the Tripitaka scriptures, stand for the credentials of overcoming calamity."

"The underlying meaning is to illustrate that through these teachings, one may transcend the cycle of birth and death, rise above the mundane world, become a sage with boundless longevity, an indestructible Vajra being, and achieve the perfected golden body."

Curious, Meng Fan asked, "According to Journey to the West, is it truly possible to cultivate into an immortal?"

Yue Huyang gently patted Meng Fan’s head and smiled, "How could that be? Ascending to immortality and cultivation into celestial beings hasn’t been seen for countless years."

"Those are merely legends now; we need not concern ourselves with such impractical notions."

"However, the ideas within Journey to the West can still offer us some valuable insights."

With a tone of admiration, Yue Huyang continued, "At the beginning of the book, it specifically states: ‘The spiritual root nurtures the source and flow; mind and nature cultivate the great way to life.’ How profound, how concise, how luminous!"

"Some may try to interpret the story through mere intention or thought, yet they neither understand the spiritual root nor the essence of mind. The spiritual root is the spiritual root, the mind is the mind."

"The reference to cultivating ‘mind and nature’ specifically means using one's mind and nature to cultivate the spiritual root and give birth to the Dao. It is not merely cultivating mind and nature that leads to enlightenment. These two lines serve as not only the opening outline but the essence of the entire book."

Meng Fan blinked, somewhat puzzled, and asked, "Master, what exactly is the spiritual root?"

Yue Huyang explained, "The spiritual root is actually the primordial qi of heaven and earth—the fundamental qi that nourishes heaven, earth, humanity, and all things."

"In ancient times, Confucians called it ‘Haoran’ (vast and profound qi), Buddhists called it ‘Perfect Enlightenment,’ and Daoists called it ‘Golden Elixir.’ Although the names differ, they all describe this same qi."

"In modern terms, we narrowly call it ‘Innate One Qi.’"

"Innate One Qi is the spiritual root, also known as the root bone or root nature. To cultivate, one must first attain qi. Without this Innate One Qi, everything else is empty talk."

Upon hearing this, Meng Fan immediately understood.

Yue Huyang continued, "In the story of Journey to the West, the first thing explored is the origin of this qi."

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"The narrative describes the numerology of heaven and earth: the unity and twelve assemblies, the initial division of chaos. Heaven begins at the hour of the Rat, earth at the hour of the Ox, and man at the hour of the Tiger, illustrating that the three powers—heaven, earth, and humanity—all arise from the same qi."

"Since all three powers come from the same qi, heaven becomes serene when it receives qi, earth becomes peaceful, and man becomes lively."

"A person’s spiritual root is this innate void-like qi, a qi that is indistinct and immeasurable, silent and unmoving, yet responding to all things and adapting to all matters. Hence, it is called the spiritual root."

"This spiritual root, in Laozi’s words, is called the Dao!"

"I do not know its name, I call it Dao. Forcibly naming it, I call it Great. Great is departing, departing is distant, distant is returning. Therefore, the Dao is great; heaven is great; earth is great; man is also great. Within the realm are four greats, and man is one of them. Man follows earth, earth follows heaven, heaven follows Dao, Dao follows nature."

"The valley spirit never dies; this is called the mysterious female. The gate of the mysterious female is the root of heaven and earth. It is continuous and seems to exist; use it but it is never exhausted."

"The sage does not die, the great thief does not cease. Some people interpret Laozi’s understanding to mean that heaven and earth are filled with endless innate qi, and man, as one of the four greats, can freely draw or even steal from it. This is the philosophy of the 'sage as thief.'"

"Of course, this is only one interpretation—a certain ancestor’s understanding of the Dao De Jing."

"This exemplifies my earlier point: a single character can have a hundred interpretations."

Hearing this, Meng Fan scratched his head, feeling an urge to expand his mind.

Yue Huyang noticed and laughed heartily, "That’s enough of wandering off; let us return to the spiritual root!"

"This spiritual root is neither tangible nor without form, neither solid nor void, seeming ethereal and boundless, both nonexistent and existent, both empty and real. It was born on Flower-Fruit Mountain in the Eastern Victory Divine Continent."

"East signifies the direction of born qi; Victory represents the flourishing manifestation of qi; Divine means wondrous beyond compare—one and divine. Hence, the ancient name for China, ‘Divine Land of the Red Counties,’ carries this meaning."

"Aolai Kingdom means ‘coming from nowhere,’ true emptiness and non-being—it is the essence of qi; Flower-Fruit Mountain means flowers represent yin, fruits represent yang, blossoming and fruiting, the unity of yin and yang, wondrous beyond words, the unity of the two, the miraculous function of qi."

"Qi is the nameless origin of heaven and earth; the unity of the two is the named mother of all things."

"Flower-Fruit Mountain lies in the sea, the place where myriad waters converge, symbolizing qi as the gate to all wonders, possessing all virtues and principles. It is the foundation for becoming a sage, a Buddha, or an immortal."

"Thus, Flower-Fruit Mountain is called the ancestral root of the ten continents and the origin dragon of the three islands."

"At the mountain’s summit is a sacred stone, signifying a qi breath completely unified, the primordial chaos undivided, born without nature or distinction—symbolizing the existence of the limitless."

"According to the 365 degrees of the celestial cycle, the twenty-four qi, the nine palaces, and the eight trigrams, all are wondrous phenomena contained within the void. They are inseparable from matter, unpredictable in biological development and transformation, and represent the innate within the innate."

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"Absorbing the essence of the sun and moon, nurturing the immortal embryo within—it is the hidden void within wondrous existence, the interplay of yin and yang, from which a qi is born, the acquired within the innate."

"In fact, the process of nurturing the Stone Monkey closely resembles the formation and growth of a fetus."

"The meeting of essence and egg, the union of yin and yang, employing the qi of heaven and earth, the creative human embryo, the essence of sun and moon symbolizing the maternal womb qi, the mother qi of all things. The acquired person nurtures and transforms the innate qi, feeding back to the fetus."

"Producing a stone egg, about the size of a sphere, which, upon exposure to the wind, transforms into a stone monkey."

"The stone is the essence of earth, a solid and lasting substance; the egg sphere is a perfectly round object; the monkey corresponds to the Shen branch, representing metal of the Geng phase, metal also being a solid and indestructible material—both symbolize the innate spiritual root."

"Its nature is strong and powerful, perfect and unobstructed, originating from a breath of qi incomparable to any acquired impurity."

"Complete with five senses and four limbs, it pays homage to the four directions, its eyes emitting twin golden rays of light that pierce the Big Dipper."

"This line can be interpreted as: the spiritual root is a wondrous existence within the void, possessing the qi of yin and yang, five elements, and four symbols—all complete. Born of creation and brilliance, it penetrates heaven and earth, naturally possessing the power to create all things, already united with heaven and earth."

"The things below are born of the essence of heaven and earth and are nothing extraordinary."

"Since the spiritual root exists within the human body, everyone possesses it, each complete, maintaining the status of sage without increase or decrease—only that ordinary people use it daily without awareness."

"Taking elixirs and water food, golden light silently breathes: the innate person exists within the acquired world, knowledge is vast but the spiritual root is dim, truth becomes falsehood, right and wrong indistinct, principles confused, beasts and humans coexisting."

"Just as Mencius said: ‘What distinguishes humans from beasts is but a slight difference; the common folk lose it, the noble preserve it.’"

"There is generally no difference between the two!"

"However, although the innate spiritual root is obscured by the acquired, it never completely disappears. As long as one is determined and adept at tracing the source of the Dao, returning to the origin, it can still be found."

"And this process is called 'seeking the root, obtaining qi.'"