Understanding Taoist Alchemy


Interpreting the Ancient Codes

Interpreting the ancient codes shrouding the esoteric Chinese arts is one of the great challenges facing any serious student of Taoist Nei Dan. Download the free paper now.

Wudang Eight Brocades Qigong Form, Ba Duan Jin

This video shows the first movement of the Wudang version of the Eight Brocades Qigong (八段錦氣功, Ba Duan Jin). This movement is called “Pressing the Sky to Regulate the Triple Warmer” (雙手托天理三焦) or just “Pressing the Sky.” The video contains and English Translation of the original Chinese teaching by Wudang Priest Wang Li Sheng.

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Interpreting the Ancient Codes of Taoist Alchemy

“Studying the classic Taoist texts is important for every serious student of Nei Dan. Our teachers transmit the methods of cultivating Ming (命) or Life, but it is up to us to cultivate our own Xing (性) or Nature. The classics not only connect us to our lineage, their richly layered imagery, symbolism, and seeming [...]

Interview with Fabrizio Pregadio

Fabrizio Pregadio, one of the foremost translators of Taoist Alchemy classics, answers several question about his work translating some of the most important texts of Nei Dan. Here is a selection of questions and his answers from the interview. The full interview can be found in the paper Interpreting the Ancient Codes available as a [...]

Day 7: Wudang Qigong and Purple Cloud Temple

Turtle and Snake, symbols of Wudang Mountain Taoism. From TCCII Journey to China

Today our group began their studies with Master Wang Li Sheng, a Longmen Daoist Priest and Xin Yi master who lives on Wu Dang Shan (武當山). He taught the original Wudang Daoist version of the Eight Pieces of Brocade called Shen [...]

Internal Alchemy Class in Michigan

Twenty people joined us over Easter weekend in Michigan to start their own practice of inner alchemy transformation. Internal Alchemy, or Nei Dan has its roots in the ancient Chinese tradition of self-cultivation. It is one of the gems of Chinese civilization.

TCCII Internal Alchemy Class in Michigan April 2011

Many of [...]

Internal Alchemy (Nei Dan) and the Dao De Jing

We’ll answer some common questions on the Taoist art of Nei Dan, or Internal Alchemy. For those new to the concept of Nei Dan, you might want to read this short introduction and this short post.

Question: Why do practitioners call the Dao De Jing a Nei Dan classic when the academics say Nei Dan [...]

When is the Best Time to Practice Meditation or Qigong?

One of the questions we often get, especially around the Equinox and Solstice, is “When is the best time to practice Meditation and Qigong?”

There are indeed times the ancient Chinese considered better for certain types of practices. But the answer we give usually surprises them. “The best time to practice is whenever you can!”

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Ba Gua and Xing Yi on a Sacred Taoist Mountain in China

Bagua and Xingyi (Pa Kua and Hsing I) are two of the most famous Chinese internal Kung Fu systems (after Tai Chi Chuan.) Bagua is generally based upon the eight trigrams of the Yi Jing (I Ching) while Xingyi is based upon the Wuxing (Wu Hsing) five element theory. Here is a demonstration of Xingyi’s [...]