Internal Alchemy: Self, Society, and the Quest for Immortality

by Livia Kohn (Editor), Robin R. Wang (Editor)

Internal alchemy (neidan) has been the dominant system of Daoist spiritual practice since the Song dynasty, when it was defined as the complex integration of multiple forms of Daoist self-cultivation. Its practitioners transform body energies into subtle levels of spirit and pure cosmic being, hoping to find illumination by returning to the fundamental order of the cosmos and in the process reconcile physiological training with intellectual speculation.

Bringing together the best work of leading scholars in the field, this book provides a thorough and easily accessible introduction to this important tradition. The volume begins with a general survey of the cultivation methods that form the backbone of internal alchemy and an analysis of its understanding of the human body and the terminology it employs. Next, it presents the historical development of the tradition with its major schools and a detailed discussion of key concepts, such as mind, inner nature, and destiny.

Following this, presentations focus on specific practices, such as the emergence of the spirit through the top of the head, the activation of internal visions in Thunder Rites, the sexual comingling of energies in duo-cultivation, and the body visions and transformative techniques employed specifically by women. Next come two contributions on the contemporary application of internal alchemy in China and its transmission and understanding in the West. The work concludes with comparative studies on Kundalini Yoga and Hermeticism.

Genres: Alchemy, Taoism

256 pages, Paperback

First published January 31, 2009

About the author

Livia Kohn is Assistant Professor of Religion at Boston University.

Reviews

[Brian Griffith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kohn and Wang call on a competent, enthusiastic team to pull together an overview of this vast tradition. Since Daoism has had no centralized control over spiritual creativity, it has generated a forest of practices for inner transformation, usually described in ways difficult to compare or to translate. But this series of essays lays out the main themes in a way that's comprehensible and inviting to Westerners. Editor Livia Kohn outlines the subject in an information-packed summarization. Then other practitioners or scholars put organs on the bones. They also compare Chinese internal alchemy with traditions from India, Europe, or Egypt. Some writers maintain academic detachment, while others overflow with passion for the practice. It's a dense book, but it helps fill a major gap in world dialogue over human potential.