Yuan Yang, Innate One Qi, Postnatal True Qi

  First, it is essential to clarify the concept that the Innate One Qi transforms into the Three Qi of Xuan, Yuan, and Shi.

  In the Daoist cosmogony, there corresponds the saying that "One Qi transforms into the Three Pure Ones." That is, Daluo Heaven is the highest heaven realm. The Three Qi of Xuan, Yuan, and Shi, born from Daluo Heaven, transform into the Three Pure Realms.
  So, what is the relationship between this and cultivation?
  Innate refers to Qi, while postnatal refers to form. Therefore, the transformations of the innate will also be reflected in the postnatal realm. Let us begin with the human body.
  For ordinary people, the Qi of the Five Elements within the body generates each other in a cycle: Metal generates Water, Water generates Wood, Wood generates Fire, Fire generates Earth, and Earth generates Metal, forming a loop.
  If there is a malfunction in the cycle of the Five Elements, a person will fall ill. The detailed content regarding illness belongs to the domain of medicine, so we will not elaborate on it here.
  The cycle of the Five Elements does not arise out of nothing; its operation consumes something.

  What is this thing? Ancient texts write it clearly: Yuan Yang. When a person's Yuan Yang is exhausted, their lifespan is also exhausted.
  The natural generation of the Five Elements is the path of mortals. To solve this consumption and turn consumption into replenishment, what should be done?
  The most fundamental method is to replenish Yuan Yang. The question is, how can Yuan Yang be replenished?
  First, one must understand how Yuan Yang comes into being. Yuan Yang is a trace left behind by one's parents after birth, stored in the navel.
  Under normal circumstances, this trace of Yuan Yang only undergoes consumption and cannot be replenished. The only way to replenish it is through cultivation. We will not discuss cultivation here, but rather focus on matters of consumption.
 

  The consumption time of Yuan Yang is very long. In Daoism, it is believed that the normal lifespan of a person is the lifespan of three yuan, meaning a person can live to be 180 years old.
  However, due to postnatal self-indulgence and reckless behavior (no zhuo, no die), people ruin themselves and die prematurely.

  If one passes away suddenly, Yuan Yang has actually not been fully consumed. After death, the formation of a spirit requires the Yin Qi to wear away the Yuan Yang until the required period is fulfilled, after which it disperses into a single Qi. Therefore, in folk legends, it is said that people who die from violent disasters are more likely to become ghosts, which is the same principle. Additionally, legends about people returning to life after death because their lifespan was not exhausted are also based on the same principle.

   In health preservation books, it is clearly stated that there are several things that harm Yuan Yang:

   The first is the Seven Emotions and Six Desires. This is explained in detail in medical texts: Joy harms the Heart, Anger harms the Liver, Pensive worry harms the Spleen, Sorrow harms the Lungs, and Fear harms the Kidneys. Since the Five Zang organs correspond to the Five Elements, harming one will cause problems in the cycle of the Five Elements, leading to illness.
   The second is irregular diet and eating indiscriminately. Eating randomly, ignoring what should be eaten and consuming what should not be eaten, causes an imbalance in the Five Elements within the body, leading to malfunctions.

   The third is that lustful desires lead to accelerated consumption of Yuan Yang. This is well-known, so we will not elaborate.

   But how is Yuan Yang consumed? How does Yuan Yang support the operation of the Five Elements?

   Here, it is clarified clearly: Yuan Yang must transform into Qi to operate the Five Elements.

 

   Additionally, the "Yuan Qi" in medicine is not the Innate One Qi, but the Postnatal True Qi. This point is often confused and must be distinguished.

   The purpose of medicine is to treat illness and preserve health, so it considers what is projected onto the physical form as postnatal, and what precedes the form as innate.

   Daoism, however, considers all things in heaven and earth as postnatal, and what exists before that as innate. The dividing line between innate and postnatal is different, and needs to be distinguished.

   Therefore, at this point, one can understand that the Innate One Qi of Daoism is not the same as the Yuan Qi of medicine.

 

   The Qi Gong cultivated is Yuan Qi, i.e., Postnatal True Qi, not the Innate One Qi.

   On Earth, the difference between living and non-living things lies in the ability to effectively transform and operate Yuan Qi within oneself. This is why humans are relatively higher than other animals; the reason lies here.

   However, cultivating only Postnatal True Qi can only benefit health, making it difficult to achieve the Dao of Immortality, let alone perform Daoist miraculous methods.
   Many folk societies since the Ming and Qing dynasties have created various cultivation methods, most of which mistakenly equate Postnatal True Qi with Innate True Qi.

   Then, using Postnatal True Qi for cultivation is like looking at flowers in a mirror or the moon in the water.
   The characteristic of Postnatal True Qi is that it can be obtained through breathing exercises, visualization, and maintaining unity, so where the mind goes, the Qi follows. Innate One Qi, however, is formless and imageless; it flows and forms itself naturally, rather than being manipulated by intention.
   This is also the greatest difference between the True Qi practiced in traditional Qi Gong and the True Qi of Daoism.

   So, what is the relationship between Yuan Yang and Innate One Qi?
   Yuan Yang is transformed from Innate One Qi, so ordinary methods cannot replenish Yuan Yang. One can only invoke Innate One Qi through it, and then use it to generate Yuan Yang, thereby increasing lifespan.

   However, even if Yuan Yang is replenished, the postnatal Five Elements must circulate normally for the physical body to survive for a long time, so this is a very complex matter.
   Moreover, simply increasing lifespan does not mean living longer, because generally, the longer one lives, the more and greater disasters one encounters. This is a matter of probability accumulation; only with sufficient luck can one avoid this problem.
   For middle-aged and elderly people whose bodies are already depleted, some may not have reached the end of their lifespan, but their bodies are severely depleted. It is not easy to establish an environment within the body to invoke Innate One Qi. In such cases, flexible methods are needed, i.e., the cultivation method of planting, by establishing an external furnace to attract Innate One Qi for self-replenishment.
   Apart from these, there are usually circulating methods on the market such as Kidney Strengthening Gong and Rejuvenation Gong. These methods cannot replenish Yuan Yang.

   If there are no conditions to establish an external furnace, but one wants to replenish the body, what other pathways are there? Other paths include living in deep mountains, consuming morning mist and drinking dew to absorb vital Qi from nature. Or, diligently practicing magical arts, by treading the Dipper steps and using talismans to gather Qi, directly invoking the Qi of Kunlun Chaos.

 
   There are many detailed methods, which will not be listed one by one here.

   In short, do not mistake Postnatal True Qi for the Innate One Qi in Daoist cultivation.