Under One Person: The Seeker of the Dao in the Lü Family

Chapter 37 Subhuti: You have no cheeks. Sun Wukong: I have a white bag.

"But Grand Tutor, I feel something is not right."

Lu Qian changed the subject, looking at Zhou Meng not far away with a puzzled expression, and asked, "Even if you transform me into a [King], it is still a means of controlling oneself, at most the effect of this method is a bit strange."

"Is this Feng Hou Qi Men merely a method to teach people to control themselves? That would be pursuing technique too much and abandoning the Dao."

"Such a strange skill is not worth keeping by Wudang. The existence of Feng Hou Qi Men might even cut off Wudang's original path to heaven."

"I can't think of a way, I really can't think of a way."

Lu Qian shook his head, and although he was very surprised by the ever-changing abilities of Feng Hou Qi Men, if that was all, it would not be what Lu Qian was looking for.

In Lü Qian's eyes, this Feng Hou Qi Men technique had become flashy but impractical.

Zhou Meng looked at Lü Qian, who was jumping around like a monkey not far away, and couldn't help but laugh. "It's commendable that you can always understand what you want and not be misled by strange skills, but who says that Feng Hou Qi Men is only capable of this much?"

"You yourself once said that techniques are born from the Dao and should be used for the Dao. Now you only see the transformative power of 'Feng Hou Qi Men' and cannot connect it to its deeper meaning. It seems that you have not read enough of the Daoist Canon and your knowledge is somewhat shallow."

"Of course, it's normal for someone your age, but you'll need to focus on theoretical study in the future."

Upon hearing these words, Lü Qian immediately realized that Zhou Meng, a master craftsman with decades of experience, had seen something deeper than the art of transformation through the "Feng Hou Qi Men".

He immediately knelt on the bedding and asked Zhou Meng, "Please teach me, Grand Tutor!"

"Get up quickly. I don't actually know much more than you. I've just read more of the basic scriptures on cultivation and gained some insights based on the Feng Hou Qi Men method."

Zhou Meng shook his head, gesturing for Lü Qian to stand up. He looked at Lü Qian, who had sat back down on the futon, and carefully considered his words.

Although he had never studied the Feng Hou Tu or the Feng Hou Qi Men before, Lü Qian had now carefully demonstrated the Feng Hou Qi Men in front of him. Based on his past experience in cultivation, he immediately understood something deeper than the art of transformation.

After a while, he spoke, "Xiao Qian, you must have heard your elders tell stories about 'Journey to the West' when you were cultivating, right?"

In the world of supernatural beings, Journey to the West is not simply a mythological novel.

In the eyes of those cultivators, this book contains the truth of cultivation and is described very vividly, making it particularly suitable for explaining the path of cultivation to future generations.

"Yes, Grand Master. When I was practicing at home, the elders in my clan used Journey to the West to explain the path of cultivation in order to better enlighten the young children in the clan. After coming to Wudang Mountain, Master Yunlong often used Journey to the West as an analogy to help us understand it better."

Lu Qian nodded. Although he was a little puzzled as to why Zhou Meng was talking about "Journey to the West", he still spoke as usual.

Zhou Meng nodded after listening, "Alright, do you still remember the scene where Subhuti teaches Sun Wukong how to avoid the three calamities?"

As Lü Qian listened to Zhou Meng's words, he recalled the plot of "Journey to the West" in his mind.

The method to avoid the three calamities is revealed in Chapter 2 of "Journey to the West," three years after Patriarch Subhuti passed on his skills to Sun Wukong.

One day, when Subhuti was giving a sermon, he suddenly summoned Sun Wukong and asked him how his cultivation was going. Sun Wukong replied, "I have a good understanding of the Dharma nature and have taken care of both the root and the source," which means that his cultivation had already been on the right track.

The patriarch then introduced the "Three Calamities," telling Sun Wukong about the three great tribulations of "thunder," "fire," and "wind," which frightened Sun Wukong so much that he hurriedly asked for a way to avoid these three calamities.

Subhuti then proposed the thirty-six transformations of the "Heavenly Dipper Number" and the seventy-two transformations of the "Earthly Fiend Number".

Sun Wukong, being greedy, asked his master for the Seventy-Two Transformations of the Earthly Fiends, which allowed him to transform into countless forms and escape the Three Calamities.

Thinking of this, Lü Qian scratched his head and looked at Zhou Meng, "Grand Master, are you trying to say that my 'Seventy-Two Transformations of the Wind' is a way to avoid the Three Calamities? But I have never heard of any Three Calamities manifesting in the world of supernatural beings. It would be good to use it to avoid human calamities."

Zhou Meng rolled his eyes. "You kid, you can't grasp the point. Think about why Subhuti said Sun Wukong couldn't learn the transformation technique before he taught it to him."

In Journey to the West, before teaching the art of transformation, Subhuti said that Sun Wukong could not learn it because although he had a human-like appearance, he had a sunken face, a pointed mouth, and no cheeks.

Sun Wukong touched his face and said that although he didn't have cheeks, he did have a plain bag, so they were pretty much the same.

"The Bodhi Patriarch said that Sun Wukong had no cheeks, but what's the point of that?"

As he spoke, Lü Qian transformed into a monkey in front of Zhou Meng. He touched the monkey's thin cheeks, puzzled.

Lu Qian, now in monkey form, scratched his head. "I know there's some metaphor involved between the [cheeks] and the [plain bag]."

"The character '腮' (sai) is composed of the radical '月' (yue, moon) on the left (which is the same as the radical '肉' (rou, meat) on the right, and the character '思' (si, thought) on the right. It has '田' (tian, field) on top and '心' (xin, heart) on the bottom. The meaning is: '肉' (rou, meat) refers to the physical body; '思' (si, thought) refers to the true and sincere practice of the unity of body and spirit."

"The word 'Su' in 'Su Dai' is a homophone for 'Shu' (术), which means that Sun Wukong's attitude of wholeheartedly studying and seeking the Dao, which seems very ambitious, is actually just focusing on the level of 'Shu' (术). This is also the reason why he greedily cultivated the Seventy-Two Transformations of the Earthly Fiends."

"That's why you're inexperienced."

Zhou Meng looked at the monkey that Lü Qian had transformed into, his lips trembled slightly, but he quickly suppressed it. He cleared his throat and continued, "In the Daoist school, there is more than one interpretation of 'cheeks'."

His words caught Lü Qian's attention. The monkey on the bedding shifted its form, transforming back into Lü Qian's appearance. "Grand Tutor, please speak!"

In Taoism, we use "Chonglou" to refer to the trachea, which connects to the lungs and other internal organs. Chonglou, in turn, acts like a bellows, providing the body with vital energy (qi) and fueling the body's internal fire (life force).

As Zhou Meng pointed to his chest to demonstrate to Lü Qian, he said, "Above the upper part of the chest is the mouth and nose, the place where we inhale and exhale. But here, there is also a cheek, which acts like a pump, controlling the rise and fall of the breath between the mouth and nose."

"The cheeks push the air from the mouth and nose to the Chonglou point, and from there it goes to the lungs and internal organs."

"It's like the hand-operated blower next to an old-fashioned earthen stove, which is also the source of control over the heat."

"Therefore, in Taoism, the cheeks also represent the timing and intensity of the fire, and are also the core of Taoist alchemy practice."

"Sun Wukong is a monkey with a mind, and he has no cheeks. But you are a human, and you have cheeks. So you not only need to cultivate in harmony with your mind and body, but you also need to pay attention to the timing of your own internal energy circulation and the relationship between the yin and yang of heaven and earth."

"The microcosmic orbit of the human body and the macrocosmic orbit of the universe are both the concept behind Feng Hou Qi Men and its method of cultivation."

"The human body is nourished by heaven and earth, and the great cycle regulates the small cycle. Therefore, you should control the transformation of yin and yang in your body according to the rise and fall of yin and yang in the universe, so as to harmonize your relationship with heaven and earth."

Zhou Meng pointed to the sky above and then to the ground below, explaining in detail to Lü Qian.

Upon hearing this, Lü Qian sat cross-legged on his bedding. He lowered his head and pondered for a while before quickly raising his head again and asking, "So, Grand Master, do you mean that the true cultivation of 'Feng Hou Qi Men' is not just about mastering oneself, but also requires me to refine my own Small Heavenly Circuit according to the timing of the Great Heavenly Circuit, like refining an elixir?"

"clever!"

Zhou Meng nodded. "The mind is easily agitated. Although it aligns with the ever-changing nature of the Feng Hou Qi Men Dun Jia, the human body prefers purity and the mind prefers tranquility."

"The mind is naturally restless; without training and restraining it according to the natural rhythms of the universe, you will never find peace."

"If people can't even find peace and quiet, what's the point of cultivating?"

"Thank you for your guidance, Grand Tutor!"

Lu Qian bowed respectfully to Zhou Meng, expressing his gratitude for the old man's teachings.

Zhou Meng waved his hand with a smile, "It's nothing. I've just cultivated for a few more decades and broadened my horizons a bit. You, a young man, are still willing to listen to an old man like me spout some old clichés, so you're not being misled by Feng Hou Qi Men."

"I always keep my pursuit in mind. Although Feng Hou Qi Men is good, it is not the path I want."

Lu Qian raised his head and said solemnly, "Techniques are born from the Way, and should be used for the Way."

"I hope you will always remember your goals, and also remember what I said today."

Looking into Lü Qian's clear eyes, Zhou Meng breathed a sigh of relief. In the end, the child wasn't ruined by Zhou Sheng's mischief.

"Alright, it's getting late. Go and bring me back some dinner."

"yes!"