30 THE MUSK DEER IS FREED FROM HIS WATER PRISON

When your merits exceed eight hundred,

And of hidden merit you have gathered three thousand,

You treat as equal others and self, intimates and enemies,

And come to accord with the divine immortals’ original vows.

Tigers and rhinoceroses, knives and weapons cannot harm you,

And you can no more be dragged into the great house of Death.

Once the precious tally has descended, you go for a heavenly audience,

Securely riding in simurgh chariots and phoenix carriages.

As Master Lü held up the elixir, he called to Xiangzi in a loud voice, “Immortal Brother, now that Han Yu has resumed his old post as Attendant General, and Mme. Dou and Luying have already left the world of mortals, your task is almost complete. There is only thing left to do.”

“What is that, Master?”

“There is still a companion of yours at the bottom of the deep lake near the banks of the Xiang,” Master Lü said. “As long as you don’t go to deliver him, you still fall short of your duty.”

“Luying is the Master’s companion and she is already here,” Mme. Dou said. “How come he has another companion who is at the bottom of some deep lake?”

“This is a connection from a previous existence that needs to be concluded in this life,” Xiangzi said.

“If you will try to explain it to us, we’ll listen respectfully,” Mme. Dou said.

“If a drum is not beaten, it gives no sound; if a bell is not struck, it won’t give forth its call,” Xiangzi said. “If I am to explain my previous existence, please listen well.”

And right away he began, “In my previous life I was a white crane at Mount Pheasant Yoke. Through inhaling solar essences and lunar efflorescences, I lived to more than one hundred years of age. On this mountain there likewise lived a musk deer, who also cultivated and refined the pneumatic phases. He often roamed and played with me at the mouth of the Xiang River in Cangwu Prefecture.

“One day, as we were playing, we happened to see the two masters Zhong and Lü descend on a cloud. The musk deer and I changed our appearance into that of two itinerant Daoists and went to welcome them. We told ourselves that our magical powers were so great that we could take on manifold forms and deceive two masters, but we didn’t know that the masters with their eyes of wisdom had already recognized our true nature. Thereupon I lowered my head and honored them, requesting from them a golden elixir pill so that I might escape from my animal’s body. The musk deer, however, did not grasp the situation at all; he made forced arguments and glossed over his wrongdoings, hoping to conceal his true nature. Master Zhong indulged him, but Master Lü became greatly enraged, drew his sword, and said, ‘You sinful beast! Who do you think you are deceiving? Do you think my sword is not sharp?’

“These words struck terror into my very heart, and I fell prostrate and pleaded for mercy. Master Zhong said, ‘This crane will do, but for this musk deer I have no use. Quickly, be off!’ When the musk deer heard these words, he burst out laughing and said, ‘If you won’t save me, that’s fine with me. The scenery here by the river anyway is superior to that of the Elysium and the Jasper Pool. I’d rather roam freely and be at ease here than ascend to Great Veil Heaven, where I’d be at the Jade Emperor’s beck and call.’ When Master Lü heard these words he became even angrier, recited something under his breath, and then shouted, ‘Quickly!’ He summoned Marshal Zhao of the Black Tiger and the Dark Altar and had him banish the musk deer to the bottom of the deep lake, where he was tied up securely and allowed no freedom to move. He ordered him, ‘Only after the crane has become an immortal will he come to deliver you and make you a great spirit guarding the mountain.’

“Then Master Zhong gave me a golden elixir pill from his gourd, and I was immediately transformed into a green-robed youth, called Crane Boy, and followed the two masters to an audience with the Jade Emperor. I considered it a lucky occasion such as one rarely encounters in three lifetimes or ten thousand kalpas that I met the two masters and escaped from my animal’s body. However, at just that time my future parents were still childless and were praying to Heaven all day long for a son who could continue the ancestral line. The city god and earth gods of Changli County memorialized the Jade Emperor, who then issued a decree ordering the two masters to first send me to the Han family to be reborn as a human. Later they were to deliver me so that I could become an immortal. I refused to leave Heaven, but the two masters said, ‘The imperial decree has already been issued—who will dare disobey it? Go and be reborn. We shall come to deliver you.’ I had no choice but to do as they said and be reborn as a human being.

“Unfortunately my parents both passed away, but I was raised to adulthood by my uncle and aunt. When my uncle asked the masters to instruct me, they did not teach me the usual curriculum, but instead secretly transmitted to me the great Dao of the Golden Elixir and its mysteries. Only then did I realize my rewards and transcend the ordinary world, happily roaming the universe. Since then I have been exerting myself to deliver my uncle, aunt, and Miss Luying, yet I forgot about the matter of this musk deer. As Master Lü now reminds me, I simply have to bring my task to a final conclusion.”

“There are also Zhang Qian and Li Wan to be taken care of,” Master Lü said. Forthwith Xiangzi faced southeast and recited something, whereupon a celestial general appeared before him. How did this general look?

On his head he wore a dipper helmet, twinkling golden in the sunlight. In his hand he held a lance wrapped in silk, whose silvery color struck the eye. He was clothed in a finely meshed green coat of mail, a jade-adorned sash of pure white tied about his waist. Three eyes flashed fiercely—no goblins could hide from them. His foot was set firmly—fearless of any attack by demons. Surely, if he was not the Great Diamond guardian deity of Mount Putuo, he must have been the Marshal Ma who served the god Huaguang.

Marshal Ma bowed and said, “Immortal Master, what mission do you have for me?”

“At the bottom of a lake at the mouth of the Xiang River in Cangwu Prefecture a musk deer is tied up,” Xiangzi said. “His measure of punishment is full. Quickly go and fetch him!”

Marshal Ma left and returned after a short time with the musk deer. Then he rose up into the air, took his leave, and departed.

When the musk deer saw Master Lü standing over him holding an immortal elixir, he was so greatly frightened that he fell to the ground, knocked his head, and said, “On this day as I see again the sun in the sky I hope the Master won’t remember my previous transgressions, but will forgive me.”

Master Lü chuckled and said, “Deer, why aren’t you enjoying the scenery at the Xiang River? What are you doing here?”

“Those were the vulgar views of a frog in a well, who was trying to measure the ocean with a calabash,” said the musk deer. “Master, be merciful and it will count as a blessing for three lifetimes.”

“Step forward and hear my orders!” Xiangzi called to the musk deer. The musk deer prostrated himself and listened with lowered head. “It is difficult to be born as a sentient being, and it is also difficult to succeed on the path to immortality,” Xiangzi said. “Although you were reborn as an animal, fortunately your numinous nature was not blinded and you are still able to ascend to the Primordial Center. I shall now promote you to great guardian spirit of this mountain. You will administer this mountain area and its grotto palace, and enjoy the people’s sacrifices. Are you willing?”

The musk deer knocked his head and said, “When I was submerged in the water, I nourished my nature and concealed my spirit. To be appointed guardian of a famous mountain is more than I could have expected. Why wouldn’t I be willing? But on the banks of the Xiang River Master Lü declared, ‘Wait until your crane brother has become an immortal; he will deliver you to become the guardian of a grotto palace.’ Now that you, Master, are appointing me mountain guardian, the words of Master Lü are proven right. But where is my crane brother now? Did he become an immortal or not? Why didn’t he come to deliver me?”

“I was the crane in my previous existence,” Xiangzi said. “Now I have completed my proper reward and have become the eighth immortal.”

“Master, how long has it been since you became an immortal?” the musk deer asked. “Master, please try to explain to me the chain of causes that brought about this result.”

Xiangzi immediately explained the intervening events to him.

The musk deer knocked his head. “Although past and present are not the same, I hope the Master will be touched to remember our past relationship and give me a pill of golden elixir so that I may become an immortal,” he said.

“You have not yet escaped the consequences of your past sins, and the obstructions caused by your karma are not yet removed,” Xiangzi said. “Just administer the mountain spirits and enjoy the meat sacrifices offered by the people. If from now on you take refuge in the great Dao, change your disposition, become a pure Daoist, and administer your realm without idleness, you will accumulate much merit and your virtue will earn the respect of others. At that stage I shall come again to deliver you so that you may leave the world’s dust and reach the realm of immortals.”

“I just ask for your compassion, Master,” the musk deer said. “I will never again offend, but will stick to the straight path.”

If only you maintain orthodoxy in your mind,

Why worry that this moment might be too late?

When I obtain a master and the strength to follow his directions,

That will be the time of my good fortune.

Enough for now about the affair of the musk deer.

Master Lü now said, “This golden elixir of mine is not easy to make. It appropriates the creative powers of the ruler of Heaven and Earth, the powers of the Great Ultimate before its division, the immeasurable powers of yin and yang, the powers of the union of water and fire, the powers of the mutual destruction cycle of the Five Phases, the powers by which all things are born and completed. Everyone has these powers in their fullness. However, while the intelligent regard them as an empty mystery, the dull and confused will become attached to them, so that their primordial yang leaks away and their perfected pneuma dissipates. Now I shall use these two red pills to deliver and transform Mme. Dou and Luying, and the three white pills to do the same for Zhang Qian, Li Wan, and the musk deer. Come forward, each of you, and hear my orders.”

“There is something strange in your words,” the musk deer interjected.

“What’s strange?” Master Lü asked.

“In the Daoist teachings, others and the self are the same, and there should be no preferential treatment,” the musk deer said. “Now that you, Master, give the great elixir to save people, why are there two kinds, red and white? Isn’t this like treating the brick better than the tile?”

Master Lü laughed and said, “Bricks and tiles are both made of clay and fired in a kiln, but they differ in their thickness. The teachings expounded by the Highest Purity must be mastered step by step by each person according to their ability; no stage may be skipped. It is for this reason that the elixir is divided into red and white. Preferential treatment has nothing to do with it. You beast, you have the audacity to waggle your lips and drum with your tongue, making willful and reckless charges. You are more detestable than ever!”

“Master, be tolerant and forgive the deer,” Xiangzi said.

Master Lü then waved once towards the south and shouted, “Come!”

In an instant Zhang Qian and Li Wan arrived. When they saw that both Mme. Dou and Luying were there, they asked, “Lady, Miss, how did you come here?”

“It’s good that you’re here today, thus putting my mind at ease,” Mme. Dou said. Just then Tuizhi also arrived, and the whole family was overjoyed.

To part is easy, to meet again difficult;

Wanting to meet, we were blocked by vast peaks.

As we suddenly meet this day,

Joy descends from Heaven and opens our faces in delight.

Master Lü called to Mme. Dou, “Originally you were a Sagely Mother who entered the mortal world and became tainted by its splendors. All along you were caught in confused attachment, and only now have you escaped the hook. Swallow the golden elixir and recognize your own true nature. Forget future and present.”

He called again, this time to Luying, “Jade Maiden of the Lofty Empyrean, do you remember your previous existence at all?”

“I sank into confusion and descended to earth, becoming dark, inferior, and devoid of knowledge,” Luying said.

“Originally you were a Jade Maiden of the Lofty Empyrean,” Master Lü said. “When the Gate of Heaven was being closed, you stole a glance at the world below and subsequently sank down into it. Fortunately your mortal roots were cut off and you awakened to the karmic causes of your condition. Cleanse yourself of your former affinities, completely erase your old mistakes, return your perfected essence to the Gold Chamber, and nourish your perfected pneuma to complete the Millet-Rice Pearl. Swallow the Golden Elixir and you shall soon resume your original position.”

Then he called to Zhang Qian and Li Wan, “You two have been unblessed children, but now you have become blessed disciples. You served your master single-mindedly, not turning back in the face of a hundred adversities, escaping a hundred deaths in this one lifetime, all the while harboring not a trace of resentment. Such loyalty and righteousness is praiseworthy, and so I bestow on you one golden elixir pill each.”

Finally he called to the musk deer, “At the outset all your thoughts were mistaken and you could count yourself very lucky to have escaped with your life. Fortunately you cultivated yourself while submerged in the lake, so that you unified and softened your pneuma; your body and mind became immoveable and your souls became controlled. Now I give you the immortals’ elixir so that you may shed your animal’s body and realize your reward as a deity. If you continue to cultivate and refine yourself, then you can ascend into the ranks of the immortals and your future blessings will be assured.”

Gratefully Mme. Dou, Luying, Zhang Qian, Li Wan, and the musk deer received the immortals’ elixir and swallowed it.

The lightning of kan boils and rumbles in the region of metal and water,

Fire issues forth from Kunlun and yin and yang are united.

If the two things are returned, they will be harmoniously combined;

The elixir will then be ripe and the whole body fragrant.¹

“Master, now that they have swallowed the elixir and escaped their mortal bodies, those who resume their posts will return to their former positions, those who rise up will take their places in the ranks of the immortals, and those who walk on earth will roam at leisure among the Penglai Isles,” Xiangzi said. “Only my father, Han Hui, and my mother, Mme. Zheng, are still confined to the underworld and have not been delivered. It would be a grave injustice to leave them like this.”

“When a son ascends to immortality, all relatives rise to Heaven,” Master Lü replied. “Of course your parents will leave the sea of suffering and step up to the Lotus Terrace. Just await the arrival of an imperial decree and don’t worry—everything will turn out well.” Just then they saw auspicious clouds in the hazy distance, propitious mist enshrouding the horizon, simurghs and cranes soaring and circling, flags and banners fluttering. In mid-air many immortals were approaching.

Master Zhong held up the imperial decree and called, “Immortals, hear the proclamation of the imperial decree!” The decree ran as follows:

Immortals turn the balancing scales of creative transformation; they grasp the pivot of the universe. The work of the spirit and the circulation of the fire do not require a whole evening before the single orb of the sun manifests itself, emerging from the deep pool.² When Mercury is clear and gold radiant, then in the sky the moon will be bright and the stars shining. When Lead is encountered amid the emerging lesser water,³ all things in the human world can be refined. By shaping themselves like the Dao that existed even before God,⁴ they will achieve agelessness in Later Heaven. Han Xiang, you have been concerned solely with the Celestial Pass and the Axle of Earth. By the method of obversion you moved the sixty-four hexagrams to the yin talisman. Through reversion you gathered the twenty-four pneumata around the yang fire. Circulating the essences of the seventy-two phases, you gathered them into your chest. Appropriating the 3,600 orthodox pneumata, you circulated them in your womb. By bringing relief to humans and benefiting all beings, your virtue has grown ever weightier, and ghosts and spirits admire you. As you refined yourself and emptied your mind, the Dao rose ever higher, and Dragon and Tiger submitted.

Your uncle Han Yu was originally the Attendant Great General, but was banished to the world of dust. Now he has become aware of the previous causes for his present condition, taken refuge in the great Dao, obeyed Heaven and Earth in their waxing and waning, and employed this practice diligently. Imitating gengshen and making up his deficiencies, he carefully achieved entry into the ranks of the immortals. Mme. Dou and Luying brought punishment upon themselves through a single reckless thought. Fortunately their six roots were still clear and pure and their minds not beclouded by the five poisons. As their old obstructions are already removed, they can together resume their original positions.

Xiangzi’s father, Han Hui, and mother, Mme. Zheng, planted roots of goodness over nine generations and accumulated hidden merit over three lifetimes. When a son has ascended to perfection, his parents too shall be delivered. They will quickly realize the ignorance of this world and ascend without hindrance to the celestial palaces. Yunyangzi Lin Gui has planted roots of wisdom in Heaven and has abandoned his official honors in the world of dust. As yin and yang are united, the corpse ghosts are all eradicated, water and fire are joined, and his soul and spirit excel. Zhang Qian and Li Wan were born from imperfect wombs, with turbid bones that possessed no affinity for immortality. Although they hankered after luxuries in their early lives, they proved themselves loyal and sincere in the end. Since their hidden cultivation is already complete, their lifespan shall be extended and they shall be sent to Mount Zhuowei to cultivate themselves for a further two dozen years, after which time their progress will be examined.

The musk deer has become aware of the insecurity of an animal’s body and hopes for the marvelous formula of eternal life. However, for him it is already a piece of good fortune to enjoy his leisure on earth and receive meat sacrifices in the mountains. Although no further plans are allowed at present, the roots of goodness are inexhaustible. By accumulating merit he can gain rewards, and his karmic sins will be easy to cancel. If this comes about, We shall reverse our present judgment. If he can cut off the smell of sacrificed sheep and goats and pare away his worldly thoughts, I shall give permission for him to record his merits, and be rewarded and inducted into the ranks of immortals. No worries arise when all attachments to the world of dust are extinguished. The true joy of immortals is extraordinary—it is to attain freedom and ease. Be respectful and diligent!

After the proclamation, the immortals knocked their heads, said thanks, and then returned to their posts. Their spirits still clear, the souls of Han Hui and Mme. Zheng returned from the netherworld. The immortals welcomed them, and they got to meet their son Han Xiang. At first they were tearful and sad that they could not be together in their lifetimes, but then their joy at the good fortune of meeting again after death knew no bounds. Here are eight songs to the tune “Blue Sky Song” to recount these events:

The perfected immortals congregate at the Jasper Pool.

Singing to immortal tunes, simurghs and phoenixes descend.

Simurghs and phoenixes fly down in pairs from the purple empyrean;

Immortal cranes dance together, while immortal lads are singing.

Immortal lads are singing, singing of Great Peace,

Having obtained a crane’s count often thousand years of longevity.

Propitious clouds and auspicious light fill Heaven and Earth;

In their assembly the immortals speak of immortality.

The deathless know the subtle and marvelous formulae,

Which are difficult to put in a few words.

If one carelessly reveals this mysterious secret,

It will frighten people out of their wits.

The tip of the tongue emits a fine jade-colored light,

Dazzlingly illuminating the ten directions.

The spring wind lightly moves the blossoming twigs;

The gardens and forests are bathed in beautiful sunshine.

At a time of beautiful sunshine one gathers numinous sprouts,

And does not wait until the mid-autumn moon stands high.

Overturning the li male to meet the kan female,

The Yellow Matron claps her hands in joy that they are waving at each other.

Waving and calling to each other, they pair up yin and yang;

Dense rain and thick clouds enter their bedchamber.

After a thousand years the numinous womb gives birth to a child,

Who will ride on a white crane up to Heaven’s azure canopy.

The azure canopy is filled with vast pneuma; a high wind blows steadily,

Blows so that what turned right now turns left.

The firmament and all things are arrayed in majestic splendor;

The immortals’ palaces of three realms all face toward the Jade Palace.

Along the golden stairways of the Jade Palace immortals are lined up;

Immortality peaches are presented for the sumptuous banquet.

Immortal wine and immortal flowers shine on immortal fruits—

You will enjoy eternal life without aging for a million years.

Zhang Qian and Li Wan changed back into their human bodies and returned to the world. Twenty-four years later they achieved perfection. While the musk deer was guarding his mountain, he met a master who instructed him; as he had preserved his primordial spirit, he became united with eternity.

It was because of all these events that the “Blue Pass Record of Han Xiangzi, the Divine Immortal of the Eighth Grotto Who Delivered Han Yu Twelve Times” was transmitted through the ages.

Lascivious beauty is then an empty flower,

The floating world is then a scorched grain,

A good marriage is in fine pairing,

But in an instant one becomes single and alone.

One enters service wishing for self-glorification,

But in an instant becomes degraded and disgraced.

Joining together is the start of parting.

Joy! That’s where grief is concealed.

Melancholy and remorse most always long,

Joy and glory rushing on in a fraction of time.

Aroused awareness depends on insight;

Delusion’s grip comes from authority.

Abundance and brightness entice the moths of darkness;

The bright sun causes the foolish deer to flee.

Greed is the assembly place of pain;

Love is the base of the forest of sadness.

The water agitates the unclear waves;

The wheel turns its spokes of birth and death.

Dust responds to sprinkles of sweet dew;

Dirt awaits the clarified butter’s cleansing.

Obstructions—one needs the lamp of wisdom to burn them away.

Demons—one must annihilate them with the knife of intelligence.

An inwardly perfumed nature is easy to imbue,

But an outwardly battling heart is hard to check.

The past is gone—pursue it no more,

But look forward with joyous excitement to what’s to come.⁵