1 AT MOUNT PHEASANT YOKE, A CRANE REFINES HIMSELF

Between Heaven and Earth, there are nine continents and eight directions. The dry land has nine mountains; the mountains have nine passes. Marshes have nine different pneumata, winds come in eight different degrees, of rivers there are nine classes.

What are the nine continents? In the southeast is Shen Province, called the land of agriculture. In the south is Zi Province, called the land of fertility. In the southwest is Rong Province, called the land of abundance. In the west is Yan Province, called the land of ripeness. In the center is Ji Province, called the central land. In the northwest is Tai Province, called the land of plenty. In the north is Qi Province, called the land of consummation. In the northeast is Bo Province, called the land of seclusion. In the east is Yang Province, called the land of beginning again.

What are the nine mountains? They are Mount Guiji, Mount Tai, Mount Wangwu, Mount Shou, Mount Taihua, Mount Qi, Mount Taihang, Mount Yang-chang, and Mount Mengmen.

What are the nine passes? They are the Taifen Pass, the Min’ou Pass, the Jingruan Pass, the Fangcheng Pass, the Yaoban Pass, the Jingxing Pass, the Lingci Pass, the Gouzhu Pass, and the Juyong Pass.

What are the nine marshes? They are the Juqu Marsh of Chu, the Yunmeng Marsh of Yue, the Yangyu Marsh of Qin, the Dalu Marsh of Jin, the Putian Marsh of Zheng, the Mengzhu Marsh of Song, the Haiyu Marsh of Qi, the Julu Marsh of Zhao, and the Zhaoyu Marsh of Yan.

What are the eight winds? The northeast wind is called the intense wind. The east wind is called the protracted wind. The southeast wind is called the luminous wind. The south wind is called the balmy wind. The southwest wind is called the cool wind. The west wind is called the lofty wind. The northwest wind is called the elegant wind. The north wind is called the cold wind.

What are the six rivers? They are the Yellow River, the Vermilion River, the Liao River, the Black River, the Yangtze River, and the Huai River.

The expanse within the four seas measures 28,000 miles from east to west and 26,000 miles from south to north. There are 8,000 miles of watercourses, which pass through six valleys and 600 named streams. There are 3,000 miles of roads and paths. Yu employed Tai Zhang to measure the earth from its eastern extremity to its western extremity. It measured 233,500 miles and 75 paces. He also employed Shu Hai to measure from its northern extremity to its southern extremity. It measured 233,500 miles and 75 paces. Concerning floodlands, deep pools, and swamps greater than 300 fathoms in area: within the expanse of 233,500 miles, there are nine deep pools.

Yu also took expanding earth to fill in the great flood, making the famous mountains. He excavated the wastelands of Kunlun to make level ground. In the center of the world is a manifold wall of nine layers, with a height of 11,000 miles, 114 paces, two feet, and six inches. Atop the heights of Kunlun are tree-like cereal plants thirty-five feet tall. To the west of these are pearl trees, jade trees, carnelian trees, and never-dying trees. To the east are found sand-plum trees and lang’gan trees. To the south are crimson trees. To the north are bi jade trees and yao jade trees.¹ On one side is Mount Bear Ears, on the other Mount Pheasant Yoke. A poem rightly says about them:

Clouds hover over Bear Ears—how graceful its peaks.

Water gushes forth from Pheasant Yoke—how lofty this mountain.

Truly, they are impressive mountains, and here is a lyric to witness to it:

A rocky range seen from afar,

Lofty peaks viewed from nearby.

This majestic mountain

Stands firm among the vast waters, the sea churning in snowy waves against its sides.

This lofty rock

Subdues the scaly dragons and sea serpents, who let silvery billows gush forth from their dens.

Here the earth dragon is located in the corner marked by the phases of wood and fire,

While the cloud mother is hidden at its southeastern border.²

Among high cliffs, steep precipices,

Strange ravines, extraordinary peaks,

Constantly one hears pairs of phoenixes singing in unison,

And everywhere sees single simurghs dancing by themselves.

Amidst wafting fog,

Leopards hide in the depth of the mountain;

In the slight rustling of the wind,

Tigers come to the lofty ranges.

There are jasper grasses and wondrous flowers that never die,

Blue pines and green cypresses in eternal spring.

Immortals’ peaches in gorgeous red,

Tall bamboo in luxuriant green.

A streak of rosy clouds merges with the shade of the trees,

Two mountain torrents splash the roots of vines.

Indeed the scenery resembled

A thousand mountains rising loftily as pillars supporting Heaven,

Ten thousand ravines criss-crossing the Earth like scars.

On the peak of Mount Pheasant Yoke there was a great tree. On that tree there stood a white crane whose essence had been endowed with the phases of metal and fire and whose pneuma had received yin and yang. His crown was red, his wings a pure white; the throat was well-rounded, the feet delicately formed. He was a womb-born immortal bird, senior among the feathered creatures.³ Here is a lyric to illustrate it:

A slender head and protruding eyes,

Luxuriant feathers and sparse flesh.

Phoenix wings and tortoise back,

Swallow breast and turtle belly.

Their cries warn of the falling dew.⁴

Stopping at Gold Cave Mountain, cranes hover and wheel in the air,

The whiteness of their plumes not due to the bathing sunlight.

Gathering at Orchid Cliff Mountain, they lower their heads and regard their feet.

Some rode in noble chariots in the state of Wei,⁵

While others served as mounts at the Tower of Jiangxia.⁶

Others again fetched arrows for immortals at Ye Brook,⁷

And were fed millet from the marshes.⁸

Their legs’ length contrasts with the shortness of ducks’ legs,⁹

When in groups, they do not peck about like chicken.

With simurghs and phoenixes as companions they travel afar,

Reaching the clouds, they preen their feathers on high.

Truly, this crane is a descendant of Master Wang of Mount Kou,¹⁰

Of the same kind as Ding Ling of Liaodong.¹¹

This white crane on Mount Pheasant Yoke was just a common bird, yet in the past the cries of ordinary cranes on Mount Eight Lords subdued invaders,¹² and the calls of wild cranes in the Ninth Marsh penetrated Heaven.¹³

It so happened one day that from the Tushita Palace in the Thirty-third Heaven a crane from the team that pulled the carriage of the Heavenly Worthy of Primordial Beginning flew down to this mountain.¹⁴ When the white crane saw her flying in, his mind cleared up in the presence of such good fortune and he went over and engaged in intercourse with her. Afterwards the immortal crane revealed to him one by one the marvelous principles of the immortals and the true way to study the Dao.

Following the instructions given him, the white crane engaged in serious cultivation for three or four hundred years. On his tree in the mountains he swallowed solar sap in the mornings and sought lunar efflorescences in the evenings, drank dew and ingested wind, ate cloud vapors and absorbed dew. However, as he was studying without having been properly inducted as a disciple, it was like having wings but still being unable to fly. He could not escape from his feathery body and reach the garden of the Jasper Pool above.

As it happened, on that same mountain there lived a musk deer, who had also lived for more than one hundred years. He liked to play tricks and do mischief, riding on the mists and mounting the clouds. He struck up an acquaintance with the white crane and they became sworn brothers. Every day they roamed leisurely at the river and played in the mountains. Truly they wandered at ease without restraints, fearing neither Lord Yama nor Heaven itself.

When telling a story, one should recount all the details from beginning to end. In this wide world, there must exist hundreds of thousands of white cranes and musk deer. Why was it then that this particular crane and this particular deer acquired illicit powers and engaged in sinful behavior?

Between Heaven and Earth there are four forms of birth and six paths of rebirth. The Buddhist sutras say that these four forms of birth are birth from the womb, from an egg, from moisture, or by metamorphosis. As for the six paths of rebirth, the Buddha tells us that they are those of immortals, Buddhas, ghosts, humans, beasts, and demigods. If one is placed in a good womb, there will be good results; if the womb is not good, neither will be the results—this is the wheel of rebirth spun by retribution, the impartial principle of Heaven and Earth.

Originally the crane and the deer had lived as humans in the Han dynasty, but their misconduct caused them to be reborn in their present state. How did it happen that humans of the Han period became spirits after a lapse of three or four hundred years? Reader, listen closely—once I have recounted to you this prologue, you will realize what an astounding story is behind this.

During the Han dynasty there was a Counselor-in-chief of the Left named An Fu. When his daughter was four years old, her mother died, and he gave her to a wet nurse to raise. By the age of seven, the girl was able to master all kinds of skills without need for instruction by anyone.

One day when Counselor An returned from court, he heard someone strumming the zither and playing the flute in his daughter’s room. He asked who it was, and a slave answered that it was the young lady. Having listened to the music a while, An Fu entered the room and asked his daughter, “When I got back from court, I heard you playing the zither and flute. Who taught you to play?”

The girl replied, “I mastered the hundred arts without need for instruction by anyone.”

“I have only this one daughter,” An Fu said. “As you are so intelligent, I will call you Bright-Bright. When you’re ten I’ll look for a husband for you, but I won’t settle for anything less than your becoming second wife of the prime minister. Even if the top graduate of the palace examinations comes to ask for your hand, I won’t give you to him.”

“Why won’t you give her to a top graduate, but would rather have her become the prime minister’s second wife?” interjected the wet nurse.

An Fu said, “If she marries a top graduate as his first wife, it will be years before she is a lady of the first rank, but if she marries the prime minister as a second wife, she’ll receive first rank the moment she enters his household.”

“Things don’t always turn out the way you plan,” the wet nurse said. “I am afraid you’re doing your wife a disservice, and will lose a lot, too.”

An Fu scolded the wet nurse and sent her away. After that, many asked for the hand of his daughter, but An Fu would not agree to any match.

One day the Han emperor called An Fu to the palace and told him, “We have a nephew, only twenty-two years old, who has been widowed and has not yet remarried. Now We have heard that you have a daughter named Bright-Bright whom you are willing to give in marriage as the prime minister’s second wife. Why not have her marry Our nephew instead?”

An Fu replied, “Years ago I made a pledge to give her in marriage only as the prime minister’s second wife. I wouldn’t dare marry her to an imperial nephew.”

“How could marriage to the prime minister be better than to Our nephew?”

“As soon as she enters the prime minister’s household, she will become a lady of the first rank. An imperial nephew, on the other hand, may only be a general or a commander. There would be quite a difference in rank.”

“What if I granted her first rank in accordance with your wishes?” the emperor asked.

“Such a grant would be at odds with propriety and my daughter’s station in life. She would still be better off marrying the prime minister,” An Fu said.

The emperor was greatly enraged, and wanted to have An Fu beheaded at the execution grounds as a warning to the other officials. He was set free only after two other officials pleaded for clemency on his behalf. The emperor demoted him and banished him to a faraway place. Furthermore, he sent a messenger to summon Bright-Bright to court for an audience.

When Bright-Bright heard the summons, she was greatly alarmed, knowing that her father had almost lost his life on her account. So, without combing her hair or washing, her eyes filled with tears, she went to the audience with the emperor. The emperor commanded her to raise her face, and truly, her beauty and elegance were matchless.

Thereupon he ordered that she be sent to Red Copper Mountain in Shanxi, there to marry a villager called Stiff Neck, who was only three feet tall and exceedingly ugly. His neck did not extend above his shoulders and was completely inflexible, so that his head and body had to turn together. It was for this reason that people had given him the nickname Stiff Neck. That Bright-Bright, a girl perfect in beauty and talent, should be married to such a dolt truly accords with the saying “A noble mount often carries a stupid fellow, a beautiful wife often sleeps alongside a dull husband.”

Bright-Bright’s heart was filled with grief, and within a few years she fell ill and died. Seeing her dead, Stiff Neck hanged himself from the roof beam so that his soul might follow that of his wife.

Both drifted far and wide, arriving eventually in the underworld at the court of Yama.¹⁵ The ox-headed and horse-faced demons blocked their way and asked, “Who are you? Who arrested you and brought you here? Why didn’t you come with the messenger?”

“I am Bright-Bright, the daughter of the counselor-in-chief An Fu. I died of grief just because the Old Man Under the Moon made a wrong match and married me to this person Stiff Neck.¹⁶ My soul comes for an audience with King Yama to explain the matter,” Bright-Bright told them.

“I am Stiff Neck from Red Copper Mountain in Shanxi,” Stiff Neck said. “I received a decree from the Han emperor to marry Bright-Bright. I did everything I could to please her, but she still wasn’t satisfied and escaped by way of her grief. I couldn’t give her up, so I followed her on this road, hoping that she would come back.”

“You really are a stiff-necked fellow!” the ox-headed and horse-faced demons said. “Your wife is dead now—how do you think she could return to you?!”

Only when Stiff Neck heard these words did he fully realize that he himself was also dead. He broke into loud wails, startling King Yama.

King Yama ascended the hall and asked what sort of people were outside, wailing so pitifully. The demons were afraid and did not dare utter a sound, but a judge came forward and reported what Bright-Bright and Stiff Neck had said. King Yama called on the two to enter and kneel before his desk. Crying, they told him what they had suffered in their lifetime and asked Yama to send them back to the world of the living.

King Yama said, “You came here of your own accord; it’s not as if my runners had brought you here by mistake. Therefore it is not possible for you to go back. I now sentence you to be reborn together, so as to fulfill your hearts’ wishes.”

Then he pronounced the official judgment, “The husband is the wife’s heaven;¹⁷ husband and wife are the beginning of humankind. When a wife has received him who is heaven to her, she should acquiesce and maintain her wifely duties. She must not cause quarrels by being resentful. By harboring resentments toward her superiors in her lifetime, Bright-Bright had already perverted the proper order of human life. Now that she is dead, she makes reckless pleas—for this she ought to be reborn as an animal. Fortunately her spirit is not darkened and there still remains life-force in her bones. Therefore she should not be reborn in a womb. Instead she shall be transformed into a noble bird, first among its kind. After three hundred years she will meet an immortal and be transformed by his instruction, whereupon she will once more become human. As for Stiff Neck, he is ugly in appearance and stupid in constitution, fit only to live in poverty and make a living in the countryside. By rights he should have renounced marriage forever, resigning himself to his ugliness. Yet he dared hope to marry into the family of a high minister and love a beautiful woman, with the result that she died of grief. He threw away his insignificant body to pursue her, unwilling to give her up, thus darkening his nature even further. He should be reborn as an animal, and shall by way of punishment be transformed into a musk deer. After three hundred years he will become acquainted with the white crane to complete his karmic destiny.”

When the judgment had been pronounced, Bright-Bright and Stiff Neck lowered their heads and, without uttering a word, each went their own way. This then is the story of the previous existence of the white crane and the musk deer. Today, however, we are to tell how Han Xiangzi saved Han Yu twelve times, so let’s leave this story of karmic retribution aside.

Let us instead reveal that in the palace of the Jade Emperor there once was an Attendant Great General on the Left¹⁸ called Chonghezi. At an immortality peach banquet he fought with a certain Yunyangzi over a peach, and in the course of the struggle they broke a crystal cup. Greatly enraged, the Jade Emperor banished Chonghezi and Yunyangzi to the human world.

Chonghezi was born into the Han family of Changli County in Yongping Prefecture and was given the name Han Yu, while Yunyangzi was born into the Lin family of the same location and was named Lin Gui.

The Han family had accumulated merit for nine generations, focusing single-heartedly on the recitation of The Yellow Court Scripture.¹⁹ Old Master Han had two sons. The elder was named Han Hui; he married a woman of the Zheng family. The younger was named Han Yu, styled Tuizhi; he married a woman of the Dou family.

The two brothers got along well, their marriages were harmonious, and their household was at peace. Everything was perfect, except for the fact that neither of them could beget a son. All his life Han Hui was saddened by this and often said to his brother Tuizhi, “Those who enjoy a long life have no wealth. Those who have wealth do not have an official position. Those who have an official position have no sons. The allotments of fate are uneven, but to be childless is the saddest of them all. What could be worse than still to be without children at our age?” A poem shall illustrate his state of mind:

In silence often sighing,

In darkness lost in confusion.

All because he has no descendants—

Day and night his suffering is difficult to bear.

Tuizhi said, “That may be so, but please don’t be despondent. Our family has accumulated merit for nine generations. Surely Heaven will give you a worthy son by way of retribution, and won’t leave you without so much as a tail to chase away the flies. There is no reason to worry. If only we burn incense and worship all day long, and pray to Heaven, Earth, and our ancestors, we are sure to get a response.”

Following Tuizhi’s suggestion Han Hui thereupon prayed piously every day. His prayers moved the local city and earth gods, as well as the six fate-supervising spirits of the kitchen, who together submitted a memorial to the Jade Emperor, requesting him to grant a son to Han Hui. This is how the memorial was phrased:

Your ministers, the six fate-supervising spirits, the earth gods and city god of Changli County in Yongping Prefecture, knock their heads and submit the following memorial to the Jade Emperor, the Exalted Worthy of the Golden Palace in the Vast Heavens: We have heard that, being seated high and august as the jade pinnacle, Your Majesty has the authority to bestow blessings on the common people; that as the Golden Worthy of Great Veil Heaven, Your Majesty opens the way for all beings to renew themselves. Whenever someone reaches out in prayer, he is certain to receive a response. Now there are Han Hui and Han Yu of Changli County whose family has accumulated merit for nine generations and who have revered the esoteric scriptures all their life. Because they are without a son, they have earnestly implored Heaven. We respectfully request that Your Majesty will testify to their reverence by extending your auspicious light to them, that in view of their respectfully sincere hearts you will bestow on them a handsome son. In this way they will forever receive the shelter of the Dao and the sincerity of their minds will not be disregarded. They will fully benefit from your abundant grace, which will further strengthen their worshipful reverence. As the disc of the moon keeps turning in eternity, so the strength of a vow is limitless. Your ministers look up to Heaven with intense reverence, earnestly awaiting the arrival of Your Majesty’s orders. Respectfully we submit this memorial for your consideration.

After perusing the memorial, the Jade Emperor gave an imperial commission, as well as magic methods and divine techniques, to the divine immortals Zhongli Quan and Lü Dongbin. These two were to go to the lower realm to save a meritorious person to be used by Heaven for its purposes. If there was to be found one whose cultivation was not yet complete and who needed to be reborn as a human once more, they should dispatch him to the household of Han Hui, there to attain deliverance and final transformation by first entering a womb. Later, when he had accumulated sufficient merit and was no longer confused by his previous karma, they were to go again and save him, so that he might reap the fruits of his efforts. Having received their orders, Zhong and Lü descended from Heaven on a cloud.

On the way the immortal Zhong said to the immortal Lü, “When someone becomes an immortal, he is released from the corpse and ascends to Heaven. There he goes to the immortality peach banquet, where he eats jiao pears and fire dates. As a result he enjoys a life-span of ten thousand years and all his descendants and ancestors ascend to the realm of the immortals together. Why is it then that so many people in this vast world only know how to sink into the sea of desire, drown in the river of love, savagely indulge in wine and sex, and arrogantly abuse wealth and power? Why are they unwilling to abandon wife and children and leave their family like cast-off shoes so as to compound the reverted elixir of the nine cycles, and enjoy eternal life without aging?”

“Humans live in the world like fish in water,” the immortal Lü replied. “At first they spend their life at ease until, alas, the line plunges into the water from the fishing rod. They throw themselves on the delicious bait until they swallow the hook and are drawn out by it, are cut up and cooked. How many are there who can quench the fire of their mind, still the waves of consciousness, firmly maintain the vast and diffuse primordial pneuma, grasp the seeds of Former Heaven, and hold up sun and moon with both hands?”

“The five turbidities confuse the mind, the three paths lead the feet astray, and as a result people get entangled in lust and resentment,” the immortal Zhong said. “If they do not get to swallow a golden elixir pill, they will find it hard to slip their mortal frame. The two of us have today descended into the world of mortals with an imperial commission. In which prefecture and which county will we get to meet an appropriate person?”

Before the immortal Lü could reply, they suddenly saw in the southeast a ray of white pneuma rising up and penetrating the clouds, somewhat like a rainbow. What was so unusual about this pneuma?

Neither smoke nor mist, yet cloudlike. Neither smoke nor mist, yet casting a haze over the clear air. Cloudlike it rose to fill the blue sky. Reaching the empyrean, penetrating the Milky Way, striking the sun and shading the sky. No thunder was heard and there was no trace of wind or rain. Yet the sky was filled with pure and bright white light, gathered into an arc. Those who divine by examining pneumata would not see in it the Emperor’s Pneuma, nor the Pneuma of Divine Immortals, nor the Demonic Pneuma, nor the Sea Monster Pneuma. Those who observe clouds would not recognize in it the Royal Cloud, nor the High Minister’s Cloud, nor the General’s Cloud, nor the Retired Scholar’s Cloud. It is just a ray of white—pneuma or cloud? Looking at it carefully, it is a coiled mass suspended in mid-air, and it is not clear whether good or ill portents can be read from it. A waft of immortal’s wind will blow it away, forcing it to drift along exposed roots on the flat ground.

Pointing to the phenomenon, Lü said to Zhong, “This white pneuma rising to the sky seems to come from Cangwu Prefecture by the banks of the Xiang River. Being neither divine nor ordinary, it is likely of demonic origin. Let’s blow our immortal pneuma toward it. If it is of immortal quality itself, the pneuma will deflect our wind; if it is demonic, it will itself be deflected.”

Thereupon the immortal Zhong lifted his beard to one side, opened his great lion-like mouth, and blew a mouthful of pneuma towards the southeast. It turned into a strong gust of wind which completely deflected the soaring ray of white pneuma.

When Lü opened his eyes of wisdom and peered toward the place where the ray had arisen, he saw two animals spouting pneuma. One was a musk deer doing mischief, the other a white crane playing tricks. Needless to say, the two immortals flew there quick as the wind.

The white crane and the musk deer there on the bank of the Xiang River were just showing off their magical powers, playing to their hearts’ delight, when they suddenly saw the gust of wind blowing past and deflecting their white pneuma. They realized that two divine immortals were about to arrive. Quite unhurried, they shook themselves and changed into the shape of Complete Perfection Daoists, and then stood beside the river to await the immortal masters.

How were they dressed?

One wore on his head a cap made from bamboo sheaths, the other had his hair dressed in a yin-yang pattern. One wore a robe trimmed with black down, around his waist a silken sash; the other a gown of yellow cloth, bound with a soft belt. One wore on his feet tied shoes of hemp, looking like Kuafu of ancient myth who pursued the wind and chased the sun.²⁰ The other was shod with straw sandals and had the appearance of a divine immortal who rides the clouds and paces the moon. Truly, their faces were lighthearted and fresh, their attire original and strange.

When they saw the two masters approaching from afar, they stepped forward, knocked their heads and repeatedly honored them, saying, “Masters, we are two followers of the Way of Complete Perfection cultivating ourselves on the bank of the Xiang River in Cangwu Prefecture. We were slow in welcoming you, please forgive us.”

Master Lü pointed to the white crane and said, “You actually are a companion of phoenix and simurgh, how dare you hide your head and tail?”

Again he pointed at the musk deer and said, “You actually are kin to foxes and dogs, how dare you conceal your name?”

When the crane heard his true identity spoken, he lowered his head and remained silent, not daring to reply. The musk deer on the other hand came forward and said, “We really are practitioners of Complete Perfection—do not mistake men for animals, masters!”

“Lying wretch, wanting to hoodwink me with crafty words!” Master Lü said. “Do you think my sword isn’t sharp?”

These words frightened the white crane greatly. Lowering himself on both knees he said, “Master, a human body is hard to obtain, a prosperous lifetime is hard to come upon. Although I am an animal, my refined spirit has already undergone transformation. Now my skeleton of immortality is already complete, but I have not yet escaped from this feathered body. Day after day I have faced the wind and absorbed the dew, but have not yet reaped the final reward. I hope that you will take pity on me and spare me a pill of golden elixir, enabling me to shed my feathers and be reborn through your grace.”

Hearing the white crane’s words, Master Zhong said, “This crane’s knowledge of nature and spirit is quite advanced and he fully understands human thinking. His rebirth would fulfill a prophecy. Let us deliver him and take him to the Jade Emperor for further deliberation. This musk deer’s bad karma, on the other hand, is as heavy as a mountain. I have no use for you. For now be forgiven and be off, but if you continue to behave recklessly and out of accord with your proper lot, I have my sword of wisdom and my divine lance with which I can get at you as I wheel in the air.”

“If you won’t deliver me, that’s fine with me,” the musk deer said. “The scenery here by the river is just as good as at the Three Isles of the Immortals or Mount Kunlun. I’ll keep to my proper lot, as you said, and pass my days here.”

“Why do you think the scenery by the Xiang River is as good as that of the Three Isles of the Immortals or Mount Kunlun?” Master Zhong asked.

“I’m not just bragging,” the musk deer answered. “Here in Cangwu, by the river, ducks float in the mornings and geese in the evenings. Below them black-and white-scaled turtles dive and frolic. A clear light suffuses everything at sunrise, and the setting sun illuminates the landscape with its slanting rays. In winter lines of frost give off a blue shine that dazzles the eye. In summer elegant flowers and wild herbs are covered with fog and surrounded by mist. My love for this place is deeper than that of the birds which inhabit its skies and the fish which dwell in its depths. It is so much better than the Penglai Isles of the Immortals or the Weak Water of Mount Kunlun, which by comparison are an endless sea of suffering—difficult for a boat to cross or the dreaming soul to traverse.”

“From what you say, it does not seem to be at all superior to our land of the immortals. Your bragging is quite useless,” Master Lü said.

The musk deer retorted, “Let me offer a poem to prove my point:

“The scenery in Cangwu is refreshing,

In the mountain mists at the Xiang River I sleep well fed and well clad.

White gulls are floating, aware of the setting sun,

Purple swallows twitter of the fine mist against a clear sky.

Swaying red in the light breeze, flowers are opening with a smile,

A luxuriant green, the grass stretches away before my eyes.

Venerable masters, if you came to this place,

You too would forsake Great Veil Heaven.”

“Sinful beast, you are utterly devoid of manners,” Master Lü said. “Only after ridding ourselves of love and desires do we immortals succeed in completing perfection and realizing our rewards. You are unprincipled and sinful; your mind is filled with greed for profit. What good is there in your reckless boasts?”

At the same time he thought to himself, “He doesn’t understand life and death and is just puffing himself up with deceitful words. I’ll deliver the crane and take him up to Heaven, while banishing this musk deer to a deep pool where he cannot see the light of day. Once the crane has become an immortal, he’ll come to save the deer and make him a great guardian deity of the mountain. This will display the marvelous schemes of which we immortals are capable.”

Then he recited some words under his breath and shouted, “Quickly!”

A bright heavenly light shone forth; a black fog gathered. In mid-air a celestial general appeared in a flash and stood in front of the assembled group. How was this general dressed?

On his head was an iron helmet, lacquered black and red; in his hand was a steel rod inlaid with silver threads. Golden dragons writhed on his gown of black gauze, jade pendants dangled high from his lion-buckled belt. His face was as black as the soot under a pot, his lips blood red as if painted vermilion. To his left stood a strong man with a yellow headcloth, to his right the Great Black Tiger Spirit. Flaming fire wheels circled him, fluttering black flags heralded his coming. Truly, it was Marshal Zhao of the Dark Altar, who subdues dragons and tigers—he has no fear of your tricks, you mischievous musk deer!²¹

Arriving in a gust of wind, the celestial general bowed and inquired, “What is your command, my master?”

“This musk deer has committed sins that cannot be tolerated by Heaven,” Master Lü said.

With one hand the general took up his steel rod and with the other grasped the musk deer. He was just about to get to work on him, when Master Zhong called, “Let us spare this sinful beast’s life and banish him to a deep pool among the rivers and lakes. He shall not be allowed to so much as poke out his head until the crane has achieved his proper reward and has ascended to the ranks of the immortals. Then he will come to save the musk deer so that he may serve as guardian of the gate to this grotto-heaven. However, if you do not behave in accordance with your proper lot, but again stir up wind and thunder and harm passing travelers, you will right away be cast into hell.”

Following his orders, the celestial general picked up the musk deer and took him to a deep and secluded spot among the rivers and lakes. There he locked him up tightly, giving him no slack whatsoever.

Unable to employ any of his powers, the musk deer wailed and beseeched the general, “I have offended the immortal masters and deserve to die ten thousand deaths. This banishment surely satisfies the desire for retribution. But I am an animal used to roaming the mountains, passing its days eating grass and flowers. Now that I am buried below the water, I will surely drown or die of hunger! Please save me!”

“You do not understand the schemes of immortals,” the celestial general replied. “If they spared your life, of course you won’t die. So why fear drowning or starvation? Just collect your mind and absorb pneuma, manifest your nature and complete your spirit, while you wait for the crane to save you.”

The musk deer bowed. “Many thanks for these instructions, but I don’t know how long it will be before the crane comes to save me!”

After the general had left, the musk deer remained locked up in this place, where truly he was submerged in water on all sides. There was no food and he could not roam freely, so he faced upward and stretched, looked down and contracted, closed in his breath, and swallowed his essence. No longer did he dare engage in reckless behavior, which might bring further punishment upon him. It is just as stated by the following poem:

Quarrels are caused by talking too much,

Trouble comes from willfully sticking one’s head out.

Now he has learned the way of the turtle,

To pull in his head at the right time.

What happened afterwards? Hear it all explained in the next chapter.