The Immortal He Xiangu
Author: Jie Kong
He Xiangu (何仙姑) is a great Daoist immortal, the guardian of the Violet Room on Penglai Island. All women who have attained immortality are associated with He Xiangu (she is associated with the deity Magu). She is in charge of external alchemy, whose symbols are the lotus, the peach, and the sacred Lingzhi mushroom.
He Xiangu achieved immortality in the 7th century. At the age of 14, she met the immortal Lü Dongbin (吕洞宾), who taught her how to feed on mica (saliva). To free the maiden from her dependence on hunger, he gives her a peach. Here, eating the peach symbolizes the art of attaining immortality by freeing oneself from dependence on coarse energy. In other words, Lü Dongbin helped He Xiangu change the quality of her energy, after which she not only ceased to depend on her physical body but could also move across mountains, flying great distances.
He Xiangu’s name is associated with Lofushan Mountain near the city of Guangzhou (廣州) in Guangdong Province (廣東). On this mountain is the Bridge for Meeting Immortals (Huixiangqiao,会仙桥), where the Immortal still meets her disciples to this day.
In this place, the alchemy practicing poet Su Shi(蘇軾) once met two travelers, a man, and a woman. The woman composed a verse to annoy Su that he was punished by the imperial court. And Su suddenly realized that the plain-looking woman was actually He Xiangu! And the second traveler, who turned out to be the great Dao immortal Li Tieguai (李铁), helped Su cross the wide river by transforming himself into a bridge.
If you want to find the Immortal Lady, you’ll have to head to Mount Magufeng(麻姑峰), where on every 15th day of the lunar month since 750, He Xiangu has descended from the heavens to perform a Daoist ceremony dedicated to the Jade Emperor. According to tradition, she is usually present in the colorful clouds above.
He Xiangu is believed to have first adapted the practice for women who aspired to reach immortality. The main practice areas associated with it are external alchemy (the use of the great elixir, saliva nourishment); and Daoist alchemy for women (daojiao nü danxiulian, 道教女丹修炼), cultivating the source of energy for women, knowing the nature of the female body. Her knowledge is associated with the art of eating mica and pearl (yunmu hezhen zhude yangfen, 云母和珍珠的养分). In addition, she has created-or rather-enriched the knowledge of cultivating the pre-heavenly state.
The knowledge related to He Xiangu is presented in the School of Perfect Truth (Quanzhen Jiao, 全真教). This school was actually formed after He Xiangu achieved immortality. But since one of the founders of the school is believed to be Lü Dongbin (who was also a teacher), the school is associated with both Sun Buer (孙不二) and He Xiangu.
This school has made a major contribution to the development of the feminine strand of the Daoist tradition. Throughout the years, the number of female followers has not been less than that of male followers. It is this teaching, together with the Way of the Celestial Masters (Tianshi Dao, 天師道), that gives women a prominent role in Daoism. The school’s classical work is “The Complete Methods for Finding the Treasures of the Spirit” (Linbao Bi Fa, 灵宝 毕 法) written by Zhongli Quan and his student Lu Dongbin.