The history of alchemy

Magic originated from the history of witchcraft in primitive society. Due to the limitation of productivity and scientific knowledge in ancient society, people think that heaven rules all personnel, and the rulers of the world are dictated by heaven. They regard the changes of the sun, moon, stars, rain, snow, mountains, vegetation, birds, animals, insects and fish in nature as signs of disaster and good luck. According to legend, some officials, such as He He, specialize in observing astronomy, observing the changes of time, observing good and bad luck, using divination to convey God's will, and offering sacrifices to eliminate disasters and pray. There are a large number of burnt animal bones used for divination in Longshan cultural site, which indicates that divination has begun at this time. There are many records of solar eclipse, lunar eclipse, rain and snow, and offering sacrifices to gods in Oracle Bone Inscriptions in Shang Dynasty. The Zhou Dynasty believed that heaven and man were connected with each other, and people's actions could sense God, so that "God's will is impermanent" and people's monarch "respected morality and protected people" could "pray for eternal life in heaven". During the Spring and Autumn Period, people referred to the twelve stars and the twenty-eight nights in the sky as the "dividing line" corresponding to the positions of states and countries on the ground. Compared with the good or bad luck of states and countries, the variation of the stars makes the relationship between man and nature closer.

The thought of Yin-Yang and Five Elements appeared in the Yin and Zhou Dynasties and was widely popular in the Warring States Period. The Book of Changes, which talks about Yin and Yang, and Hong Fan, which talks about the five elements, were written at this time. All medical astrology is based on the principles of Yin-Yang and Five Elements. Zou Yan, a Qi man, attached the theory of five elements to social and historical changes, and put forward the theory that "five virtues begin with the end", explaining the rise and fall of the dynasty with the mutual development and endless cyclic changes of water, fire, wood, gold and earth. Yan people, who don't avoid the Song Dynasty, are sincere with overseas Chinese, respect and admire others, and cultivate immortals. Boasting can make the soul get rid of the body and get close to ghosts and gods. So there appeared a group of alchemists who talked about immortal art along the coast of Yanqi. They claimed that there are three sacred mountains in the Bohai Sea: Penglai, the abbot and Yingzhou. The palaces on the mountain are all made of gold and silver. Immortal immortals live there. They hide immortal miracles. Qi Weiwang, Qi Xuanwang and Yan Zhaowang listened to these nonsense stories and sent people to the sea to look for them many times, but the people who came back always said: Sanshen Mountain looks like a cloud in the distance, and when the ship arrives, it will sink to the bottom of the sea; Get close to it and the wind will blow it away.

Qin Shihuang traveled to the sea and believed the advice of the alchemist. He sent Han Zhong and others to ask for the elixir of life, but it never came back. Xu Shi (that is, Xu Fu) was sent to build a big ship and take 500 boys and girls to find it. There was no result.

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was good at magic and longed for the Yellow Emperor to become immortal and ascend to heaven. As a result, there were more than 10,000 people in the Qi Dynasty, including Li, Shao Weng, Luan Da, Gong and others. They either went to the sea to beg for Penglai, or waited for the immortals in the temple to get rich, but all of them were ineffective and the scam was exposed. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty took Tian's advice and told the alchemists to invite immortals in the fourth year of Zheng He (89 years ago). But he wants to see the real immortal, while others are still trying to win him over. When Han Dang married the emperor, he was invited to play and left. Later, due to the frequent illness of Emperor Ai of the Han Dynasty, he recovered from his illness for the sake of seeking happiness, but he sacrificed 37,000 times a year to no avail. Since then, it has declined.

After Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, some alchemists and Confucian scholars merged together for divination (see divination), explaining Confucian classics with Yin-Yang and Five Elements. Both Wang Mang and Emperor Guangwu of Han Dynasty took advantage of this and proclaimed themselves emperors. Emperor Guangwu officially announced the prophecy to the world and became a legal classic, which was called "internal learning", while the original classic was called "external learning". The other part of the alchemists absorbed the theories of Huang, Lao and Fautu, and preached destiny and disaster, good and evil have accounts, praying for disaster elimination, reincarnation retribution and so on. , and become a pioneer of Taoism. When Emperor Shun was in the Han Dynasty, Gong Chong played the "Divine Book" that his teacher Yu Ji got in Quyang-"Taiping Ching Ling Shu". The existing Taiping Jing evolved from this book. In the book, divination is advocated, and some Buddhist principles are used to explain the way of governing the country. The Book of the Later Han Dynasty contains the first and second chapters of Magic Biography by 35 people, including Hua Tuo, Zuo Ci and Fei Changfang.

It is idealistic to infer the good or bad of personnel by natural changes. In addition to the attached superstition, its observation, recording and explanation of the changes of nature with Yin-Yang and Five Elements reflect natural phenomena and their changing laws to some extent. Some alchemists are engaged in alchemy and immortal art, and have accumulated a lot of chemical and medical knowledge. Therefore, alchemy can be said to be "a connection between the germination of scientific thinking and fantasy such as religion and myth". Astronomy, almanac, medicine and chemistry in ancient China were intertwined with alchemy and developed from its interior. Therefore, it is necessary to analyze its content, discard its dross, extract its essence, clarify its role in the process of scientific development, and give it a certain historical position. With the emergence of the theory of immortals, witches used it to render supernatural, and some used the budding technology at that time to render religiously, thinking that the magic of immortals would be sold among people. Such people are called alchemists, or alchemists.

According to the artistic records of the Han dynasty, alchemy can be divided into four categories, namely, medical classics, medical prescriptions, houses and immortals. The biography of alchemy in the later Han Dynasty includes astronomy, medicine, immortals, divination, physiognomy, fortune telling, Tibetan armor, geomantic omen and so on. The ancients called all skills magic, and what we are talking about here is the magical magic formula sold by those who advocate immortality and think that they can become immortals after eating sacrifices.

China's ancient legends include Peng Zu, Rongcheng, Qi Bo and Motome. According to historical records, the earliest alchemist was Changhong (545-57 1) in Zhou Lingwang. Historical Records of Amenorrhea:

At that time, Changhong took care of the princes Mo Chaozhou and Zhou Li. Changhong is a ghost. He set up a beaver head, and the beaver head is the one that didn't come. According to strange things, chief. The princes refused to accept it, and the Jin people killed Changhong, and the Zhou people said that they were responsible for Changhong.

The so-called "shooting at the head" is witchcraft in the Han Dynasty, so it can be seen that alchemist Changhong is a legacy of witchcraft.

The alchemists and wizards in the Warring States period were responsible for feeding and offering sacrifices. They only have alchemy and no theory, which is obviously overshadowed by a hundred schools of thought. At the end of the Warring States period, an alchemist named Li Yan combined the theory of Yin-Yang and Five Elements with the rise and fall of social dynasties, not to mention the changes of social things. Therefore, Li Yan was distinguished from the princes, which also inspired other alchemists. According to the Historical Records, since Wei Qi's proclamation, Li Yan's disciples' works began in Wude, which were played by Qin Huang and Qi people and adopted by the emperor. However, in the Song Dynasty, we should not be jealous because we are overseas Chinese. We should be full of respect. In the final analysis, we are all Yan people and immortals, and the form of solution depends on ghosts and gods. Li Yan showed his princes by yin and yang, but Yan Qi's maritime alchemist couldn't pass on his skills, but he blamed his success on pedantic flatterers, and the list goes on.

Because Qin Shihuang fantasized about getting the elixir of life, the alchemists were very active. The first alchemist who won the favor of Qin Shihuang was Xu (Fu). Historical Records of the First Qin Emperor: Xu and others wrote that there are three sacred mountains in the sea, named Penglai, Abbot and Yingzhou, where immortals live. Please hurry and beg with boys and girls. So Xu left thousands of boys and girls in the city to seek immortality in the sea.

Xu Shi went to the sea to ask for medicine for several years and spent a lot of money. He is afraid of being condemned. He told the first emperor that Penglai had medicine, but it was often harmed by mackerel and could not come. Lu Sheng, Han Zhong, harem, and other Yan people are all Xu's minions. They begged the immortals to reward them, and they begged Qin Shihuang for a medicine with a high oath to live forever, all of which were hopeless. Lu Sheng returned to the sea, leaned on ghosts and gods, and wrote a book saying, "If Qin dies, Hu will die." . The first emperor ordered general Meng Tian to send 300,000 troops to attack Hu in the north. Lu Sheng also said Qin Shihuang: In Zhong Fang, when people are in charge, they will act imperceptibly to ward off evil spirits, and real people will come. Master alive, ministers know, is harmful to god. Real people don't get wet in the water. If you don't get angry when you enter the fire, you will live with heaven and earth for a long time Today, under the rule, it has not been calm. May the palace where I live be unknown, and then I can get the elixir of life.

The laws of the Qin dynasty are cool, so you don't have to die. The alchemist Lu Sheng and others fled because they could not ask for the fairy medicine. Qin Shihuang was furious and said, ... There are many scholars who want to make peace and refine medicine. Today, I heard that Han Feng and others left without reporting, resulting in tens of thousands of market expenses. Finally, drug dealers can't tell the Japanese. Lu Sheng and others gave me a lot of money, but now they slander me, which is not good for Jyuugo. Lu Sheng is in Xianyang, and I make people ask Lian, or for slander.

Qin Shihuang was angry at all the students, and more than 460 offenders were all in Xianyang, so that the world could know about it and punish them. His eldest son, Fu Su, explained to him that Zhu Sheng was different from the alchemist, and Qin Shihuang was even more angry that Fu Su was exiled to the border and Meng Tian was supervised in Shang Jun in the north.

After Qin Shihuang, the most respected alchemist was Liu Che, the emperor of the Han Dynasty. The first person who won his favor was Fang Shili. According to "Historical Records of Xiaowu", Li took his ancestral temple and Quelao to see Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. Li said: the shrine furnace can cause trouble, and cinnabar can turn stone into gold. Jin can think that eating utensils can prolong life, but the immortals in the sea can see them and will not die if they see them. Huangdi also. I tasted the sea. Seeing An Qisheng, I ate a giant jujube the size of a melon. The immortal of Anqi Sage, passing through Penglai, met people, but didn't get along.

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty believed Li's words, so he kissed the shrine and sent an alchemist to the sea to seek the ownership of the seven saints in Penglai, and refined cinnabar medicine into gold. After Li died of illness, Emperor Wu refused to say that he was dead, and let Huang Hammer and Shi Kuanshu suffer beside him, begging Penglai and An Qisheng. Later, some bloggers lured me to fight Thailand. Few people in Qi have seen emperors with ghosts and gods, saying that they can create the appearance of Wu Di's dead wife and kitchen ghost by magic night, and they have to worship General Wencheng, which gives them a lot of flavor. Later, because of the silk book, something strange appeared in Yunniu's stomach. When Emperor Wu knew about it, he killed General Wencheng. There is also the Forbidden City in Jiaodong, Luanda. Lies are tasted in the sea. I have seen immortals quietly envy the door. Gold can be made, immortal medicine can be obtained, and immortals can cause it; Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty prized Luanda and worshipped him as General Five Blessingg. Luanda often wears clothes. In the evening, he asked the god below, and Luan Dapei printed six seals, which are world-famous. But between Yan and Qi at sea, they said that they were banned and could become immortals.

According to Records of Historical Records of Xiaowu, Luan Da was later punished for failing to verify his magical power. Qi Sun Qing went to Donglai Mountain to wait for the God of Emperor Wu. At this time, Emperor Wu ordered thousands of alchemists to go to the sea to seek immortality, and then sent alchemists to pray for God, taking thousands of wonderful medicines. Gongsunqing also said that immortals live in good buildings, and Liang Wudi designated Chang 'an as a concept of honesty and integrity, and Ganquan as a concept of promoting life and prolonging life, so that Gongsunqing could buy equipment and wait for God. There was nothing to test, and Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty began to get tired of the alchemist's strange pedantry. In the second year of Yuanguang (133), an alchemist was sent to seek immortality. It was not until the fourth year (189) that he realized that the alchemist was waiting for God, and it was forty-five years ago. At this time, Emperor Wu of Han Dynasty was 68 years old. He once sighed to his ministers, "When you were stupid and confused, you were cheated by the alchemist. There are no immortals in the world, you can go on a diet and take medicine, but you can get sick less. " (History as a Mirror, Volume 22, Fourteen Records of Hanshu)

Han Shu's Records of Literature and Art commented on the immortal alchemist who specializes in immortal art: immortals protect the truth of their own lives, while wandering immortals seek the truth of life. Chat with peace of mind, live and die together, don't worry about sleeping on your chest. However, if you are a specialist, you will think that there are many articles that bully and pedantic, and the reason why the non-holy king counts is also. Confucius said, "I don't want to do it, because I will do it later." .

In a word, Fang believes in the theory of immortals, which is the most basic belief and feature of Taoism in the future, and the techniques made by alchemists, such as the rule of man walking slightly, ancestral kitchen, Gu Dao's not too old, seeking immortality, waiting for God, looking at the sky, guiding the way, night gods, fighting flags, massage, cultivating bacteria, and so on. It is a historical fact that Taoism originated from the fairy family and was the predecessor of Taoism.

Because Fang's magic is not sudden and has been criticized by the society, people who believe in and specialize in fairy theory and magic have to change their ways. This leads to the distribution of immortals, which are of the same origin but different. One school is imitation, and the other school is Huang, who is attached to Huang Lao.