TheHuangdi Yinfujing (Chinese:黃帝陰符經;pinyin:Huángdì Yīnfújīng;Wade–Giles:Huang-ti Yin-fu Ching;lit. 'Yellow Emperor's Hidden Talisman Classic'), orYinfujing, is a circa 8th century CEDaoistscripture associated withChinese astrology andNeidan-styleInternal alchemy. In addition,Huangdi Yinfujing is also the name of a ChineseFengshui text onmilitary strategy.
There are two received versions of the DaoistHuangdi Yinfujing, a shorter text of 332Chinese characters in one section and a longer one of 445 in three sections. Both versions of this classic explain cosmological correspondences, the Dao of Heaven,Yin and Yang, theWu Xing, and biospiritual techniques. In the description ofAlexander Wylie,[1] "This short Treatise, which is not entirely free from the obscurity of Tâoist mysticism, professes to reconcile the decrees of Heaven with the current of mundane affairs." In the explanation of the modern Daoists Zhang Jiyu and Li Yuanguo,
TheHuangdi yinfu jing (The Yellow Emperor's Scripture on "Unconscious Unification") reflects this later stage of Daoist thought and attempts to "expose heaven's mysteries and reveal divinity's workings." It became one of the most important classics of Daoism, second only in significance to theDaode jing. Zhang Boduan (987–1082), in hisWuzhen pian (An Essay on Realizing Perfection), said: "The treasuredYinfu jing consists of more than three hundred words whereas the inspiredDaodejing has five thousand characters. All those who attained immortality in the past and attain it in the present have comprehended the true meaning of these scriptures."[2]
TheHuangdi Yinfujing's date of composition is uncertain. Some scholars believed it existed prior to theZhou dynasty (1122–256 BCE), while others believe it is a forgery from theTang dynasty (618–907 CE). The traditional Chinese belief, as well as the eponymous title, ascribed this classic to the legendaryChinese sovereign Huangdi "Yellow Emperor". According to literary legend, in 441 CE the Daoist reformerKou Qianzhi hid theHuangdi Yinfujing in a cave nearMount Song, where it was discovered by the Tang military officialLi Quan (fl. ca. 743 CE). Li transcribed the text and published it with his commentary (Yinfujing Jie陰符經解). There is consensus among contemporary scholars that Li probably forged the text, which is confirmed by the absence of references in pre-Tang sources. Despite this comparatively late date, theHuangdi Yinfujing is considered a Chinese classic, and collections like theDaozang andSiku Quanshu include various editions and commentaries.
During theSong dynasty, theHuangdi Yinfujing was canonized by theQuanzhen "Complete Perfection" school of Neidan internal alchemy. Liu Chuxuan劉處玄 (1147–1203), founder of the Suishan (隨山 "Mount Sui") lineage, wrote a commentary[3], andQiu Chuji丘處機 (1148–1227), founder of the Longmen (龍門 "Dragon Gate") lineage, wrote another. Xia Yuanding夏元鼎 (fl. 1201) wrote a textual exegesis.[4] The analytical commentary (Yinfujing Kaoyi陰符經考異) dubiously attributed to the leadingNeo-Confucian scholarZhu Xi first suggested that Li forged the text.
Qing dynasty scholars used philological methods to analyze classical texts.Liu Yiming劉一明 (1734–1821), the 11th Longmen Daoist patriarch, wrote an erudite commentary.[5] Acker published an annotated translation of Liu.[6] Li Xiyue李西月 (1806–1856), leader in the "Western School" (西派) of Neidan, also wrote a commentary.
Besides the above DaoistHuangdi Yinfujing黃帝陰符經, there is another military text by the same name. It contains 602 characters in 86 rhymed lines, and is a type of strategy manual based on theQimen Dunjia (奇門遁甲 "Strange Gates Escaping Techniques") method of Fengshui.Ho Peng Yoke explains the title.
Yinfu陰符 (secret tally), according to a military text entitledLiutao六韜 (Six Strategies) and attributed to Jiang Shang 姜尚 in the eleventh century BC, refers to the tallies of various specified lengths used between the emperor and his generals for confidential communication. For example, the tally used to report a conquest in war had a length of one Chinese foot, that to report a victory in battle had a length of nine Chinese inches, that for reporting the occupation of an enemy city was eight Chinese inches long, and so on.[7]
TheHuangdi yinfujing classic has been translated into English, French, Italian, Portuguese, German, Russian, and Japanese.
The first English versions were published during theVictorian era.Frederic H. Balfour initially translated theYinfujing within hisTaoist Texts.[8]James Legge translated the text and Li Xiyue's commentary as an appendix toThe Texts of Taoism.[9]
More recent English translations and studies reflect insights from modernSinology, as surveyed by Reiter.[10] Christopher Rand's article on Li Quan translates and interprets theHuangdi Yinfujing as a treatise on Chinese military strategy.[11]Thomas Cleary published a popular translation with Liu Yiming's commentary.[12] Another English translation was published byFabrizio Pregadio.[13] It includes the commentary by Yu Yan (1258–1314), a learned author of works on Neidan and Chinese cosmology.
The titleHuangdi Yinfujing combines three Chinese words. The firstHuangdi黃帝 "Yellow Emperor" and lastjing經 "classic; scripture; book" are common in titles of otherChinese classic texts. For example, theHuangdi Neijing "Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic" andHuangdi Sijing "Yellow Emperor's Four Classics". The second wordyinfu "hidden/secret talisman/correspondence" is an uncommoncompound ofyin陰 (ofyin and yang) "shady place; passive; negative; secret; hidden" andfu符 " tally (with two halves); talisman; symbol; charm; amulet".
Fu means a seal, divided into two parts. On one half of this seal we have the visible phenomena of the world around us; this we can all see, but, the diagram being incomplete, we require the other half of the seal, that bearing the道理 [daoli "principle, truth; reason"] of Heaven or the Unseen World, before we can understand the why and the wherefore of the existing order of things.[14]
Fulu符籙 "Daoist secret talismanic writing; Daoist magic formulas" refers to charms written in peculiar characters, often on yellow paper (for instance, seejiangshi).
English translations ofYinfujing illustrate semantic problems with the title:
Note the omission ofHuangdi above, which all the translators render as "Yellow Emperor", excepting Komjathy's "Yellow Thearch".
Footnotes