tech04 The Theory & Practice of Source Acupuncture

 The Quaternary Scroll -
Additional Viewpoints of Shen

Shen and Alchemy

After the time of the "Breaking the intercourse between Heaven and Earth" mentioned earlier, a scroll written by a Taoist alchemist identifies two types of human Shen : Common consciousness (Shih-shen), and Primary consciousness (Yuan-shen).

Common consciousness is concrete and corporeal, and is created from Qi. Common consciousness includes the five senses and qualities such as cognition, intellect, and emotion, that are obtained at birth or in early life.

Primary consciousness, on the other hand, exists prior to birth as the spiritual power that diffuses throughout the universe but becomes invisible at birth as it is overlaid by our common consciousness.

According to the ancient alchemist, the secret of life and imperishability, is to cause our Primary consciousness to control our common consciousness, and not the reverse, as it is done normally.

Common consciousness deals with things in the three-dimensional world, but Primary consciousness is sacred as it deals with the true nature of the Self.

 

Confucianism, Taoism, and Shen

For the Confucians, Shen was a function of the mind.

For the Taoists, Shen was the spark of immortality waiting to be realized.

The terms Ming (destiny) and Shen (spirit) can only be understood in relation to each other. While it is true that "the spark of immortality waiting to be realized" is a spiritual force - in the human sphere this is not Shen . . . it is Ming (destiny or spiritual potential).

Shen is our conscious connection with the spiritual realm while in the midst of life on earth, and it is displayed in varying degrees for each individual.

Ming, as an aspect of Jing (essence), is spiritual potential, whereas Shen is the spirit manifested in life.

The "Spiritual Path" consists of practices (or the development of states of consciousness) that allow the Shen to become progressively more etherealized until it becomes completely metaphysical.

• Metaphysical means "beyond the physical."

Original (ancient) descriptions of Shen are quite different from the current interpretations of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), wherein modern Chinese Yin-Yang concepts have reduced Shen to a function of physical metabolism.

 

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