The Doctrine of the "Mysterious Female" in Taoism

The only means, not only to become liberated from sufferings but to obtain the highest happiness, is to restore original unity with Tao, to broaden consciousness and to put an end to the egocentric attitude, that is, to return to the state of the nonborn child who does not know a distinct difference between his or her own body and the maternal body, who breathes the maternal breath and eats maternal food. This coming back to the womb of the Mother-Tao is connected with the broadening of the personality to the cosmic scale, when "eternal integrity never deserts you, You will return to the state of infancy" (§28) and "a man is sparing of his body in caring for all under heaven" (§13). This state of the nonborn child is the state of immortality, peace, and unity with all beings and with one's own nature: The return to the root is called "stillness," stillness is called returning to the "fate-vitality," the return to the fate-vitality is called "constancy." One who knows constancy is called "enlightened"

(§16).'

Tao explicates itself on all levels of micro- and macrocosm, and because of this, the Taoist texts distinctively describe an isomorphism between cosmogonic process, development of the foetus and birth, and in the reverse sequence, the steps of the Taoist cultivation. So, for the Taoist, the returning to the womb of the Mother-Tao is not simply a metaphor, but a kind of expression of some profound essence of the isomorphous structure of the universe. It is also the reason why practicing Taoists try to imitate the prenatal states in their self-cultivation. One example is the famous technique of "embryonic breathing" (t'ai hsi), first depicted in Ko Hung's Paop 'u-tzu (4 A.D.). It is very still and quiet breathing, minimizing inhalation and exhalation. This kind of breathing control gives the impression that the practitioner does not breathe at all, like a foetus in the maternal womb, obtaining vital energy (ch 'i) from the blood of the mother.

Prenatal symbolism permeates the whole text of the Tao Te ching. The comparison of Tao with water and the important role played by the symbolism of water in this text in general is well known: For example: "The highest good is like water; Water is good at benefiting the myriad creatures but also struggles to occupy the place loathed by the masses. Therefore, it is near to the Way" (§8). The reason for the importance of the water symbolism lies not only in that, archetypically, water has female nature; it can be proposed, following Lao-tzu, that water is of the same nature as the nature of the waters of that embryonic ocean in which the baby-sage washes and wavers (§20 of The Canon of the Way and its Power).

In this regard, it is rather important to evaluate the name-pseudonym of the sage, who according to a tradition more than two thousand years old, is considered to be the author of the Tao Te ching, that is, Lao-tzu, Old Sage, and also Old Infant. Let us once again reflect upon this infant with the grey beard.Up to the first centuries A.D., the teaching was formed about the divinized Lao~tzu (Lord Lao or Lao-jun). But the tendencies to divinization were very old. Thus, in the 21st chapter of the Chuang-tzu, Lao-tzu says that he was wandering in the origin of things. The divinized Lao-tzu was associated with Tao and with original chaos-undifferentiated energetic pneuma (ch 'i), that is, with the source of the universe itself. (Detailed research into the process of the divinization of Lao-tzu may be found in Seidel, 1969.) The texts of the Han dynasty period (3 B.C.-3 A.D.) describe Lao-tzu as the Body of Tao. All of the texts use synonyms to express the idea of the body in this context: hsing (form, pattern), shen (body, person, personification), and ti (body, substance, incarnation) (Schipper, 1978, pp. 358-361). But further still, identified with the chaos in its mythological personification of P'an Ku (cosmic pananthropos, typologically akin to Purusha of the Rig-Veda and Adam Kadmon of the Kabbalah), Lao-tzu became the creator of the world: "Lao-tzu has changed his body. His left eye became the sun, his right eye became the moon, his head changed into the K'unlun mountain, his beard changed into the stars and heavenly space, his bones became dragons, his flesh-beasts, his viscera-snakes" (Maspero, 1950, p. 108; Schipper, 1978, p. 361). In his evolution from the undifferentiated chaos to his cosmic "birth," Lao tzu goes through nine stages, reflected in the myth of his "historical" birth. As K. M. Schipper points out (1978, p.361), this corresponds to the concept of §21 in the Tao Te ching which describes the transformations of the universe from the unqualified "blurred and nebulous" to the Name-Mother of all creatures. The famous commentary of Hoshangkung (2 B.C.) says:

In relation to myriad beings, Tao is such: it is wandering hither and thither and it has no definite place to be grounded there. Tao dwells in the formless of the "blurred and nebulous," but it is the only principle pattern of all beings. Though 'Lao is nothing but "blurred and nebulous," the One exists in it; the One contains in itself all metamorphoses. Due to the presence of the pneuma-ch'i, it becomes materialized. Though Tao is only formless darkness of mystery, it has spermatic energy [ching] and though in its essence its divine numinous mind [shen ming] is very subtle, it lies in the basis of the yin-yang interaction. If one can say anything about the nature of the spermatic pneuma [ching ch 'ij, it must be declared that its mystery is absolutely real; it does not need any decorations, Tao hides glory in itself; Tao contains name in itself-here is sincerity and truth [hsin] in the midst of it. (Hoshang-kung, in Tao Te ching, 1989, p.55)

It is timely to recall here the myth about the historical and cosmic birth of Lao-tar. There are very interesting details in the canonical text San t 'ian nei 'chieh ching (Canon of the Esoterical Erplanation of Three Heavens) written during the Han period. First of all, the text describes the cosmic birth of Lord Lao as a kind of theophany:

Then in the midst of darkness, Cave of Emptiness was born [K'ung tung]. In this Cave of Emptiness, Great Absence was born. Great Absence changed itself into three pneumata: Mysterious, Original and Principal. Being in chaotic mixture, these pneumata gave birth to Jade Maid of the profound Mystery [Hsuan miao yu nь]. After her birth joining pneumata twisted in her body and by their transformations they bore Lao-tar... When he was born he had grey hair. So he was called Old infant [i.e., Lao-tar]. This Lao-tzu is Lord Lao. By his transformation he created from his pneumata Heaven and Earth, people and things. Thus he has created everything by his transformations.

This passage clearly tells us that Lao-tar was his own mother. Another passage tells us about the "historical" birth of Lao-tar:

In the time of King Wu Ting of Yin dynasty, Lao-tar once again entered the womb of Mother Li . .. When he was born, his hair was grey again. Therefore he was again called Old Infant... What about his coming back to the embryonic state in the Mother Li's womb?; it must be understood that he himself has changed his subtle various body into the body of Mother Li, entering thus his own womb. In reality there was no Mother Li. Unwise people now say that Lao-tar entered Mother Li's womb from inside. In reality, it is not so. (Tao tsang, Vol.876; see also Schipper, 1978, p.365)

K. M. Schipper notes that none of the most ancient myths about Lao-tar's birth tell about the father of Lao-tar. Even his family name (Li) Lao-tar received from his mother ("Li" literally means "plum"). According to some versions, Lao-tar was born because his mother ate the kernel of a plum (Schipper, 1978, p.365).Thus, in Taoist texts, Tao is conceived of as a female maternal principle personified in the image of the male-female androgyne Lao-tar (Berthier, 1979; Seidel, 1969, p.64). Moreover, texts stress only his female aspect, because Tao bears the universe by itself; its "male" aspect does not participate in this process at all.

In the myths mentioned above, the founder of Taoism is conceived of as universal panantropos, the All-Man, who enjoys everlasting bliss in the maternal womb of Tao with which he is connected so perfectly-like a foetus and its mother constituting one and the same body. It is quite obvious that myths of this kind (myths of a rather early date, as we have seen), underline the importance of the theme of perfection as a prenatal state for Taoism. They also explain in great part why the authorship of such a basic (though not uniquely basic) text of Taoism was ascribed to the person called Old Infant. (I refer here to the traditional view of Lao-tar as the author of the Tao Te ching.) It is also interesting that the Taoists prefer to interpret the name of Lao-tzu as Old Infant or Old Baby but not as Old Sage. It seems to me that understanding the role and meaning of the prenatal symbolism in Taoism would serve as a general key to the right insight into the whole system of Taoist thought.