Biography of Wu Zhiyuan ((伍 止淵)
Wu Zhiyuan (伍止淵, 1896–1966), also known by his Quanzhen Longmenpai tradition name Chengding (誠鼎) and his Taoist name Lingyuanzi (陵源子), was a Taoist monk, healer, and internal cultivation teacher from Huangyan, Zhejiang Province. After suffering from tuberculosis in his youth, he sought a reliable method of recovery and found healing through Taoist health practices. He later founded schools for studying Taoist qigong and provided treatments to many patients. Respected within Taoist circles for both teaching and temple restoration, he served as abbot in several temples and became an important modern transmitter of Southern Alchemical practices. In the 1960s, he taught qigong and neidan (internal alchemy) in Shanghai, where Fu Qinglong studied with him as part of the Southern Neidan transmission preserved within Taoist-Lifestyle.Com.
Early Life and Ordination
Wu Zhiyuan was a native of Huangyan (Zhejiang). At the age of twenty, he entered Taoist monastic life and was later ordained in 1925. His early years were shaped by poor health and a serious lung illness, which became the turning point that guided him toward Taoist cultivation methods as a path of recovery and long-term transformation.
Healing Work and Taoist Health Practice Schools
Having found relief through Taoist health practices, Wu Zhiyuan wished to share his method with others facing similar suffering. He therefore founded schools dedicated to the study of Taoist qigong and related methods of internal cultivation, while also offering treatments to patients. He became known for curing many people and for combining cultivation practice with concrete results in health and recovery.
Temple Restoration and Abbotship
Beyond teaching and healing, Wu Zhiyuan was also honoured for his efforts to rebuild and maintain Taoist temples. He served as abbot in several locations and supported the continuity of Taoist ritual space and training culture during difficult decades.
From 1937 to 1949, he was abbot of the Southern tradition’s ancestral Tongbaigong (桐柏宮) temple in the Tiantai Mountains, where he played a key role in restoring the temple while continuing to teach and heal.
Beijing Visit and the Taoist Association Context
In 1961, Wu Zhiyuan travelled to Beijing to attend the Taoist Association’s conference during the period when Chen Yingning (陳攖寧) was its leading figure. This visit reflects Wu’s recognised standing within modern Taoist circles and his connection to the wider movement of Taoist renewal and organisation in twentieth-century China.
Teaching in Shanghai and Connection to Fu Qinglong
In the 1960s, Wu Zhiyuan taught qigong and neidan (internal alchemy) in Shanghai. During this period, Fu Qinglong (傅青龍, born 1933) studied with him, becoming familiar with the Quanzhen version of the Southern Taoist Alchemy tradition.
This transmission became one of the important internal roots supporting the Taoist-Lifestyle.Com lineage and its preserved approach to internal cultivation and alchemical training.
Passing and Legacy
Wu Zhiyuan passed away in 1966. He is remembered as a modern Taoist monk whose life combined healing practice, internal cultivation teaching, and active preservation of Taoist temple heritage — and as one of the transmitters through whom key Southern Neidan methods were preserved into the modern era.
Acknowledgment of Gratitude
Taoist-Lifestyle.Com expresses sincere gratitude for the enduring influence of Wu Zhiyuan (伍止淵). Remembered for his dedication to healing, teaching, and temple restoration, he preserved essential elements of Southern Taoist internal alchemy in the modern era. Through his transmission to Fu Qinglong, his legacy continues within Taoist-Lifestyle.Com as a foundation for authentic internal cultivation and alchemical training.
FAQ
What is neidan (Taoist internal alchemy)?
Neidan (內丹) refers to Taoist internal alchemy: a tradition of transformation through refining, practiced through methods affecting body, breath, and mind.