Glossary
term records from the glossary content collection — 50 records.
| id | title | chinese | pinyin | literalMeaning | recommended |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| bao-guang | Baoguang (葆光) | 葆光 | bǎoguāng | ||
| baoyi | Baoyi | 抱一 | bàoyī | embracing/holding the One | embracing the One (parallel to the standard 'guarding the One' for shouyi) |
| da-kuai | Dakuai (大块) | 大块 | dàkuài | ||
| dantian | Dantian (丹田) | 丹田 | dāntián | cinnabar field | dantian (transliterated) — 'cinnabar field' for explanatory contexts |
| dao-shu | Daoshu (道枢) | 道枢 | dàoshū | ||
| dao | Dao | 道 | dào | way, path, road; to speak | keep romanized as Dao/dào; capitalize 'Way' when the technical sense is meant |
| de | De | 德 | dé | virtue, power, inner potency | keep romanized as De/dé where technical; 'virtue/power' gloss on first use |
| guan | Guan | 观 | guān | to observe; to watch; to look deeply into | observation (inner observation where the target is the interior); 'contemplation' only with Buddhist contexts flagged |
| hua | Hua (化) | 化 | huà | ||
| huan-zhong | Huanzhong (环中) | 环中 | huánzhōng | ||
| ji-ren | Jiren (畸人) | 畸人 | jīrén | ||
| ji-xin | Jixin (机心) | 机心 | jīxīn | ||
| jiafuzuo | Jiafuzuo | 结跏趺坐 | jiéjiāfūzuò | bound sitting with folded soles: 结 tie/bind, 跏 cross, 趺 instep/sole, 坐 sit — the ankles and insteps crossed and settled on the thighs | 'full-lotus posture' when the double-crossed form is meant; 'cross-legged sitting' for the general family (and never just 'lotus,' which is a flower loan) |
| jian-du | Jiandu (见独) | 见独 | jiàndú | ||
| jing-qi-shen | Jing-Qi-Shen | 精气神 | jīng-qì-shén | essence–vitality–spirit | the three treasures (jing, qi, shen), glossed once; never 'body-fluids-energy-mind' literally |
| jingzuo | Jingzuo | 静坐 | jìngzuò | still/quiet sitting | quiet sitting; hyphenate 'quiet-sitting' in scholarly contexts |
| liang-wang | Liangwang (两忘) | 两忘 | liǎngwàng | ||
| liang-xing | Liangxing (两行) | 两行 | liǎngxíng | ||
| mo-ruo-yi-ming | Moruo Yiming (莫若以明) | 莫若以明 | mòruò yǐ míng | ||
| neiguan | Neiguan (内观) | 内观 | nèiguān | inner contemplation; inner vision | 'inner contemplation' — 'inner observation' for contexts emphasizing the inspecting function; avoid 'inner visualization' unless the source explicitly describes images |
| qi | Qi | 气 | qì | vapor, breath, vital substrate | keep romanized as qi with a gloss; use 'breath' only in breathing contexts, 'energy' only with qualification |
| qiwu | Qiwu (齐物) | 齐物 | qíwù | ||
| shen | Shen | 神 | shén | spirit; numen; the luminous-animating aspect of the mind | spirit (with 'luminous-animating mind' glossed where the context is meditative) |
| shouyi | Shouyi | 守一 | shǒuyī | guarding-keeping the One | guarding the One (standard in Robinet and Kohn) |
| tian-ji | Tianji (天机) | 天机 | tiānjī | ||
| tian-jun | Tianjun (天钧) | 天钧 | tiānjūn | ||
| tian-lai | Tianlai (天籁) | 天籁 | tiānlài | ||
| tiaoxi | Tiaoxi (调息) | 调息 | tiáoxī | regulating the breath | 'regulating the breath' — keep the tiao-shen/tiao-xi/tiao-xin trio visible in translation |
| tuoyue | Tuoyue | 橐籥 | tuóyuè | bellows: 橐 the leather bag, 籥 the blowpipe tubes — the smith's double-valved air machine | bellows (with 'the smith's air machine' glossed where the emptiness-productivity point matters) |
| wu-he-you-zhi-xiang | Wu He You Zhi Xiang — 无何有之乡 (The Land of Not-Having-Anything) | 无何有之乡 | wú hé yǒu zhī xiāng | ||
| wu-hua | Wuhua (物化) | 物化 | wùhuà | ||
| wu-sang-wo | Wu Sang Wo (吾丧我) | 吾丧我 | wú sàng wǒ | ||
| wu-shi-wu-zhong | Wu Shi Wu Zhong — 无始无终 (No Beginning, No End) | 无始无终 | wú shǐ wú zhōng | ||
| wuwei | Wuwei | 无为 | wúwéi | no-doing | non-action, with the note that it is the negation of forced/contrived action, not of activity |
| xi | Xi | 息 | xī | breath; rest; to rest; the fine continuous breath | 'rest breath' in the four-breath ladder; plain 'breath' elsewhere (真人之息以踵 = 'the true person's breathing reaches the heels') |
| xian-jie | Xianjie (县解) | 县解 | xuánjiě | ||
| xiaoyao | Xiaoyao (逍遥) | 逍遥 | xiāoyáo | ||
| xin | Xin | 心 | xīn | heart; mind; heart-mind | heart-mind on first use in philosophical contexts; then plain 'mind' if the context is cognitive |
| xinzhai | Xinzhai | 心斋 | xīnzhāi | mind/heart-fasting | fasting of the mind (with the note that xin covers both heart and mind) |
| xuan-pin | Xuanpin (玄牝) | 玄牝 | xuánpìn | ||
| xuan | Xuan | 玄 | xuán | dark; deep; distant beyond sight; the color of depth | dark/depth (with 'beyond naming' glossed); avoid 'mysterious' where it suggests the occult |
| xushi-sheng-bai | Xushi sheng bai (虚室生白) | 虚室生白 | xūshì shēng bái | ||
| yingning | Yingning (撄宁) | 撄宁 | yīngníng | ||
| yuan-du-yi-wei-jing | Yuandu Yiwei Jing (缘督以为经) | 缘督以为经 | yuán dū yǐ wéi jīng | ||
| zhao-che | Zhaoche (朝彻) | 朝彻 | zhāochè | ||
| zhaoche | Zhaoche (朝彻) | 朝彻 | zhāochè | ||
| zhen-zai | Zhenzai (真宰) | 真宰 | zhēnzǎi | ||
| zhi-shui | Zhishui (止水) | 止水 | zhǐshuǐ | ||
| zuochi | Zuochi | 坐驰 | zuòchí | sitting (坐) while galloping (驰) | 'sitting while galloping' (glossed: the body sits, the mind races) |
| zuowang | Zuowang | 坐忘 | zuòwàng | sitting-forgetting | sitting in oblivion (Kohn 2010); gloss with pinyin on first use |