T’ai-hsi Chin., lit. “embryonic breathing”; a Taoist meditation practice for prolonging life. T’ai-hsi consists in learning to breathe like an embryo in the mother’s body. Essentially it is a combination of holding the breath (pi-ch’i) and then allowing it to circulate (hsing-ch’i), thereby creating an immortality body, which is nourished by the breath (shen-t’ai). When the adept dies, this embryo separates from the corpse (shih-chieh) and the practitioner becomes an immortal (hsien).
At first the adept must learn to hold his breath. By daily practice he will manage to do so for ever longer periods three, five, seven, nine (etc.) heartbeats until he can do so for approximately one thousand heart beats. At this point, the practitioner can cure himself of any illnesses by means of the breath and is said to be approaching immortality. As the breath is held, it is directed through the body of the practitioner. This is done by a technique known as inner vision (nei-kuan ). Normally, the air we inhale only reaches as far as the heart, entrails, liver, and kidneys; the Taoist practitioner, however, endeavors to direct it to the lower cinnabar field (tan-t’ien) situated in the region of the navel, and from there right down to the soles of his feet. The breath should then be made to rise along the spine to the brain, i.e., the upper cinnabar field, from there to the chest (middle cinnabar field), and from there, via the lungs, back to the throat. When it reaches the throat the breath is gradually swallowed. In this way the practitioner nourishes himself by the breath.
While the practitioner directs the breath through his body he endeavors to produce as much saliva (yü-hiang) as possible, by pressing his tongue against the palate. This accumulated saliva is swallowed, to gether with the breath. Breath and saliva are considered to be the best nourishment for those who strive for immortality: it is said that their body becomes light and transparent, so that they are able to ride on the clouds.
To realize the importance of embryonic breathing as a Taoist practice, it is necessary to remember that in the Taoist view man consists of breath, i.e., energy (ch’i). The body of a human being is formed by coarse Earth energies, while the life energy of a person circulates between Heaven and Earth. To attain im mortality it is necessary to transform the coarse energies into pure energy. For that reason, practitioners of t’ai-hsi must also refrain from eating grain (pi-ku) because it is believed to consist of coarse energy.
Over the centuries, the Taoist understanding of embryonic breathing has radically changed. At first it was believed that the “breath” that is allowed to circulate through the body was the actual air the practitioner inhales. Since the time of the T’ang Dynasty, however, relevant texts state that what circulates through the body is the inner breath (nei-ch’i), which is synonymous with the primordial breath (yüan-ch’i) and corresponds to the energies that give rise to Heaven and Earth. This primordial breath the adept must preserve within his body. Normally it escapes through the mouth. The practitioner of t’ai-hsi therefore tries to store it in the lower cinnabar field and prevent it from mingling with the ordinary outer breath, i.e., the air he inhales. Both these breaths move synchronously within the body: as the outer breath rises during exhalation, the inner breath ascends from the lower cinnabar field; and as the outer breath sinks during inhalation, the inner breath descends to the lower cinnabar field.
The practice of allowing the inner breath to circulate begins by swallowing it (yen-ch’i), thereby preventing it from leaving the body together with the outer breath. After that the inner breath is collected and channeled toward the lower cinnabar field (also called ch’i-hai, “ocean of the breath”) via the alimentary tract, and from there through the whole of the body. The practitioner may also allow the inner breath to circulate freely without directing it in any way. This method is known as “melting the breath” (lien-ch’i).
Source: The Encyclopedia of Eastern Philosophy and Religion: Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, Zen. Shambhala Publications, Inc.
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