by Ying-shih Yü
) was once presented to the Prince of Jing
(i.e., Chu )41 and a cer-
tain guest taught the Prince of Yan
how to cultivate the “way of no death”
( busi zhi dao
).42 Sima Qian has assured us that since the time of King
Wei (358–320 b.c.e.) and King Xuan (319–301 b.c.e.) of Qi and King Zhao
of Yan (311–279 b.c.e.),43 people had been sent to sea in quest of xian, or immor-
tals and “drugs of no death,” which all the princes desired.44 This kind of search
26 l ife a nd im m or ta l i t y in t h e mind of h a n c h ina
for “drugs of no death” by later princes culminated in the eff orts of Qin Shi
Huang (the First Emperor of the Qin) and Han Wudi (the Martial Emperor of
Han, 140–87 b.c.e.), which will be discussed below.
The idea of “no death” became so popu lar at the time that it was used lav-
ishly to name many things, such as “no death people,” 45 “no death country,” 46
“no death mountain,” 47 “no death tree,” 48 and “no death water.” 49
It is in ter est ing to note, however, that prior to the time of Qin Shi Huang,
the idea of “no death” was only indirectly related to xian; the kind of immortal-
ity sought by the princes was still within the tradition of the worldly desire for
longevity. There is no evidence, not even the above- mentioned rather ambigu-
ous passage in Sima Qian’s Shiji (Rec ords of the Grand Historian), that any
prince before Qin Shi Huang ever sought to become immortal in the sense of
xian. The princes prob ably wanted only the “drugs of no death,” to which the
xian of the Three Divine Mountains ( san shenshan
) in the sea alone had
access. It is unlikely that the pre- Qin princes aspired to become xian them-
selves, as did Qin Shi Huang and Han Wu-di in later days.
We do not know exactly when the otherworldly xian immortality fi rst ap-
peared, although the consensus of opinion among modern scholars dates its
rise late in the fourth century b.c.e.50 The otherworldliness of the xian can best
be seen in the descriptions of them in pre- Qin and early Han lit er a ture. The
earliest such description is in the Zhuangzi. In the fi rst chapter, we read: “Far
away on the mountain of Gu Ye
there lived a spiritual man
. His fl esh
and skin were like ice and snow. His manner was elegant and graceful as that
of a maiden. He did not eat any of the fi ve grains, but inhaled the wind and
drank the dew. He rode on clouds, drove along the fl ying dragons, and thus
rambled beyond the four seas.”51 “Yuanyou”
(Distant Excursions), tradi-
tionally attributed to Qu Yuan but considered by modern scholars to be a prod-
uct of early Han times,52 is one of the fi nest descriptions of the xian.53 It also
characterizes the immortals in purely otherworldly terms. Throughout the
whole poem runs the central theme of an immortal’s fl ight through space.54 It
is prob ably in this poem that we fi rst see the term dushi (transcending this
world) used in connection with the xian.
The transformation of Chi Songzi
and Wang Qiao
from men of
longevity to xian is a concrete illustration of the otherworldliness of the xian. In
pre- Qin times, these two were regarded only as men of longevity. For instance,
the Zhanguoce (Intrigues of the Warring States) once mentions the “longevity
of [Wang] Qiao and [Chi] Song [zi],” but does not regard them as xian.55 In the
“Distant Excursions,” however, both Chi Song and Wang Qiao are represented
as transmundane xian wandering in the sky in a leisurely manner. As early as
the second century b.c.e., Zhang Liang
, one of the greatest ministers of
the Former Han dynasty (202 b.c.e.–8 c.e.), expressed a wish to retire by say-
ing that he wanted to leave worldly aff airs behind and wander with Chi Songzi.56
This again makes clear that, as a xian, Chi Songzi was in no way tied to the
l ife a nd im m or ta l i t y in t h e mind of h a n c h ina 27
human world. In the Huainanzi, both Wang Qiao and Chi Songzi are depicted as
having kept away from the dust of the world as well as having avoided the com-
plications of worldly trou bles.57 Wang Bao
, in his “Shengzhu de xianchen
song”
(Eulogy on Obtainment of Worthy Ministers by the Sacred
Emperor), written during the reign of Emperor Xuandi (73–49 b.c.e.), criticizes
those who follow in the footsteps of such xian as Wang and Chi for having cut
off worldly ties ( jueshi lisu
).58 Thus, the case of these two men shows
clearly that the xian, by defi nition, assumed an otherworldly and seclusive
character.
The nature of the xian, or immortality cult, at the beginning of the Former
Han is illustrated by a highly illuminating passage from Lu Jia’s
Xinyu
(New Sayings):
[If a man] treats his body bitterly and harshly and goes deep into the
mountains in search of xian immortality, [if he] leaves behind his parents,
casts aside his kindred, abstains from the fi ve grains, gives up classical
learning, thus running counter to what is cherished by Heaven and Earth
in quest of the way of “no death,” then he is in no way to communicate
with this world or to prevent what is not right from happening ( fei suoyi
tongshi fangfei ye
).59
Lu Jia seems to be of the opinion that only the worldly, Confucian Dao is the
true Dao, whereas the otherworldly Dao followed by the xian immortals is not
the right path for man. In this passage, two in ter est ing points may be observed.
First, during early Former Han times, the cult of immortality as here described
was still thoroughly otherworldly in character. Only by cutting off all worldly
bonds could one expect to become a xian. This early cult of immortality, as we
shall see, diff ered greatly from the same cult in the Later Han Period. Second,
otherworldly xian immortality is identifi ed with the “way of no death,” which,
as our preceding analy sis has shown, is an outgrowth of the ancient worldly
desire for longevity. Here we already see the confl uence of the streams of
worldly and otherworldly immortality, a historical trend that became readily
discernible, if it did not originate, in Qin Shi Huang’s quest for immortality, to
which we now turn.
W O R L D LY T R A N S F O R M AT I O N O F T H E
I M M O R TA L I T Y C U LT
As has been pointed out, in pre- Qin times, it was already a general practice
among the princes of vari ous states to seek immortality drugs for the prolonga-
tion of life. With the unifi cation of China under Qin Shi Huang in 221 b.c.e.,
the imperial quest for immortality drugs was intensifi ed and undertaken on a
28 l ife a nd im m or ta l i t y in t h e mind of h a n c h ina
much larger scale, prob ably the result, at least in part, of the fact that now the
fangshi
(necromancers) had only a single emperor to work for rather than a
number of princes. In 219 b.c.e., only two years after unifi cation, the fangshi
from the coastal region of Qi fl ocked to the court, off ering the emperor their
ser vices in seeking “drugs of no death” out in the sea.60 According to Sima
Qian, after Qin Shi Huang achieved unifi cation, numerous immortals talked
to him about the xian and “drugs of no death.” 61 A fi rst- century- b.c.e. source
relates that as soon as Qin Shi Huang sent men to sea in search of xian and
drugs, the people of Yan and Qi contended with one another in talking about
xian immortality. Thousands of fangshi rushed to the capital, Xianyang, saying
that by taking elixirs of gold and pearls, xian could live as long as Heaven and
Earth.62
With the popularization of the immortality cult came its vulgarization as well.
Thus, the otherworldly and seclusive xian immortality gradually underwent an
Earthly transformation. With Qin Shi Huang, we encounter for the fi rst time the
confl ict of worldly with otherworldly immortality. Since “no death” was now
identifi able with xian immortality, to achieve the former was to become a xian.
This fact explains why Qin Shi Huang preferred to call himself “True Man”
( zhenren
), another name for xian, rather than the more dignifi ed and
honorable zhen
, the royal “we.” 63
In spite of the emperor’s eff orts to make himself a xian, however, the gap
between worldly and otherworldly immortality could not be so easily bridged.
What the emperor was really after was longevity or immortality. Obviously, it
was the xian’s reputation for knowing the best way to gain these ends that at-
tracted the emperor to the cult. No Earthly person such as he could have been
interested in the otherworldly life of the xian as described in such literary pas-
sages as those mentioned above. From the scanty sources at our disposal, it is
evident that his quest for immortality must be understood in terms of the tradi-
tional worldly desire for longevity or “no death.”
His real position is best refl ected in his attitude toward death. Near the end
of his life, he disliked death so much that no one dared mention it in his pres-
ence.64 This fact reveals the worldly considerations that motivated his interest
in the cult, however incompatible with the idea of the xian this motive may
have been. One of the fangshi blamed the failure to obtain immortality drugs
on the fact that the emperor was ruling the empire and therefore not practicing
that quietism which was a necessary condition for attaining immortality. The
fangshi then suggested that the emperor live a solitary and secluded life, always
keeping his whereabouts secret— advice that he followed. The emperor’s greed
for power, which made him unworthy of immortality drugs, is one of the rea-
sons given for the departure of many fangshi from the court.65 It may well be
that they used the emperor’s worldly life as a con ve nient excuse for their failure
to procure the promised drugs; nevertheless, we can discern here a diff erence
l ife a nd im m or ta l i t y in t h e mind of h a n c h ina 29
between the ideas of worldly and otherworldly immortality that even the inge-
nious fangshi found diffi
cult to reconcile.
Intensifi cation of the emperor’s quest for immortality furthered the popu-
larization as well as the transformation of xian immortality, both as a cult and
as an idea. The rapid development of the cult during the reign of Han Wudi
was such a striking and well- known phenomenon that it startled his contempo-
raries as much as it amuses us. Sima Qian repeatedly tells us that since Wudi
became involved in the pursuit of immortality and honored some fangshi with
noble titles and generous gifts, fangshi from Yan and Qi contended with one
another in making lavish claims to secret recipes for immortality and commu-
nications with xian.66 In the latter part of the fi rst century b.c.e., Gu Yong
succinctly summarized the eff orts of these two rulers and their fangshi:
When Qin Shi Huang fi rst unifi ed the empire, he indulged in the cult of
xian immortality. Thereupon, he sent people like Xu Fu
and Han
Zhong
to sea, with unmarried boys and girls, in search of xian as
well as drugs. But [ these people] took the opportunity to run away and
never came back. Such eff orts aroused the resentment and hatred of all
under Heaven. With the rise of Han, Xinyuan Ping
of Zhao (in
the reign of Wendi, 179–157 b.c.e.), Shaoweng
, Gongsun Qing
,
Luan Da
, and others of Qi,67 all received honors and favors from Em-
peror Wudi on account of their [claimed magical powers, such as] ac-
quaintanceship with xian, alchemy, sacrifi cial off erings, serving and
controlling spirits, and going to sea to search for xian and drugs. Gifts
bestowed on them amounted to thousands of mea sures of gold. [Luan] Da
was particularly honored, and even married a princess. Titles and posi-
tions were heaped on him to such an extent that all within the seas were
shocked. Therefore, during the yuanding and yuanfeng periods [116–103
b.c.e.], there were thousands of fangshi in the areas of Yan and Qi who
protruded their eyes and clasped their hands, saying that they knew such
arts as those of achieving xian immortality, of sacrifi cial off erings, and of
obtaining blessings.68
Furthermore, in the year 31 b.c.e., according to a joint memorial of Kuang Heng
and Zhang Tan
to Emperor Chengdi, 683 sacrifi cial halls were
erected throughout the empire for the purpose of meeting gods or xian and
were placed in the care of fangshi. 69 This fact, together with Gu Yong’s state-
ment, indicates beyond a doubt how popu lar the cult of xian immortality had
become since the time of Qin Shi Huang, and especially Han Wudi.
The unpre ce dented intensity with which the cult was practiced under the
latter’s reign is discernible in at least two impor tant ways. First, according to
tradition, there were two mythical residences for xian immortals: one in the
30 l ife a nd im m or ta l i t y in t h e mind of h a n c h ina
extreme east in the sea and the other in the extreme west on the summit of
Mount Kunlun, the supposed residence of the well- known Xi Wangmu
(Western Queen Mother).70 Prior to Han Wudi, however, royal seekers of im-
mortality, such as the princes of Qi and Yan and the First Emperor, sent envoys
beyond the sea to the east in hopes of communicating with immortals. Prob-
ably because of the limited geo graph i cal knowledge of the time, none of them
seems to have made any attempt to reach immortals on Mount Kunlun in the
west. Even Han Wudi’s quest was, in his early years, still directed mainly
toward the sea. The opening of the western region by Zhang Qian in the second
half of the second century b.c.e., however, diverted the attention of the emperor
and the Daoist immortals more and more to the west.71 The failure to obtain im-
mortality drugs from the sea helped kindle the emperor’s imagination in other
directions and intensifi ed his expectation of procuring them from the Western
Queen Mother. According to Wen Ying
, a commentator on the Hanshu
(History of the Former Han Dynasty), he actually
expressed his desire to ascend
Mount Kunlun and become a xian.72 Thus, during Han times, following on the
increase in geo graph i cal knowledge, the imperial quest for xian immortality
ranged geo graph i cally wider than ever before.
Second, although previous royal seekers of xian immortality had all been so
concerned with means of prolonging their lives, they were rational enough not
to let these personal longings interfere with the public undertakings of their
states to any serious degree. With Han Wudi, however, the case was somewhat
diff er ent. In his quest for xian immortality, he went a step further by some-
times allowing this personal concern to aff ect the foreign relations of the em-
pire. That the emperor’s opening up of the western region was motivated not
only by military and diplomatic considerations but also by his personal craving
for foreign rare products, such as the well- known “Heavenly Horses” of Fer-
ghana (Dawan or Dayuan
), is a fact that has been observed by almost
every historian dealing with the period.73 It has further been suggested that the
widespread belief in the Western Queen Mother of Mount Kunlun may also
have somewhat accentuated the emperor’s interest in westward expansion. And
in his offi
cial trip to Central Asia, Zhang Qian was prob ably also entrusted with
the additional imperial mission of learning the exact whereabouts of the West-
ern Queen Mother.74 Even behind the emperor’s curiosity about rare foreign
products, one may again fi nd at work the eager quest for xian immortality. The
“Heavenly Horses” of Ferghana are a case in point. As one highly suggestive
study has ably shown, Han Wudi’s conquest of Ferghana was, to a great extent,
precipitated by his preoccupation with xian immortality. It seems that Han
Wudi’s rather excessive fondness for the “Heavenly Horses” cannot be ex-
plained to our full satisfaction by the practical consideration of getting horses
of good stock for war purposes. Still less can it be simply taken as a peculiar
obsession with horses as such. Rather, a deeper reason is to be found in the
emperor’s staunch belief in the “Heavenly Horses” as a medium of communi-
l ife a nd im m or ta l i t y in t h e mind of h a n c h ina 31
cation between the world of man and that of the xian immortals. Somewhat
