Inner Alchemy (Neidan): Building the Foundation (Zhù Jī 築基)

Zhù Jī (築基) is the preliminary stage of Neidan (internal alchemy) in which the practitioner stabilizes the body-mind through regulation of diet, sleep, breath, and sexual energy. The body is treated as the alchemical laboratory — the furnace (lú 爐) and the cauldron (dǐng 鼎) must be prepared before any transmutation of the Three Treasures (sān bǎo: jing, qi, shen) can begin. Daoist texts such as the Cantong Qi and later Quanzhen manuals insist that without this foundation, attempts at higher refinement scatter the practitioner's qi rather than consolidate it.

Cross-Tradition Resonances