For many years, I’ve spoken with students, clients, and even experienced meditators who all shared the same frustration:
“I’ve meditated for so long, but my mind never truly becomes still.”
“I learned ‘inner alchemy’ from different teachers, but none of it actually works.”
“Everyone talks about ‘refining the spirit,’ but no one explains what the spirit even is.”
Most modern meditation, unfortunately, is mindfulness without a method.
People sit, breathe, “observe thoughts,” and hope something transformative will happen.
But The Secret of the Golden Flower is different.
It doesn’t give vague advice.
It gives a precise map of consciousness — one that explains why the mind is chaotic and how to reverse the chaos using Turning the Light Around.
Chapter Two is where this clarity begins.
Today I’ll share with you a practitioner’s explanation of:
- What the Original Spirit actually is
- What the Conscious Spirit actually is
- Why they separate in human life
- How Turning the Light Around reunites them
- How this chapter corrects 99% of meditation mistakes
If Chapter One showed us where to practice (the Heavenly Heart),
Chapter Two tells us who is practicing inside us.
Let’s begin.
1. The Original Spirit vs. the Conscious Spirit
(Chinese & English both included for reference)
In Chapter Two, the text states:
「元神主性，識神屬命。」
“The Original Spirit belongs to Inner Nature; the Conscious Spirit belongs to Inner Life.”
This is the single most important distinction in the entire Golden Flower method.
Original Spirit (元神)
- Innate
- Luminous
- Silent
- Unborn and undying
- The true awareness that does not move with thoughts
- The aspect that can “turn the light around”
- The part of you that can realize the Dao
This is what the text calls your true face before you were born.
Conscious Spirit (識神)
- Learned after birth
- Linked to sensory stimulation
- Moves with emotions
- Reacts to conditions
- The mental chatter and thinking mind
- The “ordinary self” that gets tired, anxious, scattered
- Dependent on the body and the Po (魄)
If the Original Spirit is the sun, the Conscious Spirit is just the reflected light dancing on the waves.
Most people live entirely in the reflected waves.
That is why their practice never stabilizes.
2. How the Split Happens: A Universal Human “Fall”
The text explains that when consciousness enters the body:
「一靈真性，既落乾宮，便分魂魄。」
“When the One Spirit descends into the body, it immediately divides into Hun and Po.”
This division produces two operating modes of mind:
Hun (魂) — the subtle, luminous, upward-moving aspect
- Follows Spirit
- Prefers clarity
- Belongs to light
Po (魄) — the dense, downward-moving, sensory aspect
- Follows form
- Prefers sensation
- Belongs to the physical body
And because the Po responds to stimuli, the Conscious Spirit becomes entangled with it.
That is why modern people feel:
- Overwhelmed
- Restless
- Scattered
- Emotionally reactive
- Unable to still the mind
Their Conscious Spirit is ruled by the Po, not the Original Spirit.
The text describes this perfectly:
「識神如強藩悍將，欺天君暗弱。」
“The Conscious Spirit behaves like a rebellious general who overpowers the Heavenly Lord.”
In other words:
Your mind is running your life instead of your true Spirit.
Turning the Light Around reverses this.
3. What Chapter Two Teaches Practically
Here is the message that many readers miss:
Meditation is not about calming the Conscious Spirit.
That never works.
Meditation is about returning leadership to the Original Spirit.
This always works.
The text describes the process with a vivid analogy:
When the Original Spirit sits upright in the Heavenly Heart,
The Conscious Spirit ceases its rebellion.
This is why The Secret of the Golden Flower begins not with breath, not with visualization, but with:
Returning the Light to the Heavenly Heart.
When attention turns inward and upward:
- Hun rises naturally
- Po settles naturally
- The Conscious Spirit stops scattering
- The Original Spirit begins to shine
Nothing forceful.
Nothing complicated.
Nothing mystical.
Just correct direction.
4. What This Means for You (Modern Practitioner)
When someone tells me,
“I’ve meditated for five years, but my mind never becomes silent,”
I already know their issue:
They are using the Conscious Spirit to fight the Conscious Spirit.
That is like using fire to fight fire.
The Golden Flower gives a different strategy:
You don’t fight the thoughts.
You ignore their battlefield.
You place awareness in the Heavenly Heart.
The Original Spirit takes over,
and the Conscious Spirit naturally quiets down.
This is why Wilhelm wrote:
“When one turns the light around, all energies return to the root.”
And why the original text says:
「凝守元宮，如英明之主在上。」
“Hold firmly to the Original Palace, and the wise ruler returns to power.”
5. My Personal Commentary (as a Daoist and Feng Shui Practitioner)
In Feng Shui we evaluate whether a house is ruled by Hun (clarity, upward qi) or Po (yin accumulation, stagnation).
The exact same principle governs the human body.
When a person’s inner life is ruled by the Po:
- Life feels heavy
- Energy sinks
- Emotions dominate
- Thought loops never end
- Decisions arise from fear
- Practice stagnates
When ruled by the Original Spirit:
- Awareness is clear
- Emotions settle
- Breath becomes subtle
- Intuition sharpens
- Practice progresses
- Life aligns naturally
This is why Chapter Two is crucial:
it tells us who is practising.
If you use the wrong “you,” nothing works.
If you use the correct “you,” everything works.
6. What Comes Next (Chapter Three Preview)
In Chapter Three, the text finally teaches:
- How to “Turn the Light Around” step-by-step
- Why the light must enter the Heavenly Heart
- How Spirit-Fire is produced
- How the “Millet Pearl” (initial elixir) forms
- How true inner stillness is accomplished
It is the most practical chapter in the entire book.
I will share that breakdown in the next post.
If you find these commentaries useful, let me know — I may eventually organize my personal study notes and practitioner diagrams into a clean, structured English eBook for those who want a direct-entry method without the confusion found online.
Feng Shui Master
Quan Zhen Lineage Daoism Magic Master
40th Gen Holder of the Esteemed Yang Gong Lineage
Xuan Kong Liu Fa · Xuan Kong Da Gua · Classical Form School
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