Three Treasures (三寶)

Three Treasures(三寶)

Alternative Names (異名):
三寶, Sarm Boe(Cantonese), san-pao(Mandarin), Three Treasures

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The Three Treasures (Chinese: 三寶; Cantonese: Sarm Boe; Mandarin: san-pao), are basic concepts in Taoism.

According to orthodox Taoism, The Three Treasures are:

1. Tao (道);
2. Scriptures (Teachings of Tao) (經);
3. Teachers (of Tao) (師)

The three internal treasures are:

1. Tzing/Jing (精): essence; sexual energy;
2. Hey/Qi(氣): vital energy;
3. Sun/Shen(神): divinity; divine nature; true self; divine energy, spiritual energy

According to Taoism and Chinese Medicine (中醫), Sex cells (sperm/eggs) are produced from vital energies, and vital energies are produced from divinities.


A mundane person's vital energy and divinity (spiritual power) are weak because he often wastes his sexual energies;


A Tao-cultivator accumulates his Three Treasures, so that his sexual energy will be transmuted back into vital energy, and his vital energy will be transmuted back into divine energy, then his divinity (True Self) will become stronger, and he will achieve Tao.


In China, there is a wide-known short poem:

煉精化氣, 煉氣化神, 煉神還虛, 煉虛合道

which means:

Refine the sexual energy to transmute it back into vital energy;
Refine the vital energy to transmute it back into divine energy;
Refine the divine energy to transmute it back into the Emptiness;
And refine the Emptiness to dissolve in Tao.

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References

"The Great Dictionary of Taoism"(道教大辭典), by Chinese Taoism Association, published in 1994, ISBN 7-5080-0112-5/B.054

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_mythology
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Chinese_mythology
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portal:Mythology

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