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The Three Treasures or Three Jewels () are theoretical cornerstones in traditional Chinese medicine and practices such as Neidan, Qigong, and T'ai chi. They are also known as Jing Qi Shen (; "essence, qi, and spirit"). Despeux summarizes. ''Jing'', ''qi'', and ''shen'' are three of the main notions shared by Taoism and Chinese culture alike. They are often referred to as the Three Treasures (''sanbao'' 三寶), an expression that immediately reveals their importance and the close connection among them. The ideas and practices associated with each term, and with the three terms as a whole, are complex and vary considerably in different contexts and historical periods. (2008:562) This Chinese name ''sanbao'' originally referred to the Taoist "Three Treasures" (from ''Tao Te Ching'' 67, tr. Waley 1958:225, "pity", "frugality", and "refusal to be 'foremost of all things under heaven'") and subsequently translated the Buddhist Three Jewels (Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha). In long-established Chinese traditions, the "Three Treasures" are the essential energies sustaining human life: *''Jing'' 精 "nutritive essence, essence; refined, perfected; extract; spirit, demon; sperm, seed" *''Qi'' 氣 "vitality, energy, force; air, vapor; breath; spirit, vigor; attitude" *''Shen'' 神 "spirit; soul, mind; god, deity; supernatural being" This ''jing-qi-shen'' ordering is more commonly used than the variants ''qi-jing-shen'' and ''shen-qi-jing''. In ''Neidan'' "internal alchemy" practice (Despeux 2008:563), transmuting the Three Treasures is expressed through the phrases ''lianjing huaqi'' 鍊精化氣 "refining essence into breath", ''lianqi huashen'' 鍊氣化神 "refining breath into spirit", and ''lianshen huanxu'' 鍊神還虛 "refining spirit and reverting to Emptiness". Both ''Neidan'' and Neo-Confucianism (Despeux 2008:564-5) distinguish the three between ''xiantian'' 先天 "prior to heaven" and ''houtian'' 後天 "posterior to heaven", referring to ''Yuanjing'' 元精 "Original Essence", ''Yuanqi'' 元氣 "Original Breath", and ''yuanshen'' 元神 "Original Spirit". The (2nd century BCE) ''Huainanzi'' refers to ''qi'' and ''shen'' with ''xing'' 形 "form; shape; body". The bodily form () is the residence of life; the ''qi'' fills this life while ''shen'' controls it. If either of them loses their proper position, they will all come to harm. (1, tr. Englehart 2000:99) The Taoist text ''Gaoshang yuhuang xinyin jing'' (高上玉皇心印經, "Mind-Seal Scripture of the Exalted Jade Sovereign", or ''Xinyin jing'' "Mind-Seal Scripture") is a valuable early source about the Three Treasures (tr. Olson 1993). Probably dating from the Southern Song dynasty (1127-1279), this anonymous text presents a simple and concise discussion of internal alchemy (''neidan'' 內丹). In particular, it emphasizes the so-called Three Treasures (''sanbao'' 三寶), namely, vital essence (''jing'' 精), subtle breath (''qi'' 氣), and spirit (''shen'' 神). (Komjathy 2004:29) Frederic H. Balfour's (1880:380-381) brief essay about the ''Xinyin jing'' ("The Imprint of the Heart") contains the earliest known Western reference to the Three Treasures: "There are three degrees of Supreme Elixir – the Spirit, the Breath, and the Essential Vigour". The (late 16th century) ''Journey to the West'' novel provides a more recent example when an enlightened Taoist patriarch instructs Sun Wukong "Monkey" with a poem that begins:
==References== *Balfour, Frederic H. 1880. ("Three Brief Essays" ), ''The China Review'' 9: 380-382. *Despeux, Catherine. 2008. "''Jing'', ''qi'', ''shen''; 精 氣 神; essence, pneuma (breath, energy, vital force), spirit", in ''The Encyclopedia of Taoism'', ed. Fabrizio Pregadio, pp. 562–5. Routledge. *Engelhardt, Ute. 2000. "Longevity Techniques and Chinese Medicine," in ''Daoism Handbook'', ed. Livia Kohn, pp. 74–108. Brill. *Komjathy, Louis. 2004. (Daoist Texts in Translation ). *Olson, Stuart Alve. 1993. ''The Jade Emperor’s Mind Seal Classic: A Taoist Guide to Health, Longevity, and Immortality''. St. Paul: Dragon Door Publications. *Waley, Arthur. 1958. ''The Way and Its Power: A Study of the Tao Te Ching and Its Place in Chinese Thought''. Grove Press. ISBN 0802150853 *Wang, Mu. (''Foundations of Internal Alchemy: The Taoist Practice of Neidan'' ). Golden Elixir Press, 2011. ISBN 9780984308255. *Yu, Anthony, tr. 1977. ''The Journey to the West''. University of Chicago Press. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Three Treasures (traditional Chinese medicine)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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