Sima Chengzhen

Sima Chengzhen

Sima Chengzhen (d. 735) was a Daoist priest and expert on Confucian classics in the Tang Dynasty. He lived as a hermit in the Tiantai Mountains, and called himself "Tiantai Baiyunzi."

Sima believed that qi (vital force or energy) was the source of the fetus, and the source of the physical body. He also believed that Dao had great energy and could gradually change a person's body and soul; those who could keep their physical bodies in line with Dao and integrated with spirit could be deemed as immortals. He asserted that the unity of physical body and spirit could help human beings transcend life and death. This theory laid a solid foundation for his philosophy of comprehensively cultivating physical and spiritual health.

司马承祯

司马承祯，唐朝道士，深谙儒典，隐居在天台山，自称“天台白云子”。他认为，“夫气者，胎之元也，形之本也”，“道有深力，徐易形神；形随道通，与神合一，谓之神人”，意指只有形神合一，才能超越生死境界。这种聚气成形，形神合一、超越生死境界的生命元气本体论，正是司马承祯建构“性命双修”心性论的哲学理论基础。