Chen Nan
Chen Nan's literary name was Nanmu, and he styled himself Chuixu. He lived during the Southern Song dynasty, and came from Bonou of Huizhou, which is located in Guangzhou province. In his early years, he lived on making barrels. He claimed that Master Xue Zixian ahd imparted to him his Tablet of the Reversion Elixir and Return to Life. Since then, he followed Xue Daoguan to learn the Supreme Oneness Magic Fomulas of the Jade Knife Golden Elixir ( 太乙刀圭金丹法訣 Taiyi Daogui Jindan Fajue ). After that, the Spirit of Mt. Limu gave him the Daoist Book of Great Thunder and Auspicious Clouds ( 景霄大雷琅書 Jingxiao Dalei Langshu ). During that period, he became a Daoist. He used to employ Thunder Skills ( 雷法 Leifa ) to subdue monsters an demons and save people. Menawhile, he also treated patients with Talismanic Water and small soil balls, as a reuslt of which he was known as Soil Ball Chen. During the Northen Song Emperor Hui's Zhenhe era, he was designated as head of Daoist Administration. After that, he came back to Mt. Luofu, living there as a hermit. A few years later, he moved to Changsha, and established the Individual Cultivation sect ( 清修派 Qingxiu Pai ) of the Southern Lineage. In a poem, he said: 'In the eighth month of the Jiadi Renshen year (1212 A.D.), I was living on Mt. Luofu, practicing the formula of Inner Alchemy there, and transmitted it to Bai Yuchan'. Besides Bai, among his successful disciples were Ju Jiusi and Sha Zhexu.
Books
- Chuixu's Tablet ( 翠虛篇 Cuixu Pian ),
- Chuixu's Complete Works of Mysterious Enlightenment ( 翠虛妙悟全集 Cuixu Miaowu Quanji ), and
- Hymns by Chuixu of Luofu ( 羅浮翠虛吟 Luofu Cuixu Yin ).