After the seeking of natural elixirs in vain, the West Han dynasty swerved to the man-made elixirs, so we have had heard the stories of Liu’an, who after had succeeded in making himself a immortal, before he was about to go up into the heaven, he was so loath to part with his fowls and dogs, he spread the elixirs to the ground, after his dogs and fowls had taken them, they went up into the heaven, too. This story had been developed into an idiom which is worth-noticing for friends who’d like to learn Chinese in China.
Therefore, language learners who’d like to study Chinese in China may discover that the second century was a crucial period for the formation of the Taoism. During the 30s, the first doctrine of the Taoism the Tai ping Classics was created, and the first exclusive book on the alchemy came into being during the 60s, and this was also a period of the Taoists transition from the necromancers, there were more than ten pieces of work been collected into the Taoist sutra.
The subjective intentions of the Taoists’ alchemy was to produce the elixirs to ensure their becoming immortals and ascending heaven during the daytime to become supernatural beings, however, it is obvious for the friends who’d like to study Mandarin in China to discover that, the exact work the alchemists were doing was the chemical experiments, the alchemy chambers were actually their laboratories.
And it is also obvious for friends, who’d like to learn Chinese in China to understand that the manufacturing of the elixirs are impossible, and once the so called elixirs made of chemical compounds, such as the lead, mercury and sulfur, were taken by a man, there he is going to die of intoxications.
However, it may seem unbelievable for friends who’d like to study Chinese in China that there are still some emperors of the Tang Dynasty who blindly worshiped the alchemy, such as Lichun, Liheng, Lizhan and Liyan, whose doomed failure were all a sudden death of poisoning.
Here is another example about the great literate of the Song dynasty Sushi, who may also be well-known for people who’d like to study Mandarin in China, Sushi used to study from the Taoist Zhang Yijian at the E’ Mei mountain, Si Chuan province, one of his classmates who was also his good friend was earnestly believing the preaching of Taoism as well as the alchemy, and died after swallowing the elixirs.
Well, to the amazement of people who’d like to learn Chinese in China, the attitudes held by Sushi toward the Taoism was quite the opposite, he rejected the so called elixirs while started to practice the regimen art of controlling and swallowing breath from the mouth, and build up his strong constitution and had enjoyed longevity.
We can see that the Chinese Taoists clinkering of the elixirs was a failure; however, the results of their long-term practices of mixing different substances and burning them at different temperature s would be the chemical combination of new substances, or the isolation of one element from the substance. Students who’d like to study Chinese in China could imagine the consequences of the alchemists’ dangerous work.
It was indeed very dangerous, for the alchemists had even put the sulfur, realgar, nitrates and honey together for calcinations, as a result, the honey was turned into coal, which went to a blast after meeting the sulfur and nitrates, and people who’d like to study Mandarin in China may came to realize that the invention of gunpowder was probably originated from this.
It may seem unbelievable for friends who’d like to learn Chinese in China that the powder could have had been invented by Chinese alchemists, however, the alchemists just drew lessons from it, while the strategists started to take advantage of that for the invention of firelocks and cannons, or even for the explosion of the roadblocks in the construction works. The prescription of the alchemists’ gunpowder was taken down in Chengshu’s book in the eighth century.
The size of the experiments may be huge, for they were usually backed up by the sufficient material and financial supports from the emperors, sometimes, a huge mountain can be sent to the alchemist for support, as can be see by friends who’d like to study Chinese in China that training of the active substances needed much resources, the abundant verdant trees could provide enough fuels for burning.
While as to the theoretical basis for alchemy, the Taoists were more like a cook who just have had to keep on trying to make desirable dishes, however, it should be understand by students who’d like to study Mandarin in China that the alchemists large-scale and persistent chemical practices was unique in the ancient history of chemistry around the world, which have had also opened ways for the development of modern chemistry in the western countries.