Sun Bu'er

Sun Bu'er ( Chinese  孫不二  /  孙不二 , Pinyin Sun Bu'er , W.-G. Sun Pu-erh , and Sun Buer ) was a famous Quanzhen - Daoistin and belonged to the so-called Seven masters of this school. She lived about 1119–1182 in the Chinese province of Shandong . She was a beautiful, intelligent, and rich woman; she had three children with her husband. Her family name was Sun and her first name was Fuchun, Bu'er was her religious name. Her husband Ma Yu ( 馬 鈺  /  马 钰 ) was a student of Wang Zhe (Wang Chongyang). She began studying the Dao in earnest at the age of 51 and became a disciple of Wang Chongyang and a Daoist priestess herself. Finally, she left home and traveled to Luoyang City , where after twelve years of asceticism in the Fengxiangu Cave, she was enlightened by the Dao and, it is said, achieved immortality . Sun taught several students, established the community of purity and tranquility, and wrote Daoist poetry.

The legend tells: Wang Chongyang told Sun Bu'er that if one of his students travels the 1,000 miles to Luoyang, he will meet an immortal there who will teach him the ultimate secrets of the universe. Sun Bu'er decided to leave. Wang feared that her beauty would attract the attention of violent men and that she would kill herself out of shame. So he forbade her to travel. Sun Bu'er went home and burned her face with hot oil. As a result, Wang began to give her intensive training in the art of alchemy in order to prepare her for the journey.

Because the family would not let her go, Sun pretended to be insane, wore strange clothes, and let her hair go wild. Finally, they were let go and, as the legend goes on, an immortal waited for them and taught them in Luoyang. It is further reported that she achieved immortality herself and that she ascended to heaven with her physical body on the bright day. However, she did not forget about her husband and returned to earth for a while to teach him. He also attained perfection under the name Ma Danyang ( 馬丹陽  /  马丹阳 ).

Works

• The secret book of the inner elixir ( 孫 不二 元君 傳 述 丹 道 秘書  /  孙 不二 元君 传 述 丹 道 秘书 , Sūn Bú'èr yuánjun chuanshu dandào mishu )
• Selected speeches ( 孫 不二 元君 法語  /  孙 不二 元君 法语 , Sūn Bú'èr yuánjūn fǎyǔ ).

literature

• Thomas Cleary (Ed.): Immortal Sisters. Secrets of Taoist Women . Shambhala Publications, Boston MA et al. 1989, ISBN 0-87773-481-X .
• Livia Kohn (Ed.): Daoism Handbook . Brill, Leiden 2000, ISBN 90-04-11208-1 , ( Handbuch der Orientalistik . 4, 14).
• Brock Silvers: The Taoist Manual. An Illustrated Guide. Applying Taoism to Daily Life . Sacred Mountain Press, Honolulu HI 2005, ISBN 0-9677948-1-1 .
• Eva Wong (translator): Seven Taoist Masters. A Folk Novel of China . Shambala Publications, Boston MA et al. 1990, ISBN 0-87773-544-1 .