神仙之要莫大乎存想存谓存我之神想谓想我之身闭目见自己之目收心见自己之心心目不
离我身不伤我神则存想之渐也
养性之道欲小劳但莫大疲及强所不能堪尔食欲少而不欲顿常如饱中饥饥中饱善养性者先
饥乃
食先渴乃饮食后当行毕摩腹数百遍暮卧常习闭口口开则失气邪从外入屈膝仄卧益人气力胜正
偃卧春欲晏卧早起夏秋欲夜寝早起冬欲早卧晏起虽云早起莫在鸡鸣前虽云晏起莫在日出后莫
久行久立久坐久卧久听久视莫强食莫强酒饮则不欲多多则速吐之养性之士唾不至远行不疾步
耳不极听目不极视坐不久处立不至疲卧不至厌先寒而衣先热而解
彭祖曰和气导气之道密室闭户安床暖席枕高二寸半正身偃卧暝目闭气以鸿毛
着鼻上不动经三百息耳无所闻目无所见心无所思如此则寒暑不能侵蜂虿不能毒寿三百六十岁
邻于真人也
仙经曰常存心中有气大如鸡子内赤外黄能辟众邪延年益寿又云常存心如炎火如斗煌煌光
明百邪不敢于之
道人蒯京年百七十八而甚丁壮言朝朝服玉泉琢齿玉泉者口中唾也朝旦未起早漱津令满口
含之琢齿二七过名曰练精(修真秘诀)
杨州有武官侍其某者官于二广十余年终不染瘴面红腻腰足轻快初不服药唯每日五更起坐
两足
相向热摩涌泉无数以汗出为度欧公平日不信仙佛笑人行气晚年云数年来足疮一点痛不可忍近
有人传一法用之三日不觉失去其法重足坐闭目握固缩谷道摇 两足如气球状气极即休气平复
为之日七八得暇即为乃般运捷法也文忠痛已即废若不废当有益(仇池笔记)
神仙修养的要诀，没有比“存想”更重要的了。“存”，是指安守我的精神；“想”，是指观想我的身体。闭目可以看见自己的眼睛，收心可以看见自己的心脏。心神与身体不离散，不损伤精神，这就是“存想”的初步功夫。
养生之道，在于保持轻微的劳作，但不要过度疲劳，也不要勉强去做自己无法承受的事情。饮食方面，要少量多次，不要暴饮暴食，常常保持一种“似饱非饱、似饥非饥”的状态。善于养生的人，要在感到饥饿之前进食，在感到口渴之前饮水。饭后应当散步，并用手按摩腹部数百次。晚上睡觉时，习惯性地闭口，因为张口呼吸会流失元气，导致邪气从外部侵入。采用屈膝侧卧的姿势，有助于增加人的气力，胜过平躺仰卧。春天适合晚睡早起，夏天和秋天适合晚睡早起（注：原文此处可能有误或特指某种流派，通常夏秋宜夜卧早起，冬宜早卧晚起，但依原文翻译），冬天适合早睡晚起。虽然说是早起，但不要在天鸡鸣叫之前起床；虽然说是晚起，但不要等到太阳出来之后才起。不要长时间行走、站立、坐着、躺着、听声音或看东西。不要强行进食，不要强行饮酒。如果饮酒，不要喝太多，如果喝多了，应当尽快催吐。讲究养生的人，吐唾沫时不要用力过远，走路时不要大步疾行，耳朵不要听到极限的声音，眼睛不要看到极限的景象，坐的时间不要太久，站不至于疲劳，躺不至于厌恶。在感觉寒冷之前就添加衣物，在感觉炎热之前就脱去衣物。
凡是呕吐，是为了排出体内的旧气，也称为死气；凡是纳气（深呼吸/导引吸气），是为了摄取新的气息，也称为生气。
彭祖说：“调和气息与引导气息的方法：在密闭的房间内关好门窗，安放床铺并温暖席子，枕头高度为二寸半。端正身体仰卧，闭上眼睛，屏住呼吸，将鸿毛放在鼻子上，要求鸿毛不动。经过三百个呼吸周期后，耳朵听不到声音，眼睛看不见景象，心中没有思虑。像这样，寒暑就不能侵犯，蜂蝎等毒虫就不能伤害，寿命可达三百六十岁，接近于‘真人’的境界。”
晚上睡觉醒来后，经常叩击牙齿九次，吞咽唾液九次。用手按压鼻子，左右上下数十次。
仙经中说：“经常存想心中有一团气，大小如鸡蛋，内部红色外部黄色，能够辟除各种邪气，延年益寿。”又说：“经常存想心脏像燃烧的火焰，像北斗星一样辉煌光明，各种邪气不敢靠近它。”
道人蒯京一百七十八岁，但身体非常健壮。他说每天早晨服用“玉泉”。“玉泉”就是口中的唾液。早晨起床前，先用唾液漱口使其充满口腔，含漱后叩齿十四次（二七过），这叫做“练精”（出自《修真秘诀》）。
扬州有一位姓侍其的武官，在两广地区做官十多年，最终没有被瘴气感染，面色红润细腻，腰脚轻快有力。起初他不服药，只是每天五更天起床坐下，双脚相对，热气按摩涌泉穴无数下，直到出汗为止。欧阳修平日不相信神仙佛教，嘲笑别人练习行气，晚年时说：“这几年我脚上长了一个疮，疼痛难忍。最近有人传授一种方法，使用三天后，不觉疼痛消失。这种方法是：双脚重叠而坐，闭目握固（手指紧握成拳），收缩肛门，摇动双脚如同气球状，气息极尽时停止，气息平稳后再恢复常态。每天只要有空闲就练习，这就是‘般运捷法’。文忠（欧阳修的字）疼痛消失后就废弃了这个方法，如果不废弃，应该会有益处（出自《仇池笔记》）。”
The most essential aspect of the immortal's practice lies in "Cunxiang" (Visualization and Retention). "Cun" refers to retaining one's spirit, while "Xiang" refers to visualizing one's body. Closing the eyes allows one to see one's own eyes; gathering the mind allows one to perceive one's own heart. When the mind and spirit do not depart from the body and do not injure the spirit, this constitutes the preliminary stage of Cunxiang.
The way of nurturing life involves maintaining slight physical exertion, but avoiding excessive fatigue or forcing oneself beyond one's capacity. Regarding diet, one should eat small amounts frequently rather than large meals at once, always maintaining a state between fullness and hunger. Those skilled in nurturing life should eat before feeling hungry and drink before feeling thirsty. After eating, one should walk and massage the abdomen hundreds of times. Before sleeping at night, one should habitually keep the mouth closed, as opening it leads to the loss of Qi and allows pathogenic factors to enter from outside. Sleeping with knees bent and lying on the side benefits Qi strength more than lying flat on the back. In spring, one should sleep late and rise early; in summer and autumn, sleep late and rise early; in winter, sleep early and rise late. Although rising early is advocated, it should not be before the rooster crows; although rising late is allowed, it should not be after the sun has risen. One should avoid prolonged walking, standing, sitting, lying down, listening, or viewing. One should not force food intake or alcohol consumption. If drinking alcohol, one should not drink excessively; if overindulged, one should induce vomiting promptly. Practitioners of life-nurturing should not spit forcefully over long distances, walk hastily, listen to extreme sounds, view extreme sights, sit for too long, stand until fatigued, or lie down until uncomfortable. One should dress warmly before feeling cold and undress before feeling hot.
Vomiting expels old Qi, also known as "Dead Qi"; inhaling/nourishing Qi takes in new Qi, also known as "Living Qi."
Peng Zu said: "The method of harmonizing and guiding Qi involves a sealed room with closed doors, a warm bed and mat, and a pillow half a cun high. Lie straight on your back, close your eyes, hold your breath, and place a goose feather on your nose without letting it move. After three hundred breaths, you will hear no sounds, see no sights, and have no thoughts. In this state, cold and heat cannot invade, and stinging insects cannot poison you. Your lifespan can reach 360 years, approaching that of a 'Zhenren' (True Person)."
Upon waking at night, often tap the teeth nine times and swallow saliva nine times. Press the nose with hands, moving up, down, left, and right dozens of times.
Immortal scriptures state: "Constantly visualize Qi in the heart, the size of an egg, red inside and yellow outside, which can ward off various evils and prolong life." It also says: "Constantly visualize the heart like a blazing fire, bright as the Big Dipper, so that all evils dare not approach."
Daoist Qiao Jing was 178 years old yet vigorous. He stated that every morning he consumed "Yuquan" (Jade Spring), which is saliva. Before rising in the morning, rinse the mouth with saliva until full, then tap the teeth fourteen times (two sets of seven). This is called "Refining Essence" (from *Xiuzhen Mijue*).
In Yangzhou, there was a military officer named Shi Qi who served in the Liangguang region for over ten years without contracting miasma. His complexion was ruddy and smooth, and his waist and limbs were light and agile. Initially, he took no medicine, only rising at the fifth watch each morning, sitting with feet facing each other, and rubbing the Yongquan acupoints until sweating. Ouyang Xiu usually disbelieved in immortals and Buddhas and mocked those practicing Qi circulation. In his later years, he said: "For several years, I suffered from a painful sore on my foot. Recently, someone taught me a method. After three days of use, the pain vanished. The method is: sit with feet stacked, close eyes, grasp fists tightly, contract the anus, and shake the feet like balloons. Stop when Qi is exhausted, resume when Qi stabilizes. Practice whenever free. This is the 'Banyun Jiefa' (Rapid Transport Method). After Wen Zhong's [Ouyang Xiu's courtesy name] pain subsided, he abandoned the method. Had he continued, it would have been beneficial" (from *Chiqi Biji*).