Guiguzi's Wordless Book of Heaven

Legend has it that while Guiguzi was cultivating, he obtained a wordless heavenly book. Ordinary people could not see any writing in it. Only sages could wash their hands, burn incense, and open it to reveal the words. A popular saying goes that Guiguzi's teachings were once forbidden from being recorded in writing and could only be passed on orally, from teacher to student, and understood through intuition. The Buddhist view says: "With words, there are no words; without words, there are words. Why cling to whether there are words or not?"

Based on Guiguzi's life, legends about him, and records from court and other historical texts, this book offers an overview of his secret methods for navigating the world, the mysteries of vertical and horizontal diplomacy, and the secrets of esoteric schools of learning... These include literary strategy, the unique art of diplomacy; military strategy, the heavenly martial art of the Seventy Transformations in Combat; divination arts such as astrology and prognostication; and great methods of self-cultivation, including unusual techniques for nourishing one's nature and cultivating the Way, absorbing the essence of the sun and moon, fasting and practicing qi, and rejuvenating oneself. These teachings portray Guiguzi's doctrine as stealing the principles of yin and yang and seizing the workings of creation, making it as easy to turn the world upside down as to turn one's hand, and treating fame and profit as insignificant as weeds, thus reaching a state of freedom without restraint, unimpeded communion with the Way, and profound breadth of understanding.

This book introduces readers to the main ideas of Guiguzi's teachings. However, it contains both genuine insights and idealist mysticism, so it presents and explains them without verifying their authenticity. Readers are encouraged to take what is valuable and discard what is worthless as they read, and to proceed with care.