From Shiguang to Xingguang: Ontology and the Method of Huiguang in the Taiyi Jinhua Zongzhi
Trans/Form/Ação January 19, 2026 Danke Zhang
This article argues that the Daoist text Taiyi Jinhua Zongzhi presents a coherent metaphysical framework centered on light, not merely a psychological or symbolic model. It distinguishes innate light (xingguang), identified as the ontological Dao, from cognitive light (shiguang), which obscures this primordial luminosity. The practice of turning the light inward (huiguang) is prescribed as the disciplined path of return. Through close textual analysis, the article elucidates a triadic framework of light as ontology, method, and visionary confirmation, concluding that the text offers a distinctively Daoist model of light-centered cultivation.