內丹是文化嗎？一個對修煉經驗的身體研究

Is Daoist Cultivation Cultural? A Study of the Neidan Practice of the Body

本文探討道家內丹修煉者如何體驗「先天」。在道家的概念中，「道」是「萬物」的根源。雖然萬物是由道所生，但是我們無法以偏於一隅的萬物來理解道的全體。《道德經》有云「為學日益、為道日損」，修道是要拋棄萬物所執的成見，增益世俗的分辨能力無助於此。在內丹的身體修煉中，道與萬物的分別經常以「先天」與「後天」表示。所謂「順則生人、逆則成仙」，修煉的目的是要從後天逆返回到先天的狀態，以與道合一。道家對後天的觀點類似人類學的文化概念，認為後天是對於事物約定俗成的區辨，而此區辨本身乃來自於對慣習的執著。若是先天是要超越後天的分辨與慣習，理論上先天的體驗必然是「非文化」的。內丹修煉如何說明他們的身體經驗是非文化的？對於人類學而言，內丹是漢人宗教的一部份，它不可能是非文化的。若是內丹修煉是文化現象，則意味著內丹的目的是永遠無法達成的幻想：修煉者以為可以超越後天的文化，實際上卻是以自身的文化概念想像非文化的先天狀態。但是，內丹修煉者卻並非毫無反省的能力，他們往往以後天的概念分類與身體慣習檢驗是否達到先天。他們如何認證先天的身體經驗？哪些身體經驗的特質使得修煉者相信它們不是後天的塑模？這些問題的解答不僅有助於理解內丹修煉，或能提供反省人類學文化概念以及身體主體性的參考。

This paper examines how the Daoist Neidan (內丹) practitioners experience Dao through bodily cultivation. Anthropologists employ the concept of culture to explain human variations as result of learning. For anthropologist, Daoism is a cultural phenomenon that instills a particular worldview and bodily practice. However, for Daoist, Dao is not any particular way of seeing the world. A Neidan practitioner could experience Dao, or xiantian (先天) , only by getting rid of habitual thoughts and bodily practice. It is exactly the ability to transcend the anthropological culture, which is referred as houtain (後天) , that defines Daoist cultivation. What convinced a Daoist that Neidan cultivation is not produced by a habitual way of experiencing the world but transcending it? By what indicator does it guarantee a Neidan practitioner that xiantian is achievable? This paper examines the spontaneous techniques (自動發功) in relation to these questions.