The Sword of Wisdom

Ever since the adepts handed on The secret of the sword, The true imperative has been upheld Completely, truly adamant. If someone asks me about  Looking for its origin, I say it is not ordinary iron. This lump of iron Comes from receptive stillness; When you obtain it, it rises up. Forging it in a glowing fire, Through repeated efforts It is refined And forged into steel. When students of the Tao Know this secret, The spirit of light is intensely powerful, And devils of darkness vanish. The subtle function of spiritual work Is truly hard to measure; I now give an explanation for you. In telling you about it I divulge the celestial mechanism. Setting to work when one yang comes back, First have the six yangs pump the furnace bellows; Then the six yins work the tongs and hammer. When the work of firing is complete, It produces the sword; When it is first done, It flashes like lightning. Brandish it horizontally And a cold clear breeze arises; Hold it upright, And the shining bright moon appears. Auspicious light illumines heaven and earth; Sprites and ghosts are distressed. It stops turbidity, brings out clarity, Sweeps away weird defilements; It slays volatility, Cuts down aggressiveness, Destroys monsters: Influences draining away Vitality, energy and spirit All vanish in the light of the sword. Entanglements are cut off, rumination dies down, And the web of feelings is rent asunder. Where the spiritual edge is aimed, mountains crumble; The demon kinds of mundane planes are all routed. This precious sword fundamentally has no form; The name is set up because it has spiritual effect. Learning the Tao and practicing reality Depend on this sword: Without this sword, The Tao cannot be achieved. Opening up the vast darkness, Distinguishing heaven and earth, Dissolving obstructions, transmuting objects - All is included. If you ask me to show it to you, I bring it out before you - Do you understand or not? -   The Book of Balance and Harmony     Translated by Thomas Cleary, 1989, p. 115-117