life, was placed beyond the limits of our visible universe; and in order
for human life to return thither at death and to enjoy immortality, it
was only necessary to refine away corporeal grossness according to the
doctrines of Lao Tzu. Later on, this One came to be regarded as a fixed
point of dazzling luminosity, in remote ether, around which circled for
ever and ever, in the supremest glory of motion, the souls of those who
had successfully passed through the ordeal of life, and who had left the
slough of humanity behind them.

The final state is best described by a poet of the ninth century A.D.:--

Like a whirling water-wheel,
Like rolling pearls,--
Yet how are these worthy to be named?
They are but illustrations for fools.
There is the mighty axis of Earth,
The never-resting pole of Heaven;
Let us grasp their clue,
And with them be blended in One,
Beyond the bounds of thought,
Circling for ever in the great Void,
An orbit of a thousand years,--
Yes, this is the key to my theme.

Debased Taoism.--This view naturally suggested the prolongation of
earthly life by artificial means; hence the search for an elixir,
carried on through many centuries by degenerate disciples of Taoism. But
here we must pass on to consider some of the speculations on God, life,
death, and immortality, indulged in by Taoist philosophers and others,
who were not fettered, as the Confucianists were, by traditional