The Six Doors are the eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body and mind. If these doors are not guarded, one’s soul will wander in and out through them upon death and fall into the cycle of birth, death and rebirth. Why? The eyes, ears, nose and tongue are doors leading to rebirth as four kinds of animals, and are also known as four paths of birth.

If one desires for sights excessively, his soul will leave the body through the eyes upon death. He is destined to be born again as birds for others to watch and enjoy. If one listens to heresies excessively, his soul will leave the body through the ears. He is destined to be born again as domesticated animals for others to order. If one desires for aroma excessively, his soul will leave the body through the nose. He is destined to be born again as insects to taste all filth and bad odours and will die of sucking and biting their victims. If one likes to slander others or criticize others, his soul will leave the body through the mouth. He is destined to be born again as aquatic lives. This is because the mouth is symbolized by “kan” in the trigrams, which also symbolize water or scales.

For those who practise heresies, do not practise filial devotion, and perform wicked deeds, they will be punished in future lives. This is the eternal law of karma. For those few who practise their virtues and perform good deeds but are not meant to encounter Tao of Heaven during their life times, they will be rewarded in their future lives by being born in rich, powerful, or influential families, enjoying wealth, power or fame. Once their rewards are exhausted, their souls still return to the Underworld. These are the six paths in the cycle of birth, death and rebirth.

Realizing the consequences of the six paths, Lao Tze taught others to constantly guarding these six doors to avoid souls passing through them. The five external doors – the eyes, ears, nose, tongue and body – are relatively easy to guard; however, the internal door – the mind – is difficult to guard. The mind, resides in the spleen, is called “Yin-shen” (the ‘yin’ spiritual image). To tackle this, Taoism devised a dumb technique: concentrating one’s mind at the Right Portal constantly. This method let the True Fire of old “yang” (aureole) refine “Yin-shen”. If one practises this technique continuously as if he is retarded or slow, he can attain a calm mind and have clear wisdom after a hundred days. With prolonged practice, one will act according to his True Nature and need not guard his Six Doors anymore.

My Heavenly Master JiGong said, “If you wish to become a Carefree Immortal and a Fully Enlightened Being, you must cultivate and practise Tao with one-mindedness, not repeating the same mistakes, humble the mind and subdue arrogance, treat people with gentle words and a cheerful face, and be responsible to oneself and Heaven. After carrying oneself across the bitter sea of life, one should help carry others across; having oneself enlightened, one must guide and enlighten others; having oneself corrected, one must help others to correct themselves.”

Author: T.A Chew