Mary Fairchild, About.com's Guide to Christianity, offers the following definition of Transubstantiation:
"Transubstantiation" is the official Roman Catholic concept referring to the change that takes place during the sacrament of Holy Communion (Eucharist). This change involves the substances of bread and wine being turned miraculously into the substance of Christ himself. The underlying essence of these elements is changed, and they retain only the appearance, taste, and texture of bread and wine. Catholic doctrine holds that the Godhead is indivisible, so every particle or drop thus changed is wholly identical in substance with the divinity, body, and blood of the Savior.
This doctrine of Transubstantiation has given rise to voluminous debate among Christian theologians. Though I’m familiar, in a general way, with these dialogues, I’m clearly not qualified to comment, in any substantive way, on the various arguments and their defenses. Instead, what I’d like to do in this essay is simply present a view of this doctrine in light of Taoist Inner Alchemical teachings. Much of this will dovetail with the material covered in “Immortality & Esoteric Initiation.”
To begin, let’s explore the basic assumption underlying the Christian definition of Transubstantiation. This definition revolves around a distinction between, on the one hand, an essence or “substance” – that which is transformed into the “body and blood of Christ” and, on the other hand, a physical appearance (called the “accident” in theological parlance) - in this case, the visible bread/communion wafers and wine/grape juice. At the consecration of the Eucharist - by the power of the priest’s invocation in combination with a dispensation of grace - the substance/essence, but not the appearance, of the bread and wine becomes the body and blood (and soul/spirit) of Christ. {Interesting to compare with the Buddhist Madhyamika view.}
The mechanism of this transformation of something wholly material (bread and wine) into something essentially holy, as I understand it, has everything to do with the power of the Eucharist ritual: the priest’s function as a conduit for spiritual blessing, and the support flowing through him or her from the unseen realms. Less emphasis is given, in this context, to the role of prayer or devotion on the part of those to be receiving the Eucharist. Whether or not one believes in the process, the Transubstantiation does, in fact, happen. This is the conventional Catholic teaching.
Taoist Alchemy & Transubstantiation
How is transubstantiation understood from the point of view of Taoism? Taoist alchemical practices fall into two basic categories: external alchemy and internal alchemy. External alchemy involves ingesting mineral and/or herbal elixirs, for the purpose of extending life or achieving the Immortality of the physical body.
The creation of these formulas – particularly when they are then ingested within a highly ritualized context - can be likened to the consecration of the Eucharist. Something basically material (an herb or a mineral) is, through various alchemical procedures, transformed into something that possesses magical properties: a potent blessing-energy capable of transforming the bodymind of the Taoist practitioner.
Other alchemical substances, e.g. Tonic Gold, are the result not of a distillation of something subtle from something more gross, but rather a condensation of a spiritual essence into a material form – which can then be ingested by the practitioner. This type of external alchemical formula is akin to the “descent of grace” aspect of the Eucharist.
These forms of external alchemy – though similar in certain ways to aspects of the Eucharist –may more precisely be considered as cases of transmutation: of one physical substance (e.g. lead) being transformed into another physical substance (e.g. gold). It is in the practices of Inner Alchemy where we find a more clear example of transubstantiation: the kind of “phase shift” in which a physical substance (in this case the body of the Taoist practitioner) is transformed not simply into another – albeit upgraded - physical substance, but rather is “Christed” – i.e. becomes a Body of Light.
As the Three Treasures of Jing, Qi and Shen are refined and circulated, an alchemical process is initiated. In the early stages of this process, we become aware of a substance or energy within our physical body, which seems at times to have a “life of its own.” Our external appearance may at this point remain relatively unchanged, but there is an internal awakening – a kind of consecration that has happened, that is now working its “magic.”
At the apex of this process, even the physical form of the practitioner is subsumed within this process. The result is transubstantiation – a resurrection and ascension similar to that of Jesus. If we then (as did Jesus) choose to reappear in this world, it is in a form which has been wholly transfigured, has become a Body of Light – fully consecrated bread and wine, able now to be offered out as spiritual nourishment to all living beings.
Related links:
Mantak Chia “The Immortal Body”
“Death and Resurrection: Enlightenment and the Body of Light” by John White
Video of Russian Monk in Suspended Animation
