Zhongli Quan

Zhongli Quan is the venerable leader and mystical instructor of the legendary Eight Immortals (Baxian) and the supreme Second Patriarch of the North in the revered Quanzhen Taoist lineage of China. A veteran, decorated imperial general of the Han dynasty, he abandoned the fleeting glories of the battlefield after an ambush on the frontier to devote himself to meditative seclusion and internal alchemy (Neidan) in the depths of the sacred Zhongnan mountains under the tutelage of the immortal Donghua Dijun. Wielding his unmistakable magic fan of heron feathers and banana leaves (Babao Shan), he holds the cosmic power to calm ocean storms, transmute raw stone and rusted copper into pure gold to rescue starving peasants, and raise the dead by restoring their vital Yang breath. His compassionate wisdom transforms worldly afflictions into lasting spiritual peace for all seekers of the Tao. He is the generous master who teaches the sublime art of turning earthly defeats into eternal spiritual victories.

15 min read · Reviewed on September 28, 2026 · How we research

The palm-leaf fan, the bared belly, the long beard and the elixir

Primary sources

• Wu Yuantai, Dongyouji. translation: Philip Clart, 2020.
• Zhongli Quan e Lu Dongbin, Zhong-Lü Chuandao Ji. translation: Eva Wong, 2000.
• Tuo Tuo, Song Shi. translation: Herbert Franke, 1976.
• Qin Zhi'an, Jinlian Zhengzong Ji. translation: Vincent Goossaert, 2007.

Studies

• Joseph Needham, Science and Civilisation in China, Volume 5: Chemistry and Chemical Technology. Cambridge University Press, 1983.
• Kristofer Schipper, The Taoist Body. University of California Press, 1993.
• Isabelle Robinet, Taoism: Growth of a Religion. Stanford University Press, 1997.
• E. T. C. Werner, Myths and Legends of China. George G. Harrap & Co., 1922.