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A second meaning of shen refers to the human spirit or psyche that is seen in the body as luster or vigor and in the mind as vitality and enthusiasm; it is the basic power or agency within humans that accounts for life, and in order to further life to its fullest potential, the spirit (Shen) is transformed to actualize potential (Jing 精 ).
It has subsequently also been used to refer to the jing, qi, and shen and to the Buddhist Three Jewels (Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha). This latter use is misleading, however, as the Three Jewels in Buddhism is a completely different philosophy. The Buddha is the teacher, the Dharma is the teaching, and the Sangha is the community.
Seen in Buddhist and Taoist temples. Naluoyan Jingang: 那羅延金剛 He: 和 Collectively, the "2 Immortals He and He", with names meaning "Harmony" and "Union". He: 合 Qin Shubao: 秦叔寶 Tang generals whose image was ordered placed upon gates by the Great Ancestor of the Tang ("Emperor Taizong") Yuchi Gong: 尉遲恭 Sun Bin: 孫臏
Shen in the meaning of "spiritual" is a synonym. [96] The Yijing states that "spiritual means not measured by yin and yang". [ 96 ] Ling is the state of the "medium" of the bivalency ( yin - yang ), and thus it is identical with the inchoate order of creation. [ 14 ]
The earliest Buddhist art is from the Mauryan era (322 BCE – 184 BCE), there is little archeological evidence for pre-Mauryan period symbolism. [6] Early Buddhist art (circa 2nd century BCE to 2nd century CE) is commonly (but not exclusively) aniconic (i.e. lacking an anthropomorphic image), and instead used various symbols to depict the Buddha.
The category shen is rather comprehensive and generic in Chinese myth and religion, shen may be spirits, goddesses or gods, ghosts, or other. Another important concept is the classification of immortals . Immortals are more a category of quality than a description of an actual type. Immortals are defined by living for a long time (maybe forever).
The Falun (法輪) symbol pictured is used as an emblem by the Falun Gong spiritual group. The term translates literally as "law wheel." Other representations of the Falun (dharma wheel, or Dharmachakra in Sanskrit) are utilized in other Buddhist traditions. In Buddhism, the Dharmachakra represents the completeness of the doctrine.
Taoist and Buddhist teachers often instruct their students to centre the mind in the navel or lower dantian. This is believed to aid control of thoughts and emotions . Acting from the dantian is considered to be related to higher states of awareness including sanmei (三昧) or ding (定).