Levels of LIFE · Internal Edition¶

I. Definition¶

The Levels of LIFE is the foundational taxonomic framework of Lifechanyuan's cosmological LIFE-philosophy, classifying all cosmic LIFE forms by the degree of spirituality (lingxing) in their antimatter structure. The higher the level, the greater the freedom, the higher the quality of existence; the lower the level, the lower the freedom and quality. There are sixteen levels in total, spanning from the Greatest Creator at the apex to beings in the fire-refinement realm at the base.

"The Levels of LIFE are classified primarily according to the degree of spirituality possessed by the LIFE form's antimatter structure. The higher the level of LIFE, the greater the freedom, the higher the quality of life; the lower the level of LIFE, the smaller the freedom, the lower the quality of life."

(Chanyuan Corpus · Life Chapter · The Levels of LIFE)

II. The Sixteen Levels¶

Level 1: The Greatest Creator¶

A perfect, flawless antimatter structure. Its spiritual energy permeates all matter and all spaces without any obstruction.

Level 2: Gods¶

An antimatter structure with slight imperfections. Its spiritual energy permeates all matter and nearly all spaces, but cannot enter the Cool-Clear Realm and cannot rival the Greatest Creator.

Level 3: Celestial Beings and Buddhas¶

"Celestial beings and buddhas belong to the same level of LIFE existence, differing only in 'lineage.'"

Heavenly Celestials:

"The fundamental characteristics of Heavenly Celestials: they are unconstrained by time and space; they can sense the subtle changes anywhere in the cosmos; they can sense the consciousness of the Greatest Creator and the gods and respond swiftly accordingly. Heavenly Celestials can transform what is tangible into what is intangible and vice versa; they possess spiritual powers of a thousand transformations; they can manifest in countless forms and exist simultaneously in different LIFE spaces. The home base of Heavenly Celestials is the Celestial Islands Continent of the Elysium World."

Divine Celestials:

"The fundamental characteristics of Divine Celestials: they cannot manifest in countless forms, but they possess spiritual powers and transformations — they can soar through clouds, become invisible, change form, travel freely between the visible and invisible realms, subsist without human food, perceive the past and future, and traverse in an instant a distance one hundred times ten thousand and eight thousand li. Divine Celestials do not like communal living and so have no home base. They 'act in this, rest in this, move in this, wander freely in this.' Except for the Cool-Clear Realm and the Heavenly Realm, they can go anywhere without trace, truly 'roaming freely like a celestial horse, going alone wherever they will.'"

Terrestrial Celestials:

"The fundamental characteristics of Terrestrial Celestials: long-lived, eat little, have no illness, have no worry, can walk on water, pass through walls, fly along treetops, travel ten thousand li in a day without fatigue. Terrestrial Celestials are mainly concentrated in the Ten-Thousand-Year World. They occasionally appear in the human world, but ordinary people cannot encounter or see them."

Human Celestials:

"The fundamental characteristics of Human Celestials: they have a physical body, but their consciousness differs from ordinary people — they know the structure of the cosmos, know the thirty-six-dimensional space, know the origins of the cosmos, LIFE, and humanity, know the mechanisms of karmic transformation, and know the laws of LIFE reincarnation. They are enlightened sages with perfect humanity. They hold no private property and take part in no form of confrontation or competition. In all things they flow with conditions — adapting naturally, settling wherever they land, acting as circumstances arise, moving as their nature directs — living according to perfect human spirituality. Human Celestials already know clearly where their next LIFE destination will be, and so have no fear of death whatsoever; one can say they have already escaped death's constraint. Human Celestials are concentrated in the Thousand-Year World. One in ten thousand people in human society possesses the qualities of a Human Celestial; with one further step, they can enter the ranks of Human Celestials."

Ghost Celestials:

"The fundamental characteristics of Ghost Celestials: the physical body has already died, but consciousness still remains in the human world. They are generally produced from exceptionally clever people who were overly impatient to reach their goals."

Buddhas:

"Buddhas are divided into ten major categories according to their level of buddha-nature. Those who dwell at the Supreme Enlightenment Continent belong to the highest-grade buddhas; next are those dwelling at the Divine Continent, the Cold Moon Continent, the Three-Realm Transit Continent, the Celestial Islands Continent, the Amitabha Continent, the Yingwu Continent, the Kasyapa Continent, the Borneo Continent, and the Lotus Continent. Buddhas of the Lotus Continent are the lowest-grade. There are no true buddhas in the human world — only the buddha-nature within each person. Once someone has cultivated their buddha-nature to its fullness, they immediately undergo physical passing, and their LIFE instantly arrives at the initial buddha level — the Lotus Continent."

(Chanyuan Corpus · Life Chapter · The Levels of LIFE)

Level 4: Demons¶

"Demons are manifestations of buddhas — the expression of buddhas temporarily going to an extreme during their cultivation. The power of demons exceeds that of buddhas and can approach that of gods. Therefore, whenever demons are found to exist in large numbers, the Greatest Creator personally intervenes to constrain them within the Negative Pole Black Hole."

(Chanyuan Corpus · Life Chapter · The Levels of LIFE)

Level 5: Humans¶

"Humans are beings who live on Earth through sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch, and spiritual sensing — they are animals without spiritual powers who depend on food to survive. According to differences in their origins, humans can be roughly divided into five kinds: Primal People, Worldly People, Ordinary People, Wise People, and Celestials.

Primal People: live by instinct; their previous life was a tree or a lower-order animal. Worldly People: live for desire; their previous life was a higher animal, livestock, or a bird. Ordinary People: live by emotion; their previous life was a worldly person or an ordinary person. Wise People: live by reason; their previous life was a celestial or a wise person. Celestials: live by spirituality; their previous life was a celestial or a Human Celestial of the Thousand-Year World. Additionally, one in ten million people in human society are celestials, buddhas, or gods who descended from the Ten-Thousand-Year World, the Elysium World, or the Heavenly Realm, carrying a special mission."

(Chanyuan Corpus · Life Chapter · The Levels of LIFE)

Level 6: Birds¶

"Birds are LIFE forms dwelling in the fourth-dimensional space — their wisdom is lower than humans' but they are freer than humans, with a larger range of activity. They are communal, living in family-based groups. Among them, the red-crowned crane is the highest-grade bird — long-lived, with high spirituality. Other cranes, storks, and geese are slightly lower; eagles and owls next; forest birds such as warblers, parrots, sparrows, and open-space birds such as doves and crows, along with water-dependent birds such as mandarin ducks, egrets, and ducks, are lower still. Domestic poultry and birds with wings that cannot fly — such as ostriches — are the lowest-grade."

(Chanyuan Corpus · Life Chapter · The Levels of LIFE)

Level 7: Flowering Plants¶

"All plants that flower without bearing fruit are called flowering plants. … Flowering plants have extraordinarily high spirituality — they are almost replicas of the flowering plants of the Ten-Thousand-Year World. Beyond adorning the natural world, they are arranged primarily for the Wise People and Celestials among humans, to remind and awaken those of higher spirituality not to forget that there is a celestial realm, and to develop toward the Ten-Thousand-Year World. Peony is the supreme grade among flowers…"

(Chanyuan Corpus · Life Chapter · The Levels of LIFE)

Level 8: Livestock¶

"LIFE forms controlled and protected by humans, serving human life directly. Though their freedom is lower than wild animals', their existential risk is also lower. If wild animals are compared to uneducated 'illiterates,' then livestock are like disciplined 'high school and university students' nurtured by 'civilized influence.' Wild animals only know how to take; livestock only know how to give."

(Chanyuan Corpus · Life Chapter · The Levels of LIFE)

Levels 9–16¶

"Level 9: Land wildlife and aquatic creatures of rivers, lakes, and seas Level 10: Trees Level 11: Insects Level 12: Grasses and crops (Lingzhi is the highest-grade grass; water-bamboo and hanging orchid are high-grade; grain crops and vegetables are middle grade; ordinary grass is the lowest) Level 13: Microorganisms and fungi Level 14: Ghosts and spectral beings of the Underworld Level 15: Beings in the Ice-Freezing Realm Level 16: Beings in the Fire-Refinement Realm"

(Chanyuan Corpus · Life Chapter · The Levels of LIFE)

III. Aura and LIFE Level¶

"LIFE is stratified. Different levels of LIFE embody the same aura but express different colors."

"Everyone has an aura. The auras of Primal, Worldly, Ordinary, and Wise People are faint; those of sages, perfected persons, and true persons, as well as demons and devils, are strong and full. … Ordinary people's auras are a faint white, like a hazy mist. Wise People display faint multicolor that shifts constantly. As the structure becomes more perfect and the quality purer, the aura of the LIFE form gradually displays a fixed color. Sages, perfected persons, and true persons display red, yellow, or purple light. Demon-type beings display blue or green light. Devil-type beings display black light. Buddhas (including Heavenly Celestials) radiate seven-colored light."

(Chanyuan Corpus · Life Chapter · The Aura and Colors of LIFE)

IV. Three Quantitative Indicators¶

New Era Human 800 Concepts, Fourth Edition:

"The higher the level of LIFE, the fewer conflicts LIFE has with its surrounding environment; the lower the level of LIFE, the more conflicts." (Concept 366)

"The core component of a higher LIFE's consciousness is love. The higher the LIFE, the higher the love content in its consciousness; the lower the LIFE, the lower the love content." (Concept 367)

"The lower the level of LIFE, the more it lacks love and affection. What is hell? A place with no love and affection. The higher the level of LIFE, the richer its love and affection. What is heaven? A place filled with love and affection." (Concept 585)

V. Detecting Your Level through Qing¶

"Every level of LIFE has its own qing distinct from other levels. As a human, by examining your qing, you can determine whether it belongs to ordinary human feeling or celestial feeling."

"If your qing causes you worry and suffering, it belongs to ordinary human feeling. If your qing causes you joy and delight, it is celestial feeling."

"Analyzing and detecting the scope and realm of your qing helps you understand which level your LIFE currently occupies. If your qing is ordinary human feeling, you can only remain human forever. If your qing is celestial feeling, you are no longer human but a celestial — and when your human journey ends, you can proceed to the celestial realm."

(Xue Feng Corpus · Miscellaneous Essays · Detecting Your LIFE Level through Qing)

VI. The Path of Ascent¶

"In terms of direction, every person should strive toward higher LIFE spaces: Primal People should develop toward Worldly People; Worldly People toward Ordinary People; Ordinary People toward Wise People; Wise People toward Celestials; Celestials should develop toward Terrestrial Celestials, Divine Celestials, Heavenly Celestials, and Buddhas."

"The road of LIFE is very clear. Speaking in terms of spaces: people in the human world should strive toward the Thousand-Year World; Human Celestials of the Thousand-Year World should strive toward the Ten-Thousand-Year World; Terrestrial Celestials of the Ten-Thousand-Year World should strive toward becoming free-roaming Divine Celestials; Divine Celestials should strive toward the Elysium World, becoming Heavenly Celestials. Reaching the Elysium World is the peak of LIFE's ascent. Humans cannot become gods; they certainly cannot become the Greatest Creator. Everything is this clear, this simple."

(Chanyuan Corpus · Life Chapter · The Levels of LIFE)