Although these graphics come from different cultural fields and each has its own unique form and connotation, they have one thing in common—they are all ways in which humanity interprets everything in the universe.

Geographical symbol:

As an important part of traditional Chinese culture, Taoism has had a profound influence on the art of Feng Shui.

A vast number of symbols and diagrams were widely used in various fields such as environment, architecture, housing, production, and daily life, becoming an indispensable part of ancient Feng Shui.

In fact, many talismans are themselves pictorial representations of geography and environment, representing the fusion of rational observation and mystical experience of the natural environment and feng shui by Taoist priests throughout history.

For this reason, people believe that these symbols have the magical power to ward off evil, avert danger, and protect the peace of their homes and country. These special symbols are collectively known as geographical symbols.

Among the many geographical symbols, the most famous is the True Form Map of the Five Sacred Mountains, which appeared during the Wei and Jin Dynasties.

As recorded in "Baopuzi Neipian·Xialan": "What Daoists value most is the Inner Text of the Three Sovereigns and the True Form Diagram of the Five Sacred Mountains."

This fully demonstrates the lofty status of the Five Sacred Mountains True Form Map in society at that time and the degree of respect it received.

Today, the Daoist Canon includes several versions of the True Forms of the Five Sacred Mountains, and their images are generally similar.

In fact, besides the Five Sacred Mountains, it also includes Mount Huo, Mount Qian, Mount Qingcheng, and Mount Lu, which are collectively known as the Four Auxiliary Mountains. Each mountain has two true-form diagrams, one with textual descriptions and the other a blank image.

Taoist books refer to those without text as "the true forms of the Upper Five Sacred Mountains" and those with text as "the true forms of the Lower Five Sacred Mountains".

The accompanying text descriptions provide basic information about each mountain.

According to the "Dongxuan Lingbao Five Sacred Mountains Ancient True Form Map", the original map was drawn with three colors: black to represent the shape of the mountains, red to represent the water source, and yellow to represent the entrance of the cave.

If the image is small, it will present a small, hilly shape; if it is large, it will show a magnificent view of mountains and valleys.

Ge Hong once said that height should be described according to the actual terrain, while length should be determined according to the specific shape.

As for the places where the divine herbs and stone chambers are depicted at the water source, those were naturally marked out by later immortals on this map.

What is presented before one's eyes are all black and white engravings. The black, winding rectangles extend from east to west, representing towering mountains; while the meandering curves within the mountains symbolize rushing water.

As for those blank spaces, they must be the blessed lands where Taoists cultivate in seclusion!

Combined with the accompanying text descriptions, we can not only clearly understand the specific path to the mountain, but also know the location of the mountain streams and springs, and even grasp the distribution of various medicinal herbs and plants, the specific locations of caves and temples, and even the height, width and overall extent of the mountains are clear at a glance.

From these points, it is easy to see that these maps do indeed have high practical value, and their creation must be closely related to detailed observation of actual mountains and terrain.

However, who exactly created such an exquisite talisman?

What is their purpose in doing this?

This series of questions lingered in my mind like a fog, leaving me completely baffled.