《元始天尊说东岳化身济生度死拔罪解冤保命玄范诰咒妙经》

At this time, the Primordial Heavenly Worthy (Yuanshi Tianzun), a revered deity of Daoism, was within the Golden Palace of Daluo Heaven (Daluo Tian), in the celestial halls of the Holy Realm of Jade Purity (Yuqing). He ascended the Precious Throne of Nine Lights, holding the Five-Light ruyi scepter, and summoned the imperial lords of the various heavens, the sun, moon, and constellations, together with the host of perfected immortals and holy beings, who ranged themselves before his seat. The Primordial Heavenly Worthy then raised a vast voice and proclaimed the supreme and unsurpassed true teaching. Celestial blossoms drifted down in profusion, and immortal incense curled through the air.

The four Perfected Ones (zhenren) in attendance—the Greatly Compassionate Golden Florescence Perfected (Jinhua Zhenren), the Greatly Compassionate Jade Purity Perfected (Yuqing Zhenren), the Greatly Compassionate Wondrous Practice Perfected (Miaoxing Zhenren), and the Greatly Compassionate Deliverer from Suffering (Jiuku Zhenren)—stepped forward together, knelt at length, and addressed the Heavenly Worthy (Tianzun): “We behold the people of the lower world, men and women, old and young alike. Some are poor and distressed, beset by illness; some are harassed by ghosts, specters, and sprites; some bear grievances, enmities, and offenses, or are entangled by curses; and some meet year after year with calamity, lawsuits, and poisoning, even suffering sudden and untimely death. We also see the hungry ghosts, destitute souls, and lonely departed spirits in the hells, punished day and night—crushed and cut by knife-wheels, pierced upon sword-trees, burned by fierce flame, and frozen in bitter ice—without a moment of rest. We further see many women in the Blood Lake Hell suffering day and night. We ask: through what different karmic causes do these two kinds of beings come to endure such suffering? We humbly beg the Heavenly Worthy, in compassion, to reveal an expedient means of salvation and to point out the broad path of cultivation.”

At this time, the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning (Yuanshi Tianzun) said: “Return to your seats and listen carefully. I shall now explain these matters to you one by one.

The beings of the world do not believe in causes and conditions, or in retribution for good and evil. Some fail to revere Heaven and Earth, are disloyal to their sovereign, unfilial toward their parents, and disrespectful to their teachers and elders. Others deceive the gods and spirits, turn against brothers, kin, friends, and neighbors, present one face in public and another in private, and what they say does not match what they think. These faults are examined morning and evening by the deities of the Yuefu (the divine bureau of the Eastern Peak), the Cao officials (divine clerks who record and verify offenses), and the holy assembly. The offenses are written down and confirmed without error.

Therefore, while they live they are often poor and destitute, afflicted by malignant illnesses and toxic sores, and struck by epidemics and all manner of disease. Calamities follow one upon another. They may become entangled in lawsuits, cast into prison, and harmed by demons and malign spirits. For many years they find no peace; their households are restless and disordered, and funerals come often. At times they meet with warfare, floods, fires, locusts, and famine, or are harassed by thieves and bandits, and peace is hard to obtain.

After death they fall for a long time into the hells and sink into the path of hungry ghosts, suffering the cutting of their limbs, immersion in cauldrons of boiling oil, or confinement in realms of ice and cold. Only after passing through myriads of kalpas may they leave the cycle of rebirth; and even if they are reborn as livestock, they still suffer slaughter and injury. Karmic retribution of every kind has no end.”

When the Four Great Perfected Ones heard these words, they were filled with compassion. They bowed before the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning and petitioned him: “We pray that you extend your compassion and save all beings equally.”

At this time, the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning again addressed the Perfected:

Long ago, before Heaven and Earth had separated and before Taiji (the Supreme Ultimate) had taken form, there was a Mother of the Dao of Primordial Unity. She conferred upon the Supreme Teaching Lord of the Boundless Expanse the ancestral Qi (vital energy) of blazing Heaven and mysterious brilliance—the golden wheel, the root Qi of the single lineage sprung from the ancestral source of the Lesser Sea. Tradition holds that he was born after a dream of sunlight; his birthday is the twenty-eighth day of the second lunar month, and he is the younger brother of the Sage of Eastern Hua of the Purple Prefecture. He established his merit on Mount Changbai and received the honorific title of Xihuang. At first he was known as the Perfected of Taihua; under Emperor Ming of the Han he was honored as Marshal of Mount Tai. Court after court continued to add titles, until at last he became the Holy Emperor of Great Life, Equal to Heaven, Benevolent and Primordial, of the Eastern Peak—that is, the Great Emperor of the Eastern Peak.

He was endowed with the Qi of verdant Yang and occupies the exalted station of Zhen in the East. He alone presides over the Middle Realm, commands the myriad spirits, governs good and evil in the human world, and also scrutinizes right and wrong in the underworld. He adjudicates the registers and cases of the seventy-two bureaus, oversees the punishments of the thirty-six peaks, punishes the treacherous and the wicked, enrolls the dead, and records the living. He further manifests as the Four Peaks and the Four Celestial Holy Emperors, nurturing all living beings throughout Heaven, Earth, and the four quarters.

If faithful men and women in the world, on the Three Yuan days, the Five La days, the four seasons and eight nodes, on Jiazi days and Gengshen days, on the third and the seventh of each month, on the day the stellar lords of the Northern Dipper descend, on one’s natal day, and on other auspicious days such as the first and the fifteenth of each month, give alms, set up an altar and make offerings, lay out abundant sacrifices, burn incense and light lamps, pray with sincere hearts, and take refuge in the Upper Minister of Eastern Hua, the Holy Emperor of Great Life, Equal to Heaven, Benevolent and Primordial, of the Eastern Peak, the Celestial Worthy of Majestic Authority and Sovereign Freedom, they will receive protection: the state will be secure, the people content, warfare will cease, the five grains will be abundant, the palace will be tranquil, and the destiny of the nation will stand firm.

From officials and commoners down to male and female devotees, they may likewise eliminate sinful karma, wash away calamity, obtain blessings, lengthen their years, see their households flourish and their descendants continue, and enjoy peace and ease in going out, coming in, and daily life. For those who have already died, the sufferings of hell may be spared, guilt removed, grievances resolved, and affliction stilled; the underworld’s calling to account and interrogation, together with the five bitter punishments, may also cease. The departed may ascend to the heavenly halls, roam in freedom and boundless joy, unite with the Dao (the Way) and join the True, so that all sentient beings may ascend to the unsurpassed realm.

Thereupon the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning pronounced an incantation:

The deity of Mount Tai is titled the “First Emperor of the Eastern Peak, Benevolent Sage of Great Life, Equal to Heaven.” The Eastern Peak belongs to the Azure Heaven and administers the related affairs in Gunzhou; above, it corresponds to the Fang lunar mansion (one of the eastern asterisms), and below, it governs the Qi (vital energy) of the Zhen direction of the Bagua (Eight Trigrams). The deity of the Eastern Peak makes all things grow and flourish, and makes the span of life endure as long as Heaven. He dwells in the Lodge of Mysterious Numinosity, and his name is entered in the azure documents of the celestial realm. He can relieve the living and deliver the dead, and protect the lasting peace of the state.

The deity of the southern Mount Heng is titled the “Second Emperor of the Southern Peak, Illuminating Sage of Great Transformation, Who Administers Heaven.” The Southern Peak belongs to the Cinnabar Heaven and administers the related affairs in Hengzhou; above, it corresponds to the Star lunar mansion, and below, it shines upon the Qi of the Li direction. He nurtures and transforms all things, so that life flourishes and long endures. His abode is the Jade Palace of Upright Yang, and his name is entered in the vermilion documents of the celestial realm. He can burn away demons and evil beings, so that calamity and misfortune disperse forever.

The deity of Mount Song is titled the “Third Emperor of the Central Peak, Revered Sage of Great Peace of the Central Heaven.” The Central Peak belongs to the Yellow Heaven and administers the related affairs in Daizhou; he sets in motion the stellar mansions of the four directions and alone commands Mount Feng (the underworld realm of Daoist legend). He presides in honor over all things and, through a hundred million kalpas, is still venerated. His abode is the Jade Palace of the Mysterious Capital, and his name is entered in the jade-hued documents of the celestial realm. The numinous Qi of the five directions settles and stands guard, and can destroy the host of ghosts and demons.

The deity of Mount Hua is titled the “Fourth Emperor of the Western Peak, Compliant Sage of Great Benefit of the Golden Heaven.” The Western Peak belongs to the White Heaven and administers the related affairs in Huazhou; above, it corresponds to the Mao lunar mansion (one of the western asterisms), and below, it steadies the Qi of the Dui direction. He brings all things to completion, protects life, and prolongs the lifespan. His abode has golden gates and mysterious windows, and his name is entered in the white documents of the celestial realm. He can secure the state, support its undertakings, and guard the frontiers.

The deity of the northern Mount Heng is titled the “Fifth Emperor of the Northern Peak, Primordial Sage of Great Constancy Who Pacifies Heaven.” The Northern Peak belongs to the Dark Heaven and administers the related affairs in Hengzhou; above, it corresponds to the Xu lunar mansion (one of the northern asterisms), and below, it courses through the Qi of the Kan direction. He nourishes all things so that they flourish, adding to longevity and lengthening the years. His abode is the Primordial Terrace of Yujue, and his name is entered in the black documents of the celestial realm. He can deliver the dead so that they are reborn in the upper realms, and save and transform all beings so that they may cultivate and attain the immortal Dao (the Way).

With utmost sincerity I take refuge in and reverently honor the deity of the northern Mount Heng, and I pray that he…

He is a patriarch blazing with light, mysterious and profound, the ancestral master of the lineage of the Golden Wheel and the Lesser Sea. After Immortal Mother Mi dreamed of sunlight, she gave birth to the younger brother of the Sage of the Purple Palace, the Sovereign Lord of Eastern Florescence. In former times he established his merit on Changbai Mountain and was first enfeoffed by Sovereign Fuxi with the title “Perfected One of Taihua.” Under Emperor Ming of the Han he was enfeoffed as “Marshal of Mount Tai,” and in the Tang he was further enfeoffed as “Holy Emperor of Exalted Grace.” The present dynasty imperially entitled him “Supreme Lord.” He guards the great earth, and his merit and De (Virtue/Power) answer above to the Dao (the Way) of Heaven. Through benevolent De he bestows grace, as though the power to restore the dead to life were held in his hand; his holy mind shines all the brighter, like the sun and moon suspended high in the sky.

The Five Peaks all praise him as the one who dwells in the East; among the Three Realms he alone is supreme in the Middle Realm. Looking upward, he receives the great commands of the celestial realm; looking downward, he inspects the affairs of the offices of the shades. He governs good and evil among humankind and holds authority over life and death throughout the world. He punishes treachery and wickedness, establishing thirty-six hells in their separate divisions; he presides over the auspicious and the inauspicious and judges the affairs of the seventy-two bureaus. Those who do good are entered in the registers and may be reborn in the celestial realm; when those sunk in delusion meet with disaster and cry out, he saves them in answer to their voices, manifests a form at once compassionate and noble, and opens for all beings the gate of ceaseless generation and transformation. His blessings and De stand equal with Heaven, and his merit is beyond measure.

Great in compassion and great in vow, great in holiness and great in mercy—Supreme Honored One of the Middle Realm: the Holy Emperor of the Eastern Peak, Heavenly Worthy of Merciful Light Who Saves from Suffering, of Majestic Authority and Spontaneous Freedom.

With utmost sincerity I take refuge and pay homage:

She accords with the station of primordial Qian and is endowed with the De of the earth of Kun. Her mild, pure, and upright Qi (vital energy) spreads clear and bright, so that the Three Realms are gentle and harmonious as a day in spring; the deep, loving moisture of her De nourishes the myriad things, so that the four quarters are lucid as a day in autumn. Her holy De is as luminous as that of the Heavenly Worthies, and all under Heaven revere her together.

Great in mercy and great in kindness, great in gentleness and great in brightness—the Empress of Gentle Brightness and the De of Kun, of the Principal Palace of the Eastern Peak.

With utmost sincerity I take refuge and pay homage:

He assists the purification rites of the celestial realm and is an important aiding minister beside the Benevolent and Holy One; he issues commands like the sunlight of spring and holds the authority of Mount Tai. With cultured De he assists and adorns moral transformation, and he is a high minister in the court of the Five Peaks; he proclaims the virtuous conduct of the Sovereign Lord and administers the people of the mundane world. He clearly discerns hearts that are fair, loyal, and upright, and he likewise clearly discerns matters of good and evil, treachery and wickedness.

Great in compassion and great in vow, great in wisdom and great in intelligence—the Perfected Lord, Senior Minister of the Eastern Peak, Arbiter of Fate and Guardian of the State.

With utmost sincerity I take refuge and pay homage:

Numinous Qi (vital energy) differentiated into three kinds of primordial Qi, and bodily form rests upon the Qi of the Nine Yangs. Wood and Fire generate one another, and thus transformation and birth proceed from the place of origin. Qian and Kun each occupy their stations, and from the spiritual root there is nurtured a graceful and refined numinous Qi. Its innate nature is blazing and luminous, able to send down blessings, send down auspiciousness, and bestow welfare; the heart-mind is upright and bright, uniting literary talent, martial strategy, and benevolence. He upholds the authority of his father, discerns the will of Heaven, and carries out the great Dao (the Way). He is the Crown Prince of the Upper Hall of the Eastern Peak, of great compassion, great vows, great filial piety, and great benevolence, honored as the Most Holy King of Blazing Numinosity, Benevolence, and Grace.

With the Utmost Heart, Take Refuge and Pay Homage (to return in reliance and offer reverence with a perfectly sincere heart):

In the Inner Palace of the Eastern Peak atop the summit of Mount Tai, she once manifested in the body of a Jade Maiden, while her root is the true form of an Imperial Perfected (the true body of a venerable deity of the celestial realm). Responding to the Nine Qi, she manifests a compassionate appearance, presides over the host of spirits, and her wisdom is complete and thoroughly penetrating. The merit of her cultivation fills the ten directions, and her grace endures through millions upon millions of kalpas. Ranked among the celestial immortals, she was enfeoffed as Bixia Yuanjun; she commands the divine troops of the Administration of the Eastern Peak and also governs good and evil in the human world. Hearing prayers, she comes in response, protecting the state and bringing peace to the people. She is the Celestial Immortal Jade Maiden of great holiness, great compassion, utmost benevolence, and utmost filial piety, honored as the Perfected of Vast Numinosity, Kind Grace, Reverent Compliance, Universal Salvation, and Protection of Life. Her grace continues through millions upon millions of kalpas; ranked among the celestial immortals, she was enfeoffed as Bixia Yuanjun, commanding the divine soldiers of the Peak Administration and inspecting good and evil in the human world. She responds as soon as she hears a cry, guarding the country and pacifying the people, and she is also Bixia Yuanjun who protects the state, shelters the people, and whose virtuous conduct is vast.

With the Utmost Heart, Take Refuge and Pay Homage:

These two true deities belong under one and the same jurisdiction. Those who do good ought to receive the recompense of blessing; they bestow golden-pearl writings that record one’s store of blessings. The loyal obtain auspiciousness and receive an increased stipend together with a greater share of blessing. Good deeds are entered in the Cinnabar Registers (the books in which immortals record the merits and faults of good and evil) and are listed in the Jade Offices (the official bureaus of the celestial realm). This is the deity of the Peak Administration who increases blessings and allots blessings, of great compassion, great vows, great holiness, and great mercy.

With the Utmost Heart, Take Refuge and Pay Homage:

The descendants and devotees of the Eastern Peak hold that the Office for Supervising Births of the Nine Heavens is responsible for gestating life and forming the fetus and, in accordance with the creative transformations of Heaven, Earth, and Yin-Yang, for escorting the infant into birth and protecting the mother in childbirth. These two holy deities are the guiding principles that sustain the affairs of procreation. They harmonize Yin and Yang and also preside over the spread of illnesses such as smallpox and eruptive rashes. The Nine Heavens celebrate this and regard all living beings with impartial equality. We pray that the greatly compassionate and greatly merciful Perfected Lord Mingsu, Supervisor of Births of the Nine Heavens, of great vows and great De (Virtue/Power), together with the Primordial Lady, Holy Mother Who Guards the Chamber of the Nine Heavens—she who presides over many sons and daughters, over childbirth, and over protection of the conjugal chamber—universally relieve and deliver all living beings.

With wholehearted sincerity we take refuge and pay homage:

This deity was born in the land of Min (the region of present-day Fujian) and established his meritorious achievements in the south. In studying and seeking the Dao (the Way), he once received personal transmission from the Five Patriarchs; in seeking immortality he attained it, and at Sangeng he exercised the art of the straw effigy. He also guarded the imperial presence in the midst of the Yangzi River and manifested divine powers aboard the boat of the enlightened sovereign. His awe-inspiring fame spread far, and his sacred De is beyond measure. We pray that the greatly compassionate and greatly merciful deity of Jiangdong, the Loyal Protector and Exalted Benefactor, of great vows and great De, loyal and diligent, rescue and aid all living beings.

With wholehearted sincerity we take refuge and pay homage:

This divine general is a fierce commander in the courts of the underworld and holds the office of deputy commander of the troops. He has red hair and a blue-green face, wears a three-peaked iron cap, is dressed in a black robe with a sash at the waist, and carries a nine-section steel whip. He can seize and detain souls and pursue the spirits of the dead. He presides over life and death, directs the rewarding of good and the punishing of evil, inspects faults, and corrects what is improper. We pray to the greatly compassionate and greatly merciful Grand Marshal, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Troops, General Zhu the Soul-Seizer, Grand Guardian of Manifest Response of the Yue Administration, whose divine might is resplendent and whose spiritual efficacy is plainly manifest.

With wholehearted sincerity we take refuge and pay homage:

The Yue Administration maintains seventy-five offices, and deities conduct business along the eastern corridors and the western wings. The Ten Grand Guardians await commands before the hall, while the Divine Lords of Dragon and Tiger stand guard on the left and the right. Each office can swiftly investigate, report, and verify cases, and dispose of good and evil separately. The bureaus of the yang world and the yin world respectively adjudicate the affairs of adherents of the Three Teachings—Confucianism, Buddhism, and the Dao. They record the merits of officials, generals, and chief ministers; determine the sufferings of birth, old age, sickness, and death borne by all beings; handle cases of different kinds, including humans, ghosts, and spirit-anomalies; and govern every form of life, whether womb-born, egg-born, moisture-born, or transformation-born. All matters are processed by the case clerks of the respective offices, and each affair is likewise supervised by officials of the underworld administration. Hearings never cease, and appraisal and weighing never pause. We pray that the greatly compassionate and greatly merciful, magnanimous and benevolent office-holders and bureau colleagues of the Yue court, together with the officials and registrars of the various departments of Mount Tai, bestow grace and protect all living beings.

At this time, after the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning (Yuanshi Tianzun, a revered deity of Daoism) had finished the incantation and the ten honorific titles, the divine perfected beings of all the heavens respectfully offered praise and together acclaimed it as excellent.

The Celestial Worthy then said to the four Perfected: Whether kings and emperors, empresses and consorts and members of the palace household, or officials of the prefectures and counties and the common people, if they encounter warfare and banditry, locust plagues, drought and flood, infestations of rats, and epidemics, they need only recite this scripture (Jing), and the world will be at peace, the winds and rains timely, the five grains abundant in harvest, and the people able to live in peace and be content in their work.

If someone is confined in prison and has long worn instruments of punishment, reciting this scripture can bring pardon and release from shackles. If someone’s fate meets with baleful stars and illness clings to the body, reciting this scripture can turn the encounter toward auspicious stars and remove calamity. If someone wishes to seek office and promotion and to achieve merit and renown, reciting this scripture can bring advancement in official rank and salary and appointment to a prominent post. If someone suffers poverty and prays for prosperity, reciting this scripture can bring ample wealth and goods, with neither clothing nor food lacking.

If someone suffers penal harm, has no offspring, or is widowed, orphaned, or left alone, reciting this scripture can obtain children and bring the birth of intelligent, refined, and handsome sons, so that descendants continue without end. For those whose family fortunes have declined and who are disturbed by malign spirits, reciting this scripture can make the household prosper and cause demons and evils to withdraw. If, when building a house and breaking ground, no auspicious day can be found, and one offends the divine baleful agents that govern the land, so that chickens and dogs behave abnormally and disasters arise again and again, reciting this scripture can lift the prohibitions of the earth and bring peace to the home.

If someone is troubled by wrongful enmities, curses, or nightmares, reciting this scripture can dispel them. For those who travel, engage in trade, or plan affairs, reciting this scripture can make their movements safe, their journeys by water and land smooth, their official careers unimpeded, and their undertakings fulfilled as they wish.

If this scripture is recited for deceased parents, forebears, relatives by marriage, lonely souls, and the like, the dead can be reborn in the Pure Land and long enjoy peace and happiness. Those who recite the scripture should first fast and purify themselves and bathe, put on clean new clothes, and sit upright to recite; in this way they can move the benevolent spirits of the Five Marchmounts to recommend them and the celestial deities of the ten directions to protect them.

If faithful men and women pray with sincere hearts, they may invite a Daoist priest of Zhengyi (Orthodox Unity) and, in a palace, abbey, or temple, or at home, light lamps and offer fruit, and have the scripture recited ten times, or even several dozen or several hundred times; so long as they pray sincerely, their wishes will be fulfilled.

If someone gives money and property without the least reluctance, and according to his or her means has this scripture printed—a hundred scrolls, a thousand scrolls, or even more—and distributes copies in all directions so that the text circulates for people to read, recite, and uphold, this can move the Holy Emperors of the Five Marchmounts to dispatch the civil and military officials of the marchmount bureaus, the ministers and grandees, and the household members of the holy palaces to protect and support them, to bestow blessings and prolong life, and to remove disasters and adversities; the faults of the past and of the present life are likewise dissolved. In this way the foundations of the state can also be made secure, the year’s harvest abundant, the people peaceful and at ease, and the dead enabled to transcend and be reborn.

The meritorious benefits of this scripture are inexhaustible. The mysterious and wondrous principles it expounds must not be rashly divulged and should be treated with caution.

Thereupon the Celestial Worthy gave instruction once more: May the world endure and flourish, the four seasons bring abundant harvests of the five grains, all beings dwell in peace, and the dead be delivered and pass on to new life. The merit and benefit of this scripture (Jing) are without end. The profound principles within it have now been set forth; they must not be carelessly disclosed, but should be guarded and treasured with care.

The Celestial Worthy then once again explained the fundamental origin of the Sacred Peak, the Great Emperor of the Eastern Peak, so as to bring you to awakening, and said:

The Ancestral Master of the Limitless, formless and nameless, transcending all things, is deep and indistinct, numinous, subtle, and vast, like the Great Void. Supreme truth is without a second, noble of itself; in silence it turns and transforms the mysterious primordial Great Dao (the Way), and abides in the highest realm.

Presiding over the ten directions, its vastness is yet as a grain of millet; circulating through the eight quarters, it gathers all beings within its embrace. The Honored One of the Jade Aurora, of the Void Sovereign’s wondrous Dao, proclaims the scriptural teachings and opens the gate of profound mystery.

He patrols the Xuanji stars and the Ji lunar mansion, passing to and fro between sun and moon; his light shines everywhere, without bound or limit. The Supreme Sovereign of Primordial Chaos descends into the human world as the master of the Three Teachings, who saves beings without measure.

To the west he manifests as a Golden Immortal and teaches living beings in the region of the Flowing Sands; to the east he instructs Nifu, that is, Confucius, and that teaching runs through past and present. After cultivating through three thousand two hundred kalpas, he becomes the Tathagata Buddha, the Pure and Tranquil King of Awakening.

Through hundreds of millions of kalpas he becomes the supreme Miluo Ancestor, bearing the title of the Boundless, Measureless Great Celestial Worthy. The Dao of Great Mystery, of the Limitless, and of True Emptiness runs through past, future, and present.

He commands the celestial emperors of the Thirty-Six Heavens, together with the perfected immortals of worlds as countless as the sands of the Ganges. Some dwell in heaven, some among humankind, and some live hidden in the mountains of the host of immortals.

They relieve the dead and deliver the living, meeting no obstruction. They come in response to the karmic conditions of beings, and their wondrous working cannot be measured. Whether in other realms or in this one, they set out as soon as they hear a call for help, and they are ever present in the Nine Earths and the Three Paths—the dark offices of the underworld and the places of suffering—to rescue beings in distress.

Their concealment and manifestation, their transformations, cannot be fathomed; immortals, ordinary people, Buddhas, and sages alike cannot know them fully. In compassion they display every form as a model for the salvation of beings, so that countless sentient beings receive aid.

They lift beings out of sinful karma, enabling them, across measureless kalpas, to be reborn; they dispel disaster and remove misfortune, and their wondrous working is inconceivable. Fine rays of light shine throughout the ritual assembly, and beings of the Six Destinies—the six destinations of rebirth within the cycle of transmigration—and of the Ninefold Darkness, the depths of the underworld, all obtain liberation.

Auspicious vapors wind about as the gods arrive in precious carriages; auspicious light flashes as they descend upon the jasper altar. I now take refuge and bow in worship before the deity of the Peak, wishing that the Three Realms and the Ten Directions may all receive benefit.

When the Celestial Worthy had finished this verse, everyone bowed the head in refuge and paid homage to the Celestial Worthy.

The Greatly Life-Giving, Equal-to-Heaven, Benevolent and Primordial Holy Emperor of the Eastern Peak (Dongyue); the Holy Emperors of the Four Peaks and the Four Heavens, together with the civil and military lords and ministers of Mount Dai; Empress Shuming of Kun De (Virtue) of the Principal Palace of the Eastern Peak; the True Lord, Senior Minister of the Eastern Peak, Director of Fate and Guardian of the Realm; Prince Bingling, the Benevolent and Gracious King, heir of the Upper Hall of the Eastern Peak; Bixia Yuanjun, Celestial Immortal and Jade Maiden of Mount Tai of the Eastern Peak, Primordial Goddess of the Azure Clouds; the divinities of the Eastern Peak who govern the increase and decrease of blessings; the Holy Mother and Primordial Goddess of the Eastern Peak who protects the peace of descendants and safeguards women in childbirth; the God of Loyal Protection and Exalted Grace of Jiangdong; and General Zhu, Grand Commandant of the Peak Administration, the chief and deputy marshals who command the troops, and the underworld officials of the Seventy-Five Bureaus of the Peak Court together with the officials of the court assembly—all are included in this company.

At this moment the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning (Yuanshi Tianzun) once again addressed the imperial lords of the various heavens and the Perfected (Zhenren), saying, “Since living beings have earnestly taken refuge, acknowledged their faults, and repented with sincere hearts, all sentient beings can receive benefit.”

Having received this instruction, the four Perfected offered a hymn of praise:

The Azure Emperor is the most revered of the Five Sacred Peaks;

he nurtures and upholds all living beings.

He presides over seventy-two offices of authority,

and the myriad things depend on him to grow and multiply.

He is the imperial lord of the middle realm,

commanding the immortals and the Perfected.

He is able to remove every transgression,

so that both the living and the dead receive his grace.

When the hymn had been offered, clouds of the Dharma were seen drifting faint and far, and the assembled immortals rode the clouds back to the Cinnabar Empyrean (Danxiao, the celestial realm as spoken of in Daoism). The immortal hosts of all the heavens were filled with joy and exultation. They performed the full prostration, bowing until their heads touched the ground, before the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning, then withdrew, faithfully accepting and putting into practice what they had received.

Here ends the Wondrous Scripture (Jing) of the Mysterious Model, Proclamations, and Incantations, Spoken by the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning on the Transformation Body of the Eastern Peak, Which Saves the Living, Delivers the Dead, Uproots Sins, Resolves Grievances, and Protects Life.