《太上无极总真文昌大洞仙经》

The Supreme Wuji Comprehensive Perfection Wenchang Great Cavern Scripture of the Immortals (Taishang Wuji Zongzhen Wenchang Dadong Xianjing), Volume One.

Preface composed by the Celestial Worthy of the Nine Heavens, Opener of Transformation and Sovereign Ruler, Clear and True in Correct Contemplation, Precious Radiance and Compassionate Response, Renewer of Life and Prolonger of Destiny.

Revised and edited by the True Lord of Supreme Mystery and Unsurpassed High Virtue (Taixuan Wushang Shangde Zhenjun), Master of the Cavern of Mount Gan and Moweii.

I used to live in the fields and farm. One day, beneath my hoe, I suddenly dug up a golden statue. I asked the elders of the village about it, and they said it was an image of the Celestial King of Primordial Beginning (Yuanshi Tianwang, a revered Daoist deity). Long ago, when Yu the Great controlled the floods, he had cast golden images to guard the mountains in the four directions. So I made offerings of incense to it and never grew negligent.

Later, wind and waves surged up from the sea, and no human strength could hold them back. To save the people, I threw the golden statue into the raging waters, and the storm subsided at once. The whole region was spared. Much later, one night, a beam of light shot from the sandy ground straight up to the sky. I dug away the sand and found the old statue again. I brought it home, built a shrine to house it, and made offerings together with my fellow villagers. Over the years its efficacy was revealed so many times that I cannot record them all.

My parents died, to my sorrow, in an epidemic. I kept watch at their grave and added earth around the tomb. At that time three divine beings came to visit me: the Perfected Zhen Dingguang, Yu Luoqiao, and Guang Miaoyin. They wore kudzu-cloth headscarves and feathered rough-cloth robes, and straw sandals on their feet. They gave me a scroll of the Great Cavern Scripture (Dadong Jing) and said: "Recite it morning and evening, and you will surely obtain good fruits. At the highest level, it can help the souls of your parents and ancestors escape the sufferings of the underworld. At the middle level, it can dispel sins and calamities and bring longer life and greater fortune. At the lowest level, it can shelter your clan and aid others, so that all may live in peace." They told me to give up my gold and treasures and to bow to the three of them as a sign that I was willing to be taught, and they said they would petition on my behalf for the transmission of the scripture's methods. That very day I did as instructed: I held a purification feast, offered gold and silk, and took them as my teachers and received the scripture.

From then on I recited the scripture morning and evening without interruption, and received efficacious responses again and again. One year in high summer, a flood rose over my parents' grave. I bowed before the golden statue and made offerings, recited the Great Cavern Scripture, and vowed to complete one thousand recitations so that the grave might be kept safe. In autumn of the following year, days of heavy rain made the streams swell, and several of them merged into a single expanse of water, which worried me even more. When the flood receded and I went to look, the stream valley in front of the grave had turned into firm, high ground more than a li wide. Ever since, the pines and cypresses around the burial ground have no longer suffered from flooding.

I often thought of my parents dying in the epidemic. I hated the plague demons for harming people and longed to take revenge, but humans and demons live in separate realms and I was powerless. So every morning and evening I diligently recited the Great Cavern Immortal Scripture (Dadong Xianjing) and sincerely prayed to the golden statue to grant me the power to subdue the plague demons. Three years later, I suddenly dreamed that the golden statue spoke to me: "You have already memorized the Great Cavern Immortal Scripture, but you have not yet seen the Great Cavern Registers of Ritual Methods (Dadong Falu, a Daoist text transmitting ritual techniques and talismans). Now it should be passed to you, so that you may use it to subdue evil demons. This will fulfill your original wish, and also help Heaven carry out its work of transformation, assist the state, and rescue the people." From its sleeve the golden statue drew out two books, and I bowed and received them. One was called the Great Cavern Register (Dadong Lu) and the other the Great Cavern Method (Dadong Fa). When I woke, the two books were indeed beside my pillow. After holding a purification feast, I put the books in a case and chose a day to take them out and read them.

When I read the line "Ten thousand celestial guard soldiers descend to the world to deliver people," suddenly, in broad daylight, wind and thunder roared and the sky darkened. Many soldiers and officers in golden armor, with red sashes at their waists, lined up before me and bowed low to await my orders. One of them stood at the head of the ranks holding a red banner and said: "We are willing to serve at your command." In my daze, I could not help commanding them in a loud voice to go and drive out the plague demons: "In this village, the whole family of so-and-so has caught the plague. Drive the plague demons here for me!" The banner-bearer led more than a hundred soldiers into that house, and before long they dragged out five demon envoys. Some wore tiger skins, some wore rooster combs, some looked like humans, and some resembled crows, donkeys, or horses. In their hands they held implements such as water and fire vessels, feather fans, and chisels.

I rebuked them angrily and was about to destroy them, but they pleaded in their defense: "We are born according to the Qi (vital energy) fortunes of each year, and we act according to the allotted fate of that year. Where we go and whom we make ill are all fixed. Whoever receives the punishment decreed in the underworld suffers calamity, and those whose heavenly-appointed lifespan has run out also die because of it. We do not act on our own authority. The matter begins when the Three Offices and the Five Peaks report to the Jade Emperor and present the sins of humankind. After the Jade Emperor gives the order, the Three Offices and Five Peaks arrange for the plague to be carried out. The Year King (Nianwang, a deity in charge of each year's epidemics and the registers of life and death) issues documents region by region and dispatches us, and we all act according to the established rolls. If the Perfected Official is willing to pardon us, we will from now on accept his restraint. In future, whenever we spread plague, we will not go to any place where we see the Perfected Official's talismans."

So I taught them the teachings according to the scripture's methods, and they left. For the villagers who had caught the plague, I gave talismans and methods, and thanks to this they all kept their lives. After that, I used these registers to heal many sick people. My name spread far and wide, and scholars, commoners, and officials came to my door one after another seeking cures, in numbers too great to count.

All the subtle merit I have accumulated comes from upholding the recitation of the Great Cavern Immortal Scripture and from receiving the Great Cavern Registers of Ritual Methods. Through them I have been able to summon spirits, set right what is upright and expel what is evil, rescue the living, deliver the dead, and dispel calamity and extend life. Later, powerful ghosts and spirits of the underworld, and the heroic spirits of local shrines, also came to ask me to recite the scripture and dedicate the merit to them. They all said that by the power of the Perfected Official's scriptural methods, their authority and virtue had increased and their spirits had been moved into the registers of the good. There were also souls sunk in the underworld who could not be reborn; they came through dreams or possessed people to ask me to recite the scripture to deliver them. Afterward they all came to thank me, saying that by the power of the scripture's methods they had escaped the realms of suffering and been born again.

When a plague is spreading and the contagion will not stop, one need only recite this scripture and carry out the talismans within the registers for dispatching plague, cutting off plague, and halting plague. Through these one can summon the celestial guard soldiers and nine divisions of divine officials: the officials who seize plague and devour plague, seize poison and devour poison, seize evil and devour evil, seize Qi and devour Qi, seize ghosts and devour ghosts, seize calamity and devour calamity, and seize essence (Jing) and devour essence; the divine-physician officials who cure illness; and the officials who execute by talisman and destroy temples. Each division leads its own armored soldiers. In addition there are the five hundred million mounted Heavenly Officials of the black cavalry of the north, the aged Magu, and the Vajra strongmen, who together seize the evil of plague. When performing the rite, one first sends a document to the Year King, then reports to Daiyue (the divine office of Mount Tai), and assigns the City God and the Altar Commanders to handle the matter, issuing documents to send away the plague envoys. If evil spirits refuse to submit and still do not withdraw, and even after hearing the scripture do not keep their covenant, only then should one petition Heaven to have them destroyed.

The Great Dao (Dao) esteems compassion, Taiqing (the Supreme Purity, the highest Daoist state of clarity and stillness) always harbors goodwill, and the Lord on High cherishes life. When someone must be apprehended, a notice should first be sent to the Year King (the deity in charge of years and calamities) and then reported to Daiyue (Mount Tai and its deities). The matter is then handed over to the City God (Chenghuang) and the Earth God (Sheling), the deities who guard cities and localities, and plague envoys are dispatched. If the offender defies the true Way, refuses to submit and withdraw, and, having heard the scripture, still does not keep the covenant, only then are memorials submitted and punishment imposed.

The Great Dao esteems compassion, Taiqing always harbors goodwill, and the Lord on High cherishes life. One must therefore promote benevolence and put an end to killing. Those who practice the scriptural methods and the Falu (ritual registers, the talismans and ritual documents transmitted in Daoism) must not act out of favoritism or harshness, nor use violence recklessly, lest they bring down Heaven's censure. They may send the offender away with proper ritual propriety, exhort them with the scripture, display authority through the registers, and then guide them with good deeds. This too is an expedient path of cultivation. Those who practice the methods of this scripture and its registers should act with care, so as to establish profound and subtle merit.

This scripture (Jing) is held in the highest esteem. It can dissolve grievances and bonds of enmity, resolve disputes over graves, halt the penalties that follow from guilt, and remove the misfortunes caused by curses and offenses against the spirits. It can also settle tombs and dwellings, bring peace to military camps, quell war and epidemics, and secure favorable winds and timely rain. It brings auspicious omens, promotes the harvests of silkworms, mulberry, and grain, protects lives and kin, aids the state and the localities, steadies the borders, curbs insect plagues and tigers, calms drought and flood, destroys demons, and ends many kinds of disaster. For the spirits who receive offerings, for aiding the consciousness of ancestors, and for relieving the dead who are stranded and distressed, one may likewise hold Zhaijiao (purification rites), chant the scripture, and perform the rites to avert calamity and atone for faults.

As for curing illness and neutralizing poisons, there is also the Divine Formula of the Celestial Physician of the Purple Court (the heavenly medical arts transmitted in Daoism). It is a boon left by Emperor Yu and Queen Jin, and it benefits later generations, sparing people from premature death and accidental harm and, from time to time, from plague and disaster. Those who follow the Daoist path should seek out and study these methods in order to attain immortal merit.

In the past I was born in Wuhui (present-day Jiangsu and Zhejiang), and through the merit of this scripture I attained the rank of Fanzhen Tathagata. The later practice of reciting and upholding this scripture is likewise a boon left by Emperor Yu and Queen Jin, which benefits later generations, sparing people from premature death and accidental harm and, from time to time, from plague and disaster. Those who follow the Daoist path should seek out and study it in order to attain immortal merit.

I was once born in the region of Wuhui, and through the merit of cultivating this scripture (jing), I attained the rank of "Tathagata Fanzhen." Afterward I kept on reciting and upholding it diligently, and further attained such honored ranks as "Supreme Unproud Heavenly Sovereign of Joyful Nurture" and "Celestial Worthy of Purified Truth and Right Contemplation, of Precious Light, Compassionate Response, Renewed Life, and Eternal Destiny." Because of my diligence in reciting the scripture, I finally obtained the exalted position of Shangqing (Highest Clarity). Is such a scripture not worthy of deep reverence and of being transmitted to others? Those who receive the transmission and recite it should strive to cultivate in accordance with the text. May all be able, together with the assembly of Wenchang, to ascend to the sublime realm of cultivation.

This scripture was revealed on the Phoenix Terrace in the autumn of the Wuzi year of the Qiandao era, and was held up by Liu Ansheng. In the autumn of the Jiazi year of the Jingding era it was revealed once more and re-collated in the Mowei Cave on Bietou Mountain; Jinlian Shi presided over the altar, and Luo Yizi held it up. Later, on the Double Ninth Festival in the Chrysanthemum Month of the Xuanmo Shetige year, it was revealed yet again at the Weisheng Zongzhen Altar on Guiyan at Xiling.

The Scripture on Salvation (Duren Jing) and the Book of the Great Cavern (Dadong Shu) are the root of all scriptures; they are the "Millet-Grain Pearl" and the "Cangru Treasure," and the wellspring of all the sages. These two texts share one source and differ only in name; they generate Heaven and Earth, nurture the profound principle, and branch out into the many scriptures. These words are not speech meant to deceive the people or delude the world, but the essential key for reaching the sacred realm and awakening the spirits (shen); they govern the creative transformations of Heaven and Earth and drive the pivotal mechanism of the myriad things.

The scripture has no ornate rhymes, and its chapters do not strive for rhetorical embellishment, so its meaning is deep and mysterious, hard to probe exhaustively; it is truly a classic prized by Heaven. Since the time of Wuji (the Limitless), how could it ever be allowed to go missing? People of the world know only to recite the Scripture on Salvation, and do not know to recite the Dadong Jing. This is because I once composed a commentary on the Scripture on Salvation to make plain its purport, but had not yet written verses of praise for the Dadong Jing. Now I have instructed my attendant disciples to carve printing blocks and circulate it, and I will also compose verses of praise to make manifest its merit, hoping that readers may understand it more easily and reciters may grasp it more readily.

Explaining the Meaning of the Scripture

In the beginning, the sounds of Canghu Tanchi condensed into clouds of qi (qi), which transformed into seal-script characters, used to deliver the heavenly beings.

When the Taixuan Father of the Dao personally sought and received the transmission, the virtue (De) and meaning of this Dadong Jing were passed on to the world.

In the beginning, it issued forth from the Cang-Hu-Tan-Chi sound, condensing cloud-qi (Qi) into talismanic script (fulu) to deliver the beings of Heaven and the human world.

The Supreme Father of the Dao, Taixuan (the venerable deity of the highest mystery of the Dao), personally sought to transmit it. Only after it descended to the lower realm did people come to hear of the Dadong Jing (Great Cavern Scripture).

The Path of Cultivating Perfection

Ordinary people who wish to study the true Dao and grasp its principles find that the source of the immortal path is distant and profound, and truly hard to trace.

If you wish to know a simple route that will not go astray, recite the Dadong Jing with your mouth and hold to it in your heart.

Praying for Rank, Emolument, and Offspring

When one's ancestral line accumulated little merit from good deeds in former lives, seeking rank, emolument, and children in this life becomes quite difficult.

If you wish your prayers to be answered, nothing is better than diligently reading the Dadong Jing.

Averting Calamities of Heaven

The sun and moon lose their radiance, and disasters follow one upon another. The stars move in disorder, and the celestial signs fall into confusion.

To remove misfortune from the heavens and bring peace to the people, practitioners of the Dao should proclaim the Dadong Jing together.

Praying for Wind and Rain, and Protecting Farming and Sericulture

Drought rages, and rain is as precious as gold. Plagues of insects and locusts and floods strike in succession, and hope for a grain harvest fades.

To ensure a bountiful harvest for all and spare the people from famine, rely on reciting and praying with the Dadong Jing.

Instructing the People

Artisans, merchants, farmers, and people of every trade often create karmic causes without noticing, through their craving, and bitter consequences follow.

Even amid busy lives, one should set aside some effort to study and recite the Wenchang Dadong Jing.

Securing Treasuries and Ending War

When government storehouses are well supplied and weapons are laid down forever, the world will be stable and at peace.

If the people sing the praises of governance in accord with the Dao and hope for the nation's lasting stability, they should diligently read the Dadong Jing as a way of repaying their debt to the country.

Providing for Ghosts and Spirits

The deities of village shrines and the spirits of every region wish for promotion, yet seem to lack a means of achieving it.

So that their names may be entered in the registers of the good and their powers increased, they should hear the Dadong Jing morning and evening.

Delivering One's Ancestors

The souls of relatives, kinsmen, and parents may linger long in the underworld, unable to be delivered and ascend. One wishes to raise them up but feels powerless.

Therefore, observe fasting and precepts and diligently read the Dadong Jing, praying for the deliverance of the dead.

Dispelling Lawsuits Arising from Graves

Lawsuits and investigations arising from problems with graves can implicate later generations. In addition, Heaven's court may hand down penalties.

Such misfortunes leave bitter consequences from generation to generation. To resolve and end them, recite the Dadong Jing.

Resolving Offenses and Securing Graves and Dwellings

Some people offend the malevolent spirits through building houses, constructing tombs, or breaking ground, and as a result their households suffer repeated calamities. To dispel such misfortune and find peace, one should recite the Dadong Jing (Scripture of the Great Cavern, a Daoist classic).

Dispelling Plague

When epidemics spread, the Five Plague Spirits (deities who, in traditional belief, govern pestilence) travel through every prefecture, county, and village, harming the people. To protect one's neighbors from contagion, one should purify body and mind and study the Dadong Jing together.

Curing Illness

Some people meet with inauspicious years and are long afflicted by illness. Consulting physicians and diviners and praying to the spirits cannot relieve their suffering, and they have nowhere to lodge their appeal. At such a time, one should take refuge in the Daoist community and recite the Dadong Jing.

Delivering Sunken and Stagnant Souls

The souls of men and women among the Six Kinds of Grievance and Kinship (those bound to the deceased by karmic grievance or by family ties) lie sunken and stagnant in the dark underworld. One should proclaim to them everywhere that they may receive the Daoist rite of salvation (liandu), so that they may ascend to the heavens; one should also study the Dadong Jing regularly.

Resolving Grievances

Within the Six Paths (the six destinies of rebirth for living beings), feuding enemies nurse deep resentments, and vengeance answers vengeance with no end in sight. If one wishes both sides to find joy, the only way is to hear the Dadong Jing.

Halting Curses

Some people, quarreling over money or in a fit of anger, call upon the spirits and cast curses, and thereby create disputes that seem never to be settled. To dissolve such entanglements, one should recite the Dadong Jing.

Quelling Manifold Misfortunes

Illness and death follow one upon another, lawsuits, disasters, and thieves come in succession, and wealth melts away like ice and snow. To seek protection, one should recite the Dadong Jing.

Eliminating Demons

Spirits and sprites of trees, stones, foxes, monkeys, dogs, and the like can hurl bricks and start fires, take on human form, lord it over people, and demand improper sacrifices. To eliminate these demons, one should study the Dadong Jing.

Opening the Mind and Awakening Intelligence

Scholars find their minds clouded, and even a child prodigy answers questions without sharpness. If one wishes to be aided by the spirits when taking up the brush, one should first recite the Dadong Jing regularly.

Preserving Body and Life

The human body is like a dream, an illusion, a bubble, a shadow; it does not last forever. One should cultivate the true Dao (the Way) within Qi (vital energy) and Shen (spirit). Treasure and preserve the body and life so that they endure as long as heaven itself; read the Wenchang Dadong Jing (Scripture of the Great Cavern) closely and take its meaning to heart.

Admonition against the Wealthy

Do not rely on a rich household or on ten thousand pieces of gold laid up in store. If the Heavenly Office (the celestial bureau that keeps the registers of fortune and emolument) takes away your blessings and emolument, the family estate will easily collapse. When the right moment comes, you should cultivate merit by using your own wealth to print and circulate the Dadong Jing.

Account of Responses

If a single sincere heart reaches Shangqing (the Highest Pure Heaven, the upper heavenly realm in Daoism), then after this resonance one receives transmission from the Three Spirits. This very body can attain the rank of a Celestial Venerable, and this comes from diligently reading the Dadong Jing.

Two Verses of Universal Exhortation

Listen as I speak again and again of the Dadong Jing: this scripture is profound and subtle, and words cannot exhaust it; its merit is vast and boundless, beyond measure. I urge people to turn to the Dao with sincerity and reach Shangqing; after this resonance, they receive transmission from the Three Spirits. This body attains the rank of a Celestial Venerable precisely because of diligent reading of the Dadong Jing.

Listen as I speak again and again of the Dadong Jing: this scripture is profound and subtle, and words cannot exhaust it; its merit is vast and boundless, beyond measure. I urge ordinary people not to take it lightly.

The Heavenly Sovereign of the Primordial Beginning (Yuanshi Tianwang, a revered Daoist deity) expounded the Mahayana teaching; only those with the proper affinity can encounter this honored scripture. If one practices and recites it diligently from beginning to end, one will enter the assembly of the Dao together with Wenchang.

Essential Verses by the Old Man of Qinghe

Among the scriptures of the Three Caverns (the Daoist system for classifying scriptures), the jade voice (sacred utterance) is the most precious. Its chapters and lines are gracefully arranged, radiant as pearls, jade, gold, and stone. The scripture dispels calamity and wards off evil and misfortune; it instructs the people between heaven and earth and brings countless beings to liberation.

The great Dao spreads widely and condenses into the Dongjing (Cavern Scripture); it aids the multitude and benefits all things, and its merit has no limit. If a mortal body wishes to become one who ascends and becomes an immortal, it should purify the heart and recite this wondrous text.

The Dao is originally without sound or speech; it was only so that the sages might spread the Way that they established teachings and reluctantly expressed it in words. To catch fish one relies on a bamboo trap, but once the fish is caught, one need not cling to the trap. This means that scriptures and verbal teachings are a path toward understanding the great Dao, and once it is understood, one need not be bound by the words.

The Heavenly Sovereign of the Primordial Beginning first transmitted the Dadong Jing, and when the first wondrous sound was uttered, the multitude were able to hear it. The responsibility of continuing the transmission of the Dao is also entrusted to people of the present age, not only to the Celestial Venerables and the Dao Lords (revered Daoist deities).

A numinous, wondrous breeze blows softly, and the sea is free of clouds and mist; heaven and earth are clear and at ease, and the Qi of the four seasons is harmonious. But if a single stray thought stirs, the Xuanji (the pivot symbolizing the movements of the heavens) begins to turn again without rest.

Choose an auspicious day and hour to recite the scripture, and do not let the heart be burdened by the ten thousand worldly worries. Aid the multitude and benefit all things, and once merit is complete, your name will be entered in the jade slips and golden books (the registers in Daoist texts symbolizing the rolls of immortals).

"Neither wholly nonexistent nor truly existent, its nature is pure and true; it is neither form nor..."

When choosing an auspicious day and a propitious hour to recite the scripture, one must keep the mind from being stirred by the countless worries of the world.

Once one has aided the multitudes and benefited all beings, and one's merit and virtue are complete, one's name will be recorded in the jade tablets and golden books (registers symbolizing sacred merit).

The Dao (the Way) is neither void nor substantial; it transcends form, color, and sound, and stands alone without equal. If one tries to portray it through images, it is hard to truly reach it; yet within its mystery, its rank and its form are clearly distinct.

That which holds the highest position and transcends all transformations of Qi (vital energy) is the supreme true Dao. From the Longhan era (an ancient cosmic age in Daoist legend) until now, it has neither increased nor diminished, remaining pure, still, and unchanging. This is the "Great Dharma Body" (the vast essence of the Dao).

Reverently visualizing and proclaiming the talismanic decrees can release one from the entanglements of suffering and guilt in the dark prisons; it allows life to return to its source and recover its original truth, so that everyone, at all times, may be elevated.

All defilements of guilt arise from a clouded and benighted mind. The Three Evil Paths and Five Sufferings (the Daoist term for the realms of woeful rebirth and manifold afflictions) burden body, mind, and souls. After being washed by the light of heaven, the sense-roots and their dust-like objects (the faculties of body and mind and the things they perceive) all return to purity, and a person may then be transformed into an immortal and true being, paying homage to the Most Venerable.

Gradually entering the realm of Wuwei (non-action), one grasps the essential purport of the Dao, with not a speck of dust staining the heart and the thoughts perfectly open and unobstructed. Looking back down upon the three thousand worlds, one sees that all things in the end return to emptiness.

The Great Dharma Body has no shadow and no form; it is neither born nor extinguished, and is therefore called the attainment of truth. Though worn down through long ages of calamity, the still light of the spirit remains bright.

Having crossed layer upon layer of mountain passes and endured every hardship, one at last joyfully ascends the golden list. A man's resolve cannot be stopped by anyone; riding home in glory in a carriage drawn by four horses, he advances at ease.

The study of the Dao requires ample wisdom and strength; let the clear river never swell into stormy waves. Let the mind become open and fused, and enter directly into the still light of the spirit.

Merging the heart and passing beyond the rosy clouds (that is, transcending the mortal world and entering the realm of the immortals), even if one's eyes are filled with spears and halberds, they can do nothing to me.

Preface to the Scripture of the Original Vow of the Nine Heavens' Opening Transformation

Composed by the Perfected Lord Jifu, Pivotal Minister of the Northern Mansion.

This scripture was personally proclaimed by the Supreme One (Taishang) to save beings from the calamities of the final age. When the preaching ended, Taishang, acting on the Jade Decree (the will of the Jade Emperor), handed the scripture to the Inner Hall of Jade Purity for safekeeping. He commanded the heavenly deities to expand and transform its teachings, and the Perfected Ones to transmit and practice it according to the text.

Later, the scripture circulated among Daoist altars in many places. In the Shaoxi era, people gathered at the site of spiritual response to carve printing blocks and publish it, while elsewhere it was only copied by hand and recited from person to person. The people of Dingzhou delighted in doing good, and stood out above all the other prefectures. Nowhere was the Great Emperor's teaching of the people more flourishing than here. I have tended the incense offerings here for more than ten years, always single-minded and devout, never slack. The Great Emperor of Wenchang especially praised the efficacy of this place, and so handed this scripture down. I further encouraged devout believers to carve printing blocks and print the scripture for free distribution, and now at last the work is complete.

Alas! Everyone who has left their name in the Green Register (the registry in which names are recorded) and received this scripture surely hopes to live, and to be spared the suffering of war and plague. In my view, receiving the scripture is not enough; one must recite it. Reciting it alone is not enough either; one must put it into practice. How? By being filial to one's parents, respectful to one's elder brothers, loyal and trustworthy, modest and courteous, fair and generous. These are not hard to do; in the end, one need only keep to one's proper station. This is all I have to say: do these things, and calamities can be dissolved. Whether you believe or not, I cannot compel you.

Rites for Reciting the Scripture

When reciting the scripture, one should first fast and bathe, put on clean clothes, enter a chamber and burn incense, knock the teeth nine times, and bow toward the Nine Heavens. In the mind, one visualizes the Heavenly Sovereign of the Primordial Beginning, the many High Perfected Ones (revered Daoist deities), the Great Emperor of the Seven Turnings, and his transformative celestial officials descending to the assembly and arranging themselves in the void. Then one recites the incantation.

Incantation for Purifying the Mind and the Mouth Spirits

Spirit of the Cinnabar Pearl in the mouth, I ask you to expel foulness and clear away turbid Qi (vital energy). Spirit of the tongue, set right the proper order, so that the Qi of life flows freely and the Shen (spirit) is nourished. Spirit of the thousand teeth, drive out evil Qi and guard the true Qi. Spirit of the throat, Tiger Guard, extend the breath and guide the Jing (essence). Spirit of the heart, Cinnabar Origin, let me be in communion with the true Dao (the Way). Visualizing the spirits and refining the saliva, may the Qi of the Dao endure forever. Swiftly, swiftly, in accordance with the statutes and commands!

Incantation for Purifying the Body

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Lord of the Numinous Treasure (Lingbao Tianzun, one of the revered deities of Daoism), please calm my body and mind. May the disciple's souls be settled, and may the five organs (heart, liver, spleen, lungs, and kidneys) rest deep and still. May the Azure Dragon and White Tiger stand guard in formation, while the Vermilion Bird and Black Tortoise attend and protect my true body. May this decree take effect swiftly, as though obeying the statutes and ordinances! This incantation is to be recited twice, with the same prayer each time.

Incantation for Purifying the Three Karmas

Within the body lie many realms, and in them dwell thirty-six thousand spirits. Their movements, actions, and concealments run through past lives, this life, and lives to come. May my body and mind always be at ease and always abide in the Three Treasures (the Dao (the Way), the Scriptures, and the Master). Even when the kalpa ends and heaven and earth are destroyed, may my body endure and never perish. As this incantation is recited, the three karmas of body, speech, and mind (action, word, and thought) are purified.

Incantation for Dispelling Impurity

The essence of Taiyi (the Supreme Unity, the highest deity revered in Daoism) and the bloom of the Bundled Well flow through and moisten the body, washing away filth and baleful Qi (vital energy). May I be as clean as a bright pearl and as pure as a lotus, transformed into a body of golden light. Treading on brocaded clouds and rosy radiance, may I ascend the Hall of Seven Treasures and become a true immortal. May this decree be swiftly obeyed, as though it were the ordinance of the Primordial August Lord, Sovereign of the Nine Heavens' Transformation!

Incantation for Purifying Heaven and Earth

Heaven and earth lie in chaos, and impure Qi is scattered between them. The void is mysterious and luminous, its brilliance lighting the Great Beginning. May I ascend the Hall of Seven Treasures and become a true immortal. May this decree be swiftly obeyed, as though it were the ordinance of the Primordial August Lord, Sovereign of the Nine Heavens' Transformation!

Heaven and earth lie in chaos, and impure Qi is scattered. The cavern-heavens are void and mysterious, and their radiance lights the Great Beginning. The Three Pure Ones (Sanqing, the supreme Daoist deities) send down jade decrees, and their light shines on the roads in every direction. The spirits of the eight directions display their might, so that I may follow the course of nature. The Lingbao talismanic mandate is proclaimed to the Nine Heavens: "Qian luo da na, Dong gang tai xuan." Cut down monsters, bind malevolent spirits, and slay the myriad ghosts and demons. The Zhongshan incantation is the jade text of the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning; recite it once, and ghosts and demons are driven off and life is lengthened. Surveying the Five Peaks, may the Eight Seas all hear it; may the demon kings bow their heads, accept their bonds, and come to serve in my retinue. May all malevolence and impurity be washed away, and may pure Daoist Qi endure forever.

Incantation for Purifying the Altar

Taishang (the Supreme One, the highest Dao (the Way)) expounds the teachings, and the golden bells sound the five tones. All defilements are hidden away in the depths of the Nine Earths, and the multitude of demons stand guard over the Qianlin grove. Heavenly flowers scatter like a falling rain of Dharma, and the resounding drums of the Law awaken those lost in delusion and darkness. All the heavens rejoice and cry "Excellent!", while the Golden Youths play their jade zithers. I vow to gather the rosy glow of the eight directions to illuminate my aspiration to take refuge in the Great Dao. May I soon ascend the Dao's bridge of the Law and attend in the depths of the five-colored auspicious clouds. Swiftly, swiftly, in accordance with the statutes and ordinances!

Incantation for Pacifying the Earth (a spell to settle the land and notify the local spirits)

Yuanshi (the Primordial Beginning, a revered Daoist deity) pacifies this land, and the Golden Youths play their jade zithers. I vow to gather the rosy glow of the eight directions to illuminate my aspiration to take refuge in the Great Dao. May I soon ascend the Dao's bridge of the Law and attend in the depths of the five-colored auspicious clouds. Swiftly, swiftly, in accordance with the statutes and ordinances!

Incantation for Pacifying the Earth

Yuanshi pacifies this land and proclaims to all the spirits of every quarter: the true officials of the mountains and rivers, and the spirits of the earth, the Altar God on the left and the Grain God on the right. None may cause disturbance or alarm of their own accord. Lead all things back to the right path, so that within and without all is solemn, still, and clear. Let each keep to the post that is theirs, and make ready to guard the palace of the Celestial Emperor. Taishang has already issued the command to hunt down evil spirits and monstrous beings. Divine Kings who protect the Law, protect the one who recites the scripture. We take refuge in the Dao, and the Dao flows open and smooth, in accord with the way of correctness and steadfastness. Swiftly, swiftly, in accordance with the statutes and ordinances!

Incantation of the Five Stars (a spell invoking the divine power of the five stars: Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth)

The Five Stars shine in turn, brightly illuminating the five directions. The virtue of Water brings vitality and dispels calamity, and the virtue of Wood brings prosperity. Yinghuo (Mars) removes misfortune, and Taibai (Venus) scatters the disasters of war. Zhenxing (Saturn) guards the four quarters, keeping family and state secure and at peace. May the names of the divine beings be engraved on tablets of jade, and their registers entered in the halls of the Celestial Emperor. Riding the wind, they unfurl their radiance and soar through the great void. They pass in and out of the realms of the underworld and roam in joyous feasting through the ten directions. Clouds of five colors become canopies of splendor, summoning the spirits and commanding the winds and Qi (vital energy). They command the myriad spirits and ascend to guard the Immortal Elder.

Opening the Censer (a ritual of burning incense and invoking the spirits)

Taishang Laojun, the Most High Lord Lao of the Three Qi, the Primordial Beginning of the True Origin of the Supreme Three Heavens: please summon forth, from within our bodies, the Merit Officers of the Three and the Five, the officials and envoys of the left and right, the courier-messengers who bear the incense, the dragon riders, and the spirits of the wind. Command the myriad spirits and ascend to guard the Immortal Elder.

Opening the Censer

The Supreme Lord Lao (Taishang Laojun, a revered Daoist deity) of the Three Qi (qi, vital energy) of the Primordial Beginning, in the Three Heavens of Highest Truth, summons the Three-Five Officers of Merit (officials who deliver documents) within my body, the left and right official envoys, the incense-bearing courier dragons and mounted attendants, the incense-attending Golden Youths, the message-bearing flower-scattering Jade Maidens, as well as the Duty Talismans of the Five Emperors and the Incense Officers of the Day, thirty-six of each, all to appear together. In my mind I visualize them straightening their robes and caps as they report to the local Earth God and the regional True Officials: this is the place where I burn incense and chant the scripture (jing). The Golden Youths raise the incense, the Spirit Consorts scatter flowers, and the true sages of the Three Realms gather before the veranda.

I respectfully pray: after the chanting, may true qi (primordial energy from before birth) circulate everywhere. At the highest level, I wish to preserve the state and its altars of the realm, keep the sovereign safe, and end war, weapons, floods and fires, as well as the calamities of plague, disease, drought, and locusts. At the middle level, I wish to lengthen life and protect my whole family, dissolve the Nine Stars and Eight Disasters (hardships brought by stellar fate and misfortune), and be spared the Five Sufferings and Three Calamities (all manner of afflictions and disasters). At the lowest level, I wish to have names struck from the registers of the underworld, to escape the realm of ghosts, to have seven generations of ancestors ascend as immortals, and to have deceased relatives attain the Great Way (Dao).

Next I pray that people of every surname will flourish in fortune through the power of this scripture, and that the living beings of mountains, rivers, and lakes, having felt its sacred merit, may rise beyond the mortal world and set out on the path of the Way. I also wish that I, so-and-so, be untouched by illness and that misfortune disperse; that I devote my mind to longing for the true Way and yearn for the realm of the Radiant Immortals; that I wash away stray thoughts and clarify my heart and spirit (shen), seeking to become light in body and rise upward. Putting the aid of others and the benefit of all things first, I accumulate merit. May whatever I seek find resonance and fulfillment, and may it be heard and granted in heaven above and heaven below.

May the Upright and True Generative Breath of the Ten Directions of the Supreme One descend and flow into my body, so that my petition may swiftly reach the thrones of the Three Pure Ones (Sanqing), the Highest Sages of the Limitless Great Way, the Jade Emperor, Supreme Lord of Heaven, the Lord of Zitong, King of Letters, Martial Valor, Filial Virtue, Loyalty, and Benevolence, and the Heavenly Venerable of Great Compassion who Saves from Calamity and Renews Life Eternal.

Spell for Gathering the Spirits

Primordial Beginning, Great Truth, Five Thunders, High Venerable. Supreme Florescence shines bright, illuminating the Eight Gates.

The Five Elders hand down their decree: no darkness or secret place goes unheard. Above, it can command the Nine Heavens; in the middle, it can subdue Mount Feng (a famed mountain of the underworld).

Guarding the rivers, seas, and twelve water sources of the lower realm, I wield the Eight Majesties divine incantation along with efficacious talismanic tallies and jade script. I summon the dragon spirits to bring rain, gather in the clouds and vapors, and collect the mist. I command the sun, the moon, the Five Planets, and the Seven Primordials of the Northern Dipper. Driving the Nine Heavens, I subdue Mount Feng in the middle realm.

Guarding the rivers, seas, and twelve water sources of the lower realm, I wield the Eight Majesties divine incantation along with efficacious talismanic tallies and jade script. I summon the dragon spirits to bring rain, gather in the clouds and vapors, and collect the mist. I command the sun, the moon, the Five Planets, and the Seven Primordials of the Northern Dipper.

The Heavenly Emperor Heming issues a decree to Taixuan, proclaiming his authoritative command to the Three Realms, and no delay is permitted. All the heavens and earths, all the waters and mountains, the many spirits under the rule of the Jade Perfected, and the Great Deity Mingling must obey. As the Immortal King goes forth on a pleasure excursion, the Great Marshal carries the banners. The Heavenly Soldiers (celestial warriors) open the road in front, while the Golden Tiger follows swiftly behind.

The fierce beasts of Juetian stand guard at the four gates; whoever is called arrives at once, and whoever is summoned steps forward immediately. The red talisman script shines forth in brilliance, and the divine power of wind and fire arrives in an instant. The spirit officials in charge of Fulu (talismans and registers) act on command, and the Golden Horse swiftly carries the decrees.

Scroll One of the Supreme Limitless Comprehensive Perfection Wenchang Great Cavern Immortal Scripture (Jing) ends here.

Scroll Two of the Supreme Limitless Comprehensive Perfection Wenchang Great Cavern Immortal Scripture (Jing).

Revised and corrected by the Cavern Master of Mount Gan and Moweii, the True Lord of Taixuan, Supreme and Highest De (Virtue).

Incense Invocation (burning incense and offering prayer).

May auspicious winds and sweet rains gather the numinous beauty of the five fragrances. With the highest De (Virtue) and compassion, may you discern the sincerity entrusted to this single wisp of incense smoke. The incense smoke can reach boundless realms; though without form or substance, it rises like mist. Through these curling fragrant clouds, we universally express our offering; with one mind and reverence, we pray that the myriad spirits observe us from afar.

May the divine powers open the golden key and praise the jeweled verses (sacred scripture); may precious light shine everywhere and clear sacred chants resound. May the dead be reborn and the living be delivered; may every vow be fulfilled. May all beings throughout the world, covered by the heavens and borne by the earth, who share the affinity, enter the true Dao (the Way). Now, in accordance with the ritual, we present these hymns and proclaim them with reverence.

May all give rise to the highest and most sincere intention, and pray to join the Wenchang Society of Emolument and Heirs (a ritual assembly honoring Wenchang and praying for blessings, prosperity, and offspring).

Taking refuge in the Three Treasures of the Dao (the Way), the Jing (scripture), and the Master, together with all the many methods of salvation, may every vow we make be fulfilled. All those with affinity, covered by Heaven above and borne by Earth below, will receive confirmation. Invocation verses already exist, and I respectfully proclaim them here.

Let everyone arouse a supremely sincere heart and vow to enter the Wenchang Lusi Assembly (a ritual gathering that seeks Wenchang's protection and the continued inheritance of blessings and emoluments). We take refuge in the Three Treasures and in the ancestral masters of every generation, hoping only that the ancestral masters, in their compassion, will constantly protect and guide us.

We look up and invoke the realm of the Three Pure Ones (Sanqing: the Jade Pure, Upper Pure, and Supreme Pure realms of Daoism) and pay homage to the venerable deities of the three supreme realms. The Great Dharma King of Primordial Beginning (the Celestial Venerable of Primordial Beginning) is the truly compassionate master of the teaching. The Great Dao Lord of Jade Aurora is the father of the profound Dao. We look up and invoke the supreme sovereign of the mysterious firmament in Daluo Heaven (the highest heaven in Daoist cosmology), and we invoke as well all the true spirits who attend the Celestial Venerables in the realm of the Three Pure Ones.

Cang Hujie (a legendary divine being) received a precious pearl, and from it the Great Cavern Scripture (Dadong Jing) was composed. Its subtle Dao is beyond comprehension, and from its jade chapters ten thousand spirits are born. The greatly compassionate Celestial Venerable of Primordial Beginning appeared as a golden image and emerged from the Earth Gate. He also manifested three divine beings in hemp robes and bestowed gold and treasure upon them. In a dream the Celestial Venerable gave them two books and passed down the methods of Fulu (talismans and registers) as well. The spirit of Wenchang was transformed and revealed in this way, and it responds efficaciously to whatever people wish.

Now I purify the three karmas of body, speech, and mind, and I cut off forever the root of the Blood Corpse (in Daoist practice, the source of defilement tied to meat-eating and killing). Bearing the Fulu, I enter the Jade Capital (the dwelling of the Heavenly Emperor) and bow my head before the Golden Gate Tower (the gate of the heavenly palace). With my whole body and a single mind I pay homage to the Great Dharma King of Primordial Beginning. I humbly ask the greatly compassionate Celestial Venerable to accept my plea, and I vow to visualize and recite in silence, cutting off the root of the Blood Corpse forever.

Bearing the Fulu, I enter the Jade Capital, bow my head before the Golden Gate Tower, and with a single mind pay homage to the Great Dharma King of Primordial Beginning. I humbly ask the Celestial Venerable, in compassion, to accept my plea. May my silent contemplation and visualization unite me with Emperor One (Diyi, a divine being revered in Daoist inner cultivation), so that I transcend the mortal world, enter the Yellow Court (Huangting, in Neidan the dwelling place of the body's spirits and Qi), and ascend together to the immortal realm beyond the Great Desolation. May my ancestors of seven generations be released from obstruction in the underworld, receive their heavenly offices, and attend the court of the Jade Emperor.

May a hundred spirits and the whole host of deities gather when I recite this scripture. May the sound of the recitation reach upward through ten thousand heavens and downward to the nine earths. May every wish be fulfilled just as the scripture says. From here I will advance steadily in my practice, attain the Dao in the end, and serve all the sages.

To the filial companions at this scripture gathering (fellow practitioners who study the scriptures and practice filial piety together): with hearts firm as metal and stone, we vow never to change our original resolve. With every bow and every utterance of a sacred name, we take refuge in the Lord of Seven Turns (an honorific for Lord Wenchang). We visualize the Primordial Mother of Longevity in the Primal Azure Heaven (one of the Daoist heavens), and we visualize the true land of Wenchang at Purple Cloud Cliff. The compassionate father and mother of the posterior heaven are manifested in the Cassia Fragrance Palace, where filial sons and loving grandchildren stand in rows to attend their benevolent faces.

May the Celestial Venerable accept our sincere homage and radiate a vast, wish-fulfilling light, manifesting efficacious responses in our thoughts and dreams, so that blessings and emoluments are passed on and auspicious signs accumulate. May I accompany my loving parents life after life, so that the elders keep their white hair in health and peace. May I be born into an age of sage rule and receive favor and honor at every step. May the place where I dwell hold wish-fulfilling light wherever my thoughts turn. May good affinities ripen so that I soon learn the Dao and awaken to the truth. May the defilements of karmic obstruction be exhausted, so that with a single mind I reach the realm of purity.

May all people under heaven, together with the heavenly hosts, attain good fruits according to their own causes and conditions. With firm and sincere hearts we take refuge in the Emperor Lord, while the sages and all the Celestial Venerables join in praise and prayer. May we, together with all who recite the scripture and cultivate with us, bow in homage with one heart and entrust our lives to the Dao.

With utmost sincerity, I take refuge in and pay homage to:

In the sacred realm of Yuqing (Jade Purity) and the Qingwei Heavenly Palace, amid the Yuluo and Xiao terraces, above the serene and boundless waters of the myriad phenomena, the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning (Yuanshi Tianzun) manifests a majestic and sacred form, endowed with boundless spiritual powers. He expounds the true and profound principles of the Dao (the Way), dispelling attachment to being and non-being, form and emptiness. He delivers all beings, freeing them from the bonds of cleverness and foolishness, nobility and lowliness. His wondrous workings cannot be fathomed, and his numinous mechanisms cannot be measured.

Greatly compassionate, greatly vowed, greatly holy, greatly merciful, the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning, who delivers countless beings.

With utmost sincerity, I take refuge in and pay homage to:

In the true realm of Shangqing (Supreme Purity) and the Yuyu Heavenly Palace, amid the Ziwei jade terraces, above the Xuandu Jade Capital, the Celestial Worthy of the Numinous Treasure (Lingbao Tianzun) receives the transmission of the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning and transcends the origin of the Xina Jade Kingdom. He enters a precious pearl as small as a grain of millet, drawing fully upon the essence of the true and profound. In the Fragrant Forest Garden, he repeatedly expounds the secret essentials, using various words to guide people toward understanding the true Dao. His virtue is beyond reckoning, and his spiritual powers beyond discussion.

Greatly compassionate, greatly vowed, greatly holy, greatly merciful, the Celestial Worthy of the Numinous Treasure, who delivers countless beings.

With utmost sincerity, I take refuge in and pay homage to:

The essential purport of the immortal teachings of Taiqing (Great Purity) lies in the words and methods that guide people toward understanding the true Dao; the virtue of the Celestial Worthy of the Numinous Treasure is beyond reckoning, and his spiritual powers beyond discussion.

Greatly compassionate, greatly vowed, greatly holy, greatly merciful, the Celestial Worthy of the Numinous Treasure, who delivers countless beings.

With utmost sincerity, I take refuge in and pay homage to:

In the immortal realm of Taiqing (Great Purity) and the Great Red Heavenly Palace, golden towers rise high, far above the many layers of the heavens. The Celestial Worthy of the Dao and De (Daode Tianzun), born after countless kalpas, once proclaimed his teachings across twelve thousand heavens. With the secret essentials of the five thousand words, he united the wondrous Dao of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity, and through repeated incarnations he taught and received beings of the six destinies (the six realms of rebirth). His holy virtue is lofty, and his profound and wondrous achievements are vast.

Greatly compassionate, greatly vowed, greatly holy, greatly merciful, the Celestial Worthy of the Dao and De, who delivers countless beings.

With utmost sincerity, I take refuge in and pay homage to:

The Jade Emperor Celestial Worthy (Yuhuang Tianzun) dwells in the purple-gold celestial palace and the Jade Capital built of white jade, abiding in the realm of Wondrous Being, above the heavens of profound truth. Because his merit is complete and his practice of the Dao fulfilled, his wondrous Dao surpasses all the heavens; because his heart is vast and his body and mind at peace, the radiance of his compassion illuminates the Three Realms. His exalted position is supreme, and the mystery of his Dao is unfathomable. He is the true and sage master, and the revered deity upon whom Heaven and the human world alike depend.

Greatly compassionate, greatly vowed, greatly holy, greatly merciful, the Sovereign of the Vault of Heaven, the Jade Emperor Celestial Worthy.

With utmost sincerity, I take refuge in and pay homage.

He assisted the Han dynasty, though his family had served the rulers of Han (Korea's namesake state, the old state of Han) for generations. With only a three-inch tongue, he became the teacher of emperors; by obtaining a single volume of writings, he became a man among men. He did not need to gallop across the battlefield in person, yet his achievements were already inscribed in the historical records. In his early years he met Huangshi Gong (the Yellow Stone Elder, a legendary immortal), and from then on set foot upon the fundamental path of immortal cultivation; later he followed Chisongzi (the Master of Red Pine, a legendary immortal) and ascended to the Court of Great Existence (Dayou zhi Ting, an immortal realm).

He received the honors due to a chief minister and held a vital position at Tianshu (the Celestial Pivot). He opened and expounded the true scriptures of the Three Caverns (Dongzhen, Dongxuan, and Dongshen, the three categories of Daoist canon), and was further granted the glory of the Nine-Radiance Precious Tally. His merit and virtue (De) resound through the ages and are praised and revered by all the heavens.

Of great compassion and great vow, greatly holy and greatly merciful, he is the Presiding Master of Scriptural Collation (the venerable deity who oversees the editing of scriptures). Lofty in his attainment of the Dao and eminent in his holy virtue, he is the supreme Venerable Heavenly Sovereign of Great Virtue, the Dharma-Master Daoist Lord, the Celestial Venerable.

With utmost sincerity I take refuge and pay homage (that is, I entrust myself and bow in worship with a wholly sincere heart):

I pay reverence in the north to the Supreme Void of Unsurpassed Constant Harmony Heaven and the Realm of Silent Void and Mysterious Brahma, to the Taiyi Palace of True Celebration, to the Mysterious and Supreme Sage, Envoy of Wandering Patrol of the Nine Heavens, and to the great general who commands the Tiangang and the Right Wall of the Northern Pole. I revere the Taiji (Supreme Ultimate) True Ancestor, the Great Mysterious Merciful Father, the Spiritually Penetrating Great Wonder Immortal, and the Emperor of Primal Heaven who holds the Eight Majesties and Nine Radiances.

This venerable deity, with the seal of the heart, holds the talisman of the Shadow-Spirits and the Dipper's Pole. He commands in full the Right Assistant Office of Xuanwu, presides over the Office of the Holy Residence, and has sworn to cut down demons, save living beings, support those in times of calamity, and govern the myriad spirits. His majesty and virtue are boundless and his spiritual powers vast. He travels through the cavern-heavens of the ten directions, inspects the many heavens, bestows blessings and protection on the filial and loyal, and eradicates sin and misfortune. He is the most holy and most divine Zhenwu (True Warrior), who guards the heavens, governs the world, and bestows blessings; he is also the Preceptor-Minister of the Jade Void, titled the Purple Sovereign Taiyi True Lord and the Mysterious Heaven's Benevolent Majesty, Supreme Emperor of Qingwei, the Celestial Venerable incarnate of the Golden Gate.

With utmost sincerity I take refuge and pay homage.

In the blessed land of Mount Gan and the grotto-heaven of Mowei (in Daoism, the blissful lands and cavern-heavens where immortals and the perfected dwell), there was an elder who received the One Qi (the primordial energy of all things) and was born in response to the stirring of the Ziwei Star. He paid court at the Golden Gate of Nine Radiances and shone through the Azure Void (the celestial realm). He proclaimed a scripture in six chapters, expounding the principles by which ordinary people are refined and sages and the perfected are tempered. He praised a teaching of ten thousand years of contemplation that links past and present, upheld the human order of moral bonds, and made manifest the spiritual energy of the earth. The great Dao (the Way) is vast and hard to put into words, and his merit is so lofty that it cannot be discussed. He is the Elder of the Nine Heavens, of great benevolence, great filial piety, great sagehood, and great compassion, who can accumulate blessings and fix destinies. He is also the Perfected Lord of the Great Mystery and Supreme Highest De (Virtue), and the Heavenly Worthy of Mystic Perfection and Ten Thousand Blessings.

With utmost sincerity, I take refuge and pay homage.

He was originally from the south, and later traveled upstream to the Shu capital (the area of present-day Chengdu, Sichuan). He first obtained the Yellow Emperor's Nine Tripods Elixir Writings, and afterward served Laojun (Lord Lao). Twice at Yuju (a sacred Daoist site) he received the essential methods of cultivation from a thousand scrolls of scripture, and he soon perfected the art of breath regulation (a cultivation method of regulating respiration and guiding qi). He assembled the full set of fulu registers (the talismans and credentials used in the ordination of Daoist masters), received the ranks of the Covenant of Orthodox Authority, and formed the Lin Formulas (Daoist ritual hand-seals and incantations). He distinguished the true Way from the false, recovered the governance of the blessed court, and brought transformation to Xianquan. His accomplished virtue was like a great elixir, and his practice of the Dao stood level with the Seven Governors (the stars of the Northern Dipper and other celestial bodies). He is the Mystic Capital Elder and Supreme Minister of the Three Heavens, of great compassion, great vow, great sagehood, and great mercy, the Celestial Master (Tianshi) who supports the Daoist teaching and delivers the world. He is also the Perfected Lord of Zhengyi (Orthodox Unity), Assistant of Origins, Embodiment of the Dao, Emptiness and Mystery, Divine Transformation, Stillness and Response, Manifest Protection; the Emperor of Six Harmonies, Boundless and Lofty in Brilliance; and the Heavenly Worthy who subdues demons and protects the Dao.

With utmost sincerity, I take refuge and pay homage.

He once served as Pillar Historian of Yongping (a local official post), and in the Tang dynasty changed his name to Yixuan. Through extraordinary arts he preserved his body and spirit (Shen), escaped the troubles of the dusty world, and was no longer bound by the corvée of worldly service. He presided over the Great Rite of Radiant Splendor and grasped the true mysteries of all things. His bones were lean and extraordinary, and he often bore the appearance of an immortal, leaving behind the tale of leaping on horseback into an abyss. He was generous and forgiving, and rendered fair judgments in trying cases, so that the auspicious legend arose of a rat flying away through a window. He was granted the title of Red Dragon Elixir and styled himself Master of the Green Parasol Tree. He is the Second Minister of the Three Heavens, the Elder of Nine Qi, the Emperor of Danlin, and the Heavenly Worthy who transforms according to circumstance, of great compassion, great vow, great sagehood, and great mercy.

With utmost sincerity, I take refuge and pay homage.

He was born in the Han dynasty and received an honorific title in the Jin dynasty. He spread Qi (vital energy, written 炁 in Daoism) to subdue malevolent spirits, and once swallowed a tiger to save a person. He mastered the methods of the Jade Firmament and the Pure Cavern, and transmitted the scriptures of the inner teachings of the Mysterious Altar. He oversaw matters such as the punishments and judgments of the Thunder Bureau, and held the authority to act at his own discretion. Serving as Celestial Master (Tianshi), he ranked as Right Minister of the Ziwei Heaven, presided over the Dongyang Palace, and governed the Hunyuan teaching. He is the Supreme Sovereign of Pure August Heaven, the Perfected Origin of the Limitless, the Celestial Venerable of the Nine Heavens who Safeguards the Registers and Governs Destiny, of great compassion and great vows, greatly holy and greatly merciful.

With utmost sincerity, I take refuge and pay homage.

His virtue shone throughout the Ba Gorges, and his traces appeared and vanished along the Yu River. In youth his name was inscribed on the golden roll of honor, and later he personally received the jade-stepped ceremonial robes. To halt killing, he answered the dream of an official of the Frost Tribunal; when he manifested his divine might, his countenance shone as bright as the sun. He grasped the most subtle and profound principles and used them to encourage people toward goodness; he took great masters as teachers and companions, and studied the Dao of true constancy. He once lectured under the name of the Master of Gongtian Temple, and was praised for his benevolence in aiding the world. His divine power is beyond measure; he guarded the land of national restoration and opened a path of rebirth for the people of Shu. His grace reached all beings, and his virtue has been handed down for a hundred generations. He is the Perfected Manifesting Response of Bishan, the Celestial Sovereign of the Clear and Bright River Youth, of great compassion and great vows, greatly holy and greatly merciful.

With utmost sincerity, I take refuge and pay homage to the Holy Ancestral Mother, and pray on her birthday, the fifth day of the tenth month.

The Holy Ancestral Mother was born from the primordial mandate of the Highest Origin of the Beginning-Azure Heaven. Before the first Qi had dispersed, she already contained the essence of the Seven-Fold True Origin. The Nine Heavens began from this, and she possessed the complete essence of the three luminaries: sun, moon, and stars. Her divine wonder cannot be named; her character, lofty like that of a crane, is beyond words. She is the compassionate mother who existed before Heaven and Earth, gentle in bearing, unbound by past or present. On the fifth day of the tenth month, she causes the Yang qi to return, as spring arrives; she is also the founding teacher who instructs in the Three Bonds and Five Constants. Her lifespan is long, and her form was received from the Primordial Beginning. Even reading the postscript of the Collection of Original Deeds (Benxing Ji), one cannot fathom the realm of the Great Dao she attained in the Beginning-Azure Heaven. She is the Seven-Fold Primordial Kalpa Form-Bestowing Mother of Long Life and Longevity, the Original Sovereign of Taiji (Supreme Ultimate), of great compassion and great vows, greatly holy and greatly merciful.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, I take refuge in and bow before the Holy Father, whose birthday falls on the eleventh day of the second month.

The Holy Father dwells in the Palace of Osmanthus Fragrance and the Upper Palace of Wenchang. His Dao (the Way) body is wholly one with the myriad things and holds the power of more than ninety transformations. Before his true origin had yet appeared, he had already stored up thirty-six thousand essences. He opened the phoenix-script, handed down to later ages as a symbol of immortality, and received the unfathomable dream omens of the azure heavens. He is the father of the spirits and the supreme sage of utmost goodness. He is the root of the human bonds and of the Five Constants, and the very substance of the nature and heart that embraces every conduct and ten thousand virtues. My longing to take refuge in him is without end; how could my praise ever be forgotten? With utmost sincerity I take refuge in the Holy Father of Seven Turnings, great in compassion and great in vow, great in sagehood and great in mercy: the Great Emperor Xuanchu, King of Manifest Blessing, Merciful Protection, Benevolent Abundance, and Excellent Virtue, the Bodhisattva King of Realized Fruition and Longevity, the Celestial Venerable Chuzhen Yanqing.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, I take refuge in and bow before the Holy Mother, whose birthday falls on the seventh day of the seventh month.

The Holy Mother dwells in the Inner Palace of Osmanthus Fragrance and the Auxiliary Palace of Wenchang. Her character is gentle and kind, her bearing as mild and harmonious as spring, and she holds the Qi (vital energy) of Supreme Truth (the temperament of ultimate authenticity and purity). She is the Bodhisattva King of Realized Fruition and Longevity, the Celestial Venerable Chuzhen Yanqing.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, I take refuge in and bow before the Holy Mother, whose birthday falls on the seventh day of the seventh month.

The Holy Mother dwells in the Inner Palace of Osmanthus Fragrance and the Auxiliary Palace of Wenchang. Her character is gentle and kind, as mild and harmonious as spring, and she holds the Qi of Supreme Truth. Her pure light is as clear as autumn water and holds the radiance of the Qixi night. The image of the dragon lies hidden deep within her nature, and the wondrous workings of the phoenix are contained in her without being displayed. She is the greatly merciful mother of Sword Spring and the person of utmost goodness of Penglai. She gives birth to the ethical bonds that ten thousand generations follow, and nurtures the teachings and roles observed throughout the Nine Heavens. My longing to take refuge in her is without end; how could my praise ever be forgotten? With utmost sincerity I take refuge in the Holy Mother of Seven Turnings, great in compassion and great in vow, great in sagehood and great in mercy: the Empress Dowager of Illustrious Virtue, Accumulated Blessing, Merciful Grace, Reverence, and Kindness, the Bodhisattva of Realized Fruition and Precious Light, the Primordial Lady Siqing Chuxiang.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, I take refuge in and bow before the Primordial August Heavenly Emperor, whose birthday falls on the third day of the second month.

The fragrant, cassia-scented palace is the Upper Palace where Wenchang Dijun (the deity who governs literary fortune, official success, and the registers of emolument) dwells. Through ninety-six transformations he planted good fruit in the teaching of poetry and books, and through hundreds of thousands of changes he cultivated the roots of the cassia tree in the fields of accumulated hidden merit. From the Thunder Shuttle manifesting its efficacy at Phoenix Mountain to the Ruyi scepter bestowing blessings at Ao Peak, he opens people's hearts, always taking devoted family affection and filial reverence toward parents as the foundation. In protecting the long endurance of the state, he always puts loyal service to the ruler first. He answers dreams to rescue people and preserve their lives, and he looks with compassion on those who suffer. Though he dwells in the Jade Purity Palace of Celebration in the realm of the Emperor, he takes no pride in his exalted station. He manifests ninety-eight forms and traces of transformation, revealing wonders that span countless billions of kalpas. Riding the luan bird, he spreads the teachings, establishing altars everywhere to aid the state and relieve the people, so that all receive his grace. His merit runs through the Three Teachings of Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism, and his offices extend over the Three Officials of Heaven, Earth, and Water. His awesome power cannot be measured, and his virtue is beyond conception. Supremely benevolent and filial, he does not think of ease and pleasure and never declines to aid the people; all receive his grace, and his merit runs through the Three Teachings of Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism, and his offices extend over the Three Officials of Heaven, Earth, and Water. His awesome power cannot be measured, and his virtue is beyond conception. Supremely benevolent and filial, he does not covet comfort and joy, nor does he take pride in his exalted station.

The Great Sage, of Great Compassion, Great Pity, and Great Vow; King of Literary Sagehood, Martial Might, Filial Virtue, Loyalty, and Benevolence; King of Samadhi, Concentration, and Wisdom, who plays in peaceful joy and unmoving stillness; Bodhisattva who has realized the fruit, who as Kāśyapa, Śākyamuni, and Brahmā guards the world, and as the Tathagata rescues beings from calamity; the greatly compassionate Celestial Venerable of Renewed Life and Eternal Destiny.

With utmost sincerity, I take refuge in and bow before the Holy Empress. The birthday of the Holy Empress is the third day of the fifth month.

The fragrant, cassia-scented inner hall is the Auxiliary Palace of Wenchang. The bearing of the Holy Empress is as upright as ice and snow, and her heart is as clear as the moon in a bright sky over the nine heavens. Her benevolent heart is as warm as spring, and she upholds the family tradition of the Qiqu Mountain lineage (an important sacred site of the Wenchang cult). She served her parents with gentle grace, endowed by nature with the loving and virtuous character of a mother, bringing harmony to the whole household and leaving a beautiful model for ten thousand generations. She answers dreams with blessings and carries out her teaching in accord with her own heart. She is the Holy Empress of Qiqu, of Great Benevolence, Great Filial Piety, Great Sagehood, and Great Compassion; the Empress Gongshun Shuying Dehui Zhaoyi; the Bodhisattva Dingying who has realized the fruit; the Lady Chonghe Dongmiao.

With utmost sincerity, I take refuge in and bow before the Eldest Holy Son. The birthday of the Eldest Holy Son is the third day of the third month.

The fragrant, cassia-scented inner hall is the Auxiliary Palace of Wenchang. The Eldest Holy Son is lofty in virtue, loving and auspicious, and wholeheartedly carries on the family's good name. His divine merit is manifest, moving the nine heavens and setting his imperial father's heart at ease. Playing among the clouds and cliffs, he embodies in subtle detail the rites that have neither form nor sound.

Within the Inner Hall of Cassia Fragrance (cassia fragrance symbolizing an elegant and refined palace), in the Auxiliary Palace of Wenchang (the residence that assists Emperor Wenchang), dwells one of sacred virtue and benevolence. In a single thought he carries forward his family's good name and bloodline. His divine merit is manifest, bringing peace and joy even to the Celestial Father in the Nine Heavens. Among the cloud-crowned cliffs he plays and offers up radiant colors, discerning the rites and music that have neither form nor sound. He pays his respects to his elders in the Moon Palace, passing down a family tradition grounded in canon and law. The Five Blessings are bestowed upon households of benevolence and filial piety through the generations, and the glory of placing first in all three levels of the imperial examinations shines upon descendants who carry on the family tradition of poetry and books. He establishes moral teaching in accord with his original heart, and responds to dream omens by storing up auspicious blessings. He is the Utmost in Benevolence, Utmost in Filial Piety, Utmost in Sagacity, and Utmost in Compassion: the Sacred Eldest Son, King Who Continues Virtue and Practices Filial Piety, Celestial Emperor Who Unfolds Qingwei, and Perfected Lord of Wenchang Who Spreads Auspicious Celebration.

With sincere devotion we take refuge in and pay homage to the Sacred Eldest Daughter-in-Law, born on the first day of the eighth month.

Within the Inner Hall of Cassia Fragrance, in the Auxiliary Palace of Wenchang, she is gentle and fair in character; when attending to her elders and inquiring after their well-being, her bearing is pure, graceful, and compliant. Her heart is sincere and clean, and in her dignity she displays a noble and lofty standard of virtue. She helps to establish the reputation of the household of the eldest son (the Zhen trigram), and quietly grasps the family teaching of harmony (the Dui trigram). She promotes a culture of kindness and joy, so that customs are steeped in peace and humility; she responds to dream omens by storing up auspicious blessings, and bestows good fortune according to her original heart. She is the Utmost in Benevolence, Utmost in Filial Piety, Utmost in Sagacity, and Utmost in Compassion: the Sacred Eldest Daughter-in-Law, Lady Who Aids Goodness, Manifests Excellence, and Follows Filial Piety, Perfected Consort of the Primal Truth and Wondrous Cavern, and Celestial Lady of Wenchang Who Responds with Tranquility.

With sincere devotion we take refuge in and pay homage to the Sacred Second Son, born on the first day of the first month.

Within the Inner Hall of Cassia Fragrance, in the Auxiliary Palace of Wenchang, father and son, as one family, fulfill the duties of filial piety and loving-kindness; and ruler and minister, across a thousand years, alike hold hearts of benevolence and reverence. He establishes teaching upon the foundation of the moral bonds and human relationships, becoming a model for the human world, and takes poetry, books, and the teachings of ritual as his measure to guide the world and the hearts of its people. He accumulates virtue and does good in secret, causing his family's fortunes to flourish; he acts with humility and cultivates his virtue, and thereby gathers blessings. Ruler and minister, across a thousand years, alike hold hearts of benevolence and reverence. He establishes teaching upon the foundation of the moral bonds and human relationships, becoming a model for the human world, and takes poetry, books, and the teachings of ritual as his measure to guide the world and the hearts of its people. He accumulates virtue and does good in secret, causing his family's fortunes to flourish; he practices humility in both conduct and craft, and gathers blessings. He spreads moral teaching according to his original heart, and responds to dream omens by storing up auspicious blessings. He is the Utmost in Benevolence, Utmost in Filial Piety, Utmost in Sagacity, and Utmost in Compassion: the Sacred Second Son, King Who Prospers Virtue and Establishes Filial Piety, Celestial Emperor Who Unfolds Wondrous Accomplishment, and Perfected Lord of Wenchang Who Oversees Emoluments.

Sincerely I take refuge and bow to the wife of the Sage's Second Son, whose birthday falls on the eighteenth day of the second month.

She dwells in the Inner Hall of Osmanthus Fragrance and serves as an assisting official of Wenchang. Filial and virtuous, modest and gentle, she received a pure and beautiful nature from birth. Her heart is sincere and accords with the yielding gentleness of the Kun way, and her conduct is graceful enough to serve as a model for the women's quarters. At Wufu Ridge she left a fine example of greeting her elders, and like the three tides of the river, the pure and upright stream of blessings she accumulated has been passed down. An omen in a dream revealed her auspicious signs, and she in turn followed her own heart in carrying out moral instruction. She is the wife of the Sage's Second Son, supremely benevolent, filial, sage-like and compassionate, titled Lady Who Aids Compliance, Bestows Kindness, Excels in Filial Piety; True Consort Responsive to the Jade Perfected Cavern (Dongzhen); and Celestial Sovereign of Wenchang Who Continues the Blessings.

Sincerely I take refuge and bow to Princess Yixiao, whose birthday falls on the sixteenth day of the fourth month.

She dwells in the Inner Hall of Osmanthus Fragrance and serves as an assisting official of Wenchang. Like the toad in the moon, she gathers auspicious signs, rooted in her father's loving nature; like the phoenix, she collects blessings, nurturing the warm and harmonious virtue of Mother Tao. Her bearing is as elegant as frost and snow, unbound by external things, and her heart is as clear as spring breezes and the autumn moon, naturally in accord with the Way of Heaven. Contemplating her own mind, she understood that all realms are empty, and in her youth she attained the Dao (the Way) of the Nine Heavens. Her heart is pure, leaving nothing to be critiqued, and her virtue is so graceful that it can hardly be fully described. She is the sage daughter, supremely benevolent, filial, sage-like and compassionate, titled Princess Shuzhen Miaojing Yixiao; Perfected Person of the Primordial Cavern; and Celestial Sovereign of Wenchang for Ten Thousand Years of Longevity.

Sincerely I take refuge and bow to the Sage's Eldest Grandson, whose birthday falls on the third day of the seventh month.

He dwells in the Inner Hall of Osmanthus Fragrance and serves in the auxiliary palace of Wenchang. Austere and dignified by nature, he kept his family's reputation pure through upright and solemn standards; lofty in bearing, he renewed moral instruction through the renown of his benevolence. His authority is like thunder, appearing at times, yet it brings the warmth of spring days and awakens everyone; his kindness is like rain and dew, spreading across the heavens and allowing all things to grow. He gathers auspicious signs in response to our thoughts and manifests his numinous power through dreams. He is the Sage's Eldest Grandson, supremely benevolent, filial, sage-like and compassionate, titled Marquis of Utmost Filial Piety Who Continues the Response and Manifests Numinous Power; Celestial Sovereign of Precious Splendor and Perfect Fullness; and Perfected Person of Wenchang Who Accumulates Blessings.

Sincerely I take refuge and bow to the wife of the Sage's Eldest Grandson, whose birthday falls on the twenty-eighth day of the first month.

She dwells in the inner hall fragrant with cassia blossoms, assisting the Palace of Wenchang. Sacred and dignified by nature, her bearing is as gentle and pure as the spring breeze; her demeanor accords with the models of Daoist immortals, and her heart is as clear and serene as the autumn moon. Four generations lived together under her roof, where ritual propriety was complete and the women's quarters were harmonious and dignified. Throughout her life she performed many good deeds, and blessings and good fortune flowed on through her household. She manifests through dreams and bestows transformation as circumstances allow, benevolent and filial, supremely holy and supremely compassionate. She is the wife of the Sage's Eldest Grandson, and her titles are "Lady of Shuying Zhaoxiao" and "Celestial Sovereign of Xuanzhen Jingsu, Wenchang Jiqing."

With utmost sincerity, I take refuge and pay homage. The Sage's Second Grandson was born on the thirteenth day of the tenth month.

He dwells in the inner hall fragrant with cassia blossoms, assisting the Palace of Wenchang. In his talk and laughter he was as mild as the spring breeze, and his words everywhere revealed a heart of benevolence. His conduct was gentle, and his speech carried on the rules of his family. He inherited the aspirations of the Sage's son and cultivated the merit of secret good deeds; his descendants received his sacred character and in the end attained true immortality. He brings auspicious fortune through dreams and establishes teachings in accordance with his original heart, benevolent and filial, supremely holy and supremely compassionate. He is the Sage's Second Grandson, and his titles are "Marquis of Chengying Xuanling Shunxiao" and "Celestial Sovereign of Zude Miaoqing, True Person of Wenchang Xiqing."

With utmost sincerity, I take refuge and pay homage. The wife of the Sage's Second Grandson was born on the twenty-third day of the seventh month.

She dwells in the inner hall fragrant with cassia blossoms, assisting the Palace of Wenchang. Her appearance and character were like jade and gold, the fruit of her parents' careful nurturing. Her grace shone like sunlight on all, allowing her descendants to carry on from generation to generation. Within the household she cultivated the merit of secret good deeds, and in her heart she encouraged and supported others in turn. She gently assisted her family, so that the family's fine reputation and blessed destiny might continue. She brings auspicious fortune through dreams and bestows transformation as circumstances allow, benevolent and filial, supremely holy and supremely compassionate. She is the wife of the Sage's Second Grandson, and her titles are "Lady of Huiying Tixiao" and "Celestial Sovereign of Zhenyuan Yucui, Wenchang Xiqing."

With utmost sincerity, I take refuge and pay homage.

The assisting deities of Wenchang, the True Official Taiyi, the True Lord Tianshun, the Three Mao True Lords of Destiny, the Great King Dugu who oversees emoluments on the left of the civil ranks, the Prince of Brilliant Grace, Loyal Valor, and Blessed Peace who oversees heirs on the right of the military ranks, the Grand Commandant of the Twin Pines Who Announces Joy, the immortal officials who keep the Registers of Cassia and of Emolument, the immortal youths and jade maidens, the phoenixes soaring before the carriage, and the two attendants Deaf-to-Heaven and Mute-to-Earth all wait upon either side of the divine carriage. Also gathered are the assisting spirits of the Northern Court of the Three Immortals, the Jade-Green Offering Feast (a Zhaijiao, or purification ritual, laid out in jade-colored furnishings), the gods of the Cloud, Thunder, and Rain departments, the assembled immortals and sages, and all the True Sovereigns who assist the Dao (the Way).

When the prostrations and hymns of praise are complete, make confession according to the Divine Light:

The Venerable of Compassion of the Seven Turns (Lord Wenchang) is the compassionate master of the teaching. My loving father and loving mother were born into the world together with me.

When parents bring children into the world, those children should become sages and worthies, cherishing filial devotion and compassion. Descendants who inherit the work of the spirits should likewise practice filial conduct and do good, become sages and worthies, and assist the Dao.

When the prostrations and hymns of praise are complete, make confession according to the Divine Light:

The Venerable of Compassion of the Seven Turns is the compassionate master of the teaching. My loving father and loving mother were born into the world together with me.

When parents bring children into the world, those children should cherish filial devotion and compassion. Descendants who inherit the work of the spirits should likewise practice filial conduct and do good.

The harmony of a united household is inexhaustible, and for ten thousand generations it is like a high terrace in spring, bright with moonlight.

The luminous light of compassion shines over heaven and the human world, reaching down to the finest mote of dust and filling heaven and earth.

I share one common endowment with heaven and earth, as though returning to the original, true state of Lord Wenchang at the very opening of heaven and the separating of earth.

I know now why sages are sages and why ordinary people are ordinary. Having drifted lost until now, I have at last awakened.

May I meet the teaching of the Venerable of Compassion of the Seven Turns, and from this day forward be loyal and filial and ever hold a compassionate heart.

May I not, through the karma of speech, treat the gods and other people with arrogance, nor, through the karma of action, bring burden upon my parents.

May I not, through the karma of thought, deceive heaven and earth, nor, through the karma of the mind's intentions, bring calamity upon my descendants.

May I take filial conduct and hidden merit (the virtue of doing good in secret, without seeking reward) as my root, and do my utmost to practice every kind of expedient good deed.

May I repent of and be absolved from the many offenses accumulated over successive lifetimes, and take refuge in the great compassionate light of the Primal Sovereign.

For heirs, for emolument, and for a path in life, I will not seek from others, but will begin with myself.

My master, Wenchang of the Seven Turns, through the passing of the kalpas you have always treated others with the way of forgiveness.

May you release your wish-fulfilling light, take pity on all beings, and accept our sincere confession.

When the confession is complete, the vows should be made next:

May my parents together enjoy the blessing of long life, as long-lived as the tortoise and white-haired as the crane, their benevolent radiance shining in all directions.

May I always encounter good fortune, serving my elders above and raising my children below, and may all be spared distress and suffering.

May my descendants breathe the fragrance of the cassia blossoms of Yunyan, and flourish and attain success together with me.

May fathers be kind and sons filial, and may the whole family live in harmony like spring. May my household be bright and upright, never failing the teachings of the Compassionate Venerable.

May I be graciously led and guided in person by the venerable deities of Seven Turnings (Qiqu, the sacred site of Lord Wenchang), who will point us toward ascending to the Real and entering the Dao (Way).

By the practice of relinquishing this life and receiving a new one, may I attain Perfect Universal Wisdom (complete and all-encompassing knowledge); and until future ages, may all beings reach fulfillment.

Having made these vows, one should next chant the praise:

The Lord of Benevolence and Filial Piety upon the Cassia Fragrance Hall spreads the rain of his teaching far and wide, washing clean the roots of sinful karma.

The roots of sinful karma are transformed into the pure fragrance of cassia blossoms, and the roots of goodness are planted to bear the fruit of long life.

May the whole family be free of affliction, and may the descendants of Seven Turnings be protected together.

May all, in this life and the next, attain fruition before the Purple Cloud Cliff.

The rain of teaching spreads far and wide, washing clean the roots of sinful karma.

The roots of sinful karma are transformed into the pure fragrance of cassia blossoms, and the roots of goodness are planted to bear the fruit of long life.

May the whole family be free of affliction, and may the descendants of Seven Turnings be protected together.

May all, in this life and the next, attain fruition before the Purple Cloud Cliff.

May every step and every thought be under the protection of the Lord at his side, and may I be supported by the Heavenly Sovereign through life after life.

Even if this mortal body changes its form and finally turns to ashes, a single point of sincere devotion to the Dao will remain firm as metal and stone.

Having made these vows, on this day, the disciple of this registry, so-and-so, bows in homage before the Heavenly King of Primordial Beginning (Yuanshi Tianwang) and the thousand realized ones and ten thousand sages, and recites the Great Cavern Immortal Scripture (Dadong Xianjing). I pray for pardon, for the absolution of faults and sinful karma, for misfortune to be turned into blessing, for the roots of evil deeds to be cut off, and for my path of cultivation to be free of demonic obstruction. May my ancestors and parents be swiftly delivered to the Southern Palace (Nangong, the immortal realm in Daoism that receives departed souls) and be reborn in the Central Land; may all kin and beings with whom I share affinity receive the teaching and be transformed; and may calamities be dispelled. These mortal wishes I have set forth offend the majesty of Heaven, yet I humbly beseech the spirits to respond and grant my petition. I further pray that the Incense Messenger (the divine official charged with carrying petitions upward) will receive this utmost sincerity and report it far and wide. I bow in homage and take refuge:

Heavenly Venerable of the Three Pure Ones' Responsive Transformation.

Heavenly Venerable of Jade Pure Universal Transformation.

Heavenly Venerable of Taiyi, Savior from Suffering.

Heavenly Venerable, Daoist Lord and Dharma Master, Supreme Minister of the Celestial Pivot.

Heavenly Venerable Who Relieves Suffering to the End of the Kalpa.

Heavenly Venerable Who Dispels Calamity and Resolves Hardship.

Thunder Sound Universal… (may the deities report this far and wide), I bow in homage and take refuge:

Heavenly Venerable of the Three Pure Ones' Responsive Transformation.

The Celestial Venerable of Universal Transformation of Jade Purity (the Celestial Venerable who dwells in the Jade Purity Realm and bestows teaching and transformation everywhere). The Celestial Venerable of Supreme Unity Who Saves from Suffering (the Celestial Venerable who delivers suffering beings). The Celestial Venerable Dao Lord, Master of the Law and Supreme Minister of the Celestial Pivot (the Celestial Pivot Supreme Minister Dao Lord who holds the office of the Law). The Celestial Venerable Who Relieves Suffering Through the End of Kalpas (the Celestial Venerable who rescues beings amid calamities). The Celestial Venerable Who Dispels Disasters and Resolves Misfortunes (the Celestial Venerable who removes calamity and relieves hardship).

The Celestial Venerable of Universal Transformation of the Thunder's Voice (the Celestial Venerable who bestows teaching and transformation with the power of thunder). The Celestial Venerable of Mysterious Truth and Ten Thousand Blessings (the Celestial Venerable of Mysterious Truth who grants ten thousand blessings). The Star Lords of the Dipper Mansion and the Celestial Bureaus (the star lords of the Dipper Mansion and the Celestial Bureaus). The Great Emperors of the Three Primes and Three Officials, together with the Three Hundred and Sixty Celestial Venerables of Responsive Manifestation (the Great Emperors of the Three Primes and Three Officials, and the three hundred and sixty Celestial Venerables who manifest in response to supplication).

The Celestial Venerable of Fixed Light and Clear Brilliance Who Universally Delivers (the Celestial Venerable who delivers all beings through pure and luminous light). The Celestial Venerable of Purple Purity Who Bestows Blessings (the Celestial Venerable of Purple Purity who grants blessings). The Celestial Venerable Who Renews Life and Prolongs Destiny (the Celestial Venerable who enables people to be renewed and extends their lifespans). The Celestial Venerable of Limitless Salvation (the Celestial Venerable who delivers beings without measure). The Celestial Venerable Who Leads All Under Heaven to Repent Their Sins (the Celestial Venerable who leads all beings under heaven to repent their transgressions). The Lingbao Celestial Venerables of the Ten Directions (the Lingbao Celestial Venerables of the worlds of the ten directions).

The merit and virtue (De) of these revered deities is beyond conception. May all beings thereby have their minds opened and awaken to the true Dao (the Way), and may they uphold and recite the scripture (Jing).

The Full Title of the Primordial Sovereign (the complete honorific title of the Primordial Sovereign):

Supreme Minister of the Golden Gate and Grand Preceptor with Inspecting Authority; Inner Assistant of Primordial Chaos, Chief Steward of the Three Pure Ones (Sanqing) and Commander-in-Chief of the Grand Metropolitan Office; Supreme Commander of the Yin Soldiers of the Three Realms, empowered to act at his discretion; Overseer of the Prisons of the Three Realms of Heaven, Earth, and Water. May all beings thereby have their minds opened and awaken to the true Dao, and may they uphold and recite the scripture.

The Full Title of the Primordial Sovereign

Supreme Minister of the Golden Gate, Inspector and Grand Preceptor, Inner Aide of Primordial Chaos, Chief Steward of the Three Pure Ones (Sanqing), Supreme Commander of the Grand Governor's Office who leads the yin soldiers of the Three Realms and acts as expedience requires, keeper of the penal courts of the Three Realms of Heaven, Earth, and Water, wielder of the True-Form Tiger Tallies and Dragon Contracts of the Five Peaks and Four Rivers, commander of the stars and luminaries of all the heavens, and adjudicator of the registers of emolument and succession. He is the Immortal Perfected One Yingxian Yuanhuang, the Perfected Lord who oversees emolument and tribute examinations, and Master Dongzhao Tongzhen, who compiles and edits the registers of flying immortals.

He is also the compassionate Venerable who governs the creation and transformation of Primordial Chaos, the cycle of rebirth through the six paths, and the rescue of beings from suffering and calamity. He is the Pure and Tranquil Dao Perfected of the inner realm of Jade Purity, who manifested at Purple Cloud Cliff holding a jade-like staff, ruling over the myriad spirits and relieving the suffering of all. He is the Heavenly Sovereign of Great Benevolence, Great Filial Piety, Great Sanctity, and Great Compassion, supremely free of arrogance and delighting in nurturing beings. He is the overall governor of Primordial Heaven, sincere in his dealings with others, the Teaching Master who leads the myriad heavens, and the Venerable who responds compassionately to every vow. He is the Ninefold Heaven's Establisher of the Origin, Protector of Life, Supporter of the Teaching, Aide of the Source, Opener of Enlightenment, Wenchang, Savior of Humankind, and Sovereign. He is the Great Heavenly Lord of Lasting Joy, Eternal Protection, and Numinous Response, and also King Dinghui, who oversees the workings of the Five Lakes, the Four Seas, and the water offices of the twelve river sources, and Jia-Shi-Fan-Zhen Tathagata, who has attained the rank of Bodhisattva.

He clarifies the true realm, rectifies contemplation, and records the registers of emolument. His radiant light responds with compassion, governing the world and manifesting the Great Dao. He protects peace, uproots sins, grants renewed life and longevity, supports good deeds, and rescues beings from suffering. He is the Water Office's Commissioner, King Dinghui, and Jia-Shi-Fan-Zhen Tathagata, who has attained the rank of Bodhisattva. He clarifies the true realm, rectifies contemplation, and records the registers of emolument. His radiant light responds with compassion, governing the world and manifesting the Great Dao. He protects peace, uproots sins, grants renewed life and longevity, and supports good deeds. He is the Heavenly Venerable who dispels calamities, carries out transformation through teaching, is pure and undivided in virtue (De), and is distinguished by manifest responsiveness.

End of Scroll Two of the Supreme Limitless Comprehensive Perfection Wenchang Great Cavern Immortal Scripture (Jing).

Scroll Three of the Supreme Limitless Comprehensive Perfection Wenchang Great Cavern Immortal Scripture.

Revised by the Supreme Mystery Perfected Lord of Highest Virtue, Master of Ganshan Moweidong.

Mantra of Mysterious Accumulation

The primordial Qi of the Mysterious Origin, the profound and original beginning, divides and issues forth, and from it a pure and numinous radiance opens and reveals the Dongshen. The numinous wind circles and returns to Supreme Harmony, and the jade sound gathers in the flowing Jing. The Supreme Dao is naturally so from the very beginning, but who can grasp the meaning of these profound words? If one holds fast to a resolute heart and understands and realizes the single root, one can in an instant transcend the Three Vehicles (the three stages of Buddhist practice: Shravaka, Pratyekabuddha, and Bodhisattva). In stillness and formlessness there is no root to cling to. Having passed through endless ages, how could one be swept along and sink? Who can practice with diligence and in the end ascend to Jade Purity (Yuqing, one of the Three Pure Realms of Daoism)?

Long ago, at the beginning of the Longhan Kalpa (a legendary primordial cycle of cosmic time), the Celestial King of Primordial Beginning (Yuanshi Tianwang, a revered Daoist deity) proclaimed the Dadong Yujing in the Jade Pure Palace of Supreme Great Existence. He expounded the Dao of the Great Mystery, the Twofold Mystery, and the Mystery of Unity, and named this scripture the Dadong Immortal Jing (scripture).

With the single sound of the Great Mystery (the subtle voice of the Dao), the Celestial King of Primordial Beginning declared the true Dao of the Emperor's Unity (a Daoist teaching centered on "Diyi") within the Jade Pure Palace. He taught the Dadong Precious Text, revealed the method of the Nine Unifications, and transmitted the talismans (Fulu) of the Nine Lights. Those sincere in heart who recite this scripture and observe purification rites (Zhaijiao) will be celebrated by the myriad spirits, protected by the hundred numinous powers, answered by the ten thousand sages, and visited by the ten thousand immortals. They will rise beyond calamities: the three disasters and four afflictions, the five demons and six harms, the seven injuries and eight hardships, and the nine ordeals and ten evils. Their cultivation will bring them to immortality and sagehood, and their Shen (spirit) will ascend to the Purple Tenuity (Ziwei, the exalted celestial abode of the immortals). Practitioners will naturally accord with the Dao of Wuwei (non-action), no longer bound by Yin-Yang, the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water), or the six Qi (vital energies), and the merit of their practice will grow without end until they enter the Great Vehicle. The merit of spreading this scripture is boundless: the celestial deities will look upon it, and the Jade Emperor will descend to watch over and protect it. Flying Immortals will welcome and guard the practitioner's ancestors across the generations, kin of many lifetimes, and wandering souls scattered and lost, so that all may be reborn. Later descendants will inherit the bond with the immortals and remain people of honor for a long time. When merit is complete and practice fulfilled, their kin may also ascend together, riding dragons and clouds to pay court at the Jade Pure realm.

The Celestial King of Primordial Beginning chanted the Great Mystery, concentrated his Shen, contemplated the far distance, and proclaimed the following cavern verses:

The Supreme Cavern Origin is the root from which primordial Qi gives birth to the Nine Heavens. This Qi takes the Great Void (Taiwu, the formless, tranquil original state) as its ancestor, and from it the profound lineage is handed down.

The layered sources of the Mystery seem severed and scattered, yet the Four Pure Realms (Siqing, luminous and exalted heavens) are calmly at peace. The Upper Vista of the Emperor's Unity (the celestial scene manifested by Diyi) joins the numinous host and draws in the mists and clouds.

Long in accord with the One Revolution, seven generations return peacefully to stillness. Entrusting one's spirit and submitting to Heaven's mandate, one returns to the true and goes back to naturalness.

Deep and distant radiance flows onward, and the Six Luminaries (sun, moon, and stars) sink and shift. The sacred law commands the light, and the Western Splendor (Xihua, the wondrous western realm) manifests in peace.

Together, all are inscribed in the register of the Emperor Lord's immortals, and in the end all attain the source of liberation. The Embryonic Field (Taitian, the foundation for nurturing the spirit and practicing Neidan, or internal alchemy) opens a path into the profound, and in the world there arise immortal blossoms like jade orchids.

The numinous light radiates splendor in all eight directions, blending with the myriad things and giving birth to the ten thousand spirits.

The Celestial Sovereign of the Primordial Beginning (Yuanshi Tianwang) said:

Yuxu (the pure and empty realm of the immortals in Daoism) returns along the mysterious Dao (the Way). At dawn it roams among golden clouds. Its radiance shines brilliantly and brings forth a vision of imperial majesty, and in an instant a banquet is laid out on the Jade Isle.

On the left, it summons the Spirit Child of the Beginning; on the right, it commands the Talisman of Constancy to rise. The light of Illuminated Truth shines through the nine heavens, and the splendor of three days illumines the mysterious realm.

Gan Jing joins with the Three Sashes, and within them lies a realm profound and distant that returns to emptiness. May I attain long life, and may a thousand kalpas count as but a single cycle.

Huanglu (the yellow talismans or registers of Daoism) protect those of deep merit. Clothed in brocade, they enter the dwellings of the immortals. Taiyi (the Supreme Unity, a venerated Daoist deity) governs the root of life, and the Young Lord summons the talismanic mandates and brings them into accord.

Gan Jing joins with the Three Sashes, and within them lies a realm profound and distant that returns to emptiness. May I attain long life, and may a thousand kalpas count as but a single cycle.

Huanglu protect those of deep merit. Clothed in brocade, they enter the dwellings of the immortals. Taiyi governs the root of life, and the Young Lord summons the talismanic mandates and brings them into accord.

Practice this ten times over, and one can pass through the first threshold and enter a deep and steadfast faith.

The Celestial Sovereign of the Primordial Beginning said:

The Mysterious Supreme Banner (a banner of subtle wonder) of the Jade Emperor proclaims its orders, reaching the ranks of the nine heavens. The Seven Awakenings (seven kinds of enlightenment) form the stages of the path of cultivation, and a joyous divine wind swirls upward.

In the swift wind gleams the radiance of the north, while purple blossoms chant the immortal music of the east. Auspicious Qi (vital energy) resounds beyond the nine heavens, and the Jade Talisman (a talismanic decree) summons Taiwei (the celestial region where the heavenly star officials dwell).

The Three Sus (three kinds of pure essence or radiance in Daoism) arise from the Niwan (the upper Dantian, or energy center, in the head) and emit a golden numinous light. Laojun (Laozi, the Supreme Lord Lao) firmly sets up his barriers and guards the pivot between life and death.

The Ten Virtues (ten kinds of good deeds) arise from the mysterious realm, delivering people from calamity and bringing about their salvation of its own accord.

The Celestial Sovereign of the Primordial Beginning said:

The Great Obscurity (a profound and dark realm) cuts off the nine mysteries, and the vision that pierces all is lodged within divine power. The Jade Emperor rides the vermilion clouds, and green rosy mists light up the golden city towers.

The immortal halls above lie hidden among cloud pearls, and gazing upward one may draw near the lofty, mysterious peaks. The Numinous Gate lies beneath the Great Desolation, where dense clouds at last surge straight into the sky.

Minghua Hunli Kan Xuan said, in wonder:

The Great Obscurity cuts off the nine mysteries, and the vision that pierces all is lodged within divine power. The Jade Emperor rides the vermilion clouds, and green rosy mists light up the golden city towers.

The immortal halls above lie hidden among cloud pearls, and gazing upward one may draw near the lofty, mysterious peaks. The Numinous Gate lies beneath the Great Desolation, where dense clouds at last surge straight into the sky.

In the obscure transformations, Li and Kan (two trigrams of the Book of Changes, also symbolizing fire and water) merge, profound and far-reaching, and King Shuhuo (a Daoist deity) appears within them. Silent and wondrous, he is born together with the lofty and distant realm, and Wuji (the Limitless, the boundless realm of the Dao) protects the Valley Child.

The path of perfect cultivation is open and unobstructed. Splendid realms join layer upon layer, nine tiers in all. To the south, it uncovers the roots of the Seven Ancestors (seven generations of forebears); to the west, it dispels the misfortunes of many lifetimes.

The body is graceful, as ten thousand streams of bodily fluids surge forth. Shen (spirit) and Qi arise and take hold of the ten directions. In the end one returns to the way of embryonic breathing and ascends in union with the celestial dragon.

The Celestial Sovereign of the Primordial Beginning said:

The Palace of the Celestial Emperor of Taiwei (the dwelling of the Celestial Emperor) rises high into the clouds, and drifting mists from all eight directions encircle its towers. The divine lineage presides over matters of spiritual wonder, and the Dragon Mountain is so lovely that it seems the Jade Capital (the immortal capital where the transcendents dwell).

Golden chambers are wrapped in luminous clouds, and the nine-fold gates glow with pure jade light. The Yellow Court (a cultivation site within the human body, also referring to the related inner-cultivation concepts) opens onto the Northern Origin, where the Primordial Father circles and shines on the left.

Vermilion crystal opens the gate of the enlightened master, and its deep stillness leads to Shangqing (Highest Clarity, the upper heavens in Daoist cosmology). The Four Mysteries uphold the prohibitions of the Primordial Beginning, keeping the City of the Five Emperors forever at peace.

The Celestial King of the Primordial Beginning said:

Purple essence-qi fills the Great Void (the supreme formless realm), and the Three Origins (the primordial qi governed by the Officials of Heaven, Earth, and Water) stand above the great Way that reaches through Heaven. Bright and radiant, they safeguard the vast light of the sun; deep and boundless, they proclaim the teachings of the Celestial Emperor.

Boshi opens the Three Pure Lights (the three kinds of pure spiritual qi in Daoism), and the Emperor's spirit ascends to the Jade Void (the realm of immortals). Auspicious qi nurtures clouds of five colors, and from them the deity who governs destiny first appears.

Ten wondrous and resplendent transcendents subdue the obstructions of demons, and the six kinds of radiance arise.

The Celestial King of the Primordial Beginning said:

The Elder Guests of the True Yang Emperor, commanded to serve the Jade Emperor, receive their offices. With the water of the Dharma, which destroys demons and removes defilement, they cleanse all impurity, and the spirits, each in charge of their own duties, proceed to the Crimson Palace (the red palace of Heaven).

The transcendents dwell in peace within the Cinnabar Mystery, and the five kinds of primordial qi gather in the ten directions.

After seven revolutions, the deity who governs destiny arrives; after three turns, the celestial officials are summoned. The spirits who rule the ghosts of Mount Tai swiftly conduct their inspection before the Three Officials. When the ten virtues have first established their foundation, they ascend together with the origin of the seven awakenings.

The Celestial King of the Primordial Beginning said:

The three wondrous qi of Great Simplicity rise at dawn into the Hall of Vast Spirit. The Jade Guests record names in the register of the Mysteries, protecting life and keeping it as sound and innocent as a child's.

The whirling wind scatters the myriad demons, and the golden talisman summons the spirits of the Vast Realm. Within the Gate of Earth (the portal of the earthly realm), they stand guard and protect, preserving the body of long life.

Passing into the gate of the ten transcendents, the immortal landscapes of the eight directions gather in the Cavern of Yang.

The Celestial King of the Primordial Beginning said:

Purple essence-qi nourishes the splendid grove of the immortals, which dwells forever beyond the Great Void. Precious clouds arise in the Jade Chamber, and the nine-fold gates enfold the embryonic origin.

The Imperial Guest bears the five talismans, and the three lights of sun, moon, and stars encircle the purple canopy. Canghu Bin is born here to guard this assembly of the long night.

Purple essence-qi nourishes the splendid grove of the immortals, which dwells forever beyond the Great Void. Precious clouds arise in the Jade Chamber, and the nine-fold gates enfold the embryonic origin. The Imperial Guest bears the five talismans, and the three lights of sun, moon, and stars encircle the purple canopy. Canghu Bin is born here to guard this assembly of the long night.

The scripture of talismans for crossing over is formed from the Qi (vital energy) of the Five Spirits, and the Nine Unities converge to join nine kinds of radiance. The Qi of the Three Mysteries issues from the realm of Great Clarity (Taiqing), and the Qi of Purple Yang stirs the transformation and generation of all things.

The mysterious essential Qi gives birth to the Nine Spirits, and the Primal Father condenses the embryonic immortal.

The Celestial Sovereign of the Primal Beginning said:

The Qi of the Azure Spirit drives the primal Qi of the eight directions, sets the Dharma wheel turning, and moves through the City of Three Blossoms. For you, it uproots the knots and blockages in the womb, so that for seven generations you may enjoy blessings and attain long life.

The grievances of past lives are thereby extinguished, and you are released from the cycle of rebirth in the Five Paths, long guarding the Camp of the Emperor-One. The Young Lord holds the Five Talismans, and the Supreme One dwells in the Purple Chamber.

The three powers converge beneath the Gate of Earth. They lift you out of your allotted fate and send you on to the Palace of the Jade Emperor. The Maiden and the Lord of Yu Mo guard the windows of your Seven Qi.

Restrain and harmonize the blood and Qi of your vow, and let them fill the five viscera. Ten Perfected Ones ascend to the Yellow Chamber, and the Emperor's Child is thereby transformed into a golden immortal.

The Flying Talisman of White Jade comes to summon you and leads you up to the Heaven of the Dragon Terrace.

The Celestial Sovereign of the Primal Beginning said:

The Spirits of the Highest Exalted feast in the Palace of Purple Empyrean, and the Five Elders assist the Jade Root. The Qi of Supreme Simplicity stirs the faint and subtle light, so that the tally and the Emperor-One may be joined.

General Haoyu of the White Emperor returns to the land of golden Great Rosy Clouds. He carries me out from beneath the Gate of Death and lifts me away from the bridge of the Three Paths.

Ten kinds of penetrating understanding arise from this, and wondrous practice flourishes with them. In the light of luminous clarity, the Emperor-One reveals the profound and mysterious true realm.

End of Volume Three of the Taishang Wuji Zongzhen Wenchang Dadong Xianjing (Jing, scripture).

Taishang Wuji Zongzhen Wenchang Dadong Xianjing, Volume Four

Revised by the Lord of Mount Gan and Mount Moweidong, the True Lord of Great Mystery and Supreme Virtue (De).

The scripture says: At that time, azure rays of light shone from between the brows of the Celestial Sovereign of the Primal Beginning, and purple Qi swirled about the crown of his head. Myriad precious flowers formed a canopy, and the Qi of drifting gauze covered his body. Jade-colored light and golden rosy clouds interwove, circling and glittering. The Jade Dawn Lord (Yuchen Daojun), Father of the Dao of Great Mystery, a name of a Daoist deity, bowed in reverence and stood gazing upward, wishing to hear the Cavern Verses, the scriptures of the mysterious and wondrous teachings of the Caverns. Then the Celestial Sovereign of the Primal Beginning chanted serenely:

The Sovereign stands transcendent upon a precious canopy without form, the Qi of drifting gauze covering his body. Jade-colored light and golden rosy clouds interweave, circling and glittering. The Jade Dawn Lord, Father of the Dao of Great Mystery, bows in reverence and stands gazing upward, wishing to hear the Cavern Verses. Then the Celestial Sovereign of the Primal Beginning chants serenely:

The supreme heavens transcend all formless realms, and the Nine Luminaries (nine celestial bodies or stellar deities) revolve and give rise to being. The whirling wind blends and merges the heart of the Emperor, and the Qi (vital energy) of the eight directions circulates, so that the ten thousand things are made lasting and at peace.

Vast rosy clouds gather in the heaven of the divine spirits, and the Five Emperors scatter the essence of the sun. The fluids within the primordial Qi are full, blood and breath condense, and the blossoms of the five organs are calm and settled.

The treasure within the body shines like a round pearl, its radiance flowing and turning, uprooting calamities from the form. It is called "Longevity and Ease in Abundance," and also "Clear Spring Still Waters." These powers together help people pass through the barrier of the Three Paths (the realms of suffering in Daoist teaching: hell, hungry ghosts, and animals), open the registers of the immortals, and ascend to the realm of Supreme Brightness, so that the practitioner preserves the nature of an immortal and true being. The ancestors of seven generations may also be delivered through this and enter the realm of the immortals.

It can dispel the misfortunes along the road through the shadowy underworld, and raise a person to the blessed realm of dawn light. Generation after generation may ascend to the Jade Land, and the ancestors of every age may be reborn as infants. The practitioner perceives the realm of luminous emptiness and then reaches the light of life's source. The black-dragon pearl (a metaphor for the clear inner radiance) is reflected in the square pupils, and inside and out are illumined in clarity.

The Celestial Sovereign of the Primordial Beginning said:

The Nine Heavens of Jade Purity (the lofty celestial realms) are born of the Supreme Great Dao. The practitioner constantly abides within the transformations of the divine spirits, turning nine times and shining upon the realm of Highest Purity.

In the Chamber of Jade Reflection, loosen your sash, ride the plain Qi, and enter the realm of the Four Brightnesses. Seize the King within the sun and join with the spirit of the moon at dawn.

Taiyi (a venerated Daoist deity) summons the heavenly demons, and the Sovereign inspects the myriad spirits, uprooting the accumulated Qi of death, enabling a person to cross over perils and ascend into the immortals' Yellow Court (the central place of cultivation within the human body, also meaning the realm of the immortals).

The Celestial Emperor stands above the Three Passes, and divine soldiers fly within the Eight Winds. In the left hand he holds the liquor of blessing; in the right he lifts the vase of the wellspring of celebration.

Perceiving the subtle, the mysterious is unobstructed. When the Brahma Qi flows through, life arises from empty luminosity. Qi penetrates the crown of the head, hears the sounds of the ten directions, and suddenly comprehends every sound.

The Celestial Sovereign of the Primordial Beginning said:

The realm of Great Clarity floats upon utter emptiness, and the Three Heavens hold precious talismans. Within the sun five-colored radiance blossoms, and the Azure Emperor (the Emperor of the East) is complete and everlasting.

Bearing the registers of the immortals, one ascends to the realm of Supreme Brightness and receives the immortal records in the Tower of Golden Splendor. The five organs cultivate a foundation of jade, and the Hun and Po souls condense and unite in harmony.

Penetrating the realm of luminous emptiness, purity, and mystery, the primordial Qi flows through, and life thereby becomes clear. When the heart and spirit are settled and in harmony, and one awakens to subtle brightness, the mysterious breath (deep and fine breathing) naturally grows long, and one may attain long life.

The Celestial Sovereign of the Primordial Beginning said:

The Prince of Primordial Splendor of Taiji (the Supreme Ultimate; an exalted deity of the Three Realms) governs the Three Heavens, nurturing the Shen (spirit) so that life may arise. Dense purple plain Qi wreathes around him as he ascends peacefully to the Upper Flowery Capital.

Pull out the accumulated five sufferings and return body and mind to the Court of the Seven Origins (an inner realm connected with primordial Qi (vital energy)). The Nine Mysteries (nine generations of ancestors) are thereby released from their heavy bonds, and all the ancestors of every generation come to rest in pure joy.

Wandering beneath the Radiant Blossom, one reaches the realm of the Lord of the Utmost Origin and Scenic Light, so that the Three Heavens (the three celestial realms of Daoism) draw in the spirits and nourish life. Dense, towering purple numinous Qi rises peacefully to the Upper Flourishing Capital (a celestial realm of immortals).

Pull out the accumulated five sufferings and return body and mind to the Court of the Seven Origins. The Nine Mysteries are released from their heavy bonds, and all the ancestors of every generation come to rest in pure joy.

Moving to and fro beneath the Radiant Blossom, one can respond to the Five Numina in the space of a single glance upward or downward. The practitioner's body ascends into the Jade Hall, and the Five Spirits (the divine beings of the five directions stored within the body) return to the pure state of an infant.

Together they ascend beyond the Great Expanse, nurturing one's true nature and turning toward the realm of perfect clarity. Dwelling in emptiness, stillness, and harmony, the radiance of the spirit (Shen) penetrates everything and is led toward mysterious light.

Refine the Five Sprout Pearls (spiritual pearls in Daoist practice that symbolize the essences of the five directions), and nourish oneself with their good and wondrous flavor, and so attain long life.

The Heavenly Sovereign of the Primordial Beginning said:

Within the Purple Origin of the Great Beginning, radiance shines brilliantly and illuminates the heights. The Three Heavens reveal nine kinds of scenery, and Yin-Yang (the complementary forces of darkness and light) part and unite, transforming into hundreds of millions of lives.

Draped in pearl-adorned cloth and green mist, one wheels through the heights and receives the Spirit of the Cold Child (a Daoist deity). Pull out the five bitter poisons, free body and mind, and cross beyond the Heaven of the Initial Azure (the name of a Daoist heaven).

White numinous Qi opens the realm of Xiaoren, and the Golden Gate is guarded by soldiers in vermilion. The corpse-defilements and bindings accumulated over seven generations, once dissolved, disperse like clouds and mist.

Receive blessings in the Chamber of the Eastern Mist and return to the Vermilion Fire Court (an inner realm corresponding to the vital Qi of life). Practice the Dao (the Way) of penetrating spiritual clarity and stillness, and one's power will flow through everything, naturally reaching the realm of light.

The Pure and True One holds the Northern Dipper in hand and treads upon the stars of the Nine Origins. Wielding the pivot that governs heaven and earth, this being masters the root of spirit and life.

The Heavenly Sovereign of the Primordial Beginning said:

The Peerless True One of the Supreme Mystery (the name of a Daoist deity) is the source of the Nine Pure Qi of the Mysterious Origin. This Qi lodges in the Pearl of Continuous Conveyance (a spiritual pearl in Daoist practice), mixing and transforming, and opens the day of illumination.

The immortal officials of the left and right of Zhengyi (Orthodox Unity) long guard the Chamber of Numinous Emptiness. A practitioner who holds a jade talisman and a name in the registers can unite with the immortal Way and obtain true Qi.

The hun and po souls form the pivot linking heaven and earth, and the spirit is the root of life.

The Heavenly Sovereign of the Primordial Beginning said:

The Peerless True One of the Supreme Mystery is the source of the Nine Pure Qi of the Mysterious Origin. This Qi lodges in the Pearl of Continuous Conveyance, mixing and transforming, and opens the day of illumination.

The immortal officials of the left and right of Zhengyi long guard the Chamber of Numinous Emptiness. A practitioner who holds a jade talisman and a name in the registers can unite with the immortal Way and obtain true Qi.

The hun soul is born within the Great Void, and the po soul too will circulate through the Five Paths (the five destinations of rebirth). Generation after generation, the bonds on the gate of death are loosened, so that seven generations of ancestors are no longer obstructed.

The divine wind stirs the Womb Tree (a tree symbolizing the origin of life), and the entanglements of root and leaf are cut off. The ghostly evils and calamities planted in the womb are likewise dissolved when the Five Talismans (Fulu, Daoist talismans and registers) unseal the knots of the earth.

Long may one be a sovereign among the divine and true, continuing with the immortal Way through ten thousand ages. Body and mind become transparent to what is real and pure, the Dao communicates with the self, and one's natural original nature is revealed.

The manifested image of True Response dwells peacefully within the Yellow Chamber, unmoving and unshaken. Its transformations respond without fixed direction and are present everywhere; the bones and flesh of a person can likewise become as solid as gold and jade.

Keep to purity, stillness, and the True One (Zhenyi); understand and uphold the correct Great Dao (the Way), and even into old age it will not change.

The Celestial King of the Primordial Beginning said:

The yellow-plain Qi (vital energy) of the center, a perfectly blended radiance, nurtures the spirit of long life. The Jade Gate above is opened wide, and within the hidden clouds lies a brilliance of three ren.

The azure scene is deep and distant, bearing and drawing in the essential Qi of the Supreme One (Taiyi). The Emperor's Daughter embraces the spirit of Dingling and chants the True Scripture of the Jade Fruit.

Keep to purity, stillness, and the True One; understand and uphold the correct Great Dao, and even into old age it will not change.

The Celestial King of the Primordial Beginning said:

The yellow-plain Qi of the center, a perfectly blended radiance, nurtures the spirit of long life. The Jade Gate above is opened wide, and within the hidden clouds lies a brilliance of three ren.

The azure scene is deep and distant, bearing and drawing in the essential Qi of the Supreme One. The Emperor's Daughter embraces the spirit of Dingling and chants the Jade Pure Scripture.

Five canons are arranged within the Purple Chamber, and five Fulu (talismans and registers) enter the Round Court. The ancestors of seven generations return to the womb-abode and are wholly freed from the Three Paths (the realms of suffering in the cycle of rebirth).

The flowing wind-qi blocks and severs the blood vessels, so that the mysterious leaves and blossoms may rest in peace. The pure light of Dongxuan appears, and the spirit of one's original destiny reaches fulfillment.

The root of nature and life is firmly established, and filial piety is accomplished and made manifest. The root of life receives the Qi of Great Harmony, accords with the way of Wuwei (non-action), and ascends to the realm of Highest Clarity (Shangqing).

The Celestial King of the Primordial Beginning said:

The upper-flower Qi of the Azure Essence, and the mysterious images within Taiwei, transform into immortal youths. Within the Jade Chamber, divine transformation appears; with wings raised in flight, they drift lightly across the purple heavens.

The sun transforms into the image of the Three Dawns; bearing the talismans, one ascends to the emperor's walled city. Opening the gate, one holds the golden tally; closing the door, one strikes the jade bell.

The Celestial King of the Primordial Beginning said:

The upper-flower Qi of the Azure Essence, and the mysterious images within Taiwei, transform into immortal youths. Within the Jade Chamber, divine transformation appears; with wings raised in flight, they drift lightly across the purple heavens.

The sun transforms into the image of the Three Dawns; bearing the talismans, one ascends to the emperor's walled city. Opening the gate, one holds the golden tally; closing the door, one strikes the jade bell.

Demonic evils are destroyed, and the foul darkness of the fields of the Three Fengdu is cleansed. The spirits are invited to descend to the Palace of Highest Clarity. Light emerges from the dim passes, and essential Qi enters the palaces within the Six Directions.

Aging is reversed, and the pale, withered appearance is transformed, so that one returns from old age to youth. The pure light of the Cavern Source appears, and the bodily fluids too take on a wondrous function.

Swallow the fluids, and the myriad spirits are brought forth; the divine water gathers and blends in the Flower Pool. The fluids surge upward, pour forth, and moisten the whole body, circulating again and again without end.

Thereby the source of life and the Great Dao are joined, and the Root of Heaven remains ever flourishing and full.

The Celestial King of the Primordial Beginning said:

The sun transforms into the Three Dawns, and a purple carriage descends from the realm of subtle mystery. The Primordial Lord protects the child of the Valley Spirit, guards the stomach-storehouse, and seals the gate that leads to death.

Golden Fulu (talismans and registers, sacred Daoist script) shine brilliantly on Mount Beihua, and the jade covenant lifts the seven generations of ancestors to liberation. The Emperor of the Perfected (the revered true deity) pours vital force into me and frees me from the suffering of the Three Evil Paths (the realms of hell, hungry ghosts, and animals).

The clear, pure light, penetrating and bright, reaches the heart of the Emperor and the profound Dao (the Way). From this I gain the wisdom to know past destinies and former lives, and I understand the root and origin of all things.

Insight into the future and into the hearts of others is likewise fully integrated and unobstructed. This power to perceive the source and illuminate the principles of things lets all the ways of the Dao open up and arise from it.

The Celestial King of Primordial Beginning (Yuanshi Tianwang) said:

At the Great Beginning, nine kinds of pure and subtle primordial Qi (the fine breath of heaven and earth at their birth) welled up from within the Radiant Scene. Immortal banners fluttered in the Dharma Enclosure (the walled palace of celestial law), and the Five Elders appeared at ease.

The celestial being named Qizhu held the register of names and entered the Purple Chamber (a palace of heaven). The Primordial Father Zuo Huiming met and merged with the Youth of Great Subtlety (Taiwei Tong).

Penetrating and clear, wisdom shines forth. The mind is vast and bright, reaching the original source. The six senses and the dusts of the world (the human senses and the external realm they touch) dissolve, and being and non-being alike return to emptiness.

The celestial being named Qizhu held the register of names and entered the Purple Chamber. The Primordial Father Zuo Huiming met and merged with the Youth of Great Subtlety.

Penetrating and clear, wisdom shines forth. The mind is vast and bright, reaching the original source. The six senses and the dusts of the world dissolve, and being and non-being alike return to emptiness.

When wondrous practice is complete and True Unity (the fundamental true Qi and the state of oneness in Daoism) is fully realized, this is called the Great Mind of Spiritual Power. When the practice of the great Dao is perfected, one ascends to the Heaven of Jade Clarity (Yuqing) and takes a place among the holy immortal elders.

The Celestial King of Primordial Beginning said:

The Primordial Beginning handed down the Dao of Great Mystery, and Canghu Jie held up the precious pearl. The subtle sound of Tan Chijun is hard to perceive, yet it carries through the Great Void.

The Qi of the Nine Sovereigns and Highest Perfected gathered with the Four Directors, the great immortal kings. Flying mists spread across the sky, their radiance condensing and unfolding to fill the six directions.

The immortals paid homage at the Jade Void from the heaven of Highest Clarity (Shangqing), traveling by sunlight and morning glow. The Three Spirits, Hao Fa Niu, held up the register of names and petitioned the Sovereign of the Void (the supreme celestial deity).

The immortals entered the immortal registers in the Heaven of Purple Clarity, and golden talismans were inscribed in the Palace of Feathers. Canghu Jie dwells above the Mysterious Heaven, and with great compassionate power he delivers living beings and brings them up to the realm of Universal Light.

He guides practitioners within the profound mystery, so that they swallow the essences and nourish the five organs. Through accumulated cultivation they form the Immortal Embryo (the immortal body produced by cultivation), nurtured by the Mother of the Elixir and by the Yang Qi of the Golden Perfected.

Host and companion unite and accord with the law of the Primordial Beginning, and from this the Qi of the Great Change is born within the profound realm.

End of Scroll Four of the Taishang Wuji Zongzhen Wenchang Dadong Xianjing (Jing, scripture).

Scroll Five of the Taishang Wuji Zongzhen Wenchang Dadong Xianjing. Revised by the Perfected Lord of Great Mystery, Supreme and Highest Virtue, Master of the Grotto of Moweï on Mount Gan.

The Dao says: At that time, in the district of Yuanxuan…

At that time, the Heavenly Sovereign of Primordial Beginning (Yuanshi Tianwang) gathered the precious Jade Emperor qi (Qi) of the Great Cavern's Highest Supremacy, the Chaotic Void and Primordial Heaven, and condensed it into a precious pearl named "Canghu Jie." He said: "This pearl was born from the subtle principle of the Dao (the Way). It bestows vitality and nurtures the root. It holds the mysterious within it and divides the primal qi; it opens the original beginning of all things, spreads the true Dao, gives birth to the many heavens, and gathers into ten thousand manifestations. It is the most supreme of treasures, and I alone may hold it.

"Now, for the sake of the Daoist Lord of the Jade Dawn (Yuchen Daojun), I reveal this pearl once more. The sovereigns of the heavens and the great sages of true heaven gazed up at the pearl's radiance and saw the light scatter, transforming into hundreds of thousands of billions of rays. These condensed into the jade text of the Scripture of the Great Cavern (Dadong Xianjing, a Jing). The jade text gathered into clouds of qi, and the clouds in turn revealed splendid verses.

"The sovereigns of the heavens and the great sages of true heaven grasped it with clear and luminous minds, contemplated it with the wisdom of first awakening, and in beautiful voices chanted together the cloud-script of the Scripture of the Great Cavern. Their chanting resounded through the ten thousand heavens and echoed through the nine earths. All the spirits of the heavenly realms, the earthly realms, the waters, and the dwellings of the gods, though they had not left their original places, all saw the cloud-script; the radiance of the immortal realms appeared before their eyes, and the sound of the scripture reached their ears. The accumulated obstacles of living beings across many lifetimes were thereby dispelled, and the dust and defilement gathered over countless kalpas were thereby washed away.

"Beings in the Three Paths and Nine Hells (the dark realms of suffering described in Daoism) and in the evil destinies of the ten directions all received the light and sound of the scripture. Wherever the light and sound reached, the many bonds and defilements, the ten entanglements, nine knots, six stains, and seven dusts, were in an instant released all together."

Then the Daoist Father of Great Mystery (Taixuan Daofu) came to the Xiao Terrace, bowed twice and touched his head to the ground, and asked to receive the jade cloud-script of the Scripture of the Great Cavern transformed from the pearl. He hoped thereby to teach and transform beings of the human and heavenly realms, sparing them from all manner of calamities, dissolving their sinful karma, keeping them from falling again into evil destinies, and bringing them together to return to the One Vehicle (the unified path leading to liberation). With a vast vow in his heart, he made his earnest petition.

The Heavenly Sovereign of Primordial Beginning commanded the Great Sage of Primordial Spirit, the Daoist Lord of the Jade Dawn, to perform the rites in due form and to hand the Canghu Jie pearl to the Daoist Father of Great Mystery with his own hands.

The Celestial King of the Primordial Beginning (Yuanshi Tianwang) told the assembly: "This treasure is called the 'Canghu Jie Treasure,' and it resonates with the 'Tan Chi Jun Yin.' Unless one practices the Way of Great Mystery, one cannot seek it. Only because your compassion runs deep and your vow is firm may I bestow this precious scripture upon you."

The Celestial King of the Primordial Beginning said:

The Qi of the Supreme Truth of the Celestial Sovereign rises, and the Three Origins (the Qi of the upper, middle, and lower origins) return with the morning light. The realm of sacred law arises in vermilion clouds, and the radiance of the Emperor's Star opens the Jade Gate.

Within the Gate of Life, expel the corrupt Qi of the corpse-spirits, and loosen the bonds along the steps of Taokang. Gather in the Shen (spirit) and guard the root of cultivation represented by the five canons. Advance through each layer and enter Taiwei (the celestial star palace).

One may cultivate alone or practice together with others. Following a single bend of water, water and sky seem suddenly to open wide. The sun over the sea rises of itself in the east, and the person's own innate Qi returns to the Great Beginning (the primordial source state of the cosmos).

The Celestial King of the Primordial Beginning said:

Taiyi (the Supreme Source) gives birth to primordial Qi, and within the Great Yang dwells the Youth Who Governs Destiny (a deity who presides over lifespan). The Shen radiates brilliantly, and, wrapped in rosy mists, ascends to the city-towers of the Celestial Emperor.

The many deities sit in rows upon the mats of Zhenling and together enter the Chamber of the Five Suns (a chamber symbolizing the spirit-room in cultivation). White Qi nourishes the rising impulse, and the Azure Lord makes life secure and flourishing.

With the left hand I carry Jing (essence) into the upper gate, and with the right I embrace the Harmonious Infant (a spirit-child symbolizing the union and harmony of Yin-Yang). I bring forth the radiance of sun and moon, and take the Sovereign of Red Qi as my companion.

The Eight Effulgences (the eight inner lights of the human body) illuminate the Niwan (the spirit-chamber of the head), and the Grotto Chamber (the inner dwelling of the divine) is filled with brightness. The spirit-infant becomes a newborn child, Yin and Yang unite, and a face like jade appears.

The Qi of the Five Paths shows golden brilliance, and by this the practitioner takes rank as a Duke of Shangqing (an honored station among the Shangqing immortals). The sins and stagnations of seven generations of ancestors are thereby severed, and the practitioner is lifted up, riding the divine wind.

Wandering at ease in the Heaven of Jade Purity, joyfully one returns to the pure innocence of an infant. The Three Primordial Qi of the Great Beginning circulate everywhere, and the true script begins to shine forth in radiance.

The Celestial King of the Primordial Beginning said:

Within the Yellow Chamber of Primordial Void (the Yellow Court, the spirit-chamber in the body), there dwells a youth named Huangning. On the left stands the Lord of Firm Jade, and on the right the Emperor Changhuang.

The clear Qi stirs and floats, and the Shen-Qi gathers like clouds and mist, revealing a form both abundant and ethereally empty. The Azure Liver's Bright Wheel Child (the deity corresponding to the liver) shines brilliantly, making the gates of the eight directions open and luminous.

Taiyi descends to Shouqiu Lan, bearing the talismanic mandate as he enters the Jade Palace. He removes for me the sins of seven generations of ancestors, and turns the primordial Qi back, until it reaches a state open in all ten directions.

Mingling with the divine Qi in the chamber of Diyi, the Five Elders (the deities of the Five Directions' Celestial Emperors) transform into the form of children. The pure practice of Taisu Fanxing (undefiled, pure conduct) begins here, and by performing a single good deed one may reach the golden towers in all four directions.

The Celestial King of the Primordial Beginning said:

Taiji (the Supreme Ultimate) governs the four true deities, bright and clear, illuminating the gates of the eight directions.

Taiyi, Shouqiu, and Helan (venerated Daoist deities and place-names of the immortal realm) bear the Fulu (talismans and registers) into the Jade Palace. They erase my sins of seven generations, restore my primal Qi (vital energy), and lengthen my life, until I reach a state of penetration in all ten directions.

Emperor Hunhe dwells in a single chamber, and the Five Elders transform into the forms of children. When Taisu Fanxing first appears, the merit of a single good deed opens the metal Qi of the four quarters.

The Heavenly King of Primordial Beginning (Yuanshi Tianwang) says:

The Taiji (Supreme Ultimate) commands four true spirits, who ride on feathers and ascend, dwelling transcendent in Highest Clarity (Shangqing). After seven transformations, one may summon the Director of Destiny (Siming, the deity in charge of lifespans and the registers of fate), while Taiyi displays his majesty and radiance.

The Director of Records (Silu, the deity in charge of recording merits, faults, and the registers of fate) urges the gods to come and take their places. After three recommendations, one ascends to the rank of Zhenling. Demon kings come to receive their assignments, and immortal officials restrain ghosts and spirit-demons.

Within the moon is the Mother of the Azure Emperor, called Fenyanying. Taizhang presents five Fulu upward, so that Anlai may ascend to a place in the Jade Register.

Shen-Qi (spirit and Qi) blends and transforms within the six directions, and fire soldiers are arrayed in the Grotto Chamber. The five spiritual Qi of the Taiji flow in harmony, and the emperor's sons and guests take their positions according to the horizontal script.

The Heavenly King of Primordial Beginning says:

Within the Dipper constellation are four true ones, who scatter flowers upon the Jade Clarity Terrace. Among the imperial ministers is Xuansheng; once he circles, all the true ones arrive.

Fragrant winds stir the Three Treasures (the Dao, the scriptures, and the masters, revered in Daoism), and the five viscera reveal a pure and peaceful scene. Canghu Jieguanghua and Tanchijun all manifest auspicious signs.

The six Qi of the Great Center are clear and harmonious, and the winding waters flow into the Celestial River. When the merit of the six perfections is complete, the five demons campaign against the six Yin Qi.

The King of Primordial Beginning dwells at the center, enthroned high in the courtyard of the six directions.

The Heavenly King of Primordial Beginning says:

In the early morning, yellow Qi rises, and the Three Blossoms ascend to the Courtyard of Heaven. Cangtai arrives on a feathered wheel to greet them, for the practice of the Dao has been accomplished.

The Director of Destiny bears the decree of the Heavenly Emperor and bestows the title Lord Xuandu. The five demons campaign against the six Yin Qi, and the King of Primordial Beginning dwells at the center, enthroned high in the courtyard of the six directions.

The Heavenly King of Primordial Beginning says:

In the early morning, yellow Qi rises, and the Three Blossoms ascend to the Courtyard of Heaven. Cangtai arrives on a feathered wheel to greet them, for the practice of the Dao has been accomplished.

The Director of Destiny bears the decree of the Heavenly Emperor and bestows the title Lord Xuandu. The practitioner who nurtures life dwells in the Palace of Supreme Rosy Clouds and is enrolled among the guests of the realm of Highest Clarity.

The Gate of Life (Mingmen, the region that sustains the body's vital Qi) joins Jing (essence) and Qi so that they continue unbroken, guarding the Qi of Huangning within my body. In the left hand I hold Lord Yuansu, and with the right I command Zhuyu Ling.

The Qi of Supreme Harmony passes through the seven stages of awakening, kindles the true fire, and brings forth the true script. Zihua leads the embryonic immortal (an immortal spirit conceived from Jing and Qi, not yet manifest in form), and the Original Destiny is the true original Shen (spirit) within the body.

The Heavenly King of Primordial Beginning says:

Above the Golden Gate Tower, radiant Qi rises, and purple clouds illuminate the ten directions. Three times he commands Taiyi, the Emperor, and five times he summons the Spirit of Great Peace.

The Seventh Transformation (seven transformations, or stages of cultivation) summons the true spirits of the sacred mountains. The jade talisman (Fulu) conveys its command to the Three Officials (Sanguan; deities who govern the affairs of heaven, earth, and the human world). Names are struck from the registers, and the Three Spirits descend, so that the practitioner may be born into the realm of the High Clarity dawn.

The Eight Spirit Kings of the Great Emperor undergo one transformation and return to the realm of Qingxuan. The Lord of Peach guards the Six Directions (up, down, and the four cardinal directions), restrains Jing and Qi (essence and vital energy), and protects the Niwan (the cultivation site in the head).

Within the Eight Scenes of Great Clarity, the True Script of the Ten Virtues is proclaimed. It protects the practitioner and makes them a spirit among spirits, and their Original Life (the root source of one's life) arises of itself.

The Celestial Lord of the Primordial Beginning said:

The Great Void is silent and formless, and within the clouds and mists lies the Chamber of Peng. Nine layers of cloud-Qi join to form tier upon tier of gates, and the Sovereign Lord dwells quietly in the deep and hidden place.

The Eight True Spirits meet with the Lord of the Scenes and, ascending, bring with them the Female Supreme One (the name of a goddess). The Qi of female and male blends in the Jade Chamber (in cultivation, a symbol for the place within the body where Jing and Qi unite). After nine transformations, it returns once more to the realm of "Seven."

When the form divides and spreads through the Six Directions, the Niwan can close its gates again, and the Sovereign Lord dwells quietly in the deep and hidden place.

The Eight True Spirits meet with the Lord of the Scenes and, ascending, bring with them the Female Supreme One. The Qi of female and male blends in the Jade Chamber. After nine transformations, it returns once more to the realm of "Seven."

When the form divides and spreads through the Six Directions, the Niwan can manifest each of its aspects separately. The Nine Lights of Great Truth revolve, and the Ten Immortals (transcendent beings) are joined with the "丿 Script." (Note: the "丿 Script" here is probably a special symbol or a corrupted character in the scripture, and it is kept as it appears literally.)

It protects the practitioner, so that Primordial Qi (the Qi of the source of life) flows freely and the Five Qi (the Qi of the Five Phases) harmonize the Central Palace. All things merge and return to the Imperial Gate (the dwelling of the Celestial Sovereign), and from then on the practitioner lives long and is not brought to an end by cosmic calamities.

Transformed, they ascend in flight to High Clarity and pass beyond the three thousand worlds.

The Celestial Lord of the Primordial Beginning said:

The Nine Qi of Great Mystery (the nine subtle primordial Qi) rise, and smoke and rosy clouds swirl in the great radiance. Spirit light illuminates the peaks in the sky, and five colors of brilliance shine upon the Three Heavens.

Riding the light, one climbs to the highest heavens, and mounting the wind, one sweeps away the stagnant Qi of the spirit. The spirit of the Central One moves within the body like a pearl, regulating the Shen (spirit) of the heart and making the mind clear and at ease.

Let the Palaces of the Three and the Five (palaces related to the organs and the movement of Qi within the body) fuse together, and through layer upon layer of transformation, continue for a hundred million years. Cut away what grows from the placental tree (a symbol of the root that entangles one in birth and death), and sever forever the root of the blood-corpse (the root bound up with the mortality of flesh and blood).

Let the Seven Ancestors (seven generations of forebears) disperse their accumulated stagnation, return to radiance, and be freed from the dark and shadowy obscurity. Ten thousand Qi give birth to ten thousand spirits, and the host of immortals together perfect themselves as Immortal Kings.

Great Mystery opens the Ten Brightnesses, and the subtle methods of practice advance, severing forever the root of the blood-corpse.

Let the Seven Ancestors disperse their accumulated stagnation, return to radiance, and be freed from the dark and shadowy obscurity. Ten thousand Qi give birth to ten thousand spirits, and the host of immortals together perfect themselves as Immortal Kings.

Great Mystery opens the Ten Brightnesses, and the subtle methods of practice rise to the realm of the Ten True Ones.

The Celestial Lord of the Primordial Beginning said:

High Clarity rises beyond the rosy light, and the Eight Sovereigns move through the Nine Heavens. In the deep and vast expanse arises the dwelling of the Sovereign Lord, who brings with him this person who abides in the realm of the Scenes.

At dawn they ascend to the sleeping hall of the Great Elder, and at dusk they feast in the Pavilion of Golden Splendor. With feathered tallies they summon the Supreme One, and with brocade banners they call forth the ten thousand spirits.

May my six viscera and my embryonic origin be made firm, and the root of the tree of the womb be cut away. May the tangled knots of karma be undone, so that the ancestors of seven generations are released; may calamity be dispersed, so that the nine generations of ancestral spirits (the Nine Mysteries) are at peace.

The Red Emperor, Cinnabar Spirit (the fire deity who governs the south) holds his post and helps you enter the Jade Gate (a sacred pass in cultivation). Lunar Mother Lingsu Lan guards and seals the gate of death-Qi (炁, vital energy).

From this moment death-Qi is cut off, and the fluids of life extend without break. The ten thousand spirits and the ten thousand Qi all attain immortality, rise beyond the dusty world, and take their places among the True Kings.

When the wondrous practice of the Ten Perfected is complete, the realm of Great Mystery meets the Bright Yang. The Supreme Honored One of the Great Cavern (the highest divine lord of the Cavern) joins with the Dragon Light through a single Qi.

The Celestial King of the Primordial Beginning said:

From the land of Eastern Florescence the first radiance comes forth, and the True Kings…

When the wondrous practice of the Ten Perfected is complete, the realm of Great Mystery meets the Bright Yang. The Supreme Honored One of the Great Cavern joins with the Dragon Light through a single Qi.

The Celestial King of the Primordial Beginning said:

Eastern Florescence sends forth its radiance, and High Dawn (the lofty heavenly realm) shines upon Highest Clarity (Shangqing, the heaven where the honored deities of the Dao dwell). The Cavern Heaven blazes forth, its pearl-round light spreading far and wide, and the purple glow shines bright and clear.

The Seven Spirits return to the seat of the Celestial Emperor, and the Five Elders ride in jade chariots through the air. Taiyi (the Great One, a celestial deity) stands within the radiant light, and the Director of Destiny (the deity who governs lifespans) commands the multitude of spirits.

They drift at leisure among the waves of cloud and mist, quietly gazing upon the City of the Niwan (the inner realm of the head, where spirit is cultivated). Seven times the ritual formula is turned, summoning the Three Officials (of Heaven, Earth, and Water); the Lord of the North bows his head in homage to the spirits.

The spirits of the Five Peaks arrive in response to the Qi. They strike the name from the registers of death and enter it in the registers of long life. Three times the spirit talisman is raised, overawing and dissolving the powerful demonic essences.

The ancestors of seven generations loosen the knots in their bloodlines, and the mysterious numinous bloom protects Huangning (the realm of peace within the body).

The Celestial King of the Primordial Beginning said:

The Nine Elders of the Imperial Capital of the Celestial Emperor (the dwelling of heavenly immortals) review and record the registers of immortals, and then ascend to Fusang. Seven times the ritual formula is turned, summoning the Celestial Emperor; the Director of Destiny arrives riding the sacred cords of order.

The Five Peaks open their numinous gates and send word to the Great Demon King. The spirits of the rivers and seas all receive their orders and establish for you the method of resonance (the rule of sympathetic response).

Keep the talisman that protects the body within the Niwan, and guard the original spirit, which is called Taokang. Turn back the numinous brightness and alter the register of death, so that you are enrolled as the immortal Shuhuo Wang.

Remove sickness and misfortune from the Three Paths (the realms of suffering, such as hell, hungry ghosts, and animals), and dispel calamity, so that your life may rise to the highest realm of immortals. The Seven Mysteries (your ancestors of seven generations) ascend to the Vermilion Chamber (the sacred dwelling in Heaven), and your body and mind gather in the Jade Hall.

Above you, Fangyingzi lends his aid; below, Liweizang follows you. On your left, Mingchejun commands, and on your right, Guishengchang assists.

Let your own self blend into one with the Qi of the Jade Capital (the pure, numinous Qi of Heaven), giving rise to good fortune and bringing you prosperity. Return to the primordial life of an infant, and let the light of auspiciousness blaze and be complete.

The Primordial Root Immortal of Heavenly Unity (an immortal embodying the original qi of heaven and earth at the beginning) dwells within a wheel of Dharma, free and radiant.

The Celestial Sovereign of the Primordial Beginning said:

In the Jade Pure Palace of Ten Thousand Splendors live high-ranking immortals who guard the scriptures of the Heavenly Emperor. They oversee the charts and registers of the Nine Heavens and perceive how all things arise from emptiness.

With seven revolutions of fortune, the myriad spirits are summoned, and the spirits of the Five Peaks arrive together in the courtyard. The Three Officials (the deities governing heaven, earth, and water) gather the demons, and the Registrar (the office in charge of ledgers and records) examines the rosters that have been submitted.

The names are pulled out of the registers of the dead in the depths of the underworld and entered into the immortal rolls of Shangqing (Highest Clarity).

The Celestial Sovereign of the Primordial Beginning said:

Mysterious Isle lies far from the Three Fords (the waters leading to the underworld). It is the Court of Supreme Void, where feathered immortals and the radiance of sun and moon converge. Swirling clouds sweep across the vast sky, and all things transform, merging into the many streams of vital essence.

Clouds of the five colors fill the lofty heavens, and rays of seven-hued dawn light illuminate the realm of perfect brightness. Immortals, profound and still, appear in clear radiance, and through the way of Brahma's Splendor they aid the realm of Yellow Serenity.

The Five Elders (the venerable deities of the five directions or Five Phases) wave crimson brilliance, scatter fragrance, and carry the Jade Spirit. Their golden immortal bodies bathe in the River of the Heavenly Emperor, and within the green mist, the luster of fine jade flows.

Divine power uproots the karmic obstructions accumulated in the Three Paths (the realms of hell, hungry ghosts, and animals, among other places of suffering). From this the immortal embryo congeals, revealing its signs and form. The Teacher of the Jade Emperor of Shangqing, the Great Lord of the Jade Firmament and Great Dao, and the Spirit of the Crimson Palace within the heart (the deity residing in the palace of the heart) all ascend to the realm of clarity and become venerable deities of the Great Mystery.

The Celestial Sovereign of the Primordial Beginning said:

Three true deities are born from the primordial qi (Qi) of the Great Beginning, and the jade doors reflect the light of morning. The realm of Great Plainness opens onto the original void, and in the Cinnabar Forest the vermilion branches stand lush and tall.

Turn the spirit and qi back to the palace of the Nine Heavens, and in the Palace of Nanchang a jade-like radiance arises. Let the hundred joints of the whole body draw in the fluids, so that the mysterious essence (Jing) comes to rest in the place of the Three Blossoms (a symbol of the place where immortal herbs gather).

The practitioner's body will rise to the Heaven of Jade Clarity, and seven generations of ancestors will also be freed from the prisons of the underworld. Preserved for ages, free from the suffering of the cosmic cycle's end, they will enter the households of the immortals generation after generation.

Their rank is exalted; they command the sages and the perfected, and become spirits of the Great Cavern of Jade Clarity.

The Celestial Sovereign of the Primordial Beginning said:

Turn the spirit and qi back to the palace of the Nine Heavens, and in the Palace of Nanchang a jade-like radiance arises. Let the hundred joints of the whole body draw in the fluids, so that the mysterious essence comes to rest in the place of the Three Blossoms.

The practitioner's body will rise to the Heaven of Jade Clarity, and seven generations of ancestors will also be freed from the prisons of the underworld. Preserved for ages, free from the suffering of the cosmic cycle's end, they will enter the households of the immortals generation after generation.

Their rank is exalted; they command the sages and the perfected, and become spirits of the Great Cavern of Jade Clarity.

The Celestial Sovereign of the Primordial Beginning said:

The nine spiritual qi of the Primordial Beginning in the West cause the Golden Elixir to circulate through the cloud palaces. Above, it reaches the place of the Xuan Yao (the stellar luminaries of the heavens), and its radiance shines amid the Great Rosy Clouds.

In movement, spirit and qi circulate, turning the wheel of the Nine Heavens; in stillness, they sink into the guiding cords of the waters of the eight directions. Within the chamber dwells the Mother of the Immortal Embryo, who draws at the robe of the Great Emperor.

The spiritual qi of the Mysterious One arises in its season, and the Three Elders (the three venerable deities spoken of in cultivation) appear in calm stability. The left hand holds your talismanic register, and the right hand carries the essential principles that govern the spirits.

Together they ascend to the Linlong Gate-Tower (a heavenly tower adorned with fine jade) and pay homage to the palace of Jade Clarity. Uproot the source that leads to death and destruction, and nourish the body within the numbers of the Three and Five (numerical symbols used in Daoist numerology).

The seven generations of ancestors are released from the knot of corpse-liberation (shijie), and obtain a method of blessing as radiant as a bright pearl. Ascending, they enter the sacred realm and become the honored ones; through Fulu (talismans and registers) they undergo transformation and become sovereigns who command Primordial Qi (the original qi of the cosmos).

The Jade Dawn Dao Lord (Yuchen Daojun, an honored deity of Daoism) said: "My teacher, the Heavenly Sovereign of Primordial Beginning, transmitted this Great Cavern Immortal Scripture (Dadong Xianjing) to me. Its purport is profound and subtle, and it is the gateway to the wondrous method of cultivating truth. At the outset, one must settle the breath and harmonize the qi of Great Harmony up to one thousand counts. Then, turning one's gaze inward, one transforms the self into the true, casts off bodily form and dispels worldly burdens, and unites with the primordial qi up to five thousand counts. Afterward, whether sitting or standing, one can enter stillness and extinction; reaching great concentration and becoming wholly true, one's wondrous practice penetrates the spirits.

Cultivation is first called 'penetrating Qi,' next 'penetrating Shen (spirit),' and finally 'penetrating the numinous.' When the ten penetrations are attained, one can become a true being. When one's practice is complete, one ascends to the heavens, transcends and rises in flight, passes through the Three Realms (the realm of desire, the realm of form, and the formless realm), and moves back and forth among the Three Pure Ones (Sanqing, the highest heavens of Daoism). One enters the rank of the Great Cavern Immortals and becomes the Heavenly Unity Emperor. When the six perfections and ten penetrations, and the ten thousand practices, are fulfilled, when the thousand harmonies are joined and the ten thousand dharmas return to one, one naturally becomes the Supreme One."

The foregoing content on the stages and attainments of cultivation is restated once more in the original text.

Fifth Fascicle of the Supreme Limitless Complete Truth Wenchang Great Cavern Immortal Scripture (Taishang Wuji Zongzhen Wenchang Dadong Xianjing)