《太上灵宝元阳妙经》Vol. 2

I said to the beast again, “If you will complete this verse, I am willing to be your disciple for life. The words and meaning of the verse you have recited are not yet complete. Why are you unwilling to finish it? Giving material goods and precious treasures will eventually be exhausted, but the gift of the Dharma—spreading the Buddhist and Daoist teachings—never runs out and can benefit many people. I have heard this verse, yet doubts still remain in my mind. I beg you to resolve them for me. As soon as you finish reciting it, I will be your disciple for life.”

The beast said, “You are very wise, yet you care only for your own life and show not the slightest concern for me, though I am now suffering from hunger and have no strength to finish the verse.”

I asked, “What do you eat?”

The beast replied, “You need not ask. The answer would frighten you.”

I said again, “This place is remote and deserted. I am not afraid of you, so why will you not tell me?”

The beast replied, “I eat only the hot flesh of human beings and drink only their hot blood. I have searched everywhere for food, but even now, after all my efforts, I have found no one to eat. Many people in the world possess merit and virtue and are protected by heavenly gods and benevolent spirits. I have no power to kill them.”

Good man, I said again to the beast, “Just finish reciting the verse in full. When I have heard it, I will offer you my body as a gift. Even if I die, this body is of no use; in the end, it will be devoured by evil insects, and I will gain not a bit of merit from that. I am willing to abandon this impure body in order to attain the fruit of the supreme, true, and perfect Way, exchanging it for a pure body and mind.”

The beast asked, “Who would believe what you say? Would anyone truly give up the body they cherish in order to seek the Way?”

Good man, I replied, “You are truly unwise. Suppose someone gives away an ordinary object and receives a genuine treasure in return. I am doing the same: giving up an impermanent body to seek a body and mind that endure. You ask who can bear witness. Countless heavenly kings can bear witness now. There are also realized adepts and Daoist practitioners with the heavenly eye, who cultivate offerings to the Mahayana scriptures for the benefit of all living beings and possess the Four Immeasurables and the Six Wisdoms; they too can know of this. The Heavenly Worthies of the Ten Directions, who benefit living beings, can also bear witness that I am giving up my body to seek the true Way.”

The beast said again, “If you truly can give up your life, listen with full attention, and I will recite the verse for you in detail.”

Good man, on hearing this I was filled with joy. I took off my clothes and spread them out as a seat of the Dharma, inviting the beast to sit upon it. “Realized one, please take your seat,” I said. Then I knelt before it with my hands joined and said, “I beg you, realized one, to recite the verse for me so that I may hear it in full.”

Then the beast recited the verse:

When the suffering of arising and passing away has completely ceased, stillness and Wuwei (non-action) become abiding bliss. One may freely wander through the Seven Treasures Terrace and stroll among the Four Bright Halls.

Every kind of impurity has been removed; all is pure and unstained, with no evil. One casts off the old body and receives the true body. Though gathered through auspicious affinities, the heart has no craving or attachment.

After the fierce beast had recited this verse—a teaching expressed in poetic form—it said, “Assembly of immortals, you have now heard the whole verse. The wishes you seek will all be fulfilled. If you truly wish to benefit living beings, you may give my body as an offering.”

I reflected again and again on the meaning of these words. Then I made several copies of the verse and tied them to my clothes. Fearing that my body would be exposed after death, I climbed a tree. The tree spirit asked me, “Why are you doing this?” I replied, “I wish to give up my body in response to this verse.” The tree spirit asked again, “What benefit can this verse bring?” I answered, “This verse was proclaimed by the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning, one of Daoism’s revered deities. I am giving up my life for this teaching, not for fame, offerings, or wealth, but solely to benefit countless ordinary people. That is why I am willing to give my body.”

Good man, as I prepared to give up my body, I thought: May all those who are miserly and greedy see with their own eyes that I am giving up my body. Even if some grieve and lament at this, let them see that I am willing to die to hear a single verse, casting my body aside like something filthy and no longer cherishing it.

When I had finished speaking, I gave up my life and leapt from the tree. Before my body had reached the ground, a hundred kinds of sound rang out in the air. The fierce beast also gave up its own body in midair, caught mine, and laid it on the ground.

The Perfected Yuan Yang and the company of immortals bowed to me in reverence. Together they praised me, saying, “How good! You are truly wise and discerning, able to bring great benefit to all living beings and wishing to kindle a mighty Dharma flame amid ignorance. We have become troubled because we cherish the wondrous teachings of the Celestial Worthy. We ask you, great one, to allow us to repent before you and confess our wrongs. In the future, you will surely attain the fruit of the supreme, true, natural Great Dao. We pray that you will save us.”

Afterward, the Perfected One and the others took their leave together and suddenly vanished.

At that time, the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning was in the Chamber of Nine Turns in the Hall of Golden Radiance and Jade, within the Jade Palace of Purple Tenuity, dwelling in the Primordial Yang realm. He said to Perfected Miao Le, “You should now cultivate compassion, mercy, and joy in this land, and abide in the ‘realm of loving care for an only child’—the state of loving and pitying all beings as though each were your only child.”

Perfected Miao Le bowed to the Celestial Worthy and asked, “Why is it called the ‘realm of loving care for an only child’?”

The Celestial Worthy replied, “It is like parents raising their child in peace, their hearts filled with joy. Good man, those who abide in this realm are the same: seeing that all beings share the same condition, they feel sincere joy when they see someone doing good. Hence it is called ‘loving care.’ It is also like parents seeing their child fall ill: they grieve, yet would never abandon the child. Those who abide in this realm are the same: seeing ordinary beings afflicted by the sickness of defilements, they feel grief and pity, as though blood were flowing from every pore of the child’s body. Hence it is also called the ‘realm of an only child.’

“It is also like a young child picking up excrement and putting it in their mouth. Seeing this, the parents are shocked and frightened, fearing the child will be harmed, so they wash the child with water and remove the excrement. Those who abide in this realm are the same: seeing that ordinary beings often act unwholesomely through body, speech, and mind, they use the hand of wisdom to help them rid themselves of evil conduct. They pity ordinary beings and do not wish them to wander through birth and death, enduring all kinds of defilement. Hence it is called ‘an only child.’

“Consider, too, parents whose only child suddenly falls ill and soon dies. They grieve and weep, wishing they could bear everything in the child’s place. When a Perfected One sees beings fall into the Three Destinies of Suffering—hell, the hungry ghosts, and animals—he is willing to be reborn in hell alongside them. Why? When beings suffer, they may give rise to a thought of repentance. I then take that opportunity to teach them ways of cultivating goodness, so that they may plant a seed of goodness in that very moment. Hence this realm is also called ‘an only child.’

“Parents with a single child are always thinking of that child, whether walking, standing, or lying down. Even when the child does wrong, they gently advise and guide them; they do not harm them. Perfected Daoist adepts should treat ordinary beings in the same way: seeing them fall into the three evil paths of hell, hungry ghosts, and animals, they feel only pity. They never grow angry or treat them harshly. Hence this realm is also called ‘an only child.’”

Perfected Miao Le said to the Celestial Worthy, “The principles you have explained are profound and mysterious, and my wisdom is shallow; I do not understand their meaning. If a Perfected One abides in the ‘realm of an only child’ and can pity beings in this way, then why did you, when you were once King of the Sweet Dew Kingdom and practiced the Dao of a Perfected One, kill the elder Falong? If you had attained this realm, you should have cared for ordinary beings. If you had not attained it, why did you not fall into the three evil paths? You say that you pity beings and regard them all equally, favoring none. How can these words fail to contradict what happened earlier?

“When the Celestial Worthy dwells in the realm of emptiness and wishes to beg for food, he must first observe the person. If that person harbors envy toward him, he does not beg there, even if he is desperately hungry. For Perfected Daoist adepts often reflect in this way: ‘I remember that in some past kalpa I gave rise to an evil thought before a field of merit, and so fell into hell and endured every kind of torment. Now, no matter how hungry I become, I will not beg for food, lest the other person grow suspicious of me and thereby fall into hell and suffer.’

“They also think: ‘If an ordinary person might commit evil because they suspect me of standing, I will sit upright all day. If someone might commit evil because they suspect me of sitting, I will stand all day, without walking or lying down.’ If Perfected Daoist adepts take such care for the well-being of beings, how much more should the Celestial Worthy, the Great Sage with spiritual powers? If you had attained the ‘realm of an only child,’ why did you say such things, causing ordinary beings to give rise to grave evil thoughts?”

The Celestial Worthy told Perfected Miao Yue, “You should not question me in this way. Even if I had the power to drain all the water from the sea, I would never become the source of distress for ordinary beings. Even if Heaven and Earth ceased to show their forms, water turned solid, fire turned to water, and wind changed its nature, I would still never become the source of distress for beings. Even if someone violated the prohibitions of the Four Covenants or slandered the Orthodox Teaching, yet in this very life attained the fearless state of the Ten Sages; even if disciples of the lower immortals and those with deviant views remained unchanged forever; even if a Perfected One violated the ordinances of the Four Covenants, slandered the Orthodox Way, or beings severed their Dao-nature, I would still never become the source of distress for beings. Even if someone could bind the wind with ropes or make a raging fire burn up a mountain of stone, I would never become the source of distress for beings. It would be better to live among poisonous snakes and fierce tigers than to say that a sage could become the source of distress for beings. What the Celestial Worthy truly does is help ordinary beings put an end to distress. He would never make them give rise to it.”

Perfected Miao Yue once asked whether the Celestial Worthy had killed the Elder Falong in a former life. The Celestial Worthy said, “I do not even kill small insects or ants now, much less the Elder Falong. I have always sought to help beings and grant them lives of lasting peace. Giving food is equivalent to giving life. When Perfected Ones and Daoist priests give alms, they help beings preserve their lives. Refraining from killing, keeping the precepts, practicing patience, exerting oneself diligently, cultivating stillness and concentration, and developing wisdom can all encourage beings to do good and thereby help them live longer. In practicing patience, one urges people not to harbor resentment, to be lenient toward others and strict with oneself, and not to give rise to anger. In exerting oneself diligently, one encourages people to cultivate good practices. In cultivating stillness and concentration, one guides people to maintain an even mind. In developing wisdom, one urges people not to slacken in the practice of good. From this you can see that Perfected Ones and Daoist priests do not abandon any ordinary being.”

The Celestial Worthy went on to explain the Elder Falong’s death: “At that time, I had already cultivated a compassionate heart. I therefore ended his life, but did so without ill intent. It is like parents with only one child: if the child breaks the law, the parents may, out of fear and worry, drive the child away or even punish him, yet still harbor no ill intent. Perfected Ones and Daoist priests act in the same way when protecting the good Way. If someone slanders the Scripture of Primordial Yang, a Daoist scripture, he may be severely punished with a whip or staff, or even deprived of his life, in order to turn him away from evil and toward the good. A Perfected One should always ask himself: how can beings be brought to give rise to good intentions? So long as one can guide them toward the good Way, one should respond according to their circumstances.”

After the Elder Falong died, he was reborn in the Northern Prison of Mysterious Sands. There he gained three kinds of knowledge: he knew that he had come from the human world, knew that he was now in the Northern Prison of Mysterious Sands, and knew that he had come there because he had slandered the Scripture of Primordial Yang, disbelieved in cause and effect, and been killed by the king. He therefore came to revere the Scripture of Primordial Yang. Before long, he died and was reborn in the world of blissful freedom, where he attained a long life. The Celestial Worthy said, “In this way, I shared my lifespan with him in a former life. How could that be called killing him?”

Perfected Miao Yue asked whether good people who dig the earth, cut grass, fell trees, handle corpses, or curse others would therefore fall into hell. The Celestial Worthy praised his understanding and explained: “If these things are done with an evil heart, one will fall into an evil path. But Perfected Ones and Daoist priests feel compassion for all beings, even insects and ants, and wish to benefit them. They know how to use suitable means in each situation. Thus, even when they appear to take a life, they do so without ill intent, seeking instead to help beings cultivate merit and practice goodness.”

The scripture then distinguishes between degrees of killing. Killing ants or ordinary animals is called “lesser killing”; killing ordinary people or beginners is called “intermediate killing”; and plotting against a ruler, one’s parents or elders, a Perfected One, or a good person is called “greater killing.” The scripture says that killing these different people brings different degrees of karmic retribution. The consequences are especially severe for killing one’s parents, good people, virtuous practitioners of the Way, women, or oxen. As for evil people who endanger others, the scripture maintains that killing them brings no karmic offense. If one kills and does not repent, one will fall into hell or another evil path. If one openly confesses, repents, and fasts for three days, the offense is erased. The point is that the karmic result of killing depends on the victim, the motive, and whether one repents.

Perfected Miao Yue then asked why the Celestial Worthy had once called the Great Practitioner Shouye “a fool who eats spittle.” The Celestial Worthy replied that one cannot judge a sage’s intent from the words alone. Some words may sound harsh, but when spoken at the right time and in the right way, they benefit beings, and a sage will say them. A sage will not speak false or flattering words, or words spoken at the wrong time that bring no benefit. The Celestial Worthy understands all manner of skillful means and knows how to teach and transform beings.

The Celestial Worthy told of a time when he traveled through mountains, forests, villages, and towns and encountered a great demon named Jingchang. It fed on blood and flesh, often killed beings, and ate one person each day. The Celestial Worthy taught it the Dharma, but it refused instruction. He therefore took the form of a mighty spirit and shook its palace so that it could not remain there. The demon came out to resist him, but at the sight of the Celestial Worthy it was so terrified that it fainted. The Celestial Worthy touched it with compassion and brought it back to consciousness. Grateful to have been saved, the demon gave rise to reverence and faith. The Celestial Worthy resumed his original form and taught it the Orthodox Way, leading it to accept the precept against killing.

That same day, the village elder Falong was about to be handed over to the demon. The demon gave him to the Celestial Worthy, who accepted him and gave him the new name Ruxu. The demon asked what it and its followers would live on from then on. The Celestial Worthy arranged for Perfected Ones and Daoist priests to provide them with food wherever Daoist practice was carried out. He then established a rule requiring Daoist priests to offer food regularly to the demon Jingchang. If someone lived in the area but refused to make offerings, he would not count as a disciple of the Celestial Worthy, but as a companion of the heavenly demons. The Celestial Worthy explained that these arrangements were all intended to subdue and teach beings, not to make them afraid. When he had struck guardian spirits with wood, pushed great demons down mountains, or pricked hair-cutting demons with needles, he had done so to establish them in the Orthodox Dharma, not because he truly wished to destroy them.

The Celestial Worthy also said that when he had rebuked those with deviant views, criticized immortals, or reprimanded young disciples, he had been using skillful means to teach them, not acting out of genuine ill will or violating the precepts. Perfected Miao Yue then said that he had heard the scriptures from the sages many times, like chewing sugarcane and tasting its sweetness; he had savored the flavors of the Dao, Dharma, wisdom, and understanding. The sages’ teachings were also like real gold: repeatedly refined, they became brighter, purer, and more precious. The Celestial Worthy praised him for asking questions to benefit beings and told him to explain the Great Vehicle, Wondrous Scripture of Primordial Yang according to his own wishes.

Perfected Miao Yue asked what state is attained through cultivating “equanimity” after practicing loving-kindness, compassion, and joy and reaching the “ground of the single child,” in which all beings are cherished as one’s only child. The Celestial Worthy said that cultivating equanimity allows one to abide in the “ground of the Dharma of equality like empty space”: the mind is even like space and no longer distinguishes between relatives and enemies. Perfected Ones and Daoist priests should contemplate all phenomena with this same equality, undisturbed by closeness or distance, affection or aversion.

“Emptiness” includes inner emptiness, outer emptiness, inner-and-outer emptiness, the emptiness of conditioned things, the emptiness of unconditioned things, beginningless emptiness, the emptiness of all phenomena, the emptiness of nothingness, ultimate emptiness, emptiness of emptiness, and great emptiness. Although inner and outer phenomena appear in many forms, none has a fixed, unchanging nature. Dao-nature, meanwhile, does not belong to the categories of inner or outer, conditioned or unconditioned. The scripture also says that the origin of arising and passing away cannot be found; when one examines things, sensations, and the constituents of body and mind, no permanent, independent nature can be seen. This is the contemplation of emptiness. Ultimate emptiness means examining things and seeing that, although actions and results exist, no fixed, unchanging “doer” can be found. Great emptiness refers to the wisdom of the heavenly eye. Perfected Ones and Daoist priests who understand these meanings of emptiness can abide in the state of equality like empty space. They are no longer attached to, bound by, or deluded by phenomena. They can also encompass all things and understand their nature, causes and effects, and methods of cultivation.

Those who abide in this state understand various ascetic practices, such as plunging into water or fire, throwing oneself into a deep pit, standing on one foot for a long time, exposing the body to the five fires, or sleeping on thorns. They also know practices such as wearing coarse clothing, eating grass, and limiting alms-seeking to a single household. Yet the scripture holds that such austerities alone cannot bring true liberation. If ordinary people practice these deviant methods, they will certainly fall into hell. Only after being reborn in the human world from hell and then practicing good deeds such as giving alms and exerting themselves diligently can they hope to enter true liberation.

Perfected Ones and Daoist priests both know and see. They see that people in the world hold different views about permanence and impermanence, suffering and joy, purity and impurity, self and no-self. They also know that sages do not ultimately pass into extinction: the body of a sage is as indestructible as vajra and is not made up of afflictions, and all beings have Dao-nature. They also understand the different stages beings pass through in practice: some follow the current of birth and death, some move against it, some abide in the Orthodox Way, and some have already reached the far shore. The scripture uses this to show that Perfected Ones and Daoist priests can observe beings’ actions and destinations with the pure heavenly eye. They can also see whether beings pass from darkness to deeper darkness, from darkness to light, from light to darkness, or from light to greater light.

The scripture also says that some people have karma that should bring severe retribution, but through cultivating themselves, keeping the precepts, developing meditative concentration and wisdom, confessing and correcting their faults, making offerings to the Three Treasures, and regularly reproaching themselves, they can transform heavy karma into mild illness, hunger, or physical hardship in this life and avoid falling into an evil path. In contrast, those who do not cultivate the precepts, concentration, and wisdom, and who commit evil deeds without repenting or feeling shame, increase the weight of their offenses and ultimately suffer retribution in the netherworld. Perfected Ones also know that all beings have Dharma-nature, though it is obscured by afflictions. Some people know this but still do not see it clearly.

Perfected Ones and Daoist priests who understand these principles attain the “four unobstructed abilities”: unobstructed Dharma, unobstructed meaning, unobstructed knowledge, and unobstructed wisdom. Unobstructed Dharma is mastery of many scriptures and methods. Unobstructed meaning is understanding what those methods mean. Unobstructed knowledge is the ability to explain the profound principles of the scriptures. Unobstructed wisdom is the ability to teach beings all manner of Dharma without impediment. Though a Perfected One can know and explain widely, he does not cling to names, meanings, or wisdom itself. Perfected Miao Yue wondered: if one does not cling, how can one still know the Dharma? The Celestial Worthy replied that not clinging does not mean not knowing. True unobstructed understanding means comprehending phenomena without letting the mind be bound by them. Ordinary people cling to form, sensation, perception, mental formations, and consciousness; craving then arises, they are held captive by these things, and they cannot escape birth, aging, death, and affliction. Perfected Ones are not stained by such experiences, and so attain unobstructed understanding.

Unobstructed Dharma also includes using methods of teaching skillfully without losing their essential meaning. Unobstructed meaning means grasping the sense behind a name. The scripture uses the earth giving rise to plants and trees, the mountain remaining unmoved, the eye seeing, clouds nourishing, a good physician curing illness, and a mother loving and caring for her children as examples to show that Perfected Ones should understand the deeper functions of all things. Unobstructed expression is the ability to present the meaning of the Dharma clearly in the language of the scriptures. Unobstructed wisdom means that even after teaching for a long time, one never exhausts the principles. The Celestial Worthy said that Perfected Ones gain these abilities only after practicing for a long time the ultimate truth, the Numinous Treasure Great Cavern True Scripture, and the wondrous teachings of the Three Pure Ones. Those who practice the teachings of the lower immortals and aspire to the ranks of the immortals but have not yet attained them do not possess these four unobstructed abilities.

After hearing this, Perfected Miao Yue rose and knelt with his legs joined, saluting the Celestial Worthy. He said that through hearing the teaching, he now understood the source of the Dao. The assembled heavenly beings all bowed together and then returned to their seats.

This concludes Volume Three of the Wondrous Scripture of Primordial Yang, Numinous Treasure of the Most High.

Volume Four is “Questions on Practice,” a chapter in which disciples ask their master about methods of cultivation. The original text is marked “all the disciples and others”; a “no” may be missing before this phrase, in which case it may have been intended to read “none of the disciples and others.”

The disciples reported to their revered master: “Living beings each have different karmic conditions and innate capacities, including the great beings and the male and female officials among the disciples. We have privately reflected that what the master manifests now is unlike what the holy masters of the past displayed. The master broadly expounds the stages of practice, teaches the great method of primordial Yang for ascending to immortality, and clarifies the scriptures that explain the principles of the Great Dao.

“The various teachings, the holy assemblies, and the realms of practice in which male and female officials cultivate inwardly and outwardly in accord all match the great majesty attained by the men and women among the immortals of old. Their spiritual powers were clear and penetrating. They had witnessed such auspicious signs and this kind of radiance, and then heard the great teaching. So we should understand that the master manifests transformations and widely proclaims the teachings in order to reveal spiritual powers. All the various methods are like this: the master enables the disciples to hear and understand them. Some people in the world find it hard to believe, and that is why such auspicious signs are manifested.

“Male and female officials, in immeasurably distant and inconceivable kalpas of the past, there was a king named the Great Manifestation Lamp, Pure Dharma King. He manifested in response to the needs of the world and governed eighty-four thousand regions. These lands were level and peaceful, densely populated, and without mountains, rivers, sand, stones, gullies, pits, or high ground. Their city walls were made of gold; the water in their ponds was like mercury; their houses were adorned with pearls and fine jade; and their sleeping chambers were inlaid with agate. The dwellings stretched on for more than four hundred li. The people there were all kind and benevolent.

“There was a disciple named Great Dharma Grove, who had heard many teachings. His understanding was clear and complete: he had surpassed the ordinary and reached the highest state, teaching and transforming gods and humans. His explanations were free of confusion, and his words were artful and lucid. He possessed the Five Supernatural Powers, as described in Daoist cultivation, and used his teaching to benefit and save living beings. He understood the principle that all things are empty. This perfected one later attained the Dao together with the six divine kings mentioned earlier, becoming the second among the primordial Yang perfected beings of the highest rank, able to realize all wisdom of the Dao.

“Next there was another disciple named Constant Diligence, a great being devoted to diligent practice, whose name was Bright and Everlasting Appearance. Over twenty-two lifetimes he was reborn in Wenchang Palace, owing to the good De he had cultivated over a long time in the past. He was endowed from birth with spiritual wisdom and received profound instruction. He heard subtle teachings and brought his accumulated merit and virtue to completion. Later he attained the fruit of the Nine Heavens and received blessings for the future; he was protected by Highest Clarity, and his spirit was gathered in the Celestial Treasury. His merit grew ever deeper, and an immortal official guided him into the True Mansion of the Sacred Peak. What he studied was the Taishang Diagram and Ranks of the Purple Yang Immortal; he held the seventh rank.

“Before leaving home, this great being was already endowed with wisdom. He revered the Purple Yang Immortal as his teacher, diligently studied the primordial Yang way of the immortals, and aspired to become an immortal rank listed in the registers of Heaven. He could distinguish the initial, intermediate, and lower ranks of immortals, as well as initial, intermediate, and later stages of goodness, and his explanations reached profound depths.

“Before this immortal perfected one left home, eight disciples followed him: Dazzling Grove, Precious Grove, Intent Grove, Manifest Grove, Good Grove, Joyful Grove, Treasure Grove, and Doubt-Removing Grove. They were known as primordial Yang disciples of the highest rank in the heavenly palace. Complete in wisdom and practice, they possessed the Five Supernatural Powers and freely exercised awe-inspiring virtue, each governing gods and humans. When the great being first left home, he contemplated beneath a tree, gave up his high position, awakened great compassion, and resolved to depart. He steadfastly cultivated the true Dao, and later they all became leaders in the immortal realm. After millions of years, all the good deeds they had planted in the past came to fruition.

“At midnight, during the Zi hour, he looked up at the Dipper’s leading stars, the Purple Tenuity star, and the Wenchang stars. The starry sky suddenly opened, and he saw the Most High Laozi descend amid clouds, riding a blue dragon. When he landed, he was mounted on a blue horse. Laozi asked him, ‘Which worthy are you?’ Then Laozi replied, ‘I am Li Yuan, a perfected young immortal from the Eastern Sea. The gods and the holy beings are gathering in celebration, and they have sent me here.’ Laozi came to this place to teach the great being Zi Grove. After this, Zi Grove was able to expound the immeasurable meaning scripture, reveal the primordial Yang way of the immortals, and become the second person to spread this teaching. Heavenly flowers covered the sky, and he taught and transformed the world far and wide; all kinds of tremors followed.

“At that time, a perfected adept of twelve years of age in the assembly reported to the revered master: ‘We, the whole gathering, have seen what we have never seen before. We are now joyful and glad, kneeling and sitting upright as we focus on listening to the master’s teaching. The master speaks with skill and uses apt parables; he radiates light that shines everywhere and inspires everyone in the assembly. These circumstances make clear the realms of the primordial Yang highest rank, the great ranks of the immortals and holy beings, and the gods and humans. That land is pure, and the people have seen what they had never seen before. Thus, for hundreds of thousands of years, living beings will enjoy lasting peace and great blessings.’

“Perfected One Tiaolin Fajing said: ‘Since my revered master began expounding the primordial Yang highest rank, sixty minor kalpas have passed, and he has never left the Dharma seat. Now he will withdraw his manifested body, bringing living beings lasting peace and great blessings for ten thousand years. On the seventh day of the first month, he will return to the heavenly palace and join the gods and humans in a joyful gathering. Whether there is one person among you, two, or ten, anyone who can proclaim the wondrous teaching and guide living beings after I depart will be reborn among the primordial Yang ranks. Do not grow lax.’

“After sixty minor kalpas had passed, the gods and the assembled immortals took their places together and wholeheartedly received their predictions. Then the perfected one told the great beings that, as Perfected One Tiaolin Fajing had said, the gods’ joyful gathering was about to take place. After he departed, Miaoyuan Grove and Guangmiao Grove would attain the Five Supernatural Powers and vast wisdom, become thoroughly versed in the scriptures and teachings, and surely gain pure wisdom and awaken living beings. They would be named Pure Wisdom. Once the prediction had been given, this perfected one suddenly departed on the seventh day of the first month in the Renchen year.”

The Perfected One of Primordial Yang, Pure Wisdom and Deliverance, Dulin, was born in the deep and wondrous royal palace. His ancestors had cultivated good deeds for generations, sincerely sought the Dao, devoted themselves to studying the true scriptures, and often studied the writings of immortals. The lineage he followed began with the Primordial Palace of Taiyi, the residence of the Taiyi immortals.

He studied eight hundred volumes of the Taiyi Immortal Scripture, which expounded the principles of the Dao in detail and taught living beings. He also spoke on eight thousand volumes of the Wondrous Forest Immortal Records. For eighty minor kalpas, he sat upright without moving, preaching scriptures and explaining the Dao. The text says he had eight disciples: Huanglin, Miaolin, Jiaolin, Jian Gu Lin, Dengxianglin, Lelin, Dulin, and Hualin. These eight disciples were all endowed with clear wisdom and the virtue of cultivation. They were third rank among the highest-grade disciples of Primordial Yang, dwelling among terraces, gardens, fields, and woods.

One of them had already attained the rank of an immortal. His name was the Perfected One Baihuang. He wished to study beside the Perfected One Pure Wisdom and Deliverance, Dulin. He became thoroughly versed in the scriptures, recited them, explained them widely, and proclaimed their profound and wondrous principles. In an earlier age, he spent sixty minor kalpas among an assembly, teaching and transforming others with solemn and reverent bearing. He delivered countless beings and led them into the highest grade of Primordial Yang.

When the Perfected One first left home to pursue the Dao, three disciples witnessed a great sacred manifestation, with immortals in attendance, and heard the immeasurable meanings contained in this scripture. The immortals of the heavens should explain these teachings in detail. The Perfected One said, “I am about to expound them.” At that moment, he sat upright in the empty expanse of heaven for eighty minor kalpas, gazing down upon the people and teaching the Dao at length, leading them into immeasurable ranks of immortals.

Heavenly Fragrance, Precious Canopy, the Dragon Kings of Heaven, and others made offerings to the immortals of the human realm. The world was splendid and pure. That land was called the Palace of the Lion and Elephant King; its ground was clean as ointment and covered with precious trees. The many sounds of heavenly beings and spirits resounded in every direction. The Perfected One Pure Wisdom and Deliverance, Dulin, sent forth radiant supernatural light and displayed many rare wonders, enabling people to see all the inhabitants of that land.

That land was pure and splendid: pearls paved the ground, gold formed the city walls, silver made the ramparts, and lapis lazuli formed the houses. Yellow, blue, and red cords were woven between them; agate adorned the boundaries, crystal formed the palaces, and white jade built the towers. Trees lined the roads on either side. Gardens, terraces, and lotus ponds were pure and graceful; flowers and fruits flourished, and the beings who lived there were happy and free from care. The land stretched for more than four thousand li. Heavenly light shone everywhere, and precious jewels made every place bright and clear, so the sun and moon were not needed.

The immortals prepared food and offerings, while the heavenly kitchens provided food of their own accord. There was a heavenly being whose light was pure and radiant, outstanding above all others. He traveled in a cloud chariot, drawn by dragon spirits and tigers; flying phoenixes sang above it, bells hung on all four sides and were set in all eight directions, and music sounded spontaneously. His body shone like a golden mountain of jewels. Dignified and wondrous, he was like pure lapis lazuli, complete both within and without.

Then appeared a great being named the Perfected One Discerning Wisdom and Deliverance from Calamity. His disciples had all ascended to heaven, and countless beings had been delivered in the Palace of Taiyi. By the Perfected One’s radiance, people could fly freely. They saw the assembled immortals, great beings diligently cultivating in the mountains and forests, and those who kept the precepts and practiced the Dao in accord with the wondrous and numinous ranks of immortals. These beings were precious as bright pearls.

One disciple, named Zhuang Miaolin, often cultivated in the mountains and forests. He diligently kept the precepts, practiced purity, generosity, and forbearance, and attained the immortal rank of Primordial Yang. Another disciple, named Great Treasury of Wisdom, entered deeply into wondrous concentration, with body and mind still and calm, and possessed vast wisdom and meditative power. There was also Miaofanlin, who understood the profound and extensive principles of the teaching. His mind was tranquil, and his spiritual awareness was undisturbed by external things. Each of them proclaimed the highest-grade teachings in his own land.

Dafanlin displayed great supernatural powers and rejoiced in his heart. The four assemblies of disciples—an expression commonly used in Buddhist and Daoist scriptures for different groups of practitioners—proclaimed the teachings widely and questioned one another about the immortal rank of Primordial Yang. Guan Fanlin delighted in seeking the highest Dao, was revered by heavenly beings, and was called the foremost in the Three Realms. He could praise the immortals and was a rare figure in the world. Zhen Miaoyin knew all things extensively, was trusted by heavenly beings, and could practice the lofty and wondrous Dao. Baoxuanlin possessed wisdom as vast as empty space, could illuminate the scriptures of the immortals, often spoke of Yin-Yang principles, and spread the teachings widely, drawing heavenly beings together in joy. With wondrous light, he succored the world.

Wisdom Deep and Wisdom Complete possessed the Five Powers, the five supernatural abilities gained through cultivation. For eighty minor kalpas, they opened the way for teaching in the world and preached without leaving their seats. The highest-grade principles they taught were subtle, profound, and beyond measure. They were honored as the Moonlight Supreme Immortal Master. Baomiaolin, meanwhile, brought joy to heavenly beings and people in the human realm alike.

The Perfected One said, “I have already explained to you the true principles of all teachings, and have also made clear their differences in length and scope.” On the fifth day of the tenth month, he would return to the heavenly palace. He told his disciples, “Cultivate with focused diligence. In time, you should ascend to the heavenly palace and become beings of the Taiqing Heaven.” These disciples all belonged to the immortal ranks of Primordial Yang, and their supernatural powers were unobstructed.

After speaking, the Perfected One Pure Wisdom and Deliverance, Dulin, said to his disciples again, “The time allotted to our immortal bond is drawing to a close, but we will still gather joyfully in the heavenly palace. What could keep us apart? I will return to the heavenly palace on the fifth day of the tenth month. Heaven’s command hastens me, and this auspicious gathering is extraordinary.”

At noon on the fifteenth day of that month, the Perfected One and the assembled immortals returned together to the heavenly palace. They rode in cloud chariots with feathered canopies, attended by eighty million followers. Flying immortals, heavenly immortals, and an immeasurable host of sages also departed together in their chariots.

Yuanyang taught the Dao to the celestial beings in the Great Clarity Heaven. Setting out from the Palace of the King Without Attachments, he traveled calmly through the Three Realms and said to his disciples, “I received immeasurable, profoundly subtle wisdom from the Perfected Ones. Thus I opened the gate to the wisdom that clearly perceives the source of life. The Five Spirits are pure and radiant, and every faculty of perception is keen, enabling one to benefit living beings. These teachings are difficult for people in the world to understand, grasp, and explore deeply; even celestial beings struggle to attain them.

“Why is that? Because I once drew near to hundreds of millions of Perfected Ones and Great Beings, practiced the immeasurable Great Dao, and advanced with fearless diligence. My reputation spread far and wide, my cultivation grew profound, and I obtained rare teachings. The celestial official of the Yue Spirit’s Heavenly Chart—who oversees the registers of the immortal realm and transmits immortal teachings—bestowed these methods on me, enabling me to teach and transform beings throughout the Three Realms, offering guidance suited to each person.

“Ever since I attained the state of a Perfected One, I have used many kinds of conditions and parables to expound the teachings widely. I have employed countless skillful means to guide beings away from attachment. These skillful means arise from far-reaching insight and are all intended to bring beings to fulfillment.

“My Supreme Ancestral Master’s wisdom was vast and profound, boundless and fearless. His mind and spirit were at peace and free; he penetrated the hidden treasury and possessed inexhaustible insight. He attained every rare teaching and, in the end, became the Great Wondrous Immortal of the Highest Rank, Yuanyang of the Immortal Charts in the Celestial Palace. The treasured scripture is rich in content and skillfully clarifies many principles. Its words are gentle and bring joy to all. If you disciples understand the essentials of what I teach and practice in accordance with the teachings, you will attain immeasurable accomplishment, beyond all thought. There is no need for you to repeat these words. Why? The principles I have realized are supremely subtle, and their meaning is difficult to understand; only my own master can explain them. The teachings are profound and inexhaustible.

“Now I embody the marks, nature, substance, power, function, conditions, causes, results, retribution, and the origin and development of things; every aspect has reached complete perfection.”

At that time, the celestial beings made predictions for the good men and women who had faith in the Orthodox Way, so that all might hear, understand, and awaken.

Among them was the younger son of the Celestial Elder, King Xuanjing, who had originally been born in the palace of King Weitian. The Great Treasure was foremost among the teachings he inherited, and he studied eight thousand scrolls of the Scripture of Great Clarity. He expounded the teachings widely for sixty minor kalpas, never once rising from his seat, so that all could hear, understand, and awaken. He had cultivated through countless kalpas and perfected every kind of practice. The Dao he cultivated was profound and subtle, difficult to perceive and comprehend.

Among his disciples were three named Perfected One Xuanmiao, Perfected One Zhengguo, and Perfected One Mingzhi. These disciples all possessed great sacred conduct and could expound the teachings of the Yuanyang Immortal Rank, remaining in their seats for a thousand days and nights without interruption. Another disciple, Zhenfanlin, had keen faculties of perception and penetrated subtle principles. By practicing these methods, he attained realization.

I fully know of such a great fruition and the merits of Yuanyang. Another disciple, Dafanlin, skillfully used many kinds of expedient means, enabling me and all beings throughout the ten directions to receive instruction and awaken from darkness and delusion. He, too, attained these merits of Yuanyang. There was also the disciple Zhenjinglin, whose wisdom was exceptional and whose faith was steadfast. Once he and the other disciples had ended their afflictions and completed their cultivation, they all ascended together to the Supreme Immortal Palace and settled there, each in accordance with their rank.

End of Scroll Four of the Supreme Scripture of Numinous Treasure and Primordial Yang

Supreme Scripture of Numinous Treasure and Primordial Yang, Scroll Five

Chapter on Contemplation and Practice, Part One (explaining methods of observation and cultivation)

At that time, the Celestial Worthy of the Jade Treasure of the Eastern Numinous Heaven was in the pure world of the Land of Empty Song. There, among the seven-jeweled trees of the Fragrant Grove, he gathered with his immortal retinue, the Flying Celestial Spirit Kings, the Most True Great Sages, and eighty-four thousand disciples to expound the Wondrous Scripture of Contemplation and Practice of the Supreme Grade of Primordial Yang. This teaching was intended to cultivate great merit and virtue for those who would practice the Dao in later generations, help them resolve profound doubts, and bring them to know the wondrous Dao. The Celestial Worthy said, “Good men, you should make a vow and set your resolve to study four methods in sequence.”

At that moment, the Perfected One Linghua straightened his robes and cap, held an incense burner in both hands, and knelt to report: “Through the good conditions I formed in past lives, I have been fortunate enough to behold the Celestial Worthy’s radiant majesty. My heart rejoices, yet I am also apprehensive and ashamed. I have now heard the Celestial Worthy expound the secret treasury of Primordial Yang, whose principles are profound and wondrous, beyond the reach of thought. May I ask what these four methods of study are?”

The Celestial Worthy replied, “The four methods of study are these. First, follow a teacher and receive the scriptures of Primordial Yang. Second, draw near to good spiritual guides—wise teachers and friends who can guide one’s practice—and resolve profound doubts. Third, reflect on the subtle principles and understand the teachings of suffering and emptiness. Fourth, practice diligently and set one’s resolve on attaining the Dao. You should draw near to an enlightened teacher, seek out good spiritual guides, hear the profound teachings, resolve your questions, and keep these four methods of study firmly in mind.”

The Celestial Worthy continued, “The actions of body, speech, and mind are drawn along by four delusions: the delusion of greed, the delusion of ignorance, the delusion of lust, and the delusion of deceitful flattery—the delusion of using trickery and feigned magical arts to seek personal gain. Those who study the Mahayana scriptures and seek the fruit of the natural Dao should rid themselves of these four delusions.

“What is the delusion of greed? Coveting worldly honors, clothing, and precious things that one has no right to desire; exhausting one’s ingenuity in pursuit of profit; even killing living beings and injuring life; indulging one’s appetites and eating without restraint—all these are called the delusion of greed.

“What is the delusion of ignorance? Paying no heed to the order of Heaven and Earth, such as the sun, moon, and stars, and showing no reverence for the Three Treasures. When a person practicing the Dao hears that someone else has done good, they instead form the intent to undermine it, stir up discord, slander their elders, or evade gatherings and refuse to obey when their teacher gives instructions. All these are called the delusion of ignorance.

“What is the delusion of lust? Becoming infatuated with women without regard for the ties between people; having illicit relations with another man’s wife or concubine; secretly plotting to seduce others; driving a wedge between blood relatives; and indulging without restraint—all these are called the delusion of lust.

“What is the delusion of deceitful flattery? Harboring deceit and sycophancy, devising every sort of scheme, using public business for private gain, and secretly relying on power and influence. Or, while living as a monastic, deceiving living beings and taking their possessions; claiming to possess Daoist powers despite having no genuine cultivation. All these are called the delusion of deceitful flattery. Those who sincerely seek the unsurpassed fruit of the natural Dao should completely sever these four evil delusions.”

The Celestial Worthy then spoke of the stages of faith and study: “There are two kinds of faith: sincere belief and unbelief in the heart. Sincere belief is good; without belief, one cannot be said to be good. After believing, one should regularly go to the teaching seat—the place where the Dharma is expounded—to listen to the teaching. Once there, one should bow. While bowing, one should listen attentively to the teaching. After hearing it, one should reflect on its principles. After reflecting, one should put the instructions into practice. There are also two kinds of putting the teaching into practice: one is accompanied by great wisdom and benefits all living beings; the other has great wisdom but cannot benefit living beings. Only the ability to benefit living beings is truly good.

“Perfected Ones should understand that benefiting living beings and bringing them peace and joy leads to the reward of the natural Dao. Among all treasures, the moon pearl is the most precious; among all flavors, ambrosia is the sweetest. In the same way, the worth of a Perfected One who expounds the meaning of the Primordial Yang scripture among humans and in the heavens, benefiting living beings, is beyond comparison. Such is the Perfected One and youth who dwell in the nine teachings of the Mahayana’s pure Wuwei (non-action). By abiding in these nine good practices, they can truly understand contemplation and practice.”

Perfected One Linghua asked, “Cultivating loving-kindness can eliminate anger, and cultivating compassion can also eliminate anger. Why, then, do you speak of four immeasurable states of mind? By this reasoning, there seem to be only three.”

The Celestial Worthy replied, “The four states of loving-kindness, compassion, joy, and equanimity each have three kinds of focus. Loving-kindness has three: first, focusing on living beings, wishing that they may find happiness; second, focusing on the Dharma, giving help according to what living beings need; and third, having no focus, clinging neither to the appearance of living beings nor to the appearance of the Dharma. Compassion, joy, and equanimity are the same. If one traces them back to their source, one might say there is only one; if one distinguishes them according to the objects and methods of practice, one may speak of four.

“To focus on living beings is to regard them as one’s parents, siblings, spouses, children, and family, and to wish to bring them well-being. To focus on the Dharma is to let go of distinctions such as family ties, see that all living beings arise through the conjunction of causes and conditions, and give help according to their needs. To have no focus is to cling neither to the appearance of living beings nor to the appearance of the Dharma. Compassion, joy, and equanimity are understood in the same way.

“There are two kinds of practitioners: some emphasize insight and regularly cultivate loving-kindness and compassion; others emphasize feeling and regularly cultivate joy and equanimity. So one may also say there are only two categories. Moreover, since ‘immeasurable’ by definition means boundless, one might say there is only one immeasurable state of mind, not four. The different explanations I have given are distinctions made according to how living beings understand and practice.”

The Celestial Worthy also said that when sages teach living beings, they guide them through different ways of explaining things. At times they speak of a single category of causes and conditions: all conditioned phenomena. At times they speak of two categories, cause and effect; of three, afflictions, actions, and suffering; or of four, ignorance, formations, birth, and aging-and-death. They may also analyze causes and conditions, and birth and death, in terms of five, six, seven, eight, or nine categories. These classifications listed in the scripture are meant to help living beings understand causes and conditions from different perspectives. They should not lead anyone to doubt the profound methods of practice taught by the sages.

The Celestial Worthy taught living beings through many skillful means, adapting his teaching to each person to help them understand the nature of the Dharma and dispel their doubts. When living beings craved wealth and treasures, the Celestial Worthy would transform himself into a wealthy elder, satisfy their needs for a long time, and then guide them to understand the Great Dao. When they were attached to the five desires—wealth, sex, fame, food, and sleep—he would first let them satisfy those desires, then urge them to abide in the realm of Wuwei. When someone relied on wealth and status, the Celestial Worthy would serve as his attendant for a long time; once he had earned the person’s trust, he would counsel and guide him. When someone was violent by nature and did evil, and needed others to restrain him, the Celestial Worthy would patiently instruct and comfort him, help him reform, and then guide him into a pure realm. Though sages dwell in a defiled world, they are not tainted by it, just as a luminous pearl lies among sand and stones, and a lotus grows in muddy water.

The Celestial Worthy explained why both loving-kindness and compassion can eliminate anger: “There are two kinds of harmful actions: taking another’s life and beating or injuring them. Loving-kindness can restrain killing; compassion can restrain beating and injury. Anger, too, can be divided in different ways: anger toward living beings and nonliving things; anger with a cause and without a cause; anger accumulated in the past and anger newly arisen in the present; anger toward sages and toward ordinary people; and anger that is strong or moderate. Loving-kindness and compassion counter these different kinds in their own ways. Each of the four immeasurable states of mind therefore has its own function, and they cannot simply be reduced to three.

“Furthermore, if one cultivates loving-kindness without compassion, joy, and equanimity, then the four states of mind are not all present. The four immeasurable states of mind are defined according to the practices undertaken. There are also four conditions relating to immeasurable states of mind. Some extend their concern to immeasurable living beings but cannot freely help them. Some can freely help the relatives close to them but do not yet extend their concern widely to living beings. Some can both extend their concern widely and freely benefit living beings; this is the realm of celestial beings and sages. Others can neither extend their concern widely nor freely benefit living beings; this is the condition of those whose practice is still shallow. Thus, only celestial beings and sages can truly attain the perfected state of the four immeasurable states of mind.”

Perfected One Linghua asked, “Can cultivating loving-kindness and compassion while abiding in the Mahayana Primordial Yang scripture lead to great loving-kindness and great compassion?”

The Celestial Worthy said, “They can be cultivated gradually. First divide people into three groups: those who are close to you, those you resent, and those toward whom you feel neither closeness nor resentment. Then divide those who are close and those you resent into three degrees: high, middle, and low. At first, the practitioner gives greater happiness to those who are close and less to those they resent. Then, as practice deepens, they give more and more happiness to those they resent, until they can give equal happiness even to the person they resent most. When there is no difference in the heart between a good and loving parent and one’s most hated enemy, loving-kindness is said to be accomplished.

“Yet this does not count as great loving-kindness. Afflictions have accumulated for a long time, while wholesome qualities have not been cultivated sufficiently. It is therefore hard to tame the mind in a short time and make it firm and unwavering. Afflictions are deeply rooted and difficult to remove, while the resolve to practice the Dao is easily shaken. Anger is hard to eliminate, like a household dog that is not afraid of people; loving-kindness is easily lost, like a wild deer in the mountains and forests that flees at the sight of a person. Anger is also like a pattern carved in stone, which does not fade for a long time, while wholesome roots are like a pattern drawn on water, which disappears easily. The fire of anger is like a great blaze that can keep burning; loving-kindness is like a flash of lightning, gone in an instant. For these reasons, taming the mind is not easy.

“Only a youth Perfected One who abides on the true ground can be said to possess great loving-kindness. Wrong views are the gravest evil. A person who cultivates great loving-kindness can meet someone who holds wrong views without making distinctions, clinging to that person’s faults, or giving rise to anger; this is called great loving-kindness. Removing what is of no benefit to ordinary and foolish people is called great loving-kindness; wishing to give them immeasurable benefit and well-being is called great compassion; seeing living beings at ease and feeling joy is called great joy; clinging to no one and showing no favoritism is called great equanimity. To cling neither to the self, the Dharma, nor one’s own person, and to regard all phenomena as equal and without distinction, is also a form of great joy. Letting go of attachment to oneself and delighting in giving to others is great equanimity.

“Only the four immeasurable states of mind can enable Perfected Ones to develop and perfect the four kinds of deportment. Perfected Ones first cultivate the four immeasurable states of mind, then give rise to the aspiration to seek the unsurpassed, true, and perfect Great Dao, gradually transcending the world. Through the immeasurable good deeds of the world, one can reach the immeasurable realm beyond the world; this is why it is called the great immeasurable.”

Perfected One Linghua asked again, “When one removes what is of no benefit to living beings and gives them benefit and well-being, if these actions have no substantial meaning in themselves, could such contemplation be merely a contemplation of emptiness? It is like when Daoist priests contemplate impurity and see their clothes as though they were skin, though in reality they are not skin; see their food as though it were worms, though in reality it is not worms; and see delicious soup as though it were filth, though in reality it is not filth either.”

When contemplating the cheese one has eaten, one sees it as resembling bone marrow and brain matter, while knowing that it is not truly marrow or brain. When contemplating ground bone, one sees it in the form of powder, while knowing that it is not truly powder. One contemplates the food one has eaten as having the shape of worms, while knowing that it is not truly worms. One contemplates a delicious soup as a foul liquid of excrement, while knowing that it is not truly excrement.

The Four Immeasurable Minds—kindness, compassion, joy, and equanimity—are the same. If one cannot truly help living beings and bring them happiness, but merely says one will make them happy without actually doing so, is such contemplation not empty and false?

Perfected One Linghua asked the Celestial Worthy, “If this is not empty and false, and is indeed equivalent to bringing happiness to living beings, why do they not all become happy through the power of the heavenly beings and sages? If this is truly real, yet living beings do not obtain happiness, how can that be? The Celestial Worthy once said that, looking back on the past, you cultivated only kindness. Over the course of a hundred cycles of the world’s formation and destruction in this kalpa—a period in which the world passes through one cycle of arising and dissolving—you were never reborn here. When the world formed, you were born in the Heaven of Dragon Transformation and Brahma’s Crossing; when it was destroyed, you were born in the Heaven of Supreme Ultimate Peace and Nurture. If living beings here give rise to the aspiration to seek the Dao and cultivate only kindness and compassion, they can attain such a human or heavenly reward. If this is not true, how can it accord with these principles?”

The Celestial Worthy said, “Well said, well said! Virtuous son, you are indeed courageous and fearless.” Then he spoke to Perfected One Linghua:

“One who understands the forms of the Dharma and does not let the minds of the Three Poisons—greed, anger, and delusion—arise treats all that is done with equality. Only such a person can expound the wondrous Dharma. Men and women throughout the world should all purify their minds and spirits. This practice is called the ‘Contemplative Practice Chapter.’ When perfected, it enables one to realize the fruit in the Assembly at the Fragrant Grove.”

Those who clearly understand the patterns and principles that things reveal do not let greed, anger, or delusion—the three poisons—arise in their hearts. Only by acting with equality and fairness can one teach subtle truths. Men and women among the people should purify their minds and set their hearts aright. This is the method of practice described in the “Chapter on Contemplation and Practice.” By cultivating in this way, one can attain the fruit and journey to the Fragrant Grove.

At dawn, Daoist priests should understand the precepts and deeply grasp subtle, hidden principles. They should ascend calmly to Ziwei, the celestial palace, and arrive at Yujing, the lofty and secluded abode of the immortals in Daoist legend. To realize the true Dao, one must investigate its profound meanings. Recite the scriptures regularly at the six periods of the day, and continue chanting through the Eight Seasonal Nodes—the beginning of spring, spring equinox, beginning of summer, summer solstice, beginning of autumn, autumn equinox, beginning of winter, and winter solstice.

Ordinary beings should abstain from killing, stealing, and sexual misconduct. Once the harmful deeds of body, speech, and mind have been purified, evil spirits can no longer intrude. Every wholesome cause and result is bound up with the vows people hold dear. I now speak this verse to awaken those who are deluded and dispel their confusion.

The sages’ nectar is a wondrous drink that one may partake of at will. The immortals cherish the intention to uphold the teachings and wear ritual robes; the jade maidens wear sacred hairpins. The “Hidden and Secret Verse of Primordial Yang” is like a musical composition formed from five tones. If you can discern its most vital principle, your body will become pure as gold.

Good man, the practice of great compassion is not an unreal imagining, but a true principle. For lesser immortals who are just beginning to study, this principle may still seem unreal; for the sages of the heavens, it is real and true. Why is this so?

When the perfected youth cultivates this Scripture of the Supreme Grade of the Great Vehicle of Primordial Yang, he can regard earth as gold and gold as earth, land as water and water as land, water as fire and fire as water, land as wind and wind as land. He can also regard existence as nonexistence, reality as an illusion, and what truly exists as empty appearance. These states arise with each thought; they are not unreal. When contemplating sentient beings, he can realize that they have no fixed mark of being sentient beings. When contemplating those who are not sentient beings, he can also realize the true principle of sentient beings within them. All this comes about according to the mind; it is not unreal.

Good man, you should know that the perfected youth’s four immeasurable states of mind—loving-kindness, compassion, joy, and equanimity—are both true in meaning and, in a sense, not true in meaning. What is meant by “true subtle reflection”? It is the ability to cut off doubt and quiet the many afflictions. Cultivating loving-kindness cuts off craving; cultivating compassion cuts off anger; cultivating joy cuts off discontent; cultivating equanimity cuts off craving, anger, and attachment to sentient beings. From this we know that the four immeasurable states of mind are a true principle.

When perfected beings cultivate the four immeasurable states of mind, they make them the root of every wholesome quality. Good man, if the perfected youth never encountered beings in poverty, he would have no occasion to give rise to loving-kindness. Without loving-kindness, it would be difficult to give rise to the wish to give. Giving therefore brings ordinary beings peace and happiness. When the perfected being gives sentient beings food and drink, carriages, clothing, incense and flowers, mats and bedding, treasures, sweet fruit, silk, and embroidered fabrics, he feels no stinginess or regret and forms no attachment. He always dedicates the merit to the unsurpassed, true Way.

When giving, the perfected being relies on nothing and cuts off deluded thoughts. He does not give out of fear or for fame or gain; he seeks neither heavenly nor human happiness, feels no pride, and expects no reward. He does not give in order to deceive others, nor does he seek recompense. In giving, he does not cling to the giver, the recipient, or the thing given. Whether or not he can distinguish those who uphold the true Dharma from those who violate it, the good from the bad, or merit from its absence, he gives with a straightforward mind. He does not choose a day or hour, change his conduct according to poverty or wealth, or calculate the result. Though he clings neither to giver, recipient, gift, cause and effect, nor recompense, he continues to give without interruption.

Good man, if the perfected being clings to the recipient’s identity, to whether that person upholds or violates the Dharma, or even to the reward for giving, he cannot truly give. If he is unwilling to give, he cannot attain the natural fruition; if he cannot attain the natural fruition, he cannot attain the unsurpassed, true Way.

This is like someone struck by a poisoned arrow. His family and friends, seeking to save him, summon a skilled physician to remove it. But the wounded man says, “Do not pull it out yet. First let me find out where the arrow came from and who shot it—whether it was an enemy, whether ghosts or spirits harmed me, or whether it appeared of itself.” Before this foolish man can find out, he is already dead. The perfected being is the same: if, while giving, he keeps distinguishing the recipient, whether that person upholds or violates the Dharma, and the reward for giving, he will be unable to give. Unable to give, he cannot attain the natural fruition or the unsurpassed, true Way.

When the perfected youth gives, he should regard ordinary beings with equal loving-kindness, as though they were his own children. He should feel joy as he gives, like parents seeing their sick child recover. After giving, he should let go of attachment, like parents seeing their child grow up and become self-sufficient.

When the perfected youth gives food with a loving heart, he should make this vow: “All that I give now, I share with all ordinary beings. May beings receive the food of wisdom and diligently dedicate it to the unsurpassed Great Vehicle and the Wondrous Scripture of Primordial Yang. May beings be of one mind in equality and receive the food of good wisdom, without needing to beg food from the wealthy and powerful. May beings eat the food I give and have no need to seek food from others. May all beings receive natural food, be fully satisfied, take what they need without hindrance, and increase their wholesome roots. May beings understand emptiness, receive unhindered bodies like space, and always be able to receive offerings. May they care for all and become a support on which beings may rely to accumulate merit.” When cultivating loving-kindness and giving food, he should firmly make this unsurpassed vow.

When the perfected youth gives drink with a loving heart, he should make this vow: “All that I give now, I share with all ordinary beings. May beings enter the river of the Great Vehicle and drink the eight kinds of sweet water. May they quickly awaken to the unsurpassed, true Way, dispel doubt and affliction, and long for and delight in the Great Vehicle Scripture of Primordial Yang. May they complete the Dharma-body, obtain the treasury of all Dharmas, and enter the deep and vast ocean of wisdom. May beings receive the water of ambrosia and the taste of sweet spring water, turn toward the true Way, and purify body and mind. May they possess immeasurable flavors of the Dharma; having seen the nature of the Way, may they proclaim the true Dharma and spread the Way everywhere like space. May countless other beings also taste this flavor of the Great Vehicle and leave behind false views and unwholesome opinions.” When giving drink, he should firmly make this natural vow.

When the perfected youth gives clothing, embroidered fabrics, carriages, and bedding with a loving heart, he should make this vow: “All that I give now, I share with all ordinary beings. May all beings thereby attain the fruit of the Great Vehicle of Primordial Yang, abide in it, and never fall back or waver.”

When giving clothing with a loving heart, he should also make this vow: “May beings receive the garment of modesty, have their bodies covered by the Dharma-realm, and overcome every false view. May they leave behind attachment to clothing, attain pure bodies, and experience only what is wholly good and unhindered. May their features be gentle and radiant, their skin soft, and their bodies filled with constant light, without attachment to form or color. May all beings receive bodies beyond form, transcend every appearance of form, and enter the formless secret treasury of the Great Vehicle.” He should make this vow when giving clothing.

When the perfected youth gives the hundred-blended precious incense with a loving heart, he should make this vow: “All that I give now, I share with all ordinary beings. May beings awaken to the Way when they smell its fragrance. May their forms be like the bright full moon, their visible features wondrous and excellent, adorned with every virtue, and may they see pleasing forms as they wish. May beings always meet good friends, obtain unhindered fragrance, and leave behind foul odors. May they possess wholesome deeds and unsurpassed treasures, live together in harmony without distress, understand suffering and emptiness, and form no attachment to mutual affection.

“May beings uphold the unhindered Dharma, spreading its fragrance throughout the world. May they obtain the firm Dharma, the Dharma without regret, and the Dharma of precepts; leave behind the violation of precepts; and attain the Dharma that is Wuwei, unprecedented, self-taught, uncreated, undefiled, unstained, ultimate, and equal. May they regard praise and blame, good and evil, without bias. May beings obtain the Dharma of the unsurpassed Great Vehicle and remain unconstrained by the views of the Lesser Vehicle. May they complete the natural fruit of the Way, as perfected beings do when they first attain the Dharma. May beings be steeped in the wholesome practices of giving, keeping the precepts, patience, diligence, and other virtues, as well as in wondrous incense and flowers. May they bring to perfection the subtle precious fragrance of the Supreme Grade of Primordial Yang and spread its scent throughout space. May beings partake of the fragrant feast of the Supreme Grade Great Vehicle of Primordial Yang, like bees gathering the fragrance and flavor of flowers. May they possess immeasurable natural merit and have their bodies adorned with merit.”

When the perfected youth gives incense with a loving heart, he should firmly make this natural vow.

When the perfected youth gives a couch with a loving heart, he should make this vow: “All that I give now, I share with all beings. May beings obtain a heavenly couch and great wisdom, sit securely in the four places of spiritual power, and lie on the couch of perfected beings rather than on the couch of demons and the unlawful. May they lie in peace, leave behind the bed of birth and death, and attain the natural lion’s couch. Having sat upon this couch, may they manifest spiritual powers and great wisdom for countless beings. May they abide in the great palace of Primordial Yang and expound the Way and its Dharma for beings. May they sit upon the unsurpassed couch and not be overcome by worldly dharmas. May they obtain the couch of patience and leave behind birth and death, hunger, and hardship; the couch of fearlessness and forever leave behind afflictions and enemies; the couch of purity and single-mindedly cultivate the unsurpassed, true Way; the couch of wholesome Dharma and always receive the protection of good friends; and the couch for lying on one’s left side, following the Dharma practiced by sages.” When giving a couch, he should firmly make this vow.

When the perfected youth gives a dwelling with a loving heart, he should make this vow: “All that I give now, I share with all ordinary beings. May beings dwell in the house of the Great Vehicle and cultivate the Way practiced by good friends, the deeds of great compassion, and the wondrous practices that deliver beings. May they cultivate the vast Way practiced by the perfected beings of the heavens, boundless like space. May they possess right mindfulness, leave behind evil thoughts, find peace, abide in permanence, bliss, and purity, and forever leave behind the four dangers of upheaval. May beings uphold subtle and wondrous writings and become a dwelling of unsurpassed wisdom. May they enter the joyful house of the ambrosial Dharma, abide always in the pure abode of Primordial Yang, and in future lives dwell in the palaces inhabited by perfected beings.” When giving a dwelling, he should firmly make this vow.

When the perfected youth gives a lamp with a loving heart, he should make this vow: “All that I give now, I share with all ordinary beings. May beings have immeasurable light, abide in the Dharma of the Way, and always be clear and bright. May their features be radiant and excellent, and their physical eyes pure and unobstructed. May they obtain the torch of great wisdom, understand non-self, and realize that there are no fixed marks of ordinary beings, persons, or living selves. May beings see the pure nature of the Dharma, like space; may their eyes be clear and bright, able to see far across the immeasurable worlds in the ten directions. May they obtain the light of the Dharma, illuminating immeasurable lands; attain unhindered wisdom and see the pure nature of the Dharma; receive the light of great wisdom that dispels all darkness and demons; and gain immeasurable radiance that shines throughout the worlds of the heavens.

“May beings kindle the lamp of the Great Vehicle Dharma and leave behind the views of the Lesser Vehicle. May the light they receive dispel the darkness of ignorance, surpass the brilliance of a thousand suns, and illuminate the three thousand worlds, brightening every shadowed place. May beings possess the five eyes—the five kinds of perception described in Buddhist practice—understand the marks of the Dharma, and attain the Way of an unsurpassed teacher. May beings no longer be obscured by ignorance, receive the wondrous light of the Great Vehicle of Primordial Yang, and understand the truth of the perfected beings’ true Dharma-nature.” When giving a lamp, he should firmly make this vow.

Good man, the perfected youths of the heavens take loving-kindness as their root. By cultivating loving-kindness, they give rise to immeasurable wholesome deeds: contemplating impurity, the in-and-out breath, impermanence and cessation, the four stages of sagehood, the five kinds of wholesome deeds, the three modes of penetrating insight, the eight kinds of merit, and understanding all aspects of emptiness without clinging to physical form. They also give rise to knowledge of others’ minds, the various spiritual knowledges, knowledge of the fundamental origin, the wisdom of immortals, the wisdom of youths, the wisdom of perfected beings, and the wisdom of Celestial Worthies. All these Dharmas have loving-kindness as their root. Therefore, loving-kindness is true, not unreal.

To be skilled in doing good is called “true subtle reflection”; true subtle reflection is loving-kindness. Loving-kindness is the Celestial Worthy; loving-kindness is the Great Vehicle, and the Great Vehicle is loving-kindness. Loving-kindness is the Celestial Worthy. Loving-kindness is the natural order; loving-kindness is the true Way, and the true Way is loving-kindness. Loving-kindness is the Celestial Worthy. Loving-kindness is the immortal, and the immortal is loving-kindness. Loving-kindness is the Celestial Worthy. Loving-kindness can be the parent of ordinary beings; parenthood is loving-kindness, and loving-kindness is the Celestial Worthy.

Loving-kindness is the realm of inconceivable Dharmas, and that inconceivable realm is loving-kindness. You should know that loving-kindness is the Celestial Worthy. Loving-kindness is also the nature of ordinary beings’ Dharma; it is only because this nature of Dharma has long been obscured by afflictions that ordinary beings cannot see it. The nature of Dharma is loving-kindness, and loving-kindness is the Celestial Worthy. Loving-kindness is the Great Void, and the Great Void is loving-kindness; loving-kindness is the Celestial Worthy. Loving-kindness is space, and space is loving-kindness; loving-kindness is the Celestial Worthy. Loving-kindness is eternal; the eternal is true, the true is the Way, the Way is loving-kindness, and loving-kindness is the Celestial Worthy. Loving-kindness is joy, joy is the immortal, the immortal is Dharma, Dharma is loving-kindness, and loving-kindness is the Celestial Worthy. Loving-kindness is purity, purity is cleanliness, cleanliness is the Way, the Way is Dharma, Dharma is loving-kindness, and loving-kindness is the Celestial Worthy. Loving-kindness is self, self is the Way, the Way is Dharma, Dharma is the noble person, the noble person is loving-kindness, and loving-kindness is the Celestial Worthy. Loving-kindness is ambrosia, and ambrosia is loving-kindness; loving-kindness is the nature of Dharma.