《太上玄灵北斗本命延生真经》

At that time, on the seventh day of the first month in the first year of the Yongshou era, the Supreme Lord Lao (Taishang Laojun), one of the highest deities venerated in Daoism, was residing in the Palace of Taiji (Supreme Ultimate) above the realm of Great Clarity (Taiqing). He beheld living beings who had passed through countless kalpas of calamity, rising and sinking without stability and repeatedly undergoing the cycle of birth and death.

Some were born in the human world, in the land of China, while others were born among the Yi and Di, the Man and Rong. Some were rich and noble, others poor and lowly. For a time they entered the world by virtue of various causes and conditions, yet, drawn by the force of karma, they fell into the hells and suffered in the underworld courts (the offices of the yin realm). When their term of suffering was complete, if they were about to leave the human path, they might be reborn as livestock, birds, or insects, growing ever further from human existence and finding it very difficult to obtain a human body again. Sinking continually in this way, they themselves remained wholly unaware. The scripture holds that this was because they had lost their true nature in a former life and therefore suffered the pain of transmigration.

Filled with compassion, Lord Lao differentiated various transformation-bodies in order to teach and transform living beings. His transformation-body came to the Shu capital (the area of present-day Chengdu in Sichuan), where the local deities raised a jade platform from beneath the earth to serve as a high dais. Lord Lao ascended the jade platform and took his seat, transmitting the essentials of the Scripture of the Northern Dipper and Original Destiny (Beidou Benming Jing) to the Celestial Master (Tianshi, the honorific title in Daoism for Zhang Daoling) and expounding important methods so as to bring universal aid to living beings.

At this point, Lord Lao told the Celestial Master: “A human body is hard to obtain…”

At this time, Lord Lao said to the Celestial Master (Tianshi): “A human body is hard to obtain, and to be born in the Central Plains is not easy either. Even if one is born, it is still very difficult to encounter the orthodox teaching. Many people lose the true Dao (the Way), stray into deviant paths, and plant all kinds of sinful karma. They act with cunning, indulge desire and delight in killing, sink into forming factions and contending with one another, and give free rein to greed and wrath, until in the end they fall into hell and lose the human body. Because of these causes and conditions, sentient beings do not awaken. They do not know the orthodox Dao, and those who fall into delusion are many.

“Seeing sentient beings in this state, compassion arose in my heart, and so I transmitted the teaching, pointing out for them the wholesome conditions, so that they might know that a person’s body, together with nature and life, all come into being in reliance upon the Dao. Once this principle is understood, one can long preserve the human body, so that the root and vein of goodness continue from life to life; one is not born where there is no orthodox Dao, and the root of being human is not cut off. One can also cultivate the orthodox Dao with a devoted mind, gradually enter the way of the immortals, forever leave the cycle of rebirth, and ascend to the attainment of the Dao. Therefore I transmit and reveal this wondrous method to you, so that the people of Heaven may be delivered, return to the true Dao, and come to recognize their own allotted destiny.

“On one’s own benming day (the day corresponding to one’s personal zodiac animal), one may keep the fast and hold a Zhaijiao (purification ritual), setting up an altar to perform a Keyi (liturgy) of prayer for blessings, and pray to the deities of the Northern Dipper, the Three Officials, the Five Emperors, the Nine Bureaus, and the Four Directorates, seeking the bestowal of blessings and the removal of disasters. One submits memorials and petitions, prays with earnest sincerity, and presents offerings with devotion. One offers all kinds of fragrant flowers and the five fruits of the season, follows the rites proper to the occasion, and purifies the altar ground. The arrangement of the altar should model the patterns of Heaven and the form of Earth. It may be done in a Daoist temple or at home, cultivating merit and performing the ritual according to one’s means. Merit of this kind is profound and weighty, and it is hard to recount it all, one item after another.

“Reciting the great holy names of the Seven Primordial Perfected Lords of the Northern Dipper (the seven stellar lords corresponding to the seven stars of the Northern Dipper) can eliminate sinful karma and wash away calamities, so that one’s share of blessing and one’s lifespan may increase, and wholesome fruits may descend upon oneself. When sudden hardship arises, one may burn incense and recite the Jing (scripture/classic), praying with a sincere heart, and thus pass safely through the crisis.”

Thereupon, Lord Lao spoke this efficacious text on the Northern Dipper’s resolution of adversity:

The Great Holy Seven Primordial Lords of the Northern Dipper are able to resolve the adversity of the Three Calamities;

the Great Holy Seven Primordial Lords of the Northern Dipper are able to resolve the adversity of the Four Killings;

the Great Holy Seven Primordial Lords of the Northern Dipper are able to resolve the adversity of the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water);

the Great Holy Seven Primordial Lords of the Northern Dipper are able to resolve the adversity of the Six Harms;

the Great Holy Seven Primordial Lords of the Northern Dipper are able to resolve the adversity of the Seven Injuries.

The Seven Primordial Lords of the Northern Dipper (Beidou Qiyuanjun—the seven stellar lords corresponding to the seven stars of the Northern Dipper) are able to dissolve every kind of calamity: the eight difficulties, the afflictions of the nine stars, discord between husband and wife, misfortunes concerning men and women, the perils of childbirth, disasters that follow one upon another, plague, illness, harassment by malign spirits, injury by tigers and wolves, harm from insects and snakes, robbery and banditry, punishment by the rod, the cangue, and shackles, unexpected violent death, calamities brought on by curses and sworn vows, predicaments as inescapable as the net of heaven and the snare of earth, the perils of armed conflict and warfare, and disasters of water and fire.

The Seven Star Lords (the deities corresponding to the seven stars of the Northern Dipper) possess vast spiritual powers and, with compassion, help people pass through every kind of calamity, so that suffering beings may be freed from their plight. If someone meets with sudden distress and sincerely recites this scripture (Jing), that person will receive protection and remain safe.

Reciting the scripture can increase blessings of every kind and bring oneself into accord with the Five Phases (Wuxing: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water). When the three hun souls are settled and sound, evil spirits cannot intrude. The five directions send down pure and upright primordial Qi (vital energy), and blessings of all kinds arrive one after another. In this way one can prolong life, pass beyond the eight difficulties, weather every adversity, and leave suffering behind.

All these blessings arise from revering and upholding the seven stars of the Northern Dipper. In this life one can live free and at ease, and in every lifetime retain a clear and lucid spirit. The response to good deeds is like a shadow cast in the light, and the reply is like an echo in a mountain valley. The Three Primordial Spirits (the deities in Daoism who preside over the three realms of heaven, earth, and water) protect one together, and the myriad sages clearly watch over and guard one. From then on there is no calamity to obstruct, and one long preserves a peaceful mind of the Dao (the Way).

The Most High Lord Lao says: The North Star appears in the heavens, and the host of stars circles around it. It is the pivot of the generation, transformation, and movement of Heaven and Earth, and the sovereign who commands both humans and spirits. Its power extends throughout the Three Realms of Heaven, Earth, and humanity, and it governs the myriad spirits. It determines the days on which good and evil in the human world are assessed, and it also keeps the registers by which right and wrong are judged in the underworld. The Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water) all come under its control, and the Seven Governors—the sun, the moon, and the stars of Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth—are likewise under its command. It has the power to restore the dead to life and to dispel calamity and relieve adversity.

Whether one is an emperor or a commoner, although rank and station differ, the reckoning of allotted fate does not. Ordinary people in the world are often confused and muddled. They do not know that their body and life are linked to the Northern Dipper (Beidou), nor that destiny is administered by the Celestial Treasury (Tianfu). When they meet with disaster and illness, they do not understand how to pray for relief from adversity; when they wish to seek blessings and the preservation of life, they do not discern the way of turning toward the correct Dao (the Way). Thus their souls and spirits are disturbed, and misfortunes cling to them one after another. Some suffer grave illness that is hard to cure; some are harmed by malign influences and demonic beings, remaining sickly, worn down, and in difficult circumstances for many years. Others become entangled in matters of tombs and litigation, or are summoned and called by the authorities, even implicating deceased kin. Still others incur punishment from the celestial realm, or are falsely accused by the ghosts and spirits of the underworld.

If one encounters such perils, how are they to be rescued and resolved? One should hasten to make supplication to the Northern Dipper, perform the jiao rite (setting up an altar to pray to the deities and present offerings), and, before the Perfected Lords of the Northern Dipper, confess one’s faults and pray for the warding off of harm. By reciting, or transmitting and practicing, this true scripture (Jing), and by recognizing and reverently honoring one’s own Benming Perfected Lord—the star-lord of the Northern Dipper corresponding to the year of one’s birth—one may obtain peace, and further recover health and enjoy ease and good fortune. The still deeper and more wondrous principles of this cannot be set forth one by one. Whoever beholds the True Form of the Northern Dipper should offer prostrate reverence.

The First Star-Lord of the Northern Dipper, Yangming Tanlang, Lord of the Great Star, corresponds to those born in the year of the Rat.

The Second Star-Lord of the Northern Dipper, Yinjing Jumen, Lord of the Prime Star, corresponds to those born in the years of the Ox and the Pig.

The Third Star-Lord of the Northern Dipper, Zhenren Lucun, Lord of the True Star, corresponds to those born in the years of the Tiger and the Dog.

The Fourth Star-Lord of the Northern Dipper, Xuanming Wenqu, Lord of the Bond Star, corresponds to those born in the years of the Rabbit and the Rooster.

The Fifth Star-Lord of the Northern Dipper, Danyuan Lianzhen, Lord of the Guideline Star, corresponds to those born in the years of the Dragon and the Monkey.

The Sixth Star-Lord of the Northern Dipper, Beiji Wuqu, Lord of the Regulator Star, corresponds to those born in the years of the Snake and the Sheep.

The Seventh Star-Lord of the Northern Dipper, Tianguan Pojun, Lord of the Pass Star, corresponds to those born in the year of the Horse.

The sixth star of the Big Dipper is called Beiji Wuqu Ji Xingjun (Star Lord of the Northern Pole, Wuqu, the Chronicle). Those born in si years and wei years are under his charge.

The seventh star of the Big Dipper is called Tianguan Pojun Guan Xingjun (Star Lord of the Heavenly Pass, Pojun, the Barrier). Those born in wu years are under his charge.

The eighth star of the Big Dipper is called Dongming Waifu Xingjun (Star Lord of Cavern Brightness, the Outer Assistant), and the ninth star is called Yinguang Neibi Xingjun (Star Lord of Hidden Light, the Inner Aide).

Among the stars of the Three Terraces, the Upper Terrace is called Xujing Kaide Xingjun (Star Lord of Void Essence Who Opens Virtue), the Middle Terrace is called Liuchun Sikong Xingjun (Star Lord Liuchun, Minister of Works), and the Lower Terrace is called Qusheng Silu Xingjun (Star Lord of Curved Birth, Minister of Emolument).

The titles of these Zhenjun (Perfected Lords) are not such as ordinary people are able to hear. Whoever has the chance to hear them, see them, and recite them is a person whose mind of the Dao (the Way) is profound and who accumulated good affinities in the past, and who is therefore able to hear and uphold this scripture. The merit of this is beyond measure.

Men and women who cherish right faith, upon encountering this true scripture, can bring their wisdom to perfect clarity and open the mind of the Dao, leave the road on which the multitude is lost, enter the deep and mysterious gate of the Dao, return to orthodox Daoist methods, and reach a state of peace, joy, and prosperity. On the Sanyuan (Three Primordials), the Bajie (Eight Nodes), one’s own destiny year and birthday, and when the Big Dipper is on duty, one solemnly sets up an altar, recites the scripture, and performs the Zhaijiao (purification ritual), cultivating according to the rite. The blessings obtained are boundless. Generation after generation, one will neither go against one’s original nature nor fall into deviant views.

If one who upholds the scripture often recites the respective honorific titles of the Qiyuan Zhenjun (Seven Yuan Perfected Lords—the seven star lords corresponding to the seven stars of the Big Dipper), and if good conduct and merit are brought to completion, auspiciousness will also descend.

The incantation of the Big Dipper is then proclaimed:

“The nine chronograms of the Big Dipper are great deities dwelling in the center of heaven. Above, they attend court at the Golden Portal, the palace gates where the Celestial Thearch resides; below, they cover Kunlun. They regulate the guiding principles of Heaven and Earth and hold command over Qian and Kun. The star lords Dakui and Tanlang, Jumen and Lucun, Wenqu and Lianzhen, and Wuqu and Pojun, together with the exalted Jade Emperor and the Purple Tenuity Thearch, extend their power throughout the whole celestial realm and can also enter the finest dust. What calamity cannot be removed? What blessing cannot descend? May the orthodox Qi (vital energy) of the Primordial Beginning come upon my body. Wherever the Tiangang points, it turns day and night without cease. Though I am an ordinary mortal of the dusty world, I cherish the Great Dao and seek numinous response; may I behold the countenances of the honored deities and forever preserve my life. Star Lords Xujing, Liuchun, and Qusheng of the Three Terraces, I ask you to give me life and nourishment and to protect the form of my body.”

At the end the original text has missing characters, so the incantation cannot be read in full. The surviving wording is:

“□□□□□□ Kui, the Venerable Thearch, may you unite with my body. Wherever the Tiangang points, it ever turns day and night. An ordinary mortal of the dusty world loves the Great Dao and seeks numinous response, and wishes to behold the countenances of the honored deities and forever secure long life. Star Lords Xujing, Liuchun, and Qusheng of the Three Terraces, I ask you to give me life and nourishment and to protect the form of my body. □□□□□□ Kui, the Venerable Thearch—quickly, quickly, in accordance with the statutes and commands!”

Lord Lao (Laojun) said: A person’s nature and life, together with the body, are all governed by that person’s own natal-destiny star officials (stellar deities who preside over an individual’s fate). The divine generals of the natal destiny and the star officials of one’s natal lodge (stellar deities corresponding to the year of birth) constantly shelter people, uphold their lifespans, and enable them to live out their full allotment of years. Worldly people often do not understand these principles, and to the end of their lives they never awaken.

The True Officials of the Natal Destiny descend to the human world six times each year, and these days of descent are called “natal-destiny days.” When the term of the natal destiny arrives, three thousand Emissaries of Nanling, seven thousand divine generals of the Perfected Lord of the Northern Dipper, and the True Officials of the Natal Destiny descend together, and hosts of divine perfected beings also come to protect and sustain. At this time one may dispel calamities, repent of transgressions, pray for blessings, and prolong life. People should, according to their own means, set up an altar and perform the jiao (a Daoist ritual for seeking blessings and averting disasters), and in this way increase blessings and De (Virtue/Power).

If the term of the natal destiny is about to arrive and one does not know it, and neither holds a Zhaijiao (purification ritual) nor offers incense, this is to slight life, lose sight of the root, and fail to cherish human life. The Celestial Bureaus (the divine offices that keep the registers of Heaven) will then reduce one’s stipend and deduct from one’s lifespan, and for this reason many people die before their time. If someone does not understand the truth of the matter and, even upon encountering scriptures (Jing) and Keyi (liturgy), still harbors disbelief and slanders the scriptural texts, such a person after death will sink into the three paths (the three evil destinies spoken of in Buddhism: the hells, hungry ghosts, and animals) and other destinations of rebirth, and for a long time lose the human body. This is truly pitiable; it is a bitter fruit that one has brought upon oneself.

If, on the natal-destiny day, one can hold a Zhaijiao and pray with a sincere heart to the Celestial Bureaus, and when the term of the natal destiny arrives recite the true scriptures and set forth abundant offerings, it is said that this can cause one to be reborn as a man for three successive lives, enjoying wealth, honor, and intelligence, and to become a person outstanding among humankind. If the blessings accumulated in former lives are meager, so that in this life one is human yet poor and lowly, and even though one knows the natal-destiny day one lacks the means to hold a larger ritual, then simply pouring water and offering flowers, calming the mind, facing the North Pole and bowing in prostration, and reciting the name of the Perfected Lord of the Natal Destiny, one will not have let the natal-destiny day pass in vain. One will likewise be able to extend life and add blessings, continue to retain a human body, eliminate disasters and afflictions, and obtain immeasurable rewards of blessing.

When the Celestial Master (Tianshi) heard this, he rejoiced and leapt with delight, paid homage, and exclaimed in praise: “This is truly an unsurpassed Dharma bridge, hard to encounter (a Dharma gate that leads people toward cultivation and liberation).”

Lord Lao (Laojun) once again told the Celestial Master (Tianshi): The transgressions, shares of blessing, good deeds, and evil deeds of the people of the world are all administered by the divine offices of heaven. To repent of transgressions and dispel calamities, there is no better method than cultivating and practicing the orthodox Dao (the Way). When the day of one’s own natal birthday arrives, one may pray to the Yuanchen within the body (the spirits related to personal destiny) and ask the Yima (the spirits charged with conveying divine intent) to reduce and eliminate the three calamities and nine adversities (the various disasters and hardships), so as to protect the peace and safety of one’s family in this life.

If there are people of higher cultivation who uphold and recite this scripture (Jing) on their own natal birthday, they can subdue demons and monsters outwardly and settle their true nature inwardly. Their merit extends to all living beings of water and land, and their good deeds benefit both the living and the dead. Repenting their faults and holding reverence in their hearts, they gradually realize wondrous fruits of attainment, accumulate profound and mysterious merit, and awaken to the Dao of emptiness and non-being. In the end they obtain sagely and luminous wisdom, thorough and perfectly integrated. Their movements, whether hidden or manifest, are hard to fathom. They can pass in and out between being and non-being, roam freely among the clouds, ascend into the Golden Gate, unite with the sages and become perfected, transcend the Three Realms, and no longer revolve in transmigration. Their lifespan is without end, and they are joyful and at ease.

All men and women who, on their natal birthday or on other days of fasting and abstinence, purify body and mind, burn incense, and uphold and recite this scripture, and who clearly recognize the stellar lord of the Northern Pole who governs their own natal destiny, praying as their hearts incline, will find that their good wishes receive a response. Calamities and transgressions are eliminated, and many holy perfected ones are moved to come and protect them. Wherever the scripture is present, a thousand perfected ones pay reverence and ten thousand sages guard and uphold it; demons withdraw, spectral beings lie hidden, and the calamities of the world can all be extinguished.

This scripture is called the Beidou Benming Yansheng Jingjue (the Scripture and Formula of the Northern Dipper for Extending Life According to One’s Natal Destiny). It is the path of cultivating perfection, attaining the Dao, and roaming in freedom. Realizing sagehood and becoming perfected, escaping birth and death, and protecting men and women can all be accomplished by means of this scripture; in preserving life and extending one’s years, one can likewise obtain freedom through it. One ought to regard it as a lifelong treasure, revere and uphold it, and must not transmit it to unsuitable persons.

When Lord Lao was about to finish expounding the scripture, dragons, cranes, and celestial immortals came to receive him and escort him back to Yujing (the immortal capital of the heavenly realm). After the Celestial Master obtained this wondrous method, he said: “I vow to let it circulate and to transmit it to people of good heart. If there are men and women who receive, uphold, and recite this scripture, I, together with the immortal officials of the Ten Precepts (the immortal officials who observe the Ten Precepts), will protect them wherever they are.” The Celestial Master then once more paid homage to Lord Lao and offered this praise:

If the Beidou Jing (Scripture of the Northern Dipper) is kept in the home, at the time of one’s natal destiny true numinous spirits will descend.

When the Beidou Jing (Scripture of the Northern Dipper) is enshrined in the home, the dwelling will be peaceful and secure; one’s parents will be preserved and live to a great age; all manner of foul impurities and malignant Qi (vital energy) will disperse; and every kind of evil spirit will return to the orthodox Dao (the Way).

When the Beidou Jing is enshrined in the home, trade and business will go just as one wishes; the whole family will naturally enjoy health and safety; sons and grandsons will flourish and rise to distinction; and roads in every direction will be open and unimpeded. All kinds of evil can be dispelled for a long time, and the six domestic animals kept at home will also multiply and thrive. Illnesses will be cured, wealth and property will not be lost without cause, unexpected calamities will not arise again, and one will long remain fortunate, smooth in one’s affairs, and at peace.

Lord Lao (Laojun), a deity revered in Daoism, said: “Excellent, excellent! You may proclaim the orthodox Dao, so that blessings spread vast and boundless, universally reaching all living beings, and everyone may long receive this supremely excellent good fruit.” The Celestial Master (Tianshi), a teacher revered in Daoism, bowed his head in ritual thanks, accepted the teaching in faith, and carried it out in practice.

Here ends the Taishang Xuanling Beidou Benming Yansheng Zhenjing (True Scripture of the Most High Mysterious Numen of the Northern Dipper on Original Destiny and the Prolongation of Life).