《太上元始天尊说消殄虫蝗经》

At that time, the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning (Yuanshi Tianzun, a revered deity of Daoism) was on Jade Capital Mountain in the Daluo Heaven, broadly expounding the wondrous teachings to the assembly. The Perfected One of the Supreme Ultimate (Taiji Zhenren, a Daoist immortal) knelt respectfully, holding a set of slips in his hands, and addressed the Celestial Worthy:

“I see that the common people throughout the world make their living by farming and raising silkworms, sustaining themselves through their fields and through sericulture. In recent years, insect plagues and locust disasters have followed one upon another, and floods and droughts have also departed from their normal measure. The crops have therefore been damaged. The people are anxious and fearful; men and women alike are filled with sorrow, yet they do not know where they should go to pray.

The people have gone in person to famous mountains to offer worship, but they have received no response: the insects and locusts have not been eliminated, and no one knows when the rain will fall. I do not understand what karmic offenses ordinary mortals have accumulated, such that their prayers meet with no answer. I earnestly beg the Celestial Worthy to grant a special instruction, so that all may understand the principle of this matter.”

The Celestial Worthy said: I see that whenever the people of the world enjoy a year of abundant harvest, they often neither know reverence and faith nor gratefully remember the sun, moon, and stars—the Three Luminaries, that is, the sun, the moon, and the stars—and they treat grain with contempt. Grain is trampled by chickens and dogs; people scatter it on the ground and mix it with filth, neither taking it as food nor cherishing it. Celestial signs, the omens manifested by the operation of the Heavenly Dao (the Way), then appear: lacking reverence and faith, the people encounter plagues of insects and locusts, floods, and drought.

Now that the Perfected has memorialized this matter, I am greatly pleased. I therefore respectfully dispatch the Great Demons of the Five Emperors, the officials of the Three Origins, the Divine Generals of the Six Jia, the Five Peaks and Four Rivers—the deities of the five famous mountains and the four great rivers—the Earl of Wind and the Master of Rain, the Duke of Thunder and the Mother of Lightning, the Divine Lords of the Twenty-Four Qi (vital energy), the Eight Great Dragon Kings of the grotto-heavens and famous mountains, the spirits of the Five Grains, and all dragon deities, to go into the human world, drive out insects and locusts, harmonize wind and rain, and lead the people of the world to reform their faults and turn toward goodness.

A ritual arena should be established in palace-abbeys and spirit altars and in the immortals’ secluded grotto-abodes, and sacred images should be installed. The rite may last one day, two days, or as many as seven days. Participants should be of one mind and pure, burn various renowned incenses, practice the Dao according to the liturgy, recite the scriptures (Jing), and offer a Zhaijiao (purification ritual)—the Daoist rite of presenting offerings and praying to the deities—petitioning the honored gods of the celestial signs and constellations and widely performing good deeds. Only then can insects and locusts be eliminated, wind and rain harmonized, the five grains flourish and ripen, storehouses be filled, the people live in peace and joy, the state enjoy tranquility, and clothing and food be abundant.

The Celestial Worthy then spoke a gatha, a verse that expresses doctrine in rhyme:

If in life one does not accumulate goodness, disaster and misfortune will intrude; if tilling is not diligent, one will meet with insects, locusts, flood, and drought. Transformations in the unseen are hard to fathom, and in the vague and elusive they are hard to trace. If people revere the Great Dao, many calamities will not intrude; if living beings practice kindness and filial devotion, they will of themselves reap blessings. Revering the Great Dao in this way, one may secure a bountiful harvest year after year.

After the Celestial Worthy finished speaking this hymn, the assembled multitude present, together with the Perfected of Taiji (Supreme Ultimate) and the others, all kowtowed in unison, their hearts filled with joy. They then offered their respects with reverence and withdrew, believing in and accepting the teachings of the Jing (scripture/classic) and putting them into practice accordingly.

The Scripture Spoken by the Most High Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning on the Eradication of Insects and Locusts ends here.