《太上洞玄灵宝二部传授仪》

On first entering the ritual altar, the disciple may circumambulate along the left side of the hall. The master faces north and burns three sticks of incense.

Still facing north, the master makes three bows toward the scriptures (Jing); the disciple, facing north toward the master, likewise makes three bows.

The master then turns to face west, while the disciple stands facing east, and both quiet the mind and visualize the deities.

The ritual drum is then struck twenty-four times.

The master intones the invocation:

“Most High Lord Lao of the Mysterious Primordial Qi (vital energy) of the Unsurpassed Three Heavens, I ask you to summon forth from within my body the Three-and-Five Merit Officers (divine clerks charged with transmitting documents), the emissaries of the offices of the left and right, the dragon-mounted courier officers of the left and right who bear incense, the Golden Lads who attend the incense, the Jade Maidens who convey messages, and the Direct Talisman Officers of the Five Emperors (divine clerks who carry the talismanic commands of the celestial emperors of the five directions)—thirty-six of each kind—and to have this announced to the earth gods of this place and to the true officials and orthodox deities of the locality.

“I now reverently burn incense and transmit the methods of the Dao (the Way). May the orthodox, true, living Qi of the Most High, coming from the ten directions, enter my body, so that what I memorialize may swiftly ascend and reach directly before the Unsurpassed Great Dao of the Most High and the presence of the Jade Emperor of Ultimate Truth.”

The master then kneels upright, begins to summon the divine clerks, and says:

I respectfully request that the True Officials of the Five Bodies and the Merit Officers within my body come forth. I request that the Merit Officers of the Upper Three Heavens within my body, who enforce the statutes and open and transform Yin-Yang, together with the lords and officers charged with saving beings, dispelling disasters, scattering misfortunes, and releasing calamities—twelve of each—come forth. I further request that the lords and officers holding parish office within my body, the Great Generals Who Establish the Staff of Authority and Supervise Merit of such-and-such parish, the Front Division of Effective Merit, the Rear Division of Effective Execution, the Director and the Assistant Director of the Courier Court, together with the Merit Officers of the Four Heavens who enforce the statutes and open and transform Yin-Yang and the lords and officers charged with saving beings, dispelling disasters, and releasing calamities—twelve of each—come forth.

I request that the lords and officers holding parish office within my body, the Great Generals Who Establish the Staff of Authority and Supervise Merit of such-and-such parish, the Front Division of Effective Merit, the Rear Division of Effective Execution, the Director and Assistant Director of the Courier Court, and the Ushers of the Four Divisions Who Supervise Merit come forth. I further request that the Direct Envoys of the Immortal Spirits, the Merit Officers of Zhengyi (Orthodox Unity), the Merit Officers Who Treat Illness, the Envoys of the Left and Right Offices, the Divine Adjudicating Officers of Yin and Yang, the Red Talisman Officers of the Regulation Chariots, the Mounted Dispatch Officers of the Gang Wind, the Officers Who Ride Post Horses to Submit Memorials, the Flying Dragon Cavalry Officers, and the rest—two of each—come forth.

All who come forth must dress in full array and stand in solemn order, wearing clearly marked ceremonial robes, with caps set in place, sashes fastened, and their bearing composed. The Direct-Envoy Merit Officers wear the Cap That Reaches Heaven and unlined robes of black silk. The Zhengyi Merit Officers wear the Vermilion Yang headcloth and deep-red unlined robes. The envoys wear the Cap of the Nine Virtues and five-colored robes of long life, with tiger tallies bound at the waist and jade tablets held in the hand.

The Direct-Envoy Merit Officers take their places in the four directions; the Zhengyi officers of each bureau stand at the center; and the Merit Officers Who Treat Illness guard my body. The Envoy of the Left Office, holding the credential staff, stands in front, and the Envoy of the Right Office, holding the banner, stands behind. The Yang Divine Adjudicating Officers stand on the left, and the Yin Divine Adjudicating Officers stand on the right. The Merit Officers of the upper division stand above, and the Merit Officers of the middle division keep watch within my body. The Merit Officers Who Urge Qi (vital energy) press onward the Qi of the four quarters. The envoys of the upper division gaze up toward Heaven, and the envoys of the middle division look afar toward the eight directions. The envoys of the metropolitan offices encircle my body.

The Wolf Officers and Tiger Braves, the Mounted Hook-Officers Who Investigate Treachery, the Commandants of the Metropolitan Offices, the armored soldiers of the Celestial Grooms, and the strongmen of the Celestial Stalwarts, together with the various officers charged with seizing and restraining Qi, Shen (spirit), ghosts, deviant forces, Jing (essence), and poisons, and also the Officers Who Execute by Talisman and Destroy Temples, the Red Talisman Officers of the Regulation Chariots, the Mounted Dispatch Officers of the Gang Wind, the Officers Who Ride Post Horses to Submit Memorials, and the Flying Dragon Cavalry Officers, all take their stations before me and behind me, to my left and to my right.

When the Merit Officers and envoys have finished arraying themselves, they form a processional guard and make report to the official staff of Lingbao, to the lords and officers who lead the immortals and supervise the retreat, and to the thirty-six thousand spirits of the upper palaces of the Twenty-Four Parishes, the Thirty-Six Quiet Lodges, the Seventy-Two Blessed Lands, and the Three Hundred Sixty Famous Mountains, Kunlun, and the like, established by the Celestial Master (Tianshi). Those addressed in the report also include the sun, moon, and stars; the Rotating Pivot and the Jade Transverse; the Five Emperors of Heaven and Earth; the official lords, generals, and officers of the Three Realms; and the deities within the Dao (the Way)—the Two Mysteries, the Three Primes, the Four Beginnings, and the rest. They include as well the official lords, generals, and officers of the four directions, of wind and Qi, of afflicting Qi, and of the jiazi cycle, together with the Lords of Investigation and Summons; the Old Lord of the Nine Yi and the Hu of the East, the Old Lord of the Eight Man and the Yue of the South, the Old Lord of the Six Rong and the Di of the West, the Old Lord of the Five Di and the Qiang of the North, and the Old Lord of the Three Qin and the Cang of the Center; the spirits of the Five Marchmounts and the Four Great Rivers, the gods of hills and marshes, and the deities of temples everywhere; and the official lords, generals, and officers, and the Lords of Investigation and Summons, of the high mountains, mountains and rivers, streams and valleys, and mountain forests of every place, together with the Twelve Stream Maidens, the lords of the root, source, and original beginning of the soil, and the generals and officers of the altars of soil and grain. All these spirits are to array themselves together and, along with the Merit Officers and envoys and the Flying Dragon Cavalry Officers within my body, submit a memorial upward to the Most High Limitless Great Dao, the Most High Lord of the Great Dao, the Most High Lord Lao, the Most High Elder, the Unsurpassed Mysterious Elder, the host of holy Celestial Worthies of the Limitless Great Dao and of De (Virtue/Power) throughout the ten directions, the Great Emperors of Supreme Truth, the Celestial Emperors, the Lord Celestial Master, the Great Ritual Master of Lingbao Who Supervises the Retreat, and all the official lords.

On the day I received the teaching, it was proper that I proclaim the sound of the teaching, praise the transformative instruction of the Great Dao, transmit the teaching to later students, and open salvation for the beings of Heaven and of humanity. Now there is so-and-so of such-and-such commandery, county, district, and village—whether man or woman—who keeps the body pure and cultivates the Way, seeking immortality with a single mind, and who has already received the Great Method of Salvation of the Three Caverns (Dongzhen, Dongxuan, and Dongshen) (an important method of transmission in Daoism). Yet the mysterious and subtle purport is difficult to grasp, and this person has not yet fully penetrated the path of cultivating the True. Bearing pledges of faith, this person now sincerely seeks to receive the “Essential Formula of the Ten Precepts of the Two-Half Diagram Board for Contemplating the Subtle and Settling the Will,” transmitted by the Celestial Worthy (a set of ritual formulas concerning contemplating the subtle, settling the will, and the precepts). The intention is utterly sincere and urgent, and I ought not refuse.

I have therefore, in accordance with the regulations, observed the purification retreat together with so-and-so. The prescribed term of the ritual has been fulfilled, and I now confer the method of liberation. I respectfully present one red memorial on yellow silk (a red memorial written on yellow silk), and I order the Merit Officers and envoys and the Flying Dragon Cavalry Officers to submit it at the proper time, delivering it to the highest Office of the Most High, placing the memorial upon the jade table, and inviting the gods each to examine it.

Next, the memorial is read aloud.

The drum is then struck three times, and the following is spoken:

The disciple once more petitions the perfected superior officials, the merit officers and envoys, the flying-dragon mounted clerks, and the other divine functionaries, each to transmit the report, bearing the yellow-silk red memorial of the precept formula that the disciple has reverently received, into which he has been initiated and ordained, and by which he has established his vow (a yellow silk cloth and red memorial inscribed with the words of the prayer), and to deliver it before the imperial presence of Qingxuan (before the honored divine throne of the Qingxuan celestial realm). May the stale Qi (vital energy) of the lower realm (the old, lingering breath) not intercept the official document and prevent the memorial from ascending.

The disciple holds back the Qi within the mouth, so that the memorial may rise to the Three Heavenly Bureaus (the offices of the three celestial realms), and respectfully awaits the proclamation and reply.

After the memorial has been presented with a prostration and the obeisance is complete, one returns to the palace station according to the earlier ritual for submitting a petition.

The master then rises, turns to the left and circles around to face south, while the disciple turns back to face north. Master and disciple stand opposite each other. The master kneels and says:

(“Master of a Certain Marchmount” means a master of a certain mountain who serves as ritual master; “your servant so-and-so” is the writer’s way of referring to himself.) Master So-and-so of a Certain Marchmount, your servant so-and-so, bows with forehead to the ground and bows again, respectfully reporting to the Most High, formless and nameless, empty and spontaneous Supreme True Great Dao (the Way); to the Unsurpassed Primordial Worthy; to the Most High Lord of the Great Dao; to all the holy Celestial Worthies of the boundless Great Dao and its De (Virtue/Power) throughout the ten directions; to the Supreme True Great Ritual Master of the Mysterious Center; to the Perfected of the Taiji (Supreme Ultimate); to the Three Perfected of Mysterious Unity; and to the Lord Celestial Master (Tianshi).

I, so-and-so, am dull of aptitude, no better than a walking corpse, and only through karmic affinity from former lives have I received a grace I do not deserve, and so been allowed to go on and receive the Great Law and the revered scriptures of the Three Treasures. I have neither withdrawn to live in remote mountains, far from the dusty world, nor proclaimed the teaching of the Great Dao, widely done good, relieved suffering, or accumulated merit to atone for my faults; I have merely mixed with ordinary people, no different from the worldly. The kindness and power of the Great Dao are profound: they have preserved my life, so that to this day I can still see the sun, moon, and stars, and breathe and go on living. This grace is truly beyond repayment. I, so-and-so, am filled with fear and trepidation; I knock my head, bow again, and know myself to be at fault.

I have heard that the sacred scriptures are exceedingly exalted, and are not for mediocre, shallow persons to transmit or put into practice at will; nor can the subtle and profound principles within them be grasped, with ordinary eyes, by one of my slight learning. I have been fortunate to meet with an opportunity: the teaching of the Three Caverns (Dongzhen, Dongxuan, and Dongshen—the classification system of Daoist scriptures) circulates in the world, seeking out and selecting those who have an affinity, and even one of my filthy, unworthy aptitude has been granted the numinous texts. Yet it is still only a short time since I received the scriptures, and it is not fitting that I lightly transmit them in public.

We are now in the cyclical turn of the renchen year. An age of Great Peace is already drawing near, yet calamity and good fortune still alternate. Unless one who has attained the Dao happens upon the right moment and receives transmission of the teaching of the Three Caverns, neither length of life nor the fortune of the kalpic cycles can be assured. Still, the human heart is hard to fathom. Worthy persons are diligent in seeking the Dao, and the teaching ought not to be sealed off entirely.

There is now a male or female official Daoist priest, so-and-so, of such-and-such commandery, county, and village, who keeps himself pure and guards his conduct, seeking immortality with a single mind. He has already received the great method of salvation of the Three Caverns, yet the mysterious and subtle essential purport is still hard for him to comprehend, and he has not yet reached the true path of cultivating the Dao. He now brings tokens of faith to show his sincerity, and earnestly begs to receive the diagram and scheme in two halves of Contemplating the Subtle and Settling the Will (Siwei Dingzhi), transmitted by the Celestial Worthy, together with the essential instructions of the Ten Precepts. His intention is earnest and hard to refuse.

I now respectfully follow the Mysterious Code (the regulations governing Daoist transmission): I divide the covenant tallies and confer the diagram and scheme, transmit and expound the prohibitions and precepts, and make a sworn declaration before the Three Officials (the Officials of Heaven, Earth, and Water venerated in Daoism), covenanting not to divulge them recklessly. I respectfully submit this matter upward, and will carry it out only after a decision is given. I, so-and-so, am filled with fear and trepidation; I bow with forehead to the ground, bow again, and report.

Then the liturgical text is read aloud:

“The four Qi (vital energy) of clear emptiness and natural spontaneity—four kinds of breath—were originally one whole, then divided into two parts; and further, because of the densely interfused Qi, half of each descends, so that the four bodies come together and once again become one.”

The Shou Siwei Dingzhi Jing (Received Scripture of Contemplating the Subtle and Settling the Will) says:

“The four Qi of clear emptiness and natural spontaneity were originally one whole, then divided into two parts; because of the densely interfused Qi, half of each descends, and the four bodies come together and once again become one. Those who receive the instructional precepts of the Siwei Dingzhi Jing (Scripture of Contemplating the Subtle and Settling the Will), and who do not commit the Five Rebellions (grave crimes of defiance), are able to ascend and return to the ‘One.’ The Dao (the Way) of clear emptiness and natural spontaneity, even while a person remains in the Realm of Desire, can also, through the merit gained by receiving the Ten Precepts of Contemplating the Subtle and Settling the Will, bring about a gradual ascent of itself. The Heavenly Worthies of the ten directions, without limit, possess immeasurable merit and dwell forever in the realm of lasting joy.

“Those who do not receive the instructional precepts of the Siwei Dingzhi Jing, and who do not cease from evil, naturally accumulate sinful karma and after death become wronged souls (departed spirits who bear a grievance and cannot be delivered). A wronged soul naturally draws down the upper half, which descends into the human world; when this portion is exhausted, the two halves unite as one, and one then enters the eighteen levels of hell, unable to remain in the paths of hungry ghosts or animals. Afterward the four bodies again become one.

“Doing evil brings descent; doing good brings ascent, and one enters the Formless Realm, the Realm of Form, and the Realm of Desire (the different heavenly realms of which Daoism speaks). One cannot remain in the heavens of the Formless Realm, cannot remain in the heavens of the Realm of Form, and cannot remain in the heavens of the Realm of Desire. All is empty: there is nowhere to stop, and nowhere one may dwell.”

The above comes to one hundred and seventy-seven characters in all.

The character “一” (“one”) is then drawn: the master holds the brush above, the disciple holds the brush below, and the two together draw a single horizontal stroke from left to right. The disciple recites after the master:

“After the character ‘一’ has been drawn, one reverently follows the seven characters of the covenant writ (the credential document used in the transmission ritual).”

The character “一” is then drawn once more: the master holds the brush above, the disciple holds the brush below, and the two together draw a single horizontal stroke from left to right. The disciple recites after the master:

“After the character ‘一’ has been drawn, one reverently obeys the covenant command, honors the Dao and De (Virtue/Power), reveres the master and the precious treasures of the teaching, cultivates purificatory rites and observes the precepts, and saves and delivers the living and the dead. From this time onward, if one violates the liturgical statutes, one shall be dealt with according to the regulations of the Mingzhen Wen (Text of Illuminating the Perfected).”

The covenant tallies (credential documents used in the ritual) are then separated: a male disciple receives the left tally, and a female disciple receives the right tally.

A ring is then carved. The master recites “Zuo Yuanshang” (Left Primordial Above), and the disciple recites after him.

A ring is then carved. The master recites “You Xuanlao” (Right Mysterious Elder). One further ring is then carved, and in the middle “Taishang” (the Most High) is recited. The master further says: “These three venerable masters are the Heavenly Worthy (Tianzun), the Left Mysterious Perfected One (Zuo Xuan Zhenren), and the Right Mysterious Perfected One (You Xuan Zhenren).”

The master then passes the rings through the covenant tallies and places them on the altar table.

Next, the disciple kneels erect facing south, holding the covenant water—the water used for the oath—with both hands before his chest, while the master, facing north, proclaims the oath:

“The Unsurpassed Three Caverns of the Most High Lingbao (Numinous Treasure)—the highest order of Daoist scriptures and methods—or the Dongxuan master of the law, Master So-and-so of such-and-such mountain, respectfully declares to the covenant water: A person of such-and-such commandery, county, township, and village, named So-and-so, of such-and-such years, personally sets forth the words of the vow and establishes the covenant, entrusting his nature and life to me, and comes seeking transmission of the Essential Instructions of the Ten Precepts of the Two-Halves Chart for Contemplating the Subtle and Settling the Will. A yellow-silk memorial—a petition written on yellow silk—has already been submitted on his behalf, making the matter known to the Most High and the assembled honored ones.

May the lords and officers who oversee the covenant, the Lord of Lingbao, the Elder of Lingbao, the lords and officers of the Three Officials of Heaven, Earth, and Water, and the seven generations of ancestors of this family all come to inspect and bear witness. So-and-so, seeking the Dao (the Way) by which life is obtained, has come in person and, with a sincere heart, has kept the purificatory fast; he is about to receive the purport of the wondrous numinous scriptures (Jing) and their oral instructions. He covenants to practice in accordance with the great law, to revere the honored deities, to be careful in speech and conduct, to cast off every entanglement of desire, to cut off outward distractions, to quiet the mind in silence, and to devote himself wholly to cultivation, neither letting mind and Shen (spirit) fall into disorder nor stirring and drawing one another on, lest the true Qi (vital energy)—the original breath—be disturbed.

He should constantly practice compassion and broadly save all living beings. May the state be secure, the people well provided, and the four seas peaceful and united. May the parents and the ancestors of seven generations all be delivered, enter the light in person, and soon be reborn in the human world. When the course of the great kalpa comes to an end, all shall ascend together to Shangqing, the higher celestial realm of which Daoism speaks. Until he has become an immortal and attained deliverance, the term shall be ‘five and eight.’ He must not divulge the teaching midway, nor transmit it recklessly to unsuitable persons. If he violates the covenant, betrays the oath, or carelessly leaks the numinous writ, so that his living parents and seven generations of ancestors remain long trapped in the dark underworld and suffer the torment of the wind-knives through ten thousand kalpas, he may not complain or lay blame. The consequences of violating the various prohibitions shall all be carried out according to the provisions stated in the Writ of Illuminating the Perfected.”

Next, the disciple himself swears:

“I, disciple So-and-so, receive the charge of the true Dao and the oral instructions transmitted by the master of the law. I dare not violate or betray them, nor dare I transmit them recklessly to unsuitable persons. If I break the oath, disaster will surely extend to the disciple himself. I shall certainly not fail the orthodox and true divinities of above and below, of the center, and of the four quarters and eight directions. Now, together with my master, I drink the water of the covenant, keep the purificatory fast according to the regulations, and cultivate the profound and wondrous purport of the law. I pray that both disciple and master may pass through heavenly calamities, as well as the Yangjiu and Bailiu—the cycles of disaster of which Daoism speaks—and the great calamity of the jiashen year. May we, from this kalpa to the next, never wane or fall short, shining together with the sun and moon, while the Three Treasures—the Dao, the Jing, and the master—revolve as one. The disciple respectfully receives the transmission of the Elder of Lingbao and of the celestial writs of the Three Caverns, and gratefully remembers the kindness by which he has been granted life in this world.”

Next, the master draws in three mouthfuls of elixir water—the symbolic sacred water of the rite—and passes them on to the disciple; the disciple likewise draws in three mouthfuls, so that calamity and misfortune are brought to an end. The Yang Nine and the Hundred Six, an ancient way of naming cycles of disaster, and the great calamity of the jia-shen year neither increase nor diminish, however the kalpas may succeed one another; the sun and moon shed their light together, and the Three Treasures—the Dao (the Way), the Jing (scriptures), and the masters—turn in concert. The disciple reverently receives the celestial writs of the Three Caverns (Dongzhen, Dongxuan, and Dongshen), the scriptures and talismanic graphs of the Three Caverns of Daoism, transmitted by the Numinous Treasure Elder (Lingbao Zhangren), the venerable deity of transmission honored by the Lingbao tradition. This is the grace of obtaining new life.

Next, the master again draws in three mouthfuls of elixir water and passes them on to the disciple; the disciple likewise draws in three mouthfuls, signifying that calamity and misfortune are extinguished completely. The master gives the disciple the covenant token (Juquan), the credential used in the rite of transmission. The disciple kneels erect to receive it: a man takes it with the left hand, a woman with the right. After receiving it, the disciple holds the token in the left hand, circles it three times about the waist, and bows three times to the master; the disciple then recites three passages of the Scripture of Wisdom, and when the recitation is finished turns to pay homage toward the ten directions. The master sits at ease facing south, and the disciple bows three times to the master, visualizing in the heart the great sages of the ten directions above, and then receives the Nine Precepts, the nine rules a cultivator must observe, which the master proclaims.

The Celestial Worthy said, “Two halves join to form one body, and the principle within this has five levels. Do you know them?” The two Perfected replied, “We know them. Is it not this: from the Qi (vital energy) of pure emptiness—the primordial Qi of clarity, stillness, and void—through the joining of Yin-Yang, it divides into two halves and descends, and from this is joined again into one body? And is it not also this: there are those who borrow this method of union to do evil, and thereby draw down the Qi of spontaneity (ziran), sinking into the three paths, the three evil destinies? And is it not also this: those who practice goodness leave these four halves, ascend once more into the Great Void (Taixu), recover my Qi of pure emptiness, return to the original two halves, and dwell at ease within spontaneity?”

The Celestial Worthy said, “You have already grasped it. Now I will display in the air the chart of the turning of the two halves, and set it before the Perfected One on the left.”

The Celestial Worthy said, “Although one has obtained this secret instruction, one must still take the Nine Precepts as the foundation.”

The first is not to kill living beings, and always to hold all beings in mindful care. The second is not to engage in sexual misconduct, and not to give rise recklessly to impure thoughts. The third is not to steal, and not to take wealth gained unrighteously. The fourth is not to deceive, and not to invert good and evil or confound right and wrong. The fifth is to abstain from wine, always intending to maintain pure conduct. The sixth is to keep clan and kindred in harmony with one another, and not to fall into discord with one’s kin. The seventh is, on seeing others practice goodness, to assent to it in the heart and rejoice in it. The eighth is, on seeing others in sorrow and hardship, to help them accumulate blessings and practice goodness.

Article Nine: With regard to all who have not yet attained the Dao (the Way), I dare not presume that I myself have already gained what I hope for.

After the disciple, So-and-so, receives the precepts, he vows to cultivate and observe them for the rest of his life. He performs three bows before the master.

The disciple then chants five Wisdom Hymns (Zhihui Zan), while scattering flowers and singing “shan” (“good”), and again performs three bows.

The Most High (Taishang, the supreme Dao) is empty, mysterious, and profound. It spreads the Great Dao and honors the scriptures (Jing). Between a glance downward and a glance upward, one has already become an immortal, passing through countless kalpas (jie, ages of immense length). The De (Virtue/Power) of the Great Truth (Taizhen, the supremely true Dao) is lofty beyond compare. It rests still and unmoving, and becomes manifest through non-arising. The scenes amid the clouds form pavilions in the air; riding the void, one advances of itself, spontaneously. Sun and moon shine like bright lamps; there is peace and joy without end.

To study immortality, one must cut off vain and showy thoughts, for thoughts accumulate one after another. Confused thoughts, coming and going, disturb the mind and the spirit (Shen); when the spirit grows restless, it reaches everywhere. Eliminate distracting thoughts and let the mind abide in emptiness and stillness, pure, quiet, and at ease. The scenes amid the clouds form pavilions in the air; riding the void, one advances of itself, spontaneously. Sun and moon shine like bright lamps; there is peace and joy without end.

To study immortality, one must cut off vain and showy thoughts, for thoughts accumulate one after another. Confused thoughts, coming and going, disturb the mind and the spirit; when the spirit grows restless, it reaches everywhere. Eliminate distracting thoughts and let the mind abide in emptiness and stillness, entering the empty quiet in purity and stillness. Seek the scriptures as the hungry and thirsty seek food and water, and hold to your resolve as firmly as metal and stone. May you guard the path of ascent into the mysterious realm, and by the Five Numina (Wuling, the spiritual powers of the five directions) pass beyond the trials recorded in the talisman registers.

The Great Dao aids me in cultivating the Six Perfections (liudu, six kinds of meritorious practice), and so I am able to gain release from the Three Nets (Sanluo, bonds like a threefold snare). I purify the heart and observe the fast, and pay reverence to the Great Simplicity (Taisu, the Dao in its primordial, unadorned state); I regulate the breath so as to nourish the cloud-sprouts (yunya, symbolizing the essence (Jing) and vital energy (Qi) obtained through internal refinement). Free and unfettered, I dwell in the Golden Portal (Jinque, the palace of the immortals); the Jade Capital (Yujing, the capital of the immortal realm) is my home. The Seven Treasures arise of themselves, and everyone, while seated, can circulate and transform so as to bring forth blossoms. Raising the head, one chews the □ of the Mysterious Metropolis; lowering the head, one holds in the mouth the melon of the Empty Cavern. The countenance is as bright as ten suns—why then reckon how many kalpas have passed? The dharma drum assembles the celestial immortals; the sound of the bell summons the great demons.

A numinous wind brushes the fragrant flowers, and splendid robe-fronts open out in radiance. The Great Truth plays the cloud-ao (yun’ao, an instrument of the immortal realm); the assembled immortals pluck the cloud-zither. All sing in elegant song of the sights of the Three Heavens (Santian, the three-layered heavens of which Daoism speaks), and scatter wisdom in the Forest of Jade Blossoms. The Seven Ancestors (Qizu, the ancestors of seven generations) ascend into the Hall of Blessings and thereby set foot upon the mysterious path. If merit accumulated in former lives is insufficient, this scripture will be remote and hard to find. If the heart that trusts in the Great Dao is not sincere, the wish to ascend in flight will instead end in a fall. Whether the Most High’s Dao of Wuwei (non-action) can be spread abroad depends on whether there is resolve within your heart.

The study of the Dao must begin from a firm and single-minded faith. One should serve the master as one serves one’s closest kin. Draw in the radiance of sun and moon, join with the realm of pure emptiness, and cultivate diligently, making progress every day. So long as the many have not yet been delivered, I can never, in the end, be delivered alone.