《洞玄灵宝太上真人问疾经》

At one time, Lingyao Baozang Tianzun, the Celestial Worthy of Numinous Radiance and the Treasure Store, was in Dragon-Tooth Mountain in the world of Beilong Xuanji Renxian, beneath the Qianhua tree. Together with great sages from the ten directions and a vast assembly of listeners, he gathered at the Dharma seat to discuss, expound, and carefully study a Mahayana Jing (scripture/classic) called the Five Thousand Characters. Day and night they savored the meaning of the Jing, yet always felt that its sense was not exhausted; they neither wearied of it nor grew lax.

In the assembly were practitioners who had already attained the Dao (the Way), those about to realize the fruit of the Dao, those who had not yet attained the fruit of the Dao, and those who had already realized the fruit of the Dao, as numerous as dust and sand. There were also the Four Heavenly Kings, the Heavenly Kings of Brahma Qi (vital energy), the Indras of the various heavens, the many Kunlun kings of the ten directions, and the host of Shen (spirits) under the Kunlun kings’ command. The Brahma kings of the Thirty-two Heavens, ghosts and spirits, the demon kings of the various heavens, the spirit-kings of the mountains and seas, and the spirit-king of Yanggu all came as well, in numbers beyond counting.

Beings of the Three Realms, whether human or non-human—every living creature possessed of blood and Qi—likewise came to the assembly in countless numbers. Practitioners of the ninety-eight kinds of heterodox paths, together with the ghosts and spirits of those paths, also arrived in great numbers. Wheel-turning sage-kings, the celestial sons of the sun and moon, and the celestial sons of the worlds of the ten directions all brought their mounts, palaces, and wives and concubines, and together came beneath the Qianhua tree to hear the Celestial Worthy expound the teaching.

The principles of this Mahayana Jing are profound and subtle, difficult to fathom in full. Although living beings could not understand them, all were glad at heart and forgot the defilements of the dusty world. Each scattered fragrant flowers in offering to the Celestial Worthy and prayed to come to understand the meaning of the Jing.

The Celestial Worthy said: “The Great Vehicle scriptures of which I speak, and the matter of the Three Attainments—wisdom that thoroughly comprehends past, present, and future—are not something everyone can understand. Among the listeners are many exalted Perfected of constant abiding, of the past, and of the present—Perfected Persons who have attained the Dao (the Way)—as well as people numbering in the hundreds of billions. Among them are eighty-six thousand disciples who have fully mastered the Great Vehicle. They are named the Primordial Perfected, the Celestial Sovereign Perfected, the Taiji (Supreme Ultimate) Perfected, the High Sovereign Perfected, the Supreme Sovereign Perfected, the Great Unity Perfected, the Great Peace Perfected, the Great Simplicity Perfected, the Great Beginning Perfected, the Luminous Sovereign Perfected, the Long Night Perfected, the Zhengyi (Orthodox Unity) Perfected, the Fixed Radiance Perfected, the Luoqiao Perfected, the Wondrous Sound Perfected, the Liuluo Perfected, the Great Void Perfected, the Mysterious Subtlety Perfected, the Wisdom-Named Perfected, the Great Penetration Perfected, the Immeasurable Perfected, the Mysterious Quiescence Perfected, the Sovereign Freedom Perfected, the Perfected Who Governs the Three Realms, the Great Power Perfected, the Immeasurable Power Perfected, the Auspicious Marks Perfected, the Clear Understanding Perfected, the Wisdom Perfected, the Impermanence Perfected, the Guiding Master Perfected, the Evil-Breaking Perfected, the Longevity-Preserving Perfected, and others.

All these Perfected thoroughly understand the scriptures and methods of the Great Vehicle. In past kalpas—vast stretches of time—they cultivated lofty and subtle practice of the Dao, and thus were able to become Perfected. Among the listeners there are also “lesser-kalpa bodies,” as numerous as sand and dust: people whose cultivation is still shallow and whose foundations are comparatively weak. In former lives they did not delight in the teaching of the Great Vehicle, and so they remain at a lower level of practice. Now, hearing the Great Vehicle scriptures, they feel joy in their hearts, yet still no one dares to speak up and ask.

At this point the fifth disciple among the listeners, the Beginningless Perfected, rose, paid reverence, and addressed the Celestial Worthy: “Now that the teaching of the Great Vehicle is being expounded, many people do not understand it and cannot yet take it in; they find these teachings hard to bear. If only they constantly make offerings and cherish their aspiration, then, once causes and conditions have ripened, they too will be able to realize the supreme true Dao.”

The Celestial Worthy said, “What I am now expounding is the Great Vehicle teaching, the Buddhist dharma that broadly delivers all beings. You have all already understood it. Yet beings in the kalpas of later ages will still be unable to comprehend this path.” He then raised his left hand and, pointing to the fifth and sixth disciples, the Perfected One of No-Beginning and the Perfected One of Fixed Light, said, “You two shall serve as guiding masters in the Worthy Kalpa, the age when worthies and sages appear. The Perfected One of No-Beginning will be invested as the Celestial Master of No-Beginning (Wushi Tianshi), and the Perfected One of Fixed Light will be invested as the Celestial Master of Fixed Light.”

The Celestial Worthy next pointed to the seventh disciple, the Perfected One of Orthodox Unity (Zhengyi Zhenren), and the eighth disciple, the Perfected One of Mysterious Wonder, and said, “In the Turbid Kalpa, the age when the ways of the world are muddied, you shall transmit my teaching of the Three Vehicles, the methods that guide beings of differing capacities in cultivation. The Perfected One of Orthodox Unity will be invested as Ritual Master of the Three Heavens, and the Perfected One of Mysterious Wonder will be invested as Ritual Master of the Six Perfections.”

The Celestial Worthy continued, “You four disciples have passed through every kind of cultivation in the kalpas of past, present, and future, advancing from coarse and shallow methods into the realm of the subtle and wondrous. Relying further on the conditions that attend such stations as persons of great virtue and sons of the Dharma-kings of states, you have instructed beings, relieved the sufferings of the hells, and dissolved the calamities bound up in the destined cycles of the various heavens. You have applied your minds with diligence, so that beings of both the Worthy Kalpa and the Turbid Kalpa may understand my teaching. I now differentiate into many transformation-bodies and titles, numbering in the hundreds of thousands of millions of myriads, and all of this is because I have illness and pain.

“Yi is the first name, Xi the second, and Wei the third. These three are the primary methods of the Three Vehicles, and they are also the beginning of the Three Caverns (Dongzhen, Dongxuan, and Dongshen, the three great divisions of the Daoist scriptures). Branching out from them are yet a hundred billion kinds of scriptures and teachings. In the first kalpa I dwelt in the Palace of Jade Clarity and was called the Lord of Heavenly Treasure; this is my first title. In the second kalpa I dwelt in the Palace of Purple Tenuity and was called the Lord of Numinous Treasure; this is my second title. In the third kalpa I dwelt in the Palace of the Supreme Ultimate (Taiji) and was called the Lord of Divine Treasure; this is my third title.

“The records say that in the kalpas yet to come, the first step is to dwell in Jade Clarity, the second is to spread the teaching of the Numinous Treasure, and the third is to subdue demonic essences. ‘Numinous’ is my first title: it is the father of the myriad things and is able to bring them to completion. ‘Treasure’ is my second title: it is the mother of the myriad things and is able to give them birth. By the regulations of the Numinous Treasure I transform the beings of the turbid world in later ages, transmit this teaching to them plainly, and have it recorded within the Void Sovereign, the supreme celestial realm venerated in Daoism.

“I have ten further titles. The first is the One to Come; the second, the Past; the third, the Present; the fourth, the Ever-Abiding; the fifth, Guide of the World; the sixth, Compassion; the seventh, Purity; the eighth, Empty Void; the ninth, Being and Non-being; and the tenth, Heaven and Earth. You should know them, reverently receive my instruction, and remember these titles.”

At that time the assembled Perfected, together with the Perfected of the four quarters, the sons of the various heavens, the kings, ghosts and spirits, and beings both human and non-human, all rose and paid homage, praising with one voice, “Excellent! May we all come to understand.”

Then the Perfected One of No-Beginning asked again, “The methods now described branch into thousands of millions of myriads of kinds; they are truly hard to understand and hard to penetrate. Your disciple knows that beings in the turbid world cannot thoroughly grasp them all at once, and I earnestly ask the Celestial Worthy to begin from what is fine and close at hand, so that every being may understand. The Celestial Worthy constantly manifests every kind of illness and suffering. I ask you to explain them separately: why should there be disease, pain, and affliction so hard to bear that death and transformation themselves appear? This death is not death as it is ordinarily spoken of, nor is this transformation transformation as it is ordinarily spoken of, and even the great sages cannot escape them. Your disciple is constantly anxious and tormented over this. It is not that I am thereby sunk in deep sorrow, yet such worry does indeed exist.”

The Celestial Worthy smiled, and from his mouth came forth light of eight colors, shaped like dense clouds. He snapped his fingers to signal the assembly and said, “No one has ever asked in this way before. Now this senior disciple, skilled at questioning, inquires of me about death and the sufferings of illness. The matter of death is hard to grasp, yet it can be made clear. I shall now explain the causes of disease; let all listen with quiet minds. The many illnesses and sufferings I have passed through, from kalpas that exist all the way to kalpas that do not, are as numerous as flowing sand, endless and inexhaustible—and even this does not yet count as many. My grief and vexation all come from my having a body; where there is a body, there is disease.”

Thus the Celestial Worthy (Tianzun) said:

People of later ages who study and cultivate the immortal Dao (the Way) wear ritual robes on the outside, yet hide dark and evil thoughts within—this is one great illness of mine. Outwardly they pursue splendor and strive to outdo others, yet inwardly they lack a single-minded, steadfast conviction—this is one great illness of mine. They do not regularly cultivate the Dao or examine themselves and repent; they give no thought to relieving living beings; they do not cherish all living beings with compassion; and their resolve grows slack and falls away—all these are one great illness of mine.

They transmit the most exalted and wondrous methods of the Dao, yet do not report them to the gods and spirits of Heaven and Earth; they expound the scriptures (Jing), yet do not carefully observe the norms of ritual; in order to receive the precepts they do what harms their own persons; and when they undergo the trials of demons they cannot hold fast to the correct Dao—all these are one great illness of mine.

When kings and subjects occupy high station, they grow proud and arrogant; though rich and honored, they do not act according to moral principle; they are stingy and greedy, and kill living beings to gratify their appetites. Households are not harmonious, and kin are not united. They do not show filial respect to their parents, do not lovingly care for their wives and children, and do not practice humaneness and righteousness. They destroy quiet places of cultivation and halls of purification. They do not revere the Three Treasures—the Dao, the scriptures, and the teachers—and do not stand in awe of ghosts and spirits. They steal and rob, plot against their rulers, and do not obey ruler and father; ruler or father acts contrary to the Dao. They treat the stars, the sun, and the moon with contempt—all these are one great illness of mine.

Evil karma left from former lives has not yet been exhausted, and in this life they again meet with hardship, yet they lay the blame on enemies, other people, and the methods of the Dao—this is one great illness of mine. They turn their backs on a teacher’s kindness and care only for bonds of personal affection. They deceive friends who keep to righteousness, slight their teachers and neglect their friends, and mock their teachers’ faults. They do not cherish their disciples, nor teach them so that they understand the principles. They conceal the true methods of the Dao, yet spread what is false. They cling to the sensual pleasures of sound and sight, abandon the correct teaching and turn toward the deviant and spurious, covet the methods of the Lesser Vehicle, delight in following heterodox ways, and make offerings to deviant spirits. They envy those of talent, praise themselves and insist that they are right, and will not acknowledge the virtuous conduct of others. They boast and flaunt their strength, and take themselves to be correct. What they do not know they claim to know; what they do not understand they claim to understand; what they have not seen they claim to have seen—and by this they deceive and beguile others. All these are one great illness of mine.

They cheat the poor, and do not return what they have borrowed. When they lend, they exact too much. They take in with a large measure and pay out with a small one; when weighing goods, they sell with a light scale and buy with a heavy one. They abuse others with harsh words and tell untrue lies. They drink to excess, and are immoderate in their desire for clothing and food. They eat blood and flesh, fish and rank meats, and too much of the five pungent plants (onions, garlic, and other strongly scented pungent vegetables). In their daily going out and coming in, walking and resting, they do not give rise to a compassionate heart. On the fasting days of the various heavens they grow angry and jealous; on auspicious fasting days they take life. The conjugal life of husband and wife does not follow Daoist precepts and ritual norms. They revile wind and rain, mock the poor or the sick, discuss others’ gains and losses, and resent others’ success or failure. They foul clean waters and roads, kill living beings, and bury corpses. They begrudge wealth and goods, and are unwilling to receive the methods of the Dao so as to dissolve the sinful karma of former lives and establish good conditions. They harm fetuses and abort them. They cut down trees and fruit groves—all these are one great illness of mine.

They do not believe in fate or in cause and effect, and say that between Heaven and Earth there are no ghosts or spirits. They do not know how to give to all, yet after giving they feel regret. They revile and drive away beggars. They hoard clothing and precious treasures. They pass judgment on whether others do good or evil. They do not rescue those in distress, hunger, or urgent need. They cannot transcend all death and decay—all these are one great illness of mine.

I have these seventy-two kinds of illness. Through countless kalpas they are hard to cast off and cannot be escaped. Therefore I transform my bodily form, disperse and transform my Qi (vital energy), transform my Shen (spirit), and divide my own person, becoming seventy-two sages. Among the sages there are Perfected Persons; among the Perfected Persons there are classes; among the classes there are chapters; among the chapters there are sentences; among the sentences there are words; among the words there is Qi; within Qi there is form; within form there is the subtle; within the subtle there is what is finer still. When subtlety reaches its utmost it returns to nothingness, and from nothingness being can again arise—this is called the wondrous and subtle.

Within the wondrous and subtle, the higher Qi is without form and without Qi, yet can bring the true body to completion; the lower Qi has form and has Qi, and thus brings the fleshly body to completion. Therefore the four great elements—water, fire, wind, and earth—combine to constitute the body. That my body has these great illnesses is because it is made of the four great elements. If there were no four great elements, what affliction would remain? In truth I do not possess any fixed and unchanging body of the four great elements—what great affliction, then, is there to speak of?

Only when my body is recognized is it my body; if it is not recognized, it is not my body. To recognize this is to be able to endure for long; not to recognize it is to die before one’s time and suffer injury, to endure bitter pain in the hells, and to revolve for ages among the five paths, never coming to rest. Therefore I transform myself in this way. Unless there is the power of a profound and great karma, this transformation cannot be brought to an end; the way to release it is to cultivate according to the methods of the Dao that one has heard.

The suffering of death of which I speak comes from old age and disease. Where there is birth there must be death; where there is flourishing there must be decline. Human beings and the myriad things are alike: no life fails to come to an end. The myriad things sprout in spring, grow in summer, wither in autumn, and fall in winter. Affairs may succeed and may also fail; a high position brings danger; even in ease there is sorrow. Joy is little and suffering is much; what flourishes will in the end decline—who can see through these things?

Death brings vexation and pain, which the spirit can hardly dispel. One sinks into the long night, and the suffering is truly brought on by one’s own deeds. Although the various heavens enjoy pleasure, they too are forever anxious about impermanence. Once the spirit has scattered, the four great elements of the body are hard to gather again, and the former dwelling is hard to return to.

I have these sufferings, yet it is not the true I who suffers them. My death is not true death, my birth is not true birth, and my old age is not true old age. The body that has form and appearance is not the real I; the true I, which has no fixed bodily form—that is I. What are called “I die” and “I am born” are only names set up in relation to birth and death. I am able to transcend birth and death; those who cannot transcend are living beings.

All those assembled, whether already awakened or not yet awakened, together made a vow, hoping to comprehend the principle in good time. Thereupon everyone rose and paid homage, praising the Celestial Worthy for having spoken well.

The Celestial Worthy said: Those who cultivate the method of the Great Vehicle in order to be freed from bondage should constantly observe fasting and the precepts, wear the great talismans of the Three Caverns (the Fulu, talismans and registers, of the scriptural methods of the Daoist Three Caverns), carry the great registers of the Three Caverns (the ritual registers of Daoism) and the covenant tokens (credentials of cultivation or ritual implements), cultivate the Dao (the Way) and recite and revolve the scriptures (Jing) according to the regulations, and never slacken through the six periods of day and night.

The six periods are established because a person is formed of the four great elements (earth, water, fire, and wind, which constitute the body) and is also drawn along by the six passions (the sensory desires of the eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, mind, and the like). If the six passions are not eliminated, they become the root of karmic offenses. The cultivation of the six periods is therefore used in turn to clear away the desires aroused by the eyes, nose, mouth, ears, mind, and hands. When practice continues day and night, the six passions gradually disperse, the six wisdoms (the wisdoms corresponding to the six passions) thereupon become penetrating, and the six perfections (six methods of cultivation) can also be carried out. One is then no longer obstructed, and can move freely in spiritual powers, fully endowed with every capacity, living long and seeing enduringly, no longer subject to pain, vexation, and sorrow.

Lighting lamps lets brightness shine into the dark places of the long night, dispelling the dimness of the parents of seven generations, as well as of parents throughout the world and of all living beings. Burning incense is done in order to remove the filth within the Three Realms and restore the hells to fragrance and purity. The scripture takes as an example a plant called pingxiang: it is also known as guiyao and yilan, and its scent can drift for four hundred li all around. When living beings of the Three Realms fall ill from being permeated by its vapor, agarwood, sandalwood, frankincense, and the like are used to drive out the foul Qi (vital energy), so that the hells of the Three Realms become fragrant and pure once more, the souls of the dead are transformed and delivered, living beings are able to revive, the world rejoices, the six passions disperse, and the Five Constants thereupon also come to rest.

After the Five Constants have come to rest, one should repay five kinds of kindness: the kindness of parents, the kindness of teachers and disciples, the favor of one’s master, the kindness of the king and sovereign, and the nurturing kindness, parental in character, of the common people. One should cherish parents and teachers, assist the masters of the passes and fords, make offerings to the king, and relieve and lovingly care for the orphaned, suffering, and poor among the people—these are the five virtues. The principles spoken of in the scripture can be understood if one reflects on them carefully; these words are not empty and false, but true and trustworthy. All living beings can comprehend and learn them, and should ponder them with care.

Chapter Two: The Precept of Governing the Ear and the Spiritual Power of Universal Hearing. The second chapter explains how, by cultivating the precept of governing the ear, one obtains the spiritual power of universal hearing.

One hears the chanting and long whistling of the Shangzhen (Perfected Ones who have attained the Dao (the Way)); the songs, dances, and music that arise of themselves in the palaces of the seven treasures; the voices of the various heavens expounding the teachings of the Jing (scripture/classic) and reciting the classics; the cries, whistles, and songs of dragons and phoenixes; the sound of numinous winds scattering blossoms; the ballads of demon kings that disturb the human heart; the voices of immortal lads and jade maidens who attend the Perfected and answer in harmony; the spontaneous sounding of the celestial drums; and the sounds of the host of sages attending court. One also hears the sounds of the ranks by which the Five Emperors (the celestial emperors who govern the five directions) deliver and transform immortals; the voice of the Northern Emperor examining the name registers of the dead; the voices of the star lords of the Southern Dipper (deities who preside over life, death, and lifespan) recording the ledgers of longevity; the voice of the Central Dipper inscribing the roster of immortals; the voices of the Three Realms (the heavenly realm, the human world, the underworld, and other distinct realms) distinguishing good from evil; and the voice of Mount Tai adjudicating guilt.

One also hears the songs, dances, and music in the palaces of kings; the sounds of reviewing troops and horses and of training in the martial arts; and the sounds of composing poetry and prose and of deliberating on affairs of state. One hears the voices of Daoist priests offering incense and performing worship, making vows and offering prayers; the voices of expounding and studying the meaning of the Jing; the voices of instructing children; the voices of treating illness and helping people through calamity; and the voices of boys and girls. The voices of ghosts and spirits in the mountains and forests, and among the rivers and seas, as they discuss good and evil, can all be heard as well. The voices of those who live in seclusion in hidden valleys, immersed in the Jing of ultimate truth and reciting the scriptural texts, are likewise heard.

One also hears the voices of hungry ghosts in the hells begging everywhere for food; the voices of the wangliang demons of the hells crying out in pain as they are tortured and beaten; and the voices of those dispatched by the Three Officials to perform forced labor, toiling in hardship and seeking death yet unable to die. One hears the sounds of agony of those tried and punished in the prisons of the yang officials; the wailing of livestock as they are slaughtered; the sounds of beasts, birds, fish, and fowl devouring one another; the sounds, amid conflict, of drawing ghosts and spirits to cause harm; and the sounds of taking life in sacrifice to deviant spirits.

There are, moreover, the sounds of drums and of bells and chimes; sounds of play; sounds of grief, weeping, and mourning; the resentful sighs of the poor and suffering; the groans of those in illness and pain; the voices of the rich and noble, complacent and proud; the sounds of robbery, theft, and killing; and the sounds of sexual misconduct and of craving sensual pleasure. Every kind of such sound between heaven and earth can be heard, and yet the ear-root (the faculty of perceiving sound) is still not disturbed. This is a spiritual power obtained through observing the precepts and cultivating practice.

The third grade: the spiritual power obtained by cultivating the eye precept, by which one is able to see universally.

When the exalted perfected in the palaces of the various heavens—the lofty perfected who have attained the Dao—expound the teaching; when the lofty sages of the ten directions remain serene and unmoved; when the sun and moon each manifest their radiance; when the tones gong, shang, and the others sound in harmonious response; when Yin-Yang mutually transform and generate one another; when dragons and phoenixes cry out long; when flying celestials scatter flowers; when the Celestial Worthy guides living beings in the empty sky; when the assembly gathers in the ritual arena to teach and transform the various heavens; when the ranks of immortals and perfected are delivered within the Three Realms; when the Five Emperors register names in the rolls; when kings and their subjects sport and play; when Daoist priests expound the scriptures (jing) and discuss the teaching; when people repent their faults and cultivate the Dao; when kin are parted by life and death and the multitude weeps and mourns; when the suffering souls in the hells undergo torment; when the yang officials—the divine officers who oversee the affairs of the yang world—teach and transform the various heavens in the ritual arena, deliver the immortals and perfected of the Three Realms, and have the Five Emperors register the name-rolls; and when kings and subjects sport and play, Daoist priests expound the scriptures and discuss the teaching, people repent and cultivate the Dao, there is parting in life and death, weeping and mourning, the suffering souls of the hells are tormented, and the prisoners of the yang officials suffer pain they can scarcely bear—whatever these many scenes may be, in the heavens above or the world below, one can see them all, and yet they still do not disturb the eye-faculty (the visual sense). This is a supernatural power obtained through the practice of upholding the precepts.

Fourth category: by upholding the nose precept, one obtains the supernatural power of perceiving fragrances universally.

The natural fragrance of the various heavens, the subtle fragrance of Tuoluo, the Shamonilin fragrance, the Boti manhua fragrance, the fragrance of wind arising over dense rivers, the fragrances of azure blossoms and white blossoms, of purple blossoms and crimson blossoms, and of gray-green blossoms and yellow blossoms, the fragrance of the Yin clouds of the two earths, the celebrated fragrance of adamantine hue, the fragrance of the beauty of the bodily forms of the exalted perfected of the ten directions—the high-ranking immortals and perfected of each quarter—the fragrance of the Qi (vital energy) of the jeweled maidens of the various heavens, the fragrances of sandalwood and aloeswood, the fragrance of lofty, cool green cassia, the Anxi and sparrow-head fragrances, the fragrances of mugwort, nard, and allied herbs, the Chongpi kundang fragrance, the fragrances of frankincense and Anxi resin, the fragrances of numinous zhi-herbs and bright orchids, the fragrances of fine waters and medicinal substances, the fragrance of cultivated blossoms in their true form, the fragrance of human heads and bird plumage, the fragrance of boys and girls, the Maoxian Keyue fragrance, and the fragrance of soft, tender breath: every kind of scent in the heavens above and on the earth below can be smelled and known one by one, yet none disturbs the nasal faculty, the nose’s capacity of perception. All of these are supernatural powers attained by observing the precepts.

Section Five: The Supernatural Powers of the Precept Governing the Mouth—Universally Knowing Flavors

The flavor of the sweet numen of the various heavens, the flavor of swallowing the sun and ingesting blossoms, the flavor of drawing in the moon and dining on Jing (essence), the flavor of feeding on nothingness and absorbing light, the flavor of Luo-born forms reflecting the mystery, the flavor of green waters and yellow essence, the flavor of fine herbs and choice scallion, the flavor of the jade seal that penetrates the mystery, the flavor of wind-born jade and stone, the flavor of pine and cypress sweet to the mouth, and the flavor of the fragrance arising from the unborn: every kind of taste in the heavens above and on the earth below can be clearly distinguished and found delightful, yet none disturbs the oral faculty, the mouth’s capacity of perception. All of these are supernatural powers attained by observing the precepts.

Section Six: The Supernatural Powers of the Precept Governing the Hands—Universally Pervading Strength

Without the hands reaching out to take anything, one is naturally satisfied; without moving, one is naturally replete; without stirring, one is naturally abundant; without shifting, one is naturally steady; without expending effort, one naturally has strength; without seizing, what is needed arrives of itself; without gripping, things are lifted of themselves; without holding fast, the hands are filled of themselves. The capacity of the hands is the same as that of hands endowed with supernatural power. All of these are supernatural powers attained by observing the precepts.

Section Seven: The Supernatural Powers of the Precept Governing the Mind—Universal Subtlety

The mind can gather and contain the Three Realms—the Realm of Desire, the Realm of Form, and the Formless Realm—and it can also set the Great Void in motion, commanding demonic spirits and subduing the host of Jing (essences). It can take the form of palaces and of Yin-Yang, guide the sun and the moon, move and transform freely within the Daochang (ritual precinct), and come and go in the realm of the Supreme Perfected. The mind can manifest radiant brilliance and enter the most minute and subtle places, and it can also assume vast and grand forms. It can become water and fire, wind and earth; harmonize Heaven and Earth; rescue the beings of the hells; pass through every calamity, distress, and affliction; loosen the bonds of bodily form; and commune with the myriad things. The mind can change in every manner of way, yet still not disturb its original mind. All these spiritual powers are obtained through cultivating the precepts and regulating body and mind.

The Celestial Worthy (Tianzun) said: One who possesses a body formed of the Four Great Elements—earth, water, fire, and wind—and who can follow the norms and uphold the precepts, even without yet having realized the truth of the Dao (the Way), can in this present life broadly attain spiritual powers and cause the “divine feet” (cultivated capacities such as ease of body and mind and swiftness of movement) to manifest. Continuing to cultivate and learn thereafter, one gradually enters the subtle and mysterious realm, advancing from one to three, and finally realizes the fruit of the Dao. This is the Way of long life and enduring vision. The practitioner remains far from the three evil paths (hell, hungry ghosts, and animals) and is no longer troubled by sorrow, affliction, or poisonous harm. Once the six kinds of spiritual powers are complete, one unites with the One Spirit and together they ascend in flight to Shangqing (the higher heavenly realm of which Daoism speaks).

Chapter Eight: Speaking of Learning Immortality in the Life to Come—the Section on Persons Seeking the Fruits of Desire.

If one wishes to gain the ability to transform the bodily form and fly through the air, one should cultivate and recite this scripture (Jing), and in the end the wish will be fulfilled. If one wishes to ingest elixir medicines, refine and nourish oneself, and seek the great Dao (the Way), one should likewise cultivate and recite this scripture, and in the end the wish will be fulfilled.

If one wishes to cultivate by taking in Jing (essence) and Qi (vital energy) and by swallowing the breath, so as to bring oneself to the realm of Wuwei (non-action); or if one wishes to practice daoyin and tuna and thereby remain far from sorrow and vexation, one should in every case cultivate and recite this scripture, and in the end the wish will be fulfilled. Here “daoyin” refers to a method of cultivation that harmonizes the breath through movements of the limbs, and “tuna” refers to the regulation of breathing.

If one wishes to expound and recite the scriptures of the Great Vehicle and thereby ascend into the lofty, far-off sky; wishes to ride the chariot of the Jinglun (the carriage of light in which immortals ride) and roam the Taixu (the vast void); wishes to sport with dragons and phoenixes and beat time to the rhythm; wishes to enter the Changzhu Zhengzhen (the true realm that is constant and unchanging); wishes to hear immortal music that arises of itself; and wishes to pass in and out of the future and the past—one should in every case cultivate and recite this scripture, and in the end the wish will be fulfilled.

If one wishes to subdue the great demon armies; wishes to be able to bring being forth from non-being and return being to non-being, to bring things to completion and also to bring them to ruin; wishes to be able to become large or small, and to cause things to appear in a subtle or minute state; wishes to be able to transform into heaven, earth, mountains, and seas, to bring cold or scorching heat, and also to make the myriad things harmonious, compliant, and gentle—one should in every case cultivate and recite this scripture, and in the end the wish will be fulfilled.

If one wishes to see the eternally abiding host of the Perfected of the ten directions (every direction)—the Changzhu Zhongzhen (the many Zhenren, or Perfected Persons, who exist eternally)—and to hear them expound the teaching, then after cultivation one will see them as wished. If one wishes to see the Zhenren of the past and hear them expound the teaching, after cultivation one will also see them. If one wishes to see the various Zhenren of the present and hear them expound the teaching, after cultivation one will also see them.

If one wishes to see palaces that manifest of themselves in the sky and to hear the teaching expounded within them, then after cultivation one will see these palaces. If one wishes to see the immortal music of the various heavens, then after cultivation one will be able to hear it. If one wishes to see the thirty-two Celestial Emperors (Tiandi) under the jurisdiction of a single Mount Sumeru (Xumishan) and to hear them expound the teaching, then after cultivation one will see these Celestial Emperors.

If one wishes to see the Heavenly Kings of Brahma-Qi (Qi, vital energy; the heavenly kings within the Brahma heavens), the Wheel-Turning Sage Kings (ideal monarchs who rule the world by the true law), the great generals of the heavenly realm, the various Brahma heavenly kings, and the sons of heaven and heavenly kings of the worlds in the ten directions—or if one wishes to see the palaces of demon kings, the ghosts and spirits of the Three Realms, the divine kings of Yanggu, the Five Emperors, dragons and phoenixes, and all kinds of strange beasts—one need only have the teaching expounded for this purpose, and later one will be able to behold the corresponding bodily forms or palaces. Those who wish to gain intelligence and wisdom, or to escape poverty and misfortune, may likewise obtain the corresponding karmic fruits by hearing the teaching.

Those who wish to transform a female body into a male body, or a male body into a female body, who wish to become recluses or teachers, who wish to subdue demonic Jing (essence; malevolent demonic sprites that cause harm), and who wish to bring peace to the world, may all have their wishes fulfilled through the expounding of the teaching. Those whose dwellings or burial grounds are unsettled may find peace after hearing the teaching; those beset by unending evil affinities, hardship in the household, and one funeral after another may likewise dispel calamity and regain favorable circumstances. Those who wish to resolve the hauntings of ghosts and spirits occasioned by taboos and to avoid entanglement in misfortune, who seek advancement in an official career, a livelihood sufficient to provide clothing and food, and freedom from the pursuit and blame of enemies, or who hope to be born continually in lands possessed of blessed De (Virtue/Power) and the Dao (the Way), may all obtain what they wish through the teaching. Those who hope that their clan will endure, that descendants will be many, and that the family will live in harmony, or who hope to be reborn into a king’s household, may likewise have their wishes fulfilled.

Sentient beings hear these words yet do not understand them, not knowing that this is my true teaching. If one can regularly make offerings to the master of the teaching with incense, lamps, food, precious treasures, canopies, flower banners, silk curtains, clothing, beds and mats, high seats, and halls, and act in accordance with such aspiration and conduct, the karmic fruit will surely come—like sowing a single seed and reaping ten-thousandfold, like rice ripening in the fields. One should cultivate diligently and not give rise to doubt in the mind; otherwise one will miss the causes and conditions, sink into a long darkness, and transmigrate without cease through the Five Paths (the five destinations of sentient beings’ rebirth). The profound meaning herein is difficult to fathom in full.

The Celestial Worthy said: In the previous kalpa (a past age), all who cultivated and studied the supreme Dao (the Way) and made offerings to the Three Treasures—the Dao, the Jing (scripture/classic), and the Master—had long since realized the true Dao. Those who recited the Dongjing (the Cavern Scriptures, that is, the Daoist classics), kept the fasts and observed the precepts, swallowed Jing (essence) and Qi (vital energy), practiced ingestion for nourishing life, and cultivated daoyin had likewise long since attained the Dao.

At the Five Marchmounts, the Three Rivers, and other places, those who on the Eight Nodes (the important days when the seasons turn) submitted memorials and presented slips; those who provided clothing for ritual masters and urged others to contribute incense and the supplies needed for offerings; those who vowed to rejoice in the Great Vehicle of the Dao, gave alms, and released living beings; those who helped build hermitages and quiet chambers and planted fruit trees to support the halls of ritual masters; and those who assisted others in reading the scriptures and arranged the purification offerings—all had likewise long since attained the Dao.

Those who watched, listened, and took part in practicing the Way, reflected on their faults, and strengthened their faith; those who with sincere hearts exclaimed “Excellent”; those who restrained themselves and held the regulations in awe; those who, whether going out or coming in, resting, sitting, or lying down, always cherished compassion; those who released living beings and saved lives, who were free of jealousy, resolved to pursue study, and often praised good deeds—all had likewise long since attained the Dao.

Those who harbored no thought of killing, who gave to the poor, who rescued people in urgent distress, who lit lamps to brighten the road at night, and who clearly distinguished good from evil and upheld the teachings of the Dao had likewise long since attained the Dao. Among the Zhenren (Perfected) possessed of these merits, many attained the Dao. Only a few such cases are briefly cited here: their names are all recorded on the golden registers and jade slips (the golden books and jade tablets that symbolize the heavenly roster of merit). All of this is because, in the previous kalpa, they planted such good causes.

Chapter Ten: The Simile of the Sheltering of De (Virtue/Power)

The Celestial Worthy said: “I am the father and mother of all living beings. I cherish you and compassionately care for every living being, sheltering and nurturing all so that the myriad things are moistened and nourished. For the myriad things to obtain me is like fish obtaining deep water, a child obtaining its mother, the hungry obtaining food, the thirsty obtaining drink, the sick obtaining healing, the people obtaining the protection of their sovereign, the frightened obtaining companions, those who have fallen into the water obtaining a boat, the poor obtaining precious treasures, those under punishment obtaining pardon, those on the verge of extinction reviving, and those who have failed attaining success.

My teaching universally delivers all living beings, just as dark clouds fill the sky and sprinkle down fine rain, so that nothing fails to be moistened. Do living beings know the grace of my De? I bring you to birth, I provide for you, I nurture you, I cause you to grow, and I take pity on you. Why do you not understand that you should repay my kindness with a compassionate heart and practice every kind of good deed? You encounter the teachings of my Jing (scripture/classic), yet you do not know to repent and establish good conditions, and so you proceed toward evil paths and sink into the hells. This is truly grievous and sorrowful. Each of you ought to cultivate diligently, and only then can you be freed from the root of karmic offenses and long enjoy good fruits and peace. This is the principle of which I speak.”

Chapter Eleven: Living Beings Receive Unwholesome Retribution According to the Causes and Conditions of Their Original Conduct

In a previous life, if one killed others and brought their families to extinction, in this life one suffers the retribution of having no descendants. If in a previous life one killed other people’s children, or harmed a fetus and caused a miscarriage, in this life one may have children who mostly die young, or give birth to children who bear a grudge against oneself. If in a previous life one hated to see others meet with bereavement and calamity, in this life one constantly encounters setbacks. If in a previous life one resented others’ success or failure, in this life one is constantly slandered. If in a previous life one mocked others for their poverty, in this life one suffers the hardship of poverty.

If in a previous life one stole and robbed, or relied on wealth and high status to act without regard for the Way, deceived the poor and lowly, and borrowed money or goods without returning them, in this life one may be reborn as an ox, bearing heavy loads year after year and thinking only of water and grass. If in a previous life, when lending, one lent one and demanded ten, exacting an excessive repayment, in this life one is constantly poor and hard-pressed. If in a previous life one loathed others who suffered from sores and scabies, leprosy, paralysis, and similar diseases, in this life one may suffer such afflictions. If in a previous life one envied others’ intelligence, in this life one is dull and benighted.

If in a previous life one wore shoes when ascending a pure and quiet hall, in this life one may have broken feet and find it hard to move about. If in a previous life one slipped into others’ homes at night to commit adultery or theft, in this life one may go blind, and will also hate the blind. If in a previous life one lived in a wealthy household, enjoyed things alone, refused to lend or give in charity, showed no pity for those in crisis and distress, disregarded benevolence and righteousness, and looked down on the poor and lowly, in this life one may be born in a remote land among foreign peoples, in a lowly condition. If in a previous life one clearly heard something yet claimed not to have heard it, and also hated the deaf, in this life one may suffer an affliction of this kind.

If in a previous life one was sexually dissolute, even to the point of relations with kin, in this life one may be reborn as a donkey or a horse. If in a previous life one killed flesh-and-blood living beings and greedily ate their meat, in this life one may be reborn as livestock or a wild beast, to be killed by people in repayment of old grievances and debts. If in a previous life one took life and buried the corpses, in this life one may be reborn as the very kind of creature one once killed. If in a previous life one killed another person’s husband, in this life one has no husband; if one killed another person’s wife, in this life one has no wife. If in a previous life one hated to see others meet with success or failure, gain or loss, in this life one constantly suffers misfortune and calamity.

If in a previous life one engaged in “resu cui W,” in this life one does not know how to study. (Here the original wording “cui W” is hard to make out, and what it refers to cannot be stated with certainty.) If in a previous life, while serving as an official or clerk, one harbored mutual hatred and jealousy, slandered and framed others, caused them to meet unjust ruin, and thereby formed enmities, in this life one may suffer slander and harm from others. If in a previous life one offered food and drink to ghosts and spirits, in this life one constantly feels want and is hard-pressed in the world. If in a previous life one abused others with vicious words, in this life one is constantly abused and despised by others, and may even be reborn as a dog. If in a previous life one drank without restraint, drank to excess, and thereby did evil, in this life one’s mind and nature may be confused and disordered. If in a previous life one was not filial toward one’s parents, in this life one may give birth to unfilial children. If in a previous life one was not loving toward brothers, wife, and children, in this life the household is not harmonious, constantly quarreling, and one is scorned and mocked by others. If in a previous life one hoped that others would become one’s slaves and servants, in this life one may sink to the status of a slave or servant.

There are many similar causes and conditions; only a few are briefly cited here, so that people may roughly grasp the principle. Sentient beings should not form such evil wishes, nor commit such evil deeds. The retribution of good and evil truly follows in their wake.

If there were no causes and conditions of this kind from previous lives, why is it that people are equally born as human beings and equally possess the Four Great Elements of earth, water, fire, and wind, yet differ in intelligence and dullness? Why the difference between those with ability and those without, between the noble and the poor and lowly, between the wise and the unwise? Why do some have all six sense faculties complete, while others do not? Why are some skilled at discussion and deliberation, while others are not? Why are some respected and loved by others, while others are not? Why are some honored and treated with courtesy, while others are not? All these phenomena are brought about by the causes and conditions of previous lives spoken of in the scriptures (Jing).

Wealth in the present life comes from giving alms in a previous life; becoming a king among humans in the present life comes from having made offerings to the Three Jewels—the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha—in a previous life. Serving in the present life as a Dharma teacher skilled at guiding and instructing others comes from having kept the Mahayana teachings in mind in a previous life. Being intelligent and wise in the present life comes from having reverently trusted and studied the scriptures and their teachings in a previous life. Being respected by others in the present life comes from having been careful and reverent toward the Three Jewels in a previous life.

Having sufficient clothing and food in the present life comes from having relieved the poor in a previous life. Holding office and enjoying high rank in the present life comes from not having harmed living beings or caused the myriad things to perish before their time in a previous life. Having the six sense faculties—eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind—well formed and complete in the present life comes from not having slandered the Three Jewels in a previous life. Speaking clearly and without error in the present life comes from having expounded the Mahayana scriptures and teachings in a previous life. Becoming a person on whom others can rely in the present life comes from having comforted and cared for people in a previous life. Meeting good people on the road in the present life and receiving their courtesy and deference comes from having done good in a previous life and from having hoped that others would accomplish something.

The above is only a brief account of the principle behind these karmic results. Causes and conditions are exceedingly numerous. The roots of good and evil, and the results one receives, are like the course of the sun and moon and the waves of the great sea, like the succession of the four seasons and the turning of the Five Phases (Wuxing), and also like a wheel that turns without cease. Sentient beings, do you know this? Have you awakened to it? Do you understand it? Have you grasped it? Can you act accordingly? Do you believe it? Have you treated it with care? Are you able to accept it? I have now made clear the matter of the causes and effects of good and evil.

All those present rejoiced. They bowed and praised him, saying, “Well spoken! We are willing to understand the principle in this.”

The Perfected of No Beginning said: The essential purport set forth by the Celestial Worthy (the honorific title in Daoism for the supreme divine worthy) is exceedingly subtle and wondrous, sufficient to turn the hearts of all beings back toward the Dao (the Way). Yet the levels of meaning within it are many, and beings find them hard to understand completely. Only those who have attained the Dao can explain the Dao to one another; only Perfected beings can explain the True to one another; only those who have reached the realm of “non-being” can explain “non-being” to one another. In a later kalpa-age I was invested as the Celestial Master (Tianshi) of No Beginning, and I shall guide the Most High (a venerated deity of Daoism) in coming to understand together the way of the Great Vehicle; I myself must also inquire into what has been said today. Among the assembly, those who have not yet grasped these true principles remain many.

The kalpa-body of the Celestial Worthy (a measure of bodily magnitude reckoned on the scale of vast kalpas) is like the palace of Yanggu. There stands a Terrace of the Water Numen, eight hundred thousand li in extent and of equal height. The terrace is strewn with golden sand, each grain the size of a mustard seed; only once every ten thousand years does a single grain disappear. When all these grains have vanished, that counts as one minor kalpa-body of the Celestial Worthy.

A further comparison may be drawn: in the north, one hundred and eighty Kunlun Mountains preside over thirty-eight thousand worlds. All the mountains and ridges, hills, tiles and stones, soil, and forests within them are at once reduced to fine dust. When this dust is cast into the vast emptiness, its total quantity is still equal to the bodily magnitude of the Celestial Worthy. Even after a great kalpa has passed, beings may still fail to comprehend this teaching, and may not believe it.

Among the fourfold assembly present (a Buddhist term referring to monks, nuns, laymen, and laywomen), practitioners of the Lesser Vehicle, the various sons of heaven, the various heavenly kings, and the various heavenly emperors may likewise not yet have heard or understood these matters. Even when they are spoken now, people will still harbor doubt—how much more so the beings of this turbid age, who can hardly avoid suspicion. Therefore, to set them forth is what enables people to understand.

To believe and accept is hard; to know is hard; to comprehend is hard; to receive is hard; to encounter is hard; to see is hard; and to practice is hard as well. Even I myself find it difficult; as a teacher, I still find it hard to explain clearly. That is why these things are spoken, so that people may come to understand: they appear difficult, yet if one carefully investigates their principle, they are not truly beyond comprehension.

The Beginningless Perfected said: “The Five Thousand Characters (that is, the Daodejing, the Jing [scripture] of the Dao [the Way] and De [Virtue/Power]) are the spirits of the five bodily forms within the body of the Celestial Worthy of Numinous Radiance and Precious Treasury. What is called the ‘five hundred’ is the content set forth in Laozi’s proclamation; Laozi gathered together the principles contained in it. ‘Numinous’ is the father of living beings, and ‘Precious’ is the mother of living beings; ‘Radiance’ is like the light of the sun, illuminating and moistening all things; ‘Treasury’ embraces the myriad things, and all things are born from it. I, too, once studied this scripture.”

The Celestial Worthy surveyed the living beings in every world surrounding a hundred billion Mounts Sumeru (the great mountain that stands at the center of the world in the Buddhist cosmology)—whether good or evil, whether they cultivate and study or not, whether human or nonhuman, whether one-footed, two-footed, four-footed, or many-footed, and whether born from filth, from moisture, from an egg, or from a womb, or born by transformation. All the various evil deeds these beings commit take place before my eyes, no more than a few inches from me. Yet living beings say that they neither know nor see, and that they cannot see their true parents. Some say the sages are lofty and hard to reach; some even say that there are no spirits or deities.

If one can be filial and reverent toward one’s parents, numinous Qi (vital energy) will descend; if one is not filial and reverent toward one’s parents, calamity and punishment will arrive. Parents of womb-birth conceive and raise children through the temporary lodging of karmic conditions; in principle, they are no different from the true parents. Who can understand the principle in this?

Cultivating the Great Vehicle (the path of practice that seeks to save beings widely and to accomplish the Buddha Way) is for the sake of forming good affinities. Some people wish only to be born in a future life, and do not take seeking the Dao as their true aspiration. Those who have already attained the Dao, and those whose merit is not yet complete, may still have to pass through the cycle of rebirth and lodge in a body to receive birth, yet the root of their blessings and merit will not be cut off. In lives to come they are often born into worthy, noble, and prosperous families; their character is respected, their features are upright and well formed, and good spirits guide their conduct. In seeking learning they meet enlightened teachers; in burial they meet auspicious ground; in marriage they meet worthy women; in going out to make a living they obtain an official stipend; and baleful spirits dare not trouble them.

If one is unwilling to form an affinity with the Three Treasures (the Dao, the scriptures, and the masters revered in Daoism), does not believe the teachings of the sages, speaks insults, and acts without goodness, one is often born into households of low station. In seeking learning one meets dull and mediocre teachers; in burial one meets inauspicious ground; in marriage one meets a coarse and vulgar wife; in going out one often loses wealth and becomes entangled in lawsuits, and nothing one undertakes goes smoothly. Good spirits grant no protection, while baleful spirits lead one’s conduct. All these circumstances are tied to the karmic conditions and actions of former lives, and each is governed by the stars: those who do good belong to auspicious stars, and those who do evil belong to baleful stars. Retribution between birth and death corresponds on both sides and is perfectly clear. Without the saving power of the Way of the Great Vehicle, it is very hard to escape.

Living beings may know these principles, yet they turn instead to revere and trust heterodox teachings and all kinds of books; such delusion and misguidance is truly lamentable. There are one hundred ninety-eight kinds of methods of the Dao, and all of them are transformations manifested by the Celestial Worthy. Why is this so? The thoughts and actions of living beings in the worlds of the ten directions are not alike. Some do not believe in ghosts and spirits, and so the Celestial Worthy accords with the intentions they already hold and guides them by fitting expedient methods: evildoers are checked by warning and chastisement, and the good are encouraged and inspired, so that gradually they come to understand the Dao and at last awaken to the Great Way of the highest vehicle.

In cultivating the Way of Zhengyi (Orthodox Unity), one of the important traditions of Daoism, one must understand that the Dao has no inside or outside and no exterior or interior, admits no division of fine and coarse, and does not fall into discriminations such as two, three, ten, or a hundred. One should seek the Dao through practice, and the root of seeking the Dao lies in one’s own heart. The principle between the hidden and the manifest is exceedingly subtle.

Whether living beings see or not, they should be as careful as if they saw; whether they fear or not, they should always hold reverence and awe; whether they are consciously careful or not, they should remain careful throughout; whether they are putting it into practice or not, they should be as if they were practicing it; whether they accept it or not, they should be as if they had already accepted it; whether they delight in it or not, they should be as if they delighted in it; and whether they are cultivating or not, they should be as if they were cultivating. In all of this, one must observe the three hundred sixty precepts. As for what is true and what is not true, and what is one and what is not one, all should be understood according to the principles I have set forth.

This scripture (Jing) was proclaimed by the Heavenly Worthy in his own words and must not be slighted or slandered: slighting it brings disaster and punishment, while honoring it brings blessing and protection. Those who aspire to the Dao (the Way) of the Great Vehicle should wholeheartedly make offerings to it, recite and read it, and carefully reflect on its meaning, thereby dissolving the sins of this life, removing the evil affinities formed in former lives, relieving the calamities suffered by nine generations of ancestors, and rescuing all who suffer. If in the future one wishes to seek the Dao, to make the spirit lucid and upright, and to gain the support of ghosts and spirits and the respectful homage of demon kings, one must bring gold, silver, and precious treasures, sincerely observe fasting and purification for a thousand days, and only then may this scripture be transmitted.

The Perfected One of No Beginning said, “I have received the Dao of Wuwei (non-action) and embody the movement of the vital breath of the myriad things. What is called the ‘beginning’ is the moment when the myriad things congeal their Jing (essence) and Qi (vital energy); the principles of life and death are all manifested in me.” This mountain has ten names: Dragon-Tooth Mountain, Dragon Body, Dragon Liver, the Vital Breath of the Myriad Things, Phoenix Cry, Lion’s Head, the Minor Kalpa, Eternal Abiding, the Present, and the Future and the Past. The mountain measures eight thousand hundred-million myriads of li in circumference, and the area beneath the Qianhua tree measures four hundred hundred-million myriads of li in circumference. The Supreme Sages and Exalted Perfected Ones (the high-ranking holy perfected beings revered in Daoism) descend upon this mountain once every kalpa, proclaim the scriptures of the Great Vehicle, and gather the assembly.

At that time the Heavenly Worthy taught in many different ways. Sentient beings each grasped the kind of speech that corresponded to them, and these corresponded to one another without error; birds, moths, and the kings of sentient beings all likewise understood the same principle. They set out from this mountain. On the mountain, altars were built of gold, steps paved with silver, and trees made of the seven treasures, with auspicious clouds for blossoms; dragons, phoenixes, and celestial beasts dwelt among them. Among the many who listened to the teaching, there were also those who had never before seen such a sight.

The Celestial Worthy (Tianzun) broadly opens the gateway of compassion and salvation, so that people may behold the form of this mountain; this is also bound up with the karmic conditions of their previous lives. All who cultivate and study, so long as they diligently practice the methods of the Great Vehicle, will in the end be able to come to this mountain. The mountain likewise has palaces built of the seven treasures, and within the palaces music arises of itself. There is no spring, summer, autumn, or winter there, nor any change of Yin-Yang climate; everything exists naturally and abides constantly.

There is only one scripture (Jing) of the Great Vehicle, yet it can branch into thousands of millions upon millions of scriptural meanings; even dragon chariots cannot carry them all, and the water of the Eastern Well (the name of a constellation) cannot be exhausted by ladling. The most fundamental of them is the Five Thousand Characters (usually referring to the Daodejing, the Classic of the Dao and De). It speaks of emptiness, of vacuity, of non-being, and also of being; it speaks of Heaven and of Earth, and also of the myriad things. The exalted Perfected who eternally abide in the ten directions (the immortals and Perfected who exist eternally in every quarter) ponder its principles together and never grow weary.

The character “one” in the scripture is the Celestial Worthy’s title in the innermost depths; only the beings of the world have not realized it. Among the beings of later ages, if there are those who have attained the Dao (the Way), together with worthies and sages, the intelligent and wise, and those versed in Confucian learning, who are able to reflect on its principles—even if some take it for the empty talk of an outside teaching, that is not unacceptable.

This scripture embodies the body of the Great Sage. Inwardly it arouses numinous Qi (vital energy); outwardly it sets forth subtle and marvelous principles, which no one can exhaust completely. In kalpas past, beings pondered this path and each expressed an understanding of their own; their meanings, once spoken to this point, then dissipated. Whether the principles discussed are correct or not, and whether or not one has grasped anything or knows the direction of cultivation, I can embrace them all, blaming no one, and accord with the minds of the common people. This is what is called “taking the mind of the people as one’s own mind.”

The True Person Without Beginning (Wushi Zhenren) said: The methods of Daoist self-cultivation are as countless as the sands of the Ganges and cannot all be mastered; it is enough to concentrate on holding to the essentials of the Great Dao. If one hopes to cultivate by ingesting talismans, by Daoyin (guiding the limbs and regulating the breath so as to circulate Qi), by Tuna (exhalation and inhalation), and by similar arts, these are often hard to accomplish before one’s skill has matured. At that point one may instead diligently make offerings to this scripture, worship and pray, recite and study it, and revere it with a wholesome mind, free of doubt and without slackening or turning back, ever renewing one’s resolve. In this way one may also gain the karmic fruit of ascending and riding the dragon carriage, and the nine ancestors (nine generations of forebears) will share in the benefit. This should be carefully considered. This scripture is the Five Thousand Characters (Wuqian wen, usually referring to the Daodejing).

The Hymn on Diligent Study by the True Person of Primordial Beginning (Yuanshi Zhenren) reads as follows:

The Great Dao is truly wondrous and supreme, and the truth of the Dao is fully contained in the Five Thousand Characters. The Great Dao is originally empty, still, and formless, leaving no trace; once it shows a visible form, it spreads abroad like the glow of rosy clouds. The differentiation of the Great Dao is profound and hard to fathom; the Three-in-One (Sanyi, the Daoist principle that three are one) accords with the Imperial Lord (Dijun). The Three Vehicles (Sancheng, methods of cultivation at different levels) are fundamentally not two, and the Vacuous Sovereign (Xuhuang, a title of an exalted Daoist deity) widely proclaims the teaching and guides living beings. Living beings are full of doubt, and so the teaching is expounded to awaken them, enabling them to understand and transmit the methods of the Dao; the root delusion is undone, evil conditions are removed, and one is kept far from aging, illness, and affliction. One attains long life and enduring vision, and by the merit of cultivation rides the auspicious clouds; freely and at ease one dwells in the Great Void (Taixu), ranked together with the lofty sages. Through millions upon millions of kalpas one remains as peaceful as the early morning, without sorrow, anger, or grievance.

Looking back at those who come later to seek the teaching: if they slacken and turn back, their faith unsteady, slandering and envying one another, how could they together ascend the dragon carriage? They will sink beneath the Nine Nights, their hun and po souls subjected to trial and suffering, cycling through the Three Paths (Santu, the three realms of suffering spoken of in Daoism), and wholesome conditions will be hard for them to hear of again.

Wushi Zhenren (the Perfected of No Beginning) said: Long ago, those who studied and cultivated the Dao (the Way) of longevity of the superior immortals, and the methods of deathlessness, did not cling to life in the world. To cling to the world is to give rise to many thoughts; when thoughts multiply, sorrow appears; sorrow encumbers the heart and spirit (Shen), and when the heart and spirit are encumbered, one loses the Dao. If one marries and has children, one worries over wife and children; if one possesses goods, one worries over goods; if illness arises, one worries over illness; if one meets with death and funeral matters, one worries over the funeral; if one falls into poverty, one worries over poverty. Living in this way, how can one be spared the suffering of death? This stands in direct opposition to the Dao of long life. When nothing at one’s side lays a claim upon one, there is no sorrow; without sorrow, the methods of the Dao can abide for a long time.

Later seekers of the Dao grew confused. They knew only how to cherish the body and life, but not how to guard and sustain Shen. A person’s physical form is only a house made of the four great elements—earth, water, fire, and wind. How could a house never fall into ruin? Once the person has left the house, the house cannot keep its former condition. When the form disperses, Shen still transmigrates and turns through successive lives; it is neither extinguished nor sunk away. Only when one is not bound by worry can the methods of the Dao long endure.

Foolish people spend great wealth building spacious tombs and preparing heavy coffins, and even kill living beings to accompany the funeral, supposing this to be filial devotion and loving kindness, yet they do not know that it invites lasting entanglement after death. How benighted they are! Unwilling to be guests in the Dao of the Most High, they scramble instead to be kings and common people; this is suffering.

Even when a sage has disciples and juniors, they are not necessarily children of his own blood; they may be persons of merit from a former life who have lodged themselves at the sage’s gate. The sage has no fixed line of blood descendants through whom the transmission must pass. What matters is that people truly come to understand the principle.

In former times there were those who studied and cultivated the superior Dao and the ranks of the immortals, yet whose merit and practice were not yet complete, so that they did not attain the Dao and deliverance at the proper time, and instead underwent a passage through Taiyin (the underworld). Their disciples and juniors may invite ritual masters, friends of the same Dao, and kin to hold for the deceased a “Three-Sevens Zhai” (Zhaijiao, a purification ritual reckoned in three periods of seven days), reciting and revolving the Five Thousand Words (the Daodejing) ten times, so as to rescue and deliver the soul and Shen. Those who cultivate the superior Dao hope to be reborn and to ascend swiftly; they need not, like ordinary people of the world, seek only long life. Ordinary people cling to preserving their lives only because they have not yet awakened to the Dao. Without awakening to the Dao, one weeps; and one weeps precisely because one still sets store by the sickness and pain of this body. People of the world already differ in success and failure and in the length of their allotted years, yet they still cling to funeral wailing—truly lamentable.

The Three-Sevens Zhai is performed because during the first seven days the Water Officials expunge offenses, during the second seven days the Earth Officials release faults, and during the third seven days the deceased is delivered beyond the Three Realms and freed from the sufferings of hell, no longer held by entanglements, and thus more quickly obtains transformation and deliverance. It is best if the full twenty-one days can be carried out completely; if one cannot manage the whole, one may also observe it in segments according to the number of days, and observance in segments is likewise beneficial. If in all six periods one practices the rites with a diligent heart, one can help the deceased pass beyond the limits set by lifespan. Family members may take articles left by the deceased as tokens of proof, and with them make offerings to the ritual masters and the Three Treasures (Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha). One ought to ponder the principle in this with care; it is genuinely beneficial.

People of later generations commonly fall into this confusion: while alive they do not know how to do good and accumulate blessings; after death they bury clothing, precious objects, and the like inside coffins and tombs, which only adds to the deceased’s entanglements. They do not know that what truly ought to be done is to open for the dead a road of deliverance and to guide the deceased toward rebirth. If the living cannot bring themselves to part with these goods, they may at least send one set of clothing in the cold of winter and one in the heat of summer, and need not maintain lavish burial over a long time; otherwise they forget the true condition of living beings. One should carefully take to heart the words I have spoken.

The Wushi Zhenren (Perfected One of No Beginning), a revered deity in Daoism, said: In the world to come, living beings will for the most part be coarse and base in mind and nature. They will fail to understand wholesome affinities and will not be as simple and sincere as people of the present. At that time there will of themselves arise wise and discerning persons of later generations, who will explain to living beings the various rules, the norms of ritual propriety, and the principle of yinyuan (causes and conditions). Through yinyuan, people come to have kin such as parents, brothers, paternal uncles, sisters, and aunts, and from this also arises the ritual system of mourning and funeral observance. These are customs established for ordinary people of the world; those who cultivate the higher Dao (the Way) should not conduct themselves by the same regulations.

After parents and other relatives have died, whenever one performs deeds of merit, one should vow to be transformed and reborn so as to meet again with one’s true parents, and from then on never again to undergo birth and death. One should not set up sacrifices to make offerings to the spirits of the dead, for to do so would instead harm the mind that seeks the Dao. This piece is titled “Ming yue er luan” and should be carefully pondered.

The True Person Without Beginning said: What those who later study the Dao (the Way) must most avoid is restless, discontented craving—going against human feeling and right principle, and forcibly seeking their own advantage, thereby drawing upon themselves the resentment and reproach of others. Even if they receive and uphold the Jing (scripture/classic) and its methods, wear Fulu (talismans and registers), practice guiding exercises and breath regulation, observe fasting and abstinence while walking the Dao, and further take numinous medicines and restrain their diet, they only weary the body in vain on the outside. They cannot thereby bring about communion with the immortals and the perfected, and will instead meet with trials all the sooner.

If one does not even understand the basic principles of things, yet studies the Dao with this attitude, what one seeks is nothing more than contention and pursuit in the world; it is not true cultivation of the Dao. Seeing that there are people in the world who are killed by evil ghosts without knowing it, and that after death their spirits sink into the hells, where the suffering of retribution is beyond words, one ought to understand what I say.

Those who cultivate the Dao should make their hearts peaceful and generous. Entering among insects and ants, they treat them with a kindly heart; entering among the six kinds of domestic animals, birds and beasts, and ghosts and spirits, they do the same. Facing people both good and evil, trees and woods, and all the myriad things, they should hold a kindly heart, without the slightest anger or blame. Only then can they obtain the protection of ghosts and spirits and the safeguarding and recommendation of the Three Realms, and naturally perfect themselves as True Persons.

The True Person Without Beginning said: The Celestial Worthy and I observe what has not yet occurred, what is past, and what is present, all with perfect clarity, as if it were laid out within the mind.

At that time, the Celestial Worthy released a purple, hair-fine radiance from the center of his forehead (a luminous mark appearing between the brows), shining throughout the ten directions and upon a hundred billion Kunluns. The Celestial Worthy said: “The Celestial Worthy and I observe what has not yet occurred, what is past, and what is present, all with perfect clarity, as if it were laid out within the mind.”

At this moment the Celestial Worthy (Tianzun) released from the center of his forehead a purple fine-hair radiance—the purple ray that appears between the brows or at the crown of the head. The light shone throughout the billions of Kunlun mountains in the ten directions and the thirty-six thousand great chiliocosms, and every kind of being within them clearly saw it. The light was golden, and from within it came forth hundreds and thousands of kinds of sound. All beings delighted to hear them and, following the sound, arrived without realizing it beneath the Qianhua tree, where they were able to hear the causes and the fundamental root of the teaching.

This is a metaphor by which the Celestial Worthy manifested the whole of his great awe-inspiring divine power; such an occasion is met with only once in a kalpa. One should take it as a mirror to illuminate later students, and cultivate with care.

The Celestial Worthy (Tianzun, the honorific title in Daoism for the supreme divine venerable) possesses immense divine majesty and power, which he uses to rescue all living beings. He is without form and without a body, yet he can send forth a vast sound and display mighty force. People cannot grasp him. Like the sun, moon, and stars suspended high in empty space, he is subtle, profound, and far-reaching, and is not constrained by living beings. His activity extends throughout the Three Realms—the Realm of Desire, the Realm of Form, and the Formless Realm—reaches all things in nature, and also operates within the human body.

Qi (vital energy) communicates with divine power, and so human beings and the true Dao (the Way) depend upon one another. The true Dao is present in the human heart, and the true Dao also abides in the human heart. When people revere the spirits, the spirits protect them; when people cherish their spiritual nature, that nature draws near to them. If a person forgets their own Qi, the Qi disperses; if a person neglects the Dao, the Dao withdraws from them.

Thus, those who have good affinity move from light to light, from insight to deeper insight, from understanding to deeper understanding, and from peace and ease to peace and ease. Those without good affinity turn and fall into fault, darkness, and suffering. This principle of causes and conditions and of karmic retribution is inherent in all living beings.

In the kalpa ages yet to come, those who can believe, practice, uphold, cultivate, and diligently walk the Dao may become ritual masters. They should be skilled at expounding the meaning of the Jing (scripture/classic), serve as guides, and urge living beings to enter the gate of the teaching, the path of cultivating the Dao. By performing zhai—fasting and setting offerings according to Daoist rites—studying the scriptural texts, repenting of faults, and petitioning the spirits, they help living beings escape the bondage of birth and death. The kinds of zhai rites and precepts are many, and they should be carried out in detail according to the liturgies compiled by sages of later ages.

When practicing the method, one must establish merit and make vows. Merit and the power of vows accumulate from little to much: from one to ten, from a hundred to a thousand, and then from a thousand to ten thousand. One should urge living beings to enter the gate of the teaching, perform zhai and cultivate the scriptures, repent and make petitions, so as to loosen the bonds of birth and death. The concrete liturgies are many and must be carried out according to the procedures set by sages of later generations. One should also gather silk, precious treasures, and other wealth to bestow on the zhai officers, those who preside over the purification rites, and divide it into three portions: one portion offered to the Three Masters of Lingbao, the three honored teachers in the Lingbao method of the Dao; one portion offered to the Supreme Perfected and Highest Saints, the loftiest true sages; and one portion used for giving that creates good affinity. The principle of the karmic fruits of good and evil also concerns being and non-being, emptiness and substance; the true meaning within it is to be realized from this.

The Perfected One says that, of the three portions of offerings, one is given to the zhai officers and one is offered to the ritual master; the remaining portion is offered each year, or every three years, to the ordination master and the ancestral master. If these two teachers are no longer in the world, it is entrusted to the register master—the teacher who keeps the registers of the Dao and transmits the Fulu (talismans and registers)—and is transferred and handled according to the Law of the Three Heavens, the ritual order of the Daoist celestial lineage.

The title Zhenren (Perfected Person) follows definite ceremonial norms and ranks. To attain the station of a Zhenren is still to fall short of the highest Dao (the Way). Even when one already wields spiritual powers freely, no longer regresses, and can command ghosts and spirits, one is still engaged in deliberate action. One must diligently cultivate and accumulate great merit, pass through many kalpas, and go ever deeper before one can gradually reach the Dao. Cases of this kind are, by and large, all like this.

Those who studied the Dao in the previous kalpa cultivated in just this way: even becoming a Zhenren is not something that can be attained all at once. They hope to be born onto a good path, yet they remain bound to the youming (the dark netherworld), and in their hearts they naturally find it hard to forget. Should they once grow lax, meet with trials, and fall back, they sink again into the five paths (the five destinations of sentient beings in the cycle of rebirth), not knowing when they may escape once more. You must understand my words: I have received the mandate of the Tianzun (Celestial Worthy) and, in later ages, serve as parent to sentient beings, guiding them as they grow. Those who wish to shun evil deeds ought to take my words to heart with care and earnestness.

In the “kalpa when the guiding cycle is due to open” (a time when kalpic fortunes shift and heaven and earth are opened anew), only the Celestial Master (Tianshi) appears in the world, and such a circumstance occurs only once. It is not the case that scriptures and precepts exist only when sages appear; these scriptures and precepts admit no distinctions of greater or lesser, earlier or later, higher or lower, and are fundamentally one and the same. Although the scriptures are ranked by grade and compiled into different scrolls, this is because the sages of successive ages each acted in their own way, all with the aim of saving living beings. In essence they are not divided into two or into three; they are the same as the principle borne in one’s own body. Those who cultivate and study them should be skilled at grasping this.

According to the old regulations of Xuandu (the immortal realm, or sacred site of Daoism, spoken of in Daoist scriptures), Yuqing has thirty-one scrolls, Ziwei thirty-six scrolls, and Taiji (Supreme Ultimate) three scrolls. The various scriptures and their numbers of scrolls are all bound up with sworn covenants and pledges; by means of covenants, people guard and preserve the precious Jing (essence) and Qi (vital energy) of their own persons.

A person’s death always arises from within; it is not that outside things intrude from without. Once the interior stirs, corresponding signs appear on the outside; once there are signs, great calamity may be brought on. Only when the interior is firm, unmoving and unmanifest, can Jing and Qi be kept intact. One should rest calmly and concentrate Shen (spirit); this is called “silent Shen,” which means letting mind and spirit abide quietly within oneself.

Thus it is said that the highest cultivation is Wuwei (non-action): one does not act by deliberate effort, but lets the workings of Qi harmonize of themselves. A lower cultivation does involve deliberate doing; acting by deliberate effort wearies body and mind together. Such toil can gradually loosen the bonds of former lives and slowly harmonize the workings of Qi, yet this is not the same as “silent Shen.” When karmic offenses have been cleared away, mind and spirit grow quiet of themselves; when mind and spirit are quiet, life can be nourished and preserved for a long time. While merit and practice are not yet complete, one also cannot take “silent Shen” for a state already established. Cultivating the Dao (the Way) still requires wearying body and frame and aiding the myriad beings, without growing slack because of hardship.

When the state meets with calamity, one may cultivate and recite this scripture (Jing); when a ruler or a father is ill at ease, one may do the same. When pestilence spreads and the people sicken and die, when sun and moon fall out of course, when the stars move in disorder, when the kalpic cycle is about to end, when wind and rain miss their seasons, when teachers or friends fall ill, when the household suffers bereavement, when the five grains fail, when thieves are many, when living beings curse one another, when cultivation falls back and is not firm, and in cases of insult, reviling, and anger—in all these circumstances one may cultivate and recite this scripture. On the days when the various heavens observe fasting and purification, one should do likewise.

When one fasts, purifies, and recites the scripture, the voice carries through the Great Void, and the echo draws in spirits and divinities, so that the sound of recitation becomes Brahma-sound (a pure and sacred tone). Brahma-sound is subtle and wondrous, and can move and reach the holy perfected; demon kings too bow in reverent worship, and the host of perfected immortals praise and approve. Cultivation that has this efficacy enables one, in De (Virtue/Power), gradually to draw near the celestial perfected (the true immortals of the heavenly realms), and step by step to enter spirit-concentration (the state in which mind and spirit are settled and focused).

The scripture further says that the thirty-two marks within the cultivator’s body gradually become complete. These marks include hair that is blue-black and long; a neck that shows a purple radiance; eyebrows like a crescent moon; ears that can hear from afar; eyes whose light is bright; breath from the nose that is cool; a mouth of proper form; teeth that are yielding yet firm within, white as silver, and complete in number; tongue-fluids abundant as a gushing spring, able to take in the Jing and Qi of lunar radiance; a throat that is high and firm; hands supple and strong, able to grasp both inwardly and outwardly; feet of vigorous strength, so that one’s steps seem to tread the void; and a mind and spirit upright and settled, sufficient to subdue demon kings. The Qi of the liver is bright and luminous and can enter Daizong (Mount Tai); the Qi of the lungs is clear and plain and can reach Huayin; the Qi of the kidneys is powerful and can behold Mount Heng; the spleen can receive and hold Jing and Qi, flourishing like Mount Song; and the Qi of the gallbladder is majestic, its voice shaking the numinous realm. Reciting the scripture can penetrate the hidden and subtle and enter the uninterrupted realm. All of these are gained through cultivation and study; they are not so by inborn nature.