《许太史真君图传》

Illustrated Biography of the Perfected Lord Xu, Grand Historian, Part One

At dawn on the first day of the eighth month in the second year of Ningkang (the jiaxu year) of Emperor Xiaowu of the Jin, a procession of celestial attendants descended from the heavens. Two immortals, riding in carriages and surrounded by a great retinue, arrived at the courtyard of the Perfected Lord Xu (Xu Zhenjun). The Perfected Lord descended the steps to receive them and bowed in greeting.

The two immortals said, "By command of the Jade Emperor, we have come to bestow an edict upon you." The Perfected Lord bowed low to the ground and listened reverently.

The edict was read aloud: "The Jade Emperor proclaims to Xu Xun, a youth who studies immortality: Across many kalpas past, you have unceasingly cultivated the supreme Dao (the Way). You have endured every hardship, and your practice has grown deep; there is no method you have not studied. You have rescued others from calamity, removed misfortune, and driven out demons and evil spirits, earning merit for all living beings. Your name is already inscribed in the register of immortals. The assembled immortals hold you in esteem and acclaim you, and you ought to be promoted. You are hereby appointed Grand Historian and Capital Immortal of the Nine Provinces and Grand Envoy of Lofty Brightness. You are also granted a purple robe of colored feathers, a banner of jade, and a precious tally, together with one portion each of jade ointment and Golden Elixir. Having received this edict, you must carry out its commands."

The Perfected Lord bowed again, then climbed the steps and received the edict. One of the immortals said, "I am Cui Ziwen, Duke Supreme of Jade Perfection." The other said, "I am Xiaqiu Zhong, Grand Minister of Primal Perfection." Having spoken, they saluted the Perfected Lord with folded hands, sat down, and told Xu the day of their ascent to heaven. Then they departed in a carriage of clouds.

A Second Edict Descends from the Jade Steps

At noon on the fifteenth day of the eighth month in the second year of Ningkang (the jiaxu year) of Emperor Xiaowu of the Jin, people far below heard music coming from the sky. Auspicious clouds spread across the horizon and gradually drew near to the Perfected Lord's courtyard. Immortals arrived in dragon carriages beneath canopies of feathers, accompanied by a great many officials and guards. Celestial youths and fair maidens walked before and behind, leading the way. Red clouds and purple vapors unfurled and encircled the scene.

The two immortal envoys who had delivered the previous edict arrived once more. The Perfected Lord descended the steps and bowed to receive them. The two immortals then read out another edict…

The Jade Emperor issued an edict, saying: "Xu Xun (the Perfected Lord Xu), a youth who studies immortality at the command of Heaven: I pardon your past-life offenses of greed, murderous cravings, concealment without confession, and neglect of ancestral sacrifice. I have recorded your merits in this life: using water and talismans (Fulu) to heal the sick, punish evil, and rid the world of plague and poison. I have ordered the Director of Destiny of Mount Qian to transmit the method of the Golden Elixir (Jindan) to you in the lower realm, to settle your debts on your behalf, and to seal away your bodily form. Now I summon you, your family, your kitchens and dwellings, and all your possessions to ascend together to the Three Heavens (the celestial realms of Daoism). Make haste to cleanse away all impurity, and bear your native soil with you as you rise into the air. On your left will stand the Mighty Celestial Warrior (a divine general of Heaven), and on your right the General of Flowing Gold and the Fire Bell, who will guard you, shine upon you, and drive out the baleful forces of the Central Yellow. Do not be negligent. Carry out this edict the moment you receive it."

The edict also posthumously conferred titles on Xu Xun's ancestors. His distant ancestor You was named Vice Director of the Jade Void; his great-grandfather Mei was named Palace Guard Grandee of the Supreme Subtlety; his grandfather Yu was named Keeper of Registers of the Supreme Ultimate (Taiji); and his father Su was named Immortal Official of the Central Peak. The residence where Xu Xun lived was granted the name "Left Mansion of the Immortal Bureau." The envoy who delivered the edict said, "Among the disciples at your gate, only six qualify to ascend to Heaven together in dragon chariots." Having spoken, the envoy too ascended to Heaven and departed.

The Sacred Proclamation of the Perfected Lord

I bow in reverence to the Primordial Ancestor of Chaos (the ancestor of the universe's origin), from whom the One Qi divided to give rise to the true spirits. The Perfected Lord accumulated cultivation through countless ages past, pursuing the ultimate Dao through every hardship and attaining profound learning. He studied the ten thousand methods and thousand schools of teaching, and there was none under which he had not trained. He relieved calamities and uprooted misfortunes, eliminated harms and subdued demons, and his merits benefited all beings. His name is inscribed in the Jade Register (the celestial roll of immortals). The assembled true immortals revere and esteem him, and so he is rightly deserving of commendation and promotion.

His compassionate vows are vast and deep, and he is filial and benevolent. His honorific titles include: Grand Historian and Chief Immortal of the Nine Provinces; Envoy of Lofty Brilliance; Celestial Pivot of the Thunder and Great Province; Supreme Minister Who Subdues Demons; Responsive One of the Ultimate Dao and Profound Mystery; Divine Merit and Wondrous Aid; Holder of Office over the Nine Heavens; Perfected Lord of the Supreme One Who Fixes Destiny and Governs Birth; Chief Inspector of the Three Heavens; Grand Master of Remonstrance Who Memorializes Universally; Great Emperor of Celestial Medicine; Ancestral Teacher Who Delivers Humanity; and Celestial Venerable of Pure Clarity and Universal Transformation.

The Perfected Lord (Zhenjun) of Marvelous Aid and Divine Merit, Grand Historian-Immortal of the Nine Provinces, Great Envoy of Lofty Brilliance, and Responsive Sage of the Supreme Dao (Dao, the Way), was surnamed Xu, with the given name Xun and the courtesy name Jingzhi. His great-grandfather was named Yan, his grandfather Yu, and his father Su, and the family had lived in Xuchang for generations. Of noble character and unwilling to hold office, they were descendants of You of Yingyang. At the end of the Han dynasty, his father moved to Nanchang county in Yuzhang commandery to escape the turmoil, and the family settled there.

At first, Xu Xun's mother dreamed of a golden phoenix carrying a pearl in its beak, which dropped into the palm of her hand. She played with the pearl and then swallowed it. When she woke, she felt a stirring in her belly, and so she conceived and later gave birth to Xu Xun. The scriptures (Jing) record that he was born on the twenty-eighth day of the first month in the second year of Chiwu, during the reign of Sun Quan, Emperor Da of Wu.

Xu Xun was intelligent from birth and understood principles clearly even in his youth. In dealing with others and with the world, he harbored no wish to harm any living thing. Once, when he went hunting with others, he shot a doe, and the fawn in her belly fell out. The doe turned back to lick her young, and died before she could finish. Moved to compassion by the sight, Xu Xun was deeply shaken, broke his bow and arrows, and began to study the Dao.

Xu Xun devoted himself to learning and gained wide knowledge of the classics and histories. He also understood astronomy, geography, musical pitch, the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water; Wuxing), and the arts of the warp and weft. He was especially fond of the arts of immortals and their cultivation, and he traveled far and wide to seek out and study them, probing deeply into their mysteries.

Xu Xun heard that in Xi'an county there was a man named Wu Shiyun, who had received the divine formulas passed down by the Perfected Man Ding Yi, the secret methods of Bao Jing of the Southern Sea, and the White Cloud talisman (Fulu) sent down from Heaven. He went to him and became his disciple. Wu Shiyun and Xu Xun understood one another by instinct, as though they had long been destined as master and student, and Wu Shiyun passed on all the essential secrets to him. The "Ruyi Great Elixir," still transmitted today, is one of the divine formulas of Ding Yi. Xi'an is present-day Ningzhou. Wu Shiyun once served as magistrate of Xi'an county under the state of Wu and afterward settled there. Today, sixty li west of the prefectural city, stands the Xiping Jingwu Immortal Temple, said to be Wu Shiyun's former residence.

In the original text, the passage "the doe still looked back and licked" contains repeated and garbled characters, so the meaning above has been reconstructed from context.

Xu Zhenjun (Xu the Perfected) and Guo Pu traveled far and wide in search of famous mountains, hoping to find a place suited to the cultivation of the Dao (the Way). They took a liking to the residence of the Jin family on Mount Xiaoyao, judging it well suited to practice, and went together to call on Master Jin. Guo Pu explained: "Master Xu wishes to buy a dwelling to use as a place of cultivation, and that is why we have come to see you."

Master Jin replied: "If Master Xu truly has this intention, then let him buy the estate and its fields together, to supply his daily firewood and rice." Xu Zhenjun said: "I am grateful for your generosity, but it would trouble me to accept this for nothing. Please name the price, and I will pay whatever you decide." Master Jin said: "When two men of stature agree with a single word, they may entrust each other with their very lives, to say nothing of mere external possessions." He then took a large coin, broke it in two, and each party kept one half as a token of their agreement.

Xu Zhenjun settled in the Jin residence and devoted himself every day to cultivation, seeking neither fame nor high office. The villagers were moved by his filial devotion and brotherly affection, and his friends admired his virtue (De) and his sense of righteousness. When others offered him gifts, he refused anything that came by improper means or went against what was right, even the smallest trifle.

Once, someone sold him an iron lamp stand. When he lit the lamp that night, he noticed gold showing through where the lacquer had peeled away. The next day he sought out the seller and returned the stand.

Xu Zhenjun's reputation spread more widely with each passing day. The prefecture recommended him as a Xiaolian (a designation used in the Han and Jin periods for selecting officials), but he declined. The court summoned him with courtesy several times, and he repeatedly demurred. In the end, unable to refuse any longer, he took up the post of magistrate of Jingyang County in Shu Commandery in the first year of the Taikang era of the Jin dynasty (280 CE), at the age of forty-two.

When he first began handling official business, he admonished the clerks (xuli, subordinate officials who handled documents and assisted the magistrate) to rid themselves of greed and baseness, abolished burdensome and harsh ordinances, and released those who had been held in custody, patiently guiding them with reasoned counsel. Officials and common people alike were won over, and one after another they declared their willingness to mend their ways.

He taught the people to put first loyalty, filial piety, kindness, benevolence, forbearance, prudence, diligence, and reverence, that is, faithfulness, devotion to parents, compassion, generosity, tolerance, carefulness, industriousness, and respect. He also had respected local worthies of good standing join in encouraging and leading everyone else. As a result, disputes dwindled day by day, and in the end there were almost no lawsuits. Two officials, surnamed Hu and Zhan, served as dianya (officials who managed case files and assisted in hearing administrative matters) and handled the case records and the hearing of affairs. Later, the people made offerings to Xu Zhenjun in a temple and venerated him as a deity.

Before Master Xu (Xu Taishi Zhenjun) had taken up his post in the county, a famine struck, and the common people could not pay their rents and taxes. Prefectural and county officials pressed them for payment according to the law, and many had no choice but to flee to other regions.

After taking office, Master Xu used a spiritual elixir to transform tiles and rubble into gold, and then had the gold quietly buried in the garden behind the county office. One day he summoned all the people who still owed taxes to the courtyard and had the officials order them to perform labor in the back garden. While digging the ground, the people discovered the gold and used it to pay their taxes. In this way, they no longer had to worry about fleeing, and their lives became settled. Refugees from neighboring areas heard of his kindness and came in great numbers to seek his protection. The county's population gradually grew, and its people became prosperous.

In one year, a great epidemic broke out in the prefecture, and seven or eight out of every ten people died of illness. Master Xu used the divine formulas he had obtained to treat the people. Wherever his talismans and incantations (Fulu) were applied, the sick quickly recovered; even those gravely ill were all restored to health.

After the people stricken by the epidemic were saved, word of Master Xu's healing spread to other prefectures and counties. The sick arrived one after another, as many as a thousand each day. He therefore set up bamboo markers on the riverbank ten li outside the city and placed talismans in the water, so that the sick could drink at the markers and be cured. The elderly and frail, who could not go themselves, had their families fetch the water and bring it home to drink, and they too recovered. For this reason, the people of Shu sang a ballad: "The people do not steal, the officials do not cheat. Our lord has given life to the people, and sickness can no longer harm them."

Glossary notes: "Angdu" (按堵) refers to the people living in peace and security; "chenke" (沈痾) refers to a grave, long-standing illness that resists treatment; "Jingyang" (旌阳) is Master Xu's title of enfeoffment.

After serving for many years in Jingyang, Xu Zhenjun (Xu Xun) foresaw that turmoil was coming to the Jin dynasty, and so he resigned his post and headed back east. The people of Shu were grateful for his kindness and moral guidance, and though they wished to keep him, they could not. Wherever he had been, people built living shrines for him (shrines established for a person still alive), households passed down his portrait, and they revered him as they would a deity.

On the day Xu Zhenjun set out, people who had come to see him off with provisions filled the countryside. Some accompanied him for a thousand li before turning back; others followed him all the way to his residence, willing to stay and serve him and unwilling ever to go home again. So Xu Zhenjun built thatched huts for them on the open ground east of his house. The place looked like a military encampment, and everyone took the surname Xu. For this reason, the site is still called Xujia Ying (the Xu Family Camp) to this day. Xu Zhenjun cherished the people, and the people cherished him in return.

On one occasion, Xu Zhenjun came to Xinwu and was resting in a grove of cypress trees when five young girls suddenly appeared, each holding a precious sword to present to him. Finding this strange, he accepted the swords. Afterward, the five girls came together to his home, where they took delight each day in practicing swordsmanship, and no one could fathom where they had come from. Xu Zhenjun knew they were sword immortals and treated them with courtesy, and later he did indeed receive the help of divine swords. After Xu Zhenjun ascended to the heavens, the five girls lived in seclusion beneath the cypress trees he had planted with his own hands, and so they came to be called the "Cypress Immortal Youths." In Xinwu there is still a Cypress Grove Temple (Bolin Guan) today.

When Xu Zhenjun and Wu Zhenjun were traveling in Songyang, they heard that at Huangtang Jing in Danyang County, Jinling, there lived a female Daoist master named Shen Mu (a Daoist woman practitioner), who was well versed in many Daoist arts. They set out together to take her as their teacher. Shen Mu said: "Long ago, Filial and Fraternal King descended from Shangqing (the celestial realm of Daoist belief) to the home of Lord Lan in Qufu County, Yanzhou, and left behind a precious scripture of the Golden Elixir, along with bronze talismans and iron tallies. He told Lord Lan: 'After the Jin dynasty, an immortal named Xu Xun will appear to inherit my Way.' He also charged Lord Lan with passing these sacred objects to me for safekeeping until Xu Xun should come to claim them. Many years have passed since then, and now the time has come to transmit them to you."

Shen Mu then set up an altar and, following the proper rites, swore covenant oaths with them and conferred the teachings. She transmitted to them the Zhengyi (Orthodox Unity) method of slaying evil, the art of the Three-Five Flying Steps, and more. After receiving the teachings, the two Zhenjun bowed in thanks and took their leave. Xu Zhenjun had originally intended to come pay his respects to Shen Mu every year. Perceiving his thoughts, Shen Mu said: "There is no need for you to come again; I am about to return to the Imperial Realm (the realm of the immortals)." Then she took…

Perfected Lord Xu (Xu Xun, a legendary Daoist of the Jin dynasty) returned from Songyang and resumed his search for the thatch grass that Shenmu (Dame Shen, a legendary immortal) had sent flying. Along the way he passed a roadside pool of clear water and stopped to rest. The Qizhen Jing (hermitage) in present-day Qingbei Village is said to stand where he rested.

Xu then saw villagers laying out lavish offerings of wine and meat to a spirit, and heard them say to one another, "If the offerings are not rich enough, the spirit will grow angry and send down calamity." Perfected Lord Xu said, "How dare such a malevolent thing do this evil!" That night, as Xu lodged at an inn, Xu summoned fierce winds and swift thunder, which tore up the trees where the evil spirit dwelled. The next day Xu told the villagers, "The demon has been driven out. There is no need to sacrifice any longer." The abandoned shed altar (a place for sacrifices to the earth god) still remains there, and the villagers no longer make offerings at it.

Perfected Lord Xu continued searching for the flying thatch. On the road Xu saw villagers carrying buckets and walking a long way to fetch water, the path crowded with people, the old and the young alike worn out. Xu struck the dried-up marsh in front of the shed altar with a staff, and a spring at once gushed forth for the villagers to drink from. It has never run dry, even in times of drought. The stone well at Ziyang Jing in present-day Dazé Village is said to be this very well.

Perfected Lord Xu once climbed to the summit of Longcheng Mountain and pointed to a fissure with a spring on the mountainside, saying, "Something strange must be hidden in there. In time it will turn into a demon and harm the people." Xu therefore planted a sword, performed a rite, and established an altar-station (a Daoist site for conducting rituals and guarding a locality) to suppress it. Each year, when Perfected Lord Xu goes to pay homage to Shenmu, Xu rests here, and the place is called Longcheng Guan (Longcheng Temple).

Every year on the third day of the mid-autumn month (the eighth lunar month), the two immortals both go to pay homage at the Huangtang Shrine.

The Perfected Lord Xu crossed the Xiaoshu River, known today as Huanghukou. On the riverbank he came to a shop whose owner, surnamed Zhu, was poor but treated everyone with great courtesy and respect. The Perfected Lord casually drew a pine tree on the wall and left. That very day, the Zhu family's takings doubled. Later the river flooded and burst its embankments, and every house in the marketplace was swept away. Only the wall with the pine tree remained undamaged. The place is now called Songhu Market, and a temple still stands there to Earth God Zhu.

The Perfected Lord Xu once refined a divine elixir on Huanglong Mountain in Aicheng. In the pools of the mountain, flood dragons and demons had gathered. They stirred up a flood, hoping to drown the house where the elixir was being made. The Perfected Lord sent divine soldiers to seize them and nail them to the rock face. The "Dragon-Nailing Rock" can still be seen there today.

When the divine elixir was complete, the Perfected Lord held a sacrificial rite in the stone chamber of the Immortal Duke Ge on Mufu Mountain. He later came to Xiuchuan, where he liked the swift current and the clear, firm quality of the water, and so he whetted his divine sword on the rocks beside the stream. The place is now called the Meishan Jiyang Temple. The Perfected Lord crossed the water and climbed Xiufeng Peak. On the summit he set up an altar and performed a Jiao ritual (a Daoist rite of offering and petition to the gods) to give thanks to the Supreme Emperor, and then took the immortal elixir. The place is now called Jiyang Mountain. South of the stream stands the Wuxian Temple, said to be the former home of the Perfected Lord Wu.

The Perfected Lord went to the home of Lord Wu, and then passed through Xi'an County, which is today's Ningzhou. The local Shebo (the deity governing the land of a district) came out to greet him. The Perfected Lord asked whether any monstrous creature was harming the people of the area. The Shebo, however, had hidden it away and did not tell him the truth.

As the Perfected Lord passed a small temple, five divine beings came out to receive him. They told him: "For a long time a flood-dragon demon has done evil here and poisoned the people. When it heard that the Immortal Lord was coming, it fled and hid at Ezhu. It will come back later, and we hope you will rid the people of it." The temple deity was surnamed Mao, and there were five brothers. The temple is now called Xieyou Temple and lies four hundred paces east of the prefectural city.

Following what the temple deities had said, the Perfected Lord Xu tracked the dragon demon's trail and pursued it as far as Ezhu. On the way he met three old men and asked them about the whereabouts of the five dragon brothers. Here the original text seems to have an omission or a displaced passage: after the words "the five dragon brothers," the earlier account of Xieyou Temple appears again, and the content that follows has not survived in full.

Following the temple god's advice, Perfected Lord Xu tracked the trail the flood dragon had left and pursued it to Ezhu (the riverbank area around present-day Ezhou). On the road he met three elders and asked them where the dragon had been making trouble and where it was hiding. The elders pointed ahead and said, "It is hiding beneath the bridge up ahead." When Lord Xu reached the bridge, he held his precious sword and shouted a stern rebuke. The dragon, terrified, fled into the great river and hid in its deep pool. Lord Xu then ordered his spirit officers and soldiers to chase it down, and the dragon escaped upstream but was finally slain. The three elders were the Three Kings of Puying (three divine kings who received local sacrifices), and their temples were built in that locality, where they enjoy offerings. Today the place has a Bridge of the Subdued Dragon (Fulong Bridge), with a dragon's mouth at each end, upper and lower.

Lord Xu was angry that the Xi'an Shebo (the deity in charge of the local earth-altar sacrifices) had hidden the dragon and neglected his duty. He sealed the doors of the Shebo's shrine, put an end to the local offerings made to him, and had the residents worship at a small temple of the Mao family instead. Even now, the main gate of the City God Temple in Ningzhou stays closed all year round; it is said that if it were opened, disaster would strike the city, while the incense at the Xieyou Temple flourishes. When Lord Xu returned to the prefectural city, he said, "This is an important junction of water and land routes, and the population is large. Can there be no one here who is fit to join the immortals?" He tried mixing a few spirit elixir pills in with other medicines for sale, letting people know that those with the right affinity could come and take them. In the end, not one person came upon the elixir. Lord Xu sighed that finding someone with an immortal destiny was truly not easy.

Lord Xu heard that a flood dragon was causing trouble in Xinwu and went after it with his sword. As he passed the place where the Xianyou Temple (Xianyou Guan) now stands, the dragon grew frightened and fled into a cave in a stream. This is the present-day Cangxi (Hidden Stream).

Lord Xu then drew a talisman (fu) on a huge rock and wrote a text for subduing the dragon, using them to suppress it. The stone bearing the inscription still stands today in the Yanzhen Temple (Yanzhen Guan), ten li west of Fengxin county seat.

North of Haihun, in the region of Liao, a giant serpent occupied a mountain cave. The breath it exhaled turned into clouds and mist stretching forty li, and it devoured people and creatures, inflicting terrible harm on the common people. When Lord Xu heard of this, he climbed North Ridge, now called Huixian Peak (Peak of the Gathering Immortals), to survey the situation, and indeed saw poisonous vapors filling the sky. He then summoned his disciples and prepared to go slay the serpent. Just as he entered the creature's territory, hundreds upon thousands of residents from far and near rushed to him, weeping and begging for help. Moved by compassion, Lord Xu said, " "

The cycles of the age turn and change, and now calamity has descended. What offense have the common people committed, that they should suffer such a disaster? This is precisely why I have come. I swear that I will not share the world with this serpent, and I will surely eliminate it on your behalf.

After the Perfected Lord's disciples had gathered, they too joined in petitioning him to slay the serpent demon. The Perfected Lord said, "We must wait until the moment is right." He then planted his sword in the ground and prayed in silence. After a long while, a spring suddenly welled up, and shortly afterward a red crow flew overhead. The Perfected Lord said, "The moment has come." A temple was therefore built in that place, called the Temple of Awaiting the Moment (Houshi Guan), which was later renamed the Temple of the Red Crow and Longevity-Sanctifying (Chiwu Shousheng Guan), and is today's Guangfu Temple.

When the Perfected Lord arrived at the place where the serpent demon dwelled, the villagers all beat drums and shouted, hurrying forward to await his instructions. The Perfected Lord planted his precious sword, applied his Qi (vital energy) methods, and released Fulu (talismans and registers; talismanic writings used in Daoist rites to summon deities and drive away evil). He summoned the Earth God of the Haihun Altar and the Lord of the Nanchang Altar (spirits who oversee local earth-altar rites) to drive the serpent demon out of its lair together. The place where the talisman fell was later built into a Daoist temple called the Temple of the Fallen Talisman (Fuluo Guan), which is today's Taihe Temple south of Nanchang Prefecture.

The giant serpent emerged from its cave, raising its head more than a hundred feet high, and its poisonous breath shot straight up into the sky. The Perfected Lord (Zhenjun), Xu, the Grand Historian, let out a cry that summoned wind and thunder and called down divine soldiers. He ordered Lord Wu to pace the Dipper in the ritual steps of Tagang Budou (踏罡步斗) and to slash off the serpent's head with his sword. Shi Cen, Gan Zhan, and the others cut open its belly and found a small serpent emerging from within, several fathoms long. Lord Gan wanted to kill it, but the Perfected Lord said, "It has not yet harmed anyone. You must not kill it at will."

The small serpent fled seven li. Hearing the drums and the clamor, it turned back to look at its mother. The disciples asked permission to chase it down and kill it. The Perfected Lord said, "If this serpent harms the people five hundred years from now, I will come forth again and destroy it. The pine and the parasol tree before my altar will serve as the sign: when their branches grow long enough to brush the ground, the prophecy will be fulfilled."

The Perfected Lord added, "In the one thousand two hundred and forty years after I ascend as an immortal, eight hundred Earthly Immortals (dixian, those who have attained the immortal Way and dwell on earth) will appear in the Yuzhang region, within the Five Mounds. Their teacher will come from Yuzhang and will greatly spread my teachings. When a sandbar rises in the river at the center of the prefectural city and extends until it covers the mouth of the Sand Well, then, if the small serpent is harming the people, these eight hundred Earthly Immortals will naturally destroy it. If it is not harming the people, it must not be killed." The young serpent was thus able to slip into the river inlets. Today Jianchang has the "Seven-Li Hearing of the Serpent's Inlet," and Xinjian has the "Wucheng Temple," both of which refer to this event.

After the Perfected Lord slew the great python, its foul blood stained his precious sword. He therefore whetted and washed the blade, and tested its edge against a block of saltpeter. To this day, Jianchang Prefecture preserves the Cold Water Terrace, the Sword-Whetting Pool, and the Sword-Testing Stone. The Perfected Lord said to his disciples, "Although the great serpent has been removed, the flood-dragon spirit has not yet been destroyed. That creature has spiritual perception and must know that I intend to rid the land of this harm. I fear it will seize the moment to burst through the prefectural city. It would be better to return to the prefecture. Disciples Gan and Shi, come with me."

This was the sixth year of the Yongjia era (312 CE).

Perfected Lord Xu (a Daoist "true person" venerated in the tradition) was profoundly accomplished in the arts of the Dao (the Way) and famous far and wide. Those who wished to become his disciples often numbered in the hundreds or thousands, and he could not turn them all away at once. So he transformed charcoal into a beautiful woman and, at night, placed her in the disciples' lodgings to test them. When he inspected the next day, only ten had resisted temptation and kept their conduct upright. These ten later became his key disciples, accompanied him throughout, and in the end ascended together into the realm of the immortals.

Afterward, Perfected Lord Xu traveled across the rivers and lakes, slaying flood dragons and serpent monsters, with his disciples following him. Most of the others left in shame. West of Jianchang Prefecture (an ancient prefectural name) there is a ferry crossing called "Charcoal Woman Market," and "Jin Hao Miaoming" is also found in that place. [The meaning of this sentence in the original is not very clear; the place name and title are retained as in the original.]

End of the first volume of the Illustrated Biography of the Perfected Lord Xu, Grand Historian

Second volume of the Illustrated Biography of the Perfected Lord Xu, Grand Historian

Perfected Lord Xu returned to the prefecture with the two Perfected Ones, Gan and Shi, and toured the city. Just then a handsome young man in splendid robes and cap came to call, giving his surname as Shen. He was courteous in every way and quick in reply, and soon took his leave. Perfected Lord Xu turned to his disciples and said, "That was no ordinary person. He is the spirit-essence of an old flood dragon, sent to probe us. Though he looks human, he carries a fishy stench. I deliberately pretended not to know, hoping to draw out his confederates."

Having learned that the youth was an old dragon spirit, Perfected Lord Xu traced where he had gone and found that he had reached the riverbank, where he had turned into a yellow ox and hidden himself on the sand. Perfected Lord Xu then cut a piece of paper into the shape of a black ox and sent it to confront him.

(The following passage in the original repeats the earlier text, and the phrase "wang guo zhi" appears to be corrupt or incomplete, so it is translated according to the surviving wording.)

The Perfected Lord (Zhenjun) ordered his disciples to trace the flood dragon's whereabouts. They found it hiding on the riverbank outside the prefectural city, where it had taken the form of a yellow ox and lay on the sandy ground. That place is now known as Yellow Ox Isle. The Perfected Lord cut a piece of paper and transformed it into a black ox, sending it to lure the dragon away. He then secretly sent Shi Cen with a sword, instructing him to strike once the dragon had fallen into a deep sleep. Shi Cen did so and wounded its left leg. The yellow ox fled into a well south of the city. This well lies in the southeast corner of what is now Shanglan Temple, and so people call it the "Dragon Well."

The Perfected Lord then dispatched a Fulu (talisman and register) official, a type of functionary in Daoism who is commissioned to carry out tasks, to pursue the dragon to Changsha. The dragon emerged from Jia Yi's Well, took human form, and settled in the household of Jia Yu. It had already married Jia Yu's daughter some time before, lived there for several years, and fathered two sons. Every spring and summer it would travel out by boat, and in autumn it would return with a full load. This time it suddenly came back empty-handed and told Jia Yu that it had been robbed and that its leg was injured. Jia Yu summoned a physician, and the Perfected Lord, disguised as a physician, asked to be admitted. Jia Yu called for him, but the dragon would not come out. The Perfected Lord then strode into the hall and rebuked it angrily: "There are many flood dragons among the rivers and lakes. I have followed your trail all the way here. Do you think you can hide from me while wounded? Come out at once!" Only then did the dragon reveal its true form. The Perfected Lord had his troops put it to death at once. He then breathed upon the two children, turning them into young dragons. Jia Yu's daughter nearly became a dragon as well, but she was spared after her parents came forward and pleaded for her.

The Perfected Lord said to Jia Yu: "The place where a flood dragon dwells is by nature water. Beneath your house the water is not even a foot deep now, but it will all become a flood that engulfs the heavens. Move away quickly, and do not let yourselves be drawn into the water." Jia Yu's whole family, terrified, moved to higher ground. Before long, the original site did indeed collapse into a deep pool, so deep that no bottom could be seen. This is the present-day Zhao Pool in Changsha.

The Perfected Lord then returned to Yuzhang. By this time the dragon's remaining followers had grown powerful. Fearing that the Perfected Lord would wipe them out as well, they were deeply uneasy, and they took human form and wandered about the city. They asked after the Perfected Lord's disciples, pretending: "My family lives in Chang'an, and for generations we have done good deeds. We have heard from afar that Master Xu possesses a divine sword, and we would like to know what power it holds." A disciple replied: "When my master's divine sword points at the heavens, the heavens split open. When it points at the earth, the earth cracks apart. When it points at the stars, the stars lose their usual courses. When it points at rivers, the rivers flow backward. No evil of any kind can withstand it. It is a sacred treasure." The strangers asked further: "Is there anything it cannot harm?" The disciple said: "Only winter melons and gourds."

Having believed the Perfected Lord's (Zhenjun) earlier words, the flood-dragon spirit transformed all its subordinates into winter melons and gourds. Their intertwined vines spread across the river until the surface was covered, as if they meant to drift downstream and out of the district.

When the Perfected Lord rose at dawn, he sensed an exceedingly heavy demonic qi (Qi) in the air. Looking toward the river, he saw that it was the flood-dragon's transformation. He handed his sword to Shi Cen and told him to tread upon the water and strike them down. The dragon's followers were cut down one after another, and almost none escaped. The river itself changed color.

The Perfected Lord then said to his disciples and the elders of the prefectural city: "This place is Fuzhou, where flood dragons hide. If we do not find a way to subdue it, it will come out again to cause trouble, and by then no one will be able to control it." He therefore commanded ghosts and spirits to cast an iron pillar in the well south of the inner citadel, as a lasting means of suppressing Fuzhou.

When the pillar was finished, the Perfected Lord left it standing several feet above the mouth of the well. Beneath it he fastened eight iron chains that hooked and locked the earth's veins (the underground channels said to hold the land's contours in place). He prayed: "If this iron pillar leans, the demons will rise again, and I shall return. If it stands upright, the demons will be destroyed forever." From then on, no demons appeared in the water, and the city enjoyed peace.

The Perfected Lord also worried that treacherous people of later ages might plot rebellion, so he left an inscription on the pillar: "This land has a favorable terrain, and its people are good-hearted, so no treacherous men will naturally arise here. Even if someone plots rebellion, they will in the end fail to succeed." Such, in essence, was the depth of his concern for future generations.

The Perfected Lord (Zhenjun) saw that water monsters such as flood dragons and giant clams had scattered and fled to the Poyang and Xunyang regions. Worried that they might return one day, he patrolled the rivers and lakes, looking for ways to destroy them. When he reached the summit of Mount Tiaoshao, he found three dragon lakes, whose caverns led to the great river and also connected with the Raozhou and Xinzhou regions. The Perfected Lord slew the dragon-monsters there and established the Yuyang Prefecture, the Kaihua Jing (靖) and the Taicheng Prefecture Jing (靖) to guard the area. A jing (靖) is a district that Daoism set up for cultivation and administration.

The Perfected Lord also cast iron talismans (Fulu) to guard the mouth of Poyang Lake and block the passage by which the monsters entered. The talismans still lie in the Zhongshi River above Hukou County. He also cast an iron cover to seal the Dark Pool (Xuantan) at Luling, closing off the lair where the monsters hid, then suppressed it with an iron talisman and guarded it with a spirit sword. Today the Chongzhen Temple on Feifu (Flying Talisman) Ridge stands on that spot.

The general Wang Dun rose in arms and marched against the imperial court, encamping beside the lake. The Perfected Lord went with Lord Wu and Guo Pu to pay him a visit. At a banquet, Wang Dun said, "I dreamed that a tree broke through the sky. What does this portend?" The Perfected Lord said, "This is not an auspicious sign." Lord Wu explained, "When the character for 'tree' (木) pierces the heavens above, it becomes the character 未, 'not yet.'" Wang Dun then had Guo Pu divine, and Guo Pu said, "This undertaking will not succeed." Wang Dun asked again, "Can my lifespan break through the decree of Heaven?" The Perfected Lord and Lord Wu again said it was not auspicious, and Guo Pu, after divining, also said, "It will not succeed." When Wang Dun asked how long he himself would live, Guo Pu answered, "If you raise troops, disaster will come swiftly. If you return to Wuchang, your life will be beyond measure." Enraged, Wang Dun asked Guo Pu how long he himself would live. Guo Pu replied, "Until noon today." Wang Dun immediately ordered his warriors to seize Guo Pu and behead him. The Perfected Lord tossed his wine cup into the air, and it turned into a bird that circled the rafters. When Wang Dun looked up, the Perfected Lord and Lord Wu had vanished.

The Perfected Lord and Lord Wu came to Jinling and wished to hire a boat to return to Yuzhang, but the boatman said he lacked anyone able to pilot it. The Perfected Lord told the people aboard, "Simply sit quietly with your eyes closed, and do not peek under any circumstances. I will pilot the boat for you." The people aboard agreed.

The Perfected Lord summoned two dragons and had them carry the boat forward between them. When they passed Chiyang, he pressed his seal into the cliff face on the west bank to ward off the water monsters, and they continued onward. The seal's impression can still be seen there today.

Perfected Lord Xu (Xu Zhenjun) and Lord Wu were flying through the air together in a dragon boat. Before long they passed over the summit of Mount Lu and arrived at the Golden Gate Cavern on Zixiao Peak. The two wished to enter the cavern and look around, so the dragon boat descended a little, brushing the treetops with a rustling "jia-jia" sound. Unable to contain their curiosity, the people aboard secretly peeked outside. The dragon then left the boat upon the layered peaks, broke off its mast, and hurled it into the deep ravine.

The Perfected Lord said to the boatman, "You did not heed my words. Where will you go from here?" The boatman bowed to the ground and begged the Perfected Lord to rescue him. The Perfected Lord taught him to eat spirit herbs and passed on to him methods for prolonging life and escaping death. The boatman afterward lived in seclusion on this mountain. To this day, the Iron Boat Peak still stands among the layered summits, and in the deep ravine lie stones into which the broken mast was transformed.

The Perfected Lord returned to the place where he had once lived in retirement. For several decades afterward, he paid no heed to worldly affairs. Each day he discussed the true meaning of cultivating the Dao (the Way) with his disciples and devoted himself entirely to the practice of the Great Dao. He wrote the "Song of the Drunken Longing for Immortals" and also composed the "Eight Treasures Teaching," which says: "Loyalty, filial piety, integrity, prudence, generosity, magnanimity, tolerance, and forbearance. With loyalty, one does not deceive; with filial piety, one does not disobey. With integrity, one is not greedy; with prudence, one does not err. Generosity wins the support of the people, and magnanimity leaves one with room to spare in handling affairs. Tolerance allows one to embrace others, and forbearance brings peace and ease."

The people of the village, transformed by his teaching, all corrected their faults, turned toward goodness, and kept far from wrongdoing, and the custom of honoring parents and cherishing brothers flourished. In daily life, the Perfected Lord's words and conduct were no different from those of ordinary people. Only the place where he dwelled was often filled with the calls and flight of immortal cranes, while auspicious clouds coiled around it.

In the second year of the Ningkang era, the jiaxu year, when the Perfected Lord was one hundred and thirty-six years old, on the first day of the eighth month, a procession of cloud-formed attendants descended from the heavens. Two immortals came down in carriages, accompanied by a magnificent retinue.

In the second year of the Ningkang era (374 CE), a jiaxu year, the Perfected Lord (Zhenjun) was one hundred and thirty-six years old. On the first day of the eighth month, a procession of colored clouds descended from the heavens, and two immortals came down in carriages, attended by a magnificent retinue. The Perfected Lord faced the sky and bowed in greeting.

The two immortals said, "By command of the Jade Emperor, we bestow upon you an imperial edict. You are appointed Grand Historian and Immortal of the Nine Provinces and Grand Envoy of Lofty Brilliance, and you are granted a robe of purple-colored feathers, one portion of jade ointment, and one portion of Golden Elixir (金丹, Jindan)." The Perfected Lord bowed and received them. One of the immortals then said, "I am Cui Ziwen, Duke of Jade Perfection." The other said, "I am Xiaqiu Zhong, Grand Minister of Primal Perfection." They told the Perfected Lord the date of his ascension to heaven, then departed on their cloud carriage.

The Perfected Lord gathered his disciples and the elders of the village and told them the date of his ascension, and a grand assembly was held in the courtyard. Each day banquets were set out with wine, and he spoke with the crowd of the sorrow of parting. He also taught them to do good and accumulate virtue (De, 德) in pursuit of the aim of becoming immortal, and had Lingjianzi and others record these teachings. Together with eleven disciples, he composed five-character poems, two from each person, ten poems of exhortation in all, to leave to the people of the world. He also passed down the "Formula of the Elixir of Great Merit and Fulfilled Wishes" to the disciples who were staying behind at home, and did not take them with him in ascending to heaven. These exhortation poems are the one hundred and twenty divination slips used today, and the formula of the Fulfilled Wishes Elixir has also been handed down in the world. Every year the Huangzhong Zhai assembly is still held.

On the fifteenth day of the eighth month, the Perfected Lord held a great purification assembly (zhai, 斋), specially inviting the people of the village, both old and young, to attend. At midday, auspicious clouds spread across the distance and music sounded from the sky. Canopies and dragon carriages appeared, and the officials and guards in attendance came down to the human world. Immortal youths and colorful maidens led the two envoys, Cui Ziwen and Xiaqiu Zhong, as they descended once more. The envoys proclaimed the Jade Emperor's decree: "The Director of Destinies of Qianshan has already been commanded to transmit the Golden Elixir to the world below. You should close out your debts and gather in your bodily form, and, bringing your body, your family, your kitchens and dwellings, and all your belongings, return to the Three Heavens. Hasten to cleanse away impurity, turn your back on the dusty world, and rise into the sky. You will be guarded by the Great Heavenly Warrior of the Left and the Flowing Gold Fire Bells, who will illuminate and open the Way of the Central Yellow (Zhonghuang). You must not be negligent or slack." The Perfected Lord bowed low and received the decree.

Following the edict and charge of the Jade Perfected Duke (Yuzhen Shanggong), the Perfected Lord (Zhenjun) decided to take his disciples with him. Though he had many disciples, only six met the conditions for traveling together; the rest each had their own appointed time for transcendence and ascension, and could not go along.

The Perfected Lord mounted the dragon carriage. He ordered Chen Xun and Shi He to carry the registers and lead the way, while Zhou Guang and Hui Heng drove the carriage. Huang Renlan accompanied him with his father and kinsfolk, and Xu Lie followed with his mother and kinsfolk. The Perfected Lord's immortal household, forty-two people in all, ascended to heaven together at the same moment, and even the chickens and dogs rose with them.

The people of the village could not bear to see the Perfected Lord leave. They pulled at him and begged him to stay, and they prostrated themselves on the ground, weeping, unable to endure the parting. The Perfected Lord therefore left behind his practice bell and a stone casket, to serve as relics commemorating the event in later days.

The Perfected Lord had a servant surnamed Xu, named Xu Da. Hearing that the Perfected Lord was about to ascend, he earnestly begged to go along. The Perfected Lord told him that the edict had fixed the number of those who could accompany him, and that the arrangement could not be changed because of his plea. He instructed Xu Da and his wife to carry their rice out of West Ridge. When Xu Da heard that the Perfected Lord had ascended, he hurried back in a panic, only to find that the party had already gone. He overturned the rice cart, and when he reached the scene he beat his chest and wept bitterly.

The Perfected Lord then taught him the arts of the Earth Immortal (dixian), techniques that allow one to cultivate long life and live in seclusion in the human world. Xu Da and his wife lived in seclusion together on West Mountain. The rice that had spilled from the overturned cart onto the ground later sprouted into growing rice plants. Since the couple did not wish to be recognized after retiring from society, they changed their surname to "Wu" (午). They receive offerings at Raw Rice Market (Shengmi Shi). Around Overturned Cart Ridge (Fanche Gang), people often encountered them; it is said that their whereabouts were unpredictable, and that they appeared at times and vanished at others.

As Master Xu's (Xu Xun) immortal procession rose into the sky, a medicine mortar and a cart hub fell from the heavens, followed by a chicken coop. More than ten li to the southeast of his residence, several rats also fell. Their intestines trailed out of their bodies, yet they did not die, and people supposed that they had stolen and eaten the immortal elixir. Those who later saw these sights all regarded them as auspicious omens.

After Master Xu ascended to heaven, colorful mists and propitious clouds filled the valleys, and a strange fragrance drifted across a hundred li in every direction, not fading for a full month. Earlier, when Master Xu returned from Jingyang, he had given Sichuan brocade as a token to Lady Shen (a female immortal of legend). She made it into hangings for her hall. When the time came for Master Xu's ascension, these hangings suddenly flew over and circled above his old residence for a whole day, then flew off again into the clouds.

In his early years, Master Xu had traveled with Guo Pu (a Jin-dynasty master of occult arts) in search of immortals and in selecting places of scenic splendor. As they passed Mount Qiwu in Yichun, Wang Shuo, son of the Chief Secretary Wang, welcomed them with warmth and reverence. Master Xu taught Wang Shuo the arts of immortality and said, "Before this place lies a grotto-heaven (a blessed land where immortals are said to dwell), and below it flows the Yuan River. It is well suited to building a Daoist temple." Wang Shuo followed his advice. Master Xu wrote the character "Jing" (靖) on the wall and departed.

When Master Xu ascended in flight, his cloud chariot passed over Mount Qiwu, and he sent two blue-robed messengers to bid farewell. Wang Shuo's entire family begged Master Xu to take them with him into immortality. Master Xu said, "Your immortal bones have not yet been perfected." Then an immortal herb, xianmao, came flying down, and he had them plant it, saying that taking it over a long period would bring longevity. Afterward, members of the Wang clan all lived to around one hundred years of age. To this day, the xianmao is still preserved in the Yuxu Temple in Linjiang.

The Perfected Lord Wu Xian, Imperial Censor of the Mysterious Capital and Divine Blazing One, was named Wu Meng, with the style name Shiyun, and came from Puyang. By nature he was deeply filial, and he spread Daoist methods in the region of Wu. Using a feather fan to draw a line across the water, he once crossed the Yuzhang River in broad daylight. On the fifteenth day of the tenth month in the second year of the Ningkang era of the Jin dynasty (374 CE), he received an edict from the Celestial Emperor and ascended in flight together with four disciples.

Qianhui: The Perfected Lord Peng Xian, personally named Kang and styled Wuyang, served as Left Assistant Director of the Imperial Secretariat during the Jin dynasty. He later became a disciple of the Perfected Lord Xu, cultivated the Dao, and attained it. On the twenty-fourth day of the eighth month in the second year of Yongchu under Emperor Gaozu of the Song, he was summoned by heavenly decree, and his entire household of twenty-six ascended to heaven together. The present-day Longxing Zonghua Temple stands on the site of his former residence.

Hongshi: The Perfected Lord Shi Xian, personally named He and styled Daoyang, was a native of Muyang County in Donghai. He served as a Daoist priest at the Fengxian Temple ("yellow caps" being a term for Daoists). Many seekers of the Way attached themselves to him. He became a disciple of the Perfected Lord Xu, cultivated the Dao, and attained it. He could command ghosts and spirits and sweep away malevolent forces. On the day the Perfected Lord Xu ascended to heaven, he was ordered, together with Chen Xun, to lead the way holding the scroll of registers, and rose to heaven alongside the dragon chariot.

Yuantong: The Perfected Lord Zhou Xian, personally named Guang and styled Huichang, was a native of Luling. He became a disciple of the Perfected Lord Xu, followed the methods of the Dao, and practiced diligently day and night. He built a dwelling more than a hundred paces west of his family home. This place is now called the Blessed Land of the Proclaimed Edict, also known as the Taixu Temple. On the day the Perfected Lord Xu ascended, he rose to heaven riding the dragon chariot.

Jingxing: The Perfected Lord Gan Xian, personally named Zhan and styled Bowu, was a native of Fengcheng. He became a disciple of the Perfected Lord Xu, cultivating the Dao, eliminating harms, and bringing benefit to all beings. On the seventh day of the first month in the first year of Dajian under the Chen dynasty, he was summoned by heavenly decree and ascended to heaven in a qilin-drawn chariot. The present-day Qingdu Temple in Fuzhou stands on the site of the compound where he once stored his elixirs; it is also called the Feihuang Temple.

Yongwu: The Perfected Lord Shi Xian, personally named Cen and styled Taiyu, was a native of Jiujiang. Possessed of extraordinary martial courage, he became a disciple of the Perfected Lord Xu, cultivated the Dao, and attained it. On the twenty-eighth day of the tenth month in the second year of Ningkang under the Jin, he was summoned by heavenly decree and ascended to heaven. The Zhide Temple on the Western Ridge stands where his terrace for watching the water dragon once was.

Shenhui: The Perfected Lord Zeng Xian, personally named Heng and styled Xingguo, was a native of Sishui. Learned and talented, he became a disciple of the Perfected Lord Xu. The Perfected Lord Xu transmitted to him essential methods of the Dao, efficacious talismans (Fulu), and the secret formulas of divine prescriptions, all of which he mastered completely. Later, he ascended to heaven in the dragon chariot together with the Perfected Lord Xu. The present-day Zhenyang Temple in Fuzhou preserves his traces.

The Perfected Lord Zhengte Chen (Chen Xun, courtesy name Xiaoju) was a native of Shuchuan. He was learned and widely informed. In the past, when Perfected Lord Xu served as magistrate of Jingyang, he entrusted Chen with the business of the magistracy; later he accepted him as a disciple and charged him with weighty duties, including the care of the scriptures and registers (Jing) and the guarding of the alchemical furnace. When Perfected Lord Xu ascended to the heavens, he ordered Chen and Shi He to carry the registers and lead the way ahead.

The Perfected Lord Hejing Yu (Yu Lie, courtesy name Daowei) lost his father in early childhood and served his mother with great filial devotion. His mother was the second elder sister of Perfected Lord Xu. Seeing that she was widowed, Xu built a house for her to the west of his own residence. Later, mother and son attained the Dao (the Way) together, and both received the Celestial Emperor's decree to become immortals among Xu's subordinates. It is said that forty-two relatives in all ascended to the heavens with them.

The Perfected Lord Chongdao Huang (Huang Renlan, courtesy name Ziting) was a native of Gao'an. He once served as a clerk in Qingzhou and rode to his post alone on horseback. Perfected Lord Xu gave his daughter to him in marriage. His father, Huang Fu, courtesy name Wanshi, had been recommended as "filial and incorrupt" and had served as an imperial censor. Father and son became disciples of Perfected Lord Xu together, and both later attained the Dao. Thirty-two members of the family ascended to the heavens with Xu in a dragon carriage.

The Perfected Lord Puhui Zhongli (Zhong Li, courtesy name Gongyang) was the son of Perfected Lord Xu's second elder sister. He lost both parents in early childhood, and Xu transmitted the supreme Dao to him. On the fifteenth day of the tenth month in the second year of the Ningkang era of the Jin dynasty, he ascended by the Celestial Emperor's decree. The present-day Danling Temple on Mount Xiangya in Xinjian County is said to have been his former dwelling.

The Celestial Master (Tianshi) Hu of the Dongzhen (Cavern of Perfection), named Huichao and styled Basu, is of unknown origin. He lived at Hongjing on Xishan in Yuzhang. Perfected Lord Xu transmitted to him the methods of prolonging life, of refining and nourishing the self and effecting transformation, and of transcending the Three Primes and Nine Cycles. On the fifteenth day of the second month in the third year of the Chang'an era of the Tang dynasty, he ascended to the heavens. The present-day Longxing Xuanmiao Temple is said to be the place where he slew the camphor-tree spirit.

Xu Taishi Zhenjun Tuzhuan, Volume 2