《道教灵验记》

The Daojiao lingyan ji (Records of Daoist Miraculous Verifications) documents miraculous events manifested at Daoist temples, sacred sites, and venerated images. It opens with a preface attributed to Emperor Huizong of the Song dynasty, while the main text was composed by Du Guangting.

The work is divided into four fascicles. The first three collect accounts of miraculous responses at Daoist temples, covering places such as the Kaiyuan Temple in Raozhou, the Zongxuan Temple on Mount Qingcheng, the altar of Lady Wei on Mount Nanyue, and the Iron Pillar of Hongzhou. They also record miraculous legends concerning the local earth deities within the temples, the buildings themselves, and natural disasters, as well as stories of officials who built temples and of divine or extraordinary events seen in dreams. The fourth fascicle, titled "Miraculous Responses of Venerated Images," describes the miraculous efficacy displayed by Daoist divine statues.

The Efficacious Account of the Gilded Bronze Statue at Danao Terrace, Nanping

The Efficacious Account of the Celestial Venerable (Tianzun) Stele of Shuzhou

The Efficacious Account of the Stone Celestial Venerable at Tangxing Weir

The Efficacious Account of the Iron Celestial Venerable at Changdao Abbey

The Efficacious Account of the Wooden Celestial Venerable

The Efficacious Account of the Iron Celestial Venerable at Xingdao Abbey, Shiyu County

The Efficacious Account of the Wooden Celestial Venerable at Xinguo Abbey, Hongzhou

The Efficacious Account of the Iron Celestial Venerable at Santai Abbey, Pengzhou

The Efficacious Account of the Perfected Lord Zhangren of Mount Qingcheng

The Efficacious Account of the Iron Celestial Venerable on Mount Yunding

The Efficacious Account of the Celestial Venerable at Wangxian Abbey, Xunyang

The Efficacious Account of Su Hu's Theft of a Venerable Image

Fascicle 5

Efficacious Images (Accounts of Efficacy Manifested by Statues of the Divine Venerables)

The Efficacious Account of Zhang Renbiao's Offerings to the Celestial Venerable Taiyi

The Efficacious Account of Yuan Feng's Offerings to the Celestial Venerable Taiyi

The Efficacious Account of Li Shao's Offerings to the Celestial Venerable Taiyi

The Efficacious Account of Sun Jingzhen's Offerings to the Celestial Venerable Who Saves from Suffering

The Efficacious Account of the Celestial Venerable at Qiling Abbey

The Efficacious Account of the Image of Lord Mao at the White Crane Temple

The Efficacious Account of the Venerable Image at Qinglin Abbey, Hezhou

The Efficacious Account of the Lingzhi Celestial Venerable of Tangxing County, Shu

The Efficacious Account of the Celestial Venerable Taiyi of Tangxing County

The Efficacious Account of Li Shao's Offerings to the Celestial Venerable Taiyi

The Efficacious Account of Sun Jingzhen's Offerings to the Celestial Venerable Who Saves from Suffering

The Efficacious Account of the Celestial Venerable at Qiling Abbey

The Efficacious Account of the Image of Lord Mao at the White Crane Temple

The Efficacious Account of the Venerable Image at Qinglin Abbey, Hezhou

The Efficacious Account of the Lingzhi Celestial Venerable of Tangxing County, Shu

The Efficacious Account of the Manifestation of the Celestial Venerable in Tangxing County

The Efficacious Account of Datong Abbey in Tanglong County, Yizhou

The Efficacious Account of Feiwu Baiya Abbey in Zizhou

Fascicle 6

Efficacy of Laojun (Accounts of Efficacy Manifested by the Supreme Lord Lao, Taishang Laoj

Volume 8 of the Records of Daoist Miracles (Daojiao lingyan ji) is titled "Miracles of the Celestial Master" (Tianshi). It collects miracle accounts concerning the Celestial Masters, including stories of the Celestial Master set in Zhaocheng Abbey, Shuzhou, and Lingzhou, as well as tales of people who dreamed of the Celestial Master or received talismans from him.

Volume 9 is titled "Miracles of the Perfected, the Queen Mother, the Generals, the Divine Kings, and the Youths." It records the manifestations of immortals and deities such as the Perfected Tao, the Queen Mother of the West, the Lord of the Azure Dragon, and the Perfected Lord Zhangren. It also relates stories of rescue or revelation by the Divine Kings, the Dragon Lords, and the flying celestial spirits.

Volumes 10 and 11 are titled "Miracles of Scriptures, Methods, and Fulu" (talismans and registers). They tell of the recitation of Daoist scriptures (jing) and incantations, among them the Scripture for Ascending to the Mysterious and Protecting Life, the Scripture on Salvation of Humanity, and the Tianpeng Incantation, as well as accounts of miracles that followed encounters with the Shangqing Scriptures. Fulu refers to the talismans and registers used in Daoist ritual, while yan means efficacy or fulfillment, that is, a miracle that proves true.

Miraculous Response of the Stone Casket Scripture (Shihan Jing) at Xiandu Temple

Miraculous Response of the Iron-Cast Seal-Script at the Corner of Xiangzhou City

Miraculous Response of Lu Hanzhen's Mercury-Star Stone Talisman Script

Miraculous Response of the True Script North of the Xuanwu Tower

Miraculous Response of Liu Qiandu's Merit Register

Miraculous Response of the Talisman of Venerable Master Ye of Yuxiao Palace

Miraculous Response of Jia Qiong's Reception of the Zhengyi Register (Zhengyi, Orthodox Unity)

Miraculous Response of Li Xuanli's Scripture for Protecting Life

Miraculous Response of Yin Yan's Yinfu Jing (Scripture of the Hidden Talisman)

Miraculous Response of Gao Xiang's Inner Writ of the Three Sovereigns

Miraculous Response of Zhang Qianyao's Tianpeng Incantation

Miraculous Response of Zhao Ye's Reception of the Zhengyi Register of the Eight Ranks

Volume Twelve

Miraculous Responses of Scriptures, Ritual Methods, and Fulu (Talismans and Registers)

Miraculous Response of the Monk Fa Cheng After Converting to the Daoist Scriptures

Miraculous Response of the Monk Xingduan After Converting to the Scripture of the Five Kitchens

Miraculous Response of Du Jianzhou's Scripture on Delivering from the Nine Darknesses and Absolving Sins

Miraculous Responses of Cao Jia's Daodejing (Dao De Jing), Which Was Not Destroyed by Fire, and of the Zhengyi Register of the Eight Ranks

Miraculous Response of Cui Gongfu's Xiandu Scripture

Miraculous Response of Cao Fu's Tianpeng Incantation

Miraculous Response of Old Deng's Scripture in the Pillow

Miraculous Response of Zhang Zhengyuan's Great Brahma Hidden Language

Miraculous Response of Chen Taiqing's Scripture of Salvation (Duren Jing)

Miraculous Response of Gan Mei's Sacred Incantation Scriptures

Miraculous Response of Zhang Rong's Ritual Registers

Miraculous Response of Yao Sheng's Yellow Court Scripture (Huangting Jing)

Volume Thirteen

Miraculous Responses of Ritual Instruments such as Bells and Chimes

Miraculous Response of the Bell at Qingxi Temple in Qingtian County

Miraculous Response of the Bell at Zongxuan Temple

Miraculous Response of the Bell at Taiping Temple

Miraculous Response of the Bell at Pengshan Temple in Meizhou

Miraculous Response of the Ancient Bell of Yuanchimu

Miraculous Response of the Bell at Yuxiao Palace

Miraculous Response of the Bell at Longxing Temple in Kaizhou

Miraculous Response of the Bell at Kaiyuan Temple in Shizhou

Miraculous Response of the Bell at the Shrine of the Perfected Lord Xu in Hongzhou

Miraculous Response of the Celestial Master's Sword (Tianshi)

Miraculous Response of Zhang Rang's Seal of the Yellow Deity Yuezhang

Miraculous Response of Fan Xiyue's Tianpeng Seal

Miraculous Response of the Bell at Yanqing Temple in Shangyu County, Yuezhou

Volume Fourteen

Miraculous Responses of Rituals such as Zhaijiao and the Presentation of Memorials. Zhaijiao (purification ritual) is a Daoist ceremony for seeking blessings, averting disasters, and making offerings to the spirits; the presentation of memorials is the submission of written petitions to the deities.

Miraculous Response of Emperor Wu of Chen Holding the Yellow Register Retreat

Miraculous Response of Emperor Wen of Sui Holding the Yellow Register Retreat

Miraculous Response of Emperor Gaozu of Tang Holding a Jiao Rite at Zongsheng Temple

Record of Verified Responses to the Dragon-Casting Ritual under Emperor Gaozong at Sanchuan: an account of the efficacious response that followed the dragon-casting ritual (Toulong) performed by Emperor Gaozong at Sanchuan.

Record of Verified Responses to the Dragon-Casting Ritual under Emperor Xuanzong at Dabao Temple: an account of the efficacious response that followed the dragon-casting ritual performed by Emperor Xuanzong at Dabao Temple.

Record of Verified Responses to the Bell at the Zhai Banquet under Emperor Xuanzong at Zhaocheng Temple: an account of how the sound of the bell manifested an efficacious response when Emperor Xuanzong held a Zhai (fasting and purification) rite at Zhaocheng Temple.

Fascicle 14 records efficacious events connected with Zhaijiao (purification ritual) and the presentation of memorials. Zhaijiao refers to the Daoist rites in which an altar is set up for sacrifice and prayer; the presentation of memorials means submitting petitions to the Celestial Bureaus (Tiancao), the offices of the heavenly realm in Daoist belief.

The titles in this fascicle include: the efficacy of the Yellow Register Retreat (Huanglu Zhai, a Daoist purification rite for seeking blessings and averting calamity) held by Emperor Wu of the Chen; the efficacy of the Yellow Register Retreat held by Emperor Wen of the Sui; the efficacy of the offering ritual (Jiao) held by Emperor Gaozu of the Tang at the Zongsheng Temple; the efficacy of Emperor Gaozong's dragon-casting at Sanchuan; the efficacy of Emperor Xuanzong's dragon-casting at Dabao Temple; the efficacy of the Zhai rite held by Emperor Xuanzong at Zhaocheng Temple; the efficacy of Emperor Xuanzong's presentation of the Yellow Plain Text (Huangsu Wen, a prayer written on yellow silk); the efficacy of Emperor Xizong's Golden Register Retreat (Jinlu Zhai, a Daoist purification rite for seeking blessings and prolonging life) held to pray for rain, of the Zhaijiao he held at Qingcheng, and of the offering ritual he established at Qingcheng; the efficacy of the offering ritual held by Ye Fashan; and the efficacy of Liu Tu's wearing of Fulu (talismans and registers).

Fascicle 15 likewise records efficacious events connected with Zhaijiao and the presentation of memorials. The titles in this fascicle include: the efficacy of the Divine Incantation Retreat (Shenzhou Zhai) held by Li Dan; the efficacy of Zhang He's memorial reporting the Celestial Bureau money, with an appended account of the memorial-money affairs at Qiongzhou and Chengdu; the efficacy of Tao Yinju's presentation of a memorial to pray for rain; the efficacy of the Divine Incantation Retreat held by Wang Zhaoshang; the efficacy of the Yellow Register offering ritual held by Du Hegong; an account of Magistrate Liu of Jixian, who disrupted a Yellow Register Retreat; the efficacy of Cheng Kegong's presentation of a memorial to pray for rain; the efficacy of the Yellow Register offering ritual held by the Grand Councilor Wei Gao; and the efficacy of the Yellow Register Retreats held by Li Yue and Li Yan.

Preface to the Records of Daoist Efficacious Responses: composed by Emperor Huizong of the Song.

The profound Dao (the Way) takes root in the undifferentiated state of primal wholeness, and the highest divinities manifest in realms beyond human measure. The Jing (scriptures) and proclamations declare and symbolize the purpose of union between humanity and the Dao; the temples and abbeys are the dwellings in which the spirits reside; Fulu (talismans and registers) are composed according to Daoist ritual law and used to carry out sacred rites; and fasting and sacrificial offerings express sincere devotion. Signs of efficacy and responsive resonance take many forms, and the descent of the divinities and their acceptance of offerings never err. These things awaken the common people of the world, and they also make plain the retribution that follows good and evil alike.

I know that my learning is shallow, yet I have been fortunate to inherit an age of great peace and to receive the blessings it brings. For this reason I have striven to keep myself pure and reverent, never daring to grow lax, and I also hope to spread the profound principles of the Dao so that all the people may understand them. I once read the Records of Daoist Efficacy (Daojiao Lingyan Ji) in twenty fascicles, compiled by Du Guangting. The events recorded in it are clear and essential, and its meaning is true and thorough; what has been heard of past and present is gathered within it and arranged in good order. Accounts of particular importance are preserved there as well. Hoping that this book will be transmitted for a long time, I have ordered that it be carved into printing blocks and published, so that people may study it and draw lessons from it, and so that it may nurture honest and generous customs. I now set down plainly the reason for compiling the book and inscribe it at the head of the volume.

Compiled by Du Guangting.

The Dao (the Way), when it acts, neither speaks nor strives; yet as the fundamental substance, it holds feeling and is worthy of trust. To practice Wuwei (non-action) is to let the myriad things change of their own accord; to be trustworthy is to adopt the mode of teaching that suits each particular situation. When the myriad things change naturally, they tacitly accord with the Dao of ultimate truth; when teaching is given according to the times, its transforming influence can be made manifest. The Daodejing (Jing, the scripture) says: "To the good I am good; to the not-good I am also good." This shows how Taishang (the Supreme One, the Daoist honorific for the highest Dao) returned the heart to an undivided state without discrimination, treating all people as though they were newborn infants.

The Shangshu (Book of Documents) says: "Do not revere only your own kin, for all under Heaven can become your kin; do not cherish only your own children, for the children of all under Heaven can be cherished." This means that the sage follows the great Dao and nurtures the people with compassion. Evil conduct must not be indulged, and good conduct must not be suppressed; both should be judged through rewards and punishments. The Daodejing says: "If a person is not good, what reason is there to abandon them?" Therefore the Son of Heaven and the Three Dukes (the high officials who assist the Son of Heaven) were established to guide the people away from evil and toward goodness. The scripture also says that evil done in the open can be punished by people according to law, while evil done in secret will be punished by ghosts and spirits. It further says that those who do good will draw down good Qi (vital energy), and those who do evil will draw down evil Qi. This is the purpose for which Taishang warned against evil and encouraged good.

The Shangshu says: "Heaven's bestowal of blessings follows no fixed rule: do good, and many auspicious things descend; do evil, and many calamities descend." This is the teaching of the sages, who modeled themselves on the Way of Heaven in urging good and warning against evil. Seen in this light, retribution for sin and reward for virtue answer as an echo answers a sound, or as a shadow follows a body, without the slightest deviation. This idea is not found only in Daoism and Buddhism; it was recorded long ago in the Confucian classics as well. King Xuan of Zhou dreaming of Du Bo, the Marquis of Jin dreaming of the Great Demon (a vengeful ghost of legend), the innocent Crown Prince Gong, the blameless Hun Liangfu, the Marquis of Qi's retribution in the form of a transformed boar, the Wei family's reward for tying knots of grass, the stories of Liangxiao and Si Dai, and the record of Zheng Xuan and Liu Lan are all cases set down in Confucian histories. The historians recorded these events faithfully, and they suffice as lessons on the retribution of sin and the reward of virtue, and as standards for judging good and evil.

Accumulated goodness leaves surplus blessings, and accumulated evil leaves surplus calamity: in the dark, ghosts and spirits watch; in the light, penal law punishes. All of these are means of encouraging good and punishing evil. The Dao does not personally govern the myriad things, and Taishang cherishes life and would never, by nature, treat people like straw dogs offered in sacrifice and judge them harshly; yet retribution is still shown to people. This is because the Daoist halls and sacred precincts (the fayu, Daoist temples and abbeys) and their divine images each have their guardians, and the true texts and sacred codes (zhenwen and lingke, Daoist scriptures and the regulations of ritual practice) are likewise protected; anyone who intrudes upon or insults them will surely incur guilt. For this reason, through the generations, instances of such manifest responses have been numerous.

Li Qizhi of Chengji compiled the Daomen jiyan ji (Records of Verified Marvels of the Daoist Gate) in ten fascicles, and Su Huaichu of Shiping compiled the Xuanmen lingyan ji (Records of Efficacious Marvels of the Mysterious Gate), also in ten fascicles; both works have been transmitted. Now I have sought out elders and gathered what I have seen and heard, compiling the Daojiao lingyan ji (Records of Efficacious Marvels of Daoism) in twenty fascicles. I hope that through these records I may widely encourage people to act with care and promote a culture that reveres goodness; here I only record events as they truly happened, without embellishment.

The Kaiyuan Abbey (Kaiyuan guan, a Daoist temple) of Raozhou originally stood on the northern shore of the lake, one or two li from the city. It had lofty halls, tiered pavilions, and broad covered corridors, with a waterside pavilion built over the lake and secluded kiosks set among the pines. Pines and bamboo grew in alternating density, and flowers and trees flourished, making it a favorite place for local people to escape the summer heat and enjoy the spring.

Later, the Daoists at the abbey dwindled in number, and its corridors and side halls gradually collapsed. Only the Shangqing Pavilion, the main hall, the dining hall, and the main gate remained within the city. The common people had also built many graves on the abbey grounds, so that apart from the altar and halls, almost all of the land had become a cemetery.

In the second year of the Dazhong era (848), the people of the prefecture suddenly heard, in the night, the voices of tens of thousands of people, roaring like wind and thunder. At daybreak, they found that more than forty structures of the abbey, including its halls, pavilions, and gates, had moved to the southern shore of the lake and now stood on level ground. The layout, the lay of the land, and the distances between the buildings at the new site were all identical to those of the old one. The prefect reported the matter to the court and petitioned to change the abbey's official name in honor of this marvel. The court decreed that it should still be called Kaiyuan Abbey, but renamed the Shangqing Pavilion the Pavilion of Divine Transport (Shenyun ge), and ordered it rebuilt. Afterward, people near and far turned their hearts to the Dao (the Way) and vied to donate their wealth, and the abbey was restored to a gleaming newness. The record states that the new site lay more than two li from the old one, with a lake between them. This relocation was the work of the spirits, and it also depended on the response of the sages.

The Laojun Temple (Laojun Guan) at Fengshan, north of Xingyuan Prefecture, lies a little over two li away. A lake separates it from the city, and one must cross the water to reach it; this waterway is said to have been made by divine power and depends on the spirits' manifest响应 efficacy.

Records of Miraculous Responses at the Laojun Temple at Fengshan, North of Xingyuan Prefecture

The Laojun Temple at Fengshan, north of Xingyuan Prefecture, was built by Gong Muhua. It faces Nanzheng across the river. Tradition holds that traces of the site date back to remote antiquity, and that it was a place where Laojun (Lord Lao) manifested himself and taught the Dao (the Way).

When Emperor Gaozu of the Han raised his army in Hanzhong and prepared to seize Sanguan Pass and pacify the Three Qin, he sent officials to offer sacrifices and announce the undertaking here. The handwriting left by Zhang Liang still survives, though in recent times it has worn down so far that it can scarcely be read.

When Zhang Lu, General Who Pacifies the South and Governor of Liangzhou and Yizhou, governed the Han River region, he promoted the teachings of Zhengyi (Orthodox Unity). He built additional halls, altars, and meditation chambers, and erected a tall pavilion beside the source of the Laojun waters. A divine dragon dwells in the water; it has been venerated through the generations and has shown its efficacy many times.

After Grand Preceptor Yang Shouliang lost Liangcheng, he later returned to it. By then most of the government offices had been burned, so he requisitioned and supervised the supply of tiles and timber in order to rebuild the official buildings. An official petitioned to take timber and tiles from the Laojun Temple for public use, and men were sent to tear the temple down.

The villagers believed that the temple was protected by the spirits and had always answered with efficacy, so they asked everyone to pool their money and compensate the authorities for the timber and tiles at their value, in order to save the temple. Some said the temple was old, and its timbers and tiles were rotten and not worth using. The official ignored these appeals and ordered the workmen up onto the roof to dismantle it.

Before long, a huge serpent more than ten zhang long coiled itself upon the roof and opened its jaws toward the crowd. The official and the workmen fell from the roof; several died on the spot, and the rest fled in panic. The Grand Preceptor was furious and ordered the temple burned. The soldiers rushed forward in an uproar, but the villagers said that the spirits here were efficacious, and the soldiers grew still more afraid to advance, halting more than a hundred paces from the temple. Suddenly thunder and lightning crashed together and rain poured down in torrents, and the terrified soldiers withdrew. The temple still stands today.

Records of Miraculous Responses at the Suling Temple in Yangzhou

The Suling Palace (素灵宫, Suling Gong) in Yangzhou is said to have been built by Emperor Wu of the Han as an inner hall for the descent and manifestation of the Lady Suling. It stands at the foot of Mount Taibai. With the passage of the years, only a single site of the palace-temple complex remained. In the year that Emperor Gaozu of the Tang arrived in Chang'an to accept the abdication of Emperor Gong of the Sui, he dreamed of a spirit-being dressed in plain white, who said: "I am the lord of Mount Taibai, and I dwell at the Suling Terrace. It has fallen into ruin and neglect." Gaozu then ordered an investigation of the site and had terraces and halls specially built there, naming the complex the Suling Palace.

During the Kaiyuan era, it is said that a Celestial Master (Tianshi) once performed a Zhaijiao (斋醮, a Daoist purification ritual involving fasting, the setting up of an altar, and prayers for blessings and the warding off of calamity) in the palace by imperial decree. When Emperor Dezong toured the Liang and Yang regions, he too intended to visit the Suling Palace, and so it was repaired and adorned once more. Later, someone wished to tear down the palace and convert it into a government office. When the workers removed the roof tiles, they discovered countless venomous snakes living in the eaves gutters, and no one dared to proceed. When this was reported to a superior, a certain Feng grew angry and ordered his runners to set the building on fire. No sooner had the runners dragged up the firewood than thunder and lightning crashed fiercely together, and a violent wind and rain descended all at once. The runners fled in panic, and several of them lost their lives. From then on, people believed that the place was spiritually efficacious, and no one dared to encroach upon the palace again.

Accounts of miraculous efficacy at the Zhaocheng Abbey (昭成观) in the Upper Capital.

The Zhaocheng Temple (Zhaocheng Guan, a Daoist temple) stood in the Shangdu capital, Chang'an. Emperor Minghuang built it for Empress Dowager Zhaocheng, and it was situated in Tongfang Ward within Banzheng Quarter, with its northern side against Anfu Gate Street, facing the Jinxian Temple. Within the temple stood a statue of Laojun (Lord Lao, the deified Laozi) a hundred feet tall, enshrined amid tiers of pavilions; the seated figure itself was thirty feet high. The paintings and ornamentation on the statue were all executed by the hands of Wu Daozi, Wang Xianqiao, and Yang Tuizhi. Minghuang appointed Xiao Miao, courtesy name Xuansu, the Commissioner of Daoist Affairs for the Realm, to oversee the work.

Above the pavilion were owl-tail finials (chiwei, ornaments at the ends of the roof ridge) eight feet tall, and the eaves of the corridors on either side hung more than thirty feet above the ground. Of all the Daoist temples in Chang'an, the Zhaocheng Temple was the most magnificent and splendid, and only the great hall of the Xuandu Temple could compare with it.

After Emperor Xizong recovered Chang'an and his carriage returned to the palace city, the officials in charge planned to build administrative halls. Wishing to use existing foundations so as not to burden the common people, they selected tall and imposing halls to be relocated and rebuilt. The officials petitioned to dismantle the corridors and pavilions of the Zhaocheng Temple, and during the work more than ten laborers fell to their deaths. People at the time took this as a manifestation of the spirits and wished to petition for the demolition to be spared, but in the end the pavilions were destroyed, and the statue of Laojun was left exposed to wind and rain. That winter, Emperor Xizong set out again for Chencang, and the plan to build the Hanyuan Hall was also abandoned. Those who understood what lay behind these events could not help but lament it.

Manifest Efficacy at the Zongxuan Temple on Mount Qingcheng

(In the original, the title "Efficacy at the Zongxuan Temple on Mount Qingcheng" then appears again, followed by a repetition of the closing passage above.)

Zongxuan Temple (Zongxuan Guan) on Mount Qingcheng was known in ancient times as Changdao Temple (Changdao Guan). It stood before the Altar where the Yellow Emperor received the registers, beside the Liushi Cliff. It was later seized by Buddhist monks, and the Daoist temple was moved outside the mountain, while the original site was converted into the Feifu Monastery. The monks there were often disturbed by uncanny occurrences: sometimes flying stones smashed the buildings, and sometimes doors and windows were torn off and hurled down the cliff. The monastery's great bell was also thrown into the valley three times, and each recovery cost enormous labor and expense. The monks knew the place was not fit for long residence, and they suffered greatly from it.

In the nineteenth year of the Kaiyuan era (731), the Daoist Wang Xianqing petitioned the throne to move the temple back to its old site and have the monastery relocated outside the mountain. The emperor issued an edict ordering Zhang Jingzhong, Chief Administrator of Yizhou, together with Wang Xianqing and the senior eunuch official Wang Huaijing, to oversee the relocation. The emperor also bestowed images and stone statues of the two princesses, Jinxian and Yuzhen, to be installed in the temple as its guardians. The Yellow Emperor's True Script Banner, the Yindao Mountain inscribed tablet, and the stele bearing the imperial edict were likewise erected within the temple. Afterward the Daoists lived there, and even a person alone felt safe and unafraid.

Near the end of the Xiantong era (around 874), the Daoists left and the temple gradually fell into ruin, leaving only the main hall and the stone altar. Bamboo and trees grew thick and covered the old site, even sprouting beside the steps and eaves. Two Buddhist monks came to live there and planned to merge the temple into Feifu Monastery. After a month or more, they had settled their plans and were ready to destroy the divine images and occupy the land. Thereafter, a great snake lay across them as they slept at night, and flying sand fell into their food as they ate by day. They also saw a hand as large as a winnowing basket and a hairy foot as thick as a pillar, heard faint sounds echoing in the valley, and sometimes saw great boulders fall from the sky in front of their dwelling. The two monks, terrified, fled in haste.

In the year Jihai of the Qianfu era (879), the county magistrate Cui Zhenggui and the Daoist Zhang Suqing rebuilt the temple. When the emperor toured Western Shu, it was requested that the temple be named Zongxuan Guan, and this was approved. When the temple held a Zhaijiao (purification ritual, in which an altar is set up for prayer and offerings to the deities), divine lamps appeared all over the mountain, the spirit bell sounded of its own accord, a golden snake appeared on the altar, and the withered pine before the mountain grew again. The emperor issued an edict of commendation and had these events recorded in the national history and in the stele inscription commemorating his tour of Western Shu. Whenever a Jiao offering was held on an auspicious night, the sound of immortal chimes drifted through the air; when the regional military governor performed the Throwing of the Dragons (Toulong) rite (a Daoist ritual in which dragon-shaped offerings are cast into water), auspicious clouds gathered above the forest. From this we can see that the place was regarded as a secluded, blessed realm where immortals dwell. How could ordinary mortals presume to encroach upon it?

Wen Zhu was a native of Chang'an. His parents sent him to study at a country estate elsewhere and built a study hall for him on a mound in front of the estate. But he was by nature idle and unrestrained, and he disliked reading. He cared only for shooting birds and hunting beasts with the young men of the neighborhood, treating it all as a game. He kept an array of hunting gear, including nets, bows and arrows, and bladed weapons, and over several years the birds and animals he killed or captured were beyond counting.

One day a Daoist priest saw him and said, "Why has your head suddenly changed?" Startled, Wen Zhu asked what he meant. The priest led him down below the terrace and had him bend over and look into a well. In the water Wen Zhu saw his own reflection: the head of a beast on a human body. He wanted to confess his fault to the priest and beg for mercy, but when he looked at the water again, his body stayed the same while his head changed many times in an instant, sometimes like a bird, sometimes like a wild beast, a snake, or a fish. Wen Zhu was both amazed and terrified.

The priest said, "The myriad beings all cling to life, and birds and beasts likewise cherish theirs. You have defied the Dao (the Way) of Heaven by killing them, and so you receive this retribution. Each time your head changes, you must endure one lifetime. For every living creature you have killed, you must repay in turn. As days and months accumulate, these repayments will use up your allotted years. From now on your body will die, and you will be reborn among different kinds of creatures to repay the lives you took. Even after a thousand or ten thousand years, you may not recover a human form."

Weeping, Wen Zhu begged for help. He promised to burn all his hunting gear, repent, reform, and never offend again. Seeing his sincere remorse, the priest said, "By command of the Supreme One (Taishang, a venerated Daoist deity), I pass through the kalpas saving beings from suffering. I am called the Perfected Savior from Suffering. You have an old bond with the Dao and should have met a cultivator of the Way earlier. If I did not save you now, you would sink for a long time with no means of escape." The priest then handed Wen Zhu his own Daoist robe and told him to cultivate the Dao for the rest of his life, doing good in secret, helping people, and broadly protecting living beings, so that his earlier sins might be cleared away.

When he had finished speaking, the priest leapt up and rose several zhang above the ground, standing on a golden lotus. In his left hand he held a jade bowl, and in his right a willow branch. He wore a golden crown and phoenix shoes, stood over three zhang tall, and radiated light of five colors from his whole body, shining up to the sky and illuminating all around. Soon after, he vanished.

Wen Zhu burned his nets and other hunting gear, put on the Daoist robe, and built a hall on the site. He sculpted an image of the Perfected Savior from Suffering as he had seen him, and practiced diligently day and night, burning incense and confessing his faults. After more than ten years of living there, he was also moved to receive from true immortals the secret formulas of medicine. He then traveled widely, healing the sick and relieving others' suffering. Later he attained the Dao and departed. Locals say the place came to be called "Wen Zhu Terrace," and the statue of the Celestial Worthy Who Saves from Suffering still stands there today.

Later, some Buddhist monks passed by and saw the statue. They said, "Since this is a sacred site of Wen Zhu, how could it hold the merit of a Daoist? It seems the Daoists have had ill intent and have been occupying our ancient site for many years." They pulled up a large log, and two of them together struck the Celestial Worthy's neck with it. They failed to damage it and only wore themselves out. After resting a little, they found that the spot where the Celestial Worthy had been struck had returned to its original state. Meanwhile, their own mouths, ears, noses, and necks ached terribly, and when they looked at their hands, those too had been broken. They crawled about crying loudly for help, told the crowd what had happened, and died after a long while.

In Dayuan Temple...

Correction: I begin directly below.

At the Datong Temple (Datong Guan) in Tangxing County, Shuzhou, there stood a Ziwei Pavilion. It was built during the Kaiyuan era of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang by the Daoist priest Cai Shouchong, using silk bolts bestowed by the emperor. With the passing of the years, the temple's corridors and gate halls collapsed one after another, and only this pavilion survived. During the Zhonghe era, warfare spread into the countryside and the county was overrun. A local man named Luo and his son, who were habitually violent and reckless, suddenly set fire to the Ziwei Pavilion. Everyone grieved deeply, but there was no time to put out the flames.

After the bandits were put down, the villagers gathered at the pavilion's ruins to celebrate, and together held a zhai (a vegetarian offering ritual, one form of Zhaijiao, the Daoist purification ritual). While the ritual was under way, Luo and his son pushed into the crowd to beg for food, and some, taking pity on them, gave them something to eat. Then someone said to them: "In the midst of the chaos you could not even look after your own lives, yet for no reason you burned down this pavilion. It was built at enormous expense and had stood for many years as an ancient landmark, and you destroyed it in an instant. Do you not fear punishment from the spirits? How dare you come here begging for food?"

No sooner had the man finished speaking than Luo and his son leapt more than ten feet into the air and crashed heavily to the ground. This happened five or six times, and they cried out miserably the whole while, until after a short time they died. When the onlookers looked, the flesh and bones of father and son had come apart.

Records of Efficacious Responses from the Qingyang Hall of Chengdu (Chengdu Qingyang Dian Lingyan Ji)

The Qingyang Gong (Green Ram Temple) was built by imperial decree in the renyin year of the Zhonghe era. By the ninth month of the youyou year, the surrounding halls and buildings had been repaired and were gleaming like new. At that time, many houses outside the city had been burned down, and in the temple there was an enormous wooden beam that took ten men working together to drag.

Suddenly a strong, sturdy soldier said, "I can lift it by myself." Everyone laughed at him. Yet, to everyone's surprise, he did indeed shoulder the beam alone and carry it into the city. Someone asked what he meant to do with the timber if he bought it, and he said, "It would be a waste of this wood. I want to send it to the Yanzhen Guan (Yanzhen Temple)." Another replied, "What use is it to give it to the Daoists as firewood?" With that, he raised an axe to chop it. Before the axe came down, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his arm, dropped the axe, and died in an instant.

A man from the same lane, who had also been gathering timber, said: "In the Hall of Laojun (Lord Lao) at Qingyang, no one was willing to tear down this beam. It was this soldier who ordered everyone to begin dismantling it first. At the start, a great serpent crept out from beneath the base of the divine statue, and he dragged it out and killed it; he also damaged the venerated image. That he died so strangely must mean the spirits punished him in accordance with the principle of Heaven. He was young and strong, so who could possibly have harmed him?" Everyone who heard this was filled with awe. The beam remained there for another year, and afterward no one knew where it had gone.

Tenth account of efficacious responses at the Taiqing Gong (Palace of Great Purity) in Bozhou.

The Taiqing Palace (Taiqing Gong) in Zhenyuan County, Bozhou, is the birthplace of the Sage Ancestor Laojun (Lord Lao, the Laozi venerated in Daoism). From the Yin and Zhou dynasties down to the Tang, the nine wells and three ancient cypress trees within the palace were always preserved. During the Wude era the old cypresses grew anew, and during the Tianbao era palace halls were built again. The historic site had been repaired by order of Emperor Xuan and Emperor Huan of the Han, and the Emperor Taiwu of Wei and Emperor Wen of Sui planned and built further structures there. Bian Shao and Xue Daoheng composed stele inscriptions recording these events.

Portraits of six emperors, Gaozu, Taizong, Gaozong, Zhongzong, Ruizong, and Xuanzong of the Tang, were displayed on either side of the statue of Laojun. The complex consisted of two palaces and two temples, with more than a thousand ancient cypresses and over seven hundred rooms, and five hundred soldiers were stationed there as guards.

During the Xiantong era, Pang Xun seized Xuzhou, and the court assembled armies from the various circuits to attack him, so that the encirclement was about to close. Fearing he could not hold out for long, Pang Xun led more than three thousand men straight to the Taiqing Palace, intending to take it as a fortified base. At that time more than a thousand households of refugees were sheltering inside the palace. People saw black vapor rise from a well, and after a long while a dense fog spread and covered the entire place. Laojun appeared in the sky, and Pang Xun's followers lost their way and trampled one another. The bridge they crossed to fetch firewood and water also collapsed, and the men fell into the water and drowned. Then the sky cleared, and not one of the rebel soldiers survived.

During the Guangming era, a commander under Huang Chao led men intending to burn the Taiqing Palace, but they too met a black fog filling the countryside and lost their way. Other bandits roamed everywhere and likewise tried to invade and damage the palace, but they became lost and went away.

Later, the city of Bozhou was besieged, and the assault grew ever fiercer. The prefect Pan Chou burned incense facing the government office and prayed for divine help. Before long, black fog poured out from the palace and encircled the outside of the city. The fog carried a foul wind and poisonous vapors, and anyone who breathed them fell at once. Heavy snow then fell, and the cold was extraordinary, so that five or six in every ten of the attackers died. At the start of the assault, countless divine crows had also carried arrows in their beaks and dropped them into the ground, which had already astonished the rebel soldiers. Afterward, the city within was clear and calm, while outside it wind and snow raged and many froze to death. Fearing this divine power, the rebels lifted the siege and left, and soon afterward they too scattered.

Pan Chou reported to the throne that since the great rebellions had struck Guanzhong, rebels great and small had attempted to invade the Taiqing Palace eighteen times in all. Some lost their way, and some met the manifestation of dragon spirits, and in the end none succeeded. The palace city remained unharmed, and the number of residents it sheltered was beyond counting. He requested that Zhenyuan County be moved to a site near the Taiqing Palace. The court replied that it feared moving the county seat next to the palace would cause defilement and disturbance, so the county seat remained where it was, and, following the precedent of Wannian County, it was raised to the status of a "red county" (chixian, a special county-level designation for the capital region). The court also issued an edict bestowing a Qingci (a prayer text presented to the deities during Daoist ritual) and ordered that a Zhaijiao (purification ritual) be held to report the events and give thanks.

Mengjin Temple (Mengjin Guan) stood outside the county seat of Changming in Mianzhou, across the river, on a mountain summit. Its halls rose high and its pavilions towered majestically. Looking down on the Yangtze and close to the village settlements, it was one of the most scenic places in the county.

After Grand Commandant Lord Pingyang conquered Dongchuan and took up his post as military governor, he had Mengjin Temple burned down. Later, when government offices lay vacant, Lord Pingyang was unwilling to conscript labor and burden the common people to repair the official buildings. The garrison commander of Changming, Baosheng, submitted a report: Mengjin Temple was separated from the county seat by a river, few Daoists lived there, and its location beside the waterway made boat traffic convenient. He requested permission to dismantle the temple's buildings and roof tiles, bind the timber into rafts, and ship it downstream for urgent use.

Lord Pingyang hesitated and did not decide. The construction commissioner likewise said the matter was pressing and suggested that government labor be borrowed first to complete the work and the materials be returned afterward. Lord Pingyang then gave his approval. Baosheng brought craftsmen and laborers to the temple to take down the buildings, dismantling eighteen bays in all, including the halls and corridor buildings. The materials were then carried to the riverbank and lashed into rafts, ready to be loaded onto boats and sent away.

However, venomous snakes lay hidden beneath the roof tiles of the main hall, the triple gate, and the Pavilion of the Five Sages, and no one could set about removing them. That very day, Baosheng felt pain in his legs and knees, as though he had contracted "tiger wind" (a disease that causes painful limbs and difficulty moving). Within ten days, one of his legs had rotted away and broken off. When the Grand Commandant heard of this, he sent the dismantled timber to Kaiyuan Temple (Kaiyuan Guan) north of the city, and in the end it was never used.

End of Scroll One of the Records of Daoist Miracles (Daojiao lingyan ji).

End of Volume One of the Records of Daoist Miracles (Daojiao Lingyan Ji).

1. The title "Miracle of the Kaiyuan Temple in Raozhou" is recorded in the Yunji Qiqian as "Miracle of the Divinely Transported Halls and Pavilions Crossing the Lake at the Kaiyuan Temple in Raozhou."

2. "One or two li from the city" is recorded in the Yunji Qiqian as "two li from the city."

3. "Buried within the grounds of the Daoist temple" is recorded in the Yunji Qiqian as "buried in the temple grounds."

4. "No different from the old temple" is recorded in the Yunji Qiqian as "the same as the old one."

5. The title "Miracle of the Su Lingguan in Yangzhou" is recorded in the Yunji Qiqian as "Miracle of Feng Xingxi's Destruction of the Su Lingguan in Yangzhou."

6. "Only had" is recorded in the Yunji Qiqian as "only remained."

7. The title "Miracle of the Wenzhu Terrace South of the City" is recorded in the Yunji Qiqian as "Miracle of the Two Monks, Wenzhu and Kui, Striking the Statue of the Heavenly Worthy Who Saves from Suffering."

8. In this sentence, the Yunji Qiqian does not have the two characters "weixue" (for study).

9. This sentence is recorded in the Yunji Qiqian as "draped in the celestial robe of a Daoist."

10. This sentence is recorded in the Yunji Qiqian as "Miracle of Laojun at the Taiqing Palace in Bozhou Defeating the Bandits."

11. This sentence is recorded in the Yunji Qiqian as "caught the bandit's arrow in its mouth."

12. "Imperial edict: it is feared that the county seat will need to be relocated closer to the government offices" is recorded in the Yunji Qiqian as "Imperial decree: it is feared that the county seat will need to be relocated closer to the government offices."

13. This sentence is recorded in the Yunji Qiqian as "performed the purification rite and gave thanks."

Volume Two of the Records of Daoist Miracles

Compiled by Du Guangting, Master Guangcheng

Miracles of Daoist Temples

Miracle of the Foundation of the Scripture Hall of Perfected Zhou

Zhou Zhenren (Perfected One Zhou), whose name was Taixuan, was a disciple of Tao Yinju (the Recluse Tao). He attained the Dao (the Way) at twenty-one, and the immortal rank he realized even preceded that of Tao Yinju. He lived on the site of today's Ziyang Temple, in front of Mao Ridge. The land there is level and open, and the scenery is bright and graceful, truly a blessed place.

Beside the main hall was a slightly raised piece of ground that looked like the foundation of an old building, though no trace of cartwheels or human labor could be seen on it. Taixuan planted flowers and trees there. He often saw people in tall caps and wide robes, sometimes in groups of three or five, sometimes in twos or threes. He also saw armored men carrying weapons, standing there on bright moonlit nights when all was still.

A child in the household named Xiaodou, only five or six years old, often played on that ground. Several times someone suddenly carried the child into the courtyard, and the child was never hurt. One day Taixuan told Master Tao about these strange sights. Master Tao said: "This is the old residence of Master Xu of the Jin dynasty. It was the foundation of the hall where the Supreme Scriptures were kept, and it lies right on this ground. Build a meditation chamber quickly and use it for burning incense. Nothing disrespectful or impure may be done inside."

Taixuan asked: "Why would so many spirits guard a place where the Supreme Scriptures were once kept?" Master Tao replied: "Where the precious scriptures of the Three Caverns (a classification of Daoist scriptures) were once kept, the myriad numinous beings attend as guards and the hundred spirits come to pay homage. How could one fail to revere such a place?"

Taixuan said: "The true scriptures were taken away long ago and this place is empty. Do the perfected spirits still guard it?" Master Tao answered: "Where the Supreme Scriptures were kept, the earth deities (local spirits of the land) stand guard for seven hundred years. Where a fayu (a Daoist ritual altar or sacred space) was built, they guard for a thousand years. Where the Zhengyi (Orthodox Unity) scriptures and methods were kept, benevolent spirits guard for three hundred years. Even after the scriptures have been removed, as long as the term of guardianship has not run out, the spirits continue to protect the place."

Taixuan then built the meditation chamber and burned incense and lit lamps there every morning and evening. Yet Taixuan did not dare to perform worship or cunsi (meditative visualization) inside it, worried that their own spiritual rank was still low and that a gulf between the ordinary and the sacred still separated them from the true immortals.

Record of Efficacious Responses at the Immortal Altar of Lady Wei of Nanyue.

The Altar of Lady Wei sits upon a huge boulder in front of the central peak of Nanyue (the Southern Peak). It is a single massive stone, more than ten feet across, square and steady in form, round below and flat on top, as though it were resting loosely upon another rock. Someone once tried pushing it alone and felt that it might be made to turn, yet when many people pushed together, it stood firm and did not move. Tradition holds that the altar is wondrously efficacious: immortals and hermits often come to rest there, and strange auspicious clouds frequently hang over its summit.

One night, more than ten monks came to the altar carrying torches and staves, intending to harm the immortal lady. They entered her dwelling and saw her lying on her bed, but the monks themselves went unseen by her. They then went to the altar, hoping to topple the Altar of Lady Wei. The great stone rumbled as though it had already fallen, but when they raised their candles to look, the altar had not shifted in the slightest. Realizing the place was spiritually potent, they fled in haste.

At daybreak, these men reached a village some distance away, the farthest of them having traveled no more than ten or so li. Ten of them were traveling together, and nine were killed by a tiger. Only one man, who had taken no part in the wrongdoing while the others pushed the altar, was spared from the tiger. He told the villagers what had happened, and when people near and far heard of it, they were all astonished.

The passage headed "Hongzhou Iron Pillar Verification" and the text after it about ten men attacked by a tiger repeat the earlier content; the closing "Hongzhou Iron Pillar Verification 4" is a heading or leftover text.

The Iron Pillar of Hongzhou was cast by the immortal Master Xu. During the Jin dynasty, Yuzhang was plagued by water beasts such as giant flood dragons and huge serpents, which wantonly harmed the common people. Master Xu and his teacher, Master Hao, had learned the Zhengyi (Orthodox Unity) technique of the "Slaying of Evil by the Three-Five Flying Steps" (a Daoist exorcistic art), which enabled them to subdue all manner of spirits and demons.

Master Xu once chased a flood dragon with his sword into a well in Tanzhou, and the dragon escaped through that well. After emerging, he said to Master Hao, "Beneath this well lies the dragon's lair. If it is not suppressed, then every three hundred years the dragon will emerge to bring calamity upon the people. Who will be able to subdue it afterward?" He then commanded ghosts and spirits to haul in several million jin of iron, and cast an iron pillar within the well. The pillar rose several feet above the mouth of the well, standing like a mountain. Beneath the well he also laid eight thick iron chains to lock down the earth's veins. From then on, the Zhongling region was free of demonic mischief, and free of the disasters of sinking land and drowning floods.

Master Xu made a vow: "If later generations damage my iron pillar, the city will sink and the river waters will overflow." Everyone knew this vow, and so no one dared to offend against the pillar. Once, some fishermen chipped iron from the pillar to use as weights for their nets, causing considerable damage. More recently, the authorities have also forbidden this practice.

When Yan Shijie governed Jiangxi, he believed slanderous and defamatory words and sent men to dig up the iron pillar, intending to smash it. Suddenly thunder crashed and the river surged over its banks. They had dug only two or three feet when the city began to shake, and people both inside and outside the walls were seized with terror. Only then did Yan Shijie believe, and he burned incense, prayed, and made apology before halting the excavation. The Daoist temple beside the pillar, which he had destroyed, was recently rebuilt.

Miraculous Responses at the Changpu Temple of Guangzhou

The Changpu Temple of Guangzhou is the place where Master Anqi attained the Dao through cultivation. It contains a medicinal herb garden, an elixir well, and a numinous stream.

The Jupu Temple (Jupu Guan) in Guangzhou is traditionally said to be the place where Master Anqi (a immortal of Daoist legend) cultivated the Dao and refined his true nature. It had a medicine garden, an elixir well, a spirit stream, and ancient pines, and it was the most pleasant place to visit in the whole prefecture. In earlier times the halls of the temple still stood, but they fell into disrepair over the years and were taken over by Buddhist monks, who converted the site into a Chan monastery. Although the monks lived there together, frightening incidents occurred there often; at times there were even lawsuits and brawls, and some people were injured or killed.

An old man passing by told the monks: "This is where an immortal official dwelt, a sacred site of the Daoists. Though you monks are able to guard it, you are not its masters. If you do not move away, tigers and wolves will bring disaster and devour you." The monks did not believe him. Before long, the tiger attacks grew worse, and more than ten people were wounded or killed. The monks concealed the matter and dared not speak of it, and afterward they fled one after another.

At that time, the Presented Scholar Xu Sanwei happened to inscribe a long seven-character poem on the wall. It read: "This was once the place where Master Anqi refined his medicines, and now it has become the temple where Bodhidharma (the revered patriarch of the Chan school) sat in meditation. Several monks chant scriptures upstairs, their voices filling the moonlight; from the deep valley come the cries of gibbons, and mountain winds blow through the midnight hours. The lingering notes of the golden chime fade, and the pine pavilion seems remote and still; the drifting clouds scatter completely, and the sea, sky, and mountains shine clear and empty. Having come here, I met no cultivator of the Dao, yet through the principle of Suchness I am able to seek instruction from Master Yuan." In the poem, "Suchness" (zhenru) refers to the true nature of reality as described in Buddhism, and "Master Yuan" refers to Huiyuan, the eminent monk of the Eastern Jin dynasty.

When the military commissioner Zheng Gongyu visited the Chan monastery, he saw that few monks remained. He also heard of the beasts that had harmed people and of the old man's earlier warning, and then turned and saw the poem on the wall. He sighed and said: "This poem carries the author's feelings. How could one not be moved by it?" He then submitted a memorial to the court, and the Chan monastery was restored as the Jupu Temple.

The Qingyang Market (Qingyang Si) in Chengdu lay outside the Luocheng wall, beyond the Zhengjian ward. According to tradition, when Taishang Laojun (the Supreme Venerable Lord, one of the highest deities revered in Daoism) parted from Yin Xi on Mount Zhongnan and was about to set out for the Flowing Sands, the two agreed to meet again at this place. That year, Laojun ascended from the Scripture-Expounding Terrace into the Taiwei Heavenly Palace. Yin Xi cultivated for a thousand days, and once his practice and merit were complete, he entered Shu in search of the Qingyang Market and at last met Laojun. This was the very place where they had agreed to meet.

The site had long been desolate and neglected, and nothing had ever been built on it. Although people of the Daoist community all knew its origins, they lacked the means to buy it, so the land passed into the hands of local residents. All that stood there was a thousand-year-old pine, more than ten zhang tall, its trunk three or four chi across; the slender bamboo growing among the ruined terraces also survived.

At that time there was a commoner named Yang Mei, who worked as a merchant in the marketplace and bought the land to live on. His neighbors all said that the ancient pine and the bamboo grove must not be defiled or treated with disrespect, and Yang Mei likewise often protected them with reverence. One evening, as he returned from the market and walked into the bamboo grove, he saw an old man who said to him: "This is my sacred site. In ten years someone will build here, and you will not be able to stay long. I wish to build a temple here where travelers may rest and wander. You can accomplish this for me."

Yang Mei said that he lacked sufficient funds and declined on grounds of poverty. The old man pointed his staff at the ground and said: "There is gold beneath this spot. Dig it up and build the halls for me. Build the pavilions and railings well, and have everything fully provided. I will repay you in this way for your care in protecting this place. When the work is done, move to another prefecture and do not speak much of this to others."

Yang Mei was delighted. He memorized the spot where the gold lay buried, but forgot to ask the old man's name, and in an instant the old man had vanished. He assumed the old man was a dragon spirit and did not realize that this was a sacred site of the Daoist community. Yang Mei dug down two or three chi and found a porcelain jar containing thirty or forty taels of gold. He took out the gold and put it away, then returned the jar to its place beneath the great pine. He then bought timber and tiles and built a celestial hall of sixteen pillars, with a brick-paved floor and bracketed eaves, and he completed the pavilions and railings, everything according to proper standards. He did not dare paint images of the deities on one of the walls, and instead smeared the wall with charcoal ash and set out an incense table for offerings.

When the work was finished, Yang Mei moved to Pengzhou and made his living selling wine, and his household gradually grew prosperous. He sold the land to Chen, an Assistant Judge of the Finance Bureau, in the spring of the bingshen year. I once visited Assistant Judge Chen, and seeing that a temple had already been built there, I asked how it came about, and Chen told me this story.

Less than two years later, Assistant Judge Chen followed the Chancellor, Duke Gao of Yan, to Jiangling, and the land passed to Lan Zhao, who was serving with the army. In the xinchou year, the Emperor came to Shu. In the eighth month of the renyin year, an auspicious manifestation of a numinous mirror appeared. On the twelfth day of the ninth month, the court ordered the establishment of the Qingyang Palace (Qingyang Gong), granting two hundred thousand cash; 1,800 strings of cash were spent to purchase the land and build the halls. The Emperor visited the palace three times in person. Counting from the bingshen year, it was only seven years until then, and the efficacy of the Dao was already plainly evident.

At that time, Li Teli of the household of the Yielding Emperor and the Daoist Li Wuwei (Wuwei) saw a red light at night, bouncing across the ground like a pellet. They dug where the light vanished and found an ancient mirror inscribed with six archaic seal characters: "Taishang pacifies the Zhonghe era's calamities." The Military Commissioner and Palace Attendant Chen Jingyi, together with Tian Lingzi, the Army Supervisor and Commander of the Traveling Court, submitted a memorial reporting the matter. The court displayed the mirror to the assembled officials, had the characters on it copied and engraved, and bestowed the copies on the soldiers at the front. Li Teli was appointed Collator in the Crown Prince's household and Magistrate of Jiangyou in Longzhou, and Li Wuwei was granted a purple robe; the rewards given to the two differed.

After this, the following year the imperial palaces were recovered, and a year later the rebellion of Huang Chao was quelled. In the yisi year, the Emperor returned to the capital. These events suffice to prove the efficacy of the Supreme Mysterious Ancestor in pacifying warfare and dispelling calamity for his sage descendant in the Zhonghe era.

Longxing Temple in Yizhou, originally called the Zhizhen Temple (至真观), stood in Chengdu. Its old grounds were broad and opened onto streets on all four sides, but only the main hall, the lecture hall, the Yuhua Palace, and the inscribed steles remained.

A man named Wang Feng, who served the Prince of Yingchuan, was building a private residence in the Xiaoman quarter. Finding the site low and damp, he had laborers strip earth from the temple's gate walls, and he also dug extensively within the temple grounds, hauling away several thousand cartloads to raise his foundation. Before the work was finished, several members of his household had died one after another.

One day, as Wang Feng returned home from the government office, he saw two men in yellow robes outside his gate. They told him that the removal of earth from the temple required review and settlement. Wang Feng dismounted to answer them, and died on the spot.

Longxing Temple once had a bell tower, known as the "Terrace of Resonant Sound" (灵响台) because its bell was so efficacious. The gate tower on the terrace was tall, imposing, and exquisitely crafted. The military governor Hao Xinglu once petitioned to have the gate tower moved to the Tianwang Temple, and he also had the bell tower demolished. As a result, the original remains and scenery were utterly swept away.

Not long ago, when the emperor was residing in Shu, the Master of the Bright Way (明道大师), Yin Sixuan, reported that an official under Hao Xinglu had fallen ill and entered the underworld, then returned to life several days later. He said he had seen Hao Xinglu driven by demon officials to haul timber for Longxing Temple, bound in iron chains and instruments of punishment, without rest day or night. Whenever a little timber had been piled up, it would fly away again. Whipped and made to carry it in this way, he could not tell when it would end. Hao Xinglu wished his descendants to rebuild the temple gate on his behalf to atone for his offenses, but they were poor and truly unable to do so.

"Jingfu Mountain Boundary Verified" (静福山分界验) is the title of the next account, meaning the miraculous verification of the boundaries of Jingfu Mountain.

Jingfu Mountain Temple in Lianzhou was the place where the immortal Liao Chong attained the Dao (the Way) and practiced cultivation. The temple stands beside a small stream and is surrounded by strange stalagmite-like rocks and trees, making the setting serene and beautiful. Liao Chong's grandson, Liao Shenjiao, inherited the family legacy and lived there, overseeing the temple's affairs and making offerings with great devotion, and so he earned the respect of the people of the prefecture.

Before long, some Buddhist monks built a monastery near the temple and encroached on its land, putting up storehouses and latrines. Liao Shenjiao submitted a written complaint in his defense. The prefecture sent officials to inspect the site, but the monks stood by their claim and pointed to still more of the temple's land, hoping to take it as well. The two sides gave conflicting accounts, and the officials could not reach a ruling at the time.

While everyone was still conferring, wind and thunder suddenly broke out. Lightning shattered a stone pillar and split open the ground, drawing the boundary clearly; the foundations of the storehouses and latrines were also marked off as falling within the temple's bounds. That night a fierce tiger roared as well, gnawing at trees and trampling through the grass, leaving claw prints in the earth that marked the limit of the monastery's land. The Prefect, Jiang Fang, set up a stele to record the event.

General Liu took soil from Dongming Temple to verify it.

General Liu served in the Right Divine Strategy Army (Youshence Army), and his residence was close to the Dongming Temple. When he undertook a large construction project to build his mansion, he took earth from the temple grounds to lay foundations and fill in gullies, using several thousand cartloads in all. Once the work was finished, General Liu suddenly fell gravely ill. After more than ten days his condition improved slightly, but then he abruptly began behaving as if possessed by madness, clawing at the soil and digging in the courtyard until his fingers bled, yet he would not stop. His family held him and tried to restrain him, and he seemed to settle for a moment, but then he crawled off and dug at the earth again, as though someone were forcing him. His family heard what sounded like something beating him and were deeply distressed; he could only weep and sob, and gave no answer when questioned.

More than a month later, General Liu again grew so ill that he was barely breathing. Shamans and physicians tried every method without effect. Then someone brought in a blind shaman, who suggested treating him through Daoist methods. General Liu had never believed in Daoism, and no Daoist priest had ever visited his household. His wife and children, in great anxiety, went to the Jinxian Temple to invite a priest to handle the matter with Fulu (talismans and registers, the written charms Daoists use to pray for blessings and drive away evil). The talisman was placed before the patient, and several more were burned, with the ashes mixed into water for him to drink. Only then did General Liu speak: "Because of my ignorance, I offended against the Daoist law by taking earth from the Dongming Temple to build my own residence. The Earth Office (the divine bureau in charge of the affairs of the underworld) has already reported the matter to the Celestial Bureau (the heavenly administration), and I have been sentenced to carry earth to fill in the pits I dug. I do not know how many cartloads there are in total, but if I had to carry them all alone, I fear even two or three hundred years would not be enough. If I delay even slightly, a certain official punishes me harshly with beatings, and in the end there will be no day of release for me."

When he finished speaking, he cried out without ceasing, as if pouring out his grievances, and his whole family, hearing it, was overcome with sorrow. His wife and children then went to the main hall of the Dongming Temple to burn incense and pray, asking to purchase five thousand cartloads of clean earth to fill the pits that had been dug, and they held a Zhaijiao (purification ritual; here, a ritual offering of a vegetarian feast to seek blessings) to give thanks and beg forgiveness. After this, General Liu's illness eased somewhat.

The next morning he spoke again: "The Heavenly Talisman (a command issued from the heavenly realm) carries an edict: because he dug up the temple's earth to build a private residence, although it has been refilled, his offense has not yet been fully atoned for. Twelve years are to be stripped from his salary and his lifespan; his descendants, who were implicated, are to be pardoned." That very night, he died.

Having consulted the Daoist precepts, I have concluded that whenever someone deliberately damages a Dao-site, a blessed land, or a sacred altar, the calamity extends to three generations. Now, because General Liu first sought to atone by refilling the earth, the guilt fell on him alone. Is this not worth taking as a warning?

The Sanyuan Temple (Sanyuan Guan) in Yuewen County, Fuzhou, is said to have been built during the Liang and Song periods. It stands alone on an ancient peak, bordering the riverbank, with a dragon pool before it. The temple grounds covered some seventy or eighty mu, and stone statues, an iron stele, and stone lions still remained there, so finely crafted that they differed from those commonly seen.

A yatui (a subordinate official in the local government) named Li Yin cleared the temple grounds to use as a residence and turned them into a garden, planting many scallions and garlic to profit from them. He and his family fell ill one after another, and more than ten members of his household died or were injured. Those who understood such matters held that a blessed site should not be defiled or desecrated, and urged him to repent and make amends, but he paid no heed. Before long, Jiangling Prefecture seized the land, set up a guarded military camp, and built walls and halls on a grand scale. The old cypresses, green pines, and tall trees beside the temple were all cut down.

The camp commissioner Ma Shu was especially zealous in felling them. After he took up residence, he was repeatedly uneasy, so he slaughtered chickens to sacrifice to ghosts and spirits. Someone urged him to protect the temple's divine images and ritual furnishings and to preserve the merit accumulated by those before him, but he acted as though he had not heard. Later, while racing boats with others and playing on the river, he drowned. The three commissioners who succeeded him all met with misfortune as well, and the camp has now been abandoned. The temple site is overgrown with weeds, filthy and ruined, and its divine images are damaged. The author also urged the local people to restore it, hoping that people of virtue and learning would come and return this renowned and numinous site to its former state.

The temple originally housed a statue of the Celestial Worthy of the Primordial Beginning (Yuanshi Tianzun, a supreme Daoist deity), whose title plaque was written in seal script and carved on an iron stele. The stele was three chi wide and six or seven chi long, and its inscription was composed by Yu Zishan (Yu Xin), Secretary of the Imperial Secretariat.

Prime Minister Li Fu's Restoration of the Xuanyuan Temple: A Verified Account

Chancellor Li Fu served as Regional Governor of the Eastern Capital (Luoyang) in the first year of the Xiantong era (860 CE). Earlier, while attending the Grand Lady Dowager of Chu, he had vowed to build a Daoist temple, but the plan was never carried out. When he took up the governorship that year, he had forgotten his earlier vow.

Three days after arriving in the Eastern Capital, Li Fu dreamed of seven or eight celestial youths (qingtong, the boy attendants who serve the immortals in Daoist legend), carrying fresh flowers and incense and leading the way. They brought him to a Daoist temple in the mountains. The road into the mountains seemed very deep, yet when he reached the temple the ground was quite level. Pines and cypresses grew thick, and terraces and pavilions rose high, a scene that seemed somehow familiar. He entered the hall and saw that the face of the Celestial Worthy (Tianzun) looked like clay sculpture, yet it also seemed to move like a living person. It did not speak and only nodded to him. Li Fu bowed and begged the Celestial Worthy for a word, but there was still no reply. The Worthy only pointed with a hand toward the bell tower outside the hall. Following the gesture, Li Fu saw that the bell tower was leaning.

The next day Li Fu went to the Xuanyuan Temple and found that it was indeed just as he had seen in the dream. When he looked back at the bell tower, it too seemed to lean and rot. He therefore ordered craftsmen to repair it. As they removed the tiles and tore down the walls, they found damage in many places. Only one main beam had been lacquered all the way around and was intact, with no visible flaw on the outside, yet when struck it proved to be hollow inside. The craftsmen asked to replace it and not reuse the old timber. Li Fu ordered the beam split open, and inside they found a cavity more than a foot long, within which lay a square piece of wood. It was inscribed: "Mountains and waters, who is without words? In the first year, one with fortune will rebuild."

Li Fu showed the piece of wood to officials of the various offices and questioned his subordinates one by one, but no one could explain its meaning. Li Fu then interpreted it himself: "'Mountains and waters, who is without words' refers to the emperor's reign title, and 'one with fortune will rebuild' refers to me, Li Fu, rebuilding the bell tower." He believed that the spirits had pointed to the bell tower in his dream and then caused this inscription to be discovered, in order to foretell that he would repair the tower that very year.

Wei Gao, Prince of Nankang, Grand Commandant, and Director of the Secretariat, was the beloved son-in-law of Lord Zhang, Governor of Chengdu and Chancellor. Broad-minded and of great capacity, he was plain in his conduct yet self-assured, and he disliked associating with ordinary people. Lord Zhang's family had produced chancellors for generations, and their virtue and reputation were lofty and distinguished. The Zhang kinsmen therefore looked down on Wei Gao, and he was left out in the cold without even noticing it.

One day he suddenly dreamed of two divine beings who said to him: "The celestial bureau in charge of the transformations of the world and the registers of human names has recorded your name at Gesuo. You are destined to enjoy the stipend of all Shu, and wealth and honor are about to arrive. Why do you linger here? Press on. When you have become rich and honored, do not forget Gesuo." From then on, Wei Gao set his mind on seeking office and renown. He discussed it with his wife, who encouraged him as well and brought out several hundred thousand in gold to fund his journey.

Wei Gao had originally planned to go to Fengxiang, where Zhang Yi summoned him to serve as a tuiguan (an official who assists in handling administrative affairs). Later, when the prefecture of Longzhou lacked a chief official, Wei Gao was ordered to take charge of its affairs temporarily. Soon afterward Zhu Ci rebelled, and Emperor Dezong fled to Fengtian. Zhu Ci sent an envoy to appoint Wei Gao as Prefect of Longzhou, but Wei Gao killed the envoy and sent the head to the emperor's temporary residence, showing that he refused to submit to the rebels. At that time the imperial carriage had arrived suddenly in the Zhengzhen region, and many people had no time to go to the rescue. Only after Wei Gao's memorial reached the city was his loyalty firmly established and made plain. The court then appointed him Prefect of Longzhou and Censor-in-Chief, and bestowed on him a golden seal and a purple official robe.

After the rebellion was put down, Wei Gao entered the court as Grand General of the Golden Guard, and later was posted to Xingyuan before being transferred to Military Commissioner of Western Sichuan, exchanging posts with Lord Zhang. In the years that followed, the land of Shu enjoyed bountiful harvests, and gold and silk were amply stored. Nanzhao submitted to the Tang and asked to become a vassal state, Wei Gao's prestige grew more evident by the day, and tribute and taxes were never in arrears. The court relied on him, and the tribes of the frontier all feared and obeyed him. With permission, Wei Gao established a school of study in Nanzhao, where hostage princes and students sent by Nanzhao learned the Poetry, the Documents, ritual, and music. His prose and calligraphy were unrivaled in his day; when Nanzhao obtained samples of his own handwriting, they carved them into stone and regarded this as a glory for their country.

Wei Gao had long since forgotten the matter of Gesuo. Later he dreamed again of the two divine beings, who said: "You enjoy wealth and honor, yet you have forgotten where they came from. How can this be?" Wei Gao woke drenched in sweat and badly frightened. After a long while he went in person to the Yunlin Temple (Yunlin Guan), where he burned incense and prayed for blessings. He then ordered craftsmen to plan the timber and choose an auspicious day for construction, and had built forty bays of soaring pavilions in the Southern Palace, along with lofty halls, long corridors, multiple gates, and deep courtyards. He also cast golden images and had stone inscriptions carved; he did nearly everything that could be done. He set aside the rents and taxes of Jiulong and built granaries at the foot of the mountain, where grain piled up like hills and craftsmen came and went in an endless stream. He composed the stele inscription himself and had it carved beside the cave gate, and above it he raised a tall tower. He assigned seventy servant boys to sweep and clean, and set aside five hundred mu of fine farmland to supply the refectory. After more than twenty years in Western Sichuan, Wei Gao was enfeoffed as a prince. The scripture (Jing) records that he was born in a Dingmao year, and that the matter of Gesuo was fulfilled in that same year.

The Kaiyuan Daoist Temple (Kaiyuan Guan) in Guozhou stood beside the prefectural city, in a bright, open setting with fine terrain, so the prefecture chose the site for building a Daoist temple. The prefectural officials quickly completed the paperwork for the project, but it still lacked a main hall. The prefecture sent craftsmen and Daoist priests to travel along the Jialing River to the upper reaches near Lizhou and buy timber.

Before they set out, the priests and craftsmen all dreamed that someone said, "There is timber in Zhufeng Pool, enough for your needs." The same dream came three times in a row. The group conferred and said, "Since we have had such an omen, perhaps large merchant boats carrying timber are coming down the river. Let us wait three or five days and see; we may not need to travel far after all." One craftsman said, "I will go look along the riverbank below Zhufeng Mountain and see whether the merchant boats have arrived." He went to the foot of the mountain and found the pool water clear, and suddenly noticed timber lying at the bottom. He asked skilled divers to go into the water and hook it up, and they pulled out one thousand logs of catalpa wood.

This timber was used to build the Hall of the Three Pure Ones (Sanqing), the hall that enshrines the three supreme deities of Daoism, along with the bell tower, the scripture pavilion, and the corridors and galleries, so that everything the construction required was fully supplied. Later, a batch of materials was purchased for the altar, and some of them were yellowish-red in color. People suspected they had not been sufficiently refined by fire and cast them aside. After a single night, they had all turned into gold, and the funds for building the temple were thus more than ample.

Once the halls were completed, the community prepared to fashion the sacred images. Tens of thousands of catties of iron were then unearthed at the Baihe Mountain temple, and from it three iron statues were cast, each about two zhang tall, now called the Sacred Images. People from near and far came to pray, and all said their prayers were answered quickly. The family of the Daoist priest He, who had founded the temple, had been wealthy for generations and has now become a prominent local family.

Even today, street peddlers who make their living from small profits often go every three or five days to burn incense before the Sacred Images and ask for protection. It is said that if someone misses a visit, or their heart is not sincere enough, their business earns no profit and their goods go unsold.

The Hualin Guan (Flower Grove Temple, a Daoist temple) in Xinpu County, Kaizhou, was originally the residence of a local family. The family was very wealthy, and their home stood right on the bank of the river.

During the Kaiyuan era, one morning after the household had risen, they smelled an extraordinary fragrance filling the whole courtyard. The surroundings were bright and luminous, and purple qi (vital energy) gathered from every direction, spreading for several miles. Rare flowers and wondrous trees appeared in the courtyard and on the river. In the middle of the water, red and white lotuses were in bloom, each more than a foot across, too many to count. Immortals moved back and forth among them, while luan birds and immortal cranes soared and circled. After some time, the strange visions faded away.

The people of the county had only smelled the extraordinary fragrance; they had not seen the flowers and trees, the immortals, or the cranes. So after the matter was reported, the local authorities converted the residence into a Daoist temple and named it "Hualin Guan." Later, when the Hall of the Heavenly Worthy (Tianzun) was being built, the auspicious signs of the extraordinary fragrance and bright radiance appeared once more, just as before.

End of Volume Two of the Records of Daoist Miracles (Daojiao lingyan ji).

What follows notes the differences and similarities between this text and the version recorded in the Seven Slips from the Cloud Satchel (Yunji qiqian). Some of the titles are written differently, and they concern matters such as perfected beings (zhenren) cultivating the Dao, the destruction of an altar, an iron pillar, Daoist temples, and divine manifestations. For example, "attained the Dao at the age of twenty-one" is written identically in both versions. "Ten monks came to destroy Lady Wei's altar, and nine were devoured by tigers, as a verified miracle" means that ten monks came to demolish Lady Wei's altar, and nine of them were eaten by tigers. "General Liu took earth from the Dongming Temple to build a residence, a verified miracle" tells how General Liu took earth from the Dongming Temple to construct his house, and the retribution was fulfilled.

Some wording also varies. "Two or three hundred years" is given elsewhere as "three or two hundred years"; "one morning" is given as "one day"; the particle "ye" is given as "er"; and "in future days he will be wealthy and honored" is given as "in future days he shall surely be wealthy and honored." As for the passage on the official career of the person concerned, the Seven Slips from the Cloud Satchel records the following. After this man reached Qinchuan, amid a long famine and days of continuous rain, a friend recommended him, and he served as military judge of Longzhou. Soon afterward the emperor arrived at Fengtian, and he accompanied the prefect in leading soldiers and civilians, transporting military supplies and protecting the emperor, and for this he was appointed Defense Commissioner. Later he requested an audience at court, and Emperor Dezong held him in high regard. After the rebellion was put down and the emperor returned to the capital, he was rewarded for his merit with the titles of Acting Right Vice Director of the Department of State Affairs and Military Commissioner of Fengxiang. He earnestly asked to be transferred to Xichuan as Military Commissioner, and when this was granted, he handed over his duties to Lord Zhang. Another account says that he escorted Lord Zhang to his post, and that Lord Zhang took a route back to the capital in order to avoid confronting him.

There are a few further differences in wording. The matter of the craftsmen of the Kaiyuan Temple in Guozhou all dreaming together of obtaining timber is treated in the Seven Slips from the Cloud Satchel as a single record of a miracle. "Completed the Hall of the Three Pure Ones (Sanqing)" is given elsewhere as "completed the Hall of the Three Venerables." And "the temple was founded at the home of the Daoist He, whose family prospered for generations" means that after the temple was established, the Daoist He's family lived in prosperity for generations.

Locusts Fail to Invade the White Crane Temple in Shan County

In the Jin dynasty, Wang Xizhi, General of the Right Army, owned two estates at Kechuan in Shan County. To the east stood the Jinting Temple, and to the west the Baihe (White Crane) Temple, the two lying more than seventy li apart. Around the Jinting Temple lived over a hundred households of Wang's descendants, while the Mound of Worn Brushes, the Ink Pond, and the Sword Case were all at the White Crane Temple. The temple's plaque was said to have been written in "flying white" calligraphy by Emperor Taizong of the Tang himself, and it was treasured by the prefecture and county.

The temple's paddy fields lay all around it. One autumn during the Xiantong era, a plague of locusts struck, and the Jiangsu and Zhejiang region suffered especially badly. Villagers gathered in the fields to drive the locusts away. Some beat drums and hides, while others shook bronze vessels to make noise. They labored from day into night, too busy to sleep or eat, shouting and chasing the insects, yet they could not escape the disaster. When the locusts settled on the fields, even across a thousand mu, the sturdy seedlings and plump heads of rice were devoured in an instant.

Some of the temple's fields adjoined the villagers' land, while others were separated from it by ditches, and the boundaries between them twisted and interlocked like the teeth of a dog. The villagers' crops were almost entirely consumed, yet the temple's crops grew lush and yielded a far better harvest than in previous years. Even where rice plants were rooted in the temple's fields but had their heads stretching into the villagers' fields, the locusts would not eat them. At first the locals took this for mere chance. The following year, the surrounding crops were again attacked by insects, with damage even worse than the year before, and once more the temple's fields were left untouched. The villagers then prepared incense, fasted, and purified themselves, and came to give thanks for the profound grace of the Dao (the Way) as taught by Daoism.

Daebao Temple (Dabao Guan) in Mingzhou, a Daoist temple whose name plaque was bestowed by Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, stands below Dragon Pool. A stream runs in front of the temple, and dense forest surrounds it. Whenever summer rains were excessive, muddy floodwaters often turned into disaster.

In the early years of the Dazhong era under Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, a sudden downpour poured down in torrents, with thunder and lightning roaring. The waters of the stream and pool rose and overflowed, destroying the woods and collapsing the banks. The flood seemed about to reach the halls and pavilions, its turbid, muddy waves surging and raging, towering like mountains and impossible to hold back. But when the water reached a point about ten paces from the temple, dark clouds suddenly gathered over the temple and a fierce wind abruptly rose, driving the flood aside so that it turned sharply and passed beyond the stream in front of the temple. Looking back, the rain was still pouring, the thunder still roaring, the stream and pool still overflowing, and the woods and banks still being swept away.

The ground on which the temple stands seemed to rise high out of the waves, with the bell tower and main hall soaring above the trees. From then on, the temple grounds were high, open, and bright, and never again suffered the calamity of being submerged by continuous rains or choked by mud.

The Efficacious Case of Panlong Temple (Panlong Guan) in Jinzhou, Which Wildfire Could Not Harm

In Jinzhou, in the area of Jiakou, there stood an ancient Daoist temple called Panlong Guan (the Coiling Dragon Temple). It had tier upon tier of high altars and steep, towering halls, and its scale was grand. Its covered corridors and living quarters numbered more than twenty rooms, yet no Daoist had lived there for years. At that time a wandering Buddhist monk was lodging in it. The halls stood close beside a remote, little-used path, and the surrounding vegetation was so dense and deep that it was hard to pass through.

During the Zhonghe era, the emperor was staying in the capital of Shu. The valleys of the various prefectures had not yet been brought back under administration, and the site of Panlong Guan lay on a major thoroughfare, where the population had scattered and the villages lay deserted. Suddenly a fierce, cold wind arose and set off a mountain fire. Flames swept in from every side with terrifying force, reaching the eaves of the halls, and even thick trees turned to ash in moments. The thatch grass and brambles beside the altars were burned away entirely, yet the ancient halls and corridors stood untouched. On their walls there was not a trace of smoke or scorching.

Several days after the fire died down, travelers finally came to the place. They went deep into the valley and asked the local elders, but no one knew who had put out the blaze, and no one could say when the fire had even occurred. After examining the site together, the travelers were astonished and said: "Before the wars, the households in this valley stood side by side. Then came the upheaval, and people fled to the mountains in every direction to escape disaster. The mountain paths were almost severed, so there were no residents who could have come to fight the fire. Even if people had put it out, they would have left traces. Now the fire has burned all around the altar compounds, reaching even their deepest parts, and this cannot have been the work of human hands. It must have been the protection of the numinous perfected and the guardianship of the divine powers."

From then on, the displaced people living in the stream valleys, together with the valley dwellers, were moved by the temple's miraculous protection and agreed to pool their resources to repair Panlong Guan.

An account of the efficacious responses surrounding the establishment of the Taiyi Guan (Temple of the Supreme One) in Dongchuan.

During the Zhonghe era, Emperor Xizong of Tang resided in Shu, intending to return to the capital once order had been restored. Yang Shili, the Military Commissioner of Dongchuan, rose in revolt. His territory lay very close to the emperor's temporary court, and the emperor was deeply troubled. He therefore ordered Gao Renhou, a senior general of Chengdu, to lead local and outside troops against him.

At that time Shu had enjoyed years of peace. Government and people alike were prosperous, and grain was piled up like mountains. Even though the city was not large, it was able to resist the imperial army, and the government forces took it only after besieging it for several months. Yang Shili's rebel troops were forced to scatter, yet they still refused to surrender, seek survival, and turn disaster into good fortune. Some were killed in battle, others were put to death as they retreated, and the casualties were heavy. Corpses were left in the wild grass, and white bones lay scattered in the gullies, in no small numbers.

After the army returned in triumph, people often heard ghosts weeping. The sound began at dusk and was especially mournful at night. Some also saw strange apparitions near the city gates, and others heard eerie howling on the roads. The residents were bewildered and uneasy, and frightened one another.

The court then rewarded the officers and soldiers and appointed Gao Renhou to govern Dongchuan and comfort its weary people. Gao Renhou built the Taiyi Wansheng Guan (a Daoist temple dedicated to the deity Taiyi, the Supreme One) on the site of the old camp of the central army. Once the halls were completed, the weeping at night ceased. After the statue of Xuanyuan Taiyi was sculpted, Gao Renhou dreamed that black clouds covered the mountaintop like a canopy, then in an instant turned into mist of five colors, from which came the sound of strings and flutes. Men and women, old and young, from the foot of the mountain rose leaping with the mist and drifted away in all directions. From then on, the strange lights and shadows and the eerie sounds vanished at once, and the region became peaceful.

Record of the Efficacious Response of the Wild Fire Extinguishing Itself at the Jiuhe Guan in Junzhou

In Nanchuan, Zhengxiang County, Junzhou, one crosses the Han River and follows the stream into the mountain valley for about ten li to reach the White Crane Guan (Baihe Guan). The temple rests against Heng Mountain and looks down over level ground. Dense, secluded woods surround it, and its terraces and halls rise high. The residents here live in peace, and the place is tranquil.

At Nanchuan in Zhengxiang County, Junzhou, one crosses the Han River and follows the plain for about ten li, and there stands the White Crane Abbey (Baihe Guan). The abbey rests against Mount Heng and overlooks a broad, level expanse of fields. The woods and foothills around it are deep and lush, its halls rise high, and the scenery is very fine.

Local elders say that when the Celestial Emperor (Tianhuang Dadi, a revered Daoist deity) performed the Feng and Shan sacrifices at the Eastern Peak (the rites of offering to Heaven and Earth held on Mount Tai), white cranes gathered on the sacrificial altar. He therefore ordered that Daoist abbeys be built throughout the realm and named "White Crane." During the Kaiyuan era of the Tang, a recluse cultivator named Feng Yiren (a hermit devoted to the Dao) lived and practiced here, and his cultivation advanced. One day he departed, leaving his physical form behind. Later he sent a letter to his disciples in the Xiangyang and Han River region. The villagers thereby learned that he had attained the Dao, and they fashioned an image of him to venerate.

In the last years of the Xiantong era of the Tang, no Daoist had presided over the abbey for a long time, and its buildings gradually fell into ruin. The outer gate, the old hall, and the connecting corridors together amounted to only some twenty rooms; there was no surrounding wall, and mugwort and weeds grew thickly on every side. Suddenly a wildfire broke out, and its flames, swept up by a swirling wind, surged straight toward the eaves and steps. The villagers saw it and ran to fight the fire in alarm. Before long, a stream of water fell out of the empty air from the dripping edge of the eaves and put out the blaze, though the sky stayed clear and there was neither wind nor rain. That water should appear from the air and end the fire was truly a manifestation of divine power.

In the Qianfu era, in the jihai year, someone visiting the Lingji Abbey (Lingji Guan) happened to hear an elder recount this miraculous response. He recorded the auspicious wonder and inscribed it on the wall of the hall. That same year, the elder also intended to discuss plans for repairing the abbey.

The Verification at the Terrace Abbey of Mount Shanqiu, Dreamed by Chancellor Cui of Anyi

In the Northern Capital stands an ancient abbey at Shanqiu Terrace (a place name). Inside, the divine images are solemn and finely made, and the towers and terraces are grand and splendid. The site is open and commanding, rising above its surroundings. At this point the text goes on to mention the plan to repair the abbey.

There was an ancient Daoist temple on Gangqiu Terrace in the Northern Capital. The statues enshrined within were solemn and dignified, and its towers and halls were grand and splendid. Standing on open, commanding ground, it stood out above all else in the capital. Many years had passed since its construction, and it had gone long without repair; battered by wind and rain, it was falling further into ruin with each passing day.

The Chancellor Cui Yanzhao once dreamed that he was wandering the countryside in search of quiet places, and came to the foot of an ancient terrace. Looking up, he saw purple qi (气) swirling about its summit and auspicious light radiating in every direction, yet he could find no path up to it. For a long while he heard celestial music, together with the sound of reed pipes and flutes, and his longing to find the way grew all the more urgent. But the terrace was steep and treacherous on every side, and though it seemed to be right before his eyes, it felt ten thousand miles away. Suddenly a golden bridge, like a ladder, appeared ahead of him, its steps broad and wide. He climbed it, but halfway up he found that several of the planks were broken and missing, and he could go no further. Then an enormous golden hand reached down to guide and receive him. Before he had even firmly grasped one of its fingers, he found himself standing atop the terrace.

He wandered about on the terrace, looking in every direction. The ancient hall was on the verge of collapse, and the deserted altar was overgrown with weeds. Sighing again and again, he made his way to the statue of the Celestial Venerable (Tianzun), and realized that the golden bridge had in fact lain right before the Venerable's seat, and that the golden hand was the Venerable's own. At that moment the celestial music faded away and the purple qi vanished. He thought to himself, "Could it be that the Celestial Venerable has some matter to entrust to me? Why has the scene changed so?" Suddenly the Celestial Venerable spoke: "You will take office here. Do not forget the ruin you see before you." Cui Yanzhao awoke with a start.

Ten days later he received his appointment and went to the Northern Capital to serve as Regent. A month afterward, he felt as though something were lost within him, and as though he were troubled by some doubt, so he went out in a carriage to ease his mind. Hearing that Gangqiu Terrace was not far away, he went to look at it. There he found the ancient hall in disrepair, deep grass growing everywhere, and mist enveloping the place. He paid homage before the statue of the Celestial Venerable, and saw that the statue and its attendants seemed to match exactly what he had seen in his dream. Looking more closely before the Venerable's seat, he found that there was indeed a golden bridge, though its railings had been torn down and its planks had broken. He then looked at the Venerable's golden arm and fingers, and at once understood: this was precisely the scene from his earlier dream.

He therefore gave out of his own salary to hire craftsmen to restore the temple, ridding it of its former decay and making its halls look wholly new. Because the halls were of great age, he cherished their original ancient design and merely repaired them. The remaining walls, covered corridors, altar courtyards, and gatehouses, as well as the murals, painted decoration, red coloring, vermilion lacquer, and gold and kingfisher-blue ornamentation, were all restored one by one until nothing was lacking. When the work was complete, offerings of incense and flowers flourished, and for a time the temple became the talk of the age.

The chancellor Liu Zhan was demoted and banished to Jiaolu in the far south. On the way he passed through Jiangling. He had boarded a small boat and was about to cast off when he looked back and saw a Daoist temple beside the road. Its divine images were solemnly arranged, yet its halls had rotted and collapsed. He asked the temple's name and learned that it was the Zhenfu Yuzhi Temple (Temple of the True Talisman and the Jade Mushroom) of Jiangling.

Liu Zhan went in, climbed the steps, bowed, and prayed silently. That night he dreamed that a Qingtong (a youth attendant to the immortals in Daoist legend) led him up a great mountain. Pine-shaded paths wound through the mountain, and its cliffs were strange and beautiful. In its deep recesses grew fragrant lingzhi mushrooms and flowers, and the scene was vivid and clear.

After walking about a li, he saw Yuanshi Tianzun (the Celestial Worthy of the Primordial Beginning, one of the highest deities revered in Daoism) seated on a jeweled flower throne. Looking up at the Celestial Worthy's face, Liu Zhan found that it was the very image enshrined in the hall of the Yuzhi Temple. He bowed and pleaded: "I have offended the court and been sent into distant exile. I dare not voice any resentment. I only ask that I may return home safely."

The Celestial Worthy said: "Your name is already recorded on the Qingjian (the green bamboo slips, Daoist registers listing the names of immortals and the perfected) and enrolled in Fangzhu (a legendary realm of the immortals). Why should you worry about the troubles of the mortal world? You will become chancellor once more, and afterward you will attain the Dao (the Way). From now on, observe a fast for ten days and keep the precepts for three. Then, even in the remote south, among miasmas and spirits of the wilds, you need not be afraid." The Celestial Worthy added: "The days of Chen, Wei, Si, and Wu will correspond to the time of your return."

Liu Zhan then traveled south. When he reached the Huling region, the military governors along his route sent greetings one after another. Soon he received gifts of gold and silk, and he sent a letter through an acquaintance to the commander of Xingzhou. With these means he built a hall for the Celestial Worthy, a fasting hall, and corridors, and he chose pure and disciplined Daoist practitioners to live in the temple, burning incense and cultivating themselves. Later, just as foretold, the court summoned him again, and he returned to take charge of government affairs. When he grew weary of worldly life and abandoned it to follow the Dao, everything in the dream's prophecy came true, and the years it had named proved exact.

Chancellor Li Wei (a Tang dynasty official) was stationed at Bianzhou and concurrently served as Commissioner of the Taiqing Palace. He constantly sought the profound Dao (the Way) with a sincere heart, longing for the Perfected and reciting the methods of the Dao.

One night he dreamed that he was strolling in the countryside. He saw marvelous five-colored light shining from a thicket of grass and trees, and within the light stood an image of a Celestial Venerable. The halo above the Venerable's head was half broken, and in his hand he held a jade zhi (a lucky object shaped like the lingzhi fungus). The jade zhi resembled a white lotus, with a smooth, slender stalk and eight leaves. What he saw in the dream was perfectly clear, and he kept it in his mind.

The next day, as he saw off a guest outside the city, he looked back and noticed the statue of a Daoist temple standing exposed in the wilderness, and he asked what place it was. It turned out to be the Temple of the Jade Zhi. Chancellor Li thought this strange, reined in his horse, and went to pay his respects. The courtyard was overgrown with sedge and weeds, and wormwood blocked the paths; he pushed aside the brambles to enter. The image of the Celestial Venerable before him was exactly the same as the one in his dream, except that it held no jade zhi in its hand. Yet the name of the temple matched the dream. He therefore ordered a grand restoration and decoration.

Once restored, the temple boasted tall, deep halls, soaring roof ridges, and magnificent walls. It had a hall for purification, a place for expounding the scriptures (Jing), and bright windows and ritual platforms for ceremonies. The gate towers in front opened onto the main avenue, imposing in their grandeur and overlooking the city walls, and they became a spectacular sight for the region.

The Kaiyuan Emperor honored his ancestors, revered the profound teachings, and comprehended the methods of the Dao. His utter sincerity moved Heaven, and auspicious omens descended to the human world because of it. He once received a true talisman on a numinous peak and discovered a jade zhi within his palace, and so he issued an edict ordering temples to be built in important towns, named "True Talisman" and "Jade Zhi." He also enfeoffed Mount Taibai as Duke of Numinous Response and renamed Huayang as True Talisman County. The auspicious signs that appeared in the past were thus fulfilled once again. For this reason, eminent ministers such as the Chancellor received fortunate dream omens, and when the officials of Yimen restored the temple, an auspicious confirmation likewise appeared. Were it not for the manifest power of the great Dao, who could have brought about such things?

Chancellor Zheng Tian's construction of the Tongsheng Temple also showed miraculous efficacy.

The Tongsheng Temple (Tongsheng Guan) in Zhenning County, Ningzhou, was built on the site where Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang, after dreaming of twenty-seven Perfected Ones (zhenren), ordered stone statues of them to be carved and installed. In later years the sacrificial offerings gradually lapsed, and the temple buildings soon fell into ruin. Remote regions had always lacked the manpower and resources to maintain Daoist temples, so for a long time no one attended to its repair.

When Zheng Tian, Chancellor and Minister of Works, was just beginning his rise to prominence, he happened to visit Tongsheng Temple, performed the rites of homage, and wrote a poem of thirty rhymes recording the occasion. He also made a silent vow: "If I should one day attain high office, I will surely find a way to expand and restore this temple."

Later, Zheng Tian entered the court to oversee imperial edicts and held the lofty position of chief minister. Burdened with state affairs, he rarely had a moment's leisure, and he forgot his earlier vow entirely. One night he dreamed that he was wandering through a grotto-heaven (dongfu). Immortals were taking their pleasure there, celestial music was playing, and they were enjoying themselves without restraint. Before long, an honor guard and immortal attendants descended from the sky, and a messenger came down to proclaim: "By decree of the Supreme One, you are summoned back to Shangqing (the Highest Purity, the realm of the immortals in Daoist belief)." The immortals then rose into the air, some riding cranes, others riding dragons. Zheng Tian wished to flick his sleeves and ascend with them, but one immortal turned and said with a smile, "First complete the vow you made at Zhenning, and then come here."

On waking, Zheng Tian remembered the matter of restoring the temple at Zhenning. He set aside the money meant for banquets and meals as construction funds, consulted with the military commander, Minister Li, and had a chief officer (duxiao, a military official in charge of supervising affairs) take charge of the work. In fewer than a hundred days, Tongsheng Temple was completely renewed. Zheng Tian later recounted the dream, saying that the grotto-heaven he had seen was the grotto of Luochuan, and that the immortals he had seen were the twenty-seven Perfected Ones. Startled that he had forgotten his old vow, he devoted himself to the restoration of the temple, and he regarded the episode as true evidence of the manifestation of the Dao (the Way).

Verification of Chancellor Duan's Restoration of the Xiandu Temple (an account of the efficacious response following Chancellor Duan's restoration of the Xiandu Temple)

The Xiandu Temple (Xiandu Guan) on Mount Pingdu in Fengdu County, Zhongzhou (present-day Fengdu County, Chongqing), is traditionally said to be the place where the Perfected Wang Fangping of the Former Han and the Perfected Yin Changsheng of the Later Han attained the Dao (Way) and ascended to heaven. It had lain in ruins for a long time, and only the old foundations remained. Master Gao of the Jin dynasty was the first to undertake large-scale construction here, and during the Taiyuan era Yao Hong carried out further repairs. The temple was renovated again under both the Liang and the Sui, and the work has continued in the present dynasty. Tall pavilions now rise into the sky, their red eaves glowing in the sunlight.

Generals and high officials from Qian, Jing, Zi, Shu, and other regions have, on occasion, moored their boats and climbed the mountain to visit, and afterward ordered repairs to the temple. When the Chancellor Duan Wenchang of Zouping was traveling and living away from home, he once found himself stranded in the Huixia area. He climbed Mount Dong, burned incense and bowed before the two Perfected Ones (Wang Fangping and Yin Changsheng), and prayed: "If I can rise to office and gain distinction, and escape these hardships even a little, I will surely undertake a solemn restoration of this temple in repayment to the two Perfected Ones."

In less than ten years, Duan Wenchang was appointed to govern Jiangling. On the very night he arrived to take up his duties, he already recalled this promise. Before long, he dreamed of the two Perfected Ones, who, like old intimate friends, led him up a mountain beside the river. When they reached the summit, there stood the entrance to the Cavern of Lord Yin, and then the two Perfected Ones vanished. The next day, Duan Wenchang gave one month's salary to repair the temple, and set the money aside as a permanent fund for its upkeep, to be used over the long term to keep the temple in good condition, as repayment for the efficacious response of the two Perfected Ones.

Louguan (a Daoist temple complex) was the residence of Yin Xi, a grandee under King Kang of Zhou. It stood in Wenxian Lane, in Shenjiu Township of Zhengzhi County in Jingzhao Prefecture, on the northern slope of Mount Zhongnan. Within the temple were halls built by King Mu of Zhou, the First Emperor of Qin, and Emperor Wu of Han, as well as calligraphy left by the First Emperor of Qin. Yin Xi, the Spirit Well, Laojun (Lord Lao), the Zhi-fungus tree, the Ascension Terrace, the memorial tablets of the Jin and Song periods, and the inscriptions of the Qin and Han dynasties have all been preserved here through the generations.

When the Great Tang was about to receive the Mandate of Heaven and rise, the righteous army raised its banners in Hedong, and a red light shot straight up into the sky above the temple, lasting six or seven nights. In the Gengzi year of the Guangming era, when rebel forces attacked Chang'an, lights again appeared in the temple, much as they had in the Yining years. Later, when the emperor's carriage set out for Fengxiang and Panzuo was about to accompany the imperial progress, strange sights appeared once more at the temple. As a result, scholars and common people seeking refuge flocked to it. The temple's miraculous manifestations had always been conspicuous, and no one dared to violate it. During the reign of Emperor Gaozu of Tang, Louguan was granted the name "Zongsheng Guan" (Temple of the Ancestral Sage).

End of Volume Three of the Daojiao Lingyan Ji (Records of Daoist Miraculous Efficacies).

7. In the Yunji Qiqian (Seven Slips from the Cloudy Satchel), this sentence reads: "The Louguan temple's red light showed people how to avoid disaster, as verified by miraculous response." This means that a red radiance appeared over Louguan, pointing people toward safety from calamity, an account of efficacious and miraculous events.

8. The character "芝" (zhi) is written as "支" (zhi) in the Yunji Qiqian.