《太上慈悲道场消灾九幽忏》Vol. 2

With reverence and sincerity, we bow in worship to the Perfected One of Great Compassion, who saves those in distress, and to the Perfected One who rescues living beings from suffering. With reverence and sincerity, we bow in worship to the Perfected One of Great Mercy, who removes offenses, and who helps living beings dispel their karmic sins through a heart of great mercy.

May the donors and assembly gathered today for the rites at this sacred altar look up in prayer to the Unsurpassed Spirit Treasure Celestial Worthy of the South, along with all the divine lords, holy Perfected Ones, Great Perfected Ones, great immortals, celestial immortals, and celestial youths. May all the true sages who respond and manifest throughout the ten directions and the boundless depths of the empty realms—whether of the past or the future—wash the penitents, so-and-so, with the water of Great Mystery, a sacred water used for cleansing and symbolizing the removal of karmic sins. May they wash the penitent’s living and deceased parents, the masters who transmitted the teachings, uncles, brothers, male and female relatives, and all those bound to them by affinity in this life and past lives. Through this repentance, may the immeasurable worldly afflictions, hardships, and karmic sins they bear be dispelled, by the power of the Great Dao, the true sages, the repentance rite, cause and effect, the inconceivable, and merit and virtue. May they then discern the many views and comprehend the wondrous principles of the Mystery.

May all living beings no longer be bound by worldly afflictions and karmic sins. May they realize the Dao of Wuwei (non-action) and return to the Great Dao.

Bow once.

“Reverent Devotion and Faith,” Section Three.

Everyone gathered at the Daoist sanctuary today should collect their thoughts and face the Compassionate Venerable One, repenting of the offenses they have committed through irreverence and disbelief. After bowing, the leader of the repentance rite, [Name], kneels and asks everyone to listen carefully to what the scripture says: When sentient beings commit evil deeds and act wrongly, their thoughts often burn like a raging fire, heedless of what is beautiful or ugly. Their intentions are as cold and keen as a blade, indifferent to whether others are strong or weak. Day after day, month after month, year after year, they fail to cultivate even the smallest good deed in time, while their faults and wrongs keep accumulating. They create ever more painful karma and will eventually sink into prolonged suffering.

From this life back through past lives, from one kalpa to the next, a single thought can give rise to disbelief and irreverence: slandering, destroying, slighting, defiling, mocking, insulting, cursing, deceiving, acting arrogantly and discourteously, shouting and making a disturbance, disparaging, cheating, or taking or wasting the possessions of the Three Holy Ones (the three venerable deities referred to here). Some also disparage the scriptures and repentance rites, make reckless judgments about the authenticity and merits of scriptures and repentance methods, argue stubbornly over right and wrong, and pass judgment on their depth and quality. Others appear unclean in their bearing, clothing, hands, feet, shoes, or breath; drink alcohol, eat meat, consume animal foods and pungent spices, speak foully, and show no reverence. Some enter the sacred altar hall without washing their hands, burning incense, rinsing their mouths, or bathing, then approach the ritual seat. Others enter the sanctuary to hear the teachings and scriptures, approach the revered images, and defile the True Sages, immortals and numinous beings, Jade Youths and Maidens, Diamond Spirit Kings, Heavenly Officials, Mighty Ones, and other guardian spirits. Some behave arrogantly before the Celestial Worthies, the Dao, its scriptures and teachings, and monastics, refusing to bow, prostrate themselves, or sincerely take refuge. Some even lie down while listening to a ritual master expound the Great Vehicle scriptures of the Three Caverns. Others bring alcohol, meat, and animal foods into the sanctuary on bicycles or horses, approach the Celestial Worthies, and view or read scriptures and repentance texts. Some see people observing vegetarian discipline and receiving precepts yet remain unconvinced, mocking them as insincere and affected. Others bring men and women into the sanctuary to hear scriptures and teachings, then shout loudly and disturb those who are cultivating the Way.

Some begin every conversation by arguing over right and wrong or comparing merits. In the name of the Three Treasures (the Dao, the scriptures, and the master), they seek money; they falsely invoke the teachings to deceive male and female devotees, or divert the property of the Three Treasures for their own use. Others intimidate or coerce monastics, pick at their faults, and demand money to support their own families. Some carry scriptures and divine images into marketplaces to solicit donations, or collect money on the road under the pretense of promoting merit, then use it for themselves. Others privately rent out, buy, or sell scriptures and divine images to support their relatives. Some give teachings from the ritual platform, receive offerings from devotees, and keep them for themselves. Others do not study scriptures, precepts, Fulu (talismans and registers), or ritual texts, yet call themselves masters and accept alms. Some gather many disciples and transmit scriptures and teachings without discerning their character, revealing what should remain secret. Others disregard liturgical rules, precepts, and the lineage of transmission, altering or adding to the scriptures and teachings as they please.

Some allow revered images to gather dust and damage communal Daoist property. They let halls fall into ruin and scriptures and ritual objects become dirty or damaged; they destroy banners, lamps, and other objects used to accumulate merit, and show no respect for sacred images. Some steal precious scriptures and treat them as ordinary books. They copy them privately without protecting or honoring them, keep them among secular books, and show them no reverence. Some place beds and pillows beside scriptures and images and sleep there, or let their rooms and courtyards become filthy and disorderly. After handling meat or other animal foods, they touch the scriptures or discuss them. Some betray the Daoist community, disobey their masters, and violate the vows they themselves have made.

Whenever such faults occur in thought or deed, they violate explicitly prescribed ritual regulations and precepts. These offenses are without measure or limit. The scripture says that anyone who commits even the slightest offense of irreverence or disbelief will bring discord and hardship upon their family in this life and suffering upon deceased relatives. They themselves will suffer the karmic retribution of gu and leprosy; after death, they will fall into the Ninefold Netherworld, the hells deep in the underworld, where they must endure for ten thousand kalpas before being reborn, and then will be born as beasts.

At this point, the Compassionate Venerable One, wishing to instruct those who had not yet awakened, spoke a verse.

In this life, they fail to honor the faith and destroy the true likenesses and sacred images of Daoism. They wantonly damage, slight, or defile images of the guardian spirits—the High Saints, Immortals, numinous beings, divine beings, Jade Boys and Jade Maidens, Vajra guardians, and mighty warriors—and show them no reverence.

They mock and revile those who leave home to pursue spiritual cultivation, speak without restraint, and beat, curse, and bully them. They even assault and torment them through lewd and depraved acts. Arrogant and unruly, they speak recklessly about the various scriptures and teachings, argue perversely about right and wrong, violate purification fasts and precepts, and steal the property of the Three Treasures (the Dao, the scriptures, and the masters). All their conduct reveals their disbelief and irreverence.

After death, they fall into the Ninefold Dark Prison, the deep underworld, and suffer the torments of all eighteen levels of hell. They tread on mountains of blades and cling to trees of swords with their hands; naked, they embrace copper pillars and lie on iron beds; they bear volcanoes on their heads and iron rods on their backs. When hungry, they swallow burning coals; when thirsty, they drink molten copper. They are boiled in cauldrons of scalding broth and burned by fiery chariots. They are pounded with pestles, ground by stone mills, hung upside down, sawn apart, hacked with knives, and pierced with needles at the joints of their bodies. Stone presses crush them; bitter cold freezes and snaps their sinews and bones. They must also run back and forth through burning coals, leaping without end and never allowed to rest.

They are often placed amid stench and filth, while foul water flows into the Four Rivers. Vile birds peck at their eyes, copper dogs tear at them, poisonous snakes swallow them, and ox-headed wardens break their spines. They die and are reborn ten thousand times in a single day. Their suffering is unbearable, and when they are reborn, they may be afflicted with a disease of parasitic sores.

Everyone gathered today in the ritual precinct, listen carefully to this verse, a rhymed text for proclaiming the teachings. What the scripture says concerns grave fear and sorrow: having committed these sinful acts, how can one come to understanding and awaken? If one commits such sins, it is difficult to escape the consequences. By the time one wishes to repent, it is often already too late. You should all practice with diligence and sincerely repent your faults.

If living beings remain within the Six Realms, the six destinations of birth and death, and are reborn in bodies among the Four Kinds of Birth—womb-born, egg-born, moisture-born, and transformation-born—then, whatever their size, they may devour one another. Even before retribution comes, I now respectfully pray that all living beings may attain liberation.

The repentance leader, So-and-so, bows before this repentance text to pray for peace and to commend the dead. The worshipper prostrates with all five limbs touching the ground—both hands, both knees, and the head—makes a vow with single-minded devotion, bows before the compassionate venerable one, and respectfully pays homage to the true sage.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of the Jade Clarity who Bestows Blessings.

The repentance leader, So-and-so, bows before this repentance text to pray for peace and to commend the dead. The worshipper prostrates with all five limbs touching the ground, makes a vow with single-minded devotion, bows before the compassionate venerable one, and respectfully pays homage to the true sage.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of the Jade Clarity who Bestows Blessings.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Hears Cries and Saves from Suffering.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Mysterious Truth and Ten Thousand Blessings.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of the Cavern of Emptiness, Manifest in Transformation.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Boundless Response.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Attained the Dao.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Everlasting Joy.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Joy in the Wondrous Dharma.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Ever Rescues Beings.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of the Unchanging Form.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of the Dharma Abode.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of the Mysterious Palace.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Responsive Manifestation.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of the Great Void.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of the Sea of the Dao.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of the Azure Heavens.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of the Dharma Abode.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of the Mysterious Palace.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Responsive Manifestation.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of the Great Void.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of the Sea of the Dao.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of the Azure Heavens.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of the Constant Dao.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Subdues.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Taiyi, Savior from Suffering, the Daoist deity who delivers beings in distress and those in the netherworld.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Grants Longevity and Preserves Life, who is prayed to for long life and the preservation of life.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Universal Compassion Who Protects the State, who extends compassion widely and safeguards the nation.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Freedom and Joy.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Grants Rebirth According to One’s Vows, who protects all beings so that they may be reborn as they wish.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Boundless Reach.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Whose Merits and Virtue Are as Vast as the Sea.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, I pay homage to the Perfected One Who Is a Treasury of Wisdom, endowed with wisdom as profound and abundant as a treasure storehouse.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, I pay homage to the Widely Venerated Perfected One.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, I pay homage to the Perfected One of Great Compassion Who Rescues from Suffering and the Perfected One of Great Mercy Who Removes Sins.

The patrons who have gathered at today’s ritual assembly—the people who provided the funds to establish it—pay homage with utmost sincerity to the Widely Venerated Perfected One, the Perfected One of Great Compassion Who Rescues from Suffering, and the Perfected One of Great Mercy Who Removes Sins.

The patrons and assembly gathered today at the ritual site together look up to the Supreme Celestial Worthy of Numinous Treasure in the south, as well as all the divine beings, sages, great perfected ones, celestial immortals, young attendants, and dragon spirits. They also look up to all the true sages and saints who fill the ten directions and pervade the realm of dark mystery—the deep and wondrous cosmos—whether hidden or manifest. With reverence, they pray that the sages and saints dispel realms of suffering and remove the roots of sin.

I, so-and-so, the officiant of this repentance rite, sincerely repent today of all the sinful deeds I have committed since birth, and pray that these sins be erased. From this day onward, may I always maintain faith and reverence, reflect on past failings, cleanse my thoughts, and repent for my former conduct. May I continue to cultivate through the cycles of rebirth in future lives and ultimately attain eternal longevity. May the souls of those who have passed away ascend to a blessed place, and may my living relatives dwell in a land of good fortune. May I attain Wuwei (non-action), free from grasping and contrived action, in accord with the Dao, and swiftly realize the fruit of sagehood. One bow.

Chapter Four: Removing Obstacles

Today, at the ritual site, I bow in reverence, reflect on past failings, cleanse my thoughts, and repent. May the cycles of rebirth continue in future lives, and may I ultimately attain eternal longevity. May the souls of those who have passed away ascend to a blessed place, and may my living relatives dwell in a land of good fortune. May I attain Wuwei (non-action) and swiftly realize the fruit of sagehood. One bow.

All those gathered in the ritual hall today should each still their thoughts and face the Compassionate Venerable One with reverence, repenting for the offenses they have committed by obstructing others. The chief penitent, So-and-so, kneels in sincerity and listens attentively to the scripture.

All beings, driven by greed and desire, stir the six faculties—the eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind, through which we perceive—as well as the six sense objects—forms, sounds, scents, tastes, tactile sensations, and mental objects—the six desires, and six kinds of attachment. Deluded thoughts arise, and all manner of obstacles follow. People commit wrongs without realizing it; they knowingly do wrong yet still believe they are in the right. This is all because their minds are clouded and they do not know what constitutes an offense. They see only the faults of others and think themselves superior in every way. How, then, could they recognize the dignity of others? They behave basely without knowing it, and divide people into ranks of high and low.

The wealthy and powerful live in grand houses and lofty towers, dressed in purple and adorned with gold. Their rooms are splendid and their courtyards finely kept. The poor and lowly wear coarse clothes and go barefoot, hurrying behind others to welcome and see them off. They speak softly and humbly, slighted at every turn. The rich wear light, warm furs, ride fine horses, and feast on sumptuous foods. They speak loudly, seeming broad-minded. The poor, by contrast, are constantly anxious about hunger and cold, and struggle to observe the rules of propriety. Their words and deeds often fall short. When beings commit these bodily deeds, how could they know to uphold the right way? Their faults grow ever greater, yet who will awaken?

Amid the turmoil of the world, people instead give rise to the intent to obstruct others. Some prevent others from taking refuge in the Three Treasures—the Dao, the scriptures, and the teachers—and in the sacred teachings of the Celestial Worthies, while showing contempt for the Great Dao and its scriptures. Some prevent others from being loyal to the sovereign, serving their masters and teachers, honoring their fellow practitioners and members of the religious community, or showing filial respect to their parents. Some prevent others from reciting scriptures and practicing the Dao for the sake of the state, praying for protection and blessings for their households, devoting themselves to affairs of state, or laboring for their families.

Some prevent others from giving rise to the supreme aspiration for the Dao, singing and praising the Dao, observing precepts and maintaining purity, releasing animals and saving lives, reciting scriptures and cultivating goodness, bearing insult with patience, giving joyfully, or practicing with diligence. Others prevent people from withdrawing to mountain valleys, cultivating Qi through breath practices, and pursuing the Dao in hopes of ascending to immortality. They obstruct the copying of scriptures and the adornment of sacred texts; the making of images of the Venerable Ones to inspire faith; the building of sacred altars, temples, and monasteries and inviting others to reside and preside there; and the provision of ritual meals and offerings. They also hinder people from practicing with hardship, refining their character, making offerings to the Dharma body—the practitioner’s realization of the Dharma and the teaching itself—burning incense with reverence, treating everyone equally, distancing themselves from worldly contamination and dispelling afflictions, performing rites of repentance and confessing faults to avert disaster, guarding the incense lamps in the ritual hall day and night, developing intelligence and wisdom, reading scriptures regularly, and learning skills to cultivate their character and reputation.

Some use affection, loyalty, assistance, or instruction to constrain others. Some obstruct them out of craving, contempt, wilfulness, or empty pretension. No one should recklessly hinder another from doing good, even if that good deed is small. People obstruct others because they think only of themselves and do not understand that good deeds offer a way to escape the bonds of the world. Unable to practice themselves, they turn instead to impeding others.

Committing even one act that obstructs goodness brings measureless offenses. In this life, one may grow old and fall ill, be left alone without support, and find one’s wishes hard to fulfill. After death, one may fall into the Ninefold Netherworld, the dark and deep hells, and suffer every torment. Only after enduring countless kalpas might one be reborn; one may even take birth as a fish or turtle and be cut open and killed by people. Without repentance, there is no way to liberation.

Then, to save and deliver all beings, the Compassionate Venerable One spoke this verse.

(Continuing from the previous passage) If one thereby creates sinful karma, after death one will fall into the Hells of the Ninefold Darkness, endure every kind of suffering, and pass through countless kalpas before being reborn as a fish or turtle, to be cut open by people. Without sincere repentance, there is no way to be freed.

At this time, the Compassionate Venerable One (the divine being who compassionately saves living beings) came to their aid and spoke this verse:

In a former life, you had no wish to do good and created obstacles everywhere. You spoke of obscure and deceptive things, uttering lies that misled others; you called the right path wrong and the crooked path a way to life. You sank into affection and desire, clinging greedily to what was defiling, and acted frivolously. To remain attached to such things and refuse to let them go is also evil karma. After death, you will fall into the Hell of Quicksand. Even if you are fortunate enough to be born human again, you will live in poverty and hardship, lonely and without support. You will watch the elderly in the world suffer long illnesses, while the good medicine they receive turns instead to poison.

All who have gathered today for the ritual assembly at the sacred altar should each give this their full attention. On hearing this verse, you ought truly to feel apprehension and sorrow. If you commit this kind of offense that obstructs cultivation, when its retribution comes, regret may be powerless to undo it. Therefore, you must now make a vow to remove the obstacles created by your sins.

The presiding penitent, So-and-so, bows before this repentance text to pray for peace or to dedicate merit to the dead. Prostrating with all five limbs touching the ground, he prays with single-minded devotion. He reverently bows to the Compassionate Venerable One and pays homage to the true sage.

With wholehearted reverence, he pays homage to the Jade Clarity Heavenly Worthy Who Bestows Blessings.

With wholehearted reverence, he pays homage to the Heavenly Worthy Who Hears Cries and Relieves Suffering.

With wholehearted reverence, he arouses a devout intention, respectfully bows to the Compassionate Venerable One, and pays homage to the true sage.

With wholehearted reverence, he pays homage to the Jade Clarity Heavenly Worthy Who Bestows Blessings.

With wholehearted reverence, he pays homage to the Heavenly Worthy Who Hears Cries and Relieves Suffering.

With wholehearted reverence, he pays homage to the Heavenly Worthy of Dark Truth and Myriad Blessings.

With wholehearted reverence, he pays homage to the Heavenly Worthy Who Upholds Transformation.

With wholehearted reverence, he pays homage to the Heavenly Worthy Who Transmits the Teaching.

With wholehearted reverence, he pays homage to the Heavenly Worthy of Victorious Goodness.

With wholehearted reverence, he pays homage to the Heavenly Worthy Who Discerns the Dharma.

With wholehearted reverence, he pays homage to the Heavenly Worthy of Original Radiance.

With wholehearted reverence, he pays homage to the Heavenly Worthy of Precious Virtue.

With wholehearted reverence, he pays homage to the Heavenly Worthy Who Soars upon the Clouds.

With wholehearted reverence, he pays homage to the Heavenly Worthy Who Rides the Radiant Scene.

With wholehearted reverence, he pays homage to the Heavenly Worthy of the Power of the Dharma Body.

With wholehearted reverence, he pays homage to the Heavenly Worthy of the Bright King of Virtue.

With wholehearted reverence, he pays homage to the Heavenly Worthy of the Wondrous Transformative Sound.

With wholehearted reverence, he pays homage to the Heavenly Worthy Who Constantly Protects the World.

With wholehearted reverence, he pays homage to the Heavenly Worthy of Boundless Power.

With wholehearted reverence, he pays homage to the Heavenly Worthy of the Unstained Mind.

With wholehearted reverence, he pays homage to the Heavenly Worthy, King of Merit and Virtue.

With single-minded reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy of Boundless Freedom and Power, praying to receive vast and limitless power of freedom.

With single-minded reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy Taiyi, Savior from Suffering, praying for protection and deliverance from hardship.

With single-minded reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy of Long Life and Preservation of Life, praying for longevity and the safeguarding of life.

With single-minded reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy of Universal Compassion and Protection of the Nation, praying for the nation to be protected through compassion.

With single-minded reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy of Ease and Joy, praying to be free from sorrow and suffering, and to dwell in ease and peace.

With single-minded reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy of Freedom and Power in Going Wherever One Wills, praying to fulfill my wishes and attain the power of freedom.

Then I again bow in reverence to the Celestial Worthy Taiyi, Savior from Suffering; the Celestial Worthy of Long Life and Preservation of Life; the Celestial Worthy of Universal Compassion and Protection of the Nation; and the Celestial Worthy of Ease and Joy. I also bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy of Rebirth Wherever One Wills, praying to be reborn as I wish and find a place of refuge.

With single-minded reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy Without Bounds, praying to receive boundless protection; I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy of an Ocean of Merit, praying for merit that is vast and profound.

With single-minded reverence, I bow in worship to the Perfected Ones of Wondrous Faith and Wondrous Sound, the Perfected One of Great Compassion Who Saves from Suffering, and the Perfected One of Great Mercy Who Removes Sin, praying that they use their compassionate power to relieve suffering and remove the burdens of sin.

May the person presiding over today’s repentance liturgy at the Daoist altar, together with the assembly, respectfully pray for the protection of the Supreme Numinous Treasure Celestial Worthy of the South, all the honored deities and sages, the great immortals, great perfected adepts, great Perfected Ones, and great youthful attendants, as well as the true sages throughout the ten directions, extending to the furthest reaches of the mysterious and void, from the past and future, in all that is manifest and hidden. May they bestow their protection.

May all of you, through the inconceivable power of the Great Dao, the power of subtle merit and virtue, and the compassionate power that answers the prayers of living beings, cause the obstacles and grave offenses of the repentance leader, so-and-so, to be forever removed through today’s bowing and repentance. This includes the offenses of their ancestors across nine generations, parents, co-resident teachers, disciples, fellow cultivators, and the parents, uncles, brothers, and family members of those who recite the scripture, whether living or deceased. Though these burdens are piled high as mountains and deep as the sea, may they be erased through the power of the immortals, dragon deities, Three Sages, and Perfected Ones. May those who have sunk into suffering be released and no longer endure distress.

From this day forward, when we see others practicing good deeds of any kind, may we no longer obstruct them. May the sprouts of goodness instead continue to grow and bring universal deliverance to measureless beings, so that all sentient beings may be released together and be reborn in a pure realm.

One bow.

The Most High Compassionate Repentance Liturgy for Dispelling Calamities in the Ninefold Abyss, Scroll Three

The Most High Compassionate Repentance Liturgy for Dispelling Calamities in the Ninefold Abyss, Scroll Four

Compiled by Ge Xuan, Left Immortal Lord of the Taiji

Chapter One: The Chapter on Quelling Anger.

Today, all the people gathered at the Daoist altar sincerely face the compassionate deity and repent for the sins and offenses they have committed through anger. The presiding penitent gathers his thoughts, kneels on the ground, and listens respectfully to the scripture:

All beings often become angry because they cling to their own views. Anger arises from the mind, and the mind also creates the offenses that follow. Anger welling up in the heart is like wind feeding a fire: though wind and fire may rage fiercely, after a while they die down on their own. Yet beings refuse to let anger fade. Clinging instead to foolish opinions, they go on becoming angry.

Some, driven by desire, form all kinds of perceptions. Influenced by the Six Dusts—the external objects of sight, sound, smell, taste, touch, and thought—their minds become stained and anger arises. Some resent the Venerable Celestial Lord of the Great Dao, believing that the gods speak falsely and offer only empty, vague words, so they refuse to believe in them. Some resent Heaven and Earth, cursing the cold and heat, yet remain wrapped up in their own ignorance and fail to feel gratitude for Heaven and Earth’s virtue in sheltering and sustaining all things. Some resent the sun, moon, and stars. They go unclothed and behave without restraint, heedless of the sun and moon shining upon them, while constantly complaining that their courses move either too slowly or too quickly. Some resent the scriptures, calling their words empty falsehoods. They refuse to study them, yet freely slander and disparage them.

Some resent the parents who brought them into the world. They fail to care for them properly, show no filial devotion, and do not repay their parents for the toil of raising them. Some resent their brothers, forgetting the bond between siblings and treating them as strangers, as distant from one another as passersby. Some resent their own families, unable to treat them with loving kindness: they show no respect to their elders and offer their younger family members neither care nor guidance.

Some resent fasting and abstinence—the discipline of keeping body and mind pure—and devotional practice. They carry out these observances without reverence, repeatedly violate their precepts, and lack sincerity. Some resent their ruler. They refuse to praise an age of peace, instead harboring murderous and rebellious thoughts and refusing to support the loyal and worthy. Some resent the teaching of scripture and the expounding of the Dao. They will not heed words that urge them toward goodness, but instead speak harshly and confuse what is right. Some resent Daoist temples, showing them no respect, repeatedly slandering them, and refusing to help repair them. Some resent deceased friends and relatives. They do not perform rites to commend them, cultivate blessings for them, or form good connections that might help them on the shadowy road of the dead.

Some resent the gods and refuse to make offerings to them, yet trust wicked mediums and take part in licentious acts and killing. Some resent the old and frail, refusing to honor or pity them and instead saying that their suffering is the karmic retribution they deserve. Some resent prisons. They refuse to examine the circumstances and what is right, speaking only of hardship; they even encourage harsher punishments and tighten the prisoners’ shackles. Some resent the poor and lowly, oppressing them at will and leaving them unable to seek redress for their grievances. They disregard their hunger and cold and often make them suffer. Some resent birds and beasts, disregarding their lives and acting only from greed and cruelty as they capture and cook them for food. Some resent servants and maids, refusing to make allowances for their lowly status and treating them with nothing but harshness and abuse.

Whether the offense has already been committed or has yet to be committed, whether its object is near or distant, male or female, human or nonhuman, whenever a thought arises and gives birth to anger, it is like wood catching fire and flames spreading on their own: the offenses grow ever heavier. Among them, the gravest consequence is that departed loved ones may be confined in the netherworld and unable to gain release.

When the Compassionate Venerable One saw beings giving rise to anger through delusion, he sighed and said:

All you men and women must listen carefully and reflect deeply. Do not become angry before the Heavenly Worthy of the Great Dao; do not become angry before the king or your parents, within a Daoist ritual hall where scripture and teachings are present, or in the presence of a master who expounds the scriptures and praises the teaching.

Some men and women still become angry when they see monastics, worthy people, or those who have resolved to honor and practice good deeds; when they see people who give alms, the poor, prisoners, travelers, those with limited mobility, the lonely and unsupported, people sleeping rough, the sick, or those who have lost loved ones. Such anger is like a fire springing from wood: once it blazes, it turns back and burns the very one who kindled it. Only by letting go of attachment and prejudice can one understand the truth of impermanence.

Then the Compassionate Venerable, the compassionate deity, spoke again: If living beings commit offenses through a single outburst of anger, while alive they may suffer the torment of illnesses caused by harmful winds. After death, they will fall into the Eight Cold and Eight Hot Hells, where they endure eight kinds of cold and eight kinds of scorching punishment, and then pass through the Needle-Point Hell. Only after enduring countless kalpas will they be reborn. They may then take birth as frogs, pufferfish, or other fish. And when they return to human life, they will be foolish, clumsy, and cruel. If they do not repent, they will sink into ruin forever.

The Compassionate Venerable, taking pity on beings who had not yet awakened, repeated this verse:

In this life, you are often angry, your heart always harboring the evil intent to harm others, and your spirit suffers torment because of it. You lose your temper with men, women, livestock, and servants alike, as though you were placing yourself in the midst of torment. You take up a knife or club, intent only on hurting others; your heart is filled with hatred and resentment, and you have not a moment’s joy.

After death, you will endure the torments of the cold and hot hells, then be pierced by needle points that wound your heart, liver, and gallbladder, and run through your bowels, belly, and ribs, leaving you drenched in blood. Afterward, you will be reborn as a frog, eyes glaring with anger but unable to speak; or as a pufferfish, floating at the surface in anger, where owls and kites compete to seize it, tear it apart, and devour it. Even if you later gain human birth, you will suffer the retribution of delusion: you will be ugly in appearance and clumsy in manner, speak without knowing what is fitting, and often say things that displease others. No one will take pity on you.

All those gathered in the ritual hall today should reflect carefully in accordance with the scripture. If anyone has committed such offenses, the retribution they face will be all the heavier. Today we repent together; may everyone be liberated together. The repentance leader, So-and-so, performs this rite to pray for peace and to commend the dead: prostrating with all five limbs on the ground, listening with single-minded reverence, bowing before the Compassionate Venerable and paying homage to all the perfected sages.

With reverence and sincerity, I bow to the Celestial Worthy of Blessings from the Jade Clarity Realm, who bestows blessings from the realm of Jade Clarity.

If these karmic offenses have been committed, the retribution they bring will be all the more severe. Today, we repent here, wishing that everyone may be delivered together. The presider of this repentance rite, So-and-so, recites this text of repentance to pray for peace and to make offerings on behalf of the deceased. With all five limbs touching the ground, the presider listens with single-minded attention, bows before the compassionate and revered deities, and respectfully pays homage to all the perfected sages.

With reverence and sincerity, I bow to the Celestial Worthy of Blessings from the Jade Clarity Realm; the Celestial Worthy Who Answers Cries and Relieves Suffering, who comes to aid those in distress upon hearing their cries; the Celestial Worthy of the Great Numinous Void Emperor; the Celestial Worthy of the Highest Pole in Purple Clarity; the Celestial Worthy of the Dragon Form and Nine Colors; the Celestial Worthy Who Expounds the Dao in the Fragrant Grove; the Celestial Worthy Whose True Form Shines with Light; the Celestial Worthy of the Divine Lamp and Dharma Ocean; the Celestial Worthy of True Awakening Who Dispels Suffering; the Celestial Worthy of Compassion and Wisdom Who Dispels Suffering; the Celestial Worthy of Mysterious Radiance Who Extends the Lifespan; the Celestial Worthy Who Shelters All Without Limit; the Celestial Worthy Who Transforms and Connects the Three Realms; the Celestial Worthy of Wuwei (non-action); and the Celestial Worthy Who Entrusts Himself to a Body.

With reverence and sincerity, I bow to the Celestial Worthy Who Shelters All Without Limit; the Celestial Worthy Who Transforms and Connects the Three Realms; the Celestial Worthy of Wuwei (non-action); the Celestial Worthy Who Entrusts Himself to a Body; the Celestial Worthy of Numinous Talismans; the Celestial Worthy of the Jeweled Grove; the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Radiance; the Celestial Worthy Who Responds to Those Ready for Deliverance; the Celestial Worthy Who Grants Long Life and Preserves the Vital Breath; the Celestial Worthy Taiyi Who Relieves Suffering; the Celestial Worthy of Universal Compassion Who Protects the Nation; the Celestial Worthy Without Boundaries; the Celestial Worthy of the Ocean of Merit and Virtue; the Celestial Worthy of Untroubled Ease and Joy; the Celestial Worthy Who Grants Rebirth According to One’s Vows; and the Perfected Ones Who Aid All and Deliver All.

With utmost sincerity, we pay homage to the Perfected One of Great Compassion, Savior from Suffering, who delivers beings in distress through the power of compassion.

With utmost sincerity, we pay homage to the Perfected One of Great Mercy, Remover of Sins, who helps beings free themselves from the burden of transgressions through great mercy.

The ritual leader and all those gathered at today’s Daoist altar respectfully entreat the Unsurpassed Celestial Worthy of Lingbao in the southwest, together with all the honored deities, holy Perfected Ones, great Perfected Ones, great immortals, and great youths, as well as all the true and holy beings who fill the realms in the ten directions and the realm of mystery, appearing and concealing themselves without hindrance. May they all send forth the light of compassion and protect us everywhere.

Since measureless kalpas ago, I, the ritual leader, have committed immeasurable offenses through anger. Today I bow and repent, praying that these offenses be erased, that I no longer suffer their corresponding consequences, and that I remain pure forever. From this day forward, may I never again give rise to anger; may I understand and release my clinging views, and realize the Way of true constancy. May the souls of my ancestors and my family across past and future generations be forever freed from entanglement in transgressions and never again pass through the Nine Depths, the Daoist realm of deep darkness. May all beings of the four births and six paths—the various forms of life and destinations of rebirth—understand the principle of cause and effect and return to the Unsurpassed Great Dao.

One bow.

Chapter Two: Recognizing Delusion — a chapter on becoming aware of delusion and bringing wisdom to light.

All those gathered today at the ritual site should each quiet their thoughts and bow before the Compassionate Venerable, the compassionate divine being, repenting for the sins they have committed through ignorance. I, the one leading this repentance, listen attentively and with reverence and faith to what the scripture says: from the very beginning of life, when all beings first emerged from primordial chaos, they have been ignorant and attached to all manner of worldly things. Even diligent cultivation of merit can meet with obstacles. Therefore, one must cultivate good deeds and nurture good fruits in order to attain liberation.

Some beings do not know how to cultivate. Though they accumulate good merit, they give rise again to the Three Poisons of greed, anger, and delusion, and commit deeds born of ignorance. Some insult Heaven and Earth and curse spirits and gods; some defy rulers and parents, fail in loyalty and filial duty, act perversely, and violate laws and proper principles. Some draw close to their household but reject their own kin, while ingratiating themselves with outsiders. Some believe neither in the karmic retribution of sin and blessing nor in anything beyond nature, thinking themselves capable of enduring forever without perishing. They cannot distinguish good from evil or understand higher and lower ranks. Reborn again and again, they continue to commit acts of ignorance.

Such ignorant acts may take place before sacred images, where scriptures are kept or rituals are performed, or in the presence of ritual masters. They may occur around rulers, parents, teachers, fellow students, Dao companions, relatives, wives, and children; beneath Heaven and Earth, the sun, moon, and stars; in temples of spirits and gods; before the open sky or the traces left by worthy sages; or even in the presence of humans, nonhumans, insects, beasts, and birds. Mocking those who perform good deeds, give alms, or accumulate merit is also a sin of slander and disparagement. All these acts are called ignorance, and their root lies in the mind.

If someone commits an act of ignorance toward just one person or in just one place, the offense may still implicate distant ancestors and bring calamity upon living relatives. Even if they later regret it, the harm may be beyond repair. They will remain for a long time trapped in a place of darkness; in this life they will suffer strange afflictions and grave illness, and eventually die under the weight of karmic retribution, falling into the Hell of the Cold Night. Only after enduring ten thousand kalpas will they be reborn as snakes and vipers. Without repentance, they will sink forever into the evil paths.

The Compassionate Venerable took pity on beings who had yet to awaken, and so spoke this verse.

In this world, some people are ignorant and unenlightened. They do not believe that wrongdoing brings misfortune or that good deeds bring blessings. They mock those who cultivate merit, often saying that people have no destiny from a previous life. They show no reverence for the sun, moon, Heaven, Earth, or stars, and treat all the gods, spirits, and perfected sages with contempt. In their daily lives they often do what is wrong, acting in ways that stray from the good path. Stubbornly clinging to their own views and refusing to understand, they fall after death into the Eighteen Levels of Hell and endure every kind of torment. After countless kalpas, they are reborn as snakes, their minds full of venomous thoughts and their bellies without internal organs. Tormented by hunger and thirst, they cannot eat; when people see them, everyone wants to kill them. Even if they are later reborn as human beings, they still suffer the consequences of ignorance and delusion.

Everyone gathered at this Daoist altar today should feel deep apprehension on hearing these verses. Anyone who commits these wrongs will surely receive the corresponding consequences. We should awaken to this truth so that we do not suffer such retribution. If we wait until our body and life have sunk into ruin, and only then seek repentance at the moment of death, it may already be too late. We also make a vow for the beings suffering in the realms of hell, hungry ghosts, and animals, who have not yet been freed: may they all find liberation. The person presiding over this repentance rite respectfully prays for peace and dedicates merit to the deceased. Bowing in homage to this text of repentance, with the whole body prostrate and the mind wholly focused, we make our vow, bow before the compassionate deities, and respectfully pay homage to the true sages.

With sincere reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Bestowed Blessings in Jade Clarity.

With sincere reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Seeks Out Voices and Rescues from Suffering.

With sincere reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of the Great Numinous Void Emperor.

With sincere reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of the Lofty, Supreme, Mysterious Void.

With sincere reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Boundless Freedom.

With sincere reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of the Lofty, Supreme Jade Emperor.

With sincere reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Brahma’s Deliverance in the Dragon-Han Era.

With sincere reverence, we pay homage to the Supreme Celestial Worthy of Purple Void.

With sincere reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Guides the True Ones and the High Sages.

With sincere reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Attests to Realization and Follows Merit.

With sincere reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of the Wondrous Appearance of Jade Radiance.

With sincere reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of the Most Excellent Skillful Means.

With sincere reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Unfolds Radiance and Protects Life.

With sincere reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Skillful Means and Transformative Manifestation.

With sincere hearts and reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Wondrous Fruit and Pearl Radiance. With sincere hearts and reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy who universally opens the mysterious and wondrous Daoist canon. With sincere hearts and reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy who compassionately manifests throughout the Dharma Realm. With sincere hearts and reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy who brings forth light and protects life. With sincere hearts and reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy who assumes forms through skillful means.

With sincere hearts and reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Wondrous Fruit and Pearl Radiance; the Celestial Worthy who universally opens the mysterious and wondrous Daoist canon; the Celestial Worthy who compassionately manifests throughout the Dharma Realm; the Celestial Worthy who follows the hearts of people and awakens their understanding; the True Celestial Worthy who delivers beings of the underworld and the living world; the Celestial Worthy whose great wisdom is like the sea; the Celestial Worthy of fearless power; the Compassionate Celestial Worthy; the Celestial Worthy of the Treasure Treasury; the Celestial Worthy Taiyi Who Relieves Suffering, a revered Daoist deity who saves the suffering and guides the dead; the Celestial Worthy who preserves life and protects destiny; the Celestial Worthy who extends universal compassion and safeguards the nation; the Celestial Worthy of boundless vastness; the Celestial Worthy whose merit and virtue are like the sea; the Celestial Worthy of freedom and joy; and the Celestial Worthy who welcomes beings and guides them to rebirth in accordance with their wishes.

With sincere hearts and reverence, we pay homage to the Perfected One of Wise Contemplation, the Perfected One who Responds to the World, the Perfected One of Great Compassion Who Relieves Suffering, and the Perfected One of Great Mercy Who Removes Transgressions. These titles praise the Perfected Ones’ wisdom, compassion, and virtue in delivering beings. Through repeated homage to the Celestial Worthies and Perfected Ones, the passage expresses reverence and offers prayers for protection, awakening, and deliverance.

Today, the donors and assembly gathered for the ritual at the Daoist sanctuary respectfully invite the Most High Celestial Worthy of the Numinous Treasure from the southwest, together with all the venerable deities, holy perfected ones, great perfected ones, sages of great virtue, and holy assembly. May they extend throughout the ten directions and fill the depths of the empty void, manifest their transformed bodies, and universally save all living beings. Through the compassion of the Great Dao, may they rescue living beings, arouse vast vows, and join in granting salvation.

The person presiding over the repentance rite, [name], respectfully prays on behalf of their ancestors of generations past, birth parents, parents connected through karmic causes, and ordination master who bestowed salvation; for the uncles and brothers recommended at the altar, their relatives by marriage, wife and children, and all living and deceased family members. May they repent and eliminate boundless offenses born of delusion, whether already committed or not yet committed, whether recognized or not yet recognized, with the aid of the ritual power of today’s Daoist sanctuary. From this day forward, may such offenses never be repeated. May all living beings leave the Three Paths—commonly understood as the three realms of suffering: hell, hungry ghosts, and animals—and attain liberation together, gradually realizing Wuwei (non-action) and reaching the farther shore of the Dao.

Perform one bow.

Third: repentance for the offense of miserliness and greed.

All those gathered in today’s Daoist sanctuary should each quiet their thoughts and look up to the Compassionate Worthy, repenting for the sins born of stinginess and greed. The presiding penitent, [name], gathers their mind and listens attentively to what the scripture says:

All living beings dwell in this world, but how many days are there in a hundred years? Time passes in an instant, like a spark struck from stone. How could it last? Those who cling to desire and greed are like moths flying into a flame, bringing the pain of burning upon themselves. Living beings do not understand this, nor can they see how greed and attachment entangle the mind without ever letting up. Sins accumulate day by day and year by year, and suffering from those sins grows with time.

Out of stinginess, people go on craving without end. They pile up wealth like mountains, yet remain unsatisfied. They plan for a single day’s livelihood as though they were making arrangements for a thousand years. No one brings a single coin into life, and no one can take one away at death. Once a person has passed away, everything they possessed in life is gone. Countless acts of hoarding and craving ultimately become causes for creating karmic consequences.

Some give rise to stinginess and greed before the Great Dao of the Celestial Worthies; some do so before the Great Treasury of scriptures, the collected canon of Daoist writings. Some are stingy and greedy toward those who have left home to cultivate the Dao, or in matters of fasting, making offerings, burning incense, and lighting lamps. They may also be so when building Daoist temples and halls, or when cultivating merit and fields of blessing. Some feel greed and stinginess toward emperors and rulers, parents and children, worthy people and elders, or their own and other people’s possessions.

Some see food and drink, carriages and horses, clothing and adornments, broad fields and estates, splendid houses, or servants and attendants, and give rise to greed and stinginess. They do so as well when they see ruined Daoist temples, towering mountains and forests, or flourishing flowers and fruit. When they see the poor, the elderly, or the sick, they do not think to help. When they see prisoners in distress, they show no compassion. When they see weary travelers, the weak, or those without support, they do not lend a hand. When they see people suffering from hunger and cold, thin and frail, they do not provide what they need. All of this, too, is a form of stinginess.

One may covet one’s own property, another person’s property, government property, or property held in common by the people. Even the tiniest amount—a blade of grass, a tree, a flower or fruit, or a small handful of rice or wheat—can become an object of greed. Some indulge their appetites; others are miserly. Some treat others harshly and refuse to give generously, laboring to amass wealth only to be troubled and distressed by it. They hope to become rich themselves while wishing for others to remain poor.

On the day life ends, a person is like a boat without oars or a cart without wheels, unable to move forward. A lifetime of evil deeds remains, with no good deeds to be remembered. The karmic causes thus created lead a person to fall into the evil realms, places of suffering. The Compassionate Worthy, moved by pity for living beings, therefore spoke this verse:

If, in past lives, one was consumed by greed and stinginess and never willing to stop, accumulating wealth like a mountain while one’s craving seemed ready to swallow the rivers and seas, never knowing contentment, then even fasting and observing precepts, making offerings before divine images, copying scriptures, or building Daoist temples and other facilities were done only to seek personal gain. When burning incense, lighting lamps, or performing acts of merit, one would not give away even the smallest amount, always hoping to profit from them. After death, such a person would fall into the Ice Hell, where the body freezes and the joints break. In a future life, they might be born among distant peoples beyond the frontier or become someone’s dog, guarding day and night without peace and suffering the contempt of cruel people. Only after enduring long ages might they be born human again, perhaps with a disabled body: a bent arm, a limp, blindness or deafness, a crooked nose or mouth, a protruding chest or back, a bent waist or spine, and an ugly appearance. Wherever they went, no one would pity them.

The assembly gathered today at the Daoist altar hears what the scripture says and is filled with fear. If we have committed these sins, we will in the future endure the corresponding karmic consequences. We should now diligently perform rites of repentance and wash away our past transgressions. May all beings, whether enduring these karmic consequences in the realms of hell, hungry ghosts, animals, or elsewhere, attain liberation through the power of today’s repentance before the Great Dao, the power of merit, and the power of deliverance.

The presiding celebrant prays on behalf of themself, for all immeasurable ages up to this present life, and on behalf of their revered masters, parents, and all family and dependents, asking that the boundless sins of stinginess and greed accumulated across the two lives of birth and death be eliminated. These sins have never before been cleansed or even recognized. Today, in reciting this text of repentance to pray for peace and dedicate merit to the departed, may the celebrant and all their family and dependents, both living and deceased, repent and be freed of sin. Then they prostrate with all five limbs touching the ground, listen with single-minded attention, bow before the Compassionate Venerable One, and respectfully pay homage to all the perfected sages.

With sincere reverence, they pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Jade Clarity Who Bestows Blessings.

With sincere reverence, they pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Hears Cries and Saves from Suffering.

With sincere reverence, they pay homage to the Celestial Worthy, Great Spirit, August Sovereign.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy of the Wondrous Appearance in the Golden Mirror, whose majestic and wondrous form is manifest.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy Who Guards Life and Extends Longevity through Precepts.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy of the Inexhaustible True Forms, whose wondrous true appearances have no end.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy Who Enables Beings in Every Realm to Attain the Fruit of Realization according to their circumstances.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy Who Constantly Aids and Universally Saves Beings.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy of Natural Stillness and Emptiness, who is quiet, empty, and free of action.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy Who Reveals the Principle of Cause and Effect through Skillful Means.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy of the Compassionate Light of All Wondrous Things, whose light shines upon all beings.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy of Precious Causes and the Ocean of the Dharma, whose conditions are precious and whose teachings are as vast and deep as the sea.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy Who Saves Lives through the Everlasting Truth.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy of a Majestic Name Reaching a Hundred Billion Worlds.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy Who Protects the Nation and Ensures Lasting Peace.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy of the Great Wisdom Eye.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy Who Broadly Proclaims the Highest Teaching.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy of Skillful Wisdom, who teaches and transforms beings through skillful insight.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy Who Turns the Dharma Wheel and Spreads the Dao.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy Like a Jeweled Grove, majestic and sublime as a forest of precious trees.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy Who Broadly Proclaims the Highest Teaching.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy of Skillful Wisdom.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy Who Turns the Dharma Wheel and Spreads the Dao.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy Like a Jeweled Grove.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy Who Raises the Power of the Dao, flourishing in its teachings and endowed with its power.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy Taiyi, Savior from Suffering, an important Daoist deity who rescues beings from hardship and calamity.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy Who Grants Long Life and Protects Life.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy of Freedom and Joy, who enables beings to find ease and happiness.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy Who Helps Beings Be Reborn in Blessed Realms in Keeping with Their Good Wishes.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy of Boundless Vastness.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Celestial Worthy of an Ocean of Merit and Virtue.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Perfected One of Vast Faith.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Perfected One of Wondrous Virtue.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Greatly Compassionate Perfected One Who Rescues Those in Suffering.

With single-minded sincerity and reverence, I bow in worship to the Greatly Merciful Perfected One Who Removes Sin through the Power of the Great Vow.

Today, the master of repentance—the person leading the repentance rite—and all those gathered respectfully pray together: May the supreme Lingbao Heavenly Worthy of the Southwest, along with all the revered gods, holy perfected ones, great perfected ones, the supremely compassionate perfected ones, the Youths Who Rescue from Suffering, the Youths of Supreme Wisdom, and the Youths Who Attend to Medicine, extend throughout the ten directions and fill the deep, boundless expanse of Heaven and Earth, manifesting as all the perfected sages.

May all the revered holy ones awaken their vows of compassion and universally save and guide living beings. May the merits of today’s rites of bowing and repentance release the master of repentance, so-and-so, from the charges for every crime of stinginess and greed committed by the living and the dead across three lifetimes, by nine generations of ancestors and family members, and by the master and their spouse. May all beings who have not yet attained liberation, as well as those who have already been delivered, receive salvation through this repentance rite and ultimately realize the supreme Dao. (Bow once.)

Recite the fourth section, “The Chapter on Giving.”

Today, everyone in the ritual hall should each devote themselves wholeheartedly, look up toward the compassionate deity, and confess the wrongs they have committed by failing to give. The penitent, so-and-so, awakens the mind of understanding, bows with forehead to the ground, kneels in reverence, and listens to what the scripture says:

All living beings dwell in this world, yet their desires are never satisfied. They spend the whole day grasping for more, but when have they ever been willing to let anything go? Their families are large, their halls are piled high with gold and jade, yet still they are not content. They clutch their wealth tightly, with no thought of helping others, intent only on hoarding and coveting.

Giving has immeasurable merit. It benefits all living beings, and its effects are beyond reckoning. There are three kinds of giving: giving the Dharma, giving one’s body, and giving wealth.

Giving the Dharma means continually using Daoist teachings, the scriptures of the Three Caverns (Dongzhen, Dongxuan, and Dongshen), and skillful, adaptable methods to guide living beings. At times one offers timely counsel; at times one explains the true principles; at times one teaches at length, and at times in brief. One guides all beings to return together to the One Vehicle—the ultimate Way—and to leave behind forever the entanglements of love and desire, ascending to a realm of constant joy. From one kalpa to the next, one continually proclaims the true teachings. Whether in the past or the future, one does not turn back or regret. This is the most excellent and inconceivable form of giving.

Giving one’s body means using one’s body and life to rescue living beings. When they face illness, fire or flood, armed conflict, or other disasters, one does all one can to protect them, using every available means and risking one’s own life. Seeing someone starve to death, one feels as though one were starving oneself; seeing someone freeze, one feels as though one were suffering the cold oneself. One may also offer one’s labor, taking on danger and hardship for others without holding back. One may care for Daoist practitioners who have left home, meeting their daily needs; gather herbs in the mountains, attend to them on their travels, build Daoist temples, sweep their halls, plant orchards, or contribute labor to bring good works to completion. One may also dig wells by roadsides and repair bridges and roads, working without complaint and doing one’s utmost. The merit of such deeds is immense and beyond counting.

Giving wealth is of two kinds. Inner wealth means one’s own body, hands and feet, bones and limbs, nine openings, skin, nails, and the like, all used to help others to the fullest, without sparing oneself. Outer wealth includes money, land, cities, one’s wife and children, servants, oxen and horses, gold, silver, pearls and jade, fine silks and brocades, as well as playthings and clothing. One gives these to the people without clinging to them or keeping them in mind.

There are also nine kinds of giving, each arising from a different intention and bringing its own benefits. The first is giving sacred images of Daoist deities who manifest in response to the needs of the world. The second is giving scriptures and Mahayana teachings. The third is giving images of immortals and perfected beings. The fourth is giving the buildings, halls, towers, corridors, and steps of Daoist altars and temples. The fifth is providing men and women who have left home to practice the Way with black caps, yellow-brown robes, and other ritual clothing and implements, so that they have everything they need. The sixth is providing the incense and oil, lamps and candles, farmland, and servants needed for the daily upkeep of Daoist temples. The seventh is giving bells, chimes, banners, flowers, canopies, seats, and all kinds of ritual implements. The eighth is giving vegetarian meals, rice, flour, and incense oil to nourish Daoist practitioners who have left home, as well as those who observe vegetarian discipline, keep the precepts, and diligently study the Way. The ninth is giving to the poor and the lonely, to those who are hungry, cold, or ill, to prisoners, and to all who are trapped in danger and hardship.

Puji said: “The various forms of giving taught by the Compassionate Venerable One have inconceivable merit. Then why did people in ancient times suffer no disasters even though they did not practice giving?”

The Compassionate Worthy said: In ancient times, people were simple and sincere. They held the Dao in their hearts and acted with De; they did not covet wealth or harbor excessive desires. In later generations, however, customs grew shallow. People often became deceitful, pursuing wealth alone without understanding the workings of cause and effect. They valued money over life, with the result that families could be ruined and states destroyed. They harbored evil thoughts, allied themselves with wicked people, and formed enmities with one another, yet never came to their senses.

For this reason, the Compassionate Worthy established this teaching to encourage people to give. The four assemblies of today—that is, the different groups of Daoist adherents—know only how to cherish possessions, not how to cherish life. To relinquish wealth is like relinquishing life, which is why they are called “life and wealth.” If people are able to give, the thieves of greed and stinginess will not arise within, and thieves from outside will have little chance to intrude. With peace within and without, all suffering is dispelled. By giving, one overcomes stinginess and greed, connects with the sacred Dao, and receives blessings in keeping with one’s deeds of merit.

If beings do not give in the proper way, are unwilling to offer their effort and dedication, their personal or other possessions, or to practice the various forms of giving, then even when they see communal meals and offerings being prepared, precepts being observed, spiritual practice undertaken, or true scriptures being expounded, they refuse to give. They refuse to give when they see sacred images of the Celestial Worthies, or places where those who have left home to cultivate the Dao live in the cold. They refuse to add oil to keep a lamp burning. When incense has run out and lamps have gone dark at a place of offering, they refuse to replenish them. If banners and images of the gods at a Daoist sanctuary are lacking, ancient sacred sites have fallen into disrepair, or Daoist temples and halls are dilapidated, they refuse to contribute to repairs. They also refuse to give when the Daoist Canon, its scriptures and cases are incomplete, or the vessels used for offerings do not meet the proper standards.

When they see ritual hymns being sung, daily necessities at Daoist temples running short, bells and chimes sounding out of tune, or construction work left unfinished, they still refuse to give. They will not help prisoners, the poor, the elderly, or the sick, nor take opportunities to perform good deeds, accumulate merit, and cultivate blessings. Some refuse to give by suitable means, with compassion, or to encourage others to do good. They are also unwilling to help others through teaching and guidance, frugality in their own spending, kind intentions, loyalty and filial devotion, or benevolent thoughts. Some refuse to give impartially, clinging instead to narrow and biased views; others will not help people with the abilities, medical skills, or generous spirit they possess.

According to the scripture, those who refuse to give in these and other ways will often find their families and dependents unsettled in this life; spouses and children may become separated before their time. They themselves may suffer physical disabilities and grave illnesses. After death, they will fall into the Nine Depths, the deepest regions of the underworld, and endure the many torments of the hells. Only after countless kalpas will they be reborn as creatures such as snakes and dogs. The Compassionate Worthy took pity on those who had not yet awakened and therefore composed this verse:

If a person is wealthy and distinguished, virtuous and intelligent, and possesses medical skill or influence, yet refuses in every circumstance to give alms and help others, saying, “I am prosperous and content in this life, and I can remain so forever,” that person does not believe in reincarnation and looks down on the poor. Yet they may see people die suddenly, separated from their families in the prime of life, and after death enter a prison of sorrow and suffering, their hearts as if confined in an iron cage. They may be reborn as a snake, a dog, or another creature, viciously guarding a household. Even if they later regain human form, they will be dull and ignorant, lacking insight, lonely and destitute, low in status, and made to serve others in life after life.

Those gathered in the ritual hall today, having heard the scriptures describe these consequences, should take them deeply to heart. We too may have committed such offenses without knowing it, and in the future we will still have to bear the corresponding retribution. As we bow and recite the scriptures today, we should do so with wholehearted diligence. May we all repent together, so that our offenses may be erased; may the beings of the Six Realms—heavenly beings, humans, asuras, animals, hungry ghosts, and beings in hell—as well as the beings of the Four Births—womb-born, egg-born, moisture-born, and transformation-born—all attain liberation.

The principal of repentance, So-and-so, vows to bow before this repentance text in prayer for peace or to dedicate merit to the deceased. Prostrating with all five limbs touching the ground and focusing the mind, they bow before the compassionate deities and respectfully pay homage to the perfected sages.

With focused reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Jade Clarity Who Bestows Blessings, the Celestial Worthy Who Responds to Cries and Relieves Suffering, and the Celestial Worthy, Sovereign Emperor of Great Mystery.

Vowing to bow before this repentance text to dedicate merit to the deceased, the principal of repentance prostrates with all five limbs touching the ground and focuses the mind, bowing before the compassionate deities and respectfully paying homage to the perfected sages.

With focused reverence, pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Jade Clarity Who Bestows Blessings, the Celestial Worthy Who Responds to Cries and Relieves Suffering, the Celestial Worthy, Sovereign Emperor of Great Mystery, the Celestial Worthy of Broad Transformation and Compassionate Countenance, the Celestial Worthy of Universal Nourishment and Wuwei (non-action), the Celestial Worthy of Ten Thousand Transformations through Divine Powers, the Celestial Worthy of the Many Wonders That Save Humanity, the Celestial Worthy of Mysterious Transformation and Liberation, the Celestial Worthy of True Light That Rescues from Adversity, the Celestial Worthy of Blessings and Auspiciousness through Wuwei, the Celestial Worthy of the Broad Radiance of the Wondrous Dao, the Celestial Worthy Who Teaches Expedient Means, the Celestial Worthy Who Widely Spreads Transformative Grace, the Celestial Worthy of Great Compassion and Good Understanding, and the Celestial Worthy Who Is Seen Amid Boundless Affinities.

With sincere hearts and reverence, bow before the Celestial Worthy of Universal Good Deeds (the Celestial Worthy who bestows good deeds throughout the heavens), the Celestial Worthy Who Liberates Through the Dao’s Teachings (the Celestial Worthy who saves all beings through the Dao’s teachings), the Celestial Worthy Who Transmits the Scriptures and Teaches (the Celestial Worthy who imparts the scriptures and instructs all beings), the Celestial Worthy of Great Wisdom (the Celestial Worthy endowed with vast wisdom), and the Celestial Worthy of Sovereign Power (the Celestial Worthy possessed of sovereign divine powers).

Next, with sincere hearts and reverence, bow before the Celestial Worthy, the Celestial Worthy Who Liberates Through the Dao’s Teachings, the Celestial Worthy Who Transmits the Scriptures and Teaches, the Celestial Worthy of Great Wisdom, the Celestial Worthy of Sovereign Power, the Celestial Worthy Taiyi Who Relieves Suffering (the revered deity who aids those in distress), the Celestial Worthy Who Grants Longevity and Preserves Life (the Celestial Worthy who protects longevity and preserves life), the Celestial Worthy of Universal Compassion Who Protects the Nation (the Celestial Worthy who extends compassion widely and protects the nation), the Boundless Celestial Worthy (the Celestial Worthy vast and without limits), the Celestial Worthy Whose Merit and Virtue Are an Ocean (the Celestial Worthy whose merit and virtue are like the sea), the Celestial Worthy of Freedom and Joy (the Celestial Worthy who brings people ease and peace), and the Celestial Worthy Who Grants Rebirth in Accordance with One’s Wishes (the Celestial Worthy who protects beings so they may be reborn as they wish).

Finally, with sincere hearts and reverence, bow before the Perfected One of the Supreme Ultimate (an honorific title for a Daoist Perfected One), the Perfected One of Wondrous Light, the Greatly Compassionate Perfected One Who Relieves Suffering, and the Greatly Merciful Perfected One Who Removes Sin.

Today, the benefactors and assembly gathered at the ritual altar respectfully invite the Supreme Celestial Worthy of the Numinous Treasure from the southwest, together with all the honored deities, sages, great perfected ones, and great youths, and all the responsive manifestations of the honored and holy who fill the ten directions and pervade the realm of mystery and emptiness. May they bestow the power of the Dao and the power of skillful means.

May the parents, teachers, fellow students, and close kin of the person leading this repentance be released through the merit of today’s bows and repentance from all offenses committed through failure to give, whether in the upper, middle, or lower of the three ages, and whether their karmic consequences have already come to pass or are yet to come. May these kin also dwell in wealth and honor in every life, possess wisdom and intelligence, and delight in giving and helping all living beings. May those who are suffering be brought together into peace and happiness, swiftly awaken to the Dao of Wuwei (non-action), and quickly attain the fruits of sagehood. Bow once.

The Supreme Greatly Compassionate Repentance Liturgy for Dispelling Calamities in the Nine Netherworlds, Scroll Four

The Supreme Greatly Compassionate Repentance Liturgy for Dispelling Calamities in the Nine Netherworlds, Scroll Five

Compiled by Ge Xuan, Immortal Lord of the Left of the Supreme Ultimate

First Section: Take Care with False and Reckless Words.

Today, in the sanctuary, everyone gathers their thoughts and faces the Compassionate Venerable One with reverence. They repent for the offenses they have committed through boastful and false speech. The person leading the repentance, so-and-so, stills the mind and spirit, kneels on the ground, and listens closely to the scripture.

All beings are often led astray by four kinds of delusion, acting only on the basis of the six consciousnesses—the perceptions and judgments of the eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, and mind. They describe a small good deed as boundless merit, yet claim to be blameless after committing many offenses. When they see another person’s faults, they exaggerate them and spread slander; when they see another accumulating virtue, they look for ways to disparage them. They claim their own virtue is complete, using clever arguments and ornate words to conceal the truth. A brief separation from someone becomes, in their telling, half a year; a single day seems to them like a hundred years. Such foolish stubbornness is all brought about by boastful, false speech.

Some speak boastfully and falsely before the Heavenly Venerable One and the Great Dao; some do so before the Three Caverns scriptures, the Daoist canon; others before ritual masters and people of great virtue. Some speak this way before rulers and emperors, parents and honored elders, sages and senior figures, or even the foolish and lowly, the deaf and blind, and people with disabilities. Some use boastful falsehoods before the honored and wealthy, their teachers, fellow practitioners, or elders. Some rely on power, wealth, intelligence, or cunning to do so; others speak this way to people they know well.

Still others speak boastfully and falsely before the holy beings of the heavens, the true sages of the ten directions, the stars, the sun and moon, and all the spirits. Whoever harbors such thoughts and speaks ornate but untrue words will bear grave offenses. Those who create this karma in this life will, after death, have twisted mouths and faces and fall into the hell of tongue-pulling. Only after passing through ten thousand kalpas will they be reborn as animals. Without repentance, they will find it difficult to escape and be reborn in the Pure Land. So the Compassionate Venerable One spoke a verse for those who have not yet awakened.

If a person is crooked in heart and deceitful, even resorting to falsehood before the Three Treasures—the Dao, the scriptures, and the masters; if, whether dealing with parents and children, rulers and common people, or meeting and associating with others, they sow discord and harm the loyal and virtuous; if they separate people from their family and friends, envy those more capable than themselves, spread rumors and stir up disputes, call falsehood truth and purity filth, criticize others’ faults, and presume to judge what others like or dislike—such conduct will stir conflict wherever they go. After death, they will fall into the Tongue-Pulling Hell, where iron awls pierce the tongue and enormous stones crush the body. Their tongue will be stretched a hundred feet long and nailed down, as blood drips without end. Afterwards, they will be reborn as a wild dog, devouring filth and suffering day and night.

Having heard this verse, the assembly gathered at today’s ritual altar should understand that, from lives past onward, all beings have endured karmic retribution in the cycle of rebirth. Why is this so? We now repent and vow to practice diligently, hoping that through the merit of today’s repentance we may all attain liberation. The principal penitent, [name omitted], performs this rite of repentance to pray for peace and to dedicate merit to the deceased. Prostrating with all five limbs on the ground, they listen with single-minded attention. They bow before the compassionate divine beings and respectfully pay homage to all the perfected sages.

With wholehearted sincerity, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Brings Blessings from the Jade Clarity, the Celestial Worthy Who Hears the Cries and Relieves Suffering, the Celestial Worthy of Supreme Mystery, the Celestial Worthy of Wisdom’s Transformation into the Natural, the Celestial Worthy Beyond Form and Color, the Celestial Worthy Who Beholds Form and Color, the Celestial Worthy of Sovereign Wisdom, [only the character “Worthy” remains here], the Celestial Worthy of Supreme Mystery, the Celestial Worthy of Wisdom’s Transformation into the Natural, the Celestial Worthy Beyond Form and Color, the Celestial Worthy Who Beholds Form and Color, the Celestial Worthy of Sovereign Wisdom, the Celestial Worthy of Boundless Wisdom, the Celestial Worthy Whose Virtue Pervades All, and the Celestial Worthy Who Gives Life to All Things.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, I bow before the Celestial Venerable One who harmonizes Yin and Yang, the Celestial Venerable One whose Dao and De are vast and boundless, the Celestial Venerable One of immeasurable wisdom, the Celestial Venerable One who endures throughout the past, present, and future, the Celestial Venerable One who created Heaven and Earth, the Celestial Venerable One who makes the sun and moon shine, the Celestial Venerable One whose compassionate deliverance never ceases, and the Celestial Venerable One whose jeweled light shines everywhere.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, I bow before the Celestial Venerable One who endures throughout the three ages, created Heaven and Earth, illuminates the sun and moon, shows unceasing compassion, and shines with jeweled light in all directions; before the Celestial Venerable One who teaches and transforms the Three Realms, the Celestial Venerable One whose golden radiance shines far and wide, the Celestial Venerable One Taiyi, Savior from Suffering, the revered deity who delivers beings from hardship in Daoism, the Celestial Venerable One who protects and blesses longevity and preserves life, the Celestial Venerable One whose compassion safeguards the nation, the Celestial Venerable One who brings freedom and joy, and the Celestial Venerable One who guides the departed onward in accord with their wishes.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, I bow before the boundless Celestial Venerable One, the Celestial Venerable One whose merit and virtue are like the sea, the Perfected One of Sunlight, the Perfected One of Moonlight, the Greatly Compassionate Perfected One who saves from suffering, and the Greatly Merciful Perfected One who removes sins, delivering beings from hardship and eradicating their karmic offenses.

May the person making confession at the Daoist sanctuary today and all those present join in reverent prayer. May the Most High Celestial Worthy of Numinous Treasure of the Western Realm, together with all the venerable gods, holy immortals, Great Perfected Ones, and Great Youths, and all the true sages and holy ones throughout the ten directions, filling the realm of mysterious emptiness, whether hidden or manifest, together extend their vast mercy and save all beings.

We pray that the Celestial Worthy and the holy perfected ones save the nine ancestors and seven generations of descendants of the person making confession, so-and-so, as well as that person and their relatives by marriage, whether living or deceased. Since time without measure, through the cycles of repeatedly casting off and receiving bodies, if they have committed the offenses described earlier, such as deceptive speech and falsehood, and have not yet been freed through the power of the Daoist teachings, may the sins be dispelled through today’s bowing and confession. From this day onward, may they never commit these offenses again, speak no boastful or false words, and keep their speech and conduct plain and honest. Finally, we pray that all sentient beings may realize the Great Dao. Bow once.

Section Two: Confessing Harsh Speech and Double-Tongued Speech (words that wound others and sow discord).

Today, everyone in the ritual hall should focus their minds and look up to the Compassionate Venerable One, repenting the offenses created by harsh speech and divisive talk. The officiant leading the repentance should kneel upright, quiet the mind, and listen carefully to what the scripture says:

Among the verbal offenses of all living beings, divisive talk is especially grave. Quarrelsome argument often brings calamity. Some people are careless and eager to show off: they mock those above them and slight those below. They behave arrogantly toward the honored, the monastics, and their relatives and friends without realizing it, and even regard judging others as a skill. They indulge in the Five Flavors of food without restraint, crave meat and pungent foods, and eat without limit.

Some deceive the worthy and mislead the sages, disparage perfected beings and slander the Great Dao. They discuss other people’s faults while boasting of their own merits; casually berate Heaven, Earth, wind, and rain; and spread hearsay, turning what exists into what does not, and making the rough seem precise. They sow discord among good people and promote foolishness, speaking ill of one person to another and then telling each person what is wrong with the other. They turn closeness and distance upside down, separating people from their relatives and associating with vulgar, ignorant people. They distance those who are close, causing relatives and friends to become enemies. They speak in empty, ostentatious ways, taking falsehood for truth; their words go against what is right. They slander rulers and parents, slight teachers and friends, ruin the loyal and upright, suppress those who surpass them, and frame the innocent. Their speech is boastful and deceitful: they claim to be right aloud but refuse inwardly to admit their faults. Verbal offenses take many forms, yet the sins they create run deep.

Some sigh in another’s presence while calling good evil. They are always making up absurd, untrue stories, drawing near to deviant teachings, and invoking Heaven, Earth, and ghosts and spirits. Whatever they say, they are never truthful. Some use harsh and divisive speech before the Celestial Venerable, the Great Dao, the scriptures and teachings, and their revered teachers. Some do so before kings, parents, the worthy, and the Dharma Body—the pure body attained through spiritual cultivation. Some do so before the various heavens, the sun and moon, and the holy assembly in the void. Others do so at wells, stoves, and doorways; before relatives and friends, ordinary people, or nonhuman beings such as spirits and ghosts.

Such faults of the tongue can entangle countless things and even bring harm to Heaven and Earth. The immeasurable roots of sin all arise from speech; even comparing them to grains of sand cannot begin to count them. Even the slightest offense leaves a record of sin and karmic retribution. The scripture says that in this life one may suffer a twisted mouth and face, an immobile tongue, loss of voice, or a hoarse throat and blocked nose. After death, one may fall into the molten-copper hell, undergo its torments for ten thousand kalpas before being reborn, and take the form of an insect, scorpion, snake, or viper. Without repentance, how could these offenses be erased?

Moved by compassion for living beings who had not yet awakened, the Compassionate Venerable One then spoke this verse:

In a former life, because of malicious and abusive speech, you insulted relatives and strangers alike. You spoke without distinguishing good from evil, saying whatever came to mind. You even called out to Heaven and Earth, summoning ghosts and spirits; you insulted the Three Treasures (the Dao, the scriptures, and the masters) and offended Heaven, Earth, the sun, moon, and stars. Beside wells and stoves, over flowing water, by doorways and along roads, at local earth-god shrines and beneath mountain forests, you cursed people close to you and those far away, speaking evil words without restraint. You also cursed the loyal and virtuous, regardless of their rank—even your parents, flesh-and-blood relatives, bondservants, and servants suffered your verbal abuse.

After death, molten copper would be poured over your body, and smoke would rise from your whole body. Reborn, you might become a venomous creature such as a bee or scorpion, opening your mouth to harm other living beings. Or you might become a clam or mussel, sunk in sand and mud, withdrawing into your shell whenever anything happens. Even if you later gained a human body, you might be mute or stammer.

Assembly gathered at today’s sacred site, as the scriptures say, we have committed the sins of harsh speech and divisive speech—stirring up trouble and setting people against one another—and their karmic consequences will come without the slightest error. If we have committed such offenses, how can we escape their consequences when they ripen? That is why, through the cycles of rebirth among the hell beings, hungry ghosts, and animals, we go on repaying our karmic debts without end. I now bow in repentance and, before the Dao, earnestly beg for mercy. May the Dharma’s nourishing rain fall everywhere, so that all beings may be liberated.

The person presiding over this repentance rite bows before this text to pray for peace and to guide the deceased onward. Prostrating with all five limbs touching the ground, he listens with single-minded reverence. He bows to the compassionate Worthy One and pays respect to all the true sages.

With sincere devotion, we pay homage to the Heavenly Worthy of Jade Clarity, Who Bestows Blessings; the Heavenly Worthy Who Hears Cries and Rescues from Suffering; the Heavenly Worthy of Supreme and Utmost Mystery; the Heavenly Worthy of the Radiance of Ten Thousand Treasures; the Heavenly Worthy of Boundless Manifestation; the Heavenly Worthy Who Constantly Enacts Deliverance; the Heavenly Worthy of Lofty, Pure Radiance; the Heavenly Worthy of Boundless Manifestation; the Heavenly Worthy Who Constantly Enacts Deliverance; the Heavenly Worthy of Lofty, Pure Emptiness; the Responsive Heavenly Worthy; the Heavenly Worthy Who Protects the Nation; and the Heavenly Worthy Who Universally Saves All Beings.

With sincere hearts, we respectfully pay homage to the Heavenly Worthies of Constant Compassionate Thought, Endless Intent, Lasting Peace for the Nation, Protection of Heaven and Earth, Joy in the Land, Boundless Blessings, Responsive Mind, Fulfilled Land, Broad Dispelling of Calamities, Birth of All Things, Great One Who Saves from Suffering, Long Life and Protection of Life, Universal Compassion and Protection of the Nation, Freedom and Joy, Rebirth According to One’s Wishes, and Boundlessness; to the Heavenly Worthy Who Is an Ocean of Merit and Virtue; and to the Perfected Ones of Natural Wisdom and Dharma Body, Supreme Virtue of Mystery and Emptiness, Great Compassion Who Saves from Suffering, and Great Mercy Who Removes Sin.

The person presiding over repentance in this sanctuary today, together with all those gathered here, looks up and prays to the unsurpassed Lingbao Heavenly Worthy of the West, and to all the honored gods, sacred perfected beings, great Perfected Ones, great Youths, and all true sages of the ten directions, whether manifest or hidden from sight. May they take compassionate heed of our sincere and reverent hearts, and widely extend their aid and deliverance.

We earnestly ask all the honored sacred beings to ensure that every offense committed by the repentance leader, [name],’s nine generations of ancestors and seven generations of forebears, deceased and living relatives, and all family members—including harsh speech and divisive speech that spreads discord and sows conflict—may be erased through today’s ritual repentance. May these offenses never be repeated. May they, in every life to come, be endowed with skillful speech and abundant wisdom and eloquence, speaking in ways that bring harmony and benefit, and guiding and helping people according to their different levels of understanding. May they universally deliver beings in the six realms and four modes of birth, and become one with the Great Dao. One prostration.

Everyone gathered in the Daoist sanctuary today, focus your minds and bow in reverence before the Compassionate Venerable One, repenting the transgressions committed through sexual desire. The leader of the repentance rite, [Name], kneels and takes refuge, respectfully listening to what the scripture says:

When any living being gives rise to sexual desire, they are shut away in a dark hell, sinking into the river of craving and struggling to find release, condemned to sink there for a long time. From the distant past, living beings have circled through birth and death for an entire kalpa. The bones they have accumulated would pile up like mountains; the mother’s milk they have drunk would fill the Four Great Seas. The blood they have shed themselves is greater still. Their parents, siblings, and other close kin have all reached the end of their lives, and the tears shed at their partings would also equal the waters of the Four Great Seas. That is why the scripture says: “Where there is craving, there is birth; when craving is exhausted, there is cessation.” From this we can see that the cycle of birth and death begins with sexual desire and attachment.

The transgression of sexual desire can cause living beings to fall into hell or be reborn as hungry ghosts. They may also be reborn as animals, such as pigeons, sparrows, or owls. If living beings give rise to thoughts of sexual desire before a Celestial Worthy’s scriptures, a ritual master, a Mystic Altar (a shrine dedicated to Daoist deities), a sacred temple or sanctuary, or a Daoist ritual site; if they do so in a pure place, a shrine, or a site of sacred significance; if they violate the chaste, harm others, separate mothers from children, part men and women, sever the love between spouses, obstruct the affection and longing between family members, or show no regard for the virtuous and kind; if they expose their bodies beneath the sun, moon, and stars—the Three Luminaries; if in their thoughts they defile the Dharma bodies (the pure status of those who have left home to practice the Dao) of ordained men or women; or if they commit impure acts with five kinds of people—then all who, in this way, harbor ill intent toward those who have left home to cultivate the Dao are like those who burn revered divine images and palaces. They will sink into the Nine Hells of Darkness in Fengdu, the legendary underworld, and for long kalpas will be unable to be reborn. Their descendants for nine generations will also suffer short lives and hardship.

It follows that no matter what kind or degree of transgression through sexual desire a person commits, in this life their household may face wrongful accusations, sudden calamities, lawsuits, and grave misfortune. They themselves may be afflicted by malign influences and suffer illness year after year. After death, they may enter the Nine Hells of Darkness, endure ten thousand kalpas before being reborn, and undergo the retribution of being reborn as filthy dung worms. Without repentance, they will bear their transgressions for a long time, sinking without escape.

Thereupon, the Compassionate Venerable One spoke this verse to those who had not yet awakened:

In a former life, they committed sexual misconduct and indulged without restraint. They deceived and violated other people’s wives and concubines, separating families. They engaged in incest with close relatives, and even had sex indiscriminately with monastics and animals. Some had sex while naked in pure and sacred places, in numinous temples and mysterious altars, before scriptures or divine images, and even in broad daylight. They showed no regard for ghosts and spirits, even beneath the light of the sun, moon, and stars. Some had sex everywhere, beside famous mountains and great lakes, and in temples where the gods of the soil and grain were worshipped. After death, they fell into the Ninefold Netherworld Prison, the underworld hell described in Daoism.

The men who had committed these offenses clung to enormous bronze pillars; the women lay on beds of red-hot iron. Smoke and flames rose from their bodies as their flesh and fat burned and rotted away. Then they were thrown into cauldrons of boiling broth and beaten day and night with iron rods. Afterward, they had to enter the icy prison, where their bodies were torn apart, pounded with stone pestles, ground beneath millstones, sawed apart, and hacked with blades and axes. Even if they were later reborn as human beings, they would take the form of madmen afflicted by depraved illnesses.

Everyone gathered at today’s Daoist altar: the scenes described in the scriptures are truly terrifying. If one has incurred such offenses, how can they be recognized? All beings among the four forms of birth and the six realms of rebirth—those already suffering and those whose punishment has yet to come—may all be freed through the bowing and repentance performed today. The presiding penitent, [name], seeks peace and offers prayers for the deceased by bowing before this repentance text. Prostrating with all five limbs touching the ground, they bow before the compassionate Worthies and reverently pay homage to all the holy perfected beings.

With wholehearted reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Jade Clarity Who Bestows Blessings.

With wholehearted reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Hears Voices and Saves the Suffering.

With wholehearted reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Supreme Subtlety and Utmost Extremity.

With wholehearted reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Free and Transformative Manifestation.

With wholehearted reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Encompasses Heaven and Earth, the Celestial Worthy of Blessings.

With wholehearted reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Hears Voices and Saves the Suffering.

With wholehearted reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Supreme Subtlety and Utmost Extremity.

With wholehearted reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Free and Transformative Manifestation.

With wholehearted reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Encompasses Heaven and Earth.

With wholehearted reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Five Hundred Billion Manifestations.

With wholehearted reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Shakes Heaven and Earth.

With wholehearted reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of the Golden Wheel and Jade Radiance.

With wholehearted reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Brings the Lands to Fulfillment.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, we bow before the Celestial Worthy who abides among all living beings.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, we bow before the Celestial Worthy of Ninefold Radiance, the Celestial Worthy of the Precious Lotus Blossom, the Celestial Worthy Who Cleanses All Defilements and Obstacles, the Celestial Worthy Who Grants Blessings Wherever Beings May Be, the Celestial Worthy Who Teaches Through Quiet Compassion, the Celestial Worthy Who Protects Souls and Lets Them Move Unhindered, the Celestial Worthy Who Shines upon All Life, and the Celestial Worthy Who Turns the Power of the Dharma in Accord with the Heart’s Wishes.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, we bow before the Celestial Worthy Who Teaches Through Quiet Compassion, the Celestial Worthy Who Protects Souls and Lets Them Move Unhindered, the Celestial Worthy Who Shines upon All Life, the Celestial Worthy Who Turns the Power of the Dharma in Accord with the Heart’s Wishes, the Celestial Worthy Who Delivers Beings from Calamity, the Celestial Worthy, King of the Still Mountain, the Celestial Worthy Whose Fragrance and Blossoms Fill the Heavens, the Celestial Worthy Who Widely Aids and Relieves Beings Through Skillful Means, the Celestial Worthy Taiyi Who Saves from Suffering, the Celestial Worthy Who Preserves Life and Prolongs Longevity, the Celestial Worthy Who Compassionately Protects the Nation, the Celestial Worthy of Ease and Joy, the Celestial Worthy Who Grants Rebirth According to One’s Vows, the Celestial Worthy Without Boundaries, and the Celestial Worthy Whose Merit and Virtue Are Like an Ocean.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, we bow before the Perfected One of the Sun’s Compassion and Great Wisdom, the Perfected One of the Moon’s Compassion and Great Insight, the Perfected One of Great Compassion Who Saves from Suffering, and the Perfected One of Great Mercy Who Removes Sin.

Today, the presiding officiant of this repentance liturgy and all those gathered here join in looking upward and praying: May the Supreme Celestial Worthy of the Western Realm, together with all the honored deities, sages, Great Perfected Ones, and Great Youths, as well as all true sages and perfected beings throughout the ten directions, filling the realm of the mysterious and profound, whether hidden or manifest, look kindly upon this prayer. May we draw upon the power of this ritual sanctuary and the merit of these praises…

May the masters of repentance and all the assembly gathered today in the sanctuary look up and petition the supreme Celestial Worthy of Numinous Treasure of the West, together with all the honored deities, sages, great perfected ones, and great youths, as well as all true sages throughout the ten directions, filling the realm of Mystery and Emptiness and appearing and disappearing in the world. May the power of the sanctuary, the power of praise and proclamation, and the power of self-transformation enable the masters’ parents in this life, extended family, uncles and brothers, relatives by marriage, and kin from this and former lives—whether living or deceased—if they have ever committed the sexual transgressions described above, to wash away their sins through this sincere appeal, bowing, and repentance. From now on, may they see beauty and understand that its nature is empty, no longer suffer the corresponding karmic retribution, and never repeat these transgressions. May they give rise to compassion, cherish themselves as precious treasures, and act with care as if protecting a luminous pearl; may they encounter no further obstacles, enter the realm of Wuwei (non-action), and ascend together to the state of realizing the Great Dao. One bow.

Chapter Four: Leaving Hatred and Attachment Behind.

Everyone gathered today in the ritual hall should each focus their minds and look up to the Compassionate Venerable One, repenting of the offenses committed through hatred, favoritism, and the division between “others” and “self.” The leader of the repentance rite gathers his thoughts, kneels upright on the ground, and respectfully listens to the scripture.

All beings are often deluded in mind and seldom sincere in their actions. They accumulate what they love and desire in heaps as high as mountains, yet still feel it is not enough. They shun what they hate and detest as though it were filth, yet still feel their hatred is not deep enough. With thoughts like these, people fail to understand the way things are. They constantly divide things into “you” and “me,” judge who is strong and who is weak, and let their words and actions conflict with one another. They are also entangled in worldly concerns, allowing stubborn, deluded thoughts to run unchecked.

People can never look enough at what pleases them, and never want to stop listening to what delights them. They cling to deviant thoughts and delusion, and do not keep to stillness and calm. They indulge their gaze on things that please the eye, then remember them long afterward; they listen without end to words that please the ear. They speak only of other people’s faults and always want to boast of their own strengths. When they like someone, they disregard that person’s ugliness; when they speak of someone they love, they make no distinction between those close to them and those far away.

Thus, beings sometimes give rise to hatred and attachment before the Dharma seat of a true sage; sometimes they harbor such feelings toward kings, parents, or revered teachers; and sometimes toward uncles, brothers, men, or women. They may also feel hatred and attachment toward Heaven and Earth, the sun and moon, or the realm of empty space; or they may feel such desires in places such as sacred sites and numinous altars. The offenses arising from hatred and attachment, from distinctions between self and others, are truly boundless.

Even committing just one of these offenses can cause a person, after death, to fall into the hells for many kinds of wrongdoing, with little hope of escape. Even if they are reborn and enter the cycle of transmigration, they must endure a nonhuman form. Unless repentance removes these offenses, they will remain sunk in suffering for a long time. The Compassionate Venerable One then spoke again:

Hatred and craving create the distinction between “you” and “me”; they arise because people cling to their own thoughts. When evil thoughts are taken for good ones, hatred grows ever deeper while love grows ever weaker. When hating someone, one wishes they would disappear completely, yet even that cannot satisfy one’s foolish heart. When loving someone, even love as deep as a mountain still seems insufficient. In truth, all things come from one source, yet people distinguish between beauty and ugliness. The distinction between you and me comes from the mind, and good and evil alike arise from human nature.

After death, one falls into the great hell and suffers every kind of torment: blades pierce the heart, iron awls stab and cut the tongue, and iron nails are driven into every joint of the body. Then one is reborn as a goose or duck, or as an aquatic creature such as a fish or turtle. When people slaughter them, they cannot speak and can only be boiled alive. Later, when reborn as a human, one may be foolish, deaf, or mute.

The assembly gathered in today’s Daoist ritual hall, recalling what the scriptures say, feels even greater sorrow at this. If one commits such sins, how can one plead when the retribution comes? When slaughtered, one cannot speak and can only submit to being killed and boiled. Reborn afterward as a human, one may be foolish, deaf, or mute.

The penitent and their ancestors through nine generations, parents, teachers and masters, uncles, brothers, the penitent themself, and all their family members, throughout immeasurable, beginningless kalpas—the distant past beyond reckoning—until this very day, have undergone the cycle of birth and death, relinquishing one body and taking up another. They have committed sins by making distinctions through hatred and love, dividing self from others, yet have never awakened to this. Now they establish a Daoist ritual hall to pray for peace and to commend their departed ancestors, and respectfully bow before this penitential text. All present prostrate themselves with the five points of the body touching the ground—the forehead, both hands, and both knees—make vows with single-minded devotion, and bow before the compassionate revered deities, paying homage to the holy perfected ones.

With utmost sincerity and reverence, they bow before the Celestial Worthy of Jade Clarity Who Bestows Blessings, the Celestial Worthy Who Hears the Cries and Rescues from Suffering, the Celestial Worthy of the Great and Wondrous Ultimate, the Celestial Worthy of the Western Numinous Host of the Ten Directions, the Celestial Worthy of the Precepts, Birth, and Right Wisdom, the Celestial Worthy of the Profound Mystery of the Empty Cavern, the Celestial Worthy of the Great Cycle Pervading Everywhere, and the Celestial Worthy of Vermilion Brightness and Ten Thousand Blessings.

With single-minded reverence, everyone bows in worship to the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Essence, the Celestial Worthy Who Transforms the Dao and the Myriad Fortunes, the Celestial Worthy of the True Radiance of the Dao’s Fortune, the Celestial Worthy Who Accommodates the World, the Celestial Worthy of Wondrous Colors and True Kingship, the Celestial Worthy of the Golden Palace’s Myriad Transformations, the Celestial Worthy of the Orthodox Dharma and Wuwei (non-action), the Celestial Worthy, Dharma King of the Cavern of Emptiness, the Celestial Worthy of the Purple Palace of the Three Pure Ones (Sanqing), the Celestial Worthy Who Brings the True Dao to Fulfillment, the Celestial Worthy of Jade-like Grace and Radiance, and the Celestial Worthy of Wondrous Compassion Who Relieves Suffering.

With single-minded reverence, everyone bows in worship to the Worthy, as well as the Celestial Worthy Who Brings the True Dao to Fulfillment, the Celestial Worthy of Jade-like Grace and Radiance, the Celestial Worthy of Wondrous Compassion Who Relieves Suffering, the Celestial Worthy of the Turning Wheel of the Three Luminaries, the Celestial Worthy Who Guides Through the True Dao and De (Virtue/Power), the Celestial Worthy Taiyi, Savior from Suffering, the Celestial Worthy Who Preserves Life and Guards One’s Fate, the Celestial Worthy of Ease and Joy, the Celestial Worthy Who Grants Rebirth According to One’s Wish, the Celestial Worthy of Universal Compassion Who Protects the Nation, the Celestial Worthy Without Bounds, the Celestial Worthy of the Sea of Merit and Virtue, the Perfected One of True Stillness and Radiance, the Perfected One of Wondrous Radiance and Sound, the Perfected One of Great Compassion Who Saves from Suffering, and the Perfected One of Great Mercy Who Removes Sin.

Today, the presider of the repentance rite and all those gathered together look up in prayer to the Western Most High Celestial Worthy of Numinous Treasure. With single-minded reverence, they bow in worship to the assembled honored deities, sages, and perfected ones, and to the Perfected One of Great Mercy Who Removes Sin.

Today, within the sacred precinct, the presiding penitent and the assembly together humbly beseech the Supreme Spirit Treasure Celestial Worthy of the West, the revered divine beings and holy perfected ones, the Great Perfected Ones, the Great Youths, and all the true sages and holy ones who dwell throughout the ten directions and fill the realm of mysterious emptiness, whether hidden or manifest. May they join in bestowing their benevolent power, so that the presiding penitent’s nine ancestors and seven generations of forebears—that is, all ancestors throughout the generations—as well as all their kin among both the living and the dead, may be released from the sins and transgressions described above. From this day forward, may they commit no such sins again. May all beings sunk in suffering, through the power of repentance, reach the shore of the Dao and be freed from hardship, turning toward the right path. One bow.

Fifth Chapter: On Not Stealing. This fifth chapter discusses the prohibition against stealing.

All those gathered today for the assembly at the Daoist sanctuary, each of you, focus your minds and bow before the Compassionate Venerable One, repenting for the offenses committed through theft. I, the leader of this repentance rite, compose my thoughts, kneel upon the ground, entrust myself and take refuge, and listen reverently to what the scripture says:

If living beings do not uphold honesty and integrity, they must not take anything without cause, however small its value—even a blade of grass or a leaf—let alone commit theft. For the sake of immediate gain, living beings often use all kinds of dishonest means to acquire wealth: some dig through walls, break into homes, or rob travelers; others fail to repay debts or keep agreements, deceiving others outwardly and remaining dishonest inwardly. Some believe that if they act in secret, no one will know. They do not understand that Heaven’s net is vast and no crime can be hidden.

Some steal the Celestial Worthies’ scriptures, ritual objects, and offerings; objects and valuables dedicated to the True Sages; the property of the Three-Tiered Mysterious Altars; and the vessels and goods used at sacred observances and purification assemblies. They steal objects used for sacred images, as well as offerings made by donors and observant believers. Some steal gifts and precious treasures given to the Three Treasures—the Dao, the scriptures, and the masters. They steal radiant treasures, jeweled seats, canopies, umbrellas, palanquins, carriages, banners, standards, crowns, mirrors, trees, and flowers, as well as precious halls, heavenly steeds, ritual robes, and cloud-patterned capes. They steal the True Scriptures, jeweled seats, precious halls, and anything kept in sacred treasuries or caskets, or belonging to the Highest Sages and Venerable Immortals.

Others steal the oil used for lamps and incense; precious goods and valuables belonging to the resident community of a Daoist temple, or held in state tribute stores and warehouses. They steal the possessions of immortals and numinous beings, immortal youths and jade maidens, vajra deities and kings, strongmen, lions, and others. They steal objects used for the ritual bodies of male and female officials; flowers, fruit, and vegetarian offerings from the blessed lands of the Three Sages; and sacrificial animals and offerings from shrines. No one may steal cowrie shell, agate, glass, amber, gold, silver, pearls, jade, copper, iron, or fine silks and brocades.

Whether the stolen value is one coin, ten coins, a single thread or the tiniest fraction, or whether the amount is enormous, theft is a grave offense. Some break into warehouses, tunnel through walls, force open doors, break seals and locks, alter marks, or move seals. Others embezzle military supplies, taxes, or payments due to the state. Even if they take only a fraction or an inch, the offense grows from small beginnings: they seek only their own gain and refuse to pay what is owed to the public.

Some steal tokens and garments used by ritual masters to consecrate an altar, or cut up offerings set out at a sacred assembly. Some steal fresh goods before they have been offered to the spirits. Others steal from parents and relatives, brothers and friends, neighbors, travelers, the orphaned and poor, the elderly and frail. Some steal the proceeds of trade, crops from fields, or the produce of raising livestock.

Whether one takes advantage of an opportunity, extorts property, seizes it through influence, or takes it under the pretext of public business; whether one deceives, tricks, coerces, secretly transfers, invents a false pretext, borrows without repaying, cheats in an exchange, evades a debt, conceals and embezzles, or uses any improper means to obtain property—all such conduct is crooked and brings guilt. If something does not belong to you, even a moment’s greed for the smallest fraction of it is already theft.

Even if one finds something lost on the road, or something blown by the wind, carried by a bird, or sent by spirits and deities, hiding it for oneself is still theft. This applies to clothing, bedding, utensils, carts and horses, cloth, grain, and every other possession, even if it is tiny as dust or as fine as a mustard seed or a thread. Such offenses shorten one’s life and bring calamity upon the Nine Generations of ancestors and the Seven Generations of descendants, making it hard for one’s kin to find release. In life, one suffers illness and pain; after death, one falls into hell. Even after rebirth, one may become livestock such as an ox or horse. Without repentance, one will sink into suffering for a long time. Then the Compassionate Venerable One spoke this verse:

In a previous life, they stole property belonging to the Three Treasures—the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha, here referring to precious things associated with religious faith. They stole items used during fasting and goods that believers had donated or offered in support of spiritual practice and its merits. They also coveted anything that belonged to kings or common people. Whenever they saw something that was not their own, they felt the urge to steal it and kept thinking of taking it for themselves.

Some waylaid travelers on the road, using threats, coercion, or false accusations to harm them. Others broke into homes through the walls to rob them, committing their crimes by day as stealthily as at night. They often waited until no one was around to steal cattle, sheep, servants, valuables, and jade, using every means to make these things their own.

After death, such people fall into the Hell of the Fiery Chariot, where intense flames punish sinners and burn their bodies until they are charred and shattered. In a later life, they may become oxen or horses and repay their former debts by serving others. Their bodies are pierced, their flesh and fat scattered, their noses and mouths injured and torn open. They suffer constant hunger and thirst, cannot speak, and are left at the mercy of those who slaughter them. Even if they are later reborn as human beings, they may be robbed or killed, thereby repaying the offenses they committed in a previous life.

All those attending today’s ritual assembly should reflect carefully: the circumstances described in the scriptures are truly frightening. They should bow in sincere repentance and earnestly plead for mercy. May all beings be born as human beings in this life; and if they are robbed or killed, may they thereby repay the offenses of their previous lives.

All those attending today’s ritual assembly should reflect even more carefully. They should sincerely bow and repent, earnestly pleading for mercy. May all beings, whether they have already undergone the consequences of their offenses or have yet to undergo them, find release through today’s repentance and prostrations.

The officiant of repentance, So-and-so, bows before this penitential text to pray for peace and to honor the dead. Prostrating with all five parts of the body on the ground, they make a wholehearted vow, bowing before the compassionate divine beings and respectfully paying homage to the holy Perfected Ones.

With sincere reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Jade Purity Who Bestows Blessings, the Celestial Worthy who grants blessings in the realm of Jade Purity.

With sincere reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Hears the Cries and Relieves Suffering, who hears calls of distress and comes to the aid of those in need.

With sincere reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Supreme Subtlety and Utmost Perfection.

With sincere reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Universal Equality and Vast Compassion, who extends compassion to all without distinction.

With sincere reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Dwells in the World and Liberates People, who saves beings in the world.

With sincere reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Limitless Emanations, who has countless manifestations.

With sincere reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Is Free of All Habitual Afflictions.

With sincere reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Removes All Thoughts, dispelling every deluded thought.

With sincere reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Unhindered Freedom, who moves freely without impediment.

With sincere reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Is Free of All Habitual Afflictions.

With sincere reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Removes All Thoughts.

With sincere reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Unhindered Freedom.

With reverence and devotion, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy who proclaims the teachings throughout the ten directions; the Celestial Worthy who burns incense to transform living beings; the Celestial Worthy who recites the scriptures to save those in distress; the Celestial Worthy who observes the fast and aids all things; the Celestial Worthy who upholds the precepts and protects the world; the Celestial Worthy who focuses the mind on the Dao and dispels calamities; the Celestial Worthy who scatters flowers and prays for long life; the Celestial Worthy whose radiance shines ever bright in the golden hall; the Celestial Worthy who revives the nation and brings peace to all under Heaven; the Celestial Worthy who rescues those in peril; the divine Celestial Worthy who protects life; the Celestial Worthy who turns the Dharma Wheel and spreads the teachings; the Celestial Worthy Taiyi, Savior from Suffering; the Celestial Worthy who grants long life and preserves people’s lives; the Celestial Worthy who extends compassion to all and protects the nation; the Celestial Worthy who brings people freedom and joy; the Celestial Worthy who fulfills their wishes and guides the departed to rebirth; the boundless Celestial Worthy; and the Celestial Worthy whose merit and virtue are as vast as the sea.

With reverence and devotion, we pay homage to the Perfected Ones of Starlight and Firelight, the Greatly Compassionate Perfected One who saves those in distress, and the Greatly Merciful Perfected One who removes sins.

Today, with reverence and devotion, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy whose merit and virtue are as vast as the sea, and to the Perfected Ones of Starlight and Firelight, the Greatly Compassionate Perfected One who saves those in distress, and the Greatly Merciful Perfected One who removes sins. “With wholehearted reverence, we pay homage” is a formula used for bowing in Zhaijiao repentance rites. It signifies saluting the deities with utmost sincerity.

Today in the ritual sanctuary, the presiding penitent and the assembly should devote themselves wholeheartedly and sincerely, praying to the supreme Lingbao Celestial Worthy of the West, as well as to the honored gods, sages, great perfected ones, great boys, and all the true sages, manifest or hidden, in the realms of the ten directions and the mysterious void. May they bestow powers to dispel calamities and protect life, relieve suffering and remove guilt, confer immeasurable merit and virtue, and grant countless divine immortals and inconceivable might.

May these powers protect the disciples of the presiding penitent’s revered master, fellow ritual masters who study the same teachings, companions in the Dao who live together, and all members of their religious families—that is, relatives and fellow disciples who have received the teachings of the Dao—along with the seven generations of ancestors and nine generations of forebears, their birth parents, uncles, brothers, extended relatives, and all their dependents. From time immemorial until today, they have committed theft and deceived honest people by using false weights and measures, such as giving short weight or measuring goods with oversized bushels. They have acquired wealth by unrighteous means, using cruel and violent acts to intimidate, harm, and steal. Deceiving themselves, they have acted brutally, disregarding others’ joys and sorrows and their poverty, indulging only in greed and cruelty, and thereby accumulating all manner of offenses. May the merit of today’s prostrations and repentance cause these offenses to be eradicated.

From now on, may they obtain in every lifetime wish-granting jewels, the seven precious treasures, fine garments, delicious food, and all kinds of medicine. May they have every necessity of life in full measure, as they wish, and be able to give their wealth to those in need, never again stealing without cause. May all beings be free of the thought of stealing, know contentment at all times, and not become obsessed with craving. May they delight in giving, relieve the poor, and remove suffering; may they give even their heads, eyes, and brain marrow as freely as they cast away mucus and saliva, arouse the intention to dedicate their merit, and ultimately attain the supreme Dao. One prostration.

Taishang Cibei Daochang Xiaozai Jiuyou Chan, Scroll Five

Taishang Cibei Daochang Xiaozai Jiuyou Chan, Scroll Six

Compiled by Ge Xuan, Immortal Lord of the Left of the Supreme Ultimate

First: Repenting for the Offenses of Taking Life

Today, all those gathered in the ritual sanctuary should each devote themselves wholeheartedly and sincerely, facing the compassionate honored gods and repenting for the offenses committed through taking life. The presiding penitent, so-and-so, should compose the mind, kneel upright on the ground, and listen attentively to the scripture.

Those gathered today at the Daoist ritual assembly should each still their minds and spirits, face the compassionate deities with reverence, and repent the offenses of taking life. The person leading the repentance, so-and-so, gathers their thoughts, kneels upright on the ground, and listens attentively to what the scripture says.

Among all living beings, those who live in the human world are often entangled in worldly affairs. They may never meet anyone capable of guiding them, and instead spend much of their time with the ignorant. As time passes, their habits deepen, and good and evil influence one another. They then commit all kinds of wrongs, acting recklessly and often behaving with cruelty and no compassion: they kill living beings and eat their flesh and bones.

Some gather for feasts on behalf of their parents, themselves, their brothers, wives, children, relatives, and neighbors, killing countless creatures without regard for their lives. Some slaughter domesticated animals such as cattle, sheep, mules, horses, pigs, and dogs. Others cook muntjacs, deer, foxes, rabbits, tigers, leopards, jackals, wolves, and other animals that dwell in the mountains and forests. They kill all kinds of livestock without pity and without regard for whether the animals are fat or thin. Some stab them with knives until blood covers the ground. Others scald away their fur with boiling water; before the animals have drawn their last breath, they cut open their bellies, strip out their bones and sinews, tear out their entrails, and slice their flesh. The suffering they endure is so terrible that its karmic debt is hard to repay.

Some hunt and kill luan birds, cranes, geese, ducks, turtledoves, pigeons, crows, magpies, owls, kites, and other birds. They set bows, snares, and nets, catch birds on sticky poles, scald and pluck their feathers, and destroy nests in trees. Before the birds are fully dead, they struggle to survive but cannot escape. Some cut off their feet and heads, sever their wings, gouge out their eyes, then cook or roast them to fill their own bellies.

Some catch and kill softshell turtles, alligators, tortoises, turtles, snails, clams, crabs, and other shelled or aquatic creatures. They drain rivers, set bamboo poles and nets in ditches, and use nets, baskets, and traps to catch fish and shrimp, then slaughter and cook them by the water. Their bones pile up like mountains, and the stench carries on the wind. Even after killing so many, people refuse to stop.

Some kill insects, snakes, scorpions, bees, dung beetles, midges, moth larvae, grubs, mole crickets, ants, and others. Some also kill mosquitoes, horseflies, lice, fleas, mayflies, worms, small sea creatures, and pinworms. All creatures that crawl, fly, or hide beneath the water, even those called poisonous or harmful, are seeking a place to live. They arise in heat and damp and perish in bitter cold, yet they too are lives nurtured by Heaven and Earth; they are not all meant to be used as food. How can we bear to harm them without cause?

Some release hawks and hounds or draw bows and shoot arrows, driven by greed and cruelty, with their minds fixed only on killing. Some set fire to mountains, search every forest, or drain rivers dry. Some kill living beings with arrows, blades, or spears; others squeeze them in their hands, trample them underfoot, or crush them by sitting or lying on them. Plowing and planting fields, building walls, and constructing houses; digging pits and taking earth; dismantling fences for barriers, cutting grass and leveling ground, gathering firewood and felling trees, picking flowers and pulling up plants—all may kill or injure living beings. Lighting lamps and candles, directing water into burrows, pouring hot water on the ground, washing one’s hair or bathing, drinking and eating, processing grain and wheat, cutting open wombs or breaking birds’ eggs—all may cause living beings to die. Even snapping a rope, driving away mosquitoes and flies, opening the mouth or closing the eyes, raising a hand or stamping a foot can harm them.

Some kill living beings before images of the deities, scriptures, Daoist ritual grounds, ritual seats, or Dharma bodies—the sacred images enshrined for worship. Some bring live creatures home and slaughter them there. Some kill out of anger, sorrow, or distress; others do so while reveling in song and dance or indulging their desires. Some kill to ask spirits and deities for protection, or to seek blessings for men and women who are ill. Some use live creatures to prepare medicinal soups. Some creatures die in people’s hands, others on knives or chopping boards, and still others are fried or boiled over fierce flames. Some also prevent creatures from breeding and reproducing, destroying the very roots of their lives until their kind dies out.

Some kill creditors, enemies, or innocent, virtuous people. Some end pregnancies or destroy birds’ eggs, harming more than just beasts and birds. There are many ways of killing: frightening a creature to death; killing it oneself or ordering someone else to do so; killing with insults, poison, drugs, or spells; killing in anger or on a whim; killing deliberately or by mistake; killing through words, hands, thoughts, or imagination. Even watching creatures fight and allowing them to kill one another can become a cause of taking life. All who raise a hand or set their bodies in motion to slaughter different animals must each bear the corresponding karmic consequences; none can expect to escape.

The Compassionate Venerable One said, “Accumulating countless riches will in the end become a source of sorrow to oneself. When offenses pile up too high, one must repay the debts incurred in the past. If you do not awaken to regret and resolve to save and protect living beings, you will be trapped in this life, and calamities will extend even to your ancestors. After death you will fall into the Prison of Trials and Torments and endure every kind of suffering. Even if you are reborn, you may take the form of a strange creature unlike your former self. Without repentance, how can you escape the suffering of transmigration?” Then the Compassionate Venerable One once again recited a verse of praise:

In a former life, you killed many living beings, including cows, sheep, pigs, chickens, dogs, geese, ducks, pheasants, rabbits, muntjacs, deer, tigers, leopards, crows, sparrows, jackals, wolves, foxes, raccoon dogs, apes, camels, mules, donkeys, and horses. You also killed fish, softshell turtles, turtles, cicadas, maggots, snails, clams, shrimp, mussels, shellfish, dung beetles, mole crickets, ants, leeches, mosquitoes, fleas, lice, and all kinds of small insects. These many acts of killing arose from a lack of compassion: whenever you encountered them, you harmed them. After death, you therefore fell into various hells, endured countless torments, and were tortured day and night, suffering so greatly that you could find no peace.

All these beings, the cows and sheep among them, came to demand repayment for their lives. Together they said, “You ate my flesh, or took my life. You cannot escape what you have done. Now that we have found you, you must repay the debt you incurred in the past.” There was nowhere to flee. The Demon King opened the register of sins, examined it, and confirmed the charges. He then ordered each life debt to be repaid in turn. If, in a future life, you are reborn among animals, you will again become a cow, sheep, dog, goose, duck, or some other creature, to be slaughtered by others and thereby repay the sins of your former life. The scripture repeats this passage about the demand for lives and repayment of debts.

The assembly gathered at this Daoist altar today is as the scripture describes: some beings kill without cause, while others kill at another person’s command. At the time, the act may seem satisfying, but who can repay your life debts and resolve your grievances? While alive, you can still rely on the help of your family. But after death, when you fall into the Three Wretched Realms—the hells, the hungry ghosts, and the animals—who will come to your aid? The consequences of such sins, and the debts that must be repaid, are perfectly clear. Now we seek to repent and cleanse ourselves of past wrongs. The person presiding over this repentance, [Name], recites and reverently performs this repentance liturgy to pray for peace and to deliver the deceased. Prostrating with all five limbs touching the ground, they recite with single-minded sincerity, bow to the compassionate deities, and respectfully pay homage to the assembled sages and perfected beings.

With sincere reverence, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Jade Clarity Who Bestows Blessings, the Celestial Worthy Who Hears Sounds and Relieves Suffering, the Boundless Celestial Worthy of Great Florescence, the Celestial Worthy of Golden Radiance and Illumination, the Celestial Worthy Who Rescues the Suffering in the Ninefold Darkness, the Celestial Worthy of the Great Luo, Formless, and the Celestial Worthy Who Dwells in the World and Saves Humanity.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Infinite Manifestations, who appears in countless forms to save and guide living beings.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Inner Truth and the Celestial Worthy of Light.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Delivers Beings from Suffering in the Ninefold Underworld, rescuing its inhabitants from their hardships.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Formless Celestial Worthy of the Great Luo, who dwells in the Great Luo realm and transcends all forms.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Dwells in the World and Saves Its People, delivering living beings in the human realm.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Infinite Manifestations.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Inner Truth.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of the Expedient Name, invoked by a name given for convenience.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Aids Beings Through the Dao’s Teachings.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Delivers and Sustains Life.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Forgives and Frees Living Beings from Suffering and Distress.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Brings Prosperity to the Nation and Educates Its People.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Appears in Forms Suited to the Needs of the World.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Perceives and Illuminates All Without Limit.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Whose Fragrance Spreads Everywhere.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Whose Manifestations of the Dao’s Teachings Extend Throughout the World.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Taiyi Who Saves from Suffering, an important Daoist deity who rescues beings from hardship and distress.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Grants Longevity and Preserves Life.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Universal Compassion Who Protects the Nation.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Freedom and Joy.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Grants Rebirth in Accordance with Each Being’s Wishes, guiding beings to a favorable destination after death.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Without Boundaries.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Whose Merits and Virtues Are as Vast as the Sea.

From afar, I reverently pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Joy.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Grants Rebirth in Accordance with Each Being’s Wishes.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Without Boundaries.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Whose Merits and Virtues Are as Vast as the Sea.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Perfected One of the Boundless Heart, whose heart is vast beyond measure.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Perfected One of Universal Spiritual Holiness.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Greatly Compassionate Perfected One Who Saves from Suffering.

With reverence, I pay homage to the Greatly Compassionate Perfected One Who Removes Sins.

The principal of repentance and all those gathered for the repentance rite at the Daoist altar gaze toward the northwest, where the Supreme Venerable Celestial Worthy of Numinous Treasure resides, together with the honored gods, sages, immortals, perfected beings, great perfected ones, and celestial youths. May all the perfected sages, spread throughout the ten directions and filling the realm of the Mysterious Void, together pour down the Dharma water to cleanse the sins and karmic burdens of living beings.

From time immemorial, the souls of the principal of repentance’s nine generations of ancestors, their masters, parents, fellow disciples, and relatives—including uncles, brothers, and all close kin—whether deceased or still living, have incurred boundless sins through taking life. As a result, they have suffered retribution and paid their debts in the three paths of hell, hungry ghosts, and animals. May all the debts for past sins that remain unpaid now be repaid in full. Through this repentance rite, may they forever escape the bonds of craving and attachment, and from this day onward commit no further acts of killing.

One should imagine that the bodies of living beings are like one’s own body; to see a living being killed is like being killed oneself. With all manner of compassionate thoughts, one should cherish living beings as one cherishes oneself. May all the debts for past sins that remain unpaid now be repaid in full. Through this repentance rite, may they forever escape the bonds of craving and attachment, and from this day onward commit no further acts of killing. One should imagine that the bodies of living beings are like one’s own body; to see a living being killed is like being killed oneself. With all manner of compassionate thoughts, one should cherish living beings as one cherishes oneself.

May all kinds of animals be reborn in the human realm, come to understand the mysterious principles, and attain the supreme Dao.

Bow once.

Section Two: Repentance for the Sin of Destruction.

Everyone gathered today for the Daoist assembly should quiet their minds, bow before the Compassionate Venerable One, the merciful deity, and dedicate the merit, repenting for the countless sins of destruction they have committed. The officiant who leads the repentance rite should gather his thoughts, kneel with his knees on the ground, and listen to the scripture with reverence and concentration.

Because all beings have bodies, from immeasurable kalpas ago until today they have passed through countless cycles of birth and death among their parents, siblings, themselves, and their family members. Yet they have not practiced loyalty, righteousness, or kindness. Instead, they have often harbored destructive intentions, indulged in arrogance and excess, failed to restrain themselves, seized servants, destroyed things without cause, harmed living beings, and committed countless vile and evil deeds.

Some have held official posts but failed to be honest and diligent. They have often acted destructively, been disloyal to the state, and made a habit of flattery and deceit. They have ignored the times and failed to honor the Great Dao. They have concealed good deeds and committed evil, ruled on cases without regard for reason, envied the worthy and capable, oppressed their superiors and humiliated their subordinates. Relying on their office and power, they have refused to act fairly, making choices according to personal likes and dislikes.

Some have attacked cities and breached towns, burning other people’s homes; sold free people and lured away other people’s servants; falsely accused and oppressed the innocent, and bullied and persecuted the kindhearted. Others have damaged statues of the holy and venerable, Daoist temples and shrines, and sacred altars—places where deities are enshrined and Daoist rites are performed. They have also damaged public or temple property, the complete collection of Daoist scriptures, and ritual implements and vessels used for offerings. They refuse to make offerings or undertake cultivation, and think only of destruction.

Just as an echo follows a sound, evil deeds bring corresponding consequences. You should put reverence and faith first, and keep solemn respect in your hearts. If you commit acts of destruction, your relatives across the Three Ages—the past, present, and future—may all become entangled in karmic injustice and remain trapped in adverse circumstances. After death, you may fall into the hells of suffering and endure the retribution of having your hair shaved off. Without repentance, you will sink into suffering for a long time.

Moved by compassion for beings who have not yet awakened, the Compassionate Venerable One then proclaimed this verse once more:

In a previous life, one showed contempt for others and damaged many kinds of property, including images of the gods. In palaces and temples, at sacred altars dedicated to Daoist deities, among the communal possessions of a temple, and in monks’ quarters, one used one’s power to oppress the innocent and acted with cruelty and malice. After death, one fell into a harsh hell. Family members often fought and resented one another, bullying each other, while their enmity repeatedly endured. Later, though reborn as a human being, one suffered the retribution of having one’s hair shaved off or cut. Relatives grieved and wept over this, wandering from place to place, not knowing when their suffering would end.

Today, all those gathered at the Daoist altar have heard the scripture spoken by the Compassionate Venerable One. They understand that the workings of cause and effect are inconceivable, that retribution is clear and exact, and that it continues from one life to the next. Now, with sincere resolve, they plead for compassion and perform this rite of repentance. May the hungry ghosts and animals in this hell, through the power of repentance, the power of merit, and inconceivable power, all attain liberation. The principal of repentance, a certain person, performs this rite and recites its text to pray for peace and to dedicate merit to the dead. Prostrating with the whole body, they listen with single-minded reverence; they bow before the Compassionate Venerable One and pay homage to the true sages.

With sincere hearts, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Jade Purity Who Sends Down Blessings.

With sincere hearts, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Hears the Cries and Rescues from Suffering.

Prostrating with the whole body, we listen with single-minded reverence; we bow before the Compassionate Venerable One and pay homage to the true sages.

With sincere hearts, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Jade Purity Who Sends Down Blessings.

With sincere hearts, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Hears the Cries and Rescues from Suffering.

With sincere hearts, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Boundless Great Splendor.

With sincere hearts, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Appears in Forms Befitting the World.

With sincere hearts, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Boundless Wondrous Forms.

With sincere hearts, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Manifests in Forms Through Countless Kalpas.

With sincere hearts, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of the Mountain of Treasured Merit.

With sincere hearts, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Pure, Flowing Light.

With sincere hearts, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Preaches the Dharma Without Obstruction.

With sincere hearts, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Opens Up Means of Deliverance for All.

With sincere hearts, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy, King of Pure Wisdom and Virtue.

With sincere hearts, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Inexhaustible Form.

With sincere hearts, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Emptiness and Signlessness.

With sincere hearts, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy of Immeasurable Life.

With sincere hearts, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Constantly Preaches the Dharma.

With sincere hearts, we pay homage to the Celestial Worthy Who Freely Bestows Wealth.