《要修科仪戒律钞》Vol. 1

Translation

Yaofa Ke Yao Jie Lu Chao (Essentials of Liturgical Regulations, Precepts, and Cultivation) is a compilation that describes Daoist liturgical regulations (keyi, the norms of religious ritual), precepts (jielü), and requirements for cultivation (xiuchi). Originally attributed to Zhu Famen, it is 16 juan (fascicles) long and is included in the Dongxuan section (Dongxuan bu) and precepts category (jielü lei) of the Zhengtong Daozang (Orthodox Daoist Canon).

According to its table of contents, juan 1 discusses the grades of scriptures, their transmission, restrictions on transmission, and the years of transmission. Juan 2 addresses matters such as copying scriptures, visualizing and reciting incantations (cunnian zhouyu), expounding scriptures, generating the aspiration for awakening (faxin), and receiving and upholding the texts (shouchi). Juan 4 gathers the various precepts and vows (yuannian), totaling 1,100 items. Juan 7 covers liturgies concerning retribution for sins (zui bao keyi) and the precept items associated with the Three Primes (sanyuan): the Upper, Middle, and Lower Primes.

Juan 8 mainly enumerates matters relating to fasting (zhai jie), including the names of fasts, the months, days, and hours for fasting, and the ritual offices of the officiating master (fashi), the lecture assistant (dujiang, one who helps in expounding scriptures), the fast supervisor (jianzhai), and the attendants who tend incense (shixiang) and lamps (shideng). Juan 9 concerns norms of dress and worship, codes of conduct in daily life, the duties of the fast supervisor, and dietary prohibitions.

The table of contents also lists matters concerning the zhi (administrative units), including the establishment of zhi buildings, the naming of zhi, the affiliations of zhi, and the zhi chambers. The zhi were organizational or administrative units of the Daoist community. The subsequent fascicles deal with shangzhang (the ritual of presenting memorials to the deities), the sequence for requesting a memorial when illness occurs, taboos and orientations for presenting memorials, the selection of auspicious days, the brushes and inkstones used to write memorials and talismans, and the preservation of old memorial drafts and methods for disposing of memorials.

At the end, the text lists a number of yuan (causal conditions or occasions), each explaining the appropriate ritual regulations or karmic matters surrounding particular circumstances. These include offering meals to worthy persons, constructing halls, recitation of the Dao, defilement, theft, transgressions, meritorious deeds, and the salvation of persons through their ordination as renunciants (duren chujia).

Volume 13 of the Essential Compilation of Ritual Regulations and Precepts (Yaoxiu Keyi Jielü Chao) lists sections titled “Miscellaneous Rites, Part One,” “Circumstances Concerning Fellow Disciples, Part Two,” “Circumstances Concerning the Construction of an Altar, Part Three,” and “Steles and Gateways, Part Four.” Volume 14 includes sections on drinking wine, fasting from grains and taking medicines, fasting from grains by taking talisman water, healing and prayer, and sleeping arrangements. These cover drinking, grain avoidance and medicinal practices, talisman water, prayers for healing, and sleep and rest.

Volume 15 is titled Rituals for Daoist Priests on Auspicious and Inauspicious Occasions, with Preface. Its ceremonies include “Opening Address, Part One,” “Funeral Condolences, Part Two,” “Illness, Part Three,” “Initial Encoffining after Death, Part Four,” and “Final Encoffining, Part Five.” Volume 16 includes “Three Modes of Brahma Chanting,” “Text for Ritual Repentance,” and “Methods for Presenting Memorials,” as well as “Ritual for Putting on Mourning Garments, Part Six,” “Funeral Procession, Part Seven,” “Establishing the Spirit’s Resting Place, Part Eight,” “A Disciple’s Return to Their Original Monastery, Part Nine,” and “Ritual for Removing Mourning Garments, Part Ten.” These sections chiefly describe the ceremonies observed by Daoist priests when participating in funerals and mourning.

The first volume of the Essential Compilation of Ritual Regulations and Precepts was compiled by Zhu Faman, a Daoist priest of the Three Caverns (Sanqing), and belongs to the category of compilations organized by textual divisions.

To teach and transform the people, sages must rely on the scriptures. If they do not establish teachings of true value, how can they save living beings? The sages speak exquisite scriptures aloud, illuminate sacred and profound mysteries, and lead people back to simplicity. To accomplish this, one must devote oneself to study and practice through the scriptures. There are established paths of study and practice, and their principles are made clear in the texts.

The Chapter on Bringing Forth the Spirit says: during the Dragon-Han kalpa, a remote age in Daoist cosmology, the Celestial Worthy proclaimed the Dongzhen Scripture; during the Red Brightness kalpa, the Dongxuan Scripture; and during the Kaihuang kalpa, the Dongshen Scripture. These three classes of revered scriptures set out the profound and hidden Daoist teachings in detail. They adapt their teachings to different places, instructing and delivering gods, humans, and other living beings. They guide the beings of the six paths—the six destinations of rebirth—back to the true Dao, and bring insight to practitioners of the Three Vehicles, the different levels of spiritual practice. Since practitioners differ in attainment and methods differ in depth, thirty-six divisions of scripture came to be formed and made clear.

The Scripture of the True Canon records the first twelve divisions as follows: Shangqing, Miaozhen, Taiyi, Miaolin, Kaihua, Xianren, Huanglin, Shangzhen, Daojiao, Shanglian, Shangmiao Gongde, and Daode. These twelve divisions are stored in the canon of the Great Cavern Jade Clarity realm.

A second group of twelve divisions consists of Dongxuan, Yuanyang, Yuanchen, Dajie, Shangkai, Neiyin, Liansheng, Lingmi, Xiaomo, Wuliang, Anmo, and Shangtong. They are stored in the canon of the Highest Clarity realm.

A further group of twelve consists of Taiqing, Che shi, Jixian, Dongyuan, Neimi, Zhenyi, Jiling, Zhongjing, Wuliang, Jigong, Huangting, and Xiaojie. These belong to the canon of the Great Clarity realm.

These are the scriptures collected in the Three Caverns, entered in the revered golden registers, transmitted as authoritative standards by the seven holy perfected ones, and preserved in the precious Daoist canon. They took myriad kalpas to be opened, and their methods appear in response to those with the affinity to receive them.

The Tai Zhen Ke records that on the first day of the fifth month in the first year of Han’an, the Most High Lord Lao transmitted 930 volumes of the Zhengyi Mengwei Jing and 70 volumes of talisman diagrams to Zhang Daoling at Heming Mountain, making 1,000 volumes in all. He also transmitted to him 21 volumes of the Tianshi Dadong Zhenjing, thereby making him a perfected Perfected One.

The Taiping Jing says that a Perfected One asked a Spirit Being: “What are the scriptures of Heaven, Earth, humanity, the Dao, the sages, the worthy, good fortune, misfortune, life, and death?” The Spirit Being replied: “Cultivating and accumulating the true Dao is the scripture of Heaven. Heaven delights in the growth of all things, and the Dao takes nurturing life as its foundation; this is why it is called the scripture of Heaven. Cultivating and accumulating De is the scripture of Earth. Earth is skilled at nurturing all things, and De can nurture people; this is why it is called the scripture of Earth. Cultivating the way of harmony and delighting in giving is the scripture of humanity. Harmonious Qi enables people to associate and exchange what they have, and those with material goods should also help one another; this is why the way of harmony is called the scripture of humanity. Cultivating the Daoist teachings passed down from high antiquity, middle antiquity, and later antiquity is called the scripture of the Dao. Cultivating the classical texts of the sages of those eras is called the scripture of the sages. Cultivating the words of the worthy is called the scripture of the worthy. Following the way of goodness is called the scripture of good fortune; following the way of wickedness is called the scripture of misfortune; following the way of nurturing life is called the scripture of life; and following the way of death is called the scripture of death.”

The sages make the standards of conduct clear, while people are responsible for spreading the Dao. The Dao Jing says: “If rulers and kings can hold fast to the Dao, all things will transform of themselves.” From this we know that when a ruler practices the Dao, the Great Dao flourishes; when a ruler is without the Dao, the Great Dao declines.

Copied from the Jing transmission text.

Those who receive tokens such as white or black feathers are all extraordinary people entrusted with a mission in the world. Tokens such as golden fish and jade dragons are likewise beyond the reach of ordinary people. The teachings of the scriptures may be transmitted, but not everyone is fit to receive them. They are hard to encounter and hard to put into practice. This depends on the depth of a person’s capacity and on whether their affinity with the Daoist teachings is shallow or profound.

The Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning (Yuanshi Tianzun) expounded the teachings of the Three Vehicles as a bright mirror that encompasses many different methods. The supreme and lofty Dao, through two volumes of subtle and profound teachings, also guides people back to unity. The Scripture on Original Aspects says that the human body can become either the source of the Three Evils or the foundation of becoming an immortal. It has ten names: fertile field of good fortune, garden of brambles, house of seeds, gate of abandoned life, domain of the Dao, village of pus and blood, vessel of precious treasures, basin of rubble, chamber of clear wisdom, and one lost in darkness through nine nights. Only those who understand that the body holds these different possibilities may be called perfected persons. Yet those who have only words and no genuine practice should not hear the scriptural teachings. Only those who both practice sincerely and expound the teachings correctly may transmit them.

The Scripture of Ascending to the Mystery says that people in the latter age suffer from three grave failings, which must be watched against carefully: envy of the Dao and its teachings, slander, and greed. Envy of the Dao prevents the scriptural teachings from being widely spread. Slandering the teachers of the Dharma weakens the people’s faith in the Dao. Attachment to wealth and beauty earns a person the contempt of others. Of these three failings, two arise from external influences and one from within. Only after overcoming them may one transmit the Dao.

The Scripture of the Fundamental Origin says that a person must possess ten good vows to be fit to receive transmission:

First, the wish to leave behind the world’s defilement and disorder.

Second, the wish to leave home, renounce worldly bonds of affection, beg for alms as circumstances allow, and do good widely; to remain always compassionate and patient, and never cling to distinctions between self and others.

Third, the wish to meet good friends who can guide and instruct them.

Fourth, the wish to meet an enlightened teacher and respectfully receive the supreme Dao.

Fifth, the wish to hear the true teachings and put them into practice as instructed.

Sixth, the wish to behold a Celestial Worthy and personally receive sacred instruction.

Seventh, the wish to save all living beings, putting oneself last and others first.

Eighth, the wish to proclaim the teachings widely and awaken those who are ignorant and deluded.

Ninth, the wish that all living beings awaken the aspiration to seek the Dao; to encourage people to build scriptures and images and establish Daoist temples; and to offer incense, flowers, lamps, and candles to the best of one’s ability, so that even those not yet awakened may see the gate to entering the Dao.

Tenth, the wish to keep one’s heart set on the Dao firm and unwavering.

Only those who hold these ten vows may receive transmission.

The Scripture of Ascending to the Mystery also says that anyone in later generations who wishes to circulate the Inner Teachings of the Numinous Treasure must possess eleven qualities before expounding this scripture to the public: first, to observe the precepts fully, committing no transgressions in one’s heart; second, to aid the orphaned, elderly, and poor with compassion; third, to urge others diligently to turn from wrongdoing and practice good, as a father and son counsel one another; fourth, to seek no reputation and regard praise and blame alike; fifth, to be diligent in worship and the cultivation of merit even in secluded places, as if in the presence of a crowd; sixth, to deceive no one, so that the people trust one as they trust the course of the four seasons; seventh, to renounce splendor and seek no high office; eighth, to leave wife and children and live alone in a quiet place; ninth, to draw near to worthy and wise people and seek their broad counsel on the true Dao; tenth, even when alone in a secluded place, not to cling stubbornly to one’s own views, but to discuss them with the worthy; and eleventh, to remain humble and treat others with respect. These are the eleven conditions for understanding and practicing the Inner Teachings.

There are also ten signs by which one may judge whether someone is suitable to receive this scripture: first, a love of seeking profound and supreme teachings and a willingness to heed good counsel; second, closeness to the worthy and wise, without suspicion of others; third, intelligence and discernment, with the ability to distinguish truth from falsehood; fourth, care in speech and conduct, keeping one’s word; fifth, a gentle temperament and few faults; sixth, a willingness to take as one’s teacher someone more virtuous, without arrogance; seventh, reverence for one’s teacher and the teachings, as a poor person treasures a precious jewel; eighth, serving one’s teacher without sparing oneself from hardship; ninth, gratitude toward one’s former teacher; and tenth, earnestly requesting instruction and remaining diligent day and night. These are the ten signs.

The scriptures also say that some people may hold low status while possessing genuine inner virtue, though others have not yet recognized it. If such a person can truly uphold this teaching, it should be transmitted to them in an unexpected place, where no one would have thought to look.

The Hidden Commentary on the Jade Scripture says that if a person receives a scripture without reverence, or if either teacher or student fails to practice properly, there will be no spiritual response. The person may later fall ill, or even be reborn as a domestic animal.

The Scripture of Great Peace says that encountering a suitable person and failing to transmit the teachings is to shut off the Way of Heaven, bringing harm upon oneself. Transmitting the teachings to someone unfit will also bring punishment in the future. The Treatise on Settling the Will says that a suitable person who is denied transmission will be cut off from the Dao, while an unsuitable person who receives the teachings hastily will face punishment in this life. Both cases violate the precepts.

Shallow conduct is easy to fall into, while subtle practice is difficult to uphold. Though many study the Dao, few truly attain it. Anyone who violates the rules of the orthodox scriptures will incur punishment. The Statutes of the Lady of Azure say that a person will incur guilt and lose 1,024 years of life for receiving Daoist teachings without distinguishing their relative importance; transmitting scriptures to someone unfit; seeking money or profit and using others for personal gain; or keeping for oneself something borrowed.

The precepts say: Do not transmit precious scriptures indiscriminately, or pass them on to those who do not believe. Whoever reveals the true essentials will have ninety-six thousand years deducted from their allotted lifespan in Heaven.

The Brief Text on the Yellow Register says: Transmitting scriptures without authorization, when they should not be passed on, is to be investigated and punished by the Bureau of Illuminating Brahma. Forcing the transmission of scriptures three times, as though enduring the torment of wind-blades, is to be investigated by the Bureau of Rectification. Carrying tokens to pay respects to a master while failing to meet the required rank, then abusing one’s position to show anger toward the master, is to be investigated by the Bureau of the Four Luminaries. Failing to perform the prescribed rites is to be investigated by the Bureau of Great Rites. Being miserly with one’s property when receiving scriptures, or failing to prepare all the ritual tokens of faith required for transmitting the teachings, is to be investigated by the Bureau of Celestial Supervision. Transmitting the rites in private without first swearing an oath before the Five Emperors is to be investigated by the Bureau of Punishment. Carelessly divulging the names of scriptures and exposing Heaven’s secrets is to be investigated by the Bureau of the Heavenly Covenant. Offering incense and lamps that do not conform to ritual standards is to be investigated by the Bureau of Spiritual Authority.

A scripture master who does not guide disciples through the rites of initiation and swear an oath before the Five Emperors, yet privately transmits the rites, is to be investigated by the Bureau of Punishment. Carelessly divulging the names of scriptures and exposing Heaven’s secrets is to be investigated by the Bureau of the Heavenly Covenant. Offering incense and lamps that do not conform to ritual standards is to be investigated by the Bureau of Spiritual Authority. Anyone who fails to initiate three disciples for the Three Masters—the masters who each have distinct duties in transmitting scriptures and teachings—or to register seven masters and initiate nine transmission masters is to be investigated by the Bureau of Illustrious Might. If someone has already performed enough meritorious deeds for the Three Masters and has served the required period, yet deliberately conceals this and refuses to transmit the teachings, thereby severing the lineage, they are to be investigated by the Bureau of Great Yin. After receiving the teachings, failing to establish good merit is to be investigated by the Bureau of Illustrious Metropolis. Failing to teach people widely and guide living beings to salvation without seeking recognition is to be investigated by the Bureau of the Lower Origin. After receiving the teachings, failing to make a vow for the Three Masters is to be investigated by the Bureau of Illustrious Metropolis. Anyone who initiates no one after receiving the teachings, blocks worthy people from seeking the Dao, and keeps the credit and recognition for themselves is to be investigated by the Bureau of the Hidden Metropolis. After personally receiving the scriptures and teachings, failing to set up the elevated seat, the Dipper canopy, and incense and lamps in the ritual hall is to be investigated by the Bureau of Illustrious Metropolis.

The Code of Illuminating Truth says: When receiving the true texts—the sacred scriptures transmitted in Daoism—each person must calculate their age using a lifespan silk, a ritual offering linked to the recipient’s allotted years. Any other item must be entered in a separate register and submitted to the Bureau of Mystery for investigation.

The ritual code stipulates: When receiving the true texts, one must cast three golden dragons, metal dragon-shaped ritual objects, into the prescribed locations, such as the water realm and mountain sanctuary. If they are not cast into all three required locations, the Three Officials, who govern the affairs of Heaven, Earth, and Water, will detain and investigate the person. If they discover a violation in the register of allotted lifespans, the Bureau of the Nine Metropolises will investigate.

The ritual regulations require the preparation of five pieces of silk bearing the patterns of the Five Emperors, each forty chi long, to swear an oath before the Five Emperors and serve as proof of the vow. Violations will be investigated by the Spring-Bend Office, the underworld bureau responsible for inspections.

The ritual regulations require five liang of fine gold to swear an oath before the Five Sacred Peaks and serve as proof of reverence for the scriptures. Violations will be investigated by the Office of Yin Officials.

The ritual regulations require 240,000 coins as proof of faith in the twenty-four Qi periods. If cash is unavailable, copper coins may be used instead. Violations will be investigated by the Office of the Chief Spirits.

The ritual regulations require incense, lamps, and candles to be prepared to open the Nine Offices, the divine bureaus described in Daoism. Violations will be investigated by the Office of Great Yin.

The ritual regulations require those who receive the scriptures to observe purification and fasting, keeping the body and mind clean. Violations will be investigated by the Office of Great Yang.

The secret methods of celestial writing are exceedingly precious; without sincerity, they should not be treated as treasures. Therefore, the High Sages—realized beings who have attained the Dao—test the sincerity of those seeking the Dao through an oath of faith. Without sincerity, one holds the Daoist methods in contempt; without an oath, one disdains the treasure. Violations will be investigated by the left and right official bureaus.

The scriptures should be transmitted by a master. If they are received without transmission through a teacher and without an oath affirming one’s sincerity, they should not be treated as treasures. Therefore, the High Sages test the sincerity of those seeking the Dao through an oath of faith. Without sincerity, one holds the Daoist methods in contempt; without an oath, one disdains the treasure. Violations will be investigated by the left and right official bureaus.

The regulations state: Anyone who reads through scripture texts without receiving instruction from a master and without swearing an oath of alliance to the Five Emperors is guilty of the same offense as stealing scriptures. The case is to be examined by the Court of Clarification of the Law.

These regulations are difficult to keep and easy to violate. When reading the scriptures and handling the scrolls, who could fail to feel apprehensive? If one merely sits in silence and passes on no teachings, the Daoist methods will be cut off. But to pass them on indiscriminately would completely contradict the purpose of transmission. Thinking it over again and again, one is caught between going forward and turning back, with a heavy anguish seemingly knotted in the heart.

Moreover, greedy and cruel people are stubborn in their thinking. They pay no heed to the cultivation and virtue of those who came before, and want only to have disciples take possession of the scriptures as treasured property. When transmitting scriptures, they do not teach their precious principles or ask about the relevant restrictions and prohibitions. They neither establish a purification ritual nor make a pledge of faith—so how could they observe the rules of the oath? Disciples who see their masters act this way will pass on the teachings in the same manner later. They do not fear that officials in the underworld will record their offenses; they pursue only fame and profit. It is people like these who ruin the Daoist teachings.

The Jing of the Western Ascension says: “The deluded teach one another, passing things on from person to person, until falsehood and deceit mingle with the true Dao, and what is empty is taken for something real. Unable to distinguish truth from falsehood, they rush about only to gain profit, straying from the right path and forgetting their roots. Acting foolishly and blindly, they bring fault upon themselves alone, like wood that kindles its own fire and is ultimately consumed and rotted by it.” These words are indeed trustworthy. I hope everyone will take them as encouragement.

On Deducting Shares from Transmissions and Copies

The Regulations for Clarifying the Truth stipulate that when receiving the tokens of faith for true texts and methods, one should divide what is received into ten shares: send two to the ancestral masters, then distribute two more to the poor. Daoists living in the mountains may use their own share for incense, fire, and lamps, thereby accumulating merit for their disciples. Those who violate these regulations will be investigated and punished by the Court of the Three Officials.

The Regulations of Great Truth stipulate that when receiving an office in a Celestial Master’s administrative jurisdiction and being assigned the households under its authority, one must not keep for personal use a deducted portion of the twelve shares, as one might when transmitting teachings independently. Instead, one should take five tenths of the merit share received and send it to the Celestial Master’s jurisdiction, and announce this regulation so that everyone knows it. Anyone who violates it will be dealt with under the laws of the Five Punishments.

The Four Extremes’ Clear Regulations (Siji Mingke) says that anyone who transmits the Precious Scripture of Highest Clarity (Shangqing Baojing) must accept the tokens of faith offered by disciples and divide them into three portions. One portion is to be placed in a secluded mountain or forest retreat to support the poor; one is for making the transmitter’s own ritual robe; and one is to accumulate merit for the disciple’s ancestors through seven generations. On the day the tokens are placed, one should make a vow that the poor throughout the world and reclusive practitioners living austere lives may soon attain the Dao, transcend the world, and ascend to immortality. When making one’s own ritual robe, one should vow to become like the immortals, don the robe, and receive the laws of the Immortal Way. When lighting lamps and burning incense, one should vow that the disciple and one’s own ancestors through seven generations may soon escape the mountains of blades and the three paths and five sufferings—a Daoist description of the torments endured by the dead—ascend to the Southern Palace, the celestial palace of the immortals, be reborn in transformed bodies and become immortal, act always in accordance with the laws, and ultimately attain the true Dao. If one breaks the oath or violates the ritual precepts, retribution will also befall oneself.

The Regulations (Ke) says that when receiving the Precious Scripture of Highest Clarity, one must first offer the master the prescribed amount of tokens of faith. If one has not yet reached the amount required by the ritual precepts, then even after many years of receiving the scripture and having reached the proper time to transmit it, one must not accept tokens from others. All such tokens should be handed over to one’s former master to make up the previously prescribed amount; only then may they be divided into three portions. Violating the ritual precepts will bring retribution upon one’s ancestors through seven generations.

The Regulations for Clarifying Truth (Mingzhen Ke) says that if someone receiving the scripture initially offered too few tokens of faith, and later encounters a worthy person who offers tokens and requests the scripture, those tokens should first be used to make up the amount prescribed by the former master. Only the remainder may be kept for one’s own ritual practice. Violating this rule will bring investigation and punishment by the Fire Bureau, the divine office responsible for administering penalties.

These three passages give different instructions on how to divide the tokens of faith, so one should follow the requirements of the scripture being received. Nowadays, some people divide the tokens into twelve portions but use them all to meet their own living expenses. They show disrespect toward their masters above and treat those below them with contempt and cruelty. This is exceedingly reckless.

Collected Notes on the Prescribed Periods (Nianxian Chao)

Sages transform and move with the changing cycles of tribulation, responding to the Way and becoming attuned to it. Only those who truly accord with the Way may transmit the scriptures and teachings. They are not passed on to the unworthy or to those who do not meet the requirements for transmission.

The Fu records that, after studying the Way and receiving a scripture, one must wait forty years before transmitting it to a single person. Someone whose lifespan has already been extended must wait four hundred years before transmitting it to one person; after becoming an Earth Immortal, four thousand years; after becoming a Celestial Immortal, forty thousand years; and after attaining the supreme Way, forty thousand kalpas. The rules for transmitting the Great Method of the Most High Lingbao are fully established.

The Hidden Instructions for Ascending to True Immortality says that Heavenly Zhen (true immortals of the celestial realms) and spiritual adepts (those endowed with spiritual insight and who have attained the Way) each have strict time limits for transmitting scriptures: six people in three thousand years, ten in two thousand two hundred years, five in one thousand years, and three in seven hundred years. These periods were all entered into the Jade Registers and Golden Statutes as rules governing transmission from master to disciple among the sage emperors. They are not standards that people in the world may apply as they please.

The Scripture of the Sage’s Record says that those listed among the immortals with “golden status and jade names” have eyes that shine like the sun, blue-green teeth, and white blood. Those entered in the Golden Books and Jade Registers of Shangqing bear a mark on their backs resembling the constellation Hekui and have a projecting bone in the chest. Those listed in the blue writings of the Cinnabar Tablets of Taiji have palm lines shaped like characters of the “leiren daida” type. Anyone whose immortal name is marked with black, blue-green, or purple has four ring-shaped patterns in the eyes, with purple light shining from the center. Those listed in the Jade Registers of Taiqing have voices clear and resonant as jade, ringing like gold, square-shaped mouths, and rounded eyes. Those with golden names in the Great Simplicity have a white mark visible on the abdomen and exhale purple Qi. Those listed in the Mysterious Registers of the Dipper have nine openings in the heart, brocade-like patterns on the outer surface of the lungs, a jade pellet on the chin, green veins in the eyes, and hairs at the outer corners of the eyebrows that grow upward.

All who possess these signs belong to the company of immortal Zhen. Whether they emerge into the world or live in seclusion, whether they are active or still, they do not attain their status through corpse liberation, in which the body remains behind while the spirit ascends. The time limits for transmitting scriptures may be applied according to the rules stated above.

Yet teachers today have short lifespans and cannot be sure of living long enough to meet the prescribed periods. To encounter the teachings in advance is already as rare as dropping a mustard seed onto a needle’s tip; having the chance to receive a text is rarer still, like a blind turtle surfacing by chance and finding its way through a hole in a floating piece of wood. If one rigidly adheres to the time limits, one may frustrate the purpose of transmitting the Way. Therefore, as long as the recipient acts with compassion and kindness, holds the supreme Way in their heart, and meets the ten aspirations mentioned above, the teachings may be transmitted to them.

The Dengzhen Yinjue says: Those who aspire to study the Dao should devote themselves to seeking numinous responses in the unseen realm and sincerely ask a profound master—a teacher who transmits the mysterious Daoist methods—for guidance. If their natural capacities and karmic affinities are compatible, they will come to an understanding. Only after the assembled perfected beings—the realized adepts and immortals—have agreed to accept them may they take an oath. In taking the oath, they must resolve in their hearts to honor the Great Dao and fulfill the ten vows described earlier. Only then may they receive the transmission.

The Dengzhen Yinjue also says: Those who aspire to study the Dao should devote themselves to seeking numinous responses and asking a profound master for guidance. If their natural capacities and karmic affinities are compatible, they will surely come to an understanding. They may take an oath only after the assembled perfected beings have agreed to accept them. Once they have entered the covenant, they must practice, and practice must be sustained to the end. I will pass on precious Daoist methods to people of this kind and become their fellow cultivator. Those who do not meet these conditions need not force the matter. Even if they fill their book chests with scriptures, the books will only become a burden, bringing trouble upon their seven ancestral generations on the paternal line and causing the stones of the Trial River—a symbol for recording offenses and reckoning guilt—to pile ever higher.

The ancients called those who sought only appearances and empty renown “fine on the surface.” I now call them “ear-learners”: people who hear teachings but do not truly practice. Thus, when they hear of the Dao, they advance on their knees in reverence; but once the Daoist methods are concealed or no one teaches them, everything they learned disappears. Daoist methods can be obtained only through transmission, and practicing according to the teachings is never in vain. It is like forbidden arts in the world: without receiving them from a teacher, one cannot put them to use. This example alone is enough to make the point clear.

The Xuandu Lü says: Daoist men and women who wear attendant spirits and troops assigned to their religious offices must not pass Daoist methods to others indiscriminately. They may transmit them to people who are sincere, steadfast, and diligent in practice. If they pass them to wicked and rebellious people, the teachers will face judgment and reckoning across three lifetimes.

The Ziran Jue says: Before transmitting Daoist methods, teacher and disciple must first observe a period of purification for three months, or for ten, twenty, or thirty days. When the period is over, they must climb a famous mountain together and conduct the scripture transmission on a peak altar or on a rock. After receiving the scripture, if someone truly sincere and devoted to the Dao comes seeking the transmission with a precious token of faith—a pledge of sincerity offered in seeking the teachings—the teacher may pass it on, without being bound by any prescribed interval. If no suitable person appears, the teacher may later transmit it together with the token of faith, thereby accumulating blessings for the people. The teacher must not keep it for personal use; otherwise, the offense will be grave.

The Code for Clarifying the True (Mingzhen Ke) says: If someone approaches the Three Treasures—the Dao, the scriptures, and the master—with shallow sincerity, remains half-hearted in purpose, treats the scriptures and Daoist methods with contempt, or desecrates sacred texts; if they teach disciples without observing the prescribed period of training, or pass on teachings in secret without reporting to Heaven and Earth and performing the oath-taking rite; if they establish a lineage on their own, violate the Four Oaths—the agreements sworn when transmitting Daoist teachings—or are careless and perfunctory during purification rites, arrogantly slighting the Highest Perfected Ones, their offenses are grave.

After death, they will suffer punishments such as shaving and fettering, then be driven onto a forest of swords. Evil winds from all eight directions will blow against one another, shaking the sword trees up and down. Their feet will fall onto a mountain of blades, and they will be punished again and again beyond counting. Their hands, feet, and bodies will be torn and wounded; the pain will be unbearable, and the torment impossible to endure. Only after passing through ten thousand kalpas might they be reborn as foolish and lowly people. They may also suffer from six kinds of illness, becoming deaf and blind and losing the ability to hear and discern. From then on, they will remain cut off from the Dao for a long time, forever unable to enter the path of learning the Dao. They will cycle through the Five Sufferings, sink into the consequences of their offenses, and find no release, as the roots of evil continue to grow. Those who transmit scriptures and teachings unlawfully will bring such punishments upon themselves. The mutual regard and care between master and disciple are precious to this subtle Great Dao.

End of volume one of Collected Essentials on Cultivation and the Precepts for Ritual Practice (Yaoxiu keyi jielü chao).

Compiled by the Daoist Zhu Faman of the Three Caverns.

Copying the scripture.

The dragon-patterned talismans shine brightly, while phoenix-shaped seal script spreads benevolent grace. Chapters are inscribed with a purple brush, and the sound of scripture recitation carries through the green woods. The lands of Fuli extend far and wide, encompassing both humans and heavenly beings; in the refining pool, a brilliant torch of wisdom is kindled. These scriptures were annotated by the August Sovereign in ancient ages of tribulation and transmitted by the Blue Youth in years past. Once the primordial chapters had been opened, the Sovereign Lord took up his brush and compiled them. The bridge of the Way has been raised, and from it one may ascend to the farther shore of blessed reward. Thus we can see the significance of copying, arranging, and organizing scriptures.

The Scripture of the Fundamental Origin says: “If someone copies scriptures on paper, silk, or other materials, or carves them in jade or engraves them in gold; binds them into volumes with cords and scrolls; then circulates them widely, recites them, and expounds teachings that have not yet been heard, you should know that this person has entered the ranks of those who cultivate the Way. Their name is recorded in the Golden Register and included in the Jade Chapters.”

The Great Precepts say: “Copying scriptures can make one’s descendants intelligent, widely learned, and able to understand subtle and profound principles; they will often encounter an enlightened age. All the wise and discerning people of today have had some connection with writing the revered scriptures of the Three Caverns (Dongzhen, Dongxuan, and Dongshen). The blessings gained by copying scriptures are not limited to future lives; they can also be received in this life.”

The Great Precepts also say: “Copying revered scriptures, even at a cost of just one coin or more, can bring a reward seventy-four thousand times greater. If one spends ten thousand coins or more, the reward is beyond measure. Even giving away a single portion and receiving ten thousandfold in return has always been praised. How much more extensive and exalted is the merit of receiving a seventy-four-thousandfold reward! If wealthy families do not contribute their resources to copying scriptures, then they possess wealth in vain.”

The Rules of the Thousand Perfected say: “If one copies the scriptural treasures of the Three Vehicles—the scriptures classified by levels of teaching—and had originally planned to copy the Great Vehicle scriptures but instead copies the Middle or Lesser Vehicle scriptures, one commits the crime of the Five Rebellions. If one had originally planned to copy the Middle or Lesser Vehicle scriptures but later copies the Great Vehicle scriptures, this does not count as breaking the precepts.”

Notes on Preserving and Reciting Mantras

Scriptures come from the mouths of sages, while ritual methods are cultivated by ordinary people. The subtle meaning of the scriptures is not easy to understand fully, and a mind lacking discernment can readily become stuck and obstructed. Since the scriptures have been set down in writing, they must have a purpose; their categories differ, and so do the methods of preserving and reciting them—that is, the focused visualization and recollection practiced during cultivation. One should follow the scriptures one recites and cultivates, and learn the corresponding rules and forms for each.

Recite the Jing of Original Forms once, while visualizing the scene described in its incantation. First strike the ritual drum thirty-six times, then bow to the scripture three times and recite:

O Great Dao, wondrous and supreme, true and without falsehood: may purity settle in the harmonious center of the Imperial Pole. The perfected ones of Heaven gather with vast radiance, and the divine spirits shine in one another’s light. All beings in the four directions turn their hearts in reverence; thus the forms of the great immortals assemble. Heaven’s gates open at the appointed time. May all bend their knees and bow, proclaiming subtle scriptures and spreading their teachings, to save beings from the Three Paths of Suffering—the realms of hell, hungry ghosts, and animals.

Recite the Jing of the Yellow Court twice, while visualizing its contents. The Ritual Code of the Four Extremities, a Daoist liturgical text on ritual regulations, stipulates that when reciting the Jing of the Yellow Court, one should burn incense, observe purification, put on ritual robes, enter the chamber facing north, bow four times, and then kneel upright. Click the teeth twenty-four times, then submit a petition to the Most High Lord of the Great Dao, Jade Dawn of the Ten Thousand Perfected (a revered Daoist deity): “Your disciple, A, is now entering the quiet chamber to recite the Jade Scripture, refine and nourish the primordial spirit, and protect body and mind. I pray that body and mind may be nourished, so that I may ride the void and ascend to pay homage at the Imperial Court.” After the petition, turn east and make four formal bows to the Great Emperor.

Then click the teeth twelve times and submit a petition to the Great Emperor of Fusang and the Divine King of Yanggu, deities associated with the rising sun in the east: “Your disciple, A, is now entering the chamber to recite the Jade Scripture. I pray that lingzhi will arise naturally within the quiet chamber, that jade radiance—the precious numinous substance of the immortal realm—will shine forth, and that the three lights of sun, moon, and stars will grow clear. After ten thousand cycles of cultivation, may I form an immortal embryo and take my place among the spirits of the Emperor.”

After the petition, face east and recite the scripture ten times; this counts as one cycle. At the end of each cycle, return to the north and bow four times, then face east and make four formal bows. No further petitions are required. Anyone who violates these ritual regulations will be subject to the “Trial of Wind Blades,” a punishment described in Daoist teaching.

Recite the Scripture of Lord Lao three times, while visualizing the scenes described in the text. The Esoteric Instructions of the Supreme Ultimate (a Daoist manual of cultivation) says: First burn incense, dress neatly in ritual robes, and bow ten times. In your mind, visualize the Great Master of the Mysteries, the Perfected Lord Lao of the Riverbank, and Master Yin. Then recite the “Incantation for Opening the Scripture’s Hidden Meaning”:

“The utmost Dao, mysterious beyond mystery, is the root of all things. The highest De embodies the vast source. Though the Way of heavenly perfection is profound and mysterious, it can draw close to the Lord of the Muddy Pellet (the spirit who resides in the head). The palaces are made entirely of the Seven Treasures, and their doors and windows are naturally clear. Preserve stillness, and you will often accord with the true Dao. Ride the rosy clouds and travel upon purple clouds; the sun and moon shine on either side, and you attain immortality and long life. Draw close to the Lord of the Muddy Pellet; the palaces are made entirely of the Seven Treasures, and their doors and windows are naturally clear. Preserve stillness, and you will often accord with the true Dao. Ride the rosy clouds and travel upon purple clouds; the sun and moon shine on either side, and you attain complete transcendence and long life. Your ancestors for seven generations also ascend to Heaven, and for generations your family becomes one of the virtuous.”

After reciting, click your teeth thirty-six times and swallow your saliva thirty-six times. First visualize in your mind a Blue Dragon on the left, a White Tiger on the right, a Vermilion Bird in front, and a Dark Warrior behind. Beneath your feet is a divine tortoise bearing the Eight Trigrams; thirty-six lions crouch before you. On your headwrap are the Seven Stars of the Northern Dipper. The Five Viscera give rise to five kinds of breath, whose colored patterns cover your whole body. The Three Ones (the three guardian spirits within the body) attend the scripture scroll, each accompanied by a thousand chariots and horses and ten thousand mounted followers. In addition, eighteen thousand jade maidens and jade boys guard each of Heaven and Earth. For every five hundred characters you read, click your teeth three times and swallow your saliva three times.

When reciting the four Shangqing scriptures, one should practice visualization—cultivating through focused contemplation.

The Jinlu Jianwen says that when reading the Shangqing scriptures, one should face north and perform nine bows before the mat. Then turn east and take the seat of honor; after turning left, face north.

The opening blessing recorded in the Yujing Yinzhu Kaijing Yun Chi says: “The Daoist gate is subtle and mysterious, its radiance illuminating the vast expanse of Kongtong, where immortals dwell. The Supreme Dao emerges from stillness and silence; one should be able to see the Three Su Palaces, the celestial palaces described in Daoism. Through this, the Great Dao is cultivated to completion. Riding clouds and driving dragons, one travels with attendants bearing scriptures at either side, accompanied by jade maidens and jade youths. The body crosses the ford of immortality, escapes the nets of the mortal world, and rides the wind of the spirits. Ancestors of seven generations and descendants yet to come will, in every generation, belong to a lineage of immortals.”

The Jinlu Jianwen further says to click the teeth nine times and visualize clouds of nine colors filling the entire room. Azure dragons, white tigers, lions, dark tortoises, immortal youths, jade maidens, and the officials of the Five Emperors of the Three Realms all stand guard at one’s sides. Then, riding the heavens and treading the earth, one recites the scripture. When finished, one rises from the bed on its western side and performs the same rites as at the beginning.

The Yuzhu says to click the teeth thirty-six times and swallow the saliva in the mouth thirty-six times. Then first visualize Huifeng Hunhe Di Yi, a deity contemplated in Daoist visualization practice, together with the hundred gods and myriad immortals, before beginning to read the scripture.

Fifth, recite the Lingbao scriptures and incantations. The Jinlu Jianwen says that when reciting the Lingbao scriptures, one should straighten one’s clothes and headwear and face the scripture. First burn incense before it and bow three times, then sit upright facing north. The Opening Scripture’s Hidden Incantation, in the Yujing Yinzhu, says:

“Silent and still, without sound, it reaches the source that depends on nothing. It stands high in the midst of emptiness, enduring through countless kalpas. The writings of the Cavern Mystery (Dongxuan) suddenly appear; who can fathom their profound and far-reaching mysteries? Once one has set foot on the path of the Great Vehicle, who still counts the passing kalpas? Life is neither born nor extinguished. If one is to be born, one is born from a lotus, on a path that transcends the Three Realms. With a compassionate heart, release the bonds of the world. The perfected beings possess supreme De (Virtue/Power) and, age after age, take their place among the immortals.”

When the incantation is finished, click the teeth thirty-six times and swallow the saliva thirty-six times. Visualize the five-colored Qi (vital energy) in the Five Viscera rising and merging with the vital essences of the Five Planets, then recite the scripture.

Sixth, recite the Three Sovereigns Scripture. The Jinlu Jianwen says that when reciting it, one should face south, burn incense before the scripture, and bow twice. Then face west and climb onto the bed, turn left to face south. The Opening Scripture’s Hidden Incantation, in the Yujing Yinzhu, says:

“The Most High—Daoism’s honorific for the highest divine beings—settles the spirit and bestows the blessings of Heaven and Earth through talismanic commands. At the sound of the summons, they arrive at once, without waiting for a carriage. Ten thousand immortals suddenly gather; the summoned divine officials, whatever their rank, are nothing to speak of—how much less defiling things. Through purification and fasting, one cuts off worldly affairs and stands apart, face to face with the divine. Ascend to the Jade Clarity Palace and roam in joyful repose beyond the Nine Heavens.”

When the incantation is finished, the Jianwen says to click the teeth three times and visualize clouds of three colors filling the entire room. The Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermilion Bird, and Black Tortoise guard the four directions, while divine boys and jade maidens protect one’s right and left. After swallowing Qi three times, recite the scripture. When finished, climb down from the bed facing east and perform the opening ritual again.

Seventh, recite the Bu Xu Jing (Scripture of Pacing the Void), a Daoist liturgical hymn. The Yujing Yinzhu says that before reciting, one should click the teeth three times and swallow saliva three times, then visualize the sun and moon in front of oneself, passing three times before the nose. Then recite the scripture. When finished, climb down from the bed facing east and perform the opening ritual again.

When reciting the Scripture of Pacing the Void, first click the teeth together three times, then swallow the saliva in the mouth three times. In the mind, visualize the sun and moon appearing on your face and entering through the nostrils into the Golden Flower Palace of the Cavern Chamber, an inner palace in Daoist visualization practice. Their light shines out from the back of the neck and transforms into a vivid, circular image of nine colors. It gradually enters the Jade Pillow, a visualization point at the back of the head. Its radiance illuminates the ten directions and moves in a circuit as you pace the scripture.

Visualize the sun entering through the left nostril and the moon through the right. When this is complete, click the teeth together as at the beginning, then recite the Secret Spell for Commanding Demons, a spell used in purification ritual liturgy to issue commands and subdue evil spirits. The Ceremonial Instructions for the Purification Ritual of the Hundred Clans records the spell as follows:

“Yellow Center stirs the breath and cuts down demons and evils; the Ancestral Inspector observes and subdues the violent, while the Essence cuts off wickedness. The Most High has issued a command: swiftly summon the Northern Emperor, the deity of the north, to proceed to the Jade Palace, receive the command, and proclaim it to the Demon King: the Five Qi billow in profusion and accord with the command; the secret storehouse surges with jade, and the patterned directions rise in grandeur; the Three Heavens set light in motion, and the Six Heavens bring it to an end. O worthy one!”

The dujiang, the person who leads scripture recitation and guides the assembly through the liturgy, may chant: “Let all officials each visualize the circular image of nine colors, swallow saliva three times, hold the Secret Spell for Commanding Demons in mind, and pace the void according to the ritual.”

When entering or leaving the Daoist gate, one should hold the Golden Registers’ Brief Text in mind, a document used in Zhaijiao rites. At dawn, when entering the Daoist purification hall, click the teeth together three times outside the gate and recite: “Four Radiances, meritorious officers; the spell of the emissary who communicates with the True. Pace the void according to the ritual.”

When entering the Dao chamber in the morning—the place where Daoist priests undertake practices such as purification and visualization—visualize the divine beings described in the Golden Register Documents (Jinlu Jianwen), ritual texts used in Daoist ceremonies. Outside the entrance to the purification hall, click your teeth three times and recite the incantation:

“Four Ming Merit Officers, Messengers Who Communicate with the True, Jade Youths Who Convey Messages, Jade Maidens Who Attend the Purified: please carry my message. Orthodox spirits in the Dao chamber, vital energy of the Upper Origin, enter my body.”

Then, following the Laozi Visualization Chart (Laozi Cunshi Tu), a guide to visualization practice, visualize one Four Ming Merit Officer, one Messenger Who Communicates with the True, two Jade Youths Who Convey Messages, and two Jade Maidens Who Attend the Purified.

The Golden Register Documents say that when entering the Dao chamber at night, you should stand outside, face the door, click your teeth three times, and recite the incantation:

“Four Upper Merit Officers, Dragon and Tiger Messengers, vital energy of Zhengyi (Orthodox Unity), Pure Maidens Who Attend the Purified: tonight I have a matter for which I seek assistance. I ask that the Illuminating Youth and the Maiden of the Upper Mystery enter the Yellow Chamber (the inner spirit chamber in Daoist visualization) with me, convey my petition, and carry it all the way up to the celestial realm.”

Then, following the Laozi Visualization Chart, visualize one Four Upper Merit Officer, two Dragon and Tiger Messengers, one Pure Maiden Who Attends the Purified, one Illuminating Youth, and one Maiden of the Upper Mystery.

The Golden Register Documents also say that when leaving, you should click your teeth three times and recite the incantation:

“Depart the Yin and enter the Yang; may the myriad spirits open the way. The matter entrusted for communication is complete; please close the Yellow Chamber. Jade Maiden Who Attends the Purified, protect the spirit palace and make all things clear and complete.”

The Visualization Chart explains: Jade Maidens are spirits formed in response to the wondrous Qi of nature. Their bodies are bright and pure, white as jade; when concealed, they are warm and inwardly radiant, and when manifest, upright and free of impurity. As practitioners gradually advance, their movements in and out accord with both their bodies and the Dao. The Dao’s Qi is subtle and vast, responsive in places both small and great; it guides practitioners in sequence, from lower to higher stages. Thus, by day Jade Maidens protect the spirit palace, while at night Maidens convey messages, helping people overcome danger and ascend to the Daoist ritual ground.

The Golden Register Documents further say that when leaving at night, you should glance back over your left shoulder, click your teeth three times, and recite the incantation:

“Mysterious Uppermost Taiyin, may the eight windows open bright. The matter I have just presented: please let the Maiden convey it to the spirit realm. When it is complete, return to your place, and let the myriad spirits rest in stillness and concealment.”

The true sacred scriptures shine forth among the heavens; the jade characters and golden chapters—the precious scriptures of Daoism—have been handed down to the present day. The principles of the Great Dao are profound and difficult to grasp, and its hidden teachings are not easily disclosed. Unless a person possesses exceptional virtue and ability, it is better to let them remain temporarily unclear than to force an explanation.

First, on which direction to face when expounding the scriptures. The Shengxuan Jing says: when scriptures are expounded, the ritual master and the scripture master—the person presiding over or teaching the classic—sit facing one another, on seats five chi high. They may sit facing east, west, south, or north, and should bow no more than three times.

Second, on visualization: a method of cultivation in which one focuses the mind and forms inner images. The original text gives no further instructions on how to practice it.

First, on which direction to face when expounding the scriptures. The Shengxuan Jing says: when scriptures are expounded, the ritual master and the scripture master—the person presiding over or teaching the classic—sit facing one another, on seats five chi high. They may sit facing east, west, south, or north, and should bow no more than three times.

Second is the practice of visualization. According to the Illustrated Guide to the Visualization of Lord Lao, before teaching a scripture one first visualizes three kinds of Qi, then the Three Ones: deities who dwell in the upper, middle, and lower regions but belong to a single Dao. The day’s ritual practice has six periods, three of which are set aside for scripture teaching: after a meal, in the afternoon, and at the hour when the night grows quiet. At these times, participants enter the fasting hall, offer incense, bow three times, then proceed in order around the hall and take their seats.

Once everyone is seated, the ritual master strikes the bench with a wooden board, then places it before his knees. With eyes slightly closed and hands clasped firmly, he visualizes the Qi in his head as blue, the Qi in his hands as red, and the Qi in his feet as white, with these three colors of Qi circling his body. He then visualizes the Three Ones: the deities in the three regions are originally one Dao. The Dao’s essence is one, but it manifests as three in response to different circumstances, and is present everywhere within and beyond the Three Realms. It governs and transforms all things and is called the “Three Heavens.” When the Most High Lord Lao proclaims the teachings and safeguards the scriptures, he is called the “Three Primes.” When Lord Lao descends among humankind and enables people to attain De, he is called the “Three Ones.”

The Three Ones reside in the body’s three palaces. The brain is the Palace of the Upper Prime, whose deity is called Yi; the heart is the Palace of the Middle Prime, whose deity is called Xi; and the region below the navel is the Palace of the Lower Prime, whose deity is called Wei. Each of the three deities is visualized as an infant, one inch tall, sitting quietly with hands clasped, free of desire and action. Their forms seem insubstantial, yet also somehow real.

Next, one visualizes the Three Masters: the Master of the Scripture, the Master of the Register, and the Master of Initiation. First one rises and faces the seat, then bows three times before it to the Three Venerable Ones. One then bows once each to the Master of the Scripture, the Master of the Register, and the Master of Initiation, making six bows in all, before ascending the high seat. Next one visualizes the attendant guardians: seated upright on the high seat, one draws in the ritual tablet and strikes the drum thirty-six times, then swallows saliva thirty-six times. With eyes slightly closed, one visualizes the Azure Dragon on the left, the White Tiger on the right, the Vermilion Bird in front, and the Dark Warrior behind. Beneath the feet is a divine tortoise bearing the Eight Trigrams, while thirty-six lions crouch in front. The headscarf bears the Seven Stars; the Five Organs emit five kinds of Qi, whose patterned radiance envelops the body. The Three Ones attend the scripture, while many sages, immortal mounts, immortal youths, and jade maidens stand guard nearby.

Visualization marks the beginning of settling the mind and focusing one’s thoughts; entering meditation marks the beginning of stilling distracting thoughts. Through this practice, one can discern and contemplate, allowing the spirit and intention to travel freely: without moving swiftly, they can reach their destination at great speed. The original procedure was to visualize the Three Masters and the Three Ones below the seat, then, after ascending the high seat, visualize the awe-inspiring presence of the attendant guardians. The three bows express reverence for the Three Venerable Ones, while the six bows do not conform to the ritual practice of the Four Assemblies. In current practice, there is no need to spend effort on visualization below the seat; one need only bow three times. After ascending the high seat and sitting quietly, one first visualizes the Three Ones, then the Three Masters, and finally the awe-inspiring guardian attendants. This simplifies the visualization practice, making it easier for the mind to encompass everything while avoiding an overly elaborate ritual. It has been arranged in this form on the basis of accounts in earlier texts.

The Scripture of Original Reality records that when the host of a purification retreat invited a ritual master to preach, the host first offered three sticks of incense, carried a precious incense burner before the master, bowed three times, then knelt and made this request:

“We disciples are fortunate to meet a thousand years later and encounter the Dao teachings circulating in the world. The teachings left by the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning are now widely spread. Although I have embraced Daoism, I still hope to hear the sacred teachings. I respectfully ask the ritual master to bestow this blessing.”

When the ritual master agreed, he ascended the high seat and chanted:

“I look up to the ritual master and presume to state my wish. Living beings have long been benighted and closed off, and yearn to hear the highest teaching. May great compassion dispel the long night for all beings, and may the teachings remain ever fresh through countless kalpas. The host has established a retreat of merit, extending its blessings to four generations.”

As the ritual master ascended the seat, he chanted:

“Purification and retreat are essential means of cultivating the Great Dao, and the most subtle rites are supremely revered. Therefore, this bridge spanning the kalpas is established to save living beings far and wide. Today we perform a pure purification rite, arranging canopies and seats and displaying solemn offerings in five colors. Celestial immortals roam above, while the Heavenly Emperors of the Five Directions each guard their place. The Merit Officers transmit talismanic commands and protect me on either side. I ascend the dragon carriage seat, with a jade staircase set beside it. The gods of the Divine Empyrean assist and protect me; heavenly demons dare not raise their heads to peer in. The Five Spirits remain settled and still as I proclaim the teachings of the Highest One.”

The scripture next gives the “Seating Chant,” recited by the ritual master as he settles onto the high seat. It likewise praises the Heavenly Emperors of the Five Directions for guarding their respective places, the Merit Officers for relaying commands and providing protection, and the gods of the Divine Empyrean for supporting the master as he proclaims the teachings of the Highest One.

After taking his seat, he chants:

“The Great Dao abides in Wuwei (non-action), gathering primordial Qi (vital energy) and transforming it into form. For the sake of living beings, a bridge to the Great Dao has been specially established, and supreme scriptures have been left behind. By cultivating these teachings, one may attain lasting peace and joy and no longer sink within the Three Realms. Burn away the Six Dusts—the defilements that arise when the eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, and mind encounter the outside world—focus the mind in quiet reflection, and listen reverently to the teaching.”

The scripture then marks the “Departure Chant,” a hymn recited by the ritual master as he leaves the high seat.

The teachings of the wondrous method are proclaimed far and wide, while the profound sounds of the celestial realm echo from afar. All beings equally receive unobstructed wisdom, pass through three barriers, and cross the Yellow Ford. The merit officials and messengers of the Divine Empyrean (Shenxiao, the Daoist celestial realm) have labored; please pause and rest awhile. Since the Three Assemblies (ritual stages in Daoist purification rites) have endured hardship, they should receive their reward and be repaid, so that the promise made earlier is not left unfulfilled. We must also formally invoke and report, then state the matter to the officials of the bureau, lest they grow angry from waiting so long. Those seated below return to their places and pay homage to the Three Treasures: the Dao, the scriptures, and the masters.

When people speak of cultivating a field of merit—accumulating blessings through good deeds—they often hope to keep the rites simple. But if everything is carried out according to elaborate ritual, those performing the rite will find it difficult to follow. Now it is enough for the sponsor of the purification rite to accept the invitation, after which those seated above and below chant in praise; this suffices to complete the ritual service. Why insist on cumbersome details at every turn? Both approaches have therefore been retained, perhaps because each person has their own preference.

Notes on Arousing the Aspiration

To arouse the aspiration means that, when hearing the Mahayana teachings, one should remain calm and still in mind and listen with focused attention. Even hearing them once may lead to some awakening, though the way people understand them differs. There are six causes and conditions for arousing the aspiration… (The original text turns to the next discussion here.)

Notes on Arousing the Aspiration

Those who have set their minds on cultivating the Dao should listen to the teachings of the Great Vehicle with calm and focused attention. Even hearing them in passing may lead to some insight. Yet different people understand them differently, according to their circumstances and their practice:

Some can see through false doctrines that pass themselves off as the true Way and recognize that they are not the Way. Some mistakenly believe false doctrines to be the true Way and so stray from the path. Some hear the teachings of the Great Vehicle but grasp only the principles of the Lesser Vehicle, remaining at a superficial level. Others hear the teachings of the Lesser Vehicle and, through them, awaken to the subtle principles of the Great Vehicle. Some grow ever more diligent in their hearts and make solemn vows. Others falter inwardly and thereby bring misfortune upon themselves.

These differences also depend on whether the teacher explains the teachings skillfully or clumsily, and whether the listener understands them superficially or deeply. The Jing of the Original Ground says that a teacher who truly understands the principles can skillfully explain the various teachings: there is nothing to cultivate or attain; nothing arises or ceases; things are neither existent nor nonexistent; they are neither cause nor effect. Yet the teacher speaks of existence and nonexistence without denying cause and effect. The teacher skillfully explains conditions and uses provisional names to express the Middle Way. Those who understand such teachings can reach across and communicate with beings of different kinds.

The Jing of the Original Ground also says, “The Celestial Worthy proclaims the Dharma in a single voice, and beings understand it each according to their own kind.” The account in the Jing of the Original Nature tells the same story. The Celestial Worthy expounded the true writings of the Dongxuan Cavern (Dongxuan), an important body of Daoist scriptures, at Chanli, remaining seated for seven hundred thousand kalpas. Seven million beings listened with complete attention, and Dragon Kings from the ten directions radiated light as they came to hear the teaching. The Celestial Worthy’s disciple Jinghui said, “If even dragons and beasts delight in hearing the Dao, how much more should human beings!” No sooner had he spoken than the Dragon Kings became enraged. They raised clouds and sent down hail, which piled up to a height of ten zhang. The Celestial Worthy then spread forth five-colored Qi and gathered the clouds into a canopy that lifted the hail. The hail hung suspended in the air without falling, while the Celestial Worthy sat unmoved and continued teaching as before. Such was the Celestial Worthy’s divine might: beings throughout the ten directions were able to understand and awaken.

The Jing of the Original Ground further says that even one who teaches the Lesser Vehicle’s doctrine that practice brings attainment, and explains the processes of arising and ceasing, existence and nonexistence, cause and effect, may be called a wise teacher.

The Great Code of Truth (Dazhen Ke) says: When learning and hearing the Daoist teachings, one should carefully grasp their meaning and distinguish the Five Tones—gong, shang, jue, zhi, and yu—harmonize the Five Virtues, and regularly practice praising and chanting. One should gradually turn away from the frivolous and improper sounds of Zheng, speak gently and calmly, and slowly reduce noisy, disorderly speech. One should recite and sing sacred scriptures, joining in the chants according to ritual rules. Only through long practice can one make one’s voice as clear and elegant as jade and cut off worldly musical influences at their source.

In practicing scriptures and studying the Dao, one should begin with the “Thousand Texts.” Explanations of the scriptures should make their meaning clear, so that they can transform others and aid oneself, teaching living beings without end. This is the path for practitioners of the Mahayana. Even if one’s learning and ability to expound the teachings are not yet sufficient, one should make a resolute vow to strive diligently, aspire to the Mahayana, and go beyond the Three Realms—the Realm of Desire, the Realm of Form, and the Formless Realm. Do not cling to the Lesser Vehicle or seek offerings and wealth; do not become absorbed in the pleasures of the human and heavenly realms or treat cultivation merely as a means of personal gain. If one looks only to small benefits in the present, one will overlook the great merit that lies ahead.

When conducting purification rituals for others and reciting ritual texts, one should aim to instruct and guide the faithful. If someone gets drunk, gives themselves over to sexual indulgence, craves sensual pleasures and flavors, and seeks only to satisfy personal desires while claiming to practice the Mahayana, they do not in fact understand the Mahayana. They have learned only minor techniques yet wrongly expect great attainment. In the end, they will lead themselves astray and fall into suffering—a truly sorrowful outcome.

The Xuan Du Lü says: A ritual master bears the responsibility of proclaiming teachings throughout the world and saving the people. He must not covet wealth or use the transmission of techniques such as those for controlling servants as a way to make a profit. Anyone who breaks the precepts will be punished with a year of illness. A ritual master who is virtuous, lives simply, and wears ritual robes ought to receive offerings. The Great Precepts also say that offering a ritual master incense, oil, vegetarian food, ritual robes, or other items worth at least one coin brings blessings multiplied 240,000 times. The more one gives, the greater the blessings; in future generations, one’s family will be wealthy and never go without.

First, if you mistake false teachings for the true Way, you will fail to recognize the true Way. The Zhenzang Jing tells of a king named Tufang, who had always followed the true Way. A sorcerer came and tempted him to practice a false path, performing magical feats such as changing shape and flying through the air. The sorcerer also used music and praise to bewitch the women of the palace. They watched for twenty-one days and remained entranced. The king rebuked the sorcerer and ordered him to leave at once. But the sorcerer claimed to follow the true Way and urged the king to practice goodness. The king replied that true adepts often conceal their names and whereabouts, remaining unknown to others. The true Way is deep and difficult to fathom; those who display themselves are mostly practitioners of false paths. The king then ordered his spiritually perceptive minister to debate the sorcerer. The minister pointed out that outside teachings were often false and not worth debating. Unable to make a case, the sorcerer finally fled and disappeared. More than three thousand people no longer dared to come forward. The sorcery naturally faded away, the kingdom returned to upright ways, and the people turned toward the Great Vehicle. From this we can see that false teachings cannot harm the true Way; it has always been so.

Second, if you believe false teachings are the true Way, you will fall into a false path. The Zhenzang Jing tells of King Zitong, who loved doing good and giving generously but lacked discernment, and was deceived by a wild fox spirit. The Fox King told the other foxes, “The king likes to do good, but he lacks wisdom. I have marvelous magical powers: I can fly and vanish, and I can rise a hundred feet into the air before the royal hall, take the form of a dignified person, and discuss the emptiness of things and the meaning of the scriptures. If we can persuade the king to give us his wealth, even to give up his life, we can take them back to our cave and eat them.” The foxes all praised this plan.

The Fox King memorized hundreds of scrolls of magical texts, flew to the royal hall, and recited scriptures while suspended a hundred feet in the air. The king’s family and attendants wept and praised him at the sight, then brought out and offered all the treasures in the royal treasury. More than thirty people also gave up their lives on the spot. The Fox King declared that those who gave up their lives were the highest practitioners. Then he turned into a fierce wind, swept away the bodies and treasures, and carried them back to the foxes’ cave, where they ate the human flesh. The Fox King next sent a young fox in human form to take the treasures and buy things. At a butcher’s shop, the young fox saw fierce dogs fighting over bones. Frightened, it reverted to its fox form and was bitten to death. Alarmed, the butcher reported the matter to the authorities, who in turn informed the king. Recognizing the treasures, the king asked how they had come into the hands of wild foxes. His minister Xianling explained that the one who had earlier preached and taught the people was in fact a fox demon: he could only recite scripture, not understand its meaning; he urged people to do good, but his words and heart did not agree; and his supposed ascent above the royal hall was proof of his deceit. The king asked how the harm could be undone. Xianling advised him to gather troops and surround the hills. The fox spirit came out in human form to meet the king, but when fierce dogs approached, it turned back into a wild fox and was bitten to death. The king ordered his ministers to open the cave, where they found a great deal of wealth. From this we can see that a king who lacks deep wisdom will be misled by false teachings.

Third, if you hear the teachings of the Great Vehicle but grasp only the Lesser Vehicle, you will fall into a shallow understanding. The Shengxuan Jing records that Daoling asked the Celestial Worthy: “Among those listening, many have made only shallow progress, and few have raised their minds to the Great Vehicle. If I do not teach the Dharma, they cannot awaken; if I teach the great Dharma, I fear their capacities are insufficient; if I teach the Lesser Vehicle, I fear I will fail those whose cultivation reaches far.” The Celestial Worthy replied, “This is not difficult to handle. What matters is what each listener seeks and the causes and conditions that bring them to the teaching, not how many there are. Teach the lesser Dharma to those who seek it, and the great Dharma to those who seek it. People understand the Dharma in different ways after hearing it: some hear the lesser Dharma and grasp the lesser Dharma; some hear the lesser Dharma and awaken to the great Dharma; some hear the great Dharma and grasp the great Dharma; and some hear the great Dharma but fall back to the Lesser Vehicle.”

Long ago, more than 8,400 virtuous men and women understood and believed in the Great Way, yet clung to seeking “something to attain.” Though they spoke of seeking “nothing to attain,” they were also confined by the names and concepts of the Great Vehicle. After practicing for more than four thousand years, they reached only the state of terrestrial immortals. Terrestrial immortals are a rank of Daoist immortals who have not yet escaped the world.

Fourth, if you hear the teachings of the Lesser Vehicle yet awaken to the Great Vehicle, you can enter the realm of subtle profundity. The Shengxuan Jing says that when the Celestial Worthy first taught in the Great Land of Fuli in the First Azure Heaven, a terrestrial immortal surnamed Hong and named Faqi requested teachings on behalf of the assembly. Seeing that he was not yet ready to hear the great Dharma, the Celestial Worthy followed his wishes and taught three miscellaneous scriptures. Countless people listened. Among them, more than 186,000 heard the lesser Dharma, deeply awakened to the Great Way, transcended the Three Realms, left the place of teaching, and attained the Way. The “Three Realms” are the Realm of Desire, the Realm of Form, and the Realm of Formlessness—the three realms in which beings undergo the cycle of rebirth.

Fifth, those who diligently cultivate from the heart and make their own vows should receive support. The Benji Jing says that when someone praises and spreads the wondrous Dharma, others should praise that person’s virtue and not allow external demons to obstruct the work. When explaining the meaning of scripture, one should also prevent unexpected troubles from befalling the ritual master and provide what they lack for daily living, so that the wondrous Dharma can be passed on. The Benxiang Jing says that when the Celestial Worthy taught the Dharma, 84,000 people became clear in mind and raised the aspiration for the unsurpassed, true, and perfect Way. They remained steadfast and did not turn back, thereby dissolving seventy-two knots of attachment and a hundred afflictions.

The scriptures also say that Falong, the son of an elder, received the teachings with faith and reverence, while another 720,000 people single-mindedly sought the unsurpassed Way of true emptiness. The Zhenzang Jing records that when the Celestial Worthy taught the Dharma, three youths each made a vow. Huili vowed to practice; Baoming vowed to teach scripture; and Shanjie vowed to study the Way. Huili and his attendants vowed to practice the Great Vehicle and never turn back, to understand the nature of all things, penetrate the ultimate, awaken to the Great Vehicle, and attain the unsurpassed Way. Baoming made a great vow to expound the Great Vehicle, resolve to save living beings, and help them attain liberation and the unsurpassed Way. Shanjie exerted himself with courage and made a great vow to study the Great Vehicle: to cultivate the Four Great Cities, defeat the thieves of the Five Rebellions, remove the demons of the Seven Delusions, subdue the demons of the Ten Obstacles, break through the barrier of ignorance, and cut out the three thieving impulses, never turning back. “Ignorance” means delusion that obscures wisdom and prevents people from understanding the truth.

The scriptures also say that if disciples practice, recite, and expound the revered scriptures, and develop faith that they sustain without wavering, they are making offerings, accumulating merit, and planting a field of blessings in the presence of their revered teacher. People who do this have honored the Great Vehicle through immeasurable kalpas and now, upon encountering this scripture, are able to develop faith in it.

Sixth, if you turn away from the Way in your heart, the fault is your own. The Shengxuan Jing says that among 872 people who heard the Great Vehicle, eight men and eleven women gave rise to disbelief, left their seats, and withdrew, deceived by heavenly demons and heterodox paths. As a result, they contracted severe illnesses, lost the hair on their heads and bodies, and after death fell into the three evil destinies. When reborn, they were often deaf and blind; even when they had ears and eyes, they could not hear or see words and deeds of goodness. From this we can see that how deeply one understands the Way arises from the heart. These examples are enough to show the importance of having faith in and accepting the true Dharma.

Those who disturb the minds and spirits of people reciting scriptures will suffer serious illness, and their hair and body hair will fall out. After death, they will fall into the Three Evil Paths—the hells, hungry ghosts, and animals—and in later lives they will often be deaf, mute, or blind. Even if they have ears and eyes, they will be unable to hear or see words of goodness and praise. From this we should understand that insight into the Dao and its teachings may be deep or shallow, but it all arises from the mind. These karmic conditions are enough to show that cultivating the Dao requires sincere faith.

There are four conditions involved in cultivating scriptures. Although scriptures speak of emptiness and existence, achievement comes only through practice. In cultivation, one must be sincere and steadfast and act in accordance with the rules in order to advance in Daoist rank. If one treats sacred scriptures with defilement or disrespect, the resulting guilt and punishment are clear.

First, the conditions for reading and reciting scriptures. The Four Poles’ Code of Illumination, a Daoist text on liturgical rules and precepts, says: When reciting a scripture, the sentences must flow continuously; none may be skipped or omitted. If one line of the Heavenly Sound—the prescribed manner of recitation—is missed, one must make it up by reciting one hundred words; if two lines are missed, two hundred words must be made up; if five lines are missed, five hundred words. For every line omitted during recitation, one must recite an entire passage in compensation. After thirty such offenses, one will undergo the Trial of the Mountain of Blades, a punishment in the Daoist underworld.

While reciting, one must keep one’s eyes on the scripture and one’s mind on the divine beings and the true Dao. One must not look at the text while letting the mind wander, lest the Heavenly Sound be disrupted. Each offense must be made up by reciting an entire passage; after thirty offenses, one will likewise undergo the Trial of the Mountain of Blades.

When reciting fewer than one thousand words, one must not drink water partway through. For one thousand to five thousand words, one may drink once; for more than five thousand, twice; and for more than ten thousand, three times. After thirty offenses, one will undergo the Trial of the Left Office, a punishment carried out by officials of the underworld. If one has recited ten thousand words and the mind is weary and the strength exhausted, one may pause briefly to rest and then continue until the recitation is complete. But one must not leave unfinished lines to recite the next day. After ten such offenses, one will fall into hell after death.

If virtuous men and women wish to listen while a scripture is being recited, the men should sit on the left and the women on the right, with the two groups seated separately on the eastern and western sides. Daoist clergy and laypeople must also sit apart. Men and women must not mingle, much less share a bed or seat. Listeners should sit behind the clergy, not in front of them; those who violate this rule will undergo the Trial of the Left Office.

The Xuandu Statutes stipulate that anyone who discusses worldly matters while reading scripture must pay a penalty of three liters of oil. Anyone who loses their place while reading and asks another person about a passage they have misread or cannot make sense of must pay five liters of oil. Questions on Invocations also says that scripture should be read with the reverence one would show in the presence of the Highest One. Readers must not be arrogant or playful, nor discuss worldly fame and profit. The immortal boys who attend the scriptures will report such offenses to the Three Heavens’ Inspector, the celestial office responsible for oversight, which will then memorialize the Highest One. After three such reports, a reader may lose the scriptures, suffer disturbances and ordeals at the hands of ghosts and spirits, or even fail to die a peaceful death. How, then, could they speak of becoming an immortal? The scripture also says that if someone receives scripture without instruction from a teacher, the immortal boys who attend it will keep watch and examine that person, and calamities may even affect seven generations of their descendants.

The Brief Text of the Golden Registers says that before reciting scripture from the elevated seat, one should bow once each to the scripture teacher, the register teacher, and the transmission teacher. The remaining rites should follow the usual procedure. On first taking the seat, perform the ritual once according to protocol. If recitation continues, there is no need to repeat the opening rite each time; on the following day, perform the full rite again according to protocol. During recitation, one must not speak with people seated below, nor stop partway through a sentence of scripture. If one does stop, the recitation must afterward begin again from the start. After every five hundred characters, one may drink a clear beverage and swallow saliva. These instructions differ slightly from those in the Ritual Code of the Four Poles: that text says one may stop midway only after reciting ten thousand characters, and must still begin again from the start after stopping. The former is more lenient, while the rule here is stricter. Recite with a focused mind, keep to the prescribed order, and do not violate the ritual regulations; spiritual efficacy will follow naturally.

The Scripture of the Origin says that if someone reads and recites this scripture, puts its teachings into practice, and persists without slackening day or night, their dwelling will naturally be peaceful and joyful, and after death they will reside in the Pure Land. Even someone who upholds only a single sentence from it and delights in reciting it can, in an instant, dispel immeasurable sins and afflictions accumulated over past lives. This is like lighting a lamp in a dark room after a long night: the darkness vanishes at once. When faced with violent storms at sea, venomous creatures or fierce beasts in the mountains and forests, bandits, or enemies, reciting this scripture will calm the waves, drive away the creatures and beasts, and resolve enmity. Reciting it when gripped by fear will also make ghosts and apparitions disappear. From this we can see that if one quiets the mind and concentrates on recitation, one’s wishes can be fulfilled. When a severe drought struck his realm, King of the Great Brahma Realm invited people to recite the honored scripture to end it. When calamities plagued his country, King of the Many Afflictions invited people to recite it, and illness and delusion were cured. This shows that the scripture possesses awesome spiritual power and that recitation brings a response.

The Hidden Annotations on the Taiji says that when the Dao De Jing is recited, thirty-six thousand immortal boys and jade maidens often attend the scripture, burn incense, scatter flowers, and connect the practitioner with the assembled immortals. After ten thousand recitations, a cloud chariot—the vehicle in the clouds ridden by immortals—will come to receive the practitioner. If the desired result does not come, recite the scripture three times a day for a month without interruption; the response will never fail. The Scripture of the True Treasury records that in former times a Jade Seal Boy was burning incense and reciting scripture when immortal boys and jade maidens suddenly filled the sky and came together. They burned precious incense and praised the numinous text, their presence stirring the whole country. The Jade Seal Boy remained calm and unafraid.

Today, at ritual sites where purification rites are held, capable people are also chosen to sit on the elevated seat and recite scripture. Yet even when the reciter’s voice and phrasing are exceptionally fine, those seated below may pay no attention. Some chatter and whisper among themselves; others are caught up in sensual desire or pursue money. Some older practitioners recline with their heads resting high or sit with their heads bowed in arrogance. If those on the elevated seat cannot maintain proper discipline, how can those seated below be sincerely reverent? This conduct first violates ritual propriety, second fails to inspire people with faith in goodness, third leads the sponsors of the purification rite to look down on the Daoist teachings, and fourth may bring ordeals upon the practitioners themselves. Think this over repeatedly, and I urge all the Daoist masters to take this admonition to heart. If you can ensure that the assembled practitioners observe the rules, why should you worry that they will not comply? If these failings are not carefully discussed and corrected in daily practice, the Daoist teachings will be harmed.

Next, the benefits of listening to the recitation of scriptures are explained. The Jingjue of Naturalness (Ziran Jingjue) says: When listening to someone recite a scripture, one should inwardly bow in reverence with each passage and silently pray according to one’s own wishes. As long as one’s mind is sincere and focused, a response will surely come.

The Statutes of the Xuandu (Xuandu Lü) says: When listening to a scripture, leaning or sitting improperly incurs a penalty of one sheng of oil. Failing to listen with focused and tranquil attention, allowing the mind and spirit to wander and becoming mentally weary to the point that others notice, incurs a penalty of three sheng of oil. Listening attentively to the recitation of a scripture is no different from reciting and upholding it oneself.

The Scripture of the Original Origin (Benji Jing) says: If someone listens to and reads this scripture with focused, upright attention, rejoices after hearing it, understands its meaning, and even forgets to sleep and eat without feeling that time is passing slowly, one should know that this person heard the scripture in a previous life. In this life, they have only temporarily taken birth among humanity, using this opportunity to cultivate there. Before long, they will become an immortal and ultimately attain the Dao.

Three circumstances related to making offerings and upholding a scripture deserve explanation.

The Scripture of the True Treasury records that the Celestial Worthy asked the youth Shanming, “If someone gives away all their precious possessions, such as gold and jade, is their merit great?” Shanming replied, “Such merit is exceedingly rare, but it still does not equal the merit of expounding, copying, receiving and upholding, and making offerings to this scripture. The latter surpasses the former by hundreds of millions of times.” This scripture is called the “City of the Dharma of Beneficent Power.” It can protect living beings and dispel wrong thoughts, delusion, and obstacles.

The Scripture of the Fundamental Origin says that if someone gives away their household property—even selling their wife and children—to buy incense oil and various ritual implements, and offers vegetarian meals to support those who uphold the scripture, the merit they gain is immense. Why? Because such acts help bring the Celestial Worthies of the ten directions to fulfillment and bring the assembled sages into manifestation. Thus, the Scripture of Ascending to the Mysterious says that making offerings to those who uphold the scripture is especially meritorious. Next in merit are providing incense oil and lamps, and presenting banners and fresh flowers.

The Scripture of the Fundamental Origin also says that if a ruler or ordinary people make offerings to this scripture with halls, canopies, seats, jeweled parasols, banners, incense, flowers, and lamps, the four assemblies of disciples, together with the Heavenly Emperor, heavenly soldiers and officials, heavenly dragons, spirits and ghosts, Vajra strongmen, and perfected officials who serve the scriptures, will all come with their retinues. They will follow, honor, pay respect to, and make offerings to the scripture, while protecting the state and blessing its people.

The Scripture of Original Conduct records that once there was a woman who upheld this scripture, reciting and practicing it morning and evening. Her husband regularly provided her with incense and fire. Later, the woman ascended to Heaven and was honored as the Primordial Lady of Brahmic Conduct. After her husband died, he went to a great mountain and gave a full account of the merit he had gained by providing incense and fire. The woman then came and transmitted the scripture to him. He thereupon ascended to the Southern Palace; a hundred years later, he was reborn into a royal household. He studied the scriptures and teachings extensively and eventually became a Perfected One of the Nine Palaces.

There was also a worthy man who upheld this scripture, but his wife was miserly and unwilling to uphold it with him. After her husband ascended to Heaven, the wife later became a hungry eagle. Her husband then used his teachings to deliver her. She was reborn as a woman and took up the scriptures and teachings; she is now the Imperial Consort of the Primordial Lord of the South Pole.

From this we should understand that upholding the scriptures and following their precepts truly have efficacy; this is no empty claim. Slandering the scriptures and treating them with contempt and disrespect will only bring calamity.

The True Treasury Scripture says: When sentient beings do not believe in the true Dharma, they slander and destroy it. They do not believe that the Three Treasures are inherently present within themselves, that the past and future truly exist, that the Mahayana is fundamental, or that all sentient beings possess the nature of a Celestial Worthy. They also do not believe that all phenomena are originally quiescent, without fixed origins, conditions, or karmic results. Nor do they believe that sentient beings have passed through immeasurable kalpas, accumulating many conditions that have not yet come to fruition, and so are beyond arising and ceasing. Such disbelief is called destroying and extinguishing the Dharma. In truth, the Dharma cannot be destroyed; it is called “extinguished” only because obstructions conceal it, making it impossible to see. After slandering the true Dharma, those who remain attached to the bodily form fall into the cycle of birth and death, from which it is difficult to escape. They are certain in the end to fall into hell, with little chance of release.

The Scripture of Original Appearance says: Some people see scriptures and the true Dharma as they would see mud, grass, or trees, showing them no reverence at all. When they see others doing good, they turn away and mock them, with no wish to rejoice in their virtue or support them. Such people have come from among the six kinds of domestic animals and have only just obtained human form; that is why they do not believe in the true Dharma.

The True Treasury Scripture says: In a past kalpa, five poor men did not believe in the scriptures and the Dharma. They did not believe that sentient beings possess the true nature of the Dao, that sentient beings themselves are the subtle Dharma spoken of in the scriptures, or that sentient beings are unborn and undying. They also did not believe that the minds of sentient beings are vast as the sea, or that sentient beings are gathered from the great emptiness. Those who hold such disbelief will suffer grave illness. In life and death, in eating and drinking, and even in breathing, they will feel as though they are confined in a dark prison. All you good men and women should each reflect on this and never give rise to disbelief.

The Celestial Worthy then spoke this verse:

Anyone who disbelieves in the Orthodox Teaching and slanders the worthy and virtuous will, after death, be punished in Zhengdu Hell. There, they will be pierced and cut by the sword trees, their body wounded. Even after ten thousand kalpas, they will find it hard to escape. Their soul and spirit will suffer unbearably, crying out without cease, while the jailers torment them with cauldrons of boiling broth. This retribution has no end. They glare in every direction, enduring pain beyond bearing—all because delusion led them to act recklessly.

Therefore, those who cultivate the Dao and seek the truth should heed this warning: cultivate blessings and accumulate De (Virtue), and they will be spared calamity forever.

The words of the sages are never false. If people do not believe in and follow the scriptures and teachings, the disasters they bring upon themselves are their own doing. If they are also told that the scriptures are served and protected by eighteen thousand Jade Maidens and Jade Youths, they are even less willing to believe or accept them.

Some people fail to observe the rules for reading the scriptures. They leave the books exposed to dirt and damage, or keep them mixed together with secular texts. Before reciting, they may neglect to rinse their mouths and wash their hands, or fail to maintain the proper purity and care. Any failure to follow the prescribed ritual for reading the scriptures is called slandering the scriptures and teachings. The Questions and Answers says: “If a scripture is soiled and not cleansed with fragrant water, the soul will scatter and fall away.”

The Scripture of the Fundamental Origin says: “If someone slanders this scripture, disbelieves in it, treats the precious Dharma-treasure with contempt, or doubts and reviles the words of the sages, know that in countless past kalpas this person sank into the lowly class of ghosts, enduring every kind of suffering and passing through many different forms before finally being reborn as a human being. Yet the person remains ignorant and dull, understanding nothing, sowing evil causes and refusing to believe in or accept the true Dharma. Their actions do not accord with the right path, and they readily incur offenses. They turn away from the right path and enter deviant ways, rejecting truth and trusting in worldly conventions. The Three Offices and Nine Bureaus—the divine departments that oversee and record good and evil deeds and merits—will record this person’s merits and faults, placing their name in the registers of the condemned and the dead.

“Such a person may suffer frequent hardship in life, violate the king’s laws, and be arrested and flogged. They may contract diseases such as malignant wind or parasitic sores, endure distress and calamity, and fall into poverty and want. They may also be deluded and disturbed by external demons and heterodox teachings. Though living among people, they are scorned and rejected, and even when they wander far and wide, they find no good connections. Once they lose their human form, they will never be able to enter the realm of the worthy and sages. After death they will fall into hell, with no knowing when they might escape. They will suffer retribution in a dark prison, confined behind layer upon layer of barriers and beaten day and night, unable to see the sun, moon, or stars.

“Some must embrace a bronze pillar while their bodies are burned; others must climb a mountain of blades and endure unbearable pain. They suffer through a long darkness and, even after ten thousand kalpas, find no release. If they are eventually reborn, they will take the form of domestic animals or other nonhuman beings, forever losing the human form.”

The various causes and conditions associated with the scriptures and teachings have now been outlined in general. When opening a scripture and reciting it, one should reflect carefully on these admonitions.

Collected Notes on the Precepts and Rules for Liturgical Practice, Volume Three

Compiled by the Daoist Zhu Faman.

The regulations state: After receiving registers, laypeople are often still unfamiliar with liturgical procedures and rules. When they come to ask about difficulties, their teachers should explain each matter and answer truthfully. They must not deceive them by claiming they do not know. They should urge people to turn from wrongdoing and do good, to promote what is good and eliminate what is harmful. They must not take sides, form factions, or pursue private interests at the expense of the law, thereby harming themselves and misleading others.

The Treatise on the Regulations of the Nine Punishments says: Daoists of lofty virtue, the libationers of the Great Governance, and the Eighty-One Worthies should purify their minds, observe the fast, and ascend the ritual altar. The altar is set up in the Hall of Reverence for the Void and is called the Altar of the August Spirits. Such people need not first receive the Dharma or registers before they may transmit the methods of the registers and governance units. However, the twenty-four volumes of scriptures, their profound teachings, the precious scriptures of the Three Caverns (Dongzhen, Dongxuan, and Dongshen), and the various Fulu (talismans and registers) and secret taboos must all be transmitted personally by a master. The master must be a member of the Daoist community who has received the complete transmission and is of lofty virtue. Even descendants of the Celestial Master (Tianshi) must treat their master according to the rites owed by a disciple. When they receive various methods, they must also give the master the customary token of transmission; otherwise, the Three Officials—the officials of Heaven, Earth, and Water worshipped in Daoism—will not show them mercy.

The regulations state: A master who, after receiving the various covenant tallies and the natural covenant tallies, transmits those tallies without providing the scriptures is absurd and in error. Tallies are originally transmitted on the authority of the scriptures; without scriptures, how could there be tallies? A master must copy out the scriptures and take an oath before becoming a master. Otherwise, the spirits will not show mercy.

The regulations also state: If someone has not yet reached the age at which they may accept disciples and transmit the Dharma, they should find a master for their disciple who has a complete set of scriptures. From a master whose scriptures are incomplete, one may first study gradually, continuing until one has learned the full set. There is no limit on the number of masters, and their sex does not matter. A master must not keep a disciple confined at their side, and a disciple must not betray their original master. Those who betray their master will undergo the trials of the Ten Forms of Punishment and be reborn in a future life as one of the six domestic animals. Those who confine their disciples will be imprisoned and reborn in a remote, desolate region. All who are ignorant should understand these precepts and observe them carefully.

The liturgical code says: The transmission of precious scriptures is subject to strict prohibitions and occurs only once in countless kalpas. The turning of Heaven and Earth is urgent, and supporting the Orthodox Way requires worthy people. Thus one must wait seven hundred years to hear and transmit it. If someone has the corresponding innate constitution and aptitude, transmission may take place after seven years. Within three years, no calamity will befall them; in the fourth year, transmission may proceed. If the teaching is passed to a suitable person, both transmitter and recipient will receive blessings. If it is passed to someone unsuitable, both will bear responsibility for their offenses and suffer together the torments of being drenched in fire and cut by blades of wind, as well as punishments such as carrying stones in servitude throughout countless kalpas.

The liturgical code says: One should serve one’s master with the care of someone holding an object in both hands, remaining attentive at all times so that it is not dropped or lost. A master is like a father. There are, broadly speaking, two ways of honoring the Dao and serving one’s master. In the first, a person merely takes a place in the master’s lineage in name. They do not study its mysterious principles, accumulate great merit, or practice Wuwei (non-action). They encounter obstacles everywhere, suffer over birth and death, fail to understand the constant Dao, and act recklessly, bringing calamity upon themselves. This is called serving a master in name only. In the second, a person wholeheartedly follows the master’s teachings, conducts themselves in accordance with the methods, accumulates merit widely, helps themselves and saves others. Though they practice Wuwei, nothing remains beyond their ability to accomplish. Wherever they go, they find an open and unobstructed path; they attain long life without death and enjoy peace and good fortune for a long time. This is called truly serving a master in accordance with the teachings’ principles.

The liturgical code says: When a master and disciple speak with each other, they may address one another as “I,” “me,” “you,” or “disciple.” The disciple may also use these forms when addressing the master, for master and disciple are as close as kin appointed by Heaven. When acting within the master’s lineage, one should refer to oneself publicly as “disciple.” In private, one should address the master by given name alone, without the surname. The master’s master is to be treated with the respect due to a founding master; the founding master’s master, with the respect due to a great-grandmaster; and the great-grandmaster’s master, with the respect due to a great-great-grandmaster. The great-great-grandmaster’s master is called the “Lineage Master.” From the Lineage Master down to the disciple themselves, there are five generations in all. One should show particular reverence to the founding master, bow once, and offer a verbal greeting. Letters follow much the same conventions: one should refer to oneself as “disciple” and never speak disrespectfully. Any violation is subject to the Seven Punishments.

A “senior adept” is someone whose virtue and learning are sufficient to serve as a teacher. Disciples should honor senior adepts as they honor their teachers, and also address them as “heart teachers.” When paying respects and offering greetings, if several teachers are present, they should first bow to the lineage master, then greet the ancestral master, the master who registered them, and the master who transmitted the teachings.

When writing letters, petitions, or other documents, a disciple’s Dharma body—the status acquired after receiving precepts and taking up the Daoist path—must use neat regular script and must not write carelessly. Violators are subject to the “Five Punishments.” Daoists should hold senior adepts in high regard and observe a degree of humility in their presence beyond what is customary toward ordinary teachers.

When visiting their master, disciples should wear formal court dress and pay their respects on the first and fifteenth days of each month. They must not say one thing in public while concealing another, or speak differently to someone’s face and behind their back.

If a Daoist adherent or a registered disciple agrees on a date to meet the master but fails to appear, the law requires the Water Officials to detain the person’s soul for fifty days of service. If a disciple is disrespectful or discourteous when meeting a teacher, or addresses them bluntly as “you” and “I,” the Water Officials will detain the soul for sixty days. After the investigation and punishment are complete, two cycles will also be deducted from the person’s allotted lifespan.

Disciples should treat their teachers with the reverence they would show their parents; teachers, in turn, should care for their disciples as they would cherish an infant. If either party violates this rule, one cycle will be deducted from each of their allotted lifespans.

The Zhengyi school has three masters: the Zhengyi Master, the Celestial Master, and the Transmission Master. Disciples registered at the Three and Five Administrations should honor these same three masters and observe the corresponding forms of reverence. Violators receive thirty strokes of disciplinary punishment.

When writing to the master, a disciple must present the letter respectfully and write out their full name in the text. They must not behave with contempt or discourtesy. Violators receive fifteen strokes of disciplinary punishment.

When speaking with the master, a Daoist adherent should refer to themselves as “Daoist adherent” and must not state their own name directly. Violators receive ten strokes of disciplinary punishment.

If a disciple has been away from the master for a full month and has not paid a visit at the end or beginning of the month, or on one of the auspicious Three Origins days—the fasting days of the Upper, Middle, and Lower Origins—they must make up the visit by bowing three times. The master may impose ten strokes for a violation; in serious cases, the disciple will also fall ill for twenty days.

Daoist precepts stipulate that a master may accept a disciple and transmit the Dao to them only when seven generations separate them. If they belong to the same lineage within seven generations, they must not transmit it to one another. Anyone who violates this rule will have three calendrical cycles deducted from their allotted lifespan. This precept is meant to prevent a disciple’s transgressions from bringing trouble upon the master’s lineage. If a disciple repeatedly breaks the precepts, the master will also be held responsible and examined for ten days; in serious cases, the master will fall ill for twenty days.

Another precept likewise stipulates that a master and disciple may transmit the Dao to one another only when seven generations separate them; if they are within seven generations, no transmission is permitted. This rule is meant to prevent a disciple’s wrongdoing from implicating ancestors and parents up to nine generations back, as well as the master’s ancestors. If a disciple is loyal and trustworthy, commits none of the Seven Precept violations, lives up to the Ten Practices, and has bone structure that accords with the transmission diagram, then a father may also pass the Dao to his son. In this way, their ancestors across nine generations may all attain immortality, and no reduction in allotted lifespan will result.

If a disciple hears that their master is ill, facing an emergency, or destitute and worn down, yet refuses to do all they can to help, they lack benevolence and filial devotion and have broken their vow. They will be examined for fifty days; in serious cases, they will fall ill for one hundred days.

A Daoist must not insult another person’s master or elders in front of that person’s disciples. When speaking of them, one should be fair and evenhanded. If one judges their goodness or wickedness carelessly, the hun and po souls within the body will swear to depart. Violation of this precept brings an examination lasting fifty days; in serious cases, the offender will fall ill for one hundred days.

Another precept likewise says that a Daoist must not insult another person’s master or elders in front of their disciples, and must speak of them fairly and impartially. If one judges their goodness or wickedness carelessly, the hun and po souls within the body will depart. Violation of this precept will bring an examination by the Water Bureau and illness lasting fifty days.

If a disciple speaks ill of their master or parents in front of others, the officials and soldiers within the body will report the matter to the Celestial Court. The disciple will fall ill for one hundred days and be examined for thirty days.

When a disciple receives a letter from their master, they should burn incense, hold a tablet in their hands—the kind carried during a formal bow—straighten their clothing and cap, and bow three times before opening and reading it. This shows respect and obedience to the Holy Ones above, promotes the Dao, and honors one’s master and elders, in keeping with the intentions of the ancient sages. Violation of this precept will reduce the disciple’s allotted lifespan by one calendrical cycle.

Within a month of leaving their master, a disciple should dress properly, hold a tablet, and go to pay their respects. They must not wear white casually. Violation of this precept incurs a fine of three dou of oil; refusal to pay will bring twenty strokes of the staff.

The precepts stipulate that when a disciple has been away from the master for more than one night but fewer than five, the disciple must straighten their clothing, hold a ceremonial staff, bow twice, and greet the master. The disciple should then put on their headwear, sash, and tablet—the board held in the hand during ancient rites—and greet the master again. They must not appear casually in plain white clothes. Violators must pay a fine of three dou of oil; those who refuse to pay are to receive twenty strokes of the staff.

The precepts further stipulate that when a disciple has been away from the master for more than one night but fewer than five, the disciple must straighten their clothing, hold a ceremonial staff, bow twice, and greet the master according to ritual. Violators must pay a fine of five liang of incense, which is to be turned over to the Three Treasures—the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha, a term for the community’s shared religious property here. Whenever disciples meet the master, they must address themselves by their own names. When visiting the master, they may not sit down on their own; they must wait until the master tells them to sit. Violators are to undergo ten days of disciplinary examination, a punishment administered according to the precepts.

The precepts stipulate that disciples must not call their master “a Daoist.” They should address him as “my teacher,” “the harmonious teacher,” “the great master,” “the honored teacher,” or “the master.” Anyone who violates this rule must offer three dou of lamp oil to the Three Treasures—the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha—and undergo ten days of “illness examination,” a form of disciplinary punishment in the precepts.

Disciples must not address their master directly by his personal name. If a senior asks repeatedly, a disciple should lower their voice and give their own name. Violators are fined one ji, a period of twelve years. Disciples must also behave properly in their master’s presence, for divine inspectors attend him. Violators are likewise fined one ji.

If disciples discover that their master has committed a fault, they should go to a secluded place, kneel upright, fold their hands respectfully, and offer remonstrance. They must not discuss the master’s rights and wrongs or shameful conduct in front of others. Violators are fined one ji.

When sharing a room with their master, disciples must not go to bed before him or rise after him. Violators undergo fifty days of illness examination. When dining with their master, disciples must not eat first; they should let him begin. If the master orders them to eat together, they may either begin eating first or stop before he does.

Whether attending to their master in daily life, accompanying him on errands, or traveling with him, disciples should be humble and respectful and observe proper etiquette at all times. Violators receive thirty strokes. In serving their master, disciples should treat him with respect even if he is younger than they are, just as they would honor an official or a parent. They must not use their greater age as a reason to slight him. Violators receive eighty strokes, imposed by the responsible authority in accordance with the law.

If a master and disciple are seated together and the master rises to go somewhere, the disciple should stand and leave their seat rather than remain seated calmly. Violators receive thirty strokes.

If disciples had not previously received the teachings or taken the precepts, were close in rank to their master, or were older than him, but later became his disciples and studied the teachings, they must still regard him as their master and serve him respectfully. When addressing him, they should use his personal name and must not continue treating him as an equal as before. Violators receive forty strokes.

If disciples and their master originally shared the same surname and clan, and were related as brothers, grandchildren, or nephews, but the disciples later became his disciples and received the teachings, they must still be humble and respectful. They should address their master by his personal name and must not treat him according to ordinary family rank. Violators receive forty strokes, imposed by the responsible authority in accordance with the law.

People related to their master within the degree of mourning known as sima—a relatively light grade among the five ancient mourning grades, used for more distant relatives—must not become one another’s master and disciple. When the teachings are transmitted, the ancestors of the preceding three and seven generations are said to bear witness and swear an oath on behalf of the descendant receiving them. It is said that breaking this oath brings punishment upon the ancestors of nine generations and causes the recipient of the teachings to fall ill for a hundred days.

Disciples must not become angry with, resent, blame, or secretly harbor hostility toward their master. Violators receive thirty strokes. When asking their master for Daoist teachings, disciples should dress properly, hold a ceremonial tablet—a board held in the hand in ancient rites—and make their request humbly and sincerely. They must not ask casually or carelessly. Violators receive forty strokes. Disciples must not quarrel with their master; violators are punished.

Fortieth Rule: When serving their master, disciples should go to greet him whenever he arrives or returns, and ask him to teach them the Dao and its methods. They should wear their caps properly, dress neatly, and hold a tablet of office—the hand-held tablet used in ancient ritual ceremonies—as they ask their questions with respect and humility. They must not act carelessly. Violators shall receive forty strokes. Disciples must not argue with or talk back to their master. Violators shall receive forty strokes.

Fortieth Rule: When serving their master, disciples should go to greet him when he returns from an outing, traveling as far as the distance requires. They must not remain seated and wait for him to come to them. Violators shall receive forty strokes. When walking with their master, disciples must not step on his shadow. Violators shall receive thirty strokes. Whenever disciples go out, enter a place, or attend to a matter, they must first report to their master and seek his instructions; they must not decide on their own. Violators shall receive fifty strokes. In serving their master, disciples should be sincere and faithful, without divided intentions. Violators shall receive thirty strokes. Disciples must not steal or disclose their master’s ritual implements, trunks and chests, money, food and drink, or his precepts and liturgical regulations. Violators shall be beaten with a staff thirty times.

When seated with their master, disciples must not spit on the ground or dirty their surroundings. Violators shall receive twenty strokes. While serving their master, if guests arrive, disciples should remain at their master’s side. They must not neglect him, leave him to receive the guests alone, or treat him as an ordinary person. Violators shall be beaten with a staff seventy times. After receiving the transmission of ritual methods and cultivation from their master, disciples should remain humble even if they attain moral accomplishment and earn the respect of others. They must remember their master and never forget his kindness. Violators shall have two cycles deducted from their allotted lifespan—typically twenty-four years.

The precepts stipulate that Daoist men and women, even when advanced in age, must not walk ahead of those who hold higher ritual ranks when performing the Dao if their own ranks are lower. Even if they are younger, those with higher ritual ranks and precept positions may walk in front. The order of precedence must not be reversed. Violators shall receive sixty blows with a staff.

The precepts say: When a person of high virtue and great renown lives among the community, a crafty disciple may come seeking refuge—turning to and following the Daoist teachings—perhaps because old attachments remain unresolved, or because the disciple has been driven to do so through unreasonable coercion. The teacher should instruct each person in a way suited to their circumstances. The disciple may first be assigned difficult tasks, or counseled with gentle words; asked to sit alone in stillness and forget distracting thoughts (zuowang, “sitting in oblivion”), or told to leave for a time; taught scriptures and ritual treasures, or asked to fast to atone for faults. The teacher may also preserve their own dignity by having another person offer comfort and guidance. But if the disciple persists in wrongdoing, refuses to reform, and shows no inclination toward goodness, taking such a person in would harm the Daoist teachings. The teacher should keep away from them forever.

The precepts say: If a disciple cherishes the correct teachings and wishes to hear profound scriptures and essential principles, but the time is not yet ripe and their innate capacity is dull, so that they cannot understand for the moment, their goodwill has already become clear and should be met with reassurance and guidance. To take in such a disciple would harm the Daoist teachings. The teacher should keep away from them forever.

The precepts say: If a disciple cherishes the correct teachings and wishes to hear profound scriptures and essential principles, but the time is not yet ripe and their innate capacity is dull, then, since they have already shown a desire to seek the Dao, the teacher should comfort and encourage them with the Three Precepts and Five Precepts, the Daoist rules of discipline, and teach them to quiet the mind and settle the spirit. A ritual master of high virtue and renown is someone on whom all beings rely. If a disciple is arrogant, the teacher should make them humble; if domineering in conduct, restrain them; if timid in temperament, urge them to find strength and courage. Bearing a responsibility like that of a parent to all beings, the teacher should instruct them with earnest care and compassion, so that they firmly set their course toward the Daoist sanctuary and never turn back.

The precepts say: A Shangqing ritual master, a Daoist who practices the Shangqing tradition, should not transmit the greater precepts to others, accept anyone as a disciple under their care, take on students, or teach others the doctrines. They should not take part in deliberations on various matters, go out alone at night, or associate closely with people of deviant views. Their every action and manner should accord with the rules.

A Daoist scripture stipulates that if a master must discipline a disciple he has taken in, and the disciple has committed a serious offense, the master may rebuke him sternly with five statements. First: “I am reprimanding you now; you must leave.” Second: “After you leave, do not enter my room again.” Third: “Even if no one is near me, I will no longer send you on errands.” Fourth: “While I am alive, do not come to me again.” Fifth: “I can guide all beings out of the Three Evil Destinies and Five Paths—the realms of suffering and destinations of rebirth described in Daoism—but I will no longer speak with you.”

Such a rebuke and expulsion are severe enough as punishments; no further penalty should be imposed. The scripture says that unlawful torture, shackling and beating, suspending someone upside down, binding their hands behind their back, and beating and berating them day and night all violate the precepts and damage the heart of compassion.

If a master orders a disciple to buy wine and meat, sit and conduct business, herd cattle or raise horses, or engage in illicit sexual conduct, the disciple may explain: “These things do not accord with the conduct of the Celestial Venerables, the revered deities of Daoism, and I dare not do them.” If the master responds with anger and abuse, the disciple may leave.

The scripture also lists ten kinds of misconduct among disciples: doing evil without shame; seeing good deeds but refusing to do them; becoming worse after hearing correction; behaving contrary to proper decorum; acting domineering and arrogant, without respect; being lazy and fierce; being disloyal and untrustworthy toward friends; indulging in illicit sex; delighting in killing; and getting drunk and behaving improperly, confusing distinctions of rank. Those who commit these ten acts bring ruin to the Daoist teachings.

By contrast, a disciple who does no evil, restrains himself, works diligently and bears hardship, and remains pure and still will enter the master’s room early each morning, clean the chamber pot, greet the master three times a day—morning, midday, and evening—and ask what he should study. When the master assigns a task, he does not shirk the labor. In this way, he gradually develops breadth of character and accumulates De, eventually cultivating himself into a perfected person. A disciple like this can inherit and spread the true teaching, and is worthy of the highest praise.

Rules: Male Daoist officials should follow male Daoist officials, and female Daoist officials should follow female Daoist officials. Their master should be someone well versed in the Great Dao. Every ten days, disciples should go to their master to receive instruction.

Before setting out, they should put their ritual robes in order, be sincere and respectful in heart, and conduct themselves with care and solemnity. They should go straight to their master’s residence and not turn aside to visit elsewhere along the way. At the master’s door, they should first announce, “Your disciple so-and-so has come to pay respects.” Once informed, the master should arrange their robe and cape, burn incense in the scripture-recitation room, and then invite the disciple in. The disciple should approach the master, calmly perform three bows, and ask, “Master, have you been well lately? Have your health or virtue suffered any harm?” If nothing is amiss, the master should reply, “Recently, I have not neglected the rites or scripture recitation.” If ill or in hardship, the master should answer truthfully.

If a disciple has committed an offense and the master has heard of it, the master may say, “You acted improperly in this matter. You should accept admonition and correct yourself.” After bowing in thanks, the disciple should reply, “I have failed to encourage myself to do better, and I trouble you, Master, to admonish me.” The disciple should bow again and say, “From now on, I will not dare to repeat this.” If the visit takes place before a purification day, arrangements should be made for the purification meal. After the meal, if there is nothing else to discuss, the disciple may take leave. Before departing, the disciple should bow again and say, “May you take good care of yourself, Master.” The master should then give a solemn admonition: “Wherever you may be, diligently observe purification and restraint, and do not allow pride to arise.” After the disciple assents, they should rise and withdraw, walk three steps before turning to leave, and not enter any other room. On returning to their own monastery, the residence and training place of Daoists, they should relay the master’s admonition to everyone there, from the highest to the lowest, without concealing anything.

If a female Daoist official has no master who is well versed in the Great Dao and able to transmit the teachings, she may seek instruction from a male Daoist official. She may also consult a highly virtuous female or male Daoist official and receive the transmission of the teachings. The rules for approaching, withdrawing, and bowing described above apply to both male and female Daoist officials.

Rules: A master or presiding official who is highly virtuous may also be approached for instruction. If a female Daoist official has no master who is well versed in the Great Dao and able to transmit the teachings, she may seek instruction from a male Daoist official. She may also consult a highly virtuous female or male Daoist official and receive the transmission of the teachings. The rules for approaching, withdrawing, and bowing described above apply to both male and female Daoist officials.

Protocol requires that when the master who oversees instruction and religious affairs, or a highly respected Daoist master, returns from a distant place, someone be sent ahead to notify the monastery. Disciples should arrange their robes and ritual garments and go outside the monastery to welcome them. During the reception, they should pay attention to their surroundings and never take someone by surprise without cause.

Whenever disciples have something to report to the master or to a respected elder from their own or another monastery, they should arrange their robes and announce themselves outside the person’s room. If the door is closed, they should knock gently three times and wait briefly. If they hear no response, they should knock three more times. If there is still no response, they should knock three more times. If no one answers, they should leave.

When guests visit the master, disciples should wipe down the bed and mats, tables and desks, and cushions, and clean the areas in front of and behind the room. They should wait for the master’s instructions, and once the guests have entered, follow any further arrangements.

When the master calls a disciple over to hand something to them, the disciple should remain standing if the master is standing. If the master is seated, the disciple should receive or pass the item while kneeling upright on both knees, as a sign of respect.

When paying respects or greeting the master and other elders, disciples should bow twice and then stand by to attend them. If an elder invites them to sit, disciples should bow before sitting. If the elder asks them a question, they should rise and answer while standing. They should stand upright with their feet together and their hands held neatly before them.

On entering an elder’s room, if they know the person is inside the room or storeroom but hear no sound, they should cough to announce their presence. If the person does not ask what they want, they should withdraw. If asked, they should give their name and explain their purpose. They may enter only after receiving permission. If the door was open, they should leave it open; if it was closed, they should keep it closed. After entering, they should look directly at the elder and not glance to either side.

The precepts stipulate that those who have left the household should remain loyal and upright at all times. In all their comings and goings, they should take five forms of rectitude as their foremost principles: first, to keep themselves upright; second, to keep their disciples upright; third, to conduct affairs fairly in the monastery, without distinction between high and low status; fourth, to deal uprightly with Daoist teachings and affairs among people both near and far; and fifth, to guide and transform stubborn and ignorant people of the secular world.

Only by keeping themselves upright and setting an example for others can they teach their disciples well and ensure that they observe proper conduct. Only by acting fairly in the monastery can they ensure that younger and older members alike follow the rules. Only by handling affairs among all parties uprightly can the principles of the Dao be praised. And only by guiding the ignorant can they greatly increase their wisdom. Those who accomplish these things may be called Daoist priests.

If they are not upright themselves, everyone will despise them. If they fail to teach their disciples, they will instead show contempt for their teachers and the monastery’s abbot. They will disregard all prohibitions in the monastery, blur the distinctions between younger and older, high and low, and ignore trustworthiness and righteousness. People both near and far will detest them. They will oppress the ignorant, continually adding to their own offenses, and will fail to extend their authority and benevolence widely. Instead, they will entice disciples and servants from other households, seize property for themselves, or secretly collude with others. They will not conduct themselves according to the proper Way and will habitually engage in deviant practices. Such people are called “runaway, wicked bandits.” Everyone should guard against them and remain vigilant; if they cannot be punished by other means, the king has laws to deal with them.

End of Collected Essentials on Ritual Procedures and Precepts for Cultivation, scroll three.

Collected Essentials on Ritual Procedures and Precepts for Cultivation, scroll four

Compiled by Zhu Faman, a Daoist priest of the Three Caverns.

The precepts and vows together number one thousand one hundred.

The scripture teaches that scriptures are used to distinguish and correct wrongdoing, while precepts prevent transgressions. Daoist writings are so numerous that it is difficult to consult them all one by one, so the key teachings are selected here to help practitioners grasp the essentials. The Hidden Instructions for Ascending to Perfected Status (Dengzhen Yinjue) says that precepts block the paths through which impurity and evil thoughts enter, preventing evil Qi from coming and going. The Regulations for a Thousand Perfected Ones (Qianzhen Ke) says that those who leave the household life to cultivate the Dao do not associate with worldly society or pursue fame and profit. They do good without seeking worldly advantage, instead quieting the mind, entering meditative stillness, and subduing external demons. This is called pure observance, the foundation of cultivating the Dao.

The Great Precepts for Contemplating the Body (Guanshen Dajie) says that possessing scriptures but not observing the precepts is like trying to cross the sea without oars, or having a mouth but no tongue: how could one cultivate oneself and attain deliverance? If people who study the Dao do not understand how to observe precepts in accordance with the scriptures, they have not grasped the essential principles of cultivation. They are like someone who has slept for a long time without waking—a truly regrettable state. The Regulations for a Thousand Perfected Ones also says that those who have left the household life and observe the three, five, nine, and ten precepts, up to the three hundred major precepts, are protected by twenty-four benevolent spirits for each precept. Those who observe the precepts commit no evil and receive offerings from celestial beings and humans. Those who reject the precepts and repeatedly commit evil accumulate guilt in the netherworld, are reborn life after life, and fall into a state of blindness and delusion. Observing the precepts brings blessings; violating them brings punishment. The principle is the same for cultivators and laypeople alike, with no favoritism.

The Commentary on the Changes (Yizhu) says that purification washes the heart, while precepts guard against calamity. The Original Beginning (Benji) says that the practices of sages and Perfected Ones are called “teaching,” while the actions of ordinary people are called “karmic practice.” Carrying out teachings and creating karmic actions are fundamentally no different. The so-called “one precept” is to set one’s heart on seeking the supreme natural Dao; this is the most fundamental right cause. There are also “two precepts”: contemplation of Qi and contemplation of spirit, that is, meditative stillness and wisdom. The “three precepts” are to give up body, life, and wealth. The “four precepts” are to settle the heart in compassion, love, goodness, and forbearance. The “five precepts” are five ways of keeping the Dao in mind: think of the Dao and remain pure, leaving sensual desire behind; think of the Dao and act contrary to worldly custom; think of the Dao and remain free from the constraints of taboos; think of the Dao and do not cling to forms or sounds.

Another set of five precepts in the Scripture of Ascending the Mystery (Shengxuan Jing) disciplines the eyes, ears, mouth, heart, and actions. When seeing forms, advantages, splendor, or beautiful sights, use the precepts to restrain the gaze. When hearing pleasing or unpleasant words, or any kind of music, use the precepts to discipline the ears. Faced with delicacies, use the precepts to control the mouth. When thoughts of wealth, jewels, and the pursuit of pleasure arise, use the precepts to restrain the heart. When thoughts of sexual desire or wrongdoing arise, use the precepts to stop yourself. It is said that fulfilling these five can enable seven generations of one’s ancestors to ascend to heaven.

There are also “six precepts,” called the six perfections: diligence, sincerity, gentleness, seeing things through to the end, avoiding conflict, and keeping away from wine and sexual pleasure. The “seven precepts,” called the seven awakenings, are understanding the one and the three, misfortune and good fortune, the mundane and the Dao, and existence and nonexistence. The “eight precepts,” called the eight abilities, are: being able to endure a grievance without defending oneself; yielding one’s merit to others; not coveting what others desire; tolerating unreasonable conduct without fighting; distancing oneself from those who lack the Dao and withdrawing from the world; not readily revealing one’s thoughts; not violating scriptural precepts; and avoiding self-praise while gathering in the six senses.

The scripture also says that the six perfections give rise to six spiritual powers and thirty-eight kinds of precepts, also called the six awakenings and six wisdoms. The six precepts that gather in the six senses are as follows:

First, the eyes must not greedily gaze upon complicated and dazzling forms, or Jing and Qi will be depleted and the light of the eyes grow dim. Second, the ears must not indiscriminately listen to every kind of sound, or the spirit will be disturbed and vital Qi harmed. Third, the nose must not crave every kind of rank and foul odor, lest the breath become turbid and the body lose its purity. Fourth, the mouth must not crave rich, strongly flavored foods, lest the five spirits be disturbed and the organs harmed. Fifth, the hands must not do evil, steal other people’s possessions, or claim benefits for oneself, lest calamity arrive without one’s knowing it. Sixth, the heart must not become submerged in desire, or the spirit will be disturbed, Jing and Qi harmed, and the person led into confusion. These six precepts are all designed to address grave dangers to body and mind.

The precepts arising from the six perfections chiefly teach people to relieve the suffering of living beings: when seeing someone in hardship, find a way to help; when seeing someone poor or hungry, give alms even at personal cost; help living beings in danger escape death; show kindness to birds and beasts by offering them food; rescue small creatures of every kind from untimely death; and remain compassionate, relieving the suffering of living beings and saving lives by releasing animals. The scripture holds that such good deeds bring blessings and security. The six precepts use wisdom that penetrates the heart, enabling people to practice De and do good, with their conduct aligned with the natural Dao.

The scripture then explains the meaning of observing precepts by describing Heaven’s and Earth’s powers of “penetrating vision” and “penetrating hearing.” Heaven sees in all directions and illuminates everything; Earth hears near and far, taking in every sound. People should model themselves on Heaven and Earth. But without observing the precepts, the senses are disturbed by external things and wisdom cannot readily awaken.

As for the eyes, there is a “Red Child” within them, a spirit associated with the gaze. If one lets the eyes roam in pursuit of every kind of form, the gaze will grow scattered and dim, and sight may even be damaged. One should therefore restrain the gaze, care for the spirit of the eyes, quiet the mind, and contemplate the Dao, so that wisdom may become clear. As for the ears, they contain the “spirit of the five sounds.” Indiscriminately listening to every kind of sound disturbs the spirit and, in severe cases, can even cause deafness. One should therefore avoid hearing improper sounds, listen quietly to scriptures and the words of the Perfected Ones, and use the precepts to gather in the spirits of the ears.

The nose and breath, too, require observance of the precepts. The scripture says that the nose contains the “Yellow Peaceful Spirit Who Wards Off Wrongdoing.” Eating rank and foul-smelling foods indiscriminately obstructs the breath and affects clarity of body and mind. Observing the precepts keeps the breath flowing freely and life secure. As for food, greed for rich, strongly flavored dishes unsettles the spirit and harms longevity. Eating with care and keeping the five organs cool brings peace to body and mind. As for the spirit of the heart, sexual desire leads people into confusion and harms both spirit and longevity. Observing the precepts and abandoning desire clears the mind and spirit. The hands, too, are governed by spirits. Without observing the precepts, one can easily become greedy, steal, and do evil without realizing it. Restraining the hands and stopping wrongdoing allows one to follow the natural Qi and preserve one’s life.

The Scripture of Ascending the Mystery records the nine precepts of Great Clarity. The first three listed here govern the body, heart, and mouth. The first precept requires bodily purity: do not become immersed in desire or indulge yourself, and do not covet fine adornments or sensual pleasures. Those who observe it must gather in their thoughts and practice it throughout their lives. The second precept requires that no evil thoughts arise in the heart: do not covet wealth or profit, scheme unlawfully, act with jealousy or folly, presume yourself to be right, or crave indulgence in food and drink. Here, too, one must gather in the heart and practice the precept throughout life. The third precept requires that the mouth not make reckless judgments about good and evil, curse or insult, deceive or lie, stir up disputes by sowing discord, spread talk of other people’s faults, or fabricate incidents without cause. Those who observe it should restrain their speech and practice the precept throughout their lives. The scripture then warns that the hands must not kill any living being, even tiny insects; must not seize, steal, or take possession of what does not belong to oneself; and must not take up weapons to commit unlawful acts.