《上清道宝经》Vol. 3

E Rong, the Jade Maiden of Great Cinnabar, wears her hair in a loose, towering cloud-shaped coiffure and is dressed in vermilion robes and flowing skirts.

The Jade Maiden of Golden Florescence in the Upper Palace has seven hundred attendants who guard the Immortal Mother and assist her in governing the immortal palaces, including the Purple Tower of Flowing Essence and the Jade Halls of the Golden Chamber. The Immortal Mother ascends to the Jade Clarity realm—the upper celestial realm in Daoist belief—three times each month, and afterward holds a banquet at Kunlun.

The Immortals of the Five Sacred Mountains lists the Jade Maidens’ titles according to the sexagenary cycle. “Hui” refers to a personal name, and “zi” to a courtesy name:

• Jiazi Jade Maiden: personal name Lingzhu, courtesy name Chengyi.
• Yichou Jade Maiden: personal name Lanxiu, courtesy name Qingmeng.
• Bingyin Jade Maiden: personal name Zhihua, courtesy name Yuling.
• Dingmao Jade Maiden: personal name Xutai, courtesy name Fuyou.
• Wuchen Jade Maiden: personal name Aiting, courtesy name Zhongli.
• Jisi Jade Maiden: personal name Sifu, courtesy name Yuling.
• Dingmao Jade Maiden: personal name Xutai, courtesy name Fuyou.
• Wuchen Jade Maiden: personal name Aiting, courtesy name Zhongli.
• Jisi Jade Maiden: personal name Sifu, courtesy name Ninghua.
• Gengwu Jade Maiden: personal name Huirong, courtesy name Liunan.
• Xinwei Jade Maiden: personal name Chenghua, courtesy name Baozhu.
• Renshen Jade Maiden: personal name Shuanghuang, courtesy name Fengwen.
• Guiyou Jade Maiden: personal name Longying, courtesy name Huansheng.
• Jiaxu Jade Maiden: personal name Shenguang, courtesy name Feilian.
• Yihai Jade Maiden: personal name Zida, courtesy name Feizhi.
• Bingzi Jade Maiden: personal name Jifeng, courtesy name Shenmeng.
• Dingchou Jade Maiden: personal name Fengxuan, courtesy name Diaoyu.
• Wuyin Jade Maiden: personal name Lanhua, courtesy name Shangrong.
• Jimao Jade Maiden: personal name Yingxuan, courtesy name Yuzhu.
• Gengchen Jade Maiden: personal name Zhengling, courtesy name Xiangzhen.
• Xinsi Jade Maiden: personal name Weisheng, courtesy name Diaoluo.
• Renwu Jade Maiden: personal name Guipin, courtesy name Qiancheng.
• Guiwei Jade Maiden: personal name Liangying, courtesy name Ewang.

The list then continues with the Jia Shen Jade Maiden.

“Taboo name” refers to a deity’s sacred name, while “courtesy name” is the name used in addition to it. The Jade Maidens (Daoist deities) are listed below in the order of the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches:

The Jade Maiden of Yiyou: sacred name Zhenyuan, courtesy name Qiongshi.

The Jade Maiden of Bingxu: sacred name Lanxiao, courtesy name Yuying.

The Jade Maiden of Dinghai: sacred name E Xuan, courtesy name Heying.

The Jade Maiden of Wuzi: sacred name Yufang, courtesy name Luhua.

The Jade Maiden of Jichou: sacred name Shuofeng, courtesy name Dinghui.

The Jade Maiden of Gengyin: sacred name Yanling, courtesy name Yanzhu.

The Jade Maiden of Xinmao: sacred name Qi □, courtesy name Lingfei.

The Jade Maiden of Renchen: sacred name Zhaotai, courtesy name Bianjiao.

The Jade Maiden of Guisi: sacred name Weijin, courtesy name Danqi.

The Jade Maiden of Jiawu: sacred name Anfu, courtesy name Shafeng.

The Jade Maiden of Yiwei: sacred name Danfu, courtesy name Yunling.

The Jade Maiden of Bingshen: sacred name Sanyang, courtesy name Linghua.

Later, several of the Jade Maidens from Guisi through Bingshen are listed again. The Jade Maiden of Bingshen is there also given the courtesy name Danqi.

The Jade Maiden of Dingyou: sacred name Suijing, courtesy name Xuanzhu.

The Jade Maiden of Wuxu: sacred name Baoyun, courtesy name Lükai.

The Jade Maiden of Jihai: sacred name Fangbin, courtesy name Shixiang.

The Jade Maiden of Gengzi: sacred name Qingying, courtesy name Nanling.

The Jade Maiden of Xinchou: sacred name Lingqun, courtesy name Qudeng.

The Jade Maiden of Renyin: sacred name Sujiang, courtesy name Qiqing.

The Jade Maiden of Guimao: sacred name Fenhua, courtesy name Weizhi.

The Jade Maiden of Jiachen: sacred name Yaoying, courtesy name Xi’an.

The Jade Maiden of Yisi: sacred name Longyuan, courtesy name Lingsu.

The Jade Maiden of Bingwu: sacred name Huanting, courtesy name Yishi.

The Jade Maiden of Dingwei: sacred name Yingzhi, courtesy name Yusheng.

The Jade Maiden of Wushen: sacred name Zhaofeng, courtesy name Shie.

At the end, the three Jade Maidens of Bingwu, Dingwei, and Wushen are listed again, and “Huanting, courtesy name Yishi” is repeated.

The Jade Maiden of the Jiyou year is named Mimimg and styled Shengfei; the Jade Maiden of the Gengxu year is named Ziling and styled Rongjing; the Jade Maiden of the Xinhai year is named Fenghua and styled Jin’an; the Jade Maiden of the Renzi year is named Fengyifang and styled Shangyin; the Jade Maiden of the Guichou year is named Baohua and styled Zhaoyi; the Jade Maiden of the Jia’yin year is named Qiyuan and styled Huijing; the Jade Maiden of the Yimao year is named Qingyang and styled Esheng; the Jade Maiden of the Bingchen year is named Youyu and styled Chenhui; the Jade Maiden of the Ding Si year is named Fuhua and styled Guangfu; the Jade Maiden of the Wuwu year is named Lüyun and styled Anguan; the Jade Maiden of the Jiwei year is named Jinsheng and styled Qutai; the Jade Maiden of the Gengshen year is named Chen M and styled Yunfei; the Jade Maiden of the Xinyou year is named Baiqinxian and styled Gaoying; the Jade Maiden of the Renxu year is named Shenzhu and styled Guanzhong; and the Jade Maiden of the Guihai year is named Ninghui and styled Baosheng. All those listed above are Dragon Flower Jade Maidens.

The Golden Dawn Jade Youths, immortal attendants serving the deity of the Golden Dawn, hold fresh flowers and burn incense as they guard the Sage. The Jade Maiden is styled Daoming. She rides a carriage formed from purple cloud Qi and sits serenely upon a divine tortoise. The Jade Maiden of the Mysterious Light of Great Yin is named Yuanyang and styled Zidan.

The Golden Dawn Jade Youths scatter flowers and burn incense as they guard the Sage. The Jade Maiden is styled Daoming and rides a divine tortoise in a carriage drawn by purple clouds. The Jade Maiden of the Mysterious Light of Great Yin is named Yuanyang and styled Zidan.

The divine maiden of the East is named Qingyao; the divine maiden of the South, Chigui; the divine maiden of the Center, Sünü; the divine maiden of the West, Yünü; and the divine maiden of the North, Xuannü.

The Laozi Hidden Record states: “The Lord Emperor of Jade Clarity commanded the Dragon Flower Jade Maidens and others at the Golden Terrace of the Northern Frontier to chant poems of the Lofty Cavern Spirit, thereby dispelling demonic obstacles, summoning true spirits, and sending the songs of the various deities up to the lofty, profound realm of truth.” Lord of Longevity of the Southern Pole.

Thereupon, the Celestial Emperor ordered nine hundred Cloud-Kui Golden-Blossom Jade Maidens of the Vermilion Office and Yang Gate to serve and guard the True Writings—the sacred scriptures. He took the purple radiance formed from the essence of sunlight and brushed it over the divine scripture. [From Seventy-Four Prescriptions]

The Most High (Taishang), an honorific for the highest Daoist deities, often sent the Southern Perfected Spirit Consort and the Purple-Spirit Enchanting Maidens to stand at the left side of the myriad books—the sacred canon. Their faces shone with the golden and emerald radiance of dragons. [From Jade Characters of the Golden Slips of the Supreme Ultimate]

Three thousand virtuous women all received the scripture at the age of twenty. They entered the mountains to cultivate the Dao and, after six years, attained deliverance. They now reside in Zhongyang Palace, three hundred li south of the Western Peak and two hundred and seventeen li from Duyang Palace.

The Starry Jade Maidens, the transformations of Heaven and Earth in motion.

Mount Taihe Yushan: after six years, they attained deliverance and now reside in Zhongyang Palace, three hundred li south of the Western Peak and two hundred and seventeen li from Duyang Palace.

The Starry Jade Maidens, the transformations of Heaven and Earth in motion.

The Taihe Jade Maidens and the Directing Officer of Merit (a divine official who conveys commands and manages affairs) are stationed in the four directions, while the Zhengyi Officer of Merit is stationed at the center. The Upper Officer of Merit gazes into the distant heavens; the Middle Officer of Merit surveys the eight directions; and the Qi-Urging Officer spurs the divine officials of the ten directions into action. [From Ritual Forms for the Numbered Purifications]

Each year has six months in which purification rites are observed. The Three Heavens—the upper levels of the Daoist heavens—command the envoys of the Celestial Emperor Taiyi, the spirits of the sun, moon, and stars, and the Three Officials (Heaven, Earth, and Water) to investigate and summon the people of the world to answer for their offenses.

Among the great worthies of the Three Heavens described above, those with the firmest resolve may attain ten parts of the achievement; people of middling virtue, if their resolve is firm, may attain five parts.

Among the heavenly worthies, there are three kinds of wealth and honor: the greatest honor is to be without wrongdoing; the greatest joy is to have no anxiety in one’s heart; and the greatest abundance is to know contentment. [From The Wondrous Truth of Laozi]

A noble Hun-spirit and a precious Po-soul are the most valuable qualities in the human world for someone who upholds this scripture.

On the Southern Mountain there was a Daoist who made a firm resolution.

If he never ceased doing good, his reputation would spread throughout the realm, and people across the four seas would praise him. Heaven and Earth would cherish him, and the hundred spirits would assist him. The ruler would treat him as a friend, and his neighbors would regard him as a parent. His merit and virtue would shine between Heaven and Earth. [From Great Peace]

If his actions accorded with the heart of Heaven and, in stillness, he understood the intent of Earth, Heaven and Earth would cherish him, and the hundred spirits would assist him. The ruler would treat him as a friend, and his neighbors would regard him as a parent. His merit and virtue would shine between Heaven and Earth. [From Great Peace]

When the mind stirs, it can accord with the Dao (the Way); when the spirit is still, it can comprehend the intent of the Earth.

Among all actions, good deeds are the most outstanding; among all blessings, those brought by good deeds are the most precious.

In China, no one is born a sage. Those called good people come from Heaven; practitioners of the Dao are likewise said to have descended from Heaven.

The Three Officials of Heaven, Earth, and Water—deities who govern these three realms in Daoism—record people’s good and evil deeds. This is discussed in “The Immortal Lord’s Inquiry.”

The guests of the Most High, a Daoist honorific for the supreme deity, are those who rise from among the beings of the world to become worthy of respect.

“Four acts of giving and three renunciations” refers to four kinds of giving and three kinds of renunciation. The “four acts of giving” are four forms of generosity; the “three renunciations” are renouncing the body, renouncing possessions, and entrusting one’s life, in order to seek and receive the secret teaching.

Choose an auspicious day and hour of manifesting might to make offerings to the Three Venerable Ones, the three deities honored in Daoism.

“Clarifying the mysterious and the plain, refining Yin-Yang”: this means observing the precept of sexual restraint.

Teachings with the resonance of bells and jade tones are meant to open the wisdom of students in later generations.

If the time is not right, do not speak; if the subject is not proper, do not expound on it.

When one’s speech, conduct, and daily practice are all one with the Dao, and one transcends life and death, one can become a teacher to the heavenly beings and humanity.

By continually accumulating good deeds that help others, one can lengthen one’s life. Keep this always in mind.

Even if one’s blessings reach Heaven, they may still fade and fall away.

Even if calamity sends one down to hell, one may still turn around and rise.

Dantong Longluo Weitian Dongming Yuguo.

Receiving the Dao from the Red Bird’s A, one can become one with the Dao, transcend life and death, and become a teacher to the heavenly beings and humanity. By continually accumulating good deeds that help others, one can lengthen one’s life. Keep this always in mind. Even if one’s blessings reach Heaven, they may still fade and fall away; even if calamity sends one down to hell, one may still turn around and rise.

Dantong Longluo Weitian Dongming Yuguo.

In a mountain hollow on Mount Zhuque lived a woman named Natai. At fourteen, she was renowned throughout the land. When the Southern Pole’s Lady of Purple Emptiness and Primordial Origin, a revered deity of the southern immortal realm, returned to the hollow of Mount Danhuo, she bestowed on Natai the True Text of the Southern Realm in the Red Script of Lingbao.

Primordial Origin once sat beneath a withered mulberry tree in a long grove near Langbi Stream and Fufeng Hill, his radiance shining in all ten directions. Natai saw five-colored purple light winding its way into the purification hall. She climbed onto the wall and looked around. Above the mulberry groves in the east, she saw a splendorous light stretching for hundreds of miles, with Yang Valley and the vast sea between her and it. She leapt into the air. The Water Emperor and Divine King immediately ordered five-colored flying dragons to bear her up. Before long, in a wondrous realm, she transformed into a man and rode a dragon up into the sky.

Primordial Origin ordered the immortals of the capital to confer an imperial title on her. When the great calamities had run their course and the green Qi was in motion, at the Platform of Brahma Naluo, the capital of Flying Origin and Cloud Root, and the Ruins of Nine Spirits amid Azure Clouds, Primordial Origin bestowed on her the title “Imperial Lord, First Elder of Azure Spirits in the Forest of Precious Blossoms” and presented her with the True Text of the Nine Qi of the Azure Heaven in the Red Script of Lingbao. [Deeds of Her Practice]

The World of Chanli

A woman named Aqiu Zeng gave rise to a heart of great compassion, and her devout intention steadily gathered a response. In the first year of Kaiguang, the great holy deities of the ten directions and accomplished Realized Ones who had perfected their cultivation came together in the Three Lights Grotto Platform and the Forest of Azure Blossoms, in the hollow of Mount Danhuo in the Southern Garden. They admired the flowers and trees and enjoyed music and dance. Their number reached fifty million. The True Text shone brilliantly, like the moon among the stars.

When Aqiu Zeng was sixteen, she bathed in fragrant water and faced south. She saw divine light gleaming like the sun, with purple clouds encircling it. She climbed onto the wall and leapt down, hoping her body would turn to dust and then fly toward the Dao. She threw herself into a fire and soon transformed into a man. Primordial Origin ordered the Southern Pole deity to transmit the Ten Precepts to Aqiu Zeng. The Realized One of Lingbao bestowed on her three hundred Taihua Jade Maidens and three hundred official Jade Youths, providing her with a full retinue of attendants and guards. [The Thirty-Two Signs]

Her name was recorded among the heavens, and she became a disciple of the Tenfold Turning. She gave alms to Daoist recluses cultivating the Way in the mountains, enabling her seven generations of ancestors to associate with the Five Emperors. Her merits were many, and the blessings she received were profound. She gave generously of her wealth to all four quarters, honored her teachers, revered the Great Dao, and recited the scripture ten thousand times.

When the dragon chariot of the Most High Lord Lao (a revered Daoist deity) descends to welcome a practitioner, that practitioner can ascend to Heaven in broad daylight.

Yielding to others is a reward gained through cultivating the Dao. The willingness to give way shows that one has De (Virtue). People deserve respect for their moral cultivation, regardless of their social rank.

Harmonizing the breath and making it calm is a method of cultivation taught in the scriptures and precepts. There are many ways to cultivate the Dao; even small beginnings can lead to great achievements. The heart should be gentle, resilient, and humble, like the rushes. Calamities often arise from thoughts and actions, so one should show compassion toward all things and extend deep care to all living beings.

The highest form of filial devotion is to resolve to cultivate the Dao, seek longevity and protection, and help one’s parents attain deliverance as well. Such a person is the most virtuous filial child of the age of the Most High Sovereign of Antiquity, whose good name spreads in every direction.

One’s name is entered in the True Realm, the immortal land where Perfected Beings dwell. See “Dispelling Demons” (the title of a scripture chapter). One proclaims the Dao’s vital energy and exhorts the ignorant and deluded to change; many sounds ring out in harmony, flying and singing as they open a crossing toward the realm of the Dao.

The Heavenly Emperor Lord of Taiwei, a revered deity who dwells in the heavens of Taiwei, makes inquiries in a quiet chamber, gazing up at the cool, deep currents of the Mysterious Stream. He gathers and consumes the vital essences of the Two Forms, Yin and Yang, and breathes in and out the energy of drifting rosy clouds. He visualizes five-colored lights shining upon his body and sets in motion radiant clouds like the sun, moon, and stars. Their brilliant colors flow and shine throughout the Jade Hall and Purple Chamber, the palaces of the immortals.

Return to one’s true nature and become simple again. Wander through Primordial Simplicity, the original state before Heaven and Earth were divided and primordial energy was differentiated. Observe the customs handed down from the Three Dynasties, while holding precious De in one’s heart.

Travelers sometimes go to the mountains and sometimes to the water’s edge; at times they live among the world, at times they return home; now they are at court, now in the fields. This teaching appears in the “Book of Langhua from the Highest Heavens” (the title of a scripture chapter).

Those who pursue fame and profit without restraint and busy themselves with the Three Activities of body, speech, and mind will be confused and overcome by the Six Desires of the senses. These are the warnings of the Most High’s Pure and Perfect Dao.

Deceiving Heaven and Earth is discussed in “The Wondrous Perfected” (the title of a scripture chapter). Those who bear grave offenses like a mountain of stones, encounter the Eight Calamities that obstruct cultivation, or seize others’ property will suffer disasters and retribution after death. This teaching appears in the “Statutes of the Luminous Perfected” (the title of a scripture chapter).

Turning Yin and Yang upside down and violating the sun and moon are discussed in “The Luminous Year” (the title of a scripture chapter). Reviling Heaven and Earth and insulting the clouds and skies, and cursing the wind spirits, are discussed in “The Luminous Awe” (the title of a scripture chapter).

Heavenly demons and heterodox paths can bewilder and disturb the mind and spirit. After death, one will fall into the Three Destinies of woe—the realms of hell, hungry ghosts, and animals—and enter the Red Lotus hell, where one will suffer amid water and fire for two hundred billion kalpas, unable to be reborn as a human during that time.

To recklessly cast oneself into water or fire and walk toward peril and death is to treat one’s own destiny lightly.

To treat the supreme scriptures as false fabrications, mocking and belittling them as absurd and untrue, causes the subtle teachings to decline. Heaven-dwellers and beings in the human world will all suffer, and even the earth and the hells will find no peace.

Even after enduring two hundred billion kalpas amid disasters such as floods and fires, one may still find it difficult to regain human form. When people face the perils of flood or fire, yet slight their destiny and karmic consequences and continue to mock the supreme scriptures as falsehoods, the Mystery Teachings will decline, and heaven-dwellers and all beings will fall into suffering.

Those who do not believe in the Great Dao, do not revere the deities, and deface or slight sacred writings will fall upon a tree of swords after death, where blades of wind strike from all eight directions. The wind makes the tree sway up and down, sending their feet onto a mountain of knives. In subsequent rebirths, they will bear six kinds of illness and cycle through five kinds of suffering, sinking into the consequences of their offenses.

Please grant me a compassionate remedy to cure the illness of delusion. Teach the Dharma with good words, dispel the veil of ignorance, and clear the eye of wisdom so that it shines brightly and can perceive the truth of the Dao. Benji

Once the six desires become tainted, people will cycle through the Three Evil Paths—hell, hungry ghosts, and animals—wandering without return. They will also pass through the Five Paths, the different destinations of rebirth, sinking for a long time without awakening. Dingzhi

Even ten thousand jin of gold cannot buy a single scripture of the immortals. If one gives such a scripture to someone in the poor mountains, in a future life one will receive bells and precious metals. (The precise meaning of “bells and precious metals” here is unclear; this follows the literal wording.)

Greed is a grave illness, not one that can be cured with treatments such as mugwort or acupuncture.

If someone receives another’s kindness for twenty-five years yet never repays or shares it, the Director of Life, who governs lifespan and the registers of life, will report the matter to Heaven and reduce that person’s lifespan by seven hundred years. Benzhen Ke

Human desires are difficult to control, like a banner raised in the wind, fluttering without cease. Only a sage can bring them to a stop.

The immortal attendants of the scriptures will report arrogant people to the Three Heavens; the Director of the True Way will report them to the Most High. After three reports, such a person will lose the Way. Xianggong Qingwen

To discuss De while reviling heavenly purity—the innate nature that is pure and in accord with the Dao—and to say one thing while thinking another are the roots of every kind of evil.

When evil thoughts permeate the heart, they destroy the Ten Virtues and encourage the Ten Evils. The pathways in the four directions are thereby neglected, and the six supernatural powers are blocked.

When the Five Spirits within the body run wild and unsettled, they delight in drinking and lose all restraint.

The three forms of reverence and the three forms of anxiety.

After death, one enters Youdu (the underworld), where one is examined and imprisoned in a ghost prison. Afterward, one must still undergo reincarnation through countless eons.

The Five Desires

Living beings harbor countless thoughts. The eyes crave looking at every kind of color, but excessive looking exhausts the hun and shen. The ears crave listening to every kind of sound, but a cacophony of sounds makes the hun and shen suffer. The nose craves smelling every kind of fragrance, but an excess of fragrance dissipates Jing and Qi. The mouth craves tasting every kind of flavor, but an overabundance of flavors muddles Shen and Qi. The body craves comfort and pleasure, but idleness and indulgence scatter the will, damage one’s temperament, and make one’s conduct dangerous. This passage is quoted from the Laozi Jingjiao.

The Five Evils

Title: The Numinous Book for Delivering Lives.

The Seven Harms

The High Holy Emperor said: The first harm is for the divine spirits to weep in the depths of the hidden realms, their cries reaching the heavenly court. The second is to have the chance to enter one’s name in the register of the mysterious immortals, yet sink oneself into the Nine Springs. The third is to ruin the fruits of cultivation in the Five Palaces, causing the myriad spirits to tremble and the true immortals to depart on distant journeys, while the Red Child—the symbol of the Original Spirit within the body—cries out in sorrow. Even if one’s mysterious name has already been entered in the registers, one will lose the immortal name inscribed in the jade record in vain. The fourth is for the hun and po to scatter, the body’s nine orifices to gather dust, and the Five Palaces to fall into disorder and decay. The fifth is for one’s name to be recorded in the Azure Bureau, the register of Daoist divine offices and oversight, and entered in the Golden Gate, the palace of the heavens, yet to slight the perfected and spurn treasures, turning instead toward darkness and abandoning the Seven Mysteries, the wondrous realms of Dao. The sixth is for the Five Spirits to scatter and the Numinous Origin to lose its light. The seventh is for the true Qi in the Numinous Gate to be fearful and unsettled, the roaming spirits within the body to be alarmed, and the hun and po to wander among the official residences, while the true immortals ascend to Yuqing, a high celestial realm in Daoism. This passage appears in Returning to Heaven through the Nine Heavens.

The Ten Afflictions

To cultivate Daoist methods and attend to related affairs without perseverance, and to serve one’s masters without remaining steadfast throughout one’s life, are both afflictions. The Perfected One said: The first of the ten forms of ruin causes the hun and po to wail in the Numinous Palace, their cries reaching the heavenly pavilion; the Three Offices, divine authorities governing Heaven, Earth, and Water, will then investigate the matter and dispute over it.

Hunting outdoors during the three months of spring

Setting nets and traps, and setting fire to burn the mountains, will cause one to bear an iron staff after death, endure every kind of suffering, and be driven to run about in torment. This passage appears in Illuminating the True.

Blocking rivers, digging channels, casting nets, and fishing also bring an evil retribution: after death, one enters a forest of blades and swords. One should observe this rightly with wisdom. If one’s allotted lifespan has not yet run out, yet one cannot discern the heart of Heaven and Earth or the intent of Yin-Yang, it will be difficult to preserve one’s life. After death, one will likewise bear an iron staff, endure every kind of suffering, and be driven to run about in torment. This passage appears in Illuminating the True.

Blocking rivers, digging channels, casting nets, and fishing.

If one contemplates life and death with wisdom and right understanding, one will not fall into dangers as perilous as mountains of blades and forests of swords. Human life span is difficult to fathom, yet it is not easy to grasp the original nature of Heaven and Earth and the changes of Yin-Yang. Life and longevity are treasures cherished by the Dao of Heaven. Only by accumulating De through virtuous conduct, and allowing Heaven and Earth, the four directions, the distant lands of the eight regions, and all things to each find their proper place, can one extend one’s life and enjoy the full span of one’s years.

The Dao exists in hollow depths and pervades realms beyond all bounds; it is higher than everything and lower than everything. People model themselves on the Dao: they nurture the body through stillness and silence, settle the heart through purity and calm, and preserve their integrity through wholehearted focus. They dwell in quiet seclusion like dragons lying hidden; conceal themselves from view like the sun and moon disappearing into the void. They cultivate De and nurture the spirit as the altars of state protect its light; they revere the divine as ancestral temples safeguard peace. Others cannot see them, just as a spirit fish hides within a great net; others do not understand them, just as the sun rises without an eastern boundary. Their own being is boundless, like the Great Dao, which has no fixed direction.

Though Heaven and Earth are wondrous, they cannot prevent this cultivation; though the sun and moon are bright, they cannot obstruct it.

The Taiping records: “When the palaces of the brain are full, the six fluids—the six kinds of bodily fluid—are harmonized.” The Taishang Sanyuan Dongzhu says: “Within the court of life, the Perfected Person dwells amid formlessness and rests where there are no boundaries, thereby attaining the vitality of the Mysterious Pearl, the symbol of life’s subtle source.”

One’s life span lasts as long as the sun and moon. The Guishan Yuanlu says: “To receive the will of the Celestial Lord, the ruling spirit within the body, is to become a long-lived person, able to serve alongside the gods of Heaven.”

One’s allotted years cannot be measured; they are recorded in the Celestial Archive. Only when the heart is pure and free of dross, one’s aspirations flow freely like water, and one’s dwelling is secure like a walled city, can one attain long life.

Merit and virtue move Heaven and Earth. The Laojun Cewen says: “Master the Six Arts externally—the traditional disciplines of ritual, music, archery, charioteering, calligraphy, and mathematics—and settle the Highest Clarity realm internally. Cultivate the wondrous art of elixir fluid, and you may ascend to the Purple Court, the palace of the immortals.”

The Danjian Molü says: “Those who observe the celestial signs…”

When one’s aspirations flow freely like water and one’s dwelling is secure like a walled city, one can attain long life. Merit and virtue can move Heaven and Earth. The Laojun Cewen.

The Record of Alchemical Slips and Ink says that those who observe the heavens regard the sun, moon, and stars as the “Three Lights.” The celestial phenomena visible to people fall into three categories: the courses of the sun and moon, and the nine stars of the Northern Dipper. Two stars remain hidden from view, while seven shine clearly, as though weighing and directing the mysterious currents of the celestial ford. The Book of the Precious Mystery also says that Yin Xi looked up to observe the heavens and down to examine the land.

To examine the land is to distinguish three signs—soil, mountains, and water—and to survey the Precious Mysteries of the five directions.

The wondrous arts of the immortals in heaven are beyond counting. The Taiping records that the Lord Emperor of the Golden Gate told Lord Green Lad that he would teach him the methods for becoming a celestial immortal.

The “Six Arts” are talismans, diagrams, scriptures, precepts, methods, and numerical arts: Fulu, images, sacred texts, rules of discipline, esoteric arts, and divination.

The four directions of heaven and earth, above and below, seem to lie within a single expanse of waves; a thousand things seem to share one dream. The sun, moon, and stars are like windows, while the vault of heaven is like a roof beam suspended high above. Raise your head to pluck flowers as lovely as fine jade; bend down to drink from a well of gleaming jade. A thousand years seem no more than an instant, and ten thousand generations pass like a flash of lightning. Time flies like an arrow released from a taut bowstring.

The Perfected Officials roam amid the mysterious currents of the celestial ford, dwelling in the Purple Empyrean where the immortals gather.

The Lady of the Upper Prime sang the song “Steps on the Mystery”: “Long ago, I set foot on the path of Mysterious Truth, and with light steps soared up to the Great Rosy Heavens. Carrying my book chest, I came to the Gate of Heaven and asked where the Most High dwells. Suddenly I came upon the Purple Tenuity Garden, where Perfected Beings stood in numbers like a forest. Serene green radiance shone upon cloud canopies and red flowers; orchid-scented halls enveloped the towers among the trees, and halls like green jade opened their curtains woven from precious things. The Cinnabar Terrace rose high into the sky, its brilliance shining forth with numinous splendor. Flying immortals stepped onto the rooftops, their figures rising tall; light from within the grotto shone upon the winding paths they leaned beside. Beside the Jade Embryo lay crimson numinous fungi, their nine colors gleaming against one another. Through ingestion and refinement, the immortals’ bodies endure; after ten thousand kalpas, they remain as young as newborn children. Who says that lifespan has a fixed limit? Even the Fusang tree will not wither on that account.”

I ride a carriage swift as light and shadow, speeding through the clear, empty realms in all eight directions. I set the horses and carriage in order and take the vermilion road that leads to the heavens; in an instant, I feast and roam among palaces in the clouds. Dragon-shaped wings shine against a jade-like body. Clad in blue and purple feathered robes, I ride an immortal carriage. I pass beyond the Six Drinking Terrace and wander freely in Phoenix City; accompanied by the King of Divine Firmament, a revered deity of the heavens, I soar to the Supreme Capital, the city of the highest heaven.

I gaze up at the Three Plain Chambers, palaces of the heavens, as long trails of cloud and mist descend over the waters in all eight directions. The supreme Dao rises beyond the Orchid Palace. The jade-like body, feathered robes, and carriage appear once more. I pass beyond the Six Drinking Terrace and wander in Phoenix City, then fly with the King of Divine Firmament to the Supreme Capital. I gaze up at the Three Plain Chambers as cloud and mist drift through the eight directions. The supreme Dao rises beyond the Orchid Palace, and radiant light shines upon Jade Clarity, one of the highest heavens in Daoism.

The clouds of heaven wheel around me. My flying carriage enters the courtyard, and its blue-green shafts come into view. As I ascend, the gates in all four directions stand open; splendid jade shines upon the golden gates. Divine light illuminates Orchid Peak, and the three radiances of sun, moon, and stars appear in their brilliance. From this, a pure and clear breath arises, gathering from the eight directions; the hidden source suddenly opens wide. At the beginning of the mysterious cycle of tribulation, the sun joins with the fresh energy of dawn. Marvelous transformations fill the courtyard, flourishing like patterns in the high heavens.

All manner of phantoms vanish without a trace, and I draw forth the soul of the sun’s essence. I return to the Elixir Chamber, a quiet room for cultivating Neidan or visualization, and silently contemplate the High Perfected Ones, exalted deities. I focus my spirit and wield the Nine Drinks, a technical term for a practice in the scripture, joining them to the unbroken flow of cloud-breath. Three candle flames illuminate a sunlike radiance. Beyond the realm of emptiness, the true spirit appears. The Jade Emperor, a revered deity of the heavens, illuminates the numinous robes and passes serenely through the nine heavens. I treasure the supreme verses and hold the chapters of Jade Clarity as precious.

Azure clouds encircle the Elixir Chamber, and the scripture’s characters gleam with purple light. I step across ten thousand surging crossings and, with mysterious steps, ascend to the Jade Gate. Eight phoenixes sing from the high peak—how lofty are the woods among the clouds! Dragons and phoenixes stand erect and cry out; their commands accord with mysterious talismans. Holding my tally, I proceed to Taiwei, the celestial palace among the stars.

Scripture for Quelling Demons

A poem composed when this scripture was first transmitted:

Crimson clouds drift around the palace, and the scripture’s characters gleam with purple light. I step across ten thousand surging crossings and, with mysterious steps, ascend to the Jade Gate. Eight phoenixes sing from the high peak—how lofty are the woods among the clouds! Dragons and phoenixes stand erect and cry out; their commands accord with mysterious talismans. Holding my tally, I proceed to Taiwei.

Scarlet divine light glimmers across the distant, mysterious dawn. Over purple fields, immortals ride the clouds on their far-flung journey. They rise with their bodies arched back, entering the Golden Palace, then gaze down upon the City of Western Splendor. Dawn clouds in the east unfurl a jade-colored radiance, and divine light illuminates the seven numinous spirits. Light and shadow mingle like three bright candles; incense smoke drifts through the jade courtyard. Hand in hand with the Weaver Maiden, they dance, blue brocade falling from their double collars. On the left, banners of splendid design sweep in circling arcs, while magnificent canopies tilt with the clouds.

Beyond the nine-tiered heavens, they dwell peacefully at a feast, no longer troubled by right and wrong, gain and loss.

The Hidden Writ of the Great Elixir says: The emerald peaks of Fusang, the divine tree of the east, rise into the vast sky, and crimson numinous flowers glow faintly. Cangtai towers above the clouds, its scenery on every side reflected in the clear, bright heavens. The immortals ride flying radiance and guide purple wheels, steering red celestial carriages with three-colored silken reins. They rest in the lodgings of the Great Thearch and gather for lively conversation in the courtyard of the Queen Mother of the West, sovereign of the female immortals in legend. They wash and rinse their mouths with green stream water, carrying jars filled with jade nectar. Qu Chen, a divine name from the immortal realm, rides the wind, raising a fan and swaying as he leans down. How cool the quiet chambers are! There, they cultivate their true nature and await the completion of their meritorious deeds.

A Poem in Which the Perfected of Great Primordial Bestows the Great Cavern Mysterious Scripture upon Xu Xiang

The roads of the eight directions converge at the formless, nameless source. Following the seasons, one observes the bustling world of dust. Looking up at the jade towers in the empty sky, one hears the mysterious Dao play music like the song of phoenixes. Holding a jade blossom in the left hand, one ascends with flying steps through the Gate of the Seven Origins. Sun, moon, and stars shine with purple radiance; in every direction, it seems, are spirits of one’s own being. Mysterious waves stir the vast sea, and the broad crossing sets myriad currents in motion. Jade wheels turn among the clouds; why hurry through the dusty world?

Quietly Chanting in the Jade Hall

Clouds in six colors rise between the windows.

The Master of the August Sovereign

At the Gate of the Seven Origins, sun, moon, and stars shine with purple radiance; in every direction, it seems, are spirits of one’s own being. Mysterious waves stir the vast sea, and the broad crossing sets myriad currents in motion. Jade wheels turn among the clouds; why hurry through the dusty world?

Quietly Chanting in the Jade Hall

Clouds in six colors rise between the windows.

The Master of the August Sovereign, Quietly Chanting in the Jade Pavilion

Gaze upon the deep and hidden vistas of the three celestial gates; the secret heavenly writings unfold their rhythms. Music blends with the Qi of Great Harmony, and every kind of chant falls silent. Numinous light shines in all directions, and the seven forms of primordial Qi mingle and arise. The young lord, an honorific from the immortal realm, transforms and unites; the Thearch One, the supreme deity revered in Daoism, gathers into form. Through wondrous chanting, one receives the grace of the spirits; numinous music scatters like jade dust, and the penetrating vision accords with the mysterious Dao.

The Seven Treasures stir the jade branches; the myriad immortals ride the void, chanting.

The Instructions and Verses of Qu Su

Chanting the venerable deity Thearch One naturally harmonizes the hundred pulses throughout the body.

The Scripture of Jade Capital Mountain

Cloud dragon.

The Immortal Lord

Cultivate the Dao of Dongzhen, and the corresponding signs will appear.

I ask the Jade Thearch Lord of the August Sovereign.

The jade-toned music of the Hidden Book of Jade Clarity carries into the distance, delicate and melodious, like the ringing of jade. These verses sing: The scenes of the upper realm reflect the light of dawn; purple Qi fills the golden clouds, lush and clear. Pure white jade radiance shines upon a fan carved from fine jade, as songs are offered to the numinous perfected beings in the void. Holding flowers from the green forest, one returns to the Court of Great Origin, the celestial court above. Dwelling in green-hued palaces, one follows the natural Dao and lightly flies toward the splendid Jade Capital, the immortal realm. Escorting the Vermilion Radiance King, long trails of mist fill the reaches of the void. Which of the Four Kings is the sovereign of this dwelling? And how could transformation take only one form?

Golden Mystery of the Cavern’s Radiance

Poem by Lady Zhonghou:

The perfected beings of the upper realm chant in halls of jade; exalted immortals sing in towers of precious stone. Nine phoenixes sound crimson melodies, while the Empty Beat records the feathered hymns of the celestial realm.

Songs of the Many Perfected

Sighing beneath the moon:

Nine sages, nine mysteries.

The Dao Lord, the Chronicler, and Master Shanghuang sing together “Mysterious Lang”:

Purple Dawn of Shangqing.

Flourishing Virtue and Great Peace

Qilin and phoenixes arrive of their own accord; in purity and coolness, sacred mushrooms and Jade Maidens appear naturally. Heaven and Earth are in harmony, auspicious signs abound, and good fortune follows. Scripture of Laozi’s Precepts

True Text of the Jade Chapters of the Crimson Writ of the Numinous Treasure of the Cavern Mystery of Primordial Beginning

Generated before Primordial Beginning, the state before Heaven and Earth were divided. In a time of flourishing virtue and great peace, qilin and phoenixes arrive of their own accord; in purity and coolness, sacred mushrooms and Jade Maidens appear naturally. Heaven and Earth are in harmony, auspicious signs abound, and good fortune follows. Scripture of Laozi’s Precepts

True Text of the Jade Chapters of the Crimson Writ of the Numinous Treasure of the Cavern Mystery of Primordial Beginning

It was born before the Primordial Beginning, within the hollow void. Once its wondrous, numinous image appeared, the myriad Celestial Emperors came to pay homage to the True Dao. Twelve kinds of mysterious auspicious signs appeared in the heavens, and twenty-four kinds of responsive signs arose on earth. It revealed the profound numinous wonders of the Nine Heavens above and praised the treasured radiance of the Three Heavens.

The “twelve auspicious signs” refer to the time when Heaven and Earth became the source of the myriad vital energies, and the two energies of Yin and Yang divided and took form. Thirty-six thousand suns and moons shone at once, lighting all the heavens so that no shadowed place remained beyond their reach. The great sages and divine beings, together with the perfected ones of wondrous practice—those who had attained the Dao—gathered and feasted in the Jade Court, roaming through space and reciting numinous writings. A hundred thousand kinds of music sounded spontaneously in the heavens, all playing together at once. Their reverberations shook the offices among the clouds and stirred the spirits and perfected ones. Numinous winds played a hundred melodies, as though music were sounding throughout the empty spaces in the ten directions. The notes of gong, shang, and the other pitches answered one another, all transforming into the celestial music of the Grotto-Heavens. The Jade Pivot, the celestial mechanism for observing the heavens, ceased its rotation, and the constellations stopped moving. There was no distinction between day and night; all four seasons were bright at once, like the early morning. Purple clouds cast their radiance across the heavens.

The energies of spring, summer, autumn, and winter were mild and harmonious. The Five Sacred Peaks were at peace, and the seven treasures and numinous beings were scattered throughout the land. Strange forests of the seven treasures covered the celestial realm.

The “twenty-four responses” refer to the time when the Celestial Origin was still in chaos and there was as yet no light. The morning rooster announced the dawn, and the scene in all four directions immediately became bright and clear. The vault of Heaven stretched high and the Earth spread wide, and so the Five Phases came into being. Thirty-six thousand suns and moons shone above and below at once, illuminating the boundless expanse. A black crow carried a written document in its beak, announcing that the Five Emperors should arrange Heaven and Earth according to their proper divisions. Three tigers exhaled golden Qi, stabilizing and guarding the five directions. A numinous dragon brought auspicious talismanic decrees to inform the Water Emperor. A jade phoenix carried a seal in its beak, while a vermilion bird flew and danced. Flood dragons leapt, churning the deep and vast waters; the rivers stopped flowing, and schools of fish gathered in crossing currents. Sweet dew arose spontaneously, and numinous mushrooms grew in abundance. Lions and other fierce beasts drew close to people and became their neighbors. The elderly returned to youth, their faces becoming young and vigorous. Gold and jade hidden beneath the earth came to light. The people throughout the realm sang for joy, celebrating peace in the country; lotuses sprang from the ground, and the Five Sacred Peaks shone forth in splendor.

Scripture of Grotto Talismans (Dongfu Jing)

The Heavenly Worthy of Primordial Beginning was in the Garden of Fragrant Woods.

The gods and spirits of the heavens laid out a feast to welcome him. At that time, clouds and mist grew dense, obscuring the landscape in every direction. For three days and three nights, the darkened heavens did not clear. Heaven and Earth were in chaos. The Heavenly Worthy said, “The radiant Jade Characters, sacred writings of the celestial realm, have obscured the light of Heaven. I will reveal to all beings in the four directions the wondrous auspicious signs of the world’s creation.”

The Essential Meaning of Honoring the Scripture

Some smelled the fragrance of incense smoke; some heard the sounds of zithers and lutes; some heard chanting from the sky. Others saw round halos like the sun, along with visions of perfected beings and flying immortals appearing from the ten directions.

Obstructed Understanding

The spirits of Heaven and Earth no longer appeared or spoke.

The Talismanic Writings of the Jade-Like Imperial Edict

At dusk, one should hold it in the heart. Then the Immortals of Great Perfection, beings of high rank, will come to protect it from disturbance by the outside world.

Purple Tenuity Shines on the Seven Terraces and Qian Trees

The gathered jade blossoms and rosy clouds; the sages assemble in the Palace of Jade Trees; the Golden Mother commands the Green Song. The Numinous Writings of the Empty Cavern

Purple Tenuity, the august palace of Heaven, shines brilliantly, and the Seven Terraces and Qian Trees appear. The gathered beings of jade blossoms and rosy clouds, and the holy spirits, assemble in the Palace of Jade Trees. The Golden Mother, the Queen Mother of the West, commands the Green Song. The Numinous Writings of the Empty Cavern is the title of a Daoist scripture.

Amid the Great Rosy Clouds

A lofty terrace is built by condensing white Qi, and a palace is raised by gathering nine layers of clouds. Purple smoke winds in layers around its gates, where wondrous radiance gathers. This is the dwelling of the Primordial Lady of Great Emptiness, a celestial immortal of the highest heavens.

Mount Longze in the Southwest of Yaomingzong Piao Heaven

Amid the Great Rosy Clouds, a lofty terrace is built by condensing white Qi, and a palace is raised by gathering nine layers of clouds. Purple smoke winds in layers around its gates, where wondrous radiance gathers. This is the dwelling of the Primordial Lady of Great Emptiness.

Mount Longze in the Southwest of Yaomingzong Piao Heaven

In ancient times there were the Writings of the Three Sovereigns, talismanic characters said to have been passed down from the celestial realm in remote antiquity. Among a million men and women, perhaps not one could obtain them. Only those destined to do so and bound to them by affinity could receive and uphold these writings.

The Lord of Long Life at the South Pole

The Lord of Long Life at the South Pole, whose courtesy name was Yidu, hid this scripture in the nine-turn cavern chamber of the Palace of Cinnabar Clouds on the Jade Terrace. He sealed it with a peak of the Yulin Mountains and gave it the title The Chapter of the Lofty and Luminous Mysterious Cavern.

The Chamber on Mount Emei in the Western Part of Shu Commandery

In ancient times, the Writings of the Three Sovereigns were hidden here. Of a million men and women, only a few could enter the Chamber of the Yellow Hall. This chamber governs the opening of the sun and moon and the accomplishment of the flying perfected beings. The Inner Sounds of the Heavens is the title of a Daoist scripture.

After obtaining the essential formula of the Great Cavern, one should visualize the Five Spirits within the Purple Chamber, a cultivation image of an inner or divine dwelling. In this way, one’s name can reach the Chamber of the Five Elders, the dwelling of the celestial lords of the five directions, and one’s De can rise above the Three Pure Ones, the highest Daoist deities and celestial realm.

Langshu and Qiongwen are both precious scriptures of the celestial realm. The Taixiao Langshu records that on five auspicious days each year—the ninth day of the ninth month, the fifth day of the tenth month, the third day of the third month, the eighth day of the fourth month, and the seventh day of the seventh month—the Divine Lord holds an assembly called “Ten Gatherings of Vows.” At these times, the Divine Lord ascends the Jade Terrace of Taiji and, within the lofty Jade □ Golden Chamber, quietly focuses inward on five kinds of vows, hoping that profound and wondrous teachings will descend from the void. Then he presents a jade memorial, whose golden tones resound throughout the heavens, summoning the Five Emperors and their guardian spirits. Many blessings and auspicious signs then gather at the solar chamber.

The Chamber of Qionghua appears in the “Outer Illustrations: Chapter on the Released Beings” and the “Inner Biography of Lord Mao”; it is also called the Green Chamber.

The Chamber of Eight Qiongs appears in the “Inner Biography of Lord Mao” and the “Golden Mystery of the Cavernous Radiance”; it is also called the Blue-Green Chamber. The “Seventy-Four Methods of Supreme Clarity’s Transformations” records this name as well.

The City of Three Blossoms is the name of a palace in the Jade Clarity realm. It lies within the Jade City and is where Primordial Lord Yang’an resides.

The Hall of Vast Numen is where the Three Primordial Lords of Jade Dusk reside.

The Cloud Official’s Yellow Chamber, a quiet dwelling of the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning, lies among the Seven Treasures. The “Biography of the Unsurpassed Perfected” records that Yin Xi ascended to heaven with Laozi, climbed to the Sun Gate of the Ninth Heaven, and entered a room of flowing clouds in seven colors. He became one of the honored immortals and was treated with respect by the assembled immortals.

The Lord of Longevity of the Southern Pole once climbed the ravines of Mount Xuanzhu. There he received instruction in the art of the Golden Elixir, as well as scriptures on refining the root of clouds and making pliant metal hard. He also learned methods for flying smoke, raising frost, and settling snow, along with ways to summon rosy clouds and swallow vital essences.

The Chamber of Accumulated Stone and Jade on Mount Kunlun is a dwelling of immortals; it appears in the “Inner Biography of the Immortal Lord.”

The Mysterious Capital’s Purple Chamber in the Heaven of Manifest Determination and Utmost Wind oversees the appointed limits of the cosmic cycles of Heaven and Earth; it appears in the “Inner Tones of the Heavens.”

The Green Chamber Illuminated by Cinnabar Clouds appears in the Taixiao Langshu. The Purple Chamber shines upon the lofty, pure realm.

Mist surrounds the sun and moon. The Twenty-Four Birth Images

The White Jade Queen Mother lives in the Jade Tower and Green Lapis Palace on Mount Hao, in a room of vermilion and purple. There hang jeweled curtains strung with linked pearls, and immortal youths and Jade Maidens attend and guard her, carrying musical instruments.

The Great Cavern of Truth Scripture is secretly kept in the Ninefold Mystery Jade Repository of the High Great Expanse Heaven; the Cavern of Truth Mystery Scripture is stored in the Purple Chamber of the Supreme One’s Six Directions. The Instructions in Winding Plain Silk and the Five Phases Secret Talismans are secretly kept in the Cloud Chamber of the Jade Capital. These accounts appear in the Illustrious Statutes of the Four Extremes.

The Ninefold Radiant Chamber.

The Numinous Treasure Red Writ.

The Purple-Green Elixir Chamber.

Illustrations from the Outer Register.

“Clear stillness” means bringing five things into unity: following Heaven’s clarity to purify oneself; following Earth’s peace to make oneself settled; drawing on the light of the sun and moon to make oneself bright; aligning oneself with the courses of the stars; and adapting oneself to the nature of all things, regulating oneself and restraining one’s desires.

“Numinous tones” means bringing ten kinds of sound into harmony.

The Northern Origin Celestial Numinous Mirror Scripture and the Supreme One’s Eight Plain Silks.

In the halls of Daoist temples, golden mirrors and stone chimes hang above the scripture platform and in front of the purification hall. Striking bronze vessels and stone chimes moves the gods. This account appears in the Statutes of the Great Zhen.

In the Heaven of Zhuluo Huangjia, the Northern Emperor’s Window of Cold Numinous Power gives birth to the essential energies of the myriad demons. This account appears in the Inner Books of the Various Heavens.

In the Heaven of Origin’s Vast Ascent, the Southern Pole’s Mysterious Radiance governs those who have succeeded in cultivating the Dao.

The Green Radiance Scripture of Truth was transmitted by the Elder of Ninefold Mystery to the Master of the High Sovereign. Later, the Lord of the Supreme Dao sealed it within the Jade Scripture. This account appears in the Supreme Register of the Essential Radiance Scripture of Truth.

Great Simplicity lies above the Hidden Mystery, and within the Heaven of Great Simplicity the Nine Palaces are arranged around the Golden Gate.

“Jade Gate, Orchid Chamber” is also a name for a doorway in the Shangqing Palace.

The Supreme One has a gate called the “Gate of Jade Feathers.” “Fourfold Brightness” is another name for it; it is also the southern gate of the Shangqing Jade Emperor.

The Eastern Florescence, Fangzhu, and the Palace of the Blue Youth.

There are six celestial gates, each encompassing an area of three thousand li. The eastern Qinghua Gate is guarded by Qiu Boyuan, who oversees the registers of those seeking learning and immortality. The southern Shenhua Jade Gate is guarded by Wang Zusi, who oversees perfected beings and flying immortals. The western Jade Cavern Gate is guarded by Yang Shaoye, who oversees true immortals. The southeastern Tiandong Celestial Pass Gate is guarded by Wuche, who oversees people’s fated destinies. The northeastern Coldwater Gate is guarded by Chonglindu, who oversees ghosts and spirits. All six gates are located on Long Mountain in the celestial realm.

Qing Golden Tower Palace

The Qing Golden Tower Palace lies fifty thousand li north of the sun, moon, and stars—the three lights. It is east of the dwelling place of the High and Lofty God, nine thousand li from Long Mountain, west of the Dark Feather Wilderness, and west of Jade Clarity, adjoining the Celestial Tower Terrace. Four gates stand outside the palace.

The eastern Jade Radiance Golden Fusion Gate has two royal officials. The Morning King carries a nine-section command baton, and the two officials each guard half the gate’s domain. This is where the guests and attendants of the High and Lofty Jade Clarity Empty Sovereign, the Great Perfected One, enter and depart.

The southern Cavern Treasure Jade Cloud Gate oversees perfected beings and flying immortals, enabling them to travel in all eight directions and visit the Five Sacred Mountains.

The western Dark Capital Jade Treasure Gate oversees perfected beings who study the immortal Way and receive immortal offices, as well as the records of immortal registers.

The northern Northern Yin Pole Cloud Gate oversees the advancement, withdrawal, ascent, and descent of perfected beings. The area encompassed within the gate extends seven thousand li.

The chariots of the Nine Heavens stand in rows; the Celestial Emperors of the eight directions halt their carriages. Ghosts and demons are hunted down at the Jade Portal, while spirit soldiers in Yin armor stand arrayed at the Dark Gate. Purple Writ, Golden Root; Cavern of Truth, Golden Mystery

The Gate of the Sun and Moon in the Middle of Huangzeng Heaven

This gate oversees the passage of light to the Nine Depths, the furthest reaches of the underworld, and opens the domain of the long night. Inner Book

The Qinghua Gate in the Middle of Pingyu Heaven

This gate oversees the multitude of true immortals and jade maidens, who sing the music of the Five Harmonies.

The Threefold Convenience Gate in the Middle of Wenju Heaven

The original text ends here; the surviving text gives only the gate’s name.

These are portals that govern the countless movements of Qi in the celestial realm, as well as vast, deep passes through which scriptures from the Longhan era may be reached.

In the Seven Luminaries Moyi Heaven, at the southern pole stands a portal that excels at protecting life. It governs the registers of life and death and their accompanying charts.

There are ten portals in the celestial realm:

In the east is the Qinghua Yuanyang Gate; in the south, the Dongyang Taiyuan Gate; in the west, the Tongyin Golden Pass Gate; and in the north, the Yinsheng Guangling Gate. In the southwest is the Yuanhuang Gaochen Gate; in the southeast, the Shiyang Shengyuan Gate; in the northeast, the Lingtong Jinshang Gate; and in the northwest, the Jiuxian Fanxing Gate. Above is the Daluo Feifan Gate, and below, the Jiuling Huangzhen Gate.

Immortals travel to and fro in these places, recording the origins and particulars of good and evil. This passage appears in the Huanglu Jianwen.

The Great Lord of the Supreme Dao, a revered Daoist deity, once explained the Northern Lingtong Jinshang Gate, the Northwest Jiuxian Fanxing Gate, the Upper Daluo Feifan Gate, and the Lower Jiuling Huangzhen Gate as follows: Immortals pass between these portals, recording the origins and particulars of good and evil.

The Great Lord of the Supreme Dao told the True Lord of the Northern Spirit, a Daoist immortal: “Long ago, I withdrew to the northern heavens. Treading upon the canopy of flowers, I pushed the Nine Origins with my hands and rode out with the cloud officials, roaming the distant, secluded reaches of the north. I wandered freely in the Hall of Northern Yin and raced in my carriage through the Gate of Donghao. I gazed toward the Northern Dipper to summon the workings of Heaven, hastening the cycles of the kalpas and turning the celestial wheel. I watched all things decline, yet looked down upon Heaven and Earth and endured forever. In this way, I grasped the marvels of the starry array and understood the supreme subtlety of the Northern Dipper’s leading stars.” This passage appears in the Taishang Feixing Yuzhang.

The Nine-Heavens Dragon Book bears inscriptions describing three of the Nine Heavens’ passes.

The Court of Flowing Fire lies beneath the Dongyang Palace and extends eight hundred thousand li in each direction.

A Perfected One of the Upper Clarity crossed the Bright Gold Pool and ascended to the Radiant Floating Court, where he met the Jade Clarity Immortal Lord of Golden Radiance, the Eastern King and Master Wen of the Beginningless Way, a perfected being of the Jade Clarity realm. This passage appears in the Records of the Three Heavens.

The Lord of Longevity at the Southern Pole passed by the Golden Pool and entered the royal court to pay his respects. Along the way, he encountered the Heavenly King of Primordial Beginning, the Lofty Jade Emperor, and the Jade Youths of the Three Heavens, and dwelt with them in a cloud chamber. There, purple clouds formed the roofs, green mists the city walls, gold the halls, and white jade the pillars.

The Supreme Emperor pays homage to the True Gods.

The golden youth, an immortal attendant who serves the gods, raises the incense smoke, and the fragrance of a hundred harmonies, blended from many kinds of incense, appears. The Primordial Heavenly King, the Exalted Jade Emperor, and the Jade Youths of the Three Heavens dwell together among the cloud chambers: purple clouds form their houses, blue-green mists their city walls, gold their halls, and white jade their beams and pillars.

The Supreme Emperor’s Audience with the Perfected

The golden youth raises the incense smoke. The fragrance of a hundred harmonies mingles and drifts through the Purple Court, the dwelling place of immortals. He exhales the Sun’s Essence to dispel impurity and releases the Moon’s radiance to sweep away dust. This passage appears in the Essential Explanation of the Most High’s True Writings.

The Greatly Abundant Wondrous Court

This appears in the Scripture of Deliverance.

A Recitation of the Supreme Jade Clarity Golden Perfected

Two rays of light emerge from the void. The true form unites with the Seven Qi, and both feet tread upon a courtyard of colored glaze. This line appears in the Jade Clarity Scripture for Dispelling Demons.

The Measure of Governance and Refinement

This appears in the Great Cavern Jade Scripture.

The Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning lays out five-colored gold to form the altar, covers the ground with silver, and offers the Seven Treasures in sacrifice to the spirits. He transmits the Cavern Mystery Golden Book, the secret characters of the Purple Ultimate, and the Vermilion Chapters in Jade Script, and confers them upon the Supreme Lord of the Limitless Dao. This passage appears in the Illustrations of the Twenty-Four Lives.

The Elder of Primordial Beginning

The Elder of Primordial Beginning ascends to the Jade Void altar in the Purple Empyrean and receives the Registers of the Nine Heavens’ Treasures, the August Sovereign’s Treasure Scripture, the secret chapters of Jade Talismans, and the Jade Emperor’s registers. “Emptiness and brightness are my dwelling. Emptiness is where Heaven and Earth move and transform; brightness is where the spirits dwell.” This passage appears in the Wondrous Truth of Laozi.

The Waystation of the Immortals

This appears in the Scripture of Great Peace.

The Mysterious Residence of the Heavenly Governance

In the center of the grounds, build a structure seven stories high, six bays wide, and twelve zhang long. Above the two central bays, add another level, called the “Chongxuan Terrace.” Place a large incense burner on the terrace, five zhang high, and burn incense in it throughout the year so that the smoke never ceases. Five zhang to the north, build an Immortal Hall, with a room on each side, east and west, for entertaining the immortals.

Extend the main hall from its center to the east and west, forming a structure three bays wide and five rafters deep. The eastern side is the Yang Immortal Room; the western side is the Yin Immortal Room. Twelve zhang south of the Chongxu Supreme Mystery Terrace, near its southern edge, build a gate hall five bays wide and three rafters deep. In front of the main hall of the terrace, build a wing on each side, east and west, each five bays wide and five rafters deep. Call the eastern one the “Azure Ascension Room” and the western one “Myriad Blessings.”

One zhang from the terrace’s northern side, to the southwest of Chongxu, is a small chamber called the “Tongming libationer’s lodge.” Beneath the main terrace hall, at its western end, is a room with its door facing east. Set a seat and incense burner against the western wall. When the Celestial Master teaches, he always sits facing east. Taizhen Code

The Venerable of Primordial Beginning dwells in the Jade-Pure Heaven’s Qiongtian Palace. Guilu of Mount Gui

The Venerable of the Nine Heavens dwells in the Palace of Opening Clarity.

The Primordial Father of the Nine Heavens dwells in the Palace of Jade Treasures above the Nine Heavens.

The Mysterious Mother of the Nine Heavens dwells in the Palace of Jade Treasures and Mysterious Origins above the Nine Heavens.

The Venerable of the Three Heavens, the August Elder, dwells in the Palace of Golden Radiance in the Highest Clarity.

The Jade Youth of the Three Heavens dwells in the Palace of Cinnabar Brilliance in the Highest Clarity.

The Venerable of the Nine Empyreans dwells in the Palace of Layered Darkness in the Jade Clarity.

The True King of the Nine Empyreans dwells in the Palace of Phoenix Birth in the Jade Clarity.

The August Sovereign of Supreme Brightness of the Three Origins dwells in the Palace of Primordial Truth in the Highest Clarity.

The August Lord, Master of Ten Thousand Beginnings, dwells in the Palace of Golden Souls in the Highest Clarity.

The Lord of the August Sovereign dwells in the Palace of Vermilion Radiance in the Jade Clarity.

The Purple August Sovereign dwells in the Palace of Primordial Truth in the Highest Clarity.

The August Lord, Master of Ten Thousand Beginnings, dwells in the Palace of Golden Souls in the Highest Clarity.

The Lord of the August Sovereign dwells in the Palace of Vermilion Radiance in the Jade Clarity.

The Jade Emperor, August Elder of the Purple Void, dwells in the Palace of Primordial Essence in the Jade Clarity.

The Lord of the Grotto of Mysterious Emptiness and Great Truth dwells in the Great Elixir Residence of Jade Clarity.

The Master of Purple Emptiness, the Jade Emperor, Lord Purple Dawn, dwells in the Ninefold Residence of Great Clarity.

The Lord of Purple Numinous Threefold Origin and Purple Essence dwells in the Grotto Numinous Residence of Supreme Clarity.

The Lord, Heavenly Emperor of the Great Subtlety, dwells in the Eightfold Radiance Residence of Supreme Clarity.

The Lord of the Upper Origin, Great Simplicity, and Threefold Origin dwells in the Ninefold Mystery Residence of Supreme Clarity.

The Lords of the Three Simplicities dwell in the True Origin Residence of Supreme Clarity.

The Lord in the Midst of the Way, the Four Elders Above the Sovereign, dwells in the Converging Radiance Residence of Supreme Clarity.

The Great Dao Lord Above, Jade Dawn, dwells in the Sun Gate Residence of Supreme Clarity.

The Central Lord Lao dwells in the Golden Pearl Residence of Supreme Clarity.

The Lord of Purple Origin at the Beginning of the Sovereigns dwells in the Layered Chambers Residence of Supreme Clarity.

The Lord Above, True in the Center and Without Hero, dwells in the Purple Layered Residence of Jade Clarity.

The Sovereign Lord of Emptiness appears as the four seasons change. He dwells in the Cinnabar Jasper Residence, the Residence of Transformative Birth, the Vermilion Bird Residence, and the Phoenix Cry Residence.

The Lord of the Primordial Constellation dwells in the Radiant Splendor Residence.

The Sovereign Lord Above Emptiness dwells in the Northern Origin Residence.

The Lord of the Upper Origin dwells in the Eightfold Darkness Residence.

The Lord of the Primordial Womb dwells in the Phoenix Dance Residence.

The Lord of Jade Worthies dwells in the Numinous Communion Residence.

The Lord of Radiant Origin dwells in the Numinous Brilliance Residence.

The Lord of the Threefold Origin dwells in the Settled Subtlety Residence.

The Lord of True Constellations dwells in the Purple Birth Residence.

The Lord of Scattered Blossoms dwells in the Chief Origin Residence.

The Lord of the Eight Radiances dwells in the Grotto Clarity Residence.

The Lord of Jade Worthies dwells in the Numinous Communion Residence; the Lord of Radiant Origin dwells in the Numinous Brilliance Residence; the Lord of the Threefold Origin dwells in the Settled Subtlety Residence; the Lord of True Constellations dwells in the Purple Birth Residence; the Lord of Scattered Blossoms dwells in the Chief Origin Residence; and the Lord of the Eight Radiances dwells in the Grotto Clarity Residence.

The Lord of the Immortal Sovereigns dwells in the Sun Valley Residence.

The Lord in Charge of Prohibitions dwells in the Immortal Metropolis Residence.

The Immortal Mother dwells in the Ninefold Mystery Residence.

The Lord of the Blue Emperor dwells in the Ninefold Birth Residence; the Lord of the Red Emperor dwells in the Vermilion Mound Residence; the Lord of the White Emperor dwells in the Residence of Universal Origins; the Lord of the Black Emperor dwells in the Northern Yellow Residence; and the Lord of the Yellow Emperor dwells in the Lofty Sovereign Residence.

“The Chapter on Music and Dance of the Immortals,” Part Six

In heaven there is the “Grand Music of the Heavenly Jun” (the magnificent music of the celestial realm). Various instruments take turns playing, while many Perfect Consorts (female immortals of the celestial realm) sing together. In the Jade Capital (the heavenly paradise described in Daoism), the Four Heavenly Kings and many celestial attendants serve Laozi, presenting incense and flowers on his right. The heavenly musicians play as one, and the mournful sound of the horn resounds across the open sky.

Music can move the Qi of the six directions and eight extremities (the four quarters of heaven and earth and their farthest reaches). It can also set in motion twenty-five kinds of Qi, corresponding to east, west, south, and north, as well as the Heavenly Stems Jia, Yi, Bing, and Ding, each with its own proper domain. Music can therefore resonate with all things, harmonize Yin-Yang, order the four seasons, and balance the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water). To bring Yin-Yang into harmony, string instruments must be tuned by adjusting their strings according to the number nine repeated nine times.

On the zi day, the young woman Xuanshuang is skilled at playing the sheng; on the chou day, the young woman Huangzhen is skilled at playing the xiao; on the yin day, the young woman Youling is skilled at playing the qin and se; on the mao day, the young woman □□ is skilled at playing the zhu; on the chen day, the young woman Huangyou is skilled at playing the qin; on the si day, the young woman Yingdan is skilled at striking bells and chimes; on the wu day, the young woman Sima Xing is skilled at playing the xiao; on the wei day, the young woman Gongsun Wu is skilled at playing the flute; on the shen day, the young woman Zhenjin is skilled at performing the music of the nine tones; on the you day, the young woman □Yue is skilled at singing the songs of the six transformations; on the xu day, the young woman Changyun is skilled at imitating the cries of a hundred beasts; and on the hai day, the young woman Gongche Jian is skilled at composing new melodies for all under heaven.

When music is to be played, the Master first reports to Heaven. The Left Official then fetches the instruments and sends one instrument back among the clouds. Before the music has traveled even several dozen li, a sound of “Huang…” can already be heard (“Huang” is left unfinished in the text that follows). The text then mentions the Great Golden Perfect One, the Grass Immortals, and the assembled sages.

They pluck the strings to sound the melodies of the heavens, play among lions, and roam beside white qilin. Their bodies can transform into white cranes and fly through the sky, then into vermilion phoenixes soaring aloft. The music rings clear as the eight tones come together, shining with nine-colored radiance. Flutes, pipes, bells, and drums sound in unison, presenting countless marvelous performances of song and dance. Taishang Zishu Lu Xing

The Song, Dance, and Music of the Heavens

The Queen Mother of the West ordered her attendant Shi Gongzi to strike the gold of Kunting; her attendant Wan Jueqing to pluck the zither of Wuling; her attendant Fan Chengyan to strike the chime stones of Dongyin; her attendant Sheng Shuangcheng to play the sheng of Yunhe; her attendant Xu Feiqiong to sound the huang of Zhenling; and her attendant Yu Shanghua to play the gold instrument in the court. The records repeat the performances of Wan Jueqing, Fan Chengyan, Sheng Shuangcheng, and Xu Feiqiong. They also record Yu Shanghua playing the shu of Balang. Neizhuan of the Perfected of the Great Origin, the Three Mao Lords

The Purple Consort of Western Florescence and the Queen Mother of the West

The Purple Consort of Western Florescence and the Queen Mother of the West each ordered an attendant—Zhao Yun zi and Li Qingyu—to play the stones of Liujin. Shangqing

The Celestial Emperor Lord of Taiwei

The Celestial Emperor Lord of Taiwei ordered Cheng Ling, envoy of the Perfected of Taiwei, to play the music of the nine heavens. The original text is missing the names of the instruments played.

A Long Purification Retreat at Xuandu, Sounding Jade and Striking a Precious Jade Bell

During a long purification retreat at Xuandu, jade instruments are sounded and a bell of precious jade is struck. A long purification retreat is a Daoist ritual involving fasting and abstinence over an extended period.

The Azure Youth of Fangzhu

The Azure Youth of Fangzhu ordered the Jade Maiden of Donghua, Yanjingzhu, to strike the bell of Xiying. Neizhuan of the Inner Lord of Purple Void

The Sage Lord plucked the zither of Yungou. Its sound surged as though shaking every bone loose. With a plectrum made of precious jade, he played the music of the nine voids. The sound rang through the nine heavens, performing pieces such as “Hymn of the Great Grotto’s Divine Continent” and “Song of the Congealing Soul,” as well as singing mysterious verses. The heavenly harmonies are profound and subtle. Purple Writ

The Heavenly Worthy

The Heavenly Worthy ordered the Perfected Lady Jinghuang, the Golden Spirit Official of Western Florescence, to play the zither of the Five Mandates and the sheng of the Divine Continent. Kongdong Lingyi

The Lord of Taiwei

The Supreme Perfected of Taiwei commanded the emissary Wei Ling to raise the banners, whose golden fire bells gleamed. Five kinds of numinous light appeared in succession; the radiance of the Six Degrees was tranquil, and music from the eight directions blended in harmony as many melodies sounded together. The cloud ao, a jade or metal percussion instrument used in Daoist ritual, rang with a clear, pure tone, while the heavenly maidens played the luo zither.

The Jade Consort of Western Florescence ordered her attendant Wang Xian to strike the Eight-Lang zhu, a stringed instrument adorned with jade. The Jade Youth played a melody called “Proud”; the Immortal of Northern Florescence presented “Snow,” and the Lord Emperor played the “Jinglong Cloud Ao.” A hundred kinds of sound converged and rang through the Great Void like fine jade striking fine jade. The Emperor’s music surged forth, followed by the sound of the luo zither.

Winds from the eight directions met in mid-heaven, while five-colored immortal radiance encircled the four quarters. Images of the spirits appeared as the Gate of Luminous Jade opened, and wondrous music issued from the realm of the Great Cavern.

The Perfected of Taiji commanded the Jade Maiden Song Lianjuan, Bihan, to play the Nine-Qi jiao, an instrument or melody associated with the Nine Qi.

Why were the five sounds of nature so mournful? The divine phoenix flew through the jade forest as the immortal of the grasses stirred her feathered ornaments and displayed her bearing.

Tianyi beat the drum on the dark moon, the new moon, and the Eight Seasonal Nodes, summoning all the spirits. Those spirits whose names were absent from the registers would perish.

On the day of the Great Perfected of the Nine Heavens, the void drum sounded and the bells resounded, while clouds surged across the Nine Heavens.

When the Most High Jade Emperor Dao Lord received the Hidden Talisman of the Supreme Dao of Clear Highness and Limitless—the secret talisman of the Highest Clarity tradition—the jade drum thundered. Nine rays of light dimmed even the daylight.

The Emperor of Taiwei commanded Wei Ling to beat the blue-green drum and sound forth the mysterious music. It rang like gold and jade striking, like dragons roaring and tigers howling, like luan birds dancing and phoenixes calling, revealing the golden mystery of the Cavern-Sky realm.

The Perfected of Clear Emptiness commanded the Jade Maiden of Flying Mystery, Xianyu Lingjin, to play the Nine Golden Jade Nodes.

The tones of gong, shang, and the other notes intertwined and harmonized; their differing pitches combined to form music.

The Western Consort (an immortal consort of the West) kept the beat, while celestial maidens played the luo zither. The sounds of many instruments mingled and flourished, their melodious music echoing among the clouds. The Two Sovereigns quickened the rhythm; luan birds danced and phoenixes took flight. (Jade Pendants and Golden Bells Scripture)

The Heavenly True Emperor commanded the Mysterious Maiden to sing: “Immortal sages roam through the wondrous landscapes of the Mystery; from them arise soaring Brahmā-like tones.” (The Three Sovereigns)

Immortals played the Nine-Spirit flute, whose sound could carry more than thirty li. The central flute had forty-nine holes, and its bamboo tube was three chi and two cun long. When all nine flutes were played together, the hundred beasts danced to their music, and thousands of phoenixes flew in to join the harmony. The flute’s sound brought peace and beneficence.

The Purple Consort of Western Florescence recorded that the Queen Mother of the West ordered her attendant Zuo Baoke to play, while Han Longbin performed on the Phoenix-and-Luan flute. (Biographies of the Three Heavenly Lords of the Highest Mystery)

The Divine King of Fusang Yanggu commanded Jia Quwei, Mistress of the Cloud Grove, to play the Phoenix-Cries flute.

The Celestial Worthy commanded Jing Huangren to play the Nine-Phoenix flute.

When the Jade Sovereign of the Great One received the hidden talisman taught by the High and Clear Lord of the Way of Limitless Mystery, clouds of five colors surrounded the radiance. A dragon-patterned flute began to sound, accompanied by the beating of instruments by a patterned tiger. (Great Cavern of the True)

The Perfected One of the South Pole composed this verse: “Its ringing resounds across the peaks of the Mystery; the golden flute sets the qi of the eight directions in motion. Why not drink the spirit wine together and raise our eyes to admire the immortal realms of the nine directions?” (Songs of the Multitude of Perfected Ones)

The roars of dragons resounded ten thousandfold; the breath of tigers sounded, and luan birds and phoenixes sang together in harmony.

Dragon forms inscribed in nine patterns; a purple phoenix bearing a vermilion inscription.

The Heavenly Emperor of Taiwei held a banquet in the Jasper Chamber, singing wondrous verses about the immortal realm of Purple Void and letting delicate, far-reaching music echo through the realm of Great Mystery. (Cavern-Encompassing Scripture)

When the Heavenly King of Primordial Beginning taught the Lord of Fate of the South Pole the methods for transforming into seventy-four forms of Shangqing, they were in a cloud chamber. There, the Emperor of Wuying, the True Jade Lord of the Upper Origin of the Three Origins, sang the melody “Inner Chapter on the Transformation of the True Ones at the Gate of the Upper Origin”: “The qi of the Three Pure Ones flows through the Five Rivers; clouds coil around the Nine Ridges. The Vermilion Spirit opens the chamber of blue jade, and golden radiance illumines the clouds of the East.” Three stars shone brightly, illuminating the Lord of Fate of the South Pole.

The Immortals of Shangqing display seventy-four transformations in palaces among the clouds. At this time, the Emperor Lord Wuying of the Upper Origin, the True Jade of the Three Origins (the emperor of the celestial realm of the Upper Origin), chants the “Inner Chapter on the Transformations of the True Ones at the Cavern Gate of the Upper Origin.”

Three kinds of essence and Qi flow through five rivers, while cloud Qi encircles nine mountain ranges. Vermilion spiritual light opens the chambers of green jade, and golden radiance illuminates the clouds of the East. The sun, moon, and stars shine across the vast sky; jade gates connect to winding palaces. Spiritual Qi spreads beyond the nine heavens and gathers in the immortal court that has endured countless kalpas.

The Emperor Lord Huanglao of the Middle Origin (the emperor of the celestial realm of the Middle Origin) chants the “Inner Chapter on the True Ones’ Transformation in the Cavern of the Middle Origin”:

Three True Gods are arrayed high above, dividing into nine layers of cloud Qi. Jade chambers rise amid the Great Rosy Clouds, and the golden immortal realm stretches deep into the distance. A jade terrace hangs high in the mysterious heavens; essence and Qi flow, illuminating a purple canopy. True Qi gathers in the three Elixir Palaces (places where essence and Qi are stored and refined), while spiritual Qi spreads beyond the nine heavens.

The Emperor Lord Baiyuan of the Lower Origin (the emperor of the celestial realm of the Lower Origin) chants the “True Chapter on the Transformation of Spirituality in the Cavern of the Lower Origin”:

The palace towers of the Great Rosy Clouds rise high, their golden gates encircling nine tiers. Cinnabar-red radiance shines upon the jade heavens, and flying clouds gather among the beams of mysterious halls. Spiritual Qi spreads toward nine gates of the spirit, then divides into ten thousand palaces and courts of the Celestial Emperors. Transformation within the Cavern-Heavens forms a grotto of cinnabar spirit; the Qi of the Eight Radiances can carry people aloft to ascension. In the stillness, rosy clouds arise, then the ancestral court of the ten thousand immortals takes shape.

“Seventy-Four Methods of Shangqing Transformation”

The Purple Consort of Western Florescence (a purple-robed immortal woman of the Western Florescence realm) and the Queen Mother of the West (the revered sovereign of the female immortals)

Each commands one of four serving girls—Xin Baihe, Zheng Bifang, Yan Wanlai, and Tian Shuanglian—to chant one of the four “Songs of the High Immortals Longing to Roam the Cavern of the Spirit.” The songs say:

Jade chambers reflect the clouds of the East; a purple immortal brush appears in the crimson dawn. Splendid immortal terraces draw the eye, as if an immortal were hosting a banquet there for the flying spirits. A jade terrace stands high in the clouds, with golden immortal flowers surrounding a wondrous spirit carriage. The gates of the seven heavens reflect flowing rosy light, and dragonlike clouds rise from the jade chambers. With the left hand, one guides the Qi of the Three Simples; with the right, one strikes the ten thousand streams of spirit. Holding the Qi of the Eight Simples, one leaps up and drifts through empty space. The left hand holds a jade flower jeweled canopy; riding on moving light, one ascends to the Seven Origins. Layer upon layer, the high heavens shine with purple radiance, and wondrous scenes appear in every direction. The mysterious heart dwells among the Three Origins; during the year, there is also a time when…

“Chronicle of the Lords of the Three Upper Heavens of Shangqing”

The Most High (a Daoist honorific for the supreme deity)

They commanded Ji Yunmen and Tian Sifei, maidens serving the officials of Jade Clarity, to sing the “Song of the Mysterious and Transcendent Flight from the Treasure Cavern”: “Riding a carriage, I ascend into the distant, mysterious clouds. The feathered ornaments on the dragon carriage gleam above the Golden City. Flying mist circles the winding palaces, while a purple phoenix lights up the Jade Capital. Fragrance drifts with the flowing smoke, spreading thickly in all eight directions. I ride in a splendid carriage to the Chamber of Crimson Jade, hold the covenant token, and enter the Hall of Jade Reflections. In the upper realm, I summon the Immortal Maiden of Western Florescence; with a long cry, I send the command, call forth Golden Dawn, and make the layered dragons reveal their nine-colored patterns.” “The Purple Phoenix’s Red Writ”

The Great Ultimate Perfected One… “Fragrance drifts with the flowing smoke, spreading thickly in all eight directions. I ride in a splendid carriage to the Chamber of Crimson Jade, hold the covenant token, and enter the Hall of Jade Reflections. In the upper realm, I summon the Immortal Maiden of Western Florescence; with a long cry, I send the command, call forth Golden Dawn, and make the layered dragons reveal their nine-colored patterns.” “The Purple Phoenix’s Red Writ”

The Perfected One of the Great Ultimate sang: “Crimson radiance shines brightly, illuminating Supreme Clarity; winds from the eight directions scatter the Great Rosy Clouds. I reach upward to gather the Sun’s vital essence and bend down to drink the radiance of the yellow Moon. A wondrous vision appears in the open sky; the Great Dao is vast and boundless, with no crooked path to be found.”

The Lord of the Green Lad of Fangzhu sang: “The Great Rosy Clouds sweep out divine light; the nine kinds of primordial Qi shift without end. I drive a dark carriage beyond the clouds and rise high, borne by the Qi of the Eight Radiances. I take the Jade Emperor by the sleeve, and he brings me forth at dawn. Looking back toward the place of the Seven Luminaries—the Sun, Moon, and five planets—I see a realm mysterious and profound, dark and unfathomable. Son of the Wei family, rise! Your name is already written in the Golden Register and proclaimed among the ranks of the immortals.”

The Divine King of Fusang said: “At dawn, the hall of the Great Emperor opens, and nine dragons set out together to draw his carriage.”

The Perfected One of Clear Emptiness sang: “I guide my carriage through the realm of Clear Emptiness, roaming among the Four Flower Pavilions. Wheels of jade turn with the morning light; tiger-shaped Qi pursues the mist and scatters. Auspicious winds stir the red banners, and brilliant radiance shines in every direction. I hold the light of the scene as though grasping the branches of a tree, while nine strings resound in the mysterious realm. You have left me the old affairs of many lifetimes, allowing me to lay down a thousand years of sighs.” “Inner Tradition of the Primordial Sovereign of Purple Emptiness”

The Queen Mother.

The Maidservant’s Fate Is Hard and Poor; Li Longsun Sings Two “Songs of Mysterious Clouds”:

“Heaven and Earth stretch vast and boundless; I hold the gates of Heaven and Earth in my grasp. Clad in cloud Qi, I wander through the immortal realms in all eight directions, reaching the six worlds in the blink of an eye. Within the Three Origins, I nurture the spirit; beneath the celestial gates in the six quarters, I absorb Jing and Qi. Then I mount a carriage formed by ten thousand dragons and descend to a place where phoenixes wheel above, overlooking the Nine Provinces. The Mysterious Garden lies beyond the Northern Terrace, while five immortal cities rise in lofty splendor. I open the boundless ford and sail upon the River of the Weaving Maiden. I ascend into the Crimson Court, abode of the immortals, and descend to wander beside the Sun Cave. Looking back beyond the Northern Encampment, I point out the rosy clouds in the ninefold sky. In stillness, I reflect and resonate with the Qi of harmony and balance; thus I sing this wondrous song of mystery and quietude.”

Inner Traditions of Lord Mao

The Jade Maiden’s figure is graceful and lovely as she dances; light and airy, she moves with composure.

Scripture of Mount Jade Capital

Scripture of the Treasures of the Dao of Highest Clarity, volume three, ends.

Scripture of the Treasures of the Dao of Highest Clarity, volume four

Chapter Seven: Regulations for Carriages and Processions

The Nine-Dragon Carriage

Jade Capital (the celestial realm of immortals in Daoist belief).

When a purification rite is performed and the Dao is invoked, the Four Heavenly Emperors all ride green carriages drawn by flying dragons and jade chariots adorned with the Eight Radiances. Perfected Ones and Jade Maidens accompany them. They hold splendid banners; phoenixes lead the way, singing as they go, while celestial music follows behind. White cranes and lions accompany them, their whistles and songs ringing out in harmonious, lilting tones. Incense is burned and flowers are scattered during the rite, as those gathered watch and listen to the wondrous sounds of the celestial realm.

Great Proclamation of Lingbao

The Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning turns back his jade carriage.

Yellow banners summon wind and clouds, clearing the ritual grounds in the Five Directions.

The great sages of the heavens and the Perfected Ones of lofty cultivation all ride jade carriages of flowing radiance and flying clouds, their color that of emerald clouds, drawn by nine numinous spirits.

Red Writ

The Lord of the Great Dao Most High.

At first, the practitioner rides a chariot of the First Radiance, borne by purple clouds formed from eight layers of plain clouds. Leading the Cang Emperor of Subtle Absence, they travel east together to the Heaven of the Jade Terrace, where they pay their respects to the Supreme Lord, the Jade-Clear Purple Way, Emptiness Emperor, and receive the Hidden Talisman of the Nine Radiances and Great Dawn.

Next, they ride a chariot of the Second Radiance, borne by crimson clouds formed from seven layers of plain clouds. Leading the Red Emperor of Central Subtlety, they travel south to the Southern Peach and Dragon Net Heaven, where they pay their respects to the Jade-Clear Winged Traveler. They then go to the Heaven of the Jade Terrace to pay their respects to the Supreme Lord, the Jade-Clear Purple Way, Emptiness Emperor, and receive the Hidden Talisman of the Nine Radiances and Great Dawn.

Next, they again ride a chariot of the Second Radiance, borne by crimson clouds formed from seven layers of plain clouds. Leading the Red Emperor of Central Subtlety, they travel south to the Southern Peach and Dragon Net Heaven, where they pay their respects to the Jade-Clear Winged Sun, Emptiness Emperor, and Lord of the Way, and receive the Hidden Talisman of the Dawn of Beholding the Numinous.

Next, they ride a chariot of the Third Radiance, borne by red clouds formed from six layers of plain clouds. Leading the White Emperor of Purple Subtlety, they travel northwest to the Heaven of Emerald Firmament and Empty Song, where they pay their respects to the Jade-Clear Lord of Flourishing Yang, Primordial Emptiness, and High Origin, and receive the Hidden Talisman of the Nine Poles of Total Dawn.

Next, they ride a chariot of the Fourth Radiance, borne by azure clouds formed from five layers of plain clouds. Leading the Black Emperor of Dark Subtlety, they travel north to pay their respects to the Jade-Clear Lord of Sevenfold Stillness, Guidance, and Life, the High Emptiness Emperor, and receive the Hidden Talisman of Obscure Radiance and the Revolving Root.

Next, they ride a chariot of the Fifth Radiance, borne by yellow clouds formed from four layers of plain clouds. Leading the Supreme Emperor of Primordial Subtlety, they travel northeast to the Heaven of Floating Luo, Canopy of Hua, and Support of the Blade, where they pay their respects to the Jade-Clear Lord of Great Brightness, Emptiness Emperor, and Cavernous Clarity, and receive the Hidden Talisman of Dark Radiance and the Dawn-Tusk.

Next, they ride a chariot of the Sixth Radiance, borne by green clouds formed from three layers of plain clouds. Leading the Central Emperor of Numinous Subtlety, they travel southeast to the Heaven of Primordial Silence, where they pay their respects to the Jade-Clear Lord of Primordial Beginning, Emptiness Emperor, and Great Empyrean, and receive the Hidden Talisman of Joined Radiance and the Dawn Mandate.

Next, they ride a chariot of the Seventh Radiance, borne by purple clouds formed from two layers of plain clouds. Leading the Emperor Below, they travel southwest to the Heaven of Rushing Vastness and Flourishing Vapors, where they pay their respects to the Jade-Clear Lord of Sevenfold Vision, Unborn Emptiness Emperor, and Golden Numinous One, and receive the Hidden Talisman of High Radiance and Dawn Mystery. The text then again records that they ride purple clouds formed from two layers of plain clouds, leading the Emperor Below southwest to the same place, where they pay their respects to the same revered deity and receive the same talisman.

Next, they ride a chariot of the Eighth Radiance, borne by numinous clouds formed from one layer of plain clouds. Leading the True Emperor of Cavernous Subtlety, they travel northwest to pay their respects to the Jade-Clear Lord of Eightfold Vision, High Nonbeing, Emptiness Emperor, and Still Radiance, and receive the High Lord’s Dragon-Mist Talisman.

Finally, they ride a jade chariot of Cavernous Radiance, borne by the brilliance of Great Rosy Clouds, Purple Mist, and Dark Radiance. Leading the Inner Emperor of the Nine Subtleties and the many perfected kings of the Nine Mysterious Heavens of the August Sovereign, they ascend together in reverence to the Cloud Root Capital of Mifanluo Terrace and Empyrean, the Utmost Liao Mound, and Flying Origin. They arrive at the Upper Heaven of Jade-Clear, pay their respects to the Jade-Clear Purple Radiance, Supreme Jade Emperor, Bright One, and Great Lord of the Way, and receive the Hidden Talisman of the High Clear, Great Non-Ultimate, Supreme Lord of the Way.

This passage describes the practitioner’s gradual ascent: riding chariots and clouds, summoning and accompanying imperial deities, ascending through the heavens, paying respects to perfected beings, and receiving secret talismans. “Hidden talisman” refers to a secret talisman transmitted in Daoism; “radiance” and “plain clouds” are terms the scripture uses to describe sacred vehicles and clouds.

The Great Spirit, the White Jade Queen Mother, who has attained the Dao, is a revered deity in Daoism. She rides in a carriage with a nine-tiered canopy, guarded by cloud dragons at her sides. Immortal youths are arrayed before her and jade maidens behind. Flower scatterers follow on the left, and incense bearers on the right. This passage comes from the Hidden Book of the Upper Clarity: Dragon Script.

The Great Lord of the Azure Youth of Fangzhu in the Eastern Sea, a revered deity associated with Fangzhu in the Eastern Sea and dwelling in the east, purified his heart and observed ritual abstinence. After cultivating for three years in the Spirit Pavilion, the Cinnabar Gate, and the Yellow Chamber, he rode in the cloud carriage of the Three Spirits and Flowing Radiance amid emerald clouds. This passage comes from the Book of the Numinous Writings.

On the first day of the ninth month in the first year of the Upper Sovereign, the Lord of the Great Dao, a revered deity in Daoism, traveled west to Dragon Cavern Mountain in the Jade Realm. The Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning arrived in a carriage of emerald clouds and green jade, and the gods and spirits of the heavens rejoiced and leapt for joy. This passage comes from the Golden Register’s Brief Text.

The great gods of the heavens, the holy Celestial Worthies, the emperors, and the lofty immortals and perfected beings each observe abstinence, practice the Dao, and honor the Supreme Void Emperor. On days of ritual abstinence, they ride together in the flying-dragon cloud carriage of the Eight Effulgences and assemble at the Supreme Mysterious Capital. The Ninefold Numinous Perfected One of Jade Capital recites the Dao: “The dragon robe sweeps across the heights of the clouds; the tiger command gathers in the Vermilion troops.” This passage comes from the Classic of Jade Capital Mountain.

The carriage of the mottled dragon is the carriage of the Eight Paths of Radiance. The carriage of dark splendor and green jade reveals the golden perfection and jade radiance. The crimson carriage of cinnabar clouds belongs to the Lord Emperor of Great Tenuity.

The Lord Emperor of Great Tenuity commanded the Supreme Perfected Ones of Great Tenuity to assist Wei Ling in putting armor in order and sharpening weapons. They then ascended the Eight-Jade Writing Brush. The Numinous Text of the Great Rosy Clouds Division says: “Let the Five Emperors, whose lights join at dawn on the seventh day, drive away the yang essence of Great Jia. Let the Eight Su open the carriage, and let dark steel cut down the evil of weapons. The feathered canopy hangs suspended in the air; ten thousand riders gather in the clouds. Poisonous dragons guard the carriage, and flying mists encircle the jade brush.” This passage comes from the Golden Mystery.

After reciting the Chapter of Great Empyrean, open it three times, and it will naturally become clear. Clouds descend and circle without dispersing; then, from the void, a carriage of flying rosy clouds is sent forth. This passage comes from the Jade Book of the Great Empyrean.

The Jade Maiden of Night Radiance wears garments green as the cloud forests. Riding in a spirit carriage, she sets out to visit a perfected one and flies across the Celestial River. Five Talismans

She suddenly encounters the King of Fusang.

The Perfected Ones of the Nine Immortal Capitals inspect and verify her. They ride in a purple carriage, their faces exceptionally radiant. Song of the Multitudes of Perfected Ones

The Eight Radiances carriage circles back and forth. The Jade Carriage is ridden by Lord Azure Lad.

He rides in a carriage adorned with jade carvings, steering cloud vapors like round pearls. He ascends the mountain of cloud waves and enters the Chamber of Eastern Florescence. The Great Cavern Jade Scripture says: “Master of Ten Thousand Florescences rides upon the radiance of the Three Su, in a carriage of feather-brightness. He ascends north to the peak of High Origin and rests in the Hall of Ten Thousand Florescences.”

The Supreme Emperor-King, True Earl of the Forbidden

He often rides a carriage adorned with the sun and moon, ascending layer upon layer of remote, secluded mountains.

Immortals

Their feet hang suspended in the air, and they hold bright clouds in their hands.

Spirits of the Three Origins

They drive purple cloud carriages, wandering through the heavens amid the palaces and towers of the cloud realm.

Flowing-Cloud Cinnabar Carriage

The flying carriage of the Three Su enters my Eight Gates; from this, one can know the workings of the laws governing life and death.

The Green Carriage enters my Mysterious Gate. The Perfected One of Mysterious Unity chants:

“The hidden scripture of Great Cinnabar circles among the mists and clouds of the eight directions. Riding a carriage drawn by dragons, it soars up through the nine heavens.”

Those of Feather Brightness

This is the carriage of the Celestial Beings of Shangqing. The Great Cavern Jade Scripture

Primordial Lord of Taiji

He rides a light, nimble feather carriage and dwells in leisure within the Shangqing Palace.

Queen Mother of the Golden Terrace

She sends the Consort of the Western Numen, the Jade Maiden of Great Florescence, and three hundred others in twenty-four phoenix carriages to the Golden Tower, where they receive the Celestial Books and ascend to the Upper Palace of Yuqing.

After reciting the thirty-nine chapters of the Great Cavern Scripture of Reality ten thousand times, the Yellow Elder Lord of the Center reports to the Most High. The Most High commands the carriage of the Cinnabar Proclamation to set out, and sends the Nine Numinous Messengers and the Director of Fate, Taiyi, to welcome you.

Spirits of the Six Jia

On the days of the Eight Seasonal Nodes, they ride white-luan carriages and drive black phoenixes, feasting and wandering at Changyang. Reflected in the light of the sun and moon, they travel among the divine mountains of the eight directions. The Most High Taiji Green Radiance Scripture

The Lord of the Dao rides in a carriage adorned with pearls and jade, its wheels fashioned from soaring serpents. Laozi’s Passage Through the Storehouse

The Azure Youth of the Eastern Sea rides in a flying-wheel carriage made of a single sheet of paper. Reflected in its passage, the sights unfold as he tours the eight directions and their sacred mountains. Taishang Taiji Lujing Zhen

The Lord of the Dao rides in a carriage adorned with pearls and jade, its wheels fashioned from soaring serpents. Laozi’s Passage Through the Storehouse

The Azure Youth of the Eastern Sea rides in a flying-wheel carriage made of a single sheet of paper, inspecting Xiangdong Mountain. Inner Traditions of Lord Mao

A flying tortoise carriage of dark clouds; an azure cloud carriage; a five-colored cloud carriage; a carriage of red cloud Qi; a purple cloud carriage; and a white cloud carriage. Hanguang Yuzhen

The Most High Primordial Venerable transmits the Numinous Chart of Nature and The Fourteen Lives of Unity. He commands the immortals of the eight scenic realms within the grotto heavens, as well as the hosts of the Celestial Immortals, Earth Immortals, Perfected Ones, and Spirit People who transcend the limits of life. He also commands the hosts of the gods of the sun, moon, and stars; the Nine Palaces; the Five Emperors; the Five Sacred Peaks; the Three Rivers; and the Four Seas. Each host numbers nine hundred million riders. There are also riders of golden dragons, flying dragons, dragon clouds, dragons and tigers, and soaring dragons, each host numbering nine hundred million. He bestows these forces upon the Most High Lord of the Dao. Twenty-Four Lives

Thirty-six thousand Red Youth riders, carrying iron staffs, patrol the world and seize those who have committed the grave Five Rebellious Crimes. Dongyuan

The Perfected One of Wondrous Practice and countless others ride in a flying carriage of cloud, crimson heavens, and green jade, with wheels of precious stone.

The Supreme Sage, the Great Lord of the Dao, together with the High Jade Emperor and the Perfected Ones of the ten directions, rides in a five-colored jade carriage. Spirit consorts—female immortals—scatter flowers, while golden youths raise clouds of incense. The company proceeds beneath the Golden Gate of the Primordial Beginning to request the transmission of the True Writings, Daoist scriptures passed down in secret. Red Writ

A poem by the Lady of the Purple Origin of the Southern Pole:

I set in motion the jade-brocade wheels of my carriage,

and stir the reins as I gaze upward, lingering.

Radiant light and clear rosy clouds shimmer in wondrous splendor;

eight dragons race side by side, each in a different pose.

Songs of the Multitude of Perfected Ones

A flying tortoise with purple wheels. Yuanlu

Laozi drives a carriage with a luminous canopy.

Countless Perfected Immortals from the distant lands in the four directions gathered in the stone chamber of Crane-Crying Mountain. They arranged seats formed naturally by the mountain and spread canopies adorned with golden lotuses above the assembled Perfected Ones. All rose into the air together, riding flying dragons beneath their canopies. (From The Inner Biography of the Immortal Lord)

The Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning, together with the great sages of the heavens, the Perfected Ones of the ten directions, the limitless Divine Kings, and the Celestial, Flying, and Earth Immortals, the Perfected Ones of the Five Emperors, and others, rode in a jade carriage adorned with the auspicious splendor of the Eight Sceneries. They traveled upon the Three-Color Flying Clouds, with wheels like carved jade and a canopy decorated with feathers, their bodies shining with five-colored radiance. (From The Wondrous Chapters)

They wore crescent-shaped canopies and were bestowed with jade fungus, a spirit fungus of the immortals, and the Hidden-Repelling Flower.

The Lord of the Dao Supreme High traveled west to Dragon Cave Mountain at Jade Gate. The Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning arrived riding the Three-Color Flying Clouds beneath a feathered canopy of the immortals. (From The Golden Register’s Brief Text)

Dark clouds and purple canopies; purple writings and golden handles.

Chapter Eight: Taking and Consuming

Immortals in the clouds and feathered visitors—those who cultivate the Dao and attain immortality—nourish life by feeding on rosy mists and practicing breath circulation.

The Numinous Pass governs the Three Origins: Heaven, Earth, and Water. Jing and Qi transform and coalesce into the Five Spirits; through nine rounds of refinement, they form an immortal embryo like carved jade. Gather Qi to attain immortality, and take elixirs with care, employing the Nine Numinous Powers. Quiet the mind and visualize the divine spirits descending to the Jade Pavilion; the level roads of the eight directions and the heights of the four gates all lie open.

Take the divine elixir and refine life with the Five Minerals, nourishing the spirits within the body. Cherish the five sense organs and cultivate yourself into a Perfected One of the Nine Palaces.

The Five-Cloud Fungi flourish and thrive; their wondrous radiance pours forth a jade-like light. Saliva gathers and fills the Abode of Numinous Mystery. The spirit-mind travels between the palaces of the sun and moon. Five-colored radiance harmonizes body and mind, bringing true thoughts down to the Jade Pavilion; the level roads of the eight directions and the heights of the four gates all lie open.

Take the divine elixir and refine life with the Five Minerals, nourishing the spirits within the body. Cherish the five sense organs and cultivate yourself into a Perfected One of the Nine Palaces.

The Five-Cloud Fungi flourish and thrive; their wondrous radiance pours forth a jade-like light. Saliva gathers and fills the Abode of Numinous Mystery. The spirit-mind travels between the palaces of the sun and moon, while five-colored radiance harmonizes the thoughts of the High Perfected Ones. Its light shines throughout the celestial realms in the ten directions, without the slightest weariness in each breath. It is as though flying celestial spirits accompany the golden Dharma body, guiding the practitioner in circulating Qi and nurturing numinous energy until its wondrous nourishment fills the six viscera.

According to the method in the Twenty-Four Life Diagrams for “practicing the Nine Mornings’ Illumination of the Muddy Pellet in the Inner Chamber,” gather in and restrain the hun and po souls, and subdue the various evil spirits. The Qi of the Immortals descends upon the sleeping chamber. This is what is meant by guiding the power of the Three Lights and Nine Stars to shine upon the hundred spirits. The Great One, the Sovereign Lord, and the Heavenly Demons transform together.

Gather the airy, calm, and harmonious Qi (vital energy). Inhale and exhale saliva like clouds and rosy mists, and use fetal breathing—slow and gentle, like that of an infant in the womb—to quiet every joint in the body. In deep stillness, investigate the Way of the “Three Conveniences.”

In the womb, a fetus exhales Yin Qi and inhales Yang Qi, nourishing its nature with the Qi within. The Taiping records: “Qi is the vessel on which the spirit depends, and the root of clear and turbid Qi.”

Inhaling the Qi of the Mysterious Root—the Daoist term for primordial Qi—can bring clarity to the spirit and sharpen the senses. The body then shines like sunlight; saliva on the face is like jade; bright radiance appears in the eyes; and the teeth hold purple Qi. The essentials of cultivation lie in the Golden Nectar, a name for precious spiritual fluid; its subtlety lies in Water-Jade, a name for pure spiritual fluid. What is called breathing in and out means following the natural Qi of Great Harmony and regulating the Nine Essences—the subtle energies that constitute the human body and the cosmos.

Consuming Qi can bring longevity and keep one’s appearance youthful. Five Talismans

The Five Primordial Qi—the five kinds of primordial Qi in Daoist teaching—gather from the heavens at the Upper Palace of the Mysterious Capital on Mount Jade of Lingbao. When the sun first rises, the light of the Primordial Beginning spreads out and flows through the heavens. Its Qi swirls in mist; its light is warm and lustrous. Its essence is like a pearl of the moon, its radiance like a purple mountain. It pours down to the roots of the practitioner’s “Five Teeth”—the five directional essences visualized and gathered through meditation or breathing—and gathers above in the Upper Palace. The assembled sages and great wise perfected beings absorb its radiance and live as long as Heaven. Jade Sleeves of Lingbao

The Method of Feeding on the Teeth: At each of the Eight Seasonal Nodes—Beginning of Spring, Spring Equinox, Beginning of Summer, Summer Solstice, Beginning of Autumn, Autumn Equinox, Beginning of Winter, and Winter Solstice—enter a quiet chamber, observe purification and abstinence, and visualize the Five Elders, divine beings who represent the five directions. After eight years of practice, immortal officials and jade maidens will attend and protect you. Your body will shine with light that illuminates the ten directions; the Five Emperors will bow to you, and divine officers from the Three Realms will come to welcome you.

The Five Immortals: Jade fungus grows in the depths of the Mysterious Realm. Illustrated Chart of the Twenty-Four Births

Frequently visualize a great sun within the spleen.

Within the sun stands a golden tower, and inside it are hidden scriptures. Beside them is a golden seal, three characters wide and three characters long. When the sun’s radiant power appears, the practitioner who visualizes it can see and read these words. At that moment, the mind and spirit become clear and the eyes bright, enabling one to become an immortal. This account is titled “Laozi Contemplating Heaven.”

Visualize a yellow field within the stomach. In the field is something pure white, like solidified fat, containing yellow Qi. Send it into the mouth and swallow it, and a feeling of fullness will arise. The “yellow field” is the Great Granary, another name for the stomach. The gods eat there; the field also contains a yellow lightning cauldron and food. Attendants such as jade maidens and young boys await commands and call out, “Son of the Yellow Emperor, the kitchen that brings the meal has arrived.”

Guide the breath upward and downward in nine cycles. After twelve days of practice, the body will feel lighter; after eighteen days, there will be some effect; after thirty-six days, the practice will be fully accomplished; after eighty days, the head and face will shine; after one hundred and twenty days, one will become a perfected person.

Burn incense, enter a quiet chamber, sit upright facing south, hold the breath, knock the teeth together twenty-four times, and perform the visualization according to the method. Visualize Li above the head, Kan below the navel, Kun in the left hand, Xun in the right hand, Qian below the left foot, and Gen below the right foot. Dui is below the left side of the ribs, and Zhen below the right. Each of the Eight Trigrams has an image; within each image is Qi, and within the Qi is spirit. Spirit beings and light fill all eight directions, while the mouth breathes forth the Qi of life.

In spring, Zhen governs and generates Fire; in summer, Li governs and generates Earth; in autumn, Dui governs and generates Water; in winter, Kan governs and generates Wood. During the four seasons, Qian, Kun, Gen, and Xun take turns governing and generate Metal, rotating with the months: Xun governs the third month, Kun the sixth, Qian the ninth, and Gen the twelfth.

The method for swallowing Qi from the eight directions is as follows: in the spring months of Yin and Mao, first inhale Zhen Qi and swallow three times; then blow upward nine times. Next, inhale Xun Qi four times and Kun Qi twice; then blow out Qian Qi six times. After that, inhale Gen Qi eight times, Dui Qi seven times, and Kan Qi once. When finished, knock the teeth together thirty-six times and massage the limbs and body. Practice should be undertaken during a period of pure fasting. Each day, at three or six appointed times, pay homage to the Supreme One of the Eight Su (a Daoist deity and a designation associated with related scriptures and ritual methods).

Morning and evening

When reciting the day names “Jiazi, Yichou, Bingyin, Dingmao, and Wuchen,” face Chen, the southeast. Lightly tap the roof of your mouth with your tongue, tap your teeth thirty-six times, then rub your limbs and body. During practice, observe a pure fast and, at three or six chosen times of the day, pay homage to the Supreme One’s Eight Su.

Recite the day names “Jiazi, Yichou, Bingyin, Dingmao, and Wuchen” morning and evening, facing Chen, and tap your teeth as described above. Then stir the saliva in your mouth with your tongue and spread it throughout your mouth. Rinse three times, then swallow once; repeat until you have swallowed three times in all. Next, recite “Lower Zhen, Six Jia” as described earlier, swallowing thirty times in all to take in the essence of the saliva. Here, “Golden Beam” refers to the tongue, “Jade Gate” to the teeth, and “Sweet Spring,” “Cinnabar Pool,” and “Dew Drops” all refer to saliva. This is a method of ingesting Qi, a practice involving regulated breathing, visualization, and swallowing saliva.

In the morning, absorb the Qi of the five-colored auspicious clouds; in the evening, absorb the radiance of the Three Luminaries.

The Great Dao is mysterious and subtle, without form or image.

It stirs and transforms, manifesting as Three Spirits. In the morning, draw in the essence of the Five Stars and absorb the Sun’s saliva through the mouth; in the evening, consume the essence of the Yellow Moon, and before sleep cultivate the Five Immortals externally.

Consume the Sun’s essence, and you will attain long life.

Practice between sunrise and noon on the first, third, fifth, seventh, and ninth days of each month, and on the fifteenth. First visualize a Sun within your heart, with a black canopy above it and a small child, red all over, below. Red Qi fills the body through its nine layers. Visualize this Qi filling your head, rising from the crown to Heaven, then circling the Sun nine times. Next recite the incantation: “Sun Lord, primordial Yang, return to the crimson words. Join your De with mine, and together nourish the child.” Then visualize the Sun’s essence flowing down, entering through your nose, and swallow it twenty-seven times. Afterward, visualize three spirits appearing in your heart: Father Taiyi on the left, Mother Mysterious Radiance on the right, and the Red Child in the center. They sit on a golden bed and jade couch, holding jade objects and cups. Then visualize jade essence, divine wine, and Heavenly Zhi grass appearing, and consume them. The scripture states that this practice can grant long life.

Practicing in this way can lead to longevity. At midnight on the fifteenth day of each month, face the moon, bow twice, and recite the incantation: “Radiant Lord of the Moon, please return to my Dantian (the cultivation center within the abdomen). Become one with me, sharing the same De, and together nurture the child within me.” Visualize the moon’s pure white Jing entering through your nose and mouth, and swallow twenty-one times. When the moon’s Jing is lodged at the root of the kidneys, you can attain longevity.

Absorbing the Jing of the Stars

From there, ascend to the Great Clarity (Taiqing), the lofty celestial realm of Daoism. At sunrise, dusk, noon, and midnight, gaze upward in your mind at the Great Yellow Star at the North Pole and recite the incantation: “Supreme Lord of the Way, Eternal and Exalted in the Celestial Heavens, I am your descendant, a humble Daoist priest. May I attain longevity.” Then visualize the stars.

Absorbing the Jing of the Stars

From there, ascend to the Great Clarity. At sunrise, dusk, noon, and midnight, gaze upward in your mind at the Great Yellow Star at the North Pole and recite the incantation: “Supreme Lord of the Way, Eternal and Exalted in the Celestial Heavens, I am your descendant, a humble Daoist priest. May I attain longevity.” Visualize the stars’ Jing descending to the space between your eyebrows, then flowing into your nose and mouth. Swallow fifteen times. In this way, Qi fills the heart, gallbladder, and spleen. The Dao Mother within the spleen presides over the nurturing of the Red Child, a symbolic figure in cultivation, and you can attain longevity.

The Flying Boat Named Frost

Clouds and water are boiled and refined, congealing into vermilion jade and fresh gold; the flames of the nine furnaces rise into the heavens. The cultivator thereby ascends to the Nine Heavens and passes beyond Xuanzhou, an immortal realm, traveling among the Nine Palaces, yet has not attained the gateway of the Perfected One—the level of cultivation at which one becomes a Perfected One. This account appears in the Eight Su.

Nine Grades of Immortal Elixirs

First, the liquor of the naturally formed Dragon Embryo of Great Harmony; second, the salve of jade delicacies and jade nectar; third, the flowing Jing of the purple radiance of the Flying Boat; fourth, the essence of fragrant radiance and cloudlike jade green; fifth, the divine elixir of rainbow radiance from the Nine Springs; sixth, the brilliance of clear Golden Liquid; seventh, the elixir of snow and frost refined through nine cycles; eighth, the cloud essence of the Nine Cauldrons; ninth, cloud radiance, water, and stone.

Among these, Flowing Flight, Dragon Embryo, and Flying Elixir belong to the highest grade; Unradiant Spring and Great Clarity belong to the middle grade; Nine Cycles, Nine Cauldrons, and Cloud Radiance belong to the lowest grade.

Supreme Eightfold Radiance Purple-Fluid Divine Elixir

This elixir also has several names: Purple Flower of the Four Medicines, Purple Jade Essence of Subtle Fire, Flower Elixir of the Five Pearls, and Crimson-Born Morning Radiance. Unradiant Spring and Great Clarity belong to the middle grade; Nine Cycles, Nine Cauldrons, and Cloud Radiance belong to the lowest grade.

Supreme Eightfold Radiance Purple-Fluid Divine Elixir

Some elixirs are called “Four Medicines of Purple Flower”; others are named “Purple Jade Blossom of Subtle Fire,” “Five-Pearl Flower Elixir,” “Crimson-Born Morning Blossom,” “Three-Blossom Supreme Spirit Elixir,” “Supreme Great Flying Hardness,” or “Nine-Spirit Supreme Elixir”—eight kinds in all. (Among the Nine Truths)

Nine Elixirs

The “Nine Elixirs” refers to nine kinds of elixir, each with its own name, much like the Nine Prescriptions. Taking them is said to grant life for ten thousand generations. The first is called the Nine-Blossom Elixir, the second the Spirit Talisman Elixir, the third the Dragon Elixir, the fourth the Reverted Elixir, the fifth the Ingested Elixir, the name of the sixth is missing, the seventh is the Deep Elixir, the eighth the Subdued Elixir, and the ninth the Cold Elixir. (Scripture of the Nine Elixirs of the Nine Turns of the Immortals, Transmitted by the Perfected)

Eight Ways of the Central Yellow

The Eight Ways of the Central Yellow records secret methods of the Immortal Way, including Golden Books and Purple Writings, Nine-Turn Frost and Snow, Langgan Flower Elixir, Returning-White Jade Wine, Golden Liquid and Flowing Essence, Jade Grove Blossoming, and the Water of the Sun and Moon. These are all cultivation methods said to enable a person to ascend to immortality in broad daylight and rise to heaven. They originated with the Lord Sovereign and are kept at the Jade Terrace, the abode of immortals. Without a True Register, the credential conferring the immortal arts, one cannot obtain these methods.

Langqie Yuhua

The Liquid of the Seven-Yang Sun Infant and Nine-Lin, the Essence of Eight Qiong, Four-Stamen Purple Syrup, Five-Lin Crimson-Born, Three-Blossom Flying Hardness, Twin-Pearl Moonlight, Orchid-Fat Golden Embryo, Jade Bottle of Sweet Dew, Qingjian Turning Luo, Drifting Zhi and Flowing Spirit, Divine Beam Elixir Powder, Xuan’e Entwined Coils, Lang Root Morning Blossoms, and Yellow Emperor Plain Abundance are names of numinous medicines, immortal liquids, or elixir methods listed in the scripture. Practicing these methods is said to allow one to rise through the highest heavens and fly into the Jade Clarity Heaven. By breathing in the qi of true spirits, then transforming body and mind through the method of rinsing and refining, one can enter the Imperial Court, that is, Great Grotto Mountain. The original repeats the passage from “Qingjian Turning Luo” through “Yellow Emperor Plain Abundance.”

Flying Through Emptiness, Traversing the Hollow, the Yang Palace and Flowing-Fire Court

This describes ascending through the void, entering the hollow, and proceeding to the Yang Palace and Flowing-Fire Court, an abode of immortals. There are blazing radiances within, as well as a mysterious elixir that forms naturally after eight refinements. Yellow qi and Yang essence move along three pathways.

The Divine Elixir and Thirty-Six Waters

The Record of Elixir Slips and Ink states that the Divine Elixir is associated with thirty-six kinds of water; Golden Liquid is essential to preserving it.

Śarīra

Śarīra are explained as the essence formed by the congealing of Golden Liquid, the product of the Reverted Elixir’s transformation, and the natural qi of “True Unity.”

One Dose of the Nine-Turn Reverted Elixir

One dose of the Nine-Turn Reverted Elixir is accompanied by a divine prescription, bestowed by Lord Mao upon his two younger brothers.

Immortal Mother’s Golden Elixir

One elixir is called “the Queen Mother of the West’s Elixir for Arresting Aging and Stilling the Breath.” Take three sheng of thickened white honey, three jin of bright, lustrous cinnabar essence with a whitish sheen, and two jin of powdered mica. Put them in a bronze vessel and simmer over a low fire fueled with mulberry wood. Freeze the mixture for three days, then steam-refine it for thirty days, continuously during daylight hours. Next, boil the bronze vessel and its contents for three days and three nights. Remove the mixture and dry it in the sun. After offering a reverent prayer, pound it thirty thousand times, sift it into a fine powder, and use white honey to form pills the size of small beans. Take twenty pills each morning at dawn. It is said that this can bring eternal life and keep one’s face youthful like a woman’s. This passage appears in the Great Cavern of Perfection Scripture (Dadong Zhenjing).

“Jade Liquor and Golden Elixir” is the name of a drug for ascending and flying through the air. The following passage begins, “The Most High Lord of the Way asked the Most High Elder Lord.”

The formula for the Crimson Effusion Celestial Immortal of the numinous perfected beings (xian zhen) consists of a hundred kinds of numinous fungi from the Jade Court and the subtle, wondrous medicines of Highest Clarity. The medicines listed include Six-Pavilion Bloom-Nourishing, Dark Radiance Eight-Corner, Wind Treasure Cloud Seed, Emperor’s Altar and King’s Gate, Golden Covering Blossoms, Vast-Heaven Yellowwood, Prosperous-City Jade Medicine, Night-Mountain Fire Jade, Phoenix Grove Singing Drunk, Western Yao’s Jade Wine, Central China Purple Honey, Lesser Mound Green Heights, Crimson Ford Golden Marrow, Moon Essence and Sun Longevity, Vermilion River Lang Seeds, Peng Mountain Patterned Ugly, Seven Stems of Washed Water, Collapsing Peak Electric Willow, and the patterned scallions of the Northern Dark Citadel. One must also tilt the face upward and inhale vermilion honey from the Cloud Mountain; gather the Night Ox’s Hidden Bone, Divine-Wu Yellow Lacquer, Hollow Numinous Claw, One Fruit in Four Kalpas, Dark Realm Qilin Gall, Night Sun of Ying Mountain, and the vermilion mulberries of Fusang in the east; then bend down to gather the patterned algae of the Long Abyss.

Blend these medicines into the King Wen elixir of nine transformations. Take the Azure Dark Dawn Treasure from above and swallow its essence; let the Great Void congeal like a mirror. It is embraced by the Plain Maiden and combined with the Purple-This Youth, Nine-Colored Phoenix Brain, Hidden Taiji Fungus, Crimson Tree Sun Path, Great Highest Rainbow Plum, Great-Han Herb, Southern Palace Giant Pearl, Western Village Supporter of the Aged, Three-Beam Dragon Blossom, and the medicines found by the numinous consort. After taking them, one can outlast the natural span of life and endure forever. These are the medicines consumed in Jade Clarity and treasured by the Great Highest. After taking them, one can ascend through the clouds and, at dawn, travel among the countless realms of the Dao. One can guard and stabilize Yellow Essence and pay homage to the Nine Brains. Hearing wondrous sounds dispels turbid Qi; hearing the flow of wind Qi drives away defilement.

Next are the immortal medicines of the Highest Clarity Hidden Fungus class, including the Great Highest’s Nine Times and Eight Radiances, the Great Harmony Mottled Dragon’s Black Embryo, and the Patterned Tiger’s White Foam, which grow in the western hills; as well as Seven Dark Flying Joints, Nine-Holed Jade Pearls, and Cloud Nectar Lin. Others include Dark Diagram Lang Fat, Mount Zhong White Glue, Metal-Born Green Covering, Langfeng Stone Brain, □ River Coral, Meng Mountain White Phoenix Jade Lung, Lingqiu Azure Luan Golden Blood, Eastern Flower Vermilion Greens, Nine-Jointed Intertwining, Grand Tenuity Purple Hemp, Jade Blossoms and Treasures, Flowing Abyss Phoenix Eyes, and Red River Crimson Jasper. One must also draw water from the Well of Taiji, gather the veins of Patterned Pearls, and obtain the Divine Peach of the Cloud Court, the Plain Sparrow of Kun Garden, Night Essence White Grass, Azure Ford Green Reed, True Official’s Lush Altar, and the Three Canopies of Dark Capital.

The practitioner takes in the Jade Youth’s radiance on the left and holds the Jade Maiden’s Qi on the right; receives divine light from above and drinks water from the Dark Rapids below. Leaning back, the practitioner gathers the jade essence of the Orchid Garden; bending forward, they pluck the purple nai fruit of Dark Mound. White-Water Numinous Clams and Eight-Heaven Red Garlic are rare treasures that appear only once in ten thousand years, arrayed in flowing radiance. Whoever can consume them will outlast the span allotted by Heaven and live long. They are treasures consumed by the Celestial Emperor and cherished by the Great Highest. They are unheard of even in the realm of Taiji, and beyond the reach of ordinary perfected immortals.

Many names in the source refer to immortal medicines, numinous beings, or celestial realms; their specific identities cannot be determined from this text alone.

Next come the precious numinous substances of the Supreme Ultimate grade. Four true treasures are often regarded as rare: the vapor refined from nine kinds of stone, and the elixir fluid that nourishes like jade; the First-Flow Pearl and the essence of Jade Radiance Stone; golden liquid from the alchemical furnace, and purple splendor with crimson blossoms; the numinous medicine refined through the Nine Revolutions of Great Clarity, and a syrup like clouds of five colors; Dark Frost and Crimson Snow, and the leaping Yellow One; white incense from the Eastern Ocean, and blue coins from the Canglang; the surplus grain of Shangqiu, and flying fields of Jishi; the Returning Elixir of the Great Void, and the Dark Firmness of Great Qin; flowing scenes of enduring radiance, and cloud children flying to heaven. These are all numinous medicines consumed by Celestial Immortals. They are beyond what ordinary people can hear of or hermits in the mountains can see. One must also understand such methods as the Nine Transformations and Ten Changes and the Eight Guardians of the Hidden Earth. Only then can one roam widely through the Mysterious Void, travel backward along the Celestial River, ride clouds and dragons, and fly freely.

Next come thirty-six kinds of zhi fungus, whose vapor is drawn forth by a flying furnace, along with numinous substances such as Yang Water Moonlight and the rich essence of the Five Lords. They can nourish the five organs and refine the body, enabling a person to transform their physical form. Other substances, such as Precious-Pearl Cloud Fragments and Golden Powder Jade Mulberry, are said to prolong life to ten thousand years.

Next come the syrup of Dark Water and Cloud Radiance, Five-Yellow Moonlight, and the rich essence of the Five Lords. They can nourish the five organs and refine the body, enabling a person to transform their physical form. There are also substances such as Precious-Pearl Cloud Fragments and Golden Powder Jade Mulberry, which are said to prolong life to ten thousand years.

Next come the syrup of Dark Water and Cloud Radiance, Five-Yellow Hidden Numinous Essence, the Central Essence’s Thousand-Stone □ Rice, the treasures of the many Blue and Crimson Blossoms and the White Chariot’s Flying Nodes, and the Yellow Essence of Flowing-Horse Purple Wood. A single dose can extend a person’s life by a thousand cycles. As the medicine’s power grows, so does one’s allotted lifespan, and life itself is prolonged along with the medicine’s power.

Next are the lower-grade medicines. These include the resin of pine and cypress, mountain ginger, poria with root, sweet flag, dwarf lilyturf, giant sesame (sesame seeds), Solomon’s seal, chrysanthemum, goji berries, cliff honey (honey gathered from mountain cliffs), poria, peach bark, alisma, fragrant Solomon’s seal, coptis, cohosh, rehmannia, red cinnabar, and spirit-flying cinnamon, among many others. There are numerous medicines of this kind; only a few examples are given here. After taking them, one might live as long as seven hundred years at the upper end, or three to four hundred years at the lower end. The body becomes radiant and smooth, and the face regains the appearance of childhood. One can also command a thousand spirits and become an Earth Immortal, walking the Five Sacred Peaks and wandering among famous mountains and great rivers. Medicines of this kind are called “spirit medicines that dispel demons.”

Su Lin, whose courtesy name was Zixuan, was from Qushui in Puyang. He studied for five years under Master Qiu, an immortal of Mount Hua. He could enter and leave water and fire, and looked like a young girl. Master Qiu said, “You are a perfected one.” This account appears in the Three Origins, the One True.

The Lady of Mount Heng, whose surname was Wei and courtesy name Xian’an, was from Rencheng. On a night in the last month of winter, at midnight, the sky was clear and bright. She heard bells and drums, along with reed pipes and flutes, coming from the depths; the sounds of many instruments intertwined. She went outside and looked up. In the sky she saw several perfected immortals approaching from the east: the Perfected One of Taiji, An Duoming; the Great Spirit of Donghua, Fang Zhu, the Azure Youth; the Perfected One of the Jade Scenery of the Fusang Blue River and Yang Valley; and the Perfected One of Clear Emptiness, Wang Zideng, the Immortal King of Lesser You.

The Lady bowed low and paid her respects. The immortals gave her two doses of medicine: one called “Spirit Powder of Hidden Transmigration and Self-Concealment,” and the other “Numinous Pills of Stone Essence and Golden Light that Transform the Form.” After she had taken the medicines for seven days, at midnight the Supreme High Mysterious Immortal sent a floating carriage to receive her. Following the method of the Radiant Image—an art of transforming the body through divine light—she entrusted her form to her sword and pillow, and departed. This account appears in the Inner Biography of the Primordial Lady of Purple Emptiness.

The celestial immortals’ medicines are as plentiful as grain piled high in the Grand Granary, the government’s great storehouse.

“Crimson silk and vermilion child” refers to cinnabar. This explanation appears in the Book of the Numinous Writ, in Purple Characters.

The “Sun-Soul of Cinnabar Mountain” is realgar; the “Moonlight of the Dark Terrace” is arsenic sulfide; the “White-Plain Flying Dragon” is white quartz; the “Green-Waisted Middle Woman” is azurite; the “Marquis of Purple Ridge” is amethyst; the “Flying Blossom of the Jade City” is mineral pigment made from slate; the “Dark Pearl of the Northern Emperor” is saltpeter; the “Yellow Child of the Nine Spirits” is sulfur; the “Golden Sheep of the Five Essences” is actinolite; the “Flying Blossom of Rain” is mica; the “White Tiger’s Shed Teeth” is gold-bearing stone; the “Flowing Cinnabar, White Paste” is lead white; and the “Divine Bone Walking Backward” is Rong salt. These are all alternate names for different mineral medicines.

Those of the highest attainment in Daoist cultivation practice the way of the sun and moon and visualize the Perfected One of Cinnabar Spirit and Lesser Yang, a divine being who governs the essence of the sun. They use a glass vessel to hold Jade Spring Green Fungus Paste and drink it to nourish the body. They also use a gold vessel to hold refined paste and pour it over the body, filling it with yellow Qi and Yang essence.

Dark Water Jade Liquid, also called Flying Dragon Cloud Fat and the Refined Essence of the Five Minerals, is taken for fifteen years. The body will then shine with a jade-like radiance, one will live long between Heaven and Earth and be able to command ghosts and spirits, and one’s hair will grow long enough for writing by night within three years. This formula is superior to the Golden Elixir made by refining eight mineral medicines, and surpasses the jade syrup made from cassia water and mica.

The Great Cavern calls it “Dark Waves of Cloud Grass”: it is the essence of black sesame, also known as “Dark Clarity.” The Scripture of the One Feminine and the Five Elders calls it “the rich essence of Purple Jade.” The text of Lord Mao says it “fills the hun-soul and secures the po-soul.” The Purple Measure of Flaming Radiance records that taking seventy-four kinds of numinous pills enables one to fly aloft and walk through empty space. The Nine Perfected Within records the “Pill of the Great One and the Four Guardians,” which grants a life of ten thousand years.

The Inner Biography of the Primordial Sovereign, Lady of the Purple Void records that when Lady Wei was eighty-three, her hearing and sight remained clear. Each month, during the full moon, she wrote Daoist talismans for children. By entering a quiet chamber to visualize and cultivate, she could go for several dozen days, or even a hundred, without eating.

A Perfected One on Earth.

One must first remove the Three Corpse Worms, evil creatures believed in Daoism to dwell in the human body and damage one’s lifespan and cultivation. There are three kinds, each of which diminishes a person’s life. If the Three Corpses are not removed, they will disturb the Six Viscera, disrupt the Five Spirits that govern human mental activity, and prevent a person from attuning to original truth and keeping to the True One.

The Supreme One’s Elixir of the Eight Jades and Flying Essence. The Perfected One Mao Ying, whose courtesy name was Shushen, was from the south gate of Xianyang. He became a disciple of Master Guigu of the Northern River and later lived in seclusion on Mount Hua. At the age of eighteen, he left home to cultivate the Dao on Mount Heng.

Mao Ying’s great-grandfather, Mao Meng, had once ridden clouds and dragons on Mount Hua and ascended to immortality in broad daylight. A local ballad from that time said: “Mao Chu-cheng, ancestor of the Mao family, attained the Dao and became an immortal, riding a dragon up into the Great Clarity, the celestial realm. At times he descends to Xuanzhou and wanders in Chicheng. This legacy is passed down through the generations; next in line is Mao Ying. The Lord Emperor studied the Dao during the twelfth month, at the time of Jia-ping.”

Mao Ying lived in the mountains for six years. In a dream, the Great Mystery Jade Maiden, a Daoist female immortal, came to welcome him, holding a jade document. She told him, “The Lord of the Western City, an immortal of the Dao, possesses the true methods of the Dao.” Mao Ying then paid his respects at Lingcheng and went to meet the Lord. Seventeen years later, the Lord appointed him to oversee the registers of divine records and robes. After three years of cultivation, Mao Ying was ordered to travel by carriage to White Jade Hair Mountain and pay a visit to the various Queen Mothers of the Green Palace.

The Lord also bestowed on Mao Ying a dose of the Ninefold-Refined Return Elixir, a Daoist elixir of immortality, along with a recipe for immortality. After meeting Mao Ying, the Celestial Emperor appointed him Senior Minister of the Eastern Peak and Director of Fate at Huolin, responsible for the registers of life and death in the regions of Wu and Yue.

Afterward, Mao Ying taught his two younger brothers to take Green Buds. He also told Ji Weiqing, “You are suited to taking the Wind Lord’s Four-Fan Dispersing-Spirit Formula, transmitted by the Yellow Emperor. I received this formula from the High Master, and now I pass it on to you.” He told Sihe Qing as well, “You are suited to taking the Queen Mother’s Four Youths Powder, which replenishes Jing and Qi and nourishes the brain marrow.” Both remedies proved effective. After taking the medicines for eighteen years, the two brothers’ faces became as youthful as those of young women.

The Inner Tradition of Lord Mao

May the Mysterious Mother…

Eat with me the naturally formed Seven-Treasure Jade Sweet, the Golden Elixir, and the Purple Hidden Mushroom. With your right hand, pick five rare marvels: night-glow, phoenix brain, tiger foam, cloud jade, and jade frost. Once you have tasted these wondrous delicacies, you can ascend beyond the Great Void, the lofty heavenly realm. The One Yin

Sage Lord

He invites the Azure Youth, an immortal attendant, to take a seat, and sets out a drink of rosy clouds, white fruit borne by red trees, and green fruit borne by crimson trees. The Purple Writ of the Numinous Book

The August One

The August One was dispatched by the Lord of Fusang, ruler of the eastern immortal realm, to oversee the immortal officials of Mount Emei. He stands nine feet tall, and long hair covers his entire body. He lives beneath the northern cliffs in a house built of blue-green jade, with a bed of yellow jade. Fine silk curtains hang there, and a thousand harmonies of incense are burned. The immortals and jade maidens all serve him. The attendants at the three jeweled seats are all immortal kings of Great Clarity. They set out a full peck of dates and drink numinous brew from the jade well of the Vermilion Office. The Five Talismans

Nectar of Mysterious Water and Cloud Radiance

Also called “Cloud-Stored Vermilion Nectar.” Taking five measures each day can make the face youthful as a child’s and cause the body to give off fragrance. Among the Nine Truths

Those who cultivate the Dao should travel through the palaces of the sun and moon, pay homage to the Kings of the Sun and Moon, and drink the golden covenant nectar transformed from the essence of the sun and moon. Wisdom

Perfected One of the Supreme Ultimate

The Blue Essence Thousand-Stone She-Rice is a numinous formula cultivated by the highest immortals. Eating it prevents all manner of harm from injuring you. After taking it for ten years, the spirit of Blue Essence will coalesce into a form and obey your commands, enabling you to summon wind and rain. A single dose adds a thousand years to your life. Inner Biography of Lord Wang, Perfected One of Clear Emptiness

Five Kinds of Divine Mushrooms on Mount Gouqu

The first is Dragon Immortal Mushroom. It resembles two intertwined dragons leaning against one another; its leaves are like scales, and its roots like coiled dragons. Whoever finds and eats it will be appointed an immortal minister of the Supreme Ultimate. The second is Ginseng-Forming Mushroom. It is red, shining with the brilliance of cinnabar. When its branches and leaves are struck, they ring like metal and stone.

The first is Longxian Zhi. Its shape resembles two dragons supporting one another, its leaves resemble dragon scales, and its root resembles a coiled dragon. Whoever eats it will be appointed a Taiji Immortal.

The second is Shencheng Zhi. It is red and brightly radiant. When its branches and leaves are struck, they ring like metal and stone. Whoever eats it will be appointed a Taiji Grand Physician.

The third is Yantai Zhi. It is purple and shaped like a sunflower leaf, with the pattern of a flying swallow on each leaf. It is luminous and translucent throughout. Whoever eats one stalk will be appointed a Ta Qing Dragon-and-Tiger Immortal Lord, Zhengyi Physician.

The fourth is Yedong Zhi. It is green, with fruit as white as plums. It grows three or four feet tall, and its leaves resemble those of a cypress. At night, its fruit appears as though moonlight were illuminating a room. Each stalk bears nine fruits. When they fall to the ground, they resemble raccoon-shaped mirror plates about seven inches across and one or two inches thick. At night, they shine as brightly as an ox [the original text is damaged here]. Whoever eats one branch will be appointed Left Censor of the Ta Qing Immortal Officials.

The fifth is Baiyi Yu Zhi. If one cuts it open and eats its core, one will be appointed a Censor of the Three Offices and a True One. When someone finds and consumes these fungi, the Most High—the Daoist honorific for the supreme deity—will command a Taiji Perfected One to send the Five Emperors to pay a visit and grant the person an official rank.

Among these, the Four-Section Yantai Zhi shimmers with shifting radiance. As one watches, it seems to glow for a long time, with two swallows flying through it; at night, it can illuminate plants and trees. The fungi consumed by Lord Mao were cultivated by the Taiji True Lord Fangzhu of Qingzhou. They are not the kind described here.

Inner Account of Lord Mao

There are four kinds of Taiji Hidden Zhi.

Some lingzhi appear in four colors, their radiance reaching a hundred paces.

One is blue-green, shaped like a bright mirror resembling the moon. Three layers are stacked together, and it stands five or six inches high. It is called “Taiji Mirror of Hidden Heaven, Blue-Green Lingzhi.”

One is white, shaped like the asterism known as the Dipper, with seven sections. The star-shaped part forms the sections, while the stem serves as the trunk. It stands three or four feet high and is called “Taiji Hidden Stars, Spirit-Soul Lingzhi.”

One is red, shaped like a small jujube tree, with fruit resembling the character lu. Its radiance is vivid, and it stands three or four feet high. It is called “Mirror-Net Hidden Mystery, Taiji Golden-Heaven Lingzhi.”

One is dark green, like layers of parasols turned upside down on the ground. It spans seven or eight inches, its clear light flowing, and stands three or four inches high. It is called “Taiji Dark Moon, Reclining Dragon Lingzhi.” (The above is from the Golden Slips and Jade Characters of Taiwei.)

Dig a pit six feet deep in the ground, plant one “mirror fruit,” and water it with five he of yellow water. After three years, grass will grow, bearing fruit shaped like peaches. This lingzhi is called “Five-Colored Phoenix-Brain Lingzhi.” After eating its fruit, one can ascend into Taiji; exhaling onto the ground, one can transform into a phoenix and ride it through the sky. This lingzhi is also called “Taiji Hidden Lingzhi.” (The above is from the Golden Slips and Jade Characters of Taiwei and the Purple Writings of the Numinous Book.)

Yin Xi followed the Old Lord on a journey and ascended to the Hall of the Abbot on Changyang Mountain, where he saw nine old men chewing “Nine-Jointed Lingzhi.” Later, he traveled south and climbed Mount Suqiu, where he ate “Nine-Radiance Lingzhi.” (The above is from The Perfected One of the Primordial Supreme.)

On Feng Mountain in the Land of the Celestial Mirror, golden and jade-colored purple lingzhi grow.

The heavens scatter fragrant flowers, and the sun and moon send down numinous light. Swallowing these numinous breaths opens the Five Spirits; Jade Maidens bear golden knives and chopsticks. (The above is from the Illustrations of the Twenty-Four Forms of Life.)

The “Five Lingzhi” spread their fragrance; immortal herbs flourish on the ridges, lingzhi branches grow thick, and numinous caverns open. Only once in ten thousand kalpas does such radiance appear; only when the heavens converge can the wondrous Dao be attained. When one awakens in serenity, long ages seem to pass in a single morning.

A poem by Lady Wang, the Central Marquis of Donghua, says: “‘Fragrant ridge, immortal herbs flourishing, numinous branches, numinous caverns; in ten thousand kalpas, one opening of radiance; when the heavens converge, the wondrous Dao is attained. In peaceful awakening, long ages pass like a single morning.’” The Great Cavern True Scripture says: “Use the waters of Kun Pond to irrigate the jade fields.”

Jade-Fat Lingzhi.

Jade ointment is produced in mountains where jade is found. After flowing out, it solidifies into a resin over ten thousand years. Its shape resembles birds and beasts, and it shines like moonlight. When mixed with the juice of mindless grass, it turns into water in an instant. Taking one dou can prolong one’s life by a thousand years. Treatise on Numinous Treasures and Fungi

Diagram of the Five Sacred Peaks

The Diagram of the Five Sacred Peaks came into being together with Heaven and Earth. It is kept in the Office of the Dongting of the Thirty-Two Heavens, where the Highest Perfected and flying immortals dwell. The diagram bears divine herbs and jade fungi which, when taken, can make a person immortal. Wondrous Sayings of the Yellow Emperor and Laozi

Stone Fungus

Stone fungus grows by the sea or in places among accumulated rocks in famous mountains. It has a head, a tail, and four legs. Its colors include red, like coral; white, like silver ointment; black, like deeply dyed black lacquer; blue-green, like the feathers of a kingfisher; and yellow, like gold. Stone fungus is bright and translucent, like solid ice. On a dark night, its light can be seen from a hundred paces away. The largest specimens weigh more than ten jin.

After obtaining a fungus shaped like a stone, pound it thirty-six thousand times. Take one square-inch spoonful at a time—the small spoon used in ancient times to measure medicinal powder. After taking one jin, one can prolong one’s life by a hundred thousand years. Stone fungus also grows on high mountains beside water and has the appearance of ice. On a dark night, its light can be seen from a hundred paces away; the largest specimens weigh more than ten jin. Another kind is shaped like a plate or bowl, no more than one chi in diameter, and has seven holes. It is called “Seven Brightness”; one with nine holes is called “Nine Radiance.” Both shine like stars. All one hundred and twenty kinds belong to stone fungus. The relevant account appears in The Inner Record of the Prosperous Era of the Jade Register of the Great One. Treatise on Numinous Treasures and Fungi

Wood Fungus

A numinous substance shaped like a lotus is said to form from pine resin after a thousand years. It is called “Wooden Wei Xi.” At night it glows, and wearing it on the body is said to ward off weapons. Its root resembles a seated person and is about seven feet long; when cut open, it flows with blood. Smearing its juice on the feet is said to let one walk across water; smearing it on the body is said to make one invisible. Mixed with Jusheng, a plant like sesame, it can be used at night to illuminate the ground. If gold or jade is buried beneath, the light turns green and shines downward. Taking ten jin is said to prolong life by a thousand years.

After pine resin has grown for three thousand years, a lump of fat congeals within its bark. Shaped like a dragon, it is called “Qi Jie Zhi” and weighs ten jin. Taking one jin is said to prolong life by five hundred years.

Fan Tao Zhi has a woody trunk like a rising dragon, flowers like a red net, and fruit like a kingfisher. It is five feet tall and grows on the northern side of famous mountains, near flowing water. Taking one plant is said to prolong life by five thousand years.

Da Quan Zhi grows on large trees. It is shaped like a lotus and tastes sweet with a hint of spice. Jian Shi Zhi is the fruit of Jianmu and grows in Duguang. Its skin resembles a tassel snake, and its fruit resembles a luan bird. Taking these two kinds of Zhi together is said to enable one to ascend to heaven in broad daylight.

The above is excerpted from The Catalogue of Numinous Treasures and Zhi.

Herbal Zhi.

The Self-Shaking Lingzhi (a kind of sacred fungus spoken of by the immortals) moves on its own even when there is no wind. Its stem is red as cinnabar, and its root is as large as a measuring vessel, while its thinner parts are like eggs. Twelve small lingzhi encircle the large root. It grows on Wu Slope of Tiger Longevity Mountain, is shaped like an ox horn, measures three or four feet long, and is blue-green. Taking one square-inch spoonful (an ancient measure for medicinal powders, roughly a spoonful) is said to grant a lifespan of one thousand years.

The Hemp Mother Lingzhi has purple flowers. The Pearl Lingzhi has a yellow stem and red leaves; its fruit is plum-shaped and purple, with twenty-four fruits arranged like a string of beads. The White Talisman Lingzhi is shaped like a plum tree. It often flowers in heavy snow and bears fruit in the last month of winter. The Vermilion Plant has nine bends, with three fruits growing at each bend. The Five-Hearing Lingzhi is shaped like a tower, with a square stem and leaves arranged like a string of beads. Its leaves have five colors and resemble an upturned canopy. Sweet dew gathers at its center, and several feet of purple vapor rise above it. The Dragon-Street Lingzhi grows in paired shoots in mid-spring, with three nodes in each group, twelve in all. It is said that after consuming various kinds of herb lingzhi, some people can live for one thousand or two thousand years.

Fungal Lingzhi

Some fungal lingzhi are shaped like houses, palaces, chariots and horses, dragons and tigers, or flying birds. Their colors are constantly changing, and there are one hundred and ten kinds in all. After consuming them, the highest grade is said to make one immortal, the middle grade to grant a lifespan of several thousand years, and the lowest grade to grant a lifespan of one thousand years.

Lotus Seeds

Lotus seeds, also called Water Lingzhi, correspond with the head of a hawk in Yin-Yang. On the first Wu day of the eighth month, gather lotus seeds; on a morning in the ninth month, gather lotus roots. Dry equal quantities separately in the shade, then grind them after one hundred days. On the first Mao day of the first month, at dawn, take one square-inch spoonful with water freshly drawn from a well, four or five times each day. After one hundred days, all illnesses are said to be cured; with long-term use, one is said to become immortal. Five Talisman Methods

Chapter Nine: Food and Goods

The sea contains countless islands, rich in precious treasures. Determining the Will

Lingwu Mountain in the great sea naturally produces gold and silver, pearls and jade, giant clamshells, agate, coral, and many other rare treasures. Determining the Will

Lingwu Mountain in the great sea naturally produces gold and silver, pearls and jade, giant clamshells, agate, coral, and many other rare treasures—hundreds of thousands of kinds. Inner Traditions of the Immortal Lord

The Blade of Xiwu

Even when jade is cut into pieces only ten inches across, the golden light, swift as a shooting star, can penetrate the tiniest things and make them clearly visible. The Five Talismans

Even when a hall is filled with gold and jade, no one can keep them forever.

With ten liang of purple gold, swear an oath to the Nine Heavens and transmit The Luminous Rites of the Nine Truths. The Luminous Rites of the Four Extremes

Use fifty jin of gold to provide relief to the people. The Divine Elixir of Golden Liquid of the Great Clarity

Those who seek to study the Dao should prepare one gold fish, one jade dragon, and three liang of fine gold, and offer them to the master who transmits the scriptures, thereby honoring the true Dao and the radiance of jade.

When receiving The Ten Wondrous Scriptures of the Perfected Writ of the Cavern Mystery and Numinous Treasure, swear an oath to the Nine Heavens with nine liang of fine gold. Then cast two gold dragons and nine gold buttons into the mountains, taking the earth and stones of the mountains and rivers as tokens of proof. The Rites for Clarifying the Perfected

Those of the rank of High Immortal—that is, those whose cultivation has reached the advanced state of perfected immortals—should have their names entered in a silver-bound jade register.

When receiving The Ten Wondrous Scriptures of the Perfected Writ of the Cavern Mystery and Numinous Treasure, swear an oath to the Nine Heavens with nine liang of fine gold. Then cast two gold dragons and nine gold buttons into the mountains, taking the earth and stones of the mountains and rivers as tokens of proof. The Rites for Clarifying the Perfected

Those of the rank of High Immortal should have their names entered in a silver-bound jade register, together with their immortal rank and allotted years.

After the three great gods have finished their lament, they appear at the appointed time: vast stores of gold and silver, jade essence, and glass treasures surge up from beneath the Five Sacred Peaks, their radiance lighting the ten directions. The Divine Kings of the Eight Seas raise coral trees from the depths of the blue sea, reaching five million li in height, their leaves and flowers of the Seven Treasures spreading across the ocean. The heavens of the Three Realms rain down tiny luminous pearls, while the Five Sacred Peaks open their immortal mountains’ treasure stores, revealing jade of every color. Sutra on the Karma of the Womb

The Land of Glass means a land in which everything is glass.

The Luminous-Pushing Youth, a spirit who follows the courses of the sun and moon, moves along their paths. He leads three thousand six hundred people, all dressed in crimson, down into the dark sea to stir the jade of golden essence and purple radiance. The Three Sovereigns

When this scripture is released, the heavens and people belonging to the Three Realms will all make offerings of incense and flowers, seats on couches of the Seven Treasures, and gold, silver, pearls, jade, coral, and agate.

The Luminous-Pushing Youth follows the courses of the sun and moon, leading three thousand six hundred people dressed in crimson down into the dark sea to stir the jade of golden essence and purple radiance. The Three Sovereigns

Release this scripture.

Within the Three Realms, all things have their proper place. The people of the various heavens offer incense, flowers, and seven-jeweled seats adorned with treasures such as gold, silver, pearls and jade, coral, and agate. Correct Contemplation and Liberation through the Wisdom of the Primordial Beginning

The Grand Emperor of Taiwei (the emperor of the heavens) removes his necklace of beads and offers a precious pearl bright as the moon. The Lord of the Upper Dao accepts the scriptures.

The Dim Pearl (name of a pearl)

The Three Sovereigns

Only those with golden remains and jade bones, whose names are recorded in the register of emperors, may see this text. When receiving the scripture, one should observe purification and offer a jade dragon.

Lord Qing Tong, the Upper Minister, said:

On the first day of the first month, the seventh day of the seventh month, and the ninth day of the ninth month, those who study the Dao should quiet their thoughts, burn incense on both sides in a quiet chamber, prepare eight jade tablets, and submit a memorial to the Three Primes. The Three Primes are the Lord of White Silk, the Lord of Yellow Silk, and the Lord of Purple Silk.

When receiving the ten wondrous scriptures of the Dongxuan Lingbao True Writ, prepare four hundred and ninety feet of patterned silk in five colors, forty-nine feet of each color, to present a report to the Five Emperors. Code of the Luminous Truth

The Lord of the Dao, Most High

He praises the three great gods, who have already journeyed through the Three Realms and the various heavens… Above the heavenly rain and cloud brocade are the characters of the Great Vehicle in the heavenly scriptures. Scripture on the Karma of the Womb

Hidden Writ of the Jade Clarity:

This is a supreme essential formula, a sacred chapter of the Jade Emperor. When transmitting the formula, one must use forty-nine feet of blue brocade and two pairs of gold rings as tokens. Hidden Writ

The Jade Formula of the High Sage:

Those with golden names and jade bones should establish an oath before this formula is transmitted. Use silk in five colors, ninety feet of each. Clear Code of the Four Poles

Lord of the Golden Gate:

Give the scriptures to Lord Qing Tong, the Upper Minister, and command him to transmit them to those destined to become immortals. Use ninety feet of phoenix-patterned gauze as a token.

When receiving the Precious Scripture of the August Sovereign, one should observe purification and prepare ninety feet of blue gauze as a token of the oath. The master offers the talisman of the Five Emperors’ proclamation of the truth; the disciple offers crimson gauze. Clear Code of the Four Poles

Lord of the Golden Gate:

Give the scriptures to Lord Qing Tong, the Upper Minister, and command him to transmit them to those destined to become immortals. Use ninety feet of phoenix-patterned gauze as a token.

Receive the Precious Scripture of the August Sovereign.

During the purification fast, prepare ninety feet of blue patterned silk as a token of the covenant and the receiving of precepts. The master bestows the Talisman for Reporting Truth to the Five Emperors—a Fulu used to petition the sovereigns of the five directions—and the disciple offers five feet of crimson silk in return, seeking to receive the scripture. Register of the Jade Emperor, Primordial Beginning, Most High (Gaoshang Yuanshi Yuhuang Pulu)

Patterned silk in the rain is whiter than frost and snow. Sutra on the Karma of the Womb (Chutai Ye Jing)

For the east, use ninety feet of blue patterned silk, or nine feet; for the south, thirty feet of deep-red patterned silk, or three feet; for the west, seventy feet of white patterned silk, or seven feet; and for the north, fifty feet of black patterned silk, or five feet. For each of the four corners, use one hundred and twenty feet of yellow patterned silk, or twelve feet per corner, for a total of four hundred and eighty feet. Above, use thirty-two feet of blue patterned silk; below, thirty-two feet of yellow patterned silk. This patterned silk for the ten directions—the four cardinal directions, the four corners, above, and below—serves as a ritual token, used to deliver the spirits of the dead from the Long Night. Yellow Writ (Huang Su)

When receiving the jade talisman of the Three-Heavens Youths, prepare white silk, one foot for each year of one’s age. It is used to seal an oath and demonstrate fidelity to the Nine Heavens. Purple Book, Golden Root (Zishu Jin Gen)

A mysterious oath, sworn through the wondrous methods of the Dao.