《天枢院都司须知令》

The Chief Registrar of the Court of the Heavenly Pivot (Tianshu yuan) is responsible for registering the living. The court is staffed by seven supervisors, signatories, and recorders, together with seven clerks who assist in handling affairs and in transmitting and issuing documents. The seven recorders exercise overall command of the Garrison of the Primordial Assembly, which maintains ten thousand troops and mounts, known as the Army of Heavenly Apprehension.

The seven recorders are as follows. The First Recorder Office is held by Perfected Tongti, Shen Quan. The Second Recorder Office is held by Perfected Maoquan, Wang Xiang. The Third Recorder Office is held by the Immortal Assistant Yangming, Fu Shou. The Fourth Recorder Office is held by Perfected Mingjiu Zhizhai, Feng Xiu. The Fifth Recorder Office is held by the document clerk Hu Zhu, who has not yet received an immortal office. The Sixth Recorder Office is held by the document clerk Kong You, who has likewise not yet received an immortal office. The Seventh Recorder Office is held by the document clerk Fang Zheng, who also has not yet received an immortal office.

The seven recorders are charged with signing and disposing of the business of the seventy-four offices. In addition, the Office of Emolument and Reckoning maintains section officers of its own, who are attached to the First Recorder Office and whose document-signing is connected with that of the seventy-four offices. All seven recorders are living persons still in the world. The registers of their immortal offices belong to the Metropolitan Bureau of the Heavenly Pivot, yet their identities are kept secret and are not made known outside.

The First Recorder Office is called the Assembly Bureau. Including the section officers of the Office of Emolument and Reckoning, it oversees twenty-seven offices in all. The offices named, together with their charges, are these. The Office of Emolument and Reckoning administers emolument fate, longevity reckoning, and related matters, and is held by Perfected Xuanjiang Danxia, Wang Zi. The Court of Recording Merit keeps the records of merit and De (Virtue/Power) of all people under Heaven, and is held by Perfected Huiteng, Lu Cang. The Office of Appointed Service and Regulation oversees the training and examination of officers of ritual law throughout the world, and is held by Perfected Xiuying, Jia Yi. The Court of the Heavenly Dao (the Way) keeps the name registers of practitioners throughout the world, and is held by Perfected of Wondrous Virtue, Wu Chen. The Bureau of Hidden Merit administers people’s concealed merits and the misfortunes they bring upon themselves in secret, and is held by Perfected Wuwei (non-action) Who Orders the Dao, Lin Fu. The Desk of Ghost Immortals keeps the registers of those among the ghostly host who attain immortality, and is held by Perfected Jiucha Ling, Xiao Shi. The Office of Troops and Mounts administers the numbers of troops and mounts in the Three Realms, and is held by Upper Prime Perfected Zixiu, Ouyang Li.

In the original text the passage beginning “Beyond signing the public business of the seventy-four offices, the seven recorders…” appears twice; here it has been combined and restated according to its sense.

The Office of Grain and Provisions is charged with registering the supplies and expenditures of deities, officials, and related personnel, and is headed by the Linghui Zihua Zhenren (Perfected), Ouyang Du.

The Bureau of the Controller of Destiny is charged with managing the talismanic mandates of those already registered but not yet born—that is, the documents concerning their allotted lifespans—and is headed by the Baogong Zhenren, Fu Yuan.

The Bureau of Untimely Death is charged with recording deaths, reductions of lifespan, and diminutions of allotted fate, and is headed by the Longguang Zhenren, Bai Minzhong.

The Black Prison Register is charged with registering criminal cases involving immortal officials, and is headed by the Fengyaozhuang Zhenren, Kuang Xiu.

The Court of Exalting the True is charged with reviewing and deciding the affairs of the Court of Recording Merit, and is headed by the Huangguan Zhenren, Liao Li.

The Court of Immortal Registers has overall charge of the name registers of the various immortals, and is headed by the Danxia Zhenren, Wu Zhiquan.

The Office of Detailed Determination is charged with copying the memorials and documents submitted from throughout the world, and is headed by the Xihua Zhenren, Hao Cai.

The Bureau of Presenting Affairs is charged with transmitting and submitting memorials and documents, and is headed by the Beidong Zhenren, Wang Qiaonian.

The Metropolitan Penal Court is charged with adjudicating punishments and lawsuits in the Yang realm, the world of the living, and is headed by the Mingfen Zhenren, Gao Yao.

The Prison of the Heavenly Pivot is charged with administering the hells of the Yin realm, the world of the dead, and with receiving cases reported by the celestial and terrestrial hells of the various regions, and is headed by the Youbi Zhenren, Ge Hong.

The Office of Audit and Review is charged with examining the affairs of the Demon Offices of the Four Heavens, and is headed by the Bakai Zhenren, Jiang Wei.

The Register of Official Temples is charged with registering the ghosts and spirits involved in sacrifice and with managing the related rites, and is headed by the Gunchang Zhenren, Zhao Fenghou.

The Bureau of Thunder and Rain is charged with managing the talismanic mandate documents of the immortal officials of thunder and rain, and is headed by the Langye Zhenren, Xiao Zhuang.

The Bureau of Scattered Immortals is charged with registering documents on the origins and backgrounds of the various immortals, and is headed by the Baojing Zhenren, Bao Jing.

The Inspection Court is charged with ceremonial regalia, the escort for the emperor’s excursions, and the implements used by female immortals, and is headed by the Zuixian Zhenren, Fu Xing.

The Bureau of Troop Assignment is charged with managing the military tallies of the Three Realms and with casualties, victories, and defeats in battle, and is headed by the Xude Zhenren, Guo Maoxian.

In the original text, a passage below the character “xian” is repeated; the entry marked by the character “jian” likewise appears to be repeated or defective, and its specific duties cannot be determined on this basis.

The Office of Inspection is administered by Liu Zhen, the Perfected (Zhenren), Judge of the Upper Realm, whose honorific title is the Perfected of Pure Radiance.

The Memorial Court of the Various Heavens processes the documents submitted by the immortal officials of the various heavens. It is administered by Zhen Shanji, the Perfected, whose honorific title is the Perfected Who Brings Order to the Ultimate.

The Case Bureau of the Various Offices processes the documents submitted from the Three Islands and Ten Continents. It is administered by Cai Fu, the Perfected, whose honorific title is the Perfected of Wondrous Response of the Primordial Supreme.

The Second Recorder’s Office is also known as the “Chief Bureau of the Eight Offices of the Left,” and the offices under it are as follows.

The Right Office of Inspection reports the name registers of the judges of the lower realm. It is administered by Jiang Zhen, the Perfected, whose honorific title is the Perfected of the Closed Court.

The Left Office of Inspection processes the documents submitted by the Five Marchmounts. It is administered by Liang Shu, the Perfected, whose honorific title is the Perfected of Yang Radiance.

The Court of Illuminated Documents administers the legal documents that arrive at the Gate of Heaven. It is administered by Pei Yan, the Perfected, whose honorific title is the Perfected of Equal Wonder.

The Court of Penal Regulation handles matters of capital punishment for offenders. It is administered by Feng Tan, the Perfected, whose honorific title is the Perfected of Flourishing Yang.

The Office of Extended Blessings records the destiny of the state and the names of its sovereigns. It is administered by Cui Ji, the Perfected, whose honorific title is the Perfected of Pure Vastness.

The Court of Yang Officials administers the officials of the human world in the yang realm. It is administered by Yin Jue, the Perfected, whose honorific title is the Perfected of Pure Candor.

The Court of Yin Officials administers the officials of the underworld earth-bureau in the yin realm. It is administered by Wu Qi, the Perfected, whose honorific title is the Perfected of Resplendent Ceremony.

The Bureau of Attendants administers the registers and documents of the guilty ghosts of Fengdu. It is administered by Huang Yue, the Perfected, whose honorific title is the Perfected of Jasper Well-Being.

The Third Recorder’s Office is also known as the “Chief Bureau of the Six Offices of the Right,” and the offices under it are as follows.

The Court of Accomplished Righteousness records loyal and filial persons throughout the world. It is administered by Qiu Lan, the Perfected, whose honorific title is the Perfected of Broad Illumination.

The Court of Pure Integrity records persons of upright character and moral steadfastness. It is administered by Huang Ding, the Perfected, whose honorific title is the Perfected of Talismanic Accord.

The Directorate of Illumined Oversight regularly examines the figures of foreign lands in the four quarters. It is administered by Ouyang Yun, the Perfected, whose honorific title is the Perfected of Uniform Regulation.

The Directorate of Broad Proclamation administers the fortunes and national destinies of foreign lands in the four quarters. It is administered by Liao Xin, the Perfected, whose honorific title is the Perfected Who Preserves Well-Being.

The Office of the Sun and Moon processes the documents submitted by the sun and moon. It is administered by Qiu Xiang, the Perfected, whose honorific title is the Perfected of Reverent Harmony.

The Court of the Five Stars administers the documents and talismanic mandates of the various stars. It is administered by Shi Yao, the Perfected, whose honorific title is the Perfected of Intersecting Radiance.

The Five Stars Court is charged with keeping the various stellar writs and talismans, and is presided over by the Perfected of Intersecting Light, Shiyao.

The fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh Recorders handle affairs concerning the Twenty-Eight Lunar Mansions of the four directions—twenty-eight groups of constellations divided by quarter—as they move into position. Together these are called the Eight Offices. Of the offices that conduct business, seven belong to the regular establishment and one to the seasonal staff. These posts are jointly enfeoffed as Perfected (zhenren) and share a common title.

The East comes under the fourth Recorder. Its eight judges are jointly enfeoffed as the Perfected of Azure Radiance: Wang Ji, Qin Lang, Wang Jue, Yang Qi, Zhang Hao, Hou Fu, Niu Qing, and Niu Du.

The South comes under the fifth Recorder. Its eight judges are jointly enfeoffed as the Perfected of Blazing Bloom: Dou Jian, Wan Sheng, Feng Yan, Ming Duo, Mao Zhong, Feng Zhen, Hua Jian, and Zhi Xiang. This passage is repeated once in the scripture, and the list given the first time omits Zhi Xiang.

The West comes under the sixth Recorder. Its eight judges are jointly enfeoffed as the Perfected of Pure Stillness: Huang Wen, Xiao Zong, Guan Zimen, Hu Qian, Hu Zhu, Huang Wansheng, Liu Zhiji, and Liu Zhang. In the original there is a blank after Xiao Zong.

The North comes under the seventh Recorder. Its eight judges are jointly enfeoffed as the Perfected of Mysterious Numen: Lu Jixian, Guo Yuan, Wang Zhidao, Li Yunzhong, Li Kui, Cao Hong, Hu Zhu, and Hu Zhen.

The Dispatch-Forwarding Commissioner of the Northern Pivot transmits documents and delivers them to the Metropolitan Office—the organ that supervises the affairs of the various offices—to which each office belongs. The officers concerned are Cui Long, General Superintendent and Left Commissioner Who Controls the Cranes; Hu De, Right Commissioner Who Drives the Dragons of the bureau; and Dou Sheng, a seasonal staff member, the Right Crimson Lad.

The foregoing is the content of the Essential Directive of the Metropolitan Office of the Celestial Pivot Court. At the end, the original is subscribed as the Essential Directive of the Metropolitan Office of the Celestial Pivot Court, with the syllable xu written by a different character from the one ordinarily used in that title.