《太上通玄灵印经》

The Scripture of the Most High on the Numinous Seal That Penetrates the Mystery (Taishang Tongxuan Lingyin Jing)

The Numinous Seal (Lingyin) is the dharma-seal for communicating with spirits. The Ghost-Seizing Seal (Shegui Yin) is the seal method for gathering in and capturing ghosts and spirits. The Ghost-Directing Seal (Cegui Yin) is the seal method for driving and employing ghosts and spirits. The Ghost-Summoning Seal (Zhaogui Yin) is the seal method for calling ghosts and spirits to come.

Laozi said: “This seal for communicating with spirits is the root of every kind of ritual art. If someone has not obtained this method, the other arts of the Dao are merely wasted effort and can hardly succeed. Although the various arts all claim their own efficacy, if one does not know from where to obtain the Numinous Seal, one only labors in vain and wears oneself out all day long.”

Laozi said: “If someone wishes to command ghost soldiers, that person may take the drugs listed above: three liang of red ge flowers, that is, the flowers of white calamus; one jin of goji berries, gathered on the seventh day of the seventh month; three jin of red mulberry bark, taking the portion buried in the soil that is white in color and thick and full; and three liang each of guijiu, the fat of a blue-green ox, and ghost-arrow.

“Shade-dry these six materials for twenty days, pound them into a fine powder, and mix them with honey to make pills the size of small beans. At the yin hour (from three to five in the early morning) take three pills, three times each day. By the seventh day of taking them, it is said that the Eight Scribes, the Jade Maidens of the Six Ding, mountain essences, the River Earl, the water officials, the altar lord, and the lord of lightning, together with the rakshasas of the rivers and seas, King Jiupanqin, and the ghosts and spirits of the Eight Divisions, will all lead a million ghosts and spirits of the world to bow before you and come to court. Tigers, wolves, and every kind of bird and beast can likewise be placed under your command.”

The Lord Lao said: “Every kind of ritual art can be put into effect from this Numinous Seal, each displaying its own efficacy, and one need not seek after food and drink.”

“As for the various external methods, even if one has talismans, seals, and incantations and claims all manner of efficacy, without this Numinous Seal they are only wasted effort and will scarcely succeed.”

Laozi said: This is the “Lingbao Tongling Yinwen” (Numinous Treasure Spirit-Communicating Seal Inscription), transmitted by the Most High (Taishang) in his own words. If one keeps and employs it according to the proper norms and cultivates for three months and three days, one can transform into myriad forms. Even if one has mastered Fulu (talismans and registers), seal methods, and incantations, merely speaking of their efficacy without this spirit-communicating seal is wasted effort, and nothing can be accomplished.

Laozi said further: This is the “Lingbao Tongling Yinwen,” transmitted by the Most High in his own words. If one keeps and employs it according to the proper norms and cultivates for three months and three days, one can transform all things and, out of nothing, bring forth water and fire, gold and silver, jewels and jade, every kind of vegetable under heaven, trees, rivers and seas, earth and stone, and wind and rain. Birds and beasts can likewise all be produced by transformation, and there is nothing that cannot be done. If one wishes to realize the effects described above, one must purify body and mind and eat no food of blood or flesh. When such pure precepts are observed, practice of the method will not go astray.

Laozi said: If one wishes the Eight Archivists (Bashi) and the Six Ding (Liuding) to fetch gold and silver, all kinds of treasures, and immortal medicines on one’s behalf, one must first put into effect the spirit-communicating talisman-seal of the Eight Archivists. Direct the seal toward the Zhen position in the east, one of the positions of the Bagua (Eight Trigrams), and the Eight Archivists will at once fetch every kind of object for one. Then hold the seal crosswise toward the sky, and the Eight Archivists, the Six Ding, and the soldiers, generals, ghosts, and spirits under their command will all come before the ritual altar.

Laozi said: This art is extremely secret and must not be transmitted to others. If one violates the precepts of the Daoist tradition, calamity will implicate seven generations of descendants.

The scripture says that this seal is two cun wide, with its core made of white sandalwood and carved as a left seal. Carved according to the method set out above, the seal’s efficacy is no different. The closing sentence of the original, “also extending to seven generations of descendants,” is incomplete in meaning and may be connected with the earlier statement that violating the precepts brings disaster upon later generations.

The form of the seal inscription is as follows: it is two cun wide, with white sandalwood serving as the core of the seal, and is made as the left seal. This seal is to be carved according to the method described above, and its efficacy is no different. The seal on the left is placed at the rear, and the seal on the right is placed at the front. The rear seal and the front seal are used respectively to command the Eight Clerks (bashi, the eight attendant divine officials of the celestial realm), the Six Ding Jade Maidens (Liuding yunü, the six goddesses of which Daoism speaks), and the ghosts and spirits throughout the world.

The front seal is to be carved in agarwood to a depth of one cun, and the carving is to be done on the fifth day of the fifth month or the seventh day of the seventh month. These two days are the days when the Eight Clerks of the various heavens descend; at that time all ghosts and spirits are in the human world, inspecting people’s good and evil and their faults. If the seal is opened on these two days, it can be completed at once. The rear seal is likewise to be carved on the same day, so that the flying talismans issued can be swiftly delivered a thousand li away.

This seal is an object of secret transmission and is not to be taught at will. When carving the seal, first enter a pure chamber, sprinkle and sweep the ground with a decoction of spikenard, and then begin the carving with an ancient knife. At the yin hour (from three to five in the early morning), enter the chamber and burn incense, respectfully inviting the former master Laozi, the Eight Clerks, and the Six Ding Jade Maidens. When the invocation has been made three times, begin to carve. The work must end at the mao hour (from five to seven in the morning) and must not be drawn out past the mao hour. The original text then repeats once more the requirements of the pure chamber, the sprinkling of the ground, the burning of incense and the invocation, and the ending of the work at the mao hour.

When carving the seal, one must wear new clothes and bathe in a fragrant decoction so that the body is clean. Carve while counting the breaths; when the count reaches eight times eight, sixty-four breaths, the carving must be finished. The count must be kept, and none may be omitted. After the carving is done, bury the seal for twenty days in the place called “ghost ground,” then take it out at daybreak in the yin hour. Set up the altar according to the prescribed procedure and maintain it for twenty-one days, and the work can be accomplished.

When the ritual altar is set up, the altar surface is eight chi (Chinese feet) wide. Upon it are placed eight lamps, one bronze bowl, four incense burners, four incense tables, the colored silks of the five directions (pieces of colored silk representing east, south, west, north, and the center), one mirror, one cup of wine, one jin (a Chinese pound) of dried venison, and one plate of five kinds of vegetables. If the altar is established on the first day of the first lunar month, the rite can be completed in three days. The lamp oil must be huma oil (sesame oil); freshly pressed oil must not be used.

A lamp is lit at each of the four corners and must not be put out at night; the four lamps inside the altar are extinguished only at dawn. The four outer lamps correspond to the four directions and the four seasons, while the four inner lamps are for the Eight Scribes (the subordinate spirit-officials spoken of in the scripture) when they take their seats. Round cushions are spread beneath the seats, and the Six Ding (the six guardian deities of Daoist belief) are set in place. Arranged in this way, the eight lamps within and without correspond to the Eight Scribes above and to the Bagua (Eight Trigrams) below. When the Eight Scribes come, leading the various kings, no additional incense may be burned.

The person who sets up the altar receives ten kinds of blessed rewards. Those who see this lamp may also obtain blessings: longevity throughout life, and every treasure and article they need can be gained just as they wish. The efficacy of setting up the altar is more than can be told, so it will not be set out further here; this method is not to be transmitted.

Laozi says: If the seal is to be used, face the seal and recite the incantation three times. The words of the incantation are:

“True Qi (vital energy) of the Most High, the supreme Qi of the Dao (the Way), illuminate my body and mind. The transformations wrought by use of the seal are realized at once. The Eight Scribes guard on the left, and the Six Ding protect my bodily form. All the ghosts and spirits under heaven come to respond in spirit. Once the divine seal is set down, ghosts, spirits, and their troops can be commanded. Let the disciple attain the methods of the Dao and live forever. Ascend to heaven in broad daylight, and rise in flight to Shangqing (the lofty celestial realm spoken of in Daoism).”

When the incantation has been recited, take the seal in the left hand and hold it toward the sky. The scripture says that the Eight Scribes of all the heavens will come before one. When they ask what is to be obtained, one names the things desired, and they will at once fetch them and hand them over.

If one wishes to turn mountains and forests into a scene of rivers and seas, one holds the body of the seal and shakes it three times, and that mountain will become a wooded hill. To restore it, one raises the seal upright toward heaven, and the hill returns to its original form.

If one wishes to conjure a river, one coats the seal with ink, wears it on the head, and shakes it three times, and a great river a hundred li wide will appear. To stop the river, one sets the seal down and sits, and the waters will cease.

If one wishes to summon the Six Ding (Liuding), the Jade Maidens (Yunü), and all manner of ghosts and spirits, one anoints the seal with ox bezoar and cinnabar. The Jing (scripture) says that the ghosts and spirits, together with the Six Ding, will all come and submit to command. Moving mountains, draining seas, summoning thunder and lightning, darkening heaven and earth, causing the sun and moon to fall, and raising clouds to bring rain can all be directed by this Tongling Seal (tongling yin), the seal that communicates with spirits.

If one wishes the Six Ding to obey one’s orders—to move mountains and drain seas, summon thunder and lightning, darken heaven and earth, cause the sun and moon to fall, and raise clouds and rain—one may also use this Tongling Seal.

If one wishes the Six Ding to move mountains and drain the seas, one anoints the seal with cinnabar and raises it toward the mountain, and the mountain will become mulberry fields. If one holds the seal sideways toward the west, the mountain will shift onto level ground. To restore it, one raises the seal upright toward the east, and the mountain returns to its former place. The original text here reads “toward shu”; in light of the context, this is understood as “toward the east.”

If one wishes to bring forth thunder, one raises the seal in the left hand toward the east, and thunder that shakes heaven and earth will resound.

If one wishes to darken the sun and moon and to raise clouds and rain, one uses the seal to summon the Eight Scribes (Bashi) and has them raise clouds and send rain. The Eight Scribes are the names of deities given in the Jing.

If one wishes to veil the light of the sun and moon and produce a white mist, one uses the seal to summon the Six Ding and asks them to carry it out.

Laozi says: If one wishes the Eight Scribes to help one lengthen one’s years and attain long life, and to seek immortality and ascend as an immortal, one smears the seal twenty-one times with the flowers of red kudzu. The Eight Scribes and the Six Ding will then come to support one, leading one up to heaven, so that one may travel through the void, roam the Five Marchmounts (Wuyue), and conceal oneself in ten thousand places. The immortal officials of the Five Marchmounts, the heavenly deities, and the jade lads and jade maidens will all come to receive one. The Jing further says that one first shortens the veins of the earth and then sets out, touring the eight directions of the world, and thereafter can attain the Dao (the Way) of the immortals and become an immortal. The closing passage of the original contains repetitions and corrupted wording; here it is rendered continuously according to the sense that can be made out.

Laozi said: To practice the art of “shrinking the earth’s veins,” smear ox bezoar and cinnabar on the seal (yin), face the ghosts and spirits of the east, and call upon Azha to lead the divine troops of every quarter to come. One can then shorten a journey of a thousand li, or even a hundred thousand li, and reach the destination in the time it takes to eat a mouthful of food.

If one wishes to go to Mount Penglai to pay homage to the immortals, take two zhu of mercury and genuine cinnabar and smear them on the seal. Then the Eight Scribes of the Bound Quarters (Shufang Bashi), leading the ghost soldiers of the Five Great Divisions, will assist in performing the art of shrinking the earth’s veins, so that one arrives at Mount Penglai at once. On arrival, one will see immortals and jade maidens riding azure dragons and white tigers to welcome you. When you meet them, turn the seal sideways toward the immortals, and it will transform into tens of thousands of lions. The immortals, seeing this, will all marvel and sigh in praise, and will bestow on you the title of an immortal; your name will also be entered in the Purple Chamber Palace of the Golden Portal on the Great Mountain. From then on you will live without dying, sharing the lifespan of heaven and earth. Anyone who wishes to cultivate this method must not harm any spirit.

Laozi said: If one wishes the Six Ding (Liuding) and the Eight Scribes (Bashi) to fetch treasures, raise the seal toward the sky. The divine maidens of the Eight Scribes will at once bring all kinds of gold, silver, and precious goods. Take out three liang and bury them at the Earth Door (Dihu—the gateway on the ground, or the place where the earth’s veins enter and leave); the rest may be used as one pleases.

If one wishes to conceal the body and transform its form, point the seal toward the face and one instantly becomes an old person; point it toward the center of the chest and one becomes a woman; point it toward the feet and one becomes earth; point it toward the back and one becomes the sky, while thunder and lightning also crash and resound. Hold the seal in the left hand and point it inverted toward the sky, and rain will fall; if one wishes the rain to stop, point the seal steadily at the ground, and the rain will cease.

If one wishes to change grasses and trees into other forms, on the fifth day of the fifth month gather a hundred kinds of flowers, dry them in the shade for twenty days, grind them into powder, and smear it on the seal. Press the seal upon the ground, and a person will turn into all manner of grasses and trees. Wave the seal to the left and right, and tens of thousands of people will appear; if one wishes the transformations to stop, turn the seal over and face it toward oneself.

If one wishes to produce all kinds of birds and beasts—lions, tigers and wolves, flood dragons, venomous snakes, and the like—hold the seal sideways aimed at the ground, and tens of thousands of great venomous snakes will appear, each ten zhang long. If one wishes them to vanish, use the seal to press and suppress the ground, and the tigers, wolves, flood dragons, and venomous snakes will disappear at once.

Laozi said: This “Seal of Spirit Communion” of mine—a ritual seal used for communicating with spirits—can be obtained only after one sets up an altar and cultivates for twenty-one days. One need not first receive the Daoist registers, the name-registers conferred by Daoism upon practitioners, which also represent their ritual offices and lineages of transmission. Whether one obtains this seal or the “Eight Perfected Seal of Spirit Communion,” following the same method in either case will ensure that nothing goes amiss.

Formerly there was no “Register of the Eight Scribes.” In the first year of Yongshou, a divine master saw eight “scribes” conversing in the void. He thereupon compiled one scroll of Keyi (liturgy) for sacrificing to the Eight Scribes, and compiled six further scrolls. If people of the world obtain the fundamental transmission of this method, they need not receive the registers. If they have no such transmission, they must first receive the registers and then perform the jiao rite—a Daoist ritual of setting up an altar to offer sacrifice and prayer—before they may practice the method. In the past, Fei Changfang, Master Guigu, cultivated according to this method and was thereby able to ascend as an immortal. In the third year of Yonghe of the Jin, when the Taisui stood at Shuo, the method was transmitted to Master Zhuge; from then on, those who obtained it were very few. The complete work comprises fifty scrolls. Master Zhuge composed one scroll, the Book of Spirit Communion for Commanding Ghosts, and later passed it on to the world.

If one wishes to command ghosts, one may gather guijiu on a Six Ding day or a gui day, and take three liang of the white bark of red mulberry. On the seventh day of the seventh month, bury these things at the place of the “Ghost Gate.” After twenty-one days, at dusk, take three steps and walk nine traces, knock the teeth three times, and recite the incantation three times.

Smear the medicine on the eyes, and one will be able to see ghosts and spirits. The scripture goes on to say that ghosts and spirits will obey one’s commands like servants. One may also obtain the immortal medicines of gold and silver, ingest them together with others, and thereby ascend in flight and become an immortal. Ghosts constantly wish to harm people; if one first holds the pills mentioned above in the mouth, they will not dare to injure anyone.

If one wishes to command ghosts and spirits to steal gold, silver, silk, and other goods from other people’s homes, one must first sacrifice to the ghosts. The offerings may be three cups of wine, three dried fish, three jin of dried venison, five kinds of fruit, and one incense burner. The prayer says: “I join with you as friends, and will regularly give you wine and meat to eat. If I ask you to fetch gold, jade, money, and the like, bring them at once, and on no account go against my words.”

If one wishes to seek the Dao (the Way) and hopes to become an immortal, one may likewise obtain all things under heaven and have them arrive at once. Do not go against my words.

If you wish to obtain gold, jade, money, and other valuables, and to have them available for use without ever running short, you must keep this method secret and not pass it on to others carelessly.

This talisman is used to summon ghosts. Write it in cinnabar on a piece of white silk two cun long, place it in a five-colored pouch, and carry it on your person, taking care that no one sees it.

If you wish to obtain the wealth that the ghosts oversee, so that it can be used without running short, you must likewise keep it secret and not teach it carelessly.

This talisman is used to summon ghosts. Write it in cinnabar on a piece of white silk two cun long, place it in a five-colored pouch, and carry it on your person, taking care that no one sees it.

If you wish to command ghosts and spirits, hold the talisman pouch in your left hand and point it toward the four directions. It is said that tens of thousands of ghosts from every direction will then gather. At that moment, say to the ghost soldiers: "What are you willing to fetch for me?" After this, you may send them on errands. Whether it is immortal medicines or gold, silver, and precious objects, the ghosts will bring whatever is requested, supplying the practitioner endlessly and without limit.

If someone commits evil and harms others, you may summon the ghost soldiers to punish them. If you command that they die, they will die; if you command that they live, they will live. Even without killing them, you can afflict them with illness, so that they long to live but cannot, and long to die but cannot. In matters of wrongdoing, grievance, or injustice suffered, you may likewise dispatch the ghost soldiers to take revenge, causing the offender to die or to live.

Zhuge said: if you wish to have ghosts bring someone from a thousand li away, write that person's name on the talisman and shake it three times while holding it. It is said that the person will arrive that very day.

Before commanding ghosts and spirits, you must first recite the names of the ghost marshals of the Five Directions and Five Divisions. The ghost marshal of the east is named Azhaqie and commands one million lesser ghosts. The ghost marshal of the south is named Fu, also called Baosha, and commands three million lesser ghosts. The ghost marshal of the west is named Fuqiu and commands three million lesser ghosts. The ghost marshal of the north is named Shenzha and commands one million lesser ghosts. The original text afterward repeats the names and troop numbers of the marshals of the south, west, and north.

Zhuge said: If you wish to have ghosts and spirits fetch things for you, simply follow the person's wishes and the items will be delivered at once. First recite the names of the Five Directions (east, south, west, north, and center), and the ghost commander will personally lead the host of ghosts to retrieve them. The ghost commander surveys people's faults day and night, and a practitioner of this method should be aware of it. Usually it makes one inspection at sunrise, stays briefly, and then leaves; it inspects again at noon; and again at midnight. During these three periods one should not lie down to sleep, because this greatly frightens the Five Divisions of ghosts (the ghost hosts belonging to the five directions), and at times it may even harm people, so one must be careful and on guard. If one holds a medicinal talisman (fu) at these times, the ghosts cannot cause harm. When speaking with someone, if you show it secret matters or gold, silver, and treasures, it will immediately go and fetch them.

Zhuge said: If you wish to turn beans into soldiers, take a thousand red beans, mix them with sheep's blood and bezoar (niuhuang, a medicinal ingredient), and coat the beans with it fourteen times. When using them, first wash the beans clean, then recite the incantation: "These beans are the soldiers of the ghosts and spirits, and I am a child of the Celestial Emperor, able to command and transform, so that you may heed my orders. Attack mountains and fell trees, and let wealth and goods be as abundant as a marketplace; extend life and lengthen years, lasting as long as heaven and earth. Quickly, quickly, in accordance with the statutes and ordinances!"

After reciting it, hold the beans in your left hand and shake your right hand toward the Kan position in the north (the northern direction among the Bagua, the Eight Trigrams), summoning the ghosts and spirits from afar. Shake three times toward the north, and the ghost commander will lead the ghost soldiers, who will transform into bean soldiers and shake the mountains and valleys. You may have as many soldiers as you wish; in a moment, tens of thousands can be produced, with forms like living people.

If you want the bean soldiers to fell trees or open up mountains, use the same incantation as before for every kind of task. In a single night, the bean soldiers can clear mountain forests and open up tens of millions of mu of land.

When the work is done, use the Ghost-Summoning Talisman (a fulu used to gather and restrain ghosts and spirits) to call them back; after reciting the incantation, they will all return to stand before you at once. The talisman design is as follows, and it must be kept strictly secret and not shown to others.

This is the Ghost-Summoning Talisman. When using it, use sheep's blood and bezoar, and write it during the time of the four qi. Once the talisman and incantation are put into use, nothing may be omitted; if any part is damaged or incomplete, it will not be effective.

If one wishes to send this talisman flying hundreds of thousands of li away, take human blood blended with sheep’s blood, write the name into the talisman, and it will fly off at once. If someone comes asking the talisman to accomplish a matter, yet the matter is in some way lacking or not fully in order, the talisman will not take effect.

If someone comes seeking to have a matter carried out, one need not draw a talisman, but only recite the incantation three times:

“Spirits of Heaven and Earth, brightness of the sun and moon. So-and-so enacts the flying talisman and commands the Six Ding (the six divine generals spoken of in Daoism). In accordance with what is asked by mouth, drive forth the ghost troops. Quickly, quickly, in accordance with the statutes and ordinances.”

When the incantation has been recited, click the teeth three times, then impress the “Tongling Seal” (the ritual seal spoken of in the scripture) seven times, and the talisman will fly off.

If one wishes the talisman to summon a certain person or a thief, recite the incantation three times, form the hand seal, and apply the talisman three times; the talisman will then fly off and kill the thief. If one intends to kill a person, one must further use the talisman to seize that person’s name, and then tell others.

Zhuge says: To command the numinous troops, take one sheng of millet, mix in pig’s blood and the blood of a black ox, and smear it over the millet two or three times; recite the “Bean-Soldier Incantation” three times, and the ghost troops can be made at once to fill the mountains and rivers. If one wishes to gather in the ghost troops, use the “Ghost-Seizing Talisman,” hold it in the mouth and call out, and the ghost troops will stop immediately.

If a person is able to command the Jiupanji ghosts and the Rakshasa ghosts (the ghosts and spirits spoken of in the scripture), one can, for all living beings under Heaven, display transformations and produce strange phenomena.

The method of command is this: impress upon the fingers the left and right Tongling Seals mentioned above, and the Jiupanji ghosts and Rakshasa ghosts will arrive at once and, on one’s behalf, bring forth a great venomous snake three hundred zhang long, with a mouth one zhang wide, thereby frightening the crowd. If one wishes it to stop, forcefully form the hand seal, and it will vanish. This method must be kept secret and must not be transmitted.

Zhuge says: The Lord Lao (Laojun) Talisman for Driving Ghosts can command the Shejun, the Hebo, and the Water Officials (spirits associated respectively with the soil, the rivers, and the waters), and can also see things hidden a thousand li away; treasures of gold and jade will all appear clearly before one’s eyes. The method of making this talisman is as follows, and it can also command the Aojun (the spirit associated with the giant ao). This method ought to be kept secret.

This is a talisman method for commanding spirits such as Hebo (the water deity), the Water Official, Shejun (the earth deity), and Chongjun.

The blood from the crown of a magpie’s head is blended with mineral sulfur and used to write the talisman script; garments are then made from five-colored materials. Hold the talisman in the left hand and place it on top of the head, and the person will vanish from sight. Place the talisman below, and the transformation will cease. Place it on the face, and one will turn into fifteen boys; tie it at the waist, and one will become a woman of peerless dignity; place it on the feet, and one will become a white-haired old man who looks more than a hundred years old.

Hold the talisman in the right hand and shake it three times; first step two paces forward, then three paces back, and one can divide into a thousand people. To stop the transformation, go to the doorway and point the former talisman toward the sky, and one will become a single person again.

Zhuge says: This talisman may be used by reciting an incantation aloud as needed. Write the talisman in cinnabar on white silk, then use the ghost-seizing talisman mentioned above, recite the incantation three times, and strike the talisman’s right ear; one will at once become eighteen women, each dignified and beautiful. Point the former talisman toward the sky, and one will become a single person again; put the talisman away, and the transformation ceases.

Zhuge further says: This talisman may be used by reciting an incantation aloud as needed. Write the talisman in cinnabar on white silk, then use the ghost-seizing talisman mentioned above, recite the incantation three times, and strike the talisman’s right ear; one will at once become eighteen women, each dignified and beautiful; put the talisman away, and the transformation ceases. Place the talisman beneath a tree, and crows and sparrows of every kind will gather; put the talisman away, and the flock will disperse. Cast the talisman into the water, and jiao-dragons, fish, and soft-shelled turtles of every kind will gather, yet they will do no harm to anyone; put the talisman away, and the gathering will cease.