《灵宝净明院行遣式》

Format of the Jingming Talisman-Vouchers

Outer Altar of the Lingbao Jingming Court (the outer altar established by the Jingming Court):

This court presently has on duty, for a given month, the Sovereign Lords, Divine Kings, and palace generals, together with the divine generals, clerks, and soldiers of the various ritual courts. Stipend talisman-vouchers must be issued to them so that they may proceed to the Celestial Pivot Court (Tianshu Yuan, the office that handles stipend matters for divine generals) and claim payment. The categories are listed below:

The thirty-six Sovereign Lords of the Jingming Court, together with the Divine Kings and official generals, eighty-four thousand in number, and the companies of stockade chiefs (zhaizhu), jiefu, armored horses (jiama), and the rest.

If divine generals from other courts are also to be received, they are listed together according to established custom.

Talisman-vouchers are now issued and delivered to the thirty-six Sovereign Lords of Jingming, and to the Divine Kings, official generals, stockade chiefs, jiefu, armored horses, and the divine generals, clerks, and soldiers of the various ritual courts. They are to take the talisman-vouchers to the Celestial Pivot Court, complete the procedures for claiming payment, and set out carefully the amounts of stipend due to the divine generals, clerks, and soldiers, omitting nothing. The names of the deities are to be arranged clearly according to rank, higher and lower, and the distribution is to be fair; neither too little nor too much may be issued. Let this be carried out at once in accordance with the sworn statutes and ordinances of the Hall of the Most High Dongshen. This voucher shall serve as proof.

Voucher dated such-and-such year of the sexagenary cycle, with the month and day, under the Grand Year (Taisui).

Endorsed and signed by this court.

At the head of the voucher one “Cina” talisman (Cina fu) is used, and the Jingming ritual seal is also to be impressed upon the whole voucher, twenty-four impressions in all.

Format for Issuing the Vouchers and Reporting to the Celestial Pivot Court

Outer Altar of the Lingbao Jingming Court:

This court presently has on duty, on a given day of this month, the Sovereign Lords and Divine Kings, together with the divine generals, clerks, and soldiers of the various ritual courts. Talisman-vouchers must be issued to them so that they may proceed to the Celestial Pivot Court and claim their stipends. This matter ought to be reported. The circumstances are hereby set forth: in accordance with the scriptural methods of the Jingming Jing, this court has already issued talisman-vouchers and given them to the Sovereign Lords, Divine Kings, official generals, and the divine generals, clerks, and soldiers of the various ritual courts, for them to take and make their claims. A document is now respectfully submitted to report the matter to the Celestial Pivot Court. We earnestly request…

The original text breaks off at this point. “Zhaizhu,” “jiefu,” “jiama,” and the like are titles or collective designations of divine generals in the document; they are retained here as in the original.

Once compliance has been verified, make the allocation according to regulation and carry the matter out. Respectfully submitted.

Dated by the Tai Sui year-count: such-and-such year, month, and day. One who holds official status submits the petition.

Form for Issuing an Upward Petition, Coupons, and an Escort Guide

Outer Altar of the Lingbao Jingming Court:

The Great Shen (spirit) of the Celestial Treasury is now dispatched, charged with presenting one upward petition together with the talisman coupons, delivering them up to the Tianshu Court, and awaiting instructions.

The foregoing matters are entrusted to the Great Shen of the Celestial Treasury.

Outer Altar of the Lingbao Jingming Court:

The Great Shen of the Celestial Treasury is now dispatched, charged with presenting one upward petition together with the talisman coupons, delivering them up to the Tianshu Court, and awaiting instructions.

The charge laid upon the Great Shen of the Celestial Treasury is as follows. Proceed to the Tianshu Court, deliver the documents clearly and in full, draw the required materials and funds according to the stated quantities, and distribute them in equal shares, without delaying for so much as a moment. Should there be any breach or error, the responsibility shall be yours alone. With all urgency, obey and carry this out in accordance with the sworn statutes and ordinances of the Most High Hall of Dongshen (one of the Three Caverns).

Such-and-such year, month, and day. The escort guide.

Vermilion endorsement: Great Shen of the Celestial Treasury.

Sealed by the Court.

Form of Petition Submitted for a Patient

In such-and-such circuit, such-and-such prefecture, such-and-such county, such-and-such township, and such-and-such ward and lane, there resides a disciple who reveres the Great Dao (the Way), of such-and-such surname.

A certain person now respectfully reports: Someone of my household, so-and-so, was born in such-and-such year, month, day, and hour, and on such-and-such year, month, and day contracted a certain illness. Medicine and treatment have been of no avail. We fear that malign specters are twining about this person and following close upon them, to the injury of life. If in dreams there has been dealing with gods or ghosts, male or female, or if divination has yielded related indications, let these be set out in full in the petition. A document is now respectfully prepared and submitted to the Outer Altar of the Lingbao Jingming Court, with the earnest plea that ritual methods be compassionately applied so as to bring about a cure. If in dreams there has been dealing with gods or ghosts, male or female, or if divination has yielded related indications, let these be set out in full in the petition. A document is now respectfully prepared and submitted to the Outer Altar of the Lingbao Jingming Court, with the earnest plea that ritual methods of healing be applied and put into effect. Respectfully submitted.

Such-and-such year, month, and day. One who holds official status, of such-and-such surname, signs and seals.

First Form for Judging the Petition and Dispatching Divine Generals

After the text of the petition, write the words of judgment and affix the signature seal.

The officers and generals of the Divine Kings of Pure Brightness (Jingming) are dispatched to go forth at the head of a company of troops and generals. They are to examine with care the petition submitted by the party concerned: the matter is urgent and must be acted upon at once. The troops and generals are ordered to proceed to the home of the party concerned, to supervise and restrain the Earth God of the dwelling (Tudi), the Director of Destinies (Siming), and the Six Spirits (deities who guard the household and its people), and to search carefully within and without the patient’s body and all around the residence, above and below. They are to seize those evil gods and baleful ghosts that attach themselves to a person, work mischief, and thereby cause illness, together with the essence-specters (Jing) that injure men and bring death to women, the essences of earth, wood, and mountains, and the ghosts and spirits that cling to grasses and trees. These are to be bound fast and escorted under guard to the Eastern Peak (Dongyue), there to be dealt with according to the celestial statutes.

If there are male or female household kin, inner or outer (ghosts and spirits connected with the household or the patient), they too are to be sent back to the places from which they originally came, to be taken in charge by the jurisdictions to which they belong. They are not permitted to return and work mischief, nor to escape. The patient must be brought to immediate recovery. When night falls, the divine generals, with their troops and horses, are further to appear distinctly and manifest a verifying response in the home of the party concerned. The command is not to be defied. Let this be carried out with all urgency in accordance with the sworn statutes and ordinances of the Hall of the Cavern of Spirit (Dongshen) of the Most High (Taishang).

Dispatched and endorsed: year, month, day, and hour.

This petition is burned when troops are sent forth from this altar.

Second Form of the Adjudicating Petition

Entrusted to the Earth God, the Director of Destinies, and the Six Spirits of the home of the party concerned: Examine carefully the matters set forth in the petition. The situation is urgent and brooks no delay. Search carefully within and without the patient’s body and all around the residence, above and below, and seize the evil gods and baleful ghosts that work mischief and cause illness, the essence-specters that injure men and bring death to women, and the essence-specters that cling to grasses and trees. Take them clearly into custody and hand them over to the divine generals, officers, and troops who have come under command, to be escorted under guard to the Eastern Peak and dealt with according to celestial law.

If there are household kin, inner or outer, escort them back to the places from which they originally came, to be taken in charge by the jurisdictions to which they belong, and do not permit them to return and work mischief; they are also to be taken clearly into custody and handed over to the divine generals, officers, and troops who have come under command, to be escorted under guard to the Eastern Peak and dealt with according to celestial law. Do not, out of private partiality, shelter them and thereby allow them to escape. The patient must be brought to immediate recovery. At night a verifying response is to be manifested clearly in this household, without delay. Should there be any defiance, a memorial is to be submitted reporting it.

Submit a memorial to the celestial court, requesting that the matter be carried out in accordance with the provisions of the Taishang Dongshen Tang Shili (the Oath-Regulations of the Hall of the Supreme Dongshen, the Cavern of Spirit).

The year, month, day, and hour are to be entered, and the document is then signed, sealed, and dispatched.

This petition is to be burned at the “ao qian” in the patient’s home (the wording is as in the original; it may refer to the place where offerings are presented or the rite is performed).

The third format of the judgment document calls for divine generals and clerical troops to be dispatched to bring about a cure, and for fushui (water over which talismanic methods have been worked) to be issued for treating the illness.

The date is written out, and the document is signed and sealed.

If the illness is severe, the petition is prepared according to this format and handled in accordance with the ritual, and the die (a document used to transmit commands) is written on paper of the finest quality. If the patient’s xie Qi (the malignant Qi, or vital energy, held to cause illness) is relatively heavy and the condition appears clouded, sunken, and critical, one need only first write a single petition; an endorsement is then added, requesting that the illness be treated with this talisman water.

The date is written out, and the document is signed and sealed.

If the illness is severe, the petition is prepared according to this format and handled in accordance with the ritual, and the die is written on paper of the finest quality. If the patient’s xie Qi is relatively heavy and the condition appears clouded, sunken, and critical, one need only first write a single petition; an endorsement is then added petitioning the Chenghuang zhuzhe of the prefecture or county concerned (the presiding authority of the local City God), asking that this deity examine the circumstances set forth in the patient’s petition and immediately dispatch a capable judicial officer of that temple to lead the divine generals and clerical troops of the temple, carefully search out the malign spirits on the patient’s person, and seize them. The remainder is the same as in the preceding form of judgment.

If the patient’s household presents paper horses and similar offerings, a note may be added after the petition: “The patient’s household now presents, together with this petition, a certain number of cash-horses; kindly receive them clearly and in full.” In treating the illness, the various divine generals belonging to this altar should be dispatched in due order.

The format of the die requesting the Divine Kings to treat illness runs as follows. The Outer Altar of the Lingbao Jingming Court addresses this die to the Divine Kings, official generals, and presiding authorities: This Court, now relying upon the petition of a certain person…, must at present issue an official document. The aforementioned Divine Kings, official generals, and presiding authorities are requested to examine the circumstances stated by the patient, swiftly lead the troops and horses of this encampment to go and effect the cure, and dispatch them in due order.

The format of the die requesting the Divine Kings to treat illness runs as follows. The Outer Altar of the Lingbao Jingming Court addresses this die to the Divine Kings, official generals, and presiding authorities:

This office, having now received the petition of a certain person, the contents of which are as follows…, therefore specially issues this official document. The dispatch requests that, with regard to the matter set forth by the said person in the foregoing statement, the troops and horses of this encampment be mobilized at once and sent to the City God temple at the place in question, there to urge the temple to dispatch without delay capable infernal judges, valiant divine generals, and clerical soldiers. These are to supervise and restrain the six deities of this household, including the Earth God and the Director of Destinies. They must search the sick person’s body with care and seize the evil spirits and baleful ghosts that have attached themselves to the body, worked mischief, and brought on the illness. Whether they have injured men or brought death upon women, they are to be firmly shackled and held, escorted to the celestial prison, and dealt with according to the regulations for examining and punishing offenses.

The sick person must be made to recover immediately, so that malign Qi (vital energy) leaves the body and true Qi gathers within it. There must be no partiality or concealment that would allow the baleful ghosts to escape. Especial care must be taken lest life be harmed by mistake. Except where some other disposition has been made, this matter is not to be handled as ordinary business. It must be carried out in accordance with the decree issued by Jingming Yuan, and must not be disobeyed on one’s own authority. This document is hereby issued.

The dispatch is sent in a certain jiazi year of the Grand Year, in a certain month, on a certain day, and at a certain hour.

Vermilion endorsement: the Divine Kings, and the officers and generals in charge of the matter.

Ritual rank, surname, and cipher-signature.

Format for a Petition to Imperial Lord Wen

It may also be submitted to the Thirty-six Divine Kings.

Ritual rank, and a certain surname:

Now, on the basis of a petition from a certain person of a certain county in a certain prefecture concerning a certain matter, this report is specially submitted.

The foregoing rests on the statement previously made by that person. This office respectfully sets the matter forth in writing and submits this report on the binding of the common people. Signature.

Format for a Petition to Imperial Lord Wen

It may also be submitted to the Thirty-six Divine Kings.

Ritual rank, and a certain surname:

Now, on the basis of a petition from a certain person of a certain county in a certain prefecture concerning a certain matter, this report is specially submitted.

The foregoing rests on the statement previously made by that person. We respectfully submit this report before the sacred presence of the Imperial Lord Who Binds the Hundred Evils and the Imperial Lord Who Cures the Hundred Maladies. We reverently ask the Imperial Lords to bestow their grace and dispatch divine soldiers, commanders, and clerks to the home of the person in question, there to join with the City God of this prefecture in supervising and restraining the six deities of that household, including the Earth God and the Director of Destinies, to search carefully and seize the evil spirits and baleful ghosts that have worked mischief upon that person’s body and caused the illness. Regardless of whether their relation to the person is close or distant, all are to be captured and escorted to the celestial prison and punished according to the celestial statutes. We further pray that the person be made to recover at once, and that the recompense be clearly manifested in that household. This report is respectfully submitted.

In a certain jiazi year of the Grand Year, in a certain month, the petition is presented by so-and-so of such ritual rank and surname.

Petition Offering Spirit-Generals, Talisman Water, Money, and Paper Horses to the Jingming Court

Outer Altar of the Lingbao (Numinous Treasure) Jingming (Pure Brightness) Court:

This Court, acting on a written petition submitted by a certain person of a certain county in a certain prefecture, has learned that the said person is gravely ill. He has specially requested this Court to carry out treatment and to bestow talisman water to cure the illness. He has already burned and offered a certain quantity of money and cloud-horses, and the matter now awaits this Court’s instructions.

Besides having already dispatched spirit-generals together with clerks and soldiers, this Court now issues talisman water, to be taken first by the petitioner himself. As for the money and paper horses he has burned and offered, the Jingming Court is asked to bind the hundred evils, heal the hundred illnesses, and put into effect the methods of talismanic incantation and talisman water. The talisman spirits and talisman clerks are asked clearly to receive the money and horses offered by the petitioner and swiftly to send down True Qi (zhenqi, the pure primordial vital energy of which Daoism speaks), so that it enters the talisman water. Once the patient has swallowed the talisman water and it has entered the abdomen, all illness Qi and deviant Qi within the body, together with the Qi of every kind of pain, cold and heat, epidemic, and seasonal disease, are to disperse at once. The patient’s True Qi is to gather in the body, deviant Qi is to leave the body, and recovery is to come as soon as possible, without delay.

Issued on a certain day of a certain month in a certain jiazi year of the Grand Year (Taisui).

Vermilion endorsement: the Jingming spirit-generals and others.

Court seal (the seal-mark of the Jingming Court).

Model Form for a Memorial Offering Money and Paper Horses

This form is used for the festival days of the “upper seven, three, nine, and eight.” (The original reads thus; it is suspected to be a prompt concerning ritual dates or festival days.)

State the ritual office (fill in the liturgical post or status).

Money, a certain amount. Cloud-horses, a certain number.

Offerings of incense, tea, wine, fruit, and the like, together with pure vegetarian food and so forth.

Respectfully, on a certain day of the present month, we reverently offer the following to the Thirty-Six Sovereign Lords (Dijun) of the Jingming Court (the thirty-six Sovereign Lords venerated by the Jingming Court). We respectfully ask all the Holy Worthies, in their compassion, to examine and accept these offerings. We pray that they assist so-and-so within the Teaching, enabling him to practice the methods of talismans, heal illness and expel evil, summon spirit-generals, and obtain an immediate response; and that they at the same time protect every member of the household, old and young alike, so that all remain safe and tranquil, with nothing amiss in daily life. We ask only that the Worthies uphold the altar and guard its entrance. We respectfully set this forth in writing and reverently submit this memorial.

On a certain day of a certain month in a certain year of the Grand Year, so-and-so of a certain surname, holding the stated ritual office, submits this memorial.

Model Form for a Dispatch Offering Money and Paper Horses

Outer Altar of the Lingbao Jingming Court:

A certain person of this court, on a certain day, burned paper money and cloud-horses (paper horses for the deities to command and employ), set out vegetarian food and other offerings, and respectfully submits this statement in report.

Respectfully presented by so-and-so of such-and-such office, on such-and-such day of such-and-such month in such-and-such year of the Taisui (Grand Year).

Format of the Document for Offering Money and Horses

Outer Altar of the Lingbao Jingming Court (Numinous Treasure Pure Brightness):

A certain person of this court, on a certain day, burned paper money and cloud-horses, and set out vegetarian food, wine, fruit, incense, tea, and other offerings, laying them out for general dedication. The money and horses offered are itemized as follows.

The Divine Kings and official generals of the Jingming Court; the presiding Numinous Officials, judges, officers in charge, and envoys of the provision registers and the canonical archives, together with their company; and the nodal officers and the clerks and soldiers of the armored horses—all these jointly receive by burning such-and-such an amount of paper money and such-and-such a number of cloud-horses.

The divine generals of each of the remaining courts are likewise to be listed one by one according to established custom, each being offered such-and-such money and horses.

May each of the divine generals clearly understand and receive what is listed above. If this court carries out talismanic methods (Fulu, talismans and registers) in order to heal illness and expel evil, or to summon deities and seize ghosts, they are to come at once and render the rite efficacious, and must see to it that the sick person recovers that very day. If they are commissioned to escort under custody, to lead the way, or are dispatched by a writ of judgment, they must likewise proceed at once and must not delay the business. On ordinary days they are asked to remain in the court to protect the altar and guard the assembly, and must not allow deviant gods or haunting ghosts to disturb the altar or entangle the living. All are to comply and act accordingly. This document is hereby issued.

Issued at such-and-such hour, on such-and-such day of such-and-such month, in such-and-such year of the Taisui.

Vermilion endorsement: the divine generals of Jingming, and others.

So-and-so, holder of such-and-such ritual office.

Format of the Notice for Seizing Disciples

Outer Altar of the Lingbao Jingming Court:

According to the report submitted, the affair encountered by this court is urgent and cannot properly be suppressed and left undone. It is proposed that, at such-and-such hour on such-and-such day of such-and-such month, the ritual offices be specified, the Venerable Master be reverently invited, and a flying memorial be submitted upward. We earnestly request that a written command be issued and sent down to the relevant subordinate stations of the Three Realms, ordering them to set a ritual banquet before the Exalted Perfected (revered deities of the Daoist tradition)—that is, to perform a Zhaijiao (purification ritual)—and to transmit the ritual offices in accordance with the Keyi (liturgy). When the rite has been completed, the documents of notification are to be processed according to the regulations and handed over for disposition to the Imperial Lords, the King of Feng, and the other deities of the Jingming ritual bureau; a celestial seal is also to be issued, and the ritual office filled and conferred. The particulars are set out below, and a ruling and instructions are specially requested.

Special authorization is given for a certain person to be supplementarily invested with the particular office conferred.

The objects and ritual texts bestowed include three volumes of the Scripture, Dharma Sayings, and Recorded Discourses of the Most High Lingbao Jingming (Numinous Treasure Pure Brightness); one seal of the Jingming Master of the Ritual Method; one Jingming seal; one ritual sword; one ritual mirror; one precious plaque of the Seal That Illumines the Mind; and the Jingming ledgers for recording merit and fault.

There are likewise conferred the Sovereign Lords and Divine Kings listed in the Jingming falu—the registers and credentials by which the Jingming lineage bestows ritual office—together with the eighty-four thousand spirit-official commanding generals and the eighty-four thousand ranked officers and armored mounts of the Jingming ritual bureau, as well as divine clerks such as the officers of merit, the tally-bearing officers on duty, and the judges who receive and adjudicate affairs.

The above documents are delivered to the various Sovereign Lords, Divine Kings, spirit-official commanding generals, ranked officers and armored mounts, officers of merit, tally-bearing officers on duty, and judges who receive affairs, all belonging to the Jingming falu of the one who receives the ritual method.

The above documents are also delivered to Disciple So-and-so, who receives the ritual method. In accordance with the ritual regulations, the aforesaid duties are transferred to him. He is to hold the celestial seal and exercise command over the divine personnel under him, including the Sovereign Lords and Divine Kings, assisting in the performance of the methods of the Dao (the Way) at the Jingming Court—the institution in which the Jingming ritual lineage conducts rites and cultivation—and relieving the sufferings of the people. He must be diligent in incense and offerings, devote himself single-mindedly to cultivation, and must not violate the articles of the precepts. Should he transgress the celestial statutes, the matter is to be dealt with impartially according to the orthodox law, and must not be treated carelessly or with negligence.

Year, month, and day of such-and-such Taisui.

Sponsoring and transmitting teacher: official rank and name.

Ordaining master (the teacher who presides over the rite of transmission and ordination): Perfected Lord Xu, in Heaven—Grand Historian and Chief Immortal of the Nine Provinces, Emissary of Exalted Brilliance, of Divine Merit and Wondrous Salvation.

Supervising ordination master (the teacher who oversees the rite of transmission and ordination): Zhang, in Heaven—Celestial Master (Tianshi) of the Great Law who upholds the teaching and assists the primordial under the Three Heavens.

Register master (the teacher responsible for entering one in the ritual registers): Wu, Imperial Clerk of the Mysterious Metropolis, in such-and-such year, month, and day.

Sponsoring and transmitting teacher: official rank and name.

Ordaining master: Perfected Lord Xu, in Heaven—Grand Historian and Chief Immortal of the Nine Provinces, Emissary of Exalted Brilliance, of Divine Merit and Wondrous Salvation.

Supervising ordination master: Zhang, in Heaven—Celestial Master of the Great Law who upholds the teaching and assists the primordial under the Three Heavens.

Register master: Wu, Imperial Clerk of the Mysterious Metropolis, in Heaven.

Scripture master: Immortal King Chen, in Heaven, of Utmost Filial Piety and Reverent Compliance.

Ancestral master: the Immortal King of the Way of Filial Piety, Celestial Worthy of the Yellow and the White of Lingbao Jingming, Primordial Lady of Great Yin, in Heaven.

The Celestial Worthy of Lingbao Jingming, the Supreme Thearch of the Sun, and the Ancestral Master, the Brilliant King of the Way of Filiality, all dwell in the celestial realm.

Text of the Precept Certificate

The Ten Precepts of Shangqing Lingbao are hereby conferred upon a certain person.

Whoever receives the Great Method of Lingbao must first understand and observe ten precepts. One should keep an impartial heart and not deceive oneself. One should be loyal to the ruler and to teachers and elders, and show filial reverence toward Heaven and Earth and toward one’s parents. One should practice humaneness and compassion, treat all beings kindly, live frugally, and restrain oneself. One’s conduct should be pure and upright, without forming cliques or showing partiality. One should revere the teachings of the supreme vehicle, hold firm in faith, and cultivate in earnest. One should respect ghosts and spirits and must not slight or insult them. Clothing and food all come from the Primordial Ancestral Qi (vital energy)—the source energy of which Daoism speaks—and one must not give rise to distracting thoughts on that account. One should wash away defilement with ash-water and must not deliberately adorn or beautify oneself. When reciting the Jing (scripture), one should hold reverence in the heart and offer worship with the mind, and must not exhaust the body through excessive toil. After seven days of deep stillness and concentration, the radiance of Shen (spirit) becomes clear and limpid, and one may then behold the realm of Jade Clarity, the pure celestial realm of which Daoism speaks.

The recipient of the precepts should observe and carry out the precept text above. It is hereby issued.

Issued on a certain day of a certain month in a certain year of the Taisui.

The ordaining master—the master who confers transmission—and the persons listed below him are likewise to be set out together in accordance with the preceding text.

Memorial Requesting the Issuance of a Supplementary Certificate for the Scripture and Methods of Salvation

Outer Altar of the Lingbao Jingming Institute:

According to the statement of a certain person, it is respectfully learned that the Supreme Thearch, Patriarch King of Lingbao Jingming, once descended to the Dongshen Hall (one of the Three Caverns), ascended the seat of the Jade Bureau, and expounded the Great Method of Lingbao, the scripture and methods of present clarity, and the method of the Yellow Silk. These teachings were transmitted into the human world in order to save and deliver the beings of the celestial realm and of humankind. It is now further seen that Teacher Ouyang and others, carrying out the true intent, have compiled The Great Method of Lingbao in four scrolls and request that it be transmitted and that cultivation proceed in accordance with it.

This altar has already recommended them for this purpose and memorialized the True Master, requesting that a dispatch of the celestial provincial office be sent down, that documents be issued to the offices concerned with the Lingbao teachings, and that the certificates of method which ought to be conferred be granted: one Lingbao Precept Certificate; The Great Method of Lingbao in four scrolls; one seal of the Lord of the Dao; one seal of the Metropolitan Province of Great Mystery; and one seal of the Director-General of Ghosts and Spirits.

The foregoing is to be carried out in accordance with the regulations.

A recipient at the initial stage should first enter the register-rank that has been conferred, and then be added to the roster of those admitted to receive the transmission.

The Great Method of Shangqing Lingbao (Supreme Clarity and Numinous Treasure) holds authority over the Three Realms and brings deviant demons back to the orthodox Dao (the Way).

This method has charge of the Bureau of Taixuan Du, the Daoist office that administers the relevant ritual affairs, and it calls down the Divine Kings of Lingbao, the Numinous Officials, the Jade Maidens, and the clerks and troops—divine generals and divine officers—to assist in cultivation and in the performance of the rite.

This warrant is now conferred upon a certain person. May he follow the subtle regulations of the law, strictly keep his oaths, deliver beings in heaven and among humankind, and raise up the suffering souls of the dead. On the day his merit is accomplished, he will be advanced to an immortal office. He must not transgress the regulations, or he will bring punishment upon himself. This warrant is issued accordingly.

Issued on a certain day of a certain month in a certain year.

Sponsoring master: the name is to be set out in full.

The ordination master is Xu Zaitian, Grand Historian of the Immortals of the Nine Provinces and Perfected Lord of Divine Merit and Wondrous Salvation.

The ritual objects delivered at the time of transmission and ordination are as follows.

Spell of the Seal. When the incantation is finished, face east and draw in one breath.

What is engraved on the divine seal is the talismanic script of Heaven above. It is the credential of passage through the Three Realms and can protect the host of spirits. To keep and employ it is to accord with the Dao. Should anyone turn away from the Great Dao, punishment will fall upon the ancestors of nine generations.

Spell of the Mirror. When the incantation is finished, face south and draw in one breath.

The divine mirror is bright and numinously efficacious, answering to the mind and nature of the one who receives the rite. Shine it upon Heaven, and Heaven grows clear; shine it upon Earth, and Earth grows level and true; shine it upon a person, and that person grows sincere. May the recipient of the rite long remain as lucid as a bright mirror.

Spell of the Water. When the incantation is finished, face north and draw in one breath.

The divine water is limpid and deep, like the inborn nature of a filial son. For water to flow upward is to go against the current; to flow downward is to go with it. If one preserves Qi (vital energy) without filling it to the brim, one naturally comes to rest. May the recipient of the rite long keep a character as pure as water.

Spell of the Register. When the incantation is finished, face east and draw in one breath.

Whatever the register records can reveal the true state of things. Going out, one serves one’s lord; coming home, one serves one’s father and elder brothers. One does not covet petty gain or indulge desire, but seeks only what is true and sincere. All that one does must be recorded, and the facts must not be concealed. To break this oath is the same as breaking the covenant oath of the master’s lineage.

Spell of the Ritual Writings. When the incantation is finished, face west and draw in one breath.

The Most High (the supreme Dao, the Way) has transmitted a numinous and wondrous art that can free you from birth and death, raise nine generations of ancestors into the heavenly realm, and cause the Three Corpses (the spirits who, in Daoism, are said to dwell within the human body and record a person’s faults) to leave the body. So long as someone cultivates with single-minded devotion, every kind of auspicious sign will descend, and that person will surely ascend the ranks of the immortals and reach above the cloudy heavens. If anyone violates the precepts of the Keyi (liturgy), it is as if they have broken the oath established by me, this master.

When reciting the incantation and writing the elixir talisman, say: After the incantation is finished, face east and inhale one breath of Qi (vital energy).

The spiritual elixir of the Most High is to be visualized in accordance with the decree and the teaching. The nine sections of true writ (Daoist scriptures or talismanic texts) can make the principle clear. Cast off your deluded thoughts, and be careful with what you hear and see. If you contemplate with the mind, you can bring the elixir to completion through nine transformations. In one year it is first born; in nine years it transforms. In the end one soars aloft into the void; when cultivation has been fulfilled for three years, one can have an audience with the immortal Perfected. If this covenant is broken, disaster descends at once—I establish this vow in the name of the master.

When reciting the incantation and writing the sword talisman, say: After the incantation is finished, face west and inhale one breath. Be careful with what you hear and see; if you contemplate with the mind, you can bring the elixir to completion through nine transformations. In one year it is first born; in nine years it transforms. In the end one soars aloft into the void; when cultivation has been fulfilled for three years, one can have an audience with the immortal Perfected. If this covenant is broken, disaster descends at once—I establish this vow in the name of the master.

When reciting the incantation and writing the sword talisman, say: After the incantation is finished, face west and inhale one breath.

The divine sword is not an implement of iron; it is formed of Qi within one’s own body. One takes the Jing (essence) of the sun and moon and refines it by means of the fire of Bing and Ding (the heavenly stems that represent Fire in the numerology of the Five Phases). After three years the sword is completed, and it can cut down malign spirits and slay the wicked. Yet one must not kill the innocent, nor move against loyal ministers. If one violates this precept and uses it recklessly, one must bear the consequences just as if one had broken the covenant oath established by me, this master.

Then inhale once more, swallow the Qi, and breathe it out again. If the art is to be transmitted to one’s father, one’s master, or an elder, one should perform the rite of bowing, kneel for a long time, hold the ritual objects (the implements or talismanic items used in the ceremony) in both hands, face east, and say before the master:

“I, so-and-so, have received the numinous method, and the ritual objects are fully prepared. I have personally met a holy master and received the profound meaning of this method. That I have been able to cultivate to this point is truly due to my affinity with the master’s grace. I ask the master to bear with my dullness, to urge me to strive in cultivation together, and to make me set my resolve on learning without ever growing slack. If I violate this liturgical rule, I shall be examined and punished by Fengdu (the underworld palace of the dead, as spoken of in Daoism), and the calamity will extend to nine generations.”

At this moment the master should carefully exhort and encourage the disciple, and must not allow the disciple to give up of his own accord.

The master who transmits the methods first offers salutation once again, then kneels and bows with the disciple before the ancestral masters, and afterward gives thanks to the Supreme Thearch. The master exhales one breath of Qi (vital energy). If the transmission is made to the disciple, the disciple is directed to perform each salutation in turn according to the ritual already described, and the methods are then conferred stage by stage. When the ritual objects are handed over, this incantation is recited:

“May I, this disciple who studies the methods, never lose the heart with which I first sought to learn. First I honor the kindness and De (Virtue/Power) of Heaven and Earth; next I honor the grace of the sovereign and of my parents. If the study of the ritual arts is brought to fulfillment, may you and I both ascend in flight and become immortals. Should the master’s instruction be treated with neglect, one will sink forever into suffering.”

When the recitation is finished, exhale one breath of Qi, then kneel and give thanks as before.

The Method of Wearing the Sun and Treading the Dipper

Each day this method is to be practiced precisely at sunrise. Raise the eyes and gaze steadily, and visualize the image of the sun appearing above the crown of the head. “Treading the Dipper” means pacing the steps of the Dipper walk. Taking the yin hour, about three to five in the morning, as the starting point, one circulates according to the method of the seven returns, beginning at the chou position and stepping toward the left.

Roster of the Shen (spirit) Generals of the Various Courts to Whom This Altar Issues Auxiliary Warrants Each Month

The Court of Pure Brightness (Jingming Yuan) has its thirty-six imperial lords, together with spirit kings and official generals, eighty-four thousand in all, and in addition the hosts charged with affairs, including those who bear tallies and the armored horses.

The Court of the Celestial Pivot (Tianshu Yuan) has its four spirits and eight generals, the judges of the Numinous Treasure (Lingbao), divine youths, clerks and soldiers, thirty-six imperial lords, and spirit kings and official generals, eighty-four thousand in all, together with the hosts charged with affairs, including those who bear tallies and the armored horses.

The Court of the Celestial Pivot also has its four spirits and eight generals, Lingbao judges, divine youths, clerks and soldiers, and the spirit generals of examination and summons.

The Court for the Expulsion of Evil has its spirit generals, together with the thirty-six great spirit generals of examination and summons beneath the Dipper, the four envoys on rotating duty, and the hosts of clerks and soldiers.

There are further the spirit generals commanding the armies of Shuyue, the spirit generals who assist the methods, the associate and deputy great generals, the heads of troops, the leaders of companies, the dragon spirits of defense, the presiding clerks of the Nine Prisons, the envoys of ritual dignity attendant at the altar, the staff of the military bureau, the presiding clerks of the military kitchen, the four Officers of Merit on rotating duty, the local earth deity attendant at the altar, and one thousand soldiers of the marchmounts.

There are also the spirit generals and the clerks and soldiers in the Scriptural Department of the Numinous Writings of Celestial Treasure, together with the troops and horses of the celestial immortals.

Finally there are the talisman envoys and talisman clerks, the spirit generals who serve as Officers of Merit, the troops and horses of the celestial immortals, and the hosts of clerks and soldiers attached to the Register of the Great Merit of the Three and Five (a register within Fulu, talismans and registers).

Format of the Memorial for Recommending the Transmission of the Methods

In the memorial one enters the troops and horses of the immortals of the methods.

In the memorial one must also enter the talisman envoys, talisman clerks, spirit generals who serve as Officers of Merit, the troops and horses of the celestial immortals, and the hosts of clerks and soldiers attached to the Register of the Great Merit of the Three and Five.

Format of the Memorial for Recommending the Transmission of the Methods

One fills in the ritual office and writes, “Your subject, surnamed So-and-so.”

I, your servant, having received the petition of a certain disciple of a certain register (lu) who seeks the teachings, who has come to my ritual altar and earnestly requests transmission of the Lingbao Jingming Jingfa (Scriptures and Methods of Numinous Treasure Pure Brightness), have examined his circumstances (where the original has “and so forth,” the text is omitted). He has sworn that he is willing to proclaim transformation on Heaven’s behalf, assist the state, and relieve the people. I now recommend and sponsor him, holding that he may serve as a ritual officer of this court and may also carry out the ritual affairs of the Jingming scriptures. Should any impropriety later be found in him, he shall be dealt with according to the oaths of the hall. The said person’s petition of submission, together with the related documents, is attached in front. I respectfully set this forth in a memorial.

Respectfully submitted to the Lingbao Jingming Ordination Master, Grand Envoy of Lofty Brightness of the Nine Provinces, Perfected Lord of Divine Merit and Wondrous Salvation. I earnestly beg your sagely brilliance and merciful compassion to grant my request and to bestow a rescript at an early date. A separate memorial is submitted so that transmission and ordination may be carried out according to the regulations. This is respectfully recorded and memorialized, awaiting the immortal decree. Respectfully memorialized.

In the Taisui year of a certain jiazi, on a certain day of a certain month. I, your servant of such-and-such a surname, holding ritual office, submit this memorial.

Form of the Memorial for Supplementary Conferral of Title after Approval

I, your servant of such-and-such a surname, holding ritual office, memorialize: On the basis of the petition submitted beneath my altar by a certain disciple of a certain register who seeks the teachings, I have learned that he requests transmission of the Lingbao Jingming Jingfa.

In the Taisui year of a certain jiazi, on a certain day of a certain month. I, your servant of such-and-such a surname, holding ritual office, submit this memorial.

Form of the Memorial for Supplementary Conferral of Title after Approval

I, your servant of such-and-such a surname, holding ritual office, memorialize: A certain disciple of a certain register who seeks the teachings has submitted a petition beneath my altar, requesting transmission of the Lingbao Jingming Jingfa. On a certain day of this month I memorialized a recommendation and sponsorship together with the related petitions, and a rescript has now been received granting permission to transmit. I now supplementarily confer upon the said person the title of Taishang Master of Loyalty and Filial Piety of a certain ritual register, so that he may practice the Lingbao Jingming scriptures and methods and hold such offices as Immortal Assistant of the Archives of this court. Upon examination, the said person is to use the Seal of Taishang Jingming and the Seal of the Jingming Master of the Methods, and to affix two signature marks. The related documents are attached in front. I respectfully set this forth in a memorial.

Respectfully submitted to the Lingbao Jingming Ordination Master, Grand Envoy of Lofty Brightness of the Nine Provinces, Perfected Lord of Divine Merit and Wondrous Salvation. I earnestly beg your sagely brilliance and merciful compassion to grant my request. This is respectfully memorialized.

Respectfully are invited the imperial lords and master-teachers of the Three Realms—the deities of the three worlds and the master-teachers venerated in Daoism—together with the divine offices in every place that, under command, transmit orders through the Three Realms and take charge of the relevant affairs. They are asked to examine this document and to act in accordance with it.

A further communication is addressed to the Jingming Court (Jingming Yuan, an institution among the divine offices of Daoism). You are requested, according to established procedure, to dispatch divine lords, spirit kings, marshals, envoys, and supervising officers and generals, together with the divine hosts of credential-talismans, spirit-horses, and the like, to proceed to the altar of the person concerned, there jointly to relieve the sufferings of living beings and, on that same day, to make the response clearly manifest, so that the matter may be registered and verified on that basis. The document is respectfully copied and submitted in memorial.

On such-and-such a day of such-and-such a month, in the jiazi year of the Grand Year (Taisui). Your servant so-and-so, invested with ritual rank, presents this memorial.

Zhu of Benevolent Rectitude and Majestic Numen (Ren Zheng Weiling); Zhang of Filial Probity and Gracious Favor (Xiaolian Zihui); Zhang of Loyal Caution and Compassionate Kindness (Zhongshen Cihui); Gong of Pure Rectitude and Incorrupt Caution (Qingzheng Lianshen).

The Most High Numinous Treasure Jingming Court (Taishang Lingbao Jingming Yuan).

This Court now appoints the disciple Zhu to the title Benevolent Rectitude and Majestic Numen, Zhang to Filial Probity and Gracious Favor, Zhang to Loyal Caution and Compassionate Kindness, and Gong to Pure Rectitude and Incorrupt Caution.

The Most High Numinous Treasure Jingming Court.

This Court now appoints the disciple so-and-so as a ritual officer of this Court. In accordance with established custom, a warrant is issued and delivered to him, so that he may thereby be elevated. He is ordered to receive it and keep it in hand, and to proceed to the Celestial Pivot Court (Tianshu Yuan, an institution among the divine offices of Daoism) to request the document of his origin and commission. The matter must be handled promptly, in obedience to the statutes and commands of the Most High.

Warrant of such-and-such an hour, on such-and-such a day of such-and-such a month, in such-and-such a year of the Grand Year.

Sealed and endorsed by the Jingming Court.

Documentary format of the Formulary for the Dispatch of Documents of the Numinous Treasure Jingming Court (Lingbao Jingming Yuan Xingqian Shi).