《云笈七签》Vol. 45

I am a woman, yet I can leave home and roam far and wide without fearing floods, tigers, or wolves. Do you think I would be afraid of your casual insults?” The monks were enraged and wanted to subdue her with blades. Her words and expression grew ever more severe, but the Immortal Maiden only smiled and said, “I am a woman, yet I can leave home and roam far and wide without fearing floods, tigers, or wolves. Do you think I would fear you rats?” Then she took off her clothes and lay down. The monks suddenly snuffed out the candles, smugly thinking they had gained the upper hand.

The next day, the Immortal Maiden picked up her staff and left the mountain. The monks had spent the night standing rigidly, unable to move, as if they were corpses; it was as though they had been bound and gagged, unable to speak. Only after she had gone several miles did they return to normal. She traveled throughout the Jiangnan region. People in Wu had seen her for more than forty years, and her appearance had never changed. She moved as swiftly as if flying. Wherever she went, people held her in awe and treated her as a deity; no one dared to mock or insult her with improper intentions.

In the early Xiantong era (the reign title of Emperor Yizong of Tang, beginning in 860), she said to the Daoist priest Kui Yuntao of Baihe Abbey in Shan County, “My father served as an official under the Northern Zhou and Sui dynasties. He was famed for his arts, and secretly did good deeds and helped people. He, too, has now attained the Dao. I am blessed by his beneficence, which is why I can live so long.” From this, it appears that she was the daughter of Shizhi.

◎Immortal Maiden Gou

Gou Xiangu was from Changsha. She later entered the Dao and lived on Mount Heng. Even in her eighties, she still looked remarkably young. For more than ten years, she devoted herself to spiritual cultivation at the altar of Lady Wei at the foot of Mount Heng, a place where Lady Wei was worshiped and incense offered. She lived there alone, without a companion. Tigers and wolves often appeared near the altar, and ordinary visitors to the mountain had to go in groups and carry weapons. Xiangu, however, secluded herself there without the slightest fear.

Several years later, a blue bird flew to her dwelling. It resembled a dove, with a red crown and a long tail. It spoke: “I am a messenger sent by the Lady of the Southern Peak. Seeing how diligently you cultivate the Dao, living alone in a remote mountain forest, the Lady has sent me to keep you company.”

Later, the blue bird said again: “The Queen Mother of the West, whose surname is Gou, is your ancestor. She has heard of your diligence in cultivating the Dao. In time, a perfected celestial official will come to teach you the Dao, but the moment has not yet arrived. You should continue your efforts in cultivation.”

Whenever someone came up the mountain to sightsee, the blue bird would announce that person’s name in advance. When the appointed day arrived, every name proved correct. The bird also said: “Goushi in Henan is where the Queen Mother cultivated the Dao. It is also the mountain of your native home.”

One day later, the blue bird flew in and told Lady Wei, “Tonight, a band of ruffians will attack. They will cause no harm, so do not be afraid.” That night, as foretold, more than ten monks arrived.

Lady Wei’s altar was a huge boulder, a little over a zhang in circumference. It seemed to hang above the ground, resting on another stone. One person could push it and make it rock, but even a crowd could not move it at all. That night, the monks came with torches and knives, intending to harm Lady Wei. When they entered the room, she was lying on her bed, but they could not see her. After leaving the room, they tried to push over the altar. The boulder roared as if the mountains were shaking and the valleys splitting open. The monks thought it had fallen, but they had not managed to move it at all, so they fled together.

The next day, some monks reached a village far away. After the nine monks had scattered, tigers killed them. One monk, who had pushed the altar but taken no part in the wrongdoing, escaped the tigers. Lady Wei’s altar remained unharmed, and she was safe as well.

More than a year later, the blue bird told Lady Wei that she should move elsewhere to cultivate and dwell. She moved to Hunan, and the blue bird followed her there. Other people, however, could never understand what it said. Zheng Tian, the Duke of Wenzhao, a Tang official who had served as an academician-in-waiting and was later demoted to prefect of Wuzhou, became Lady Wei’s disciple. She told him, “From now on, calamities and unrest will multiply throughout the world. It is not suitable to dwell among people for long. I intend to withdraw to Mount Jiuyi.” Before long, she departed.

◎ The Tea Matron of Guangling

The Old Woman of Guangling, a tea seller in the Guangling region, was of unknown surname and origin. She always looked about seventy, yet moved with agility and had abundant strength. Her hearing and eyesight were sharp, and her hair was thick and black. Since the Jin emperor Yuan crossed south, old people in the region had passed down stories of having seen her. They said her appearance had not changed for more than a hundred years.

She often carried a tea vessel to the market to sell tea. Townspeople hurried to buy from her. She sold a great deal from morning to night, yet the tea in the vessel always seemed freshly brewed and never ran low. People found this extraordinary. Officials in the prefecture imprisoned her on the grounds that she had broken the law. The old woman then took her tea vessel and flew out through a window.

Lady of the Southern Sea

Lady of the Southern Sea lived in the South China Sea. Her rank was unknown, though she was probably an immortal who had attained the Dao.

Yuan Che and Liu Shi shared the same interests and set out together in search of Daoist arts. They built a hut on Mount Heng and lived there in seclusion, practicing their cultivation. After more than a year, they traveled south together. In Hepu County, Guangzhou, they boarded a ship to cross the sea and head for Jiaozhi in the south. As they moored the ship by the shore, the villagers happened to be holding a sacrifice to the gods, with flutes and drums sounding all around. The boatmen, sailors, and servants all went ashore to watch; only Yuan Che and Liu Shi remained on board.

Before long, a hurricane snapped the mooring ropes and swept the ship out to sea, carrying it toward an unknown place. It nearly sank several times. Suddenly, the ship came to rest beside a small, isolated island, and the wind and waves subsided.

The two men came ashore and gazed across the island. They saw a statue of a Celestial Worthy, carved from gleaming white jade, enshrined in a stone chamber. Before it stood a golden incense burner, its incense already reduced to ash. There was no one to be seen anywhere around. The two men searched the area, hearts heavy with sorrow. Suddenly, a huge beast emerged from the waves, seeming to observe something. After a long while, it sank beneath the sea.

Before long, purple clouds billowed up from the sea and spread across three or four li. Within them appeared a great lotus, more than a hundred feet high. Its petals unfolded and turned one by one, revealing an interior fitted with curtains embroidered in richly interwoven patterns. A rainbow bridge, several dozen feet wide, stretched from the lotus straight to the island. A maidservant approached the statue of the Celestial Worthy with incense in her hands and was about to burn it. The two men bowed in grief and begged her to help them and show them the way home.

The maidservant asked in surprise, “How did you arrive here so quickly?” The two men told her what had happened. She said, “Before long, the Lady of the Southern Sea, Nánmíng, and the Revered Master Yùxū will come to meet. You can ask them for help.” Before the maidservant could leave, a Daoist arrived riding a white deer and borne on colored clouds. The two men wept as they told him what had happened. The Daoist said, “Follow this maidservant and pay your respects to the Lady of the Southern Sea.”

The two men did as they were told. They followed the maidservant across the rainbow bridge to the curtains, bowed twice with their foreheads touching the ground, and explained how they had drifted there, giving their names. The Lady invited them to sit, and the Revered Master arrived as well. They sat together, and music began to play. Soon, food was brought in. The Revered Master said, “Our two guests wish to offer us food from the human world.” After the meal, he handed the Lady a scroll of cinnabar talismans. She bowed in thanks and accepted it. The Revered Master then took his leave, saying to the two men, “You have the breath of the Dao, so do not worry about finding your way home. In principle, I ought to give you an elixir, but your destiny is not yet ripe. You will meet your own master; I should not be your master. We will meet again in the future.” The two men bowed farewell, and the Revered Master rode away on his deer.

After a while, a warrior in golden armor, more than ten zhang tall, came forward and reported, “I was ordered to clear the way for Tianwu, the deity who governs the waters, but I failed in my duty. By law, I should be put to death. My sentence has now been carried out.” Having said this, he hurried away. The Lady then ordered a maidservant to escort the two men away.

Suddenly, a warrior more than ten zhang tall, clad in golden armor and carrying a precious sword, stepped forward to report: “I was ordered to serve Tianwu, the spirit who governs the waters. Because I was not careful enough in clearing the road, the law required that I be put to death. The sentence has now been carried out.” Having spoken, he hurried away and vanished.

The lady immediately told her attendants to show the two young men the way home. “Take the Hundred Flowers Bridge,” she said. She also gave them a jade flask. “If you encounter trouble on the road ahead, knock on this flask.” The two took their leave of the lady and set out across the bridge.

The bridge was long and broad, and strange flowers bloomed all along its railings. Peering through the blossoms, the two saw thousands upon thousands of horned dragons and dragons entwined together, forming the bridge itself. They also saw that the enormous beast from earlier had been decapitated, its body floating on the water. They asked the guide who was escorting them home why the beast had been slain. He replied, “Because it did not recognize the two honored guests.”

The guide continued, “I was not meant simply to escort you home. There is a deeper reason: I wish to entrust something to you.” He took an amber box from his sash and handed it to them. Inside, they could just make out an object shaped like a spider. The guide said, “We are water immortals. Not long ago, I became deeply attached to a young man from Panyu, and we had a three-year-old child. I should have entrusted the child to you, but the lady has already had him acknowledge the Lord of Southern Marchmount as his father. Earlier, a messenger from Huiyan Peak came to the Water Palace on business. I asked him to take a jade ring for the child to play with, but he hid it away, and I have been deeply troubled ever since. I hope you will take this box to the temple at Huiyan Peak and cast it down there. If you can retrieve the jade ring, please take it to the temple of the sacred mountain. My child will reward you in turn. Be sure not to open the box.”

The two accepted the box and tucked it into their robes. They then asked, “The Venerable Master Yuxu said that we each have a master of our own. Who is ours?” The guide replied, “It is the Taiji Master of Southern Marchmount. You will meet him in due course.”

Before long, they reached the end of the bridge. They parted from the guide and found themselves on the shore at Hepu. When they asked what year it was, they learned that twelve years had passed. They set out for Mount Heng, but on the way they grew terribly hungry. They tried knocking on the jade flask, and an array of rare delicacies appeared at once. After eating their fill, they no longer felt hungry or thirsty.

When the two men returned, the wife had already died. Their family told them, “Your husband drowned at sea and died long ago. More than ten years have passed.” From then on, the two men grew even more weary of worldly life and no longer aspired to fame or official rank.

Later, they climbed Mount Heng in the south and threw the small box into the temple at Huiyan Peak. In an instant, a black dragon several dozen feet long appeared. A fierce wind rose, thunder and lightning crashed, trees snapped, and houses were torn from their foundations. At the crack of thunder, the temple collapsed. As the two men stood terrified, they heard someone in the sky hand them a jade ring. They took the ring and brought it to the temple on the mountain.

After they returned home, a youth dressed in yellow arrived with two golden boxes as a reward. He said, “The Lord of the Southern Mountain has sent me to bring you the Resurrection Salve in gratitude. If anyone in your household dies, even if sixty years have passed, applying the salve to the crown of the head can still bring them back to life.” The two men accepted the salve, and the messenger vanished. They applied it to the crown of the wife’s head, and she came back to life.

Later, during a heavy snowfall, the two men saw an old woodcutter struggling through the bitter cold with a heavy load on his back. Pitying his age and frailty, they offered him wine. Suddenly, they noticed the words “Taiji” written on the eaves of his hut. They bowed to him and asked to become his disciples. The old man said, “I have attained the Way of the immortals and my name is listed among those of Taiji. The Most High has ordered me to guide you.” Seeing the jade flask, he said, “This is the flask I used to hold Jade Nectar. It has been lost for more than sixty sexagenary cycles. I am glad to see it again.” The two men then presented him with the flask.

After that, the two men followed Master Taiji into Zhuling Palace and to Zhurong Peak, visiting immortal dwellings far and wide. In the end, they and the wife attained the Way of ascending to Heaven through cultivation.

Bian Dongxuan

Bian Dongxuan was the daughter of a family from Fanyang. From childhood, she was noble in character and keen in mind, kindhearted, and glad to do good. Whenever she saw a small creature in danger, she would bend down to help it.

Bian Dongxuan was the daughter of a family from Fanyang. From childhood, she was virtuous and refined, clever and perceptive, kindhearted, and eager to help others. Whenever she saw a small, helpless creature in danger, she would bend down to rescue it, forgetting even to eat or drink as she did so. When frost and snow came and the birds were hungry and huddled in their nests, she would find rice and grain to scatter for them. In time, the birds came to know her: some flew ahead, calling to guide her, while others circled and danced in flight behind her.

At fifteen, she told her parents of her wish to enter the Dao and cultivate the Way, giving up grain-based food to nourish her Qi (vital energy). Her parents loved her for her kindness and filial devotion, but would not agree. When she came of age, she vowed not to marry and stayed at home to care for them. A few years later, her parents died one after the other. Grief left her so thin and weak that she could scarcely eat or drink, and her life was nearly in danger. After her mourning period ended, she went to the residence of the female Daoist practitioners in the commandery and asked to leave home and cultivate the Way.

She had no brothers and no close relatives. Skilled and nimble with her hands, she knew how to weave, and the female Daoists all cherished and respected her. She worked diligently at the loom, day and night without rest. Whenever she earned money, she used it to buy sesame, poria, ginseng, and incense, and also regularly stored away large quantities of the five grains. Someone asked her, “You have not eaten for many years, so why do you keep storing rice and wheat? Are you afraid you will feel hungry and thirsty in the middle of the night, before daybreak?” She smiled and said nothing.

In fact, every morning she scattered rice and grain in the back courtyard to feed the birds, and fed the mice indoors as well. Year after year, she did this without fail. In the courtyard where the female Daoists lived, everyone had to weave and work; from the time Bian Dongxuan moved in, their belongings were never again damaged by mice. People said this was the reward for the good she quietly did, extending kindness to living creatures.

She also liked to take alchemical medicines. Whenever someone gave her an elixir, a pill, or a powder, she would first go to the Hall of the Celestial Worthies, where the Celestial Worthies were enshrined, and offer incense before taking it. The medicines often disagreed with her, causing vomiting and diarrhea and leaving her utterly exhausted, but she never complained. As soon as her symptoms improved, she resumed taking them as usual. Her fellow practitioners worried about her and repeatedly tried, with patience and tact, to dissuade and counsel her, but her faith in cultivating the Way through taking medicines never wavered. In years of famine, she also brought out the rice and wheat she had stored and shared them with those who were hungry.

One day, an old man arrived at a Daoist temple carrying a cloth sack and selling medicine. People asked him what kind of medicine he was selling. The old man replied, “The Great Return Elixir, a legendary Daoist elixir that can grant immortality. Anyone who takes it can live forever, become an immortal, and ascend to heaven in broad daylight.” Everyone who heard him thought it was amusing. The old man’s face was dark, his frame gaunt, and he walked bent over with a stoop. As soon as he finished speaking, they laughed and mocked him: “If the Great Return Elixir can keep people from dying, make them live forever, and let them ascend to heaven, why do you still look so haggard…?”

The old man said, “I have just finished refining this elixir in my furnace. In principle, I should use it to guide people toward the Dao and accumulate merit. But the number of people I am to guide is not yet complete, and those who truly seek immortality are hard to find. I cannot take it myself, or I would ascend straight to the heavens.”

The people asked, “Everyone in the world wishes to live forever and prolong their years. Since this is everyone’s desire, why do you say that those who truly seek immortality are so rare?”

The old man said, “Everyone’s heart longs for the Dao, yet few can persist in practice. To long for the Dao and put it into practice, to keep one’s spirit from wavering and persevere over time, to remain unmoved by sights and sounds, undeluded by fame and gain, undisturbed by luxury, and unentangled in disputes—never abandoning one’s original resolve, but remaining as steadfast as metal and stone: such a person is rare. Among hundreds of thousands, you would not find even one. What, then, counts as truly longing for the Dao?”

Someone asked, “The emperor is exalted and possesses all under Heaven. You also have a wondrous Golden Elixir. Why not present it to him, so that he may live forever?”

The old man said, “The great sages and perfected beings of Heaven, the high perfected immortals, and the Seven Lords of the Northern Dipper—the divine lords corresponding to its seven stars—take turns being born into the human world as emperors. When their allotted time is over, they return to Heaven. Why would they need to take an elixir to seek the Dao?”

The people asked again, “Since you know everything, which immortal is the emperor now?”

The old man replied, “He is the Perfected Being of the Southern Palace, the Supreme One of Vermilion Yang.”

The old man answered swiftly. His words were unlike those of ordinary people, flowing from his mouth and impossible to fathom. Before long, a violent storm arose, with thunder and rain together. The people looked at one another, overcome with fear, and gradually dispersed.

An old man asked the people gathered there, “There is a Daoist woman here who enjoys doing good and accumulating De (Virtue/Power). She has not eaten grains for many years. Where is she?” As he spoke, he pointed out the courtyard where she lived.

The old man entered the courtyard without knocking or asking, and went straight to Dongxuan. “I have brought the great medicine of the Returned Elixir from far away to save you. Are you willing to take it?” Dongxuan was both startled and delighted. She invited him to sit and asked how much the medicine cost. “Not much,” he replied. “Only five hundred thousand gold.” Dongxuan said, “I have been impoverished for years and truly cannot come up with that much. How can I obtain the medicine?” The old man said, “Do not worry. You are forty years old now. For thirty of those years, you stored grain to feed birds and insects. By that reckoning, what you have given already exceeds the cost of the medicine.”

The old man opened his bag and showed her the dark green pills inside. Each was as large as a seed of the parasol tree, and there were two or three dou of them. He told Dongxuan to reach into the bag herself and take some. She felt around at random and took three pills. “After taking this elixir, your intestines and blood will be renewed, and in fifteen days you will ascend to Heaven. This is a middle-grade elixir.” He then took a small box from inside his robe, about the size of a coin. It contained a little medicine resembling peach gum, with the fragrance of peaches. The old man drew water from the well, mixed it with the peach gum, and had Dongxuan swallow the pills.

The old man said happily, “Your utter sincerity has moved Heaven. The Most High (a Daoist honorific for the highest divinity) has issued an order and sent me to summon you. After you take these two medicines, you will no longer undergo the renewal of your intestines and blood. From now on, you should live in a lofty pavilion, receive perfected beings, and meet with immortals. Do not live in a filthy dwelling any longer. In seven days you will be able to ascend to Heaven; then heavenly robes and celestial music will come to welcome you.”

Before long, the rain stopped, and no one knew where the old man had gone. The female officials hurried to Dongxuan’s room and asked whether she had obtained the medicine. Dongxuan told them the whole story. Some mocked it as absurd, while others marveled that she had encountered such a fate. They looked at one another, all greatly astonished. From then on, the commandery…

At the time, people who heard what had happened hurried over to see for themselves. The court ladies rushed to Dongxuan’s room and asked whether she had obtained the elixir of immortality. Dongxuan told them the whole story in detail. Some mocked it as absurd, while others marvelled at her extraordinary encounter. They looked at one another in amazement.

Dongxuan said to them, “I do not want to stay here. I want to go up to the gate tower.” She turned to look around, but the tower was still locked. Dongxuan said again, “I am not here.” Before she had finished speaking, she had already risen into the tower. A strange fragrance spread everywhere, and uncanny clouds filled the air. Onlookers crowded the prefecture in numbers, packed together like a wall. The prefect and his officials, along with people from near and far, all came to bow and pay their respects.

Dongxuan told the crowd, “At dawn on the Zhongyuan Festival (the fifteenth day of the seventh lunar month), I will surely ascend to Heaven. You may come to bid me farewell.” The people then gathered after observing ritual purification. At the hour of the Dragon on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, celestial music sounded in the sky. Dense purple clouds curled around the tower of the temple. The crowd saw Dongxuan ascend to Heaven, guided by immortal music, with banners and ceremonial attendants arranged behind her. She headed straight south. The clouds did not disperse until noon.

The prefect and his officials submitted a detailed report of the event. That day, between the hour of the Dragon and the hour of the Snake, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang was in a side hall when he suddenly smelled a rich, strange fragrance. Purple clouds filled the courtyard. Four azure attendants from the immortal realm led in a female Daoist priest, about sixteen or seventeen years old. She said, “I am Bian Dongxuan, a female Daoist priest from Youzhou. Today I have attained the Dao and ascended to Heaven. I have come especially to bid Your Majesty farewell.” With that, she departed slowly. Emperor Xuanzong immediately issued an edict to inquire of the local officials. Just then, the report they had sent was arriving at a gallop by relay horse, and its account matched what he had seen.

The emperor ordered that the Daoist temple where she had lived be named the Temple of Ascending to Immortality, and that its tower be named the Purple Cloud Tower, to commemorate the event. That same year, the emperor’s younger sister, Princess Yuzhen, asked to enter the Dao. The emperor increased her fief and income. From then on, Emperor Xuanzong became even more zealous and diligent in seeking the way of the immortals. He also ordered Wang Duanjing, a Collation Office scholar, to compose an inscription recording this celebrated account of her becoming an immortal.

— Huang Guanfu

Huang Guanfu was the daughter of a family in Baizhang County, Yazhou. From childhood, she ate no meat or animal blood and loved quiet. Her family was poor and had no incense to burn, so she burned cypress leaves and cones instead. After burning incense, she would sit quietly and do nothing else. She could sit for an entire day without feeling tired. At times, she ate only cypress leaves and drank water to stave off hunger, and had little desire for the five grains. Her parents felt for her and let her live as she pleased.

When she reached marriageable age, she suddenly said to her parents, “There is something very strange in the water in front of the house.” She often told them of unusual happenings, and her predictions frequently came true, so they believed her and went with her to look. They saw the water surging violently without pause. She immediately leapt into it and did not come out for a long time. Her parents went into the water to search for her and brought up an ancient wooden statue of a Heavenly Worthy. The gold and colors on the statue had peeled away, and its face looked just like their daughter’s. The water soon cleared, and nothing strange appeared again. Her parents placed the wooden statue by the roadside and returned home weeping, both astonished and grief-stricken. Her mother often went to see it, constantly thinking of her daughter.

Suddenly, colored clouds appeared, accompanied by celestial music, and three immortal maidens descended into the courtyard, attended and guarded by a great retinue. They said to her parents, “Your daughter was originally an immortal of Shangqing, one of the Daoist heavens. Because of a minor transgression, she was demoted to the human world. Her appointed time here has now ended, and she has returned to heaven. There is no need to grieve so deeply.” Of the three who came with her, one was a maidservant of the Jade Emperor, and another was a maidservant of the Great Emperor…

The maiden of Chen said her surname was Huang and her given name Guanfú. She was a serving immortal in the Highest Clarity (Shangqing), attending to its divine immortals. She told her parents that once she left, she would not return, and that an epidemic would strike the region that year, killing many people. She left them several cakes of gold and advised them to move to Yizhou to escape the year of disaster. Then she ascended to heaven. Her parents followed her advice and moved to Shu Commandery. That year an epidemic spread, devastating the people. The Ya region was especially hard hit: three or four out of every ten people died. This happened during the Linde era. People now call her “Huangguan Buddha” because they did not recognize the image of the Celestial Worthy and, through word of mouth, Huang Guanfú’s name was mistakenly passed down as “Huangguan Buddha.”

◎ Yangping Administration

The account of the Yangping Administration concerns the wife of an immortal banished to the human world, but does not give her name. Zhang Shougui, a wealthy resident of Jiulong, had a tea plantation on Mount Xianju in Yangping. Each year he hired more than a hundred tea pickers, men and women who worked together on the plantation.

A young man was hired to pick tea. He said he had no relatives. Intelligent and diligent, he won Zhang Shougui’s sympathy, and Zhang adopted him as his son. Later, a woman in her twenties, also claiming to have no relatives, said she was willing to marry the adopted son. She was filial, upright, and careful in her conduct, and Zhang Shougui took a great liking to her.

One day, a mountain flood broke out and cut off the roads to the towns. Salt and fermented milk were in short supply, and Zhang Shougui was very troubled. His new daughter-in-law said, “These things can be obtained.” She took some money, walked a dozen or so paces, placed it beneath a tree, and struck the tree with a staff. Salt and fermented milk appeared, and she brought them home. After that, whenever the family needed something, they had only to ask her to strike the tree, and she could obtain it. Her husband had the same ability.

Once, she met more than a dozen women from nearby households at the market in Pengkou and bought a bowl of wine for everyone. She had them strike a tree to obtain wine. They all became drunk, yet the wine in the bowl did not diminish. People near and far spread the story, amazed by what had happened.

Shougui asked the youth whom he had learned the arts he taught from. The youth replied, “I am an immortal from Yangping Cavern. Because I committed a minor offense, I was banished to the human world. I will soon be leaving.”

Shougui asked, “Are the caverns as large as the cities of the human world?” The youth answered, “Each of the Twenty-Four Transformations has a great cavern. Some extend for 1,500 li in every direction, others for 300 li. Every cavern has its own sun and moon, along with vital energies that move and fly about. These are called the ‘roots of the hidden spirits.’ They shine down into the caverns from above, where everything is much as it is in the human world.

“Each cavern has an immortal king, as well as immortal ministers, officials, and assistants who oversee different affairs, just like government offices in the human world. Those who have attained the Dao, along with those who have accumulated merit, risen to become spirits, and returned to life, all dwell in the caverns as their inhabitants.

“Every year, during the great festivals of the Three Primes, the Perfected Ones of the highest rank in the heavens descend to visit the grotto-heavens. They inspect how well each cavern is governed and judge its good and evil. Human life and death, prosperity and decline, as well as droughts, floods, winds, and rains, are all linked in advance to what takes place in the caverns. Dragon spirits, their shrines and temples, and the deities who receive offerings are also under the caverns’ jurisdiction.

“Beyond the Twenty-Four Transformations, there are caverns in places such as Qingcheng, Emei, Yideng, Cimu, Fanyang, and Zhong. These are not included among the Ten Great Grotto-Heavens and the Thirty-Six Lesser Grotto-Heavens. The immortal offices and officials within the caverns are like the commanderies, counties, towns, and villages of the human world; they are too numerous to record in full.”

A little over ten days later, the husband and wife suddenly departed together.

◎The Divine Maiden

The Divine Maiden was Lu Meiniang, a descendant of Lu Jingzuo, the Northern Ancestor’s preceptor in the Northern Wei. She was born with long green eyebrows, which gave her the name “Meiniang.”

In the first year of the Yongzhen era, the governor of Nanhai judged her skills ingenious and extraordinary, and sent her to the capital. Clever from childhood, Lu Meiniang could split a single silk thread into three strands, then use colored threads held in her palm to weave a five tiered canopy. Its designs included the Ten Continents and Three Islands, celestial beings and jade maidens, terraces and halls, qilin and phoenixes. Around the outer layer stood more than a thousand young immortals carrying banners and ceremonial tablets. The canopy measured one zhang across, yet weighed less than three liang. She also treated it with a fragrant paste made by decoction, which made it durable and difficult to break.

Emperor Shunzong marveled at her exquisite skill, and people in the palace called her the “Divine Maiden.” She was only fourteen when she entered the palace and ate just two or three ge of sesame rice each day. During the Yuanhe era, Emperor Xianzong admired her intelligence and gave her a golden phoenix bracelet to wear on her wrist. After some time, she no longer wished to remain in the palace, so she left the world and became a female Daoist. The emperor allowed her to return to Nanhai and bestowed on her the Daoist name “Xiaoyao” (“Free and Untroubled”).

It is said that several years later she stopped eating, and divine beings often descended to meet with her. One day, she feathered and ascended. In Daoist legend, feathering is the attainment of the Dao and ascent beyond the world as an immortal. When she departed, fragrance filled the room. At her burial, those carrying the coffin found it very light. When they opened it, only the shoes she had once worn remained inside. Thereafter, people often said they saw her riding purple clouds above the sea near Mount Luofu.

Li Xiangxian wrote “Biography of Lu Xiaoyao,” and Su E also recorded her story in Duyang Miscellany.

◎ Wang Fengxian

Wang Fengxian was the daughter of a poor family in Dangtu County, Xuanzhou. Her parents made their living by spinning and weaving. When she was thirteen or fourteen, she went one day to the fields to bring a meal and suddenly saw more than ten young women playing with her. After a while, they dispersed. Later, she met them again. From then on, whenever she went to the fields with food, the women would gather to play with her.

A little over a month later, the women came to her home at night. They talked and laughed until dawn before leaving. Sometimes they brought strange fruits; at other times, they laid out exquisite foods found nowhere in the human world. Fengxian’s family lived in a small house, yet however many visitors came, it never felt crowded. Her parents heard the laughter and grew suspicious. They watched in secret but could see nothing. Suspecting that their daughter had fallen under the spell of spirits, they questioned her repeatedly. Fengxian always answered with something else. After that, the women stopped coming at night and instead visited often during the day.

Sometimes they took Fengxian far away to play. They soared and circled through the air, able to go wherever they wished, and returned only at dusk. Fengxian still neither drank nor ate, and her body gradually began to show strange changes. One evening, her mother saw her descend to the ground from the tip of a bamboo stalk beside the courtyard. Even more worried, her mother earnestly asked what was happening. Only then did Fengxian tell her about meeting the women, but her parents never understood the full story.

The women cut Fengxian’s hair, leaving her forehead bare above her eyebrows and the hair at the back falling to her shoulders. For years afterward, it never grew longer. She went more than a year without eating, yet her skin became plump and white as snow and ice. Her features were delicate and radiant, her eyes clear, and she looked like a celestial being. She was intelligent and eloquent. People in the Jiangdong region called her “Guanyin.”

In the final years of the Xiantong era under Emperor Xizong of the Tang, Chancellor Du Shenquan was stationed in Jinling (present-day Nanjing), while Linghu Tao was stationed in Weiyang (present-day Yangzhou). Both invited Fengxian and provided for him, and his reputation spread throughout Jiangnan. Later, Qin Yan asked him to stay in Jiangdu (present-day Yangzhou) and honored him as a teacher.

The lofty scholar Zhufu Huaigao was an upright and forthright man. At first, he suspected that Fengxian belonged to a deviant path, so he went to question him in person. Fengxian received him warmly and courteously, and they discussed principles for many days in a row. Zhufu Huaigao asked, “The principles you discuss accord closely with the subtle essentials. Why, then, do people call you ‘Guanyin’?” Fengxian replied, “What I encountered was the Dao (the Way), and what I attained was immortality. It was worldly people who mocked me and gave me the name ‘Guanyin.’”

He said, “Not long ago, Lord Du sought me out among huts of thatch and wanted to send me into the palace. Fortunately, I had already shaved my head, and so escaped that fate. Before I could return home to serve my parents, I was forcibly kept in a temple. The people in the neighborhood did not know the facts and spread false praise everywhere. Some carried incense and candles; others donated precious objects, gold, and silver. The commotion went on for more than a year, and I could not see how to get free. Now at last I can cultivate body and mind and am no longer confined in the rear courtyard. This, too, is the hidden protection of a true immortal. The fact that I shaved my head and had my hair cut evenly is plain evidence. How could I not feel relieved and glad?”

“Besides, reputation does not conflict with the Dao. Zhuangzi says that if others treat me as an ox, I will be an ox; if they treat me as a horse, I will be a horse. One who forgets the body and realizes what is real is not burdened by reputation, so I do not disdain the name others have given me.”

Fengxian added, “The woman I saw was about eighteen or nineteen years old, with extraordinary beauty. She wore brocade embroidered with clouds and rosy mists, with wide sleeves. In her hands she held immortal flowers and numinous herbs, and she chanted immortal scriptures and sacred chapters—Daoist classics and holy writings. She spoke of immortals, long life, and escape from the mundane world. I followed her as we traveled, coming and going with effortless speed, without knowing fatigue. We visited celestial palaces and immortal halls, where there were golden towers and jade chambers, long corridors and spacious courtyards, fields of medicinal fungi and gardens among the clouds, as well as divine birds, heavenly beasts, rare trees, and numinous flowers and herbs—sights never seen in the human world. We crossed the River of Stars and traveled who knows how many tens of millions of miles to pay our respects to the Heavenly Venerable. He sat in a vast hall, with winged guards standing in orderly ranks beside him. He told Fengxian, ‘You dwell in the human world; after fifty years, you should return here.’ Then he ordered those beside him to give me a cup of jade nectar. After I drank it, the Heavenly Venerable warned me, ‘The grains and fruits of plants and trees will harm your body and life and shorten your years. Above all, you should abstain from them.’ I have therefore eaten none of these things for twenty years.”

The Celestial Worthy (Tianzun), the Daoist honorific for the highest deity, teaches in Heaven. By instructing people in the principles of the Dao, he helps them live longer, governs all things, and universally protects and nurtures living beings, like a father among humans. Shakyamuni, the founder of Buddhism, teaches in the human world and causes people’s lifespans to be shortened. For this reason, one should especially renounce faith in him. It is precisely because of this that I have eaten nothing for twenty years.

The Celestial Worthy teaches in Heaven. By instructing people in the principles of the Dao, he helps them live longer, governs all things, and universally protects and nurtures living beings, like a father among humans. Shakyamuni teaches in the human world, urging people to stop doing evil and guiding them to seek blessings, like a mother among humans. The Confucian writings of Zhongni (Confucius) circulate among people. They enlighten them through the Five Constant Virtues—benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and trustworthiness—and teach them through various codes of conduct, like an elder brother among humans.

Infants often know only their mother and do not understand the dignity of their elder brother and father. It is therefore no surprise that few ordinary people understand the Dao, and few revere Confucian learning.

Moreover, the people of Heaven whom I have seen include men who wear cloud crowns and feathered robes, and others with children’s topknots and blue-lapelled garments; among the women, some wear gold hairpins and jade ornaments, while others have three topknots or double-horn buns. They hold jade tablets used in court audiences, bear round halos behind their heads, and can fly through the air and transform in mysterious ways. Some ride dragons, qilin, luan birds, or cranes. Their processions include banners made of feathers and rainbow-colored tallies, like the retinues of earthly emperors. I have never seen any image of a bodhisattva, Buddha, or monk. So I brought out the many paintings I keep for worship. Most depict celestial beings, emperors, Daoist lords, and flying immortals; none show monks or Buddhas.

Over the forty years from the Xiantong to the Qiguang era, I traveled through the Wanling region of Huai and Zhejiang. Wherever I went, crowds gathered like clouds to watch. When I admonished people, I often spoke of the ways of loyalty, filial devotion, chastity, and uprightness, as well as purity and frugality…

For more than forty years, from the Xiantong era to the Guangqi era, he traveled through Wanling and the Huai and Zhejiang regions. Wherever he went, crowds gathered around him like clouds. He often admonished people with teachings on loyalty, filial piety, chastity, and uprightness; with words advocating purity, stillness, simplicity, and frugality; and with guidance on cultivating oneself without seeking recognition. People near and far therefore held him in reverence.

People piled gold, silver, and precious goods before him, and the gifts bestowed upon him amounted to tens of millions. He left them all behind and walked away without looking back. Even when the waters around the Three Huai regions surged and beacon fires blazed across the land, he dwelt in peace and felt no concern. Powerful warlords such as Sun Ru, Zhao Hong, and Bi Shiduo tried to coerce him by improper means, even threatening him with swords. Yet as soon as they saw his bearing and appearance, they could not help bowing and bending their knees, treating him with the respect due a disciple.

Later, he entered the Dao with two sworn sisters and lived on Dongting Mountain. At the beginning of the Guangqi era, he moved to Qianqing Mountain in Yuhang. People at the foot of the mountain built the Dihua Hall for him to live in. A little over a year later, he died without having been ill, at the age of forty-eight. It is said that auspicious signs appeared at his death: cloud-borne cranes took flight, and an extraordinary fragrance filled the air. This indeed fulfilled his prediction that he would live fifty years. Moreover, he went thirty years without eating, his face remained childlike, and his skin was fair; he often seemed like an unmarried young woman. How could this have been possible without the effects of the Golden Elixir and Jade Liquids?

He also often traveled in spirit to the heavenly realm, sitting upright for more than a month at a time. At other times, he looked down into the underworld and its shadowy passes; seated in one place, he could see in all eight directions. He often recounted these things to those who had attained the Dao. People in the world did not understand what was happening and assumed he was merely sitting in meditation. Perhaps he was a companion among the immortals, like the Primordial Lord of the South Pole and the Holy Mother of the Eastern Mound.

— Xue Xuantong

Xue was the wife of Feng Hui, a deputy prefect in Hezhong. Her Daoist name was Xuantong. Twenty years after marrying Feng Hui, she told her husband of her long-held aspiration, then feigned illness and lived by herself. She vowed to burn incense and recite the Dao, chanting the Huangting Jing (Yellow Court Scripture), a Daoist classic, two or three times each day.

She practiced this way for thirteen years. One night, two jade maidens dressed in blue appeared in her room. As they arrived, a moonlike radiance filled the room and spread across the courtyard and roof eaves, while fragrant breezes drifted all around. It was early autumn, and the heat still lingered, yet the room was cool and clear, like a celestial grotto.

The two jade maidens told her, “The Primordial Lady of Purple Emptiness, a revered Daoist deity, oversees the scriptures transmitted from the south. She has commanded the Perfected Ones and Immortals to search beyond the Four Seas and within Heaven and Earth for people in famous mountains and great rivers who aspire to long life and whose hearts are attuned to the true Dao…”

The Primordial Lady (Yuanjun), a revered female immortal of Daoism, would surely descend to teach her. Xuántóng had built up profound merit through her cultivation of the Dao. The Earthly Office, which oversees people’s merits and faults and reports them to Heaven, had submitted memorials on her behalf several times, and her name had already been entered in the registers of the Purple Void Court, the government offices of the immortals. Moreover, when the Primordial Lady heard that this woman was resolved to cultivate the Dao, she especially admired her devotion and decided to descend in person that very day. Xuántóng burned incense for five nights in a row, waiting solemnly for her arrival.

On the fourteenth day of the seventh month in the fifteenth year of Xiantong (the year Jiǎwǔ), the Primordial Lady descended to Xuántóng’s residence with twenty-seven attendants and female immortals. Xuántóng went to the gate to greet her with a bow. The Primordial Lady sat for a long while, explaining the essentials of the Huangting Jing—how to nourish the spirit and cultivate through inner visualization. She then bestowed upon Xuántóng a pellet of the Ninefold Splendor Elixir, an immortal elixir in Daoist tradition, and instructed her to take it eight years later. At that time, a Jade Maiden would come in a swift carriage to escort her to Mount Song. After speaking, the immortals departed.

From then on, Xuántóng devoted herself to quieting her spirit and cultivating, often abstaining from food. True immortals had come to visit her, and bright radiance, wondrous spirit winds, and fragrance had appeared in the air; inside the room, the cloud gongs and celestial music had sounded. Yet Feng Huī knew nothing of this. Thinking that Xuántóng was cultivating alone elsewhere and was difficult to approach, Feng Huī grew jealous and often mocked her. As a result, Xuántóng repeatedly aroused suspicion like that once directed at Marquis of Dongling Shaoping.

In the year Gengzǐ of the Guangming era, rebel forces entered the capital. Officials and scholars fled in all directions, seeking only temporary refuge. Feng Huī and Xuántóng took shelter together in Jinling, Changzhou. Xuántóng continued her inner visualization and cultivation, with even greater devotion and reverence.

In the Gengzi year of Guangming (880), large forces of rebels attacked the capital. Officials and scholars fled in every direction, each seeking a place to take refuge for a time. Feng Xuantong was living with others in Jinling, Changzhou, yet he continued without pause to cultivate and annotate the scriptures, with even greater devotion and reverence.

In the tenth month of the first year of Zhonghe (881), they traveled by boat to the mouth of Zhidu, intending to go on to a country house. Among their companions were several women from neighboring families. As the boat drifted downstream, they suddenly saw officials in red robes and purple garments standing on the riverbank, along with armored warriors carrying spears. They stood in orderly ranks, as though waiting for Xuantong’s boat to arrive. The region was unsettled at the time, with bandits everywhere. When the boatman saw them, he was so frightened that he dared not go farther. Xuantong said, “Do not be afraid,” and steered the boat closer. All the officials bowed to him. Xuantong instructed them, “It is not yet time. I am still at my private residence in Chunzhong; you need not hurry to take me away.” The officials then dispersed. Though everyone aboard had seen the scene, none understood its meaning.

In the second year, the Renyin year (882), in the second month, Xuantong bathed and swallowed the elixir bestowed on him by Zixu. Two immortal maidens quietly descended into his room and urged him to go to Songgao, the area around Mount Song, said to be the abode of immortals. On the fourteenth day of that month, Xuantong indicated that he was ill and died that evening at his private residence. Thirty-six immortal cranes flew there and circled above the roof, gathering together. His body remained soft and warm, looking as though he were alive; a bright white point appeared in the center of his forehead, and after a long while it turned into purple Qi. During the bathing, thick black hair had also grown on his head, standing several feet high.

On the night of the fifteenth, clouds filled the room. Suddenly, thunder and lightning roared; the coffin lid flew into the courtyard, and the body vanished, leaving only empty clothes and bedding. A wondrous fragrance and cloudlike immortal cranes remained for ten days without dispersing.

Zhou Bao, commissioner for military affairs of western Zhejiang and chancellor, submitted a memorial saying: “I have heard that when Lady Zhao ascended to heaven and departed this world, her appearance remained as though she were alive; when Master Tao left the human world, a wondrous fragrance lingered for a long time. Both were cases of ascending to immortality, and both are recorded in the scriptures of the immortals. Who could have imagined that, in today’s peaceful and prosperous age, we would witness such an event with our own eyes?

“Xue, the wife of Feng Hui, long ago set aside worldly concerns and devoted herself to the Daoist path. From the secret teachings of the immortals, she grasped profound principles; the worldly affairs of women’s adornment could not disturb her tranquil resolve. She did not cultivate by abstaining from grains or consuming medicinal fungi. Instead, she held fast to her original nature, returned to simplicity, followed the teaching of Wuwei (non-action) in this sage age, and pursued the principles of the Mysterious Origin—the source of the Dao—and preserving the One. If not for this, how could such an event have occurred?

“Just as people were recalling the mourning of breaking a basin—a metaphor for viewing life and death with detachment—numinous birds appeared one after another. As they grieved for the beloved who had departed, like the person reflected in a mandarin-duck mirror, her black hair began to grow again. Thunder and lightning revealed auspicious signs; clouds and rosy mists displayed wondrous portents. From the distant heights of the sky came the sound of strings and bamboo, while in the coffin only her clothes and bedding remained. It was as though she had been banished to dwell briefly among mortals; now that she has departed as an immortal, she has returned to heaven.

“This event will be passed down through the ages and praised by our contemporaries. It is an auspicious sign for this prefecture, and also a splendid event for the court. I am fortunate to guard this region. I respectfully submit this report to the throne, presumptuously bringing it to the attention of Heaven; though apprehensive, I am filled with joy and congratulations.”

This memorial was presented at the imperial residence in Chengdu on the fifteenth day of the second month that year. The emperor issued an edict: “The Way of Heaven takes the Dao as its model; these principles are recorded in the scriptures of the immortals. Those of lofty De (Virtue/Power) diligently cultivate themselves, and thereby accomplish wondrous works. Having read this report, I find that it accords with an extraordinary auspicious sign. This event may be compared to the Wei maiden’s ascent to immortality and to the descent of Flower Maiden; it is enough to bring glory to the prefecture and to illuminate our dynasty. It should be entrusted to the court historians and entered into the historical records. The local administration shall also be ordered to allocate funds for offerings and build a Golden Register ritual altar at her residence, thereby repaying the Highest Mystery and expressing reverent gratitude.”

This took place in the third year of the emperor’s residence at Chengdu.

The profound and wondrous Dao is originally a seamless whole, while the highest deities appear in places beyond human comprehension. Scriptures and proclamations explain the principles that accord with the Dao; temples enshrine the deities; Fulu (talismans and registers) guide the observance of Daoist rites; and prayers offered at purification rituals express reverence. Signs of efficacy take many forms, and the deities’ responses are indeed real. These matters awaken the people and reveal the rewards and consequences of good and evil.

I reflect that my own understanding is shallow, yet I was fortunate to inherit an age of peace and receive many blessings. For this reason, I have long been diligent in purification and vows, and have dared not slacken. I wish to spread the wondrous teachings widely and make them known to all beings. I therefore read the twenty volumes of Du Guangting’s Record of Daoist Efficacy. The events recorded there are clear and concise, and the principles they explain are precise and thorough. Accounts heard from ancient times to the present have all been gathered into the book and arranged in order, while many extraordinary and unusual events have also been preserved. I hope this book will be handed down for a long time, printed and circulated as a model for moral instruction and an aid to customs of simplicity and honesty. I have now set down the circumstances of its compilation truthfully and placed this account at the beginning.

Preface by Master Guangcheng

The function of the Dao is wordless and Wuwei (non-action), yet the Dao’s underlying reality has feeling and sincerity. Through Wuwei, all things are left to change naturally; through sincerity, teachings can be applied in response to particular circumstances. When things change naturally, they accord with the highest truth; when one responds flexibly to events, the effects of teaching become clear.

The Dao De Jing (Classic of the Dao and De) says, “I treat the good person well, and I also treat the person who is not good well.” This means that the Most High—a Daoist honorific for the supreme deity or highest being—keeps the heart free of distinctions and regards everyone equally, as one would an infant. The Book of Documents says, “Love not only your own kin, but all the people under Heaven; cherish not only your own children, but the children of all under Heaven.” This means that sages emulate the Dao by nurturing the people with loving care.

Yet wrongdoing must not be allowed to run unchecked, nor may good deeds be obstructed. Rewards and punishments should be applied according to good and evil. The Dao De Jing asks, “When someone does wrong, why should that person be cast aside?” Thus the sage established the Son of Heaven and appointed the Three Dukes—high officials who assist the ruler—to teach the people to abandon wrongdoing and turn toward goodness. The Dao De Jing also says that wrongdoing committed in full view will be punished by people, while wrongdoing committed in secret will be punished by spirits and gods. It further says that good deeds attract auspicious Qi, while evil deeds attract baleful Qi. These are the principles the Most High uses to encourage goodness and punish evil.

The Book of Documents says, “The blessings and calamities sent down by the Lord on High are not constant: do good and many blessings will descend; do evil and many calamities will follow.” This is the principle by which sages emulate the Way of Heaven and warn people that wrongdoing brings calamity, while good deeds bring blessings. From this, we can see that retribution for sins and blessings is as exact as an echo answering a sound or a shadow following a form. Is it really only Daoism and Buddhism that speak of retribution? Confucian texts have recorded such accounts for a long time as well. King Xuan of Zhou dreamed of Du Bo; the Marquis of Jin dreamed of a fierce ghost; the Gong Heir suffered despite being innocent; Hun Liangfu was unjustly accused; the Marquis of Qi met retribution through the tale of his transformation into a pig; the Wei family received the repayment of aid once given in the form of entwined grass; Liang Xiao died at the hands of Si Dai; Zheng Xuan was seized by someone; and Liu Lan could not escape retribution. Historians recorded all these events. They serve as warnings about the retribution for sin and blessing, and as standards for judging good and evil. What is more, accumulated good deeds leave a legacy of blessings, while accumulated evil leaves calamity behind. Spirits and gods watch in secret, while the laws punish in public. These are all powerful means of encouraging goodness and restraining evil.

The Great Dao does not rule over the myriad things, and the Most High cherishes life; there is no need, in itself, to punish people like straw dogs used in sacrifice. Yet to help people understand the principle of retribution, Daoism established Fulu (talismans and registers), images of deities, and other symbols to represent divine authority, and protected them with sacred scriptures and spiritual ordinances—the holy writings, precepts, and ritual rules of Daoism. Anyone who violates or insults them will surely incur guilt. Many such accounts of efficacy have been passed down through the ages. Li Qi of Chengji wrote the ten-volume Collected Accounts of Efficacy from the Daoist Tradition, and Su Huaichu of Shiping wrote the ten-volume Accounts of the Mysterious Tradition’s Spiritual Efficacy; both works have circulated to this day. I have now sought out elders with long experience and gathered what they have seen and heard, compiling it into a twenty-volume Record of the Efficacy of Daoism. I hope this work will help spread the principles of careful conduct, attention to even the smallest matters, and reverence for cause and effect, and support a culture that honors goodness. I record events as they are, without deliberately embellishing the prose.

The Kaiyuan Temple in Raozhou originally stood on the lake’s northern shore, two li from the city walls. It had lofty halls, tiered pavilions, broad, winding corridors, waterside galleries overlooking the lake, and pavilions among the pine trees. Pines and bamboo grew in scattered clusters, and flowers and trees flourished. It was a favorite local place to escape the summer heat, enjoy the springtime, and take in the scenery.

Over time, the temple’s Daoist priests grew fewer, and its covered walkways gradually fell into disrepair. Only the Shangqing Pavilion, the main hall, the refectory, and the three gates remained in place. People also began burying their dead within the temple grounds, so that nearly everything beyond the altars and halls became a field of neglected graves.

On a night in the second year of the Dazhong era of the Tang dynasty, people in the prefecture suddenly heard the clamor of tens of thousands of people, with a roar like wind and thunder. By dawn, they discovered that more than forty buildings from the Kaiyuan Temple—its halls, pavilions, gates, and other structures—had been moved to an open stretch of land on the lake’s southern shore. Their arrangement and the distances between them were much the same as before.

The prefect reported the event to the court and requested that the temple’s plaques be renamed in recognition of this supernatural occurrence. The court decreed that it should continue to be called the Kaiyuan Temple, but renamed the Shangqing Pavilion the Pavilion of Divine Transport and ordered repairs. People from near and far believed the story and donated funds and goods, allowing the temple buildings to be restored. The Record of the Temple’s Renewal states that the new site was more than two li from the original and that a lake lay between them. The halls and pavilions had been moved there through divine power, aided by the response of the spirits.

The Palace of Pure Numinous Power in Yangzhou is said to have been built by Emperor Wu of Han for Lady Pure Numinous Power, a Daoist deity, to descend into the human world. It stood before Mount Taibai. Over the centuries, only its ruins remained. In the year Gaozu of Tang reached Chang’an and accepted the abdication of Emperor Gong of Sui, he dreamed of a divine figure dressed in white. The figure identified himself as the principal deity of Mount Taibai, said he lived at the Terrace of Pure Numinous Power, and told the emperor that the site had fallen into ruin. Gaozu then ordered a search for the ruins and had a terrace and palace built there, naming it the Palace of Pure Numinous Power.

During the Kaiyuan era, Celestial Master Fu once received an imperial order to perform a Zhaijiao, a Daoist purification and sacrificial ritual, at the palace. When Emperor Dezong was in the Liangyang region, he had planned to visit the palace in person and ordered it expanded and adorned. As a result, its buildings were immense in scale and built with lavish materials.

Later, Feng Xingxi received the title of Wuding Army commander in Yangzhou while remaining in Jinzhou, and sent his son to oversee the area. Feng Xingxi’s son wanted to demolish the palace buildings and convert the site into government offices. When the workers lifted the roof tiles, they found the eaves’ gutters filled with countless venomous snakes, making it impossible to proceed. They reported this to him. Enraged, Feng Xingxi’s son ordered officials to set fire to the palace. As the men dragged firewood over and lit it, thunder and lightning suddenly crashed overhead, and wind and rain swept in together. The officials fled in panic, and several of them died. The Palace of Pure Numinous Power remained standing, and no one dared to trespass against it again.

The story of two monks at Wenzhu Terrace who struck an image of the Celestial Worthy Who Saves from Suffering, and the wondrous events that followed.

Wenzhu was from Chang’an. His parents sent him to study at an estate elsewhere and built a schoolroom on a mound in front of it. But he was naturally unruly and carefree, with no love of study. He only liked to join the neighborhood boys in shooting at birds and trapping wild animals, making a game of it. He gathered every kind of gear for catching fish and hunting animals: fish traps, bird nets, hunting nets, bows and arrows, mallets, and blades. Over the years, the number of animals he killed and caught was beyond counting.

One day, a Daoist saw him and asked, “How did your head suddenly become like this?” Wenzhu was startled and asked what he meant. The Daoist led him beneath the terrace and told him to bend over and look into the well water. Wenzhu saw that his body still had a human shape, but his head had become that of a beast. He tried to ask the Daoist for help and confess his wrongdoing, but the Daoist told him to keep looking carefully into the water. In an instant, his body remained unchanged while his head kept transforming: now it looked like a bird’s, then a beast’s, a snake’s, and a fish’s. Wenzhu was terrified and distressed.

The Daoist said, “All beings strive to stay alive, each cherishing its own life. Birds and beasts value their lives just as deeply. You have gone against the Way of Heaven and killed them, so you have suffered this retribution. With each transformation of your head, you must bear the repayment owed for one life; however many you have killed, you must repay one by one. As the days and years accumulate, when your allotted lifespan is exhausted, your present body will die. Then you will be reborn as all kinds of other creatures, repaying the lives you have taken. Even after hundreds of millions of years, you may not be reborn as a human.”

Wenzhu wept and begged for help. He said he was willing to burn all his hunting gear to atone for his past wrongs, cleanse his heart, reform himself, and never do wrong again. Seeing that he was truly sincere, the Daoist told him, “By command of the Most High (a revered Daoist deity), I relieve the suffering of living beings. I am called the Perfected One Who Rescues from Suffering. You have a karmic bond with the Dao and should have met someone who had attained it long ago. If I did not save you now, you would sink into degradation for a long time, with little hope of escape.” The Daoist then gave him his own Daoist robe and instructed him to cultivate the Dao for the rest of his life, secretly accumulate De (Virtue) by helping people, and widely protect living beings. Only then could he be freed from his former offenses.

The Daoist then rose into the air, several yards above the ground, and stood upon a golden lotus. He held a jade bowl in his left hand and a willow branch in his right. Wearing a golden crown and phoenix shoes, he stood more than thirty feet tall. Five-colored light streamed from his whole body, reaching into the sky and illuminating the surrounding land. A moment later, the Daoist vanished.

Wenzhu then burned the nets and other equipment he had used for hunting, donned the celestial robes worn by Daoist priests, and built a temple there, making statues of the deities he had seen. He practiced diligently day and night, burning incense and repenting for his sins. After living there for more than ten years, he withdrew into seclusion again.

Wenzhu then burned the nets and other equipment he had used for hunting, donned the celestial robes worn by Daoist priests, and built a temple there, making statues of the deities he had seen. He practiced diligently day and night, burning incense and repenting for his sins. After living there for more than ten years, he received a response from a True Immortal. The True Immortal taught him the secrets of refining elixirs and sent him to travel throughout the land, helping those who were ill and suffering. Later, Wenzhu attained the Dao and departed. The place where he had lived is popularly known as “Wenzhu Terrace,” and the statue of the Heavenly Worthy Who Relieves Suffering still stands there today.

Suddenly, several monks went out on a pilgrimage. When they saw the statue, they said, “Since this is a sacred trace left by Wenzhu, how could it be the work of Daoist priests? This shows that Daoist priests are ill-intentioned and have occupied our ancient site for many years.” They pulled up a large piece of timber, and two of them struck the statue of the Heavenly Worthy Who Relieves Suffering together. They broke its arm and damaged its ear, and its mouth and nose were also ruined. They then struck the statue’s neck with all their might, but could not damage it; instead, they became utterly exhausted.

After resting briefly, the two monks looked again at the statue’s injuries. They had all healed, while the monks’ own mouths, ears, noses, and necks were in severe pain. Then they looked at their hands and found that their hands, too, had been broken. They collapsed on the ground, crying out and telling everyone what had happened. Much later, both men died.

A Miraculous Account of Lord Lao Punishing Thieves at the Taiqing Palace in Bozhou

The two monks’ mouths, ears, noses, and necks were in severe pain. Then they looked at their hands and found that their hands, too, had been broken. They collapsed on the ground, crying out and telling everyone what had happened. Much later, both men died.

The Taiqing Palace in Zhenyuan County, Bozhou, is where the Sage Ancestor, Lord Lao (that is, the Most High Lord Lao), was born. From the Yin and Zhou dynasties through the Tang, the palace’s nine wells and three cypress trees remained as they had been. During the Wude era, cypress trees that had withered and died came back to life. In the Tianbao era, the court rebuilt the palace buildings.

The historic sites here had been continually restored and expanded since the reigns of Emperor Xuan of Han and Emperor Huan of Han. Emperor Taiwu of Northern Wei and Emperor Wen of Sui also had new plans drawn up for construction. Bian Shao and Xue Daoheng each wrote an inscription recording these events. The imperial portraits of six Tang emperors—Gaozu, Taizong, Gaozong, Zhongzong, Ruizong, and Xuanzong—were arranged on either side of Lord Lao’s image. The palace grounds held two palaces and two Daoist temples, more than a thousand ancient cypress trees, and over seven hundred buildings. Five hundred soldiers were stationed there to guard the palace and temples.

During the Xiantong era of Emperor Yizong of Tang, Pang Xun occupied Xuzhou. The court assembled troops from ten circuits to campaign against him. As the encirclement was about to close, Pang Xun feared he could not hold out much longer, so he led more than three thousand followers straight to Taiqing Palace, intending to seize the palace and temples and use them as a stronghold. That day, more than a thousand households of refugees and scholars had taken shelter inside. They saw black vapor rise from the nine wells. After a long while, it spread across the fields, leaving people faint and gasping for breath; Lord Lao also appeared in the sky. Pang Xun’s followers lost their way and trampled one another. The Qishui Bridge then collapsed, and they all fell into the water and drowned. Before long, the sky cleared, and not one of the rebel soldiers remained.

During the Guangming era of Emperor Xizong of Tang, a general of Huang Chao led his followers to burn Taiqing Palace, but a black fog spread across the fields, and they lost their way. Later, another band of marauders tried to destroy Taiqing Palace and lost their way as well. They ended up beneath the walls of Bozhou and immediately laid siege to the city, pressing their attack with increasing force. Prefect Pan Chou burned incense facing the palace and temples, praying for divine protection. Soon, black fog surged from the palace and encircled the city. A foul wind and poisonous vapor made anyone who breathed them collapse at once. Heavy snow fell, and the cold was extreme; five or six out of every ten people died. When the siege first began, countless divine crows had carried the arrows fired by the rebels into the city, which had already astonished them. Later, the sky inside the city was clear and bright, while beyond its walls the wind …

Fearing this divine power, the rebels lifted the siege and withdrew. Before long, they scattered and disappeared. Pan Chou submitted a memorial stating: “Since the large rebel forces invaded the capital, I have witnessed many astonishing events. Later, the skies within the city were clear and peaceful, while outside the city snow and wind raged. Since the rebels attacked the palace precincts and the wicked were put to death, rebel forces both large and small have made eighteen attempts, in all, to attack Taiqing Palace. Some lost their way; others encountered manifestations of dragon spirits. In the end, none succeeded, and the palace city remained safe. The residents who received protection are too numerous to count. I request that Zhenyuan County be relocated beside the palace.”

The emperor issued an edict: “If the county seat is moved beside the palace, it may bring much pollution and sacrilege. The county government shall remain at its former site, but, following the precedent of Wannian County, the county shall be elevated to a Chi County, a county within the capital region directly administered by the capital. Blue petitions shall also be presented, and a purification ritual held to inform the spirits and make a solemn vow.”

The Efficacious Signs Revealed by the Site of the Upper Scripture Hall Where Perfected Zhou Resided: Accounts of spiritual efficacy associated with the ruins of the Upper Scripture Hall where Perfected Zhou lived.

The Perfected Zhou, whose personal name was Taixuan, was a disciple of Tao Yinjü (Tao Hongjing). At the age of twenty-one, he attained the Dao, securing immortal status even earlier than Tao Yinjü. The place where he lived is today the Ziyang Abbey, situated in front of Maoling. Its level, open ground is dry and elevated, truly a blessed place.

Beside the main hall was a slightly raised patch of ground, like the foundation of an old house, though no traces of bricks or tiles could be seen. Taixuan planted flowers and trees there. He often saw people arriving, wearing tall caps and loose robes—sometimes in groups of three or five, sometimes two or three. He also saw armored warriors standing among the flowers and trees on quiet nights lit by the bright moon.

A child in Taixuan’s household, named Xiaodou, was only five or six years old. While playing there, he was several times lifted up and carried into the courtyard, yet was never hurt. One day, Taixuan told Lord Tao about these strange occurrences. Lord Tao said, “In the former residence of Lord Xu of the Jin dynasty, an Upper Scripture Hall was once built on this very spot. Build a quiet chamber at once for burning incense. Do not behave irreverently here.”

Taixuan asked, “Why are so many divine beings guarding the place where the Upper Scripture was once kept?” Lord Tao replied, “Where the precious scriptures of the Three Caverns—the collective name for Daoist scriptures—are kept, the myriad numinous beings stand guard and the hundred gods pay homage. How could one fail to treat such a place with respect?”

Taixuan said, “The true scriptures were moved away long ago. Are true spirits still guarding this place?” Lord Tao replied, “A place where the Upper Scripture was kept is guarded by earth spirits for seven hundred years. A place where a ritual sanctuary was established is guarded for a thousand years. A place where the Zhengyi scriptures and methods were kept is guarded by benevolent spirits for three hundred years. Though the scriptures and methods have been moved, their periods of protection have not yet ended, so the spirits remain.”

Taixuan therefore built a quiet chamber and offered incense and lit lamps there every morning and evening. He did not dare to bow or practice visualization and inner cultivation in the chamber, however, fearing that his own rank in the Daoist hierarchy was too low and that a gulf separated an ordinary person from the true spirits.

◎ “The Verification of the Ten Monks Who Came to Destroy Lady Wei’s Altar, Nine of Whom Were Devoured by Tigers” refers to a miraculous account in which ten monks came to destroy Lady Wei’s altar and nine of them were devoured by tigers.

The altar to Lady Wei stood on a massive rock in front of the central peak of Mount Heng. The rock was more than ten feet square, regular in shape and firmly set, rounded underneath and flat on top, and appeared to rest lightly on another rock. It was said that one person pushing it seemed able to move it, but when many pushed together, it would not budge. For this reason, it was regarded as a thing of supernatural power. Immortals and hermits often came to play and rest on the rock, while strange clouds and numinous energy frequently shrouded its summit.

One night, more than ten monks dressed in Buddhist robes came to the altar carrying torches and staffs, intending to harm the immortal aunt Gǒu. They entered her dwelling and saw her lying on her bed, but could not get close to her. The monks then went to the altar, intending to topple Lady Wei’s altar. The great rock thundered as if it had fallen over. They turned back and shone their torches on it, but the rock had not moved at all. Realizing that it possessed supernatural power, the monks fled in panic.

After daybreak, someone reached a village some distance away, only a little more than ten li from the site. Of the ten accomplices, nine had been killed by tigers. The man who had not joined in the wrongdoing when they tried to push over the altar was spared the tigers. He told the villagers what had happened, and people far and near were astonished to hear it.

Yan Li Digs Up the Iron Pillar of Hongzhou and Witnesses Its Power: This is the title of the next account, meaning “The miraculous events surrounding Yan Li’s excavation of the Iron Pillar of Hongzhou.”

Hongzhou’s Iron Pillar, said to have been cast by the immortal Xu Zhenjun, stands in a well. During the Jin dynasty, water monsters such as giant jiao dragons and long serpents plagued the Yuzhang region, often harming the people. Xu Zhenjun and his master, Wu Jun, knew such arts as the Orthodox Unity rites for beheading evil and the Three-Five Flying Steps, and could subdue all kinds of spirits and monsters. Wielding his sword, Xu chased a jiao dragon from a well in Tanzhou. The dragon fled into this well. After emerging, Xu said to Wu Jun, “Beneath this well lurk a jiao dragon and a chi dragon, another legendary water-dwelling creature. If they are not held in check, they will emerge every three hundred years to harm the people. Who, in generations to come, will be able to subdue them?”

They therefore commanded spirits and ghosts to bring millions of pounds of iron and cast it into a pillar, which they placed in the well. The pillar rose several feet above the rim, standing tall like a column. They also laid eight enormous chains beneath the well to bind the earth’s veins, the legendary channels said to support and connect the land. From then on, no evil spirits caused trouble in the Zhongling area, and no one drowned there. Xu Zhenjun swore, “If later generations damage my iron pillar, the city will be submerged and the river will overflow.” Everyone knew of this vow and dared not defy it. Once, fishermen chipped iron from the pillar to use as weights for their nets, causing considerable damage. Recently, the authorities have also forbidden this practice.

Yan Jiezhi, an official in Jiangxi, believed slanderous reports and ordered the iron pillar dug up so it could be smashed. Suddenly, thunder roared and the river rose rapidly. After they had dug only two or three feet, the city began to shake, and people inside and outside the walls were terrified. Yan Jiezhi then believed that the pillar truly possessed miraculous power. He burned incense, prayed, and apologized, then ordered the digging to stop. He also had the Daoist temple beside the pillar destroyed, but it was later rebuilt.

◎ Miraculous accounts of Wang Feng and Wu Xinglu digging up and destroying the Chengdu Longxing Abbey.

The Longxing Temple in Chengdu was known as the Zhizhen Temple during the Later Zhou. Its grounds were extensive, with streets on all four sides. The main hall, lecture hall, and the stone inscriptions from the Yuhua Palace were still there.

A man named Wang Feng served the Prince of Yingchuan. Later, he built a private residence in Xiaoman Ward. Finding the building site low and damp, he ordered workers to dig up the earthen wall at the temple entrance and excavate a large area within the grounds. They hauled away thousands of cartloads of earth to raise the site. Before the house was finished, several people in his family had already died.

One day, as Wang Feng was returning home from the government office, he met two men in yellow robes outside his door. They said they needed to question him about taking earth from the temple. While Wang Feng was answering them, he dismounted and died.

The temple once had a bell tower called the Terrace of Resonant Echoes. Its gate tower was also very tall and finely built. After submitting a memorial, Military Governor Wu Xinglu had the gate tower moved to the Tianwang Temple and ordered the bell tower demolished. Today, these remains and buildings have all been destroyed.

Some years earlier, when the emperor was staying in Shu, the Master of the Way Mingdao, Yin Sixuan, said that one of Wu Xinglu’s officials had fallen ill, and his soul entered the underworld. A few days later, he recovered. He said he had seen Wu Xinglu being driven by ghost officials to carry timber from the Longxing Temple. Bound with iron chains and restraints, Wu Xinglu labored day and night without pause. Whenever the timber had been piled up, it would fly away again. He had to carry it over and over, with no idea what year his punishment would end. Wu Xinglu hoped his descendants would rebuild the temple gate for him and thereby atone for his wrongdoing. But they were poor and destitute, and in the end had no means to do so.

The Verification of General Liu’s Retribution for Taking Earth from the Dongming Temple to Build His Residence: The account of how General Liu suffered retribution for taking earth from the Dongming Temple to build his residence.

General Liu served in the Right Shence Army and lived near Dongming Abbey. He undertook extensive construction to build a residence, taking earth from the abbey to make bricks and lay the foundations. Over time, he removed several thousand cartloads of soil. After the project was finished, General Liu suddenly fell gravely ill. He improved somewhat after ten days or so, then abruptly began acting as if mad: in his courtyard, he clawed at the earth with his hands and dug holes until his nails split and his fingers bled, yet he would not stop. His family held him down, and he seemed to grow calmer for a while. But soon he was back on the ground, digging as though something were driving him. Those nearby heard what seemed to be something beating him. In great pain, he could only weep and sob. When asked what was wrong, he never answered. Later, as his illness worsened and his life hung by a thread, sorcerers and physicians tried every remedy they could think of, but nothing worked.

His family brought in a blind diviner, who said they should seek help through Daoist methods. General Liu had never believed in Daoism, and no Daoist priest had ever visited his home. In desperation, his wife and children went to Jinxian Abbey and asked for a talismanic rite. A talisman was placed beside his bed, and several more were burned; he was given the ashes mixed with water to drink. Only then did General Liu speak. “In my ignorance, I offended the Daoist powers by taking earth from Dongming Abbey to build my own residence. The Earth Registrar, who governs affairs on the ground, has already reported me to the Celestial Bureau, the government of Heaven. I have been ordered to carry earth back to fill the ground. I do not know how many cartloads I must move. I only know that I must carry them all by myself, and even two or three hundred years would not be enough to finish. If I delay or slacken even a little, the underworld officials will sternly interrogate and flog me. In the end, I will still be unable to escape punishment.”

After saying this, he wept and cried out as though lamenting his suffering. His whole family was deeply distressed to hear him. His wife and children went to burn incense and pray in the main hall of Dongming Abbey. They also bought five thousand cartloads of clean earth to fill the holes he had dug, then held a purification offering (zhai) to give thanks and plead for forgiveness. Only after this did General Liu’s condition improve somewhat.

One morning, he said again, “A Celestial Talisman has issued an order: though I dug up earth from a Daoist abbey to build a private residence and have now filled it back in, the offense has not been fully repaid. Twelve years are to be taken from my allotted years and fortune. My descendants, who were implicated, may be spared punishment.” That night, he died.

The author notes that, according to Daoist precepts, anyone who deliberately damages the Great Dao, blessed lands, or sacred altars brings calamity upon three generations. In General Liu’s case, he repaid the offense by replacing the earth and bore the responsibility himself, so the punishment fell on him alone. This incident should serve as a warning.

Wei Gao, Prince of Nankang, once served as Grand Commandant and Director of the Secretariat. He was also the beloved son-in-law of Zhang Gong, Chancellor and Governor of Chengdu. Deep and composed, with a generous spirit, he led a simple and self-respecting life and disliked pandering to conventional tastes. The Zhang family had held high office for generations and enjoyed great virtue and renown. Its members therefore looked down on Wei Gao and treated him with little respect, though he remained unaware of it.

Later, he suddenly dreamed that two divine beings said to him, “There are many spirits in the world who oversee the registers of human lives. Your name is entered under Ge Gui. You are destined to receive the full stipend of Shu, and wealth and honor are soon to come. Why do you still linger where you are? You must strive!”

When Wei Gao awoke, he still did not understand the dream’s words. Later, he dreamed again of two divine beings, who told him the same thing.

So why linger and make no progress? Press forward! In time you will surely attain wealth and honor. Do not forget Ge Gui.” Wei took this counsel to heart and resolved to seek fame and office. After discussing it with his wife, he found that she encouraged him too. She gave him tens of thousands in gold from her dowry to fund his journey.

When Wei reached Qin River Plain, the region was suffering from years of famine and unrelenting rain. Recommended by a friend, he was appointed military judge of Longzhou. Before long, the emperor traveled to Fengtian, and the prefect fled the fighting for the temporary imperial residence. Wei led local retainers and armored soldiers, transported military supplies, and helped protect the emperor. In recognition of his service, he was appointed defense commissioner. He then requested an audience at court, and Dezong received him with great regard.

After the rebellion was put down, the emperor returned to the capital. For his services, Wei was granted the honorary high rank of Right Vice Director of the Department of State Affairs and appointed military governor of Fengxiang. He earnestly requested a transfer to Xichuan, and the court appointed him military governor there, succeeding Zhang Gong. Wei led his troops to take up the post, while Zhang Gong chose to return to court by another route to avoid confronting him.

For many years afterward, Shu enjoyed abundant harvests, and gold and silk were plentiful. Nanzhao submitted and expressed its willingness to serve. Wei’s reputation grew ever greater, and the court’s tribute revenues did not decline. The court therefore relied heavily on him, and the neighboring Rong and Man peoples were awed by his authority. Wei then requested permission for Nanzhao to establish a school where its people could study, sending hostages and students to learn the Classics, including the Book of Songs, the Book of Documents, the Book of Rites, and the Book of Music. No one of his time could match Wei’s prose or calligraphy. Nanzhao received his own handwritten words and had them carved in stone, bringing honor to the state—while Wei had long since forgotten Ge Gui’s original admonition.

He dreamed again that two divine beings said to him, “You enjoy wealth and honor, yet have forgotten the source of it all. How could your neglect have become so grave?” When he awoke, he was so terrified that sweat covered his body. After a long while, he went in person to Yunlin Abbey, lit incense, and prayed for blessings. He then ordered the craftsmen to measure the timber and chose an auspicious day for construction. They built forty rooms in the Southern Palace’s soaring pavilions, along with a grand hall and covered corridors, setting up successive gates and deep-set halls. They also cast metal vessels and carved stone inscriptions; they did nearly everything that could be done. He allocated the tax revenues from Jiulong, established a granary at the foot of the mountain, and stored grain there until it was piled high as a mountain. Craftsmen came flocking in. He wrote the inscription himself and set the stele beside the cave gate, then built a tall tower above it. He burned paper effigies of seventy young servants to serve as sweepers and attendants, and set aside five hundred mu of fertile land for purification rituals and grain storage. He guarded this place for more than twenty years, and later was enfeoffed as a king. His birth year was Dingmao, the same year that Ge Gui passed away.

Craftsmen at Kaiyuan Abbey in Guozhou Dream Together and Verify the Timber

Kaiyuan Abbey in Guozhou stands next to the prefectural city. Its grounds are high, dry, and well situated, with beautiful scenery, so they were chosen for a Daoist abbey. Officials in the prefecture soon prepared a memorial and submitted it; permission was granted to establish the abbey, but it still lacked a main hall. The prefectural government sent craftsmen and Daoist priests to travel upstream along the Jialing River and purchase timber above Lizhou. Before setting out, the Daoist priests and craftsmen all dreamed that someone…

It is said that the pool at Zhufeng contained enough timber for the construction. This dream omen appeared three times. So everyone gathered to discuss it: “Since this sign has appeared repeatedly in our dreams, surely a merchant ship laden with timber will come downriver. We can wait three to five days and see. Perhaps then we won’t need to travel far to seek wood, which would be more convenient.”

One of the craftsmen said, “I’ll go to the river below Zhufeng Mountain and see whether a merchant ship’s timber raft has arrived.” He went down to the mountain. The pool was clear to the bottom, and suddenly he saw timber lying there. They asked someone skilled at diving to go down and hook it up, and hauled out more than a thousand lengths of catalpa wood. In this way, they had no need to travel far for timber, and the matter was easily settled.

With this wood, they built the Hall of the Three Venerables, a bell tower, a scripture library, a triple gate, and covered corridors. All the buildings they needed were complete. Later, they bought bricks to build an altar. Some of the bricks were yellowish red, and everyone suspected they had not been fired enough, so they discarded them. After one night, the bricks had all turned into gold. As a result, the cost of building the monastery exceeded the already ample wealth they had possessed.

Once the halls were complete, they prepared to sculpt the revered images. While digging at the monastery on White Crane Mountain, they unearthed tens of thousands of jin of iron. They used it to cast three iron statues, each only two zhang tall. To this day, they are called the “Sacred Images.” People came from near and far to pray, and their requests were soon answered.

The He family of Daoist priests who founded the monastery had been wealthy for generations, and has now become a prominent family. Even today, merchants and those skilled at pursuing profit often come every three to five days to burn incense before the Sacred Images and pray for blessings. If they sometimes fail to come, or their intentions are insincere, their businesses bring no profit and their goods cannot be sold.

The Chancellor Cui of Qiandi Terrace in the Northern Capital Builds a Monastery in Response to a Dream: This account tells how Chancellor Cui of Qiandi Terrace in the Northern Capital built a Daoist monastery because of a dream, and how the dream’s promise was fulfilled.

In the northern part of the capital, there is a place called Hidden Mound Terrace, where an ancient Daoist temple stands. Its divine statues are solemn and dignified, its halls and pavilions grand and ornate, and its open, prominent site rises far above the rest of the city. The temple was built long ago, but for years it received no repairs. Exposed to wind and rain, it gradually tilted and fell into disrepair.

The Chancellor Cui Yanzhao often dreamed that he was wandering through the wilderness in search of secluded places. He would arrive beneath the ancient terrace and look up to see purple Qi swirling above it, light shining in every direction, yet no path by which to climb up. After waiting a long while, he would hear celestial music and the sound of flutes and horns. His eagerness to ascend and explore grew stronger, but the sheer cliffs all around, though close before his eyes, seemed separated from him by thousands of miles.

Suddenly, a golden bridge appeared ahead, like a ladder with broad steps. He began climbing. Halfway up, he found that the boards of three or four steps were missing or damaged, and the railings had fallen apart; he could go no farther. Then he saw a great golden hand reach out, gesture to him, and guide him forward. Before he could even get a firm hold on one of its fingers, he had already reached the top of the terrace.

He wandered across the terrace and saw that the ancient hall was on the verge of collapse, while weeds had overgrown the abandoned altar. He could not help sighing again and again. Then he came before the image of the Celestial Worthy and recognized that the golden bridge was the bridge before the Celestial Worthy’s seat, and that the golden hand had been the Celestial Worthy’s own. By then, he could no longer hear the celestial music or see the purple Qi. He said, “Could the Celestial Worthy have some matter to entrust to me? Why has everything changed like this?”

The Venerable One suddenly said to him, “Since you live here, do not forget to repair the places that have fallen into ruin.” Before long, he awoke with a start. Ten days later, he was appointed governor of the northern capital and set out for his post. After several months, he felt dazed and uneasy, as though something were missing or he were troubled by some doubt. To clear his mind, he went out for a ride.

He heard that Qianqiu Terrace was not far away and went to see it. There stood only an old, dilapidated temple, hidden among tall grasses. He looked up at and paid his respects to the Heavenly Worthy, the deity revered in Daoism. Seeing the divine image and its attendants, he felt they were exactly as he had seen them in his earlier dream. He examined the area before the divine seat closely. Sure enough, there was a golden bridge, but its railings were broken and its planks damaged. He looked again at the Heavenly Worthy’s golden arm and fingers, and at once understood everything: this was precisely the scene he had dreamed of.

He then took money from his official salary and hired craftsmen to repair the Daoist temple, clearing away the old decay and restoring its halls. Since the temple buildings were very old, they were repaired in their original style. The remaining walls, covered walkways, altars and courtyards, gatehouses, murals, painted decorations, red ochre coating, white plaster, and gold and kingfisher-feather ornamentation were all put in order as well. Once the temple was complete, the project flourished, and offerings of incense and flowers soon became widespread.

Chancellor Liu Zhan dreams of the Heavenly Worthy; later, when he again becomes chief minister, the dream comes true

Prime Minister Liu Zhan was demoted and sent south to Jiaozhi (in what is now northern Vietnam). On the way, he passed through Jiangling (in what is now the Jingzhou area of Hubei). He boarded a small boat and was about to cast off when he turned and saw a Daoist temple beside the road. Its divine image stood in solemn dignity, but its halls had decayed and collapsed. On asking about it, he learned that it was the Zhenfu Yuzhi Temple. He entered, climbed the steps, clasped his hands in reverence, and prayed silently.

That night, aboard the boat, he dreamed that a blue-robed youth—a young immortal—led him up a great mountain. A winding path through the pines stretched across the slopes; the cliffs and peaks were strange and beautiful, and lingzhi mushrooms, secluded plants, rare birds, and unusual flowers were all clearly visible. After walking about a mile, he saw the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning, one of the highest deities revered in Daoism, seated on a throne of precious flowers. Looking up at the Celestial Worthy’s pure and graceful face, he recognized the deity as the one in the Yuzhi Hall. He knelt and prayed: “I have offended the court and been banished to a distant land. I do not dare hold resentment; I only ask to return safely.” The Celestial Worthy said, “Your name is already recorded on the blue register of immortals, and you have been placed among the immortals of Fangzhu. Why worry about calamities in the mortal world? You will again serve as prime minister, and afterward you will attain the Dao. Then, after ten days of fasting and three days of keeping the precepts, you may go to remote, uncultivated lands, thick with miasma and haunted by demons and spirits, without fear. The hours of Chen, Wei, Si, and Wu will mark the appointed time between us.”

Liu Zhan continued south. When he reached the area around the lakes and mountain passes, the local military governors offered him one welcome after another. Later, he acquired gold, silver, and other valuables, and sent word to the governor of Jingzhou, asking him to build a hall for the Celestial Worthy, a fasting hall, and covered corridors. He also selected Daoist priests who were sincere, upright, and devoted to cultivation to live at the temple. Later, Liu Zhan was summoned back to court and took charge of the central government. When he grew weary of worldly life, left the world, and devoted himself to cultivating the Dao, the dream’s words came true, and the years foretold were exact.

◎ Prime Minister Li Wei Dreams of the Celestial Worthy; the Temple He Builds Fulfills the Prophecy

Prime Minister Li Wei commanded the troops in Bianzhou (in what is now the Kaifeng area of Henan) and also served as commissioner of the Taiqing Palace. He was constantly devoted in heart to the mysterious Daoist path, longing for the perfected beings and reciting Daoist teachings. One night, he dreamed that he was walking in the countryside when he saw a strange, five-colored light among the plants and shrubs of a hedgerow.

Li Wei, the Chief Minister Li, commanded the military and civil administration of Bianzhou and also served as Commissioner of the Taiqing Palace, an official responsible for Daoist temples and monasteries. He often yearned for the mysterious Dao, longed for perfected beings, and sought the Great Dao.

One night, he dreamed he was walking in the countryside. Among the trees and grasses, he saw a strange, five-colored radiance. Within the light stood an image of a Heavenly Worthy. Half of the halo above its head was missing, and in its hand it held a jade fungus, a legendary immortal herb shaped like a white lotus. Its stem was round and slender, and the fungus had eight branches. He remembered everything he had seen in the dream clearly and kept it in his heart.

The next day, while escorting a guest beyond the city, he turned and saw a Daoist image standing outdoors. He asked where it was and learned that this was the Jade Fungus Temple. Astonished, he turned his horse around and went to pay his respects. The temple courtyard was overgrown with sedge and weeds, and mugwort blocked the path. He pushed aside the brambles to enter. The image before him was exactly like the one in his dream. Though it held no jade fungus, the temple’s name matched the dream, so he set about restoring and adorning it on a grand scale.

Once the work was complete, the halls were lofty and spacious, their ridges and upturned eaves splendid and imposing. The purification halls and lecture halls were fully equipped; moonlight shone through the windows, and frost gleamed across the ritual grounds. Facing the main road and commanding the land beyond the city walls, the temple became a magnificent sight in the regional military district.

Alas! Emperor Xuanzong of the Kaiyuan era honored his ancestors, immersed himself in profound principles, and contemplated the Great Dao. His sincere devotion reached Heaven, and auspicious signs descended to the human world. He once received a true talisman, a sign of Heaven’s mandate or divine favor, on Spirit Peak, and later discovered a jade fungus in the inner palace. He therefore issued an edict to build temples in important strongholds, naming them for the “True Talisman” and the “Jade Fungus.” He granted Mount Taibai the title “Lord of Efficacious Responses” and renamed Huayang County True Talisman County. Auspicious signs appeared in the past, and now favorable omens have appeared again. Thus, the good dream of a distinguished minister such as Chief Minister Li was fulfilled. The restoration of Daoist temples in places such as Yimen and Zhugong—how could it have been accomplished without the Great Dao’s response and the manifest signs of divine beings?

◎ The Fulfilled Vow of Chief Minister Zheng to Rebuild the True Peace Temple in Ningzhou

Tongsheng Abbey in Zhenning County, Ningzhou, was where Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang ordered images of twenty-seven perfected beings to be carved and installed after dreaming of them. As the years passed, the abbey gradually fell into ruin. Because the place was remote, the Daoist priests’ efforts to repair it went unattended for a long time.

When he was young, Zheng Tian, who later served as Chancellor and Minister of Works, visited Tongsheng Abbey to pay his respects. He wrote a poem of thirty stanzas recounting the abbey’s origins and privately made a vow: “If I one day attain high office, I will find a way to repair the abbey.” Later, he entered the court and took charge of drafting imperial edicts, rising to the highest ranks of the state. But his official duties kept him so busy that, little by little, he forgot his earlier vow.

One night, he dreamed that he was traveling through a heavenly grotto, where a host of immortals were enjoying music and revelry as grand celestial music rang out. Before long, ceremonial retinues and guards descended from the sky. A messenger conveyed the command of the Most High: the immortals were to return to Shangqing, a realm of the Daoist immortals. Some rode cranes, others mounted flying dragons, and all soared away. Zheng Tian too wanted to shake out his robes and ascend. An immortal turned back, smiled at him, and said, “First fulfill your wish to build a Daoist abbey in Zhenning. Only then may you come here.”

When Zheng Tian awoke, he remembered the repairs needed at the Daoist abbey in Zhenning and set aside the funds he would have spent on lavish meals for the construction work. Li Kan, military governor of Binzhou, assigned a senior officer to oversee the project. In just one hundred days, the abbey had been completely restored. Zheng Tian later recounted this dream. He believed the heavenly grotto in it was the grotto of Luochuan, and that the immortals were the twenty-seven perfected beings. Astonished that he had forgotten his old vow, he worked hard to complete this major undertaking, regarding it as a clear sign that the Great Dao had made itself manifest.

The Efficacious Story of Chancellor Duan Fulfilling His Vow to Rebuild Xiandu Abbey in Zhongzhou: An account of the efficacy of a Chancellor surnamed Duan fulfilling his vow to rebuild Xiandu Abbey in Zhongzhou.

The Xiandu Temple on Pingdu Mountain in Fengdu County, Zhongzhou (around present-day Fengdu in Chongqing) is where the perfected beings Wang Fangping of the Former Han and Yin Changsheng of the Later Han attained the Dao and ascended to heaven. The temple had long lain in ruins, with only its old foundations remaining. In the Jin dynasty, Master Gao was the first to build a temple there on a large scale; during the Taiyuan era, Yao Hong had it repaired and renovated. It was refurbished again under the Liang and Sui dynasties, and repairs continued into our dynasty. Its halls and towers rise high into the sky, their red eaves gleaming in the sunlight.

Military governors and senior officials in the regions of Qian, Jing, Shu, and Zi sometimes moored their boats and climbed the mountain to visit. They would often order the Daoist temple repaired. When the Chancellor Zou Ping, Duan Wenchang, was staying in the region, he spent time moving from place to place through the gorges and often climbed to high vantage points to look out over the land. He burned incense, bowed, and prayed to Wang Fangping and Yin Changsheng: “If you can help my official career prosper and ease my difficulties somewhat, I will certainly renovate the temple with great care in gratitude.”

In less than ten years, he was entrusted with full military and civil authority in Jiangling. From the start of his appointment, he kept this promise in mind. Before long, he dreamed that the two perfected beings, as though they had been friends for many years, led him up a small hill beside the river. At its summit stood the entrance to Lord Yin’s grotto. Then the two perfected beings vanished. The next day, he donated one month’s salary to repair the temple buildings. He set the money aside as a permanent endowment for the temple and instructed people to carry out regular repairs and maintenance, in gratitude for the gods’ favor.

◎The Red Light at Louguan: An Omen That Warned People to Escape Disaster

The Red Light at Louguan: An Account of an Omen That Forewarned People of Disaster and Enabled Them to Escape.

Louguan was the former residence of Yin Xi, a court official in the time of King Kang of Zhou. It was located in Wenxian Village, Shenjiu Township, Zhizhi County in the Jingzhao region, north of Zhongnan Mountain. The monastery housed halls built by King Mu of Zhou, the First Emperor of Qin, and Emperor Wu of Han, and also preserved the First Emperor’s handwriting. There were traces associated with Yin Xi, the numinous well, Lao Jun, and the terrace from which Zhi Ge’s tree was said to have ascended to heaven. The monastery also retained petition boards from the Jin and Song periods and inscriptions dating from the Qin and Han dynasties onward.

As the Tang dynasty was about to be founded, the righteous army rose in Hedong, and red light blazed skyward above Louguan for six or seven nights. In the Gengzi year of the Guangming era, enemy forces invaded Chang’an, and a light appeared at the monastery, resembling the events of the Yining era. Later, when the emperor went to Fengxiang and Zhizhi was on the verge of falling, another extraordinary sight appeared at the monastery. Many scholars and common people fleeing danger therefore sought refuge at Louguan. The Daoist monastery and its numinous traces stood in majesty, and no one dared to violate them. During the reign of Emperor Gaozu of Tang, Louguan was bestowed the name “Abbey of the Ancestor Sage.”

Volume 118, “Section on Miraculous Efficacy, Part Two”

Divine Images Manifesting

The Miraculous Efficacy of the Manifestation of the Venerable Heavenly One of the Wood Texts

The Manifestation of the Celestial Worthy of Wood: In the seventh year of the Kaiyuan era under Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang, Xinxing Nunnery in Xinjin County, Shuzhou, held a communal vegetarian feast on the eighth day of the fourth month. As the meal was being served, a Daoist priest arrived late and sat among the crowd. The others looked down on him and did not set aside any food for him. After the gathering ended, the priest rose and entered the Buddha hall. He did not come out for a long time. Puzzled, the crowd hurried inside to look for him, but he was nowhere to be seen. Then they suddenly noticed his image faintly emerging in one of the hall’s pillars, its outline barely visible. When they scraped away the pillar’s surface with knives and axes, the image grew clearer and more finely detailed.

The image, which had appeared naturally within the pillar, stood about three chi and five cun tall. He wore a cloud crown and a rosy robe. In his left hand he held a hand censer; with his right, he held an incense stick above the rising smoke. A bird resembling a mandarin duck appeared in the crown. He wore square-toed shoes, beneath which was a lotus flower. Behind the flower was a lotus leaf, on which the image of a divine turtle appeared. Behind his left elbow were clouds joined to flames, and within their radiance emerged the head of a blue dragon. In front of his right shoulder was a tiger looking back toward the left. Flames of light encircled his whole body, and his appearance resembled that of the Celestial Worthy of Great Unity. His eyebrows, beard, and sideburns were as finely rendered as if painted. Twelve cloud leaves and celestial flowers appeared beside him. Atop the halo above his head was a large flower, sheltering him like a canopy.

Zhang Jingzhong, the senior regional official, reported the matter to the court. The emperor ordered his palace attendant Lin Zhaoyin to travel to Shu and bring back the pillar bearing the image. It was made into a precious palanquin and carefully enshrined. When the palanquin arrived in the capital, it was taken into the palace, where the emperor paid his respects in person. After a three-day purification gathering had ended, the emperor ordered the Court of the Imperial Guard to arrange a ceremony at Dongming Abbey, announcing that the image of the Celestial Worthy would be sent to a Daoist temple for enshrinement. A grand ritual space was set up, and officials and commoners were permitted to view and worship the image. The major Daoist abbeys in both districts of the capital were also ordered to hold ritual gatherings for seven days each.

At the time, the monks submitted a memorial arguing that this image, which had appeared in their temple, should belong to the monastery…

At this point, the monks submitted a memorial disputing the matter. They claimed that the figure appearing on the pillar must be Vimalakirti, a Buddhist layman, and had nothing to do with Daoism. The emperor ordered someone to announce his judgment: “I have examined what is distinctive about this image on the pillar. It resembles the Celestial Worthy’s crown, not Vimalakirti’s headscarf.”

Knowing they had submitted a false report, the monks hired a group of strong men and sent them to steal the image pillar from the ritual grounds of Dongming Abbey, a Daoist temple. After it had been enshrined for several days, the men gradually grew careless. One night, the strongmen lifted the pillar in the ritual hall, bound it with silk ropes, carried it on their backs, and left the temple compound. They passed through many streets and lanes, and after roughly ten wards, they ran out of strength and sat down to rest. Before long, daylight came. They discovered that they were still standing in front of the ritual grounds, and the crowd seized them. Under questioning, they revealed that they had been recruited by monks from Ximing Monastery. There were thirty of them, and they had been ordered to steal the image pillar.

After the matter was reported to the emperor in full, Emperor Ming did not pursue it further. Instead, he placed the image pillar in the palace. Later, someone made a silk painting of it, and the emperor bestowed copies on the various circuits, as well as on the chief ministers and other high officials.

The Miraculous Efficacy of the Celestial Worthy’s Iron Image Floating on Water in Shifang County, Hanzhou

In Shifang County, Hanzhou, there is an iron statue of a Celestial Worthy about twelve feet and three inches tall, known locally as the “Black-Gold Image.” It originally stood beneath a cliff in Jintang Gorge. After floodwaters swept away the rocks, the statue came into view. At times it floated on the surface, rising five or six feet above the water. Changli Market was right beside it.

The Daoist community burned incense, prepared banners and flowers, and went to welcome and guide it. The statue then sank back into the water and disappeared. When the sky cleared somewhat, it surfaced again and drifted to Changli. The Daoists invited it to come three times, but could not bring it away. The following summer, when floodwaters surged, the statue finally traveled upstream and reached Xingdao Abbey in Shifang County. By then the waters had greatly subsided, and no one knew why it had come there.

The local people welcomed the statue ashore. At first, only a hundred people pulled on it, and they easily brought it onto level ground. But when they tried to move it into the main hall, several hundred people pulled together and could not budge it. So they built a lecture hall and enshrined the statue there. The buildings were later burned down many times during periods of war, but the statue remained unharmed.

The Perfected Lord of Qingcheng, the Elder of the Mountain, Miraculously Bestows Money (with an Account of the Iron Statue’s Miracles)

The statue of the Perfected Lord at the Elder of the Mountain Abbey on Mount Qingcheng wears a celestial crown, is clad in a vermilion robe, and bears three pavilions…

The seal symbolizes the power to command the Five Sacred Peaks and awe the gods. During the Kaiyuan era, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang received a portent in a dream and ordered sacred images to be made and sent into the mountains. Later, the shrine was moved from Tianguo Shrine to its present location, which lies somewhat closer to the county seat and makes it easier to hold the spring and autumn rites for the mountain god. The original site of Tianguo Shrine was too remote and secluded. Decades passed, yet the golden crown on the statue’s head still looked as fresh as if it had just been made.

A villager did not understand the reason for this and was under severe pressure from taxes. The local authorities repeatedly demanded payment and had even beaten him as punishment. With no way out, he went to the temple one night and spent a few coins on incense. Before the image of the True Lord, he prayed, explaining how urgent his tax burden was and how often he had been beaten, and asked the True Lord to give him the crown so he could sell it and pay his taxes.

After praying, he fell asleep and dreamed that the True Lord said to him, “The crown on my head is not solid gold; it is only covered with gold leaf and would not fetch much. Even if you got money from it, the authorities would investigate you, putting your life at risk and bringing you serious trouble. There are ten thousand coins in front of the mountain gate, beneath the leaves beside the stele. You may take them. After paying your taxes, you will still have enough left to build up your household.”

The villager respectfully bowed in thanks and left the mountain. Just as the True Lord had said, he found the money. After paying his rent and taxes, his household gradually grew prosperous. From then on, he brought sesame oil to the temple each month as an offering. To this day, the golden crown on the True Lord’s head still tilts forward. According to the story, it is positioned this way so the villager could inspect it and see that it was not solid gold.

The Iron Image of the Celestial Worthy at Yunding Mountain is three or four chi tall. It was cast during the reign of Wu Zetian by Liao Yuanli, a craftsman from Mengyang. The mountain once had an Immortal Abode Abbey, with two cave entrances and a stele erected by Lu Zhaolin. In recent times, no Daoist has overseen the abbey, and Buddhist monks have taken it over. The abbey’s stele and caves have been covered over and damaged; only the Celestial Worthy’s image remains.

The monks tried several times to destroy the image, but each attempt brought disaster. No matter how hard they struck it, the image remained undamaged. The monks then claimed that the mountain god had manifested and kept the matter quiet, so people near and far knew nothing of it.

When Liao Yuanli first began casting the Celestial Worthy’s image, purple clouds appeared on the mountain like a city wall. Five-colored light rose from the clouds, seeming to support the sun, and everyone looked up and bowed in worship. Suddenly, several immortal cranes led in a great bird, its wings more than a zhang wide and its whole body crimson, shaped like a phoenix. The cranes circled the casting furnace, calling out, while the great bird flew swiftly toward it and went straight inside. As everyone watched in astonishment, flames leapt from the furnace to a height of thirty or fifty zhang. The sound was like thunder; the fire twisted upward into the sky, then burst in every direction and spread across the mountain. The people fled in panic. They could only smell a strange fragrance, which lingered for a full day before fading.

Once the Celestial Worthy’s image was complete, its appearance was wonderfully unusual. People came from all directions to pray, and were soon granted blessings. Such efficacy shows that this was no ordinary object that could be destroyed or damaged.

The Celestial Worthy of Wangxian Abbey in Xunyang County, Jinzhou, Who Manifested to Settle a Lawsuit: An account of the Celestial Worthy manifesting at Wangxian Abbey in Xunyang County, Jinzhou, and helping resolve a legal dispute.

Wangxian Temple in Xunyang County, Jinzhou, enshrines the Celestial Worthy. The site is an ancient landmark, and many stories tell of its miraculous efficacy. When county residents faced lawsuits that were hard to resolve, or when someone seized or stole public or private property, they had only to burn incense and make their petition, and a response would follow.

If someone concealed the truth and deceived others, that very night a divine being would come to the door, call out to them, and urge them to appear for questioning. Those summoned would see palaces and government offices: behind the main hall stood more than a dozen pavilions, and beneath the corridors on either side officials from various departments were arrayed. The interrogations and investigations proceeded just as they did in the courts of the human world. Those who concealed the truth, cunningly harmed others, or joined together to do evil would also be taken to prison, where they would die. Anyone who came to answer questions and truthfully recounted what had happened would be sent back.

From then on, people throughout the county revered the Celestial Worthy’s authority. Many turned over a new leaf and did good deeds. When cats or dogs went missing, or when lawsuits of any size arose, people would post written petitions on the temple walls. There were often as many as a hundred, and the practice continues to this day.

“Zhang Renbiao’s Devotion to the Taiyi Celestial Worthy Who Relieves Suffering and Its Miraculous Efficacy”

Zhang Renbiao, a Daoist priest of the Left Street, was eloquent and quick-witted, learned and talented. He often lectured and debated in the inner halls of the imperial palace, where his replies were sharp and forceful, and no one could defeat him in argument. Yet in his daily words and conduct he was frivolous and insincere, never speaking from the heart. He was also often impatient, deceitful, and absurd with his peers, so many people looked down on him.

Later, he fell ill for more than a month, and treatment did him no good. In a dream, he was seized by bailiffs sent by the Director of Destinies, the deity who governs human lifespans and registers of fate. Foot soldiers and mounted officials came to his residence to arrest him, just as thieves were captured in the human world. With nowhere to hide, he was bound and led away. They passed along wild paths and across open fields, where thorns covered the ground. The bailiffs dragged him along at great speed. His clothes caught on the thorns, and they scratched his body, causing unbearable pain.

After traveling more than thirty li, he saw a black city in the distance, with smoke and flames billowing above it. As he drew near, he saw that it was an iron city. Its gates and walls were heavily guarded. The guards had animal heads and human bodies, with arms like snakes. Some had four mouths and eight eyes; others had ten arms and nine heads. Their teeth were white as frost and snow, and their fangs sharp as swords—just as people depict the scenes of hell. But once he passed through the gate, he saw halls adorned with pearls and jade, and towers and palaces of jade and gold. The sight was extraordinary, utterly unlike the gateway to the underworld.

After walking another four or five li, he could see nothing around him. Zhang Renbiao slowly asked the bailiffs escorting him, “What place is this? Why is it so different from what I saw outside the gate?” Someone replied, “This is the palace of the Celestial Worthy Taiyi, a revered deity in Daoism. The Office we serve lies farther ahead.” Hearing the name Taiyi, Zhang Renbiao suddenly remembered that when lecturing on the scriptures, he often urged people to recite the Celestial Worthy Taiyi Who Relieves Suffering. He thought, “Now that I have come to the Celestial Worthy’s palace, how could I fail to recite the name?”

At once, he loudly recited “Celestial Worthy Taiyi Who Relieves Suffering” more than ten times. The bailiffs escorting him all laughed and said, “Digging a well when you’re thirsty is like trying to bite your own navel—what good will it do now?” Hearing them mock him did not make him stop. He recited the name more than ten times again, his voice plaintive and his tone sorrowful.

Then he loudly chanted “Taiyi Jiuku Tianzun” (the Daoist deity revered as a divine protector who relieves suffering and saves lives) more than ten times. The people restraining and tormenting him all laughed and said, “Digging a well only when you’re thirsty is like trying to bite your own navel. It’s too late now—how could there still be time?” Hearing their ridicule, he did not stop chanting, but repeated it more than ten times. His voice was sorrowful and plaintive; his words were full of grief, and tears soaked his clothes.

After a while, red light suddenly illuminated the area around him. The people restraining him all left at once, leaving him alone in the radiance. He looked around and saw only a splendid landscape of mountains and rivers, with clouds drifting gently across the sky. Before long, the Celestial Worthy and more than a thousand attendants appeared before him.

Renbiao performed a formal bow before the Celestial Worthy, weeping in grief. He knocked his forehead against the ground and confessed the wrongs he had committed throughout his life, asking the Celestial Worthy to allow him to repent.

The Celestial Worthy sat upon a throne of five-colored lotuses, his feet resting between two small lotus blossoms. Beneath the throne, nine five-colored lions bore it together, flames pouring from their mouths and encircling the Celestial Worthy. Within the flames, divine light in nine colors streamed outward from his whole body and the crown of his head, its rays sharp as ten thousand spears and swords. Above his head was a canopy adorned with the Seven Treasures; behind him stood precious flowers of the Qian tree, a mythical tree whose blossoms shone in all directions. Perfected Ones, mighty warriors, Diamond Kings, Jade Maidens, and Jade Youths stood in ranks as attendants. Yin-Yang Taiyi and forty-six other deities each led their own retinues, standing to either side of the Celestial Worthy. Cloud chariots and canopies decorated with feathers filled the sky.

The Celestial Worthy said to Renbiao, “Of all the things people do in this world, the three forms of action—those of body, speech, and mind—and the ten evils they give rise to are the ones that demand the greatest care. Among them, offenses of the tongue are especially grave. A person’s reckless words may lead thousands upon thousands to do wrong; the one who speaks amiss bears the first responsibility. In your actions of body, speech, and mind, you have scarcely left any evil undone. If I did not save and protect you, you would sink forever into suffering. Your allotted lifespan has ended, and you should not have returned to the human world. Now I grant you seven more years, so that you may guide the people of the world. I bestow upon you this image of the Celestial Worthy. Show it widely to the people and open a path that will lead them toward goodness. Do your utmost.”

The Celestial Worthy then had a young attendant guide Renbiao back to the human world, and his illness was cured at once. A few days later, Renbiao used his own wealth to have an image of the Celestial Worthy painted at Suming Monastery. He spread and reproduced the image beyond Dongluo Pass and throughout the capital region, allowing more people to understand its teachings.

Later, when Renbiao went outside the city, he saw a place among the mugwort and thornbushes beyond Chunming Gate that seemed familiar. Looking among the tips of the thornbushes, he found a thread from a purple garment caught there, along with traces of blood on the branches. It turned out that on the night the spirits pursued him, he had indeed passed along this road. Renbiao died at the end of the seven years.

When Li Shao was serving as magistrate of Jiameng County, he heard that his wife had died eight or nine years earlier. He himself had also been away from the capital all that time. Later, he went to the capital to take part in the selection of officials and lodged at an inn beside the Three Caverns Abbey. One day, he happened to see a maid from his household, who had long since died, coming out of a neighbor’s house. Looking closely, he recognized her as a maid named Xiaoyu. He called out her name.

Shao stayed behind to wait and, looking closely, saw that it was indeed the maid Xiaoyu. He called her by name, and she straightened her clothes and came over. Shao asked why she was here. Xiaoyu said, “I’ve been living here with my mistress for over a year. I just went out briefly to buy some things. I’ll be back soon, and when I return I’ll tell my mistress you’re here.” Shao waited for her. After the time it takes to eat a meal, Xiaoyu hurried home carrying fruit, tea cakes, and other things.

Only after a long while did Xiaoyu invite Shao in to see his former mistress. She lived in two rooms, with only a small courtyard outside. When they met, the two spoke of the times they had been separated by life and death, sometimes weeping, sometimes grieving. Xiaoyu kept checking the time. Much later, she announced, “That man has arrived.” The mistress looked haggard, her voice choked with emotion. She bowed to Shao and asked him to leave.

Before Shao had reached the door, a young man came in carrying an umbrella. Shao hurriedly stepped aside, and Xiaoyu led him behind a curtain to stand there. The mistress went out to greet the young man, but he ignored her bows and threw his umbrella to the ground. At once, the umbrella turned into a large cauldron filled with water, with a fierce fire blazing beneath it. Thick smoke and flames billowed upward, and before long the water was boiling.

The young man removed his large hat, revealing the form of a bull-headed spirit. Holding a steel fork, he stood before the cauldron, speared the mistress, and threw her into the boiling water. She cried out in agony. Before long, the boiling had left her flesh and skin in tatters, her bones separated from her body. Then the fire went out. The bull-headed spirit lifted her bones with the fork, laid them in the courtyard, and left with his umbrella.

The mistress’s body was soon restored to its former state. When she awoke, she slowly got up and said to Sha through her tears, “The sins I committed in life mean that I must suffer punishment for three years. I have already endured more than a year. I go through this agony every day; it is beyond words to describe.”

Seeing the suffering his wife endured because of her transformation, Shao was deeply saddened and asked her, “Now that we have met again, what do you need? Would you like me to perform meritorious acts to rescue you?” His wife replied, “Earlier, when I asked Xiaoyu to bring you here, I did not mean to entrust you with performing meritorious acts. Among the neighbors here, those who suffer can escape their karmic offenses simply by having an image of the Celestial Worthy of Great Unity (a Daoist deity) painted. I have known of this for several months, but could not find anyone I could entrust with the task. Now that you have come, at last I have hope of escaping my suffering.”

Shao immediately went to the Three Caverns Abbey, the name of a Daoist temple, to find an image of the Celestial Worthy of Great Unity. In the hall there was an old image, its paint already flaking away. He had it adorned with rich gold and silk, then hired an artist to repaint it. He also held a purification rite and prayed at the abbey. Everything was completed within three days. He personally inspected and oversaw the work, so busy that he had no time to spare. When he finally went to his wife’s dwelling, the meritorious work was done and he was about to tell her—only to find the place empty.

His wife had asked an elderly neighbor to tell Shao that, deeply grateful for the aid of Great Unity’s merit, she had escaped her suffering and departed through rebirth. She and Xiaoyu had left together the previous day, between the hours of Chen and Si, around seven to eleven in the morning. Afterward, Shao often urged people to have images of the Celestial Worthy of Great Unity painted, believing that the blessings gained from doing so would soon become evident.

The Qinglin Abbey in Hezhou had fallen into disrepair over the years. Its halls were dilapidated, and the roof leaked especially badly, so that rainwater dripped onto the statue of the Supreme High One. The governor, Yang Shimo, dreamed that the Supreme High One appeared with a tear mark beneath his left eye. Yang then inspected and paid his respects at various Daoist abbeys. It was only when he reached Qinglin Abbey that he discovered a mark left by a leak in front of the statue’s left eye, making it look as though the image were weeping.

Yang Shimo cleared away the weeds, expanded and renovated the abbey, and built two new halls and two towers. He added successive courtyards and gates, along with deep, spacious halls, creating a magnificent complex whose splendor was unmatched at the time. After the work was complete, he dreamed again that the Supreme High One said to him, “The merit of your construction of the abbey has been recorded above in the Mysterious Bureau, the celestial administration spoken of in Daoism. You should bring instruction to ten commanderies.” Thereafter, Yang Shimo served several times as a local official and received the favor of his superiors for many years. He governed eleven commanderies and lived to the age of ninety. (During the Dazhong era.)

Lü Xi Builds an Abbey, Confirmed by the Coming and Going of Immortals

The Datong Abbey in Tanglong County, Yizhou, was said to have been built in the first year of the Yixi era, an Yisi year under the Jin dynasty. By the end of the Zhou dynasty, it had fallen into ruin, and only its foundations remained. During the Wude era, a local man named Lü Xi passed by and saw a Daoist riding a blue donkey descend from the sky. The Daoist circled and hovered over the site of the old abbey, pointing and tracing its layout for a long time, then ascended back into the sky.

Lü Xi and Fan Zhongliang both received his instructions. That very day, they contributed gold and silk and undertook the construction of the abbey together. Inside stood the Ziwei Pavilion, more than eighty feet high and exceptionally imposing. Wei Gao, the Prince of Nankang and a Grand Commandant, later had it renovated. A market stood beside the abbey, eight li southwest of the county seat. The abbey enshrined thirteen stone-carved images of Celestial Worthies, each thirteen chi tall. On auspicious days during the fasting month, bells sometimes rang of their own accord. At night, divine lamps appeared; by day, people saw immortals coming and going. These events were known far and wide.

The Confirmation of the Black-Bearded Lord Lao’s Invitation to Emperor Daizong to Visit the Ten Continents and Three Islands

The Black-Bearded Lord Lao was enshrined in the Eastern Sacred Ancestors’ Hall at Guangtian Abbey, in Wuben Ward on the left side of the capital. The statue was made using the jiazhu technique, in which figures are formed from materials such as lacquer and hemp cloth. Its craftsmanship was exquisite, and its face was dignified and perfectly proportioned—work beyond the skill of ordinary people. Its sun and moon horns rose prominently, and it stood fifteen or sixteen chi tall. Jade boys and jade maidens stood in attendance on either side.

The Black-Bearded Lord (a statue of Laozi with a black beard) is enshrined in the Eastern Sanctuary of the Sage Ancestor at Guangtian Temple, in Wuben Ward on the Left Street of the capital. The statue was made using the lacquered-cloth technique. Its workmanship is exquisite, and its solemn, perfectly formed face is beyond the skill of ordinary artisans. A pair of high, raised horns shaped like the sun and moon rise from its head. The statue stands about fifteen or sixteen feet tall. At its sides stand twelve Jade Boys and Jade Maidens, eight statues of Perfected Ones, and four statues each of Vajra Guardians and Divine Kings. The walls on either side are also painted with eight Divine Kings in golden armor, accompanied by a scene of celestial music.

The Lord has a black beard, wears a Daoist robe patterned with mountains and waters, and a golden crown of nine phoenixes. He sits leaning against a table. The curtains and furnishings are arranged with solemn care, but no one knows when they were first put in place or why they were made.

Emperor Daizong often dreamed that two Azure Boys came to summon him. The Sacred Ancestor of Primordial Unity, an honorific for Laozi in Daoism, commanded the emperor to accompany them on a journey beyond the four seas. In the dream, the emperor followed the two Azure Boys to Laozi. He wore a crimson gauze robe and a flat-topped crown, held a gui—a jade tablet used in ancient ceremonies—and stood behind Laozi as they traveled together among the Ten Continents and Three Islands, legendary realms of immortals beyond the sea. In the dream, he journeyed through the lands in all directions, across oceans and over mountains. He remembered everything clearly, including the accompanying procession and ceremonial guard.

After waking, the emperor ordered painters to depict his dream and display the paintings throughout the capital, in search of a divine statue that matched it. He found that the ceremonial guard and figures at Guangtian Temple were just as they had appeared in the dream. He therefore ordered a statue of himself to be made, seated on five-colored clouds and standing behind Laozi. The emperor also selected seven Daoist priests of profound virtue to tend the incense, practice cultivation, reside at the temple, and make offerings. He allocated money and goods from the imperial treasury and the Department of Revenue to provide clothing and meals in the refectory. Finally, he had the auspicious event recorded on a stone stele.

The jade statue of Laozi enshrined at Yuju Temple once appeared to the emperor in a dream, and the dream proved true.

During the Tianbao era of Emperor Xuanzong’s reign in the Tang dynasty, a beam of light often appeared at night in the river before the Jade Bureau Temple, rising from the water to a height of about seven or eight feet. Its upper part was red and its lower part white, and its tip trailed away like smoke. People came to see it, thinking there was treasure in the water. They went in to search and tried to recover it, but found nothing.

When Emperor Xuanzong was traveling to Shu, he dreamed that the Sacred Ancestor, Lord Lao (the venerated patriarch of Daoism), appeared in his true form in the river. Before long, someone discovered a jade statue of Lord Lao at the place where the light appeared and presented it to the emperor. The statue was a little over one foot tall, its material lustrous and white, and its expression seemed wholly natural. Its face was rounded and radiant, scarcely seeming to have been carved by human hands. After returning to the capital, Xuanzong placed the statue in the Taiqing Palace, where it was enshrined to guard the site. The place where the divine light had appeared came to be called Sacred Countenance Dam and was associated with other historic sites, including Jade Maiden Dam and Golden Sand Spring. In recent years, the jade statue has disappeared without a trace.

The Natural Stone Image of Lord Lao Manifests and Brings Rain

On a cliff in Langzhou, in the area of present-day Langzhong, Sichuan, there was a naturally formed image of Lord Lao about one zhang tall. Gao Yuanyu, a Secretariat Drafter, was demoted and appointed governor of Langzhou. That year there was a severe drought. Gao Yuanyu went to pray at shrines and temples among the mountains and rivers, visiting nearly all of them. Suddenly, at the site of the stone image of Lord Lao…

That year, a severe drought struck. Yuanyu prayed everywhere, visiting the shrines and temples of the mountains and rivers one by one to make offerings and supplications. Suddenly, while looking out from in front of the Yutai Abbey, he saw an unusual cloud hovering above a grove on the mountainside. He pushed through the brambles and followed the path toward it. Just as he had expected, around a bend in the cliff he found a cave and a hanging spring. On the rock face beneath the tall trees were strange natural markings that took the form of Lord Lao (a Daoist honorific for Laozi). In front stood a Jade Attendant (a servant of an immortal), sleeves gathered and an incense burner held in both hands, with twin topknots high on the head. Behind was the figure of a divine king, standing reverently as though awaiting instructions.

Yuanyu burned incense, bowed, and prayed, asking to restore the site and to bring rain. Before he had returned to the prefectural city, abundant rain poured down for two nights. People near and far said the rainfall had been ample. He then cleared away the weeds and brambles, built a Zhaigong (a Daoist temple for purification, offerings, and related activities), and erected a stele to record the event. Beneath the hanging spring he also built a weir and enclosed a square pond, channeling water into a small pool for floating cups. He planted flowers, trees, pines, and bamboo, and before long the place had become a beautiful landscape.

During the Guangqi era, when the emperor returned to the capital, Guangting submitted a memorial requesting that a Xuanyuan Abbey be established. The emperor issued an edict approving the request. To this day, when the prefecture suffers floods or droughts, people still commonly regard prayers offered there as efficacious.

The Story of the Recluse Lai’s Prophecy of Lord Lao’s Birth and Its Later Fulfillment

The recluse Lai was a wanderer of the rivers and lakes. He had lodged in the household of Yang Gong Xuanmo for more than ten years, yet no one knew what Daoist arts he practiced. Yang Gong always treated him with the respect due a teacher and friend. Lai spent most of his time inside the residence, and few people ever saw him.

At the time, Yang Gong served as commander of the Left Army and had several junior adjudicators under him. Among them were two men, one surnamed Wang and the other Liang. The adjudicator surnamed Wang was eloquent, clever, and quick-witted. Everyone respected him and believed he would one day attain a prominent position. The adjudicator surnamed Liang was modest, quiet, cautious, steady, and sparing of words. People looked down on him, believing he had no prospects. Only Cheng Jun, a military officer in the Yang household, was close to Liang.

The recluse Lai suddenly came to the residence gate and, with …