《云笈七签》Vol. 46

Cheng asked him, “To master the way of conducting oneself in the world, one must first recognize the important people. Can you recognize them?”

Wang Cheng replied, “I am dull and ignorant. How could I tell? Please instruct me, Master.”

The reclusive scholar said, “Minister Liang is an important person. In time, he will oversee the court’s most pressing affairs. If you hope to receive great responsibility and command a military commission, you should rely on him and cultivate a close relationship with him. Although Minister Wang is clever, he will not live long; he will die in a foreign land. After that, the imperial house and the state will know no peace. The realm will fall into disorder, warfare will erupt everywhere, and the nation’s fate will be in grave danger. At that time, the Most High Lord Lao (one of the highest deities revered in Daoism) will descend in person to the palace and become a young ruler, helping the state through this crisis. In this way, the country will be preserved. Minister Liang will oversee the court’s affairs, and you will command the regional military government. Both of you must rely on this young ruler to protect yourselves. I will no longer stay here.”

A few days later, the reclusive scholar took his leave of Yang Gong and departed. Wang Cheng found his words extraordinary, so he showed Minister Liang respect and became closely associated with him. Before long, Yang Gong was stripped of his position, and Minister Wang was convicted and exiled to the south, where he died on the journey. The reclusive scholar’s predictions were increasingly fulfilled.

In the autumn of the fourteenth year of Xiantong (873), Minister Liang became Director of the Inner Secretariat, and Wang Cheng became a military commissioner. Emperor Xizong…

The prince was convicted, stripped of his authority and rank, and exiled to the south, where he died along the way. The words spoken by the recluse Lai—a Daoist or scholar who lived in seclusion and held no office—were later borne out even more fully.

In the autumn of the fourteenth year of the Xiantong era, Liang served in the Inner Council, while Cheng was appointed military commissioner. On the third day after Emperor Xizong ascended the throne, he summoned everyone in the army. The sun had just risen, and its faint light fell across the steps. Xizong rose to change his clothes. Before he had sat down, Lord Liang suddenly recalled what the recluse Lai had said. He went to the edge of the steps and told Cheng. Lord Han of the Left Army found their private conversation strange and pressed them repeatedly for an explanation. Liang and Cheng then told him the truth. Lord Han felt greatly relieved: the young ruler had only just taken the throne, and the court and the realm were still unsettled; hearing this prophecy gave him hope.

Later, Cheng was ordered to carry the imperial tally—a token of the court’s authority—to Cangzhou. Events unfolded just as the recluse Lai had said. Wars and upheavals continued across the Central Plain for many years, but the state was eventually brought to peace and the palace city was recovered. Xizong resided there for several years, and his sacred virtue remained constant. These were among the achievements of Xizong’s restoration of the dynasty.

Jia Xiangyan’s Devotion to Lord Lao and Its Fulfillment

The Jia family had followed Daoism for generations, revered the Daoist teachings, and kept incense burning before their devotional lamps throughout the year. Jia Xiang served in the Bureau of Accounts and was quite wealthy, yet few were as diligent as he in practicing the Dao and honoring Daoist tradition. He carried with him a portrait of the Old Lord (Taishang Laojun). Wherever he went, even if he stayed only a day or two, he set up an incense table and made offerings. It is said that the responses and protection he received as a result were too numerous to recount.

After Huang Chao captured Chang’an, the emperor fled westward. Jia Xiang left the city by way of the East Wei Bridge, taking his family and their gold and silver valuables. Though the roads were crowded with people looting, his household of more than a hundred all traveled safely, and their baggage was left untouched. Later, he repaired a residence at the foot of Longjiao Mountain and took refuge there. Officials of the court and Daoist priests from near and far came to seek shelter with him, and he provided for them all. He also invited the Daoist priests to recite and uphold the Dao De Jing and the Scripture for Deliverance of Humanity, in a number exceeding ten thousand recitations.

A band of robbers suddenly surrounded his home. Jia Xiang went inside to pray before the image of the Old Lord, then came out to speak with them. The robbers threw their knives to the ground and knelt before him. When Jia Xiang asked why, they remained silent and only kept bowing. After Jia Xiang turned and went back inside, the robbers stayed where they were, bowing and saying only that they were guilty. Taking pity on them, Jia Xiang brought out silk and had it given to them, then comforted and admonished them for a while. Only then did the robbers gradually leave, taking nothing. From that time on, the Jia family did not even close the outer gate, and no one dared to intrude.

Someone asked the ruffians what they had seen that made them bow before Jia Xiang. They replied, “We saw divine beings constantly guarding Jia Xiang. There were many divine soldiers, each several zhang tall, with mouths agape and eyes glaring, as if ready to swallow people whole. We were so terrified that we thought we might not escape with our lives.”

Later, the court repaired the palace, and the emperor prepared to return to the capital. Jia Xiang sought an omen before the image of the Old Lord to learn whether he should go or stay. Suddenly, he saw a flourishing millet shoot growing beside the incense burner, with two ears of millet that seemed to sway in the wind. The ears pointed west. He therefore sold his property, moved with his entire family, and returned to Yongxing Ward in the capital. When he found his old home, it had already been destroyed.

Only a dozen or so modest huts were built to serve as temporary lodgings. Three months later, he rode back to the capital and only then began clearing the weeds and building houses. Beneath the foundations, he discovered six thousand taels of silver, which made his household more prosperous. Through five years of turmoil and separation, he never ceased devoting himself to the worship of the Lord Lao. This was said to be because his reverent observance and unwavering devotion had won him the protection of the Most High.

The Miraculous Story of Shen Ying’s Worship of the Lord Lao

Shen Ying, a native of Wuxing, had always devoutly upheld the Great Dao and worshipped the Lord Lao (a revered deity in Daoism) year after year. He had a residence in the market town of Shan County, Yuezhou.

At that time, the bandit Qiu Fu rose up among the peasants, gathered a band of violent men, and raided counties, towns, and villages far and wide. The area had no standing military defenses, and the officials fled in panic. Qiu Fu then took control of the county seat. The court summoned troops from Chen, Xu, Zheng, Hua, Huai, Zhe, Xu, Si, and other regions to put down the rebellion. Eight armies surrounded the county seat and attacked. The realm had known no warfare for a long time, and local people were unaccustomed to fighting. When the troops arrived, everyone hid in the villages.

In his haste, Shen Ying locked the outer gate and fled, leaving a young boy locked inside the house. When the troops and their horses arrived, he turned back to open the gate, but found that a military camp had already been set up nearby. Daring not to approach, he left.

The fighting thereafter swung between victory and defeat, and the situation shifted constantly. Most of the shops in the market town were burned down. At times the rebels held a place; at other times the government troops recaptured it. More than ten months passed before the rebellion was finally suppressed. After the troops withdrew, six or seven rooms of Shen Ying’s residence remained, with the locks on the doors as they had been and the fences intact. He unlocked the door and found the boy safe and well.

Asked what had happened during that time, the boy said, “After the door was shut, a boy in blue, about thirteen or fourteen years old, came to play with me. He said the Lord Lao had sent him. After a while, the boy in blue took me to a large mansion and gave me food and fruit. When we had eaten, we played together. About half a day later, I heard the Lord Lao tell me to add incense. As soon as I lit it, I heard the door opening.”

When Shen Ying entered, the incense smoke had not yet dispersed. He asked the boy whether he had heard anything about the fighting, fires, neighboring houses burning, or people fleeing in panic. The boy said he had heard nothing at all. Outside, battles had raged for ten months and the surrounding area had been engulfed in flames, yet to the boy it seemed that only a moment had passed; he had noticed nothing. All the shops in the market town had burned down, while only the Shen family’s house remained. The story attributes this to the Lord Lao’s divine power and protection.

From then on, Shen Ying devoted himself wholeheartedly to the Mysterious Gate (Daoism), seeking the true Dao and admiring the life of cultivation. He came to aspire to leave the secular world and practice for the long term. Before long, he left his home region, and no one knew where he went. He took only the young boy with him.

When Yao Gu, the governor of Taizhou, visited the Tiantai Abbey on Mount Tiantai, he ordered workers to cut into the cliff and fell trees behind the lecture hall to build a hall for Lord Lao. While they were leveling the foundations, they discovered a stone casket beneath a large boulder. It was about three feet on each side. Inside was a smaller stone casket containing three or two liang of cinnabar, a red mineral often used in Daoist alchemy, and a jade slip. The slip was nine inches long, two inches wide, and five or six fen thick. Inscribed on it were the words: “Even if the seas run dry and Mount Tiantai crumbles, the fortunes of the imperial house will never come to an end.”

Yao Gu reported the discovery to the court. The emperor issued an edict saying: “This is a sign of blessings bestowed by Heaven and auspicious omens revealed by Earth. A numinous inscription on a white jade slip has appeared in the sacred hall of Xuanyuan—the Lord Lao, that is, Laozi—foretelling the flourishing fortunes of the state. It also symbolizes treasures emerging from the earth and auspicious signs being revealed. This is an auspicious portent, truly of the highest order. It should be recorded in the Historiographical Office and proclaimed throughout the realm.” The event took place in the thirteenth year of the Xiantong era (872 CE).

People wished to make a statue of Lord Lao (the Most High Lord Lao), but the mountain soil was mixed with stones, and suitable earth was hard to find. Someone dreamed that a Blue Lad—a youth who serves immortals—told him, “A little over ten feet east of the main hall, there is earth as white as chalk. You can use it.” They went to look and found it just as he had said. They used the earth to fashion statues of the Most High Lord Lao and eight or nine attendants, and the earth ran out exactly.

When the statues were finished, their appearance was radiant, their faces gentle and solemn. Lord Lao’s head was moon-shaped, with prominent temples, as though he had been born in Wo River. The pair of pillars and three gates before the hall seemed to recall the manifestation of his sacred signs at Xiang. Later, during a purification rite and praise ceremony, the clouds in the sky gathered in harmony, strange lights shone, and the sounds of sheng mouth organs, stone chimes, and string and bamboo instruments could faintly be heard. Everyone regarded these as auspicious signs.

Long ago, when the Hall of the Celestial Worthy was first built on Mount Tongbai, five-colored clouds drifted above it. Strange signs also appeared at the three wells: clouds entered the hall and then came out again, repeating this three times. These events were entered into the official histories as records of auspicious omens. The inscription by Cui Shang of Qinghe recounts them in detail. This Hall of the Sacred Ancestor also has its own commemorative inscription.

◎ The Manifestation of Lord Lao to Yang Nao’er

Yang Nao’er of Chengdu had parents who revered Daoism and often worshipped Lord Lao with devotion. While stationed with the army at Jintang, Yang Nao’er was captured by the enemy and taken to a stronghold on South Mountain, but he was neither wounded nor killed.

Day and night, he longed for Lord Lao and hoped to see his parents again. Suddenly, he dreamed that Lord Lao bestowed a cloud upon him and had a lad lead him down to level ground. The lad said, “You can go home now.” When Yang Nao’er awoke, he had already left the stronghold, and so he was able to return home. On the day he arrived, his parents were performing a hundred-day Zhai—a ritual of purification and prayer lasting one hundred days—for him.

Volume 119, Section Three: Miraculous Efficacy

◎ The Manifestation of the Celestial Master in a Mural at Zhaocheng Abbey

(With an account of a manifestation in a silk painting)

The Celestial Master (Tianshi) portrait on the wall of Zhaocheng Abbey had grown dim and begun to flake away with age. It was beneath a covered walkway, yet no one had ever offered incense or lit lamps and candles before it.

A resident of Li-named family in Zhengzheng Ward had suffered from intermittent malaria for more than a year. Treatment had done no good, and he grew weaker and thinner by the day, until he could only leave his fate to Heaven. Suddenly, he dreamed of a Daoist, eight or nine feet tall, dressed in plain cloth with wide sleeves. The Daoist came before him and brushed his sleeve across the man’s face. At once, he felt a coolness. The Daoist said, “From now on, your illness will be cured. There is no need to worry.” When he woke, his illness had indeed gone, and he gradually regained his appetite.

That evening, he leaned on a cane and walked around his home without feeling tired. He could only think that the Daoist from his dream was still before him, and urgently wanted to go to Zhaocheng Abbey. His family feared he was too weak and repeatedly tried to stop him, but he would not listen. After entering the abbey, he studied the Celestial Master’s image for a long time and said, “This is the one I saw in my dream.” He then bowed several times and instructed his relatives to ask the sculptor Liu Chushi to remake the image and repair the hall, and to make offerings morning and evening. From then on, people came to pray, and blessings and good fortune soon followed.

In making the Celestial Master’s image, Liu Chushi divided the inside of the figure with strips of cloth and painted them the color of flesh. He also sewed the five viscera and six bowels from red silk. The throat was made with twelve knots and twelve rings, joined to the root of the tongue. Fragrant ingredients in five colors were placed inside the organs, in quantities corresponding to the number assigned to each of the five viscera; a mercury mirror was also set at the chest. The work was exceptionally intricate, unlike ordinary statues. The clay used for the statue was later moved to Tiangzhang Abbey, where the image was also adorned with gold pigments and displayed the same miraculous efficacy.

Liu Cunxi of Pengcheng said that the Celestial Master’s manifestations were unfailingly efficacious. From childhood, he had revered and worshipped the Celestial Master at Tangxing Abbey, vowing to paint an image of him for veneration. Later, he obtained a silk painting of the Celestial Master and carried it with him when he traveled, protecting it with care. Though ordered to journey far and travel back and forth between north and south, he never once missed offering incense and paying his respects.

When Huang Chao entered the capital, Liu Cunxi was in a government office within the palace. Amid the confusion, he had no time to flee with the emperor. He could only roll up the image of the Celestial Master and carry it away in his arms. More than thirty people traveling with him were captured, and some were killed. Only Liu Cunxi…

He once faced the danger of being killed or wounded, yet escaped alone from among the crowd. Later, as he was preparing to travel to South Mountain, he passed through a village late at night and encountered a group of people fleeing for refuge. By chance, he heard that his wife was among them. He went with her into the depths of Great Rock Mountain in Yangzhou, where they built a grass hut and lived.

He had no relatives; there were only the two of them, husband and wife. Having escaped the upheaval, he resolved to withdraw into the mountains and forests and no longer hoped to hold office. In time, he grew accustomed to the company of wild elk and mountain deer. The people living below the mountain saw that he needed little to live on, and sometimes helped him stock up on grain or brought him salt and cheese. In his daily life, he simply gathered cypress seeds to burn as incense and paid reverence to the Celestial Master (Tianshi), Zhang Daoling, whom Daoists venerate.

Not long afterward, his old friend, the Grand Secretariat Song, entered the court to take charge of key affairs. When he learned that Cunxi was living in the mountains of Yangzhou, he forcibly summoned him out of the mountains, bestowed on him a red official robe, and assigned him an official rank. Cunxi firmly declined, but could not refuse; he had no choice but to comply reluctantly. Later, when the emperor passed through Shimen on a journey, Cunxi seized the opportunity to flee. He hid in Shacheng Mountain for several months.

Soldiers searched the valleys, and he could no longer live there in peace. He and his wife took off their silk clothes and walked more than forty li through the night. When they reached level ground, they saw more than ten mounted soldiers approaching from both sides in the distance. The soldiers had already seized several travelers. Cunxi and his wife stood there in terror, but the riders passed right by them as if they had not seen them, and so the couple escaped danger once again.

Several years later, he was ordered to travel on an embassy to Western Sichuan, carrying an image of the Celestial Master. I, too, once copied this image. Whether Cunxi was in deep mountain valleys where tigers and wolves roamed, or amid the clamor of soldiers with blades close at hand, his mind always remained calm, as though several people were by his side. In moments of fear and anxiety, he would also sense, faintly, that he was standing in attendance beside the Celestial Master. He had experiences of spiritual response and manifestation as well, but kept them secret and did not speak of them.

The Verification of the Celestial Master’s Well in Lingzhou, Which Made Up the Salt Tax Arrears

The Biography of the Celestial Master’s Well in Lingzhou records: While the Celestial Master was walking in the mountains, twelve Jade Maidens came to pay their respects and asked him to make up the unpaid salt tax owed by the Celestial Master’s Well.

The Biography of the Celestial Master’s Well at Lingzhou records that when the Celestial Master was walking in the mountains, twelve Jade Maidens came to pay their respects and asked to serve at his side. Knowing that they were Yin spirits from beneath the earth, he asked, “What do you intend to offer me? I would like to see the depth of your devotion, then choose someone to accept.”

Each Jade Maiden brought out a jade ring, each several inches wide. The Celestial Master said, “You have all offered the same thing, so I cannot accept all of them. I will turn these twelve rings into one and cast it into the ground. Whoever finds it, I will accept.” He joined the twelve rings into a single ring more than a foot in diameter and cast it into the earth. The jade ring sank deep into the ground, and a well appeared in its place. The Jade Maidens removed their clothes and entered the well to search for the ring, but none of them could find it. The Celestial Master gathered up their clothes and hid them in a stone casket. From then on, the Jade Maidens remained in the well.

The salt well at Lingzhou is 570 feet deep. One must pass through two layers of solid rock before reaching the brine. The bottom of the well is cleaned once a year. Before anyone can descend, they must first sing and make a commotion; otherwise, they may see the Jade Maidens waiting naked in the well. It is said that those who see them often meet with misfortune. The well is so deep that people cannot descend frequently. Sometimes ropes break or leather buckets fall in. If incense is lit before the Celestial Master’s image and one waits a while, the Jade Maidens will hang the lost items back in place, leaving them as good as new.

In recent years, the well has come under the administration of Dongchuan and has become a source of income. The well is so deep that people cannot descend frequently. Sometimes ropes break or leather buckets fall in. If incense is lit before the Celestial Master’s image and one waits a while, the Jade Maidens will hang the lost items back in place, leaving them as good as new.

Several years ago, Jingdi belonged to Dongchuan. A certain Zhang, a Palace Attendant, was in charge of the salt administration. Because he neglected his duties, he failed to meet the salt tax quota and fell short by several thousand catties. After the handover, he was kept there to make up the deficit and could not leave his post. His successor was also a devoted Daoist, and he prayed earnestly to the Celestial Master: “Zhang has fallen behind on his salt quota. His family’s wealth has been exhausted, yet he is still trapped here and may become even poorer. I hope divine power will increase salt production within three to five days, so he can make up the shortfall.” He and Zhang bowed together and prayed with great sincerity.

The amount of brine boiled each day remained as usual—forty-five han, the unit used to measure the brine for salt-making—but the amount of salt produced increased. Within five or six days, the shortfall had indeed been made up. After that, salt production returned to normal, neither rising nor falling.

Of the Twelve Jade Maidens, the two associated with Xu and Hai were in Heaven, leaving only ten at the wells. For this reason, salt-boiling stopped at the hours of Xu and Hai. When the Celestial Master first saw that this place was remote and difficult to reach, uninhabited, and surrounded by barren mountains and poor land that could not be cultivated, he brought forth salt wells to relieve the poor. People settled around the wells, and the population gradually grew, so a prefecture was established to govern them. Since its name came from the Celestial Master’s name, it was called Lingzhou. The Celestial Master swore, “I brought these wells into being to provide for the poor. If the officials seize the profits from the salt wells, then a thousand years from now the wells will collapse.” Today, statues of the Celestial Master and the Jade Maidens stand at every well.

◎ Li Huan’s Dream of Meeting the Celestial Master and Receiving a Prophecy about the Prefect of Lingzhou, Which Later Came True: A record of Li Huan meeting the Celestial Master in a dream and receiving a revelation about the Prefect of Lingzhou, which was later fulfilled.

During the Xiantong era, Li Huan served as a senior official in a prince’s residence. Born into a noble family, he was unaccustomed to a life of poverty. Now living in retirement at home, he was short of money, troubled and frustrated by his lack of success. One night at midnight, he fell asleep and dreamed that he had entered a remote valley deep in the mountains. A winding plank road curled around the slopes, and a stream murmured past. The journey was so long that he could not tell whether it stretched for hundreds or thousands of miles.

Then he saw a bustling, crowded marketplace and a broad, bright city. Tall buildings with swept-up eaves rose into the sky, seeming to reach the clouds and block the sunlight. There were more households in the city than he could count. He wandered about, taking in the sights, cheerful, at ease, and content.

Later, he left the outskirts of the city and crossed hills and streams. Weeds grew thick along the way, and wild grasses and trees crowded together—small pines among large trees, with orchards and bamboo groves interspersed. Some of the mountains were steep and rugged, some winding, and others gentle. After rounding a ridge and reaching the end of the road, he came to a small prefectural town. Thatched cottages stood scattered throughout, and narrow, crooked lanes ran unevenly past an official office.

A mass of white vapor rose from the office and shot straight into the sky. It was as large as a room, and sorrowful singing and cries came from within. He saw a blue-robed youth—an immortal attendant from Daoist lore—leading Li Huan onward. They climbed steep stone steps and followed a stone staircase through the doorway; the path before the entrance was extremely precipitous.

Within the gate stood ancient trees and fragrant grasses, making the place look like an old Daoist temple. Li Huan (hereafter “Huan”) looked around, delighted. Before long, he entered the main hall and saw the solemn arrangement of the divine images. Smiling, he said, “You’ve come! I’ve been waiting for you a long time. Entering the Heavenly Gate and rinsing the mouth with the Dark Spring were practices of the ancients; directing Qi to the Dantian (energy center) and preserving the White Origin were practices of the highest Daoist adepts. Bring these methods together and put them into practice. Do good in secret and help others; accumulate hidden De (Virtue/Power) and save the people. Hundreds and thousands of households will be waiting for you to care for them. Strive on, strive on! We’ll meet again next spring.”

Huan bowed twice, knocked his head to the ground, and accepted the teaching. Then he awoke. That winter, he repeatedly petitioned the chief ministers, hoping to be appointed again, and was consequently named governor of Lingzhou. As he traveled past mountains, rivers, commanderies, and counties, he had the hazy sense that everything before his eyes was somewhere he had been before. He had never visited Shu and did not know where this familiarity came from.

When he arrived in Lingzhou, he went to pay his respects to the Celestial Master (Tianshi). He climbed the steps and came to the hall. Seeing the image of the Celestial Master, the arrangement of the attendants, and the layout of the buildings, he suddenly understood: they all matched what he had seen in his dream. He used his official salary to repair and paint the Celestial Master’s hall, and erected a stele with an inscription recording the matter. The white vapor in his dream, stretching straight to the sky, was in fact a salt well; the mournful singing was the sound made by those operating the carts. As for the secrets of inner cultivation, Li Huan never did receive them. (Li Huan was the grandson of the Prince of Xiping.)

◎ Xie Zhen devoted himself to masonry and repairs, encountered the Celestial Master, and received a talisman that proved efficacious.

Xie Zhen was a craftsman from Linqiong, skilled in masonry and plastering. He was meticulous and conscientious in his work. Huming Mountain was where the Celestial Master cultivated the Dao and where the Old Lord manifested in response. An ancient Shangqing Palace stood at the mountain’s summit. According to tradition, it had been built in the Celestial Master’s time. Though many years had passed, its structure remained as it had been, but its walls had fallen into disrepair. Xie Zhen was hired to mend them. He studied the work closely and did his utmost in carrying it out, plastering the walls with great care and thoroughness.

One day, a Daoist priest arrived with two attendants to inspect the work. He was tall and striking in appearance. Entering from outside, he said to Xie Zhen, “It is difficult to find anyone willing to make repairs in the mountains. You have worked hard and given this your attention.” Then he drew a talisman on the ground with his hand and told Xie Zhen to memorize it carefully. The priest said, “From now on, when someone falls ill, even if they are a thousand miles away, applying this talisman as instructed will bring a response. Do not charge too much. Take only what you need to support your household, so that you will have food and clothing throughout your life.”

Xie Zhen memorized the talisman completely. When he put it into practice, it proved effective, and he came to earn a great deal of money; his family’s fortunes gradually prospered as well. In the Huming Mountain area, there was no authentic portrait of the Celestial Master. The image sculpted in a well in Lingzhou was not the true likeness passed down through successive generations of descendants, either. Later, at Mount Qingcheng, Xie Zhen saw a gorge merchant holding a purification offering. There he saw a small portrait of the Celestial Master: it was the very figure who had first taught him the talisman method and revealed its efficacy.

A testimony to the effectiveness of Daoist priest Liu Fangying’s treatment of illness using the Celestial Master’s sword method.

The Daoist priest Liu Fangying of Tiantai took Lord Lao as his teacher and devoted himself single-mindedly to pure cultivation. From an early age, he wore the Bi Dao ritual register, a credential of Daoist office and ritual authority, and often used cinnabar talismans to help others. Along with Liu Hui, the magistrate of Yiyang, who shared his aspirations, he followed the Celestial Master’s sword method and, on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, smelted steel and forged swords at Ge Creek in Yiyang. He then used talismans to perform rites and restrain the waters of the creek; the sick soon recovered.

Once, Liu Fangying established a Zhaijiao purification ritual and prepared a ritual altar in Huangyan County to drive away an epidemic. A medium who could see ghosts secretly went to observe. He saw thousands of ghosts and spirits rushing northward in disarray, like an army whose battle formation had collapsed. A few days later, the epidemic had subsided throughout the county.

At the end of the Xiantong era, Liu Fangying died without having been ill. He instructed his disciples to bury him together with his sword, and they dared not disobey. During the Qianfu and Zhonghe eras, Li Sheng, a deputy general under Liu Wen, the military commander of Taizhou, led men to break into his grave in hopes of taking the sword. They found Liu Fangying’s body still soft, his face unchanged, as though he were merely sleeping after a drink. When they looked at the sword, it gave a roar. The men were terrified and ultimately did not dare take it. Li Sheng ordered them to cover the grave again, then left. From this, it seems that the sword was not the only thing with supernatural power: Liu Fangying, too, had refined his bodily form and nurtured his spirit, attaining the Dao and becoming an immortal.

The Statue of the Queen Mother of the West Miraculously Cures the Sick (with an account of the Three Generals)

The statue of the Daoist goddess Queen Mother of the West in Yuju Temple had stood there for many years. Some time ago, fire destroyed the temple buildings and the covered walkways collapsed, yet the statue remained unharmed. People all said it had manifested its divine power.

A local man, Fan Yantong, suddenly came down with fenglai, a skin disease. His sores became severe, and his eyebrows and beard gradually fell out. He went to the temple and made a vow before the statue of the Queen Mother of the West: if his illness showed even a little improvement, he would do his utmost to restore the statue. That night, he dreamed of a jade maiden—a celestial maiden—holding a tray of flowers. She brushed her sleeve over his body and said, “The Queen Mother has sent me to save you. Your illness will soon be cured.” Within a few days, his condition gradually improved: the sores and swelling subsided, and his eyebrows and beard grew back. He then had gauze screens made, adorned the statue with gold and color, and repaired the eaves and the columns on either side. He enshrined the statue in a solemn and clean setting. After that, he personally brought incense and lamps each month. In recent years, however, this practice gradually fell away.

The temple also contained three statues of generals, made in ancient times. The temple buildings had once been completely destroyed by fire during the Nanzhao period, but the three statues were unharmed. When the temple was rebuilt, people erected a hall above them. A local man, Yan Shilin, was bedridden for more than a month, his illness so grave that he seemed close to death. He dreamed that the three generals swung their halberds at his body and pulled something out of him, shaped like a black dog. From then on, he recovered. He therefore donated clothing to have gauze screens made for the statues and had them repainted.

Account of the Efficacy of the Yellow Demon God of Guizhou, Who Rescued a Boat in the Gorge Waters

The Yellow Demon God of Guizhou. After Chancellor Li Jifu left his post in Zhongzhou, he traveled down the gorge by boat in the fifth month and came to the gorge waters…

When Li Jifu’s term of office ended, he left his post in Zhongzhou and, in the fifth month, took a boat down the Three Gorges. As the boat entered the gorge, the waters surged violently. Suddenly, a divine being rose from the surface and lifted the boat. It had three faces and six hands, bulging eyes, and loose red hair. Bare to the waist, it gave a roar like a furious shout. At once, the wind and waves subsided. Li Jifu prayed in thanks and asked the spirit’s name. The divine being replied, “I am the Yellow Demon Spirit.” Later, Li Jifu moored at Guizhou for more than a month, chose a site, and had a building constructed. At the Purple Pole Palace, he built a Hall of the Yellow Demon and said that the Yellow Demon Spirit was the Demon King of the Yellow Heaven, a divine being with strength that spanned the sky. He also had the event recorded on a stone stele.

Chancellor Xiao Gou had been demoted from his post as Court Gentleman for Rendering Service to the Gorge region, and was later summoned back to the capital. On the way, the gorge waters rose, and his boat was on the verge of sinking. He, too, saw the Yellow Demon Spirit lift the boat and save everyone aboard. Xiao Gou then ordered the shrine repaired and its painted decorations enhanced, had the halls renovated, and commissioned a stone stele to record the event, adding it to the account of the spirit’s deeds.

The Miraculous Manifestations of the Venerable of Qingcheng and Ge Gui as Divine Officials

The Perfected Lord, the Venerable of Qingcheng. In the sixth year of the Taihe era (832), military governor Li Deyu sent the military officer Cai Ju and others to hold a purification ritual on Qingcheng Mountain and instructed them to search for medicinal herbs.

Cai Ju reached the foot of Six Hours Cliff. Suddenly, a fierce wind blew out from the valley, and then he saw two divine beings walking through the air. The one in front stood more than a zhang tall and wore a wide-sleeved robe and a flat-topped cap. The one behind wore a blue wide-sleeved robe and held a book in both hands. Terrified, Cai Ju asked, “What kind of spirits are you?” The one in front replied, “I am Old Bamboo Branch.” Then he pointed to the figure behind him and said, “…”

“These are Ge Gui’s ritual implements.” I have two sheets bearing cryptic words, which I can record item by item, copy out, and present to the Director of the Department of State Affairs. This year, the western Shu region was due to suffer floods. Through purification rites and prayers to avert calamity, I diverted water from a peak behind the mountain and built a weir, making the water flow east. In autumn, a great flood struck Zizhou. This was the fulfillment of what had been foretold.

I then imparted the cryptic words to him and recounted the good and ill fortune that had yet to be revealed to Li Gong. Cai Ju wrote them down item by item. When he returned to Changdao Abbey, he copied them onto paper and, as expected, obtained two sheets. Following the instructions of the divine being, he sealed them and sent them to Li Gong. Once the writing was finished, the related details were all forgotten.

In the eighth month of that year, the waters in eastern Chuan rose several zhang, but western Shu suffered no disaster. Li Gong questioned the officials and Daoist priests one by one, but no one could decipher the cryptic words. Li Gong said, “‘Bamboo branch’ refers to the father-in-law. This must be the True Lord of the Father-in-Law. ‘Ge Gui’s ritual implements’ means that Ge Gui’s birth destiny has taken visible form—or perhaps it is a spirit official manifesting in that form. Perhaps this was revealed deliberately to make the response of the divine powers known.”

The True Person Luo Brings Rain to Aid the Jin Family: A Miraculous Account

The Perfected One Luo was the immortal Luo Gongyuan. He once cultivated the Dao near Luojiangba in Mengyang, an area connecting Jiulong and Shifang. After Liyuanhua, people came to say that the place had been the former home of Immortals Luo and Fan. He practiced south of Mount Qingcheng, at a place now called Luojiashan.

During the reign of Emperor Ming of Tang, the Perfected One Luo came and went from the imperial court, assisting and instructing the emperor. These events are recorded elsewhere in an inner biography. Even today, he continues to appear and disappear around the capital region, in places such as Pengkou, Shifang, Yangcun, Mengyang, Xinfan, and Xindu, where local people often see him. His appearance is not fixed: sometimes he looks like an old woman, sometimes like a beggar. Whenever the rains and winds come at the wrong time and farming is delayed, he is sure to appear. People suppose that among the immortals he oversees wind and rain, floods and droughts.

When Yangcun suffered a drought, the villagers prepared to go to the Li Bing shrine at Luokou Houcheng to pray for rain. The weather was extremely hot, and everyone stopped to rest in the shade of trees by the roadside. Suddenly, an old woman came up and asked, “Where are you all going?” They told her they were going to pray for rain. The old woman said, “If you want rain, you should pray to the Perfected One Luo. No other spirits or gods can do it.” Then she vanished. The villagers realized that the old woman had been the Perfected One Luo, so they burned incense and prayed at the spot where she had disappeared. Before long, the wind rose, clouds gathered, and a light rain began to fall. The villagers then returned home. That night, enough rain fell across an area tens of miles wide.

Later, people built a temple there and made a statue of the Perfected One Luo. When people in other villages that had received no rain heard about this, they brought music, incense, and flowers to pray at the newly built temple. They then carried the statue back to their village, set up another altar, and built a shrine. Their prayers for rain were soon answered as well. In this way, temples to the Perfected One Luo came to be found throughout the territories of seven or eight counties, including Shifang and Mianzhu. Whenever people prayed for blessings, their prayers were answered.

The Perfected One Luo once again took the form of a beggar and said to people by the Pengkou River, “A great flood is coming here. It will sweep away…”

At first, the Perfected One suddenly took the form of a beggar. By the river at Pengkou, he said to the people, “A great flood will soon come, destroying houses and harming the people. Those who believe me should move to higher ground to escape the disaster. The flood will arrive in fewer than ten days.” Some thought his behavior strange, but moved to higher ground all the same. Those who did not believe him stayed safely in their homes. Five or six days later, floodwaters suddenly surged in, destroying houses and drowning or injuring many people. About three or four out of every ten households in the area were affected. The locals then believed in him, built a shrine, and made an image of him to worship.

When the army laid siege, the merchant Yang Chu of the Gold and Silver Guild was ordered to pay more than seven hundred thousand cash to provision the troops. He sold his property, but the proceeds came to less than half the amount demanded. Yang Chu was devoted to his mother. Whenever the Military Supply Office—the government agency responsible for collecting provisions—pressed him to pay, he would pretend to be going out, afraid that his mother would worry.

Some time earlier, he had obtained a portrait of the Perfected One at a mountain Daoist temple. For many years he had respectfully worshipped it, burning incense and keeping lamps lit. Later, the Perfected One appeared in ordinary human form at Yang Chu’s shop and asked how he planned to raise the money demanded by the authorities. Yang Chu told him frankly of his predicament. The visitor told him to buy raw iron and prepare charcoal. The next day, he returned, lit the charcoal, and piled iron bars into the fire. After working through the night, he left. Before going, he told Yang Chu, “I am Luo Gongyuan, and I live on Mount Qingcheng. You honor your parents and do not disobey them, and your heart has not forgotten the Dao. I will use this gold to help you. Once you have paid the government, there will still be enough left to make your household comfortable.” He then took Yang Chu into the mountains and told him to return home from time to time to visit his mother. Yang Chu also received elixirs for his mother to take. It is said that her white hair turned black, and that in old age she regained her youth.

The Efficacy of the Flying Heavenly Spirit King Image at Kaiyuan Temple in Jiazhou in Repelling Bandits: A record of how the image of the Flying Heavenly Spirit King at Kaiyuan Temple in Jiazhou manifested its power and drove off thieves.

The Kaiyuan Abbey in Jiazhou was founded during the Northern Zhou dynasty and was originally called Hongming Abbey. It was not until the Daye era of the Sui dynasty that the main hall was completed. At its western end, a statue of the Flying Heavenly Spirit King was made. The seated statue stood more than two zhang tall and rested above two demons.

When the abbey was first being built, the Daoist priest Lü Yuanzao dreamed for several nights in a row of a divine being on the mountaintop, towering so high that he seemed to reach the sky. At times, the figure could also be glimpsed in daylight. Some people in the commandery who followed the Dao also saw him, or met him in dreams. The people therefore agreed to make a statue of the divine being. They originally planned to make ten statues, but at first completed only one. In the final years of the Sui dynasty, warfare was constant and the Central Plain was in turmoil, so work on the other statues did not continue. People throughout the commandery knew of the statue’s manifestations. Families with sick members came to pray, and it was said that their prayers were always answered. The two blue-black demons beneath the statue were also often seen appearing in people’s homes.

During the Taihe era, when Chancellor Du Yuanying was stationed in Chengdu, the city walls and defenses had not been repaired, and the passes were inadequately guarded. Nanzhao therefore invaded. Along the frontier near Muyuan River, local people lured the Nanzhao forces and showed them the way. The army advanced in three columns, taking advantage of our lack of preparation as it set out to capture Jiazhou. When the enemy was still more than forty li from Jiazhou, they were suddenly terrified and fled in panic. The prefecture’s territory was at last somewhat at ease, and the authorities then began arranging its defenses. Later, a Nanzhao man who had come to scout was captured…

The enemy army was preparing to capture Jiazhou, in the area of present-day Leshan, Sichuan. When it was still more than forty li from the prefectural city, the enemy troops suddenly panicked, broke ranks, and fled. Only after the area had become somewhat more settled did the defenders begin to arrange their defenses.

Later, a local captured a Man scout and asked him, “Your army had already reached the prefectural border. Why did you panic and flee?” The scout replied, “The three Man armies had planned to take Jiazhou directly, believing the city was undefended. When we were forty li from the city, we suddenly saw flags covering the mountains and soldiers standing in formation—too many to count. There were also three or five great generals, clad in golden armor and carrying axes, each about three zhang tall. Their voices were like thunder. They stood on two demons and commanded the soldiers on the mountains to resist us together. We judged that we were no match for them, so we panicked and fled.”

That day, three of the Man army’s commanders were killed. Man military law required that anyone who died or was wounded on the march, as well as any excrement left behind, be buried at once and never exposed. So no one knew where the commanders had been buried.

When people heard the story, they all believed that the Flying Heavenly Spirit King, a Daoist deity, had manifested his troops and saved Jiazhou. From then on, people prayed to him and made vows almost every day.

On another occasion, someone traveling by boat down the gorge went to the temple of the Flying Heavenly Spirit King to pray for protection. When the boat reached Qutang Gorge, the river rose suddenly and the waves grew violent. Of three boats belonging to members of the same clan, one had already been wrecked, and the other two were in imminent danger. Suddenly, they saw a divine figure standing on the bank, resembling the Flying Heavenly Spirit King. He ordered two great demons to enter the water and steady the boats. The demons were more than one zhang tall; the boats soon became stable, and the wind and waves died down.

In their panic, the people could not tell who had rescued them. Once they had calmed down and thought it over, they recognized the two demons who carried the Flying Heavenly Spirit King, come to save the boats. One was red and the other green, and their appearance matched the temple statues exactly.

Chengdu’s Qianyuan Temple, in the area around the Silkworm Market, had stood for many years. Not long ago, during a war, troops set it ablaze, and the entire temple was burned to the ground. Beneath the temple gate had stood four divine kings: Donghua, Nanji, Xiling, and Beizhen. Modeled on the Chaoyuan Pavilion at Huaqing Palace, they wore golden armor and celestial robes. Although the gate tower was destroyed, the statues remained unharmed, weathering wind and rain without damage. Local people told stories of their remarkable efficacy.

At the time, after the King of Shu had conquered Shu, he sent troops to capture Pengzhou. The siege had gone on for a long time, so he returned to Chengdu for a while. It was midsummer, and the generals and officials accompanying him each sought a convenient place to rest. General Du Kexiu first went to the statues of the divine kings. Seeing a crowd gathered to watch them, he asked what had happened. They told him that the statues had moved. Du Kexiu filled a vessel with water and placed it in a statue’s hands. The statue indeed trembled, and the water spilled out.

Before long, the King of Shu arrived. He, too, prayed and put the statues to the test, saying, “If we can capture Pengzhou, show the sign of movement once again.” After a long while, the statues shook several times in succession. Within a month, the Shu army captured the city and destroyed its powerful enemy. The king then bestowed gifts and ordered the local people to build a hall and carefully restore the statues.

The Auspicious Response of the Northern Emperor to King Zhao Kuangning of Chu

When Zhao Kuangning, Prince of Chu, was stationed in Xiangzhou, there was an old Northern Emperor Hall in the city, a Daoist shrine dedicated to a northern deity. It had fallen into disrepair and been abandoned for many years, and stood inside the military camp.

One night, a sound like a halberd shaft and leather being dragged came from above the prince’s bedroom. The roof tiles began to shake. He quietly got up to investigate and saw a stream of black Qi rising from the site of the old Northern Emperor Hall, reaching straight to the roof. Thinking this extraordinary, he secretly offered prayers to the deity and resolved to rebuild the shrine in response to this auspicious sign.

The next morning, as the prince attended to government business, he dealt with fifty officers he had previously selected to oversee the military farms. He had arranged for them to receive clothing and farming tools each day, and had instructed them on their duties and training. Yet not one of them obeyed his orders. Suspecting they had other plans, the prince had them arrested and questioned. Once their plot to join together in rebellion was exposed, he put them all to death.

The prince told those present, “The Northern Emperor has manifested his power; there was indeed a sign. A strange cloud appeared in the middle of the night, and the next morning the treacherous men were exposed. Had the deity’s wondrous power not given warning, an unforeseen disaster might nearly have come to pass.” He then repaired the shrine and its covered galleries, installed the deity’s image with due solemnity, and appointed those who came to pay their respects to oversee the offerings of incense. People from throughout the region came to behold the shrine and pray, and their petitions were repeatedly answered.

◎ Li Changxia’s Recitation of the Scripture on Dispelling Calamities Brings a Miraculous Response

Li Changxia was a descendant of the Eastern Han governor of Yan Province. From birth, he had been devoted to Daoism and often recited the Supreme One’s Scripture of Numinous Treasure for Ascending to the Mystery, Dispelling Calamities, and Protecting Life. His temperament…

Li Changxia was descended from a former Han governor of Yan Province. From childhood, he followed Daoism and often recited the Scripture of the Most High Numinous Treasure for Ascending to the Mystery, Dispelling Calamities, and Protecting Life. He was gentle and timid by nature, and others often bullied him.

One day, while sleeping in the daytime, he dreamed that he was sitting in a place shrouded in mist and rosy clouds. Bears, brown bears, tigers, and leopards crowded all around him, and he did not know what to do. He could not help sighing: “Why am I being put on guard like this? Is there really no reward for doing good?”

At that moment, a Daoist in the sky called him by name and said, “I am the Perfected One Who Relieves Suffering, a divine being who rescues those in distress. Do not be afraid. I have received the Most High’s talismanic command and sent the divine generals to protect you unseen. The scripture you often recite also says that when it circulates in the world and people recite it, countless divine beings gather to guard it: the Flying Celestial Divine Kings, the Vajras Who Destroy Evil, the Dharma-Protecting Spirit Youths, the Perfected Ones Who Relieve Suffering, and the fierce beasts of golden essence.”

When Li Changxia awoke, he understood at once. He realized that every person who had bullied him in the past had met with calamity and punishment. This was the scripture’s efficacy made manifest.

◎The Efficacy of Cui Zhou’s Recitation of the Scripture for the Salvation of Humanity (the story of how Cui Zhou’s recitation of the Scripture for the Salvation of Humanity proved efficacious)

Cui Zhou was a descendant of Zhong Mou, the Marquis of Wenyang in the Han dynasty. He once visited Master Baiyun to learn methods of self-cultivation. The master asked him, “You come from a wealthy and powerful family. Why do you long for a quiet and simple life?” Cui Zhou rose from his seat and replied respectfully, “Using wealth to help others can go only so far, while human desires have no end. Rewarding people with noble titles can make some of them more arrogant the higher their rank. Please guide me in the Great Dao. I hope to use it to help all living beings.”

The master said, “Among my Daoist teachings is a scripture called the Scripture for Delivering People (Duren Jing), which teaches the salvation and aid of living beings. You may recite it.” Cui Zhou bowed in acceptance and recited it with sincere devotion. Later, a messenger rode up with a letter for Lord Cui and said, “Your ancestor sent me with this letter to thank you.” As soon as he had spoken, the messenger suddenly vanished. Cui Zhou opened the letter and examined it closely. He recognized his ancestor’s handwriting, and the letter read: “Thank you for the merit you have earned by reciting the Scripture for Delivering People. Through it, your ancestors across the generations have all been able to ascend to Heaven.” From then on, the Cui family continued to recite this scripture, and still does so today.

Yao Yuanchong’s daughter devotes herself to incense offerings, and Lord Lao imparts a scripture

During the Kaiyuan era, the chancellor Yao Yuanchong was appointed governor of Fengyi. His daughter, Changshou, stopped eating meat and drinking alcohol when she was seven. Her parents often had her burn incense and light lamps before an image of the Divine Lord of the Mysterious Origin, Laozi.

One afternoon, while napping, Changshou dreamed of Lord Lao, attended by two young acolytes and two divine generals. One of the acolytes said to her, “You burn incense and cultivate with a single-minded heart. You may come with me to study.” Then the acolyte orally imparted to her a chapter from the Scripture of the Nine Heavens on the Generation of the Spirits (Jiutian Shengshen Jing), which concerns the Nine Heavens and the way spirits come into being.

Wang Daoke recites the Tianpeng Incantation and manifests its power

Wang Daoke lived in the Nanba area of Shuangliu County, Chengdu Prefecture. An acolyte had once said to Changshou, “You burn incense and cultivate with a single-minded heart. You may come with me to study,” and orally imparted to her a chapter from the Scripture of the Nine Heavens on the Generation of the Spirits.

Wang Daoke was from the Nanba area of Shuangliu County, Chengdu. When Emperor Xizong fled to Shu to escape the turmoil, Daoke made his living through divination and drawing talismans. In his daily life, he often recited the Tianpeng Incantation, a Daoist divine spell. Whenever he went to the Shuangliu market to sell talismans and tell fortunes, he would drink until he was drunk before heading home.

Outside the county seat stood a temple to the White Horse General. People went there to pray and fulfill their vows both morning and evening. A curtain hung inside the temple year-round. At times, light shone through it, and a sound like someone blowing could be heard. People found these occurrences uncanny and came to believe eagerly that the deity was manifesting. The offerings of wine and food would often vanish without warning. This frightened the locals, and no one dared look directly into the temple.

Once, Daoke was drunk on his way home when he entered the temple and loudly recited the divine spell. The hall immediately fell silent. Those who witnessed it were deeply shaken.

One morning, just after the rooster crowed, Daoke joined villagers carrying garlic to market. As they passed the temple in the dark, he suddenly collapsed. In the confusion, he saw several wild foxes, their eyes like torches, dragging him beneath the steps of the temple hall. He heard someone above rebuke him: “How dare you rely on your drunkenness to barge into my temple and recite spells, disturbing my retinue?”

Daoke silently recited the Tianpeng Divine Incantation in his heart. After a while, he woke up. It turned out that he had been traveling with the people carrying garlic, and the divine soldiers had found the garlic’s odor foul, so they had not protected him. That was why the fox demons had seized him. Once the garlic carriers set down their loads, Daoke continued reciting the divine spell in his heart, and the fox demons could no longer harm him.

After recovering his strength, he went home, bathed, and purified himself. Then he went to the temple and loudly rebuked it: “I am a disciple of the Most High, the Daoist honorific for the Dao. I do more than recite the Tianpeng Incantation; I often chant the Daoist Scriptures as well. The Dao De Jing says: ‘Heaven attains the One and becomes clear; Earth attains the One and becomes settled; spirits attain the One and become efficacious.’ If you truly are a deity, you should assist Daoism and teach the people. Why can you not bear to hear a divine incantation? I know you are no White Horse Deity, but a fox spirit dwelling in a shrine and deluding the people. Today I will stay here and chant the divine incantation to rid the people of this harm.”

So he sincerely chanted the divine incantation aloud, without stopping even after nightfall. The temple remained silent. No light showed through the curtains; all that could be heard was something falling over of its own accord and groaning. At daybreak, he called the nearby residents to come and see. They found five old foxes with shattered heads, their blood covering the ground. All were dead. From then on, no more strange manifestations occurred in the temple. The offerings ceased, and the temple gradually fell into ruin.

From this we can see that one must not eat garlic when chanting this incantation, because garlic was considered unclean and liable to offend the deities. General Tianpeng is a great commander under the Northern Emperor, capable of subduing all kinds of ghosts and spirits. Surely his power is not meant only to destroy minor demons such as foxes?

◎ Accounts of the Efficacy of Wang Qingyuan’s Recitation of the Shenzhou Jing

Wang Qingyuan’s family had lived for generations at the foot of Mount Beimang. During the Xiantong era of the Tang dynasty, an epidemic spread through the land. Though a layman, he regularly practiced breath regulation and took medicinal preparations. He also recited the Divine Spell Scripture and claimed to be a distant descendant of the Perfected One of Mount Gou. At the time, the emperor had fled to Shu to escape the turmoil of war. Fighting continued and the epidemic spread, affecting many prefectures and counties. Famine and disease brought the people great suffering.

Wang Qingyuan had received the registers of the Divine Spell Scripture, a Fulu transmission associated with the text. He often used talismans and medicines to treat people, usually charging nothing and asking only for a small offering of lamp oil for the registers. People from the surrounding area flocked to him for treatment. His cousin, a Buddhist monk named Fachao, also possessed the Secret Characters of the Great Compassion Wheel Practice, a method transmitted in secret. After Wang Qingyuan had gained a reputation as a healer, Fachao came to stay with him one night. In secret, he filled a bottle with dog’s blood and poured it into Wang Qingyuan’s Daoist hall.

Around the second watch of the night, the sound of soldiers’ armor suddenly rang out in the air. Fachao then seemed to be dragged from his bed; he cried out and begged for mercy. Wang Qingyuan lit a lamp to see what was happening and found Fachao striking his head against the ground, his face covered in blood. He continued until dawn. Soon afterward, Fachao’s feet were dragged straight away, as though someone were pulling him off in flight. In the end, he fell into the Gou River, where his body floated on the water. Everyone in the city witnessed this and was astonished.

This account presents the Divine Spell Scripture as a true scripture, protected by divine generals and officers who would not tolerate its being insulted by the envious. Fachao defiled the scripture hall with filthy matter, doing evil in secret, and was ultimately discovered and punished by the spirits. Wang Qingyuan inherited the breath regulation method, recited the scripture, and quietly did good by helping others. He lived to the age of one hundred and seven. On the night he died, people throughout the region smelled a wondrous fragrance. The account says these events were signs that he had gradually attained the Dao.

The Immortal Capital Abbey on Mount Pingdu in Zhongzhou preserves the Scripture of Great Peace and uses it as an object of verification.

At the Xiandu Monastery on Mount Pingdu in Zhongzhou, the Taiping Jing (Scripture of Great Peace), which the Perfected Yin had left to guard the mountain, was enshrined. During the Wude era, the prefect Dugu Sheng wanted to take the scripture and present it to the imperial court. After the boat had been traveling for half a day, a blue dragon and a white dragon suddenly appeared on the river. They blocked its course and churned up waves, leaving the boat unable to move forward. Terrified, the boatmen had no choice but to turn back upstream to the prefectural city.

Dugu Sheng then ordered them to take the Dianjiang route instead and transport the scripture overland. At that time, no fierce beasts had been seen in the mountains for a long while. Yet this time, snakes and tigers blocked the road. The people carrying the scripture grew fearful and returned with it. Dugu Sheng therefore established a Huanglu Daoist ritual site—a consecrated space for rites of protection, blessing, and other purposes—submitted a memorial praying to the gods, and then once more took the scripture to the imperial court. It was enshrined in a palace ritual hall for many years.

During the Kaiyuan era, the Daoist priest in imperial service Sima Xiu received an edict to visit a sacred mountain and perform a Jiao rite, an altar ritual to honor the gods. He opened the scripture case, but found it completely empty. He questioned the Daoist community at the monastery, suspecting that the person in charge had hidden the scripture. The Daoists and their fellow practitioners were alarmed and unsettled, and could not explain where it had gone. Sima Xiu then burned incense and prayed to the gods, saying that the scripture had been taken away during the Wude era, and that he had now come under imperial order to search for it, but had no scripture to present. He feared that he would be punished for this.

The sky was clear, and there was no dust in the open country. Suddenly, dark clouds gathered over the hall, and thunder roared. Soon, rain poured from the eaves, yet the scripture appeared on the table. A wondrous fragrance filled the air, and auspicious smoke curled around it. The scripture they retrieved was the very same one as before, and they presented it to the imperial court.

During the Huichang era, the Daoist priests Guo Chongguang and Yan Xuanshou, who had been granted purple robes, were again ordered to go to the mountain and perform a Jiao rite. They took the scripture from a stone case and found it just as it had been before. To this day, the scripture enshrined at Xiandu Monastery remains this same volume. No one knows in what year it was returned.

“An Account of the Efficacy of Master Ye of Yuxiao Palace on Mount Tiantai in Using Talismans to Exorcise Madness and Evil”

The Seven Lots from the Bookbag of the Clouds records that Master Ye of Yuxiao Palace on Mount Tiantai usually cultivated his body and nurtured his nature, and in his spare time also used talismanic methods to help people.

In Wuzhou there was a wealthy man surnamed Ye who owned a great deal of property. He suddenly became mentally deranged and blind in both eyes, and remained uncured for many years. After his condition had grown severe for several months, he began to alternate between weeping and laughing, shouting loudly, stripping off his clothes, and running about. He was so strong that several people together could barely restrain him. At first, his family tied him up with silk cords, but before long he snapped them and ran out onto the main road to cause a disturbance. He even charged at government offices, and no one could stop him. The authorities took pity on him as the son of a wealthy family and did not punish him; they only ordered his relatives to keep close watch and find a way to restrain him. His family also called on Buddhist monks to pray for blessings, made offerings to spirits and ghosts, and summoned spirit mediums. They tried every means they could think of, but nothing worked.

The family had never believed in Daoism. Later, someone advised them to go up Mount Tiantai and ask Master Ye of Yuxiao Palace to draw a talisman, saying it might cure the illness. So they prepared silk and vessels and went into the mountains to seek a talisman. Master Ye said to them, “Once this talisman reaches your home, the illness will be cured. I have no use for the silk and vessels you brought; take them all back.”

Before the talisman had even reached home, the man’s illness flared up again. He broke free of his bonds and began hurling stones. The family had no choice but to shut the doors and hold him back, yet he still smashed the doors and window latticework. He was so strong that no one could subdue him. Suddenly, he calmed his fierce behavior and returned to the inner room on his own. He washed his hands and face, combed his hair, dressed neatly, and, holding a tablet respectfully, bowed with a calm expression beside the path inside the gate.

His family was astonished and delighted, and they all asked him what had happened. He smiled without answering, saying only, “The heavenly messenger will be here any moment.” After that, he even forgot to eat and drink and did not bother to sleep at night. Full of anticipation, he stood on tiptoe, craned his neck, and kept watch for the messenger. Though sweat poured down his back, he felt no fatigue. After waiting like this for two days and three nights, the person carrying the talisman finally arrived. The man went out to meet him, cheering and leaping with joy as he led the way inside. He received the talisman and swallowed it, then quietly closed his eyes. After the time it takes to eat a meal, his condition…

His illness had been cured. He then went in person to the mountain gate, made generous gifts of gold and silk, and helped fund the construction of a Daoist temple. His whole family cultivated the Dao together, and he established a quiet chamber for practicing Daoist methods and a Daoist hall. They burned incense and practiced every morning and evening.

At first, Yuxiao gave him two talismans: he swallowed one and pasted the other on his door. A maid in his household secretly drank wine until she vomited, and her vomit landed beneath the talisman. Ye saw a divine being emerge from it, clad in armor and holding a precious sword. The figure stood about three or four inches tall. After Ye burned incense and bowed in gratitude, the divine being vanished. He did not see it return to the talisman.

Several days later, a relative’s maid came down with what was then called “wind-demon illness,” a disease attributed to wind influences. Her condition was not yet serious. She came to Ye’s room and had only just stopped when she suddenly cried out. Ye saw the general from the talisman appear in the same form as before, swinging his sword at the top of the maid’s head. She said that a divine being had just cut something from her head with a sword, and it had fallen inside her collar. Ye asked two or three maids to hold the collar open and look. They found a severed snake’s head, about the size of a finger, still dripping blood. After this, her wind-demon illness also cleared up.

“Jia Qiong Receives the Youth Register: An Account of Its Manifest Powers”

Jia Qiong of Chengdu was three years old when his mother went to the silkworm market. On the third day of the third month, she passed by Longxing Abbey. Just then, the people at the abbey were receiving ordination registers together, a Daoist ceremony conferring ritual rank and talismans. She took Jia Qiong inside and had him receive a grade of the Register for the Youthful Disciple.

More than ten years later, Jia Qiong’s elder sister fell ill. His mother asked the Daoist recluse Wu Taixuan to enter the underworld and investigate the cause of her illness. She also asked him to look into the longevity and fortunes of the siblings. Wu Taixuan returned after spending a night away and said the illness was caused by the River Deity; after prayers were offered, she would recover. He also said that Jia Qiong’s name could not be found in the underworld’s registers. His parents grew even more worried and asked Wu Taixuan to investigate again.

Whenever Wu Taixuan was about to enter the underworld to investigate something for someone, he would lock himself in a room and fall peacefully asleep, telling people not to shout and wake him. They would wait until he woke of his own accord and called for the door to be opened before letting him out. When he returned, he could always recount events in the underworld clearly, as if he had seen them himself, and his predictions often came true. Sometimes he would not return until after two nights.

This time, Wu Taixuan searched for Jia Qiong’s name again. He said that when Jia Qiong was three, on the third day of the third month, he had received the Register of Orthodox Unity at Longxing Abbey. His name had already been entered in the Celestial Bureau, so he was not under the jurisdiction of the Underworld Bureau; that was why it could not be found in the underworld’s registers. Later, Wu Taixuan found Jia Qiong’s name in the Celestial Bureau’s yellow register.

◎ An Account of Yin Yannian’s Verification of the Yinfu Jing (Scripture of the Hidden Tally)

Yin Yan lived in Xiude Ward. He was a younger kinsman of the same clan as the Great Master Yin Sixuan of Mingdao. He had always revered Daoism, enjoyed doing good, and applied himself without tiring. Later, he went to visit Yin Sixuan and received the Scripture of the Hidden Tally. He recited it repeatedly with great devotion. Since he had never had a very good memory, he hoped to make his mind more alert and clear. After practicing this way for several years and reciting the scripture more than ten thousand times, he gradually felt his mental powers grow clearer and his understanding improve.

Once, on his natal day—the day calculated from the Heavenly Stem and Earthly Branch of his birth year—he fasted and purified himself, burned incense, and recited the scripture thirty times. Suddenly, he vividly remembered events from a previous life. He said that in that life his surname had been Zhang and his given name Chuhou, and that he had lived in Yanshou Ward. His family had been wealthy, and his children were all still alive. He remembered his childhood name and clearly recalled details such as his age. After telling Zhang Chuhou’s family about these matters, Yin Yan went to visit them. He described the year and month of Zhang Chuhou’s death, his appearance, and his temperament, and everything he said was accurate. Zhang Chuhou’s children wept as they confirmed the account. They said that Yin Yan’s present appearance was no different from Zhang Chuhou’s former appearance, though his temperament was somewhat gentler than before. From then on, the two families became kin. Both families were still alive before the Huang rebels stormed the imperial capital—the rebels of Huang Chao’s uprising.

A verified account of Zhao Ye’s receiving the Zhengyi Register (a talismanic register conferred on Daoist priests of the Zhengyi tradition).

Zhao Ye was from Dingzhou. During the Kaicheng era of Emperor Wenzong of the Tang dynasty, he served as magistrate of Jin’an County. He suddenly died of an illness, but his hands and feet remained supple, and his chest was still faintly warm. Three days later, he revived.

Zhao Ye said that at first officials from the underworld chased him, dragging him along with great urgency. They asked why he was being pursued. He could only say it was for things such as failing to repay a debt and then denying it. Zhao Ye thought he had committed no such offense and suspected they had mistaken him for someone else. After traveling thirty or fifty li, they passed a mountain ridge. At its summit stood a grand, splendid palace filled with people. A young attendant dressed in blue stepped forward and asked, “Are you not the Daoist Zhao Taixuan?” Zhao Ye replied, “I am Zhao Ye, magistrate of Jin’an County.” The attendant laughed and said, “How could you have forgotten so completely?” Another attendant came to deliver a message: the deity Taiyi had ordered Zhao Taixuan to be summoned for questioning. The others then dispersed, and Zhao Ye followed the attendant into the palace.

Taiyi was nowhere to be seen inside. Instead, a Daoist said, “When you were six, you received the Zhengyi Eight-Rank Fulu (talismans and registers), the ritual offices conferred by the Zhengyi tradition, while ill. Your Daoist name was Taixuan. How could you drift into the secular world of officialdom and forget even this? Taiyi has issued an order, so you will be returned to life. Once you go back, you should carry your Fulu, cultivate the true Dao, do good, and build merit. In office, perform your duties conscientiously; do not take bribes or recklessly destroy human lives.” After he had spoken, the Daoist vanished. Zhao Ye’s illness immediately subsided as well.

Afterward, Zhao Ye went to Mount Siyi to pay his respects to a master and receive Fulu. He set up ritual altars many times and widely performed meritorious deeds. He also resumed using his Daoist name, “Taixuan.”

◎ The Case of the Buddhist Monk Facheng’s Secret Alteration of Daoist Scriptures

The monk Facheng’s surname was Chen; his place of origin is unknown.

The monk Facheng had the surname Chen, and no one knew where he was from. He was stubborn by nature, bound by the rules of his own Buddhist school, yet given to many affected and contrived behaviors. While traveling on Mount Lu, he came to Jianji Monastery, a Daoist temple, but found no Daoists there. The temple’s halls and scripture library were usually left unlocked, so he took out Daoist scriptures and read them. He carried thirty-four volumes to Lingxi Monastery, where he settled in, claiming, “I am a monk, but I have always been fond of Daoism. I would like to live here, recite Daoist scriptures, and grow my hair long so I can enter the Daoist order.” Everyone thought he sounded sincere. Later, he took more than a hundred volumes from the temple and read them day and night. Every three to five days, he went down the mountain to beg for food. After hearing him speak, people often gave him generous amounts of food and salt, so he never lacked what he needed each month.

Afterward, he changed the titles of the Daoist scriptures to Buddhist ones, replaced “Heavenly Worthy” with “Buddha,” and called “Perfected Ones” “Bodhisattvas and Arhats.” He also altered most of the scriptures’ questions, answers, and teachings. In all, he defaced, cut up, or tore more than 160 volumes.

One day, someone from below the mountain invited him to attend a purification offering, a ritual in which food is offered to monks and Daoists. He took the opportunity to ask for paper and writing brushes, and borrowed a temple servant to accompany him. The two walked three li. The original text later recounts again how he changed the scriptures and defaced, cut up, or tore more than 160 volumes.

Suddenly, someone from below the mountain invited the Daoist priest to a vegetarian meal and asked to borrow paper and a brush. Fa Cheng took a servant along with him. After walking two or three li, they came upon a procession of military officials, their ceremonial guard in perfect order and clearing the road with loud calls. It looked as though the provincial governor was making an inspection tour. Fa Cheng and the servant went down to the roadside and hid in the woods.

After a long while, they saw the procession stop. A high-ranking official sat on horseback in the middle of the road, demanding to know where the local officials were and ordering his men to seize the monk Fa Cheng. Before Fa Cheng and the servant could flee, several strongmen dragged them out of the woods. The servant stood nearby and watched.

The official rebuked Fa Cheng: “The scriptures and teachings of the Great Dao are words handed down by the sages. What have they to do with you, that you dare alter them on your own?” He then ordered his men to beat Fa Cheng with a hundred strokes and told him to copy the scripture again exactly as it was, then return it to the Daoist temple. Once the copying was finished, he was to report back, and would be dealt with further. Fa Cheng was beaten a hundred times right there on the road. He collapsed, his body covered in bleeding wounds. Then the procession vanished.

The servant ran back to the Daoist temple to report what had happened. People from the temple went to investigate and found that Fa Cheng still had a faint breath. They carried him into the mountains, and it took several days for him to recover a little. Fa Cheng showed the other Daoists the copy of the scripture he had altered. He had left his robe and alms bowl at a monastery in Jiangzhou, so he retrieved and sold them, then continued seeking paper and a brush. He spent a year making a new copy. When he had finished, he returned the book to the Daoist temple, burned incense, and offered a sincere apology. He also declared his wish to enter the Dao and practice its cultivation. The Daoists considered his character untrustworthy, and none of them would accept him.

That very night, Fa Cheng cried out repeatedly as though someone were beating him. Blood flowed from his ears and nose, and he died.

◎ The monk Xingduan altered the Five Kitchens Scripture (Wuchu Jing) on his own, and the retribution came to pass.

The monk Xingduan had a rather unrestrained and eccentric temperament. When he came across the Daoist text Classic of the Five Kitchens, he found that it contained only five incantations. Without authorization, he added a title and renamed it Buddha Speaks the Classic of the Three Stages of Nourishment. He then claimed that the five incantations had been spoken by five Tathagatas, and appended a passage at the end saying that reciting them would bring benefits. His additions ran to more than a page.

The Classic of the Five Kitchens belongs to the Great Clarity section. During the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang, Yin Yin, a remonstrance official and head of the Suming Abbey, wrote a commentary. He suggested that the text was probably the secret language of the Five Spirits and the true Qi of the five organs. Recite it a hundred times, he said, and the five Qi would naturally harmonize, making it possible to go without food. The first incantation in the text says: “When the One Qi is harmonized, it returns to Great Harmony. Attain the One, and all things are at peace. Within harmony there is nothing disharmonious; the wondrous principle and the wondrous realm are connected.” During the Kaiyuan era, the Celestial Master Zhao Xianfu wrote an exposition on the text. Its central teachings, too, concerned cultivating harmonious breathing and nourishing the spirit.

Drawing on these ideas, Xingduan further claimed that reciting the text a hundred and twenty times could empower water with an incantation, and that drinking it would make it possible to go without food. He named his rewritten text the Classic of the Three Stages of Nourishment. Its wording and ideas were crude and shallow, far removed from the commentaries of Yin Yin and Zhao Xianfu. After completing his rewrite, Xingduan had already copied out five or six editions and sent them to others to read.

As someone was copying a scripture beneath a window, a divine being suddenly appeared, eight or nine feet tall and holding a precious sword. He said, “The Supreme One’s True Scripture, revered by Daoists, has been treasured for generations. How could it be carelessly handed over to vulgar, ignorant people to alter as they please?” The divine being swung his sword. The man raised his hand to ward it off, and several of his fingers were cut away. Two monks who lived with him witnessed the scene and, terrified, begged the divine being to spare him.

The divine being said, “You have no conscience and still fail to cherish this brief life!” He ordered them to retrieve the altered copies of the scripture and then submit a memorial to await an imperial decree. Xingduan and the monks who lived with him searched separately for the copies. They recovered only half; the rest had been taken beyond the pass by a monk. They therefore copied ten new copies of the original scripture, burned incense and repented, then placed the altered copies on the incense burner and burned them.

The divine being appeared again and said, “For slandering and corrupting a sage’s scripture, and for failing to recover all the copies, you should not be spared death.” Before long, the man collapsed and died. The altered versions of the scripture are still commonly circulated in various places. Readers may inspect their contents for themselves.

◎ The Account of Cui Gongfu Taking a Precious Scripture and Failing to Return It

◎ A record of the retribution Cui Gongfu suffered after borrowing a precious scripture and not returning it

Cui Gongfu passed the jinshi examination and later entered government service, eventually becoming governor of Yazhou. A year after taking up the post, he suddenly began to feel dazed and distracted. He was often sad and angry, quick-tempered, and frequently forgetful. His whole family found this strange. One day, though he was not ill, he suddenly died. His chest remained warm, however, and three days later he revived, his body restored to normal.

He told his colleagues, “Yesterday, messengers from the underworld came with a document summoning me. I followed them for thirty or fifty li and became very tired. When we reached the city gate of the underworld, we passed through several more gates. The messengers led me to the entrance of an office and had me wait outside a screen. Before long, an official in red robes, holding a court tablet, came to greet me at the screen and bowed first. I was surprised and said, ‘I was brought here under a summons, so I must be a criminal. I am deeply uneasy that you have come out to welcome me and bow to me.’

“The official said, ‘My lord, you have probably forgotten me. I am Ju Jian, a records clerk in Huayin County. When you first entered government service, I worked in your office. Recently, I received a heavenly talismanic decree stating that the Earth Bureau of Fengdu had reported that, when you served as magistrate of Fengdu County, you took four volumes of the Precious Scripture of the Perfected Yin Lord from Xiandu Abbey and have yet to return them. A heavenly decree ordered that your living soul be brought here for questioning, so one of your souls has remained here day and night under examination. I was concerned you might not know why, so I came to tell you in person, in return for the kindness you once showed me. Have you lately found yourself quick to anger and sorrow, dazed and distracted, with a failing memory? This is because your living soul has been detained.’

“He then led me into the hall. After a long while, he said, ‘There is food and tea here, but I cannot offer you any. If you eat, you will never return to the human world. All you need to do is write a petition asking for a Yellow Register Daoist altar to be set up, repent for your offense, and have someone return the scriptures to their original abbey. Then your living soul can be released.’ He also had his bureau check my remaining years and official prospects. Soon, a junior clerk arrived with a case file and reported, ‘Cui Gongfu still has three more appointments as governor ahead of him, and twenty-three years left to live.’ After he finished speaking, I left a handwritten statement, and the official sent people to escort me back.”

Afterward, Cui Gongfu established Yellow Register Daoist altars in Chengdu, at the Purple Ultimate Palace in Yazhou, and on Xiandu Mountain in Zhongzhou. He also had the scriptures returned to their original abbey. He recovered fully, and his later official appointments and lifespan matched what the underworld official had told him. The incident took place during the Kaicheng era, when Cui Gongfu was governor of Yazhou.

Liu Zaizhi of Pengcheng was a Confucian scholar. Alongside his studies of literature and learning, he regularly served the deity of the Northern Dipper, never allowing the incense offerings to lapse. He lived in the capital and, when young, was timid. He often had terrifying nightmares and, on waking, would remain confused.

He once met Liu Daguan, a Daoist from Mount Sumen. Liu Daguan taught him the Divine Incantation of Tianpeng, a Daoist spell used to pray for blessings and protection, and told him to recite it one thousand times. Liu Zaizhi followed his instructions diligently, abstaining from meat and pungent foods and devoting himself to burning incense and serving the deity. Even when staying at an inn, he practiced with care. From then on, nightmares never troubled him again.

Later, rebel forces captured Chang’an. Liu Zaizhi was living in Xuanyang Ward when the rebels took him prisoner. He had never been able to manage exhausting labor, and even the slightest delay brought threats of swords and knives, putting his life in grave danger. In secret, he recited the divine incantation and prayed for the deity’s protection.

That night, a man dressed like a soldier said to him, “I’ll get you out of the labor detail. There’s a small path here where you can escape. Come with me.” Liu Zaizhi suspected the rebels were testing him and refused to go. The man took his hand, and it felt as though he was carrying him up into the air. After a long while, the two of them came back down to the ground.

That night, the moon shone as brightly as day. Mountains and river valleys rose and fell in the distance, and the sound of rushing springs surged through the air. He was already standing on a great boulder. As he looked around in amazement, a village boy appeared ahead of him and led him into a cave abode.

The palaces within the cave abode were imposing and deep, with splendid, brightly lit halls and towers rising tier upon tier. Golden pavilions, jade halls, rare birds, and trees filled the surrounding area, which stretched for dozens of miles. An usher, an official responsible for announcing and escorting guests, wore a flat-topped cap and a wide-sleeved robe. He told him, “The Great Emperor has ordered you to rest in the guest quarters.” Before long, he was given wine, food, and immortal fruit, and two celestial officials joined him at the feast.

Zaizhi asked, “Which realm does the Great Emperor rule? I have never come to pay my respects, yet I have suddenly received this gracious command. I am truly apprehensive.” The celestial officials replied, “The Great Emperor is the Mysterious Lord and Great Emperor of the Upper Purple Tenuity Palace in the Northern Dipper. Above, he governs the pivot of the Dipper; below, he commands Fengdu, the Daoist realm of the underworld. The Emperor of the Yin Realm is among the deities under his authority, and the Celestial General Tianpeng is his marshal. You have devoted yourself to contemplating the Northern Origin and honoring the divine incantations. When danger befell you, you narrowly escaped blades and arrows. The Great Emperor consulted the registers of names and saw that you were destined to join the ranks of those who drive away evil and dispel calamity. Taking pity on you, he has already submitted a memorial to the Most High, describing your diligence and labor. He has specially extended your life by three cycles—thirty-six years—and will send you back to your home.”

Before long, Zaizhi was granted an audience with the Great Emperor. He knelt beneath the palace gates and bowed in gratitude. The Great Emperor ordered two attendants to escort him back. In the time it takes to eat a meal, he had arrived in Sizhou. His friend Xie Liang, who was then serving at court, heard him recount the whole affair in detail. Zaizhi is still in Jiangnan today. This shows that the Great Emperor sees all, and that the Celestial General Tianpeng’s divine power is resplendent: not even the smallest good deed escapes his notice.

Yao Sheng was from Huayuan and had loved Daoist arts from childhood. He regularly recited the Huangting Jing (Scripture of the Yellow Court), a Daoist classic. During the Guangqi era, Emperor Xizong of the Tang once again came to Chencang. The turmoil of war alarmed people near and far. Pressed by rebel soldiers, Yao Sheng fled at night and fell into a dry well, injuring his foot. He tried to climb out but failed, so he took shelter in a cave beside the well and recited the Huangting Jing day and night. He felt neither hunger nor thirst, and his injured foot healed.

Later, the fighting in the Xiang region was quelled, the emperor returned to the capital, and families in the area gradually resumed their lives. A patrol of soldiers stopped for the night beside the well. Seeing a light inside, they rescued Yao Sheng. He recounted in detail the scripture’s miraculous efficacy. He later became a Daoist priest and lived in a Daoist temple west of Huayuan.

Scroll 120, “Section on Miraculous Efficacy,” Part Four

The Ancient Bell of Qingxi Temple in Qingtian County, Chuzhou, Miraculously Returns of Its Own Accord: A record of the miraculous return, of its own accord, of an ancient bell belonging to Qingxi Temple in Qingtian County, Chuzhou.

Qingxi Temple in Qingtian County, Chuzhou, once had a bronze bell. Later, during the rebellion led by Yuan Chao, the bell disappeared, and no one knew where it had gone. The words “Qingtian” were written in ink on the bell, and some people still remembered this.

Later, boatmen sometimes heard a bell beneath the water at the foot of a mountain on an island near Wenzhou. Its sound was faint and mournful, as if it came from nearby. One day, someone suddenly saw an object emerge from the water. It looked like half a bell. When people rowed closer to inspect it, it immediately turned over and sank. The part above the surface showed the bell’s casting patterns and the image of a Pulao, a mythical dragon-like beast often used to decorate the crown of a bell. The onlookers recognized it as a bell. Whenever someone touched it with an object, it sank beneath the water.

When word of this strange occurrence spread, curious people sailed out to see it. On clear days, they could sometimes catch sight of it. Monks from the temples in the prefecture prepared decorated boats, banners, and flowers. Observing a fast, they set up an altar on the water and spent the night bowing in repentance and praying for the bell to be brought back. Sometimes they saw it, but before long it sank again. Daoists, too, prepared banners, decorated boats, and incense. They observed a fast, set up an altar, and prayed in repentance for the bell’s return. At times they saw it, and it quickly sank again; at other times, it did not appear at all.

A Daoist from Qingxi Temple was often among those who came to welcome the bell. He bowed and prayed: “The temples and Daoist temples in this prefecture all have bells, but Qingxi Temple has been without one for many years. We are truly lacking this important instrument. We live far away and cannot afford incense, flowers, and offerings; all we have is sincere devotion. If the bell has a spirit, may it travel upstream and return to Qingxi Temple of its own accord. I expect to return in about ten days. I will wait for it then in the stream before the temple.”

Everyone laughed when they heard him. More than ten days later, the Daoist returned to Qingtian and found the bell in the pool before Qingxi Temple. He burned incense and welcomed it, and the bell floated to the surface and slowly drifted to shore. It weighed more than a thousand jin, yet when several people pulled and suspended it, it felt as light as a little over a hundred jin. Later, the bell continued to fly away of its own accord from time to time, returning after about ten days. People now secure it with a heavy chain, and it no longer leaves. Although the words “Qingtian” on the bell had been submerged for a long time, they remained as clear as before. After examining it carefully, local elders confirmed that it was the very bell Qingxi Temple had lost.

◎The bronze bell at Zongxuan Temple on Mount Qingcheng could not be damaged. Even after examination and testing, its cause remained unknown.

At Zongxuan Abbey on Mount Qingcheng stands an ancient bell weighing more than three thousand jin. Its surface bears faintly raised designs in the shape of banners and ceremonial standards carried by flying immortals, crafted with great delicacy. When Liu Pi occupied Chengdu, he seized bronze statues and large bells throughout his territory and melted them down to make weapons and coins. People from the county also hauled this bell down the mountain, nearly wearing away its raised designs. They repeatedly struck it with huge stones, but still could not damage it. When they dragged it to the riverbank to load it onto a bamboo raft, it seemed to weigh ten thousand jin, and even with everyone pulling together they could not move it. The county reported the matter to Liu Pi. Finding it extraordinary, he ordered the bell returned to the mountain. As two or three dozen people hauled it back up, it felt as light as only one or two hundred jin. Once rehung, the bell would sometimes summon clouds and rain immediately when struck. It is said to remain there to this day.

◎ The Daoist Who Cast a Bell at Taiping Abbey in Wenjiang County and the Signs of His Attainment of the Dao

At Taiping Abbey in Wenjiang County lived a Daoist master named Ren. Every day he went from house to house in the marketplace, begging a single coin from each household to cast a bell weighing ten thousand jin. The bell was completed several years later, when Master Ren was already over eighty.

He held an elaborate Zhaijiao purification ritual, composed memorials and hymns of praise, struck the bell several hundred times, and then took his leave. This took place during the Dali era. Later, when the Vice Director Liu Tong oversaw military and government affairs in Xichuan, he ordered Buddhist dharani spells—incantations used in Buddhism—to be inscribed on all the large bells in abbeys and temples. Master Ren returned at that time and led craftsmen in carving these words beside the spells: “The bronze bell in this abbey should not have Buddhist spells inscribed on it at will.” He also had several lines of oath carved on it. People noticed that Master Ren looked younger than before and seemed more robust than he had been in earlier years, so they believed he had attained the Dao.

In a Daoist temple in Pengshan, in Meizhou, there once stood a great bell weighing a thousand jin. The temple was more than twenty li from the prefectural city, yet whenever the bell was struck, its sound could be heard throughout the city and its surroundings.

Some years ago, Buddhist monks submitted a memorial falsely claiming that there were no Daoist priests at the temple and that the bell had been left among the weeds and should be removed. The local authorities acted unjustly and moved it to a Buddhist temple in the prefecture. When the bell was being hung, it crushed a craftsman’s foot. People took this as a sign that the bell had manifested its power. The temple stood at the city gate, but when the bell was struck, people inside the city could not hear it.

The monks had another great bell cast. Instead of returning it to the original Daoist temple, they sold it to a Buddhist temple in Jiazhou. As it was being lowered from the upper floor, two craftsmen were injured: one suffered a crushed foot, the other a broken back. Further injuries occurred while it was being loaded onto a boat and as the boat left shore. The foolish people of the world did not regard these events as signs of the bell’s efficacy. Even now, the bell remains away from its proper home and has not been returned. This is truly regrettable.

“Bathing with Water from the Old Bell to Heal Sores: A Verified Case” (with an Account of the Old Bell’s Efficacy): The title means, roughly, “A verified case of sores healing after bathing with water from the old bell,” with an account of the bell’s efficacy attached. The meaning of “Yu Ai Chi Mu” is unclear, so it is provisionally retained as it appears in the source.

Redwood Manor lies at the foot of Jade Mountain. During the Kaiyuan era, it once presented an ancient bell to the court. Local people were said to often hear the faint sound of a bell coming from underground, yet no matter how they searched, they could not find it. One day, Redwood fell gravely ill with sores. His treatment was ineffective, and he dreamed that a green-robed youth—a Daoist immortal attendant from legend—told him, “Bathe in water from the bell, and you will recover.”

Redwood went to a nearby temple and shrine to fetch water, washed the bell with it, then carried the water home and used it to wash his sores. His condition worsened slightly instead. He then sent people to listen carefully in the places where the bell had usually been heard. Sure enough, they heard its sound coming from underground. After digging several feet, they found the ancient bell. Cast onto its suspension loop was a crouching lion. The section below the lion’s nose was broad and flat; the crown of the bell was round and large, with a circumference of more than three feet. The bell narrowed gradually downward, like a waist drum, then widened again at the base. Strange patterns, countless in their varied forms, were concealed across its surface. It seemed not to have been made by any ordinary casting method.

After the ancient bell was unearthed, people washed away the mud and used the water from washing it to bathe Redwood’s sores. He recovered that very day. At night, the bell often gave off a glow, and sometimes rang of its own accord. The neighbors all found this extraordinary. Redwood dared not keep it for himself, so he submitted a memorial presenting it to the court. The emperor ordered that the bell be bestowed on Jinglong Abbey. It was still there before Huang Chao’s rebellion.

During the Baoying era, residents of Zhuzhi County also dug up an ancient bell while plowing a field. It weighed more than a hundred jin. Cast onto its suspension loop was the figure of a crouching tiger. The body below was broad at first, then narrowed in successive tiers, changing shape three times. It stood about one chi and eight or nine cun tall. Its surface was covered with patterns of celestial flowers and cloud leaves, executed with great skill. Compared with the bell unearthed by Redwood, this one was rounder and thicker, and heavier. After being unearthed, it shone each night and sometimes flew into the air, ringing out with a clear, far-reaching sound. The people also submitted a memorial presenting it to the court, and the emperor issued an edict sending it to Xuanzhen Abbey. Much later, the bell was taken away again and kept inside a palace hall.

◎ The Marvelous and Miraculous Ancient Bell of Daochang Abbey in Nanping County, Yuzhou (a record of the wondrous efficacy of an ancient bell at Daochang Abbey in Nanping County, Yuzhou)

In Daochang Abbey in Nanping County, Yuzhou, there is an ancient bell. Two lions stand facing one another on the bell, together supporting a flower-shaped base. The bell’s crown is shaped like a horned dragon; its tail splits and winds around the lions’ feet before coiling around the bell itself. The body narrows in three successive tiers, in a style like the ancient bell at Zhuzhi. At each narrowing are five finely worked bands of ornament. The central band is bright yellow, smooth and lustrous, like strings of pearls joined together. On either side, the patterns are carved as petals, twisting and interlacing; the outer band is decorated with cloud-leaf designs, layer upon layer. The patterns are ingeniously conceived and exquisitely made, as though no human hand could have fashioned them. The rest of the bell is also covered in ornament, too extensive to describe in detail. It is said that the King of Xiangdong gave this bell to the recluse Tao Zhenbai, an honorific title for Tao Hongjing. Later, amid the upheavals of war, the bell was lost.

◎ An Example of an Ancient Bell in the Salt Wells of Southern Guizhou That Did Not Deteriorate Over Many Years

When a salt well in southern Guizhou was being rebuilt because its structure had been damaged, an ancient bell was discovered inside. The bell was three or four feet long, narrow and solid at the middle like the body of a waist drum, with thick, rounded ends. Both ends produced a sound when struck, and its tone was unusually loud and resonant, unlike that of ordinary bells. Though it had spent many years in the salt well, it had grown brighter and more lustrous, showing no signs of decay or rust; at times it even gleamed gold. Lord Xi, the military governor, kept it in the garrison treasury.

◎ An Ancient Bell at Yuxiao Palace on Mount Tiantai: The Monk’s Theft and Its Prophetic Fulfillment

At Yuxiao Palace on Mount Tiantai there is an ancient bell, two feet high and weighing more than a hundred jin. It is solid and substantial in form, shaped like …

This bell has thirty-six raised bosses in a nipple pattern, with decorative designs faintly visible across its surface. Its craftsmanship is exceptionally fine. According to one tradition, Yu the Great cast it; others say it was a musical instrument belonging to the King of Yue. Some years ago, it flew through the air each night, ringing so that everyone could hear it. Then it suddenly fell into the Yu Temple and was placed in the government treasury, where it remained for seventy or eighty years. Many monks once asked to borrow the bell, hoping to display its miraculous powers, but every request was refused.

During the Xiantong era of Emperor Yizong of Tang, Li Wan, Left Palace Attendant and Surveillance Commissioner of eastern Zhejiang, invited Master Ye, a Daoist ritual master from Jade Heaven Peak, to establish an altar at his residence, perform a purification rite, and receive registers. He also brought out the bell and struck it. Soon afterward, Liu Taobai, an aide in the Ministry of Waterways, received from the capital a statue of Lord Lao, three or four feet tall, whose appearance was solemn and wondrous. Li Wan had the statue restored and made a canopy topped with a jeweled finial. He prepared silver, an incense duck, an incense turtle, and other offerings, and sent them all to Jade Heaven Peak, where they were placed on the altar at which the registers had been received. After the purification rite ended, Li Wan asked his guests to compose an inscription for the bell, recording the year, month, and day, and had it carved into the surface. The statue of Lord Lao was also sent into the mountains. The places where the inscription had been carved gleamed gold.

The monks of Yuji Temple repeatedly tried to obtain the bell, but never succeeded. When they learned that it had been inscribed and sent to Mount Tiantai, they could think of no other means, so they spread a rumor that the ancient bell at Mount Tiantai had been cast from pure gold, and that the craftsmen had carved away several taels of gold when they cut the inscription—so how much gold must the whole bell contain! The incense duck and the other vessels were valuable as well.

So one monk led more than ten accomplices into Jade Heaven Palace by night and hid beneath a pavilion. At midnight, they climbed over the railing and entered the ritual hall. They stuffed the incense duck, incense turtle, golden dragon, and ritual implements into bags, then tied the bell to one man’s back and shouted as they rushed out of the palace gate. When Master Ye learned what had happened, he did not let his disciples pursue them.

The group traveled more than thirty li and rested beneath a large tree. At daybreak, they discovered that they were still beside the pavilion’s pillars. The young Daoist attendants went to investigate. The monk carrying the bell had become stiff and lifeless, while the other accomplices sat dazed and could not recognize the people before them. Not one item—the bell or the gold and silver valuables—was missing. Master Ye recited an incantation and sprinkled water. After a long while, the monk gradually came to, and the thieves regained their senses. They swore to repent and begged him not to report the matter to the authorities. Master Ye then released them. The group carried the sick monk away, but he died when they reached the foot of the mountain.

At Longxing Temple in Kaizhou there was a great bell weighing seven or eight thousand jin. At the time, there was no bell tower, so it was hung in the main hall. Local people said that if anyone in the region had their belongings stolen, lost something, or faced a long-running dispute with no resolution or an unredressed grievance, they could burn incense and strike the bell, and a response would soon become evident. During a criminal inquiry, if repeated questioning failed to uncover the truth, those involved could also submit a written account and ask for the bell to be struck; the facts would then become clear.

I once stayed at the temple for a short time. One day I suddenly saw officials escorting prisoners to the bell. They burned incense and took an oath, and were about to raise the mallet when someone stopped them and told them to question the witnesses again. This happened several times. The bell was never struck, yet the case was already solved.

I asked why, and was told that formerly, whenever an official case remained unresolved for a long time, anyone could ask for this bell to be struck. Within ten days of its being struck, those who had falsely accused others and caused an injustice would suddenly die of illness. If others had colluded with them or been implicated, not one would remain within a year. Those who had been wronged and were in the right, however, stayed safe and well. For this reason, officials handling criminal cases dared not deceive anyone, whether the case was great or small; they treated the bell as proof by which right and wrong could be determined. Similar tales were told of the bell at Baihe Temple in Yun’an, and people far and wide passed the story along.

The bell at Kaiyuan Temple in Qingjiang Commandery, Shizhou, was also said to make dreams come true.

At Kaiyuan Abbey in Qingjiang Commandery, Shizhou, there was a bell of exceptionally ancient design. Its loop was shaped like a qilin, so it could be hung from a bell frame, while its body resembled a suspended gourd. When struck, it first gave a clear, far-reaching tone, then, after a while, boomed loudly, its sound audible for several miles. No one knew what period it came from.

Long ago, a resident of the commandery was herding cattle in the fields south of the city when he suddenly heard a strange sound coming from beneath the ground. He and several shepherd boys were so frightened that they fled. Afterward, the man suffered a fever for more than ten days. In a dream, he saw a man wearing a short blue robe, who said to him, “Move me to Kaiyuan Abbey.” The man did not understand what this meant.

Later, when he returned to the fields, he heard the same sound again. He quietly marked the spot where it came from and reported the matter to the commandery governor. Governor Feng grew angry and said, “This commoner is talking nonsense. How dare he bother me with something so unimportant!” He then dismissed the man.

That night, the man again dreamed of the person in blue, who said, “I have been buried underground for many years. If you do not dig me up soon, a great calamity will surely befall you.” The man was terrified. At daybreak, he went there with his son and began digging. More than a zhang below the surface, they found the bell. Its body was blue, just like the robe worn by the man in the dream.

The man reported the discovery to the governor again, and the bell was installed at Kaiyuan Abbey. At the hour of the Dragon (between seven and nine in the morning), the bell rang of its own accord, without anyone striking it. Its sound shook the surrounding region and carried a great distance. The people of the commandery were astonished and praised the wonder. The governor reported the matter to the imperial court. Emperor Xuanzong of Tang ordered it entered into the official history, and also instructed the chancellor Li Linfu to copy out the report and circulate it throughout the realm.

“The Bell at Youwei Abbey in Hongzhou: A Local Official Forcibly Takes It into the Temple for Inspection”

At Youwei Temple in Hongzhou there were two bells. One had been cast by order of the temple’s director; the other, said to have been used by Perfected Lord Xu during his cultivation, had been passed down through the generations and kept in the Hall of the Perfected Lord. It was slightly smaller than the temple’s bell.

The military governor Yan Ju established the office of military commissioner and wielded great power, issuing commands with severity. He had long respected the senior monks and expanded and repaired their monastery. When the senior monk wanted Perfected Lord Xu’s bell, Yan Ju ordered his officials to fetch it and hand it over. The Daoist priests did not dare protest. On the day the bell was taken, thunder, lightning, wind, and rain broke out together. A ritual banquet was being held that day, at great expense. Suddenly, torrential rain poured down. Before the feast could even be set out, water had risen several feet in a matter of moments. Later, when they struck the bell, it made no sound at all, as if they were hitting wood or earth.

The senior monk said to Yan Ju, “Most of the Daoist priests in this prefecture know demonic arts. They must have used a spell to keep the bell from sounding.” Yan Ju flew into a rage. He arrested the Daoist priests, imprisoned and interrogated them, accused them of practicing sorcery, and prepared to punish them severely. The officials feared his authority, and none dared intervene.

Yan Ju suddenly drifted into a deep sleep. In a dream, Perfected Lord Xu appeared before him with two attendants and said, “You are ignorant and without regard for the Dao. You have forcibly taken my bell and now intend to punish the Daoist priests. If you do not return the bell to the temple and bow in apology to the Great Dao, I will have my attendant cut off your head.” As he spoke, he handed a sword to the attendant. Yan Ju awoke in a cold sweat, seemingly still seeing the attendant before him, sword in hand.

He immediately released all the Daoist priests, returned the bell to Youwei Temple, and went there himself to burn incense and apologize. Looking back, he saw the attendant holding the sword and said to him, “You have acted without regard for the Dao and harmed others. The Lord on High has condemned you and ordered your head cut off; I fear you cannot escape this.” Then he left. Before long, the river opening project under Yan Ju’s supervision failed. The mast of the boat he was traveling in snapped, and he died as a result.

Miraculous Stories of the Celestial Master’s Sword Curing Illness

The Celestial Master’s sword was said to have been forged from materials gathered from five places. It resembled freshly cast bronze, and its hilt was made of five linked sections. Raised talismanic characters and designs of stars, the sun, and the moon adorned the blade, which weighed eighty-one liang. According to legend, it was often used to punish and control ghosts and spirits, and to subdue and destroy baleful, evil beings.

When the Celestial Master ascended to heaven, he left the sword and the Dujong seal, an official seal used in the Celestial Master lineage, to be passed down to his descendants. He swore: “I have only one son in this life. I will pass the seal, the sword, and the Dujong registers, Daoist talismanic registers transmitted by the Celestial Master, to him. I will pass none of these on to anyone else.” More than a dozen red hairs on the tip of the sword marked it as extraordinary. By the time of the account’s author, this lineage had continued through twenty-one generations.

At times the sword gave off a strange light, and occasionally it made a sound like a ringing whistle. It appeared and vanished from time to time, displaying various miraculous signs.

By the sixteenth generation, the Celestial Master was known for his kind and generous nature and his concern for others’ suffering. Relying on the numinous power of the divine sword, he often lent it to sick people to venerate, and their illnesses would usually subside soon afterward. One night, a woman in a neighboring household went into labor and suffered a dangerous, life-threatening complication. She too asked to borrow the sword. Once it had been brought to her home, it suddenly shone with a divine light like a candle flame, brightly illuminating the entire room. But when the sword fell to the ground, it broke.

Several decades later, the account mentions the eighteenth-generation descendant, Sun Huiqin, describing him as mild-tempered. It then repeats the story of a neighboring woman suffering a difficult labor at night, borrowing the sword, and seeing it shine with divine light before it fell to the ground and broke.

Several decades passed, and by the time the lineage reached Huiqin, he was its eighteenth-generation descendant. Huiqin was gentle and modest, yielding rather than arguing with others. He paid little attention to worldly affairs. Whatever people told him, he tended to believe—even when dealing with deceitful people—and almost never doubted them.

One day, a man carrying a cloth sack came to Yunji Mountain’s Xianju Temple. He wandered along the corridor, gazing reverently at the temple’s merit statues, and claimed that he could polish mirrors and repair hinges and rivets. The temple attendants asked him to solder a small copper lock. Seeing him at work, Huiqin asked, “I have a broken sword. Can you mend it?” The man examined the sword and said, “I can. Please clear another room and prepare several pounds of charcoal.”

He shut the door from inside, used a large stone as an anvil, stoked the charcoal, and began hammering. The sound carried outside. The attendants were terrified, fearing he would smash the sword, but Huiqin was unconcerned. After a while, the hammering stopped. The man came out with the sword and handed it to Huiqin. It had indeed been joined, as good as before. At the seam, only a hair-thin black mark remained.

Huiqin paid him five hundred coins. The man accepted them, thanked him with an embarrassed air, then placed the money before the statue of the Old Lord and shouldered his cloth sack to leave. Yet after taking only a few steps, he vanished from sight. Those who knew the story suspected that he had been a Celestial Master in transformed guise, who had descended among the people to mend Huiqin’s sword. Otherwise, how could he have repaired it so perfectly without damaging it during the hammering?

Zhang Rang’s Yellow Spirit Seal and Its Proven Power to Cure Illness: An account of the miraculous efficacy of Zhang Rang’s use of the Yellow Spirit Seal to treat illness.

Zhang Rang lived in Guizhou and often traveled around Xiangzhou and Ezhou. He developed what was then called a “heart illness,” a term for disorders of the mind or consciousness. At first, he was often confused and forgetful: while walking, he would forget that he was walking; sitting indoors, he would forget that he was sitting. He could not distinguish day from night or tell east from west. Several months later, he frequently flew into a rage, cursing spirits and gods and lashing out at others. He even stripped off his clothes and ran about, heedless of propriety. He would tread on water and fire and face blades without fear, sometimes suffering burns or cuts as a result.

The Daoist Yuan Guizhen had recently carved a Yellow Spirit Yuezhang seal, a Daoist ritual seal. Just after completing a Jiao sacrifice, a ritual in which an altar is set up to make offerings and invoke the spirits, he tried burning incense and, following the prescribed method, stamped the seal on Zhang Rang’s chest and back. Zhang was then running about in a frenzy, so Yuan seized him and applied the seal. Zhang fell asleep afterward, and Yuan took this as a sign that the ritual seal had worked. He again dipped the seal in vermilion, lit incense, and stamped Zhang’s chest. Zhang immediately recovered. Something like a falcon, a bird of prey, flew out of his mouth, traveled several zhang, and landed on the ground. When the onlookers went to inspect it, they found that it was a large bat, with the seal’s characters clearly visible on its back. Zhang Rang returned to normal. Yuan Guizhen carried the seal from place to place to treat illnesses, and it repeatedly proved effective.

Fan Xiyue’s Prayers for Rain with the Tianpeng Seal Prove Effective

Fan Xiyue was from Chengdu and practiced the rites of the Northern Emperor, a deity revered in Daoism as the lord of the north. He carved a Tianpeng seal, a Daoist ritual seal, and used it in his rites. His sacrificial ceremonies were conducted with meticulous care and purity, exceeding the usual standards. In the gengzi year of the Guangming era, …

Fan Xiyue was from Chengdu. He studied and practiced the rites of Beidi, a northern deity revered in Daoism. He carved a Tianpeng seal, a seal used in Daoist ritual practice, and performed rites with it. His sacrifices and purification rituals were carried out with exceptional care and cleanliness, exceeding the usual requirements.

In the Gengzi year of the Guangming era, no rain fell in the third month. By the fifth month, the drought had grown worse. People were anxious and distressed, and the crops seemed close to withering. Hoping to test the divine seal at Wansui Pond and pray for rain on behalf of the people, Fan Xiyue went to Zhizhen Abbey to observe ritual purification. That day was a Gengchen day. At the xu hour, around seven to nine in the evening, he cast the seal into the pond. A sudden dark wind arose, and clouds quickly spread across the sky. At the hai hour, around nine to eleven at night, heavy rain began and continued until dawn. At the chen hour, around seven to nine in the morning, thunder and lightning struck repeatedly, shaking the area several times. By the si hour, around nine to eleven, the rain had eased enough for him to return to his residence. The water at Shengqiao Bridge rose as high as a horse’s belly, and the rivers around Chengdu’s outer city overflowed their banks. Pests such as moth larvae and locusts drowned in the flood. From then on, the harvests were abundant.

When the emperor was staying in Chengdu, he heard that Fan Xiyue possessed Daoist powers and summoned him. The emperor asked about defeating the rebels and retaking the palace compound. He ordered Fan to hold the seal in the inner palace and perform a jiao ritual during several days of continuous rain. After the ritual, the clouds dispersed, the rain stopped, and the moon shone brightly. That night, the emperor dreamed of a divine being who foretold the rebels’ destruction and the city’s recovery. Delighted, the emperor appointed Fan Xiyue as a court ceremonial officer in the Court of Imperial Sacrifices. Fan was later promoted in stages to vice director of the Ministry of Rites and then to junior vice minister of the Court of the Imperial Clan, and was granted a red official robe. News of Huang Chao’s rebel forces being defeated arrived, fulfilling the signs the emperor had seen in his dream. The emperor therefore treated Fan with exceptional favor.

Fan Xiyue said that he had first lived in Zhujiao Lane. When the inscription on the Tianpeng seal had just been carved, a tribal army suddenly invaded, and the residents fled in all directions. He hid the seal among the roof tiles in the main hall. After the army withdrew, the houses around his were all burned, but his own house remained intact. He therefore suspected that the divine seal had worked a miracle.

“An underground verification concerning Zhong Shiming of Shangyu County, Yuezhou”: this is the title of the following entry, meaning “Zhong Shiming of Shangyu County, Yuezhou: verified underground.”

Between the walls of Shangyu County in Yuezhou lay several mu of vacant land. People often heard the sound of a bell coming from beneath the ground. During the Xiantong era, the county magistrate Xiahou Po was a sincere devotee of Daoism. Since the county had no Daoist temple, he bought the land and built one. While digging, people uncovered an ancient bell weighing more than a hundred jin, engraved with the two characters “Zhengguan.” That winter, the emperor bestowed a plaque on the temple. Because the report of this discovery had been presented during the celebration of the emperor’s birthday, the temple was granted the name Yanqing Temple.

◎ The Verification of the Pacification of Shu after Emperor Wen of Sui Established a Yellow Register Retreat, While Wang Qian Held Shu

In the early Kaihuang era of Emperor Wen of Sui, the wars had ended and the realm was at peace. Only Wang Qian, a former minister of Northern Zhou who had long been distinguished for his achievements and reputation, feared Emperor Wen and worried that disaster would befall him. He therefore occupied the Three Shu regions and plotted rebellion.

Emperor Wen sent troops to suppress him, but they failed to win despite fighting several battles. Many soldiers in the army fell ill, and deaths followed one after another. The emperor then held a Yellow Register Daoist retreat, a type of Daoist purification ritual, in the inner palace and prayed for Heaven’s protection. Three days later, a divine being appeared to him in a dream and said, “A ruler can establish a state only by receiving Heaven’s mandate and following the people’s wishes, with the approval of both Heaven and humanity. Your Majesty has now replaced Northern Zhou and established Sui because this is Heaven’s will. How could the strength of one region withstand the strength of the whole realm?”

The emperor replied, “Pacifying Shu and bringing its people under control is truly something I have no choice but to do. What concerns me is that the commanders and soldiers have fallen ill.” The divine being answered, “The epidemic in the army is caused by northerners’ inability to withstand the miasma of the south, which is why so many have fallen ill. Water from the altar, empowered through ritual, can heal many people. How much more readily can it help just part of the army?” The divine being then took sacred water from the altar, water treated through ritual, and sprinkled it toward the southwest, saying, “After the rain, the sick will recover. Your Majesty need not worry. Advance on a Zi day, one of the days in the traditional sexagenary cycle, and you will surely pacify Shu.”

About ten days later, a report arrived from the army: one night, thunder and rain had fallen over the camp, and the sick soldiers throughout the three armies had all recovered. The epidemic did not return. Wang Qian was later killed, and the Three Shu regions were finally pacified. As foretold, victory came on a Zi day.

◎ The Verification of the Qingcheng Elder’s Transmission of the Yellow Emperor’s Dragon Case and His Bringing Rain

The Yellow Emperor visited Mount Qingcheng, and wherever he went, epidemics vanished. Later, when Wang Qian passed on the position of leader, the region of the Three Shu became peaceful. This event indeed took place on a Zi day.

The Efficacy of the Elder of Qingcheng Bestowing the Dragon Scabbard on the Yellow Emperor and Bringing Rain

The Yellow Emperor went to Mount Qingcheng and paid a visit to the Perfected Master Longjun, Mr. Ning. He received the Scripture of Longjun and learned how to ride flying clouds. The Yellow Emperor appointed Mr. Ning Elder of the Five Sacred Mountains, granting him the Crown That Covers Heaven, a robe of crimson radiance, and the seal of the Three Courts, and placing him in charge of the Five Sacred Mountains. He stood alongside the Director of Fate at Mount Qian and the envoy of Mount Lu as one of the three revered divine officials.

The Yellow Emperor ordered the gods of the Five Sacred Mountains to pay their respects to the Center of Emptiness twice each month, and to use sprinkling water in place of sundials and water clocks to mark the time. In later generations, emperors established shrines and performed sacrifices after purification, but no further titles were bestowed upon him.

On the fifteenth day of the seventh month in the xinchou year, the first year of the Zhonghe era under Emperor Xizong, an imperial decree ordered the palace attendant Yuan Yijian, prefect Wang Zi, and county magistrate Cui Zhenggui to accompany the emperor to the mountain and perform a Zhaijiao rite—a Daoist ritual for praying for blessings and honoring the gods. Mr. Ning was again granted the title “Elder of the Five Sacred Mountains, Perfected Lord of the Mysterious and Subtle.” At the time, a severe drought had struck the county, and the crops were on the verge of withering. On the night of the investiture and rite, a dragon’s roar came from beside the temple, and a sudden storm swept through the stream. The withered crops revived, and the county enjoyed a bountiful harvest. The event was reported to the imperial court and entered into the official history.

Celestial Master (Tianshi) Ye Fashan was from Guozhou. For three generations, his family had served as Daoist priests, skilled in wondrous supernatural arts and practices of health cultivation. Ye Fashan was especially well versed in Fulu (talismans and registers) and could command spirits and demons.

During the Xianqing era, Emperor Gaozong summoned him to the Daoist ritual hall in the palace and treated him with great generosity. At the time, the emperor was visiting the eastern capital. Ye Fashan established an altar at Lingkong Temple and held a grand Jiao rite, a Daoist ceremony for sacrifice and blessings. Men and women from across the city came to watch. Suddenly, several dozen people rushed toward a fire. The crowd was terrified and hurried to pull them away, but none of them had been injured. Ye Fashan said, “They are all afflicted by demonic possession, and my art has brought them under control.” When questioned, this proved to be true. Ye Fashan performed a rite to dispel the affliction for each of them, and they all recovered.

From the reigns of Gaozong, Zhongzong, Empress Wu Zetian, Ruizong, and Xuanzong, Ye Fashan traveled among famous mountains and was repeatedly summoned to the palace. In the second year of the Xiantian era, he was appointed Minister of State Ceremonies and Duke of Yue, among other titles. The court also posthumously appointed his father Governor of Shezhou.

◎ The Efficacy of the Jiao Rite for One’s Natal Year Held by Lu Wei of Fanyang

Lu Wei of Fanyang passed the jinshi examination at the age of twenty. A diviner told him that his life would be short and advised him to perform a jiao ritual and pray to his natal guardian deity—the spirit associated with his birth year—to extend his lifespan and increase his blessings and fortune. Lu Wei had always been devout in his worship, regularly offering incense and conducting jiao rituals with sincere reverence, never once neglecting them.

At twenty-five, Lu Wei fell ill in the Eastern Capital and was confined to bed. After more than a month, his condition grew worse. Suddenly, he dreamed that relatives and friends had come to call him outside. He mounted a horse and followed them at great speed. Suspecting that the underworld authorities had seized him, he was alarmed. Just then, someone rode up and managed to block their way, pleading earnestly on his behalf and securing his release. When they reached the underworld offices, the man once again pleaded for him with great sincerity. As a result, Lu Wei was allowed to return.

On the way back, the man stayed beside him like a trusted subordinate. They saw several thousand soldiers along the road, and Lu Wei was at first frightened. The man told him, “These are the troops you will command in the future.” As they neared Lu Wei’s residence, the man led him through an opening in the rear wall and into the courtyard. There stood command banners, pennants, gongs, and various weapons. The man said, “These are what you will use in the future.” He then buried them beneath the two steps and prepared to leave.

Lu Wei asked, “We have never known each other. Why have you gone to such lengths to help me?” The man replied, “I am your natal guardian deity, the spirit who watches over your fate. The underworld officials summoned you because your allotted years were nearly spent. I have already submitted a report to the celestial authorities. You will certainly live to middle age, and your illness will soon pass, so do not worry.” Lu Wei thanked him, ashamed and grateful. After the man departed, he recovered from his illness soon afterward.

Thereafter, Lu Wei passed the examinations and rose to the rank of Minister of the Golden and Purple Seal. He did indeed live to middle age. He was later appointed governor of Suzhou and commander of the troops at Jiaoqiao, but died before taking up his post. Some said this was because the weapons and command banners had been buried there.

◎ The Proof of Cui Tuxiu’s Rescue of His Mother from the Heavens through a Yellow Register Retreat (Huanglu zhai)

Cui Tu was from Zhongdu in Fangzhou and enjoyed hunting on horseback. One day, while hunting in the wild, his horse suddenly refused to go forward. He whipped it several times, but it still would not move. Furious, Cui Tu dismounted and prepared to shoot it. Suddenly the horse spoke: “I am your mother. You must not harm me. While I was alive, I once took thirty thousand coins from you in secret and gave them to your younger sister as her dowry without telling you. After I died, the underworld authorities responsible for punishment sentenced me to serve as your horse for eight years. The term has now ended, and I am about to die.”

Hearing this, Cui Tu collapsed face down and remained unconscious for a long time. When he awoke, he said to his mother in grief, “It was my lack of filial devotion that made you suffer this punishment.” The horse, too, wept as she replied, “I served as a horse to repay you, but before I had finished, I was sentenced to become your blind maidservant, unable even to speak.” Cui Tu wept and asked, “How can you be freed from this karmic burden?” His mother said, “I have heard that those weighed down by grave karmic obstructions must establish a Yellow Register Daoist ritual assembly, sincerely repent, and thereby escape their suffering.”

As soon as she had finished speaking, the horse died. Cui Tu prepared the body for burial and laid it to rest, then burned his hunting gear. He invited Daoist priests to conduct a Yellow Register ritual assembly, which continued for three days and three nights. On the third night, Cui Tu heard urgent knocking at the gate. When he went outside, he saw that his mother had regained her former appearance and was standing beyond the gate. She said to Cui Tu and his wife, “People living in this world should do good and refrain from evil. The underworld authorities’ judgments are perfectly clear in every case. A mother who used her son’s money was punished so severely; how much worse, then, to take what belongs to someone else? How could that be acceptable? My suffering was beyond measure and impossible to describe. Fortunately, the two of you performed a supreme Yellow Register treasure rite for me. The merit you accumulated enabled me to ascend to heaven, so I have come to bid you farewell.” With that, she rose into the air and departed.

From then on, Cui Tu believed that wrongdoing and good deeds inevitably bring their due consequences, and became convinced that the Great Dao could be followed. He and his wife went to Wangwu Mountain, where they practiced the Dao together with others who shared their aspirations.

Herlian Chong had accumulated this merit and was therefore able to ascend to Heaven, so he came to bid farewell. After speaking, he mounted a cloud and departed. From then on, Tu Zi understood that good and evil deeds inevitably bring their consequences, and that the Great Dao was worth following. The husband and wife therefore went to Mount Wangwu and devoted themselves to cultivating the Dao, united in purpose.

“The Efficacious Account of How Herlian Chong Performed the Yellow Registers Purification to Redress His Father’s Wrong”

Herlian Chong was from Dingyuan County in Lingzhou. His father, Herlian Cong, had once commanded troops on the frontier and killed more than a thousand soldiers who had already surrendered. In the eighth month of the second year of Wude, Herlian Cong died on the frontier. The underworld authorities judged him and made him suffer punishments and hardships for his many sins, but Herlian Chong knew nothing of this.

Herlian Chong served in Lingzhou as an assistant official in the local government. In the eighth year of Zhenguan, he was ordered to travel to the capital. On the way, he visited Mount Zhongnan with a friend. When they reached the entrance to the Charcoal Valley, they met a Daoist named Yang Jingtong. Yang Jingtong had lived in a thatched hut there and cultivated the Dao for more than three hundred years. After getting drunk, Herlian Chong rested in front of the Daoist’s hut and asked him, “I’m hungry. Do you have anything to eat?” Yang Jingtong usually ate nothing. He only smiled and did not answer.

Herlian Chong then ordered his attendants to fetch fire and burn down Yang Jingtong’s hut. Yang Jingtong said, “Your father unjustly killed the people, and now he is suffering in the underworld. You should cultivate good deeds to save him, yet instead you mean to harm me.” Herlian Chong asked, “How do you know?” Yang Jingtong replied, “Sit here, and I’ll summon him so you can see for yourself.”

With that, Yang Jingtong drew a talisman and tossed it into the air. Before long, a black cloud came to the front of the hut. In the cloud, more than twenty ghost soldiers were escorting a man, who was wearing a cangue, shackles, chains, and fetters. They brought him before Yang Jingtong. The ghost soldiers said, “Your son is unfilial and cannot save you.” Herlian Chong saw that the man was indeed his father, Herlian Cong. Grief-stricken, he wept and said to…

His father asked, “Why have I suffered so much?” Then he said, “I killed soldiers who had surrendered. They pleaded their case, wronged, and I have endured every kind of torment in hell because of it. Why do you still slander perfected beings—those high adepts who have attained the Dao—and make my karmic burden even heavier?”

Hearing this, Chong threw himself to the ground, weeping bitterly. He confessed his wrongdoing and begged to bear his father’s sins in his place and deliver his deceased father’s soul. Jing Tong said, “If you wish to lessen your father’s punishment, you can establish a Yellow Register Daoist altar—a Daoist salvation rite held to deliver the dead. Through it, you can rescue him and help him ascend to Heaven, free from the retribution for his sins.”

Before long, his father was led away by ghost officials. Chong bowed to Jing Tong in thanks, then went into the city to the Three Caverns Abbey, where he established a Yellow Register altar and held the rite continuously for seven days and seven nights. On the fifth day, he saw his father arrive riding on clouds. His father told him, “By the command of a heavenly talisman, and through the merit of the Yellow Register rite, I have ascended to Heaven. The wronged souls of those I killed have also all been reborn in the human world.”

The Tang Official Xian Establishes a Yellow Register Rite for His Mother, Who Thereby Ascends to Heaven: An Account of Its Efficacy

Tang Xian was from Pingyu County in Caizhou. At the age of twenty-three, in the fourth year of the Daye era under the Sui dynasty, he was appointed county commandant of Daojiang. He doted on his maid Chunhong and spent all day with her, neglecting government affairs and often letting official duties fall behind. He also suffered from a wasting illness caused by wind, which remained uncured for a long time.

Tang Xian’s mother said, “My son is undisciplined and ill because of this favored maid.” She ordered someone to sell Chunhong. Chunhong told Tang Xian what was happening. Resenting his mother for trying to sell her, he discussed the matter with Chunhong, and together they ultimately poisoned his mother.

A little over a month after his mother died, Tang Xian also died suddenly. Three days after his death, his chest was still warm, so his family did not dare bury him at once. Suddenly, he came back to life and said, “I have committed a grave crime. The sin of poisoning my mother is too great. The underworld authorities, who govern life, death, and punishment, have made me live on and suffer the consequences of my crime.”

From then on, every night two ghost officers arrived with several yaksha, demons who serve as underworld guards, and carried a large pot into the main hall. After a while, a fire was lit beneath it and the liquid inside came to a boil. The yaksha then used their forks to thrust Tang Xian into the scalding liquid. He screamed in agony until the fifth watch, just before dawn. This torment continued for three years. Tang Xian gave many offerings and accumulated much merit, but still could not escape his punishment.

Later, a Daoist who sold medicine suddenly arrived. Tang Xian asked him how he might be freed. The Daoist said, “Living beings’ sins run deep. Nothing is better suited to them than the Yellow Register ritual altar. Through purification rites and offerings, one appeals to Heaven and Earth; for three days and three nights, one burns incense, scatters flowers, hangs banners and canopies used in ritual, chants praises, bows and makes vows, repents and expiates sins, delivers the dead, and resolves grievances. This is the most wondrous method.” Tang Xian then asked the Daoist to establish a Yellow Register ritual altar, a Daoist site for rites seeking blessings, averting calamity, and delivering the dead.

Three days after the ritual began, the ghost officers and yaksha stopped coming, and Tang Xian’s body and mind returned to peace. He was no longer tormented. Suddenly he saw a messenger dressed in yellow, who said to him, “Yesterday, by command of a heavenly talisman, your mother was raised to Heaven because of the merit of your purification rites. Your grave crime of rebellion against your mother has also been pardoned. Chunhong’s sin, however, remains: she must suffer sores and scabies for three years.” As it happened, Chunhong did suffer from sores and scabies for three years before recovering.

After this, Tang Xian gave up his family estate and went to Yangjiao Mountain in Jinzhou, where he asked …

After becoming a Daoist priest, one resolves to cultivate the Daoist arts.

Li Chengsi Performs a Yellow Register Purification Ritual over the Injustice Done to His Wife and Son and Receives a Response

Li Chengsi was from Tangnian County in Ezhou, and his family was extremely wealthy. The wife he had married was unattractive, and their ten-year-old son suffered from an illness affecting his lower back and legs. Li Chengsi had always despised them. Later, he took four concubines and spent his days absorbed in song, dance, and entertainment.

One day, he became drunk. Taking advantage of the moment, a concubine coaxed him with flattering words and urged him to give his wife a hundred thousand cash so she would leave. His wife considered reporting him to the authorities; this was the only thing that temporarily spared her from being cast off. Li Chengsi then conspired with the concubines to poison and kill his wife and son while drinking at night.

More than ten days after they were buried, two crows appeared around noon each day, coming to …