《太上洞淵神咒經》Vol. 8

In the eighth volume "Summoning Ghosts Chapter" of the Taishang Dongyuan Shenzhou Jing (Great Supreme Cavernous Divine Incantations Scripture), the Celestial Worthy (the supreme deity in Daoism) reveals the truth of the Three Realms (Desire Realm, Form Realm, and Formless Realm): In this world today, few truly believe in the scriptures, so virtuous people are rare while wicked ones gather and run rampant. Only those who follow Daoism and practice the scriptures can receive divine protection.

When great calamities descend during the Jiashen year, the heavens will send envoys to receive Daoist cultivators but will not extend this grace to sinners—because they do not uphold the true Dharma. During the Renwu and Gengchen years, plagues and wars will arise, leaving very few survivors. However, when epidemics spread, if Daoist priests well-versed in the Three Caverns (Dongzhen, Dongxuan, Dongshen) scriptures establish ritual spaces to chant scriptures and perform rites, the Celestial Worthy will summon great deities from the ten directions to provide protection, healing the sick and resolving legal disputes naturally. Those who defy the Mandate of Heaven will first be punished by the Ghost Kings.

The scripture specifically mentions that during the Xinsi year, a malevolent ghost named "Dulu Na" will appear—three zhang tall (about 9 meters), with vertical eyes, a horizontal mouth, ears six inches long, and wielding an iron staff as it roams the human realm, slaying the wicked. At this time, 69,000 epidemic ghosts will transform into giant birds; wherever they fly, people will fall ill and die. By the Renchen year, the populace will suffer immense hardship, and by the Jiashen year, most will perish—unless a national-level Daoist master performs scripture recitation and rituals to avert the disaster. Then, celestial soldiers from the Three Heavens (Qingwei Tian, Yu Yu Tian, and Dachi Tian) will descend to protect them, preventing calamity. Daoist priests must guide people to follow the Three Caverns scriptures.

As the Jiashen year approaches, 490,000 ghost soldiers will manifest as "Black Mystic Warriors," roaming nations and killing. But if Daoists establish ritual spaces according to the Three Caverns scriptures and practice the Three-Five Method (cultivating the Three Dantian and Five Phases), deities will offer protection, driving away malevolent ghosts and aiding priests in enlightening the ignorant. Whether rulers, generals, or commoners, all who uphold the Three Caverns scriptures will receive great blessings in future lives, extending to their descendants for generations. After death, they will ascend to the heavens, dwelling among sages, and never be reborn into poverty or low status.

The Celestial Worthy declares: The reason the world is filled with peril is because good people struggle to survive. Today's wealthy and powerful may have accumulated minor merits in past lives to be reborn into privilege, but as they reject the true Dharma and misunderstand the scriptures, they remain sinners at heart. Though they possess wealth and status, they lack connection to the Great Dao and cannot escape disaster. Only those truly devoted to the Dao are the envoys sent by heaven to save and deliver the world.

Worldly riches and honors are like morning dew—vanishing with the rising sun, fleeting and impermanent. Rather than chasing such transience, one should devote themselves to cultivating the Dao of immortality, which endures beyond countless kalpas without perishing.

The perfected beings (zhenren) of the Dao teach humanity to revere the Three Caverns Scriptures (Sanqing jing, the highest Daoist canon), through which swift ascension to immortality is possible. When illness or legal troubles arise, sincere recitation of these scriptures can avert misfortune. Wherever these sacred texts are present, plagues and malignant spirits naturally dissipate. Let us encourage one another in this practice.

From the year of Wuyin onward, a crimson-nosed demon named Fuzi will appear—nine feet tall with three faces and one eye. Another breed of demons, three feet in height with double heads sharing one body and glowing red eyes, will emerge. The Daye demons, seven feet tall with three heads per body, will roam in hordes, wielding white blades to snatch children from the world. Their crimson miasma drifting through clouds induces chills, fever, bloody vomit, chest constriction, and delirium. Only when masters versed in the Three Caverns scriptures perform recitations will the afflicted recover and legal disputes resolve. Should conditions persist, know it is the Demon King's doing.

Between now and the Gengchen year, thirty-six thousand Tianchi demons with thirty thousand attendants will slaughter indiscriminately. Come Renwu year, three thousand nine hundred crimson-headed demons called Datou will descend, unleashing carnage that sparks widespread warfare. Chaos will reign as calamities multiply, extinguishing foreign tribes. Only the Daoist teachings will flourish while worldly paths decline. By Jiashen year, few commoners will remain. Survival hinges on cultivating the Three Caverns scriptures with reverence for teachers and the Dao—then celestial guardians will descend to escort devotees heavenward.

During Renwu's upheavals, as foreign invasions bring suffering—particularly devastating the Shu-Han region—Daoists must retreat to mountains to practice Three Caverns methods until meeting the True Lords (high Daoist deities). These divine beings will manifest no later than Renchen year. Henceforth, Heaven punishes the ignorant; only Daoists can redeem them.

That same Renwu year will see eighty thousand three-foot-six-inch demons called Dadan—with 3.9 trillion companions—wielding crimson clubs to execute the wicked. Meanwhile, white birds the size of cartwheels will arrive in countless multitudes.

The Scripture of the Divine Spells of the Most High's Cavernous Abyss (Taishang Dongyuan Shenzhou Jing) describes how people can attain salvation through devotion to the Dao during the coming cosmic calamity.

The scripture foretells ominous portents preceding the great tribulation: unexplained deaths of children in households, dead fish appearing in waters, and deceased deer in wilderness—consuming any of these will prove fatal. Daoist practitioners (those cultivating the Dao) should uphold this scripture to instruct people and help them avoid these taboos.

The Dao Ancestor (Taishang Laojun) prophesies the imminent arrival of a great cosmic catastrophe—floodwaters will engulf the world, and few living beings will escape calamity. Only those devoted to the Three Caverns scriptures (the Shangqing, Lingbao, and Three Sovereigns canons of Daoism) will preserve their lives. From now onward, when Daoist practitioners help others resolve legal disputes or illnesses, four hundred thousand celestial jade maidens will descend to assist them in averting disasters. Practitioners should diligently guide humanity.

The Dao Ancestor emphasizes that before the great calamity arrives, ordinary people remain ignorant of impending doom. Practitioners who first encounter this scripture must urgently guide people to take refuge in the Three Caverns teachings. The celestial realm will assuredly receive those devoted to these scriptures—this truth is absolute and unfailing.

Lamenting humanity's obstinate delusion during the approaching catastrophe—comparable to the dullness of livestock—the Dao Ancestor observes that though Taishang Laojun embodies boundless compassion, beings drowning in desire refuse salvation, ultimately courting destruction. Therefore, deities from the ten directions and Three Caverns practitioners must jointly awaken these deluded beings to the profound meaning of the scriptures, creating immeasurable merit. However, practitioners who retreat to remote mountains solely for personal cultivation without teaching others accumulate no such merit.

The Dao Ancestor clarifies that practitioners seeking personal transcendence may dwell in sacred mountains, but those vowing to universally deliver beings must engage with the world to teach. Remote mountains isolate practitioners from worldly affairs, leaving aspirants without guidance even when inclined toward the Dao. Thus, truly wise practitioners need not rigidly confine themselves to mountain cultivation.

Finally, the text emphasizes that only formally ordained Three Caverns masters (those qualified to transmit teachings) may recite this scripture, as it contains secret methods for subduing demons and healing people—including the true names of major demon kings. Those preserving this scripture must store it in a special container. When encountering people entangled in lawsuits or chronic illness, performing a twenty-four hour purification ritual (zhaijiao) will prompt the Dao Ancestor to dispatch spirits to investigate the causes and heal the afflicted. All practitioners who diligently teach and heal through these scriptural methods will receive protection from both major and minor demon kings.

This scripture describes a plague disaster caused by evil spirits and how Daoist deities assist devotees in combating these calamities. The main content unfolds in several parts:

It first foretells that in the Jia-Chen year (a calamitous year in Daoist prophecy), three hundred sixty thousand black demons will descend upon the world, bringing plagues like dysentery and scarlet fever. These demons kill at night, some transforming into women or elderly figures to infiltrate homes, specifically harming children and livestock. As the nation falls into turmoil with corrupt officials and displaced commoners, Daoist priests who persistently recite scriptures and perform rituals will summon three hundred sixty thousand celestial soldiers from heaven. These divine forces interrogate the malevolent spirits, completely annihilating the demons and their accomplices.

The text then details various harmful spirits: the Mysterious Zidu Demon King of mountain forests commands twenty million nine hundred thousand demon soldiers specializing in causing sudden deaths; thirty-nine thousand red-turbaned demons steal livestock; eight hundred thousand green insect demons standing three chi six cun tall can set houses ablaze; four hundred ninety thousand Great Fortune Blue Demons bludgeon people with red clubs. Yet none dare approach virtuous Daoist practitioners, only punishing those who kill, show filial impiety, or slander Daoist priests. Such evil-doers will either fall into the Crimson Sand Hell (a Daoist purgatory of severe punishment) after death or suffer chronic illness and misfortune during their lifetimes.

The scripture particularly emphasizes that those who disrespect their masters, violate Daoist precepts, or insult priests bear the gravest sins. After death, they endure ten thousand kalpas of torment in the Crimson Sand Hell (an immeasurably long time), and even if reborn, can only return as field-protecting birds (a type of waterfowl). In their current lives, they suffer prolonged illness, reap no harvests from farming or sericulture, and become objects of public ridicule. These consequences, the text states, are karmic retribution for their past transgressions.

This passage reflects the Daoist doctrine of "Chengfu" (the concept of moral retribution), using terrifying demonic imagery and severe punishments to exhort people to honor teachers, uphold the Dao, and cultivate virtue. The various named demons and their forms represent common targets of exorcism in Daoist ritual practice.

This scripture passage emphasizes the absolute reverence disciples must show toward their masters in spiritual cultivation, warning of severe divine retribution for violations. It states that those who insult their teachers or disrespect the teachings of the Three Caverns (Sanqing scriptures) will be immediately seized by demon kings and infernal officers. Such offenders will be imprisoned in the Second Heavenly Prison (a Daoist purgatory), where their three hun and seven po souls (fourteen po for women) will endure unbearable torment—denied both survival and release.

Practitioners should honor their masters as they would Heaven itself, offering seasonal greetings during the eight solar terms (beginning of spring, summer, etc.). Disciples must strictly follow protocol when receiving instruction. Should they disregard their master’s guidance, the master will cease teaching them, and divine protection will be withdrawn. As the most venerated human figures, masters deserve filial devotion akin to parents; the slightest neglect invites celestial punishment beyond even demon kings’ mercy.

A dire warning specifies that during cyclical years like Jiayin, Gengshen, or Renwu, masses of disrespectful disciples will face execution. Daoist priests who slight their masters will be slain simultaneously by 360,000 ghost soldiers, with 400,000 more specters pursuing such offenders. The text stresses that priests must wholeheartedly serve their masters, study the Three Caverns scriptures, and heal the people’s afflictions. Violators causing failed cures or legal entanglements will be dismembered by demon kings.

Concluding with the "Supreme Oral Commandment" (Taishang kouchi lüling)—a divine decree from the highest deity Lord Lao—the passage underscores these rules’ sacred inviolability. Through vivid depictions of horrific punishments, it relentlessly reinforces the sanctity of the master-disciple bond.

This scripture describes the calamities that will arise in different years and the punishments inflicted upon those who violate Daoist teachings. In the year of Yisi, ninety thousand red-nosed demons will slay the wicked across the land. By the years of Guisi and Renchen, those who reject the Dao's teachings and refuse to accept the scriptures will be cast into the Eighteen-Layer Expulsion Hell (a realm of punishment in Daoism), with thirty-nine thousand unjust deaths occurring daily.

The text warns that when plagues ravage the land and Daoist priests fail to cure the afflicted despite their efforts, demon kings like Nalü (a hellish overlord) will be torn limb from limb without mercy. The Supreme Lord Lao (Taishang Laojun, highest deity in Daoism) will personally distinguish the virtuous from the wicked.

Daoism admonishes all priests, male and female: henceforth they must diligently guide humanity, helping people embrace the Three Caverns' True Scriptures (core Daoist classics) and wear protective talismans (Fulu), while maintaining strict master-disciple transmission. Those who break these covenants will see their households exterminated by celestial soldiers, be condemned to plague-ridden realms after death, and suffer eternal regret. The Supreme Lord Lao dispatches thirty-six thousand crimson-armored cavalry bearing iron staves to patrol the mortal world, arresting the unrighteous. If a patient treated by priests isn't pardoned by demon kings, those demonic rulers shall likewise be punished.

During the Renxu and Guihai years, eight thousand life-reaping ghosts will kill those who fail to venerate the Great Dao. By Guiwei and Jiachen years, one hundred twenty thousand red demons will cause half the population to perish by sword and spear—punishing those who mock cultivators, disturb minds, assault priests, speak duplicitously, or slander masters and disciples. These offenders will plunge into the Boiling Ash Hell (a realm of scorching embers), never attaining liberation.

The scripture further specifies eight thousand untimely deaths during Simao, Bingyin, and Dinghai years for these crimes: rejecting the Dao's laws, defaulting on celestial tributes (religious obligations), breaking vows, swindling wealth, neglecting virtuous deeds, and violating fasting precepts (religious taboos). Even ordained priests who neglect ritual offerings, ignore emergencies, indulge in pleasures, offer insincere support to masters, or consume impure food will be thrown into the Great Expulsion Water Prison (a watery hell). Their future rebirths will leave them mutilated—worse than beasts—with not even demon-slaying overlords offering salvation.

The Great Daoist Masters (referring to perfected adepts who have attained the Dao), while traveling through the mortal world, observed that most people were steeped in ignorance. Thus they transmitted this "Great Scripture of Samadhi" (Sanmei Dajing). This twenty-volume scripture is a precious Dharma treasure bestowed upon humanity by the Supreme Dao Ancestor (Taishang Daozu). All who receive this scripture will behold the Supreme Dao Ancestor in person. Those who do not receive this divine incantation scripture cannot enter mountains for cultivation, cannot be considered true Daoist priests, and cannot use these methods to heal others.

From now on, ritual masters must first receive and uphold this scripture. It can subdue all great demon kings, minor ghost kings, and their retinues (referring to the demon kings' followers), who will then assist Daoist priests in delivering sentient beings and healing illnesses. Why is this? Because all demon kings actually cooperate with the Supreme Dao Ancestor in governing and teaching living beings. Those with wisdom should contemplate this truth deeply.

People in later generations who do not follow the Great Dao but instead follow vulgar worldly teachers—beating gongs and drums to worship evil spirits, slaughtering pigs, dogs, chickens and other livestock to summon hundreds of ghosts in desolate wilderness areas and make offerings to mountain demons—will only invite chaos from evil spirits. Not only will they receive no blessings, but their entire families will be interrogated and punished by the Three Officials of the Underworld (referring to the Heaven Official, Earth Official, and Water Official), suffering various calamities until their lineages are extinguished. When that time comes, they should not complain that the Great Dao is ineffective.

Devout Daoist families should concentrate their minds single-mindedly, orienting all actions toward the true path. When making incense offerings, all purification rituals (Zhaijiao, Daoist ceremonial activities) must be conducted by proper ritual masters—never invite vulgar practitioners of heterodox methods, as this will disturb the household deities and bring calamity to the living, resulting in family ruin. This too is a truth Daoist priests must teach the world.

People's blindness prevents them from seeing the good path and recognizing true Dharma, hence many meet untimely deaths. From now on, when practitioners encounter critically ill patients, all Daoist priests should set up purification altars and perform charitable acts for healing. At such times, celestial warriors from the heavenly realms, the Jade Maidens of the Three Heavens (female transcendents of the immortal realms), and deities from the ten directions will come to assist, swiftly curing illnesses, resolving legal troubles, and fulfilling all the host's wishes. Priests who accomplish this will receive immeasurable blessings. But if the healing proves ineffective, it indicates the patient's heavy karmic obstructions—then all ghost kings will mercilessly exterminate the troublemaking demon kings and their followers.

Whether dealing with demon kings or contemporary sufferers of illness, when Daoist priests use this scripture for healing, all ghost kings will obey their commands. This divine incantation can dispel countless diseases, bringing peace to Daoist families for generations. Those who recite this scripture will receive the protection of one hundred thousand Jade Maidens sent by the Supreme Dao Ancestor. All demon kings will bow respectfully upon seeing such priests, knowing they bear the mission of delivering sentient beings.

This scripture passage describes Daoist exorcism rituals for healing illnesses and dispelling misfortunes, focusing on summoning divine generals to subdue malevolent spirits.

The text explains that when people fall ill or face legal troubles, it is often due to the mischief of minor ghosts and evil entities. In such cases, one must summon the Great Halberd General (a Daoist guardian deity) along with his retinue of 3.9 billion crimson cavalry, armed with red staffs, to patrol the human realm and capture the petty ghosts responsible for spreading disease. If these ghosts are found impersonating the names of revered deities like the Three Dukes and Five Emperors, they must be executed immediately. Should any ghost refuse to depart, even the Three Demon Kings and their descendants will be slain without mercy.

The scripture mentions interrogating 490,000 demonic rulers, including the Pecking-Head Great Demon King and the Black-Extended Great King. If the ghosts disobey orders and fail to heal the afflicted, they too must be executed. The text particularly emphasizes that sixty-nine types of illnesses in the world are caused by major ghosts—entities like Changxu Shaogong and Aitu Muchuan, whose evil deeds lead to widespread sickness and death among the people.

For those suffering from illness or legal disputes, the scripture commands the demon kings to immediately release official documents (spiritual decrees) so that the sick may recover naturally and legal troubles dissolve on their own. The passage concludes with the standard Daoist imperative formula: "Swiftly, swiftly, in accordance with the Supreme Oral Decree and Command!"—underscoring that these divine orders must be executed without delay.

This scripture describes the scene where the Supreme Dao Lord (Taishang Daojun), one of the highest deities in Daoism, subdues plague demons to protect the people. The text explains that various pestilential qi (epidemic energies) and minor demons called "Yellow Slaves and Seven Offspring" are wreaking havoc upon humanity, but the Dao Lord already knows the names of these mischievous spirits.

With stern authority, the Dao Lord issues a decree: from this moment onward, the demon kings of the Thirty-Six Heavens must descend to the mortal realm, prostrate themselves seventy times, and assist in capturing all minor demons. Ever since the Supreme Dao Lord proclaimed this command, these evil spirits no longer dare to bring calamity upon the people. Should anyone still fall ill, the demon kings themselves will suffer ten thousand beheadings as punishment.

The scripture further states that although some people dwell within the land, they do not follow the Dao. Yet if even a single person upholds Daoist teachings and carries the talismanic registers of the Three Caverns (the core Daoist scriptures), when illness strikes, the ritual masters who perform healing rites will be aided by the demon kings to ensure the patient’s recovery. Should the afflicted remain unhealed, these minor demons will be executed without mercy.

As the Supreme Dao Lord proclaimed these meritorious deeds, all the great demon kings descended to bow in reverence, vowing never again to allow their underlings to run rampant. They swore a grave oath: if even one person in the world still suffered illness, their heads would shatter into forty-nine pieces.

This passage illustrates the Daoist belief in using divine authority to subdue plague demons and safeguard devotees, emphasizing that practicing the Dao can exorcise evil and cure disease, while deities impose severe punishments upon those who defy their commands.