《靈寶領教濟度金書》Vol. 185

This scripture records the morning ritual procedure of the Lingbao School (one of Daoism's major lineages) for conducting disaster-dispelling and blessing ceremonies. Before the ritual begins, the presiding Daoist masters (Gaogong Fashi) Ning Quanzhen and Lin Lingzhen prepare the altar according to traditional liturgical protocols.

First, the masters regulate their physical and mental states, silently reciting their lineage transmission, then chant the "Wei Ling Zhou" (Guardian Spirit Incantation) – a purification mantra for sanctifying the ritual space. The incantation depicts sacred radiance dispelling evil forces: sunlight-like brilliance illuminates the space while the divine White Tiger (a Daoist guardian beast) intimidates malevolent entities, celestial soldiers and generals subdue demons, and various deities cleanse the turbid energies of the Three Realms (Daoist cosmology of Heaven, Earth, and Water realms). The incantation concludes with prayers for union with the supreme Dao.

Next, the masters strike the ritual drum twenty-four times (symbolizing the twenty-four solar terms) to perform the "Fa Lu" (Opening the Furnace) ceremony – a crucial step for activating the altar. They summon the internally cultivated "Sanwu Gongcao" (Three-Five Divine Officials, inner guardian spirits) and thirty-six celestial envoys (Daoist deities), requesting their properly attired presence to protect the altar. The masters formally announce the ritual's purpose of dispelling misfortunes and gathering blessings for devotees, petitioning for the sacred energy of the Supreme Dao Ancestor (highest Daoist deity) to descend upon the altar.

Finally, the masters solemnly invite the celestial pantheon: including the Three Pure Ones (Yuanshi Tianzun, Lingbao Tianzun, Daode Tianzun), the Jade Emperor, the Purple Tenuity Emperor, and other principal heavenly deities, along with Houtu the Earth Goddess and the Nine Heavenly Honored Ones of the Shenxiao lineage. Through these meticulous liturgical procedures, the entire ceremony establishes a channel of communication between humans and deities to achieve its purpose of eliminating calamities and accumulating blessings for devotees.

This scripture depicts the solemn scene of presenting memorials to celestial deities during a Daoist zhaijiao (grand purification ritual).

First, it enumerates the numerous deities to be venerated: the supreme Shangdi (Highest Emperor), the imperial ministers and sovereign lords, the stellar deities revered by the Shangqing tradition, disaster-relieving perfected lords, the destiny-governing primordial stars of one's birth year, the Three Origin Lords overseeing blessings, rank and longevity, the Three Officials (Heavenly Official, Earthly Official, and Water Official), along with various divine officers and generals from the Thunder Ministry, underworld officials, jade maidens and youths, the annual virtue deities (Year Guardian), City God, and all responsive spirits across the Three Realms (heaven, earth, and underworld).

It then describes the Dao of cosmic generation: The Primordial Ancestral Qi (Xiantian Yuanqi) coalesces into form, establishing the Three Powers of heaven, earth and humanity. The creative work of the deities operates all things, maintaining yin-yang transformations like the great cosmic balance. The Purple Tenuity Emperor Star (Diwei) moves unseen, regulating the Five Phases through the five celestial enclosures; the heavenly spheres revolve mysteriously, circulating yin and yang qi according to celestial patterns. This supreme operation of the Dao reaches the Purple Ultimate yet extends to mundane realms, endlessly nurturing all beings.

The text expresses the devotees' piety: We ordinary beings, fortunate to stand among the immortal ranks (Yuanban), are granted audience at the dragon throne (Chibi), vowing to propagate the celestial Dao with jade-like steadfastness to benefit humanity. All faithful prayers will surely reach divine ears.

Finally, it portrays the ritual scene: The fasting master rises at dawn in devout purification, reflecting on worldly toils. Through this ritual, they seek auspicious responses. Gazing toward the celestial realm (Longhan), they listen to crane calls, opening the Lingbao scriptures to manifest heavenly mysteries on earth. The wind of true Dao spreads through the Nine Purities, while teachings rain upon the Three Caverns. Deities descend with morning light, striding the Great Void to bestow blessings - this bridge between heaven and earth has guided beings since antiquity. Now the star altar shines brilliantly, summoning the radiance of the Central Heaven's Purple Tenuity. Scripture cases display the essence of the Ten Directions as jade carriages descend celestial paths with pure tones resonating through clouds. Lion thrones stand majestic while dragon chariots gather, their fragrance rising like the soaring trees of the Nine Heavens, auspicious light illuminating all quarters like the golden crow of Fusang (sunrise place).

This scripture describes the morning Zhaijiao (purification ritual) ceremony of the Lingbao tradition in Daoism. It details the complete threefold incense offering performed by priests during dawn worship.

During the first incense offering, devotees reverently bow to the Supreme Most True Celestial Worthy of the Dao (one of the highest Daoist deities), presenting incense to this venerable divinity who has endured countless kalpas. Prostrating fully, they pray for the emperor to emulate the virtuous ancient sage-kings Fuxi and the Yellow Emperor, surpassing the achievements of Emperor Yan and Suirenshi, wishing the imperial reign to endure as steadfast as mountains and seas. Simultaneously, they offer blessings for ancestral spirits of the state, hoping departed forebears may dwell peacefully in the immortal realms.

The second incense offering honors the Supreme Most True Celestial Worthy of the Scriptures (deity representing Daoist sacred texts). This segment primarily focuses on blessings for the patron sponsoring the ritual, wishing them domestic harmony, household prosperity, and wise descendants. It also performs salvation rites for the patron's nine generations of ancestors, praying for their liberation from hellish sufferings and rebirth in the Vermilion Palace (Daoist realm for refining departed souls).

For the third incense offering, devotees present incense to the Supreme Most True Celestial Worthy of the Masters (deity representing Daoist transmission lineages). They beseech divine protection for all beings, enabling practitioners to comprehend the true meaning of the Dao. The ceremony concludes with wishes for all participants to achieve unity with the Dao (He Yu Dao He Zhen), realizing the state of cosmic harmony.

Each incense offering concludes by reciting the prayer phrase "Harmony and Unity with the Dao," expressing the aspiration to merge with the ultimate truth through ritual offerings. The entire ceremony embodies Daoism's religious functions: blessing rulers, redeeming ancestors, and dispelling misfortunes for devotees.

This passage from the Daoist scripture Lingbao Lingjiao Jidu Jinshu describes a ceremonial worship ritual where practitioners devoutly petition the celestial deities.

First, the cultivators prostrate themselves with utmost reverence before the supreme Tianzun (the highest Daoist deities), surrendering body, mind, and life to the Dao. They seek blessings from the Three Pure Ones (Sanqing) - Taiqing, Yuqing, and Shangqing - praying that their cultivation merits may benefit all under heaven. Their petitions extend to the flourishing of benevolent virtue across the land, wishing for people's peaceful livelihood, abundant harvests, and the cessation of warfare.

Further petitions include aspirations for enlightened governance: may scholarly pursuits flourish throughout the realm with proper transmission of all trades; may fishing nets grow sparse in rivers to let fish swim freely; may axes rest in forests allowing vegetation to grow undisturbed. Special prayers are offered that teachers and fellow practitioners may transcend worldly attachments and awaken to the Dao. Through refining the "Four Qi" (four essential energies of cultivation), they seek physical and mental purification with divine light manifesting in their Dantian (energy centers); by harmonizing the "Three Treasures" (Jing, Qi, and Shen), they aspire for spiritual awakening at the Mysterious Pass (key meditation points).

The incense-offering ceremony follows, where practitioners vow devotion to their masters and perfected sages, hoping to transcend physical form and unite with the Great Dao upon attainment. Three hymns of praise then commence:

The first hymn describes how Dao cultivators take the Dharma as companion, maintaining precepts with restrained desires until righteous energy fills their being. With serene spirit, they earn even heavenly demons' respect and protection, enjoying boundless blessings across lifetimes.

The second hymn depicts a prosperous nation where the Dao flourishes, with celestial and earthly beings sharing common aspirations. Through mind cultivation they establish fields of merit, keeping the Dharma wheel turning - ancestors ascend to heavenly realms while practitioners themselves achieve daylight ascension.

The third hymn extols the profound mystery of the Great Dao, attainable through sincere practice. By cultivation one achieves an immortal perfected body, transcending the Three Realms' suffering and liberation from the Five Sufferings of hell (five torments in underworld), ultimately returning to the Supreme Dao.

The ceremony culminates in three solemn prostrations: first to the Limitless Great Dao (Dao's primordial source), then to the Thirty-Six Sacred Scriptures (core Daoist canon), and finally to the Great Masters of Mysterious Centrality (Daoist patriarchs). Concluding the rite, the presiding Daoist priest and ceremonial officers jointly petition the Three Pure Ones, perfected beings of the ten directions, celestial immortals, and deities of the Three Realms for compassionate protection.

This scripture describes a solemn Daoist purification ritual (Zhaijiao), unfolding through several distinct layers:

The text first paints a celestial vision: across jade-blue skies, immortal beings adorned with ornate crowns ride upon primordial Qi (vital energy), gazing upward toward the towering Mystic Capital (Xuandu, a Daoist paradise) and the majestic Purple Palace (heavenly court). Myriad stars revolve in harmonious motion, while three thousand worlds bow in veneration toward the central Jade Canopy Heaven (Yuluo Tian, the highest Daoist realm). The natural order manifests through the measured cycles of sun and moon, the timely descent of wind, rain, frost, and dew—all revealing the operations of the supreme Dao.

It then introduces the participating Daoist priests: these practitioners follow celestial principles with minds attuned to profound mysteries, carrying sacred scriptures (divine dragon-cloud folios) as they transcend worldly distractions in devoted cultivation. Though their personal attainment remains modest, they seek divine protection through quiet meditation to apprehend true Dao and preserve teachings through ritual transmission.

The scripture details the patron's aspirations: with reverent devotion, the ritual sponsor seeks multiple blessings through this ceremony. Prayers address the cleansing of past transgressions and the accumulation of future merit. Special supplications invoke the Eastern Florescence Emperor (Donghua Dijun, overseer of immortal registers) and the Southern Pole Immortal Elder (symbol of longevity), petitioning for purified body and mind, harmonized essence (Jing), energy (Qi), and spirit (Shen), deliverance from calamity, ancestral salvation, and familial prosperity.

The collective vows follow: petitions for clear heavens and fertile earth, seasonal harmony and stellar radiance, universal peace and enlightenment. May all beings awaken to Dao's transcendence, and the underworld eternally bask in springtime light. These aspirations simultaneously manifest the compassionate teachings of celestial venerables and express the participants' sincere repentance.

The ritual culminates in divine visualization (Cunshen) and incense offerings, summoning celestial emissaries like the Incense Official Messengers and Dragon-Tiger Lords to witness and protect the ceremony. The entire passage embodies the core Daoist concept of "heaven-human resonance," where reverent prayer and proper liturgy facilitate communion between realms, channeling blessings and dispelling misfortune.

This scripture describes the scene of the Morning Court ritual (Zhaijiao) in Daoist ceremonies. At the site where the altar is established at dawn, golden celestial nectar and luminous lingzhi mushrooms resembling cinnabar clouds and jasper naturally manifest, while various deities gather before the incense burner of this sacred grotto-altar.

During the ritual, the presiding priest (referred to as "your servant," a humble self-designation by Daoist clergy) prays that through the study of the Dao (the Way), one may truly attain it, and that the pursuit of immortality may lead to ascension as desired. Officials participating in the Zhaijiao receive blessings, and beings of both the yin (spirit) and yang (mortal) realms are graced with divine favor. Celestial youths and jade maidens—attendants of the immortal realms—from the Ten Directions guard the curling incense smoke, swiftly conveying the priest’s devout petitions to the highest heavenly courts.

The text specifically mentions the supreme deities to whom these prayers ascend: the Great Dao of the Supreme Ultimate (the highest personification of the Dao), the Three Pure Ones (Sanqing)—Jade Pure, Upper Pure, and Grand Pure, the loftiest triad—and the Jade Emperor of the Vast Heaven, the supreme ruler of the celestial court. The phrase "before the imperial presence" indicates that these petitions are directly presented to these august deities.

The ritual sequence includes chanting the "Hymn of Departure from the Hall" (a eulogy sung when leaving the altar), proceeding to the Master’s Hall (to pay respects at the ancestral shrine), and offering gratitude to the master (kowtowing in thanks for the transmission of teachings). This passage is drawn from The Golden Book of Salvation According to the Numinous Treasure Tradition (Lingbao Lingjiao Jidu Jinshu), Volume 185, a major compendium of Daoist Zhaijiao liturgy compiled during the Song Dynasty.