《太上黃籙齋儀》Vol. 57

This scripture primarily explains the Eight Celestial True Texts used in the Daoist Yellow Register Retreat (Huanglu Zhaijiao), along with their ritual protocols. The Yellow Register Retreat, a Daoist rite for liberating deceased souls, serves to rescue wandering spirits and deliver suffering beings while also dispelling calamities and invoking blessings for the living. The text meticulously details the functions of five true texts: the Eastern Nine Qi (Jiuqi) True Text aids in seeking immortality, the Year Star Liver-Supporting True Text averts astral misfortunes, the Eastern Mountain Divine Incantation subdues demonic entities, and the Eastern River Subduing True Text prevents flood disasters.

The Tang Dynasty master Du Guangting clarifies in the preface that these texts originated as esoteric methods taught by the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning (Yuanshi Tianzun) to the Child of Supreme Wisdom in the Fragrant Grove Garden, capable of liberating souls from the Ninefold Netherworld. During the Yellow Register Retreat, these texts must be inscribed with cinnabar on azure paper (qingzhi zhushu—a traditional format for important Daoist documents), incorporating the Eight Heaven Concealed Characters and the Central Heaven Jade Script to sanctify the ritual altar. The ceremony unfolds in two phases: during the Preliminary Night (Suqi), the texts are recited and suppressed with a golden dragon; during the Closing Night (Santan), disciples hold the texts aloft in incense smoke before burning them.

Finally, the scripture presents the jade scripts of the eastern and southern directions—cryptic character combinations representing the "Celestial Hidden Language" (zhutian yinyu), secret heavenly mantras where each syllable embodies spiritual power. Phrases like "Danlou Ahui" and "Nanyan Dongfu" function as ritual incantations that require precise recitation methods to activate their altar-stabilizing and soul-liberating efficacy.

This passage contains the Five Directions Jade Scripts (sacred talismanic writings for the eastern, western, northern, central and other directions) and ritual incantations from the Taoist scripture Taishang Huanglu Zhaiyi (Supreme Yellow Register Purification Liturgy). The text primarily describes the celestial realms of divine beings and the invocational prayers used during zhaijiao (purification rituals).

The Five Directions Jade Scripts employ abundant symbolic language to depict sacred realms: phrases like "nine suns guide heaven and earth" describe northern deities governing the sun and moon's movement, while "yellow center gathers the qi" refers to the central divinity commanding the primordial energy of the cosmos. These talismanic writings possess mystical power to connect heaven and earth during rituals.

The subsequent incantations represent formal invocations recited by ritual masters during ceremonies. The general meaning conveys: The supreme celestial deities operate the transformations of creation, with the sacred radiance from the thirty-two heavens naturally forming talismans that stabilize the cosmos. Today, disciples devoutly perform purification rites through ceremonial actions like incense burning and tooth-knocking (a Taoist ritual gesture), praying to absolve the sins of departed souls. These practices aim to liberate spirits from the three wretched paths (hell, hungry ghosts, and animal realms) and five sufferings (birth, aging, sickness, death, etc.), enabling their names to be recorded in the immortal registers and ascend to paradise. The concluding phrase "winds and flames swiftly transmit" signifies the prayers being rapidly conveyed throughout the celestial realms.

The entire ritual demonstrates Taoism's religious function of saving departed souls and mediating between heaven and humanity through zhaijiao ceremonies. Ritual masters must strictly follow liturgical procedures including tooth-knocking and incantation recitation.