《道教靈驗記》Vol. 8

The eighth volume of Daoist Miraculous Accounts records manifestations of two Celestial Masters (Tianshi, an honorific title for realized Daoist adepts), compiled by Tang dynasty Daoist priest Du Guangting (Daoist name: Master Guangcheng).

The first account occurred at the Zhaocheng Temple in Chang'an. The temple's mural of a Celestial Master had faded with age and received few offerings. Nearby in Banzheng Ward, a malaria-stricken man surnamed Li suffered for over a year without cure despite medical treatment. One night he dreamed of a three-meter-tall transcendent in coarse Daoist robes who gently brushed his face with a sleeve, bringing immediate cool relief. The immortal foretold his recovery, which manifested upon waking. When Li later visited Zhaocheng Temple on crutches, he recognized the mural's Celestial Master as his savior and commissioned master artisan Liu to recreate the image using the special jiazhu technique (lacquer-impregnated hemp sculpture). This unique statue contained five-colored silk organs filled with Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water) corresponding fragrances, with a mercury mirror embedded in the chest—unlike ordinary icons. After being transferred to Tianchang Temple, the restored statue continued manifesting remarkable efficacy.

The second narrative recounts official Liu Cunxi's extraordinary experience. Since childhood, he had devoutly offered incense daily to a Celestial Master portrait at Tangxing Temple, even during official duties. When Huang Chao's rebellion sacked Chang'an, Liu barely escaped clutching the sacred scroll while thirty companions were captured or killed. Fleeing southward at night, he miraculously reunited with his lost wife near Nanshan. The couple eventually built a thatched hermitage deep in Yangzhou's Dayan Mountains. These accounts exemplify the Daoist belief that sincere veneration invites divine protection.

This couple had no other relatives, relying solely on each other for survival. They decided to retreat from worldly turmoil and live in seclusion among the mountains, completely abandoning pursuits of fame and fortune, roaming freely like wild deer in the wilderness. Villagers below the mountain, seeing their simple lifestyle, often provided them with essentials like grain, salt, and vinegar. The couple spent their days gathering cypress seeds and burning incense in reverence to the Celestial Master (Tianshi, referring to Zhang Daoling, founder of Daoism), living a life of quiet cultivation.

Later, their old friend Song Kaifu (an official title), who had risen to high office, learned of their seclusion in Yang Mountain and forcibly summoned them to serve, bestowing official robes and titles upon them. Unable to refuse, they reluctantly complied. However, while accompanying the imperial entourage to Shimen, they seized the chance to escape into the mountains of Shacheng, hiding for several months. Once, when soldiers scoured the hills, they abandoned their fine garments overnight and fled over forty li. As they neared the plains, they spotted a dozen cavalrymen encircling the area, having already captured many travelers. Frozen in fear, the couple stood motionless—yet the horsemen passed by as if blind to their presence, sparing them miraculously.

Years later, an envoy returning from Western Chuan brought back a portrait of the Celestial Master. Deep in the mountains, whether facing threats from wild beasts or armed conflict, the couple remained serene. In moments of peril, they always sensed an invisible presence, as though the Celestial Master watched over them. They experienced other mystical phenomena too, though they never spoke of these to outsiders.

Another tale unfolds in Chengdu. The wealthy Long family owned a pavilion behind Daci Temple, which the hermit Sun Yu from Kuaiji Mountain once borrowed. Sun noticed that servants were often dragged downstairs by unseen forces at night—though unharmed, this occurred repeatedly. When he stayed overnight himself, he heard multiple footsteps and constant shouts. Later, Sun painted an image of the Celestial Master on the wall beside the staircase, offering incense day and night. From then on, the pavilion grew peaceful, and he lived there alone for over a decade without further disturbances. Those who heard of this marveled at it. Eventually, the pavilion passed to a military officer (its final fate remains untold).

Regarding Grand Guardian (high-ranking official) Li Shitai's initial plan to demolish the pavilion for relocation, I petitioned to have the murals preserved by transferring them to the Northern Emperor Courtyard (the hall dedicated to the Great Emperor of the North Star).

On the miraculous manifestations at the Celestial Master's Well in Shuzhou: This well is located within the Kaiyuan Temple. Ancient legends recount that when Celestial Master Zhang (Zhang Daoling, founder of Daoism) traveled by crane from Heming Mountain, he once rested at this site. At times he would ride his crane into the well to return to the mountains, which is why the nearby Crane-Riding Temple was built, along with a Celestial Master Hall beside the well. Two bronze cranes were cast at the well's mouth, and every three years when the well was dredged, large amounts of coins would be retrieved, used for temple maintenance and incense offerings. The well water was renowned for its healing properties—drinking it cured illnesses, and washing sores with it brought immediate relief. After wartime destruction left the temple in ruins, only the Celestial Master Hall, ancient well, and a venerable nanmu tree remained.

A soldier surnamed Chen, while cultivating paddy fields near the temple, dismantled the well's stone railing (originally made of two stone slabs) for irrigation. Craftsmen warned him the site was too sacred to disturb, but when Chen personally tore it down, he was suddenly struck with severe eye pain and became completely blind within days. To this day, the two stone slabs remain discarded in the irrigation ditch.

Concerning the Celestial Master's Well in Lingzhou: Tradition holds that while Zhang Daoling practiced cultivation in the mountains, twelve jade maidens (female deities) came to pay homage, offering to serve him. Recognizing them as underworld spirits, the Celestial Master tested them: "What offerings will you present? I require proof of sincerity." Each maiden offered a jade ring several inches wide. The Master declared: "Identical gifts cannot all be accepted. I shall fuse these twelve rings into one—whoever retrieves it may stay." He merged the rings into a single foot-wide disc and cast it into the earth. The maidens disrobed and dove into the well but failed to recover it. The Celestial Master sealed their garments in a stone casket, and legend says the maidens remain trapped in the well's depths. The present-day Lingzhou salt well descends 570 feet, piercing two massive rock layers before reaching brine. During annual dredging, singing voices still echo from its bottom.

This passage recounts two miraculous stories related to the Celestial Master (Tianshi, referring to Zhang Daoling, founder of the Zhengyi Orthodox Unity tradition of Daoism).

The first story describes the wonders of the Lingzhou salt well. People had to make loud noises before entering, otherwise they would see naked jade maidens (female Daoist immortals) in the well, and those who saw them often encountered misfortune. The well was extremely deep, and frequent descents risked rope breakage and fatal falls. Only after prolonged incense offerings before the Celestial Master's statue would the jade maidens voluntarily assist with hanging tools. Later, a salt inspector named Zhang Tian in Dongchuan neglected his duties, causing a shortage of several thousand jin in salt taxes. His successor, a devout Daoist, prayed together with Zhang Tian to the Celestial Master. Miraculously, salt production suddenly increased over the following days, making up the entire deficit within five or six days.

The text further explains that twelve jade maidens took turns guarding the well, with two ascending to heaven during the hours of Xu and Hai (7-11 PM), leaving only ten working in the well—hence salt production paused during these hours. The Celestial Master originally manifested this salt well to aid the poor in this barren land. As populations gathered, Lingzhou (named after the Celestial Master) was eventually established. The Celestial Master vowed that this well existed solely to sustain the impoverished—if officials forcibly monopolized its benefits, it would collapse after a thousand years. To this day, all salt wells maintain statues of both the Celestial Master and the jade maidens.

The second story tells of Chengdu resident Huangfu Qia's extraordinary encounter. A devoted worshipper of the Celestial Master, he frequently visited Lingzhou to copy the master's portrait for daily veneration. When plague struck his neighborhood, infecting over a dozen servants in his household, he alone remained unharmed due to his daily incense offerings. One noon, he dreamed of a child announcing "The Celestial Master has arrived," and indeed saw the white-robed, sword-bearing master appear. The master first sprinkled him with water from a bowl, immediately refreshing his spirit; then circled his residence sprinkling water both inside and out before returning the bowl to the altar. Upon waking, everyone in his household had recovered from illness.

This passage records two accounts of Daoist spiritual efficacy. The first story recounts the miraculous healing performed by a Celestial Master (Tianshi, high-ranking Daoist priest): When an entire household of over ten people simultaneously fell mysteriously ill, the Celestial Master descended and stayed for three days to heal them. Not only was the family cured, but neighboring households also received blessings. The Celestial Master informed the family head Li Qia that his sincere devotion had moved Heaven, prompting this divine intervention. The master's attendants captured two minor demons each from the kitchen stove, firewood pile, and dung heap, plus a major demon seated on the roof beam—all were escorted to Mount Qingcheng for imprisonment. When the Celestial Master pointed at these spirits with his cinnabar brush, they fled in terror, a miracle witnessed by the entire household.

The second story describes the extraordinary experience of Li Xiang. During the Xiantong era of the Tang dynasty, though serving as Chief Administrator to a princely household, this nobleman lived in poverty and despondency. One night he dreamed of journeying deep into mountainous terrain, traversing winding cliffside paths past both bustling cities and desolate wilderness, until reaching a small town. There stood a Daoist temple emitting white Qi that pierced the heavens, accompanied by mournful wailing. A blue-robed youth guided him up steep stone steps into an ancient temple. As a lifelong Daoist devotee, Li was astonished when the temple's deity statue addressed him: "You've finally come—I've long awaited you." The deity instructed him to practice "gargling from the Mystic Spring" (a cultivation technique) and "focusing the Dantian (energy center) to preserve the White Origin" (Neidan internal alchemy), while accumulating hidden virtue through public service. The statue prophesied that next spring would bring thousands of households requiring his aid. Upon awakening, Li was indeed appointed Prefect of Lingzhou that winter, gaining his opportunity to fulfill this destiny.

Both stories embody core Daoist principles of "sincere devotion invoking divine response" and "accumulating virtue through good deeds," demonstrating through divine manifestations and dream revelations the integral connection between spiritual cultivation and worldly salvation. Key Daoist concepts like "Celestial Master," "Mount Qingcheng," and "Dantian" appear throughout, while descriptions such as "cinnabar brush repelling demons" and "white Qi ascending heavenward" reflect distinctive Daoist religious experiences and mystical phenomena.

This passage recounts two stories demonstrating the miraculous manifestations of the Celestial Master (Tianshi, referring to Zhang Daoling, founder of Daoism).

The first story tells of an official posted to Shu region who recognized the landscape as identical to his previous dream. He realized the soaring white Qi (vital energy) from his dream was actually from salt wells, and the mournful singing came from cart-pushing laborers. Using his salary, he restored the Celestial Master's temple and erected a stele recording the event. However, he hadn't yet obtained the "inner cultivation secrets" (Neidan practice methods). The text notes this official was grandson of the Prince of Xiping.

The second story concerns Zhao Keyan, a Daoist priest from Qiongzhou. Though ordained young, he neglected practice until dreaming of the Celestial Master, after which he became devout. Known for his integrity, locals consulted him for divination using crescent-shaped bamboo blocks (called jiao) to seek the Celestial Master's guidance regarding fortunes, misfortunes, or illnesses—with remarkably accurate results.

One year, Buddhist monks plotted to humiliate Daoists during a government-sponsored vegetarian feast (Zhaijiao). They secretly hired over a hundred men to pose as disruptive Daoists. Learning of this, Zhao prayed two days prior at Fire Well Pond below White Crane Mountain. He spoke to the waters as if conversing, then declared, "Rain will come when I return home." True to his word, thunderstorms erupted upon his arrival, unleashing three days of torrential rain that forced cancellation of the event. This timely downpour thwarted the monks' scheme, magnificently displaying the Celestial Master's divine power.

This passage recounts several miraculous stories related to the Celestial Master (Tianshi, referring to Zhang Daoling or his successors) of Daoism:

The first episode describes a rainmaking ritual. After three consecutive days of torrential downpours, people repeatedly rescheduled the Zhaijiao (purification ritual), yet each chosen date was met with thunderstorms and gales—so severe that the altar couldn’t even be erected. Eventually, they realized they must strictly follow the date designated by the Celestial Master, or the ritual would lose its efficacy.

Next is the story of Xie Zhen, a skilled mason from Linqiong. While repairing the Shangqing Palace at Heming Mountain (where Zhang Tianshi cultivated the Dao), he worked with exceptional dedication. A nine-foot-tall Daoist of extraordinary bearing (implied to be the Celestial Master in disguise) appeared, drawing a Fulu (talisman) on the ground and teaching it to Xie. He instructed Xie to use it for healing with guaranteed efficacy, but warned against profiteering. Xie adhered to these teachings, curing many with the talisman and achieving remarkable results, which also brought his family prosperity. Later, upon seeing a small statue of the Celestial Master enshrined by merchants at Qingcheng Mountain, Xie confirmed it was the same figure he had encountered.

The final account concerns Liu Fangying, a Daoist from Tiantai who mastered Laozi’s teachings and excelled in healing with Fulu. On the fifth day of the fifth month, he forged a sword at Ge Creek using the Celestial Master’s sword method; the resulting enchanted water could instantly cure illnesses. During a plague in Huangyan County, while conducting a ritual to dispel the epidemic, a medium secretly observed thousands of ghosts scattering in panic—and indeed, the plague vanished county-wide within days. Before his death, Liu instructed disciples to bury his ritual sword with him, a wish they dared not disregard. These events occurred between the Xiantong and Qianfu eras (860–888 CE) of the Tang dynasty.

These stories collectively emphasize the importance of devout faith in the Celestial Master’s methods and strict adherence to his instructions, while showcasing the miraculous efficacy of Daoist practices like Fulu and Zhaijiao in healing and disaster relief.

The regional commander Liu Wen dispatched his lieutenant Li Sheng with soldiers to excavate an ancient tomb, seeking to obtain the treasured sword buried within. When they opened the sepulcher, they discovered the tomb occupant's corpse remained supple as in life, his face flushed crimson like a man sleeping off drunkenness. Suddenly, the sword emitted a roar like an angry beast, terrifying the group so thoroughly they dared not take it. Li Sheng ordered his men to rebury the tomb before retreating.

This account not only demonstrates the sword's numinous nature, but more significantly reveals how the tomb occupant Liu Fangying—a Daoist practitioner—had achieved immortality through "shadow-refinement of form" (a Daoist cultivation method involving physical transformation through practice in secluded environments). His preserved corpse bearing the marks of intoxication indicates he had perfected the Daoist arts of "corpse liberation" (shijie) and attained the realm of transcendent immortality.