《太平經》Vol. 37

Taiping Jing, Scroll 37: “The Great Trust in Testing Documents” (Chapter 47), a Plain-Language Interpretation

The greatly foolish and increasingly benighted Sheng bowed twice and said, “I still have questions and would like to ask your guidance.”

The Celestial Master asked the Divine Being, the Supreme Sovereign, “What would you like to ask?”

Sheng replied, “May I ask what the main point of this scripture is? What purpose do people have in being born into the world?”

The Celestial Master said, “A good question! You could say that it already accords with the mind of August Heaven. The main point of this scripture is that, ever since Heaven and Earth were opened, emperors and ordinary people alike have been born to carry out this work. Now you have come for this very purpose, so why do you begin instead by speaking of nurturing one’s nature?”

The Perfected One—the Celestial Master’s way of referring to himself—said, “You are at once sincere and foolish, muddled and unable to understand. When I heard you speak just now, I thought you were being modest. But you are truly lost in darkness. What is going on?”

Sheng said, “Please explain it more clearly, Perfected One. I am listening.”

The Celestial Master said, “People incur faults and deserve censure because they fail to nurture themselves properly and have utterly lost their guiding principles. This is why they bear the burden of inherited consequences. It is like parents who have lost the highest Virtue and committed wrongs among their neighbors: their descendants are later harmed by those same neighbors. This is the burden of inherited consequences. When the rulers of old governed without understanding the will of Heaven and Earth, it was as if one person had thrown Heaven into disorder. Heaven grew greatly angry and displeased, and so illnesses and disasters arose in countless forms. Those who later held power then inherited the burden of these consequences. How could they escape being held to account? This, then, is precisely why this book was brought forth.

“Thus, the great sages of antiquity all knew the way to nurture themselves, and so in governing the country they incurred few failures that brought inherited consequences. But teachers among later generations of students often concealed the writings that contained the true essentials of the Way, teaching instead superficial, showy learning. They went against Heaven’s essential intent, causing later generations to become increasingly shallow. People could no longer nurture and cherish themselves well; over time they strayed far from the Way. They came to believe that there was no way for the world to be at peace on its own, and so they began to treat matters lightly and contend for emoluments. That is why calamities from inherited consequences arose. Do you understand the meaning?”

Sheng said, “Excellent, excellent! Hearing the Celestial Master’s words is like seeing the sun emerge from the clouds; there is no difference. I can say that I have grasped the meaning of the Way. This foolish student has received your kindness and now understands much more clearly. I have no further questions. I only ask the Celestial Master to admonish me repeatedly and earnestly. Yet a person must deeply nurture themselves before they can nurture others; a person must deeply cherish themselves before they can cherish…”

Note: This passage opens the question-and-answer section titled “The Great Trust in Testing Documents.” It emphasizes the scripture’s central concerns: nurturing oneself, inherited consequences, and how failures of Virtue in government bring about calamity. The final phrase, “only by cherishing oneself can one cherish others,” may continue in the original text; the translation ends where the supplied passage stops.

A Plain Language Interpretation of the Taiping Jing

(The disciple asks:) When people have bodies yet neglect themselves, and cannot even care for themselves properly, how can they take good care of others?

If people have bodies but cannot love and respect themselves, preserve their physical forms, and carefully safeguard the legacy of their ancestors, how can they love and protect others? How foolish! Can you not understand this deeply?

(The Celestial Master / disciple:) Yes, yes. Excellent, excellent.

(The Celestial Master:) If this has led you to think that my book cannot be trusted, you may consult the writings followed by people in high antiquity, who gained Heaven’s favor and enjoyed lasting good fortune. Then consult the books and records followed by people in middle antiquity, who also gained Heaven’s favor. Finally, consult the writings that people in later antiquity contemplated and put into practice, gaining Heaven’s approval and preserving themselves over time. Compare them from beginning to end, and you will find they agree exactly, like a compass and a square. Now that your confusion has greatly lifted, you will truly believe what my book says.

People today treat life lightly, fight fiercely with one another, and show off their talents in a contest for superiority. The most foolish even say, “Heaven knows nothing,” and “the Way of Heaven brings no results.” Yet the earth does not deceive people: sow millet and you reap millet; sow wheat and you reap wheat. The more effort you put in, the better the crops. How much less, then, would Heaven deceive us? Now Heaven’s resentment is mounting. The most foolish, ignorant people urge one another to slight the world and follow foolish ways. Each new generation goes further, so calamities and strange events keep arising without end. Heaven and the ruler are bound by a deep affection like that between father and son, yet people encourage one another to act foolishly. Seeing this, the foolish fail to repay the ruler in a timely way; instead, they repeatedly conceal things and cut off the path to Heaven. Heaven grows still angrier, and the burden of inherited consequences grows heavier with each generation, until it can no longer be shifted. Though an emperor may have done a thousand good deeds, he can still suffer these harms for no apparent reason. Thus those who do good may go unrecognized, as if their efforts were fruitless. If the most foolish say Heaven knows nothing, can that really be true?

(The disciple:) Now that I have heard the Celestial Master’s words, my understanding has opened as if I had been reborn. Excellent, excellent! Though I had many concerns, the Celestial Master risked his life to ask about the matter. At first, it seemed mistaken; but after asking and gaining understanding, I am overjoyed and have no regrets. Without knowledge, if one does not ask, there is no way to reach understanding. Your words express exactly this point.

(The Celestial Master:) The writings on these matters are extensive and complete. They set out everything from beginning to end, inside and out. Examine them together with the worthy people, and do not ask again.

(The disciple:) Yes, yes.

Above: Questions to the Celestial Master about the many writings and what they address, from beginning to end; an explanation and conclusion.

Explaining the Law of Inherited Consequences Through Five Matters, Chapter Forty-Eight

Brief explanation

This chapter is part of the discussion of the “law of inherited consequences.” Its central ideas are these:

1. Cultivating oneself comes before governing others: Those who cannot care for and respect themselves, or safeguard their ancestral legacy, cannot care for, love, or protect others.

2. How to test a text: If the practices of sages of high, middle, and later antiquity all accord like a compass and a square, then the Celestial Master’s book can be trusted.

3. Heaven responds: Just as the earth responds to what is sown, Heaven is all the less likely to deceive us. Treating life lightly, fighting fiercely, and claiming that “Heaven knows nothing” increase inherited consequences and bring calamities.

4. Rulers, subjects, and the path to Heaven: When foolish people obscure and cut off the “path to Heaven” and fail to repay the ruler, Heaven’s anger grows and inherited consequences intensify; even a good ruler may suffer.

5. Asking brings understanding: The disciple risks asking about the matter and rejoices when it is explained. This emphasizes that one must ask about doubts in order to understand the meaning of the scripture.

The final title, “Explaining the Law of Inherited Consequences Through Five Matters, Chapter Forty-Eight,” names the chapter and indicates that it explains the law of “inherited consequences” through five principles.

A Plain-Language Interpretation of the Taiping Jing

The disciple (a term for someone with little learning, still unenlightened and unclear) bowed repeatedly and said:

A great worthy hears the master speak once and understands the principles in all directions. A lesser worthy hears the master speak once and understands the key points in the four directions, so the matter is easy to explain. But the foolish and unenlightened remain doubtful even when someone explains things to them face to face. So I boldly ask you in detail, Celestial Master:

You have acted on Heaven’s behalf to resolve the grievances of inherited burden (Chengfu); on Earth’s behalf, to resolve the calamities of inherited burden; on the emperor’s behalf, to resolve its misfortunes; on the people’s behalf, to resolve its transgressions; and on behalf of all things, to resolve its liabilities. Inherited burden means that later generations bear the guilt and disasters caused by the wrongdoing of those who came before them. I, your foolish disciple, ask this question on Heaven’s behalf. I dare not shrink from the risk of speaking improperly; I must ask until I understand the principle clearly. I hope to hear the full account: how does it work?

The Celestial Master (a title for one who responds and transmits the Dao) said:

Good. You ask on Heaven’s behalf, and you have indeed been thorough and careful. Whenever we speak, I say that you are asking on Heaven’s behalf to resolve its doubts, so I cannot help but answer in detail. Good: your reverent heart makes you worthy of this responsibility. Do you now want me to explain everything fully? I am not afraid of talking at length. I am only concerned that the text might grow too long to take in. To explain all the inherited burdens in the world would take millions of words, and even that might not be enough. I will give you the main outline for now, so that all worthy people may understand it together, as though it were an official document.

Please begin, Celestial Master. Your disciple listens attentively, sitting quietly and steadying his mind. Yes, yes (a respectful reply of assent).

The Celestial Master said:

Heaven and Earth bring forth all things. If, without De, they harm those things, the world falls into disorder. Every household becomes poor and lacking; the old and the young suffer hunger and cold; the government collects nothing, and its storehouses stand empty. The fault lies originally with Earth for harming living things, but people end up bearing the inherited burden. This is one major principle.

There is more to say, so listen carefully:

One misguided teacher instructs ten disciples. Each of those ten disciples goes on to teach ten more, and now a hundred people are spreading falsehoods. Each of those hundred teaches ten more, and a thousand people are spreading heretical teachings. Each of those thousand teaches ten more, and ten thousand people are spreading heretical teachings. With ten thousand people speaking in every direction, the whole world is filled with heretical teachings. So many people repeat them to one another that they cannot be stopped. As time passes, these teachings even become accepted as common words.

The disaster begins with one person’s inaccurate words, yet in the end all the ordinary people of the world become inaccurate. They confound and disrupt the teachings of Heaven’s true way, altering and corrupting them.

Note: This passage takes the form of a question-and-answer between the disciple and the Celestial Master. It discusses the origins of inherited burden (Earth harms living things, and people bear the consequences) and the danger that one person’s error spreads to many until heretical teachings become accepted as common truth. Key terms are briefly explained at their first appearance.

A Plain-Language Interpretation of the Taiping Jing (Scripture of Great Peace)

When people corrupt customs and ways of life, everyone in the world considers it a great calamity, yet no one can stop it. Those who come later go even further. This is the calamity of “inherited consequences” (chengfu): earlier generations do wrong, and later generations suffer for it. The later generations are clearly not at fault, but they do not know that the trouble began long ago. Instead, they blame the people of their own time. So injustice piles upon injustice, resentment takes hold and does not fade, and the situation grows worse by the day.

Second passage:

The Perfected One explained further. Listen carefully: Suppose someone makes a great commotion in the marketplace, running about in every direction and shouting, “The earth is about to collapse! A great flood is coming!” They cry out as they shout. Everyone in the market believes them. Young and old carry the story in every direction, and soon the whole world has heard it. The people of the world have thus been deceived, and those who pass the story on later make it more and more outrageous. The trouble began with that first person’s wild lies. This is “inherited consequences”: the responsibility one bears for making up a rumor from nothing. What fault lies with those who came later? Yet they are the ones who get blamed.

Third passage:

The Perfected One explained again. Listen: On the southern mountain stands a great tree whose branches and leaves spread wide, covering hundreds of paces of ground. It has just one trunk and root, yet above them grow countless branches, leaves, and fruits. But the root below does not grip the earth firmly. When violent winds and rain sweep over it, the countless branches, leaves, and fruits above are all destroyed and wither. This is how plants and trees throughout the world suffer inherited harm: the foundation laid by those before is weak, and those who come later bear the consequences. The fault lies with the root, not the tips of the branches, yet the branches are blamed instead. Is that not unjust? The branches are blameless, yet they perish in a natural disaster. That is how inherited responsibility works. How can those who come later be blamed?

Fourth passage:

The one who assigns blame explained again. Listen: There is a poisonous vapor on the southern mountain, and the mountain does not contain it well. In spring, the south wind blows the vapor out, and it spreads until it blocks the sun and moon. The people of the world suffer, and the dead lie piled up like mountains. The trouble came from the southern mountain releasing its poisonous vapor. Why, then, should the people of the world bear the consequences, fall ill, and die? People at the time still say, “It must be because you did evil; Heaven is going to kill you.” The blame falls on someone else. Is that not unjust? This person was blameless, yet bore the consequences of this disaster. Their hun soul and po spirit cried out that they had been wronged, while the living blamed them for wrongdoing. Resentment and injustice gathered and reached Heaven’s hearing. The fault lay with the mountain’s poisonous vapor, which the wind carried forth. That is how inherited responsibility works.

Fifth passage:

The Perfected One sat upright once more. Listen carefully to what I say: The Great Dao is upright by nature; it does not deceive people with falsehoods. But once a person sits there believing a rumor, those who come later do not know how it began and instead blame the people of their own time. The resentment that forms does not fade; it grows worse by the day.

Key point: Throughout this passage, images such as the great tree and the poisonous vapor on the southern mountain illustrate “inherited consequences”: calamities often begin with earlier generations or at their source, yet innocent people who come later are wrongly blamed. The passage stresses the need to distinguish root from branch and not to accuse people of the present unjustly.

A Plain-Language Reading of the Scripture of Great Peace

When a ruler, king, or master teaches and guides people, even a slight deviation or a careless statement can lead them away from the right path. Later generations then rush to imitate them, and the problem grows more serious with time. The reason is that false teachings have been passed down for so long that the whole world has fallen into error, with no one able to stop it. Thus disasters of every kind arise in countless numbers.

How did this situation come about? It has endured for ages. Ignorant people, unaware of the truth, blame their own era and the people of their time. Do they ever consider that they themselves may also have been unjustly implicated? The whole world is in error, yet cannot recognize it. Even if an emperor possessed the Virtue of ten thousand people, how could one person alone turn everything around? Among the things people do today, what path could bring them release?

It is like running out of food and wanting more, while a sick person cannot eat and dies. Is there any release from that? Today, Yin and Yang may unite in harmony, bringing joy, descendants, and auspicious offerings to the spirits, yet a person may still be unable to have children. Is there any release from that? Human life ought to be full of joy and goodness; as people grow, they should become strong and steady, yet instead they may turn out worthless and wicked. Is there any release from that? These are clear signs of inherited burden (the accumulated debts of past generations borne by their descendants). Yet people blame those of their own time, and so the way of governing cannot be brought into balance. People today have passed down and received false teachings for so long; how could they correct themselves all at once? They are therefore repeatedly treated unjustly, and the injustice continues without end. Heaven takes pity on them, and so the Way of the High Sovereign descended in response to primordial Qi. Do not find this strange.

What is the beginning? It is to focus the mind and preserve the One. What is “the One”? The One is the beginning of number; the One is the Way of life; the One is where primordial Qi arises; the One is the guiding principle of Heaven. Therefore, one should focus the mind on preserving the One, tracing it from above downwards. When anything among the myriad things grows excessively great and never returns to its root, it is deeply lost and unable to understand; it must therefore return to its root. For this reason, when the sages of old were about to act, they looked up to observe the patterns of the heavens and down to examine the forms of the earth, discerning clear proof of the return to the root.

Has the Perfected One understood? Yes.

Now you are distressed. I have already raised the first point about inherited burden: all things in the world are passed along through inherited burden in this same way. Do you understand? Yes.

Today the Celestial Master has brought the first point to light, and the knot in this foolish student’s heart has been untied. Let me offer the Perfected One one essential teaching: those in high antiquity who attained the Dao and governed in balance were skilled only at nurturing themselves and preserving their root. Those in the middle antiquity who fell slightly short were only somewhat neglectful in nurturing themselves and lost their root. Those in later antiquity who failed greatly were deeply deficient in nurturing themselves and lost their root entirely. Thus, in an age of inherited burden, rulers cannot set themselves right and people cannot reform themselves. False teachings are passed down and received until, over time, they become habitual; disasters of every kind arise in numbers beyond reckoning.

Note: This passage develops the doctrine of inherited burden within the Celestial Masters tradition. It emphasizes that corrupted teaching is passed down from generation to generation, rather than blaming only the people of the present, and presents “preserving the One” and “returning to the root” as remedies. The original contains uncertain punctuation and lacunae; this plain-language rendering follows commonly accepted readings and briefly explains specialized terms on first use.

This passage discusses the calamities arising from "inherited burdens" (chengfu), referring to the karmic retribution passed down from ancestors' actions. The scripture points out that people's casual attitude toward their own behavior—believing they can always start over—has led to grave mistakes that disrupt social order. Yet these are not faults of the current generation, but rather the concentrated eruption of misfortunes accumulated through chengfu from past generations.

The author states this issue has been repeatedly explained and sees no need for further elaboration, as the meaning remains the same regardless of how many times it's said. Now, the will of Heaven has been clearly conveyed through the scripture, specifically instructing cultivators (zhenren, "perfected persons") to deeply contemplate its essence and transmit these key points to virtuous rulers. At its core, the text aims to explain the root of chengfu and methods for its resolution.

This section comes from the thirty-seventh scroll of the Taiping Jing (Scripture of Great Peace), focusing on questions and answers about "entangled qi from inherited burdens"—the negative energy formed by accumulated misdeeds of ancestors. It emphasizes that such influences can only be dissolved through dissemination by virtuous individuals.