《上清靈寶大法(一)》Vol. 1

The Great Method of the Numinous Treasure unites the Three Caverns—the Daoist scriptures, precepts, and treatises—and encompasses all methods of practice. It is held to have been spoken by the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning in the supreme Great Luo Heaven, and transmitted by the Lord of the Jade Dawn, the Five Elders and August Emperors, the High Perfected and Sagely Ones, the Perfected of Wondrous Practice, the Divine Kings of the Ten Directions, and the Great Gods of Utmost Truth. Later, the Sage Emperor Li, the True Heavenly Emperor of the Mysterious Origin and Golden Tower, descended into the human world to spread the teaching and save ordinary people. Those able to hear this Great Method could encounter the thirty-six revered scriptures, comprising eighteen thousand chapters. It is the root of all Daoist teachings: its contents are profound and subtle, yet they encompass every method.

The Great Method of the Numinous Treasure, composed by the Heavenly Perfected Sovereign (an immortal perfected being in Daoist legend), is divided into Eight Illuminations, Five Transmissions, Seven Scriptures, Eight Warpings, Ten Mysteries, and forty-seven chapters, forming a single work. To investigate its subtle mysteries is to give a thoroughly comprehensive account of its principles. The “Eight Illuminations” follow the Way of Heaven in opening the eight directions, making hidden principles clear. The “Five Transmissions” model the unfolding of the Five Eons, generating the Qi of the Five Phases and bringing the world into being. The “Seven Scriptures” are paths that guide people toward the Great Dao; the “Eight Warpings” describe the scope encompassed by the teaching; and the “Ten Mysteries” refer to ten profound principles. The “Forty-seven Chapters” set out the beginning and end, as well as the essential framework, and together form a single work that fully elucidates its mysterious meaning. The text arranges fine-grained principles into sections and divisions, then joins them into one whole through their central pivots.

The Eight Illuminations

The first illumination describes how the primordial ancestral Qi (the original vital energy at the beginning of cosmic creation) first transforms into jade characters. The Scripture of the Inner Sounds of the Numinous Treasure’s “Wang” Character says: Before the Three Qi, after chaos had yet to divide, true essence suddenly came into being, and then primordial Qi arose. Within primordial Qi was a god named the Celestial King of Primordial Beginning. His primordial Qi blended and gathered, arising at the same time as Primordial Beginning; it flowed and transformed, nurtured and formed into fragrance. It had no shape, color, or appearance, and at times it unfolded and at times it drew in.

At the opening of the Yan Kang Eon, one Qi divided into two Qi. From this, nonbeing and spontaneity came into being. The first and second Qi joined and condensed, forming the vast and boundless Great Void. Within it appeared characters a zhang square, with eight corners from which rays hung down. People could not fathom their principles. The one Qi blended and gathered, concealing the jade characters within itself.

At the opening of the Long Han Eon, the Celestial King of Primordial Beginning divided and ordered the two Qi. Chaos thereby opened, and light appeared. The clear, lofty Qi rose to become Heaven; the Qi that descended and settled gathered to become Earth. Between the division and union of the two Qi, within it…

Harmonized Qi is called “Mysterious Qi,” also known as “the Qi of the Great Brahma.” During the Crimson Luminosity Kalpa—a period of cosmic transformation in Daoist teaching—the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning opened the registers of the heavenly realm. The true Yang Qi within them transformed into the Fire of the Cavernous Sun. The Celestial Worthy used this fire to refine the Three Qi and unite them with jade characters, the sacred script of the heavens, forming crimson writings. For this reason, the kalpa is called the “Crimson Luminosity Kalpa,” and these characters are known as the “Crimson Writings in Jade Characters.” This is the principle at work.

Second, this explains how all things are conceived and brought forth, and how Chaos molds and shapes them. Once Chaos divided and opened, the Three Qi coalesced into writings, which were refined by fire into the Crimson Writings. The Qi of brightness and the essence of sunlight transformed into the sun; the essence of numinous light transformed into the moon. The remaining light of the sun and moon spread out and formed three kinds of images, while the spirits of the Three Qi differentiated into the Three Pure Ones (Sanqing). From then on, all things came into being from these sources; without exception, they were transformed from the Three Qi of Mystery, Primordiality, and Beginning.

Third, this explains how the Great Lingbao Teaching—the system of cultivation and scriptures in Lingbao Daoism—naturally generates charts and registers, encompasses the myriad forms, and serves as the pivot of the Three Powers: Heaven, Earth, and Humanity. During the Kalpa of the Open Emperor, all things were apportioned among the Three Origins—Heaven, Earth, and Water—and gave rise to the various sages. During the Kalpa of the August Sovereign, the Five Phases moved in sequence, forms became complete, and many Perfected Ones and immortals came into being. The mysterious, true essence born in response to the five kalpas, together with the spirits contained within that essence, is called the “August Sovereign”; hence this period is named the “Kalpa of the August Sovereign.”

Across the five kalpas, the correct Qi of the Five Phases circulated in the four directions and appeared in many forms: at times gathering or dispersing, curling or unfolding. These forms sometimes resembled clouds, smoke, fire, or mist, and sometimes stars, metal, or jade. They transformed into images of insects, fish, dragons, birds, and other creatures, all originating from the Crimson Writings in Jade Characters. All things naturally took shape and came into being in differentiated forms, giving rise to the scriptures of the Three Caverns and Four Supplements—the Daoist classification of scriptures—as well as the talismanic designs known as “Dragon Embryos and Stone Scenery,” and myriads of talismanic writings. The Heavenly Perfected Emperor and the Jade Consort of Great Perfection were ordered to write these characters and compile them into bamboo slips and Fulu, establishing the foundation of how all things are generated and transformed, encompassing the source of the myriad forms, molding and shaping all kinds of beings, and forming the key to the emergence of immortals and perfected beings. This is the principle at work.

Fourth, this explains how the Great Teaching, as the ancestral teaching of the Three Caverns—Dongzhen, Dongxuan, and Dongshen—gave rise to all the sages. After the five kalpas opened and transformed the cosmos, the Upper Clarity Dongxuan, Jade Clarity Dongzhen, and Great Clarity Dongshen scriptures, along with the talismans of the Four Supplements, all arose from the Crimson Writings in Jade Characters and received the Qi of Lingbao. In ancient times, the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning commanded the Thirty-Nine Emperors of the August Sovereign and the emperors of the Nine Heavens to record scriptures and incantations, compiling them as the “Thirty-Nine Chapters of the Great Cavern.” These set forth the opening and transformation of the five kalpas and the state of the Undivided Cavern, the undifferentiated body of Chaos.

It describes the method of harmonizing the three kinds of primordial Qi and bringing them into unity, which was taught to Lord Dao Wang Chen. Then the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning proclaimed the thirty-six revered scriptures throughout the heavens. From the age of the Three Sovereigns onward, the Hallowed Sage Lord Lao of the Mysterious Origin at the Golden Gate repeatedly descended into the world to teach and transform living beings.

In the age of Shennong, he took the form of Yumozi and spoke of tasting the hundred medicines, distinguishing the five grains, and teaching the Scripture of Long Life. In the age of Fuxi, he took the form of Tianyezi, set the eight directions in order, explored Yin-Yang, and taught the Scripture of Primordial Yang of the Numinous Treasure. In the age of Zhurong, he took the form of Yuhuazi and taught how to cultivate and regulate the Three Bonds and rectify disordered government, as well as the Scripture of the Numinous Treasure on the Five Stars and the Constant Harmony. In the age of the Yellow Emperor, he took the form of Guangchengzi and taught the Scripture of Dao Precepts of the Numinous Treasure. In the age of Shaohao, he took the form of Suiyingzi and taught the Scripture of the Primordial Treasury of the Numinous Treasure. In the age of Gaoxin, he was known as Yuanyangzi and taught the Scripture of Subtle Words of the Numinous Treasure. In the age of Emperor Yao, he was known as Wuchengzi and taught the Scripture of Governmental Affairs of the Numinous Treasure. In the age of Emperor Shun, he was known as Yinshouzi and taught the Scripture of Great Clarity and the Scripture of the Vermilion Writ of the Numinous Treasure. In the age of Yu the Great, he was known as Zhenningzi and taught the Scripture of the Five Chapters of True Writings and the Scripture of the Dragon’s Ascent. In the Zhou dynasty, he was known as Guoshuzi and taught the Scripture of the Vermilion Essence of the Numinous Treasure, the two chapters of the Dao De Jing, and the Scripture of the Eight Powers for Governing Demons of the Numinous Treasure. In the Wu dynasty, he was known as the Left Immortal of Taiji and taught the Scripture of Sacrifices to Ghosts of the Numinous Treasure and the Scripture of Karmic Retribution. In the Han dynasty, he was named Chisongzi and taught the Scripture of the Three Ones.

In the first year of Yongshou under Emperor Huan, the Zhengyi, Taiqing, and Dongshen teachings descended into the human world. In the time of Emperor Wu, the Lord by the River taught chapters of the Dao De Jing. By command of the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning, the Queen Mother of the West taught the thirty-six revered scriptures of the Numinous Treasure; these scriptures then became books transmitted in the world. It was not until the eleventh year of Yonghe in the Jin dynasty, when the Yuqing Dongzhen teachings descended into the human world, that the scriptures of all Three Caverns were transmitted. From this, the Great Numinous Treasure Teaching brought forth and nurtured all sages.

What follows are five principles for understanding the composition of the human body. When the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning created Heaven and Earth, a sacred embryo and Dharma-body arose from primordial chaos. When the essences of father and mother joined, they condensed into a single point containing the two Qi of Yin and Yang. As these two Qi divided, the kidneys formed first. When the three Qi initially separated, the spirit’s palace—the heart—came into being. When the four Qi converged, they formed the canopy. As the five Qi unfolded in radiance, they resembled the five petals of a flower, symbolizing the completion of the five organs. This was like the process by which the three Qi passed through five kalpas to take shape.

After the two Qi of Yin and Yang had separated, they generated the Mud Ball (the spirit’s palace in the head) above and the Mysterious Valley (the repository of water) below. The three Qi were refined by fire and generated the sun and moon above, like a person’s two eyes. In this way, the whole body became bright, as though illuminated by radiance.

This passage explains how heaven, earth, all things, and human life arise from the same source through the “Primordial Qi of Lingbao” (the foundational Qi of Lingbao). It also outlines the cultivation practices and magical arts contained in the Lingbao scriptures.

The text says that the Primordial Qi of Lingbao can bring forth all things: sand and earth can become gold, stones can become jade; birds can give birth to luan and phoenixes, beasts to dark dragons, and plants to numinous mushrooms. The Five Grains contain auspicious Qi. When the Primordial Qi disperses, it becomes a gentle wind; when it rises, it becomes celebratory clouds; when it descends, it becomes sweet dew. Entering water, it transforms into luminous pearls; entering the human body, it brings forth sages and worthies. Thus the Primordial Qi is the root of all things, the essential Qi of the Great One (the source of the cosmos), and the foremost of all spirits.

The text then uses the human being’s “divided form” to explain the transformations brought about by cultivation. When the Primordial Qi of Lingbao enters “the central Dantian Valley in the Great Floating Li Realm” (a site or state of cultivation described in the text), it passes through nine revolutions and five transformations to form the Dharma Body. Here, “Dharma Body” refers to the transcendent body attained by a cultivator. The text also cites the Primordial Heavenly Worthy’s revival of dry bones as an example of the Primordial Qi’s power to generate all things and restore life.

The sixth section explains that before physical forms appeared, the Primordial Qi of the Origin had neither form nor substance. It later condensed into Qi and brought forth all things. Given this, how should cultivators in the present age perceive and refine this Qi in order to attain the Dao? The text says that the Qi of Lingbao is also embodied in various living beings, as in dragon pearls, tiger treasures, ox bezoar, and crow elixirs. The “Flowing Essence, Jade Radiance Elixir” belongs to this same class.

The Qi of Lingbao between heaven and earth can be apprehended through the Qi that arises when the sun and moon face one another. Within the human body, the Qi of Lingbao appears at the first joining of Shen and Qi. The Perfected One Taiyi says one should continually grasp the pivot within Taiji, so that amid movement and stillness the spirit pearl descends into the curtained chamber. Lingbao will then arise naturally in the Mysterious Valley. “Millet Pearl” is a metaphor for subtle essential Qi, while “singing and chanting in the empty air” refers to the practice of reciting the scriptures. The text holds that those who obtain and cultivate this Qi of Lingbao can attain the rank of the Perfected. Even ordinary immortals can scarcely reach it, and may know only a little of its beginnings.

The seventh section explains that the Great Method includes various ways to aid beings and guide people to deliverance. The highest methods include cultivating the true through internal refinement, so that flesh and bones, form and spirit, ascend together. The middle methods include practices such as longevity, deliverance from the world, and attaining the Dao through corpse liberation. The scriptures also record many other methods. The Lingbao scriptures recount the purpose of the Primordial Heavenly Worthy’s preaching in heaven, and their contents are comprehensive. On a grand scale, they offer methods to protect and stabilize heaven and earth, correct celestial phenomena, overcome calamities, and drive away demons. On a smaller scale, they can treat chronic illness and restore the dead to life. In the manifest realm, they include arts that transform wind and thunder through chanting and singing, and summon spontaneous manifestations of divine power. In the hidden and subtle realm, they offer methods for commanding spirits and ghosts and seeing through the Ten Heavens. Thus the Lingbao scriptures contain all methods.

The Eight Explanations describe the Great Teaching as having three levels. Those who understand the principles of the mysterious and deeply investigate the subtle Way, cultivate the ten grades of the highest path, and bring their merit to completion can ascend in broad daylight and become holy, perfected immortals. Those who cultivate only part of it, master one method, and save even one person may also attain long life and pass beyond the world, becoming leaders among the immortals of earthly realms and grotto-heavens. And those who worship morning and evening, honor and serve this teaching, and make offerings to it will surely attain the rank of immortals through bodily release, becoming free-roaming immortals of the Ten Continents and Three Islands.

The master said, “The Eight Illuminations can open the mind to wisdom, but the Five Transmissions are where the scripture begins to take shape.” The “Five Transmissions” are five accounts of the origins of this scripture.

First Transmission

The scripture says: These words came into being before nonbeing had taken form. Hidden within the empty and vast expanse, they were called the “Jade Characters of the Great Brahma.” In the Age of Red Brilliance, when Heaven and Earth were first opened, the words emerged through refinement by fire and became the “Jade Characters of the Red Script.” The Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning, through his vast power that communicates with the spirits, revealed the five kinds of writing from which the spirits came into being. He then proclaimed the meaning of the scripture and unfolded its secret teachings, eventually forming this Great Teaching.

Second Transmission

The scripture says: After the Jade Characters of the Red Script emerged through refinement by fire, each character was one zhang square, with eight corners. They sent down radiance that covered the heavens and sheltered the foundations of the Nine Heavens of the Western Origin. They spread like drifting clouds, giving off jade light and the brilliance of golden essence, illuminating the great void.

The Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning ordered the Heavenly Perfected Sovereign to write down all these characters. They were called the “Eight Majestic Dragon Characters,” also known as the “Script of the Eight Assemblies of the Heavens.” These characters were kept hidden in the Golden Tower and Seven-Treasure Jade Terrace of the Upper Clarity Mysterious Capital, as well as in the orchid chambers, golden halls, eastern and western flower halls, and the Nine Heavens’ Scarlet Cloud Palace of the Purple Tenuity Upper Palace.

Third Transmission

The scripture says: The Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning is the patriarch of the Daoist teachings, and the Dao Lord Jade Dawn is the master of the Lingbao tradition. They compiled this numinous scripture, which includes five chapters of true writing. The jade characters of the thirty-two heavens were gathered into a scripture called the “Cloud Script of Radiant Light.”

The Queen Mother of the West once transmitted this scripture to the Yellow Emperor, and the Elder of Dragon Might once transmitted the method of the Five Lingbao Talismans to Yu the Great. The Most High Sage of Later Generations also transmitted the revered Lingbao scripture to emperors of successive dynasties. Since these accounts have all been included in the thirty-six revered scriptures, they are not translated again here.

The Yellow Emperor once sought the Dao on Mount Emei, where he saw the Sovereign and received further instruction. Zuo Xianweng of the land of Wu also once descended at the Supreme Ultimate, transmitted this scripture to Perfected Xu, and caused it to be passed down. These accounts, too, are not repeated or listed as a separate transmission.

Fourth Transmission

The scripture says: On the seventh day of the seventh month in the first year of the Yuanfeng era of Emperor Wu of the Han, the Queen Mother of the West descended and transmitted this scripture and its method to Emperor Wu. Emperor Wu did not understand the words of the “Great Brahma,” …

The Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning dwells in the Great Luo Heaven, while the Dao Lord dwells in the Western Naya Jade Kingdom. The language spoken by the people there differs from that of Shenzhou—the human world—so how much more must it differ from the language of Great Brahma Heaven? People therefore recorded the teachings with brush and ink, rewriting the celestial books and jade characters in the script commonly used in the human world. The language and rituals of Great Brahma Heaven, its clothing and carriages, the names of palaces and halls, the titles of books and charts, palaces and towers, the sexagenary cycle, trigrams, Qi (vital energy, which Daoism calls primordial energy), the regulations for ritual altars, the various practices and rites in the Great Method, and the thirty-six revered scriptures were all written in accordance with Han dynasty conventions, using common language. In this way, they became authoritative ritual language understood across the ages.

Fifth Translation

The translation says: The Celestial True Person, the August One, recorded all these scriptures as prescribed sounds and wondrous practices. The True Person Zhen Dingguang, the True Person Yuluoqiao, and the True Person Guang Miaoyin compiled talismanic texts and the Great Method for practice and ritual use. Later, they gathered the talismans, diagrams, and texts of the thirty-six revered scriptures, compiling them into the Precious Registers of the Central Covenant. They also used the texts of the thirty-six true scriptures as the contents of the Great Lingbao Method. In this way, these methods were handed down. The Immortal Elder Wu Zuo transmitted the scriptures, registers, and ritual instructions to the True Person Xu of the Supreme Ultimate. The Immortal Elder then passed them down to the Shangqing True Person, Lord Yang. Lord Yang brought together the methods of the Shangqing Cavern of Mystery and the Yuqing Cavern of Truth. After this, divine texts gradually appeared in the world.