《上清靈寶大法(一)》Vol. 25

Taught by Ning Quanzhen, titled the Perfected One Who Opens the Light and Rescues the Suffering, and compiled by Wang Qizhen.

Classification of the Scripture’s Verses

The master said: “The Great Method of the Numinous Treasure contains sixty-four verses in the hidden language of the Great Brahma, corresponding in number to the Scripture of the Sun. They appeared before Heaven and Earth took shape and before the Bagua (Eight Trigrams) emerged, and they symbolize the transformations of Yin-Yang through past and present.

“When the Great Brahma first opened the chart, the origin of number had already appeared: the Mother of Kun, symbolizing Earth as the feminine source, spread eastward, and nine suns guided the Qian trigram. The names of the Qian and Kun trigrams also derive from this. During the reign of Emperor Wu of Han, the Queen Mother of the West descended and transmitted this scripture, revealing the secret words of the chart’s opening, making clear the symbols of the sixty-four hexagrams, and linking them to the sexagenary cycle.

“The roots of the Qian, Kun, Kan, and Li trigrams lie beyond the scope of the six Jia and are not confined by the Jiazi cycle. In the scripture, a woman appears whose name is written with the character ‘fire’; the character ‘water’ does not appear, but the character ‘spring’ does, signifying true water. The principle here is profound: the origin of number arose before Heaven and Earth had formed. The breath joins with Yin-Yang; this is ‘breath within the unceasing.’

“Once the breath has settled, the myriad forms gather and return to their source. Even the subtle channels of Qi deep in the netherworld become regulated along with it. When the channels of Qi are regulated, there are four assemblies in a single breath: exhalation issues the command, and inhalation returns to the ancestral source. Exhale three cun and inhale three cun. From this, the ancestor of the three Qi sets in motion, and the Qi of the Great Brahma circulates without ceasing.

“Each assembly is counted as fifteen fen. From this, one can calculate the great measures by which the Yin-Yang of Heaven and Earth changes in both length and breadth, extending to measures such as zhang and chi. Thus, accumulated fen make a cun, accumulated cun make a chi, and chi in turn make a zhang. Fingers are therefore used as the measure of a cun, and the elbow serves as an analogy for a chi, establishing measurements in tangible things. From this are then derived musical pitches, the calendar, measures of length, capacity, and weight, the Five Latitudes (the five planets), the Seven Regulators (the Sun, Moon, and five major planets), the Bagua, the Nine Palaces, the twenty-four solar terms, and the seventy-two seasonal markers. The sages followed these principles to devise instruments and bring forth the myriad forms. At the root of it all, within emptiness lies the precious Origin: the source transformed from the primordial Qi of the beginning.

“The scripture also contains myriad arts, including Yin and Yang elixirs, astronomy, prohibitions and precepts, divination of good and ill fortune, observing signs and shadows, and foretelling the future—all concealed within it. The scripture further explains the foundation of the great Dao’s primordial Qi; the methods by which lead and mercury, terms from alchemy, find their proper destination; the roots of the three Qi; the secret taboo name of the Mother of Kun of the Western Origin; and the mysteries of the dark and deep. It also concerns the Great Cavern’s revolving wind…”

This classic holds that the so-called “Way of escaping death, merging, and becoming perfected” refers to methods for transcending death, uniting with the Dao, and becoming a perfected immortal. These methods include aiding the living, guiding the dead through salvation, summoning true spirits, and also praying for divine blessings, peace in the state and the home, health through the years, and abundance for all things. They further include suppressing evil and warding off calamities, protecting and delivering people to salvation, repenting and offering atonement, and making prayers.

The rites and music, implements, forms and names, clothing colors, weapons and ceremonial guards, laws governing ghosts and spirits, the Five Constant Virtues, and rules for daily conduct described in the scripture are all said to have existed from the beginning, before Heaven. They were proclaimed by the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning (Yuanshi Tianzun), one of the highest deities revered in Daoism. The Dao Lord arranged them into a book according to these principles, and the Celestial Perfected Sovereign recorded them. Later, Confucian scholars founded doctrines for governing the world and placed particular emphasis on benevolence and righteousness. As a result, one branch of the Great Dao gradually became concealed and less visible. Yet the classic stresses that the source of these doctrines still lies in the primordial Great Dao. All things originally came from a single source, then divided into many streams; colors ultimately return to colorlessness, all rivers flow into the sea, and the sea in turn returns to the Primordial Ancestral Dao.

The classic says that one who understands this scripture may serve as an emperor’s teacher, while one who grasps its profound mysteries is a true celestial being. According to the esoteric regulations (xuan ke), the secret precepts and rules governing transmission in Daoism, this scripture is transmitted only once every forty thousand kalpas. In ancient times, the Queen Mother of the West (Xiwangmu), a Daoist goddess, translated the celestial patterns into human script and passed them on to Emperor Wu of Han. This was done to clarify how implements were made and forms established, so that all things could be passed down to later generations. The scripture is divided into forty-seven sections, and the rites it lists all follow the instructions of the sages and were established in high antiquity. The Han dynasty system is used today to make the principles of the Primordial Ancestral Qi clearer.

Examples of rites listed in the scripture

Burying gold and jade to guard the Five Sacred Peaks, casting dragon jade bi discs—ritual objects used to make offerings and communicate with spirits—into deep waters, and casting the Nine Tripods to stabilize the Nine Provinces: these three are rites through which emperors honor the Dao, protect and pacify the state, and secure its fortunes.

The five conditions that call for warding off disasters from Heaven are the impending end of the cycles of Heaven and Earth; disorder in the courses of the stars; dimming of the sun and moon; disruption of the seasons; and imbalance between Yin and Yang.

Removing illness means regulating the body and mind according to established methods so that a person may be healthy and at peace. Removing toxic harm means eliminating or warding off baleful forces and destructive influences associated with a particular region. Delivering the dead means using the method of the Nine Refinements, a Daoist practice for refining and guiding the dead toward ascension. These three are rites for dispelling toxic harm and calamities.

The scripture also lists many rites of ascent and salvation, including ascending to the Vermilion Palace, flying up to the Golden Gate, ascending to the Southern Palace, feasting in the Jade Capital, roaming through the great void, being delivered to the Southern Palace, ascending to Highest Clarity (Shangqing), wandering freely in Highest Clarity, receiving rank in the Southern Palace, being entered in the Southern Palace registers, ascending to the great void, having one’s soul conveyed to Vermilion Mound, and traveling through the Three Realms. These thirteen rites all concern ascent, signifying the passage of the dead or of Daoist practitioners into different heavenly realms and their attainment of corresponding ranks.

All people can attain long life, preserve the lifespan bestowed by nature, transcend the calamities of the world, and endure from age to age.

The family will prosper, and even a great-grandfather—the ancestor three generations back—can be delivered and become an immortal, extending his years and lengthening his life.

Through corpse liberation, a Daoist method of leaving the physical body and becoming immortal, one can become a Perfected One of the Nine Offices, a title for an immortal, and bring lasting peace and stability to the state.

One may rank among the Immortal Elders, whose physical form even demon kings revere. Through Taiyin Refining the Form, a practice of refining and transforming the body in the underworld, one becomes a subject in the Golden Palace of the Sage Lord, receives homage and reverence from the myriad spirits, and is recommended by demon kings.

These are examples of seventeen responses of merit.

With gold, silver, and precious goods as tokens, one sincerely pledges allegiance before the heavenly realms of the ten directions.

This is an example of transmission and deliverance: imparting scripture and the Dharma, and guiding people into the Dao.

Consulting old books, we find the following accounts: gold, silver, and precious goods are offered to show sincerity; an oath is made before Heaven, and then the teachings are transmitted. According to the Mysterious Regulations, transmission takes place once every forty thousand kalpas. Another account says that transmission follows a pledge before the heavenly realms of the ten directions. These are divided into three items because the preface to the scripture says that Heaven’s treasured teachings are not passed on to ordinary people. Only those with unwavering resolve may receive them, after offering gold, silver, and precious goods to show their sincerity and swearing an oath before Heaven. This means that recipients must meet these conditions.

As for the scripture’s statement that “according to the Mysterious Regulations, transmission takes place once every forty thousand kalpas,” it means that if someone who has attained the Dao offers gold, silver, and precious goods and sincerely seeks the teachings, they must first swear an oath before the heavenly realms of the ten directions, following the established rules. Only then may the teachings be transmitted. This explains the rules for transmission and deliverance and should not be listed separately. Only one item is retained here.

Disaster may befall a person and extend to their ancestors for nine generations. Those who divulge or treat the secret teachings with disrespect will fall into hell.

These are three examples of offenses that incur punishment.

The scripture says that those who do not fast and bathe, do not offer incense by burning it in worship, and do not recite the scripture earnestly will incur this offense and its resulting calamity. Those who disregard the rules and rites, casually reveal secret teachings to people unfit to receive them, divulge and disrespect the profound teachings, transmit them before the prescribed interval has passed, or accept or disclose forbidden teachings without first fasting and swearing an oath, all commit offenses of an intermediate degree. So do those who pass secret teachings to unsuitable people and thereby cause others to slight or distrust the scripture. These offenses bring calamity upon one’s ancestors for nine generations. Those who divulge or disrespect secret teachings without concern, use deceitful methods to pursue the strange and novel, criticize or slander sacred scriptures and profound writings, or steal Heaven’s treasures commit the offense described in this item, bringing calamity upon their ancestors for seven generations.

The categories listed in the scripture are as follows:

Thirty categories of the Heavenly Grade (two items are missing from the original)

Beginning Azure Heaven; the Heavens; High Heaven; Heaven of Protection; the Thirty-Two Heavens; Root of Heaven; Heaven within Heaven; the Flying Heavens of the Ten Directions; Minister Heaven; Heaven of Communion; Heaven of Highest Clarity; the Heavenly Emperor; Heaven within Heaven; Gate; the Five Heavens; Bearing Heaven; Transverse Heaven; Riding Heaven; Above Heaven; Below Heaven; Envoy Heaven; the Way of Heaven; Flying Heaven; Dharma Wheel; Heaven and Earth; Heavenly Patterns; Heavenly Perfected Ones; Heaven Free of Miasma and Defilement; Heavenly Worthy; Oath before Heaven.

Ten categories of the Terrestrial Grade

The things concealed within the earth emerge and spread, and the Earth Qi returns. Affairs concerning the Earth Gods and the underworld bring construction and labor on the earth to an end. The roots of the earth, Heaven and Earth, and the earth’s gateways—the places through which Earth Qi enters and leaves. No demons, evil influences, or defilement remain on the earth.

Terms concerning the State (fifteen entries)

The Great Floating Li Land, a vast blessed realm in Daoist scriptures; mountains and seas, and the territory of a state; rivers and mountains, forests and trees, high and low terrain, and the men and women of a state; the narrow state (the text reads this way; its meaning is unclear), half-collapsed land, settled territory; the Dao governing the rivers, seas, and mountains of a state; the king, the destiny of the state, the ruler of the state.

Terms concerning the Venerable Ones (thirty-one entries)

The Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning, the Most Venerable, the Heavenly Lords of the various heavens; the myriad emperors, the Five Emperors, the Venerable and Wondrous; emperors and kings, the Great Lord of the Dao, the Supreme Emperor of Primordial Beginning; the Most Venerable Lord of Longevity of the Southern Pole; Lord Han; the Venerable Gods of the Southern High Office of Fate, the Office of Records, the Extension of Life, the Increase of Lifespan, and the Relief of Calamity, who respectively govern the registers of fate, records, longevity, added years, and the dispelling of calamities; the Celestial Emperor, the Utmost Perfect, the Emperors of the Thirty-Two Heavens, the Venerable One in Heaven; the Azure Emperor, Red Emperor, White Emperor, Black Emperor, Yellow Emperor, the Five Emperors, the Great Demon; the Great August Emperor, the Great Lord of Longevity, Master Wuying; the Venerable God Baiyuan, Taiyi, the God of Fate, Taokang, Heyan; the Heavenly Lords of the various heavens, the Sage Lords, before the Emperor.

Terms concerning the Sages (five entries)

The Supreme Sages, the Great Sages of the various heavens, the Great Sages of Longevity; the Utmost Sage, the Spirit Person, the Sage Lord.

Terms concerning the Perfected Ones (twenty-four entries)

The Great Celestial Perfected Gods, the Perfected Ones of Wondrous Practice, the Great Utmost Perfected Gods; those who have attained perfection, the High Perfected Ones of the Cavern of Truth; the Perfected Ones of the Nine Palaces, the Utmost Perfected Ones of the Ten Directions, the Overseers of the Perfected; the Jade Perfected Ones, the High Perfected One of True Stability and Light of Brahma; the Gods who Summon the Perfected, the High Perfected Ones who Repel and Check; the High Perfected Ones, the Golden Perfected Ones, those who attain perfection; within the Perfected there are gods—how can the genuine be distinguished from the false, and the true Dao preserved? The Wondrous Cavern, the Self-Perfected, the Celestial Perfected Sovereign, the multitude of Perfected Ones.

Terms concerning the Immortals (eighteen entries; five entries are missing from the original)

Immortals, the multitude of Immortals, transformation into an Immortal; the myriad Immortals, the equal Immortals, the Immortal Dao prizes life; the Immortal Dao is vast, the Immortal Dao prizes what is genuine, delight in the Immortal Dao; the Immortal Lord, the rank of Immortals, and so one may attain becoming an Immortal; summoning and gathering the multitude of Immortals.

Terms concerning numinous and wondrous things (fourteen entries)

The hundred numinous beings, demonic spirits, the Fundamental Chapter of the Numinous Treasure; spirits, numinous banners, numinous chapters; the Utmost Numinous, the Numinous One in Heaven, the numinous wind; the tenfold turning of the returning numinous, the Clear and Numinous, numinous writings; numinous books, the myriad numinous beings.

Terms concerning spirits (twenty-seven entries)

The Great Gods, the Great Celestial Perfected Gods, the Flying Heavenly God Kings; the myriad gods paying homage, the divine Perfected Ones, the deathless gods.

The Great God of Sima, the revered gods, the Flying Celestial God-Kings; the Great God who oversees the living, the chief overseer of the divine beings of the spirit realm; the Great Gods of the heavens: they spread out and bring down the divine perfected ones, leaving none of the myriad gods unaccounted for. The lord of the myriad gods is the Divine Lord, and all the gods obey his commands. In the realm of the perfected, there are gods who can unite and govern the hundred deities. The immeasurable Great Gods and the most holy divine beings enable people to attain the state of the immortals. The divine tassel appears naturally from within the palace; Fulu (talismans and registers) unite with the gods, and the myriad gods come to pay homage and show reverence.

The rank of kings, comprising thirteen titles: Demon King, king of a state, God-King; Great Mystery Demon King, Demon King of the Five Heavens, King Above My Station; Demon King of Song and Sound, Demon King Who Protects and Welcomes, Demon King Who Reveres the Form; Most Numinous Demon King, emperor, Demon King of the Heavens, Great Merit Demon King.

The rank of lords, comprising three titles: Divine Lord, Immortal Lord, and Lord of the Seven Ancestors.

The rank of officials, comprising twelve titles: the Five Emperors who attend upon the scriptures, Jade Boys, Jade Maidens, rulers and ministers, Merit Officers and Envoys, Direct Talisman Officers (divine functionaries who convey talismanic commands), Incense Officials, the Five Elders, the various heavens, chancellors, the Three Offices, ghost officials, and ministers of the Golden Tower.

The rank of human beings, comprising fifty titles: Perfected Ones who deliver people from the world, including men, women, the elderly, adults in their prime, the young, the strong and healthy, women, and grown people; heavenly beings, those who have attained perfection, and people born from white bones. Those of supreme learning, students of the Way, and those who deliver countless people can all become noble beings. The people of the world, scholars who seek the Way, and all heavenly beings, supreme adepts, and perfected ones are included here as well.

Twenty-four people, whose fathers and sons serve generation after generation as rulers; thirty-two people; and the countless deliverers of people and the tenfold deliverers—all belong among those who deliver people. Among them are Lord Han, the Elder, who delivers people, and those transformed from immortals. They deliver heavenly beings everywhere: transforming beings in the upper realm and protecting human bodies in the lower realm.

The Way practiced by human beings is subtle and far-reaching. One should follow the proper path of human life, neither bringing the human way to an end nor obstructing people’s years or severing their vitality. There are many who deliver people, and the human way resides in the human heart. In cultivating the human way, what matters is refinement and uprightness. The most holy divine beings and the perfected ones study and cultivate together, teaching and transforming the people. Teachers and friends each have their own duties, recording the merits and faults of the perfected ones. Among those who deliver people in quiet seclusion is the Sovereign Man.

The rank of kin, comprising thirteen titles: kin formed from different bones, countless generations of ancestors, the nine ancestors, fathers and sons, ancestral forebears, lineage kin, Elder Choubo, the Divine Lord, the Ancestral Lord, the Lord’s son, the Seven Ancestors, teachers and friends, and the Earth Mother.

The categories of the heavenly realm: the vast, luminous sky, together with the sun, moon, and stars, and the Jade Swivel and Jade Balance, astronomical instruments symbolizing the movements and observation of the heavens. The sky is unobscured by drifting clouds; the sun and moon hold their radiance in the remote, clear expanse.

The celestial pivot (the hub around which the Northern Dipper revolves) ceases to turn. The practitioner walks alone, ascends to the Jade Capital (the Daoist heavenly realm of immortals), and rises into the Vermilion Palace.

Ascending to the Golden Tower, the practitioner roams and feasts in the Jade Capital, then ascends to the Southern Palace. In this way, the original form can be restored, allowing free passage through the vast reaches of space. Ascending to the Southern Palace, treasured in Heaven, the body becomes that of an immortal, and the practitioner’s name is entered in the registers of immortals in the various heavens. Once the name has been recorded in the celestial realm, the practitioner can ascend to Shangqing (the Daoist upper heavens), reach the Thirty-Two Heavens, and continue upward directly to the unsurpassed Great Luo Jade Clarity.

The practitioner floats down through the air, then floats onward through the air, entering the ranks of immortals in the Southern Palace, transcending the Three Realms (the Realm of Desire, the Realm of Form, and the Realm of Formlessness), and roaming freely in the heavenly domain of Shangqing.

The heavens of Shangqing are a formless realm, containing domains such as the Cavern of Emptiness and the Great Mystery. There are the Eastern, Southern, Western, Northern, and Central Dippers, while the Flying-Heaven Dharma Wheel turns through space. Higher still, beyond form and appearance, lies only the Vajra Vehicle Heaven, a heavenly realm likened to a vajra.

The vast Brahma Qi (pure, boundless vital energy) fills Miro, while the primal framework, the fundamental order governing Heaven and Earth, unfolds and circulates. The formless realm flows through the ten directions, revolving through the Dipper and passing the Ji constellation, gathering and governing the Qi of the Upper Origin. This Qi enters the hidden, mysterious realm, where the Great Rosy Clouds emerge. Continuing upward through Shangqing, the practitioner opens the Eight Gates and reaches the various heavens.

There is the Cavern of Emptiness, as well as the heavens of the Realm of Desire, where Qi surges boundlessly. The Realm of Form stretches wide, and the luminous Qi of the high heavens extends in every direction. The Brahma practices of the various heavens are pure; beings in the Three Realms are at peace, and their bodies merge with nature. The practitioner transforms and ascends, the figure gradually receding, and enters the Great Luo Heaven. There, no form or appearance remains to grasp; only towering clouds rise in a realm that endures through the great calamities. The practitioner rides the Mystery Capital in full command, enters the Jade Void with the body, and flies through the air.

The Vermilion Mound, Mystery Capital, Upper Purple Tenuity Palace, Golden Tower, Jade Capital, and Nine Capitals are all celestial abodes of immortals named in the scripture. From the realm of Great Vastness, one ascends to the Heaven of Primordial Beginning; after passing through the Nine Suns, one rises to the Golden Gate. The heavens contain no defiling Qi, and songs ring out through the air as the Azure Firmament comes into view.

The Terrestrial Realm

The heights and depths of the terrestrial realm are all transformed into green jade, and the earth sinks everywhere. Five zhang above the ground, the land becomes level again, and sloping ground is set straight. In this way, the practitioner can subdue and command the earth deities, avoid passing through hell, and put an end to the suffering of confinement by the underworld authorities.

The Boundless Divine Township, the Northern Capital of Luofeng (the Daoist underworld), the Northern Capital’s Cold Pool, the Three Paths and Five Sufferings, the Eight Difficulties, and the Three Evils are all names for places of torment in the netherworld. The Five Earth Roots and Gates, and Northern Feng, are also places associated with the underworld. Below the Golden Horse’s postal route, there are no more abysses, wind caves, or marshes. The earth deities throughout the world rise up out of the Earth Gates, the portals leading underground. The mountains of the Lunar Realm’s Luminous Jade are enveloped in billowing smoke and mist.

The Demonic Realm

The scripture lists spells and titles of the demonic realm: by knowing the Demon King’s secret name, one can bind the host of demons, blind demonic spirits, and fetter demonic entities. A hundred demons conceal their voices and traces; by this means, the practitioner subdues the demons and protects themself.

In Heaven there are great demons, the Demon Kings of the Five Heavens, and the Great Demons of the Five Emperors; none of these may harm the practitioner. The scripture also mentions the Demon King’s sacred writings and the Demon King of the Realm of Form.

The demons and their retinues of the Formless Realm: Demons and spirits are brought under control, and the host of demons is subdued. The Demon King’s songs, the Demon King Bao Yingzhi Ling, the Demon King of the Heavenly Center, the Demon King Mingmo, and the Demon King of Great Merit.

The category of the realm of ghosts: Withered bones grow anew; the Yin Qi of ghostly essences dissipates; corpses rise again, and the dead return to life. White bones become full-grown people, and the demonic Qi of ghosts at the point of death is extinguished. Wandering souls, suffering souls, and souls released from the corpse are temporarily dispelled. Ghost officials are made to serve for a long time, causing remains to rise and the dead to return to life, then driving them into the ranks of ghosts. The souls of the dead are placed under general oversight, and ghost spirits and ghost soldiers are brought under command; ghostly suffering spirits, ghostly beings, and demonic essences are examined, and the ghost camps are put in order. Demons and spirits of the ghostly way, the sharp forces of the Six Ghosts, and evil ghosts and deviant paths are all eliminated. One is forever freed from forced service under ghost officials and the bonds of the corpse form. Soul spirits and the host of demons bow their heads in submission; ghostly essences perish of their own accord, and demonic Qi, wandering souls, and suffering souls all dissipate.

The category of the water realm: Fine rain falls and rivers and seas grow calm; one bathes in fragrant water. The purified mansions of Jingquan and Qu, the Cold Pool, the Deep Abyss, the Wind Marsh and Empty Cavern, and the sources of the twelve rivers are all washed clean in the Qi of the Dragon-Han era, as water streams and splashes through them.

The category of the good: Everyone praises goodness together; all turn their hearts toward good and put good intentions into practice as one. They care for one another, becoming kin even when born of different bones, and forming bonds of good karma. By observing the fast for a long time, one may receive good fortune. One naturally moves toward good fortune and avoids disaster, escaping death.

The category of the evil: The sounds of wickedness and foul Qi have not yet dissipated, and the body has not yet penetrated the true realm. Deep-rooted evil brings the three evils. One cuts short another’s life and severs another’s path to life; fierce, poisonous, and wicked, one continues to suffer harm even after death.

The category of illness: The deaf have their ear passages opened and regain their hearing; the blind see clearly. The illnesses of the mute, the lame, and those with long-lasting or stubborn ailments are relieved. White hair, lost teeth, wounds and other injuries, as well as imminent death, decline and misfortune, illness, and trauma, are all remedied.

The category of calamity and suffering: The distress of pregnancy and of the fetus; the Three Paths of Suffering—the hells, hungry ghosts, and animals—the Five Sufferings, the Eight Difficulties, and the calamities that come with the decline and end of Heaven and Earth. The waxing and waning of the Sun, Moon, and Five Planets, and the decline and fortune of sacred spirits, all become inauspicious when these movements fall out of order. As the cycles of the kalpa reach their end and all things perish, the body undergoes the tribulation of Great Yin, the netherworld. The cycles of Heaven and Earth come to an end, the stars move out of order, the Sun and Moon depart from their proper courses, the four seasons lose their sequence, and Yin and Yang fall out of balance. Rulers suffer calamity, wars break out everywhere, plague and poison spread, the people die and are injured, and teachers and friends meet their end. Brutal heat and spreading poison: these are the days when calamity descends.

The category of sins: The body is bound and the soul extinguished, leaving a person blind. One is tied up and subdued, unable to return to life. Misfortune befalls oneself and reaches the nine generations of one’s ancestors; one serves ghost officials for a long time, is driven into the ranks of ghosts, undergoes severe examination, and falls ill. In the end, everything is extinguished, and the burden of sin is cut off.

Bind them under strict restraint and sweep them away completely, expelling their poison. Drive them out in front, execute them in front, and punish them from behind. Slaughter and mutilate them, sever their heads and dismember them. Examine their crimes clearly and put an end to their evil, thereby subduing Beiluofeng, the underworld realm of Daoist legend.

Bind the condemned and take them away; behead them as a warning and suppress the evil spirits. The guilty are bound, their heads fall to the ground, and they descend into hell. Their misfortunes may also implicate seven generations of their ancestors, diminishing their blessings and longevity. Record people’s merits and faults, impose punishments, and make them submit to their sentences and serve their terms.

From this, blessings arise, bringing withered bones back to life. All may receive new life, be protected and saved, and attain longevity. Everyone may be rescued and keep their allotted years unharmed. The state is at peace, the people prosper, and all enjoy peace and security. All beings may transcend this world: even those whose lives were cut short may be born again. They escape death, their households flourish, and their generations prosper.

No disaster can trouble them; the spirits guard their gates. Through receiving the teachings, they are reborn and become people of noble status, even attaining immortality, and are saved at once. They gain longer lives and never again suffer the torments of hell; everyone may partake of blessings and joy. Boundless blessings and De protect the bodies of those who receive the scripture.

Whether in life or after death, they receive its grace. They are saved and ascend to the Southern Palace, the celestial bureau of the immortals, where they cultivate the Dao and become immortal. Their names are removed from the registers of the dead, and they pass from death to life. Their lives are preserved, and they endure between Heaven and Earth. Generation after generation, they remain unbroken and rule as sovereigns among humankind for a long time.

They bring peace and protection to their domain. The people praise the peace, and the primordial Qi of Heaven and Earth flows on without end. They leave suffering behind, guarded and protected by the Three Realms—the distinct domains of Heaven, Earth, and humankind in Daoist cosmology. The Five Emperors, lords of the five directions, come to welcome them. Their names are entered in the celestial registers, their records of guilt swiftly erased, and the roots of evil destroyed. They ascend to the Southern Palace, become immortals, and are saved in this very life.

They endure through successive kalpas and share Heaven’s longevity. They transcend the Three Realms and are forever released from the Three Paths—the realms of hell, hungry ghosts, and animals—as well as the Five Sufferings and Eight Hardships. They save all beings, celestial and mortal alike. Today, we rejoice and celebrate those who have been saved, praying that the Three Evils be removed and the roots of hell severed completely. They soar upward, crossing the Five Gates, a Daoist term whose precise meaning varies with the context of the scripture, and their names are inscribed in the Great Mystery, the ineffable celestial realm of Daoist teaching. Their lifespans are recorded and their names entered in the registers; they leave the records of the dead and ascend to new life. They protect and nurture the hun and po souls, regulate Qi and blood, ascend to Heaven, and save others.

They protect and stabilize the kalpas, preserving Heaven and Earth forever. They restore the Five Constant Virtues to their proper order, bringing harmony to a thousand things and concord to ten thousand affairs, and naturally attain the state of a perfected being. They regulate the Five Qi and unite the hundred spirits; the Qi of all things turns toward immortality. The immortal Dao prizes the preservation of life and offers salvation to all, renewing the body. Every being has a path to life: the Way of Heaven prizes nurturing life, and the immortal Dao continually brings good fortune.

They do not wish the human world to fall into hardship; they wish only for the immortal Dao to flourish ever more. The immortal Dao esteems salvation: names are entered in the Southern Palace, people are lifted out of the underworld, and they escape the Five Sufferings and Eight Hardships. After undergoing refinement and salvation, they are born anew, blessings and De arrive at once, and every inauspicious thing vanishes. They ascend directly to the Southern Palace; by counting the days, they may gain new life and thereby dispel calamities from Heaven.

They protect and guard emperors, dispel calamities and poisons, and save the people. The living and the dead alike receive their grace; the blessings are beyond measure, and all beings in heaven and on earth are saved.

They recommend accomplished high immortals for promotion to the Golden Gate, where they may move freely through the Three Realms. Whatever calamity arises, it can be dispelled, avoided, escaped, and overcome.

Ascent and flight: Going alone to Jade Capital, the city of the immortals; ascending into the Vermilion Palace and flying up to the Golden Gate; feasting and wandering in Jade Capital, ascending to the Southern Palace and roaming through the heavens; being delivered and ascending to the Southern Palace and Shangqing, the Daoist realm of higher immortals, thereby transcending the Three Realms; roaming freely in Shangqing, flying beyond the Five Gates, a name for an immortal realm in the scripture, and traveling amid drums and ceremonial music; surveying the heavens, ascending to Shangqing, and walking through the void. Body and spirit leave our realm and merge with nature. Beyond our realm, one enters Jade Void, the immortal realm, flies through the heavens, transcends the Three Realms, ascends to the Southern Palace, roams through the Three Realms, and enters the Golden Gate.

Deliverance: All who receive the highest-degree rites of deliverance from the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning, the Daoist deity who delivers beings without limit, are protected and delivered. The assembled perfected beings oversee this work so that all may be saved and delivered. They rescue those near death and save numberless beings, so that all receive blessings and ascend to the Southern Palace. Deliverance is boundless and repeated again and again: delivering people, delivering the world, and delivering them from calamity. The revered deity who saves beings from calamity grants long life and delivers the world; the perfected immortals oversee the deliverance of living beings. Each person is delivered according to their due, entering a rank in the Southern Palace. Delivered while still embodied, they escape the realm of deliverance forever and enter Bright Heaven, the immortal realm.

Through the Brahma rites, beings in heaven and on earth are saved. Today, all rejoice and celebrate their deliverance: flying beyond the Five Gates, ascending to heaven to deliver people, and delivering them through cycles in accordance with the Five Constant Virtues. All receive the opening rite of deliverance. For the immortal way, deliverance is paramount: one must deliver oneself beyond our realm. Yet our realm is difficult to leave—how few can be delivered? You are laughed at because you have not yet attained deliverance. Transcending the Three Realms, one sends the soul to Vermilion Mound, the Daoist underworld of immortals, and is delivered in accord with the movements of Heaven and Earth. The corpse is delivered according to the rites. Even when the stars move in disarray, the course of Heaven nears its end, and the four seasons fall out of order, this deliverance can still save the people. Empty Cypress, a name for an immortal realm in the scripture, delivers immortals; the silent and secluded deliver people. Nothing cannot be delivered. This is called being delivered into the Southern Palace.

Immortals: All people can become immortals. One becomes immortal oneself and is escorted by a host of immortals. Through immortal transformation, one becomes human and assists the myriad immortals, taking a place among the Immortal Lords and recommending accomplished high immortals.

Long life: After teeth fall out, they grow back. Those already born and those yet to be born alike receive the power of generation. Withered bones grow again, enabling living beings to enjoy long life, be born anew, and extend their years. The living and the dead alike receive grace and are reborn through the turning of the scripture. Lord Han cherishes life; the Lord of Long Life in the South Pole presides over the Way of Long Life.

Longevity

The Great Sage of Longevity can grant people long life, free them from the world of dust, and save all beings. He enables people to ascend to new life, oversees life and death, and brings their bodies through transformation.

The Great Lord of Longevity, who grants life in the Southern Dipper, can preserve people’s lives and nourish their vital roots. He teaches people to cherish life and undergo refinement until they attain realization, receive new life, and ascend to the heavens.

Death

He can restore withered bones and bring the dead back to life, turning white bones into living people. He saves those near death, keeping them from dying, and rescues souls in the netherworld.

In corpse liberation (when a Daoist practitioner leaves behind the body as the soul and spirit depart), the soul and spirit temporarily shed thoughts of life and death. The souls of the dead can have their names erased from the registers of the dead and become deathless gods.

He restores the bodies and souls of the dead, bringing their souls back. He saves those who, through death or injury, have fallen under the jurisdiction of the Big Dipper, sparing them the suffering of death and bringing their bodies through transformation in the Great Yin (the realm of the netherworld).

The body dies, and the allotted lifespan ends.

Ritual

After summoning the perfected beings of the ten directions (divine perfected beings from every quarter), one should first go before the ritual seat. The perfected beings stand in attendance beside it. They sit upright in the air, upon five-colored lions.

All the perfected beings wholeheartedly turn toward and revere the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning, guiding living beings to ascend. When the scripture has been proclaimed, they gather to oversee and save those in need.

When this scripture is proclaimed, the perfected beings of the ten directions surround the assembly. All beneath heaven turn toward it in reverence and devotion. The myriad spirits perform their rites, the Five Emperors stand guard, the three realms (the realms of Heaven, Earth, and Water) bow together, and the spirits protect the gateways.

Bring gold, silver, and precious goods as a sign of sincerity. Swear an oath to Heaven, then transmit this scripture. The spirits guard the scripture and protect the body of the person who receives it.

Kings, emperors, rulers and ministers, fathers and sons, and the gods of the three realms all come to stand guard. The Five Emperors take charge of receiving them; the myriad spirits come to pay court, and their voices are heard throughout the thirty-two heavens.

On days when one performs the Daoist ritual practice, bathe in fragrant water, observe ritual abstinence, and enter the chamber. Facing east, click the teeth together and pay homage inwardly. Close the eyes and meditate, imagining yourself seated amid three-colored clouds. The clouds array themselves to your left and right; the sun and moon shine, and a round halo appears above your head, its radiance illuminating the ten directions. Once this visualization is clear, recite the secret incantation (a spell chanted privately during the ritual), summon the spirits to leave your body, and state what you seek, so that your words may reach the heavenly court directly.

Guide the breath thirty-two times, then face east and recite the scripture. That day, the heavenly spirits who record and assess deeds come to court, riding flying clouds with nine-colored banners clearing the way. The spirits escorting the chariot turn it toward its destination; all lights converge and arrive together before the Lord Emperor.

The gods protect the body and soul, and present what has been spoken. The Demon King of Highest Clarity escorts and receives the practitioner. The Demon King honors the person’s body, protects their movements, and escorts them on their journeys. With a heart of utmost sincerity, swear an oath to the ten heavens, observe ritual abstinence in unity, and offer incense six times each day at the prescribed hours.

Offer incense and recite the scripture for this person, chanting it ten times to save and transform their body. The ritual must be carried out according to the rules. One should also observe ritual abstinence, offer incense, and recite the scripture.

Perform this merit for Heaven and Earth, the Lord Emperor, and the people. When disaster strikes, resolve to observe ritual abstinence, offer incense, and recite the scripture; then the myriad spirits will stand guard and protect your body.

Those who can observe purification and recite this scripture will call forth the Flying-Heavenly Divine Kings, celestial spirits who descend to inspect them. The myriad gods come to pay homage, while the earth deities stand guard at the gate and recommend the scripture’s reciter for immortalhood.

When the Flying-Heavenly Divine Kings descend, the Celestial Emperor chants from afar, and the spirits of the Three Realms attend beside the imperial carriage. All spiritual beings are awed and offer reverent worship.

Music

From the Azure Heavens comes an ethereal song, carrying hidden and profound melodies; the heavens answer from afar. A hundred demons howl ahead in deep, mysterious tones, joined in song by the Nine Phoenixes. The Eight Luans sing together behind them, their howls and songs meeting in harmony.

The heavens perform profound celestial music, the sounds of the heavenly realm: drums and rhythms, howling, chanting, and Dongzhang, liturgical Daoist hymns. The voices of the Golden Perfected are clear and fragrant; jade-toned music comes from the air.

A hollow, far-reaching song comes from the sky. Its lyrics draw on the words of the High Perfected, who chant Dongzhang in mournful tones. The Demon King of the Realm of Form also sings: “The Demon King’s song accords with Dongzhang. Hearing this numinous, wondrous sound, one knows it is the hidden music of Heaven, not ordinary speech or familiar verse from the human world. It does not prize the rhymes and ornate language of worldly verse, nor the elaborate turns and flourishes of mortal melodies, yet its sounds are boundless and inexhaustible. The tones of Guanyin flow and turn, and the melodies are wondrous. The songs of the empty sky are true sounds, and some can understand what they express. These sounds are celestial music born of their own accord, sung from afar by the Supreme Emperor.”

Palaces and Halls

The palaces and halls of the heavenly realm include the Azure Heavens, Vermilion Palace, Golden Gate, Jade Capital, Southern Palace, Nine Palaces, Highest Clarity, Yuluo, Xiaotai, Jade Mountain, Upper Capital, Great Luo, Jade Clarity, Three Blossoms, Libian, the Wondrous Court of Great Abundance, the Golden Gate and Jade Chamber, the Pure Radiance of Forested Constellations, the Upper Palace of Nanchang, the Han Bureau, the Northern Capital, the Office of Springs and Turning Waters, the Nine Offices, the Three Officials, the Cold Pool, the Wheel of Kalpas, the Pass of the Ages, the Five Gates of the Heavens, the Gate of Heaven, the Great Void, Beifeng, the Ghost Encampment, the Flowery Chamber, the Crimson Palace, the Cloud Palace of Eight Gates, the Flying-Heaven Dharma Wheel, the Earth Gate, the Gate of Life, the Mysterious Capital, the Vermilion Mound, the Upper Palace of Purple Tenuity, the Golden Gate, the Flowery Capital, the Jade Capital, the Upper Gate, Putai, the Nine Capitals, the Self Palace, the Hall of Great Vastness, and the Three Realms.

Carriages and Retinues

The spirits ride green carriages with jade wheels and feathered canopies. They also ride black jeweled seats that float through the air, or mount five-colored lions, or sit in carriages formed from blue, yellow, and white clouds. Green carriages travel alongside flying clouds, accompanied by vermilion phoenixes and five-colored black dragons.

They raise nine-colored banners and the Ten-Perfected sacred pennants. Their carriages number in the tens of millions, with throngs of mounted attendants. Their retinue also includes command banners, standards, drums and rhythm instruments, trailing pennants, hurled flames, streaming bells, golden battle-axes, golden horses, divine tassels, and other ceremonial regalia.

Light and Qi

Flying clouds, crimson mists, flowing essence, and jade-colored radiance: five-colored Qi rises in dense, surging waves, illuminating the Great Void.

The divine wind is still. Cloud vapor lies hidden between mountains and seas, and no drifting cloud shadows cross the sky.

The Qi of the four directions is clear and bright. Dense clouds and mist surge upward, while myriad kinds of Qi endure without cease.

Radiance appears on the body, encircled by clouds of three colors; the sun and moon shine brightly.

The room is filled with light. A round halo rises above the head, its radiance illuminating the ten directions.

Guide the Qi thirty-two times, opening and illuminating the three luminaries: the sun, moon, and stars.

Not a single pattern fails to shine; not a single pattern is without brightness. Vast Brahma Qi—the pure and boundless Qi—surges forth, and the radiance of five and nine colors pours down.

Yuming, Taiming, Qingming, Yuanming, Shangming, Dingguang; Chiming, Xuanming, Yaoming, Guangming, Lingxu, Mingguan; Xuanming, Diming, Zhihuo; Fuming, Fuyuan, Tianguang; Chiming, Brahma Qi, Colorless.

Gather the various kinds of Qi and bring them into a mysterious, profound realm. Clouds of great rosy radiance wind around and gather in the Qi; numinous winds draw smoke together, filling the Purple Void, the immortal realm symbolized by purple clouds. Refined, beautiful Qi gathers and blends, and all the gods share one Qi. Brilliant auspicious clouds disperse the haze.

Inhale and absorb haze, turbid Qi, impurities, and demonic dust, so that wisdom in the netherworld may become clear and unobstructed.

Among the treasures:

Jade wheels, jade radiance, green jade; gold and jade, precious pearls, golden treasures; numinous treasures, golden palaces—heavenly palaces symbolized by gold and jade—and jade chambers; jade mountains, Jade Capital, the dwelling place of immortals, and Jade Truth; the jade-clear flowing bells, nine-colored insignia; the ten peerless numinous banners, dragon-script jade characters; yellow registers, white tablets, golden perfection; the sounds of jade from heaven, treasures stored by the High Heaven, Jade Metropolis, golden gates, and precious jade.

Among the birds:

Vermilion Bird, Vermilion Phoenix, nine phoenixes, eight luan birds, and white cranes.

Among the beasts:

Five-colored lions, birds and beasts leaving the womb; Azure Dragon, White Tiger; countless carriages and mounted attendants; the Eight Powers, fierce horses, golden horses, and dragon patterns.

Among implements and places:

Gates, doors, rooms, pavilions, halls, gate towers; drums, command pennants, banners, insignia, battle-axes, carriages and palanquins; tablets, sedan chairs, fire bells, camp horses, Zegang; diagrams, wheels, winnowing baskets, peaches, chambers, mountains; forests, land, earthen seats, homes, grottoes; eyeballs, terraces, mirrors, tassels, canopies, mulberry trees, cypresses, knives, sandy ground, and mountains.

Among the body and kinship terms:

Ears, eyes, bodily form, hair, teeth; the old, the young, adults, strength and health, pregnancy, fetuses, bones; men and women, heart, mouth, eyes, body; fathers and sons, souls, body, Jing and Qi, Po, blood; neck, skull, lifespan, ancestors and forebears; name, power, life, Niwan—the upper Dantian in the head—and Jiangong, the palace associated with the heart; old man, husband, personal names and taboos.

Among speech and scriptures:

Singing, expounding scripture, intelligence and understanding, eloquence, celebration, difficulty in speaking, ritual services; words spoken in the teachings of the scriptures, without ornate language and with no evil sounds uttered from the mouth; names and expressions mentioned in the scriptures.

The categories at the end list the names of things and terms involved in ritual, visualization, or cultivation. “Guide the Qi thirty-two times” means guiding the breath thirty-two times according to ritual procedure. Through its accumulation of clouds and Qi, radiance, heavenly treasures, divine beasts, implements, and terms for body and mind, the passage depicts an atmosphere of purity and a sacred realm.

Chanting, Reciting in Practice, and Receiving Recitation

Recite secret incantations to proclaim their meaning. Sing with sounds such as blowing, whistling, and humming; speak the Shangqing Admonitions and Precepts (the instructions and rules of the Shangqing tradition) in rhythm, and chant words of wisdom as songs and melodies.

Categories of the Dao

A country takes the Dao as its foundation; the Dao is the source from which all Daoist methods arise. The Way of Corpse Liberation (a method of cultivation in which practitioners leave behind their bodily form and transcend it) is the way practiced on the day the Lord of the Dao, the Most High, puts the Dao into action. Only when the Dao is one’s own foundation is one truly cultivating the Dao.

The Immortal Way cherishes life. The human way is vast and profound, and the Way of Heaven, too, cherishes life. The ghostly way values death. The Immortal Way is boundless and often leads toward good fortune; the ghostly way often leads toward misfortune. May the human way never fall into hardship; may the Immortal Way alone be fulfilled, and the Way I cultivate grow ever more flourishing.

The Immortal Way prizes salvation, and the ghostly way is linked to it. The Immortal Way is difficult to make secure, while the ghostly way can easily lead people astray. The human way lies in cultivating the mind; the Immortal Way is precious and beautiful. Those who do not admire the Immortal Way may sink, through successive turns, into the Five Paths (the different destinations of rebirth). Beginners have only shallow attainment; only those who have truly attained the Dao should fully understand the Great Dao and bring its methods to completion.

Categories of De

When one’s deeds are complete, De is fulfilled; its reach is vast and beyond counting. Once blessings and De have been established, the power of De can subdue and govern the local earth spirits. Such merit and De are exceedingly profound; this is the kind of merit and De one should practice.

Categories of Loyalty

In a country, no one, whether man or woman, fails to turn wholeheartedly toward the Dao. When all the people of the country devote themselves to and revere the Great Dao, acting together with good intentions and showing one another compassion, even those of different surnames become like family. Then the country is at peace, the people are prosperous, and all gladly enjoy a time of peace.

A country takes the Dao as its foundation. All who are resolute should pray for the king and sovereign emperor: may the country’s fate be secured and its fortunes endure; may all regions be pacified, so that the people praise the peace.

When the cycles of Heaven and Earth near their end, and the sun, moon, and Five Planets (the five visible planets) wax and wane out of order, the most holy divine person should dispel calamities. If the vital energy of Heaven and Earth declines, the stars move in disorder, the sun and moon lose their light, the seasons fall out of sequence, and Yin-Yang becomes unbalanced, the country may suffer disasters and repeated wars. Epidemics and plagues may spread, and the people may die or be injured.

Therefore, one should offer incense and recite scriptures: above, to dispel calamities from Heaven and protect and stabilize the emperor; below, to ward off harmful influences and save the people. Heaven and Earth, the sovereign emperor, and the people should all practice this merit and De. When disaster strikes, one should resolve to undertake purification rites, burn incense, and recite scriptures.

Categories of Filial Piety

May the anguished and suffering spirits of ancestors across countless generations be saved at once and ascend to the Vermilion Palace, a heavenly palace in Daoist belief. May the spirits of the departed through the generations be released from confinement and guided to salvation in the Southern Palace; may the ancestors of the seven generations be elevated and forever freed from the jurisdiction of the ghostly authorities.

May the accumulated sins of parents and ancestors across their lifetimes be undone; may the registers of sins of relatives through the generations be erased, and the roots of harmful deeds dissolved.

After a teacher or fellow practitioner has passed away, one should also establish a purification altar, offer incense, and recite scriptures, expressing remembrance and praying for the deceased to be saved and delivered.

Divine Writings, Yellow Registers, and White Slips

Names and titles ascend to the celestial realm, written in the Red Writings of the Vast Cavern, the sacred script of the heavens in Daoism. Five kinds of writing unfold:

Without writing, there can be no light; without writing, nothing can be revealed or established, brought to completion, delivered, or brought forth and transformed.

Today, names are checked and recorded, and registers are kept; this is proclaimed throughout the Three Realms—the different domains of Heaven, Earth, and humanity—and the relevant entries are swiftly removed from the registers of guilt. This is the talismanic command of the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning. The documents ascend to the heavens, where the gods receive the command to distribute the five volumes of red books and jade script.

The Eight-Power Dragon Script, a sacred Daoist writing, thus becomes Cavern Script, proclaiming an oath throughout the celestial realms of the ten directions and recording people’s merits and faults. This is the middle section of the Numinous Writ of Primordial Beginning. Writings composed in the past and accumulated acts of merit are all presented to the heavens.

Martial Categories

They restrain the body and extinguish the clarity of the spirit, leaving people blind; subdue, control, and bind them, bringing calamity; subject them to long service, cut off their path to life, and examine them with severity.

They swiftly dispel, destroy, detain, and oppress; assemble their forces, guard, and disperse; seek to destroy and sever; bear the stones of Heaven, overturn mountains and stretch across the sky, shoulder heavy burdens, and command ghost troops.

They seize and subdue with severity, sweep everywhere, and spew poison; set up defenses in the four directions, serve as vanguards, and block and intercept; inflict punishments from front and behind, and butcher and dismember; sever heads and mutilate bodies with wind and fire.

They inspect and investigate with keen discernment, standing guard like golden horses and allowing nothing to be concealed; protect, control, and obstruct others, cutting off their way; seize, restrain, escort, and execute; command their forces, set things right and exercise control by taking advantage of circumstances; and enforce commands through weapons and armor.

All these names without exception arise from the Ancestral Qi of Lingbao, the source Qi spoken of in Lingbao teachings. It originated in the One Origin, before all things had differentiated, and then flowed into myriad transformations. One who understands this scripture can serve as a teacher to emperors; one who penetrates its hidden meaning can become a Celestial Perfected, a true immortal who has attained the Dao.

The Great Lingbao Method of Shangqing, Volume 25