《上清靈寶大法(一)》Vol. 31

The Precious Compendium of Qingwei says: “By accumulating hidden merit, one can free one’s ancestors. By accumulating evident and substantial Yang merit, one can bring blessings upon oneself. Why not establish merit by saving the souls of the dead who suffer without respite? In this way, one will naturally receive blessings from the Heavenly Emperor. Even rebellious ministers and unfilial sons may sink into misery for a long time. Sometimes, though they receive special grace and are reborn as insects, only after nine years do the heavens rejoice and celebrate. Then, by day, they ride the clouds to pay court in Jade Clarity.”

Here, “without respite” refers to the souls of the dead who suffer in the netherworld. Practicing the mysterious principles of saving others and seeking immortality is certainly an important path to becoming an immortal. But without universally saving these suffering souls, one cannot speak of truly saving others.

The netherworld has different rules for investigation and punishment. Living beings in the world cycle through the four forms of birth and the six paths, endlessly undergoing life and death. Unless they transcend the Three Realms and realize the Way of nature, they cannot escape the suffering of the cycle.

Human beings are spread throughout the world. Even in places beyond the reach of civilization—among the Rong, Man, Yi, and Xia, or where the sun and moon do not shine—those who possess the three karmic actions of body, speech, and mind, as well as the six faculties of eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind, all belong to the human realm. In the north stand three palaces of ghost officials who govern these souls. They are not the three officials Qingling, Qinghua, and Ziwei. These three ghost officials are charged specifically with examining offenses and administering retribution: the Fire Official examines grave bodily offenses; the Registrar Official examines grave offenses of the mind; and the Water Official examines grave offenses of speech. If all six faculties and all three karmic actions are seriously implicated, the person must undergo the punishment known as the “wind-blade ordeal.”

At birth, the father’s Jing and the mother’s blood come together to form flesh and bone, and the child develops in the womb. After ten months, the body is complete. Taiwei sends down breath, enabling life to take shape; the innate nature changes, and the soul and consciousness begin to form. Men hold the station of a Heavenly Venerable, and women possess the truth of a Primordial Sovereign. Yet people are bound by the three karmic actions they themselves create and by the pull of the six faculties. When their allotted lifespan ends, they return to emptiness and stillness and undergo retribution according to the karma they have made. The body returns to dust, while the soul and spirit are confined in the netherworld.

Unless a death was sudden and violent in a previous life, the souls of the dead are detained in darkness by the local spirit officials and earth lords, unable to gain release for a long time. If they still have karmic debts to repay, they are sent straight to the city of ghosts, where they may be unable to be reborn even for ten thousand years. Those with many offenses and little merit must endure five kinds of suffering before they can begin to have the chance to be reborn in another form. As for those with much merit and few offenses...

A single drawing, once completed, can establish the blessings and punishments of those caught in the cycle of rebirth. Blessings and sins are clearly distinguished: each person is reborn according to the karma they have created. Those who have accumulated merit may be reborn, while those burdened by grave sins sink into suffering through long kalpas.

Those judged and punished by the Fire Office suffer such torments as copper pillars, iron beds, molten copper, furnace coals, fiery moats, celestial river chariots of fire, and cauldrons of boiling water. Those judged by the Water Office suffer in icy pools and frozen ponds, and endure punishments involving poisonous liquids and filth. Those judged by the Office of Records are struck with golden hammers and iron rods. Those judged by the Wind Knives are dismembered, sawn apart, pierced by flying spears and drifting halberds, have their tongues pulled out, and are plowed through. They also endure peals of thunder and violent winds, blades crossing from every direction to cut their bodies, and the agony of having their forms broken apart on mountains of knives and forests of swords. Fire hounds and venomous snakes pierce and gnaw their flesh and bones; their spirit bodies are boiled down to grease, burned to ash, and ground to powder. Day and night, the punished die and are reborn countless times. After karmic winds scatter their bodies, they immediately regain their former shape.

Those whose sins are less severe may be reborn after their suffering ends, yet may still lose the chance to be born human again. They may be reborn many times as people of low status, or be born with incomplete features or bodies. They may also be born in remote lands at the edges of the four regions, among the Rong, Di, Man, and Yi peoples. Those whose sins are grave but whose karmic retribution is somewhat lighter may be reborn as domestic animals. Only after ten lifetimes and enduring the five sufferings can they return to the human realm. If their sins are exceedingly grave, then after suffering the punishment of the Wind Knives, their souls scatter in every direction. They are reborn in various forms—as beings born from wombs, eggs, moisture, or transformation—and dispersed as tiny insects, forever losing the chance to be born human again.

There are also people whose sins are not numerous, but whose offenses are especially grave in kind. They must first pass through the three paths and five sufferings before entering the realm of hungry ghosts. Bound by the cycles of the kalpas, they remain trapped in endless darkness, carrying sand and stones, drawing water from the deep sea, or being driven to command thunder and wield lightning. Only after a very long time can they be reborn in the ghost realm, where they still bear the consequences of their hideous deeds and remain submerged in darkness for countless kalpas. The “womb-born ghosts” described in the Record of Fengdu by Xin Xuanzi are of this kind.

Once born into the human world, people may nevertheless devote their daily conduct and actions to creating sins, while their thoughts and desires become sources of accumulating karma. Good deeds create good karma, bringing fitting good rewards; evil deeds create evil karma, and evil rewards follow. Once they lose their human form, they may fall into the circumstances described above.

Later, the Northern Emperor, ruler of the northern underworld, reported to Heaven at Fengdu: “My past-life circumstances were unfortunate. I bear an office in the underworld, and at every turn I pass through hundreds of millions of kalpas without seeing the light. How much worse, then, for low-ranking ghosts and sinful ghosts?” In accordance with the compassionate teaching of the Most High, he therefore revealed these causes and sufferings for practitioners to see. His purpose was to help people hold the Most High’s compassion in their hearts, awaken the wisdom of compassion, practice the methods of compassion, and realize its wondrous Dao, so that even suffering souls might receive compassion.

This method for saving the suffering and guiding people to deliverance comprises a vast body of texts and many chapters. It is like a boat for crossing the sea of suffering, and a path for cultivating the true Dao. Those who seek to study it should act with compassion, care, and diligence. If they neglect it, they will only squander their merit and labor in vain.

The master said: Above the Nine Pure Heavens lies the supreme Great Luo Jade Capital and Golden Towers, the highest celestial realm in Daoist teachings. There is a liturgy called “Alliance with the Perfected” (Mengzhen), secretly stored in the Jade Casket. It is a Lingbao school method for universal deliverance, saving beings in the netherworld and the human realm. From the beginning of the Red Brightness era, the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning expounded sacred texts for relieving suffering and removing sin. He made pacts and formed alliances with the assembled sages and perfected beings, vowing to save the suffering dead through countless eons. This is why it is called “Alliance with the Perfected.”

The Alliance with the Perfected scriptures are divided into three grades: the upper grade is the Golden Registers Liturgy of the Upper Origin; the middle grade is the Jade Registers Liturgy of the Middle Origin; and the lower grade is the Yellow Registers Rite of the Lower Origin. Together they are called the “Supreme Yellow Registers of the Jade Casket for the Alliance with the Perfected, a Boundless Great Purification for Universal Deliverance in the Netherworld and the Human Realm.” A “great purification” is a large-scale Daoist Zhaijiao ritual, involving such rites as establishing an altar, reciting scriptures, and submitting memorials to the heavens.

To perform this purification, first follow the intention expressed in the petition, then select a suitable site and auspicious day. Announce the ritual, formally appoint the officials involved, and gather fellow practitioners in a quiet chamber to take part together. Beforehand, report to Heaven and draft official notices to inform the Ten Heavens and Nine Earths, the Three Origins, and the Nine Provinces, so that all realms know what is to come. Then recite scriptures and divine names, proclaim the liturgy, burn incense and observe the purification, establish the ritual altar, submit memorials, issue talismans and registers, and request divine orders and the summoning and guidance of spirits. Invite the divine beings to manifest and await a response. When the ritual’s merit is complete, the netherworld and the human realm are both delivered. The names of those saved are entered in the Jade Clarity realm, and all beneath Heaven receive its blessings. The merit is immense.

Follow the prescribed sequence of the purification rites and transmit them with care. Do not display them casually or confuse the ritual methods of the Three Origins, or the offense will be unforgivable. If you encounter a perfected being but neither transmit nor perform this method, you will obstruct Heaven’s grace, and its punishment will soon fall upon you. Examine the character and spiritual capacity of those who receive the teaching, then transmit the method to them.

Chapter on Tokens of Trust

The master said: In ancient times, people were simple and sincere. They held the Great Dao in their hearts and upheld De; they did not crave or desire, and each was content with their proper place. With sincere intentions alone, they could naturally communicate with the divine, without relying on material offerings. In later ages, customs grew corrupt. The people became deceitful and cunning, clinging only to their possessions and ignorant of cause and condition. They treated life as lightly and wealth as precious, until families were ruined and states fell. They harbored every kind of evil thought within and allied themselves outwardly with wicked and treacherous people. They brought about one another’s ruin, yet never came to their senses. It is precisely because of this that possessions must be dispersed: then external thieves will not arise, peace will prevail within and without, and many calamities will be averted.

We express our sincerity through material offerings because material things hold the foremost place. When we are willing to give them up, our inner feelings become visible as well. The sages and perfected beings silently respond to people’s intentions. The High Heaven, the Thick Earth, and the mysterious holy perfected ones can all be reached through faithfulness and sincerity; whether communication and response can be achieved depends on the heart.

Thirteen golden dragons (ten to guard the ten directions, and three to be placed in three petition slips).

The liturgical rules specify that each dragon weigh one liang and measure three cun and six fen in length. In state rituals, the finest gold is used; dukes, marquises, and high ministers use a lower grade of gold; ordinary people may use silver gilt. These materials may also be used interchangeably. The dragon is the heavenly courier that carries documents: it conveys petitions and enables communication and response, so the dragon mount must be enlisted first. The dragon carries the petition slip aloft, symbolizing the delivery of a token. When making a sworn pledge to the Three Officials, the divine offices that govern Heaven, Earth, and Water, one must make the declaration to the ten directions. Dragons are the foremost tokens used to guard the ten directions. If the golden dragons are omitted, the case will be examined by the Yin Officials’ Bureau.

Eleven lengths of colored silk to guard the ten directions (ten are placed in the ten directions, and one, serving as the token of life, is placed at the center).

The liturgical rules specify patterned silk in blue-green for the east, nine chi long; deep red for the south, three chi; white for the west, seven chi; and black for the north, five chi. For above, use thirty-two chi of blue-green; for below, thirty-two chi of yellow. For each of the four intermediate directions—southeast, southwest, northeast, and northwest—use twelve chi of yellow. The total for the ten directions is one hundred and thirty-six chi. In state rituals, the silk is counted by bolts; dukes and marquises count it by zhang; scholars and ordinary people count it by chi. For the length serving as the token of life, the Son of Heaven and dukes and marquises use purple. Scholars and ordinary people use a finely patterned color corresponding to their birth destiny. The quantity, counted in bolts, zhang, or chi, is determined by the ritual patron’s age in years, with one added to signify a token for extending life.

Patterned silk displays the colors of the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water). It symbolizes the descent of Qi from the ten directions and the communication, through the ten heavens, between the Five Emperors and the perfected spirits. In rituals, it serves as a token for supplicating the divine and asking for the gift of life, and is indispensable. If it is omitted, the case will be examined by the Heavenly Officials’ Xuandu Bureau.

Ten sets each of paper, ink, brushes, and inkstones (to guard the ten directions; twelve sheets of paper are assigned to each direction).

The liturgical rules specify that, when establishing a purification retreat and performing the Way, whether to deliver ancestors of past generations and the deceased who came before or after them, or to pray for blessings, seek favor, avert calamity, or atone for transgressions, the Four Offices, Five Emperors, Three Realms, and ten directions all record good deeds and assess offenses. Paper and writing tools must therefore be used to compile registers of merit and good conduct and to demonstrate sincerity to the ten directions. They are indispensable. If they are omitted, the ten heavens will not record merit, and the Three Officials of the Ninefold Darkness will not remove transgressions; the case will be examined by the Three Officials’ Bureau.

Ten trays of incense and flowers (for offerings to the ten directions).

According to the ritual text, incense is offered as a medium of communication and resonance through its fragrance. It serves to separate out worldly influences and remove impurity. Flowers are offered for their freshness and purity, to signify auspiciousness, show sincerity, seek blessings, and pray to the true gods. Incense and flowers are fundamental to the ritual. Incense may include agarwood, jianxiang, and jiangzhen incense; flowers should be fragrant, clean blossoms from woody plants. If fresh flowers are unavailable, flowers may be cut from five-colored paper to calm and protect the four directions; they must not be omitted. If an offering is missing, the ritual rules require the matter to be investigated and assigned to the Office of Yin Officials, the divine bureau responsible for affairs of the underworld.

Set out two hu and four dou of rice (or one hu and two dou).

According to the ritual text, rice is an offering that expresses simple, sincere devotion. It is used to pray that the Celestial Officials increase one’s rank and stipend. If the offering is missing, the ritual rules assign the matter to the Office of Celestial Officials.

Set out two dou and four sheng of oil (or one dou and two sheng).

According to the ritual text, oil belongs to Yin, yet Yang can arise within Yin. Using oil to calm and protect the Yin officials can sustain Yang Qi. If the offering is missing, the ritual rules assign the matter to the Office of Yin Officials.

Set out one hundred and twenty jin of charcoal (or twenty-four jin, or twelve jin).

According to the ritual text, charcoal belongs to Yang, yet Yin can arise within Yang. Using charcoal to calm and protect the Yang officials can support Yin Qi. If the offering is missing, the ritual rules assign the matter to the Office of the Yang Palace.

Set out twenty-four thousand coins (for dukes and marquises, twenty-four guan; for scholars and commoners, twelve guan; alternatively, two thousand four hundred or one thousand two hundred coins).

According to the ritual text, twenty-four thousand coins serve in place of fine gold. They are tokens of sincere devotion, used to make a covenant with the Three Realms—the realms of Heaven, Earth, and Water—and the Ten Heavens, the Daoist celestial realms. If the offering is missing, the ritual rules assign the matter to the Office of the Celestial Officials’ Mysterious Capital.

Thirteen jade discs (ten for the ten directions, and three to be placed in the dragon tablets).

According to the ritual text, jade possesses the virtues of steadfastness and purity, and can communicate with the Highest Perfected in the unseen realm; it is therefore used as a token of commitment. The jade discs for the ten directions are round, with a hole in the center; each is two cun and four fen in diameter and two fen thick. The discs placed in the dragon tablets are of three kinds, for the use of the Celestial, Terrestrial, and Water Officials. The disc for the Celestial Officials is called the azure disc: it is blue-green, round, and pierced at the center. The disc for the Terrestrial Officials is called the yellow disc: it is square and pierced at the center. The disc for the Water Officials is called the dark disc: it is black, six-pointed, and pierced at the center. Each of these discs is two and a half cun in diameter.

Bind the three tablets together with golden dragons, blue silk, and golden clasps. The blue silk stands in place of cutting one’s hair, and the golden clasps in place of tasting blood; in this way, one submits the petition to the Three Officials—the Celestial, Terrestrial, and Water Officials. If the offering is missing, the ritual rules assign the matter to the Office of the Nine Capitals of the Terrestrial Officials.

Three tablets made from hibiscus wood.

According to the ritual text, “tablet” carries the sense of a record: it is used to record a person’s merits in this world and to make a covenant with the Highest Perfected. The upper and lower ends of each tablet are squared; it is one chi and two cun long, two cun and four fen wide, and two fen thick. When the state performs this kind of ritual, the tablets are made of jade. Jade has nine virtues, and using it expresses reverence and fidelity toward Heaven and Earth.

The objects described below are all made of hibiscus wood or cypress and painted in colors representing the Five Phases (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water). On a bamboo slip, write the name of the state holding the purification retreat, its era name and sexagenary date, the place where the retreat is being held, and the officiating master’s name. Then place the slip in a famous mountain, a great grotto, a numinous spring, or a dragon’s lair, or bury it within the retreat altar, to inform the Three Officials of Heaven, Earth, and Water and their envoys of the retreat. If anything has been omitted, the Nine Offices under the Earth Official will investigate.

Twenty-seven gold knobs: Use nine knobs for each set of slips. The ritual regulations specify that each gold knob should be nine fen in diameter, round in shape like a ring. States use knobs of fine gold when holding a retreat; ministers, scholars, and commoners use silver knobs gilded with gold. Wrap the dragon slips in blue silk thread, then place them in the designated location. The requirement of nine gold knobs for each set of slips appears in the Lingbao ritual methods. Follow the Guangcheng regulations for all other details; later generations must not add or remove anything on their own. As for the writing on the slips, the Guangcheng regulations do not require talismans to be drawn; regular script is sufficient. According to the scriptures and ritual methods, however, seal script is written on one side. Whether to use seal script should be decided carefully in light of the circumstances.

Chapter on Ceremonial Bearing

The ritual master said: The Three Venerable Ones of the Highest Heaven dwell in the Seven-Treasure Terrace of the Mysterious Capital’s Jade Capital Mountain, in the Upper Palace of Purple Tenuity. The holy and exalted beings from the ten directions make three rounds of audience each day, at the hours of Yin, Wu, and Xu. They hold talismans and registers, carry staffs and standards, chant the Cavern chapters, burn incense and scatter flowers, and perform the great music of the Celestial Court. Phoenixes sing and dance; the myriad perfected beings celebrate together, and the three realms rejoice as one. The rites in today’s purification rituals—ascending the altar to present petitions, pacing while chanting scriptures, and circling the altar—are all modeled on the ceremonies of the Mysterious Capital and Jade Capital. Accordingly, the various ceremonial forms and ritual procedures of the purification rites are equipped in the same manner.

A pair of flying rainbow standards: Shaped like ceremonial staffs, without dragon patterns, and adorned with golden phoenixes and three tiers of five-colored silk streamers. They are suspended from poles.

A pair of vermilion standards for paying homage to the Origin: Each has a jeweled canopy and net, with an octagonal top, and is suspended from a pole. The standard has a wooden core, with a dragon painted on the left and a tiger on the right. A golden dragon holds a streamer in its mouth; the streamer is fitted with fine, loose threads that hold the void.

A pair of ceremonial staffs: Made of five-colored silk in five tiers from top to bottom, and suspended from poles. A golden phoenix adorns the top of each pole, holding a streamer in its mouth.

A pair of wondrous jeweled fans: Adorned with pearl brocade and jade pendants, held by golden phoenixes, and suspended from poles.

A pair of five-brilliance feather fans: Carved from wood and decorated with gold. The sun, moon, and stars are painted on the upper part of each fan; the Five Sacred Peaks are arranged in the middle; and mountains and seas are depicted below. They stand on vermilion poles.

A pair of crane feathers: Carved from wood in the shape of crane wings and mounted upright on vermilion poles.

Lamps and candles

When practicing the Dao, making offerings, or reciting scriptures, lamps and candles are the foremost offerings. They are needed not only when submitting petitions, but are also used to avert disasters and ward off misfortune. Scriptures and liturgical manuals prescribe different numbers of lamps and candles; the essential point is to prepare according to one’s means. One may also set out only the number recorded in the Jinlu Jianwen. Lamplight shines across the heavens, sustaining brightness and dispelling darkness. It reaches downward to the Ninefold Netherworld and its prisons, and upward to illuminate the boundless halls of blessing. Among all meritorious deeds, lighting lamps brings the highest merit. One may also burn incense, blending in various aromatics and orchid balm, an ointment made from orchid fragrance. Everything should conform to the ritual regulations, and blessings will naturally descend.

Lamps are lit to sustain the light and illuminate the night. Once the sun has risen, the lamp attendant should extinguish them as prescribed by the ritual. This remains the practice today. As for the present-day view that lamps and candles should be abolished—

On the Altar Canopy

The Master said: “To worship Heaven and Earth and the true numinous beings of the Dao, one should establish a Daoist altar as an expression of utmost reverence. The retreat rituals of the Three Caverns (Dongzhen, Dongxuan, and Dongshen) each have their own ranks and regulations; their details are given in their respective ritual manuals. Here I discuss specifically the Yellow Register retreat altar, used for performing the Yellow Register retreat, and do not treat other altar forms in general. The ritual is as follows:

Form of the Mysterious Altar for the Lingbao Rite of Ascending and Deliverance

According to the Lower Origin Yellow Register Jian and the Lingxian Pin, rites for releasing beings from the roots of their sins should be held at an altar set up in the center of a courtyard. Choose an auspicious site, preferably in a grotto-heaven or blessed land, on a famous mountain, or at a quiet retreat or mysterious altar temple where Daoist practitioners cultivate. Places considered inauspicious include sites where battles have occurred, slaughterhouses, prisons, workshops, graves, animal pens, and other polluted places.

The altar should be properly aligned, facing south with its back to the north. If the foundations and orientation of the buildings on the site do not match this direction, determine the altar’s four sides according to the proper orientation. A slight deviation or backward tilt in the site may be disregarded. Never change the altar’s orientation merely to make it sit squarely with the buildings.

The altar may be built of sacred bricks or patterned stone, assembled temporarily from bamboo and timber, or made of earth. In every case it should conform to the prescribed form, and the rites of addressing the celestial authorities should be performed with solemnity. One may also build a Heavenly Treasure Platform, following the design of the upper realm. Establishing the altar is the first step in holding a retreat and practicing the Dao, just as one would pay homage to Jade Capital Mountain, the legendary celestial mountain of the Daoist heavens.

The altar should stand in an open place where the sun, moon, and stars are visible. Set up a frame of bamboo and timber and cover it with thatch. Leave an open shaft above the center of the altar, and provide a roof that can be used to protect against wind and rain; it need not be used in clear weather. Du Guangting said: “In general, an altar in the open is more fitting. But when sincerity brings a response, the Nine Heavens are not far away; when one’s intent cannot reach through, even what is close at hand seems distant.” If it is a place of alchemical prohibitions…

The mind should remain focused on the True Spirits, the divine beings revered in Daoism, and unite with the gods. In that light, how could a building obstruct communication with them?

Moreover, once the altar has been ritually consecrated and put into use, one must not walk through it in the reverse direction, and outsiders must not profane the True Spirits. The rules governing these rites are strict. The weather, meanwhile, can shift without warning. If a sudden storm breaks out while reports are being presented to the gods, it becomes difficult to maintain proper decorum and order. People hurry about, the ritual falls into confusion from beginning to end, and the spirit of reverence is weakened. This may also be why the Confucian tradition holds that a sacrifice should not be performed if, during the period of purification, one’s clothes become soiled or one’s appearance grows untidy: perhaps it had this very concern in mind. An altar set up indoors can therefore be used in accordance with ritual from beginning to end. Its proper decorum is naturally preserved, and communication with the gods may be expected.

The Concise Text on the Yellow Register says: On the upper level of the altar, ten gates are to be set out in all, at the four sides and corners and at the upper and lower positions, with each side measuring two zhang and four chi wide. Beyond these ten gates, open a Heaven Gate, an Earth Portal, a Sun Gate, and a Moon Gate; set one gate at each of the four corners, each three zhang and two chi wide. These are called the “Four Boundary Gates of the Metropolis.” Also install placards marking the Bagua (Eight Trigrams). The scripture, however, describes only a two-tier altar, symbolizing Heaven and Earth.

Today, following the Ritual Models of Guangcheng, altars are built in three tiers: the upper tier is two zhang and four chi per side, the middle tier three zhang and two chi per side, and the lower tier four zhang per side. Alternatively, the upper tier may be one zhang and eight chi, the middle tier two zhang and eight chi, and the lower tier may extend only three chi beyond the middle tier on each side. People must bow and kneel on the middle tier, so it should not be too narrow. The tiers may be set at heights of two chi and three cun, one chi and two cun, one chi and five cun, or nine cun. If the site is too cramped to follow the ritual regulations in full, adjust the dimensions to suit the available space and the height of the building. First measure the site, then determine the altar’s size and height. A two-tier altar may also be built on level ground. The important thing is to adapt to the site rather than cling rigidly to a fixed format.

The upper tier has ten gates and requires twenty long wooden standards, ten short standards, and ten gate plaques. The middle tier has four gates and requires eight long standards, twenty short standards, and four gate plaques. The lower tier has eight gates and requires sixteen long standards, sixteen short standards, and eight gate plaques. The three tiers therefore require forty-four long standards and fifty-four short standards in all. Each long standard is one zhang and nine chi high, and each short standard is seven chi and six cun high; they are buried in the ground…

A total of ninety-eight wooden pillars of different lengths are set up. Zhang Qingdu’s liturgy uses only sixty-four. This is probably because the altar has only two tiers: the wooden pillars arranged outside it according to the Bagua (Eight Trigrams) directions need not have fixed lengths, but can be sized to suit the height of the building. If they are arranged in separate rows, their placement can likewise be adjusted to the width of the space, provided they are spaced evenly.

All the pillars are to be decorated with red lacquer, and their tops carved in the shapes of lotus flowers and flaming jewels. The two sides of the gate are also to be carved with the sun, moon, and auspicious clouds, with every detail finished carefully. There are twenty-two plaques for the gates, each three cun and three fen wide and two cun and four fen long, decorated in five colors according to their directions. The lintels are inscribed in three tiers.

A lamp is placed between every two pillars, and five-colored lotus lamps are made for the pillar tops, arranged in alternating positions. Ninety-eight lamps in all are lit at night. Three tiers of horizontal cords are tied around the pillars using dark red or blue-green rope. The first runs from beneath the flower-shaped tops of the tall pillars to the crossbar beside the gate. The second runs beneath the flower-shaped tops of the short pillars. The third is placed about two chi below the second and should run roughly parallel to it. Where the second and third cords pass the gate, they must not block the entrance.

Ropes are also tied across the tops of the tall pillars to hang small banners, flowering branches, and other decorations. Banners and flowers are hung in alternation across three tiers, each tier matching the altar surface. The altar surface is covered with mats, thirty-eight sets in all. The two outer tiers are enclosed with twelve panels of yellow cloth, neatly decorated along both the top and bottom to create a dignified, orderly appearance.

On the four sides outside the upper-tier altar gate hang banners of the Thirty-Two Heavens, each in the color appropriate to its direction. Three heavenly banners hang above the center of the altar, and banners of the Five Directional Guardian Spirits are then hung according to the directions. Inside the altar, curtains, seats, and a precious canopy are arranged, and the spirit tablets of the three Most High Venerables are installed. The divine scriptures are placed at the center, with the Ten Directions’ cavernous altars set around them. Altar-protecting objects, incense, and flowers are arranged according to direction, and everything must conform to the rules of the liturgy.

Two additional ritual tables are set up. A single gate is opened in the Qian position (northwest), the Gate of Heaven, for entry and exit; this follows the model of Heaven. On the middle tier, the spirit tablets of the six ranks of officials are placed in order. A single Earth Portal is opened in the Xun position (southeast) for entry and exit; this takes its form from Earth. During purification rituals and the practice of the Way, all entry and exit must be through the Earth Portal, and no other gate may be used. On the lower tier, a single Gate of the Li Palace is opened at the front for entry and exit; outside the altar…

Set up the lamp altars around the four sides according to the prescribed method, and place the protective talismans and registers according to the ritual requirements for each direction. Beyond the three outer layers of the altar, erect flower pillars, each three or five feet high. Set up a purification screen to enclose and protect the clean area, leaving a doorway in the middle for people to pass through and tying the remaining sections with blue-green cords. Assign three people to oversee ritual decorum on each side of every altar, making twelve in all. They must remain orderly and attentive at all times, without neglect or confusion. During the performance of Step of the Void, a Daoist ritual practice of pacing and chanting hymns, and when processing around the altar, participants must also proceed in the proper order. The attendants responsible for the six canopies and twelve halls stand to the left and right before the altar, each overseeing their assigned duties. For a smaller Zhaijiao, or Daoist sacrificial prayer ritual, no altar need be built; the rites may be performed directly in the ritual space.

Ascending the altar serves to enact the responsive manifestations of the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning, who appears according to circumstances to teach living beings. Ritual decorum must therefore be established first, so that it may marshal the assembled heavens. The following describes the directions, cyclical energies, and surrounding lamp designs for the various gates, as prescribed in the Great Rites.

Ten Gates of the Upper Level

• East, at the Mao position: Gate of Azure Splendor and Primordial Yang, marked with a blue-green plaque bearing vermilion characters.
• South, at the Wu position: Gate of Grotto Yang and Great Radiance, marked with a red plaque bearing yellow characters.
• West, at the You position: Gate of the Golden Portal that Opens to Yin, marked with a white plaque bearing black characters.
• North, at the Zi position: Gate of Yin’s Birth and Vast Efficacy, marked with a black plaque bearing red characters.
• Northeast, at the Yin position: Gate of Numinous Access and the Forbidden Heights, marked with a yellow plaque bearing white characters; another account specifies black characters.
• Southeast, at the Chen position: Gate of the First Yang and the Birth of Qi, marked with a yellow plaque bearing white characters; another account specifies vermilion characters.
• Southwest, at the Shen position: Gate of Primordial Yellow and Lofty Dawn, marked with a yellow plaque bearing white characters.
• West, at the Xu position: Gate of the Nine Immortals’ Brahmic Practice, marked with a yellow plaque bearing white characters; another account specifies a blue-green ground with yellow characters.
• Above, at the Xuan position: Gate of the Great Luo’s Flying Brahma, marked with a white plaque bearing blue-green characters; another account specifies a blue-green ground with vermilion characters.
• Below, at the Si position: Gate of the Nine Numinous Sovereign Truths, marked with a blue-green plaque bearing yellow characters; another account specifies a yellow ground with blue-green characters.

Another account places the Sun Gate at the northeast corner and the Moon Gate at the southwest corner, making twelve gates in all:

• Sun Gate: a red plaque bearing black characters.
• Moon Gate: a black plaque bearing white characters.

Four Gates of the Middle Level, or Eight Gates

• Above the Hai position is the Gate of Heaven, marked with a black plaque bearing blue-green characters. Zhang Qingdu says it should have a yellow ground with black characters.
• Above the Si position is the Earth’s Portal, marked with a red plaque bearing yellow characters. Zhang Qingdu says it should have a yellow ground with red characters.
• Above the Yin position is the Sun Gate, marked with a blue-green plaque bearing yellow characters.

Placing the Upper Sun and Moon Gates (White Plaque, Yellow Writing)

In another arrangement, the Sun Gate and Moon Gate are placed at the two upper corners, while the eight gates are set in the middle tier:

In the Qian Palace, establish the Heaven Gate (yellow ground, blue-green writing); in the Kan Palace, the Kan Gate (black ground, blue-green writing).

In the Gen Palace, establish the Ghost Portal (black ground, blue-green writing); in the Zhen Palace, the Zhen Gate (blue-green ground, black writing).

In the Xun Palace, establish the Earth Portal (yellow ground, blue-green writing); in the Li Palace, the Li Gate (red ground, black writing).

In the Kun Palace, establish the Human Gate (white ground, writing in the same color); in the Dui Palace, the Dui Gate (white ground, red writing).

The lower tier may be arranged with either eight gates or twelve:

The Zhen Palace holds the Qi of Dongqing (the vital energy of the blue-green direction), located at the Mao position due east (yellow plaque, blue-green writing).

The Li Palace holds the Qi of Dongyang, located at the Wu position due south (white plaque, vermilion writing).

The Dui Palace holds the Qi of Shaoyin, located at the You position due west (blue-green plaque, white writing).

The Kan Palace holds the Qi of Dongyin, located at the Zi position due north (red plaque, black writing).

The Gen Palace holds the Qi of Shaoyang, located at the Yin position in the northeast (black plaque, blue-green writing).

The Xun Palace holds the Qi of Fanxing, located at the Xun position in the southeast (black plaque, yellow writing).

The Kun Palace holds the Qi of Fanyin, located at the Kun position in the southwest (black plaque, yellow writing).

The Qian Palace holds the Qi of Fantong, located at the Qian position in the northwest (black plaque, yellow writing).

The basic arrangement consists of twelve Qi gates:

Zi position: Qi of Yuanyang (red ground, yellow writing); Chou position: Qi of Dongyin (white ground, black writing).

Yin position: Qi of Shaoyang (red ground, blue-green writing); Mao position: Qi of Fanyuan (blue-green ground, red writing).

Chen position: Qi of Fanxing (yellow ground, blue-green writing); Si position: Qi of Dongyang (red ground, yellow writing).

Wu position: Qi of Fanyang (blue-green ground, vermilion writing); Wei position: Qi of Fanzhen (red ground, yellow writing).

Shen position: Qi of Dongqing (blue-green ground, yellow writing); You position: Qi of Shaoyin (white ground, black writing).

Xu position: Qi of Lingfan (blue-green ground, white writing); Hai position: Qi of Fantong (blue-green ground, yellow writing).

The seal-script forms of the inner altar gate plaques are:

Changhua Yuanyang Gate, Dongyang Taiguang Gate, Tongyin Jueque Gate, Yinsheng Guangling Gate, Lingtong Jinshang Gate, Shiyang Shengqi Gate, Yuanhuang Gaochen Gate, Jiuxian Fanxing Gate, Daluo Feifan Gate.

This passage mainly explains how to arrange the gate plaques of the inner altar. Their positions follow the Sun and Moon Gates, the gates in the eight directions, and the twelve earthly-branch positions. The gate names, plaque backgrounds, and writing colors are prescribed. “Ground,” “plaque,” and “writing” refer to the background and lettering colors of the gate plaques or posted notices; the various forms of “Qi” in the text are names for types of energy in the Daoist context.

The Gate of the Ninefold Numinous Sovereign

Inscription Format for the Central Altar Gate Plaques

Heaven Gate, Earth Portal; Sun Gate, Moon Gate; Human Gate, Ghost Portal.

Another format places the Sun Gate and Moon Gate in the upper tier, and the Heaven Gate, Earth Portal, Human Gate, and Ghost Portal in the middle tier. Both arrangements are therefore recorded here.

Inscription Format for the Twelve Qi Gate Plaques of the Outer Altar

Qi of Grotto Yang, Qi of Brahma Yang, Qi of Brahma Truth, Qi of Grotto Clarity, Qi of Lesser Yin, Qi of Numinous Brahma, Qi of Grotto Yin, Qi of Primordial Yang, Qi of Brahma Communion, Qi of Lesser Yang, Qi of Brahma Origin, Qi of Brahma Conduct.

Here, “Qi” is a Daoist term for the vital energy that makes up all things in Heaven and Earth and moves throughout them. The text lists the names of the Qi corresponding to the twelve gate plaques of the outer altar, but does not explain their meanings further.

The Great Method of the Numinous Treasure of Highest Clarity, fascicle 31