《靈寶文檢》Vol. 17

Interpretation

An Explanatory Reading of Lingbao Wenjian, Scroll Four (Excerpt)

Reprinted Daoist Canon Essentials: Shangqing Lingbao Wenjian, Scroll Four

Compiled by Jin Ti Yuan, a true adept of the Southern Bureau of Law Enforcement, bearing the secret registers of the Lingbao central covenant

Revised by Guying Buyunfang

Rechecked by Chen Fuxuan Hanpu, a later student of Jinxi

Purification Ritual for Praying for Clear Skies or Rain

To the Vast Heaven (a memorial addressed to the Supreme Emperor of the Vast Heaven)

Your servant (name) is dull by nature, yet has received the Daoist teachings. I still do not fully understand the workings of the weather and the seasons. I serve among the ranks with caution and apprehension day and night, uncertain of what effect my efforts have achieved. I can only vow to work diligently for the benefit and relief of others, repaying in some small measure the kindness I have received. I now lay bare my sincere heart and look up to seek a hearing in Heaven.

Your servant respectfully submits the matter described in the petition (and so forth), seeking the descent of rain. I have received the petitioner’s urgent plea and dare not refuse it.

I have faithfully copied the petition and, aware of my offense, lie prostrate as I report it.

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Your servant, so-and-so, is filled with awe and trepidation, bows repeatedly, and humbly pays reverence to:

The Most High, who opened Heaven and holds the talisman of authority, governs the calendar, contains the Real, and embodies the Dao—the Supreme Jade Emperor of the Vast Heaven (before Your Majesty’s jade steps). May Your heavenly compassion forgive all my offenses and grant what I have submitted. I especially beg that an edict be issued to the Three Departments and proclaimed throughout the ten directions and the three realms: to the heavens, the palaces and courts of the sun, moon, and stars; to all subordinate offices of the Three Primes and Four Bureaus; to the offices and courts of Thunder, the agencies of the Five Thunders, the water palaces and dragon courts of the Nine Rivers and Four Seas, the famous mountains, rivers, sources, pools, and caverns of the sacred peaks and waterways, and the City Gods, earth altars, and temples—to every place concerned. Let them all respond accordingly:

Forgive the accumulated misdeeds of living beings and bring the scorching heat to an end. Send down abundant, gentle rain for three days; drive away the drought demon, so that the fields do not crack and the grain ripens for the autumn harvest. In this way, answer the people’s prayers below and manifest the transforming power of the Dao above.

Your servant has presumed upon Heaven’s authority, and can scarcely bear the weight of this plea. Prostrate at the ritual altar, I await the arrival of Your gracious command. Respectfully submitted.

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To the North Pole and South Pole (the memorial follows the same format)

The Great Emperor of Primordial Sovereignty of the Purple Tenuity Palace at the North Pole of the Central Heaven (before Your Majesty’s starry steps). May Your heavenly compassion grant what I have submitted. I beg that an edict of pardon be issued and proclaimed to the palaces of the sun, moon, and stars and their stellar divisions; to the regions of the nine provinces; to the Three Primes and Four Bureaus; to the Thunder Department and its agencies; and to every place throughout the three realms and ten directions that governs wind and rain. Let them all respond accordingly:

First grant renewal to the local officials and people, and to those guilty of various offenses, as covered by the original pardon. Then restore the proper divisions and measures of Heaven, harmonize Yin-Yang, open the waterways and release the dragons, and clear the pools and caverns. Thereupon grant harmony between Yin and Yang, with favorable winds and timely rains.

(The concluding words, “Your servant is filled with awe and trepidation, bows, and respectfully submits this memorial,” follow the same format as above.)

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This text is a model memorial for the Lingbao school’s purification ritual for praying for clear skies or rain. Daoist priests refer to themselves as “your servant” when presenting their case to the Jade Emperor, the Great Emperor of the Purple Tenuity Palace, and other heavenly authorities. They ask for forgiveness and call upon the Thunder Department, water palaces, Dragon Kings, and sacred mountains and waterways to respond, so that drought may end and rain or clear skies may come at the proper time. Terms such as “Three Departments,” “Three Primes and Four Bureaus,” and “Five Thunders” refer to the divisions of celestial administration, thunder rites, and water offices in the Daoist religious imagination.

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Interpretation

A Plain-Language Interpretation of Lingbao Wenjian

(Excerpt from a Memorial for Praying for Rain)

May the mountains and rivers rise and fall, and clouds and vital energy surge forth. May abundant sweet rain fall for three days, comforting the hopes of the people. Let it reveal Heaven’s boundless grace above and answer the people’s prayers below. (Your subject) has dared to offend Heaven’s majesty, as stated above.

Houtu

To the August Earth Deity Houtu, who follows Heaven’s model and whose abundant virtue reaches far and wide—the god of the earth, also known as the Mother Goddess—(your petitioner) respectfully hopes for your sacred compassion and approval of this memorial. Please specially bestow an edict and have it issued through the provincial offices, announcing it to the Thick Earth and its terrestrial boundaries; the Nine Layers of Earth; the deep grottoes and hidden realms of wind and marsh; the territorial divisions of the Nine Provinces; the offices of Thunder; the various departments of the Three Bureaus and Five Thunders; the Three Primordial Forces and Four Offices; the Five Lakes and Four Seas; the sacred mountains, great rivers, and sources of waterways; the city god shrines and village earth temples; and the numinous wells, springs, and dragon pools. May all these places be instructed to respond. We specially beg for pardon, as stated above.

Nine Celestial Lords

May Heaven’s compassion approve (your subject’s) memorial. We beg that an edict be issued through the provincial offices, instructing the Nine Offices of Thunder to proclaim it throughout the heavens, as in the petition to the Northern Pole.

Eleven Luminaries

I, the petitioner, do not fear execution by axe and dare to present this request to the divine hearing. I respectfully submit this petition (and so forth), seeking rain and moisture. The petitioner has received this urgent request and does not dare refuse or suppress it. The written petition has already been recorded and submitted to the imperial court in Heaven, asking that a gracious decree be issued. This statement must also be recorded and respectfully reported.

Respectfully submitted.

Before the August Sun Sovereign of the Upper Clarity Palace, the Moon Sovereign of the Lunar Palace, the Five Virtue Star Lords of the Five Directions, and the Star Lords of the Four Qi and Four Luminaries, (the petitioner) respectfully hopes for your sacred compassion and approval of this request. Please specially dispatch the celestial procession to look down upon and witness this ritual offering. We further beg that your sacred decree be announced to the celestial star enclosures, the various departments of Thunder, and the divine offices of the Three Realms, as well as to every place responsible for governing the winds and rains. May all be instructed to respond. Please set the heavenly divisions and measures aright, harmonize Yin-Yang, temporarily restrain the might of the Yang fire, and transform the water of the Great Yin. May the stars follow their proper courses, disasters and calamities quietly vanish, Water and Fire communicate, thunder and rain arise, and abundant sweet rain be bestowed, fulfilling our earnest prayers. The petitioner has dared to offend divine majesty; the petitioner’s heart is overwhelmed with fear and trembling. Respectfully submitted.

Moon Obscuration

Before the Nine Heavens Flying Dipper, Subduer of Spirits, Great Unity Moon Obscuration Thunder Lord—a Daoist stellar deity associated with thunder and rain, and here a revered deity of the Thunder Department—(the petitioner) respectfully hopes for your sacred compassion and approval of this request. Please specially dispatch…

Brief Explanation

This text is a formal memorial used in a Daoist rain-prayer ritual. The priest, referring to himself as “your subject” or “the petitioner,” presents requests for rain to divine offices across several levels of Heaven:

• Houtu: Houtu, the August Earth Deity, is asked to direct the gods of the earth, the Nine Provinces, mountains and rivers, the Thunder Department, city gods, and other local powers to respond.
• Nine Celestial Lords: The Nine Offices of Thunder are asked to proclaim the request throughout Heaven.
• Eleven Luminaries: The lords of the sun, moon, and stars are asked to harmonize Yin-Yang and bring clouds and rain.
• Moon Obscuration: The Moon Obscuration Thunder Lord is invoked as a deity who presides over thunder and rain.

The language borrows heavily from official memorials to the imperial court, using terms such as “edict,” “provincial offices,” and “offend Heaven’s majesty.” This reflects the correspondence between Daoism’s celestial bureaucracy and the human administration.

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Interpretation

A Plain-Language Reading of the Lingbao Documentary Forms

The text below is a formal supplication used in Daoist Zhaijiao rites—ceremonies performed at an altar to offer sacrifice and prayer. It addresses the gods with requests and reports, and is commonly used for praying for rain, seeking forgiveness for sins, and restoring harmony between Yin and Yang. The marker “(principal)” indicates a place for the officiant to name the person on whose behalf, or the local believers for whom, the rite is performed. “(same as above)” means that the wording is identical to an earlier passage and is omitted here.

I. The Thunder Division (Marshals Deng, Xin, and Zhang)

We respectfully ask the immortal retinue—the divine procession and honored presence—to look down upon and examine this Zhaijiao rite. We pray that the Thunder Command be issued, summoning the three great marshals of the Thunder Division, Deng, Xin, and Zhang; the Five Thunder Envoys; and the myriad gods of the Thunder Division. May they descend at once, raise clouds and mist, flash lightning and sound thunder; destroy the drought-demon (a malign spirit that causes drought), and sweep away evil shamans and defilements. May they send abundant sweet rain for three days, broadly saving the lives of all beings. The principal has presumed to disturb the gods with this supplication and humbly begs them to take notice. (The closing phrase “presumed to intrude” and similar wording follows the same pattern as later passages and is omitted.)

II. The Northern Dipper

To the supreme nine sovereigns of the Northern Dipper, the Star Lords of the Upper Way at the center of Heaven, we make this appeal before the holy ones: We humbly hope that your sacred compassion will grant this request. We specially ask the immortal retinue to look down upon and bear witness to this Zhaijiao rite, and further pray that your sacred decree be issued to the star offices of Ji, Bi, Bi, Fang, Lou, Kui, and Gui; the star officials throughout the heavens; the Dipper Palace’s Director of Waters and its Water-Controlling Envoys; and the departments of the Thunder Division’s one prefecture, two courts, and three bureaus, together with the Five Thunder and the true offices assigned throughout the Three Realms. May they all provide their aid. We especially beg them to examine and pardon all the offenses of the people in this locality, grant them renewal, and rectify the divisions and measures of Heaven according to the celestial order, thereby harmonizing Yin and Yang. (The wording follows the same pattern as the later passage on the Eleven Luminaries and is omitted.)

III. The Three Officials

May your sacred compassion grant this request. We specially ask the imperial carriage to look down upon and examine this Zhaijiao rite, and further pray that your sacred decree be issued throughout the offices and bureaus governed by the Three Origins—the Celestial Official of the Upper Origin, the Human Official of the Middle Origin, and the Water Official of the Lower Origin—and to all their affiliated true offices. May all who oversee the worldly fortunes and sins of human beings provide their aid. We especially beg them to examine and pardon the offenses of the people in this locality, grant them renewal, rectify the divisions and measures of Heaven, and bring Yin and Yang into harmony. May they raise clouds and mist, open the sea and the pools, and send down abundant rain for three days, answering the hopes of the people. May the fields receive ample water and the crops yield a plentiful harvest. (The wording for the principal’s humble appeal follows the pattern above.)

IV. The Four Holy Ones

May your sacred compassion grant this earnest request. We specially ask you to uphold and transmit the teachings, and to witness and examine this purification rite. Please present this petition in person to the Supreme Emperor and request a decree of pardon, to be issued throughout the Three Realms to all affiliated true offices, commanding them to provide their aid. First, grant pardon for all the wrongs and evils committed by the people in this locality, and grant them renewal. We further pray that you send down Zhang Yuanbo, the Envoy of Fire and Thunder, bearer of the primordial Qi; Deng [given name omitted], commander of the Thunder Division; Xin [given name omitted], deputy commander; and the two marshals of Yin and Yang, Gou and Bi. May they at once lead the departments of the Thunder Division’s one prefecture, two courts, and three bureaus, together with the Five Thunder and its divisions; the Thunder Duke, Lightning Mother, Wind Earl, Rain Master, great Cloud Officials, the divisions of the Earth Office, the celestial gods of thunder and baneful force, the great Dragon and Water gods, and others, to carry out the rite according to its prescribed procedure. (Any following requests for rain, the withdrawal of malign forces, and similar actions belong to this same system of supplication.)

Reading guide

Common term	Meaning
Zhaijiao rite / purification rite	Setting up an altar, performing purification, and conducting a sacrificial ceremony
Look down upon and examine / look down upon and bear witness	To observe and attest
Five Thunder	The system of thunder powers used in the organization and talismanic practices of the Thunder Division
Rectify the divisions and measures of Heaven	Adjust the measures according to celestial signs and the calendar, so that Yin and Yang each find their proper place
Examine and pardon / pardon	Review the record of sins and grant forgiveness
Four Holy Ones	Holy beings associated in this text with thunder and the protection of the teachings; their precise identity depends on the full liturgy

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Interpretation

A Plain-Language Reading of a Prayer for Rain Liturgy from the Lingbao Wenjian (Excerpt)

I. Inviting the Thunder Division’s Divine Troops to Bring Rain

We respectfully invite the divine troops of the various divisions, including the Sheling and Manlei, to descend at once and at the appointed time, sending out clouds and mist, flashing lightning, and thundering.

Command the deities to cut down the drought demons and send a generous, welcome rain for three days, fulfilling the hopes of the people, manifesting the Dao’s transforming power above, and answering the people’s prayers below. (The following text is the same as above.)

The Five Masters and the Three Departments (formatted like the entry for the “Four Saints”).

The Nine Offices (written on nine slips, with the heading centered at the top).

The True Lord, Judge of the Jade Prefecture; the Left and Right Attendants of the Jade Prefecture; the Left and Right Vice Ministers of the Jade Prefecture; the High Chancellor of Heavenly Thunder of the Jade Prefecture; the Chancellor and Envoy of the Jade Pivot of the Jade Prefecture; the High Chancellor of the Dipper Pivot of the Jade Prefecture; the Right Minister of the Jade Prefecture, Director of Destiny of Highest Clarity; the True Lord of the Five Thunder Envoys’ Office; and the Perfected One of Original Destiny, Director-General of Thunder and Lightning—

Before the holy ones, we respectfully hope that, in your sacred compassion, you will grant this petition now presented. Bestow your special support for the teaching and its rites, and present our request in person at the imperial court. Please issue a gracious command and proclaim it throughout the Three Realms and the Ten Directions, to the Three Origins and Five Emperors, the various divisions of Thunder and Lightning, and all places under their jurisdiction that oversee the sins and merits of humankind, droughts and floods, winds and rains—including mountains and waterways, city gods, dragon palaces, and sacred wells—and command them all to comply.

First pardon the many sins and faults of the people of this region and remove their calamities and demons. Set the heavenly measures aright, harmonize Yin and Yang, open the caverns and pools, release the dragons, and clear the waterways. We further beg that you proclaim the command to the Thunder and Lightning Marshal Lords Deng, Xin, and Zhang (the Celestial Lords Deng, Xin, and Zhang, chief commanders of the Thunder Division), that they immediately lead the thunder gods of all divisions, swiftly raise clouds and mist, flash lightning and thunder, drive on the dragon gods, destroy the demons of drought, and send down abundant sweet rain. Let it rescue all that has withered, answer the people’s prayers below, and manifest the Dao’s transforming power above. (The petitioner) has rashly intruded upon your sacred authority and is filled with the utmost fear and trepidation. Respectfully submitted.

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II. Petition to Mount Tai

We respectfully hope that, in your sacred compassion, you will grant this petition now presented. Please make a special journey in your sacred carriage and look down upon our offering and cultivation of the rite. We further beg you to issue a sacred command throughout the central realm to the offices of the Perfected Ones under your jurisdiction, as well as to the famous mountains and waterways, streams, springs, pools, caverns, and the deities of city temples and local shrines, commanding them all to provide their aid. In particular, we beg you to review and pardon the many sins and faults of the people of this region, so they may all be renewed. Bestow your help in turning the weather and changing Yin and Yang: let clouds rise from the mountains and rivers, and let the dragon gods bring rain. Send down a wide and abundant rainfall to save the crops and answer the people’s prayers, thereby spreading the Dao’s transforming power. (As above.)

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III. Petition to the Water Palace

We respectfully hope that, in your sacred compassion, you will grant this petition now presented. Bestow your dragon carriage to witness and confirm the offering and cultivation of the rite. We further pray that your sacred command be issued throughout the Five Lakes and Four Seas, the Nine Rivers and Eight Streams, and the Four Great Rivers, to the dragon gods… (The remainder continues with the original text’s appeal for rain and relief from drought.)

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Note for Reading the Liturgy

This text is a “petition and proclamation” used in Lingbao rainmaking rites. It both invites the Thunder Division of the Jade Prefecture and the Marshal Lords Deng, Xin, and Zhang to summon thunder and bring rain, and petitions Mount Tai, the Water Palace, and other authorities to pardon sins, harmonize Yin and Yang, release the dragons, and clear the waterways. The official titles listed under “Jade Prefecture” belong to the Daoist Thunder Rites tradition, where they designate celestial offices responsible for thunder, lightning, rain, and drought. The Wenjian uses a fixed format to submit petitions to these offices.

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Interpretation

Plain-Language Interpretation

The matters described above concerning the numinous shrines and dragons and waters at Gongxi, Yuantan, the grottoes, and the sacred wells have already been entrusted to all parties for observance: opening the pools and grottoes, clearing the waterways and releasing the dragons, raising mist and clouds, churning rivers and seas, and sending down abundant sweet rain to save the parched land, fulfill the people’s wishes, and spread the transforming influence of the Dao. The wording here follows the earlier passage, so it is not repeated.

Three Marshals’ Horn-Shaped Petition (a horn-shaped cover is used instead of a square envelope; hence the name “horn-shaped petition”):

The matter concerns a prayer for rain. In response to the petition submitted by the petitioner and others from [their native place], this bureau has recorded and memorialized the matter to the Celestial Court, reported it to the provincial authorities, and notified the various offices. In addition, a formal document must be submitted.

Submitted to (right):

• Chief Marshal of Thunder, “Great Deity of Sudden Fire and Command,” Lord Deng
• Deputy Marshal of Thunder, “Fierce Officer of Silver Fangs,” Lord Xin
• Thunder’s Swift Messenger of Response, Yanggu Fire Thunder, Lord Zhang, and his subordinates

We humbly hope that, in Your sacred benevolence, you will grant this request and dispatch your divine banners to descend and witness the ritual offering. We ask you to command the marshals and generals of the barbarian thunders of the Five Directions, and the great deities of the Four Seas, assigning them to oversee the two divisions of clouds and thunder. Lead, too, the officials, generals, officers, and troops of the Thunder Office, its two courts and three departments, together with the four marshals Zhao, Yin, Wen, and the others. Direct the City Gods, local earth gods, and deities of the sacrificial rites in this region to turn the workings of creation, raise and lower Yin-Yang, open the channels of the weather, and stir the springs. Bring together the dragon deities of the Five Lakes and Four Seas, the Nine Rivers and Eight Streams, the water palaces of Fusang and Yanggu, and the dark sea, streams, pools, grottoes, and sacred wells. At once ride the mist and raise clouds, thunder and flash with lightning, cut down demonic rainbows and destroy the drought demon, shake the mountains, and draw down the Celestial River. Send abundant rain for three days to comfort the hopes of the people. This petition is respectfully submitted.

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Water Department

Perfected Lord Zhang, Sagely Aide of Blessings, Eminent in Holiness, Universal in Relief, and Exalted in Benevolence and Compliance

We humbly hope that, in Your sacred benevolence, you will grant this request and specially send your immortal banners to descend and witness the ritual offering. We ask you personally to command the water officials of the Red Spirit (Ding) and Black Spirit (Ren), their capable assistants, and the myriad spirits of water and thunder. Have them join with the Thunder offices and officials under the three great Celestial Lords Deng, Xin, and Zhang, as well as all the deities of the Rain Department, and descend together to the ritual altar to display the might of Heaven. At once ride the wind and whip the thunder, stream molten metal and hurl fire, drive the dragons and roll the waters, raise the dew and summon clouds, and send down abundant sweet rain for three days. This petition is respectfully submitted.

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Note to help readers follow the text

This text uses the format of a horn-shaped petition in a Lingbao Zhaijiao purification ritual, addressed to deities of Thunder and the Water Department. It first describes the administrative process—recording the petition and notifying the relevant offices—then lists the three Thunder marshals and Perfected Lord Zhang of the Water Department, asking them to coordinate the dragon deities, rivers and mountains, and the weather to bring about “three days of rain” in response to the rain-prayer liturgy. “Ding” and “Ren” often correspond to the spirits of fire and water. “Streaming molten metal and hurling fire” and “cutting down demonic rainbows and destroying the drought demon” are common images of thunder in Daoist rainmaking rites, not descriptions of historical events.

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Interpretation

Plain-language interpretation

(Continuation of the preceding text on praying for rain)

Send down abundant rain to comfort the hopes of the people. May it make Heaven’s trust known above and fulfill the people’s prayers below. (As in the preceding text.)

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Penglai Office of Waters

We humbly pray that the august and compassionate True Lord who presides over the Penglai Office of Waters will grant the petition submitted here today, and specially bring the immortal retinue down to witness the ritual observance. We further pray that you direct the Five Lakes and Four Seas; the rivers, the Huai and the Ji; the streams, springs, pools, and caves; the Six Venomous Savage Thunder deities; the Water-Thunder commanders and generals; the assembled dragons of the Water Palace; the local Dragon Gods; and the rainmaking divine officials to obey the Emperor’s command. May they gather together with the heavenly gods and commanders of the various Thunder divisions, united in purpose and exerting their strength as one: still the winds and gather the clouds, darken the union of Heaven and Earth, fill the air with humid warmth, and raise and lower the clouds and sunlight. Bestow abundant, sweet rain for three days to rescue the people from hunger. May the true wind rise with force and the Daoist rites be made manifest. Respectfully submitted.

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Petitions for Praying for Rain

Petition to the Officials and Generals

Please review the foregoing matter and its reasons in detail, then promptly gather at the ritual altar, announce and convey the summons, make known the sincere concerns of the people, and reverently await Heaven’s grace. Assemble the heavenly gods; the Dragon and Water deities of the local altars; the Five Divisions of Thunder gods; the relevant officials and generals of the Cloud, Thunder, and Rain divisions; the Five Lakes and Four Seas; the rivers, the Huai and the Ji; the streams, springs, pools, and caves; the sacred-well Dragon Gods; and the deities enshrined and officially worshipped at the City God temples. May they be united in purpose and exert their strength as one: spread mist and raise clouds, cover the sunlight, send out thunder and lightning with a mighty roar, and bring down abundant, nourishing rain to moisten the withered seedlings everywhere. In this way, may the people’s suffering be relieved at once and hope restored to their farming, making the Dao’s transformation known above and fulfilling the people’s prayers below.

Petition to the Local Altar Deities

To the Divine Lord of the local altar of [a certain] prefecture: Please review the foregoing matter and its reasons in detail, and promptly inform the local altar deities and the Thunder Office in every prefecture, instructing all subordinate divine offices to carry it out together. Gather at once the deities of the mountains, rivers, pools, and caves; the Dragon Gods of the sacred wells; and all relevant divine officials. Let them attend the commanders and generals serving this office, and work together with one purpose to turn the workings of creation, regulate Yin-Yang, raise winds and clouds, darken Heaven and Earth, make thunder resound mightily, and spread rain far and wide. Let the parched and scorched crops be thoroughly moistened, fulfilling the people’s deep hopes. Respectfully submitted.

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Praying for Clear Weather

We humbly pray that Your Sacred Compassion grant the petition of [your servant], and specially descend to the altar to witness the covenant and ritual observance. We further pray that you announce this to the relevant deities of the Cloud, Thunder, and Rain divisions, so that they may regulate Yin-Yang, bring the wind and rain to a halt, clear away the overcast skies, and spread sunlight widely. May the prolonged rains give way to clear weather, restoring the proper order of the seasonal calendar, making the Dao’s transformation known above and fulfilling the people’s prayers below.

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Notes for reading the petitions

• Penglai Office of Waters: A Daoist office of the Water Palace, responsible for rainmaking across the seas and rivers.
• Ritual observance: Establishing an altar and conducting a sacrificial rite.
• Six Venomous Savage Thunder deities; Water-Thunder commanders and generals: Divine generals in the Thunder divisions and Water Palace who govern wind and rain.
• Official petitions: Formal documents of summons addressed to divine generals and local altar deities.
• Local altar deity: A deity who governs a particular area and its land and community.
• Regulate Yin-Yang: Adjust conditions such as clear skies, rain, cold, and heat so that the weather is fitting.
• Descend to witness the covenant: A request for the revered deity to descend to the ritual altar and witness the covenant and ritual observance.

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Interpretation

Same Format as the Memorial Above

(The format is the same as in the preceding text; omitted here.)

Dispatch to the Generals

(The following dispatches are addressed to the various authorities.)

Petition

Please review the matter set forth above. We therefore invite you to gather at the altar, cleanse away defilement, and summon the Supreme Emperor to look upon and oversee the rites. We further beg you to display your divine might, set the workings of creation in order, sweep the dark clouds beyond ten thousand miles, and bring forth a single red sun, so that the crops may flourish and the people suffer no famine. Manifest your divine power in full and make recompense clear. Respectfully dispatched.

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City God

Petition

Please review the matter set forth above. We especially invite you to bring your divine banners here to witness and partake in the rites, and to join in exercising divine power and setting the workings of creation in order, as stated above.

Community Altar Deity

(The format is the same as above.)

Village Altar

We hereby issue this dispatch for your observance. At once sweep away baleful influences and purify the village district; convey the sincere prayers of ordinary people to the Emperor, and welcome the perfected immortals. We pray that the wind and rain will give way to clear skies, that the crops will ripen abundantly, that the people may rejoice, and that the transforming power of the Dao will shine forth. On receipt of this dispatch, carry out its instructions. This dispatch is hereby issued.

Local Earth Deity

We hereby issue this order to you, deity. At once sweep away baleful influences and purify the celestial road; convey the sincere prayers of ordinary people to the Emperor’s court, and welcome the perfected sages in their grand arrival. Reverently invite the officials and lords to witness and partake in the rites. Above, pray for clear skies; below, protect the common people. Help uphold the mysterious teaching and make the transforming power of the Dao shine forth. On the day your merit is recognized, your name will be entered in Shangqing. This order is hereby issued.

This order is issued to the deity of the land where the ritual altar is established. Let it be carried out accordingly.

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Locust-Driving Zhaijiao (Purification Ritual to Drive Away Locusts)

The Vast Heaven, the Northern Pole, the Southern Pole, and the Empress of Earth

(The format is the same for each.)

May your heavenly compassion grant the request submitted by your servant. First, I beg you to pardon my offenses and permit me to carry out this rite. I ask you to issue an imperial decree and forgive the common people. Let the decree be sent to the Three Ministries and proclaimed to all the subordinate divine offices, commanding them to respond and carry it out. This is specifically to drive away the locusts and dispel their baleful influence, pardon wrongdoing and remove calamity, so that the crops may yield abundantly and the farmers may have hope.

The Celestial Ministry, the Four Sages, the Five Masters, and the Three Officials

(The same format applies to all.)

May your sacred compassion grant the petition submitted by your servant. We especially ask you to descend in your immortal chariot and witness the rites. Then grant that this memorial be presented at the heavenly court, and obtain an edict to be proclaimed throughout the Three Realms, to the mountains and rivers, to the Great Year, the City Gods, the village altars, and all subordinate divine offices, commanding them to respond and carry it out. We beg you to pardon the countless offenses and sins accumulated by the people of this region, and renew them all. We further ask you to dispatch officials and troops from the ritual bureau to sweep away evil influences, and command the presiding deities of the village altars to put an end to this calamity.

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Interpretation

A Vernacular Interpretation of the Lingbao Documentary Forms

General petition

May the crops in the fields yield a plentiful harvest, and may farmers have hope for the future.

Eastern Peak (the deity of Mount Tai)

May your sacred compassion graciously approve this petition. We specially invite your sacred presence to descend, witness and protect the performance of the purification ritual, and kindly grant instructions and a favorable response. May the City God of the relevant prefecture or temple, the deities of the village altars listed in the sacrificial rites, and all other deities within their jurisdiction be directed to provide due assistance. We especially pray that you pardon the countless errors and offenses of [name] and others, and grant them renewal.

Memorial to the Marshal Generals

Please examine the circumstances carefully. At once, gather in the clouds at the ritual altar, make our humble intentions known, and invite the Supreme Emperor to witness the purification ritual. Then drive away the locust swarms and sweep aside evil influences and baleful forces. May the locusts be utterly destroyed by the wind, and then entirely washed away by the rain, so that the hundred grains grow abundantly and the three farming seasons bring celebration.

Memorial to the Prefectural Office

(The text reads “Tai Sui”; this is often a variant form of “fu,” meaning “prefectural office.”)

Please examine the circumstances described above. We specially invite your divine presence to descend and witness the performance of the purification ritual. Kindly direct all the deities responsible for managing calamities and baleful forces to suppress the evil and fierce influences and dispel the malign forces, so that the crops may yield a plentiful harvest and the people may rejoice. In this way, the people’s prayers will be answered and the transformation wrought by the Dao will be made manifest. Respectfully submitted.

Memorial to the City God

Please carefully consider the circumstances. We specially invite your divine carriage to descend and witness the performance of the purification ritual. We further beseech you to direct the village altar deities to drive away the caterpillars and locusts at once, and repel malign influences and baleful forces. May the locusts be utterly destroyed by the wind and then entirely washed away by the rain, so that the hundred grains ripen abundantly and the three farming seasons bring hope.

Memorial concerning the crops

To: __

To the official in charge of crops under the Eastern Peak: Please examine this petition. We specially invite your divine presence to descend and witness the performance of the purification ritual. Direct the terrestrial deities to sweep away evil influences and baleful forces, and command the divine troops to suppress the caterpillars and locusts at once, so that the crops may flourish and the farmers may celebrate. Respectfully submitted.

Sacrificial rites

To: __

To the deities of the rites observed by farming households: Please examine this petition and at once sweep away evil beings and protect the crops. May the caterpillars and locusts pose no threat, the crops bring the joy of a good harvest, the people find contentment in their livelihoods, and the transformation wrought by the Dao shine forth. Submitted accordingly.

Memorial to the village altar and Earth God

This memorial is hereby submitted for your review and attention. At once, cleanse the area of baleful influences and secure the village boundaries; make our humble sincerity known to the Emperor. Welcome the Marshal Generals and, upon review, carry out the instructions.

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Interpretation

Celestial saints descended to the mortal realm, driving away locusts to protect crops, ensuring the people's peaceful livelihood and harmonious weather. This demonstrates the profound merit (De) of mystical Daoist practice, worthy of being recorded in sacred scriptures.

When the local earth god (deity governing a specific territory) receives this official document, they must conduct a "Thunder Gratitude Ritual" (Zhaijiao, Daoist ceremony for disaster prevention and blessing) for the populace. Since some offenders remain unpunished, a report must be submitted to the Thunder Ministry deities (divine beings overseeing lightning punishments).

A Daoist priest (referring to himself as "your servant") with reverent awe presents a detailed petition: The people of a certain region, suffering from blurred vision and phantom images, fear these are heavenly punishments for past transgressions. Amidst their misfortunes, they tremble while repenting their sins. They have specially chosen an auspicious day to invite priests to recite the Jade Pivot Treasure Scripture and perform the "Jade Pivot Repentance" ritual, preparing offerings for the High Truth (advanced deities) to seek absolution.

The priest further petitions: May the "Most High Sovereign of Divine Empyrean, Nine Heavens' True Illumination, Great Sage of Universal Thunderclap" (supreme deity of the Thunder Ministry) bestow great compassion, pardoning offenses and commanding the Thunder Ministry to withdraw punishments. Let repentant people be spared retribution and live in peace. With utmost reverence, the priest repeatedly bows to present this matter before the celestial court.

Simultaneously, the priest submits documents to the presiding True Lord of the "Supreme Mysterious Capital Administration" (celestial bureaucratic institution in Daoist cosmology), humbly requesting the master's consideration of mortal sufferings, approving this petition to convey the people's repentance to higher deities.

Note: This scripture passage reveals the Daoist cosmological view of "heaven-human resonance," where priests serve as intermediaries conveying earthly sufferings to the celestial realm while seeking divine mediation between nature and human affairs. The mentioned "original destiny" (benming) refers to birth horoscopes, "manifested shadows" (biaoying) likely indicate karmic obstacles, and "Thunder Office" (Leisi) denotes the divine institution administering lightning punishments. The entire ritual embodies Daoism's religious function of disaster relief and misfortune resolution.

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Interpretation

This document from the Lingbao (Numinous Treasure) tradition of Daoism serves as a petition to heaven for the remission of sins, consisting of two main sections:

The first part addresses the Three Origin Palaces (the celestial bureaus of the Heavenly, Earthly, and Water Officials in Daoist cosmology). The text humbly implores the celestial powers to pardon the transgressions accumulated by the mortal petitioner, requesting the removal of their karmic records and ordering the Thunder Ministry to revoke punitive markers. The author expresses profound reverence for the divine majesty, acknowledging the audacity of this mortal appeal while awaiting the deities' benevolent response.

The second section constitutes an official dispatch to the seasonal Thunder Deities currently on duty. It details how petitions have already been submitted to both the main office and subsidiary bureaus of the Heavenly Worthy of Universal Transformation Who Responds to the Primordial with Thunderous Voices (supreme deity of the Thunder Ministry), seeking absolution for the petitioner's offenses. The document demands the Thunder Ministry withdraw its punitive markers to allow sincere repentance, while simultaneously warning that any demonic disturbances must be immediately eradicated.

A postscript explains that although preliminary petitions were submitted with modest ritual offerings to the Thunder Gods, their efficacy remains unconfirmed—hence this renewed solemn appeal. The presiding Thunder Deity is entreated to embody heaven's virtue of nurturing life (De) by dispelling misfortune and baleful influences from the petitioner. Should malevolent forces be detected, local earth gods (Tudi) and household deities (Siming) are commanded to jointly eliminate them with the urgency of enforcing celestial statutes.

The document concludes with the ritual date and the officiating priest's signature with seal. The entire text exemplifies Daoist religious practice of celestial communication through ritual documents, manifesting the distinctive theological concept of "reaching heaven through written words."

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Interpretation

Lingbao Ritual Documents · Killed by a Thunderbolt

Petition to the Nine Sovereigns (or the Nine Heavens)

Your subject respectfully petitions on behalf of a sinful commoner of (place), a woman who has submitted a written plea and confessed: The deceased, (name), was born in (year, month, day, and hour). At (home or outdoors), they were struck by thunder and executed by the thunderbolt, and died where they fell. Considering this frail body, its fate is truly burdened by grave sins accumulated over three lifetimes. We humbly pray for pardon and permission to confess and repent. We have chosen this day and hour to recite the Incantation for Purifying Heaven and Earth and the Precious Proclamation of Miroku’s Absolution of Sins, and to bow in worship before the Precious Repentance of the Jade Pivot. We humbly ask that these rites cleanse the calamities and transgressions, and will prepare offerings of thanks. May the Thunder Bureau return to its jurisdiction and issue the necessary writ. I, your subject, have received this plea and cannot suppress my urgent concern.

The deceased who received this punishment, (name), lacked goodness to sustain their life, hastened their own guilt, and met an untimely death. From this they have fallen into ruin, from which escape is not easy. For this reason, I dare to trouble you with this petition.

Having received this plea, I, your subject, respectfully record its contents and submit them before (the sacred throne). I humbly hope for Heaven’s compassion to pardon all my sins and grant leave for this petition to be presented. May the boundless grace of amnesty be extended, bringing an end to the suffering of the Three Paths, so that the deceased (name) may be spared the punishments of carrying sand and bearing stones, regain their spirit and recover their nature, and ascend to a higher state. I further pray that the petitioner’s family may all receive great pardon. I have dared to affront Heaven’s majesty.

Appeal to the Three Officials

(As above, through “from which escape is not easy.”) For this reason, in addition to first submitting a petition at the palace of the Nine Sovereigns and requesting their judgment, I respectfully record this appeal for your attention. The petitioner (details to follow) humbly presents it before the sacred seats of the Three Primes. We respectfully hope that the sacred compassion will forgive this offense in troubling you and grant this earnest appeal. May it be presented to the highest Heaven, and instructions sent down to the relevant offices charged with review and assessment, so that the Thunder Bureau appointed this year to execute punishments may extend the broad grace of amnesty. (The conclusion is the same as in the petition to the Nine Sovereigns: “I have dared to affront the sacred majesty.”)

Review by the Three Offices

May the Master’s compassion forgive this offense in troubling you and grant the petitioner’s earnest appeal. May it be presented to the highest Heaven without delay, and a gracious decree promptly issued, with documents sent to the offices of review and assessment in the palaces of the Three Primes concerning the Thunder Bureau appointed this year to execute punishments, as stated above. I have dared to affront the Master’s authority and am overcome with fear and trepidation. Respectfully submitted.

Plain-language explanation (ritual use)

This text belongs to the petitioning rites of a Lingbao purification ritual (Lingbao zhaijiao) and is specifically for someone who died after being struck by lightning.

The Nine Sovereigns refers to the ninefold heavens or their rulers. Here, the Daoist priest submits a petition to them, reporting that the deceased died by execution through the thunderbolt and may fall into the underworld for judgment.

The Thunder Bureau is the divine office that administers thunder punishments. The text asks it to return to its jurisdiction and, through rites of repentance such as the Precious Repentance of the Jade Pivot and Miroku’s Absolution of Sins, to cleanse the deceased of their transgressions. It seeks to end the sufferings of the Three Paths—such as those of the hells—and punishments in the underworld such as carrying sand and bearing stones.

The Three Officials usually refers to the Three Great Officials of Heaven, Earth, and Water. The appeal asks them to relay the petition to the highest Heaven, so that the Thunder Bureau appointed that year to carry out punishments may grant clemency under the terms of the amnesty and allow the soul to recover its body and spirit and ascend.

The petitioner’s family is the household submitting the plea. At the end, the text also asks that the entire family receive “great pardon.”

Throughout the text, a woman speaks on behalf of the deceased, or of the family as a whole. The Daoist priest receives her plea, draws up the petition, and makes the appeal. This is a standard ritual form used to deliver the deceased and resolve grievances when someone has died an unusual death, such as execution by thunder.

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Interpretation

Plain-Language Interpretation of the Lingbao Document Forms

Memorial and Official Dispatch (Petition to the Divine Empyrean)

According to the confession submitted by the petitioner (so-and-so), who has recited scriptures and performed repentance rites, I bow and act on behalf of the deceased under punishment (so-and-so), to cleanse their sins in the underworld.

After receiving this, our office has already carried out the prescribed rites. We now respectfully send one memorial and one petition, both fully sealed. We venture to trouble the Thunder chariot to speed among the stars, carrying them to the imperial gate of the Nine Sovereigns of the Divine Empyrean for presentation. Let them be submitted to the offices of the Three Origins and Three Officials and to the Supreme Mysterious Capital Secretariat, and presented for a proclamation to be issued. May the Thunder Gods of Execution and the Thunder Gods of the Five Divisions of the Water Society be ordered to descend together and receive the offerings of reverence and thanks. May the cloudy constellations and winds not obstruct them for even an instant. We await an immediate response and spiritual communion. This dispatch must be delivered.

To be dispatched.

The Merit Officer on Duty for the Day, (so-and-so), shall act accordingly.

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Petition of Thanks to the Thunder

Having reviewed the matter as stated in the memorial, we return it to the office responsible for its administration and request that it be forwarded. Our office has received this matter and, given its urgency, has examined it carefully. The deceased under punishment, (so-and-so), had no good deeds to support their life and brought about their own fate, ending their life prematurely. They have consequently fallen into ruin, from which it is not easy to escape. In addition to having prepared a memorial to the Nine Sovereigns, the Three Officials, and the Masters’ Secretariat, requesting that orders be issued to grant release and pardon, and in addition to performing repentance rites and giving thanks according to the law, we hereby prepare and submit this petition for your review. May all acknowledge and share in the Most High’s grace of universal pardon, bring the sufferings of the Three Paths to an end, accept the petitioner’s devout offering of thanks, and especially temper the Thunder’s fearsome power of execution. We hope that the deceased, (so-and-so), may be spared the underworld’s punishments of pushing sand and carrying stones, be granted renewal, and be enabled to restore their spirit and recover their nature, ascend to a higher state, and escape suffering. This is our prayer: may life be granted again. This petition must be delivered.

To be submitted.

We humbly request that the great Thunder Gods of Execution assigned to this year, the Heavenly Gods, and the Thunder Gods of the Five Divisions of the Dragon Society review this petition. Respectfully submitted.

Submitted in the year, month, day, and hour

Ritual rank and surname

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Case of a Lightning Strike Without Death · Memorial to the Nine Sovereigns

Your servant does not shrink from execution by axe, but dares to address the imperial court. Your servant respectfully submits: This is a case in which (a woman among the people) from (a certain place) has submitted a petition of confession and thanks, humbly praying on behalf of (so-and-so), whose birth destiny is as follows: …

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Notes for reading the original:

• The imperial gate of the Nine Sovereigns of the Divine Empyrean refers to the celestial palace revered by the Divine Empyrean lineage, where petitions are presented to Heaven.
• The offices of the Three Origins and Three Officials are underworld institutions overseen by the Heavenly Official of the Upper Origin, the Earthly Official of the Middle Origin, and the Water Official of the Lower Origin.
• The Supreme Mysterious Capital Secretariat is the name of a celestial bureau in the Daoist system of documents, responsible for overseeing memorials.
• The Thunder Gods of Execution and the Thunder Gods of the Five Divisions of the Water Society are groups of thunder deities responsible for punishment by thunder and for bringing rain.
• Pushing sand and carrying stones refers to forced labor imposed on sinful souls by the underworld.
• The Three Paths are the paths of fire, blood, and blades, referring to states of suffering akin to hell.
• Thanks to the Thunder / lightning strike without death refers to giving thanks to the Thunder after someone has been struck by lightning but survived, or on behalf of a deceased person, and petitioning for the thunder punishment to cease.

The final phrase, “birth destiny (details) and birth year,” is a standard formula to be completed with the person’s birth details; the specific date must be supplied from the original document.

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Interpretation

Plain-Language Interpretation of the Lingbao Document Forms

1. Opening Statement (the person’s account)

I am an ordinary mortal, burdened by grave sins from many lifetimes. On a certain day and hour in a certain month of this year, at home or at a place where I was traveling, I was struck by lightning as punishment. Fortunately, I survived. Now I humbly ask for mercy and respectfully confess my wrongdoing: I have recited a certain precious scripture and its praises, and performed bows before the Precious Repentance of the Jade Pivot. I submit to the gracious decree, seek to cleanse my sins, and prepare offerings to give thanks and ask that the Thunder Deities return to their appointed posts. I, your servant, have received this statement with utmost sincerity and will faithfully carry it out. I dare not take action on my own authority. I respectfully record the statement submitted and prostrate myself in acknowledgment of guilt, and so forth.

2. Petition to the Holy Powers

Before the throne of the Holy Powers, I humbly pray that Heaven’s compassion pardon my sins and offenses and grant my petition. May the great grace of broad pardon be extended, and may the wrongdoing of this foolish person be forgiven everywhere. May the person who received the punishment, [name], be spared and retain their rightful life, make a proper bow of thanks, and live again. I have dared to trespass upon Heaven’s authority and am filled with trembling. I respectfully submit this petition.

3. Petition for the Compassion of the Three Officials

May you graciously overlook my offense in presuming to address you and grant this earnest petition. Please cause it to be presented to the Highest Mystery and transmitted to the offices responsible for examining and verifying the matter. In this year, when punishment is due to be carried out, may the Thunder Office widely extend the great grace of pardon and forgive the wrongdoing of this foolish person. May the person who received the punishment, [name], preserve their rightful life and be granted renewed life. I, your petitioner, have dared to trespass upon your sacred authority and am filled with trembling. I respectfully submit this petition.

4. Petition to the Celestial Secretariat

And so forth. I will faithfully carry out the instructions and dare not take action on my own authority. I have first submitted petitions to the Nine Heavens and the Three Officials to request their decree. In addition, I must record this statement and submit it for their information.

5. Petition to the Holy Powers (a request submitted by the master’s office)

Before the throne of the Holy Powers, I humbly pray that the master’s compassion overlook my offense in presuming to address you and grant this earnest petition. Please cause it to be presented to the Highest Mystery, issue a gracious decree, and send an official document to the Three Origins Palace offices responsible for examining and verifying the matter. (This follows the procedure for transmitting documents to the Three Officials; the format is the same as above.)

6. Letter of Thanks to the Thunder Office (official document)

Now, based on the account submitted above, this office has received the statement with utmost sincerity, and the matter falls within its proper authority. We have already submitted petitions to the Nine Heavens, the Three Officials, and the Master’s Secretariat to request their decree, and have asked that pardon and release be granted. In accordance with the prescribed rites, we have also performed repentance and offered thanks. We must now prepare and submit this official letter for review and confirmation. May it be jointly examined. May the petitioner’s devout offering of thanks fully embody the Supreme One’s grace of broad pardon. May all be allowed to begin anew, with past offenses forgiven, so that the soul and spirit of the person who received the punishment, [name], may be brought into clear and proper order.

Notes for completing the form

Term	Meaning
Punishment by thunder and lightning	Punishment by thunder; execution by celestial lightning
Precious Repentance of the Jade Pivot	A Daoist repentance rite, often associated with Thunder Rites and the Scripture of the Jade Pivot
Three Officials	The Celestial Official, Terrestrial Official, and Water Official, the Three Great Officials of the Upper Origin
Nine Heavens	High-ranking divine courts, including the Lords of the Nine Heavens
Three Origins Palace offices	Immortal offices that examine merits and sins in the Upper, Middle, and Lower Origins
Offices responsible for examination and verification	Departments charged with investigating offenses
Letter of Thanks to the Thunder Office	A formal document of thanks submitted to the Thunder Department after pardon from thunder punishment has been granted
[name], [your servant], [petitioner]	Blanks in the document template, to be filled with the person’s name and the appropriate forms of self-reference

The document as a whole is a set of Lingbao petitions and official letters for someone who survived a lightning strike or thunder punishment. Through a ritual master, the survivor petitions the Three Officials, the Nine Heavens, and the Celestial Secretariat to send documents to the offices that examine the case and to pardon the person’s sins. A formal letter of thanks is then sent to the Thunder Department, asking that the Thunder Deities return to their posts and the person’s soul and spirit be restored to proper order.

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Interpretation

《A Vernacular Interpretation of the Lingbao Document Forms》

(Continued from the preceding text) … Whether they may continue to live, lingering on the brink of death, and whether a life destined to be short may be extended into one of long duration—all is left to the petition submitted here. The petition must be handled in accordance with the document, to make sincerity clear.

Document format: Hereby a formal petition is submitted above.

To: The great Thunder Gods who hold authority this year and govern punishment, together with the Celestial Dragons, the Water-Society gods, and the Thunder Gods of the Five Divisions.

Request: We respectfully ask that this be examined and carried out. Submitted with due respect.

Petition concerning cattle and pigs struck by lightning

According to the report submitted by the person in charge at (place) and the commoner (name): the (household) had raised (an ox or a pig), which was struck by lightning and killed at (an outdoor pen or other place) on a certain day and at a certain hour this month. This is truly the result of accumulated karmic obstruction: over five generations of reincarnation, it has persisted to the present and has not yet been cleared, so punishment continues to be imposed. We also fear that foolish ordinary people have accumulated offenses through past wrongdoing, bringing about this calamity.

Although we have prepared only meager offerings, we present them especially in thanks for the sacrifice. We further ask that a document be issued and transmitted concerning this matter, and request that this office receive our statement. Accordingly, we have prepared this petition for submission and examination.

We especially ask that you graciously pardon the offense of presuming to trouble you, and take note of this humble but sincere intention. May you heed the will to preserve life and order that the punished (ox) be spared a fall into delusion, and the (pig) be spared a fall into the cycle of rebirth. May they be freed from the suffering of animal existence, and may the petitioner and household from this day onward alike bathe in your grace. We shall follow your instructions and carry them out. This petition is hereby submitted.

Hereby submitted above, respectfully,

To the great Thunder Gods who hold authority this year and govern punishment. We respectfully ask that you examine this petition. Submitted with due respect.

Grand Blood Lake Rite · Petition to the Void Emperor

Your subject (name), holding the position of (title), bows low and submits this petition:

I venture to express my innermost sincerity and respectfully address the highest heavens, daring to hope for the compassionate mercy of Heaven and its generous pardon. I have received the following account: the deceased named above died in childbirth and is feared to have fallen into the Blood Lake, unable to be delivered and raised up. I have received the previously bestowed talismans and commands for “Deliverance of All.” I have not dared to use them on my own authority, and therefore respectfully record the petition received and submit it to you, even at the risk of death.

Submitted to: The Heavenly Worthy, the Supreme and Most Exalted Great Dao Lord in the Void Emperor’s Celestial Realm.

I respectfully beseech you: May your compassionate mercy grant my petition. First, pardon the grave sins I have committed in the past and present, and permit me to carry out this great rite. I especially beg you to issue an edict to the Supreme Mystery Metropolitan Office, and to all administrative offices throughout the Ten Directions and Three Realms, in the Nine Netherworlds of eternal night, the blood lake of the northern region’s Fengdu and Xiaoshi, and the cold, dark prisons of the deep. May they everywhere grant pardon and release to the recommended deceased (name) and to all souls who died in childbirth.

Brief background notes:

• Petition: A formal document used in Daoist communications and sacrificial rites, often addressed to the Thunder Gods or gods who govern prisons in the underworld.
• Great Thunder Gods who govern punishment: Divine generals of the Thunder Ministry responsible for executions and punitive trials.
• Blood Lake: An underworld prison into which, according to tradition, those who die in childbirth or bear the karmic stain of blood may fall. They require deliverance through rites such as the Grand Blood Lake Rite.
• Void Emperor: An honorific for the highest Daoist deity, such as the Great Dao Lord. Petitions are often titled “Petition to the Void Emperor.”

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Interpretation

A Plain-Language Reading of the Lingbao Textual Forms

When souls burdened by sin leave the sea of suffering, they can all behold the light. This applies wherever the salvation talisman and decree reach.

I respectfully receive the Jade Primordial Decree of Salvation, and ask permission to write its seal script as appropriate, proclaim it widely, and carry it out accordingly. I have presumptuously offended the majesty of Heaven, and my urgent feelings are difficult to restrain. I await punishment with utmost sincerity, filled with fear and unease (and so on). I respectfully submit this memorial to Vast Heaven.

I look up to Heaven’s compassion and ask that my petition be granted: first, I beg that my offenses be pardoned so I may carry out this work; I also specially beg that an edict be issued and proclaimed to the Great Mystery Metropolitan Bureau and the Three Realms in the Ten Directions (as above).

Heaven’s Bureau issues its edict to the Three Realms in the Ten Directions, the Ninefold Darkness of the long night, the Northern Capital of Luofeng, the Blood Lake at Xiashi, the cold, dim prisons beneath the waters, and every jurisdiction and place under their authority (as above).

Perfected Ones Who Open the Eight Gates and Deliver Souls

I respectfully appeal to the compassion of the Perfected Ones Who Open the Eight Gates and Deliver Souls of the Eastern Pole Court of Benevolent Governance, asking them to grant this petition. I specially beg that they dispatch the Great General Who Collects Souls and Summons Their Po, along with the officials in the retinue who Reconcile Grievances and Dispel Defilement, to pursue and gather the soul of the deceased person recommended for salvation (name), together with those who died in the Blood Lake, in childbirth, and in similar circumstances. May they immediately resolve resentments and enmities, dissolve hostilities, and free these souls from the underworld. May they all proceed to the Flowery Pool to wash their bodies; once clothed in celestial garments, may they become pure, recover their original nature, undergo refinement and salvation, and together ascend to a higher state. I humbly beg the Perfected Ones to descend and bear witness to this covenant. I, the ritual officiant (name), have rashly intruded upon the majesty of the divine and am overwhelmed with fear and dread. I respectfully submit this petition.

Eastern Palace of Wanli

I respectfully appeal to the compassion of the Primordial Goddess Who Governs Birth and Bestows Pure Heavenly Garments and Broad Salvation of the Eastern Palace of Wanli, asking her to grant this petition. May she briefly bring down her celestial retinue and look kindly upon this purification rite. I specially beg her to bestow supreme celestial garments, aiding the souls detained in the Blood Lake so they may all become pure, attend the court of the Perfected, receive Heaven’s grace, and ascend together through salvation. I, the ritual officiant (name), have rashly intruded upon the divine majesty (the remainder follows the same form as the Yellow Register Great Retreat).

Memorandum of the Divine Tigers

This office has received the above document, yet remains concerned that the deceased souls in question are tainted by foul and impure matter, causing them to fall into the Blood Lake and making them difficult to rescue and raise up. Besides having already submitted a memorial to the Supreme Emperor and requested a decree of pardon, it is necessary to transmit this official document.

To be transmitted above.

To the Two Great Saints He Qiao of the Divine Tigers; the Soul-Pursuing Envoys of the Three Bureaus; the Jade Maidens of the Seven Perfected Ones; and the Four Great Generals Huan, Liu, Wu, and Lu.

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Interpretation

Summons for Pursuing and Seizing Souls

We request that the officials and troops of the “Military Pursuit and Seizure” unit join with the Great Divine King Who Severs Bonds and Rejects Injustice, the Thunder of Zhen in the Heart, the Blind-Eyed Deities, Hu Jingzheng (Essence-Fire Eyes), Lu Mao, and the other great deities. They are to investigate the matter in detail and swiftly carry out their commands throughout the ten directions.

Throughout the Three Realms, in all the offices of the Northern Capital of Luofeng—the Daoist headquarters of the underworld—including the hells with and without intervals, the Stone Gorge, the Blood Lake, the dark prisons beneath the vast seas, the underworld bureaus of the sacred peaks and waterways, the City God and local earth-god offices, and the gates that govern the dead and the living: wherever their jurisdictions extend and wherever the deceased may be, pursue and seize the form and soul of the deceased (so-and-so). For souls sunk in the Blood Lake and spirits held back there, follow the talismanic command of the Void Emperor’s pardon, carried by divine fire, and swiftly bring them to the altar. If the souls recommended for salvation have not yet received pardon, please guide and protect them here for the time being, make the consequences of their deeds manifest, and receive them into salvation so they may be reborn. Respectfully submitted.

Memorial for the Celestial Physicians

In the same format as above.

We request that the immortal officials and officers of the Shangqing Celestial Medical Bureau investigate the matter in detail and descend to the altar. May they exercise their divine power widely, bestow the wondrous efficacy of the Golden Elixir, reveal the transformations of the mysterious, and infuse the finest essence of Jade Liquor. May they irrigate and refine the wounded soul, release those who died in childbirth from the bonds of the womb, restore their limbs and bodies, and grant them merit so they may soon attain new life. Respectfully submitted.

Memorial to the Bureau for Overseeing Births

We request that the officials, lords, and officers of the Bureau for Overseeing Births in the Nine Heavens investigate the preceding matter in detail and descend to the altar ground. May they exercise their divine power widely. If the child and mother among the souls of those who died in childbirth have not yet been separated, or the bonds of the womb have not been undone, then cause them to be born at once: fully separate them from the womb, restore their bodies, and enable them to ascend beyond this world. We humbly pray that they receive the protection of the gods and share in the blessings of this ritual offering. Respectfully submitted.

Bureau for Refining and Delivering Souls

We request that the officials, attendants, and officers of the Nanchang Bureau for Refining and Delivering Souls investigate the matter in detail, humbly descend to the ritual altar, and partake of the ritual offerings. May they bring the rites to completion, set the workings of primordial transformation in motion, and exercise their numinous power widely. With the true essence of the Stone Gorge Mirror, cleanse away all remaining defilements; with the calamity-fire of Jade Eyes, refine the body and spirit. Respectfully submitted.

Memorial for Dispelling Defilement

Having received this matter, our bureau has already carried out the required rites. We are concerned, however, that the above-named deceased (so-and-so) remains tainted by foul and impure influences; without cleansing, they cannot approach the perfected. We have already submitted a memorial to the Celestial Court and sent a special dispatch to summon them. We must therefore issue this document:

We request that all the officials and officers of the Nine-Phoenix Office for Dispelling Defilement investigate the matter in detail and at once pour down the divine water of Tianyi, filling the Jade Pool. In particular, let them wash and cleanse the body and spirit of the deceased soul recommended for salvation, and purge all foulness, so that the body and spirit may be pure.

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Interpretation

Wash away filth and remove the stench; make the form whole and restore the body. We further beseech your gracious descent to share the ritual wine. Respectfully, this writ.

Writ of the Four Generals

Great Spirit Xu, who goes straight to the obstructing spirits, purifies the turbid, and breaks impurity; Great Spirit Zhou, whose awe-inspiring numina universally penetrate and who, in caring righteousness, makes forms whole and washes them clean; Great Spirit Li, who resolves debts and transgressions and causes souls to be whole in form and restored in body; Great Spirit Feng of the Long Ford, who resolves debts and opposing claims, rectifies souls, generates forms, and brings shadows to the Long Ford: each is requested to examine the foregoing matter, transform Qi and divide the true, and descend to the fasting altar. Comply with and receive the talismanic command; embody the Primordial Sovereign’s virtue of cherishing life; match the ritual officer’s sincere prayer. Pursue and gather the deceased (X) whom we recommend, together with the souls of those who died in childbirth and all such hosts. Resolve for them all debts and transgressions and opposing claims; cause them to leave the Blood Lake and Stone Gorge, wash away filth and remove the stench, and be whole in form and restored in body. We further beseech your gracious descent to share the ritual wine. Respectfully, this writ.

Blood Lake Writ (Continuing from the preceding Divine Tiger Writ to this office)

Lord of the Dark Prison of the Blood Lake and Stone Gorge: examine the matter, behold this fasting supplication, comply with the talismanic command, and release the soul and hun-po of the deceased (X). Extend this to all dark souls who died in childbirth and remain stagnant; quickly erase their registers of sin and destroy the roots of evil. Do not detain them; send them forth at the proper time. If the recommended soul does not yet merit pardon, also suspend judgment and lead and escort them here to manifest retribution, so that they may receive salvation and be born in a good realm. We further beseech the divine carriage to descend and share the ritual offerings. Respectfully, this writ.

Writ for Settling Accounts

Great Spirit who settles accounts and releases opposing claims: examine the foregoing matter, look down and witness the ritual cultivation, above embody compassion, below pity deep suffering. For the deceased (X) whom we recommend, resolve debts and hatred and pacify opposing claims, so that all escape the suffering of rebirth and transcend to the land of joy. We further hope you will descend and share the ritual wine. Respectfully, this writ. (The remainder is the same as in the Yellow Register Fast (Huanglu zhai).)

Various Talismans and Chapters for the Blood Lake

This office respectfully complies with the Dao’s decree and requests the issuance of the Primordial Beginning’s talismanic command, the Golden Register White Slip True Talisman for Deliverance from Suffering (clearly for the case in which both mother and child have died).

The above talisman is proclaimed down to the great and small Iron Enclosures, the intermittent and uninterrupted hells, the Dark Cold and Stone Gorge, and the Blood Lake hells; to the ox-headed jailers, the great ghost kings, and the lords of the Nine Dark Regions: save and deliver (X), who died in childbirth, and all female souls of the Blood Lake and such hosts. May they leave blood and stench, wash away pollution, and return to the yang world. We further beseech your descent to share the ritual wine. Respectfully, this writ.

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Interpretation

May the corpse be cleansed of its defilements and forever leave behind the long night, attaining the sight of light. May the karmic wrongs that separated mother and child be dispelled. Through the merits of deliverance bestowed by the jade text left by Lingbao, may they be released from transformation and ascend among the human and heavenly realms, in every respect as the proclamation commands.

On a certain year, month, and day, this proclamation is issued.

Primordial Beginning’s Talismanic Mandate: True Talisman of Pardon and Rescue from Suffering

(Issued below)

To the officials in charge of the Blood Lakes in all places within the great and lesser Iron Enclosures, both the realms with intervals and those without intervals (position: so-and-so): receive this proclamation and respectfully seal it.

Special Pardon Talisman

(Use this talisman when a man without a concubine dies in a dispute.)

Lingbao Three Origins True Talisman for Cleansing the Blood Lakes

(The above talisman is hereby issued.)

To the rulers of the Northern Capital’s Cold Pool, the Ninefold Netherworld’s long night, the great and lesser Iron Enclosures, the realms with intervals and those without intervals, and the Blood Lake Hells of the cold, gloomy ravines; and to the Great Gods Who Turn Bodies and Cast Corpses, the Ghost Kings who eat hearts and brains, the Ox-Headed wardens, and all others: look up to the Primordial Sovereign’s virtue of cherishing life, and fulfill the ritual host’s sincere wish to deliver and rescue. In obedience to this talismanic mandate, do not detain the deceased so-and-so, or the souls of women who died in childbirth within the prisons. Deliver them from darkness so they may behold the light and receive the benefit of merit. Free them from confinement in the Blood Lakes; refine their substance and purify their Shen (spirit), and send them straightway to the Southern Palace, in every respect as the proclamation commands.

The year and month are as above.

Special Amnesty Talisman

(Use this talisman when an adopted son harms his grandson, causing a death in childbirth.)

True Talisman of the Sublime Dao of the Three Pure Ones, the Void Emperor, for Cleansing Corpses and Delivering Lives

The above talisman is hereby issued.

To the rulers of the most remote and secluded places in the Three Realms and the ten directions, both the realms with intervals and those without intervals; the prisons where calamities of childbirth occur; the Blood Lakes of the ravines; the cold, gloomy Hells; and the Great Gods Who Swallow Corpses, Press Down Corpses, and Devour Corpses: by the authority of this talismanic pardon, release the soul of so-and-so, who died in childbirth, along with all those spirits who have been held back through countless kalpas and lifetimes. Temporarily suspend their retribution and release them from confinement. Whether sons or grandsons, those entangled and held back by boundless, limitless killing Qi (vital energy), with prison Qi filling them, must swiftly leave the jurisdiction of the underworld authorities. Let them join the gathering of the good, come to see the sunlight, and be rid of defiling Qi. Let their merits and offenses be examined and the causes of their sins weighed and determined. Do not detain them. Whoever violates these statutory provisions shall be dealt with exactly as the edict commands.

(The two talismans above are written in vermilion on blue paper.)

Pardon Talisman

(Use this talisman when both mother and child die.)

Lingbao True Talisman for Pardon and Deliverance from the Blood Lakes

(The above talisman is hereby issued.)

Its meaning is similar to the text above: under the authority of a special pardon, this proclamation is issued to the Blood Lakes and the related underworld authorities, pardoning the souls of those who died in childbirth and those implicated alongside them. Their retribution is suspended, they are released from confinement, and mother and child are delivered together and sent to the Southern Palace, in every respect as the proclamation commands.

Note for readers of ritual documents

This text belongs to the talismanic-document format used in Lingbao rites of deliverance. It imitates the style of imperial proclamations and pardons, specifying the talisman’s name and the circumstances in which it applies—death in a dispute, death in childbirth caused by an adopted son harming his grandson, or the death of both mother and child. It then summons the Blood Lakes, the Iron Enclosures, and the divine officials who swallow or press down corpses, ordering them to release the souls and send them to Heaven in accordance with the ritual host’s merits. The talismans are often written in vermilion on blue paper, and used together with phrases such as “issued below” and “receive this proclamation and respectfully seal it.”

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Interpretation

The Lingbao Document in Plain Language

(The command is issued below)

Heaven and Earth issue an amnesty, granting the deceased (so-and-so) pardon according to the circumstances. Their blood-stained impurity and foul Qi are cleansed, allowing their Qi to unite with the Utmost Reality. The radiance of flowing fire shines through all realms and transforms into myriad spirits. Let everything be carried out exactly as this proclamation commands.

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Flowing Radiance Talisman (for a child who dies before reaching one month of age, or when the mother is ill)

True Talisman of Lingbao’s Three Qi for Flowing Radiance and Deliverance from Suffering

(The command is issued below)

In the ten directions of the world, the Ninefold Netherworld, the great and small Iron Enclosures—the iron-walled hells—and the hells with intervals and without intervals; in the dark, cold springs, the winding stone ravines, and the Blood Lake Hell: wherever the talisman’s radiance shines, it shatters the ninefold Yin. The flames of the volcanoes are extinguished, the ice of the cold waters melts, knives turn to jade, and sword trees become groves of beautiful trees. By authority of this talismanic command, rescue and deliver the body and soul of the deceased (so-and-so). Quickly erase their record of offenses, destroy the roots of evil, and free them from impurity so they may come and behold the sunlight. Let everything be carried out exactly as this proclamation commands.

Issued on the _ day of the _ month, in the ___ year

Ritual practitioner so-and-so, receiving the proclamation and carrying it out

Perfected One of Great Compassion, Great Mercy, and Great Beneficence, Dharma Master of the Great Purity’s Empty Subtlety, Violet Brahma, and Primordial Form

Perfected One of Great Compassion, Great Mercy, and Deliverance from Suffering, Dharma Master of the Jade Purity’s Empty Mystery, Primordial Brahma, and Violet Palace

Issued below: the True Talisman of Lingbao’s Three Qi for Flowing Radiance and Deliverance from Suffering

Sealed with due care by the officials in charge of the great hells of the Ninefold Netherworld, the Intervaless Hell, and the Blood Lake Hell (rank and title: __)

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Talismanic Command of the Nine Purities for the Exclusive Deliverance of Blood Corpses

(The command is issued below)

To the officials in charge of childbirth in the Blood Lake Hell of the Northern Yin: rescue and deliver the deceased (so-and-so), along with the souls of women who died in childbirth and others like them. Wherever the talisman’s radiance shines, all bitterness, pain, and anguish will cease; enmities accumulated over countless kalpas will naturally dissolve; and the knife mountains and sword trees will turn into auspicious clouds. Quickly leave the hells and behold the light. Ascend to the court of the highest emptiness, where no forms exist. In the orchid chamber, refine the body; let the Nine Qi cleanse and transform its form. Have the name entered in the jade register, undergo refinement, and be reborn. May all offenses be removed and every fault released. Under the authority of this talismanic command, you must not linger. Let everything be carried out exactly as this proclamation commands.

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Jade Register Talisman of the Primordial Sovereign for Breaking Impurity and Opening to the Light

(The talisman is respectfully offered)

By command of the Supreme Celestial Worthy of Utmost Truth, the Primordial Sovereign of the Limitless: let this command reach every gate of the netherworld. One hundred and twenty Celestial Soldiers and Armored Troops go ahead to clear away foul impurities and charge straight into the netherworld. One hundred and twenty Sunlight Youths and one hundred and twenty Moonlight Youths shall each carry out the breaking of impurity and the opening to the light.

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Interpretation

The following is a plain-language explanation of this passage from the Lingbao Wenjian, arranged according to the original structure to make the talismanic letters and proclamation wording easier to compare.

Even in a place of utter darkness, light can shine and reveal all. The freezing cold dissolves; foul vapors disperse and subside; the stench of blood and corpses is washed away completely in an unceasing cleansing. The true fire of the Southern Cinnabar pierces the depths of darkness, allowing the dead souls to depart and behold the light. They are also conveyed by urgent flying talismans and commands, which all the spirits respectfully heed and carry out exactly as proclaimed.

Envelope format

True Talisman of the Primordial Sovereign for Breaking Foulness and Revealing Light, proclaimed to the Netherworld’s Winding Abode and the Limitless Spirit Realm. (Name and rank of the officiant — sealed with due care)

Talisman for Cleansing Foulness

Primordial Beginning’s talismanic command: True Talisman for Cleansing Foulness.

Another form: Primordial Beginning’s talismanic command, the Jade Chapter and Jade Register: True Talisman for Cleansing Foulness. Proclaimed to the Nine Springs and Nine Depths, the Sea of Suffering and Muddy Hells, the Blood Lake, the Birth Marsh, and other foul, stinking pools. It rescues and delivers (name), together with the many female souls in the Blood Lake and elsewhere. This divine writ is proclaimed, and their sufferings and torments are brought to an end. Those who are pregnant, carrying a child, already born, or not yet born all leave behind their entanglements and burdens and are released; all receive life and renewal. Qi descends from the Nine Heavens to cleanse foulness and dispel miasma. The Holy Mother of the Nine Heavens nurtures and transforms fetuses and infants. Transgressions are erased and destroyed; the souls are refreshed, and the hun-souls become clear. Following the banner’s guidance, they refine their substance and move on in spirit. When their work is complete, they transcend and are transformed, ascending straight to Vermilion Mound. All is carried out exactly as proclaimed.

Primordial Beginning’s talismanic command: True Talisman for Cleansing Foulness, proclaimed to the Nine Springs and Nine Depths and the Limitless Spirit Realm. (Name and rank of the officiant — sealed with due care)

Talisman for Breaking the Blood Lake

Primordial Beginning’s talismanic command: True Talisman for Breaking the Blood-Stained Hells.

The talisman is hereby proclaimed to the clerks of the Northern Capital’s Luofeng Hell and underworld, and to the divine troops who enforce punishments. In obedience to this talismanic command, open and break the gates of the netherworld, cleanse away foulness and turbid vapors, and deliver the deceased (name) out of hell so that they may behold the light. May all sins be erased and grievances reconciled and released. By virtue of this talismanic command of Primordial Beginning, may they ascend in due time, exactly as proclaimed.

Primordial Beginning’s talismanic command: True Talisman for the Blood-Stained Hells, proclaimed to the Nine Nether Hells of the Northern Capital’s Luofeng. (Name and rank — sealed with due care)

Lingbao True Talisman for Deliverance from Birth Ordeals through the Three Origins

The talisman is hereby proclaimed to the lord of the Blood Lake Hell at Xiashi. May all receive and carry out this talismanic command, rescuing and delivering (name) and the souls who suffered ordeals in childbirth. May they leave the sea of blood and behold the light, come to the various ritual altars, and be cleansed of blood and corpses, so that all may become pure. May they receive the fruits of goodness and remain free of obstruction in the Blood Lake, exactly as proclaimed.

Brief background for reading talismanic letters

Texts of this kind are “talismanic commands” and “proclamations” used in Lingbao liturgy. Invoking the names of the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning, the Primordial Sovereign, and others, they use true talismans to reveal light, break foulness, and cleanse defilement. Their purpose is to rescue souls associated with childbirth ordeals and the Blood Lake from the netherworld and its hells, allowing them to see the light and ascend through deliverance. In Daoist Canon liturgies, “Blood Lake” commonly refers to a netherworld realm associated with blood from childbirth and difficult births. “Vermilion Mound” often refers to a realm of ascending to the ranks of the perfected. The phrases “(name and rank of the officiant)” and “sealed with due care” are formats to be filled in during an actual ritual with the deceased’s name and rank and when sealing the envelope; they are not fixed phrases from the scripture.

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Interpretation

This scripture contains three ritual talismanic documents (fulu) used by the Lingbao tradition of Daoism for the salvation of deceased souls. The first, titled "Lingbao Liberation from Karmic Bonds Ascension Talisman," serves as an official decree addressed to the Ten Directions of the limitless realms, the Three Offices and Nine Bureaus (the celestial, terrestrial, and aquatic administrations with their subordinate departments), the Five Thearch Examiners, and the Nine Darknesses of the underworld. Its purpose is to dissolve the deceased's accumulated grievances and karmic obstructions from their lifetime, delivering them from the bitter sea of hell realms.

The second document, "Primordial Sovereign of the Nine Heavens Radiance Dispelling Darkness Talisman," specifically targets souls trapped in the Northern Capital of Luofeng (considered Daoism's supreme underworld administration) and the Frozen Hell. The talisman emits sacred light to shatter darkness, particularly liberating souls drowning in the Blood Lake Hell (with special emphasis on women who died in childbirth), terminating all underworld interrogations and tortures.

The third, "Supreme Ultimate (Taiji) Expedient Pardon Talisman," carries the imperial decree of the Jade Emperor and the Primordial Heavenly Worthy (Yuanshi Tianzun). This talisman causes the Iron Encircling Mountains of hell to crumble, transforms frozen ice into lotuses, and purifies the foul energies of the Blood Lake. Under the protection of the Primordial Mandate, escorted by the Great Deity of the Blood Lake, souls undergo refinement in the Southern Palace (Daoism's institution for soul purification) before rebirth in celestial or human realms, ultimately attaining longevity matching heaven and earth.

All three talismans emphasize the phrase "in accordance with the imperial decree," signifying these pardons carry authority equal to the highest divine edicts. The standardized templates include blank spaces for ritual dates and the deceased's name, confirming their practical use in liturgical ceremonies (keyi). These documents exemplify Daoism's religious practice of intervening in underworld judgments through sacred writ to deliver trapped souls.

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Interpretation

Lingbao Ritual Documents: A Plain-Language Reading

Official rank and name (to be filled in)　　　　　　　　　　　　　Received the decree and carried it out

(The chief officiant, a member of the [name] family) received the decree and acted in accordance with it.

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High Ministers of Jade Clarity · High Ministers of Great Mystery · Left Minister of the Celestial Pivot · Right Minister of the Celestial Pivot

Office for Untying Knots

True Talisman of Lingbao for Harmonizing Resentments and Releasing Grudges

The divine talisman proclaims: Resentments are to be reconciled and bonds untied, so that all may be forever freed from enmity and legal disputes. The causes of discord are to be made clear and entirely dispelled. No further evil karma is to be created. Those suffering in the Cold Courts—the underworld realm of punishment—are to depart; the roots of their sins are to be extinguished. They are to be elevated and delivered according to their rank, and their forms refined at the Cinnabar Palace—all in accordance with the decree.

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Office for Watching Over Births

True Talisman of the Nine Heavens for Saving Life, Delivering Childbirth, and Watching Over Births

In obedience to the talisman’s command, it proclaims: The Office for Watching Over Births shall oversee the union of Yin and Yang and the gathering of blood and Qi. If danger arises during childbirth or the body is injured, the true talisman shall relieve suffering, separate mother and child, and bring about the swift delivery of the child. There shall be no delay—all in accordance with the decree.

Year　　Month　　Day

Official rank and name

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Heavenly Worthy of the Forgiving Emperor of Primordial Void

Heavenly Physician’s Canopy

True Talisman of the Primordial Beginning’s Command: Five Registers of Cinnabar Spirits for Continuing Life

The command of the talisman proclaims: For suffering souls whose spirits are detained in the Ghost Market of the Spring Capital and the dark passes of the Black Earth; and for all who have met untimely deaths or remain trapped in suffering—including those who died in childbirth or on the battlefield, were struck by thunder, devoured by tigers, drowned, or burned; those who are blind, deaf, mute, or paralyzed; those afflicted by chronic illness or stubborn disease, lameness, accumulated ailments, poison from venomous creatures, or snakebites—

The divine writing of Feng Mountain proclaims: Bitter torment and pain shall cease. The light of the talisman shall shine everywhere, restoring the body to wholeness. The true officials of the Heavenly Physicians, the numinous officers who continue life, and the flying mysteries that transform the caverns shall make the Brahma Qi circulate once more. The Emperor of Primordial Void shall descend in his carriage, and the true sovereign shall lower his phoenix carriage.

Heaven’s compassion shall protect and deliver them; all shall rejoice in the hidden realms. Their spirits shall be transferred and receive new forms, ascending through the gates of Heaven—all in accordance with the decree.

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Office of Primordial Unity

Talisman of the Five Emperors for Restoring the Whole Body (also called the Talisman of the Twelve Meridians)

True Talisman of the Twelve Qi of Jade Clarity: Uniting the Spirits of the Three Luminaries and Nine Yangs, Harnessing Qi, Refining the Spirit, and Flying as an Immortal

The command of the talisman proclaims: The twelve Qi of Primordial Unity, the Generals of Life’s Transformation, and their attendant officials, talisman clerks, and others shall summon and bring down life-giving Qi, refining and delivering the souls of the deceased, including [name]:

The radiance of Yang shall illuminate the Jing; Yin shall permeate the Yang body. Within, they shall unite; without, they shall renew. Qi shall spread everywhere, and the spirit shall become concentrated. Through five returns and nine revolutions, they shall circulate through the Yellow Court. The nine apertures shall blossom into luminous openings, and the meridians shall extend throughout the body. The Three Luminaries and Nine Yangs shall unite the hundred spirits and govern the nine palaces.

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Note: This text follows the format of Lingbao Zhaijiao ritual documents and names offices and true talismans concerned with untying knots, overseeing births, continuing life through the Heavenly Physicians, and refining spirits through Primordial Unity. The placeholder “[name]” refers to the deceased or person to be delivered and is filled in during the ritual. The names of the offices, talismans, and celestial officials largely follow the Lingbao liturgical tradition preserved in the Daoist Canon; they are not explained individually here.

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Interpretation

The Illustrated and Annotated Lingbao Text: A Plain-Language Interpretation

The Eight Trigrams each display their own forms. The Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning brings forth and transforms all things from primordial unity, joining form and spirit as one. At the Dark Altar, commands are issued according to the statutes; all is carried out in accordance with the talismanic mandate.

Proclamation (formal talismanic mandate)

Department of Washing and Purification

True Talisman of the Primordial Sovereign for Cleansing Blood and Bathing the Corpse

By this talismanic mandate, the divine waters of the Celestial River are commanded to wash the mortal body, cleansing away the karmic offenses of blood impurity, stench, and defilement. As the true talisman descends, it will forever deliver those burdened by debts from past lives in the Blood Lake—the underworld realm where the dead suffer for blood debts—and, through the talisman, awaken and raise them beyond suffering.

The talismanic mandate of the Five Registers proceeds directly to the Southern Capital, in accordance with the decree.

Proclamation

Department of Headwear and Cases

True Talisman of the Lingbao Transformed Register and Immortal Garments

By this talismanic mandate, the Lingbao spirit officials of the Department of Headwear and Cases, Qingxuan Jinshui, the Jade Maidens with their crowns and sashes, the Jade Maidens’ immortal carriages, and the immortal officials are instructed to follow the mandate and deliver the souls of the dead. The karmic offenses incurred in the aeon of tribulation by fire—the fires of the hellish kalpa—are transformed through this rite into a new form and, together with my celestial garments, bestowed upon your person. The Great General Jiamo, the underworld deity who enforces the law, shall promptly provide the garments and headwear, in accordance with the decree.

Proclamation

True Talisman of the Most High for Cleansing Blood and Purifying the Spirit of the Corpse

The talisman proclaims: The Perfected of the Most High ascend to the Southern Palace, the Daoist realm of deliverance in the south. The three palaces rise and transform, preserving and joining all things in their natural state. The Sovereign Lord of the Sun Palace shines down upon the earth; the August Ruler of the Lunar Court sends light into the ancestral halls. Primordial Qi descends to deliver all living beings. Before the officials who attend and observe the numinous, offenses are erased in the underworld; the great current sweeps away defilement, and the soul is cleansed in the mysterious waters. Those selected from the Three Realms have their bones and forms joined with the immortals. The dark night is opened to deliverance, and their good deeds reach Heaven.

Yin and Yang open into peace and flourishing; the debts bound to the corpse after death are severed, in accordance with the decree.

Proclamation

Preparatory Fast for the Yellow Register Retreat

Sevenfold Precious Memorial to Heaven

I, your servant, do not shrink from the punishment of axe and halberd, and dare to trouble the hearing of the lofty heavens. I respectfully submit the following grounds (and so forth).

I humbly pray that the seven imperial sacred offices, arranged in seven files, show mercy and forgive my myriad offenses, and grant what I have petitioned: that they bestow and issue a complete set of talismans and registers for the deliverance of the living, entrusting them to me to carry out on Heaven’s behalf. May officials and generals of the various departments be dispatched to assist me in performing the rites. May an edict of pardon be specially issued and proclaimed to the provinces and offices of Heaven, the sun, moon, and stars, and the true offices in charge throughout the Three Realms, specifically to pardon (name)’s transgressions from past lives and this life, deliver the souls of the nine generations of ancestors and seven generations of forebears, dispel accumulated karmic burdens, and grant deliverance to the living.

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Interpretation

May (the disciple’s) name be erased from the registers of the Southern Palace (the underworld) and entered into the register of the living in the Northern Court (the immortal realm). May the disciple be spared suffering and torment, receive light in the body, and enjoy blessings and good fortune throughout this life and lives to come. (Your servant) has presumptuously disturbed the majesty of Heaven. With a trembling heart, I await punishment. I respectfully submit this petition.

Submitted for transmission (the same as in the Yellow Register Purification Ritual).

The Three Masters of the Divine Empyrean

Heaven’s compassion has granted (your servant’s) petition. I especially beg that the true talismans for breaking open the hells and rescuing departed souls, the Eastern Palace’s Nine Dragons talismanic mandate, and the full set of talismanic mandates for receiving deliverance in one’s present body be issued and entrusted to (your servant) to carry out as a great offering. I further beg for an imperial decree (as above).

The Emperor of the Nine Heavens

With imperial compassion, grant (your servant’s) petition: record the disciple’s good deeds and enter the disciple’s name in the register of the living. Also send down the Nine Heavens’ true original Qi (vital energy) to infuse (so-and-so)’s body, so as to calm the Hun soul and govern the Po soul; bring forth spirit in the Three Departments and Eight Radiances, preserving life and protecting the body, the five viscera, and the hundred bones as they undergo refinement. After the body’s passing, may the disciple ascend directly to the Heaven of Brahma Qi. May your gracious light look upon and witness this practice. (Your servant) presumptuously petitions (as above).

The Five Elders

With the Dao’s compassion, grant (your servant’s) petition: especially record the disciple’s good deeds and enter the disciple’s name in the register of the living. I beg that the living Qi of the Five Buds be sent down to infuse (the body as above).

The Thirty-Two Heavens (the same as for the Nine Heavens, but with the added request that the numinous light of the Lingbao True Qi be sent down).

The Celestial Worthies of Lingbao in the Ten Directions

With the Dao’s compassion, grant (our) petition. Humbly bestow your gracious light to affirm and witness this practice. I beg that a decree be sent throughout the boundless worlds of the Ten Directions, to all the appropriate true divine offices, specifically to pardon (so-and-so) for transgressions and remove the burdens of karma, enabling the living body to receive deliverance and the ancestors to ascend. May the name be entered in the Southern Palace and erased from the Northern Court; may the disciple suffer no anguish, receive light in the body, and attain blessings and good fortune in this life and lives to come. (We) presumptuously petition (and so forth).

The Eleven Luminaries

With true compassion, grant (our) petition. Humbly bestow your true light to affirm and witness this practice. I beg that the true Qi of Jade Radiance be sent down to infuse (so-and-so)’s bodily field, so that the stars may follow their proper courses through the Jade Heavens and the name may be inscribed on the jade registers. May auspicious blessings attend the disciple in life, and transgressions be erased at the time of death, so that this humble life may strive to repay the great act of creation. (We) presumptuously petition.

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Note: This is a petition used in a Lingbao Zhaijiao (purification ritual) liturgy. The disciple petitions the Three Masters of the Divine Empyrean, the Emperor of the Nine Heavens, the Five Elders, the Celestial Worthies of Lingbao, the Eleven Luminaries, and other heavenly worthies for the breaking open of the hells and the rescue of departed souls; for good deeds to be recorded and names entered in the register of the living; and for true Qi to be infused to nurture and protect body and spirit. The ultimate request is ascent to the heavenly realm of Brahma Qi, with the name erased from the Southern Palace (the underworld) and entered into the Northern Court (the immortal realm), bringing light, blessings, and good fortune.

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Interpretation

A Plain-Language Reading of the Lingbao Document Forms

Before the majesty of the true spirits, we are apprehensive and ill at ease. We respectfully submit this petition.

Northern Dipper (in the same format as the previous passage), Southern Dipper (its six stars govern longevity and the recording of merit):

We earnestly ask the benevolent offices, including the Red Heaven of the Southern Pole, to record merit and bestow blessings (worded as in the previous passage).

Three Officials Great Emperor (the Heavenly, Earthly, and Water Officials, who examine merit and transgressions and grant absolution):

We earnestly ask that your holy compassion approve this petition, issue a special decree, and circulate it throughout the one hundred and twenty bureaus of the Three Origins and Nine Offices of Taixuan Nüqing, so they may specifically examine (the petitioner’s) registers of life and death and records of merit and transgressions, and pardon their offenses (while also praying for the blessings of the Celestial Worthies of the ten directions).

Heavenly Office (the chief administration of the celestial realm):

We earnestly ask that your holy compassion grant this request, specially authorize its presentation to the Highest Mystery, and issue a decree of proclamation (in the same format as the passage on the Seven Sovereigns joining the Three Realms).

Five Masters (as with the Seven Sovereigns), Five Offices of the Primordial Beginning (offices in the Lingbao system where those newly initiated into the true teachings receive registers and people are delivered):

We earnestly ask that your holy compassion grant this request, and that you petition the Heavenly Court for a mandate to proclaim it to the various offices and have them respond in accordance with the rites. We humbly hope that your cloud chariots will descend and pause briefly at the ritual altar. We further hope that you will issue instructions to the officials, attendants, generals, scribes, and ritual supervisors named in the scriptures, methods, and registers of the Three Caverns and Four Supplements. May the Lingbao officials and their retinues descend in due time and gather at the ritual altar, convey this petition, and proclaim the commands, so that the living may be delivered, the ancestors in the unseen realm may ascend, and blessings may reach all the world, extending to both the visible and invisible realms. (The petitioner) has presumed to trouble you with this request (and so on).

Office for Assessing Merit and Deeds in the Celestial Administration (the office that calculates merit and determines ascent or descent in rank):

We humbly hope that the True Lord who serves as chief assessor of merit and deeds in the Celestial Administration will, through your holy compassion, approve this request and specially bring your celestial retinue to look favorably upon the rites. Please record and submit the details concerning (the petitioner), consult the records, and enter their name in the Northern Office and their register in the Southern Palace. May their accumulated offenses be erased, their years of life extended, their suffering averted, and their body illumined, and may blessings and good fortune attend them in this life and in future lives. (The petitioner) has presumed to trouble you with this request (and so on).

Upper Clarity Yellow Register Office (an office within the Upper Clarity tradition that maintains registers and certificates of passage):

We earnestly ask that your holy compassion approve this request and specially bring your celestial carriage to look favorably upon the rites. Please erase all records of offenses from (the petitioner’s) three lives and seven generations. Once the rite of deliverance is complete and the ritual merit fulfilled, please record and submit the details for reference, so that their name may be entered in the Northern Office and their characters recorded in the Southern Palace (with blessings and good fortune as above). (The petitioner) has presumed to trouble you with this request (and so on).

The assembled perfected ones of the Southern Palace, the Venerable Spirits Who Deliver People from Death, the Lord of Long Life at the Southern Pole, the Great Spirit Sima, Director of Deliverance from the World, and Lord Han, the Elder Who Cherishes Life (all spirits of the Southern Palace who deliver beings and cherish life):

The petition to these deities, asking them to look favorably upon the rites, erase transgressions, deliver the petitioner, and enter their name in the Southern Palace, follows the meaning of the preceding passages.

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Note: This text follows the wenjian (“document form”) conventions of Lingbao purification rites. It addresses the celestial hierarchy section by section, beginning with an expression of apprehension, then petitioning the Northern and Southern Dippers, the Three Officials, the Heavenly Office, the Five Offices, the Office for Assessing Merit and Deeds, the Yellow Register Office, and the perfected ones of the Southern Palace. It asks them to descend, examine the registers, pardon offenses, and enter names in the Northern Office and Southern Palace, so that the living may be delivered and the deceased ancestors may ascend. “(The petitioner)” is a blank for the name of the person represented. “(As above)” and “(as with the Seven Sovereigns)” indicate that the same wording appears in an earlier passage and is abbreviated here.

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Interpretation

A Plain-Language Reading of the Lingbao Textual Forms

With reverence, we look to the Venerable Deity Who Governs the Registers of Fate in the Southern Upper Realm, Keeps the Registers, Prolongs Life, Increases One’s Years, and Delivers from Calamity

We respectfully pray before the sacred image of the Venerable Deity who governs the registers of fate and keeps the registers in the southern upper realm, prolongs life and adds years, and delivers people from calamities:

May Your sacred compassion grant this petition and bestow in particular:

May Your compassion approve this petition and grant in particular:

May the Immortal retinue descend to witness and accept this purification rite, performed especially for the disciple (name) to pardon faults and remove transgressions, dispel calamities and deliver from hardship, raise the ancestors to higher realms, and grant the living body deliverance. We beseech You to enter (name) in the Golden Register and fix the name on the Jade Tablet, so that there be no suffering, and the body be filled with light. In this life and in lives to come, may blessings and good fortune always be received.

We ask the Immortal retinue to descend and witness and accept the Zhaijiao (purification ritual), performed especially for the disciple (name). May they pardon faults, remove transgressions, dispel calamities, and deliver from hardship; raise the ancestors to higher realms; and grant the person deliverance and renewed life. We also pray that (name) be entered in the “Golden Register” and have their name fixed on the “Jade Tablet,” so that after death they do not suffer in hell, their body remains filled with light, and they enjoy blessings and good fortune in this life and lives to come.

(“Golden Register” and “Jade Tablet” are celestial documents in Daoist belief that record the years of life and names of virtuous people.)

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Golden Register

With reverence, we look to the Nine Heavens Golden Register True Lord of Boundless Rebirth. May Your sacred compassion be as described below for the Yellow Register Court.

Nine Heavens Golden Register True Lord of Boundless Rebirth: we pray with reverence. May Your sacred compassion be as described below for the Yellow Register Court.

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Fengdu

May Your sacred compassion grant this petition and bestow in particular:

May Your sacred presence descend to witness and affirm this cultivation. We further beseech You:

May Your sacred decree be issued to all underworld offices throughout the Nine Provinces, Ten Extremities, Nine Earths, and Nine Darknesses, and to every place under their jurisdiction, commanding them all to attend to this matter.

Especially for (name), pardon transgressions from this life and past lives; deliver the souls of the seven generations of ancestors and the nine generations of forebears; erase the name from the Northern Court and record it in the Southern Palace. May the body be filled with light, free from suffering, and may this person dwell in a land of blessing in this life and in future lives.

We also hope that all kinds of wandering spirits may be sent forth to share in this grace. (Name) makes this bold petition.

May Your sacred compassion grant this petition and bestow Your grace. We ask Your sacred presence to descend and witness and affirm the cultivation of the rite. We further beseech You to issue a decree to all underworld offices throughout the Nine Provinces, Ten Extremities, Nine Earths, and Nine Darknesses, and to every place under their jurisdiction, commanding them all to attend to this matter.

Especially for (name), may transgressions from this life and past lives be pardoned, and the souls of the seven generations of ancestors and the nine generations of forebears be delivered. May the name be erased from the Northern Court, the underworld, and recorded on the cinnabar register of the Southern Palace, the celestial realm. May the body be filled with light and spared suffering, and may this person dwell in a land of blessing in this life and the next.

We also hope that all kinds of wandering spirits may be sent forth to share in this grace. (Name) makes this bold petition.

(Fengdu is the chief seat of the northern underworld in Daoist belief. A common account says that the Northern Court records wrongdoing, while the Southern Palace records virtue.)

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Eastern Peak

May Your sacred compassion grant this petition and bestow in particular:

May Your sacred presence descend to witness and affirm this purification rite. We further beseech You:

May Your sacred decree be issued to the offices under the Merit Bureau and the Life-Prolongation Bureau, and to their subordinate departments, as described above for Fengdu.

May Your sacred compassion grant this petition. We ask Your sacred presence to descend and witness and affirm the Zhaijiao. We further beseech You to issue a decree to the offices under the Merit Bureau, the Life-Prolongation Bureau, and their subordinate departments, asking them to attend to this matter as described in the section on Fengdu.

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Water Realms

May Your sacred decree be issued to all underworld offices of the water realms along the coasts, rivers, streams, lakes, and waterways, commanding them all to attend to this matter, as described above for Fengdu.

We beseech You to issue a sacred decree to all underworld offices of the water realms along the coasts, rivers, streams, lakes, and waterways, commanding them all to attend to this matter as described in the section on Fengdu.

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Ten Kings

May Your sacred compassion grant this petition and comply with it. May Your presence descend to the site of the purification rite to witness and accept its performance. Especially for (name), examine the registers of good deeds and transgressions; erase faults from this life and past lives; deliver the souls of the nine generations of forebears and seven generations of ancestors; release spirits detained among the Six Paths and the Four Births. May all receive the fruit of goodness and attain rebirth. In particular, erase the name written in black ink and record it on the cinnabar register, so that there be no suffering and the body be filled with light. In this life and in lives to come, may blessings and good fortune always be received.

May Your sacred compassion grant this petition and comply with it. We ask Your presence to descend to the site of the purification rite to witness and accept its performance. Especially for (name), examine the registers of good deeds and transgressions, erase faults from this life and past lives, deliver the souls of the nine generations of forebears and seven generations of ancestors, and release spirits detained among the Six Paths and the Four Births. May all receive the fruit of goodness and attain rebirth. In particular, erase the name written among the black-register entries of wrongdoing and record it on the cinnabar register. May this person be spared suffering, their body be filled with light, and blessings and good fortune attend them in this life and lives to come.

(The Ten Kings usually refers to the underworld judges, including the Ten Courts of Yama. The Six Paths and Four Births encompass beings of the six realms and the various kinds of living creatures.)

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Officials and Generals

The immortal officials and clerks of the Lingbao scriptures and registers, the myriad gods at their appointed posts, and the officials and generals of the various Thunder departments shall transmit the memorials. The ritual attendants and soldiers who protect the Dharma are asked to manifest their true forms and transform their Qi (vital energy), gather at the ritual altar, sweep away baleful influences, purify the Yellow Path, convey our sincere intentions, and carry the memorial upward. Especially for (name), remove transgressions from this life and past lives, and deliver the souls of the remote ancestors and seven generations of forebears. (The original reads “remote ancestors”; this may be understood alongside “seven generations of ancestors and nine generations of forebears” above as referring to ancestral souls.)

The immortal officials and clerks in the Lingbao scriptures and registers, the myriad gods at their appointed posts, and the officials and generals of the various Thunder departments are charged with transmitting the memorials. The ritual attendants and soldiers who protect the Dharma are asked to manifest their true forms and transform their Qi, gather at the ritual altar, sweep away baleful influences, purify the Yellow Path, convey our sincere intentions, and carry the memorial upward. Especially for (name), may transgressions from this life and past lives be removed, and the souls of the remote ancestors and seven generations of forebears be delivered.

(Note: If the text reads “deliver the remote ancestors” alongside “seven generations and nine generations,” it may refer to the souls of ancestors across generations. The exact wording depends on the version used.)

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The sections above follow the common structure of a Zhaijiao petition: petitioning for a grant, receiving authorization, issuing decrees to the underworld offices, and seeking protection from officials and generals. This overview helps readers unfamiliar with classical Chinese understand which deities each section addresses and what is being requested.

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Interpretation

Blessing the souls of the Nine Depths: May all souls in the Nine Depths—the deepest reaches of the underworld, where all sunken spirits dwell—receive grace through the successful completion of the purification rite. Whether in the netherworld or the world of the living, in this life or the next, may they continually enjoy blessings and good fortune.

Divine Tiger Merit Officer (written in the same manner as in the Yellow Register Retreat liturgy)

Territorial Altar Officer (the deity in charge of a local community altar and its village rites)

Please examine in detail the circumstances set out above, and kindly report them on our behalf: let the Territorial Altar Officers of all the prefectures come together to the ritual altar, witness the offerings, and partake of the libation. This rite is performed specifically for [name]: to lessen their offenses, extend their years and prolong their life, erase their name from the black register—the underworld’s ledger of offenses—and enter it instead in the golden book, the register of the immortals and the virtuous. May their body shine with radiance and suffer no distress; may they dwell forever in a land of blessing, in this life and the next. May grace reach both the visible and hidden realms, and extend to the living and the dead.

Great Peak (the deity addressed at the head of this document; the instructions below direct him to issue orders to the Earth Bureau)

Please examine in detail the circumstances set out above, and immediately issue orders to the various offices of the Earth Bureau below. The local Earth deities at the present altar site are asked to withdraw temporarily. If the place contains lurking corpses, stagnant breath (corpse vapors or old baleful influences), concealed filth, or hidden demons and malign spirits, drive them all away and do not let them encroach upon the ritual altar. Thus may the fruits of goodness be brought to completion, the living be delivered, and all be spared distress; may their bodies shine with radiance and may they continually receive blessings and good fortune in this life and the next. We further hope that your divine chariot will descend and that you will seal and certify this undertaking.

Petition to the City God for a Warrant

After receiving this warrant, this office has already carried out the rites according to the prescribed regulations. In addition, the Daoist practitioner [name] reflects that, since receiving life, they once borrowed a netherworld debt—the yuanchen capital lent by the Birth Reception Office in the underworld at birth—and have long wished to repay it, but have not yet settled it at heart. Now they cultivate a good cause to repay this great kindness, reverently preparing [number] treasure treasuries and [number] tens of cash chests, to be carried and returned to the relevant office and entered as payment of the debt from a former life. But the capital of the netherworld is remote and its roads far-reaching; unless porters are assigned to transport it through the underworld, the strings of cash cannot be conveyed there. A warrant must therefore be drawn up and transmitted.

To the Holy Lord City God of this county, Revered Deity Who Assists Virtue:

Please examine the matter carefully, and we earnestly ask your office to embody the virtue of cherishing life. Assign one divine official and [number] strong porters from among the spirit forces, and have them all arrive at the altar on [date] at [time] to receive the ritual offerings and carry the cash chests to the Birth Reception Office at the Great Peak. There, let them deliver them clearly and in full under the merit account of [name], the living person born in [year]. In this way, the payment may be properly recorded. We also ask that you instruct your personnel to provide protection along the route. Once the payment has been made, obtain a return document and bring the original back to your office for filing. We humbly hope that your divine presence will witness and record this. The purification rite is performed specifically for [name], in preparation for a future rite, as above for the Territorial Altar Officer.

Various Temples (see the Yellow Register)

Merit Account (an underworld file recording merits, repayment of netherworld debts, and changes to a person’s register entry)

In sum, these documents first bless the souls of the underworld and ask the Territorial Altar Officers and Earth deities to assist the ritual altar. They then use a formal petition to ask the county City God to assign divine officials and spirit porters to escort the treasure and cash chests to the Birth Reception Office at the Great Peak, where the debt incurred at birth is to be repaid and erased under the merit account. A return document is then obtained so that the visible and hidden realms may both receive blessings.

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Interpretation

The following is a modern, plain-language explanation of this passage of official documents in the Lingbao Wenjian, arranged in the order of the original.

Official document from the officer in charge of the Merit Cultivation Bureau

The officer in the Eastern Peak (Mount Tai) Prefecture who oversees the “Bureau for the Cultivation of Merit by the Living” submits this report:

Please examine the matter in detail. This is a special petition to pardon (a certain person) for the sins and transgressions accumulated in this life, deliver the souls of their deceased ancestors, and enter the good fruits cultivated today into the registers as a field of blessings for the future. May they enter the Great Yin (the underworld) without suffering, and, while living in the world of the living, enjoy lasting peace and ease. We also pray that the divine carriage will descend, so that the deities may share in the vegetarian offerings.

Bureau for Extending Lifespan

The officer in the Eastern Peak Prefecture who oversees the Bureau for Extending Lifespan submits this report:

Please examine in detail the circumstances of the purification rite now being performed, and graciously send the divine presence to witness it. This purification rite is specially performed to remove (a certain person’s) sins accumulated over many lifetimes and extend their lifespan and blessings in this life. May their name be entered in the Azure Register (the register of immortals) and written in the Cinnabar Ledger (the register of destinies); may their body be filled with light and spared suffering, and may they dwell forever in a land of blessings, in this life and the next. We also pray that the divine carriage will descend, so that the deities may share in the vegetarian offerings. (The remainder follows the same form.)

Local Earth Deity

After receiving this official document, our bureau has already submitted a memorial to the Celestial Court. In accordance with the liturgy, we have also carried out the proper rites, and must now dispatch a formal notice to the local divine offices. You, deity, must carefully attend to the matter of the “preparatory purification rite” now being performed: sweep away baleful influences, purify the altar grounds, convey our sincere devotion, and welcome the flying carriage (the divine carriage). May the rite be brought to completion, so that the living may be delivered, the living and the dead receive blessings, and both the hidden and visible realms share in divine grace. This notice is issued accordingly.

Formal notice requesting the Storehouse Official’s presence for a preparatory purification rite

(To invite a powerful official to guard and protect the storehouse wealth.)

After receiving this official document, our bureau has already sent notices to the provincial authorities of the Sacred Peak and to the true offices responsible for birth repayment, and has carried out the rites in sequence. Since each office at Mount Tai has its own duties, and the storehouses are likewise assigned officials to oversee them, we must send a special notice to invite the following:

To the Storehouse Official of the (number)th division of the (number)th storehouse in the Birth Repayment Court of the Sacred Peak:

Please examine the matter described above and graciously grant this request. Lead one storehouse clerk, (number) storehouse attendants, the storehouse guardian youths, and your attending officers and servants down to the ritual grounds to seal and witness the rites. When the appointed time comes to transform and refine the storehouse wealth, we further ask that you assign an officer to supervise and guard it, so that the loans from the underworld may be repaid and the good karmic ties fulfilled. Respectfully submitted.

Ritual notice offering sacrifice to the Storehouse Official during a preparatory purification rite

For the reasons stated above: the good karmic ties are now nearing completion, and the time for transforming the storehouse wealth is approaching. We rely on the authority of your office to provide discreet protection. Accordingly, we have prepared sacrificial offerings, including meat and wine, and respectfully perform this sacrifice to express a measure of our sincerity and invite the presence of divine light. This notice is issued accordingly.

Notes to help with reading the original

• Purification rite: A Daoist Zhaijiao ritual involving the establishment of an altar, the recitation of scriptures, repentance, and the giving of alms. It is performed to extend the life of the living and deliver the souls of the dead.
• Bureau officer: The chief official responsible for a particular type of business in the underworld offices of the Eastern Peak and other authorities.
• Birth Repayment Court: An institution in the Mount Tai system that oversees “birth repayment loans” and storehouse wealth, associated with popular ideas of “borrowing lifespan” and “repaying the storehouse.”
• Transforming and refining the storehouse wealth / transforming the storehouse: The part of the ritual in which the storehouse wealth being repaid is burned and offerings are made at the conclusion of the rite.
• Formal notice: An official document sent by a government office or Daoist altar to a divine office. Its tone resembles the style of official documents used from the Song dynasty onward.

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Interpretation

A Passage from the Lingbao Wenjian: A Plain-Language Interpretation

This text is a formal transfer document used in the Daoist “Rebirth Offering” ritual. It is addressed to the underworld authorities. Its subject is the replacement, after a three-year term, of the storehouse officials and staff who guard “deposited treasury money” in the Rebirth Court of the Mountain Prefecture, an underworld institution under the jurisdiction of the Great Emperor of the Eastern Peak. The document also describes performing a purification rite in advance, establishing an altar, and ritually transforming a storehouse.

First document (closing section)

The following is transferred:

To the official in charge of the designated storehouse and bureau at the Rebirth Court of the Mountain Prefecture: Please review the preceding account and consent to receive it. All storehouse staff, clerks, laborers, and attendants sincerely appointed for this purpose are to share in the modest offerings. Please do not decline the appointment. They are to supervise the treasury and guard the underworld funds for a term of three years. At the end of the term, they are to be replaced by others. The overall limit is one hundred years, at which point the records must be checked and the charge formally handed over. Their service is recorded, and their merit is not in vain. Respectfully submitted.

Title

Petition for an Advance Offering and the Replacement of Storehouse Officials

(Before the formal change of office, the offering is performed and a petition is submitted requesting the replacement of the officials who guard the storehouse.)

Main petition

Regarding the request to replace the storehouse staff and appoint successors to supervise and guard it: At the request of Daoist Chen, from a certain village and native place, the officials are asked to take over the duties on schedule and protect the storehouse. The details are set out below.

Your disciple [name], together with [name] of the same household, and the faithful members of the family, bow in reverent petition to the divine authorities on this day.

The matter is this: Supervision and guarding are subject to a fixed term, ordinarily three years. There is a proper procedure for handing over the charge: once a term is complete, the retiring official returns. Now the time has come for one term to end and another to begin, so we respectfully call upon your divine authority.

Your disciple reflects that, thanks to past causes and conditions, they were born in a prosperous age and need not worry about food and clothing. Yet accounts in the underworld still require credit. If paper money and other symbolic funds are not stored in advance, how can the required treasury be filled? Accordingly, on an auspicious day in a certain month and year, we invited the Daoist priest [name] and others to conduct a grand Golden Register Rebirth Offering at our home. In advance, they performed a ritual to deposit funds in the underworld and establish a field of merit for blessing all and bringing light to the living and the dead, for a specified number of days and nights. They ritually transformed a storehouse building, inside which were placed boxes of money and numbered inventory records, all clearly sealed and marked. The matter is hereby transferred to your office.

Please assign storehouse staff, and dispatch clerks, laborers, and attendants to oversee and guard the storehouse. Their term shall be three years, after which they are to be replaced. We hold the long service of all these officials deeply in our hearts. Now that the customary term has ended, we renew this virtuous undertaking. The rite will begin on [date] and conclude on [date]. We respectfully express our gratitude and request the appointment of new staff. Since this office has issued the appointment, and the prescribed rites have been performed accordingly, we must submit this document to notify you.

The following is transferred:

To the official in charge of the designated storehouse and bureau at the Rebirth Court of the Mountain Prefecture: Please review the matter above and consent to receive it. Ensure that the former officials return and that the handover is fully completed. Do not allow the schedule to be delayed. We await your arrival and hope there will be no postponement. Respectfully submitted.

Background notes

• Depositing funds / advance preparation for rebirth: While alive, believers have Daoist priests perform a Rebirth Offering and symbolically deposit paper money and other funds in an underworld storehouse. The belief is that after death, they will have an account to draw upon in the underworld. The storehouse officials, who represent long-term guardianship, are often replaced every three years.
• Placeholders such as “[name]” and “designated storehouse” are usually filled in during the ritual; they are not fixed numbers in the scripture.
• The document is written in the formal style of a human disciple addressing an official of the Rebirth Court of the Mountain Prefecture. It was used alongside popular ritual documents for depositing treasury funds and preparing for rebirth, which were burned as offerings.

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Interpretation

Plain-Language Commentary on the Writ of the Nine Perfected Precepts

Writ of the Nine Perfected Precepts

We respectfully state, in accordance with the words of the Celestial Worthy: If a person in this world can receive and uphold the wondrous Nine Perfected Precepts, and have their name entered in the Golden Register and the White Document, with their characters recorded in the golden book, then their De (Virtue/Power) will be esteemed in the Jade Purity realm, their merit will be great, and their name will reach the upper realm. Through my divine power, I will rescue and protect them whenever they call to mind. Now, according to the petition submitted by the disciple (name), who reflects upon the fortunate causes of their first beginnings and their birth into the world, and upon the circumstances of their receiving salvation and establishing a grand preemptive Yellow Register fast of the Numinous Treasure tradition lasting (number) days and nights, they humbly request the bestowal of transmission and ordination, among other matters. Our bureau has received the petition and, respectfully before the Dao, proclaims and confers the precepts upon the disciple (name), instructing them to observe and carry them out.

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One Must First Take Refuge in the Three Treasures Before Receiving the Precepts

First: Take refuge in the unsurpassed Treasure of the Dao

Second: Take refuge in the unsurpassed Treasure of the Scripture

Third: Take refuge in the unsurpassed Treasure of the Master

The precepts state:

First, honor, yield to, and be filial toward your parents.

Second, serve diligently and be loyal to the sovereign.

Third, do not kill; act compassionately to save living beings.

Fourth, do not engage in sexual misconduct; maintain an upright self in dealing with others.

Fifth, do not steal; uphold what is right, even at personal cost.

Sixth, do not give way to anger; do not domineer over others with violent rage.

Seventh, do not deceive; do not use deceit to harm the good.

Eighth, do not be arrogant; do not slight the Utmost Real.

Ninth, do not be of two minds; uphold the precepts with single-minded devotion.

All these precepts were proclaimed by the Golden-Mouthed One. Receive and uphold them with sincere hearts; let them be a treasure of the body forever, and observe and carry them out.

May those in Heaven and on Earth alike attain the wondrous Dao. We further pray that the Five Emperors’ divine commanders and the officers of the Six Palaces watch over the disciple and protect them as they uphold the precepts. This writ is hereby issued.

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Issued to the disciple (name), who has received the precepts in preparation for the fast, to wear and uphold

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Writ of the Matching Ring Covenant

Our bureau, on the basis of (details as stated), has already submitted the full memorial. The Imperial Preceptor, following the prescribed rites, conducted the transmission and ordination. Now, respectfully before the Dao, a covenant has been established across the Three Realms, and the matching ring covenant has been divided according to the prescribed form. The left half is given to the person concerned for safekeeping and verification; the right half is sealed securely in an envelope and sent along with this writ. This writ is hereby issued.

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Writ addressed to the above

May the guardian deities stationed at the gates of the Three Heavens inspect and verify this document. When the disciple (name), who has prepared for the fast, passes away, may they follow the Numinous Treasure tradition’s ranks for delivering beings, so that no gate of Heaven bars their way and they may ascend in due time. Upon receipt of this writ, carry out these instructions. Respectfully issued.

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Matching Ring Covenant

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Note for Reading the Writ

This document is a precept writ and a matching ring covenant used in Numinous Treasure liturgy. The first part records the transmission of the Nine Perfected Precepts and their nine injunctions. The second part is the matching ring covenant: the precept writ and ring covenant are each divided into two halves. The disciple receives the left half; the right half is sealed and sent with the writ for inspection by officials of the Three Realms and the gates of Heaven. It also states that, after death, the disciple is to ascend according to the Numinous Treasure tradition’s ranks for delivering beings. The placeholders “(name),” “(number),” and “(details as stated)” are filled in during the ritual with the person’s name, the duration of the fast, and other particulars.

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Interpretation

This is a Lingbao School ordination contract document, recording the formal ceremony of a disciple's initiation into the Daoist tradition. The document begins with its official title: "The Golden Register Life-Salvation Contract of the Supreme Cavern Mystery Lingbao," indicating its importance as a credential for receiving longevity talismans (fulu).

The text meticulously records the ceremony date (a specific day during the Daoguang reign of the Qing dynasty) and the disciple's native place. Bringing ritual offerings (faxin), the disciple reverently approached the ordination master (dushi) to receive the "Supreme Nine Perfect Precepts" and three crucial talismans: the Golden Register White Slips (immortal registry records), the Longevity Numinous Talisman, and the True Suffering-Relief Talisman. These talismans were to be carried for life, symbolizing the bond with the Dao.

A key ritual moment was the "Dividing the Ring and Breaking the Contract" ceremony: the document was split in two, with half kept by the disciple and half burned as an offering to the Three Officials (heavenly, earthly, and water realm deities). This served as a sacred oath—violating the precepts would invite punishment from the underworld authorities.

The latter section follows official talisman-issuance format. The "Golden Register Talisman Protocol" details the basis for granting the Life-Prolonging Golden Register: the disciple provides their birth details, identifies their corresponding Northern Dipper deity (in Daoist belief, each person has a guardian destiny star), confesses potential transgressions committed through their "impure mortal frame" and "three karmic actions and six sensory roots," and prays for salvation through the Golden Register's power.

The entire document manifests the solemnity of Daoist ordination rituals, establishing sacred master-disciple contracts under the supervision of the Three Officials and testimony of one's destiny star. The "Dividing the Ring" ceremony inherits ancient military tally and contract traditions, demonstrating Daoism's spiritual transformation of secular covenant principles.

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Interpretation

A Plain-Language Interpretation of the Lingbao Wenjian

The Most High (the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning) expounded and bestowed the precious register of the Covenant with the Perfect Ones—a formal document for receiving precepts and registers in Daoism. It serves as a bridge to preparatory cultivation, undertaken in advance for a future life or to deliver the departed. Therefore, one should vow with sincere devotion to take refuge in the Great Dao and hope to transmit the Golden Register for Prolonging Life, thereby preserving and protecting oneself in this life. Should one pass from this life, one may rely only on deliverance. The scripture states:

At that time, the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning was in the Great Hall of Blessings within the Fragrant Grove Garden, where he expounded the causes and conditions of life and death to the celestial immortals and the Perfect Ones who administer the Three Realms. Then the Perfected One Who Saves from Suffering addressed the Celestial Worthy, saying: “I have seen that within the prisons of the Ninefold Darkness and the Northern Office of Mount Fengdu, the Celestial Worthy Who Saves from Suffering of the Ten Directions enters the Ninefold Darkness to rescue and deliver all who suffer.”

The Celestial Worthy addressed all four assemblies: “If you can receive and uphold the Golden Register and white tablets, the wondrous precepts of the Nine Perfect Ones, the numinous talismans for long life, and the true talismans for saving from suffering, then your great sins in the Ninefold Darkness will be dissolved and your names entered in the Nine Palaces. The Maidens Who Inspect Destinies, the Spirit Powers Who Guard the Precepts, the Talismanic Officials of the Five Emperors, and the clerks of the Six Palaces will themselves follow the tablets and watch over and protect the one who receives the precepts and bears the register. In accordance with the prescribed rites, establish the boundless ritual assembly of the Nine Heavens’ Golden Register for rebirth, perform a great Zhaijiao ritual for the Three Realms, and request the bestowal of one rank of the Golden Register. After receiving and upholding these, may they serve as a ford in this life and a boat for the departed, protecting the body and preserving life, delivering one from peril and dispelling calamities. Do not divulge or slight the sacred teachings; observe, receive, and carry them out exactly as commanded.”

The Rite of Taking Refuge and Receiving Precepts:

• First, take refuge with the body: take refuge in the Most High, Boundless Dao.
• Second, take refuge with the spirit: take refuge in the honored scriptures of the Thirty-Six Sections.
• Third, take refuge with one’s life: take refuge in the Mysterious Venerable Great Master.

The Celestial Worthy’s Precepts (the Nine True Precepts):

Precept	Content	Resulting reward
First True Precept	Respect, defer to, and care for one’s parents	The reward of upright appearance and long life
Precept of Mindfulness of the True	Diligently fulfill one’s loyalty to the sovereign	The reward of intelligence and wisdom
Precept of Upholding the True	Do not kill; compassionately save living beings	The reward of wealth, honor, and prosperity
Precept of Guarding the True	Do not engage in sexual misconduct; conduct oneself properly in one’s dealings	The reward of good fortune, celebration, and peace
Precept of Preserving the True	Do not steal; uphold righteousness, even at personal cost	The reward of a pure and virtuous nature
Precept of Cultivating the True	Do not give in to anger or rage, or oppress others	The reward of rank and a distinguished reputation
Precept of Accomplishing the True	Do not deceive; live by the straight path	The reward of possessing all ten attributes
Precept of Attaining the True	(Continued below)	…

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Note: This text is a ritual document of the Lingbao school for receiving the Golden Register and securing rebirth. It is used to establish a ritual altar, bestow precepts, and receive a register to prolong life. The Nine True Precepts correspond to prohibitions such as “do not kill, do not engage in sexual misconduct, do not steal, do not give in to anger, and do not deceive.” They set out the precepts and the merits associated with formally receiving precepts in Daoism.

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Interpretation

Classic: Lingbao Wenjian

Scripture:

Only by avoiding pride can one realize the true realm and attain the fruits of the Great Dao’s Orthodox Teaching.

The Ninth Precept for Ascending to True Realms

By holding to the precepts single-mindedly and without wavering, one may attain the fruit of all the heavens turning toward and embracing one.

All the precepts set out above

were spoken from the Golden Mouth. Receive and uphold them with sincere devotion: their merit is immeasurable. They save those in danger and relieve suffering; their divine power is beyond comprehension. Attend and listen reverently

to the command, and obey and carry it out.

Mighty Spirits Who Guard the Precepts

Divine Incantation of Taiyi for Preserving Life and Prolonging the Years

True Talisman of the Supreme Decree of the Mysterious Heaven for Universally Saving the Ignorant: May its radiance blaze forth, its bearer’s name be entered in the registers of the Pure Capital and inscribed in the Golden Register, and all past offenses be erased.

May the spirit fly through the blue heavens and ascend beyond the Great Nonbeing, in accordance with the laws and commands of the Mysterious Code.

Divine Incantation for Communing with Spirits, Prolonging Life, and Protecting the Body

The primordial vital energy of Heaven, the paired energies of the Sun and Moon: may they embrace my Seven Po and bind my Three Hun, so that my spirit is clear and I may attain long life together with them.

In accordance with the statutes and commands.

Golden Register and White Tablet Talisman of the Primordial Beginning’s Decree for Long Life

This talisman is hereby proclaimed:

May all come to protect and cover the disciple receiving deliverance, (name), who reverently receives and upholds the wondrous precepts and personally wears the divine talisman: the Great Lord of Long Life, Lord Han, of the Southern Cinnabar Heaven, the Vermilion Mound Fire Palace, and the Upper Palace of Nanchang; the Sima, Siming, and Silu deities; the revered spirits who prolong life, increase one’s allotted years, and avert calamities; and the great deities who restore the bones, revive the dead, and oversee life.

When the allotted years of Heaven have been fulfilled, may the disciple ascend to the court of flowing fire in the Vermilion Palace. May the Jade-eyed ones refine the body, and the Yellow Blossoms cleanse its form. May the disciple’s name be written in the Purple Register, receive transformation, and be reborn. By the merit of this Golden Register’s deliverance of life, may the disciple ascend at every moment, in accordance with

the decree.

Golden Register and White Tablet Talisman of the Primordial Beginning’s Decree for Deliverance from Suffering

This talisman is hereby proclaimed:

Let all know: the boundless worlds in the ten directions; the Three Offices, Nine Courts, and one hundred and twenty bureaus; the examining officials of the Five Emperors; the prisons of the Nine Hells; the mighty celestial warriors; the divine troops who enforce punishments; the Siming, Silu, Sigong, and Sisha deities; the ox-headed jailers; and the great demons of the Three Realms.

The living disciple receiving deliverance, (name), has reverently received the wondrous precepts and accepted and wears the talismanic diagram. When, in the future, the body returns to the Great Yin, may the disciple pass beyond the hells, leave the long night forever, behold the light, have ten thousand offenses erased and enmities reconciled. By the merit of deliverance through these wondrous Nine True Precepts, may the disciple ascend to

Heaven, in accordance with the decree.

The wondrous precept talismans set forth above, written on Golden Registers and jade tablets, are proclaimed throughout the palaces of the Three Origins and open the way to deliverance in the courts of the Nine Hells. They are truly a lamp on the shadowed road and a bridge across the sea of suffering.

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Modern Interpretation:

Only by avoiding pride and complacency can one enter the true realm and attain the fruits of the Great Dao’s Orthodox Teaching.

The Ninth Precept for Ascending to True Realms: If one remains single-minded, sincere, and steadfast in observing the precepts, all the heavens will turn toward and embrace one.

The precepts set out above are as though personally proclaimed by the Celestial Worthy from the Golden Mouth. Receive and uphold them sincerely: their merit is boundless. They can save those in danger and relieve suffering, and their divine power is beyond comprehension. Listen reverently

to the command and carry it out as instructed.

Mighty Spirits Who Guard the Precepts (divine powers who protect the precepts)

Divine Incantation of Taiyi for Preserving Life and Prolonging the Years and the True Talisman of the Supreme Decree of the Mysterious Heaven for Universally Saving the Ignorant: May the talisman’s radiance blaze forth, its bearer’s name be entered in the registers of the Pure Capital and inscribed in the Golden Register, and past offenses be erased. May the spirit fly through the blue heavens and ascend beyond the Great Nonbeing, the highest celestial realm, in accordance with the laws and commands of the Mysterious Code.

Divine Incantation for Communing with Spirits, Prolonging Life, and Protecting the Body: With the aid of primordial vital energy and the paired radiances of the Sun and Moon, may the Seven Po be guarded on the left and the Three Hun gathered on the right, so that my spirit is clear and I may attain long life together with them. In accordance with the statutes and commands.

Golden Register and White Tablet Talisman of the Primordial Beginning’s Decree for Long Life: This talisman is proclaimed to the Southern Cinnabar Heaven, the Vermilion Mound Fire Palace, the Upper Palace of Nanchang, and other places, as well as to the Great Lord of Long Life, Lord Han; the Sima, Siming, and Silu deities; the revered spirits who prolong life, increase one’s allotted years, and avert calamities; and the great deities who restore the bones, revive the dead, and oversee life. May they all come to protect the disciple receiving deliverance, (name), who has received the wondrous precepts and personally wears the divine talisman. When the allotted years of Heaven have been fulfilled, may the disciple ascend to the court of flowing fire in the Vermilion Palace. May the Jade-eyed ones refine the body and the Yellow Blossoms cleanse its form. May the disciple’s name be written in the Purple Register, receive transformation, and be reborn. By the merit of this Golden Register’s deliverance of life, may the disciple ascend at every moment, in accordance with the decree.

Golden Register and White Tablet Talisman of the Primordial Beginning’s Decree for Deliverance from Suffering: This talisman is proclaimed to the boundless worlds in the ten directions; the Three Offices, Nine Courts, and one hundred and twenty bureaus; the examining officials of the Five Emperors; the prisons of the Nine Hells; the mighty celestial warriors; the divine troops who enforce punishments; the Siming, Silu, Sigong, and Sisha deities; the ox-headed jailers; and the great demons of the Three Realms. Let them all know: the living disciple receiving deliverance, (name), has reverently received the wondrous precepts and accepted and wears the talismanic diagram. When the disciple’s body returns to the Great Yin—that is, when the disciple dies—may they pass beyond the hells, leave the long night forever, behold the light, have ten thousand offenses erased and enmities reconciled. By the merit of deliverance through these wondrous Nine True Precepts, may they ascend to Heaven, in accordance with the decree.

These wondrous precept talismans, written on Golden Registers and jade tablets, are proclaimed throughout the palaces of the Three Origins and open the way to deliverance in the courts of the Nine Hells. They are truly a lamp on the shadowed road and a bridge across the sea of suffering.

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Interpretation

A Plain-Language Interpretation of the Lingbao Document

(Document worn by a disciple who has received the precepts)

The disciple who has received ordination, (name), must wholeheartedly receive and uphold this document, and wear it with devotion, so as to erase the record of offenses in the Ninefold Netherworld and resolve grievances from three lifetimes. Meritorious deeds will be entered in the Azure Register, and the name will be inscribed on a Golden Tablet. Good roots will grow, and blessings and longevity will increase.

The disciple must always observe the regulations of the Nine Precepts, making them a treasure for life. Those who are to attend the altar to receive the precepts and be granted registers:

This document is hereby issued to the disciple preparing for ordination, (name), to receive and wear on their person.

Issued on the day, month, and year of the Great Beginning.

Recommending Master: [seal]

Ordination Supervisor: [seal]

Ordaining Master, holding the rank of: [seal]

The Patriarch, Lord of the Three Heavens and Perfected Lord of Zhengyi, Zhang, presiding over the covenant.

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Yin-Yang Document (Contract for the Debt Incurred at Birth)

The Office issues this Contract for the Debt Incurred at Birth to support meritorious connections and cultivate the fruits of blessing. We respectfully note:

The Scripture of the Most High on the Five Dipper Stars and the Debt Incurred at Birth says: Every person’s nature and life are governed by the life-giving Qi of the Nine Heavens, the Five Dipper Star Lords, and the person’s natal star. If someone understands their origins and, on the Three Primordial Festivals, the Five Lunar Observances, their birthday, or a day when the Northern Dipper descends, solemnly establishes an altar, performs Zhaijiao according to their means, makes offerings to the holy beings of the Five Directions and Five Elders, the Five Dipper Star Lords, and their natal star, and presents money in ritual offering, then they repay the grace of all the perfected ones who recorded their birth, enabled them to be born into the human world, and bestowed the protection of the Great Dao.

At the time of a person’s birth, the Celestial and Terrestrial Offices declare that they owe money to their natal star. The amount, measured in strings of cash, is set according to each person’s birth signs, with no discrepancy. If a good man or woman cultivates various forms of goodness and performs Zhaijiao to repay this debt incurred at birth, they will enjoy peace and ease in this life; food and clothing will come naturally, and their comings and goings will be smooth, with good fortune in all things. After death, they will not undergo suffering.

Now, based on the petition submitted by (name), a Daoist devotee from (place of origin), in repayment to Heaven and to seek an extension of life, wealth is deposited in the treasury, and years of life and blessings are bestowed. The faithful person seeking lasting well-being, (name),

together with all members of the household, on this day respectfully appeals to the source of creation and states: This petition is made on behalf of (name), whose life is linked to the year (year), month (month), day (day), and hour (hour) of birth, and who is duly registered under the case of the officer (name) in Treasury (number) of the Birth-Bestowal Court of the Office of the Sacred Mountain. At the time of this person’s release into life, a debt of (number) strings of cash was recorded in your honored office as the debt incurred at birth (Scripture on the Debt Incurred at Birth, volume). The petitioner reflects that (name) belongs to a different order in Yin and Yang, and that money…

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Notes for Reading the Document

• Records of offenses in the Ninefold Netherworld: Records of offenses kept by the underworld authorities and in the various levels of hell.
• Azure Register and Golden Tablet: Documents used by the Celestial Office to record good deeds and names.
• Nine Precepts: Daoist rules of discipline that the wearer of the document must observe.
• The Five Dipper Stars, the debt incurred at birth, and the natal star: The “money owed at birth” is repaid through Zhaijiao on the Three Primordial Festivals, the Five Lunar Observances, birthdays, and other such days.
• Birth-Bestowal Court of the Office of the Sacred Mountain: An underworld institution in the Daoist Canon responsible for debts incurred at birth. The document records details such as the treasury number, the underworld officer, and the amount owed in strings of cash, and is used together with the ritual liturgy and contract.

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Interpretation

Plain-Language Interpretation

The meaning is the same: One must keep deeply in mind the duty to repay the debt of life and gratitude for the life bestowed by Heaven and Earth. Now, in accordance with the regulations and ordinances of the Mysteries, this document is specially drawn up to cultivate karmic ties across successive lifetimes. In the past, the celestial offices and the underworld “lent” money for one’s birth, currency used in the realm of the dead. Since one has received the precious gift of a human body, one should always bear in mind what comes after death. To repay the causes of one’s former life, one must first take refuge in the Great Dao and carefully prepare the ritual offerings and all the required ceremonial forms, and so on.

With the support of the Golden Registers of the Nine Heavens, repayment and deposit in the treasury are made to bring blessings to all, in the realms of the living and the dead. One offering at the ritual site, for a number of days and nights, is made above in response to the True Sages and below to receive their attestation and approval, among other purposes. This Office, having received these instructions, has already carried out the rites in accordance with the regulations. The merits of the rites performed are now itemized below:

Item	Details
One presentation of offerings	A full altar of orchid-scented oil and pure candles for the celestial realms
One central obeisance	One text of prayers for dispelling calamities, addressed to the Nine Sovereigns
One presentation of offerings	Five cloud-script talismans for dispelling calamities, one for each of the Five Directions
One proper fast	Morning procession in the Dao
One invocation and praise	A full altar of star lamps for the Eleven Great Luminaries
One recitation	Scriptures and repentance texts, itemized separately
One presentation	Several ritual stations for a pure Zhaijiao (purification ritual) to dispel calamities
One repayment	Several chests of original celestial and earthly money for the person’s birth year; several chests of birth money from the treasury of the Sacred Mountain Office
One grant	One rank of the Golden Register for Deliverance and Longevity from the Supreme High One’s Cavern of Mystery and Numinous Treasure; a white document bearing the Golden Register and the talisman of longevity issued by the primordial origin; a white document bearing the Yellow Register and the true talisman of salvation from suffering issued by the primordial origin; a command talisman of the Nine Dragons from the Azure Palace of the Eastern Pole; a matching contract ring-ticket for deliverance through the Golden Register; and a certificate of the wondrous precepts of the Nine Perfected Ones of the Supreme High One
One construction	One towered pavilion for the treasure vault in which the offerings are deposited
One deposit	Several treasury stores of printed scriptures in underworld baskets, each store containing forty-eight chests, numbered from one to forty-eight under a designated character, with matching half-imprints serving as identifiers
One deposit	Several chests of underworld clothing, identified by half-imprints under a designated character, with several keys; several chests of gold and silver ingots, identified by half-imprints under a designated character

The merits listed above are recorded in full and in clear detail. In addition to the solar-world certificate already issued and the receipt for the advance preparations for the rite of deliverance on behalf of (name), this document is now submitted to your Office for verification of the matter. We request that you arrange for the merits of the rites performed and the deposited baskets and chests to be clearly issued and delivered.

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Background: This text is a “documentary petition” used in Lingbao Zhaijiao rites, a formal report submitted to the celestial offices and the underworld. Its central acts are to repay the birth money lent by the celestial offices and underworld, and to deposit treasures in an underworld vault. It also lists rites for dispelling calamities, star lamps, scripture recitations, repentance texts, and other ritual procedures. Finally, it asks the responsible Office to verify and issue the items, corresponding to the Golden Register for Deliverance and Longevity, underworld clothing, scripture baskets, and other materials for which receipts are held in the world of the living. Terms such as “underworld money,” “birth money,” “deposit in the vault,” and “matching half-imprints” are all written to imitate the treasury and document systems of the underworld bureaucracy.

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Interpretation

Vernacular Explanation of the Lingbao Wenjian (Lingbao Document Models)

Yang Document (Yangdie; a document for use by the officiants of the living world)

After the number is registered and the order issued, this document is to be kept in the custody of that officer. When [the person] passes away, the document is to be brought to the office, where the contract number is checked against the counterpart; once it is confirmed without error, it is to be handed over for collection as the credential of Shousheng (Receiving Life: pre-establishing merit in the underworld and repaying former debts). Here ends the document.

Submitted to: the desk of the official of the [blank] section of the [blank]th storehouse of the Shousheng Court of the Yuefu. I humbly request examination and verification; respectfully submitted as a document.

[Seal of the Yin-Yang document contract]

In the Tai Sui year [blank], month [blank], day [blank]: handed in.

Merit-office position: [name] undertakes it.

(List the officiants: first the Daoist assembly, then the lay congregation.)

True Lord of Limitless Receiving Life of the Nine Heavens Golden Register

Patriarch Zhang Zhenjun, Great Mystery Upper Minister, Zhengyi (Orthodox Unity), Quiet Response — presides as covenant witness

Tail of the Yang Document (format same as above)

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Yin Document (Yindie; a document for submission to the Mingsi, the underworld administration)

The above merits have already been itemized in the preceding text. Now the Yin-Yang contractual documents should be issued for comparison by both parties. The Yin Document, together with the register, is to be submitted to the sections, desks, and storehouses under the Mingsi and handed over separately. The Yang Document is given to the pre-cultivating believer [name] to keep as a credential. When after a hundred years the body passes away and one enters Taiyin (the Great Yin), bring it to your office and beg that it be checked against the counterpart, so that the underworld debt (the former debt owed to the underworld) may be canceled, obstacles removed, and early transcendence attained. Here ends the document.

The foregoing document is issued to [name] to be carried on the person as proof, so that one may recognize one’s former destiny, deeply awaken to one’s original cause, follow the intent of the Supreme Lord’s scriptures, and thereby repay and make good the former debts owed to the Mingsi, fulfilling and settling the original arrears (old debts). Relying on the Dao (the Way) as covenant witness, one passes through Taiyin and attains the fruit of blessing; one’s name is inscribed in the Golden Register and one’s characters recorded in the Azure Tablets. The Yin administration will no longer detain one, and the underworld will forever erase the record of sins. By this merit all is duly prepared; this document is issued as proof. Here ends the document.

The foregoing document is issued to the pre-cultivating believer (male/female) [name] as personal proof to be held in this life.

Contract: year and month, merit position, officiant, teacher’s position (all the same as in the preceding Yin document).

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Contractual Document

[Bureau designation] Concerning the matter of pre-cultivation meritorious causes and the widespread cultivation of the fruit of blessing.

I have heard that blessings are evoked by goodness, and offenses are drawn by karmic action; cultivating goodness brings the supreme fruit of humans and heavens, while doing evil leads to the suffering of ghosts and animals.

[The following should be the invocation or the main text of the Keyi (liturgy); here the scripture text ends.]

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Interpretation

Plain-Language Interpretation

Good fortune and misfortune, blessings and calamities, follow karma like a shadow. The ancients carefully examined the practice known as “depositing paper money in the underworld treasury”—placing spirit money in the storehouses of the underworld. It is recorded in the writings of the sages and is not an empty invention; the religious tradition has also passed down well-known teachings about it. If it had no efficacy, how could it have been handed down through the ages? Such merit is worthy of emulation by later generations.

Today, money sent to the underworld authorities can be accessed only on the basis of written documents. Every item must be checked, without the slightest discrepancy, before it can be released for use. Otherwise, access may be obstructed. Yin and Yang documents must therefore be issued as proof.

According to the statement now submitted by (name), the Three Treasures are venerated, and causes are cultivated and blessings planted on behalf of (name), to repay the deposit claim for the underworld treasury belonging to (name). (Name) now shows signs of approaching death: human life is like morning dew, and death may come soon. Without first establishing a bridge of deliverance, there is real fear of falling into karmic obstacles. Therefore, the resolve was made to cultivate various merits. On an auspicious day, a Daoist priest was invited to establish an altar at the home and, in accordance with liturgical procedure, conduct the Great Fasting Rite of the Golden Register for Rebirth in the Nine Heavens. A Pervasive Blessings Ritual Altar for Preparing in Advance and Depositing in the Treasury, Illuminating the Living and the Underworld was also established, with offerings made for a specified number of days and nights. On (date), the rites were completed and formally concluded according to procedure. The proper rites were honored and various merits cultivated: to repay Heaven’s grace above, and below to pray for abundant blessings, the dispelling of calamities and atonement for transgressions, the preservation and extension of life, the advance cultivation of good results, and the broad establishment of a foundation of blessings.

Having received this document, our office has already reported the matter to the Three Bureaus and submitted it to the various offices, in accordance with procedure, for the rites and offerings to be carried out. The sponsor of the fast has also prepared baskets of spirit money, packed and sealed them, stamped them, and assigned each a recorded number. Three matching pairs have been clearly prepared. Beneath the altar of the Three Treasures, the sponsor petitions for authorization to send them to the Yue Prefecture Court of the Rebirth Registry, to be received and stored under the case of the registrar in charge of Treasury No. ( ) of the ( )th division. They are to serve as a source of blessings.

At the altar, two copies of the Yin and Yang documents are issued. Each basket and carrying pole of deposited goods is entered individually, with matching contracts, seals, and identifying numbers. The Yin document is burned and submitted along with the goods; the Yang document is given to (name), the person preparing in advance, to keep as proof. When the term of a hundred years has passed, the bearer shall personally present this document at the office of your honored bureau and request the original record. The documents and records shall then be compared and checked item by item. If they match, the goods shall be released and acknowledged as received, and may be used freely. In this way, the bridge of deliverance will have a firm foundation and the merits will not be in vain. This document is therefore issued.

The merits cultivated at the altar, together with the sums deposited and the spirit money, are listed item by item below.

(The merits listed above are set out item by item in the preceding document.)

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Interpretation

This passage presents the document formats from the Lingbao Wenjian scripture concerning preemptive purification rituals (zhaijiao), primarily comprising two types of certificates: the Yin-Yang Document (credentials for both realms) and the Treasury Deposit Voucher (proof of underworld wealth storage).

The sequence of ritual participants is first specified: Daoist priests lead, followed by ritual assistants, with devotees (designated as "occupants") positioned last. The Yang Document (for the living) is given to participating devotees (named individuals) as receipt, while the Yin Document (for the underworld) must be submitted to the Yue Administration (the Daoist bureaucratic system governing the afterlife).

The documents bear the "Contract Seal of Yin-Yang Documents," inscribed with the Taisui calendar year (Daoist chronology) and date, signed by the presiding master (designated as "Master Position"). This "Treasury Deposit Document" declares that the devotee (named) has piously prepared gold/silver treasures for a specified purpose, entrusting the Daoist altar to repay karmic debts on their behalf. It petitions the Yue Administration to verify accounts—whether fully settled or not—and cancel all records, ensuring future rebirths remain unburdened by such obligations.

Specific offerings are itemized: multiple chests of gold/silver, partially allocated as three-year salaries for underworld officials, with the remainder deposited in the netherworld treasury. Upon the devotee’s natural demise, these may be claimed in the afterlife by presenting the Yang Document. This mechanism aids departed souls while ensuring meritorious deeds yield corresponding rewards.

The second document, the "Treasury Water Pass," functions as transit credentials. It states that a devotee from a specified location, seeking longevity blessings, has invited priests to conduct a Lingbao zhaijiao ritual at their residence. Beyond celestial petitions submitted by the altar, multiple treasure vaults have been prepared containing gold/silver ingots, spirit garments, and other items. Portions are allotted as salaries for officials of the Rebirth Bureau (underworld administration), with the balance stored in the nether treasury. All items are meticulously recorded in the accompanying documents.

These two texts meticulously document the Daoist "preemptive cultivation" ritual process: devotees, through priestly intermediaries, pre-deposit wealth in the underworld to settle karmic debts, seeking present-world peace and future-life bliss. The repeated emphasis on monetary quantities and distribution channels reflects the Daoist contractual concept of "Yin-Yang agreements."

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Interpretation

The following is a modern plain-language explanation of this section of the official documents in the Lingbao Wenjian. It describes the formats of the underworld’s “Birth-Reception Office” receipts, registers, and documents for repaying birth-reception money and transporting the money chests.

1. Transit Pass (proof of authorization for transporting the chests)

Main text in brief:

The chests and other items prepared for repayment are listed in detail, and this pass is issued accordingly. The underworld’s appointed laborers are to transport them to the Birth-Reception Office of Yuefu, where they must be handed over in full under the jurisdiction of the official in charge of the relevant division and storehouse. They must be carefully protected along the way. The seals must not be damaged, and no strings of coins may be lost. If the original amount is short, the responsible division is to pursue and recover the shortage.

At checkpoints, ferry crossings, boundaries between the living world and the underworld, and guarded passes, this pass must be inspected before the bearers are allowed through.

Sample pass format:

To the appointed underworld laborers: proceed as authorized.

Issued on the _ day of the _ month, ___ year.

Pass: Return to the City-God Shrine within ___ days to have the pass canceled and surrendered.

2. Final section of the register (appended after the water pass)

The items in the above list of repayment chests have all been entered clearly, one by one. The laborers and strongmen are to transport them with care and submit them to the respective divisions.

The chests sent to the storehouse are to be placed in storage one by one by the appointed officials.

The remaining chests of offerings for the dead are to be handed to the souls concerned, who must acknowledge receipt. They must be carefully protected throughout the journey. The chests must not be struck or scraped, their seals must not be damaged, and no strings of coins may be lost. Violators will be punished according to the law. This register is hereby issued.

To the underworld’s divine laborers and storehouse clerks: proceed as authorized.

3. Face of the repayment chest (ticket for repaying birth-reception money)

Office heading: Concerning the advance cultivation of merit and repayment of past debts

According to the petition submitted from (place of origin), (someone) has made arrangements in advance to prepare a repayment and seek good fortune on behalf of (someone). The petitioner, (name), sincerely declares that (person) was born at (year, month, day, and hour) and is registered under the official in charge of Yang-life allotments in the (numbered) storehouse of the (named) division at Yuefu. Before entering the womb, this person borrowed (amount) strings of birth-reception money from your division. Now, having established a virtuous cause, the petitioner has reverently prepared a chest of money and asks that the laborers transport it to your division’s office and submit it there. We respectfully request that the original debt be canceled in the records and the repayment duly entered. This ticket is hereby issued.

Prepared on the _ day of the _ month, ___ year.

Ticket issued / Ticket retained

(No.) character, No. ___ / Seal and identifying mark

4. Storehouse-opening document (opening the storehouse and issuing chests)

Office heading: Concerning opening the storehouse and issuing chests to benefit the journey through the underworld

According to the petition submitted from (place of origin), the storehouse is to be opened to provide resources for the filial offering to the dead for (someone)… (The rest follows the same pattern as above: the storehouse is opened and chests are issued to the bereaved child or the ritual officiant to facilitate their delivery in the underworld.)

The original text gives only the opening lines of this section. Its format belongs to the same type of document for opening a storehouse and issuing chests as the “repayment chest” document.

Brief explanations of terms

Term	Meaning
Birth-Reception Office / Yuefu	An institution in the underworld system of Dongyue (Mount Tai) that oversees “birth-reception”—the money borrowed before reincarnation.
Birth-reception money	“Living resources” borrowed from underworld officials before birth, to be repaid after death or through ritual.
Chest	A container for strings of coins, sealed with a cover and seal; it must remain intact and lose no coins during transport.
Underworld laborer / divine laborer	A laborer appointed by the underworld to carry or escort goods.
Division / storehouse	The underworld’s divisions and storehouses, which manage each person’s past debts through case records.
Transit pass	A travel permit to be checked at checkpoints; when its term expires, it must be returned to the City-God Shrine for cancellation.
Repayment / canceling the original debt	Settling an old debt and having it struck from the records.
Offerings for the dead	Resources in chests intended for the souls of the deceased, handled separately from chests used to repay birth-reception money.

Together, these documents form a standard set of underworld paperwork: the living cultivate merit in advance, prepare money in chests, have laborers escort them, submit them to the divisions and storehouses of the Birth-Reception Office at Yuefu, pass through checkpoints with the transit document, and return to the City-God Shrine to surrender and cancel the pass. The parenthetical spaces, such as (someone) and (amount), are blanks to be filled in during the ritual.

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Interpretation

This document is a specialized liturgical text (Daoist ritual manuscript) for the "Repayment and Storage" ceremony to liberate deceased souls in Daoism. It primarily describes the ritual procedures for repaying the "Pre-Birth Debt" on behalf of the deceased.

The text begins by stating that on a specific date, a memorial ceremony called the "Golden Register Infinite Pre-Birth Repayment and Storage Ritual Platform of the Nine Heavens" was conducted for the deceased (named). This unique Daoist salvation ritual is based on the belief that before reincarnation, all humans borrow "Pre-Birth Money" from the underworld, which must be repaid after death. During the ceremony, several vaults of underworld currency (spirit money) were prepared, each numbered (from 1 to 48), along with spirit garments and other offerings. Two copies of a yin-yang contract document (a pact between the realms of living and dead) were made: the yin copy was burned with the offerings, while the yang copy was kept by the deceased's family to be cremated at their own passing.

Concerned that the deceased might face obstacles in rebirth if the underworld treasury failed to register the payment, this document is addressed to a specific underworld official (a Caoguan) of the designated Pre-Birth Treasury vault under the Eastern Peak Administration (Daoist underworld bureaucracy). It requests verification of the contract details and proper delivery of the stored wealth to assist the deceased's smooth transition.

The second part contains gratitude documents for underworld officials, explaining that an auspicious date was chosen for the ceremony, during which gold-silver treasure chests and ceremonial banquets were prepared to thank the underworld bureaucracy. It expresses hope that through this ritual's merit, the deceased may achieve swift liberation, while living relatives receive divine protection for peaceful lives. Attached is the "Nine Dragons Talisman" (Jiulong Fu), a sacred mandate issued by the Eastern Florescence Azure Palace (abode of Daoist immortals) bearing spiritual authority.

The complete manuscript meticulously records the entire "Pre-Birth Debt Repayment" process in Daoist salvation rituals, including underworld debt settlement, yin-yang contract establishment, and underworld official acknowledgments. It reflects Daoism's distinctive netherworld cosmology and salvation liturgy.

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Interpretation

Plain-language interpretation of the Lingbao Document Forms

Respectfully received and authorized

The Dao’s decree has been issued, and the sacred talisman has been announced below.

May all the divine realms in the ten directions and the limitless lands of the gods hear and know: The disciple named below, who in this present life receives salvation and undertakes preparatory cultivation, shall faithfully cherish and uphold this talisman. When this person’s body passes away in the future and returns to the Great Yin, the spirit will ascend to the realm of immortals.

(The talisman bestowed is) the command of the Nine Dragons of the Eastern Azure Palace; the jade decree of the Great One; the sacred chapters of the Primordial Beginning; the golden scripture of the Nine Dragons; the Yang essence of the Three Qi; the lofty radiance of the Purple Void; the Primordial Emperor of Pure Radiance; the luminous clarity of the Cavern; the formation of an embryo in the Yellow Chamber; the refining of Golden Essence; the boundless blending of the myriad Qi; the flowing form of Yellow Radiance; the divine light that purifies the body; a body clothed in feathered robes, with a golden bell at the waist; the dark valley of longevity; riding the turning of fate to extend the Yellow; the soul of the sun and the spirit of the moon; transforming Yin and nurturing Yang; the True One of the Left Mystery and the Eternal Flourishing of the Right Mystery; the body riding the Nine Dragons; and the remission of sins in the ten directions—all as set forth in the decree.

Granted to the person named below to wear and receive.

In the year, month, and day of the Heavenly Cycle

The official in charge of the liturgical rites receives and carries out the decree.

The Compassionate Father of the Eastern Palace, the Great One Who Answers Cries and Rescues from Suffering, the Celestial Worthy; the Azure Mysterious Emperor — presiding over the covenant

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Petition for the Great Purification Rite of the Blood Lake and the Talisman for the Three Paths and Five Sufferings

Jade Clarity Talisman of Illumination

At the supreme altar of the Primordial Unity, we respectfully receive the Dao’s decree and request the issuance of the Jade Clarity Talisman of Illumination.

This talisman is hereby announced: The divine official who extinguishes the evil path of the roots of form is commissioned on behalf of the deceased, named below, to sever and put an end to the path of corpses and the gate of sensual desire in the realm of the heavenly path, so that the deceased may escape the heavenly officials’ labor of driving thunder and pursuing lightning, and the anguish and bitterness of suffering, and be delivered beyond the Three Realms to wander freely in Highest Clarity—all as set forth in the decree.

Announced in the year, month, and day of the Heavenly Cycle

The official in charge of the liturgical rites receives the decree and proclaims and carries it out.

The founding patriarch, the Celestial Master of the Three Heavens and True Lord of Orthodox Unity, Zhang — witness to the covenant

Jade Clarity Talisman of Illumination and Opening

At the supreme altar of the Primordial Unity, we respectfully receive the Dao’s decree and request the issuance of the Jade Clarity Talisman of Illumination and Opening.

This talisman is hereby announced: The divine official who extinguishes evil roots and evil paths is commissioned on behalf of the deceased, named below, to cut off and end the evil roots, enabling the deceased to attain deliverance. The wording follows the same pattern as the talisman above; receive the decree and proclaim and carry it out according to the liturgical procedures.

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Notes for reading the liturgy:

“Decree” uses the tone of Daoist documents modeled on imperial edicts. A “treasured talisman” is a Lingbao talismanic document issued from the realm of Jade Clarity. “The Great Purification Rite of the Blood Lake and the Three Paths and Five Sufferings” refers to a major ritual for delivering the souls of the dead from the sufferings of hell. The “divine official who extinguishes the roots of form and evil roots and paths” is a protective deity commissioned in the liturgy to sever the causes that lead to evil paths. “The heavenly path,” “the path of corpses,” and “the gate of sensual desire” refer to categories of evil paths into which the souls of the dead may fall. “Presiding over the covenant” and “witness to the covenant” refer to the revered deity and patriarch who preside over and witness the vows made at the ritual altar. The names in parentheses are spaces for the disciple’s or deceased person’s name.

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Interpretation

Related liturgical passages from the Lingbao Wenjian (Modern Chinese interpretation)

[Earth Passage Realm · Middle Corpse · Gate of Lust]

In the Earth Passage Realm, the underworld realm associated with the earth and dust, may the deceased be freed from the sin of the Gate of Lust bound to the “Middle Corpse.”

May the Earth Official, the spirit who governs the underworld, no longer subject them to the hard labor of hauling sand and stones, piling stones, and filling the earth.

May they transcend the Three Realms—the underworld realms of Heaven, Earth, and Water—and attain freedom and ease.

Shangqing, the Daoist realm of Highest Clarity: let this be carried out according to the intent of the liturgy.

Edict

By the fortune of Heaven, on the _ day of the _ month of the ___ year, this is proclaimed.

The officiant of the liturgy, your servant, receives the edict and proclaims it in practice.

The ancestral master, patriarch of the Three Heavens and True Lord of Orthodox Unity, Zhang ___, bears witness and confirms the covenant.

[Jade Clarity’s Precious Talisman for Opening Suffering]

The Altar of the Supreme Primordial Origin respectfully receives authorization.

By the Dao’s decree, we request its issuance.

Jade Clarity’s Precious Talisman for Opening Suffering

This talisman is hereby proclaimed.

May the numinous official who dispels the roots of greed and the evil paths—whose office is to sever the roots of greed and the evil paths—act on behalf of the deceased ___ and cut them off completely.

May they be freed from the paths of the Lower Corpse and the Gate of Greed and Desire in the Water Passage Realm. May the Water Official, the spirit who governs the waters, no longer require them to perform the labor of drawing water and braving the waves, or the toil of guarding the waterways of the He, Huai, and other rivers.

May they be delivered beyond the Three Realms and attain freedom and ease.

Shangqing: let it be so.

Edict

By the fortune of Heaven, on the _ day of the _ month of the ___ year, this is proclaimed.

The officiant of the liturgy, your servant, receives the edict and carries it out.

The ancestral master, patriarch of the Three Heavens and True Lord of Orthodox Unity, Zhang ___, bears witness and confirms the covenant.

[Jade Clarity’s Five-Flow Talisman · Jade Clarity’s True Talisman of Flowing Radiance]

Jade Clarity’s Five-Flow Talisman

The Altar of the Supreme Primordial Origin respectfully receives authorization.

By the Dao’s decree, we request its issuance.

Jade Clarity’s True Talisman of Flowing Radiance

This talisman is hereby proclaimed.

May the numinous official who helps people escape the corpse and burden of entanglement in sensuality act on behalf of the deceased ___ and release them from the Gate of Torment caused by sensual entanglement.

May they be freed from the path of suffering in the Mount Tai Hells. May body and spirit ascend together to pay homage at the Heavenly Emperor’s celestial gate; may they enjoy blessings and wisdom in freedom, and attend the Dragon Chariot in the celestial realm. Let it be so.

Edict

By the fortune of Heaven, on the _ day of the _ month of the ___ year, this is proclaimed.

The officiant of the liturgy, your servant, receives the edict and carries it out.

The ancestral master, patriarch of the Three Heavens and True Lord of Orthodox Unity, Zhang ___, bears witness and confirms the covenant.

[Jade Clarity’s Five-Flow Talisman · Jade Clarity’s True Talisman of Flowing Essence]

The Altar of the Supreme Primordial Origin

Respectfully receives authorization.

By the Dao’s decree, we request its issuance.

Jade Clarity’s True Talisman of Flowing Essence

This talisman is hereby proclaimed.

May the numinous official who helps people escape the corpse and burden of attachment act on behalf of the deceased ___ and release them from the Gate of Torment caused by the spirit’s entanglement in attachment and desire.

May they be freed from the path of suffering in the hell where wind-blades torture the body. May body and spirit transcend together and ascend to pay homage in the celestial realm…

Explanatory notes (for readers of the liturgy; not part of the original text):

“Corpse” here often refers to the Three Corpses or the Upper, Middle, and Lower Corpses, symbolizing bonds within the body or underworld associated with desire, greed, attachment, and sensuality. In liturgies, these are severed one by one through distinct “gates.”

“Passage Realms,” such as the Earth Passage and Water Passage Realms, are divisions of the underworld in Lingbao liturgies.

Talismans, edicts, and witness confirmations: the ritual altar requests the issuance of various Jade Clarity talismans, which are enacted by numinous officials. The ancestral master Zhang, revered in the lineage of the Zhengyi Covenant with the Powers of the Dao, confirms the covenant. The formula “By the fortune of Heaven, on the _ day of the _ month of the ___ year” is a standard format for proclaiming liturgical documents. The blank after “deceased” is for entering the deceased person’s name.

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Interpretation

Plain-Language Interpretation of Lingbao Wenjian

(Continued from above) …May body and spirit ascend, pay court at the Heavenly Gate of the August Emperor (the gate to the heavenly residence of the Celestial Emperor), and enjoy blessings and wisdom in freedom, attending in service among the Dragon Procession (the name of an immortal ceremonial retinue)—as before.

Proclamation

The year, month, ritual office, and master’s title are the same as in the preceding text.

The Altar of the Supreme Primordial Origin (a name for a Daoist ritual altar), respectfully acting under the Dao’s decree, requests the issuance of the True Talisman of the Jade Clarity’s Flowing Radiance (a numinous talisman associated with the flowing waters of Jade Clarity).

The talisman herewith is proclaimed to the Celestial Officer Who Transports and Liberates the Spirit of the “Corpse Burdened by Greed” (an immortal officer charged with liberating the “corpse burdened by greed”). On behalf of the deceased … it is to release them from the bodily suffering brought about by the burdens of greed in life, and spare the family and household from the path of torment in the Hell of Carrying Mountains and Stones (a hell where the condemned are made to bear mountains of stone). May body and spirit ascend, pay court at the Heavenly Gate of the August Emperor, and enjoy blessings and wisdom in freedom, attending in service among the Dragon Procession—as before.

Proclamation

In the year, month, and day of Heaven’s Mandate, this is proclaimed.

The ritual officer (your servant) … receives the proclamation and carries it out.

The ancestral master, the Three Heavens’ Church Leader and True Lord of Orthodox Unity, Zhang (referring to the lineage of the Celestial Masters) … bears witness and confirms the pledge.

The Altar of the Supreme Primordial Origin, respectfully acting under the Dao’s decree, requests the issuance of the True Talisman of the Jade Clarity’s Flowing Thunder.

The talisman herewith is proclaimed to the Celestial Officer Who Transports and Liberates the Spirit of the “Corpse of Splendid Striving” (an immortal officer who liberates the “corpse of splendid striving”). On behalf of the deceased … it is to release them from the suffering of the refined essence of splendid striving, and spare those in the community who have passed away from the path of torment in the Hell of Filling the Sea and Making Rivers (a hell whose suffering is likened to filling the sea and making rivers). May body and spirit ascend, pay court at the Heavenly Gate of the August Emperor, and enjoy blessings and wisdom in freedom, attending in service among the Dragon Procession—as before.

Proclamation

In the year, month, and day of Heaven’s Mandate, this is proclaimed.

The ritual officer (your servant) … receives the proclamation and carries it out.

The ancestral master, the Three Heavens’ Church Leader and True Lord of Orthodox Unity, Zhang … bears witness and confirms the pledge.

The Altar of the Supreme Primordial Origin, respectfully acting under the Dao’s decree, requests the issuance of the True Talisman of the Jade Clarity’s Flowing Splendor.

The talisman herewith is proclaimed to the Celestial Officer Who Transports and Liberates the Spirit of the “Corpse Burdened by the Body” (an immortal officer who liberates the “corpse burdened by the body”). On behalf of the deceased … it is to release them from the soul’s suffering caused by the burdens of bodily karma, and spare the community from the path of torment in the Hell of Swallowing Fire, Eating Coals, and Being Boiled in Cauldrons. May body and spirit ascend, pay court at the Heavenly Gate of the August Emperor, and enjoy blessings and wisdom in freedom, attending in service among the Dragon Procession—as before.

Proclamation

In the year, month, and day of Heaven’s Mandate, this is proclaimed.

The ritual officer (your servant) … receives the proclamation and carries it out.

The ancestral master, the Three Heavens’ Church Leader and True Lord of Orthodox Unity, Zhang … bears witness and confirms the pledge.

Note: The entire text uses a recurring talismanic proclamation format in ritual: the altar acts under the Dao’s decree to request a talisman, which then instructs a particular kind of spirit officer to release a deceased person from a specified hell and send them up to heaven. Each proclamation concludes with the date under Heaven’s Mandate, the officiating servant’s declaration that they have received and carried out the command, and the witness of the Celestial Master Zhang. The three talismans correspond to different categories of corpse spirit—burdened by greed, splendid striving, and bodily burdens—and to different hells.

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Interpretation

An Accessible Reading of the “Lingbao Ritual Documents”

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Your servant (the Daoist’s name is entered here), acting under the command of the Most High, carries out the rites according to the prescribed rules. Your servant, so-and-so, filled with awe and trepidation, bows repeatedly with forehead to the ground, prostrates himself a hundred times, and submits this petition:

Your servant ventures to lay bare his sincere devotion, humbly addressing the lofty heavens and daring to hope for their great compassion and generous forgiveness.

Your servant has now received a record for a district in Sichuan Province within the realm of the Great Han (the specific place name is entered here). In accordance with the Dao, he offers his allegiance and performs a purification rite and petitions for sacred methods on behalf of (the deceased’s name), seeking to deliver the departed and raise them to a realm of life, while also performing rites for their family members. On this day, the petition is respectfully presented to the Creator of the Primordial Origin:

It is said that the eighty thousand dark and frigid regions (eighty thousand kinds of shadowy, cold hells) are all bathed in the wise power of the Primordial Venerable, and the three thousand seas of sin (three thousand seas of sinful karma) all revere the merciful compassion of the Azure Pole. Thus the Jade Registers shine forth from wondrous mysteries, while the Golden Cords conceal the means of offering salvation. We respectfully open this splendid ritual banquet, so that blessings may reach the realm of the dead.

The petitioner (or lay devotee) respectfully reflects that the deceased, (the deceased’s name), was born with an original nature and allotted life on (year) (month) (day) at (hour), and grew up in (place). They enjoyed (number) years of life, and died on (year) (month) (day) at (hour) in (place), from complications of childbirth.

We grieve that this humble, frail body, just as the time had come for the bear and tiger to enter the dream (the time of childbirth), should have come to suffer the fate of the owl that devours its mother (death in difficult labor). After barely reaching the tenth month, her life entered the Nine Springs. We therefore establish this memorial offering to assist her passage to a realm of life.

Accordingly, we have chosen the (day) of this month, the date of the deceased’s arrival. A ritual master will set up an altar at the home and, in accordance with the prescribed rules, conduct one offering of the Great Blood Lake Purification Rite of the Most High Jade Register. The rite will continue through (day) and conclude on (day). During it, the souls of (the deceased’s name) and the others to be delivered will be included, and together they will receive deliverance and attain a realm of life.

We are concerned that the deceased mentioned above, having died in childbirth, may fall into the Blood Lake and be unable to ascend and receive deliverance. We dare not act on our own authority regarding any of the talismanic commands issued by the Origin for universal deliverance. We have therefore carefully recorded this petition and, at the risk of death, submit it to the throne.

We reverently trust in Heaven’s compassion. May our petition be granted. First, may (so-and-so) be pardoned for the grave sins accumulated under your servant’s former vows, and permitted to carry out this expansive rite. We especially beg that an edict be issued to the Great Dark Capital’s Office, the Ten Directions and Three Realms, and all the governing offices of the Ninefold Darkness, the Long Night, Fengdu, Luofeng, Xiashi, the Blood Lake, the Dark and Frigid Regions, and the other hidden prisons, commanding them to extend a universal pardon to the souls of the deceased recommended here, including (name).

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Background

This text is a petition used in the Daoist Blood Lake Great Purification Rite. In Daoist belief, women who die in childbirth may fall into the Blood Lake and require deliverance through purification rites. The many blank spaces in the text, such as those for dates, names, and places, are filled in during the ritual.

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Interpretation

A Vernacular Reading of the Lingbao Document

I. The Talismanic Mandate and the Closing of the Petition

May all the souls who died from the calamity of childbirth and bear the guilt of dying in childbirth be enabled to leave the sea of suffering, behold the light, and receive deliverance.

By mandate of the Jade Origin’s Talisman of Deliverance, we, your servants, are authorized to write talismans as appropriate and proclaim their observance. We have risked the authority of Heaven a thousand times in setting forth the circumstances below; we have held nothing back. We await punishment with utmost care.

On the [day] of the [month] in the [year] of the [celestial cycle], we respectfully submit this petition with sincere devotion.

II. Petition to the Blood Lake (Main Text)

The Most High Primordial Altar submits this petition concerning [matter]. We have received the following report:

In the realm of Great Han, in [place] in [county], [prefecture], [circuit] of Sichuan, a person who resides there, follows the Dao, and has pledged allegiance, seeks to perform a purification retreat and petition for the Dharma for [person or purpose]. This is to deliver the deceased and rescue those sunk in the underworld, and to cultivate merit on behalf of the living. The family members share this intention and have submitted it to Heaven.

We reflect that the eighty thousand dark and frigid prisons have all received the wisdom and power of the Primal Venerable One, while the three thousand seas of sin all honor the compassionate benevolence of the Azure Pole. Therefore, the wondrous treasures of the Jade Registers shine forth, and the secret methods of the Golden Cords may be offered and proclaimed. We respectfully open this splendid altar feast, that blessings may reach the netherworld.

We, the family, humbly recall the deceased [name]: originally a person of upright nature and yang aspect, born on [year], [month], [day], at [hour], and raised in [place]. They lived to the age of [age] and died on [year], [month], [day], at [hour], from a childbirth calamity.

With grief we remember that their body was frail and weak. Just as they were about to give birth, they suffered the calamity in which neither mother nor child survived. Though they had only just entered the ten-month term of pregnancy, their life had already departed for the Nine Springs. We have therefore established a mourning and offering retreat to aid and support them in the realm of the dead.

Accordingly, we have chosen [day] of this month for the [number]th anniversary of the deceased [name’s] passing. We have asked Daoist priests to conduct at home one offering of the Great Blood Lake Retreat of the Supreme One’s Five Registers. The rite will be completed on [day]. The souls of [names] are also included in the deliverance, so that all may attain the realm of life. Such are the circumstances.

Our bureau has received this report. In addition to having already conducted the rites in accordance with the prescribed regulations, we should duly prepare this petition and submit it.

This petition must be transmitted. Respectfully forwarded.

III. Closing of the Petition (Recipient and Directive)

To the presiding deity of the Blood Lake and the Underworld Prison of Xiashi: please examine these circumstances in detail and take heed of this earnest request made through the retreat. In accordance with the talismanic mandate, release the soul of the deceased [name], and universally deliver all souls who died in childbirth and remain trapped in the underworld. Quickly remove their names from the registers of guilt and extinguish the roots of evil. They must not be detained; release them onward at the appointed time.

If the deceased [name] has not yet been granted pardon, then carry out this order as stated in the petition.

Notes for reading the petition:

Term	Meaning
Blood Lake	In Daoist liturgy, an underworld prison associated with blood and the calamities of childbirth. A “Blood Lake Retreat” is often performed to deliver souls who died in childbirth.
Petition	An official document sent by an altar bureau to underworld officials, ordering them to release souls.
Great Blood Lake Retreat of the Five Registers	A large scale rite of deliverance at the Blood Lake, conducted according to the liturgy of the Five Registers.
Underworld Prison of Xiashi	The name of a prison in the Blood Lake underworld. Its presiding deity is the prison’s ruler.
Deliverance / release onward	To rescue souls from the underworld and release them, allowing them to leave suffering.

This translation follows the form of the original petition and its talismanic mandate language, without adding doctrinal interpretation.

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Interpretation

An Accessible Reading of the Lingbao Ritual Documents

(Memorandum section)

I also ask that the examination be suspended for now, and that those who have gone before be brought here. May the recompense for their deeds be made clear, and may they be granted salvation and a way to new life. Respectfully submitted.

Issued on the _ day of the _ month, in the ___ year of the Heavenly Era.

Memorandum

Issued by the officiant in charge of the rites, acting as circumstances require: ___

Certified by Zhang ___, Patriarch, Master of the Three Heavens, True Lord of Zhengyi (Orthodox Unity)

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Petition for the Blood Lake

Your servant has heard that the light of compassion shines everywhere, illuminating even the capital of the rocky land; that supreme De (Virtue/Power), through Wuwei (non-action), makes its possessor the teacher of compassion. Whoever cultivates and honors the Dao will surely receive its luminous attention.

Your servant respectfully petitions on behalf of the people of the Great Han realm, Sichuan Province, including those from the following native place: ___. Your servant has been privileged to take part in the ritual teachings and has improperly received the robes and cap of office. Since I have received the petition offered in filial piety and faith, how could I fail to report it to the imperial throne?

I, your servant ___ (ritual name), am filled with awe and trepidation. I bow my head to the ground and prostrate myself a hundred times. With reverence, I address the Holy Presence of the Blood Lake’s presiding deity, the Perfected One of the Jeweled Countenance, the Celestial Worthy Whose Purple Clouds Float Like a Canopy:

May your grace open the long night, and may the rain of your teaching moisten what has withered. May your abundant kindness reach those sunk in torment, and may your compassionate vessel ferry the distressed and drowning to safety. When filial longing is truly deep, compassion will surely come to the rescue. For this reason, we have performed the rites and now earnestly appeal for your mercy.

The filial sons _ and others weep blood as they lay out their plea, asking that the departed soul of their late, beloved mother, née _, be commemorated through the rites. She was born in the year _, on the _ day of the _ month, at the hour of _. She was a native of _. She lived for _ years under the sun. Though the span of life is fixed by Heaven and the number of years is difficult to change, her allotted limit ended on the _ day of the _ month, in the year _, at the hour of _. She died at ___, now the site of her home.

We reflect that the six Dusts—the external objects of sight, sound, smell, taste, touch, and thought in Buddhist teaching—stained her throughout life, and that she committed many grave offenses. The three actions of body, speech, and mind brought her both honor and shame, yet were often defiled. Unaware of prohibitions and taboos while alive, after death she could hardly avoid sinking into torment.

Consider this: the offense of giving birth to girls and boys arises from circumstances that are far removed from the mother’s own feelings. The fault of defiling the household stove deity, however, is judged with complete impartiality. She could not avoid the duties of drawing water and grinding grain, and must inevitably have broken some of the rules of taboo. The feminine principle, Earth and Mother, bears guilt; the masculine virtue, Heaven and Father, is likewise brought to shame. The mother bears this grievance, and her child cannot bear it.

We look up and appeal for your compassion: bend your power toward her rescue and relief. We have chosen an auspicious day this month, the _ day, when the deceased will reach the _th stage of the rite. We rely on the officiant to perform the rite at ___.

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Note: This text is a petition used in the Daoist Blood Lake ritual. The Blood Lake is the hell to which, according to legend, women fall after death because of childbirth, menstruation, and related matters. A filial child performs purification rites for a deceased mother, submits a petition, and presents this formal appeal, asking the Celestial Worthy to pardon and deliver her. The memorandum is an official document authorizing the ritual; the petition recounts the deceased’s life and alleged offenses, and conveys the child’s grief as it asks the Celestial Worthy for compassionate salvation. The blanks in parentheses are filled in during the ceremony with names, native places, dates, and other details.

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Interpretation

A Vernacular Reading of the Lingbao Ritual Text

1. Establishing an Altar at Home and Carrying Out the Ritual According to the Liturgy

An altar is established at home, and the ritual is carried out in accordance with the liturgy.

One offering of the Great Blood Lake Purification Rite of the Most High Jade Register is performed without pause, day and night, and brought to completion indoors on a certain date.

A number of additional souls are included in the rite. Together, they are sincerely delivered across, so that all may attain rebirth. We humbly hope that Your Great Compassion will grant the plea of your servant. May your grace descend upon the underworld and cleanse the Blood Lake; may your decree reach the shadowy realm and clear away the rocky barriers. May the waters of blood become fragrant, and the polluted pools be transformed into lotus ponds. May precious rafts be boarded again and again, carrying all across the ford of confusion.

May the deceased person receiving the principal offering be washed clean of worldly defilement and find peace and freedom. May the additional souls included in the rite, together with the named departed, whether they are near or far, all share in the merit of purification. Those already delivered and those not yet delivered alike may receive its cleansing grace. Then, supported by divine light, they may join the sacred procession; perhaps they will leave the hells behind and walk in heaven.

Your servant has repeatedly trespassed against the sacred majesty. My heart is overwhelmed with urgent distress and trembling fear. I respectfully submit this memorial for your attention.

Submitted on a certain day of a certain month in a certain year of the Heavenly Cycle.

2. Petition for Performing the Blood Lake Purification Rite

(The format follows the previous text up to the words “passed away.”)

I reflect that my mother was born a woman, whose Qi was inherently weighted and impure. I have long worried that the taboos concerning the lesser and greater monthly periods might defile the household kitchen and halls. Wishing to avoid the offenses associated with her death, she observed a vegetarian fast. Many years have passed, yet her merit has not been enough to outweigh her former transgressions. It has been some time since she left the world, and her soul may be stranded and lost in the underworld.

Although the purification rite of the Blood Lake can dispel misfortune, it is difficult for a child to fully express filial devotion. Without relying on your gracious light, how could she be delivered from suffering? For this reason, I have respectfully prepared the ritual credentials and implements. On an auspicious day in a certain month, I will rely on the Dao and establish an altar at home, devoutly carrying out one offering at the Green Mystery Blood Lake Rite for Deliverance from Suffering and Rebirth. The rite will conclude on a certain date.

With filial devotion sincere and earnest, I will follow the teachings and perform the rite. I humbly hope that the High Perfected will graciously pardon her. I now present this petition and conduct the rite. In reverence, I prepare this written memorial and, bowing down a hundred times, submit it before the sacred presence of the Blood Lake’s presiding deity, the Treasure-Form Perfected One, the Celestial Worthy of the Violet Clouds and Floating Canopy. I humbly beg your benevolence to grant your clear approval.

May the merit of the scripture and rite be effective, and may filial devotion be fulfilled. May the offenses committed after death be dispelled and the sins from life released. May the root of wisdom sprout of itself, though none has been planted; may the burden of sin become truly empty, though it has not been emptied.

Brief Explanation

This text is a petition used in the Daoist Blood Lake Purification Rite, performed to deliver a deceased mother and resolve karmic offenses associated with the Blood Lake.

• Blood Lake: Daoist belief holds that menstrual and childbirth blood may fall into a Blood Lake in the underworld. Ritual purification and deliverance are required.
• Taboos concerning the lesser and greater monthly periods: Taboos associated with women’s menstruation and childbirth.
• Green Mystery Rite for Deliverance from Suffering and Rebirth in the Blood Lake: A rite of deliverance centered on the Celestial Worthy of Green Mystery, Savior from Suffering.
• The Blood Lake’s presiding deity, the Treasure-Form Perfected One, the Celestial Worthy of the Violet Clouds and Floating Canopy: The principal deity of the Blood Lake ritual.

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Interpretation

(First Section: Prayer for Deliverance and Intercession)

In the Pure Land, there is no covering or obstruction, only peace and joy; in the Great Luo Heaven, there is freedom and ease. We further pray that bonds of affinity not yet severed may be joined again in the future as family in the human world. May we also together deliver and intercede for departed relatives, so that the souls of the dead may voice their pleas, be freed from suffering, receive aid, and ascend.

For those sunk in a sea of suffering, may the prison gates be opened, and may they suddenly awaken to see that even the “Night Terrace”—a name for the underworld and the grave—can become as clear as daylight. Once they reach the farther shore of Bodhi, the sea of suffering will naturally be calm and still. May they soon arrive at the place of rebirth and ascend together to the highest grade. With earnest and trembling hearts, we respectfully submit this petition.

In the year, month, and day of the current celestial cycle

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(Petition concerning the Blood Lake: Deliverance for the Souls of Those Who Died in Childbirth)

The Successor to the Teaching, [minor petitioning priest] … (the religious name varies), respectfully submits this petition on behalf of the deliverance of the departed soul and the welfare of the living.

It is now reported that [name] of the Great Han realm, Sichuan Province (with the full details to be entered here), together with the family’s bereaved kin, bows in gratitude for the grace of the Primordial One, creator of transformation, and submits the following request:

The Daoist scriptures have opened wide, providing aid to both the living and the dead, and bringing benefit to people and spirits. Heaven’s grace delivers all; relying on the scriptures and ritual methods, the departed may ascend. Therefore, we have cultivated and upheld merit, and now especially beseech compassion. The filial son [name] and others, weeping bitterly as they set forth their plea, ask that rites be performed for the newly departed and for the true soul of their late, honored mother, Lady [name]. She was born in the year, month, day, and hour of [date], in the district of [place], and grew up there. She lived for [number] years in the world of the living. We do not know what grave offense brought this sudden calamity and suffering upon her; because of childbirth, her soul entered the Southern Branch—the realm of death and dreamlike spirits. We reflect on the boundless kindness of parents and grieve as we pray for deliverance through the aid of the Eastern Pole, the Savior from Suffering. Her allotted span ended in the year, month, day, and hour of [date], and she passed away in [place]. We sincerely fear that she may fall into the Blood Lake of Xiashi or the dark prison of primordial chaos, where she will suffer alongside her departed kin, beaten down and sunk beneath the sea. Without the aid of compassion to pull her free and cleanse her, how could she ascend?

We have therefore respectfully prepared ritual offerings and ordinary ceremonial items, and have chosen the auspicious day of [date] this month to begin. Relying on the Dao, we will establish at home an offering for the Great Blood Lake Rebirth Retreat of the Most High Jade Register, a ritual arena for rebirth, to be conducted for [number] days and nights, concluding on [date]. On that day, we will now put the written petition into effect and conduct the rites. For this purpose, we respectfully prepare this letter and bow low a hundred times.

With reverence, we address the Celestial Worthy, Master of the Blood Lake Teaching, Perfected One of the Treasure Image, Floating Canopy of Purple Clouds (before the sacred presence).

We humbly pray: In the Pure Land, may there be unbounded joy; in the Great Luo Heaven, freedom and ease. May bonds of affinity not yet severed be joined again in the future as family in the human world. May we also bring along the souls of the deceased relatives named above, so that they may together be delivered and interceded for, including those who have sunk into suffering. May the prison gates be opened, and may they suddenly awaken to see that even the Night Terrace can become clear as daylight. Once they reach the shore of Bodhi, the sea of suffering will naturally be calm and still. May they soon arrive at the place of rebirth and ascend together to the highest grade.

Our plea is most urgent, and we are filled with awe and trepidation. We respectfully submit this petition.

In the year, month, and day of the current celestial cycle

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Notes for Reading the Scripture

• Blood Lake: In Daoist understandings of the underworld, souls may fall into the “Blood Lake” and suffer because of offenses associated with difficult childbirth and blood pollution. A Blood Lake retreat is therefore performed and a Blood Lake petition submitted, seeking the Celestial Worthy’s aid in delivering them.
• Great Blood Lake Retreat of the Jade Register: A major Blood Lake ritual conducted according to the Jade Register liturgy of the Lingbao tradition.
• Celestial Worthy, Floating Canopy of Purple Clouds: One of the titles of the Celestial Worthy venerated in the Blood Lake tradition. In petitions, this title is often associated with the office of teaching master.
• Placeholders such as [name], place names, and dates are part of the ritual template. When the rites are performed, the names of the bereaved family and the deceased, along with the dates, are entered.

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Interpretation

(1) Petition Humbly Seeking Grace for Refining and Delivering the Dead to Rebirth

With vast benevolence, look upon us with compassion; I humbly offer my meager sincerity and pray.

By your decree, command the Great Goddess of the Jade Maidens of the Celestial River, who washes and purifies, together with the immortal officers who reconcile grievances and dispel defilement, to gather and raise up for proper deliverance the deceased (name), along with all those named who are attached to her in pursuit, including the female souls who died in childbirth and are confined in the Blood Lake. May they leave the dark realm and all arrive at the Flower Pool, where their bodies may be washed and cleansed. May they don robes of rosy clouds and ascend directly by the ritual bridge; may their souls be refined and forged, their nature made whole, so that they may be reborn in the Pure Land. May all attain pure Dharma bodies and ascend to the heavenly court. I, your humble petitioner, have no choice but to trespass upon the sovereign’s august authority. In utmost fear and trepidation, I await punishment. I respectfully submit this petition for your attention.

In the year, month, and day of the Celestial Era __

The successor to the teaching, the junior adept __ (religious name), respectfully submits this petition, seeking grace for refining and delivering the dead to rebirth.

A petition is now submitted from Sichuan, within the great Han realm (insert place of origin, as required), with offerings presented in sorrow for the deceased mother, née __. Her allotted life began in the year, month, day, and hour of __; her allotted span ended in the year, month, day, and hour of __, when she died in childbirth. I reflect that the murky Yin energies still cause the heavens to alternate between darkness and light, while all cover their noses at the foulness of blood and filth. If, in life, one has not polished away the grime, what place can there be for the immortal Way? If, after death, one’s soul is not forged and tempered, one remains forever among the ghosts. I truly fear that she may be held for long in the Blood Lake at the Stone Gorge and the dark prisons of the cold abyss, bound there and unable to rise beyond them.

Therefore, in reverent accordance with the sacred teaching, we have sincerely prepared an offering for a rite of relieving suffering and refining the dead. It begins on the day of __ in the month of __ and concludes on __. For this purpose, I have solemnly prepared this petition, prostrated myself twice, and presented it before the throne of the Perfected Lord of Nanchang Upper Palace, who tempers souls and forges spirits.

I respectfully hope that the sacred compassion will grant this sorrowful plea. May the light of grace guide her, so that she may enter the Flower Pool, be washed and refined, and be reborn. May divine water cleanse away her accumulated defilements, leaving her free and at ease. May she soon reach the scripture altar to receive deliverance and swiftly return to the peace and purity of the Pure Land. I, your humble petitioner, can only make this urgent and sorrowful plea. I respectfully submit it for your attention.

In the year, month, and day of the Celestial Era __

The successor to the teaching, the junior adept __ (religious name), respectfully submits this petition, seeking grace for cleansing defilement and delivering the dead to rebirth.

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(2) Petition Humbly Seeking Grace for Cleansing Defilement and Delivering the Dead to Rebirth

A petition is now submitted from Sichuan, within the great Han realm (insert place of origin, as required), with offerings presented in sorrow for the deceased mother, née __. Her allotted life began in the year, month, day, and hour of __; her allotted span ended in the year, month, day, and hour of __, when she died in childbirth. I reflect that the murky Yin energies still cause the heavens to alternate between darkness and light, while all cover their noses at the foulness of blood and filth. If, in life, one has not polished away the grime, what place can there be for the immortal Way? If, after death, one’s soul is not forged and tempered, one remains forever among the ghosts. I truly fear that she may be held for long in the Blood Lake at the Stone Gorge and the dark prisons of the cold abyss, bound there and unable to rise beyond them.

Therefore, in reverent accordance with the sacred teaching, we have sincerely prepared an offering for a rite of relieving suffering and refining the dead. It begins on the day of __ in the month of __ and concludes on __. For this purpose, I have solemnly prepared this petition, prostrated myself twice, and presented it before the throne of the Perfected Lord of Nanchang Upper Palace, who tempers souls and forges spirits.

I respectfully hope that the sacred compassion will grant this sorrowful plea. May the light of grace guide her, so that she may enter the Flower Pool, be washed and refined, and be reborn. May divine water cleanse away her accumulated defilements, leaving her free and at ease. May she soon reach the scripture altar to receive deliverance and swiftly return to the peace and purity of the Pure Land. I, your humble petitioner, can only make this urgent and sorrowful plea. I respectfully submit it for your attention.

In the year, month, and day of the Celestial Era __

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These petitions follow the Lingbao format for rites of refining the dead and cleansing defilement. They are addressed to the Great Goddess of the Jade Maidens of the Celestial River, who washes and purifies; the immortal officers who reconcile grievances and dispel defilement; and the Perfected Lord of Nanchang Upper Palace, who tempers souls and forges spirits. They ask that the deceased and the female souls who died in childbirth and are confined in the Blood Lake be gathered and delivered from the dark realm, brought to the Flower Pool for washing and refinement, clothed in robes of rosy clouds, and led upward by the ritual bridge, so that their souls may be refined and forged and they may be reborn in the Pure Land. The petition states that the petitioner’s mother died in childbirth and may be trapped in the Blood Lake or dark prisons, and therefore a rite to relieve suffering and refine the dead has been prepared. It pleads for grace to guide her, for divine water to cleanse her defilements, and for her to reach the scripture altar to receive deliverance and return to the Pure Land. The names, place of origin, dates, and similar details marked __ are blanks to be filled in.

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Interpretation

Classic: Lingbao Wenjian

Scripture (modern interpretation):

Following the prescribed format, arrange the offerings and submit the petition. With deep sorrow, we remember the deceased mother, née [name], whose original life record states that she was born in the [year], [month], [day], at [hour], and reached her appointed end—her death—in the [year], [month], [day], at [hour]. She died in childbirth. We privately reflect: with the impurity of childbirth still uncleansed, how can she travel to the blessed realm? Her body is unclean, making it difficult for her to attend the purification altar. Therefore, in obedience to the sacred teachings, we have established a merit feast for relieving suffering and refining the departed. Offerings have been arranged from the [day] of the [month] until the feast is concluded on the [day]. For this purpose, we respectfully prepare this petition, bow twice, and submit it before the officials and divine clerks of the Blood Lake Bureau in the underworld.

We humbly pray that you pardon and release her, and properly guide the deceased, née [name], together with the named female spirits attached to her and others, to the place of ritual bathing. May all manner of defilement be washed away, so that they may soon come to the altar and hear the confession rites. May the offerings made in the world of the living truly aid their deliverance, and may our filial devotion be fulfilled. We are deeply grateful. Respectfully submitted for your consideration.

In the year, month, and day of the Celestial Cycle

Petition for All Spirits Who Died Violently or Through Bloodshed

Your successor in the teaching, [minor ritualist], [name], religious name [name], respectfully submits this petition, seeking grace to refine and deliver the departed into rebirth.

Submitted from [native place], [district], Sichuan Province, under the Great Han realm.

Following the prescribed format, arrange the offerings and submit the petition. With deep sorrow, we remember the person who died violently, [name]. Their original life record states that they were born in the [year], [month], [day], at [hour], and grew up at [place]. Unexpectedly, in the [year], [month], [day], at [hour], they tragically died as a result of [circumstances]. We privately reflect: the path between life and death has claimed people in every age, yet those who receive the Mandate of Heaven at birth should, in principle, die a natural death. If demonic obstacles entangle them, foul influences cut their life short, enemies pursue them for vengeance, or their remains are incomplete, then their offenses are grave and difficult to repent. Now, fortunately, the Celestial Worthy of the Primordial Beginning has opened the gate of deliverance, providing all the departed with a path to transcendence. Without offerings and rites, how can sunken souls find release? We have therefore established a ritual feast to express our filial devotion. We respectfully select the auspicious [day] of the [month] to open the altar, and conclude the feast on the [day]. Our grief is beyond words; we can only beseech the True Lord Who Relieves Suffering at Nanchang to show compassion and graciously accept this petition. We bow twice and submit it.

The remaining sections follow the same format. For those who died violently, through bloodshed, or who are to undergo refinement, as well as for attached spirits and others, fill in the names, dates, and circumstances as required by the text.

Brief background:

This text belongs to the Lingbao school’s Zhaijiao liturgy and is a wenjian, a petition in a fixed format. The Blood Lake refers to an underworld bureau that holds spirits detained because of childbirth blood or other bloodshed. Refinement and deliverance refers to rites using water, fire, and other methods to release the departed. The place of ritual bathing is where the souls are cleansed before the altar. In liturgy, Nanchang often refers to the direction or realm of the Eastern Pole, associated with the Lord Who Relieves Suffering and the summoning and elevation of souls; it does not refer only to the geographical city of Nanchang. The bracketed placeholders are spaces to be filled in with names, birth details, dates of death, and circumstances.

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Interpretation

Under the Palace of the True Lord Who Forges Souls and Casts Spirits at the Upper Palace of Nanchang

With reverent hope,

May Your vast compassion pity those who suffer in the hidden realms. Set the furnace and cauldron within the Purple Court; work Water and Fire in the Flower Chamber. Let the ill-fated deceased (name) undergo refinement, that the body may rest upon a lotus and the form become radiant and pure; let them attain deliverance, their body like a jade tree and their heart and nature bright with light, beyond coming and going, birth and death. Words cannot express my awe and grief; I pray with all my heart and respectfully submit this petition for Your hearing.

In the year, month, and day of the Heavenly Cycle

The disciple of the Teaching, the humble petitioner (name), Dharma name (name), respectfully submits this petition on behalf of

According to the report now received:

In the territory of (county), Chengdu Prefecture, Sichuan Province, under the Great Han realm, those who follow the Dao have submitted a plea, seeking grace to refine and deliver the deceased, raise them up, and send them toward life. Their filial descendants and family members have undertaken this memorial cultivation; on this day, in sorrow, they respectfully make their appeal to Heaven.

It is truly pitiable that eight myriads of cold, dark waters surge in vast waves, drowning those who fall into them; yet there is hope that, through refinement by Fire, those in the three thousand seas of karma may be raised up. We wish to offer aid and merit on their behalf, relying upon Your compassionate benevolence. We humbly reflect upon

the departed:

Their spirit suffers grievously, for they were of the delicate frame of a woman, with a body frail as the willow. Who could have thought that the first sign of a bear’s dream—pregnancy and birth—would end only in the misfortune of an owl’s omen? Their life fell to the Yellow Springs, their body sank into the Great Night. Without the power of the Dao to raise them up, how could the cause of their sorrow be resolved? Therefore, on the auspicious day of this month, we have called upon ritual masters to establish the great Jade Register Blood Lake Retreat. It will continue for one full day and night, concluding on (date). Within the rite, we will also deliver the deceased kin and isolated spirits of the lineage, so that all may together attain the realm of life. Now that we are ascending the altar and performing the rites of the Dao, we must submit this petition and make our appeal known.

We respectfully submit the above

before the Holy Presence. We humbly beg for Your benevolence and compassion, and that You graciously grant approval. May they understand the Three Emptinesses and swiftly be freed from the Five Defilements; may they bow before the Golden Countenance and swiftly enter the wondrous, majestic realm; may they hear the jade verses and suffer no stain or transgression. Respectfully submitted.

Petition drawn up on the year, month, and day of the Heavenly Cycle

True Talisman of the Jade Light of Lingbao, Which Rescues the Suffering, Cleanses the Blood Lake, and Grants Pardon

This talisman is proclaimed to:

The lords of the Three Realms and Nine Hells, the great and small Iron Enclosures, the endless cold depths, and the Blood Lake Hell; and the Great Spirit Who Turns the Body and Casts Aside Corpses.

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Interpretation

The Ghost King Who Feeds on Hearts and Devours Fetuses, the Ghost King Who Forces Others to Drink Foul Blood, and the others shall all obey the talismanic command, rescuing and delivering the souls of the deceased. They shall quickly leave impurity and evil behind, behold the light, wash away accumulated karma, cleanse and refine their forms, and ascend to the Southern Palace.

This proclamation is to be transmitted swiftly by wind and fire, like a post station dispatch.

Issued on the [blank] day of the [blank] month, in the [blank] year of the Celestial Cycle.

The affairs of this rite for delivering the dead are entrusted to (name), who shall carry them out in accordance with the proper procedures.

The Compassionate Father of the Eastern Palace, the Celestial Worthy of Great Unity Who Responds to Cries and Rescues from Suffering, presides over the covenant.

Notes:

The Ghost King Who Feeds on Hearts and Devours Fetuses and the Ghost King Who Forces Others to Drink Foul Blood are names of ghost kings in Lingbao liturgies. They symbolize authority in the netherworld; here, they signify that the ghost kings obey the command and do not obstruct deliverance.

A talismanic command is an order for salvation issued through talismans and liturgies in the Lingbao tradition.

The souls of the deceased refers to the spirits of those who have died.

Accumulated karma is the karmic burden accrued during life.

To cleanse and refine the form means to purify and transform the soul through Daoist methods, making it fit to receive deliverance.

The Southern Palace often refers in Daoism to the Eastern Pure Land of Wonderful Joy, where the Celestial Worthy of Great Unity Who Rescues from Suffering resides. The text nevertheless calls it the “Southern Palace,” which is retained here in accordance with the original. In conjunction with “ascend,” it also signifies the soul’s ascent to heaven and release from suffering.

Transmission by wind and fire describes a proclamation being issued with the speed of a post station dispatch.

The affairs of the rite for delivering the dead means the work of conducting a liturgy for the salvation of the dead.

The Compassionate Father of the Eastern Palace, the Celestial Worthy of Great Unity Who Responds to Cries and Rescues from Suffering, is the Celestial Worthy who presides over and oversees the act of deliverance, rescuing those who suffer as soon as he hears their cries.

To preside over the covenant means to oversee the covenant vows and supervise the conduct of the liturgy.

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