Patriarchal Ordination Rites of the Divine Empyrean 高上神霄宗师受经式

Author unknown.

Judging from its content, it was presumably compiled by Taoist priests of the Shenxiao Sect in the late Northern Song Dynasty.

One scroll, included in the Zhengyi Section of the Daozang.

 

Patriarchal Ordination Rites of the Divine Empyrean

This book records the secret scripture catalogue of the Divine Firmament Palace and the ritual for receiving scriptures. In the late Northern Song Dynasty, Emperor Huizong of Song favoured the Taoist priest Lin Lingsu, established the "Daoist Studies", and ordered Lin Lingsu and others to compile Taoist texts in the name of the secret collection of the Heavenly Divine Firmament Palace. Emperor Huizong also personally compiled Annotations on the Dao De Jing, and formulated the golden book sacrifice rituals and the step-vacant odes. This book reflects the contents of the Taoist texts compiled at that time.

It first lists the contents of the sixty scrolls of The Lingbao Scripture for Delivering All Beings; the titles in its catalogue are roughly the same as those of the sixty-one scrolls of The Scripture for Delivering All Beings recorded in the Dongzhen Section of the Daozang, though the order differs slightly. It also records the titles of such texts as The Secret Talisman of the Supreme Divine Firmament Jade Pure Realm, The Step-Vacant Movement Odes and The Secret Talisman of Recording Sagehood in the Divine Firmament.

It then elaborates on the rituals and ceremonies for transmitting the secret scriptures of the Divine Firmament Palace. It is stated that the Divine Firmament Palace houses more than twelve hundred scrolls of secret precious scriptures, classified into three ranks of upper, middle and lower, six classes and ten grades. A Divine Firmament patriarch who has received all the scriptures and methods of the upper rank is titled "the Master of the Three Heavens and Cavern Vistas of the Divine Firmament"; one who has received all those of the middle rank is "the Master of Cavern Transformation of the Divine Firmament"; and one who has received all those of the lower rank is "the Master of Primordial Transformation of the Divine Firmament". Each title corresponds to distinct Taoist appellations, divine positions, as well as headgear, costumes and ornaments.

This book possesses considerable historical value for the study of the scripture and talisman transmission system of the Shenxiao Sect in the Song Dynasty.