Scripture for Aiding the Multitude 太上济众经
Paul PengScripture for Aiding the Multitude
The author is unknown.
It is believed to have been compiled in the late Northern and Southern Dynasties or between the Sui and Tang dynasties.
The original number of volumes is unknown.
Scripture for Aiding the Multitude
Two incomplete Dunhuang manuscripts survive: one is P2499, titled "Eighth Scroll of the Taishang Jizhong Jing," preserving 30 lines of the scripture; the other is P2792, titled "Twenty-Fourth Scroll of the Taishang Jizhong Jing," with 64 lines remaining. Both manuscripts are severely fragmented, making it difficult to discern the original core purpose of the scripture. From the surviving text, the P2499 manuscript exhorts rulers to instruct the people to cultivate virtue and accumulate good deeds in pursuit of "the blessings of peace." The P2792 manuscript also discusses how to educate the masses to achieve harmony and attain the Taoist path of immortality and longevity. The Xu Daozang (Supplementary Taoist Canon), a continuation of the Daozang, includes a one-volume work titled Taishang Dongxuan Jizhong Jing (Supreme Cavernous Mystery Scripture of Benefiting All Beings), whose content differs from the Dunhuang manuscripts. See that entry for details.
