Supreme Mystic Seal Scripture 太上通玄灵印经

Author unknown.

It was presumably compiled between the Tang and Song dynasties. One volume, included in the Methods category of The Dongshen Section of The Daozang.

This book teaches the magical arts of summoning and commanding the Six Ding and Eight Histories. Its contents can be divided into two parts. The first half begins with diagrams of seals: the Spirit-Communicating Seal, Ghost-Subduing Seal, Ghost-Governing Seal, Ghost-Summoning Seal, and others. It also falsely attributes to Laozi the explanation of the use and divine efficacy of the Spirit-Communicating Seal, claiming that this seal is the foundation of all magical arts. By properly using the talismans, seals, and incantations, one can summon the Eight Histories (the Eight Trigrams) and the Six Ding Jade Maidens for protection, and make them fetch gold, silver, treasures, and immortal herbs for the practitioner. It is even said that “moving mountains, draining seas, summoning thunder and lightning, shrouding heaven and earth in darkness, making the sun and moon fall, raising clouds and bringing rain—all these can be commanded by this Spirit-Communicating Seal.”

The second half falsely attributes to Master Zhuge the teachings of the Spirit-Communicating and Ghost-Commanding Method. It mainly consists of applying talismans and reciting incantations to drive ghosts and spirits to fetch gold, silver, and immortal herbs, turn beans into soldiers, see hidden treasures from a thousand li away, become invisible and transform at will, gather birds, sparrows, dragons, serpents, fish, and turtles, and other quite miraculous feats.