Supreme Secret Talismans for Dwelling Protection 太上秘法镇宅灵符

The author is unknown, and the text was presumably compiled in the The Tang Dynasty.

Consisting of one scroll, it is included in the Talisman category of the The Dongzhen Section within The Daozang.

Supreme Secret Talismans for Dwelling Protection

This text expounds on the art of using talismans to pacify and protect dwellings. It quotes The Upper Yuan Scripture, recounting that Emperor Wen of the Han Dynasty visited the residence of the Three Fools and asked the owner how he could live in peace in an inauspicious house. The owner replied that two scholars had once taught him seventy-two household pacifying talismans, saying that "using these talismans to pacify a dwelling will bring great wealth and honor in ten years, prosperous offspring in twenty years, and a ruler from common birth will enter the house in thirty years". Emperor Wen then issued an imperial order to uphold these talismans and spread them throughout the realm.

The text lists the diagram of the Xuanji Eight Trigrams and seventy-two talismans for pacifying dwellings that repel ghosts and ward off evil spirits. It also details the days when deities descend each month, the corresponding ritual offerings, and the foods to be avoided. This work embodies the Taoist art of invoking deities, imposing bans and subduing evil forces.