Tai Shang Ji Du Zhang She 太上济度章赦

Author unknown.

Judging from its textual content and linguistic style, this text is believed to have been compiled during the Tang Dynasty.

Comprising three volumes, it is included in theTablet and Memorial Sectionof theDongzhen Divisionin theDaozang(Daoist Canon).

The first and second volumes collect thirty-two memorial texts, includingMemorial for Extending Life and Resolving Calamities,Memorial for Expressing Gratitude and Pacifying Dwellings,Memorial for Atoning Sins and Praying for Rain,Memorial for Praying for Offspring,Memorial for Praying for Official Emoluments, andMemorial for Averting Fire Disasters. These texts were applied in various Taoist rituals of fasting, supplication, and disaster-averting. Additionally, there are sixteen official standard formulas for general supplication memorials, which were used to pray to deities for blessings such as protecting silkworms, ensuring safe pregnancies, driving away thieves, safeguarding livestock, settling official lawsuits, dispelling evil spirits, ensuring safe long journeys, and resolving karmic grievances.

The third volume contains three types of memorial texts, namelyJade Pure Great Amnesty,Green Mystery Great Amnesty, andPrecious Amnesty with the Honorific Titles of the Jade Emperor. These texts were utilized in fasting rituals for delivering the souls of the deceased, to pray to deities for pardoning the sins of the departed.