The Deng Zhongxiu 邓仲修
Paul PengShare
Deng Zhongxiu was a native of Linchuan (now part of Jiangxi Province) during the Yuan and Ming dynasties.
His courtesy name was Zhongxiu, and he became known by this name. He styled himself Yunlin.
At the age of twelve, he entered Ziwei Courtyard and paid homage to Liu Jingbin as his teacher.
At eighteen, he received a certificate to become a Taoist priest. He once traveled abroad and encountered a Taoist on the rocks of Xianyan; he treated him as a teacher, who then taught him the methods of regulating Yin and Yang and expelling ghosts and spirits. Later, he also learned the theories of nature and destiny, as well as the esoteric methods of the Dragon-Tiger Elixir, from Jin Zhiyang, a hermit known as Ye'an.
From then on, his reputation in Taoism grew day by day. He was recommended to the imperial court, officially appointed as the Supervisor of Xuanmiao Temple in Wenzhou, and served as the abbot of Longxiang Palace in Hangzhou. Many people from all over the country came to learn his Taoism. In the fourth year of the Hongwu era (1371), when Celestial Master Zhang Zhengchang of Longhu Mountain was summoned to the capital for an audience, Zhongxiu accompanied him.
In the fifth year (1372), there was a severe drought in the capital. The emperor ordered Zhongxiu to set up an altar and perform the ritual to summon wind and thunder. Soon after, heavy rain fell. The emperor favored him greatly, bestowing poems and the imperial annotated Tao Te Ching upon him, and ordered him to compile sacrificial rituals together with Song Zongzhen, the abbot of Chaotian Palace, for popular use.
In the tenth year (1377), he was ordered to go to Kuaiji to offer sacrifices to Emperor Yu and the Mausoleum of Emperor Song Fumu. Later, he returned to the capital and resided in the imperial vicinity, practicing Taoism in the world with remarkable efficacy. By order of Emperor Taizu of the Ming Dynasty, he compiled The Established Rituals for Taoist Sacrificial Ceremonies of the Great Ming together with Song Zongzhen, Fu Ruolin, and others.
(From Annals of Longhu Mountain)
About the Author
Paul Peng
Paul Peng is a Zhengyi Taoist priest from Longhu Mountain, Jiangxi — the ancestral home of the Celestial Masters' tradition. Ordained at 25 after a dream from the Celestial Master, he has practiced for 25 years under Master Zeng Guangliang. He is one of the curators of this store, which is officially authorized by Tianshi Fu. All items are consecrated at the temple by the resident priest team.
Read his full story →
