The Ling Bao Ben Xing Su Yuan Jing 太上洞玄灵宝本行宿缘经

Formerly known as The Scripture of Inquiries by the Left Immortal Lord of the Supreme Ultimate, it is one of the ancient Numinous Treasure Scriptures of Taoism, probably compiled in the late Eastern Jin Dynasty and early Southern Dynasties.

It was already recorded in Lu Xiujing’s Catalogue of Numinous Treasure Scriptures.

The original text consists of two scrolls: a Dunhuang manuscript copy (No. S1351) exists for the upper scroll; the lower scroll is included in the Taiping Section of the Daoist Canon, with its title erroneously recorded as "Scripture of Original Deeds and Karmic Affinities".

The upper scroll of the book is pseudonymously framed as a dialogue in which the Left Immortal Lord of the Supreme Ultimate (Ge Xuan) asks the "Supreme Lord Laozi, the Peerless Dharma Master" about matters concerning cultivating good deeds and merits for spiritual practice.

Laozi replies that for those pursuing the Dao, cultivating virtue and doing good deeds is the foremost priority, followed by observing fasts and practicing breath regulation. Without accumulating good merits, even secluding oneself in mountain forests for cultivation will be in vain. The so-called good merits include honoring one’s master by organizing fasting ceremonies, copying scriptures and making statues of deities, lighting lamps and burning incense, encouraging goodness and saving sentient beings, relieving the poor and curing the sick, and ensuring that rulers, ministers, fathers, sons, husbands, wives, and brothers all abide by ethical norms and moral principles. If one can maintain pure fasting, recite scriptures, cultivate the Dao and uphold proper conduct, immortality will be attained naturally, and there is no need to hide in mountain thickets.

The lower scroll of the scripture is presented as Ge Xuan inquiring of the "Supreme Ultimate True Person, the Supreme Dharma Master" about the karmic affinities predestined from past lives that shape human existence. It states that every person has their own fundamental karmic destiny rooted in past deeds, and their life fortune varies according to the good or evil acts committed in previous lifetimes.

Retributions for sins and merits follow like a shadow, spanning three lifetimes: those who cultivate the Dao and observe precepts will receive blessings in their next life; those who commit evil and violate precepts will suffer corporal punishment and torment in this life, descend into hell after death, and be reborn as lowly servants, border barbarians, or people with disabilities in their next life. The core purpose of the entire book is to urge people to cultivate the Dao and perform good deeds.