The Register of the Eight Sceneries of the Supreme Mystery (Tàixuán Bājǐng Lù), an early talismanic text of the Shangqing School, is believed to have been compiled during the Northern and Southern Dynasties.
Consisting of one scroll, it is included in the Methods category of the Dongzhen Grotto (Dòngzhēn Bù) in the Daoist Canon (Dàozàng). The scripture is pseudonymously attributed to the Primordial Heavenly Lord (Yuánshǐ Tiānzūn), who is said to have transmitted it to the Holy Emperor of the Golden Tower (Jīnquè Hòushèng Dìjūn) and the Limitless Dao Lord (Wújí Dàojūn). It contains the Eight Sceneries Talismans (Bājǐng Fúlù).
The so-called "Eight Sceneries" refer to eight true gods residing in each of the three regions of the human body (upper, middle, and lower), who govern the vital energy (shēngqì) of the Three Yuans (Sān Yuán: upper, middle, and lower) within the body respectively.
This text elaborately records the spiritual talismans, names, attire colors, incantations of these Three Regions and Eight Sceneries Regions and Eight Sceneries True Gods, as well as the number of immortal officials and their mounts under each god's jurisdiction. It also includes ten characters of the true cloud scripts (yúnzhuàn zhēnwén) for each of the three regions, along with the names and talismanic texts of the Five Spiritual Demon Kings (Wǔlíng Mówáng) corresponding to the colors green, red, yellow, white, and black.
It is claimed that if cultivators contemplate the gods and ingest the talismans in accordance with the prescribed methods, the Three Regions and Eight Sceneries True Gods will naturally manifest themselves. Thousands of chariots and ten thousand riders will bring forth auspicious clouds (jǐngyún) to carry the cultivator upward and ascend to the Shangqing Realm (Supreme Clarity Realm).
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