Rite for Examining Talismans (Provisional Title) (Yue Lu Yi) has an unknown author and was presumably compiled during the Northern and Southern Dynasties or the transition period between the Sui and Tang Dynasties.
Two incomplete Dunhuang manuscripts, P2394 and S1020, have survived, with both their opening and closing parts missing; together, they preserve approximately 110 lines of the text.
The original manuscripts had no title. Based on its content, Yue Lu Yi (Rite for Examining Talismans) was provisionally named by Ōbuchi Shinji in his work A Catalog of Taoist Texts from Dunhuang. This text records the talisman-examining ritual of early Celestial Master Taoism.
Practitioners inspect the names of various immortals, administrative spirits, messengers, generals, as well as divine soldiers and officers recorded in the talismans they wear, recite these names, and pray for protection for themselves and deliverance from disasters and hardships.
Texts such as The Supreme Orthodox Unity Rite for Examining Talismans and The Supreme Three-in-One Five-in-Unity Orthodox Unity Alliance of Mystical Powers: Rite for Examining Talismans, which are included in the Wei Yi Lei (Ritual Protocols Category) of the Dong Shen Bu (Mystery of the Caverns Section) in the Daozang, share similar content with these Dunhuang manuscripts but differ in wording.
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