The Hierarchical System of Taoist Deities
paulpeng
The pantheon of Taoist deities is particularly extensive. Apart from a limited number of deities such as the Three Pure Ones and the Four Sovereigns, who can be ranked in a certain order, the status of many deities is not only unclear to ordinary people, but also not well understood by insiders of Taoism. This is not surprising, because the sources of Taoist deities are diverse, including the inheritance of ancient Chinese beliefs, the succession of deity figures in ancient books, and the transformation of historical figures. It is indeed not easy to distinguish their ranks. For example, the Great Emperor of Fusang in Taoism seems to have a very high status judging from the name, but what about the actual situation?
Although it is not easy to distinguish the ranks, there is an important aspect of Taoist activities, that is, the ritual of fasting, and the objects of worship in this ritual are the Taoist deities. To meet this need, Jin Yunzhong, a Taoist priest in the Southern Song Dynasty, finally completed a systematic ranking of Taoist deities. In his "Great Law of Supreme Purity and Numinous Treasure", he divided the list of 360 Taoist deities into a total of eleven ranks according to their nature and grade.
Needless to say, the first rank is the Three Pure Ones and the Four Sovereigns. These are the top existences in the genealogy of Taoist deities.
The second rank includes the Great Emperor of Longevity of the Southern Pole, the Celestial Sovereign Who Relieves Sufferings of the Eastern Pole, the Lord of Wood Avenue, the Golden Mother Yuanjun, and the 32 Celestial Sovereigns of Each Heaven; each Celestial Sovereign of a heaven, as well as the early Taoist deities such as the Eastern Duke and the Western Queen Mother, belong to this rank. The Lord of Wood Avenue is the Eastern Duke, and the Golden Mother is the Western Queen Mother. There is a legend in the Han Dynasty that when ordinary people cultivate to become immortals, they must first pay their respects to the Western Queen Mother and the Eastern Duke. It is said that one should "wear a blue dress, enter the gate of heaven, bow to the Golden Mother, and worship the Lord of Wood Avenue."
The third rank consists of the Ten Great Yuis, the Sun, the Moon, the Five Planets, the Big Dipper, and the 28 Constellation Stars; this is a remnant of the ancient worship of stars. Especially the Big Dipper, it has a special position in Taoism. The main talismans of many talismans are the Big Dipper. It is said in Taoism that the Southern Dipper bestows life, while the Northern Dipper controls death.
The fourth rank includes the Five Emperors, the Three Officials, and the Four Saints; the Five Emperors are the deification of historical legendary figures, the Three Officials are the earliest deities worshiped by the Five Pecks of Rice Taoism, and the Four Saints are represented by the Great God of True Martial Arts.
The fifth rank is for the famous masters who have passed down scriptures in successive generations. Taoism still shows favoritism towards its own people, and Zhang Tianshi, etc. are placed in the fifth rank.
The sixth rank includes the Demon Kings, the Spirit Kings, and the Immortal Officials.
The seventh rank is for the gods of the Five Great Mountains and the Fengdu Underworld; the Great Emperor of Mount Tai and other deities originally had a very high status, but later with the introduction of the concept of hell, their situation in the immortal realm became worse and worse, and they were relegated to the seventh rank.
The eighth rank is for the Great Emperor of Fusang and the gods of the Water Palaces; the Great Emperor of Fusang, with the title of "Great Emperor", actually only governs a certain water palace and is placed in the eighth rank.
The ninth rank is for the masters and gods of departments such as the Celestial Axis Court, the Demon-Expelling Court, and the Thunder Department; after the Song Dynasty, the Five Thunder Method became an essential skill for Taoist priests. Therefore, the gods of the Thunder Department were able to be listed separately and became the deities of the ninth rank.
The tenth rank is for various kinds of merit officials, messengers, golden boys, jade girls, incense officials, and servants; these are the deities who do the hard labor in the immortal realm, so they are placed in the tenth rank.
The eleventh rank is for the lowest-level deities, who are also the familiar City God, Earth God, and their subordinate gods. This can be regarded as unremarkable in the immortal realm.
Although it is not easy to distinguish the ranks, there is an important aspect of Taoist activities, that is, the ritual of fasting, and the objects of worship in this ritual are the Taoist deities. To meet this need, Jin Yunzhong, a Taoist priest in the Southern Song Dynasty, finally completed a systematic ranking of Taoist deities. In his "Great Law of Supreme Purity and Numinous Treasure", he divided the list of 360 Taoist deities into a total of eleven ranks according to their nature and grade.
Needless to say, the first rank is the Three Pure Ones and the Four Sovereigns. These are the top existences in the genealogy of Taoist deities.
The second rank includes the Great Emperor of Longevity of the Southern Pole, the Celestial Sovereign Who Relieves Sufferings of the Eastern Pole, the Lord of Wood Avenue, the Golden Mother Yuanjun, and the 32 Celestial Sovereigns of Each Heaven; each Celestial Sovereign of a heaven, as well as the early Taoist deities such as the Eastern Duke and the Western Queen Mother, belong to this rank. The Lord of Wood Avenue is the Eastern Duke, and the Golden Mother is the Western Queen Mother. There is a legend in the Han Dynasty that when ordinary people cultivate to become immortals, they must first pay their respects to the Western Queen Mother and the Eastern Duke. It is said that one should "wear a blue dress, enter the gate of heaven, bow to the Golden Mother, and worship the Lord of Wood Avenue."
The third rank consists of the Ten Great Yuis, the Sun, the Moon, the Five Planets, the Big Dipper, and the 28 Constellation Stars; this is a remnant of the ancient worship of stars. Especially the Big Dipper, it has a special position in Taoism. The main talismans of many talismans are the Big Dipper. It is said in Taoism that the Southern Dipper bestows life, while the Northern Dipper controls death.
The fourth rank includes the Five Emperors, the Three Officials, and the Four Saints; the Five Emperors are the deification of historical legendary figures, the Three Officials are the earliest deities worshiped by the Five Pecks of Rice Taoism, and the Four Saints are represented by the Great God of True Martial Arts.
The fifth rank is for the famous masters who have passed down scriptures in successive generations. Taoism still shows favoritism towards its own people, and Zhang Tianshi, etc. are placed in the fifth rank.
The sixth rank includes the Demon Kings, the Spirit Kings, and the Immortal Officials.
The seventh rank is for the gods of the Five Great Mountains and the Fengdu Underworld; the Great Emperor of Mount Tai and other deities originally had a very high status, but later with the introduction of the concept of hell, their situation in the immortal realm became worse and worse, and they were relegated to the seventh rank.
The eighth rank is for the Great Emperor of Fusang and the gods of the Water Palaces; the Great Emperor of Fusang, with the title of "Great Emperor", actually only governs a certain water palace and is placed in the eighth rank.
The ninth rank is for the masters and gods of departments such as the Celestial Axis Court, the Demon-Expelling Court, and the Thunder Department; after the Song Dynasty, the Five Thunder Method became an essential skill for Taoist priests. Therefore, the gods of the Thunder Department were able to be listed separately and became the deities of the ninth rank.
The tenth rank is for various kinds of merit officials, messengers, golden boys, jade girls, incense officials, and servants; these are the deities who do the hard labor in the immortal realm, so they are placed in the tenth rank.
The eleventh rank is for the lowest-level deities, who are also the familiar City God, Earth God, and their subordinate gods. This can be regarded as unremarkable in the immortal realm.
