Dōngchú sīmìng dēngyí 東廚司命燈儀
Lamp Ritual for the Director of Destiny of the Eastern Kitchen
Anonymous Sòng–Yuán Daoist dēngyí 燈儀, five folios, preserved in the Zhèngtǒng Dàozàng 正統道藏 (DZ 0208 / CT 208 = TC 207), 洞真部 威儀類, sharing a Dàozàng fascicle with [[KR5a0208|DZ 207 Tǔsī dēngyí]].
About the work
A five-folio lamp-liturgy for the Stove-God and his retinue. The opening invocation names the full pantheon of the stove: the Director of Destiny of the Eastern Kitchen (Dōngchú sīmìng Zàojūn 東廚司命竈君), the Five-Direction Five-Emperor Stove-Gods and their ladies (Wǔfāng wǔdì zàojūn fūrén 五方五帝竈君夫人), the Celestial-Kitchen Numinous Stove and Earthly-Kitchen Divine Stove (Tiānchú língzào 天廚靈竈 / Dìchú shénzào 地廚神竈), the thirty-six zàojūn, the gods of the new and old stoves, the Mother of Steaming and Washing (Chuī táo shénmǔ 炊淘神母), the Water-Drawing General (Yùnshuǐ jiāngjūn 運水將軍), and all the stove-taboo spirits. A prose introduction explains that “the Stove is the head of the household: he inquires into errors and judges sins; the importance of his position is not light, and the respect owed him is heavy.” The officiant (jiàoguān 醮官) then lights five lamps — each tied to the invocation of the Director of Destiny of the Eastern Kitchen and the Stove-God of one of the Five Directions (Dōngfāng jiǎyǐ Qīngdì zàojūn 東方甲乙青帝竈君, and so on) — with prose fúyǐ 伏以 invocations, pledges of refuge, and praise-quatrains.
Prefaces
Opening invocation: “Burning incense and lighting lamps in offering to: the primary voice, the Director of Destiny of the Eastern Kitchen Stove-Lord; the Five-Direction Five-Emperor Stove-Lords; the Five-Emperor Stove-Lords’ Consorts; the Heavenly-Kitchen Numinous Stove; the Earthly-Kitchen Divine Stove; the Thirty-Six Stove-Lords; the gods of new and old stoves; the Mother of Steaming and Washing; the General of Drawing Water; all the taboo-spirits within the stove — all the sundry numina now assembled, by virtue of this true incense together receive this common offering. Reverently I have heard: Heaven is lord of the hundred gods, punishing the licentious and blessing the good; the Stove is master of a single household, correcting errors and warning against faults — his office is not small, and the respect shown him not to be light. On this lucky day I offer up my paltry sincerity; before the cassia wine is poured into the golden cup, orchid-stick incense is first burned in the precious tripod — I hope you will deign to incline your ear and listen to my supplication…”
Abstract
John Lagerwey, in Schipper & Verellen eds., The Taoist Canon (2004) 2:968 (§3.B.1, Zhèngyī), identifies the rite as part of the Dàozàng series of lamp-rituals (DZ 197–214). The Dōngchú (“Eastern Kitchen”) of the title probably connects the cult to the Eastern Peak (Tàishān 泰山), a major administrator of destiny and judgment. Lagerwey notes that the present text is probably later than [[KR5c0069|DZ 69 Tàishàng dòngzhēn ānzào jīng]]. A nearly complete translation and detailed study is provided in Robert Chard, “Master of the Family: History and Identity in the Chinese Stove Cult” (doctoral dissertation, UC Berkeley, 1990), 232–243. The frontmatter brackets composition broadly 1100–1400, accommodating the span of the series.
Translations and research
Near-complete translation with study: Robert Chard, “Master of the Family: History and Identity in the Chinese Stove Cult” (Ph.D. diss., UC Berkeley, 1990), 232–243. Standard scholarly entry: John Lagerwey, “Dongchu siming dengyi,” in Schipper & Verellen eds., The Taoist Canon (2004), Vol. 2 §3.B.1, 968. On the Stove-God in Daoism: Robert Chard, “The Imperial Household Cults,” in Joseph P. McDermott ed., State and Court Ritual in China (Cambridge University Press, 1999), 237–266.
Links
- Kanseki Repository KR5a0209
- Schipper & Verellen, The Taoist Canon (2004), Vol. 2 §3.B.1, 968.