Huánglù jiùkǔ shízhāi zhuǎnjīng yí 黃籙救苦十齋轉經儀
Scripture-Recitation Liturgy of the Ten-Fast Salvation-from-Suffering Yellow-Register
About the work
First of a group of six short Huánglù 黃籙 mortuary liturgies (DZ 509–514 = KR5b0212–KR5b0217) organised under a unifying chǎng 場 (“venue”) numeration. The opening rubric identifies the work as chǎng 1 of the series (黃籙救苦十齋轉經儀場一). The series provides specialised single-rite supplements to the major Huánglù programmes of KR5b0210 (Dù Guāngtíng) and KR5b0211 (Jiǎng Shūyú / Liú Yòngguāng).
Abstract
The shízhāi 十齋 (“ten fasts”) referred to in the title are the ten lunar fast-days of the Daoist calendar, on which the deceased’s accumulated gōngdé 功德 is reviewed by the Tàiyī jiùkǔ tiānzūn 太一救苦天尊. The rite consists of zhùxiāng 祝香 (incense-blessing) sequences alternating with the zhuǎnjīng 轉經 (“turning of the scripture”, i.e. recitation of the Jiùkǔ jīng), each dedicated to one of the sānbǎo 三寶 (Three Jewels: dàobǎo 道寳, jīngbǎo 經寳, shībǎo 師寳) and to specific salvific aims — preservation of the imperial mandate, deliverance of the named deceased, release of the sāntú liùqù 三塗六趣 (three paths and six destinations of rebirth). The closing dedication is to the Tàiyī jiùkǔ tiānzūn and the Qīngxuán shàngdì, the standard Huánglù salvific deities. The rite is short and was designed for the periodic mortuary observances of the family, rather than the full multi-day zhāi.
Per Schipper & Verellen (Taoist Canon 2: 1011, John Lagerwey, DZ 509), the work is a SòngYuán composition transmitted through the Míng Zhèngtǒng dàozàng.
Translations and research
- Schipper, Kristofer, and Franciscus Verellen, eds. The Taoist Canon: A Historical Companion to the Daozang. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2004. 2: 1011 (DZ 509, entry by John Lagerwey).