Tài shàng shuō xuán tiān dà shèng Zhēn wǔ běn zhuàn shén zhòu miào jīng 太上說玄天大聖真武本傳神咒妙經
Sacred Scripture Spoken by the Most High on the Origin and Spells of the Great Sage Zhēn wǔ of the Mysterious Heaven
Anonymous (SòngYuán revealed scripture with Chén Zhōng 陳仲 commentary)
A SòngYuán Daoist revealed scripture on Zhēn wǔ 真武 — the “True Martial” deity, cosmic protector of the North — with an integrated commentary by Chén Zhōng 陳仲. Preserved in the Zhèngtǒng Dàozàng as DZ 754 / CT 754 (Dòngshén bù, Yù jué lèi 洞神部玉訣類) in 7 juàn.
About the work
The Zhēn wǔ cult
Zhēn wǔ 真武 (also called Xuán wǔ 玄武, “Mysterious Martial” — changed by Sòng taboo-avoidance from Xuán 玄 to Zhēn 真) is one of the major SòngYuán Daoist deities:
- Cosmic function: Guardian of the Northern Sacred Mountain (Héng shān 恆山) and protector of the Northern realm of the cosmos.
- Iconography: Bare-footed, black-robed warrior with snake-and-turtle attendants — images of the Northern quadrant.
- Sòng imperial patronage: The Zhēn wǔ cult received substantial imperial attention from Sòng Huīzōng onwards (1100s), and became a major state cult under the Yuán and Míng.
- Ming consolidation: The cult’s institutional apex was the Wǔ dāng shān 武當山 (Húběi) pilgrimage-complex, substantially developed under the Míng Yǒng lè 永樂 era (1402–1424).
Contents
The DZ 754 scripture comprises:
- The běn zhuàn 本傳 — a hagiographic biography of Zhēn wǔ, tracing his cosmic origin and earthly manifestations.
- The shén zhòu 神咒 — spells and sacred formulas addressed to Zhēn wǔ.
- Chén Zhōng’s commentary — an integrated scholarly apparatus.
Chén Zhōng’s commentary
Per Cedzich’s notice (Schipper & Verellen 2004, DZ 750 article): Chén Zhōng cites Fù Dòng zhēn’s 傅洞真 commentary DZ 752 at DZ 754 2.8a — providing a terminus post quem for Chén Zhōng’s work (which must therefore postdate Fù Dòng zhēn’s, i.e. probably post-1300). Chén Zhōng is otherwise not well-documented.
Ritual function
The text is primarily liturgical-ritual rather than philosophical. Its spells and formulas were used in Daoist rituals invoking Zhēn wǔ’s protection, and its hagiographic narrative provided the theological foundation for the cult.
Abstract
DZ 754 is a major ritual-scripture of the SòngYuán Zhēn wǔ cult — the cosmic-guardian Daoist deity whose worship became one of the dominant devotional streams of late-imperial Chinese religion. Its inclusion alongside the Dipper-scripture commentaries in this section of KR5c reflects the Dipper-North cosmological connection (the Big Dipper being the celestial “heart” of the Northern quadrant protected by Zhēn wǔ).
Dating. Undated. Chén Zhōng’s commentary post-dates Fù Dòng zhēn’s (KR5c0148) and therefore probably post-1300. The base scripture may be older — Northern-Sòng to early-Yuán. Per the project’s dating rule, the frontmatter gives 1100–1300 as a conservative window. Dynasty: 宋-元.
Translations and research
- Schipper, Kristofer, and Franciscus Verellen, eds. The Taoist Canon: A Historical Companion to the Daozang. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2004, DZ 754 entry.
- Seaman, Gary. Journey to the North: An Ethnohistorical Analysis and Annotated Translation of the Chinese Folk Novel Pei-yu chi. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1987. On the Zhēn wǔ cult and the later Míng novel Běi yóu jì 北遊記.
- Grootaers, Willem A. “The Hagiography of the Chinese God Chen-wu.” Folklore Studies 11.2 (1952).
Links
- Kanseki Repository KR5c0150
- Related: KR5c0148 Fù Dòng zhēn’s DZ 752 (predecessor commentary).
- ctext.org: 太上說玄天大聖真武本傳神咒妙經