| # | 漢語/英語/拼音 | 英語解說 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | wai guo fang pin qing tong nei wen 外國放品青童內文 | 外國放品青童內文 Inner Script of the Azure Lad on the Distribution of the Outer Realms) |
| 2 | wan chao 晚朝 | 晚朝 Evening Audience |
| 3 | wan li xu dao zang Wanli xu daozang 萬曆續道藏 | 萬曆續道藏 Supplementary Taoist Canon of the Wanli Reign Period The Da Ming xu daozang jing大明續道藏經 (Scriptures in Supplement to the Taoist Canon of the Great Ming) is popularly known as the Wanli xu daozang. It dates to the thirty-fifth year of the Wanli reign period (1607) and serves as an addendum to the so-called *Zhengtong daozang (Taoist Canon of the Zhengtong Reign Period) issued in 1445. Just how this supplement arose remains somewhat of mystery. What is clear is that, like the Zhengtong Canon itself, the compilation of this body of texts resulted from an imperial decree issued to the prevailing patriarch of the Celestial Master, or *Tianshi dao lineage. The scant bibliographic data on this work to survive suggest that this supplement expanded over time, with components added one after the other. One clue comes from three different editions of the *Daozang mulu xiangzhu (Detailed Commentary on the Index of the Taoist Canon) compiled in 1626. Each edition of this index provides a variant form of the table of contents for the supplement. One lists titles encompassed in nine cases bearing labels from du杜 to fu府, according to the Qianzi wen千字文 (Thousand-Word Text) classification sequence. Another provides the table of contents for a total of eleven cases, adding those labelled luo羅 and jiang將. The third form of the table of contents corresponds to the received version of the supplement, accounting for altogether thirty-two cases, the last of which is labelled ying纓. Variant forms of a colophon dating to the year Wanli 35 (1607) appear throughout the supplement itself, typically but not always recorded at the end of the last fascicle in a case. Eleven are dated to the fifteenth day of the first lunar month (shangyuan jieri上元吉日) and one, the most concisely worded colophon, is dated to the fifteenth day of the second lunar month (eryue shiwu ri二月十五日). Each colophon states that *Zhang Guoxiang (?–1611) undertook collation and publication by imperial command. All but the colophon with the variant date include a title conferred on Zhang by the Wanli Emperor (r. 1573–1620) in 1605. One also includes reference to his position as the fiftieth patriarch of the Celestial Master lineage. Another version of the colophon is also found at the close of the Da Ming xu daozang jing mulu大明續道藏經目錄 (Index of the Scriptures in Supplement to the Taoist Canon of the Great Ming). An additional line here indicates that the blocks were entrusted to the Lingyou gong 靈佑宮 (Palace of Numinous Support). The construction of this hall in a temple complex outside Beijing can be dated to 1603. The table of contents, appended to that of the Da Ming daozang jing, lists some fifty titles printed in 185 juan, or chapters. They were cut on 4,440 block surfaces, raising the total for the Ming Canon from 74,080 to approximately 78,520. The work on the supplement would appear to have been completed in a fairly short period of time. Prior to its compilation, the Wanli Emperor granted copies of a 1598 printing of the Zhengtong Canon to a number of temple compounds. A stele inscription marking his gift to the Chongxuan guan 沖玄觀 (Abbey of the Unfathomable Mystery) at Mount Wuyi (*Wuyi shan, Fujian) dates to 1605. Such bestowals are known to have been made on behalf of the emperor’s mother, but the story behind his authorization of a supplement to the Canon remains to be discovered. Judith M. BOLTZ & Chen Guofu 1963, 179–81; Chen Yuan 1988, 1298–99; van der Loon 1984, 59–61; Qing Xitai 1988–95, 4: 15–17; Zhu Yueli 1992, 156–58 ※ Zhang Guoxiang; Zhengtong daozang; daozang and subsidiary compilations |
| 4 | wang bi Wang Bi 王弼 | 王弼 226–49; zi: Fusi 輔嗣 Wang Bi, the author of commentaries to the Daode jing, the *Yijing, and the Lunyu論語 (Analects) of Confucius, played an important role in the pure conversations (*qingtan) that were in vogue within the *Xuanxue (Arcane Learning) milieu. He devised new arrangements of the Daode jing and the Yijing, and established standard editions of both works. A short note on his life is appended to Zhong Hui’s鍾會 (225–64) biography in the Sanguo zhi (History of the Three Kingdoms; trans. Fung Yu-lan 1952–53, 2: 179–80). In contrast to the exegesis of Han times, Wang Bi’s works show no concern for longevity techniques or for cosmological patterns based on numerical symbolism. Wang views the world as a whole, pervaded by a single Principle. He deemphasizes the naturalistic, numerological, and polemical approaches to the Yijing, simplifying its interpretation and offering a new exegetical model widely accepted by later scholars. Focusing on the ontological level, he highlights the constant order and reason (li理) that underlie the fluctuations of the world. For Wang, this reason is knowable; one can take it as a guide in one’s life and behave according to the cosmic and temporal situation and the position a thing occupies within it. This perspective lays the foundations of a society ordered according to the hierarchical and moral principles of Confucianism. As Howard L. Goodman (1985) has convincingly shown, however, this influence is more apparent in Wang’s commentary to the Yijing (completed by Han Kangbo 韓康伯, ?–ca. 385) than in his exegesis of the Daode jing. In the latter work, Wang gives the word dao道 a metaphysical meaning close to the one it has in the *Zhuangzi and the *Huainan zi. The Dao is *wu or Non-being, an absence of substance or entity, even conceptual. It is indescribable, unique, and cannot be matched to anything. It is the source of the world not in the temporal sense but in the sense of an atemporal priority: as shown by the Zhuangzi, the notion of beginning can only lead to a regressus ad infinitum and to the absence of any temporal beginning. In Wang Bi’s apophatic thought, wu or Non-being is the Absolute that cannot and should not endure determination by name, qualification or form. Wu is a synonym of the Ultimate (ji極; see *wuji and taiji), the Beginning (shi始), and the permanent (chang常). It is that by which (suoyi所以) things are, their true existence to which they are bound to return (*fan). This can be accomplished through a decrease (sun損) similar to the work of a gardener who clears away the weeds. Paradoxically, those who do so become complete because they are redirected to wu, which is equivalent to the One. Although the notion of the Dao as absence of anything implies its transcendence, this does not mean there is no connection between Non-being and Being (*you), the phenomenal world. Quiescence, says Wang Bi, is not the opposite of movement, nor is silence the opposite of speech. Wu must be mediated by you because it cannot be made manifest by wu. Being, therefore, is the manifestation of Non-being. However, Wang Bi emphasizes the importance of Non-being much more than that of Being. In Wang Bi’s view, the sage is one who does not name things; he is not, therefore, the Confucian sage who applies correct names (zhengming正名) to things. Wang’s ideas in this respect draw both from the Yijing and from the notion of the Taoist saint (*shengren). As in the Xici繫辭 (Appended Statements, a portion of the Yijing), the sage pays attention to change, discerns the moment in which an event takes shape, and relies on the underlying order of the world, which he illuminates; as in the Daode jing, he is intuitively in harmony with the Way and hides his light, which reaches into the dark. As in both of them, he is compliant and modest. Isabelle ROBINET & Chan A. K. L. 1991b; Chan A. K. L. 1998; Fung Yu-lan 1952–53, 2: 179–89; Lou Yulie 1980 (crit. ed.); Lynn 1994 (trans. of Yijing comm.); Lynn 1999 (trans. of Daode jing comm.); Mou Zongsan 1974, 100–168; Robinet 1977, 56–77; Robinet 1987f; Rump 1979; Wagner 1986; Wagner 1989; Wagner 2000 ※ qingtan; Xuanxue |
| 5 | wang bing Wang Bing 王冰 | 王冰 fl. 762; hao: Qixuan zi 啟玄子 (Master Who Inaugurates the Mystery) or Qiyuan zi 啟元子 (Master Who Inaugurates the Origin) Wang Bing is known as the editor and commentator of the Suwen素問 (Plain Questions; see *Huangdi neijing), presented to the throne in 762. Apparently, he held the post of Director of the Imperial Stud (taipu ling太樸令) in that year, but apart from this hardly any biographical details are known. His commentary to the Suwen as well as his hao would suggest that he moved in Taoist circles. Furthermore, he states in his preface to the Suwen that from early on he practiced the arts of Nourishing Life (*yangsheng). In that preface he also names two persons with surnames Guo 郭 and Zhang 張 as his masters, and in the preface to another work attributed to him, the Xuanzhu miyu玄珠密語 (Secret Sayings of [Master] Mysterious Pearl), which unlike the Suwen commentary is written in a rather rustic style, he mentions yet another master called Xuanzhu玄珠 (Mysterious Pearl), a name that can be traced to the *Zhuangzi and may reveal a Taoist commitment. This Taoist orientation is evident in several other works attributed to Wang Bing, all of which deal with the doctrine of the five circulatory phases and six seasonal influences (wuyun liuqi五運六氣). These include most notably the Suwen liuqi Xuanzhu miyu素問六氣玄珠密語 (Secret Sayings of [Master] Mysterious Pearl on the Six Seasonal Influences of the Plain Questions; also known as the above Xuanzhu miyu) in ten or seventeen juan, the Tianyuan yuce天元玉冊 (Jade Fascicles of Celestial Primordiality) in twenty-eight or thirty juan, the Zhaoming yinzhi昭明隱旨 (Concealed Directions on the Bright Light) in three juan, and the Yuanhe jiyong jing元和紀用經 (Scripture on the Use of the Calendar of Original Harmony) in one juan. Seven chapters in the Suwen are entirely written in terms of this doctrine, namely juan 66–71 and 74, and received opinion has it that these chapters were interpolated by Wang Bing; they constitute about one third of the Suwen. Elisabeth HSU & Despeux 2001; Ma Jixing 1990, 101; Yang Shizhe et al. 1998, 174–76 |
| 6 | wang chang yue Wang Changyue 王常月 | 王常月 ?–1680; original ming: Ping 平; hao: Kunyang zi 崑陽子 (Master of Yang of Mount Kunlun) Wang Changyue is a key figure credited with the promotion of the *Quanzhen renaissance, which allegedly took place in the late Ming and early Qing periods under the name of the *Longmen branch (Esposito 2000, 627–32). In 1656, as the abbot of the *Baiyun guan (Abbey of the White Clouds) in Beijing, Wang was said to have revived the ancient tradition of *Qiu Chuji (1148–1227) and to have restored Taoist discipline. More precisely, Wang may be regarded as the state-approved founder of the Longmen lineage. Under his guidance, Longmen became a genuine school with an orthodox lineage and organized temples. In this lineage, Wang figures as the seventh patriarch and marks the beginning of new era. The compilation of a putative work called Bojian缽鑑 (Examination of the Bowl) is also attributed to him. It is regarded as the fundamental source of Longmen history and lineage to which *Min Yide’s Jingai xindeng金蓋心燈 (Transmission of the Mind-Lamp from Mount Jingai) refers. According to some biographers, Wang was born in 1521, but others give a date of 1594. He came from a Taoist family of the prefecture of Lu’an 潞安 (Shanxi). When he was still an adolescent, he left his family and travelled to famous mountains to search for enlightened masters. In 1628, he is said to have finally met the sixth Longmen patriarch Zhao Fuyang趙復陽 on Mount Wangwu (*Wangwu shan, Henan). Zhao gave him the lineage name of Changyue (Everlasting Moons, which alludes to the several months Wang had to wait before receiving teachings from Zhao) along with teachings on Taoist discipline. After practicing them and having progressed in his study of the Three Teachings (Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism), he met master Zhao again in the Jiugong mountains ( Jiugong shan九宮山, Hubei). This last meeting served to confirm Wang’s spiritual progress and to proclaim him as the seventh Longmen patriarch of the Vinaya Line (lüshi律師), entitled to transmit the Longmen discipline. Zhao is also said to have foretold Wang’s future role as abbot of the Baiyun guan, a prophecy confirmed in 1655. In 1656, Wang built an ordination platform (jietan戒壇; see fig. 75) at the Baiyun guan to perform public ordinations for Taoist novices. The content of these ordinations was established by Wang in his work entitled *Chuzhen jielü (Initial Precepts and Observances for Perfection) as well as in a later compilation by Wang’s disciples known as Biyuan tanjing碧苑壇經 (Platform Sūtra of the Jasper Garden). This text (whose title alludes to the famous Platform Sūtra of the sixth Chan patriarch, Huineng 慧能) is found in the first volume of the Gu Shuyinlou cangshu古書隱樓藏書 (Collection of the Ancient Hidden Pavilion of Books; Qing Xitai 1994, 2: 184–86) and in the *Zangwai daoshu (vol. 12). Another version known under the title Longmen xinfa龍門心法 (Core Teachings of Longmen) is also included in the Zangwai daoshu. It consists of discourses given during an ordination held by Wang in 1663 at the Biyuan guan 碧苑觀 (Abbey of the Jasper Garden) in Nanjing. Wang Changyue’s teachings focus on the progressive path of the three-stage great ordination (santan dajie三壇大戒, lit., ordination of the threefold altar): Initial Precepts for Perfection (chuzhen jie初真戒), Intermediate Precepts (zhongji jie中極戒), and Precepts for Celestial Immortality (tianxian jie天仙戒). This system represented the sine qua non for realizing an orthodox enlightenment and was said to be attainable only under the guidance of a Longmen Vinaya master (lüshi). From Wang Changyue onward, an official Longmen lineage was established at the Baiyun guan. Its abbot was chosen from among Longmen Vinaya masters and was responsible for public ordinations. In this way, Longmen became the main school in charge of public ordinations for all Taoist priests in north and south China. Wang Changyue is said to have ordained thousand of disciples in Beijing, Nanjing, Hangzhou, Wudang and elsewhere, and thanks to him the Longmen has remained the dominant lineage to this day. Monica ESPOSITO & Despeux 1990, 147–55; Esposito 2001; Esposito 2004c; Mori Yuria 1994; Qing Xitai 1988–95, 4: 77–100; Qing Xitai 1994, 1: 392–93 ※ Chuzhen jielü; jie [precepts]; Longmen; monastic code |
| 7 | wang chu yi Wang Chuyi 王處一 | 王處一 1142–1217; zi: Yuyang玉陽; hao: Yuyang zi玉陽子 (Master of Jade Yang), Tixuan zhenren體玄真人 (Real Man Who Embodies the Mystery) Wang Chuyi is one of the Seven Real Men (qizhen七真; see table 17) who epitomize the first generation of *Quanzhen masters. His religious life began before his encounter with *Wang Zhe: as a child he had revelations, and from then on he lived as an eccentric hermit with his mother. Wang Zhe converted him to *neidan ascetic training at the age of twenty-six, but their association lasted only for a year. Wang Chuyi probably continued his Taoist education under other masters, and eventually became famous enough to be summoned to the Jin court in 1188 and again in 1198. His standing seems to have greatly helped the Quanzhen’s negotiations with the state in 1190–97, when a conflict erupted over the order’s reluctance to abide by the directive to register monasteries and clergy. From 1197 until his death, he directed a sizable monastic community in Shandong. Wang stands apart in the group of the Seven Real Men for several reasons. He was graced with an individual hagiographic work, the Tixuan zhenren xianyi lu體玄真人顯異錄 (Account of the Miraculous Manifestations of the Real Man Who Embodies the Mystery; CT 594). This work sheds more light on his liturgical activities than do the collective Quanzhen hagiographies—for example, the *Jinlian zhengzong ji—which insist on ascetic training. Although Wang Chuyi is not a member of Wang Zhe’s inner circle of four favorite disciples, who receive the best of the later hagiographers’ attention, his role in fashioning Quanzhen self-identity is larger than it may at first appear. First, his political influence in the 1190s helped in the development of the order’s institutional independence. Moreover, when Quanzhen, around the 1230s, had fully absorbed all the major liturgical lineages of traditional Taoism (including those of the *Lingbao grand ritual and the various newer *leifa or Thunder Rites), the importance of Wang Chuyi’s contribution to this process of integration became clear. Several second-generation Quanzhen masters reportedly learned their ritual skills from him. With *Qiu Chuji, he is also one of the two early Quanzhen masters known to have performed large scale official ordinations as early as 1201, and therefore to have adapted the older monastic ordination procedures to the nascent Quanzhen institutions. Furthermore, Wang seems to have played a major role in fashioning the Quanzhen’s sacred history, especially regarding the advent of the cult addressed to Donghua dijun 東華帝君 (Imperial Lord of Eastern Florescence). Like all the Seven Real Men except *Sun Bu’er, Wang has left a poetical anthology, the Yunguang ji雲光集 (Anthology of Cloudy Radiance; CT 1152), entitled after the grotto where Wang attained enlightenment. This work actually documents spiritual teachings largely homogeneous with those of his fellow-disciples. Of special note are Wang’s exchanges with the five lay associations (hui會) founded by Wang Zhe in Shandong, which proves how deeply Wang Chuyi was involved in Quanzhen’s institutional development and its popularization of neidan meditation practices. Vincent GOOSSAERT & Boltz J. M. 1987a, 66 and 163–65; Endres 1985; Marsone 2001a, 105–6; Mori Yuria 1992b ※ Quanzhen |
| 8 | wang jie Wang Jie 王玠 | 王玠 ?–ca. 1380; zi: Daoyuan 道淵; hao: Hunran zi 混然子 (Master of Chaotic Origin) A native of Nanchang (Jiangxi), Wang benefited from the teachings of *Li Daochun (fl. 1288–92), and devoted himself to interpreting contemplative treatises, or to interpreting texts as contemplative treatises. Besides arranging for the publication of Master Li’s Qing’an Yingchan zi yulu清庵瑩蟾子語錄 (Recorded Sayings of the Master Who Responds to the Cicadas in the Pure Retreat; CT 1060), edited by Chai Yuangao 柴元皋 in 1288, Wang also collated Li’s essays on salvation called the Santian yisui三天易髓 (The Mutable Marrow of the Three Heavens; CT 250). The first chapter of Wang’s own compilation, the Huanzhen ji還真集 (Anthology of Reverting to Perfection; CT 1074), includes diagrams, followed by instructions for imagining the creation of the inner elixir (*neidan) within the body. The second chapter amplifies the next stages of the contemplative process and discusses some of its potential results, including the route to becoming long-lived and a transcendent. Praise for the unity of the Three Teachings (Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism) is also an important theme in this text, which boasts a preface dated to 1392 by the forty-third Celestial Master, *Zhang Yuchu (1361–1410). While remarking on the practical usefulness of Wang’s text, which he first acquired in 1392 from his disciple Yuan Wenyi 袁文逸, Zhang also emphasizes that Li Daochun is heir to *Zhang Boduan’s (987?–1082) approach to compounding the inner elixir. In the annotations Wang gives to two scriptures, the Xiaozai huming miaojing zhu消災護命妙經注 (Commentary to the Wondrous Scripture on Dispelling Disasters and Protecting Life; CT 100) and the Qingjing miaojing zuantu jiezhu清靜妙經纂圖解注 (Compilation of Illustrations and Explications on the Wondrous Scripture of Clarity and Quiescence; CT 760), he uses inner alchemy and cosmological language to explicate each text. Lowell SKAR & Boltz J. M. 1987a, 183–84 ※ Li Daochun; neidan |
| 9 | wang ling guan Wang lingguan 王靈官 | 王靈官 Numinous Officer Wang Numinous Officer Wang, also referred to as Marshal Wang (Wang Yuanshuai 王元帥), is best known as the guardian deity of Taoist temples. His image is often housed in a Hall of the Numinous Officer (Lingguan dian 靈官殿) at the entrance to a Taoist temple or monastery, one vivid example being at the Abbey of the White Clouds (*Baiyun guan) in Beijing (Yoshioka Yoshitoyo 1979, 250–51). Numinous Officer Wang is also mentioned in novels like the Xiyou ji西遊記 (Journey to the West) as a guardian of the palace of the Jade Sovereign (*Yuhuang). Some hagiographic accounts of the Numinous Officer claim that his name was Wang Shan王善, and that he had been a disciple of *Sa Shoujian (fl. 1141–78?), a renowned practitioner of Thunder Rites (*leifa). His cult appears to have been popular in southwest China, where he was worshipped as a thunder god or a fire god, although some stories mentioning child sacrifice hint at perhaps more sinister origins of his cult. A Taoist from Hangzhou (Zhejiang) named Zhou Side 周思得 (1359–1451) is said to have practiced rituals to Wang in Beijing during the reign of the Yongle Emperor (1403–24), which may have contributed to his cult’s legitimacy and historical development. Above all, Wang is worshipped as an exorcistic deity who can ward off or expel demons, as can be seen in rituals invoking him preserved in the *Daofa huiyuan (j. 241–43). He also takes the stage during performances of ritual operas in order to exorcise demons. Paul R. KATZ & van der Loon 1977; Lü Zongli and Luan Baoqun 1991, 881–86 ※ temples and shrines |
| 10 | wang qin ruo Wang Qinruo 王欽若 | 王欽若 962–1025 Wang Qinruo was one of the most successful and influential officials of his day, enjoying the attentive ear of Song Zhenzong (r. 997–1022) from 997 until his forced retirement from the office of Chancellor in 1019. He made a comeback in 1022 under Song Renzong (r. 1022–63) and died in office in 1025. He was an able administrator who thoroughly enjoyed, and sometimes abused, the exercise of power. His ultimate place in history, however, rests on his leading role in state ritual affairs throughout the Zhenzong reign. In 1005, the Song had concluded the Shanyuan Treaty with the Khitan, widely perceived as dishonorable because they were forced to accept of their enemy on equal ritual terms, and because of the inclusion of indemnities. The treaty initiated a period of relative internal and external peace, in which Zhenzong and his advisors placed Song imperial authority on a stronger footing through the public, large-scale enactment of the emperor’s function as ritual center of All-under-Heaven (which included the Khitan and other non-Chinese groups). Wang Qinruo played an important role in these activities. In 1005, he took part in a court debate on the southern suburban rituals (jiaosi郊祀). He was also active in the compilation of the Cefu yuangui冊府元龜 (Outstanding Models from the Storehouse of Literature; 1013), a compendium of administrative documents from past dynasties to serve as an aid in government. He was, moreover, in charge of compiling the imperially ordered Canon of 1016, the *Da Song Tiangong baozang, and engaged himself in matters of content as well. Nonetheless, he was not a Taoist priest, nor did he advise his emperor from an exclusively Taoist point of view. The central ritual event in Zhenzong’s reign was the performance of the feng封 and shan禪 ceremonies to Heaven and Earth at Mount Tai (*Taishan, Shandong) in 1008, preceded by the well-orchestrated receipt of letters from Heaven (tianshu天書), auspicious omens, and repeated requests by local people from the Mount Tai region to carry out these sacrifices. As it had been with the earlier Chinese emperors who had considered performing the feng and shan ceremonies, and often proceeded at great length with the preparations before desisting, deliberations at the Song court were extremely circumspect. Wang Qinruo was the decisive influence in carrying out the rituals, with Zhenzong in the appropriate role of an emperor worried about overburdening his people. In essence, Wang Qinruo and Zhenzong merely brought to its logical conclusion a ritual program for building dynastic legitimacy that had been started by the dynastic founders Taizu (r. 960–76) and Taizong (r. 976–97). Taoist rituals were an important—but by no means exclusive—part of this program. The increasingly negative historiography in the following decades reflects the subsequent victory of a different view on legitimation, which deemphasized the direct intervention of Heaven in the bestowal of its mandate to rule and stressed the moral nature of imperial rule, which quasi-automatically bestowed the Heavenly Mandate (tianming天命). From this point of view, Wang Qinruo was a manipulator of heavenly signs and imperial rituals, or even a Taoist in Confucian disguise, whereas he and other early Song ritual specialists were merely continuing Tang and older traditions of imperial ritual practice supported by large segments of the political-scholarly elite of their day. Since in those days Taoist and state ritual traditions were still very close to each other, early Song legitimation activities naturally showed similarities with Taoist ritual in general and involved the performance of specific Taoist rituals and the support of Taoist institutions. Ultimately, the ritual specialist was the emperor, not a Taoist priest, and his advisors were secular officials, not Taoist priests. The common qualification of these activities as Taoist results from a biased historiography, which prefers to associate such rituals with superstition or a supposedly marginal religious tradition, rather than mainstream Confucianism or state ritual. Although Wang Qinruo wrote extensively, only one of his works is entirely preserved, the *Yisheng baode zhuan (Biography of [the Perfected Lord] Assisting Sanctity and Protecting Virtue). Otherwise, only shorter pieces of his are extant, of which the prose texts (in complete or summary form) have been gathered in the Song quanwen宋全文 (Complete Prose of the Song). Barend ter HAAR & Boltz J. M. 1987a, 83–86; Cahill 1980; Chen Guofu 1963, 131–33; Eichhorn 1964; van der Loon 1984, 29–37; Qing Xitai 1988–95, 2: 534–93; Schmidt-Glintzer 1981; Wechsler 1985, 107–22 and 170–94; Yamauchi M. 1976 ※ Da Song Tiangong baozang; Yisheng baode zhuan; taoism and the state |
| 11 | wang wei yi Wang Weiyi 王惟一 | 王惟一 fl. 1264–1304; zi: Jingyang 景陽; hao: Leiting sanli 雷霆散吏 (Vagrant Official of the Thunderclap) This major disciple of *Mo Qiyan (1226–94), hailing from Songjiang松江 (near Shanghai, Jiangsu), practiced and promoted both the Thunder Rites (*leifa) and inner alchemy (*neidan) during Yuan times. Although he received a classical education in his youth, Wang later used his understanding of matters of life and death based on the Daode jing as a point of entry for studying modes of longevity and transcendence. This led him to seek out teachings on inner alchemy, and may have brought him into contact with someone in the circle of *Li Daochun (fl. 1288–92). His eventual enlightenment led him to compose one of his works that is still extant in the Ming Taoist Canon, the Mingdao pian明道篇 (Folios on Elucidating the Way; CT 273), which structurally resembles the *Wuzhen pian (Folios on Awakening to Perfection) by *Zhang Boduan (987?–1082). The second work bearing Wang’s name, the Daofa xinchuan道法心傳 (Heart-to-Heart Transmission of Taoist Rites; CT 1253), has an author’s preface dated 1294. A collection of mnemonic instructional verses, it is grounded in the traditions Wang learned from Mo Qiyan, who practiced the Thunderclap Rites (leiting雷霆; see *leifa). Wang explains that these rites are superior to the various ritual practices that make heavy use of talismans (*fu) because they depend solely on concentrating one’s inner vital powers for ritual purposes. In both of these texts, Wang uses the quatrain form to praise the values of internally creating the powers of thunder to subdue the demonic agents troubling the world. Lowell SKAR & Boltz J. M. 1987a, 16–88 ※ Mo Qiyan; leifa; neidan |
| 12 | wang wen qing Wang Wenqing 王文卿 | 王文卿 1093–1153; zi: Shudao述道; hao: Chonghe zi沖和子 (Master of the Unfathomable Harmony), Yuyi ren遇異人 (The One Who Encounters The Marvellous); also known as Wang Jun 王俊 Wang Wenqing, who came from Jianchang建昌 ( Jiangxi), was a Thunder Rites (*leifa) specialist of the *Shenxiao legacy. Shenxiao enjoyed a high status during most of Song Huizong’s reign (1100–1125), but his imperial favor was terminated in 1119. After *Lin Lingsu’s disappearance from the capital in that year, Wang became the main Shenxiao representative at court. In 1122, Huizong, seemingly reconciled with the Taoists, offered Wang residence in the Jiuyang zongzhen gong九陽總真宮 (Palace of the Complete Perfection of the Ninefold Yang) and granted him the honorific title of Elder of the Unfathomable Emptiness and the Wondrous Dao (Chongxu miaodao xiansheng沖虛妙道先生). Huizong’s ephemeral successor, Song Qinzong (r. 1125–27), also conferred a title on Wang and posthumous titles on his parents. However, Wang soon decided to renounce the world and live in retirement. In 1143, Song Gaozong (r. 1127–62) invited him to court, but he declined the summons. He died ten years later at the Qingdu guan 清都觀 (Abbey of the Clear Metropolis) in Nanfeng 南豐 (Guangdong). Wang Wenqing is attributed with several sections of the ritual compendium *Daofa huiyuan (Corpus of Taoist Ritual) dealing with the Thunder Rites, including the Xuanzhu ge 玄珠歌 (Song of the Mysterious Pearl; j. 70), Thunderclap (Leiting 雷霆) writings (67.11a–29a, and the whole of j. 76), and prefaces to the Five Thunder Rites of Yushu 玉樞 (Jade Pivot; j. 56) and the Five Thunder Rites of Shenxiao (Divine Empyrean; j. 61). An illustrated supplement to the *Duren jing, entitled Duren shangpin miaojing futu度人上品妙經符圖 (Talismans and Diagrams of the Wondrous Scripture of the Upper Chapters on Salvation; CT 147), is also ascribed to him. Another work, the Chongxu tongmiao shichen Wang xiansheng jiahua沖虛通妙侍宸王先生家話 (Teachings of Elder Wang of the Unfathomable Emptiness and the Pervading Marvel, Servant of the Emperor; CT 1250), reports conversations between Wang and his disciple Yuan Tingzhi 袁庭植. Grégoire ESPESSET & Boltz J. M. 1987a, 26–30; Hymes 2002, 147–70; Qing Xitai 1994, 1: 321–22 ※ leifa; Shenxiao |
| 13 | wang wu shan Wangwu shan 王屋山 | 王屋山 Mount Wangwu (Henan) Mount Wangwu, on the Henan-Shanxi border about 50 km north of Luoyang, gained special prominence within *Shangqing Taoism, which made it the domain of Lord Wang of the Western Citadel (Xicheng Wangjun 西城王君; see under *Wang Yuan). Numerous Shangqing scriptures and methods are said to have been revealed or secreted on Mount Wangwu. Accordingly, the mountain was listed as the foremost of the ten great Grotto-Heavens (da dongtian大洞天) in the systematized sacred geography by *Du Guangting, the Dongtian fudi yuedu mingshan ji洞天福地嶽瀆名山記 (Records of Grotto-Heavens, Blissful Lands, Peaks, Rivers, and Famous Mountains; CT 599). The Wangwu shanzhi王屋山志 (Monograph of Mount Wangwu) by Li Guiyi 李歸一, originally compiled in 877, also provides much topographic and biographical information. Due to its proximity to the capital and the prominence of the Shangqing lineage, Mount Wangwu became a focus of imperial attention during the Tang dynasty. It was a site for imperial rites of casting the dragons (see *tou longjian) as well imperially sponsored Taoist establishments. The local god of Mount Wangwu aided in quelling the An Lushan 安祿山 and Shi Siming 史思明 uprisings (755–63) and was ennobled by Tang Xuanzong (r. 712–56) as Celestial King of the Numina and Spirits (Zongling mingshen tianwang 總靈明神天王). Among the important establishments on the mountain was the Yangtai guan 陽臺觀 (Abbey of the Yang Platform), the residence of *Sima Chengzhen (646–735). Repaired at the order of Tang Xuanzong in 725, it was the site for a Golden Register Retreat (*jinlu zhai) in 735, performed by Princess Jade Perfected, daughter of Tang Ruizong (r. 684–90, 710–12), who is said to have studied here before her Taoist initiation in 711 (see Benn 1991). Du Guangting’s preface to the Tiantan Wangwu shan shengji ji天壇王屋山聖迹記 (Records of Traces of the Saints on Mount Wangwu, the Celestial Altar; CT 969) provides a Taoist view of the history and geography of the mountain. The main peak, named Celestial Altar (Tiantan 天壇), is the locus for regular assemblies of transcendent officials of all the mountains and Grotto-Heavens who examine and judge the students of the Dao. This was also the site for the Yellow Emperor’s (*Huangdi) encounter with the Queen Mother of the West (*Xiwang mu), whose envoys, the Mysterious Woman (*Xuannü) and the Azure Lad (*Qingtong), presented him with esoteric devices to repel the demon Chiyou 蚩尤. Du refers to an annual assembly on the mountain which was held on the fifteenth day of the eighth lunar month. The main text elaborates on these narratives, and includes a detailed description of the mythical topography of the mountain, a short biography of Sima Chengzhen, and several verses, among them two attributed to Tang Ruizong. Gil RAZ & Qing Xitai 1994, 4: 201–5 ※ Wang Yuan; taoist sacred sites |
| 14 | wang xuan fu Wang Xuanfu 王玄甫 | 王玄甫 1. ?–345 or 365; hao: Zhongyue zhenren中嶽真人 (Perfected of the Central Peak) 2. hao: Donghua dijun東華帝君 (Imperial Lord of Eastern Florescence), Donghua zi 東華子 (Master of Eastern Florescence), Zifu Shaoyang jun紫府少陽君 (Minor Yang Lord of the Purple Bureau [Grotto-Heaven]), Huayang zhenren華陽真人 (Perfected of Flourishing Yang) There are two transcendents named Wang Xuanfu. The first is a minor figure first mentioned in the *Zhengao (14.7b–8a), and the second is an important figure in *Quanzhen Taoism. The first Wang Xuanfu was one of many persons who attained immortality in 365, while the *Shangqing deities were appearing before *Yang Xi. Some versions of his biography in the Taoist Canon, however, report his ascension occurring in 345. Wang was a man from Pei沛 ( Jiangsu) who, by a combination of techniques, including meditating for thirty-four years, ascended to heaven in broad daylight on a cloud-carriage drawn by dragons. He was appointed Perfected of the Central Peak with his friend Deng Boyuan鄧伯元 at the Northern Terrace of the Mysterious Garden (Bei Xuanpu tai 北玄圃臺). The second Wang Xuanfu, better known as Donghua dijun, was the first of the Five Patriarchs (wuzu五祖) of Quanzhen Taoism (see table 17). The obscurity of his origins and even the dynasty when he lived on earth seems to indicate that his name was selected to bring the origins of Quanzhen teachings further back into hoary antiquity. The only points of agreement among his biographies is that he had a distinctive appearance at birth, that he received a set of scriptures from the Supreme Perfected of the White Clouds (Baiyun shangzhen白雲上真), and that he passed his teachings to *Zhongli Quan (*Jinlian zhengzong ji, 1.1a–b; Jinlian zhengzong xianyuan xiangzhuan金蓮正宗仙源像傳, CT 174, 13b–14a; *Lishi zhenxian tidao tongjian, 20.5a). His ascent to heaven is celebrated on the sixteenth day of the tenth lunar month. As the Divine Lord of Eastern Florescence, he is associated with the paradisiacal isle of Fangzhu 方諸 (*Soushen ji, 1.6b–8b). Thomas E. SMITH & Reiter 1985 ※ Quanzhen; Shangqing; hagiography |
| 15 | wang ye wangye 王爺 | 王爺 Royal Lords In premodern China, personages of authority with the Chinese character wang王 (lit., king) in their titles, ranging from imperial princes (qinwang親王) to bandit leaders (shanzhai dawang山寨大王), were frequently addressed using the respectful title of wangye (lit., my lord or your lordship/highness). Throughout much of Fujian and Taiwan, the term wangye, usually translated as Royal Lord, was and frequently still is used to refer to a wide variety of demons and deities, including plague spirits (*wenshen), vengeful ghosts (ligui厲鬼), plague demons (yigui疫鬼), and historical figures such as Koxinga (Zheng Chenggong 鄭成功, 1624–62; ECCP 108–9). The origins of the wangye remain murky, but the term appears in Qingdynasty gazetteers from Fujian, some of which claim that temples to these deities existed as early as the Song dynasty. While relatively little research on Fujian’s wangye had been done until the 1990s, a significant body of scholarship exists on this cult in Taiwan (for bibliographic information see Kang Bao 1997, 248–57; Lin Meirong 1997). Government-compiled statistics on registered temples, while seriously underreporting actual numbers of temples, reveals the popularity the wangye enjoyed throughout Taiwan during the Japanese Occupation (1895–1945) and postwar periods. The data indicate that in 1918 the number of Royal Lords temples registered with the Japanese colonial government was 447 (12.86% of all temples), second only to Earth God (*Tudi gong) temples (669; 19.25%). The 1930 survey lists 534 Royal Lords temples (14.59%; again second to Earth God temples at 674 and 18.41%). Four temple surveys conducted after 1945 indicate that among registered temples those to Royal Lords had attained a position of supreme popularity, with 677 Royal Lords temples (17.63%) in 1960, 556 (13.26%) in 1966, 747 (13.99%) in 1975, and 753 (13.59%) in 1981 (Yu Guanghong 1983, 81–82). Most of these temples are located along the southwestern coast of Taiwan, but wangye are worshipped throughout the island. Numerous wangye temples may also be found in the Pescadores (Penghu 澎湖; Huang Youxing 1992; Wilkerson 1995), as well as Quemoy (Jinmen 金門). Taiwan’s most popular wangye has always been Lord Chi (Chi Wangye 池王爺), whose cult appears to have developed in Fujian and can be traced back to the cult of the plague-fighting martial deity *Wen Qiong. In Taiwan, Lord Chi is worshipped individually as the main deity (zhushen主神) or a subsidiary deity (peishen陪神) of numerous temples, and as one of a group of five very popular wangye known as the Lords of One Thousand Years of the Five Prince’s Palaces (Wufu qiansui五府千歲). Other popular wangye include plague spirits such as the Great Emperors of the Five Blessings (Wufu dadi 五福大帝), whose cult may be traced back to the Five Envoys of Epidemics (Wuwen shizhe五瘟使者), as well as the Lords of One Thousand Years [Who Appear on Earth Every] Five Years (Wunian qiansui 五年千歲), whose cult may be traced back to the Twelve Year-Controlling Kings of Epidemics (Shi’er zhinian wenwang 十二值年瘟王). Many different hagiographies of the wangye still circulate, but the most popular one is based on the hagiography of Wen Qiong and states that the wangye sacrificed their own lives to prevent plague spirits from poisoning local wells. Other stories describe the wangye as scholar-officials who died in battle or during a shipwreck, or who had been executed by China’s first emperor Qin Shi huangdi (r. 221–210 bce). One story, which appears to be based on an account preserved in *Dunhuang manuscripts (Waley 1960, 124–44), states that Tang Xuanzong (r. 712–56) attempted to test the spiritual powers of the *Tianshi dao patriarch by ordering these scholars to hide in a cellar at the imperial palace and play music. The emperor then told this Taoist patriarch that the palace was haunted, and asked him to perform an exorcism, which he accomplished by locating the scholars in their hideout using a mirror. He then put them to death, prompting the emperor to erect a shrine to appease their spirits (Zheng Zhiming 1988a). What all these stories have in common is the theme of untimely and wrongful death, and it appears that most wangye are in fact demons who ended up being worshipped as divinities. At present, Taiwan’s most renowned wangye temples are the Daitian fu 代天府 (Hall [of the Royal Lords] who Represent Heaven) of Madou 麻豆 and Nankunshen 南鯤鯓 (Tainan), the Zhen’an gong 鎮安宮 (Palace of Securing Tranquillity) at Mamingshan馬鳴山 (Yunlin), and the Donglong gong東隆宮 (Palace of Eastern Beneficence) in Donggang 東港 (Pingdong; Hiraki Kōhei 1987; Kang Bao 1991; Li Fengmao 1993b). The island’s largest and most popular plague expulsion festivals (commonly called *wenjiao) are also staged at these sites, as well as the Qing’an gong 慶安宮 (Palace of Felicitous Tranquillity), a *Mazu temple in Xigang 西港 (Tainan; Jordan 1976). Paul R. KATZ & Cai Xianghui 1989; Harrell 1974; Katz P. R. 1987; Katz P. R. 1992; Katz P. R. 1995a; Katz P. R. 1995b; Kang Bao 1997; Liu Zhiwan 1983b; Maejima Shinji 1938; Mio Yuko 2000; Schipper 1985b; Xu Xiaowang 1993; Yu Kuang-hung 1990; Zheng Zhiming 1988a ※ Wen Qiong; wenshen; wenjiao; demons and spirits; taoism and popular religion |
| 16 | wang yuan Wang Yuan 王遠 | 王遠 fl. 146–95; zi: Fangping 方平 Wang Yuan, who was a native of Donghai東海 (Shandong), is primarily known from his biography in the *Shenxian zhuan in which he is associated with the immortal *Magu. In this biography Wang is described as having a reasonably standard official career, despite an interest in esoteric texts and an ability to foretell the future, before resigning to cultivate the Dao. In typical fashion, he refuses to serve Han Huandi (r. 146–168 ce) and, instead, lives in the house of the official Chen Dan 陳耽. After some thirty years, Wang announces his imminent transformation and attains release from the corpse (*shijie) in 185 (this date is ascertained by cross-checking with the details of Chen Dan’s career as it is revealed in the Hou Hanshu or History of the Later Han). After transformation, Wang departs for Mount Guacang (Guacang shan 括蒼山, Zhejiang). On the way, he visits the house of one Cai Jing 蔡經, a commoner who Wang instructs as he is fated for transcendence. Cai, in turn, transforms. Ten years later Cai Jing returns home to announce that Wang Yuan will soon arrive. Wang arrives in glory and, in turn, summons Magu. When the three of them are present, they perform the cuisine ritual (see *chu) along with Cai Jing’s family. Then the whole party gets drunk on Heavenly wine. Later, in conversation, it is revealed that Wang normally rules over Mount *Kunlun and comes and goes to the Luofu Mountains (*Luofu shan) and Mount Guacang and that he sets in order the affairs of the Heavenly departments. (For other details on the story of Wang Yuan, Cai Jing, and Magu, see under *Magu.) Wang Yuan’s identity is, however, somewhat more complex. The *Laozi bianhua jing (Scripture of the Transformations of Laozi) lists Wang Fangping as a transformation of Laozi, placing him in the Han, immediately preceding Laozi’s manifestations near Chengdu in the Yangjia reign period (132–36 ce). This Wang Fangping is clearly too early to be the same as the Wang Yuan of the Shenxian zhuan. On the other hand, texts related to the twenty-four parishes (*zhi) of the early Celestial Masters (preserved in the *Yunji qiqian as well as in *Du Guangting’s Dongtian fudi yuedu mingshan ji洞天福地嶽瀆名山記, CT 599) have Wang Fangping receiving a revelation from Laozi. In addition to this confusion, Wang Yuan has also been identified as Lord Wang of the Western Citadel (Xicheng Wangjun 西城王君). An equivalence between Wang Yuan and Lord Wang of the Western Citadel is of significant interest as Lord Wang of the Western Citadel plays a major role in the transmission of certain texts and techniques that are central to *Shangqing Taoism and was, notably, the teacher of Mao Ying 茅盈 (see *Maojun). In his *Zhenling weiye tu (Chart of the Ranks and Functions of the Perfected Numinous Beings), *Tao Hongjing lists Lord Wang (under his extended title), with the commentary (by *Lüqiu Fangyuan, transformed 902) claiming that he is Wang Yuan, zi Fangping. Lord Wang’s biography in the *Maoshan zhi (early fourteenth century), a treatise dealing with the spiritual home of Shangqing Taoism, is unambiguous in making this identification. The same identification is made in the *Qingwei xianpu (Register of Pure Tenuity Transcendents) of 1293, which is related to the *Qingwei scriptural tradition. Unfortunately, Lord Wang of the Western Citadel appears to have been active in the first century bce (as in the *Santian neijie jing) and in the early years ce, at least a century and a half before Wang Yuan attained transcendence. Benjamin PENNY & Bokenkamp 1997, 213 and 351–52; Campany 2002, 259–70; Chen Guofu 1963, 12; Seidel 1969, 68 ※ Wangwu shan; hagiography |
| 17 | wang yuan zhi Wang Yuanzhi 王遠知(王遠智) | 王遠知(王遠智) 528–635; zi: Deguang 德廣 Wang Yuanzhi was the leader who stimulated the Tang rulers’ allegiance to Taoism. He was the successor to the spiritual authority of the preeminent Taoist of the late Six Dynasties period, *Tao Hongjing. In the annals of the *Shangqing order, Wang is designated as the tradition’s tenth patriarch or Grand Master (zongshi宗師). Beyond his involvement in drawing rulers toward Taoism, relatively little is known of Wang’s life. No writings are attributed to him, and we know virtually nothing of his beliefs or practice. His importance thus lies in his establishment of the political eminence of Taoism at the outset of the Tang, and in his transmission of that eminence to *Pan Shizheng and ultimately to *Sima Chengzhen. Wang has biographies both in the dynastic histories (Jiu Tangshu, 192.5125– 26; Xin Tangshu, 204.5803–4) and in the Daozang (e.g., Zhenxi真系, in YJQQ 5.11a–13a; *Maoshan zhi, 22.1a–11a). Wang’s parents had both been members of the elite of south China, but Wang turned to the religious life, studying under a little-known disciple of Tao named Zang Jin 臧矜. In time, Wang became sufficiently well known to be summoned both to the court of the short-lived Chen dynasty of south China (557–89) and to that of Sui Yangdi (r. 604–17). Though known as a supporter of Buddhism, Yangdi formally summoned Wang to court and personally performed the ceremonies of a disciple, thereby recognizing the centuries-old paradigm of the Taoist master as the teacher of sovereigns (diwang shi帝王師). When Yangdi proposed moving the capital to the south, Wang warned against the move, but Yangdi ignored his advice. That act apparently persuaded Wang that Yangdi was no longer the legitimate Son of Heaven, a position that had needed Taoist confirmation for hundreds of years. Wang therefore turned his attention to Li Yuan 李淵 (Gaozu, r. 618–26), the future founder of the Tang dynasty: Wang reportedly told Li that he would become the next emperor, and secretly transmitted to him the [Taoist] sacred registers and the [Heavenly] Mandate. Some scholars have argued that Wang initiated the prophecies that identified Li’s ancestor as the Taoist sage Laozi, an identification that became a crucial element of Tang legitimatory doctrine and justified the extensive Tang promotion of Taoism. There is little evidence to support the argument that it was Wang who initiated such ideas. But in 621 he did recognize Gaozu’s successor, Taizong (r. 626–49), as the Son of Heaven of Great Peace (Taiping tianzi太平天子). Taizong reportedly offered Wang a government position, but Wang naturally declined, whereupon the emperor built an abbey for him at Mount Mao (*Maoshan, Jiangsu). Just before Wang’s death in 635, Taizong issued a rescript expressing gratitude for Wang’s gracious and conscientious attentions. In 680 Tang Gaozong (r. 649–83) canonized and ennobled Wang, and in 684 Empress Wu lauded Wang in an edict. The Standard Histories suggest that Wang lived some 126 years, but the Taoist biographies establish that he died 1 November 635, at the age of 107. Russell KIRKLAND & Barrett 1996, 28; Benn 1977, 31–43; Chen Guofu 1963, 47; Kirkland 1986b, 43–44; Reiter 1998, 20–28; Wechsler 1985, 69–73; Yoshikawa Tadao 1990 ※ Shangqing |
| 18 | wang zhe Wang Zhe 王嚞 | 王嚞 1113–70; original ming: Zhongfu 中孚; zi: Yunqing 允卿, Zhiming 知明; hao: Chongyang 重陽 (Double Yang) Wang Zhe (Wang Chongyang), the founder of the *Quanzhen order, was born into a wealthy family near Xianyang 咸陽, west of Xi’an (Shaanxi). When he was a teenager, the area became engulfed in the war between the Jin and the Song, and was not at peace until the 1160s. This situation curtailed Wang’s ambitions, and he seems to have eventually renounced efforts to become a scholar and then to build a military career. He moved to the area just north of the Zhongnan mountains (Zhongnan shan 終南山), where apparently he turned into a drunkard and a local bully. In 1159 he reportedly met two extraordinary persons, later identified by the Quanzhen tradition as *Lü Dongbin and *Zhongli Quan, who made a profound impression on him. He met them again one year later and began to devote himself to self-cultivation. From 1160 to 1163, he lived in a self-made grave called tomb of the living dead (huosi ren mu活死人墓), then moved to a hermitage shared with two other ascetics. In 1167, he burned the hermitage down and headed for faraway Shandong, where his predication met with great success. In each of the five districts at the tip of the Shandong peninsula, he founded a lay association (hui會) with a name beginning with Three Teachings and a specific denomination. Each association had a meeting hall (tang堂) where devotees convened for prayer and meditation. Wang visited these groups regularly and wrote for them prose and poetic texts conveying his ethical and *neidan pedagogy. Later tradition isolates among his disciples a paradigmatic group of seven, known as the Seven Real Men (qizhen七真): *Ma Yu, *Tan Chuduan, *Liu Chuxuan, *Qiu Chuji, *Wang Chuyi, *Hao Datong and *Sun Bu’er (see table 17). Wang wanted to take them back to Shaanxi to convert his native area, but he died on the way, in Kaifeng (Henan). Wang belongs to the hagiographic category of people who create new religions. The construction of his legend includes the portrait of a sinner converted fairly late—at the age of forty-six—to religious life, and of a forceful and independent man more akin to a soldier than an official. Whereas Quanzhen’s later history is well charted by a host of sources (mainly inscriptions), Wang’s life stands apart since no contemporary records except his own works are extant. The first comprehensive accounts of his life are an inscription dated 1232 and several later hagiographic documents. These, on the other hand, are very rich and cover a vast array of genres, including a pictorial representation of his life among the murals of the *Yongle gong. A comparison of this hagiography with Wang’s extant poetry, which we have no reason to consider spurious, reveals that the broad outlines of his life’s events are reliable, but the real character behind them is rather difficult to apprehend. One of the most fascinating accounts of Wang’s life is an autobiographical poem, the Wuzhen ge 悟真歌 or Song on Awakening to Reality (in *Chongyang Quanzhen ji, 9.11b–12b). Many themes in this text later became standard elements of the Quanzhen self-image and were repeatedly employed in inscriptions and hagiographies. For instance, when Wang decides to devote himself to the pursuit of immortality, he breaks off his relationship with his wife and children in an abrupt way, telling them that their plight is not anymore of his concern. This violent scene was included in many later Quanzhen Taoists’ biographies, and was represented in excruciating detail in a theatre play (see under *Ma Yu). Wang Zhe wrote a considerable amount of poetry that circulated as isolated pieces: there has never been a unique authoritative collection. Much of what we have was collected by Ma Yu and his disciples in the 1180s, and so emphasizes Wang’s privileged relation with Ma. These works consist of a large collection of poems in various genres entitled *Chongyang Quanzhen ji (Anthology on the Completion of Authenticity, by [Wang] Chongyang; CT 1153), and of two compilations of his poetic exchanges with Ma, the Jiaohua ji教化集 (Anthology of Religious Conversions; CT 1154) and the Fenli shihua ji分梨十化集 (Anthology of the Ten Stages of Pear-Slicing; CT 1155). Many poems are found in two of these three works, which suggests an intricate compilation process. On the other hand, the Chongyang zhenren shou Danyang ershisi jue重陽真人授丹陽二十四訣 (The Twenty-Four Instructions Given to [Ma] Danyang by the Real Man [Wang] Chongyang; CT 1158) seems to be apocryphal. Other works in the Daozang attributed to Wang are also of highly doubtful authenticity. These include a short exposition of the Taoist lifestyle, entitled *Chongyang lijiao shiwu lun (Fifteen Essays by [Wang] Chongyang to Establish His Teaching; CT 1233), and an original *neidan treatise, the Jinguan yusuo jue金關玉鎖訣 (Instructions on the Golden Chain and the Jade Lock; CT 1156). Vincent GOOSSAERT & Boltz J. M. 1987a, 143–48; Eskildsen 2001; Hachiya Kunio 1992a; Kubo Noritada 1987b; Marsone 2001a, 97–101; Marsone 2001b; Qing Xitai 1994, 1: 328–29; Reiter 1994; Wong Shiu Hon 1981 ※ Chongyang lijiao shiwu lun; Chongyang Quanzhen ji; Quanzhen |
| 19 | wang zhi jin Wang Zhijin 王志謹 | 王志謹 1178–1263; hao: Qiyun zi 棲雲子 (Master Dwelling among the Clouds) Wang Zhijin is one of the most famous *Quanzhen masters of the third generation. He became an adept at the age of twenty under the tutelage of *Hao Datong. After Hao’s death in 1213, he led an ascetic vagrant life before settling on Mount Pan (Panshan 盤山), a small mountain with a long Buddhist tradition located between today’s Beijing and Tianjin. When *Qiu Chuji returned to Beijing from his famous journey to Chinggis khan’s camp, Wang formally became one of his disciples. When Qiu died in 1227, Wang left Mount Pan to set up new communities and, after the final demise of the Jin rule, was one of the first Quanzhen masters under Mongol authority to go on missionary tours in the valley of the Yellow River. His lifetime task was to build a large monastery in Kaifeng, on the spot where *Wang Zhe had died; this was to become the Chaoyuan gong朝元宮 (Palace of the Audience with the [Three] Primes), of which one tower is still standing. Although Wang’s teaching and ritual activities extended throughout the whole of northern China, where he travelled tirelessly, most of his branch communities, often named Qiyun guan 棲雲觀 (Abbey of Dwelling among the Clouds) after his hao, were located near Kaifeng, in the northern part of present-day Henan. His national prestige was recognized in 1263 when, while still alive, he was awarded with a six-character title of zhenren. Wang’s major legacy is surely his recorded sayings, the Panshan Qiyun Wang zhenren yulu盤山棲雲王真人語錄 (Recorded Sayings of the Real Man Wang Qiyun from Mount Pan; 1247; CT 1059). This was the most famous Quanzhen *yulu, as attested by its inclusion in the *Xiuzhen shishu (j. 53) and by numerous later quotations and prefaces, including one by the famous late-Ming philosopher Jiao Hong焦竑 (1541–1620). The received text is well established: the Daozang and a Yuan edition kept at the Beijing National Library are identical, while the Xiuzhen shishu edition is almost the same, except for the entirely different order of the 101 anecdotes. This is remarkable for a collection of random jottings, compiled without a preconceived plan during the author’s lifetime and written in colloquial language. Throughout this lively work, Wang appears as a passionate preacher, not averse to using Chan-like tricks, jokes or riddles to elicit enlightenment in his audience, but especially prone to tell the stories of immortals and Quanzhen patriarchs inflicting trials upon their followers to test their control over body and mind. Qiu Chuji figures prominently in many anecdotes, and appears as a paragon of the search for immortality whom all adepts should emulate. Although the Panshan yulu does not display theoretical peculiarities, it has a voice of its own in the larger corpus of Quanzhen literature. The pervasive theme of death, and the preference of absolute fluidity of mind over the use of mental symbols in meditation techniques, show that Wang’s teachings as well as his person were all about directly coming to grasp the great affair of life and death (shengsi dashi生死大事). Vincent GOOSSAERT & Boltz J. M. 1987a, 170–72 and 236 ※ Hao Datong; Quanzhen |
| 20 | wang zi qiao Wangzi Qiao 王子喬 | 王子喬 Wangzi Qiao (whose name is also transliterated as Wang Ziqiao) appears in numerous early sources as an exemplary model for a successful adept. His hagiography in the *Liexian zhuan (trans. Kaltenmark 1953, 109–14) identifies him as Jin晉, heir to King Ling of Zhou (Lingwang, r. 571–545 bce). After studying with Fu Qiu 浮丘 on Mount Song (*Songshan, Henan) for over thirty years, he disappeared riding a white crane. Shrines were erected on Mount Goushi (Goushi shan 緱氏山, Henan) and on Mount Song. A distinct, and probably older, tradition is preserved in the Tianwen天問 (Heavenly Questions) poem of the Chuci楚辭 (Songs of Chu; trans. Hawkes 1985, 122–51) and in Wang Yi’s 王逸 (second century ce) commentary, which describe Wangzi Qiao manifesting himself as a rainbow before transforming into a great bird. Wangzi Qiao’s fame grew during the Han culminating in the Wangzi Qiao bei王子喬碑 (Stele to Wangzi Qiao), erected in 165 at the prompting of Han Huandi (r. 146–168) at the shrine of the Wang family of Meng蒙 (in Henan), to commemorate the transcendent’s appearance in 137 ce during the la臘 festival (the popular New Year’s day; Bodde 1975, 49–74). Among the Perfected who appeared to *Yang Xi, Wangzi Qiao later was recognized in the *Shangqing scriptures as the official in charge of the Golden Court Cavern (Jinting dong 金庭洞) below Mount Tongbo (Tongbo shan桐柏山, Zhejiang; *Zhengao, 1.2b; *Zhenling weiye tu, 5a). In 711, Tang Ruizong (r. 684–90, 710–12) sponsored the establishment of the *Tongbo guan (Abbey of the Paulownias and Cypresses). During his residency there, *Sima Chengzhen wrote a hagiography describing Wangzi Qiao’s historical appearances, the Shangqing shi dichen Tongbo zhenren zhentu zan上清侍帝晨桐柏真人真圖讚 (Appraisals to Authentic Pictures of the Perfected of Tongbo, Director Aide to Imperial Dawn of Highest Clarity; CT 612). During the Five Dynasties, Wangzi Qiao was designated Perfected Lord and Primordial Aide (Yuanbi zhenjun 元弼真君). He was entitled Perfected Lord of Primordial Response (Yuanying zhenjun元應真君) by Song Huizong in 1113, and Perfected of Benefic Munificence and Wide Deliverance (Shanli guangji zhenren善利廣濟真人) by Song Gaozong during the Shaoxing reign period (1131–62). Gil RAZ & Campany 1996, 193–95; DeWoskin 1983, 52–53; Holzman 1991; Kaltenmark 1953, 109–14; Ngo 1976, 86–87 ※ hagiography |