Page 350 - The Encyclopedia of Taoism v1_A-L

DAODE JING 3II

3. The priest notifies the assembled deities of his charge and name, and
invokes the high-ranking deities, respectfully announcing the reason for
holding the ritual.
4. He reads the Green Declaration (qingci W ~PJ ), a summary of basic infor-
mation about the ritual and the intent of the community representatives
who are sponsoring it.
5. Incense is offered three times to each of the Three Clarities so that through
the merit of the audience, the world may enjoy fortune and happiness, the
nine generations of ancestors may attain salvation, and all living beings
may gain liberation.
6. Out of concern that the sins of both the living and the dead may remain
in the world and exert an evil influence, obeisance is made to the Celes-
tial Worthies of the ten directions, repentance (* chanhui) is made in each
direction, and forgiveness is sought from the deities of the Sun, the Moon,
the stars, the mountains, the rivers, and the netherworld.
The rite is followed by a final section that comprises chanting the Pacing
the Void lyrics (*Buxu ci), venerating the Three Treasures (sanbao =., i.e.,
the Dao, the Scriptures, and the Masters), extinguishing the incense burner
in order to return the deities who presented the Statement to their positions
within the priest's body, and descending from the altar.
MARUYAMA Hiroshi

m Lagerwey 1987<:' 106- 48; Lii Chuikuan 1994; 6fuchi Ninji 1983, 271-322
* gongde; jiao

Daodejing

Scripture of the Dao and Its Virtue

The Daode jing, also known as Laozi :t; T , is ascribed to Laozi, who allegedly
gave it to *Yin Xi as he left the Middle Kingdom to go to the west. Scholars
have long debated its authorship and date. Some think that it is not the work
of a single author, some maintain that most of it originated as oral tradition
during the Warring States period (403- 221), and some suggest that it reached
its final form in the late third or the early second century BCE. The *Guodian
manuscripts, datable to between 350 and 300 BCE, seem to prove that the Daode
jing existed at that time in a form very close to the received version.