Page 442 - The Encyclopedia of Taoism v1_A-L

FANG SHEMA 403

honorary name "Worthy" (Xian '1.?t) and the title Great Master of the Four
Seasons, the Eight Nodes, and Heaven and Earth (Sishi bajie tiandi taishi [g
B#) rn 7C:tlli:;:t tr\i). He was appointed Counselor-in-Chief (chengxiang !B1§),
enfeoffed as Marquis, and awarded the tax revenue of all his followers, who
were also exempted from corvee duties. Two years later, Fan convinced Xiong
to take the imperial title, thus formally breaking ties with the Jin empire, and
was no doubt instrumental in implementing the Taoist-inspired reforms that
characterized Xiong's rule.
The historical record for the state of Dacheng makes little mention of
Fan's activities as Chancellor, but they must have been considerable and ef-
fective, for upon his death in 318, his son Fan Ben m. succeeded his father
in this position. Little else is known of Fan, but it is likely that he was of the
Zong ~ ethnicity, perhaps a distant relative of the Fan Mu m El (or Fan Yin
m I;§) who led the Zong in support of Liu Bang ~~ *~ at the founding of the
Han dynasty. After the state of Dacheng (by then called Han ~~) was finally
conquered in 347, a revolt attempted to reestablish the state with Fan Ben as
its prospective ruler. Such was the enduring influence of the Fan family in the
Sichuan region.

Terry KLEEMAN
W Kleeman 1998, passim; Seidel 1969-70, 233-36

* Li Xiong; Dacheng

fangshema

Dispatching the Writ of Pardon

Dispatching the Writ of Pardon is the rite of sending off the Writ of Pardon of
the Three Heavens (santian sheshu -= 7C ~@:) to the lords of the underworld,
attesting that the sins of the deceased have been forgiven. In rituals of Merit
(*gongde) in Taiwan, the rite is held in the late afternoon in an open space or
on the road near the altar. The first half of the rite is an enactment of the
receipt of the Writ from Heaven. Originally, the high priest (gaogong f'i'ij Jj] ; see
*daozhang) climbed up on a platform and performed a spiritual ascension to
Heaven to present the petition. After receiving Heaven's consent, he proclaimed
it (*Shangqing lingbao dafa; CT 1221, j. 44). This action is omitted in the ritual
as it is carried out in present-day Taiwan, where the high priest instead climbs
onto the platform and immediately proclaims the Writ of Pardon.