Taiqing Laozi

Taiqing Laozi belongs to the Taiqing line, taking shape from Pangu’s primordial spirit. He, Yuanshi and Tongtian came out of the primal vapour together, and the three travelled to Zixiao Palace to hear Hongjun preach.

When the three sermons were done, Laozi received a stream of Primordial Purple Qi and founded the Human Sect with it. He took Xuandu Dafashi as his disciple, and the two withdrew to the Bajing Palace on Mount Shouyang, taking in no crowd of followers.

Xuandu cultivated with Laozi in the Bajing Palace for years on end. The hall was quiet and callers were few; only a green buffalo lay before the steps, chewing without moving all day.

Later the three teachings met again to settle the matter of the investiture, agreeing that Haotian Shangdi would install three hundred and sixty-five true gods and so complete the broken order of divine offices. Laozi, Yuanshi and Tongtian were all party to the decision, and each allowed that any of his followers fated to fall might be entered on the list.

Once the text of the Investiture List was fixed, Jiang Ziya carried it, to be read out at the enfeoffment after the campaign against King Zhou. Xuandu stayed at the Bajing Palace and took no part in it.

After the list was settled, Jiang Ziya was sent down to serve Zhou. War grew between Shang and Zhou, the Jie disciples came down one by one to help King Zhou, and the Chan disciples followed them into the camps.

With his followers falling one after another, Tongtian Jiaozhu grew angry and set out the Zhuxian Sword Formation at Jiepai Pass. Zhuxian, Luxian, Xianxian and Juexian hung one at each gate; the sword-qi was so severe that nobody dared come near.

Hearing of it, Laozi took his leave of Xuandu, rode his green buffalo out of the Bajing Palace and went to Jiepai Pass. He first urged Tongtian to take the formation down, and Tongtian refused.

Laozi then arranged with Yuanshi, Jieyin and Zhunti to go before the formation together, each taking one gate and striking at the same moment to take the swords.

Entering, Laozi unrolled the Taiji Diagram, which threw out a golden bridge across the deadly ground inside. Laozi walked the bridge, and the killing-force below could not reach him.

Jie disciples inside met him with drawn swords. Laozi answered with his crutch, turning aside blow after blow, close and unhurried, and pressed step by step towards the heart of the formation.

The four brought all they had to bear, and through several hard engagements took the four swords down one at a time and carried them out. Most of the formation’s force went with them.

Seeing the formation broken and the swords gone, Tongtian Jiaozhu gathered the immortals of the Jie Sect again and set out the Ten Thousand Immortals Formation beyond Tong Pass.

Laozi conferred with Yuanshi and set out for it. Jieyin and Zhunti arrived in turn, and the four met outside the formation.

Inside, banners hid the sun and the Jie disciples were ranked in layer upon layer. Laozi rode his green buffalo slowly in, his crutch held across him, blocking whoever came and breaking whatever stood in the way.

The wandering Jie immortals held their separate stations. Laozi opened a road with the crutch and the Taiji Diagram while Yuanshi, Jieyin and Zhunti attacked from their own quarters, and the ranks were gradually scattered.

When the Ten Thousand Immortals Formation had fallen, Tongtian still meant to begin again and set earth, water, fire and wind in motion once more. Hongjun then appeared, called Laozi, Yuanshi and Tongtian away together, and made all three swallow a pill to end the fighting.

When the war was over Laozi carried the Taiji Diagram back to the Bajing Palace. Xuandu was still waiting before the hall; inside, nothing had changed since he left, and the green buffalo lay down again before the steps.

On the day the Investiture List was read at the terrace, Jiang Ziya proclaimed the charges from the roll. Laozi did not go to Western Qi; he waited quietly at the Bajing Palace for the news, with Xuandu in attendance.

By the age of the journey west, Taishang Laojun had moved into the Tushita Palace, where he refined elixirs and instruments all day and the furnace fire never went out.

While Erlang Shen and Sun Wukong were locked together, Laojun struck Wukong down from the heavenly gate with the Diamond Bracelet. The heavenly officers seized him at once and threw him into Laojun’s eight-trigram furnace, where seven times seven days of burning gave him fiery golden eyes instead.

On the road west, the green buffalo that carried Laojun stole the Diamond Bracelet and came down to hold the Jindou Cave on Jindou Mountain, calling itself the One-Horned Rhinoceros King. Again and again it snared Wukong’s weapon and every treasure brought against it, and the pilgrimage was held up.

When Laojun learned that his mount had gone below without leave he went to Jindou Mountain himself, took out a plantain fan and waved it once. The buffalo showed its true shape, Laojun took back the Diamond Bracelet and led it home to the Tushita Palace under guard, and the pilgrims went on west.

A widely circulated account, told in several forms, has Laozi go west through Hangu Pass, detain the warden Yin Xi, hand down the five thousand words of the Daodejing and then travel west to an unknown end; from this a further story of converting the barbarians grew up. It differs from the Investiture proper, is a later addition and is not settled.