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Daoist Canon of the Kaiyuan Era开元道藏

Also known as
Jade Compendium of the Three Caverns, Phonetic and Semantic Glosses on All Daoist Scriptures (related)
Author / transmission
compiled by imperial decree of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, compiled with the participation of Shi Chongxuan and others
Period
Tang · Compiled by imperial decree during the Kaiyuan era of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang (713–741), under the title Sandong Qionggang; according to one account it comprised 3,744 scrolls (other accounts give figures such as 5,700 scrolls); the original Canon is lost, most of it destroyed in the warfare of the late Tang and Five Dynasties.
Canon division
Daoist Canon (lost)
Collected in
Lost
Category
Daozang Collections
Fascicles
approximately 3,700-plus juan (accounts vary)

Synopsis

The Daoist Canon of the Kaiyuan Era is the first Daoist Canon in history to be compiled and promulgated throughout the realm under state sponsorship. Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, a devout patron of Daoism, ordered the search and collection of Daoist scriptures from across the empire, compiling a comprehensive catalogue titled the Sandong Qionggang (三洞琼纲, Jade Guideline of the Three Caverns), and had multiple copies transcribed and distributed to temples throughout the country for safekeeping; together with companion projects such as the Yiqie Daojing Yinyi (一切道经音义, Phonetic and Semantic Glosses on All Daoist Scriptures), this represented the high point of the compilation of Daoist texts in the Tang. This undertaking brought the collection, collation, and circulation of Daoist scriptures within the framework of state institutions, marking the status of Daoism as a state religion under the Tang — the Li-surnamed Tang imperial house honored Laozi as its founding ancestor, elevated the Daodejing to the status of the Daode Zhenjing, established the Chongxuan Academy, and instituted the Daoist Examination for selecting officials, and the compilation of the Canon was one link in this whole series of policies. Its recorded scroll count varies between sources, and scholars generally accept a figure of over 3,700 scrolls. The original Canon was almost entirely lost amid the Huang Chao Rebellion at the end of the Tang and the warfare of the Five Dynasties, but its bibliographical framework was inherited by the Song-dynasty Precious Canon of the Celestial Palace of the Great Song; the Tang-dynasty manuscript Daoist scriptures unearthed at Dunhuang provide precious physical evidence for examining the actual appearance of the Daoist Canon of the Kaiyuan Era.

Key Ideas

  • The first state-compiled and promulgated Daoist Canon
  • Its comprehensive catalogue titled the Sandong Qionggang
  • Copies transcribed and distributed to temples for safekeeping
  • An institutional expression of Daoism's status as state religion under the Tang
  • Lost at the end of the Tang and in the Five Dynasties; the Dunhuang manuscripts offer evidence

Structure

Arranged according to the Three Caverns, Four Supplements, and Seven Sections (as inferred from bibliographical records).

Editions

  • The original Canon is lost; Tang-dynasty manuscript Daoist scriptures from Dunhuang offer a glimpse of its appearance

Commentaries

  • Detailed study in Chen Guofu's Studies on the Origins and Development of the Daoist Canon

Full Text & Online Resources

Related scriptures

Catalogue of the Scriptures of the Three Caverns, Catalogue of the Scriptures of the Seven Sections of the Jade Weft, Precious Canon of the Celestial Palace of the Great Song, Dunhuang Daoist Manuscripts

Related figures

Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, Chen Guofu
References
  1. Chen Guofu, Studies on the Origins and Development of the Daoist Canon
  2. Schipper & Verellen, The Taoist Canon, 2004
  3. 大渊忍尔《敦煌道经·目录编》
  4. 任继愈主编《道藏提要》