Complete Works of Patriarch Lü吕祖全书

Also known as

Compiled Works of Patriarch Lü, Complete Works of Emperor Lü

Author / transmission

Lü Dongbin,

Period

Qing · First compiled between the Shunzhi and Kangxi reigns (by Liu Tishu and others); the sixty-four-scroll edition expanded by Shao Zhilin in the fortieth year of the Qianlong reign (1775) is the most widely circulated.

Canon division

Outside the Canon

Collected in

Outside the canon (included in volume 7 of Daoist Texts outside the Canon)

Category

Alchemical Texts

Fascicles

32-scroll and 64-scroll editions, among others

Synopsis

The Complete Works of Patriarch Lü (Lüzu quanshu) is a Qing-dynasty compendium gathering scriptures, poetry, and spirit-writing revelations attributed to Lü Dongbin; Liu Tishu compiled a thirty-two-scroll edition during the Kangxi reign, and Shao Zhilin expanded it to sixty-four scrolls under the Qianlong reign. Its contents include such enduring alchemical poems as the 'Biography of Patriarch Lü,' the Qiaoyao ge (Song of Striking the Hexagram Lines), Lü Dongbin's Hundred-Character Stele, and a Qinyuanchun lyric; Zhong-Lü alchemical scriptures such as the Complete Methods of the Numinous Treasure and the Anthology of Zhongli Quan's Transmission of the Dao to Lü Dongbin; and a large body of 'new scriptures' produced at Qing spirit-writing altars, such as the Secret of the Golden Flower, the Cantongjing, the Zhixuan pian (Chapter Pointing to the Mystery), the Xingxin zhenjing (True Scripture of Awakening the Heart), and the Qingwei sanpin jing (Three-Part Scripture of the Qingwei Tradition), along with accounts of Lü Dongbin's miraculous deeds, repentance rites, and morality tracts. This work concentrates the flourishing of the popular 'cult of Patriarch Lü' in the Ming and Qing and the scale of scripture-production at spirit-writing altars, and is a fundamental source for studying the worship of Lü Dongbin, spirit-writing religion, and the evolution of internal alchemy in the Qing dynasty.

Key Ideas

• A compendium of Patriarch Lü's scriptures and alchemical poetry
• Gathers the 'new scriptures' produced at Qing-dynasty spirit-writing altars
• Combines Zhong-Lü alchemy with popular cult worship
• Morality tracts and repentance rites

Structure

The sixty-four-scroll edition is divided into categories including biography, scriptures, pronouncements, alchemical formulas, poetry, and repentance rites.

Editions

• Kangxi-era Liu Tishu edition
• Qianlong-era sixty-four-scroll Shao Zhilin edition
• Volume 7 of Daoist Texts outside the Canon

Full Text & Online Resources

• Wikipedia: Lü Dongbin
• CTEXT Search

Related scriptures

Related figures