辯正論 8.7

8.7

靈寶諸天靈書度命妙經。稱天尊言。大劫交周天崩地淪。六天之中欲界之內。雜法普滅無有遺餘。太平道經。佛說法華大小品經。周遊上下十八天中。在色界之內。至大劫交周天地改廢。其文乃沒。然玉清上道三洞神經真文金書玉字靈寶真經。竝出元始處於二十八天無色界之上。大劫周時竝還天上大羅天中玉京之山七寶玄臺災所不及。大羅天是五億五萬五千五百五十五天之上天也。故自然之文。與運同生與運同滅。能奉之者七祖生天。轉輪聖王世世不絕。靈寶真文度人本行經云。十方大聖自作是言。以何因緣得是太上之任。道言自稱元始開光以來至赤明元年。經九千九百九億劫。度恒沙之眾。赤明以後至上皇元年。度人無量。我隨劫生死世世不絕。恒與靈寶同出。經七百億劫會青帝劫。終九氣改運於是託胎洪氏。積三千七百年。至赤明開通歲在甲子。誕於狀力蓋天。復與靈寶同出。度人無量。元始天尊以我因緣。賜我大上之號。在玄都玉京。以我信靈寶之故。

The Lingbao zhutian lingshu duming miaojing (Wondrous Scripture of the Numinous Books of the Various Heavens of Numinous Treasure for Delivering Life) claims that the Heavenly Worthy said: 'When the great kalpa completes its cycle, heaven collapses and earth sinks away. Within the six heavens, inside the desire realm, the miscellaneous dharmas are completely extinguished without anything remaining. The Taiping daojing (Daoist Scripture of Great Peace) and the Fahua and Large and Small Prajñā Sūtras spoken by the Buddha travel up and down within the eighteen heavens inside the form realm; when the great kalpa completes its cycle and heaven and earth are altered and abandoned, those texts then vanish. However, the true texts, golden writings, jade characters, and true scriptures of Numinous Treasure of the Supreme Dao of Jade Purity and the Three Caverns all issue from Primordial Beginning, dwelling above the twenty-eight heavens and above the formless realm. When the great kalpa completes its cycle, they all return to Mount Yujing and the seven-jeweled Mystery Terrace in the Daluo Heaven above heaven, where calamity does not reach. The Daluo Heaven is the heaven above five hundred and fifty-five million, five hundred and fifty-five thousand, five hundred and fifty-five heavens. Therefore the spontaneous texts are born together with the cosmic cycles and extinguished together with the cosmic cycles. Those who are able to revere them will have seven generations of ancestors reborn in heaven, and wheel-turning sagely kings will continue generation after generation without interruption.' The Lingbao zhenwen duren benxing jing (Scripture of the Original Deeds of Delivering People through the True Texts of Numinous Treasure) says: 'The great sages of the ten directions spoke thus among themselves: "By what cause and condition did he obtain this office of the Most High?" The Dao proclaimed of itself: "From when Primordial Beginning first opened the radiance down to the first year of Chiming, passing through 9,999,000,000,000 kalpas, I saved beings [as numerous as] the sands of the Ganges. From Chiming onward down to the first year of Shanghuang, I saved immeasurable people. I underwent birth and death following the kalpas, generation after generation without cease, constantly appearing together with the Numinous Treasure. Passing through seventy billion kalpas, meeting the kalpa of the Blue Thearch, when the nine qi ended and transformed the cycle, I then took womb in the Hong family, accumulating 3,700 years. Reaching the opening of Chiming in the jiazi year, I was born in Zhuangligaotian. Again I appeared together with the Numinous Treasure and saved immeasurable people. Because of my causes and conditions, the Heavenly Worthy of Primordial Beginning conferred upon me the title of Most High, residing in the Jade Capital of Xuandu, because I had faith in the Numinous Treasure."'