LÜ TUNG-PIN

LÜ TUNG-PIN

"The Patriarch of Hsien, best known as Lü Tung-pin, is represented a dignified elderly man generally clothed in the dress worn by the scholarly class. His emblem is the magic two-edged sword, which he carries in his hand or slung on his back. He is the literary member of our group; and, while in some localities regarded as the patron saint of jugglers and magicians,² he is more widely looked upon by barbers as their special protector.³ In the last capacity he is called in Peking the Patriarch Lo⁴.

During the chêng-ho period of the Sung (A.D. 1111-17) there appeared in the palace demons even in broad daylight, who plundered the treasury of gold and silver, and also kidnapped some of the imperial concubines.

The Emperor purified himself by fasting, and humbly offered supplications to heaven for the space of sixty days without ceasing. One day he fell asleep and saw in his dream standing outside the Tung-hua Gate of the palace a Taoist adept, wearing upon his head p. 798 a green lotus-cap,¹ and upon his back a dark crane's-down robe. In his hand he carried a crystal ju-i.² Bowing to the Emperor, he said: "Your servant has been sent by the Supreme Ruler of the Universe to control these demons." Then he summoned an officer resplendent in golden armour, who seizing the demons tore them in pieces and swallowed them till none were left. In answer to the Emperor's query as to the identity of this gallant warrior the Taoist replied: "He is no other than Kuan Yü³, whom Your Majesty invested with the title Revered and Immortal Prince." The Emperor thanked the officer repeatedly, and then asked him where was Chang Fei⁴. Kuan Yü replied: "Every generation Chang Fei becomes reincarnate in the person of some male child. At the present time, in order to serve Your Majesty, he is being reborn in a family called Yo, living at Hsiang Chou⁵."

Asked by the Emperor what was his name, the Taoist replied: "Your servant is called Yang, and was born on the 14th day of the 4th month."⁶

The Emperor awoke from his dream, and having looked up the records, knew that the Taoist was really Tung-pin. Henceforth the demons remained permanently expelled from the palace. An imperial edict ordered that in all the shrines dedicated to Tung-pin throughout China he should be known by the title The Pure One of Subtle Intellect."

From: THE JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL ASIATIC SOCIETY OF GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND FOR 1916 [LONDON, 1916] {Reduced to HTML by Christopher M. Weimer, August 2002} XXI THE EIGHT IMMORTALSBy W. PERCEVAL YETTS

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