The ''Sanhuangjing'' (, Book of Three Emperors), also known as the ''Sanhuang Neiwen'' () or the ''Sanhuangwen'' (), is a fundamental
Daoist book which claims those who chant it can become an emperor.
The Daoist master Zheng Yin reportedly transmitted such texts as the Sanhuang Neiwen, which Zheng considered to be among the most important alchemical scriptures, to
Ge Hong
Ge Hong (; b. 283 – d. 343 or 364), courtesy name Zhichuan (稚川), was a Chinese linguist, Taoist practitioner, philosopher, physician, politician, and writer during the Eastern Jin dynasty. He was the author of '' Essays on Chinese Characte ...
during the
Jin dynasty. According to Ge, the ''Sanhuangjing'' was mainly about controlling and summoning ghosts and spirits, talismans and charts, and methods of meditation, and thus was a talismanic book.
All copies of the ''Sanhuangjing'' were ordered burned by
Emperor Taizong of Tang in 647 CE, due to its supposed ability to bestow imperial status upon the reader. The
Chongxuan school Daoist master
Cheng Xuanying participated in its investigation.
Fragments of the ''Sanhuangjing'' exist in the
Daozang.
Notes
Ge Hong - historyofalchemy.comThe Book of the Three Emperors - Daoinfo.orgForming the Image of Cheng Xuanying (ca.600-690)
Taoist texts
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