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Sketch of Yuhwang Shangte.
JUNE,
been desirous together with all the ministers and people of the em- pire to make an unanimous exaltation of the title and office of the gem imperial holy one (Shangte). During the first year of the reign of Teën, the first moon, and first day, his majesty repaired to the Taetsoo palace, and reverently proclaimed Yuhwang (Shangte) the great celestial and holy emperor, to be, the great predecessor who spread out the heavens, the holder of charms, ruler of the times of the heavenly bodies, containing the spiritual essence and enveloped in reason, the most venerated of the luminous heavens, the gem like, imperial, vast and Celestial emperor.
The couplets (on the door-posts of the temples) are
1. The holder of the charms of the luminous heavens, while all are everywhere the recipients of his cherishing bounty.
2. The emperor Shangte in his gem palace rules all spirits and men, and the whole universally remain subject to his instructions.
(The translator subjoins an extract from a sketch of the three great original* potentates, also found in the Sow Shin Ke.)
The three great original supreme ones in the beginning became the bones of the genuine genii, and by a transformation were chang ed into life, and being re-born became human beings. Their father's surname was Chun, and his name Tszechun; and he was also desig- nated the man Chunlang. He was possessed of supereminent intel- ligence and excellence.
Upon a certain time there were three daughters of the dragon king5 who of their own accord, vowed that they would become the wives of Chunlang. These three sisters bore him three sons, all of whom possessed intellectual capacities of vast extent, and were un- bounded in their knowledge of the recondite arts. The celestial superior, perceiving that they possessed such vast intellectual capaci- ties, and that the manifestations of their illustrious powers were inex- haustible, forthwith bestowed upon them their respective ranks as follows:
SHANGYUEN to become a celestial ruler, the sovereign prince of the red mystery and the bestower of happiness; the anniversary of whose birth to be celebrated on the fifteenth of the first moon.
CHUNGYUEN to become a terrestrial ruler, the sovereign prince of departed spirits, and pardoner of sins-anniversary to occur on the fifteenth of the seventh moon.
Anniver
HEAYUEN to become a ruler of the waters, the sovereign prince of the regions of the rising sun, and disperser of difficulties. sarego take place on the fifteenth of the tenth month.
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