Reference work
Modern Daoist Eschatology: Spirit-Writing and Elite Soteriology in Late Imperial China
Vincent Goossaert
Goossaert distinguishes apocalyptic destruction from a final end of all time: in these Daoist texts another cosmic cycle follows. He also distinguishes disaster affecting an individual from collective calamity. Sections I–II trace spirit-written texts associated with Wenchang, the Jade Emperor and Zhenwu. They connect divine judgment with moral teaching: humanity faces destruction, but reform and revealed instruction offer rescue. Goossaert discusses the Zitong deity’s original-vow scripture, a Zhenwu admonition dated 1302, and a later Wenchang scripture for averting catastrophe. He argues that such traditions could retain an apocalyptic outlook while relocating the savior’s work into recurring revelation and moral instruction. These are an historian’s comparisons across particular texts.
Bibliography entry · Source text is available through the cited link below.
Edition and location
Daoism: Religion, History and Society 6 (2014), 219–246. Publisher metadata and mirror body; no page-image collation.
Printed pages 221–230, sections I–II