Ziwei the Great. Ziwei is a Taoist god, the full name is "Zhongtian Ziwei Arctic Emperor", Ziwei is also called Ziyuan, Zigong, in the constellation belongs to the emperor's residence, the palace is also called the city is this origin. The image of Ziwei the Great in the heavens of Taoism and Buddhism is a middle-aged emperor. It is one of the four emperors of Taoism, and its status is second only to the Jade Emperor.

In the Taoist immortal lineage, the highest god is the "Three Qings". "Sanqing" refers to the three victorious realms where the gods live: the Yuqing Holy Realm, the Shangqing Halal Realm, and the Taiqing Immortal Realm, collectively known as the Sanqing Realm; It also refers to the three supreme gods of Taoism who live in different realms: Yuqing Emperor Yuan Shi Tianzun, Shangqing Emperor Lingbao Tianzun, and Taiqing Emperor Daode Tianzun. The Sanqing has four auxiliary gods, and their status is second only to the "Three Qings", namely: the Jade Emperor, the Arctic Ziwei Emperor, the Heavenly Emperor and the Houtu Huangdi. The first of the four emperors is the Jade Emperor, followed by the Arctic Ziwei Emperor. The Arctic Ziwei Emperor is located in the center of the heavens, assisting the Jade Emperor in ruling the natural phenomena such as the latitude and longitude of the heavens, the sun, the moon and the stars, and the four solar terms, and is highly worshipped among the ancient Chinese people.

Ziwei Arctic Emperor is enshrined in many parts of the country, and it comes from the ancient star worship in China. The North Pole is the abbreviation of the North Star, also known as "North Star" and "Tianshu". It lives in Ziweiyuan. Volume 48 of the Book of the Later Han Dynasty says: "There is Ziwei Palace in the sky, which is the residence of God." Therefore, Ziweiyuan is also called Ziwei Palace, and later the place where the emperor lived was called the city. Taoism believes that Beichen is a permanent star, located in the middle of the heavens, the highest position, the most noble, is the "lord of the stars", "the foundation of the gods", so it is extremely revered. The Book of Jin? The Astronomical Chronicles says: "The five stars of the North Pole and the six stars of Hook Chen are all in the Ziwei Palace, the North Pole, and the most honorable person in the north; Its fine star, the pivot of the sky. And it is the "seat of the emperor" and the permanent residence of the Son of Heaven". Tang Dynasty Kong Yingda's "Book? Said the fate" Shu: "Beidou surrounds the North Pole, the Zhou Wei of the Son of Heaven of the Judah Qingshi, the five stars are in the column, the princes of the province of Judah Mu, the twenty-eight houses are spread in the four directions, the princes of Judah are also guarded by the Son of Heaven, and the celestial phenomena are all the law of respect and inferiority." ”

The Taoist Sutra says: The function of the Ziwei Arctic Emperor is: to rule the heavens and the earth, to lead the gods of the stars of the Three Realms and the gods of mountains and rivers, and to be the king of all phenomena, who can call the wind and rain, and serve the thunder and lightning ghosts. Emperor Ziwei was courteous to the emperors of previous dynasties, especially in the Song Dynasty, and was often enshrined together with the Jade Emperor. Now in Dazu and other places in Sichuan, you can also see many Taoist statues carved in the next generation, including Ziwei Emperor. History of the Ming Dynasty? Lizhi IV". In the Ming Dynasty, the court also built the Ziwei Palace, "setting up an elephant sacrifice". Its image is dressed as an emperor, and there are majestic generals next to it, which is very noble and majestic. According to legend, the birthday of the Emperor Zihui is the 18th day of the fourth month of the lunar calendar.

In the process of sinicization of Buddhism, it is natural that such a revered god who is in charge of the natural world cannot be ignored, so in the water and land paintings, he is invited into the hall, which shows the flexibility and inclusiveness of Buddhism in the process of circulation. But if the Jade Emperor is invited into the puja, the position may not be easy to place.

In addition to the 20 gods in ancient Indian mythology into the Buddhist guardian team of punishing evil and promoting goodness (called the Twenty Heavens), the three gods of Taoism were added, namely the Emperor Ziwei, the Emperor Dongyue and the God of Thunder, making the Emperor Ziwei one of the 24 days of Buddhism and enjoying the fireworks in the world.

In the Taoist immortal lineage, the highest god is the "Three Qings". "Sanqing" refers to the three victorious realms where the gods live: [1] Yuqing Holy Realm, Shangqing Halal Realm, and Taiqing Immortal Realm, collectively known as Sanqing Realm; It also refers to the three supreme gods of Taoism who live in different realms: Yuqing Emperor Yuan Shi Tianzun, Shangqing Emperor Lingbao Tianzun, and Taiqing Emperor Daode Tianzun. There are four assistant gods in the Sanqing, namely: the Zhongtian Ziwei Arctic Emperor, the South Antarctic Immortal Emperor, the Gouchen Shanggong Emperor the Emperor, and the Houtu Emperor Diyi. Emperor Ziwei assisted the Jade Emperor in ruling the latitude and longitude of the earth, the sun, the moon, the stars, the stars, and the four seasons of the climate, and could call the wind and rain, serve the ghosts and gods, and be the grandmaster of all things and the master of all stars; The Antarctic Immortal Emperor assisted the Jade Emperor in ruling the world's longevity, heaven and misfortune, and the Emperor of Shanggong assisted the Jade Emperor in ruling the North and South Poles, the three talents of heaven, earth and man, and dominated the affairs of the human revolution; After Chengtian imitated the Emperor of the Earth, he assisted the Jade Emperor in ruling the Yin and Yang fertility, the growth of all things, and the beauty of the earth, rivers and mountains. [2] Ziwei the Great, referred to as Ziweixing, is located in the center of the heavens and is highly worshipped among the ancient Chinese folk. Ziwei the Great is enshrined in many parts of the country, and it comes from the ancient star worship in China. The North Pole is the abbreviation of the North Star, also known as "North Star" and "Tianshu". It lives in Ziweiyuan. The fourth volume of the Shangqing Lingbao * says: "The Arctic Emperor is the Emperor of the Purple Emblem Wall. According to the "Astronomical Chronicles" clouds: the south pole is 36 degrees into the earth, the north pole is 36 degrees above the earth, and the sky is on the side. Half out of the ground, half back to the ground, all the stars and all the stars are left, but the pivot of the north and south poles does not move, so the sky can move. The world looks to the north and says the North Pole. ”

In fact, it is in the middle of the sky. For the suzerain of ten thousand stars, the Yajun of the Three Realms, second to Haotian, Shangying Yuanqi is the origin of the Arctic Ziwei Emperor and the Zhongtian Ziwei Arctic Emperor, "Taishang said that the Xuantian Great Sage Zhenwu Ben Chuan Shen Mantra Sutra" quoted the "Beidou Bunsheng Sutra" said: "The early tribulation of the Xilong Han Dynasty, there was Zhou Shangyu Yuguo Ziguang Lady in the spring, playing to the Wenyu Pond, Fang undressed and bathing, suddenly felt the nine buds of the lotus stamen, a development, the birth of nine sons, the lady embraced the palace, volunteered to become a saint, Sasuke Qiankun, all the sons of the strong crown is each cultivated, the garden is full of merit, and the day is to the sky, and get the three noble positions! The Emperor of Heaven, the eldest son, the Purple Emblem Upper Palace Jigang, and the leader of the Yuanhua Stars. Emperor Ziwei, the second son, was the ruler of the North Pole Zhongmu Mingtang. Volume 48 of the Book of the Later Han Dynasty says: "There is Ziwei Palace in the sky, which is the residence of God." Therefore, Ziweiyuan is also known as Ziwei Palace, and later the place where the emperor lived was called the Forbidden City. Taoism believes that Beichen is a permanent star, located in the middle of the heavens, the highest position, the most noble, is the "lord of the stars", "the foundation of the gods", so it is extremely revered. "Jin Shu Astronomical Chronicles" says: "The five stars of the North Pole, the six stars of Hook Chen, are all in the Ziwei Palace, the North Pole, and the most venerable person in the north; Its fine star, the pivot of the sky. And it is the "seat of the emperor" and the permanent residence of the Son of Heaven". Tang Dynasty Kong Yingda's "Book and Fate" Shu: "The Beidou surrounds the North Pole, the Zhou Wei of the Son of Heaven of Juqingshi, the five stars are in the liesu, the princes of the province of Juzhou Muzhi are also, the twenty-eight houses are spread in the four directions, the princes of Judah are the sons of heaven and the princes are guarded, and the celestial phenomena are all respected and humbled, and the functions of the Emperor of the Arctic in the scriptures of the Zhongtian Ziwei Arctic are: to rule the heavens and latitudes, to lead the gods of the stars of the three realms and the gods of mountains and rivers, and to be the king of all phenomena, who can call the wind and rain, and serve the thunder and lightning ghosts and gods. For example, the volume of "Nine Heavens Ying Yuan Thunder Puhua Tianzun Yushu Treasure Sutra Annotation" says: "The Arctic Ziwei Emperor has mastered the five thunders. ”

As a result, the Ziwei Emperor was worshipped by the emperors of previous dynasties, especially in the Song Dynasty, and was often enshrined together with the Jade Emperor. Sichuan Dazu and other places, you can also see the statue of the Purple Hui Emperor shaped by the Song Dynasty. "History of the Ming Dynasty: Rites and Rites IV" contains: In the Ming Dynasty, the court also built the Ziwei Palace, "setting up an elephant to sacrifice the notice". Its image is dressed as an emperor, and there are majestic generals next to it, which is very noble and majestic. According to legend, the birthday of the Emperor Zihui is the 18th day of the fourth month of the lunar calendar.