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Doumu: the Mother of the Dipper Livia Kohn DOUMU: THE MOTHER OF THE DIPPER Introduction The goddess Doumu 4- f.J:, the Mother of the Dipper, is a Daoist stellar deity of high popularity. Shrines to her are found today in many major Daoist sanctuaries, from the Qingyang gong. jf.i;inChengduA lllthrough Louguan tttfL plearXi'an iN~)to Mount Tai * t1Jin Shandong. She represents the genninal, creative power behind one of the most central Daoist constellations, the Northern Dipper, roler offates and central orderer of the universe, which is said to consist of seven or nine stars, called the Seven Primes or the Nine Perfected. 1 The Mother of the Dipper appears in Daoist literature from Yuan times onward, there is no trace of any scripture or material associated with her in Song sources or libraries. 2 Her major scripture, the Doumu jing4- f.J: ~I (translated below), survives in both the Daoist canon of 1445 and in a Ming­ dynasty manuscript dated to 1439. The goddess can be seen as part of a general tendency among Daoists of the Ming to include more popular and female deities into their pantheon, which in turn is related to the greater emphasis on goddesses in popular religion and Buddhism at the time. 3 In I Edward Schafer calls them the Nine Quintessences (1977, p. 233). 2 Van der Loon (1984) has no entry on any te;-.."t regarding her worship. 3 A prominent example of a popular goddess at the time is Mazu ~ 111 or Tianfei f:. 9(.. who was also adopted into the Daoist pantheon. On her development, see Wädow 1992: on her Daoist adoption, see Bohz 1986. Another popular goddess with Daoist overtones of the same period is Bixia yuanjun ~ i1 j(; ;g-, the daughter of the god of Mount Tai. On her legend and Downloaded from Brill.com10/07/2021 07:33:35AM via free access Livia Kahn Fig. 1 - Weituo, the protector of scriptures 150 Downloaded from Brill.com10/07/2021 07:33:35AM via free access Doumu: the Mother of the Dipper addition, her elevation is also linked with the increased influence of Tantric Buddhism on later Daoism, because she is a Daoist counterpart of the Indian goddess and Tantrie bodhisattva Mariei, an offspring of Brahma and personification of light, who serves as the roler of fates and plays a role in various dhärani sutras in the Buddhist eanon.4 In addition to this Buddhist origin of the goddess, she also has forerunners among Daoist female deities or eonsorts ofthe Dipper, who appear in texts from the middle ages, making her a faseinating and potent eonglomerate of powers and religious traditions. The following is a first study of the nature and evolution of the Daoist goddess Doumu as she is represented in her key seripture, the Doumu jingo The goddess will be examined in relation to the tradition al veneration of the Dipper, the Tantrie goddess Mariei and her myths, various divine Dipper consorts, and in regard to forms ofworship that evolved around her. Before all that, however, let us take a closer look at the manuscript of the Doumu jingo The Doumu jing The manuscript was found in the late 1960's as one of eleven Ming­ dynasty texts contained in the interior of a wooden Buddha statue. The statue, whieh had made its way to an art dealer in Hamburg, Germany, was subjected to unexpected moisture due to a flood of the river EIbe and began to dissolve in its parts. It was then obtained by Mr. Wemer Burger, who in turn passed it on to Professor Herbert Franke (Münich) for eritical scholarly examinatioll. Franke describes its various manuscripts in a short article. 5 worship, see Naquin 1992. Among Buddhist goddesses, the outstanding examp1e is Miaoshan ~. ~. Her legend and development is studied in Dudbridge 1978. 4 The dhärani sutras are nos. 1254-59 in vol. 21 ofthe Taishö canon. See Franke 1972, p. 63. Tantric influence on Daoism since the Tang is also evident in the increase in the number of deities and in the more martial gods occupying a central position (see Davis 1994). A special Maricf dhärani sütra or Molizhi tian pusa toluoni jing '* flJ J( 'J:..:g: Pi pt Il Jt, *.~ ( T. 125. 21.259-60) is ascribed to Amoghavajra (Bukong 1- ~) and thus presumably dates from the eighth century (see Nakamura 1981, 1280). 5 See Franke 1972. The manuscripts are now collected in the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek (Munich) and are available in microfilm. The Doumu jing manuscript has the acquisition number 4L.sin.C229. I am indebted to Dr. Ute Engelhardt for obaining and sending me a microfilm copy of the manuscript. 151 Downloaded from Brill.com10/07/2021 07:33:35AM via free access Livia Kahn All texts found in the statue date from the reign of the Ming emperor Yingzong ~ *, i.e., around the middle of the fifteenth century. The Doumu jing is among the earliest (1439), others go back to the 1450's. Franke divides the texts into three groups: Buddhist prints, Buddhist handwritten scroIIs, and Daoist texts. Six texts belong to the first category. There is first an illustrated copy the Lotus sutra, followed by three Guanyin -U -f dhärani sutras that claim to be efficacious in difficulties and the healing of diseases. A work with thirty-two poems encouraging Buddhist devotion and a woodblock print of a standing Buddha complete the first group. The second group, handwritten Buddhist materials, has three works: an apocryphal dhärani text that promises aid in all situations of life, an abbreviated Nirväna Sutra, and a copy of the Heart Sutra with introduction and commentary. All these are said to be efficacious in the management of daily life, providing protection and support in difficuIt situations. Many begin with a dedication that wishes the emperor many ten thousand years of life, contain relevant woodblock illustrations, and often conclude with a picture of Weituo ~ rt:, the protector of holy scriptures (see Fig. 1).6 The two last texts found in the statue are Daoist works. First, the Sanyuan jiewei yansheng jing .::. Je M- ~ ~ ::i ~~ (Scripture of the Three Primes to Dissolve Dangers and Extend Life) focuses on the three rulers of the Daoist other world who dissolve sins, grant good fortune, and aid in the prolongation of life. The text consists of fifteen pages and can be divided into eight sections. It begins with a woodblock illustration of the judges of hell, then presents incantations for purification, followed by four prayers for protection to the mIers ofthe other world. Next come apreface to the main text, the text proper (also in DZ 1442), a concluding poem, and a colophon which specifies the date (1450) and informs us that the sponsor ordered the text's printing to ensure the salvation ofhis ancestors. It concludes with an illustration ofWeituo. The Doumu jing is listed last in Franke's description. It, too, matches the overall intellt of the other ten texts in that it is an invocation-based text that serves to grant protection and support to the faithfuI. Like the majority of texts in the statue, it begins with good wishes for the emperor and ends with an image ofWeituo for the scripture's protection. It also has, before the scriptural part, a detailed illustration ofthe key elements ofthe text (see Fig. 2). 6 See Don: 1914, vol. 7, p. 206. 152 Downloaded from Brill.com10/07/2021 07:33:35AM via free access Doumu: the Mother of the Dipper Shown here, from right to left, is the Dipper Mother, her head surroWlded by a glowing halo, seated on the jeweled throne and attended by three ladies­ in-waiting, two at her back, one closer to her side. She faces the nine stars of the Dipper, beginning with the two senior stars, clearly marked with name plates as the Great Emperor Celestial Sovereign Ä .i :Je '* and the Great Emperor of Purple Tenuity 'ffi ~ *- *. They wear formal, embroidered court robes and elaborate headdresses and hold audience scepters in their hands. Behind them follow the seven lords of the Dipper, so marked in a sm all name plate at the top of the page. They, too, are dressed in formal garb and hold audience scepters, hut their headdresses are merely small crowns. Slightly behind them, above in the picture, are the two additional stars Fu and Bi, secondary emanations of the two Great Emperors. They are seen only in their upper bodies and wear helmet-like headgear. One final figure, above the first three of the seven lords, holds a sacred scripture in a gesture similar to that of Weituo. He is dressed in martial garb and has a more barbarian and violent expression. Not named in a matching plate, we can surmise that he is a guardian figure in the service of the Dipper lords. The manuscript then presents the text of the Doumu jingo This can be divided into three major parts: apreface on the technicalities of reciting the scripture and venerating the goddess; the scripture's text; and a concluding encomium and mantra for the goddess. The first part or preface has three seetions, a technical set of instructions on recitation (p. 1), a laudatio for the goddess which clearly refers to her Indian origins (p. 2), and an incantation in her honor ( p. 2-3). It is Wlique to this manuscript, with the exception of the laudatio, which is also fOWld in a Doumu ritual as documented in the Xiantian doumu zougao xuanke 7t Ä -+ f.J: -* % -t H (Mysterious Rites of Petitioning the Dipper Mother of Former Heaven, DZ 1452, The second part is the scripture proper.
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