ecedent of antiquity found in the _Book of History_. The
Emperor, believing his word, ordered the Grand Master of Sacrifices to
re-establish this worship at the capital. He followed carefully the
prescriptions of Miao Chi. This enraged the _literati_, who resolved
to ruin him. One day, when the Emperor was about to drink one of
his potions, one of the chief courtiers seized the cup and drank the
contents himself. The Emperor was about to have him slain, when he
said: "Your Majesty's order is unnecessary; if the potion confers
immortality, I cannot be killed; if, on the other hand, it does not,
your Majesty should recompense me for disproving the pretensions of
the Taoist priest." The Emperor, however, was not convinced.

One account represents T'ai I as having lived in the time of
Shen Nung, the Divine Husbandman, who visited him to consult with
him on the subjects of diseases and fortune. He was Hsien Yuean's
medical preceptor. His medical knowledge was handed down to future
generations. He was one of those who, with the Immortals, was invited
to the great Peach Assembly of the Western Royal Mother.

As the spirit of the star T'ai I he resides in the Eastern Palace,
listening for the cries of sufferers in order to save them. For this
purpose he assumes numberless forms in various regions. With a boat
of lotus-flowers of nine colours he ferries men over to the shore of
salvation. Holding in his hand a willow-branch, he scatters from it
the dew of the doctrine.

T'ai I is variously represented as the Ruler of the Five Celestial
Sovereigns, Cosmic Matter before it congealed into concrete shapes, the
Triune Spirit of Heaven, earth, and T'ai I as three separate entities,
an unknown Spirit, the Spirit of the Pole Star, etc., but practically
the Taoists confine their T'ai I to T'ai-i Chen-jen, in which Perfect
Man they personify the abstract philosophical notions. [20]

Goddess of the North Star

Tou Mu, the Bushel Mother, or Goddess of the North Star, worshipped
by both Buddhists and Taoists, is the Indian Maritchi, and was made a
stellar divinity by the Taoists. She is said to have been the mother
of the nine Jen Huang or Human Sovereigns of fabulous antiquity,
who succeeded the lines of Celestial and Terrestrial Sovereigns. She
occupies in the Taoist religion the same relative position as Kuan
Yin, who may be said to be the heart of Buddhism. Having attained to
a profound knowledge of celestial mysteries, she shone