Contemplation of the Heaven-Human Realm : A Study on the Intellectual Origins and Cultural Implications of the Nine Stars of the Northern Dipper Meditation Technique in the Shangqing School

天人之际的观想—上清派北斗九星存思术的思想源流与文化意涵研究

The belief in the Big Dipper has a long history in China. The Shangqing School of Daoism absorbed the ancient belief in the Nine Stars of the Big Dipper, it develops the practice of Cunsi Technique, which is centred on the Nine Star Shenxian system and Daoist Yangsheng Techniques. This paper aims to explore the questions of historical origins, systemic construction, contemporary significance of the Nine Stars Cunsi Technique. The methodologies are documentary analysis and textual comparison. The research focuses on the development of Big Dipper belief, the framework of the Nine Star Shenxian system, the methodology and result of the Cunsi Technique, the contemporary relevance and dialogue. The conclusion is that the Nine Stars Cunsi Technique embodies the fusion of ancient astronomy and religious belief, and manifests the Daoist philosophical concept of ‘unity of Tian and humanity’ and the Daoist Yangsheng principle of ‘returning to authenticity’. Furthermore, this paper tries to establishes cross-disciplinary dialogue with contemporary issues. It engages with themes such as ecological theory, mind-body relationships, cultural development theory and so on, and finally demonstrates that the Cunsi Technique constitutes a religious practice distinctly characterised by traditional Chinese cultural features.

北斗信仰历史漫长，道教流派上清派吸收了古代北斗信仰中的北斗九星崇拜，形成了以九星神仙体系和道教养生术法为内容的存思术。为探索上清派北斗九星存思术的历史渊源、体系建构与现代意涵，本文借助文献分析法与文本比较法，依次探讨了北斗信仰的发展历程、九星神仙体系之辨析、存思术的方法与效果，以及存思术的当代意义与思想对话。研究揭示，北斗九星存思术是古代天文学与宗教信仰之融合的体现，也是“天人合一”之道教哲学理念、返璞归真之道教养生理念的彰显。此外，通过建立与现代议题和学科的跨领域对话，本文就生态理论、身心关系、文化发展论等主题进行了讨论，表明存思术是具有鲜明中华传统文化特质的宗教实践。