astronomy

Three Pure Ones

Three Pure Ones is a astronomy topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Three Pure Ones rather than just read about it. In short: The Three Pure Ones (Chinese: 三清), also translated as the Three Pure Pellucid Ones, the Three Purities, the Three Pristine Ones, the Three Clarities, or the Three Divine Teachers, are the three highest gods in the Taoist pantheon. They are: Jade Purity (Chinese: 玉清) ━ Original and Primordial Heavenly Lord (元始天尊) Upper Purity (Chinese: 上清) ━ Divine Treasures Heavenly Lord (靈寶天尊) Grand Purity (Chinese: 太清) ━ Heavenly…

Key takeaways

Three Pure Ones belongs to astronomy; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Three Pure Ones to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Three Pure Ones from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Three Pure Ones (Chinese: 三清), also translated as the Three Pure Pellucid Ones, the Three Purities, the Three Pristine Ones, the Three Clarities, or the Three Divine Teachers, are the three highest gods in the Taoist pantheon. They are:

Jade Purity (Chinese: 玉清) ━ Original and Primordial Heavenly Lord (元始天尊) Upper Purity (Chinese: 上清) ━ Divine Treasures Heavenly Lord (靈寶天尊) Grand Purity (Chinese: 太清) ━ Heavenly Lord of Way and Virtue (道德天尊) They are considered the primordial embodiments of the Energy of The One (Chinese: 一炁), which is another name for Tao. There is a famous saying in Taoism:

"The Energy of The One transforms into the Three Pure Ones. (一炁化三清)"

This saying can refer to a starting scene in Taoist creation mythology, meaning that in the beginning of the universe, there was nothing else but Tao, namely the Energy of The One. It transformed into or emanated three primordial Divinities, who are the Three Pure Ones. Additionally, the saying can also refer to a very high level of Taoist practice, which is described as:

"The Five Types of Energies combine and become the Energy of The One; the Energy of The One then transforms into the Three Pure Ones. (五行合爲一炁，一炁化作三清)"

This refers to a pivotal phase in Taoist internal cultivation that when the Five Types of Energies are perfectly mixed and become the Energy of The One, the Energy of The One then transforms into or manifests the Three Pure Ones. The saying has double meanings because according to Taoist cosmology, a human body is a small universe, while the universe is a grand human body; therefore, whatever happened during the creation of the universe can also happen within everyone's body. The Three Pure Ones are considered the sources of all existence in the universe and are believed to have power over time. They were also understood as representing the Past, Present, and Future by some. According to Taoist mythology, the Three Pure Ones reside in the highest heavens called the Three Purest Heavens (Chinese: 三清天), which are:

Jade Purity Heaven (Chinese: 玉清天), where Original and Primordial Heavenly Lord resides. Upper Purity Heaven (Chinese: 上清天), where Divine Treasures Heavenly Lord resides. Grand Purity Heaven (Chinese: 太清天), where Heavenly Lord of Way and Virtue resides.

In Taoism From the Taoist classic Tao Te Ching, it was held that "The Tao produced One; One produced Two; Two produced Three; Three produced All things." It is generally agreed by Taoist scholars that Tao produced One means Wuji produced Taiji, and One produced Two means Taiji produced Yin and Yang [or Liangyi (兩儀) in scholastic terms]. However, the subject of how Two produced Three has remained a popular debate among Taoist scholars. Most scholars believe that it refers to the Interaction between Yin and Yang, with the presence of Chi, or life force. In religious Taoism, the theory of how Tao produces One, Two, and Three is also explained. In Tao produces One—Wuji produces Taiji, which represents the Great Tao, embodied by Hundun (Chinese: 混沌無極元始天王; pinyin: Hùndùn Wújí Yuánshǐ Tiānwáng, "Heavenly King of the Never-ending Primordial Beginning") at a time of pre-Creation, manifesting into the first of the Taoist Trinity, Yuanshi Tianzun. Yuanshi Tianzun oversees the earliest phase of creation of the Universe, and is henceforth known as Dàobǎo (道寶) "Treasure of the Tao". In One produces Two—Taiji produces Yin Yang, Yuanshi Tianzun manifests into Lingbao Tianzun who separated the Yang from the Yin, the clear from the murky, and classified the elements into their rightful groups. Therefore, he is also known as Jīngbǎo (經寶) "Treasure of the Law/Scripture". While Jīng in popular understanding means "scriptures", in this context it also means "passing through" [the phase of Creation] and the Laws of Nature of how things are meant to be. In the final phase of Creation, Daode Tianzun is manifested from Língbăo Tiānzūn to bring civilization and preach the Law to all living beings. Therefore, he is also known as Shībǎo (師寶) "Treasure of the Master". Each of the Three Pure Ones represents both a primordial deity and a heaven. Yuanshi Tianzun rules the first heaven, Yu-Qing, which is found in the Jade Mountain. The entrance to this heaven is named the Golden Door. "He is the source of all truth, as the sun is the source of all light". Lingbao Tianzun rules over the heaven of Shang-Qing. Daode Tianzun rules over the heaven of Tai-Qing. The Three Pure Ones are often depicted as throned elders. Schools of Taoist thought developed around each of these deities. Taoist Alchemy was a large part of these schools, as each of the Three Pure Ones represented one of the three essential fields of the body: jing, qi and shen. The congregation of all three Pure Ones resulted in the return to Tao. The first Pure One is universal or heavenly chi. The second Pure One is human plane chi, and the third Pure One is earth chi. Heavenly chi includes the chi or energy of all the planets, stars and constellations as well as the energy of God (the force of creation and universal love). Human plane chi is the energy that exists on the surface of our planet and sustains human life, and the earth force includes all of the forces inside the planet as well as the five elemental forces. As the Three Pure Ones are manifestations of Primordial Celestial Energy, they are formless. But to illustrate their role in Creation, they are often portrayed as elderly deities robed in the three basic colours from which all colours originated: Red, Blue and Yellow (or Green) depending on personal interpretation of colour origins by additive or subtractive means. Each of them holds onto a divine object associated with their task. Yuánshǐ Tiānzūn is usually depicted holding the Pearl of Creation, signifying his role in recreating the Universe. The Ruyi held by Lingbao Tianzun represents authority: the second phase of Creation where the Yang was separated from the Yin and the Law of Things was ordered in place. Lingbao Tianzun then took his seat on the left of Yuanshi Tianzun. Later, when all was complete, Daode Tianzun took his place on the right, with the fan symbolizing the completion of Creation, and the act of fanning representing the spreading of Tao to all Mankind.

Original and Primordial Heavenly Lord

… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Three Pure Ones

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Three Pure Ones claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In astronomy, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Three Pure Ones before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Three Pure Ones ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Three Pure Ones

In research: Three Pure Ones appears in astronomy research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Three Pure Ones in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Three Pure Ones is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Chinese gods, Conceptions of God, Taoist cosmology, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Three Pure Ones outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Three Pure Ones in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Three Pure Ones means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Three Pure Ones out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Three Pure Ones in simple terms?

Why does Three Pure Ones matter?

Because it connects several astronomy ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Three Pure Ones?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Three Pure Ones.