The Book of Life and Death is a term from myths and legends. It refers to one of the three books of heaven, earth and man, namely the Book of Gods from Heaven, the Book of Mountains and Seas from Earth, and the Book of Life and Death from Man. From Hong Mai's "Yi Jian Jia Zhi Zheng Lin Rebirth", "Journey to the West", and "Plain Warfare".
Interpretation——
Abstract name for recording a person’s life and death in superstition.
In ancient Chinese mythology, it is generally owned by the underworld and preserved by the judge of King Yama. Ancient Chinese people believed that the Book of Life and Death records the birth, time of death, and longevity of all beings in the three realms of heaven, earth, and human beings. In most cases, the contents of the Book of Life and Death are predetermined and cannot be changed. King Yama needs to strictly follow the contents of the Book of Life and Death to send his men to carry out actions such as seducing souls and claiming lives.
In mythological novels such as "Journey to the West", the contents of the Book of Life and Death can be modified by people at will. In "Journey to the West", the judge once modified the Book of Life and Death to return Li Shimin to Yang. Sun Wukong also drastically modified the Book of Life and Death in the novel, freeing all monkeys from the fate of old age and death. In the Chinese mythological TV series "Lotus Lantern", Liu Chenxiang caused 18 levels of hell, rescued his father, tore up the book of life and death, and saved the villagers of Liujia Village from death from aging and illness.
There is no systematic and detailed explanation of the Book of Life and Death in ancient China. All detailed settings come from the imagination of various novel authors. It is different from the legendary book of life and death of the ancient Chinese people.
Extended information:
The Book of Life and Death, in Buddhism, Taoism and East Asian folk beliefs, is the record of the lifespan of humans or other living beings by ghosts and gods in the underworld. The lifespan of each person is different. The "Book of Life and Death" records the length of each person's life; when someone's life is over, the underworld will send black and white impermanence or a bull-headed horse face to escort the person's soul to the underworld for trial. There are also people who die in vain due to natural disasters and man-made disasters before their life span is up, so they have to wait for the end of their life span in the City of Wasted Death.
Those who hold the "Book of Life and Death" are mostly gods of the underworld such as Emperor Dongyue and the King of Hell of the Ten Palaces. In "Journey to the West", Judge Cui once altered the book of life and death to allow Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty to live twenty more years. In ancient Taoism, Lord Nandou Xing and Lord Nandou Xing also had books of life and death, which recorded the length of each person's life.
Related books - "Tai Shang Ying Pian" records, "When a person is born, the calculation of his income is recorded in the heavens." Calculation, here, refers to is a unit of time. Taoism believes that after a person is born, the length of his life is recorded in heaven.
"Tai Shang Inspiration Chapter" records, "All heavens and earth, sun, moon and stars, innocent saints, generals and messengers, deity boys, flying immortals of heaven and earth, three realms and four divisions, Yuedu official office, holding seal scripts , patrolling the school for examination, one word every three days, one performance every ten days, one summary every hundred days, without stopping for a moment.
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Reference: Baidu Encyclopedia-Book of Life and Death