128 henrik h. sørensen
Gods of the Great Dipper: Although they were of secondary impor-
tance, worship of the Great Dipper was one of the most important
cults in East Asia; it was believed that the lifespans and destinies of
sentient beings were controlled by the gods residing in this constella-
tion. The primary scripture is the apocryphal Beidou qixing yanming
jing (Scripture on the Seven Stars in the Northern
Dipper and the Extension of Life).^119 These seven astral divinities, one
for each star, are usually rendered as Chinese government officials and
their iconography is closer to that of Daoist gods.^120 In Esoteric Bud-
(^119) Cf. T. 1307. Other relevant scriptures include T. 1305–1306, T. 1310.
(^120) See also Sørensen 1995c.
Figure 17. Sudṛṣti/Miaojian. Line-drawing based on Japanese Heian image.