Hongjun Laozu () lit. "Ancestor of the Great Balance" is a deity in Chinese folk religion and Taoism, teacher of the Three Pure Ones in Taoist mythology. Hongjun is a graphic variant of hungjun () "primordial nature", as used in the Chinese idiom Xian you hongjun hou you tian "First there was Hongjun and then there was Heaven". Daoists mythologize Hongjun Laozu as the ancestor of xian "trancendents; immortals" (Werner 1922:133-134) and use the honorific name Hongyuan Laozu () "Great Primal Ancestor". In Chinese creation myths, hongyuan or is a cosmological term for "the universe before the separation of heaven and earth". Some myths about the creator Pangu (Werner 1922:128-130) refer to Hongjun Laozu as Xuanxuan Shangren () "Mystery of Mysteries Saint" (a reference to the Daodejing 1, tr. Mair 1990:59, "Mystery or mysteries, the gate of all wonders!"). Hongjun Laozu is also referred to as Hunyuan Laozu (混元老祖 - "Ancestor of Original Chaos"). Myth Hongjun Laozu has hardly been the subject of academic studies and the role assigned to it may vary according to the faithful. Some only know his interpretations in fiction. Hongjun Laozu makes his first major appearance in Chinese literature in the popular novel The Investiture of the Gods, under the name of Hongjun Daoren (鴻鈞道人). According to The Investiture of the Gods, he is the eldest of the four beings created by the Spirit of Creation (Chuangshi Yuanling; 創始元靈), the others being Hunkun Zushi (混鯤祖師), Nüwa Niangniang, and Luya Daojun (陸壓道君). His disciples are the Three Purities: Daode Tianzun (道德天尊) alias Laozi, Yuanshi Tianzun, and Tongtian Jiaozhu (通天教主), assimilated to Lingbao Tianzun. The first two are found in the novel in conflict with the last. According to the Wujihongjun Gong temple (無極黌君宮) in Taipei, he is the principle behind the universe. The Cihui Tang temple (慈惠堂) in Zhonggang, Taichung offers the faithful three interpretations: He is the origin of the universe, from him are born the Three Pure Ones and then the Five Ancients (wulao 五老), rulers associated with the five elements and the five directions. He is also the ancestor of all immortals. The original chaos (hunyuangui 混元規) gave birth to the celestial order (tiangui 天規) embodied by Haotian Laozu (昊天老祖; "Ancestor of the Boundless Sky") and the earthly order (digui 地規) embodied by Hongjun Laozu. He is a form of Pangu and also goes by the name Xuanxuan Shangren (玄玄上人). Hongjun Laozu was