秘殿珠林續編(乾清宮),第一冊,頁245&*故宮書畫錄(卷八),第四冊,頁74&*故宮書畫圖錄,第五冊,頁353-354&*三清為道教尊奉的三位最高神的統稱。依畫上品字形排列,上方為玉清元始天尊,其左手方為上清靈寶天尊。右手方為太清道德天尊。三清尊神是道教哲理「三一說」的象徵,《老子道德經》說:「道生一,一生二,二生三,三生萬物。」三清尊神就是「道」的人格神化。自唐宋以來,三清尊神主要供奉在道教宮觀裹的三清殿。本幅主尊之外,一星官抱手侍立,一玉女添香,仙童一潑水戲龜,一持羽扇轉頭觀鶴,一叉手伏身。道教科儀用三清神仙像,畫像均以正面為主,此幅則畫仙界平和至樂。&*The Three Purities is the name given to the three supreme deities in Taoism. Judging from the arrangement of the figures in this painting, the upper one is the Creator (Yü-ch'ing yüan-shih t'ien-tsun), the one to his left the Spirit (Shang-ch’ing ling-pao t'ien-tsun), and the one to his right the Tao(T'ai-ch'ing tao-te t'ien-tsun). These deities, called the Three Purities, symbolize the divine trinity in Taoist philosophy. In the Tao-te-ching of Lao-tzu,it says, "The Tao gives rise to one, one to two, two to three, and three to a myriad things." Thus, the Three Purities are personifications of the Tao. After the Sung dynasty (960-1279), the Three Purities formed the main figures of worship in Three Purities Halls. In this painting, besides the three deities, other immortals are also present, including an official with clasped hands, a lady preparing incense, and three children--one preparing water, one holding a fan looking at a turtle, and the other with hands clasped. In formal depictions of the Three Purities, they are shown usually frontally, but here the setting is informal, making the realm of the immortals appear peaceful.&*1.王耀庭,〈元人三清圖〉,收入王耀庭、童文娥編,《長生的世界:道教繪畫特展圖錄》(臺北:國立故宮博物院,1996年初版),頁67。