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Taoism

Taoism posits that by understanding himself, man may gain knowledge of the universe, and vice versa.

In Taoism, even beyond Chinese folk religion, various rituals, exercises, and substances are said to positively affect one's physical and mental health. They are also intended to align oneself spiritually with cosmic forces, or enable ecstatic spiritual journeys.[1][2] These concepts seem basic to Taoism in its elite forms. Internal alchemy and various spiritual practices are used by some Taoists to improve health and extend life, theoretically even to the point of physical immortality.[3]

Contents

Ethics

The Three Jewels, or Three Treasures, (Chinese: ??; pinyin: s?nb?o; Wade-Giles: san-pao) are basic virtues in Taoism. The Three Jewels are compassion, moderation and humility. They are also translated as kindness, simplicity and modesty. Arthur Waley describes them as "[t]he three rules that formed the practical, political side of the author's teaching". He correlated the Three Treasures with "abstention from aggressive war and capital punishment", "absolute simplicity of living", and "refusal to assert active authority".[4]

In some instances Taoism is used to justify activities which may be considered a means to an end. One of the first tenents of Taoism recommends pursuing actions that aid in the "greater good" of aligning certain individuals with nature. For example, were an abomination roaming over the land, a Taoist might readily justify destroying a monastic abbey if doing so would help cleanse the scourge and reestablish the natural order.

Pantheon

Laozi depicted as the Taoist god.
Laozi depicted as the Taoist god.
The traditional Chinese religion is polytheistic. Its many deities are part of a heavenly hierarchy that mirrors the bureaucracy of Imperial China. According to their beliefs, Chinese deities may be promoted or demoted for their actions. Some deities are also simply exalted humans, such as Guan Yu, the god of honor and piety. The particular deities worshiped vary according to geographical regions and historical periods in China, though the general pattern of worship is more constant.[5]

There are disagreements regarding the proper composition of this pantheon.[6] Popular Taoism typically presents the Jade Emperor as the official head deity. Intellectual ("elite") Taoists, such as the Celestial Masters sect, usually present Laozi (Laojun, "Lord Lao") and the Three Pure Ones at the top of the pantheon of deities.[7][8]

While a number of immortals or other mysterious figures appear in the Zhuangzi, and to a lesser extent in the Tao Te Ching, these have generally not become the objects of worship. Traditional conceptions of Tao are not to be confused with the Western concepts of theism and monotheism. Being one with the Tao does not indicate a union with an eternal spirit in the Hindu sense, but rather living in accordance with nature.[9][10]

Scripture

Taoist Priest in Macau, February 2006
Taoist Priest in Macau, February 2006

Tao Te Ching

The Tao Te Ching, or Daodejing, is widely considered to be the most influential Taoist text.[11] It is a foundational scripture of central importance in Taoism. It has been used as a ritual text throughout the history of religious Taoism.[12] However, the precise date that it was written is the subject of debate: there are those who put it anywhere from the 6th century BC to the 3rd century BC.[13]

Taoist commentators have deeply considered the opening lines of the Tao Te Ching. They are widely discussed in both academic and mainstream literature. A common interpretation is similar to Korzybski's observation that "the map is not the territory".[14] The opening lines, with literal and common translation, are:

???????? (Tao (way or path) can be said, not usual way)

"The Way that can be described is not the true Way."
???????? (names can be named, not usual names)
"The Name that can be named is not the constant Name."

Tao literally means "path" or "way"(and also means "say" or "be said"), and can figuratively mean "essential nature", "destiny", "principle", or "true path". The philosophical and religious "Tao" is infinite, without limitation. One view states that the paradoxical opening is intended to prepare the reader for teachings about the unteachable Tao.[15] Tao is believed to be transcendent, indistinct and without form. Hence, it cannot be named or categorized. Even the word "Tao" can be considered a dangerous temptation to make Tao a limiting "name".[16]

The Tao Te Ching is not thematically ordered. However, the main themes of the text are repeatedly expressed using variant formulations, often with only a slight difference.[17] The leading themes revolve around the nature of Tao and how to attain it. Tao is said to be unnameable and accomplishing great things through small means.[18] There is significant debate regarding which English translation of the Tao Te Ching is preferred, and which particular translation methodology is best. Discussions and disputes about various translations of the Tao Te Ching can become acrimonious, involving deeply entrenched views.[19]

Ancient commentaries on the Tao Te Ching are important texts in their own right. The Heshang Gong commentary was most likely written in the second century AD, and as perhaps the oldest commentary, contains the edition of the Tao Te Ching that was transmitted to the present day.[20] Other important commentaries include the Xiang'er, one of the most important texts from the Celestial Master movement, and Wang Bi's commentary.[21]

Daozang

The Daozang (??, Treasury of Tao) is sometimes referred to as the Taoist canon. It was originally compiled during the Jin, Tang, and Song dynasties. The version surviving today was published during the Ming dynasty.[22][23] The Ming Daozang includes almost 1500 texts.[24] Following the example of the Buddhist Tripitaka, it is divided into three dong (?, "caves", "grottoes"). They are arranged from "highest" to "lowest":[25][26]

  1. The Zhen ("real" or "truth"?) grotto. Includes the Shangqing texts.
  2. The Xuan ("mystery"?) grotto. Includes the Lingbao scriptures.
  3. The Shen ("divine"?) grotto. Includes texts predating the Maoshan ????revelations.

Daoshi generally do not consult published versions of the Daozang, but individually choose, or inherit, texts included in the Daozang. These texts have been passed down for generations from teacher to student.[27]

The Shangqing school has a tradition of approaching Taoism through scriptural study. It is believed that reciting certain texts often enough will be rewarded with immortality.[28]

Other texts

While the Tao Te Ching is most famous, there are other important texts in traditional Taoism. Taishang Ganying Pian ("Treatise of the Exalted One on Response and Retribution") discusses sin and ethics, and has become a popular morality tract in the last few centuries.[29] It asserts that those in harmony with Tao will live long and fruitful lives. The wicked, and their descendents, will suffer and have shortened lives.[18] Both the Taipingjing ("Scripture on Great Peace") and the Baopuzi ("Book of the Master Who Keeps to Simplicity") contain early alchemical formulas that early Taoists believed could lead to immortality.[30][31]

Zhuangzi

The Zhuangzi (??) was named after its author, who also appears as a character in the book's narrative. It is more in the form of a collection of stories than the short aphorisms and maxims of the Tao Te Ching. Also among the cast of characters in the Zhuangzi's stories is Laozi of the Tao Te Ching, as well as Confucius.

History

White Cloud Monastery, Beijing
White Cloud Monastery, Beijing
Taoism's origins may be traced to prehistoric Chinese religions in China. They are found in the composition of the Tao Te Ching (3rd or 4th century BC). Laozi received imperial recognition as a divinity in the mid second century AD.[32] Taoism gained official status in China during the Tang Dynasty, whose emperors claimed Laozi as their relative.[33] Several Song emperors, most notably Huizong, were active in promoting Taoism, collecting Taoist texts and publishing editions of the Daozang.[34] Aspects of Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism were consciously synthesized in the Neo-Confucian school, which eventually became Imperial orthodoxy for state bureaucratic purposes.[35] The Qing Dynasty, however, much favored Confucian classics and rejected Taoist works. During the eighteenth century, the imperial library was constituted, but excluded virtually all Taoist books.[36] By the beginning of the twentieth century, Taoism had fallen so much from favor, that only one complete copy of the Daozangstill remained, at the White Cloud Monastery in Beijing.[37] Taoism is one of five religions recognised by the PRC, which insists on controlling its activities through a state bureaucracy (the China Taoist Association).[38]

Adherents

The number of Taoists is difficult to estimate, due to a variety of factors including defining Taoism. The number of people practicing Chinese folk religion is estimated to be just under four hundred million.[39] Most Chinese people and many others have been influenced in some way by Taoist tradition. Estimates for the number of Taoists worldwide range from twenty to over fifty million.[40][41]

Geographically, Taoism flourishes best in regions populated by Chinese people: mainland China, Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore, and various Chinese diaspora communities. Taoist literature and art has influenced the cultures of Korea, Japan, and Vietnam, and these countries' folk religions have many common elements to that of China. Organized Taoism seems not to have attracted a non-Chinese following until modern times. In Taiwan 7.5 million people (33% of the population) are Taoists.[42] In Singapore, 8.5% of the population is Taoist.[43] There are also small numbers of Taoists in the Western world.

Practices

Chinese Taoist priests celebrating a ritual at the Wudangshan monastery
Chinese Taoist priests celebrating a ritual at the Wudangshan monastery
At certain dates, food may be set out as a sacrifice to the gods and/or spirits of the departed, such as during the Qingming Festival. This may include slaughtered pigs and ducks or fruit. Another form of sacrifice involves the burning of Joss paper or Hell Bank Notes, on the assumption that images thus consumed by the fire will reappear?not as a mere image, but as the actual item?in the spirit world, and be available for the departed spirit to use.

Secular Activities

Also at certain dates, street parades take place. These are lively affairs which invariably involve firecrackers and flower-covered floats broadcasting traditional music. Street parades may also include lion dances and dragon dances; human-occupied puppets (often of the "Seventh Lord" and "Eighth Lord"); jitong (?? male "Mediums") who mutilate their skin with knives; Bajiajiang, which are gongfu-practicing honor guards in demonic makeup; and palanquins carrying god-images. The various participants are not considered performers, but rather possessed by the god in question.[44]

Fortune-telling?including astrology, I Ching, and other forms of divination?has long been considered a traditional Taoist pursuit.[45] Mediumship is also widely encountered. We may distinguish between martial forms of mediumship (like the aforementioned jitong) and X spirit-writing, typically through the practice of fuji (planchette writing).[46]

Many Taoists also participated in the reading and writing of books. Taoists of this type tend to be civil servants, elderly retirees, or in modern times, university faculty. While there is considerable overlap with religious Taoism, there are often important divergences in interpretation. Wang Bi, one of the most influential philosophical commentators on the Laozi (and Yijing) was in fact a Confucian.[47]

A number of martial arts traditions, particularly T'ai Chi Ch'uan, Bagua Zhang, Won Yuen Yat Hey Jueng, Bak Mei Pai, Bok Fou Pai, Yaw Gong Moon and Xing Yi Quan, embody Taoist principles to a greater or lesser extent, and some practitioners consider their art to be a means of practicing Taoism.[48]

Taoist symbols and images

Taoist charm from Tien Hau Temple in San Francisco.
Taoist charm from Tien Hau Temple in San Francisco.

The Taijitu ("yin and yang") symbol ??? as well as the Bagua ?? ("Eight Trigrams") are associated with Taoist symbolism.[49] While almost all Taoist organizations make use of the yin and yang symbol, one could also call it Confucian, Neo-Confucian or pan-Chinese. The yin and yang make a backwards "S" shape, with yin (black or red) on bottom. One is likely to see this symbol as decorations on Taoist organization flags and logos, temple floors, or stitched into clerical robes. According to Song Dynasty sources, it originated around the 10th century.[50] Previously, yin and yang were symbolized by a tiger and dragon.[51]

Taoist temples may fly square or triangular flags. They typically feature mystical writing or diagrams and are intended to fulfill various functions including providing guidance for the spirits of the dead, to bring good fortune, increase life span, etc.[52] Other flags and banners may be those of the gods or immortals themselves.[53]

One sometimes sees a zigzag with seven stars, representing the Big Dipper (or the "Bushel", the Chinese equivalent). In the Shang dynasty the Big Dipper was considered a deity, while during the Han dynasty, it was considered a qi path of the circumpolar god, Taiyi.[54]

Taoist temples in southern China and Taiwan may often be identified by their roofs, which feature Chinese dragons and phoenixes made from multi-colored ceramic tiles. They also stand for the harmony of yin and yang (with the phoenix being yin). A related symbol is the flaming pearl which may be seen on such roofs between two dragons, as well as on the hairpin of a Celestial Master.[55] But in general, Chinese Taoist architecture has no universal features that distinguish it particularly from other structures.[56]

Relations with other religions and philosophies

Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism are one, a painting in the litang style portraying three men laughing by a river stream, 12th century, Song Dynasty.
Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism are one, a painting in the litang style portraying three men laughing by a river stream, 12th century, Song Dynasty.
The terms Tao and De are religious and philosophical terms shared between Taoism and Confucianism.[57] The authorship of the Tao Te Ching is assigned to Laozi, who is traditionally held to have been a teacher of Confucius.[58] However, some scholars believe the Tao Te Ching arose as a reaction to Confucianism.[59] Zhuangzi, reacting to the Confucian-Mohist ethical disputes in his "history of thought", casts Laozi as a prior step to the Mohists by name and the Confucians by implication.

Early Taoist texts reject the basic assumptions of Confucianism which relied on rituals and order, in favour of the examples of "wild" nature and individualism. Historical Taoists challenged conventional morality, while Confucians considered society debased and in need of strong ethical guidance.[60]

The entry of Buddhism into China was marked by interaction and syncretism with Taoism in particular.[61] Originally seen as a kind of "foreign Taoism", Buddhism's scriptures were translated into Chinese using the Taoist vocabulary.[62] Chan Buddhism was particularly modified by Taoism, integrating distrust of scripture, text and even language, as well as the Taoist views of embracing "this life", dedicated practice and the "every-moment".[63] In the Tang period Taoism incorporated such Buddhist elements as monasteries, vegetarianism, prohibition of alcohol, the doctrine of emptiness, and collecting scripture into tripartite organisation. During the same time, Chan Buddhism grew to become the largest sect in Chinese Buddhism.[64]

Ideological and political rivals for centuries, Taoism, Confucianism, and Buddhism deeply influenced one another.[65] They did share some similar values. All three embraced a humanist philosophy emphasizing moral behavior and human perfection. In time, most Chinese people identified to some extent with all three traditions simultaneously.[66] This became institutionalised when aspects of the three schools were synthesised in the Neo-Confucian school.[67]

See also

References

  • Barrett, Rick. Taijiquan: Through the Western Gate (Blue Snake Books, 2006). ISBN 1583941398.
  • Cane, Eulalio Paul. Harmony: Radical Taoism Gently Applied (Trafford Publishing, 2002). ISBN 1412247780.
  • Carr, David T. & Zhang, Canhui. Space, Time, and Culture (Springer, 2004). ISBN 1402028237.
  • Dumoulin, Heinrich, Heisig, James W. & Knitter, Paul. Zen Buddhism: A History (India and China) (World Wisdom, Inc, 2005). ISBN 0941532895.
  • Eliade, Mircea. A History of Religious Ideas, Volume 2. Translated by Willard R. Trask. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1984.
  • Fasching, Darrell J. & deChant, Dell. Comparative Religious Ethics: a narrative approach (Blackwell Publishing, 2001). ISBN 0631201254.
  • Fisher, Mary Pat. Living Religions: An Encyclopaedia of the World's Faiths (I.B. Tauris, 1997). ISBN 1860641482.
  • Hansen, Chad D. A Daoist Theory of Chinese Thought: A Philosophical Interpretation (Oxford University Press, 2000). ISBN 0195134192.
  • Jones, Richard H. Mysticism and Morality: a new look at old questions (Lexington Books, 2004). ISBN 0739107844.
  • Keller, Catherine. The Face of the Deep: A Theology of Becoming (Routledge, 2003). ISBN 0415256488.
  • Kim, Ha Poong. Reading Lao Tzu: A Companion to the Tao Te Ching With a New Translation (Xlibris Corporation, 2003). ISBN 1401083161.
  • Kirkland, Russel. Taoism: The Enduring Tradition (Routledge, 2004). ISBN 0415263220.
  • Kohn, Livia, ed. Daoism Handbook (Leiden: Brill, 2000).
  • Kohn, Livia. The Daoist Monastic Manual: A Translation of the Fengdao Kejie (New York: Oxford University Press 2004)
  • Kohn, Livia & LaFargue, Michael, ed. Lao-Tzu and the Tao-Te-Ching (SUNY Press, 1998). ISBN 0791435997.
  • Kraemer, Kenneth. World Scriptures: An Introduction to Comparative Religions (Paulist Press, 1986). ISBN 0809127814.
  • LaFargue, Michael. Tao and Method: A Reasoned Approach to the Tao Te Ching (SUNY Press. 1994) ISBN 0791416011.
  • Little, Stephen and Shawn Eichman, et al. Taoism and the Arts of China (Chicago: Art Institute of Chicago, 2000). ISBN 0-520-22784-0
  • Mair, Victor H. The Columbia History of Chinese Literature (Columbia University Press, 2001). ISBN 0231109849
  • Markham, Ian S. & Ruparell, Tinu. Encountering Religion: an introduction to the religions of the world (Blackwell Publishing, 2001). ISBN 0631206744.
  • Martin, William. A Path And A Practice: Using Lao Tzu's Tao Te Ching as a Guide to an Awakened Spiritual Life (Marlowe & Company, 2005). ISBN 1569243905.
  • Martinson, Paul Varo. A theology of world religions: Interpreting God, self, and world in Semitic, Indian, and Chinese thought (Augsburg Publishing House, 1987). ISBN 0806622539.
  • Maspero, Henri. Translated by Frank A. Kierman, Jr. Taoism and Chinese Religion (University of Massachusetts Press, 1981). ISBN 0-87023-308-4
  • Miller, James. Daoism: A Short Introduction (Oxford: Oneworld Publications, 2003). ISBN 1-85168-315-1
  • Moore, Charles Alexander. The Chinese Mind: Essentials of Chinese Philosophy and Culture (University of Hawaii Press, 1967). ISBN 0824800753.
  • Prebish, Charles. Buddhism: A Modern Perspective (Penn State Press, 1975). ISBN 0271011955.
  • Robinet, Isabelle. Taoist Meditation: The Mao-shan Tradition of Great Purity (Albany: SUNY Press, 1993 [original French 1989]).
  • Robinet, Isabelle. Taoism: Growth of a Religion (Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1997 [original French 1992]). ISBN 0-8047-2839-9
  • Segal, Robert Alan. The Blackwell Companion to the Study of Religion (Blackwell Publishing, 2006). ISBN 0631232168.
  • Schipper, Kristopher. The Taoist Body (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1993 [original French version 1982]).
  • Schipper, Kristopher and Franciscus Verellen. The Taoist Canon: A Historical Companion to the Daozang (Chicago: University of Chicago, 2004).
  • Sharot, Stephen. A Comparative Sociology of World Religions: virtuosos, priests, and popular religion (New York: NYU Press, 2001). ISBN 0814798055.
  • Silvers, Brock. The Taoist Manual (Honolulu: Sacred Mountain Press, 2005).
  • Slingerland, Edward Gilman. Effortless Action: Wu-Wei as Conceptual Metaphor and Spiritual Ideal in Early China (Oxford University Press, 2003). ISBN 0195138996.
  • Van Voorst, Robert E. Anthology of World Scriptures (Thomson Wadsworth, 2005). ISBN 0534520995.
  • Waley, Arthur. The Way and Its Power: A Study of the Tao Te Ching and Its Place in Chinese Thought (Grove Press, 1958). ISBN 0802150853.

Footnotes

Further reading

  • Kohn, Livia. The Taoist Experience: An Anthology (Albany: SUNY Press, 1993).
  • Saso, Michael R. Taoism and the Rite of Cosmic Renewal (2nd ed., Washington State University Press, 1990). ISBN 978-0-87422-054-4
  • Sivin, Nathan. Chinese Alchemy: Preliminary Studies (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1968).
  • Sommer, Deborah. Chinese Religion: An Anthology of Sources (Oxford University Press, 1995). ISBN 0-19-508895-6
  • Welch, H. and Seidel, A., Facets of Taoism (Yale University Press, 1979)

External links

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