91-477: The Tou Mu Kung Temple ( 斗母宮 ) is a Taoist temple situated on Upper Serangoon Road , Singapore . Worshipping the Empress Registrar of Birth or Doumu (斗母) and Nine Emperor Gods (九皇大帝), the temple has both Taoist and Buddhist influences. There are other temples dedicated to Tou Mu (Dou Mu) in many parts of China (e.g. on Mount Tai ). The temple started as a home shrine by Ong Choo Kee,
182-548: A " liturgical framework for the development of local cults", in other words a scheme or structure for Chinese religion, proposed first by the scholar and Taoist initiate Kristofer Schipper in The Taoist Body (1986). Taoshi are comparable to the non-Taoist ritual masters ( 法師 ) of vernacular traditions (the so-called Faism ) within Chinese religion. The term dàojiàotú ( 道教徒 ; 'follower of Dao'), with
273-527: A Chinese merchant. Ong had vowed to venerate the Nine Emperor Gods in exchange for successful business deals. He became successful and his home shrine became popular with an increase of worshippers. A Hokkien pineapple tycoon, Ong Chwee Tow (王水斗), donated a land parcel in Hougang to build a proper temple for worshippers. The temple started construction in 1919 and completed in 1921. It caters to
364-503: A Western or Japanese background, who often use distinct interpretive models and techniques. This point of view characterizes the religious and philosophical characteristics of the Taoist tradition as being inseparable. Sinologists such as Isabelle Robinet and Livia Kohn state that "Taoism has never been a unified religion, and has constantly consisted of a combination of teachings based on a variety of original revelations." The distinction
455-481: A bifurcated 'philosophy' versus 'religion' model. Daojia was a taxonomical category for Taoist texts, that was eventually applied to Taoist movements and priests in the early medieval period. Meanwhile, daojiao was originally used to specifically distinguish Taoist tradition from Buddhism. Thus, daojiao included daojia . Komjathy notes that the earliest Taoist texts also "reveal a religious community composed of master-disciple lineages", and therefore, that "Taoism
546-555: A central air-well. Behind the main hall is a two-story pagoda . Single-storey quarters for the keepers of the temple are located at the rear of the temple. The roof of the temple is decorated with dancing dragons . There is also a ridge decoration in the main temple hall. The centre of the ridge has a blazing pearl . Dragons and dragon fish are used to terminate the ridges. Hips are terminated by spirals. The roof trusses are typically Chinese , decorated with carvings and simple brackets . The main doors are painted with pictures of
637-515: A contentless and nonconceptual apophatic meditation as a way of achieving union with the Tao. According to Louis Komjathy, their worldview "emphasized the Dao as sacred, and the universe and each individual being as a manifestation of the Dao." These communities were also closely related to and intermixed with the fangshi (method master) communities. Other scholars, like Russell Kirkland, argue that before
728-815: A key Taoist work on inner cultivation, the Baopuzi ( Master Embracing Simplicity ). The Six Dynasties (316–589) era saw the rise of two new Taoist traditions, the Shangqing and Lingbao schools. Shangqing was based on a series of revelations by gods and spirits to a certain Yang Xi between 364 and 370. As Livia Kohn writes, these revelations included detailed descriptions of the heavens as well as "specific methods of shamanic travels or ecstatic excursions, visualizations, and alchemical concoctions." The Shangqing revelations also introduced many new Taoist scriptures. Similarly, between 397 and 402, Ge Chaofu compiled
819-587: A new set of liturgies, which continue to influence Taoist practice to the present day." This period also saw the development of the Three Pure Ones , which merged the high deities from different Taoist traditions into a common trinity that has remained influential until today. The new Integrated Taoism, now with a united Taoist identity, gained official status in China during the Tang dynasty . This tradition
910-435: A positive philosophy aims for the holistic unification of an individual's reality with everything that is not only real but also valuable, encompassing both the natural world and society. But the earliest references to 'the Tao' per se are largely devoid of liturgical or explicitly supernatural character, used in contexts either of abstract metaphysics or of the ordinary conditions required for human flourishing. This distinction
1001-537: A principled, moral person. Since Taoist thought is syncretic and deeply rooted in Chinese culture for millennia, it is often unclear which denominations should be considered "Taoist". The status of daoshi , or 'Taoist master', is traditionally attributed only to clergy in Taoist organizations, who distinguish between their traditions and others in Chinese folk religion . Though generally lacking motivation for strong hierarchies, Taoist philosophy has often served as
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#17327755911641092-470: A sage become ruined when he becomes useful." The word qi 器 "vessel; utensil" is translated here as "tools", "concrete things", "vessels", "specialists", and "officials". Chapters 32 and 37 both address houwang 侯王 "feudal lords and kings" and describe the Dao as wuming 無名 "nameless", while 37 also calls pu "nameless". Chapter 37 has a minor textual difference between buyu 不欲 "not desire" in
1183-481: A separate examination system based on Taoism. Another important Taoist figure of the Tang dynasty was Lu Dongbin , who is considered the founder of the jindan meditation tradition and an influential figure in the development of neidan (internal alchemy) practice. Likewise, several Song dynasty emperors, most notably Huizong , were active in promoting Taoism, collecting Taoist texts, and publishing updated editions of
1274-573: A series of scriptures that later served as the foundation of the Lingbao school , which was most influential during the later Song dynasty (960–1279) and focused on scriptural recitation and the use of talismans for harmony and longevity. The Lingbao school practiced purification rituals called "purgations" in which talismans were empowered. Lingbao also adopted Mahayana Buddhist elements. According to Kohn, they "integrated aspects of Buddhist cosmology , worldview, scriptures, and practices, and created
1365-505: A similar nature to all other life. Roughly contemporaneously to the Tao Te Ching , some believed the Tao was a force that was the "basis of all existence" and more powerful than the gods, while being a god-like being that was an ancestor and a mother goddess . Early Taoists studied the natural world in attempts to find what they thought were supernatural laws that governed existence. Taoists created scientific principles that were
1456-540: A theoretical foundation for politics, warfare, and Taoist organizations. Taoist secret societies precipitated the Yellow Turban Rebellion during the late Han dynasty , attempting to create what has been characterized as a Taoist theocracy . Today, Taoism is one of five religious doctrines officially recognized by the Chinese government, also having official status in Hong Kong and Macau . It
1547-572: A total of 8 occurrences. Chapter 19 parallels the near-synonyms su 素 "raw silk; white; plain; simple; quiet" and pu 樸 "unworked wood; plain; simple", and was the source for Ge Hong's pen-name Baopuzi "Master who Embraces Simplicity". Holmes Welch describes pu "the Uncarved Block" and su "Raw Silk" as symbols that Laozi used to expound his basic doctrine of "the return to our original nature". In modern usage, pu and su mean "plain," but originally pu "was wood as it came from
1638-596: A vast new collection of Taoist texts in close imitation of Buddhist sutras ." Louis Komjathy also notes that they adopted the Mahayana Buddhist universalism in its promotion of "universal salvation" (pudu). During this period, Louguan , the first Taoist monastic institution (influenced by Buddhist monasticism ) was established in the Zhongnan mountains by a local Taoist master named Yin Tong. This tradition
1729-708: A wooden roof)", written with the "tree radical" and wu 屋 "room; house" phonetic. The "B" text, like the received version, uses pu 樸 8 times in 6 chapters; the "A" text uses wò 楃 6 times in 4 chapters and has lacunae in chapters 19 and 57. The (c. 121 CE) Shuowen jiezi defines wo 楃 as muzhang 木帳 "wood canopy", and the (early 3rd century) Guangya defines it as choumu 幬幕 "curtain; cover". These variant words pú < * phrôk 樸 "unworked wood" and wò < * ʔôk 楃 "house tent" are semantically and phonologically dissimilar. The comprehensive Chinese character dictionary Hanyu Da Zidian (1987: 2:1291, 2:1154) lists 2 pronunciations and 8 meanings for
1820-474: Is a diverse philosophical and religious tradition indigenous to China , emphasizing harmony with the Tao 道 ( pinyin : dào ; Wade–Giles : tao ). With a range of meaning in Chinese philosophy, translations of Tao include 'way', 'road', 'path', or 'technique', generally understood in the Taoist sense as an enigmatic process of transformation ultimately underlying reality . Taoist thought has informed
1911-453: Is a modern Chinese construction largely rooted in earlier Chinese literati, European colonialist, and Protestant missionary interpretations. Contemporaneous Neo-Confucianists, for example, often self-identify as Taoist without partaking in any rituals. In contrast, Komjathy characterizes Taoism as "a unified religious tradition characterized by complexity and diversity", arguing that historically, none of these terms were understood according to
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#17327755911642002-496: Is also contained in 'uncarved block', except that 'uncarved block' has been reified. As a result, what was an excellent analogy of the Tao has become sterile and counterproductive." Citing the pu translations of Séraphin Couvreur "wood that has not been worked on; simple, without ornament, without disguise" and Bernhard Karlgren "wood in its natural state, not worked: rough, plain, natural, simple"; Pas and Leung conclude: "it
2093-562: Is considered a major religion in Taiwan , and also has significant populations of adherents throughout the Sinosphere and Southeast Asia. In the West, Taoism has taken on various forms , both those hewing to historical practice, as well as highly synthesized practices variously characterized as new religious movements . "Taoism" and "Daoism" are alternate spellings of the same word. "Tao"
2184-489: Is fraught with hermeneutic difficulties when attempting to categorize different schools, sects, and movements. Russell Kirkland writes that "most scholars who have seriously studied Taoism, both in Asia and in the West" have abandoned this "simplistic dichotomy". Louis Komjathy writes that this is an untenable misconception because "the association of daojia with "thought" ( sixiang ) and of daojiao with "religion" ( zongjiao )
2275-475: Is generally not understood as a variant of Chinese folk religion per se: while the two umbrella terms have considerable cultural overlap, core themes of both also diverge considerably from one another. Traditionally, the Chinese language does not have terms defining lay people adhering to the doctrines or the practices of Taoism, who fall instead within the field of folk religion. Taoist, in Western sinology ,
2366-598: Is in the Wade-Giles romanization system, which was predominant in English-speaking countries until the late 20th century, and remains in use for certain terms with strongly established spellings. "Dao" is the spelling in the Hanyu Pinyin system, officially adopted in China in the 1950s, which has largely replaced Wade–Giles. The Standard Chinese pronunciation of both romanizations of the character "Dao"
2457-402: Is obvious where the expression 'uncarved block' came from, but the addition of 'block' is an interpretation. The term means 'plain wood, uncarved wood'." Reconstructions of Old Chinese pronunciations have transformed Chinese etymology . Old Chinese reconstructions of pu or bu 樸 include: Victor Mair suggests that pu < * phluk 樸 "unhewn log" is "almost certainly related to
2548-470: Is still understood in everyday contexts among Chinese people, echoed by early modern scholars of Chinese history and philosophy such as Feng Youlan and Wing-tsit Chan . Use of the term daojia dates to the Western Han c. 100 BCE , referring to the purported authors of the emerging Taoist canon, such as Lao Dan and Zhuang Zhou . Neither the Tao Te Ching and Zhuangzi themselves, or
2639-486: Is the same; that is, /daʊ/ , much like the English "dow". One authority calls the pronunciation with a <t> as in "tie" to be a "mispronunciation" originally caused by the "clumsy Wade-Giles system," which misled most readers. The word Taoism is used to translate two related but distinct Chinese terms. The distinction between Taoism in philosophy and Taoist religion is an ancient, deeply-rooted one. Taoism as
2730-478: Is traditionally used to translate daoshi /taoshih ( 道士 ; 'master of the Tao';), thus strictly defining the priests of Taoism, ordained clergymen of a Taoist institution who "represent Taoist culture on a professional basis", are experts of Taoist liturgy, and therefore can employ this knowledge and ritual skill for the benefit of a community. This role of Taoist priests reflects the definition of Taoism as
2821-523: Is turned into concrete things. But when the sage uses it, he becomes the leading official." should be read 樸散則為器聖人用則為官長 "When uncarved wood is cut up, it's turned into vessels. When the Sage is used, he becomes the Head of Officials." D. C. Lau says the traditional passage "seems to say that when the uncarved block shatters it becomes vessels. A vessel is a specialist who is only fitted to be an official. Hence
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2912-599: The Daozang . The Song era saw new scriptures and new movements of ritualists and Taoist rites, the most popular of which were the Thunder Rites (leifa). The Thunder rites were protection and exorcism rites that evoked the celestial department of thunder, and they became central to the new Heavenly Heart (Tianxin) tradition as well as for the Youthful Incipience (Tongchu) school. In the 12th century ,
3003-522: The Zhuangzi , and the Tao Te Ching . The Tao Te Ching , attributed to Laozi , is dated by scholars to sometime between the 4th and 6th century BCE. A common tradition holds that Laozi founded Taoism. Laozi's historicity is disputed, with many scholars seeing him as a legendary founding figure. While Taoism is often regarded in the West as arising from Laozi, many Chinese Taoists claim that
3094-600: The Door Gods . Its colour scheme of light blue and brown is rather subdued when compared to other temples. The main altar is dedicated to the main deity (Nine Emperor). To the left of the main altar is an altar to Dou Mu (Tou Mu), and to the right, Guan Yin . An inscription on a wall plaque above the main entrance shows the names of benefactors and the date of construction of the temple. Taoism Taoism or Daoism ( / ˈ t aʊ . ɪ z əm / , / ˈ d aʊ . ɪ z əm / )
3185-566: The People's Republic of China promulgated simplified Chinese characters in 1956, the established variant pu 朴 (with 6 strokes ) was chosen to replace the traditional Chinese character pu 樸 (with 16 strokes ). One of the two (c. 168 BCE) Mawangdui silk manuscript versions of the Daodejing , discovered in 1973 by archeologists excavating a tomb, uses a rare textual variant character for pu 樸 : wò 楃 "a house tent (esp. with
3276-591: The Quanzhen (Complete Perfection) School was founded in Shandong by the sage Wang Chongyang (1113–1170) to compete with religious Taoist traditions that worshipped " ghosts and gods " and largely displaced them. The school focused on inner transformation, mystical experience , monasticism , and asceticism . Quanzhen flourished during the 13th and 14th centuries and during the Yuan dynasty . The Quanzhen school
3367-747: The School of Naturalists (from which Taoism draws its main cosmological ideas, yin and yang and the five phases ), and the Chinese classics , especially the I Ching and the Lüshi Chunqiu . Meanwhile, Isabelle Robinet identifies four components in the emergence of Taoism: the teachings found in the Tao Te Ching and Zhuangzi , techniques for achieving ecstasy, practices for achieving longevity and becoming an immortal ( xian ), and practices for exorcism . Robinet states that some elements of Taoism may be traced to prehistoric folk religions in China. In particular, many Taoist practices drew from
3458-462: The Shijing below). Bao 枹 is usually read fu "drumstick", and Guo noted this name bao denoted "a kind of oak [ 樸 ] that grew in clumps", and quotes the Shijing usage as baoli 枹櫟 instead of baoli 苞櫟 "bushy oak" (see below). The Bencao Gangmu says there are two varieties of hu 槲 " Quercus mongolica , Mongolian oak", the bao 枹 is small and grows in clumps while
3549-819: The Tao Te Ching was to be a topic in the imperial examinations. During the reign of the 7th century Emperor Taizong , the Five Dragons Temple (the first temple at the Wudang Mountains ) was constructed. Wudang would eventually become a major center for Taoism and a home for Taoist martial arts ( Wudang quan ). Emperor Xuanzong (r. 712–755) was also a devoted Taoist who wrote various Taoist works, and according to Livia Kohn , "had frequent meetings with senior masters, ritual specialists, Taoist poets, and official patriarchs, such as Sima Chengzhen." He reorganized imperial rituals based on Taoist forms, sponsored Taoist shrines and monasteries, and introduced
3640-753: The Tao Te Ching were written: the Heshang Gong commentary and the Xiang'er commentary. The first organized form of Taoism was the Way of the Celestial Masters , which developed from the Five Pecks of Rice movement at the end of the 2nd century CE. The latter had been founded by Zhang Daoling , who was said to have had a vision of Laozi in 142 CE and claimed that the world was coming to an end. Zhang sought to teach people to repent and prepare for
3731-514: The Teochew community, and was one of two remaining temples in Singapore with a permanent Chinese opera stage until 1998. For eight decades, Chinese opera was performed there during religious and other festivals. The temple was gazetted as a national monument , which was deemed to be of special historic and traditional value, on 14 January 2005. The temple has a symmetrical floor plan with
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3822-614: The Yellow Emperor formulated many of their precepts, including the quest for "long life". Traditionally, the Yellow Emperor's founding of Taoism was said to have been because he "dreamed of an ideal kingdom whose tranquil inhabitants lived in harmonious accord with the natural law and possessed virtues remarkably like those espoused by early Taoism. On waking from his dream, Huangdi sought to" bring about "these virtues in his own kingdom, to ensure order and prosperity among
3913-550: The li 櫟 is tall and has large leaves. Second, supu 樕樸 is defined as xin 心 "heart; mind" (14:64). Guo identifies supu (cf. reverse pusu 樸樕 in the Shijing below) as husu 槲樕 (with hu 槲 "Mongolian oak"), the " Quercus dentata , daimyo oak". While xin "heart; mind" is a common Chinese word, this Erya definition is the only known context in which it names a tree. The Yijing uses xin to mean "thorn; prick" : "Among varieties of wood it means those which are firm and have much pith". The Shuowen Jiezi ,
4004-419: The p'oh ", "the oak clumps". Commentaries describe the yupu as a "dense and shrubby tree". In addition, Ode 132 has baoli 苞櫟 : "the bushy oaks", "a clump of oaks", "luxuriant oaks". The Erya has baoli 枹櫟 , writing bao as 枹 "an oak" instead of 苞 "bushy; luxuriant". The Shujing "Classic of History" ( Zhoushu 周書 , Zicai 梓材 " Chinese catalpa lumber" section) uses pu once in
4095-422: The three treasures of compassion, frugality, and humility. The core of Taoist thought crystallized during the early Warring States period ( c. 450 – c. 300 BCE ), during which the epigrammatic Tao Te Ching and the anecdotal Zhuangzi —widely regarded as the fundamental texts of Taoist philosophy—were largely composed. They form the core of a body of Taoist writings accrued over
4186-608: The " three vehicles " of Buddhism. The three caverns were: Perfection (Dongzhen), associated with the Three Sovereigns ; Mystery (Dongxuan), associated with Lingbao; and Spirit (Dongshen), associated with the Supreme Clarity tradition. Lu Xiujing also used this schema to arrange the Taoist scriptures and Taoist deities. Lu Xiujing worked to compile the first edition of the Daozang (the Taoist Canon), which
4277-475: The Daoist keyword ziran (literally "self so") "natural; spontaneous". The scholar Ge Hong (283–343 CE) immortalized pu in his pen name Baopuzi "Master who Embraces Simplicity" and eponymous book Baopuzi . Pu can be written with either of the variant Chinese characters 樸 or 朴 , which are linguistically complex. Both 樸 and 朴 are classified as radical-phonetic characters , combining
4368-525: The English word "block," which probably derives from the Indo-European root bhelk (beam)". Axel Schuessler says the etymology of pú < * phrôk "to trim wood" could either be an "aspirated iterative derivation" from bāo < * prôk 剝 "cut up, peel, pluck", or "belong to the homophonous etymon with the basic meaning 'in a natural state, unworked', as in pú 樸 'in a natural state', 璞 'unworked precious stone' ". Pu occurs in some of
4459-656: The Golden Flower . The Longmen school synthesized the Quanzhen and neidan teachings with the Chan Buddhist and Neo-Confucian elements that the Jingming tradition had developed, making it widely appealing to the literati class. Pu (Taoism) Pu is a Chinese word meaning "unworked wood; inherent quality; simple" that was an early Daoist metaphor for the natural state of humanity, and relates with
4550-555: The Han dynasty, there were no real "Taoists" or "Taoism". Instead, there were various sets of behaviors, practices, and interpretative frameworks (like the ideas of the Yijing , yin-yang thought , as well as Mohist , " Legalist ", and " Confucian " ideas), which were eventually synthesized into the first organized forms of "Taoism". Some of the main early Taoist sources include: the Neiye ,
4641-527: The Han. As such, they grew and became an influential religion during the Three Kingdoms period, focusing on ritual confession and petition, as well as developing a well-organized religious structure. The Celestial Masters school was officially recognized by the warlord Cao Cao in 215 CE, legitimizing Cao Cao's rise to power in return. Laozi received imperial recognition as a divinity in the mid-2nd century BCE. Another important early Taoist movement
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#17327755911644732-592: The Ming, the legends of the Eight Immortals (the most important of which is Lü Dongbin ) rose to prominence, being part of local plays and folk culture. Ming emperors like the Hongwu Emperor continued to invite Taoists to court and hold Taoist rituals that were believed to enhance the power of the throne. The most important of these were connected with the Taoist deity Xuanwu ("Perfect Warrior"), which
4823-672: The Warring States era phenomena of the wu ( Chinese shamans ) and the fangshi ("method masters", which probably derived from the "archivist-soothsayers of antiquity"). Both terms were used to designate individuals dedicated to "...magic, medicine, divination,... methods of longevity and to ecstatic wanderings" as well as exorcism. The fangshi were philosophically close to the School of Naturalists and relied greatly on astrological and calendrical speculations in their divinatory activities. Female shamans played an important role in
4914-483: The character 樸 , and 6 pronunciations and 11 meanings for 朴 ; which are summarized below. The glyph 樸 can be read: The glyph 朴 can be read to mean: The Erya , which is the oldest Chinese dictionary, defined pu 樸 and supu 樕樸 as "oak" names (in "Explaining Trees" chapter 14). First, pu 樸 is defined as bao 枹 (14:45). Guo Pu 's Erya commentary identified this pu tree as yupu 棫樸 " Quercus acutissima , saw-tooth oak" (which occurs in
5005-527: The coming cataclysm, after which they would become the seeds of a new era of great peace. It was a mass movement in which men and women could act as libationers and tend to the commoners. A related movement arose in Shandong called the " Way of Great Peace ", seeking to create a new world by replacing the Han dynasty. This movement led to the Yellow Turban Rebellion , and after years of bloody war, they were crushed. The Celestial Masters movement survived this period and did not take part in attempting to replace
5096-453: The compound pozhou 樸斫 ( po "trim unworked wood" and zhuo "hack; chop off"): "as in working with the wood of the rottlera, when the toil of the coarser and finer operations has been completed, they have to apply the paint of red and other colours", "It is as when one works on catalpa wood; when he has toiled in trimming and carving it, he should take measures for making it red or green". Legge notes that pu means "the rough fashioning of
5187-410: The development of various practices within the Taoist tradition and beyond, including forms of meditation , astrology , qigong , feng shui , and internal alchemy . A common goal of Taoist practice is self-cultivation , a deeper appreciation of the Tao, and more harmonious existence. Taoist ethics vary, but generally emphasize such virtues as effortless action , naturalness , simplicity , and
5278-575: The earliest Chinese classics , frequently in Daoist ones. Two odes in the Shijing "Classic of Poetry" use pu 樸 compounds to mean "an oak". Pusu 樸樕 occurs in Ode 23: "scrubby oaks", "a clump of oaks", "low shrubby trees". The Mao commentary describes the pusu as a 小木 "small tree". The Erya (above) writes this reversible compound as supu 樕樸 . Yupu 棫樸 is the name of Ode 238, which records using this tree for firewood: "the yih and
5369-436: The early Taoist tradition, which was particularly strong in the southern state of Chu . Early Taoist movements developed their own tradition in contrast to shamanism while also absorbing shamanic elements. During the early period, some Taoists lived as hermits or recluses who did not participate in political life, while others sought to establish a harmonious society based on Taoist principles. Zhuang Zhou (c. 370–290 BCE)
5460-639: The early secondary sources written about them, put forward any particular supernatural ontology. Nonetheless, that religious Taoism emerged from a synthesis of folk religion with philosophical Taoist precepts is clear. The earlier, naturalistic was employed by pre-Han and Han thinkers, and continued to be used well into the Song, including among those who explicitly rejected cults, both private and state-sanctioned, that were often either labeled or self-identified as Taoist. However, this distinction has been challenged or rejected by some scholars of religion, often those from
5551-416: The first Chinese dictionary of characters, simply defines pu 朴 as mupi 木皮 "tree bark; wood with bark", and pu 樸 as musu 木素 "plain wood; unworked lumber" (later meaning " lignin " in scientific terminology). Returning to the central Daoist meaning of pu , Pas and Leung challenge the stereotyped "uncarved block" translation of pu : "The idea implied in it comes closer to 'wholeness', which
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#17327755911645642-477: The first of their kind in China, and the belief system has been known to merge scientific, philosophical, and religious conceits from close to its beginning. By the Han dynasty (206 BCE–220 CE), the various sources of Taoism had coalesced into a coherent tradition of ritualists in the state of Shu (modern Sichuan ). One of the earliest forms of Taoism was the Han era ( 2nd century BCE ) Huang–Lao movement, which
5733-625: The following centuries, which was assembled by monks into the Daozang canon starting in the 5th century CE. Early Taoism drew upon diverse influences, including the Shang and Zhou state religions, Naturalism , Mohism , Confucianism , various Legalist theories, as well as the I Ching and Spring and Autumn Annals . Although Taoism and Confucianism developed significant differences, they are not seen as mutually incompatible or exclusive. The relationship between Taoism and Buddhism upon
5824-409: The inhabitants". Afterwards, Taoism developed and grew into two sects; One is Zhengyi Taoism, which mainly focuses on spells, and the other is Quanzhen Taoism, which mainly focuses on practicing inner alchemy. Overall, traditional Taoist thought, content, and sects are varied, reflecting the ideal of "absorbing everything inside and mixing everything outside". Early Taoism drew on the ideas found in
5915-608: The latter's introduction to China is characterized as one of mutual influence, with long-running discourses shared between Taoists and Buddhists; the distinct Mahayana tradition of Zen that emerged during the Tang dynasty (607–917) incorporates many ideas from Taoism. Many Taoist denominations recognize deities , often ones shared with other traditions, which are venerated as superhuman figures exemplifying Taoist virtues. They can be roughly divided into two categories of "gods" and xian (or "immortals"). Xian were immortal beings with vast supernatural powers, also describing
6006-476: The meaning of "Taoist" as "lay member or believer of Taoism", is a modern invention that goes back to the introduction of the Western category of "organized religion" in China in the 20th century, but it has no significance for most of Chinese society in which Taoism continues to be an "order" of the larger body of Chinese religion. Scholars like Harold Roth argue that early Taoism was a series of "inner-cultivation lineages" of master-disciple communities, emphasizing
6097-535: The mind's original purity and clarity (which could become obscured by desires and emotions). Key figures of this school include Xu Xun, Liu Yu, Huang Yuanji, Xu Yi, and Liu Yuanran. Some of these figures taught at the imperial capital and were awarded titles. Their emphasis on practical ethics and self-cultivation in everyday life (rather than ritual or monasticism) made it very popular among the literati class. The Qing dynasty (1644–1912) mainly promoted Buddhism as well as Neo-Confucianism . Thus, during this period,
6188-496: The most important figure of the Tang was the court Taoist and writer Du Guangting (850–933). Du wrote numerous works about Taoist rituals, history, myth, and biography. He also reorganized and edited the Taotsang after a period of war and loss. During the Tang, several emperors became patrons of Taoism, inviting priests to court to conduct rituals and enhance the prestige of the sovereign. The Gaozong Emperor even decreed that
6279-439: The outward [ pu ] you will have to cultivate a [ wuwei ] of the mind. And when the mind is quiet, [ pu ] will deepen. It will become a faculty for intuitively sensing the order of the universe — the [Dao] that can be named." Pu occurs 20 times in the (ca. 3rd century BCE) Daoist classic Zhuangzi . The standard Zhuangzi text writes pu both with the 16–stroke character 樸 six times in three chapters (9, 13, and 31) and with
6370-401: The properties of plants and geology , diviners , early environmentalists , tribal chieftains, court scribes and commoner members of governments, members of the nobility in Chinese states, and the descendants of refugee communities. Significant movements in early Taoism disregarded the existence of gods, and many who believed in gods thought they were subject to the natural law of the Tao, in
6461-624: The religion of the Shang dynasty and the Zhou dynasty , such as their use of divination , ancestor worship , and the idea of Heaven ( Tian ) and its relationship to humanity. According to modern scholars of Taoism, such as Kirkland and Livia Kohn , Taoist philosophy also developed by drawing on numerous schools of thought from the Warring States period (4th to 3rd centuries BCE), including Mohism , Confucianism , Legalist theorists (like Shen Buhai and Han Fei , which speak of wu wei ),
6552-454: The rise of the Xuanxue (Mysterious Learning or Deep Wisdom) tradition, which focused on philosophical inquiry and integrated Confucian teachings with Taoist thought. The movement included scholars like Wang Bi (226–249), He Yan (d. 249), Xiang Xiu (223?–300), Guo Xiang (d. 312), and Pei Wei (267–300). Another later influential figure was the 4th century alchemist Ge Hong , who wrote
6643-465: The sage when he makes use of these vessels becomes the lord over the officials.", but in Mawangdui passage, "The meaning is very different. The uncarved block is a symbol for the sage. Just as the uncarved block becomes vessels when it shatters so does the sage become the chief of the officials when he allows himself to be employed, and just as the uncarved block is ruined when it becomes useful, so does
6734-483: The semantically significant "tree" radical 木 (commonly used for writing names of trees and wooden objects) with the phonetic indicators pu 菐 or bu 卜 . The Chinese character pu 樸 was first recorded on Chinese bronze inscriptions from the Spring and Autumn period (771-476 BCE), and the character pu 朴 was first recorded in Chinese classics from the Warring States period (475-221 BCE). When
6825-793: The standard version and buru 不辱 "not disgrace" in the Mawangdui version. Lau explains pu in the Daodejing primarily means "the uncarved block is in a state as yet untouched by the artificial interference of human ingenuity and so is a symbol for the original state of man before desire is produced in him by artificial means". The (c. 3rd century CE) Heshang Gong commentary version of this Daoist text interchangeably writes pu as both 樸 and 朴 . Three chapters (28, 32, 37) use 樸 in both text and commentary, and one (15) uses 朴 in both. One (19) uses 樸 in text and 樸朴 in commentary, and another (57) uses 朴 in text and 樸 in commentary. Of nine Daodejing chapters without 樸 or 朴 in
6916-730: The status and influence of Taoism declined. During the 18th century, the Qing imperial library excluded virtually all Taoist books. The Qing era also saw the birth of the Longmen ("Dragon Gate" 龍門 ) school of Wang Kunyang (1552–1641), a branch of Quanzhen from southern China that became established at the White Cloud Temple . Longmen authors like Liu Yiming (1734–1821) and Min Yide (1758–1836) worked to promote and preserve Taoist inner alchemy practices through books like The Secret of
7007-673: The text, three (3, 38, 41) use 樸 in commentary, and six (17, 64, 68, 71, 80, 81) use 朴 . For examples, Welch paraphrases the Daodejing relationship among pu , de "inherent character; inner power", and wuwei "non-action; non-doing". Outwardly, one cannot achieve de "until you have erased the aggressive patterns etched by society into your nature. You must return to your natural self, to [ pu ]. You must discard morality and ambition, for if you keep these you will never be capable of compassion, moderation, and humility. When you discard some of your wishes, you will have them all." Inwardly, one performs several cultivations. "For, to achieve
7098-403: The transmitted text has an extra grammatical particle zhi 之 "a possessive marker; a 3rd person pronoun" after yong 用 "use; employ". Robert G. Henricks explains this small grammatical change between the standard text saying the sage yong zhi "uses it" and the excavated silk text saying yong "is used". The transmitted version 樸散則為器聖人用之則為官長 "When the uncarved wood is broken up, it
7189-446: The tree before man had dressed it", while su "was silk that man had never dyed or painted." Chapters 28 and 57 mention simple pu in reference to shengren 聖人 "sages", Chapter 15 similarly refers to ancient Daoist adepts and describes pu as dun 敦 "sincere; honest; plain". Among all the Daodejing occurrences of pu , chapter 28 is the only case in which the transmitted and excavated versions are significantly different –
7280-573: The western parts of the Yuan dynasty's land), and Tibetan Buddhism . Under the Ming dynasty (1368–1644), aspects of Confucianism, Taoism, and East Asian Buddhism were consciously synthesized in the Neo-Confucian school, which eventually became Imperial orthodoxy for state bureaucratic purposes. Taoist ideas also influenced Neo-Confucian thinkers like Wang Yangming and Zhan Ruoshui . During
7371-429: The work" and zhou means "the fine finish given to it". Karlgren quotes the Han commentator Ma Rong that po 樸 denotes "wood that has not yet been worked into a utensil; unworked wood", and concludes po means "to treat the unworked wood (in the first rough cutting); to trim" is a variation of the same stem as pu 樸 "in a natural state; simple". Six Daodejing chapters use pu 樸 , two of them twice, for
7462-443: Was Taiqing (Great Clarity), which was a tradition of external alchemy (weidan) that sought immortality through the concoction of elixirs, often using toxic elements like cinnabar , lead , mercury , and realgar , as well as ritual and purificatory practices. After this point, Taoism did not have nearly as significant an effect on the passing of law as the syncretic Confucian - Legalist tradition. The Three Kingdoms period saw
7553-792: Was Zhang Boduan, author of the Wuzhen pian , a classic of internal alchemy, and the founder of the southern branch of Quanzhen. During the Song era, the Zhengyi Dao tradition properly developed in Southern China among Taoists of the Chang clan. This liturgically focused tradition would continue to be supported by later emperors and survives to this day. In the Yuan dynasty, Taoism in Northern China took inspiration from Tibetan cultural practices, Chinese folk religion (often from
7644-502: Was a religious tradition from the beginning." Philosopher Chung-ying Cheng likewise views Taoism as a religion embedded into Chinese history and tradition, while also assuming many different "forms of philosophy and practical wisdom". Chung-ying Cheng also noted that the Taoist view of 'heaven' mainly from "observation and meditation, [though] the teaching of [the Tao] can also include the way of heaven independently of human nature". Taoism
7735-457: Was an influential school of thought at this time. The Huainanzi and the Taipingjing are important sources from this period. An unorganized form of Taoism was popular in the Han dynasty that syncretized many preexisting forms in multiple ways for different groups existed during a rough span of time throughout the 2nd century BCE. Also during the Han, the earliest extant commentaries on
7826-536: Was called the Northern Celestial masters , and their main scripture was the Xisheng jing ( Scripture of Western Ascension ). During the sixth century, Taoists attempted to unify the various traditions into one integrated Taoism that could compete with Buddhism and Confucianism. To do this they adopted the schema known as the "three caverns", first developed by the scholar Lu Xiujing (406–477) based on
7917-416: Was published at the behest of the Chinese emperor . Thus, according to Russell Kirkland, "in several important senses, it was really Lu Hsiu-ching who founded Taoism, for it was he who first gained community acceptance for a common canon of texts, which established the boundaries, and contents, of 'the teachings of the Tao' (Tao-chiao). Lu also reconfigured the ritual activities of the tradition, and formulated
8008-496: Was syncretic, combining elements from Buddhism and Confucianism with Taoist tradition. According to Wang Chongyang, the " three teachings " (Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism), "when investigated, prove to be but one school". Quanzhen became the largest and most important Taoist school in China when master Qiu Chuji met with Genghis Khan who ended up making him the leader of all Chinese religions as well as exempting Quanzhen institutions from taxation. Another important Quanzhen figure
8099-508: Was termed daojiao (the teaching of the Tao). The Tang was the height of Taoist influence, during which Taoism, led by the Patriarch of Supreme Clarity, was the dominant religion in China. According to Russell Kirkland, this new Taoist synthesis had its main foundation in the Lingbao school's teachings, which was appealing to all classes of society and drew on Mahayana Buddhism. Perhaps
8190-415: Was the main dynastic protector deity of the Ming. The Ming era saw the rise of the Jingming ("Pure Illumination") school to prominence, which merged Taoism with Buddhist and Confucian teachings and focused on "purity, clarity, loyalty and filial piety ". The school derided internal and external alchemy, fasting ( bigu ), and breathwork. Instead, the school focused on using mental cultivation to return to
8281-425: Was the most influential of the Taoist hermits. Some scholars holds that since he lived in the south, he may have been influenced by Chinese shamanism . Zhuang Zhou and his followers insisted they were the heirs of ancient traditions and the ways of life of by-then legendary kingdoms. Pre-Taoist philosophers and mystics whose activities may have influenced Taoism included shamans, naturalists skilled in understanding
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