Approaching Daoism Pesentation

 

Approaching Daoism  

Ÿ  Spelled Taoism in the older Wade-Giles Romanization system, but still pronounced

“Daoism”

 

Ÿ  Indigenous Chinese religion deeply rooted in traditional Chinese culture

 

Ÿ  Dao 道, translatable as “the Way” and “a way,” as sacred and ultimate concern

 

Ÿ  Begins as a religious community during the Warring States period (480-222 BCE)

 

Ÿ  Western name approximates various indigenous Chinese designations, including daojia 道家 (Family of the Dao), daojiao 道教 (Teachings of the Dao), and xuanfeng 玄風 (Mysterious Movement) 

 

Ÿ  Daoists as adherents of Daoism. Those who are part of the “tradition of the

Dao” (daotong 道統) and who endeavor to  “transmit the Dao” (chuandao 傳道) 

 

Ÿ  Now a global religious tradition characterized by cultural, ethnic, linguistic and national diversity. “Global Daoism” as rooted in “Chinese Daoism” as source-tradition

 

Ÿ  Like Zen Buddhism before it, Daoism is the object of various Western fictions, fabrications, and fantasies.

Reliable Introductions to Daoism

Livia Kohn 2001/2004

James Miller 2003/2008

Russell Kirkland 2004

           Livia Kohn                                  Louis Komjathy         Louis Komjathy

               2008                                               2013                2014

Contents of The Daoist Tradition (Bloomsbury Academy, 2013)  

Preface ix

Acknowledgments xi

Conventions xiii

Illustrations xv

Charts xvi

Website xvii

Map xviii

Brief timeline of Daoist history xix

PART ONE Historical overview ₁

 1 Approaching Daoism 3  2 The Daoist tradition 17

PART TWO Identity and community ₃₇

3      Ways to affiliation 39

4      Community and social organization 61

PART THREE Worldview ₈₁

5      Informing views and foundational concerns 83

6      Cosmogony, cosmology and theology 101  7 Views of self 123

PART FOUR Practice ₁₄₃

8           Virtue, ethics and conduct guidelines 145

9           Dietetics 165

10        Health and longevity practice 187

11        Meditation 205

12        Scripture and scripture study 225

13        Ritual 243

PART FIVE Place, sacred space, and material culture ₂₆₃

14        Temples and sacred sites 265

15        Material culture 281

PART SIX Daoism in the modern world ₃₀₁

16        Daoism in the modern world 303

Basic glossary 317

Notes 325

Bibliography 331

Index 353

Contents of Daoism: A Guide for the Perplexed

(Bloomsbury Academy, 2014)  

 Conventions  viii

 List of Figures  xi

 Introduction: On guidance and perplexity 1 

1           Tradition 15 

2           Community  41

3           Identity 59 

4           View 79 

5           Personhood 105        

6           Practice  131

7           Experience  161

8           Place 181        

9           Modernity 201           

 Bibliography  227

                                           Index 249           

BASIC INFORMATION SHEET ON DAOISM (TAOISM)

 

Louis Komjathy , Ph.D.

Assistant Professor of Chinese Religions and Comparative Religious Studies

Department of Theology and Religious Studies

University of San Diego

 

This is an essentialized and simplified information sheet on Daoism (Taoism). It is particularly intended for non-specialist educators who teach Daoism or who are interested in deepening their understanding.



PRELIMINARY POINTS



Daoism (spelled Taoism in the older Wade-Giles romanization system) is an indigenous Chinese religious tradition in which reverence for the Dao, translatable as “the Way” and “a way,” is a matter of ultimate concern. Daoism was a religious community from the beginning, here dated to the Warring States period (480-222 BCE). As a Western category, “Daoism” may be understood as shorthand for Daoist adherents, communities and their religious expressions. With over two thousand years of history, Daoism is a diverse and complex religious tradition; it includes varied forms of religiosity that may be perplexing to those who construct “religion” in terms of founders, authoritative scriptures and “orthodox beliefs.” Throughout Chinese history Daoists have consistently focused on the Dao 5 as sacred and ultimate concern. This is expressed in indigenous Chinese designations, including daojia 5 (Family of the Dao), daojiao 5 (Teachings of the Dao), daoshi 5 (adept of the Dao), and xuanfeng &< (Mysterious Movement). That is, Daoists have understood themselves as those who “transmit the Dao” (chuandao 5); they have seen themselves as part of the “tradition of the Dao” (daotong 5*). In the modern world, Daoism also has become a global religious tradition characterized by cultural diversity and multiethnicity. At the same time, like Zen Buddhism before it, Daoism is the object of various Western fantasies and fictions.



ON “DAOISM” AND “TAOISM” (ROMANIZATION)



Both “Daoism” and “Taoism” refer to the same Chinese religion; they are both pronounced with a “d” sound. “Taoism” derives from Wade-Giles romanization, an earlier way of approximating the sound of Chinese characters into alphabetic script. “Daoism” derives from the more recent Pinyin romanization system, which is the official system created by the People’s Republic of China and utilized throughout mainland China. Wade-Giles uses “Tao,” “Taoist,” and “Taoism.” If these terms were pronounced with a “t” sound, they would appear as “T’ao,” “T’aoist,” and “T’aoism.” That is, in Wade-Giles, a “t” without an apostrophe (’) is a “d” sound. Pinyin uses “Dao,” “Daoist,” and “Daoism.” The latter is the preferred form. The matter is complicated because some scholars now use Pinyin romanization, but continue to employ the Wade-Giles derived “Tao,” “Taoist,” “Taoism.” The rationales for this are varied, but none of them hold up to critical scrutiny.



Scholarly opinion differs on the origins and early history of Daoism. Nonetheless, there is consensus that the category of “philosophical Daoism” is inaccurate and outdated. It should be completely abandoned. Unfortunately, specialist research has yet to influence non-specialist discourse, both academic and popular. Every major “world religions” textbook utilizes the misleading distinction between so-called philosophical Daoism and so-called religious Daoism. The use of these categories should be taken, ipso facto, as a sign of ignorance and inaccuracy. The easiest solution to this problem is to replace “philosophical Daoism” with “classical Daoism,” and to emphasize the religious dimensions of classical Daoism, of the “early inner cultivation lineages” (Harold Roth, Brown University). These dimensions

                                                                               1

COMMON MISCONCEPTIONS CONCERNING DAOISM (TAOISM)

 

Louis Komjathy ᒋᗱ༛, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor of Chinese Religions and Comparative Religious Studies

Department of Theology and Religious Studies

University of San Diego



Popular misconceptions concerning Daoism are numerous and increasingly influential in the modern world. All of these perspectives fail to understand the religious tradition which is Daoism, a religious tradition that is complex, multifaceted, and rooted in Chinese culture. These misconceptions have their origins in traditional Confucian prejudices, European colonialism, and Christian missionary sensibilities, especially as expressed by late nineteenth-century Protestants. Most of these views are located in American designer hybrid (“New Age”) spirituality, Orientalism, Perennial Philosophy, and spiritual capitalism. They domesticate, sterilize and misrepresent Daoism. In their most developed expressions, they may best be understood as part of a new religious movement (NRM) called “Popular Western Taoism” (PWT), with Taoism pronounced with a hard “t” sound. The current state of Daoism in American may thus be compared to that of Zen Buddhism in the 1950s and 1960s (cf. Dharma Bums and Alan Watts with the Mountains and Rivers Order), although some have suggested that it more closely resembles the Euro-American understanding of Buddhism in the 1890s.

 

Popular Misconception	Informed View
Dao (Tao) is a trans-religious and universal name for the sacred, and there are “Dao-ists” (“Tao-ists”) who transcend the limitations of the Daoist religious tradition	䘧, romanized as dao or tao, is a Chinese character utilized by Daoists to identify that which they believe is sacred. There are specific, foundational Daoist views concerning the Dao, which originate in the earliest Daoist communities of the Warring States period (480-222 BCE).
Daoism consists of two forms, “philosophical Daoism” and “religious Daoism”	The distinction between so-called “philosophical Daoism” and “religious Daoism” is a modern Western fiction, which reflects colonialist and missionary agendas and sensibilities. From its beginnings in the Warring States period (480-222 BCE), “Daoism” consisted of religious practitioners and communities. Considered as a whole, Daoism is a complex and diverse religious tradition. It consists of various adherents, communities and movements, which cannot be reduced to a simplistic bifurcation. Its complexity may be mapped in terms of historical periodization as well as models of practice and attainment

                                                 

  These characterizations require reflection on the category of “religion,” including the ways in which Daoists have constructed and understood their own tradition.  

                                                                                1

Remedying the Received View of Daoism

“Philosophical Daoism”

Ÿ                  Based on misinterpretation of classical Daoist texts

Ÿ                  Based on misunderstanding of defining characteristics

Ÿ                  Daojia 道家 (tao-chia) simply means “Family of the Dao”

Ÿ                  Early Han dynasty bibliographic and taxonomic category            Ÿ Eventually used by Daoists to refer to their tradition, especially       ordained Daoist priests and religious communities

Ÿ                  Earliest Daoist religious community

Ÿ                  Apophatic meditation and mystical union with Dao

Ÿ                  à philosophical Daoism

 “Religious Daoism”

Ÿ                  Based on assumed distinction with so-called “philosophical Daoism”

Ÿ                  Based on misunderstanding of earlier Daoist communities

Ÿ                  Daojiao 道教 (tao-chiao) simply means “Teachings of the Dao”

Ÿ                  Early medieval category used to distinguish Daoism from Buddhism 

                                      (fojiao 佛教)  

Ÿ                  Includes so-called daojia

Ÿ                  Daoism was a religious tradition from the beginning

Ÿ                  No other form of Daoism

Ÿ                  à religious Daoism

 

à The Daoist tradition

Ÿ              Indigenous Chinese religion characterized by diversity and complexity

Seven Periods and Four Divisions of Daoist History    

   

(The Daoist Tradition, Louis Komjathy, 2013)

Defining Characteristics of the Four Divisions   

Classical Daoism

Ÿ              Warring States (480-222 BCE) to Early Han (202 BCE-9 CE)

Ÿ              Earliest Daoist religious community

Ÿ              Key “movement”: Inner cultivation lineages (Harold Roth)

Ÿ              Primary emphasis: Apophatic meditation aimed at mystical union with the Dao  

 

Early Organized Daoism

Ÿ              Later Han (25-220 CE) to Period of Disunion (220-589)

Ÿ              Beginning of Daoism as organized religion

Ÿ              Key movements: Taiping 太平(Great Peace), Tianshi 天師(Celestial Masters), Taiqing 太清

(Great Clarity), Shangqing 上清(Highest Clarity), and Lingbao 靈寶 (Numinous Treasure)

Ÿ              Primary emphasis: Ethics, ritual, and theocratic society

 

Later Organized Daoism

Ÿ              Tang (618-907) to Qing (1644-1911)

Ÿ              Emergence of monasticism as major form of Daoist social organization

Ÿ              Key movements: Quanzhen 全真(Complete Perfection), various internal alchemy lineages, as well as deity cults and ritual movements Ÿ Primary emphasis: Internal alchemy and ritual

 

Modern Daoism

Ÿ              1912-present

Ÿ              Technically part of later organized Daoism

Ÿ              Primarily Zhengyi 正一(Orthodox Unity)-Quanzhen 全真 (Complete Perfection) tradition Ÿ Emergence of “global Daoism” as multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, multi-linguistic and multinational tradition from late 20^th century to present

Models of Daoist Practice and Attainment

 

(1)  Alchemical: Transformation of self through ingestion of various substances (external) and/or through complex physiological practices (internal)

 

(2)  Ascetic: Renunciation, perhaps even body-negation. May involve psychological purification (internal) or practices such as fasting, sleep deprivation, voluntary poverty, etc. (external) 

 

(3)  Cosmological: Emphasis on cosmological integration and seasonal attunement

 

(4)  Dietetic: Attentiveness to consumption patterns and influences

 

(5)  Ethical: Emphasis on morality and ethics, including precept study and application

 

(6)  Hermeneutical: Emphasis on scripture study and interpretation, often resulting in the production of commentaries

 

(7)  Meditative: Meditation as central, with the recognition of diverse types of meditation

 

(8)  Quietistic: “Non-action” (wuwei 無為), involving non-interference, non-intervention, and effortless activity, as central

 

(9)  Ritualistic: Ritual as central, with the recognition of diverse types of ritual expression and activity

Towards a Cross-cultural Definition of Religion

Ÿ  Dimensions (Ninian Smart): Community, doctrine, ethics, experience, materiality, narrative, and practice.  

 

Ÿ  Hierophanies (Mircea Eliade): History of religions as series of manifestations of sacred realities. Possibility that “reality” is plural, rather than singular.

 

Ÿ  Symbol System (Clifford Geertz): Integral relationship between worldview and “reality.”

 

Ÿ  Ultimate Concern (Paul Tillich): Concern (“sacred”) that renders all other concerns preliminary and reveals the meaning of life.

 

 

Some Comparative Categories for Religious Studies 

Cosmogony: Discourse on, study of, or theories about the origins of the universe.

 

Cosmology: Discourse on, study of, or theories about the underlying principles and structure of the universe.

 

Soteriology: Discourse on, study of, or theories about the ultimate purpose of human existence. Examples include actualization, liberation, perfection, realization, salvation, and so forth.  

 

Theology: Discourse on, study of, or theories about the sacred. Traditionspecific terms and defining characteristics.

-   Animistic: Gods/spirits in nature

-   Atheistic: No gods

-   Monistic: One impersonal reality (“Reality”)

-   Monotheistic: One personal god (“God”)

-   Panenhenic: Nature as sacred

-   Pantheistic: Sacred in the world

-   Panentheistic: Sacred in and beyond the world

-   Polytheistic: Multiple gods

Comparative Categories Applied to Daoism 

Cosmogony: Impersonal, spontaneous transformation. Emanation. From non-differentiation to differentiation. Manifestation without diminishment.

 

 

Cosmology: Transformative process based on yin 陰-yang 陽 interaction. Also Five Phases (wuxing 五行) and qi 氣 (ch’i; “energy”). Not specifically Daoist. Traditional Chinese culture. Amoral universe.

 

 

Soteriology: Attunement with the Dao 道. Many paths and models.

 

 

Theology: Dao 道 as sacred and ultimate concern of Daoists.

-   Primary: Apophatic, monistic, panentheistic, panenhenic.

-   Secondary: Animistic and polytheistic.

Daoist Locatedness 

(The Daoist Tradition, Louis Komjathy, 2013)

VIEW

Character for “Dao”

(Tao)

道

                     Ancient Seal Script              Modern Script

Etymology of Dao 道 (Tao)

辵首

                          Chuo: “To Walk”             Shou: “Head”

Chapter 1 of the Daode jing 道德經 

(Scripture on the Dao and Inner Power)

The dao that can be spoken is not the constant Dao.

The name that can be named is not the constant name.

Nameless—the beginning of the heavens and earth.

Named—the mother of the ten thousand beings. 

Thus, constantly desireless, one may observe its subtlety.

Constantly desiring, one may observe its boundaries.

These two emerge from sameness, but differ in name.

This sameness is called “mysterious.”

Mysterious and again more mysterious— The gateway to all that is wondrous.

“Dao” as Daoist Cosmological and Theological Category: Four Characteristics

1.   Source of everything (yuan 元/原)

 

2.   Unnamable mystery (xuan 玄)

 

3.   All-pervading sacred presence (qi 氣/炁)

 

4.   Universe as transformative process (Nature) (hua 化) 

Sanqing 三清

(Three Purities)

Classical and Foundational Daoist Cosmogony  

(The Daoist Tradition, Louis Komjathy, 2013)

Classical and Foundational Daoist Cosmology

(“Traditional Chinese Cosmology”)  

Three Primary Dimensions

Ÿ Yin 陰-yang 陽: Interrelated cosmological principles and forces

Ÿ Five Phases: Wood (minor yang), Fire (major yang), Earth (—), Metal (minor yin), and

Water (major yin)

Ÿ Qi 氣 (Ch’i): Physical respiration and subtle breath (“energy”)

 

Yin-Yang

Ÿ Etymologically the characters depict a hill covered with shadows and sunlight, respectively

 

Ÿ Every being and phenomenon as combination of yin-yang, in varying degrees

 

Ÿ Not polar opposites or antagonistic powers. Not “good” and “evil” 

 

Ÿ Cosmological and alchemical views

 

Ÿ Various relative associations

- yin/feminine/earth/moon/dark/death/cold/moist/heavy/turbidity/     descent/rest/inward

- yang/masculine/heavens/sun/light/life/hot/dry/light/clarity/     ascent/activity/outward

Nine Foundational Daoist Principles and Values

1.   Effortlessness

2.   Flexibility

3.   Receptivity

 

4.   Anonymity 

5.   Serenity

6.   Aptitude

 

7.   Non-attachment

8.   Contentment

9.   Deference

Practice

Cosmological Attunement

Dietetics

Health and Longevity Practice

Meditation

Ritual

Scripture Study

Artistic Expression

Experience

Being & Embodiment

Community

Place

Residency/Habitation

Mystical Experience & Revelation

Identity

&

Affiliation

Daoist Religious Identity

“Daoist”

 Adherent of the religious tradition which is Daoism

 

—

Affinity

 

Formal Affiliation

 

Lineage

 

Mystical Experience

 

Ordination

 

Revelation

 

Training

 

Transmission

Daoist Ordination and Lineage:

Huashan華山        Lineage of Quanzhen 全真              

(Complete Perfection)

                                       Chen Tuan 䱇ᩊ                                         Hao Datong 䚱໻䗮

                                      (Xiyi Ꮰ་; d. 989)                                                                                                         (Guangning ᒷᆻ; 1140-1212)

          Chen Yuming 䱇ᅛᯢ

   (b. 1969)

 

                                             Louis Komjathy ᒋᗱ༛              Kate Townsend ૤䛝ᘽ

                             (Xiujing ׂ䴰; Wanrui 㨀⨲; b. 1971)                           (Baojing ᢅ䴰; Wanqing 㨀⏙; b. 1962)

Daoist Ordination and Lineage

Xue Tailai 薛泰來

(1924-2001)

24^th Generation 

Shiye 師爺 (Master-grandfather)

Chen Yuming 陳宇明

(b. 1969)

25^th Generation 

Shifu 師父 (Master-father)

Kang Wanrui 康萬瑞

(b. 1971)

26^th Generation 

Huashan 華山 100-Character Lineage Poem

圓 永 勤 敬 希 養 清 嘉 沖 至 太 誕 人 郝

                                  Yuan Yong Qin   Jing       Xi                                    Yang Qing Jia Chong Zhi Tai                                           Dan      Ren Hao

                             Complete Eternal Aid     Revere                                        Rare Nourish  Clear Good                                      Infuse Utmost Great Birthday Person                             Hao

滿 建 能 謹 賢 素 靜 祥 和 一 古 十 號 祖

                                   Man Jian Neng Jiang Xian Su                                        Jing       Xiang He       Yi    Gu                                        Shi            Hao          Zu

Full Establish Able Discuss Worthy Simple Still Omen Harmony One Ancient Ten Name Patriarch 光 根 扶 規 遵 守 通 宗 德 無 廣 二 華 太

                                 Guang Gen    Fu Gui         Zun                            Shou Tong Zong De   Wu     Guang Er                                        Hua   Tai

                                Radiant Root Support Rule                               Venerate Guard Pervade Ancestor Virtue                Without Expand Two      Hua       Great

華 基 世 良 祕 堅 玄 泰 正 上 寧 月 山 古

                                    Hua Ji Shi Liang Mi Jian Xuan Tai                 Zheng Shang Ning Yue Shan Gu

照(Flower ) 厚(Base ) 運(World ) 善(Good ) 法(Secret ) 志(Firm ) 化 (Mystery )宇(Great ) 本(Align ) 道(High ) 通(Serene ) 三(Month ) 派(Shan ) 真 (Ancient )

                                  Zhao Hou Yun Shan Fa Zhi Hua                                         Yu    Ben Dao Tong San Pai                                       Zhen

Light Thick Revolve Good Method Will Change Cosmos Source Dao Pervade Three Lineage Perfect           玄 十 正 人

                                                                                                                             Xuan Shi Zheng Ren

                                                                                                                            Mystery Ten First Person

雲 仙 積 默 慎 虛 體 萬 仁 崇 妙 日 月 山

                                    Yun Xian Ji Mo Shen Xu         Ti                                 Wan Ren Chong Miao Ri Yue                                    Shan

                                  Cloud Immortal Amass Silent                                    Care Empty Body Myriad                     Humane Venerate Subtle Day Month                                    Shan

天 瀛 久 功 修 靈 性 理 義 教 極 飛 初 東

                                   Tian Ying Jiu Gong Xiu Ling Xing Li                                        Yi           Jiao          Ji                                           Fei          Chu       Dong

                               Heaven Island Long Merit                              Cultivate Numen Nature Principle RighteousTeaching Limit Fly Begin Dong

慶 書 大 毓 保 慧 悟 復 禮 演 真 昇 三 萊

                                   Qing Shu Da Yu Bao Hui Wu                                         Fu     Li Yan Zhen Sheng San                                 Lai

                                  Omen   Book Great Nourish Protect                Wisdom Awake     Return Propriety Expand Perfect          Ascend Three   Lai

上 盛 丹 秀 純 業 誠 元 智 全 君  日 州

                                 Shang Ying Dan      Xiu    Chun Ye                                  Cheng Yuan Zhi Quan Jun                                                    Ri      Zhou

                                   High Full Elixir Flourish  Pure                                   Karma Sincere Origin Wisdom Complete Lord                  Day Zhou

昇 名 成 英 貞 生 明 亨 信 真   聖 府

       Sheng Ming Cheng Ying Zhen Sheng Ming Heng Xin                                                            Zhen                                                                         Sheng Fu

                                  Ascend       Name Complete Flourish Pure               Birth         Light Pervade Honesty Perfect                          Sacred Prefect

Quanzhen Monasteries Resided At

Taiqing gong 太清宮

(Palace of Great Clarity)

Laoshan 嶗山

(Mount Lao; near Qingdao, Shandong) Yuquan yuan 玉泉院

(Temple of Jade Spring)

Huashan 華山

(Mount Hua; near Huayin, Shaanxi)

Abbot and Administrative Monks of Taiqing gong

The Three Teachings and Their Relationship

Ÿ     Confucianism (rujia 儒家; rujiao 儒教). Technically misnomer: Ruism. Indigenous Chinese tradition. Begins around 5^th c. BCE. Emphasis on moral cultivation and cultural refinement. Also ritual. Some competition, cooperation, and crosspollination with Daoism. Now considered “culture” and “philosophy,” not

“religion.”

 

Ÿ     Daoism (daojia 道家; daojiao 道教). Covered. Some competition, cooperation, and cross-pollination with Confucianism and Buddhism. Now one of “official five religions.”

 

Ÿ     Buddhism (fojiao 佛教). Indian religion transmitted to China beginning in 1^st and 2^nd c. CE. Initially rejected as “inferior.” Then Chinese conversion and adaptation. “Reincarnation.” Sinification and Chinese schools of Mahayana Buddhism. “Chinese Buddhism” and “East Asian Buddhism.” Some competition, cooperation, and crosspollination with Daoism. Only Asian missionary religion. Now one of “official five religions.”

 

Ÿ     Also folk/popular religion. Pan-Chinese and/or religion of the masses. Everything that is not Confucian, Daoist, or Buddhist.

 

Ÿ     “Chinese religion.” Syncretism. Confucian in social life; Daoist in retirement; Buddhist in death. Major disruptions after 1912, 1949, & 1966-1976, but post-1980 liberalization and revitalization