History and Origin Customs

- Tao is the force that existed before

- . Rituals of Taoism attempt to bring
all things
harmony to the universe, the world,
- The Taoist religion emerged in

Taoism China only after a long process of

religious change lasting from the
-
society, and individuals
Worship includes praying to deities,
purification, meditation on talismans,
end of the Shang dynasty
and making offerings to deities
- Tao means ?way?. To follow the Tao
- rituals are performed by priests and
is to practice the way of nature
their assistants, who chant, dance, and
- The founding of Taoism is ascribed
play percussion and wind instruments
to Lao Tzu who was later found to
- The chiao (jiao) is an important Taoist
be non-existed. It was a man
Headline
named Li Erh, an archivist at the
ritual for cosmic revival which consists
of various rituals. It involves each
royal palace of Luoyang. He was
village family bringing offerings for the
the father of Taoism.
deities, which are then dedicated to
- Taoism continued to grow after the
the deities through a ceremony by a
death of Chuang Tzu with the
Taoist priest
founding of the Huang Lao School
in the School was named in honour
- By the second century BCE, the
Huang Lao School was flourishing
and Taoism became the dominant
philosophy of the Han dynasty (206
BCE- 220 CE)
z

Rituals
- Exorsicism: Taoists believe that
many sicknesses and behavior
disorders are caused by demons,
because the gods are much more
powerful than the demons, a Taoist
priest is needed in order to perform
the exorcism.
- Funeral Rites: Funeral ceremonies
are oftentimes very extensive and
may combine Taoist and Buddhist
elements, rituals are performed over
the deceased
- Cosmic Renewal Rites: Cosmic
Renewal Rites are rituals that go by
the moon. In this ritual, Taoists
perform non-blood offerings to the
cosmos and universe.
Sacred
Festivals Writings/ Spread
- Many westerners are most familiar
- Taoists have many festivals and it
is a huge part of their culture, the with the Taode jing (Tao Te Ching)
most popular are:
and Zhuangzi (Chuang Tzu), but there
- The lantern festival: celebration of
the first full moon of the year, and are thousands of Taoist scriptures
also the birthday of Tianguan, one
of the Taoist gods responsible for
good fortune
- Chinese New Year: The Chinese
New Year has been known as the
main religious holiday in China. It
involves burning paper statues of
gods, allowing the spirits to fly up to
heaven and report on the family's
behavior.
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