Introduction of overseas Taoism

Taoism in China spread to China. According to the materials provided by the late Mr. Gong Qun, the predecessor of Taoist culture research in Taiwan Province Province, in document 1984.

1 1980 Number of Dojo, Temple and Taoist priests in different places 1 outside Asia 1.2 Ways of spreading Asia overseas 2. 1 Please come out 2.2 Exchanges 2.3 Bringing out 2.4 Making a living 3 The role of overseas Taoism 3.65438+ 0 Spiritual comfort 3.2 National cohesion 4 References 5 Notes 60 South America: 85 Taoist altars or temples with 27,000 Taoist priests; Europe: 98 Taoist altars or temples, with 29,000 Taoist priests; Africa: 54 Taoist altars or temples with 3,400 Taoist priests; Australia: 130 Taoist altars or temples, with 9,500 Taoist priests; Asia and Japan: 12 Dojo or Taoist temple, with 4,200 Taoist priests; Korea: 1 1 Taoist altar or Taoist temple, with 3,400 Taoist priests; Thailand: 9 Taoist altars or temples with 5,200 Taoist priests; Myanmar: 7 Taoist altars or temples with 2,700 Taoist priests; Indonesia: 4 Taoist altars or temples with 820 Taoist priests; India: 2 Taoist altars or temples, with Taoist 120 people; Philippines: 258 Taoist altars or temples with 38,000 Taoist priests; Singapore: 198 Daotai or Taoist temples with 27,000 Taoist priests; Malaysia: 135 Taoist altars or temples with12,500 Taoists;

Although the statistical age of these materials is relatively early, at the same time, people can't believe them all. However, these materials were written by Mr Gong Qun. Mr. Gong Qun is an old-timer engaged in Taoist research and organization in Taiwan Province Province. He must have his basis and reasons for writing and introducing these materials. In any case, Taoism in China has spread to many corners of the world, which is an indisputable fact that people have seen today.

The way to spread overseas

Taoism has a long history of spreading overseas. Historically, Taoism spread overseas in three ways.

Please come out.

Historically, China had a period of prosperity and glory in political, economic and military forces. At that time, China had a great influence on neighboring countries and regions. Neighboring countries have also asked China to send various envoys to spread China's political system, ideology and beliefs, culture, science, technology and so on. Among these messengers, there are Taoist priests. The introduction of Taoism into the Korean peninsula belongs to this type.

According to the North Korean history book "The Heritage of the Three Kingdoms", "During the Zhenguan period in Wude, Li Ji (about 6 18-649), Chinese people fought for five meals. When Tang Gaozu heard about it, he sent a Taoist priest and sent a Buddha statue to talk about the Tao Te Ching, and the king and the people listened. " According to the general examination of China literature, the Taoist priest invited at that time was Shen Shuan. The Heritage of the Three Kingdoms also said that a few years later, Gai Suwen, the then prime minister of Koguryo, advised the emperor that "Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism coexist, and Huang Guan was not prosperous", so he sent messengers to study Taoism in the Tang Dynasty. Emperor Taizong sent eight Taoist priests, including Shu Da, to the Korean peninsula, and also brought the Tao Te Ching. After Shu Da and other Taoist priests arrived in Koguryo, they were also ordered to hold town sacrifices in various mountains and rivers.

In the Song Dynasty, Koryo sent people to China to invite Taoist priests to train Korean Taoist priests, and established a Taoist temple-Fuyuan Palace. Fuyuan Palace has the Emperor's Hall and Sanqing Hall. A portrait of Sanqing is enshrined in the temple. Korean Taoist priests don't become monks. They practice fasting in Fuyuan Palace during the day and go home at night. According to records, all the North Korean Taoist priests in Fuyuan Palace chanted scriptures in Chinese, using Chinese instruments, and did not "localize" Taoist classics and instruments. Therefore, when China's national strength began to decline, its influence declined, and there were no Taoists who knew Chinese, the spread of Taoism on the Korean Peninsula stopped.

Ac type

Historically, China and foreign countries, especially neighboring countries and regions, have always had close or distant contacts. With these exchange activities, Taoism has also been exchanged. This is the influence of Taoism on Japan. During the 260 years from 630 to 894, Japan sent about 19 batches of "Tang Dynasty envoys" to China to learn advanced ideas, culture and various systems. When these messengers returned to China, they also brought back China's Taoist documents and beliefs and customs.

According to the Japanese bibliography at the end of the 7th century, Japanese students studying in China at that time brought back 63 kinds of China classics. Over the years, Japanese academic circles have launched a heated discussion around the introduction of Taoism into Japan. When I was engaged in research work at Kyoto University and Tokyo University in Japan for a long time, Japanese scholars also asked me this question. It is an objective fact that there are no Taoist temples and Taoist priests in Japan. However, it is an objective fact that Taoism has exerted a profound influence on Japanese politics and culture. The supreme ruler in Japanese history is called the "Emperor", and the word "Emperor" comes from the Taoist emperor and the real emperor. The emperor inherited three artifacts: seal, mirror and sword, which are Taoist instruments. Japan's royal family and court all advocate purple, which is the color advocated by Taoism. There is a message from Shintoism, the state religion of Japan, in Shi Yanxi, a classic of Japanese history, one of which is "offering a cross knife curse". The curse of offering a horizontal knife is all Taoist words, and the god invited is also a Taoist god. List it at a glance:

"Please: the gods of heaven, the three heavenly kings, the sun, the moon and the stars, the gods of the four directions, ministers, the father of Zuo Dong, the queen of the right west, the five emperors of the four directions, and the four seasons. Grasp the Lu people, please remove the disaster; Hold the golden knife, please extend the emperor. The curse said: Fusang in the east, Yuyuan Garden in the west, Yan Guang in the south, weak water in the north, thousands of cities and hundreds of countries. Long live Chengsi, long live ". [ 1]

The deity invited in this congratulatory message is the deity of Taoism in China, and even the concept of east, west, north and south is centered on China. It is also an indisputable fact that whoever wrote this Sword Sacrifice Mantra, whether written by Japanese or Baekje people, has been included in Japanese history books, recording the traces of China Taoism's influence on Japan.

Belt type

The so-called "taking out" means that China people took Taoism out when they went abroad. When China's national strength is strong, if China's neighboring countries are in danger of being invaded, China will be asked to send troops to support them. For example, when Japanese Toyotomi Hideyoshi invaded Korea, the Ming Dynasty sent troops to beat back Toyotomi Hideyoshi's troops at the request of the Korean dynasty. During the Ming Dynasty, China's belief in Guandi became increasingly prosperous, and the Ming army built Guandi temples everywhere in North Korea. So the belief of Guandi was also introduced into the Korean peninsula. The army later retreated, but the Guandi Temple stayed. It's just that Guandi of North Korea later evolved from a loyal Wu Shen into a god of wealth in charge of human wealth.

The northern part of Vietnam, from Youyiguan (formerly known as Zhennanguan) in China to red river valley, was once guarded by the China army in history. There are still some temples dedicated to Zhenwu the Great. Zhenwu emperor, mysterious god of Taoism. During the Song and Ming Dynasties, the belief in metaphysical gods was widely popular, and these temple views were also traces brought out by the China army at that time.

make a living

When China's national strength declined, since the late Qing Dynasty, due to social unrest, China people went abroad many times. One is the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China. At that time, China was in the process of the collapse of feudal system for thousands of years, and foreign powers swarmed in, causing natural and man-made disasters and people's poverty. So people from coastal areas, especially from Fujian and Guangdong, have gone to Nanyang and some to North America. This is the so-called first generation of overseas Chinese. The first generation of overseas Chinese went abroad to make a living. Their economic strength is weak and their education level is low. After forty or fifty years of hard work, they gained a foothold overseas. Another trip abroad occurred around 1949.

At that time, faced with the political changes in China, some people who were worried about their future went abroad in succession. They were called the second generation of overseas Chinese. Most of the second generation overseas Chinese have certain economic strength and considerable cultural level. After 40 or 50 years of hard work, they have also gained a firm foothold in Nanyang or Europe and America, and some have also achieved a certain position in business, academia or politics.

Once again, * * * appeared after 80. At this time, some people go abroad to get a degree for knowledge, and some people go to work to make money and improve their lives. Most of them have a certain economic strength and a certain level of education. Most of them have no political purpose, finish their studies or make a little money and return to China quietly. The social background, social conditions and the quality of people going abroad are completely different in these three trends. However, one thing is the same, that is, they are all from China. They live in foreign countries, and they also bring China people's beliefs to foreign countries, including Taoism.

When the first generation of overseas Chinese went to Nanyang, there was no boat and no weather forecast, and they sat in wooden boats on the vast sea for ten and a half months. They couldn't tell when they would encounter typhoons, plagues and pirates, so they pinned their hopes on the gods. When they boarded the ship, most of them invited an idol in their hometown temple or a coffin with the name of God written on it. At the same time, they wrapped a small bag of incense ashes from the incense burner in their hometown temple. They took these protective objects and drifted on the vast sea. If they reach their destination smoothly, they will build a hut on the beach with wooden boards to worship the gods or shrines from Tangshan (synonymous with the hometown of the motherland). After a long time, there are more people in the same town, so they put idols or gods in the hometown association or the home of the same town. Later, China people succeeded in planting, animal husbandry, mining or small commodity trading, and their economic conditions improved. Overseas Chinese raised funds to buy land and build temples. Inscriptions on some temple buildings read: "Every wood, brick, stone pillar or Liang Shi in the temple was brought from Tangshan". Therefore, they are all proud to say that their temple view came from Tangshan "Fenling". However, most of these temples are managed by fellow villagers' associations or councils without the participation of Taoist priests. Like the famous Guandi Temple in Kobe and Yokohama, Japan, there have been no Taoist priests. The Purdue Dojo in the Central Plains of Guandi Temple in Kobe has always been performed by Japanese Huang Bi monks. It is precisely because these temple views were spontaneously established by overseas Chinese that they concentrated on the characteristics of folk beliefs and the integration of Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism after the Ming and Qing Dynasties. The Guandi Temple in Yokohama, Japan also worships the land god, and there is also the Chenghuang Temple in Malacca, Malaysia. City God and land are the gods who manage things on the land of China, and now they are regarded as "diplomats" by overseas temples.

Nanyang Taoist priests, including those from Quanzhou, Fuzhou, Chaozhou and Qiongzhou (Hainan), mostly arrived in Nanyang in 1930s and 1940s. This is because the first generation of overseas Chinese have the ability and need to hold Taoist etiquette activities according to the beliefs and customs of their hometown. So, they invited a Taoist priest to Nanyang to preside over Taoist activities. In addition to being a Dojo, Taoist priests in Lower Nanyang have to farm, breed or trade groceries to make a living. Most Taoists in Lower Nanyang belong to the orthodox school scattered in the south, and their Taoist attainments are limited. Therefore, it is undeniable that the overall level of Taoist priests who went abroad with the first generation of overseas Chinese is not high. However, unlike the second and third generation overseas Chinese, the establishment and dissemination of Taoist temples are different. In recent ten years, Hong Kong Pine Pavilion has established a series of overseas pine pavilions, such as American Pine Pavilion, Australian Pine Pavilion, New South Wales Pine Pavilion, Singapore Pine Pavilion and Canadian Pine Pavilion. These overseas Song Qingguan were established based on the financial resources of Hong Kong Song Qingguan and the establishment of Taoist Quanzhen Taoist view. Its internal system and scientific and technological activities are modeled after the concept of pine trees in Hong Kong. Although the sea appearance of Qingsongguan has now embarked on the road of self-sufficiency, they are not exactly the same as the local Taoist view established by relying on their hometown and relatives. As far as its overall level is concerned, it seems to be more standardized. Of course, the Taoist priests in these Taoist temples have also been abroad for more than ten years, and their Taoist skills are higher than those of the past. Their ritual activities also meet the requirements of orthodox Taoist beliefs.

The role of overseas Taoism

Overseas Taoism has its own characteristics because its living conditions are different from those in China. For example, there are many factions preserved by overseas Taoism; The gods worshipped by overseas Taoists are chaotic and numerous; The degree of organization of overseas Taoism varies, and some are loose; The activities of overseas Taoist ceremonies have been greatly simplified, but some still maintain some ancient traditions.

Although overseas Taoism and China native Taoism have many different characteristics, they both use the same classics and worship the same gods, so they still play the same role among China people. This function of * * refers to the function of ideology, the function of social entity, the function of cultural inheritance, and the function of communication between God and people. In addition, overseas Taoism has its own special functions, such as spiritual comfort, social place and national cohesion.

There is a small town called Tambini in the northeast of Singapore. In the early years, China's predecessors reclaimed Pakistani land here, engaged in planting, breeding and sand washing to make a living, and formed many villages and 20 temples. The oldest China Temple in Tambini Town is Shunxing Ancient Temple, which was built in the first year of Xianfeng (185 1) and has a history of 150 years, and is dedicated to Emperor Hongxian. It is said that Tambini is sparsely populated, with dense forests and tigers, which have harmed the villagers. Emperor Hongxian took the tiger as a mount, and from then on, the people were safe and the tiger was extinct. As a result, the local villagers built Shunxing Ancient Temple, which was dedicated to Emperor Hong Xian. In addition, there are Tambini Jiuli Sanshu Temple, Xinba Uncle Temple and Luoyang Uncle Temple. Uncle Gong was originally a land god in China's Fujian-Guangdong area, also known as Fude Shen Zheng. Tambini used to have narrow and tortuous roads, many vehicles, frequent car accidents and frequent casualties. Later, the local Chinese gathered together and decided to build the Dabogong Temple near the highway, praying that the villagers could get in and out safely. It is said that the local area has been safe since then. & lt/ref & gt； Special commemorative edition of the celebration ceremony of Danbini United Palace, 16, pages 53, 77 and 85, Singapore.

At present, in order to build a new town, 20 temples in Tambini Town have jointly built the Tambini Union Palace. Union Palace in Tambini has become the largest Taoist temple in Singapore. On God's birthday, the ceremony in the United Palace was grand and the incense was flourishing. China people pour out their hearts and pray to the gods in their hometown in worship, just like on the land in their hometown. In this sense, overseas Taoism, like domestic Taoism, plays a role in communicating God and man.

There is a loyalty temple in Queenstown, Singapore, dedicated to Guandi. The late Mr. Wang Shuitai once recalled the history of the establishment of Zhong Yi Temple and said: "At that time, Wuxugang Village was sparsely populated and everyone lived a quiet and plain life. In order to get spiritual comfort and a place for villagers to gather, it is necessary to build a temple so that residents can have a place to pray and pray for the safety of the families in the village. Under the impetus of some village elders, in about 193 1 year, a family in the village set up a temporary altar to worship three gods, Guan Jun, Dai Tianxun Shou and Gong Shu. In this way, the villagers have a place to worship God. At night, everyone can gather here to chat and have a cup of tea. " A few years later, there are more and more believers in the village, and family shrines are not enough. Everyone discussed finding another place to build a bigger temple. At that time, due to economic problems, I donated a house for storing goods as a temple. With everyone's consent and Qi Xin's cooperation, the house was rebuilt and the temple built with Ada board was finally completed. Later, the altar set up at home moved in, and both good men and women had better temples to worship. Later, everyone thought we should take a temple name, and everyone agreed to take Zhong Yi Temple as the temple name, so we chose Zhong Yi Temple that year.

spiritual comfort

The so-called spiritual comfort function means that overseas Chinese need spiritual sustenance and comfort in order to make a living, leave their hometown and struggle overseas. Although they are in a foreign land, they still pin their hearts on the gods worshipped in their hometown, hoping that the gods will bless their livelihood and pray for the health of their relatives in their hometown. The function of social places means that overseas Chinese make a living in a foreign land, and they are busy and tired. At first, their rooms were relatively simple, so they needed to communicate with their fellow villagers and lacked suitable places. Temples used to be public property, and they have always been a place for public discussion and exchange in their hometown. Therefore, overseas Chinese brought this hometown tradition overseas and built temples for the needs of Chinese exchange activities.

national cohesion

The so-called national cohesion function means that overseas Chinese live in different ethnic families in foreign countries, and their * * * beliefs reflect their complex of the motherland and hometown in a * * * behavior. Whenever large-scale religious activities are held, their religious beliefs make them burn incense together, bow down together, unite and get together, thus gaining a cohesive feeling that is not lonely in hard struggle.