Daoism

Daoism
Family	East Asian / Chinese religion and philosophy
Origin region	China
Founding period	Ancient China; classical development from the first millennium BCE onward
Estimated adherents	Difficult to count separately; practiced globally and often intertwined with Chinese folk religion, ritual traditions, and philosophy.

Daoism or Taoism is an East Asian religious, philosophical, and ritual tradition centered on the Dao, often translated as the Way. Daoist traditions include philosophical writings, temple religion, ritual lineages, meditation, alchemy, ethics, cosmology, and practices for harmony with the natural and cosmic order.

Overview

Daoism developed in ancient China and became one of the major religious and philosophical traditions of East Asia. It is associated with texts such as the Dao De Jing and the Zhuangzi, as well as later ritual movements, priestly lineages, monastic institutions, meditation traditions, and popular religious practices. Daoism has influenced Chinese culture, medicine, martial arts, poetry, state ritual, temple worship, and ideas about nature, balance, and non-coercive action.

Key beliefs

Daoist traditions vary widely, but common themes may include:

• The Dao as the underlying Way, source, pattern, or process of reality
• Harmony with natural and cosmic order
• Wu wei, often translated as non-forcing, effortless action, or action in accord with the Dao
• Balance of yin and yang
• Cultivation of vitality, virtue, clarity, and spiritual longevity
• Reverence for deities, immortals, ancestors, and sacred mountains in religious Daoism
• The importance of ritual, meditation, moral conduct, and inner transformation

Practices

Practices may include:

• Temple worship and offerings
• Prayer, chanting, and scripture recitation
• Rituals for healing, protection, purification, and community welfare
• Meditation and breathing practices
• Internal alchemy
• Ethical cultivation
• Festivals and processions
• Divination and talismanic practices in some traditions
• Study of Daoist classics

Places of worship

Daoist worship and practice may take place in:

• Daoist temples
• Monasteries
• Home altars
• Sacred mountains and pilgrimage sites
• Community shrines
• Ritual halls

Sacred texts

Important Daoist texts include:

• Dao De Jing
• Zhuangzi
• Liezi
• Daozang or Daoist Canon
• Ritual manuals and lineage texts
• Internal alchemy writings
• Commentaries and liturgical texts

Holidays and observances

Daoist observances vary by region and lineage. They may include:

• Festivals for Daoist deities and immortals
• Lunar New Year observances
• Lantern Festival
• Ghost Festival in many Chinese religious contexts
• Temple fairs and local deity festivals
• Pilgrimages to sacred mountains

Branches and related traditions

• Taoism - Alternate spelling and redirect target for Daoism.
• Quanzhen Daoism - A monastic and self-cultivation-oriented Daoist tradition.
• Zhengyi Daoism - A major Daoist ritual lineage associated with priestly ritual service.
• Chinese folk religion - A broad category of local and popular religious practices that often overlap with Daoist ritual life.
• Confucianism - A major East Asian ethical and ritual tradition historically interacting with Daoism.
• Buddhism - Daoism and Buddhism have deeply influenced one another in East Asia.

See also

• Religion
• Theology
• Philosophy of religion
• Chinese folk religion
• Confucianism
• Buddhism