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Taoism
The Way or path to enlightenment has been practiced in Asia for 2000 years and advocates being one with the universe.
705 Questions
Why is it important to respect elders?
It depends, if the senior citizen is Charles Manson, not much...respect is not meant to be automatically gifted to one simply for being around a while, it is a measure of endearment to one who has earned it. At that point it is entirely subjective, some choose to give discounts, work-related favors, or simply devote a little time each week to talk with them. It it ultimately up to you.
What are taoism beliefs and practices?
Typical Taoist (or, Daoist) traditions include the general commitment to action through non-action: allowing conditions or activities to evolve until a desired end is achieved. Simplicity of thought and life-style is another key idea (and tradition) in Taoism. Various martial arts traditions are also distinctly Taoist, such as T'ai Chi Ch'uan.
What is the symbol of Taoism and what does it mean?
The taoism symbol is a black and white symbol of the 2 moving in a circle around with each other, with a little bit of each color on its own inside the other. Black and white represent yin and yang (good and evil), and the pattern shows that they are in balance with each other. Trace amounts of them are found within each other, showing that no matter how good something is, it has some evil in it, and vice-versa.
What are the major rituals for taoism?
Taoism have different types of holidays which are quiet similar to other religons.
How many people follow the beliefs of Taoism?
Because there are debates over the definition of Taoism and whether it should be divided into categories of religious, philosophical, and folk following, it is difficult to estimate the number of followers. According to Wikipedia, there may be as many as 20 million followers of Taoism world-wide.
How does Daoism compare with Confucianism?
They were both founded around the same time in China(in fact, the founders of both religions apparently knew one another). The difference between them is, Confucianism is all about man's relationship with his fellow man, while Taoism is all about man's relationship with nature.
How do you change gear oil on a tao tao ATV?
There is no gear oil in it. The motor oil does every thing. Use 10w-40 Oil
Taoists do not "pray" in the sense of common religious prayer. Taoists have nothing to pray to, and no reason to pray. Common religious prayer is a way of feeling compassion and forgiveness, and sending healing energy toward a person. Taoists pray by directly feeling compassion and forgiveness for people. Taoists have enough control over their bodies and mind that they can do this whenever they want to without interfering with daily life. Since feeling compassion and forgiveness is helpful at most times on most levels, Taoists do it very often. Additionally, Taoists have developed powerful ways to energetically heal people, making the healing effects of prayer useless. This is not to say that common religious prayer is bad. For common religiuos people, it is actually an acceptable way to feel compassion and forgiveness, and make good things happen. Taoists simply have much better ways of doing it.
Taoism and Islam are vastly different. Taoism worships a pantheon of gods, while Islam worships only one God. Taoism teaches reincarnation, with hope of becoming an immortal after a number of lifetimes. Islam teaches that when each person dies, his or her soul goes to heaven or hell.
What both religions share is that they teach high moral values.
What does the tao te ching teach?
First, the tao forms the world. It is "something" before existing, so it is "none exist". The material thing comes out from it, our thoughts come out from it. It is beyong everything, in everything. But we can "see it" if we follows the way Tao te Ching tell us.
What happens to a mans soul after death in taoism?
One of the most important things to remember about Daoism is that Daoists don't really agree with one another, and if they did Daoism could not exist. (The name tha can be named is not the eternal name.) I considre myself a Daoist, and I believe in reincarnation, fact of the matter is I know another Daoist who does not, one of the reasons Daoism is hard to classify as a religon is because there is no rigidly defined moral guidlines or afterlife. scripture of Taoism, the Chuang Tzu (4th century BC), states:
"Birth is not a beginning; death is not an end. There is existence without limitation; there is continuity without a starting point. Existence without limitation is space. Continuity without a starting point is time. There is birth, there is death, there is issuing forth, there is entering in. That through which one passes in and out without seeing its form, that is the Portal of God (Chuang Tzu 23)."
for full text, see link "REINCARNATION Its meaning and consequences"
How do Taoism and Confucianism complement each other?
No. Confucianism focuses on the respecting of elders and obeying of those who are of higher importance to one. Taoism is based off of the theory of negative and positive qi, and how to channel it. They relate to each other very little.
yes, there are many forms of Taoism but all together it is a religion.
Taoism is really more of an approach to living than a religion. It involves a balanced life, kindness, service, and cooperation, physical well-being, as well as spirituality. Some people are interested in the spirituality and read Taoist writings; some pursue the physical aspect and practice tai chi. What parts of Taoism to concentrate on is up to the individual.
Is there a dress code for taoists?
No. Not only is there no dress code, but the principles of Taoism seem contrary to the idea. From a very simplistic point of view, Taoism prefers absence of regulation.
Does Taoism permit same-sex marriage?
The Taoist Sage Zhuangzi wrote that, essentially, each way of life is natural because we are all a part of nature. Thus, any sexual orientation is usually seen by Taoists as natural.
Taoists are also often encouraged to be forward and open with their sexuality.
Additionally, the Taoist belief in the Yin and Yang also is meant to illustrate how distinctions between opposites (such as distinctions between "male" and "female") are fluid, and open to interpretation. Therefore, all points on the gay-straight continuum are supported by Taoist philosophical thought.
While there are, in fact, some Taoists who interpret a passage in the Hua Hu Ching to mean that people who indulge in homosexual relationships cannot achieve a meaningful Way (I do not recall, offhand, what this particular passage is), overall, Taoists mainly support homosexuality and LGBT rights.
I myself am a bisexual Taoist.
What are the four major themes of Taoism?
The major theme is harmony with nature. You will find the rest here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taoism
What is the doctrine of daoism?
The purpose of Daoism is the opposite of nature. For example, daoism of moving rock is rock sitting still.
What do you have to do to be a Taoist?
There is no specific "way" in the Tao Te Ching in that there is no action you could do that would be more or less on the right path. The "way" is freedom from your desire and freedom from your action. The more effort you put into trying to find the "way" the further away it is.
The Tao Te Ching says:
"Look, and it can't be seen.
Listen, and it can't be heard.
Reach, and it can't be grasped."
www.duhtao.com - for translations
The way is effortless and beyond comprehension. It happens when you arent looking for it and can be as simple as touching your cheek after washing your face.
What religion practices forgiveness?
A religion that does not teach forgiveness is hardly a religion, because every religion must teach forgiveness, and they do. Religions are kindergartens - all religions are good, they teach us the ABC of God, they teach us about being good, about loving our fellow men, about giving and forgiving but unfortunately religions are only kindergartens, they only teach us the basics. Just like we go beyond a kindergarten to school and to pre-university and university we have to graduate in the university called spirituality. Spirituality is not a religion, we don't have to change our religion but we have to go beyond the kindergarten of religion to realize the Truth about God. Forgiveness is just one simple step. Not only must we forgive, but we must also love and become compassionate, kind and we must realize that the one we are trying to forgive is none other than the Divine Spirit that is in us: we are all part of the same Divine.
Are there any famous people that practice Taoism?
All of the jedi that believe in the force in star wars.
Who is the current leader of Taoism?
Taoism is not an "ism." It is also not an ideology, or a New Age movement. It is a living philosophy. It is a way of thinking, a way of looking at life, a way of being - being with change rather than against it. Life is made up of cycles, say the Taoists, cycle upon cycle. The only constant is change. Change is inescapable. We have no control over it. The only thing we have control over is our own responses to the changes life has to offer. For really, what else can we do?
The initiated Taoist priest saw the many gods as manifestations of the one Dao. He had been ritually trained to know the names, ranks, and powers of important spirits, and to ritually direct them through meditation and visualization. In his meditations, he harmonized and reunited them into their unity with the one Dao. However, only the educated believers knew anything of the complex theological system of the priest.
AnswerTaoism is usually thought of as having originated with the Tao Te Ching, which was written by Lao Tzu (or Laozi), a librarian or historian in a royal court. Lao Tzu's work was amplified by a sage named Chuang Tzu (or Zhuangzi), whose work is simply called by his name, the Chuang Tzu.Though it is considered a religion and has priests, there is no religious hierarchy associated with Taoism with a living central council or authority figure - there is no person analogous to the Dalai Lama or the Pope, and no synod. So there is no single living leader.
