Taoist priest spreads ancient wisdom

The principal philosophy and religious traditions of Taoism, which incorporate elements of Buddhism, were established in China about 2,400 years ago. Yet even today, the lives of Taoists may still appear veiled in mystery to the casual observer. The latest official statistics indicate that there are more than 30,000 mainland sites dedicated to the religion. Hong Chen, 41, recently spoke about the lives of modern Taoists and what led him to become a Taoist priest.

I was born into a family of fung shui masters in Jiangxi province, which is considered the birthplace of Taoism and therefore of great symbolic value to Taoists. Many fung shui masters in my hometown are Taoists. My grandfather is a well-known Taoist and fung shui master.

Since my childhood, my grandfather has taught me ancient codes and records of traditional Chinese Taoism, which combines Eastern philosophy, religion and science. Interestingly enough, I decided to become a formal Taoist priest when I was 27 years old, the year I migrated to the US. I love studying religion and philosophy, which had been shelved on the mainland since the 1950s, especially during the Cultural Revolution between the 1960s and 1970s. When I approached Western philosophy in the US, I found that modern civilisations in the West were heavily influenced by philosophical naturalism and German classical philosophy, which are very similar to the philosophy of Taoism. After that, I wanted to be a priest so I could spread Eastern philosophy, dating back thousands of years, to mainlanders and foreigners. I believe the ancient wisdom of Eastern philosophy can also help modern society.

There were several schools of Taoist thought that are based mostly in philosophy. Tianshi Mansion on Longhu Mountain in Jiangxi is believed to be the first formal school and the holy land of Taoism, as significant as the Vatican is to Catholicism. In the past, only Tianshi Mansion could certify a Taoist priest and ritual master. All Taoist priests were required to be students of Tianshi Mansion, and only those who received shoulu, the imparting of Taoist instruction, there could perform Taoist services in Taoist rituals. [Today, other Taoist temples are allowed by the government to certify Taoist priests.]

I'll briefly explain that shoulu, in Taoism, means to accept someone as a disciple in the sect. And it is known as "imparting a register" to the person. Receiving this register means someone has been formally converted to Taoism and has become a formal Taoist priest, not just a Taoist worshipper. When imparting a register, a talisman is also imparted, so the act is generally known as imparting talismans and registers. But the tradition was broken on the mainland when the Communist Party came to power. It wasn't until Taoist temples started to be re-established in the 1980s that shoulu gradually resumed. However, the scale and frequency of shoulu have been restricted by the State Administration of Religious Affairs. Since 1989, authorities have approved fewer than 20 shoulu rituals, and in each of them about 200 people could be imparted a register by Tianshi Mansion and become formal Taoist priests.