Model humanity:
68-456: Main philosophical traditions: Ritual traditions: Devotional traditions: Salvation churches and sects : Confucian churches and sects: Baguadao (八卦道 "Way of the Eight Trigrams ") or Eight Trigram Teaching (八卦教) is a network of Chinese folk religious sects , one of the most extended in northern China . The tradition dates back to the late 17th century Ming dynasty , and
136-544: A Chinese religious tradition characterised by a concern for salvation (moral fulfillment) of the person and the society. They are distinguished by egalitarianism , a founding charismatic person often informed by a divine revelation , a specific theology written in holy texts , a millenarian eschatology and a voluntary path of salvation, an embodied experience of the numinous through healing and self-cultivation, and an expansive orientation through evangelism and philanthropy . Some scholars consider these religions
204-549: A Confucian identity, with the foundation of the Holy Confucian Church of China which aims to unite in a single body all Confucian religious groups. Many of the movements of salvation of the 20th and 21st century aspire to become the repository of the entirety of the Chinese tradition in the face of Western modernism and materialism, advocating an "Eastern solution to the problems of the modern world", or even interacting with
272-599: A Crowd! A lofty meeting inside the Cyan Audience Hall. Arrayed Attendants perform Cloud Songs; Realized intonations fill the Grand Empty Space. Every thousand years, her purple crabapple ripens; Every four kalpas , her numinous melon produces abundantly. This music differs from that at the feast in the wilderness— So convivial, and certainly infinite. The first mentions of the Queen Mother date back to
340-535: A child is born. The Bamboo Annals record that in the 9th year of reign of the legendary sage king Emperor Shun , "messengers from the western Wang-mu (Queen Mother) came to do him homage." It further notes that "the coming to court from the Western Wang-mu was to present white stone rings and archers' thimbles of gem." Shun's immediate successor was Yu the Great , who was Shun's prime minister and already present in
408-536: A goddess of war and sex. Other stories hold that she is a mountain goddess or a divine tigress. She is also popularly thought to have blessed the Eight Immortals with their supernatural abilities. After her integration into the Taoist pantheon, she gradually took on associations with other aspects, such as immortality , as well as being the god of stars, directions, profit, and the sun and moon. The worship of
476-586: A long life. They see the Mother sitting on the Lotus Throne , surrounded by golden light. They are received and led to their original place. In the sect tradition, for example as explained in the "Precious Repentance of Blood Lake" of Hongyangism ( 弘阳敎 ), the condition of suffering is inherent to the human being in the world, necessary to creation itself. The material world is likened to a "Blood Lake", filthy and dirty waters that necessarily flow out of women's bodies when
544-498: A single group they are said to have the same number of followers of the five state-sanctioned religions of China taken together. Scholars and government officials have been discussing to systematise and unify this large base of religious organisations; in 2004 the State Administration of Religious Affairs created a department for the management of folk religions. In the late 2015 a step was made at least for those of them with
612-416: A single phenomenon, and others consider them the fourth great Chinese religious category alongside the well-established Confucianism , Buddhism and Taoism . Generally these religions focus on the worship of the universal God ( Shangdi ), represented as either male, female, or genderless, and regard their holy patriarchs as embodiments of God. "Chinese salvationist religions" ( 救度宗教 jiùdù zōngjiào )
680-603: A variety of names. For instance, the sect led by Wang Zhong, whose arrest in 1772 led to the detection of Liu Shengguo and the exile of the Lius to Xinjiang, was called the Pure Water (清水 Qingshui) group, and was part of the Zhen Trigram branch. The major subdivisions as of the thirteenth year of Qianlong (1748) were seven, corresponding to seven out of the eight trigrams, leaving out the ☷ Kungua (坤卦) which never developed: One of
748-507: Is a contemporary neologism coined as a sociological category and gives prominence to folk religious sects' central pursuit that is the salvation of the individual and the society, in other words the moral fulfillment of individuals in reconstructed communities of sense. Chinese scholars traditionally describe them as "folk religious sects" ( 民间宗教 mínjiān zōngjiào , 民间教门 mínjiān jiàomén or 民间教派 mínjiān jiàopài ) or "folk beliefs" ( 民间信仰 mínjiān xìnyǎng ). They are distinct from
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#1732844629725816-500: Is described in Li Qi's long work "Songs of the Queen Mother": The Martial Illustrious One fasted and observed abstinence in his Basilica for Receiving Florescence; As he stood upright with folded hands, instantly the Queen Mother came to grant him an audience. Rainbow standards numinously flashing: her qilin-drawn chariots, With feathered parasols streaming and pheasant fans. Her fingers holding intertwined pears, she sent them along for
884-718: Is described in many ways in the scriptures of some Chinese folk religious sects . For instance, an excerpt from the Precious Scripture of the Dragon Flower ( c. 1654 ), pertaining to the Dragon Flower sect, says: After the emergence of the Ancient Awakened, heaven and earth were established; after the rise of the Eternal Venerable Mother, Former Heaven was established. The Eternal Venerable Mother conceives from herself and begets yin and yang . The yin
952-864: Is most often associated with Taoism. The growing popularity of the Queen Mother of the West, as well as the beliefs that she was the dispenser of prosperity, longevity, and eternal bliss, took place during Han dynasty , in the 2nd century BCE, when the northern and western parts of China became more accessible through the opening of the Silk Road . Queen Mother of the West is a calque of Xiwangmu in Chinese sources , Seiōbo in Japan , Seowangmo in Korea , and Tây Vương Mẫu in Vietnam . She has numerous titles, one being Yaochi Jinmu ( 瑤池金母 ),
1020-530: Is the daughter and the yang is the son. Their names are Fuxi and Nüwa respectively. From another section of the Dragon Flower , "It is required that all male and female members gather with neither difference nor discrimination". Equality of men and women is a characteristic element of the Chinese sectarian tradition, for both males and females are equally children of the Eternal Mother, and both of them are
1088-580: The Dao De Jing . This dichotomy of the Queen Mother as the superior is a characteristic of Shangqing Taoism , a goddess worshiping sect of Taoism of which Tu Kuang-ting was a master. There is also an account of a meeting between the Queen Mother and Laozi in Tang poetry. This account however, being of traditional Taoist thought, has the Queen Mother taking an inferior role to Laozi, calling him "Primordial Lord" (the title of his highest manifestation) and pays homage to
1156-579: The Book of Rites . Some scholars even find influences from Manichaeism , Mohism and shamanic traditions . In the Ming and Qing dynasties many folk religious movements were outlawed by the imperial authorities as "evil religions" ( 邪教 xiéjiào ). With the collapse of the Qing state in 1911 the sects enjoyed an unprecedented period of freedom and thrived, and many of them were officially recognised as religious groups by
1224-452: The Chinese folk religion consisting in the worship of gods and ancestors, although in English language there is a terminological confusion between the two. The 20th-century expression for these salvationist religious movements has been "redemptive societies" ( 救世团体 jiùshì tuántǐ ), coined by scholar Prasenjit Duara . A collective name that has been in use possibly since the latter part of
1292-698: The absolute principle of reality , or the creational origin of all things. Tang writers called her "Golden Mother the First Ruler", the "Golden Mother of Tortoise Mountain", "She of the Nine Numina and the Grand Marvel", and the "Perfected Marvel of the Western Florescence and Ultimate Worthy of the Cavernous Darkness". Commoners and poets of the era referred to her more simply as the "Queen Mother",
1360-480: The early republican government . The founding of the People's Republic in 1949 saw them suppressed once again, although since the 1990s and 2000s the climate was relaxed and some of them have received some form of official recognition. In Taiwan all the still existing restrictions were rescinded in the 1980s. Folk religious movements began to rapidly revive in mainland China in the 1980s, and now if conceptualised as
1428-455: The eight trigrams each led by a leader subordinate to Master Liu, two assistants for every leader of a trigram, and cohorts of believers. During the first year of Qianlong (1736) Liu Ruhan died and his son Liu Ke became the new leader of the Baguadao, which under his guidance grew extensively. In 1748, the thirteenth year of Qianlong, the leadership passed to Liu Shennguo, Liu Ke's son. In 1772
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#17328446297251496-485: The oracle bone inscriptions of the Shang dynasty (1766 – 1122 BCE). One inscription reads: Crack-making on day IX (9th day), we divined. If we make offering to the eastern mother and the western mother, there will be approval. Western Mother refers to an archaic divinity residing in the west. The exact nature of the Mother divinities in the Shang dynasty is unclear, but they were seen as powerful forces deserving of ritual by
1564-476: The "Divine Mother", or simply "Nanny" ( Amah ). The Queen Mother of the West is most often depicted holding court within her palace on the mythological Mount Kunlun , usually supposed to be in western China (a modern Mount Kunlun is named after this). Her palace is believed to be a perfect and complete paradise, where it was used as a meeting place for the deities and a cosmic pillar where communications between deities and humans were possible. At her palace she
1632-550: The "Golden Mother of the Jade Pond (瑤池)" (also translated "Turquoise Pond" ). She is also known in contemporary sources as the Lady Queen Mother. In Chinese salvationist religions , she is believed to be the same being as their main deity, Wusheng Laomu ( Chinese : 無生老母 ; lit. 'birthless old mother'), also known as Wujimu ( 無極母 ; lit. ' infinite mother ' ). The title, Wujimu, signifies
1700-654: The 1813 uprising, which culminated in an attack to the Forbidden City in Beijing . The Gao family members were captured and by the confession of the current leader Gao Tianyou the history of the Li branch was traced back to Gao Yunlong, who was initiated by Liu Zuochen himself a century earlier. In 1860 the heritage of Baguadao gave rise to a new movement, the Heavenly Dragon Baguajiao (天龙八卦教 Tiānlóng Bāguàjiào ). The religion
1768-609: The Baguadao and especially of the Ligua tradition, which was the first folk religion to see the " civil and martial work methods as one" (文武功法合一 wénwǔ gōng fǎ hé yī ). Meihua followers were directly involved in the anti-Western Boxer Rebellion . The Plum Flower religion and martial art is practiced freely in contemporary China with a large holy see established in March 2015 in Pingxiang County of Hebei . Scholar Raymond P. Ambrosi has studied
1836-701: The Celestial Illustrious One's palace." Turning her head back, she told the servant girl, Dong Shuangcheng, "The wind is finished; you may perform on the Cloud Harmony Mouth Organ." Red auroral clouds and the white sun, in strict attendance, did not move; Seven dragons and five phoenixes in variegated disarray greeted them. How regrettable! He was too ambitious and arrogant; the divinities were not satisfied, But sighed and lamented over his horses' hooves and chariots' wheel tracks. In his covered walkways, song bells became hard to discern in
1904-550: The Ligua (Li Trigram) subdivision; and Wang Qingrong from Heze , in Shandong , who founded the Zhengua (Zhen Trigram) subdivision. The Liu family held the role of the highest masters within the Baguadao for four generations. Historians reconstruct that Liu Zuochen died around 1701, and Liu Ruhan his son became the new head master of the Baguadao. By the 1730s the sect had developed its characteristic structure, with branches corresponding to
1972-533: The Qing dynasty is huìdàomén ( 会道门 "churches, ways and gates"), as their names interchangeably use the terms huì ( 会 "church, society, association, congregation"; when referring to their corporate form), dào ( 道 "way") or mén ( 门 "gate[way], door"). Their congregations and points of worship are usually called táng ( 堂 "church, hall") or tán ( 坛 "altar"). Western scholars often mistakenly identify them as " Protestant " churches. The Vietnamese religions of Minh Đạo and Caodaism emerged from
2040-550: The Queen Mother and Laozi (Lord Lao): "In the 25th year of King Chao of the Chou dynasty (1028 BCE) ..." "...Lord Lao and the realized person Yin Hsi went traveling..." "...on their behalf, the Queen Mother of the West explicated the Scripture of Constant Purity and Quiet." In this account, the Queen Mother plays the role of Laozi's superior and is credited with the ultimate authorship of
2108-549: The Queen Mother is organised today in Taiwan as Yaochidao . One of the earliest written references to the Queen Mother comes from the writings of the Taoist writer Zhuangzi ( c. 4th century BCE ): The Queen Mother of the West obtained it [the Dao]... ...and took up her seat at Shao kuang. No one knows her beginning; no one knows her end. Zhuangzi describes the Queen Mother as one of
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2176-627: The Queen Mother of the West and King Mu has been compared to that of a Taoist master and disciple. She passes on secret teachings to him at his request and he, the disciple, fails to benefit, and dies like any other mortal. The first emperor of the Qin dynasty, Qin Shi Huang , united the Warring States of China through brilliant military strategy and diplomacy to control the greatest territory yet seen in China. It
2244-627: The Red Banner (红旗 hóngqí ) comprising Li sects, and the Blue Banner (蓝旗 lánqí ) or Black Banner (黑旗 hēiqí ) comprising Kan sects. A sixth banner was the Flower Banner (花旗 huāqí ). The contemporary popular sect of the Plum Flower (梅花教) widespread in north China, which combines the martial aspect (武场 wuchang ) of meihuaquan , and a civil aspect (文场 wenchang ), has been studied as the continuation of
2312-426: The West , known by various local names , is a mother goddess in Chinese religion and mythology , also worshipped later in neighbouring countries. She is attested from ancient times. The first historical information on her can be traced back to Shang dynasty oracle bone inscriptions that record sacrifices to a "Western Mother". Even though these inscriptions illustrate that she predates organized Taoism , she
2380-471: The West met during the height of Wu's reign, when she visited him during the night of Double Seven , the night for encounters between mortal men and divine women. When the Queen Mother of the West visits Emperor Wu she shares a banquet with him, grants him special teachings, and then departs. Emperor Wu just like King Mu before him fails to follow her teachings, and fails to put them into practice, and therefore he inevitably dies. The whole story of their meeting
2448-477: The belief in Chinese thinking is that the teacher automatically surpasses the pupil in seniority and wisdom. Probably one of the best known stories of contact between a goddess and a mortal ruler is between King Mu of Zhou and the Queen Mother of the West. There are several different accounts of this story but they all agree that King Mu, one of the greatest rulers of the Zhou, set out on a trip with his eight chargers to
2516-456: The chance to meet the Queen Mother serves as a warning to later men, as despite huge and costly efforts to pursue immortality, he died and speaks no more. The 9th century poet Zhuang Nanjie wrote: His flourishing breath once departed, he never more will speak; His white bones buried deep, the evening mountains turn cyan. According to legend, Emperor Wu of the Han dynasty and the Queen Mother of
2584-530: The court at this time. The Xunzi , a 3rd-century BCE classic of statecraft written by Xun Kuang , wrote that "Yu studied with the Queen Mother of the West". This passage refers to Yu the Great , the legendary founder of the Xia dynasty , and posits that the Queen Mother of the West was Yu's teacher. It is believed that she grants Yu both legitimacy, and the right to rule, and the techniques necessary for ruling. The fact that she taught Yu gives her enormous power, since
2652-542: The east continued to financially support the Liu leadership in Xinjiang through the 1800s. The "Writing about Five Women's Transmission of the Way" (五女传道输 Wǔnǚchuándàoshū ) is the core scripture of Baguadao, and reveals a technique of neidan meditation to attain blessing, overcome human limits and reach salvation. Liu Zuochen is described in the scripture as the incarnation of Maitreya ,
2720-470: The emperor to eat; By means of them one can prolong life and preside over the cosmos. On top of her head she wore the nine-starred crown; She led a flock of jade lads, then sat facing south. "Do you want to hear my essential words? Now I'll report them to you." The emperor thereupon burned incense and requested such a discussion. "If you can rarefy your earth soul and dispatch the three corpses, Afterward you will certainly have an audience with me at
2788-426: The engagement of Meihua communities in embedding adherents in horizontal social networks which reconstruct grassroots civil society. Chinese salvationist religions Model humanity: Main philosophical traditions: Ritual traditions: Devotional traditions: Salvation churches and sects : Confucian churches and sects: Chinese salvationist religions or Chinese folk religious sects are
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2856-519: The far western regions of his empire. As he obtains the eight chargers and has the circuit of his realm, it proves that he has the Mandate of Heaven. On his journey he encounters the Queen Mother of the West on the mythical Mount Kunlun. They then have a love affair, and King Mu, hoping to obtain immortality, gives the Queen Mother important national treasures. In the end he must return to the human realm, and does not receive immortality. The relationship between
2924-414: The highest of the deities, meaning she had gained immortality and celestial powers. Zhuangzi also states that Xiwangmu is seated upon a spiritual western mountain range, suggesting she is connected to not only the heavens, but also to the west. In Tu Kuang-ting's text, he includes narrative accounts of the Queen Mother's encounters with legendary Chinese heroes. One such account narrates an encounter between
2992-589: The label "secret sects" ( 秘密教门 mìmì jiàomén ) to distinguish the peasant "secret societies" with a positive dimension of the Yuan, Ming and Qing periods, from the negatively viewed "secret societies" of the early republic that became instruments of anti-revolutionary forces (the Guomindang or Japan ). Many of these religions are traced to the White Lotus tradition ("Chinese Maternism", as mentioned by Philip Clart ) that
3060-447: The leadership of the sect for decades. Baguadao networks were the first folk religions to develop " civil and martial work methods as one" (文武功法合一 wénwǔ gōng fǎ hé yī ), and continue in contemporary Meihua (Plum Flower) practices. Little is known about the early history of the sect. In 1719 Liu Ruhan, a county magistrate by purchase in Shanxi was dismissed because his father Liu Zuochen
3128-497: The modern discourse of an Asian -centered universal civilisation. The Chinese folk religious movements of salvation are mostly concentrated in northern and northeastern China, although with a significant influence reaching the Yangtze River Delta since the 16th century. The northern provinces have been a fertile ground for the movements of salvation for a number of reasons: firstly, popular religious movements were active in
3196-469: The most influential branches of the Baguadao was the Ligua (Li Trigram) transmission. The Li Trigram branch was more involved in the 1813 uprising against the Qing dynasty. Lin Qing founded many groups of the Li subdivision, many of which connected to the Gao family of Henan who held the central leadership of the subdivision. Under increasing persecutions Lin Qing reacted by organising a rebellion, which broke out in
3264-609: The peaches were located, the Queen Mother of the West is widely known for serving peaches to her guests, which would then make them immortal. She normally wears a distinctive headdress with the Peaches of Immortality suspended from it. Flourishing parasols, we reach the chronograms' extremity; Riding on the mist, I wander to Lofty Whirlwind Peak. The Lady of the Supreme Primordial descends through jade interior doors; The Queen Mother opens her Blue-gem Palace. Celestial people—What
3332-514: The people of the Shang dynasty. Originally, from the earliest known depictions of her in accounts like the Classic of Mountains and Seas during the Zhou dynasty , she was a ferocious goddess of death with the teeth of a tiger , who rules over wild beasts and sends down heavenly punishments such as pestilences . She was also mentioned as an authority ruling over other divinities such as Jiutian Xuannü ,
3400-613: The period) from the Tang dynasty. After the fall of the Tang dynasty, ( c. 910 – c. 920 ) a Shang-ching Taoist master and court chronicler named Du Guangting wrote a hagiographical biography of the queen mother as part of his text "Yung ch'eng chi hsien lu" ("Records of the Assembled Transcendents of the Fortified Walled City"). This account represents the most complete source of information about Tang society's perceptions of Xiwangmu. Because she
3468-451: The population of China, which is around 30 million people, claim to be members of folk religious sects. The actual number of followers may be higher, about the same as the number of members of the five state-sanctioned religions of China if counted together. In Taiwan, recognised folk religious movements of salvation gather approximately 10% of the population as of the mid-2000s. Eternal Venerable Mother The Queen Mother of
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#17328446297253536-492: The region already in the Han dynasty , and they deeply penetrated local society; secondly, northern provinces are characterised by social mobility around the capital and weak traditional social structure, thus folk religious movements of salvation fulfill the demand of individual searching for new forms of community and social network. According to the Chinese General Social Survey of 2012, approximately 2.2% of
3604-467: The sage. During the Tang dynasty (June 18, 618 – June 4, 907) poetry flourished throughout China (this period is commonly known as the "Golden age of Chinese poetry"). It was during this period that the Queen Mother became an extremely popular figure in poetry. Her mythology was recorded in the poems of the Complete Tang Poems , a collection of surviving poems (of an estimated 50,000 written during
3672-542: The same in the "Former Heaven", the original state of birth from the goddess. The aim of every follower of the Wusheng Laomu is to return to her. For example, an excerpt of the "Precious Scroll Explaining the Great Vehicle " says: After preaching the wonderful message with an enlightened mind and manifested nature, they return home in complete pleasure. ... All children are redeemed and reunited ... and they will resume
3740-494: The same tradition of Chinese folk religious movements. A category overlapping with that of the salvationist movements is that of the "secret societies" ( 秘密社会 mìmì shèhuì , or 秘密结社 mìmì jiéshè ), religious communities of initiatory and secretive character, including rural militias and fraternal organisations which became very popular in the early republican period, and often labeled as " heretical doctrines" ( 宗教异端 zōngjiào yìduān ). Recent scholarship has begun to use
3808-605: The sun that enlightens the whole world, the son of the Eternal Venerable Mother . Palmer and Liu (2012) have studied the contents of the Baguadao as a tradition of orthodox and elaborate forms of Taoist self-cultivation techniques. The eight trigrams ' cosmology was adopted as an ideal system of organisation as described in many precious scriptures of the 16th century. Within the ideal division into eight trigrams, only three of them (Zhengua, Ligua and Kangua) were influential, and there were further subdivisions which used
3876-550: The then leader of the Zhengua subdivision named Wang Zhong was arrested in Shandong and the book in his possession, Xunshu ("Book of Instruction"), was found to contain references to the overthrowing of the "barbarian" Manchu dynasty. Wang Zhong was executed for refusing to reveal the name of the leader of Baguadao, but another member later confessed that he was one of the Lius in Shan County of Shandong. After investigation, Liu Shengguo
3944-450: The way are her dependents. The Queen Mother of the West was said to care for all woman Daoists in the universe, both perfected and aspirants. Tang writers frequently refer to her in poems about Daoist women. In accordance with the Shang Ch'ing vision expressed by Tu, she appears as teacher judge, registrar, and Guardian of female believers. Her forms reflect Tu's definitions. The Queen Mother
4012-592: Was a member of the Shouyuandao (收元道 "Way to Attain the Origin"), possibly an early name for Baguadao prosecuted by imperial authority as part of the White Lotus heterodoxy . With probability, Liu Zuochen was the founder of Baguadao, after having changed his original name Li Tingyu. At first he had only three disciples: a man surnamed Qin from Qingfeng County, of whom nothing is known; Gao Yunlong of Shangqiu , in Henan , who founded
4080-409: Was already active in the Song dynasty ; others claim a Taoist legacy and are based on the recovery of ancient scriptures attributed to important immortals such as Lü Dongbin and Zhang Sanfeng , and have contributed to the popularisation of neidan ; other ones are distinctively Confucian and advocate the realisation of a "great commonwealth" ( datong 大同 ) on a world scale, as dreamt of in
4148-426: Was also under his command that workers joined pre-existing sections of wall to create the Great Wall of China. Even after these accomplishments he is known in history as a failure both as a king and as a seeker of immortality. Qin had the opportunity to meet the Queen Mother of the West and attain greatness from her, but instead wasted it and died without the Mandate of Heaven or a dynasty. His story of not jumping at
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#17328446297254216-410: Was arrested and executed. The authorities discovered the vast network of Baguadao sects, with branches named after the eight trigrams of cosmology. Even after the arrest of Liu Shengguo the holy significance of the Liu family did not diminish, and minor leaders of the Baguadao continued to rely upon legitimation by the Master Liu of the day. After the 1772 crackdown, Liu Shengguo's successor Liu Tingxian
4284-405: Was banished to the northeastern land of Xinjiang where he served as a peasant; in 1780 a leader of the Zhengua branch of Baguadao sent messengers to Xinjiang to get into contact with Liu Tingxian and convinced him to take his legitimate position as main leader of the religion. In the following decades Liu Tingxian and his sons continued the Baguadao leadership in Xinjiang, and lesser sect masters in
4352-400: Was centered in Qiu County in modern Hebei and Shen County in Shandong , and was led by Yang Tai (杨泰) and Song Jingshi (宋景诗). The new organisation grouped the eight trigram divisions in five coloured banners: the White Banner (白旗 báiqí ) comprising Qian and Dui sects, the Yellow Banner (黄旗 huángqí ) comprising Kun and Gen sects, the Green Banner (绿旗 lǜqí ) comprising Zhen and Shun sects,
4420-404: Was heavily persecuted during the following Qing dynasty when affiliated sects organised an uprising in 1813 , led by Lin Qing. Affiliated sects appeared under various names, but during the latter half of the 18th century they adopted Bagua Jiao as their common designation. The founder, or early influential leader of Baguadao was Liu Zuochen (†~1700), and the Liu family of Shandong maintained
4488-473: Was held in especially high regard by Chinese women who did not represent the societal norm of the submissive woman. To these women, The Queen Mother of the West was seen as "a powerful, independent deity representing the ultimate yin controlling immortality and the afterlife." Model humanity: Main philosophical traditions: Ritual traditions: Devotional traditions: Salvation churches and sects : Confucian churches and sects: Wusheng Laomu
4556-411: Was surrounded by a female retinue of prominent goddesses and spiritual attendants. One of her symbols is the Big Dipper . Although not definite there are many beliefs that her garden had a special orchard of longevity peaches which would ripen once every three thousand years, others believe though that her court on Mount Kunlun was nearby to the orchard of the Peaches of Immortality . No matter where
4624-401: Was the highest goddess of the Taoist religion and ruler of female Transcendents, The Queen Mother was seen to have had a special relationship with all women. In the beginning section of Tu Kuang-ting's hagiography, he lists the most important functions of the Queen Mother: In heaven, beneath heaven, in the three worlds, and in the ten directions all women who ascend to transcendence and attain
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