Title

The Origins and Development of “Revering One’s Master in Meditation” in the Daoist Fasts of the Tang and Song Dynasties, with an Accompanying Investigation of Portraits at Daoist Altars

Author

Chang, Chao-jan

Genre

Article  

Pages

381-413

Download

PDF

Language

Chinese  

Key words

Daoist fasts, revering the masters, meditation, portraits

Abstract

      In the early history of Daoism, it was uncommon for portraits and statues to be placed at altars, but this did not negatively impact the Taoist priests’ worship, for they had long employed meditation as a means of facilitating ritual practice. This study explores the history of “revering one’s master in meditation” as a prescribed part of Lingbao ritual in order to explicate not only how this method of meditation functioned in worship, prayers and safeguarding altars, but also to examine the necessity of the portraits used in the rituals. In the article, I first analyze how Daoist practitioners from the late Tang to the Southern Song practiced the four items that constitute the method of “revering one’s master in meditation.” Second, on the basis of this analysis, I investigate the origins and development of this practice as well as its role in Daoist history. Third, in an effort to determine how such a practice was influenced by the “Masters’ Lectures on the High Dais” in the Laojun Cunsi Tuzhujue (Tai Shang Lao Jun’s Meditation Method: Illustrations, Notes and Tips), I examine the basic principles informing this method of meditation and review relevant secondary literature. Finally, I discuss several extant illustrations in order to contemplate both the limitations and the necessity of using portraits in the rituals.