Free Religion 101 by Peter Archer

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    The Dao de Jing was compiled in an environment that was racked by widespread disorder, wanton self-seeking rulers, and rampant immoral behavior. The popularity of the work has been, and is, widespread. An amazing number of translations have been produced, more than for any other literary work except the Bible. There have been eighty English translations alone.
    Feng Shui
    One example of the use of harmony and meditation is the practice of Feng Shui. The literal meaning of Feng Shui is “wind and water,” which are the natural elements that shape the landscape. A Feng Shui expert can advise on how to get the best results in a home or office by establishing the most advantageous alignment of space and furnishings to allow the most positive and harmonious flow of chi (energy).
    Zhuangzi (fourth century B.C .) was a great Taoist sage. He is best known for the book that bears his name, the Zhuangzi , also known as Nánhuá Zhēnjīng ( The Pure Classic of Nan-hua ). It is thought to have originally comprised thirty-three chapters, although there may have been more. Again, as it seems with most works of written religious antiquity, there is controversy over what the author wrote and what others contributed. However, scholars agree that the first seven chapters of the Zhuangzi were written by the author alone.
    He wrote other books highly critical of Confucianism. On the other hand he was seen as being a great influence on the development of Chinese Buddhism. Buddhist scholars considered Zhuangzi to be the primary source for Taoist thought and they drew heavily from his teachings. Overall he was considered the most significant and comprehensive of the Taoist writers.
    He lived around 327 B.C. , which made him a contemporary of the eminent Confucian scholar, Mencius. All of this confirms yet again how intertwined Taoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism were with each other.

TAOIST RITUALS AND FESTIVALS
    Dragons, Ghosts, and the Moon
    The religious aspects of Taoism are related more to shamanism than worship in the typical way. Taoist priests usually look after temples in urban areas. Monks and nuns live in temples located in sacred mountains. China has many sacred mountains and some of the temples are even dramatically suspended on the side of them. In general, monks and nuns are permitted to marry. Their work is ensuring the worship of the sacred texts, of which there are some 1,440 books.
    In Taoism there is a strong element of the ways and means of achieving immortality. Throughout life, adherents study and practice exercises designed to increase the flow of chi energy, and some will become expert in meditation to the point where they become one with the Tao. A quote from the Zhuangzi provides a good clue to the Taoist attitude toward life and death:
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.
    Birth and Death
    Birth is a time for casting horoscopes. A month after the birth a naming ceremony is held. Death combines elements of Taoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism in regard to life after death. Funeral rites have to be performed correctly in order that the dead join the family ancestors. There is a belief that the soul is judged by the King of Hell. After the body is buried, paper models of money, houses, and cars are burnt to help the soul in the afterlife, perhaps by paying for a release from the King of Hell. After about ten years the body is dug up. The bones are cleaned then reburied at a site often chosen by a Feng Shui expert.
    Religion 101 Question
    When a Taoist funeral procession passes through the streets on its way to the cemetery, what color do the family and friends of the deceased