{"id":34669,"date":"2017-03-30T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2017-03-30T10:00:00","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2021-09-29T15:16:42","modified_gmt":"2021-09-29T15:16:42","slug":"9669-taoist-monks-find-new-role-as-environmentalists","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/en\/nature\/9669-taoist-monks-find-new-role-as-environmentalists\/","title":{"rendered":"Taoist monks find new role as environmentalists"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-drop-cap\">On a chilly winter morning in Shaanxi, northwest China, rays of sunlight warmed the wrinkled face of Ren Farong, the former president of the Chinese Taoist Association. His long white beard bobbed up and down as he spoke.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIn the past, people were pure and honest, and they protected the environment,\u201d Ren said from his wicker chair in the courtyard of Louguantai Taoist Temple. It was here in the fourth century that Lao-tzu wrote the Tao Te Ching, the&nbsp;text that serves as the foundation of Taoism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Under the emerald roofs&nbsp;of Louguantai, monks with long hair tied into buns saunter past pine trees and firs, paying their respects to the sage and their gods in golden shrines, interrupted only by the occasional ringing of bells.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Just 70 kilometres from this tranquil enclave lies Shaanxi\u2019s capital, Xi\u2019an, a city of about 9 million people. There, luxury cars zip past high-end shopping malls, coal plants belch toxic fumes into the air, and factories dump waste into waterways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-cd-map-embed block--map-embed\"><div class=\"block--map-embed__column\"><div class=\"block--map-embed__embed aspect-ratio--16-9\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/IpzhGmxmtic\"><\/iframe><\/div><div class=\"block--map-embed__content\"><div itemprop=\"caption\" class=\"block--map-embed__caption\">China\u2019s Taoist monks are hoping to change people\u2019s attitudes toward protecting the environment. By Thomas Cristofoletti for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sixthtone.com\/\">Sixth Tone<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Ren believes that greed and selfishness have destroyed the world\u2019s natural balance. As a Taoist, he follows the\u00a0wu wei\u00a0\u2014 a spiritual tenet that literally means \u201cnon-doing,\u201d and is often explained as letting things follow their natural flow. But the environmental degradation Ren and other Taoists were seeing year after year horrified them so much that they decided to do something out of character: They agreed to take action.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<a class=\"wp-block-cd-related-news alignright block--related-news loading\" data-post-id=\"31502\"><div class=\"block--related-news__image\"><\/div><div class=\"block--related-news__content\"><span class=\"block--related-news__heading\">Recommended<\/span><span class=\"block--related-news__title\"><\/span><\/div><\/a>\n\n\n\n<p>More than 2,500 years after Lao-tzu wrote his classic tome at Louguantai, China\u2019s leading Taoists convened at the same spot to pen the Qinling Agreement, in which they pledged to protect the environment and become quiet champions of a new \u201cgreen revolution\u201d which they called the \u201cDaoist Ecological Protection Network.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Since the network\u2019s founding in 2006, around 120 temples have joined. Some use biofuels and solar-powered lighting; others plant trees to prevent erosion and organise volunteers to pick up litter. Posters and signs prominently displayed at the temples remind visitors of the importance of nature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cTaoist beliefs emphasise respecting and protecting nature, all in the pursuit of harmony between the human beings and the environment,\u201d said Ren, for whom becoming one of the quiet, inconspicuous leaders of a new green movement in China seemed a natural fit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-cd-article-image aligncenter block--article-image\" itemscope itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\"><div class=\"block--article-image__column\"><div class=\"block--article-image__image\"><img class=\"lazy\" data-src=\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/taoist_monks_1.jpg\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/taoist_monks_1-768x513.jpg 768w, https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/taoist_monks_1.jpg 830w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 768px, (max-width: 1024px) 1024px, 830px\" alt=\"Ren Farong, one of the highest-ranking Taoist masters in China, poses for a photo inside the courtyard at Louguantai Taoist Temple, Tayu Village, Shaanxi province\"\/><\/div><div class=\"block--article-image__content\"><div itemprop=\"caption\" class=\"block--article-image__caption\">Ren Farong, one of the highest-ranking Taoist masters in China, poses for a photo inside the courtyard at Louguantai Taoist Temple, Tayu Village, Shaanxi province, Jan. 12, 2017. Thomas Cristofoletti for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sixthtone.com\/\">Sixth Tone<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div><meta itemprop=\"contentUrl\" content=\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/taoist_monks_1.jpg\"\/><meta itemprop=\"contentSize\" content=\"72 KB\"\/><meta itemprop=\"height\" content=\"554\"\/><meta itemprop=\"width\" content=\"830\"\/><meta itemprop=\"author\"\/><meta itemprop=\"representativeOfPage\" content=\"true\"\/><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>By definition, Taoists are nonintrusive, even passive, and this is a mentality that is mirrored in the green temple network. While other environmentalists march and protest, write petitions and distribute leaflets, Taoist believe that change will come about organically: Their contribution to the cause is to serve as role models that others can aspire to emulate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThese places are committed to being ecological temples,\u201d He Yun, the officer in charge of projects in Asia at the Alliance of Religions and Conservation (ARC), which supports the Chinese Taoists\u2019 efforts, told <em>Sixth Tone<\/em>. \u201cI think they will really have an impact.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At Louguantai, Taoism has also taken on the task of protecting China\u2019s most iconic animal, the panda. As more and more tourists flock to the summit of the sacred Mount Taibai, they cut through the forest that is home to the pandas, slowly destroying their habitat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If the tourists all took the same path up the mountain, the monks thought, the pandas would enjoy more peace. So in cooperation with the ARC, they built the Tiejia Taoist Ecology Temple along one of the paths and opened an ecology education centre&nbsp;next to it, making the route the most appealing way up the mountain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-cd-pull-quote block--pull-quote\"><div class=\"block--pull-quote__wrapper\"><blockquote class=\"block--pull-quote__quote\">If people do what Taoism teaches, then the environment will reach a balance again.<\/blockquote><cite class=\"block--pull-quote__cite\">Ren Farong, former president of the Chinese Daoist Association<\/cite><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>The monks\u2019 rationale was simple: Rather than put up signs telling people what not to do or preach about what\u2019s right and wrong, they decided it would be more effective to show people an alternative that they would recognise as better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To some extent, the tourists are a nuisance to the temple\u2019s tranquillity, but the monks also recognise the benefit of educating visitors. \u201cIf people do what Taoism teaches, then the environment will reach a balance again,\u201d Ren said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At Maoshan, one of the largest Taoist temples in China, not far from Nanjing in the eastern province of Jiangsu, solar lights line the broad walkways. There are no utility poles or <a href=\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/en\/energy\/10376-sparks-fly-over-ultra-high-voltage-power-lines\/\">power lines<\/a> besmirching the scenic view from the top of the hills down onto a massive, golden statue of Lao-tzu. Inside the cluster of temples and palaces, booklets describe the importance of keeping the environment clean, limiting one\u2019s garbage, and various other sustainable practices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-cd-article-image aligncenter block--article-image\" itemscope itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\"><div class=\"block--article-image__column\"><div class=\"block--article-image__image\"><img class=\"lazy\" data-src=\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/taoist_monks_2.jpg\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/taoist_monks_2-768x513.jpg 768w, https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/taoist_monks_2.jpg 830w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 768px, (max-width: 1024px) 1024px, 830px\" alt=\"Tourists take photos at the entrance of Yuanfu Wanning Taoist Temple, Jurong City, Jiangsu province, Jan. 10, 2017. The complex includes a massive statue of Lao-tzu, the founder of Taoism.\"\/><\/div><div class=\"block--article-image__content\"><div itemprop=\"caption\" class=\"block--article-image__caption\">Tourists take photos at the entrance of Yuanfu Wanning Taoist Temple, Jurong City, Jiangsu province, Jan. 10, 2017. The complex includes a massive statue of Lao-tzu, the founder of Taoism. Thomas Cristofoletti for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sixthtone.com\/\">Sixth Tone<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div><meta itemprop=\"contentUrl\" content=\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/taoist_monks_2.jpg\"\/><meta itemprop=\"contentSize\" content=\"94 KB\"\/><meta itemprop=\"height\" content=\"554\"\/><meta itemprop=\"width\" content=\"830\"\/><meta itemprop=\"author\"\/><meta itemprop=\"representativeOfPage\" content=\"true\"\/><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>In a two-story building used for calligraphy classes, the only way to reach the upper floor is by climbing a terraced boulder that forms a natural staircase rising from the ground. If they had followed the original design plans for the new buildings, the monks would have had to cut down trees and excavate stones that had been in the same place for millions of years. But after the Qinling Agreement, they decided against these invasive measures, according to Yang Shihua, the head of Maoshan\u2019s monastery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe call our practice, \u2018Let the roads, houses, and walls give way to the trees,\u2019\u201d Yang said while slowly climbing to the top of the natural stone stairs in his monk\u2019s slippers. \u201cNow, it\u2019s become an attraction,\u201d he added with a smile upon reaching the second floor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Across the country, around 50,000 Taoist monks and nuns live in a total of 9,000 temples. Twenty years ago, there were a total of 1,500 temples. There are no official figures for the number of Taoists in China, but a 2007 survey on spirituality in the country found that 12 million Chinese firmly identified as Taoist, while 173 million reported practicing it occasionally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-cd-article-image aligncenter block--article-image\" itemscope itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\"><div class=\"block--article-image__column\"><div class=\"block--article-image__image\"><img class=\"lazy\" data-src=\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/taoist_monks_3.jpg\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/taoist_monks_3-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/taoist_monks_3.jpg 830w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 768px, (max-width: 1024px) 1024px, 830px\" alt=\"An aerial view of part of the Louguantai Taoist Temple complex, Tayu Village, Shaanxi province\"\/><\/div><div class=\"block--article-image__content\"><div itemprop=\"caption\" class=\"block--article-image__caption\">An aerial view of part of the Louguantai Taoist Temple complex, Tayu Village, Shaanxi province, Jan. 12, 2017. Thomas Cristofoletti for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sixthtone.com\/\">Sixth Tone<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div><meta itemprop=\"contentUrl\" content=\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/taoist_monks_3.jpg\"\/><meta itemprop=\"contentSize\" content=\"165 KB\"\/><meta itemprop=\"height\" content=\"553\"\/><meta itemprop=\"width\" content=\"830\"\/><meta itemprop=\"author\"\/><meta itemprop=\"representativeOfPage\" content=\"true\"\/><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Fan Guangchun, one of the country\u2019s most renowned scholars on Taoism, says that the religion is seeing a renaissance in China. \u201cThe number of Taoists is rising,\u201d he told Sixth Tone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As Taoism is seen as offering an escape from a hyper-materialistic society, Fan observes that the makeup of followers is changing, too.&nbsp;Historically, Taoism has been a religion practiced by people in the countryside, but Fan said he has been seeing more and more urban residents \u2014 with more education, income, and influence \u2014 frequenting the temples as well. The government has also supported Taoism and recognises it as China\u2019s only indigenous religion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A mix of bad weather and air pollution did not deter Tang Naichun and his wife from their recent trip to Maoshan, where Tang told <em>Sixth Tone<\/em> he believes China\u2019s rapid development is to blame for the country\u2019s environmental problems. As someone who \u201csomewhat\u201d follows Taoism, he has heard about the Taoist monks\u2019 green movement. As to whether this could have a positive impact, he answered with an equivocal \u201cPossibly.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-cd-article-image aligncenter block--article-image\" itemscope itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\"><div class=\"block--article-image__column\"><div class=\"block--article-image__image\"><img class=\"lazy\" data-src=\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/taoist_monks_4.jpg\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/taoist_monks_4-768x513.jpg 768w, https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/taoist_monks_4.jpg 830w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 768px, (max-width: 1024px) 1024px, 830px\" alt=\"A Taoist monk helps visitors prepare an offering at Louguantai Taoism Temple,\"\/><\/div><div class=\"block--article-image__content\"><div itemprop=\"caption\" class=\"block--article-image__caption\">A Taoist monk helps visitors prepare an offering at Louguantai Taoism Temple, Tayu Village, Shaanxi province, Jan. 12, 2017. Thomas Cristofoletti for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sixthtone.com\/\">Sixth Tone<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div><meta itemprop=\"contentUrl\" content=\"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/taoist_monks_4.jpg\"\/><meta itemprop=\"contentSize\" content=\"108 KB\"\/><meta itemprop=\"height\" content=\"554\"\/><meta itemprop=\"width\" content=\"830\"\/><meta itemprop=\"author\"\/><meta itemprop=\"representativeOfPage\" content=\"true\"\/><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>While the monks try to stick to their self-assigned role of leading by good example, there are a few instances in which they have actively tried to change people\u2019s behaviour. The three-stick policy for burning incense, Yang said, is a prime example.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Previously, candles and incense sticks weighing several kilogrammes each were available at most temples, providing not only a source of income for the monks, but also a way for visitors to show their devotion, personal wealth, or both. But Yang said the practice had gotten so out of hand that smoke hung over the whole area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cDuring the temple fair, if you looked up to the top of the mountain, it seemed like the peak was on fire,\u201d he said, adding that people\u2019s hair and clothes sometimes caught fire, and that the temple struggled to deal with the massive amount of ash.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-cd-pull-quote block--pull-quote\"><div class=\"block--pull-quote__wrapper\"><blockquote class=\"block--pull-quote__quote\">During the temple fair, if you looked up to the top of the mountain, it seemed like the peak was on fire.<\/blockquote><cite class=\"block--pull-quote__cite\">Yang Shihua, head of Maoshan Temple<\/cite><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Incense sticks are still being burned, of course, but now only small ones are available, and each visitor is allowed to buy no more than three \u2014 a call for moderation, the monks believe, in a society where many have lost focus of what\u2019s important.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIf all Taoist temples followed green practices, it would greatly influence our disciples, believers, and visitors,\u201d Yang said. But with the Taoists\u2019 tendency to avoid confrontation, it will take some time for the green temple movement to make a real difference, he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIn 20 or 30 years, we might change the country\u2019s ideas on environmental protection,\u201d Yang said. As the sage Lao-tzu wrote: \u201cEven a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Additional reporting: Li You.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>This article was originally published by the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sixthtone.com\/news\/taoist-monks-find-new-role-environmentalists\">Sixth Tone<\/a> and is reprinted here with permission.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By building a network of \u2018ecological temples,\u2019 leading Taoist monks are serving as role models for sustainable practices, writes Denise Hruby<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3513,"featured_media":59397,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[764],"tags":[523],"hashtags":[],"country":[],"class_list":["post-34669","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nature","tag-conservation"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v26.0) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Taoist monks find new role as environmentalists | Dialogue Earth<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"By building a network of \u2018ecological temples,\u2019 leading Taoist monks are serving as role models for sustainable practices, writes Denise Hruby\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link 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