The Historical Lineage of the Zhengyi School in Taoism

Taoism in China has a history of 2,000 years. Tianshi Dao (the Way of Heavenly Masters), also known as Zhengyi (Orthodox Unity) Taoist belief, first emerged during the last years of the Eastern Han dynasty (25 - 220), and became popular among the plebeians when it was endorsed as the “orthodox” school in the 10th century. Priests of the Tianshi Dao were then charged with the responsibility of conducting rituals for invoking blessings from the deities, stemming natural disasters etc., on occasions like local temple festivities and imperial ceremonies of sacrifice. By the Jurchen Jin and Yuan dynasties (1115 - 1368), the Quanzhen (Complete Perfection) school rose to prominence. The priests belonging to this school would practice monasticism and stringently observe the religious rules. But on the other hand, most of the priests in the Tianshi Dao maintained a secular lifestyle and lived with their families. Some folk Zhengyi Taoists priests would only put on their Taoist robes when they were employed to conduct rituals for the festivals of deities, or hold services for funerals, burials, etc. The 38th successor of the Heavenly Master based in Longhushan in Jiangxi Province, Zhang Yucai (? - 1316) was conferred the title “Nominal Head of the Zhengyi School” by the Mongol court of Yuan in the 8th year of the Dade reign (1304) of the Yuan dynasty. He held the Tallies and Registers of the Three Mountains (Longhushan, Maoshan, and Gezaoshan). So slowly, many schools in southern China practising the Taoist tradition of tally and register were merged to become the Zhengyi school, and the altar in the headquarters of the Heavenly Master of Longhushan was upheld as the Principal Altar of All Schools. In brief, Zhengyi and Quanzhen are the two mainstream schools in the Taoist system.

The Taoist ritual tradition of the Zhengyi school in Hong Kong was in the same lineage as that of the Pearl River Delta during the Qing dynasty and the Republican period; and in Hong Kong, there are two ritual systems practised separately in the New Territories and in the urban areas. That in the New Territories is primarily practised in the villages, where the priests conduct rituals of zhai (retreat), jiao and gongde (ritual for merit). The other division serving the urban areas used to cover the fishing community of the seafront areas of Yau Ma Tei, Shau Kei Wan, Hang Hau and Hung Hom, and their rituals catered for the qingtan (celebratory functions, or “red” occasions), and the huangtan (funeral services, or “white” occasions). Today, the Zhengyi Taoist priests of the urban division are hired mainly to conduct funeral rituals in funeral parlours to assist the departed soul to enter the afterlife. The Cantonese people commonly called Zhengyi Taoist priests the “nahm mouh” masters.