While there are many historical and modern schools of
Taoism
Taoism (, ) or Daoism () refers to either a school of Philosophy, philosophical thought (道家; ''daojia'') or to a religion (道教; ''daojiao''), both of which share ideas and concepts of China, Chinese origin and emphasize living in harmo ...
with different teachings on the subject, many
Taoist priest
A daoshi (道士 "master of the Tao"), translated as Taoist priest, Taoist monk, Taoist master or Professional Taoist, is a priest in Taoism. Along with Han Chinese priests, there are also many practicing ethnic minority priests in China. Some o ...
s regard their
diet as extremely important to their physical, mental and spiritual health in one way or another, especially where the amount of
qi in the food is concerned.
Fasting
Some early Taoist diets called for ''
bigu'' (), based on the belief that
immortality
Immortality is the concept of eternal life. Some modern species may possess biological immortality.
Some scientists, futurists, and philosophers have theorized about the immortality of the human body, with some suggesting that human immorta ...
could be achieved in this way. The ancient Taoist texts of the ''
Taiping Jing
''Taipingjing'' ("Scriptures of the Great Peace") is the name of several different Taoist texts. At least two works were known by this title:
:*, 12 Chapters, contents unknown, author: Gan Zhongke
:*, 170 Chapters, only 57 of which survive v ...
'' suggest that individuals who attained the state of complete
ziran
Ziran or tzu-jan is a key concept in Daoism that literally means "of its own; by itself" and thus "naturally; natural; spontaneously; freely; in the course of events; of course; doubtlessly". This Chinese word is a two-character compound of ''z ...
would not need food at all, but instead could sustain themselves by absorbing the cosmic
qi.
Vegetarianism
Taoist religious orders often promote a
vegetarian
Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the consumption of meat (red meat, poultry, seafood, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slaughter.
Vegetarianism m ...
diet in order to minimize harm to other sentient life.
Taoist levels of dietary restriction, however, are varied.
In legend, Han dynasty prince and Taoist adept
Liú Ān is credited for inventing the vegetarian food
tofu
Tofu (), also known as bean curd in English, is a food prepared by coagulating soy milk and then pressing the resulting curds into solid white blocks of varying softness; it can be ''silken'', ''soft'', ''firm'', ''extra firm'' or ''super firm ...
.
Contemporary Taoism
According to Ming Yi Wang, one version of the taoist diet includes bigu,
veganism
Veganism is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal product—particularly in diet—and an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals. An individual who follows the diet or philosophy is known as a vegan. ...
, as well as refraining from eating strong-smelling plants, traditionally
asafoetida
Asafoetida (; also spelled asafetida)
is the dried latex ( gum oleoresin) exuded from the rhizome or tap root of several species of ''Ferula'', perennial herbs growing tall. They are part of the celery family, Umbelliferae. Asafoetida is thou ...
,
shallot
The shallot is a botanical variety (a cultivar) of the onion. Until 2010, the (French red) shallot was classified as a separate species, ''Allium ascalonicum''. The taxon was synonymized with ''Allium cepa'' (the common onion) in 2010, as the d ...
, mountain
leek
The leek is a vegetable, a cultivar of ''Allium ampeloprasum'', the broadleaf wild leek ( syn. ''Allium porrum''). The edible part of the plant is a bundle of leaf sheaths that is sometimes erroneously called a stem or stalk. The genus ''Alli ...
, and ''
Allium chinense
''Allium chinense'' (also known as Chinese onion,Multilingual Multiscript Plant Name DatabaseUniversity of Melbourne. Updated 3 August 2013. Retrieved 5 September 2014. Chinese scallion, glittering chive, Japanese scallion, Kiangsi scallion, an ...
'' or other
allium
''Allium'' is a genus of monocotyledonous flowering plants that includes hundreds of species, including the cultivated onion, garlic, scallion, shallot, leek, and chives. The generic name ''Allium'' is the Latin word for garlic,Gledhill, Davi ...
s, which together with
garlic
Garlic (''Allium sativum'') is a species of bulbous flowering plant in the genus ''Allium''. Its close relatives include the onion, shallot, leek, chive, Allium fistulosum, Welsh onion and Allium chinense, Chinese onion. It is native to South A ...
are referred to as ''wǔ hūn'' (五葷, or 'Five Fetid and Strong-smelling Vegetables'). Additionally,
nightshade
The Solanaceae , or nightshades, are a family of flowering plants that ranges from annual and perennial herbs to vines, lianas, epiphytes, shrubs, and trees, and includes a number of agricultural crops, medicinal plants, spices, weeds, and orna ...
s are avoided.
[Wang, Ming Yi (2010). Ancient Wisdom for Total Vitality. Triple Muse Publications. ]
See also
*
Ch'ang Ming
Ch'ang Ming (長命 Pinyin: Chángmìng) (literally "long life") is a series of dietary and health recommendations based on Taoist philosophy. It was first introduced to the West by Chan Kam Lee (李陈金 Pinyin: Lǐ chén jīn), a Taoist teacher ...
References
Further reading
* Reid, Daniel P. – ''The Tao of Health, Sex, and Longevity: A Modern Practical Guide to the Ancient Way'' 2001.
*
Saso, Michael R., ''A Taoist Cookbook: With Meditations Taken from the Laozi Daode Jing''. Tuttle, 1994. ()
*
Schipper, Kristofer. ''The Taoist Body''. Berkeley: University of California, 1993.
* Symonds, Mike. ''Tai Chi Diet: Food for Life.'' Life Force Publishing, 2007. ()
* Soo, Chee ''The Tao of Long Life''. Seahorse Books, 2006.
* Welch, Holmes and Anna Seidel, eds.''Facets of Taoism: Essays in Chinese Religion''. New Haven: Yale University, 1979.
External links
Yoked to Earth: A Treatise on Corpse-Demons and Bigu Frederick R. Dannaway (2009)
Taoist practices
Religion-based diets
Vegetarianism and religion
Chinese cuisine
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