Wang Jueyi ( Wáng Juéyī) was the founder of the Yiguan Dao "Unity Sect" 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 ...

and claimed the 15th Taoist patriarchate ()

Life

Wang Jueyi was born Wang Ximeng () in 1821 in

Qingzhou Qingzhou () Wade–Giles: Tsing-chou, sometimes written as Ching-chow-fu, formerly Yidu County (Yitu) (), is a county-level city, which is located in the west of the prefecture-level city of Weifang, in the central part of Shandong Province, Chin ...

under the

Qing Dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...

. On account of his orphanhood in very young age, Wang was brought up in his uncle's family. He had studied Taoism,

Confucianism Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China. Variously described as tradition, a philosophy, a religion, a humanistic or rationalistic religion, a way of governing, or ...

and

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

. Subsequently, he entered the

Xiantiandao The Xiantiandao (, or "Way of the Primordial"; Vietnamese: ', Japanese: '), also simply Tiandao (; Vietnamese: ', Japanese: ') is one of the most productive currents of Chinese folk religious sects such as the White Lotus Sect, characterised by re ...

sect under the training of Yao Hetian (). After training, Wang returned to Qingzhou and founded his own temple, named Dongzhen Hall (). In 1877, he claimed that God the Mother ( "The Unborn Mother") passed him the

Mandate of Heaven The Mandate of Heaven () is a Chinese political philosophy that was used in ancient and imperial China to legitimize the rule of the King or Emperor of China. According to this doctrine, heaven (天, ''Tian'') – which embodies the natural ...

, appointing him 15th patriarch of Taoism (with

Zen Zen ( zh, t=禪, p=Chán; ja, text= 禅, translit=zen; ko, text=선, translit=Seon; vi, text=Thiền) is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that originated in China during the Tang dynasty, known as the Chan School (''Chánzong'' 禪宗), and ...

Patriarch

Bodhidharma Bodhidharma was a semi-legendary Buddhist monk who lived during the 5th or 6th century CE. He is traditionally credited as the transmitter of Chan Buddhism to China, and regarded as its first Chinese patriarch. According to a 17th century apo ...

as the first such patriarch). The Xiantian Dao sect under Wang's leadership was significantly confucianized; practitioners needed to mainly follow the scripture of the

Great Learning The ''Great Learning'' or ''Daxue'' was one of the "Four Books" in Confucianism attributed to one of Confucius' disciples, Zengzi. The ''Great Learning'' had come from a chapter in the ''Book of Rites'' which formed one of the Five Classics. I ...

whereas Taoist practice such as asceticism and alchemy were abolished. The sect had been rapidly spread throughout the country until the Qing governmental crackdown against it in 1883. Many followers of Wang, including his son, were killed during this situation. After the persecution, Wang Jueyi lived secretly until he died in 1884.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wang, Jueyi 1821 births 1884 deaths I-Kuan Tao Patriarchs Founders of new religious movements People from Weifang