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Taoism and Buddhism have co-
existed, blended, clashed and supported one another during various time periods and political climates. They have even spawned a very popular crossover religion: Zen Buddhism. This presentation will explore their connections from their roots to the present day.
Buddhism traveled through China, where it mixed with Taoism, and then moved to Japan, where it became Zen.
Buddhism
Taoism
Origin: Nepal, India
Origin: China
Place of worship: Monasteries, nunneries,
pagodas and temples.
Place of worship:
Temple, shrine.
Founder: Gautama Buddha
(Prince Siddhartha)
Founder: Lao Tzu
Goal: To attain Nirvana.
Goal: To be one with the Tao,
To attain immortality.
"When Buddhism first appeared in China, it was presented as an aspect of Taoism; the Buddha was seen either as a disciple of Lao-Tzu or as associated with Taoist deities."
-Fong, Wen
"After delivering his teachings, Laozi went west and no one knew where he had gone; a later Daoist tradition said he went to teach the 'barbarians' in the West (i.e., the Buddha and the Buddhists)."
-Littlejohn (Daoism textbook)
Tang Dynasty: 500's CE debates between Buddhists and Taoists. In the early 620s CE, Tongdao master Fu Yi proposed to the Tang court that all Buddhist institutions be abolished and the monks and nuns returned to laity. Li Zhongqing argued that Buddhism was inferior to Daoism by writing a tract to show Buddhism's principal faults. It was entitled The Ten Differences and Nine Errors."
-Littlejohn
Taoism treated Buddhism and
Confucianism, its main religious competition, in similar ways. As Zhuangzi offers conflicting stances on Confucius by elevating him to the rank of sage but simultaneously ridiculing his philosophy, so too does the Seven Taoist Masters both applaud and degrade Buddhism. Overall, aside from the power struggles in gaining imperial favor, all three religions coexisted much more successfully than any three Western religions.
In 875 CE, Tang Emperor Wuzong, a fanatical Taoist, instigated somewhat of a crusade against the Buddhists. This was the result of the Emperor's desire to both appropriate war funds and cleanse China of foreign influences. Buddhism had been very prosperous, and they were seen by Confucians as a drain on society, and by Taoists as competition. Taoism and Confucianism were considered native religions, so they were spared, but the Buddhist monks were defrocked, and their monasteries and shrines were destroyed, all precious items becoming the property of the government.