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    A Simple Approach to Taoism: Of Gods and Deities
    A Simple Approach to Taoism: Of Gods and Deities
    A Simple Approach to Taoism: Of Gods and Deities
    Ebook87 pages45 minutes

    A Simple Approach to Taoism: Of Gods and Deities

    By Khoo Boo Eng

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    About this ebook

    Most people would look at Taoism as a religion per se. If one is not familiar with Taoism, one would be surprised that the concepts of feng-shui, astrology, geography, traditional medicine, Yin-Yang and many others influencing modern western cultures are, in fact, Taoism concepts!
    Others had ideas of Taoism steeped in rituals, branded as superstitious and even looked at it with apprehension. It is quite understandable as the concepts and culture of Taoism hardly cross the path of the Western world. Taoism remains deeply rooted in the Far East and its propagation to the world is rather slow and lethargic.
    A Simple Approach to Taoism of Gods and Deities and together with A Simple Approach to Taoism Festivals, Worship and Rituals will provide in a simple to understand language, yet vivid and alluring, the basic history, concept and the rich, colourful culture of Taoism.
    The book is organized around four important themes: Historical Development, Religious Taoism, Philosophical Taoism and Taoist Gods and Deities. It also touches on certain aspects of the sacred texts such as the Tao Te Ching.
    The section on Gods and Deities will help the reader to understand the building blocks of Taoism and provides an in-depth understanding and appreciation of the more important gods and deities of the Chinese pantheon.
    Let then the journey begins, slowly unfolding the vast ocean of Taoism, its beliefs, culture and traditions. ** For book two please refer to the blurb gib
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPartridge Publishing Singapore
    Release dateDec 6, 2012
    ISBN9781482892055
    A Simple Approach to Taoism: Of Gods and Deities
    Author

    Khoo Boo Eng

    The author has already written two books on Taoism. They are 1) A Simple Approach to Taoism – of Gods and Deities 2) A Simple Approach to Taoism – Festivals, Worship and Rituals. The books are now internationally recognized. They were exhibited in the International Book Exhibition in Frankfurt, Germany and in London, United Kingdom.

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      Book preview

      A Simple Approach to Taoism - Khoo Boo Eng

      For book orders, email orders@traffordpublishing.com.sg

      Most Trafford Singapore titles are also available at major online book retailers.

      © Copyright 2012 Khoo Boo Eng.

      All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the written prior permission of the author.

      Design cover by Tan Mei Qing.

      Created in Singapore.

      ISBN: 978-1-4669-3123-7 (sc)

      ISBN 978-1-4669-3124-4 (e)

      Our mission is to efficiently provide the world’s finest, most comprehensive book publishing service, enabling every author to experience success. To find out how to publish your book, your way, and have it available worldwide, visit us online at www.traffordpublishing.com.sg

      Trafford rev. 11/05/2012

      TFSG-logo_BWFC.psd www.traffordpublishing.com.sg

      Singapore

      toll-free: 800 101 2656 (Singapore)

      Fax: 800 101 2656 (Singapore)

      Table of Contents

      Foreword

      Preface

      Acknowledgments

      Introduction

      History

      Gods and Deities

      Taoist Concepts and Glossary

      Bibliography

      Foreword

      I am very pleased to know of the impending publication of this English-language book about Taoism and its traditional rites. I must start by congratulating the author, Mr. Khoo Boo Eng, for realizing his long-harbored wish.

      The commendable point about this book is that it not only presents the basic history and concept of Taoism in simple-to-understand language but also portrays the Taoist traditions and practices that Singaporean and Malaysian Chinese inherit in their daily lives. It is both vivid and alluring.

      The daily life of the Chinese in Singapore and Malaysia is almost inseparably steeped in the Taoist faith and traditions. But most of these people remain in a state of daily use without understanding. This is what initially sparked the desire of Mr. Khoo Boo Eng, an English-educated Chinese intellectual living in Penang, to write a popularly readable book that serves to be informative and, at the same time, will propagate Taoism.

      There are those who say that the proliferation of English education in Singapore and Malaysia is a hurdle for the propagation and inheritance of Taoism. In my opinion, the mastery of and fluency in English of the Chinese populace actually presents an unprecedented opportunity for the development of Taoism. Since the formation of Taoist religious groups, the history of Taoism is over two thousand years. But up to the present, Taoism, as one of the five major religions in the world, remains rooted in Chinese communities. Its pace of propagation to the rest of the world is extremely lethargic. Other than the philosophical Dao De Jing (The Classic of the Way and its Power), which is widely recited, Taoist scriptures that are translated into other languages, are very few. One of the reasons is because Taoism knowledge involves such a wide spectrum of diverse and hard-to-understand subjects, such as astrology, geography, native medicine, and fortune-telling. Another reason is that the theory of Taoism is inextricably rooted in the cultural foundation of China and rarely crosses paths with Western philosophy, making apt and accurate translation into Western languages difficult. Thus, while many are worried that the general dominance of English may bring about various cultural crises, I can still see in many English-educated Chinese the dawn for globalization of Taoism. Due to historical and geographical factors, many Chinese in Singapore and Malaysia are fluent in English but are simultaneously strong in their identification with their own Chinese ethnicity and culture. This group of individuals will be an infinite driving force in the propagation of Taoism and will be the core and vigor in the globalization of Taoism.

      Mr. Khoo Boo Eng is representative of this group. He completed this English-language book after his retirement from his career in education. Probably due to his many years in teaching, Mr. Khoo’s writing is precise, clear, and articulate. It is highly readable by a multitude of readers. In our conversations, I am acutely aware of his fondness for his own culture. In order to really understand Taoist culture, he accepted conversion and learned religious doctrines from Taoist monks. I am deeply awed by his spirit of quest for knowledge and his strong sense of mission.

      I am truly honored to be invited to write the foreword for this book by Mr. Khoo Boo Eng. I am also anxious to read books about Taoism that Mr. Khoo will author in the future. May more and more people have the opportunity to learn about the vast and intricate culture of Taoism.

      Dr. Xu Liying

      Academic Director

      Taoist College Singapore

      Preface

      When the word Tao or Taoism is mentioned, some people would think that it is part of Buddhism. Until recently, in a birth certificate or identity card

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