A systematic archive of Daoism — its history, schools, development, distribution, figures, sacred mountains, heritage sites and scriptures — with sources cited for every entry. For researchers, practitioners and anyone drawn to Daoist culture. Continually expanding.
From pre-Qin Daoist thought to the contemporary revival, linking figures, texts and temples. 14 / 179
Celestial Masters, Shangqing, Lingbao, Quanzhen, Zhengyi, Jingming, Shenxiao, Qingwei — origins, doctrine, practice and survival. 76
Founders, inner-alchemy masters, ritual specialists, Daoist-patron emperors, and scholars of Daoism worldwide. 316
Grotto-Heavens and Blessed Lands, the Five Marchmounts, ancestral temples, cave shrines, steles and overseas temples — with a map. 562
Daoist classics, the Daozang, alchemical texts, ritual manuals, hagiographies, morality books and modern reference works, with links to full texts. 234
Daoism across China's provinces and abroad — regional profiles, organizations and statistics. 64 / 71
Deities, doctrine, cultivation, ritual, institutions and cosmology. 288
Digital libraries, academic institutions, journals, associations, museums, reference works and bibliographies — an index to Daoist materials online. 152
In the pre-Qin period there was not yet an organized religion called "Daoism" (Daojiao), but most of the ideas…
The Qin and Han were a crucial stage in the "prehistory" of Daoism. Qin Shi Huang and Emperor Wu of Han both p…
In the mid-to-late Eastern Han, on the foundation of Huang–Lao Dao, belief in the Taiping jing, and popular sh…
The Wei-Jin period saw Daoism move from a local religious community toward a nationwide religion, and from pop…
The Northern and Southern Dynasties were an era of "reform, consolidation, and official recognition" for Daois…
The Sui and Tang were among the golden ages of Daoism. Both Emperor Wen and Emperor Yang of Sui treated Daoist…
During the wars and upheavals of the Five Dynasties, Daoism continued to be honored under the various regional…
After the Jingkang Incident, China was divided into a northern and a southern regime, and Daoism developed alo…
Ming Daoism, under state administration, continued the twofold "Zhengyi–Quanzhen" configuration, with Zhengyi …
The Qing dynasty made Tibetan Buddhism its state religion, and its attitude toward Daoism grew cool and contro…
The 1911 Revolution abolished the hereditary title of Celestial Master, and Daoism lost the institutional supp…
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, Daoism underwent reorganization amid land reform and shi…
Entering the twenty-first century, Daoism on the Chinese mainland has continued to develop under institutional…
The transmission of Daoism beyond China's borders has a long but uneven history. In East Asia: Tang-dynasty Da…
The Lao–Zhuang School is the strand of pre-Qin philosophical thought that takes the "Dao" as its highest category; it wa…
"Huang-Lao" refers to a system of thought and belief attributed to the Yellow Emperor and following the teaching of Laoz…
Fangxian Dao is the general term for the immortality beliefs and traditions of esoteric arts current from the Warring St…
The Way of Great Peace (Taiping Dao) was an early Daoist religious community founded by Zhang Jiao in Jizhou at the end …
The Way of the Five Pecks of Rice (Wudoumi Dao) was a Daoist religious community founded by Zhang Daoling (Zhang Ling) i…
The Way of the Celestial Masters (Tianshi Dao) is the continuation and further development of the Way of the Five Pecks …
The Northern Celestial Masters is the school that took shape after the Daoist priest Kou Qianzhi reformed the Way of the…
The Southern Celestial Masters refers to the branch of the Way of the Celestial Masters that developed in Jiangnan durin…
Laozi, surnamed Li, given name Er, styled Dan, was a thinker of the late Spring and Autumn period, traditionally said to…
Zhuangzi, personal name Zhou, was a native of Meng in the state of Song in the mid-Warring States period, who once serve…
Zhang Ling, courtesy name Fuhan, known to later generations as Zhang Daoling, was a native of Feng in the state of Pei i…
Ge Hong, style name Zhichuan, self-styled Baopuzi (Master Who Embraces Simplicity), was a native of Jurong in Danyang un…
Lu Xiujing, styled Yuande, was a celebrated Daoist priest of the Liu Song in the Southern Dynasties, a native of Dongqia…
Tao Hongjing, style name Tongming, self-styled the Hermit of Huayang, was a Daoist priest and scholar active between the…
Sima Chengzhen, style name Ziwei, Dharma name Daoyin, sobriquet Baiyunzi, was the twelfth patriarch of the Tang-dynasty …
Zhang Boduan, styled Pingshu and later renamed Yongcheng, with the sobriquet Ziyang, was a renowned master of internal a…
Bai Yuchan, originally surnamed Ge, given name Changgeng, whose ancestral home was Minqing, Fujian, was born in Qiongzho…
Wang Chongyang, founder of Quanzhen Daoism. Born into a wealthy family in Guanzhong, he sat for both the civil and milit…
Qiu Chuji, a native of Qixia, Shandong, renounced the household at nineteen and took Wang Chongyang as his teacher the f…
Zhang Sanfeng was a celebrated Daoist priest of the late Yuan and early Ming, whose deeds are difficult to distinguish f…
Wang Changyue, a native of Changzhi in Shanxi, was the patriarch of the early Qing revival of the Quanzhen Longmen Linea…
Chen Yingning, a native of Huaining, Anhui, was the most important Daoist reformer and advocate of Xianxue (Immortality …
Wudang Mountains, anciently called Mount Taihe, is the sacred site of Zhenwu (the Perfected Warrior, Xuandi), and is lis…
Mount Longhu is the ancestral seat of Zhengyi Daoism (the Way of the Celestial Masters). According to tradition, Zhang D…
Mount Qingcheng is one of the birthplaces of Daoism. Tradition holds that Zhang Daoling built a thatched hermitage here …
Mount Qiyun, anciently called Mount Baiyue, is a famous Daoist mountain of the Huizhou region; like Mount Wudang it vene…
Louguantai is traditionally held to be the place where Yin Xi, keeper of Hangu Pass in the Zhou dynasty, built a thatche…
Mount Lao is known as 'the foremost mountain by the sea,' and in Daoism as 'the dwelling of immortals and the abode of t…
Mount Mao was anciently called Mount Gouqu; tradition holds that the three Mao brothers — Mao Ying, Mao Gu and Mao Zhong…
White Cloud Temple (Baiyun Guan) is one of the Three Great Ancestral Courts of Quanzhen Daoism and the ancestral court o…
The Daodejing is the most fundamental classic of Daoist philosophy and religion, traditionally attributed to Lao Dan, Hi…
The Zhuangzi, together with the Daodejing, is one of the two great classics of Daoist philosophy. Its author, Zhuang Zho…
The Taiping Jing (Scripture of Great Peace) is the earliest and longest of the surviving early Daoist scriptures, and th…
The Zhouyi Cantong Qi (Token for the Agreement of the Three According to the Book of Changes) was later honored as the k…
The Baopuzi Inner Chapters is Ge Hong's systematic theoretical work summarizing the immortality arts transmitted from th…
The Scripture of the Yellow Court: Inner Effulgences (Huangting neijing jing) is the most important scripture of visuali…
The Declarations of the Perfected (Zhengao) is the fundamental text of the Shangqing School, compiled by Tao Hongjing fr…
The Duren jing, in full the Wondrous Scripture of the Upper Chapters on Limitless Salvation of Primordial Beginning, is …
The Qingjing jing (Scripture of Constant Clarity and Stillness) runs to only a little over 390 characters in total, and …
The Yunji Qiqian (Seven Slips from the Bookbag of the Clouds) is a Daoist compendium compiled by Zhang Junfang of the No…
The Wuzhen pian (Awakening to Reality) is a collection of internal-alchemy poems by Zhang Boduan of the Northern Song, r…
The Daoist Canon of the Zhengtong Era (Zhengtong Daozang) is the only complete premodern Daoist canon still in existence…