Wudoumi Dao (Five Pecks of Rice Dao) 五斗米道

An important early Taoist school. It was founded during the reign of Emperor Shun of the Eastern Han Dynasty (126–144 CE) by Zhang Ling (also known as Zhang Daoling), a native of Feng in the Pei State (present-day Feng County, Jiangsu Province), at Heming Mountain in western Sichuan (now in Dayi County, Sichuan; some say in Jiange County, Sichuan). He claimed that the Supreme Old Lord (Taishang Laojun) had descended to bestow teachings upon him, and he compiled 24 Taoist texts and talismans, including Zhengyi Jing (The Scripture of Orthodox Unity) and Tianguan Zhangben (The Fundamental Text of Heavenly Officials), styling himself "Taiqing Xuanyuan."

The religion he founded was originally called Zhengyi Dao (Orthodox Unity Dao) or Zhengyi Mengwei Dao (Orthodox Unity Dao of Covenant and Majesty). Since Taoist followers revered Zhang Ling as the "Celestial Master" (some say he styled himself as such), it was also known as Tianshi Dao (Celestial Master Dao).

Because initiates were required to offer five pecks of rice as a token of faith (one peck in the Han Dynasty was roughly equivalent to two liters today), it was commonly referred to as Wudoumi Dao (Five Pecks of Rice Dao); some claim the name derives from the worship of the Five Directions Stars and Doumu (the Mother of the Big Dipper). It is abbreviated as "Mi Dao" (Rice Dao).

Adherents worshipped a pantheon centered on "Taiqing Xuanyuan Wushang Sandian Wuji Dadao Taishang Laojun" (the Supreme Old Lord, the Unsurpassed Great Dao of the Three Heavens and the Unlimited), with Laozi’s Five Thousand Words (i.e., Dao De Jing) as their foundational scripture. Its doctrines emphasized saving the world, healing the people, and achieving immortality through longevity, teaching followers to uphold the Dao, observe precepts, and practice honesty and kindness. Its practices primarily included summoning spirits, exorcising demons with talismans, and also encompassed daoyin (guiding energy), qi circulation, sexual cultivation, and alchemical practices for preparing elixirs. Through healing villagers in mountainous areas, it gained popular faith: "The common people flocked to him as their teacher, with disciples numbering in the tens of thousands" (Ge Hong, Biography of Immortals, Vol. 4).

To organize followers, Zhang Ling established "jijiu" (ritual masters) to lead households, and set up "zhi" (administrative districts) with official positions in areas with concentrated believers—these served as basic organizational units and religious activity sites, i.e., missionary districts across various regions. By 143 CE (the 2nd year of Han’an), 24 such "zhi" were established (most in present-day Sichuan), with Yangping Zhi as the primary district, functioning as a central diocese. Zhang Ling used the Yangping Zhi Du Gong Seal and the Three-Five Demon-Slaying Male-Female Swords as symbols of his authority and inheritance.

Over 20 years after Zhang Ling’s ascension (156 CE), during the Guanghe era (178–183 CE) of Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty, Zhang Xiu, a native of Ba Commandery, propagated Wudoumi Dao in Ba Commandery and Hanzhong. His methods largely inherited Zhang Ling’s teachings with some developments: he appointed "jianling" (moral instructors) and "jijiu" to teach Laozi’s Five Thousand Words; in addition to healing with talismans, he "added the practice of purifying rooms, where patients would stay to reflect on their faults."

He also established "guili" (ghost officials) to pray for the sick. Drawing on ancient myths about the Heavenly Official (who bestows blessings), Earthly Official (who pardons sins), and Water Official (who relieves misfortune), prayers involved writing three documents listing the patient’s name and confession of guilt: one "sent to heaven, placed on a mountain," one "buried in the earth," and one "sunk in water"—known as the "Three Officials’ Handwritten Records" (Records of the Three Kingdoms, Vol. 8, Biography of Zhang Lu, annotated by Dian Lue). Patients often offered five pecks of rice as thanks, earning practitioners the nickname "Five Pecks of Rice Masters," and people "vied to serve them."

In 184 CE (the 1st year of Zhongping), Zhang Xiu responded to the Yellow Turban Rebellion, "invading counties," but was later defeated and killed. Zhang Lu, Zhang Ling’s grandson, inherited the family teachings, leveraged the power of Liu Yan, and occupied Ba Commandery and Hanzhong. He abolished local officials, ruled through "jijiu," and established a theocratic regime lasting nearly 30 years. He taught the people through "ghost Dao" (i.e., Wudoumi Dao): new initiates were called "ghost soldiers," while long-standing, trusted followers became "jijiu" (core leaders), and those commanding large numbers were "zhi tou da jijiu" (chief ritual masters of districts). All chief ritual masters were subordinate to Zhang Lu, who styled himself "Shi Jun" (Teacher-Lord), forming a hierarchical religious and administrative system. Followers were taught to be honest and not deceive, and to confess their faults when ill.

In each district under the "jijiu," "righteous shelters" were set up, stocked with rice and meat to provide free food and lodging for travelers. Those who committed minor offenses were ordered to repair 100 paces of road to atone. For serious crimes, leniency was granted twice; punishment was imposed only after a third offense. History records that "people and barbarians rejoiced in this," and the imperial court "lacked the power to conquer them." The lectures on Laozi’s Five Thousand Words from Zhang Ling to Zhang Lu became the Xiang’er Zhu (Annotations of Xiang’er).

The Xiang’er Zhu interpreted Laozi from a religious theological perspective, stating: "The One is the Dao... When the One disperses, it becomes qi; when it gathers, it becomes the Supreme Old Lord"; "The Dao bestows life to reward goodness and death to deter evil"; "Uphold Daoist precepts, accumulate virtue to achieve merit, gather essence to become a spirit, and the spirit attains immortality"; "Rulers must cultivate virtue; loyal ministers assist in practicing the Dao. When the Dao is widespread and virtue abounds, peace arrives; when officials and people cherish this, governance becomes easy. If all believe in the Dao, all will attain immortal longevity." It propagated faith in the Dao, cultivation of the Dao, and practice of the Dao—claiming that governing by the Dao brings peace to the state, and cultivating the Dao brings immortality to the individual—exerting a significant influence in Taoist history.

In 215 CE (the 20th year of Jian’an), Zhang Lu surrendered to Cao Cao, was appointed General of the Southern Pacification, and enfeoffed as Marquis of Langzhong. A large number of followers migrated north with him, spreading Wudoumi Dao to the Central Plains and later to the southeast. During the Jin Dynasty, aristocratic families joined in droves—for example, the family of Wang Xizhi "generations practiced Zhang’s Five Pecks of Rice Dao." Farmers in Sichuan and the Jiangzhe region frequently used Wudoumi Dao to stage uprisings; Sun En and Lu Xun led a peasant rebellion lasting over a decade (397–411), with "eight commanderies rising simultaneously" and an army of hundreds of thousands.

During the Northern and Southern Dynasties, in the north, Kou Qianzhi, a Taoist of Songshan, claimed to have received a mandate from the Supreme Old Lord to "purify Taoism, eliminating Zhang’s false methods" and establish a new Tianshi Dao "focused on ritual propriety, supplemented by ingestion and cultivation." This became known as Northern Tianshi Dao.

In the south, Lu Xiujing, a Taoist of Lushan, compiled Taoist scriptures and systematized Taoist fasting and ritual norms, founding Southern Tianshi Dao. After the Tang and Song dynasties, Northern and Southern Tianshi Dao gradually merged with other schools such as Shangqing, Lingbao, and Jingming. In 1304 CE (the 8th year of Dade in the Yuan Dynasty), Zhang Yucai, the 38th descendant of Zhang Daoling, was appointed "Patriarch of Orthodox Unity," overseeing the talismans of the Three Mountains (Maoshan, Gezao Mountain, and Longhu Mountain). This formally established Zhengyi Dao as the collective name for all talismanic Taoist schools, which, along with Quanzhen Dao, became the two major sects of Chinese Taoism from the Yuan Dynasty onward.

Thus, Wudoumi Dao was a secular name for Zhengyi Dao (Tianshi Dao) founded by Zhang Daoling during the Han, Wei, and Jin dynasties. This term appears only in official histories, not in Taoist texts, and fell out of use after the Northern and Southern Dynasties.