Daoist temples - The ten-directional community temple

Daoist temples - The ten-directional community temple.

The ten-directional community temple is also known as the permanent residence in ten directions. In Daoism, the ten directions refer to ten positions: east, south, west, north, northeast, southeast, northwest, southwest, upper direction and lower direction. It can receive Daoist friends from ten directions to cultivate and pursue immortality. "Permanent residence" means lasting and unbreakable. "Community" means lush and prosperous.

This kind of temple hangs bells and clappers. Daily routines and affairs are commanded by bells and clappers. It has the privilege of conferring precepts but is not allowed to confer the headdress and accept disciples. Disciples received in descendant temples come to register and stay, thus forming the Daoist community. In the community temple, they learn from each other. Therefore, the Daoist priests in the community temple are highly mobile. There is a saying that the community temple is like iron while the Daoist friends are like flowing water. Now, the community temples in Daoism have some changes compared with the past. Many ten-directional community temples are accepting disciples by conferring the headdress. After the founding of New China, except for the opening of the precept-conferring altar at Baiyun Temple in Beijing at the end of 1989, other ten-directional community temples have not resumed the precept-conferring activities.

In the past, when Daoist priests went to register and stay at a community temple, they needed to recite Daoist scriptures to distinguish authenticity. Now, only formalities and proof are required. Many Daoist friends think that if a ten-directional community temple in a place is very prosperous and there are many people, then the Daoist atmosphere here is very good and very suitable for cultivating the Dao. After all, for those who cultivate the Dao, the Daoist atmosphere is a very important thing. Only when the Daoist atmosphere is correct can one cultivate the Dao better.