What exactly does "All Dharmas Return to the Origin" refer to in Taoism?
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All Dharmas Return to the Origin
The so-called "All Dharmas Return to the Origin" here means that all the doctrines, scriptures, teachings, sects, precepts, and cultivation methods of Taoism should ultimately return to believing in and cultivating the Tao, with sincere thinking and aspiration for the Tao.
All those who study and practice the Tao, regardless of which Taoist sect they belong to or which type of teaching they are good at, such as verbal teaching, personal example teaching, or scriptural teaching, should have the same beliefs, pursuits, and basic doctrines. In terms of Taoist sects, there are two major sects in Taoism, Zhengyi and Quanzhen. However, the belief systems and scriptural teaching systems of the two sects are consistent. They all take the Supreme True and Constant Tao as the highest belief, venerate the Three Pure Ones, and regard the scriptures of the Three Caverns and Four Supplements as the foundation of scriptural teaching. Zhengyi takes the essence of being true and undivided and combating and eliminating false and evil as its connotation. Quanzhen advocates accumulating true merits and practicing true deeds as its essence. What they both aim to embody and advocate is the Supreme True Tao. Although there are differences in alchemy and talisman cultivation, the core content of both is to save oneself and others. For a Taoist priest, whether he belongs to Zhengyi or Quanzhen, he should cultivate both his mind and body and the Tao simultaneously and should not neglect either. Zhang Jixian, the 30th Celestial Master, once said: "There is no Dharma outside this body." That is to say, when cultivating the Tao Dharma, one should first cultivate one's mind and body, accumulate Tao merits, condense spiritual energy to conform to the Tao, and achieve the purpose of saving oneself (cultivating the mind and body, conforming to the Tao and attaining enlightenment) and saving others (using one's own Tao merits to save others). Regarding scriptural teaching and precepts, precepts are to regulate the words and deeds of those who study and practice the Tao to meet the requirements of cultivating the Tao. For example, the Three Refuges and Five Precepts: The Three Refuges require Taoists to take refuge in the Three Treasures of the Tao, scriptures, and masters to clarify their beliefs; the Five Precepts, which prohibit killing for self-entertainment, prohibit lewdness, prohibit stealing, prohibit lying, and prohibit excessive drinking, are all for improving moral cultivation. Scriptural teaching is to make one's mind and spirit get close to the deities by chanting scriptures and performing rituals, so as to realize and understand the true Tao. At the same time, it is also an important form of proclaiming Taoist doctrines and spreading the teachings.
In conclusion, all the teaching methods and forms practiced by Taoism take "Tao" as the core tenet. As a Taoist priest, one should focus on morality. There was once a couplet in the Celestial Master's Mansion, the ancestral hall of Mount Longhu: "When the Tao is lofty, dragons and tigers submit; when virtue is profound, ghosts and spirits admire."
The so-called "All Dharmas Return to the Origin" here means that all the doctrines, scriptures, teachings, sects, precepts, and cultivation methods of Taoism should ultimately return to believing in and cultivating the Tao, with sincere thinking and aspiration for the Tao.
All those who study and practice the Tao, regardless of which Taoist sect they belong to or which type of teaching they are good at, such as verbal teaching, personal example teaching, or scriptural teaching, should have the same beliefs, pursuits, and basic doctrines. In terms of Taoist sects, there are two major sects in Taoism, Zhengyi and Quanzhen. However, the belief systems and scriptural teaching systems of the two sects are consistent. They all take the Supreme True and Constant Tao as the highest belief, venerate the Three Pure Ones, and regard the scriptures of the Three Caverns and Four Supplements as the foundation of scriptural teaching. Zhengyi takes the essence of being true and undivided and combating and eliminating false and evil as its connotation. Quanzhen advocates accumulating true merits and practicing true deeds as its essence. What they both aim to embody and advocate is the Supreme True Tao. Although there are differences in alchemy and talisman cultivation, the core content of both is to save oneself and others. For a Taoist priest, whether he belongs to Zhengyi or Quanzhen, he should cultivate both his mind and body and the Tao simultaneously and should not neglect either. Zhang Jixian, the 30th Celestial Master, once said: "There is no Dharma outside this body." That is to say, when cultivating the Tao Dharma, one should first cultivate one's mind and body, accumulate Tao merits, condense spiritual energy to conform to the Tao, and achieve the purpose of saving oneself (cultivating the mind and body, conforming to the Tao and attaining enlightenment) and saving others (using one's own Tao merits to save others). Regarding scriptural teaching and precepts, precepts are to regulate the words and deeds of those who study and practice the Tao to meet the requirements of cultivating the Tao. For example, the Three Refuges and Five Precepts: The Three Refuges require Taoists to take refuge in the Three Treasures of the Tao, scriptures, and masters to clarify their beliefs; the Five Precepts, which prohibit killing for self-entertainment, prohibit lewdness, prohibit stealing, prohibit lying, and prohibit excessive drinking, are all for improving moral cultivation. Scriptural teaching is to make one's mind and spirit get close to the deities by chanting scriptures and performing rituals, so as to realize and understand the true Tao. At the same time, it is also an important form of proclaiming Taoist doctrines and spreading the teachings.
In conclusion, all the teaching methods and forms practiced by Taoism take "Tao" as the core tenet. As a Taoist priest, one should focus on morality. There was once a couplet in the Celestial Master's Mansion, the ancestral hall of Mount Longhu: "When the Tao is lofty, dragons and tigers submit; when virtue is profound, ghosts and spirits admire."
