How do Taoist practitioners cultivate at home?

  In Taoism, the meaning of cultivation refers to "cultivating the nature and refining the life". "Nature" refers to the spirit, and "life" refers to the physical body. Cultivation is to exercise self-control over the spirit and the physical body through certain means and methods, so as to achieve the lofty goal of "My fate is in my own hands, not in the hands of heaven".

The basic requirements for Taoist practitioners who cultivate at home are: to respect the Tao and value virtue, to cultivate according to the teachings, to help the world and benefit people, to accumulate merits and virtues, to respect teachers and the teachings, to observe vegetarianism and recite scriptures, to convert to the Three Treasures of the Tao, the Scriptures, and the Masters, to refrain from all evils, and to practice all kinds of good deeds.

In addition, the following methods are used during specific cultivation:

Observing fasting.

The dates for observing fasting are: the six fasting months, which are every odd-numbered month; the ten fasting days, that is, the first, eighth, fourteenth, fifteenth, eighteenth, twenty-third, twenty-fourth, twenty-eighth, twenty-ninth, and thirtieth days of each month; the Three Yuan Days, namely the fifteenth day of the first lunar month (the Shangyuan Day), the fifteenth day of the seventh lunar month (the Zhongyuan Day), and the fifteenth day of the tenth lunar month (the Xiayuan Day); the eight solar terms days, that is, the Beginning of Spring, the Beginning of Summer, the Beginning of Autumn, the Beginning of Winter, the Spring Equinox, the Summer Solstice, the Autumn Equinox, and the Winter Solstice; the Jiazi Day; the Gengshen Day; and the natal day. In addition, all religious ceremonies such as reciting scriptures, performing penance rituals, offering sacrifices and refining, and holding Taoist rites (jiao) are included in the scope of observing fasting.

Reciting and studying Taoist scriptures.

Depending on the cultural level of the cultivator, generally, one should recite and study the "Morning and Evening Recitation Scriptures", the "Scripture of the Three Officials and the Big Dipper", the "Treatise on the Response of the Supreme Lord", the "Inscribed Texts on the Secret Virtues of Lord Wenchang" and so on. Taoist practitioners with a higher cultural level can also recite and study classics such as the "Tao Te Ching", the "Zhuangzi" (also known as "Nanhuajing"), and the "Essentials of Life and Nature".

Cultivating skills.

Taoist practitioners who cultivate at home should also cultivate their mind and body in their spare time from work and labor, so as to cure diseases and strengthen the body, prolong life, and even "attain the Tao and become an immortal". Specific cultivation skills can be learned from the master of conversion or other Taoist priests.