Tiantai Mountain has long been famous as the source of Taoism. Yesterday, the first cultural week of Taoist Southern Branch opened there in Tongbai Palace, the birthplace of the southern branch. 

The activity themed “Exchange of and Insight into Taoism” was hosted by the Taoist Association of Zhejiang. It fully showed the profoundness of the Taoism, including culture, and health, etc.

From ancient times, Tongbai Palace has been listed by the Taoism as the sixth holy place. Over 900 years ago, Holy Man Ziyang, Zhang Boduan, practiced in Tongbai Palace, advocating the ideas of “edifying disposition and improving health” and “three doctrines in one”, and finishing the classic Taoist book – Insight into Truth. Thus, the southern branch was opened, with Zhang Boduan as its founder and Tongbai Palace as its birthplace. Since then, Tongbai Palace has fostered a lot of masters and disciples. Tongbai Palace in the south China and Baiyun Temple (the birthplace of Taoism’s northern branch) in the north China witnessed the heyday of Taoism.

In 2005, Tiantai County started the reconstruction of Tongbai Palace. Six main projects have been completed such as Ziyang Palace, Yuhuang Palace and Sanqing Palace, etc. The number of the completed buildings and those under construction has reached more than 40, even more spectacular than the heyday of Tongbai Palace.

At the opening ceremony yesterday morning, the prayer rite and the unveiling ceremony of the statues of Holy Man Ziyang, Jade Emperor and Guardian Linggua were held in Tongbai Palace. The statue of Holy Man Ziyang is made of a complete length of precious rose wood weighed 25.95 tons by a master of arts and crafts. This statue has served as the treasure of Tongbai Palace.
Attention was paid to a forum held yesterday afternoon. Taoist Ren Farong, President of the Chinese Taoist Association, Hu Fuchen, a Ph.D. tutor of Philosophy Institute in Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, and other guests compared notes on the history of the Tiantai-Mountain-based Taoism and Taoism’s southern branch, the functions of Taoism and Taoism’s southern branch, their relationship, etc.

During the week, the sponsor also held the calligraphy and painting exhibition and the musical prayer rite related to Taoism’s southern branch, the seminar on health culture in Taoism, and other events.