Page 147 - The Encyclopedia of Taoism v1_A-L

OVERVIEW I07

Fig. 16. Pavilion of the Three Clarities and the Pour Sovereigns (Sanqing Siyu dian :::: ti'i [!l
1ij»\lt). *Baiyun guan (Abbey of the White Clouds), Beijing. Reproduced from Zhongguo
daojiao xiehui 1983.

other. In a further step to close the gap between pure Taoist and non-Taoist
devotional practice, Lingbao also laid the foundation for the Taoist adoption
of Buddhist-style icons, and from the fifth century onward we witness the
spread of statues and iconic stelae (and devotional associations) for the cults
of Laozi and various Celestial Worthies (tianzun :7C~).
During the Tang, the early Taoist opposition to local cults gradually evolved
into cooperation, which came to fruition in the tenth to thirteenth centuries.
During that period, many local saints were included in the outer, phenomenal
part (*houtian) of the Taoist liturgical pantheon. Some Taoist lineages even
formed around local saints (such as *Xu Xun), who became their spiritual an-
cestors. Taoists (and Buddhists) began to be employed in or even build temples
devoted to such saints, and these temples, rather than the more purely Taoist
abbeys (guan WO, became the prime venue for Taoist activities throughout
China. Yet the Celestial Masters' project was not forgotten, as Taoists always