Originally Posted by
maweitao
Is this some kind of joke? I suppose your implication is that only rural Chinese are uneducated enough to actually believe in Gods. Very nice. Indeed, there are variations of Taosim, but the vast majority of taoists in Asia do indeed believe in dieties. And the religion itself is defined by a higher power, be it an abstract entity or a physical being. And thats when they don't mix religions, most commonly combining buddhism with taoism.
Rural China indeed. Someone better remind all the Taoists who believe in deities living in major cities that they belong in rural China. I'll be sure my wife's parents get the memo.
Hyperbole.
Taoist worshipping of spirits is no different than some catholics venerating saints. If you go to the core of the matter, there is nothing in the central writings of the religion itself that these actions are based upon, but is a socially learned part of the religious experience. For me, based on my personal readings of the Tao Te Ching and various other early writings, there's no basis for the worship of spirits. If someone wishes to, fine for them, but I see no need to, and there's nothing in the Tao Te Ching perscribing such behavior.