How many people are there in the world who believe in Taoism? Who is the founder of Taoism?
There are many people who believe in religion, whether in our country or in other countries in the world. The first thing we all know should be Christianity, because Christianity has the largest number of believers in the world. Yes, how many followers does Taoism have? Which country invented the religion Taoism?
How many people are Taoist believers in the world?
The latest "Global Religious Landscape" report published by the American polling organization Pew Research Center (Pew Research Center) stated that among the world's 6.9 billion people, 84% of people (5.8 billion people) have religious beliefs, of which 32% are Christians, 23% Muslims, 15% Hindus, and 7% Buddhists. As for the 1 billion people who have no religious beliefs, 62% People live in China.
This "Global Overview of Religion" report analyzes 2011 survey data, covering 230 countries and regions in the world and 2,500 survey reports. It is a global survey of the Pew Research Center's Religion and Public Life Research Group. One of the Religious Trends Project, which studies the impact and development trends of religions on society around the world.
The report shows: Christianity (including Catholicism) is the most common religion, with 2.2 billion believers, followed by Muslims with 1.6 billion, Hindus with 1 billion, Buddhism with 500 million, and traditional religions and folk beliefs with 400 million. Other religions (including Jainism, Sikhism, Shintoism, Taoism and witchcraft, etc.) also have 5.8 million followers. This shows that there are still not many believers in Taoism. However, there is still no statistics on the specific number of people, but it will not exceed five million at most.
Among the 2.2 billion Christians in the world, half are Catholics, 37% are Protestants (including Anglicans, independent churches and Christian church organizations that are not part of the mainstream denominations), and about 12% are Orthodox ( Including Greek Orthodoxy and Russian Orthodoxy), as for sects such as Scientology, Mormonism and Jehovah's Witnesses, they only account for 1%. In 157 countries, including the United States, Brazil, Mexico, Russia, and the Philippines, Christians have the largest number of people, but 99% of Christians live in countries other than their place of origin. Muslims lead the list in 49 countries (including 19 of 20 countries in the Middle East and North Africa), while Hindus are mainly distributed in three countries: India, Nepal, and Mauritius. In terms of distribution, Christianity is the most widely distributed religion in the world, while Hinduism is the most concentrated religion (94% of Hindus live in India). In the Asia-Pacific region, where 58.8% of the world's population lives, 99% are Buddhists and Hindus, 62% Muslims, and 76% non-religious. The world is almost dominated by Buddhism and Hindus.
Who is the founder of Taoism
Buddhism has four heavenly kings, and Taoism has four heavenly masters. The most famous of the four heavenly masters is Zhang Ling. Zhang Ling was not only the founder of Taoism, but also a pioneer in life sciences in my country. It is said that he lived for more than 120 years. In addition, Longhu Mountain, where Master Zhang Tianshi has lived for generations, is a natural geomantic treasure and is known as the most ideal Yangzhai in the world.
In the history of Taoism, Taoist priests who are called heavenly masters include Kou Qianzhi, Lu Jingxiu, Du Guangting, etc., but usually the four great heavenly masters refer to Zhang Ling, Ge Xuan, Xu Xun, Sa Shoujian, or Refers to Zhang Ling, Ge Hong, Xu Xun and Qiu Hongji. "Journey to the West" adopts the latter term. Among the four great Celestial Masters, Zhang Ling is the most famous, not only because he is the founder of Taoism, but also because he is a descendant of Zhang Liang, the founding hero of the Han Dynasty, and his descendants have hereditary Celestial Master Taoism, and have been awarded titles by the imperial court in all dynasties. It has been passed down for 63 generations and has lasted for more than 1,800 years, and is highly respected among the people.
Zhang Ling, also known as Fu Han, was born in 34 AD and died in 157 AD. He lived for more than 120 years. There were two early Taoisms that appeared in the Eastern Han Dynasty: one was Taiping Taoism founded by Yu Ji from Langya, Shandong, which was used by the Zhang Jiao brothers to organize the Yellow Turban Uprising. After the uprising failed, Taiping Taoism also collapsed; the other was Taiping Taoism from Fengxian County, Jiangsu Province. The Five Pecks of Rice Road created by Zhang Ling in Shu County was passed down through the generations and became the authentic Taoist tradition.
Zhang Ling's origin and experience are full of legend. His ancestor Zhang Liang was a man of great wisdom. He retired from the army at the beginning of the Han Dynasty and learned bigu and guidance from the immortal Chisongzi. The art of lightening one's body. Although Zhang Liang learned immortality because of his physical illness, it had a subtle influence on his descendants. Later, Zhang Ling believed in the ways of Lao and Zhuang, and his family genes played a big role.
According to records in books such as "Qingwei Immortal Genealogy", "Tongjian of the Immortals of the Past Dynasties", and "Complete Biography of Immortals", Zhang Ling is the ninth grandson of Zhang Liang (some say the eighth grandson). After Zhang Liang's death, his son Zhang Bujie became a marquis, and Bujie gave birth to two sons. The second son, Zhang Gao, begat Zhang Tong, Zhang Tong begat Zhang Wuwu, Zhang Wuwu begat Zhang Liren, Zhang Liren begat Zhang Hao, Zhang Hao begat Zhang Gang, and Zhang Gang Zhang Yi. Zhang Yi was Zhang Ling's father and he once lived in Tianmu Mountain.
Taoist books describe the birth of Zhang Ling in a miraculous way, saying that Zhang Yi’s wife Lin dreamed of a god descending from the Big Dipper to the earth at night. He was given the title of Lin and said: "I first lived in Fangshan, but now I have come to your house by God's order." ?Lin was pregnant that night. After returning to Fengxian County, Zhang Ling was born on the first day of the first month of the Jiawu period in the tenth year of Emperor Guangwu's reign. When he was born, Zhang Ling was born in a room filled with yellow clouds, purple air filled the courtyard, and the light in the room was like daylight.