Taiwan 2002

		Religion
		I-kuan Tao The Chinese words I-kuan Tao can be roughly translated as the "Religion of One Unity." The name belies I-kuan Tao's nature as a religious doctrine that draws upon both traditional Chinese teachings and each of the world's major religions. I-kuan Tao is a modern, syncretic faith, and the third most popular religion in Taiwan. According to I-kuan Tao adherents, this religion attempts to identify common principles underlying Taoism, Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, Judaism, and Hinduism. I-kuan Tao faithful believe that by uncovering a single set of universal truths, the "increasing chaos" of modern times can be defeated and the world can live peacefully in harmony. They believe in a God beyond all other gods, called Ming-ming Shang-ti 明明上帝 (the God of Clarity). I-kuan Tao evolved from Hsien-tien Tao 先天道, which was founded by Huang Te-hui 黃德輝 in the 17th century. Huang combined the three main belief systems of China with a belief in the Wu-sheng Lao-mu 無生老母 deity to form Hsien-tien Tao. One reason for its rapid spread throughout China over the years was that, although I-kuan Tao claimed to be a universal religion, its basic writings, forms of religious observance, and moral precepts were all couched in traditional Chinese terms. By drawing heavily on Confucian, Buddhist, Taoist, and folk religious terminology, I-kuan Tao was readily understandable in traditional Chinese religious terms. I-kuan Tao adherents follow many of the rituals of Confucianism and engage in ancestor worship. Services are usually held at family shrines and are aimed at both cultivating personal character and regulating family relationstwo key concepts in Chinese culture. Proselytism of I-kuan Tao has not always been such an open matter. Indeed, I-kuan Tao teachings incorporate a tradition of secrecy inherited from the various clandestine religious sects that have thrived during periods of chaos in Chinese history. In their day-to-day lives, I-kuan Tao followers strive to uphold the precepts of not killing, stealing, committing adultery, lying, or drinking alcohol, while putting into practice the I-kuan Tao ideals of benevolence, righteousness, courtesy, wisdom, and faith. By 2000, there were 3,124 large or medium-sized I-kuan Tao temples in Taiwan with 2,281 temple priests serving approximately 845,000 believers. By increasing the number of I-kuan Tao temples, the faithful believe they are bringing the Buddhist "Western Paradise" to earth and creating a world of brotherhood and universal love as envisioned by Confucian teachings. Personal sublimation and a life of service are key tenets in the I-kuan Tao moral philosophy, and adherents devote a great deal of resources to social work. In Taiwan, there are four I-kuan Tao seminaries, 34 kindergartens, one nursery, one orphanage, four retirement homes, 21 hospitals, eight clinics, 20 libraries, 30 publishing houses, and 32 publications. The service ethic is closely related to the order's tradition that believers should "give their hearts to the universe and contribute their lives to humanity." Since it was brought to Taiwan, I-kuan Tao has established many cultural and educational units. These units train an average of 10,000 I-kuan Tao devotees each year. Over half of the vegetarian restaurants around the island are run by I-kuan Tao adherents, who are required to follow a strict vegetarian diet. Copyright (C) July 2002, Government Information Office.   All rights reserved.   Site design by L.F. Lee Best viewed with Netscape 4.x or IE 5.x (medium font) at 800 x 600 True Color (32 bit) resolution