|
Taoism is adhered to by 8.5% of the entire population of Singapore. In general, nearly all adherents of Taoism in Singapore are considered to belong to the Zhen Yi school, although such classification does not exist in practice as adherents of folk Taoism focus worship on deities that do not correspond to traditional Taoist virtues. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 559 KB) Summary Thian Hock Keng Temple. ...
Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 559 KB) Summary Thian Hock Keng Temple. ...
Thian Hock Keng Temple Thian Hock Keng Temple (Chinese: 天ç¦å®«; Pinyin: TiÄnfú GÅng; Temple of Heavenly Happiness) is the oldest and most important Hokkien temple in Singapore. ...
Taoism (pronounced and often written as Daoism (dow-ism)) is the English name for a religious and philosophical tradition in China. ...
History Taoism first arrived in Singapore with the first Chinese settlers in Singapore. The majority of these settlers worshipped 妈祖 (Ma Zu or Matsu) to guide them safely in on their arrival in a new foreign country. Taoist practice later flourished as an increasing number of Chinese merchants and coolies settled in Singapore. Matsu can refer to: Matsu, a significant sea goddess in Chinese culture. ...
Many Taoist followers worship Buddhas as well, leading to a blurring between both religions. Subsequently with the rise of Buddhist activists in the 1980s, the pool of worshippers who worship both Taoist deities and Buddhas realigned to declare themselves as Buddhists even if they were primarily worshipping Taoist deities (defined as families which worship Taoist deities at home). This led to a statistical decline in the Taoist population in Singapore and a confusion of Taoism as a religion in its own right.
Role of Taoism in the Chinese community Taoism itself forms the nucleus of Chinese customs among the Chinese in Singapore, and such beliefs are also adopted by folk Buddhists. Deities, such as Guan Yu, the Kitchen God and the patron deity are some of the most popular deities among Taoist adherents among the local Chinese community. The Yin Yang concept, being an orthodox Taoist principle, is only ancedotally practiced among folk Taoists. This is a Chinese name; the family name is Guan (關) Guan Yu (關羽) (160–219) was a military general under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Eastern Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms period in ancient China. ...
Taoists Taijitu The concept of Yin Yang originates in ancient Chinese philosophy, most likely from the observations of day turning into night and night into day. ...
Taoist martial arts, notably Tai Chi, is practiced in community centres. Tai Chi Chuan, Tai Chi Chüan or Taijiquan (Traditional Chinese: ; Simplified Chinese: ; pinyin: ; literally supreme ultimate fist), commonly known as Tai Chi, Tai Chi, or Taiji, is an internal Chinese martial art. ...
Today, most of the 200-odd Chinese temples in Singapore have Taoist gods enshrined and worshipped alongside with the Buddha, although the 2000 census states that there are over 300 Taoist temples and altars in Singapore. One of these Taoist temples is the Thian Hock Keng, built by the wealthy philanthropist Tan Tock Seng. Media:Example. ...
Thian Hock Keng Temple Thian Hock Keng Temple (Chinese: 天ç¦å®«; Pinyin: TiÄnfú GÅng; Temple of Heavenly Happiness) is the oldest and most important Hokkien temple in Singapore. ...
Tan Tock Seng Tan Tock Seng (陳篤生, 1798-1850) is a merchant and philanthropist. ...
Ancestor worship Chinese Ancestor worship is a Taoist practice by nature, practiced by a large number of ethnic Chinese in Singapore. Taoist, Buddhist and even Roman Catholic Chinese practice ancestor worship. The only exception are Chinese people who adhere to various Protestant denominations, and possibly Muslims, in which case Chinese ancestor worship is viewed as pagan rituals and thus not condoned in practice.
In the past, Chinese families owned ancestral tablets with the ancestors' names inscribed on them. Such tablets are placed on ancestral altars and urns meant for placing joss sticks, and food offerings are usually placed in front of it. Ancestral tablets found in Chinese homes only state the names of patrilineal ancestors and their wives. With the advent of modernism, such practices have almost vanished, and only Taoist or Buddhist altars can be found in Chinese homes.
Families may choose to have their ancestors cremated or buried in coloboriums and cemeteries respectively. Families would visit their ancestor's resting place, especially during theQingming Festival. They would bring joss sticks, incense paper and food offerings to the ancestors. Burning paper gifts for the departed. ...
According to Chinese custom and tradition, people worshipping ancestors at Chinese cemeteries or colobariums must first lay out their offerings and prayer items before burning the joss stick. The worshippers may then recite prayers before proceeding to place their joss sticks on designated areas.
The worshippers then burn the incense paper in front of the ancestors. Worshippers would collect the food after worship.
Incense Paper Incense paper used for ancestor worship comes in several forms; each represents a present for the ancestor's spirit. Paper coloured yellow with a gold foil printed on it represents a gold tael; that with a silver foil represents a silver tael.
Another variant is single-coloured paper which is manufactured with a rougher surface on one side and a smoother surface on the other side. Such paper come in varying colours. Incense paper of this type is to be rolled up and snugged tightly at both ends. The smoother face should form the exterior surface. Incense paper of this variant is used to represent clothes for the ancestor. Paper with a soft and rough surface printed in brown recycled paper serves as cloth.
Hell bank notes of various sizes as well as Kai chin are used to represent money. All of this incense paper is arranged and collected into a bundle known as Yim bou in accordance to significance. The brown incense paper serves as the base. Usually, the base must have an even number of "cloth" papers, and one sheet will serve as the nucleus of the base. They are followed on by the bank notes, Kai chin, clothes and taels, and the Yim bou is gathered up, and burnt with a candle before throwing it into the urn. Joss papers manufactured into the shape of shirts and trousers are sometimes burnt together with the Yim bou. The widely used $10,000 Hell note. ...
Joss paper Joss paper (Simplified Chinese: 金纸; Traditional Chinese: 金紙; Pinyin: JÄ«nzhÇ; literally gold paper), also known as ghost money, are sheets of paper that are burned in traditional Chinese deity or ancestor worship ceremonies during special holidays. ...
External links | 
Feeds |
Contact