Kou (365-448) was born in Changping, Shanggu (now Beijing). Born in the northern gentry, he learned the Five Dou Mi Dao when he was young, and then went from Chenggong to Huashan Temple. Later, it is said that the old gentleman named Shi Tian as the assistant to the Northern Wei Emperor (reigned from 423 to 452). In order to meet the needs of the rulers, he reformed the teachings of Taoism in Shi Tian founded by Zhang Daoling, Zhang Heng and Zhang Lu, and reorganized the religious organizations, which was called New Shi Tian Taoism in history. He realized the combination of Taoism and political power, made Taoism the state religion of the Northern Wei regime, and pushed the development of Taoism to a peak.
According to Shu Wei, Kou Qianzhi liked fairy tales since he was a child? "Historical Records Lao Zhi" records Kou Qian's study of Zhang Lu (? -2 16), but it has no effect. Because of his inner desire for Taoism, he was moved to heaven, and a fairy descended to earth and led him into Huashan and Songshan to practice. Seven years later, Kou was afraid to take the medicine that Cheng Gongxing gave him because he thought it smelled bad. Cheng Gongxing therefore told him that he could not become an immortal, but he could be the emperor's teacher politically. Kou claimed that he had seen the immortal twice and gave him a gobbledygook. The first time was in the second year of Yuan Di Shenrui in the Northern Wei and Ming Dynasties (4 15). At the age of 51, Kou Qian personally came to Songshan, where he was given the post of Shi Tian and twenty volumes of Commandments of New Branches in the Cloud. Ask him to pass on this classic, clean up Taoism, and eliminate the three false laws. In addition, the formulas and methods of persuasion and guidance are given. The orthodox Taoist classic "Laojun Chanting" mainly contains the precepts and teaching norms of Shi Tiandao. Chen thinks that this may be the remnant of the commandment of chanting new branches in the clouds.
The second time, in the eighth year of Taichang (423), when Kou was fifty-nine, Li Puwen, the great-grandson of Taishang Laojun, came and gave him four records of Taibao, such as Kyushu True Teacher, Ghost Therapist, Civilian Therapist and Shi Tian Step by Step, and also presented the Three True Records of Heaven, also known as Record True Classics, with more than 60 volumes for use. And asked him to help the northern Taiping town army build the static wheel palace.
Thailand often eight years, because the prime minister Ho Choi (38 1? -450), Kou was highly valued by the Northern Wei emperors. Kou Qianzhi prayed for Emperor Taizu in Songshan, Zhongyue (440). According to records, he was deeply touched by heaven and earth, and the old gentleman gave the Taiwu emperor the title of "true prince of peace" and gave him the crown and blessing. Therefore, the title was changed to the first year of "Taiping Zhenjun". Two years later, Kou Qianzhi invited him to build Jinglun Temple. Emperor Mao personally went to the altar to offer sacrifices. Since then, the Northern Wei Emperor ascended the throne, and all of them held this grand religious ceremony. In 446, it was suggested that Taizu destroy the Buddha, but Kou opposed it. Kou Qian died in the ninth year of Taiping Zhenjun (448) and enjoyed a life of eighty-three. He assisted Taizu for twenty-four years, which was the most prosperous period of Taoism in New Shi Tian.
Shu Wei has Kou Qianzhi's immortal theory. Interpretation of Laozi. There are thirty-six heavy days in the upper bound, and there are palaces in each heavy day, and there are gods in the palaces. Its immortal pedigree is completely different from the belief of Wudou Midao, and the hierarchical and subordinate relationship between gods is more clear. The immortals he believed in were also different from those mentioned by Ge Hong in the south and later by Tao Hongjing (456-536) in the Orientation Map of Lingbao Zhenling in Dong Xuan.
Kou Qianzhi combined Taoism's health preserving thought with Buddhism's concept of reincarnation, and put forward the way of longevity of Taoism in new Shi Tian. Taoism advocates shaping and pays attention to secular cultivation, but Kou introduced the concept of reincarnation into Taoism, thinking that what people did in previous lives had a great influence on secular cultivation. Kou Qianzhi's proposition gives believers a little more hope of becoming immortal, that is, even if the cultivation in this life can't be immortal, they can accumulate kung fu into the next life. Make Taoism immortal and increase the immortal ideal from generation to generation. Kou Qianzhi emphasized that immortals need immortals to teach him methods and give him medicine, which is understandable. He advised Emperor Taizu to build a static wheel hall, and he must reach a height where chickens and dogs can't bark, so as to facilitate the gods to descend to earth and hand over to them.
Historically, Kou Qian-zhi's Taoism after the reform was called "New Stone Heaven". Relatively speaking, because he studied Stone Heaven and Zhang Lu from his youth, it was called "Old Daoism". His basic contents of reforming old Taoism and establishing new Taoism can be divided into the following five points:
First, rectify the youth league organization.
In the organization of Taoism in Shi Tian, "Shi Tian" is the title of Taoist leader in Shi Tian, which was inherited by Zhang Daoling's descendants. And "offering wine" is the name of cadres at all levels in Tianshidao. He opposed the inheritance of Shi Tian and wine sacrifice, and denied the status of Zhang Heng and Zhang Lu as Shi Tian. This provides a powerful explanation for the rationality of his own Tianshi status.
Second, cancel the rice rent tax system
At the same time, Kou Qianzhi abolished the inheritance of sacrificial wine, and announced that the tax on renting rice money for sacrificial wine was a three-fake law and must be abolished. Taoist officials are not allowed to accept money when offering wine to believers to teach healing and prayer. Kou's measures not only conform to the position of the rulers, but also can correct the unhealthy trend of officials greedy for money, reduce the economic burden of the Taoist people, and contribute to the normal development of cults.
Third, oppose the combination of men and women.
Taoist practice of combining qi between men and women, also known as "in-room technique" or "Huang Chi's way", is originally a eugenic method that emphasizes temperance and leaves good seeds, and it is also a health-preserving method. Kou Qian-zhi's reason for opposing the combination of men and women lies in maintaining social atmosphere. Because some Taoist priests turn the method of keeping healthy for men and women into obscene art under the guise of sexual intercourse, the art of sexual intercourse has lost its positive significance of abstinence and cherish and become immoral. Some Taoist officials falsely spread Huang Chi-fang's skills taught by Zhang Daoling, giving people husband and wife and raping young girls, which is harmful to Taoism. Therefore, Kou Qian-zhi decided to abolish the technique of combining qi between men and women, forbade male and female officials to practice Huang Chi's way, and changed it to the method of clearing differences.
Fourth, add discipline and advocate ethics.
Kou Qianzhi's neo-Taoism is mainly about ceremony. In order to maintain the discipline of cults, he absorbed many Confucian rituals and advocated kindness from the father, filial piety from the son and loyalty from the minister. There are detailed regulations on various commandments that Taoist officials and Taoist priests should abide by. Among many commandments, Kou resolutely opposed the subsequent uprising, especially the anti-* * action initiated by the people. The content of Kou Qianzhi's precepts includes not only the religious practice standards, but also the etiquette of respecting the monarch that meets the needs of the rulers.
Verb (abbreviation of verb) improves religious ceremony
Kou Qian-zhi attached great importance to the fasting ceremony, and thought that only the methods of repairing chains, baiting, breaking valleys and guiding could only cure diseases, but not become immortals. If you want to live forever, you must recite the scriptures and worship God. Those who want to learn from Buddhism and live forever must work hard under the precepts, establish a fast incense, and move the world after fasting in order to live forever. Kou Qianzhi performed a series of fasting ceremonies in order to recite scriptures, observe precepts and burn incense, such as fasting by officials, fasting by officials and people, fasting by Taoist priests in violation of laws, fasting by curing diseases, fasting by dying, fasting by three meetings and so on.
In addition, the tablet "Song of Zhong Gao Yue Ling" now hidden in the Palace Museum in Beijing is generally believed to be written by Kou Qian-zhi, which records the deeds of Kou Qian-zhi's worship of Zhongyue Temple and preachers, and has important historical value for the world to study Zhongyue Temple.
With the help of Tuoba regime in Northern Wei Dynasty, Kou Qianzhi reformed Shitiandao founded by Zhang Daoling. The Northern Wei Emperor's ascent to the Taoist altar symbolized that he ascended the throne in accordance with his destiny, and Taoism became the state religion. This is the achievement of Kou's religious practice, and also his achievement in the history of Taoist development. However, with his death, the "new stone heaven" also declined.