No 1120 of Living Life Series 1
Without doubt, there are a number of oddities of religious practices all because men think the ways of men are the ways of gods*.
The ways of men in centuries past during the days of dynasties in old China were assumed to be the ways of gods in Heavens. The saying goes thus. As on Earth, so also in Heaven.
The ways of men in centuries past during the days of dynasties in old China were assumed to be the ways of gods in Heavens. The saying goes thus. As on Earth, so also in Heaven.
If there is corruption down here, so also in Heaven. But then in old days, it was considered the norm and no corruption. It was the norm to give so as to be given.
To get favor, one must grease the hands of subordinates to get favor. So in dealing with gods in Heaven, one must offer incense papers. At a temple, one pays the temple keeper money to add oil to the oil lamp. We call this oil money. This is akin to tipping for good services at hotels and restaurants in modern days. Over doing will of course be out of place and raise eyebrows
Times have changed but humans are still doing this openly to the gods and they say this is the norm in dealing with the gods in Heaven though no longer is a norm with fellow men down here. Odd, isn't it ? - alright and acceptable with with those up there but not with those down here.
Small wonder, this gives bad taste of sorts to religion or rather to the culture related to religion. They say this is appreciation and advance gratitude - sort of gifts in kind and in token.
Times have changed but humans are still doing this openly to the gods and they say this is the norm in dealing with the gods in Heaven though no longer is a norm with fellow men down here. Odd, isn't it ? - alright and acceptable with with those up there but not with those down here.
But isn't there a personal relationship between a person and his god? Then it should be voluntary and not coerced. It has to come from the heart and not mandated or regulated. The more insightful or wise would do things differently though.
If it is to be practiced, there must not be any semblance of outright solicitation. Outright solicitation supposedly to enrich God can come about if there is coercion by men and not really freely voluntary. Who is enriched in the end is a big question and a legitimate one.
But admittedly and sadly, if we leave to volunteer spirit, there will be paucity of cash flow for the temple or church. Some push, fear and coercion must be there to make things work and the money to flow into the coffers.
If moderated and less conspicuous, it may seem alright but then there is still the laws of the land to contend with. Lord Bo Tien 武天菩萨 says that in any religion, all have to contend with the laws of Heaven as well as the laws of the land. Heaven will not condone any breach of the laws of the land. God or gods should not be the excuse for doing so.
Lord Jesus says thus. Give to God what is due to God and to man what is due to man.
Incidentally, man wants money but what about God? We would expect men to accord much higher standards with regards to interaction with the gods. The standards must be befitting.
Well, some may not agree when it comes to relating with the gods. They say it is an ancestral tradition. If one day, we become gods or deities, we too will want men to fawn over us.
But aren't gods beyond need for fawning? They do not have egos for us to satiate and if they have, then how godly are they? Certainly they are godly but men handle them in ungodly ways and make them ungodly when they are truly gods.
Well, some may not agree when it comes to relating with the gods. They say it is an ancestral tradition. If one day, we become gods or deities, we too will want men to fawn over us.
But aren't gods beyond need for fawning? They do not have egos for us to satiate and if they have, then how godly are they? Certainly they are godly but men handle them in ungodly ways and make them ungodly when they are truly gods.
In rounding off, there is in any religion, people practicing at different levels. Taoism is no exception. What you see may not hold true of the true spiritual Taoism at the highest level. But many are ordinary and go along with the mainstream - the downstream.
To go for clear water, the good lord Lord Bo Tien 武天菩萨 advocates that the more discerning would want to go to the upper source. This is another time honored principle that applies to all religions.
The lord's mission is to highlight the common truth and principles behind all religions and to show oneness of religions despite plurality of religions. There is oneness in plurality. The basic platform is the same but the religion may not be.
*gods refer to heavenly saints
