The Shang Qing Sect of Mao Mountain was a sect of Taoism. It had a deep historical background. After Tao Hongjing, it was also called Maoshan Sect, and after the Sui and Tang Dynasties, it became the mainstream of Taoism. After the Northern Song Dynasty, Maoshan Shangqing, Gezao Lingbao and Longhu Tianshi formed the Three Mountains Talisman Sect, which was gradually respected by the rulers. Maoshan was originally located in the southwest of Jiangsu Province, at the junction of Jurong and Jintan. It was about 10 kilometers long from north to south, 5 kilometers wide from east to west, and covered an area of more than 50 square kilometers. The main peak, Damao Peak, was 372.5 meters above sea level. Maoshan was a famous Taoist holy land. Maoshan Taoism enjoyed a high reputation and status in the history of Taoism in China. It was known as "Immortal Mansion of Qin and Han Dynasties, Home of Prime Ministers of Liang and Tang Dynasties","First Blessed Land, Eighth Cave" and so on. Zhao Faxuan, the 82nd generation successor of his sect, whose real name was Zhao Zilong, studied the Book of Changes and other mathematical techniques since he was young. When he became an adult, he officially entered the Shangqing Sect of Maoshan to study Taoism.
The Maoshan Sect was another name for the Shangqing Sect. Because the Shangqing Sect was mainly active in the Maoshan area, it was also called the Maoshan Sect.
The Shangqing Sect and the Maoshan Sect were two important schools of Taoism, and there were some differences between them. The Qing Sect was a Taoist sect formed during the Eastern Jin Dynasty. Its beliefs were mainly concentrated in Jiangxi, Jiangsu, Zhejiang and other places. The Qing Sect paid attention to the cultivation of inner alchemy, emphasized the harmonious relationship between man and nature, man and society, and paid attention to morality and social norms. Maoshan Sect was a Taoist sect formed during the Southern Dynasty. Its beliefs were mainly concentrated in Jiangsu, Shanghai, Zhejiang and other places. The Maoshan Sect focused on cultivating external elixirs, emphasizing the relationship between humans, gods, and souls, as well as the refinement of immortal pills and immortality. Therefore, there were some differences between the Shangqing Sect and the Maoshan Sect in terms of the content of their beliefs and their cultivation methods.
Mao Mountain was the birthplace of Shangqing Sect and had nothing to do with Taiqing. The Qing Sect was formed in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. It was mainly based on the Shangqing Sutra, the Shangqing Great Cave Sutra, and the Huangting Sutra. It worshipped the female Taoist priest Wei Huacun as the founder of the sect. It took the Heavenly Lord of the Origin and the Supreme Taoist Lord as the highest gods. It emphasized the cultivation of the essence, qi, and spirit in the human body. It paid attention to entering the temple to calm down and remember the image of the gods. It did not focus on refining external elixirs. Its ancestral court was Maoshan, also known as Maoshan Sect.
Maoshan was the birthplace of the Taoist school of Taoism, which had nothing to do with Taiqing.
The Qing Sect was created during the Eastern Jin Dynasty, and it was derived from the Southern Celestial Master Sect. Its actual founder was Tao Hongjing, but Wei Huacun was the founder. Wei Huacun was a famous female Taoist priest in the Jin Dynasty. She was honored as "Lord Zixu" and "Lady Wei", and the people called her "Grandma Two Immortals". The Shangqing Sect was also called the Maoshan Sect because Tao Hongjing had retired to the Maoshan Mountain and was mainly active in the Maoshan area. The sect worshiped Heavenly Lord Yuanshi and Taishang Laojun, and the main scriptures they cultivated were the Great Cave Scripture (also known as the Shangqing Scripture, developed from the Yellow Court Scripture). In terms of cultivation methods, the Shangqing Sect focused on adjusting the mind and cultivating the spirit. They emphasized the cultivation of the essence, qi, and spirit in the human body. They attached great importance to entering the temple and meditating on the image of the gods. They did not focus on refining external elixirs. During the Northern Song Dynasty, the Yi Sect, along with Longhu Mountain and Ding Xianfeng, were the three major Taoist talisman sects, known as the Three Mountain Talisman. The sect altar was called Mao Mountain. Mao Mountain was located at the junction of Jurong City and Jintan in Jiangsu Province. It had the reputation of being the first blessed land and the eighth heavenly cave of Shangqing Sect. In the Tang Dynasty, Mao Mountain was regarded as the base mountain of the Yi Sect. When Sima Chengzhen arrived, he opened Tiantai Mountain Dao Sect and Hengshan Dao Sect. In the history of Taoism, the Qing Sect had a unique status and influence.
The Shang Sect was born in the second year of Xingning in the Eastern Jin Dynasty (364 years). The founder was Wei Huacun, and the master was Tao Hongjing. The Qing Sect worshiped the Heavenly Lord Yuanshi and Lord Taishang as the highest gods. Their main cultivation scriptures were the Great Cave Scripture (also known as the Shangqing Scripture). They used Maoshan as their altar, at the junction of Jurong City and Jintan in Jiangsu Province. Its cultivation method focused on adjusting one's mind and cultivating one's spirit. However, there was less information about the Yuqing Sect. From the only information available, the Yuqing Sect was good at using the power of Yin and Yang in the game. Their cultivation methods were orthodox and had many healing abilities. The disciples were women. The Yuqing Temple in reality originated from the Shang Dynasty and had its own unique historical development. In general, there were obvious differences between the two in terms of origin time, ancestors, the highest god they worshipped, cultivation scriptures, characteristics, and so on.
Zhengyi Maoshan Sect was an important sect of Taoism. The Yi Sect originated from the Eastern Jin Dynasty. It took Shangqing Sutra, Shangqing Dadong Sutra and Huangting Sutra as its main classics. It worshiped the female Taoist priest Wei Huacun as the founder of the sect, and the Heavenly Lord Yuanshi and Taishang Taoist Lord as the supreme gods. This sect emphasized the cultivation of the essence, qi, and spirit in the human body. It attached great importance to entering the temple and meditating on the image of the gods. It did not re-refine external elixirs. The ancestral court was Maoshan, so it was also called Maoshan Sect. In the course of Taoism's development, the various talisman schools in the south of the Yuan Dynasty gradually merged into the Zhengyi School (developed from Tianshi Taoism), and the Maoshan Sect (Yi School) in Jurong, Jiangsu Province, which passed down Shangqing Dharma, was also unified into the Zhengyi School. After Tao Hongjing, the Qing Sect was also called the Maoshan Sect and became the mainstream of Taoism after the Sui and Tang Dynasties. After the Northern Song Dynasty, Shangqing of Maoshan, Lingbao of Gezao, and Heavenly Master Longhu formed the Three Mountains Talisman Sect, which was gradually respected by the rulers. It had some unique techniques and spells, such as the Five Strongmen Talisman, the Palm Enchanting Seal, etc., but there were also evil spells such as the Seven Fiends Gathering Body (this evil method violated ethics and morality and should not be respected).
Shangqing Sect was good at many kinds of cultivation methods, such as the Twenty-four Divine Qi Movement Formula. This was a cultivation method that focused on the body and spirit. It was divided into three sections, including the upper, middle, and lower parts of the Eight Gods. It could also be divided into three sessions according to the situation. Its typical cultivation technique was the Yellow Court Scripture. He also had some attainments in talisman charms. The most basic talisman charms were the Five Strongmen Talisman, which could invite five black shadows to help him fight against the enemy. There was also the Bewitching Seal in the Palm, which would cause those with impure minds to fall into chaos for a short period of time, but it was ineffective against those with simple minds. The Seven Fiends Gathering Body belonged to the Yemao Mountain martial arts. By torturing and killing seven boys, the souls would attach themselves to the body to form a controllable fiendish aura. The Shape-Changing Nail was also a technique of the Wild Mao Mountain. This technique was insidious. After leaving a mark on the body, the nail could be used to change the shape and shadow of the body, causing injuries of varying severity.
The following are some stories related to the young Taoist priest of Maoshan Sect. - There was a young Taoist from Mao Mountain named Li Yunlong. He had a thousand-year-old peach wood magic sword in his hand. He had the double spiritual roots of wind and thunder. He could read minds and tame dragons. When he attacked, he had the passive skill of numbing divine thunder. When he defended, he had the special technique of controlling the wind to save his life. In the two regions, five clans, and three worlds, he was passionate and crazy. He devoted himself to immortality and even got the title of "Ghost's Worry". - Lin Xian, a disciple of Mao Mountain, relied on his master's favoritism. He was supposed to go down the mountain to train when he was sixteen, but he was kicked down the mountain when he was twenty. In order to support himself, he took on the work of the tomb. Others went to the tomb to look for treasures, but he dug up a life-threatening drug. - There was also a Maoshan Taoist priest who woke up to find zombies jumping at his door early in the morning. The reason was that a few young ladies who were cosplaying zombies were dancing in front of the stone tablet with the eighth heavenly passage engraved on it. They did not notice that the Maoshan base camp was behind them. This incident caused the Maoshan Taoist priest to be laughed at by the fellow daoists of other sects for half a month. <a href="/?from=ask_words" style="color:red" target="_blank">Read more exciting novels for free</a>
The Nine Heavenly Maiden was not from the Maoshan Sect. The Mysterious Lady of the Nine Heavens was a goddess in ancient China mythology who taught the art of war. She had a high status in Taoism and was regarded as a high-level female immortal and a god of divination. The Maoshan Sect was another name for the Qing Sect and was a sect of Taoism. There was no relationship between the two.