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Nature Spirits Devas
Spirituality Daoism
Aspects of Buddhism have also
been interwoven into the synergism of the teachings of Daoism and Confucianism.
Daoism shared many Buddhist concepts and words. When Chinese scholars first came
across Buddhism, they found the Buddhist beliefs to be a corresponding
complement to those of Daoism. Mystical Buddhist thought invigorated,
rejuvenated and restructured Daoism. Buddhist scriptures were translated into
the language and terms of Daoism.
Shen Nung (Shennong, Shen Nong, The Divine Farmer, Five Grains Yan Emperor, Father of Chinese Medicine) was an
ancestral Chinese patriarch and legendary cultural hero purported to be around
five thousand years old. According to tradition, he invented the plough. As the "Five Grains Yan Emperor", he showed the
farmers how to cultivate grains and other food stuffs in the hope that they
would stop killing animals as a source of food.
A master herbalist and
shamanic healer who was revered as the "Father of Chinese Medicine", he
was the originator of the practice of Acupuncture. Shen Nung was also credited with having authored The Divine Farmer's
Herb-Root Classic after tasting and testing hundreds of herbs on himself to
determine their harmful and healing properties.
Vital to the advancement of
Traditional Chinese medicine, Shen Nung's herbal classic also included hundreds
of medicinals obtained from minerals and plants. For instance, tea acted as an
effective antidote that counteracted the poisonously harmful effects of around
seventy herbs.
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The Chinese respect for
harmonious relations with Nature was readily discernable in the picture above of
a sculpture of Tang Chinese tea scholar Lu Yu was taken in Xian, China on the
grounds of the great Wild Goose Pagoda. Renown as the Sage of Tea, his
noteworthy book the Classic of Tea was the original landmark work
(3 Volumes, 10 Chapters) on cultivating, drinking and making tea.
A poetic scholar Lu Yu (733-804 ACE) was most renown for the
time he spent on Houmen mountain under the tutelage of master Zou Fuzi for whom
he regularly brewed tea. While he was there, Lu Yu used his admirable knowledge
of herbs and teas to attend to the heath care needs of the students. Lu Yu also
regularly journeyed around the countryside gathering herbs and teas leaves.
On one of these outings, he discovered a spring beneath a six
foot round rock with crystal clear waters. Tea brewed with this spring water was
qualitatively superior with enhanced heath benefits. Zou Fuzi had his students
dig a well around the spring's fountainhead. Then after he finished his studies
with Zou Fuzi in 752 ACE, Lu Yu journeyed to Jingling where he met Cui Goufu, a
poet scholar renown for his superlative short five characters per verse poems.
The two tea drinking scholars travelled widely together and
also coauthored several poetic literary works. More than 1,000 years later in 1768
ACE, the Jingling area in China was drought stricken. The nearby city dwellers rejoiced when
they learned that crystal clear spring water still flowed from the ancient well
originally discovered by Lu Yu. Three wells were dug and a structure erected on
the site called Literary Spring and Lu Yu Hut in his honor.
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Nature Spirits Elementals Fairies Beliefs Traditions Articles
Aboriginal Nature Spirits,
Air Sylphs,
Air Sylphs Assist Aurora Depiction,
Alchemical Elements,
Alchemical Elements Depiction,
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Alchemy Nature Spirits,
Älvorna Elves Depiction,
Bækhesten Brook Horse,
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Brownies
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Children of the Moon Goddess,
Chinese Nature Spirits,
Chinese Poetic Garden,
Chinese Poetic Garden Depiction,
Chinese Tea Scholar Statue,
Dandelion Depiction,
Dandelion Flower Deva,
Daoism Nature Spirits,
Daoist Nature,
Deva Flora,
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Devas Shining Ones,
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Di Penates,
Divine Alchemy,
Divine Farmer,
Divine Forest,
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Druidry Nature Spirits,
Dwarfs
Earth Gnomes,
Elves,
Elves Circle Dance Depiction,
Fair Fairy Face Depiction,
Fairies,
Fairies Circle Dance Depiction,
Fairies Looking Through Gothic Arch Depiction,
Fairies Prepare Magical Gateway Depiction,
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Fairy Dance Depiction,
Fairy Hosts Celebrate Midsummer's Eve Depiction,
Fairyland Depiction,
Fairy Wood Depiction,
Feriae Festivals,
Fire Salamanders,
Five Elements,
Flower Fairies,
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Four Kinds Elemental Beings,
Four Kinds Nature Spirit Tribes
Futarasan Jinja Depiction,
Futarasan Jinja Kami,
Garden Gnomes Statues,
Gate Pines New Year Kadomatsu Depiction,
Germanic Gnome Hall Depiction,
Germanic Gnomes,
Germanic Nature Spirits,
Germanic Treelore,
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Heathen Hallowed Traditions,
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Lars,
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Lily Fairy Depiction,
Mahadevas,
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Tree Spirits,
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