Morning and Evening Rites
The Origin of Morning and Evening Rites:
Morning and Evening Rites are one of the main forms of religious practice for Taoists at temples. The " Rites" refer to reading aloud Taoist scriptures, one of the routine assignments. They require the Taoists to read aloud the texts of the scriptures in the hall of the temple both in the morning and in the evening.
No record was left about Morning and Evening Rites in early Taoism. In the Northern and Southern dynasties, Taoists at temples practised the Rites of Routine Practice, the rites and commandments of the Four Assemblies and Three Grottoes can be practiced daily, so they are called the Rites of Routine Practice.
The core of the rites is to be courteous to the Ten Directions, which differs from the Morning and Evening Rites at later times, which mainly consist in reading aloud Taoist scriptures, exhortations, and incantations. But the forms of the two were quite similar to each other. No scriptures mentioned the Morning or Evening Rites in the Daoist Canon of the Zhengtong Era or in the Supplementary Taoist Canon of the Ming Dynasty.
In the Essential Books of the Daoist Canon compiled in the Qing Dynasty, there are two scriptures about them. One is the Qing Wei Taoist Rites of the Great Discipline, the other is the Book of the Supreme Taoist Rites. From the title we can see that it was handed down from the Taoists of theQing Wei sect, and was probably written before the Qing Dynasty.
It was not until the Ming Dynasty that the system of Morning and Evening Rites was formed in Buddhist temples. And then the temples of the Quan Zhen followed suit. So it can be estimated that the Morning and Evening Rites of Taoism came into being in the middle or late Ming dynasty. Until the end of the Ming Dynasty or early Qing Dynasty, the main temples of Taoism adopted Morning and Evening Rites as a form of practice.
The Contents and Functions of Morning and Evening Rites:
Taoists usually do the same thing during the daily Morning and Evening Rites, mostly reading incantations, scriptures, and mandates. However, the Rites are slightly different from sect to sect and from place to place. For example, in the Morning Rites of the Quan Zhen Tradition, the Taoists would read aloud the Exhortations from the Five Patriarchs of the North, the Exhortations from the Five Patriarchs of the South, and the Exhortations from the Seven Perfect Ones.
In the Evening Rites of the Zheng Yi Tradition, the Taoists would read the Treasure Exhortations of the Celestial Master and the Treasure Exhortations of the Celestial Master of Emptiness.
At the Evening Rites of the Taoists of the Mt. Mao sect, the Treasure Exhortation from the Perfect Sovereign of Mt. Mao would be read. The procedures of the Morning and Evening Rites for all Taoists were similar to one another as well. They usually began with the Rhymes for Opening the Scriptures or with the Odes for Offering Incense and ended with the Twelve Wishes and the Three Conversions.
The Morning Rites consist of three parts:
1. Incantations (e.g. the Divine Incantation for Purifying the Heart),
2. Scriptures (e.g. the Sublime Book of the Supreme Venerable Sovereign's Teachings on Eternal Purity and Tranquility),
3. Exhortations (e.g. the Treasure Exhortation of Jade Clarity)18. The Evening rites have two parts: scriptures (e.g. The Sublime Book of the Supreme Numinous Treasure Pervasive Mystery for Saving from Distress in the Ten Directions) and exhortations (e.g. the Treasure Exhortation of the Big Dipper)
One of the aims of Morning and Evening Rites is to cultivate Tao. Liu Shouyuan stated in the preface of the Qing Wei Taoist Rites of the Great Discipline that the Golden and Jade Books of Taoism are the access to the Tao while the treasure exhortations and the books of elixirs are the access to Immortality.
If one finds the right way of practice, one can renew one's original and perfect nature and refine one's eternal body. Thus living in temples, Daoists attend to the incense by reading Taoist scriptures from morning till night and practicing wherever they are. They practice from morning till night, expecting to ascend to Fairyland and approach the Sages and Perfect Men, and pray sincerely for the blessing of the state. Another aim is to nourish life. Liu Shouyuan said: "How can one nourish the Original Vital Breath of harmony if not by practicing daily?"
Taoists often practise the Morning Rites from 5 a.m. to 7 a.m. when the Yang Vital Breath is rising and the Yin Vital Breath is inactive. At that time no food is taken and the Vital Breath is not in disorder. Conducting the morning rites will contribute to peace of mind and clear the pulse as well as the apertures. The evening rites are often conducted from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. when people feel tired. At this time the Yang breath weakens whereas the Yin breath becomes strong with unhealthy breath idling about. Conducting the Evening Rites can make you relaxed, renew your energy, improve your sleep, and make you calm down.
Therefore Liu Shouyuan said: "If one can concentrate on practicing daily with perseverance, one will be strong enough to approach Immortality. One can be free from worldly troubles, even if one lives in the human world. Then one can enjoy longevity and happiness, for one can go in and out of emptiness, at peace with the world and oneself. Since one has realized that there is no birth or death, one can transcend the Three Worlds, immune to any desire except for one's perfect heart. If one can give up worldly desire, one can be free from all the misfortune in the world. Thus saved from the abyss of misery, one can be on the grand way to longevity. Disasters will be dispelled and blessings will befall as one wishes. No request would be discarded. There will always be communication with spirits."
As for Lay Taoist at home, if one could recite basic Taoist scriptures, it will be beneficial too. Such as the Qing Jing Jing(Book of peace and tranquility) , Tai shang gan yin pian, Tao Te Ching, Beidou Jing(Book of the North Dipper) and San Guan Jing(Book of the Three Divine Officials).
It is important for Taoist, to understand these basic scriptures as they convey the teachings of Taoism. By reciting them, one could pray for blessings and at same time understand their meaning.
Heavenly blessings