Taoism: The Native Religion That Emerges in Troubled Times to Save the Nation** 道教是真正的中国本土宗教：盛世从不露面，乱世却下山济世救国

 **Taoism: The Native Religion That Emerges in Troubled Times to Save the Nation**
道教是真正的中国本土宗教：盛世从不露面，乱世却下山济世救国

The transmission of Chinese culture should primarily be undertaken by the vast Chinese populace, passed down through generations for descendants to carry forward and promote. Secondly, sinologists worldwide should devote their efforts to its in-depth study. The intellectual traditions of the Chinese people should be propagated by numerous compatriots, achieving continuous development based on blood ties. Sinologists and lovers of Chinese culture from all nations can also strive towards this end, promoting its inheritance and development. This is precisely the immortal core of Chinese culture; despite the changes of time, it maintains the civilizational genes for millennia.
中国文化的传承应该首先由广大中国人民来承担，通过代代相传，让后代继续发扬光大。其次，世界各国的汉学家应该倾注心血，为之深入研究。中国人的思想传统应该由众多国人来弘扬，以血缘纽带为基础，实现不断发展。世界各国的汉学家和热爱中国文化的人也可以为之努力，推动其传承与发展。这正是中国文化的不朽内核，尽管历经岁月更替，仍然保持着千秋万世的文明基因。

China's Confucian thought represents active integration into the world, emphasizing self-cultivation in poverty and helping others in prosperity. They firmly refuse to compromise their integrity for mere sustenance, nor will they stubbornly cling to self-interest. China's native religion, Taoism, remains obscure during prosperous ages. It might be little known in times of兴盛 (flourishing), yet within the great tides of history, it repeatedly demonstrates its indomitable strength.
中国的儒家思想代表着积极融入世界，强调在贫穷时独善其身，在富裕时助人为乐。他们坚决不为温饱而屈节，也不会为一己私利而固执己见。中国本土的宗教，如道教，在盛世时默默无闻道教文化，它在兴盛时期可能默默无闻，但在历史的大潮中却一再展现出其坚韧不拔的力量。

Just as the Song Dynasty general from Shaanxi, (Note: Text mentions "端曾言", likely a reference to a historical figure or saying, but the phrasing is ambiguous. The translation captures the general sentiment of shame and resolve), once said, the Jingkang Incident was a great humiliation for the Song Dynasty. In that era, all Chinese soldiers who failed to step forward, especially the civil officials and scholars, if they failed to preserve their moral integrity, prove the value of the Chinese existence, and resist foreign military force, believed it was better to choose heroic death than to live on in disgrace.
就如同宋朝时陕西将领端曾言，靖康之变是宋朝的一大耻辱。在那个时代，所有未能挺身而出的中国军人，特别是那些文官和读书人，如果未能保全自己的气节，证明中国人的存在价值，并抵御异族武力，他们都认为宁可选择英勇就义，而不应苟且活在世间。
This voice can be said to be the strongest expression of the call to save the nation and rescue it from crisis at that time. Even if those who voiced it might not have been able to personally save the people, their efforts and dedication are worthy of deep reflection by every Chinese person sitting comfortably in their halls.
这种声音可以说是当时对于挽救天下、拯救民族危机呼声最为强烈的一种表达。即便这种呼声的发声者未必能够亲自拯救苍生，但他们所付出的努力和心思，都值得每一个坐在安逸厅堂中的中国人深加思索。
We should not wait until more than half the country's territory is occupied before realizing how close crisis and national extinction are. Nor should we wait until we can no longer see striving talents among the younger generation before feeling heartache. Act immediately to defend the homeland, make every Chinese person recognize the urgency of the moment concerning the nation's fate.
我们不应等到国家大半领土都沦陷，才意识到危机和亡国灭种离我们如此之近。我们也不应等到再也看不到年轻一代有奋发向前的人才时，才感到痛心。即刻行动，保卫家园，让每一个中国人都认识到时刻关乎国家命运的紧迫性。

Times of turmoil often highlight those who truly cherish the world under heaven (天下), and sometimes, the actions of inconspicuous individuals can shock the entire nation. Taoist adherents in Chinese history are a classic example.
在动荡的时刻，往往能够凸显出那些真正怀抱天下的人，而有时候，一些不引人注意的个体所做的举动却能震撼整个国家。中国历史上的道教信徒就是一个典型例子。

Starting with Laozi in the Spring and Autumn period, the pursuit of social peace and a natural life for the common people became the supreme goal for all Taoist learners. Laozi might not have had a precise name for this social state, but he saw in ancient texts something resembling it during the eras of Yao, Shun, and Yu. Therefore, he called this state "closeness to nature," governed through non-action (无为而治).
从春秋时期的老子开始，追求社会和平与平民自然生活成为所有学道者的至高目标。老子或许无法准确称呼这种社会状态，但他在古籍中看到了尧舜禹时期似乎存在过这样的景象，因此他将这种社会状态称为亲近自然，以无为而治。
During the great turmoil at the end of the Qin Dynasty, the Taoist representative Zhang Liang stepped forward. Using the Taigong's Art of War transmitted by the Yellow Stone Lord (黄石公), he helped save the nation, bringing the divided Chu-Han chaotic era back to a unified realm under heaven. Then, resolutely, he abandoned the position of Chancellor, withdrawing from the forefront once his achievements were complete and fame secured.
在秦朝末年天下大乱之时，道家代表人物张良挺身而出，以黄石公传授的太公兵法来挽救国家，使分裂的楚汉乱世重新回到天下一统的时代，然后毅然决然地放弃丞相之职，一旦功成名遂，便退隐幕后。
By the Wei, Jin, and Northern and Southern Dynasties period, Taoism provided a haven for those politically frustrated, making them feel as if置身于仙境 (in an immortal realm). Countless people emulated ancient hermits,远离喧嚣 (distancing themselves from the noise), hiding away in deep mountains and old forests. To the outside world, it might have seemed they were truly practicing non-action and resigning themselves to obscurity. However, few knew they constantly concerned themselves with state affairs.

到了魏晋南北朝时期，道教为那些在政治上失意的人提供了一片天地，让他们仿佛置身于仙境。无数人效仿上古隐士，远离喧嚣，躲入深山老林之中。对外界而言，或许以为他们是真的不作为、自甘沉沦。然而，鲜有人知道，他们时刻关心着国家大事。

Just as when the Eastern Jin faced the threat of annihilation at the Battle of Fei River, the Taoist hermit Xie An stepped forward. (The phrase "八公山下草木皆兵" refers to the illusion that the vegetation on Mount Bagong appeared like enemy soldiers, creating an aura of formidable defense/supernatural aid, often associated with this battle). He once again saved Huaxia.
正如东晋面临淝水之战灭国威胁时，道家隐士谢安挺身而出，八公山下草木皆兵，再度拯救了华夏。

The late Sui Dynasty again fell into the chaos reminiscent of the late Qin, with the people suffering everywhere. Despite the vastness of the land, there was no place for farmers to安心种田耕地 (farm in peace).
隋朝末年再次陷入秦末乱世的困境，各地民不聊生，尽管天下之大，却无一处让农民安心种田耕地。
The prosperous age built by Emperor Wen of Sui over twenty years collapsed within just a few years due to the Liaodong campaigns and the issues surrounding the Grand Canal.
隋文帝花费二十年构建的盛世在短短几年内被辽东战事和大运河的问题摧垮。
In such tumultuous times, could Taoist temples truly maintain the notion of清静无为 (clarity and stillness through non-action) while reciting the Nanhua Scripture (莊子, Zhuangzi)? Clearly not. Therefore, the Taoist Li Jing chose to leave the mountains, joining the Tang cause. With five thousand cavalry, he launched a surprise attack on the Eastern Turkic Khagan's court, avenging the shame of the Weishui Alliance in one stroke and achieving unparalleled merit.
在这样的乱世，道观中是否还能保持清净无为的念南华经呢？显然不行。因此，道家李靖选择出山，投靠大唐，以五千铁骑突袭突厥王庭，一举洗刷了渭水之盟的耻辱，立下了不世之功。
During the Song Dynasty, the turmoil between the Northern and Southern Song again provided Taoists an opportunity to step onto the stage. Although not as glorious as the fictional Seven Masters of Quanzhen from Jin Yong's novels, Qiu Chuji traveled thousands of miles to Central Asia and the Western Regions to advise Genghis Khan to restrain his warfare. Conflict between states might be inevitable, but the common people are innocent. Temüjin asked: "Reverend, how old are you?" Qiu Chuji replied he was ninety. The Mongols thought him divine. They又问 (asked again) if there was a method for immortality in the world. Qiu Chuji said: abstain from killing, be clear and still through non-action. This is the真实记载 (true account) famously passed down through the ages in the *Travels of an Alchemist* (《长春真人西游记》).
宋代，南北宋之交的乱世再次为道教徒提供了上台的机会。虽然没有金庸笔下的全真七子那般辉煌，但丘处机却不远万里奔赴中亚西域，劝导成吉is汗收敛刀兵。两国之战不可避免，但百姓无辜。铁木真问到：道长贵庚几何？丘处机答年方九十。蒙古人以为神，又询问世间是否有长生不死之法，丘处机说戒杀，清净无为。这就是名传千古的《长春真人西行记》中的真实记载。

One man halted the massacre tactics of hundreds of thousands of troops. After Qiu Chuji's death and up until Bayan's southern expedition to Jiangnan and the Yuan Dynasty's replacement of the Song, the Mongols never again implemented city-wide massacres (屠城). Thanks to the efforts of Taoist figures, Han culture and Huaxia civilization were preserved during the Song Dynasty.
一个人阻止了数十万大军的屠杀策略。在丘处机去世后一直到伯颜南下江南，元朝代宋，蒙古人再未实施过屠城之举。得益于道教人士的努力，宋代的汉文化和华夏文明得以保存。

China's native religion, Taoism, always leaves the impression of retreating to mountain forests in prosperous times and emerging from them in turbulent times to save the people.
中国本土的宗教，道教，总是给人留下一种在盛世中隐居山林，在乱世中走出山林拯救人民的印象。
From Qin, Han, Wei, Jin, Northern and Southern Dynasties, Sui, Tang, to Song, Taoists were present on the stage of history. However, by the Ming and Qing dynasties, it seemed that随着儒家的僵化 (with the rigidification of Confucianism), Taoism gradually declined. Because the Tang Dynasty had already established the policy of the parallel existence of the Three Teachings: Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. In the Song Dynasty, any cultured person integrated elements of all three. Later Ming literati, influenced by the Cheng-Zhu School of Principle Learning from the Southern Song, confined their thinking to "preserving heavenly principle, extinguishing human desires," severely restricting normal human thought. Consequently, Taoism entered a process of decline after reaching its peak.
从秦汉魏晋南北朝隋唐宋，道教人士一直存在于历史舞台。然而，到了明清时期，似乎随着儒家的僵化，道教逐渐衰微。因为唐朝时就确立了儒、道、释三教并行的政策。宋代时，任何一个文化人身上都融合了这三种元素，而明朝后期的文人则受南宋程朱理学的影响，将思想局限于存天理、灭人欲，使人的正常思考受到严格的制约。因此，道教与道家进入了一个盛极而衰的过程。

Decades passed. A journalist went deep into the grassroots of a Taoist temple, intending to investigate the daily life of Taoist priests. However, the once prosperous and incense-rich Hebei Great Taoist Temple was now desolate and overgrown with weeds. Only one grey-haired old Taoist priest was seen sweeping the courtyard alone. The journalist curiously asked if there were others in the temple. The old priest shook his head and said: "When I was young, my master and senior brothers all went down the mountain to join the War of Resistance Against Japan. They left and never returned."
数十年过去，一名记者深入到道观基层，意欲探访道士的日常生活。然而，曾经繁华、香火鼎盛的河北大道如今却荒凉一片，杂草丛生。仅见一位头发花白的老道士独自在打扫庭院。记者好奇地询问道观里是否还有其他人，老道士摇了摇头说：小时候，师父和师兄都下山投身抗日，一去就再也没有回来。
Why did the master leave? To pacify the chaos and save the nation. When will they return? Only possibly in prosperous times. If they don't return... then they are never coming back. These few words deeply touched the journalist's heart, making her unable to hold back her tears.
为何师傅离去？是为了平乱救国。何时能回来？只有在盛世的时候才可能。若不回来……那就永远不回来了。这几句话深深触动了记者的心灵，使她情不自禁地泪流满面。

It is precisely because countless Taoist patriots and people of ideals successively stepped forward that the beautiful reputation of "Taoist priests descending the mountain to aid the world and save the nation" was left among the people.
正是因为有无数道教仁人志士前赴后继，才在民间留下了“道士下山，济世救国”的美名。

The famous Chinese writer Lin Yutang once said: "Any religion that is without human feelings is hardly deserving of being called a religion."
中国著名文学家林语堂曾言，缺乏人情味的宗教难以被真正定义为一种宗教。
When prosperous ages rise, Taoist adherents either retreat to deep mountains or hide within bustling cities. They are hard to detect in ordinary times, but whenever common people have红白喜事 (weddings and funerals; joyful and sorrowful events), their traces can always be found therein.
在盛世兴起之际，道教信徒或隐居深山，或隐匿喧嚣市井，他们在平常时很难被察觉，但一旦百姓有红白喜事，他们总能在其中找到踪迹。
For Taoist practitioners, they do not insist that others believe in Taoism. They simply quietly cultivate their own Great Dao (大道), tolerant of others' beliefs. However, once the nation and its people fall into difficulty, their figures are often among those who step forward. This is the very nature of China's native religion.
对于修道者而言，他们并不强求他人信奉道教，只是默默修行自己的大道，对他人的信仰态度宽容。然而，一旦家国百姓陷入困境，挺身而出的人群中便常常有他们的身影。这正是中国本土宗教的特质所在。