Practices
During the Tang Dynasty, the primary activity of Zhengyi Daoists was to sell protective talismans. Local cults developed around the sale of these talismans, and around guilds and associations patronized by members of the church.
One of the fundamental practices of the school was conferring registers (lu) upon people entering Daoism. A register was a way to allow that the Daoist tradition passed on to future generations by ensuring those who received them had an adequate knowledge of the school's teachings. Registers also had the names of deities written on them who could be called upon by the bearer to assist in times of need. Once one received a register, they were considered to be part of the priesthood. There were different grades of registers for laypeople with differing levels of religious knowledge.
The Celestial Masters adopted the Thunder Rites during the last two decades of the Northern Song period. The Five Thunders variety appeared earlier and was linked with the Celestial Masters.
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“To learn a vocation, you also have to learn the frauds it practices and the promises it breaks.”
—Mason Cooley (b. 1927)