Deities and Faith
Do deities and the spirit world remain unchanged in ancient times?
English translation draft · Based on the Chinese article. This is not a word-for-word translation approved by Master Shengyuan.
In our understanding of faith, we need not imagine deities and the spirit world as permanently fixed in ancient times. Human life, culture and ideas change, and the unseen world we discuss is connected with the human world. One explanation from long ago cannot account for everything today.
Master Ji Gong used everyday examples to remind us: there were no mobile phones before, but now everyone uses them; people once lived in courtyard houses, while now there are high-rises and lifts. People understand that life develops. Why assume, as soon as we discuss deities, that they never change?
The seventh lunar month is one example. Some places do not conduct services then, while Sheng Zhen Men continues responding to needs rather than stopping everything because it is the seventh month. The characters of different deities and the views and methods of those in charge need to be understood separately. We cannot describe one arrangement as obligatory everywhere.
When encountering customs, ask why people spoke that way in the past and whether today’s conditions are the same. Understanding the background then and now makes it easier to judge how to regard them. Tradition does not require accepting everything unchanged, nor does a new era mean discarding everything from the past. Faith still needs to connect with present life.