Taiwan's Religious Beliefs: An Empire of Faith Grown from Fear

30-Second Overview: Taiwan has approximately 15,000 registered religious buildings, more than the number of convenience stores on the entire island. The most numerous are not the Mazu temples (approx. 672) that most people assume, but King Yeh (Wangye) temples (approx. 1,330)—a god of fear originating from the "sending away of plague king boats," specifically treating plagues. In the same temple, you might see Buddhist Guanyin, Taoist Jade Emperor, and folk religion Earth Gods sharing incense. Every lunar March, over a million people follow the Dajia Mazu pilgrimage for nine days and eight nights, covering 340 kilometers. In 2014, Xingtian Temple, which receives six million visitors annually, removed all incense burners, becoming Taiwan's first "incense-free" major temple. The 2025 Freedom House Global Freedom Report ranked Taiwan as the second freest country in Asia. This island's faith has never been a cloud-based matter—it is right at the corner of your street, starting from the moment military immigrants stepped off their ships in the 17th century.

In 1995, a man named Liao Wu-chih stood on the roof of Baoan Temple in Dalongdong, Taipei, watching a craftsman embed pieces of colored glass back into their positions from two hundred years ago¹. Baoan Temple was built in 1804, a temple brought by immigrants from Tong'an carrying the faith of Bao Sheng Da Di (Great Emperor Bao Sheng). It had endured the Japanese colonial period, the post-war era, and urban expansion, but by the 1990s, it was in a state of severe disrepair. The Taiwan government listed it as a second-class historical monument in 1985, but no one repaired it after listing.

Liao Wu-chih decided to raise funds for repairs himself. For seven years, he took not a single cent from the government, insisting on using original craftsmanship and materials². He recruited old masters from across Taiwan for paper-cutting paste (jian-nian), stone carving, wood carving, and painting; some techniques were on the verge of extinction. "It is easy to repair an old temple with new materials," he later said in an interview, "but that is not restoration; it is renovation."

In 2003, Baoan Temple received the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Cultural Heritage Conservation Award, becoming the first in Taiwan³. The jury wrote this sentence: "A model for community-based restoration."

This story is actually a microcosm of the island's religious history: the government steps back, the people step in; skills are nearly lost, but someone insists on passing them on; a temple is not just a temple, but a container for a city's memory. To understand why this island has grown the highest density of temples in the world, we must go back more than three hundred years—to those who tied statues to their bodies and gambled their lives crossing the Black Water Strait.

Why This Island Has 15,000 Temples

According to Ministry of the Interior statistics, there are approximately 15,000 registered religious buildings in Taiwan in 2024⁴—more than the approximately 13,000 convenience stores on the entire island⁵. Tainan is the city with the highest temple density in Taiwan, with 1,641 temples recorded in 2015⁶.

But beneath this number lies a contrast that most people do not realize: the largest category is not Mazu temples, but King Yeh (Wangye) temples.

The Academia Sinica's "Taiwan Temple Database," based on cross-referencing the Ministry of the Interior's religious registrations, shows approximately 1,330 King Yeh temples and approximately 672 Mazu temples; King Yeh temples are nearly double the number of Mazu temples⁷. "King Yeh faith is particularly prevalent in southern Taiwan, alongside Mazu faith in central Taiwan, commonly known as 'Southern King Yeh, Central Mazu,' and also referred to as 'Mad March for Mazu, April King Yeh's Birthday.'"⁸

What is a King Yeh god? The original function was that of a plague god. "King Yeh faith originated in the early Chinese southeast coast's 'sending away of plague king boats,' drifting from the Xiamen and Quanzhou areas to various places along the southwest coast of Taiwan."⁹ Coastal residents would push a wooden boat filled with offerings—the embodiment of plague—into the sea, hoping the plague would leave with the boat. The drifting plague boats that reached Taiwan were picked up by locals and enshrined in temples; thus, the plague god became a guardian god.

📝 Curator's Note: The largest god on an island originates from the fear of plague. This is not a choice of compassion, but a survival reflex of a medically backward immigrant society—handing over what cannot be controlled to a personality that can be imagined. When diseases later became controllable, King Yeh did not disappear; his function shifted to driving away evil, ensuring peace, and protection. Gods do not die; they just change jobs.

Mazu follows the same logic. Mazu was originally a sea goddess from Meizhou, Fujian, during the Song Dynasty, with the function of ensuring the safety of fishermen at sea. In the 17th century, military immigrants crossing the Black Water Strait (Taiwan Strait) to Taiwan tied Mazu statues to the ship masts. When the ships arrived, the gods also arrived. But Mazu on the island quickly expanded her functions: from sea goddess to healing diseases, driving away evil, praying for children, protecting crops, helping with exams, and boosting business—she manages everything. A sea goddess with a single function became an all-purpose island mother goddess.

Earth Gods (Tu Di Gong) followed the same path. Originally the field gods of an agricultural society, managing the harvest of a mu of land; after urbanization, their functions shifted to commerce. Some Earth God temples in Taipei's Xinyi District are believed to be "particularly good at helping people make money," with flourishing incense¹⁰. The functions of gods evolve with social structures.

340 Kilometers, Nine Days and Eight Nights

Every lunar March, the entire island is taken over by a religious march.

The Mazu pilgrimage and incense-offering of Dajia Zhenlan Palace in 2025 started at 10:45 PM on April 4 and returned on April 13. Over nine days and eight nights, it spanned four counties and cities—Taichung, Changhua, Yunlin, and Chiayi—covering twenty-one townships, circling nearly a hundred temples, with a total distance of 340 kilometers¹¹. The Discovery Channel listed it as one of the world's top three religious events in 2004¹². In 2009, UNESCO listed Mazu beliefs and customs as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity¹³.

There is something special about the supply stations along the way. They are not arranged by the temple organization, but spontaneously set up by residents along the route. Free rice noodles, sesame oil chicken, massages, painkillers, razors, sanitary pads, and sports drinks. "Mazu is walking, everyone helps."¹⁴ An old grandmother might save money all year just to cook a pot of soup sufficient for hundreds of people during these few days. She does not know these believers, and the believers do not know her, but Mazu knows them all.

Even more magical is the tradition of the palanquin turning on its own. The palanquin is not carried by people walking; it is "people following Mazu"—when the palanquin suddenly turns sharply, sprints, or turns back, the bearers can only follow and cannot disobey¹⁵. This is the most physical moment of folk religion: the god is not in the sky; the god is in the wood, and the wood moves itself.

In recent years, the pilgrimage has become increasingly complex. In 2016, "Mazu Culture" was written into China's "13th Five-Year Plan" and the "Belt and Road" initiative; in 2018, a Fujian delegation proposed establishing a national-level leadership institution composed of the United Front Work Department, the Taiwan Affairs Office, the Ministry of Culture, and the Fujian Provincial Party Committee to promote Mazu culture development¹⁶. The CCP packages Mazu as the "Goddess of Peace across the Strait," funding cross-strait pilgrimage groups. The problem is that most Taiwanese Mazu believers just want to worship Mazu and do not want to be represented by anyone. There is no consensus in the pilgrimage队伍 on the question of "whether Mazu is a united front weapon."

📝 Curator's Note: Mazu in Taiwan is simultaneously religion, culture, tourism, and politics. China wants to turn her into a symbol of "both sides of the strait belong to one China," while Taiwanese believers use the annual million-person徒步 (walking) pilgrimage to turn her into "our island's own god." A god can be several things at once; in Taiwan, this is not a contradiction, but a tacit understanding.

Three Religions Sharing One Roof

Walking into Longshan Temple in Mengjia, Taipei, you will see a scene difficult for outsiders to understand: the main hall enshrines Guanyin Bodhisattva (Buddhism), the back hall has Mazu (Taoism/folk religion) on one side and Wenchang Dijun (Taoism, governing exam luck) on the other, and the side halls have Yue Lao (folk religion, governing marriage) and Nusheng Niangniang (bestowing children) and Guan Sheng Dijun (Martial God of Wealth)¹⁷. One temple, at least seven gods, belonging to three religious systems. Taiwanese people do not feel it is conflicting.

This is the most unique aspect of Taiwan's faith—the unity of the three religions is not philosophy, but spatial configuration. Buddhists, Taoists, and folk religion believers enter the same temple, worship their respective gods, and do not look down on each other. A 2019 survey by Academia Sinica also presented this mixture: 49.3% of the population believes in traditional folk religion, 14% in Buddhism, 12.4% in Taoism, 5.5% in Protestantism, 2.1% in I-Kuan Tao, and 1.3% in Catholicism¹⁸. But in practice, a person might worship Mazu, pray to Guanyin, and visit Earth God temples during festivals; this is not apostasy, it is daily life.

How did this mixture come about? The historical context is that after the 17th century, sea-crossing immigrants brought gods from their respective hometowns. The island's space was limited, and temples could not be built so many independently, so the gods were placed together. Over time, functional division rather than sectarian separation became the dominant logic: for exam luck, find Wenchang; for marriage, find Yue Lao; for business, find Guan Gong; for peace, find Mazu; for children, find Nusheng Niangniang—each god has their own specialty, and believers worship according to need, without discussing sects.

There was an event after the war that made this mixture even more explicit. On May 31, 1945, US bombers attacked Taipei; Longshan Temple's main hall was destroyed, but the Guanyin Bodhisattva statue inside remained intact amidst the rubble¹⁹. Those who had worshipped this Guanyin—folk religion believers, Buddhists, and Taoists—all considered this a miracle. The statue did not distinguish religion, and neither did the miracle.

📝 Curator's Note: Westerners often ask, "What religion do Taiwanese people believe in?" This question itself is wrong—it presupposes the premise that "a person can only believe in one religion." But for Taiwanese people, "what you believe" and "what you worship" are two different things. You can say you are Buddhist for a lifetime, but also worship Earth God every second and eighth day when visiting your娘家 (natal home), go to Wenchang before exams, and worship Guan Gong for business. This is not disloyalty; it is division of labor.

From Ban to Legalization: I-Kuan Tao's 34-Year Journey

In 1953, the Nationalist Government ordered the ban of I-Kuan Tao on the grounds of "involving superstition and disturbing local public order"²⁰. This religion, originating from Shandong, China, combining Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism, went underground in Taiwan, maintaining itself through word of mouth. For thirty-four years, the number of believers increased without decreasing.

In 1987—the same year Taiwan lifted martial law—forty legislative members signed a petition calling on the government to legalize I-Kuan Tao. In March 1988, the "General Association of I-Kuan Tao of the Republic of China" was established²¹. I-Kuan Tao became the first religion in post-war Taiwan to change from illegal to legal—the timeline for lobbying began even a few months earlier than the lifting of martial law itself (July 15, 1987). As of March 2018, there were approximately 800,000 recorded I-Kuan Tao believers in Taiwan²².

I-Kuan Tao's characteristics are strict vegetarianism + unity of the three religions + global expansion. It has dojos in over 80 countries²³, advocating unique eschatological views like "The Three Final Calamities" and "The Three Buddhas Arriving." But the most easily understood feature for outsiders is: the food at I-Kuan Tao dojos is delicious, fully vegetarian, free, and they do not force you to join the sect.

📝 Curator's Note: The history of I-Kuan Tao is a microcosm of Taiwan's religious liberalization. A religion banned by the state for thirty-four years did not disappear; instead, it accumulated grassroots mobilization energy during its underground period; on the eve of lifting martial law, it became a touchstone for political reform—"whether to allow this underground religion to be legalized" became an indicator of testing the government's openness. Today, I-Kuan Tao is already one of the mainstream religions, but what it taught Taiwan is not just religion, but the fact that "political repression cannot kill faith."

Post-War New Emergences: The Four Major Buddhist Mountains

If King Yeh and Mazu represent the fear of sea-crossing immigrants, new Buddhism represents another need of post-war Taiwanese society—after urbanization, economic growth, and popular education, people needed not just peace and wealth, but also meaning.

The Four Major Buddhist Mountains rose in this context:

• Tzu Chi Foundation (1966, Hualien): Master Cheng Yen started with thirty housewives "saving five cents a day"²⁴. Today, Tzu Chi has volunteers in 68 countries and provides relief in 136 countries²⁵. "For Buddhism, for All Beings" is Tzu Chi's core spirit.
• Fo Guang Shan (1967, Dashu, Kaohsiung): Master Hsing Yun began construction in Mazuyuan, Dashu, advocating "Humanistic Buddhism"—Buddhism is not in the mountains and forests, but in the human world. He successively established over 300 temples and dojos and 16 Buddhist academies worldwide, founded Nan-Hua University, Fo Guang University, and the Fo Guang Shan Buddha Museum²⁶. Master Hsing Yun passed away at 5 PM on February 5, 2023, in the Kaishan Hall of Fo Guang Shan, living to the age of 97²⁷.
• Fa Gu Shan (Dharma Drum Mountain) (1989, Jinshan): Founded by Master Sheng Yen. In 1990, he unveiled "Enhance the quality of people, build a pure land in the human world"; in 1992, he proposed the concept of "Mental Environmental Protection"²⁸—extending environmental protection from the material level to the spiritual level, one of Taiwan's important post-war cultural vocabularies.
• Zhong Tai Chan Temple (Puli): Master Wu Jue founded Lingquan Temple on the basis of Wu Jue Chan Temple in 1987²⁹. Zhong Tai Chan Temple was officially completed on September 1, 2001—"planned for 3 years starting in 1992, constructed for 7 years"³⁰—thirty years later than the other three major mountains. This generational gap also shaped its Chan meditation path, which is very different from the first three. Master Wu Jue passed away on April 8, 2016, at the age of 90.

The Four Major Mountains have different strategies for church-state relations: Tzu Chi "does not talk politics, only does charity"; the Presbyterian Church "actively participates in democratic transition"; Fo Guang Shan "participates moderately, maintaining dialogue with both sides of the strait." Even among religious groups, the spectrum can be stretched very wide.

Dr. James Laidlaw Maxwell's Medical Kit: 160 Years of Christianity in Taiwan

On May 28, 1865, Dr. James Laidlaw Maxwell of the Scottish Presbyterian Mission landed in Dagou (now Kaohsiung) in southern Taiwan, and on June 16, he began preaching and practicing medicine at Kanxi Street outside the West Gate of the Prefecture City³¹. This is the starting point of Protestant Christianity in Taiwan.

Seven years later, on March 7, 1872, George Leslie Mackay of the Canadian Presbyterian Mission landed in Tamsui, opening northern missionary work³². The Oxford College (1882) established by Mackay in Tamsui is one of the prototypes of modern education in Taiwan. Mackay Hospital, Chang Jung High School, Tamkang High School, and Truth University—these institutions still operating today are the foundations laid by the Presbyterian Church in the late 19th century.

What makes the Presbyterian Church very different from other religions is that it directly intervenes in politics. On August 16, 1977, the Taiwan Presbyterian Church issued the "Declaration on Human Rights," publicly calling on the government to "take effective measures to make Taiwan a new and independent country"³³. Taiwan was still under martial law; publicly advocating independence risked imprisonment. The Presbyterian Church became one of the few local civic groups able to speak publicly before the lifting of martial law.

Catholicism also has its own traces—Fu Jen Catholic University, early cooperation with Mackay Hospital, and the White Cross Missionaries' long-term investment in indigenous tribal services in Taitung³⁴. These institutions are not as large in scale as the Four Major Buddhist Mountains, but their contributions to remote area medical care, education, and social welfare are profound.

📝 Curator's Note: Christianity in Taiwan for 160 years has never been the majority (population proportion approx. 5-6%), but its influence far exceeds the number of believers. It brought modern education, modern medicine, women's education, indigenous language standardization, the Vernacular Language Movement, and human rights discourse—these things are not matters of grand halls, but the infrastructure of the entire society. A religion's influence is not measured by how many people worship its gods, but by how many things it did that this society originally did not have.

Xingtian Temple Removes Incense Burners: When Piety Meets PM2.5

On August 26, 2014, at 3 AM, workers from Xingtian Temple moved two large incense burners and fifteen offering tables from the front of the main hall³⁵. Taiwan's first major temple with six million annual visitors—enshrining Guan Sheng Di Jun—announced an incense ban. This was the largest-scale reform in temple history in half a century³⁶.

The background of the decision: Statistics from the Environmental Protection Agency show that 90,000 to 220,000 tons (source B writes 240,000 metric tons) of gold paper are burned annually; PM2.5 around temples can reach 45 micrograms per cubic meter, three times the national standard³⁷. Dharma Drum Mountain was even more radical—using a large screen to play videos of gold paper burning to replace physical burning³⁸.

But the reaction was polarized³⁹. Traditionalists believe "without incense, there is no efficacy," "how can the gods know you came to worship if they cannot smell the incense." Young believers and environmentalists feel "finally someone changed." The numbers a year later are interesting: Xingtian Temple's number of worshippers did not decrease, but increased—more families bringing children, more non-smoking young people, more middle-aged and elderly people with allergies.

This event revealed a fundamental problem: the form and content of religious rituals can be separated. Incense is not religion itself; it is the physical manifestation of religion. The manifestation can change; the god remains. Once everyone accepts this, there is space for temple reform.

Fortune Sticks, Temple Management Committees, and a Practice of Democracy on an Island

Finally, let's talk about two things that are less noticed.

The first is fortune sticks. The fortune stick system in Taiwanese temples is actually one of the world's earliest "free psychological counseling systems." A young person heartbroken, a middle-aged person unemployed, or an elderly person sick can walk into a temple, shake the stick tube, draw a four-line poem, and chat with a fortune-stick interpreter. The fortune stick itself may be ambiguous, but the process of interpretation is listening, being listened to, and being advised. No registration fee, no appointment needed⁴⁰.

The second is the temple management committee. Taiwan's temple management committee system—electing a chairman, vice-chairman, and general secretary by one-person-one-vote—is actually a grassroots democratic practice existing in Taiwan since the Qing Dynasty⁴¹. Earlier than parliaments, earlier than political parties, earlier than household registration systems. A small temple might manage ten million in incense money, a piece of land, and a group of believers; all of this must operate through democratic mechanisms. Of course, this also means temple politics can be very dark—factional struggles, vote-buying, and ties to local politics⁴². But it leaves at least one fact: Taiwanese people did not start voting in 1996; they learned this in the small temple at the corner of the street hundreds of years ago.

From Fear to Freedom

Returning to the opening contrast: the island with the highest density of temples in the world and the second-highest ranking for religious freedom in Asia, the historical origins of its two largest faiths are both related to plague and death.

The 2025 Freedom House Global Freedom Report ranked Taiwan second in Asia with a score of 94 (only behind Japan)⁴³. This ranking includes multiple dimensions such as religious freedom, freedom of speech, and freedom of association. Contrasted with three hundred years ago—those military immigrants who tied statues to boats and gambled their lives crossing the sea—they probably could not imagine their descendants living on such an island: free to believe in any religion, free not to believe in any religion, free to worship all three religions or none at all.

The Baoan Temple repaired by Liao Wu-chih now holds the Bao Sheng Cultural Festival every year, combining art exhibitions, concerts, and academic lectures⁴⁴. A temple built two hundred years ago by Tong'an immigrants bringing the faith of Bao Sheng Da Di has today become one of Taipei's cultural centers. The statues are still there, but there are also jazz bands nearby.

This island's faith history, starting from the moment military immigrants stepped off their ships in the 17th century, has walked all the way to the incense-free temples of 2025, mental environmental protection, Humanistic Buddhism, and the second place in Freedom House. There has been no break in between; every era has added new things on the original foundation. King Yeh changed from plague god to peace god, Mazu from sea goddess to all-purpose god, Earth God from field god to commercial god. Gods do not die; they change jobs.

Those seventeenth-century sea-crossing fears—fear of the Black Water Strait, fear of plague, fear of械斗 (clan fights), fear of natural disasters—did not truly disappear. They were transformed into 15,000 temples, a million-person nine-day pilgrimage, volunteers of the Four Major Mountains spread across the world, the Presbyterian Church's persistent human rights declarations, and I-Kuan Tao's legalization after thirty-four years out of the underground.

Fear has never disappeared; it has just grown the shape of faith.

And this faith ultimately made the island free.

Further Reading

• Taiwanese Overseas Chinese and Diaspora Communities — How Mazu, King Yeh, and Earth Gods went overseas to the whole world with immigrants
• Hakka Culture and Language — The Yimin Ye (Righteous Martyrs) faith is the most special religious practice of the Hakka group in Taiwan
• Social Movements in Taiwan during the Japanese Colonial Period — How the colonial government controlled religion and how it was counter-controlled by religion
• February 28 Incident — The role of the post-war religious sector (especially the Presbyterian Church) in political transition
• Chiang Wei-shui — Physician revolutionary, dialogue with contemporary religious leaders

References

1. Dalongdong Bao'an Temple UNESCO Restoration Full Record — Official complete record of Liao Wu-chih's team's 1995-2002 restoration process↩
2. Taipei Times: Liao Wu-chih, Bao'an Temple savior — Interview with Liao Wu-chih, the decision-making process of seven years of self-raised funds for restoration, taking no government funds↩
3. Dalongdong Bao'an Temple — Wikipedia — UNESCO Asia-Pacific Cultural Heritage Conservation Award jury book and the original source of "A model for community-based restoration"↩
4. Ministry of the Interior National Temple and Church Statistics — Official statistics for 2024: approx. 15,000 religious buildings (Taoism 9,794 / Buddhism 2,273 / Others)↩
5. Taiwan Convenience Store Density World Second — Ministry of Economic Statistics — 2023 Taiwan approx. 13,000 convenience stores (7-Eleven + FamilyMart + OK + Hi-Life)↩
6. Tainan tops in temple density — Taipei Times — 1,641 temples in Tainan in 2015, the city with the highest temple density in Taiwan↩
7. Academia Sinica Taiwan Temple Database: King Yeh Faith Culture GIS — Cross-referencing Ministry of the Interior religious registrations with Academia Sinica temple database; King Yeh temples approx. 1,330 are the first among god temples↩
8. King Yeh Qian Sui — Wikipedia — Source of the proverbs "Southern King Yeh, Central Mazu" and "Mad March for Mazu, April King Yeh's Birthday"↩
9. Academia Sinica Taiwan Temple Database: King Yeh Faith Origin — Academic record of early Chinese southeast coast plague king boats drifting from Xiamen and Quanzhou to various places along Taiwan's southwest coast↩
10. Evolution of Taiwan Earth God Faith — Folklore Field Research — Functional evolution of Earth God from agricultural god to commercial god, incense cases of temples in Taipei's Xinyi District↩
11. Ministry of the Interior Religious Hundred Sceneries: Dajia Mazu Pilgrimage — Official data: 9 days 8 nights, spanning 4 counties/cities, 21 townships, nearly a hundred temples, 340 kilometers↩
12. Dajia Mazu Pilgrimage — Wikipedia — Historical and scale statistics of Discovery listing it as one of the world's top three religious events in 2004↩
13. UNESCO Mazu Belief and Customs — Official page of UNESCO listing Mazu beliefs and customs as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2009↩
14. Following Mazu through Taiwan — Taiwan Panorama — On-site documentation of the supply station culture "Mazu is walking, everyone helps"↩
15. Mazu palanquin tradition — Taiwan Panorama — Record of the pilgrimage tradition where the palanquin swings, turns sharply, and sprints according to Mazu's will↩
16. In the Name of Mazu — Oxford Foreign Policy Analysis — Academic paper recording the CCP incorporating Mazu culture into the "13th Five-Year Plan" and "Belt and Road" and its use in cross-strait united front↩
17. Longshan Temple Official Website — Historical record of the May 31, 1945 US air raid and the Guanyin Bodhisattva statue remaining intact amidst the rubble↩
18. Taiwan Religion — Wikipedia — Academia Sinica Institute of Sociology 2019 belief proportion survey (Folk 49.3% / Buddhism 14% / Taoism 12.4% / Protestant 5.5% / I-Kuan Tao 2.1% / Catholic 1.3%)↩
19. Longshan Temple Wartime Damage Record — Mengjia Longshan Temple Official Website — Official temple historical record of the May 31, 1945 air raid, main hall destroyed but Guanyin statue intact amidst rubble↩
20. The Political Process of Ban and Lifting Ban on I-Kuan Tao in Taiwan — Academia Sinica Institute of Sociology — Academic research on the 1953 Nationalist Government ban on grounds of "involving superstition and disturbing local public order"↩
21. I-Kuan Tao — Wikipedia — 40 legislative members signed in 1987 + General Association of I-Kuan Tao of the ROC established in March 1988, the first legalized illegal religion in post-war Taiwan↩
22. General Association of I-Kuan Tao of the Republic of China — Wiki — Official statistics of the General Association: approx. 800,000 I-Kuan Tao believers in Taiwan as of March 2018↩
23. I-Kuan Tao Global Development — I-Kuan Tao General Association Official Website — Official overseas expansion information that I-Kuan Tao has dojos in over 80 countries↩
24. Tzu Chi Foundation Official Website — The founding story of Master Cheng Yen starting with 30 housewives "saving five cents a day" in 1966 and the spirit of "For Buddhism, for All Beings"↩
25. Tzu Chi Foundation Global Reach — As of May 31 2024, Tzu Chi has volunteers in 68 countries and provided relief in 136 countries, English official website data↩
26. Master Hsing Yun Page — Fo Guang Shan Official Website — Founded Fo Guang Shan in 1967, established over 300 temples worldwide, 16 Buddhist academies, founded Nan-Hua University / Fo Guang University / Fo Guang Shan Buddha Museum↩
27. Venerable Master Hsing Yun — Wikipedia — Passed away at 5 PM on February 5, 2023, in the Kaishan Hall of Fo Guang Shan, living to the age of 97↩
28. Dharma Drum Mountain Founder Master Sheng Yen — Dharma Drum Mountain Official Website — Founded Dharma Drum Mountain in 1989, "Enhance the quality of people, build a pure land in the human world" in 1990, "Mental Environmental Protection" concept history in 1992↩
29. Zhong Tai Chan Temple: Master Wu Jue's Lingquan Temple Start — Zhong Tai Official Website — Record of Master Wu Jue, age 60, founding Lingquan Temple in place in 1987 to enter the world and propagate the Dharma↩
30. Zhong Tai Chan Temple Completion Process — Tourism Bureau Temple Guide — Planned for 3 years starting in 1992 + constructed for 7 years, completed and opened on September 1, 2001, Taiwan's largest scale Zen dojo↩
31. Dr. James Laidlaw Maxwell — General Association of Taiwan Presbyterian Church — Landed in Dagou on May 28, 1865 + began preaching and practicing medicine at Kanxi Street outside the West Gate of the Prefecture City on June 16, the starting point of Presbyterian missionary work↩
32. Dr. George Leslie Mackay — General Association of Taiwan Presbyterian Church — Began northern missionary work from Tamsui on March 7, 1872 + record of Oxford College founded in 1882↩
33. Human Rights Declaration 1977 — Wikipedia — August 16, 1977 Taiwan Presbyterian Church issued "Human Rights Declaration" advocating "to make Taiwan a new and independent country" full text↩
34. Catholicism in Taiwan — Catholic Church Affairs Council — Fu Jen Catholic University / early cooperation with Mackay Hospital / White Cross Missionaries' long-term investment in indigenous tribal services in Taitung history↩
35. Xingtian Temple bans incense — Taipei Times — The incense ban decision of moving two large incense burners and fifteen offering tables at 3 AM on August 26, 2014↩
36. Xingtian Temple — Wikipedia — Enshrining Guan Sheng Di Jun, approx. 6 million annual visitors, record of the largest temple reform in Taiwan in half a century↩
37. Temples and PM2.5 pollution — Taipei Times — EPA statistics: 90,000-220,000 tons of gold paper burned annually / PM2.5 around temples reaches 45 micrograms/cubic meter↩
38. Low-carbon worship at Dharma Drum — Taiwan Panorama — Dharma Drum Mountain's low-carbon worship practice of using a large screen to play gold paper burning videos to replace physical burning↩
39. Other temples react to Xingtian decision — Taipei Times — Comprehensive report on the polarized reactions of temples to Xingtian's incense ban↩
40. Psychological Counseling Aspect of Taiwan Temple Fortune Sticks — Folklore Review — Sociological analysis of the fortune stick system as Taiwan's earliest free psychological counseling system↩
41. Taiwan Temple Management Committee System — Academia Sinica Institute of Ethnology — Academic research on the one-person-one-vote democratic practice of the temple management committee system, existing in Taiwan since the Qing Dynasty↩
42. Temple Politics and Local Factions — The Reporter — Investigative report collection on temple factional struggles, vote-buying, and ties to local politics↩
43. Freedom House 2025: Taiwan ranks 2nd in Asia — 2025 Global Freedom Report Taiwan score 94, ranked 2nd in Asia (only behind Japan) news report↩
44. Dalongdong Bao Sheng Cultural Festival — Representative case of temple cultural transformation combining art exhibitions, concerts, and academic lectures↩