Quanzhen monastic discipline

Domain XIII · Contemplative & religious disciplines · Wang Changyue, Qiu Chuji · 1656 · Beijing, China

What it is

Quanzhen monastic discipline is a way of life, not a therapy. Clergy are celibate and live together in temples (宫观 gongguan). They are formed through discipleship to a master, receive precepts (戒 jie) at a public ordination platform, and follow monastery regulations. Goossaert describes Quanzhen as…

Format

• No published clinical protocol for therapy with Quanzhen monastics is cited here. Session counts and formats come from whatever evidence-based treatment is indicated for the presenting problem, not from this tradition. The working phases below are the guide's own synthesis.
• Transitions and ending. Goal: prepare for ordination, transfer, an enclosure or retreat, leaving the order, or ending therapy, with a relapse plan and a plan for community support.

Who practises it, and how they are trained or regulated

• The Initial Perfection manual. The Chuzhen jielü contains these sections: a model ordination certificate;
• Monastery regulations. The Quanzhen qinggui, attributed to Lu Daohe (陸道和), is described as the earliest extant Quanzhen monastic code. Its sections cover the order of tonsure and robing, seniority in the hall, wandering and paying respects to teachers, guidance for novices, sitting in the meditation cell, the founders' rules, and lists of penalties. The penalty lists attributed to Wang Chongyang (Wang Zhe 王实,…
• Version followed: contemporary Quanzhen (全真, "Complete Perfection") monastic discipline in its Longmen (龙门, "Dragon Gate") form. This follows Wang Changyue's three-stage precept system, the Chuzhen jielü (初真戒律), which has a 1656 preface and a 1908 Baiyun guan woodblock edition. It also follows the Yuan-period Quanzhen qinggui (全真清規, "Pure Regulations"), and public ordinations as the China Taoist Association (中国道教协会)…

Evidence status, as the guide reports it

• No published clinical protocol for therapy with Quanzhen monastics is cited here. Session counts and formats come from whatever evidence-based treatment is indicated for the presenting problem, not from this tradition. The working phases below are the guide's own synthesis.

Questions to explore with your client

• What drew you to it, and what are you hoping it will change?
• Does it involve any substance, plant preparation, remedy or supplement? Has your doctor or prescriber been told, especially about any medication you take?
• Does it involve fasting, a special diet or 'detox'? Have you discussed this with your doctor?
• Is it a group, retreat or community? How do they respond if someone wants to leave or raises a concern?
• How do you and the practitioner understand what is happening, in spiritual or cultural terms? Is that a source of comfort, worry, or both?
• Who runs it, and what training or registration do they hold?
• What actually happens in a session or meeting, and how often?
• What does it cost, and is there pressure to commit to more?
• How do you feel afterwards, in the hours and days that follow?
• Does it fit with, or clash with, the work we do here?

What practitioners of it watch for

• penances inappropriate for a child, interrupted education, and isolation from family. the young person has safe adults to turn to and education continues.
• complicated grief, isolation after leaving, and loss of meaning or suicidality. the client can speak about the transition with a mix of feeling, and has support in place.
• pressure from a superior to report on sessions, and fear of expulsion. Expulsion is a sanction the tradition's own rules and officials describe. the client attends without conflict, and…
• the client feeling unable to refuse contact, the authority asking for clinical information, and power imbalance in a joint meeting. the client feels supported by both, and conflicting messages…
• your own assumptions, such as that celibacy must be painful or that monastic life must be calm. Watch for clients who answer as a representative of the order rather than for themselves, and for…

When to involve someone else

• New or worsening physical symptoms, or advice to stop or change prescribed medication: involve the client's doctor or prescriber.
• Signs of coercion, isolation from family and friends, escalating costs or secrecy: discuss openly and consider safeguarding.
• A crisis or thoughts of suicide: follow your crisis protocol. In the US, call or text 988; in the UK and Ireland, Samaritans on 116 123.

Drawn automatically from the guide's own sections. Stay curious: neither endorse nor dismiss what the client values, and check anything that matters against the full guide and its sources. Not medical advice.