Ren Farong (; June 1936 – 26 May 2021) was a Chinese

Taoist priest A ''daoshi'' () or Taoshih, translated as Taoist priest, Taoist monk, or Taoist professional is a priest in Taoism. The courtesy title of a senior is ''daozhang'' (, meaning "Tao master"), and a highly accomplished and revered is often cal ...

religious leader Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

calligrapher Calligraphy () is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instruments. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "the art of giving form to signs in an exp ...

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...

, and politician. He was Venerable Master of the

Chinese Taoist Association Chinese Taoist Association (CTA; ), founded in April 1957, is the official government supervisory organ of Taoism in the People's Republic of China. History In 1980, the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party approved a request by t ...

between 2005 and 2015. He was president of the World Religious Peace Association, vice president of the , president of the , president of Shaanxi Taoist Association, honorary president of Shanxi Taoist Association, vice minister of the

State Ethnic Affairs Commission The National Ethnic Affairs Commission (NEAC), also called the State Ethnic Affairs Commission (SEAC), is a body under the leadership of the United Front Work Department of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party that is responsibl ...

, and abbot of

Louguantai The Louguantai Temple (), in Tayu village (), Zhouzhi county, Shaanxi province, about 70 km west of Xi'an, is the place where tradition says that Laozi composed the ''Tao Te Ching The ''Tao Te Ching'' () or ''Laozi'' is a Chinese clas ...

. He was a member of the 8th, 9th, 10th National Committee of the

Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference The Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) is a political advisory body in the People's Republic of China and a central part of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)'s United front (China), united front system. Its members adv ...

. He was a member of the 11th and 12th Standing Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.

Biography

Ren was born Ren Zhigang () in the town of , Tianshui County (now Tianshui),

Gansu Gansu is a provinces of China, province in Northwestern China. Its capital and largest city is Lanzhou, in the southeastern part of the province. The seventh-largest administrative district by area at , Gansu lies between the Tibetan Plateau, Ti ...

, in June 1936. At age 19, he paid a religious homage to the Temple of King of Medicine, from then on, he yearned for Taoism. Soon, he received complete ordination under Taoist priest Wang Silin (), a 28th generation disciple of

Quanzhen School The Quanzhen School (全真: ''Quánzhēn'', "All-True", Complete Perfection, Integrating Perfection or Complete Reality) is currently one of the two dominant denominations of Daoism in China. It originated in the Shandong peninsula in 1170. O ...

. In 1984, he was proposed as the new abbot of

, one of the 72 blessed places of Taoism. In 1986, he became president of Shaanxi Taoist Association. On June 24, 2005, he was elected Venerable Master of the

. On 26 May 2021, he died of illness in

Xi'an Xi'an is the list of capitals in China, capital of the Chinese province of Shaanxi. A sub-provincial city on the Guanzhong plain, the city is the third-most populous city in Western China after Chongqing and Chengdu, as well as the most populou ...

Shaanxi Shaanxi is a Provinces of China, province in north Northwestern China. It borders the province-level divisions of Inner Mongolia to the north; Shanxi and Henan to the east; Hubei, Chongqing, and Sichuan to the south; and Gansu and Ningxia to t ...

, aged 84.

Works

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ren, Farong 1936 births 2021 deaths People from Tianshui 20th-century Chinese calligraphers Chinese philanthropists Members of the 8th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Members of the 9th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Members of the 10th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Members of the Standing Committee of the 11th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Members of the Standing Committee of the 12th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference