Editing Exorcism (section)

==Taoism and Chinese folk religion==
 {{Main|History of Taoism|Chinese ritual mastery traditions|Fulu|Jiji ru lüling}}
[[File:Li County manual including several of the most famous heroes from Watermargin 01.jpg|thumb|A Taoist manuscript from [[Li County, Hunan|Li County]], [[Hunan]] contains codifications of ''[[fulu]]'' for each of the [[108 Heroes|108 protagonists]] from ''[[Water Margin]]'', 19th century]]
In [[Taoism]], exorcisms are performed when an individual has been possessed by an evil spirit for one of two reasons: The victim has disturbed a ghost, regardless of intent, and the ghost now seeks revenge, or the victim has been targeted by someone using black magic to conjure a ghost to possess them.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Taoist Exorcism by Taoist Master|url=http://taoist-sorcery.blogspot.com/2012/08/taoist-exorcism-by-taoist-master.html|access-date=2020-09-23|website=TAOIST SORCERY|archive-date=2019-09-09|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190909044006/http://taoist-sorcery.blogspot.com/2012/08/taoist-exorcism-by-taoist-master.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The [[Fashi]], who are both Chinese ritual specialists and Taoist priests, are able to conduct particular rituals for exorcism. These rituals will vary between the many sects which are further influenced by the geographic region in which the specific Taoist is from. A Zheng Yi sect Taoist in Beijing may conduct a ritual completely different from a Taoist of the same sect in a southern area such as Hong Kong.

For example, the leaders of these exorcism rituals who are [[tangki]] that invited the divine powers from the [[Shen (Chinese religion)|Deities]] and conduct a dramatic performance to call out against the demons so the village can once again have peace. The leaders strike themselves with various sharp weapons to show their invincibility to ward off the demons and also to let out their blood. This form of blood is considered to be sacred and powerful, so after the rituals, the blood is blotted with talismans and placed on the door of houses as an act of spiritual protection against evil spirits.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Taoism Ritual, Worship, Devotion, Symbolism, Taoism Rites and Ceremonies|url=https://www.patheos.com/library/taoism/ritual-worship-devotion-symbolism/rites-and-ceremonies|access-date=2020-09-23|website=www.patheos.com|language=en|archive-date=2020-10-01|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201001053703/https://www.patheos.com/library/taoism/ritual-worship-devotion-symbolism/rites-and-ceremonies|url-status=live}}</ref> Such ritual using blood however is more common among folk sects such as LuShan, and does not take place in more orthodox sects such as QuanZhen or Zheng Yi who are more monastic in nature. However, it is possible that folk Taoists in rural areas descended from orthodox sects may be influenced by local folk religions, so it may be seen.

Historically, all Taoist exorcisms include usage of [[Fulu]], chanting, physical gesture like [[mudra]]s, and praying as a way to drive away the spirit is common in all sects.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jumreornvong |first=Natty |date=16 July 2015 |title=Exorcism and Mental Illness Across Different Cultures |url=https://web.stanford.edu/group/hopes/cgi-bin/hopes_test/exorcism-and-mental-illness-across-different-cultures/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170314023800/https://web.stanford.edu/group/hopes/cgi-bin/hopes_test/exorcism-and-mental-illness-across-different-cultures/ |archive-date=2017-03-14 |access-date=2017-03-23 |website=Stanford University |publisher=[[Huntington's Disease Outreach Project for Education at Stanford]]}}</ref>