Hello! My name is Charlie and I'm a 15 year old student from Sweden. I first began reading about Taoism a couple of years ago when we learnt about different religions in school. I was intrigued by the philosophy and wanted to find out more. I come from a Christian family and it's been very difficult for me to express my beliefs without being shut down, which is why I wanted to seek out a place where I can connect with other Taoists / non-Christians in general.
I guess I have a couple of questions that I haven't really been able to find answers to, so if any of you would be willing to help me out it would be great
1. I'm as white as it gets. I know you can be a Taoist without being Chinese, but I still feel like by practising Taoism I'm appropriating Chinese culture in some way. Is that true or am I worrying over nothing?
2. What do I need to practise in order to call myself a Taoist? I know there are certain things such as not eating meat, grains or beans (which I already don't), practising qiqong and tai chi but from what I've learnt those are merely optional. Obviously following the Tao Te Ching is essential, which I am to my best abilities. But is there anything else that I need to do?
3. There is not a single Taoist temple near me. I don't even think there are any in my country. I'm planning on moving out of Sweden as soon as possible anyway, so that might not be a problem in a couple of years, but what can I do in the meantime to learn more about Taoism besides going on the internet? It would be nice to get some real-life training as well as connect with other Taoists.
I'm terribly sorry if I've gotten anything wrong, as I said I come from a Christian family so I'm very uninformed compared to lots of you I'm sure. I hope you're having a nice day 🌼
