Concept

Chinese folk religion

Overview

Chinese folk religion or folk beliefs, comprises a range of traditional religious practices of Han Chinese, including the Chinese diaspora. This includes the veneration of shen ('spirits') and ancestors, and worship devoted to deities and immortals, who can be deities of places or natural phenomena, of human behaviour, or progenitors of family lineages. Stories surrounding these gods form a loose canon of Chinese mythology. By the Song dynasty (960–1279), these practices had been blended with Buddhist, Confucian, and Taoist teachings to form the popular religious system which has lasted in many ways into the present day. The government of modern China generally tolerates popular religious movements, but has suppressed or persecuted large organizations that they fear would undermine social stability.

The Chinese government formally recognizes five religions: Buddhism, Taoism, Catholic Christianity, Protestant Christianity, and Islam. Chinese folk religion, being a syncretism, is not considered by the government to be a religion because it has ambiguous boundaries and a poorly defined structure, which is why Taoism and Buddhism are recognized as the country's historical religions, but folk religion is considered part of China's cultural heritage.

After the fall of the Qing dynasty in 1911, governments and modernizing elites condemned 'feudal superstition' and opposed traditional religious practices which they believed conflicted with modern values. By the late 20th century, these attitudes began to change in both mainland China and Taiwan, and many scholars now view folk religion in a positive light. In China, the revival of traditional religion has benefited from official interest in preserving traditional culture, such as Mazuism and the Sanyi teaching in Fujian, Yellow Emperor worship, and other forms of local worship, such as that of the Dragon King, Pangu or Caishen.

Feng shui, acupuncture, and traditional Chinese medicine reflect this world view, since features of the landscape as well as organs of the body are in correlation with the five powers and yin and yang.

Overview adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0; see the article history for authors).

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But by sacred things one must not understand simply those personal beings which are called gods or spirits; a rock, a tree, a spring, a pebble, a piece of wood, a house, in a word, anything can be sacred. A rite can have this character; in fact, the rite does not exist which does not have it to a certain degree.
Émile Durkheim, The Elementary Forms of the Religious Life
States what Chinese folk religion is.
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Since every man has a natural reverence, the great sages of the time teach him how and when to show it; and since he has a natural feeling of affection, they teach him when and how to cultivate it. As the teachings of these sages are based on the principle of filial piety, their doctrine is propagated without effort, and their government is effectual without resorting to force. The affection between a father and a…
Confucius, The book of filial duty
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Alluding to the matter of the Chief of the Ki family worshipping on T[']ai-shan,[7] the Master said to Yen Yu, "Cannot you save him from this?" He replied, "It is beyond my power." "Alas, alas!" exclaimed the Master, "are we to say that the spirits of T[']ai-shan have not as much discernment as Lin Fang?" Of "the superior man," the Master observed, "In him there is no contentiousness.
Confucius, The Wisdom of Confucius with Critical and Biographical Sketches
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Chinese folk religion

Overview

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