Between religion and superstition : Buddhism and Daoism in Guangzhou, China, 1900-1937
Document Type
Journal article
Source Publication
Journal of Religious History
Publication Date
12-1-2009
Volume
33
Issue
4
First Page
452
Last Page
471
Publisher
Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Asia
Abstract
This paper illustrates how Buddhist and Daoist monasteries in Guangzhou, with their legal religious status, situated themselves within the new concept of the modern nation-state, and how the distinction between religion and superstition affected ordinary people's religious lives. There were inherent tensions between religion and the modern nation-state, and the survival of Buddhism and Daoism was determined by their subordination to the state ideology and to political authorities’ regulation. However, the government did not regulate the form of worship in government-approved religious sites. Due to the syncretic nature of Chinese religion, the select few of the Buddhist and Daoist monasteries in Guangzhou, with government recognition as symbols of “true religions,” paradoxically served as a protective umbrella for the people to carry on with their “superstitious” practices. At the level of praxis, the line between religion and superstition was not as distinguishable as the government had envisioned.
DOI
10.1111/j.1467-9809.2009.00825.x
Print ISSN
00224227
E-ISSN
14679809
Funding Information
Hong Kong Research Grant Council for the financial support of this study (CUHK 4572/06H).
Publisher Statement
Copyright © 2009 The Author. Journal compilation © 2009 Association for the Journal of Religious History
Access to external full text or publisher's version may require subscription.
Full-text Version
Publisher’s Version
Language
English
Recommended Citation
Poon, S. W. (2009). Between religion and superstition: Buddhism and Daoism in Guangzhou, China, 1900-1937. Journal of Religious History, 33(4), 452-471. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-9809.2009.00825.x