Chinese Religions: Beliefs and Practices

This book brings together the studies of Jeaneane Fowler in Taoism, Chinese popular religion, and the broader canvas of Chinese cosmogony, along with those of Merv Fowler in Confucianism, Ch'an (Zen) Buddhism, and Pure Land Buddhism. Chinese Religions requires no previous knowledge and thereby serves as an introduction to the religions of China, placing them in the wider context of Chinese history and philosophy. The facets of Chinese religions are as broad, multilayered, and varied as the geographical vastness of China itself, yet so many Chinese beliefs have found their way into the West - the theory of yin and yang, the I Ching, the Tao Te Ching, etc. One of the greatest characteristics of Chinese religions is that they encompass virtually every avenue of religious thought throughout the long span of Chinese pre-historic and historical pathways.