Chinese Gods: An Introduction to Chinese Folk Religion

Chamberlain, Jonathan

ISBN 10: 9881774217 / ISBN 13: 9789881774217

Published by Blacksmith Books, 2010

The book is in good condition with all pages and cover intact, including the dust jacket if originally issued. The spine may show light wear. Pages may contain some notes or highlighting, and there might be a "From the library of" label. Boxed set packaging, shrink wrap, or included media like CDs may be missing. Seller Inventory # BSM.ZVV2

Synopsis:

Chinese gods: Who are they? Where did they come from? What do they do? Chinese folk religion is the underlying belief system of more than a billion Chinese people. Go into any Chinese home, office or restaurant and you will see altars, statues or paper 'good luck' images. And wherever there is a Chinese community there are temples and Earth God shrines. But what is the religion that makes sense of all these expressions of belief? How do these beliefs connect to Taoism, Confucianism and Buddhism? Chinese Gods helps us understand the building blocks of this religion for which even the Chinese have no name - because the beliefs are so intertwined with language and culture they have no independent existence - and provides an in-depth analysis of 19 of the major gods of the Chinese pantheon.

Review: Even Chamberlain would admit there's a lot more about Chinese folk religion, more than Chinese Gods (or even several books) could cover. But most readers will finish this book knowing substantially more than when they started it.

Bibliographic Details

Title: Chinese Gods: An Introduction to Chinese ...
Publisher: Blacksmith Books
Publication Date: 2010
Binding: Soft cover
Condition: good
Edition: 3rd Edition