Chinese folk religion

===Geographic and ethnic variations===

====North and south divides====
[[File:Baoshengdadi.jpg|thumb|Altar to [[Baoshengdadi]], whose cult is mostly [[Fujian]]ese and [[Taiwan]]ese.]]
Recent scholarly works have found basic differences between north and south folk religion.<ref name=GoossaertNCR>{{cite journal | last = Goossaert | first = Vincent | title = Is There a North China Religion? A Review Essay | journal = Journal of Chinese Religions | volume = 39 | issue = 1 | pages = 83–93 | date = 2011 | issn = 0737-769X | doi = 10.1179/073776911806153907 | s2cid = 170749557 }}</ref> Folk religion of southern and southeastern provinces is focused on the [[Chinese kin|lineages]] and [[Chinese lineage associations|their churches]] (''zōngzú xiéhuì'' {{lang-zh|宗族協會}}) focusing on ancestral gods, while the folk religion of central-northern China ([[North China Plain]]) hinges on the communal worship of [[tutelary deity|tutelary deities]] of creation and nature as identity symbols by villages populated by families of different surnames.<ref name="Overmyer, 2009. pp. 12-13"/> They are structured into "communities of the god(s)" (''shénshè'' {{lang-zh|神社}}, or ''huì'' {{lang-zh|會}}, "association"),{{sfnb|Overmyer|2009|p=xii}} which organise temple ceremonies (''[[miaohui]]'' {{lang-zh|廟會}}), involving processions and pilgrimages,<ref>Overmyer, 2009. p. 10: "There were and are many such pilgrimages to regional and national temples in China, and of course such pilgrimages cannot always be clearly distinguished from festivals for the gods or saints of local communities, because such festivals can involve participants from surrounding villages and home communities celebrating the birthdays or death days of their patron gods or saints, whatever their appeal to those from other areas. People worship and petition at both pilgrimages and local festivals for similar reasons. The chief differences between the two are the central role of a journey in pilgrimages, the size of the area from which participants are attracted, and the role of pilgrimage societies in organizing the long trips that may be involved.&nbsp;... pilgrimage in China is also characterized by extensive planning and organization both by the host temples and those visiting them."</ref> and led by indigenous ritual masters (''fashi'') who are often hereditary and linked to secular authority.{{refn|group=note|Overmyer (2009, p. 73), says that from the late 19th to the 20th century few professional priests (i.e. licensed Taoists) were involved in local religion in the central and northern provinces of China, and discusses various types of folk ritual specialists including: the ''yuehu'' {{lang-zh|樂戶}}, the ''zhuli'' {{lang-zh|主禮}} (p. 74), the ''shenjia'' {{lang-zh|神家}} ("godly families", hereditary specialists of gods and their rites; p. 77), then (p. 179) the ''yinyang'' or ''fengshui'' masters (as "...&nbsp;folk Zhengyi Daoists of the Lingbao scriptural tradition, living as ordinary peasants. They earn their living both as a group from performing public rituals, and individually [...] by doing geomancy and calendrical consultations for ''fengshui'' and auspicious days"; quoting: S. Jones (2007), ''Ritual and Music of North China: Shawm Bands in Shanxi''). He also describes shamans or media known by different names: ''mapi'' {{lang-zh|馬裨}}, ''wupo'' {{lang-zh|巫婆}}, ''shen momo'' {{lang-zh|神嬤嬤}} or ''shen han'' {{lang-zh|神漢}} (p. 87); ''xingdao de'' {{lang-zh|香道的}} ("practitioners of the incense way"; p. 85); village ''xiangtou'' {{lang-zh|香頭}} ("incense heads"; p. 86); ''matong'' {{lang-zh|馬童}} (the same as southern ''[[tongji (spirit medium)|jitong]]''), either ''wushen'' {{lang-zh|巫神}} (possessed by gods) or ''shenguan'' {{lang-zh|神官}} (possessed by immortals; pp. 88–89); or "godly sages" (''shensheng'' {{lang-zh|神聖}}; p. 91). Further (p. 76), he discusses for example the ''sai'' {{lang-zh|賽}}, ceremonies of thanksgiving to the gods in [[Shanxi]] with roots in the [[Song dynasty|Song era]], whose leaders very often corresponded to local political authorities. This pattern continues today with former village Communist Party secretaries elected as temple association bosses (p. 83). He concludes (p. 92): "In sum, since at least the early twentieth century the majority of local ritual leaders in north China have been products of their own or nearby communities. They have special skills in organization, ritual performance or interaction with the gods, but none are full-time ritual specialists; they have all 'kept their day jobs'! As such they are exemplars of ordinary people organizing and carrying out their own cultural traditions, persistent traditions with their own structure, functions and logic that deserve to be understood as such."}}

Northern and southern folk religions also have a different [[pantheon (gods)|pantheon]], of which the northern one is composed of more ancient gods of [[Chinese mythology]].<ref>Overmyer, 2009. p. 3: "...&nbsp;there are significant differences between aspects of local religion in the south and north, one of which is the gods who are worshiped."; p. 33: "...&nbsp;the veneration in the north of ancient deities attested to in pre-Han sources, deities such as Nüwa, Fuxi and Shennong, the legendary founder of agriculture and herbal medicine. In some instances these gods were worshiped at places believed to be where they originated, with indications of grottoes, temples and festivals for them, some of which continue to exist or have been revived. Of course, these gods were worshiped elsewhere in China as well, though perhaps not with the same sense of original geographical location."</ref> Furthermore, [[Chinese salvationist religions|folk religious sects]] have historically been more successful in the central plains and in the northeastern provinces than in southern China, and central-northern folk religion shares characteristics of some of the sects, such as the heavy importance of [[Chinese mother goddess worship|mother goddess worship]] and shamanism,<ref>Overmyer, 2009. p. 15: "Popular religious sects with their own forms of organization, leaders, deities, rituals, beliefs and scripture texts were active throughout the Ming and Qing periods, particularly in north China. Individuals and families who joined them were promised special divine protection in this life and the next by leaders who functioned both as ritual masters and missionaries. These sects were more active in some communities than in others, but in principle were open to all who responded to these leaders and believed in their efficacy and teachings, so some of these groups spread to wide areas of the country.&nbsp;... significant for us here though is evidence for the residual influence of sectarian beliefs and practices on non-sectarian community religion where the sects no longer exist, particularly the feminization of deities by adding to their names the characters ''mu'' or ''Laomu'', Mother or Venerable Mother, as in ''Guanyin Laomu'', ''Puxianmu'', ''Dizangmu'', etc., based on the name of the chief sectarian deity, ''Wusheng Laomu'', the Eternal Venerable Mother. ''Puxian'' and ''Dizang'' are bodhisattvas normally considered 'male', though in Buddhist theory such gender categories do not really apply. This practice of adding ''mu'' to the names of deities, found already in Ming period sectarian scriptures called ''baojuan'' 'precious volumes' from the north, does not occur in the names of southern deities."</ref> as well as their scriptural transmission.<ref name=GoossaertNCR/>{{rp|92}} [[Confucian churches]] as well have historically found much resonance among the population of the northeast; in the 1930s the [[Universal Church of the Way and its Virtue]] alone aggregated at least 25% of the population of the state of [[Manchukuo|Manchuria]]{{sfnb|Ownby|2008}} and contemporary [[Shandong]] has been analysed as an area of rapid growth of folk Confucian groups.{{sfnb|Payette|2016}}

Along the southeastern coast, ritual functions of the folk religion are reportedly dominated by Taoism, both in registered and unregistered forms ([[Zhengyi Dao|Zhengyi Taoism]] and unrecognised ''fashi'' orders), which since the 1990s has developed quickly in the area.<ref name="Chan, 2005. p. 93">Chan, 2005. p. 93. Quote: "By the early 1990s Daoist activities had become popular especially in rural areas, and began to get out of control as the line between legitimate Daoist activities and popular folk religious activities – officially regarded as feudal superstition – became blurred.&nbsp;... Unregulated activities can range from orthodox Daoist liturgy to shamanistic rites. The popularity of these Daoist activities underscores the fact that Chinese rural society has a long tradition of religiosity and has preserved and perpetuated Daoism regardless of official policy and religious institutions. With the growth of economic prosperity in rural areas, especially in the coastal provinces where Daoist activities are concentrated, with a more liberal policy on religion, and with the revival of local cultural identity, Daoism – be it the officially sanctioned variety or Daoist activities which are beyond the edge of the official Daoist body – seems to be enjoying a strong comeback, at least for the time being."</ref><ref name="Overmyer-2009-southeast-Daoism">Overmyer, 2009. p. 185 about Taoism in southeastern China: "Ethnographic research into the temple festivals and communal rituals celebrated within these god cults has revealed the widespread distribution of Daoist ritual traditions in this area, including especially Zhengyi (Celestial Master Daoism) and variants of Lushan Daoist ritual traditions. Various Buddhist ritual traditions (Pu’anjiao, Xianghua married monks and so on) are practiced throughout this region, particularly for requiem services". (quoting K. Dean (2003) ''Local Communal Religion in Contemporary Southeast China'', in D. L. Overmyer (ed.) ''Religion in China Today''. China Quarterly Special Issues, New Series, No. 3. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 32–34.)</ref>

Goossaert talks of this distinction, although recognising it as an oversimplification, of a "Taoist south" and a "village-religion/Confucian centre-north",<ref name=GoossaertNCR/>{{rp|47}} with the northern context also characterised by important orders of "folk Taoist" ritual masters, one of which are the {{lang-zh|陰陽生}} ''yīnyángshēng'' ("sages of yin and yang"),<ref name=Jones2011>{{cite journal | last = Jones | first = Stephen | title = Yinyang: Household Daoists of North China and Their Rituals | journal = Daoism: Religion, History & Society | volume = 3 | issue = 1 | pages = 83–114 | date = 2011 }}</ref><ref name=GoossaertNCR/>{{rp|86}} and sectarian traditions,<ref name=GoossaertNCR/>{{rp|92}} and also by a low influence of Buddhism and official Taoism.<ref name=GoossaertNCR/>{{rp|90}}

The [[Northeast China folk religion|folk religion of northeast China]] has unique characteristics deriving from the interaction of Han religion with [[Tungusic peoples|Tungus]] and [[Manchu shamanism]]s; these include ''chūmǎxiān'' ({{lang-zh|出馬仙}} "riding for the immortals") shamanism, the worship of foxes and other [[animal worship|zoomorphic deities]], and the [[Huxian|Fox Gods]] ({{lang-zh|狐神}} ''Húshén'')—Great Lord of the Three Foxes ({{lang-zh|胡三太爺}} ''Húsān Tàiyé'') and the Great Lady of the Three Foxes ({{lang-zh|胡三太奶}} ''Húsān Tàinǎi'')—at the head of pantheons.<ref name="Deng-chumaxian">{{cite thesis | last = Deng | first = Claire Qiuju | date = 2014 | title = Action-Taking Gods: Animal Spirit Shamanism in Liaoning, China | type = Master in East Asian Studies | publisher = McGill University, Department of East Asian Studies | location = Montreal | url = http://digitool.library.mcgill.ca/webclient/StreamGate?folder_id=0&dvs=1514765798473~395 | access-date = 1 January 2018 | archive-date = 1 January 2018 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180101001735/http://digitool.library.mcgill.ca/webclient/StreamGate?folder_id=0&dvs=1514765798473~395 | url-status = live }}</ref> Otherwise, in the [[religion in Inner Mongolia|religious context of Inner Mongolia]] there has been a significant integration of Han Chinese into the traditional folk religion of the region.

In recent years{{when|date=March 2021}} there has also been an assimilation of deities from [[Tibetan folk religion]], especially wealth gods.<ref>Mark Juergensmeyer, Wade Clark Roof. ''Encyclopedia of Global Religion''. SAGE Publications, 2011. {{ISBN|1452266565}}. p. 202</ref> In [[Tibet Autonomous Region|Tibet]], across broader [[western China]], and in [[Inner Mongolia]], there has been a growth of the cult of [[Gesar]] with the explicit support of the Chinese government, a cross-ethnic Han-Tibetan, Mongol and Manchu deity (the Han identify him as an aspect of the god of war analogically with [[Guan Yu|Guandi]]) and [[culture hero]] whose mythology is embodied as a culturally important [[epic poem]].<ref>Benjamin Penny. ''Religion and Biography in China and Tibet''. Routledge, 2013. {{ISBN|1136113940}}. pp. 185–187</ref>

===="Taoised" indigenous religions of ethnic minorities====
[[File:Benzhu Sanxing, Dali, Yunnan.jpg|thumb|The pan-Chinese [[Sanxing (deities)|Sanxing]] (Three Star Gods) represented in [[Bai people|Bai]] iconographic style at a [[Benzhu]] temple on Jinsuo Island, in [[Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture|Dali]], [[Yunnan]].]]
Chinese religion has both influenced, and in turn has been influenced by, [[indigenous religions]] of ethnic groups that the Han Chinese have encountered along their ethnogenetic history. Seiwert (1987) finds evidence of pre-Chinese religions in the folk religion of certain southeastern provinces such as Fujian and Taiwan, especially in the local ''wu'' and lineages of ordained ritual masters.<ref name=Seiwert1987>{{citation | last = Seiwert | first = Hubert | chapter = On the religions of national minorities in the context of China's religious history | pages = 41–51 | title = Ethnic Minorities in China: Tradition and Transform. Papers of the 2nd Interdisciplinary Congress of Sinology/Ethnology, St. Augustin | editor-first = Thomas | editor-last = Heberer | editor-link= Thomas Heberer | location = Aachen | publisher = Herodot | year = 1987 | isbn = 978-3922868682 }}. [https://www.gko.uni-leipzig.de/fileadmin/user_upload/religionswissenschaft/Pdf/Publikationen_Seiwert/Seiwert__-__On_the_Religions_of_National_Minorities_in_the_Context_of_China_s_Religious_History.pdf Available online] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160806230928/https://www.gko.uni-leipzig.de/fileadmin/user_upload/religionswissenschaft/Pdf/Publikationen_Seiwert/Seiwert__-__On_the_Religions_of_National_Minorities_in_the_Context_of_China_s_Religious_History.pdf |date=6 August 2016 }}.</ref>{{rp|44}}

A process of [[sinicization]], or more appropriately a "Taoisation", is also the more recent experience of the indigenous religions of some distinct [[ethnic minorities of China]], especially southwestern people. Chinese Taoists gradually penetrate within the indigenous religions of such peoples, in some cases working side by side with indigenous priests, in other cases taking over the latter's function and integrating them by requiring their ordination as Taoists.<ref name=Seiwert1987/>{{rp|45}} Usually, indigenous ritual practices remain unaffected and are adopted into Taoist liturgy, while indigenous gods are identified with Chinese gods.<ref name=Seiwert1987/>{{rp|47}} Seiwert discusses this phenomenon of "merger into Chinese folk religion" not as a mere elimination of non-Chinese indigenous religions, but rather as a cultural re-orientation. Local priests of southwestern ethnic minorities often acquire prestige by identifying themselves as Taoists and adopting Taoist holy texts.<ref name=Seiwert1987/>{{rp|47}}

Mou (2012) writes that "Taoism has formed an indissoluble bond" with indigenous religions of southwestern ethnic minorities, especially the Tujia, [[Yi people|Yi]] and [[Yao people|Yao]].{{sfnb|Mou|2012|p=57}} Seiwert mentions the [[Miao people|Miao]] of [[Hunan]].<ref name=Seiwert1987/>{{rp|45}} "Daogongism" is Taoism among the [[Zhuang people|Zhuang]], directed by the ''dàogōng'' ({{lang-zh|道公}} "lords of the Tao") and it forms an established important aspect of the broader [[Zhuang folk religion]].<ref>Ya-ning Kao, ''Religious Revival among the Zhuang People in China: Practising "Superstition" and Standardizing a Zhuang Religion'' ''Journal of Current Chinese Affairs'', 43, 2, 107–144. 2014. {{ISSN|1868-4874}} (online), {{ISSN|1868-1026}} (print). p. 117</ref>

On the other hand, it is also true that in more recent years there has been a general revival of indigenous lineages of ritual masters without identification of these as Taoists and support from the state Chinese Taoist Church. An example is the revival of lineages of ''bimo'' ("scripture sages") priests among the Yi peoples. [[Bimoism]] has a tradition of theological literature and though clergy ordination, and this is among the reasons why it is taken in high consideration by the Chinese government.<ref>Olivia Kraef. ''Of Canons and Commodities: The Cultural Predicaments of Nuosu-Yi "Bimo Culture"''. On: ''Journal of Current Chinese Affairs'', 43, 2, 145–179. 2014. pp. 146–147</ref> Bamo Ayi (2001) attests that "since the early 1980s&nbsp;... minority policy turned away from promoting assimilation of Han ways".<ref name="Bamo Ayi">Bamo Ayi. [http://publishing.cdlib.org/ucpressebooks/view?docId=kt896nd0h7&chunk.id=ch08&toc.id=ch08&brand=ucpress "On the Nature and Transmission of Bimo Knowledge in Liangshan"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161011202235/http://publishing.cdlib.org/ucpressebooks/view?docId=kt896nd0h7&chunk.id=ch08&toc.id=ch08&brand=ucpress |date=11 October 2016 }}. In: Harrell, Stevan, ed. ''Perspectives on the Yi of Southwest China''. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2001.</ref>{{rp|118}}