Guan Yu was a minor general in the early third century CE, who supported one of numerous claimants to the throne. He was captured and executed by enemy forces in 219. He eventually became one the most
This monograph presents a thorough investigation into the phenomenon of the Chinese Triads, their ritual and mythological lore, and their meanings and functions. On the foundations of a wide variety o
This new paperback title in Brill’s Scholars’ List presents a thorough investigation into the phenomenon of the Chinese Triads, their ritual and mythological lore, and their meanings and functions. On
Practicing Scripture is an original and detailed history of one of the most successful religious movements of late imperial China, the Non-Action Teachings, or Wuweijiao, from its beginnings in the la
Haar (Chinese history, Leiden U.) explores disturbing stories that local people in traditional China told each and on which they acted, often with far-reaching consequences. He focuses on a few of the
The basis of Chinese religious culture, and with that many aspects of daily life, was the threat and fear of demonic attacks. These were inherently violent and could only be counteracted by violence as well - even if this reactive violence was masked by euphemisms such as execution, expulsion, exorcisms and so on. At the same time, violence was a crucial dimension of the maintenance of norms and values, for instance in sworn agreements or in beliefs about underworld punishment. Violence was also an essential aspect of expressing respect through sacrificial gifts of meat (and in an earlier stage of Chinese culture also human flesh) and through a culture of auto-mutilation and ritual suicide. At the same time, conventional indigenous terms for violence such as bao 暴 were not used for most of these practices since they were not experienced as such, but rather justified as positive uses of physical force.
Drawing on recent discoveries, this study reconstructs the material culture of the Christian Ongut in Inner Mongolia. As much of this material no longer survives in the field, it provides an insight i
