Review by Choice Review
Dean (McGill) describes in detail three cults found in Southeast Fujian Province, roughly the area between Xiamen (Amoy) and Fuzhou (Foochow), providing a clear picture of their temple networks, rituals, and processions. Although all three have spread to other parts of China and overseas, Dean focuses on a relatively compact region; and his observations are grounded on careful fieldwork conducted between 1985 and 1991, which gives them a vividness or sense of immediacy reminiscent of John Lagerwey's work on Taoist ritual on Taiwan. Dean sees Taoist ritual as the core of "the vast liturgical framework that supports the festival of the local gods," and he argues that "Taoism should be recognized as the indigenous higher religion of China." Although Dean discusses developments from the end of the Five Dynasties (tenth century) until the present, his material on recent decades is of special importance; for he supplies valuable information about the revival of religion since the end of the Cultural Revolution, as seen in the repair and rebuilding of temples, recovery of texts, and popular support for, and participation in, sacrifices and festivals. This book is essential for anyone interested in Chinese religion or in China itself. Highly recommended. Advanced undergraduate; graduate; faculty. H. Peebles; Wabash College
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
