The Space of Religion: Temple, State, and Buddhist Communities in Modern China

The Nanputuo Temple in Xiamen, China, has been a significant site for the worship of the bodhisattva Guanyin for centuries and has been a center of modernizing Buddhism and the revival of Buddhism after state suppression during the Cultural Revolution. Yoshiko Ashiwa and David L. Wank's book, The Space of Religion, explores the practice of Buddhism in modern China and the complex relationship between Buddhism and the Chinese state. They develop the concept of religion as a space constituted by physical, semiotic, and institutional dimensions and show how the Chinese state and Buddhism have adapted to each other. The book is both a theoretically generative analysis of religious spaces and an empirically rich account of the recovery of Buddhism in China after the Mao era.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 440 pages
Publication date: 29 August 2023
Publisher: Columbia University Press

The Nanputuo Temple in Xiamen, China, has been a revered site for the worship of the bodhisattva Guanyin for centuries. It played a pivotal role in modernizing Buddhism in the early twentieth century and was a catalyst for the revival of Buddhism after state suppression during the Cultural Revolution. "The Space of Religion" takes readers inside the Nanputuo Temple to explore the practice of Buddhism in modern China and the complex relationship between Buddhism and the Chinese state. Based on three decades of ethnographic research, Yoshiko Ashiwa and David L. Wank present a vivid account of Nanputuo's history, including episodes such as renovating the halls, reestablishing ties with overseas Chinese donors, conflicts with local government, revival of ritual life, reopening of its Buddhist academy, and the passion of the Guanyin birthday festival. To understand Nanputuo, Buddhist communities, and other temples in Xiamen, Ashiwa and Wank develop the concept of religion as a space constituted by physical, semiotic, and institutional dimensions. They also show how the Chinese state and Buddhism have adapted to each other, with the temple adjusting to government policy and the state deploying Buddhism in its promotion of Chinese culture. This interdisciplinary book is both a theoretically generative analysis of religious spaces and an empirically rich account of the recovery of Buddhism in China after the Mao era.

Weight: 640g
Dimension: 151 x 230 x 27 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780231197359