Chinese shamanism, alternatively called Wuism (; alternatively ''wū xí zōngjiào''), refers to the
shamanic
Shamanism is a religious practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with what they believe to be a spirit world through altered states of consciousness, such as trance. The goal of this is usually to direct spirits or spiri ...
religious tradition of
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...
. Its features are especially connected to the ancient Neolithic cultures such as the
Hongshan culture. Chinese shamanic traditions are intrinsic to
Chinese folk religion
Chinese folk religion, also known as Chinese popular religion comprehends a range of traditional religious practices of Han Chinese, including the Chinese diaspora. Vivienne Wee described it as "an empty bowl, which can variously be filled ...
.
Various ritual traditions are rooted in original Chinese shamanism: contemporary
Chinese ritual masters are sometimes identified as ''wu'' by outsiders, though most orders don't self-identify as such. Also
Taoism
Taoism (, ) or Daoism () refers to either a school of philosophical thought (道家; ''daojia'') or to a religion (道教; ''daojiao''), both of which share ideas and concepts of Chinese origin and emphasize living in harmony with the '' Ta ...
has some of its origins from Chinese shamanism: it developed around the pursuit of long life (''shou'' /), or the status of a ''
xian'' (, "mountain man", "holy man").
Meaning of ''wu''
The
Chinese word ''wu'' "shaman, wizard", indicating a person who can mediate with the powers generating things (the
etymological
Etymology () The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p. 633 "Etymology /ˌɛtɪˈmɒlədʒi/ the study of the class in words and the way their meanings have changed throughout time". is the study of the history of the form of words a ...
meaning of "spirit", "god", or ''nomen agentis'', ''virtus'', ''energeia''), was first recorded during the
Shang dynasty
The Shang dynasty (), also known as the Yin dynasty (), was a Chinese royal dynasty founded by Tang of Shang (Cheng Tang) that ruled in the Yellow River valley in the second millennium BC, traditionally succeeding the Xia dynasty a ...
(ca. 1600-1046 BCE), when a ''wu'' could be either sex. During the late
Zhou dynasty
The Zhou dynasty ( ; Old Chinese ( B&S): *''tiw'') was a royal dynasty of China that followed the Shang dynasty. Having lasted 789 years, the Zhou dynasty was the longest dynastic regime in Chinese history. The military control of China by th ...
(1045-256 BCE) ''wu'' was used to specify
"female shaman; sorceress" as opposed to ''xi'' "male shaman; sorcerer" (which first appears in the 4th century BCE
''Guoyu''). Other sex-differentiated shaman names include ''nanwu'' for "male shaman; sorcerer; wizard"; and ''nüwu'' , ''wunü'' , ''wupo'' , and ''wuyu'' for "female shaman; sorceress; witch".
The word ''
tongji Tongji may refer to:
* Tongji Bridge (Jinhua) () a large stone arch bridge in Jinhua, China.
* Tongji Bridge (Yuyao) () a stone arch bridge in Yuyao, China.
* Tongji County (), former name of Shifang, Sichuan, China.
* Tongji Lu Station () metro sta ...
'' (lit. "youth diviner") "shaman; spirit-medium" is a near-synonym of ''wu''. Modern Chinese distinguishes native ''wu'' from "
Siberian shaman": ''saman'' or ''saman'' ; and from Indian ''
Shramana'' "wandering monk; ascetic": ''shamen'' , ''sangmen'' , or ''sangmen'' .
Berthold Laufer
Berthold Laufer (October 11, 1874 – September 13, 1934) was a German anthropologist and historical geographer with an expertise in East Asian languages. The American Museum of Natural History calls him, "one of the most distinguished sinologist ...
(1917:370) proposed an etymological relation between
Mongolian ''bügä'' "shaman",
Turkic ''bögü'' "shaman", Chinese ''bu'', ''wu'' (shaman), ''buk'', ''puk'' (to divine), and
Tibetan
Tibetan may mean:
* of, from, or related to Tibet
* Tibetan people, an ethnic group
* Tibetan language:
** Classical Tibetan, the classical language used also as a contemporary written standard
** Standard Tibetan, the most widely used spoken diale ...
''aba'' (pronounced ''ba'', sorcerer). Coblin (1986:107) puts forward a Sino-Tibetan root *' "magician; sorcerer" for Chinese ''wu'' < ''mju'' < *''mjag'' "magician; shaman" and
Written Tibetan'' 'ba'-po'' "sorcerer" and'' 'ba'-mo'' "sorcereress" (of the
Bön
''Bon'', also spelled Bön () and also known as Yungdrung Bon (, "eternal Bon"), is a Tibetan religious tradition with many similarities to Tibetan Buddhism and also many unique features.Samuel 2012, pp. 220-221. Bon initially developed in t ...
religion). Further connections are to the ''bu-mo'' priests of
Zhuang Shigongism and the ''bi-mo'' priests of
Bimoism, the
Yi indigenous faith. Also Korean ''mu'' (of
Muism) is cognate to Chinese ''wu'' . Schuessler lists some etymologies: ''wu'' could be cognate with ''wu'' "to dance"; ''wu'' could also be cognate with ''mu'' "mother" since ''wu'', as opposed to ''xi'' , were typically female; ''wu'' could be a loanword from
Iranian
Iranian may refer to:
* Iran, a sovereign state
* Iranian peoples, the speakers of the Iranian languages. The term Iranic peoples is also used for this term to distinguish the pan ethnic term from Iranian, used for the people of Iran
* Iranian lan ...
*''maghu'' or *''maguš'' "magi; magician", meaning an "able one; specialist in ritual". Mair (1990) provides archaeological and linguistic evidence that Chinese ''wu'' < *''m
yag'' "shaman; witch, wizard; magician" was maybe a
loanword
A loanword (also loan word or loan-word) is a word at least partly assimilated from one language (the donor language) into another language. This is in contrast to cognates, which are words in two or more languages that are similar because ...
from
Old Persian
Old Persian is one of the two directly attested Old Iranian languages (the other being Avestan) and is the ancestor of Middle Persian (the language of Sasanian Empire). Like other Old Iranian languages, it was known to its native speakers as ( ...
*''maguš'' "magician;
magi
Magi (; singular magus ; from Latin '' magus'', cf. fa, مغ ) were priests in Zoroastrianism and the earlier religions of the western Iranians. The earliest known use of the word ''magi'' is in the trilingual inscription written by Darius t ...
". Mair connects the nearly identical Chinese Bronze script for ''wu'' and Western
heraldic
Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, rank and pedigree. Armory, the best-known branc ...
cross potent
A cross potent (plural: crosses potent), also known as a crutch cross, is a form of heraldic cross with crossbars at the four ends. In French, it is known as '' croix potencée'', in German as a ''Kruckenkreuz'', all translating to "crutch cross ...
☩, an ancient symbol of a ''magus'' or ''magician'', which etymologically descend from the same
Indo-European
The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the overwhelming majority of Europe, the Iranian plateau, and the northern Indian subcontinent. Some European languages of this family, English, French, Portuguese, Russian, Du ...
root.
Early history
The Chinese religion from the
Shang dynasty
The Shang dynasty (), also known as the Yin dynasty (), was a Chinese royal dynasty founded by Tang of Shang (Cheng Tang) that ruled in the Yellow River valley in the second millennium BC, traditionally succeeding the Xia dynasty a ...
onwards developed around
ancestral worship. The main gods from this period are not forces of nature in the
Sumerian way, but
deified virtuous men. The ancestors of the emperors were called ''di'' (), and the greatest of them was called ''
Shangdi'' (, "the Highest Lord"). He is identified with the
dragon
A dragon is a reptilian legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted a ...
(''
Kui'' ), symbol of the
universal power (
qi).
Cosmic powers dominate nature: the
Sun, the
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width of ...
, stars, winds and clouds were considered informed by divine energies. The earth god is ''She'' () or ''
Tu'' (). The Shang period had two methods to enter in contact with divine ancestors: the first is the numinous-mystical ''
wu'' () practice, involving dances and trances; and the second is the method of the
oracle bones, a rational way.
The
Zhou dynasty
The Zhou dynasty ( ; Old Chinese ( B&S): *''tiw'') was a royal dynasty of China that followed the Shang dynasty. Having lasted 789 years, the Zhou dynasty was the longest dynastic regime in Chinese history. The military control of China by th ...
, succeeding the Shang, was more rooted in an agricultural worldview. They opposed the ancestor-gods of the Shang, and gods of nature became dominant. The
utmost power in this period was named ''
Tian'' (, "heaven"). With ''
Di'' (, "earth") he forms the whole
cosmos in a complementary duality.
Qing period
The
Manchu rulers of the
Qing dynasty
The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...
(1636–1912) introduced substantial elements of
Tungusic shamanism to China.
Hong Taiji (1592–1643) put shamanistic practices in the service of the state, notably by forbidding others to erect new shrines (''tangse'') for ritual purposes. In the 1620s and 1630s, the Qing ruler conducted shamanic sacrifices at the ''tangse'' of
Mukden
Shenyang (, ; ; Mandarin pronunciation: ), formerly known as Fengtian () or by its Manchu name Mukden, is a major Chinese sub-provincial city and the provincial capital of Liaoning province. Located in central-north Liaoning, it is the provinc ...
, the Qing capital. In 1644, as soon as the Qing
seized Beijing to begin
their conquest of China, they named it their new capital and erected an official shamanic shrine there. In the
Beijing
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the Capital city, capital of the China, People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's Li ...
''tangse'' and in the women's quarters of the
Forbidden City
The Forbidden City () is a palace complex in Dongcheng District, Beijing, China, at the center of the Imperial City of Beijing. It is surrounded by numerous opulent imperial gardens and temples including the Zhongshan Park, the sacrifi ...
, Qing emperors and professional shamans (usually women) conducted shamanic ceremonies until the abdication of the dynasty in 1912.
In 1747 the
Qianlong Emperor
The Qianlong Emperor (25 September 17117 February 1799), also known by his temple name Emperor Gaozong of Qing, born Hongli, was the fifth Emperor of the Qing dynasty and the fourth Qing emperor to rule over China proper, reigning from 1735 ...
(r. 1735–1796) commissioned the publication of a ''Shamanic Code'' to revive and regulate shamanic practices, which he feared were becoming lost. He had it distributed to Bannermen to guide their practice, but we know very little about the effect of this policy. Mongols and Han Chinese were forbidden to attend shamanic ceremonies. Partly because of their secret aspect, these rituals attracted the curiosity of Beijing dwellers and visitors to the Qing capital. French Jesuit
Joseph-Marie Amiot published a study on the ''Shamanic Code'', "" (1773). In 1777 the Qianlong Emperor ordered the code translated into Chinese for inclusion in the ''
Siku quanshu''. The Manchu version was printed in 1778, whereas the Chinese-language edition, titled ''Qinding Manzhou jishen jitian dianli'' (), was completed in 1780 or 1782. Even though this "Shamanic Code" did not fully unify shamanic practice among the Bannermen, it "helped systematize and reshape what had been a very fluid and diverse belief system."
Northeast shamanism
Shamanism is practiced in
Northeast China
Northeast China or Northeastern China () is a geographical region of China, which is often referred to as "Manchuria" or "Inner Manchuria" by surrounding countries and the West. It usually corresponds specifically to the three provinces east of ...
and is considered different from those of central and southern Chinese folk religion, as it resulted from the interaction of Han religion with folk religion practices of other Tungusic people such as
Manchu shamanism. The shaman would perform various ritual functions for groups of believers and local communities, such as moon drum dance and chūmǎxiān (出馬仙 "riding for the immortals").
Modern Shamanism
Shamanism saw a decline due to
Neo-Confucianism
Neo-Confucianism (, often shortened to ''lǐxué'' 理學, literally "School of Principle") is a moral, ethical, and metaphysical Chinese philosophy influenced by Confucianism, and originated with Han Yu (768–824) and Li Ao (772–841) ...
labeling it as untutored and disorderly. This was furthered in the 19th century with the arrival of Western
imperialism
Imperialism is the state policy, practice, or advocacy of extending power and dominion, especially by direct territorial acquisition or by gaining political and economic control of other areas, often through employing hard power (economic powe ...
’s view of shamanism as superstition, opposing their view of science and
western religion. The final hit was
Maoist China
Maoism, officially called Mao Zedong Thought by the Chinese Communist Party, is a variety of Marxism–Leninism that Mao Zedong developed to realise a socialist revolution in the agricultural, pre-industrial society of the Republic of Ch ...
causing all religious practices to disappear from public spaces. While spirit mediums have begun reappearing (mostly in rural China) since the 1980’s, they operate with a low profile, often working from their homes, relying on word of mouth to generate business, or in newly built small temples under a
Taoist Association membership card to be legitimate under the law. The term shamanism and the religion itself has been critiqued by Western scholars due to an unfair and limited comparison to more favored religions such as
Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global popula ...
and other modern and more documented religions in Western society.
In China today, shamanism has a strong negative stigma and has lost much of the respect it had during ancient times. Spirit mediums are viewed as scammers or people with mental health problems, and are rarely portrayed otherwise by the Chinese media. Along with the focus on science, modern medicine, and
material culture in China (which created serious doubt in spiritual practices), shamanism is viewed as an opposition to the modern focus of science and medicine in the pursuit of modernizing China. Modern shamanism is considered as an obstacle to China’s overall modernity. The marginalization of shamanism is one of the reasons for it mostly being practiced in rural areas or small towns, along with the lack of enforcement of anti-shamanism policies among authorities in rural areas (either because they believe in Shamanism themselves or “look the other way in concession to local beliefs”). Shamanistic practices today include controlling the weather, healing diseases modern medicine can not treat, exorcism of ghosts and demons, and seeing or divining the future.
Mainland China’s Shamanism's decrease in popularity does not reflect Shamanism in all areas. Taiwan (although Taiwan tried to ban Shamanism, in the end only restricting it) still have many who openly practice without the stigma seen in other parts of China.
See also
*
Chinese folk religion
Chinese folk religion, also known as Chinese popular religion comprehends a range of traditional religious practices of Han Chinese, including the Chinese diaspora. Vivienne Wee described it as "an empty bowl, which can variously be filled ...
*
Chinese ritual mastery traditions
*
Nuo folk religion
*
Taoism
Taoism (, ) or Daoism () refers to either a school of philosophical thought (道家; ''daojia'') or to a religion (道教; ''daojiao''), both of which share ideas and concepts of Chinese origin and emphasize living in harmony with the '' Ta ...
References
Bibliography
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External links
* Max Dashu.
Xi Wangmu, the shamanic great goddess of China'.
{{Religion topics
Chinese folk religion
Shamanism in China