A religious goods store, also known as a religious bookstore, religious gifts store or religious supplies shop, is a store specializing in supplying materials used in the practice of a particular religious tradition, such as

Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

Taoism Taoism or Daoism (, ) is a diverse philosophical and religious tradition indigenous to China, emphasizing harmony with the Tao ( zh, p=dào, w=tao4). With a range of meaning in Chinese philosophy, translations of Tao include 'way', 'road', ' ...

Chinese folk religion Chinese folk religion comprises a range of traditional religious practices of Han Chinese, including the Chinese diaspora. This includes the veneration of ''Shen (Chinese folk religion), shen'' ('spirits') and Chinese ancestor worship, ances ...

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

and

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

among other religions. These shops are abundant across the Greater Chinese region as well as Overseas Chinese communities around the world. In Iran, religious goods stores are usually visited to buy the

Quran The Quran, also Romanization, romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a Waḥy, revelation directly from God in Islam, God (''Allah, Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which ...

, Al Mafatih-Al Jinan, goods like the tasbīḥ, and many other things. One of the services related to this is to add a page to

Mafatih al-Jinan ''Mafatih al-Jinan'' (), by Sheikh Abbas Qumi, is a Twelver Shi'a compilation of Qur'anic Chapters, Dua's, Taaqeebat (acts of worship after daily prayers), acts during Islamic months and days, supplications narrated from the Ahl al-Bayt and the ...

book for a deceased loved one. In

Christendom The terms Christendom or Christian world commonly refer to the global Christian community, Christian states, Christian-majority countries or countries in which Christianity is dominant or prevails.SeMerriam-Webster.com : dictionary, "Christen ...

, religious goods stores are often visited to purchase Christian art, books and devotional material for the home, as well as gifts such as

Bibles The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) biblical languages ...

Ichthys The ichthys or ichthus (), from the Greek (, 1st cent. AD Koinē Greek pronunciation: , "fish") is, in its modern rendition, a symbol consisting of two intersecting arcs, the ends of the right side extending beyond the meeting point so as to ...

emblems, daily devotionals or cross necklaces for occasions such as

baptism Baptism (from ) is a Christians, Christian sacrament of initiation almost invariably with the use of water. It may be performed by aspersion, sprinkling or affusion, pouring water on the head, or by immersion baptism, immersing in water eit ...

confirmation In Christian denominations that practice infant baptism, confirmation is seen as the sealing of the covenant (religion), covenant created in baptism. Those being confirmed are known as confirmands. The ceremony typically involves laying on o ...

and

marriage Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

Items for sale

Buddhism

In Buddhist bookshops, a variety of Buddhist books and chanting CDs are usually available for sales. There is also wide range of other products which includes

Buddha statues Much Buddhist art uses depictions of the historical Buddha, Gautama Buddha, which are known as () in Sanskrit and Pali. These may be statues or other images such as paintings. The main figure in an image may be someone else who has obtained B ...

, Buddhist pendants, incense, candles, chanting beads, instruments, Buddhist monastics' robes, meditation cushions and other Buddhist accessories.Evergreen Buddhist Culture Service
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Christianity

, "religious goods stores", also known as "Christian bookstores", have family Bibles,

Christian art Christian art is sacred art which uses subjects, themes, and imagery from Christianity. Most Christian groups use or have used art to some extent, including early Christian art and architecture and Christian media. Images of Jesus and narrative ...

, daily devotional books,

breviaries A breviary () is a liturgical book used in Christianity for praying the canonical hours, usually recited at seven fixed prayer times. Historically, different breviaries were used in the various parts of Christendom, such as Aberdeen Breviary, ...

catechism A catechism (; from , "to teach orally") is a summary or exposition of Catholic theology, doctrine and serves as a learning introduction to the Sacraments traditionally used in catechesis, or Christian religious teaching of children and adult co ...

cross necklace __NOTOC__ A cross necklace is any necklace featuring a Christian cross or crucifix as its pendant. Crosses are often worn as an indication of commitment to the Christian faith, and are sometimes received as gifts for rites such as baptism and c ...

s, Christian music albums,

holy card In the Christianity, Christian tradition, holy cards or prayer cards are small, Catholic devotions, devotional pictures for the use of the faithful that usually depict a religious scene or a saint in an image about the size of a playing card. Th ...

home altar A home altar or family altar is a shrine kept in the home of some Western Christian families used for Christian prayer and family worship. Home altars often contain a cross or crucifix, an image of Jesus Christ, a copy of the Bible (especially ...

prie-dieu A prie-dieu ( French: literally, "pray oGod") is a type of prayer desk primarily intended for private devotional use, but which may also be found in churches. A similar form of chair in domestic furniture is called "prie-dieu" by analogy. S ...

s, and prayer beads (such as the

Dominican Rosary The Rosary (; , in the sense of "crown of roses" or "garland of roses"), formally known as the Psalter of Jesus and Mary (Latin: Psalterium Jesu et Mariae), also known as the Dominican Rosary (as distinct from other forms of rosary such as the ...

Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

, the Wreath of Christ of

Lutheranism Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

, the

Anglican rosary Anglican prayer beads, also known as the Anglican rosary or Anglican chaplet, are a loop of strung Christian prayer beads used chiefly by Anglicans in the Anglican Communion, as well as by communicants in the Anglican Continuum. This Anglican ...

Anglicanism Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

, and the

prayer rope A prayer rope; or (literal translation); ; or ; Serbian and ; ; Georgian: სკვნილი, romanized'':'' ''skvnili;'' ; , or . is a loop made up of complex woven knots formed in a cross pattern, usually out of wool or silk. The typic ...

Eastern Orthodoxy Eastern Orthodoxy, otherwise known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity or Byzantine Christianity, is one of the three main Branches of Christianity, branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholic Church, Catholicism and Protestantism ...

), among other

sacramental A sacramental (Latin pl. ''sacramentalia'') is a sacred sign, a ritual act or a ceremony, which, in a certain imitation of the sacraments, has a spiritual effect and is obtained through the intercession of the Church. Sacramentals surround the sa ...

s such as

(Jesus fish) emblems for vehicles.

Chinese folk religion and Taoism

*Statues representing

Chinese deities Chinese gods and immortals are beings in various Chinese religions seen in a variety of ways and mythological contexts. Many are worshiped as deities because traditional Chinese religion is polytheistic, stemming from a pantheistic view that ...

, also include

bodhisattva In Buddhism, a bodhisattva is a person who has attained, or is striving towards, '' bodhi'' ('awakening', 'enlightenment') or Buddhahood. Often, the term specifically refers to a person who forgoes or delays personal nirvana or ''bodhi'' in ...

images like

Guanyin Guanyin () is a common Chinese name of the bodhisattva associated with Karuṇā, compassion known as Avalokiteśvara (). Guanyin is short for Guanshiyin, which means " he One WhoPerceives the Sounds of the World". Originally regarded as m ...

or Di Zang Wang * Tong Sheng (), Chinese divination guide and almanac * all form of Chinese incenses, kemenyan and candles * incense papers, underworld bank notes and various forms of paper offerings *tablets dedicated to Tian Gong (),

Tu Di Gong A Tudigong ( zh, s=土地公, l=Lord of the Land) is a kind of Chinese tutelary deity of a specific location. There are several Tudigongs corresponding to different geographical locations and sometimes multiple ones will be venerated together in ...

(),

Zao Jun Kitchen gods are mythical beings that represent abstract concepts such as luck or just propel the minor changes of everyday life. Little things that cannot be explained, such as losing small objects like socks in the laundry, are often attribut ...

() and

ancestral tablets A spirit tablet, memorial tablet, or ancestral tablet is a placard that people used to designate the seat of a deity or past ancestor as well as to enclose it. The name of the deity or the past ancestor is usually inscribed onto the tablet. Wit ...

*unconsecrated religious devotional objects like Pa-Kua, Qian Kun Tai Ji Tu and Shang Hai Zheng *incense urns or incense holders * Chinese teapots, tea cups and Chinese tea leaves *incense paper burners * incense sticks

Gallery

File:GodsMaterialShop002.jpg,

Malaysian Chinese Malaysian Chinese, Chinese Malaysians, or Sino-Malaysians are Malaysians, Malaysian citizens of Chinese people, Chinese ethnicity. They form the second-largest ethnic group in Malaysia, after the Malaysian Malays, Malay majority, and , const ...

and

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Associated with India * of or related to India ** Indian people ** Indian diaspora ** Languages of India ** Indian English, a dialect of the English language ** Indian cuisine Associated with indigenous peoples o ...

Prayer Material Shop in

Penang Penang is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia along the Strait of Malacca. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the Malay Peninsula. Th ...

's Market Street (Little India district). File:GodsMaterialShop003.jpg, Statues of

Maitreya Maitreya (Sanskrit) or Metteyya (Pali), is a bodhisattva who is regarded as the future Buddhahood, Buddha of this world in all schools of Buddhism, prophesied to become Maitreya Buddha or Metteyya Buddha.Williams, Paul. ''Mahayana Buddhism: Th ...

on sale in a Prayer Material Shop in

. File:Family Christian Stores storefront.jpg, The exterior of a Family Christian religious goods store in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

References