The Cult of Mount Tyai in the Ming: baliefs, practices and historical developments

• Main Author: Shiau, Mei-Hui
• Language: English
• Published: 2009
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/2429/5517

This thesis explores the cult of Mount T'ai in the Ming dynasty (1368-1644) by examining its beliefs, practices and historical developments. The first chapter introduces the religious environment of the Ming by addressing the historical background of the founder of the Ming, Ming T'ai-tsu (r. 1368-1398), and his policy toward popular religions. T'ai-tsu's background influenced his views about religion, and his attitudes were followed, to some extent, by his descendants, later emperors. The last part provides a summary of the environment of ordinary people's religions and their religious practices. Since the Mount T'ai cult had existed long before the Ming, chapter two summarizes this cult prior to the Ming by discussing its early history and the early history of the role of Mount T'ai in beliefs about afterlife. Chapter three examines the cult of Mount T'ai in the Ming from three perspectives: as a state cult, a popular cult, and as the most popular cult of the goddess of Mount T'ai during the Ming. This chapter suggests that the development of these cults was closely linked to the ongoing changes in popular culture and the the attitudes of the state toward religions. Chapter four turns to religious and social activities related to Mount T'ai. In analyzing the incense tax, which was levied on pilgrims and visitors entering Mount T'ai, the pilgrimage trade, and the attitudes of the Ming elites toward popular beliefs about Mount T'ai, I suggest that religious activities were an area where people of all social classes, including the educated level, routinely came into contact. Chapter five discusses two seventeenth century religious texts about Mount T'ai: Lina-vina T'ai-shan niang-niana pao-chuan (The precious volume of our efficacious Lady of Mount T'ai) and T'ai-shan tung-yueh shih-wang paochuan (The precious volume of the Ten Kings of the eastern peak Mount T'ai). This chapter explores these two books in terms of their connections to three teachings (Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism), sectarianism, and the attitudes of the religious groups toward the state. The concluding comments characterize the interactions between popular religions, the state, and society. The cult of Mount T'ai developed in a context of socio-religious culture through a process of mutual enrichment.