Panthay RebellionThe Panthay Rebellion (1856–1873), also known as the Du Wenxiu Rebellion (Tu Wen-hsiu Rebellion), was a rebellion of the Muslim Hui people and other (Muslim as well as non-Muslim) ethnic groups against the Manchu-led Qing dynasty in southwestern Yunnan Province, as part of a wave of Hui-led multi-ethnic unrest. The name "Panthay" is a Burmese word, which is said to be identical with the Shan word Pang hse. It was the name by which the Burmese called the Chinese Muslims who came with caravans to Burma from the Chinese province of Yunnan.
Confucian churchThe Confucian church ( or ) is a Confucian religious and social institution of the congregational type. It was first proposed by Kang Youwei (1858–1927) near the end of the 19th century, as a state religion of Qing China following a European model. The "Confucian church" model was later replicated by overseas Chinese communities, who established independent Confucian churches active at the local level, especially in Indonesia and the United States.
Chinese ritual mastery traditionsChinese ritual mastery traditions, also referred to as ritual teachings (, sometimes rendered as "Faism"), or Folk Taoism (), or also Red Taoism (mostly in east China and Taiwan), constitute a large group of Chinese orders of ritual officers who operate within the Chinese folk religion but outside the institutions of official Taoism. The "masters of rites", the fashi (法師), are also known in east China as hongtou daoshi (紅頭道士), meaning "redhead" or "redhat" daoshi ("masters of the Tao"), contrasting with the wutou daoshi (烏頭道士), "blackhead" or "blackhat" priests, of Zhengyi Taoism who were historically ordained by the Celestial Master.
Chinese temple architectureChinese temple architecture refer to a type of structures used as place of worship of Chinese Buddhism, Taoism or Chinese folk religion, where people revere ethnic Chinese gods and ancestors. They can be classified as: miào (廟) or diàn (殿), simply means "temple" and mostly enshrines gods of the Chinese pantheon, such as the Dragon King, Tudigong or Matsu; or mythical or historical figures, such as Guandi or Shennong. cí (祠), cítáng (祠堂), zōngcí (宗祠) or zǔmiào (祖廟), referring to ancestral temples, mostly enshrining the ancestral gods of a family or clan.
CaishenCaishen () is the mythological figure worshipped in the Chinese folk religion and Taoism. He has been identified with many historical figures, viewed as his embodied forms, among whom Zhao Gongming (趙公明, Wade–Giles: Chao Kung-ming; also known as Zhao Gong Yuanshuai 趙公元帥 "Lord Zhao the Marshal"), Fan Li, and Bi Gan. A large temple of Caishen has been built in the 2000s in Zhouzhi, Xi'an, Shaanxi. Caishen's name is often invoked during the Chinese New Year celebrations. He is often depicted riding a black tiger and holding a golden rod.
Taoist schoolsTaoism is an East Asian religion founded in ancient China with many schools or denominations, of which none occupies a position of orthodoxy and co-existed peacefully. Taoist branches usually build their identity around a set of scriptures, that are manuals of ritual practices. Scriptures are considered "breathwork", that is "configurations of energy" (qi), embodiments of "celestial patterns" (tianwen), or "revelations of structures" (li). The earliest Taoist schools emerged during the late Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 CE).
BaodingBaoding (), formerly known as Baozhou and Qingyuan, is a prefecture-level city in central Hebei province, approximately southwest of Beijing. As of the 2010 census, Baoding City had 11,194,382 inhabitants out of which 2,176,857 lived in the built-up (or metro) area made of 4 out of 5 urban districts: Lianchi, Jingxiu, Qingyuan and Mancheng largely being conurbated, on . Baoding is among 13 Chinese cities with a population of over 10 million, ranking seventh. Zhuozhou City in the northern part has now grown into part of the Beijing built-up (or metro) area.
Temple of HeavenThe Temple of Heaven () is a complex of imperial religious buildings situated in the southeastern part of central Beijing. The complex was visited by the Emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties for annual ceremonies of prayer to Heaven for a good harvest. The Temple of Heaven was inscribed as a World Heritage site in 1998 and was described as "a masterpiece of architecture and landscape design which simply and graphically illustrates a cosmogony of great importance for the evolution of one of the world's great civilizations.
Temple of ConfuciusA temple of Confucius or Confucian temple is a temple for the veneration of Confucius and the sages and philosophers of Confucianism in Chinese folk religion and other East Asian religions. They were formerly the site of the administration of the imperial examination in China, Korea, Japan and Vietnam and often housed schools and other studying facilities. There is a 72-meter-tall statue of Confucius made of brass and reinforced with steel. The giant statue is located in Qufu, Shandong province, birthplace of the ancient Chinese educator and philosopher.
Joss paperJoss paper, also known as incense papers, are papercrafts or sheets of paper made into burnt offerings common in Chinese ancestral worship (such as the veneration of the deceased family members and relatives on holidays and special occasions). Worship of deities in Chinese folk religion also uses a similar type of joss paper. Joss paper, as well as other papier-mâché items, are also burned or buried in various Asian funerals, "to ensure that the spirit of the deceased has sufficient means in the afterlife.
