Fengshui in China: Geomantic Divination Between State Orthodoxy and Popular Religion - Couverture rigide

Bruun, Ole

Couverture rigide

ISBN 10 : 0824826728 ISBN 13 : 9780824826727

Editeur : University of Hawai'i Press, 2003

Synopsis

For well over a century, Chinese fengshui, or "geomancy," has interested Western laymen and scholars. Today, hundreds of popular manuals claim to use its principles in their advice on how people can increase their wealth, happiness, longevity, and so on. This study is quite different, approaching fengshui from an academic angle. The focus is on its significance in China, but the recent history of its reinterpretation in the West is also depicted. The author argues that fengshui serves as an alternative tradition of cosmological knowledge, which is used to explain a range of everyday occurrences in rural areas, such as disease, mental disorders, accidents, and common mischief. The study includes a historical account of fengshui over the last 150 years augmented by the results of anthropological fieldwork on contemporary practices in two Chinese rural areas.

A propos du livre

Présentation de l'éditeur

For well over a century Chinese fengshui, or geomancy, has fascinated Western laymen and scholars. Today hundreds of popular manuals claim to use its principles in their advice on how people can increase their wealth, happiness and longevity. The focus of this academic study is on fengshui's significance in China over the last 150 years, augmented by anthropological fieldwork in rural China. Eschewing Western intellectual preconceptions and penetrating the confused mass of old texts and divergent local practices, the author argues that fengshui serves as an alternative tradition of cosmological knowledge which is used to explain a range of everyday occurrences in rural areas such as disease, mental disorders, accidents and common mischief. Opposing the Chinese collectivist ethos and moralizing from above, fengshui represents an alternative vision of reality, while interpreting essential Chinese values in a way that sanctions selfish motivations and behaviour.

Présentation de l'éditeur

Contrary to popular manuals, this book approaches fengshui from an academic angle, focusing on its significance in China, but also depicting the recent history of its reinterpretation in the West. It includes a historical account of fengshui over the last 150 years with anthropological fieldwork on contemporary practices in two Chinese rural areas. The author argues that fengshui serves as an alternative tradition of cosmological knowledge to explain a range of everyday occurrences in rural areas such as disease, mental disorders, accidents and common mischief. Although Chinese authorities have opposed the tradition for centuries, it has been used by almost every-one as an aspect of popular cosmology. This title falls in the category of Anthropology, Religious Studies, Environmental Studies, and China. It is suitable for academic researchers and post-graduate students.

Détails de l'édition

• Éditeur: University of Hawai'i Press
• Date d'édition: 2003
• Langue: anglais
• ISBN 10: 0824826728
• ISBN 13: 9780824826727
• Reliure: Relié
• Nombre de pages: 320
• Coordonnées du fabricant: non disponible
• Personne responsable: non disponible