CHINESE MONASTERIES, TEMPLES, SHRINES, ALTARS
en
3
They have however continued in S.E. Asia and Taiwan; and in some of the remoter areas of Malaysia there are altars in temples, preserved and much the same as they were a hundred years ago.
It is often difficult to obtain a clear answer from devotees themselves whether a particular temple belongs to Daoism, Buddhism or popular religion because, in the main, devotees simply do not understand the question. The majority of Chinese are not concerned with legendary or historical explanations and, if remotely religious, claim to be Buddhist irrespective of which temple they visit or which deity they venerate. In a few temples it is quite obvious that the deities are all of one religion, either Buddhist or Daoist, but the altars in most temples bear a mixture of Buddhist, Daoist and folk religion images side by side on altars.
Common usage by both Buddhists and Daoists of temple titles and religious terms also tends to mislead. It is therefore unwise to ascribe, automatically, specific terms to Buddhism or Daoism, though a few have a generally accepted and common meaning. The majority of Buddhist temples for example, are called “Si” and Daoist “Guan”, with “Miao” a common term for either. However, Miao is also the common term for folk religion temples and for certain shrines. "Tang," a usual term for Buddhist monasteries and nunneries, is also used for Daoist or clan ancestral halls and for certain Guan Yin temples. "Dong", a cave, is a Buddhist title very frequently used for squatter temples, suggesting perhaps that the immigrant founder liked to think of himself as a hermit.*
Whereas Buddhist and Daoist temples and monasteries bear flowery titles, usually obscure religious phrases or names unconnected with the main deities, folk religion temples tend to be dedicated to one or a pair of specific deities, the main god or gods on the main altar, and his, her or their names or titles are cut in stone or painted over the entrance to the temple.9
In Hong Kong temple building tends to reflect the wealth of a community (unlike in India where it reflects the class of the devotees). There are large establishments where monks and priests live; smaller establishments with a resident or day-time only keeper; and non-residential structures, the smaller of which are usually referred to as shrines.
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* The characters referred to in this paragraph are ...
CHINESE MONASTERIES, TEMPLES, SHRINES, ALTARS
en
3
They have however continued in S.E. Asia and Taiwan; and in some of the remoter areas of Malaysia there are altars in temples, pre- served and much the same as they were a hundred years ago.
It is often difficult to obtain a clear answer from devotees them- selves whether a particular temple belongs to Daoism, Buddhism or popular religion because, in the main, devotees simply do not understand the question. The majority of Chinese are not con- cerned with legendary or historical explanations and, if remotely religious, claim to be Buddhist irrespective of which temple they visit or which deity they venerate. In a few temples it is quite obvious that the deities are all of one religion, either Buddhist or Daoist, but the altars in most temples bear a mixture of Buddhist, Daoist and folk religion images side by side on altars.
Common usage by both Buddhists and Daoists of temple titles and religious terms also tends to mislead. It is therefore unwise to ascribe, automatically, specific terms to Buddhism or Daoism, though a few have a generally accepted and common meaning. The majority of Buddhist temples for example, are called “Si” and Daoist “Guan”, with “Miao” a common term for either. However, Miao is also the common term for folk religion temples and for certain shrines. "Tang," a usual term for Buddhist monasteries and nunneries, is also used for Daoist or clan ancestral halls and for certain Guan Yin temples. "Dong", a cave, is a Buddhist title very frequently used for squatter temples, suggesting perhaps that the immigrant founder liked to think of himself as a hermit.*
Whereas Buddhist and Daoist temples and monasteries bear flowery titles, usually obscure religious phrases or names uncon- nected with the main deities, folk religion temples tend to be de- dicated to one or a pair of specific deities, the main god or gods on the main altar, and his, her or their names or titles are cut in stone or painted over the entrance to the temple.9
In Hong Kong temple building tends to reflect the wealth of a community (unlike in India where it reflects the class of the devo tees). There are large establishments where monks and priests live; smaller establishments with a resident or day-time only keeper; and non-residential structures, the smaller of which are usually referred to as shrines.
→
* The characters referred to in this paragraph are ✈›› $ › Ž › @ •
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