Qiyunshan as a Replica of Wudangshan and the Religious Landscape of the Ming Empire
Mount Wudang (Wudangshan 武當山) is well known to have been the most holy mountain in the Ming. As the center of the Zhenwu 真武 (Perfect Warrior) cult, Wudangshan not only attracted millions of pilgrims, but also spread the Zhenwu cult to the entire empire, with many sites of the Zhenwu cult known as th...
| Published in: | Journal of Chinese religions |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Johns Hopkins University Press
[2014]
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| In: |
Journal of Chinese religions
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| Further subjects: | B
Ming
B Wudangshan B Qiyunshan B Daoism B White Peak B Jiajing Emperor B Zhenwu B Jiangnan |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (Resolving-System) |
| Summary: | Mount Wudang (Wudangshan 武當山) is well known to have been the most holy mountain in the Ming. As the center of the Zhenwu 真武 (Perfect Warrior) cult, Wudangshan not only attracted millions of pilgrims, but also spread the Zhenwu cult to the entire empire, with many sites of the Zhenwu cult known as the "Little Wudang Mounts" (Xiao Wudang 小武當) and other regional branches (travel-palaces 行宮 etc.) modeling after Wudangshan. Among these regional Zhenwu branches, Mount Qiyun (Qiyunshan 齊雲山) was arguably the most important. This study explores the conscious effort of the Daoist clerical community to duplicate the Zhenwu cult of Wudangshan at Qiyunshan. I argue that the high point of Daoism at Qiyunshan was the Jiajing 嘉靖 emperor's (r. 1522-1566) patronage. This imperial support not only served the emperor's personal religious interest, it also provided political legitimacy to promote Jiajing's lineage and remap the religious landscape of the empire. Due to geographical, regional, and cultural differences, Qiyunshan was still distinguished from Wudangshan, and the main differences lay in the purposeful attempt to build up literati culture at Qiyunshan. In this sense, Qiyunshan deserved the nickname, "Little Wudang in Jiangnan" 江南小武當, and the cult of Zhenwu there illustrated its regional colors. |
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| ISSN: | 2050-8999 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Journal of Chinese religions
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1179/0737769X14Z.0000000008 |