Chinese Gods: An Introduction to Chinese Folk Religion [Paperback]

Jonathan Chamberlain (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 16, 2010 | ISBN-10: 9881774217 | ISBN-13: 978-9881774217 | Edition: 3rd Edition

Chinese folk religion is the underlying belief system of more than a billion people. Wherever there is a Chinese community there are temples and shrines with altars, statues and paper images. But how do these beliefs connect to Taoism, Confucianism and Buddhism? This book explains the building blocks of this religion, touching upon anthropology, history, numerology, feng shui, mythology, nature cults and ancestor worship. Includes colour images of the major gods of the Chinese pantheon.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Chamberlain explores, with tremendous respect for his subject matter, Chinese gods and deities, and the interwoven history and mythology that supports this remarkably enduring pantheon. The observant will notice these gods in restaurants, coffee shops and even offices, in any Southeast Asian city with a sizeable Chinese population. Mr Chamberlain explains, in engaging, flowing prose, just who these immortals are. And as a result, the scope of this book is amazing -- millennia of dynasties, the complex psyche of the world's most populous nation, the supernatural, anthropology, mythology, numerology, feng shui and all the other underpinnings of Greater China's disparate -- but today, remarkably integrated -- belief systems, including Taoism, Confucianism, Buddhism, nature cults and ancestor worship. For the Sinologist, this offering is akin to some imperial feast where one can gorge on anything within reach. And even for the casual reader, this is a hugely satisfying book. --Bangkok Post, March 22, 2009

About the Author

Jonathan Chamberlain was brought up in Ireland and Hong Kong. After graduating in Social Anthropology at Sussex University, he returned to Hong Kong where he lived for many years as a teacher and writer. He is now a full time author. His other works include "King Hui: The Man Who Owned All the Opium in Hong Kong" and "Cancer: The Complete Recovery Guide". In addition to his writing work he has founded two charities: The Hong Kong Down Syndrome Association and Mental Handicap Network China Ltd.

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Blacksmith Books; 3rd Edition edition (July 16, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 9881774217
• ISBN-13: 978-9881774217
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #673,447 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I decided to be a writer at the age of 16 because Hemingway made it seem both fun and easy! How wrong can you be? Now, many years later, writing is still the most interesting thing I do. My books are almost always a response to a problem of ignorance. I didn't know anything about Chinese folk religion but I wanted to know who the Gods were so I wrote Chinese Gods; I didn't know about the alternative approaches to cancer so I wrote Cancer: The Complete Recovery Guide. King Hui was an exploration into the life of a Chinese playboy and Wordjazz for Stevie a celebration of the life of my profoundly handicapped daughter who brought meaning into my life. To see some very flattering reviews of these books go to www.blacksmithbooks.com. Also I have a website at www.fightingcancer.com and a blog at www.cancerfighter.wordpress.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Definitely not for the academically inclined, August 11, 2011

By 

Anne M. Myers (New York, NY, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Chinese Gods: An Introduction to Chinese Folk Religion (Paperback)

I have no idea what Chamberlain is trying to accomplish with this book, but it had better not be helping people learn more about Chinese mythology, because this thing is a trainwreck. He admits up front that he hates pretty much every scholarly work on Chinese myth he's ever read ("One damn god follows another," he exclaims!) and refuses to emulate them, and boy does he follow through on that promise.

There's no discernible system of organization for the random stories and anecdotes he tosses around like unappetizing legumes, and furthermore he never cites sources or explains where he heard these stories he passes on, making it impossible to try to figure out where the regionalisms or interpretations might be among them. Even more hilarious is the fact that he straight-up refuses (and tells you so in the text) to attempt any kind of standard in his romanization of names and titles, leading to mass-scale confusion over what he's talking about when sometimes he uses modern pinyin, sometimes Wade-Giles, sometimes Cantonese names, sometimes Mandarin, and sometimes bizarre things he appears to be making up himself as he goes along.

We're meant to feel that this is all okay because he's making this stuff accessible to the layman, being a man of the people and whatnot. Sadly, this is also not true. His writing is an absolute pain to read; his tone and the thread of his conversation are meandering in the extreme and have an irritating quality of trying to sound knowledgeable but failing, and the intermittent whining about how scholarly sources aren't worth the paper they're printed on is aggravating and distracting. The total lack of coherent structure or organization within chapters makes trying to find any information a chore, and reading his self-satisfied tone gave me a headache.

In short, it is a terribly bad book when you are looking for concrete information on Chinese myth instead of random, unsourced anecdotes, and I am depressed that I spent ten dollars on it instead of finding something more appropriate for a student. If you're looking for a book with useful, coherent information on Chinese mythology rather than random, unsourced anecdotes, don't make my mistake.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Chinese Gods: An Introduction to Chinese Folk Religion, December 4, 2010

By 

Susan Willingham - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Chinese Gods: An Introduction to Chinese Folk Religion (Paperback)

I have a collection of mythology and folk religion from all over the world and found this a great book to include. There is very little available in English about Chinese folk religion that does not water the text down to a modern fairy tale. I enjoyed this book and feel it offers a unique voice to a part of the Chinese culture not easily found in a English translation outside of a college setting. I have been out of school for years but I loved the read.

0 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Book of Chinese Folk Religion, September 20, 2011

By 

Dallas P. - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Chinese Gods: An Introduction to Chinese Folk Religion (Paperback)

The package came within the given time in reasonable condition. No portion of the text was damaged from either the shipping process or prior handling.