RELIGIOUS SYNCRETISM : THE HARMONIZATION OF BUDDHISM AND DAOISM IN MACAO’S LIAN FENG MIAO
This paper investigates religious syncretism in Macao through a focused study of Lian Feng Miao (The Lotus Peak Temple). Arguing that Macao's Sino-Portuguese milieu fostered a polytheistic religious life in which Buddhism and Daoism intertwine rather than compete, the author shows that Lian Feng Mia...
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| Published in: | Review of Culture |
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| Format: | Articles |
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Instituto Cultural de Macau
January 2003
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| Online Access: | https://www.icm.gov.mo/rc/viewer/pdfViewerParts/40005/2700 |
| Summary: | This paper investigates religious syncretism in Macao through a focused study of Lian Feng Miao (The Lotus Peak Temple). Arguing that Macao's Sino-Portuguese milieu fostered a polytheistic religious life in which Buddhism and Daoism intertwine rather than compete, the author shows that Lian Feng Miao transgresses doctrinal boundaries by enshrining a broad gamut of deities regardless of sectarian affiliation. Situating the temple within Ming-period toleration of disparate beliefs and the hegemonic project of san jiao he yi, the article asks whether such a site can be classified as Buddhist or Daoist, and what its spiritual dimension reveals about each tradition. Methodologically, the study combines historical-anthropological analysis of temple practice, liturgical imagery, and the euhemeristic representation of mythological figures who are gradually constituted as immortals; it also considers Daoist and Buddhist textual strategies that legitimate their authority by weaving classical myths into ritual life. The findings show that Daoism absorbs and reinterpretates ancient Chinese beliefs, using myths and popular imagery to consolidate its autochthonous status, while Buddhism provides a compatible cosmology for reverence of a vast pantheon. The Lian Feng Miao case thus demonstrates a dynamic, inclusive religious culture in Macao, where syncretism and toleration sustain a plural sacred landscape beyond rigid sectarian boundaries. |
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| ISSN: | 1682-1106 |