
The most striking feature of Wutong, the preeminent God of Wealth in late imperial China, was the deity's diabolical character. Wutong was perceived not as a heroic figure or paragon of noble qualities but rather as an embodiment of humanity's basest vices, greed and lust, a maleficent demon who preyed on the weak and vulnerable. In The Sinister Way, Richard von Glahn examines the emergence and evolution of the Wutong cult within the larger framework of the historical development of Chinese popular or vernacular religion-as opposed to institutional religions such as Buddhism or Daoism.
Page Count:
401
Publication Date:
2004-01-01
ISBN-10:
1597349011
ISBN-13:
9781597349017
No comments yet. Be the first to share your thoughts!