Exploring Daoist-Practicing Families in the Northern Dynasties Through Family-Sponsored Statues

Bibliographic Data

ID8135268
AuthorsYuan Zhang (0000-0002-0902-9585, Institute of Archaeology, corresponding author)
Year2026
Volume17
Issue3
Pages369
Publication date2026-03-16
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueReligions (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2077-1444 • E-ISSN: 2077-1444
PublisherMDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT)
DOI10.3390/rel17030369
OpenAlexW7136246227
LanguageEN
References cited6

Through the collection and analysis of family-sponsored statue remains from Shaanxi and surrounding regions, this study explores the practice of Daoism within local communities during the Northern Dynasties, where religious activities—such as the erection of statues—were organized around family units. Small families and households within three generations constituted the predominant organizational model of Daoist practice at the time. The primary participants were commoners, though local prominent clans also occasionally participated. While clan-sponsored statues were fewer in number, they played a significant role in local society by mobilizing statue projects and disseminating religious teachings. Religious beliefs centered on Daoism while also incorporating Buddhist elements, revealing a strong tendency toward Daoist–Buddhist interaction. This phenomenon may be attributed to the contemporary social climate that venerated both traditions, the functional similarities between Daoism and Buddhism, and the populace’s open attitude toward religious plurality. Research on these family-sponsored statue remains provides valuable materials and new perspectives for examining Daoist-practicing families of the Northern Dynasties—groups that are scarcely documented in historical texts and Daoist canons—particularly regarding their social stratification, belief structures, and lived religious practices

Ancestor · Buddhism · Clan · Phenomenon · Social organization · Statue · Chinese history and philosophy · Landscape and Cultural Studies · Psychiatry, Mental Health, Neuroscience

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