| Religion of the Shang dynasty | |
|---|---|
.jpg) A Shang oracle bone inscribed with the results of divination[1] | |
| Type | Polytheism |
| Theology | |
| Region | Yellow River valley |
| Language | Old Chinese |
| Part of a series on |
| Chinese folk religion |
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The state religion of the Shang dynasty (c. 1600 – c. 1046 BC) involved trained practitioners communicating with deities, including deceased ancestors and nature spirits. These deities formed a pantheon headed by the high god Di.[2] Methods of communication with spirits included divinations inscribed on oracle bones and sacrifice of living beings. Much of what is known about Shang religion has been discovered through archaeological work at Yinxu – the site of Yin, the final Shang capital – among other sites.[3] At Yinxu, artefacts such as oracle bones and ritual bronze vessels have been excavated.[4][5] The earliest attested inscriptions were made c. 1250 BC, during the reign of King Wu Ding – though the attested script is fully mature, and is believed to have emerged significantly earlier.[6][7][8][9]
Religion played a significant role in Shang court life. The Shang built large tombs,[10] reflecting a belief in the afterlife and in sacred places. Deities were constantly honoured with ceremonies, the scheduling of which was facilitated by Shang astronomers via the invention of a sophisticated calendar system based on a 60-day cycle.[11] Using the calendar, royal adherents of the religion conducted liturgical rituals dedicated to those spirits. Regional estates maintained independent practitioners but worshipped the same deities for common purposes. Those acts of worship, which were formalised over time, were held for divine fortune along with prosperity of the late Shang state.[12]
The Shang originated in the Yellow River valley,[a] and for over two hundred years, their religion influenced and was influenced by the traditions of neighbouring peoples. After 1046 BC, the Zhou dynasty, which replaced the Shang, gradually assimilated elements of Di into its own cosmology.[14][15] Elements of Shang beliefs and practices were integrated into later Chinese culture, with ancestor worship and the calendar still reflected in traditions throughout the Sinosphere.
- ^ Chen et al. (2020), pp. 227–230.
- ^ Didier (2009a), p. 161.
- ^ Keightley (1999), pp. 251–252.
- ^ Bai (2002).
- ^ Wilkinson (2022).
- ^ Boltz (1986), p. 420.
- ^ Liu et al. (2021), p. 165.
- ^ Takashima (2012), p. 142 dates the earliest inscription to 1230 BC.
- ^ Tanner (2010), p. 40.
- ^ Mizoguchi & Uchida (2018), pp. 709–712.
- ^ Smith (2011a), p. 1.
- ^ Creel (1960), p. 113.
- ^ Lee (2002), p. 28.
- ^ Pankenier (1981–1982), p. 23.
- ^ Eno (2008).
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