Thesis (M. Arch.)--University of Hong Kong, 2000. / Includes special report study entitled: The waste land. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Hong Kong, 1999. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 74-76). Also available in print.

Thesis (M.Arch.)--University of Hong Kong, 2000. / Includes special report study entitled : The waste land. Includes bibliographical references. Also available in print.

 Daoist architecture, as the cultural carrier of Daoism, has close relationship with cultural landscape which is a key element in the conservation of Daoism sites. However, very little scholarly attention has been paid to it, and obviously this is a threat to the integrity of Daoist architecture and also the intangible part behind it – the continuity of Daoism culture. To date, 86 properties with 5 trans-boundary properties and 1 delisted property on the World Heritage List have been included as cultural landscapes: of these only 3 were in the China, whilst none of them is related to Daoism. The relatively small number of Chinese nomination is due partly to less concern to the cultural landscape during inscription in china, despite its great importance. Moreover, though some Daoism sites and architecture have been proved to have universal value and inscribed as world heritage, such as Mount Qingcheng and Dujiang yan Irrigation System, Ancient Building Complex in the Wudang Mount and Mount Sanqing shan National Park, some official presences have ignored the fact that they would fulfil the category of continuing landscape of outstanding universal value with cross reference to the associative cultural landscape category. And the objective of this dissertation is to provide an understanding of the close relationship between Daoist architecture and cultural landscape which seems to have never been integrated with each other, and also the important role that cultural landscape plays in the survival and conservation of Daoist architecture, through a case study of a Daoism temple in Chongqing. / published_or_final_version / Conservation / Master / Master of Science in Conservation

published_or_final_version / Chinese Historical Studies / Master / Master of Arts

published_or_final_version / Architecture / Master / Master of Architecture

Most studies of monasticism have concentrated on the religious discourse of asceticism as a withdrawal from the secular world. Based on three months of field research in a Taoist monastery at a holy mountain in Wenzhou, China, however, this thesis describes the close relationship between the monastery and the local society and economy. Social and economic factors influence the decisions of individuals to become monks or nuns. Through networks of lay disciples, the monastery maintains close social links to society. Furthermore, the monastery is intricately tied to the economy as a provider of ritual and tourist services. It is hoped that this thesis will contribute to a better understanding of the place of religious institutions in rural Chinese society.

No description available.

From the establishment of the Ming to the fall of the Qing (1368--1911), the social and cultural scene of the Chinese countryside was greatly transformed. Lineages became the dominant social organization in many areas. Local temples became a familiar part of the rural landscape. Local culture was increasingly exposed to the influence of regional culture and gentry culture with the proliferation of market towns, the development of the printing industry and the rise of literacy. By investigating the history of ritual specialists and their rituals in a sub-county area in southeast China, this thesis shows how these social and cultural transformations took place and how the local population experienced them. Lisheng or masters of ceremonies, the focus of this thesis, played and still play an important role in the local social and symbolic life. Either along with or in the absence of other ritual specialists, they guided the laity through ritual procedures to communicate with ancestors, gods, and the dead. These rituals, and also the related liturgical texts, were the outcome of social and cultural transformations in the late imperial period. Through a detailed discussion of the history of the three important local institutions that were closely related to lisheng and their rituals, namely, lineages, community compacts, and temple networks, the thesis shows the limitations of the elitist interpretation of late imperial cultural transformations. Cultural integration and gentrification were without doubt important aspects of these processes. However, both may have oversimplified the complexity of the processes and exaggerate the influence of high culture. Cultural hybridization, the process in which elements from different cultural traditions were synthesized into a new, constantly changing cultural mosaic, provides a multipolar, interactional, and thus more complex approach to our understanding of cultural processes in late imperial China.

No description available.