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- Title
The dynamic process of syncretism: Datuk Gong worship in Malaysia.
- Authors
Wang, Zhaoyuan
- Abstract
The Datuk Gong worship in Malaysia is a fusion of Malay keramat and Chinese Tudi Shen, hence easy to be labelled ‘syncretism’. Nevertheless, the rich dynamism of syncretism as a process in Datuk Gong worship is still underexplored. Through the combination of historical documentary method and anthropological multi-sited field work, this article examines the three stages in the syncretic process of Datuk Gong worship: syncretic amity, syncretic encompassment and synthesis, as well as diverse strategies Chinese devotees adopted in each stage. Compared with other worship of non-Chinese deities in Southeast Asia, the peculiarity of Datuk Gong worship in West Malaysia is that it has reached a high level of synthesis, hence its own independence. Contribution: Through the examination of Datuk Gong worship in Malaysia, a syncretism of Chinese Religion, local animism and Islam, the study provides a rare and excellent example to mirror the rich dynamism of syncretism as a process in Southeast Asia, a meeting point of different civilisations.
- Subjects
SYNCRETISM (Religion); WORSHIP; GODS; CHINESE religion; ANIMISM
- Publication
Hervormde Teologiese Studies, 2022, Vol 78, Issue 4, p1
- ISSN
0259-9422
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.4102/hts.v78i4.7269