Chapters in this book

1. Frontmatter i
2. Contents v
3. Acknowledgments vii
4. 1. Introduction: Gods and Society in China 1
5. 2. Personal Relations and Bureaucratic Hierarchy in Chinese Religion: Evidence from the Song Dynasty 37
6. 3. Enlightened Alchemist or Immoral Immortal? The Growth of Lü Dongbin’s Cult in Late Imperial China 70
7. 4. The Lady Linshui: How a Woman Became a Goddess 105
8. 5. Myths, Gods, and Family Relations 150
9. 6. Vernacular Fiction and the Transmission of Gods’ Cults in Late Imperial China 184
10. 7. Transmission in Popular Religion: The Jiajiang Festival Troupe of Southern Taiwan 212
11. 8. Matricidal Magistrates and Gambling Gods: Weak States and Strong Spirits in China 250
12. Glossary 269
13. Index 279
14. Contributors 289