Chapters in this book

1. Frontmatter i
2. Contents vii
3. Acknowledgments ix
4. Abbreviations xi
5. Introduction 3
6. CHAPTER ONE. Merit Accumulation in the Early Chinese Tradition 28
7. CHAPTER TWO. Merit Accumulation for Status Advancement 61
8. CHAPTER THREE. The Debate over Supernatural Retribution and Merit Accumulation 110
9. CHAPTER FOUR. Preserving the Social Hierarchy in the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries 157
10. Conclusion 229
11. APPENDIX. Extant Morality Books and Ledgers of Merit and Demerit Published in the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries 241
12. Glossary 243
13. Sources Cited 261
14. Index 277