ABSTRACT
Introduction Understanding the role of religion for the development of China requires first a distinction between China as a civilization and China as a polity. Looking at China as a civilization allows us to look at a material culture and a cultural tradition that have unfolded over millennia and extended their influence over a number of other societies in East Asia, such as Japan, Korea, and Vietnam. This approach allows us to look at different strands in a tradition that includes communal religions, Taoism, Confucianism, Buddhism, and other forms of religiosities embedded with the state and other social systems such as the economy, education, health, and the family. It also allows us to include Islam and Christianity as religions from other parts of the world that gradually integrated into the fabric of Chinese civilization.2 China qua civilization includes the long line of dynasties followed by Republican and Socialist successor regimes, as well as the overseas Chinese communities dispersed throughout all continents, which count over 30 million people. For reasons of space, this chapter will not address the complexities of the overseas communities.
