Chinese Folk Religion
Today most of the Chinese population in Malaysia are Buddhists, while the rest are Confucianists, Taoists, Christians, and a small number of Muslims and Hindus. Most Chinese still adhere to the Chinese folk belief system or ancestor worship in tandem with their (mainstream) religion. However, some have stopped practising this religion after adopting a mainstream religion which prohibits animism or idolatry. As is the case in China, the practice of this religion is not documented by the government for statistics purpose. Thus the number of followers in Malaysia can only be estimated.
See also: Malaysian Chinese religionRead more about this topic: Animism In Malaysia
Famous quotes containing the words folk and/or religion:
“Myths, as compared with folk tales, are usually in a special category of seriousness: they are believed to have “really happened,” or to have some exceptional significance in explaining certain features of life, such as ritual. Again, whereas folk tales simply interchange motifs and develop variants, myths show an odd tendency to stick together and build up bigger structures. We have creation myths, fall and flood myths, metamorphose and dying-god myths.”
—Northrop Frye (1912–1991)
“The only human beings I have thoroughly admired and respected in the world have been those who carried the load of the world with a smile, and who, in the face of anxieties that would have knocked me clean out, never showed a tremor. Such men and women end by owning us, soul and body, and our allegiance can never be shaken. We are only too glad to be owned. Religion is nothing but this.”
—Henry Brooks Adams (1838–1918)