Religion in China - Ancient and Pre-historic

Ancient and Pre-historic

Prior to the advent of Chinese civilization and world religions in the region generally known today as East Asia including the territorial boundaries of modern-day China; tribal totemistic and animistic religious practices were the way in which prayers, sacrifices or offerings were communicated to the spiritual world by groups or mediatory individuals such as shamans.

Following the dawn of Chinese civilization, an early indigenous form of religious practice in Chinese history began to develop from the more primitive elements of animism, folk religions and shamanism; known as Taoism, and is considered a traditional Chinese religion along with Confucianism and other Chinese folk religions with a constituency of almost 400 million followers in China alone. Shamanic religions, which have the longest recorded history in China, are still practiced formally by numerous ethnic groups around China, including the Han Chinese, but historic text and literature usually neglect this religious aspect of the Han people's history.