Blog Entry IX - Syncretism

Syncretism is a term that can be applied to a widely ranging variety of social, political, historical and anthropological areas of subject matter. It imparts the same meaning when used to describe religion. Thus, religious syncretism is "the attempt to unite disparate or contrary" beliefs, practices and ideas, and often involves the amalgamation of these beliefs, practices and ideas from various religious schools of thought.

I think what separates Manichaeism from other syncretic religious traditions is that other syncretic religious traditions have a tendency to refute their syncretic origins and profess to be a "pure" or "revealed" religious innovation. These exclusivist religious schools feel that an addition to their faith or an amalgamation with another faith would corrupt or distort the "truth" of their religion and are thus hesitant to be part of, or admit to syncretism. For example, both Judaism and Islam have been interpreted as having syncretic elements, but both religious schools refute these conjectures despite any plausible academic evidence in favour of maintaining their "pure" and "truthful" titles.

In contrast to exclusivist traditions that refuse to acknowledge their potentially syncretic orgins, the mythological religions of Classical and Hellenistic Greece and Rome both openly describe their schools of thought as syncretic. They admit to sharing and variating eachother's traditions, as well as adopting traditions from Persian, Anatolian and Egyptian traditional sources. To the religious innovators and followers of mythological religions of Greece and Rome, syncretism was a means to reduce potential inter-religious tension and hostility.

Manachaeism, in this context, neither refuted or professed its syncretic nature. Manichaeism aimed to present the complete version of teachings that were deemed to be corrupt, distorted and misinterpreted by the followers of its "ancestors" Adam, Zoroaster, Buddha and Jesus, and as Manichaeism was diffused, it also amalgamated dieties, spirits and themes from various religious scriptures.

Colourfully illustrated Manichaean iconography.



Elicti writing from a Manichaean book found at Turfan, Turkestan.

Blog Entry VIII - Horses and the Golden Age of the Tang

The high culture of the Tang dynasty is suggestive of typical western perceptions of late classical China—typical in a good way. The descriptions of the culture in Chang’an evoke a sense of romanticism, adventure, and a flourishing era full of wonder that many of us are familiar with, perhaps even since childhood, of what it may have been like to experience classical China. I personally found the position of upper class women and their material and social culture to be especially interesting. To me, the horsewomen of Chang’an are symbolic of the Tang dynasty.

Women in Chang’an had the opportunity to become skilled horsewomen, riding in the same style and with the same caliber of horses as the men did. In classical Europe, however, it was unfathomable for women to become adept horsewomen, let alone ride at a level comparable to men. In Chang’an, the horsewomen rode full-saddle, and could partake in various hunting activities with or without the accompaniment of men, including falconry and small game chases. Conversely, women in classical Europe rode side-saddle, usually rode only with male company, and very infrequently partook in falconry, small game chases, and other equestrian related sports. Furthermore, the riding costumes of the Chang’an women are particularly representative of their bold, progressive style. They adopted riding costumes similar to those of men, wearing long, tailored pants and leather boots, with billowing shirts and hunting caps that barely covered their hair or their faces! At the time, that would have been considered quite risqué, and yet, remains fashionable for horsewomen even contemporarily. In Europe, this fashion of riding costume wouldn’t take precedence for horsewomen until over a thousand years later. Women rode horses wearing flouncy, ruffled dresses, wide-brimmed hats and chiffon veils well into the late seventeenth century!

The direct image link is broken, so I've provided the link to the image on it's website. It's a clear, simple painting of Tang dynasty horsewomen and their costumes. There are accompanying images of similar genre on this website.

http://www.cultural-china.com/chinaWH/images/arbigimages/38ddb1ceeeee89f3f802f57d96b06a14.jpg


Below, a contemporary re-enactment of Tang dynasty costume and performance.