From Religious to Secular to Postsecular? On the Continuity of Divination in Chinese-speaking Countries

Schmiedl, Anne Kathrin

Abstract

This paper uses Chinese character divination as an example to underline the continuity of divinatory practices from imperial China until today. The paper first explores the strategies that authors of imperial publications on character divination employed to introduce their subject matter. It then traces the way in which character divination is presented in a contemporary postsecular setting by analysing popular publications from Mainland China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. Ultimately, independent of historical and geographical background, all sources rely on similar strategies: participants of divination draw on a wide array of approaches, including religious and political discourses, but also, and heavily, on ancient traditions and expertise. The paper proves the continuity of discourses on divination from imperial China until today, thus contributing to the study of the secular/postsecular in China.