Research On The Worship Of Ghosts And Gods In Liao Dynasty

As a social ideology,the belief in ghosts and gods has had a certain impact on almost all ethnic groups in ancient China.The Liao Dynasty,founded by the Qidan people,was deeply influenced by the primitive religion before the founding of the country and worshiped the ghosts.With the establishment of the Liao Dynasty,various religious ideas continued to spread and develop in the Liao Dynasty,and the most influential ones were Buddhism and Taoism.The Liao Dynasty pursued a religious policy of tolerance,which also allowed the spread and development of the beliefs of ghosts and gods in various religions.The beliefs of ghosts and gods in the Liao Dynasty are not static.They experienced the following development process: the early Liao Dynasty mainly included the Liao Taizu,Taizong,Suzong,and Muzong dynasties.During this period,the content of ghost worship was closely related to natural worship;mid-Liao Dynasty,Mainly including the Liao Jingzong,Shengzong,and Xingzong dynasties,with the continuous development of Buddhism,the Liao Dynasty built a large number of temples,collated Buddhist scriptures and actively spread the Buddha Dharma,so during this period,the belief of the ghosts and gods of the Liao people was deeply affected by Buddhism;In the later period of the Liao Dynasty,it mainly included the two dynasties of the Liao Daozong and the Emperor Tian Zuo.At this stage,the belief in ghosts and gods of Taoism had developed to a certain extent.In the Liao Dynasty,the beliefs of ghosts and gods in primitive religions,Buddhism,and Taoism not only did not exclude each other,but absorbed and merged with each other,forming the unique beliefs of ghosts and gods of the Liao people.The influence of Buddhism or Taoism,but throughout the Liao Dynasty,the records of "ghosts" are mostly limited to "shooting ghost arrows" to ominously omit,and it is the gods of the Liao Dynasty who are truly religiously believed by the Liao people.Although the Liao Dynasty did not build a fairy system subjectively,in the subconscious of the Liao people,various ghosts and gods should be divided into different levels.In daily practice,through the Liao people 's differences in the number of sacrifices to gods,sacrifices,and sacrifice specifications,etc.Combing,it can be seen that the general characteristics of the gods in the Liao Dynasty are mainly natural gods and ancestral gods represented by heaven,and other gods are in a relatively minor position.