Preliminary Material / J. Lagerwey and P. Lü -- Introduction / John Lagerwey -- State Religious Ceremonies / Chen Shuguo -- Borrowing Legitimacy from the Dead: The Confucianization of Ancestral Worship / Keith N. Knapp -- State Religious Policy / Li Gang -- Shamans and Politics / Fu-Shih Lin -- The Return of the State: On the Significance of Buddhist Epigraphy and its Geographic Distribution / Liu Shufen -- Seekers of Transcendence and their Communities in this World (Pre-350 AD) / Robert Ford Campany -- Community and Daily Life in the Early Daoist Church / Terry Kleeman -- Daoist Stelae of the Northern Dynasties / Zhang Xunliao -- Buddhist Monasticism / John Kieschnick -- Classification, Layout, and Iconography of Buddhist Cave Temples and Monasteries / Li Yuqun -- Preliminary Material / J. Lagerwey and P. Lü -- Translations, Apocrypha, and the Emergence of the Buddhist Canon / Sylvie Hureau -- The Revelation and Classification of Daoist Scriptures / Wang Chengwen -- Buddhism and Literature / François Martin -- Daoist Verse and the Quest of the Divine / Paul W. Kroll -- Religious Beliefs as Reflected in the Funerary Record / Bai Bin -- Images and Ritual Treatment of Dangerous Spirits / Mu-Chou Poo -- The Buddhist Pantheon / Hou Xudong -- Daoist Pantheons / Stephen R. Bokenkamp -- Buddhist Rituals / Sylvie Hureau -- Daoist Rituals / Lü Pengzhi -- Buddhist Sacred Geography / James Robson -- Daoist Sacred Geography / Gil Raz -- List of Authors / J. Lagerwey and P. Lü -- Bibliography / J. Lagerwey and P. Lü -- Index / J. Lagerwey and P. Lü.

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After the Warring States, treated in Part One of this set, there is no more fecund era in Chinese religious and cultural history than the period of division (220-589 AD). During it, Buddhism conquered China, Daoism grew into a mature religion with independent institutions, and, together with Confucianism, these three teachings, having each won its share of state recognition and support, formed a united front against shamanism. While all four religions are covered, Buddhism and Daoism receive special attention in a series of parallel chapters on their pantheons, rituals, sacred geography, community organization, canon formation, impact on literature, and recent archaeological discoveries. This multi-disciplinary approach, without ignoring philosophical and theological issues, brings into sharp focus the social and historical matrices of Chinese religion.