"Back to the Pristine: Identity Formation and Legitimation in Contemporary American Daoism

This article, based on personal interviews and written surveys of dozens of Americans who self-identify as Daoist, asks how American Daoism provides meaning and shapes the identity of its American adherents. Using Wade Clark Roof's theories about Baby Boomers's spiritual quest as a search...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Siegler, Elijah (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: University of Californiarnia Press 2010
In: Nova religio
Year: 2010, Volume: 14, Issue: 1, Pages: 45-66
Online Access: Volltext (JSTOR)
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Summary:This article, based on personal interviews and written surveys of dozens of Americans who self-identify as Daoist, asks how American Daoism provides meaning and shapes the identity of its American adherents. Using Wade Clark Roof's theories about Baby Boomers's spiritual quest as a search for meaning, this article shows how American Daoism can be both a component of and a resolution to this spiritual quest. It analyzes the strategies American Daoists use to assemble a stable identity, including constructing lineages based on personal transmission and positing the existence of an "inauthentic" Daoism, often identified as "folk" or "religious," which serves to authenticate their perceived spiritual Daoism.
ISSN:1541-8480
Contains:Enthalten in: Nova religio
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1525/nr.2010.14.1.45