Spiritual Life in Yunnan Province

The Chinese are very pragmatic about religion, practicing a blend of Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism, plus a blend of folk religions and ancestor worship. Unlike the west and the middle east, practicing one religion doesn't necessarily mean the rejection or denial of others.
This was evident in the many types of religious structures,  ( both grand and small ) that we encountered. All of the temples that we visited ( and there were many !) displayed a combination of deities, both local and universal.  Every village had it's own local god who was worshiped with incense and flowers. During our treks,we always encountered tombs, some very elaborate, that were cared and visited at least once a year when all of China celebrates Tomb Sweeping Festival. People take the day to go to their family tomb , bringing spirit money, and anything else that they think that the deceased will want in their afterlife, including bottles of liquor, cigarettes, tea, chopsticks and foodstuff. Makes for a good outing !

One of the many temples at the Shibaoshan Temple complex just outside of Shaxi.

One of the monkeys at the Shibaoshan Temple complex. 

The temples are located in a magnificent setting. Many of them are on cliffs. Just incredible to think of how they transported all the materials to this place so many hundreds of years ago.

Water cascades from the mountain over the roofs of the temples

We did alot of climbing that day !

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Local deities and one ,not so local, visitor !

A very old, modest tomb most likely on private land. Now, the government mandates that the tombs be located in designated areas so that more land can be used for farming.

Local gods for the town of Shaxi. They are supposed to protect the travelers and traders who passed through this town hundreds of years ago transporting tea up to Tibet and horses down to China.

A Golden Buddha

The magnificent Songzanlin Temple complex in Shangri la founded in 1679 . This complex houses 700 monks and is now a major tourist attraction in the area. It belongs to the Yellow Hat sect of Tibetan buddhism and may have been an inspiration for James Hiltons book The Lost Horizon. 

A local Temple hung with thousands of Buddhist prayer flags. They are inscribed with prayers that are sent to the heavens  . Representing Earth, ski, fire, water and spirit. 

A temple  rooftop in Shangri la with the the magnificent Himalaya Mountains as a backdrop.

Sorry ladies....this is a depiction of  Buddha's stages of the life cycle of women. 

A monk and his novitiate. This little boy was about 3 years old. 

A small temple in shangri la

Prayer flags wave toward the Himalayas

A local Buddhist temple in Shangri la

Devotees light candles and leave money for the upkeep of the temple.

This is a really old photo of Mao and the Dali Lama in better days. I'm not sure if the government would approve of this photo now.

An elaborate tomb in the graveyard at Shangri la. Times must be rally good there , as this is a very costly thing ot create and to erect .

Tomb detail. The carvings are magnificent

Another elaborate tomb

A simple Stupa on the hills outside of Shangri la.

A huge prayer wheel illuminated in the night. Buddhists turn the prayer wheel to send prayers up to the heavens.

A simple , local town temple honoring Buddha and the local gods.

The magnificent Yulong Mountains

A local Shaman in Lijiang .

 Songzanling Temple Decorations

Songzanling Temple decorations