Publication Type

Journal Article

Version

publishedVersion

Publication Date

12-2025

Abstract

Faith in the Chinese diaspora has become increasingly vibrant in the context of China’s rise as a global power. Drawing on multi-sited ethnographic research exploring the temple networks of the Guangze Zunwang cult, this paper advances an assemblage approach to understanding diasporic faith and investigating its multi-scalar becoming by exploring three areas of inquiry. The first investigates the evolving development of the Guangze Zunwang cult and its formation into a faith assemblage based on temple alliances, which bring people, deities, institutions, places and material objects together across (national) borders. The second explores the multi-scalar becoming in which faith assemblages are (de)territorialized by the Chinese state for diaspora engagement and at the same time by diasporic devotees who leverage their affective potential for root-seeking and networking. The third considers how the scalar interaction of top-down and bottom-up visions eventually leads to the emergence of liminal faith assemblages that are characterized by ambiguous temple activities and subjectivities, producing ambivalent tensions. In all, by foregrounding an assemblage perspective, this paper highlights the multi-faceted, non-linear and liminal ways multiple actors, flows and sites are weaved together to shape the emergence of Chinese diasporic faith across borders. It also contributes to existing understandings of diaspora engagement by bringing hitherto overlooked religious and spiritual dimensions into one analytical schema, offering insight into the agency of the Chinese diaspora amidst China’s rise.

Keywords

diasporic faith, assemblage, (de)territorialization, liminality, popular religion, Chinese diaspora

Discipline

Race, Ethnicity and Post-Colonial Studies | Religion

Research Areas

Sociology; Humanities

Publication

Geoforum

Volume

169

Issue

3-4

First Page

1

Last Page

10

ISSN

0016-7185

Identifier

10.1016/j.geoforum.2025.104525

Publisher

Elsevier

Copyright Owner and License

Contributor and Singapore Academy of Law

Additional URL

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoforum.2025.104525

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