Robyn Lebron Reforms, folk religion in particular has revived in many areas, particularly in the south and southeast, with many temples rebuilt and traditional funerals and other rituals quite common A certain number of Buddhist monasteries and Taoist temples have been allowed to reopen, but it seems unlikely that the elite practitioners of any of these traditions will soon regain their former numbers or prominence.8 God or Gods As with all the doctrines of the Chinese folk religion, many of the beliefs about Gods varied with time or became a blending of beliefs During the Bronze Age (2205–256 bc) in China, the Chinese worshiped many gods and spirits One of the most important deities during the Shang Dynasty was Ti means “deity above” or “the Lord on high.” He was believed to punish people who offended him and reward those who pleased him Ti was in charge of all the gods and spirits in the pantheon The Chinese also had spirit gods who represented things found in nature, from specific mountains and streams to the stars in the sky There were also two gods of the earth: “ ” and “ ” They were subject to Ti Ti also had a royal court in heaven made up of all of the worthy ancestors who had died These ancestors served Ti and helped him govern The Han Empire (202 bc–220 ad) didn’t have gods they worshiped because their beliefs relied on philosophy The Han shifted from philosophy to philosophy—Confucianism to Taoism to Buddhism, and many times was a blending of all three After the Chinese adopted Buddhism and introduced Buddha into the Chinese pantheon of ancient gods This pantheon consisted of a godly court in heaven, which was a close analogy to what the common people thought of as their emperor’s court on earth It was ruled by the Jade Emperor, his ministers, and his various consorts There were gods of the guilds; gods of the planets, elements, earth, and sky; war and rain gods; and, of course, the Buddha, his disciples, and those remarkable people who had lived on earth such as emperors or individuals who had been particularly virtuous There was a god of literature, a god of grain, even a god for each of the several mountain ranges within the empire