The religious undertones in the Zaju “Journey to the West”: to the problem of the manifestation of Buddhist, Daoist, and Confucian thoughts

Аннотация

The Yuan Dynasty, established by the Mongols, was the first unified national regime in Chinese history led by a minority and marked a period of cultural diversity. This era saw a fusion of various religious thoughts influencing the literati’s works, embedding Buddhist, Daoist, and Confucian elements. Yang Jingxian’s zaju adaptation of “Journey to the West” as an important literary piece from the late Yuan and early Ming periods, vividly reflects the religious and cultural backdrop of its time. This paper analyzes the manifestation of Buddhist, Daoist, and Confucian thoughts in Yang Jingxian’s zaju to explore its religious undertones.