Temples in China could be either Buddhist, Daoist or Confucian. With a pragmatic approach to the popular practice of religion, all three have continued to play their parts right up to the present day.
Temple art was predominantly Buddhist Sculptures, paintings, manuscripts and utensils were made for the glory of the Buddhist church and the accumulation of merit, which could be achieved the author, producer or donor of the work through the repetition of the name or image of the Buddha. Buddhist works were produced for individual or communal merit or for the protection of the nation, Large-scale Buddhist cave temple projects were undertaken from the time Buddhism was introduced into China in the period between the Han and Tang dynasties (220-618). The most famous of these are at ungang, Longmen and Dunhuang. Hundreds of small Buddha figures can be seen in rows in niches in these cave temple sites, surrounding the more majestic large sculpture of Buddhas or bodhisattvas. Portable statues were also produced in bronze and very large ones in cast iron, as well as more delicate examples in carved and painted wood or in dry lacquer, Sculptures were often inscribed and dated, and this has contributed to our understanding of the development of styles.
Buddhist paintings on silk were less well preserved unless they were rolled up and stored carefully in temples or caves. An example is the hoard of Buddhist paintings found at the Dunhuang cave temple site by Sir Marc Aurel Stein in the first decades of the 20th century, These include paintings of the Western Paradise of the Amitabha Buddha, new-born souls being reborn into paradise out of lotus ponds, and heavenly musicians and dancers, as well as depictions of landscape and architecture between the 8th and 10th centuries. The donors of the paintings are often portrayed at the bottom, Wearing the latest fashions in clothing and jewellery Later Buddhist art in China was heavily influenced by Tibetan and Mongolian Buddhism. Tibetan lamas acted as spiritual guides to Chinese emperors in the Ming and Qing dynasties, with the result that many mandalas (depictions of the cosmos) were produced bath in two and three dimensions well tibetan-style sculptures. Alongide Buddhism poople also practised Dao Many landscape paintings from the 10th century onwards show the influence of Daoist ideas about the yin yang balance believed to be at the heart nf the nature of universe. Practising the Dao (the Way was about understanding the natural order of the world while withdrawing from everyday politics, which many painters did. Daoistideas of immortality can also be seen in works of the Han dymasty which portray immortals and strange creatures flying among heavenly clouds. The use of materials such as realgar and cinnabar or copies of them in works of art reflects the Daoist pre-occupation with finding elixirs of immortality. Paradoxically, taking some of these potentially poisonous substances led to the deaths ofmore than one Chinese emperor, including Qin Shihuangdi sculptures portraying Daoist figures such as the Eight limmortals or Star Gods became popular in the Ming and Qingdynasties. Confucian temples had sculptures of gods based on the officiai order in the world below, such as the god of literature or the god ofwar. Most towns would have a Confucian temple to its own town gods. Confucian paintings included ancestor portraits, which would be hung in houses altar to the ancestors. The emperor also held Confucian ceremonies at the Temple of Heaven and other altars. Here he, as the Son of Heaven and therefore an intermediary between heaven and the people, would use Confucian ritual objects and music to pray to heaven to grant good harvests and other benefits to the people.