“Man Resides in the Center”: A Daoist Fengshui Rectification Practice Recorded on a Second-Century Pottery Basin from Shanxi

In traditional China, when confronting real-world problems, people might invite masters to perform rites of residential fengshui rectification for a healthy and prosperous life. However, no concrete cases have previously emerged to demonstrate what exorcism scriptures and ritual implements were actually employed during the adjustment process. A recently unearthed pottery basin from Linyi County, Shanxi, bearing a vermilion inscription on proper fengshui restoration, offers new insight into how Daoist masters played a practical role in maintaining everyday life. For the first time, we demonstrate what religious implements and texts were employed and the proper timing of their use. Identifying specific details of the entangled status of the Han Daoist ideology and fengshui adjustment rituals for the living broadens our observational and conceptual understanding of early Daoist involvement in family and community life.