Opposition and unity: Shamanistic dualism in Tibetan and Chinese pre-historic art
Prof. Huisheng Tang
China
Summary: This paper considers the possible development of dualistic thought binary opposition, binary unity to dialectical dualism. The presumed scenes of fighting animals common in rock art and portable art, particularly in eastern Asia, are proposed to have had the role of dualistic metaphors. The author also considers the frequent depiction of human faces or masks in the region's rock art and the role of the 'World Mountain', Mt Kunlun.