It is very hard to say whether Chinese are religious or not.
Traditionally a number of religious and philosophical systems were
practiced in China. At present, Taoism, Confucianism, Buddhism,
Christianity, and Islam that are most believed.
Buddhism
Buddhism, which came to China from India as early as the 1st century AD,
was a more conventional religion. Its followers attended occasional
services, practiced rituals, and supported a temple on a regular basis.
It has been estimated that more than 68 million Chinese still consider
themselves Buddhists, though it is unlikely that they practice the
religion regularly (See Buddhism). Prior to 1949, practices that may
best be called folk religions were common throughout China. Although
they incorporated elements of Buddhism and, especially, Taoism, these
religions were usually local, often based on local gods, and served the
local people.
Christianity
Christian missionaries have been active in China since Roman Catholics
belonging to the Jesuit order arrived in the early 17th century.
Protestant missionaries first appeared in the early 19th century. All
the Christian missionaries had difficulty converting the Chinese because
Christianity was associated in the popular mind with Western
imperialism. By 1949 there were only 3 or 4 million Christians in China,
less than 1 percent of the total population.
Confucianism
Confucianism is a system of behaviours and ethics that stress the
obligations of people towards one another based upon their relationship.
The basic tenets are based upon five different relationships: Ruler and
subject, Husband and wife, Parents and children, Brothers and sisters.
Friend and friend.
Taoism
In the Chinese language the word tao means "way," indicating a way of
thought or life. There have been several such ways in China's long
history, including Confucianism and Buddhism. In about the 6th century
BC, under the influence of ideas credited to a man named Lao-tzu, Taoism
became "the way". Like Confucianism, it has influenced every aspect of
Chinese culture.
Taoism began as a complex system of philosophical thought that could be
indulged in by only a few individuals. In later centuries it emerged,
perhaps under the influence of Buddhism, as a communal religion. It
later evolved as a popular folk religion.
Ch'an [or Zen] Buddhism
Zen (Ch'an in Chinese) is a Japanese term meaning "meditation." It is a
major school of Japanese Buddhism that claims to transmit the spirit of
Buddhism, or the total enlightenment as achieved by the founder of the
religion, the Buddha. Zen has its basis in the conviction that the world
and its components are not many things. They are, rather, one reality.
The one is part of a larger wholeness to which some people assign the
name of God. Reason, by analyzing the diversity of the world, obscures
this oneness. It can be apprehended by the nonrational part of the
mind--the intuition. Enlightenment about the nature of reality comes not
by rational examination but through meditation.
Islam
Islam came to China mainly from Central Asia, where it was practiced by
many of the Turkic peoples. Today there are believed to be more than 4
million Chinese Muslims. One autonomous region, Ningxia Huizu, has been
designated for Islamic adherents. Throughout the history of Islam in
China, Chinese Muslims have influenced the course of Chinese history.
Chinese Muslims have been in China for the last 1,400 years of
continuous interaction with Chinese society. Muslims live in every
region in China, as China is home to a large population of Muslims.