Chinese Religion and Culture Intro Religion focused more

Chinese Religion and Culture

Intro… • Religion focused more on living a good virtuous life rather than focusing on the complexities of God • Little attention was given to the nature of deities • Maintaining a balance between earth and heaven was most important • This need for harmony included rituals to prevent individual success and create unity among all of the people

• Examples of this unity include: training for certain skills like archery, venerating ancestors, special meals, use of chopsticks, and drinking tea • All of these traditions are a result of the fall of the Zhou and the disorder that it created… this rituals had more to do with establishing long-lasting unity within Chinese culture and social life – it would mostly eliminate differences between classes • Read about Confucius

Legalism • Rose during the Qin and Han • Did not like Confucianism • Wanted an authoritarian state • They believed that human nature was evil and a strong leader was required to provide restraint and discipline • Legalism never grew popular because most appreciated Confucian values more

Flaws of Confucianism • Did not appeal to the masses • It never explored the mysteries of life and deprived people the spirituality that they were craving • The upper classes tended to like Confucianism while the peasant classes had more issues with it • Most peasants needed more than the civil rules of society… they needed to understand more about their position as poor people living a harsh life

• Most peasants turned to polytheistic beliefs focusing on spirits of nature • This is where the symbolic tradition of dragons began

Daoism • More religious – rose about the same time as • • • Confucianism Appealed to the upper classes – mostly those who too desired a more spiritual side to life It embraced the ideas of harmony It was successful in creating a division between the philosophical (Confucianism) and the spiritual (Daoism)

• The religion was spread by a man Laozi • He taught that true understanding comes from withdrawing from the world and contemplating a life force • Daoist harmony could be achieved through humility and frugal living • These ideas would mix with later Buddhism