Confucianism And Early Daoism

Classical China was a breeding ground for new ideas, inventions, and most importantly, religions. Although Classical China was littered with different religions and beliefs, Confucianism was the most prominent. Confucianism is based on the teachings of a philosophical

China has been the home to various religions. At different times different dynasties endorsed certain religions while repressing others. While Buddhism flourished during the Sui and Tang dynasty, it faced opposition from the government during the Song dynasty. Confucianism lost government endorsement during the Sui and Tang but gained momentum during the Song as Neo-Confucianism. Yuan dynasty promoted Islam and Tibet Buddhism but ignored Confucianism. Different rulers sponsored and protected different religions but Confucianism and some form of Buddhism have always been alive in Chinese society from 600 to 1450.

Throughout the course of time, religion has had an enormous influence on societies. This also is true for the Han on Roman empires. In both societies, the genesis of their key religions were quite similar. Both were mainly based off of forces of nature and kept shrines in places that were pure and natural. Polytheism was a common practice and a different god was devoted to each different aspect of nature, such as wind, fire, and agriculture. Both empires also stemmed off from these nature based religions and absorbed religious theories and practices of other cultures that were introduced to them. however, the religions and practices that were introduced to them were quite different. In Rome, Christianity was introduced and become widely accepted. This was, of course, after many years of persecution and discrimination. Christianity promoted monotheism, or the belief in a single god, but this caused problems. Due to this practice, many early Christians were punished because they would not worship the emperor as a god. After many years of turmoil and bloodshed, Christianity was adopted into society. In Han China, a different religion had effect, or technically two religions. These were Daosim and Buddhism. Doasim entailed a magical and mythological belief and was mainly practiced by the common people. In Daoism it was common to practice alchemy and search for potions of

Chinese culture is also greatly embedded in religious and philosophical beliefs. The way a relationship is developed between and individual and the society differs according to various beliefs. In China, two common philosophical and religious ideas are Confucianism and Taoism. Confucianism

Confucian and Daoist views were important for the shaping and development of mankind in the past. They were views that existed among the eastern Asian countries. They had both similarities and differences in the way they shaped out self-knowledge and self-cultivation. Also there was other outside forces that played a major role in their theories. Nature and art were said to have helped shape the human race as we know it.

Most businesses in China are run by man. China has many religions like Taoism, Confucianism, but mainly Buddhism. Recently, China has excelled in having many more religions including Christian. Chinese philosophy comes from Confucianism, which is a collection of teachings from ancient history. Many other philosophies were later taught like Daoism, Legalism, Mohism and many more. China still uses many of these philosophies today.

Ancient China has three philosophies: Confucianism, Legalism, and Daoism. These three philosophies explain how people should behave and how the government should rule the people. The philosophies were guidelines to the people. Confucianism, Legalism, and Daoism have different values, beliefs, and ideas of what is important and expected, but the main goal is to work towards peace and harmony. These cultures are the same way in being rewarded due to their actions, but different in government regulation because of the people in command.

The main Chinese religions have many key features. The main religions include shamanism/ancestor reverence, Confucianism, Daoism, Mahayana Buddhism, and idol worship. These 5 religions share some features in common. For example, Chinese popular religion focuses on the human being’s pursuit of health, wealth, and happiness in their lives (quote the textbook). Chinese popular religions want the human to be doing well and succeeding in their day-to-day activities of their lives. Another key component of the main Chinese religions is respecting one’s elders. The religions teach the importance of obeying the commands of the elders and honoring the family name. The Chinese allow place a strong emphasis on the temple. The temple is a place where the people could communicate, understand, and learn about their gods (quote the textbook). The next subsections will be describing the key religious practices of each of the 5 Chinese religions.

Chinese philosophy is “part religious, part political” (China PPT Notes). Chinese philosophy is composed of 3 different branches- Confucianism, Daoism and Legalism. Each of these were considered a type of school and each has

While the Way can be considered an intangible idea of how to live your life, others believe it is an omnipotent force that shapes all things and cannot be named. Confucianists believe the former, where they have a superior chance of achieving a better life through ritual. Daoists, however, trust in nonaction, in not interfering with nature, to have a better and longer life. Conversely, the Daoist idea can only hold true in an ideal society, since it would be hard to employ. I will argue that a Confucianist society is better, because it relies on action in a society, the use of virtue with rituals to learn, and the overall betterment of the self to create order in the community as a means of reaching Way.

Daoism takes on many of the philosophies of Confucius, but added a spirituality part. At first, the religion of Daoism was only taught to the upper class; after awhile, the beliefs went to the other classes. The religion of Daoism focuses on the Dao, which means “the Way.” Since they believe that nature has a divine impulse, humans should only do actions that are in harmony with nature. The Yin Yang symbol is from Daoism, it shows that there is balance in the world. They believe there is balance in nature, for example, a man balances out with a woman. A major focus of Daoism is to appreciate humility and frugal living, people are to avoid excess. Daoism provided beliefs that filled gaps in people's lives which Confucianism did not.

At the core of any nation’s culture are its religious beliefs. In China there are the “Three Jewels” Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism, as described in Lopez (1996). There are small numbers of people practicing other religions such as Christianity and Islam, but these are the three dominant beliefs of the region. While they are separate in content, they have coexisted for several thousand years. Lopez (1996) goes on to say, “Historical precedent and popular parlance attest to the importance of this threefold division for understanding Chinese culture…Buddhism is the sun, Daoism the moon, and Confucianism the five planets…suggesting that although they remain separate, they also coexist as equally indispensable phenomena of the natural world.” Each belief system stands alone, and at the same time needs the other(s).

Confucianism influenced the focus of the tribute system, asserting dominance. In Confucianism, political and social order was kept with the five relationships. In every relationship, dominance is esablished. Similarly, China establishes dominance in tribuitary relationships. They established this dominace because this idea of Confucian order applied almost all aspects of life, including diplomatic matters.

Confucianism and Daoism were two ancient religions that influenced traditional Chinese ink painting and calligraphy’s style, creation, and design. The Chinese worship their ancestors and came up with the idea of Confucianism similar to the idea of the Egyptian pharaohs whom believed in the afterlife. With great respect for tradition, innovation is not important; thereby painters often produced old artwork of an older master whom they admired. This reveals the concept of Confucianism: respect the past. For example, the painting Whispering Pines on a Mountain Path by Fan Kuan is showing both the idea of Daoistic Yin and Yang, and the Confucianistic idea of respect for the past. This Chinese landscape painting is an imaginative creation intended

Throughout history, religion has impacted Chinese ways. Two religions, Taoism and Confucianism, are the backbone of China’s cultural lifestyles, but which one had the bigger impact on China? Before diving straight into this argument, I plan to give you background information on both religions. Taoism, also known as Daoism, is an ancient religion founded by Lao Tzu. Taoists believe in being immanent, uniting themselves, with nature.