World Religions, Sixth EditionWarren Matthews

Chapter Six:

China and Japan

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Early Chinese Dynasties

Xia Dynasty ~ 2000 BCE - 1500 BCE

Shang Dynasty 1500 BCE - 1027 BCE

Zhou Dynasty 1027 BCE - 256 BCE

Han Dynasty 206 BCE - 220 BCE

Sui Dynasty 589 - 618

Tang Dynasty 618 - 907

Sung (Song) Dynasty 960 - 279

Yuan Dynasty 1279 - 1369

Ming Dynasty 1369 - 1644

Affect of Confucianism and Daoism (China and Korea) on Shinto (Japan)

Two Sages Historically Honored by China

Laozi

Reflected in the lines of the cryptic classic the Dao De Jing (Tao

Te Ching)

Wrote at the time of the gurus of the Upanishads

Probably preceded Siddhartha’s enlightenment

Confucius

The more widely known sage

Thought to have been a contemporary of the Buddha

Yin-Yang

Everything can be described as both Yin and Yang

Yin and Yang

Are not mutually exclusive

Are interdependent

Can both be further subdivided into Yin and Yang

Consume and support each other, transform into one another

Are intertwined (part of Yin is in Yang, part of Yang is in Yin)

Involve forces that regain balance with yin-yang curves

Early Chinese Thought

Yin and Yang are fundamental, complementary principles evidenced

throughout the cosmos

The I Ching relies on notions of yin and yang

The I Ching is a practice that indicates ways of living and acting in

accordance with the cosmos

The Dao is the way of the universe

I Ching

The idea behind this system of divination is that the oracle will select

the appropriate answer regardless of the probabilities

The text of the ancient book, Yijing, or I Ching, is a set of predictions

represented by a set of sixty-four abstract line arrangements called

hexagrams

Laozi (Lao Tzu)

Lived 570-490 BCE in the capital of China

His life was mostly legendary, but tradition attributes the authorship of

the Dao De Jing to him

The story says he perceived that the kingdom's affairs were

disintegrating, was tired of living in society

He was about to travel West on a buffalo, when a gatekeeper

encouraged him to write to preserve his wisdom

He climbed down from his buffalo and wrote Dao De Jing

He was never heard from again

Dao De Jing

The Dao is “everything”

Laozi sometimes referred to the Dao as the “Mother” of all things

Underneath the visible, the universe is constantly changing

There is a constant flow of change

Interrupting this flow brings trouble

The natural flow of things is best

The Object in life is to live in harmony with the changing universe

Daoism (Taoism)

Societies must adapt to the Dao for survival

Most societies’ customs exist contrary to the universe

Trying to live as society leads most into trouble

People must learn to “go with the flow”

Wisdom comes with experience, age

Contemplation, meditation to learn nature of the universe

Wuwei

Lifestyle emphasizes quietism, avoids aggression

Compared to water

No shape, but wears out shapes

A sage acts without acting

Influencing without seeming to exert oneself

Ideal society is small village

Believes that government is best which governs least

Zhuangzi (Chuang Tzu)

Zhuangzi (369-286 BCE)

Influential interpreter of the Dao De Jing

Reflected on the experience of dreaming

The uncertainty of knowing what is real or not

Do I dream the butterfly, or does the butterfly dream me?

Stressed the role of perspective in formulating one’s

understanding of the world

Sectarian Daoism

In the first century CE, Zhang Daoling founded a secret society

dedicated to faith healing and longevity: the “Celestial Masters” sect

In the fourth century CE, Ge Hong compiled the Baopuzi (Pao P´u-

tzu), a collection of alchemical formulas intended to impart

immortality

During the Han Dynasty (206 BCE - 220 CE), Laozi became revered

as a deity in what became an increasingly elaborate pantheon of

celestial beings

Daoist Worldview

Ancestors could be transformed, becoming immortal or deified

Impersonal universe invisible but in harmony

Cannot be influenced though humans seek to discern it

What is natural to a person should be valued over social conventions

or proprieties

Acting without regard to the naturalness of the cosmos results in

suffering

Inaction is the secret of a good life

Daoist Worldview

Strategies for attaining immortality include:

Meditative practices

Alchemy

Sexual practices

Daoist priests trained to interact with:

Spirits

Ancestors

Deities

Confucius

Born around 551 BCE in Shantung Province

Early career as a teacher

Later served under the Duke of Lu as a government official

Became a traveling scholar in search of rulers who would heed

his advice on statesmanship

Attracted disciples who traveled with him

Seventeenth Century Chinese Scroll Painting of Confucius

Confucianism

Human beings are fundamentally good in nature

People learn best through example

The ideal male, refined in virtues, is the junzi, or “gentleman”

Li, the principle of harmony, should rule social life

Li should dictate ritual and formal ways of behavior

Yi is internalized li, the self becomes orderly

Confucianism

The Five Relationships:

Ruler vs. subject

Husband vs. wife

Elder brother vs. younger brother

Elder friend vs. younger friend

Father vs. son

Confucianism

Li – the principle of harmony in formal relationships

Should rule home, society, government

Can be learned by studying music and poetry

Junzi – the superior man

Ren – kindness, compassion

The state of being genuinely human

Learned by studying music and poetry

Junzi

Five virtues of the junzi:

Upright without regard to outward circumstances

Forgiving

Sincere in word and deed

Earnest

Generous

Jen, humanness, is not prescribed but internally directed

Confucianism is predominantly an ethical, rather than metaphysical,

philosophy

Other Teachings in the Time of Confucius – the Mohists

Mozi (Mo Tzu) lived between 479 and 381 BCE in Song or Lu

Taught jainai, or universal love

The Mohists believed that life should be lived on the basis of “share

and share alike”

This varied from the teachings of Confucius, who believed that doing

good was reserved for friends and not enemies

Other Teachings in the Time of Confucius – the Fajia (Legalists)

School of philosophy dating from the third century BCE

People are only responsive to harsh laws, therefore rulers should

instill fear

Han Feizi, a representative of the school, wrote that people were

untrustworthy

The Fajia thought all people are evil, unlike Confucius who thought

all people are good

Confucians and Daoists

Both appeal to a principle called the Dao, or Way

Daoists

Believe that human fulfillment means living in accordance with

nature

Are individualistic, without regard to social convention

Confucians

Believe that human fulfillment means acting out one’s social role

Keep a place appropriate to social life

Followers of Confucius

Mengzi

Believe that humanity’s natural inclination is toward good

Feel that virtue is the basis of good governance

Xunzi

Believe that humans are fundamentally evil

Hold that people can only become good through training

Later History of Confucianism

206-220 BCE – Confucian thinking adopted by Han dynasty rulers

as the norm for the Chinese empire

Confucius upheld as a deified teacher

1130-1200 CE – during the Song dynasty, Confucian thinker Zhuxi

creates neo-Confucianism

Revives centuries of Confucian thought

Stresses understanding of the Great Ultimate, or Taiji (Tai Chi)

Central teaching was the Doctrine of the Mean

Later History of Confucianism

618-907 CE – during the Tang dynasty, Confucianism was brought

from China to Korea

Neo-Confucian thought was also later established in Korea

Twentieth century – Confucianism in China was weakened

This began to occur with the rise of Sun Yat-sen (1866–1925)

Also later with the leadership of Mao Tsetung (1893–1976)

The Confucian “Four Books”

The details of Confucius’ teaching, as remembered by his disciples,

are contained in the Four Books:

The Analects (Lun Yu)

The Great Learning, Daxue (Ta Hsueh)

The Doctrine of the Mean, Zhongyong (Chung Yung)

The Book of Mencius, Mengzi (Meng- tze)

Temple of Heaven, Bejing

Chinese Folk Religion

A widespread, popular practice

Involved a wide panoply of deities, ghosts, and ancestors

Held that communication practices like divination were important

Believed that ancestors deserved attention

Warned that “hungry ghosts” could be a persistent problem if their

needs were not met

Confucian Worldview

Tianming, or mandate of heaven, is the sign of a legitimate ruler

World is fundamentally good

Although there is disagreement on human nature, all Confucians

believe that humans require education to become good

The problem for humans is disharmony that arises when humans

act at the expense of others

Shintoism

To be grateful for blessings of kami and the benefits of ancestors

To be diligent in the observance of the Shinto rites, applying oneself to them

with sincerity, brightness, and purity of heart

To be helpful to others and in the world at large, through deeds of service

without thought of reward

To seek the advancement of the world as one whose life mediates the will of

kami

To bind oneself with others in harmonious acknowledgement of the will of

the emperor, praying that the country may flourish and that people may live

in peace and prosperity

Shintoism

Shinto is the worship of kami

Kami are the spirits alive in particular sacred places

Places were marked with a rope, gateway (torii), or structure

People become kami and kami become people

Kami are to be respected and acknowledged

As with all spirits, kami may do good or bad for you

Most important kami is Amaterasu, the sun goddess

She is the physical ancestor of the royal family

She is the protector/guardian angel for the Japanese

Torii Gate, Marking a Sacred Place

Shinto, the Way of the Kami

Worship of the kami, or deities found in nature, is the earliest form of

Japanese religion

Spirits of sacred persons and places were honored

Places were marked as sacred by a rope, a gateway (torii), or a

small structure

With the arrival of Buddhism from Korea, worship of the kami

became more institutionalized

According to some Shinto accounts, Japan formed by two kami:

Izanami and Izanagi

Shinto Priest at a Wedding Ceremony in Japan

Shintoism

Kami and ancestors merged in a kami-dana in family house

Must cleans hands first

Use prayers, rice, and flowers

Kami honored in local shrines

Places to come for local help

Prosperity, healing, guidance

The Kami Amaterasu honored

State shrines and war memorials

The Emperor has specific Shinto duties as head of nation

A Kami-dana in a Home

Samurai

Developed during the Kamakura period (twelfth through fourteenth

centuries)

Roots in extreme patriotism, Daoism, and Zen Buddhism

Bushido code of honor included gratitude, courage, justice, and

fierce determination to succeed

Failure requires ritualized suicide, called hari-kari

Concern for purification

Shintoism in Japanese History

Prince Shotoku (574-622 CE) attempted to establish harmony in

Japan among Buddhism, Confucianism, and Shintoism

In later periods of Japanese history, such as the Tokugawa regime,

Shintoism was suppressed

This came at the expense of Confucianism and Buddhism

Then Emperor Meiji ascended in the nineteenth century

A purified form of Shinto was established as the state religion,

abolishing other religious practices

State Shinto declined with the defeat of Japan in World War II

Shinto in Japanese History

Sectarian forms of Shinto survived from the nineteenth century

Healing groups

Tenrikyo

P. L. (Perfect Liberty) Kyodan

Miki Tokuchika

Seicho-no-le (House of Growth)

Shinto Worldview

Natural world revered as divine

Kami identified with or reside in natural phenomenon

Worship of the sun goddess Amaterasu-Omikami, who is partial to

the peoples of Japan

Concern not worldly but focused on the Japanese people

Ritual pollution and purification are very important

Integration into family and national life is central to ethics