THE EASTERN END.

•
CHINESE CULTURE PRACTICALLY INFLUENCED ALL OTHER
COUNTRIES INCLUDING JAPAN AND KOREA. THE
SUPREMACY OF CHINA ON THE EASTERN FRONT CAN BE
EXPLAINED BY THE ROLE OF ITS ENVIRONMENT AND
GEOGRAPHY. CONFUCIUS DID NOT INTEND TO START A
NEW RELIGION BUT TO EXPOUND ON THE NATURE OF
ORDER AND STABILITY OF SOCIETY. WITH THE GROWTH
OF CONFUCIANIS, SHAMANISM BEGAN TO DECLINE IN
CHINA. MEANWHILE DAOISM EMERGED IN RESPONSE
TO THE WIDESPREAD WARFARE AND SOCIAL TURMOIL
THAT BESIEGED THE ZHOU DYNASTY.

•
KOREA AND JAPAN BEGIN TO EMBRACE THE
CONFUCIANISM MODEL OF HARMONIOUS FAMILY
RELATIONS. LASTLY, FAPAN DEVELOPED A UNIQUE
FORM OF BUDDHISM TAKING ITS FULLEST
MEDITATIVE FORM UNDER ZEN.

THE CULTURAL MILIEU

WORLD RELIGIONS CAN BE REGARDED
ALONG THE LINES OF THEIR EXCLUSIVITY
OR NON-EXCLUSIVITY

‘ON MONOTHEISM AND UNIVERSALITY’

MONOTHEISM IS AN ANCIENT IDEA THAT PREDATED
THE ESTABLISHMENT OF ABRAHAMIC RELIGION. THE
BASIC PRINCIPLES OF THE MUSLIM FAITH ARE
REFLECTED IN THE FIVE PILLARS OF ISLAM, THERE ARE
NO GODS, BUT ONLY ALLAH. BOTH CHRISTIANITY AND
ISLAM ARE CONSIDERED UNIVERSALIZING RELIGIONS
BECAUSE THEY ATTEMPT TO OPERATE IN A GLOBAL
SCALE AND ARE NOT INEXTRICABLY LINKED TO ANY
NATION, ETHNICITY OR PLACE AS OPPOSE TO ETHNIC
RELIGIONS THAT ATTRACT ONE GROUP OF PEOPLE
RESIDING IN ONE LOCALITY.

JUDAISM AN BE CONSIDERED AN ETHNIC RELIGION

BECAUSE IT DRAW MEMBERS FROM A SPECIFIC
GROUP OF PEOPLE FROM A DEFINITE LOCALITY
WITH MOST OF ITS PRACTICES AND RITUALS
PERFORMED CONTINUOUSLY THROUGHOUT
GENERATIONS.
 ‘ON THE CONCEPT OF DHARMA’
THE CONCEPT OF DHARMA IS INTEGRAL IN RELIGIONS
THAT EMERGED IN INDIA, INCLUDING HINDUISM,
BUDDHISM, JAINISM AND SIKHISM. IN HINDU, IT
COULD MEAN DUTY, RIGHTEOUSNESS AND ETHICS. FOR
BUDDHISM, IT MEANS COSMIC LAW AND ORDER. FOR
THERAVADA, DHARMA IS SOMETIMES USED TO
INDICATE ALL THE FACTOR OF EXISTENCE.
INTERMEDIARIES FOR HUMAN AND GODS ARE NOT
NECESSARY ALONG WITH THE MANY RITUALS THAT GO
WITH VENERATING THEM.

‘ON NATURE AND ANCESTORS’

THE ELEMENTS OF CULT OF HEAVEN AND ANCESTOR
WORSHIIP ARE FEATURES OF ANCIENT CHINESE CULTURE
INTEGRATED INTO THE CONFUCIAN PHILOSOPHY AND
BELIEF. CHINESE BELIEF SYSTEM SOON ARRIVED IN JAPAN,
INFLUENCING THE CULTURE AND THE INDIGEOUS
POLYTHEISTIC RELIGION, SHINTOISM. IN SHINTOISM,
DIVINITY ARE CLOSELY LINKED TO NATURE AD NATURAL
FORCES, MOUNT FUJI, AN ABODE OF JAPANESE GODS, IS
SURROUNDED BY TEMPLES AND SHRINES. THE CONFUCIAN
STANCE ON THE WORLD IS BASICALLY ENCAPSULATED
ABAOUT AN INDIVIDUAL’S UNDERTANDING OF HEAVEN
AND THE PEOPLES RELATIONSHIPS WITH HEAVEN.

CONFUCIUS OUTLINED THE 5 BASIC SOIAL

RELATIONSHIPS, RULER AND SUBJECTS, FATHER AND
SON, HUSBAND AND WIFE, OLDER AND YOUNG
BROTHERS, AND FRIENDS OR MEMBERS IN THE
SOCIETY. WITH THIS MINDSET, A PERFECT SOCIETY IS
ATTAINABLE, DAOISM PROMOTES HARMONIUOS
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN HUMANKIND AND NATURE,
APPROPRIATENESS OF ONES BEHAVIOUR IS ALSO
INTEGRAL IN THE DAOIST TEACHING.

____________________________________________________________________________________
The Gobi Desert is dangerous and dry. There is a little water, but is rare, and an
oasis is very rare.

The Taklamakan Desert, China's other desert, is the second largest desert in
the world. It's nickname is the Sea of Death. Sand storms whip up frequency, and
without warning. The days are boiling hot. The nights are freezing cold. The snake are
poisonous. There is little hope of water. Crossing the Taklamakan is dangerous and
can be deadly. It is one of China natural barriers. You can see why!
____________________________________________________________________
China is surrounded by deserts and mountains. These acted natural barriers, separating
China from the rest of the world. But not all China's geography were barriers. China
has two major river systems that provided fertile soil and safe drinking water.

The early people called the rivers in China "The Great Sorrow". That's because each
spring the rivers would overflow their banks.

The Yangtze River had high banks which kept the homes built on high ground safe.
But not all homes were built on high ground.

The other major river system, the Huang He (the Yellow River), has low banks. Some
early people built homes on stilts, to try and keep their homes safe during the flooding
season. It was not until the early engineers of ancient China learned the techniques of
flood control that the homes along the Yellow River survived more than one season.

Shang Dynasty
About 1700 BCE to 1100 BCE

Chou (also called Zhou, pronounced "joe") Dynasty

About 1100 BCE to 250 BCE

After Xia times, first the Shang family and then the Chou family ruled ancient China.
This was the Bronze Age of ancient China.

The first ruling family was the Shang. The Shang are famous for their use of bronze,
chopsticks, jade, silk, spices, oracle bones, and a system of writing. The kingship was
very odd. Instead of going from father to son, it went from brother to brother or from
brother to nephew. The Shang justified their right to rule using the Mandate of
Heaven. (The gods said they could rule.)

The second family was the Chou. The Chou built roads and canals for better trade and
travel. They were interested in the sciences, especially astronomy. Literature
flourished. It was under the Chou that ancient China was broken into feudal states.

For most people, daily life was very similar during both dynasties.

Clan leaders in various cities during both the Shang and Chou Dynasties were always
fighting each other for control of land and cities. Each city was protected by a huge
wall made of strong clay brick. A wall might be 30 feet high and 65 feet deep. Some
walls ran for miles.
Inside the walls of a city lived nobles and priests: The nobles, priests, and the king
or emperor and his family, lived in splendor. Their homes were palaces made of wood
and clay bricks. They were lavishly decorated with colorfully painted tiles and bronze
candlesticks. They had flower gardens and grew spices. Their food was plentiful and
delicious. Their clothes were made of silk. They were buried in gorgeous tombs, filled
with art and real chariots. The kings, or the emperors, were buried with real people
and real animals, guards and dogs buried alive in their tombs to protect them.

Outside the walls of a city lived craftsmen and merchants: Craftsmen and
merchants were not treated very well. The merchants and craftsmen lived outside the
walls in mud huts. They were supposed to be paid for their work, usually in food. You
could not change your place in life. Whatever your father was, you were. The only
exception would be to join the military, and that was not usually a move up. If the city
was attacked, the craftsmen and merchants were not brought inside the city walls.
They were not considered important enough. They were left to fend for themselves as
best they could.
Not even near the wall, Farmers: In small villages scattered around the countryside
lived the lowest class of people, the peasants. Most of the ancient Chinese people
during Shang and Chou times were peasants. They were the farmers. Their life was
very hard. Their clothes were simple tunics and trousers. They had very few
belongings. They usually did not have any furniture in their homes.

They did not own their farms. Land was broken up into small plots. Each plot of land
was owned by a noble. Nobles might own many plots. But each plot was a separate
unit, each farmed by a peasant family. In exchange for working all the time, the
peasants got to keep some of the food they produced. If they were caught hoarding
extra food to feed their families, they were killed.

In the summer, peasants lived in bamboo temporary homes built on their small plot of
land. They farmed with stone and wood tools.

In the winter, they moved back into their village. Each family had its own one room
mud home. Since they were not farming, they worked without pay on other projects.
Some worked on the noble's home. Some repaired bridges, roads, or canals for the
king or emperor. Some were taken by the military to be foot soldiers until it was time
to plant crops.

Warriors: In the beginning, warriors tried to fight with horse-drawn chariots. But
chariots fell out of style. The ground was too rough. Battles were fought on horseback
and on foot. Some warriors, the elite or top warriors, wore battle clothes made of
bronze. They rode horses, and carried metal daggers and spears and axes. Most of the
army was composed of foot soldiers. They did not have battle clothes. They were
usually peasants, forced to leave their fields and family. They wore tattered tunics and
trousers. Their weapons were made of stone and their shields, if they had any, were
made of wood.

Family: For all people during Shang and Chou times, family was all important. The
oldest male of each family, from nobles to peasants, was the head of the household.
Children were required to be respectful, obedient, and to never argue. (If they did,
they were severely punished.) If one member of the family did something wrong, the
entire family was in disgrace and could be punished.

For many thousands of years, the ancient Chinese believed in many gods, goddesses,
magical beings, dragons, and ghosts. They prayed to gods for help and safety. They
also prayed to their ancestors to protect them from harm.

The kitchen god was an important god. His job was to report to his boss, the Jade
Emperor (another god) on the behavior of everyone in your household. No one wanted
to upset the kitchen god or the report might be bad. A bad report meant bad luck
would follow you all year long!

It during T'ang times that China embraced two philosophies and one major religion at
the same time. They were called the Three Teachings. They were an important part of
daily life. The three were Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. Each day, each
person would do something to honor each of the three teachings each day. For
example, a man might honor his ancestors by following a rigid social rule
(Confucianism), practice breathing exercises (Taoism), and stop by a temple to pray
(Buddhism), all in the same day. This is not to say the ancient Chinese stopped
believing in other gods, like the powerful kitchen god, but these three doctrines were
very important.

Confucius was born around 551 BC in Zhou times. Although there was one ruling
family, the real power was in the hands of local warlords. Each warlord ruled a feudal
state. Aristocrat-scholars, called shi, traveled from one feudal state to another,
offering advice on everything from politics to weddings to war. The most famous shi
was Confucius.
His parents were nobility, but had become poor when the empire fallen apart into
feudal states. When he was about 15 years old, he became quite interested in learning.
In those days, only the nobility and royals were allowed education. All the teachers
were government officials. It was hard for him to find a way to learn. To solve this, he
went to work for a nobleman. This gave him the opportunity to travel to the imperial
capital.
Confucius studied and learned until he probably was the most learned man of his day.
People heard of his knowledge and sent their sons to study with him. He was the first
private teacher in China. Confucius taught anyone who was eager to learn. His ideas,
called Confucianism, stressed the need to develop responsibility and moral character
through rigid rules of behavior. Confucianism is not a religion; it's a way of behaving,
so you'll do the right things.
Good Moral Character: reverent in worship; respect father/ruler; study constantly;
guided by Rules of Conduct

Rules of Conduct: Confucianism was a social code of behavior, a very set and rigid
code of behavior, that honored ancestors and ancient rituals. Everything had to be
done a certain way. One of his rules, for example, was that gentlemen could only
display their skill as archers on three hunts a year, in the spring, autumn, and winter.
There's a saying about Confucius: "If the mat was not straight, the Master would not
sit."
To sum it up: Teachings of Confucius:
 He believed in respect; people should respect the ruler.

 He believed that people should respect each other.

 He believed in good moral conduct.

 He believed in a code of behavior, a structured life.

In ancient China, Confucianism became both a philosophy and a religion. It was the
state-sponsored "religion" of many Chinese dynasties. It was the favorite philosophy
of many Chinese rulers. People today still quote and study the many sayings and ideas
(rules) that Confucius taught to his students about 2,500 years ago.

Today, the people of China celebrate Confucius Birthday (Teacher’s Day) in honor
their ancestor, Confucius, the great teacher.

Here are just a few of his rules, including the very famous golden rule:
 Excerpts from The Analects of Confucius, c.400 BCE

Over 2,500 years ago, Confucius said:

Do not do unto others, what you would not want others to do to you.

If you make a mistake and do not correct it, that is called a mistake.

Do not plan the policies of an office you do not hold.

Exemplary persons do not promote others because of what they say, nor do they reject
what is said because of who says it.

Exemplary persons are steadfast in the face of adversity, while petty persons are
engulfed by it.

Learning without due reflection leads to perplexity.

Never give a sword to a man who can't dance.

Han Times
Ancient China for Kids

New things happened during Han times.

One of the most important was the trade that had begun with ancient Rome via the
"silk road". There was a demand in the Roman Empire for Chinese silk. That brought
new wealth into China, along with gold, silver, and precious gems.

Another was the invention of paper. Paper changed everything! Scroll painting began.
Things began to be written down again. So much was lost during the book burnings
ordered by Emperor Qin. When the Han took over, people tried to remember and
write down the literature and the teachings of Confucius.

Art was encouraged. Craftsman made gold ornaments and jade jewelry. A gorgeous
glaze in vivid colors was invented for pottery. Pottery was brightly painted with
dragons and trees and scenes and charming glimpses of life during Han times. Chinese
paper lanterns first became popular during the Han Dynasty.

In the sciences, great strides were made in medicine.

Education was important in Han times. Public school was started. It was only for
boys, but it was free. Schools were started in every province. The Grand School was
the big one in the capital city. At one point, the Grand School had an enrollment of
30,000 students! People wanted to learn new skills because jobs were given to people
who qualified for them, not just given to the nobles. And people were paid for their
work.

The rich did not send their kids to public school. Most were tutored at home, or in
small groups. The rich imitated the behavior and clothing worn in the imperial palace.
The wore silk robes with belts. They built beautiful homes and wore furs. They had
cashmere carpets and richly colored drapes. They ate wonderful foods. They furnished
their tombs with golden items and gorgeous fabrics. Many of the rich ordered stone
lions to be placed inside their tomb, to guard it.

Most people in Han times were peasant farmers. But some people lived in the city.
Cities were laid out with main streets and little alleyways. Each city was surrounded
by a wall made of earth and stone for protection from bandits and other invaders.

In the cities, the poor lived in crowded tenements. They had little food. Gangs roamed
the streets in the cities. They were often at war, which made walking in the city rather
dangerous.

In the countryside, the poor were much better off. They did not own the land they
farmed, but they each had their own home, and ample food. They had drapes on the
windows. Their clothes were simple, woven from a rather scratchy plant fiber. They
worked very hard.
There was a massive public works project to build canals for better movement of
goods. When the canals were put to use, some merchants became rich. They bought a
title from the emperor, built mansions, and planted beautiful gardens. This made the
nobles furious.