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Shang Dynasty
During the Shang dynasty (1500? 1100 B.C.E.) the omnipotent power that
was believed to rule the world was
called Shang Di and was thought of as
a personal god, capable of being
contacted by diviners.
Zhou Dynasty
Patterns in Nature
Ancestor Reverence
A Mysterious Force
Tian
A Hierarchy of Being
There was a
perceived hierarchy
of being from the
human and natural
world to the
ancestors and then
the forces of nature
until eventually you
reached Tian.
Unity
The Goal
The Tao
The Chinese
believed there were
three realms where
Tao could be
experienced: nature,
human society, and
ones own inner
being.
Temperaments
Those seeking
solitude would find
themselves leaning
in the direction of
Taoism and those
needing to interact
and serve others
would lean toward
Confucianism.
Taoism
Tao (Dao)
Tao (Dao)
Tao Te Ching
Yang
Yin
Zhuangzi (Chuang-Tzu)
300 B.C.E.
Wu Wei
Wu Wei
Qi (chi)
Philosophical Taoism
Tao Te Ching
Tao Te Ching
Tao Te Ching
The Tao
The Tao
The Tao
The Tao
Taoist Practice
Taoist Practice
Taoist Practice
Taoist Practice
Taoist Practice
Taoist Practice
Taoist Practice
The Confucian
tradition is named
after the philosopher
Confucius.
Reflecting Tradition
Confucius is not a
peerless sage
because he created
this tradition. He is
unequaled because
the tradition
created him, and
he reflected it
faithfully.
Confucianism
Is Confucianism a philosophy or a
religion? The answer depends on what
you mean by religion. If a religion has to
have a belief in a god then
Confucianism is not a religion. But if it
meets religious needs, then perhaps it
is a religion.
Religion or Philosophy
Confucianism as Religion
The Tao
Analects
Five Classics
Yi Jing (I Ching)
Four Books
Proper Relationships
Society would be
chaotic if people did
not find their right
and proper position
and then do their
best to fulfill their
responsibilities.
Junzi (chun-tzu)
Ren (jen)
Li
Shu
Xiao (hsiao)
Wen
Confucius on Relationships
Confucianism has
generally believed
that the basic nature
of humanity is good.
It is only perverted
by a bad social
environment.
We become more
human by learning
the necessary skills
of living in harmony
with others.
Father-Son
Father-son
becomes the primal
model of a
relationship and in
Confucianism it is in
interpersonal
relationships that
one is humanized
and Tao is
manifested.
Confucian Virtues
Confucian Mysticism
Confucianism was
given a
transcendence that
made the practice of
Confucian virtues
more deeply
religious, a sort of
mysticism in the
midst of a life of
service.
But in popular
religion, the major
traditions unite to
form a single
spiritual world.
A Changing World
People were
confused and
shaken up. The
world was changing
and the old ideas
were not keeping
up.
Womens Role
Because womens
role was understood
to be in the nature of
the dance itself
there was no room
left to argue about
the justice of this
situation.
Wives
A wife was to
exemplify Yin
(passive, plaint) in
order to provide the
harmonious
complement to the
husbands Yang
(active, firm).
Subservience
It is not surprising
then that women
would turn to Taoism
to meet their
spiritual needs. It
offered them a
deeper validity then
the masculine
emphasis found in
Confucianism.
Some scholars,
such as Ellen Marie
Chen, have
concluded that
Taoism has ties to
an ancient Mother
Goddess and the
Tao itself is the
Great Mother.
Religious Taoism
drew from
shamanism the
belief that women
especially are
receptive to Divine
inspiration.
Communism
Communism took a
heavy toll on the
fortunes of religion,
but at the same time
it opened doors to
women that had
always been closed.
Change is Slow
Major societal
changes like in
recent Chinese life
are always difficult
and sometimes
people take two
steps back for every
three steps forward.
The Blockage
We have to ask
ourselves why the
great ideas of the
world seem to not
touch our core
where they can work
their magic? What
prevents us from
putting them into
practice?
Confucian Problems
Taoist Problems
Integral Medicine
Integral medicine
will be practiced by
those who want to
combine Western
and Eastern
understandings of
health so that the
best of both is made
available.
Zen Buddhism
Zen Buddhism is
really a marriage of
Buddhism and
Taoism. They have
much in common
and it is another way
that Taoism is
influencing us
without our being
aware of it.
In the popular
religion of China,
Confucianism,
Taoism, & Buddhism
combined with
ancestrism,
seasonal festivals,
and local deities to
make a colorful
complex.
Integral Wisdom