Christian Leader’s Institute:

World History 101

The Beginnings of “Civilization” to 1500 A.D.

Rev. Richard Hamstra

 Session Four
• Early India
• Early China
India
 Indus Valley

Recommended viewing: Ancient India From the

Indus Valley Civilisation to Mughal
Imperialism:https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=ywzVUEzmK6M
First 8 minutes
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/comm
ons/9/97/Indiarivers.png
 Early India 2500-1500 B.C.
• READING ASSIGNMENT; article by Joshua J. Mark entitled
Ancient India; sections on Definition, Pre-History of India,
and Mohenjo-Daro and Harrapan Civilization; found at
http://www.ancient.eu/india/

• AND an article entitled Dravidians found at

• http://earlyworldhistory.blogspot.com/2012/03/dravidians.
html
 The Harrapan and Dravidic cultures:

• Among early settlers of the Indus valley

• Used irrigation extensively and built significant
cities.
• Early form of mother earth goddess, Shakti
worship.
• Today’s descendants live in southern India
• Used a written language, but it remains not
translated
 Aryan invasion of India
beginning of Vedic Civilization 1500-
500 B.C.
• READING ASSIGNMENT; article by Joshua J.
Mark entitled Ancient India; section on the Vedic
Period
• Found at http://www.ancient.eu/india/

Recommended viewing: The History of Hindu India,

Part One: From Ancient Times.
hhtps//www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBZRTzXAR
WM
Length: 23 minutes
 Vedic Culture
• Farmers and pastoralists, Indo-European/Aryan
descendant
• Created the Vedas, sacred texts that outline the
division of society into “castes”---the Varnas,
according to occupation, later a matter of one’s
birth group.
• Chief god..Brahma---the maker and maintain of
eternal order. To live in accord with this eternal
order is goal of religion—to accept one’s fate.
Origin of Hinduism
 Hinduism
• The religion of Hinduism passes along the
Verdic beliefs; stresses the virtue of a simple
lifestyle practices and the sacred nature of all
life. A form of animism, the divine is found in
all life and must be treated with great respect.
• Hindus have many gods---but all are
considered as basically different
manifestations of Brahma---the primary god.
Keeping the gods well supplied, and therefore
content, is a primary goal of worship.
• Kali
• https://i.vimeocdn.com/video/518286599_1280x720.jpg
 Reincarnation
• Seems not to have been a teaching of the
early Vedic tradition, but enters with 9th Cent
(ca. 1000-900) B.C. reforms of the Brahmanaic
writings, later detailed in Upanishad writings.
Accounts for how karma works—do good get
good, do bad get bad…
 Buddaism

Middle of 6th Cent B.C. Reform of

Hinduism.
 Siddhartha Gautama (563-483 BCE)
• Legends of his life generally say he was born in
• Nepal, and raised as a privileged prince in a
royal court. Around age 30, decided to give up
his privileges and began to wander in search
of enlightenment. He discovered through
intense mediation he could attain
Enlightenment. He began to teach his new
faith to others.
• http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5505/970271
1544_c843a49e1b.jpg
Main Buddhist teaching: The Middle
Way---middle between self denial and
self-indulgence
Meditation is the way to achieve
Enlightenment, and the goal of mediation is
to find release from desire or craving for
impermanent things (dukkha).
• Four Noble Truths are way to escape endless
cycles of reincarnation: The truths are dukkha,
the arising of dukkha, the cessation of dukkha,
and the path leading to the cessation
of dukkha.
 OTHER KEY TERMS
• Dharma: the cosmic order---a cycle of births,
deaths, and re-incarnations
• Karma: the tally of deeds by which one either
achieves a better re-incarnation or loses it.
E.g. kindness to others is good Karma
 Jainism
• A 7th Cent. B.C. (from the Ganges River region)
reform of the Vedic teachings, but directed
more toward non-violence and respect for all
living beings---ascetic practices and radical
self-denial are the ideal.
• https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/46/Jain_Prateek_Chihna.jpg
• The swastika in Jainism symbolizes the four
realms of existence: heavenly beings, human
beings, hellish beings, and sub-human beings
• The hand includes symbols of Jainism
teachings, with the basic concept of pursing
“non-injury” to all living things.
 CHINA
• Assigned Reading: Article by Joshua J. Mark : Ancient
China. Sections—Definition, Pre-History, The First
Dynasties, The Zhou Dynasty, The Spring and Autumn
Period and the Warring States, Qin Dynasty, The Chu-
Han Contention: http://www.ancient.eu/china/

• Recommended viewing: Lost Civilizations History of

Ancient China Documentary:
https//www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzW3lXbcXwo
• Length first 30 minutes
en.wikipedia.org Qin vs Zhao (278–260 BC)
 Early China
• One of oldest “civilizations”, increased
concentration along the Yellow River basin.
Settled maybe by 5000 B.C.
• Dynastic—family-rulers begin with the Xia (CHIA)
Dynasty 2700-1600 B.C. Early leader: Yu the
Great. Control of the flooding Yellow River a key
to successful leadership. The family is thought to
have become opulent in the dynasty’s closing
years and was resented by the people
• Shangti was god of nature and political order,
war, and tradition…people’s ancestors were
identified as having mediatorial, godlike
powers and a religion of keeping one’s dead
ancestors content and honored after death
developed---sacrifices, grand tombs-prayers.
In return the ancestors helped their loyal
family members achieve blessings.
 Shang (Shahng) Dynasty 1600-1046
B.C.
• Likely begun as a revolt movement against the
Xia family, lead by a warrior, Tang
• Tang reduced taxation, and the culture grew
• cut extravagances.
• A system of writing began as well as entry into
the bronze age ( years after other places).
• Pantheistic religion with supreme god, Shanti
• https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/04/CMOC_Treasures_of_Ancient_China_exhibit_-
_bronze_battle_axe.jpg
• https://media1.britannica.com/eb-media/61/10361-004-
15AECA1A.jpg
• The political ruler was also a priestly mediator
between the dead and the living: the
beginnings of Mandate from Heaven concept.
• Decisions of importance were made by
divination, particularly oracle bones. By
reading the cracks in the bones and shells, the
leader would decide what to do.
• http://arts.cultural-
china.com/chinaWH/upload/1(814).jpg
 Zhou (JOE) Dynasty 1046-771 B.C.
• The Zhou family replaced the Shang after a
revolt.
• The Zhou family justified the revolt by claiming
the Shang family was no longer ruling for the
good of the people. The Zhou claimed that
the good of the people was a Mandate from
Heaven, that is the basis on which a
government must be founded
• Zhou, remembered of as one China’s greatest
dynasties, setting the cultural standards for
1000’s years.
• Mandate of Heaven solidified during Zhou rule.
en.wikipedia.org Qin vs Zhao (278–260 BC)
 Autumn and Spring Period
• Following 771 B.C., the Zhou Dynasty moved
its capital and began a greatly de-centralized
government. It was a period of cultural
flourishing, including the rise of Confucius’s
teachings, among others, but ended in a
period of warring among regional 7 warlords
• A drastic change in military tactics by a
warlord, Shang, (Sun-Tzu) one of the Qin
generals, gave that family the advantage and
the Qin faction overcame the others in 221
B.C.
 Chinese religions
• Assigned Reading; article entitled Religion in
Ancient China by Emily Mark:
http://www.ancient.eu/article/891/
• https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4f/Konfuzius-1770.jpg
 Confucius 551-479 B.C.
• Lived during the latter part of the Zhou
Dynasty. Taught ancestor worship, but
stressed the duty to live morally and rationally.
Was not especially interested in the “gods”.
During the Qin Dynasty, obedience to law was
the only state religion (Legalism), and other
religions were banned. Following the short
lived Qin Dynasty, the Han Dynasty restored
Confuciusism as well as the other religions.
End of Session 4
Reading: Ancient India

Ancient India
Definition

by Joshua J. Mark
published on 13 November 2012
India is a country in South Asia whose name comes from the Indus River. The name
`Bharata’ is used as a designation for the country in their constitution referencing the
ancient mythological emperor, Bharata, whose story is told, in part, in the Indian
epic Mahabharata. According to the writings known as the Puranas
(religious/historical texts written down in the 5th century CE) Bharata conquered the
whole sub-continent of India and ruled the land in peace and harmony. The land was,
therefore, known as Bharatavarsha (`the sub-continent of Bharata’). Homonid activity
in the Indian sub-continent stretches back over 250,000 years and it is, therefore, one
of the oldest inhabited regions on the planet.

Archaeological excavations have discovered artifacts used by early humans, including

stone tools, which suggest an extremely early date for human habitation and
technology in the area. While the civilizations of Mesopotamia and Egypt have long
been recognized for their celebrated contributions to civilization, India has often been
overlooked, especially in the West, though her history and culture is just as rich.

PRE-HISTORY OF INDIA

The areas of present-day India, Pakistan, and Nepal have provided archaeologists and
scholars with the richest sites of the most ancient pedigree. The species Homo
heidelbergensis(a proto human who was an ancestor of modern Homo sapiens)
inhabited the sub-continent of India centuries before humans migrated into the region
known as Europe. Evidence of the existence of Homo heidelbergensis was first
discovered in Germany in 1907 and, since, further discoveries have established fairly
clear migration patterns of this species out of Africa. Recognition of the antiquity of
their presence in India has been largely due to the fairly late archaeological interest in
the area as, unlike work in Mesopotamia and Egypt, Western excavations in India did
not begin in earnest until the 1920’s CE. Though the ancient city of Harappa was
known to exist as early as 1842 CE, its archaeological significance was ignored and
the later excavations corresponded to an interest in locating the probable sites referred
to in the great Indian epics Mahabharata and Ramayana (both of the 5th or 4th
centuries BCE) while ignoring the possibility of a much more ancient past for the
region. The village of Balathal (near Udaipur in Rajasthan), to cite only one example,
illustrates the antiquity of India’s history as it dates to 4000 BCE. Balathal was not
discovered until 1962 CE and excavations were not begun there until the 1990’s CE.

ARCHAEOLOGICAL EXCAVATIONS IN THE PAST FIFTY YEARS HAVE DRAMATICALLY

CHANGED THE UNDERSTANDING OF INDIA’S PAST AND, BY EXTENSION, WORLD
HISTORY.

Archaeological excavations in the past fifty years have dramatically changed the
understanding of India’s past and, by extension, world history. A 4000 year-old
skeleton discovered at Balathal in 2009 CE provides the oldest evidence of leprosy in
India. Prior to this find, leprosy was considered a much younger disease thought to
have been carried from Africa to India at some point and then from India to Europe by
the army of Alexander the Great following his death in 323 BCE. It is now understood
that significant human activity was underway in India by the Holocene Period (10,000
years ago) and that many historical assumptions based upon earlier work in Egypt and
Mesopotamia, need to be reviewed and revised. The beginnings of the Vedic tradition
in India, still practiced today, can now be dated, at least in part, to the indigenous
people of ancient sites such as Balathal rather than, as often claimed, wholly to
the Aryan invasion of c. 1500 BCE.

MOHENJO-DARO AND HARAPPAN CIVILIZATION

The Indus Valley Civilization dates to 5000 BCE and grew steadily throughout the
lower Ganetic Valley region southwards and northwards to Malwa. The cities of this
period were larger than contemporary settlements in other countries, were situated
according to cardinal points, and were built of mud bricks, often kiln-fired. Houses
were constructed with a large courtyard opening from the front door, a kitchen/work
room for the preparation of food, and smaller bedrooms. Family activities seem to
have centred on the front of the house, particularly the courtyard and, in this, are
similar to what has been inferred from sites in Rome, Egypt, Greece, and
Mesopotamia.

Excavation site at Mohenjo-daro

The most famous sites of this period are the great cities of Mohenjo-Daro and
Harappa both located in present-day Pakistan (Mohenjo-Daro in the Sindh province
and Harappa in Punjab) which was part of India until the 1947 CE partition of the
country which created the separate nation. Harappa has given its name to the
Harappan Civilization (another name for the Indus Valley Civilization) which is
usually divided into Early, Middle, and Mature periods corresponding roughly to
5000-4000 BCE (Early), 4000-2900 BCE (Middle), and 2900-1900 BCE (Mature).
Harappa dates from the Middle period (c. 3000 BCE) while Mohenjo-Daro was built
in the Mature period (c. 2600 BCE). Harappa was largely destroyed in the 19th
century when British workers carried away much of the city for use as ballast in
constructing the railroad and many buildings had already been dismantled by citizens
of the local village of Harappa (which gives the site its name) for use in their own
projects. It is therefore now difficult to determine the historical significance of
Harappa save that it is clear it was once a significant Bronze Age community with a
population of as many as 30,000 people. Mohenjo-Daro, on the other hand, is much
better preserved as it lay mostly buried until 1922 CE. The name `Mohenjo-Daro’
means `mound of the dead’ in Sindhi. The original name of the city is unknown
although various possibilities have been suggested by finds in the region, among them,
the Dravidian name `Kukkutarma’, the city of the cock, a possible allusion to the site
as a center of ritual cock-fighting or, perhaps, as a breeding centre for cocks.

Mohenjo-Daro was an elaborately constructed city with streets laid out evenly at right
angles and a sophisticated drainage system. The Great Bath, a central structure at the
site, was heated and seems to have been a focal point for the community. The citizens
were skilled in the use of metals such as copper, bronze, lead and tin (as evidenced by
art works such as the bronze statue of the Dancing Girl and by individual seals) and
cultivated barley, wheat, peas, sesame, and cotton. Trade was an important source of
commerce and it is thought that ancient Mesopotamian texts which mention Magan
and Meluhha refer to India generally or, perhaps, Mohenjo-Daro specifically.
Artifacts from the Indus Valley region have been found at sites in Mesopotamia
though their precise point of origin in India is not always clear.

The people of the Harappan Civilization worshipped many gods and engaged in ritual
worship. Statues of various deities (such as, Indra, the god of storm and war) have
been found at many sites and, chief among them, terracotta pieces depicting
the Shakti (the Mother Goddess) suggesting a popular, common worship of the
feminine principle. In about 1500 BCE it is thought another race, known as the
Aryans, migrated into India through the Khyber Pass and assimilated into the existing
culture, perhaps bringing their gods with them. While it is widely accepted that the
Aryans brought the horse to India, there is some debate as to whether they introduced
new deities to the region or simply influenced the existing belief structure. The
Aryans are thought to have been pantheists (nature worshippers) with a special
devotion to the sun and it seems uncertain they would have had anthropomorphic
gods.

At about this same time (c. 1700-1500 BCE) the Harappan culture began to decline.
Scholars cite climate change as one possible reason. The Indus River is thought to
have begun flooding the region more regularly (as evidenced by approximately 30
feet or 9 metres of silt at Mohenjo-Daro) and the great cities were abandoned. Other
scholars cite the Aryan migration as more of an invasion of the land which brought
about a vast displacement of the populace. Among the most mysterious aspects of
Mohenjo-Daro is the vitrification of parts of the site as though it had been exposed to
intense heat which melted the brick and stone. This same phenomenon has been
observed at sites such as Traprain Law in Scotlandand attributed to the results
of warfare. Speculation regarding the destruction of the city by some kind of ancient
atomic blast (possibly the work of aliens from other planets) is not generally regarded
as credible.

THE VEDIC PERIOD

The Aryan influence, some scholars claim, gave rise to what is known as the Vedic
Period in India (c. 1700- 150 BCE) characterized by a pastoral lifestyle and adherence
to the religious texts known as The Vedas. Society became divided into four classes
(the Varnas) popularly known as `the caste system’ which were comprised of
the Brahmana at the top (priests and scholars), the Kshatriya next (the warriors),
the Vaishya (farmers and merchants), and the Shudra (labourers). The lowest caste
was the Dalits, the untouchables, who handled meat and waste, though there is some
debate over whether this class existed in antiquity. At first, it seems this caste system
was merely a reflection of one’s occupation but, in time, it became more rigidly
interpreted to be determined by one’s birth and one was not allowed to change castes
nor to marry into a caste other than one’s own. This understanding was a reflection of
the belief in an eternal order to human life dictated by a supreme deity.

While the religious beliefs which characterized the Vedic Period are considered much
older, it was during this time that they became systematized as the religion of Sanatan
Dharma (which means `Eternal Order’) known today as Hinduism (this name deriving
from the Indus (or Sindus) River where worshippers were known to gather, hence,
`Sindus’, and then `Hindus’). The underlying tenet of Sanatan Dharma is that there is
an order and a purpose to the universe and human life and, by accepting this order and
living in accordance with it, one will experience life as it is meant to be properly lived.
While Sanatan Dharma is considered by many a polytheistic religion consisting of
many gods, it is actually monotheistic in that it holds there is one god, Brahma (the
Self), who, because of his greatness, cannot be fully apprehended save through the
many aspects which are revealed as the different gods of the Hindu pantheon. It is
Brahma who decrees the eternal order and maintains the universe through it. This
belief in an order to the universe reflects the stability of the society in which it grew
and flourished as, during the Vedic Period, governments became centralized and
social customs integrated fully into daily life across the region. Besides The Vedas,
the great religious and literary works of The Upanishads, The Puranas, The
Mahabharata, and The Ramayana all come from this period.

In the 6th century BCE, the religious reformers Vardhaman Mahavira (549-477 BCE)
and Siddhartha Gautama (563-483 BCE) broke away from mainstream Sanatan
Dharma to eventually create their own religions of Jainism and Buddhism. These
changes in religion were a part of a wider pattern of social and cultural upheaval
which resulted in the formation of city states and the rise of powerful kingdoms (such
as the Kingdom of Magadha under the ruler Bimbisara). Increased urbanization and
wealth attracted the attention of Cyrus, ruler of the Persian Empire, who invaded India
in 530 BCE and initiated a campaign of conquest in the region. Ten years later, under
the reign of his son, Darius I, northern India was firmly under Persian control (the
regions corresponding to Afghanistan and Pakistan today) and the inhabitants of that
area subject to Persian laws and customs. One consequence of this, possibly, was an
assimilation of Persian and Indian religious beliefs which some scholars point to as an
explanation for further religious and cultural reforms.
Map of India, 600 BCE

Ancient World History

The Ancient World Prehistoric Eras to 600 c.e.

Dravidians

Dravidians
This term has traditionally been applied to groups from the Indian
subcontinent that speak Dravidian languages: Tamil, Telugu, Kannada,
Malayalam, Brahui, and Tulu. Most of these linguistic groups live in the
southern portion of the subcontinent.

The word Dravidian comes from the Sanskrit term dravida, which means
“southern.” During the 19th century linguistic scholars began to
realize that the Dravidian languages differed significantly from many of
those spoken in the north.

Early anthropologists and sociologists began to suggest that the

darker-skinned inhabitants of the subcontinent were the ones who
predominantly spoke the Dravidian languages and that they in fact may have
been the original inhabitants of India.

Modern geneticists suggest that the color of skin may have had more to
do with adapting to sunnier conditions in the southern part of India than
actual racial differences. Theories concerning the darker-skinned
Dravidians also played to issues of political, regional, caste, and
religious strife in 19th-century India.

Notions of possible historical Dravidian displacement in the Indus River

valley due to an invasion or migration began to be entertained by Western
scholars who joined in interdisciplinary studies of the origins of the
Hindu religion.

Archaeological evidence from the 1920s concerning the ascension and

demise of the ancient polytheistic Indus civilization (3500–1700 b.c.e.)
gave rise to the theory of an invasion of the Indus region by
lighter-skinned northern peoples, who began to be known as Aryans.
In fact, there were a number of religion scholars like Bloch and Witzel
who felt that Indus River valley inhabitants composed the oldest parts
of the Rig-Veda. The Rig-Veda is the most ancient form of Hindu religious
literature, dating in written form to around 800 b.c.e. and possibly
stemming from oral formulas and prayers dating as far back as 2000 b.c.e.

Even the ancient Puranas point to the Dravidians as being descended from
the earliest Vedic peoples. (Elements of the Puranic oral traditions may
date as early as 1500 b.c.e. but did not reach their final written form
until around 500 c.e.). The Matsya Puranas also indicate that the first
man, Manu, was a king from the southern part of India.

Numerous attempts continued through the 20th century to connect the

Dravidians to the Indus civilization. Scholars insisted that Hinduism
emerged from a blending of Aryan and Dravidian culture.

Many modern studies of the ancient Indus Valley civilization presumed that
the inhabitants who occupied a wide range of ancient city-states all along
the Indus (including the very large urban centers at Harappa and
Mohenjo-Daro) were all Dravidian.

It is believed that more than 500 highly civilized centers, all inhabited
before 900 b.c.e., were part of the network of Indus and Ghaggar Rivers.
Their economy was supported by agriculture from the crops that grew from
the rich deposits of soil along the Indus and its tributaries. However,
most inhabitants of cities were artisans, merchants, or craftspersons.

Many of the towns exhibit signs of urban planning with straight streets,
sanitation systems, municipal governments, and even multilevel housing.
Cities like Harappa even had dockyards, warehouses, granaries, and public
baths.

Meteorologists, archaeologists, and geologists claim that the collapse

of the early Indus civilization was due to climactic and environmental
issues, tectonic events, and most likely drought. One group then possibly
resettled the Indus area, or several other groups migrated into the area.

Given these hypotheses it is easy to see why the linguistic differences

first noticed by scholars in the mid-19th century could be explained by
a northern invasion from settlers beyond the Khyber Pass and the eventual
domination of the area by a lighter-skinned ruling class.

How ever, there is a whole group of contemporary scholars who now think
the Aryans may not have been Middle Eastern or European but were part of
a group proximate to the Indian subcontinent all along.

Some geneticists interpret the earliest settlement of India as connecting

Middle Eastern peoples such as the Elamites with the Dravidians, to
placing the Dravidian group as the last among ancient migrants into India
behind other earlier Indo-European settlers and more ancient Australoid
peoples.

Reading: Ancient China

Ancient China
Definition

by Joshua J. Mark
published on 18 December 2012
Ancient China produced what has become the oldest, still extant, culture in the world.
The name `China’ comes from the Sanskrit Cina (derived from the name of the
Chinese Qin Dynasty, pronounced `Chin’) which was translated as `Cin’ by the
Persians and seems to have become popularized through trade along the Silk
Road from China to the rest of the world. The Romans and the Greeks knew the
country as `Seres’, “the land where silk comes from”. The name `China’ does not
appear in print in the west until 1516 CE in Barbosa’s journals narrating his travels in
the east (though the Europeans had long known of China through trade via the Silk
Road). Marco Polo, the famous explorer who familiarized China to Europein the 13th
century CE, referred to the land as `Cathay’. In Mandarin Chinese, the country is
known as `Zhongguo” meaning `central state’ or `middle empire’.

PRE-HISTORY

Well before the advent of recognizable civilization in the region, the land was
occupied by hominids. Peking Man, a skull fossil discovered in 1927 CE near Beijing,
lived in the area between 700,000 to 200,000 years ago and Yuanmou Man, whose
remains were found in Yuanmou in 1965 CE, inhabited the land 1.7 million years ago.
Evidence uncovered with these finds shows that these early inhabitants knew how to
fashion stone tools and use fire. While it is commonly accepted that human beings
originated in Africa and then migrated to other points around the globe, China’s
paleoanthropologists “support the theory of `regional evolution’ of the origin of man”
(China.org) which claims an independent basis for the birth of mankind. “The Shu
Ape, a primate weighing only 100 to 150 grams and being similar to a mouse in size,
lived [in China] in the Middle Eocene Epoch 4.5 to 4 million years ago. Its discovery
posed a great challenge to the theory of African origin of the human race” (China.org).
This challenge is considered plausible due to genetic links between the Shu Ape fossil
and both advanced and lower primates, standing, then, as a `missing link’ in the
evolutionary process. However one interprets this data (the Chinese conclusions have
been disputed by the international community), the solid evidence provided by other
finds substantiates a very ancient lineage of hominids and human beings in China and
a high level of sophistication in early culture. One example of this is Banpo Village,
near Xi’an, discovered in 1953 CE. Banpo is a Neolithic village which was inhabited
between 4500 and 3750 BCE and comprises 45 houses with floors sunk into the
ground for greater stability. A trench encircling the village provided both protection
from attack and drainage while man-made caves dug underground were used to store
food. The design of the village, and the artifacts discovered there (such as pottery and
tools), argue for a very advanced culture at the time it was constructed.

It has generally been accepted that the Chinese `Cradle of Civilization’ is the Yellow
River Valley which gave rise to villages sometime around 5000 BCE. While this has
been disputed, and arguments have been made for a more wide-spread development
of communities, there is no doubt that the Henan province, in the Yellow River Valley,
was the site of many early villages and farming communities. In 2001 CE,
archaeologists uncovered two skeletons “buried in a collapsed house, which was
covered with a thick layer of silt deposits from the Yellow River. In the layer of
deposits, archaeologists found more than 20 skeletons, an altar, a square, pottery, and
stone and jade utensils” (Chinapage.org). This site was only one of many prehistoric
villages in the area.

THE FIRST DYNASTIES

YU THE GREAT WAS SO FOCUSED ON HIS WORK THAT IT WAS SAID HE DID NOT RETURN
HOME ONCE IN ALL THOSE YEARS, EVEN THOUGH HE SEEMS TO HAVE PASSED BY HIS
HOUSE ON AT LEAST THREE OCCASIONS...
From these small villages and farming communities grew centralized government; the
first of which was the prehistoric Xia Dynasty(c. 2070-1600 BCE). The Xia Dynasty
was considered, for many years, more myth than fact until excavations in the 1960’s
and 1970’s CE uncovered sites which argued strongly for its existence. Bronze works
and tombs clearly point to an evolutionary period of development between
disparate Stone Agevillages and a recognizable cohesive civilization. The dynasty
was founded by Yu the Great who worked relentlessly for thirteen years to control the
flooding of the Yellow River which routinely destroyed the farmer’s crops. He was so
focused on his work that it was said he did not return home once in all those years,
even though he seems to have passed by his house on at least three occasions, and this
dedication inspired others to follow him. After he had controlled the flooding, Yu
conquered the Sanmiao tribes and was named successor (by the then-ruler,
Shun), reigning until his death. Yu established the hereditary system of succession
and, so, the concept of dynasty which has become most familiar. The ruling class and
the elite lived in urban clusters while the peasant population, which supported their
lifestyle, remained largely agrarian, living in rural areas. Yu’s son, Qi, ruled after him
and power remained in the hands of the family until the last Xia ruler, Jie, was
overthrown by Tang who established the Shang Dynasty (1600-1046 BCE).

Tang was from the kingdom of Shang. The dates popularly assigned to him
(1675-1646 BCE) do not in any way correspond to the known events in which he took
part and must be considered erroneous. What is known is that he was the ruler, or at
least a very important personage, in the kingdom of Shang who, around 1600 BCE,
led a revolt against Jie and defeated his forces at the Battle of Mingtiao. The
extravagance of the Xia court, and the resultant burden on the populace, is thought to
have led to this uprising. Tang then assumed leadership of the land, lowered taxes,
suspended the grandiose building projects begun by Jie (which were draining the
kingdoms of resources) and ruled with such wisdom and efficiency that art and
culture were allowed to flourish. Writing developed under the Shang Dynasty as well
as bronze metallurgy, architecture, and religion.

Prior to the Shang, the people worshipped many gods with one supreme god, Shangti,
as head of the pantheon (the same pattern found in other cultures). Shangti was
considered `the great ancestor’ who presided over victory in war, agriculture, the
weather, and good government. Because he was so remote and so busy, however, the
people seem to have required more immediate intercessors for their needs and so the
practice of ancestor worship began. When someone died, it was thought, they attained
divine powers and could be called upon for assistance in times of need (similar to
the Roman belief in the Parentes). This practice led to highly sophisticated rituals
dedicated to appeasing the spirits of the ancestors which eventually included ornate
burials in grand tombs filled with all one would need to enjoy a comfortable afterlife.
The king, in addition to his secular duties, served as chief officiate and mediator
between the living and the dead and his rule was considered ordained by divine law.
Although the famous Mandate of Heaven was developed by the later Zhou Dynasty,
the idea of linking a just ruler with divine will has its roots in the beliefs fostered by
the Shang.
Bronze Zhou Cooking Vessel

THE ZHOU DYNASTY

Around the year 1046 BCE, King Wu, of the province of Zhou, rebelled against King
Zhou of Shang and defeated his forces at the Battle of Muye, establishing the Zhou
Dynasty (c. 1046- 256 BCE). 1046-771 BCE marks the Western Zhou Period while
771-226 BCE marks the Eastern Zhou Period. The Mandate of Heaven was invoked
by the Duke of Zhou, King Wu’s younger brother, to legitimize the revolt as he felt
the Shang were no longer acting in the interests of the people. The Mandate of
Heaven was thus defined as the gods’ blessing on a just ruler and rule by divine
mandate. When the government no longer served the will of the gods, that
government would be overthrown. Further, it was stipulated that there could be only
one legitimate ruler of China and that his rule should be legitimized by his proper
conduct as a steward of the lands entrusted him by heaven. Rule could be passed from
father to son but only if the child possessed the necessary virtue to rule. This mandate
would later be often manipulated by various rulers entrusting succession to unworthy
progeny.

Under the Zhou, culture flourished and civilization spread. Writing was codified and
iron metallurgy became increasingly sophisticated. The greatest and best known
Chinese philosophers and poets, Confucius, Mencius, Mo Ti (Mot Zu), Lao-Tzu, Tao
Chien, and the military strategist Sun-Tzu (if he existed as depicted), all come from
the Zhou period in China and the time of the Hundred Schools of Thought.
The chariot, which was introduced to the land under the Shang, became more fully
developed by the Zhou. It should be noted that these periods and dynasties did not
begin nor end as neatly as they seem to in history books and the Zhou Dynasty shared
many qualities with the Shang (including language and religion). While historians
find it necessary, for clarity’s sake, to break events into periods, the Zhou Dynasty
remained extant through the following recognized periods known as The Spring and
Autumn Period and The Warring States Period.

THE SPRING & AUTUMN PERIOD & THE WARRING STATES

During the Spring and Autumn Period (772-476 BCE and so called from the Spring
and Autumn Annals, the official chronicle of the state at the time and an early
source mentioning General Sun-Tzu), the Zhou government became decentralized in
their move to the new capital at Luoyang, marking the end of the `Western Zhou’
period and the beginning of `Eastern Zhou’. This is the period most noted for
advances in philosophy, poetry, and the arts and saw the rise of Confucian, Taoist,
and Mohist thought. At the same time, however, the different states were breaking
away from central rule by Luoyang and proclaiming themselves sovereign. This, then,
led to the so-called Warring States Period (476-221 BCE) in which seven states
fought with each other for control. The seven states were Chu, Han, Qi, Qin, Wei,
Yan, and Zhao all of whom considered themselves sovereign but none of whom felt
confident in claiming the Mandate of Heaven still held by the Zhou of Luoyang. All
seven of the states used the same tactics and observed the same rules of conduct in
battle and so none could gain the advantage over the others. This situation was
exploited by the pacifist philosopher Mo Ti, a skilled engineer, who made it his
mission to provide each state with equal knowledge of fortifications and siege ladders
in hopes of neutralizing any one state’s advantage and so ending the war. His efforts
were unsuccessful however and, between 262 and 260 BCE, the state of Qin gained
supremacy over Zhao, finally defeating them at The Battle of Changping.

A Qin statesman by the name of Shang Yang (died 338 BCE), a great believer in
efficiency and law, had re-cast the Qin understanding of warfare to focus on victory at
any cost. Whether Sun-Tzu or Shang Yang is to be credited with reformation of
military protocol and strategy in China depends on one's acceptance of Sun-Tzu's
historicity. Whether Sun-Tzu existed as people claim, however, it is very probable
that Shang Yang was acquainted with the famous work, The Art of War, which bears
Sun-Tzu's name as author. Prior to these reforms, warfare was considered a
nobleman’s game of skill with very set rules dictated by courtesy and the perceived
will of heaven. One did not attack the weak or the unprepared and one was expected
to delay engagement until an opponent had mobilized and formed ranks on the field.
Shang advocated total war in pursuit of victory and counselled taking the enemies’
forces by whatever means lay at hand. Shang’s principles were known in Qin, and
made use of at Changping (where over 450,000 captured Zhao soldiers were executed
after the battle) giving the Qin the advantage they had been waiting for. Still, they
did not make further effective use of these tactics until the rise of Ying Zheng, King
of Qin. Utilizing Shang’s directives, and with an army of considerable size utilizing
chariots and iron weapons, Ying Zheng emerged from the Warring States conflict
supreme in 221 BCE, subduing and unifying the other six states under his rule and
proclaiming himself Shi Huangdi -`First Emperor’ - of China.

Map of the Qin Empire

THE QIN DYNASTY

Shi Huangdi thus established the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BCE) which is also known as
the Imperial Era in China. He ordered the destruction of the walled fortifications
which had separated the different states and commissioned the building of a
great wall along the northern border of his kingdom. Though little remains today of
Shi Huangdi’s original wall, The Great Wall of China was begun under his rule.

It stretched for over 5,000 kilometres (3,000 miles) across

hill and plain, from the boundaries of Korea in the east
to the troublesome Ordos Desert in the west. It was an
enormous logistical undertaking, though for much of its
course it incorporated lengths of earlier walls built by the
separate Chinese kingdoms to defend their northern frontiers
in the fourth and third centuries. (Scarre and Fagan, 382).
Shi Huangdi also strengthened the infrastructure through road building which helped
to increase trade through ease of travel.

Five trunk roads led from the imperial capital at Xianyang,

each provided with police forces and posting stations. Most
of these roads were of rammed-earth construction and were 15
metres (50 feet) wide. The longest ran southwest over 7,500
kilometres (4,500 miles) to the frontier region of Yunnan.
So precipitous was the countryside that sections of the road
had to be built out from vertical cliff faces on projecting
timber galleries. (Scarre and Fagan, 382).

Shi Huangdi also expanded the boundaries of his empire, built the Grand Canal in the
south, redistributed land and, initially, was a fair and just ruler.

While he made great strides in building projects and military campaigns, his rule
became increasingly characterized by a heavy hand in domestic policy. Claiming the
Mandate from Heaven, he suppressed all philosophies save the Legalism which had
been developed by Shang Yang and, heeding the counsel of his chief advisor, Li Siu,
he ordered the destruction of any history or philosophy books which did not
correspond to Legalism, his family line, the state of Qin, or himself.

Since books were then written on strips of bamboo fastened

with swivel pins, and a volume might be of some weight, the
scholars who sought to evade the order were put to many
difficulties. A number of them were detected; tradition says
that many of them were sent to labor on the Great Wall, and
that four hundred and sixty were put to death. Nevertheless
some of the literati memorized the complete works of
Confucius and passed them on by word of mouth to equal
memories. (Durant, 697).

This act, along with Shi Huangdi’s suppression of general freedoms, including
freedom of speech, made him progressively more unpopular.

The ancestor worship of the past, and the land of the dead, began to interest the
emperor more than his realm of the living and Shi Huangti became increasingly
engrossed in what this other world consisted of and how he might avoid traveling
there. He seems to have developed an obsession with death, became increasingly
paranoid regarding his personal safety, and ardently sought after immortality. His
desire to provide for himself an afterlife commensurate with his present one led him
to commission a palace built for his tomb and an army of over 8,000 terracotta
warriors created to serve him in eternity. This ceramic army, buried with him, also
included terracotta chariots, cavalry, a commander in chief, and assorted birds and
animals. He is said to have died while on a quest for an elixir of immortality and Li
Siu, hoping to gain control of the government, kept his death a secret until he could
alter his will to name his pliable son, Hu-Hai, as heir. This plan proved untenable,
however, as the young prince showed himself to be quite unstable, executing many,
and initiating a widespread rebellion in the land. Shortly after Shi Huangdi’ s death,
the Qin Dynasty quickly collapsed through the intrigue and ineptitude of people like
Hu-Hai, Li Siu, and another advisor, Zhao Gao, and the Han Dynasty began with the
accession of Liu-Bang.

THE CHU-HAN CONTENTION

With the fall of the Qin Dynasty, China was plunged into chaos. Two generals
emerged among the forces which rebelled against the Qin, Prince Liu-Bang of
Hanzhong and King Xiang-Yu of the state of Chu, who fought for control of the
government. Xiang-Yu, who had proven himself the most formidable opponent of the
Qin, awarded Liu-Bang the title of `King of the Han’ in recognition of Liu-Bang’s
decisive defeat of the Qin forces in the final battle. The two former allies quickly
became antagonists, however, in the power struggle known as the Chu-Han
contention until Xiang-Yu negotiated the Treaty of Hong Canal and brought a
temporary peace. Xiang-Yu suggested dividing China under the rule of the Chu in the
east and the Han in the west but Liu-Bang wanted a united China under Han rule and,
breaking the treaty, resumed hostilities. At the Battle of Gaixia in 202 BCE,
Liu-Bang’s great general, Han-Xin, trapped and defeated the forces of Chu under
Xiang-Yu and Liu-Bang was proclaimed emperor (known to posterity as Emperor
Gaozu of Han). Xiang-Yu committed suicide but his family was allowed to live and
even serve in government positions. Liu-Bang treated all of his former adversaries
with respect and united the land under his rule. He pushed back the nomadic Xiongnu
tribes, who had been making incursions into China, and made peace with the other
states which had risen in rebellion against the failing Qin Dynasty. The Han Dynasty
(which derives its name from Liu-Bang’s home in Hanzhong province) would rule
China, with a brief interruption, for the next 400 years, from 202 BCE to 220 CE.

Han Dynasty Farm Model

Reading: Religion in Ancient China

Religion in Ancient China

Article

by Emily Mark
published on 21 April 2016

Religious practices in ancient China go back over 7,000 years. Long before the
philosophical and spiritual teachings of Confucius and Lao-Tzu developed or before
the teachings of the Buddha came to China, the people worshipped personifications of
nature and then of concepts like "wealth" or "fortune" which developed into a religion.
These beliefs still influence religious practices today. For example, the Tao te
Ching of Taoismmaintains that there is a universal force known as the Tao which
flows through all things and binds all things but makes no mention of specific gods to
be worshipped; still, modern Taoists in China (and elsewhere) worship many gods at
private altars and in public ceremonies which originated in the country's ancient past.

Yuantong Temple

Scholar Harold M. Tanner writes, "The gods, spirits, and ancestors could affect crops,
the weather, childbirth, the king's health, warfare, and so on. It was, therefore,
important to sacrifice to them" (43). The gods grew out of people's observance of
natural phenomena which either frightened them and caused uncertainty or assured
them of a benevolent world, which would protect them and help them succeed. As
time passed, these beliefs became standardized and the gods were given names and
personalities, and rituals developed to honor the deities. All of these practices were
eventually standardized as "religion" in China just as similar beliefs and rituals were
everywhere else in the ancient world.

EARLY EVIDENCE OF RELIGIOUS PRACTICE

In China, religious beliefs are evident in the Yangshao Culture of the Yellow River
Valley, which prospered between 5000-3000 BCE. At the Neolithic site of Banpo
Village in modern Shaanxi Province (dated to between c. 4500-3750 BCE) 250 tombs
were found containing grave goods, which point to a belief in life after death. There is
also a ritualistic pattern to how the dead were buried with tombs oriented west to east
to symbolize death and rebirth. Grave goods provide evidence of specific people in
the village who acted as priests and presided over some kind of divination and
religious observance.

Banpo Village Tomb

The Yangshao Culture was matrilineal, meaning women were dominant, so this
religious figure would have been a woman based on the grave goods found. There is
no evidence of any high-ranking males in the burials but a significant amount of
females. Scholars believe that the early religious practices were also matrilineal and
most likely animistic, where people worship personifications of nature, and usually
feminine deities were benevolent and male deities malevolent, or at least more to be
feared.

These practices continued with the Qijia Culture (c. 2200-1600 BCE) who inhabited
the Upper Yellow River Valley but whose culture could have been patriarchal.
Examinations of the Bronze Age site of Lajia Village in modern-day Qinghai
Province (and elsewhere) have uncovered evidence of religious practices. Lajia
Village is often referred to as the "Chinese Pompeii" because it was destroyed by an
earthquake which caused a flood and the resulting mudslides buried the village intact.
Among the artifacts uncovered was a bowl of noodles which scientists have examined
and believe to be the oldest noodles in the world and precursors to China's staple dish
"Long-Life Noodles". Even though not all scholars or archaeologists agree on China
as the creator of the noodle, the finds at Lajia support the claim of religious practices
there as early as c. 2200 BCE. There is evidence that the people worshipped a
supreme god who was king of many other lesser deities.

GHOSTS & RELIGION

By the time of the Shang Dynasty (1600-1046 BCE) these religious beliefs had
developed so that now there was a definite "king of the gods" named Shangti and
many lesser gods of other names. Shangti presided over all the important matters of
state and was a very busy god. He was rarely sacrificed to because people were
encouraged not to bother him with their problems. Ancestor worship may have begun
at this time but, more likely, started much earlier.

Evidence of a strong belief in ghosts, in the form of amulets and charms, goes back to
at least the Shang Dynasty and ghost stories are among the earliest form of Chinese
literature. Ghosts (known as guei or kuei) were the spirits of deceased persons who
had not been buried correctly with due honors or were still attached to the earth for
other reasons. They were called by a number of names but in one form, jiangshi ("stiff
body"), they appear as zombies. Ghosts played a very important role in Chinese
religion and culture and still do. The ritual still practiced in China today known
as Tomb Sweeping Day (usually around 4 April) is observed to honor the dead and
make sure they are happy in the afterlife. If they are not, they are thought to return to
haunt the living. The Chinese visit the graves of their ancestors on Tomb Sweeping
Day during the Festival of Qingming, even if they never do at any other time of the
year, to tend the graves and pay their respects.

When someone died naturally or was buried with the proper honors, there was no fear
of them returning as a ghost. The Chinese believed that, if the person had lived a good
life, they went to live with the gods after death. These spirits of one's ancestors were
prayed to so they could approach Shangti with the problems and praise of those on
earth. Tanner writes:

Ancestors were represented by a physical symbol such as a

spirit tablet engraved or painted with the ancestor's
honorific name. Rituals were held to honor these ancestors,
and sacrifices of millet ale, cattle, dogs, sheep, and humans
were offered. The scale of the sacrifices varied, but at
important rituals, hundreds of animals and/or human
sacrifices would be slaughtered. Believing that the spirits
of the dead continued to exist and to take an interest in the
world of the living, the Shang elite buried their dead in
elaborate and well-furnished tombs (43).
The spirits of these ancestors could help a person in life by revealing the future to
them. Divination became a significant part of Chinese religious beliefs and was
performed by people with mystical powers (what one would call a "psychic" in the
modern day) one would pay to tell one's future through oracle bones. It is through
these oracle bones that writingdeveloped in China. The mystic would write the
question on the shoulder bone of an ox or turtle shell and apply heat until it cracked;
whichever way the crack went would determine the answer. It was not the mystic or
the bone which gave the answer but one's ancestors who the mystic communed with.
These ancestors were in touch with eternal spirits, the gods, who controlled and
maintained the universe.

Chinese Oracle Bone

THE GODS
There were over 200 gods in the Chinese pantheon whose names were recorded
during and after the Shang Dynasty. The early gods, before Shangti, were spirits of a
place known as Tudi Gong ("Lord of the Place" or "Earth God"). These were earth
spirits who inhabited a specific place and only had power in that locale. The Tudi
Gong were sometimes thought to be an important member of the community who had
died but remained in spirit as a guardian but, more often, they were ancient spirits
who inhabited a certain area of land. These spirits were helpful if people
acknowledged and honored them, and vengeful if they were ignored or neglected. The
Chinese concept of Feng Shui comes from the belief in the Tudi Gong.

These local earth spirits continued to be venerated even after gods developed who
were more universal. One of the first deities acknowledged who probably began as a
local spirit was the dragon. The dragon is one of the oldest gods of China. Dragon
images have been found on the Neolithic pottery at Banpo Village and other sites. The
Dragon King known as Yinglong was god of rain, both gentle rain for the crops and
terrible storms, also as Lord of the Sea and protector of heroes, kings, and those who
fought for right. Dragon statuary and imagery is routinely used in Chinese art and
architecture to symbolize protection and success.

THERE WERE OVER 200 GODS IN THE CHINESE PANTHEON WHOSE NAMES WERE RECORDED
DURING AND AFTER THE SHANG DYNASTY. ABOVE ALL WAS SHANGTI, THE GOD OF
LAW, ORDER, JUSTICE, AND LIFE, KNOWN AS "THE LORD ON HIGH".

Some form of Nuwa, goddess of humankind, existed as early as the Shang Dynasty.
Nuwa was a goddess part woman and part dragon who molded human beings from the
mud of the Yellow River and blew her breath into them to bring them to life. She
continued making people and bringing them to life over and over again but grew tired
of it finally and invented marriage so people could reproduce without her. She saw
that people did not know how to do anything, though, so she asked her friend Fuxi for
help.

Fuxi is the god of fire and the teacher of human beings. He brought fire to people and
taught them how to control it to cook food, bring light, and keep warm. Fuxi also
wove the first fishing nets for the people and taught them how to get food from the
sea. Once their basic needs were taken care of, he gave them the gifts of music,
writing, and divination. Nuwa and Fuxi were considered the mother and father of
human beings and always were called on for protection.

Sun Wukong was the monkey god of mischief who caused so much trouble he was
killed by the other gods and sent to the underworld. Once he got there, he erased his
name from the book of the king of the underworld and not only came back to life but
could never die again. His name did not develop until later but a mischevious monkey
god appears on bronze inscriptions from the Shang Dynasty who appears to be this
same deity.

Lei Shen was the god of thunder who was very unpleasant and beat on a large drum
with a hammer whenever he became irritated. He could not tolerate anyone who
wasted food and would hurl thunderbolts at them, killing them instantly. One time, he
saw a woman who seemed about to throw out a bowl of rice and killed her with his
thunderbolt. The gods determined that he had acted too quickly and so the woman,
Dian Mu, was raised from death and became the goddess of lightning. She would
flash her light to show Lei Shen where he should throw his thunderbolts so he would
not make the same mistake again.

Above these gods and all the others was Shangti, the god of law, order, justice, and
life known as "The Lord on High". Shangti decreed how the universe would run and
the lives of all the people were under his constant watch. He was especially mindful
of those who ruled over others and decided who should rule, how long, and who
should succeed them.

WORSHIP & CLERGY

Chinese temples and shrines were cared for by priests and monks who were always
male. Women were allowed to enter monasteries to devote themselves to the work of
the gods but could not hold spiritual authority over men. Different types of religious
services were held in temples for different religious beliefs. These services all had in
common the sound of music, most often bells. The monastic prayers were said three
times a day, at morning, noon, and night, to the sound of a small bell. Incense was
burned regularly at services to cleanse the place of evil spirits and negative energies.

An important aspect of Chinese religion, whether Taoism, Confucianism,

or Buddhism, was known as "hygiene schools" which instructed people on how to
take care of themselves to live longer lives or even achieve immortality. Hygiene
schools were part of the temple or monastery. The priests taught people how to eat
healthy, exercise (the practice of Tai Chideveloped through these schools), and
perform rituals honoring the gods so the gods would bless them with a healthy long
life.

FURTHER RELIGIOUS DEVELOPMENTS

In the Zhou Dynasty (c. 1046-226 BCE) the concept of the Mandate of Heaven was
developed. The Mandate of Heaven was the belief that Shangti ordained a certain
emperor or dynasty to rule and allowed them to rule as long as they pleased him.
When the rulers were no longer taking care of the people responsibly, they were said
to have lost the Mandate of Heaven and were replaced by another. Modern scholars
have seen this simply as a justification for changing a regime but the people at the
time believed in the concept. The gods were thought to watch over the people and
would pay special attention to the emperor. People continued a practice, which began
toward the end of the Shang Dynasty, of wearing charms and amulets of their god of
choice or their ancestors for protection or in the hope of blessings, and the emperor
did this as well. Religious practices changed during the latter part of the Zhou
Dynasty owing to its decline and eventual fall but the practice of wearing religious
jewelry continued.

The Zhou Dynasty is divided into two periods: Western Zhou (1046-771 BCE) and
Eastern Zhou (771-226 BCE). Chinese culture and religious practices flourished
during the Western Zhou period but began to break apart during the Eastern Zhou.
Religious practices of divination, ancestor worship, and veneration for the gods
continued, but during the Spring and Autumn Period (772-476 BCE) philosophical
ideas began to challenge the ancient beliefs.

Confucius (c. 551-479 BCE) encouraged ancestor worship as a way of remembering

and honoring one's past but emphasized people's individual responsibility in making
choices and criticized an over-reliance on supernatural powers. Mencius (c. 372-289
BCE) developed the ideas of Confucius, and his work resulted in a more rational and
restrained view of the world. The work of Lao-Tzu (c. 500 BCE) and the development
of Taoism might be seen as a reaction to Confucian principles if not for the fact that
Taoism developed many centuries before the traditonal date assigned to Lao-Tzu. It is
much more probable that Taoism developed from the original nature/folk religion of
the people of China than that it was created by a 6th-century BCE philosopher.
Therefore, it is more accurate to say that the rationalism of Confucianism probably
developed as a reaction to the emotionalism and spiritualism of those earlier beliefs.

Confucius, Buddha and Lao-Tzu

Religious beliefs developed further during the next period in China's history,
The Warring States Period (476-221 BCE), which was very chaotic. The seven states
of China were all independent now that the Zhou had lost the Mandate of Heaven, and
each one fought the others for control of the country. Confucianism was the most
popular belief during this time, but there was another which was growing stronger. A
statesman named Shang Yang (died 338 BCE) from the region of Qin developed
a philosophy called Legalism which maintained that people were only motivated by
self-interest, were inherently evil, and had to be controlled by law. Shang Yang's
philosophy helped the State of Qin overpower the six other states and the Qin
Dynasty was founded by the first emperor, Shi Huangti, in 221 BCE.

RELIGION BANNED AND REVIVED

During the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BCE), Shi Huangti banned religion and burned
philosophical and religious works. Legalism became the official philosophy of the
Qin government and the people were subject to harsh penalties for breaking even
minor laws. Shi Huangti outlawed any books which did not deal with his family line,
his dynasty, or Legalism, even though he was personally obsessed with immortality
and the afterlife, and his private library was full of books on these subjects. Confucian
scholars hid books as best as they could and people would worship their gods in secret
but were no longer allowed to carry amulets or wear religious charms.

Shi Huangti died in 210 BCE while searching for immortality on a tour through his
kingdom. The Qin Dynasty fell soon after, in 206 BCE, and the Han Dynasty took its
place. The Han Dynasty (202 BCE-220 CE) at first continued the policy of Legalism
but abandoned it under Emperor Wu (141-87 BCE). Confucianism became the state
religion and grew more and more popular even though other religions, like Taoism,
were also practiced.

During the Han Dynasty, the emperor became distinctly identified as the mediator
between the gods and the people. The position of the emperor had been seen as linked
to the gods through the Mandate of Heaven from the early Zhou Dynasty but now it
was his express responsibility to behave so that heaven would bless the people. Mount
Tai became an important sacred site during this time and ancient rituals and festivals
were revised. An example of this would be the Festival of the Five Elements which
honored earth, fire, metal, water, and wood which was changed to the Festival of
Heaven and Earth, honoring the people's relationship with the gods.

An important religious sect which gained popularity during this time was the cult of
the Queen Mother of the West, Xi Wang Mu, goddess of immortality. She lived in the
mountains of Kunlun, like the other gods, but in a castle of gold, with a moat around it,
so sensitive that anything, even a hair, which fell upon it would sink. She walked
every day in her Imperial Peach Orchard whose fruit held the divine juices of
immortality. Scholar Patricia Buckley Ebrey comments on this cult:

During the Han period, the hope for deathlessness or

immortality found expression in the cult of a goddess called
the Queen Mother of the West. Her paradise was portrayed as
a land of marvels where trees of deathlessness grew and rivers
 of immortality flowed...People of all social levels
expressed their devotion to her, and shrines were erected
under government sponsorship throughout the country (71).

The Queen Mother of the West was sometimes represented as an old, unattractive
woman with sharp teeth like a tiger's and a hunched back, and at other times as a
beautiful woman with long hair. She jealously guarded the secrets of immortality in
her garden and struck down people who tried to find their way in. She was kind to her
followers, though, and blessed them as long as they pleased her.

THE ARRIVAL OF BUDDHISM

In the 1st century CE, Buddhism arrived in China via trade through the Silk Road.
According to the legend, the Han emperor Ming (28-75 CE) had a vision of a golden
god flying through the air and asked his secretary who that could be. The assistant
told him he had heard of a god in India who shone like the sun and flew in the air, and
so Ming sent emissaries to bring Buddhist teachings to China. Buddhism quickly
combined with the earlier folk religion and incorporated ancestor worship and
veneration of Buddha as a god.

White Horse Temple

Buddhism was welcomed in China and took its place alongside Confucianism,
Taoism, and the blended folk religion as a major influence on the spiritual lives of the
people. When the Han Dynasty fell, China entered a period known as The Three
Kingdoms (220-263 CE) which was similar to the Warring States Period in bloodshed,
violence, and disorder. The brutality and uncertainty of the period influenced
Buddhism in China which struggled to meet the spiritual needs of the people at the
time by developing rituals and practices of transcendence. The Buddhist schools of
Ch'an (better known as Zen), Pure Land, and others took on form at this time.
Buddhism introduced a new kind of ghost to China, the egui ("Hungry Ghost"), which
became one of the most feared. The modern day Ghost Festival in China (also known
as the Hungry Ghost Festival) grew out of this belief. Hungry ghosts were spirits of
those who had been murdered, improperly buried, or had sinned and not been
forgiven. They could also be people who had never been satisfied with anything in
life and were no happier in death. People would leave food out for them during Ghost
Month to appease them and went to the graves of their ancestors to sacrifice food so
they would not become hungry ghosts.

THE TANG DYNASTY & RELIGION IN CHINA

The major religious influences on Chinese culture were in place by the time of
the TangDynasty (618-907 CE) but there were more to come. The second
emperor, Taizong (626-649 CE), was a Buddhist who believed in toleration of other
faiths and allowed Manichaeism, Christianity, and others to set up communities of
faith in China. His successor, Wu Zeitian (690-704 CE), elevated Buddhism and
presented herself as a Maitreya (a future Buddha) while her
successor, Xuanzong (712-756 CE), rejected Buddhism as divisive and made Taoism
the state religion.

Although Xuanzong allowed and encouraged all faiths to practice in the country, by
817 CE Buddhism was condemned as a dividing force which undermined traditional
values. Between 842-845 CE Buddhist nuns and priests were persecuted and
murdered and temples were closed. Any religion other than Taoism was prohibited,
and persecutions affected communities of Jews, Christians, and any other faith. The
emperor Xuanzong II (846-859 CE) ended these persecutions and restored religious
tolerance. The dynasties which followed the Tang up to the present day all had their
own experiences with the development of religion and the benefits and drawbacks
which come with it, but the basic form of what they dealt with was in place by the end
of the Tang Dynasty.

Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism, and the early folk religion combined to form the
basis of Chinese culture. Other religions have added their own influences but these
four belief structures had the most impact on the country and the culture. Religious
beliefs have always been very important to the Chinese people even though the
People's Republic of China originally outlawed religion when it took power in 1949
CE. The People's Republic saw religion as unnecessary and divisive, and during the
Cultural Revolution temples were destroyed, churches burned, or converted to secular
uses. In the 1970's CE the People's Republic relaxed its stand on religion and since
then has worked to encourage organized religion as "psychologically hygienic" and a
stabilizing influence in the lives of its citizens.