discussion

Jberm066

Fisher_LR_10e_CH06_FINAL.pptx

Home >Applied Sciences homework help >discussion

Chapter 6

Daoism and Confucianism

Living Religions

Tenth Edition

Learning Objectives (1 of 2)

6.1 Describe the ancient Chinese tradition of ancestor worship and the concept of cosmic balance.

6.2 Identify the basic principles for life in harmony with Dao.

6.3 Outline the practices associated with popular religion and organized Daoism.

6.4 Explain the increasing interest in Daoist practices and philosophy in the West.

Learning Objectives (2 of 2)

6.5 Outline the major teachings of Confucius.

6.6 Define Neo-Confucianism.

6.7 Discuss the ways in which Confucianism is being adapted to modern concerns in mainland China and other parts of East Asia.

Simon Man-ho Wong Quote

“It is very hard to find a true sage who through his self-cultivation has perfectly combined himself with Heaven, or the transcendent Dao, or ultimate reality—whatever you may call it.”

Simon Man-ho Wong

Simon Man-ho Wong, interviewed September 21, 2013.

Ancient traditions

Why are ancestor worship and cosmic balance important?

Chinese civilization old and continuous

By 2000 CE, people settled in agrarian villages

Musical instruments

Work in bronze, silk, ceramics, and ivory

Chinese religious ways as old as these works

Worship and divination (1 of 2)

Prehistoric evidence of ancestor worship

Graves lined with funerary offerings

li: sacred rituals for ancestors

Early worship of spirits

Plants, animals, mountains, stars

Kings and priest made regular sacrifices

Demons and ghosts

Ghosts were ancestors not properly worshiped

Many practices developed to thwart their menace

Worship and divination (2 of 2)

Rituals of common people unknown

Rituals performed by kings and priests

Sacrifices

Divination

Shangdi: Shang period Lord-on-High

Zhou period: focus shifted from Shangdi to Tian, impersonal power controlling the universe

tian: “Heaven” or “Supreme Ultimate”

“Mandate of Heaven” justified Zhou rule

Cosmic Balance

qi: impersonal self-generating physical-spiritual substance.

yin: the dark, receptive, “female” aspect of qi

yang: the bright, assertive, “male” aspect of qi

Dao: “way,” the creative rhythm of the universe

Yijing or Book of Changes: a divinization text used to harmonize the cosmic process

Daoism— the way of nature and immortality

What are the basic principles for life in harmony with Dao?

Beneath the Daoist principles of a simple life is a tradition of strict mental and physical discipline.

“Daoism” is a broad philosophical (literati) tradition.

It also includes popular practices, such as home worship of gods.

Teachings of Daoist sages (1 of 2)

Tradition attributes the earliest teachings to the Yellow Emperor (r. 2687–2597 BCE).

Dao de jing (“The Classic of the Way and its Power”)

Composed by Laozi (Old Master) during the Zhou dynasty (sixth century BCE).

5,000 words

Oral tradition

Teachings of Daoist sages (2 of 2)

Zhuangzi (c. 365–290 BCE)

Elaborated on Daoist concepts

Asserted: best to detach from absurd civilization

Dao is “unnamable,” the “eternally real”

Experience the transcendent unity of all things

No “good” or “bad”

wu wei: “actionless action,” no intentional action contrary to the natural flow

Popular religion and organized Daoism (1 of 2)

What practices are associated with popular religion and organized Daoism?

Invisible spirits are worshiped:

In temples with incense and other offerings

In folk religion with nonvegetarian offerings

feng shui: “geomancy,” allowing things to take their own course

Popular religion and organized Daoism (2 of 2)

Deities from folk religions have become part of the pantheon.

Jade Emperor is the ruler of heaven.

Daoist masters are divine beings.

Vows are commonly taken for fulfillment of requests.

Inner alchemy (1 of 2)

Inner alchemy is an internal spiritual practice for the sake of inner transformation, longevity, and immortality.

Within the body is a spiritual micro-universe.

Three treasures:

Generative force (jing)

Vital life force (qi)

Spirit (shen)

Inner alchemy (2 of 2)

The process is to circulate and transmute jing into qi and then to shen.

This produces the Immortal Fetus, which can leave the body.

Daoist Sects (1 of 2)

Practices institutionalized in Han dynasty (206 BCE–220 CE)

Celestial Masters

184 CE: rebellion leading to fall of Han dynasty

Zhang Daoling’s vision: Appointed representative of Dao on earth and given the title “Celestial Master”

Introduced pantheon of celestial deities

Now thriving in Taiwan and Hong Kong

Daoist Sects (2 of 2)

Highest Purity Daoism

Revelations from deceased Lady Wei

365 CE

New deities, rituals, meditative and alchemical methods

Celestial Masters were crude

Not popular, but highly influential

Complete Perfection

Developed from fourth century Numinous Treasure School

Twelfth century

Dominant monastic tradition

Present Daoist canon was compiled in 1445 CE

Daoism Today

Which Daoist practices are of increasing interest in the West?

All forms of Daoist practice are still actively undertaken.

Chinese temples combine various religions, but liturgy is Daoist.

Bureaucratic obstacles in communist China

Monks and nuns are of equal status.

New Daoist temples and social activities:

Schools

Hospitals

Environmental groups

Confucianism— the practice of virtue

Which virtue did Confucius feel could save society?

Confucius: Master Kong (sixth century BCE)

Rujiao: the teaching of the scholars

Teachings based on:

Beliefs in Heaven

Ancestor worship

Efficacy of rituals

Master Kong’s life

Confucius born c. 551 BCE

Determined to be a scholar

Living ascetically, he studied ritual (li)

Returned to society and gained renown as teacher

3,000 disciples

5 Confucian “Classics”

Teachings contained in The Analects

Period of political chaos

Social rites would restore order

Died in 479 BCE

The Confucian virtues

Codified in the Han dynasty (206 BCE–220 CE)

ren: “humaneness”

Confucius believed this could save society.

Comprises Chinese character for “two” and “person”

Conveys the idea of relationships

Actions should be motivated by self-improvement, not recognition.

He supported ancestor worship as an extension of filial piety.

junzi: the noble person

Confucianism after Confucius

What was the significance of Neo-Confucianism?

Mengzi (c. 390–305 BCE), the “Secondary Sage”

Inherent goodness of humanity

Learning is process of coming to understand the Way of Heaven.

Xunzi

Inherent self-centeredness of humanity

li ought to be legally enforced

The state cult

During Han dynasty:

Teachings of Confucius adopted as the state cult

Traditional Book of Rites and Etiquette and Ritual reconstructed

Neo-Confucianism

Revival of Confucianism after rise of Buddhism and Daoism in China

“Metaphysical thought” or “the learning of principle”

Zhu Xi (1130–1200 CE)

Developed Confucian school curriculum

Tradition continued for hundreds of years

Confucianism in the modern world (1 of 2)

How is Confucianism being adapted to modern concerns in mainland China and other parts of East Asia?

Confucian ritual was attacked as one of the “Four Olds” during the Communist Cultural Revolution.

Chairman Mao had been against Confucianism since childhood.

1989: Communist government urged officials to maintain Confucian discipline.

Confucianism in the modern world (2 of 2)

Communist temple renovation projects

Capitalist Confucianism: business conducted according to Confucian principles

Confucianism in East Asia

Confucian principles may have aided economic rise of East Asian countries.

Korea adopted Neo-Confucianism as state religion in the 1392.

Confucianism Entered Japan in seventh century and influenced view of emperor.

Hong Kong, Taiwan, and other East Asian countries have made attempts to revive Confucian religious practices.