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Origin and evolution of religion essay
Origin and evolution of religion essay
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The origin of religion goes back to prehistoric times when the earliest people of China sought answers to the same basic questions that have baffled man over time: what is the unseen force that brings darkness and light, winters and summer, drought and rain, life and death: what must men do to appease this force (Schafter 60-61)? Ancient China has three main religions: Taoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism.
Confucius was concerned mostly with laws made by people and whether people were naturally good or naturally evil. Confucius, a major system of thought in China, developed from the teachings of Confucius and his disciples, and concerned with the principles of good conduct, practical wisdom, and proper social relations (Creel 18). Confucius rose to greatest prominence during the Han dynasty, around 200 BC to 200 AD (Creel 19). It influenced the Chinese attitude toward life, set the patterns of living and standard s of social values (Hinnelles 354). Although Confucius became the official ideology of the Chinese state, it never existed as an established religion with a church and priesthood (Ammann). Confucius later became a basis for education and a collection of Confucius wrightings known as the "Classics" have been used for Chinese memorization and recited in exams (blue.butler.edu). Confucius provides the settings for Chinese political theories and institutions still used in China today.
In contrast, the followers of Lao-tzu believed universal laws, not human ones, guide people. This was the basis of Taoism becoming a religion around the Eastern Han dynasty. Taoism developed around the same time as Confucianism (blue.butler.edu). Taoists tried to live a life of simplicity and meditation close to nature. Taoism was mystical and influenced by ancient Chinese folk religion (Williams 18). Its followers used magic, as well as prayer and diet to seek internal youth (Williams 18). Taoists were peaceful people who generally lived peaceful lives (Williams 19).
Tao originally meant road' and then was implied to rule' and principle' (Watts 21). Tao is the origin of the internal world. It is boundless in time and space. Ordinary people can become gods when they have Tao. Taoism pursues immortality and preservation of health; its uttermost goal is to become an immortal being. Taoism claims this can be obtained through cultivating one's moral character and perfecting one's moral integrity (http://ssd.cas.pacificu.edu). Unlike Buddhism, Taoism does not support simplicity, however holds an open mind to sexual characteristics.
Buddhism did not come to a land innocent of religion and philosophy, China, in fact had three main rival streams of thought: Confucianism, Taoism, and folk religion.
People’s well beings were affected by the Chinese philosophies Taoism, Legalism, and Confucianism. In legalism, for example, people aren’t trusted and there was a very strict government. On the other hand, in Taoism, they saw themselves as a part of nature, there were no laws, and leaders were good. This greatly affected different philosophies, making a big difference. In Ancient India, there was Hinduism and Buddhism. People worshipped and worked differently in these two religions. Therefore, both Ancient India and Ancient China were affected by the religion and
After watching the documentary The Long Search: Taoism: A Question of Balance—China, I am totally surprised by the details in the video, which explain every single aspect of people’s daily life in Taiwan as religious, especially Taoist. Since China does not consider itself as a nation of religious beliefs and practices, I do not actually think of what Chinese people do everyday as religious. However, after studying Religions in China for a semester, I finally realize that all the Chinese traditions and beliefs have evolved as a mixture of Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. As a result, it all makes sense to see in the video that Taoism is a dominant religion that has deeply influenced individuals’ life in Taiwan.
Philosophy is a complicated subject. Since the beginning of human existence, many tried to come up with theories about life, happiness, reality and knowledge. From philosophical ideas different beliefs sprung, and existence of different religions followed. Every theory raised by a philosopher attracted different followers. In today's modern society aside from major religions, there are thousands of others that suggest that their explanations to universal questions are the only accurate ones, and all of these religions seek to gain more followers to join their "way". One of these religions is the religion/philosophy of Taoism. Taoism has it roots in China, where the founder of Taoism Lao-Tse was searching for a way that would avoid the constant feudal warfare and other conflicts that disrupted his society during his lifetime. The result was his book: Tao-te-Ching. Lao-Tse described Taoism as a path or a way which one must follow in order to reach inner serenity and peace. In order to reach these inner goals one must live in harmony with nature and natural process that creates the balance in the universe.
The main religions of China were Confucianism, Taoism, and Legalism. The central religions in India were Hinduism and Buddhism. Both Ancient China and India had religious teachers that invented these prevalent religions. Confucius invented Confucianism, Lao Tzu invented Taoism, and a man named Hsun Tzu invented the ideas of Legalism in China. Hinduism in India took many of its religious beliefs from the Aryan people that invaded India. Buddhism was created around 520 B.C. by a wealthy man Siddhartha Gautama. China and India had much in common. They both believed in supernatural forces. For example, China and India believed that supernatural forces controlled the weather and the abundance of crops grown at certain times around the year. Furthermore, both ancient civilizations constructed art pertaining to their respective religions.
To begin, Confucianism is a system of philosophical and ethical teachings founded by Confucius. Confucianism was the code of ethics accepted as the certified religion of most of the immense empires in the territory since the Han Dynasty. Confucianism provided an outline of ethical and religious beliefs that most of the Chinese expanded to make other religions such as Daoism and Legalism. To expand, Confucianism was founded by Confucius and his beliefs on the political and social order of China. Confucius believed that everything would fall into place if children had respect for their parents and if the rulers were honest. In Confucianism, specific roles were followed by each person in the family. The head of the family, the father, was the one primarily in control and then it was the oldest son that was next in line. Confucius had the belief that a ruler has to be everything he wants
After the fall of the Qin Dynasty, the Han dynasty drew from the teachings of Confucius to create the Han Synthesis. This formed the traditional belief in China that history repeats itself and directly contributed to the Dynastic Cycle. This is demonstrated by the use of Confucius teachings, the Dynastic Cycle and the Han Synthesis when addressing the Good Life, Good Society and Good State respectively. Each of these philosophies highlight that Chinese history repeats itself by casting light on this theme of repetition through the three different areas. This makes the state accountable for its actions to its people. Confucius was a Chinese philosopher whose ideas greatly affect China in every aspect of its culture. In The Analects, he preached how to be a good man through living a life of filial piety, being a gentleman, and the way a ruler should govern his empire. The Han Synthesis used many of Confucius’ ideas to be the guiding force in China’s political ideology which contributed to the Dynastic Cycle of an empire, which stated that empires go through periods of success and decline. All of these highlight the cyclical nature of history in China, and its importance in the development of the state.
...ccording to it. It is the level of understanding and respect a Taoist has with nature, everyone around them, and everything. This mystery is the last feature that is important to defining a religion.
Taoism is one of the oldest religions in the world and its origins are rather mysterious. Formally there is no specifically known founder or date of foundation for Taoism; however, the individual accredited with the founding of Taoism “Began […] with the revelation of […] Lao Tzu (Taoism: The Origins of Taoism), which Buddhism. Taoism is a polytheistic religion with a wide variety of deities, and so Shamanism became an important part of the religion, as shamans were individuals’ connections to the different Gods of Taoism and protection from evil spirits; so in its initial structure a solid base of religious leaders formed, which would help the spread of the religion through education and role modeling (Hundoble). As for specific leaders of the religious movement, Lao-Tzu, an early philosopher and poet, is believed to have written the original founding principles of Taoism in the sixth century B.C., and as presented by King Shu Liu “of his work we have only the Tao-Teh-king [(the first Taoist literature)] which tradition attributed to him” (Liu 377). Zhao Daoling, another prominent Taoist leader, was the first of the Celestial M...
Taoism follows a much different idea of the "chain of being," than that of the other major religions (i.e. Hinduism, Judeo-Christian, Islam), which is very important in consideration of the ecological sensibility which stems from it. As opposed to a God-over-man-over-nature view of the world, Taoism states:
Taoism and Confucianism are two major Chinese philosophies. I say that they are philosophies because religions tend to worship deities and Taoism and Confucianism don’t seems to worshiping anything. To some they appear to be different, even clashing but to me, they seem very much alike but they come at it from different points of view. Both philosophies strive to reach harmony but in to very different ways. I do believe the reason they can co-exist is because they see Tao from two different ways.
Regarding religion, Chinese culture saw the emergence of Confucianism and Buddhism as the major influence. Confucianism stressed filial piety which meant respecting elders and superiors, ruling righteously, and obeying commands and orders. Confucianism was introduced by the Chinese thinker Confucius. Buddhism was brought to China, but originated in India and was founded by Siddhartha Gautama. Followers of Buddhism worshipped Buddh...
Taoism and Buddhism were born in the same century. Siddhartha reached enlightenment in approximately 535 B.C. and Lao Tzu’s teachings were recorded around 500 B.C. There are many similarities in the basics of these two religions. Some of the similarities can be seen clearly when examining the three meaning of Tao.
The Buddhist brought with them the concept of multiple gods and Buddha’s “spiritual state to provide the power for humans to make the transition into death and the afterlife successfully” (Corduan, 2012, p.410). Confucianism brought the obedience of the child to the parent into Chinese mainstream life, plus the “social stratification and codes governing dress, actions and communication” (Corduan, 2012, p.409). Taoism introduced the balance of forces in harmony in spirits in the form of yin and yang, thus creating that balance of nature and humans (Corduan, 2012). Christianity influenced Chinese life both socially and economically by introducing the concepts of “love for one’s neighbor, self-discipline, and trust” (Lu, 2014, p.2) as both essential and beneficial (Lu, 2014). All of these together with the traditional Chinese religion, give the Chinese culture it’s popular religion
In the Chinese culture there are several major religions, two of these include Confucianism and Taoism, which have dated back for thousands of years. According to. Experiencing the World’s Religions and The World’s Wisdom: Sacred Texts of the World’s Religions, both Confucianism and Taoism, originated in ancient China through the religions’ teachers: Confucius and Lao Tzu. “Taoism and Confucianism grew up together, entering Chinese history around the sixth century B.C.E. Taoism’s beginnings are linked to the legendary figure of Lao Tzu, senior to Confucius by about fifty years.
Lao-Tze founded Taoism around 550 BC. The goal in Taoism is achieve Inner harmony, pea...