Chapter 2

Philosophy and
Religions
The Development of Chinese Philosophy
The philosophy in Pre-Qin times (
)
The orthodox philosophy during the
Han Dynasty ()
Metaphysics during the Wei and Jin
dynasties ()
The buddhist philosophy during the
Sui and Tang dynasties ()
Neo-confucianism in Song and Ming
dynasties ()
Application philosophy in the Ming
and Qing dynasties ()
The philosophy in Pre-Qin times
()
The philosophy in Pre-Qin times was
marked by the emergence of various
ancient philosophical views.
The most influential schools were
Confucianism (), Taoism (),
Mohism () and Legalism ()
Confucianism
The school takes the
teachings of Confucius as
its core of thought and
regards the words and
deeds of Confucius as its
highest code () of
behavior.
It advocates the
benevolence and justice,
allegiance and
forbearance (
), the doctrine of the
golden mean () and
values the ethical
relations of men.
Taoism
Based on the work of Dao De Jing, Taoism
promotes the belief that a person should live a
simple life, not to strive for wealth, fame or
power, which will only give one worries and
trouble.
The school favours the political principle of
achieving good government through non-
action()
Founded by Lao Zi and Zhuang
Zi, the school advocates the
doctrine that the Dao is the
course, the principle, the
substance, and the standard of
all things, to which all of them
must conform.
Mohism
Base on the teaching of
Mozi, the school
cherishes universal love
which states that if all
the people in the world
loved one another, there
will be no hatred,
calamities, and
hostilities.

In politics and ethics, Mohism proposes
honoring virtuous people, opposing fatalism (
) and aggressive wars, and upholding
thriftiness and simple funerals.
Legalism
Legalism, begun by
Hanfeizi, espouses (
) laying down laws
to unify the thought
of people, promoting
agriculture to achieve
affluence (),
waging () wars to
gain strength and
power, and
establishing a system
of bureaucracy (
).
The Basic Features of Chinese Ancient
Philosophy

Stress on spiritual existence
Stress on practice
Stress on morality
Stress on harmony
Stress on intuition
Stress on Spiritual Existence

Ancient Chinese philosophers studies
different kinds of philosophical problems
based on reality and experience, but all of
them paid attention to the study of
existence. all pursue in order to achieve
the highest spiritual state.
e.g.
Confucianisms knowledge of life through
disposition and consciousness;
Taoisms search for spiritual freedom;
Buddhisms Nirvana ().


Stress on Practice
Chinese ancient philosophers were
concerned with the relationship between
knowledge and practice.
Example:
To prefer it is better than only to know it.
To delight in it is better than merely to
prefer it.()
Stress on Morality
Every school of ancient Chinese
philosophy was a kind of moral
philosophy. Almost every
philosophy stressed moral
practice.
Stress on Harmony
Ancient Chinese philosophy stresses
on harmony, and the pursuit of
harmony between man and nature
and also between man and man.
E.g.
Mencius said Opportunities
vouchsafed by Heaven are less
important than terrestrial advantages,
which in turn are less important than
the unity among people. (
)

Stress on the Intuition
Chinese ancient philosophy did
not adhere to formal rules of
structure and system in thought
and often resulted in
fragmented () thoughts
written on paper. It was
through reflecting on lifes
experiences and intuition that
philosophical ideas were formed.
Characteristics of Chinese Ethics and
Morality
Traditional Chinese ethics that reflect
the high standard or moral pursuit of
the Chinese people and embrace
ethical wisdom of lasting value:
Seeking Harmony and Maintaining
Equilibrium()
2. Collectivism over Individualism
3. Spiritual Life over Material Life

To Chinese people, harmony is
powerful word. Maintaining
equilibrium is the ultimate purpose
of harmony.
Seeking Harmony and Maintaining
Equilibrium ()
Collectivism over Individualism
Traditional Chinese values attach great
importance to collective interest. An
individuals values can be realized only
within society as a whole, as that is the
groundwork of ones existence.
Spiritual Life over Material Life
Chinese people advocate morality in
their behavior.
Self-cultivation in morals is
emphasized, and is considered to be
more important than ones material
life.
Religions
The Taoist Religion
Taoism is the indigenous ()
religion in China.
Lu Xun once said, The Chinese roots
are deep in Taoism. If one tries to
comprehend Chinese history and
culture, he must first comprehend
Taoism and the Taoist religion.
The Taoist religion evolved out of
witchcraft (), necromancy )
and self-cultivation techniques. Its
highest belief is called Dao, its bible
is called Dao De Jing.
Zhang Daoling
The Taoist religion was
founded by Zhang
Daoling in the Eastern
Han Dynasty and became
very popular during the
Southern and Northern
Dynasties.
Taishang laojun
Taoists revered () Lao
Zi as the originator of the
Taoist religion and called
him Taishang Laojun (
).
Taoism Temples
Taoism temples are places for Taoist
priests to self-reflect and carry out their
religious activities.
The layout of the Taoism temples evolved
from the traditional square-shaped
Chinese courtyard,
also resembling
that of Buddhist
temples in design.
In front of Taoist
temples, there are
mountain gates,
Huabiao (marble
pillar) and fangan
().
Outside the Huabiao
is the earthly world
(), inside it is
the celestial place
().
The most sacred Taoist mountain
Dragon-Tiger Mountain
Dragon-Tiger Mountain is located at
the southwestern suburb of Yingtan,
Jiangxi Province. It is the birthplace of
the Taoist religion.
According to a legend, when the
elixirs were made, a dragon and a
tiger were seen above the mountain.
So, the mountain was renamed after
the celestial animals (
).
Buddhism
Buddhism was first introduced into
China in the first century. During the
Sui and Tang dynasties, Buddhism
entered its golden age.

The theory of Buddhism is based on
the theory of samsara ()
meaning that living beings orbit
around the six spheres of heaven,
hell and earth, just like an ever-
turning wheel.
The doctrine of Four Noble
Truths ()
life is suffering,
the cause of suffering is desire,
the answer is to quench () desire,
the way to this end is to follow the
Eight-Fold Path ().

Buddhism Temples
Chinese Buddhist architecture
includes pagodas, temples and
grottos. Earlier Buddhist
temples usually combined
pagodas and a courtyard-style
temple.
The First Buddhist Temple
The White Horse Temple
The White Horse Temple, located 21 km east of
the Luoyang City, Henan Province, was the
first officially built Buddhist temple in China in
the Eastern Han Dynasty.
It was named after the white
horse that carried the
Buddhist scriptures from
India to Luoyang, then the
capital of the country.
The Famous Buddhism
Mountains
Islam
Islam was introduced into China
in the seventh century.

Mosque
A mosque is always a high-domed
building with sweeping arches, flowing
arabesques () and towering
minarets ().

Inside, a mihrab, or niche (), which
symbolizes the place where the
prophet () led the prayer, is set
into the middle of the qibla wall in
order to indicate the direction of Mecca
().
Judaism
A Jewish community with a Jewish
Synagogue existed from the 12th (Song-
Dynasty) until the middle of the 19th
century in the old city of Kaifeng in Henan
province, China.

The uninterrupted existence of this
religious and ethnic group, lasting for more
than 700 years in totally different socio-
cultural surroundings strongly dominated
by Confucian moral and ethical principles,
is a unique phenomenon, not only in
Chinese history, but also in the thousands
of years of Jewish civilization.

Judaism
A Jewish community with a Jewish
Synagogue existed from the 12th (Song-
Dynasty) until the middle of the 19th
century in the old city of Kaifeng in Henan
province, China.

The uninterrupted existence of this
religious and ethnic group, lasting for more
than 700 years in totally different socio-
cultural surroundings strongly dominated
by Confucian moral and ethical principles,
is a unique phenomenon, not only in
Chinese history, but also in the thousands
of years of Jewish civilization.

Judaism
Although existing almost in isolation and without
any contacts with the Jewish diaspora outside
China, it still managed to keep alive Jewish
traditions and customs for hundreds of years.

However, although it experienced neither
discrimination nor persecution on the part of the
Chinese, a process of gradual assimilation went
on. Up to the 17th century, the assimilation of
the Kaifeng Jews intensified and escalated.
Judaism
It resulted in changes in Jewish religious and
ritual customs, social and language traditions, as
well as intermarriage between Jews and other
ethnic groups, such as the Han Chinese and the
Hui and Manchu minorities in China.

In the 1860s, the Jewish synagogue in Kaifeng
collapsed because it had long been in disrepair.
As a consequence, Jewish religious life, together
with the Jewish identity in the community, came
to an end.
Judaism
The existence of the Jews in China was unknown
to the rest of the world until Matteo Ricci met a
Jew from the Kaifeng community by accident at
the beginning of the 16th Century.

It was then that European research on the Jews
in Kaifeng began, mostly carried out by
European missionaries.

However, the Jews in China remained almost
unknown to Chinese society until the beginning
of the 20th century, although they had existed
in the country for over 700 years.
Judaism
Research on the Jews in China gained new
attention around the world through the
reappraisal of the experiences of around 25,000
Jewish refugees in Shanghai during the Nazi
period.