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Zhou dynasty

Zhou dynasty

took power in 1122 BCE

-Included mandate of heaven

-eventually weakened along with the unity of china

-led to age of warring states

-legalist solution to age of warring states

-Confucianism solution (qin dynasty)

-daoist answer

-ended in 256 BCE

(due to states acquiring more power than king = age of warring states)

mandate of heaven

Idea that china is one political unity, under one ruler only. that ruler had the blessing of the gods, and just needs to keep that approval.

age of warring states (403 - 221 B.C.E.)

period of chaos, violence, and disharmony. people reflected on past peace and emerged classical cultural traditions during this time as well.

Legalists solution / Legalists

believed that the answer to china’s problem is in rules and laws

-rules and strict enforcement = key to success

-Han Fei “if rewards are high than what the ruler wants will be quickly effective”

-Legalists: pessimistic view of human nature, thought they were stupid and short sided

-led to harsh reunification of china under shihuangdi and qin dynasty

Confucian answer

Confucian’s answer was to set a moral example

-Confucius: 551-479 BCE

-his teachings were turned into a book called Analects = Confucianism was created

(qin dynasty)

Confucianism:

-consisted of unequal relationships: male domination

-cultivation of “ren” : human heartedness/nobility =essential for tranquil society

-emphasizing education as key to moral betterment

-rituals and ceremonies = show appropriate behavior

-process of improvement = perfect moral character

-discredit of legalist = adaption of Confucianism

-family life is important

-ancestor veneration

-model for political life → honoring ancestors and parents was a training ground for reverence to emperor and state officials

-set tone for defining lives of men and women

(heaven : men/male / earth: women/female)

-Ban Zhao: wrote lessons for women: called for greater attention for girls to serve husbands betters

-”wen” and "wu” associated with men

wen: rationality, scholarship, and literary and artistic abilities

wu: physical and martial achivement

-military men and merchants = lower position in hierarchy

-justificed inequalities of chinese society

-established expectations for superior

-unable to follow norms of confucianism forfeit mandate of heaven and invited upheaval and replacement by another dynasty

human relationships, effective government, social harmony

daoist answer

spontaneous, indivualistic natural behavior, focusing on realm of nature, simplicity of living

Daoism: associated with Laozi, refined by zhuangzi

-ridiculed confucius’ ways and believed they were artifical and useless

-encouraged spontaneous individualistic behavior

-focused on real of nature

-invites people to withdraw from politics and social activism = simplicity in living

-viewed family central

-male/female hierarchy downplayed (non-patriarchal)

-simple life, enjoy nature, magic, fortune telling, search for immortality

cultural traditions of classical india

indian culture = embraced diving and all things spiritual, elaborated on philosophical visions

Hinduism

-no historical founder, nor a missionary religion

-association with specific people and territory

-vedas: collection of poems hymns prayers and rituals, ancient Sanskrit (was reduced to writing in Sanskrit) texts, compiled by priests / brahmins

-suggested patriarchal society, but gave upper class women more opportunities

-sacrifices and rituals = lead to wealth and power

-Upanishads: anonymous thinkers in 800-400BCE, who sought to find the inner meaning of sacrifices in Vedas

-external ritual gave way to introspective thinking, expressed the concept of Hinduism

-main concept: idea of brahmin; final reality → idea that a single energy or divine reality keeps things together

-assertion was that the individual soul, atman, is part of Brahman → goal of unifying with Brahman (moksha)

-Moksha: reaching it involved many lifetimes (samsara) → rebirth

-Karma: souls migrated from body to body depending on actions

-caste system became a spiritual progress

Upanishads:

-women aren’t allowed to learn Vedas

-Laws of Manu: all babes = men; weak semen creates women

-womens should treat husband like god, cant remarry

-sexual pleasure considered a legitimate goal

-called brahmin priests to pursue spiritual development

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-died out in india, spread to surroudning areas of asia (mahayana buddhism)

-affected growth of Buddhism

-was revived with clear action in world and path to liberation

-Bhakti movement: adoration of particular diety through songs, prayers, rituals

Deities: Vishu - protector and preserver of creation; associated with mercy and goodness

-Shiva: divine in its destructive aspect

Buddha was incorporated into Hindu pantheon as 9th incarnation of Vishnu

Buddhist Challenge

-Buddhism:

-founded by Siddharth Guatama

-experiencing life as imperfect, impermanent, and unsatisfactory is central or human life

-achieve enlightment

-reflected hindu traditions:

Karma, overcoming ego, meditation, final release from cycle of birth

-simplified from hinduism

-challenged inequalities of hindu based caste system

-role of women as nuns

-more freedom towards woman compared to other indian religions

-appealed to low caste people and women

mahayana Buddhism:

-Bodhisattvas = spirtually developed people postponed their entry into nirvana to help others

-called the “great vehicle”

-growth was affected by competition from islam

-was incorporated into Hindu pantheon as 9th incarnation of Vishnu

Monotheistic religions

Middle East: Persian Zoroastrianism and Judaism

-was basis for Christianity and Islam

-monotheistic: belief that there is only one god

Zoroastrianism

-started by Zarathustra (persian prophet) 6th and 7th BCE

-Achaemenid era/dynasty

-single god: ahura Mazda

-placed emphasis on free will of human kind

-good vs evil

-support from persia egypt mesopotamia, and anapolia

-alexander the great’s invasion destroyed zoroastrianism (temples destroyed, priests slaughtered, writings burned)

-islam and arab empire rose, decline of zoro

-influenced christianity and islam

judaism

-started in smaller region with hebrews

-migrated from mesopotamia to canaan

-fled to egupt, enslaved, escaped,

-went to palestine

-established israel and judah

-israel was conquered by assyria through assimilation

-jews created new identity

-one god: yahweh

-lofty, transcendent, holiness, purity

brith of christianity - with buddhist comparisons

Jesus of Narareth created Christianity that grew from his teachings (500 years after Confucius, Budda, Zarathustra, Socrates)

-They didnt want to found religion → believed that their religion was wider and inclusive

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Gautama (buddha) - royalty and luxury

-became spiritual seekers

-instructed to practice metta, loving-kindness

-called for personal transformation of followers and letting go of craving that causes suffering

-ignored supernatural and had no miracles

-teachings were less threatening, died at 80

-saw himself as a enlightened human → became supernatural to be workshiped and prayed

Jesus - poverty and rural environment

-became spiritual seekers

-instructed followers to love everyone even the enemy

-called for personal transformation of followers and letting go of craving that causes suffering

-devotion tol deity (Abba)

-sharper social and political edge

-spoke on behalf the poor and wealthy

-short life: teachings were seen treatening to jewish and romans

-never claimed divine status, saw himself as a teacher and prophet

-still became diving in eyes of followers (saint paul and john)

saint paul:  transformed Christianity from small Jewish sect to world religion in 10-65 C.E. who went to Roman Empire and started christian communities

-limited freedom rights for women, patriarchal

-Mary became a devotional cult

-converts to christianity were lower class people

-faith = miracles and healings

spread of christianity

-10% of roman empire were Christians

-followers lived in non-European regions of Roman Empire (north africa, egypt, Anatolia, Syria) / outside empire (arabia, persia, ethiopia, india, and china)

-spread from Syria to Persia → converts were persecuted by Zoroastrian rulers of Persia → Persia enemy is Roman Empire

-Syria and Persia are core region of Church of the East

-Church took control southern India

-spread from palestine (place of origin)

-developed in egypt - translated bible into coptic

-saint augustine: church of north africa, included augustine and christian martyrs to roman persecution

-became state relgion of eritrea and ethiopea

-armenia and roman empire endorsed christianity

-roman persecution of christians as “atheists for their antagonism to all divine powers except their one god, ended in 4th century

-later used christianity to keep the empire together

-created netwroks of cultural connections

spread through roman empire

-developed hierarchial organization - patriarchal

-not unfied religion, different languages, cultures, and political regimes

bishop emerged as leader in western europe

buddhism’s spread

ashoka’s support helped but was never promoted as india’s sole religion

-absorbed into hinduism in india

-created networks of cultural connections

-failed to prevent division between theravada, mahyana and others

-no violece

-no religious hierarchy