Morris Bian HIST 1010 Exam 4 Study Guide

Qin Dynasty

set in motion the trend toward administrative centralization by creating the first bureaucratic empire in Chinese history

Shihuangdi

1st Chinese emperor

Shihuangdi brought about administrative centralization by creating commanderies and counties and by dispatching centrally appointed officials to administer them

Terracotta Army

One demonstration of the successful outcome and high degree of administrative centralization is the existence of an underground terracotta army "stationed" in Xian

The existence of the terracotta army demonstrates the successful outcome and the high degree of administrative centralization under the Qin Dynasty

Han Dynasty

Confucianism replaced legalism as the state ideology / religion under the Han Dynasty

Han Wudi

Emperor Han Wudi's two major achievements:

1. Administrative centralization: building centralized administrative bureaucracy

2. Imperial expansion: defeating Xiongnu Confederation

Administrative Centralization

to bring under a single, central authority. In the context of world history, centralization refers to the process of bringing administrative power under a single, central, and typically imperial authority

Xiongnu

a loose confederation of nomadic tribes who lived in the steppes to the north and west of China

they were in a constant state of war with the Chinese and often raided their settlements until Han Wudi exploited the divisions between the tribes and defeated them

The ethnic background of the Xiongnu is disputed - they may have been Turks, Mongols, Huns or perhaps Iranians

Confucianization

process by which Confucianism became the officially recognized imperial ideology/ religion as well as the core curriculum of education

Five Classics

5 ancient Chinese books associated with Confucius. They were compiled during the Han Dynasty and invoked as authorities on Chinese society, government, literature, and religion. They were taught from 136 BC to 1905 CE

Characteristics of Ancient India

Lack of centralized empires and the dominance by regional kingdoms

The development of a well-defined but inflexible social structure known as caste system

Siddhartha Gautama

(563-483 BC) was one of the ethical and moral thinkers who lived in ancient India

he was born into a rich royal family and left his lavish lifestyle to discover why people suffer

commonly referred to as the Buddha ("the awakened")

founder of Buddhism

Brahmins

Brahmin priests were extremely important for ancient Indian society & were at the top of the caste system

During Siddhartha's birth, the king asked Brahmin priests to interpret his wife's dream and give life predictions of their son

Ascetic

a person who renounces material comfort and leads a life of austere self-discipline, especially as an act of religious devotion

Siddhartha's father was certain his son would one day become a wandering ascetic because of what the Brahmin priests told him. He tried to do everything in his power to influence his son against becoming an ascetic but he couldn't stop him

Great Renunciation

to give up princely life and become a wandering ascetic

Siddhartha snuck out with his charioteer one night and saw sickness, oldness, and death which led to his great renunciation

Four Noble Truths

1. Life is suffering

2. Suffering is caused by desire

3. The way to end suffering is to end desire

4. The way to end desire is to avoid two extremes:

i. the extreme of a life of vulgar materialism

ii. the extreme of a life of self-torture and self-mortification

Enlightenment

A blessed state in which the individual transcends desire and suffering and attains Nirvana, which is the ultimate goal/ condition

Nirvana

The ultimate goal or condition, which is beyond existence and without form or definition. It is a blissful spiritual condition where the heart extinguishes passion, hatred, and delusion. It is the highest spiritual plane a person can attain

Theravada

the traditional form of Buddhism. Theravada Buddhism was closer to the teachings of the historical Buddha. Followers of Theravada Buddhism renounced the material world and emphasized the importance of monastic life and limited routes to salvation

Mahayana

in contrast to Theravada Buddhism, Mahayana Buddhism emphasized the importance of faith and personal devotion and the universal opportunity for salvation. Within Mahayana Buddhism, the Buddha himself was made a supernatural god. There were also innumerable other deities called Bodhisattvas.

Bodhisattva

enlightened beings destined to attain Nirvana but decided out of compassion to delay the final act to help others achieve salvation

Silk Road

a network of interlinking trade routes across the Eurasian landmass that connected Asia with the European world

Buddhism made its way along the Silk Road to East Asia and SE Asia

Dream of Emperor Ming

Although there are disputes about the story's reliability, the Dream of Emperor Ming (64 CE) was the first known incidence regarding the introduction of Buddhism in China recorded in historical documents

He saw a flying golden deity, but he couldn't figure out who that deity was

His ministers interpreted his dream for him. One of them mentioned Buddha

Period of Disunion

the time of disorder that followed the collapse of the Han Dynasty

The Civil Service Examination System was replaced with the Nine Rank System

ended in 581 with the establishment of the Sui Dynasty

Appeal of Buddhism

In northern China, alien rulers accepted Buddhism for the same reason that the Franks converted to Christianity after the collapse of the Western Roman Empire: they hoped to attract the allegiance of the Buddhist population and legitimize their rule

The case of Liang Wudi demonstrates the strong appeal of Buddhism to native Chinese rulers

Liang Wudi

this Chinese emperor converted to Buddhism

Liang Wudi acquired titles that suggest the fusion of both Confucian and Buddhist political sanctions: Emperor Bodhisattva; Bodhisattva Son of Heaven

The case of Liang Wudi demonstrates the strong appeal of Buddhism to native Chinese rulers

Tang Dynasty

evolution of state policy toward Buddhism under the Tang Dynasty

Sinicization

to make Chinese in character or to change by Chinese influence

Buddhism became Sinicized as it spread to China along the Silk Road

The continued Sinicization of Buddhism led to the transformation of the Buddha (statue) into a fat Buddha (statue) under the Tang Dynasty

Rise and fall of Buddhism under the Tang Dynasty

Early Tang Dynasty

· During the Early Tang Dynasty (618-906), the Imperial Court continued to patronize Buddhist establishments and build Buddhist temples

· At the same time, Sinicization continued, as Buddhism became more Chinese in character and continued to be modified by Chinese influence

Late Tang Dynasty

1. As the Tang Dynasty began to decline, the large land holdings of Buddhist monasteries were seen as a fiscal threat to the state, for they removed land and people from tax registers

2. During the late Tang Dynasty, the once discredited Confucianism begun to experience revival, and Confucian scholars started to attack Buddhism as a foreign religion

Persecution of Buddhism

Daoists and Confucians found allies in the court and closed monasteries, expelled other religions, and took their property, but Buddhism still survived

Significance: the persecution proved a crippling blow to Buddhism in China. More important, it paved the way for China's ideological, intellectual, and religious re-centralization

Sui Dynasty

formally established a Civil Service Examination System

By the end of the 6th century, the Sui (581-617) had brought about China's reunification as well as administrative re-centralization

brought about the reunification of China and built the Grand Canal

Grand Canal

longest canal ever built in all of human history; built by the Sui Dynasty

Traditional Chinese Civilization

- absolute monarchy

- centralized bureaucratic system of government

- governing elite consisting of shidafu

- civil service examination system

- dominance of classical and neo-confucianism

Song Dynasty

Empire in southern China (1127-1279) while the Jin people controlled the north. Distinguished for its advances in technology, medicine, astronomy, and mathematics.

Mutiny at Chen Bridge

Resulted in the founding of the Song Dynasty

There were reports of an imminent nomadic invasion ->

General Song Taizu was appointed as a general of an expeditionary force to fight back ->

Song Taizu decided to lead a coup and take over the government, making himself emperor

Song Taizu

Founder and first emperor of the Song Dynasty

after uniting all of China, convinced his generals to retire so there would be no threat to his power

He organized a tightly centralized state by rewarding loyal administrators handsomely and by offering large salaries. This system eventually caused problems due to using large amounts of money.

Civil Service Examination System

originated under the Han Dynasty

a system of official examination and recruitment for China's administrative bureaucracy

Candidates who pass these exams become an elite members of scholar-officials (shidafu), only for men.

Significance of Civil Service Exam System

It allowed upward social mobility by creating a mechanism that is radically different from the one developed in every other civilization

It created a new governing elite called Shidafu (scholar-officials) who achieved elite status because of their success in the competitive examinations

It freed the emperor from dependence on the aristocracy and contributed to the establishment of a truly centralized bureaucratic system of government by conferring the emperor the power to elevate those of modest social origins

Nine-Rank System

ranking system in china for power and popularity among the upper echelon

replaced examinations as the basis for office holding

Significance of the Nine-Rank System

In the absence of the civil service examination system, high-ranking officials were recruited form members of the aristocracy through a system of recommendation

Xiucai

people who passed the prefectural exams; means "received talent"

equivalent to a "bachelors degree"

Juren

students who passed the provincial exams; means "elevated man"

equivalent to a "master's degree"

At this point, the student was now qualified for ruling as a provincial official

Jinshi

students who passed the 3rd metropolitan exams; means "presented scholar"

equivalent to a "Ph.D."

At this point, the student was eligible for central bureaucracy or an entry level position called a county magistrate

County Magistrate

civilian officer who administers the law; entry-level position for Jinshi holders

Shidafu

elite governing class; scholar-officials

achieved elite status because of their success in the competitive examinations

Mandarin

a high government official; a member of an elite group, especially having high status in intellectual or cultural circles

Neo-Confucianism

A philosophy that emerged in Song-dynasty China; it revived Confucian thinking while adding in Buddhist and Daoist elements.

Zhu Xi

created Neo-Confucianism

His contribution to neo-Confucianism is similar to Aquinas' contribution to Scholasticism

Li

universal principle

equivalent to Aristotle's definition of form

Qi

material force

equivalent to Aristotle's definition of matter

Meaning of Li and Qi in Human Society

Li: moral principle and potentially good human nature

Qi: organization of human society and Confucian classics

Li and Qi of cars

If Li as the universal principle constitutes the pattern for cars, then the actual, physical cars consist of Qi or material manifestation of Li such as engines

"Investigation of Things"

mechanism/method for comprehending/ understanding Li (universal principles)

how Zhu Xi came to his findings; written down in the Four Books

Four Books

The four texts that the Neo-Confucian Zhu Xi commented on

fundamental in understanding the Confucian teaching

Between 1313 and 1905, they made up the curriculum for the civil service examination. They are Analects, Mencius, Great Learning, and Doctrine of the Mean

Zhu Xi & Thomas Aquinas

demonstrates that both Christian and Confucian scholars responded to challenge by INCORPORATING AND APPROPRIATING concepts/ideas/approaches from other schools of thought/belief systems/religions

- Aquinas responded to the challenges presented by the primary intellectual tradition by incorporation and appropriating its rational approach into Christian theology

- Zhu Xi responded to the challenges presented by Buddhism and Daoism by incorporating their cosmological and metaphysical conceptions into Confucian ideology/religion

· Aquinas's commentaries on the Old Testament and New Testament are similar to Xi's commentaries on Confucianism

Ming Taizu

Expelled the Mongols from China

founded the Ming dynasty, 2nd commoner to found a dynasty

ordered the construction of the Great Wall of China

Genghis Khan

founder of the Mongol Empire

although this is how we refer to him, this is actually not his name; it is his title meaning "universal ruler"

completed the conquest of the Jin Dynasty before his death

Kublai Khan

The conquest of China did not begin in earnest until after 1260 under Genghis Khan's grandson Kublai Khan, who became the Great Khan in 1260

It was Kublai Khan who conquered China and founded the Yuan Dynasty in 1279

Mongols hierarchy

The Mongols established an ethnic hierarchy similar to India's caste system in China under the Yuan Dynasty

Mongols > Mongol allies > northern Chinese > southern Chinese

(highest class > lowest class)

Ming Dynasty

Dynasty that succeeded Mongol Yuan dynasty in China in 1368; lasted until 1644; initially mounted huge trade expeditions to southern Asia and elsewhere, but later concentrated efforts on internal development within China.

Great Wall of China

it was a Ming-Dynasty project, and it was designed to prevent invasion by the Mongols and other nomadic peoples

Zheng He

Chinese admiral during the Ming Dynasty, he led great voyages that spread China's fame throughout Asia

Seven Voyages of Zheng He

They were not voyages of exploration in the Columbian sense

They were political and diplomatic in nature; they were not commercial or colonizing ventures

They demonstrated China's potential to develop maritime trade and become a maritime power

Significance : they represented a deviation from the established pattern of a fundamentally agricultural civilization

Jesuits

Also known as the Society of Jesus; founded by Ignatius Loyola (1491-1556) as a teaching and missionary order to resist the spread of Protestantism.

the Jesuits contributed to global transmission of Confucian knowledge

As a result of global transmission of knowledge on Confucianism, Chinese names Kongzi and Mongzi are spelled as Confucius and Mencius, respectively. In other words, the name "Confucius" and "Mencius" came from Jesuit missionaries; they are a Latinization of these Chinese names

Matteo Ricci

Portuguese Jesuit missionary who went to China, assimilated into Chinese culture and language and ran a Christian mission in China.

Why did the Jesuits fail to convert the vast majority of Chinese to Christianity?

This has to do with the exclusivity of Christianity: the belief that Christianity is the only true religion and that all other belief systems are fallacious creeds. To put it differently, conversion to Christianity would imply that Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism were inferior or even fallacious creeds

Manchus

Northeast Asian peoples who defeated the Ming Dynasty and founded the Qing Dynasty in 1644, which was the last of China's imperial dynasties. They moved their capital to Beijing & adopted Confucianism as their state ideology/ religion.

In the end, the Manchus became thoroughly assimilated by dominant Chinese culture, practices, and institutions

Manchuria

historic province in northeastern China; rich in natural resources

Qing Dynasty

(1644-1911 CE), the last imperial dynasty of China which was overthrown by revolutionaries; was ruled by the Manchu people: began to isolate themselves from Western culture,

Tribute System

Chinese method of dealing with foreign lands and people's that assumed the subordination of all non-Chinese authorities and required the payment of tribute --produce of value from their countries--to the Chinese emperor(although the Chinese gifts given in return were often much more valuable).

Suzerain

a nation that controls another nation in international relations but allows its domestic sovereignty

China sought to establish vassal like relations between them and other nations