An Introduction to Religion in China - Essay Example

Religions in China The people of China were residents of village areas in the pre-modern times. Uniquely they followed a shared culture which allowed them to be identifiable wherever they went. This was because the religious ideas and moral values were communicated to common people in a certain kind of way. Other reasons also come to play their part as well and they will be discusses later on (De et al 73). In China religion was something of a taboo because practicing any single faith was considered incorrect. It was more of a pluralistic society which was against allowing members to adhere to any organization. They were more practicing in their cultural customs and believed in following one particular family as a dynasty with its specific rules of living and policies of the state. Scholars still indulge in the argument about China having a religion or not from the time the country took its shape on the planet. Various terms which are now associated with legendary and traditional practices are considered to be the earliest form of value-drilling such as Buddhism and Confucianism, which help in understanding the culture of China even better (De et al 74). Starting with the teaching of Confucianism which goes back to the 551 BCE, one will observe that it was an attempt to revive the golden age. Kong Qui who came to be known as Confucius was inspired to follow the rituals of the ancient people. He exercised ethical force to make his dynasty follow the same rituals and make these practices common amongst the people. These practices included: i. Consciousness to do the right thing ii. Be loyal to the superiors iii. Be benevolent towards each other The rituals were known as “li” which, if practiced, largely affected the role of the individuals in the society and so did their status. Hence, the deities of worshipping were divided into various classes according to the level of peoples’ performance. Kong Qui was the sole transmitter of the social hierarchies and rituals who stood the weight of the revival of the ancient times. His teachings included the lessons included in the previous books and the people who followed him started associating the teachings as Confucianism. During the late imperial age, the performances in China were remarkably at their peak and elaborated with various local opera genre and solo performances. Since rituals had been the bedrock of Confucianism, during the time of Tang dynasty, theatricals of all kinds became eminent. For Father Evariste Hue, a European traveler who had lived in China for years exclaimed that China looks more like a fair for amusement of people (De et al 75). Countless works of literature depicted the Chinese tradition including “Mulian zhuan”. This opera is considered the best amongst other village performances. In 1929 a performance was recorded in the recital form which was organized and created by the Ding County’s experienced village actors in Hebei. The Ding County “yangge” was not a valuable evidence of popular culture. The themes of political righteousness and loyalty are absent while there is much farce and romance to discuss (De et al 104). Right after Kong Qui’s era or even during his time which came considered an overlapping of the phase, the concept of Daoism began to emerge. This was all about patience and seeing life as a whole despite all the chaos surrounding it. Those persons or hermits who had a connection with the previous teachings including Confucianism were asked to escape the civilization. This made Daoism the most complex tradition especially for the current times. As time passed and people became more accustomed to the modern world the government asked the people to establish temples for every community so that those who wanted to practice Daoism or the teachings of another tradition including Buddhism could do so with peace and strengthen their network (De et al 92). The teachings Buddha emerged next in line and were commonly known among the Chinese as Fojiao. Buddha is a name which meant enlightenment or the enlightened one, especially in the Sanskrit language. The teachings of Buddhism mainly focus on the impermanence of the self and the feeling of unsatisfactoriness from within about life in general. People learnt to liberate themselves from the feeling of pain and suffering through this teaching and learnt to struggle in life in order to transcend above the mundane. The traditions discussed above all summed up to represent the concept of spirituality which existed in China. The teachings of Confucians and Buddhism existed even prior to China’s engagement to the West. These popular traditions gradually became an exclusive family practice and no longer existed in one particular community at large in hope to reach the ancient deities and consider themselves more privileged (De et al 95). The State has always been the one controlling the religious practices in China. This seems to remain intact till the end of times although modernity does not seem to given up on its efforts as well. By doing this the state intends to have a political control over the Chinese by teaching them from the ancient rituals the practice of resistance and control over emotions by way of becoming a good citizen. China as a Communist State saw major restriction in religious practices especially in public places. This was the time period between the year 1950 and 1980. The situation gained normalcy since the 1980s when the new religious groups emerged in China only through registration under the Religious Affairs Bureau of the State Council. Hence Christianity, Islam. Buddhism was not just approved for practicing but the practitioners also had to abide by the principles of the state. The folk-religion remained intact despite the emergence of these religions especially among the natives who considered it their prestige and remained untouched even with the coming of the new dynasties. It is said that the future of the Chinese politics as well as religion is unpredictable. Some people however assure that Marxist-Leninism will be completely discarded. Chinese cannot seem to tolerate party dictatorship (De et al 555). In the later imperial era the tracts were published and distributed to educate the ordinary people how to behave. There was a great deal of difference between the political and cultural elite’s intention of educating the common people. It was according to what they felt right that they ordained the rules and this attitude is significant and prevails throughout the history of religion in China. There are some extraordinary narrations of the people of China which might be legendary but hold considerable depth in them. As time took its turn and modernity came to full swing the Europeans started taking great interest in the new lands and thus a new form of literature emerged which mainly dealt with travels. The early Sino-Western relations were based on the economic, cultural and racial superiority. Although the relationship was tensed on both the sides, they were still receptive and open to one another. The Jesuits were especially most impressed by the Chinese people and narrated this to the other Europeans who then began pouring in to the new land to take tours. The first ones to come were the Italian Jesuits (De et al 143). The values and beliefs of the ancient practices were so uniformed and structured that their traces can still be found. New Confucianism emerged through Mou Zongsan in the late twentieth century. He merged the previous teachings of this tradition with his own philosophical ideas (De et al 558). Nothing much can be said about the current policies of the State since the social tension will take time to evade. The core Chinese traditionalists might not be happy to see this change overcoming their nation so there is a possibility that they may react. This might not be good news for those seeking change and transformation. Some people claim the transformation unnecessary while the others consider it passage for a new opening in the limited mindsets of the people. It is remarkable to note that this cultural and political mingling in China was a turning point for the people of China who were initially hesitant to welcome outsiders in their domain of rituals. However the other religions found place in the community because of their gesture of fascination. They were soon welcomed by the common people and shared their literature to produce a new genre of entertainment. The West can learn a great deal from the East. The virtues and compassion of the Chinese people is noteworthy and their wisdom is out of this world. For China is particular “culture is an expression of a people’s spiritual life and the laws of nature all expression drains the energy of life” (De et al 557) Works Cited De, Bary W. T, and Richard J. Lufrano. “Popular Values and Beliefs” & “Chinese Response to Early Christian Contacts” Chapter 26 & 27 in Sources of Chinese Tradition: Vol. 2. New York: Columbia University Press, 2000. Print Read More