China

Confucianism Confucius 551-478 BCE Zhou Dynasty 1100-256 BCE 522 BCE begins to teach Zhou Dynasty 1100-256 BCE Mencius 372-289 BCE Golden Rule “Do not do unto others what you would not want others to do to you” Harmony and Balance Government chaotic under this philosophy Analects Philosophical system Five Relationships Ruler and ruled Parent and child Husband and wife Old and young Friend and friend Social harmony and good government [political virtue] would return if people lived according to principles of ethics After Confucius died in 479 BCE his teachings were collected in the “Analects” Provided the basis for the civil service system Believed in divine order but refused to speculate on it. Does not have a spiritual side to it Appealed to upper class who had the time and resources to pursue an education and participate in ceremony but elements spread beyond upper class—ritual, self-control, polite manners Discouraged the notion of temples soaring to the heavens Shaped Chinese society and government until the early 1900’s

Daoism 500’s BCE Laozi Harmony in nature Shunned politics Rejected formal social structures Renounce worldly ambitions Yin and Yang Helped Chinese accept Buddhist ideas brought by monks and traders from India Daoism 500’s BCE Laozi lived somewhere around the 500’s BCE—arose approx. the same time as Confuciansim Rejected the idea that the people must fill specific roles in society Focus on nature influenced arts—painting and poetry Spiritual alternative to Confucianism. Simplicity rather than Confucian formalism Yin and Yang=opposing forces in nature [warm, cool] Confucianism provided the pattern for government and one’s place in the social order, and Daoism emphasized harmony within the individual attuned to nature. Emphasis differed therefore people could be both.

Legalism Qin Dynasty—200’s BCE Beliefs Law is the supreme authority Humans by nature evil Need for strong government Law is the supreme authority Strengthen state at all costs Rejected Confucian idea of learning Strict laws Harsh punishments Favored by nobles Reflected in the harsh laws and punishments often inflicted on the peasants Pragmatic Authoritarian Disdained Confucianism