World Texts Reading Packet
Asian Religions
priapism is said to have resulted
in his castration and the
subsequent worship of his
disembodied phallus. In addition,
Shiva is said to have appeared on
earth in various human, animal,
and vegetable forms, establishing
his many local shrines.
Hinduism (India)
Brief Overview
Traditional religion of India, characterized by a philosophy
and a way of life rather than by a dogmatic structure. It was not
founded by an individual and has been developing gradually since
c.3000 BC absorbing external influences. There are several schools
within Hinduism, but all Hindus recognize the Vedas as sacred texts.
Dharma is the eternal moral law underpinning existence. Karma is
the law of cause of effect that energizes reincarnation. Liberation from
the cycle of suffering and rebirth (moksha) and a return to Brahman is
the chief aim in life. One of the features of Hindu society is the caste
system, but modern Hindu scholars maintain that it is not part of the
religion. The main Hindu gods are Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva (the
Trimurti). Popular deities include Krishna, Ganesh, Parvati,
Lakshmi, and Indra. Brahmanism, the early phase of Hinduism,
culminated in the classic texts of the Mahabharata (incorporating the
Bhagavad Gita) and the Ramayana (relating the adventures of
Rama). Today, there are c.800 million Hindus worldwide.
Major Gods & Goddesses
Although all Hindus acknowledge the existence and
importance of a number of gods and demigods, most individual
worshipers are primarily devoted to a single god or goddess, of
whom Shiva, Vishnu, and the Goddess are the most popular.
Shiva embodies the apparently contradictory aspects of a god
of ascetics and a god of the phallus. He is the deity of renouncers,
particularly of the many Shaiva sects that imitate him. Shiva is also
the deity whose phallus (linga) is the central shrine of all Shaiva
temples and the personal shrine of all Shaiva householders; his
Vishnu is worshiped as a
pervading god (supreme to his
worshipers), the god from whose
navel a lotus sprang, giving birth
to the creator (Brahma). Vishnu
Shiva
created the universe by separating heaven
and earth and rescued it on numerous
subsequent occasions. He is also
worshiped in the form of a number of
"descents"—avatars or, roughly,
incarnations. Several of these are animals
that recur in iconography: the fish, the
tortoise, and the boar. Others are the
dwarf (Vamana, who became a giant in
order to trick the demon Bali out of the
entire universe); the man-lion
(Narasimha, who disemboweled the
demon Hiranyakashipu); the Buddha
(who became incarnate in order to teach a
Vishnu
false doctrine to the pious demons); Rama-with-an-Axe
(Parashurama, who beheaded his unchaste mother and destroyed the
entire class of Kshatriyas to avenge his father); and Kalki (the rider on
the white horse, who will come to destroy the universe at the end of
the age of Kali). Most popular by far are Rama (hero of the Ramayana)
and Krishna (hero of the Mahabharata and the Bhagavata-Purana), both
of whom are said to be avatars of Vishnu, although they were
originally human heroes.
Along with these two
great male gods, several
goddesses are the object of
primary devotion. They are
sometimes said to be various
aspects of the Goddess, Devi. In
some myths Devi is the prime
mover, who commands the male
gods to do the work of creation
and destruction. As Durga, the
Unapproachable, she kills the
buffalo demon Mahisha in a
great battle; as Kali, the Black,
she dances in a mad frenzy on
goddess in her own right; and Parvati, the wife of Shiva and the
daughter of the mountain Himalaya. The great river goddess Ganga
(the Ganges), also worshiped alone, is said to be a wife of Shiva, and a
goddess of music and literature, Sarasvati, associated with the
Saraswati River, is the wife of Brahma. Many of the local goddesses of
India--Manasha, the goddess of snakes, in Bengal, and Minakshi in
Madurai--are married to Hindu gods, while others, such as Shitala,
goddess of smallpox, are worshiped alone. These unmarried
goddesses are feared for their untamed powers and angry,
unpredictable outbursts.
Many minor gods are
assimilated into the central
pantheon by being identified
with the great gods or with
their children and friends.
Hanuman, the monkey god,
appears in the Ramayana as the
cunning assistant of Rama in
the siege of Lanka. Skanda, the
general of the army of the gods,
is the son of Shiva and Parvati,
as is Ganesha, the elephantheaded god of scribes and
merchants, the remover of
obstacles, and the object of
Devi
the corpses of those she has slain
and eaten, adorned with the still-dripping skulls and severed hands
of her victims. The Goddess is also worshiped by the Shaktas,
devotees of Shakti, the female power. This sect arose in the medieval
period along with the Tantrists, whose esoteric ceremonies involved a
black mass in which such forbidden substances as meat, fish, and
wine were eaten and forbidden sexual acts were performed ritually.
In many Tantric cults the Goddess is identified as Krishna's consort
Radha.
More peaceful aspects of the Goddess appear as wives of the
great gods: Lakshmi, the meek, docile wife of Vishnu and a fertility
Rama Getting Crowned with Sita
worship at the beginning of any
important enterprise.
Principle Texts & Stories
The ultimate canonical authority for all Hindus is the Vedas.
The oldest of the four Vedas is the Rig-Veda, which was composed in
an ancient form of the Sanskrit language in northwest India. This text,
probably composed between 1300 and 1000 BC and consisting of 1028
hymns to a pantheon of gods, has been memorized syllable by
syllable and preserved orally to the
present day. The Rig-Veda was
supplemented by two other Vedas,
the Yajur-Veda (the textbook for
sacrifice) and the Sama-Veda (the
hymnal). A fourth book, the AtharvaVeda (a collection of magic spells), was
probably added about 900 BC. At this
time, too, the Brahmanas, lengthy
Sanskrit texts expounding the priests'
ritual and the myths behind it, were
composed. Beginning about 600 BC,
the Upanishads were composed; these
are mystical-philosophical
Hanuman
meditations on the meaning of
existence and the nature of the universe.
The Vedas (including the Brahmanas and the Upanishads) are
regarded as revealed canon (shruti, "what has been heard [from the
gods]"), and no syllable can be changed. The actual content of this
canon, however, is unknown to most Hindus. The practical
compendium of Hinduism is
contained in the Smriti, or "what is
remembered," which is also orally
preserved. No prohibition is made,
however, against improvising
variations on, rewording, or
challenging the Smriti. The Smriti
includes the two great Sanskrit epics,
the Mahabharata and the Ramayana;
the many Sanskrit Puranas, including
18 great Puranas and several dozen
more subordinate Puranas; and the
many Dharmashastras and
Ganesha
Dharmasutras (textbooks
on sacred law), of which
the one attributed to the
sage Manu is the most
frequently cited.
The two epics are
built on central stories.
The Mahabharata tells of
the war between the
Pandava brothers, led by
their cousin Krishna, and
their cousins the
Kauravas. The Ramayana
tells of the journey of
Rama to recapture his
wife Sita after she is
stolen by the demon
Ravana. But these stories
are embedded in a rich
corpus of other tales and
discourses on
Krishna and Rhana
philosophy, law,
geography, political science, and astronomy, so that the Mahabharata
(about 200,000 lines long) is a kind of encyclopedia or even a
literature, and the Ramayana (over 50,000 lines long) is hardly less.
Although it is therefore impossible to fix their dates, the main bodies
of the Mahabharata and the Ramayana were probably composed
between 300 BC and AD 300. Both, however, continued to grow even
after they were translated into the vernacular languages of India (such
as Tamil and Hindi) in the medieval period.
The Puranas were composed after the epics, and several of
them expand on themes found in the epics (for instance, the
Bhagavata-Purana describes the childhood of Krishna, a topic not
elaborated in the Mahabharata). The Puranas also include subsidiary
myths, hymns of praise, philosophies, iconography, and rituals. Most
of the Puranas are predominantly sectarian in nature; the great
Puranas (and some subordinate Puranas) are dedicated to the
worship of Shiva or Vishnu or the Goddess, and several subordinate
Puranas are devoted to Ganesha or Skanda or the sun. In addition,
they all contain much nonsectarian material, probably of earlier
origin, such as the "five marks," or topics (panchalakshana), of the
Puranas: the creation of the universe, the destruction and re-creation
of the universe, the dynasties of the solar and lunar gods, the
genealogy of the gods and holy sages, and the ages of the founding
fathers of humankind (the Manus).
Worship & Ritual
The great and lesser Hindu gods are worshiped in a number of
concentric circles of public and private devotion. Because of the social
basis of Hinduism, the most fundamental ceremonies for every Hindu
are those that involve the rites of passage (samskaras). These begin
with birth and the first time the child eats solid food (rice). Later rites
include the first haircutting (for a young boy) and the purification
after the first menstruation (for a girl); marriage; and the blessings
upon a pregnancy, to produce a
male child and to ensure a
successful delivery and the
child's survival of the first six
dangerous days after birth (the
concern of Shashti, goddess of
Six). Last are the funeral
ceremonies (cremation and, if
possible, the sprinkling of ashes
in a holy river such as the
Ganges) and the yearly offerings
to dead ancestors. The most
notable of the latter is the pinda,
a ball of rice and sesame seeds
given by the eldest male child so
Hindu Shrine
that the ghost of his father may pass from limbo into rebirth.
In daily ritual, a Hindu (generally the wife, who is thought to
have more power to intercede with the gods) makes offerings (puja) of
fruit or flowers before a small shrine in the house. She also makes
offerings to local snakes or trees or obscure spirits (benevolent and
malevolent) dwelling in her own garden or at crossroads or other
magical places in the village. Many villages, and all sizable towns,
have temples, where priests perform ceremonies throughout the day:
sunrise prayers and noises to awaken the god within the holy of
holies (the garbagriha, or "womb-house"); bathing, clothing, and
fanning the god; feeding the god and distributing the remains of the
food (prasada) to worshipers. The temple is also a cultural center
where songs are sung, holy texts read aloud (in Sanskrit and
vernaculars), and sunset rituals performed; devout laity may be
present at most of these ceremonies. In many temples, particularly
those sacred to goddesses (such as the Kalighat temple to Kali, in
Calcutta), goats are sacrificed on special occasions. The sacrifice is
often carried out by a special low-caste priest outside the bounds of
the temple itself. Thousands of simple local temples exist; each may
be nothing more than a small stone box enclosing a formless effigy
swathed in cloth, or a slightly more imposing edifice with a small
tank in which to bathe. In addition, India has many temples of great
size as well as complex temple cities, some hewn out of caves (such as
Elephanta and Ellora), some formed of great monolithic slabs (such as
those at Mahabalipuram), some built of imported and elaborately
carved stone slabs (such as the temples at Khajuraho, Bhubaneswar,
Madurai, and Kanjeevaram). On special days, usually once a year, the
image of the god is taken from its central shrine and paraded around
the temple complex on a magnificently carved wooden chariot (ratha).
Many holy places or shrines (tirthas, literally "fords"), such as
Rishikesh in the Himalaya or Benares on the Ganges, are the objects of
pilgrimages from all over India; others are essentially local shrines.
Certain shrines are most frequently visited at special yearly festivals.
For example, Prayaga, where the Ganges and Yamuna rivers join at
Allahabad, is always sacred, but it is crowded with pilgrims during
the Kumbha Mela festival each January and overwhelmed by the
millions who come to the special ceremony held every 12 years. In
Bengal, the goddess Durga's visit to her family and return to her
husband Shiva are celebrated every year at Durgapuja, when images
of the goddess are created out of papier-mâché, worshiped for ten
days, and then cast into the Ganges in a dramatic midnight ceremony
ringing with drums and glowing with candles. Some festivals are
celebrated throughout India: Dewali, the festival of lights in early
winter; and Holi, the spring carnival, when members of all castes
mingle and let down their hair, sprinkling one another with cascades
of red powder and liquid, symbolic of the blood that was probably
used in past centuries.
Buddhism (India & China)
Brief Overview
Religion and philosophy founded (c.528 BC) in India by
Gautama Siddhartha, the Buddha. Buddhism is based on Four Noble
Truths: existence is suffering; the cause of suffering is desire; the end
of suffering comes with the achievement of Nirvana, and Nirvana is
attained through the Eightfold Path: right views, right resolve, right
speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness
and right concentration. There are no gods in Buddhism. Karma, one
of Buddhism's most important concepts, says good actions are
rewarded and evil ones are punished, either in this life or throughout
a long series of lives resulting from samsara, the cycle of death and
rebirth by reincarnation. The achievement of nirvana breaks the cycle.
Buddhism is a worldwide religion. Its main divisions are Theravada,
or Hinayana, in SE Asia; Mahayana in N Asia; Lamaism or Tibetan
Buddhism in Tibet; and Zen in Japan. Today, there are c.300 million
Buddhists worldwide.
Buddhism today is divided into two major branches known to their
respective followers as Theravada, the Way of the Elders, and
Mahayana, the Great Vehicle.
Buddha
No complete
biography of the Buddha
was compiled until
centuries after his death;
only fragmentary accounts
of his life are found in the
earliest sources. Western
scholars, however, generally
agree on 563 BC as the year
of his birth.
Siddhartha
Gautama, the Buddha, was
Buddha
born in Kapilavastu near the
present Indian-Nepal border, the son of the ruler of a petty kingdom.
According to legend, at his birth sages recognized in him the marks of
a great man with the potential to become either a sage or the ruler of
an empire. The young prince was raised in sheltered luxury, until at
the age of 29 he realized how empty his life to this point had been.
Renouncing earthly attachments, he embarked on a quest for peace
and enlightenment, seeking release from the cycle of rebirths. For the
next few years he practiced Yoga and adopted a life of radical
asceticism.
Eventually he gave up this approach as fruitless and instead
adopted a middle path between the life of indulgence and that of selfdenial. Sitting under a bo tree, he meditated, rising through a series of
higher states of consciousness until he attained the enlightenment for
which he had been searching. Once having known this ultimate
religious truth, the Buddha underwent a period of intense inner
struggle. He began to preach, wandering from place to place,
gathering a body of disciples, and organizing them into a monastic
community known as the sangha. In this way he spent the rest of his
life.
Principle Texts & Stories
The Buddha was an oral teacher; he left no written body of
thought. His beliefs were codified by later followers.
The Buddhist canon is known as the Tripitaka, or Three
Baskets, because it consists of three collections of writings: the Sutra
Pitaka, a collection of discourses; the Vinaya Pitaka, the code of
monastic discipline; and the Abhidharma Pitaka, which contains
philosophical, psychological, and doctrinal discussions and
classifications.
The Sutra Pitaka is primarily composed of dialogues between
the Buddha and other people. It consists of five groups of texts: Digha
Nikaya (Collection of Long Discourses), Majjhima Nikaya (Collection
of Medium-Length Discourses), Samyutta Nikaya (Collection of
Grouped Discourses), Anguttara Nikaya (Collection of Discourses on
Numbered Topics), and Khuddaka Nikaya (Collection of
Miscellaneous Texts). In the fifth group, the Jatakas, comprising
stories of former lives of the Buddha, and the Dhammapada
(Religious Sentences), a summary of the Buddha's teachings on
mental discipline and morality, are especially popular.
The Vinaya Pitaka consists of more than 225 rules governing
the conduct of Buddhist monks and nuns. Each is accompanied by a
story explaining the original reason for the rule. The rules are
arranged according to the seriousness of the offense resulting from
their violation.
The Abhidharma Pitaka consists of seven separate works.
They include detailed classifications of psychological phenomena,
metaphysical analysis, and a thesaurus of technical vocabulary.
Although technically authoritative, the texts in this collection have
little influence on the lay Buddhist. The complete canon, much
expanded, also exists in Tibetan and Chinese versions.
Core Beliefs
The Four Noble Truths
At the core of the Buddha's enlightenment was the realization
of the Four Noble Truths: (1) Life is suffering. This is more than a
mere recognition of the presence of suffering in existence. It is a
statement that, in its very nature, human existence is essentially
painful from the moment of birth to the moment of death. Even death
brings no relief, for the Buddha accepted the Hindu idea of life as
cyclical, with death leading to further rebirth. (2) All suffering is
caused by ignorance of the nature of reality and the craving,
attachment, and grasping that result from such ignorance. (3)
Suffering can be ended by overcoming ignorance and attachment. (4)
The path to the suppression of suffering is the Noble Eightfold Path,
which consists of right views, right intention, right speech, right
action, right livelihood, right effort, right-mindedness, and right
contemplation. These eight are usually divided into three categories
that form the cornerstone of Buddhist faith: morality, wisdom, and
samadhi, or concentration.
Karma
Closely related to this belief is the doctrine of karma. Karma
consists of a person's acts and their ethical consequences. Human
actions lead to rebirth, wherein good deeds are inevitably rewarded
and evil deeds punished. Thus, neither undeserved pleasure nor
unwarranted suffering exists in the world, but rather a universal
justice. The karmic process operates through a kind of natural moral
law rather than through a system of divine judgment. One's karma
determines such matters as one's species, beauty, intelligence,
longevity, wealth, and social status. According to the Buddha, karma
of varying types can lead to rebirth as a human, an animal, a hungry
ghost, a denizen of hell, or even one of the Hindu gods.
Although never actually denying the existence of the gods,
Buddhism denies them any special role. Their lives in heaven are long
and pleasurable, but they are in the same predicament as other
creatures, being subject eventually to death and further rebirth in
lower states of existence. They are not creators of the universe or in
control of human destiny, and Buddhism denies the value of prayer
and sacrifice to them. Of the possible modes of rebirth, human
existence is preferable, because the deities are so engrossed in their
own pleasures that they lose sight of the need for salvation.
Enlightenment is possible only for humans.
Nirvana
The ultimate goal of the Buddhist path is release from the
round of phenomenal existence with its inherent suffering. To achieve
this goal is to attain nirvana, an enlightened state in which the fires of
greed, hatred, and ignorance have been quenched. Not to be confused
with total annihilation, nirvana is a state of consciousness beyond
definition. After attaining nirvana, the enlightened individual may
continue to live, burning off any remaining karma until a state of final
nirvana (parinirvana) is attained at the moment of death.
In theory, the goal of nirvana is attainable by anyone, although
it is a realistic goal only for members of the monastic community. In
Theravada Buddhism an individual who has achieved enlightenment
by following the Eightfold Path is known as an arhat, or worthy one, a
type of solitary saint.
For those unable to pursue the ultimate goal, the proximate
goal of better rebirth through improved karma is an option. This
lesser goal is generally pursued by lay Buddhists in the hope that it
will eventually lead to a life in which they are capable of pursuing
final enlightenment as members of the sangha.
The ethic that leads to nirvana is detached and inner-oriented.
It involves cultivating four virtuous attitudes, known as the Palaces of
Brahma: loving-kindness, compassion, sympathetic joy, and
equanimity. The ethic that leads to better rebirth, however, is centered
on fulfilling one's duties to society. It involves acts of charity,
especially support of the sangha, as well as observance of the five
precepts that constitute the basic moral code of Buddhism. The
precepts prohibit killing, stealing, harmful language, sexual
misbehavior, and the use of intoxicants. By observing these precepts,
the three roots of evil--lust, hatred, and delusion--may be overcome.
Daoism (China)
Brief Overview
Chinese philosophy and religion considered as being next to
Confucianism in importance. Whereas Confucianism sought the full
development of human beings through moral education and the
establishment of an orderly graded society, Taoism sought to preserve
human life by following the Way of Nature (Tao) and by reverting to
primitive agrarian communities and a government of extreme laissezfaire. Taoism attempted to bring the individual into perfect harmony
with nature through a mystical union with the Tao.
Taoist philosophy is traced to a 6th-century BC classic of Lao
Tzu, the Tao Te Ching. The recurrent theme of this work is the Tao
(way or path). To follow the Tao is to follow the path leading to selfrealization. Te (virtue) and ch'i (energy) represent the goal of
effortless action. Taoist ethics emphasize patience, simplicity, and the
harmony of nature, achieved through the proper balance of yin and
yang (male and female principles). As a religion, Taoism dates from
the time of Chang Tao-ling, who organized a group of followers in
AD 142.
Major Gods & Goddesses
Religious Taoism is generally considered to be polytheistic. Its
many deities, although unified by the idea and practice of Tao, are
oftentimes pictured as part of a heavenly hierarchy that mirrors the
bureaucracy of Imperial China. According to the beliefs of Religious
Taoism, Chinese deities may be promoted or demoted for their
actions. Some deities are also simply exalted humans, such as Guan
Yu, the god of honor and piety. The particular deities worshipped
vary according to geographical regions and historical periods in
China, though the general pattern of worship is more constant.
There are disagreements
regarding the proper composition of
this pantheon. Popular Taoism
typically presents the Jade Emperor
as the official head deity. Intellectual
("elite") Taoists, such as the Celestial
Masters sect, usually present Laozi
(Laojun, "Lord Lao") and the Three
Pure Ones at the top of the pantheon
of deities.
While a number of immortals
or other mysterious figures appear in
the Zhuangzi, and to a lesser extent in
the Tao Te Ching, these have
generally not become the objects of
worship. Traditional conceptions of
Jade Emperor
Tao are not to be confused with the
Western concepts of theism and monotheism. Being one with the Tao
does not indicate a union with an eternal spirit in the Hindu sense,
but rather living in accordance with nature.
Principle Texts & Stories
The Tao Te Ching, or Daodejing, is widely considered to be the
most influential Taoist text. It is a foundational scripture of central
importance in Taoism. It has been used as a ritual text throughout the
history of religious Taoism. However, the precise date that it was
written is the subject of debate: there are those who put it anywhere
from the 6th century BC to the 3rd century BC.
Taoist commentators have deeply considered the opening
lines of the Tao Te Ching. They are widely discussed in both academic
and mainstream literature. A common interpretation is similar to
Korzybski's observation that "the map is not the territory". The
opening lines are:
"The Way that can be described is not the true Way.
The Name that can be named is not the constant Name."
Tao literally means "path" or "way" and can figuratively mean
"essential nature", "destiny", "principle", or "true path". The
philosophical and religious "Tao" is infinite, without limitation. One
view states that the paradoxical opening is intended to prepare the
reader for teachings about the unteachable Tao. Tao is believed to be
transcendent, indistinct and without form. Hence, it cannot be named
or categorized. Even the word "Tao" can be considered a dangerous
temptation to make Tao a limiting "name".
The Tao Te Ching is not thematically ordered. However, the
main themes of the text are repeatedly expressed using variant
formulations, often with only a slight difference. The leading themes
revolve around the nature of Tao and how to attain it. Tao is said to
be unnameable and accomplishing great things through small means.
There is significant debate regarding which English translation of the
Tao Te Ching is preferred, and which particular translation
methodology is best. Discussions and disputes about various
translations of the Tao Te Ching can become acrimonious, involving
deeply entrenched views.
Ancient commentaries on the Tao Te Ching are important
texts in their own right. The Heshang Gong commentary was most
likely written in the second century AD, and as perhaps the oldest
commentary, contains the edition of the Tao Te Ching that was
transmitted to the present day. Other important commentaries
include the Xiang'er, one of the most important texts from the Way of
the Celestial Masters, and Wang Bi's commentary.
Core Beliefs
Taoism has never been a unified religion, but has rather
consisted of numerous teachings based on various revelations.
Therefore, different branches of Taoism often have very distinct
beliefs. Nevertheless, there are certain core beliefs that nearly all the
schools share.
Taoist theology emphasizes various themes found in the
Daodejing and Zhuangzi, such as naturalness, vitality, peace, "nonaction" (wu wei), emptiness (refinement), detachment, flexibility,
receptiveness, spontaneity, the relativism of human ways of life, ways
of speaking and guiding behavior.
The ethical ideal of the Tao Te Ching is to recompense injury with
kindness and achieve a quiet, restful, humble simplicity in living. The
teachings of early Taoism center around the following themes:
The basic unity behind the universe is a mysterious and
undefinable force called the Tao. Tao produces all things and
all things go back to their common origin and blend into one.
Absolute truth and absolute good are unknowable.
Life is the greatest of all possessions. The chief aim of human
existence is to attain fullness of life by attunement with the
Tao. When man seeks his own plan rather than the eternal plan
of the great Tao, he precipates ills, suffering, and evil.
Live in primitive simplicity. Leave all things take their natural
course. Education, wealth, power, and family ties are worthless
impediments to living. The sage can know the whole world
without going out of his door. The further one travels, the less
one knows. The Tao is characterized by its quietude of power,
its production without possession, action without self-assertion,
development without domination. "Aim at extreme
disinterestedness and maintain the utmost possible calm ...
There is no guilt greater than to sanction ambition ... Only quiet
non-striving is successful." Kindness, sincerity, and humility
should be cultivated.
Pomp and glory are to be despised. The tree which stands
higher than its neighbors is the first to be felled by the
woodsman. The weak and humble overcome the strong and
proud. The highest goodness is like water, it seeks the lower
levels; therefore it is near to Tao. The least government is the
best government. Weapons are instruments of ill omen; he who
has Tao will have nothing to do with them.
Wu wei is a central concept in Taoism. The literal meaning of
wu wei is "without action". It is often expressed by the paradox wei wu
wei, meaning "action through inaction". The practice and efficacy of
wu wei are fundamental in Taoist thought, most prominently
emphasized in Taoism. The goal of wu wei is alignment with Tao,
revealing the soft and invisible power within all things. It is believed
by Taoists that masters of wu wei can observe and follow this
invisible potential, the innate in-action of the Way.
In ancient Taoist texts, wu wei is associated with water
through its yielding nature. Water is soft and weak, but it can move
earth and carve stone. Taoist philosophy proposes that the universe
works harmoniously according to its own ways. When someone
exerts his will against the world, he disrupts that harmony. Taoism
does not identify man's will as the root problem. Rather, it asserts that
man must place his will in harmony with the natural universe.
Pu is translated "uncarved block," "unhewn log," or
"simplicity." It is a metaphor for the state of wu wei and the principle
of jian. It represents a passive state of receptiveness. Pu is a symbol
for a state of pure potential and perception without prejudice. In this
state, Taoists believe everything is seen as it is, without
preconceptions or illusion.
Pu is usually seen as keeping oneself in the primordial state of
tao. It is believed to be the true nature of the mind, unburdened by
knowledge or experiences. In the state of pu, there is no right or
wrong, beautiful or ugly. There is only pure experience, or awareness,
free from learned labels and definitions. It is this state of being that is
the goal of following wu wei.
Taoists believe that man is a microcosm for the universe. The
body ties directly into the Chinese five elements. The five organs
correlate with the five elements, the five directions and the seasons.
Akin to the Hermetic maxim of "as above, so below", Taoism posits
that man may gain knowledge of the universe by understanding
himself.
In Taoism, even beyond Chinese folk religion, various rituals,
exercises, and substances are said to positively affect one's physical
and mental health. They are also intended to align oneself spiritually
with cosmic forces, or enable ecstatic spiritual journeys. These
concepts seem basic to Taoism in its elite forms. Internal alchemy and
various spiritual practices are used by some Taoists to improve health
and extend life, theoretically even to the point of physical
immortality.
Confucianism (China)
Brief Overview
Philosophy that dominated China until the early 20th century
and still has many followers, mainly in Asia. It is based on the
Analects, sayings attributed to Confucius (551–479 BC). Strictly an
ethical system to ensure a smooth-running society, it gradually
acquired quasi-religious characteristics. Confucianism views man as
potentially the most perfect form of li, the ultimate embodiment of
good. It stresses the responsibility of sovereign to subject, of family
members to one other, and of friend to friend.
Principle Texts & Stories
The principles of Confucianism are contained in the nine
ancient Chinese works handed down by Confucius and his followers,
who lived in an age of great philosophic activity. These writings can
be divided into two groups: the Five Classics and the Four Books.
The Wu Ching (Five Classics), which originated before the time
of Confucius, consist of the I Ching (Book of Changes), Shu Ching
(Book of History), Shih Ching (Book of Poetry), Li Chi (Book of Rites),
and Ch'un Ch'iu (Spring and Autumn Annals). The I Ching is a
manual of divination probably
compiled before the 11th century
BC; its supplementary
philosophical portion, contained
in a series of appendixes, may
have been written later by
Confucius and his disciples. The
Shu Ching is a collection of ancient
historical documents, and the Shih
Ching, an anthology of ancient
poems. The Li Chi deals with the
principles of conduct, including
those for public and private
ceremonies; it was destroyed in
the 3d century BC, but presumably
much of its material was preserved
in a later compilation, the Record of
Rites. The Ch'un Ch'iu, the only work reputedly compiled by
Confucius himself, is a chronicle of major historical events in feudal
China from the 8th century BC to Confucius's death early in the 5th
century BC.
The Shih Shu (Four Books), compilations of the sayings of
Confucius and Mencius and of commentaries by followers on their
teachings, are the Lun Yü (Analects), a collection of maxims by
Confucius that form the basis of his moral and political philosophy;
Confucius
Major Gods & Goddesses
Chinese scholars honored Confucius as a great teacher and
sage but did not worship him as a personal god. Nor did Confucius
himself ever claim divinity. Unlike Christian churches, the temples
built to Confucius were not places in which organized community
groups gathered to worship, but public edifices designed for annual
ceremonies, especially on the philosopher's birthday. Several attempts
to deify Confucius and to proselyte Confucianism failed because of
the essentially secular nature of the philosophy.
Ta Hsüeh (The Great Learning) and Chung Yung (The Doctrine of the
Mean), containing some of Confucius's philosophical utterances
arranged systematically with comments and expositions by his
disciples; and the Mencius (Book of Mencius), containing the teachings
of one of Confucius's great followers.
“An Introduction to Confucianism.” Web. 24 Jun 2009.
<http://urantiabook.org/archive/readers/601_confucianism.htm>.
Core Beliefs
"Buddhism." Encyclopedia. Reproduced in World News Digest. Facts
On File News Services. Web. 23 June 2009.
Although Confucianism became the official ideology of the
Chinese state, it has never existed as an established religion with a
church and priesthood.
Li (social propriety) is the greatest principle of living. When
society lives by li it moves smoothly. Confucius saw the embodiment
of this society in the idealized form of feudalistic government,
illustrated by the Five Relationships: kindness in the father, filial piety
in the son; gentility in the eldest brother, humility and respect in the
younger; righteousness behavior in the husband, obedience in the
wife; humane consideration in elders, deference in juniors;
benevolence in rulers, loyalty in ministers and subjects. Li may also
refer to the "middle way" in all things.
Just as li is the outward expression of the superior man, jen
(goodness, humaneness, love) is the inner ideal. Confucius taught that
men should love one another and practice respect and courtesy. If li
and jen were operative in a person, the end product would be the
Confucian goal: the superior man. Confucius believed in the natural
goodness or at least the natural perfectibility of man. He stressed
government by virtue (Te) and the arts of peace (Wen). Since filial
piety is the root of all virtue this concern for parental respect is seen in
the veneration of age and ancestor worship. Confucius was a
pragmatic man who thought one should respect the spirits but keep
them at a distance.
“An Introduction to Taoism.” Web. 24 Jun 2009.
<http://urantiabook.org/archive/readers/601_taoism.htm>.
"Buddhism" World Encyclopedia. Philip's, 2008. Oxford Reference
Online. Oxford University Press. Saint Mary's College of
California. Web. 24 June 2009.
"Confucianism." Encyclopedia. Reproduced in World News Digest.
Facts On File News Services. Web. 23 June 2009.
"Confucianism" World Encyclopedia. Philip's, 2008. Oxford Reference
Online. Oxford University Press. Saint Mary's College of
California. Web. 24 June 2009.
"Hinduism." Encyclopedia. Reproduced in World News Digest. Facts
On File News Services. Web. 24 June 2009.
"Hinduism" World Encyclopedia. Philip's, 2008. Oxford Reference Online.
Oxford University Press. Saint Mary's College of California. Web.
24 June 2009.
"Taoism." Encyclopedia. Reproduced in World News Digest. Facts
On File News Services. Web. 23 June 2009.
"Taoism." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Web. 24 Jun 2009.
Works Cited
Note: All of the above text was copied from the following sources.
"Taoism" World Encyclopedia. Philip's, 2008. Oxford Reference Online.
Oxford University Press. Saint Mary's College of California. Web.
24 June 2009.