Chinese philosophy

Priest paying homage to Confucius's tablet, c. 1900

What Is Confucianism?

What Is Confucianism? Confucianism (儒家, rújiā, literally “The School of the Scholars“; or, less accurately, 孔教 kŏng jiào, “The Religion of Kong”) is an East Asian school of ethical, philosophical, and (more contentiously) religious thought originally developed from the teachings of the early Chinese sage Confucius (551 – 479 B.C.E.). As a school of thought, it...

The gates of the Temple of Confucius in Datong, Shanxi.

Confucianism Explained

Confucianism Explained By Confucianism is meant the complex system of moral, social, political, and religious teaching built up by Confucius on the ancient Chinese traditions, and perpetuated as the State religion down to the present day. Confucianism aims at making not simply the man of virtue, but the man of...

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Taijitu

Taijitu A taijitu (太极图; 太極圖;  tàijítú) is a symbol or diagram (图 tú) in Chinese philosophy representing Taiji (太极 tàijí “utmost extreme”) in both its monist (wuji) and its dualist (yin and yang) aspects. Such a diagram was first introduced by Song Dynasty philosopher Zhou Dunyi (周敦頤 1017–1073) in his Taijitu shuo (太極圖說). The modern Taoist canon, compiled during the Ming era, has at least half a dozen...

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Outline Of East Asian Religions

Outline Of East Asian Religions The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to East Asian Religions. The East Asian religions or Taoic religions form a subset of the Eastern religions. This group includes Chinese religion overall, which further includes ancestral worship, Chinese folk religion, Confucianism, Taoism and...

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Neijia

Neijia Neijia (内家) is a term in Chinese martial arts, grouping those styles that practice neijing, usually translated as internal martial arts, occupied with spiritual, mental or qi-related aspects, as opposed to an “external” approach focused on physiological aspects. The distinction dates to the 17th century, but its modern application is due to...

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Qi

Qi In traditional Chinese culture, Qi or ch’i (气; 氣; qì) is believed to be a vital force forming part of any living entity. Qi translates as “air” and figuratively as “material energy”, “life force”, or “energy flow“. Qi is the central underlying principle in Chinese traditional medicine and in Chinese martial arts. The practice of cultivating and...

Folk ritual masters conducting a ceremony.

De (Chinese)

De (Chinese) De (Chinese: 德), also written as Te, is a key concept in Chinese philosophy, usually translated “inherent character; inner power; integrity” in Taoism, “moral character; virtue; morality” in Confucianism and other contexts, and “quality; virtue” (guna) or “merit; virtuous deeds” (punya) in Chinese Buddhism. The word Chinese de 德 is an ancient and linguistically complex word. The...

Two women praying in front of a Japanese Shinto shrine.

East Asian Religions

East Asian Religions The East Asian religions or Taoic religions form a subset of the Eastern religions. This group includes Chinese religion overall, which further includes ancestral worship, Chinese folk religion, Confucianism, Taoism and so-called popular salvationist organisations (such as Yiguandao and Weixinism) as well as elements drawn from Mahayana Buddhism that form the core...

Xuanzang, Monkey King, and companions riding mythological turtle across a river as depicted on a Long Corridor mural, Beijing, China

Chinese Mythology

Chinese Mythology Chinese mythology (中國神話; Zhōngguó shénhuà) is a mythology that has been passed down in oral form or recorded in literature in the geographic area now known as “China”. Chinese mythology includes many varied myths from regional and cultural traditions. Chinese mythology is far from monolithic, not being an...

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Tian

Tian Tian (天; Tiān) is one of the oldest Chinese terms for heaven and a key concept in Chinese mythology, philosophy, and religion. During the Shang dynasty (17–11th centuries BCE), the Chinese referred to their supreme god as Shàngdì (上帝, “Lord on High”) or Dì (帝,”Lord”). During the following Zhou dynasty, Tiān became synonymous with this...

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Human Nature

Human Nature Human nature is a bundle of characteristics, including ways of thinking, feeling, and acting, which humans are said to have naturally. The term is often regarded as capturing what it is to be human, or the essence of humanity. The term is controversial because it is disputed whether or not...

Confucius, Philosopher of the Chinese, or, Chinese Knowledge Explained in Latin, compiled by Philippe Couplet and three other Jesuits and printed at Paris in 1687.

Chinese Rites Controversy

Chinese Rites Controversy The Chinese Rites controversy was a dispute among Roman Catholic missionaries over the religiosity of Confucianism and Chinese rituals during the 17th and 18th centuries. The debate centered over whether Chinese ritual practices of honoring family ancestors and other formal Confucian and Chinese imperial rites qualified as...

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Legalism In Chinese Philosophy

Legalism In Chinese Philosophy This article is about Legalism In Chinese Philosophy. Legalism or Fajia (法家; Fǎjiā) is one of Sima Tan‘s six classical schools of thought in Chinese philosophy. Literally meaning “house of administrative methods” or “standards” (fa), the “school” represents several branches of realist statesmen, or “men of methods” (法術之士; fǎshù zhī shì),...

Yin and Yang

Yin And Yang

Yin And Yang Yin and yang (陰陽 yīnyáng, “dark-bright”, “negative-positive”) is a concept of dualism in ancient Chinese philosophy, describing how seemingly opposite or contrary forces may actually be complementary, interconnected, and interdependent in the natural world, and how they may give rise to each other as they interrelate to one...

Confucius Quotes From The Analects

Confucius Quotes From The Analects

Confucius Quotes From The Analects This is a collection of Confucius quotes from The Analects to put his wisdom at your finger tips. Confucius was a Chinese thinker and social philosopher with a knack for nailing some big ideas for life. Enjoy these quotes by Confucius and may they serve you...

Confucius Quotes

Confucius Quotes

Confucius Quotes Confucius was a Chinese social philosopher, whose teachings deeply influenced East Asian life and thought. “Confucius” is a latinization of the Chinese 孔夫子, Kong Fu Zi or K’ung-fu-tzu, literally “Master Kong”, but he is usually referred to in China with a simpler version of this honorific as 孔子, Kongzi, or Kǒng Zǐ. See also: Confucius, Disciples of...

Chinese Sages and Immortals

Samples From Chinese Wisdom

Samples From Chinese Wisdom The following wise sayings of Chinese philosophers. are some samples from Chinese Wisdom. We have collected some wise sayings of Chinese philosophers. Enjoy reading these insights and feel free to share this page on your social media to inspire others. Lao Tzu said: Sometimes lead, sometimes...

In the picture they are the two grandmasters of the Shaolin Temple Shi DeRu (Shawn Xiangyang Liu) and Shi DeYang (Shi WanFeng) who are two decedent (or descendent?) disciples of the late Great Grand Master of the Shaolin Temple Shi SuXi (aka: His Holiness Upper Su and Lower Xi).

Tai Chi

What Is Tai Chi? Tai Chi is an ancient art with many of its fundamental principles reflecting ancient Chinese wisdom. Tai chi (太極; Tàijí), short for T’ai chi ch’üan or Tàijí quán (太極拳), is an internal Chinese martial art practiced for both its defense training, its health benefits and meditation. The term taiji is a Chinese...

Chinese philosopher Mozi (c. 470 BC – c. 391 BC)

Mohism

What is Mohism? Mohism or Moism (墨家; Mòjiā; literally: ‘School of Mo’) was an ancient Chinese philosophy of logic, rational thought and science developed by the academic scholars who studied under the ancient Chinese philosopher Mozi (c. 470 BC – c. 391 BC) and embodied in an eponymous book: the Mozi. It evolved at...

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Idealism

What Is Idealism? In philosophy, idealism is the group of metaphysical philosophies which assert that reality, or reality as humans can know it, is fundamentally mental, mentally constructed, or otherwise immaterial. Epistemologically, idealism manifests as a skepticism about the possibility of knowing any mind-independent thing. In contrast to materialism, idealism asserts...