LESSON 17

EAST ASIAN CIVILIZATION

REPORT OF: GROUP 2 (ARAL.PAN.)

Chinese literature abound with stories about ancient empires and emperors who were bearers of knowledge and skills used by men for their daily lives, like farming and weaving.
The earliest Chinese empire is said to be the Hsia Dynasty, but apart from literature, there is no proof of its existence.

THE SHANG DYNASTY

The second oldest empire.

ANYANG CITY

In the city of Anyang, located (80) miles from the Huang Ho or Yellow river, farmers stumbled on fragments of what they called dragon bones which were polished and bore markings.

The dragon bones were in fact bones of oxen, sheep, turtles, and other animals which were more than three thousand years old.

They were called oracle bones.

The diviners (probably priests) interpreted signs from gods and recorded the questions and answers on the bones, thus the term oracle bones. Chinese historians and scholars were able to read the writings on the bones, which is similar to modern-day Chinese script.

ORACLE BONE

THE CHOU DYNASTY

Thus, through the excavation of the city of Anyang, the Shang Dynasty is now considered as the first Chinese empire.
Archaeological excavations indicate that during the Shang Dynasty, the people used the wheel, wore silk and furs from animals which were hunted and later, domesticated. The emperors of the Shang Dynasty came from aristocratic families who were former military leaders.

The emperor ruled the kingdom like an authoritative father who decides on everything and whose word must be followed by everyone.
It is presumed that their soldiers were very efficient because the Dynasty lasted for a long time. The Dynasty had numerous enemies, most of them from the fringes of the kingdoms boundaries.

Human sacrifices was probably practiced; a dead Shang emperor was buried with his entire retinue.

The Shang people believed that upon his death, the emperor became a god deserving worship by the people.

The Chou period lasted for eight hundred sixty six (866) years, from 1122 B.C. to 256 B.C.

Aside from the huge territorial expansion, the Dynasty was known for the ideas that laid the foundations for a bureaucratic form of government. The Chou conquerors explained the reason for their supremacy as a mandate from heaven, a belief that became the center of Chinese political thought.

According to this belief, Heaven grants the emperor, the Son of Heaven, the right to rule as long as he behaves properly and virtuously.
When the emperor behaves otherwise, the mandate is withdrawn and the Heavens show this through a series of calamities and natural disasters.

Another person may then be chosen as a ruler.

The emperors duty was to ensure peace among the nobles and the maintenance of the entire kingdom.
In the latter part of the Chou Dynasty, the noblemen built more powerful kingdoms, and initiated wars among themselves. This created chaos in Chinese society.

Different thinkers attempted to restore peace and order by teaching their philosophies.

The most popular of all Chinese scholars is Confucius. According to him, harmony in society is attained only if the proper relationship between people is restored and properly observed.

An individual should respect his superiors and expect deference from those in the inferior rank.
According to Confucius, virtue is not given or inherited.

Virtue is attained through education, and anyone who wants to work for the government must work toward a proper education.
Confucius followers wrote down his teachings in the Five Classics and the Analects.

CONFUCIUS

Another philosopher, Lao Tzu, blamed society for the individuals behavior. According to his philosophy, the laws and traditions created by man forced the individual person to live contrary to the ways of nature, or the Tao, causing chaos in society.

LAO TZU

According to Han Fei Tzu, the leading proponent of the school is the Legalism, the most important element is the state, and the welfare of the individual person is subordinate to that of the state.

By 600 B.C, the power of the Chou Dynasty was over, but the legacies of the Shang and Chou Dynasties remain enduring traditions of the Chinese people.

HAN FEI TZU

Among these are the notion of the importance of the state, respect for elders and observance of family relations (ultimately traceable to ones ancestors), the system of writing, and an education based on values.

China may be vast, with various cultures, but these traditions unite the Chinese people wherever and in whatever time they are.

END OF OUR PRESENTATION