Unity of Heaven and humanity () is an ancient

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

philosophical Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...

concept that is found common across all Chinese religions and philosophies. The basic idea is that

societal A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Societ ...

phenomena such as

physiology Physiology (; ) is the scientific study of functions and mechanisms in a living system. As a sub-discipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ systems, individual organs, cells, and biomolecules carry out the chemical ...

ethics Ethics or moral philosophy is a branch of philosophy that "involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior".''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' The field of ethics, along with aesthetics, concer ...

, and

politics Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that stud ...

of humanity are direct reflections of ''

Tian ''Tiān'' () is one of the oldest Chinese terms for heaven and a key concept in Chinese mythology, philosophy, and religion. During the Shang dynasty (17th―11th century BCE), the Chinese referred to their supreme god as '' Shàngdì'' (, "Lor ...

'', "heaven" or "nature."

History

The idea finds its origins in ancient Chinese religion, in which humans were possessed by spirits and in a trance. This early shamanistic experience can still be found in forms of present-day

Chinese folk religion Chinese folk religion, also known as Chinese popular religion comprehends a range of traditional religious practices of Han Chinese, including the Chinese diaspora. Vivienne Wee described it as "an empty bowl, which can variously be filled ...

. The notion was discussed as early as the Spring and Autumn Warring States period, but was later elaborated within

Confucianism Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China. Variously described as tradition, a philosophy, a religion, a humanistic or rationalistic religion, a way of governing, or a ...

Daoism Taoism (, ) or Daoism () refers to either a school of philosophical thought (道家; ''daojia'') or to a religion (道教; ''daojiao''), both of which share ideas and concepts of Chinese origin and emphasize living in harmony with the ''Tao'' ...

, and

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religions, Indian religion or Indian philosophy#Buddhist philosophy, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha. ...

Confucianism

It was cited by Dong Zhongshu in the Han Dynasty as heaven and mankind induction, and by Cheng-Zhu school of

Neo-Confucianism Neo-Confucianism (, often shortened to ''lǐxué'' 理學, literally "School of Principle") is a moral, ethical, and metaphysical Chinese philosophy influenced by Confucianism, and originated with Han Yu (768–824) and Li Ao (772–841) in t ...

is derived from the theory of the Divine Principle.

Daoism

, ''

'' or "Heaven" is nature, and humanity is a part of nature, as the saying goes: "If there is man, there is also heaven; if there is heaven, there is also heaven. "Heaven and earth are born with me, and all things are one with me" (

Zhuangzi Zhuangzi may refer to: * ''Zhuangzi'' (book) (莊子), an ancient Chinese collection of anecdotes and fables, one of the foundational texts of Daoism **Zhuang Zhou Zhuang Zhou (), commonly known as Zhuangzi (; ; literally "Master Zhuang"; als ...

Chinese medicine

The

traditional Chinese medicine Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is an alternative medical practice drawn from traditional medicine in China. It has been described as "fraught with pseudoscience", with the majority of its treatments having no logical mechanism of acti ...

text ''

Huangdi Neijing ''Huangdi Neijing'' (), literally the ''Inner Canon of the Yellow Emperor'' or ''Esoteric Scripture of the Yellow Emperor'', is an ancient Chinese medical text or group of texts that has been treated as a fundamental doctrinal source for Chines ...

'' advocates the unity of Heaven and humanity. ''Huangdi Neijing'' emphasizes that man "corresponds to heaven and earth, is in harmony with the four seasons, and that man participates in heaven and earth" (Lingshu - Pricking the Joints of True Evil), that "man participates with heaven and earth" (Lingshu - The Dew of the Year, Lingshu - Jing Shui), and that "he is as one with heaven and earth" (Suwen - The Essence of Pulse). It is believed that "heaven", as an objective existence independent of human spiritual consciousness, and "man", as a subject with spiritual consciousness, have a unified origin, properties, structure and laws.

Outside Chinese thought

In the Western world, the idea of "unity of God and humanity" in

Ancient Greece Ancient Greece ( el, Ἑλλάς, Hellás) was a northeastern Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of Classical Antiquity, classical antiquity ( AD 600), th ...

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

, and Islam is also similar to the Chinese idea of "unity of Heaven and humanity," but there are still some differences in nature. In ancient Greece, the "unity of God and humanity" could only be achieved by a sorcerer with special powers; whereas Christianity believes that anyone who confesses his sins and accepts the salvation of God's only Son, Jesus Christ, is given authority by Jesus to become a child of God and enter eternal life. The Islamic view emphasizes the "good works" that believers are to observe. In Indian culture, the main theme of the great classic Upanishads is Unity of Brahman (Moksha), which is a tenet practiced by deep yogis and coincides with the Chinese idea of the unity of heaven and man.

History

Confucianism

Daoism

Chinese medicine

Outside Chinese thought

See Also

References

Further reading