Synthesized answer
The transition of Taoism from a philosophy to a religion involved borrowing heavily from Buddhism. This transformation required the adoption of a formal structure and practices, including the establishment of temples, the presence of priests and nuns, and the development of a ritualistic system [1, 3, 4]. Taoism also adopted Buddhist liturgical forms, drawing up liturgies to resemble Buddhist Sutras, and incorporated prayers for the dead [1, 3]. Furthermore, they adopted the Buddhist concept of Purgatory and a Trinity, consisting of Lao Tzu, P'an Ku, and the Ruler of the Universe [1].
These borrowings suggest that for a philosophical school to become a full-fledged religion in ancient China, it needed to develop an organized hierarchy of religious practitioners, formal ceremonies and liturgies, and a comprehensive set of beliefs regarding the afterlife, including concepts like Purgatory and a divine Trinity [1, 3, 4]. The passages indicate that Taoism, initially a philosophy that operated with Confucianism in dislimning the old faith [2], later "borrowed from Buddhism and becomes a Religion" [4]. This evolution involved adopting elements that provided a more elaborate and…
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From the book
ples, priests, nuns, and ritual. They drew up liturgies to resemble the Buddhist Sutras , and also prayers for the dead. They adopted the idea of a Trinity, consisting of Lao Tzu, P'an Ku, and the Ruler of the Universe; and they further appropriated the Buddhist Purgatory with all its frightful terrors and tortures after death. Nowadays it takes an expert to distinguish between the temples and priests of the two religions, and members of both hierarchies are often simultaneously summoned by persons needing religious consolation or ceremonial of any kind. Doubts.—In a chapter on "Doubts," by…
← Chapter II — Confucianism Religions of Ancient China by Herbert Allen Giles Chapter III — Taoism Chapter IV — Materialism → sister projects : Wikipedia article 110945 Religions of Ancient China — Chapter III — Taoism Herbert Allen Giles Lao Tzu.—Meanwhile, other influences had been helping to divert the attention of the Chinese people from the simple worship of God and of the powers of nature. The philosophy associated with the name of Lao Tzu, who lived nobody knows when,—probably about B.C. 600—which is popularly known as Taoism, from Tao, the omnipresent, omnipotent, and unthinkable…
← Chapter IV: Materialism Religions of Ancient China by Herbert Allen Giles Chapter V — Buddhism and Other Religions → 110949 Religions of Ancient China — Chapter V — Buddhism and Other Religions Herbert Allen Giles So early as the third century B.C., Buddhism seems to have appeared in China, though it was not until the latter part of the first century A.D. that a regular propaganda was established, and not until a century or two later still that this religion began to take a firm hold of the Chinese people. It was bitterly opposed by the Taoists, and only after the lapse of many centuries…
Odes—Hou Chi and Parthenogenesis—Superstitions and Supernatural Manifestations—Sacrifice—Ancestral Worship—Filial Piety. Feudal Age (Tenth Century to Third Century B.C.)—The Influence of Confucianism—His Agnosticism—Weakening of Supernatural Beliefs—Consolidation of Confucianism—Human Sacrifices—Prayers for Rain—The Philosophy of Taoism—A Rival to Confucianism—But uniting to weaken the old Monotheistic Faith—Its Theory of Spirits—Modifications of Taoism—The Elixir of Life—Evidences of a Spiritual World—Mysticism. The Empire (Third Century B.C. to modern times)—Arguments against a Spiritual…
Taoism (both debased) for the Masses—The Jesuits arrive in the Sixteenth Century—Protestant Missionaries date from 1799. Selected Works Bearing on the Religions of China edit Religion in China. Joseph Edkins , D.D. The Religions of China. James Legge , D.D. The Dragon, Image and Demon, or the three Religions of China. Rev. H. C. du Bose . Les Religions de la Chine. C. de Harbez. The Religious System of China: Its ancient forms, evolution, history, etc. J. J. de Groot, Ph.D. The Sacred Books of China. James Legge, D.D. Chinese Buddhism. Joseph Edkins, D.D. Le Shinntoisme. Michel Revon. This…
More questions about this book
- The syllabus highlights a clear evolution from early animistic and monotheistic beliefs to complex philosophical and religious systems. If you were to explain to an unfamiliar student, what is the most significant driving force or recurring pattern that seems to consistently reshape Chinese religious thought across the Legendary, Feudal, and Imperial periods?
- Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism are presented as interacting in various ways—as rivals, weakening old faiths, or borrowing from each other. How would you illustrate the core distinctions between these belief systems that led to both profound conflict and eventual syncretism, particularly concerning their views on the supernatural or the role of humanity?
- The text mentions both Confucius's 'Agnosticism' and later 'Agnosticism the rule for literati.' How did this philosophical stance, appearing at different historical junctures, impact the development of religious practices and the social stratification of belief, differentiating the experience of the educated elite from that of 'the Masses'?
- Multiple foreign religions like Mazdeism, Nestorian Christianity, and Manichaeism appear, yet the text specifically notes that 'Mahometanism alone survived' among them. What might this suggest about the cultural, social, or political conditions in ancient China that determined the long-term viability and integration of foreign belief systems?