Good day, everybody. This is my first article on this History board, even though I've spent some time in here, mostly in Vrylakas' quiz.
This was my first term paper in college, finished the very early Monday morning before Thanksgiving last fall for my 6 credit course. I imagine there was a good grade on it because I aced the course and this paper was 25% of the grade. So, without further delay, my term paper:
[size=+3]Ritual in the Imperial Court: The Tang Dynasty[/size]
By William W. Travis
November 24, 2003
Rituals have long been an important part of Chinese society. Various rituals have been in practice by the Chinese people for thousands of years, since prehistoric times. Rituals have been more important in China than perhaps most places in the world at any given time. Chinese rituals followed a long line of tradition; the rituals were unchanged for centuries, even millennia.
The people that took these rituals the most seriously were the rulers. In prehistoric times, the rulers were likely the religious leaders of their clans. Thus, they would have to lead their people in rituals and maintain their own religious purity. However, because they were the only ones believed to have direct contact with the spirits and the heavens, they were given leadership over their clans to guide the people towards a greater unity with these spirits. With a monopoly on spiritual power, these leaders could claim that they are the rightful rulers because that would be the spirits will. This is at the core of the Mandate of Heaven concept that was used by Chinese emperors and dynasties and also used to justify overthrowing a dynasty since the Zhou overthrew the Shang dynasty to the end of the dynastic cycle in 1911 A.D.
Religion and ritual werent used only for their own beliefs. The rituals were the only way of life for the Chinese people, even down to the lowest class of farmers. Therefore, it was imperative that the ruling class would also take part in these rituals or risk losing their support and their status. However, the ruling class always attempted to use ritual to their advantage (as in the case of the Mandate of Heaven) and it also was a powerful tool for rulers to integrate themselves fully into the traditional Chinese society. The Tang dynasty used traditional Chinese beliefs to win the support of the society and keep a hold on their power. In the process, the Tang rulers changed the rituals and beliefs in the imperial court, embracing a different belief system and further introducing a foreign philosophy to the court. Politics was the driving force behind the change.
Long before the Tang dynasty, Confucianism dug its roots into Chinese society and had become an integral part of the administration. The emperors had established the rituals of ancestor veneration that were so dear to Confucian philoshophy. These rituals had also been incorporated as state rituals that would be followed by everyone in the imperial court as well as anyone working for the government.
This all-important ritual in Confucian thought had a very strict guideline that must be followed or the family, especially the ruling dynasty, could suffer from its misdeeds. Confucianism went farther with this ritual than had previously been done in ancient China and set the standard for the ritual for many centuries and through all of the dynasties, including the Tang. Formal Confucianism merely extended respect for ones elders to those who had gone before, valuing them as models and performing regular rituals in small household shrines to keep their memory alive. The duties for the rituals were relegated to the eldest son upon his fathers death. He was responsible for continuing the family line as well as keeping the predecessors memory alive with frequent offerings to the spirits. This was standard practice for the Chinese people and they expected their rulers to perform the very same rituals. By the time the Tang dynasty came to power, these rituals were in practice for over one thousand years.
New ideas, in particular, Buddhism, were introduced to China coming from the north, through the Tarim Basin to the barbarian kingdoms in the north after the fall of the Han dynasty. As such, the northern rulers were not as discriminating to the foreign faith, unlike the traditional south. Buddhism was quite favored by the ruling class of the north. Buddhism, unlike Christianity in the Roman Empire, apparently was taken up by the rich before it spread downward to the poor. This explains why the Tang rulers were very open-minded to new ideas.
The Tang founders that emerged victorious after the fall of the short-lived Sui dynasty were people from northern China that were mixed Chinese and barbarian. Since they came from the north, they had a lot of experience with the new ideas that were entering China. The Tang rulers were fascinated by new thoughts and styles from the edges of the empire. However, they had to remain firm in their beliefs in Confucianism in order to satisfy the large traditional Chinese society and keep power. The heavy Confucian influence on the ruling class and the imperial court was also due to the traditional educational system. Since Confucian ideology lay at the basis of Chinese education, the ruling class was thoroughly imbued with ethical principles, concepts of loyalty to existing authority, and a strong sense of the value of rituals and decorum.
The traditional Confucian values and rituals remained strong inside the Tang imperial court. The rituals of ancestor veneration as well as the standard sacrifices to the spirits of the ancestors were still in practice under the Tang. The concept of filial piety showed the strength of family unity. Confucianism places a great importance on respect for parents and the elderly. The concept was continued into the Tang. This was standard practice as the Tang sought to keep in touch with the traditional Chinese culture and prove that they were fit to govern. The Confucian ethic was indisputably the single most important factor in the determination of the style of life in Tang China and the values held by its people.
Another important pillar of Confucian thought is the concept of li. This concept is the belief of how the society should be structured and the relationships between them. Confucianism pointed out five relationships in society and how each person, in regards to their position in the relationship, should behave in accordance to li. The relationship between ruler and subject was especially important to the Tang court. The court had to ensure that they followed the doctrines that the relationship or they would lose the Mandate of Heaven and be forced from power.
A lasting monument to Confucian thought influencing the Tang court was the Tang legal system, otherwise known as the Code. Much of the code is attributed to the emperor Taizongs brother-in-law, Zhangsun Wuji. The Code focuses heavily on Confucian traditions such as family relations and conflict resolution in the local community. Also, the Code recognized Confucian dispositions to consider particular statuses, hierarchal distinctions, and degrees of personal relationship. Article 6 of the Code deals with offenses against the society and is appropriately titled The Ten Abominations. The laws and explanations of the various abominations have very deep roots in Confucian thought. Many of the ideas and punishments are taken from the Analects, a great Confucian text that outlines Confuciuss thoughts and conversations about society with his disciples. The Code set a standard for the laws regarding rituals and relationships within society for future dynasties in China.
One other facet of imperial ritual and governance that continued with the traditional Confucian ideal was that of the civil service examinations. The examination system was introduced during the Han dynasty. The basic subjects of the examinations were on the Confucian classics. It can be said that the examination system and Confucian teachings kept the ideology alive from Han times to Tang rule, where the examinations were revised and improved into a form that continued until the end of the dynastic cycle in the early 20th century.
The examinations themselves were administered with rituals. One of the six ministries that were introduced by the Tang, the Ministry of Rites, dealt with this administration. The ministry would perform very elaborate rituals during the imperial examinations. These examinations were crucial to the Tang court. People who received degrees from certain categories in the examinations were often elevated to very prestigious posts in the imperial court, often to positions that required them to perform the very same rituals for the examinations or for rituals in which the emperor took part.
The examinations were by and large the same as those introduced by the Han dynasty several centuries earlier. Candidates had to know Confucian classics such as the Analects, the Classic of Filiality, as well as the Five Classics, which were referred to often by Confucius and following Confucian scholars. However, there was the introduction of a new category of examination that focused on Daoist classics. Because the imperial house claimed descent from Laozi (founder of Daoism), there was also one type of examination based on a knowledge of Daoist texts. The introduction of a Daoist examination with all its rituals for administration did not change the fact that most imperial civil servants had to be very well versed in Confucian thought.
Part Two is next.
This was my first term paper in college, finished the very early Monday morning before Thanksgiving last fall for my 6 credit course. I imagine there was a good grade on it because I aced the course and this paper was 25% of the grade. So, without further delay, my term paper:
[size=+3]Ritual in the Imperial Court: The Tang Dynasty[/size]
By William W. Travis
November 24, 2003
Rituals have long been an important part of Chinese society. Various rituals have been in practice by the Chinese people for thousands of years, since prehistoric times. Rituals have been more important in China than perhaps most places in the world at any given time. Chinese rituals followed a long line of tradition; the rituals were unchanged for centuries, even millennia.
The people that took these rituals the most seriously were the rulers. In prehistoric times, the rulers were likely the religious leaders of their clans. Thus, they would have to lead their people in rituals and maintain their own religious purity. However, because they were the only ones believed to have direct contact with the spirits and the heavens, they were given leadership over their clans to guide the people towards a greater unity with these spirits. With a monopoly on spiritual power, these leaders could claim that they are the rightful rulers because that would be the spirits will. This is at the core of the Mandate of Heaven concept that was used by Chinese emperors and dynasties and also used to justify overthrowing a dynasty since the Zhou overthrew the Shang dynasty to the end of the dynastic cycle in 1911 A.D.
Religion and ritual werent used only for their own beliefs. The rituals were the only way of life for the Chinese people, even down to the lowest class of farmers. Therefore, it was imperative that the ruling class would also take part in these rituals or risk losing their support and their status. However, the ruling class always attempted to use ritual to their advantage (as in the case of the Mandate of Heaven) and it also was a powerful tool for rulers to integrate themselves fully into the traditional Chinese society. The Tang dynasty used traditional Chinese beliefs to win the support of the society and keep a hold on their power. In the process, the Tang rulers changed the rituals and beliefs in the imperial court, embracing a different belief system and further introducing a foreign philosophy to the court. Politics was the driving force behind the change.
Long before the Tang dynasty, Confucianism dug its roots into Chinese society and had become an integral part of the administration. The emperors had established the rituals of ancestor veneration that were so dear to Confucian philoshophy. These rituals had also been incorporated as state rituals that would be followed by everyone in the imperial court as well as anyone working for the government.
This all-important ritual in Confucian thought had a very strict guideline that must be followed or the family, especially the ruling dynasty, could suffer from its misdeeds. Confucianism went farther with this ritual than had previously been done in ancient China and set the standard for the ritual for many centuries and through all of the dynasties, including the Tang. Formal Confucianism merely extended respect for ones elders to those who had gone before, valuing them as models and performing regular rituals in small household shrines to keep their memory alive. The duties for the rituals were relegated to the eldest son upon his fathers death. He was responsible for continuing the family line as well as keeping the predecessors memory alive with frequent offerings to the spirits. This was standard practice for the Chinese people and they expected their rulers to perform the very same rituals. By the time the Tang dynasty came to power, these rituals were in practice for over one thousand years.
New ideas, in particular, Buddhism, were introduced to China coming from the north, through the Tarim Basin to the barbarian kingdoms in the north after the fall of the Han dynasty. As such, the northern rulers were not as discriminating to the foreign faith, unlike the traditional south. Buddhism was quite favored by the ruling class of the north. Buddhism, unlike Christianity in the Roman Empire, apparently was taken up by the rich before it spread downward to the poor. This explains why the Tang rulers were very open-minded to new ideas.
The Tang founders that emerged victorious after the fall of the short-lived Sui dynasty were people from northern China that were mixed Chinese and barbarian. Since they came from the north, they had a lot of experience with the new ideas that were entering China. The Tang rulers were fascinated by new thoughts and styles from the edges of the empire. However, they had to remain firm in their beliefs in Confucianism in order to satisfy the large traditional Chinese society and keep power. The heavy Confucian influence on the ruling class and the imperial court was also due to the traditional educational system. Since Confucian ideology lay at the basis of Chinese education, the ruling class was thoroughly imbued with ethical principles, concepts of loyalty to existing authority, and a strong sense of the value of rituals and decorum.
The traditional Confucian values and rituals remained strong inside the Tang imperial court. The rituals of ancestor veneration as well as the standard sacrifices to the spirits of the ancestors were still in practice under the Tang. The concept of filial piety showed the strength of family unity. Confucianism places a great importance on respect for parents and the elderly. The concept was continued into the Tang. This was standard practice as the Tang sought to keep in touch with the traditional Chinese culture and prove that they were fit to govern. The Confucian ethic was indisputably the single most important factor in the determination of the style of life in Tang China and the values held by its people.
Another important pillar of Confucian thought is the concept of li. This concept is the belief of how the society should be structured and the relationships between them. Confucianism pointed out five relationships in society and how each person, in regards to their position in the relationship, should behave in accordance to li. The relationship between ruler and subject was especially important to the Tang court. The court had to ensure that they followed the doctrines that the relationship or they would lose the Mandate of Heaven and be forced from power.
A lasting monument to Confucian thought influencing the Tang court was the Tang legal system, otherwise known as the Code. Much of the code is attributed to the emperor Taizongs brother-in-law, Zhangsun Wuji. The Code focuses heavily on Confucian traditions such as family relations and conflict resolution in the local community. Also, the Code recognized Confucian dispositions to consider particular statuses, hierarchal distinctions, and degrees of personal relationship. Article 6 of the Code deals with offenses against the society and is appropriately titled The Ten Abominations. The laws and explanations of the various abominations have very deep roots in Confucian thought. Many of the ideas and punishments are taken from the Analects, a great Confucian text that outlines Confuciuss thoughts and conversations about society with his disciples. The Code set a standard for the laws regarding rituals and relationships within society for future dynasties in China.
One other facet of imperial ritual and governance that continued with the traditional Confucian ideal was that of the civil service examinations. The examination system was introduced during the Han dynasty. The basic subjects of the examinations were on the Confucian classics. It can be said that the examination system and Confucian teachings kept the ideology alive from Han times to Tang rule, where the examinations were revised and improved into a form that continued until the end of the dynastic cycle in the early 20th century.
The examinations themselves were administered with rituals. One of the six ministries that were introduced by the Tang, the Ministry of Rites, dealt with this administration. The ministry would perform very elaborate rituals during the imperial examinations. These examinations were crucial to the Tang court. People who received degrees from certain categories in the examinations were often elevated to very prestigious posts in the imperial court, often to positions that required them to perform the very same rituals for the examinations or for rituals in which the emperor took part.
The examinations were by and large the same as those introduced by the Han dynasty several centuries earlier. Candidates had to know Confucian classics such as the Analects, the Classic of Filiality, as well as the Five Classics, which were referred to often by Confucius and following Confucian scholars. However, there was the introduction of a new category of examination that focused on Daoist classics. Because the imperial house claimed descent from Laozi (founder of Daoism), there was also one type of examination based on a knowledge of Daoist texts. The introduction of a Daoist examination with all its rituals for administration did not change the fact that most imperial civil servants had to be very well versed in Confucian thought.
Part Two is next.