Unity of Heaven and humanity () is an ancient Chinese

philosophical Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

concept that is found common across many Chinese religions and philosophies. The basic idea is that societal phenomena such as

physiology Physiology (; ) is the science, scientific study of function (biology), functions and mechanism (biology), mechanisms in a life, living system. As a branches of science, subdiscipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ syst ...

ethics Ethics is the philosophy, philosophical study of Morality, moral phenomena. Also called moral philosophy, it investigates Normativity, normative questions about what people ought to do or which behavior is morally right. Its main branches inclu ...

, and

politics Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with decision-making, making decisions in social group, groups, or other forms of power (social and political), power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of Social sta ...

of humanity are direct reflections of ''

Tian Tian () is one of the oldest Chinese terms for heaven and a key concept in Chinese mythology, philosophy, and cosmology. During the Shang dynasty (17th―11th century BCE), the Chinese referred to their highest god as '' Shangdi'' or ''Di'' (, ...

'', "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 comprises a range of traditional religious practices of Han Chinese, including the Chinese diaspora. This includes the veneration of ''Shen (Chinese folk religion), shen'' ('spirits') and Chinese ancestor worship, ances ...

. 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, and is variously described as a tradition, philosophy, Religious Confucianism, religion, theory of government, or way of li ...

Daoism Taoism or Daoism (, ) is a diverse philosophical and religious tradition indigenous to China, emphasizing harmony with the Tao ( zh, p=dào, w=tao4). With a range of meaning in Chinese philosophy, translations of Tao include 'way', 'road', ...

, and

Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

Confucianism

It was cited by

Dong Zhongshu Dong Zhongshu (; 179–104 BC) was a Chinese philosopher, politician, and writer of the Han dynasty. He is traditionally associated with the promotion of Confucianism as the official ideology of the Chinese imperial state, favoring heaven worsh ...

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, which originated with Han Yu (768–824) and Li Ao (772–841) i ...

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). Heaven is sometimes seen as synonymous with the Dao or a natural energy that can be accessed by living in accordance with the Dao.

Chinese medicine

The

traditional Chinese medicine Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is an alternative medicine, alternative medical practice drawn from traditional medicine in China. A large share of its claims are pseudoscientific, with the majority of treatments having no robust evidence ...

text ''

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 Chinese medicine for mo ...

'' 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 () was a northeastern Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of classical antiquity (), that comprised a loose collection of culturally and linguistically r ...

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

, and

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

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