Model humanity:
66-505: Main philosophical traditions: Ritual traditions: Devotional traditions: Salvation churches and sects : Confucian churches and sects: Pangu ( Chinese : 盤古 , PAN -koo ) is a primordial being and creation figure in Chinese mythology and Taoism . According to the legend, Pangu separated heaven and earth, and his body later became geographic features such as mountains and roaring water. The first writer to record
132-544: A Chinese religious tradition characterised by a concern for salvation (moral fulfillment) of the person and the society. They are distinguished by egalitarianism , a founding charismatic person often informed by a divine revelation , a specific theology written in holy texts , a millenarian eschatology and a voluntary path of salvation, an embodied experience of the numinous through healing and self-cultivation, and an expansive orientation through evangelism and philanthropy . Some scholars consider these religions
198-581: A "disconnection" between heaven and earth. Derk Bodde linked the myth to the ancestral mythologies of the Miao people and Yao people in southern China. This is how Professor Qin Naichang ( 覃乃昌 ), head of the Guangxi Institute for Nationality Studies , reconstructs the true creation myth preceding the myth of Pangu. Note that it is not actually a creation myth: A brother and his sister became
264-563: A Confucian identity, with the foundation of the Holy Confucian Church of China which aims to unite in a single body all Confucian religious groups. Many of the movements of salvation of the 20th and 21st century aspire to become the repository of the entirety of the Chinese tradition in the face of Western modernism and materialism, advocating an "Eastern solution to the problems of the modern world", or even interacting with
330-523: A bear rather than an ape, and wielding an immense hammer and chisel with which he is breaking the chaotic rocks. The Pangu myth appears to have been preceded in ancient Chinese literature by the existence of Shangdi or Taiyi (of the Taiyi Shengshui ). Other Chinese myths, such as those of Nüwa and the Jade Emperor , try to explain how people were created and do not necessarily explain
396-527: A belief in the prophethood of Zoroaster while also maintaining the prophethood of Gautama Buddha and Jesus Christ. It shares a dualist cosmology that pits good and light against evil and darkness, with an adversary to oppose the benevolent God. Manichaeism and Mandaeism also share a common belief in many of the figures and stories of the Abrahamic faiths, which has raised questions of influences and origins. In comparative religion, Indian religions are all
462-458: A break with Islam and started a new religious system, Bábism . However, in the 1860s a split occurred after which the vast majority of Bábís who considered Mirza Husayn `Ali or Bahá'u'lláh to be Báb's spiritual successor founded the Baháʼí Movement, while the minority who followed Subh-i-Azal came to be called Azalis . The Baháʼí division eventually became a full-fledged religion of its own,
528-545: A non-Hindu tradition. He writes, "I do not regard Jainism or Buddhism as separate from Hinduism." A Taoic religion is a religion, or religious philosophy, that focuses on the East Asian concept of Tao ("The Way"). This forms a large group of eastern religions including Taoism , Confucianism , Jeung San Do , Shintoism , I-Kuan Tao , Chondogyo , and Chen Tao . In large parts of East Asia, Buddhism has taken on some taoic features. Tao can be roughly stated to be
594-533: A shared sense of duality between the forces of good and evil, or light and darkness. In addition to this, there is a shared belief in the resurrection of the dead as well as an emphasis on free will and the moral responsibility of mankind. These are seen by some as having influenced the three major Abrahamic faiths as well as Gnosticism and the Baháʼí Faith. Manichaeism is another Iranian faith that shares many similarities to Zoroastrianism. In fact, Manichaeism shares
660-507: A single group they are said to have the same number of followers of the five state-sanctioned religions of China taken together. Scholars and government officials have been discussing to systematise and unify this large base of religious organisations; in 2004 the State Administration of Religious Affairs created a department for the management of folk religions. In the late 2015 a step was made at least for those of them with
726-416: A single phenomenon, and others consider them the fourth great Chinese religious category alongside the well-established Confucianism , Buddhism and Taoism . Generally these religions focus on the worship of the universal God ( Shangdi ), represented as either male, female, or genderless, and regard their holy patriarchs as embodiments of God. "Chinese salvationist religions" ( 救度宗教 jiùdù zōngjiào )
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#1732765504501792-507: Is a contemporary neologism coined as a sociological category and gives prominence to folk religious sects' central pursuit that is the salvation of the individual and the society, in other words the moral fulfillment of individuals in reconstructed communities of sense. Chinese scholars traditionally describe them as "folk religious sects" ( 民间宗教 mínjiān zōngjiào , 民间教门 mínjiān jiàomén or 民间教派 mínjiān jiàopài ) or "folk beliefs" ( 民间信仰 mínjiān xìnyǎng ). They are distinct from
858-783: Is also a noted similarity between the Tao being "the Way" as well as Christ claiming to be "the Way." While scholarship rejects this view today, it was a notable view in the history of comparative religion. These beliefs were ultimately opposed and disavowed by the Catholic Church in the 18th century. The introduction of Nestorian Christianity to China under the Tang dynasty also led to increasing similarities between Chinese Buddhism and Nestorian Christianity . Christians began using Buddhist and Taoist concepts to explain their faith. During this time
924-474: Is an academic discipline which has been developed within Christian theology faculties, and it has a tendency to force widely differing phenomena into a kind of strait-jacket cut to a Christian pattern. The problem is not only that other 'religions' may have little or nothing to say about questions which are of burning importance for Christianity, but that they may not even see themselves as religions in precisely
990-749: Is believed by Muslims to be the final prophet of Islam , and the Khatam an-Nabiyyin , meaning the last of the prophets ever sent by Allah ("seal of the prophets"). Based on the Muslim figure of the Mahdī , the ultimate savior of humankind and the final Imām of the Twelve Imams, Ali Muhammad Shirazi , later known as Bab, created the Bábí movement out of the belief that he was the gate to the Twelfth Imām. This signaled
1056-639: Is intimately tied to the complex concept of De , or literally "virtue" or "power." De is the active expression of Tao . Taoism and Chan Buddhism for centuries had a mutual influence on each other in China, Japan, Korea, and Taiwan. These influences were inherited by Zen Buddhism when Chan Buddhism arrived in Japan and adapted as Zen Buddhism. Despite being too far from each other to have had any influence, some have historically noted similarities between traditional Chinese religious beliefs and Christianity. This
1122-411: Is the branch of the study of religions with the systematic comparison of the doctrines and practices, themes and impacts (including migration ) of the world's religions . In general the comparative study of religion yields a deeper understanding of the fundamental philosophical concerns of religion such as ethics , metaphysics and the nature and forms of salvation . It also considers and compares
1188-460: The Baháʼí Faith . In comparison to the other Abrahamic religions, Judaism, Christianity and Islam, the number of adherents for Baháʼí faith and other minor Abrahamic religions are not very significant. Out of the three major Abrahamic faiths, Christianity and Judaism are the two religions that diverge the most in theology and practice. The historical interaction of Islam and Judaism started in
1254-591: The Book of Rites . Some scholars even find influences from Manichaeism , Mohism and shamanic traditions . In the Ming and Qing dynasties many folk religious movements were outlawed by the imperial authorities as "evil religions" ( 邪教 xiéjiào ). With the collapse of the Qing state in 1911 the sects enjoyed an unprecedented period of freedom and thrived, and many of them were officially recognised as religious groups by
1320-457: The Chinese folk religion consisting in the worship of gods and ancestors, although in English language there is a terminological confusion between the two. The 20th-century expression for these salvationist religious movements has been "redemptive societies" ( 救世团体 jiùshì tuántǐ ), coined by scholar Prasenjit Duara . A collective name that has been in use possibly since the latter part of
1386-676: The God of Abraham eventually became strictly monotheistic present-day Rabbinic Judaism . Judaism is considered by religious Jews to be the expression of the covenant that God established with the Children of Israel . Jews hold that the Torah is part of the larger text known as the Tanakh or the Hebrew Bible , they also believe in a supplemental oral tradition represented by later texts such as
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#17327655045011452-598: The Hebrew Bible or from post-biblical Jewish traditions. These practices are known collectively as the Isra'iliyat . The historical interaction between Christianity and Islam connects fundamental ideas in Christianity with similar ones in Islam. Islam accepts many aspects of Christianity as part of its faith – with some differences in interpretation – and rejects other aspects. Islam believes
1518-685: The Islamic Golden Age and considered as the "fathers of comparative religion", compared the study of religious pluralism and their works have been significant in the fields of theology and philosophy. The Persian Al-Biruni discussed his idea of history in The Remaining Signs of Past Centuries ( c. 1000 AD) which was translated by Eduard Sachau in 19th century. It is a comparative study of calendars of different cultures and civilizations, interlaced with mathematical, astronomical, and historical information, exploring
1584-543: The Jingjiao documents were created, sometimes called sutras , that demonstrated the blending of Christianity with Buddhism. The two also formed a monastic tradition that furthered the similarities. This fusion became so heavy that when Emperor Wuzong of the Tang dynasty began persecuting Buddhists in the 9th century, he claimed that Christianity was merely a heresy of Buddhism rather than its own religion. This equation of
1650-699: The Midrash and the Talmud . Christians believe that Christianity is the fulfillment and continuation of the Jewish Old Testament . Christians believe that Jesus (Hebrew Yeshua יֵשׁוּעַ) is the awaited Messiah (Christ) foretold in the Old Testament prophecies , and believe in subsequent New Testament scripture . Christians in general believe that Jesus is the incarnation or Son of God . Their creeds generally hold in common that
1716-719: The Parsis in India and Pakistan. Scholars have often noted the similarities between Zoroastrianism and the Abrahamic religions, especially Christianity. They've particularly noted this due to the historic relationship between the Jews and the Zoroastrian Persian Empires, as well as the relationship between Greek philosophy, Persia, and Christianity. They've debated whether Zoroastrianism played an influencing role on these religions or not. Particular areas of concern are
1782-484: The early republican government . The founding of the People's Republic in 1949 saw them suppressed once again, although since the 1990s and 2000s the climate was relaxed and some of them have received some form of official recognition. In Taiwan all the still existing restrictions were rescinded in the 1980s. Folk religious movements began to rapidly revive in mainland China in the 1980s, and now if conceptualised as
1848-603: The four corners of the world , which is a Chinese version not only of the Norse myth of the Giant Ymir , but also of the Babylonian story of Tiamat. Illustrations of P'an-Ku represent him in the company of supernatural animals that symbolize old age or immortality, viz., the tortoise and the crane; sometimes also the dragon, the emblem of power, and the phoenix, the emblem of bliss. When the earth had thus been shaped from
1914-503: The 7th century CE with the origin and spread of Islam . There are many common aspects between Islam and Judaism, and as Islam developed , it gradually became the major religion closest to Judaism. As opposed to Christianity, which originated from interaction between ancient Greek , Roman , and Hebrew cultures, Judaism is very similar to Islam in its fundamental religious outlook, structure, jurisprudence and practice. There are many traditions within Islam originating from traditions within
1980-533: The Qing dynasty is huìdàomén ( 会道门 "churches, ways and gates"), as their names interchangeably use the terms huì ( 会 "church, society, association, congregation"; when referring to their corporate form), dào ( 道 "way") or mén ( 门 "gate[way], door"). Their congregations and points of worship are usually called táng ( 堂 "church, hall") or tán ( 坛 "altar"). Western scholars often mistakenly identify them as " Protestant " churches. The Vietnamese religions of Minh Đạo and Caodaism emerged from
2046-692: The Quran is the final revelation from God and a completion of all previous revelations, including the Bible . Mandaeism , sometimes also known as Sabianism (after the mysterious Sabians mentioned in the Quran , a name historically claimed by several religious groups), is a Gnostic and monotheistic religion. John the Baptist is their chief prophet and frequent baptism is part of their core beliefs. According to most scholars, Mandaeism originated sometime in
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2112-460: The ancient classics Guoyu . In it, King Zhao of Chu asked Guanshefu ( 觀射父 ) a question: "What did the ancient classic "Zhou Shu (周書)" mean by the sentence that Zhong and Li caused the heaven and earth to disconnect from each other?" The "Zhou Shu" sentence he refers to is about an earlier person, Luu Xing (呂刑), who converses with King Mu of Zhou . King Mu's reign is much earlier and dates to about 1001 to 946 BC. In their conversation, they discuss
2178-588: The artistically classical form under which it is best known to us. The name, which by an ingenious afterthought is explained as "the fore thinker," is originally the Sanskrit pramantha and means "twirler" or "fire-stick," being the rod of hard wood which produced fire by rapid rotation in a piece of soft wood. We cannot deny that the myth must have been known also in Mesopotamia, the main center of civilization between India and Greece, and it becomes probable that
2244-482: The body of P'an-Ku, we are told that three great rivers successively governed the world: first the celestial, then the terrestrial, and finally the human sovereign. They were followed by Yung-Ch'eng and Sui -Jen (i.e., fire-man) the later being the Chinese Prometheus , who brought the fire down from heaven and taught man its various uses. The Prometheus myth is not indigenous to Greece, where it received
2310-725: The creation of the world. There are many variations of these myths. According to Bouyei mythology, after Pangu became an expert in rice farming after creating the world, he married the daughter of the Dragon King , and their union gave rise to the Buyei people. This is celebrated by the Bouyei people on June 6, as a holiday. The daughter of the Dragon King and Pangu had a son named Xinheng ( 新横 ). When Xinheng disrespected his mother, she returned to heaven and never came down, despite
2376-598: The customs and religions of different peoples. In the seventeenth century, antiquarians such as Athanasius Kircher along with Sir Thomas Browne were pioneering scholars of comparative religion. Social scientists in the 19th century took a strong interest in comparative and "primitive" religion through the work of Max Müller , Edward Burnett Tylor , William Robertson Smith , James George Frazer , Émile Durkheim , Max Weber , and Rudolf Otto . Nicholas de Lange , Professor of Hebrew and Jewish Studies at Cambridge University , says that The comparative study of religions
2442-510: The doctrine of Advaita Vedanta . Gautama Buddha is mentioned as an Avatar of Vishnu in the Puranic texts of Hinduism. Most Hindus believe the Buddha accepted and incorporated many tenets of Hinduism in his doctrine. Prominent modern Hindu reformers such as Mahatma Gandhi and Vivekananda acknowledge Buddhist influence. Like Hindus, Gandhi himself did not believe Buddha established
2508-688: The earth ten feet thicker, and Pangu ten feet taller. This task took yet another 18,000 years. In some versions of the story, Pangu is aided in this task by the Four Holy Beasts (四靈獸), the Turtle , the Qilin , the Phoenix , and the Dragon . In others, Pangu separated heaven and earth, which were already yin and yang , with his axe. After the 18,000 years had elapsed, Pangu died. His breath became
2574-419: The egg. Pangu inside the cosmic egg symbolizes Taiji . Pangu is usually depicted as a primitive, hairy giant with horns on his head. Pangu began creating the world: he separated yin from yang with a swing of his giant axe , creating the earth (murky yin ) and the sky (clear yang ). To keep them separated, Pangu stood between them and pushed up the sky. With each day, the sky grew ten feet (3 meters) higher,
2640-536: The field of comparative religion, a common geographical classification discerns the main world religions as follows: In the study of comparative religion, the category of Abrahamic religions consists of the three monotheistic religions, Christianity , Islam and Judaism , which claim Abraham (Hebrew Avraham אַבְרָהָם; Arabic Ibrahim إبراهيم ) as a part of their sacred history. Smaller religions such as Baháʼí Faith that fit this description are sometimes included but are often omitted. The original belief in
2706-536: The figure Sui-Jen has been derived from the same prototype as the Greek Prometheus. The missionary and translator James Legge discusses Pangu: P'an-ku is spoken of by the common people as "the first man, who opened up heaven and earth." It has been said to me in "pidgin" English that "he is all the same your Adam"; and in Taoist picture books I have seen him as a shaggy, dwarfish, Hercules, developing from
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2772-842: The first three centuries CE, in either southwestern Mesopotamia or the Syro-Palestinian area . However, some scholars take the view that Mandaeism is older and dates from pre-Christian times. Mandaeans assert that their religion predates Judaism, Christianity, and Islam as a monotheistic faith. Mandaeans believe that they descend directly from Shem , Noah 's son, and also from John the Baptist's original disciples. Several important religions and religious movements originated in Greater Iran , that is, among speakers of various Iranian languages . They include Zoroastrianism , Mithraism , Ætsæg Din , Yazdanism , Ahl-e Haqq , Zurvanism , Manichaeism , and Mazdakism . Perhaps one of
2838-483: The flow of the universe, or the force behind the natural order. It is believed to be the influence that keeps the universe balanced and ordered and is associated with nature, due to a belief that nature demonstrates the Tao . The flow of qi , as the essential energy of action and existence, is compared to the universal order of Tao . Following the Tao is also associated with a "proper" attitude, morality and lifestyle. This
2904-705: The foot of the Pangu King Mountain. The Huadu District is located north of Guangzhou to the west of the Baiyun International Airport . The term for the primordial supercontinent pangea is translated as Pangu in Chinese, referring to the creation myth. Chinese salvationist religions Model humanity: Main philosophical traditions: Ritual traditions: Devotional traditions: Salvation churches and sects : Confucian churches and sects: Chinese salvationist religions or Chinese folk religious sects are
2970-431: The form of soteriology . Comparative study of religions may approach religions with a base idea of salvation with eternal life after death, but religions like Hinduism or Buddhism don't necessarily share this view. Instead, Hinduism and Theravada Buddhism both speak of a falling back into nonexistence and escaping the cycle of reincarnation , rather than eternal life after death. According to Charles Joseph Adams , in
3036-559: The incarnation, ministry , suffering , death on the cross , and resurrection of Jesus was for the salvation of mankind. Islam believes the present Christian and Jewish scriptures have been corrupted over time and are no longer the original divine revelations as given to the Jewish people and to Moses , Jesus , and other prophets. For Muslims, the Quran is the final, complete revelation from God (Arabic الله Allah ), who believe it to have been revealed to Muhammad alone, who
3102-605: The label "secret sects" ( 秘密教门 mìmì jiàomén ) to distinguish the peasant "secret societies" with a positive dimension of the Yuan, Ming and Qing periods, from the negatively viewed "secret societies" of the early republic that became instruments of anti-revolutionary forces (the Guomindang or Japan ). Many of these religions are traced to the White Lotus tradition ("Chinese Maternism", as mentioned by Philip Clart ) that
3168-680: The lunar calendar. This day became an important traditional Buyei holiday for ancestral worship . This legend of creation is one of the main characteristics that distinguishes the Buyei from the Zhuang . Pangu is worshipped at a number of shrines in contemporary China , usually with Taoist symbols, such as the Bagua . The Pangu King Temple ( 盤古皇廟 or 盘古皇庙 ) built in 1809 is located in Guangdong Province , northwest Huadu District (west of G106 / north of S118), north of Shiling Town at
3234-506: The modern discourse of an Asian -centered universal civilisation. The Chinese folk religious movements of salvation are mostly concentrated in northern and northeastern China, although with a significant influence reaching the Yangtze River Delta since the 16th century. The northern provinces have been a fertile ground for the movements of salvation for a number of reasons: firstly, popular religious movements were active in
3300-588: The most important religions to have come out of Iran was Zoroastrianism. While not, properly speaking, a world religion, it became widespread in the Iranian world, especially through the Achaemenid and Sasanian Empires. It went into decline alongside many Iranian religions with the rise of Islam and the Caliphates . The religion still survives today in small numbers, with a particularly notable example being
3366-580: The myth of Pangu was thought to be Xu Zheng during the Three Kingdoms period. However, his name was found in a tomb predating the Three Kingdoms period. In the beginning, there was nothing and the universe was in a featureless, formless primordial state . This primordial state coalesced into a cosmic egg for about 18,000 years. Within it, the perfectly opposed principles of yin and yang became balanced and Pangu emerged (or woke up) from
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#17327655045013432-547: The only survivors of the prehistoric Deluge by crouching in a gourd that floated on water. The two got married afterwards, and a mass of flesh in the shape of a whetstone was born. They chopped it and the pieces turned into large crowds of people, who began to reproduce again. The couple were named 'Pan' and 'Gou' in the Zhuang ethnic language, which stand for whetstone and gourd respectively. 19th-century comparative religion scholar Paul Carus writes: P'an-Gu: The basic idea of
3498-795: The origins and similarities shared between the various religions of the world. Studying such material facilitates a broadened and more sophisticated understanding of human beliefs and practices regarding the sacred , numinous , spiritual and divine . In the field of comparative religion, a common geographical classification of the main world religions distinguishes groups such as Middle Eastern religions (including Abrahamic religions and Iranian religions ), Indian religions , East Asian religions , African religions , American religions , Oceanic religions , and classical Hellenistic religions . There also exist various sociological classifications of religious movements . Al-Biruni (973 – c. 1050 ) and Ibn Hazm (994 – 1064), both of
3564-686: The other "basin solid". Both are homophones, i.e., they are pronounced the same way; and the former may be preferred as the original and correct spelling. Obviously the name means "aboriginal abyss," or in the terser German, Urgrund, and we have reason to believe it to be a translation of the Babylonian Tiamat , "the Deep." The Chinese legend tells us that P'an-Ku's bones changed to rocks; his flesh to earth; his marrow, teeth and nails to metals; his hair to herbs and trees; his veins to rivers; his breath to wind; and his four limbs became pillars marking
3630-448: The population of China, which is around 30 million people, claim to be members of folk religious sects. The actual number of followers may be higher, about the same as the number of members of the five state-sanctioned religions of China if counted together. In Taiwan, recognised folk religious movements of salvation gather approximately 10% of the population as of the mid-2000s. Comparative religion Comparative religion
3696-552: The region already in the Han dynasty , and they deeply penetrated local society; secondly, northern provinces are characterised by social mobility around the capital and weak traditional social structure, thus folk religious movements of salvation fulfill the demand of individual searching for new forms of community and social network. According to the Chinese General Social Survey of 2012, approximately 2.2% of
3762-561: The religions that originated in South Asia . It is thought that "the kinship of the religions of India stems from the fact that Jains, Buddhists and Sikhs look back to Hinduism as their common mother." Al-Biruni deeply studied the Vedic religions and through his works essential details about pre-11th century India's religions and cultures were found. Adi Shankaracharya was an early 8th century philosopher and theologian who consolidated
3828-414: The repeated pleas of her husband and son. Pangu was forced to remarry and eventually died on the sixth day of the sixth month of the lunar calendar . Xinheng's stepmother treated him badly and almost killed him. When Xinheng threatened to destroy her rice harvest, she realized her mistake. She made peace with him and they went on to pay their respects to Pangu annually on the sixth day of the sixth month of
3894-494: The same tradition of Chinese folk religious movements. A category overlapping with that of the salvationist movements is that of the "secret societies" ( 秘密社会 mìmì shèhuì , or 秘密结社 mìmì jiéshè ), religious communities of initiatory and secretive character, including rural militias and fraternal organisations which became very popular in the early republican period, and often labeled as " heretical doctrines" ( 宗教异端 zōngjiào yìduān ). Recent scholarship has begun to use
3960-496: The same way in which Christianity sees itself as a religion. Examples that demonstrate this point are Buddhism and Chinese Folk Religions. These belief systems have not historically been seen as mutually exclusive and have blended over time into different beliefs such as Pure Land Buddhism . This shows a marked difference from Western conceptions of religions which see adherence to one religion as precluding membership of another faith. Hinduism and Buddhism provide another insight in
4026-405: The story, his body turned into the mountains. Three main elements describe the origin of the Pangu myth. The first is that the story is indigenous and was developed or transmitted through time to Xu Zheng . Senior Scholar Wei Juxian states that the Pangu story is derived from stories during the Western Zhou dynasty. He cites the story of Zhong ( 重 ) and Li ( 黎 ) in the "Chuyu (楚語)" section of
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#17327655045014092-415: The two led to the collapse of Nestorian Christianity in China alongside the persecution of Buddhism. Religious ideologies can be systematically understood to have formed many major groups with tens of thousands of subbranches. It is a form of cultural evolution that can be intuitively illustrated with trees showing historical relationships and the diversification over time of the various traditions. Some of
4158-427: The wind, mist and clouds; his voice, thunder; his left eye, the Sun; his right eye, the Moon; his head, the mountains and extremes of the world; his blood, rivers; his muscles, fertile land; his facial hair, the stars and Milky Way; his fur, bushes and forests; his bones, valuable minerals; his bone marrow, precious jewels; his sweat, rain; and the fleas on his fur carried by the wind became animals. In other versions of
4224-432: The yih philosophy was so convincing that it almost obliterated the Taoist cosmology of P'an-Ku who is said to have chiseled the world out of the rocks of eternity. Though the legend is not held in high honor by the literati, it contains some features of interest which have not as yet been pointed out and deserve at least an incidental comment. P'an-Gu is written in two ways: one means in literal translations, "basin ancient",
4290-409: Was already active in the Song dynasty ; others claim a Taoist legacy and are based on the recovery of ancient scriptures attributed to important immortals such as Lü Dongbin and Zhang Sanfeng , and have contributed to the popularisation of neidan ; other ones are distinctively Confucian and advocate the realisation of a "great commonwealth" ( datong 大同 ) on a world scale, as dreamt of in
4356-411: Was noted by Jesuit missionaries who became known as figurists . Figurists promoted the idea that the ancient Chinese knew the truth of Christian revelation and that many of the figures described in Chinese texts are actually figures and concepts from Christianity. Noted parallels include shared flood myths , similarities between Fuxi and Enoch , as well as parallels between Christ and the sages. There
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