Asian Humanities is one of the best classes I have happened to attend. I enjoyed every bit of it. During the class, I was able to learn about china and its ancient culture. I was able to learn that the traditional Chinese name of the country was referred to as Zhing guo. This was a name that dated back to the Xia dynasty. However, I was able to discover that the modern name, China came from the first imperial dynasty that existed during the 221 BCE. This is the only country that still practice its ancient tradition among the modern states. The Chinese attached a lot of value to their ancient culture to the extent that they were able to Sinicize the foreigners that tried to conquer their kingdom. The Chinese art and culture changed as time went by because the Chinese absorbed foreign ideas as they redefined their own culture and traditions.
I was also able to learn that there has been a continuous change in the artistic nature of the Chinese art characterized with some level of uniqueness. The change began to take place from the fifth century and it is still taking place up to date. According to the Chinese, it was believed that the Chinese deceased had a posthumous form of existence which gave them access to gods. Because the ancestors were considered to be very powerful after they die, the living had the duty of paying respect to them as they provided for their upkeep as spirits. The tradition required the furnishing of the graves with all the materials that the deceased would require in their terrestrial lives in their next lives.
During this class, I was also able to learn about the genesis of Confucius. The respect for Chinese morality and tradition as it developed for many centuries was organized in the social ethics as the teachings of Confucius spread overtime. Confucius was born at a period when civil unrest had taken over China hence the Chinese were looking for ways of rebuilding their ancient community that they believed was a reflection of a much higher universal order. According to Confucius, it was believed that the people during their time could regain their old sense of order through self-discipline as well as abiding by the correct code of conduct and paying homage to the spirit ancestors that had access to the gods’ wisdom. He considered this to be an ideal feature for a perfect harmony. Confucian respect for authority, age and morality made the philosophy popular among the Chinese leaders as well as the artists they patronized over the centuries.
During the class sessions, I was able to discover that as Confucianism guided the public life of the individuals, Daoism provided the key principles that guided the individual’s spiritual life. In the Chinese culture, Daoism was considered to be an animistic belief that lies at the center of the Chinese comprehension of the world. The Daoist priests were also referred to as court divinators and during certain times, the ideas of Daoism were applied in various local religious activities. I also learnt that the emergence of Buddhism in the first century of china became widespread by the fifth century. Its emergence introduced the Chinese people to a new organization for the cosmos.
In the course of my readings, I learnt about some Chinese earliest art. Even though some of the Chinese art critics and the aestheticians have disappeared, some of their thinking may be seen through their earliest extant treatise on the philosophy of art referred to as Xie He. Four of Xie’s principles stress matters of technique and the criticality of copying works from the past and showing Xie’s respect for Confucian principles. The values were considered to be a manifest of the Chinese temples. Even though few of the Chinese buildings have survived, the clay models were preserved in the early in tombs from the Han Period. This indicated that the basic design of the Foguangsi temple was a very old one during its construction in 857 CE. The structure was a post and lintel structure. It had rows of evenly spaced poles that supported elaborate sets of brackets that in turn supported the lintels from which the ceramic tiled roof was mounted.
I learnt a great deal of the Chinese dynasty. Some of the dynasties that I was really attracted to were the Xia dynasty and Shang dynasty. It is believed that the Xia dynasty era began during the Bronze Age in china. It was during this period that Xia was able to acquire the technology to cast bronze as well as building walled palace cities. However, it was later stated that Xia did not last for long since the dynasty was overthrown by Shang. Shang used an early form of a Chinese script that is currently being used today. The religion combined a veneration of animistic deities and shamanistic rituals with a strong cult of ancestor worship. During this period written word and reading signs were considered religious. This is something that has basic in our modern society.
The information I acquired about china has really changed my thinking about the state. Initially, I had general information about China. I believed that the country did not have a rich history of culture.
Works Cited
Wu, Cheng'en, and Arthur Waley. Monkey. , 1961. Internet resource.
Needham, Joseph, and Ling Wang. Science And Civilisation In China. Cambridge [England]: University Press, 1954. Print.
Hall, Eleanor J. Ancient Chinese Dynasties. San Diego, CA: Lucent Books, 2000. Print.
Confucius., et al. The Wisdom Of Confucius. New York: Modern library, 1938. Print.
