Chinese Religion

Who is Han Yu?

A scholar.

Who is Ho Hsiang-ku?

A taoist ascetic that was female.

What is the basic belief of Pure Land?

All beings, no matter how depraved or wicked, can attain the salvation of the Western paradise by simple, total faith in the help of Amitabha/Amida.

The "Obedient Son" principle led to what extremes in Imperial China?

Children were unable to testify against their parents in court and were expected to serve a parent's sentence even if it incurred death.

What is the title of the pivotal text for taoism?

It is the Tao Te Ching.

What is the purpose of acupuncture?

It is to help regulate the flow of ch'i.

What is the force of the talisman?

It protects the family from evil influences.

Who is the father of Confucianism?

K'ung Fu-tzu

Who is known as the father of Taoism?

Lao Tzu

What is the Yang associated with?

Light, activity, air, and the male

Why are lions featured in Chinese architecture?

Live lions were brought as gifts to emperors.

Why is located in specific places Feng Shui?

Locations that catch the currents of vital breath as they circulate.

What is Chinese religion made up of?

Many different religions and philosophies

In traditional China what does Taoism regulate/perform?

Many festivals, healings, and exorcisms.

What are the means used to access the Tao?

Meditational, liturgical, alchemical, and philosophical means.

What does the first way seek?

The creation and practice of order and harmony in family or society.

In exorcism, what does the priest seek to control?

The dangerous excess of yin forces

What was the name given to the religious form of Taoism?

Tao-Chiao

What is the second way in Chinese religion?

Taoism

Why are Chinese rulers worshipped?

The Chinese notion of kingship was rooted in the belief that royal ancestors had become ` divinities and must be worshiped.

How does Chinese religion explain rebellion?

The Chinese religion explains rebellion as the result of a ruler neglecting his ritual duties and moral responsibility to the people.

When did the teaching of Confucius become an official text?

The Han dynasty (206-221 CE)

What are the 2 principal elements of the Tao?

The Tao Te Ching and the Chuang Tzu.

What attracted mystics, poets and philosophers to the teaching of Lao Tzu?

The Tao Te Ching.

How can immortality be literal?

The attaining of an enduring subtle body

How can immortality be symbolic?

The attaining of spiritual freedom and effortless spontaneity

Who had access to the inner sanctum

The empress and the emperor's consorts or secondary wives, senior ministers, eunuchs, and woman servants.

Until when was Confucianism the basis of Chinese education?

The end of Imperial China in 1911

Who were the cornerstones of traditional China?

The farmer and the gentleman scholar/official

What are the San-chiao?

The three ways

What is the first way of San-chiao?

The way of Confucius

How would Taoists harmonize the energies of the universe?

They channel their powers and harmonize Yin and Yang.

Why would cities build on Feng Shui's principles?

They seek to harmonize the yin and yang energies, from whose interaction the universe and its diverse forms emerge.

In a family compound, what do 'the hen and rooster represent'?

Yin and yang, the negative and positive forces that must be kept in balance in order to achieve harmony within the home.

What is the general concern of all Taoists?

Harmonizing the fundamental energies in the universe.

What happened to 'Buddha-to-be' in the Chinese texts?

He became the laughing Buddha

In 'Yin and Yang', what is the superior force?

Yang

What does 'Tao' mean?

"The way"

How large is the taoist canon?

1,120 volumes.

What does Confucianism teach?

A kind of humanism open to an agent or principle of moral order.

What does Chung K'iu control in hell?

A large spirit army that helps him slay demons.

Who is Ts'ao Kuo-Chiu?

A person left at home in shame that cultivated the Tao.

Who is Chung Li Ch'uan?

An alchemist in the Han dynasty.

When did the 3rd way enter China?

At the beginning of the Christian era

What is known as 'ch'i'?

Breathing exercises

What is the 3rd way in Chinese religion?

Buddhism

How can one live according to the Tao?

By going with the flow and not struggling against the tide.

What particular care has been undertaken by monks in Chinese Buddhism?

Care for unhappy, wandering, hungry ghosts

In which 3 countries is Popular Religion still practiced?

China, Taiwan, and Malaysia.

What refers to sexual, emotional and psychological forces?

Ching.

What is the dominant influence on religious life in China and Japan?

Confucianism

In Chinese, what depicts the character for "good"?

Hao, or a mother with her child.

What are the 3 most popular gods in Chinese religion?

Happiness (Fu Hsing), Wealth (Tsai Shen), and Longevity (Shou Hsing)

Who is Lan Ts'ai-Ho?

Cross-dressing poet and singer.

What is the Yin associated with?

Darkness, water, and the female

What does the Kitchen God control?

Each person's destiny and lifespan.

What does the first way regulate?

Ethics and rites of passage

What elements does Popular Religion deal with?

Everything from illness to buying a house

For Confucius what was the basis for a strong society?

Filial piety and ancestor rites

Why would a family compound be surrounded by flowing water?

For good Fend Shui.

What can influence the ch'i in the body?

Forces in the weather.

How long did the Ch'ing Imperial Court rule China?

From 1664 to 1911.

How did Chung K'ui become the demon-slayer?

He died on the steps on the Imperial Palace and it became vulnerable, and then the emperor became ill because of the red demon. Chung K'ui's ghost came back and killed the demon with his sword, cured the emperor, and now he's the demon slayer.

What did Lao Tzu do when he retired from the Zhou Empire?

He wrote the text of the Tao Te Ching and departed from civilization to realize the Tao.

What 'Tien' in Confucianism?

Heaven

How can a ruler ensure the correct balance of yin and yang?

If they gain the approval of heaven and the ancestors

In Taoism, what are meridians?

Invisible channels carrying the blood and ch'i through the body.

In Taoism, what is the body?

It is an energy system consisting of vital energy and blood.

What is a spiritualized immortality?

It is something that arises from a natural and harmonious life with little importance attached to material gain.

Who is Lu Tung-Pin?

Official turned sage.

What would a Chinese Buddhist do to release an ancestor from hell?

Perform funerals correctly/perform other rituals

What is the fourth way of Chinese religion?

Popular or folk religion

What were the 2 notable schools of meditation in Chinese Buddhism?

Pure Land and Ch'an

What is fundamental to the first way?

Respect for teachers and tradition

What animal represents the ultimate force of the yang?

Rooster

What does Ch'an teach?

Sitting in meditation is the only thing necessary to achieve enlightenment.

Why would the family compound have an open door?

So each family member can join the rest of the world and perform his or her tasks following the morality and ideals that they have learned within the family.

What are the central themes of the Chou Ch'en scroll?

Solitary reflection, immortality, and the importance of nature.

What is the refined ch'i, known as Shen?

Spirit or consciousness.

What does the Demon trap contain?

The five noxious creatures, the spider, centipede, snake, toad, and gecko.

What do popular religions tend to regulate and harmonize?

The fundamental forces in nature, society, and the individual.

What is the Heavenly Mandate?

The idea that if Chinese rulers gained the approval of heaven and the ancestors, then they ensure the regularity of the seasons, a good harvest, the correct balance of yin and yang in the community, and the maintenance of the royal hierarchy.

Who is Chang Kuo-Lao?

The immortal that travels on a donkey that turns into paper.

Who is Li T Ieh-kuai?

The lame beggar with an iron crutch.

What did Tao Te Ching address originally?

The needs of society

What does the phoenix represent in Chinese religion?

The phoenix is an indication that the land is beig ruled justly and that the ruler has the Heavenly Mandate.

What is the 4th way in Chinese Religion?

The popular religion of daily life

What is the 'Te'?

The power to bring the Tao into realization in all things.

What is very important in Tao-Chiao?

The quest for immortality

What is Feng Shui?

The siting of habitations

What is the meaning of 'Tao is the unproduced Producer of all that is'?

The source of all things

What does Taoism seek to access?

The tao (the way)

What are the 2 central beliefs in Taoism?

The tao is the unchanging principle behind the universe and the secret of life is to live in accordance with the Tao.

How can one achieve immortality?

Through the total challenging of energies

How can one achieve the correct relationship between ruler and ruled?

Through the worship of T'ien, or heaven.

What were the 2 roles of the eunuchs?

To be in charge or the emperor's concubines and being food tasters.

What is the role of the Kitchen God?

To observe everyone during the year, and report their deeds to the Jade Emperor at the New Year

What is Filial Piety?

When children are expected to serve and be obedient to their parents above all else.