6. The religions in china
The major religions in China are Taoism, Buddhism, Islam and Christianity. Of these Taoism is a native religion, the others having been introduced from foreign lands.
Taoism was founded on the teachings of Laozi, a sage born in 604 B. C. In the present-day Henan Province. He taught contemplation and retirement as a means of spiritual purification and the attainment of the Dao, a principle that signifies the highest spiritual ideals of mankind.
He spent his life in study and teaching. His teachings are incorporated in a profound book Daode Jing which Taoists regard as the final authority and doctrines
of the religion.
The Taoist adherents believe that by following a certain regimen
(including meditation
and ascetic practices
) they can attain a state bordering on immortality.
It is generally believed that Buddhism first came to China in 67 A. D. During the reign of Emperor Mingdi of the Eastern Han Dynasty, but the official records hold that it was first propagated in China in 2 B. C. During the reign of Emperor Aidi of the Western Han Dynasty .
Afterwards, because it was sanctioned by many of the successive dynasties. Buddhism became wide spread and had a tremendous impact on the development of Chinese thought, culture and art.
Lamaism is a Buddhist sect which flourishes in the regions inhabited by the Tibetans and Mongolians .
Sincere Buddhists take a vow of celibacy and abstinence from meat and wine, wear no fur or woollen garments and shave their heads.
As commercial and cultural contacts between East and West developed, Arab and Persian traders began calling on China along the Silk Route in increasing numbers. In 651 an envoy of Moslems journeyed to Chang'an and expounded the principles of Islam to the court.
There are approximately 10 million Moslems in China today, including the Huis in Ningxia and the Uighurs in Xinjiang. Nearly every major city has its mosques, shops and restaurants for Moslems.
·Nestorian missionaries reached China as early as A. D. 500. Monte Corvino is regarded as the first Roman Catholic missionary to China. From the time of Ricci to 1735 the Roman church sent five hundred missionaries all over the country.
In 1807 Robert Morrison, the first British Protestant missionary to China arrived in Guangzhou. He and Milne who joined him later translated The New Testament into Chinese . In 1949 Chinese Catholics totaled 3 million and Protestants 700,000.
