Religion in China
Religion in China has been characterized by pluralism since the beginning of Chinese history. Temples of many different religions dot China’s landscape, particularly those of Chinese folk religion, Mahayana Buddhism and Taoism. Buddhism remains the largest organized religion in China since its introduction in the 1st century.
Ancestor worship is the original basic Chinese religion. According to ancient law, the highest King of China, also called the Son of Heaven (Tianzi), sacrificed Heaven (Tian or Shangdi), Earth (Di) and other gods especially the gods of famous mountains and rivers. Seigneurs or officials were accredited to sacrifice respective gods.
Daoism was formed in Han Dynasty. About the time Buddhism was introduced to China, and it rose to predominance during the Tang Dynasty, which initially tolerated its coexistence. Tensions between Buddhism and the Chinese Tang state led to the Great Anti-Buddhist Persecution in 845 CE when the emperor felt that force of the religion was threatening the government. The Chinese religious tradition of Three Religions Combining into One which means combining Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism into one religion was greately developed during Sui and Tang Dynasty.
Chinese religions are often classified as religions, philosophies, spiritualities or ways of life. Taoism and Buddhism are considered pantheistic and nontheistic, while Chinese folk religion is widely polytheistic.
Independently of adherence to organized religions (see below), most Chinese ground their spirituality in Chinese folk religion, Confucianism and ancestor veneration. These are not organized religions but rather practices or thought systems denoting membership in ethnic Chinese culture and civilization.
The Chinese religions are family-oriented and, unlike Western religions, do not demand the exclusive adherence of members. Chinese people may visit Buddhist temples while living according to Taoist principles and participating in local ancestor veneration rituals. To cite Rodney L. Taylor, "There is little doubt that Buddhism and Neo-Confucianism are deeply influenced by each other and that at the level of practice, methods from various sources are tried, borrowed, and interrelated." In other words, the questions of who should be called religious in China, and what religion or religions they should be called are up to debate.
