Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism

Paper Summary:

This paper explains the roots of these three religions. It shows how each has held a predominant position at some point in Chinese history, and each has had its followers. Taoism and Confucianism were the primary religions in China?s early history. Buddhism later spread to China and established a large following. While Taoism and Confucianism are largely philosophical, ethics-based, codes of living, Buddhism has a deeper spiritual aspect. Buddhism?s spiritual ties, along with its relative simplicity of approach and practice and its similarities to Taoism and Confucianism, allowed the religion to gain a strong foothold in China.

From the Paper:

"Confucianism has been mainstream Chinese philosophy for over two thousand years. It was a primary religion for the Chinese people. Many hold that Confucianism is an ethical system that is grounded in humanism. The teachings of Confucius form the basis of Confucianism. The heart of the teaching is found in the "Four Books". These works are the Analects of Confucius, Mencius, and two extracts from the ritual collections: "The Doctrine of the Mean" and "The Great Learning". 1 They mainly focus on individual morality and ethics, and the proper exercise of political power by the rulers. It is not like many other deeply spiritual religions such as Islam or Christianity. Confucianism has more philosophical roots. It concentrated on the moral and political conformity. It is primarily an ethical system to which rituals added at important times in one's life."

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