China
China is one of the oldest, and most complex civilizations. However, the earliest civilization to form in China was the Huang River Valley, which was also known as the Yellow River. The Huang River Valley provided a great source for farming where they would grow rice, millet, wheat, green onions, ginger, grapes, peaches, plum, and wild chestnuts, and also herded a few animals. There was a disadvantage to living near the Huang River, though. The Huang River flooded very often, but an engineer built levees to hold back the water. Whenever the water overflowed, it brought yellow soil called loess to the valley, which is a crumbly, yellowish, sand-clay soil.
The Chinese also developed the Dynastic cycle, which is a political theory in the Chinese history. The most important rule is the Mandate of Heaven which is a concept that concerns the rules of how a ruler governs his state. From this rule, the Chinese came up with the theory that their rulers have the right to rule because they had a Mandate of Heaven but if this Mandate was lost, due to poor crops, looses in battle, then the right to rule could be given to a new dynasty.
One great period during this time was the Bronze Age which is a period that used copper and its alloy bronze as the main ingredient to all their weapons and machinery.
The most complex dynasty to the Chinese though was the Qin Dynasty that was ruled by a powerful ruler named Shi Huangdi who was responsible for unifying all of China and centralizing power with the help of legalist advisers who based their knowledge on legalism. Legalism was based on the teachers of Hanfeizi, "The nature of man is evil. His goodness is acquired." Shi Huangdi's most remarkable and costly achievements on the other hand was the Great Wall which later beacame an important symbol to the Chinese, diving and protecting their civilized world from the nomadic bands of the wall.
After the Qin Dynasty collasped, the Han Dynasty followed right after headed by Emperor Wudi who took China to new heights. Similiar to Gao Zu, he chose officials from confucian, "Men of wisdom and virtue." Han emperors made confucianism the official belief system of the state. The emperor Wudi also opened up a network of trade routes, later called the Silk Road that would link China and the West for centuries. But by the end of this dynasty, Buddhism was starting to spread.
Karl Jaspers is responsible though for pioneering the idea of the Axis Age. Karl was fascinated by the fact that so many great philosophers and religious leaders including Confucius, Buddha, Lao Tzu, and many more had flourished at roughly the same time as if something parallel was happening in the world, although people were unaware that similar or complimentary ideas were being developed at the same time. However, from this the 3 Streams of Thought became Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. Confucianism is the belief that human beings were able to be taught to become better people. Taoism is the way of man's cooperation with the course or trend of the natural world. Buddhism is a major global religion with a complex history and system of beliefs. The Buddha was born as a prince and at around the age of 30, he left the comforts of his home to seek the meaning of the suffering he saw around him. The Chinese civilization developed through philisophical thinking and ruling through dynasties, which created a complex civilization.
The Chinese also developed the Dynastic cycle, which is a political theory in the Chinese history. The most important rule is the Mandate of Heaven which is a concept that concerns the rules of how a ruler governs his state. From this rule, the Chinese came up with the theory that their rulers have the right to rule because they had a Mandate of Heaven but if this Mandate was lost, due to poor crops, looses in battle, then the right to rule could be given to a new dynasty.
One great period during this time was the Bronze Age which is a period that used copper and its alloy bronze as the main ingredient to all their weapons and machinery.
The most complex dynasty to the Chinese though was the Qin Dynasty that was ruled by a powerful ruler named Shi Huangdi who was responsible for unifying all of China and centralizing power with the help of legalist advisers who based their knowledge on legalism. Legalism was based on the teachers of Hanfeizi, "The nature of man is evil. His goodness is acquired." Shi Huangdi's most remarkable and costly achievements on the other hand was the Great Wall which later beacame an important symbol to the Chinese, diving and protecting their civilized world from the nomadic bands of the wall.
After the Qin Dynasty collasped, the Han Dynasty followed right after headed by Emperor Wudi who took China to new heights. Similiar to Gao Zu, he chose officials from confucian, "Men of wisdom and virtue." Han emperors made confucianism the official belief system of the state. The emperor Wudi also opened up a network of trade routes, later called the Silk Road that would link China and the West for centuries. But by the end of this dynasty, Buddhism was starting to spread.
Karl Jaspers is responsible though for pioneering the idea of the Axis Age. Karl was fascinated by the fact that so many great philosophers and religious leaders including Confucius, Buddha, Lao Tzu, and many more had flourished at roughly the same time as if something parallel was happening in the world, although people were unaware that similar or complimentary ideas were being developed at the same time. However, from this the 3 Streams of Thought became Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. Confucianism is the belief that human beings were able to be taught to become better people. Taoism is the way of man's cooperation with the course or trend of the natural world. Buddhism is a major global religion with a complex history and system of beliefs. The Buddha was born as a prince and at around the age of 30, he left the comforts of his home to seek the meaning of the suffering he saw around him. The Chinese civilization developed through philisophical thinking and ruling through dynasties, which created a complex civilization.
Global Perspective
Mark Tanner is an American man who now lives in the ruins of China. He has visited the Great Wall a few times and conversed with the Chinese of what they thought of the Great Wall. Mark Tanner has discovered that the Chinese believed that the Great Wall was the greatest symbol in all of ancient Chinese history. It was the greatest symbol because its a structure that represents what China is today, the most complex civilization and that name will still continue.
Citation: Tanner, Mark. "The Modern Great Wall Of China." Mark Tanner - The Official Home of the Kiwi Adventurer and Writer. China. Web. 14 Dec. 2011. <http://marktanner.com/blog/the-modern-great-wall-of-china/>.
Citation: Tanner, Mark. "The Modern Great Wall Of China." Mark Tanner - The Official Home of the Kiwi Adventurer and Writer. China. Web. 14 Dec. 2011. <http://marktanner.com/blog/the-modern-great-wall-of-china/>.