Zhou Dynasty 

Zhou Dynasty (1046 - 256 BC)

"Mandate from Heaven"

 

 

 

The Shang dynasty had been in power for more that 500 years when a new power, the Zhou, came from the steps in central Asia. The Zhou army along with their military allies marched to the Shang capital Yin (present day Anyang in the North of Henan province) and attacked the city from the Western side. Before the attack, King Wu gave a rousing speech in which he claimed that the gods had withdrawn the mandate of heaven from the Shang rulers and given it to the Zhou people. The concept of the “Mandate of Heaven”, which formulated that a Chinese dynasty should maintain order in the world, including natural order affecting farming and the environment, may have developed at this time as a way to legitimize rulers. It could also be used to blame rulers as climate conditions became more difficult, where rulers of China should upkeep the Mandate of Heaven. This could have happened as the Zhou justified their rule due to the failings of the Shang, as conditions became more difficult. This “Mandate from Heaven” has followed the Chinese “right to rule“ trough the entire history.

The Zhou ultimately took over the entire Shang Dynasty and quickly adopted to their politics and ruling of the state, history, culture and rituals. Central to the Chinese political authority was the rituals of elaborate feasting with the dead. This involved magnificent bronze vessels developed during Shang Dynasty, which were both symbols of power and important historical documents. But the Zhou clans also added more text that documented the military achievements and civil honour of individual family members. One example is following text written inside a Gui vesel “This Vessel was made for the Duke of Kang, the brother of  Zhou King Wu´s brother, after the successful defeat of an uprising by Shang rebels”. Some inscriptions even had reference to year and date.

The Zhou dynasty lasted almost 800 years, longer than any other dynasty in Chinese history and the entire world.

The fonder Zhou Wen Wang had been wrongfully imprisoned by the evil last emperor of the Shang Dynasty. In prison he occupied himself with a study of the Yjing (book of Changes) until he was released as a result of outcries of his people and led a revolt. Wen Wang was considered an ideal monarch, intelligent and human. He was in many ways the inspiration and paved the ground for the most important philosopher in Chinese history; Confucius (551-479 BC).

The long rule of the Zhou dynasty is usually divided into two parts, the first covering the time when the kings of Zhou were the undisputed political leaders of the empire (Western Zhou 11th Cent.- 770 BC), and the second (Eastern Zhou 770-221 BC) representing the time when the regional rulers, descendants of the former vassal states of the Zhou, became so powerful that the kings of Zhou, although acting formally as the highest arbiters, were politically dependent of the activities of the larger regional states.

At the end of Zhou Dynasty, centralized power decreased throughout the  Spring and Automn period to regional rulers that were able to protect the Zhou Dynasty against barbarian tribes from the north. Gradually this disintegrated into the Warring States Period around 5th Century BC. While during the Spring and Autumn period the kings of Zhou were still respected as Sons of Heaven, they were nearly irrelevant during the end of the period.

 

The famous work “The art of war” by Sun-Tzu was written during this time, recording precepts and tactics one could use to gain advantage over an opponent, win the war and establish peace.

How widely read The Art of War was at this time is unknown but Sun-Tzu was not the only one who tried to end the violence through stratagems. The pacifist philosopher Mo Ti (also given as Mot Tzu, l. 470-291 BCE) went to each state, offering his knowledge in strengthening a city’s defense as well as offensive tactics in battle. His idea was to provide each state with exactly the same advantages, neutralizing all, in the hope that they would realize the futility of further warfare and declare peace. His plan failed, however, because each state, like a die-hard gambler, believed that their next offensive would result in the big win.

The Zhou court gradually lost control over its constituent states that were at war with each other, until one of them, the Qin state consolidated power and formed the Qin dynasty in 221 BC.

The Warring States period has become an important part of modern Chinese myths and legends with bloody internal warfare and coalitions that finally formed the important Xin and Han Dynasties.

The first ancient classic literature also appeared during the Zhou Dynasty, and verses like “ten thousand men ploughing in pairs” and “the ground is laid open by their ploughs; in thousands of pairs they remove the roots” gives one of the earliest description of manmade civilization as early as around 11th century BC.

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Agriculture was streamlined and the Western Zhou farmers made use of irrigation canals, and were working on public field as well as for private land owners. Rice, wheat, fruits and vegetables were cultivated for food as well as the domestic animals like pigs, cows, buffalos, sheep, and horses. Hemp, linen and silk was the most important materials for fabric. By far the most advanced civilization at that time.

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Confucius (551- 479 BC) 

Confucius (or Kon-Fu-tse) was a Chinese philosopher and politician acting during the Spring and Autumn Period at the end of the Zhou dynasty.

It is actually remarkable parallel in time with the uprising of Siddharta Gautama (Buddha) on the Indian continent.

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