2006-09-22 08:55:44 · 8 answers · asked by djblast 1 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Confucianism has very little to say about the divine or the unpercieved world. For this reason, some do not even consider it to be a religion.
It definitely has a lot to say about ethics and standards, so perhaps it is more properly called an ethical system or a philosophy. Those who do cite it as a religion tend to do so because of its vast influence on behaviour and thought which is not unlike many religions in that regard.
So to answer your question... no, it is not monotheistic. Nor is it polytheistic or atheistic. It really hasn't much to say about theism at all. Perhaps it's non-theistic!
2006-09-22 09:02:02 · answer #1 · answered by Doctor Why 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
A curious and noteworthy aspect of the teaching of Confucius is his arm's length attitude towards religion. Confucius, although he later became a god, to whom temples were dedicated in every Chinese city, as the patron of students and scholars, nevertheless didn't talk about the gods at all:
"The topics the Master did not speak of were prodigies, force, disorder, and gods. [Analects translated by D.C. Lau, Penguin Books, 1979, VII:21, p. 88]"
The term for "god" here, shén (shin or kami in Japanese) is often translated "spirit" or even "spiritual beings." We see another term in this quote:
Chi-lu asked how the spirits of the dead and gods should be served. The Master said, "You are not able to serve to serve man. How can you serve the spirits?" [XI:12, p. 107]
2006-09-22 09:05:40 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Not a lot of talk of God, but he does mention "Heaven" pretty often. Not the blissful heaven of us Christians, but an authority from which his precepts are said to be based on.
2006-09-22 09:10:49 · answer #3 · answered by Love Shepherd 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's not even theistic. It's a way of life that you can live by regardless of religion.
2006-09-22 08:59:32 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Confucionism is really more of a philosophy than a religion.
2006-09-22 08:58:56 · answer #5 · answered by Bran McMuffin 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
no, its a code... a way of life... not so much a religion
2006-09-22 08:57:50 · answer #6 · answered by WhiteHat 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
No. It's controlled hysteria.
2006-09-22 08:57:30 · answer #7 · answered by vanamont7 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
No, just confusion.
2006-09-22 08:57:02 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋