Li Shen: Traditional Chinese Culture and Atheism
[Editor’s Note] At the meeting celebrating the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, General Secretary Xi Jinping first proposed the important perspective of combining the basic tenets of Marxism with China’s specific realities and with China's fine traditional culture. The Resolution of the Sixth Plenary Session of the 19th CPC Central Committee and the Report to the 20th National Congress reaffirmed these "Two Combinations." The most critical theoretical breakthrough of the "Two Combinations" lies in the "Second Combination." On June 2, 2023, at a symposium on cultural inheritance and development, General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "The 'Second Combination' is another emancipation of the mind [1], allowing us to fully utilize the precious resources of China's fine traditional culture within a broader cultural space to explore theoretical and institutional innovations oriented toward the future." He emphasized that Chinese culture has a long history and Chinese civilization is extensive and profound. Only by comprehensively and deeply understanding the history of Chinese civilization can we more effectively promote the creative transformation and innovative development of China's fine traditional culture, more vigorously advance the development of socialist culture with Chinese characteristics, and build a modern civilization for the Chinese nation. To study and implement the spirit of this important speech, the editorial department of Science and Atheism organized a special symposium on the "'Second Combination' and Atheism" on July 9. Among the participants, Professor Li Shen, a member of the Academic Advisory Committee of the Center for Science and Atheism at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), delivered a speech titled "Chinese Traditional Culture and Atheism," the main contents of which are as follows.
The origins of Chinese culture can be traced back to the legendary eras of the Yan and Yellow Emperors [2]. In this legendary era, the belief in "Shangdi" (the High God) [3] and the "Mandate of Heaven" was formed—a lineage that would be passed down through subsequent generations—and a series of experiences in state governance, along with related knowledge of human society and the natural world, were accumulated.
During the Shang and Zhou dynasties, beliefs in the Mandate of Heaven and "Shangdi" were stabilized, and various forms of knowledge further developed. The ancient experiences of state governance were innovated and developed by thinkers such as the Duke of Zhou, Confucius, and Laozi, forming a relatively complete system of rites and principles of national governance. From this point forward, national unity and political stability became the highest political and social goals pursued by the ancient Chinese people.
The establishment of the Qin Dynasty achieved de facto unity for China on a material level. The Han Dynasty’s choice to accord exclusive importance to Confucianism [4] achieved ideological unity for China. From then on, Confucianism became the orthodox guiding ideology of the ancient Chinese state. Regimes could rise and fall, and the individuals or ethnic backgrounds of those in power could change, but the exclusive status of Confucianism remained as before. Confucianism exerted its efforts and fulfilled its responsibility for the stability of ancient Chinese rule and the continuity and unity of the traditional culture of the Chinese nation. Confucius, the founder of Confucianism, became the most important sage of ancient China and an iconic symbol of Chinese traditional culture. Consistent with territorial and cultural unity, national unity came to be regarded as normal and desirable, while national division was seen as abnormal. During periods of national division, longing for a return to unity became a shared psychological trait of the Chinese nation and a precious legacy of traditional culture. National unity guaranteed cultural unity and the continuity of that unified culture, making Chinese traditional culture the only uninterrupted culture in five thousand years.
Confucius "followed the path of Yao and Shun, and modeled himself after [Kings] Wen and Wu" [5], claiming to be a "transmitter rather than a creator." In reality, on the basis of inheriting the governance experiences of ancient sages, Confucius studied the various problems faced by the ancient state by seeking truth from facts and further proposed a series of new concepts, such as "governing the country through virtue." The Han Dynasty's exclusive elevation of Confucianism integrated the principles of "benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and trustworthiness" (ren, yi, li, zhi, xin), established by Confucian scholars since Confucius, into national politics, creating a ritual system centered on "filial piety." This system played an important role in national stability, but it also brought about many phenomena of hypocrisy and pretense. Consequently, during the Wei and Jin dynasties, Wang Bi and others proposed that the invisible and intangible "Nothingness" (wu) [6] behind tangible rituals was even more important. Since Wang Bi and others could not articulate the specific content of that "Nothingness," those who revered "Nothingness" acted as they pleased and ignored regulations. By the Tang Dynasty, with Kong Yingda’s Correct Meaning of the Five Classics at the core, it was proposed that the tangible "Being" (you) and the intangible "Nothingness" (wu) were equally important. At the end of the Tang Dynasty, Han Yu and others promoted The Great Learning, The Doctrine of the Mean, and Mencius, foreshadowing that Confucianism would enter a new era. In the Song Dynasty, represented by the Cheng brothers and Zhu Xi, The Analects, Mencius, The Great Learning, and The Doctrine of the Mean were compiled as the Four Books. They made internal self-cultivation the prerequisite for observing Confucian regulations and pointed out that the "Nothingness" behind tangible "Being" was "Principle" (li), or "Heavenly Principle." Principle is order; observing social order is human nature. Human self-cultivation consists of realizing this Heavenly Principle and returning to one's own nature. This New Confucianism [7] made the observance of social order a conscious act of the human heart, thereby further guaranteeing the stability of the social order.
While Confucianism was constantly innovating and developing its own theories, Buddhism and Taoism were also renewing their doctrines. In Buddhism, the Chan (Zen) school emerged, holding that Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, demons, and monsters are nothing but thoughts in the mind; as long as one understands the purity of one’s own nature, one is a Buddha. Taoism, as its movement for physical immortality faced repeated failures, abandoned the idea of physical immortality and even advocated that a person of high moral character in reality is an immortal.
However, as Shusun Tong, revered as the "Doyen of Han Confucianism," said: "Confucian scholars are difficult to use for aggressive acquisition, but can be used to preserve what has been achieved." Confucianism made outstanding contributions to maintaining the stability of its own country. It did not advocate invading others, but it also found it difficult to respond when facing external invasions. Especially in modern times, when encountering the "ships and guns" [8] of imperialist powers, Confucianism lacked the ability to cope. Therefore, at the final moment, the Qing Dynasty—which had accorded exclusive importance to Confucianism—had no choice but to abolish the dominant status of Confucianism itself. This was followed by the Xinhai Revolution [9] and later the founding of the People’s Republic of China, which gave China a new life and also gave traditional Chinese culture a new life.
The national faith of the ancient Chinese state, which prioritized Confucianism, centered on a system of deities led by "Shangdi," who were, in principle, the protector gods of the state. In the eyes of those who believed in these deities, for every additional deity, the state gained another layer of protection, just as if the state had acquired another elite soldier or capable general. Therefore, in ancient China, foreign Buddhas and indigenous figures like Laozi and Confucius could all be called sages. In fact, this was the case in other ancient countries as well. It was only later that world religions centered on individual salvation, particularly Christianity, regarded the deities of other nations as "idolatry" and insisted on their elimination, thereby changing the spirit of tolerance and peace among nations believing in world religions. In modern times, the expansionist requirements of capitalism were added to this, causing the culture of tolerance and peace in these countries to almost completely vanish.
The ancient Chinese state, from the monarch to the masses, believed in gods. This is a historical fact. It is also a fact that Confucius was worshipped and sacrificed to as a public state god by ancient regimes, with a status as high as the gods of the land and grain. However, at least since Confucius, thinkers in every dynasty have continuously corrected and discarded low-level, crude sorcery and excessive, unrestrained superstition regarding ghosts and gods. This constitutes the long-standing tradition of atheism within our traditional culture.
In the society where Confucius lived, it was generally believed that extraordinary celestial phenomena such as comets and meteorites were the "Way of Heaven," reflecting the will of Heaven. However, Confucius did not discuss issues related to the so-called "Way of Heaven." Confucius and his disciples also did not believe in the anthropomorphic ghosts and gods spoken of by the Mohists, and thus were regarded as "atheists." Xunzi further pointed out that those extraordinary celestial phenomena were merely uncommon occurrences, not expressions of Heaven's will. By the Han Dynasty, the state enacted laws identifying sympathetic magic as "sorcery and witchcraft" (wugu) that harmed society, and proposed the concept of "licentious sacrifices" (yinsi) [10]. From then on, the abolition and suppression of wugu and yinsi—sacrifices exceeding state regulations—became the regular enterprise of ancient atheists.
In the Han Dynasty, Dong Zhongshu proposed the new theological concept of "resonance between Heaven and humanity" (tianren ganying). He transformed the previously moody Heaven, which issued rewards and punishments arbitrarily, into a Heaven that decided rewards and punishments based on the virtues and vices of human behavior, marking a theological advancement in ancient Confucianism. Wang Chong further examined the events Dong Zhongshu identified as "resonances" and found them to be accidental coincidences, thereby negating the concept of resonance and proposing the idea that "the Way of Heaven is natural," which was a major achievement of Han Dynasty atheist thought. Wang Chong also denied that humans become ghosts after death, believing that a soul separated from a living body lacks cognitive functions.
During the Wei, Jin, and Northern and Southern Dynasties, Confucian scholars opposed the Buddhist doctrine of karmic reincarnation. Fan Zhen, in particular, compared the relationship between spirit and body to that of sharpness and a blade, arguing that after a person dies, there can be no ghost, just as sharpness cannot exist once a blade is gone. In the Tang Dynasty, Han Yu resolutely opposed the Emperor's worship of Buddha's finger-bone relics, nearly losing his life for it. Liu Zongyuan criticized the concept of "auspicious omens" promoted by the theory of resonance between Heaven and humanity, considering such talk similar to that of "licentious witches and blind historians." Together with Liu Yuxi, he even denied Heaven’s function of rewarding good and punishing evil.
By the Song Dynasty, Ouyang Xiu wrote history by recording only abnormal celestial phenomena and disasters without recording the so-called resonance relationship between these events and human affairs, further negating the idea of resonance between Heaven and humanity. He even denounced the River Chart (Hetu) and the Luo Writing (Luoshu) [11], which were then considered gifts from Heaven, as fraudulent and demonic inventions by certain Confucian scholars. Cao Duan of the Ming Dynasty not only resolutely opposed "licentious sacrifices" by the populace but also vigorously criticized the burgeoning superstition of Feng Shui. In the Qing Dynasty, Xiong Bolong continued the work of Wang Chong, targeting newly added "licentious sacrifices" of later generations, such as the worship of the Zitong God [12].
These atheist ideas in Chinese history constitute a sequence in the development of fine traditional culture, providing precious materials for our atheist thought today. However, viewed as a whole, the spread of ancient Chinese atheist thought and the experiences of atheists were difficult. Atheist thought, especially scientific and thorough atheist thought, can only flourish in a socialist society guided by Marxism.
Online Editor: Tong Xin Source: Science and Atheism (Official WeChat Account)