Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism: Chinese Popular Religion

[@greenblaze9189]

When my grandmother was a young woman growing up in Trinidad and Tobago, a mischievious cousin of hers once went to a member of the Chinese diaspora and asked "why do you leave bowls of rice by grave sites? When are the dead going to come up and eat the rice." He received a response "the same time your dead come up to smell your flowers"

[@iluvtacos1231]

It always fascinates me learning about non-Abrahamic religions because they're so different.

[@liamjohnston2000]

Agnostic atheist here, I just want to thank the entire Crash Course team for all their hard work on this series. I've enjoyed every episode and learned so much. I'm very curious about next week's episode.

[@peteryoble9227]

Petition to add a “Live Long, Die Never, Read Books” t-shirt as Crash Course merch.

[@LikelyToBeEatenByAGrue]

I remember reading a translation of the dao de ching when i was young and it was the closest I've ever come to spirituality. I've gone back to it a few times in adulthood. I'd recommend it. It's a fascinating and deep read. Also, quite short.

[@falala-l3v]

Hi, I'm from the southern part of China. Here is an example of how one experiences and practices Chinese popular religion in China: In school, we learn extracts from the Analects(required to recite some), also a bit of Doaism(there are other Chinese schools of philosophy which we also learn), my family burn incense, offer food to our ancestors and we are Buddhists. True, religion here is sort of hidden or unseen and a lot of my friends are atheists but we respect deeply the teachings from these religions and philosophies. I remember one time when I was seven and I made a paper shoe for fun and my grandpa was horrified and snatched it from me and forbade me to wear it. Paper shoes, phones, handbags, money are for burning; to give to the ancestors. Another thing is that we are not supposed to put dark blue or white flowers in our hair which is only reserved for a death in one's family(it is also when one cannot give money in red packets, just cash without an envelope during Chinese New Year). Anyway, that's from my experience, and other people may have different ones so please share!

[@Syco108]

This course should be taught in schools. I was completely ignorant of other's religions until I sought out that knowledge for myself

[@TatianaBoshenka]

Something so cute happened when I watched this video this morning. I have a cat named Ghost and he jumped up beside me and curled up to watch this with me. I realized after a little while that you kept saying his name over and over.

[@Sirfing_Wolf]

What this series seems to be teaching me as I eagerly await each new episode, is that the idea of a “true” or “correct” faith, and ideas of following the “right path” seems to be a very Western religious ideal. There’s a reason so many people say they’re spiritualist but don’t follow any particular path

[@iluvtacos1231]

Definitely VERY western.

[@sznomn]

Untrue! Judaism, Islam, and Christianity each claim to follow the one true god. None of them originate in the west.

[@laurafoy5838]

My heritage is chinese but I'm a second generation New Zealander and it was great learning more about the practices my grandma used to have around honoring the ancestors and where that comes from!

[@mindykb15]

Nice work on this episode. Though I did think you’d explain the part about burning stuff a bit more clearly. Fun fact: You can buy a paper model of just about anything to “send” to your ancestors… like a paper yacht, or a paper Ferrari.

[@ernestcline2868]

As someone who despises Faulkner's _The Sound and The Fury_ , I appreciated the shade thrown on him.

[@khora3845]

Spirited Away reference

[@rmdodsonbills]

A few things struck me watching this video. The spirit festival struck me as very similar to Halloween which is an amalgamation of old pagan practices and Christian theology which has become a very secular communal practice. Even many of the Christians who participate are probably disconnected from both the pagan beliefs about dead relatives and the Christian celebration of the saints in heaven. Also, the unknowableness of The Way is also not unique. Native American spirituality also embraces the idea that the Great Spirit is unknowable; that's what the Wakan in Wakan Tanka means. Even Christians talk about how God works in mysterious ways and that God's ways are not Man's ways.

[@MRL200]

John, I think Chinese folk religion would have been fun to discuss. It's a major component of Chinese mythology and culture with its rather immense pantheon of major gods and minor gods. As you said, a lot of it is merged together or basically complement each other (my grandmother had Buddhist, Daoist, and folk religious rituals at her funeral, for example), but it's still its own semi-distinct thing.

[@louisliu4598]

Chinese here and maybe some supplements provided. Confuciusism is more like an ideology than a religion irl. In the past Confuciusism emphasized loyalty to the Emperor and obedience to paternity, which forms a system where in each class of the society there is a "master" directing the others (in central government is the emperor, and in the family is the father/husband) to maintain the operation of the society. Nowadays after the communists' society revolution in the 1950s and 1970s, most of the Chinese you get across today may be atheist (except for some border areas like Xinjiang and Tibet where many people keep their beliefs) thanks to the materialism education in school from childhood. The Ghost Festival and ancestor worship are more cultural traditions instead of religious ceremonies. We light the incense and pray to the ancestors' spirits not because we believe in some religion, but believe that this may bring some good luck or just hold the mindset that "doing this does not harm".

[@poisonedfrog]

I learned so much from this one video, WOW. Thank you crash course!!

[@Rudero3]

Aw man, I see Wades-Giles translations got ahold of this episode. Also, never stop mispronouncing things, ever. John Green is a national treasure. Also, I got so excited to see Qin Shi Huang's portrait, I love that portrait.

[@Move2C]

8:40: Daoism: So this is where the quote „The map is not the landscape“ originally stems from before it got famous in western culture of 20th century 🙏

[@ramonarobot]

As a chinese, those practices aren’t really religious, but more… cultural

[@eerwwful]

Wow the ghosts are SOOO cute

[@QueenOfTriad]

Here in Indonesia the three teaching is called Tridharma and on our ID that listed religion its in Confucius (Konghucu) while years back its in Buddhism.

[@comiccultivation]

Literally watching this video in china

[@mrping2603]

I've been looking forward to this episode!!

[@kwanarchive]

The Dao is beyond words, but is pretty easy to follow. Are you trying to do something but meeting resistance along the way? Then you're probably doing it wrong in that situation. Try a different tactic or strategy or milestone. The one that offers less resistance while still making progress towards... whatever it is... is probably the better way for now. Then you'll come to see all of nature works that way. The Principle of Least Action. Even the principles behind the principles follow that principle. The Great Dao is broad and plain. But people like the side paths for some reason. The Dao dwells where people loathe. People loathe boringness, mundanity, and consideration.

[@MackenzieCassell]

0:42. I was literally thinking “what does that box have to do with religion?” And then I thought “he’s probably going to say ‘so you’re probably wondering what that had to do with Chinese Confucianism’” Woah

[@tirvine9102]

☯ I was hoping to hear about the Yin Yang in Daoism section. Otherwise, very well done I've been loving this series.

[@stevenxia5776]

Aw the ghosts are so cuuuttteee

[@lordphinix3]

Anyone in China want to admit that they are in fact watching this video?

[@Resavian]

I always love the crash course stuff, I got intially hooked on crash course philsophy and then worked my way out from there, and this is fast becoming part of my core favourites, and I have to say I am looking forward to the atheist one, because I know, agree or not, it will be respectful and thoughful as have all the ones before it have been

[@mailill]

Oh, "the hungry ghosts" - they are so relatable!

[@MrSilverDude101]

John may be using the wrong pronunciation for pinyin romanization, but if anyone says anything just remember how many ways there are to pronounce the same characters across the many dialects of Chinese. Mandarin is just the one they teach in school to laowai and to zhongguoren students. If anything John should only make videos in Chinese as mispronunciation is his thing.

[@Nyxelestia]

TBH, the idea that "what you worship = who you are" is largely a monotheistic construct (or tbh Abrahamic religions specifically). No one else treats their religion as their identity.

[@dangerousflyer4485]

When will John and hank make analects for the nerdfighters to continue their modernist religion of compassion and science?

[@gailaltschwager7377]

Thank you!

[@be1tube]

How many takes did that paper money joke require? It looked perfect!

[@pvtpain66k]

"He was quite the Confuisiust-stan" and I'm like "Stan is back?... Oh."

[@dziban303]

I'm here for the dunks on Faulkner

[@nealmp]

Can we get some Qin Shi Huang "Live Fast, Die Never, Burn Books" Merch?

[@ShearDouchbaggery]

I was looking for a shout-out to Dudeism somewhere in the Dao

[@CJFravel]

I and my wife are atheist, but my mother in law is Buddhist. When we had out wedding in China she held ceremonies for the ancestors to invite me into the family. I had to give them food and alcohol, light a bunch of cigarettes for the men, and of course burn paper money. It was interesting, even if I thought it was a daft.

[@justinvidanes5186]

Thank you. I’m becoming conservative with my philosophy studies. Hank and John… it’s like I “worshipped your religion.” Vlogbrothers was hugely part of my life and crash course made me grow. I know not where my destination is, but I harken that I have good teachers like you and crash course!

[@johnchessant3012]

George Lucas has said that the practices of the Jedi from _Star Wars_ are loosely drawn from Buddhism and Daoism.

[@finnboru7977]

Existential Hot Pocket...your command of language knows no bounds...😊

[@deebmonkey23]

Big big Stan stan here 😅

[@WsdomCapsuleUS]

How does the blending of Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism in traditions like the Ghost Festival challenge Western ideas about the definition of religion?

[@Howwhen_IQof9]

chinese gods are more like a service sectors lol, if they don't provide the service ppl go to another god, spirits, ghost, ancestors, dudes who were cool thousands of years ago, whoever

[@evan7642]

I can’t tell if that intro was scripted or not lol

[@adityaschannel161]

Dao is

[@geeksdo1tbetter]

6:05 I'm a Stan stan!!

[@gapsfire23]

Yay

[@joziahturner]

I'm a stan stan

[@Anil18834]

"Atheism... That'll be fun, and non-contentious..." 😂 Looking forward to it ❤

[@veronicamcghie5238]

In addition to buying money do they also burn paper models of cars and houses and other goods at the Ghost Festival? Or am I getting mixed up with the Day of the Dead?

[@narrator69]

Boo Berry looks totally stoned

[@pluto9870]

Go with the Tao

[@SomePoserStoleMyName]

Let’s not forget the pastafarians

[@aryastark5832]

I’m in china , but I saw this video🤔

[@MakeMeThinkAgain]

Snark directed at Faulkner isn't very nice. His ghost could come back and haunt you. And there are some lines in "As I Lay Dying" that I wish I had written. Are you going to do this for Japan, too. I've always wondered how the warrior monk tradition got started there.

[@shadowsbane22789]

So the Tao is basically the force.

[@user-rh6ru5oz2o]

Wow rice wine. That's more Chinese than I expected.

[@francescaan110]

I hope you do one on atheism as well! After you’ve covered all of the religions, that is 👏

[@quantumgunner221]

wow i like this guy idk but is he the same guy who use to do cc biology

[@arrebolc5028]

Generally correct, but there are still many misunderstandings about China. It is easy to make such mistakes without living in China for a long time and understanding Chinese culture in depth.