What is the Mandate of Heaven?
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Answer:
The Mandate of Heaven (Tianming), also known as Heaven's Mandate, was the divine source of authority and the right to rule of China's early kings and emperors. The ancient god or divine force known as Heaven or Sky had selected this particular individual to rule on its behalf on earth.
Answer:
Explhe Mandate of Heaven (Tianming), also known as Heaven's Mandate, was the divine source of authority and the right to rule of China's early kings and emperors. The ancient god or divine force known as Heaven or Sky had selected this particular individual to rule on its behalf on earth. An important element of the mandate was that although the ruler had been given great power he also had a moral obligation to use it for the good of his people, if he did not then his state would suffer terrible disasters and he would lose the right to govern.
Wen & the Responsibility of Rule
The first Chinese ruler to claim his position and authority came directly from Heaven, which was for the Zhou the supreme divine force, was King Wen of Zhou, the pre-dynastic feudal state in the Wei river valley of China. Building on a well-established tradition of ancestor worship, this legendary king was known, as his successors would be too, as the 'Son of Heaven'. He was considered the head of the royal family, the nobility, the state, the judiciary and religious hierarchy. The idea of a divine favour on Wen was further endorsed by the conjunction of the five major planets in the night sky in 1059 BCE. When Wen and his successors died, it was thought that they rose to Heaven and served at court there. Such exalted attachments, then, ensured that subsequent rulers and emperors were treated with great reverence and awe by any person fortunate enough to ever come in physical contact with them.
WEN BECAME A MODEL FOR MANY SUBSEQUENT KINGS, EMPERORS, POLITICIANS & HISTORIANS & A SYMBOL OF GOOD & BENEVOLENT GOVERNANCE.
Wen became a model for many subsequent kings, emperors, politicians and historians and a symbol of good and benevolent governance during his long and peaceful reign during the 11th century BCE. The virtue of his reign was in strong contrast to the debauched reputation gained by his predecessor King Chou. In later Confucian thought, Wen would be idealised and he was often cited by authors such as Mencius as the great example of a ruler whose every decision was based on the best interests of his people and who even shared his pleasure park with them. Mencius pointed out that "Heaven does not create people for the sake of the sovereign. Heaven made the sovereign for the sake of the people" (in Dawson, 8). The ruler must, therefore, at all times be guided by the principle of benevolence or jen. He is both the mother and father of the people. Further, if there were suitable omens such as floods and droughts and the ruler was proving less capable of fulfilling his mandate than he ought to have been, then Mencius considered it legitimate for the people, if not actually to overthrow their ruler and find a new one, then at least to show their disapproval through rebellion and protest.anation: