No word for "religion" was
known to the language; the notion of Church or Temple served by a
priestly caste had not entered men's minds. Offences against "the
gods" or "the spirits," in a vague sense, were often spoken of;
but, on the other hand, too much belief in their power was
regarded as superstition. "Sin" was only conceivable in the sense
of infraction of nature's general laws, as symbolized and
specialized by imperial commands; direct, or delegated to vassal
princes; in both cases as representatives, supreme or local, of
Heaven, or of the Emperor Above, whose Son the dynastic central
ruler for the time being was figuratively supposed to be. No
vassal prince ever presumed to style himself "Son of Heaven,"
though nearly all the barbarous vassals called themselves "King"
(the only other title the Chou monarchs took) in their own
dominions. "In the Heaven there can only be one Sun; on Earth
there can only be one Emperor"; this was the maxim, and, ever
since the Chou conquest in 1122 B.C., the word "King" had done
duty for the more ancient "Emperor," which, in remote times had
apparently not been sharply distinguished in men's minds from God,
or the "Emperor on High.
Pages:
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133