Ancient Religion in China

Now that we have explained the roles in Eastern religions in modern medicine, Hindus impact on modern India's society and how Buddhism practice is expressed in the United States, let us discuss the state and practice of ancient Chinese religious traditions in Communist China today.

For two and a half millenniums, religions in China were part of every day lifestyles and practiced routinely. Religions were accepted by the government until 1911 with the downfall of the Qing dynasty. With the lack of imperial support for religious Taoism, Buddhism, or any other form of religion, a chaotic period for China emerged.

In 1949, the Communist party brought severe religious restrictions and persecution of practitioners of all religions. The government confiscated the properties, ancient relics, and the temples of China's estimated Five million monks. Laws were passed which severely restricted any religious practitioner's activities and could lead to being arrested. These laws force the denunciation of beliefs and the dismantling of monasteries and other religious facilities. In 1950, the government of Mao Zedong passed a statute helping initiate the era of religious persecution spelled out a new social category of superstition practitioners who could be punished. It read, "All those who for three years immediately prior to the liberation derived the main part of their income from such religions and superstitious professions as those of clergymen, priests, monks, Taoist, lay Taoists, geomancers, fortune tellers, and diviners are to be classified as superstitious practitioners." (Toropov, 2002)

The Chinese Communists view themselves as modern citizens and saw the expression of religion, especially Taoism, as evidence of an old, irrational outlook on life. The ideology of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is Marxism/Lenonism and Mao Zedong thought. With this perception of religion, one of the world's oldest and most diverse faith traditions were officially discouraged under the title of superstitious.

In 1957, the Communists created the Chinese Taoist Association (CTA) in Beijing, which permitted gatherings of monks from around the country. There is speculation that the government had come to terms with the heritage and endurance of traditional Chinese religious practices. Mao acknowledged that Taoism understood the logic dialect (the Marxist process of change arising from the