Explain how the Confucian concepts of Tian and “order” impact social and cultural life. Explain the role of the emperor and other elites in Confucian thought.

Explain how the Confucian concepts of Tian and “order” impact social and cultural life.
Explain the role of the emperor and other elites in Confucian thought.
From last week’s reading we saw that Buddhism, like Christianity and Islam that followed, is a missionary religion religion and emphasized equality over hierarchy. The focus of the Buddha’s message is that he had found a path out of the world of Samsara (illness, old age and death). The escape from Samsara can be accomplished by following the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path. Buddhism made its way to Eastern Asia through a variety of paths, including the Indian Ocean trade network and the Silk Routes. As Buddhism moved eastward towards China (and then on to Korea and Japan) it changed along the way. It eventually developed into different schools or sects. Much in the same way that we saw Christianity divide into Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant sects and Islam split into Sunni and Shia. The oldest Buddhist school is