Mandate of Heaven

Overview

The Mandate of Heaven, the legitimation of authority in Ancient China, was the divine power of a ruler over his people. Though this mandate granted the ruler special powers, it could only be retained if he was just and cared about his people. This idea of a conditional legitimation coming not from the gods but from the way a ruler treated his people was unique to China at the time and transcended many different dynasties and beliefs.

Confucianism

Confucius, in his strife to create a moral order sustained by virtual and ritual, included many of the same ideas as the Mandate of Heaven. For example, his depiction of an Emperor to subject relationship urged the subjects to show chung (loyalty), but only if the ruler created economic and cultural prosperity as well as safety for the people. In Confucian beliefs, these are the necessary conditions if a leader is to have the Mandate of Heaven.

Mencius

Mencius, another thinker in ancient China and a follower of Confucius, too touched on a Mandate of Heaven. He went even further than Confucius on this topic however, creating the first kind of social contract the world had ever seen. He said that rulers were placed by the divine to keep peace and order among the subject, and if a ruler failed to meet these requirements, then his subjects had not only the right but the responsibility to revolt. [1]

Sources

[2] - CF Manual pages 117-122 Class Notes (April 16- April 24)

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History 8 Sarah Bland