Tag: Lasting Peace Br.

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Culture History Language Learning Science Theocratic

tiān‐yī‐wúfèng

tiān‐yī‐wúfèng ((tiān [(is)] heavenly 天)‐(yī garment 衣)‐(wú·fèng without · seams 无缝 無縫) → [[is] flawless]) 👈🏼 Tap/click to show/hide the “flashcard”

[Notes: Tap/click on a Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) expression to reveal its “flashcard”; tap/click on a “flashcard” or its Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) expression to hide the “flashcard”. 📖 📄 📘 icons mean 📖 Reveal All, 📄 Reveal Advanced, and 📘 Reveal None re all the “flashcards” in the heading, paragraph, etc. that they are placed at the beginning of.]

We in the Mandarin field should keep in mind that many Mandarin-speaking people were taught to believe in evolution, and thus tend to not believe in God. The Shēngmìng Láizì Chuàngzào Ma? ((Shēngmìng Life 生命) (Lái·zì Came · From 来自 來自) (Chuàng·zào Initiating · {Making, Creating} → [Creating] 创造 創造) (Ma [? ptcl for “yes/no” questions] 吗 嗎)? → [Was Life Created? (lc)]) (Was Life Created? (lc)) brochure and the Shēngmìng de Qǐyuán—Zhíde Sīkǎo de Wǔ Ge Wèntí ((Shēngmìng Life 生命) (de ’s 的) (Qǐ·yuán {Rising → [Starting]} · Source → [Origin] 起源/原)—(Zhí·de Worth · Getting → [Worth] 值得) (Sī·kǎo {Thinking About} · Examining 思考) (de ’s 的) (Wǔ Five 五) (Ge [mw] 个 個/个) (Wèn·tí Asking · Subjects → [Questions] 问题 問題) → [The Origin of Life—Five Questions Worth Asking (lf)]) (The Origin of Life—Five Questions Worth Asking (lf)) brochure were originally published back in 2010, but they are still considered current publications, and relatively recently, the English version of the Was Life Created? brochure was updated to the December 2022 Printing, and the Mandarin version of it was updated to the February 2023 Printing. So, it would be good for us to consider some of the expressions used in the Mandarin versions of the Was Life Created? and Origin of Life brochures, which can be so helpful when discussing the fundamentally important question of whether life was created.

“Very Fortunate” Indeed!

This week’s MEotW, which appears in the first paragraph of the section of the Mandarin Was Life Created? brochure entitled “Shēngjī (Shēng·jī Life · {Mechanism → [Being Organic]} → [Life] 生机 生機)‐Bóbó (Bó·bó Flourishing · Flourishing 勃勃) de (’s 的) Dìqiú (Dì·qiú Earth · Globe 地球)” (“The Living Planet”), is “tiān‐yī‐wúfèng ((tiān [(is)] heavenly 天)‐(yī garment 衣)‐(wú·fèng without · seams 无缝 無縫) → [[is] flawless])”:

English:

Life on earth could never exist were it not for a series of very fortunate “coincidences,”

Mandarin (WOL; Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) Plus)

📖 📄 📘 Dìqiú (Dì·qiú earth · globe 地球) zài (in 在) hěn (very 很) duō (many 多) fāngmiàn (fāng·miàn {directions → [sides]} · faces → [aspects] 方面) dōu ({all of them} 都) “qiǎohé (qiǎo·hé {being coincidental → [coincidentally]} · {closing → [matching]} → [coincidental] 巧合)” de (-ly 地) pèihe (pèi·he matches · {closes → [accords]} → [is suitable] 配合) de (getting 得) tiān‐yī‐wúfèng ((tiān (to be) heavenly 天)‐(yī garment 衣)‐(wú·fèng without · seams 无缝 無縫) → [to be flawless]), yào (if 要)‐bu ((it) not 不)‐shì ({would be} 是) zhèyàng (zhè·yàng this · {form → [way]} 这样 這樣), dìqiú (dì·qiú earth · globe 地球) shang (upon 上) gēnběn (gēn·běn {root (of a plant)} · {root or stem of a plant} → [basically] 根本) jiù (then 就) bù (not 不) kěnéng (could 可能) yǒu (have 有) shēngmìng (life 生命).

Where the English Was Life Created? brochure speaks of the “coincidences” that made life possible on earth as “very fortunate” (a bit of British understatement?), the Mandarin Was Life Created? brochure effectively says these “coincidences” made earth “suitable for life to a miraculously/superhumanly flawless extent”. In the process of doing so, it evokes the long-standing Chinese cultural concept of “Tiān (Heaven [→ [God]] 天),” or Heaven.

“Let Me Reintroduce You to…”

As the Lasting Peace brochure (English, Mandarin) helps us understand, this concept of “Tiān (Heaven [→ [God]] 天)” is a kind of conceptual bridge back to a time when historical records show that the Chinese worshipped one supreme deity:

WHO IS GOD?

TO THE Chinese, the concept of God, or Shang-di (literally “Emperor above”), is both foreign and abstract. Most people worship heaven and earth, spirits and demons, ancestors and other humans. Interestingly, however, according to Chinese historical records, between three and four thousand years ago, during the Xia and Shang dynasties, the Chinese were already worshipping one supreme deity. The book The Religious History of China explains that they “reckoned that between heaven and earth there was a principal God who stood supreme and had absolute control over all things. . . . This supreme deity came to be called Di, or Shang-di, during the Shang Dynasty, and was known as Tien [heaven], or Tien-di [Emperor in Heaven], during the Zhou Dynasty [11th century to 256 B.C.E.].” Thus, the ancient Chinese believed in the existence of a Supreme Sovereign of the universe.

During the Spring and Autumn period (c. 722-481 B.C.E.) and the Warring States period (c. 480-221 B.C.E.), Confucianism and Taoism gained ascendancy. Influenced by these two schools of thought, the worship of Shang-di was gradually replaced by the abstract idea of reverence for Tien. By the Han dynasty (202 B.C.E.–221 C.E.), under the dominance of Confucianism, the Chinese became engrossed in moral culture and social order, and the concept of Shang-di suffered another setback. With the spread of Buddhism into China, the Chinese no longer held to the belief of a Creator who is in control of the universe, but they accepted Heaven, or Providence, as the first cause of all things. Since then, the concept of God, or Shang-di, has become something completely foreign to most Chinese.

Who, then, really is God? The Bible shows that God is not a force or law of nature that governs the operation of all things in the universe. Nor is he Tien, which is venerated by many Chinese. Rather, God is a living spirit who has feelings and personality traits. He is the almighty and omniscient Sovereign of the Universe, and his love is boundless. Not only has he created all things but he also has a definite purpose for mankind—that we worship him with love and live forever on this beautiful earth in lasting peace and happiness.

(PDF files with 3-line material covering the Mandarin version of the above quotation from the Lasting Peace brochure can be downloaded from here (iPad-Letter-A4) or here (XLP-iPhone-A5). (Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) Plus material for the Lasting Peace brochure is in the works, but is not quite ready to be posted yet.) The short link for Chinese field language-learning links for the Lasting Peace brochure is: Lasting Peace Brochure Links (tiandi.info/pc).)

Use of this week’s MEotW in the Mandarin Was Life Created? brochure reflects good insight into what can help us to reach the hearts of the Chinese people we meet in the Mandarin field, as we reintroduce them to the “Supreme Sovereign of the universe” whom they once recognized and worshipped.

For convenience:

The direct link for the current-generation Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) Plus resource for the Was Life Created? brochure is:

The short link for Chinese field language-learning links for the Was Life Created? brochure is:

More Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) and Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) Plus web material based on the Mandarin Was Life Created? brochure will be made available in the Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) Plus web resource as time allows.

Categories
Culture Current Events History Theocratic

tiānxià

tiānxià (tiān·xià heaven · under → [all under heaven; the whole world] 天下) ← Tap/click to show/hide the “flashcard”

[Notes: Tap/click on a Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) expression to reveal its “flashcard”; tap/click on a “flashcard” or its Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) expression to hide the “flashcard”. 📖 📄 📘 icons mean 📖 Reveal All, 📄 Reveal Advanced, and 📘 Reveal None re all the “flashcards” in the heading, paragraph, etc. that they are placed at the beginning of.]

At the time of this writing, the main page of jw.org was featuring the following headline in support of a global campaign:

English

Will War Ever End?

Mandarin:

📖 📄 📘 Tiānxià (Tiān·xià Heaven · Under → [the Whole World] 天下) Huì (Will 会 會) Tàipíng (Tài·píng Supremely · {Be Flat, Level, Even → [Be Peaceful]} 太平) Ma ([? ptcl for “yes/no” questions] 吗 嗎)?

Screenshot of jw.org (CHS) on 2023-09-05, with _“天下 (Tiānxià)”_ circled

The Mandarin headline shown above is derived from the common expression “tiānxià (tiān·xià heaven · under → [all under heaven; the whole world] 天下)‐tàipíng (tài·píng supreme · {being flat, level, even → [being peaceful]} → [peace; tranquility] | supremely · {[be] flat, level, even → [[be] peaceful]} 太平)”, which basically means “peace on earth”. Note that the expression “tiānxià (tiān·xià heaven · under → [all under heaven; the whole world] 天下)”, this week’s MEotW, may also be capitalized, since it may be used in reference to “Tiān (Heaven [→ [God]] 天)” (the Chinese mythological concept of Heaven), which should really be capitalized for a similar reason to why “Shàngdì (Shàng·dì Above’s · {Emperor → [God]} → [God] 上帝)” (also a term used by the ancient Chinese) is capitalized.

Heaven…

This excerpt from the MEotW post on “Shàngtiān (Shàng·tiān Above’s · {Heaven [→ [God]]} → [Heaven; Providence; God] 上天)” recounts how the Chinese concept of Heaven developed:

As mentioned in the MEotW post on “Shàngdì (Shàng·dì Above’s · {Emperor → [God]} → [God] 上帝)”:

The Lasting Peace brochure has a box explaining how the concept of Shàngdì (Shàng·dì Above’s · {Emperor → [God]} → [God] 上帝) has been viewed in China throughout its history.

Here is a quote from that box that relates how the Chinese came to view the “Tiān (Heaven [→ [God]] 天)” in “Shàngtiān (Shàng·tiān Above’s · {Heaven [→ [God]]} → [Heaven; Providence; God] 上天)”, and how that affected their understanding of Shàngdì (Shàng·dì Above’s · {Emperor → [God]} → [God] 上帝):

…according to Chinese historical records, between three and four thousand years ago, during the Xia and Shang dynasties, the Chinese were already worshipping one supreme deity. The book The Religious History of China explains that they “reckoned that between heaven and earth there was a principal God who stood supreme and had absolute control over all things. . . . This supreme deity came to be called Di, or Shang-di, during the Shang Dynasty, and was known as Tien [heaven], or Tien-di [Emperor in Heaven], during the Zhou Dynasty [11th century to 256 B.C.E.].” Thus, the ancient Chinese believed in the existence of a Supreme Sovereign of the universe.

During the Spring and Autumn period (c. 722-481 B.C.E.) and the Warring States period (c. 480-221 B.C.E.), Confucianism and Taoism gained ascendancy. Influenced by these two schools of thought, the worship of Shang-di was gradually replaced by the abstract idea of reverence for Tien. By the Han dynasty (202 B.C.E.–221 C.E.), under the dominance of Confucianism, the Chinese became engrossed in moral culture and social order, and the concept of Shang-di suffered another setback. With the spread of Buddhism into China, the Chinese no longer held to the belief of a Creator who is in control of the universe, but they accepted Heaven, or Providence, as the first cause of all things. Since then, the concept of God, or Shang-di, has become something completely foreign to most Chinese.

…and All Under Heaven

What about when “Tiān (Heaven [→ [God]] 天)” is combined with the common and seemingly simple morpheme “xià (below; under; underneath [→ [next; later; following]] | downward; down | {go/come/put/set/bring down}; descend | fall | {be less/lower than} | lower; inferior | {times going/coming/putting/setting/bringing down} 下)”, which here means “under”? Wikipedia provides this summary of what “Tiānxià (Tiān·xià Heaven · under → [all under Heaven; the whole world | the whole of China] 天下)” came to mean in Chinese culture:

Tianxia (Chinese: 天下), literally meaning “(all) under Heaven”, is a Chinese term for a historical Chinese cultural concept that denoted either the entire geographical world or the metaphysical realm of mortals, and later became associated with political sovereignty. In ancient China and imperial China, tianxia denoted the lands, space, and area divinely appointed to the Chinese sovereign by universal and well-defined principles of order. The center of this land was directly apportioned to the Chinese court, forming the center of a world view that centered on the Chinese court and went concentrically outward to major and minor officials and then the common subjects, tributary states, and finally ending with fringe “barbarians”.

The center of this world view was not exclusionary in nature, and outer groups, such as ethnic minorities and foreign people, who accepted the mandate of the Chinese Emperor were themselves received and included into the Chinese tianxia. In classical Chinese political thought, the “Son of Heaven”, having received the Mandate of Heaven, would nominally be the ruler of the entire world.

In passing, we can note that the above describes Sinocentrism, the view of China as the centre of the world, as discussed in the MEotW post on “Zhōngguó (Zhōng·guó Central · Nation → [China | Chinese] 中国 中國)”. Anyway, what is this “Mandate of Heaven” that’s mentioned above? Wikipedia provides this summary:

The Mandate of Heaven (Chinese: 天命; pinyin: Tiānmìng; Wade–Giles: T’ien-ming; lit. ‘Heaven’s command’) is a Chinese political philosophy that was used in ancient and imperial China to legitimize the rule of the King or Emperor of China.[source] According to this doctrine, heaven (天, Tian) bestows its mandate[source] on a virtuous ruler. This ruler, the Son of Heaven, was the supreme universal monarch, who ruled Tianxia (天下; “all under heaven”, the world).[source] If a ruler was overthrown, this was interpreted as an indication that the ruler was unworthy and had lost the mandate.[source] It was also a common belief that natural disasters such as famine and flood were divine retributions bearing signs of Heaven’s displeasure with the ruler, so there would often be revolts following major disasters as the people saw these calamities as signs that the Mandate of Heaven had been withdrawn.[source]

“The Most High is Ruler”

As seen from its usage on jw.org, as shown above, “Tiānxià (Tiān·xià Heaven · under → [all under Heaven; the whole world | the whole of China] 天下)” (or “tiānxià (tiān·xià heaven · under → [all under heaven; the whole world] 天下)” with a lowercase “t”, corresponding to an uncapitalized “heaven”) is now often used just to mean “the whole world”, or “throughout the earth”. However, some continue to seek to apply the concept of “Tiānxià (Tiān·xià Heaven · under → [all under Heaven; the whole world | the whole of China] 天下)” to the contemporary world by connecting it to China’s current political influence, which some aspire to spread to the whole world. In this regard, it would be good to bear in mind the lesson referred to in Daniel 4:25, 26 that Babylon’s King Nebuchadnezzar had to learn, that really, “the Most High is Ruler in the kingdom of mankind”, and that “the heavens are ruling”, not him, a mere human king.

Also, as the article linked to by the above-mentioned headline on jw.org says:

English:

[The Bible] says that “the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed.” (Daniel 2:44) Under that Kingdom, or government, God will bring “an end to wars throughout the earth.”—Psalm 46:9.

Mandarin:

📖 📄 📘 Shèngjīng (Shèng·jīng (the) Holy · Scriptures → [the Bible] 圣经 聖經) shuō (says 说 說/説): “Tiānshang (Tiān·shang heaven · upon 天上) de (’s 的) Shàngdì (Shàng·dì Above’s · {Emperor → [God]} → [God] 上帝) yào (will 要) shèlì (shè·lì {set up} · {make to stand} 设立 設立) yí (one 一) ge ([mw] 个 個/箇/个) yǒngbú (yǒng·bú forever · not 永不) mièwáng (miè·wáng {will be extinguished} · {will die} 灭亡 滅亡) de (’s 的) wángguó (wáng·guó king’s · nation → [kingdom] 王国 王國).” (Dànyǐlǐshū (Dànyǐlǐ·shū Daniel · Book 但以理书 但以理書) 2:44) Shàngdì (Shàng·dì Above’s · {Emperor → [God]} → [God] 上帝) huì (will 会 會) tōngguò (tōng·guò through · passing → [passing through] → [through] 通过 通過) zhèige (zhèi·ge this · [mw] 这个 這個) Wángguó (Wáng·guó King’s · Nation → [Kingdom] 王国 王國) “zhōngzhǐ (zhōng·zhǐ end · halt 终止 終止) zhànzhēng (zhàn·zhēng wars · contendings → [wars] 战争 戰爭), píngdìng (píng·dìng {make to be flat, level, even → [make to be peaceful]} · {make to be settled → [make to be calm]} 平定) tiānxià (tiān·xià heaven · under → [the whole world] 天下)”. (Shīpiān (Shī·piān {Sacred Song} · {Piece of Writing} → [Psalm] 诗篇 詩篇) 46:9)

(For reference, here are the Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) Plus links for the scriptures cited above: Dànyǐlǐshū (Dànyǐlǐ·shū Daniel · Book 但以理书 但以理書) 2:44; Shīpiān (Shī·piān {Sacred Song} · {Piece of Writing} → [Psalm] 诗篇 詩篇) 46:9.)

Categories
Culture History Theocratic

Shàngtiān

Shàngtiān (Shàng·tiān Above’s · {Heaven [→ [God]]} → [Heaven; Providence; God] 上天) ← Tap/click to show/hide the “flashcard”

[Notes: Tap/click on a Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) expression to reveal its “flashcard”; tap/click on a “flashcard” or its Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) expression to hide the “flashcard”. 📖 📄 📘 icons mean 📖 Reveal All, 📄 Reveal Advanced, and 📘 Reveal None re all the “flashcards” in the heading, paragraph, etc. that they are placed at the beginning of.]

At the time of this writing, jw.org was featuring an invitation to attend an “Exercise Patience”! 2023 convention of Jehovah’s Witnesses. In one of the places where the English version of this invitation uses the word “God”, the Mandarin version uses this week’s MEotW, “Shàngtiān (Shàng·tiān Above’s · {Heaven [→ [God]]} → [Heaven; Providence; God] 上天)”, which literally means “Above’s Heaven”:

“Shàngtiān” used on jw.org, on the page inviting people to attend the 2023 convention

English:

If you pray to God for help, what can you expect?

Mandarin:

📖 📄 📘 Nǐ ((if) you 你) xiàng (to 向 向/曏/嚮) Shàngtiān (Shàng·tiān Above’s · {Heaven → [God]} → [God] 上天) qiúzhù (qiú·zhù request · {helping → [help]} 求助), tā (he 他) huì (will 会 會) bāngzhù (help 帮助 幫助) nǐ (you 你) ma ([? ptcl for “yes/no” questions] 吗 嗎)?

Note that this jw.org web page uses the personal pronoun “tā (he 他)” (“he”) to refer to “Shàngtiān (Shàng·tiān Above’s · {Heaven → [God]} → [God] 上天)”, showing that “Shàngtiān (Shàng·tiān Above’s · {Heaven → [God]} → [God] 上天)” here refers to a person, not to an abstract concept or to a place like heaven. Also, the wording shown in the above screenshot indicates that “Shàngtiān (Shàng·tiān Above’s · {Heaven → [God]} → [God] 上天)” here refers to “Shàngdì (Shàng·dì Above’s · {Emperor → [God]} → [God] 上帝)”, that is, God.

Addressing People Who Don’t Know God Well

Note also that this web page written using Chinese characters and invitating people to the convention is largely directed towards the Chinese people of the world, who may know God only as an abstract concept, and not so much as a person.

Another example of official material that uses “Shàngtiān (Shàng·tiān Above’s · {Heaven [→ [God]]} → [Heaven; Providence; God] 上天)” when addressing someone who did not know God well is the Mandarin New World Translation Bible’s rendering of Daniel’s words to Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel 4:26:

“Shàngtiān” in Daniel 4:26 (NWT (nwtsty), WOL CHS+Pinyin)

Here, “Shàngtiān (Shàng·tiān Above’s · {Heaven [→ [God]]} → [Heaven; Providence; God] 上天)” corresponds with the English expression “the heavens” in the phrase “after you come to know that the heavens are ruling”.—Daniel 4:26 (English).

The Chinese People’s View of God Over Time

As mentioned in the MEotW post on “Shàngdì (Shàng·dì Above’s · {Emperor → [God]} → [God] 上帝)”:

The Lasting Peace brochure has a box explaining how the concept of Shàngdì (Shàng·dì Above’s · {Emperor → [God]} → [God] 上帝) has been viewed in China throughout its history.

Here is a quote from that box that relates how the Chinese came to view the “Tiān (Heaven [→ [God]] 天)” in “Shàngtiān (Shàng·tiān Above’s · {Heaven [→ [God]]} → [Heaven; Providence; God] 上天)”, and how that affected their understanding of Shàngdì (Shàng·dì Above’s · {Emperor → [God]} → [God] 上帝):

…according to Chinese historical records, between three and four thousand years ago, during the Xia and Shang dynasties, the Chinese were already worshipping one supreme deity. The book The Religious History of China explains that they “reckoned that between heaven and earth there was a principal God who stood supreme and had absolute control over all things. . . . This supreme deity came to be called Di, or Shang-di, during the Shang Dynasty, and was known as Tien [heaven], or Tien-di [Emperor in Heaven], during the Zhou Dynasty [11th century to 256 B.C.E.].” Thus, the ancient Chinese believed in the existence of a Supreme Sovereign of the universe.

During the Spring and Autumn period (c. 722-481 B.C.E.) and the Warring States period (c. 480-221 B.C.E.), Confucianism and Taoism gained ascendancy. Influenced by these two schools of thought, the worship of Shang-di was gradually replaced by the abstract idea of reverence for Tien. By the Han dynasty (202 B.C.E.–221 C.E.), under the dominance of Confucianism, the Chinese became engrossed in moral culture and social order, and the concept of Shang-di suffered another setback. With the spread of Buddhism into China, the Chinese no longer held to the belief of a Creator who is in control of the universe, but they accepted Heaven, or Providence, as the first cause of all things. Since then, the concept of God, or Shang-di, has become something completely foreign to most Chinese.

Since Chinese people in the world have this historical and cultural background that stretches back for millennia, it is understandable why the organization uses “Shàngtiān (Shàng·tiān Above’s · {Heaven → [God]} → [God] 上天)” to refer to God when addressing them. Perhaps we can think of “Shàngtiān (Shàng·tiān Above’s · {Heaven → [God]} → [God] 上天)” as an acceptable stepping stone between the impersonal “Tiān (Heaven [→ [God]] 天)” and “Shàngdì (Shàng·dì Above’s · {Emperor → [God]} → [God] 上帝)”. Hopefully, we will be able to help many more Chinese people to get to know and appreciate Jehovah God as a person, and to eventually get accustomed to referring to him as “Shàngdì (Shàng·dì Above’s · {Emperor → [God]} → [God] 上帝)”, and as “Yēhéhuá (Jehovah 耶和华 耶和華)”.