cause and effect, gods, lightning, thunder, thunder god, virtue

Cause and Effect Behind Lightning Warnings

In ancient China, it was believed that all earthly phenomena were controlled by deities. Lightning, water, fire, wind — everything had a spiritual embodiment, hence the existence of gods of thunder, lightning, water, fire, and wind. The Thunder God, traditionally depicted with wings, three eyes, a face as red as a monkey, and eagle-like claws, ...

Hermann Rohr

Lightning flashing from the clouds during a thunderstorm.

Confucius and the Mandate of Heaven: Respecting Divine Beings and Spirits

In both Chinese and Western cultures, there is a belief in the Mandate of Heaven and the existence of divine beings and spirits. The West celebrates Christmas as the day a divine being was born into this world, while the Chinese acknowledge the Divine by careful consideration of auspicious days when choosing when to hold ...

Mikel Davis

Statue of Confucius outdoors among trees.

The Future Is Revealed Through the Quality of Your Thoughts

People need to be responsible for their behavior and thoughts. A compilation of Chinese poetry known as The Classic of Poetry, or sometimes translated as the Book of Songs or the Book of Odes (詩; Shī), is the oldest existing collection of Chinese poetry from the 11th to the 7th centuries B.C. One poem says: ...

Helen London

Yin and yang symbol above a Chinese character on a circular tile.

Gods Help a Kind Old Man

In the old stories, it is often recounted that gods come to people in disguise to test their true nature. There was a generous and open-minded old scholar called Liu Gong who lived in Anhui during the early Qing Dynasty. One such test occurred during a very tough time in his life. Thankfully, the old ...

Max Lu

Rays of light from the sun shining through clouds.

A Monk Suffered Retribution After Using Buddha Dharma to Make Money

Even a monk can suffer retribution. During the Northern and Southern Dynasties, there was a monk called Yan Tong in Northern Qi. Although he was a monk, he was unable to achieve the Four Great Emptiness, and in the end, he did not really want to practice. In fact, Yan Tong loved money as though ...

Emma Lu

A statue of a golden buddha.