Discuss how the concept of the Mandate of Heaven became part of the political rationale for every dynasty from the Zhou to the 21st century in China. How did the Mandate of Heaven contribute to other social and cultural changes?
What will be an ideal response?
The Zhou, having conquered the Shang, needed a rationale for why they, and not the Shang, were now the rightful rulers. Their argument was that Heaven (the name for the supreme being that gradually replaced the Deity Above during the early Zhou), appalled by the wickedness of the last Shang king, had withdrawn its mandate to rule from the Shang, awarding it instead to the Zhou. This concept of the Mandate of Heaven was subsequently invoked by every dynasty in China down to the twenty-first century. Answers will vary regarding how this contributed to other social and cultural changes.
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