Editing Confucianism (section)

===Metaphysical antecedents===
[[File:Temple rooftop dragon in Taiwan (1).jpg|thumb|The [[Chinese dragon|dragon]] is one of the oldest symbols of Chinese religious culture. It symbolises the supreme godhead, ''Di'' or ''Tian'', at the north [[orbital pole|ecliptic pole]], around which it coils itself as the [[Draco (constellation)|homonymous constellation]]. It is a symbol of the "protean" supreme power which has in itself both [[yin and yang]].{{sfnb|Pankenier|2013|p=55}}]]
[[File:Birth Places of Chinese Philosophers.png|thumb|Birthplaces of notable Chinese philosophers of the Hundred Schools of Thought in Zhou dynasty. Confucians are marked by triangles in dark red.]]
{{See also|History of religion in China}}
According to [[He Guanghu]], Confucianism may be identified as a continuation of the [[Shang dynasty|Shang]]-[[Zhou dynasty|Zhou]] ({{circa|1600}}–256 BC) official religion, or the Chinese aboriginal religion which has lasted uninterrupted for three thousand years.{{sfnb|Chen|2012|p=105, note 45}} Both the dynasties worshipped a supreme "godhead", called ''[[Shangdi]]'' ('Highest Deity') or ''Di'' by the Shang and ''[[Tian]]'' ('Heaven') by the Zhou. ''Shangdi'' was conceived as the first ancestor of the Shang royal house,{{sfnb|Libbrecht|2007|p=43}} an alternate name for him being the "Supreme Progenitor" ({{zhi|c=上甲|p=Shàngjiǎ}}).{{sfnb|Didier|2009|pp=227–228, Vol. II}} Shang theology viewed the multiplicity of gods of nature and ancestors as parts of ''Di''. ''Di'' manifests as the ''[[Wufang Shangdi]]'' with the winds ({{zhi|c=風|p=fēng}}) as its cosmic will.{{sfnb|Didier|2009|pp=143–144, Vol. II}} With the Zhou dynasty, which overthrew the Shang, the name for the supreme godhead became ''tian''.{{sfnb|Libbrecht|2007|p=43}} While the Shang identified ''Shangdi'' as their ancestor-god to assert their claim to power by divine right, the Zhou transformed this claim into a legitimacy based on moral power, the [[Mandate of Heaven]]. In Zhou theology, ''Tian'' had no singular earthly progeny, but bestowed divine favour on virtuous rulers. Zhou kings declared that their victory over the Shang was because they were virtuous and loved their people, while the Shang were tyrants and thus were deprived of power by ''Tian''.{{sfnb|Fung|2008|p=163}}

John C. Didier and David Pankenier relate the shapes of both the ancient [[Chinese characters]] for ''Di'' and ''Tian'' to the patterns of stars in the northern skies, either drawn, in Didier's theory by connecting the constellations bracketing the north celestial pole as a square,{{sfnb|Didier|2009|p=103, Vol. II}} or in Pankenier's theory by connecting some of the stars which form the constellations of the Big Dipper and broader [[Ursa Major]], and [[Ursa Minor]] (Little Dipper).{{sfnb|Pankenier|2013|pp=138–148, "Chapter 4: Bringing Heaven Down to Earth"}} Cultures in other parts of the world have also conceived these stars or constellations as symbols of the origin of things, the supreme godhead, divinity and royal power.{{sfnb|Didier|2009|loc=''passim'' Vol. I}} The supreme godhead was also identified with the [[Chinese dragon|dragon]], symbol of unlimited power (''[[qi]]''),{{sfnb|Libbrecht|2007|p=43}} of the protean primordial power which embodies both [[yin and yang]] in unity, associated to the constellation [[Draco (constellation)|Draco]] which winds around the north [[orbital pole|ecliptic pole]],{{sfnb|Pankenier|2013|p=55}} and slithers between the Little and Big Dipper.