Animism and Veneration
Shang religion consisted of animism and veneration. Animism is the belief that spirits inhabited all objects of the natural world. Veneration was, in simplest terms, ancestral worship. The belief that the spirits of past family members still surround the living family and that these past family members are still capable of affecting the living world. Oracle Bones were often used to make important decisions and the questions that were written on the oracle bones were put towards to the ancestors, hoping for an answer. For this to work, a diviner, or a priest, had to write two statements, one positive and one negative. The negative and positive statements were put onto separate sides of the oracle bone, the bone was then heated and the bones cracked. The Emperor would read the cracks and find the answer that the ancestors had sent down to them.
Monotheism?
The religion of the time was not monotheistic, even though there was one all-powerful god named Shangdi who controlled the destiny and the forces of nature. It was believed that the ancestors from families met with Shangdi and received their instruction from him. Shang Emperors offered sacrifices and called upon their ancestors to plead on their behalf to Shangdi. The Shang also gave much importance to the worship of nature, praying to the forces of nature such as the moon, the sun, the sky, the land, the moon, the sun, the wind, the star, the land, the sea, and the river.
Shang religion consisted of animism and veneration. Animism is the belief that spirits inhabited all objects of the natural world. Veneration was, in simplest terms, ancestral worship. The belief that the spirits of past family members still surround the living family and that these past family members are still capable of affecting the living world. Oracle Bones were often used to make important decisions and the questions that were written on the oracle bones were put towards to the ancestors, hoping for an answer. For this to work, a diviner, or a priest, had to write two statements, one positive and one negative. The negative and positive statements were put onto separate sides of the oracle bone, the bone was then heated and the bones cracked. The Emperor would read the cracks and find the answer that the ancestors had sent down to them.
Monotheism?
The religion of the time was not monotheistic, even though there was one all-powerful god named Shangdi who controlled the destiny and the forces of nature. It was believed that the ancestors from families met with Shangdi and received their instruction from him. Shang Emperors offered sacrifices and called upon their ancestors to plead on their behalf to Shangdi. The Shang also gave much importance to the worship of nature, praying to the forces of nature such as the moon, the sun, the sky, the land, the moon, the sun, the wind, the star, the land, the sea, and the river.