In the study of comparative religion, the East Asian religions (also known as Far Eastern religions or Taoic religions) form a subset of the Eastern religions. This group includes Confucianism, Shinto, Taoism, and elements of Mahayana Buddhism; as well as new religious movements such as Cao Dai, Chen Tao, Hoa Hao, Chondogyo, Jeung San Do, and I-Kuan Tao.
These traditions or religious philosophies focus on the East Asian concept of Tao 道 ("The Way"; pinyin dào, Korean do, Japanese tō or dō, Vietnamese đạo).
The place of East Asian religions among major religious groups is comparable to the Abrahamic religions and Indian religions.
Early Chinese philosophies defined Tao and advocated cultivating Te in that Tao. Some ancient schools have merged into traditions with different names or are no longer active, such as Mohism (and many others of the Hundred Schools of Thought), while some such as Taoism persist to the modern day. East Asian religion is usually polytheistic or nontheistic, but henotheistic, monotheistic, pantheistic, panentheistic and agnostic varieties exist, inside and outside of Asia. East Asian religions have many Western adherents, though their interpretations may differ significantly from traditional East Asian thought and culture.
Read more about East Asian Religions: Terminology, Tao, Traditions, Taoism and Confucianism, Interaction With Dharmic Traditions
Famous quotes containing the words east, asian and/or religions:
“Next to the originator of a good sentence is the first quoter of it. Many will read the book before one thinks of quoting a passage. As soon as he has done this, that line will be quoted east and west.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
“If he roars at you as you’re dyin’
You’ll know it is the Asian Lion.”
—Carolyn Wells (1862–1942)
“All religions have honored the beggar. For he proves that in a matter at the same time as prosaic and holy, banal and regenerative as the giving of alms, intellect and morality, consistency and principles are miserably inadequate.”
—Walter Benjamin (1892–1940)