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Zhou Ritual and Music System

Type Object Region China Time c. -1046–-500

The Zhou ritual and music system was a political-cultural institution established in the Western Zhou to regulate hierarchy through ritual and reinfo…

Timeline

  1. c. -1046–-1000Haojing and Luoyi · ChinaLegend holds that the Duke of Zhou, assisting King Cheng, codified ritual norms governing sacrifices, investiture audiences, court audiences and visits, and marriage and funeral ceremonies, accompanied by elegant music, hymns, and dance, using ritual and music to maintain patriarchal hierarchy and the order of All Under Heaven.
  2. c. -770–-500State of Lu and the feudal states of the Central Plains · ShandongFrom the Eastern Zhou onward, the feudal lords overstepped their bounds and ritual collapsed and music fell into decay, yet the ritual and music system continued to be cited as a norm of political legitimacy and cultural identity, providing a historical foundation for Confucius's idea of 'restoring ritual' and later Confucian ritual learning.

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