Philosophy and Religion China's history has been full of cultural richness, mostly due to how they progressed with philosophy and religion. Since the beginning of Chinese civilization, philosophy and religion have been at the forefront of Chinese culture. From ancient oracle bones and bronze inscriptions to the development of different schools of thought, the Chinese have always been experts for that period in philosophy and religion. And throughout their history they have combined the two in a way that suits their needs, through this evolution and combination of the two they have become a strong nation. Oracle bones were the cornerstone of early Chinese dynasties such as the Shang from about 1200 to 1050 BC (Shang p. 1). One of the articles attempts to explain the use of these bones by saying that the kings of the Shang dynasty would have "attempted to communicate with the spiritual forces that governed their world by reading stress cracks in the bones of cattle..." (Shang 1). These kings applied a heated poker to the bones which produced cracks which they analyzed based on the direction and depth of the crack. These bones and records of the king's analyzes were recently discovered. It is estimated that around 150,000 oracle bones have been found and refer to the Shang god, Di (Shang p. 1). This type of analysis by kings is an early form of religion and forms the basis for later philosophy and schools of thought in China's history. A great progression can be seen between the oracle bones of the Shang Dynasty and the emergence of Confucius (551 -479 BC) (Ebrey Text p. 42). Oracle bones formed the basis for the development of schools of thought and religion in China. ...... middle of paper ...... has come a long way from its origins. The early schools of thought based on the teachings of Confucius were crucial to China's progress. It shaped their overall political structure and modes of worship. With the help of students like Mencius and Xzuni, Confucianism was allowed to expand and incorporate religious aspects that made it a hybrid philosophy. From there Daoism came into the picture and gave people more choices instead of being forced into Confucianism. But it wasn't until hundreds of years later that a real religion, Buddhism, came into play. To adapt to the change, Daoism re-emerged as a religion in order to further spread its message and continue to influence political authority in China. Overall, all of these schools of thought and religions have played an incredibly important role in China's political structure and development as a country..