MODERN CHINA

"One of the reasons why modern China appears to lack the outward manifestations of her ancient beliefs is that they are not really essential. You will see the traditions more clearly expressed in how the Chinese think and act than in the symbols and rituals of overt worship.

During the twentieth century, confronted by the superior military and technical power of the West, the Chinese have striven to break free from the shackles of superstition. The imperial examinations were abolished at the turn of the century and since then Chinese intellectuals have been searching for a modern yet essentially Chinese philosophy. The Cultural Revolution can be seen as the culmination of these efforts to repudiate the past. Hundreds of thousands of temples, ancestral halls and religious objects were defaced and destroyed. Monasteries which had preserved their seclusion for centuries were burnt to the ground and their monks imprisoned. The classics of literature and philosophy - the ""residue of the reactionary feudal past"" - were burned in huge celebratory bonfires. In 1974, towards the end of the Cultural Revolution, a campaign was launched to ""criticize Lin Biao and Confucius"", pairing the general with the sage to imply that both were equally reactionary in their opposition to the government.

Yet the very fact that Confucius could still be held up as an object for derision in 1974 reveals the tenacity of traditional beliefs . With the Cultural Revolution now long gone, they are once again being accepted as an essential part of the cultural tradition which binds the Chinese people together. The older generation, despite a lifetime of commitment to the Marxist revolution, are comforted and strengthened by their knowledge of the national heritage. The young are rediscovering the classics, the forbidden fruit of their school days. The welcome result is that Chinese temples of all descriptions are prosperous, busy places again, teeming with people who have come to ask for grandchildren or simply for money. The atmosphere may not seem devout or religious, but then perhaps it never did."