According to Merriam-Webster, the word atheism means the lack of belief in the existence of deities. China and other Far East countries have a significantly different meaning from what the westernized culture understand from that definition. Although it seems as if most Chinese people do not have much belief in a god, or higher being, it is because their philosophical and moral beliefs are their religion. It is possible to be religious and not serve or have a lack of belief in a particular higher being. China has a long tradition of folk religions, ancestor worship, and Buddhism, which can be considered a philosophical concept rather than a religion and for the most part has nothing to do with the belief in a god. Chinese culture, unlike western cultures influenced by monotheism and the worship of a single deity, does not have the idea of a "one true god”. Folk religions such as …show more content…
They still identify with that particular set of beliefs and organizations. One can be religious without believing in a specific higher being. Devout monotheism religious followers cling to worship their one and only god; they treat God as a higher power, while Chinese respect whatever they worship as an equal being, only more powerful than them. Immortal characters in Chinese folklore that Chinese people worship are in fact mortals before they reach enlightenment or nirvana. The "ascension" towards the Phantom City in Buddhism has nothing to do with death, but is merely a transition from a lower status into a more powerful one. Everyone has the opportunity to be that immortal character who enjoys worship from later descendants; in a sense, anyone can become a Buddha (perfect individual). From this perspective, most Chinese people are undoubtedly atheists, according to the definition of god in monotheism religion, which originated the word