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Question: What were problems faced by Ancient China!?
What were some problems faced by ancient China (at about 4000 BC-2000 BC) as they developed a great civilizatin!?
Any links to articles concerning this would be nice!. Thank you!!!!

(It's for a Social Studies project)Www@QuestionHome@Com


Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:
The time period you speak of is the period of the Yellow emperor according to ultra hardcore Chinese traditionalists, and the "dark period" by atheist communist PRC educated Chinese historians!. Official PRC history of China dictates, that the period you are talking about involved either primitive tribes, or loose confederation of city states, not unlike those of ancient Greece!. Don't forget that Chinese people are east asian; kind of a dumb reminder but its important!.

You know the native americans!? All about their shamanism, their adobe houses, their "connection with nature" and all that!? During the period of Chinese history you are mentioning, Chinese people were not unlike the native americans!. They lived in tents, not unlike tepees!. They had shamanic practices and totem worship in fact, the similarities between primitive China, and 18th century native americans, is what led anthropologists to believe that native americans were in fact east asian in origin!. Then there is also the fact that, like many east asians, most native americans have blood type A, and there are a lot of linguistic similarities as well!.

According to the PRC, the period you speak of in China's history, was barely different from what the native americans of north america were like in the 19th century; they were ruled by chiefs, they danced around fires, they lived in tents and had a nomadic existence, shamanic practice and totem worship until finally they decided to settle down!. Daoism is in fact a more sophisticated "refined" version of shamanism, according to official history, in fact, what Daoism can be said to be is "philosophical shamanism!."

Take Native American shamanic lore, combine it with Greek logic, throw in a little bit of Yoga-like thought, and you get Daoism!. Ultimately peoples across the globe started life being "primitive;" see though, primitive Chinese, were not like primitive Indians, and primitive Indians were not like primitive Europeans, and so on!. Even primitive cultures, are still distinct from one another they are not identical to each other!. And Chinese primitive culture, was almost exactly like the culture of the American "Indians," the native americans!. Anthropologists have long speculated that had the native american peoples not been wiped out, they would have developed a culture and civilization similar in character and sophistication as anything you see in east asia!.

As to what problems; ancient China, in the south, it was a sweltering jungle with all the accompanying dangers that come with a jungle!. Northern China was swamp land, and as you can imagine, swamp land in the winter time is dangerously inhospitable to human life, so infant mortality rates were tragically high!. Tradition holds that the Yellow emperor, the historic Yellow emperor, was a wise tribal chief, similar to a native american one who united the various roving nomadic tribes!. He got them organized, through wisdom he tamed the yellow river, and made the dangerous swamp lands of northern China bow to his will, and what was once dangerous swamp land, was turned into fertile rice fields!.

Chinese people honor the Yellow emperor because if it had not been for him, the dangerous inhospitality of "wild China," before it was tamed, would have led to their extinction!. It wasn't just jungles in the south, and swamp land that was frigid in winter in the north, but the tribes were fighting among themselves as well!.

Historically, what the Yellow emperor was, was not the ruler of an advanced civilization the way traditional Chinese thought holds, but rather a chieftain that also happened to be a Shaman, hence the reason he is credited with being the inventor of Daoism!. Most PRC history professors will tell you, that the Yellow emperor, if he even existed, was likely a tribal chief that was also a shaman, and would likely scoff at the idea, proud Chinese though they may be, that China was an advanced culture way back then in that time period!. Chinese traditionalists say that the Yellow emperor ruled over a China more advanced than that of even the Han; however, current PRC historians contend, that its a myth!. Most Chinese people however, believe in the "Shaman Chieftain" view, assuming they are open to the idea that the Yellow emperor existed at all!.Www@QuestionHome@Com