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The Family: The days of human sacrifice were long over, but honoring ones ancestors was still very important. Family members were expected to help each other, and care for each other. When a girl married, she went to live with her husband’s family. 

School: Only boys could go to school. They did not have to go to school, but it was free, and encouraged. Girls learned at home. Education was very important. Teachers were one of the five objects of worship. (The other four were heaven, earth, the emperor, and parents).

Religion: Buddhism had been introduced in Han times. Buddhism arrived as an idea from India, via the Silk Road. It really took hold during T’ang times. Confucianism was very strong, and so was Taoism. Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoism were known in T’ang times as the Three Doctrines.  Still, if you were to ask someone in ancient China, “What is the official religion of China?” – they probably would not have mentioned Buddhism, Confucianism, or Taoism. They would probably have said something like this: “The proper and seasonable worship of the gods of the rivers and mountains, and wind and moon, and of our noble ancestors.” 

Many of the celebrations and festivals that honor these ancient gods are still celebrated by the Chinese today. Honoring gods and ancestors was very much a part of ancient Chinese daily life.

Farmers: Eastern T’ang: In spite of the wonderful Golden Age enjoyed by the rich in the cities, most of the people in T’ang times were farmers. For a while, their life was somewhat improved.

At least they owned the land! The early T’angs distributed the land equally, to create a nation of free farmers. Each farmer received one ch’ing of land, about 15 acres. (In later years, this system of family farms broke down. Landlords and nobles took back the land. China reverted to feudal times, where nobles owned and peasants worked.)

They ate beans, turnips, barley cakes, melons, peaches, bits of pork and chicken, plums, lots of fish, and drank wine. In the north, still, they ate breads made of wheat. In the south, still, they ate rice.

Although they worked hard, country people were not unhappy. For the most part, they were not at war. They had developed a culture rich with ancestor worship and festivals and customs. They were simple people, who enjoyed simple pleasures. They were richly aware of the many beauties of nature.