Heaven: The Chinese Mandate Of Heaven

The Chinese mandate of Heaven was established by the Zhou dynasty as a description of how an emperor could rule or be deposed. It said that as long as the emperor behaved well, then he would be in favor of God and his rule would continue. However, if another clan should receive word the gods that they were displeased with the current dynasty, then you had the right to be overthrown. These signals,(that an dynasty was not being ‘good') could be shown through nature with floods, hurricanes, famine, etc.
The European divine right of kings said that a king was essentially a ‘messenger from God' and that his supreme authority was to be obeyed at all costs. It meant that to question the king's authority was to question God.
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