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Tian (Chinese: 天; pinyin: tiān; Wade–Giles: t'ien; literally "sky, heaven, heavens; god, gods") is one of the oldest Chinese terms for the cosmos and a key concept in Chinese mythology, philosophy, and religion. During the Shang Dynasty (17–11th centuries BCE) the Chinese called god Shangdi (上帝 "lord on high") or Di ("lord"), and during the Zhou Dynasty (11th–3rd centuries BCE) Tian "heaven; god" became synonymous with Shangdi. Heaven worship was, before the 20th century, an orthodox state religion of China.

In the Chinese philosophical systems of Taoism and Confucianism, Tian is often translated as "Heaven" and is mentioned in relationship to its complementary aspect of Dì (地), which is most often translated as "Earth". These two aspects of Daoist cosmology are representative of the dualistic nature of Taoism. They are thought to maintain the two poles of the Three Realms (三界) of reality, with the middle realm occupied by Humanity (人 Ren).

This article contains Chinese text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Chinese characters.

Look up 天 in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Chinese Bronze script for tian 天 "heaven"

Chinese Oracle script for tian 天 "heaven"

Characters[link]

Tian's modern Chinese character 天 combines da 大 "great; large" and yi 一 "one", but some of the original characters in Shang oracle bone script and Zhou bronzeware script anthropomorphically portray a large head on a great person. The ancient oracle and bronze ideograms for da 大 depict a stick figure person with arms stretched out denoting "great; large". The oracle and bronze characters for tian 天 emphasize the cranium of this "great (person)", either with a square or round head, or head marked with one or two lines. Since Shang scribes cut oracle inscriptions on bone or shell, their characters often have straight lines where later bronze inscriptions have curved lines. Schuessler (2007:495) notes the bronze graphs for tian, showing a person with a round head, resemble those for ding 丁 "4th Celestial stem", and suggests "The anthropomorphic graph may or may not indicate that the original meaning was 'deity', rather than 'sky'."

Besides the usual 天, tian "heaven" has variant Chinese characters. Two early examples are 兲 (written with 王 "king" and 八 "8") and the Daoist coinage 靝 (with 青 "blue" and 氣 "qi", i.e., "blue sky").

Interpretation by Western Sinologists[link]

The sinologist Herrlee Creel, who wrote a comprehensive study on "The Origin of the Deity T'ien" (1970:493–506), gives this overview.

For three thousand years it has been believed that from time immemorial all Chinese revered T'ien 天, "Heaven," as the highest deity, and that this same deity was also known as Ti 帝 or Shang Ti 上帝. But the new materials that have become available in the present century, and especially the Shang inscriptions, make it evident that this was not the case. It appears rather that T'ien is not named at all in the Shang inscriptions, which instead refer with great frequency to Ti or Shang Ti. T'ien appears only with the Chou, and was apparently a Chou deity. After the conquest the Chou considered T'ien to be identical with the Shang deity Ti (or Shang Ti), much as the Romans identified the Greek Zeus with their Jupiter. (1970:493)

Creel refers to the historical shift in ancient Chinese names for "god"; from Shang oracles that frequently used di and shangdi and rarely used tian to Zhou bronzes and texts that used tian more frequently than its synonym shangdi.

First, Creel analyzes all the tian and di occurrences meaning "god; gods" in Western Zhou era Chinese classic texts and bronze inscriptions. The Yi Jing "Classic of Changes" has 2 tian and 1 di; the Shi Jing "Classic of Poetry" has 140 tian and 43 di or shangdi; and the authentic portions of the Shu Jing "Classic of Documents" have 116 tian and 25 di or shangdi. His corpus of authenticated Western Zhou bronzes (1970:464–75) mention tian 91 times and di or shangdi only 4 times. Second, Creel contrasts the disparity between 175 occurrences of di or shangdi on Shang era oracle inscriptions with "at least" 26 occurrences of tian. Upon examining these 26 oracle scripts that scholars (like Guo Moruo) have identified as tian 天 "heaven; god" (1970:494–5), he rules out 8 cases in fragments where the contextual meaning is unclear. Of the remaining 18, Creel interprets 11 cases as graphic variants for da "great; large; big" (e.g., tian i shang 天邑商 for da i shang 大邑商 "great settlement Shang"), 3 as a place name, and 4 cases of oracles recording sacrifices yu tian 于天 "to/at Tian" (which could mean "to Heaven/God" or "at a place called Tian".)

The Shu Jing chapter "Tang Shi" (湯誓 "Tang's Speech") illustrates how early Zhou texts used tian "heaven; god" in contexts with shangdi "god". According to tradition, Tang of Shang assembled his subjects to overthrow King Jie of Xia, the infamous last ruler of the Xia Dynasty, but they were reluctant to attack.

The king said, "Come, ye multitudes of the people, listen all to my words. It is not I, the little child [a humble name used by kings], who dare to undertake what may seem to be a rebellious enterprise; but for the many crimes of the sovereign of Hsiâ [Xia] Heaven has given the charge [tianming, see Compounds below] to destroy him. Now, ye multitudes, you are saying, 'Our prince does not compassionate us, but (is calling us) away from our husbandry to attack and punish the ruler of Hsiâ.' I have indeed heard these words of you all; but the sovereign of Hsiâ is an offender, and, as I fear God [shangdi], I dare not but punish him. Now you are saying, 'What are the crimes of Hsiâ to us?' The king of Hsiâ does nothing but exhaust the strength of his people, and exercise oppression in the cities of Hsiâ. His people have all become idle in his service, and will not assist him. They are saying, 'When will this sun expire? We will all perish with thee.' Such is the course of the sovereign of Hsiâ, and now I must go and punish him. Assist, I pray you, me, the one man, to carry out the punishment appointed by Heaven [tian]. I will greatly reward you. On no account disbelieve me; — I will not eat my words. If you do not obey the words which I have spoken to you, I will put your children with you to death; — you shall find no forgiveness." (tr. James Legge 1865:173–5)

Having established that Tian was not a deity of the Shang people, Creel (1970:501–6) proposes a hypothesis for how it originated. Both the Shang and Zhou peoples pictographically represented da 大 as "a large or great man". The Zhou subsequently added a head on him to denote tian 天 meaning "king, kings" (cf. wang 王 "king; ruler", which had oracle graphs picturing a line under a "great person" and bronze graphs that added the top line). From "kings", tian was semantically extended to mean "dead kings; ancestral kings", who controlled "fate; providence", and ultimately a single omnipotent deity Tian "Heaven". In addition, tian named both "the heavens" (where ancestral kings and gods supposedly lived) and the visible "sky".

Another possibility is that Tian may be related to Tengri or Tengger (Old Turkic: 𐱅𐰭𐰼𐰃; Mongolian: Тэнгэр, Tenger; Chinese: 腾格里, Mandarin: Ténggélǐ; Turkish: Gök Tanrı) and possibly was a loan from a prehistoric Central Asian language.^[1]

Views[link]

Confucius[link]

The concept of Heaven (Tian, 天) is found pervasively in Confucianism. Confucius had an intimate trust in Heaven and believed that Heaven overrules human efforts, that he was carrying out the will of Heaven, and so Heaven will not allow its servant, Confucius, to be killed until his work is done. Many attributes of Heaven were delineated in his Analects.

Confucius honored Heaven as the supreme source of goodness:

The Master said, "Great indeed was Yao as a sovereign! How majestic was he! It is only Heaven that is grand, and only Yao corresponded to it. How vast was his virtue! The people could find no name for it. How majestic was he in the works which he accomplished! How glorious in the elegant regulations which he instituted!" (VIII, xix, tr. Legge 1893:214)

Confucius felt himself personally dependent upon Heaven (VI, xxviii, tr. Legge 1893:193): "Wherein I have done improperly, may Heaven reject me! may Heaven reject me!"

Confucius believed that Heaven cannot be deceived:

The Master being very ill, Zi Lu wished the disciples to act as ministers to him. During a remission of his illness, he said, "Long has the conduct of You been deceitful! By pretending to have ministers when I have them not, whom should I impose upon? Should I impose upon Heaven? Moreover, than that I should die in the hands of ministers, is it not better that I should die in the hands of you, my disciples? And though I may not get a great burial, shall I die upon the road?" (IX, xi, tr. Legge 1893:220-221)

Confucius believed that Heaven gives people tasks to perform to teach them of virtues and morality:

The Master said, "At fifteen, I had my mind bent on learning. At thirty, I stood firm. At forty, I had no doubts. At fifty, I knew the decrees of Heaven. At sixty, my ear was an obedient organ for the reception of truth. At seventy, I could follow what my heart desired, without transgressing what was right." (II, iv, tr. Legge 1893:146)

He believed that Heaven knew what he was doing and approved of him, even though none of the rulers on earth might want him as a guide:

The Master said, "Alas! there is no one that knows me." Zi Gong said, "What do you mean by thus saying - that no one knows you?" The Master replied, "I do not murmur against Heaven. I do not grumble against men. My studies lie low, and my penetration rises high. But there is Heaven - that knows me!" (XIV, xxxv, tr. Legge 1893:288-9)

Perhaps the most remarkable saying, recorded twice, is one in which Confucius expresses complete trust in the overruling providence of Heaven:

The Master was put in fear in Kuang. He said, "After the death of King Wen, was not the cause of truth lodged here in me? If Heaven had wished to let this cause of truth perish, then I, a future mortal, should not have got such a relation to that cause. While Heaven does not let the cause of truth perish, what can the people of Kuang do to me?" (IX, v and VII, xxii, tr. Legge 1893:217-8)

Mozi[link]

For Mozi, Heaven is the divine ruler, just as the Son of Heaven is the earthly ruler. Mozi believed that spirits and minor demons and spirits exist or at least rituals should be performed as if they did for social reasons, but their function is to carry out the will of Heaven, watching for evil-doers and punishing them. Mozi taught that Heaven loves all people equally and that each person should similarly love all human beings without distinguishing between his own relatives and those of others (Dubs, 1959-1960:163-172). Mozi criticized the Confucians of his own time for not following the teachings of Confucius. In Mozi's Will of Heaven (天志), he writes:

Moreover, I know Heaven loves men dearly not without reason. Heaven ordered the sun, the moon, and the stars to enlighten and guide them. Heaven ordained the four seasons, Spring, Autumn, Winter, and Summer, to regulate them. Heaven sent down snow, frost, rain, and dew to grow the five grains and flax and silk that so the people could use and enjoy them. Heaven established the hills and rivers, ravines and valleys, and arranged many things to minister to man's good or bring him evil. He appointed the dukes and lords to reward the virtuous and punish the wicked, and to gather metal and wood, birds and beasts, and to engage in cultivating the five grains and flax and silk to provide for the people's food and clothing. This has been so from antiquity to the present." (tr. Mei 1929:145)^[2]

Schools of cosmology[link]

There are three major schools on cosmology. Most other hypothesis were developed from them.^[3]

Gatian shuo (蓋天說) "Canopy-Heavens hypothesis" originated from the text Zhou Bi Suan Jing. The earth is covered by a material tian.

Huntian shuo (渾天說) "Egg-like hypothesis". The earth surrounded by a tian sphere rotating over it. The celestial bodies are attached to the tian sphere. A summary is in Zhang Heng's article Armillary sphere.^[4]

Xuanye shuo (宣夜說) "Firmament hypothesis". The tian is an infinite space. The celestial bodies were light matters floating on it move by Qi. A summary by Ji Meng (郗萌) is in the astronomical chapters of the Book of Jin.

Sometimes the sky is divided into Jiutian (九天) "the nine sky divisions", the middle sky and the eight directions.^[5][6][7]

Buddhism[link]

The Tian are the heaven worlds and pure lands in Buddhist cosmology. Some devas are also called Tian.^[8][9][10]

Taoism[link]

The number of vertical heaven layers in Taoism is different, the most common saying is the 36 Tian developed from Durenjing (度人經).^{[11][12][13][14][15][16][17]} There are also 36 Grotto-Heavens and 72 blessed lands (洞天福地) in the earth where Taoist gods lived.^[18][19]

I Kwan Tao[link]

Tian are divided into 3 vertical worlds. Li Tian (理天) "heaven of truth", Qi Tian (氣天) "heaven of spirit" and Xiang Tian (象天) "heaven of matter".^[20][21][22] The enlightened ones lived in Li Tian, common devas lived in the Qi Tian and our world is Xiang Tian.^[23]

Meanings[link]

The semantics of tian developed diachronically. The Hanyu dazidian, an historical dictionary of Chinese characters, lists 17 meanings of tian 天, translated below.

1. Human forehead; head, cranium. 人的額部; 腦袋.
2. Anciently, to tattoo/brand the forehead as a kind of punishment. 古代一種在額頭上刺字的刑罰.
3. The heavens, the sky, the firmament. 天空.
4. Celestial bodies; celestial phenomena, meteorological phenomena. 天體; 天象.
5. Nature, natural. A general reference to objective inevitability beyond human will. 自然. 泛指不以人意志為轉移的客觀必然性.
6. Natural, innate; instinctive, inborn. 自然的; 天性的.
7. Natural character/quality of a person or thing; natural instinct, inborn nature, disposition. 人或物的自然形質; 天性.
8. A reference to a particular sky/space. 特指某一空間.
9. Season; seasons. Like: winter; the three hot 10-day periods [following the summer solstice]. 時令; 季節. 如: 冬天; 三伏天.
10. Weather; climate. 天氣; 氣候.
11. Day, time of one day and night, or especially the time from sunrise to sunset. Like: today; yesterday; busy all day; go fishing for three days and dry the nets for two [a xiehouyu simile for "unable to finish anything"]. 一晝夜的時間, 或專指日出到日落的時間. 如: 今天; 昨天; 忙了一天; 三天打魚, 兩天曬網.
12. God, heaven, celestial spirit, of the natural world. 天神, 上帝, 自然界的主宰者.
13. Heaven, heavenly, a superstitious person's reference to the gods, Buddhas, or immortals; or to the worlds where they live. Like: go to heaven ["die"]; heavenly troops and heavenly generals ["invincible army"]; heavenly goddesses scatter blossoms [a Vimalakirti Sutra reference to "Buddha's arrival"]. 迷信的人指神佛仙人或他們生活的那個世界. 如: 歸天; 天兵天將; 天女散花.
14. Anciently, the king, monarch, sovereign; also referring to elders in human relationships. 古代指君王; 也指人倫中的尊者.
15. Object upon which one depends or relies. 所依存或依靠的對象.
16. Dialect. A measure of land [shang, about 15 acres]. 方言. 垧.
17. A family name, surname. 姓.

The Chinese philosopher Feng Youlan differentiates five different meanings of tian in early Chinese writings:

(1) A material or physical T'ien or sky, that is, the T'ien often spoken of in apposition to earth, as in the common phrase which refers to the physical universe as 'Heaven and Earth' (T'ien Ti 天地).
(2) A ruling or presiding T'ien, that is, one such as is meant in the phrase, 'Imperial Heaven Supreme Emperor' (Huang T'ien Shang Ti), in which anthropomorphic T'ien and Ti are signified.
(3) A fatalistic T'ien, equivalent to the concept of Fate (ming 命), a term applied to all those events in human life over which man himself has no control. This is the T'ien Mencius refers to when he says: "As to the accomplishment of a great deed, that is with T'ien" ([Mencius], Ib, 14).
(4) A naturalistic T'ien, that is, one equivalent to the English word Nature. This is the sort of T'ien described in the 'Discussion on T'ien' in the [Hsün Tzǔ] (ch. 17).
(5) An ethical T'ien, that is, one having a moral principle and which is the highest primordial principle of the universe. This is the sort of T'ien which the [Chung Yung] (Doctrine of the Mean) refers to in its opening sentence when it says: "What T'ien confers (on man) is called his nature." (1952:31)

The Oxford English Dictionary enters the English loanword t'ien (also tayn, tyen, tien, and tiān) "Chinese thought: Heaven; the Deity." The earliest recorded usages for these spelling variants are: 1613 Tayn, 1710 Tien, 1747 Tyen, and 1878 T'ien.

Pronunciations[link]

The Modern Standard Chinese pronunciation of 天 "sky, heaven; heavenly deity, god" is tiān in level first tone. The character is read as Cantonese tin1; Taiwanese thiN1 or thian1; Vietnamese yêu or thiên; Korean cheon or ch'ŏn (천); and Japanese ten in On'yomi (borrowed Chinese reading) and ame or sora in Kun'yomi (native Japanese reading).

Tiān 天 reconstructions in Middle Chinese (ca. 6th–10th centuries CE) include t'ien (Bernhard Karlgren), t'iɛn (Zhou Fagao), tʰɛn > tʰian (Edwin G. Pulleyblank), and then (William H. Baxter). Reconstructions in Old Chinese (ca. 6th–3rd centuries BCE) include *t'ien (Karlgren), *t'en (Zhou), *hlin (Baxter), and *thîn (Schuessler).

Etymologies[link]

For the etymology of tian, Schuessler (2007:495) links it with the Mongolian word tengri "sky, heaven, heavenly deity" or the Tibeto-Burman words taleŋ (Adi) and tǎ-lyaŋ (Lepcha), both meaning "sky". Schuessler (2007:211) also suggests a likely connection between Chinese tiān 天, diān 巔 "summit, mountaintop", and diān 顛 "summit, top of the head, forehead", which have cognates such as Naga tiŋ "sky".

Compounds[link]

Tian is the component in hundreds of Chinese compounds. Some significant ones include:

• tianming (天命 "Mandate of Heaven") "divine mandate, God's will; fate, destiny; one's lifespan"
• Tianwen (traditional Chinese: 天問; simplified Chinese: 天问; pinyin: Tiānwèn), the Heavenly Questions section of the Chu Ci.
• tianzi (天子 "Son of Heaven"), an honorific designation for the "Emperor; Chinese sovereign" (Tianzi accounts for 28 of the 140 tian occurrences in the Shi Jing above.)
• tianxia (天下, lit. "all under heaven") "the world, earth; China"
• tiandi (天地, lit "heaven and earth") "the world; the universe"
• Xingtian (刑天) An early mythological hero who fought against Heaven, despite being decapitated.

Notes[link]

1. ^ Fax, Mller F (Friedrich Max) (2009). Lectures on the Science of Religion. BiblioLife. ISBN 1-110-73340-2. http://books.google.com/books?id=l0Vx_SuD5MsC&pg=PA92&dq=Mongolian+tengri&hl=en&ei=HMjVTMXhHMXNswa6-8iNCA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=8&ved=0CE0Q6AEwBw#v=onepage&q=Mongolian%20tengri&f=false. 
2. ^ http://ctext.org/mozi/will-of-heaven-ii#n743
3. ^ 陈美东, 2008. 中国天文学史大系--中国古代天文学思想自然科学. 中国科学技术出版社. ISBN 978-7-5046-4837-2
4. ^ 中国之最 - 13世界上最早揭示月食成因的人：东汉科学家张衡
5. ^ 卷二天部二-太平御览
6. ^ 聖明壇Sacred Splendor Shrine
7. ^ 九天_百度百科
8. ^ 護法天神來歷考--漢化的諸天
9. ^ 天_百度百科
10. ^ 佛像的种类及介绍
11. ^ 三十六天 - 道教學術資訊網站
12. ^ 卿希泰. "三十二天与三十六天" 中国道教, Volume 4.
13. ^ 三十六天
14. ^ 三才者，天、地、人。三光者，日、月、星。
15. ^ 道教三十六天
16. ^ 道教洞天福地
17. ^ 道教的宇宙论
18. ^ 卿希泰. "洞天福地岳渎名山记" 中国道教, Volume 2.
19. ^ 天界．仙境．地府及五道 - 道教學術資訊網站
20. ^ 理氣象三天論
21. ^ 天界透視
22. ^ The Answers to the Truth (III)
23. ^ 宇宙萬靈圖

References[link]

• Chang, Ruth H. 2000. "Understanding Di and Tian: Deity and Heaven From Shang to Tang." Sino-Platonic Papers 108:1–54.
• Creel, Herrlee G., 1970. The Origins of Statecraft in China. The University of Chicago Press. ISBN 0-226-12043-0
• Dubs, Homer H. 1959-1960. "Theism and Naturalism in Ancient Chinese Philosophy," 'Philosophy East and West' 9.3-4:163-172.
• Fung Yu-Lan. 1952. A History of Chinese Philosophy, Vol. I. The Period of the Philosophers, tr. Derk Bodde. Princeton University Press.
• Legge, James., tr. 1865. The Chinese Classics, Vol. III, The Shoo King. Oxford University Press.
• Legge, James, tr. 1893. The Chinese Classics, Vol. I, The Confucian Analects, the Great Learning, and the Doctrine of the Mean. Oxford University Press.
• Schuessler, Axel. 2007. ABC Etymological Dictionary of Old Chinese. University of Hawaii Press.

External links[link]

• Oracle, Bronze, and Seal characters for 天, Richard Sears

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Jolin Tsai 蔡依林
MTV Asia Awards 2006, Bangkok, Thailand
Chinese name	蔡依林
Pinyin	Cài Yīlín (Mandarin)
Birth name	蔡依林
Ancestry	Fujian, China
Origin	Republic of China (Taiwan)
Born	(1980-09-15) September 15, 1980 (age 31) Xinzhuang, Taipei County, Taiwan
Occupation	Singer, Dancer, Actress, Designer, Model, Spokesperson
Genre(s)	Mandopop, Dance
Instrument(s)	Piano
Label(s)	Universal Music Taiwan (1998–2001) Sony Music Entertainment (Taiwan) (2002–2006) EMI Music Taiwan (2006–2008) Warner Music Taiwan (2008–present)
Years active	1998–present
Official Website	Jolin@Warner Music Taiwan
Awards Golden Melody Awards Best Female Mandarin Artist (2007) Dancing Diva Most Popular Female Artist (2007) MTV Asia Awards Style Award (2006)

Jolin Tsai (Chinese: 蔡依林; pinyin: Cài Yīlín; Wade–Giles: Tsai I-lin; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Chhoà I-lîm; born September 15, 1980) is a Taiwanese Golden Melody Award-winning Mandopop singer, dancer and actor. Tsai was the second top earner among Taiwanese singers in 2010 behind Jay Chou (周杰倫), with earnings of US$14.51 million that year.^[1] She is managed by Mars Entertainment Ltd (天熹娛樂).^[2]

Early life[link]

Though Tsai was introverted and shy as a child, she studied English intensively during her youth and eventually majored in English Literature at Fu Jen Catholic University. During her childhood years, Tsai developed an interest in singing and experimented with different vocal techniques after listening to the songs of popular female singers such as Teresa Teng and Faye Wong.^{[citation needed]}

Musical career[link]

Universal Music Taiwan (1998–2001)[link]

Tsai first started her singing career by taking part in an MTV singing competition at the age of 18. She won the top prize at the competition with her rendition of Whitney Houston's #1 hit "Greatest Love of All". She was then signed by Universal Music.

In July 1999, her first single "Living With the World" (和世界做鄰居) was released. It was sold in convenience stores and was a tremendous success,^[3] which led to the release of her first album, Jolin 1019, in September 1999. At that time, she was promoted as "The Girl Next Door," and was an instant hit with teenagers, earning her the title "Teenage Boy Killer"^{[citation needed]}. Jolin 1019 ended up selling more than 400,000 copies in Asia. With the success of her first album, she released her second album in May 2000, Don't Stop. Many of the hits from that album were well known throughout Asia as the album also became a tremendous success.^{[citation needed]} She also released her first photobook with pictures mainly taken in Hawaii.

Nearing the age of 21, Tsai changed her image in her third album, Show Your Love. The album was considered more mature and soothing.^{[citation needed]}, but it did not sell as well as her previous two albums. Her fourth album, Lucky Number, also failed to match the sales of her first two albums. Tsai's music career came to a halt when conflicts surfaced between her and her music company.^{[citation needed]} At the end of 2001, Tsai's contract with Universal Music ended and her first greatest hits compilation, Together was released. Tsai did not release any albums the following year, but she did release her second photo book, with photos taken in Thailand.

Sony Music Entertainment (Taiwan) (2002–2006)[link]

Tsai signed with Sony Music Entertainment (Taiwan) that year and got the biggest break of her whole career. Her first single with Sony Music "Spirit Of The Knight" (騎士精神) became a big hit that led to the highly anticipated release of her fifth album Magic (看我72變). The album topped the Taiwan album charts for three months. More than 300,000 copies were sold in Taiwan alone, and over a million copies were sold in Asia.^[4] The album contained many of her most well-known singles, including the hit dance song "See My 72 Changes" (看我72變) that brought Tsai back to the top of the charts, a song which some suggested was named after The Monkey King's 72 transformations.^[5] Other songs from the album, such as "Say Love You" (說愛你) and "Prague Square" (布拉格廣場) were penned by fellow Taiwan star Jay Chou. Her more dance-oriented album marked her first release in two years following her hiatus in 2002.

Tsai's sixth album Castle (城堡), released in 2004, was just as popular as "Magic" and became a top album in many Asian countries.^{[citation needed]} Just as with Magic, many songs on this album were written by Chou, her rumored boyfriend at that time.^{[citation needed]} The playful song "It's Love" (就是愛) and the rock ballad "Rewind" (倒帶), became two of Tsai's biggest hits. Prior to the album's release, she showcased her single "Pirates" (海盜), another song composed by Chou, at a mini-concert. She subsequently filmed one of the most expensive music videos in Taiwanese history for that song.^{[citation needed]}

Between Castle and her next studio album, Tsai released a remix album of her most popular dance songs called J9 New + Party Collection. Tsai featured two new songs in the CD, including the hit song "Signature Pose". Tsai sang the Mandarin version of "Mirage (Warriors In Peace)", the theme song for the film Warriors of Heaven and Earth.

On April 25, 2005, Tsai seventh album J-Game was released, become the longest running album on the Taiwanese album charts in 2005, with over 1 million copies sold throughout Asia in just a little over a month.^[6] The album featured many more hip-hop influenced tracks than before, though it retained the dance pop and love ballads in her previous albums. Tsai supposedly broke up with Chou around the time the album was recorded, but she was able to find other writers and producers, including Leehom Wang, another pop star who composed "Exclusive Myth" (獨佔神話). The first single of the album "Barbaric Game" (野蠻遊戲) was a huge hit across Asia^{[citation needed]} and it was followed by other singles including "The Greek Girl Next To The Wishing Pond" (許願池的希臘少女) (composed by rising Hong Kong singer Ivana Wong), "Sky" (天空), "Repeat Signs" (反覆記號), "I Really Miss You" (好想你) and "Eyes Half Shut" (睜一隻眼 閉一隻眼). During this time, Tsai rapped in the duet "真命天子" [Destined Guy] with fellow artist Show Luo, which was featured on his album Hypnosis Show. She performed that song with Show in his first solo concert at the Taipei Arena.

Late in 2005, Tsai released her J1 Live Concert DVD, presenting performances of hits from her albums Magic (看我72變) and Castle from a late-2004 concert in Taipei. Show Luo made a guest appearance in the performance of "Prove It". The DVD did not include Jay Chou's guest appearance in her concert, in which he danced together with Tsai. It was later placed in the DVD for her greatest hits compilation, J-Top.

In early 2006, it was announced that Tsai would be leaving Sony Music Entertainment (Taiwan), to join Capitol Music Taiwan, which released under the name EMI Music Taiwan.^[7] To prepare for her new album, Tsai worked to perfect her dancing and change her style again.^{[citation needed]} She won the Style Award at the 2006 MTV Asia Awards, where she performed her new single "Dancing Diva" (舞孃) with elements of yoga and various props including a ball and a ribbon.^[8]

In May 2006, Sony released a greatest hits compilation album called J-Top, which included two CDs and a DVD with two previously unreleased music videos and a 70 minute documentary on Tsai's time at Sony. In one of the two music videos, Tsai looks back on all her previous music videos.

EMI Music Taiwan's label-Capitol Records (2006–2009)[link]

In concert during 2007 in Singapore.

After the release of J-Top, her first album with EMI Music Taiwan Dancing Diva was released on May 12, 2006. This album became Tsai's biggest album yet, selling over 2 million copies in Asia.^[9] The album featured her released single "Dancing Diva" (舞孃) along with "Pulchritude" (玩美), "Mr.Q" (The music video for this song shows Tsai getting intimate with Hong Kong pop star Edison Chen.), and the bonus track "Attraction of Sexy Lips"(唇唇欲動) (a song she did as part of an endorsement deal with MaxFactor similar to Anita Mui's song "Hot Red Lips"). The album also featured two of the biggest hits in Asia during the year^{[citation needed]}: the upbeat "A Wonder in Madrid" (馬德里不思議) and the love ballad "Pretence" (假裝). She collaborated with friend and label partner Stanley Huang on the song "Nice Guy" (乖乖牌), which he also helped to write. Tsai had some writing duties on the album, writing the lyrics for the song "The Prologue" (開場白), which many speculated was written about Chou. The album was re-released in July as the "Perfect Celebration Edition" with a DVD featuring music videos of all eleven of the songs on the album. She has done the same thing for Magic, Castle, and J-Game as well.

During the fall of 2006, Tsai began her Dancing Forever World Tour, performing concerts to sellout crowds in Asia and then to audiences in North America and Australia. The huge opening concert in Hong Kong, which took place on her birthday, featured many special guests, including one of Hong Kong's top male artists Eason Chan, Taiwan's rising pop princess Rainie Yang, and Show Luo. Show and Huang also made surprise appearances in other stops of her tour. In the most shocking moment of her tour, she kissed fellow Taiwanese star Elva Hsiao on the lips during one of her concerts. Tsai made guest appearances at her friend Stefanie Sun's concerts, while she and Singaporean male artist JJ Lin took turns appearing at each other's concerts.^{[citation needed]}

Tsai released her third remix album, Dancing Forever (唯舞獨尊) in October 2006, which contained two CDs and a DVD. The first disc contained all new material, including the title track and theme for her tour "Dancing Forever", covers of songs by Chinese singers Sandy Lam and Faye Wong, and the duet "Marry Me Today" (今天你要嫁給我) that she recorded with her idol and mentor David Tao. In this album, she experimented with two other Chinese dialects — Taiwanese and Cantonese (the Canto version of "Pretence" is on the album). Up to this point, she had only released music in Mandarin and English. The second disc included remixes of three dance hits from Dancing Diva, while the DVD featured the LUX-sponsored mini-concert she performed in the summer in Kaohsiung where Huang and Taiwanese boy band Energy also performed.

A month later, Sony released another two-CD compilation album called Jolin Favorite Live Concert Music Selection. This album consisted of remixes of popular songs Tsai recorded under Sony, as well as rare live tracks.

Tsai ended 2006 performing hits like "Mr.Q", "A Wonder in Madrid", "Pretence" and "Dancing Diva" at several New Year countdown parties in Taiwan. According to G-music, Dancing Diva became the biggest selling album of the year in Taiwan, while Dancing Forever reached #15 on the year-end album sales charts.^[10] Dancing Diva accounted for 4.26% of all Mandarin album sales in Taiwan for the year, ahead of Jay Chou's Still Fantasy, which accounted for 3.50%. Tsai's popular duet with Tao was considered by many lists to be the #1 song of the year in Taiwan^{[citation needed]}. Singles like "Dancing Diva," "Pretence," and "A Wonder in Madrid" also won many song awards between 2006 and 2007.^{[citation needed]}

On June 8, 2007, Tsai released her second DVD The Acquired Talent (地才), which featured performances from her latest world tour and documented her work in preparing for the tour. The DVD shows footage of her performing dance sequences with concert guests Luo, Huang, and Hsiao. The DVD opened at the top of the Taiwanese audio/video charts and stayed there for thirteen weeks.^[11]

On June 16, Tsai won the Most Favorite Female Artist and the Best Mandarin Female Singer Award for the first time at the 18th Golden Melody Awards.^[12][13] Her duet with David Tao won the Best Song Award. Tsai's win for Best Mandarin Female Singer drew criticism from netizens and industry critics, who believed her voice was not as strong as the other nominees (A-mei, Sandy, Angela Chang, and Penny Tai). However, many said that she won due to her all-round talent, hard work, and universal pop appeal.^[14] Regardless of the controversy surrounding this award, she won the Most Favorite Female Artist award following a fan vote conducted for a few months prior to the awards show, beating out many other artists such as A-mei, Fish Leong, Hsiao, Sun, Twins, and Yang.

Just a few days before the release of Tsai's new album at EMI Music Taiwan, Sony released another compilation album, Jolin's Final Wonderland (Jolin夢綺地精選). This collection featured almost all the songs Tsai released during her time at Sony in three CDs (The songs were separated into dance songs, cute songs, and love ballads.), as well as a DVD with 22 music videos and a 52-page photo book.

Jolin Tsai became the online game spokeswoman of "We Dancing Online" after the CD album release of "Dancing Forever".

Tsai's second album with EMI Music Taiwan, titled Agent J (特務J), was released on September 21, 2007. The album featured eleven new tracks - the title track "Agent J" (特務J), the ballads "Alone" (一個人) and "Fear Free" (怕什麼), the dance tracks "Bravo Lover" (愛無赦) (best known for its often-imitated dance steps^{[citation needed]}) and "Tacit Violence" (冷‧暴力), and the bonus track "Let's Move It," which was used as a promotional track in commercials for Toyota. The deluxe version of the album contained a 3-part 70-minute music movie filmed in France, London, and Bangkok. The movie, which cost NT$50 million to film, stars Tsai as the leather-clad Agent J and features popular Korean actor Kim Jae Won and Hong Kong stars Stephen Fung and Carl Ng.^[15][16] During the filming of the movie, Tsai had to learn two new forms of dance in 10 days: aerial silk dancing and pole-dancing. She almost paralyzed her right arm and fainted in the process.^[17]

According to G-music Taiwan, the album accounted for 45% of album sales and over 65% of Mandarin album sales in Taiwan in its first week of release. Since its release, the album stayed at the number one position for two weeks.^[18] Tsai released two more versions of the album: the Champion Special Edition (featuring 10 music videos, 4 dance instruction music videos, and a remix of Bravo Lover) and the No. 1 Special Celebration Edition (featuring the "Let's Move It" music video and her "Agent J" celebration concert with the best male artist at the Golden Melody Awards Nicky Lee from Taiwanese hip-hop group Machi).

Tsai then collaborated with Australian pop queen, Kylie Minogue in a song called "In My Arms", which would be included in the Asian version of Kylie's album X. Tsai was invited to the world premiere of Kylie's movie 'White Diamond', where Tsai presented Minogue with her newest album and a jade bracelet which Tsai personally picked for her.

Soon after, Tsai traveled to Hong Kong for Christmas, attending various functions and performing and winning three awards at the 2007 Metro Showbiz Music Awards, before returning to Taiwan. Tsai again ended off the year performing hits in Taiwan to celebrate the end of 2007. For the second year in a row, Tsai had the best-selling album in Taiwan. According to g-music, sales of Agent J accounted for 3.08% of all album sales in Taiwan and 5.96% of Chinese albums for the year, even higher than the numbers for Dancing Diva a year ago.^[19] Agent J also topped the year-end album charts according to Five Music, while The Acquired Talent was the best-selling music DVD of the year.^[20][21][22]

Like the previous year, Tsai also topped the Hito Top 100 Singles chart for the year. This time her song "Sun Will Never Set" was voted Top Song of the Year by over 340,000 voters.^[23]

In April 2008, Tsai incorporated newly learned skills such as flying rings and pole dance in addition to her usual multi-style dances in her concert in Beijing's Workers' Gymnasium.^{[citation needed]}

References[link]

Teresa Teng 鄧麗君
200px
Chinese name	鄧麗君 (Traditional)
Chinese name	邓丽君 (Simplified)
Pinyin	Dèng Lìjūn (Mandarin)
Pe̍h-ōe-jī	Tēng Lê-kun (Hokkien)
Birth name	Teng Li-chun (鄧麗筠)
Ancestry	Daming, Hebei, China
Origin	Republic of China (Taiwan)
Born	(1953-01-29)January 29, 1953 Baojhong, Yunlin, Taiwan
Died	May 8, 1995(1995-05-08) (aged 42) Chiang Mai, Thailand
Resting place	Chin Pao Shan (Jinbaoshan), Taiwan 25°15′04″N 121°36′14″E / 25.251°N 121.604°E / 25.251; 121.604
Other name(s)	Teresa Tang, Teresa Deng
Occupation	Singer
Genre(s)	Mandopop, Cantopop, J-Pop
Instrument(s)	Singing
Label(s)	Taiwan: Yeu Jow (1967–1971), Haishan (1971), Life[disambiguation needed ] (1972–1976), Kolin (1977–1983), PolyGram (1984–1992) Hong Kong: EMI (1971), Life[disambiguation needed ] (1971–1976), PolyGram (1975–1992) Japan: Polydor K.K. (1974–1981), Taurus (1983–1995)
Years active	1967–1995
Awards Golden Melody Awards Special Award 1996

Teresa Teng (January 29, 1953 – May 8, 1995) (traditional Chinese: 鄧麗君; simplified Chinese: 邓丽君; pinyin: Dèng Lìjūn; Wade–Giles: Teng Li-chun; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Tēng Lē-kun, Japanese: テレサ・テン), was an immensely popular and influential Chinese pop singer from Taiwan. Teng's voice and songs are instantly recognized throughout East Asia and in areas with large Asian populations. It is often said, "Wherever there are Chinese people, the songs of Teresa Teng can be heard." Her songs enjoy popularity among Korean, Japanese, Thai, Vietnamese, Malaysian, and Indonesian listeners as well.

Teng was known for her folk songs and romantic ballads. Many became standards in her lifetime, such as "When Will You Return?" (何日君再來) and "The Moon Represents My Heart" (月亮代表我的心).^[1] She recorded songs not only in her native Mandarin but also in Taiwanese, Cantonese, Japanese, Vietnamese, Indonesian, and English.^{[citation needed]}

Teng, a lifelong sufferer from asthma, died in 1995 from a severe respiratory attack while on holiday in Thailand. She was 42.

Biography[link]

Early life[link]

Teresa Teng was born in Baozhong, Yunlin County, Taiwan, to a mainland Chinese family from Hebei. She was educated at Ginling Girls High School. As a young child, Teng won awards for her singing at talent competitions. Her first major prize was in 1964 when she sang "Visiting Yingtai" from Shaw Brothers' Huangmei opera movie, "The Love Eterne" (梁祝), at an event hosted by Broadcasting Corporation of China. She was soon able to support her family with her singing. Taiwan's rising manufacturing economy in the 1960s made the purchase of records easier for more families. With her father's approval, she quit high school to pursue singing professionally.

Career[link]

Teng's singing style conveyed simplicity and sincerity. Yeh Yueh-Yu, a professor of Cultural Theory at the University of Southern California said, "It was the sweetness in her voice that made her famous. She had a perfect voice for folk songs and ballads, and she added traditional folk song stylings into Western-style compositions." Her voice was also described as being "like weeping and pleading, but with strength, capable of drawing in and hypnotizing listeners." Songwriter Tsuo Hung-yun said Teng's voice was "seven parts sweetness, three parts tears."

Teng gained her first taste of fame in 1968 when a performance on a popular Taiwanese music program led to a record contract. She released several albums within the next few years under the Life Records label. In 1973 she attempted to crack the Japanese market by signing with the Polydor Japan label and taking part in Japan's Kōhaku Uta Gassen, a year-round singing match of the most successful artists. She was named "Best New Singing Star".^[2] Following her success in Japan, Teng sang many Japanese songs, including original hits such as "Give yourself to the flow of Time" (時の流れに身をまかせ, Toki no Nagare ni Mi wo Makase^?) which was later covered in Chinese as "I Only Care About You" (我只在乎你).

In 1974 the song "Airport" (空港) became a hit in Japan. Teng remained popular in Japan despite being barred from the country briefly in 1979 for having a fake Indonesian passport she purchased for US$20,000. The subterfuge had seemed necessary due to the official break in relations between Taiwan and Japan that occurred shortly after the People's Republic of China replaced the ROC in the United Nations.

Teng's popularity boomed worldwide in the 1970s after her debut in Japan. Singing by now in Cantonese, Japanese and English besides her native Mandarin, Teng's popularity quickly grew in Malaysia and Indonesia. In Taiwan she was known not only as the island's most popular export, but as "the soldier's sweetheart" because of her frequent performances for servicemen. Teng was herself the child of a military family. Her concerts for troops featured popular music and Taiwanese folk songs that appealed to natives of the island as well as Chinese folk songs that appealed to homesick refugees of the civil war.

In the early 1980s, continuing political tension between mainland China and Taiwan led to her music, along with that of other singers from Taiwan and Hong Kong, being banned for several years in mainland China as too "bourgeois".^[3] Her popularity in China continued to grow nonetheless thanks to the black market. As Teng songs continued to be played everywhere, from nightclubs to government buildings, the ban on her music was soon lifted. Her Chinese fans nicknamed her "Little Deng" because she had the same family name as Deng Xiaoping; it was said that Deng the Communist leader ruled China by day, but that Deng the singer ruled China by night.^{[citation needed]}

Teng's contract with Polydor ended in 1981. She signed a contract with Taurus Records in 1983 and made a successful comeback appearance in Japan. In 1983 Taurus released her album, dan dan you qing (淡淡幽情). This album consisted of settings of twelve poems from the Tang and Song dynasties. The music, written by composers of her earlier hits, blended modern and traditional styles of East and West. The most popular single from the album today is "Wishing We Last Forever" (但願人長久). The number of hits released in the years from 1984–1989 make them "Teresa Teng's Golden Years" in the views of her fans. She was the first singer to win the All-Japan Record Awards for four consecutive years (1984–1988).

Teng performed in Paris during the 1989 Tiananmen student protests on behalf of the students and proclaimed her support for democracy. On May 27, 1989, over 300,000 people attended the concert called "Democratic songs dedicated to China" (民主歌聲獻中華) at the Happy Valley Racecourse in Hong Kong. One of the highlights was her rendition of "My Home Is on the Other Side of the Mountain."^[4]

Though Teng performed in many countries around the world during her career, her hopes of performing one day in mainland China never materialized. The Communist Party of China eventually invited her to do so in the 1990s but she died before the opportunity came.^[5]

Death and commemorations[link]

Teng died from a severe asthma attack while on holiday in Chiang Mai, Thailand, at the age of 42 (43 by Chinese reckoning) on May 8, 1995. She was an asthmatic throughout her adult life. Teng was given state honors at her funeral in Taiwan, with the flag of the Republic of China draped over her casket and then president Lee Teng-hui in attendance among thousands in mourning.

She was buried in a mountainside tomb at Chin Pao San, a cemetery in Jinshan, Taipei County (now New Taipei City) in northern Taiwan. The grave site features a statue of Teng and a large electronic piano keyboard set in the ground that can be played by visitors who step on the keys. The memorial is often visited by her fans. (This represents a noteworthy departure from the traditional Chinese practice of shunning grave sites.)^[6] Geotagging of the Teresa Teng Memorial Park (Yun Garden)^[7]: Geolocation on Google Maps from the tomb of Teresa Teng with view from the driveway on her golden statue: 25.248582,121.601843 (Latitude/Longitude).

A house she bought in 1986 in Hong Kong at No. 18 Carmel Street has also become a site of pilgrimage for her fans soon after her death. Plans to sell the home to finance a museum in Shanghai were made known in 2002,^[8] and subsequently sold for HK$ 32 million. It closed on what would have been her 51st birthday on January 29, 2004.^[9]

To commemorate the tenth anniversary of her death, the Teresa Teng Culture and Education Foundation launched a campaign entitled "Feel Teresa Teng". In addition to organizing an anniversary concert in Hong Kong and Taiwan, music fans paid homage at her shrine at Chin Pao San Cemetery. Additionally, some of her dresses, jewelry and personal items were placed on exhibition at Yuzi Paradise, an art park outside Guilin, China.^[10]

In May 2002, the wax figure of Teng was unveiled at Madame Tussauds Hong Kong.

Influence on popular culture[link]

• Her songs have been covered by a number of singers, including Faye Wong who released a tribute album (Decadent Sounds of Faye, 靡靡之音, 1995) of Teng's popular hits.
• The 1996 Hong Kong film Comrades: Almost a Love Story (甜蜜蜜 – Tiánmìmì) directed by Peter Chan features the tragedy and legacy of Teresa Teng in a subplot to the main story. The movie won best picture in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and at the Seattle Film Festival in the United States.
• Her songs are featured in various films, e.g. Rush Hour 2, Prison On Fire, Formosa Betrayed, Gomorrah.
• In 2007, TV Asahi produced a tanpatsu (単発, TV movie), entitled Teresa Teng Monogatari (テレサ・テン物語)^[11] to commemorate the 13th anniversary of her death. Actress Yoshino Kimura starred as Teresa Teng.
• Teresa Teng, Judy Ongg (1950–), Agnes Chan (1955–), Ouyang Feifei (1949–), and Yu Yar (尤雅, 1953–) were billed as the "Five Great Asian Divas" during the 1970s and 1980s due to their huge cross-cultural popularity.^{[citation needed]} Teng's music remains the most popular.
• Her song "Toki no Nagare ni Mi o Makase" was played numerous times in the film "Ban zhi yan" (also known as "Metade Fumaça" which means "half smoked" in Portuguese), including the opening scene. It can be called the theme of the film.

Awards received in Japan[link]

Teng received the following awards in Japan:^[12]

• The New Singer Award for「空港」(Kūkō) in 1974.
• The Gold Award in 1986 for「時の流れに身をまかせ」(Toki no Nagare ni Mi o Makase).
• The Grand Prix for「つぐない」(Tsugunai) in 1984:「愛人」(Aijin) in 1985; and「時の流れに身をまかせ」(Toki no Nagare ni Mi o Makase) in 1986. This was the first time anyone had won the Grand Prix three years in a row.
• The Outstanding Star Award for「別れの予感」(Wakare no Yokan) in 1987.
• The Cable Radio Music Award for「別れの予感」(Wakare no Yokan) in 1987 and 1988.
• The Cable Radio Special Merit Award (有線功労賞) in 1995 for three consecutive Grand Prix wins.

References[link]

See also[link]

• Zai shui yi fang (song)
• Ni zen me shuo

External links[link]

	Taiwan portal
	Biography portal
	Music portal

• Teresa Teng Foundation 鄧麗君文教基金會
• 鄧麗君 Teresa Teng テレサ・テン – One And Only
• Teresa Teng at Allmusic
• Teresa Teng discography at MusicBrainz
• Teresa Teng at the Internet Movie Database

Datuk Zulkifli Noordin is a Malaysian politician and is currently the Member of the Parliament of Malaysia for the Kulim–Bandar Baharu constituency in Kedah, Malaysia. He holds his seat as an Independent, having been elected as a member of the People's Justice Party (PKR).

Zulkifli was elected to the Parliament in the 2008 election.^[2] His election had been contested by the defeated UMNO candidate; however the court petition to overturn the result was eventually withdrawn.^[3]

Zulikifli was born on 19 February 1962 in Baling, Kedah and is a Sharia lawyer.^[4]

"Allah" issue and dismissal from PKR[link]

Zulkifli was a prominent figure in the controversy over the use of the word 'Allah' in a Catholic publication. In response to the decision of the High Court allowing the publication Herald, Zulkifli stated "I can't understand how any Muslim can support this judgment".^[5] Zulkifli also called for the resignation of a Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party MP, Khalid Samad for supporting the right of Christians to use the word 'Allah'.^[6]

On 6 March 2010, Zulkifli was dismissed from PKR following the unanimous decision of a party disciplinary panel arising from Zulkifli's lodging of a police report against Khalid Samad and his public criticisms of the Chief Minister of Penang, Lim Guan Eng.^[7][8] Zulkifli's request to have his case heard by an all-Muslim disciplinary panel had been dismissed by the party.^[9] He immediately indicated he would remain in Parliament as an Independent.^[10] He has been vocal in criticizing the federal opposition, especially the PKR, since his dismissal.

Election results[link]

References[link]

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Hebe Tien Fu-Chen
Hebe at Love! To Hebe Live - Hong Kong
Chinese name	田馥甄
Pinyin	Tián Fūzhēn (Mandarin)
Birth name	Tien Fu-Chen
Origin	Republic of China (Taiwan)
Born	(1983-03-30) 30 March 1983 (age 29) Hsinchu, Taiwan
Other name(s)	Tian Xi Bi, 田喜碧
Occupation	Singer, actress, host
Genre(s)	Mandopop, Alternative Rock, Jazz
Instrument(s)	piano, flute, drums
Voice type(s)	Soprano.[1]
Label(s)	HIM International Music
Years active	2001–present
Associated acts	S.H.E
Influences	Faye Wong[2]
Awards Best Taiwanese Duet Song, Sprite Hong Kong Music Awards 2007 for Zhi Dui Ni You Gan Jue, Only Have Feelings For You (Hebe with Fahrenheit).

Tien Fu-Chen (Chinese: 田馥甄; pinyin: Tián Fūzhēn), more commonly known as Hebe, was born on 30 March 1983 in Hsinchu City, Taiwan. She is a Taiwanese singer, actress, TV program hostess, and most notably a member of Taiwanese Mandopop girl group S.H.E. She is the second child in her family. After living in Hsinchu for eighteen years, Hebe moved to Taipei after she was signed as a singer. She finished high school but did not attend college.