 The two most relevant concepts are tian 天 (heaven) and ming 命 (the command; fate). The idea of tianming 天命 (the “Mandate of Heaven”) first came to prominence in rationalizing the conquest of the Shang dynasty by King Wen and King Wu, who founded the Zhou dynasty in the eleventh century BCE. Heaven is described in anthropomorphic terms as having awareness, preferences, and values. Its most fundamental concern is for the people, as expressed in a famous line from the “Great Declaration” chapter of the Book of Documents (Shangshu 尚書): “Heaven sees from where my people see; heaven hears from where my people hear” (quoted from Mengzi 5A5). As a political doctrine, the claim is that heaven will support rulers who help the people and will bring disaster on rulers who do not. On this view, the world works on consistent patterns that encompass ethical and political concerns. Human beings determine their own success or failure based on these patterns rather than depending on divine whim. The emergence of this view is commonly seen as a decisive moment in the formation of Chinese philosophy.