The mandate of heaven was a claim by rulers that they where the divine ruler of an empire or kingdom, and that god themself placed them on the throne because they are great or righteous. Most famously this was used by Chinese rulers up until the fall of the Qing dynasty.
The Mandate of Heaven (Tianming), also known as Heaven's Mandate, was the divine source of authority and the right to rule of China's early kings and emperors. The ancient god or divine force known as Heaven or Sky had selected this particular individual to rule on its behalf on earth.
The Zhou created the Mandate of Heaven: the idea that there could be only one legitimate ruler of China at a time, and that this ruler had the blessing of the gods. They used this Mandate to justify their overthrow of the Shang, and their subsequent rule.
Explanation:
The Mandate either said or implied three major things. (1) The right to rule is granted by the gods. This gave the ruler religious power. (2) The right to rule is only granted if the ruler cares about his people more than he cares about himself.
