先秦时期对“天”的崇拜是古代宗教信仰与政治秩序结合的重要产物，是周人精神文明建设的主要组成部分，这一政治理论体系对中国此后的历史文化产生了深远影响。西周的覆灭极大地震动了春秋时期人们的精神世界：以周王室为中心的旧秩序逐渐崩溃，新的人文主义精神正在跃动。继起的春秋时期上承两周之际礼崩乐坏之乱局，下启战国群雄并起之变革，其间霸权的迭兴促使“天”的意涵发生了重大变动。
  春秋时期的“天”主要具有着物质之天、主宰之天和运命之天的内涵。物质之天覆盖广阔且历史久远，漫天星辰于其间移位运转，预兆吉凶；主宰之天神力强大而地位尊崇，控制着人的生前与死后，既可为逝者主持公道助其干涉人间，又为生者降下吉凶祸福影响深远；运命之天不慆已久且难以违抗，但人仍可通过顺应天命、天道，掌握天时的方式，积极助力于本国的发展。
  春秋时期“天命”的影响范围包括了各国之命与各人之命。“天命”赋予诸侯建邦立国的神圣性、治理民众的合法性，扩张疆域的正当性。天命”也注重个人品行，要求国君遵礼守德，卿士尊君修德。春秋时期发展了运命之天的内涵，使春秋时期“天命”的含义变得丰富：这时的“天命”既指主宰之天的命令，又指运命之天下的规则，这使得“天命” 带上了运命之天难以违抗的特点。
  运命之天具有的不容质疑、难以违抗和无法挽回的特性，使得人们在春秋时期大力宣扬己身对天命的恭敬与顺从。西周晚期巩固天命思想的盛行和春秋晚期恭敬天命意识的流行，都是在政局动荡之时发生的。无论形式为何，其祈求的都是上天的保佑，这反映了春秋时期“天”的神圣与权威仍长存人们心中。
  西周晚期对于“天”与“天命”的怨怼与责问，并未使“天”与“天命”的神圣性降低。在短暂的低潮与插曲之后，春秋时期的“天”与“天命”重新焕发出生机与活力，普通世人被容纳进“天”的直接影响范围之内，这为后世“天”之思想的发展提供了广泛的传播基础。

 The  worship  of  "heaven"  in  the  pre-Qin  period  was  an  important  combination  of  ancient religious beliefs and political order. It is a major component of the spiritual civilization of Zhou. It opened up the ideological and political theory system used by the ruling class for thousands of years, and has a profound impact on China's history and culture. The collapse of the Western Zhou Dynasty caused a huge shock in people's spiritual world during the Spring and Autumn Period: the old order centered on the Zhou royal family gradually collapsed, and the new humanistic spirit is surging. The Spring and Autumn Period inherited the chaos of the Western Zhou Dynasty's ritual collapse  and  the  collapse  of  music,  and  initiated  the  revolution  of  the  Warring  States  Period. Studying the meaning and changes of "heaven" in this period is of great benefit to the study of the history of political thought in ancient China.
  The  "Heaven"  in  the  Spring  and  Autumn  Period  mainly  carries  the  connotations  of  the material heaven, the dominating heaven and the destiny heaven. The material sky covers a vast area and has a long history and the stars shifts and circulates in it, which indicates good and bad luck; the ruling sky is powerful and respected, which controls the people’s life and after death. It can act justice for the dead and help them interfere in the world. It also has a far-reaching impact on the good and bad for the living; the fate is long and difficult to defy, but people can still actively contribute to the development of the country by following the destiny and the way of heaven and mastering the time.
  The  influence  of  the  "mandate  of  heaven"  in  the  Spring  and Autumn  Period  includes  the destiny of each country and the destiny of each individual. " The mandate of heaven" endows the vassal state with the sacredness of building a state, the legitimacy of governing territories, and the legitimacy of expanding territories. "The mandate of heaven " also requires monarchs to observe courtesy and morality, to respect the emperor's morals, and to pay attention to the requirements of each individual's character. During the Spring and Autumn Period, the connotation of the destiny of the destiny was developed, and the meaning of the " The mandate of heaven " in the Spring and Autumn Period was also enriched. The " The mandate of heaven" in the Spring and Autumn Period refers to both the command of the ruler of the heaven and the rules of the world of destiny, which makes the "destiny" with the characteristics that the destiny is difficult to defy.
  The  unquestionable,  irresistible,  and  irretrievable  characteristics  of  the  fate  of  the  sky weakened the consciousness of consolidating the fate of the Spring and Autumn Period, but took a  step  back  to  respect  the  fate  of  the  fate,  in  order  to  obtain  the  blessing  of  the  heaven.  The prevalence of consolidating destiny thought in the late Western Zhou Dynasty and the popularity of  respectful  destiny  consciousness  in  the  late  Spring  and Autumn  Period  occurred  when  the political situation was turbulent. Regardless of the form, what he prays for is heaven's blessing, which reflects that the sacredness and authority of the "heaven" in the Spring and Autumn Period is still in people's hearts.
  The grievances and censures of "Heaven" and "Destiny" in the late Western Zhou Dynasty did not make the sacredness of "Heaven" and "Destiny" completely depressed. After a brief low ebb and episode, the "Heaven" and "Destiny" of the Spring and Autumn Period regained vigor and vitality, and ordinary people were included in the direct influence of "Heaven", which is the base of  development  for  the  thinking  of  "Heaven"  in  later  generations  Provides  a  broad  basis  for communication.