- White Lotus
White Lotus (白蓮教
Pinyin : "báiliánjiào"Wade-Giles : "Pai-lien chiao") was a type ofBuddhist sectarianism that appealed to many Chinese, most notably to women and to the poor, who found solace inworship of theEternal Mother who was to gather all her children at themillennium into one family. The doctrine of the White Lotus included a forecast of the imminentadvent of the future BuddhaMaitreya .Origins
The first signs of the White Lotus Society came during the late
13th century . Mongol rule overChina , known also by its dynastic name, the Yuan dynasty, prompted small, yet popular demonstrations against foreign rule. The White Lotus Society took part in some of these protests as they grew into wide-spread dissent. The Mongols considered the White Lotus society aheterodox religious sect and banned it, forcing its members to go underground. Now asecret society , the White Lotus became an instrument of quasi-national resistance and religious organization.White Lotus Revolution
A revolution, inspired by the White Lotus society, took shape in
1352 aroundGuangzhou . A Buddhist monk and former boy-beggar,Zhu Yuanzhang , (Wade-Giles: "Chu Yüan-chang") threw off his vestments and joined the rebellion. His exceptional intelligence took him to the head of a rebelarmy ; he won people to his side by forbidding his soldiers to pillage, in observance of White Lotus religious beliefs. By1355 the rebellion had spread through much of China. In1356 , Zhu Yuanzhang capturedNanjing and made it his capital. It was here that he began to discard his heterodox beliefs and so won the help ofConfucian scholars who issued pronouncements for him and performed rituals in his claim of theMandate of Heaven , the first step toward establishing new dynastic rule. Meanwhile the Mongols were fighting among themselves, inhibiting their ability to suppress the rebellion. In 1368, Zhu Yuanzhang extended his rule toGuangzhou -- the same year that the Mongol ruler, Toghan Temur, fled toKarakorum . In 1368 Zhu Yuanzhang and his army entered the former Mongol capital,Beijing , and in1371 his army moved throughSichuan to the southwest. By 1387, after more than thirty years ofwar , Zhu Yuanzhang had liberated all of China. Having attained theMandate of Heaven and the status of Emperor, he took the titleHongwu and founded a new dynasty - the Ming. Clinging onto historical perspectives the White Lotus society used a more Asian tagline of kumate.Later Rebellions
The White Lotus reemerged in the late 18th century in the form of an inspired Chinese movement in many different forms and sects.
In
1774 , one instance of a White Lotus derivative sectThe Eight Trigrams arose in the form of underground meditation teachings and practice inShandong province, not far fromPeking near the city of Linqing. [cite book | last = Spence | first = Jonathan D. | title = The Search for Modern China | publisher =W.W.Norton | date = 1991 | isbn = 978-0-393-30780-1] The leader,herbalist andmartial artist Wang Lun, led an uprising that captured three small cities and laid siege to the larger city ofLinqing , a strategic location on the north-south Grand Canal transportation route. After initial success, he was outnumbered and defeated by Qing troops, including local armies of Chinese soldiers known as theGreen Standard. [cite book | last = Spence | first = Jonathan D. | title = The Search for Modern China | publisher =W.W.Norton | date = 1991 | isbn = 978-0-393-30780-1]An account of
Wang Lun 's death was given toQing authorities by a captured rebel. [cite book | last = Spence | first = Jonathan D. | title = The Search for Modern China | publisher =W.W.Norton | date = 1991 | isbn = 978-0-393-30780-1] Wang Lun remained sitting in his headquarters wearing a purple robe and two silver bracelets while he burned to death with his dagger and double-bladed sword beside him. [cite book | last = Spence | first = Jonathan D. | title = The Search for Modern China | publisher =W.W.Norton | date = 1991 | isbn = 978-0-393-30780-1]Wang Lun likely failed because he did not make any attempts to raise wide public support. He did not distribute captured wealth or food supplies, nor did he promise to lessen the tax burden. Unable to build up a support base, he was forced to quickly flee all three cities that he attacked in order to evade government troops. Though he passed through an area inhabited by almost a million peasants, his army never measured more than four thousand soldiers, many of whom had been forced into service.A similar movement arose in the mountainous region that separates
Sichuan province fromHubei andShaanxi provinces in central China as tax protests. The White Lotus led impoverished settlers into rebellion, promising personal salvation in return for their loyalty. Beginning as tax protests, the eventual rebellion gained growing support and sympathy from many ordinary people. The rebellion grew in number and power and eventually, into a serious concern for the government.Heshen , a corrupt official, was sent by the EmperorQianlong (Ch'ien-lung) (reigned 1735–99) to quell the uprising. Surprisingly, the ill-organized rebels managed to defeat the inadequate and inefficient Imperial forces. Heshen had been known to embezzle funds and resources earmarked for the defeat of the White Lotus, and had only gained his position because he was the Emperor's favorite, and this accounted for his defeat. Upon assuming effective power in 1799, EmperorJiaqing (Chia Ch’ing) (reigned 1796–1820) disposed of Heshen and gave support to the efforts of more vigorous Manchu commanders as a way of restoring discipline and morale.A systematic program of pacification followed in which the populace was resettled in hundreds of stockaded villages and organized into militia. In its last stage, the Qing suppression policy combined pursuit and extermination of rebel guerrilla bands with a program of amnesty for deserters. The rebellion came to an end in 1804. A decree from the Emperor
Daoguang admitted, "…it was extortion by local officials that goaded the people into rebellion…"Using the arrest of sectarian members as a threat, local officials and police extorted money from people. Actual participation in sect activities had no impact on an arrest; whether or not monetary demands were met, however, did. Administrators also seized and destroyed sectarian scriptures used by the religious groups. One such official was
Huang Yupian , who refuted the ideas found in the scriptures with orthodox Confucian and Buddhist views in hisA Detailed Refutation of Heresy (破邪詳辯 "Pōxié Xiángbiàn"), which was written in 1838. This book has since become an invaluable source in understanding the beliefs of these groups.The end of the White Lotus Rebellion in 1804 also brought an end to the myth of military invincibility of the Manchu, perhaps contributing to the greater frequency of rebellions in the 19th century.
ee also
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Falun Gong Notes
References
cite book
last = Spence
first = Jonathan D.
title = The Search for Modern China
publisher = W.W.Norton
date = 1991
isbn = 978-0-393-30780-1
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