What kind of organization is the White Lotus Sect in history? Don't be fooled by the movies. This mysterious folk group, which evolved from the Tiantai sect of Buddhism, has always played an important role in Chinese history. It was once seen as a potential threat by the Song and Ming monarchs and was severely suppressed; However, during the Yuan Dynasty, the White Lotus Sect gained legal status and developed to its heyday. What is the purpose of the White Lotus believers who often launch uprisings under the banner of "salvation" and "equality thinking"? What is their purpose? What kind of organization is it? Let's find out.
The origin and early development of the White Lotus Cult
In the third year of Shaoxing in the Southern Song Dynasty (1133), a monk named Mao Ziyuan founded the White Lotus Sect in Wu County, Jiangsu. Mao Ziyuan's White Lotus Sect believed in Maitreya Buddha and declared that Maitreya Buddha would come to the world to save the world from the sea of suffering. At the same time, the White Lotus Sect also has a unique way of cultivating, abstaining from eating scallion milk, strictly observing the precept of not killing, and not drinking alcohol.
The appearance of the White Lotus Sect quickly attracted the attention of the people at the bottom. In contrast to traditional Buddhism, which focuses on monks, the White Lotus sect advocates "ordination at home", allowing monks to marry wives and have children, and to practice both men and women. This method of cultivation was relatively relaxed, and it won more followers for the White Lotus Sect.
The core teachings of the Maitreya belief of the White Lotus Sect also had a great attraction for the society at that time. First, the object of Maitreya Buddha's salvation is all devout believers, regardless of whether they are rich or poor; Second, the goal of the practice is to obtain the guidance of Maitreya Buddha and come to the Tushi Heavenly Realm to live a prosperous and healthy life. This idea of equality and yearning for a better life soon attracted a large number of poor people to join the White Lotus Sect.
As the number of believers grew, the White Lotus sect gradually evolved into a folk belief known as the "White Lotus Sect". Emperor Song Xiaozong of the Southern Song Dynasty once summoned Mao Ziyuan in Deshou Palace, listened to his speech on the Pure Land Method, and gave him the honorific title of "Persuading the Pure Industry Lotus Sect Master to Teach Cizhao". Since then, "foolish men and foolish women have bewitched each other, and they have been happy in the fields", and the fire of the spread of the White Lotus Sect has become more and more prosperous.
However, the rapid development of the White Lotus Cult also aroused the jealousy of the ruling class. They feared that this emerging civil power would pose a threat to feudal rule. Despite this, during the Southern Song Dynasty, the White Lotus Sect was still able to gain a certain space to survive and develop. It wasn't until the establishment of the Yuan Dynasty that the White Lotus Sect really entered its heyday.
The White Lotus Sect during the Yuan Dynasty
After the establishment of the Yuan Dynasty, the Mongol rulers had a friendly attitude towards Buddhism, which allowed the White Lotus Sect to gain legal status and development space during this period. According to historical records, at that time, "there were all the so-called White Lotus Halls in the capital, and there were thousands of disciples gathered, and there were no less than 100 people." The White Lotus Hall is magnificent, like a strict arrangement, and even comparable to the Taoist Hall of the Fangong Palace, and the cover is sincere. ＂
Although the White Lotus Sect was granted legal status at the beginning of the Yuan Dynasty, its development trend also made the rulers jealous. In the seventeenth year of the Yuan Dynasty, Du Wanyi, the head of the thieves in Duchang County, and others launched a riot in the name of the "White Lotus Society", and many unrest incidents under the banner of the White Lotus Sect broke out across the country. In the first year of the reign of Emperor Yuanwuzong, he ordered a complete ban on the missionary activities of the White Lotus Sect.
At this time, Pudu, a monk of Lushan Donglin Temple, stepped forward and strongly advocated that the imperial court should not completely ban the White Lotus Sect. He wrote the book "The Treasure of the Lushan Lotus Sect", expounding the teachings of the White Lotus Sect, and with the help of the crown prince of Yuanrenzong, Aiyu Li Bali Bada, he sent a 7,000-word letter to Wuzong, proving that the White Lotus Sect is beneficial to educating the people.
Wu Zong changed his attitude after seeing it, but the ban has not yet been lifted. The following year, Wuzong died, and Aiyu Li Bali Bada succeeded him as Yuanrenzong, and the ban on the White Lotus Sect was lifted immediately. As a result, Pudu was revered as the "White Lotus Sect Master", and the White Lotus Sect was revitalized.
It is worth mentioning that the White Lotus Sect was not a unified, organized and disciplined religious group before, but more of a loose expression of folk beliefs. However, after gaining legal status, the White Lotus Sect gradually formed its own sangha system and canons, and opened many special "White Lotus Halls" as activity venues.
During this period, the number of White Lotus followers grew rapidly and their influence expanded. History records that its "building is magnificent, and the image is strictly organized", which shows that the White Lotus Sect has occupied a certain scale and status in society. However, as the power continues to grow, it also makes some people with ulterior motives covet it and abuse the name of the White Lotus Sect to do illegal things.
In 1351, the White Lotus disciples Han Shantong and Liu Futong launched the famous "Red Turban Army Uprising" in Yingzhou, which opened the prelude to the peasant uprising at the end of the Yuan Dynasty. More riots under the banner of the White Lotus followed, which eventually led the imperial court to re-examine its policy towards the White Lotus Sect.
The White Lotus Cult and the peasant uprising
As a folk religious belief, the White Lotus religion is closely related to the peasant uprising movement in Chinese history. Because of the idea of equality and the yearning for a better life advocated by the White Lotus Sect itself, it has a strong mass appeal and has become an important ideological source for many peasant uprisings.
As early as the Yuan Dynasty, there were many peasant uprisings under the banner of "White Lotus Sect". In 1351, the White Lotus disciples Han Shantong and Liu Futong launched the "Red Turban Army Uprising" in Yingzhou, Henan Province, which shocked the Central Plains. The Red Turban Army began with only a few hundred people, but soon grew to tens of thousands, becoming one of the triggers for the fall of the Yuan Dynasty.
After entering the Ming Dynasty, although the White Lotus Sect was severely suppressed by the government, there was still an undercurrent among the people. Zhu Yuanzhang himself was also a member of the White Lotus Sect, and later betrayed the White Lotus Sect. In the early Ming Dynasty, there were many shadows of the White Lotus Sect in the peasant rebel army, such as the "Red Turban Army" led by Zhang Shicheng and the "Battle of Jingjing" led by Tang He, all of which were inextricably related to the White Lotus Sect.
The White Lotus Sect is so closely related to the peasant uprising at the beginning of the Ming Dynasty precisely because the idea of equality it advocates coincides with the peasant masses' yearning for a better life. However, the White Lotus itself lacks a systematic political program, and its religious ideas often have a considerable degree of fantasy, which also makes it difficult for it to truly unify and call on the peasant masses to establish a new social order.
In the mid-to-late Ming Dynasty, due to the suppression of the imperial court, the White Lotus Sect could only spread underground. However, in the social environment of the decline of imperial power and the people's lack of livelihood, there are still peasant uprisings from time to time under the guise of the White Lotus Sect. For example, the "Wang Lun Uprising" in the Jiajing period and the "Zhang Xianzhong Peasant Uprising" in the Wanli period are all related to the background of the White Lotus Sect.
It is worth mentioning that Zhang Xianzhong, the leader of the peasant uprising in the late Ming Dynasty, was himself a White Lotus cultist. The peasant army he mobilized also included many members of the White Lotus Sect, and religious ideas had a great appeal to the military personnel. Although Zhang Xianzhong later converted to Catholicism, he still retained many White Lotus followers who played an important role in the uprising.
After entering the Qing Dynasty, due to the severe suppression of the rulers, the White Lotus Sect basically lost its space for activities in the Central Plains. However, in the densely populated and acutely social contradictions of northern China, the White Lotus Sect still has underground activities. Until the Jiaqing period, a "White Lotus Peasant Uprising" broke out in North China that shocked China and foreign countries.
The uprising, launched by Zhang Jiuchen, an immigrant from Tingzhou, Fujian, and others soon grew to hundreds of thousands of people, shaking the Qing dynasty. Although it was eventually pacified, the impact on the Qing Dynasty at that time can be seen. To some extent, this is also the last prestige of the White Lotus Sect in history.
The ban on the White Lotus Sect in the Ming Dynasty and its folk circulation
At the beginning of the establishment of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang himself was a member of the White Lotus Sect. However, once he seized power, he reversed course and turned to severely suppressing the White Lotus Sect.
In the fourteenth year of Hongwu (1381), Zhu Yuanzhang promulgated the "Edict on the Prohibition of White Lotus in the World Military Civilian Service", which was the first decree in the Ming Dynasty that explicitly prohibited the White Lotus Sect. Later, Zhu Yuanzhang clearly stipulated in the "Da Ming Law": "Those who have gossipes to confuse the public and invite people to make trouble will be hanged." Since then, the White Lotus Cult has completely lost its legal status in the Central Plains of the Ming Dynasty.
Under the severe suppression of the imperial court, a large number of White Lotus followers could only flee to Mongolia, where a force to be reckoned with was formed. The most famous of these was the Bansheng Mongols, who gathered tens of thousands of White Lotus followers to build an army in Mongolia and repeatedly harassed the Ming frontiers.
In the middle and late Ming Dynasty, although the imperial court continued to strictly prohibit it, the White Lotus Sect was still surging among the people, and it was spread and active from time to time. Especially in the late Ming Dynasty, when imperial power was declining and social contradictions intensified, the White Lotus Sect flourished.
According to historical records, at that time, "the White Lotus Army was endless, and the call was growing". In addition to the old White Lotus Cultists, there are many new entrants. For example, Zhang Xianzhong, the leader of the peasant uprising at the end of the Ming Dynasty, was himself a White Lotus disciple.
There were many White Lotus followers in the peasant rebel army launched by Zhang Xianzhong, and they had great appeal to the army and the people. Although Zhang Xianzhong later converted to Catholicism, he still retained a large number of White Lotus followers. These people played an important role in the uprising, helping Zhang Xianzhong eventually seize Xi'an.
On the other hand, at the end of the Ming Dynasty, some cults that claimed to be the "White Lotus Sect" also appeared, such as the "Longhua White Lotus Sect." Under the banner of the "White Lotus Sect," these cult organizations have acted absurdly and seriously damaged the reputation of the White Lotus Sect.
The fall of the White Lotus Cult in the Qing Dynasty
After entering the Qing Dynasty, due to the severe suppression of the rulers of the Qing Dynasty, the White Lotus Sect was basically unsustainable in the Central Plains, and only some residual fires remained in some remote areas.
In the fourteenth year of Shunzhi (1657), the Qing court promulgated the "Prohibition of the White Lotus Party", which explicitly prohibited any activities of the White Lotus Sect in the Central Plains, and punished those who violated the order with capital punishment. Since then, the White Lotus Sect has basically disappeared in the Central Plains.
However, in North China, where the population is dense and social contradictions are acute, the White Lotus Sect has not disappeared. Especially during the Jiaqing period, a "White Lotus Peasant Uprising" broke out here that shocked China and foreign countries.
This uprising was launched by Zhang Jiuchen, an immigrant from Tingzhou, Fujian, and others in the Datong area. They spread the rumor that "when Maitreya Buddha is in the world, the world will change", they soon united a large number of poor people and grew to hundreds of thousands of people.
Zhang Jiuchen's White Lotus Rebellion occupied Datong, Yangqu, Huairen and other places in the early days, and controlled almost the entire southeastern Jin region. Subsequently, they even smashed Huanglong, which once made Jingshi tremble.
Faced with such a grim situation, the Qing court had to mobilize more than 700,000 heavy troops, commanded by Dolgon, Li Luan and others, and after several years of difficult fighting, finally completely put down this thrilling uprising in 1813.
This uprising not only dealt a heavy blow to the Qing Dynasty, but also made it completely realize that the social influence of the White Lotus Sect should not be underestimated. For this reason, after suppressing the uprising, the Qing court suppressed the White Lotus Sect even more severely.
In the nineteenth year of Jiaqing (1814), the Qing court promulgated the "Miscellaneous White Lotus Canons and Supplementary Notes". The book characterized the White Lotus Sect as a "famous religion" and systematically summarized the various punishment measures taken by the dynasties to deal with the White Lotus Sect, which became the legal basis for the Qing court to severely suppress the White Lotus Sect.
Since then, the White Lotus Sect has basically collapsed in Chinese mainland, and it is no longer possible to gather and expand outside the sect. Even if there were occasional remnants of embers, they could only carry out small-scale activities in secret, and could no longer pose any threat to the rule of the Qing Dynasty.
In general, as a folk religious belief that originated in the Song Dynasty, the White Lotus Religion reached a considerable scale and social influence in the Yuan and Ming dynasties, and was even inextricably linked to the peasant uprising movement that changed the dynasty many times.
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However, after entering the Qing Dynasty, the White Lotus Sect was basically completely wiped out in the Central Plains, and only some embers remained in the remote areas. Despite this, the large-scale "White Lotus Rebellion" that broke out in 1813 still gave the Qing Dynasty a great shock and warning. This also prompted the Qing court to issue a draconian decree to completely eradicate the existence of the White Lotus Sect in Chinese mainland.