Way of the Taiping
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The Way of the Taiping, also known as the Way of the Great Peace, was a Chinese
Taoist Taoism (, ) or Daoism () refers to either a school of philosophical thought (道家; ''daojia'') or to a religion (道教; ''daojiao''), both of which share ideas and concepts of Chinese origin and emphasize living in harmony with the ''Tao'' ...
movement founded by
Zhang Jue Zhang Jue (; died October 184) was a Chinese military general and rebel. He was the leader of the Yellow Turban Rebellion during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He was said to be a follower of Taoism and a sorcerer. His name is sometimes ...
during the
Eastern Han Dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warr ...
. Its adherents all around China participated in the
Yellow Turban Rebellion The Yellow Turban Rebellion, alternatively translated as the Yellow Scarves Rebellion, was a List of peasant revolts, peasant revolt in China against the Eastern Han dynasty. The uprising broke out in 184 CE during the reign of Emperor Ling of ...
of 184, with the rebellion being suppressed within the same year by the Eastern Han government. The religious movement was greatly reduced and died soon afterwards. The Way of the Taiping was one of the two largest movements within early
Taoism Taoism (, ) or Daoism () refers to either a school of Philosophy, philosophical thought (道家; ''daojia'') or to a religion (道教; ''daojiao''), both of which share ideas and concepts of China, Chinese origin and emphasize living in harmo ...
, with the other being the
Way of the Five Pecks of Rice The Way of the Five Pecks of Rice () or the Way of the Celestial Master, commonly abbreviated to simply The Celestial Masters, was a Chinese Taoist movement founded by the first Celestial Master Zhang Daoling in 142 CE. At its height, the movem ...
. During the reign of
Emperor Ling of Han Emperor Ling of Han (156 – 13 May 189), personal name Liu Hong, was the 12th and last powerful emperor of the Eastern Han dynasty. Born the son of a lesser marquis who descended directly from Emperor Zhang (the third Eastern Han emperor), L ...
, the movement was recorded to have been popular in eight Provinces:
Qing Province Qingzhou or Qing Province was one of the Nine Provinces of ancient China dating back to  BCE that later became one of the thirteen provinces of the Han dynasty (206 BCE–220 CE). The Nine Provinces were first described in the '' Tribut ...
,
Xu Province Xuzhou as a historical toponym refers to varied area in different eras. Ordinarily, it was a reference to the one of the Nine Provinces which modern Xuzhou inherited. History Pre-Qin era Xuzhou or Xu Province was one of the Nine Provinces of ...
,
You Province You Prefecture or You Province, also known by its Chinese language, Chinese name Youzhou, was a prefecture (''Zhou (country subdivision), zhou'') in North China, northern China during its imperial era. "You Province" was cited in some ancient so ...
, Ji Province,
Jing Province Jingzhou or Jing Province was one of the Nine Provinces of ancient China referenced in Chinese historical texts such as the ''Tribute of Yu'', '' Erya'' and '' Rites of Zhou''. Jingzhou became an administrative division during the reign of Empe ...
,
Yang Province Yangzhou, Yangchow or Yang Province was one of the Nine Provinces of ancient China mentioned in historical texts such as the ''Tribute of Yu'', '' Erya'' and '' Rites of Zhou''. Name There are four different theories regarding the origin of t ...
,
Yan Province Yan Province or Yanzhou was one of the Nine Provinces of ancient China. During the Han dynasty (206 BCE – 220 CE), it covered roughly present-day southwestern Shandong, eastern Henan, and the northwestern corner of Jiangsu Jiangsu (; ...
, and Yu Province.


Origins

The Way of the Taiping originated in the reign of
Emperor Shun of Han Emperor Shun of Han (; 115 – 20 September 144) was an emperor of the Chinese Han Dynasty and the eighth emperor of the Eastern Han. He reigned from 125 to 144. Emperor Shun (Prince Bao) was the only son of Emperor An of Han. After Emperor A ...
of the
Eastern Han Dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warr ...
(126-144). A
Fangshi ''Fangshi'' () were Chinese technical specialists who flourished from the third century BCE to the fifth century CE. English translations of ''fangshi'' include alchemist, astrologer, diviner, exorcist, geomancer, doctor, magician, monk, mystic, ...
named ''
Gan Ji Gan Ji (died 200), rendered also as Yu Ji, was a Taoist priest who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. As a Taoist clergy, Gan Ji helped to cure the diseases of many people and saving lives. He was widely respected in Wu Count ...
'' (Some later histories referred to him as Yu Ji) claimed that he received a divine book called the '' Taiping Qingling Shu'' (太平清領書) from a pond in Quyang County, and thereafter started to build elaborate temples and established rituals like the burning of incense and the reading of
Taoist Taoism (, ) or Daoism () refers to either a school of philosophical thought (道家; ''daojia'') or to a religion (道教; ''daojiao''), both of which share ideas and concepts of Chinese origin and emphasize living in harmony with the ''Tao'' ...
manuscripts. He also treated the people's (
Baixing Baixing () or lao baixing () is a traditional Chinese term, meaning "the people" or "commoners." The word "lao" () is often added as a prefix before "baixing". A confederation of tribes living along the Yellow River were the ancestors of what ...
) illnesses with burnt
Fulu (), is a term for Taoist incantations and magic symbols, written or painted as talisman or () by Taoist practitioners. These practitioners are also called () or the sect, an informal group made up of priests from different schools of Tao ...
mixed with water, and he became very popular amongst them. According to the ''
Book of Later Han The ''Book of the Later Han'', also known as the ''History of the Later Han'' and by its Chinese name ''Hou Hanshu'' (), is one of the Twenty-Four Histories and covers the history of the Han dynasty from 6 to 189 CE, a period known as the Later ...
'', during the reign of
Emperor Shun Emperor Shun () was a legendary leader of ancient China, regarded by some sources as one of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors being the last of the Five Emperors. Tradition holds that he lived sometime between 2294 and 2184 BC. Tradition a ...
( 125–144),
Gong Chong A gongFrom Indonesian language, Indonesian and ms, gong; jv, ꦒꦺꦴꦁ ; zh, c=鑼, p=luó; ja, , dora; km, គង ; th, ฆ้อง ; vi, cồng chiêng; as, কাঁহ is a percussion instrument originating in East Asia and S ...
(宮崇), one of Gan Ji's disciples, submitted the ''Taiping Qingling Shu'' to the emperor, but did not receive substantial attention. Gong Chong's disciple
Xiang Kai Xiang or Hsiang may refer to: *Xiang (place), the site of Hong Xiuquan's destruction of a Chinese idol early in the Taiping Rebellion *Xiang (surname), three unrelated surnames: Chinese: 項 and Chinese: 向 (both ''Xiàng'') and Chinese: 相 (''X ...
tried the same, but his efforts also faltered. Later on, the book fell into the hands of
Zhang Jue Zhang Jue (; died October 184) was a Chinese military general and rebel. He was the leader of the Yellow Turban Rebellion during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He was said to be a follower of Taoism and a sorcerer. His name is sometimes ...
, who established the Way of the Taiping.


Later Developments

Zhang Jue Zhang Jue (; died October 184) was a Chinese military general and rebel. He was the leader of the Yellow Turban Rebellion during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He was said to be a follower of Taoism and a sorcerer. His name is sometimes ...
from
Julu Commandery Julu Commandery () was a historical commandery of China, located in modern-day southern Hebei. The commandery was established by Qin after it annexed Zhao in 222 BC. In early Western Han dynasty, it was part of the Zhao Kingdom. After the failed ...
, having obtained the ''Taiping Qingling Shu'', declared himself "Great Teacher" (大賢良師), preached to his disciples and treated peoples' illnesses. He quickly became popular, as he sent his eight disciples around the country, using the "Kind Way" (善道) to preach to the commoners, and within ten years had followers numbering 100,000, across eight Provinces:
Qing Province Qingzhou or Qing Province was one of the Nine Provinces of ancient China dating back to  BCE that later became one of the thirteen provinces of the Han dynasty (206 BCE–220 CE). The Nine Provinces were first described in the '' Tribut ...
,
Xu Province Xuzhou as a historical toponym refers to varied area in different eras. Ordinarily, it was a reference to the one of the Nine Provinces which modern Xuzhou inherited. History Pre-Qin era Xuzhou or Xu Province was one of the Nine Provinces of ...
,
You Province You Prefecture or You Province, also known by its Chinese language, Chinese name Youzhou, was a prefecture (''Zhou (country subdivision), zhou'') in North China, northern China during its imperial era. "You Province" was cited in some ancient so ...
, Ji Province,
Jing Province Jingzhou or Jing Province was one of the Nine Provinces of ancient China referenced in Chinese historical texts such as the ''Tribute of Yu'', '' Erya'' and '' Rites of Zhou''. Jingzhou became an administrative division during the reign of Empe ...
,
Yang Province Yangzhou, Yangchow or Yang Province was one of the Nine Provinces of ancient China mentioned in historical texts such as the ''Tribute of Yu'', '' Erya'' and '' Rites of Zhou''. Name There are four different theories regarding the origin of t ...
,
Yan Province Yan Province or Yanzhou was one of the Nine Provinces of ancient China. During the Han dynasty (206 BCE – 220 CE), it covered roughly present-day southwestern Shandong, eastern Henan, and the northwestern corner of Jiangsu Jiangsu (; ...
, and Yu Province. Zhang Jue split his followers into 36 "Fang"s (directions), with the bigger Fang having over 10,000 each, while the smaller Fangs having 7,000 people. He and his brothers gave themselves titles: Zhang Bao was the "General of Land" (地公將軍),
Zhang Liang Zhang Liang is the romanization of common names like 張良, 張亮 and 張梁. 張良 * Zhang Liang (Western Han) (died 189 BC), early Han dynasty strategist ** Zhang Liang, an animation character from the animated TV series ''The Legend of Qin'' ...
was the "General of the People" (人公將軍); and Zhang Jue was the "General of Heaven" (天公將軍). The Way of the Taiping acted like a military organisation thereafter.


Preachings

Zhang Jue held a nine-section cane, and often proclaimed that people were sick and suffering because they had sinned. For them to recover, the patients must first reflect on their mistakes, and when they finally show contrition, he would make them drink the
Fulu (), is a term for Taoist incantations and magic symbols, written or painted as talisman or () by Taoist practitioners. These practitioners are also called () or the sect, an informal group made up of priests from different schools of Tao ...
-water mixture. He praised those who recovered as having great faith, and for those who did not as having not enough. The Way of the Taiping worshiped the colour yellow, and followers wore yellow clothes with yellow headbands, and they worshiped the
Yellow Emperor The Yellow Emperor, also known as the Yellow Thearch or by his Chinese name Huangdi (), is a deity ('' shen'') in Chinese religion, one of the legendary Chinese sovereigns and culture heroes included among the mytho-historical Three Soverei ...
, Laozi and Taiyi (太一), who was the greatest God in the pantheon. Taiyi is an anthropomorphism of the
North Star Polaris is a star in the northern circumpolar constellation of Ursa Minor. It is designated α Ursae Minoris ( Latinized to ''Alpha Ursae Minoris'') and is commonly called the North Star or Pole Star. With an apparent magnitude that ...
.


Uprising

Zhang Jue proposed the slogan of "Cangtian (heaven, blue sky) is dead, the Huangtian (yellow sky) has been established, the age is at Jiazi (184AD),
tianxia ''Tianxia'' (), literally meaning "(all) under Heaven", is a Chinese term for a historical Chinese cultural concept that denoted either the entire geographical world or the metaphysical realm of mortals, and later became associated with poli ...
experiences great fortune" (蒼天已死,黃天當立,歲在甲子(184年),天下大吉), and theorised that of
Zou Yan Zou Yan (; ; 305 BC240 BC) was a Chinese philosopher and spiritual writer best known as the representative thinker of the Yin and Yang School (or School of Naturalists) during the Hundred Schools of Thought era in Chinese philosophy. Biography Z ...
's cycle of five elements (
Wu Xing Wuxing may refer to: Places in China Counties and districts *Huzhou, formerly Wuxing County, Zhejiang, China *Wuxing District (吴兴区), central district of Huzhou Subdistricts (五星街道) *Wuxing Subdistrict, Mudanjiang, in Dong'an District ...
), the Earth (Yellow) element was to replace the Han Dynasty's Fire element. Zhang Jue's followers wrote the slogan in the capital and
yamen A ''yamen'' (''ya-men''; ; Manchu: ''yamun'') was the administrative office or residence of a local bureaucrat or mandarin in imperial China. A ''yamen'' can also be any governmental office or body headed by a mandarin, at any level of govern ...
walls of the provinces and prefectures, and planned for the leader of the large Fangs
Ma Yuanyi The Yellow Turban Rebellion, alternatively translated as the Yellow Scarves Rebellion, was a List of peasant revolts, peasant revolt in China against the Eastern Han dynasty. The uprising broke out in 184 CE during the reign of Emperor Ling of ...
to lead the tens of thousands of followers from
Jing Province Jingzhou or Jing Province was one of the Nine Provinces of ancient China referenced in Chinese historical texts such as the ''Tribute of Yu'', '' Erya'' and '' Rites of Zhou''. Jingzhou became an administrative division during the reign of Empe ...
and
Yang Province Yangzhou, Yangchow or Yang Province was one of the Nine Provinces of ancient China mentioned in historical texts such as the ''Tribute of Yu'', '' Erya'' and '' Rites of Zhou''. Name There are four different theories regarding the origin of t ...
to rise up on the 5th of March 184AD. Ma went around the capital and nearby cities to prepare for the rebellion, and had officials within the Palace walls as spies. But the central government caught wind of the conspiracy, and Ma was torn asunder by chariots for treason.
Emperor Ling of Han Emperor Ling of Han (156 – 13 May 189), personal name Liu Hong, was the 12th and last powerful emperor of the Eastern Han dynasty. Born the son of a lesser marquis who descended directly from Emperor Zhang (the third Eastern Han emperor), L ...
ordered the arrest of Zhang Jue and his followers, and this prompted Zhang to initiate the
Yellow Turban Rebellion The Yellow Turban Rebellion, alternatively translated as the Yellow Scarves Rebellion, was a List of peasant revolts, peasant revolt in China against the Eastern Han dynasty. The uprising broke out in 184 CE during the reign of Emperor Ling of ...
in February, with the scale of the rebellion shocking the court. New followers flocked from all over the country to join the Way of the Taiping.


Defeat

Within the same year of the uprising, Zhang Jue died from an illness, Zhang Bao was killed, and Zhang Liang fell in battle. The
Yellow Turban Army The Yellow Turban Army, also known as the Yellow Turban Bandits (after the publishing of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms), was a peasant rebel force led by the late Eastern Han Dynasty mystic Zhang Jue from Julu Commandery. The Yellow Turbans lau ...
still resisted in various locales for the next ten years, and many joined
Cao Cao Cao Cao () (; 155 – 15 March 220), courtesy name Mengde (), was a Chinese statesman, warlord and poet. He was the penultimate Grand chancellor (China), grand chancellor of the Eastern Han dynasty, and he amassed immense power in the End of ...
's army later on.窪德忠:《道教史》,頁86。 The Way of the Taiping survived in a different form, even after the Jin Dynasty, in the worship of the Taiping Di Jun(太平帝君).


References

{{Reflist


Further reading

* 窪德忠著,蕭坤華譯:《道教史》(上海:上海譯文出版社,1987)。 * 秋月觀瑛:〈道教史〉,載福井康順等監修,朱越利譯:《道教》第一卷(上海:上海古籍出版社,1990),頁25-59。 * 唐長孺:〈《太平經》與太平道〉,載《唐長孺社會文化史論叢》(武漢:武漢大學出版社,2001),頁133-143。 Taoist schools Yellow Turban Rebellion