Mānī on the Margins: a Brief History of Manichaeism in Southeastern China

Mānī (216–ca. 277 AD), the founder of Manichaeism, was brought up in a JewishChristian community at the end of the Arsacid dynasty. After several private revelations, he established his own religion, which he and his disciples propagated in the newly established Sasanian Iran. Spreading east along the Silk Road, Manichaeism arrived in China in 694, where it remained basically a religio licita until 843. After the Huichang persecution (843–845), Manichaeans found a relatively safe harbour in the southeastern regions, especially in present-day Zhejiang and Fujian provinces, where they survived for centuries, as reports from the Song, Yuan, and Ming dynasties attest. In this paper, after summarizing the main events before the Huichang persecution, I give an overview of what the historical sources recording various manifestations of southeastern Manichaeism tell us about the latest form of Manichaeism, which uniquely survived in this peripheral region at a time, when it had completely disappeared from other parts of the world. This overview differs from other similar endeavours in that it also incorporates some new developments that were inspired by the discovery of a new corpus of texts from Xiapu and Pingnan counties, where it was the figure of Lin Deng (1003‒1059), who played a pivotal role to preserve the Manichaean heritage of the Tang.


Introduction
Mānī (216-ca. 277 AD), the founder of Manichaeism, supposedly received several private revelations from his spiritual Twin between the age of 12 and 24. After these revelations, he left the Jewish-Christian community to which his father had taken him at a very young age, and, equipped with this divine knowledge, he first started proselytizing and organizing his Manichaean church with the support of Shapur I (r.   In general, one can broadly divide the various religious traditions of ancient and medieval China into two major categories: 1. The first type comprises religions that took shape in China: various shamanic and popular religious cults, religious Daoism, and certain aspects of Confucianism (if we consider the latter a religion at all); 2. The second category covers religions that arrived from abroad: the most important and well-know example is Buddhism, but there were also the so-called "three foreign religions" (sanyi jiao 三 夷 教 ) of the Tang dynasty: Zoroastrianism, Nestorianism, and Manichaeism. The representatives of these three latter religions arrived at the western marketplace of Chang'an 長安 after a typically long journey along what 19 th century German geographers (like Carl Ritter or Ferdinand von Richthofen) called the Silk Roads (Mertens 2019). Chinese Manichaeism is probably the most important among the "three foreign religions" and can boast of some superlatives: I. In general, Manichaeism can probably be duly called the first world religion, and while it disappeared completely from other regions of the Eurasian continent by ca. 12 th century, it did survive in the southeastern provinces of China for several subsequent centuries; II. The only surviving Manichaean temple in the world can be found in Jinjiang 晋江, Fujian province; III. This temple also houses the only surviving Manichaean sculpted image of Mānī.

Historical sources
Due to a double set of new discoveries, the last decade has witnessed an unprecedented interest in Chinese Manichaeism. 1 It is not the first occasion that such a sudden surge of interest Manichaeans was that they feign a Buddhist identity. This characteristic is not baseless at all, since Manichaean missionaries were famous for adopting the local religious traditions, which was definitely Buddhism in Central and East Asia, as tools to express their own teachings (Bryder, 1994).
Despite this short interlude, Manichaeism was basically a religio licita in Tang  This is a key period, when Sogdians, who were the "teachers of the Uyghurs", strived to make Manichaeism take root in the Chinese religious soil: Manichaean scriptures were translated into Chinese and several Manichaean temples were built in Luoyang 洛陽 and in prefectures (zhou 州) like Jing 荊, Hong 洪, and Yue 越 in 768, 771, and 807 AD. 12 Some of these temples, called 'the 7 The first three texts were found in the Library Cave (Cave 17) in Dunhuang: 1. Hymnscroll (Monijiao xiabu zan 摩尼教下 部讚, S.2659), British Library; 2. Compendium (Moni guangfo jiao fayi lüe 摩尼光佛教法儀略; S3969+P3884), British Library and BnF, Paris; 3. Traité (Bosijiao canjing 波斯教殘經; BD00256), Beijing National Library; 4. Various Chinese Manichaean fragments from Turfan (e.g., Ch. 258, Ch. 174, Ch. 1363 R, Ch. 3218); kept in Berlin; 5. The Foxingjing 佛性經 (BD9401), identified in 2012. 8 On the conversion of the Uyghurs, see Hansen (1930), Clark (2000. Clark's view that the conversion happened earlier in 755/756 was partly criticized by Moriyasu (2015, 319-322), though he also admits that the act of taking five Manichaeans from China in 763 was the result, and not the cause, of the Uyghurs' acquaintance with Manichaeism. 9 Yoshida 2020, 14: "According to our reading of the Chinese version, it was five monks who first came to Karabalgasun, that is to say, four monks headed by Ruixi 睿息 and another referred to as fashi 法師 "master of the law," who was apparently the leader of the group. All previous scholars have thought that it was four monks who visited the Uighur capital, and that Ruixi was also referred to as fashi." 10 將睿息等四僧入國，闡揚二祀，洞徹三際。On this inscription, see Chavannes and Pelliot (1912, 221-223), Yoshida (2020: 13-20). For a comprehensive analysis, see Yoshida (2020). The conversion of the Uyghurs was a longer process, which is summarized by Yoshida (2020, 17) as follows (references omitted): "1. Bögü's first encounter with Manichaeism. Manichaean mission to the Uighur court from Central Asia; 2. Bögü's final conversion after some hesitation because of an anti-Manichaean vassal named Tarkhan; 3. Invitation to the Uighur court of the five Manichaean monks whom Bögü encountered in Luoyang in 762/3; 4. The Chinese monks' successful propagation; one Manichaean church headed by a mahistag was established in the capital; 5. Anti-Manichaean Uighur ministers' final adoption of Manichaeism; 6. Archegos's praise of the Uighurs' conversion; 7. Arrival of the Central Asian monks and Možak Mār Nēw Ruwān, whose seat was placed in Tughristan (Karashahr or Šorčuq); 8. Establishment of Manichaean churches in various cities in China, first in 768 CE and again in 771 CE." 11 On Eastern Uyghur Manichaeism, see, e.g., the summary of Moriyasu (2015). 12  Light of the Great Cloud' (Dayun guangming si 大雲光明寺), were established in a region that was not far from the venues of later Manichaeism. Yue prefecture, for example, was located in present day Zhejiang province, which was a prominent place for late Manichaeism. 13 During this period between 763 and 840, the Uyghur embassies, accompanied by Manichaeans wearing white robe and white headgear, 14 regularly visited the Chinese court. 15 A huge turn in the history of Chinese Manichaeism was triggered by the defeat of the Uyghurs by the Kirghiz in 840, which in turn instigated the steppe Uyghurs to flee from their homeland; some of them settled in the Turfan basin, with the capitals in Qočo (Gaochang 高昌) and Bišbalïq (Beiting 北庭), and continued to support Manichaeism for at least another 150 years.
This period of the Western Uyghur Empire (ca. 850-1000 AD), which basically belongs to Uyghur and not to Chinese history, played a pivotal role in producing the most well-known, albeit rather fragmentary, pieces of Central Asian Manichaean art 16 and scriptures.
Not being reliant on the Uyghurs' support anymore, emperor Wuzong 武宗 (r. 840-846 AD) initiated a massive attack against Manichaeism, which was part of a general persecution of all foreign religions (especially Buddhism) in 843-845: Manichaean scriptures and images were burnt and Manichaean priests and nuns were executed.
The emperor decreed that the Uighurs belonging to the Gongdeshi (director of religious affairs) in the two capitals should wear Chinese robes. The officials should collect the Manichaean writings, as well as the statues, and burn them publicly. The(ir) properties should be confiscated." 17 "Fourth month: Middle ten days: (In 843) an imperial edict was issued [ordering] the Manichaean priests of the Empire to be killed. Their heads are to be shaved, and they are to be dressed in Buddhist robes and are to be killed looking like Buddhist monks. The Manichaean priests are highly respected by the Uyghurs. 18 After this Huichang 會昌 persecution, Manichaeans found a relatively safe harbor in the southeastern regions, especially in present-day Zhejiang and Fujian provinces. As the late Minshu reports, one of the religious leaders went to the southeastern Futang 福唐, thus named between 742 and 933, in the vicinity of present-day Fuzhou 福州 (Fujian province), where he was teaching at the 13 A Tang literary piece, preserved in the Taiping guangji 太平廣記 (107.727), narrates the story of the Manichaean Wu Kejiu 吳可久, who hailed from Yue prefecture (Lieu 1992, 236 Moriyasu (2004); on the artistic remains and book culture, see Gulácsi (2001) and(2005), respectively. 17 Xin Tangshu 新唐書 217b.6133: 詔回鶻營功德使在二京者，悉冠帶之。有司收摩尼書若象，燒于道，產貲入之官。 18 Trans. Lieu (1992, 238), which is a modified version of Reischauer (1955, 327 (Pelliot 1923, 205. n. 5), and he died and was buried at the foot of a mountain in the northern part of Quanjun 泉郡. 20 The Minshu does not give the name of this person, nor do any other sources, but refers to him as hulu fashi 呼祿法師. The second part of this expression (fashi 法師), which is ultimately a Buddhist term (Sanskrit ), literally means "a dharma teacher", "master of the law", or, more generally, "a religious teacher" (Mikkelsen 2006, 19). Aside from the Minshu, this term is also used in the Karabalgasun inscription (Chinese version, column VII-VIII), and Yoshida Yutaka opines that in this context this fashi was the leader of the four other Manichaean monks who ultimately converted the Uyghur Bögü khagan in 762/3 (Yoshida 2020, 14), and, he continues, "In our understanding of the Chinese text, owing to this fashi's great contribution in propagating Manichaeism among the Uighurs, he became a mahistag, i.e., presbyter. Possibly this was the first time that the seat of mahistag or presbyter was established in the Uighur capital" (Yoshida 2020, 14). It is the fashi's excellent knowledge of Manichaeism and his rhetorical skill that is praised in the subsequent part (VIII): They [the five monks] clearly showed (the doctrine of) the two sacrifices [= principles] and were thoroughly acquainted with (the teaching of) the three times, to say nothing of the master of the law (= fashi 法師), who was marvelously learned in the Doctrine of Light (明門 = Manichaeism) and understood the seven scriptures (七部) perfectly. His abilities were deep like an ocean and high like a mountain, while his eloquence was like a torrent. That is why they were able to propagate the right teachings (正教 = Manichaeism) in the land of the Uighurs. (Yoshida 2020, 14).
As for the first part of the expression, two suggestions have been offered: P. Bryder and S.
While it is obvious that the two fashis are not identical, the relatively high (though definitely not the highest) status of the latter implies the same status in the former case. This means that the person taking Manichaeism to the south was a relatively important person in the Manichaean hierarchy, even if this name does not appear in the description of hierarchies of the Compendium (cols. 70-75).
After the Huichang persecution, the "northern phase" of Chinese Manichaeism basically ended, 21 and the "southeastern phase" began, and this information in the Minshu seems to be the only explicit link between the two. During the southern phase, Manichaeans survived in Zhejiang and Fujian provinces, as reports from subsequent centuries, to be briefly summarized below, attest.

Manichaeism during the Song, Yuan, and Ming dynasties
Although we only have scattered references to the Chinese presence of Manichaeism, there can be no doubt that it did play some minor, local role in southeastern China, especially Zhejiang and Fujian provinces (Fig. 1).  Chavannes and Pelliot 1912, 271). Other sources like that of al-Mas'ūdi, an-Nadīm and Gardīzī also report on Manichaeism in Gaochang (Chao 1996, 296;Lieu 1992Lieu , 240). 1957Kauz 2000;Franzmann, Gardner and Lieu 2005 There is an apparent discrepancy between two facts recorded in the second source: Lin Deng joined the Manichaean community at the age of 25, and followed strict dietary restrictions, a requirement for a Manichaean elect, for 22 years, and died at the age of 56, which means that there is a period of ten years missing. This either can be explained by a scribal error of writing 22 instead of the correct 32 (this is the opinion of Lin Wushu 2017, 23), or he spent his first ten years as an "auditor", the lower grade of Manichaean hierarchy, without embracing stricter regulations. This latter scenario is more likely, because he first joined the community at a young age (25) and scriptures. The two latter types are more concretely referred to in other historical sources as well: the Fozu tongji cites the 13 th century Shimen zhengtong 釋門正統, which quotes an edict that foremost warns against the contemporary use of the Book of the Two Principles (Erzongjing 二宗經), 35 the same work that was brought to Wu Zetian's court in 694, and mentions several other works, at present otherwise unknown. 36 The most complete list of supposedly Manichaean writings and paintings that were in vogue among the followers of the Religion of Light in Wenzhou 溫州 (Zhejiang) appears in the Song huiyao jigao 宋會要輯稿 (xingfa 刑法), which is a Qing dynasty (1644-32 Trans. Lieu (1992, 288). 閩中有習左道者，謂之明教。亦有明教經甚多。刻版摹印，妄取道藏中校定官名銜贅其後。

明教尤甚。至有秀才使人軍兵亦相傳習。
34 其經文、印版令州縣根尋目下焚毀。仍立法:凡為人圖畫、妖像及傳刊印明教等妖妄經文者，並從徒一年論罪。 35 Another, more complete title of the same work appears in Hong Kuo's 洪适 (1117-1184) Panzhou wenji 盤洲文集 (74.1b), which has "The scripture of the Two Principles and Three Epochs" (Erzong sanji jing 二宗三際經), a title that precisely reflects the two fundamental concepts of Manichaeism, which nevertheless do not appear anywhere else (Wang Jianchuan 1992, 249-250 The officials say: 'At the prefecture of Wen (Wenzhou 溫州) and other places are recalcitrant persons who proclaim themselves to be the "disciples" (xingzhe 行者 = Sanskrit: ācārin) of the Religion of Light (Mingjiao). At present these followers of the Religion of Light set up buildings in the districts and villages of their abode which they call "vegetarian halls" (zhaitang 齋堂). In the prefecture of Wen for instance, there are some forty such establishments and they are privately built and unlicensed Buddhist temples '. 38 Recurring motifs in the characterization of the Manichaeans in Zhejiang and Fujian are the white robe they wear, their ban on eating meat and drinking wine, their gathering at night and dispersing in the morning, as well as their potential threat to the social order.

The period of the Yuan (1279-1368) and Ming (1368-1644) Dynasties
A Yuan dynasty tomb, found in Quanzhou 泉州, a major international harbor , is dedicated to Mar Solomon, a Christian bishop, who was in charge of the Religion of Light  Forte (1973, 238-251), Lin Wushu (2018) Gulácsi (2009, 105-106, 144) opines that the so-called Seiun-ji painting (153.3 x 58.7 cm, Seiun-ji 栖雲寺, Kōfu 甲府) can be termed as a "Portrait of Jesus buddha"; for an alternative view, see Kósa (2015b, 205-206, n. 27 Lieu (2012a, 63). See also Forte (1973, 229-234), Lieu (1992, 276-277), Wang Jianchuan (1992, 251-252). 39 Lieu (1998b, 180-181;1980, 73-74). 管領江南諸路明教、秦教等，也裡可溫馬裡失裡門阿必思古八，馬裡哈昔牙。Cf. Moriyasu (2011, 348-357). 40 Pelliot (1929): "De même, un chapitre entièrement nouveau nous révèle l'existence, près de Fou-tcheou du Foukien, d'une secte dont les officialités chrétiennes et islamiques se disputaient l'administration. Marco Polo a pensé finalement que c'étaient des chrétiens d'une espèce particulière, et M. Benedetto a souscrit ce jugement ; mais il s'agit sûrement des Manichéens qui n'avaient pas dans l'empire mongol leurs officialités propres, mais étaient très nombreux dans Certaines régions, en particulier autour de Fou-tchéou ; nous savons par d'autres sources qu'ils ne s'y éteignirent qu'au début du xvne siècle." For a more detailed discussion, see Olschki (1951). Chavannes and Pelliot 1912, 329-331). Among the Ming dynasty sources we have several important descriptions, the most important being He Qiaoyuan's work on Fujian province, entitled the Minshu (7.31b-32b [171-172]; chapter Fangyu zhi 方域志), which contains the most comprehensive summary of Chinese Manichaeism (Pelliot 1923, 198-207): the starting point is the Manichaean shrine (called cao'an 草庵) on the Huabiao mountain (Huabiao shan 華 表 山 ) in Quanzhou prefecture (Quanzhou fu 泉州府). Then he recounts the mythical birth of Mānī through the chest of his mother in Sulin 蘇隣, after she had eaten a pomegranate (an Iranian fruit introduced to China during the Han dynasty [206 BC -220 AD], a symbol of fertility, see Harper 1986), which in turn was a transformed shape of Laozi. This narrative seems to be related to the huahu 化胡 theory, which was popular among the Chinese Manichaeans: one of the versions of the Huahujing (T54n2139_p1267b19-24) had a Manichaean ending, which was then cited in the Compendium (cols. [35][36][37][38][39][40]. 41 After describing some general features of the religion, He Qiaoyuan offers a historical overview of its spread in China, already referred to several times above; nevertheless, the entire report is worth quoting in length: The Huabiao Hill of the county of Jinjiang prefecture of Quanzhou is joined to the Lingyuan Hills. Its two peaks stand up like huabiao (i.e., twin columns placed at the entrance of tombs). On the ridge slope back of the hill is a cao'an (lit. thatched nunnery) which is a relic of the Yuan period. There reverence is paid to Buddha Mani. The Buddha Mani has for name 'Brilliant Buddha Mo Moni. He came from Sulin (i.e., Assuristan) and is also a Buddha, having the name 'Envoy of the Great Light, Complete in Knowledge'. It is said that more than five hundred years after Laozi travelled to the shifting sands of the West, in the Wuzi year of the Jian'an period of emperor Xian of the Han (208 A.D.), he was transformed into a naiyun (i. e., pomegranate). The queen of the king Badi ate and liked it, upon which she became pregnant. The time having come, the child came forth through her breast. The naiyun is a pomegranate of the imperial gardens. This story is similar to that of the grasping of the pear-tree and the coming forth from the left side. His (Laozi's avatar; Mani's) religion is called "luminous"; in his clothing he favoured white; in the morning he worshipped the sun, in the evening the moon. He had a complete conception of the nature of "dharma", and laboured for its clarification. He said: ʻThat which approaches your nature is mine; that which approaches my nature, is yours.' In fine, he united in one [the doctrines of] Sakyamuni (i.e., Buddha) and Laozi (i.e., Taoism). He propagated [his religion] in the countries of the Arabs, the Roman Empire, Tokharestan, and Persia. In the year Pingsi of the Taishi period of emperor Wu of the Jin (A.D. 266) he died in Persia. He entrusted his doctrine to a chief mushe. The mushe in the reign of Gaozong of Tang (650-683) propagated his religion in the Middle Kingdom. Then, in the time of Wu Zetian (684-704) an eminent disciple of the mushe, the fuduodan Miwumosi (Mihr-Ormuzd) came in turn to the court. The Buddhist monks were jealous of him and calumniated him, and there were mutual struggles and difficulties; but Zetian (i.e., Empress Wu) was pleased with his words and kept the envoy to explain his Scriptures to her. In the period Kaiyuan (713-741) a Dayun guangmingsi (Temple of the Light of the Great Clouds) was established for the worship (of Mani). He himself (the fuduodan) said that in his country there had been in the beginning two sages, called Xianyi (Primordial Thought) and Yishu (Jesus); as we in the Middle Kingdom speak of Pangu. The word mo means large. Of their sacred books there are seven works. They have [also] the Huahujing, where is told the story of Laozi entering the shifting sands of the West to be born in Syria. In the period Huichang (841-846) when (Buddhist) monks were suppressed in great numbers, the Religion of Light was included in the suppression. However, a Hulu fashi came to Futang (south of Fuzhou), and taught his disciples at Sanshan (in Fuzhou). He came to the prefecture of Quan in his travels and died (there) and was buried at the foot of a mountain to the north of the prefecture. In the period Zhidao (995-997) a scholar of Huai'an, Li Tingyu, found an image of the Buddha (Mani) in a soothsayer's shop at the capital; it was sold to him for 50,000 cashpieces, and thus his auspicious image was circulated in (the province of) Min (i.e., Fujian). In the reign of Zhenzong (998-1022) a scholar of Min, Lin Shichang, presented his (i.e., Manichaean) scriptures for safe-keeping to the Official College of Fuzhou. When Taizu of the Ming Dynasty established his rule, he wanted the people to be guided by the Three Religions (i.e., Confucianism, Daoism and Buddhism). He was further displeased by the fact that (the Manichaeans) usurped the dynastic title (viz. Mingchao 明朝 'Dynasty of Light') through the name of their sect (viz. Mingjiao 明教-'Religion of Light'). He expelled their followers (from their shrines) and destroyed their shrines. The President of the Board of Rites, Yang Long, memorialized the throne to stop (this proscription); and because of this the matter was set aside and dropped. At present those among the people who follow its (Manichaean) practices use formulas of incantation called 'The master's prescription', (but) they are not much in evidence. Behind the shrine are the Peak of Ten Thousand Stones, the Jade Spring, the Cloud-Ladder of a Hundred Steps, as well as accounts inscribed on the rocks (by visitors  摩尼宮) in Fuding 福鼎 on the Taimu 太姥 mountain; here a statue was housed, in front of which believers were praying for the fulfillment of their dreams (Schafer 1954, 102; see also Kauz 2000; Bai Rongmin 2020). Kauz (2000, 341) suggests that the Moxiao'an 摩霄庵, a bigger temple nearby, was perhaps originally also a Manichaean temple. The Xishan zazhi 西山雜誌 mentions a Manichaean temple (Moni si 摩尼寺) on the Stone Knife Mountain (Shidaoshan 石刀山), which is the local name of the Huabiao mountain (Kauz 2000, 337. n.20). Huangshi richao 黃氏日抄 has preserved a correspondence (ca. 1260-1270) between Huang Zhen 黄震, the author of the work, and Zhang Xisheng 張希聲 (Lieu 1998a). The latter person, who was in charge of the Daoist temple named Chongshougong 崇壽宮 near Ningbo 寧波, traced the origin of the temple, which had been formerly used as a Manichaean temple. The Confucian literatus, Chen Gao 陳高 (1314-1366) reported on a temple called 'The Temple of 42 Lieu (1998b, 194-195) and Lieu (2015, 137)  During recent discoveries in Fujian, the remains of the following buildings were identified in the region: The written sources quoted above and, to a smaller extent, the archaeological finds listed attest to a relatively large community in these two southeastern provinces. In sum, there were two major figures who ensured the continuity of Chinese Manichaeism: first, the "great dharma teacher", who after the Huichang persecution (843-845) of the Tang dynasty took Manichaeism from northern to southeastern China; and the second key figure in the survival of Manichaeism was Lin Deng (1003-1059) during the Song dynasty, whose local cult happened to coincide with the preservation of Manichaean material in the local ritual manuals. Without the former person, Manichaeism would have most probably disappeared by the end of the 9 th century, and without Lin Deng we would definitely not have the unique documents with Manichaean contents surviving into the Qing dynasty. In his new book, Yang Fuxue suggests that there was a direct line of transmission between these two figures. 47 If this is indeed so, the thousand-year history of post-Tang Manichaeism hinged on a single person, whose original name we do not even know.