Veneration of the Buddhist Canon and National Integration in the Yuan Dynasty: Religious Policy and Cultural Convergence

Abstract

Inheriting a tradition of religious tolerance from the Inner Asian Steppe, the Mongol Yuan Empire elevated Buddhism to a pivotal role in unifying its multiethnic and culturally diverse domain, with Tengriist ideology serving as the political foundation for these Buddhist veneration policies. The ruling class of the Yuan dynasty practiced a complex interaction between religion and political unity through the institutionalization of the cult of writing, printing, and reading the Buddhist Canon. Specifically, the Yuan dynasty established specialized government offices to mobilize elites from Mongolian, Han Chinese, Goryeo, and other ethnic groups for the construction of a multilingual Buddhist Canon. They copied the scriptures with gold and silver ink in Chinese, Tibetan, Uyghur, and other languages. Participants in scripture copying were rewarded or granted official positions. In this way, they achieved the goal of enlisting local elites, the cohesion of the community’s beliefs, and enhanced the unity of the local elites. By subsidizing the writing and reading of Buddhist classics, the Yuan rulers succeeded in constructing a space of identity at the level of material culture and facilitated cultural interaction and political integration among various social groups such as the Mongols, ethnic groups, and Han Chinese. Through state-sponsored scripture carving and recitation activities, the Yuan rulers cultivated a shared identity in the material culture sphere, facilitating cultural exchange and political integration across the Mongolians, the Han Chinese, and other ethnic communities. However, the effectiveness of state unification was significantly constrained by the Mongolian rulers’ policy of ethnic segregation, central–local conflict, and the high concentration of social wealth in the Buddhist communities.

1. Introduction

The nomadic empires of the Inner Asian Steppes, situated at the crossroads of multiple religious systems, developed a long-standing political tradition of implementing religious tolerance policies to facilitate a state consolidation legacy that the later emerging Mongol–Yuan Empire strategically perpetuated (Michal 2005, pp. 202–11; Elverskog 2010; Foltz 2010). During the Mongol Yuan dynasty, the Mongols maintained a significant political tolerance toward various religious groups, and motivated by the practical purpose of maintaining their rule, they actively sought to establish relationships with religious communities throughout the empire (May 2012, p. 172). Certainly, the Mongol rulers operated under a political premise that fundamentally shaped their governance strategy. This premise stemmed from an unwavering refusal to tolerate any religious institution that posed a potential threat to imperial stability or Mongol political supremacy. More critically, they categorically rejected the notion of any religious authority superseding their self-proclaimed universal sovereignty—a conceptual framework grounded in their determination to maintain absolute political hegemony across their conquered territories. Under this religious conquering ideology, known as “Tenggerism”, any religion must operate under the dominion of the Mongol power structure, becoming a subordinate entity within the imperial system (Sh 2003, pp. 3–12).

This political rationale fundamentally underpinned the Mongol deployment of religious systems as instruments of state consolidation. Religious sects exhibiting heightened syncretic tendencies and cross-cultural adaptability capable of assimilating pluralistic cultural elements while maintaining doctrinal elasticity were thus more readily endorsed by the Yuan imperial regime. The Mongols sought a religious system that could be relatively acceptable to various ethnic groups, serving as a psychological foundation for unifying group beliefs and thereby achieving national integration through faith. When faced with the challenges of multiple ethnicities and diverse cultures within their territories, the Yuan dynasty rulers adopted Buddhism as the state religion, which reflected both profound political considerations and Buddhism’s special status in East Asian society. A focused examination of how Yuan rulers instrumentalized Buddhist ritual practices to shape material culture—particularly through the cultic veneration of the Buddhist Canon—provides critical insights into the political logic underpinning their religio-cultural strategies for imperial consolidation.

2. The Yuan Dynasty’s Use of Buddhism for National Integration

During the Qing dynasty, Zhao Yi remarked in his book that “never in history has Buddhism been as prosperous as during the Yuan dynasty”. He critiqued the Yuan dynasty’s excessive reverence for Buddhism, highlighting the extravagance of its opulence, the lavish ceremonial processions, exorbitant monastic construction costs, extravagant offerings, immense monastic wealth, and overwhelming political influence. He observed that Buddhist institutions eclipsed even the most grandiose state expenditures, including imperial altars, places, official salaries, military provisions, feudal princes, and powerful generals. He lamented that “the imperial government was obstructed by [Buddhist institutions]” and warned that “the wealth of the realm was depleted by them”, going so far as to assert that “half of the Yuan empire was lost to the monks”1 (Y. Zhao 2009, p. 310).

While modern observers may marvel at the historical records of the Yuan dynasty’s ruling class indulging in Buddhist worship, we cannot help but wonder, were the Yuan rulers truly as foolish and ignorant as later scholars criticized, channeling the nation’s financial resources into Buddhism without understanding the potential harm to the state? Merely criticizing the Yuan people’s excessive Buddhist devotion seems to risk oversimplifying the issue. The Yuanshi (History of Yuan 元史) attributes the fluctuating fortunes of Buddhism during the Yuan dynasty to “the personal predilections of individual monarchs”, framing religious ascendancy as contingent upon imperial whim2 (Song 1976, p. 4517). Such an interpretation, however, constitutes a reductive historiographical approach. We understand that any institution persisting over time and gaining broad societal acceptance necessarily embodies an inherent rationality. The Yuan dynasty’s reverence for Buddhism cannot be a completely irrational behavior and should contain a deeper underlying intention.

Under Mongol rule, Buddhism accepted the royal ideology of Mongol “Tengrism” and actively served its purposes. Considering Buddhism’s widespread influence and profound religious foundations in East Asian society, the Mongol emperors of Kublai’s lineage chose to convert to Buddhism, embracing a large number of new concepts, doctrines, and beliefs. They elevated Buddhism’s status and strategically utilized it as a religious tool for integrating various ethnic groups in East Asia. A series of Buddhist material, cultural, and doctrinal ideas subsequently permeated the Mongolian lifeworld. Elements such as Buddhist sacred objects, symbols, architecture, ritual implements, and various other items, along with the modes of behavior protocols and cognitive frameworks governing their perception and interaction, emerged as mediators that actively reconfigured the Mongol lifeworld.

The abstract notions of spiritual efficacy and karmic merit inherent in certain Buddhist objects have profoundly shaped China’s material world (Kieschnick 2003, p. 157). Buddhist adherents believe that individuals can acquire karmic merit through various good deeds, and therefore, the conceptual framework for generating such merit becomes deeply integrated into Buddhist praxis. Activities such as constructing stupas and temples, transcribing, printing, and disseminating Buddhist scriptures, as well as creating and distributing sacred iconography—practices observed from India to China—were systematized as merit-generating technologies within Buddhist spiritual economies. Religious objects are generally imbued with varying degrees of sacred power, and the ability to contact, engage with, or create religious objects serves as an important pathway for people to experience religious authenticity.

In the initial stages of crossing the threshold of civilization, the Mongols primarily adhered to Shamanism, a religious ideology based on belief in the animistic concept centered on spiritual forces inherent in all phenomena. Their understanding of the religions of surrounding civilizations with higher cultural development was limited, and the psychological premise for their engagement with other faiths lay in identifying conceptual parallels. Buddhism’s universal notions of sanctity and karmic merit resonated with the Mongols’ animistic Shamanistic worldview, establishing a foundational ideological convergence (Koketsu 1925, pp. 351–76). While the Mongols may have possessed only a partial grasp of Buddhism’s esoteric doctrines, their worldview erected no cognitive barriers to its concept of karmic merit, which resonated intuitively with their animistic framework.

The Mongols swiftly embraced the Buddhist concept of merit. During the first four Khans of Mongolia (Genghis Khan, Ögedei Khan, Güyük Khan, and Möngke Khan), Buddhism gradually permeated the ideological framework of the Mongol imperial elite. This transitional phase witnessed Buddhist clerics remaining one among many religious specialists in the Mongol imperial court without attaining prominent political status, yet they secured early patronage from members of the Tolui royal lineage. The Mongol rulers initially encountered Chan Buddhist monks from the Central Plains Han region, and during the period of Ögedei Khan, Buddhism’s institutional standing rose through the advocacy of Yelü Chucai (耶律楚材1189–1243), a Buddhist-educated statesman, with numerous monks serving in administrative roles. Elite Buddhist monks ascended into the upper echelons of the Mongol ruling apparatus, winning the trust of the most powerful Tolui family, and by the time of Möngke Khan, Buddhism had reached its peak of influence among the Mongols (Chen 2005, p. 96).

The Mongol regime attempted to establish a political ideology based on Buddhist principles, utilizing ritualistic gift-giving and reciprocity to develop corresponding political ceremonies (Tambiah 1973, pp. 3–31). This principle is consistent with the prairie political culture that emphasizes rewards and loyalty. The leaders of the Mongol Yuan regime presented themselves as Buddhist believers, with different ethnic groups becoming members of political alliances through intermarriage and shared Buddhist faith. The entire nobility similarly chose to use Buddhist rituals as an alliance mechanism to maintain social status and order. Rituals functioned as a cohesive mechanism for integrating multiethnic groups and codifying social hierarchies. Buddhist liturgical practices imbued Mongol and Semu elites with a sense of quotidian meaning and value systems, facilitating their political integration. Mongol–Yuan nobility, officials, and senior monks forged faith-based communal bonds through shared Buddhist devotion and ritual practices, thereby delimiting core power strata from peripheral populations.

The Mongol Empire spanned vast territories, yet the Mongols constituted a ruling minority compared to subject populations. Mongol and Semu peoples comprised merely 3% of the Yuan demographic, while Han Chinese and southerners (97%) largely adhered to syncretic traditions of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism, viewing long-established Han Chinese Buddhism as integral to their cultural identity (Dongya 1964, p. 139). This doctrinal alignment enabled partial acceptance of the Mongol rulers by Han and southern populations through shared Buddhist affiliation. The ethnic heterogeneity of the Mongol ruling class was, thus, strategically obscured, as Buddhist ideology provided a framework for political consolidation, allowing Mongol elites to bridge cultural divides and legitimize their authority.

Sustaining Mongol “minority rule” emerged as an urgent governance imperative. Establishing alliances between ethnic groups and forming a stable political integration became a key option. Following the Toluid lineage’s consolidation of power, Mongol princes complemented military dominance with Buddhist ritual diplomacy—a calculated religious–political strategy informed by the pervasive Buddhist adherence across Central Asia, the Mongolian Steppe, Tibet, the Western Xia, Western Liao, and Dali. Kublai converted to Tibetan Buddhism and granted it a status similar to a state religion, with his starting point being to use Buddhist rituals to establish a multi-ethnic Buddhist political alliance.

Mongol rulers sought to secure political support from various ethnic groups through Buddhist belief practices. By leveraging state power, they amplified institutionalized Buddhist traditions and liturgies through measures such as expanding monastic populations, constructing monumental temples, endowing monasteries with vast estates, granting clerics political and economic privileges, staging recurrent grandiose Buddhist rituals at immense fiscal cost, and sponsoring mass reproduction of Buddhist texts. These policies served dual purposes. Internally, they fulfilled the rulers’ pursuit of karmic merit; politically, they consolidated multiethnic cohesion. By subsuming diverse groups—Mongols, Uighurs, Han Chinese, southerners, and others—under a shared Buddhist framework, the regime transformed Buddhism into a culture that transcended ethnic boundaries. This “religious consensus” enabled cultural integration among populations of distinct origins, illustrating Buddhism’s role as a syncretic mechanism for transethnic governance.

Overall, the Yuan dynasty’s state integration strategies achieved limited success. The inherent nature of the Yuan as a conquest regime, coupled with its implementation of ethnic segregation policies, created significant barriers to national cohesion. Culturally, Yuan unification facilitated cross-regional Buddhist transformation between northern and southern China—previously constrained since the Song dynasty—resulting in frequent interactions among Buddhist practitioners, doctrinal discourses, and the widespread dissemination of the Buddhist Canon, which flourished under imperial patronage. However, there were four relatively unsuccessful aspects of the Yuan dynasty’s national integration: intensified ideological conflicts, unequal political participation, limited ethnic fusion, and widening class divisions (Xiao 2007, pp. 30–36).

Limited ethnic integration originated from the hierarchical dynamics between the ruling Mongols and subject populations. Demographically, the Mongol and Semu populations constituted a minuscule minority compared to the Han majority, with profound cultural divergence severely limiting opportunities for bidirectional acculturation. As the ruling elite, the Mongols prioritized maintaining ethnic cohesion and privileges through a reinforced political identity. However, prolonged exposure to Sino–Tibetan civilizations—particularly through Buddhist acculturation—inevitably eroded Mongol cultural exclusivity.

Articles by Xiao Qiqing (蕭啟慶 1937–2012), Chen Gaohua (陳高華 1938–), and others discussing Mongolian scholarship in Han and Buddhist studies demonstrate that Mongolians were not isolated from Han and Tibetan cultural traditions. The Mongol rulers’ policies of integrating diverse ethnic groups through Buddhist religious practices, though comparatively crude when contrasted with the Song dynasty’s more sophisticated religious administration, undeniably exerted an integrative effect on populations with pre-existing Buddhist affiliations.

3. Procedures and Institutional Arrangements for Organizing Buddhist Scripture Copying by the Yuan Royal Elite

The Buddhist Canon of the Yuan dynasty can be categorized into two systems of carved block editions (keben 刻本): official and private, both circulating in distinct versions. Scholar Chikusa Masaaki classified these editions into two genealogical systems based on their geographical production. First, a systematic reconstruction of the Northern “Jin Canon” (Jin zang 金藏) is undertaken. The “Jin Canon” is a reprinted version of the “Kaibao Canon” (Kaibao zang 開寶藏), continuing the Buddhist scriptural edition tradition of the Song dynasty. The supplementary reprints include the “Hongfa Canon” (Hongfa zang 弘法藏) and the “Yuan Official Canon” (Yuan guanzang 元官藏), funded and printed during the middle and late Yuan dynasty period by Emperor Renzong (仁宗r. 1311–1320) and Empress Budashili (卜答失里) in the second year of the Zhiyuan era. Additionally, there are the “Puning Canon (Puning zang 普寧藏)”, “Qisha Canon (Qisha zang 磧砂藏)”, and some smaller canon scriptures published in Jiangnan during the Yuan dynasty3 (Chikusa 2000, pp. 336–57). The southern carved editions survive in greater quantities and circulated extensively across East Asian societies. Another system is the long-standing tradition of scriptural transcription. During the Yuan dynasty, the imperial family and nobility often wrote sutras using clay made from precious metals such as gold and silver, thereby showcasing their esteemed status, devout Buddhist beliefs, and sometimes overt political intentions. Official records, such as the Yuanshi, document repeated instances of the imperial family sponsoring the transcription of Buddhist Canons in Chinese, Uighur, and Tibetan scripts with precious metals, a practice sustained throughout the Yuan period.

3.1. Diverse Languages of Buddhist Scripture Writing

Compared to Buddhist scripture carving and transcription practices during the Tang and Song dynasties, Buddhist Canon publishing and writing in the Yuan dynasty exhibited distinct characteristics of the era. While Buddhist texts from the Tang and Song periods contained limited multilingual texts, with the Han Chinese Buddhist Canon predominating, in the Yuan era, multiple ethnic scripts were employed, such as Tangut script, Tibetan, and Uyghur were widely used for carving or writing Buddhist scriptures. The frontispiece woodblock prints of Buddhist texts during the Yuan dynasty also clearly displayed Tibetan Buddhist stylistic elements, with some images featuring donor figures from ethnic groups beyond the Han Chinese. Naturally, extant Buddhist Canons still primarily consisted of Han Chinese Buddhist texts while simultaneously incorporating evident elements of multicultural diversity.

The Han ethnic group, which comprised 97% of the population during the Yuan dynasty, generated immense demand for Buddhist scriptures. The Mongols and Semu people, who were fewer in number but belonged to the ruling class, also needed their religious practices to be reflected in Buddhist publications. The spread of Chinese Buddhist scriptures extended to East Asian cultural spheres, including Goryeo, Japan, and Vietnam. Additionally, non-Chinese Buddhist scriptures, such as those in the Tibetan and Tangut languages, were widely circulated in regions like Xinjiang and Tibet. Based on extant and excavated Buddhist literature, most of these classic texts were published in major cities represented by Dadu and Hangzhou. Huang, Shih-shan Susan‘s recent research reflects the fact that Uyghur and Tibetan monastic and lay elites inscribed Uyghur and Tibetan Buddhist scriptures, which were then transported to Xinjiang and Tibet through the well-developed postal relay system during the Yuan dynasty. Particularly noteworthy is that Yuan court female figures such as Kublai Khan’s empress Chabi (察必, 1260–1281), Emperor Chengzong’s (成宗, Temur, r. 1294–1307) mother Kokochin (kokochin, kuokuozhen, 闊闊真 d. 1300), and his wife Bulugan (Buluha卜魯罕) were all enthusiastic sponsors of Buddhist endeavors. Their use of state power to generously fund the printing of multilingual Buddhist scriptures in Chinese, Tibetan, and other languages is truly impressive4 (Huang 2024, p. 501). People from different ethnic groups widely participated in the processes of engraving, writing, circulating, and even reciting Buddhist scriptures in multiple languages. Through the policy support and funding they received during these processes, it is clearly evident that the Mongol ruling class used the large-scale printing of Buddhist scriptures to achieve the political intent of consolidating faith across multiple ethnic groups. Buddhism thus became an important bond for integrating beliefs across different ethnic groups.

Mongolian rulers generally promoted Buddhist policies and spread Buddhist ideas by establishing Buddhist administrative institutions, constructing temples, and conducting religious ceremonies. Moreover, they actively participated in shaping Buddhist material culture, with a particular focus on transcribing, printing, and worshipping Buddhist scriptures. By leveraging state power to patronize these endeavors, they extended imperial authority into the religious domain. Through guiding, funding, compiling, and printing comprehensive and voluminous Buddhist scriptures, they sought to express their religious devotion. This practice was intrinsically motivated by dual political and religious imperatives: cultivating state-sanctioned identity and operationalizing the governance principle of “adapting to local customs to pacify the populace”5 (Y. Zhao 2009, p. 307).

3.2. Administrative Agency That Serves Scripture Writing

The Yuan dynasty established specialized religious management institutions to handle religious affairs, which clearly showed a tendency toward institutionalized management. The officials were allowed to organize relevant staff to collaborate with the aim of finishing the extensive scriptures written with precious materials such as gold and silver ink. The Yuan imperial court organized the activity of writing scriptures in gold and ink, which required several steps, including issuing a royal decree, assigning responsible officials, gathering monks and laypeople for the writing, and preparing materials such as gold, silver, brushes, ink, and paper. Upon completion, the remaining materials were returned to state repositories, and the finished scriptures were distributed to major temples or presented as diplomatic gifts to vassal states. The process concluded with merit-based evaluations, wherein officials and scribes received promotions and material bestowments. The Yuan imperial scripture transcription projects constituted prestigious opportunities for participants to advance politically while enabling emperors to co-opt diverse elites into state service. Historical records reveal that these activities involved not only top-down imperial mobilization but also voluntary acts of loyalty from Uighur merchants and tributary nobles seeking imperial favor. Thus, these endeavors transcended mere Buddhist devotion, embodying deliberate state consolidation strategies through liturgical performance.

According to the YuanShi, Kublai’s reign undertook a costly project to transcribe the Jinzangjing. On the Gengchen day of the sixth lunar month in the 27th year of the Zhiyuan era (June 1290), the transcription of the gold-inscribed Tripitaka consumed 3244 taels of gold6 (Song 1976, p. 338). During the Zhiyuan era (至元, 1264–1294), Khubilai Khan institutionalized a standardized protocol for scripture transcription. An imperial edict mandated the production of gold-inscribed Buddhist Canons: “Grind gold into pigment to transcribe the Buddhist Tripitaka”. “Gong (Xilihala昔里哈剌1249–1319) having completed his duties, the Emperor still entrusted him to oversee this project. Upon completion, the remaining gold was returned to the government treasury. He was rewarded with two bolts of gold-woven fabric and elevated to the Minister of the Board of Revenue”. At the age of 17, Xilihala was assigned by Kublai Khan to guard crown prince Jinggim (Zhenjin真金, 1243–1286), becoming a close guard of the royal family and one of the trusted nobility in the Yuan dynasty7 (Yu 2007, vol. 2, p. 1096). Moreover, in the second month of the third year of Emperor Yuan Yingzong’s Zhizhi era (1323), an imperial decree ordered two copies of the “Buddhist Scriptures” to be written in gold, commanding Bai Zhu and others to oversee the entire project (Song 1976, p. 629). It is clearly evident that the imperial court of the Yuan dynasty, in leading the gold-scripted Buddhist scripture writing activity, was sure to arrange for trusted, high-ranking officials to supervise the entire work to demonstrate its importance.

A band of personnel was employed to write and print scriptures with precious metals, making it necessary to establish specialized institutions to manage the complex daily tasks. In 1318, during the reign of the Yuan emperor Renzong, in the second month, he allocated “3000 taels of gold for the transcription of the ‘Vimalakirti Sutra’”, and in the third month, “allocated 900 taels of gold and 150 taels of silver for the transcription of the ‘Buddhist Canon’ in gold letters”, thereby providing a total of 3500 taels of gold specifically for the writing of Buddhist scriptures. The amount expended solely on this aspect is rarely seen in the records of the Yuan shi. In the second month of the first year of the Yanyou era (1314), Emperor Renzong of Yuan established the “Seal Scripture Office (印經提舉司)”, which was responsible for organizing personnel to transcribe scriptures and print Buddhist texts8 (Song 1976, p. 563). With the increasing frequency of scripture copying and printing needs from Emperor Renzong and the Empress Dowager, the status of the Scripture Printing Office gained prominence. In April 1316, Emperor Renzong elevated the Scripture Printing Office to the status of the Guangfu Supervisor9 (Song 1976, p. 573). In the fourth month of 1318, the “Seal Scripture Office was changed to Yanfu Supervision, with an official rank of the third grade”10 (Song 1976, p. 583). Compared to the heads of the six ministries at the same political level, the institution dedicated to the organization and printing of Buddhist scriptures had garnered significant attention from the emperor, highlighting that Emperor Renzong of Yuan aimed to elevate the status of the Buddhist scripture printing institution within the system.

During Khubilai’s reign (r. 1260–1294), the Bureau of Merit Affairs (Gongde Shisi 功德使司) oversaw Buddhist ritual activities, including scripture transcription and distribution. In the third month of 1280, the Central Bureau of Merit Affairs (Du Gongde Shisi 都功德使司) was established as a second rank of Junior Grade institution (從二品) to manage monks under the Imperial Preceptor (Dishi 帝師) and Tibetan civil–military affairs11 (Song 1976, p. 223), though overlapping in authority with the higher-ranked Bureau of Buddhist and Tibetan Affairs (Xuanzheng Yuan 宣政院, First Rank, Junior Grade 從一品). The matters of printing and distributing Buddhist scriptures also fell within the scope of the Department of Merit’s authority. During the era of Emperor Renzong, due to the escalating demand for Buddhist texts, Renzong especially established the Buddhist Scripture Printing Office and elevated it to the status of Guangfu Supervision and Yanfu Supervision, granting it the power to mobilize personnel and resources from the state to print Buddhist scriptures. Emperor Yingzong (元英宗 r. 1435–1449) advocated new policies, focusing on reforming administrative malpractices. He recognized the need to emphasize both court rituals and sacrificial ceremonies while also stressing simplicity in governance and sought to reduce the frequency of lavish Buddhist religious activities. The Yanfu Supervision and Guangfu Supervision, which had been elevated during the reign of Emperor Renzong, were subsequently downgraded in rank during Emperor Yingzong’s period. In the first month of 1321, “the Yanfu Office was demoted to the Yanfu Supervisory Bureau, and the Guangfu Office was demoted to the Guangfu Supervisory Bureau, with a rank of fifth junior grade.”12 (Song 1976, p. 610). Despite the decrease in the official ranks of the two local offices, the activity of writing and printing Buddhist scriptures continued to be conducted.

Yuanshi repeatedly recorded that in addition to writing Buddhist scriptures in Chinese, separate golden-lettered Buddhist scriptures were also written in different scripts, such as Tibetan and Uyghur scripts. In the second month of 1326, an imperial decree was issued to create “golden-lettered Buddhist scriptures in Tibetan script”13 (Song 1976, p. 668). In the fourth month of 1339, an imperial decree was issued to write a thousand copies of the Amitayus sutra in gold ink with Uyghur script. In May of that year, another decree ordered the creation of a complete collection of Buddhist scriptures in gold ink14 (Song 1976, pp. 784–85).

While ostensibly acts of devotion, these multilingual scriptures harbored profound political motivations. Emperor Taiding (Yesün Temür, r. 1323–1328), a conservative ruler, adhered to Khubilai Khan’s precedents as his governance principle: “All affairs shall follow the ancestral institutions of Emperor Shizu [Khubilai]”15 (C. Zhao 2002, p. 193). Following Emperor Yingzong’s assassination, Taiding implemented measures to stabilize the Xuanzheng Yuan (宣政院, Bureau of Buddhist and Tibetan Affairs) and Tibetan populations, notably decreeing the transcription of the Tibetan script Buddhist Canon in gold, a critical act to consolidate Tibetan loyalty. Emperor Wenzong (Jayaatu Khan Tuq Temür文宗; r. 1328–1332) ascended to the throne through the improper means of plotting against his elder brother, and the political tragedy of fratricide imposed a significant psychological burden on him. Consequently, his governance maintained a conservative approach following established traditions, with relevant measures aimed at maintaining court operations and consolidating various ethnic groups16 (W. Shi 2021, p. 102).

3.3. Scholars Appointed to Participate in Royal Buddhist Scripture Transcription

The state-sponsored transcription of Buddhist scriptures required a substantial number of knowledgeable individuals skilled in calligraphy. Such a recommendation represented another manifestation of power dynamics. As noted in historical records, “The state reveres Buddhism and establishes grand temples which enshrines scriptures. Skilled scribes are assembled nationwide to transcribe scriptures with gold-infused ink, embodying ceremonial solemnity”17 (Cheng 2009, p. 223). The Yuan state’s nationwide selection of master calligraphers for official scriptural transcription projects underscores the regime’s prioritization of Buddhist textual production. Being chosen by official channels not only provided recognition of one’s calligraphic skills from the government but also bestowed prestige and social status upon the writer. Biographies of prominent Yuan calligraphers frequently documented their participation in these projects, which constituted a crowning honor in their careers.

The specific procedures for selecting scribes are poorly documented in historical materials, with the limited available evidence suggesting that most scribes were involved in scripture copying through recommendation or official selection. Regarding recommendations, the biographical accounts of Zhao Mengfu (趙孟頫1254–1322) and Deng Wenyuan (鄧文原1258–1359) are representative examples. Zhao Mengfu (趙孟頫), the pre-eminent calligrapher of the Yuan dynasty, wielded such influence that his Zhao-style script (趙體) became the definitive script style for official and commercial publications. Both Zhao and Deng were summoned to participate in gold or silver ink scripture transcription (泥金寫經) projects. Through their recommendations, over twenty people were involved in the project, and all participants were granted official positions upon the activity’s completion. The Yuan dynasty government summoned people to write Buddhist scriptures in gold and allowed Zhao Mengfu to recommend skilled calligraphers to accompany the project. After the writing activity was completed, the more than twenty people he recommended were all granted rewards and official positions. The ruling officials wanted to retain Zhao Mengfu in the Hanlin Academy, but Zhao Mengfu declined18 (M. Zhao 2012, p. 522). Deng Wenyuan (鄧文原), a calligrapher of equal renown to Zhao Mengfu, shared similar experiences. Deng participated in a gold ink scripture transcription project commissioned by Empress Kokejin (闊闊真), wife of Crown Prince Zhenjin (真金). He recommended twenty disciples to travel to Dadu for the project, all of whom received official rewards upon its completion19 (Deng 2016, p. 408). Regarding official records of selecting monks and laypeople to transcribe scriptures, a more definitive account is a record from the fourth month of the third year of Emperor Yingzong’s Zhizhi era, which states: “An imperial edict was issued for monks and scholars to write the Buddhist Canon using gold-mixed ink”20 (N. Shi 2023, p. 734b20). Considering the context of arranging a trusted court official, Baizhu (拜住, 1298–1323), to oversee the Buddhist scripture transcription in the third month of that year, it can be understood that this scripture copying activity involved selecting skilled calligraphers from both monastic and secular circles within the country, with all eligible participants being called upon to take part.

Dozens of types of writing are evidence of participation from various ethnic groups, including Han Chinese, Koreans, Uyghurs, Tibetans, and other nationalities. These skilled calligraphers included not only monks but also renowned secular masters. While Han Chinese scribes are well-documented in Chinese language sources, records of scribes using other languages (e.g., Tibetan, Uyghur) remain sparse. The Han Chinese who participated in writing the Golden Buddhist Scriptures were predominantly “southerners (南人)”. According to the historical materials we have been able to collect thus far, the majority were individuals from the Jiangnan region.

The Yuan dynasty government employed various methods to summon scholars from Jiangnan to the capital, Dadu, bestowing official positions and rewards upon them to stabilize the Jiangnan region and integrate the southern population. After the Yuan dynasty overthrew the Song dynasty, resistance movements continued to occur throughout Jiangnan. Southern Song imperial descendants and loyalists were scattered throughout the Jiangnan region and deeply respected by the local populace. Viewing them as threats, the Yuan regime employed military suppression while coercing these figures into accepting bureaucratic positions and publicly declaring their submission, thereby diminishing their influence. For instance, they recruited renowned calligraphers to participate in the transcription of Buddhist sutras in gold ink, strategically leveraging their cultural prestige to pacify dissent and achieve state integration.

After the mid-Yuan dynasty period, Buddhist monks from the Jiangnan region who were skilled in calligraphy traveled to Dadu (present-day Beijing) to participate in transcribing Buddhist scriptures. While ostensibly acts of devotion, these engagements implicitly conveyed their endorsement of Mongol rule. Two disciples under Chan Master Yuansou Xingduan (元叟行端1255–1341), the abbot of Jingshan Temple in Hangzhou, went to Dadu to write scriptures: one was Chu shi Fanqi (楚石梵琦1296–1371), and the other was Master Yong (泳藏主).

Fanqi (梵琦, 1296–1371), a prominent Jiangnan Buddhist monk during the Yuan–Ming transition, showed exceptional talent from childhood, entering monastic life at nine. At twenty-seven, Fanqi traveled to the capital to transcribe the Buddhist Canon in gold ink, which triggered his spiritual enlightenment. He then returned south to meet with Xing Duan, gaining his recognition. Regarding Yong Cangzhu (泳藏主), Yuan Sou Xingduan composed a farewell inscription prior to his disciple’s departure for Dadu: ”The enlightened emperor now governs myriad nations with a Buddha-like compassionate heart... Mobilizing treasuries of precious wealth, His Majesty has summoned all scripture-transcribing monks and literati to the capital. Yong Cangzhu of Jingshan Temple has been selected for this sacred task due to his unparalleled calligraphic skill“21 (X. Shi 2023, p. 528c17).

From a religious perspective, Xingduan articulated the rationale behind Emperor Yingzong's Yuan’s scripture copying initiative, emphasizing the legitimacy of the imperial expenditure on these activities, which reveals the Jiangnan Buddhist community’s acknowledgment of Yuan dynasty rule. As a high-ranking monk in society, Xingduan served as an important representative of the Jiangnan Buddhist community, clearly expressing views aligned with the Yuan ruling class. Similarly, Master Yong, who excelled in calligraphy, ensured that each stroke of his brush aligned with Emperor Yingzong’s original intention for the scripture copying activities—writing to enlighten confused sentient beings and to secure the perpetual stability of the Yuan imperial rule. Xingduan’s interpretation of Yong’s participation accentuated the success of Yuan imperial transcription in unifying the Jiangnan Buddhist community. The Yuan court’s mobilization of monastic and lay elites from diverse ethnicities to transcribe Buddhist scriptures, followed by their official recognition and rewards, transcended mere religious activity, which aimed to secure the allegiance of multiethnic elites and channel their talents into imperial service to achieve the stated objective of “awing and pacifying the populace through unified resolve”22 (Yu 2007, vol. 1, p. 547).

4. The Imperial Family and Officials of the Yuan Dynasty Printed and Bestowed Buddhist Canons

During the Yuan dynasty, printed editions of the Buddhist Canon had supplanted manuscript versions as the dominant form in general circulation, with carved-block printing becoming the preferred method across all social strata for fulfilling devotional needs through patronage, distribution, and acquisition. The imperial family and aristocracy undertook the largest-scale canon printing projects. In addition to meeting the needs of merit-based faith, the Buddhist Canons printed and bestowed by the royal family to various regions also fulfilled functions such as cultural exchange, cultural identity, and peaceful diplomacy. (Fang and Zhang 2013) The imperial family and nobility of the Yuan dynasty financially sponsored the printing and bestowing of Buddhist scriptures, promoting enthusiasm among major monasteries nationwide to collect large-scale Buddhist Canons. For monasteries, receiving Buddhist scriptures distributed by the imperial family and nobility represented recognition and protection from the highest imperial authority, sufficient to consolidate the loyalty and support of senior monks and monasteries toward the dynasty. Similarly, when the Yuan imperial court bestowed handwritten or carved Buddhist Canons to high-ranking monasteries in surrounding vassal states such as Goryeo (Korea) and Japan, it achieved the effects of religious acknowledgment and peaceful diplomacy. Additionally, various nobles and wealthy families actively participated in printing and donating Buddhist scriptures, which not only earned them merit and satisfied their faith but also potentially gained favor from the Yuan imperial court, thereby helping to consolidate their political positions and strengthen political ties with the ruling house. Consequently, we observe that scripture printing activities flourished during the Yuan dynasty, and its influence extended to the early Ming dynasty when Zhu Yuanzhang (朱元璋r. 1368–1398) and Zhu Di (朱棣r. 1402–1424) utilized state power to print the Hongwu Southern Canon (洪武南藏), Yongle Southern Canon (永樂南藏), and Yongle Northern Canon (永樂北藏).

4.1. The Printing of the Buddhist Canon in Yuan Dadu

Starting from the Northern Song dynasty, Buddhist sutras were extensively block-printed in Sichuan, Kaifeng, Fujian, and Hangzhou. Huzhou and Suzhou (Pingjiang), north of Hangzhou, also engaged in production. The northern system included three major Buddhist Canons: the Khitan Canon of the Liao dynasty, the Zhaocheng Canon of the Jin dynasty, and the Hongfa Canon, which was a supplementary carving of the Jin Canon from the early Yuan dynasty. Additionally, far away in Goryeo, there was the Goryeo Canon, which continued the tradition of the Northern Song’s Kaibao Canon system. The carving and printing sites for these Buddhist Canons were invariably located in major metropolitan centers to concentrate manpower and integrate resources for printing the numerous volumes of Buddhist scriptures. During the Yuan dynasty, Dadu emerged as the preeminent hub for northern work production, distinguished by its superior scale and logistical capacity.

As a hub of multiethnic convergence, Yuan Dadu hosted the production of Buddhist Canons in Han, Tibetan, Tangut, and Uyghur and received sponsorship from the Yuan imperial court and nobility. The sponsors of these Buddhist scriptures came from multiple ethnic backgrounds, and frontispiece designs and textual versions of these canons exhibited pronounced multicultural characteristics. For instance, the Yanyou Yuan Official Canon (Yuan guanzang 元官藏), printed in 1316 with the sponsorship of Emperor Renzong (Ayurbarwada; r. 1311–1320) of the Yuan dynasty, featured frontispieces blending Tangut and Tibetan Buddhist artistic motifs. (Xu 1987) In the fourth year (1336) following the death of Emperor Wenzong of the Yuan dynasty, his empress Budashili commissioned the printing of the Dazangjing, whose frontispiece designs adhere to the Han Chinese stylistic tradition of Liao and Jin editions. Notably, the 30 sets of canons she sponsored followed the Puning Canon (普寧藏) style from the Hangzhou region of Jiangnan rather than the Dadu-region edition.

The list of monks recorded in the Buddhist Canon texts containing Empress Budashiri’s devotional prayers, housed in the Yunnan Provincial Library, reveals broad geographic participation. Most abbots hailed from northern regions such as Dadu, Zhendinglu, and Dongchanglu, while scholarly monks joined from Jiangxi, Shanxi, and Ningxia. The Yuan court’s nationwide recruitment of monastic elites for scriptural collation yielded multifaceted outcomes. First, disorganized Buddhist texts were properly arranged; second, the imperial court’s reverence for Buddhism became known throughout the country, satisfying Buddhist beliefs while bringing wider faith recognition; third, the invitation of eminent monks from various regions created an interactive network of Buddhist talent, effectively unifying the upper echelons of Buddhism.

According to the monastic circles, Dafazang Temple (大法藏寺), located in the Jincheng Ward (金城坊) of southwestern Dadu, housed eight scripture repositories (jingzang 經藏) and possessed the capacity to print Buddhist Canons. The “Records of Xijin (Xijinzhi 析津志)” documents that within the Jincheng District, there was also the Yang Guogong Temple (Yangguogongsi 楊國公寺), which similarly had “eight repositories covered with glazed blue tiles, housing scripture printing blocks of exquisite craftsmanship”. It further records that “Emperor Wenzong ordered the printing of thirty-six sets, which were distributed to various Chan monasteries, with some also bestowed upon those in Jiangnan”23 (Xiong 1983, p. 67). Yangguogong Temple, the ancestral shrine of Yang Lianzhenjia (楊璉真迦ca. 1277–1291), appears distinct from Dafazang Temple despite their shared location in Jincheng Ward and the striking similarity of both housing eight scripture repositories. Limited historical evidence precludes definitive confirmation of whether the two temples were institutionally linked.

Based on currently available information, multiple temples in Yuan Dadu were equipped to undertake Buddhist Canon printing (Huang 2024, p. 487). Huang Shishan clearly marked on the map of the Yuan dynasty’s Great Capital that the temples printing Buddhist sutras were concentrated in the southwest corner of Dadu, including three temples: Qingshousi (Qingshou Monastery慶壽寺), Baitasi (White Stupa Monastery白塔寺), and Fazangsi (Fazang Monastery法藏寺). These monasteries accepted the work of printing Buddhist scriptures from the Yuan dynasty imperial family, Mongols, Semu people, and Han Chinese, undertaking the tasks of block carving, copying, translating, and writing Buddhist classics in multiple languages. The activities of scripture printing in Dadu were quite vibrant. The imperial, aristocratic, and wealthy patrons and newly established and historic temples for text storage and production marked the emergence of the city as the northern hub of Buddhist textual production. This center disseminated scriptures nationwide via the advanced courier relay system (yizhan 驛站), as evidenced by the widespread discovery of Dadu-printed editions across Yuan territories. This center utilized the developed postal relay system to distribute Buddhist classics throughout the country.

The Yuan Dynasty Buddhist Canon originated during the reign of Yuan Taizong (Ögedei Khan窩闊台汗; r.1229–1241) when Yelü Chucai proposed supplementary carvings to the Jin dynasty’s Buddhist scriptures at Hongfa Temple in Yanjing. Apart from the southern Puning Temple edition, northern editions included the Yanjing Hongfa Canon (燕京弘法藏) and the Dabaoji Temple Canon (大寶集寺藏經). The Hongfa Canon inherited and expanded the Jin Tripitaka, incorporating newly translated texts based on the Zhiyuan Fabaokantong Zonglu «至元法寶勘同總錄» (hereafter referred to as the “Zhiyuanlu (至元錄)”24 (B. Su 2009, p. 27).

The compilation of the Zhiyuan Catalogue («至元法寶勘同總錄», Zhiyuan Fabaokantong Zonglu) originated from Emperor Shizu’s (Kublai Khan) initial mandate to collate and supplement the Jin dynasty Tripitaka stored at Dadu’s Hongfa Temple. However, Kublai harbored doubts about phonetic and doctrinal discrepancies between Tibetan and Chinese Buddhist texts. Therefore, from the spring of 1285 to the summer of 1287, he assembled scholars from various ethnicities, including Han, Tibetan, Uyghur, Mongolian, and even Indian, to collaborate on a comprehensive comparison. The collation results revealed minimal substantive differences between the two textual traditions, culminating in the Zhiyuan Catalogue—a groundbreaking bibliographic compendium in Buddhist Canon studies. Through this Buddhist text collation project, Kublai orchestrated a statecraft maneuver, uniting multiethnic monastic elites under the banner of textual scholarship to achieve ideological and political consolidation (J. Su 1998, p. 281).

The official printed Buddhist Canons in the mid-to-late Yuan dynasty’s capital, Dadu, included the “Yanyou Canon (延祐藏)” from 1316. In the third month of that year, Emperor Renzong published thirty-three volumes of Buddhist scriptures. Cross-referencing inscriptions authored by the Yuan-era monk Huiyin (慧印, 1271–1337), it is evident that the Yanyou Canon closely resembled the Hongfa Canon («弘法藏»). However, scholar Xu Huili’s comparative analysis of the Jin Canon («金藏») and the Hongfa Canon suggests that while the two share a hereditary relationship, they cannot be considered equivalent25 (Xu 1987).

In the early years of the Huangqing era (1312–1313), Huiyin, following the imperial edict of the Empress Dowager Targi (答己), went to Hongfa Temple in Dadu to participate in proofreading and editing Buddhist scriptures and commentaries26 (Qin 2017, p. 589). Under Emperor Yingzong (r. 1320–1323), he further engaged in a grander-scale canon collation project. Renowned for his erudition, Huiyin bridged the doctrinal traditions of the Ci’en School (慈恩宗) and Huayan School (華嚴宗) in northern China while studying Tibetan Buddhist teachings under the Imperial Preceptor (Dishi 帝師). His intellectual versatility earned him favor among Yuan rulers, cementing his legacy as a pivotal figure in northern Han Chinese Buddhism27 (Chikusa 2000, p. 203).

Beyond the colation of the “Hongfazang” by both monastics and laity during Emperor Renzong’s reign, Emperor Yingzong organized an even larger-scale Buddhist Canon revision project at the Da.

At the Yongfu Monastery in Dadu, Emperor Yingzong, having noticed errors in the Buddhist Canon texts, specifically invited more than sixty eminent monks from various regions to re-examine and correct them, including Huiyin, Beixi Zhiyan (北溪智延 1256–1335), and Zhantang Xingcheng (湛堂性澄 1265–1342). The project primarily included scholastic monks specializing in doctrinal exegesis, as proved by biographies of Jiangnan monks. This initiative exemplified the Yuan court’s strategy to unify northern and southern monastic communities through state-led Buddhist cultural projects, fostering cross-regional religious integration. Additionally, this assembly aimed to recompile the catalog of Buddhist scriptures, but this effort was not accomplished due to the sudden death of Emperor Yingzong.

4.2. The Printing, Bestowal, and Purchase of the Buddhist Canon in the Jiangnan Region

The Yuan imperial court’s substantial demand for Buddhist Canon production created specialized scriptural publishing networks within the capital region. However, Buddhist texts produced in Dadu inadequately met the needs of imperial patronage and circulation. Consequently, scriptures from the Jiangnan region also attracted imperial attention. The Yuan dynasty’s royal family and nobility funded the printing of Buddhist Canons to bestow upon temples throughout the realm and surrounding vassal states. Editions printed in Hangzhou, Suzhou, Wuchang, and other locations received royal recognition, enabling the continued development of Buddhist printing culture in the south under Mongol rule.

Generally speaking, the most representative examples of new developments in the large-scale printing of Buddhist scriptures in southern cities during the Yuan dynasty were the Puning Canon (Puningzang 普寧藏) from Hangzhou and the Qisha Canon (Qishazang 磧砂藏) from Suzhou. Both were printed in large quantities with numerous surviving texts. Analysis of their inscriptions clearly reveals the characteristics of the groups that funded these two canons. Both canons enjoyed considerable sales, with people from various social strata commissioning complete or partial printings according to their financial capabilities and different purposes. Two epigraphs indicated that funders in southern cities featured less unusual. Meanwhile, the printing history of these two canons also exhibited features distinct from those in Dadu. Southern production inherited institutional frameworks from the Southern Song dynasty, achieving refined organizational structures and labor allocation. The quantity and quality of Jiangnan-printed scriptures surpassed northern editions, making them highly sought-after texts that circulated widely across East Asia under Mongol rule.

4.2.1. Block Prints of the Puning Canon and the Qisha Canon

In the late Southern Song dynasty, the printing blocks of the Zifuzang (資福藏) were destroyed during war. After the situation stabilized, Master Jitang Si (寂堂思) of Damingqing Temple (大明慶寺) in the Hangzhoulu convened senior abbots from various monasteries to discuss the reprinting of the Buddhist Canon. The project was entrusted to Abbot Dao’an (道安) of Miaoyan Temple (妙嚴寺) in Huzhou and the White Cloud Sect (白雲宗) for assistance. To secure imperial authorization, Dao’an traveled twice to Dadu, leveraging credentials from the Buddhist Regional Supervision Office of Jianghuai (江淮諸路釋教都總攝所). Through the recommendation of Danba Lama (簷巴上師), he ultimately obtained a protective imperial edict, which authorized the White Cloud Sect to oversee the carving and printing of the Buddhist Canon. Dao’an was also appointed as the Monastic Registrar of the White Cloud Sect in Hangzhou and other circuits of the Zhexi Circuit (浙西道杭州等路白雲宗僧錄), tasked with overseeing the compilation of the Puning Canon. With imperial decrees from the Yuan court and the patronage of Master Danba, the Puning Canon was completed rapidly with exceptional quality28 (Li and He 2003, p. 317). Dao’an’s appeals for support from Master Yanba and Kublai Khan in finishing the Buddhist Canon carried profound political symbolism during the early Yuan dynasty, coinciding with the unification of the Jiangnan region.

In the colophon of the Puning Canon’s Chen volume (December 1279), Dao’an praised the Yuan Emperor, Empress, Crown Prince, Nobles, Officials, Imperial Preceptors (Dishi 帝師), National Preceptors (Guoshi 國師), Master Yanba, and senior Jianghuai Buddhist administrators like Yang Lianzhenjia (楊璉真迦), which reflects the unique interplay of political and religious authority in early Yuan Jiangnan. The White Cloud Sect seized this opportunity to successfully shed its identity as an unorthodox Buddhist sect of folk origin29 (Yang 2012, p. 231). At this time, the Yuan dynasty needed a local Buddhist sect loyal to the new regime, and Dao’an’s active allegiance became the opportunity for the White Cloud Sect to successfully enter the Yuan rulers’ field of vision and obtain political protection. His efforts to normalize the sect’s status and secure state backing for scripture printing succeeded entirely. The Miaoyan Temple was also elevated from a yuan (院) to a si (寺) in 1292 under an edict from the Imperial Preceptor.

Compared to the Puning Canon, which served as an important tool for Kublai Khan to unify the Buddhist communities in southern China during the early Yuan dynasty, the Qisha Canon, which represented the restoration of the scripture publishing enterprise, was produced later than the printing time of the Puning Canon. In the eleventh month of 1299, the Qisha Yansheng Monastery (Qisha Yanshengsi 磧砂延聖寺) in Pingjiang Prefecture (Pingjiang Fu 平江府) was elevated to the status of a monastery, and the Dazangjing Publishing Organization was renamed the Dazangjing Publishing Organization of Qisha Yansheng Monastery in Pingjiang Lu (Pingjianglu Qishayanshengsi Dazangjingju 平江路磧砂延聖寺大藏經局). At this time, compared to the Southern Song, the Dazangjing Publishing Organization for the Qisha Canon had become more institutionalized, with a more rigorous division of labor and a larger scale, clearly reflecting the Yuan dynasty’s increased investment in the organization. A colophon from the Qisha Canon’s Yu volume Mahāvaipulya Sūtra of the Solar Store (大乘大方等日藏經), dated 1299, lists ten monks from Yansheng Temple and three from external monasteries involved in the project. Notably, high-ranking Yuan officials, monastic administrators, and abbots acted as chief patrons (datanyue大檀越), providing substantial funding and political protection. During 1299–1307, the sutra carving enterprise for the Qisha Canon flourished, presenting a stark contrast with the extremely difficult circumstances of fundraising for canon carving during the late Southern Song dynasty due to frequent warfare.

The colophons of the Qisha Canon record that many high-ranking Yuan dynasty officials, monastic administrators, and abbots of major temples served as financial patrons for the engraving of the scriptures. The number of fascicles carved and printed with the support of figures such as the father and son Zhu Wenqing (朱文清) and Zhu Xianzu (朱顯祖), Zhang Wenhu (張文虎), Zhang Lü (張閭), and the Yansheng Monastery monks Huilian (慧聯) and Xingjia (行堅) was remarkably large30 (Shanghai Yingyin Song Ban Zangjing Hui 1935, Bei, Zui, Fu, Zao, Xia).

As an example, Zhang Lü (birth and death dates unknown, also known as Zhang Lü or Zhang Lv 章閭, 張驢) served as the Commissioner of the Branch Bureau of Buddhist Affairs and was the highest administrative official overseeing Buddhism in Jiangnan. Given his elevated political status and influence, he was particularly well-suited to serve as the chief fundraiser for the Buddhist Canon carving project. Zhang Lü commanded considerable prestige in Jiangnan and was an ardent supporter of Buddhism. From the day he assumed the position of Commissioner, he “swept away and eliminated all policies unfavorable to monks and all practices that betrayed Buddhist principles”. The Buddhist community in Jiangnan praised him for bringing about “harmony between humans and deities and celebration among all ranks of society”, demonstrating Zhang Lü’s significant contribution to unifying Buddhism in the Jiangnan region31 (X. Shi 2023, p. 535a15).

On the first day of the second month of 1307, personnel changes occurred at the publishing bureau of the Qisha Canon. Master Guangfu, the former Buddhist registry official of Songjiang Prefecture appointed by Xuanzheng Yuan, assumed the position of Bureau Director, taking charge of the printing of the Buddhist Canon (Shanghai Yingyin Song Ban Zangjing Hui 1935, Qi). Guan Zhuba, a monk of Tangut ethnicity, traveled south after the Yuan dynasty unified Jiangnan, serving as a Buddhist official in Songjiang Prefecture and later managing the publication enterprise of the Qisha Canon. Guan Zhuba held a high position with significant authority, even directing the style of Buddhist scripture printing, and brought with him the influence of Tibetan Buddhism. Before assuming his official duties in Jiangnan, Guan Zhuba obtained secret Buddhist sutras from the Hongfa Monastery in Dadu to supplement the Puning Canon and Qisha Canon, thereby adding Buddhist classics originally collected during the Jin dynasty to the Han Chinese Buddhist Canon system in Jiangnan. Scholars have pointed out that “when the printing blocks of the Jin Canon were destroyed, some of its esoteric sutras were preserved through the Qisha Canon and Puning Canon; furthermore, the Qisha Canon directly influenced various editions of Buddhist Canons produced during the subsequent Ming and Qing dynasties” (Li and He 2003, p. 116). Under the unified landscape of the Yuan dynasty, the Buddhist Canon from the north and south achieved profound exchange, with precious fragments of the northern Buddhist Canon being preserved through the printed versions of the southern Buddhist Canon.

Guanzhuba led the carving and printing of the Qisha Canon, incorporating classic content and artistic styles from Tibetan Buddhism. When analyzing the composition of the frontispiece illustrations in the Puning Canon and Qisha Canon, Huang Shishan pointed out that Han Chinese and Tibetan artistic styles were clearly integrated within these illustrations. It could even be said that compared to the earlier Tangut prototypes, the frontispiece illustrations of the Qisha Canon display more comprehensive and bolder artistic characteristics that integrate Nepalese, Indian, and Tibetan cultural traditions on the foundation of the Han Chinese style (Huang 2024, p. 563). After the Yuan dynasty unified southern China, numerous Buddhist monks from the north took control of Buddhist affairs in the south. With their immense power and influence, they naturally imposed their own religious concepts on related matters. Guan Zhuba incorporated Tibetan Buddhist artistic styles into the frontispiece illustrations of the Qisha Canon and mass-produced Buddhist scriptures in Tangut and Tibetan scripts, infusing the Han Buddhist classics that had originally circulated in southern China with distinctive foreign Buddhist elements. In fact, Guan Zhuba’s actions carried obvious religious and political symbolic significance, serving as one of the various strategies employed by the Yuan dynasty to exert political influence over the southern regions through religion.

4.2.2. The Donation and Purchase of the Jiangnan Dazangjing

The Jiangnan Buddhist Canon, represented by the Puning Canon and Qisha Canon, circulated throughout East Asian society primarily due to enormous social demand. Strong purchasing power from the imperial court, bureaucrats, monasteries, and neighboring countries like Japan stimulated their mass production. The Yuan dynasty imperial family and high officials selected these Jiangnan editions as gifts to local monasteries, demonstrating their reverence and support for Buddhism while simultaneously consolidating political power and strengthening social cohesion. Monasteries required scripture repositories as part of their construction, and those with sufficient financial resources would naturally acquire a complete set of the Buddhist Canon for veneration. Japanese monks who traveled to Yuan China would, upon their return, sometimes purchase some works to bring back to their homeland.

In 1296, Zhang Lü, who was serving as the Commissioner of the Xingxuanzheng Yuan, purchased 5481 volumes of the Buddhist Canon before leaving Hangzhou and donated them to the Beiqian Ming Nunnery on Mount Miaogao in Ruizhou Prefecture (present-day Ruichang, Jiangxi) (妙高峰北乾明尼寺). Why did Zhang Lu give a complete set of Buddhist scriptures to them? According to Zhao Mengfu’s records, the nunnery had faced existential threats due to persecution by local religious authorities. The abbess Fayu and her disciple Guiheng traveled north to Dadu seeking a solution, where they received assistance from Zhang Lü and Danya Dasi (旦牙答思), an official of the Xuanzheng Yuan, and were granted an audience with National Preceptor Danba, the most politically influential figure during Emperor Chengzong’s reign. Under the protection of National Preceptor Danba, Master Fa Yu and his disciples not only received honorary titles and protection for their monastery, but they also had audiences with the Empress Dowager, imperial consorts, and other Yuan dynasty royal nobles. While receiving gifts of clothing and food, they obtained an imperial edict from the Empress Dowager that designated “their monastery as a place of spiritual cultivation under her patronage”. They were even granted the exceptional privileges of “ordaining disciples, entering and exiting the imperial palace, and using the imperial water transportation system for travel”32 (M. Zhao 2012, p. 191). Their sudden ascent to becoming favorites of the Yuan court coincided with Zhang Lü’s tenure as Commissioner of the Buddhist Administration Bureau (Xingxuanzheng Yuan 行宣政院) in Hangzhou. Upon his promotion to Left Chancellor of the Secretariat (Zhongshu Sheng 中書省左丞) and prior to his departure, Zhang donated a Buddhist Canon to demonstrate his esteem for Abbesses Fayu and Guiheng while currying favor with the Empress Dowager and imperial consorts.

It is noteworthy that Guan Zhuba repeatedly emphasized in the inscription of the “Qisha Canon” that he had carved and printed more than eighty volumes of the Buddhist Canon in both Chinese Hexi script and Tibetan script and regarded this as a significant personal achievement33 (Shanghai Yingyin Song Ban Zangjing Hui 1935, Feng, Yi, He, Zun). Guan Zhuba’s printed editions required the official courier relay system (yizhan 驛站) to transport them to the Hexi region (modern Gansu and adjacent areas). On the eighth day of the fifth month in the first year of Emperor Renzong’s Yanyou reign (1314) in the Yuan dynasty, the Central Secretariat submitted a memorial: “Earlier, eight editions sent from Hangzhou were ordered by Yuelu Temür (月魯鐵木兒) to be delivered to Hexi. Now, by imperial decree, six more editions are to be sent. However, the relay stations west of Dadu are overburdened by frequent transport of Tibetan monks’relics. We propose suspending the six canons until post-harvest, when resources permit”34 (S. Zhao 2020, p. 607). Although Emperor Renzong approved the suspension, he upheld the principle of using the relay system for book distribution, deferring shipments until station conditions improved, which showed the critical role of Yuan logistics in disseminating printed ones.

During this period, Buddhist Canons of significant size were transported through the Yuan dynasty’s postal system. In 1301, Yuantong Temple in distant Yunnan constructed three large halls to store editions produced in Hangzhou and bestowed by Emperor Chengzong (Li 2004, p. 571). Due to the higher level of woodblock printing technology in the south, members of the imperial family would consider having the Buddhist sutras carved in the south, then transported to the capital, with the printed corpora subsequently distributed to various monasteries through the postal system. “The Empress Dowager Xingsheng Ciren Zhaoyi Shouyuan ordered the carving of Buddhist Canon blocks in Wuchang. Once completed, these were transported to the capital, and printed copies were distributed throughout the realm, with famous mountains and large monasteries receiving them as gifts”, which exemplified the practice of carving sutra plates in Wuchang while printing and distributing them in Dadu (Beijing). In the fourth month of the second year of Huangqing (1313) under Emperor Renzong of Yuan, Ciyuan, the abbot of Dacihuan Chan Temple on Nanquan Mountain in Yuanzhou (present-day Yichun, Jiangxi) requested Emperor Renzong to bestow them a Buddhist Canon. Renzong granted his request and “ordered officials to prepare boats and vehicles, quickly load and transport it via the postal stations, and present it directly to the temple”35 (Cheng 2009, p. 232).

This historical record reveals the procedural elements of the Yuan imperial family’s bestowal of Buddhist Canons. Generally, major local temples would submit applications to government officials requesting Buddhist Canons, and after receiving imperial approval, official transportation would be arranged to escort the Buddhist Canon to the temple using the postal system. Similarly, another record of the imperial bestowal of Buddhist Canons occurred in the first year of Zhishun (1330), when Emperor Wenzong of Yuan bestowed a Buddhist Canon to the imperial temple Dazhaoqing, “bestowing a Buddhist canon of five thousand scrolls. The Empress bestowed gold to purchase fields to feed monks, instructing them to read this sutra daily to pray for auspiciousness and longevity”36 (Yu 2007, vol. 1, p. 796).

Fortunately, a surviving edict from Emperor Renzong in the third year of Yanyou (1316), granting Buddhist scripture sets to three Yunnan monasteries, illuminates Yuan policies on monastic property protection:

“By the power of the Eternal Heaven and under the shelter of great fortune, the Emperor’s imperial edict states: To military officers, soldiers, darughachi (governors) of cities, officials, traveling envoys, the imperial decree is proclaimed:

According to the imperial edicts of Emperor Genghis, Emperor Ögedei, Emperor Xuechan, Emperor Wanzedu, and Emperor Quli: “Monks ... shall be granted Buddhist scriptures for the Qiongzhu Temple, appointing Monk Xuanjian as abbot to read and circulate them, to pray for the emperor’s longevity and people’s peace. Regardless of circumstances, those who pray to Heaven for longevity shall be permitted”. Now, following previous imperial edicts, no matter what labor service is required, those who pray to Heaven for longevity are exempted. The Buddhist Canon has been bestowed upon Abbot Elder Xuanjian and the monks of Qiongzhu Temple on Yuanshan in Yachi City, Yunnan. The imperial edict declares: Xuanjian shall repair the scripture hall and temple buildings. They are exempted from labor services, postal duties, and all other obligations. They are exempted from grain taxes. All temple properties including fields, land, water resources, servants, livestock, shops, pawnshops, bathhouses, and anything else, regardless of what they are, shall not be seized by anyone, and no one shall use power to oppress them.

Furthermore, any violation of imperial edicts held by monastic authorities shall be duly sanctioned, with enforcement proceeding unhindered by spurious contestations”37 (Cai 2017, p. 189).

The original stele, housed in Qiongzhu Temple’s main hall, contains lacunae later supplemented by scholar Cai Meibiao based on Yuan edict conventions. The bestowal of Buddhist scriptures was also recorded in Monk Yuanding’s Dianshiji (滇釋記) in The Biography of Xuanjian Xue’an (Xuanjian Xue’an Zhuan 玄堅雪庵傳): “In the Gengxu year of Zhida (1310), high officials of the Southern Province petitioned for the Buddhist canon to civilize the newly pacified regions. A special edict was issued in Hangzhou, ordering the Buddhist Registry Office and Master Ba to deliver the Buddhist Canon in ornate cases, which were transported to Shanchan (Kunming) and distributed to three temples-Qiongzhu, Yuantong, and Bao’en-for monks and nuns to read and circulate”38 (Cai 2017, p. 190). From the request for the imperial edict in 1310 and the transportation of the Buddhist scriptures from Hangzhou to Kunming, this must have occurred during Emperor Renzong’s reign. Since the granted scriptures came from Master Ba, they were likely from the Qisha Canon. Emperor Renzong’s imperial edict clearly demonstrated protection for temple properties, including the Buddhist Canon, prohibiting others from encroaching upon them.

Local monasteries sought religious authority and political protection by petitioning the Yuan court for Buddhist Canon grants. Receiving Buddhist Canons bestowed by the emperor significantly enhanced the monastery’s prestige and attracted surrounding believers, further consolidating the monastery’s local authority. These grants provided both material support and spiritual legitimacy, reinforcing the emperor’s dual role as political sovereign and sacred patron. By disseminating the Buddhist Canon as a state-sanctioned sacred text, the Yuan regime unified Buddhist practices across regions, developing cross-ethnic cultural cohesion and central political allegiance. Additionally, the bestowal of Buddhist Canons demonstrated the imperial family’s active support for Buddhism, fostering closer ties between the emperor and Buddhist circles, which helped form and strengthen political allegiance to the central government. It also established a common cultural foundation among different ethnicities and regions. This synergy of religion and governance stabilized society, mitigating dissent through shared spiritual identity.

Such political tracks drove nobles and officials to donate Buddhist Canons to monasteries. In 1984, the Cultural Relics Management Office of Zhihua Temple in Beijing (北京市智化寺文物保管所) recovered three types of Yuan dynasty Buddhist scriptures from inside Buddha statues in the Tathagata Hall, including a copy of the “Fufa Zang Yinyuan Jing” (付法藏因緣經) printed by King Wang Zhang of Goryeo (高麗國王王璋 1275–1325) in the ninth month of the first year of Huangqing (1312), which belonged to the “fei (飛)” section of the Puning Canon. Its preface mentioned Wangzhang and stated: “Donating pure wealth, I printed fifty complete books to distribute among monasteries, ensuring the Dharma’s widespread circulation”. The Puning Canon was completed in 1289, and that same year, a monk named Xuetang (雪堂) from the newly established Tianqing Temple in Dadu, following the orders from the Emperor’s grandson Ganmala (甘麻剌 1263–1302), traveled to famous temples in Jiangsu and Zhejiang to purchase Buddhist Canons. Xuetang acquired four sets of the Buddhist Canon, “totaling over 28,000 scrolls”, which were enshrined in Kaitai Temple and Tianqing Temple in Dadu, Henan’s Hui’an Temple (Kaifeng), and Faxiang Temple (Luoyang), and Fazang Monastery in Yongfeng. These were the first editions of the Puning Canon after its completion, transported from Jiangnan to famous temples in Dadu and Henan, “eliminating the distinction between south and north, allowing the profound Buddhist teachings to flow freely”, and carried profound political symbolism, reflecting Yuan’s unification of northern and southern China. Numerous records document monks and monasteries pooling resources to acquire copies of the Buddhist Canon from Jiangnan39 (Xu 1987). The flourishing production and purchasing power of the Buddhist Canon in the Yuan dynasty not only accentuated regional monasteries’ devotion to merit-seeking but also revealed the regime’s strategic use of political influence to elevate the Buddhist Canon’s status.

5. Institutionalized Imperial and Bureaucratic Patronage of Buddhist Canon Reading in the Yuan Dynasty

Reading and reciting religious scriptures is one of the important practices across various religious faiths, with Buddhism particularly emphasizing that reading Buddhist sutras can bring boundless merit and benefits. Major Mahayana Buddhist texts such as the Diamond Sutra, the Lotus Sutra, and the Avatamsaka Sutra all strongly extolled the merits of reading, reciting, and copying Buddhist scriptures. The Lotus Sutra comments:

“If there is a man who shall receive and keep, read and recite, explain, or copy in writing a single gatha of the Scripture of the Blossom of the Fine Dharma [i.e., the Lotus Sutra], or who shall look with veneration on a roll of this scripture as if it were the Buddha himself,……be it known that this man or any other like him shall have already made offerings to ten myriads of millions of Buddhas in former times, and in those Buddhas’ presence taken a great vow”40 (Lotus Sutra, T9.262, 30c10).

Such narratives underline Buddhist scriptures as a source of merit, asserting that reading, copying, circulating, reciting, or preserving them could confer worldly and spiritual benefits. This concept stems from the belief that Buddhist objects, especially scriptures, possess supernatural power. Medieval Buddhist literature abounds with miraculous stories (lingyanji 靈驗記) about scriptures, often framed as didactic accounts of divine efficacy. These texts, functioning as religious propaganda, promoted the idea that scriptures could shield devotees from calamities, fulfill desires, or grant blessings. Yuan elites—imperial kin, bureaucrats, and magnates—leveraged wealth and power to organize large-scale scripture recitations, fulfilling both devotional and political agendas. State authorities, monastic institutions, and Buddhist clergy developed institutionalized annual rituals (歲例) and religious rites centered on the recitation of the Buddhist Canon.

5.1. Imperial Organization of Sutra Reading by the Yuan Dynasty Royal Family

The Yuan imperial house frequently mobilized Buddhist monks to recite the Tripitaka through administrative decrees, employing official edict terms such as zhao (詔), ming (命), chi (敕), and ling (令). These directives mandated scripture recitations under imperial authority while funding associated costs. The situation changed in the 26th year of the Zhiyuan era (1289). In his later years, Kublai suffered from old age and illness, developing a stronger need for the Buddhist faith, for which he organized large-scale Buddhist activities multiple times. By this time, the Yuan dynasty had completed the unification of northern and southern China for over a decade, with some recovery in the social economy. Additionally, the Buddhist Canons printed in both southern and northern regions were transmitted to various temples through the postal relay system. Larger local temples, based on the Buddhist Canons they possessed, already had the objective conditions to conduct reading activities. With the Buddhist Canon distributed nationwide via the relay system, major monasteries gained the capacity for large-scale recitations. Kublai “decreed that monks be gathered to read and recite the Buddhist Canons stored in all Buddhist temples throughout the empire, with expenses provided, and made this an annual practice”41 (Song 1976, p. 142). Thus, the Buddhist activity of organizing monks to recite the Buddhist Canon by imperial order became an annual convention. However, whether this convention was strictly maintained every year and whether such a large scale of reading was consistently implemented remains questionable due to the lack of historical materials.

The next recorded large-scale reading of the Buddhist Canon of similar magnitude occurred during the reign of Emperor Yingzong. In the fourth month of the summer of the third year of Zhizhi (1323), “an imperial decree ordered monks throughout the empire to read 100,000 volumes of Buddhist scriptures”. Later that same month, “another decree commanded the four temples of Wan’an, Qingshou, Sheng’an, and Puqing in the capital, along with Jinshan Temple at the Yangtze River and Wanshengyouguo Temple at Mount Wutai, to perform the Water and Land Buddhist ceremonies for seven days and nights”42 (Song 1976, p. 630). Such intensive activities of scripture reading and Water and Land Buddhist ceremonies must have occurred for specific reasons. Reading through the Annals of Emperor Yingzong (英宗本紀), one can easily discover that during his reign, natural disasters were frequent, with records of calamities and famines almost every month. Emperor Yingzong’s extensive hosting of Buddhist assemblies and his order for monks to read 100,000 volumes of the Buddhist Canon undoubtedly stemmed from an internal need to alleviate disasters through scripture reading.

Both Emperor Wuzong and his son, Emperor Wenzong, mandated large-scale Buddhist Canon recitations across the realm. In sixth month of 1308, there was an “imperial decree for monks in interior commanderies, Jiangnan, Goryeo (Korea), Sichuan, and Yunnan to read the Buddhist Canon to pray for blessings for the three palaces”43 (Song 1976, p. 482), featuring its inclusion of Goryeo, creating an “inner-outer” devotional dynamic to enhance the efficacy of the merit generated by the activity.

During Emperor Wenzong’s reign, large-scale Buddhist Canon reading activities were conducted with specified funding. In the sixth month of the first year of Zhishun (1330), he “commanded the provincial administrations of Henan, Huguang, Jiangxi, and Gansu to read 650 sets of the Buddhist Canon, with 30,000 ingots of paper currency provided”44 (Song 1976, p. 759). Six months before this activity, Emperor Wenzong commemorated his father Wuzong’s death anniversary by specifically “ordering 340 Goryeo and Han monks to recite two sets of Buddhist sutras at the Dachongen Fuyuan Temple”45 (Song 1976, p. 746). Though smaller in scope, the integration of Goryeo and Han monks in this ritual is striking, indicating that by the mid-to-late Yuan period, Mongol rulers regarded Koryŏ and Han Buddhist traditions as a unified cultural entity within Chinese Buddhism. Wenzong’s incorporation of scripture recitations into ancestral rites further emphasized the deep entrenchment of Buddhist merit ideology within the imperial elite.

Various activities of Yuan emperors were documented in the Yuanshi, which were manifested in different ritual practices. While official histories lacked detailed accounts of scripture recitation, more information survived in the Chan sect Buddhist texts and literary works by Yuan scholars. Emperors’ orders for scripture recitations fell into two categories. First, “annual rituals (suili歲例)”, referring to scripture reading activities of varying scales held each year, and second, “special rituals (teli特例)”. Exceptional events, such as Wuzong’s recitations for the “Three Palaces”, Wenzong’s commemorations of his father’s death anniversary, or Yingzong’s disaster-response campaigns, can all be considered special cases. However, despite differences in scale, both categories followed a standardized procedure. The specific procedure for imperial-sponsored scripture readings began with the emperor’s envoys offering incense and initiating the scripture reading ceremony. Scripture readings were typically limited to seven days, though some lasted more than thirty days. The ceremony concluded with a scripture dispersal (sanzangjing) rite, witnessed throughout by imperial envoys.

After Emperor Wenzong ascended the throne, he donated his residence in Nanjing to establish a monastery, naming it the Da Longxiangjiqing Temple (大龍翔集慶寺), and invited the eminent monk Xiaoxin Daxin (笑隱大訢 1284–1344) from Jiangnan to serve as the founding abbot of this imperial temple. Wenzong’s support elevated Daxin’s status, forging a bond of mutual reverence. Following Wenzong’s death, as the temple originated from Wenzong’s princely residence, it was mandated to hold biannual commemorative rites during spring and autumn, each involving a seven-day recitation of the Buddhist canon. During these rites, officials from the Regional Surveillance Bureau (xingyushitai 行御史臺) participated in ceremonies, which often spanned multiple days. Daxin lamented the exhausting schedule: “Due to the late emperor’s commemorations, scripture recitations, and official rituals, we have been deprived of rest throughout the night”46 (D. Shi 2004, p. 396). After leading the recitations, Daxin would, following Chan Buddhist tradition, give dharma talks regarding the scripture reading intended to guide the assembled monks toward realizing their true nature. Additionally, as an abbot, Daxin also cultivated ties with imperial officials, leveraging scripture recitation as a platform for engagement. Using scripture reading as an opportunity for networking was one of many ways to maintain contact with officials. In correspondence with Zuojipingzhang (左吉平章), Daxin mentioned, “In the winter of 1332, we received your bestowed incense and gifts of gold and silk for the scripture reading, which brought glory to our religious traditions and added prestige to our site”47 (D. Shi 2004, p. 344). Similarly, in a farewell letter to Du Qingbi, a Hanlin Academy scholar, he wrote: “ With the recitations concluded and guests departed, our boats now set sail. In our twilight years?”48 (D. Shi 2004, p. 352). Of course, scripture reading required funding. Part of the expenses for readings on Emperor Wenzong’s memorial days came from the Empress Dowager’s support: “The Empress Dowager dispatched messengers with gifts of gold and silk for the process, to benefit the emperor’s soul”49 (D. Shi 2004, p. 605). Despite Wenzong’s demise, Dalongxiang Jiqing Temple retained its symbolic significance within the Yuan court, reflecting the enduring intertwining of imperial memory, Buddhist devotion, and political patronage.

5.2. Yuan Dynasty Officials Gather Monks Recitation

Under the influence of the Yuan dynasty, imperial family officials widely adopted the practice of sponsoring Buddhist scripture recitation (songzang 誦藏) through financial donations and monastic assemblies, which became a prominent social trend. Among these, Uyghur officials stood out as exemplary figures. Academic research on the Buddhist faith of Uyghur officials has focused on their inland migration to serve in government positions, their use of Buddhism as a means of advancement, and their engagement in Buddhist administrative roles, with less research devoted to materials regarding their involvement with the Buddhist Canon. Among Uyghur officials, Yiheimishi (亦黑迷失ca. 1252–1316) has received more scholarly attention, as has the Mongolian official Biebuhua (dates unknown).

5.2.1. Yiheimishi and the Record of Reading Sutras in One Hundred Temples

Information regarding the Uyghur Yiheimishi’s life history is primarily preserved in the “Biography of Yiheimishi” in Yuanshi, but it generally records only Yiheimishi’s personal achievements in military and diplomatic affairs in the South China Sea, with no mention of his Buddhist activities. In reality, Yiheimishi maintained extensive connections with various major temples throughout the Yuan dynasty. This is fully substantiated in the “Record of Reading Sutras in One Hundred Temples (一百大寺看經記)” included in Volume 11 of the “Records of Inscriptions in Fujian (Minzhong Jinshilu 閩中金石錄)” compiled by Chen Rongren (陳榮仁) during the Qing dynasty. This stele documented Yiheimishi’s post-retirement Buddhist patronage and his extensive monastic network and highlighted his sponsorship of massive Dazangjing recitations, mobilizing monks through significant financial contributions.

According to the stele, Yiheimishi spent approximately 15,000 ding (750,000 taels of silver) on this act, accounting for one-third of his family assets. Yiheimishi’s ability to accumulate such enormous wealth was inseparably linked to his identity as both an Ortoq merchant and an official in charge of Ortoq affairs. In the middle section of this stele, there are forty-eight lines of text listing the names of various temples, hermitages, monasteries, and monks’ halls from different regions, primarily focusing on the temples of the Dadulu (大都路). It assigns one hundred famous temples from various regions to read the Buddhist Canon, as well as six temples that read the Four Major Division Sutras, and eighteen places that read the Avatamsaka Sutra and Lotus Sutra while also receiving traveling monks. Additionally, there are eighteen places designated for maintaining eternal lamps. The final line of the inscription indicates that the funds for these sutra recitations were donated in the sixth year of the Yanyou period, which corresponds to 1319.

Huang Shishan’s count of scripture-reciting temples was not 100, as stated in the inscription, but 99. According to the map, these temples were distributed in Dadu Route (32), Quanzhou Route (16), Hangzhou Route (8), Fuzhou Route (5), Zhenjiang (6), Hexi (2), Ganzhou (3), Xiliang Prefecture (2), Ningxia Route (5), Zhending (2), and other regions (9) (Huang 2024, p. 697). The network of monasteries described reflects the distribution of elite institutions housing Dazangjing across 14th-century Yuan territories. The mention of foreign congregations (fan zhong siyuan 番眾寺院) indicates that the recitations utilized multilingual editions of the Dazangjing, incorporating Chinese, Tangut, Tibetan, and Uighur texts. To ensure sustained recitations, Yiheimishi mandated recipient institutions to invest his donated funds or land into interest-bearing loans, using annual interest to finance monthly rituals. This financial model—common in the Yuan period—mirrored practices by Mongol official Bie Buhua (別不華).

5.2.2. Biebuhua Sponsored the Assembly of Monks to Read the Buddhist Canon

In fact, two years before Yiheimishi funded the collective recitation of Buddhist scriptures, individuals such as Biebuhua had already funded major monasteries in Jiangnan to organize scriptural recitations. In the fourth year of Yanyou (1317), Biebuhua (also known as Baibuha 拜布哈, who was executed in 1331 for participating in opposition to Emperor Wenzong) had served as the Provincial Chancellor of Jiangzhe and Huguang. Holding a high position, he wished to express loyalty to the emperor while simultaneously using Buddhism to educate the populace, encouraging them to be law-abiding and discourage thoughts of rebellion. Driven by this idea, beginning in the second year of Huangqing (1313), Biebuhua “donated ten thousand ding of gold currency to one hundred major monasteries both within and beyond the capital, for the recitation of one hundred collections of scriptures”, thereby accumulating Buddhist merit. Notably, to ensure continuity, Biebuhua specifically instructed financial officers in the monasteries to invest his donations as principal for loans, using the interest as funds for support, preventing depletion. “He ordered the temple treasury officials to manage the principal and interest, collecting the annual profits to cover the expenses, so that the resources would never be exhausted, and this practice continued annually”. This reflects the widespread practice of moneylending by wealthy Yuan monasteries, with over 100 institutions implicated in such activities.

Bie Buhua (別不華) initially donated 1000 ding to ten major Hangzhou monasteries, later expanding to twelve by including Xingyuan Temple (興元寺) and the Goryeo Huiyinjiao Temple (高麗惠因教寺). The subsequently added Korean Huiyin Teaching Temple in Hangzhou managed the donation as follows: “Using the principal to generate interest, they drew 10% annually, distributed monthly, to finance the recitation of one scripture set”. He organized these twelve monasteries into a rotating annual system, assigning each a specific month for recitation. The rotating monastery system, whereby each monastery was assigned a specific month to host scripture recitation, was standardized across institutions, with nearly identical operational protocols. Yiheimishi’s (亦黑迷失) implementation of this system likely drew direct inspiration from Bie Buhua (別不華), who had pioneered the model in Jiangnan monasteries two years prior. For instance, Jingci Temple was responsible for the second month: “On an auspicious day in the second month of the year, the bell would be rung, and all monks would gather, facing north to the capital to pray, chanting fanbei hymns, and reciting with utmost reverence”50 (D. Shi 2004, p. 447). Similarly, assigned December, prioritized recitations despite winter administrative duties, conducting them with “utmost solemnity and reverence”, treating the state-aligned private initiative as formal Buddhist function. Of the twelve temples funded by Bie Buhua, only three are specifically known: Jingci Temple, Huiyinjiao Temple, and Xingyuan Temple, with the rest awaiting further research but certainly among Hangzhou’s major temples. Through the temples’ attitude toward this activity, we can understand that they treated the scripture recitation as a formal Buddhist ceremony.

By the Song dynasty, monasteries had established mature protocols for patron-sponsored recitations, ensuring orderly, solemn ceremonies that fulfilled both spiritual and socio-political aspirations. The monks’ rigorous adherence not only honored patrons’ wishes but also cultivated enduring ties with Yuan officials, positioning donors as external guardians of monastic authority. The scripture recitation activities in Yuan monasteries, though ostensibly devotional acts driven by Buddhist piety, functioned as a nuanced medium for expressing political and social aspirations by both patrons and monastic institutions. This dual dynamic revealed the interplay between religious practice and elite socio-political strategies.

Huang Shishan (黃士珊) questions the feasibility of completing thousands of scripture volumes within a month, citing Charlotte Eubanks’ theory that rotating sutra cabinets (lunzang 輪藏)—a practice attributed to the Liang-dynasty monk Fu Dashi—symbolized recitation without literal reading. The Jiaoyuan Qinggui notes Fu Dashi’s innovation: “out of compassion, his Shuanglin monastery accepted those who could not read or recite scriptures, while they devoutly rotate the cabinet once gain merit equal to reciting the entire book”. This practice spread widely, suggesting symbolic substitution. However, it remains questionable whether this practice of equating sutra–cabinet rotation with scripture recitation was consistent with the ritual protocols for scripture recitation funded by the imperial court and bureaucrats. Based on the emphasis on “careful reading” and “avoiding sutra debt” in the Chanyuan Qinggui, it appears that monks and monasteries took the recitation task quite seriously and responsibly, likely completing the reading of an entire Buddhist Canon in accordance with the patrons’ requirements (Z. Shi 2006, p. 72).

6. Conclusions

The Yuan dynasty utilized the system and activities of writing sutras with gold ink to incorporate multi-ethnic elites into their political network and demonstrate the imperial family’s devotion to Buddhism through religious practices. The government established specialized organizations to manage sutra printing, coordinating the writing, engraving, and distribution of Buddhist scriptures, and rewarded participants upon completion of these activities, thereby cultivating relationships with notable figures from various regions. Different ethnic groups, including Han Chinese, Semu, Korean monks, and laypeople, actively participated in sutra-writing enterprises, thus achieving the integration of local elites at both cultural and political levels. Although these measures promoted multicultural interaction and ethnic integration to a certain extent, issues such as ethnic division policies, conflicts between central and local authorities, and social contradictions limited the depth and long-term effectiveness of the Yuan dynasty’s national integration.