Way of the Li Family

Woodcut print of Ge Hong, Gan Bozong (甘伯宗), Tang dynasty (618–907)

Ge Hong's 317 Baopuzi ("Master Who Embraces Simplicity") has the oldest extant references to the Way of the Li Family. They occur in a context (chapter 9, Daoyi 道意The Meaning of "the Way") where Ge argued against many ancient customs of Chinese folk religion, including shamanism and sacrifices. He explained his personal "conviction that ghosts and gods have no power" and dismissed all sacrifices to temple gods as useless (Ware 1966: 158).

Three consecutive Baopuzi passages discuss the Way of the Li Family. The first contrasts heterodox yaodao (妖道, "demonic cults") that sacrificed animals to gods believed to enjoy their blood with the Daoist Lijia dao (李家道) that prepared profligate chu "Kitchen" communal banquets (Stein 1979: 56). The second passage traces the Way of the Li Family's origins to a diviner and healer named Li A (李阿, fl. 229-252), originally from Shu (present-day Sichuan Province), whose extraordinary longevity earned him the epithet Li Babai (李八百, Li Eight-Hundred[-Years-Old]). In the lengthy third passage, Ge Hong describes a contemporary charlatan healer named Li Kuan (李寬). Many people identified him as Li A, and he had over a thousand devoted followers, yet died while praying to heal himself from a plague.

The first passage about the Lijia dao praises the Daoist school for not practicing blood sacrifice but blames it for holding extravagant communal feasts.

There are more than a hundred bogus Ways (yaodao 妖道) that rely on slaughtering living things and feeding their blood [to ghosts and spirits]. Only the Way of the Li clan (Lijia dao 李家道), with its nonparticipation [in such cults], is slightly different. But, although it does not butcher victims, whenever it holds its blessing feasts (fushi 福食) there are no limits; in the provisions they buy in the markets they strive for the most sumptuous, and they insist on buying the choicest and rarest items. Several dozen people sometimes do the kitchen work. The expenses are high. Such practices, too, are not quite purely disinterested, and they ought to be included among those which are forbidden (tr. Campany 2002: 215).

It was the northern emigration and the establishment of the Eastern Jin that made it socially respectable for the southern aristocracy to take up the Way of the Celestial Master and make it their own. "The relatively low social status of the Celestial Masters in the south prior to 317 is enough to account for Ge Hong's apparent ignorance, or his misportrayal of them as the Way of the Li House ... in fact, Ge may have been less ignorant of the Celestial Masters than is normally imagined." (Nickerson 2000: 259).

Woodcut illustration of Li Babai, Hong Zicheng's 1602 Xianfo qizong (仙佛奇蹤, "Marvelous Traces of Transcendents and Buddhas")

The second Baopuzi passage describes the founder of the Lijia dao, the diviner Li A who came from the western state of Shu (Sichuan Province).

Someone asked when this Way of the Li clan (Lishi zhi dao 李氏之道) began. I replied: During the reign of the Grand Emperor of Wu (Sun Quan, r. 229-252), there was a certain Li A in Shu. He lived in a cave and did not eat. Successive generations saw him, so they styled him the Eight-Hundred-Year-Old Sire [Babaisui gong]. People often came to him to consult him on affairs, but Li A would say nothing. But they had only to divine by his facial expression: if he wore a pleased expression, affairs would all be auspicious; if he wore a troubled look, then affairs would all be inauspicious. If he smiled, it meant there would be a great felicity, and if he sighed, it meant deep trouble was near. They watched him for these signs, and the signs never missed. Later, he suddenly departed one day, no one knew where to (tr. Campany 2002: 215-216).

James R. Ware translates yaodao as "ways for dealing with demons", fushi as "good-luck food", and Babaisui gong as "Sir Eight Hundred" (1966: 158).

In the third and longest Baopuzi passage about the Way of the Li Family, Ge Hong describes a popular charlatan faith healer and self-styled Daoist xian ("transcendent; immortal") named Li Kuan (李寬), who like Li A also came from Shu (Sichuan) and became popular in Wu. "He knew how to treat illnesses with holy water that produced many cures. Then the rumor spread both far and near that he was no other than Li A, so they called him Li The Eight Hundred [李八百], but in reality he was not Li A." People "flocked to his door in droves", and Li Kuan had almost a thousand disciples, whom he instructed in simple practices such as using holy water and magic amulets, daoyin calisthenics, and xingqi (行氣, "breath circulation"), but not the esoteric techniques of bigu fasting and Daoist alchemical elixirs necessary for achieving longevity and xian transcendence. Ge Hong said he was "personally acquainted with many" witnesses who attended his healing rituals, and they were "unanimous in saying that he was weak with old age and emaciated", was frail and toothless, had bad eyesight and hearing, and becoming senile. "He was no different from the ordinary run of men. People kept saying, however, that he deliberately acted normally in order to deceive others, but that could hardly be so." In the early fourth century, there was a severe plague in south China with more than fifty percent mortality. Li Kuan contracted the epidemic disease, and announced that he would enter his lu (廬, "hut, Daoist meditation room") in order to fast and purify himself, whereupon he died. His followers, repeatedly claimed that he had transformed into a xian transcendent" by means of shijie "release as a corpse" and had not truly died. Ge Hong says Daoist transcendents differ from ordinary people in the value placed upon not growing old and not dying. However, "Li Kuan was adjudged old, so he did become old; he was seen dead, so he did die. It is thus quite easy to see that he did not have the divine process. How can there be any doubt?" Ge concludes by explaining,

I have taken the trouble to discuss Li Kuan at length because his pupils are maintaining his tradition, their teachings filIing the land south of the Yangtze. Normally, roughly a thousand persons, not realizing that Li Kuan's methods are too shallow to be followed, do accept and observe them in the hope of attaining [Daoist transcendence]. Accordingly, I merely wish people to be conscious of this and to be aware how stagnant and beguiling it is. There is really no limit to the number of doctrines in the world similar to that of Li Kuan, though they are not his. I shall now mention them briefly in order to inform future generations who may not see through them. (tr. Ware 1966: 158-160; Wade-Giles changed to Pinyin romanization).

Retreat to a lu (廬) chamber "is what we would expect of a Celestial Master adherent confronted with epidemic; the movement is well known to have counseled its members to retreat to "chambers of quietness," confess their sins, and perform acts of penitence when taken ill, because illness was understood as a sign of prior transgression." Celestial Master practitioners also entered these chambers to send petitions to the celestial gods, which Li Kuan may have been doing on behalf of the plague-stricken people (Campany 2002: 217-218).

The subsequent Baopuzi context gives several stories about yinsi (淫祀, "excessive cults") worshipping popular but illegitimate gods, borrowed word-for-word from the 195 Fengsu Tongyi (Stein 1979: 57). For instance, there was a cult that sacrificed to a plum tree (li 李, as in Lijia dao). Zhang Zhu (張助) was a farmer from Runan Commandery (present-day Henan) who found a plum pit while working in his field, decided to plant it at home later, and placed it in the hollow of a mulberry tree, but forgot to take it with him. While Zhang was on a long trip, a fellow villager was surprised to see a plum tree sprouting out of a mulberry tree, and concluded it was a miracle. One day, a man with an eye disease was sitting in the shade under the tree and prayed to Lord Plum (Li Jun, 李君), promising that if his disease was healed, he would sacrifice a suckling pig. Since his eyes happened to get better, the man killed a young pig and offered it in worship. Rumors spread that the tree could even restore sight to the blind, and many sick people came to be healed. The place became crowded with horses and carriages, and many people offered wines and meats to Lord Plum. This had been going on for several years when Zhang Zhu returned from his travels, saw the busy shrine and exclaimed "This is only the plum tree I placed here long ago. There's no god!" Then he chopped it down, and all the activity ceased. (tr. Ware 1966: 161).

Ge Hong's Baopuzi descriptions do not mention the Way of the Celestial Masters, but the common ties of Li A (alias Li Babai) and Li Kuan to Shu, and the large communal meals and avoidance of blood offerings characterizing the Way of the Li clan suggest that what "Ge may have heard about was some form of Celestial Master practice (or at least a body of practice that had adopted some features of the Celestial Master religion and emanated from Shu)" (Campany 2002: 217).

Besides writing the Baopuzi, which conflates Li A and Li Babai, Ge Hong was also accredited as the original editor of the Shenxian zhuan ("Records of Divine Transcendents"), which has two separate hagiographies for them. Neither of them mentions the Way of the Li Family. The received edition of the text combines an original core written by Ge Hong with many later accretions up to the Song dynasty (960-1279). According to the research of the Shenxian zhuan scholar and translator Robert Ford Campany, the Li A and Li Babai material is reliably attested by the year 650 (2002: 127).

The Li A hagiography says he was from Shu and regularly begged in the Chengdu market in order to distribute all the proceeds to the poor. It expands upon the brief Baopuzi description of him not using any divination techniques and leaving his questioners to divine the answers from Li's facial expressions, and adds several stories about his lay follower Gu Qiang (古强). The Baopuzi also mentions Gu Qiang as a Daoist herbology practitioner who appeared to be a healthy eighty-year-old and faults him for pretending to be thousands of years old. Gu became famous and wealthy from telling exaggerated stories about having personally met mythical sages including Emperor Yao and Emperor Shun (Ware 1966: 321-324). The Shenxian zhuan says when Gu Qiang was eighteen, Li A appeared to be around fifty, and when Gu was eighty, Li had not changed at all. Li was summoned to Kunlun mountain and never seen again (Campany 2002: 212-215). Two features of this Li A story resemble the Way of the Celestial Masters traditions. The early Celestial Master community collected donations of rice from its practitioners and fed the needy; Li A begged in the Chengdu marketplace and gave all the proceeds to the poor. The Celestial Master religion prohibited using divination techniques and even possessing prognostication manuals; Li A does not use any method of divination, and refuses to speak of future matters, however his facial expressions reveal to questioners whether a matter will be auspicious or inauspicious (Campany 2002: 213-214).

The Li Babai hagiography says Li "Eight Hundred" was also a native of Shu, and usually lived secluded in the mountains but sometimes appeared in the markets. Most of Li Babai's account centers around testing his future disciple Tang Gongfang (唐公房) to determine if he was worthy of teaching. Li disguised himself and took a job as Tang's servant, proving himself a diligent worker. When Li pretended to be sick and near death, Tang hired a doctor and spent "several hundred thousand" pieces of cash trying to heal his servant, who had "disgusting sores [that] oozed blood and pus, and no one could bear to go near him." Tang told Li he did not regret hiring the expensive doctor and asked if he could do anything else. Li responded, "My ulcers will not be cured unless someone licks them. That should work." Tang sent in three maidservants to lick his sores but that did not help his condition. Li then said, "The maidservants' licking has not cured me. But I can be cured if you will do it yourself", so Tang licked his skin without any effect. Li then said that it would be most beneficial to have Tang's wife lick him, which Tang ordered her to do. Finally, Li declared that his ulcers would heal if he could bathe in thirty hu (斛) of fine liquor. Tang poured it in a large tub, Li bathed in the liquor, and the sores suddenly healed. "His body resembled congealed fat [ningzhi 凝脂 "smooth, soft, and creamy skin"] and he bore no trace of illness". Li revealed to Tang that he was a transcendent, and had been testing him to see if he would make a suitable disciple. Li then instructed Tang, his wife, and the three maidservants to bathe in the remaining liquor, "they all reverted to youth, their countenances perfect and pleasing." Afterward, he transmitted a scripture on Daoist elixirs to Tang who entered the mountains to prepare the drug of immortality. "When it was complete, he ingested it and departed as a transcendent." (tr. Campany 2002: 215-216).

Campany notes that the Shenxian zhuan hagiographies of Li A and Li Babai strongly resemble those of two other transcendents surnamed Li: Li Yiqi (李意期) and Li Changzai (李常在) (2009: 228-230 and 316-318). In summary,

1. Li A: native of Shu; distributes largesse to the poor; knows the future without resort to a divination procedure and communicates it by facial expression only, using no words; divides time between city market and mountains.
2. Li Babai: native of Shu; divides time between city market and mountains.
3. Li Yiqi: native of Shu; distributes largesse (obtained by begging, probably in city market) to the poor; knows the future without resort to a divination procedure and communicates it by facial expression only, using no words; enters mountains.
4. Li Changzai: native of Shu; divides time between city and mountains; knows the future without apparent resort to a divination procedure.

As discussed above, aspects of these hagiographies may reflect Celestial Masters practices (Campany 2009: 217-218).

The 648 Jin Shu history of the Eastern Jin dynasty (318-419) records a Daoist practitioner named Li Tuo (李脫) or Li Babai:

His sorcery deceived the masses. He pretended to be eight hundred years old and consequently was nicknamed Li Babai (李八百). In the region between Zhongzhou (中州) and Jianye (建鄴), he healed the sick with demonic methods (guidao 鬼道) and invested people with official appointments. In those days many people put their trust in him and served him. His younger brother (or disciple? dizi 弟子) Li Hong (李弘), who assembled followers on Mount Xin (灊山), proclaimed: "According to a prophecy I shall be King (yingchan dang wang 應讖當王) (tr. Seidell 1969: 231, adapted to pinyin spelling).

After two feuding officials accused Li Tuo and Li Hong of having plotted rebellion, they were tried and executed in 324, "The magician (shuren 術人) Li Tuo seduced the crowd with magic writings (yaoshu 妖書) of his own fabrication. He was beheaded on the market place of Jiankang (建康)." (Seidell 1969: 231).

There are similarities between the Way of the Li Family and activities of Li Tuo and Li Hong a few decades later. Both movements attracted followers through healing, particularly with talismans, and claiming supernatural longevity. Namely, Li A as "Sir Eight Hundred" and then Li Kuan and Li Tuo as "Li Eight Hundred" (Seidell 1969: 232). A major difference is that while the Way of the Li Family was not associated with any politico-religious aspirations, Li Hong referred to a prophecy that he would become king (Seidell 1969: 232). Nevertheless, there is no historical proof that Li Tuo belonged to the Way of the Li Family, and this tradition is too scarcely documented in primary sources to allow for anything more than conjectures (Espesset 2014: 397).

The Northern Wei court's Celestial Master Kou Qianzhi wrote the 415 Laojun yinsong jiejing (老君音誦誡經, Classic on Precepts of Lord Lao, Recited [to the Melody in the Clouds]), Kohn 2008) that denounced diviners who called themselves Li and abused the people. Several prophets who called themselves Li or Li Hong (李弘, Laozi's appellation as the messiah) arose in south China, especially in the Wu and Shu regions. Some of them led popular, millenarian-type rebellions and were executed for deceiving the masses and causing social disorder (Mollier 2008: 657). Most of them belonged to the Lijia dao, a "long-lasting sect" that spread throughout southern China during the Six Dynasties (220-589), and was condemned as heterodox by the Daoists themselves (Mollier 2008: 640).

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