Blog # 7 Cosmopolitan Chang’an

Summing up in his article the history of the Tang Dynasty that was ruled by Li family from the 7^th century to the 10^th, Schafner refers to it as constantly changing times in Chinese history. He believes that the best way to differentiate them is by looking at the commerce and art of that period.

The 7^th century can be referred to as the era of conquest and settlement. In that period the prices were low, economy was stable, new taxes were introduced. Also, it could be viewed as the era of a social change when through official examination system (writing skills of candidates were tested) one could achieve a higher socio-economic status by passing the exam. That is probably why so many nations and races migrated at that time. At the end of the 7^th century Buddhism and Indian culture were at their peak.

The 8^th century was known as the “Fullness of T’ang”. Reign of Hsuan Tsang made China wealthy, safe and open for commerce. Yang-chou and Canton were the most popular centers of commerce at that time.

Then, the money economy came - people were using cash and thereafter the “Double Tax” reform was introduced, which in turn caused a collapse of independent farmers and rise of the merchant class.

The second half of the 8^th century was the time of decline and drop in population numbers due to deaths. It was a difficult time for the Chinese nation as it was surrounded by stronger neighbors such as Burma, India that did not want to gave up its independence, Uyghur, Turks, Khitans, Tibetans, Muslims with Arab pirates. It was also known as the century of tolerated foreign faiths. Bundy’s article is about the Nestorian missions in China, that is when the first Church of the East was approximately established. That was a perfect timing for someone of a foreign religion to approach the emperor asking to allow the preaching on the alien territory. Of course, it was difficult to sustain and rise when one competes with well established Buddhism or Manichaeism. Other factors were taken in consideration as well - some scholars say that they were “too foreign for superior culture”, or their abilities in translations did not satisfy the royalty (and made it hard for today’s scholars to study). Later on, Nestorians tried to tie in Middle-Eastern traditions with the local ones,which Chinese rulers highly encouraged foreigners to do. Perhaps Nestorians took a wrong approach as Bundy refers to it as apologetic. Perhaps due to the distance from the home land, Nestorian preaching did not reach high popularity within the locals, although some churches were built on territory of Chang’an  T’angs capital. I would probably agree and say that they were too foreign for the Chinese, the religion missed that exotic twist, the mysticism that attracted them so much.

By the 9^th century everything goes downhill with the ruling age of Huang Chao. It is known as the most fatal of human disasters in that century. Huge massacre of foreigner merchants at Canton in 879c.e. only shows negative impact on the trade. 

The 10^th century house of Li and Tang disappeared.

Obviously, China has been known for it’s obsession with political power, religion and commerce. Many wanted to migrate there, the most popular type of new comers were envoys, clerics and merchants. People traveled on land with caravans, from mountains and by sea. Port Canton was the most popular stop for “barbarians”. Canton was known for its pirate raids, corrupt officials and murderers – therefore, some preferred other ways of reaching the superior land.

Yang-chou, on the other side, was known as the jewel of China. Rich businessmen wanted to be there as it was the banking centre of China.

Chang’an can bee seen as racist in today perspective, as the rules and policies of the city could change on the spot depending on the race of the foreigners. The city was separated by “zones”. Western Market was for foreigners – it was more violent, but exotic. Strict surveillance was enforced all around the city, but was significantly higher in that area. Eastern Market, located closer to palace was richer and less crowded.

Chinese obsession with everything exotic was reflected in almost everything from fashion and art to their literature and religion.

Blog entry # 6 Dunhuang Caves

Presented articles by S.Fraser and Ma Shichang describe the decoration techniques and specific locations of the caves discovered in Dunhuang. This fascinating discovery helps us to understand the religious life of people during Tang dynasty. Themes such Magic Competition (murals presented in 16 caves-shrines, that took over 90 years to complete ), The Cave of the Thousand Buddhas at Magao caves and other Buddhist motifs demonstrate that Buddhism played a major role at that time and thereafter. This could be seen from the amount of effort that was put into the decoration of the caves. The caves served for variety of purposes - from meditating, storing sacred scrolls and utilizing them as workshops for artists to appropriating them as homes for locals. This is even more helpful in studying Chinese history today. Around 500 caves were discovered in the region, most of which were decorated by professional artists that worked at these workshops. The artists used variety of techniques from sketching to copying paintings and others. Sketches made a very important discovery - looking at them, one can see how the mind of the artist worked, as they were made more freely and spontaneously. In the copying techniques, pouncing and paper cutting were used. Even though some of the caves were not made for the purpose of evident demonstration, all of them were thoroughly decorated. The techniques that were used were well developed, and professional artists were sometimes hired by local ruling families such as Zhang and Cao clan to work on them. Once again, that proves that Buddhism was as important for common citizens as it was for the upper class.