Mongol Rulers, Yugur Subjects, and Tibetan Buddhism 377

Mongol Rulers, Yugur Subjects, and Tibetan Buddhism 377 Chapter 15 Mongol Rulers, Yugur Subjects, and Tibetan Buddhism Translated by Ilia Mozias and Meir Shahar Yang Fuxue and Zhang Haijuan Yang and Zhang Tibetan Buddhism has played a pivotal part in Asian history. The formation of a distinct ethnic group with an equally distinct culture, the Yugurs (Chinese: Yugu zu 裕固族) is an excellent example of such influence. Officially recog- nized as one of China’s fifty-six national minorities, the Yugurs reside in present-day Gansu Province. Their origins can be traced back to the Yuan period (1279–1368), when the local Uighur population (Chinese: Weiwuer zu 維吾爾族) was ruled by a Mongol clan, (hereafter: the Bin 豳 Clan, after the title that was bestowed upon its chieftains by Kublai Khan (1215–1294)). The leaders of the Bin Clan were ardent supporters of Tantric Buddhism. Under their influence the Mongols and Uighurs converted to the Tibetan faith, a move that served to unite them. Their common religion enabled the Mongol rulers and their Uighur subjects to forge a very particular identity, to wit, the Yugur nationality. The dual ethnic origins of the Yugurs—Uighur and Mongol—are linguisti- cally attested. To this day, the Yugurs are split down the language divide: one group speaks a variant of the Uighur (Turkic) language whereas the other con- verses in a Mongolian dialect. At the same time, their shared Tantric beliefs distinguish both subgroups from the Uighur Muslim population in Western Xinjiang Province while their Uighur heritage differentiates them from the Mongols to the north. Tibetan Buddhism has cemented a unique cultural identity, merging its originally distinct Mongol and Uighur elements. The Yugur case is a compelling example of the weight religion can carry in the creation of national identity. This paper examines the processes by which Tibetan Buddhism became the Yugurs’ national religion. While scholars have examined the characteristics of the Yugur religion, its origins in the Mongol era have been largely overlooked.1 The paper draws upon written documents and stele inscriptions from Chinese 1 On the Yugurs and their religion see, among others, He Weiguang 1999, 27; Zhong Jinwen 1991; He Weiguang and Zhong Fuzu 1998; He Weiguang and Zhong Fuzu 2000; Tang Jingfu 1996; Gu Xiefeng 2010; Abuduweli 2011. © koninklijke brill nv, leiden, 2017 | doi 10.1163/9789004340503_017 378 yang And Zhang Central Asia, charting the roles of Mongol rulers, Uighur subjects, and Tibetan monks in crafting the Yugur identity. The period covered ranges from the thirteenth through the seventeenth century: From the patronage that the Mongol Yuan-Dynasty rulers extended to Tibetan Buddhism, through the subsequent Ming Dynasty (1368–1644) and into the first decades of the Qing Dynasty (1644–1911). The Mongol Patronage of Tibetan Buddhism in Chinese Central Asia Relations between the Uighurs and Tibetan Buddhism date back to the time of the Mongol empire. These relations became especially close after Tibetan Buddhism became the state religion of the Yuan dynasty (1279–1368), which was established by Kublai Khan (r. 1264–1294). During the first decades of Mongol rule, in the area of the Gansu Hexi corridor Uighur monks acted as intermediaries between the Mongol conquerors and Tibetan Buddhism. The “History of Sakya lineage” records that when Sakya Pandita (1182–1251) dis- cussed Buddhist Dharma with Godan Khan (1206 –1251), an Uighur monk served as their interpreter. When, in Liangzhou, Sakya Pandita expounded Buddhist sūtras, “persons of great wisdom and merit from the Jin, Tibet, Uighur, Xixia and other countries came to listen to Buddhist Dharma” (Cai Rang 2004, 50). Thirteenth-century Mongol rulers came into contact with Uighurs, who were well-versed in Tibetan Buddhism. The thirteenth-century Uighurs whose descendants were to become the present-day Yugurs resided for the most part in the Gansu corridor. This population was referred to in the literature of the Song-Period (960–1127) as the “Yellow-Headed Uighurs” (Huangtou Huihe 黄头回纥), a name which appears also in Central Asian sources.2 In the last decades of the thirteenth century, the Yellow-Headed Uighurs came under the control of a Mongol clan headed by Chagati Khan’s (1183–1242) fourth-generation descendants Chūbaī (Chinese: Chubai 出伯) and Qabān (Chinese: Haban 哈班). The two brothers took a stra- tegic decision to align themselves with Kublai Khan to the east, rather than with the Chagatai Khanate to the west. The decision has had far-reaching con- 2 Consult the entry on Khotan (Yutian 于闐) in Chapter 490 of the Songshi 宋史; and also sec- tion four of the chapter on the barbarians (Fanyi si 蕃夷四) in the Song huiyao jigao 宋會要輯稿. The Yelow-Headed Uighurs (Sárigh Uighurs) are mentioned in the writings of the Chagatai historian Mirza Muhammad Haidar (?–1551); see Elias and Ross 1972, 406..

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