Soulstealers: The Chinese Socery Scare of 1768 - Revision history

67.150.4.158 at 04:19, 25 November 2011

2011-11-25T04:19:12Z

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67.150.2.220 at 22:01, 21 October 2011

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67.150.2.220 at 21:56, 21 October 2011

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Root: /* Introduction */

2011-10-07T21:10:59Z

Introduction

Root: /* Mid 1768 - The Emperor gets involved */

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Mid 1768 - The Emperor gets involved

Root at 21:04, 7 October 2011

2011-10-07T21:04:50Z

Root at 21:04, 7 October 2011

2011-10-07T21:04:13Z

Dekeo at 18:24, 7 October 2011

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Qianlong at 01:06, 2 October 2011

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-Reading in turn #1: Licia Kim
 == Introduction ==
-Philip Kuhn's book, ''Soulstealers: The Chinese Sorcery Scare of 1768'' gives us an interesting view into the world of 18th Century China, right at the height of the Qing Dynasty. [[Qianlong]] was the Emperor. It was one of the most prosperous periods of China's history. During his reign, the population of China grew tremendously, almost tripling by the end of the century. This led to great numbers of unemployed wanderers- people (usually men) looking for a way to stay alive. Many were beggars, some claimed to be monks, some were looking for work but, all of them were poor and most of them were wanderers, not native to the areas where they were found begging. Strangers were everywhere (it seemed); people not known to the locals, hungry, homeless, sometimes desperate...
+Philip Kuhn's book, ''Soulstealers: The Chinese Sorcery Scare of 1768'' gives us an interesting view into the world of 18th Century China, right at the height of the Qing Dynasty. Qianlong was the Emperor. It was one of the most prosperous periods of China's history. During his reign, the population of China grew tremendously, almost tripling by the end of the century. This led to great numbers of unemployed wanderers- people (usually men) looking for a way to stay alive. Many were beggars, some claimed to be monks, some were looking for work but, all of them were poor and most of them were wanderers, not native to the areas where they were found begging. Strangers were everywhere (it seemed); people not known to the locals, hungry, homeless, sometimes desperate...
 And so, the stories begin...
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 The first letters to the Emperor, weren't too concerned about soul stealing- they reported the incidents as (almost) minor occurrences. Qianlong didn't agree. Confessions wrung from suspected soulstealers stated that there were "master" soulstealers hiding in the country. They offered homeless wanderers (and other poor folk) money if they would cut off the end of queues and deliver them to these "masters". He accused his governors of failing to follow up on the leads thus obtained. Qianlong wanted these "masters" found and dealt with. And he wanted it done fast.
-The problem was, no matter how hard the governors tried, they couldn't find anyone where the "master" stealers were said to be. No one matching the confessions seemed to exist. Frustrated with the (seeming) incompetence of his governors, Qianlong ordered many of the convicted "soul stealers" sent to Beijing (and some he even ordered sent to his summer court)where officials he trusted could interview the individuals and find the truth. This didn't mean, though, that the governors were off the hook. He still expected them to find, and arrest, any and all soul stealers. So, the governors started arresting wandering vagrants and monks- anyone who might, just possibly, be guilty of attempting soul stealing. They tried to do as the Emperor commanded and reported numerous arrests, but no concrete evidence of wrong doing could be found. Furthermore, in spite of the government's best efforts, rumors of soul stealing spread throughout the provinces, eventually even reaching Beijing.
+The problem was, no matter how hard the governors tried, they couldn't find anyone where the "master" stealers were said to be. No one matching the confessions seemed to exist. Frustrated with the (seeming) incompetence of his governors, Qianlong ordered many of the convicted "soulstealers" sent to Beijing (and some he even ordered sent to his summer court)where officials he trusted could interview the individuals and find the truth. This didn't mean, though, that the governors were off the hook. He still expected them to find, and arrest, any and all soulstealers. So, the governors started arresting wandering vagrants and monks- anyone who might, just possibly, be guilty of attempting soul stealing. They tried to do as the Emperor commanded and reported numerous arrests, but no concrete evidence of wrong doing could be found. Furthermore, in spite of the government's best efforts, rumors of soul stealing spread throughout the provinces, eventually even reaching Beijing.
 Through August and September the letters continued to be sent. Eventually, one of the governors was able to report the arrest of one of the suspected "Master" soulstealers, a beggar named Chang Ssu. He was found with a knife, a packet of drugs (believed to be used to stupefy the victim just long enough to clip his queue)and a cut off queue. This beggar's name was almost the same as one of the reported "masters" - Chang Ssu-ju and his possession of hair, knife and drugs seemed to be all proof needed of his identity. Governor G'aojin sent a report the Emperor stating that he was going to question the man himself. The Emperor (in red ink) told him to "do your best to investigate this man's tracks in detail." He also reminded the governor to remember that, as soon as he resorted to torture, he could expect no true confession. Unfortunately, no such confession could be obtained. Beggar Chang insisted that his name was not Chang Ssu-ju and that he was innocent. Subsequent investigation confirmed his innocence.
@@ Line 89: / Line 89: @@
 In the course of their investigation, (which continued a month or so after the Emperor's letter came out) all the innocent folks from the stories at the beginning of the book were cleared of any wrongdoing and sent home. The officials also found out what probably started this whole mess. It wasn't peasant Shen.
-A small temple, near Te-ch'ing was having trouble. Fewer and fewer worshipers were coming to the temple. Offerings were dropping and the monks were very poor. Nearby was a very prosperous temple. Early that spring one of the lay monks had an idea. If they spread the word that the masons building a bridge near the other temple were practicing sorcery, it would "pollute" the environment around the other temple and perhaps some of those worshipers would come to their temple instead. Makeing the idea even more attractive is the fact that Mason Wu had won the contract over several local people. Teh monk;s figured it shouldn't be too hard to convince the locals that these disgruntled rival groups had turned to sorcery in an attempt to get even. A poster was created accusing the masons of burying "death magic" on the path to the other temple. To avoid becoming contaminated, it was recommended that all people come to a (their) clean temple. When questioned about this Mason Wu couldn't confirm or deny the possibility. As far as he knew, no one wanted any revenge for losing the contract. Still, it sounded possible to the grand councilors. In any event, Mason Wu was clearly innocent of any wrong doing. He was released and sent home.
+A small temple, near Te-ch'ing was having trouble. Fewer and fewer worshipers were coming to the temple. Offerings were dropping and the monks were very poor. Nearby was a very prosperous temple. Early that spring one of the lay monks had an idea. If they spread the word that the masons building a bridge near the other temple were practicing sorcery, it would "pollute" the environment around the other temple and perhaps some of those worshipers would come to their temple instead. Making the idea even more attractive is the fact that Mason Wu had won the contract over several local people. The monks figured it shouldn't be too hard to convince the locals that these disgruntled rival groups had turned to sorcery in an attempt to get even. A poster was created accusing the masons of burying "death magic" on the path to the other temple. To avoid becoming contaminated, it was recommended that all people come to a (their) clean temple. When questioned about this Mason Wu couldn't confirm or deny the possibility. As far as he knew, no one wanted any revenge for losing the contract. Still, it sounded possible to the grand councilors. In any event, Mason Wu was clearly innocent of any wrong doing. He was released and sent home.
 Maybe they all did "live happily ever after" after all.

@@ Line 79: / Line 79: @@
 The author draws several conclusions from these events. First, he considers the Emperor's response and possible reasons for it.
-The Emperor was dependent upon his provincial governors to run the country. No system of government is perfect, and promoting a new governor was always a little risky. The author gives a fairly in depth review of what the current the procedures for promotion were. Qianlong wasn't exactly happy with the system, but was able to work within it. As the system stood, it was all to easy for provincial officials to become complacent, moved up automatically by superiors who wanted their support and loyalty, thus ensuring their own continuance in "cushy" government positions. The author suggests that Qianlong might have used this "crisis" as an opportunity to remind his governors of who was really in charge. Regardless of his personal views of sorcery, the Emperor's main concern was the security of his rule.
+The Emperor was dependent upon his provincial governors to run the country. No system of government is perfect, and promoting a new governor was always a little risky. The author gives a fairly in depth review of what the current procedures for promotion were. Qianlong wasn't exactly happy with the system, but was able to work within it. As the system stood, it was all to easy for provincial officials to become complacent, moved up automatically by superiors who wanted their support and loyalty, thus ensuring their own continuance in "cushy" government positions. The author suggests that Qianlong might have used this "crisis" as an opportunity to remind his governors of who was really in charge. Regardless of his personal views of sorcery, the Emperor's main concern was the security of his rule.
-For their part, the governors seemed to get the message. From July, when the first letter from the Emperor came out until November when the search was called off, the reader can see a steady increase in diligence on the part of the governors. Prior to the letters, it was just business as usual; collect the taxes, keep the people quiet and enjoy your nice safe position. The next several months showed the governors that, even their jobs could be lost. If nothing else was accomplished, the Emperor certainly got a lot of mail that summer. And his governors started to sit up and pay attention. Throughout the entire process, all the folks involved truly seemed to be concerned with doing their duty, and finding the truth, even when that truth inconveniently turned out to be that, there was nothing going on.
+For their part, the governors seemed to get the message. From July, when the first letter from the Emperor came out until November when the search was called off, the reader can see a steady increase in diligence on the part of the governors. Prior to the letters, it was just business as usual; collect the taxes, keep the people quiet and enjoy your nice safe position. The next several months showed the governors that even their jobs could be lost. If nothing else was accomplished, the Emperor certainly got a lot of mail that summer. And his governors started to sit up and pay attention to him. Throughout the entire process, all the folks involved truly seemed to be concerned with doing their duty, and finding the truth, even when that truth, inconveniently, turned out to be that there was nothing going on.
 For the common people, nothing much changed. There were still far too many mouths to feed and far too few jobs. The wanderer was still someone to be wary of.

@@ Line 44: / Line 44: @@
 == Mid 1768 - The Emperor gets involved ==
 [[Image:Map_of_China_1768.JPG|thumb|600px|left|alt=China at 1768|A Map of China from 1768.]]
-https://wiki.vm.ruhr-uni-bochum.de/uvu/images/8/8c/Location_of_Soulstealing_incidents.JPG
+[[File:Location_of_Soulstealing_incidents.JPG|thumb|600px|left|alt=Location of Soulstealing Incidents|A Map of locations where soulstealing was reported.]]
 Just before he set out for his summer capitol, north of the Great Wall, Emperor Qianlong (whom the author refers to by his birth name, Hung-li)sent a letter to the provincial officials of the provinces where the early spring soul stealing incidents had occurred; G'aojin- Governor-general of the Liangkiang area (the three provinces of Kiangsu, Kiangsi and Anhwei); Yungde- newly appointed (April 25, 1768) governor of Chekiang province and Funihan- governor of Shantung province. In a court document he orders the officials to, quietly, investigate reports of soul stealing and queue clipping. If there was really sorcery going on, the officials were to stop it. If someone were spreading rumors, they were to stop them. He felt that such rumors could incite public and must be stopped. How he found out about these incidents, he didn't say. Obviously the Emperor had a good information network, because, none of his provincial governors had considered the incidents important enough to report to the Emperor.
@@ Line 88: / Line 89: @@
 In the course of their investigation, (which continued a month or so after the Emperor's letter came out) all the innocent folks from the stories at the beginning of the book were cleared of any wrongdoing and sent home. The officials also found out what probably started this whole mess. It wasn't peasant Shen.
-A small temple, near Te-ch'ing was having trouble. Fewer and fewer worshipers were coming to the temple. Offerings were dropping and the monks were very poor. Nearby was a very prosperous temple. Early that spring one of the lay monks had an idea. If they spread the word that the masons building a bridge near the other temple were practicing sorcery, it would "pollute" the environment around the other temple and perhaps, some of those worshipers would come to their temple instead. Further more, Mason Wu had won the contract over several local people. It shouldn't be too hard to convince the locals that these disgruntled rival groups had turned to sorcery in an attempt to get even. A poster was created accusing the masons of burying "death magic" on the path to the other temple. To avoid becoming contaminated, it was recommended that all people come to a (their) clean temple. When questioned about this Mason Wu couldn't confirm or deny the possibility. As far as he knew, no one wanted any revenge for losing the contract. Still, it sounded possible to the grand councillors. In any event, Mason Wu was clearly innocent of any wrong doing. He was released and sent home.
+A small temple, near Te-ch'ing was having trouble. Fewer and fewer worshipers were coming to the temple. Offerings were dropping and the monks were very poor. Nearby was a very prosperous temple. Early that spring one of the lay monks had an idea. If they spread the word that the masons building a bridge near the other temple were practicing sorcery, it would "pollute" the environment around the other temple and perhaps, some of those worshipers would come to their temple instead. Further more, Mason Wu had won the contract over several local people. It shouldn't be too hard to convince the locals that these disgruntled rival groups had turned to sorcery in an attempt to get even. A poster was created accusing the masons of burying "death magic" on the path to the other temple. To avoid becoming contaminated, it was recommended that all people come to a (their) clean temple. When questioned about this Mason Wu couldn't confirm or deny the possibility. As far as he knew, no one wanted any revenge for losing the contract. Still, it sounded possible to the grand councilors. In any event, Mason Wu was clearly innocent of any wrong doing. He was released and sent home.
 Maybe they all did "live happily ever after" after all.

@@ Line 3: / Line 3: @@
 == Introduction ==
-Philip Kuhn's book, ''Soulstealers: The Chinese Sorcery Scare of 1768'' gives us an interesting view into the world of 18th Century China, right at the height of the Qing Dynasty. Qianlong was the Emperor. It was one of the most prosperous periods of China's history. During his reign, the population of China grew tremendously, almost tripling by the end of the century. This led to great numbers of unemployed wanderers- people (usually men) looking for a way to stay alive. Many were beggars, some claimed to be monks, some were looking for work but, all of them were poor and most of them were wanderers, not native to the areas where they were found begging. Strangers were everywhere (it seemed); people not known to the locals, hungry, homeless, sometimes desperate...
+Philip Kuhn's book, ''Soulstealers: The Chinese Sorcery Scare of 1768'' gives us an interesting view into the world of 18th Century China, right at the height of the Qing Dynasty. [[Qianlong]] was the Emperor. It was one of the most prosperous periods of China's history. During his reign, the population of China grew tremendously, almost tripling by the end of the century. This led to great numbers of unemployed wanderers- people (usually men) looking for a way to stay alive. Many were beggars, some claimed to be monks, some were looking for work but, all of them were poor and most of them were wanderers, not native to the areas where they were found begging. Strangers were everywhere (it seemed); people not known to the locals, hungry, homeless, sometimes desperate...
 And so, the stories begin...

@@ Line 44: / Line 44: @@
 == Mid 1768 - The Emperor gets involved ==
-[[File:Map_of_China_1768.JPG]]
+[[Image:Map_of_China_1768.JPG|thumb|600px|left|alt=China at 1768|A Map of China from 1768.]]
 https://wiki.vm.ruhr-uni-bochum.de/uvu/images/a/a3/Map_of_China_1768.JPG

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:24, 7 October 2011
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		+	Reading in turn #1: Licia Kim
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	== Introduction ==		== Introduction ==