Writing with your own blood

~IN PROGRESS~

OVERVIEW

The origins of blood writing can be traced back to Chinese Buddhist monks. Contrary to popular believe, monks did not write in pure blood. Instead they used their blood to mix with the ink, which in turn gave the ink a brownish tint to it. Writing in blood usually involved some form of self mutilation.Forms of self mutilation that were traditionally practiced in China inluded cutting their fingers and self-immolation by fire (Baker).

FILIAL PIETY

In the Tang Dynasty, Wan Jingru received official recognition for his filial devotion to his parents by cutting off two of his fingers and copying texts using his blood (Kieschnick). The monk Hanshan Deqing also used blood writing for merit toward his deceased parents. It was believed that by copying Buddhist scriptures on behalf of relatives, they might reap a better rebirth.

WARRIORS’ COURAGE

In AD 1002, a magistrate called Fei Ji defended his city from attack for over a month. He cut his finger and wrote a letter to the Song court using his blood, requesting aid ("imperialchina.org").

Another more modern example of blood-letter writing comes from a teacher named Xu Teli, who wrote a blood letter to protest Japan’s 21 demands on China in 1915 (Wang).

BUDDHISM

Buddhists believed that a person can show devotion and accrue good karma for their next life by copying Buddhist texts in blood. One example of bloodwriting in Buddhism is by an 83 year old man who used ink mixed with his blood to write Buddhist scripture. (Baker)

In Search of Lin Zhou's Soul 尋找林昭的靈魂

A woman named Lin Zhou wrote about 500 pages (140,000 words)in blood from a prison during the cultural revolution. She later was able to acquire ink from the guards and rewrote her message in ink. Lin Zhou's letters were given to her sister by one of her guards after the cultural revolution.

“The document was ostensibly a letter to the People's Daily, the party's official newspaper. Lin condemned the Anti-Rightist Campaign and accused the party of taking advantage of the idealism of her generation. She wrote of the abuse she suffered in prison, of guards who handcuffed her in painful positions and force-fed her through her nostrils. She described how she wrote in blood after they took away her pen, and how the prison saved her writing to use against her. Occasionally the letter deteriorated into an incoherent rant, but every page was brimming with emotion and defiance” (Pan 2008).

(Pan 2008)

Sources Cited

Baker, Abby. "Blood writing in Buddhist scrolls." British Library, Untold Lives: Sharing stories from the past. N.p., 02 January 2012. Web. 1 Feb 2012. <http://britishlibrary.typepad.co.uk/untoldlives/2012/01/blood-writing-in-buddhist-scrolls.html>.

BL, S.5451. 2012. Photograph. British Library, Untold Lives: Sharing stories from the pastWeb. 1 Feb 2012. <http://britishlibrary.typepad.co.uk/untoldlives/2012/01/blood-writing-in-buddhist-scrolls.html>.

Hu, Jie. "In Search of Lin Zhou's Soul." Posted June 10, 2008. 2004. Web, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DwkDeisygcM.

Kieschnick, John. The Eminent Monk: Buddhist Ideals in Medieval Chinese Hagiography. United States: Kuroda Institute, 1997.

Pan, Philip P. "A Past Written In Blood." Washington Post: Breaking News, World, US, DC News & Analysis. 03 July 2008. Web. 10 Feb. 2012. <http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/02/AR2008070203677.html?nav=hcmodule>.

"Tanguts vs Song Dynasty." imperialchina.org. N.p., 2011. Web. 2 Feb 2012. <http://www.imperialchina.org/Xi-Xia.html>.

Wang, Zheng. Women in the Chinese enlightenment: oral and textual histories. Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1999. eBook. <http://books.google.com/books?id=unObToGSvUwC&printsec=frontcover

PART 1: https://docs.google.com/present/embed?id=dc4f2tj3_2cprh46fk

PART 2: https://docs.google.com/present/view?id=dc4f2tj3_34ds98bd7q