Page 422 - The Encyclopedia of Taoism v1_A-L

DU DAOJIAN

there in different ways and was especially venerated in the Middle Ages by
warriors, as she was believed to protect and make invisible those who bore
her effigy or invoked her name (Hall 1990). In Tibet, Marici (Od-zer Can-
China, she is often represented with the eighteen arms of CUl)91 (Zhunti '*
ma) is frequently associated with the Green Tara (de Mallmann 1975, 263). In

1'tt) and shares CUl)~l's mudra; as a form of Avalokitesvara (Guanyin ft 'i§f),
she is especially related to human beings and her origins as a controller of
demonic forces appear to be forgotten. Traces of her ancient features, however,
are found in a *Shenxiao ritual in which she is closely associated with]iutian
Leizu JL:7C-mf.§., the Thunder Ancestor of the Nine Heavens, supreme ruler
of the Thunder (*Daofa hUiyuan,j. 83; Xiantian Doumu zougao xuanke :%:7Ci.J-
i±J:*..1±:."E"N, CT 1452).

Monica ESPOSITO
III Frederic 1992, In 226; Hall 1990; Little 2000b, 282-83; Maspero 1981, 157-58;
Strickmann 1996, 154
* beidou; DEITIES: THE PANTHEON ; TAOISM AND CHINESE BUDDHISM

Du Daojian

1237- 1318; zi: Chuyi ~~; haD: Nangu zi 1¥f~T
(Master of the Southern Valley)

Du Daojian, who came from Dangtu El ~ (Anhui), formally belonged to
the *Xuanjiao institution created by the Mongol rulers in southern China.
At the age of fourteen, having received revelations, he moved to Mount Mao
(*Maoshan,]iangsu) and became a Taoist at the Shengxuan guan n"Rfi (Abbey
of the Ascension to the Mystery). In 1274, when the Mongols were planning
to invade southern China, Du travelled to Beijing to plead with Khubilai khan
(Shizu, r. 1260-1294) on behalf of the southern populations. This undertaking
turned out to be a success, and Du became an official representative of the
Yuan regime in the south. Starting a tradition of indigenous political involve-
ment in Mongol rule, he appealed to southern officials and scholars to display
a yielding attitude for their own sake.
During Yuan Renzong's (r. 1312- 20) reign, Du administered the Zongyang
gong * Jl&;} '§ (Palace of Ancestral Yang) in Wulin m;;t,f (Zhejiang), a cultural
center that played an important role in the intellectual life of southern China,
and supervised the restoration of the Laojun tai ~;g lE (Lord Lao's Terrace)