Page 682 - The Encyclopedia of Taoism v1_A-L

640 THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF TAOISM A-L

have a more or less revolutionary intensity depending on their milieu. For
sectarian movements such as the one that produced the *Dongyuan shenzhou
jing, a political message underlies the religious import: the apocalyptic out-
burst is both the result and the cause of the fall of the rulingJin dynasty, and
Li Hong's advent anticipates the up coming reestablishment of the Han house
by Liu Yu )jfIJ Ni- (356-422), founder of the new Liu Song dynasty (420-79). The
political program advanced by these devotees, however, does not go beyond a
simplistic, conformist utopia. Li Hong would govern a kingdom of absolute
equality, peace, and happiness through non-action (*wuwei). All the virtuous
survivors of the apocalypse---equally tall, good looking and immortal-would
be granted high official posts in the theocratic bureaucracy.
Cosmic god for the intellectual elite of orthodox Taoism, and messianic
bearer of a new Heavenly Mandate for sectarian Taoists, Li Hong shepherded
the hopes of people prey to apocalyptic anxiety. Several prophets in flesh and
blood who called themselves Li or Li Hong, mentioned in the official histories
since the Han period, were executed for deceiving the masses and causing
social disorder. Most of them belonged to the *Lijia dao, a long-lasting sect
that spread throughout southern China during the Six Dynasties, and was
condemned as heterodox by the Taoists themselves.
Nevertheless, Li Hong's destiny was by no means limited to that of a flouted
and persecuted heretic. At the opposite end of the social scale, he was also
honored as an imperial messiah: official ideology promptly took over Taoist
messianic beliefs and used them for dynastic legitimation. Many emperors
claimed to be incarnations of the divine Lord to justify their mandates. The
tradition of Li as messiah-emperor continued from the Han period down to
at least the Tang dynasty, of which Li was considered to be the divine ancestor
(Bokenkamp 1994).
The appropriation of Li Hong's myth by the ruling houses did not preclude
his appearance, time and again, as a popular savior prophet. His last appear-
ance in Chinese history was in III2 CE, when he was executed for fomenting
a rebellion.

Christine MOLLIER
m Bokenkamp 1997, 275-306 passim; Li Fengmao 1986, 282-304; Mollier 1990,
10-1 3, 159-62; Seidel 1969; Seidel 1969-70; Sunayama Minoru 1990, 69-92
* Laozi and Laojun; housheng; Housheng daojun /ieji; APOCALYPTIC ESCHATOL-
OGY; MESSIANISM AND MILLENARIANISM