The history of China is full of interesting characters and incidents and in this occasional series of articles which Sallie has asked me to write, I will be trying to recount some of these to you. The first one that I have chosen concerns various rebellions, and in particular that of the Yellow Turbans, that took place during the second Han dynasty that lasted from 23 A.D to 220 A.D.


THE REBELLION OF THE YELLOW TURBANS


The rebellion of the Yellow Turbans began in the year 184 A.D. during the last years of the second Han dynasty. At the time that the rebellion took place, the gains initially made by the empire had long since vanished. The country was controlled by a privileged group of eunuchs whose interests were far from those of the neglected and impoverished peasant class. Their situation became even worse following serious flooding in the basin of the Yellow River which gave rise to food shortages and the spread of disease.

In such a situation, all that was lacking for the peasants to rise up was an inspirational leader. This need was satisfied with the emergence of Chang Chiao and his two brothers Chang Piao and Chang Liong who became the leaders of the sect that became known as the Yellow Turbans. Chiang Chao was a healer and leader of a Taoist sect called “the Great Peace”. The members of this sect believed that the life force of an individual could be increased by means of retirement from the world and the adoption of a life dedicated to discipline with emphasis on breathing technique, a healthy diet, gymnastics and the perfection of sexual technique. Illness was the result of sin and could be best combated by following Taoist tradition and respecting the concepts of yin and yang and the five elements. Amulets played an important part in the struggle against illness.

The discipline imposed by this set of beliefs made the Yellow Turbans an inspiring political and military force. By the year 184, Chiang Chiao had gathered together 360,000 followers, many of whom were armed. Such was the discipline of the Yellow Turbans that they remained in their camps and did not, as might have been expected, make use of their power to go on the rampage. Chang Chiao encouraged the members to spend days at a time in ceremonies involving chanting and the confession of sins as well as the occasional orgy.

The rebellion itself was launched to coincide with the beginning of a new 60 year cycle at the second moon of the year 184. Unfortunately for the Yellow Turbans, Chang Chiao and his two brothers were killed almost immediately and while the now leaderless army did achieve limited military success, it was all over by 188 and the Yellow Turbans disappeared into history.

Another revolutionary movement occurring at about the same time was known as the Five Bushels of Rice. This sect was called so due to the requirement that members contributed five bushels of rice to the cause and worked on road maintenance without being paid. Private property was not considered acceptable. The Five Bushels of Rice managed to set up an independent state in Shensi province in 190 A.D.

Both the Yellow Turbans and the Five Bushels of Rice were able to gather enormous following due to the penetration of Taoism into the lives of the ordinary working person. Without the unity of religious belief and practise that these people found in Taoism, it is doubtful that either of these sects could have mounted the challenges that they did to the authorities of the day.

Rebel groups with exotic names were not confined to the time of the Second Han Empire. In the brief period that separated the two Han empires between 9 and 23 A.D, China was ruled by the despot Wang Mang. The policies of Wang Mang produced much hardship in much the same way those of the Han did years later. Again, the catalyst for an uprising was the flooding of the Yellow River basin. Ironically, given the events of later years, the rebels wanted to restore the freshly deposed Han dynasty. They painted their faces so as to look like demons and terrify their opponents and went by the name of the Red Eyebrows. Unlike the Yellow Turbans, the Red Eyebrows were successful not least as they enjoyed the support of the rich families who had done well from the Han and wanted to see them back. The rebellion was a success and lead to the restoration of the Han in 23 A.D.  Things did not turn out so well for the Red Eyebrows as the Han saw them as a threat and wiped them out shortly after they returned to power.

Stella Yoke

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