Zhangjia is a title given to a religious leader similar to the Dalai Lama’s. The Seventh Zhangjia was a legendary national teacher during three dynasties: the Qing Dynasty, the Beiyang Government of the Republic of China, and the Nationalist Government of Chiang Kai-shek. He led a magnificent life full of legends.
Despite this, a lot of controversy was rumored about him by the general public from the outside world. Some people questioned whether he was a real practitioner and labeled him a “Political Monk.” This label followed him until the day of his cremation, which led to miracles that stunned everyone!
The legendary life of Zhangjia
During the reign of Emperor Kangxi, he canonized four religious leaders of Tibetan Buddhism, and Zhangjia was one of them. The other three are the Dalai Lama in the former Tibet, the Panchen Lama in the later Tibet, and the Jebtsundamba Hutuktu in Outer Mongolia.
Among these four religious leaders, Zhangjia was the one the Qing Emperor valued the most. As soon as Emperor Kangxi came to power, he appointed the Second Zhangjia the national teacher and named him “Grand Master of Universal Kindness and Compassion.” During the reign of Qianlong, he also appointed the Third Zhangjia, the leader of the four religious leaders, and converted the Lama Temple for him to use.
Assisting the Qing Dynasty
The Seventh Zhangjia was born in 1890 in Datong County, Qinghai. At the age of eight, he was recognized as the reincarnation of the Sixth Zhangjia. Emperor Guangxu quickly took him in and made him inherit the title of Grand Master the following year. Empress Dowager Cixi liked this young Master and often kept him by her.
When he was 10 years old, in 1900, there was a severe drought. Emperor Guangxu issued an edict to pray for rain. The seventh Zhangjia burned incense and chanted scriptures in front of the Shakyamuni Buddha statue. Three days later, heavy rain came, and the drought was immediately alleviated.
On August 14 of the same year, the Eight-Power Allied Forces captured Beijing. Empress Cixi and Emperor Guangxu hurriedly fled to Taiyuan. At that time, the Seventh Zhangjia was on his way to Mount Wutai. Upon hearing that the Empress Dowager and the Emperor had fled, he immediately changed his route and rushed over with the aid of 1,000 taels of silver.
When Empress Cixi saw him, she burst into tears and said: “I have nothing to give you in return, so I will give you the folding fan I painted myself as a return gift.”
Empress Cixi’s First Chief Eunuch, Li Lianying, hugged Little Zhangjia and asked him: “Master, where are we going?” Zhangjia pointed to the West with his little finger and said, “Let’s go to the West!” Everyone obediently went westward and finally settled in Xi’an, escaping the impending disaster.
Regarding this event of taking refuge in Xi’an, the 36th image of Tui Bei Tu, a Chinese prophecy book, had already predicted it, saying that “mother and son, regardless of order, look West to Chang’an to pay homage.” Zhangjia, who was only 10 years old, pointed with his little finger, and this coincided with the prophecy in Tui Bei Tu. It can be seen that Zhangjia could have predicted this since he was very young.
In 1908, Empress Cixi and Emperor Guangxu passed away in succession. Seeing that the Qing Dynasty was doomed, everyone began to plan their retreat. The Dalai Lama in Tibet planned to ally with Britain to build his independent kingdom. The Jebtsundamba Khutuktu in the North also contacted Russia to seek independence for Outer Mongolia and become a theocratic king. Only the Seventh Zhangjia, aged 18 at the time, remained loyal to the young Emperor Puyi.
Assisting the Republic of China
As expected, the Republic of China came into being. What was unexpected was that Zhangjia soon announced his recognition of the “Republic of China” and even returned to Inner Mongolia to travel around to persuade everyone to submit to the new government. Many people did not understand and said that this was a big turn. The Qing Dynasty treated him well! Is he a “Political Monk” who just adapted to the changing situation?
The transition between the Republic of China and the Qing Dynasty is Chinese history’s most peaceful dynastic change. There was no war, and it had little impact on the people. Emperor Puyi took the initiative to abdicate and cede to the Republic of China. The government of the Republic of China later treated Puyi well and allowed him to continue to be Emperor in the Forbidden City. All food, clothing, and daily expenses remained the same as before. So there was no conflict or hatred between the Republic of China and the Qing Dynasty. Zhangjia’s turning to assist the Republic of China was not considered a betrayal of the Qing Dynasty.
The government of the Republic of China was also grateful to the Seventh Zhangjia for his kindness and respected him. The Beiyang government of the Republic of China and later the Nationalist government of Chiang Kai-shek also solemnly appointed him as the national teacher. This is the origin of the title of “Zhangjia Three Dynasties National Teacher.” The National Palace Museum in Taiwan still preserves the document and seal of Chiang Kai-shek’s Nationalist Government in 1947 that conferred Zhangjia the title of “National Protector and Pure Awareness Assisting Teaching Master.”
The seventh Zhangjia, during the crisis of the War of Resistance against Japan, said: “Move the capital to Chongqing, and the resistance against Japan can be won.” These words helped Chiang Kai-shek escape the fatal crisis and ushered in the victory of the War of Resistance.
However, the Republic of China and the Qing Dynasty have completely different ways of ruling. Zhangjia had to fulfill his responsibilities as a national teacher and inevitably had to attend social events or face complicated interpersonal relationships. Since he was a monk, would this affect his practice if he hung out with ordinary people all day?
The Seventh Zhangjia later held a high position in the government of the Republic of China. He had always been loyal to the government. During the Anti-Japanese War, he accompanied Chiang Kai-shek through many difficulties. At the end of the civil war between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party, he successfully predicted the fate of Chiang Kai-shek’s Nationalist Government in retreating to Taiwan with the words “Victory does not leave Xi’an and defeat does not leave Taiwan.”
In 1949, Chiang Kai-shek retreated to Taiwan as he had predicted. This time, Zhangjia did not choose to stay on the mainland to assist the new government, but went to Taiwan. Those who once said that Zhangjia was able to adapt to the changing situation at hand were puzzled by his move.
Follow Taiwan
Zhangjia’s choice to go to Taiwan was very correct. The other two religious leaders stayed behind in the mainland. The Dalai Lama reluctantly stayed for another 10 years, but when he saw that the situation was not right, he found an opportunity to escape. The Panchen Lama was more naïve and wrote a 10,000-word letter to the government to express his opinions, and as a result, he was imprisoned for more than 10 years.
After arriving in Taiwan, Zhangjia found himself far away from his people and without his land; what else could he do? In addition to continuing to hold important positions in the government, he also began to perform the duties of the Chairman of the Buddhist Association of China. When he had free time, he traveled around Taiwan to promote Buddhism. He removed his Lama clothes, put on the Han robes, and began preaching the Han land’s Buddhist scriptures to make them more acceptable to everyone.
Zhangjia had been well-educated since childhood and had a high level of attainment in Han Buddhism. Despite this, some people were unhappy with him, saying Buddhism advocates the non-duality principle. “Is it okay for you to be indecisive?”
As usual, Zhangjia did not argue their point. Only those who followed him knew that he was an enlightened monk. They said that even if the Master did not speak, they would always feel calm and peaceful around him.
Until his death, many controversies surround him. The biggest label applied to him was that he was a “Political Monk,” not a true practitioner. However, on the day of his cremation, these controversies were challenged!
Mystical events and icons appear during cremation
According to people, it was drizzling on the day of the cremation. But as the flames rose, a lotus flower shape appeared, shining brightly. Then, an unusual fragrance wafted out of the flames, which could be smelled 10 miles away. These were not the most outstanding miracles. It was the relics that remained and burned out after cremation.
In Buddhism, a standard is applied to denote a practitioner’s ranking. This standard is the presence of sarira. After the flames of cremation die out, the number of sarira that the body gives out accounts for the rank you are given as a practitioner. It would be very good for ordinary monks to burn out a few. For the Seventh Zhangjia, the sarira reached the tens of thousands.
According to the data on the Internet, some say 6,000, and some say tens of thousands. In short, there were too many to count, some big, some small, in various shapes, emitting a soft light. At that time, many media were present to report and take pictures of the event.
After this news report, the Seventh Zhangjia’s reputation was finally cleared. Both those who had belittled him and his disciples were stunned by this evidence. In terms of the number of relics, at least in modern China, no one can match it. The Seventh Zhangjia’s realm is beyond everyone’s imagination.
These relics are preserved in the Stupa of the Zhangjia Living Buddha on the square hillside behind the Zhonghe Temple in Beitou District, Taipei. If you visit Taiwan, you can see it.
The moment before the Seventh Zhangjia passed away, he said that he would not reincarnate until the mainland was restored. Although the Dalai Lama has been certified as a Zhangjia for many years, the Republic of China has not recognized it. So the Seventh Zhangjia became the last Zhangjia.
Translated by Chua BC and edited by Maria
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