The Transformation of Historical Material in Religious Storytelling: The Story of Huang Chao (d. 884) in the Baojuan of Mulian Rescuing his Mother in Three Rebirths

This paper deals with the portrayal of a historical figure, the rebel leader Huang Chao(d. 884),in a Qing religious text in the baojuan (precious scroll) genre. This study considers the Baojuanof Mulian Rescuing His Mother in Three Rebirths (ca. nineteenth century)as a representative example of the practice of embedding historical events and figures in popular literature of the late imperial period. The study also takes into account other related materials, most notably novels and plays that also portray the failed Huang Chao rebellion. It demonstrates how different literary and religious traditions contributed to Huang Chao’s image in thisbaojuan text. The main aims of this project include tracing the literary sources of the Huang Chao image in the baojuan text; the identification of similar features shared by Huang Chao and another figure from popular and religious literature, the demon-queller, Zhong Kui; an analysis of the portrayal of Huang Chao in the role of an exorcist; and an interpretation of the baojuan text in the context of popular ritual traditions. An exploration of the literary and historical sources of this text illustrates the interaction of elite and popular values in Chinese popular literature of the late imperial period, and the paper seeks to reevaluate baojuan texts in the context of this interaction.