If you view the territorial maps of China's past dynasties together, there will be a "great weight loss" from the Yuan to the Ming Dynasty that is impossible to ignore. Therefore, some people criticize the Ming Dynasty, thinking that although the Han people regained control of the Central Plains, they lost the important Tibetan Plateau area - but is this really the case?
1. The first acquaintance between Tibet and the Ming Dynasty
In the eighth year of the Yuan Dynasty (1271), Kublai Khan proclaimed himself emperor, and the first unified regime established by ethnic minorities in Chinese history was officially established. But in fact, as early as the fourth year of Jiaxi in the Southern Song Dynasty (1240), Tibet had officially become a tributary of the Mongolian Khan. Tibetan Buddhism, which has an unshakable status in Tibet, is also well known to the Mongolian nobles... Therefore, when dynasties changed and Zhu Yuanzhang , who became the new master of the world, it was reasonable for him to believe that Tibet should also surrender to him.
But is the Ming Dynasty and is the Ming Dynasty, which is different from the Ming Dynasty after all. As a Han emperor, Zhu Yuanzhang did not know much about Tibetan society at first, especially the special status of Tibetan Buddhism in Tibet. He first sent general Xu Da to open the road from the Central Plains to Tibet, and then directly sent an envoy to ask Tubo to surrender - but naturally the Tubo "succumbed to its fate".
Whether it is due to practical considerations or considering Zhu Yuanzhang's majesty, the relationship between Ming Dynasty and Tibet cannot continue to be inconclusive: In June of the third year of Hongwu (1370), Zhu Yuanzhang sent monk Kexin to Tibet to appease, and "He was ordered to map the mountains and rivers he passed through to return home." In July of the same year, Xu Yunde, a member of the Shaanxi Province who was more familiar with the people in the west, went to many places in Gansu, Qinghai and Tibet, and successfully recruited and surrendered several Tibetan tribes, and opened up the Ming Dynasty with the core areas of Tibet Wusi Zang communication channel...
From the conquest to the edict, Zhu Yuanzhang's own understanding of Tibet actually did not deepen much. At least compared to the former Mongolian nobles, he and the Tibetan ruling class are still "strangers" to each other. But after all, the Central Plains has a tradition of "being gentle and restrained" in dealing with the outside world. After Zhu Yuanzhang, Ming Chengzu Zhu Di quickly mastered the secret of getting along with Tibet, and truly incorporated this magical snow-covered plateau into the territory of the Ming Dynasty.
2. The establishment of King Chanhua and the three Dharma Kings
In the Yuan Dynasty, the most powerful religious force in Tibet was the Sakya sect Tibetan Buddhism. Relying on the support of the Yuan court, the Sakya sect gradually strengthened its rule, so much so that at the end of the Yuan Dynasty, it fell into the predicament of excessive indulgence and the collapse of discipline.
The decline of the Sakya Sect undoubtedly provided development opportunities for other factions: Among them, the Pazhu regime was the most successful, and even once replaced the Sakya Sect and became the ruling force in Tibet recognized by the Yuan court. Even after Zhu Di succeeded to the throne, the Pazhu regime still controlled a large area of Tibet - Chengzu of the Ming Dynasty had the idea of "capturing the thief first" - canonized Drakpa Gyaltsen, the leader of the Pazhu regime, as "Initiation" The national teacher is the King of Chanhua."
Before Zhu Di, Zhu Yuanzhang had actually respected Drakpa Gyaltsen as the "Initiation Master" in order to win over him. But this letter only recognized its status in Buddhism. Judging from the next choices of the Pazhu regime, Zhu Di's new "King Chanhua" is the testimony that the Ming Dynasty correctly understood the reality of the integration of Tibetan religion and politics, and truly brought Tibet into unified governance.
After the canonization of Drakpa Gyaltsen in the first year of Yongle (1403), Zhu Di immediately sent an invitation to the Karma Kagyu sect fifth living Buddha Yin Shepa, hoping that he could go to Nanjing to meet with him. After careful weighing and months of traveling, Deyin Xieba finally went to the capital of the Ming Dynasty to meet Zhu Di. Zhu Di gave it the title originally given to the Sakya sect Pasipa by the emperor of the Yuan Dynasty "The Ten Thousand Actions, the Most Perfect, the Perfect Enlightenment, the Wonderful Wisdom, the Good and Universal Blessing of the Country, the Dharma King of the West, the Great Goodness and Freedom" "Buddha" is the Dharma King.
After the Karmapa, Kunze Siba of the Sakya sect and Sakyamuni of the newly emerged Gelug sect were also awarded the title of "Mahayana Dharma King" and "Great Compassionate Dharma King" respectively. The political status of Tibetan sect leaders was fully recognized and supported by the Ming Dynasty.The exchanges between the Central Plains and Tibet also progressed smoothly due to the communication between these upper-level figures.
3. The influence of tribute trade
Because Tibetan religious leaders accepted the canonization of the emperors of the Central Plains, the exchanges between Tibet and the mainland took on an important and unique aspect - the tribute trade was extremely prosperous and had far-reaching influence.
As the literal meaning goes, tribute trade means that Tibetan envoys pay tribute to the Ming court, and the Ming court returns the products needed by Tibet according to certain standards, as well as some inland specialties. Throughout the history of the Ming Dynasty, the tribute trade between Tibet and the mainland flourished not only because of the large economic gap and product differences between the two places, but also because the central government has always been very generous to Tibet - according to Tibetan historical records, one shipment The team for the central reward can even be as high as 70,000 to 80,000 people.
In the trade with huge disparity in the amount of tribute and gifts, Tibet not only obtained a large amount of physical goods, but also acquired advanced agriculture, construction, tanning, gold and silver processing and other technologies that were urgently needed for development from the mainland. The first porcelain kiln in Tibet, "Pubu Porcelain Kiln", appeared under such a trade background; when the eminent monk Tangdong Jebu was still alive, the nearly 60 iron cable bridges organized and built by him were also the product of cooperation between mainland and Tibetan craftsmen...
At the same time, Although the products introduced to the mainland from Tibet are not many in comparison, they are of high quality. And because Tibetan society is inextricably linked to Tibetan Buddhism, Tibetan Buddhism has also entered the eyes of more mainland people through architecture, arts and crafts, etc. Even in Buddhist temples in the mainland, there have been wonderful scenes of Chinese Buddhist monks and Tibetan Buddhist monks living in the same temple and practicing Buddhism together.
In fact, the Ganden , Drepung and Sera monastery that still stand on the snowy plateau, as well as Wuta Temple in Beijing, Yuangzhao Temple in Wutai Mountain , etc. are all from Tibet. The product and testimony of interactions with the Ming Dynasty. Although King Chan and Dharma King have passed away long ago, and the Ming Dynasty has become a thing of the past, the imprint of their interactions still remains in our culture - this connection will not be severed by other people's words, just like Tibet is China inherent territory.
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