Duan Zhi Lian

Biography

Accession and Change of Era Name

In 1200 (6th year of the Qingyuan era, Southern Song) Duan Zhixing died and his son Duan Zhilian succeeded him. Another account lists him as the nineteenth ruler of Dali with the temple name Yingzong. The following year he changed the era name to Fengli, and later used Yuanshou as well; a further account records the variant "Tianshou". A summary in another account contains the sentence "in 1200 Duan Zhengxing came to the throne", which conflicts with its own context, where Duan Zhilian succeeds his father and Duan Zhengxing had already abdicated earlier; this is an evident error in a personal name and is not followed here.

Seeking Buddhist Texts in Song China

The main text of another account states that in 1202 (2nd year of the Jiatai era, Southern Song) Duan Zhilian sent envoys into Song territory and obtained 1,465 fascicles of the Dazangjing, which were placed in the Wuhua Tower at Dali; a further account also gives 1202 and the same number. The summary of another account dates the event to 1201 (1st year of the Fengli era, Dali). Because the main texts of the two accounts agree and one of them supplies the Jiatai 2 regnal date, the entry adopts 1202 while recording the internal conflict in the source comparison. The surviving sources say only that envoys were sent for the scriptures; they do not show that Duan Zhilian went to the Southern Song in person or supervised the translation himself.

Death and Succession

The information card and introduction of one account give 1205 as the year of his death, while its main text also lists 1204 and the variant "he reigned only one year"; the main value of another account is 1204 with 1205 noted as well. The entry follows the main value of 1205 and preserves the variants. Duan Zhixiang succeeded him; the introduction of one account calls him a younger brother of Duan Zhilian while the main text also gives the variant "son", and the entry follows the common statement of both accounts that he was a younger brother.

Major Activities

Political and institutional context

The cached record places Duan Zhi Lian within the institutions and conflicts of Song.

Source-based record

Personal Relations

• Relationships are recorded from the cached source text and should be read together with the related entries listed below.

Historical Assessment

There are few records of Duan Zhilian's reign, and the acquisition of the Dazangjing shows the exchange of Buddhist texts between the Dali royal house and the Southern Song. What can be confirmed is the embassy, the number of fascicles and their storage in the Wuhua Tower; no further inference can be drawn about the circulation of the texts, the financial burden or his personal religious motives. The divergence over the year of his death and over the year of the scripture mission is also a reminder that later research must check the original histories.