(Minghui.org) Amid the dazzling splendor of the Great Tang period, there was a quiet and graceful figure who took the path of seeking immortality – Princess Yuzhen, ninth daughter of Emperor Ruizong (Li Dan), and younger sister of Emperor Xuanzong (Li Longji).
Her life was marked by the tempestuous tides of palace power struggles, which she eventually chose to leave behind, and follow the path beyond the mortal world to find a sacred refuge where her soul was at last in peace.
Quiet Purity of an Original Aspiration Beneath Imperial Splendor
Princess Yuzhen was born into an era of dramatic power shifts within the Tang imperial court, and her childhood was far from a life of trouble-free luxury and sweetness. Her mother Consort Dou died at the hand of her grandmother Empress Dowager Wu Zetian when she was only two or three years old.
Through the ruthless court intrigues, where kin turned against kin, she came to see the fragility and cruelty of worldly power, and began to harbor a wish to leave it all behind.
While other women in the imperial family were treading carefully amidst the political turmoils of the imperial court, Princess Yuzhen made an astonishing decision – to renounce worldly life and devote herself to the pursuit of the Dao.
She and her elder sister Princess Jinxian begged their father to allow them to relinquish everything and to find refuge in the Dao.
At first, Emperor Ruizong was reluctant to see his daughters go, but respected their aspirations in the end. He commissioned grand Taoist temples for the sisters, where they could reside and dedicate themselves to the pursuit of the Dao.
From that point on, the Great Tang had one less princess, but gained a Daoist nun of rare purity and grace, known by her religious name “Wushang Zhen” (无上真), meaning “Supreme Truthfulness.”
Decades later, Emperor Xuanzong (her elder brother) bestowed upon her another Daoist name “Chiying” (持盈) meaning “Holding fullness without overflowing and remaining whole without diminution.” The name could not have been more fitting, reflecting the restraint, serenity, and inner strength that shaped her entire life.
Secluded Paradise Amidst Mountains and Rivers
Princess Yuzhen didn’t live a reclusive life after she left the palace. Daoism was highly respected during the Great Tang at that time, and Daoist nuns also enjoyed very high social status and much freedom.
Princess Yuzhen traveled extensively to well-known mountains, and people today can still visit her Daoist retreats at Zhongnan Mountain and Wangwu Mountain, as well as sites where she is said to have left traces of immortality.
According to ancient inscriptions at Wangwu Mountain, on days to observe a ritual fast and to receive the Dao, she would set up an altar and construct a ceremonial sanctuary on the Immortal Terrace, with incense and lamps shimmering like stars in the night sky, while gold and precious offerings were presented in a solemn covenant with Heaven.
Inscriptions also vividly described scenes when she entered deep meditation, and deities in the mountain appeared, lining up around her, with the pure and ethereal strains of bamboo flutes drifting through the air. Legends even tell of sweet dew falling in the stillness of night, while flowers mysteriously blossomed across the courtyard trees.
Such descriptions may well reflect the Tang dynasty’s reverence for the Dao and its tradition of praising the sacred. Yet, they also reveal from another perspective, how she was regarded in her own time – not simply as a woman devoted to spiritual cultivation, but as one who had attained the Dao – an adept believed capable of communicating with Heaven and Earth, and entering the mysterious realm of the Dao.
According to legends, Princess Yuzhen took advantage of her special status, and from time to time, turned her Daoist retreat into a haven where the literati of her time found support and inspiration.
Two widely known such stories involve Wang Wei and Li Bai. It’s said that the princess was so impressed by a melody Wang Wei played on the pipa that she recommended the young man to the imperial court. Wang Wei later came first in the Jingzhao Prefecture examination and went on to pass the imperial examination.
The “Poet Immortal” Li Bai, also resided at Princess Yuzhen’s retreat once. It’s said that through the princess’s recommendation, he was able to enter the Imperial Hanlin Academy and serve in the imperial court.
Renouncing Imperial Title, Returning Estates and Assets
In 744, the third year of Tianbao era, Princess Yuzhen took another highly unconventional action. Having seen through the decadence and frivolity that pervaded the political climate at the time, she submitted a memorial to her brother, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, requesting her title as princess be revoked, and expressing her wish to return the estates and assets that had been bestowed upon her.
She said in the memorial that she was granddaughter of Emperor Gaozong, daughter of Emperor Ruizong, and younger sister of his Majesty. Having attained such a status that was by no means lowly, why should she still rely on the title of princess and the revenues of a fief to affirm her social status? She begged the emperor to revoke her status as a princess, along with the estates and wealth bestowed upon her.
Emperor Xuanzong wouldn’t accept Princess Yuzhen’s appeal at first, but later changed his mind and granted her requests. From that point onwards, Princess Yuzhen broke free from the bonds of privilege associated with the Li imperial family, and became, in a profound sense, a truly independent and unfettered Daoist cultivator.
Remaining Life Spent in Purity, Detachment, and Spiritual Freedom
Towards the end of the Tianbao era, the An Lushan Rebellion erupted, plunging the entire Tang empire into the flames of war and a storm of upheaval. Later, Emperor Suzong succeeded to the throne. As the new emperor marginalized the former officials who had served under Emperor Xuanzong, Princess Yuzhen’s circumstances also became increasingly difficult. She later moved to live in Yuzhen Temple.
She spent her final years mostly in Lingdu Temple at Wangwu Mountain, and remained focused on spiritual cultivation. In the first year of Baoying era (762), this legendary princess passed away peacefully in her early 70s, and according to the dynastic histories, was buried in Fengxi Plain in Wannian County near Chang’an.
Princess Yuzhen spent her entire life showing the world a different way of life for a female from the imperial family. She chose not to be a victim of political power struggles, or someone indulging in worldly splendor and luxury. Instead, with a Daoist whisk in hand, she cultivated the truest and most serene version of herself under the bright moonlight during the era of the Great Tang.
Category: Traditional Culture
