This paper focuses on the Zijiehui, a ceremony conducted during the reign of the founder of the Yuan dynasty, Qubilai Qa’an, giving details of the nature of this Buddhist ritual and shedding light on its purpose. Qubilai conducted the Zjijiehui on three separate occasions during his reign: the first at the Kaiyuan temple in Shunde Fu, the second at Dadu, and the third at Puen temple in Xijing. The main purpose of these three occurrences of the ceremony was to impart to the participating monks and nuns the full import of monastic Buddhist precepts. This was one expression of Qubilai’s intention as ruler of the empire-and thus as a “buddha” or a “wheel turning ruler”-to establish himself as the formal legitimator of his subjects’ claim to be disciples of the Buddha. In other words, the Zijiehui was conducted as a concrete manifestation of Qubilai’s own claim to imperial status, and in this we can read his intentions in sponsoring this ritual.
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