ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the process in which the imperial god of war Guandi or Emperor Guan was introduced to Tibet and transformed from a translocal deity to a lesser guardian deity and a subordinate representative of the eastern land. It is based on the historical analysis of gazetteers, stone stele inscriptions, and prayers, as well as ethnographic study of the Guandi temples and rituals. The chapter demonstrates that Qing soldiers brought the Guandi cult to Tibet for blessings and protection in the eighteenth century. Meanwhile the Tibetan Buddhist lamas and officials in Beijing and Tibet identified Guandi as a lesser guardian deity in the Tibetan pantheon and invented legends, rituals, prayers, and genealogy for him. This chapter argues that on the one hand the power of the emperor – both the secular Qing emperor and celestial Emperor Guan – penetrated Tibetan daily and ritual life through this process; on the other hand taming the imperial god of war as a guardian deity and incorporating Guandi as representative of China in the Tibetan world elevated the spiritual power of Tibetan Buddhism.
