Wutai Buddhist music

Wutai Buddhist music, Shanxi intangible cultural heritage [Photo/wutaishan.city.sohu.com]

Music is a major part of Mount Wutai, Shanxi province, going way back to ancient India and intangible part of China's cultural heritage, rooted in Buddhism and which, at Wutai, reached a peak during the Tang Dynasty (618 - 907) when Buddhism was followed by the royal family and gradually spread to the general public.

Musical instruments arrived at Wutai in the late Yuan (1271 - 1368) and had an effect on the Buddhist rituals at Wutai then further developed during the Ming Dynasty (1368 - 1644), blending musical styles from former dynasties and folk music. And, when the emperors of the Qing Dynasty (1644 - 1911) showed a preference for Tibetan Buddhism, Wutai absorbed some Tibetan musical styles.

Members of the Wutai music society are taking on a performance. [Photo/wutaishan.city.sohu.com]

In more modern times, new generations of Buddhists began studying western musical theory and some newer Wutai versions have even adopted contemporary pop elements, with some ordinary Buddhists thinking that this makes the music and chanting of sutras easier.

Unfortunately, since the musical arts at Mount Wutai have mainly been handed down from one generation to the next orally, it is quite easy for the legacy to fade from sight. In addition, it can take years for a Buddhist disciple to become an adept, and at the same time, the monks at the training center have a great deal of mobility, so there are now only about 50 musical virtuoso monks at Wutai, while all the works in the ancient collection require hundreds of participants.

The Buddhist music book from Wutai [Photo/wutaishan.city.sohu.com]

So, the Wutai administrators consider the Buddhist musical legacy and its inheritance a pressing problem to be dealt with.

Edited by Roger Bradshaw