Page:A Chinese Biographical Dictionary.djvu/589

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570
A Chinese Biographical Dictionary


Ta-li Fa in TiinnaD, who studied Arabic and theology and started in 1839 on a pilgrimage to Mecca, visiting also Egypt and Constantinople where he studied astronomy and other sciences for two years. After spending a year at Singapore, he reached his home in 1846. His influence among his co-religionists was immense, • and he took up the position of High Priest. He gaye warning of the intended massacre of Mussulmans in 1856, and was chosen to be Dictator of the rebels of eastern Tflnnan. He acquiesced in the terms offered by Ma Hsien to the Imperialists of Tflnnan Fa in 1860, himself accepting a monthly pension of Tls. 200. When the Viceroy was assassinated in 1862 and anarchy was feared, the o£Scials found in him the one man sufficiently respected to gpiarantee order, and he acted as Viceroy until 186S. After this he lived in honourable retirement, until Ts'ftn Yii-ying took advantage of the absence of Ma Hsien in Peking to execute him without even the form of a trial.

1485 Ma Tsu ,B| jjg. A.D. 709-788. The Patriarch Ma. A priest, • whose name in religion was ^ — * Tao I. He was the most influential ecclesiastic of his time, and leader of the Nan-yo esoteric school of Hunan. He followed in the steps of B6dhidharma, and taught abstraction of the mind from all phenomena perceived through the senses, and even from its own thoughts. Canonised by the Emperor Hsien Tsung as ^ ^ jjjp jIlS • See P^ang HaHn.

1486 Ma Tuan-lin l| Cl E§ (T. M* ^)- 1** ^®°*- ^'^' ^ ^^^^

of m ^ Lo-p4ng, whose father had been a high offidal and who was consequently provided as usual with a post. Upon the collapse of the Sung dynasty, he disappeared from public life; and taking refuge in his native place, he gave himself up to teaching, attracting many disciples from far and near and fascinating all by his untiring dialectic skill. Author of the ^ jH( ^ ^i ^ hi^e encyclopaedia of general information, the ^ ^^i and the '^Sft^'fif^*