|
|
 |
The Hu-lan deb-ther (Mongolian for: Red Book; Tibetan title: Deb-ther dmar-po) is a history of China from the viewpoint of a Tibetan noble named Kun-dga'h rdo-rĵe ("Gongge Duorzhi" 公哥朵兒只 ). Beginning with the origin of Buddhism in India and some Buddhist dynasties in India, Kungah Dorje describes the Chinese dynasties from the Zhou 周 (11th cent.-221 BCE) to the downfall of Song 宋 in 1368. He then proceeds to China's neighbours establishing Chinese-style states, like the Western Xia 西夏, as well as the and the Mongols from their origin to the end of the Yuan dynasty 元 (1279-1368). The last part of this chapter must have been written by another person - Kungah Dorje died in 1365, just before the Ming dynasty 明 (1368-1644) was founded. The central part of the book is nevertheless the history of Tibet from the early kings to the transmission of Buddhism and the development of the Tibetan schools of Buddhism.
The "Red Book" (Chinese: Hongce 紅冊) is divided either into 26 or 8 parts - depending on the edition.
Kun-dga'h rdo-rĵe retired from his office as commander of the Chaliba brigade (Chaliba wanhu 搽里八萬户 or Caiba wanhu 蔡巴萬户) in 1352 and started compilingseveral historical books about Tibetan history which are very important for the historiography of Tibet (Tubo 吐蕃) in its early centuries.
Source: Zhou Qingshu 周清澍 (1992). "Hongce 紅冊", in: Zhongguo da baike quanshu 中國大百科全書, Zhongguo lishi 中國歷史, vol. 1, p. 367. Beijing/Shanghai: Zhongguo da baike quanshu chubanshe.
|
|
|
Chinese literature according to the four-category system
|
|
