A Study of the Life of Monk Dalang of the Early Qing Dynasty and His Contribution to Water Conservancy in Sichuan (Shu)

The Dalang Weir (irrigation system) has benefited local people in the Chengdu Plain since its completion in the early Qing Dynasty. After extensive research of historical background details, and channeling scenes of the Weir construction, and sifting through relevant literature in combination with chronicles, chorography, and tablet inscriptions from the Ming and Qing dynasties, assembled evidence indicates that the Weir was built during the autumn of the first reign to the spring of the second reign of Emperor Kangxi. The Weir is an important expansion of the famous Dujiangyan Irrigation System and after analyzing and assessing the value of the project under the principle of “making the past serve the present,” it is also proof of a Buddhist Monk’s active participation in a public welfare undertaking. In addition to inheriting the basic logic of Shu’s water culture cultivated by Yu the Great, King Bieling of Shu, and Li Bing during their water control activities, it implies the spirit of joint efforts of officials and the populace to society and posterity. Monk Dalang, the initiator of the project, therefore, deserves great respect from later generations for his outstanding merits and virtues as well as his significant contribution to societ