34 Taenzer
members, but the president was invariably the oldest person of the group.61
Circulars were sent around to notify the members of the items to contribute
for the festivals. Bylaws stipulating punishment—usually a jug of wine—for
not abiding to them were formulated by the members. They were all written
in Chinese, except that on the back of one circular concerning a funeral the
incoming contributions are listed in Tibetan.62 According to the latter manu-
script not all members contributed. This shows that on such a short notice—
two days—it was not possible for all members of the group to come up with
the required material, namely one bre63 of flour, one bre of millet and half a
bolt (Chin. pi 疋)64 of coloured material (Chin. sewu 色物).65 Some brought
beer instead of cereals. It seems that the person who collected the contribu-
tions on this special occasion mentioned in this manuscript was not able to
write Chinese although all of the members bore Chinese given names. People
who wanted to join a worship club had to hand in a petition, whereupon all
members decided on their admission. Theoretically open to all citizens, mem-
bership in a worship club was definitely limited to the higher strata of society.
Members had to be able to read simple sentences, pay an admission fee and be
able to afford the current costs—each year around 60 litres (1 shi) of cereals.
The manuscripts extant from the time of Tibetan rule over Dunhuang all
refer to private worship clubs which assembled not only to celebrate Buddhist
festivities but also the spring and autumn festival. Moreover, its members
were obliged to help each other in times of hardship. This method of organ-
ising tasks started during the time of Tibetan rule since the admittance fee
was calculated in loads (Tib. khal)—a Tibetan measure of capacity; however, it
became prominent during the following period of local rule when such groups
were formed to carry out government-related work as well.
That the people of the higher strata of society of Dunhuang wished to per-
form the religious festivals in their way can be seen in the formation of these
61 Yamamoto Tatsuro, Yoshikatsu Dohi, and Yusaku Ishida ed., Tunhuang and Turfan
Documents Concerning Social and Economic History: IV She Association and Related Docu-
ments (A) Introduction and Texts (Tokyo: The Toyo Bunko, 1989), 7.
62 P. tib. 1102.
63 1 Tib. bre = 1 Chin. dou (斗); it amounted to around 6.6 litres. See Taenzer, Dunhuang
Region during Tibetan Rule, 400.
64 The size of a bolt (Chin. pi) is about 54 × 120cm.
65 The coloured material consisted of blue, red, maroon, yellow and white silk of various
types. Contributions of cloth were the usual demands for funerals.