Page:Christianity in China, Tartary, and Thibet Volume I.djvu/298

286 286 CHRISTIANITY IN CHINA, ETC. crushed them all indifferently whenever their policy or their interest seemed to demand it. They feigned friendship for Christianity and Christian princes merely that they might obtain the assistance they needed ; but they had much more regard for their own armies than for any religion Avhatever. It is true, however, that the Christian missionaries scattered about the further parts of Asia did at this time receive a friendly recep- tion from the Grand Khan, who was occupied in endeavouring by all methods to effect the civilisation of his still barbarous subjects. With this view he received equally well all religious foreigners of whatever country or creed. But Kublai Khan was, nevertheless, in no respect a Christian, and from the year 1260, he had made his choice of the religion which he desired his subjects to embrace. Following the example of the ancient kings of India, of several Tartar princes, and of some Chinese emperors of the great dynasty of Thang, he had created a pontiff, under the title of " Master of the Kingdom," and had honoured with this office a young Buddhist ecclesiastic, a Thibetan by birth, who had been for seven years a great favourite with him. It was through this person, whose family held the office of high priest to the kings of Thibet for ten generations, that the succession of the ancient Buddhist patriarchs was continued, and that of Grand Lamas commenced; and it was also since his time that Lamaism, or re- formed Buddhism, became the common religion of all Mongols. History informs us that the adoption of a new worship was with Kublai an affair of policy rather than of conviction ; and, indeed, one must know very little of the Chinese, amongst whom Kublai had been edu- cated, to suppose that conviction has usually had any-