《岱史》Vol. 13

Volume 13 of the Records of Mount Tai documents the incense tax system. What exactly was this "incense tax"? Devotees who came to Mount Tai to pray would present incense offerings to the deities while donating money and goods. The authorities recorded these donations and levied taxes to supplement state revenues.

In the entire realm, only Mount Tai in Shandong and Mount Taihe (Wudang Mountain) in Hubei collected such incense taxes. However, since Wudang isn't one of the Five Sacred Mountains, Mount Tai stood alone among them with this practice. When pilgrims came in droves, undertaking arduous journeys to worship, this tax not only enriched the treasury but also sustained local livelihoods: sedan chair carriers earned wages, merchants profited from trade, monasteries maintained their operations through donations, and even beggars survived on pilgrims' alms. Truly, this taxation system brought widespread benefits to the region.

Precious metals, jewels, horses and other offerings from devotees were uniformly managed by officials, with biannual account settlements. These contributions arose spontaneously from divine inspiration, not through government coercion. The natural accumulation and equitable distribution of wealth operated with such ingenious harmony that it seemed divinely orchestrated.

As a strategically vital region near the capital, Shandong already bore heavy tax burdens and corvée labor demands. Compounded by successive years of famine, commoners faced extreme hardship. Without incense tax revenue, many essential expenditures would have been unaffordable. Perhaps Heaven's protection of the nation secretly manifested through this system to relieve suffering across six prefectures. Initially administered by the Provincial Administration Commission to supplement local finances, these funds gradually became direct central government revenue.

Some officials proposed: "With state coffers now full, why not allocate these funds for famine relief, extending the deities' blessings?" This indeed reflected the compassionate consideration befitting public-minded officials. Detailed regulations for incense tax management followed:

According to established practice, one chief inspector position was created—concurrently held by a prefectural official—responsible for comprehensive oversight. Six deputy administrators (held by county magistrates as secondary appointments) assisted: two stationed at Yaocan Pavilion (a key temple at Mount Tai's base)—one collecting taxes from provincial pilgrims, the other handling out-of-province devotees, both issuing receipts. One officer at Xuanwu Gate managed collections from the mountain's northern routes.

This passage discusses the institutional changes and operational issues in the ancient incense tax management system at Mount Tai (where "Dai" refers to Mount Tai).

Regarding the appointment of incense tax officials: Originally, specialized officials were stationed at locations like Hongmen Gate and South Heaven Gate to verify tax receipts. In the fifth year of the Longqing era (1571), the system was streamlined by eliminating some positions, retaining only three deputy administrators (at Yaocan Pavilion, Xuanwu Gate, and Bixia Palace). However, during peak pilgrimage seasons, the reduced staff proved insufficient, prompting suggestions to moderately increase personnel.

Concerning the official assignment system: Management was divided into three seasonal periods annually. During the high seasons (January-April and September-December) with heavy pilgrim traffic, both chief inspectors and deputy administrators were on duty. In the low season (May-August), only deputy administrators were deployed. The quarterly rotation system created excessive staff turnover, sometimes resulting in appointed officials failing to report for duty. Considering the importance of tax revenue and pilgrim safety, proposals were made to establish permanent chief inspector positions.

About tax collection procedures: Initially, local pilgrims paid 0.054 taels of silver while out-of-province visitors paid 0.094 taels, with innkeepers escorting pilgrims to Yaocan Pavilion for payment and receipt issuance. In the eighth year of Wanli era (1580), after discovering out-of-province pilgrims evading taxes by posing as locals, a flat rate of 0.08 taels was implemented. Innkeepers were required to wrap the silver in labeled packages stored at Yaocan Pavilion's treasury, to be claimed during biannual remittance periods (summer and winter). However, some unscrupulous innkeepers substituted copper or iron for silver during tax payments, leaving insufficient funds during remittance - resulting in some fleeing or even committing suicide by hanging.

This passage documents the management system and tax distribution of devotees' donations at Mount Tai's Bixia Palace (also known as the Shrine of Bixia Yuanjun) during the Ming Dynasty.

All offerings from pilgrims—including gold, silver, jewels, jade ornaments, gold and silver figurines, copper coins, as well as ritual banners, robes, and fine silks—were collectively stored at Bixia Palace. Each summer and winter, government officials would dispatch special commissioners to the mountain. These officials, accompanied by the regular incense tax inspectors, would open the treasury for inventory. Precious items like gold and silver jewelry were transported alongside the incense tax revenue to the Provincial Administration Commission's vaults (the provincial financial institution) for imperial expenditures. Meanwhile, ritual banners and clothing were sent to Jinan Prefecture's warehouses, where they were converted into monetary equivalents for officials' salaries.

The distribution of incense tax and donation income followed clear regulations: A portion was submitted to the Ministry of Revenue (central treasury), with records from the 37th year of the Jiajing reign showing approximately 10,000 taels of silver submitted in spring and 12,000-13,000 taels in winter. Another portion remained with the Provincial Administration Commission for public expenses, including ceremonial events, official documents and stationery, laborers' wages, as well as stipends for three imperial princes—De Wang, Lu Wang, and Heng Wang—and their clans. Special funds were allocated for city wall repairs and maintenance of Mount Tai's various temples, with 0.05 tael deducted from every 0.8 tael of incense tax collected specifically for temple upkeep. Additional public funds covered the salaries of tax officials and their attendants, drawn directly from Tai'an Prefecture's treasury.

This comprehensive system meticulously stipulated the allocation of incense tax revenue, ensuring both imperial income and addressing local infrastructure needs while maintaining religious sites.

This passage describes the fiscal management situation in ancient Shandong region (where "Dai" refers to Mount Tai, representing Shandong). According to established practice, locally collected copper coin taxes were to be remitted to the Ministry of Rites, but in recent years the ministry had long failed to collect these funds, resulting in massive accumulations stored in the Provincial Administration Commission's treasury (equivalent to today's provincial finance department).

The text vividly portrays the astonishing quantity of coins - piled up like mountains, with the strings holding them rotting away ("guan xiu" - ancient copper coins were strung together, with one string equaling one thousand coins). This description powerfully illustrates the severe backlog in local finances during that period, while also hinting at the disconnect between central and local fiscal management systems.