Association: No hard evidence of any Muslim emperor in Ming Dynasty

The Malaysia Dynamic Community Association has regarded the claim by PAS president Tan Sri Hadi Awang about the Chinese Ming Dynasty emperors having embraced Islam, as ‘unfounded’.

The association’s chairman Paul Fong said while there were trade and cultural exchanges between China and the Islamic world during this dynastic period, there was no definitive evidence indicating that any Ming Dynasty emperor was a follower of Islam.

“Based on the historical records I am familiar with, there is no evidence to suggest that any Ming Dynasty emperor had openly practiced Islam, or was a Muslim.

“The claim that there emperor from the Ming Dynasty in China who was Muslim is not supported by strong historical evidence.

“While there were certainly Muslims living in China during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), there’s no credible historical documentation or consensus among historians to suggest that an emperor of the Ming Dynasty had converted to Islam,” he said in a statement, made in response to an article posted by Harakah Daily on Sept 13, where Hadi claimed that there were Ming Dynasty emperors who embraced Islam.

Elaborating, Fong said with the well-documented history records of China, and with the biographies and actions of the Ming emperors having been extensively recorded, there was no reliable historical account of a Ming Dynasty emperor converting to Islam.

On the dynasty’s religious policies, he said the Ming Dynasty was known for its strict Confucian state ideology. It promoted Confucianism as the official state ideology and suppressed other belief systems, including Buddhism and Daoism, he added.

“It would have been highly unusual for an emperor to openly convert to Islam during that period,” he said.

Fong said while there were Muslims living in China during the Ming Dynasty, they were primarily concentrated in the western regions of China like Yunnan and Xinjiang.

These communities maintained their Islamic faith, he added, but there was no evidence to suggest that an emperor during that period had converted to Islam.

“In historical research, it is crucial to rely on contemporary accounts and reliable sources. Without such evidence, claims of an emperor’s conversion should be treated with skepticism,” he said.

He said Buddhism was influential during the Ming Dynasty, adding that temples were built, and Buddhist art and culture flourished.

Daoism also had a significant presence in Ming Dynasty, he pointed out, adding that Daoist philosophy and practices continued to be followed, particularly in the areas of health and longevity.