Origins
The first signs of the White Lotus Society came during the late thirteenth century. Mongol rule over China, known also by its dynastic name, the Yuan dynasty, prompted small, yet popular demonstrations against its rule. The White Lotus Society took part in some of these protests as they grew into widespread dissent.
The Mongols considered the White Lotus society a heterodox religious sect and banned it, forcing its members to go underground. Now a secret society, the White Lotus became an instrument of quasi-national resistance and religious organization.
It was also believed that the White Lotus sect were one of the main ancestors of the Chinese organization known as the Triads. The Triads were originally members and soldiers of the Heaven and Earth Society during the period of the war between the Ming and Qing dynasties. The Triads formation was not for criminal purposes, the original purpose was to overthrow the Qing and restore the Ming to power. The White Lotus Society may have been one of five branches of the Heaven Earth Society which formed at the Shaolin temple by Ming Rebels and Loyalists. The Five branches known by some as the five ancestors were the Black, Red, White, Yellow, and Green Lodges. After there was no longer any need for Triads on the battlefield, some high level military leaders resorted to criminal activity in order to find means of survival as China's new age in history began.
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