Qian Liu, the founder of Wuyue built his kingdom in Zhejiang Province during the chaotic state of the Five Dynasties period, and contributed to the East Asian cultural advancement in the tenth century. In this article, I reviewed some important Buddhist venerations of Qian Liu before his accession were done in the basis of the Buddhist Cakravartin Ideas. Qian Liu might have developed his Buddhist Cakravartin Ideas according to the story of the famous Emperor Liang Wudi in the sixth century who accepted the tradition of Aśokan Legend in China for the first time. In addition, Qian Liu mixed the legend into the ideal Cakravatin theory who would rule the world when the Future Buddha Maitreya come. This theory was popular at that time not only in China but also in Korea.
Qian Liu venerated the Great Maitreya Buddha of Shichengsi temple in Xinchang which was made for the first time during the reign of Liang Wudi. He rebuilt the temple and wished to be a great King like a Buddhist Cakravartin in front of the Maitreya. However, the famous Monk Putai, a so-called incarnation of Maitreya was alive around the same time in the territory of Qian Liu’s kingdom. It might be possible that the legend of Monk Putai as a live Maitreya was made under the political condition of Qian Liu.
Qian Liu revealed and legitimated his political position as a Buddhist Cakravartin through the miracles during his Buddhist relic veneration of Ayuwangsi temple in Ningbo. This Buddha’s relic was one of the most sacred treasures associated with the legend of Aśokan stupa in Chian as well as the exact one venerated by Liang Wudi for the emperor’s buddhist political propaganda. Therefore Qian Liu’s veneration to the Buddha’s relic in Ayuwangsi temple means that this religious act was not a pure Buddhist but a new reproduction of the legend of King Aśoka for his political propaganda after the tradition of King Aśoka and Emperor Liang Wudi. After Qian Liu, many kings had venerated this Buddha’s relic as the most famous and important sacred symbol to gain their political legitimations as a Buddhist Cakravartin.