Mùlǐ

Muli lies among steep, forested mountains and river gorges on the southern edge of the Tibetan cultural world. Tibetan, Pumi and Yi communities lived in this varied mountain country, where valleys and high slopes supported different ways of life. Above a gorge of the Muli River stood Ganden Shedrub Namgyel Ling, the monastery whose abbots came to rule the district.

Before 1580 the area was under the influence of the Naxi rulers of Lijiang and the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism. In 1604 the Lijiang chief Mu Zeng sent forces north into Muli and neighbouring districts. After 1640 the Gelug school gained a strong position, and Muli's religious rulers navigated competing Tibetan, Mongol and Qing claims. The Fifth Dalai Lama granted rights to land and taxes there, while Qing administration also claimed the district. Local rulers preserved room to act amid these overlapping authorities.