When my favourite digital assets writer, Byron Gilliam, dispatched his latest newsletter ‘The Right to Bear Crypto’, it arrived with the quintessential flair only Bryon Gilliam can deliver. Adorned with a poignant quote from Thomas Jefferson and an image evoking the American Revolutionary era — soldiers in tricorn hats, muskets at the ready — the article immediately seized my attention.

“And what country can preserve its liberties, if its rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance?” — Thomas Jefferson

Gilliam’s article embarks on a fascinating exploration of the parallels between the First Amendment’s free speech rights and the Second Amendment’s right to bear arms. It opens an intriguing debate: Is crypto a form of property or a defensive tool against financial tyranny?

For those deeply ensconced in both world of DeFi and TradFi, Gilliam’s insights unlock a vast landscape ripe for creative intellectual exploration. In my own journey, meandering through diverse historical and cultural landscapes, I find a compelling anchor in the legendary ‘Water Margin,’ also known as ‘Outlaws of the Marsh’ or ‘All Men Are Brothers’ in Pearl Buck’s early translation. Despite their diverging contexts, these narratives intersect at a crucial philosophical inquiry: the delicate balance between individual autonomy and societal constraints, a theme central to the pulse of the crypto movement.

Within this intricate balance, two fundamental undercurrents emerge and intertwine. The first, highlighted in Byron Gilliam’s post, resonates profoundly with what I believe can be aptly described through Isaiah Berlin’s ‘Two Concepts of Liberty.’ Berlin advocates for ‘negative liberty,’ emphasising the importance of freedom from external restrictions and interference. He poses a defining question: “What is the area within which the subject — a person or group of persons — is or should be left to do or be what he is able to do or be, without interference by other persons?” In contrast, the concept of ‘positive liberty’ probes into the nature of control or interference that influences someone’s actions or identity: “What, or who, is the source of control or interference that can determine someone to do, or be, this rather than that?” [Berlin, Isaiah. 1969. Two Concepts of Liberty. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. p.120]. Berlin’s discourse, treating liberty and freedom as synonymous, resonates deeply with the ethos of the defi movement. (In the long-form piece I’ve authored, Decentralisation’s Global Dynamics, particularly in section 4.2, I delve deeply into the philosophical heritage that underpins the DeFi movement, exploring its roots and implications within the broader context of this post).

Running parallel to this philosophical undercurrent is a strong theme of resistance against unjust rule, prominently featured in ‘Water Margin.’ This sense of defiance against tyranny shapes the novel’s narrative and found its contemporary relevance in crypto sentiment.

Set against the backdrop of the Northern Song Dynasty around 1120 in China, ‘Water Margin’ emerges as a poignant testament to literature’s ability to challenge injustice and tyranny. Its narrative reflects the often-tragic fate of resistance movements, frequently crushed under the weight of political machinations.

At the heart of ‘Water Margin’ is a group of 108 outlaws, their character oscillating between heroism and villainy based on the reader’s lens. United at Liangshan Marsh, their rebellion is not just a fight against a society grappling with poverty, injustice, and suffering, exacerbated by natural disasters and epidemics, but also a poignant commentary on unjust ruling of a deeply flawed feudalist system and the bureaucrats within.

The novel weaves a intricate contradiction: these heroes, while displaying allegiance to the emperor, simultaneously find themselves as exiles, engaged in armed conflict against the very government forces they once served. Their story culminates in an ultimate tragedy — a pardon that turns into a tool for further exploitation. After being enlisted to quell uprisings like those of the Liao Dynasty and Fang La, these heroes face a cruel fate, discarded by the court once their utility fades.

The term ‘outlaws,’ as used in Sidney Shapiro’s translation, somewhat skews the essence of Shi Nai’an’s original intent. To me, the essence of ‘Water Margin’ is a story of honor and rebellion against a deeply entrenched, corrupt bureaucratic system under a long-standing feudal regime. Shapiro, with his unique background as a Brooklyn-born lawyer, army officer, translator, actor, and naturalized Chinese citizen, brought his life experiences and political perspectives into his interpretation, including a noted accommodation to autocratic rule. This aspect of Shapiro’s life, including his 50-year tenure in China, culminating in a role with the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, while significant, is a conversation for another time.

In contrast, Professor Shi Changyu offers an interpretation that aligns more closely with the novel’s true spirit. He views the protagonists of ‘the Outlaws of the Marsh’ as humble heroes, driven by a sense of honor and compelled by the injustices they witness to seek refuge in the Liangshan mountains. This choice and the direction of the novel carry a subtly subversive undercurrent. Despite being banned multiple times during the Ming and Qing dynasties for its portrayal of resistance and its glorification of ‘greenwood outlaws’ — acts deemed as banditry by the ruling feudal lords — the novel thrived. It persisted in various forms, including numerous editions, translations, and adaptations into plays, films, music, and video games, underlining its enduring appeal and resilience across centuries.

Byron Gilliam’s ‘The Right to Bear Crypto’ engages us in a thought-provoking dialogue, intertwining the foundational spirit of the American Constitution with the anti-repression ethos of the crypto movement. This discourse naturally brings to mind the intricate narratives of ‘Water Margin.’ Here, the 108 heroes, not just against the ‘heavenly mandate’ — a term critically alluding to the problematic reign of the Song Emperor — but also against a bureaucratic system rife with corruption and power abuses that eclipse the principles of justice. Similarly, today’s crypto community is actively challenging the breadth and depth of state authority, manifested in regulatory controls by various state apparatus, as exemplified in the on-going legal skirmish between the SEC and Coinbase.

By this point in my exploration, the juxtaposition of Byron Gilliam’s ‘The Right to Bear Crypto’ with a Chinese martial arts novel from a millennium ago evolves from a speculative thought experiment into a plausible parallel. It reveals how the timeless struggle for liberty and resistance against overarching control transcends eras and geographies, resonating deeply in both the tales of yore and the digital narratives of today.

Celebrated for centuries in China, by the 1820s, ‘Water Margin’ had reached a widespread audience, extending well beyond China’s southern borders. In 1827, the Japanese printmaker Kuniyoshi Utagawa achieved commercial and artistic success with ‘The 108 Heroes of the Tale of Suikoden,’ a series inspired by the novel. ‘Suikoden,’ a Japanese translation of ‘Water Margin,’ resonated deeply in Japan. Kuniyoshi’s woodblock prints brought the novel’s gripping storylines and themes of resistance against injustice and corruption to life for an audience that eagerly embraced its sentiments, despite the novel’s near-million-word length.

For those of you fatigued by words, but who have read this far, I present some visual artworks for fun.

Linchong(林冲), a central figure in the 108 Heroes in Water Margin , stands as a symbol of resistance and skill. Ranked as the Majestic Star (天雄星) among the 36 Heavenly Spirits, he is renowned for his prowess with the 8-foot-long Snake Spear (丈八蛇矛). Standing six feet tall, Linchong’s piercing gaze and formidable presence earned him the nickname ‘Panther Head’ (豹子头). Once a respected drill sergeant of the Imperial Guard, his journey from loyal servant to a rebel is a blend of heroic resistance, martial excellence, and a deeply personal struggle against injustice.He is falsely accused of wanting to assassinate Grand Marshal Gao Qiu, leading to his exile to Cangzhou. His wife, whom he loves dearly, is harassed and ultimately commits suicide. Lin Chong is framed again while in exile, leading to him becoming an outlaw and joining the outlaws at Liangshan Marsh. There, he becomes a key figure, eventually being appointed as one of the Five Tiger Generals of the Liangshan cavalry.

A sworn physical art fan myself, I initially failed to see the true value in digital NFTs until when I experimented with creating a digital NFT of Linchong using AI. The process was liberating, to say the least. Whether the image meets the standard of being an artwork is deeply controversial. But for the first time, a non-artist like myself is truly capable of creating a visual image as a way of expression. This is emancipating, liberating, and opens a whole new debate about value creation and value exchange.

https://opensea.io/assets/0xA11357Af003dC6457b6827AD9A81EEdE12d2b7E6/1

Please like, share, and comment if you enjoy this content. If there’s significant interest, I’ll continue to feature other prominent characters in this series.