Bitter Dhūta (simplified: 苦头陀, traditional: 苦頭陀, pinyin: Kǔtoutuó, jyutping: fu2 tau4 to4) was the alias used by Fan Yao (范遥), the Bright Right Messenger of the Ming Order, during his time as a spy in the Yuan court. To maintain his cover, Fan Yao disfigured his face, making him appear as a scarred and disfigured person, which led to this alias, literally “the bitter ascetic monk”.
Bitter Dhūta and Fan Yao are the same person—the novel refers to him by both names depending on context. For detailed information about this character, please see the article on Fan Yao.
See also
- Fan Yao — The same person as Bitter Dhūta (main article)
- Yang Xiao — Fan Yao’s colleague, the Bright Left Messenger
- Ming Order — The organisation Fan Yao served
- Yuan Dynasty — The court where Fan Yao worked undercover