Bai Ling (meaning "White Spirit") was born in Chengdu, China, on October 10, 1970, during that country's Cultural Revolution. Her father was a music teacher, and her mother was a dancer and stage actress. As a result of their creative professions, the government cruelly treated Bai Ling's parents, and so the infant Bai Ling was sent to Szechwan to be raised by her grandmother.