……..
But, Gun’s spirit lived. A drop of his blood flowed in a stream. A peasant woman drank it. She became pregnant. Ten months later, a baby was born in a hut above which a dragon circled round and round for three nights. The baby was named Yu (禹). He grew up to become an expert on water works. He worked so hard to build up such a good water system for China that he was made an Emperor in the Xia(夏)Dynasty.

He was remembered as the Great Yu and Father of Irrigation. Because of the legendary story of his birth, the Chinese people have been proud to call themselves “descendants of the dragon” (龍的傳人) ever since.

Click the image to read the tale.

This is a narration of a passage in the book 《符子》 which told us how the universe was kept in order through the endeavors of great heroes. The original title 后羿射日 is commonly used to denote great acts of benevolence and courage.

Click the image to read the tale.

(3)  Fuxi: Creator and Emperor
After Pangu opened the universe, and Gun-Yu (鯀禹) channeled the flood into the sea, the earth became a suitable habitat for the ancient Chinese. Gods and human beings intermingled in heaven and earth in all kinds of activities, sometimes in harmony, sometimes in conflict. Events in the universe were not as defined as we know them today.
Legends were described in many classic books, like Lie Zi 《列子》and Boshu 《帛書》, a piece of cloth unearthed from an ancient tomb.
Fuxi (伏羲) was one important legendary god-man figure. His birth was an unusual event, and his life a signal contribution to Chinese civilization.

Click the image to read the tale.

(2) Nuwa, Mother of Humankind 
     All people have a culture unique to them. Mythical thoughts are part of that culture. They depict the beginning of the universe and everything in it, with special meanings and purposes.
     In Chinese mythology the universe began inhabited by gods and other mythical creatures, instead of human beings.

     Nuwa was a goddess…..

Myths and Legends

(1) How the Universe Began

Click here to read the story.

Chinese tales have a unique character. They feature life in many forms, supernatural, natural, and immortals in between. Their activities and interactions began in mythic times, when the universe was an unknown, chaotic being.

The human ancestor Pangu (盤古) was both universe and man. The creator of humans, Nuwa (女媧) was goddess and woman. Then, there were the mythic and legendary emperors, Yandi (炎帝)and Huangdi (黄帝). That placed man in the center of all things, magnificent and humble, sharing equal rights and responsibilities, caring for all living things and the environment.

閱讀全文