Illustrates Dudu Torres
Edition Felipe van Deursen
It is ancient and complex for those who are not familiar with it. This is because it has elements from the three main Chinese religions: Taoism, Confucianism and Buddhism. The mixture of these beliefs was responsible for creating the so-called «traditional religion». chinese“, which is full of subtleties. Many of the myths involve the founding of Chinese culture and state. Unlike the Greek gods, the Chinese have impeccable morals and live “free classification” life stories. They prize ingenuity and discipline over courage.
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multipurpose creator
In the beginning, there was only chaos, from which Panku, the first being with consciousness, emerged. With an axe, he divided the world into heaven and earth. When he died, his eyes became the sun and the moon, his breath became the wind and even the parasites that lived in him became the animals we know.
the three sovereigns
They started Chinese civilization
Nu Wa I missed someone to talk to. Using clay, she forged a human. He was so happy that he started molding more people to populate the world. When he noticed that everyone died, he created sex. Thus, humans could reproduce without the goddess having to work non-stop.
fuxi, brother and husband of Nu Wa, was an important protector of the human race and responsible for showing us how to perform complex activities such as writing, forging metals and mapping the seasons. According to legend, he was the first emperor of China, reigning from 2852 BC to 2737 BC
Shennong it has a crystalline belly, which allows you to see what happens inside it. He helped humans, who didn’t know which plants were toxic or not. He tried them all and saw how they acted on the body. He noted healing functions in several and is therefore the patron saint of medicine. chinese
rest of the class
Other Famous Gods of the Chinese Pantheon
Guan Di
It is the god of war. Bloodthirsty though he is, he is content when peace reigns. Some historians believe that the myth derives from a real warrior.
jade emperor
Considered by some to be the king of heaven and hell. He commands the Quatro Ao, water gods who assume dragon form and manipulate the rain and sea.
Yu
As in many other mythologies, the chinese it also has its versions of the flood. One of the most famous shows the engineer god Yu, who, instead of an ark, built canals to hold back the flood.
Yi
In ancient times, ten suns took turns to illuminate the Earth. One day they revolted and appeared together, causing droughts and deaths. Yi, with his bow and arrow, destroyed nine suns, leaving only one
Huang Di
Known as the Yellow Emperor, he has four faces and sees everything, according to some ancient writings. One of his greatest achievements was to ascend to heaven, proving to humans the existence of another kingdom.
Tsao Chun
It is common to see his image in kitchens. It is believed that on New Year’s he makes a report on that home. Therefore, it is tradition to smear the mouth of his image with honey, for him to speak sweet words.
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Consultancy Carmen Seganfredo, researcher and author of the book The Best Stories of Mythology chinese
Sources Books Biographies of Immortalsby Herbert A. Guiles and Frederic H. Balfour, Bird’s Paradiseby Maria Helena Guedes, Everything We Need to Know, But Never Learned About Mythologyby Kenneth C. Davis, and Chinese Myths and Legendsby Philip Ardagh