Transcriptions | |
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Standard Mandarin | |
Hanyu Pinyin | KuāFù |
Wade–Giles | Kʻua1 Fu4 |
IPA | [kʰwá.fû] |
Yue:Cantonese | |
Jyutping | kwaa1 fu6 |
Middle Chinese | |
Middle Chinese | /kʰˠuabɨoX/ |
Old Chinese | |
Zhengzhang | /*kʰʷraːbaʔ/ |
Kuafu (Chinese :夸父) is a giant in Chinese mythology who wished to capture the Sun. [3] He was a grandson of Houtu. [4]
One day,Kuafu decided to chase and catch the Sun. He followed the Sun from the East to the West,draining the Yellow River and the Wei River (all rivers and lakes crossing his path) to quench his burning thirst. However,the big rivers were also unable to quench his thirst,and as he searched for more water,he eventually died of dehydration. The wooden club he was carrying grew into a vast forest of peach trees called the Deng Forest (鄧林). [5]
In one version,Kuafu turns into a mountain range. [6] This mountain range and the peach forest are said to be located in present day Lingbao. [7]
In modern Chinese usage,the story of Kuafu chasing the Sun ( 夸父追日 ) is used to describe a person who is brave and optimistic and willing to overcome all the obstacles to reach the goal.
"Kuafu" can also be taken to refer to his people,the Kuafu-shi (夸父氏) or "Clan of Kuafu". Since "shi" can mean both "clan" and "maiden name",as well as serving as a masculine honorific like "mister" or "sir",it is sometimes used in reference to his people or the individual.
During the battle of Banquan,Chi You's tribes allied themselves with the Kuafu tribe and the Sanmiao (三苗) tribe and attacked the Yan Emperor's tribe,driving them into the lands of the Yellow Emperor.
Chinese mythology is mythology that has been passed down in oral form or recorded in literature throughout the area now known as Greater China. Chinese mythology encompasses a diverse array of myths derived from regional and cultural traditions. Populated with engaging narratives featuring extraordinary individuals and beings endowed with magical powers,these stories often unfold in fantastical mythological realms or historical epochs. Similar to numerous other mythologies,Chinese mythology has historically been regarded,at least partially,as a factual record of the past.
Pangu or Pan Gu (Chinese:盤古,PAN-koo) is a primordial being and creation figure in Chinese mythology and in Taoism. According to legend,Pangu separated heaven and earth,and his body later became geographic features such as mountains and roaring water.
Jin,originally known as Tang (唐),was a major state during the middle part of the Zhou dynasty,based near the centre of what was then China,on the lands attributed to the legendary Xia dynasty:the southern part of modern Shanxi. Although it grew in power during the Spring and Autumn period,its aristocratic structure saw it break apart when the duke lost power to his nobles. In 403 BC,the Zhou court recognized Jin's three successor states:Han,Zhao,and Wei. The Partition of Jin marks the end of the Spring and Autumn period and the beginning of the Warring States period.
Emperor Wu of Jin,personal name Sima Yan,courtesy name Anshi (安世),was a grandson of Sima Yi,nephew of Sima Shi and son of Sima Zhao. He became the first emperor of the Jin dynasty after forcing Cao Huan,last emperor of the state of Cao Wei,to abdicate to him. He reigned from 266 to 290,and after conquering the state of Eastern Wu in 280,was the emperor of a reunified China. Emperor Wu was also known for his extravagance and sensuality,especially after the unification of China;legends boasted of his incredible potency among ten thousand concubines.
Chiyou is a mythological being that appears in Chinese mythology. He was a tribal leader of the Nine Li tribe in ancient China. He is best known as a king who lost against the future Yellow Emperor during the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors era in Chinese mythology. According to the Song dynasty history book Lushi,Chiyou's surname was Jiang (姜),and he was a descendant of the Flame Emperor.
An Lushan was a Chinese military general and rebel leader during the Tang dynasty and is primarily known for instigating the An Lushan Rebellion which devastated China and killed millions of people.
The Kunlun Mountains constitute one of the longest mountain chains in Asia,extending for more than 3,000 kilometres (1,900 mi). In the broadest sense,the chain forms the northern edge of the Tibetan Plateau south of the Tarim Basin. Located in Western China,the Kunlun Mountains have been known as the "Forefather of Mountains" in China.
Yu the Great or Yu the Engineer was a legendary king in ancient China who was credited with "the first successful state efforts at flood control",his establishment of the Xia dynasty,which inaugurated dynastic rule in China,and for his upright moral character. He figures prominently in the Chinese legend titled "Great Yu Controls the Waters". Yu and other sage-kings of ancient China were lauded for their virtues and morals by Confucius and other Chinese teachers. He is one of the few Chinese monarchs who is posthumously honored with the epithet "the Great".
Erlang Shen,or simply Erlang,is a god in Chinese folk religion and Daoism,associated with water,justice,warriorhood,hunting,and demon subdual. He is commonly depicted as a young man with a third,truth-seeing eye in the middle of his forehead,wielding a three-pronged spear,and being accompanied by his loyal hunting dog,Xiaotian Quan.
Shennong (神農),variously translated as "Divine Farmer" or "Divine Husbandman",born Jiang Shinian (姜石年),was a mythological Chinese ruler known as the first Yan Emperor who has become a deity in Chinese and Vietnamese folk religion. He is venerated as a culture hero in China and Vietnam. In Vietnamese,he is referred to as Thần Nông.
The Wei River is a major river in west-central China's Gansu and Shaanxi provinces. It is the largest tributary of the Yellow River and very important in the early development of Chinese civilization. In ancient times,such as in the Records of the Grand Historian,the river was called Wei Shui.
Yatagarasu (八咫烏) is a mythical crow and guiding god in Shinto mythology. He is generally known for his three-legged figure,and his picture has been handed down since ancient times. The word means "eight-span crow" and the appearance of the great bird is construed as evidence of the will of Heaven or divine intervention in human affairs.
Yang Huiyu,formally known as Empress Jingxian,semi-formally known as Empress Dowager Hongxun (弘訓太后),was an empress dowager of the Jin dynasty of China. She was the third wife of Sima Shi,a regent of the Cao Wei state in the Three Kingdoms period. Her father,Yang Chai (羊茝),was the commandery administrator of Shangdang,while her mother was a daughter of the Han dynasty historian and musician Cai Yong. Her younger full brother was Yang Hu,a military general who served under the Jin dynasty.
The Battle of Zhuolu was the second battle in the history of China as recorded in the Records of the Grand Historian,fought between the Yanhuang tribes led by the legendary Yellow Emperor and the Jiuli tribes led by Chiyou. The battle was fought in Zhuolu,near the present-day border of Hebei and Shanxi.
Guo Wei,also known by his temple name as the Emperor Taizu of Later Zhou (後周太祖),was the founding emperor of the Chinese Later Zhou dynasty during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period,reigning from 951 until his death in 954.
The Kuafu project is a Chinese space project to establish a space weather forecasting system composed of three satellites,originally to be completed by 2012. As of the Solar Wind XIII conference in June 2012,the planned launch date was 2017. However,due to withdrawal first by Canada and then ESA,the project was postponed. It was launched on 9 october 2022.
Gong is the pinyin romanization of several distinct Chinese surnames,including 宫,龔,共,公,鞏,功,貢,and 弓. It may also be an alternative transcription of the surname Kong,or the Jyutping romanization of the Chinese surname Jiang.
In Chinese mythology,the xiao is the name of several creatures,including the xiao "a long-armed ape" or "a four-winged bird" and shanxiao "mischievous,one-legged mountain spirit". Furthermore,some Western sources misspell and misconstrue the older romanization hsiao as "hsigo" [sic] "a flying monkey".
The Weak River also known as the Weak Water or Ruoshui is an important feature in the mythical geography of Chinese literature,including novels and poetry over a course of over two millennia from the Warring States to early Han dynasty era poetry of the Chuci onward. The Weak River is one of the mythological rivers flowing near Kunlun,home of a Western Paradise. The Weak River flowed with "water" so lacking in specific gravity that even a feather would not float,thus being a protective barrier against the unworthy,who otherwise would profane the paradise on Kunlun,and perhaps even climb up to Heaven and disturb the deities and other inhabitants residing there. In the novel Journey to the West,the Weak Water River forms one of the obstacles the fictional version of the monk Xuanzang,the magic monkey Sun Wukong,and companions must cross over on their mission to fetch the Buddhist scriptures from India and return them to Tang China.
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