Over time, a plethora of rituals and practices were incorporated into the faith. Occasionally described as China’s indigenous faith, Taoism is an ancient religion and philosophy that emphasizes harmonious living with the universal way i.e. For this list, only major characters from such classical works are featured. Individual sections are sorted alphabetically, while sections are categorized according to origins:Ĭlassical Chinese fantasy sagas are also renowned/notorious for having hundreds of characters. Understanding what each god represents is in turn, a major step in deciphering the complex 5000-year-old civilization that is China. The short of it, Chinese mythological gods and characters do not only represent religious precepts and beliefs, they reflect classic Chinese culture, virtues, and values too. The most prominent example of the latter is Guan Yu, a Shu Han general from the Three Kingdoms Era. In addition to which there are localized Buddhist “ gods,” and historical heroes who were so revered, they were deified. They became so popular, folkloric worship of them began. Other characters such as Sun Wukong the Monkey God are completely fictitious. However, he is today more commonly remembered as the warrior deity from the classical novels, Journey to the West and Investiture of the Gods. His interests include history, traveling, and mythology.ġ08 Chinese mythological gods and characters from Chinese religions, classical fiction, and folkloric worships.Ī strange occurrence in Chinese mythology is that many Chinese mythological gods and characters were heavily influenced by literature, and correspondingly underwent notable transformations.įor example, the three-eyed Taoist deity Erlang Shen was originally a god of agriculture. A completely honorary position, but extremely well-regarded.įinally, Guan Yu is also worshiped as a God of Literature - because he managed to read a whole page of Confucius without going cross-eyed.Earned a bachelor's degree in communication studies in 1999. Quickly learning the Five Precepts, he became a Buddhist, reached Enlightenment, and now devotes the rest of his Immortality to defending the faith. Which was only natural under the circumstances. Legend tells that after he died, Guan Yu appeared before a meditating Master of Buddhism and asked for spiritual guidance. For his bravery, and because he died defending legal issues, he also became the patron God of Police Officers. Loyal Guan Yu knew that changing sides during a war was not only immoral but also against the Law. Guan Yu not only refused, he uttered a terrible insult which made even the soldiers blush. When he was finally captured, Guan Yu was told by Wu, the evil new Emperor, to change sides or face death. (Just as well Solitaire is a one-handed game.) To the incredulity of on-lookers, he calmly sat playing Solitaire while field surgeons did excruciating things to his tendons. In one famous tale, his arm was damaged in battle and needed surgery. (Surely you’ve heard of Kung Few?) But his bravery is legendary. A peace-loving deity, he tries to minimize every battle he’s in. Unusually for a God of War, he uses his skill to avoid confrontations if at all possible. As told in Romance Of The Three Kingdoms, he started life as a mortal vendor of soya bean curd (see To-fu).īut after a heroic incident involving the rescue of a harassed lady and the killing of a tax inspector, he got the taste for battle and embarked on a famous military career with Liu Bei and Zhang Fei, becoming one of the Three Brothers of the Peach Orchard. He is a Daoist deity who is also well thought of by Buddhists.
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