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Chinese gods and immortals

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This article is about Chinese popular deities. For the Chinese scholastic theology about these gods and the supreme godhead of Heaven, see Chinese theology. For a list of Chinese mythological stories, including narratives with gods and immortals, see List of Chinese mythology.
Qing dynasty Water and Land Ritual painting (水みず陆画) of Buddhist, Daoist, and Folk Deities.
A complex of deities at an outdoor fountain-altar with incense burners at a pilgrimage area in Weihai, Shandong. At the centre stands Mazu, surrounded by the four Dragon Gods (龍神りゅうじん) and various lesser deities. Distant behind Mazu stands the Sun Goddess (太陽たいよう神しん).
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Chinese folk religion
Stylisation of the 禄 lù or 子 zi grapheme, respectively meaning "prosperity", "furthering", "welfare" and "son", "offspring". 字 zì, meaning "word" and "symbol", is a cognate of 子 zi and represents a "son" enshrined under a "roof". The symbol is ultimately a representation of the north celestial pole (Běijí 北极) and its spinning constellations, and as such it is equivalent to the Eurasian symbol of the swastika, 卍 wàn.
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Zhenkong, "Void of Truth".
Zhenkong, "Void of Truth".

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Related religions

Chinese gods and immortals are beings in various Chinese religions seen in a variety of ways and mythological contexts.

Many are worshiped as deities because traditional Chinese religion is polytheistic, stemming from a pantheistic view that divinity is inherent in the world.[1]

The gods are energies or principles revealing, imitating, and propagating the way of heaven (天てん, Tian),[2] which is the supreme godhead manifesting in the northern culmen of the starry vault of the skies and its order.[citation needed] Many gods are ancestors or men who became deities for their heavenly achievements. Most gods are also identified with stars and constellations.[3] Ancestors are regarded as the equivalent of Heaven within human society,[4] and therefore, as the means of connecting back to Heaven, which is the "utmost ancestral father" (曾祖父そうそふ, zēngzǔfù).[5]

There are a variety of immortals in Chinese thought, and one major type is the xian, which is thought in some religious Taoism movements to be a human given long or infinite life. Gods are innumerable, as every phenomenon has or is one or more gods, and they are organised in a complex celestial hierarchy.[6] Besides the traditional worship of these entities, Chinese folk religion, Chinese Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, and formal thinkers in general give theological interpretations affirming a monistic essence of divinity.[7]

Overview[edit]

"Polytheism" and "monotheism" are categories derived from Western religion and do not fit Chinese religion, which has never conceived the two things as opposites.[8] Tian bridges the gap between supernatural phenomena and many kinds of beings, giving them a single source from spiritual energy in some Chinese belief systems.[2] However, there is a significant belief in Taoism which differentiates tian from the forces of earth and water, which are held to be equally powerful.[9]

Since all gods are considered manifestations of qì (氣き), the "power" or pneuma of Heaven, in some views of tian, some scholars have employed the term "polypneumatism" or "(poly)pneumatolatry", first coined by Walter Medhurst (1796–1857), to describe the practice of Chinese polytheism.[10] Some Taoists consider deities the manifestation of the Tao.[citation needed]

In the theology of the classic texts and Confucianism, "Heaven is the lord of the hundreds of deities".[11]

Modern Confucian theology sometimes compares them to substantial forms or entelechies (inner purposes) as described by Leibniz as a force that generates all types of beings, so that "even mountains and rivers are worshipped as something capable of enjoying sacrificial offerings".[12]

Unlike in Hinduism, the deification of historical persons and ancestors is not traditionally the duty of Confucians or Taoists.[clarification needed] Rather, it depends on the choices of common people; persons are deified when they have made extraordinary deeds and have left an efficacious legacy. Yet, Confucians and Taoists traditionally may demand that state honours be granted to a particular deity. Each deity has a cult centre and ancestral temple where he or she, or the parents, lived their mortal life. There are frequently disputes over which is the original place and source temple of the cult of a deity.[13]

God of Heaven[edit]

Main article: Chinese theology

Chinese traditional theology, which comes in different interpretations according to the classic texts, and specifically Confucian, Taoist, and other philosophical formulations,[14] is fundamentally monistic, that is to say, it sees the world and the gods who produce it as an organic whole, or cosmos.[15] The universal principle that gives origin to the world is conceived as transcendent and immanent to creation, at the same time.[16] The Chinese idea of the universal God is expressed in different ways. There are many names of God from the different sources of Chinese tradition.[17]

The radical Chinese terms for the universal God are Tian (天てん) and Shangdi (上帝じょうてい, "Highest Deity") or simply, Dì (帝みかど, "Deity").[18][19] There is also the concept of Tàidì (太ふとし帝みかど, "Great Deity"). Dì is a title expressing dominance over the all-under-Heaven, that is, all things generated by Heaven and ordered by its cycles and by the stars.[20] Tian is usually translated as "Heaven", but by graphical etymology, it means "Great One" and a number of scholars relate it to the same Dì through phonetic etymology and trace their common root, through their archaic forms, respectively *Teeŋ and *Tees, to the symbols of the squared north celestial pole godhead (口くち, Dīng).[3][21] These names are combined in different ways in Chinese theological literature, often interchanged in the same paragraph, if not in the same sentence.[22]

Names of the God of Heaven[edit]

Besides Shàngdì and Tàidì, other names include Yudi ("Jade Deity") and Taiyi ("Great Oneness") who, in mythical imagery, holds the ladle of the Big Dipper (Great Chariot), providing the movement of life to the world.[23] As the hub of the skies, the north celestial pole constellations are known, among various names, as Tiānmén (天てん門もん, "Gate of Heaven")[24] and Tiānshū (天てん樞くるる, "Pivot of Heaven").[25]

Other names of the God of Heaven are attested in the vast Chinese religio-philosophical literary tradition:

  • Tiāndì (天帝てんてい), "Deity of Heaven" or "Emperor of Heaven":[26] "On Rectification" (Zheng lun) of the Xunzi uses this term to refer to the active God of Heaven setting creation in motion.[20]
  • Tianzhu (天主てんしゅ), the "Lord of Heaven": In "The Document of Offering Sacrifices to Heaven and Earth on the Mountain Tai" (Fengshan shu) of the Records of the Grand Historian, it is used as the title of the first God from whom all the other gods derive.[27]
  • Tiānhuáng (天皇てんのう), the "August Personage of Heaven": In the "Poem of Fathoming Profundity" (Si'xuan fu), transcribed in "The History of the Later Han Dynasty" (Hou Han shu), Zhang Heng ornately writes: «I ask the superintendent of the Heavenly Gate to open the door and let me visit the King of Heaven at the Jade Palace».[26]
  • Tianwang (天王てんのう), the "King of Heaven" or "Monarch of Heaven".
  • Tiāngōng (天てん公こう), the "Duke of Heaven" or "General of Heaven".[28]
  • Tiānjūn (天たかし君くん), the "Prince of Heaven" or "Lord of Heaven".[28]
  • Tiānzūn (天てん尊みこと), the "Heavenly Venerable", also a title for high gods in Taoist theologies.[26]
  • Tiānshén (天神てんじん), the "God of Heaven", interpreted in the Shuowen Jiezi as "the being that gives birth to all things".[20]
  • Shénhuáng (神かみ皇すめらぎ), "God the August", attested in Taihong ("The Origin of Vital Breath").[20]
  • Lǎotiānyé (老ろう天てん爺じい), the "Olden Heavenly Father".[26]

Tian is both transcendent and immanent, manifesting in the three forms of dominance, destiny, and nature of things. In the Wujing yiyi (五經ごきょう異義いぎ, "Different Meanings in the Five Classics"), Xu Shen explains that the designation of Heaven is quintuple:[27]

  • Huáng Tiān (皇すめらぎ天てん), "August Heaven" or "Imperial Heaven", when it is venerated as the lord of creation.
  • Hào Tiān (昊ひろし天てん), "Vast Heaven", with regard to the vastness of its vital breath (qi).
  • Mín Tiān (旻みん天てん), "Compassionate Heaven", for it hears and corresponds with justice to the all-under-Heaven.
  • Shàng Tiān (上天じょうてん), "Highest Heaven" or "First Heaven", for it is the primordial being supervising all-under-Heaven.
  • Cāng Tiān (蒼天そうてん), "Deep-Green Heaven", for it being unfathomably deep.

All these designations reflect a hierarchical, multiperspective experience of divinity.[17]

Lists of gods, deities and immortals[edit]

Main altar and statue of Doumu inside the Temple of Doumu in Butterworth, Penang, Malaysia.
A temple dedicated to Pangu in Zhunan, Miaoli.

Many classical books have lists and hierarchies of gods and immortals, among which are the "Completed Record of Deities and Immortals" (神仙しんせん通どおり鑑かん, Shénxiān Tōngjiàn) of the Ming dynasty,[29] and the Biographies of the Deities and Immortals (Shenxian Zhuan) by Ge Hong (284–343).[30] The older Collected Biographies of the Immortals (Liexian Zhuan) also serves the same purpose.

Couplets or polarities, such as Fuxi and Nuwa, Xiwangmu and Dongwanggong, and the highest couple of Heaven and Earth, all embody yin and yang and are at once the originators and maintainers of the ordering process of space and time.[31]

Immortals, or xian, are seen as a variety of different types of beings, including the souls of virtuous Taoists,[32] gods,[32][33] zhenren,[33] and/or a type of supernatural spiritual being who understood heaven.[34] Taoists historically worshiped them the most and Chinese folk religion practitioners during the Tang dynasty also worshiped them, although there was more skepticism about the goodness, and even the existence, of xian among them.[34]

Chinese folk religion that incorporates elements of the three teachings in modern times and prior eras sometimes viewed Confucius and the Buddha as immortals or beings synonymous to them.[35]

In Taoism and Chinese folk religion, gods and xian[36] are often seen as embodiments of water.[37] Water gods and xian were often thought to ensure good grain harvests, mild weather and seas, and rivers with abundant water.[37] Some xian were thought to be humans who gained power by drinking "charmed water".[36]

Some gods were based on previously existing Taoist immortals, bodhisattvas, or historical figures.[38]

Stoneware figure of a Daoist (Taoist) deity. From China, Ming Dynasty, 16th century CE. The British Museum

Cosmic gods[edit]

  • Yudi (玉たま帝みかど, "Jade Deity") or Yuhuang (玉たま皇すめらぎ, "Jade Emperor" or "Jade King"), is the popular human-like representation of the God of Heaven.[39] Jade traditionally represents purity, so it is a metaphor for the unfathomable source of creation.
  • Doumu (斗と母はは, "Mother of the Great Chariot"), often entitled with the honorific Tianhou (天てん后きさき, "Queen of Heaven")[i] is the heavenly goddess portrayed as the mother of the Big Dipper (Great Chariot), whose seven stars, in addition to two invisible ones, are conceived as her sons, the Jiuhuangshen (九きゅう皇神すめがみ, "Nine God-Kings"), themselves regarded as the ninefold manifestation of Jiuhuangdadi (九きゅう皇すめらぎ大帝たいてい, "Great Deity of the Nine Kings") or Doufu (斗と父ちち, "Father of the Great Chariot"), another name of the God of Heaven. She is, therefore, both wife and mother of the God of Heaven.[40][41]
  • Pangu (盤ばん古いにしえ), a macranthropic metaphor of the cosmos. He separated yin and yang, creating the earth (murky yin) and the sky (clear yang). All things were made from his body after he died.[42]
  • Xiwangmu (西王母せいおうぼ, "Queen Mother of the West"),[ii] identified with the Kunlun Mountain, shamanic inspiration, death, and immortality.[44][45] She is the dark, chthonic goddess, pure yin, at the same time terrifying and benign, both creation and destruction, associated with the tiger and weaving.[46] Her male counterpart is Dongwanggong (東ひがし王公おうこう, "King Duke of the East";[iii] also called Mugong, 木き公こう "Duke of the Woods"),[47] who represents the yang principle.[46]
    • Hòuyì (后きさき羿, "Yi the Archer"), was a man who sought for immortality, reaching Xiwangmu on her mountain, Kunlun.
  • Yanwang (閻王, "Purgatory King")[iv] the ruler of the underworld, assisted by the Heibai Wuchang (黑白くろしろ無常むじょう, "Black and White Impermanence"), representing the alternation of yin and yang principles, alongside Ox-Head and Horse-Face, who escort spirits to his realm.
  • Yinyanggong (陰陽いんよう公こう, "Yinyang Duke"[iii]) or Yinyangsi (陰陽いんよう司し, "Yinyang Controller"), the personification of the union of yin and yang.

Three Patrons and Five Deities[edit]

Wufang Shangdi (五ご方ぽう上帝じょうてい), the order of Heaven inscribing worlds as tán 壇だん, "altar", the Chinese concept equivalent to the Indian mandala. The supreme God conceptualised as the Yellow Deity, and Xuanyuan as its human form, is the heart of the universe and the other Four Deities are his emanations. The diagram is based on the Huainanzi.[49]
Statue and ceremonial complex of the Yellow and Red Gods in Zhengzhou, Henan.
Temple of the Three Officials of Heaven in Chiling, Zhangpu, Fujian.
Temple of the Great Deity of the Eastern Peak at Mount Tai, Tai'an, Shandong.
  • Sānhuáng (三さん皇すめらぎ, "Three Patrons or Augusts") or Sāncái (三さん才さい, "Three Potencies"); they are the "vertical" manifestation of Heaven, spatially corresponding to the Sānjiè (三界さんがい, "Three Realms"), representing the yin and yang and the medium between them, that is the human being:
    • Fuxi (伏ふく羲) , the patron of heaven (天皇てんのう, Tiānhuáng), also called Bāguàzǔshī (八卦はっけ祖師そし, "Venerable Inventor of the Bagua") by the Taoists, is a divine man reputed to have taught to humanity writing, fishing, and hunting.
    • Nüwa (女おんな媧), the patroness of earth (地ち皇すめらぎ, Dehuáng), is a goddess attributed for the creation of mankind and mending the order of the world when it was broken.
    • Shennong (神かみ農みのり), "Peasant God", the patron of humanity (人皇じんのう, Rénhuáng), identified as Yandi (炎ほのお帝みかど, "Flame Deity" or "Fiery Deity"), a divine man said to have taught the techniques of farming, herbal medicine, and marketing. He is often represented as a human with horns and other features of an ox.[50]
  • Wǔdì (五ご帝みかど, "Five Deities"),[51] also Wǔfāng Shàngdì (五ご方ぽう上帝じょうてい, "Five Manifestations of the Highest Deity"), Wǔfāng Tiānshén (五ご方ぽう天神てんじん, "Five Manifestations of the Heavenly God"), Wǔfāngdì (五ご方ぽう帝みかど, "Five Forms Deity"), Wǔtiāndì (五ご天帝てんてい, "Five Heavenly Deities"), Wǔlǎojūn (五ご老ろう君くん, "Five Ancient Lords"), Wǔdàoshén (五ご道みち神しん, "Five Ways God[s]"); they are the five main "horizontal" manifestations of Heaven, and along with the Three Potencies, they have a celestial, a terrestrial, and a chthonic form. They correspond to the five phases of creation, the five constellations rotating around the celestial pole and five planets, the five sacred mountains and five directions of space (their terrestrial form), and the five Dragon Gods which represent their mounts, that is to say, the material forces they preside over (their chthonic form).[52][53]
    • Huangdi (黃き帝みかど, "Yellow Emperor" or "Yellow Deity"); or Huángshén (黃き神しん, "Yellow God"), also known as Xuānyuán Huángdì (軒のき轅ながえ黃き帝みかど, "Yellow Deity of the Chariot Shaft"), is the Zhōngyuèdàdì (中岳なかだけ大帝たいてい, "Great Deity of the Central Peak"): he represents the essence of earth and the Yellow Dragon,[50] and is associated with Saturn.[53] The character 黃き (huáng, "yellow"), by homophony and shared etymology with 皇すめらぎ (huáng), also means "august", "creator", and "radiant", identifying the Yellow Emperor with Shangdi ("Highest Deity").[54] Huangdi represents the heart of creation, the axis mundi (Kunlun) that is the manifestation of the divine order in physical reality, opening the way to immortality.[50] As the deity of the centre, intersecting the Three Patrons and the Five Deities, in the Shizi he is described as "Yellow Emperor with Four Faces" (黃き帝みかど四よん面めん, Huángdì Sìmiàn).[55] As a human, he is said to have been the fruit of a virginal birth, as his mother Fubao conceived him as she was aroused, while walking in the country, by a lightning from the Big Dipper (Great Chariot). She delivered her son after twenty-four months on the mount of Shou (Longevity) or mount Xuanyuan (Chariot Shaft), after which he was named.[56] He is reputed to be the founder of the Huaxia civilisation, and the Han Chinese identify themselves as the descendants of Yandi and Huangdi.
    • Cangdi (蒼あおい帝みかど, "Green Deity); or Qīngdì (青あお帝みかど, "Blue Deity" or "Bluegreen Deity", the Dōngdì (東ひがし帝みかど, "East Deity") or Dōngyuèdàdì (東岳あずまだけ大帝たいてい, "Great Deity of the Eastern Peak"): he is Tàihào (太ふと昊ひろし), associated with the essence of wood and with Jupiter, and is the god of fertility and spring. The Bluegreen Dragon is both his animal form and constellation.[50][53] His female consort is the goddess of fertility, Bixia.
    • Heidi (黑くろ帝みかど, "Black Deity), the Běidì (北きた帝みかど, "North Deity") or Běiyuèdàdì (北岳きただけ大帝たいてい, "Great Deity of the Northern Peak"): he is Zhuanxu (顓頊), today frequently worshiped as Xuanwu (玄武げんぶ, "Dark Warrior") or Zhēnwǔ (真ま武ぶ), and is associated with the essence of water and winter, and with Mercury. His animal form is the Black Dragon and his stellar animal is the tortoise-snake.[50][53]
    • Chidi (赤あか帝みかど, "Red Deity"), the Nándì (帝みかど, "South Deity") or Nányuèdàdì (南岳みなみだけ大帝たいてい, "Great Deity of the Southern Peak"): he is Shennong (the "Divine Farmer"), the Yandi ("Fiery Deity"), associated with the essence of fire and summer, and with Mars. His animal form is the Red Dragon and his stellar animal is the phoenix. He is the god of agriculture, animal husbandry, medicinal plants, and market.[50][53]
    • Baidi (白しろ帝みかど, "White Deity"), the Xīdì (西にし帝みかど, "West Deity") or Xīyuèdàdì (西岳にしたけ大帝たいてい, "Great Deity of the Western Peak"): he is Shaohao (少しょう昊ひろし), and is the god of the essence of metal and autumn, associated with Venus. His animal form is the White Dragon and his stellar animal is the tiger.[53]
  • The Three Great Emperor-Officials: the Tiānguān (天てん官かん, "Official of Heaven"), the Dìguān (地ち官かん, "Official of Earth"), and the Shuǐguān (水みず官かん, "Official of Water").[9][57]

In mythology, Huangdi and Yandi fought a battle against each other, and Huang finally defeated Yan with the help of the Dragon (the controller of water, who is Huangdi himself).[58] This myth symbolizes the equipoise of yin and yang, here the fire of knowledge (reason and craft) and earthly stability.[58]

Yan (炎ほのお) is flame, scorching fire, or an excess of it (it is important to note that graphically, it is a double 火ひ (huo, "fire").[58] As an excess of fire brings destruction to the earth, it has to be controlled by a ruling principle. Nothing is good in itself, without limits; good outcomes depend on the proportion in the composition of things and their interactions, never on extremes in absolute terms.[58] Huangdi and Yandi are complementary opposites, necessary for the existence of one another, and they are powers that exist together within the human being.

Gods of celestial and terrestrial phenomena[edit]

Temple of the Wind God in Tainan.
  • Longshen (龍神りゅうじん, "Dragon Gods") or Lóngwáng, (龍王りゅうおう, "Dragon Kings"), also Sìhǎi Lóngwáng (四海しかい龍王りゅうおう, "Dragon Kings of the Four Seas"), are gods of watery sources, usually reduced to four, patrons of the Four Seas (四海しかい, sihai) and the four cardinal directions. They are the White Dragon (白はく龍りゅう, Báilóng), the Black Dragon (玄げん龍りゅう, Xuánlóng), the Red Dragon (朱しゅ龍りゅう, Zhūlóng), and the Bluegreen Dragon (青あお龍りゅう, Qīnglóng). Corresponding with the Five Deities as the chthonic forces that they sublimate (the Dragon Gods are often represented as the "mount" of the Five Deities), they inscribe the land of China into an ideal sacred squared boundary. The fifth dragon, the Yellow Dragon (黃き龍りゅう, Huánglóng), is the dragon of the centre, representing the Yellow God.
  • Báoshén (雹神, "Hail God")[iv]
  • Bālà (八はち蜡), the Chóngshén (蟲むし神しん, "Insect God") or Chóngwáng (蟲むし王おう, "Insect King"): the gods of insects.[iv]
  • Dìzhǔshén (地主じぬし神しん, "Landlord God").
  • Dòushén (痘神, "Smallpox God").[iv]
  • Fei Lian (飛ひ帘), the Fēngshén (風神ふうじん, "Wind God").[iv]
  • Hǎishén (海神わたつみ, "Sea God"); also Hǎiyé (海うみ爷, "Sea Lord").
  • Hebo (河かわ伯はく, "River Lord") or Héshén (河かわ神しん, "River God"): any watercourse god, among which, one of the most revered is the god of the Yellow River.[iv]
  • Gǔshén (穀こく神しん, "Valley God"): in the Daodejing, a name used to refer to the Way[61]
  • Huǒshén (火ひ神しん, "Fire God"), often personified as Zhurong (祝融しゅくゆう)[iv]
  • Húshén (湖みずうみ神しん, "Lake God")
  • Shèshén (社しゃ神しん, "Soil God")
  • Jìshén (稷きび神しん, "Grain God")
  • Jīnshén (金きむ神かみ, "Gold God"), often identified as the Qiūshén (秋あき神しん, "Autumn God") and personified as Rùshōu (蓐收)
  • Jǐngshén (井い神しん, "Waterspring God").[61]
  • Leishen (雷神らいじん, "Thunder God") or Léigōng (雷公らいこう, "Thunder Duke");[iii] his consort is Diànmǔ (電でん母はは, "Lightning Mother").
  • Mùshén (木き神しん, "Woodland God"), usually the same as the Chūnshén (春はる神しん, "Spring God"), and as Jùmáng (句く芒すすき).
  • Shānshén (山神さんじん, "Mountain God")
  • Shuǐshén (水神すいじん, "Water God")
  • Tudishen (土地とち神しん, "God of the Local Land"), also Tǔshén (土ど神しん, "Earth God"), or Tudigong (土地とち公こう, "Duke of the Local Land"):[iii] the tutelary deity of any locality. Their Overlord is Houtu (后きさき土ど, "Queen of the Earth").[ii]
  • Wen Shen (瘟神, "Plague God")[iv]
  • Xiangshuishen (湘水神しん, "Xiang Waters' Goddesses"): the patrons of the Xiang River.
  • Xuěshén (雪ゆき神しん, "Snow God")
  • Yǔshén (雨あめ神しん, "Rain God")[iv]
  • Xihe (羲和), the Tàiyángshén (太陽たいよう神しん, "Great Sun Goddess") or Shírìzhīmǔ (十じゅう日にち之の母はは, "Mother of the Ten Suns").[ii]
  • Yuèshén (月つき神しん, "Moon Goddesses"): Chángxī (常つね羲) or Shí'èryuèzhīmǔ (十二月じゅうにがつ之の母はは, "Mother of the Twelve Moons"), and Chang'e (嫦娥じょうが).

Gods of human virtues and crafts[edit]

Guan Yu (middle), Guan Ping (his right) and Zhou Cang (his left) at a Chinese folk religious temple in Osaka, Japan. Guandi is one of the most revered gods among Han Chinese.
The Waterside Dame and her two attendants, Lin Jiuniang and Li Sanniang, at the Temple of Heavenly Harmony of the Lushan school of Red Taoism in Luodong, Yilan, Taiwan.
Temple of the Dragon Mother in Deqing, Guangdong.
Temple of the Ancestral Mother the Queen of Heaven[i] in Qingdao, Shandong.

Some Taoist gods were thought to affect human morality and the consequences of it in certain traditions. Some Taoists beseeched gods, multiple gods, and/or pantheons to aid them in life and/or abolish their sins.[62]

The six Jade Maidens, as depicted in The Ordination of Empress Zhang (detail)
  • Civil and military (wen and wu) deities:
    • Wendi (文ぶん帝みかど, "Culture Deity"), also Wénchāngdì (文ぶん昌あきら帝みかど, "Deity who Makes Culture Thrive") or Wénchāngwáng (文ぶん昌あきら王おう, "King who Makes Culture Thrive"): in southern provinces, this deity takes the identity of various historical persons, while in the north, he is more frequently identified as being the same as Confucius (孔あな夫子ふうし, Kǒngfūzǐ)
      • Kuixing (魁さきがけ星ぼし, "Chief Star"): another god of culture and literature, but specifically, examination, is a personification of the man who awakens to the order of the Great Chariot.
    • Wǔdì (武たけ帝みかど, "Military Deity"): Guandì (關せき帝みかど, "Divus Guan"), also called Guāngōng (關せき公こう, "Duke Guan"),[iii] and popularly Guānyǔ (關せき羽はね).[ii]
      • Another class is the Zhànshén (戰せん神しん, "Fight God"), who may be personified by Chiyou (蚩尤) or Xingtian (刑けい天てん), who was decapitated for fighting against Tian.
  • Baoshengdadi (保生やすお大帝たいてい, "Great Deity who Protects Life").[v]
  • Baxian (八はち仙せん, "Eight Immortals").
  • Canshen (蠶かいこ神しん, "Silkworm God"), who may be:
    • Cánmǔ (蠶かいこ母はは, "Silkworm Mother"), also called Cángū (蠶かいこ姑しゅうと, "Silkworm Maiden"), who is identified as Leizu (嫘祖), the wife of the Yellow Emperor: the invention of sericulture is attributed primarily to her.
    • Qīngyīshén (青あお衣ころも神しん, "Bluegreen-Clad God"): his name as a human was Cáncóng (蠶かいこ叢くさむら, "Silkworm Twig"), and he is the first ruler and ancestor of the Shu state and promoter of sericulture among his people.
  • Caishen (財ざい神しん, "Wealth God").[ii]
  • Yánshén (鹽しお神しん, "Salt God"): a pantheon of salt deities that bring wealth to their adherents, including ChiYou for his blood turned into a pool of salt after he died in some tellings, Sushashi for being the first to extract salt from seawater in mythology, Guan Zhong for he gave his state an official monopoly on salt operations, and animals of all types, such as crows and deer, which were credited with leading humans to salt and thus granted divinity. Many of the salt gods can be worshipped as wealth gods.[63]
  • Cangjie (倉くら頡), the four-eyed inventor of the Chinese characters.
  • Cāngshén (倉くら神しん, "Granary God").
  • Chuānzhǔ (川かわ主ぬし, "Lord of Sichuan")
  • Chenghuangshen (城しろ隍神, "Moat and Walls God", or "Boundary God"): the god of the sacred boundaries of a human agglomeration, he is often personified by founding fathers or noble personalities from each city or town.[ii]
  • Chen Jinggu (陳ちん靖やすし姑しゅうと, "Old Quiet Lady"), also called Línshuǐ Fūrén (臨水夫人ふじん, "Waterside Dame").[v]
  • Hùshén (戶神とかみ, "Gate God").
  • Chēshén (車くるま神しん, "Vehicle God")[iv]
  • Erlangshen (二郎じろう神かみ, "Twice Young God"), the god of engineering.
  • Guǎngzé Zūnwáng (廣澤ひろさわ尊王そんのう, "Honorific King of Great Compassion").[v]
  • Guanyin (觀音かんのん, "She who Hears the Cries of the World"), the goddess of mercy.[ii]
  • Huang Daxian (黃大仙こうだいせん, "Great Immortal Huang").
  • Jigong (濟すみ公こう, "Help Lord").
  • Jiǔshén (酒神しゅしん, "Wine God"), personified as Yidi (儀ぎ狄).[iv]
  • Jiutian Xuannü (九天きゅうてん玄女げんにょ, "Mysterious Lady of the Nine Heavens"), a disciple of Xiwangmu and initiator of Huangdi.
  • Longmu (龍りゅう母はは, "Dragon Mother").
  • Lu Ban (魯班), the god of carpentry.
  • Lùshén (路みち神しん, "Road God").[iv]
  • Xíngshén (行くだり神しん, "Walking God").
  • Mazu (媽祖, "Ancestral Mother"), often entitled the "Queen of Heaven".[i][vi]
  • Pànguān (判官ほうがん, "Judging Official").
  • Píng'ānshén (平ひら安神あんしん, "Peace God"), an embodiment of whom is considered to have been Mao Zedong.[65]
  • Qingshui Zushi (清水しみず祖師そし, "Venerable Patriarch of the Clear Stream")[v]
  • Táoshén (陶すえ神しん, "Pottery God")[iv]
  • Tuershen (兔うさぎ兒じ神しん, "Leveret God"), the god of love among males.
  • Tuōtǎlǐ Tiānwáng (托たく塔とう李り天王てんのう, "Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King"), also known as Li Jing (李り靖やすし). He has three sons, the warlike protector deities Jinzha (金きむ吒), Muzha (木き吒), and Nezha (哪吒).
  • Wǔxiǎn (五ご顯あらわ, "Five Shining Ones"), possibly a popular form of the cosmological Five Deities.[v]
  • Xǐshén (喜き神しん, "Joy God").
  • Yàoshén (藥くすり神しん, "Medicine God") or frequently Yàowáng (藥くすり王おう, "Medicine King").[iv]
  • Yuexia Laoren (月下げっか老人ろうじん, "Old Man Under the Moon"), the matchmaker who pairs lovers together.
  • Yùshén (獄ごく神しん, "Jail-Purgatory God")[iv]
  • Zaoshen (灶神, "Hearth God"), the master of the household deities, including the "Bed God" (床ゆか神しん, Chuángshén), the "Gate Gods" (門もん神しん, Ménshén), and the "Toilet god" (廁神, Cèshén), often personified as Zigu.
  • Zhong Kui (鍾馗しょうき), the vanquisher of ghosts and evil beings.
  • Sanxing (三星みつぼし, "Three Stars"), a cluster of three astral gods of well-being:
    • Fuxing (福ぶく星ぼし, "Prosperity Star"), god of happiness.
    • Luxing (祿ろく星ぼし, "Firmness Star"), god of firmness and success in life and examinations.
    • Shouxing (壽ことぶき星ぼし, "Longevity Star"), who stands for a healthy and long life.

Gods of animal and vegetal life[edit]

  • Huāshén (花はな神しん, "Flower Goddess").
  • Huxian (狐きつね神しん, "Fox God[dess]") or Húxiān (狐きつね仙せん, "Fox Immortal"), also called Húxiān Niángniáng (狐きつね仙せん娘むすめ娘むすめ, "Fox Immortal Lady").[vii]
    • Two other great fox deities, peculiar to northeast China, are the "Great Lord of the Three Foxes" (胡えびす三さん太ふとし爷, Húsān Tàiyé) and the "Great Lady of the Three Foxes" (胡えびす三さん太ふとし奶, Húsān Tàinǎi), representing the yin and yang.[vii]
  • Mǎshén (馬神うまがみ, "Horse God") or Mǎwáng (马王, "Horse King").[iv]
  • Niúshén (牛神うしがみ, "Cattle God" or "Ox God"), also called Niúwáng (牛うし王おう, "Cattle King").[iv]
  • Lángshén (狼おおかみ神しん, "Wolf God").[iv]
  • Shùshén (樹き神しん, "Tree God[s]").
  • Wǔgǔshén (五谷ごたに神しん, "Five Cereals God"),[iv] another name for Shennong.
  • Yuánshén (猿さる神しん, "Monkey God") or Yuánwáng (猿さる王おう, "Monkey King"), who is identified as Sun Wukong (孙悟空ごくう).[viii]
  • Zhīmáshén (芝しば蔴神, "Sesame God")[iv]

Bixia mother goddess worship[edit]

"Bixia" redirects here. For the regal address, see Emperor of China.
Taiwanese wooden icon of the Queen of the Earth (Houtu).

The worship of mother goddesses for the cultivation of offspring is present all over China, but predominantly in northern provinces. There are nine main goddesses, and all of them tend to be considered as manifestations or attendant forces of a singular goddess identified variously as Bixia Yuanjun (碧あお霞かすみ元もと君くん, "Lady of the Blue Dawn"), also known as the Tiānxiān Niángniáng (天仙てんせん娘むすめ娘むすめ, "Heavenly Immortal Lady") or Tàishān Niángniáng (泰山たいざん娘むすめ娘むすめ, "Lady of Mount Tai"),[ix] or also Jiǔtiān Shèngmǔ (九天きゅうてん聖母せいぼ,[67] "Holy Mother of the Nine Skies"[x])[68]: 149–150  or Houtu, the goddess of the earth.[69]

Bixia herself is identified by Taoists as the more ancient goddess Xiwangmu.[70] The general Chinese term for "goddess" is nǚshén (女神めがみ), and goddesses may receive many qualifying titles, including mǔ (母はは, "mother"), lǎomǔ (老母ろうぼ, "old mother"), shèngmǔ (聖母せいぼ, "holy mother"), niángniáng (娘むすめ娘むすめ, "lady"), nǎinai (奶奶, "granny").

The additional eight main goddesses of fertility, reproduction, and growth are:[68]: 149–150, 191, note 18 

  • Bānzhěn Niángniáng (瘢疹娘むすめ娘むすめ), the goddess who protects children from illness.
  • Cuīshēng Niángniáng (催生娘むすめ娘むすめ), the goddess who gives swift childbirth and protects midwives.
  • Nǎimǔ Niángniáng (奶母娘むすめ娘むすめ), the goddess who presides over maternal milk and protects nursing.
  • Péigū Niángniáng (培つちかえ姑娘くーにゃん娘むすめ), the goddess who cultivates children.
  • Péiyǎng Niángniáng (培養ばいよう娘むすめ娘むすめ), the goddess who protects the upbringing of children.
  • Songzi Niangniang (送おく子こ娘むすめ娘むすめ) or Zǐsūn Niángniáng (子孫しそん娘むすめ娘むすめ), the goddess who presides over offspring.
  • Yǎnguāng Niángniáng (眼光がんこう娘むすめ娘むすめ), the goddess who protects eyesight.
  • Yǐnméng Niángniáng (引蒙娘むすめ娘むすめ), the goddess who guides young children.

Altars of goddess worship are usually arranged with Bixia at the center and two goddesses at her sides, most frequently the "Lady of Eyesight" and the "Lady of Offspring".[68]: 149–150, 191, note 18  A different figure, but with the same astral connections as Bixia is the "Goddess of the Seven Stars" (七なな星ほし娘むすめ娘むすめ, Qīxīng Niángniáng).[xi]

There is also the cluster of the "Holy Mothers of the Three Skies" (三さん霄聖母せいぼ, Sānxiāo Shèngmǔ; or 三さん霄娘娘むすめ, Sānxiāo Niángniáng, "Ladies of the Three Stars"), composed of Yunxiao Guniang, Qiongxiao Guniang, and Bixiao Guniang.[71] The cult of Chenjinggu, present in southeast China, is identified by some scholars as an emanation of the northern cult of Bixia.[72]

Other goddesses worshipped in China include Cánmǔ (蠶かいこ母はは, "Silkworm Mother") or Cángū (蠶かいこ姑しゅうと, "Silkworm Maiden"),[69] identified with Leizu (嫘祖, the wife of the Yellow Emperor), Magu (麻あさ姑しゅうと, "Hemp Maiden"), Sǎoqīng Niángniáng (掃清娘むすめ娘むすめ, "Goddess who Sweeps Clean"),[xii][73] Sānzhōu Niángniáng (三洲さんしゅう娘むすめ娘むすめ, "Goddess of the Three Isles"),[73] and Wusheng Laomu. The mother goddess is central in the theology of many folk religious sects.[69]

Gods of northeast China[edit]

See also: Wudaxian and Northeast China folk religion

Northeast China has clusters of deities which are peculiar to the area, deriving from the Manchu and broader Tungusic substratum of the local population. Animal deities related to shamanic practices are characteristic of the area and reflect wider Chinese cosmology. Besides the aforementioned Fox Gods (狐きつね仙せん, Húxiān), they include:[citation needed]

  • Huángxiān (黃き仙せん, "Yellow Immortal", the Weasel God.
  • Shéxiān (蛇へび仙せん, "Snake Immortal"), also variously called Liǔxiān (柳やなぎ仙せん, "Immortal Liu"), or Chángxiān (常つね仙せん, "Viper Immortal") or also Mǎngxiān (蟒仙, "Python or Boa Immortal").
  • Báixiān (白はく仙せん, "White Immortal"), the Hedgehog God.
  • Hēixiān (黑くろ仙せん, "Black Immortal"), who may be the Wūyāxiān (烏鴉うがらす仙せん, "Crow Immortal"), or the Huīxiān (灰はい仙せん, "Rat Immortal"), with the latter considered a misinterpretation of the former.

Gods of Indian origin[edit]

Temple of the Four-Faced God in Changhua, Taiwan.

Gods who have been adopted into Chinese religion but who have their origins in the Indian subcontinent or Hinduism:

  • Guanyin (觀音かんのん, "She who Hears the Cries of the World"), a Chinese goddess of mercy modeled after the bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara
  • Sìmiànshén (四面しめん神しん, "Four-Faced God"), but also a metaphor for "Ubiquitous God": The recent cult has its origin in the Thai transmission of the Hindu god Brahma, but it is important to note that it is also an epithet of the indigenous Chinese god Huangdi who, as the deity of the centre of the cosmos, is described in the Shizi as "Yellow Emperor with Four Faces" (黃き帝みかど四よん面めん, Huángdì Sìmiàn).[55]
  • Xiàngtóushén (象ぞう頭あたま神しん, "Elephant-Head God"), is the Indian god Ganesha.[74]

Gods of North China and Mongolia[edit]

  • Genghis Khan (成吉せいきち思おもえ汗あせ, Chéngjísīhán), worshipped by Mongols and Chinese under a variety of divinity titles, including Shèngwǔ Huángdì (聖ひじり武たけし皇帝こうてい, "Holy Military Sovereign Deity"), Fǎtiān Qǐyùn (法ほう天啓てんけい運うん, "Starter of the Transmission of the Law of Heaven"), and Tàizǔ (太ふとし祖そ, "Great Ancestor") of the Yuan and the Mongols.

Gods of folk and Local[edit]

  • Heng and Ha (哼哈二に將しょう), two generals of the Shang dynasty, guards of Buddhist temples in East Asia.[75]
  • Menshen (門もん神しん, "Door Gods"), divine guardians of doors and gates.
  • Shentu and Yulü (鬱うつ壘るい), a pair of deities who punished evil spirits.
  • Luoshen (洛らく神しん), the goddess of the Luo River.

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

Notes about the deities and their names
  1. ^ a b c The honorific Tiānhòu (天てん后きさき "Queen of Heaven") is used for many goddesses, but most frequently Mazu and Doumu.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g The cult of this deity is historically exercised all over China.[43]
  3. ^ a b c d e About the use of the title "duke": the term is from Latin dux, and describes a phenomenon or person who "conducts", "leads", the divine inspiration.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t The cult of this deity is historically exercised in northern China.[48] It is important to note that many cults of northern deities were transplanted also in southern big cities like Hong Kong and Macau, and also in Taiwan, with the political changes and migrations of the 19th and 20th centuries.
  5. ^ a b c d e The cult of this deity is historically exercised in southeastern China.[43]
  6. ^ The cult of Mazu has its origin in Fujian, but it has expanded throughout southern China and in many northern provinces, chiefly in localities along the coast, as well as among expatriate Chinese communities.[64]
  7. ^ a b The cult of fox deities is characteristic of northeastern China's folk religion, with influences reaching as far south as Hebei and Shandong.
  8. ^ The worship of monkeys in the northern Fujian region has a long history. Influenced by Journey to the West, the worship of the Monkey God in some areas has gradually been replaced by the worship of the Qítiān Dàshèng.[66]
  9. ^ As the Lady of Mount Tai, Bixia is regarded as the female counterpart of Dongyuedadi, the "Great Deity of the Eastern Peak" (Mount Tai).
  10. ^ The "Nine Skies" (九天きゅうてん Jiǔtiān) are the nine stars (seven stars with the addition of two invisibile ones, according to the Chinese tradition) of the Big Dipper or Great Chariot. Thus, Bixia and her nine attendants or manifestations are at the same time a metaphorical representation of living matter or earth, and of the source of all being which is more abstractly represented by major axial gods of Chinese religion such as Doumu.
  11. ^ Qixing Niangniang ("Lady of the Seven Stars") is a goddess that represents the seven visible stars of the Big Dipper or Great Chariot.
  12. ^ Saoqing Niangniang ("Lady who Sweeps Clean") is the goddess who ensures good weather conditions "sweeping away" clouds and storms.

References[edit]

Citations[edit]

  1. ^ Lü & Gong (2014), p. 71.
  2. ^ a b "tian". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2023-04-28.
  3. ^ a b Didier (2009), passim.
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  5. ^ Zhong (2014), p. 84, note 282.
  6. ^ 民間みんかん信仰しんこう的てき神明しんめい概念がいねん [Hierarchic organisation of the spiritual world]. web.sgjh.tn.edu.tw. Archived from the original on 2017-11-07. Retrieved 2017-11-01.
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  52. ^ Little & Eichman (2000), p. 250. It describes a Ming dynasty painting representing (among other figures) the Wudi: "In the foreground are the gods of the Five Directions, dressed as emperors of high antiquity, holding tablets of rank in front of them. [...] These gods are significant because they reflect the cosmic structure of the world, in which yin, yang and the Five Phases (Elements) are in balance. They predate religious Taoism, and may have originated as chthonic gods of the Neolithic period. Governing all directions (east, south, west, north and center), they correspond not only to the Five Elements, but to the seasons, the Five Sacred Peaks, the Five Planets, and zodiac symbols as well. [...]".
  53. ^ a b c d e f Sun & Kistemaker (1997), pp. 120–123.
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  68. ^ a b c Barrott Wicks, Ann Elizabeth (2002). Children in Chinese Art. University of Hawaii Press. ISBN 0824823591.
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Sources[edit]

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