ASIAN
MYTHOLOGY
Lontoc, Alfred R.
BSED-English 2201
ASIAN GODS AND
GODDESSES
MATCHANU
He is half-fish and half-deity, which is
very handy as he guards the lake
leading to the Underworld realm
of Patal. In case you were wondering, his
top half is a monkey and his bottom half
is the fishy bit.
ANTABOGA
He is so old that he is even older than
age itself. Since before the beginning he
was given to meditating. Then he
became much given to meditating and
felt that meditating owed him much in
return.
ANANTA THEWI
She is reported to be a consort of Phra
Sao, although we have had a little trouble
tracking her down.
As a Goddess of Good Fortune she
presumably compensates for her
husband’s grouchiness by spreading
beneficial luck around.
DEWI SRI
She was born from the tears
of Antaboga the World Serpent, who was
having a bad day in Heaven and badly
needed a hug.
His snaky tears formed into three
fabulous shining eggs.
PHRA SAO
He is the planet Saturn, which, as usual in
these cases, gives him a stormy and
unpredictable nature. He is grouchy,
grumpy and grinchy — not to mention
extremely irritable.
BATARA KALA
He is notoriously ravenous all the time
and also extremely grouchy. When he
really loses it we get misfortune,
accidents and possibly event eclipses. To
be honest we don’t know how his
wife Setesuyara puts up with him.
PHRA RAM
He has a green face and wears a very
pointy golden crown, but not as pointy as
the one his wife Phra Lak wears.
BATARA GURU
son of supreme God Mula Jadi Na
Bolon, he decided his growth was
dependent on solids so he started to add
soil to the all-encompassing oceans to
create solid land.
SETESUYARA
consort of Batara Kala. She is the
one who has to deal with all his
tantrums and hissy fits. Of course
she might be just as bad as him.
10 FAMOUS CHINESE
MYTHS
THE PILGRIMAGE
MYTHOLOGY
The Pilgrimage Mythology primarily talks about Kwan Yin, the
goddess of mercy and compassion. In most of the myths, she is
portrayed as a woman holding an infant, dressed in white, and
sitting on a lotus. She was said to have been murdered by her own
father. She arrived in hell reciting holy books and the king of hell
was very angry with her. He sent her back to the world of the
living where she gained spiritual insights from Buddha and later
on was blessed with immortality. The temple of Kwan Yin, located
at the summit of Wondrous Peak, has always attracted many
pilgrims.
THE MONKEY MYTH
A government official named Wu Ch’eng-en in his
popular novel, Journey to the West, tells the myth about the
Monkey King, Sun Wukong. Sun Wukong is the most
famous monkey in China. He was said to have been born
out of a stone egg that came from a magic rock on the
Mountain of Fruit and Flowers. According to mythology,
Sun used to be very naughty and eager to take over the
world and it took Buddha a lot of effort to tame him. The
Monkey King is characterized by his greedy, but joyful,
curious, and extremely popular nature.
THE UNICORN’S
PROPHECY
The myth of the unicorn’s prophecy sprang up around the life of
Confucius. This story introduces the unicorn, the chi-lin, which is
considered a sacred animal to the Chinese. It bears little
resemblance to the unicorn of European myths, and is a mixture
of many creatures including the deer, ox, dragon, and horse. The
chi-lin has been depicted in myths as a peaceful and timid animal
who leaves the innocent alone, but if angered, will jab evil people
with its horn. It is said that loyal soldiers embroidered the
emblem of the chi-lin on their clothing to show how dutiful they
were.
THE MOON GODDESS
Chang-O (or Chang’e), the Chinese goddess of the moon,
is the subject of several legends in Chinese mythology.
The moon goddess myth revolves around Hou Yi the
archer, the elixir of life, a benevolent emperor, and the
moon. This popular and interesting story about Chang-O
takes you to the distant past where the 10 sons of the Jade
Emperor were transformed into 10 suns. The 10 suns rose
to heaven and scorched the earth, threatening mankind’s
survival. The archer Yi shot down nine of these suns and
left only one.
THE GRAND ARCHER YI
In many ancient Chinese mythologies, we can see gods
helping the people. But the Grand Archer Yi is one of the
few mortals who has helped the gods. He is characterized
by his great skill at archery. Hou Yi is believed to have
lived between 2436 and 2255 BC. Myths about him are
linked to the people of the southwestern part of China. Yi
was one of the most famous archers of that time. It is
believed that Yi saved the moon during an eclipse and
rescued the country from a variety of outbreaks.
YU REBUILDS THE EARTH
The myth about Yu the Great is based on Chinese legends
dating from 2205 to 2197 BC. Like all demigods in ancient
times, Yu the Great could change himself into different
shapes whenever necessary. He could transform himself
into a bear, a dragon, or a human. Yu is considered to be
the first to pass his status as ruler on to his descendants,
creating the first dynasty, the Xia dynasty. However, due to
the lack of any archaeological evidence, the Xia dynasty
still remains a myth.
WATER WAR
Gong Gong (aka Kang Hui), a Chinese water god, is one of the
frequently described characters in ancient Chinese mythology.
He is depicted in stories as having red hair and the tail of a
serpent. Gong Gong has been credited in various mythological
texts as being responsible for destructive floods. He wrestled to
gain control of the earth shortly after the creation of people.
Before Gong, Zhurong, the fire god, ruled the world peacefully.
But when Gong became the ruler, he wanted to expand his
influence by increasing the amount of water in the universe,
namely seven-tenths water to three-tenths dry land.
FUSHI TEACHES THE
PEOPLE
The most ancient myths involve the 10 legendary
kings or gods who guided people through their
prehistoric beginnings (around 3000 to 2197 BC). They
were demigods (half god and half human), who lived
among the people and taught them the rules of
civilization. Fushi was the first ruler of this magical
period. Many scholars believe that his story is based
on an actual monarch who lived sometime between
2953 and 2736 BC.
NUWA CREATES PEOPLE
Nuwa (aka Nugua), the goddess of humankind, is one
of the most popular characters in ancient Chinese
mythology. According to mythology, Nuwa created
mankind and repaired the pillar of heaven and the
broken corners of earth which Gong Gong had
destroyed in a fit of anger. In Chinese mythology,
Nugua is regarded as the patroness of matchmakers.
PANKU (PANGU) CREATES
THE WORLD
The earliest Chinese mythologies contain many stories
of the wondrous rulers of ancient times, but there are
no creation stories. The story of Panku (aka Pangu) is
probably the closest Chinese version of a creation
myth. Pangu is the central figure in the Chinese Taoist
legends of creation. Pangu, the first man, is said to
have been created out of the cosmic egg and had two
horns, two tusks, and a hairy body.
REFERENCES:
• https://www.godchecker.com/southeast-asian-mythology/
• https://www.ancienthistorylists.com/china-history/top-10-astonishing-ancientchinese-mythology/