Lion dance

Lion dance (simplified Chinese: 舞狮; traditional Chinese: 舞獅; pinyin: wǔshī) is a form of traditional dance in Chinese culture, in which performers mimic a lion's movements in a lion costume
Asiatic lions found in nearby India are the ones depicted in the Chinese culture.

The lion dance originated in China close to a thousand years ago. The lion is traditionally regarded as a guardian creature. It is featured in Buddhist lore, being the mount of Manjusri. There are different variations of the lion dance in other Asian cultures including mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau, Japan, Okinawa, Korea, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Singapore,with each region possessing their own styles.
Chinese lion dances can be broadly categorised into two styles, Northern (北獅) and Southern (南獅). Northern dance was used as entertainment for the imperial court. The northern lion is usually red, orange, and yellow (sometimes with green fur for the female lion), shaggy in appearance, with a golden head. The northern dance is acrobatic and is mainly performed as entertainment.
Southern dance is more symbolic. It is usually performed as a ceremony to exorcise evil spirits and to summon luck and fortune. The southern lion exhibits a wide variety of colour and has a distinctive head with large eyes, a mirror on the forehead, and a single horn at center of the head. The lion dance also symbolises the myth of the Chinese new year
The Lion dance is often confused with the Chinese Dragon Dance, which features a team of around ten or more dancers. The Lion Dance usually consists of two people.

Association with kung fu

The lion dance has close relations to kung fu and the dancers are usually members of the local kung fu club. They practise in their club and some train hard to master the skill.

Northern style

In the north the lions usually appear in pairs. Northern lions usually have long and shaggy orange and yellow hair with either a red bow, or a green bow on its head to represent a male or female.
During a performance, northern lions resemble a Pekinese Dog or Fu Dogs and movements are very life-like. Acrobatics are very common, with stunts like lifts or balancing on a giant ball. Northern lions sometimes appear as a family, with two large "adult" lions and a pair of small "young lions". Ninghai, in Ningbo, is called the "Homeland of the Lion Dance" (狮舞之乡) for the northern variety.

Southern Cantonese style

Guangdong is the homeland of the southern style. The southern horned lions are believed to be Nians.
The Cantonese style can be further divided into Fat Shan (Buddha Mountain), Hok Shan (Crane Mountain), Fat-Hok (minor style that exhibits a hybrid of Fat Shan and Hok Shan), Chau Ka (minor style performed by practitioners of Chau family style kung fu), and the Green Lion (Qing1 Shi1 - popular with the Fukien/Hokkien and Taiwanese).
Fat San is the style many Kung Fu schools adopt. It requires powerful moves and strength in stance. The lion becomes the representation of the Kung Fu school and only the most advance students are allowed to perform.
The Hok San style is more commonly known as a contemporary style. Contemporary Hok Shan style combines a southern lion head with Northern lion movements. Hok Shan style tries to reproduce a more life-like look, realistic movements, and acrobatic stunts. Its shorter tail is also a favorite among the troupes that do pole (jong) jumping.[2]There is three important and the first colors of the lions. The lion with the white colored fur is considered to be the oldest of the lions. The lion with the goldish yellowish fur is the considered to be the middle child. Not the youngest or the oldest. And the black colored lion is considered to be the youngest lion so when people use this color lion it should move fast and quick like a young child.
When the dancing lion enters a village or township, it is supposed to pay its respects first at the local temple(s), then to the ancestors at the ancestral hall, and finally through the streets to bring happiness to all the people. There are three types of lions: the golden lion, representing liveliness; the red lion, representing courage; and the green lion, representing friendship.
Three other famous lion types can also be identified: Liu Bei, Guan Gong (Cantonese: Kwan Kung) and Zhang Fei. They represent historic characters in China that were recorded in the classic, Romance of the Three Kingdoms. These three were blood oath brothers that swore to restore the Han dynasty.
The Liu Bei (Cantonese: Lau Pei) lion is the eldest of the three brothers and has a yellow (actually imperial yellow as he became the first emperor of the Shu-Han Kingdom) based face with white beard and fur (to denote his wisdom). It sports a multi colored tail which encompasses the colors of the five elements, as it was believed that being the Emperor, he had the blessings of the heavens and thus control of the five elements. There are three coins on the collar. This lion is used by schools with an established Sifu (teacher) or organization and is known Rui shih (Shui Shi) or The Auspicious Lion.
The Guan Gong (Cantonese: Kwan Kung) lion has a red based face, black fur, with a long black beard (as he was also known as the "Duke with the Beautiful Beard"). The tail is red with black trim. He is known as the second brother and sports two coins on the collar. This Lion is known as Hsing Shih (Shing Shi) or the Awakened Lion. This lion is generally used by most.
The Zhang Fei (Cantonese: Chang Fei) lion has a black based face with short black beard, culiflowered ears, and black fur. The tail is black with white trim. Traditionally this lion also had bells attached to the body, which served as a warning like a rattler on a rattle snake. Being the youngest of the three brothers, there is a single coin on the collar. This Lion is known as the Fighting Lion because Zhang Fei had a quick temper and loved to fight. This lion is used by clubs that were just starting out or by those wishing to make a challenge.
Later an additional three Lions were added to the group. The Green faced lion represented Zhao Yun or Zhao (Cantonese: Chiu) Zi Long. He has a green tail with white beard and fur and an iron horn. He is often called the fourth brother, this lion is called the Heroic Lion because it is said he rode through Cao Cao’s million man army and rescued Liu Bei’s infant and fought his way back out. The Yellow (yellow/orange) face and body with white beard represented Huang Zhong (Cantonese: Wong Tsung) , we was given this color when Liu Bei rose to become Emperor. This lion is called the Righteous Lion. The white color lion is known as Ma Chao (Cantonese: Ma Chiu), he was assigned this color because he always wore a white arm band to battle against the Emperor of Wei, Cao Cao, to signify that he was in mourning for his father and brother who had been murdered by Cao Cao. Thus this lion was known as the funeral lion. This lion is never used except for a funeral for the Sifu or some important head of the group, and in such cases it is usually burned right after. Even if it is properly stored, it is not something one would want to keep, as it is symbolically inauspicious to have around. It is sometimes though, confused with the silver lion which sometimes has a white like coloring. These three along with Guan Yu and Zhang Fei were known as the “Five Tiger Generals of Shu,” each representing one of the colors of the five elements.
During the Chinese New Year, lion dancers from martial art school will visit the store front of businesses to "choi chang" (採青 lit. picking the greens). The business would tie a red envelope filled with money to a head of lettuce and hang it high above the front door. The lion will approach the lettuce like a curious cat, consume the lettuce and spit out the leaves but not the money. The lion dance is supposed to bring good luck and fortune to the business and the dancers receive the money as reward. The tradition becomes a mutual transaction.
Other types of "greens" (青) may also be used to challenge the troupe, for instance using pineapples, pomelos, bananas, oranges, sugar cane shoots, earthen pots to create pseudo barriers and challenges.
The dance also performed at other important occasions including Chinese festivals, business opening ceremonies and traditional weddings.

In the old days, the lettuce was hung 15 to 20 feet above ground and only a well-trained martial artists could reach the money while dancing with a heavy lion head. These events became a public challenge. A large sum of money was rewarded, and the audience expected a good show. Sometimes, if lions from multiple martial arts schools approached the lettuce at the same time, the lions are supposed to fight to decide a winner. The lions had to fight with stylistic lion moves instead of chaotic street fighting styles. The audience would judge the quality of the martial art schools according to how the lions fought. Since the schools' reputation were at stake, the fights were usually fierce but civilized. The winner lion would then use creative methods and martial art skills to reach the high-hanging reward. Some lions may dance on bamboo stilts and some may step on human pyramids formed by fellow students of the school. The performers and the schools would gain praise and respect on top of the large monetary reward when they did well. Nowadays, performances to attain the red envelope are not as rigorous but lion dance troupes still have the onus of making a good show or face the consequence of an unhappy client.

During the 1950s-60's, people who joined lion dance troupes were “gangster-like” and there was a lot of fighting amongst lion dance troupes and kung fu schools. Parents were afraid to let their children join lion dance troupes because of the “gangster” association with the members. During festivals and performances, when lion dance troupes met, there would be fights between groups. Some lifts and acrobatic tricks are designed for the lion to “fight” and knock over other rival lions. Performers even hid daggers in their shoes and clothes, which could be used to injure other lion dancers’ legs, or even attached a metal horn on their lion’s forehead, which could be used to slash other lion heads. The violence got so extreme that at one point, the Hong Kong government had to put a stop to lion dance completely. Now, as with many other countries, lion dance troupes must attain a permit from the government in order to perform lion dance. Although there is still a certain degree of competitiveness, troupes are a lot less violent and aggressive. Today, lion dance is a more sport-oriented activity. Lion dance is more for recreation than a way of living.

Lion Dance in Modern Popular Culture

Several movies in the Once Upon a Time in China series involve plots centered around Lion Dancing, especially Once Upon a Time in China III and IV.
Jet Li has performed as a lion dancer in several of his films, including Southern style lion dancing in Once Upon a Time in China III, Once Upon a Time in China and America and Northern style lion dancing in Shaolin Temple 2, and Shaolin Temple 3.

Dragon dance

Dragon dance (simplified Chinese: 舞龙; traditional Chinese: 舞龍; pinyin: wǔ lóng) is a form of traditional dance and performance in Chinese culture. Like the lion dance it is most often seen in festive celebrations. Chinese people often use the term "Descendants of the Dragon" (龍的傳人 or 龙的传人, lóng de chuán rén) as a sign of ethnic identity.
In the dance, a team of people carry the dragon — which is an image of the Chinese dragon — on poles. The lead dancers lift, dip, thrust, and sweep the head, which may contain animated features controlled by a dancer and is sometimes rigged to belch smoke from pyrotechnic devices. The dance team mimics the supposed movements of this river spirit in a sinuous, undulating manner. The movements in a performance traditionally symbolise historical roles of dragons demonstrating power and dignity. The dragon dance is a highlight of Chinese New Year celebrations held worldwide in Chinatowns around the world.
Dragons are believed to bring good luck to people, which is reflected in their qualities that include great power, dignity, fertility, wisdom and auspiciousness. The appearance of a dragon is both frightening and bold but it has a benevolent disposition, and so eventually became an emblem to represent imperial authority.
One of the illustrations at right shows a Double Dragon Dance, rarely seen in western exhibitions, with two troupes of dancers intertwining the dragons. Even rarer are dances with the full array of 9 dragons (Kawlung), since 9 is a 'perfect' number. Such dances involve large number of participants from various organizations, and are often only possible under the auspices of the greater community.

The Dragon Dance itself originated during the Han Dynasty and was started by the Chinese who had shown great belief and respect towards the dragon. It is believed to have begun as part of the farming and harvest culture, also with origins as a method of healing and preventing sickness. It was already a popular event during the Song Dynasty where it had become a folk activity and like the lion dance, was most often seen in festive celebrations.[1]
From its origins in combining stylized depictions of natural animals, the Chinese dragon evolved to become a mythical creature revered in Chinese culture. Its physical form is a combination of many animals, including the horns of a stag, ears of a bull, eyes of a rabbit, claws of a tiger and the scales of a fish, all on a long serpent’s body. With these traits, it was believed that dragons were amphibious with the ability to move on land, fly through the air and swim in the sea, bestowing them roles as governors of cloud and rain in weather.
As the dragon gives people a feeling of great respect, it is often called the Sacred Dragon. The emperors of ancient China considered themselves as the dragon. The Dragon is also the emblem of Imperial Authority. It symbolises supernatural power, goodness, fertility, vigilance and dignity.
The dragon dance was started by the Chinese who had shown great belief and respect towards the dragon. It is an important item of the Chinese Culture and tradition. Dragon Dance has spread throughout China and to the whole world. It becomes a special performance of arts in the Chinese physical activities. It symbolizes the bringing of good luck and prosperity in the year to come for all the human beings on earth. According to ancient history, during the period of Chun Chiu, the learning of Chinese Martial Arts was very popular and in the spare time, dragon dance was also being taught to students to provide more encouragement.
In the Qing Dynasty, the Dragon Dance team of the province of Foochow had been invited to perform in Peking and had been greatly praised and admired by the Ching Emperor, which earned great fame for the team

The dragon dance is performed by a skilled team whose job is to bring the motionless body to life. The dragon itself is a long serpent shaped body on poles, assembled by joining the series of hoops on each section and attaching the ornamental head and tail pieces at the ends. Traditionally, dragons were constructed of wood, with bamboo hoops on the inside and covered with a rich fabric, however in the modern era lighter materials such as aluminum and plastics have replaced the wood and heavy material.

Dragons can range in length from around 25 to 35 meters for the more acrobatic models, and up to 50 to 70 meters for the largest, parade and ceremonial styles, since part of the myth of the dragon is that the longer the creature, the more luck it will bring. The size and length of a dragon depend on the human power available, financial power, materials, skills and size of the field. Its length typically ranges from 9 sections to 15 sections long, though some dragons are as long as 46 sections.
A small organization cannot afford to run a very long dragon because it consumes great human power, great expenses and special skills which are difficult to manage. The normal length and size of the body recommended for the dragon is 112 feet (34 meters) and is divided into 9 major sections. The distance of each minor (rib-like) section is 14 inches apart; therefore, the body has 81 rings. History tells us that the dragon dance is performed in various ways, types and colors. Green is sometimes selected as a main color of the dragon, which symbolizes a great harvest. Other colors include: yellow symbolizing the solemn empire, golden or silver colors symbolizing prosperity, red color representing excitement while its scales and tail are mostly beautiful silver colors and glittering at all times which provides a feeling of joyous atmosphere. As the Dragon dance is not performed every day, the cloth of the dragon is to be removed and to have a new touch of ultra-paint before the next performance.
The correct combination and proper timing of the different parts of the dragon are very important to make a successful dance. Any mistakes made by even some of the performers would spoil the whole performance. To be very successful in the dance, the head of the Dragon must be able to co-operate with the body in combination with the timing of the drum. For larger ceremonial and parade style dragons, the head can weigh as much as 12 katis (14.4 kg, almost 32 lb). The dragon tail also has an important role to play as it will have to keep in time with head movements. The fifth section is considered to be the middle portion and the performers must be very alert as the body movements change from time to time.
In competition performances however, there are strict rules governing the specifications of the dragon body and the routine performed, and so dragons made for these events and what are mostly seen in the impressive stage shows are made for speed and agility, to be used by the performing team for maximum trick difficulty. In these dragons, the head is smaller and light enough to be whipped around, and must be a minimum of 3Kg, the body pieces are a light aluminum with cane and the majority of the hoops will be very thin PVC tubing. Performances are typically made into 8-10 minute routines with an accompanying percussion set.[1]
The patterns of the dragon dance are choreographed according to the skills and experiences acquired by the performers. Some of the patterns of the dragon dance are "Cloud Cave", "Whirlpool", Tai-Chi pattern, "threading the money", "looking for pearl", and "dragon encircling the pillar". The movement "dragon chasing the pearl" shows that the dragon is continually in the pursuit of wisdom.
The dragon moves in a wave-like pattern achieved by the co-ordinated swinging of each section in succession. Whilst this swinging constitutes the basic movement of the dragon, executing more complex formations is only limited by a team’s creativity. The patterns and tricks that are performed generally involve running into spiraled formations to make the dragon body turn and twist on itself. This causes performers to jump over or through the dragon’s body sections, adding to the visual display. Other advanced manoeuvres include various corkscrew-like rotating tricks and more acrobatic moves where the performers stand on each others legs and shoulders to increase the height of the dragon’s movements.

Performing in a dragon dance team incorporates several elements and skills; it is something of a cross-over activity, combining the training and mentality of a sports team with the stagecraft and flair of a performing arts troupe. The basic skills are simple to learn, however to become a competent performer takes dedicated training until movements become second nature and complex formations can be achieved – which rely not only on the skill of the individual member, but on concentration by the team as a whole to move in co-operation.

Journey to the West

Journey to the West (traditional Chinese: 西遊記; simplified Chinese: 西游记; pinyin: Xīyóujì; Wade-Giles: Hsiyu-chi) is one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature. Originally published anonymously in the 1590s during the Ming Dynasty, and even though no direct evidence of its authorship survives, it has been ascribed to the scholar Wú Chéng'ēn since the 20th century.

In western countries, the tale is also often known simply as Monkey. This was one title used for a popular, abridged translation by Arthur Waley. The Waley translation has also been published as Adventures of the Monkey God; and Monkey: [A] Folk Novel of China; and The Adventures of Monkey.

The novel is a fictionalized account of the legends around the Buddhist monk Xuánzàng's pilgrimage to India during the Táng dynasty in order to obtain Buddhist religious texts called sutras. The Bodhisattva Guānyīn, on instruction from the Buddha, gives this task to the monk and his three protectors in the form of disciples — namely Sūn Wùkōng, Zhū Bājiè and Shā Wùjìng — together with a dragon prince who acts as Xuánzàng's horse mount. These four characters have agreed to help Xuánzàng as an atonement for past sins.

Some scholars propose that the book satirises the effete Chinese government at the time. Journey to the West has a strong background in Chinese folk religion, Chinese mythology and value systems; the pantheon of Taoist immortals and Buddhist bodhisattvas is still reflective of Chinese folk religious beliefs today.

Part of the novel's enduring popularity comes from the fact that it works on multiple levels: it is a first-rate adventure story, a dispenser of spiritual insight, and an extended allegory in which the group of pilgrims journeying toward India stands for the individual journeying toward enlightenment.

Synopsis
The novel comprises 100 chapters. These can be divided into four very unequal parts. The first, which includes chapters 1–7, is really a self-contained prequel to the main body of the story. It deals entirely with the earlier exploits of Sūn Wùkōng, a monkey born from a stone nourished by the Five Elements, who learns the art of the Tao, 72 polymorphic transformations, combat and secrets of immortality, and through guile and force makes a name for himself as the Qítiān Dàshèng (simplified Chinese: 齐天大圣; traditional Chinese: 齊天大聖), or "Great Sage Equal to Heaven". His powers grow to match the forces of all of the Eastern (Taoist) deities, and the prologue culminates in Sūn's rebellion against Heaven, during a time when he garnered a post in the celestial bureaucracy. Hubris proves his downfall when the Buddha manages to trap him under a mountain for five hundred years
Only following this introductory story is the nominal main character, Xuánzàng, introduced. Chapters 8–12 provide his early biography and the background to his great journey. Dismayed that "the land of the South knows only greed, hedonism, promiscuity, and sins", the Buddha instructs the Bodhisattva Guānyīn to search Táng China for someone to take the Buddhist sutras of "transcendence and persuasion for good will" back to the East. Part of the story here also relates to how Xuánzàng becomes a monk (as well as revealing his past life as the "Golden Cicada" and comes about being sent on this pilgrimage by the Emperor Táng Tàizōng, who previously escaped death with the help of an underworld official).

The third and longest section of the work is chapters 13–99, an episodic adventure story which combines elements of the quest as well as the picaresque. The skeleton of the story is Xuánzàng's quest to bring back Buddhist scriptures from Vulture Peak in India, but the flesh is provided by the conflict between Xuánzàng's disciples and the various evils that beset him on the way.

The scenery of this section is, nominally, the sparsely populated lands along the Silk Road between China and India, including Xinjiang, Turkestan, and Afghanistan. The geography described in the book is, however, almost entirely fantastic; once Xuánzàng departs Cháng'ān, the Táng capital and crosses the frontier (somewhere in Gansu province), he finds himself in a wilderness of deep gorges and tall mountains, all inhabited by flesh-eating demons who regard him as a potential meal (since his flesh was believed to give Immortality to whoever eats it), with here and there a hidden monastery or royal city-state amid the wilds.

The episodic structure of this section is to some extent formulaic. Episodes consist of 1–4 chapters, and usually involve Xuánzàng being captured and his life threatened, while his disciples try to find an ingenious (and often violent) way of liberating him. Although some of Xuánzàng's predicaments are political and involve ordinary human beings, they more frequently consist of run-ins with various goblins and ogres, many of whom turn out to be the earthly manifestations of heavenly beings (whose sins will be negated by eating the flesh of Xuanzang) or animal-spirits with enough Taoist spiritual merit to assume semi-human forms.

Chapters 13–22 do not follow this structure precisely, as they introduce Xuánzàng's disciples, who, inspired or goaded by Guānyīn, meet and agree to serve him along the way, in order to atone for their sins in their past lives.

The first is Sun Wukong (simplified Chinese: 孙悟空; traditional Chinese: 孫悟空), or Monkey, previously "Great Sage Equal to Heaven", trapped by Buddha for rebelling against Heaven. He appears right away in Chapter 13. The most intelligent and violent of the disciples, he is constantly reproved for his violence by Xuánzàng. Ultimately, he can only be controlled by a magic gold band that the Bodhisattva has placed around his head, which causes him excruciating pain when Xuánzàng says certain magic words.
The second, appearing in 19, is Zhu Bajie (simplified Chinese: 猪八戒; traditional Chinese: 豬八戒), literally Eight-precepts Pig, sometimes translated as Pigsy or just Pig. He was previously Marshal Tīan Péng (simplified Chinese: 天蓬元帅; traditional Chinese: 天蓬元帥), commander of the Heavenly Naval forces, banished to the mortal realm for flirting with the Princess of the Moon Chang'e. He is characterized by his insatiable appetites for food and sex, and is constantly looking for a way out of his duties, but is always kept in line by Sūn Wùkōng.
The third, appearing in chapter 22, is the river-ogre Sha Wujing (simplified Chinese: 沙悟净; traditional Chinese: 沙悟淨), also translated as Friar Sand or Sandy. He was previously Great General who Folds the Curtain (simplified Chinese: 卷帘大将; traditional Chinese: 捲簾大將), banished to the mortal realm for dropping (and shattering) a crystal goblet of the Heavenly Queen Mother. He is a quiet but generally dependable character, who serves as the straight foil to the comic relief of Sūn and Zhū.
Possibly to be counted as a fourth disciple is the third prince of the Dragon-King, Yùlóng Sāntàizǐ (simplified Chinese: 玉龙三太子; traditional Chinese: 玉龍三太子), who was sentenced to death for setting fire to his father's great pearl. He was saved by Guānyīn from execution to stay and wait for his call of duty. He appears first in chapter 15, but has almost no speaking role, as throughout most of the story he appears in the transformed shape of a horse that Xuánzàng rides on.
Chapter 22, where Shā is introduced, also provides a geographical boundary, as the river that the travelers cross brings them into a new "continent". Chapters 23–86 take place in the wilderness, and consist of 24 episodes of varying length, each characterized by a different magical monster or evil magician. There are impassably wide rivers, flaming mountains, a kingdom ruled by women, a lair of seductive spider-spirits, and many other fantastic scenarios. Throughout the journey, the four brave disciples have to fend off attacks on their master and teacher Xuánzàng from various monsters and calamities.

It is strongly suggested that most of these calamities are engineered by fate and/or the Buddha, as, while the monsters who attack are vast in power and many in number, no real harm ever comes to the four travelers. Some of the monsters turn out to be escaped heavenly animals belonging to bodisattvas or Taoist sages and spirits. Towards the end of the book there is a scene where the Buddha literally commands the fulfillment of the last disaster, because Xuánzàng is one short of the eighty-one disasters he needs to attain Buddhahood.

In chapter 87, Xuánzàng finally reaches the borderlands of India, and chapters 87–99 present magical adventures in a somewhat more mundane (though still exotic) setting. At length, after a pilgrimage said to have taken fourteen years (the text actually only provides evidence for nine of those years, but presumably there was room to add additional episodes) they arrive at the half-real, half-legendary destination of Vulture Peak, where, in a scene simultaneously mystical and comic, Xuánzàng receives the scriptures from the living Buddha.

Chapter 100, the last of all, quickly describes the return journey to the Táng Empire, and the aftermath in which each traveler receives a reward in the form of posts in the bureaucracy of the heavens. Sūn Wùkōng and Xuánzàng achieve Buddhahood, Wùjìng becomes an arhat, the dragon is made a Naga, and Bājiè, whose good deeds have always been tempered by his greed, is promoted to an altar cleanser (i.e. eater of excess offerings at altars).

Historical context
The classic story of the Journey to the West was based on real events. In real life, Xuanzang (born c. 602 - 664) was a monk at Jingtu Temple in late-Sui Dynasty and early-Tang Dynasty Chang'an. Motivated by the poor quality of Chinese translations of Buddhist scripture at the time, Xuanzang left Chang'an in 629, despite the border being closed at the time due to war with the Gokturks. Helped by sympathetic Buddhists, he travelled via Gansu and Qinghai to Kumul (Hami), thence following the Tian Shan mountains to Turfan. He then crossed what are today Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Afghanistan, into Gandhara, reaching India in 630. Xuanzang travelled throughout the Indian subcontinent for the next thirteen years, visiting important Buddhist pilgrimage sites and studying at the ancient university at Nalanda.

Xuanzang left India in 643 and arrived back in Chang'an in 646 to a warm reception by Emperor Taizong of Tang. He joined Da Ci'en Monastery (Monastery of Great Maternal Grace), where he led the building of the Big Wild Goose Pagoda in order to store the scriptures and icons he had brought back from India. He recorded his journey in the book Journey to the West in the Great Tang Dynasty. With the support of the Emperor, he established an institute at Yuhua Gong (Palace of the Lustre of Jade) monastery dedicated to translating into Chinese the scriptures he had brought back. His translation and commentary work established him as the founder of the Dharma character school of Buddhism. Xuanzang died on March 7, 664. The Xingjiao Monastery was established in 669 to house his ashes.

Popular stories of Xuánzàng's journey were in existence long before Journey to the West was written. In these versions, dating as far back as Southern Song, a monkey character was already a primary protagonist. Before the Yuan Dynasty and early Ming, elements of the Monkey story were already seen.
Main characters

Tripitaka or Xuánzàng

An illustration of Xuanzang
Main article: Xuanzang
Xuánzàng (玄奘) (or Táng-Sānzàng (唐三藏), meaning "Táng-dynasty monk" — Sānzàng (三藏) or "Three Baskets", referring to the Tripitaka, was a traditional honorific for a Buddhist monk) is the Buddhist monk who set out to India to retrieve the Buddhist scriptures for China. He is called Tripitaka in many English versions of the story. Although he is helpless when it comes to defending himself, the bodhisattva Guānyīn helps by finding him powerful disciples (Sūn Wùkōng, Zhū Bājiè, and Shā Wùjìng) who aid and protect him on his journey. In return, the disciples will receive enlightenment and forgiveness for their sins once the journey is done. Along the way, they help the local inhabitants by defeating various monsters. The fact that most of the monsters and demons are trying to obtain immortality by eating Xuánzàng's flesh, and are even attracted to him as he is depicted as quite handsome, provides much of the plot in the story.
Monkey King (Emperor of Monkeys) or Sūn Wùkōng
Main article: Sun Wukong
Sūn Wùkōng is the name given to this character by his teacher, Patriarch Subhuti, and means "the one who has Achieved the Perfect Comprehension of the Extinction of both Emptiness and non-Emptiness"; he is called Monkey King or simply Monkey Emperor in English.
He was born out of a rock that had been dormant for ages in Flower Fruit Mountain that was inhabited/weathered by the sun and moon until a monkey sprang forth. He first distinguished himself by bravely entering the Cave of Water Curtains (pinyin:Shuǐlián-dòng) at the Mountains of Flowers and Fruits (Huāguǒ-shān); for this feat, his monkey tribe gave him the title of Měi-hóuwáng ("handsome monkey-king"). Later, he started making trouble in Heaven and defeated an army of 100,000 celestial soldiers, led by the Four Heavenly Kings, Erlang Shen, and Nezha. Eventually, the Jade Emperor appealed to Buddha, who subdued and trapped Wukong under a mountain. He was only saved when Xuanzang came by him on his pilgrimage and accepted him as a disciple.
His primary weapon is the rúyì-jīngū-bàng ("will-following golden-banded staff"), which he can shrink down to the size of a needle and keep behind his ear, as well as expand it to gigantic proportions (hence the "will-following" part of the name). The staff, originally a pillar supporting the undersea palace of the East Sea Dragon King, weighs 13,500 pounds, which he pulled out of its support and swung with ease. The Dragon King, not wanting him to cause any trouble, also gave him a suit of golden armor. These gifts, combined with his devouring of the peaches of immortality and three jars of immortality pills while in Heaven, plus his ordeal in an eight-trigram furnace (which gave him a steel-hard body and fiery golden eyes), makes Wukong the strongest member by far of the pilgrimage. Besides these abilities, he can also pull hairs from his body and blow on them to transform them into whatever he wishes (usually clones of himself to gain a numerical advantage in battle). Although he has mastered seventy-two methods of transformations, it does not mean that he is restricted to seventy-two different forms. He can also do a jīndǒuyún ("cloud somersault"), enabling him to travel vast distances in a single leap. Wukong uses his talents to fight demons and play pranks. However, his behavior is checked by a band placed around his head by Guanyin, which cannot be removed by Wukong himself until the journey's end. Xuanzang can tighten this band by chanting the Tightening-Crown spell (taught to him by Guanyin) whenever he needs to chastise him. The spell is referred to by Xuanzang's disciples as the "Headache Sutra", and is as follows:- "Oh-munney pud-meyon", which is spoken quickly and repeatedly.
Wukong's child-like playfulness is a huge contrast to his cunning mind. This, coupled with his acrobatic skills, makes him a likeable hero, though not necessarily a good role model. His antics present a lighter side in what proposes to be a long and dangerous trip into the unknown.
Zhū Bājiè
Main article: Zhu Bajie
Zhū Bājiè ("Pig of the Eight Prohibitions") is also known as Zhū Wùnéng ("Pig Awakened to Power"), and given the name Pigsy or Pig in English.
Once an immortal who was the Tiānpéng-yuánshuǎi ("Field Marshal Tianpeng") of 100,000 soldiers of the Milky Way, during a celebration of gods, he drank too much and attempted to flirt with Cháng'é, the beautiful moon goddess, resulting in his banishment into the mortal world. He was supposed to be reborn as a human, but ended up in the womb of a sow due to an error at the Reincarnation Wheel, which turned him into a half-man half-pig monster. Staying within Yúnzhan-dòng ("cloud-pathway cave"), he was commissioned by Guanyin to accompany Xuanzang to India and given the new name Zhu Wuneng.
However, Wuneng's desire for women led him to Gao Village, where he posed as a normal being and took a wife. Later, when the villagers discovered that he was a monster, Wuneng hid the girl away. At this point, Xuanzang and Wukong arrived at Gao Village and helped subdue him. Renamed Zhu Bajie by Xuanzang, he consequently joined the pilgrimage to the West.
His weapon of choice is the jiǔchǐdīngpá ("nine-tooth iron rake"). He is also capable of thirty-six transformations (as compared to Wukong's seventy-two), and can travel on clouds, but not as fast as Wukong. However, Bajie is noted for his fighting skills in the water, which he used to combat Sha Wujing, who later joined them on the journey. He is the second strongest member of the team.
Shā Wùjìng
Main article: Sha Wujing
Shā Wùjìng (literally meaning "Sand Awakened to Purity"), given the name Friar Sand or Sandy in English, was once the Curtain Raising General, who stood in attendance by the imperial chariot in the Hall of Miraculous Mist. He was exiled to the mortal world and made to look like a monster because he accidentally smashed a crystal goblet belonging to the Heavenly Queen Mother during the Peach Banquet. The now-hideous immortal took up residence in the Flowing Sands River, terrorizing the surrounding villages and travelers trying to cross the river. However, he was subdued by Sūn Wùkōng and Zhū Bājiè when the Xuānzàng party came across him. They consequently took him in to be a part of the pilgrimage to the West.
Shā Wùjìng's weapon is the yuèyáchǎn ("Crescent-Moon-Shovel" or "Monk's Spade"). Aside from that, he knows eighteen transformations and is highly effective in water combat. He is about as strong as Bājiè, and is much stronger than Wùkōng in water. However, Bājiè can beat Wujing in a test of endurance, and Wùkōng can beat him out of water.
Shā Wùjìng is known to be the most obedient, logical, and polite of the three disciples, and always takes care of his master, seldom engaging in the bickeries of his fellow-disciples. Ever reliable, he carries the luggage for the travellers. Perhaps this is why he is sometimes seen as a minor character; the lack of any particular perks confers the lack of distinguishing and/or redeeming characteristics.
Wùjìng eventually becomes an Arhat at the end of the journey, giving him a higher level of exaltation than Bājiè, who is relegated to cleaning every altar at every Buddhist temple for eternity, but is still lower spiritually than Wùkōng or Xuānzàng who are granted Buddhahood.

Guan Yin

Guanyin (觀音, pinyin guānyīn, Wade-Giles: kuan-yin) is the bodhisattva of compassion as venerated by East Asian Buddhists, usually as a female. She is also known as the Chinese Bodhisattva of Compassion. The name Guanyin is short for Guanshi'yin (觀世音, pinyin: guānshì yīn, Wade-Giles: kuan-shih yin) which means "Observing the Sounds (or Cries) of the World".
It is generally accepted that Guanyin originated as the Sanskrit Avalokiteśvara (अवलोकितेश्वर), which is her male form. Commonly known in the West as the Goddess of Mercy, Guanyin is also revered by Chinese Taoists as an Immortal. It should be noted that in Taoist mythology, Guan Yin has other origination stories which are unrelated to Avalokiteśvara.
In Japanese, Guanyin is pronounced Kannon (観音), occasionally Kan'on, or more formally Kanzeon (観世音); the spelling Kwannon, based on a pre-modern pronunciation, is sometimes seen. In Korean, the Bodhisattva is called Gwan-eum (관음) or Gwanse-eum (관세음), In Thai, the name is called Kuan Eim (กวนอิม) or Prah Mae Kuan Eim (พระแม่กวนอิม), and in Vietnamese, the name is Quan Âm or Quan Thế Âm Bồ Tát. In Hong Kong where there are many temples to her the name is written as Kwun Yum.
Depiction
Guanyin is the Chinese name for the Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara. However, folk traditions in China and other East Asian countries have added many distinctive characteristics and legends. Avalokiteśvara was originally depicted as Buddha when he was still a prince, and therefore wears chest-revealing clothing and may even sport a moustache. However, in China, Guanyin is usually depicted as a woman. Additionally, some people believe that Guanyin is neither man nor woman.[citation needed]

In China, Guanyin is usually shown in a white flowing robe, and usually wearing necklaces of Indian/Chinese royalty. In the right hand is a water jar containing pure water, and in the left, a willow branch. The crown usually depicts the image of Amitabha Buddha, Guan Yin's spiritual teacher before she became a Bodhisattva.

In some Buddhist temples and monasteries, Guanyin images are occasionally depicted as a young man dressed in Northern Song Buddhist robes sitting gracefully. He is usually depicted looking or glancing down, symbolising that Guanyin continues to watch over the world.
There are also regional variations of Guan Yin depictions. In the Fukien region of China, for example, a popular depiction of Guan Yin is as a maiden dressed in Tang dynasty style clothing carrying a fish basket. A popular image of Guan Yin as both Guan Yin of the South Sea and Guan Yin With a Fish Basket can be seen in late 1500s Chinese encyclopedias and in prints that accompany the novel Golden Lotus.

In Chinese art, Guan Yin is often depicted either alone, standing atop a dragon, accompanied by a bird, flanked by two children, or flanked by two warriors. The two children are her acolytes who came to her when she was meditating at Mount Putuo. The girl is called Long Nü and the boy Shan Tsai. The two warriors are the historical character Guan Yu who comes from the Three Kingdoms period and the mythological character Wei Tuo who features in the Chinese classic Canonisation of the Gods. The Buddhist tradition also displays Guan Yin, or other buddhas and bodhisattvas, flanked with the two said warriors, but as bodhisattvas who protect the temple and the faith itself.
In Chinese Buddhist iconography, Guan Yin is often depicted as meditating or sitting alongside one of the Buddhas and usually accompanied by another bodhisattva. Which buddha or bodhisattva usually depends upon which school it represents. In the Pure Land school, for example, Guan Yin is frequently depicted as standing alongside Amitabha Buddha and bodhisattva Mahasthamaprapta. Temples that revere the bodhisattva Ksitigarbha usually depict him meditating alongside the Buddha and Guan Yin.

Along with Buddhism, Guanyin's veneration was introduced into China as early as the 1st century CE, and reached Japan by way of Korea soon after Buddhism was first introduced into the country in the mid-7th century.

More recently in Europe and America, a new wave of believers have spread a devotional cult beyond Buddhism, Taoism and folk traditional beliefs. Guan Yin is not only a bodhisattva or a goddess but a focus of devotion by some Eastern New Age movements.

Representations of the bodhisattva in China prior to the Song Dynasty (960-1279) were masculine in appearance. Images which later displayed attributes of both genders are believed to be in accordance with the Lotus Sutra, where Avalokitesvara has the supernatural power of assuming any form required to relieve suffering, and also has the power to grant children (possibly relating to the fact that in this Sutra -unlike in others- both men and women are believed to have ability to achieve enlightment). Because this bodhisattva is considered the personification of compassion and kindness, a mother-goddess and patron of mothers and seamen, the representation in China was further interpreted in an all-female form around the 12th century. In the modern period, Guan Yin is most often represented as a beautiful, white-robed woman, a depiction which derives from the earlier Pandaravasini form.

Guanyin and the Thousand Arms
One Buddhist legend presents Guan Yin as vowing to never rest until she had freed all sentient beings from samsara, reincarnation. Despite strenuous effort, she realized that still many unhappy beings were yet to be saved. After struggling to comprehend the needs of so many, her head split into eleven pieces. Amitabha Buddha, seeing her plight, gave her eleven heads with which to hear the cries of the suffering. Upon hearing these cries and comprehending them, Avalokitesvara attempted to reach out to all those who needed aid, but found that her two arms shattered into pieces. Once more, Amitabha came to her aid and appointed her a thousand arms with which to aid the many. Many Himalayan versions of the tale include eight arms with which Avalokitesvara skillfully upholds the Dharma, each possessing its own particular implement, while more Chinese-specific versions give varying accounts of this number.

In China, it is said that fishermen used to pray to her to ensure safe voyages. The titles Guan Yin of the Southern Ocean (南海觀音) and 'Guan Yin (of/on) the Island' stem from this tradition.

Legend of Miao Shan
Another story describes Guan Yin as the daughter of a cruel king who wanted her to marry a wealthy but uncaring man. The story is usually ascribed to the research of the Buddhist monk Chiang Chih-ch'i in 1100AD. The story is likely to have a Taoist origin. Chiang Chih-ch'i, when he penned the work, believed that the Guan Yin we know today was actually a Buddhist princess called Miao Shan (妙善), who had a religious following on Fragrant Mountain. Despite this, however, there are many variants of the story in Chinese mythology.

According to the story, after the king asked his daughter Miao Shan to marry the wealthy man, she told him that she would obey his command, so long as the marriage eased three misfortunes.

The king asked his daughter what were the three misfortunes that the marriage should ease. Miao Shan explained that the first misfortune the marriage should ease was the suffering people endure as they age. The second misfortune it should ease was the suffering people endure when they fall ill. The third misfortune it should ease was the suffering caused by death. If the marriage could not ease any of the above, then she would rather retire to a life of religion forever.

When her father asked who could ease all the above, Miao Shan pointed out that a doctor was able to do all these.

Her father grew angry as he wanted her to marry a person of power and wealth, not a healer. He forced her into hard labor and reduced her food and drink but this did not cause her to yield.

Every day she begged to be able to enter a temple and become a nun instead of marrying. Her father eventually allowed her to work in the temple, but asked the monks to give her very hard chores in order to discourage her. The monks forced Miao Shan to work all day and all night, while others slept, in order to finish her work. However, she was such a good person that the animals living around the temple began to help her with her chores. Her father, seeing this, became so frustrated that he attempted to burn down the temple. Miao Shan put out the fire with her bare hands and suffered no burns. Now struck with fear, her father ordered her to be put to death.

In one version of this legend, when she was executed, a supernatural tiger took Guan Yin to one of the more hell-like realms of the dead. However, instead of being punished by demons like the other inmates, Guan Yin played music and flowers blossomed around her. This completely surprised the head demon. The story says that Guan Yin, by merely being in that hell, turned it into a paradise.

A variant of the legend says that Miao Shan allowed herself to die at the hand of the executioner. According to this legend, as the executioner tried to carry out her father's orders, his axe shattered into a thousand pieces. He then tried a sword which likewise shattered. He tried to shoot Miao Shan down with arrows but they all veered off.

Finally in desperation he used his hands. Miao Shan, realising the fate the executioner would meet at her father's hand should she fail to let herself die, forgave the executioner for attempting to kill her. It is said that she voluntarily took on the massive karmic guilt the executioner generated for killing her, thus leaving him guiltless. It is because of this that she descended into the Hell-like realms. While there she witnessed firsthand the suffering and horrors beings there must endure and was overwhelmed with grief. Filled with compassion, she released all the good karma she had accumulated through her many lifetimes, thus freeing many suffering souls back into Heaven and Earth. In the process that Hell-like realm became a paradise. It is said that Yanluo, King of Hell, sent her back to Earth to prevent the utter destruction of his realm, and that upon her return she appeared on Fragrant Mountain.

The Legend of Miao Shan usually ends with Miao Chuang Yen, Miao Shan's father, falling ill with jaundice. No physician was able to cure him. Then a monk appeared saying that the jaundice could be cured by making a medicine out of the arm and eye of one without anger. The monk further suggested that such a person could be found on Fragrant Mountain. When asked, Miao Shan willingly offered up her eyes and arms. Miao Chuang Yen was cured of his illness and went to the Fragrant Mountain to give thanks to the person. When he discovered that his own daughter had made the sacrifice, he begged for forgiveness. The story concludes with Miao Shan being transformed into the Thousand Armed Guan Yin, and the king, queen and her two sisters building a temple on the mountain for her. She began her journey to heaven and was about to cross over into heaven when she heard a cry of suffering from the world below. She turned around and saw the massive suffering endured by the people of the world. Filled with compassion, she returned to earth, vowing never to leave till such time as all suffering has ended.

After her return to Earth, Guan Yin was said to have stayed for a few years on the island of Mount Putuo where she practised meditation and helped the sailors and fishermen who got stranded. Guan Yin is frequently worshipped as patron of sailors and fishermen due to this. She is said to frequently becalm the sea when boats are threatened with rocks. After some decades Guan Yin returned to Fragrant Mountain to continue her meditation
Guanyin and Shan Tsai
Legend has it that Shan Tsai (also called Sudhana in Sanskrit) was a disabled boy from India who was very interested in studying the Buddha Dharma. When he heard that there was a Buddhist teacher on the rocky island of Putuo he quickly journeyed there to learn. Upon arriving the island, he managed to find Bodhisattva Guan Yin despite his severe disability.

Guan Yin, after having a discussion with Shan Tsai, decided to test the boy's resolve to fully study the Buddhist teachings. She conjured the illusion of three sword-wielding pirates running up the hill to attack her. Guan Yin took off and dashed off to the edge of a cliff, the three illusions still chasing her.

Shan Tsai, seeing that his teacher was in danger, hobbled uphill. Guan Yin then jumped over the edge of the cliff, and soon after this the three bandits followed. Shan Tsai, still wanting to save his teacher, managed to crawl his way over the cliff edge.

Shan Tsai fell down the cliff but was halted in midair by Guan Yin, who now asked him to walk. Shan Tsai found that he could walk normally and that he was no longer crippled. When he looked into a pool of water he also discovered that he now had a very handsome face. From that day forth, Guan Yin taught Shan Tsai the entire Buddha Dharma
Guanyin and Lung Nü
Many years after Shan Tsai became a disciple of Guan Yin, a distressing event happened in the South Sea. The sons of one of the Dragon Kings (a ruler-god of the sea) was caught by a fisherman while taking the form of a fish. Being stuck on land, he was unable to transform back into his dragon form. His father, despite being a mighty Dragon King, was unable to do anything while his son was on land. Distressed, the son called out to all of Heaven and Earth.

Hearing this cry, Guan Yin quickly sent Shan Tsai to recover the fish and gave him all the money she had. The fish at this point was about to be sold in the market. It was causing quite a stir as it was alive hours after being caught. This drew a much larger crowd than usual at the market. Many people decided that this prodigious situation meant that eating the fish would grant them immortality, and so all present wanted to buy the fish. Soon a bidding war started, and Shan Tsai was easily outbid.

Shan Tsai begged the fish seller to spare the life of the fish. The crowd, now angry at someone so daring, was about to prise him away from the fish when Guan Yin projected her voice from far away, saying "A life should definitely belong to one who tries to save it, not one who tries to take it."

The crowd realising their shameful actions and desire, dispersed. Shan Tsai brought the fish back to Guan Yin, who promptly returned it to the sea. There the fish transformed back to a dragon and returned home. Paintings of Guan Yin today sometimes portray her holding a fish basket, which represents the aforementioned tale.

But the story does not end here. As a reward for Guan Yin saving his son, the Dragon King sent his granddaughter, a girl called Lung Nü ("dragon girl"), to present to Guan Yin with the Pearl of Light. The Pearl of Light was a precious jewel owned by the Dragon King that constantly shone. Lung Nü, overwhelmed by the presence of Guan Yin, asked to be her disciple so that she might study the Buddha Dharma. Guan Yin accepted her offer with just one request: that Lung Nü be the new owner of the Pearl of Light.

In popular iconography, Lung Nü and Shan Tsai are often seen alongside Guan Yin as two children. Lung Nü is seen either holding a bowl or an ingot, which represents the Pearl of Light, whereas Shan Tsai is seen with palms joined and knees slightly bent to show that he was once crippled.

Guanyin and Vegetarianism
Due to her symbolising compassion, in East Asia Guan Yin is associated with vegetarianism. Chinese vegetarian restaurants are generally decorated with her image, and she appears in most Buddhist vegetarian pamphlets and magazines
Guanyin in Chinese Buddhism
In Chinese Buddhism, Guanyin/Kuan Yin/Kannon/Kwannon is synonymous with the Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara, the pinnacle of mercy and compassion. Among the Chinese, Avalokitesvara is almost exclusively called Guan Shi Yin Pu Sa (觀世音菩薩). The Chinese translation of many Buddhist sutras has in fact replaced the Chinese transliteration of Avalokitesvara with Guan Shi Yin (觀世音) Some Taoist scriptures give her the title of Guan Yin Da Shi, and sometimes informally as Guan Yin Fo Zu.

In Chinese Buddhism, the popular myth and worship of Guan Yin as a goddess by the populace is generally not viewed to be in conflict with the bodhisattva Avalokitesvara's nature. In fact the widespread worship of Guan Yin as a "Goddess of Mercy and Compassion" is seen as the boundless salvific nature of bodhisattva Avalokitesvara at work. The Buddhist canon states that bodhisattvas can assume whatsoever gender and form is needed to liberate beings from ignorance and dukkha. With specific reference to Avalokitesvara, he is stated both in the Lotus Sutra and the Surangama Sutra to have appeared before as a woman or a goddess to save beings from suffering and ignorance. Some Buddhist schools refer to Guan Yin both as male and female interchangeably.

Also in Mahayana Buddhism, to which Chinese Buddhism belongs, gender is no obstacle to Enlightenment. The Buddhist concept of non-duality applies here. The Vimalakirti Sutra in the Goddess chapter clearly illustrates an Enlightened being who is also a female and deity. In the Lotus Sutra a maiden became Enlightened in a very short time span. That bodhisattva Avalokitesvara is also the goddess Guan Yin is not seen as contradictory.

Given that bodhisattvas are known to incarnate at will as living people according to the sutras, the princess Miao Shan is generally viewed as an incarnation of Avalokitesvara.

Guanyin is immensely popular among Chinese Buddhists, especially those from devotional schools. She is generally seen as a source of unconditional love and more importantly as a savior. In her bodhisattva vows, Guan Yin promises to answer the cries and pleas of all beings and to liberate all beings from their own karmic woes. Based upon the Lotus Sutra and the Shurangama sutra, Avalokitesvara is generally seen as a savior, both spiritually and physically. The sutras state that through his saving grace even those who have no chance of being Enlightened can be Enlightened, and those deep in negative karma can still find salvation through his compassion.

In Pure Land Buddhism, Guan Yin is described as the "Bark of Salvation". Along with Amitabha Buddha and the bodhisattva Mahastamaprata, She temporarily liberates beings out of the Wheel of Samsara into the Pure Land, where they will have the chance to accrue the necessary merit so as to be a Buddha in one lifetime.

Even among Chinese Buddhist schools that are non-devotional, Guan Yin is still highly venerated. Instead of being seen as an active external force of unconditional love and salvation, the personage of Guan Yin is highly revered as the principle of compassion, mercy and love. The act, thought and feeling of compassion and love is viewed as Guan Yin. A merciful, compassionate, loving individual is said to be Guan Yin. A meditative or contemplative state of being at peace with oneself and others is seen as Guan Yin.

In the Mahayana canon, the Heart Sutra is ascribed entirely to the bodhisattva Kuan Yin/Kwannon. This is unique, as most Mahayana Sutras are usually ascribed to Shakyamuni Buddha and the teachings, deeds or vows of the bodhisattvas are described by Shakyamuni Buddha. In the Heart Sutra, Guan Yin/Avalokitesvara describes to the Arhat Sariputra the nature of reality and the essence of the Buddhist teachings. The famous Buddhist saying "Form is emptiness, emptiness is form" comes from this sutra.

Guanyin and Chinese Folk Belief
Guan Yin is an extremely popular Goddess in Chinese folk belief and is worshiped in Chinese communities throughout East and South East Asia. Guan Yin is revered in the general Chinese population due to her unconditional love, compassion and mercy. She is generally regarded by many as the protector of women and children. By this association she is also seen as a fertility goddess capable of granting children. She is also seen as the champion of the unfortunate, the sick, the disabled, the poor, and those in trouble. Some coastal and river areas of China regard her as the protector of fishermen, sailors, and generally people who are out at sea, thus many also come to believe that Mazu, the Taoist goddess of the sea, is a manifestation of Guan Yin. Due to her association with the legend of the Great Flood where she sent down a dog filled with rice grains in its tail after the flood, she is worshiped as a rice goddess. In some quarters, especially among business people and traders, she is looked upon as a Goddess of Luck and Fortune. In recent years there have been claims of her being the protector of air travelers.

Guanyin and the Virgin Mary
Some Christian observers have commented on the similarity between Guan Yin and the Blessed Virgin Mary of Christianity, the mother of Jesus Christ. The Tzu-Chi Foundation, a Taiwanese Buddhist organization, also noticing the similarity, commissioned a portrait of Guan Yin and a baby that resembles the typical Roman Catholic Madonna and Child painting.

Some Chinese of the overwhelmingly Roman Catholic Philippines, in an act of syncretism, have identified Guan Yin with the Virgin Mary
During the Edo Period in Japan, when Christianity was banned and punishable by death, some underground Christian groups venerated the Virgin Mary disguised as a statue of Kannon; such statues are known as Maria Kannon. Many had a cross hidden in an inconspicuous location.
Guanyin in popular culture
Guan Yin plays a central role in the plot of the classic Chinese novel Journey to the West.
A space probe called Kuan-Yin features in the 1982 science fiction novel Voyage from Yesteryear by James P. Hogan.
The name of the Japanese company Canon Inc. derives from the Japanese name of the deity.
Her birthday, the 19th day of 2nd lunar month (6 April in 2007), based on Chinese calendar is a holiday in the Republic of China.

Cassia

Cassia (Cinnamomum aromaticum, synonym C. cassia) is an evergreen tree native to southern China and Vietnam. Like its close relative, Cinnamon (Cinnamomum zeylanicum, also known as "true cinnamon" or "Ceylon cinnamon"), it is used primarily for its aromatic bark, which is used as a spice, often under the culinary name of "cinnamon". The buds are also used as a spice, especially in India and in Ancient Rome.
The Cassia tree grows to 10-15 m tall, with greyish bark, and hard elongated leaves 10-15 cm long, that have a decidedly reddish colour when young.

Cassia is a close relative to the cinnamon (Cinnamomum verum, Cinnamomum zeylanicum, or "true cinnamon"), Saigon Cinnamon (Cinnamomum loureiroi, also known as "Vietnamese Cinnamon"), Camphor laurel (Cinnamomum camphora), Malabathrum (Cinnamomum tamala) and Cinnamomum burmannii (also know as "Indonesian Cinnamon") trees. As with these species, the dried bark of cassia is used as a spice. Cassia's flavour, however, is less delicate than that of true cinnamon; for this reason the less expensive cassia is sometimes called "bastard cinnamon".
Whole branches and small trees are harvested for cassia bark, unlike the small shoots used in the production of cinnamon; this gives cassia bark a much thicker and rougher texture than that of true cinnamon.
Most of the spice sold as cinnamon in the United States and Canada (where true cinnamon is still generally unknown) is actually cassia. In some cases, cassia is labeled "Chinese cinnamon" to distinguish it from the more expensive true cinnamon (Cinnamomum zeylanicum), which is the preferred form of the spice used in Mexico and Europe . "Indonesian cinnamon" can also refer to Cinnamomum burmannii, which is also commonly sold in the United States, labeled only as cinnamon.
Cassia (Cinnamomum aromaticum) is produced in both China and Vietnam. Up to the 1960s Vietnam was the world's most important producer of Saigon Cinnamon, a species which has a higher oil content than Cinnamomum aromaticum, and consequently has a stronger flavor. Saigon Cinnamon is so closely related to cassia that it was often marketed as cassia (or, in North America, "cinnamon"). Of the three forms of Cassia, it is the form which commands the highest price. Because of the disruption caused by the Vietnam War, however, production of another form of cassia, Cinnamomum burmannii, in the highlands of the Indonesia on island of Sumatra was increased to meet demand, and Indonesia remains one of the main exporters of cassia today. Indonesia Cassia has the lowest oil content of the three types of Cassia and consequently commands the lowest price. Saigon Cinnamon, only having become available again in the United States since the early 21st century, has an intense flavour and aroma and a higher percentage of essential oils than Indonesian cassia. Cinnamomum aromaticum has a stronger and sweeter flavor, similar to Saigon Cinnamon, although the oil content is lower. In China Cassia is known as Tung Hing.
Cassia bark (both powdered and in whole, or "stick" form) is used as a flavouring agent, for candies, desserts, baked goods, and meat; it is specified in many curry recipes, where cinnamon is less suitable. Cassia is sometimes added to true cinnamon but is a much thicker, coarser product. Cassia is sold as pieces of bark (as pictured below) or as neat quills or sticks. Cassia sticks can be distinguished from true Cinnamon sticks in the following manner: Cinnamon sticks have many thin layers and can easily be made into powder using a coffee or spice grinder, whereas Cassia sticks are extremely hard, are usually made up of one thick layer and can break an electric spice or coffee grinder if one attempts to grind them without first breaking them into very small pieces.
Cassia buds, although rare, are also occasionally used as a spice. They resemble cloves in appearance and flavor.

Moon rabbit

The Moon rabbit, also called the Jade Rabbit, is a rabbit that lives on the moon in East Asian folklore. The legends about the moon rabbit are based on the traditional pareidolia that identifies the markings of the moon as a rabbit pounding in a mortar. In Chinese folklore, it is often portrayed as a companion of the moon goddess Chang'e, constantly pounding the elixir of life for her; but in Japanese and Korean versions it is just pounding mochi.

History

The earliest records suggesting that there is a rabbit on the moon appears in the Warring States period in ancient China. The Chu Ci, a Western Han anthology of Chinese poems from the Warring States period, notes that along with a toad, there is a rabbit on the moon who constantly pounds herbs for the immortals. This notion is supported by later texts, including the Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era encyclopedia of the Song Dynasty. Han Dynasty poets call the rabbit on the moon the Jade Rabbit or the Gold Rabbit (金兔), so in the days of old people also use the words "Jade Rabbit" and "Gold Rabbit" to refer to the moon.

Folklore

The reason why a rabbit is on the moon is described in the Buddhist story "Śaśajâtaka", where a monkey, an otter, a jackal, and a rabbit were friends. Together they resolved to practise charity on the Uposatha day (the day of fast), that was to occur on the following day. In the tradition it was believed that one who stood fast in moral practice and alms-giving on that day would earn a great reward. When an old man begged for food, the monkey was able to gather fruits from the trees, the otter was able to gather dead fish from the river bank, the jackal wrongfully pilfered a lizard and a pot of milk-curd from somebody’s house. The rabbit, wanting to offer something acceptable to the man, was only able to gather grass, and therefore offered its own body instead, and threw itself into a fire that the man built. The rabbit however did not get burned. The old man then revealed himself to be Śakra, and being touched by the rabbit's virtue, drew a picture of the rabbit on the moon to be visible to all. It is said that the smoke-like substance surrounding the lunar image is the smoke that rose when the rabbit cast itself into the fire.
This story can be found in the Konjaku Monogatarishū, a Japanese collection of tales from India, China, and Japan. In this version, however, the rabbit's friends are a fox and a monkey.

Modern references

A popular culture manifestation of this tradition can be found in the character title character of Sailor Moon, whose name is Usagi Tsukino, a Japanese pun on the words "rabbit of the moon." Also, in the dojin game Imperishable Night, a moon rabbit named Reisen Udongein Inaba is the boss of the fifth stage. In Clover Studio's PlayStation 2 game Okami, the rabbit spirit of the Chinese zodiac is depicted making mochi and also grants the player the ability to draw a crescent in the sky to summon the moon.

The moon rabbit was also mentioned in the conversation between Houston and the Apollo 11 crew just before the first moon landing:

Houston: Among the large headlines concerning Apollo this morning there's one asking that you watch for a lovely girl with a big rabbit. An ancient legend says a beautiful Chinese girl called Chang-o has been living there for 4000 years. It seems she was banished to the moon because she stole the pill for immortality from her husband. You might also look for her companion, a large Chinese rabbit, who is easy to spot since he is only standing on his hind feet in the shade of a cinnamon tree. The name of the rabbit is not recorded.
Collins: Okay, we'll keep a close eye for the bunny girl.

In the manga Pet Shop of Horrors, Count D tells a boy the legend of the Princess and the rabbits on the moon. He also mentions that when the Apollo astronauts landed on the moon, they were all "killed". The boy, however, believes that they are still alive and only hid when the astronauts came.

Kunlun Mountains

The Kunlun Mountains (simplified Chinese: 昆仑山; traditional Chinese: 崑崙山; pinyin: Kūnlún Shān) is one of the longest mountain chains in Asia, extending more than 3,000 km.

The Kunlun runs eastwards along the northern part of the Tibetan plateau to form the border range of northern Tibet. It stretches along the southern edge of what is now called the Tarim Basin, the infamous Takla Makan or "sand-buried houses" desert, and the Gobi desert. A number of important rivers flow from it including the Karakash River ('Black Jade River') and the Yurungkash River ('White Jade River'), which flow through the Khotan Oasis into the Taklamakan Desert.

The highest mountain of the Kunlun Shan is the Kunlun Goddess (7,167 m) in the Keriya area. The Arka Tagh is in the centre of the Kunlun Shan; its highest point is Ulugh Muztagh (6,973 m, definitely not 7,723 m). Some authorities claim that the Kunlun extends north westwards as far as Kongur Tagh (7,649 m) and the famous Muztagh Ata (7,546 m). But these mountains are physically much more closely linked to the Pamir group (ancient Mount Imeon).

Bayan Har Mountains, a southern branch of the Kunlun Mountains, forms the watershed between the catchment basins of China's two longest rivers, the Yangtze River and the Huang He.

The mountain range formed at the northern edges of the Cimmerian Plate during its collision, in the Late Triassic, with Siberia, which resulted in the closing of the Paleo-Tethys Ocean.
Mythology
The Kunlun mountains are well known in and are believed to be Taoist paradise. The first to visit this paradise was, according to the legends, King Mu (976-922 BCE) of the Zhou Dynasty. He supposedly discovered there the Jade Palace of Huang-Di, the mythical Yellow Emperor and originator of Chinese culture, and met Hsi Wang Mu (Xi Wang Mu) , the 'Spirit Mother of the West' usually called the 'Queen Mother of the West', who was the object of an ancient religious cult which reached its peak in the Han Dynasty, also had her mythical abode in these mountains. The story has interesting parallels with the story of the meeting of Solomon and the Queen of Sheba (ca 950 BCE).

Queen Mother of the West

The Queen Mother of the West (Chinese: 西王母; pinyin: Xīwángmǔ; Japanese: Seiōbo), in Chinese mythology, is the ruler of the western paradise and goddess of immortality. She is charged with overseeing the Wall of Heaven. Her official Taoist title is Yaochi Jinmu (瑤池金母), or the Golden Mother of the Shining Lake.

In popular Chinese mythology, The Queen Mother of the West lived with white cranes and red phoenixes in a golden palace by a lake, where she grew peaches. It was said the fragrance of the peaches of her palace could be smelled miles away, and the fragrance could put even the unhappiest person to sleep. She also possesses a peach tree which, every 3,000 years, produces peaches, known as p'an-t'ao (Chinese: flat peach), that grant immortality. Every 3,000 years she invites all the other gods to partake of a banquet with peaches for dessert.

Originally, from the earliest known depictions of her in the "Guideways of Mountains and Seas" during the Zhou Dynasty, she was a ferocious goddess with the teeth of a tiger, who sent plagues down upon the world. After she was adopted into the Taoist pantheon, she was transformed into the goddess of life and immortality.

Iconography and Representation

The Queen Mother of the West, or Xiwangmu in Chinese, is usually depicted holding court within her palace in Kunlun or the Western Paradise, surrounded by a female retinue of prominent goddesses and spiritual attendants. This court is depicted as being nearby to the orchard of the Peaches of Immortality.
She normally wears a distinctive headress with the Peaches of Immortality suspended from it.

Role

Xiwangmu's role within the system of Heaven is highly contested. Some legends claim that she is the mother of Jade Emperor whilst others claim that she is his wife.

Jade Emperor

The Jade Emperor (Chinese: 玉皇; pinyin: Yù Huáng or 玉帝 Yù Dì), is the Taoist ruler of Heaven and all realms of existence below including that of Man and Hell according to a version of Taoist mythology. He is one of the most important gods of the Chinese Taoist pantheons.
The Jade Emperor is known by many names including Heavenly Grandfather (天公 Tiān Gōng) which is used by commoners, the Pure August Jade Emperor, August Personage of Jade (玉皇上帝 Yu Huang Shangdi or 玉皇大帝 Yu Huang Dadi), the Xuanling High Sovereign, and his rarely used formal title, Peace Absolving, Central August Spirit Exalted, Ancient Buddha, Most Pious and Honorable, His Highness the Jade-Emperor, Xuanling High Sovereign .According to the books Understanding Heaven and Hell (洞冥寶記) and The Feast of Immortal Peaches (蟠桃宴記), the Jade Emperor is selected by a panel of deities who had to pass a test by his predecessor.

There are many stories in Chinese mythology involving the Jade Emperor.
Origin
It was said that the Jade Emperor was originally the crown prince of the kingdom of Pure Felicity and Majestic Heavenly Lights and Ornaments. At birth he emitted a wondrous light that filled the entire kingdom. When he was young, he was kind, intelligent and wise. He devoted his entire childhood to helping the needy (the poor and suffering, the deserted and single, the hungry and disabled). Furthermore, he showed respect and benevolence to both men and creatures. After his father died, he ascended the throne. He made sure that everyone in his kingdom found peace and contentment. After that, he told his ministers that he wished to cultivate Tao on the Bright and Fragrant Cliff. After 1,550 kalpas, each kalpa lasting for 129,600 years, he attained Golden Immortality. After another one hundred million years of cultivation, he finally became the Jade Emperor. (Using the given figures, this period before his becoming the Jade Emperor lasted for a total of about 200,880,000 years.)
Vanquishing evil
There is a little known myth which tells of how the Jade Emperor became the monarch of all the deities in heaven. It is one of the few myths in which the Jade Emperor really shows his might.

In the beginning of time, the earth was a very difficult place to live; a much harsher place to live in than it is now. Men were having tremendous difficulty coping with existence; not only did men have to deal with harsh conditions, but also with all kinds of monstrous beings. At this time, there were also not many gods or deities to protect men. Furthermore, a lot of powerful, evil demons were defying the immortals of heaven. The Jade Emperor was still at the time an ordinary immortal who roamed earth to help as many people as he could. He was, however, saddened by the fact that his powers were limited and could only ease the sufferings of men. He decided to retreat in a mountain cave and cultivate his Dao. He passed 3,200 trials, each trial lasted for about 3 million years.

Unfortunately, a powerful, evil entity; a demon of sorts, which dwelt on earth had the ambition to conquer the immortals and gods in heaven and proclaim sovereignty over the entire universe. It went into retreat later than the Jade Emperor. This evil entity retreated itself too and went into meditation to expand its power. He passed through 3,000 trials each trial lasting for about 3 million years too. After it passed its final trial, it felt confident that no one could defeat it anymore. It re-entered the world again, and recruited an army of demons with the purpose of attacking heaven.

The immortals being aware of the threat gathered themselves and prepared for war. The gods were unable to stop the powerful demon and all were defeated by it. The Three Pure Ones were leading the celestial beings at the time.

Fortunately, the Jade Emperor finished his cultivation in the midst of this war. He was changing the land to make it more liveable for men and repelling all kinds of monstrous beasts. Suddenly, he saw an evil glow emitting from heaven and knew something was amiss. He ascended and saw that a war was going on, he saw that the demon was too powerful to be stopped by any of the gods present. He went up and challenged the demon, and a battle ensued between them. Mountains shook and rivers and seas toppled; however, the Jade Emperor stood victorious due to his deeper and wiser cultivation, not for might but for benevolence. After totally annihilating the demon, all the other demons were scattered by the gods and immortals.

Because of his noble and benevolent deeds, the gods, immortals and mankind proclaimed the Jade Emperor the supreme sovereign of all.
Creation
The world started with 無極 (wuji: nothingness) according to the Chinese creation story, Jade Emperor was the head of the pantheon but not responsible to the creation process itself.

According to another version of creation myth, the Jade Emperor fashioned the first humans from clay, but as he left them to harden in the sun, it rained, misshaping some of the figures, thus explaining the origin of sickness and physical abnormalities(The most common alternative Chinese creation myth states that human beings were once fleas on the body of Pangu.)

The story above is also told as Nüwa who fashions humans out of the mud from the Yellow River by hand. Those she made herself became the richer people of the earth. After getting lazy she used a rope and swung it around. The drops that fell from the rope became the poorer humans.
In The Journey to the West
In the popular novel by Wu Chengen, The Jade Emperor is featured many times in the story.
The princess and the cowherd
In another story, popular throughout Asia and with many differing versions, the Jade Emperor has a daughter named Chih'nü (simplified Chinese: 织女; traditional Chinese: 織女; pinyin: zhī nǚ literally: weaver girl). She is most often represented as responsible for weaving colorful clouds in the heaven, in some versions she is instead a seamstress who works for the Jade Emperor. Everyday Chih'nü descended to earth with the aid of a magical robe to bathe. One day, a lowly cowherd named Niu Lang (Chinese: 牛郎; pinyin: niú láng) spotted Chih'nü as she bathed in a stream. Niu Lang fell instantly in love with her and stole her magic robe which she had left on the bank of the stream, leaving her unable to escape back to Heaven. When Chih'nü emerged from the water, Niu Lang grabbed her and carried her back to his home.

When the Jade Emperor heard of this matter, he was furious but unable to intercede, since in the meantime his daughter had fallen in love and married the cowherd. As time passed, Chih'nü grew homesick and began to miss her father. One day, she came across a box containing her magic robe which her husband had hidden. She decided to visit her father back in Heaven, but once she returned, the Jade Emperor summoned a river to flow across the sky (the Milky Way), which Chih'nü was unable to cross to return to her husband. The Emperor took pity on the young lovers, and so once a year on the seventh day of the seventh month of the lunar calendar, he allows them to meet on a bridge over the river.

The story refers to constellations in the night sky. Chih'nü is the star Vega in the constellation of Lyra east of the Milky Way, and Niu Lang is the star Altair in the constellation of Aquila west of the Milky Way. Under the first quarter moon (7th day) of the seventh lunar month (around August), the lighting condition in the sky causes the Milky Way to appear dimmer, hence the story that the two lovers are no longer separated in that one particular day each year.

The seventh day of the seventh month of the lunar calendar is a holiday in China called Qi Xi, which is a day for young lovers much like Valentine's Day in the West; in Japan, it is called Tanabata (star day), and in Korea, it is called Chilseok. If it rains on that day, it is said to be Chih'nü crying tears at being reunited with her husband
The zodiac
There are several stories as to how the twelve animals of the Chinese zodiac were chosen. In one, the Jade Emperor, although having ruled Heaven and Earth justly and wisely for many years, had never had the time to actually visit the Earth personally. He grew curious as to what the creatures looked like. Thus, he asked all the animals to visit him in heaven. The cat, being the most handsome of all animals, asked his friend the rat to wake him on the day they were to go to Heaven so he wouldn't oversleep. The rat, however, was worried that he would seem ugly compared to the cat, so he didn't wake the cat. Consequently, the cat missed the meeting with the Jade Emperor and was replaced by the pig. The Jade Emperor was delighted with the animals and so decided to divide the years up amongst them. When the cat learned of what had happened, he was furious with the rat and that, according to the story, is why cats and rats are enemies to this day.
His predecessor and successor
The Jade Emperor was originally the assistant of the Divine Master of the Heavenly Origin, Yuan-shi tian-zun. Yuan-shi tian-zun is said to be the supreme beginning, the limitless and eternal creator of Heaven and Earth, who picked Yu-huang, or the Jade Emperor, as his personal successor. The Jade Emperor will eventually be succeeded by the Heavenly Master of the Dawn of Jade of the Golden Door. The characters for both are stamped on the front of the arms of his throne.
Worship and festivals
The Jade Emperor's Birthday is said to be the ninth day of the first lunar month. On this day Daoist temples hold a Jade Emperor ritual (拜天公 bài tiān gōng, literally "heaven worship") at which priests and laymen prostrate themselves, burn incense, and make food offerings.

Chinese New Year's Eve is also a day of worship as it is said to be the day the Jade Emperor makes his annual inspection of the deeds of mortals and rewards or punishes them accordingly. On this day incense is burned in the home and offerings are made to the Jade Emperor and also to Zao Jun, the god of kitchen who reports to the Emperor on each family.

A temple in Hong Kong is located at A Kung Ngam and is also called "Yuk Wong Po Tin" (玉皇寶殿 Yu Huang Bao Dian). In the mid 19th century, people from Huizhou and Chaozhou mined stones in the hill for the development of the central urban area. They set up a shrine to worship Yuk Wong. At the beginning of the 20th century, the shrine was developed into a small temple and was renovated many times. The latest renovation was in 1992.
In popular culture


In the television series Stargate SG-1, the Goa'uld System Lord Yu is presumably based on the Jade Emperor, though whether Lord Yu is supposed to be the originator of the related myth, or merely impersonated the deity among the ancient Chinese (as was the case with several other Goa'uld, who impersonated Egyptian gods, among others) is unclear.
Akito Sohma, the antagonist of the anime and manga Fruits Basket, is based on the Jade Emperor.
In the manga Fushigi Yūgi, the identity of Tai Yi-Jun (aka Tai Itsuken), the oracle who created the Universe of the Four Gods, is eventually revealed to be the Jade Emperor.
In the 2008 film,The Forbidden Kingdom, featuring Jet Li and Jackie Chan, is based on the Journey to the West and includes the Jade Emperor.

Houyi

Houyi (Chinese: 后羿), also simply called Yi, was a mythological Chinese archer and the leader of Dongyi. He is sometimes portrayed as a god of archery descended from heaven to aid mankind, and sometimes as the chief of the Youqiong Tribe (有窮國) during the reign of King Xiang of Xia Dynasty. His wife, Chang'e, became a lunar deity.
The Time of the Ten Suns
In Chinese mythology, the sun's true forms are the Sun-birds. It is believed that there were ten of them, all of whom are the offspring of Dijun, God of the Eastern Heaven. Each morning, one of these Sun-birds was to rise and give the world light. One day, the Sun-birds grew tired of the routine and decided that all of them were to rise at once. The heat on earth became intense. At a result, crops shrivelled in the fields. Lakes and ponds dried up; humans and animals cowered in shelters or collapsed from exhaustion. Time passed and the suffering continued. Yao, the Emperor of China, decided to plead for divine intervention and ask Dijun for aid.
Dijun was well aware of his sons' misdeeds, and sent for Houyi, the God of Archery, to teach his sons a lesson. Dijun wanted Houyi to simply frighten them so that they would not dare to cause mischief again. Houyi, too, wanted to settle this crisis peacefully, but a single glance at the scorched land was enough to convince him that desperate measures were needed. Angered by the suffering of the people caused by the Sun-birds' misconduct, Houyi lifted up his bow and shot them down one by one. Upon killing the ninth, Emperor Yao hurried to halt him as killing the last one would leave the world in total darkness. Houyi agreed and was hailed as a hero for mankind. Yet, later, Houyi's actions caused him to make enemies in Heaven and as a result he was punished with divine wrath.
Banishment from the heavens
Although Yao was pleased with Houyi, Dijun was anything but happy. Yi had killed nine of the Sun-birds, nine of his errant children, instead of merely bringing them to heel as he wished. As a father, Dijun could not forgive him, so he banished the hero from the heavens and stripped him of his immortality. He thought that if Houyi cared so much for the mortals, he could live as one.

Houyi cared little about the banishment as he saw no difference between living on earth and in the heavens. In fact, Houyi continued to serve humanity selflessly after his banishment. As he was well aware, the land remained beset by chaos and it seemed as though the world was returning to its primal state of chaos. Neither the deities in Heaven or the mortal rulers could solve these problems. Yet, little did they know, Houyi's great ability would be the solution.
Houyi's heroic missions
Houyi set off on a series of epic adventures to save China. First he had to deal with Fei Lian, Count of the Winds, who created storms that swept across the Middle Kingdom, uprooting crops and tearing down houses. Fei Lian is a fearsome spirit who generally took the form of a one-eyed bull with the tail of a serpent; he resides in Taishan Mountain. Using his power to travel on the wind, he tracked the gales back to the Demon's habitat. Noticing the Divine Archer is to come and get him, Fei Lian hid in a sack. When Houyi entered the monster's cave, he saw through the Demon's lame trick and fired an arrow at it which burst the sack right open. Fei Lian attempted to run but Houyi quickly struck the Demon on his knee. Wounded, Fei Lian surrendered and promised to not stir up trouble again.

During his crusade, Houyi happened to come upon a river that had burst its banks. Houyi knew that this must be the doings of a turbulent water god, so he shot an arrow at random into the water. Soon the flood receded and a white-garbed figure on a white horse with several attendants surfaced upon the water. Instantly, Houyi attacked him, wounding him in the eye. The god then fled, leaving his companions behind. Next, Houyi took aim at the nearest figure but when he was about to fire, he noticed his target was a harmless girl. He swung his bow so that the arrow whistled harmlessly through her hair. The girl was Chang'e, the daughter of the water god that had fled. Houyi, stunned by her unearthly beauty, asked her on the spot to be his wife. Chang'e, with great respect for the hero, accepted the prosposal.

The next threat Houyi had to face was a plague of monsters marauding through the world. Among them was Chilseltooth, a fearsome giant with a single huge incisor protruding from the top of his mouth which he used to rend his victims' flesh. In addition, a monstrous water serpent (see Bashe) was disrupting the calm of Lake Dongting, and the giant Windbird caused storms merely by flapping its wings. Houyi managed to fend off these menaces one after the other. For Houyi's service for the human realm, Emperor Yao bestowed on him the title of Marquis Pacifier of the Country.
The search for immortality
Although Houyi cared little about being banished from Heaven, he couldn't bear the fact that he would one day die and become nothing. Searching for a way to regain his immortality, he traveled to the palace of Xi Wang Mu, the Queen Mother of the West, on Kunlun Mountain, seeking her elixir of immortality. The stories of the great hero Houyi were known to the goddess and she took pity on him and agreed to give him the elixir, but with one condition: knowing that Houyi was a skilled architect, she asked him to build her a summer palace in exchange for the immortality drug. He agreed and for many months he laboured and earned it. Before departing, Xi Wang Mu warned Houyi that these two elixir she gave him were the last of their kinds. Houyi planned to spend them on himself and his wife.
Chang'e's ascent to the Moon
When Houyi returned to his home, he found that Emperor Yao had urgent requests for him, and he made haste to respond. Houyi made a vital mistake by not taking the elixir immediately, and leaving them unguarded. While Houyi was hunting monstrous wild boars and dragons terrorizing the land, his wife stayed at home, and for months, he had no news of home.
In her boredom, Chang'e found the elixirs that her husband had left behind, and out of curiosity drank them both. At this momment, Houyi returned and to his surprise found his wife ascending to the moon. Houyi heard his wife's cry for help, tried to seize her but she was already beyond his reach. Chang'e would gain immortality and forever live alone on the moon with only white hares accompanying her.
The death of HouyiThe grief of the loss of his wife changed Houyi completely. He became violent and changed from a hero welcomed by the mortals to being hated as a tyrant.

Houyi had taught mortals the ways of using the bow and had a prized student called Feng Meng. Feng Meng's skills of archery had blossomed under Houyi's tutelage and soon he saw himself as worthy of comparison with Houyi. One day, Feng Meng challenged him in a shooting contest. Houyi easily beat him and convinced Feng Meng there was no way he could catch up to his master. Blinded by jealousy, Feng Meng decided to murder his teacher. To him, it was entirely justified as Houyi was no longer an honorable hero but a tyrant. One day during a hunt, he attacked him on the back with a club. Along with others that were angry at Houyi, he beat him to death. Although these men were to be brought to justice, the epic of Houyi finally came to a bitter end.
Variations
There are variations of the story of Houyi.
One of them involves Houyi being the chief of the Youqiong Tribe (有窮國), saving the world from drought by shooting down the ten suns and slaying various beasts