Category Archives: Creator/Creation
Narahdarn
I must confess, I came across the figure of Narahdarn when a friend posted a link to a series of pictures for a number of different mythological deities grouped by pantheon. Yes, said link and pictures were for the Marvel Comics versions. Not planning to turn it down, I kept a copy of the pictures to use for later inspiration of “what to do next” for Brickthology.
In Australian mythology, there is a story of Narahdarn the Bat who is associated as a symbol of Death. His other thing is honey, the guy loves it, enough to kill for it.
Narahdarn The Bat
This story was the most referenced source for Narahdarn that I could find.
As I said already, Narahdarn loves honey, so much so he was bound and determined to himself some. Unable to locate a Bee Hive, Narahdarn set out to follow a bee to its nest. While following the bee, Narahdarn’s two wives accompanied him with jars or pots to carry home honey in.
Narahdarn followed the bee to it’s nest and marked it with dagger so he could find it later and went to get his wives who had fallen behind. He hurried the two to the tree with the bee hive in it and demanded that one of the wives climb the tree to chop out some of the honey combs. The first wife who climbed up, got her arm stuck fast within the tree hollow or split.
To the first wife’s horror, Narahdarn’s answer to get her free from being stuck was to chop off her arm. Once she realized what he was doing, the first wife began to protest. Narahdarn didn’t listen and proceeded with chopping off the arm. The first wife of shock and Narahdarn brought her body down from the tree.
Laying down the first wife’s body, Narahdarn commanded his second wife to climb up the tree. Horrified the sight, the second wife protested, saying that the bees were likely to have moved the honey to a different tree.
Refusing to accept the excuses, Narahdarn brandished his knife and forced the second wife to climb up the tree. Finding the same notch in the tree that the first wife had found, made all the more obvious with the bloody limb hanging from the hole, the second wife reached her arm in for the honey within.
Like the first wife, the second wife was now stuck too. Narahdarn chopped off the second wife’s arm as well and yelled for her to come down. When the second wife didn’t answer, Narahdarn realized what he had done and became scared. He quickly climbed down the tree, laying the bodies of both wives next to each other. No longer wanting any honey, Narahdarn ran from the place, running back to the tribe.
Back at the tribe’s camp, two of the little sisters for the wives came out to greet Narahdarn. Naturally they believed the wives, their sisters would be with Narahdarn. So it’s no wonder they were surprised to see him return alone and not just that, but covered in blood. Narahdarn’s face had a harsh look to him.
Alarmed, the two young sisters ran for their mother. Upon hearing the two girls, the mother went out to confront Narahdarn, asking him where her daughters were. Narahdarn refused to answer, rebuking the mother with saying to go ask the bee, Wurranunnah.
The mother returned to her tribe, telling them of her missing daughters and how Narahdarn would tell her nothing about their disappearances. She was certain that they were truly dead given how Narahdarn’s arms had been covered in blood. The chief of the tribe listened to the Mother and her cries that came after. The chief said that the daughters would surely be avenged and that the young warriors of the tribe would retrace Narahdarn’s tracks to discover their fate. If it was found that they were dead, then Narahdarn would be punished at a corrobboree (a special ceremony).
It didn’t take long for the young warriors to track Narahdarn’s tracks or to find the bodies of the daughters. Just as quickly, the young warriors return with their news and soon enough the corrobboree was held. Narahdarn joined the men, not realizing what was in store for him. As he danced towards a particularly large fire, the Mother let out a loud shriek and when Narahdarn turned to move away from the fire, he found himself blocked in. The men seized Narahdarn and threw him into the fire where he died.
Not the most pleasant of ways to go, but consider that justice served.
The Introduction Of Death
This next story when I found and came across seems rather Biblical in nature.
By this story, the first man in Australia was named Ber-rook-boorn, created by the god Baiame. After placing Ber-rook-boorn in the area they were to live in, Baiame placed his sacred mark on a yarran tree which happened to have a bees’ nest in it.
Baiame told the first man and woman that this yarran tree was his, along with the bees in it. That Ber-rook-boorn and his wife could take food from anywhere in the land that they wanted, just not this tree or the honey produced by the bees within. Baiame warned the two that a grave evil would come upon them all people who followed after.
With that, Baiame disappeared and Ber-rook-boorn and his wife obeyed as told, for a short time at least. For one day, while the woman was out gathering firewood, she found herself near Baiame’s tree where she found many branches on the ground. Looking up, the woman realized she was beneath the sacred tree of Baiame’s. Scared, the woman still managed to gather up an armful of branches.
Soon, the woman felt a presence over her and she looked up again. This time she saw the bees buzzing around the tree’s trunk and drops of honey that glistened from within the tree. The woman stared hungrily at the honey. She had had honey before, even if only once and surely there was enough honey, a little wouldn’t hurt or be missed. Letting her branches fall, the woman climbed the tree, determined to get herself some honey.
Once she up in the tree, the woman was greeted to a flurry of leathery wings as Narahdarn the Bat swooped down at her. Baiame had placed Narahdarn there to guard his tree. Now because of her action, the woman had released Narahdarn, bringing with him and symbolizing death. This ended a Golden Age for Ber-rook-boorn and the woman. The yarran tree, it seems wept tears for the loss of man’s immortality. These tears would become a red gum that can be found on the yarran tree.
As I said, the story sounds very Biblical and similar to the story told of Adam and Eve in the garden, how they could eat of all the fruit except from one tree and when Eve did, it’s at the snake’s suggestion and with it, when she does eat the forbidden fruit, brings death to the world. I know there’s far more to the story, but that’s just in brief for right here.
Marvel Deity
Making only one appearance within the pages of Marvel comics, specifically the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe 2006 #3, Narahdarn is presented as an Australian god of Death.
Disney’s Hercules
In the cartoon series of the same name, there is an episode where Hercules travels to Australia and goes up against Narahdarn as a god of Death.
Juok
Also called: Dyok, Jo-Uk, Joagh, Joghi, jok, Joogi, Jouk, Jok Odudu, Ju-Ok, Juong, Jwok or Nyikang
Etymology: Creator, Jok Odudu – “god of birth”
Juok is the main Creator God of the Shilluk, Dinka, Nuer and other tribes along the upper areas of the Nile river. It is generally believed that Juok controls the destinies of all living creatures. The legendary Shilluk king, Nyikang is often seen as being Juok’s earthly representative or avatar much like the Egyptian pharaohs were often seen as the living god Ra in earthly form.
God Of Creation
Creating Mankind – According to stories, Juok created or molded all of the people from the earth. While busy with creation, Juok wandered the earth. In the land of the white folk, Juok found a pure white earth or sand in which to create the first whites. In the land of Egypt, Juok made the red or brown people from the mud of the Nile river. When Juok finally came to the land of the Shilluks, he found some black earth in which to create black people from. Eventually, Juok gave people sex organs so they could reproduce themselves without his help.
Creating All Things – In this story, Juok created several different creatures such as the elephant, buffalo, lion, crocodile, dog and finally the first humans, a boy and girl. Juok wasn’t too happy with the humans he had created and told the dog to get of them. Proving to be man’s best friend, the dog instead raised and took care of the children until they grew up.
When Juok had finished with all of his creations, he started to divide up the land as to where each would live and providing each with weapons to defend or attack. Juok saw that the humans were still alive and decided he would wait until the last to deal with them. This way, he hoped, there would be no more land or weapons to give out.
The dog, figuring this out, told the man to tell Juok that they were the elephant, buffalo and lion. That way, when Juok came to pass out weapons, he gave them all spears.
When the real animals showed up for their weapons, there were no spears left. Juok then gave the elephant tusks, the buffalo horns, the lion claws and the crocodile teeth. The man used the spears he was given to drive and ward off the animals and took the best land for himself.
The Origins Of Death – In the beginning, death was not a permanent thing. For when people died, they would be dead for three days before returning to life. Juok decided to make death a permanent thing by throwing a rock into a river.
The dog who had previously helped men, told the people to work together and pull the rock out of the river. The people, however ignored the dog’s advice. So the dog tried himself to remove the rock. In his efforts, he was only able to break off a large piece of the rock and brought it home. As a result, humans have much longer lives than they otherwise would have.
I would say, looking at these last two stories, Juok doesn’t seem all that nice of a deity.
Nyikang
As Nyikang, he was a legendary king who became deified at death. He is often invoked as an intermediary for the gods.
Ancestral Spirit
Tribes such as the Acholi and Lango see Jok as a local and ancestral spirit.
Other tribes like the Alur of Uganda and Zaire saw the world as being full of spirits or Jok/Djok. For them, their ancestors manifested as snakes or large rocks. Whenever there was a drought, the Alur would sacrifice a black goat to Jok in order to bring rain.
Huang-Di
Alternate Spellings: 黄帝, Huang Di, Huangdi
Also known as: Gongsun, Kung-sun, Xuanyuan, Xuan Yuan, Hsuan-yuan, Huang Ti, Hwang Ti, Yellow Emperor, Yellow Thearch, the Yellow God, the Yellow Lord
Etymology: the Yellow Emperor, The character 黄 Huang, means “yellow” and is a homophony for the character, 皇 Huang, meaning, “august”, “creator” and “radiant”, Di “emperor”
Huang-Di, the Yellow Emperor ruled during a golden age of Chinese history and mythology. He is the first of five legendary Chinese emperors. Tradition has Huang-Di beginning his rule during 2697 B.C.E. and ending 2597. An alternate date is 2698-2598 B.C.E. These dates were first calculated by Jesuit missionaries studying the Chinese chronicles. They have been accepted by later scholars looking to try and establish a universal calendar.
There are a number of different legends surrounding Huang-Di that tell of his greatness as a benevolent ruler and establishing Chinese civilization. Huang-Di is to have ruled in a Golden Era of history before written Chinese history was established so many of his stories were passed down orally first. Just as Britain has its King Arthur, China has Huang-Di, the greatest ruler of all time that everyone looks up to and reveres.
What’s In A Name?
This gets a little tricky. Depending on the Chinese character used and its pronunciation; depends on what the word is translated to mean.
Huang-Di
The character for Di, is used to refer to the highest deity from the Shang dynasty. During the Warring States period, the term Di came to be associated with the gods of the five sacred mountains and colors. After this era, about 221 B.C.E. the term Di came to refer to earthly emperors.
The character for Huang can be translated a couple different ways. Either Yellow or August. Scholars and historians seeking to emphasize the more religious meaning to the name Huaung-Di will translate the name to mean “Yellow Thearch” or “August Thearch.”
Xuanyuan Shi
Some scholars such as Sima Qian in his “Records of the Grand Historian” compiled in 1st century B.C.E. have given Huang-Di’s name as Xuanyuan. The 3rd century scholar Huangfu Mi have said that this is to be the very same hill that Huang-Di lived and takes his name from. Liang Yusheng, from the Qing dynasty has argued that the hill is named after the Huang-Di. In Chinese astronomy, Xuanyan is the name for the star Alpha Leonis or Regulus.
The name Xuanyuan is also references Huang-Di’s birthplace. Huang-Di’s surname was Gongsun or Ji.
Youxiong
The name Youxiong is thought to be either a place name or clan name. Several Western scholars and translators have given their ideas on what Youxiong translate to. The British sinologist, Herbert Allen Giles says the name is from Huang-Di’s principal heritage. William Nienhauser, in translating the “Records of the Grand Historian” has put forth that Huang-Di is the head of the Youxiong clan who lived near Xinzheng in Henan. The French historian, Rémi Mathieu translates the name Youxiong to mean “possessor of bears” and linking Huang-Di in mythology to bears. Rémi isn’t the only one to make a connection to bears. Ye Shuxian also makes a connection with Huang-Di to the bear legends found throughout northeast Asia and the Dangun legend.
Cultural Hero
As a culture hero, Huang-Di is seen as a wise and benevolent ruler who introduced government and laws. He is also seen as having taught people several different skills and to have invented several things such as clothing, building permanent structures such as palaces and houses, music, the wheel, armor & weapons, carts, ships, writing, digging wells, agriculture, taming and domesticating animals, astronomy, calendars, mathematics, cuju (a sport similar to football), the compass and currency.
At some time during Huang-Di’s rule, he reputed to have visited the Eastern sea where he met Bai Ze, a supernatural talking beast that taught him the knowledge of all supernatural creatures. Bai Ze explained to Huang-Di there were 11,522 (or 1,522) different types of supernatural beings.
San-Huang – The Three Sovereigns
Also, known as the Three Emperors, they are a group of god-kings and demigod emperors who are believed to have lived some 4,500 years ago. Huang-Di is counted as being part of this group and the leader of their number to have once ruled over China. Other’s counted among this number are Fu Xi, Nuwa and Shennong.
Five Emperors
This is another mythological and historical group of rulers important to Chinese culture. These five emperors were virtuous rulers of outstanding moral character. Taihao, the Yan Emperor, the Yellow Emperor (Huang-Di), Shaohao and Zhuanxu are considered among the Five Emperors in this group.
But that makes four with the Three Sovereigns! The math is off! There are a number of variations as to who is counted among these numbers and it all depends on which text and source is used. It will even flip-flop too as to where Huang-Di is placed as either one of the Three Sovereigns or Five Emperors.
Parentage and Family
Parents
Huang-Di’ parents are given as Shaodian as his father and Fu Pao as his mother.
According to the “Discourses of the States”, Shaodian is sometimes mentioned as being Huang-Di’s step-father.
Spouse
Huang-Di seems to have had several different wives:
Leizu – Of Xiling, she is the first wife, she is the most notable with any information as she is the first person to have domesticated silk worms for their silk. With Leizu, Huang-Di had two sons.
Fenglei – Second wife
Tongyu – Third wife
Momu – Fourth wife
Children
Huang-Di is reputed to have had 25 sons. 14 of these sons all started clans of their own with their own surnames.
Shaohao – Also known as Xuanxiao, he would become the Emperor after Huang-Di’s death.
Changyi, who in turn is the father of Zhuanxu who would succeed his uncle, Shaohao as the next Emperor.
Ancestor Of The Chinese
A lot of emphasis and importance has been placed on Huang-Di as many Chinese dynasty rulers would trace the rights of their sovereignty to him. The Chinese Han claim being descendants of both Yandi (The Flame Emperor) and Huang-Di. Eventually, Huang-Di would be seen as the ancestor to all Chinese. A many Dynasty Emperors would all lay claim to Huang-Di’s legacy to prove their rightful claim to the throne.
It should be noted that the earlier mentions of Huang-Di, the Yellow Emperor is on a fourth century bronze inscription for the royal house of the Qi. This inscription claims Huang-Di as an ancestor to the Qi. The scholar, Lothar von Falkenhausen has suggested that Huang-Di is likely created as an ancestral figure in order to claim that all the ruling clans from the Zhou share a common ancestor.
Birth Of A Legend
Per myth and legend, Huang-Di is the result of a virgin birth. His mother, Fubao become pregnant with him while walking out in the countryside and was struck by lightning from the Big Dipper constellation. Fubao would give birth to her son after a period of twenty-four months on either Mount Shou or Mount Xuanyuan. It is for mount Xuanyan that Huang-Di would be named.
In Huangfu Mi’s account, Huang-Di is born at Shou Qiu or Longevity Hill near the outskirts of Qufu in Shandong by modern times. Huang-Di lived with his tribe near the Ji River, a mythological river and later migrated with his tribe to Zhuolu near modern Hebei. As a cultural hero, Huang-Di tames six different animals, the bear, the brown bear, the pi and xiu. The pi and xiu get combined to become a mythological animal known as the Pixiu. He also tames the chu and tiger. I’m not sure which creatures all of these are or the difference between a bear and brown bear is, but there we have it.
Other legends surrounding Huang-Di hold that he could speak shortly after his birth. That when he was fifteen years old, there was nothing that he didn’t know. Huang-Di would eventually hold the Xiong throne.
Trouble In Paradise
Huang-Di’s rule wasn’t completely problem free. One god decided to challenge Huang-Di’s sovereignty. This god was helped by the emperor’s son, Fei Lian, the Lord of the Wind. Fei Lian sent fog and heavy rain to try and drown the Imperial Armies. The emperor’s daughter, Ba (meaning drought) put an end to the rain and helped to defeat Fei Lian and his forces.
The Yellow Emperor And The Yan Emperor
Despite there being some 500 years between Huang-Di and Shennong rules, both of these emperors’ rules near the Yellow River. Shennong hailed from another are up around the Jiang River. Shennong having trouble with keeping order within his borders, begged the Yellow Emperor, Huang-Di for help against the “Nine Li” lead by Chi You and his some 81 brothers who all have horns and four eyes.
Battle of Zhuolu – Shennong was forced to flee Zhuolu before begging for help. Huang-Di used his tame animals against Chi You who darkened the sky by breathing out a thick fog. Huang-Di then invented the south-point chariot to lead his army out of the miasma of fog.
In order to defeat Chi You, Huang-Di calls on a drought demon, Nüba to get rid of Chi You’s storm.
This story sounds a lot like a variation of the previous story where Huang-Di calls for his daughter Ba to defeat Fe Lian.
Battle of Banquan – It is at this battle, that both Huang-Di and Shennong finally defeat Chi You and his forces and replace him as ruler.
Death & Immortality
Huang-Di ruled for many years and is thought to have died in 2598 B.C.E. Legend holds Huang-Di lived over a hundred years, by some accounts this was 110 years. Before he died, Huang-Di met a phoenix and qilin before he rose to the heavens to become an immortal or Xian. He is considered the very archetype of a human who merges their self with the self of the Universal God; how a person reaches enlightenment and immortality.
Another account of Huang-Di’s death is that a yellow dragon from Heaven flew down to take up Huang-Di up. Huang-Di knew that he could not deny destiny and went with the dragon. On their way to fly back to Heaven, they flew over Mount Qiao where Huang-Di asked to be able to say goodbye to his people. The people cried out, not wanting Huang-Di to leave them and they pulled on his clothing to try and keep. Surprisingly, Huang-Di slipped free of his clothing and got back on the dragon to fly up to the heavens. As to his clothing, they were buried in a mausoleum built at Mount Qiao.
Two tombs commemorating Huang-Di were built in Shaanxi within the Mausoleum of the Yellow Emperor. Other tombs were built in Henan, Hebei and Gansu.
Taoism
Huang-Di is the founder of Taoism, one of the main philosophies and religions found in China.
As Huang-Di began to age, he began to allow his court officials to handle matters and make decisions. Huang-Di moved out into a simple hut in his courtyard. There, as he fasted, prayed and meditated, Huang-Di discovered Tao, or the way, a philosophy that would lead to the ideal state of being.
Lei Gong
In some of the older accounts with Huang-Di, he is identified as a god of light and thunder. The name Huang and Guang, meaning “light,” making him a Thunder God. However, Lei Gong or Leishen is the name of another deity and he is seen as Huang-Di’s student.
Shang-Di
The legend and origins for Haung-Di have been cast into doubt by many. The scholar Yang Kuan, a member of the Doubting Antiquity School has argued that Huang-Di is derived from the god, Shang-Di from the Shang dynasty. Yang says that the etymology of Shang-Di, Huang Shang-Di and Huang-Di all have a connection to the Chinese character of 黄 Huang, which means “yellow” and its homophony of, 皇 Huang, which means “august,” that to use the character for 皇 Huang, was considered taboo.
Other historians have disputed this claim like Mark Edward Lewis and Michael Puett. While Mark Edward Lewis agrees that the two characters are interchangeable, he has suggested that the character 黄 Huang is closer to the character wang phonetically. Lewis puts forth the idea that Huang might have referred to a “rainmaking shaman” and “rainmaking rituals.” He uses the Warring States and Han era myths for Huang-Di, in that these were ancient rainmaking rituals, as Huang-Di held power over the clouds and rains. Huang-Di’s rival, Chiyou or Yandi held power over fires and drought.
Lord Of The Underworld Or The Yellow Springs
Further disagreements with Yang Kuan’s idea of equating Haung-Di with Shang-Di is the Western scholar, Sarah Allen who has stated that the pre-Shang myths and history can be seen as changes to Shang’s mythology.
By this argument, Huang-Di was originally an unnamed Lord of the Underworld or Yellow Springs, the counterpart to Shang-Di in his role as the supreme deity of the sky. Continuing this theme, the Shang rulers claimed their ancestor as the “the ten suns, birds, east, life and the Lord on High. Shang-Di had defeated an earlier group of people who were associated with the Underworld, Dragons and the West.
After the Zhou dynasty overthrew the Shang dynasty in the eleventh century B.C.E., the Zhou rulers began to change out the myth, changing the Shang to the Xia dynasty. By the time of the Han, according to Sima Qian’s Shiji, Huang-Di as Lord of the Underworld had now become a historical ruler.
Huang-Di’s Cult
During the Warring States era of texts, the figure of Huan-Di appears intermittently. Sima Qian’s text, Shiji (Records of the Grand Historian) is the first work to gather all of the fragments and myths surrounding Huan-Di into a coherent form and narrative. The Shiji would become a very important and influential text for the Chinese and the start of their history.
In the Shiji, Sima Qian he says that the state of Qin began worshiping Huang-Di during the fifth century B.C.E. along with Yandi, the Flame Emperor. Alters had been established in Yong, the capital of Qin. By the time of King Zheng in 247 B.C.E., Huang-Di had become the most important of the four “thearchs” worshiped in Yong.
During the late Warring States and early Han eras, Huang-Di’s cult became very prominent as he is regarded as the founder of the arts, civilization, governing and a supreme god. There have been a number of texts such as the Huangdi Neijing, a classic medical text, and the Huangdi Sijing, a group of political treatises that Huang-Di is credited with having written.
While his influence has waned for a period, the early twentieth century saw Huang-Di become an important figure for the Han Chinese when trying to overthrow the Qing dynasty. For some, Huang-Di is still an important, nationalist symbol.
Huángdì Sìmiàn – Yellow Emperor with Four Faces
In the Shizi, Huang-Di is known as the Yellow Emperor with Four Faces. Other names that Huang-Di is known by are: Sìmiànshén, Four-Faced God or the Ubiquitous God. The name Sìmiànshén is also the name for Brahma in Chinese.
As Huángdì Sìmiàn, Huang-Di represented the center of the universe and his four faces allowed him to see in everything that happened around him and in the world. In this aspect, he communicated directly with the gods for prayer and sacrifice. When traveling, Huang-Di rode in an ivory chariot pulled by dragons and an elephant. He would be accompanied by a troop of tigers, wolves, snakes and flocks of phoenix.
Wufang Shangdi – Five Forms of the Highest Deity
In Chinese texts and common beliefs, the Wudi (“Five Deities”) or Wushen (“Five Gods”) are five main deities who are personifications or extensions of a main deity.
Zhōngyuèdàdì – Huang-Di, when he becomes an Immortal or Xian and deified, is one of the Wudi. As Zhōngyuèdàdì, the “Great Deity of the Central Peak”, he is the most important of the Wudi, representing the element of earth, the color yellow and the Yellow Dragon. He is the hub and center of all creation upon which the divine order found within physical reality makes way for possible immorality. Huang-Di is the god of the governing the material world, the creator of the Huaxia (Chinese) civilization, marriage, morality, language, lineage and the primal ancestor to all Chinese people. In addition, he is a Sun God and associated astrally with the planet Saturn, the star Regulus and the constellations Leo and Lynx. The constellation Lynx in Chinese star lore, represents the body of the Yellow Dragon.
Huángshén Běidǒu – the “Yellow God of the Northern Dipper”, connected to this constellation, Huang-Di becomes identified as Shangdi or Tiandi, the supreme God or “Highest Deity.”
Further, Huang-Di is the representation for the hub of creation, the divine center and the axis mundi for the divine order in physical reality which opens the way to immortality. He is the god who is the center of the cosmos that connects the San-Huang and the Wudi.
Huángdì Nèijing – The Yellow Emperor’s Inner Canon
Also, spelled as Huang Ti Nei Ching (The Yellow Emperor’s Classic of Medicine).
This medical text forms the foundation for traditional Chinese Medicine. it comprises of the theories of the legendary emperor Huang Di who lived around 2600 B.C.E. This tome preserved a lot of ancient medical knowledge and is compose of two volumes. The first one is a dialogue between Huang Di and his minister, Qibo. The second one has the descriptions of anatomy, medical physiology and acupuncture. The real author of this book is unknown.
Huangdi Sijing – Four Scriptures of the Yellow Emperor
In this text, it is explained how regulating the heart and one’s emotions, they will never allow oneself to get overly emotional and carried away. Huang-Di had accomplished doing this during his three years at the refuge at Mount Bowang in order to find himself. Doing this, creates an internal void where all the forces of creation gather, where the indeterminate they stay, the more powerful these forces of creation will be. In more simpler terms, this is self-mastery and self-control.
Other Books –
Other books attributed to Huang Di are: Huángdì Yinfújing (Yellow Emperor’s Book of the Hidden Symbol) and the Yellow Emperor’s Four Seasons Poem that is found contained in the Tung Shing fortune-telling almanac.
Chinese Astronomy
As a Sun God, Huang-Di as Zhōngyuèdàdì is associated astrally with the planet Saturn, the star Regulus and the constellations Leo and Lynx. The constellation Lynx in Chinese star lore, represents the body of the Yellow Dragon.
Going Back To Where It All Began!
As previously mentioned earlier, tradition has Huang-Di begin his rule during 2697 B.C.E. and ending in 2597. An alternate date is 2698-2598 B.C.E. These dates were first calculated by Jesuit missionaries studying the Chinese chronicles. They have been accepted by later scholars looking to try and establish a universal calendar.
It should be noted that the traditional Chinese calendar didn’t mark years consecutively. Some Han-dynasty astronomers have tried to determine when Huang-Di ruled. Under the reign of Emperor Zhao in 78 B.C.E. a court official, Zhang Shouwang calculated that some 6,000 years had passed since the time of Huang-Di rule. The court however rejected this claim and said that only 3,629 years had passed. Comparisons with the Western, Julian calendar place the court’s calculations to the late 38th century B.C.E. for Huang-Di. Nowadays, the 27th century B.C.E. is accepted by many.
Possible Reality Behind The Legends
Getting anything for reliable accuracy and the historical context of China before the 13th century B.C.E. is difficult. There is a lot of reliance on what archaeology can provide and prove. The earliest Chinese writing and records date to the Shang dynasty around 1200 B.C.E. This system of writing is the use of bones for oracles. Even any hard evidence for the Xia dynasty is hard to find, even with Chinese archaeologists trying to link this dynasty to the Bronze Age Erlitou sites.
Many Chinese historians view Huang-Di to have a stronger historical basis than other legendary figures like Fu Xi, Nuwa and the Yan Emperor. While many legendary figures and ancient sages have all been considered to be historical figures, it is not until the 1920’s that members of the Doubting Antiquity School in China began to question the accuracy of these legends and claims.
Warring States Era
These early figures of Chinese history, as Gu Jiegang from the Doubting Antiquity School, as stated are mythological in origin. They started off as gods and then became depicted as mortal during the Warring States era by intellectuals.
Yang Kuan, another member of the Doubting Antiquity School, has commented that it is only during the Warring States era that Huang-Di is mentioned as the first ruler of China. Yang goes on to argue that Huang-Di is really the supreme god, Shang-Di, the god of the Shang pantheon.
Even the French scholars Henri Maspero and Marcel Granet, in their “Danses et légendes de la Chine ancienne” (“Dances and legends of ancient China”) have commented that early Chinese legends have more to do with the period to when they were written than to when they are supposed to have happened.
From God To Man
Huang Di’s status as a god faded during the 2nd century C.E. with the rise and reverence of Laozi. Huang Di will still be regarded as an immortal and the master of the longevity techniques and a deity who would reveal new teachings in the form of books like the Huang Di Yinfujing in the 6th century C.E.
Nowadays, many scholars accept the view that Huang-Di and other figures like him started off as a god of religious importance and then become humanized, mortal during the Warring States and Han periods. Even though Huang Di’s status as a god faded during the
Indo-European Connections
Okay?
Chang Tsung-tung, a Taiwanese scholar has argued, that based on a vocabulary comparison between Bernhard Karlgren’s Grammata Serica and Julius Pokorny’s Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, there is a connection with the Old Chinese and the Proto-Indo-European etymologies. That there is a strong influence of Indo-European languages on the Old Chinese language around 2400 B.C.E. Chang goes on to say that the Shang dynasty was founded by Indo-European conquerors and identifies Huang-Di as an Indo-European god. Chang says that the “yellow” in Huang-Di’s name should be interpreted as referring to blond hair. That as a nomad of the steppes, Huang-Di encouraged road construction and horse-drawn carriages to establish a central state.
This idea, to me, seems farfetched. Since it is one of the ideas I came across, I’ll include it here.
Babylonian Immigrants
Thanks to the French scholar, Albert Terrien de Lacouperie, many Chinese historians got hooked on the idea Chinese civilization getting its start in 2300 B.C.E. by Babylonian immigrants and that Huang Di would have been a Mesopotamian tribal leader. This idea has been rejected by European sinologists, however the idea was advocated for again by two Japanese scholars Shirakawa Jiro and Kokubu Tanenori in 1900.
The ideas certainly seem to held on to by anti-Manchu intellectuals who are looking for the truth of China’s history and wanting to prove the superiority of the Han over the Manchu and the importance of Huang Di as the ancestor of all Chinese.
The Mausoleum Of The Yellow Emperor
Also called Xuanyuan Temple, this mausoleum is the most important of ancient mausoleums in China and praised as “the First Mausoleum in China.” The mausoleum is located at Mount Qiao, north of the Huangling County of Yan’an some 200 kilometers north of Xi’an, the capital of Shaanxi Province. According to historians, the mausoleum was first built on the western side of Qiao during the Han Dynasty (206 B.C.E. – 220 C.E.) It was later restored during the Tang Dynasty (618 – 907 C.E.) It had been damaged by floods and moved to Qiao’s eastern side by the Emperor Song Taizu of the Song Dynasty (960 – 1234 C.E.)
During the Qingming Festival that is held on April 5th, Chinese people from all over gather to hold a memorial ceremony to commemorate the Yellow Emperor, Huang-Di. Yan’an also earns the distinction of being considered the birthplace of Chinese civilization.
Shilluk Pantheon
I came across a few of the gods or ancestral deities for the Shilluk people. However, the information is sparse enough, I decided to combine all the deities into one article in order to expand this post. Plus, it feels more worthwhile writing it up.
First up is that Shilluk is a corruption of the word Chollo, so a lot of my research did center around looking up Shilluk and not just Chollo.
The Shilluk or Chollo people are a large, native or Luo Nilotic people living along the Nile River of modern, Southern Sudan.
Legend and traditions hold that sometime during the 15th century C.E., Nyikango, the mythical ancestor and founder of the Shilluk or Chollo nation had an argument with Dimo and other Luo groups in a place known as Bahr el Ghazel.
Taking a group of his closest family and friends, Nykango led them northwards up along the Nile in rafts and canoes until they found the place of Otango Dirum to settle. Through the use of war and diplomacy, Nykango managed to conquer over time the entire area of Otango Dirum. For each of the tribes, Nykango granted a name and ritual they were to perform. Legends and tradition hold that Nykango’s son, Dak was the most influential in establishing the Shilluk Kingdom.
Today though, the Shilluk as a nation is recognized by the Sudanese state as only part of native administrations. Since 1837, the Shilluk have never truly free except for a brief period from 1881 and 1898 during the Mahdiya. The Shilluk still have a common territory, language, tribal authority they listen to and their customs and traditions they hold to.
Diang
Diang is a cow goddess, she lived along the west bank of the Nile river. She is seen as the wife of the first human Omara that had been sent by the Creator God, Juok.
Diang and Omara have a son, Okwa who grows up and marries the crocodile goddess Nyakaya.
In Shilluk religion and beliefs, this shows a connection of the three major elements of life. Men or humans for the sky, cattle for the earth and crocodiles for water.
Juok is known by a number of other names: Jo-Uk, Joagh, Joghi, jok, Joogi, Jouk, Jok Odudu, Ju-Ok, or Jwok
He is the main Creator God of the Shilluk and other tribes along the upper areas of the Nile river. It is generally believed that Juok controls the destinies of all living creatures. The legendary Shilluk king, Nyikang is often seen as being Juok’s earthly representative or avatar much like the Egyptian pharaohs were often seen as the living god Ra in earthly form. Other tribes such as the Acholi and Lango use the name Jok to refer to local or ancestor spirits.
Nyakaya
A crocodile goddess, she is the wife of Okwa and the mother of Nyikang.
Nyikang
Also known as Nyakango.
He is a fertility god and the mythical ancestor from whom all the kings of the Shilluk are descended from. Being an immortal and the avatar of Juok, Nyikang is believed not to have died, but instead, to have vanished in a whirlwind. The later kings of the Shilluk are seen as the reincarnations of Nyikang. The vitality and well-being of the tribe is closely connected to the health of Nyikang.
Okwa
The son of Omara and Diang, he is the husband of Nyakaya and the father of Nyikang.
Omara
The husband of Diang, he is the first man in the mythology of the Shilluk. Omara and Diang fathered Okwa who would eventually found the lineage of Nyikang.
