Ancient Chinese Culture » Chinese Folktale

Jiang Taigong Fishes

sharon — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 13:26:14 +0000

A famous saying goes that, “Jiang Taigong (1128BC~1015BC) gets the fish, which is willing to let itself be caught”. Jiang Taigong, also called Jiang Shang, is a real historical figure, who is a famous statesman and strategist in history.

There spread various versions about the origin of this famous saying. The most popular one goes that during the period of Shang Dynasty (1600BC~1046BC), Jiang Taigong heard that King Wen was searching for talented people to assist him to overthrow the Shang Dynasty. He decided to help him. However, he did not offer himself to the king directly. Each day, he went fishing near the river. His fishing was really special as the hook was straight and he did not use any baits. What’s more, the fishing rod hung 3 feet above the water. People who saw his way of fishing always laughed at him, “You will never get the fish by fishing this way!” Jiang answered calmly, “I am waiting for the fish which is willing to be caught”. Soon, the news about Jiang reached King Wen. Curious about him, the King visited him and talked with him. After their talking, the King discovered that Jiang was really a genius. He then visited Jiang another two times to invite him to appear at court and finally, Jiang agreed to help him. With the help of Jiang, King Wen and his son King Wu overthrew the Shang Dynasty and established the Zhou Dynasty (1046BC~771BC).

Nowadays, when we talk about the famous saying, we always mean that a person who is willing to fall into other people’s trap.

Ma Liang and His Magic Brush

sharon — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 14:05:59 +0000

Ma Liang and His Magic Brush is a literary classic in the world and is also the gem of Chinese children literature. It is written by Hong Xuntao, the famous children’s literature writer in China.

The tale goes that, in a village, there lived a boy called Ma Liang, whose family was so poor that he could not go to school. However, he loved painting and studied very hard at it. One day, he got a special brush with magic power: Anything he painted with the magic brush would turn real. Then he used his magic brush to help the poor people in his village.

Soon, news about his magic brush reached the greedy local officer. He wanted Ma to draw gold coins and ingots for him, but Ma refused. Therefore, Ma was put into the prison and his brush was also confiscated. However, the local officer found that the brush did not have any magic power when it was used by others. He had no choice but to force Ma to draw for him again. This time, Ma agreed and drew a golden mountain, but he also drew the wavy ocean around it. After the officer and his servants sailed across the sea, Ma waved his brush to draw the fierce storm and finally the officer sank into the water.

After that, Ma left but no one knew where he went then. Maybe he travelled around and wherever he went he used his magic brush to help the poor.

The tale of Ma Liang and His Magic Brush is popular not only among the children, but also the adults. This tale has been translated into several languages and is favored by the people throughout the world. It also has a variety of literary forms including cartoons, films, songs, etc.

Lady Meng Jiang Wailed at the Great Wall

sharon — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 13:53:23 +0000

Lady Meng Jiang Wailed at the Great Wall is a traditional legend and also has been one of the four love Chinese Folktales. It has been widespread for thousands of years.

The folklore tells a tragic love story between Meng Jiang and her husband named Fan Xiliang. It goes that during the Qin Dynasty (221BC-206BC), the newlywed couple Fan and Meng were separated as the groom was forced to build the Great Wall. Meng missed him very much. After innumerable hardships, Meng finally arrived at the construction site. However, she was told that her husband had died of starvation and fatigue and his corpse was buried under the Great Wall. She went nearly mad with grief and cried for three days. It was said that she cried down 800 miles of the Great Wall. Due to the collapse of the Great Wall, she finally managed to find her husband’s skeletons. After that, she committed suicide by jumping into the sea.

According to the ancient documents, the earliest version of legend of Lady Meng Jiang was recorded in “Zuo Zhuan” (a historical book). It had various details at the very beginning for it had been transmitted by word of mouth. This legend has a variety of literary forms such as folk songs, poems, operas, etc. It has been one of the widely known legends since ancient times and is loved by the people throughout the world.

Legend of the White Snake

sharon — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 13:39:09 +0000

Legend of the White Snake is a Chinese traditional legend and also is one of the Four Chinese Folklores. It is listed as the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage.

The folklore tells a love legend between a white snake and a human being. The legend goes that once upon a time, a white snake, named Bai Suzhen (the heroine of the legend) who had magical power, practiced thousands of years and finally transformed to be a beautiful lady. In order to repay a life-saving debt, she married a scholar named Xu Xian who saved her life thousands of years ago. But Fa Hai, a Buddhist monk with magic power, insisted that humans and demons could not marry and believed that every demon should be eliminated. He imprisoned Bai under the Leifeng Pagoda. Many years later, Bai’s son saved his mother from Leifeng Pagoda and the family was reunited at last.

Legend of the White Snake originated from the Tang Dynasty (618~907). It has various versions and details as it was transmitted by word of mouth at the very beginning. The legend also has a variety of literal forms including ballad, fiction, historical novel, drama, movie, TV play, cartoon, etc. It is one of the widely known legends in China and is loved by the people throughout the world.

Moon Palace

sharon — Sun, 06 Jun 2010 15:11:32 +0000

Moon Palace, also called Guanghan Palace, refers to the Palace on the moon. Legend goes that it is inhabited by the goddess of the moon – Chang’e, the Jade Rabbit and the woodcutter Wu Gang.

As is known to all, Chang’e stole the Pill of Immortality and flew to the moon and then she became the Chinese goddess of the moon.

There were many versions about the background of the goddess’s best friend – the Jade Rabbit. It was widely believed that it was sent to the Palace to alleviate Chang’e's sorrowful solitude. It was busy all day long, pestling medicinal materials in efforts to concoct a pill that could help the goddess return to Earth. However, it never succeed.

Originally, Wu Gang was a woodman who lived on Earth. It was said that he offended the Almighty and was sent to the Palace. He was told that once he fell the sweet-scented osmanthus tree, he would attain magic powers. Therefore, Day after day, Wu Gang wielded his ax, but the tree had magical power and the cleaving scars disappeared seconds after each stroke. Wu Gang continued his labors day after day. But years after years, the tree still grew verdantly and heavily sheltered the palace beside.