Sun Wukong was actually inspired by the travels of Tang Dynasty monk Xuenzhang when he traveled west all the way through Persia , Turkmenistan and into Afghanistan to Northern India where he brought Buddhism back to China. Sun Wulong was written and inspired by his travels.
Guan Yin is the Chinese translation of the Sanskrit Avalokiteshvara (the lord who looks down on the world with mercy or the bodhisattva of compassion) which comes from Indian Buddhism. He turned female and took on many folk traditions of the indigenous religions/beliefs of China. Guan Yin became so disheartened at the suffering of the world unable to curb it, she shattered herself into nothingness but Amitabha Buddha put her back together with a thousand arms to help/liberate sentient beings of all realms. Sun Wukong is said to be inspired by Hanuman as well.
@@RoseNZieg in east asia yes. Mostly people heavily involved in mahayana/vajrayana and ppl from areas of india, nepal, bhutan, mongolia, tibet use the male form. I wasnt fully aware of the female until further research. It is said in vajrayana and mahayana buddhas/bodhisattvas can many take many different forms to help all beings achieve enlightnment/nirvana. So gender doesnt matter, the core idea remains the same just traits added/changed.
The Monkey King? He’s not a legend. He’s a famous novel character from the Ming dynasty, [Journey to the West]. It is a very beloved fantasy novel and still widely read in East Asia.
@@onyxleoheart5226 I’m confused: In what way? The Monkey King story isn’t categorized as a legend. He is widely celebrated as a novel character. Of course, there might be a folklore or stories that gave the idea of the Monkey King, but it would be a lesser one at that.
As a Chinese, I would like to correct that there is something wrong with the album. In Chinese traditional costumes, the collar is right-crossed(交领右衽)， which makes the collar looks like the alphabet "y"(This feature actually influenced other East Asian nation's costumes like Kimono and Hanbok ), but this album obviously reverses it as left-crossed and makes it look like a reversed "y"(as ʎ). The left-crossed collar was once used as burial clothes in Chinese history, but now, it has been abandoned.
@@poxiaozhiguang @user-vd3gu5gp8m I’m looking for information about Grandfather #7 & Grandfather #8 (they catch or protect from ghosts, is what I’ve been told ). Anything you could tell me would be greatly appreciated, or just a link to a webpage or anything at all… I found a lot of good videos about Mah-Tsü (I like her a lot because I used to work catching & processing fish on the Bering Sea, so, since I was told about her protection and warning and help to those at sea… that píqued my interest)… Anyway, Grandfather #7 & Grandfather #8: I’m curious about these because I think maybe something supernatural happened: when I went to a very small temple where their masks (carved sculpture) and resplendent robes were displayed when not in use I wanted to take a photograph. Since nobody was around, I put my camera-phone very close to the shorter of the two & multiple times I pressed my button to take a photo and it wouldn’t work. It worked for photographing lanterns outside and for architectural items inside, but many multiple clicks and repositioning just only that carved mask the iPhone wouldn’t work…
For me, I would say there are 4 generations of Chinese gods that are overlaid onto eachother. From the beginning there was the Shangdi (later Heaven) of Shang-Zhou dynasty, and personal ancestor worship. The post-Zhou era gradually solidified into a sort of a more unified creation mythology and pantheon (Pangu, Nuwa, Fuxi, Yellow Emperor, etc), in which the nature of ancestor worship changed. You no longer venerate your own ancestor, but the ancestors of powerful leaders (as deities). Around Han dynasty the gods began to take on a more bureaucratic nature, with the Jade Emperor being conflated with Shangdi. The more modern, familiar pantheon came into place around Tang dynasty with ascended mortals (Guanyu, the door gods, the god of wealth, etc.) and dragons being incorporated into the existing mythology.
Very good list i would have exchanged chang e with er lang shen since he was a product of a human and a goddess and had to rescue his mother and prove himself worthy to his uncle. Plus he fought with monkey king to a standstill until monkey king was eventually captured
Actually if you click the settings of the video, you'd see the audio track. There, you can set it to English (Spanish is available). Regarding the captions, I guess only English captions have been uploaded here. That's why
XIWANHMU is also the Goddess of all the warriors and all those die in battle .Also Chang’E is an immortal not a goddess.sun Wukong is a novel character and a god .
A little bit surprised _Guan Di_ didn't make the list. The god of war & economy is kind of a household staple. But I guess, the list sounds prominent enough without him.
Do you mean Guan Yi? He was a general, dude He actually existed and was worshipped as a deity after his death. He wasn't a mythical character like Guan Yin and Sun Wukong
I think it's much more common to see images of Caishen, especially during the New Year. Guanyu is known but I don't remember seeing any household images of him.
Emmm, there are quite a few problems. The name of the Jade Emperor in Chinese mythology is too long, but before him, there were kings of gods such as the Haotian God and the Eastern Emperor Taiyi （DongHuangTaiTi） of the Chu Kingdom. gradually they all evolved into a god, and the most popular term among Chinese people is' Heavenly Grandpa （LaoTianYe）'. Xiwangmu and Fuxi Nuwa, among others, were gods from earlier ancient times. The three emperors(Huang) and five emperors（Di） made significant contributions during the tribal period, and later generations have mythologized them. The Chinese mythology cannot be separated from the book "The Classic of Mountains and Seas（ShanHaiJing）", and many mythological characters and animals known in it have even influenced other countries in the Chinese cultural circle. For example, the four great mythical beasts are blue dragons, white tigers, red sparrows, and black turtles. Phoenix, various types of dragons, including the nine tailed fox that Japan and South Korea now prefer, many divine beasts and animals come from the Book of Mountains and Seas.
@@loranelson8476 no, most legend and version only mention nine I remember Few version and legend i was read from somwhere said when it come to heaven it will grow the 10th tails There is no legend and version said mythical fox have 1000 tails
@@loranelson8476 i must say this video is so much wrong about china mythology Except nuwa and shennong ( and i not sure about yu huang and fuxi because i don’t know did this god is the right god i know because i don’t know their china name ) The rest is not main deities of china mythology
Well, I'll be. Your pronunciation of their Chinese names are quiet good. But "Sun" for Sun Wukong should be pronounced as "Sooon" (soon but a little longer due to the Tone 1)
Where are these depictions from? My goodness they’re gorgeously stunning! Great, great video; informative and entertaining all at once. Def got me to subscribe. Thanks!
Not even a mention of Pangu 盘古? Who created the universe from chaos. He died from his work, and his body parts became the earth, mountain , river etc. Then there is the three pure ones (三清), which is embodiment of Pangu's spirit.
I thought so too but no , immortals and gods are different. Immortals cultivate to become god status through a process that that involves no love and no emotions called the heartless path.
@@pctechnoob8907 not say heartless, more like detached from the mortal realms, like those chinese webnovels that take inspiration from the culture of immortals, to aim to be as perfect as the gods in body and soul.
due to China being multi-religion, the gods can be roughly divided between Buddhist, Taoist, and Folk religions, and somehow Eastern heaven(Taoist heaven) and Western heaven(Buddhist heaven) exist at the same time also GuanYin is actually NOT a singular diety, but a collection of dieties, GuanYin is actually buddhist in origin, sanskirt Avalokiteshvara, which is "Boddhisatva of mercy", the earliest Guanyin is actually male, but multiple spinoff occurred, and the most well known ones are all female, like the "Guan Shi Yin(World Guan Yin, and probably the greatest of Guan Yin)" that appears in Journey to the West, and the "Thousand Hand Guan Yin" which have a thousand hands.....
The Chinese belief are more to ancestors worship. Before confusions, Taoism and later Buhdism came to the country from the silk road. Most are from Taoism belief. Guan Yin are from Buhdism belief, which she had male counterparts in India. Only she in Chinese, she hand many hand because her hand after being cut off to cure her father. She grow back her hand because her unable to help as many people needed her help. Monkey king story are created during the Tang Dynasty, as the real historical journey to the West happened.
Taoism is a native religion in China. Although strictly speaking, Taoism is not a religion in the general sense, it focuses more on personal practice, and its ultimate goal is to become an immortal (the Jade Emperor in the video is the ultimate case of success through personal practice).
Is there a connection between Chinese and Norse myths? (I see some similarities like with Odin, Thor and Freya) (Also, am I right to say there are similarities between these myths and Indians myths? (Specially Sun Wukong?)
Not necessarily. it's similar or seems so because naturals phenomenons are universals just like concepts of justice and love and the fact that humans explain the world around them through their gods. So it's no surprise that different civilisations have superficially similar deities for the same phenomenons. Of course, tales can travel far and contribute to that too. However, As far as i know, Norsemens never traveled so far as china. It was very far away and there was closers targets.
@@controllerplayer1720 Ok. But is it correct to say "Fallen Angels"? Sure there are links in how people personified and idolized attributes of nature; but does it necessarily link to Abrahamic religions?
@@controllerplayer1720the concept of fallen angels has been debunked but Abrahamic religions still hold on that belief. The coming revelation of ET's that Christians seem to always equate to Fallen Angels could change that.
Sun Wukong is possible the most powerful deity in all of mythology. He cannot truly be killed. Yu Huang cannot even keep him out of Heaven. AND he appears in several video games that are based off a combination of mythologies.
@harrishromero6447 After doing a bit of research, whereas Sun Wukong is best known from A Journey to the West, nearly every source of information that lists Chinese gods, deities, or mythological figures has Sun Wukong on that list. I understand that you may not consider Sun Wukong apart of Chinese mythology, it is clear that regardless of where he was introduced, he is currently and has been for a great many years, either a Chinese god, deity, or mythological figure. With many sources just outright considering him a Chinese god or deity more than a mythological figure.
@harrishromero6447 There are many gods and deities that are similar to other gods and deities from different cultures. It was a debate for many years that Zeus and Thor were the same god, in fact. The gods of Rome and the gods of Greece are another example. The Mayan gods have a monkey deity. The one thing that can not be denied is that they are ALL considered deities. It does not matter where they are from. It matters how the people of their culture view them. Sun Wukong is viewed and considered a deity by many cultures who recognize him, and not just the Chinese culture recognize him. It is okay for you to see him as "propaganda." Like many others, however, I will see him as a deity. That will not change, and this discussion with me will end here. Sorry.
It so cool to hear about theses other gods. Deity’s are the same thing right so, why another name for it? Also does Buddha count for the Chinese since he was sun’s teacher ?
Gods in China are of two categories: deities or immortals. Immortals are cultivated (spiritual cultivation is the practice of seeking immortality through learning, meditating and practice of Taoism) and can be anything from plants to animals to humans who have cultivated into immortals as far as I'm aware. Deities are born aspects of their divinity (river gods for example). And then there is a muddled middleground in which something can be understood as both immortal and deity: "Flower fairies", dragons, etc. As for Buddhism: I'd say Guanyin is the most important central figure in Chinese Buddhism, but that has not always been the case and depending on dynasty and location, other saints/deities will be regarded as higher figure, and "Buddha" is only of a title, it refers to someone who has "awakened ones spirit completely". It's also the Indian title. In Chinese it would be "佛"
@@melonseiiLOVE So its more of a journey to unlocking your full potential on the path of enlightenment like what buddha did? something that easier said then done. Or they were born/ made into it like the other gods.
@@ZephyrBW well, immortal cultivation is taoism, it’s kind of the art of prolonging your life through virtuous deeds and self discipline. A little bit how Western heroes strive to ascend to legends through their heroism, but also mixed with the taoist fundamentalist teachings of balance in life. It’s a bit hard to explain but essentially there is multiple ways to become immortal. The first would be accumulating a lot of spiritual power (imagine more like magic and such). From artefacts or from incantations and spells, as well as absorbing other’s spiritual/life force (frowned upon, referred to as demonic cultivation) The second would be meditating and following the taoist teachings, which is said to prolong your life if you follow the path of immortal cultivation (so essentially you prolong your life until you live forever). Mortal heroes may be declared immortals by doing a heroic deed that is highly regarded (best example here is Yang Jian who ascends as the immortal god Erlang Shen for his contributions and deeds in the war against tyrant king Zhou). On the other hand, if a tree grows old enough it might develop a conscience and through further cultivation it can turn humanoid and then ascend. It’s said that spiritual energy is all around us in nature. Also in Chinese language there is a distinction between gods and immortals. “Shen” translates as god but means minor deities and immortals. Everyone with the prefix “tian” (heaven) is regarded as GODS and deities I hope I was able to explain it a bit because it’s hard to translate my thoughts and the cultural meanings from Chinese into English :P
Oh and to give another example of the tree metaphor: I think Sun Wukong was a rock before he cultivated into a monkey and then into the humanoid monkey. Then following his deeds with the monk Tang Sanzhan he is allowed to become an immortal deity, as are the other companions. So in this case it’s a mix of cultivating until sentient and good deeds to ascend into heaven.
@@melonseiiLOVE But he became immortal without dying isn't it that the transcend part only happens when the soul lives the body and the only way to do that is to die?
This is a list more about 10 more commonly known, instead of 'main'. Nor was the description accurate. Lei Gong doesn't remotely look like that, at least not the most well known one.
Yu Wong: Not governing the universe that contain countles stars like earth or bigger. What I know there are many stages of the heavenly realms. 1-4th stage heavens, I am not sure anything higher than that.
Chinese gods looks like a Chinese. Indian gods looks like an Indian. Norse gods looks like a viking, Christian god looks like a European .. Which one is the truth
I am a Chinese and I have to say that the depiction is not accurate. Chinese mythology has many Deities, and many of the 10 Deities described in the video are more like characters from folklores than Deities worshipped in temples. Go to different Chinese temples and it is not hard to tell that many of the "main Deities" described in the video are not commonly worshipped.
@@user-cg2tw8pw7j no that's purely Chinese origin, there's archeological findings to prove that,and western dragons are totally different creatures from the east, translation cannot properly explain the difference
@@user-cg2tw8pw7j take for example we took Naga from India and say that's dragons too ,but we all know the difference,they also entitled 龍王，which means dragon king of some sort, but they only protect Buddhism,where Chinese 龍王have to perform a lot of work like raining and care for fisherman,we don't expect nagas to do the jobs
wait... so what do chinse believe then? I didnt know they had gods. I thougt the worshiped their ancestors, Taoism, confucianism, and Buddihim. So they believe in all??
depends on their religion... and sometimes, profession. For example, if you watch hongkong police drams in the 90s, there will be an Altar with "Guan Yu" statue in their station to which the policemen will pray too. And funny enough, their counterparts, the triads/"bad guys" also pray to "Guan Yu". If you are a student, you might want to go to Temple of Confucius to pray for good results. If you are a married and pray that you give birth to a son, you may want to go pray to Justice Bao (for the chinese name loosely translate to "Guaranteed Male")
The meaning of gods is much broader than human interpretation. To more advanced civilizations a god refers to a beings ability to inhabit any point of attention, and with space races, a god refers to your ability to inhabit a star, which means you can steer a star, conjoin with, and determine, what a star creates. Dragons are similar to humans in that they are polarized incarnations, like all Life in form. Their polarized contrast is only Real from its reunification to Lifes purpose, to Know ItSelf, which means to know its nature, to choose to know its nature, this is the WONESS, the reunification of polarity by choice, Won Oneness
