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Every year, at the Wa Huang Gong temple in Hebei Province, China, people gather to worship the great mother, Nuwa, the oldest deity in Chinese myth, praising her for bringing them a happy life. It is a vivid demonstration of both the ancient reach and the continuing relevance of mythology in the lives of the Chinese people.
Compiled from ancient and scattered texts and based on groundbreaking new research, Handbook of Chinese Mythology is the most comprehensive English-language work on the subject ever written from an exclusively Chinese perspective. This work focuses on the Han Chinese people but ranges across the full spectrum of ancient and modern China, showing how key myths endured and evolved over time. A quick reference section covers all major deities, spirits, and demigods, as well as important places (Kunlun Mountain), mythical animals and plants (the crow with three feet; Fusang tree), and related items (Xirang-a kind of mythical soil; Bu Si Yao-mythical medicine for long life). No other work captures so well what Chinese mythology means to the people who lived and continue to live their lives by it.
With more than 40 illustrations and photographs, fresh translations of primary sources, and insight based on the authors' own field research, Handbook of Chinese Mythology offers an illuminating account of a fascinating corner of the world of myth. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Modern guide to Chinese mythology
This book is a mine of wealth in Chinese mythology with inputs from ancient texts and Chinese different ethnic groups over the long Chinese history.

It highlights the creation, major deities, spirits and demigods.It showed human in relation to heaven and earth with the universe in the belief in cultural context.

Reading this book will help understand Chinese characters, vision and belief.As they are independently developed, will Christian West look at mysterious East to defeat and convert?

In-depth explorations linking traditional cultural myths to insights on behavior and ideals
ABC-CLIO's wonderful handbooks on world mythology offer in-depth explorations linking traditional cultural myths to insights on behavior and ideals, and Handbook Of Chinese Mythology is an essential reference for any high school to college-level collection with a Chinese studies program. From main sources of myths and their importance to Chinese society and psyche to a timeline of myths as they evolved through Chinese history and a survey of the myths and themes themselves, Handbook Of Chinese Mythology is a real winner.

In-depth explorations linking traditional cultural myths to insights on behavior and ideals
ABC-CLIO's wonderful handbooks on world mythology offer in-depth explorations linking traditional cultural myths to insights on behavior and ideals, and Handbook Of Chinese Mythology is an essential reference for any high school to college-level collection with a Chinese studies program. From main sources of myths and their importance to Chinese society and psyche to a timeline of myths as they evolved through Chinese history and a survey of the myths and themes themselves, Handbook Of Chinese Mythology is a real winner.

In-depth explorations linking traditional cultural myths to insights on behavior and ideals
ABC-CLIO's wonderful handbooks on world mythology offer in-depth explorations linking traditional cultural myths to insights on behavior and ideals, and Handbook Of Chinese Mythology is an essential reference for any high school to college-level collection with a Chinese studies program. From main sources of myths and their importance to Chinese society and psyche to a timeline of myths as they evolved through Chinese history and a survey of the myths and themes themselves, Handbook Of Chinese Mythology is a real winner.

In-depth explorations linking traditional cultural myths to insights on behavior and ideals
ABC-CLIO's wonderful handbooks on world mythology offer in-depth explorations linking traditional cultural myths to insights on behavior and ideals, and Handbook Of Chinese Mythology is an essential reference for any high school to college-level collection with a Chinese studies program. From main sources of myths and their importance to Chinese society and psyche to a timeline of myths as they evolved through Chinese history and a survey of the myths and themes themselves, Handbook Of Chinese Mythology is a real winner.
... Read more

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"We must all thank Professor Birrell for providing an incredibly bountiful source, containing all manner of practical and fascinating information within its framework of myths. This book should find many uses and readers -- it is a superb resource for teaching about Chinese myth, literature, history, religion, culture, and thought." -- Suzanne Cahill,The Journal of Asian Studies

InChinese Mythology, Anne Birrell provides English translations of some 300 representative myth narratives selected from over 100 classical texts, many of which have never before been translated into any Western language. Organizing the narratives according to themes and motifs common to world mythology, Birrell addresses issues of source, dating, attribution, textural variants, multiforms, and context. Drawing on exhaustive work in comparative mythology, she surveys the development of Chinese myth studies, summarizes the contribution of Chinese and Japanese scholars to the study of Chinese myth since the 1920s, and examines special aspects of traditional approaches to Chinese myth. The result is an unprecedented guide to the study of Chinese myth for specialists and nonspecialists alike.

"Goes far beyond anything in or out of print on this subject. Nothing remotely of this stimulating nature and high quality exists in English. It will be very much sought after by sinologists, but especially by non-sinologist comparativists. Birrell has singlehandedly saved the scholarly world at least a decade in its attempts to come to grips with this fragmented, refractory body of narratives... [A] marvelous work of humanistic scholarship." -- Victor H. Mair, University of Pennsylvania

"The first serious and comprehensive introduction to Chinese mythology aimed at both the specialist and general reader. It is splendidly organized with well-chosen texts, lucid commentary, and useful supplementary matter... Sets new standards in the presentation of Chinese mythology." -- Asian Affairs

"One can safely expect to see this volume in all libraries that serve educated general readers as well as even the most modest academic libraries. Anne Birrell is to be congratulated for bringing this arcane subject matter into the grasp of a wide variety of readers outside the China-studies area." -- Robert E. Hegel,Chinese Literature: Essays, Articles, Reviews

Customer Reviews (7)

Could be a bit quicker..
If you plan on ordering for college courses make sure you do well in advance. Otherwise good service, and condition of the book is near mint.

Nice outside look at a culture
This book brings you into the old folk tales and stories of the chinese. To keep yourself in check with all the odd stories, draw out what's going on after each story. You'll have some very, very unusual pictures.

Very Tough Student Text
I selected this book for a class on myth, mainly after reading reviews discussing how well the stories were told compared to other resources. All I can assume is that other resources include almost incomprehensible stories. Birrell has obviously done a great deal of research, and she is trying to compile hundreds of sources into some sort of meaningful whole, but the result is very difficult to read. Her introductions to the stories are more meaningful than the tiny tales themselves, and I fear I will use this text only sparingly in the coming semester, giving more time to books explaining other mythic systems, not because I dislike Chinese myth, but because this text does little to clarify it. My students will have a hard time with these readings, and I will need to supplement them as much as possible so that the students can see what's at work within each story and understand the sociological and historical context.

I know trying to tackle all of Chinese myth is hard in itself--much harder than Greek or Norse myth--but after reading this, I am not sure I have a better sense of Chinese myth than I did before I opened the book. As an introduction, it may tend to be more daunting than it should be, and less accessible to a student course.

Mistitled, Misreviewed
I purchased this book on the strength of the reviews I saw here, and was seriously misled by the title, the self description, and the reviews. This is by no means a survey of the extant Chinese mythology, nor even a readable book. It concerns itself exclusively with the earliest strata of Chinese myth, which are preserved in verey fragmentary form in later sources. It does quote liberally from these, but the references are, even in full, so short as to be nearly useless. They are snippets and bare mentions of lost tales, not anything one could call full myths.

The book is valuable as a reference work for those concerned withthis early and almost entirely lost layer of Chinese literature, but the interest for the non-specialist in this byway of archaic Chinese religion and lit is hard to fathom.

As for methodology, there is none. Birrel invokes Eliade and Dumezil (which is nice) and Levi Strauss (which is useless) among others, and cites many parallels from Greco-Roman myth. But there is nothing that could be called substantive analysis or insight.

This is in fine just the sort of useful, dilligent, careful and intellectually mediocre volume that wins the praise of captious academics. To recommend it to the intelligent general reader is an act of malice or stupidity.

Ian Myles Slater on A Unique Resource
Anyone without a knowledge of Chinese who has tried to find out much about the myths and legends of early China -- as opposed to the abundant material from medieval and later times -- has certainly encountered many obstacles. Mythical and heroic narratives from before the Han Dynasty are rare, often incomplete, and usually frustratingly allusive; and often are not narratives, but applications of parts of presumably well-known stories to illustrate a point. And they usually have survived in a form considered "rational" by generations of Confucian editors.

There have been a few useful, but all-too-brief, presentations by qualified Sinologists, notably Derk Bodde. Other serious discussions by qualified Western scholars, however, often bog down in discussions of textual problems, the age and authority of sources, and other important issues, without ever explaining what a story is about.

For this reason alone, Anne M. Birrell's "Chinese Mythology: An Introduction" is welcome. Actual translations of texts are provided, with useful discussions and annotations intelligible to non-Sinologists like this reader. In addition, the author/translator/editor writes with grace and clarity. One comes away feeling that the confusing nature of the source has not been amplified by the presentation, and that the cultural issues they seem to address have been identified with reasonable certainty.

It is also an extremely interesting book, usually offering several versions of each of the stories, illustrating the various ways they have been told, and their persistence in Chinese culture. They are grouped thematically, and a myth which contains a variety of themes usually gets one major treatment, and relatively abbreviated consideration under other headings. A few get treated from different perspectives at somewhat greater length. Some readers will probably object to flipping back and forth, but the alternative was considerable repetition, which Birrell has gracefully avoided.

As a result of reading this book with the attention it inspires, I have actually been able to appreciate the depth of learning and insight concealed in some of the earlier scholarship (such as that of Bernhard Karlgren and Wolfram Eberhard). Anne Birrell has also been responsible for some attractive translations of interesting, but so far obscure, Chinese literature, and this reader hopes to see more of them.

This book should not be confused with Anne Birrell's short illustrated volume on "Chinese Myths," for the British Museum's "Legendary Past" series.

(Reposted from my "anonymous" review of September 12, 2003.) ... Read more

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Product Description
Retells stories from Chinese mythology, folk tales, and popular superstitions. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Thoroughly Enjoyable
I would recommend this book for the following reasons.
First of all myths are delightful and the drawings
are wonderful.It gave me a good introduction to
many myths in an easy yet informative manner.

Dragons, Gods, and Myths from Chinese Mythology
I thought Dragons, Gods, and Spirits from Chinese Mythology was an excellent book.It compiled many myths from all over China.It had tales from a wide variety of religions, such as Buddhism, Taoism, andConfucianism.The stories are not only entertaining, they give a clearpicture of what life was like in Ancient China.It contains information ondiet, clothing, holidays, architecture, and more.The tales were soenthralling, I literally couldn't put it down.And even the reader wholikes a little at a time can enjoy this, because the stories are of variedlength, from a quarter of a page to five pages and more.It has beautifulillustrations as well.I would recommend this to anyone and everyone, thestories are basic enough for little children, but clever enough for matureadults.Read this book! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Richly illustrated yet lacking
Read in the local library too. I found having an overview of what seems important may be culled from other readings-even Hughart's Master Li and Number Ten Ox Chronicles- sparked interest in this selection. The illustrations are quite attractive. Being an American any tool to maximize knowledge requires focus. Mr Roberts style, geared toward young inquiry, is thoughtful and appreciated.

Interesting, but some of it doesn't quite feel right
I had a look at several books from this series in the reference section of my library.The information from all meshed with that I found in other sources.It's all introductory material, as would be expected from such a series, but the tone of some entries in the Chinese and Japanese volumes seems a little problematic.Generally this sort of book is trying to convey the facts of, rather than judgments on the validity of, another group's beliefs

For example, from the entry Cat in the Chinese volume: "Some people thought just hanging a picture of a cat on the wall could prevent evil spirits or rats from entering the house."

As opposed to the entry Jaguar from the South and Meso-American volume: ". . . humans and gods alike could do no better than be associated with the power of this cat."

Both are factually correct descriptions of beliefs of the respective cultures, but the former seems to take a superior view, where the latter is simply descriptive.Maybe I'm reading too much into these (and the books are written by different people), I just noticed what seemed to be quite a contrast between them.

My other thought was perhaps Roberts got the idea he was writing for a much younger audience, and the other authors did not get the same idea.

Factually the books in the series are fine, based on the entries I read, and an easier introduction to these subjects than the route I took, particularly the African and South and Meso-American volumes.They cover many different people groups as compared to other books (at least those available at a public library) that tend to focus on the more popular cultures such as Egyptians or Mayans (though these of course have their place). ... Read more

Product Description
Chinese myths were primarily a diffuse and fragmentary oral tradition, eventually preserved in writing only in a piecemeal fashion. Many classical texts are unavailable in translation, and the stories have been unknown to Western readers. Anne Birrell here introduces the general reader to a selection of narratives organized by themes and motifs that help set Chinese myths in the context of world mythology. The contents include:o Origin and creation mythso Myths of the floodo The divine cosmoso Gender in mytho Metamorphoseso Mythic heroes and heroineso Fabled plants and animalso Major sources of myth ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

This is NOT an introduction to Chinese mythological literature
Which I was expecting. If you are looking for something along the lines of the "poetic edda", "the tain" or "metamorphosis" then look elsewhere.

This effort, at best, is a textbook presentation of chinese mythology lumped by subject matter.At worst,imagine someone taking a heavily annotated version of Ovid's "metamorpohsis", rearranging the text by topic, excising all extraneous text other than what specifically represents the topic, and then printing the annotations with this remainder tagged at the end of chapter. This is essentiall what you get. For each "subject" listed in the editioral review Anne Birrel gives us 2 to 5 pages of her analysis and interpretation of the text sources as well as comparisions to other mythological systems and then we get 2-4 paragraphs of the original text.

It is commented in the introduction that Chinese mythology is hampered by the source material being fragementary, but this presentation's limited text of the source material is so sterile, so minimal that one has to wonder why any attempt to include the original material was made.

If you are looking for an introduction and comparative analysis of Chinese Mythology as it relates to other better known western mythologies then this is an interesting book. If you are looking for an introduction to the literature that preserves Chinese mythology, fragmentary though it may be --- there has to be a better selection somewhere.

Good Transaction
This was a good transaction.Delivery was slow, but not terrible.Thanks a lot! ... Read more

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76 b/w plates, 37 b/w illustrationsA Chinese Bestiary presents a fascinating pageant of mythical creatures from a unique and enduring cosmography written in ancient China. The Guideways through Mountains and Seas, compiled between the fourth and first centuries b.c.e., contains descriptions of hundreds of fantastic denizens of mountains, rivers, islands, and seas, along with minerals, flora, and medicine. The text also represents a wide range of beliefs held by the ancient Chinese. Richard Strassberg brings the Guideways to life for modern readers by weaving together translations from the work itself with information from other texts and recent archaeological finds to create a lavishly illustrated guide to the imaginative world of early China.Unlike the bestiaries of the late medieval period in Europe, the Guideways was not interpreted allegorically; the strange creatures described in it were regarded as actual entities found throughout the landscape. The work was originally used as a sacred geography, as a guidebook for travelers, and as a book of omens. Today, it is regarded as the richest repository of ancient Chinese mythology and shamanistic wisdom. The Guideways may have been illustrated from the start, but the earliest surviving illustrations are woodblock engravings from a rare 1597 edition. Seventy-six of those plates are reproduced here for the first time, and they provide a fine example of the Chinese engraver's art during the late Ming dynasty. This beautiful volume, compiled by a well-known specialist in the field, provides a fascinating window on the thoughts and beliefs of an ancient people, and will delight specialists and general readers alike. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

A great work of scholarship and fun to read
Professor Strassberg is an expert in Chinese travelogues and the Shanhaijing is the ur-book in this genre. So it's really no surprise that he has produced the definitive guide to the Shanhaijing, or the Classic of Mountains and Seas.
This book is aimed at specialists but it is beautifully produced and fun just to dip into now and again. General readers will recognize many famous names from Chinese mythology, such as the Kunlun Mountains (now the name of a PLA-run hotel in Beijing) and enjoy the pictures of the strange beasts that are found on almost every page.
This is not a great "read" in the sense of a page turner but if you're interested in getting to the next level of understanding China--i.e. its myths and beasts and so on--then this is a good place to start.

"Shan Hai Jing" was found to be the Catalog of human population!
Scientists discovered that the great Leonardo da Vinci was correct in his assumptions - humans ARE biorobots. Every person gets a program at birth. These programs are recorded in "Shan Hai Jing" or "The Classic of Mountains and Seas". No human is able to deviate from his/her individual program. Anybody can be manipulated by the use of certain set programs. The question, "What is the soul?" has been answered.

The soul has been found and is described in the CATALOG OF HUMAN POPULATION (CHP). Archeological excavations by students of deep psychology--the search of the human soul--can now be considered complete. It was found that all programs have been recorded on a monument dating back to the 20thcentury BC. In 1975, decryption of this ancient manuscript began. The compilation of the full Catalog is almost complete. We, people who are described in the Catalog, now have the opportunity to stop asking ourselves questions like, "Who am I?", "Why am I?', and "What is my purpose?".

Every subtype structure is described based on six factors. In the description of each subtype structure there is complete information on how to use one's abilities to the fullest. By studying one's own subtype program and manipulation modes, one can protect themselves from all unpleasant provocations from the outside. The psyche is an archetypal matrix. Immeasurably ancient is the origin of the psyche, fundamental to the mind in the same way that the mammalian physiology is fundamental to the structure of human body. People's children look alike. If cats have kittens, and humming-birds have humming-birds - people can have anyone.

The Catalog does not discriminate. Today's humans absolutely groundlessly call themselves homo sapiens, when they are simply homo erectus; to become a homo sapien, one must study. The Catalog has been created like a project's documentation. Homo erectus have been created on the basis of this Catalog. The Catalog is not the foundation of any religion--it was created before the earliest religion came into existence. Based on the Catalog, it is possible to state that homo erectus is a form that has the potential to develop into homo sapien. It does not matter what a civilization thinks about the Catalog-- that does not prevent it to exist absolutely independently. CHP's free demo videos and texts are an opportunity to test the functional application of the Catalog. CHP invites its audience to decide for themselves: does the Catalog of human population exist or not? CHP readily provides information on the website and to mass media so that this question can be answered for one's self.

The "Catalog of Human Population" (CHP) was founded in Russia in 1975 and registered in USA (CA) as "CATALOG OF HUMAN POPULATION" General Partnership in 2009. CHP is engaged in scientific research based on the discovery of the Catalog of human population, and sells its intellectual products in the form of decrypted human programs. For additional information visit [...]

A Scholarly Read Not to Be Missed
Geoffrey E.R. Lloyd and Nathan Sivin in, The Way of the Word: Science and MedicineinEarlyChinaandGreece, raise thefollowingquestions:"Inwhat circumstances did inquiries about the world outside human society begin? and What paths [my own italics] did those inquiries open up?" One such "path" or "guideway" is found in the Shan hai jing , or "The Scripture, Classic, Canon, Warp-text [and now Guideways]--however one wants to render jing--Mountains and Seas," as Robert Ford Campany puts it in his review of Riccardo Fracasso and Anne Birrell's earlier translations. He goes on to say, "The list is the trope of plenitude, and an overwhelming plenitude ofanomaly is whatthisbook conveys." TheShanhaijing is one of the earliest Chinese works that attempted to provide a description of what was then believed to be "the world outside human society." It sought to provide an embodiment of taxonomic reckoning of its landscape and all of its natural and supernatural fauna and flora, especially to those who ventured into it. There gradually arose amongst the ancient Chinese intelligentsia a weltanschauung, or "world concept" of their biophysical and socioanthropological environment in which they conceived of themselves as being an integral part of the cosmos and intrinsically interjoined with its spiritual, physical, and moral "influences."

To explore the Shan hai jing is to undertake an odyssey in search of its mysteries. This literary venture can easily boggle the mind, especially when it comes to accomplishing a creditable translation with a plausible exegesis of its contents. Many of the traditional commentaries are, for the most part, useless, since the commentators were themselves ignorant of the folklore and palæozoology that underlies this venerable and probably composite text. It requires a whole critical apparatus built around it before an even reasonably full interpretation can be achieved, especially by the philological unwary. Richard Eric Strassberg, Professor of Chinese in the Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures at the University of California at Los Angeles, offers us an exceptionally fine work of scholarship in his thorough editing, excellent translation, and extensive commentary of this ancient work. He provides his readers with a new and invigorating approach to wandering through this arcane world.Heledsus along this jing,or "guideway" andfamiliarizesus with its passages as a jing, or a "classic." As our guide,hepoints out in his introductory remarks (p. 5), as a daybook to guide the reader in "choosing auspicious days for travel and avoiding danger from gods and demons." As its expounder, he penetrates its "sacred geography filled with strikingly unusual denizens" (p. xiv) and acquaints us with its mysteries.

Strassberg reminds us that he has "undertaken the risky venture of providing translations whenever possible of the names of creatures, places, and things. Though well aware of the risks involved in the more polysemous case, I offer these translations as reasonable significations that would have occurred to traditional Chinese readers both to facilitate the readers contact with this difficult text and to stimulate further consideration among specialists of what these names might have meant." (p. xviii) One can never be too exacting when it comes to translating ancient Chinese words, nor should such exactitude be so constrained as to preclude the full rein they must be givenin order to convey the splendor of their exquisite implicitness. And, again, one can never be too careful when it comes to avoiding renderings which are vitiated by the bland assumption that they meant then what they mean in later dynastic periods; accordingly, such assumptions can be distorted or entirely false. The author has adroitly avoided such pitfalls and he does not misguide his readers.

The contents of A Chinese Bestiary: Strange Creatures from the Guideways Through Mountains and Seas (hereafter cited as A Chinese Bestiary) consists of eight parts: List of Illustrations; a Preface; Editorial Notes; a meticulous introduction, followed by 76 plates of the rare illustrations found in the 1597 Yaoshantang reprint of the earlier Wang Chongqing edition as well as 345 descriptions of its demoniac/theriomorphic denizens; extensive Notes; an inclusive Selected Bibliography; and a thorough Glossary Index to Plates. Strassberg has gone to considerable effort to cull through resources in order to provide his readers with what is regarded as being the earliest surviving illustrations of woodblock engravings from the above rare work, making the illustrations available perhaps for the first time in any foreign publication, thereby, providing his readers with an artistic tour de force into the realm of a Chinese bestiary.

In discussing the origins of A Chinese Bestiary, the author refers to how "the yi-physicians credited Divine Farmer (Shennong) and the Yellow Thearch...with having written important medical and pharmacological treatises." (p. 4) One is reminded of Angus Graham's remarks that "legends of Shennong and the Yellow Emperor develop in interaction as representatives of rival tendencies to political centralization and decentralization...."Thispoliticaldichotomywithin medicinealsoreflectsa gradual division within Chinese society between the illiterati (the bearers of oral traditions, including folk medicine) and the literati (the bearers of written traditions, including what would later become known as traditional Chinese medicine). Consequently, one can with caution suggest that materia medica may have been later more closely associated with folk traditions even though it is referenced in the Huang di nei jing su wen, or "The Inner Canon of the Yellow Thearch,BasicQuestions" whichformsinparttheliteraryfoundationof Chinese medicine.

As for minor suggestions, I would offer the following remarks: It would be more convenient for the reader to have the ideograms side by side with their Romanized counterparts, not to mention having the footnotes at the foot of each page for immediate and convenient referencing; there are a few entries,such as guai,yi, xi,andqiuwhose ideogramsaremissing in the GlossaryIndex; there is some question to rendering of yu and jin as "jade" and "gold,"or zhen as "minister," since in most texts as early as this they mean "precious stones," "precious metals," and "magnate." Similarly, jing bi shi probably means "azure pi stones" (bi is an unidentified stone in early texts, used for making arrowheads; its use as a color word is much later); and, even given all of Strassberg's extensive footnotes, the undaunting quest for more appears to be an insatiable need (e.g., the guanxiong min, or "the people with perforated chests" (pp. 163-164) may refer to those people who were carried on planks of simple construction before the advent of sedan chairs).

The contents of A Chinese Bestiary are not vitiated by bland assumptions of contextual meanings misplaced in dynastic disorder or by a "highly imaginative rendition" (p. xvii) in which assumptions can be distorted or entirely false. Strassberg's literary astuteness and refined linguistic sensitivity provide his readers with an encompassing grasp of its numerous subtleties and variegated shades of meaning. He has not failed to afford his readers, specialists and nonspecialists alike, with an exceptional opportunity of improving our appreciation and understanding of this fascinating ancient Chinese text. It joins the ranks of Yuan Ke's Shan hai jing jiaoyi, Rémi Mathieu's Étude sur la Mythologie et L'ethnologie de la Chine Ancienne and Riccardo Fracasso's Libro dei monti e dei mari (Shanhai jing): Cosmografia e mitologia nella Cina Antica, as being the best translation in its language--English--as well as a must read for those whose penchant is ancient Chinese studies.

hungry for zhiguai ^__^
Dr. Strassberg has done some intensive researches on the zhiguai genre as well as the Chinese Travelogue tradition (the two in fact has a germane connection).This book is to provide you with a collection of pictographs of the strange creatures from Shan Hai Jin, an eerie...no, no, no sacred book about the landscape of si-hai (four seas) and jiu-zhou (nine provinces) of the middle kingdom (ancient China). I have both of his two books (this & Inscribed Landscape) and will be more than happy to recommend them to anyone who either has an interest in the study of ancient mythology, Chinese literature, or the so called "sacred geography" of eastern mysticism.:) ... Read more

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Chinese Gods and Myths
A very quick and incomplete look at Chinese Gods, legends, etc.This book is an attractive book with a "coffee table" feel about it, but it is too advanced in it's writing style for children and too simplistic for adults.The illustrations are plentiful and interesting but often do notrelate to the text.All in all I found it to be a disappointment - withthis title, my expectations were greater. ... Read more

Product Description
Chinese Myths features three engrossing myths from the rich culture of ancient China. Wonderful colors evoke the landscape of China, and the gripping text recounts stories of the creation of man, rivers, and the myth of the ten suns. These tales are complemented by an informative compilation of front and back matter. ... Read more

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This study presents an investigation into the phenomenon of the Chinese Triad, its rituals and mythological lore and its meanings and functions. Using a variety of primary and secondary sources, the author interprets Triad myth and ritual in their Chinese religious context. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

"Rebellion to tyrants is obedience to God."
Depending on whom you ask, the Triads might be an esoteric religious brotherhood, a patriotic band of freedom fighters, or the Chinese equivalent of the Maffia. The more one knows, the foggier it gets. Well, the bad news is that Barend ter Haar's massive study "Ritual & Mythology of the Chinese Triads" probably won't clarify this kaleidoscopic welter of perspectives for you. Indeed, he is maddeningly reticent on these points when he brushes against them at all. These are not his questions. The good news is that what you'll get instead is an indelibly vivid impression of how the Triad members saw themselves along with a painstakingly cautious yet assuredly bold analysis making sense of the sources, contexts, and characteristics of this sense of common identity constructed from obscure (to us, and, well, sometimes to them) rituals and mythological narratives. Hence the title, if you were wondering.

The book itself is scholarly and straightforwardly serious in tone, though certain particularly outrageous facts or claims will elicit a conspiratorial wink from the author (you'll know them when you see them). At times though the prose is pretty dry, and is almost ploddingly so for the first fifty pages or so as ter Haar defines his terminology and methodology and outlines the rest of the book. Bear with him, for it is this same care and attention to detail that makes what follows worth the effort. He has taken a dizzying mass of confusing and contradictory data from sources of wildly variable reliability and lent them organization and coherence without oversimplifying them as he investigates the Triads' rituals (particularly the initiation ritual and the blood covenant at its conclusion) and mythologies (particularly their differing foundation accounts), collapsing neither the performative into the narrative nor vice versa as is all too typical. The consonance of Triad-specific rites and motifs to more pervasive elements of vernacular southern Chinese religiosity and political ideology is explored in fine and rich detail and with great sensitivity, making this in some ways as much a study of the little-known world of the latter with the Triads as a specific example than just a study of the Triads per se. The fantastical world of popular messianic and apocalyptic expectations focused on the lost Ming dynasty which informs the "overthrow the Qing and restore the Ming" theme in Triad lore, for instance, utterly threw me for a loop, with old familiar terms like "Mandate of Heaven" applied with a startlingly unusual twist. And not to be coy, but that's just one example among many in this large volume.

So while "Ritual & Mythology of the Chinese Triads" will doubtlessly stand tall as a milestone in the scholarly study of the Triads themselves for years to come, those interested in Chinese and Southeast Asian religion, history, and anthropology will find this an indispensable source as well. Erudite, well-researched, and ultimately plain interesting, this book demands much and concedes little but the payoff is an offer the attentive and persevering reader can't refuse. ... Read more

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Discusses the myths and gods of ancient China and their sources. ... Read more

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The authors present a comprehensive, colourful taste of the broad tradition that informs Chinese storytelling. ... Read more

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An introduction to Chinese mythology. Colourful, sometimes grotesque and imaginative, Chinese mythology is just as moving and compelling as anything to be found in the better-known Egyptian, Greek and Teutonic traditions. In this book, Yuan Ke has culled from ancient sources, rearranged in chronological order and retold the variant versions of the creation of the world, the origins of men, women and animals and the era of the five endlessly warring emperor-gods. ... Read more

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This is an introduction to the most frequently encountered Chinese deities in the enormous Chinese pantheon, focusing on those gods which express the most common concerns of the Chinese people.Some of these include the gods of creation myths, the mythical founders of China's early societies, and the deities of the celestial world, nature, and destiny. There have been few written records of these popular myths and gods in English or Chinese, as they have traditionally been transmitted orally. Highlighting regional variations, this is the ideal companion to deciphering the divine maze of statues in most Chinese temples. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Les derniers mythes et legendes chinois
Les mythes chinois nous disaient pourquoi le monde etait cree, pourquoi il y avait tant de mal, et ce qui se passait apres la mort. Bien sur, il s'agissait aussi des dieux mythologiques, tels que Lei Gong, qui s'occupaient des orphelins et des veuves. Les legendes chinoises nous racontaient la vie des braves gens anciens. Par exemple, Yo et Shun etaient les derniers de 5 empereurs sages auxquels tous les souverains chinois devaient se ressembler. Il y avait des ministres des cieux et de la terre, tels que l'ingenieur Yu qui savaient soumettre la riviere Jaune tellement inapprivoisable. Alors l'auteur Keith Stevens nous donne un livre bien fait, bien ecrit sur un theme dont je ne savais rien. Bravo!

China House
Like any myth, Chinese myths tell why the world began. They tell also the why of bad things, such as drought, flood and plague. They also guess about after death. In contrast, like any legend, Chinese legends tell about real people of long ago.

The first CHINESE MYTHOLOGICAL GODS were around before the world. For example, Daoists believed their great master Hongjun Laozu to be life-giving nature, from before the world was made. The actual worldmaker, either Pangu the giant or Yuanshi Tianzun, was in the next set of gods.

Some were gods of the ancestors of the Chinese people, in what's now southern Shanxi province, about 6,000-7,000 years ago. Others these ancestors got from the people they met in moving into what's now central and southern China. The latest gods were believed to have come down from heaven just 100 years ago. Ordinary Chinese people saw all of them as helpers drawing on the power of the highest god, the Jade Emperor Yu Huang Dadi. Favorite helpful gods have been Lei Gong, for kidnapped children, orphans, and widows; Tai Sui, whenever the ground's disturbed; and Yang Jian, during trouble.

Then came the heroes of legend. They showed up as demigods, sage emperors, and founding ministers of Chinese culture. For example, Yo and Shun were last of the 5 legendarily wise emperors. All Chinese rulers were supposed to be like them.

There were also supposed to be the same kinds of ministers on earth, as in heaven. Rule in both places needed ministers of agriculture, exorcisms, finance, fire, the 5 sacred mountains, medicine, public works, thunder, time, war, and water. A favorite was Yu the engineer. His canals and embankments tamed the "untameable" Yellow river.

A lot of this was written in two stories. One was the Fengshen Yanyi, or Identification of the gods, from the Ming dynasty of 1368-1644. Carvers made their images and statues from its descriptions. The other was the Xiyou Ji, or Journey to the West, from the 16th century. It was about a Buddhist monk, Xuanzang, bringing Buddhist books, icons and images to China about 1,200 years ago.

So Keith G Stevens did an excellent job of sorting out an unknown subject for me. I'd read other books by him. His book gives a good understanding of Chinese culture, ... ... Read more

Product Description
This work covers the oral performing and dramatic literatures of China written over the four hundred year period from a.d. 1200 to 1600. It contains approximately 8,000 entries based on the reading notes and glosses found in various dictionaries, thesauruses, glossaries, and editions of works from that period. As late as 1981, no comprehensive dictionary or glossary for this literature existed in any language, Asian or Western. With this aid even a relative novice having a reasonable command of Chinese can read, translate, and appreciate this great body of literature with an ease undreamed of even two decades ago.
Now retired, Dale R. Johnson was Professor of Chinese and chair of East Asian Studies, Oberlin College. He has published Yuan Music Drama: Studies in Prosody and Structure and A Complete Catalogue of Northern Arias in the Dramatic Style.
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Product Description
The origins of the four great rivers of China are revealed in this classic myth.Against the landscapes of China, follow four dragons as they struggle against the Jade Emperor to bring water to the people of China ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Not very interesting
I have to concur with the other reviewers. Indeed the book has wonderful pictures. But- for one thing- the Hui are not exactly an ethnic group- they are extremely diverse, live all over China, and range from committed Muslims to atheist cadres- so a study of the "Hui folktales" does not necessarily shed light on what it means to be Hui; these folktales are not part of a shared heritage. Perhaps if the scope was more specific, i.e. "Folktales of the Hui of Ningxia," this would have worked better. Of course many of the stories are interesting- particularly those dealing with the intersection of Islam and traditional Chinese religion.

One star
Great pictures (for black and white), including of the tombs of some of the great Chinese Muslim saints; but regarding content the author displays very little interest/appreciation for the religion of Islam; he presents a book that is quite "fuzzy around the edges," with very little regard for the vast wealth of Islamic/Sufi tradition in China, including the Naqshbandiyya (Khuffiyya/Jahriyya) and Qadiriyya orders.One would wish to see in a book like this much more probing and intelligent representation of these truely fascinating people, the Hui Muslims.

how can you make sure that the stories belong to Hui ?
i think that the stories in the book are not the stories ofthe Muslim people their own. this is because there is great distance between anthors and the culture of the people whom they wrote about. the people like Hui inChina might not like to tell such stories that they collected in the book ... Read more