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xingwu.bsky.social
@x1ngwu on X. I collect, translate and write about ancient Chinese folklore, mythology, and history. Love books and cats. Mythology | Yaoguai(妖怪) | Ghost(鬼) | Art | Myth | Fantasy | History
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Hu Xian, or fox spirits, hold a fascinating place in traditional Chinese #mythology and folklore. These enchanting creatures cultivate immortality and can transform into beautiful humans. The Xuanzhongji notes that at fifty, a fox can become a woman; by one hundred, 1/3

submitted 12 hours ago • 1 comment

In one of the Chinese folklores, people lit lanterns during the Lantern Festival because a divine bird was accidentally shot by a hunter, prompting the Heavenly Emperor to order destruction on the fifteenth day of the new year. To save themselves, villagers decorated their homes 1/2 #folklore

submitted 16 hours ago • 1 comment

How a thousand-year-old Chinese meditation story mirrors modern social media behavior. In one famous Chinese folktale, when literary giant Su Shi(蘇軾) insulted his friend monk Foyin(佛印), he unknowingly showcased a behavior common online today. During meditation, Su Shi asked, 1/3 #folklore

submitted 20 hours ago • 1 comment

While modern China celebrates its beloved cats in social media posts, ancient texts like the Guangyang Miscellaneous Records, tell a much darker tale. According to it, a chilling battle unfolds every month between families and a terrifying, supernatural predator that hunts their cats. #caturday 3/3

submitted 23 hours ago • 1 comment

The dark truth behind China's most romantic mythical creature: The Biyi bird(比翼鳥), isn't just about eternal love! While poets romanticized these one-winged, one-eyed birds that must fly in pairs, ancient texts like the Classic of Mountains and Seas, warn of their connection to 1/2 #mythology

submitted 1 day ago • 1 comment

Modern Chinese heist dramas owe their most iconic tropes to an ancient trickster god! Dongfang Shuo, a mortal who outwitted immortals, became China's patron saint of thieves. This historical figure from the Han Dynasty didn’t just steal the Queen Mother’s immortal peaches—he did it three times, 1/2

submitted 1 day ago • 2 comments

Have you ever wondered what flower you would dedicate to a goddess? In Chinese #folklore, each bloom was believed to be guarded by a divine spirit, and among these protectors were Nü Yi(女夷) and Hua Gu(花姑), two immortal women entrusted with overseeing the world's flowers. Their story, 1/2 #mythology

submitted 2 days ago • 1 comment

While modern CDramas glamorize fox spirits as beautiful seductresses, ancient texts reveal a forgotten variant - the fox ghost (狐鬼), representing our ancestors' complex relationship with the wilderness. These beings challenge our modern understanding of Chinese supernatural lore, #folklore 1/2

submitted 2 days ago • 1 comment

China's creation myth stands apart by featuring a powerful goddess, not a male deity, as the architect of humanity. Nüwa, the divine creator, shaped the first human beings from yellow mud, bringing them to life with a single touch. But her role didn’t end there—she also divided them #mythology 1/2

submitted 2 days ago • 1 comment

While today's CDramas portray the Queen Mother of the West as a serene immortal in flowing robes, ancient texts tell a different story. The Classic of Mountains and Seas describes her with disheveled hair and beast-like features, wielding power over natural disasters. 1/2 #mythology

submitted 3 days ago • 1 comment

Jun Ren (菌人), often referred to as 'the Mushroom People,' is a fascinating creature from the Shanhaijing. These tiny beings, with their human-like forms, are deeply connected to the essence of humanity, embodying the unique relationship between nature and humankind. 🎨 Shanze #mythology

submitted 3 days ago • 0 comments

Forget Nezha—there’s a forgotten fire prince in Chinese #mythology who defeated Sun Wukong not once, but multiple times! Son of the Bull Demon King and Iron Fan Princess from Journey to the West, the teenage demon prince, Red Boy, aka the 'Infant King,' wields an 8-foot fire spear and commands 1/2

submitted 3 days ago • 1 comment

The origins of femme fatale tropes go deeper than you think - centuries before modern horror, Chinese #folklore warned of the Painted Skin Ghost (畫皮鬼), a demon who wears human skin as a disguise. Modern interpretations transform this tale into powerful commentary on beauty standards, identity, 1/2

submitted 4 days ago • 1 comment

Chinese feng shui is not just about furniture placement. The ancient concept of Dragon Veins (龍脈) reveals how our ancestors saw entire mountain ranges as living dragons, channeling earth's energy. These sacred pathways were so powerful that disturbing them was strictly forbidden - and 1/2

submitted 4 days ago • 1 comment

Chinese people celebrate more than four seasons. The ancient Chinese divided the year into 24 micro-seasons, each with its own flowering messenger. From January's plum blossoms to April's peonies, these flower message winds (花信風) weren't just poetry - they were nature's calendar, 1/2 #tradition

submitted 4 days ago • 2 comments

China's first monster encyclopedia wasn't written by humans - it was dictated by a talking divine beast. When the Yellow Emperor met Bai Ze at the Eastern Sea, this wise creature revealed secrets about supernatural beings that became China's earliest monster classification system. 1/2 #mythology

submitted 5 days ago • 1 comment

Talking about afterlife judges in Chinese #folklore: Which would you rather face—a calm and calculated Pan Guan, with his life-altering brush and the Book of Life and Death, or a fierce military judge armed with a nine-section whip? 1/2

submitted 5 days ago • 1 comment

Chinese #mythology isn’t just about balance and harmony—sometimes, it’s about chaos, rebellion, and destruction. Gonggong, the fiery, red-haired water god with a serpent's body, who literally shattered the world. Born to the god of fire, this paradoxical deity clashed with the supreme ruler, 1/2

submitted 5 days ago • 1 comment

What's your favorite 'happy accident' that turned into something beautiful? Share your stories as we explore Princess Shouyang(383-444)'s legendary nap under plum blossoms that revolutionized later dynasties' makeup. As she rested, her serene, naturally flushed cheeks caught the 1/3 #folklore

submitted 6 days ago • 1 comment

Ever wondered why some Chinese dragons look trapped, eternally coiling around pillars? Meet the Pan Long (蟠龍) - the rebel dragons who never made it to heaven. Ancient texts describe them as massive creatures, four zhang long (about 40 feet!), with venomous powers that could kill 1/2 #mythology

submitted 6 days ago • 2 comments

Have any stories about your family's connection to local guardian deities? In Chinese culture, Tudigong (土地公, Lord of the Land), the beloved 'Grandfather of the Village,' has long been seen as the protector of the land and people. As one of the revered earth gods in #Daoism, he’s #folklore 1/2

submitted 6 days ago • 3 comments

Beyond the familiar Great Wall lies a mythical mountain that defies physics - where water is too weak to float a feather and eternal flames burn without fuel. Kunlun Mountain, the axis mundi of Chinese #mythology, challenges everything we know about natural laws while housing immortals 1/2

submitted 7 days ago • 2 comments

Think Chinese hell is just about punishment? The fascinating truth about Yan Wang reveals a sophisticated system of justice and redemption that influenced Chinese society for millennia. Unlike Western hell, souls facing the King of Hell could earn a better rebirth through accepting 1/2 #folklore

submitted 7 days ago • 3 comments