China
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White Tiger/Baihu/Byakko/Chien Ping
The White Tiger is a creature that was initially a Chinese symbol and was later adapted into Japanese myth. It is one of the Shijin along with the Vermillion Bird, Azure Dragon, and the Black Tortoise. It is connected with the West, the color white, metal and Autumn. It was thought to represent warmth, clarity, and calm and was also often connected to the Sanyo-Do/San-In-Do Trunk Road. It is often depicted as a white tiger fringed with gold, and sometimes is even depicted with serpentine features. It has the associated mansions (these being associated with the phases of the moon) Tokaki-Boshi, Tatara-Boshi, Ekie-Boshi, Subaru-Boshi, Amefuri-Boshi, Toroki-Boshi, Karasuki-Boshi. These mansions lie…
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Vermillion Bird/Zhūquè/Suzaku/Meng Chang Phoenix/Su-Zaku/Ling Kuang
The Vermillion Bird is a creature that was initially a Chinese symbol and was later adapted into Japanese myth. It is one of the Shijin along with the White Tiger, Azure Dragon, and the Black Tortoise. It’s associated with the South, the color red, fire, and summer. It was thought to represent heat, passion, and love, and was also often connected to the Ogura-No-Ike pond. It resembles a large bird with big wings and a long tail, covered in bright red and orange feathers, and these features typically lead to this creature being related to, and confused with, the Phoenix. It has the associated mansions (these being associated with the…
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Peng/P’eng
Peng is gigantic bird from Chinese myth. It is thought to have started its life as a fish named K’un. Its back measures thousands of leagues across, and the ocean moves in conjunction with its wing flaps. It flies so high that it can’t tell if the sky is blue. It lives in a place known as North Gloom and migrates to a place known as South Gloom. This migration causes whirlwinds and tsunamis. Citations: Bane, Theresa. Encyclopedia of Beasts and Monsters in Myth, Legend and Folklore. United States, McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers, 2016.
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Longwang/Long Wang
The Longwang is a notable dragon from Chinese myth. He has a human body and a dragon head. The term can also refer to the four Dragon Kings Ao Ch’in, Ao Ju, Ao Kuang, and Ao Shun. He has amassed a massive hoard of treasure built up from the countless junk ships sunk by him over the years. Specific to its treasure trove are gems resembling large fish eyes, and people from the Juanch’eng district believe that a fish washing ashore without eyes are victims of the Longwang. Citations: Bane, Theresa. Encyclopedia of Beasts and Monsters in Myth, Legend and Folklore. United States, McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers, 2016.
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Jiangshi/Chiang-Shih/Kiang-Shi/Kuang-Shi
The Jiangshi are a form of undead creature from Chinese myth. They’re most often formed when someone dies from murder, hanging, drowning, suicide, or dying during the committing of a crime. It is believed they are the lesser of the two souls, called the p’o, that remains in the body after death. They have incredibly stiff bodies due to rigor mortis and have to hop around because of this. They’re believed to become stronger the longer they exist, with rigor mortis wearing off, and they would become smarter and more malicious. They can leap from massive distances and even learn how to fly. They have been known to appear as…
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Black Tortoise/Black Warrior/Xuánwǔ/Genbu/Chih Ming
The Black Tortoise is a creature that was initially a Chinese symbol and was later adapted into Japanese myth. It is one of the Shijin along with the Vermillion Bird, White Tiger, and the Azure Dragon. It is connected to the North, the color black, water, and winter. It was thought to represent cold, harshness, and power, and was also connected to the Funaoka-Yama Mountain. Sometimes it was represented as a traditional Chinese warrior with turtle and snake motifs, and other times it was depicted as a turtle and snake mating, combining into one singular animal. The reason for the snake and turtle being intertwined has been lost to time.…
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Bai Ze
Bai Ze is from Chinese mythology. This creature’s name translates to “white marsh,” and it resembles a large white lion with one or two horns and sometimes an extra set of eyes either on its face or its back. It is believed to have appeared to the Yellow Emperor and told him that it appeared only to auspicious emperors. The emperor discovered that this creature knew about many supernatural creatures and had knowledge of how to destroy them. With this information a book known as the Bai Ze Tu was created. Citations: Bane, Theresa. Encyclopedia of Beasts and Monsters in Myth, Legend and Folklore. United States, McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers, 2016.…
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Ba She
Ba She is a monstrous creature from Chinese myth in the form of a snake large enough to swallow an elephant. When it does, however, it takes three years for it to digest the elephant’s body. It is typically described as resembling a python and is either black with a green head, or black, red, green, and yellow. It is believed that carrying Ba She skin in contact with your own skin will prevent lung problems. Citations: Bane, Theresa. Encyclopedia of Beasts and Monsters in Myth, Legend and Folklore. United States, McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers, 2016.
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Azure Dragon/Green Dragon/Qinglong/Seiryu/Seryu/Shōryū/Meng Chang
The Azure Dragon is a creature that was initially a Chinese symbol and was later adapted into Japanese myth. It is one of the Shijin along with the Vermillion Bird, White Tiger, and the Black Tortoise. It is connected to the East, the colors blue and green (because there wasn’t always a clear distinction between the two), wood and spring. It was thought to represent new life and was connected to the Kamo-Gawa River. It was depicted as a long serpentine dragon with no wings, that was blue, green, or turquoise color, occasionally with a red or black mane. It has the associated mansions (these being associated with the phases…
