His breath became the wind his voice the thunder left eye the sun and right eye the moon his body became the mountains and extremes of the world his blood formed rivers his muscles the fertile lands his facial hair the stars and milky way his fur the bushes and forests his bones the valuable minerals his bone marrows sacred diamonds his sweat fell as rain and the little creatures on his body (in some versions, the fleas), carried by the wind, became human beings all over the world. At the end of eighteen thousand years, Pangu laid to rest. Pangu stood between them, and pushed up the sky. The heavy Yin sank to become the Earth, while the light Yang rose to become the Heavens. He separated Yin and Yang with a swing of his great axe. When the forces of Yin and Yang balanced, Pangu emerged from the egg, and set about the task of creating the world. Out of this chaos there was born an egg for eighteen thousand years. In the beginning there was nothing but a formless chaos. Pangu (盤古), appearing in literature no earlier than about 200 AD, was the first sentient being and creator. Nüwa was also responsible for repairing the sky after Gong Gong damaged the pillar supporting the heavens (see below). They are often represented as half-snake, half-human creatures. These two beings are sometimes worshipped as the ultimate ancestor of all humankind. Her companion was Fuxi (伏羲), the brother and husband of Nuwa. Nüwa (女媧), appearing in literature no earlier than about 350 BC, is said to have recreated, or created humanity. The extent of the distinction (if any) between them is debated. The qualities of 'Heaven' and Shangdi appear to merge in later literature (and are worshipped as one entity ("皇天上帝") in, for example, the Temple of Heaven in Beijing). There are no "creation" oriented narratives for 'Heaven', although the role of a creator is a possible interperatation. Tian (天, or Heaven), appearing in literature probably about 700 BC, or earlier (the dating of these occurrences depends on the date of the Shujing, aka "Book of History"). Although Shangdi appears to have the attributes of a "person", detailed references to Shangdi as the creator are not explicitly identified until about the Han Dynasty. There are no "creation" oriented narratives for Shangdi, although the role of a creator is a possible interperatation. Shangdi (上帝), appearing in literature probably about 700 BC, or earlier (the dating of these occurrences depends on the date of the Shujing, aka "Book of History"). The following presents common versions of the creation story in roughly chronological order. The stories exist in several versions, often conflicting, with the creation of the first humans being variously ascribed to Shangdi, Heaven, Nuwa, Pangu, Yu Huang. Those that do exist appear well after the foundation of Confucianism, Taoism, and Folk Religions. A unique characteristic of Chinese culture is the relatively late appearance in Chinese literature of creation myths.
0 kommentar(er)
