Chinese gods and immortals


Chinese gods and immortals are beings in various Chinese religions seen in a variety of ways and mythological contexts.
Many are worshiped as deities because traditional Chinese religion is polytheistic, stemming from a pantheistic view that divinity is inherent in the world.
The gods are energies or principles revealing, imitating, and propagating the way of heaven, which is the supreme godhead manifesting in the northern culmen of the starry vault of the skies and its order. Many gods are ancestors or men who became deities for their heavenly achievements. Most gods are also identified with stars and constellations. Ancestors are regarded as the equivalent of Heaven within human society, and therefore, as the means of connecting back to Heaven, which is the "utmost ancestral father".
There are a variety of immortals in Chinese thought, and one major type is the xian, which is thought in some religious Taoism movements to be a human given long or infinite life. In China, "gods" are often referred to together with "xian". Gods are innumerable, as every phenomenon has or is one or more gods, and they are organised in a complex celestial hierarchy. Besides the traditional worship of these entities, Chinese folk religion, Chinese Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, and formal thinkers in general give theological interpretations affirming a monistic essence of divinity.

Overview

"Polytheism" and "monotheism" are categories derived from Western religion and do not fit Chinese religion, which has never conceived the two things as opposites. Tian bridges the gap between supernatural phenomena and many kinds of beings, giving them a single source from spiritual energy in some Chinese belief systems. However, there is a significant belief in Taoism which differentiates tian from the forces of earth and water, which are held to be equally powerful.
Since all gods are considered manifestations of qì, the "power" or pneuma of Heaven, in some views of tian, some scholars have employed the term "polypneumatism" or "pneumatolatry", first coined by Walter Medhurst, to describe the practice of Chinese polytheism. Some Taoists consider deities the manifestation of the Tao.
In the theology of the classic texts and Confucianism, "Heaven is the lord of the hundreds of deities".
Modern Confucian theology sometimes compares them to substantial forms or entelechies as described by Leibniz as a force that generates all types of beings, so that "even mountains and rivers are worshipped as something capable of enjoying sacrificial offerings".
Unlike in Hinduism, the deification of historical persons and ancestors is not traditionally the duty of Confucians or Taoists. Rather, it depends on the choices of common people; persons are deified when they have made extraordinary deeds and have left an efficacious legacy. Yet, Confucians and Taoists traditionally may demand that state honours be granted to a particular deity. Each deity has a cult centre and ancestral temple where he or she, or the parents, lived their mortal life. There are frequently disputes over which is the original place and source temple of the cult of a deity.
The gods and immortals believed in by Taoism and Chinese mythology can be roughly divided into two categories, namely "gods" and "xian". "Gods" are also called deities and there are many kinds, that is, god of heaven, god of ground, wuling, god of netherworld, god of human body, god of human ghost, etc. Among these "gods" such as god of heaven, god of ground, god of netherworld, god of human body are innate beings. "Xian" is acquired the cultivation of the Tao，persons with vast supernatural powers, unpredictable changes and immortality.

God of Heaven

Chinese traditional theology, which comes in different interpretations according to the classic texts, and specifically Confucian, Taoist, and other philosophical formulations, is fundamentally monistic, that is to say, it sees the world and the gods who produce it as an organic whole, or cosmos. The universal principle that gives origin to the world is conceived as transcendent and immanent to creation, at the same time. The Chinese idea of the universal God is expressed in different ways. There are many names of God from the different sources of Chinese tradition.
The radical Chinese terms for the universal God are Tian and Shangdi or simply, . There is also the concept of . ' is a title expressing dominance over the all-under-Heaven, that is, all things generated by Heaven and ordered by its cycles and by the stars. Tian is usually translated as "Heaven", but by graphical etymology, it means "Great One" and a number of scholars relate it to the same ' through phonetic etymology and trace their common root, through their archaic forms, respectively *Teeŋ and *Tees, to the symbols of the squared north celestial pole godhead. These names are combined in different ways in Chinese theological literature, often interchanged in the same paragraph, if not in the same sentence.

Names of the God of Heaven

Besides and, other names include Yudi and who, in mythical imagery, holds the ladle of the Big Dipper, providing the movement of life to the world. As the hub of the skies, the north celestial pole constellations are known, among various names, as and .
Other names of the God of Heaven are attested in the vast Chinese religio-philosophical literary tradition:
  • ', "Deity of Heaven" or "Emperor of Heaven": "On Rectification" of the Xunzi uses this term to refer to the active God of Heaven setting creation in motion.
  • Tianzhu, the "Lord of Heaven": In "The Document of Offering Sacrifices to Heaven and Earth on the Mountain Tai" of the Records of the Grand Historian, it is used as the title of the first God from whom all the other gods derive.
  • ', the "August Personage of Heaven": In the "Poem of Fathoming Profundity", transcribed in "The History of the Later Han Dynasty", Zhang Heng ornately writes: «I ask the superintendent of the Heavenly Gate to open the door and let me visit the King of Heaven at the Jade Palace».
  • Tianwang, the "King of Heaven" or "Monarch of Heaven".
  • ', the "Duke of Heaven" or "General of Heaven".
  • ', the "Prince of Heaven" or "Lord of Heaven".
  • ', the "Heavenly Venerable", also a title for high gods in Taoist theologies.
  • ', the "God of Heaven", interpreted in the Shuowen Jiezi as "the being that gives birth to all things".
  • ', "God the August", attested in Taihong.
  • ', the "Olden Heavenly Father".
Tian is both transcendent and immanent, manifesting in the three forms of dominance, destiny, and nature of things. In the Wujing yiyi, Xu Shen explains that the designation of Heaven is quintuple:
  • Huáng Tiān, "August Heaven" or "Imperial Heaven", when it is venerated as the lord of creation.
  • ', "Vast Heaven", with regard to the vastness of its vital breath.
  • ', "Compassionate Heaven", for it hears and corresponds with justice to the all-under-Heaven.
  • , "Highest Heaven" or "First Heaven", for it is the primordial being supervising all-under-Heaven.
  • Cāng Tiān, "Deep-Green Heaven", for it being unfathomably deep.
All these designations reflect a hierarchical, multiperspective experience of divinity.

Lists of gods, deities and immortals

Many classical books have lists and hierarchies of gods and immortals, among which are the "Completed Record of Deities and Immortals" of the Ming dynasty, and the Biographies of the Deities and Immortals by Ge Hong. The older Collected Biographies of the Immortals also serves the same purpose.
Couplets or polarities, such as Fuxi and Nuwa, Xiwangmu and Dongwanggong, and the highest couple of Heaven and Earth, all embody yin and yang and are at once the originators and maintainers of the ordering process of space and time.
Immortals, or xian, are seen as a variety of different types of beings, including the souls of virtuous Taoists, gods, zhenren, and/or a type of supernatural spiritual being who understood heaven. Taoists historically worshiped them the most and Chinese folk religion practitioners during the Tang dynasty also worshiped them, although there was more skepticism about the goodness, and even the existence, of xian among them.
Chinese folk religion that incorporates elements of the three teachings in modern times and prior eras sometimes viewed Confucius and the Buddha as immortals or beings synonymous to them.
In Taoism and Chinese folk religion, gods and xian are often seen as embodiments of water. Water gods and xian were often thought to ensure good grain harvests, mild weather and seas, and rivers with abundant water. Some xian were thought to be humans who gained power by drinking "charmed water".
Some gods were based on previously existing Taoist immortals, bodhisattvas, or historical figures.

Cosmic gods

  • Yudi or Yuhuang, is the popular human-like representation of the God of Heaven. Jade traditionally represents purity, so it is a metaphor for the unfathomable source of creation.
  • Doumu, often entitled with the honorific Tianhou is the heavenly goddess portrayed as the mother of the Big Dipper, whose seven stars, in addition to two invisible ones, are conceived as her sons, the Jiuhuangshen, themselves regarded as the ninefold manifestation of Jiuhuangdadi or Doufu, another name of the God of Heaven. She is, therefore, both wife and mother of the God of Heaven.
  • Pangu, a macranthropic metaphor of the cosmos. He separated yin and yang, creating the earth and the sky. All things were made from his body after he died.
  • Xiwangmu, identified with the Kunlun Mountain, shamanic inspiration, death, and immortality. She is the dark, chthonic goddess, pure yin, at the same time terrifying and benign, both creation and destruction, associated with the tiger and weaving. Her male counterpart is Dongwanggong, who represents the yang principle.
  • * Hòuyì, was a man who sought for immortality, reaching Xiwangmu on her mountain, Kunlun.
  • Yanwang the ruler of the underworld, assisted by the Heibai Wuchang, representing the alternation of yin and yang principles, alongside Ox-Head and Horse-Face, who escort spirits to his realm.
  • Yinyanggong or Yinyangsi, the personification of the union of yin and yang.

Three Patrons and Five Deities

  • Sānhuáng or Sāncái ; they are the "vertical" manifestation of Heaven, spatially corresponding to the Sānjiè, representing the yin and yang and the medium between them, that is the human being:
  • * Fuxi '', the patron of heaven, also called Bāguàzǔshī by the Taoists, is a divine man reputed to have taught to humanity writing, fishing, and hunting.
  • * Nüwa ,'' the patroness of earth, is a goddess attributed for the creation of mankind and mending the order of the world when it was broken.
  • * Shennong, "Peasant God", the patron of humanity, identified as Yandi, a divine man said to have taught the techniques of farming, herbal medicine, and marketing. He is often represented as a human with horns and other features of an ox.
  • Wǔdì, also Wǔfāng Shàngdì, Wǔfāng Tiānshén, Wǔfāngdì, Wǔtiāndì, Wǔlǎojūn, Wǔdàoshén ; they are the five main "horizontal" manifestations of Heaven, and along with the Three Potencies, they have a celestial, a terrestrial, and a chthonic form. They correspond to the five phases of creation, the five constellations rotating around the celestial pole and five planets, the five sacred mountains and five directions of space, and the five Dragon Gods which represent their mounts, that is to say, the material forces they preside over.
  • * Huangdi ; or Huángshén, also known as Xuānyuán Huángdì, is the Zhōngyuèdàdì : he represents the essence of earth and the Yellow Dragon, and is associated with Saturn. The character 黃, by homophony and shared etymology with 皇, also means "august", "creator", and "radiant", identifying the Yellow Emperor with Shangdi. Huangdi represents the heart of creation, the axis mundi that is the manifestation of the divine order in physical reality, opening the way to immortality. As the deity of the centre, intersecting the Three Patrons and the Five Deities, in the Shizi he is described as "Yellow Emperor with Four Faces". As a human, he is said to have been the fruit of a virginal birth, as his mother Fubao conceived him as she was aroused, while walking in the country, by a lightning from the Big Dipper. She delivered her son after twenty-four months on the mount of Shou or mount Xuanyuan, after which he was named. He is reputed to be the founder of the Huaxia civilisation, and the Han Chinese identify themselves as the [Yan Huang Zisun|descendants of Yandi and Huangdi].
  • * Cangdi ; or Qīngdì or Dōngyuèdàdì : he is Tàihào, associated with the essence of wood and with Jupiter, and is the god of fertility and spring. The Bluegreen Dragon is both his animal form and constellation. His female consort is the goddess of fertility, Bixia.
  • * Heidi, the Běidì or Běiyuèdàdì : he is Zhuanxu, today frequently worshiped as Xuanwu or Zhēnwǔ, and is associated with the essence of water and winter, and with Mercury. His animal form is the Black Dragon and his stellar animal is the tortoise-snake.
  • * Chidi, the Nándì or Nányuèdàdì : he is Shennong, the Yandi, associated with the essence of fire and summer, and with Mars. His animal form is the Red Dragon and his stellar animal is the phoenix. He is the god of agriculture, animal husbandry, medicinal plants, and market.
  • * Baidi, the Xīdì or Xīyuèdàdì : he is Shaohao, and is the god of the essence of metal and autumn, associated with Venus. His animal form is the White Dragon and his stellar animal is the tiger.
  • The Three Great Emperor-Officials: the Tiānguān, the Dìguān, and the Shuǐguān.
In mythology, Huangdi and Yandi fought a battle against each other, and Huang finally defeated Yan with the help of the Dragon. This myth symbolizes the equipoise of yin and yang, here the fire of knowledge and earthly stability.
Yan is flame, scorching fire, or an excess of it. As an excess of fire brings destruction to the earth, it has to be controlled by a ruling principle. Nothing is good in itself, without limits; good outcomes depend on the proportion in the composition of things and their interactions, never on extremes in absolute terms. Huangdi and Yandi are complementary opposites, necessary for the existence of one another, and they are powers that exist together within the human being.

Gods of celestial and terrestrial phenomena

  • Longshen or Lóngwáng,, also Sìhǎi Lóngwáng, are gods of watery sources, usually reduced to four, patrons of the Four Seas and the four cardinal directions. They are the White Dragon, the Black Dragon, the Red Dragon, and the Bluegreen Dragon. Corresponding with the Five Deities as the chthonic forces that they sublimate, they inscribe the land of China into an ideal sacred squared boundary. The fifth dragon, the Yellow Dragon, is the dragon of the centre, representing the Yellow God.
  • * In Taiyuan, Liu Heng, the fifth emperor of the Western Han dynasty, is worshiped as the Dragon King. This is because Liu Heng once served as the Prince of Dai of the area and was welcomed by the local people. Every year, local villagers hold a sacrifice to him on the Longtaitou Festival.
  • Báoshén
  • Bālà '', the Chóngshén or Chóngwáng : the gods of insects.
  • Dìzhǔshén.
  • Dòushén.
  • Fei Lian, the Fēngshén.''''
  • Hǎishén ; also Hǎiyé.
  • Hebo or Héshén : any watercourse god, among which, one of the most revered is the god of the Yellow River.
  • Gǔshén : in the Daodejing, a name used to refer to the Way
  • Huǒshén, often personified as Zhurong
  • Húshén
  • Shèshén
  • Jìshén
  • Jīnshén, often identified as the Qiūshén and personified as Rùshōu
  • Jǐngshén.
  • Leishen or Léigōng ; his consort is Diànmǔ.
  • Mùshén, usually the same as the Chūnshén, and as Jùmáng.
  • Shānshén
  • Shuǐshén
  • Tudishen, also Tǔshén, or Tudigong : the tutelary deity of any locality. Their Overlord is Houtu.
  • Wen Shen
  • Xiangshuishen : the patrons of the Xiang River.
  • Xuěshén
  • Yǔshén
  • Xihe '', the Tàiyángshén or Shírìzhīmǔ.
  • Yuèshén : Chángxī or Shí'èryuèzhīmǔ'', and Chang'e.

Gods of human virtues and crafts

Some Taoist gods were thought to affect human morality and the consequences of it in certain traditions. Some Taoists beseeched gods, multiple gods, and/or pantheons to aid them in life and/or abolish their sins.
  • Civil and military deities:
  • * Wendi, also Wénchāngdì or Wénchāngwáng : in southern provinces, this deity takes the identity of various historical persons, while in the north, he is more frequently identified as being the same as Confucius
  • ** Kuixing : another god of culture and literature, but specifically, examination, is a personification of the man who awakens to the order of the Great Chariot.
  • * Wǔdì : Guandì, also called Guāngōng, and popularly Guānyǔ.
  • ** Another class is the Zhànshén, who may be personified by Chiyou or Xingtian, who was decapitated for fighting against Tian.
  • Baoshengdadi.
  • Baxian.
  • Canshen, who may be:
  • * Cánmǔ, also called Cángū, who is identified as Leizu, the wife of the Yellow Emperor: the invention of sericulture is attributed primarily to her.
  • * Qīngyīshén : his name as a human was Cáncóng, and he is the first ruler and ancestor of the Shu state and promoter of sericulture among his people.
  • Caishen.
  • Yánshén : a pantheon of salt deities that bring wealth to their adherents, including ChiYou for his blood turned into a pool of salt after he died in some tellings, Sushashi for being the first to extract salt from seawater in mythology, Guan Zhong for he gave his state an official monopoly on salt operations, and animals of all types, such as crows and deer, which were credited with leading humans to salt and thus granted divinity. Many of the salt gods can be worshipped as wealth gods.
  • Cangjie, the four-eyed inventor of the Chinese characters.
  • Cāngshén.
  • Chuānzhǔ
  • Chenghuangshen : the god of the sacred boundaries of a human agglomeration, he is often personified by founding fathers or noble personalities from each city or town.
  • Chen Jinggu, also called Línshuǐ Fūrén.
  • Hùshén.
  • Chēshén
  • Erlangshen, the god of engineering.
  • Guǎngzé Zūnwáng.
  • Guanyin, the goddess of mercy.
  • Huang Daxian.
  • Jigong.
  • Jiǔshén, personified as Yidi.
  • Jiutian Xuannü, a disciple of Xiwangmu and initiator of Huangdi.
  • Longmu.
  • Lu Ban, the god of carpentry.
  • Lùshén.
  • Xíngshén.
  • Mazu, often entitled the "Queen of Heaven".
  • Pànguān.
  • Píng'ānshén, an embodiment of whom is considered to have been Mao Zedong.
  • Qingshui Zushi
  • Táoshén
  • Tuershen, the god of love among males.
  • Tuōtǎlǐ Tiānwáng, also known as Li Jing. He has three sons, the warlike protector deities Jinzha, Muzha, and Nezha.
  • Wǔxiǎn, possibly a popular form of the cosmological Five Deities.
  • Xǐshén.
  • Yàoshén or frequently Yàowáng.
  • Yuexia Laoren, the matchmaker who pairs lovers together.
  • Yùshén
  • Zaoshen, the master of the household deities, including the "Bed God", the "Gate Gods", and the "Toilet god", often personified as Zigu.
  • Zhong Kui, the vanquisher of ghosts and evil beings.
  • Sanxing, a cluster of three astral gods of well-being:
  • * Fuxing, god of happiness.
  • * Luxing, god of firmness and success in life and examinations.
  • * Shouxing, who stands for a healthy and long life.

Gods of animal and vegetal life

  • Huāshén.
  • Huxian or Húxiān, also called Húxiān Niángniáng.
  • * Two other great fox deities, peculiar to northeast China, are the "Great Lord of the Three Foxes" and the "Great Lady of the Three Foxes", representing the yin and yang.
  • Mǎshén or Mǎwáng.
  • Niúshén, also called Niúwáng.
  • Lángshén.
  • Shùshén.
  • Wǔgǔshén, another name for Shennong.
  • Yuánshén or Yuánwáng, who is identified as Sun Wukong.
  • ''Zhīmáshén''

''Bixia'' mother goddess worship

The worship of mother goddesses for the cultivation of offspring is present all over China, but predominantly in northern provinces. There are nine main goddesses, and all of them tend to be considered as manifestations or attendant forces of a singular goddess identified variously as Bixia Yuanjun, also known as the Tiānxiān Niángniáng or Tàishān Niángniáng, or also Jiǔtiān Shèngmǔ or Houtu, the goddess of the earth.
Bixia herself is identified by Taoists as the more ancient goddess Xiwangmu. The general Chinese term for "goddess" is nǚshén, and goddesses may receive many qualifying titles, including mǔ, lǎomǔ, shèngmǔ, niángniáng, nǎinai.
The additional eight main goddesses of fertility, reproduction, and growth are:
  • Bānzhěn Niángniáng, the goddess who protects children from illness.
  • Cuīshēng Niángniáng, the goddess who gives swift childbirth and protects midwives.
  • Nǎimǔ Niángniáng, the goddess who presides over maternal milk and protects nursing.
  • Péigū Niángniáng, the goddess who cultivates children.
  • Péiyǎng Niángniáng, the goddess who protects the upbringing of children.
  • Songzi Niangniang or Zǐsūn Niángniáng, the goddess who presides over offspring.
  • Yǎnguāng Niángniáng, the goddess who protects eyesight.
  • Yǐnméng Niángniáng, the goddess who guides young children.
Altars of goddess worship are usually arranged with Bixia at the center and two goddesses at her sides, most frequently the "Lady of Eyesight" and the "Lady of Offspring". A different figure, but with the same astral connections as Bixia is the "Goddess of the Seven Stars".
There is also the cluster of the "Holy Mothers of the Three Skies", composed of Yunxiao Guniang, Qiongxiao Guniang, and Bixiao Guniang. The cult of Chenjinggu, present in southeast China, is identified by some scholars as an emanation of the northern cult of Bixia.
Other goddesses worshipped in China include Cánmǔ or Cángū, identified with Leizu, Magu, Saoqing Niang, Sānzhōu Niángniáng, and Wusheng Laomu. The mother goddess is central in the theology of many folk religious sects.

Gods of northeast China

Northeast China has clusters of deities which are peculiar to the area, deriving from the Manchu and broader Tungusic substratum of the local population. Animal deities related to shamanic practices are characteristic of the area and reflect wider Chinese cosmology. Besides the aforementioned Fox Gods, they include:
  • Huángxiān, also variously called Liǔxiān, or Chángxiān or also Mǎngxiān.
  • Báixiān, the Hedgehog God.
  • Hēixiān, who may be the Wūyāxiān, or the Huīxiān, with the latter considered a misinterpretation of the former.

Gods of Indian origin

Gods who have been adopted into Chinese religion but who have their origins in the Indian subcontinent or Hinduism:

Gods of North China and Mongolia

  • Genghis Khan, worshipped by Mongols and Chinese under a variety of divinity titles, including Shèngwǔ Huángdì, Fǎtiān Qǐyùn, and Tàizǔ of the Yuan and the Mongols.

Gods of folk and Local