Nezha (deity)
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Nezha (Chinese: 哪吒; pinyin: Nézhā; Japanese: Nataku or Nata) is a deity, the enfant terrible trickster, originally of Chinese mythology, though in the West he is perhaps more well known from Japanese anime. His official Taoist deity name is Zhongtan Yuanshuai. (中壇元帥)
Nezha is often depicted flying in the sky with a wheel of fire under each foot, a golden hoop, the "cosmic ring", around his shoulder and a spear in his hands. Sometimes he is given multiple arms. Nezha is usually depicted as a youth and rarely as an adult.
As the third son of a military commander called Li Jing, a military leader in Chentangguan Fortress, his birth was peculiar. When his mother got pregnant, she waited for three years to deliver the boy, but unfortunately a meat ball was born. His father got so angry that he split it with a sword, which caused Nezha to jump out and grow fully, even though his mind and temperament were that of a child. He flayed and disemboweled himself after committing several crimes in the eyes of the Heavenly Court but was brought back to life by his master, a Taoist immortal sage who used lotus blossoms to reconstruct a body for his soul to inhabit.
Nezha's two elder brothers are also powerful warriors. The eldest is Jinzha (金吒), who is a disciple of Manjusri Bodhisattva, and the second eldest is Muzha (木吒), a disciple of Samantabhadra Bodhisattva.
Some traced his origins to the Vedic god Nalakuvara, and legend goes that he was born in the Shang dynasty.
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[edit] Appearance in ancient Chinese mythology and literature
Nezha has frequently appeared in Chinese Mythology[citation needed] and ancient Chinese Literature such as the Fengshen Yanyi (or Investitutde of the Gods), although the story of Nezha conquering the sea is the most famous among Chinese households. In Journey to the West, he was a general under his father, Li Jing, fighting Sun Wukong's rebellion against the heavenly God, the Jade Emperor. Unfortunately, Nezha lost to Sun Wukong and had to retreat. At one point in his life, Nezha had a crush on the Dragon King's daughter.[citation needed]
In most incarnations, Nezha is able to grow additional heads and limbs.
[edit] Animated films
The story of Nezha has been made into several animated films. One of the most well-known is the 1979 production of Nezha Nao Hai (哪吒闹海) (63 minutes), translated into English on the recent DVD release as Nezha Conquers the Dragon King, which won international award and recognition in the former USSR.
In the chinese VCD, Nezha is shown with fire wheels, a red ribbon, and a golden ring.
Also, Nezha appears in the popular Japanese manga/anime series Saiyuki as Nataku, a half-mortal war god who won the then-divine Son Goku (Sun Wukong)'s friendship. Unfortunately, Nataku falls into a catactonic state (the reasons for this are not disclosed in the anime) and sits in the divine garden of heaven with only the Goddess of Mercy to keep him company staring blankly ahead for all time. In the series, Nataku is decidedly more somber than Goku and is resigned to being a puppet (he was 'given the honor' of being the War prince, a role which is later passed onto Homura) to the Gods. Furthermore, Nataku goes by a different title, but his background is still very much the same--right down to a Commander father and spear weapon. (However, it is glaringly obvious as the series goes on that the Commander is exploiting his son for fame and recognition from the Gods, reversing the roles that Nataku is to blame for misfortune) Nataku's father however, is then lectured by the past reincarnation of Cho Hakkai (Field Marshal Tenpou) and further mis-treatment of his son is then yet to be seen in the series.
In the anime series Gundam Wing, Meilan Long, Chang Wufei's wife, insists on calling herself Nataku (the Japanese pronunciation of the kanji for "Nezha"). After her death, Wufei would give his mobile suits, the Shenglong and Altron Gundams the nickname Nataku in her honor.
