Gonggong

Gonggong (Chinese: 共工; pinyin: Gònggōng or 龚工), also known as Kanghui, is a Chinese water god or sea monster who is often depicted in Chinese mythology, folktales, and religious stories as having red hair and the tail of a serpent (or dragon).[1] He is often seen as destructive and is blamed for various cosmic catastrophes. In all accounts, Gonggong ends up being killed or sent into exile, usually after losing a struggle with another major deity.

In Literature

Gonggong is known from the late Warring States period (before 221 BCE). Gonggong appears in the ancient "Heavenly Questions" (Tianwen) poem of the Chu Ci, where he is blamed for knocking the earth's axis off center, causing it to tilt to the southeast and the sky to tilt to the northwest.[2] This axial tilt is used to explain why the rivers of China generally flow to the southeast, especially the Yangzi River and the Yellow River, and why the sun, moon, and stars move towards the northwest. Literature from the Han dynasty becomes much more detailed regarding Gonggong.

Gonggong was credited in various mythological contexts as being responsible for great floods, often in concert with his associate, or subordinate, the multiheaded dragon, Xiang Yao (alternately, Xiangliu Chinese: 相繇), who has nine heads and the body of a snake.

In Chinese mythology, Gonggong was ashamed that he lost the fight with Zhurong, the Chinese god of fire, to claim the throne of Heaven. In a fit of rage he smashed his head against Buzhou Mountain (不周山), a pillar holding up the sky, greatly damaging it and causing the sky to tilt towards the northwest and the earth to shift to the southeast, which caused great floods and suffering.

The goddess Nüwa (女媧) cut off the legs of the giant turtle Ao and used them in place of the fallen pillar, ending the floods and suffering; she was, however, unable to fully correct the tilted sky and earth and alter their effects on the sun, moon, stars, and rivers in China.

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Yang, 124
  2. ↑ Yang, 124

References

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