{"collection":"myth-cosmogony","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_29939/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_29939","id":"gutenberg_29939","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/29939","summary":null,"tags":["Category: Mythology, Legends & Folklore","Fairy tales","Fairy tales -- China","Folklore -- China"],"text":"Produced by David Edwards, Sam W. and the Online Distributed\nProofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was\nproduced from images generously made available by The\nInternet Archive)\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n THE\n CHINESE FAIRY\n BOOK\n\n EDITED BY\n DR. R. WILHELM\n\n TRANSLATED AFTER ORIGINAL SOURCES BY\n FREDERICK H. MARTENS\n\n\n [Illustration]\n\n\n WITH SIX ILLUSTRATIONS IN COLOR BY\n GEORGE W. HOOD\n\n\n NEW YORK\n FREDERICK A. STOKES COMPANY\n PUBLISHERS\n\n\n\n\n _Copyright, 1921, by_\n FREDERICK A. STOKES COMPANY\n\n _All Rights Reserved_\n\n\n\n\n BOOKS IN THE \"FAIRY SERIES\"\n\n _The English Fairy Book_\n _The Welsh Fairy Book_\n _The Irish Fairy Book_\n _The Scottish Fairy Book_\n _The Italian Fairy Book_\n _The Hungarian Fairy Book_\n _The Indian Fairy Book_\n _The Jewish Fairy Book_\n _The Swedish Fairy Book_\n _The Chinese Fairy Book_\n\n\n\n\n [Illustration: \"THE CROWS COME FLYING AND FORM A BRIDGE OVER WHICH\n THE WEAVING MAIDEN CROSSES THE SILVER RIVER.\"\n --_Page 40_]\n\n\n\n\nPREFACE\n\n\nThe fairy tales and legends of olden China have in common with the\n\"Thousand and One Nights\" an oriental glow and glitter of precious\nstones and gold and multicolored silks, an oriental wealth of\nfantastic and supernatural action. And yet they strike an exotic note\ndistinct in itself. The seventy-three stories here presented after\noriginal sources, embracing \"Nursery Fairy Tales,\" \"Legends of the\nGods,\" \"Tales of Saints and Magicians,\" \"Nature and Animal Tales,\"\n\"Ghost Stories,\" \"Historic Fairy Tales,\" and \"Literary Fairy Tales,\"\nprobably represent the most comprehensive and varied collection of\noriental fairy tales ever made available for American readers. There\nis no child who will not enjoy their novel color, their fantastic\nbeauty, their infinite variety of subject. Yet, like the \"Arabian\nNights,\" they will amply repay the attention of the older reader as\nwell. Some are exquisitely poetic, such as \"The Flower-Elves,\" \"The\nLady of the Moon\" or \"The Herd Boy and the Weaving Maiden\"; others\nlike \"How Three Heroes Came By Their Deaths Because Of Two Peaches,\"\ncarry us back dramatically and powerfully to the Chinese age of\nChivalry. The summits of fantasy are scaled in the quasi-religious\ndramas of \"The Ape Sun Wu Kung\" and \"Notscha,\" or the weird sorceries\nunfolded in \"The Kindly Magician.\" Delightful ghost stories, with\nhappy endings, such as \"A Night on the Battlefield\" and \"The Ghost Who\nWas Foiled,\" are paralleled with such idyllic love-tales as that of\n\"Rose of Evening,\" or such Lilliputian fancies as \"The King of the\nAnts\" and \"The Little Hunting Dog.\" It is quite safe to say that these\nChinese fairy tales will give equal pleasure to the old as well as the\nyoung. They have been retold simply, with no changes in style or\nexpression beyond such details of presentation which differences\nbetween oriental and occidental viewpoints at times compel. It is the\nwriter's hope that others may take as much pleasure in reading them as\nhe did in their translation.\n\n FREDRICK H. MARTENS.\n\n\n\n\nCONTENTS\n\n\n PAGE\n\n PREFACE v\n\n\n NURSERY FAIRY TALES\n\n CHAPTER\n\n I WOMEN'S WORDS PART FLESH AND BLOOD 1\n\n II THE THREE RHYMSTERS 4\n\n III HOW GREED FOR A TRIFLING THING LED A MAN TO LOSE A\n GREAT ONE 6\n\n IV WHO WAS THE SINNER? 9\n\n V THE MAGIC CASK 10\n\n VI THE FAVORITE OF FORTUNE AND THE CHILD OF ILL LUCK 11\n\n VII THE BIRD WITH NINE HEADS 13\n\n VIII THE CAVE OF THE BEASTS 17\n\n IX THE PANTHER 20\n\n X THE GREAT FLOOD 24\n\n XI THE FOX AND THE TIGER 27\n\n XII THE TIGER'S DECOY 28\n\n XIII THE FOX AND THE RAVEN 29\n\n XIV WHY DOG AND CAT ARE ENEMIES 30\n\n\n LEGENDS OF THE GODS\n\n XV HOW THE FIVE ANCIENTS BECAME MEN 35\n\n XVI THE HERD BOY AND THE WEAVING MAIDEN 37\n\n XVII YANG OERLANG 42\n\n XVIII NOTSCHA 44\n\n XIX THE LADY OF THE MOON 53\n\n XX THE MORNING AND THE EVENING STAR 55\n\n XXI THE GIRL WITH THE HORSE'S HEAD OR THE SILKWORM\n GODDESS 56\n\n XXII THE QUEEN OF HEAVEN 58\n\n XXIII THE FIRE-GOD 61\n\n XXIV THE THREE RULING GODS 62\n\n XXV A LEGEND OF CONFUCIUS 64\n\n XXVI THE GOD OF WAR 66\n\n\n TALES OF SAINTS AND MAGICIANS\n\n XXVII THE HALOS OF THE SAINTS 71\n\n XXVIII LAOTSZE 73\n\n XXIX THE ANCIENT MAN 75\n\n XXX THE EIGHT IMMORTALS (I) 76\n\n XXXI THE EIGHT IMMORTALS (II) 82\n\n XXXII THE TWO SCHOLARS 84\n\n XXXIII THE MISERLY FARMER 88\n\n XXXIV SKY O'DAWN 90\n\n XXXV KING MU OF DSCHOU 95\n\n XXXVI THE KING OF HUAI NAN 99\n\n XXXVII OLD DSCHANG 102\n\n XXXVIII THE KINDLY MAGICIAN 107\n\n\n NATURE AND ANIMAL TALES\n\n XXXIX THE FLOWER-ELVES 119\n\n XL THE SPIRIT OF THE WU-LIAN MOUNTAIN 124\n\n XLI THE KING OF THE ANTS 125\n\n XLII THE LITTLE HUNTING DOG 127\n\n XLIII THE DRAGON AFTER HIS WINTER SLEEP 130\n\n XLIV THE SPIRITS OF THE YELLOW RIVER 131\n\n XLV THE DRAGON-PRINCESS 137\n\n XLVI HELP IN NEED 142\n\n XLVII THE DISOWNED PRINCESS 151\n\n XLVIII FOX-FIRE 161\n\n\n GHOST STORIES\n\n XLIX THE TALKING SILVER FOXES 165\n\n L THE CONSTABLE 168\n\n LI THE DANGEROUS REWARD 174\n\n LII RETRIBUTION 177\n\n LIII THE GHOST WHO WAS FOILED 180\n\n LIV THE PUNISHMENT OF GREED 184\n\n LV THE NIGHT ON THE BATTLEFIELD 186\n\n LVI THE KINGDOM OF THE OGRES 189\n\n LVII THE MAIDEN WHO WAS STOLEN AWAY 196\n\n LVIII THE FLYING OGRE 199\n\n LIX BLACK ARTS 201\n\n\n HISTORIC LEGENDS\n\n LX THE SORCERER OF THE WHITE LOTUS LODGE 209\n\n LXI THE THREE EVILS 212\n\n LXII HOW THREE HEROES CAME BY THEIR DEATHS BECAUSE OF\n TWO PEACHES 215\n\n LXIII HOW THE RIVER GOD'S WEDDING WAS BROKEN OFF 218\n\n LXIV DSCHANG LIANG 220\n\n LXV OLD DRAGONBEARD 223\n\n LXVI HOW MOLO STOLE THE LOVELY ROSE-RED 231\n\n LXVII THE GOLDEN CANISTER 235\n\n LXVIII YANG GUI FE 240\n\n LXIX THE MONK OF THE YANGTZE-KIANG 243\n\n\n LITERARY FAIRY TALES\n\n LXX THE HEARTLESS HUSBAND 251\n\n LXXI GIAUNA THE BEAUTIFUL 261\n\n LXXII THE FROG PRINCESS 271\n\n LXXIII ROSE OF EVENING 280\n\n LXXIV THE APE SUN WU KUNG 288\n\n\n\n\nLIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS\n\n\n \"The crows come flying and form a bridge over which the\n Weaving Maiden crosses the Silver River\" _Frontispiece_\n\n FACING PAGE\n\n \"Beside it stood a Cassia-tree\" 54\n\n \"'And I crossed the water on the shoe'\" 90\n\n \"A fisherboy dived into the water and brought up a pearl\n from beneath the chin of a black dragon\" 138\n\n \"Tsian Tang brought out a platter of red amber on which\n lay a carbuncle\" 156\n\n \"Then he took his master and Rose-Red upon his back and\n flew with them over the steep walls\" 234\n\n\n\n\nNURSERY FAIRY TALES\n\n\n\n\nTHE CHINESE FAIRY BOOK\n\n\n\n\nI\n\nWOMEN'S WORDS PART FLESH AND BLOOD\n\n\nOnce upon a time there were two brothers, who lived in the same house.\nAnd the big brother listened to his wife's words, and because of them\nfell out with the little one. Summer had begun, and the time for\nsowing the high-growing millet had come. The little brother had no\ngrain, and asked the big one to loan him some, and the big one ordered\nhis wife to give it to him. But she took the grain, put it in a large\npot and cooked it until it was done. Then she gave it to the little\nfellow. He knew nothing about it, and went and sowed his field with\nit. Yet, since the grain had been cooked, it did not sprout. Only a\nsingle grain of seed had not been cooked; so only a single sprout shot\nup. The little brother was hard-working and industrious by nature, and\nhence he watered and hoed the sprout all day long. And the sprout grew\nmightily, like a tree, and an ear of millet sprang up out of it like a\ncanopy, large enough to shade half an acre of ground. In the fall the\near was ripe. Then the little brother took his ax and chopped it down.\nBut no sooner had the ear fallen to the ground, than an enormous Roc\ncame rushing down, took the ear in his beak and flew away. The little\nbrother ran after him as far as the shore of the sea.\n\nThen the bird turned and spoke to him like a human being, as follows:\n\"You should not seek to harm me! What is this one ear worth to you?\nEast of the sea is the isle of gold and silver. I will carry you\nacross. There you may take whatever you want, and become very rich.\"\n\nThe little brother was satisfied, and climbed on the bird's back, and\nthe latter told him to close his eyes. So he only heard the air\nwhistling past his ears, as though he were driving through a strong\nwind, and beneath him the roar and surge of flood and waves. Suddenly\nthe bird settled on a rock: \"Here we are!\" he said.\n\nThen the little brother opened his eyes and looked about him: and on\nall sides he saw nothing but the radiance and shimmer of all sorts of\nwhite and yellow objects. He took about a dozen of the little things\nand hid them in his breast.\n\n\"Have you enough?\" asked the Roc.\n\n\"Yes, I have enough,\" he replied.\n\n\"That is well,\" answered the bird. \"Moderation protects one from\nharm.\"\n\nThen he once more took him up, and carried him back again.\n\nWhen the little brother reached home, he bought himself a good piece\nof ground in the course of time, and became quite well to do.\n\nBut his brother was jealous of him, and said to him, harshly: \"Where\ndid you manage to steal the money?\"\n\nSo the little one told him the whole truth of the matter. Then the big\nbrother went home and took counsel with his wife.\n\n\"Nothing easier,\" said his wife. \"I will just cook grain again and\nkeep back one seedling so that it is not done. Then you shall sow it,\nand we will see what happens.\"\n\nNo sooner said than done. And sure enough, a single sprout shot up,\nand sure enough, the sprout bore a single ear of millet, and when\nharvest time came around, the Roc again appeared and carried it off in\nhis beak. The big brother was pleased, and ran after him, and the Roc\nsaid the same thing he had said before, and carried the big brother to\nthe island. There the big brother saw the gold and silver heaped up\neverywhere. The largest pieces were like hills, the small ones were\nlike bricks, and the real tiny ones were like grains of sand. They\nblinded his eyes. He only regretted that he knew of no way by which he\ncould move mountains. So he bent down and picked up as many pieces as\npossible.\n\nThe Roc said: \"Now you have enough. You will overtax your strength.\"\n\n\"Have patience but a little while longer,\" said the big brother. \"Do\nnot be in such a hurry! I must get a few more pieces!\"\n\nAnd thus time passed.\n\nThe Roc again urged him to make haste: \"The sun will appear in a\nmoment,\" said he, \"and the sun is so hot it burns human beings up.\"\n\n\"Wait just a little while longer,\" said the big brother. But that very\nmoment a red disk broke through the clouds with tremendous power. The\nRoc flew into the sea, stretched out both his wings, and beat the\nwater with them in order to escape the heat. But the big brother was\nshrivelled up by the sun.\n\n Note: This fairy-tale is traditionally narrated. The\n Roc is called _pong_ in Chinese, and the treasures on\n the island are spoken of as \"all sorts of yellow and\n white objects\" because the little fellow does not know\n that they are gold and silver.\n\n\n\n\nII\n\nTHE THREE RHYMSTERS\n\n\nOnce there were three daughters in a family. The oldest one married a\nphysician, the second one married a magistrate; but the third, who was\nmore than usually intelligent and a clever talker, married a farmer.\n\nNow it chanced, once upon a time, that their parents were celebrating\na birthday. So the three daughters came, together with their husbands,\nto wish them long life and happiness. The parents-in-law prepared a\nmeal for their three sons-in-law, and put the birthday wine on the\ntable. But the oldest son-in-law, who knew that the third one had not\nattended school, wanted to embarrass him.\n\n\"It is far too tiresome,\" said he, \"just to sit here drinking: let us\nhave a drinking game. Each one of us must invent a verse, one that\nrimes and makes sense, on the words: 'in the sky, on the earth, at the\ntable, in the room,' And whoever cannot do so, must empty three\nglasses as a punishment.\"\n\nAll the company were satisfied. Only the third son-in-law felt\nembarrassed and insisted on leaving. But the guests would not let him\ngo, and obliged him to keep his seat.\n\nThen the oldest son-in-law began: \"I will make a start with my verse.\nHere it is:\n\n \"In the sky the phenix proudly flies,\n On the earth the lambkin tamely lies,\n At the table through an ancient book I wade,\n In the room I softly call the maid.\"\n\nThe second one continued: \"And I say:\n\n \"In the sky the turtle-dove flies round,\n On the earth the ox paws up the ground,\n At the table one studies the deeds of yore,\n In the room the maid she sweeps the floor.\"\n\nBut the third son-in-law stuttered, and found nothing to say. And when\nall of them insisted, he broke out in rough tones of voice:\n\n \"In the sky--flies a leaden bullet,\n On the earth--stalks a tiger-beast,\n On the table--lies a pair of scissors,\n In the room--I call the stable-boy.\"\n\nThe other two sons-in-law clapped their hands and began to laugh\nloudly.\n\n\"Why the four lines do not rime at all,\" said they, \"and, besides\nthey do not make sense. A leaden bullet is no bird, the stable-boy\ndoes his work outside, would you call him into the room? Nonsense,\nnonsense! Drink!\"\n\nYet before they had finished speaking, the third daughter raised the\ncurtain of the women's room, and stepped out. She was angry, yet she\ncould not suppress a smile.\n\n\"How so do our lines not make sense?\" said she. \"Listen a moment, and\nI'll explain them to you: In the sky our leaden bullet will shoot your\nphenix and your turtle-dove. On the earth our tiger-beast will devour\nyour sheep and your ox. On the table our pair of scissors will cut up\nall your old books. And finally, in the room--well, the stable-boy can\nmarry your maid!\"\n\nThen the oldest son-in-law said: \"Well scolded! Sister-in-law, you\nknow how to talk! If you were a man you would have had your degree\nlong ago. And, as a punishment, we will empty our three glasses.\"\n\n Note: This is also a fairy-tale traditionally handed\n down.\n\n\n\n\nIII\n\nHOW GREED FOR A TRIFLING THING LED A MAN TO LOSE A GREAT ONE\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was an old woman, who had two sons. But her\nolder son did not love his parents, and left his mother and brother.\nThe younger one served her so faithfully, however, that all the people\nspoke of his filial affection.\n\nOne day it happened that there was a theatrical performance given\noutside the village. The younger son started to carry his mother there\non his back, so that she might look on. But there was a ravine before\nthe village, and he slipped and fell down in the middle of it. And his\nmother was killed by the rolling stones, and her blood and flesh were\nsprinkled about everywhere. The son stroked his mother's corpse, and\nwept bitterly. He was about to kill himself when, suddenly, he saw a\npriest standing before him.\n\nThe latter said: \"Have no fear, for I can bring your mother back to\nlife again!\" And as he said so, he stooped, gathered up her flesh and\nbones, and laid them together as they should be. Then he breathed upon\nthem, and at once the mother was alive again. This made the son very\nhappy, and he thanked the priest on his knees. Yet on a sharp point of\nrock he still saw a bit of his mother's flesh hanging, a bit about an\ninch long.\n\n\"That should not be left hanging there either,\" said he, and hid it in\nhis breast.\n\n\"In truth, you love your mother as a son should,\" said the priest.\nThen he bade the son give him the bit of flesh, kneaded a manikin out\nof it, breathed upon it, and in a minute there it stood, a really\nfine-looking little boy.\n\n\"His name is Small Profit,\" said he, turning to the son, \"and you may\ncall him brother. You are poor and have not the wherewithal with which\nto nourish your mother. If you need something, Small Profit can get it\nfor you.\"\n\nThe son thanked him once more, then took his mother on his back again,\nand his new little brother by the hand, and went home. And when he\nsaid to Small Profit: \"Bring meat and wine!\" then meat and wine were\nat hand at once, and steaming rice was already cooking in the pot. And\nwhen he said to Small Profit: \"Bring money and cloth!\" then his purse\nfilled itself with money, and the chests were heaped up with cloth to\nthe brim. Whatever he asked for that he received. Thus, in the course\nof time, they came to be very well off indeed.\n\nBut his older brother envied him greatly. And when there was another\ntheatrical performance in the village, he took his mother on his\nback--by force--and went to it. And when he reached the ravine, he\nslipped purposely, and let his mother fall into the depths, only\nintent to see that she really was shattered into fragments. And sure\nenough his mother had such a bad fall that her limbs and trunk were\nstrewn around in all directions. He then climbed down, took his\nmother's head in his hands, and pretended to weep.\n\nAnd at once the priest was on hand again, and said: \"I can wake the\ndead to life again, and surround white bones with flesh and blood!\"\n\nThen he did as he had done before, and the mother came to life again.\nBut the older brother already had hidden one of her ribs on purpose.\nHe now pulled it out and said to the priest: \"Here is a bone left.\nWhat shall I do with it?\"\n\nThe priest took the bone, enclosed it in lime and earth, breathed upon\nit, as he had done the other time, and it became a little man,\nresembling Small Profit, but larger in stature.\n\n\"His name is Great Duty,\" he told his older brother, \"if you stick to\nhim he will always lend you a hand.\"\n\nThe son took his mother back again, and Great Duty walked beside him.\n\nWhen he came to their courtyard door, he saw his younger brother\ncoming out, holding Small Profit in his arms.\n\n\"Where are you going?\" he said to him.\n\nHis brother answered: \"Small Profit is a divine being, who does not\nwish to dwell for all time among men. He wants to fly back to the\nheavens, and so I am escorting him.\"\n\n\"Give Small Profit to me! Don't let him get away!\" cried the older\nbrother.\n\nYet, before he had ended his speech, Small Profit was rising in the\nair. The older brother then quickly let his mother drop on the ground,\nand stretched out his hand to catch Small Profit. But he did not\nsucceed, and now Great Duty, too, rose from the ground, took Small\nProfit's hand, and together they ascended to the clouds and\ndisappeared.\n\nThen the older brother stamped on the ground, and said with a sigh:\n\"Alas, I have lost my Great Duty because I was too greedy for that\nSmall Profit!\"\n\n Note: In China--usually on festive days or because of\n some religious celebration--a provisional stage is\n erected before the village or temple, and a play given.\n Permanent theaters are to be found only in the large\n cities.\n\n\n\n\nIV\n\nWHO WAS THE SINNER?\n\n\nOnce upon a time there were ten farmers, who were crossing a field\ntogether. They were surprised by a heavy thunder-storm, and took\nrefuge in a half-ruined temple. But the thunder drew ever nearer, and\nso great was the tumult that the air trembled about them, while the\nlightning flew around the temple in a continuous circle. The farmers\nwere greatly frightened, and thought that there must be a sinner among\nthem, whom the lightning would strike. In order to find out who it\nmight be, they agreed to hang their straw hats up before the door, and\nhe whose hat was blown away was to yield himself up to his fate.\n\nNo sooner were the hats outside, than one of them was blown away, and\nthe rest thrust its unfortunate owner out of doors without pity. But\nas soon as he had left the temple the lightning ceased circling\naround, and struck it with a crash.\n\nThe one whom the rest had thrust out, had been the only righteous one\namong them, and for his sake the lightning had spared the temple. So\nthe other nine had to pay for their hard-heartedness with their lives.\n\n Note: A traditionally narrated fairy-tale.\n\n\n\n\nV\n\nTHE MAGIC CASK\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a man who dug up a big, earthenware cask in\nhis field. So he took it home with him and told his wife to clean it\nout. But when his wife started brushing the inside of the cask, the\ncask suddenly began to fill itself with brushes. No matter how many\nwere taken out, others kept on taking their place. So the man sold the\nbrushes, and the family managed to live quite comfortably.\n\nOnce a coin fell into the cask by mistake. At once the brushes\ndisappeared and the cask began to fill itself with money. So now the\nfamily became rich; for they could take as much money out of the cask\nas ever they wished.\n\nNow the man had an old grandfather at home, who was weak and shaky.\nSince there was nothing else he could do, his grandson set him to work\nshoveling money out of the cask, and when the old grandfather grew\nweary and could not keep on, he would fall into a rage, and shout at\nhim angrily, telling him he was lazy and did not want to work. One\nday, however, the old man's strength gave out, and he fell into the\ncask and died. At once the money disappeared, and the whole cask began\nto fill itself with dead grandfathers. Then the man had to pull them\nall out and have them buried, and for this purpose he had to use up\nagain all the money he had received. And when he was through, the cask\nbroke, and he was just as poor as before.\n\n Note: \"The Magic Cask\" is a traditionally narrated tale.\n In Northern China wooden casks or barrels are unknown.\n Large vessels, open at the top, of earth or stone are\n used to hold water and other liquids.\n\n\n\n\nVI\n\nTHE FAVORITE OF FORTUNE AND THE CHILD OF ILL LUCK\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a proud prince who had a daughter. But the\ndaughter was a child of ill luck. When it came time for her to marry,\nshe had all her suitors assemble before her father's palace. She was\ngoing to throw down a ball of red silk among them, and whoever caught\nit was to be her husband. Now there were many princes and counts\ngathered before the castle, and in their midst there was also a\nbeggar. And the princess could see dragons crawling into his ears and\ncrawling out again from his nostrils, for he was a child of luck. So\nshe threw the ball to the beggar and he caught it.\n\nHer father asked angrily: \"Why did you throw the ball into the\nbeggar's hands?\"\n\n\"He is a favorite of Fortune,\" said the princess, \"I will marry him,\nand then, perhaps, I will share in his good luck.\"\n\nBut her father would not hear of it, and since she insisted, he drove\nher from the castle in his rage. So the princess had to go off with\nthe beggar. She dwelt with him in a little hut, and had to hunt for\nherbs and roots, and cook them herself, so that they might have\nsomething to eat; and often they both went hungry.\n\nOne day her husband said to her: \"I will set out and seek my fortune.\nAnd when I have found it, I will come back again and fetch you.\" The\nprincess was willing, and he went away, and was gone for eighteen\nyears. Meanwhile the princess lived in want and affliction, for her\nfather remained hard and merciless. If her mother had not secretly\ngiven her food and money, no doubt she would have starved to death\nduring all that time.\n\nBut the beggar found his fortune, and at length became emperor. He\nreturned and stood before his wife. She however, no longer recognized\nhim: She only knew that he was the powerful emperor.\n\nHe asked her how she were getting along.\n\n\"Why do you ask me how I am getting along?\" she replied. \"I am too far\nbeneath your notice.\"\n\n\"And who may your husband be!\"\n\n\"My husband was a beggar. He went away to seek his fortune. That was\neighteen years ago, and he has not yet returned.\"\n\n\"And what have you done during all those long years?\"\n\n\"I have been waiting for him to return.\"\n\n\"Do you wish to marry some one else, seeing that he has been missing\nso long?\"\n\n\"No, I will remain his wife until I die.\"\n\nWhen the emperor saw how faithful his wife was, he told her who he\nwas, had her clothed in magnificent garments, and took her with him to\nhis imperial palace. And there they lived in splendor and happiness.\n\nAfter a few days the emperor said to his wife: \"We spend every day in\nfestivities, as though every day were New Year.\"\n\n\"And why should we not celebrate,\" answered his wife, \"since we have\nnow become emperor and empress?\"\n\nYet his wife was a child of ill luck. When she had been empress no\nmore than eighteen days, she fell sick and died. But her husband lived\nfor many a long year.\n\n Note: \"The Favorite of Fortune and the Child of Ill\n Luck\" is a traditionally narrated fairy-tale. The dragon\n is the symbol of imperial rule, and the New Year's\n feasts, which old and young celebrate for weeks, is the\n greatest of Chinese festivals.\n\n\n\n\nVII\n\nTHE BIRD WITH NINE HEADS\n\n\nLong, long ago, there once lived a king and a queen who had a\ndaughter. One day, when the daughter went walking in the garden, a\ntremendous storm suddenly came up and carried her away with it. Now\nthe storm had come from the bird with nine heads, who had robbed the\nprincess, and brought her to his cave. The king did not know whither\nhis daughter had disappeared, so he had proclaimed throughout the\nland: \"Whoever brings back the princess may have her for his bride!\"\n\nNow a youth had seen the bird as he was carrying the princess to his\ncave. This cave, though, was in the middle of a sheer wall of rock.\nOne could not climb up to it from below, nor could one climb down to\nit from above. And as the youth was walking around the rock, another\nyouth came along and asked him what he was doing there. So the first\nyouth told him that the bird with nine heads had carried off the\nking's daughter, and had brought her up to his cave. The other chap\nknew what he had to do. He called together his friends, and they\nlowered the youth to the cave in a basket. And when he went into the\ncave, he saw the king's daughter sitting there, and washing the wound\nof the bird with nine heads; for the hound of heaven had bitten off\nhis tenth head, and his wound was still bleeding. The princess,\nhowever, motioned to the youth to hide, and he did so. When the king's\ndaughter had washed his wound and bandaged it, the bird with nine\nheads felt so comfortable, that one after another, all his nine heads\nfell asleep. Then the youth stepped forth from his hiding-place, and\ncut off his nine heads with a sword. But the king's daughter said: \"It\nwould be best if you were hauled up first, and I came after.\"\n\n\"No,\" said the youth. \"I will wait below here, until you are in\nsafety.\" At first the king's daughter was not willing; yet at last she\nallowed herself to be persuaded, and climbed into the basket. But\nbefore she did so, she took a long pin from her hair, broke it into\ntwo halves and gave him one and kept the other. She also divided her\nsilken kerchief with him, and told him to take good care of both her\ngifts. But when the other man had drawn up the king's daughter, he\ntook her along with him, and left the youth in the cave, in spite of\nall his calling and pleading.\n\nThe youth now took a walk about the cave. There he saw a number of\nmaidens, all of whom had been carried off by the bird with nine heads,\nand who had perished there of hunger. And on the wall hung a fish,\nnailed against it with four nails. When he touched the fish, the\nlatter turned into a handsome youth, who thanked him for delivering\nhim, and they agreed to regard each other as brothers. Soon the first\nyouth grew very hungry. He stepped out in front of the cave to search\nfor food, but only stones were lying there. Then, suddenly, he saw a\ngreat dragon, who was licking a stone. The youth imitated him, and\nbefore long his hunger had disappeared. He next asked the dragon how\nhe could get away from the cave, and the dragon nodded his head in the\ndirection of his tail, as much as to say he should seat himself upon\nit. So he climbed up, and in the twinkling of an eye he was down on\nthe ground, and the dragon had disappeared. He then went on until he\nfound a tortoise-shell full of beautiful pearls. But they were magic\npearls, for if you flung them into the fire, the fire ceased to burn\nand if you flung them into the water, the water divided and you could\nwalk through the midst of it. The youth took the pearls out of the\ntortoise-shell, and put them in his pocket. Not long after he reached\nthe sea-shore. Here he flung a pearl into the sea, and at once the\nwaters divided and he could see the sea-dragon. The sea-dragon cried:\n\"Who is disturbing me here in my own kingdom?\" The youth answered: \"I\nfound pearls in a tortoise-shell, and have flung one into the sea, and\nnow the waters have divided for me.\"\n\n\"If that is the case,\" said the dragon, \"then come into the sea with\nme and we will live there together.\" Then the youth recognized him for\nthe same dragon whom he had seen in the cave. And with him was the\nyouth with whom he had formed a bond of brotherhood: He was the\ndragon's son.\n\n\"Since you have saved my son and become his brother, I am your\nfather,\" said the old dragon. And he entertained him hospitably with\nfood and wine.\n\nOne day his friend said to him: \"My father is sure to want to reward\nyou. But accept no money, nor any jewels from him, but only the little\ngourd flask over yonder. With it you can conjure up whatever you\nwish.\"\n\nAnd, sure enough, the old dragon asked him what he wanted by way of a\nreward, and the youth answered: \"I want no money, nor any jewels. All\nI want is the little gourd flask over yonder.\"\n\nAt first the dragon did not wish to give it up, but at last he did let\nhim have it, after all. And then the youth left the dragon's castle.\n\nWhen he set his foot on dry land again he felt hungry. At once a table\nstood before him, covered with a fine and plenteous meal. He ate and\ndrank. After he had gone on a while, he felt weary. And there stood an\nass, waiting for him, on which he mounted. After he had ridden for a\nwhile, the ass's gait seemed too uneven, and along came a wagon, into\nwhich he climbed. But the wagon shook him up too, greatly, and he\nthought: \"If I only had a litter! That would suit me better.\" No more\nhad he thought so, than the litter came along, and he seated himself\nin it. And the bearers carried him to the city in which dwelt the\nking, the queen and their daughter.\n\nWhen the other youth had brought back the king's daughter, it was\ndecided to hold the wedding. But the king's daughter was not willing,\nand said: \"He is not the right man. My deliverer will come and bring\nwith him half of the long pin for my hair, and half my silken kerchief\nas a token.\" But when the youth did not appear for so long a time, and\nthe other one pressed the king, the king grew impatient and said: \"The\nwedding shall take place to-morrow!\" Then the king's daughter went\nsadly through the streets of the city, and searched and searched in\nthe hope of finding her deliverer. And this was on the very day that\nthe litter arrived. The king's daughter saw the half of her silken\nhandkerchief in the youth's hand, and filled with joy, she led him to\nher father. There he had to show his half of the long pin, which\nfitted the other exactly, and then the king was convinced that he was\nthe right, true deliverer. The false bridegroom was now punished, the\nwedding celebrated, and they lived in peace and happiness till the end\nof their days.\n\n Note: \"The Bird With Nine Heads\" is a traditionally\n narrated fairy-tale. The long hair needle is an example\n of the halved jewel used as a sign of recognition by\n lovers (see No. 68, \"Yang Gui Fe\"). The \"Fish\" in the\n cave is the dragon's son, for like East Indian\n _Nagaradjas_, the Chinese dragons are often sea-gods.\n Gourd flasks often occur as magic talismans in Chinese\n fairy-tales, and spirits who serve their owners are\n often imprisoned in them. See No. 81.\n\n\n\n\nVIII\n\nTHE CAVE OF THE BEASTS\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a family in which there were seven\ndaughters. One day when the father went out to gather wood, he found\nseven wild duck eggs. He brought them home, but did not think of\ngiving any to his children, intending to eat them himself, with his\nwife. In the evening the oldest daughter woke up, and asked her mother\nwhat she was cooking. The mother said: \"I am cooking wild duck eggs. I\nwill give you one, but you must not let your sisters know.\" And so she\ngave her one. Then the second daughter woke up, and asked her mother\nwhat she was cooking. She said: \"Wild duck eggs. If you will not tell\nyour sisters, I'll give you one.\" And so it went. At last the\ndaughters had eaten all the eggs, and there were none left.\n\nIn the morning the father was very angry with the children, and said:\n\"Who wants to go along to grandmother?\" But he intended to lead the\nchildren into the mountains, and let the wolves devour them there. The\nolder daughters suspected this, and said: \"We are not going along!\"\nBut the two younger ones said: \"We will go with you.\" And so they\ndrove off with their father. After they had driven a good ways, they\nasked: \"Will we soon get to grandmother's house?\" \"Right away,\" said\ntheir father. And when they had reached the mountains he told them:\n\"Wait here. I will drive into the village ahead of you, and tell\ngrandmother that you are coming.\" And then he drove off with the\ndonkey-cart. They waited and waited, but their father did not come. At\nlast they decided that their father would not come back to fetch them,\nand that he had left them alone in the mountains. So they went further\nand further into the hills seeking a shelter for the night. Then they\nspied a great stone. This they selected for a pillow, and rolled it\nover to the place where they were going to lie down to sleep. And then\nthey saw that the stone was the door to a cave. There was a light in\nthe cave, and they went into it. The light they had seen came from the\nmany precious stones and jewels of every sort in the cave, which\nbelonged to a wolf and a fox. They had a number of jars of precious\nstones and pearls that shone by night. The girls said: \"What a lovely\ncave this is! We will lie right down and go to bed.\" For there stood\ntwo golden beds with gold-embroidered covers. So they lay down and\nfell asleep. During the night the wolf and fox came home. And the\nwolf said: \"I smell human flesh!\" But the fox replied: \"Oh, nonsense!\nThere are no human beings who can enter our cave. We lock it up too\nwell for that.\" The wolf said: \"Very well, then let us lie down in our\nbeds and sleep.\" But the fox answered: \"Let us curl up in the kettles\non the hearth. They still hold a little warmth from the fire.\" The one\nkettle was of gold and the other of silver, and they curled up in\nthem.\n\nWhen the girls rose early in the morning, they saw the wolf and the\nfox lying there, and were much frightened. And they put the covers on\nthe kettles and heaped a number of big stones on them, so that the\nwolf and the fox could not get out again. Then they made a fire. The\nwolf and the fox said: \"Oh, how nice and warm it is this morning! How\ndoes that happen?\" But at length it grew too hot for them. Then they\nnoticed that the two girls had kindled a fire and they cried: \"Let us\nout! We will give you lots of precious stones, and lots of gold, and\nwill do you no harm!\" But the girls would not listen to them, and kept\non making a bigger fire. So that was the end of the wolf and the fox\nin the kettles.\n\nThen the girls lived happily for a number of days in the cave. But\ntheir father was seized with a longing for his daughters, and he went\ninto the mountains to look for them. And he sat right down on the\nstone in front of the cave to rest, and tapped his pipe against it to\nempty the ashes. Then the girls within called out: \"Who is knocking at\nour door?\" And the father said: \"Are those not my daughters' voices?\"\nWhile the daughters replied: \"Is that not our father's voice?\" Then\nthey pushed aside the stone and saw that it was their father, and\ntheir father was glad to see them once more. He was much surprised to\nthink that they should have chanced on this cave full of precious\nstones, and they told him the whole story. Then their father fetched\npeople to help him carry home the jewels. And when they got home, his\nwife wondered where he had obtained all these treasures. So the father\nand daughters told her everything, and they became a very wealthy\nfamily, and lived happily to the end of their days.\n\n Note: \"The Cave of the Beasts\" is traditionally\n narrated.\n\n\n\n\nIX\n\nTHE PANTHER\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a widow who had two daughters and a little\nson. And one day the mother said to her daughters: \"Take good care of\nthe house, for I am going to see grandmother, together with your\nlittle brother!\" So the daughters promised her they would do so, and\ntheir mother went off. On her way a panther met her, and asked where\nshe were going.\n\nShe said: \"I am going with my child to see my mother.\"\n\n\"Will you not rest a bit?\" asked the panther.\n\n\"No,\" said she, \"it is already late, and it is a long road to where my\nmother lives.\"\n\nBut the panther did not cease urging her, and finally she gave in and\nsat down by the road side.\n\n\"I will comb your hair a bit,\" said the panther. And the woman allowed\nthe panther to comb her hair. But as he passed his claws through her\nhair, he tore off a bit of her skin and devoured it.\n\n\"Stop!\" cried the woman, \"the way you comb my hair hurts!\"\n\nBut the panther tore off a much larger piece of skin. Now the woman\nwanted to call for help, but the panther seized and devoured her. Then\nhe turned on her little son and killed him too, put on the woman's\nclothes, and laid the child's bones, which he had not yet devoured, in\nher basket. After that he went to the woman's home, where her two\ndaughters were, and called in at the door: \"Open the door, daughters!\nMother has come home!\" But they looked out through a crack and said:\n\"Our mother's eyes are not so large as yours!\"\n\nThen the panther said: \"I have been to grandmother's house, and saw\nher hens laying eggs. That pleases me, and is the reason why my eyes\nhave grown so large.\"\n\n\"Our mother had no spots in her face such as you have.\"\n\n\"Grandmother had no spare bed, so I had to sleep on the peas, and they\npressed themselves into my face.\"\n\n\"Our mother's feet are not so large as yours.\"\n\n\"Stupid things! That comes from walking such a distance. Come, open\nthe door quickly!\"\n\nThen the daughters said to each other: \"It must be our mother,\" and\nthey opened the door. But when the panther came in, they saw it was\nnot really their mother after all.\n\nAt evening, when the daughters were already in bed, the panther was\nstill gnawing the bones he had brought with him.\n\nThen the daughters asked: \"Mother, what are you eating?\"\n\n\"I'm eating beets,\" was the answer.\n\nThen the daughters said: \"Oh, mother, give us some of your beets,\ntoo! We are so hungry!\"\n\n\"No,\" was the reply, \"I will not give you any. Now be quiet and go to\nsleep.\"\n\nBut the daughters kept on begging until the false mother gave them a\nlittle finger. And then they saw that it was their little brother's\nfinger, and they said to each other: \"We must make haste to escape\nelse he will eat us as well.\" And with that they ran out of the door,\nclimbed up into a tree in the yard, and called down to the false\nmother: \"Come out! We can see our neighbor's son celebrating his\nwedding!\" But it was the middle of the night.\n\nThen the mother came out, and when she saw that they were sitting in\nthe tree, she called out angrily: \"Why, I'm not able to climb!\"\n\nThe daughters said: \"Get into a basket and throw us the rope and we\nwill draw you up!\"\n\nThe mother did as they said. But when the basket was half-way up, they\nbegan to swing it back and forth, and bump it against the tree. Then\nthe false mother had to turn into a panther again, lest she fall down.\nAnd the panther leaped out of the basket, and ran away.\n\nGradually daylight came. The daughters climbed down, seated themselves\non the doorstep, and cried for their mother. And a needle-vender came\nby and asked them why they were crying.\n\n\"A panther has devoured our mother and our brother,\" said the girls.\n\"He has gone now, but he is sure to return and devour us as well.\"\n\nThen the needle-vender gave them a pair of needles, and said: \"Stick\nthese needles in the cushion of the arm chair, with the points up.\"\nThe girls thanked him and went on crying.\n\nSoon a scorpion-catcher came by; and he asked them why they were\ncrying. \"A panther has devoured our mother and brother,\" said the\ngirls. \"He has gone now, but he is sure to return and devour us as\nwell.\"\n\nThe man gave them a scorpion and said: \"Put it behind the hearth in\nthe kitchen.\" The girls thanked him and went on crying.\n\nThen an egg-seller came by and asked them why they were crying. \"A\npanther has devoured our mother and our brother,\" said the girls. \"He\nhas gone now, but he is sure to return and devour us as well.\"\n\nSo he gave them an egg and said: \"Lay it beneath the ashes in the\nhearth.\" The girls thanked him and went on crying.\n\nThen a dealer in turtles came by, and they told him their tale. He\ngave them a turtle and said: \"Put it in the water-barrel in the yard.\"\nAnd then a man came by who sold wooden clubs. He asked them why they\nwere crying. And they told him the whole story. Then he gave them two\nwooden clubs and said: \"Hang them up over the door to the street.\" The\ngirls thanked him and did as the men had told them.\n\nIn the evening the panther came home. He sat down in the armchair in\nthe room. Then the needles in the cushion stuck into him. So he ran\ninto the kitchen to light the fire and see what had jabbed him so; and\nthen it was that the scorpion hooked his sting into his hand. And when\nat last the fire was burning, the egg burst and spurted into one of\nhis eyes, which was blinded. So he ran out into the yard and dipped\nhis hand into the water-barrel, in order to cool it; and then the\nturtle bit it off. And when in his pain he ran out through the door\ninto the street, the wooden clubs fell on his head and that was the\nend of him.\n\n Note: \"The Panther\" in this tale is in reality the same\n beast as \"the talking silver fox\" in No. 49, and the\n fairy-tale is made up of motives to be found in \"Little\n Red Riding-Hood,\" \"The Wolf and the Seven Kids,\" and\n \"The Vagabonds.\"\n\n\n\n\nX\n\nTHE GREAT FLOOD\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a widow, who had a child. And the child was\na kind-hearted boy of whom every one was fond. One day he said to his\nmother: \"All the other children have a grandmother, but I have none.\nAnd that makes me feel very sad!\"\n\n\"We will hunt up a grandmother for you,\" said his mother. Now it once\nhappened that an old beggar-woman came to the house, who was very old\nand feeble. And when the child saw her, he said to her: \"You shall be\nmy grandmother!\" And he went to his mother and said: \"There is a\nbeggar-woman outside, whom I want for my grandmother!\" And his mother\nwas willing and called her into the house; though the old woman was\nvery dirty. So the boy said to his mother: \"Come, let us wash\ngrandmother!\" And they washed the woman. But she had a great many\nburrs in her hair, so they picked them all out and put them in a jar,\nand they filled the whole jar. Then the grandmother said: \"Do not\nthrow them away, but bury them in the garden. And you must not dig\nthem up again before the great flood comes.\"\n\n\"When is the great flood coming?\" asked the boy.\n\n\"When the eyes of the two stone lions in front of the prison grow red,\nthen the great flood will come,\" said the grandmother.\n\nSo the boy went to look at the lions, but their eyes were not yet\nred. And the grandmother also said to him: \"Make a little wooden ship\nand keep it in a little box.\" And this the boy did. And he ran to the\nprison every day and looked at the lions, much to the astonishment of\nthe people in the street.\n\nOne day, as he passed the chicken-butcher's shop, the butcher asked\nhim why he was always running to the lions. And the boy said: \"When\nthe lions' eyes grow red then the great flood will come.\" But the\nbutcher laughed at him. And the following morning, quite early, he\ntook some chicken-blood and rubbed it on the lions' eyes. When the boy\nsaw that the lions' eyes were red he ran swiftly home, and told his\nmother and grandmother. And then his grandmother said: \"Dig up the jar\nquickly, and take the little ship out of its box.\" And when they dug\nup the jar, it was filled with the purest pearls and the little ship\ngrew larger and larger, like a real ship. Then the grandmother said:\n\"Take the jar with you and get into the ship. And when the great flood\ncomes, then you may save all the animals that are driven into it; but\nhuman beings, with their black heads, you are not to save.\" So they\nclimbed into the ship, and the grandmother suddenly disappeared.\n\nNow it began to rain, and the rain kept falling more and more heavily\nfrom the heavens. Finally there were no longer any single drops\nfalling, but just one big sheet of water which flooded everything.\n\nThen a dog came drifting along, and they saved him in their ship. Soon\nafter came a pair of mice, with their little ones, loudly squeaking in\ntheir fear. And these they also saved. The water was already rising to\nthe roofs of the houses, and on one roof stood a cat, arching her back\nand mewing pitifully. They took the cat into the ship, too. Yet the\nflood increased and rose to the tops of the trees. And in one tree sat\na raven, beating his wings and cawing loudly. And him, too, they took\nin. Finally a swarm of bees came flying their way. The little\ncreatures were quite wet, and could hardly fly. So they took in the\nbees on their ship. At last a man with black hair floated by on the\nwaves. The boy said: \"Mother, let us save him, too!\" But the mother\ndid not want to do so. \"Did not grandmother tell us that we must save\nno black-headed human beings?\" But the boy answered: \"We will save the\nman in spite of that. I feel sorry for him, and cannot bear to see him\ndrifting along in the water.\" So they also saved the man.\n\nGradually the water subsided. Then they got out of their ship, and\nparted from the man and the beasts. And the ship grew small again and\nthey put it away in its box.\n\nBut the man was filled with a desire for the pearls. He went to the\njudge and entered a complaint against the boy and his mother, and they\nwere both thrown into jail. Then the mice came, and dug a hole in the\nwall. And the dog came through the hole and brought them meat, and the\ncat brought them bread, so they did not have to hunger in their\nprison. But the raven flew off and returned with a letter for the\njudge. The letter had been written by a god, and it said: \"I wandered\nabout in the world of men disguised as a beggar woman. And this boy\nand his mother took me in. The boy treated me like his own\ngrandmother, and did not shrink from washing me when I was dirty.\nBecause of this I saved them out of the great flood by means of which\nI destroyed the sinful city wherein they dwelt. Do you, O judge, free\nthem, or misfortune shall be your portion!\"\n\nSo the judge had them brought before him, and asked what they had\ndone, and how they had made their way through the flood. Then they\ntold him everything, and what they said agreed with the god's letter.\nSo the judge punished their accuser, and set them both at liberty.\n\nWhen the boy had grown up he came to a city of many people, and it was\nsaid that the princess intended to take a husband. But in order to\nfind the right man, she had veiled herself, and seated herself in a\nlitter, and she had had the litter, together with many others, carried\ninto the market place. In every litter sat a veiled woman, and the\nprincess was in their midst. And whoever hit upon the right litter, he\nwas to get the princess for his bride. So the youth went there, too,\nand when he reached the market place, he saw the bees whom he had\nsaved from the great flood, all swarming about a certain litter. Up he\nstepped to it, and sure enough, the princess was sitting in it. And\nthen their wedding was celebrated, and they lived happily ever\nafterward.\n\n Note: \"The Great Flood\" is traditionally narrated and a\n diluvian legend seems to underlie it. Compare with\n Grimm's fairy-tale (No. 73) \"The Queen of the Bees.\"\n\n\n\n\nXI\n\nTHE FOX AND THE TIGER\n\n\nOnce a fox met a tiger. The latter bared his teeth, stretched out his\nclaws, and was about to devour him. But the fox spoke and said: \"My\ndear sir, you must not think that you are the only king of beasts.\nYour courage does not compare with my own. Let us walk together, and\ndo you keep behind me. And if men catch sight of me and do not fear\nme, then you may devour me.\" The tiger was willing, and so the fox led\nhim along a broad highway. But the travelers, when they saw the tiger\nin the distance, were all frightened and ran away.\n\nThen the fox said: \"How about it? I went in advance, and the men saw\nme and had not as yet seen you.\"\n\nAnd thereupon the tiger drew in his tail and ran away himself.\n\nThe tiger had remarked quite well that the men were afraid of the fox,\nbut he had not noticed that the fox had borrowed the terror he\ninspired from him.\n\n Note: This universally known fable is traditionally\n narrated. Animal fables are very rare in China.\n\n\n\n\nXII\n\nTHE TIGER'S DECOY\n\n\nThat the fox borrowed the terror he inspired from the tiger is more\nthan a simile; but that the tiger has his decoy is something we read\nabout in the story books, and grandfathers talk about a good deal,\ntoo. So there must be some truth in it. It is said that when a tiger\ndevours a human being, the latter's spirit cannot free itself, and\nthat the tiger then uses it for a decoy. When he goes out to seek his\nprey, the spirit of the man he has devoured must go before him, to\nhide him, so that people cannot see him. And the spirit is apt to\nchange itself into a beautiful girl, or a lump of gold or a bolt of\nsilk. All sorts of deceptions are used to lure folk into the mountain\ngorges. Then the tiger comes along and devours his victim, and the new\nspirit must serve as his decoy. The old spirit's time of service is\nover and it may go. And so it continues, turn by turn. Probably that\nis why they say of people who are forced to yield themselves up to\ncunning and powerful men, in order that others may be harmed: \"They\nare the tiger's decoys!\"\n\n Note: This tale is traditionally narrated.\n\n\n\n\nXIII\n\nTHE FOX AND THE RAVEN\n\n\nThe fox knows how to flatter, and how to play many cunning tricks.\nOnce upon a time he saw a raven, who alighted on a tree with a piece\nof meat in his beak. The fox seated himself beneath the tree, looked\nup at him, and began to praise him.\n\n\"Your color,\" he began, \"is pure black. This proves to me that you\npossess all the wisdom of Laotzse, who knows how to shroud his\nlearning in darkness. The manner in which you manage to feed your\nmother shows that your filial affection equals that which the Master\nDsong had for his parents. Your voice is rough and strong. It proves\nthat you have the courage with which King Hiang once drove his foes to\nflight by the mere sound of his voice. In truth, you are the king of\nbirds!\"\n\nThe raven, hearing this, was filled with joy and said: \"I thank you! I\nthank you!\"\n\nAnd before he knew it, the meat fell to earth from his opened beak.\n\nThe fox caught it up, devoured it and then said, laughing: \"Make note\nof this, my dear sir: if some one praises you without occasion, he is\nsure to have a reason for doing so.\"\n\n Note: Traditionally narrated, it may be taken for\n granted that this is simply AEsop's fable in Chinese\n dress. The manner of presentation is characteristically\n Chinese. For \"the wisdom of Laotzse\" compare, p. 30,\n \"The Ancient's Book of Wisdom and Life\": \"Who sees his\n light, yet dwells in darkness.\" Master Dsong was King\n Dsi's most faithful pupil, renowned for his piety. The\n raven is known in China as \"the bird of filial love,\"\n for it is said that the young ravens bring forth the\n food they have eaten from their beaks again, in order to\n feed the old birds.\n\n\n\n\nXIV\n\nWHY DOG AND CAT ARE ENEMIES\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a man and his wife and they had a ring of\ngold. It was a lucky ring, and whoever owned it always had enough to\nlive on. But this they did not know, and hence sold the ring for a\nsmall sum. But no sooner was the ring gone than they began to grow\npoorer and poorer, and at last did not know when they would get their\nnext meal. They had a dog and a cat, and these had to go hungry as\nwell. Then the two animals took counsel together as to how they might\nrestore to their owners their former good fortune. At length the dog\nhit upon an idea.\n\n\"They must have the ring back again,\" he said to the cat.\n\nThe cat answered: \"The ring has been carefully locked up in the\nchest, where no one can get at it.\"\n\n\"You must catch a mouse,\" said the dog, \"and the mouse must gnaw a\nhole in the chest and fetch out the ring. And if she does not want to,\nsay that you will bite her to death, and you will see that she will do\nit.\"\n\nThis advice pleased the cat, and she caught a mouse. Then she wanted\nto go to the house in which stood the chest, and the dog came after.\nThey came to a broad river. And since the cat could not swim, the dog\ntook her on his back and swam across with her. Then the cat carried\nthe mouse to the house in which the chest stood. The mouse gnawed a\nhole in the chest, and fetched out the ring. The cat put the ring in\nher mouth and went back to the river, where the dog was waiting for\nher, and swam across with her. Then they started out together for\nhome, in order to bring the lucky ring to their master and mistress.\nBut the dog could only run along the ground; when there was a house in\nthe way he always had to go around it. The cat, however, quickly\nclimbed over the roof, and so she reached home long before the dog,\nand brought the ring to her master.\n\nThen her master said to his wife: \"What a good creature the cat is! We\nwill always give her enough to eat and care for her as though she were\nour own child!\"\n\nBut when the dog came home they beat him and scolded him, because he\nhad not helped to bring home the ring again. And the cat sat by the\nfireplace, purred and said never a word. Then the dog grew angry at\nthe cat, because she had robbed him of his reward, and when he saw her\nhe chased her and tried to seize her.\n\nAnd ever since that day cat and dog are enemies.\n\n Note: \"Why Dog and Cat are Enemies.\" This fairy-tale is\n given in the current popular version.\n\n\n\n\nLEGENDS OF THE GODS\n\n\n\n\nXV\n\nHOW THE FIVE ANCIENTS BECAME MEN\n\n\nBefore the earth was separated from the heavens, all there was was a\ngreat ball of watery vapor called chaos. And at that time the spirits\nof the five elemental powers took shape, and became the five Ancients.\nThe first was called the Yellow Ancient, and he was the ruler of the\nearth. The second was called the Red Lord, and he was the ruler of the\nfire. The third was called the Dark Lord, and he was the ruler of the\nwater. The fourth was known as the Wood Prince, and he was the ruler\nof the wood. The fifth was called the Mother of Metals, and ruled over\nthem. These five Ancients set all their primal spirit into motion, so\nthat water and earth sank down. The heavens floated upward, and the\nearth grew firm in the depths. Then they allowed the waters to gather\ninto rivers and seas, and hills and plains made their appearance. So\nthe heavens opened and the earth was divided. And there were sun, moon\nand all the stars, wind, clouds, rain, and dew. The Yellow Ancient set\nearth's purest power spinning in a circle, and added the effect of\nfire and water thereto. Then there came forth grasses and trees, birds\nand beasts, and the tribes of the serpents and insects, fishes and\nturtles. The Wood Prince and the Mother of Metals combined light and\ndarkness, and thus created the human race as men and women. And thus\nthe world gradually came to be.\n\nAt that time there was one who was known as the True Prince of the\nJasper Castle. He had acquired the art of sorcery through the\ncultivation of magic. The five Ancients begged him to rule as the\nsupreme god. He dwelt above the three and thirty heavens, and the\nJasper Castle, of white jade with golden gates, was his. Before him\nstood the stewards of the eight-and-twenty houses of the moon, and the\ngods of the thunders and the Great Bear, and in addition a class of\nbaneful gods whose influence was evil and deadly. They all aided the\nTrue Prince of the Jasper Castle to rule over the thousand tribes\nunder the heavens, and to deal out life and death, fortune and\nmisfortune. The Lord of the Jasper Castle is now known as the Great\nGod, the White Jade Ruler.\n\nThe five Ancients withdrew after they had done their work, and\nthereafter lived in quiet purity. The Red Lord dwells in the South as\nthe god of fire. The Dark Lord dwells in the North, as the mighty\nmaster of the somber polar skies. He lived in a castle of liquid\ncrystal. In later ages he sent Confucius down upon earth as a saint.\nHence this saint is known as the Son of Crystal. The Wood Prince\ndwells in the East. He is honored as the Green Lord, and watches over\nthe coming into being of all creatures. In him lives the power of\nspring and he is the god of love. The Mother of Metals dwells in the\nWest, by the sea of Jasper, and is also known as the Queen-Mother of\nthe West. She leads the rounds of the fairies, and watches over change\nand growth. The Yellow Ancient dwells in the middle. He is always\ngoing about in the world, in order to save and to help those in any\ndistress. The first time he came to earth he was the Yellow Lord, who\ntaught mankind all sorts of arts. In his later years he fathomed the\nmeaning of the world on the Ethereal Mount, and flew up to the radiant\nsun. Under the rule of the Dschou dynasty he was born again as Li\nOerl, and when he was born his hair and beard were white, for which\nreason he was called Laotsze, \"Old Child.\" He wrote the book of\n\"Meaning and Life\" and spread his teachings through the world. He is\nhonored as the head of Taoism. At the beginning of the reign of the\nHan dynasty, he again appeared as the Old Man of the River, (Ho Schang\nGung). He spread the teachings of Tao abroad mightily, so that from\nthat time on Taoism flourished greatly. These doctrines are known to\nthis day as the teachings of the Yellow Ancient. There is also a\nsaying: \"First Laotsze was, then the heavens were.\" And that must mean\nthat Laotsze was that very same Yellow Ancient of primal days.\n\n Note: \"How the Five Ancients Became Men.\" This\n fairy-tale, the first of the legends of the gods, is\n given in the version current among the people. In it the\n five elemental spirits of earth, fire, water, wood and\n metal are brought into connection with a creation myth.\n \"Prince of the Jasper Castle\" or \"The White Jade Ruler,\"\n Yu Huang Di, is the popular Chinese synonym for \"the\n good lord.\" The phrase \"White Jade\" serves merely to\n express his dignity. All in all, there are 32 other Yu\n Huangs, among whom he is the highest. He may be compared\n to Indra, who dwells in a heaven that also comprises 33\n halls. The astronomic relationship between the two is\n very evident.\n\n\n\n\nXVI\n\nTHE HERD BOY AND THE WEAVING MAIDEN\n\n\nThe Herd Boy was the child of poor people. When he was twelve years\nold, he took service with a farmer to herd his cow. After a few years\nthe cow had grown large and fat, and her hair shone like yellow gold.\nShe must have been a cow of the gods.\n\nOne day while he had her out at pasture in the mountains, she suddenly\nbegan to speak to the Herd Boy in a human voice, as follows: \"This is\nthe Seventh Day. Now the White Jade Ruler has nine daughters, who\nbathe this day in the Sea of Heaven. The seventh daughter is beautiful\nand wise beyond all measure. She spins the cloud-silk for the King and\nQueen of Heaven, and presides over the weaving which maidens do on\nearth. It is for this reason she is called the Weaving Maiden. And if\nyou go and take away her clothes while she bathes, you may become her\nhusband and gain immortality.\"\n\n\"But she is up in Heaven,\" said the Herd Boy, \"and how can I get\nthere?\"\n\n\"I will carry you there,\" answered the yellow cow.\n\nSo the Herd Boy climbed on the cow's back. In a moment clouds began to\nstream out of her hoofs, and she rose into the air. About his ears\nthere was a whistling like the sound of the wind, and they flew along\nas swiftly as lightning. Suddenly the cow stopped.\n\n\"Now we are here,\" said she.\n\nThen round about him the Herd Boy saw forests of chrysophrase and\ntrees of jade. The grass was of jasper and the flowers of coral. In\nthe midst of all this splendor lay a great, four-square sea, covering\nsome five-hundred acres. Its green waves rose and fell, and fishes\nwith golden scales were swimming about in it. In addition there were\ncountless magic birds who winged above it and sang. Even in the\ndistance the Herd Boy could see the nine maidens in the water. They\nhad all laid down their clothes on the shore.\n\n\"Take the red clothes, quickly,\" said the cow, \"and hide away with\nthem in the forest, and though she ask you for them never so sweetly\ndo not give them back to her until she has promised to become your\nwife.\"\n\nThen the Herd Boy hastily got down from the cow's back, seized the red\nclothes and ran away. At the same moment the nine maidens noticed him\nand were much frightened.\n\n\"O youth, whence do you come, that you dare to take our clothes?\" they\ncried. \"Put them down again quickly!\"\n\nBut the Herd Boy did not let what they said trouble him; but crouched\ndown behind one of the jade trees. Then eight of the maidens hastily\ncame ashore and drew on their clothes.\n\n\"Our seventh sister,\" said they, \"whom Heaven has destined to be\nyours, has come to you. We will leave her alone with you.\"\n\nThe Weaving Maiden was still crouching in the water.\n\nBut the Herd Boy stood before her and laughed.\n\n\"If you will promise to be my wife,\" said he, \"then I will give you\nyour clothes.\"\n\nBut this did not suit the Weaving Maiden.\n\n\"I am a daughter of the Ruler of the Gods,\" said she, \"and may not\nmarry without his command. Give back my clothes to me quickly, or else\nmy father will punish you!\"\n\nThen the yellow cow said: \"You have been destined for each other by\nfate, and I will be glad to arrange your marriage, and your father,\nthe Ruler of the Gods, will make no objection. Of that I am sure.\"\n\nThe Weaving Maiden replied: \"You are an unreasoning animal! How could\nyou arrange our marriage?\"\n\nThe cow said: \"Do you see that old willow-tree there on the shore?\nJust give it a trial and ask it. If the willow tree speaks, then\nHeaven wishes your union.\"\n\nAnd the Weaving Maiden asked the willow.\n\nThe willow replied in a human voice:\n\n \"This is the Seventh day,\n The Herd Boy his court to the Weaver doth pay!\"\n\nand the Weaving Maiden was satisfied with the verdict. The Herd Boy\nlaid down her clothes, and went on ahead. The Weaving Maiden drew them\non and followed him. And thus they became man and wife.\n\nBut after seven days she took leave of him.\n\n\"The Ruler of Heaven has ordered me to look after my weaving,\" said\nshe. \"If I delay too long I fear that he will punish me. Yet, although\nwe have to part now, we will meet again in spite of it.\"\n\nWhen she had said these words she really went away. The Herd Boy ran\nafter her. But when he was quite near she took one of the long needles\nfrom her hair and drew a line with it right across the sky, and this\nline turned into the Silver River. And thus they now stand, separated\nby the River, and watch for one another.\n\nAnd since that time they meet once every year, on the eve of the\nSeventh Day. When that time comes, then all the crows in the world of\nmen come flying and form a bridge over which the Weaving Maiden\ncrosses the Silver River. And on that day you will not see a single\ncrow in the trees, from morning to night, no doubt because of the\nreason I have mentioned. And besides, a fine rain often falls on the\nevening of the Seventh Day. Then the women and old grandmothers say to\none another: \"Those are the tears which the Herd Boy and the Weaving\nMaiden shed at parting!\" And for this reason the Seventh Day is a rain\nfestival.\n\nTo the west of the Silver River is the constellation of the Weaving\nMaiden, consisting of three stars. And directly in front of it are\nthree other stars in the form of a triangle. It is said that once the\nHerd Boy was angry because the Weaving Maiden had not wished to cross\nthe Silver River, and had thrown his yoke at her, which fell down just\nin front of her feet. East of the Silver River is the Herd Boy's\nconstellation, consisting of six stars. To one side of it are\ncountless little stars which form a constellation pointed at both ends\nand somewhat broader in the middle. It is said that the Weaving Maiden\nin turn threw her spindle at the Herd Boy; but that she did not hit\nhim, the spindle falling down to one side of him.\n\n Note: \"The Herd Boy and the Weaving Maiden\" is retold\n after an oral source. The Herd Boy is a constellation in\n Aquila, the Weaving Maiden one in Lyra. The Silver River\n which separates them is the Milky Way. The Seventh Day\n of the seventh month is the festival of their reunion.\n The Ruler of the Heavens has nine daughters in all, who\n dwell in the nine heavens. The oldest married Li Dsing\n (comp. \"Notscha,\" No. 18); the second is the mother of\n Yang Oerlang (comp. No. 17); the third is the mother of\n the planet Jupiter (comp. \"Sky O'Dawn,\" No. 34); and the\n fourth dwelt with a pious and industrious scholar, by\n name of Dung Yung, whom she aided to win riches and\n honor. The seventh is the Spinner, and the ninth had to\n dwell on earth as a slave because of some transgression\n of which she had been guilty. Of the fifth, the sixth\n and the eighth daughters nothing further is known.\n\n\n\n\nXVII\n\nYANG OERLANG\n\n\nThe second daughter of the Ruler of Heaven once came down upon the\nearth and secretly became the wife of a mortal man named Yang. And\nwhen she returned to Heaven she was blessed with a son. But the Ruler\nof Heaven was very angry at this desecration of the heavenly halls. He\nbanished her to earth and covered her with the Wu-I hills. Her son,\nhowever, Oerlang by name, the nephew of the Ruler of Heaven, was\nextraordinarily gifted by nature. By the time he was full grown he had\nlearned the magic art of being able to control eight times nine\ntransformations. He could make himself invisible, or could assume the\nshape of birds and beasts, grasses, flowers, snakes and fishes, as he\nchose. He also knew how to empty out seas and remove mountains from\none place to another. So he went to the Wu-I hills and rescued his\nmother, whom he took on his back and carried away. They stopped to\nrest on a flat ledge of rock.\n\nThen the mother said: \"I am very thirsty!\"\n\nOerlang climbed down into the valley in order to fetch her water, and\nsome time passed before he returned. When he did his mother was no\nlonger there. He searched eagerly, but on the rock lay only her skin\nand bones, and a few blood-stains. Now you must know that at that time\nthere were still ten suns in the heavens, glowing and burning like\nfire. The Daughter of Heaven, it is true, was divine by nature; yet\nbecause she had incurred the anger of her father and had been banished\nto earth, her magic powers had failed her. Then, too, she had been\nimprisoned so long beneath the hills in the dark that, coming out\nsuddenly into the sunlight, she had been devoured by its blinding\nradiance.\n\nWhen Oerlang thought of his mother's sad end, his heart ached. He took\ntwo mountains on his shoulders, pursued the suns and crushed them to\ndeath between the mountains. And whenever he had crushed another\nsun-disk, he picked up a fresh mountain. In this way he had already\nslain nine of the ten suns, and there was but one left. And as Oerlang\npursued him relentlessly, he hid himself in his distress beneath the\nleaves of the portulacca plant. But there was a rainworm close by who\nbetrayed his hiding-place, and kept repeating: \"There he is! There he\nis!\"\n\nOerlang was about to seize him, when a messenger from the Ruler of the\nHeaven suddenly descended from the skies with a command: \"Sky, air and\nearth need the sunshine. You must allow this one sun to live, so that\nall created beings may live. Yet, because you rescued your mother, and\nshowed yourself to be a good son, you shall be a god, and be my\nbodyguard in the Highest Heaven, and shall rule over good and evil in\nthe mortal world, and have power over devils and demons.\" When Oerlang\nreceived this command he ascended to Heaven.\n\nThen the sun-disk came out again from beneath the portulacca leaves,\nand out of gratitude, since the plant had saved him, he bestowed upon\nit the gift of a free-blooming nature, and ordained that it never need\nfear the sunshine. To this very day one may see on the lower side of\nthe portulacca leaves quite delicate little white pearls. They are the\nsunshine that remained hanging to the leaves when the sun hid under\nthem. But the sun pursues the rainworm, when he ventures forth out of\nthe ground, and dries him up as a punishment for his treachery.\n\nSince that time Yang Oerlang has been honored as a god. He has\noblique, sharply marked eyebrows, and holds a double-bladed,\nthree-pointed sword in his hand. Two servants stand beside him, with a\nfalcon and a hound; for Yang Oerlang is a great hunter. The falcon is\nthe falcon of the gods, and the hound is the hound of the gods. When\nbrute creatures gain possession of magic powers or demons oppress men,\nhe subdues them by means of the falcon and hound.\n\n Note: Yang Oerlang is a huntsman, as is indicated by his\n falcon and hound. His Hound of the Heavens, literally\n \"the divine, biting hound\" recalls the hound of Indra.\n The myth that there were originally ten suns in the\n skies, of whom nine were shot down by an archer, is also\n placed in the period of the ruler Yau. In that story the\n archer is named Hou I, or I (comp. No. 19). Here,\n instead of the shooting down of the suns with arrows, we\n have the Titan motive of destruction with the mountains.\n\n\n\n\nXVIII\n\nNOTSCHA\n\n\nThe oldest daughter of the Ruler of Heaven had married the great\ngeneral Li Dsing. Her sons were named Gintscha, Mutscha and Notscha.\nBut when Notscha was given her, she dreamed at night that a Taoist\npriest came into her chamber and said: \"Swiftly receive the Heavenly\nSon!\" And straightway a radiant pearl glowed within her. And she was\nso frightened at her dream that she awoke. And when Notscha came into\nthe world, it seemed as though a ball of flesh were turning in circles\nlike a wheel, and the whole room was filled with strange fragrances\nand a crimson light.\n\nLi Dsing was much frightened, and thought it was an apparition. He\nclove the circling ball with his sword, and out of it leaped a small\nboy whose whole body glowed with a crimson radiance. But his face was\ndelicately shaped and white as snow. About his right arm he wore a\ngolden armlet and around his thighs was wound a length of crimson\nsilk, whose glittering shine dazzled the eyes. When Li Dsing saw the\nchild he took pity on him and did not slay him, while his wife began\nto love the boy dearly.\n\nWhen three days had passed, all his friends came to wish him joy. They\nwere just sitting at the festival meal when a Taoist priest entered\nand said: \"I am the Great One. This boy is the bright Pearl of the\nBeginning of Things, bestowed upon you as your son. Yet the boy is\nwild and unruly, and will kill many men. Therefore I will take him as\nmy pupil to gentle his savage ways.\" Li Dsing bowed his thanks and the\nGreat One disappeared.\n\nWhen Notscha was seven years old he once ran away from home. He came\nto the river of nine bends, whose green waters flowed along between\ntwo rows of weeping-willows. The day was hot, and Notscha entered the\nwater to cool himself. He unbound his crimson silk cloth and whisked\nit about in the water to wash it. But while Notscha sat there and\nwhisked about his scarf in the water, it shook the castle of the\nDragon-King of the Eastern Sea to its very foundations. So the\nDragon-King sent out a Triton, terrible to look upon, who was to find\nout what was the matter. When the Triton saw the boy he began to\nscold. But the latter merely looked up and said: \"What a\nstrange-looking beast you are, and you can actually talk!\" Then the\nTriton grew enraged, leaped up and struck at Notscha with his ax. But\nthe latter avoided the blow, and threw his golden armlet at him. The\narmlet struck the Triton on the head and he sank down dead.\n\nNotscha laughed and said: \"And there he has gone and made my armlet\nbloody!\" And he once more sat down on a stone, in order to wash his\narmlet. Then the crystal castle of the dragon began to tremble as\nthough it were about to fall apart. And a watchman also came and\nreported that the Triton had been slain by a boy. So the Dragon-King\nsent out his son to capture the boy. And the son seated himself on the\nwater-cleaving beast, and came up with a thunder of great waves of\nwater. Notscha straightened up and said: \"That is a big wave!\"\nSuddenly he saw a creature rise out of the waves, on whose back sat an\narmed man who cried in a loud voice: \"Who has slain my Triton?\"\nNotscha answered: \"The Triton wanted to slay me so I killed him. What\ndifference does it make?\" Then the dragon assailed him with his\nhalberd. But Notscha said: \"Tell me who you are before we fight.\" \"I\nam the son of the Dragon-King,\" was the reply. \"And I am Notscha, the\nson of General Li Dsing. You must not rouse my anger with your\nviolence, or I will skin you, together with that old mud-fish, your\nfather!\" Then the dragon grew wild with rage, and came storming along\nfuriously. But Notscha cast his crimson cloth into the air, so that it\nflashed like a ball of fire, and cast the dragon-youth from his\nbreast. Then Notscha took his golden armlet and struck him on the\nforehead with it, so that he had to reveal himself in his true form as\na golden dragon, and fall down dead.\n\nNotscha laughed and said: \"I have heard tell that dragon-sinews make\ngood cords. I will draw one out and bring it to my father, and he can\ntie his armor together with it.\" And with that he drew out the\ndragon's back sinew and took it home.\n\nIn the meantime the Dragon-King, full of fury, had hastened to\nNotscha's father Li Dsing and demanded that Notscha be delivered up to\nhim. But Li Dsing replied: \"You must be mistaken, for my boy is only\nseven years old and incapable of committing such misdeeds.\" While they\nwere still quarreling Notscha came running up and cried: \"Father, I'm\nbringing along a dragon's sinew for you, so that you may bind up your\narmor with it!\" Now the dragon broke out into tears and furious\nscolding. He threatened to report Li Dsing to the Ruler of the Heaven,\nand took himself off, snorting with rage.\n\nLi Dsing grew very much excited, told his wife what had happened, and\nboth began to weep. Notscha, however, came to them and said: \"Why do\nyou weep? I will just go to my master, the Great One, and he will know\nwhat is to be done.\" And no sooner had he said the words than he had\ndisappeared. He came into his master's presence and told him the whole\ntale. The latter said: \"You must get ahead of the dragon, and prevent\nhim from accusing you in Heaven!\" Then he did some magic, and Notscha\nfound himself set down by the gate of Heaven, where he waited for the\ndragon. It was still early in the morning; the gate of Heaven had not\nyet been opened, nor was the watchman at his post. But the dragon was\nalready climbing up. Notscha, whom his master's magic had rendered\ninvisible, threw the dragon to the ground with his armlet, and began\nto pitch into him. The dragon scolded and screamed. \"There the old\nworm flounders about,\" said Notscha, \"and does not care how hard he is\nbeaten! I will scratch off some of his scales.\" And with these words\nhe began to tear open the dragon's festal garments, and rip off some\nof the scales beneath his left arm, so that the red blood dripped out.\nThen the dragon could no longer stand the pain and begged for mercy.\nBut first he had to promise Notscha that he would not complain of\nhim, before the latter would let him go. And then the dragon had to\nturn himself into a little green snake, which Notscha put into his\nsleeve and took back home with him. But no sooner had he drawn the\nlittle snake from his sleeve than it assumed human shape. The dragon\nthen swore that he would punish Li Dsing in a terrible manner, and\ndisappeared in a flash of lightning.\n\nLi Dsing was now angry with his son in earnest. Therefore Notscha's\nmother sent him to the rear of the house to keep out of his father's\nsight. Notscha disappeared and went to his master, in order to ask him\nwhat he should do when the dragon returned. His master advised him and\nNotscha went back home. And all the Dragon Kings of the four seas were\nassembled, and had bound his parents, with cries and tumult, in order\nto punish them. Notscha ran up and cried with a loud voice: \"I will\ntake the punishment for whatever I have done! My parents are\nblameless! What is the punishment you wish to lay upon me?\" \"Life for\nlife!\" said the dragon. \"Very well then, I will destroy myself!\" And\nso he did and the dragons went off satisfied; while Notscha's mother\nburied him with many tears.\n\nBut the spiritual part of Notscha, his soul, fluttered about in the\nair, and was driven by the wind to the cave of the Great One. He took\nit in and said to it: \"You must appear to your mother! Forty miles\ndistant from your home rises a green mountain cliff. On this cliff she\nmust build a shrine for you. And after you have enjoyed the incense of\nhuman adoration for three years, you shall once more have a human\nbody.\" Notscha appeared to his mother in a dream, and gave her the\nwhole message, and she awoke in tears. But Li Dsing grew angry when\nshe told him about it. \"It serves the accursed boy right that he is\ndead! It is because you are always thinking of him that he appears to\nyou in dreams. You must pay no attention to him.\" The woman said no\nmore, but thenceforward he appeared to her daily, as soon as she\nclosed her eyes, and grew more and more urgent in his demand. Finally\nall that was left for her to do was to erect a temple for Notscha\nwithout Li Dsing's knowledge.\n\nAnd Notscha performed great miracles in his temple. All prayers made\nin it were granted. And from far away people streamed to it to burn\nincense in his honor.\n\nThus half a year passed. Then Li Dsing, on the occasion of a great\nmilitary drill, once came by the cliff in question, and saw the people\ncrowding thickly about the hill like a swarm of ants. Li Dsing\ninquired what there were to see upon the hill. \"It is a new god, who\nperforms so many miracles that people come from far and near to honor\nhim.\" \"What sort of a god is he?\" asked Li Dsing. They did not dare\nconceal from him who the god was. Then Li Dsing grew angry. He spurred\nhis horse up the hill and, sure enough, over the door of the temple\nwas written: \"Notscha's Shrine.\" And within it was the likeness of\nNotscha, just as he had appeared while living. Li Dsing said: \"While\nyou were alive you brought misfortune to your parents. Now that you\nare dead you deceive the people. It is disgusting!\" With these words\nhe drew forth his whip, beat Notscha's idolatrous likeness to pieces\nwith it, had the temple burned down, and the worshipers mildly\nreproved. Then he returned home.\n\nNow Notscha had been absent in the spirit upon that day. When he\nreturned he found his temple destroyed; and the spirit of the hill\ngave him the details. Notscha hurried to his master and related with\ntears what had befallen him. The latter was roused and said: \"It is Li\nDsing's fault. After you had given back your body to your parents,\nyou were no further concern of his. Why should he withdraw from you\nthe enjoyment of the incense?\" Then the Great One made a body of\nlotus-plants, gave it the gift of life, and enclosed the soul of\nNotscha within it. This done he called out in a loud voice: \"Arise!\" A\ndrawing of breath was heard, and Notscha leaped up once more in the\nshape of a small boy. He flung himself down before his master and\nthanked him. The latter bestowed upon him the magic of the fiery\nlance, and Notscha thenceforward had two whirling wheels beneath his\nfeet: The wheel of the wind and the wheel of fire. With these he could\nrise up and down in the air. The master also gave him a bag of\npanther-skin in which to keep his armlet and his silken cloth.\n\nNow Notscha had determined to punish Li Dsing. Taking advantage of a\nmoment when he was not watched, he went away, thundering along on his\nrolling wheels to Li Dsing's dwelling. The latter was unable to\nwithstand him and fled. He was almost exhausted when his second son,\nMutscha, the disciple of the holy Pu Hain, came to his aid from the\nCave of the White Crane. A violent quarrel took place between the\nbrothers; they began to fight, and Mutscha was overcome; while Notscha\nonce more rushed in pursuit of Li Dsing. At the height of his\nextremity, however, the holy Wen Dschu of the Hill of the Five\nDragons, the master of Gintscha, Li Dsing's oldest son, stepped forth\nand hid Li Dsing in his cave. Notscha, in a rage, insisted that he be\ndelivered up to him; but Wen Dschu said: \"Elsewhere you may indulge\nyour wild nature to your heart's content, but not in this place.\"\n\nAnd when Notscha in the excess of his rage turned his fiery lance upon\nhim, Wen Dschu stepped back a pace, shook the seven-petaled lotus from\nhis sleeve, and threw it into the air. A whirlwind arose, clouds and\nmists obscured the sight, and sand and earth were flung up from the\nground. Then the whirlwind collapsed with a great crash. Notscha\nfainted, and when he regained consciousness found himself bound to a\ngolden column with three thongs of gold, so that he could no longer\nmove. Wen Dschu now called Gintscha to him and ordered him to give his\nunruly brother a good thrashing. And this he did, while Notscha,\nobliged to stand it, stood grinding his teeth. In his extremity he saw\nthe Great One floating by, and called out to him: \"Save me, O Master!\"\nBut the latter did not notice him; instead he entered the cave and\nthanked Wen Dschu for the severe lesson which he had given Notscha.\nFinally they called Notscha in to them and ordered him to be\nreconciled to his father. Then they dismissed them both and seated\nthemselves to play chess. But no sooner was Notscha free than he again\nfell into a rage, and renewed his pursuit of his father. He had again\novertaken Li Dsing when still another saint came forward to defend the\nlatter. This time it was the old Buddha of the Radiance of the Light.\nWhen Notscha attempted to battle with him he raised his arm, and a\npagoda shaped itself out of red, whirling clouds and closed around\nNotscha. Then Radiance of Light placed both his hands on the pagoda\nand a fire arose within it which burned Notscha so that he cried\nloudly for mercy. Then he had to promise to beg his father's\nforgiveness and always to obey him in the future. Not till he had\npromised all this did the Buddha let him out of the pagoda again. And\nhe gave the pagoda to Li Dsing; and taught him a magic saying which\nwould give him the mastery over Notscha. It is for this reason that Li\nDsing is called the Pagoda-bearing King of Heaven.\n\nLater on Li Dsing and his three sons, Gintscha, Mutscha and Notscha,\naided King Wu of the Dschou dynasty to destroy the tyrant Dschou-Sin.\n\nNone could withstand their might. Only once did a sorcerer succeed in\nwounding Notscha in the left arm. Any other would have died of the\nwound. But the Great One carried him into his cave, healed his wound\nand gave him three goblets of the wine of the gods to drink, and three\nfire-dates to eat. When Notscha had eaten and drunk he suddenly heard\na crash at his left side and another arm grew out from it. He could\nnot speak and his eyes stood out from their sockets with horror. But\nit went on as it had begun: six more arms grew out of his body and two\nmore heads, so that finally he had three heads and eight arms. He\ncalled out to his Master: \"What does all this mean?\" But the latter\nonly laughed and said: \"All is as it should be. Thus equipped you will\nreally be strong!\" Then he taught him a magic incantation by means of\nwhich he could make his arms and heads visible or invisible as he\nchose. When the tyrant Dschou-Sin had been destroyed, Li Dsing and his\nthree sons, while still on earth, were taken up into heaven and seated\namong the gods.\n\n Note: Li Dsing, the Pagoda-bearing King of Heaven, may\n be traced back to Indra, the Hindoo god of thunder and\n lightning. The Pagoda might be an erroneous variant of\n the thunderbolt Vadjra. In such case Notscha would be a\n personification of the thunder. The Great One (Tai I),\n is the condition of things before their separation into\n the active and passive principles. There is a whole\n genealogy of mythical saints and holy men who took part\n in the battles between King Wu of Dschou and the tyrant\n Dschou-Sin. These saints are, for the most part,\n Buddhist-Brahminic figures which have been reshaped. The\n Dragon-King of the Eastern Sea also occurs in the tale\n of Sun Wu Kung (No. 74). \"Dragon sinew\" means the spinal\n cord, the distinction between nerves and sinews not\n being carefully observed. \"Three spirits and seven\n souls\": man has three spirits, usually above his head,\n and seven animal souls. \"Notscha had been absent in the\n spirit upon that day\": the idol is only the seat of the\n godhead, which the latter leaves or inhabits as he\n chooses. Therefore the godhead must be summoned when\n prayers are offered, by means of bells and incense. When\n the god is not present, his idol is merely a block of\n wood or stone. Pu Hain, the Buddha of the Lion, is the\n Indian Samantabharda, one of the four great Boddhisatvas\n of the Tantra School. Wen Dschu, the Buddha on the\n Golden-haired Mountain Lion, (Hou), is the Indian\n Mandjusri. The old Buddha of the Radiance of the Light,\n Jan Dong Go Fu, is the Indian Dipamkara.\n\n\n\n\nXIX\n\nTHE LADY OF THE MOON\n\n\nIn the days of the Emperor Yau lived a prince by the name of Hou I,\nwho was a mighty hero and a good archer. Once ten suns rose together\nin the sky, and shone so brightly and burned so fiercely that the\npeople on earth could not endure them. So the Emperor ordered Hou I to\nshoot at them. And Hou I shot nine of them down from the sky. Besides\nhis bow, Hou I also had a horse which ran so swiftly that even the\nwind could not catch up with it. He mounted it to go a-hunting, and\nthe horse ran away and could not be stopped. So Hou I came to Kunlun\nMountain and met the Queen-Mother of the Jasper Sea. And she gave him\nthe herb of immortality. He took it home with him and hid it in his\nroom. But his wife who was named Tschang O, once ate some of it on the\nsly when he was not at home, and she immediately floated up to the\nclouds. When she reached the moon, she ran into the castle there, and\nhas lived there ever since as the Lady of the Moon.\n\nOn a night in mid-autumn, an emperor of the Tang dynasty once sat at\nwine with two sorcerers. And one of them took his bamboo staff and\ncast it into the air, where it turned into a heavenly bridge, on which\nthe three climbed up to the moon together. There they saw a great\ncastle on which was inscribed: \"The Spreading Halls of Crystal Cold.\"\nBeside it stood a cassia tree which blossomed and gave forth a\nfragrance filling all the air. And in the tree sat a man who was\nchopping off the smaller boughs with an ax. One of the sorcerers said:\n\"That is the man in the moon. The cassia tree grows so luxuriantly\nthat in the course of time it would overshadow all the moon's\nradiance. Therefore it has to be cut down once in every thousand\nyears.\" Then they entered the spreading halls. The silver stories of\nthe castle towered one above the other, and its walls and columns were\nall formed of liquid crystal. In the walls were cages and ponds, where\nfishes and birds moved as though alive. The whole moon-world seemed\nmade of glass. While they were still looking about them on all sides\nthe Lady of the Moon stepped up to them, clad in a white mantle and a\nrainbow-colored gown. She smiled and said to the emperor: \"You are a\nprince of the mundane world of dust. Great is your fortune, since you\nhave been able to find your way here!\" And she called for her\nattendants, who came flying up on white birds, and sang and danced\nbeneath the cassia tree. A pure clear music floated through the air.\nBeside the tree stood a mortar made of white marble, in which a jasper\nrabbit ground up herbs. That was the dark half of the moon. When the\ndance had ended, the emperor returned to earth again with the\nsorcerers. And he had the songs which he had heard on the moon written\ndown and sung to the accompaniment of flutes of jasper in his\npear-tree garden.\n\n Note: This fairy-tale is traditional. The archer Hou I\n (or Count I, the Archer-Prince, comp. Dschuang Dsi), is\n placed by legend in different epochs. He also occurs in\n connection with the myths regarding the moon, for one\n tale recounts how he saved the moon during an eclipse by\n means of his arrows. The Queen-Mother is Si Wang Mu\n (comp. with No. 15). The Tang dynasty reigned 618-906\n A.D. \"The Spreading Halls of Crystal Cold\": The goddess\n of the ice also has her habitation in the moon. The hare\n in the moon is a favorite figure. He grinds the grains\n of maturity or the herbs that make the elixir of life.\n The rain-toad Tschan, who has three legs, is also placed\n on the moon. According to one version of the story,\n Tschang O took the shape of this toad.\n\n [Illustration: \"BESIDE IT STOOD A CASSIA-TREE.\"\n --_Page 54_]\n\n\n\n\nXX\n\nTHE MORNING AND THE EVENING STAR\n\n\nOnce upon a time there were two stars, sons of the Golden King of the\nHeavens. The one was named Tschen and the other Shen. One day they\nquarreled, and Tschen struck Shen a terrible blow. Thereupon both\nstars made a vow that they would never again look upon each other. So\nTschen only appears in the evening, and Shen only appears in the\nmorning, and not until Tschen has disappeared is Shen again to be\nseen. And that is why people say: \"When two brothers do not live\npeaceably with one another they are like Tschen and Shen.\"\n\n Note: Tschen and Shen are Hesperus and Lucifer, the\n morning and evening stars. The tale is told in its\n traditional form.\n\n\n\n\nXXI\n\nTHE GIRL WITH THE HORSE'S HEAD OR THE SILKWORM GODDESS\n\n\nIn the dim ages of the past there once was an old man who went on a\njourney. No one remained at home save his only daughter and a white\nstallion. The daughter fed the horse day by day, but she was lonely\nand yearned for her father.\n\nSo it happened that one day she said in jest to the horse: \"If you\nwill bring back my father to me then I will marry you!\"\n\nNo sooner had the horse heard her say this, than he broke loose and\nran away. He ran until he came to the place where her father was. When\nher father saw the horse, he was pleasantly surprised, caught him and\nseated himself on his back. And the horse turned back the way he had\ncome, neighing without a pause.\n\n\"What can be the matter with the horse?\" thought the father.\n\"Something must have surely gone wrong at home!\" So he dropped the\nreins and rode back. And he fed the horse liberally because he had\nbeen so intelligent; but the horse ate nothing, and when he saw the\ngirl, he struck out at her with his hoofs and tried to bite her. This\nsurprised the father; he questioned his daughter, and she told him the\ntruth, just as it had occurred.\n\n\"You must not say a word about it to any one,\" spoke her father, \"or\nelse people will talk about us.\"\n\nAnd he took down his crossbow, shot the horse, and hung up his skin in\nthe yard to dry. Then he went on his travels again.\n\nOne day his daughter went out walking with the daughter of a\nneighbor. When they entered the yard, she pushed the horse-hide with\nher foot and said: \"What an unreasonable animal you were--wanting to\nmarry a human being! What happened to you served you right!\"\n\nBut before she had finished her speech, the horse-hide moved, rose up,\nwrapped itself about the girl and ran off.\n\nHorrified, her companion ran home to her father and told him what had\nhappened. The neighbors looked for the girl everywhere, but she could\nnot be found.\n\nAt last, some days afterward, they saw the girl hanging from the\nbranches of a tree, still wrapped in the horse-hide; and gradually she\nturned into a silkworm and wove a cocoon. And the threads which she\nspun were strong and thick. Her girl friend then took down the cocoon\nand let her slip out of it; and then she spun the silk and sold it at\na large profit.\n\nBut the girl's relatives longed for her greatly. So one day the girl\nappeared riding in the clouds on her horse, followed by a great\ncompany and said: \"In heaven I have been assigned to the task of\nwatching over the growing of silkworms. You must yearn for me no\nlonger!\" And thereupon they built temples to her in her native land,\nand every year, at the silkworm season, sacrifices are offered to her\nand her protection is implored. And the Silkworm Goddess is also known\nas the girl with the Horse's Head.\n\n Note: This tale is placed in the times of the Emperor\n Hau, and the legend seems to have originated in\n Setchuan. The stallion is the sign of the zodiac which\n rules the springtime, the season when the silkworms are\n cultivated. Hence she is called the Goddess with the\n Horse's Head. The legend itself tells a different tale.\n In addition to this goddess, the spouse of Schen Nung,\n the \"Divine Husbandman,\" is also worshiped as the\n goddess of silkworm culture. The Goddess with the\n Horse's Head is more of a totemic representation of the\n silkworm as such; while the wife of Schen Nung is\n regarded as the protecting goddess of silk culture, and\n is supposed to have been the first to teach women its\n details. The spouse of the Yellow Lord is mentioned in\n the same connection. The popular belief distinguishes\n three goddesses who protect the silkworm culture in\n turn. The second is the best of the three, and when it\n is her year the silk turns out well.\n\n\n\n\nXXII\n\nTHE QUEEN OF HEAVEN\n\n\nThe Queen of Heaven, who is also known as the Holy Mother, was in\nmortal life a maiden of Fukien, named Lin. She was pure, reverential\nand pious in her ways and died at the age of seventeen. She shows her\npower on the seas and for this reason the seamen worship her. When\nthey are unexpectedly attacked by wind and waves, they call on her and\nshe is always ready to hear their pleas.\n\nThere are many seamen in Fukien, and every year people are lost at\nsea. And because of this, most likely, the Queen of Heaven took pity\non the distress of her people during her lifetime on earth. And since\nher thoughts are uninterruptedly turned toward aiding the drowning in\ntheir distress, she now appears frequently on the seas.\n\nIn every ship that sails a picture of the Queen of Heaven hangs in the\ncabin, and three paper talismans are also kept on shipboard. On the\nfirst she is painted with crown and scepter, on the second as a maiden\nin ordinary dress, and on the third she is pictured with flowing hair,\nbarefoot, standing with a sword in her hand. When the ship is in\ndanger the first talisman is burnt, and help comes. But if this is of\nno avail, then the second and finally the third picture is burned. And\nif no help comes then there is nothing more to be done.\n\nWhen seamen lose their course among wind and waves and darkling\nclouds, they pray devoutly to the Queen of Heaven. Then a red lantern\nappears on the face of the waters. And if they follow the lantern they\nwill win safe out of all danger. The Queen of Heaven may often be seen\nstanding in the skies, dividing the wind with her sword. When she does\nthis the wind departs for the North and South, and the waves grow\nsmooth.\n\nA wooden wand is always kept before her holy picture in the cabin. It\noften happens that the fish-dragons play in the seas. They are two\ngiant fish who spout up water against one another till the sun in the\nsky is obscured, and the seas are shrouded in profound darkness. And\noften, in the distance, one may see a bright opening in the darkness.\nIf the ship holds a course straight for this opening it will win\nthrough, and is suddenly floating in calm waters again. Looking back,\none may see the two fishes still spouting water, and the ship will\nhave passed directly beneath their jaws. But a storm is always near\nwhen the fish dragons swim; therefore it is well to burn paper or wool\nso that the dragons do not draw the ship down into the depths. Or the\nMaster of the Wand may burn incense before the wand in the cabin. Then\nhe must take the wand and swing it over the water three times, in a\ncircle. If he does so the dragons will draw in their tails and\ndisappear.\n\nWhen the ashes in the censer fly up into the air without any cause,\nand are scattered about, it is a sign that great danger is\nthreatening.\n\nNearly two-hundred years ago an army was fitted out to subdue the\nisland of Formosa. The captain's banner had been dedicated with the\nblood of a white horse. Suddenly the Queen of Heaven appeared at the\ntip of the banner-staff. In another moment she had disappeared, but\nthe invasion was successful.\n\nOn another occasion, in the days of Kien Lung, the minister Dschou\nLing was ordered to install a new king in the Liu-Kiu Islands. When\nthe fleet was sailing by south of Korea, a storm arose, and his ship\nwas driven toward the Black Whirlpool. The water had the color of ink,\nsun and moon lost their radiance, and the word was passed about that\nthe ship had been caught in the Black Whirlpool, from which no living\nman had ever returned. The seaman and travelers awaited their end with\nlamentations. Suddenly an untold number of lights, like red lanterns,\nappeared on the surface of the water. Then the seamen were overjoyed\nand prayed in the cabins. \"Our lives are saved!\" they cried, \"the Holy\nMother has come to our aid!\" And truly, a beautiful maiden with golden\nearrings appeared. She waved her hand in the air and the winds became\nstill and the waves grew even. And it seemed as though the ship were\nbeing drawn along by a mighty hand. It moved plashing through the\nwaves, and suddenly it was beyond the limits of the Black Whirlpool.\n\nDschou Ling on his return told of this happening, and begged that\ntemples be erected in honor of the Queen of Heaven, and that she be\nincluded in the list of the gods. And the emperor granted his prayer.\n\nSince then temples of the Queen of Heaven are to be found in all\nsea-port towns, and her birthday is celebrated on the eighth day of\nthe fourth month with spectacles and sacrifices.\n\n Note: \"The Queen of Heaven,\" whose name is Tian Hou, or\n more exactly, Tian Fe Niang Niang, is a Taoist goddess\n of seamen, generally worshiped in all coast towns. Her\n story is principally made up of local legends of Fukien\n province, and a variation of the Indian Maritschi (who\n as Dschunti with the eight arms, is the object of quite\n a special cult). Tian Hou, since the establishment of\n the Manchu dynasty, is one of the officially recognized\n godheads.\n\n\n\n\nXXIII\n\nTHE FIRE-GOD\n\n\nLong before the time of Fu Hi, Dschu Yung, the Magic Welder, was the\nruler of men. He discovered the use of fire, and succeeding\ngenerations learned from him to cook their food. Hence his descendants\nwere intrusted with the preservation of fire, while he himself was\nmade the Fire-God. He is a personification of the Red Lord, who showed\nhimself at the beginning of the world as one of the Five Ancients. The\nFire-God is worshiped as the Lord of the Holy Southern Mountain. In\nthe skies the Fiery Star, the southern quarter of the heavens and the\nRed Bird belong to his domain. When there is danger of fire the Fiery\nStar glows with a peculiar radiance. When countless numbers of\nfire-crows fly into a house, a fire is sure to break out in it.\n\nIn the land of the four rivers there dwelt a man who was very rich.\nOne day he got into his wagon and set out on a long journey. And he\nmet a girl, dressed in red, who begged him to take her with him. He\nallowed her to get into the wagon, and drove along for half-a-day\nwithout even looking in her direction. Then the girl got out again and\nsaid in farewell: \"You are truly a good and honest man, and for that\nreason I must tell you the truth. I am the Fire-God. To-morrow a fire\nwill break out in your house. Hurry home at once to arrange your\naffairs and save what you can!\" Frightened, the man faced his horses\nabout and drove home as fast as he could. All that he possessed in the\nway of treasures, clothes and jewels, he removed from the house. And,\nwhen he was about to lie down to sleep, a fire broke out on the hearth\nwhich could not be quenched until the whole building had collapsed in\ndust and ashes. Yet, thanks to the Fire-God, the man had saved all his\nmovable belongings.\n\n Note: \"The Fire-God\" (comp. with No. 15). The Holy\n Southern Mountain is Sung-Schan in Huan. The Fiery Star\n is Mars. The constellations of the southern quarter of\n the heavens are grouped by the Chinese as under the name\n of the \"Red Bird.\" The \"land of the four rivers\" is\n Setchuan, in the western part of present-day China.\n\n\n\n\nXXIV\n\nTHE THREE RULING GODS\n\n\nThere are three lords: in heaven, and on the earth and in the waters,\nand they are known as the Three Ruling Gods. They are all brothers,\nand are descended from the father of the Monk of the Yangtze-kiang.\nWhen the latter was sailing on the river he was cast into the water by\na robber. But he did not drown, for a Triton came his way who took him\nalong with him to the dragon-castle. And when the Dragon-King saw him\nhe realized at once that there was something extraordinary about the\nMonk, and he married him to his daughter.\n\nFrom their early youth his three sons showed a preference for the\nhidden wisdom. And together they went to an island in the sea. There\nthey seated themselves and began to meditate. They heard nothing, they\nsaw nothing, they spoke not a word and they did not move. The birds\ncame and nested in their hair; the spiders came and wove webs across\ntheir faces; worms and insects came and crawled in and out of their\nnoses and ears. But they paid no attention to any of them.\n\nAfter they had meditated thus for a number of years, they obtained the\nhidden wisdom and became gods. And the Lord made them the Three Ruling\nGods. The heavens make things, the earth completes things, and the\nwaters create things. The Three Ruling Gods sent out the current of\ntheir primal power to aid in ordering all to this end. Therefore they\nare also known as the primal gods, and temples are erected to them all\nover the earth.\n\nIf you go into a temple you will find the Three Ruling Gods all seated\non one pedestal. They wear women's hats upon their heads, and hold\nscepters in their hands, like kings. But he who sits on the last\nplace, to the right, has glaring eyes and wears a look of rage. If you\nask why this is you are told: \"These three were brothers and the Lord\nmade them the Ruling Gods. So they talked about the order in which\nthey were to sit. And the youngest said: 'To-morrow morning, before\nsunrise, we will meet here. Whoever gets here first shall have the\nseat of honor in the middle; the second one to arrive shall have the\nsecond place, and the third the third.' The two older brothers were\nsatisfied. The next morning, very early, the youngest came first,\nseated himself in the middle place, and became the god of the waters.\nThe middle brother came next, sat down on the left, and became the god\nof the heavens. Last of all came the oldest brother. When he saw that\nhis brothers were already sitting in their places, he was disgusted\nand yet he could not say a word. His face grew red with rage, his\neyeballs stood forth from their sockets like bullets, and his veins\nswelled like bladders. And he seated himself on the right and became\ngod of the earth.\" The artisans who make the images of the gods\nnoticed this, so they always represent him thus.\n\n Note: \"The Three Ruling Gods\" is set down as told by the\n people. It is undoubtedly a version of the Indian\n Trimurti. The meaning of the terrible appearance of the\n third godhead, evidently no longer understood by the\n people, points to Siva, and has given rise to the\n fairy-tale here told. As regards the Monk of the\n Yangtze-kiang, comp. with No. 69.\n\n\n\n\nXXV\n\nA LEGEND OF CONFUCIUS\n\n\nWhen Confucius came to the earth, the Kilin, that strange beast which\nis the prince of all four-footed animals, and only appears when there\nis a great man on earth, sought the child and spat out a jade whereon\nwas written: \"Son of the Watercrystal you are destined to become an\nuncrowned king!\" And Confucius grew up, studied diligently, learned\nwisdom and came to be a saint. He did much good on earth, and ever\nsince his death has been reverenced as the greatest of teachers and\nmasters. He had foreknowledge of many things. And even after he had\ndied he gave evidence of this.\n\nOnce, when the wicked Emperor Tsin Schi Huang had conquered all the\nother kingdoms, and was traveling through the entire empire, he came\nto the homeland of Confucius. And he found his grave. And, finding his\ngrave, he wished to have it opened and see what was in it. All his\nofficials advised him not to do so, but he would not listen to them.\nSo a passage was dug into the grave, and in its main chamber they\nfound a coffin, whose wood appeared to be quite fresh. When struck it\nsounded like metal. To the left of the coffin was a door, which led\ninto an inner chamber. In this chamber stood a bed, and a table with\nbooks and clothing, all as though meant for the use of a living\nperson. Tsin Schi Huang seated himself on the bed and looked down. And\nthere on the floor stood two shoes of red silk, whose tips were\nadorned with a woven pattern of clouds. A bamboo staff leaned against\nthe wall. The Emperor, in jest, put on the shoes, took the staff and\nleft the grave. But as he did so a tablet suddenly appeared before his\neyes on which stood the following lines:\n\n O'er kingdoms six Tsin Schi Huang his army led,\n To ope my grave and find my humble bed;\n He steals my shoes and takes my staff away\n To reach Schakiu--and his last earthly day!\n\nTsin Schi Huang was much alarmed, and had the grave closed again. But\nwhen he reached Schakiu he fell ill of a hasty fever of which he died.\n\n Note: The Kilin is an okapi-like legendary beast of the\n most perfected kindness, prince of all the four-footed\n animals. The \"Watercrystal\" is the dark Lord of the\n North, whose element is water and wisdom, for which last\n reason Confucius is termed his son. Tsin Schi Huang\n (B.C. 200) is the burner of books and reorganizer of\n China famed in history. Schakiu (Sandhill) was a city in\n the western part of the China of that day.\n\n\n\n\nXXVI\n\nTHE GOD OF WAR\n\n\nThe God of War, Guan Di, was really named Guan Yu. At the time when\nthe rebellion of the Yellow Turbans was raging throughout the empire,\nhe, together with two others whom he met by the wayside, and who were\ninspired with the same love of country which possessed him, made a\npact of friendship. One of the two was Liu Be, afterward emperor, the\nother was named Dschang Fe. The three met in a peach-orchard and swore\nto be brothers one to the other, although they were of different\nfamilies. They sacrificed a white steed and vowed to be true to each\nother to the death.\n\nGuan Yu was faithful, honest, upright and brave beyond all measure. He\nloved to read Confucius's \"Annals of Lu,\" which tell of the rise and\nfall of empires. He aided his friend Liu Be to subdue the Yellow Turbans\nand to conquer the land of the four rivers. The horse he rode was known\nas the Red Hare, and could run a thousand miles in a day. Guan Yu had a\nknife shaped like a half-moon which was called the Green Dragon. His\neyebrows were beautiful like those of the silk-butterflies, and his eyes\nwere long-slitted like the eyes of the Phenix. His face was scarlet-red\nin color, and his beard so long that it hung down over his stomach.\nOnce, when he appeared before the emperor, the latter called him Duke\nFairbeard, and presented him with a silken pocket in which to place his\nbeard. He wore a garment of green brocade. Whenever he went into battle\nhe showed invincible bravery. Whether he were opposed by a thousand\narmies or by ten thousand horsemen--he attacked them as though they were\nmerely air.\n\nOnce the evil Tsau Tsau had incited the enemies of his master, the\nEmperor, to take the city by treachery. When Guan Yu heard of it he\nhastened up with an army to relieve the town. But he fell into an\nambush, and, together with his son, was brought a captive to the\ncapital of the enemy's land. The prince of that country would have\nbeen glad to have had him go over to his side; but Guan Yu swore that\nhe would not yield to death himself. Thereupon father and son were\nslain. When he was dead, his horse Red Hare ceased to eat and died. A\nfaithful captain of his, by name of Dschou Dsang, who was\nblack-visaged and wore a great knife, had just invested a fortress\nwhen the news of the sad end of the duke reached him. And he, as well\nas other faithful followers would not survive their master, and\nperished.\n\nAt the time a monk, who was an old compatriot and acquaintance of Duke\nGuan was living in the Hills of the Jade Fountains. He used to walk at\nnight in the moonlight.\n\nSuddenly he heard a loud voice cry down out of the air: \"I want my\nhead back again!\"\n\nThe monk looked up and saw Duke Guan, sword in hand, seated on his\nhorse, just as he appeared while living. And at his right and left\nhand, shadowy figures in the clouds, stood his son Guan Ping and his\ncaptain, Dschou Dsang.\n\nThe monk folded his hands and said: \"While you lived you were upright\nand faithful, and in death you have become a wise god; and yet you do\nnot understand fate! If you insist on having your head back again, to\nwhom shall the many thousands of your enemies who lost their lives\nthrough you appeal, in order to have life restored to them?\"\n\nWhen he heard this the Duke Guan bowed and disappeared. Since that\ntime he has been without interruption spiritually active. Whenever a\nnew dynasty is founded, his holy form may be seen. For this reason\ntemples and sacrifices have been instituted for him, and he has been\nmade one of the gods of the empire. Like Confucius, he received the\ngreat sacrifice of oxen, sheep and pigs. His rank increases with the\npassing of centuries. First he was worshiped as Prince Guan, later as\nKing Guan, and then as the great god who conquers the demons. The last\ndynasty, finally, worships him as the great, divine Helper of the\nHeavens. He is also called the God of War, and is a strong deliverer\nin all need, when men are plagued by devils and foxes. Together with\nConfucius, the Master of Peace, he is often worshiped as the Master of\nWar.\n\n Note: The Chinese God of War is a historical personality\n from the epoch of the three empires, which later joined\n the Han dynasty, about 250 A.D. Liu Be founded the\n \"Little Han dynasty\" in Setchuan, with the aid of Guan\n Yu and Dschang Fe. Guan Yu or Guan Di, i.e., \"God\n Yuan,\" has become one of the most popular figures in\n Chinese legend in the course of time, God of War and\n deliverer in one and the same person. The talk of the\n monk with the God Guan Di in the clouds is based on the\n Buddhist law of Karma. Because Guan Di--even though his\n motives might be good--had slain other men, he must\n endure like treatment at their hands, even while he is a\n god.\n\n\n\n\nTALES OF SAINTS AND MAGICIANS\n\n\n\n\nXXVII\n\nTHE HALOS OF THE SAINTS\n\n\nThe true gods all have halos around their heads. When the lesser gods\nand demons see these halos, they hide and dare not move. The Master of\nthe Heavens on the Dragon-Tiger Mountain meets the gods at all times.\nOne day the God of War came down to the mountain while the mandarin of\nthe neighboring district was visiting the Master of the Heavens. The\nlatter advised the mandarin to withdraw and hide himself in an inner\nchamber. Then he went out to receive the God of War. But the mandarin\npeeped through a slit in the door, and he saw the red face and green\ngarment of the God of War as he stood there, terrible and\nawe-inspiring. Suddenly a red halo flashed up above his head, whose\nbeams penetrated into the inner chamber so that the mandarin grew\nblind in one eye. After a time the God of War went away again, and the\nMaster of the Heavens accompanied him. Suddenly Guan Di said, with\nalarm: \"Confucius is coming! The halo he wears illumines the whole\nworld. I cannot endure its radiance even a thousand miles away, so I\nmust hurry and get out of the way!\" And with that he stepped into a\ncloud and disappeared. The Master of the Heavens then told the\nmandarin what had happened, and added: \"Fortunately you did not see\nthe God of War face to face! Whoever does not possess the greatest\nvirtue and the greatest wisdom, would be melted by the red glow of\nhis halo.\" So saying he gave him a pill of the elixir of life to eat,\nand his blind eye gradually regained its sight.\n\nIt is also said that scholars wear a red halo around their heads which\ndevils, foxes and ghosts fear when they see it.\n\nThere was once a scholar who had a fox for a friend. The fox came to\nsee him at night, and went walking with him in the villages. They\ncould enter the houses, and see all that was going on, without people\nbeing any the wiser. But when at a distance the fox saw a red halo\nhanging above a house he would not enter it. The scholar asked him why\nnot.\n\n\"Those are all celebrated scholars,\" answered the fox. \"The greater\nthe halo, the more extensive is their knowledge. I dread them and do\nnot dare enter their houses.\"\n\nThen the man said: \"But I am a scholar, too! Have I no halo which\nmakes you fear me, instead of going walking with me?\"\n\n\"There is only a black mist about your head,\" answered the fox. \"I\nhave never yet seen it surrounded by a halo.\"\n\nThe scholar was mortified and began to scold him; but the fox\ndisappeared with a horse-laugh.\n\n Note: This tale is told as traditionally handed down.\n The Master of the Heavens, Tian Schi, who dwells on the\n Lung Hu Schan, is the so-called Taoist pope.\n\n\n\n\nXXVIII\n\nLAOTSZE\n\n\nLaotsze is really older than heaven and earth put together. He is the\nYellow Lord or Ancient, who created this world together with the other\nfour. At various times he has appeared on earth, under various names.\nHis most celebrated incarnation, however, is that of Laotsze, \"The Old\nChild,\" which name he was given because he made his appearance on\nearth with white hair.\n\nHe acquired all sorts of magic powers by means of which he extended\nhis life-span. Once he hired a servant to do his bidding. He agreed to\ngive him a hundred pieces of copper daily; yet he did not pay him, and\nfinally he owed him seven million, two hundred thousand pieces of\ncopper. Then he mounted a black steer and rode to the West. He wanted\nto take his servant along. But when they reached the Han-Gu pass, the\nservant refused to go further, and insisted on being paid. Yet Laotsze\ngave him nothing.\n\nWhen they came to the house of the guardian of the pass, red clouds\nappeared in the sky. The guardian understood this sign and knew that a\nholy man was drawing near. So he went out to meet him and took him\ninto his house. He questioned him with regard to hidden knowledge, but\nLaotsze only stuck out his tongue at him and would not say a word.\nNevertheless, the guardian of the pass treated him with the greatest\nrespect in his home. Laotsze's servant told the servant of the\nguardian that his master owed him a great deal of money, and begged\nthe latter to put in a good word for him. When the guardian's servant\nheard how large a sum it was, he was tempted to win so wealthy a man\nfor a son-in-law, and he married him to his daughter. Finally the\nguardian heard of the matter and came to Laotsze together with the\nservant. Then Laotsze said to his servant: \"You rascally servant. You\nreally should have been dead long ago. I hired you, and since I was\npoor and could give you no money, I gave you a life-giving talisman to\neat. That is how you still happen to be alive. I said to you: 'If you\nwill follow me into the West, the land of Blessed Repose, I will pay\nyou your wages in yellow gold. But you did not wish to do this.'\" And\nwith that he patted his servant's neck. Thereupon the latter opened\nhis mouth, and spat out the life-giving talisman. The magic signs\nwritten on it with cinnabar, quite fresh and well-preserved, might\nstill be seen. But the servant suddenly collapsed and turned into a\nheap of dry bones. Then the guardian of the pass cast himself to earth\nand pleaded for him. He promised to pay the servant for Laotsze and\nbegged the latter to restore him to life. So Laotsze placed the\ntalisman among the bones and at once the servant came to life again.\nThe guardian of the pass paid him his wages and dismissed him. Then he\nadored Laotsze as his master, and the latter taught him the art of\neternal life, and left him his teachings, in five thousand words,\nwhich the guardian wrote down. The book which thus came into being is\nthe Tao Teh King, \"The Book of the Way and Life.\" Laotsze then\ndisappeared from the eyes of men. The guardian of the pass however,\nfollowed his teachings, and was given a place among the immortals.\n\n Note: The Taoists like to assert that Laotsze's journey\n to the West was undertaken before the birth of Buddha,\n who, according to many, is only a reincarnation of\n Laotsze. The guardian of the Han-Gu pass is mentioned\n by the name of Guan Yin Hi, in the Lia Dsi and the\n Dschuang Dsi.\n\n\n\n\nXXIX\n\nTHE ANCIENT MAN\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a man named Huang An. He must have been\nwell over eighty and yet he looked like a youth. He lived on cinnabar\nand wore no clothing. Even in winter he went about without garments.\nHe sat on a tortoise three feet long. Once he was asked: \"About how\nold might this tortoise be?\" He answered: \"When Fu Hi first invented\nfish-nets and eel-pots he caught this tortoise and gave it to me. And\nsince then I have worn its shield quite flat sitting on it. The\ncreature dreads the radiance of the sun and moon, so it only sticks\nits head out of its shell once in two thousand years. Since I have had\nthe beast, it has already stuck its head out five times.\" With these\nwords he took his tortoise on his back and went off. And the legend\narose that this man was ten thousand years old.\n\n Note: Cinnabar is frequently used in the preparation of\n the elixir of life (comp. No. 30). Fu Hi is \"the\n life-breeding breath.\" Tortoises live to a great age.\n\n\n\n\nXXX\n\nTHE EIGHT IMMORTALS (I)\n\n\nThere is a legend which declares that Eight Immortals dwell in the\nheavens. The first is named Dschung Li Kuan. He lived in the time of\nthe Han dynasty, and discovered the wonderful magic of golden\ncinnabar, the philosopher's stone. He could melt quicksilver and burn\nlead and turn them into yellow gold and white silver. And he could fly\nthrough the air in his human form. He is the chief of the Eight\nImmortals.\n\nThe second is named Dschang Go. In primal times he gained hidden\nknowledge. It is said that he was really a white bat, who turned into\na man. In the first days of the Tang dynasty an ancient with a white\nbeard and a bamboo drum on his back, was seen riding backward on a\nblack ass in the town of Tschang An. He beat the drum and sang, and\ncalled himself old Dschang Go. Another legend says that he always had\na white mule with him which could cover a thousand miles in a single\nday. When he had reached his destination he would fold up the animal\nand put it in his trunk. When he needed it again, he would sprinkle\nwater on it with his mouth, and the beast would regain its first\nshape.\n\nThe third is named Lu Yuan or Lu Dung Bin (The Mountain Guest). His\nreal name was Li, and he belonged to the ruling Tang dynasty. But when\nthe Empress Wu seized the throne and destroyed the Li family to almost\nthe last man, he fled with his wife into the heart of the mountains.\nThey changed their names to Lu, and, since they lived in hiding in the\ncaverns in the rocks, he called himself the Mountain Guest or the\nGuest of the Rocks. He lived on air and ate no bread. Yet he was fond\nof flowers. And in the course of time he acquired the hidden wisdom.\n\nIn Lo Yang, the capital city, the peonies bloomed with special\nluxuriance. And there dwelt a flower fairy, who changed herself into a\nlovely maiden with whom Guest of the Rocks, when he came to Lo Yang,\nwas wont to converse. Suddenly along came the Yellow Dragon, who had\ntaken the form of a handsome youth. He mocked the flower fairy. Guest\nof the Rocks grew furious and cast his flying sword at him, cutting\noff his head. From that time onward he fell back again into the world\nof mundane pleasure and death. He sank down into the dust of the\ndiurnal, and was no longer able to wing his way to the upper regions.\nLater he met Dschung Li Kuan, who delivered him, and then he was taken\nup in the ranks of the Immortals.\n\nWillowelf was his disciple. This was an old willow-tree which had\ndrawn into itself the most ethereal powers of the sunrays and the\nmoonbeams, and had thus been able to assume the shape of a human\nbeing. His face is blue and he has red hair. Guest of the Rocks\nreceived him as a disciple. Emperors and kings of future times honor\nGuest of the Rocks as the ancestor and master of the pure sun. The\npeople call him Grandfather Lu. He is very wise and powerful. And\ntherefore the people still stream into Grandfather Lu's temples to\nobtain oracles and pray for good luck. If you want to know whether you\nwill be successful or not in an undertaking, go to the temple, light\nincense and bow your head to earth. On the altar is a bamboo goblet,\nin which are some dozens of little lottery sticks. You must shake them\nwhile kneeling, until one of the sticks flies out. On the\nlottery-stick is inscribed a number. This number must then be looked\nup in the Book of Oracles, where it is accompanied by a four-line\nstanza. It is said that fortune and misfortune, strange to think,\noccur to one just as foretold by the oracle.\n\nThe fourth Immortal is Tsau Guo Gui (Tsau the Uncle of the State). He\nwas the younger brother of the Empress Tsau, who for a time ruled the\nland. For this reason he was called the Uncle of the State. From his\nearliest youth he had been a lover of the hidden wisdom. Riches and\nhonors were no more to him than dust. It was Dschung Li Kuan who aided\nhim to become immortal.\n\nThe fifth is called Lan Tsai Ho. Nothing is known of his true name,\nhis time nor his family. He was often seen in the market-place, clad\nin a torn blue robe and wearing only a single shoe, beating a block of\nwood and singing the nothingness of life.\n\nThe sixth Immortal is known as Li Tia Guai (Li with the iron crutch).\nHe lost his parents in early youth and was brought up in his older\nbrother's home. His sister-in-law treated him badly and never gave him\nenough to eat. Because of this he fled into the hills, and there\nlearned the hidden wisdom.\n\nOnce he returned in order to see his brother, and said to his\nsister-in-law: \"Give me something to eat!\" She answered: \"There is no\nkindling wood on hand!\" He replied: \"You need only to prepare the\nrice. I can use my leg for kindling wood, only you must not say that\nthe fire might injure me, and if you do not no harm will be done.\"\n\nHis sister-in-law wished to see his art, so she poured the rice into\nthe pot. Li stretched one of his legs out under it and lit it. The\nflames leaped high and the leg burned like coal.\n\nWhen the rice was nearly boiled his sister-in-law said: \"Won't your\nleg be injured?\"\n\nAnd Li replied angrily: \"Did I not warn you not to say anything! Then\nno harm would have been done. Now one of my legs is lamed.\" With these\nwords he took an iron poker and fashioned it into a crutch for\nhimself. Then he hung a bottle-gourd on his back, and went into the\nhills to gather medicinal herbs. And that is why he is known as Li\nwith the Iron Crutch.\n\nIt is also told of him that he often was in the habit of ascending\ninto the heavens in the spirit to visit his master Laotsze. Before he\nleft he would order a disciple to watch his body and soul within it,\nso that the latter did not escape. Should seven days have gone by\nwithout his spirit returning, then he would allow his soul to leave\nthe empty tenement. Unfortunately, after six days had passed, the\ndisciple was called to the death-bed of his mother, and when the\nmaster's spirit returned on the evening of the seventh day, the life\nhad gone out of its body. Since there was no place for his spirit in\nhis own body, in his despair he seized upon the first handy body from\nwhich the vital essence had not yet dispersed. It was the body of a\nneighbor, a lame cripple, who had just died, so that from that time on\nthe master appeared in his form.\n\nThe seventh Immortal is called Hang Siang Dsi. He was the nephew of\nthe famous Confucian scholar Han Yu, of the Tang dynasty. From his\nearliest youth he cultivated the arts of the deathless gods, left his\nhome and became a Taoist. Grandfather Lu awakened him and raised him\nto the heavenly world. Once he saved his uncle's life. The latter had\nbeen driven from court, because he had objected when the emperor sent\nfor a bone of Buddha with great pomp. When he reached the Blue Pass in\nhis flight, a deep snowfall had made the road impassable. His horse\nhad floundered in a snow-drift, and he himself was well-nigh frozen.\nThen Hang Siang Dsi suddenly appeared, helped him and his horse out of\nthe drift, and brought them safely to the nearest inn along the Blue\nPass. Han Yu sang a verse, in which the lines occurred:\n\n Tsin Ling Hill 'mid clouds doth lie,\n And home is far, beyond my sight!\n Round the Blue Pass snow towers high,\n And who will lead the horse aright?\n\nSuddenly it occurred to him that several years before, Hang Siang Dsi\nhad come to his house to congratulate him on his birthday. Before he\nhad left, he had written these words on a slip of paper, and his uncle\nhad read them, without grasping their meaning. And now he was\nunconsciously singing the very lines of that song that his nephew had\nwritten. So he said to Hang Siang Dsi, with a sigh: \"You must be one\nof the Immortals, since you were able thus to foretell the future!\"\n\nAnd thrice Hang Siang Dsi sought to deliver his wife from the bonds of\nearth. For when he left his home to seek the hidden wisdom, she sat\nall day long yearning for his presence. Hang Siang Dsi wished to\nrelease her into immortality, but he feared she was not capable of\ntranslation. So he appeared to her in various forms, in order to try\nher, once as a beggar, another time as a wandering monk. But his wife\ndid not grasp her opportunities. At last he took the shape of a lame\nTaoist, who sat on a mat, beat a block of wood and read sutras before\nthe house.\n\nHis wife said: \"My husband is not at home. I can give you nothing.\"\n\nThe Taoist answered: \"I do not want your gold and silver, I want you.\nSit down beside me on the mat, and we will fly up into the air and you\nshall find your husband again!\"\n\nHereupon the woman grew angry and struck at him with a cudgel.\n\nThen Hang Siang Dsi changed himself into his true form, stepped on a\nshining cloud and was carried aloft. His wife looked after him and\nwept loudly; but he had disappeared and was not seen again.\n\nThe eighth Immortal is a girl and was called Ho Sian Gu. She was a\npeasant's daughter, and though her step-mother treated her harshly she\nremained respectful and industrious. She loved to give alms, though\nher step-mother tried to prevent her. Yet she was never angry, even\nwhen her step-mother beat her. She had sworn not to marry, and at last\nher step-mother did not know what to do with her. One day, while she\nwas cooking rice, Grandfather Du came and delivered her. She was still\nholding the rice-spoon in her hand as she ascended into the air. In\nthe heavens she was appointed to sweep up the fallen flowers at the\nSouthern Gate of Heaven.\n\n Note: The legends of the Eight Immortals, regarded as\n one group, do not go back further than the Manchu\n dynasty, though individual ones among them were known\n before. Some of the Immortals, like Han Siang Dsi, are\n historic personages, others purely mythical. In the\n present day they play an important part in art and in\n the art-crafts. Their emblems also occur frequently:\n Dschung Li Kuan is represented with a fan. Dschang Go\n has a bamboo drum with two drum-sticks (and his donkey).\n Lu Dung Bin has a sword and a flower-basket on his\n back. Tsau Guo Gui has two small boards, (Yin Yang Ban),\n which he can throw into the air. Li Tia Guai has the\n bottle-gourd, out of which emerges a bat, the emblem of\n good fortune. Lan Tsai Ho, who is also pictured as a woman,\n has a flute. Han Siang Dsi has a flower-basket and a\n dibble. Ho Sian Gu has a spoon, usually formed in the\n shape of a lotus-flower.\n\n\n\n\nXXXI\n\nTHE EIGHT IMMORTALS (II)\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a poor man, who at last had no roof to\nshelter him and not a bite to eat. So, weary and worn, he lay down\nbeside a little temple of the field-god that stood by the roadside and\nfell asleep. And he dreamed that the old, white-bearded field-god came\nout of his little shrine and said to him: \"I know of a means to help\nyou! To-morrow the Eight Immortals will pass along this road. Cast\nyourself down before them and plead to them!\"\n\nWhen the man awoke he seated himself beneath the great tree beside the\nfield-god's little temple, and waited all day long for his dream to\ncome true. At last, when the sun had nearly sunk, eight figures came\ndown the road, which the beggar clearly recognized as those of the\nEight Immortals. Seven of them were hurrying as fast as they could,\nbut one among them, who had a lame leg, limped along after the rest.\nBefore him--it was Li Tia Guai--the man cast himself to earth. But the\nlame Immortal did not want to bother with him, and told him to go\naway. Yet the poor man would not give over pleading with him, begging\nthat he might go with them and be one of the Immortals, too. That\nwould be impossible, said the cripple. Yet, as the poor man did not\ncease his prayers and would not leave him, he at last said: \"Very\nwell, then, take hold of my coat!\" This the man did and off they went\nin flying haste over paths and fields, on and on, and even further on.\nSuddenly they stood together high up on the tower of Pong-lai-schan,\nthe ghost mountain by the Eastern Sea. And, lo, there stood the rest\nof the Immortals as well! But they were very discontented with the\ncompanion whom Li Tia Guai had brought along. Yet since the poor man\npleaded so earnestly, they too allowed themselves to be moved, and\nsaid to him: \"Very well! We will now leap down into the sea. If you\nfollow us you may also become an Immortal!\" And one after another the\nseven leaped down into the sea. But when it came to the man's turn he\nwas frightened, and would not dare the leap. Then the cripple said to\nhim: \"If you are afraid, then you cannot become an Immortal!\"\n\n\"But what shall I do now?\" wailed the man, \"I am far from my home and\nhave no money!\" The cripple broke off a fragment of the battlement of\nthe tower, and thrust it into the man's hand; then he also leaped from\nthe tower and disappeared into the sea like his seven companions.\n\nWhen the man examined the stone in his hand more closely, he saw that\nit was the purest silver. It provided him with traveling money during\nthe many weeks it took him to reach his home. But by that time the\nsilver was completely used up, and he found himself just as poor as he\nhad been before.\n\n Note: Little field-god temples, Tu Di Miau, are\n miniature stone chapels which stand before every\n village. As regards the field-god, see No. 51.\n\n\n\n\nXXXII\n\nTHE TWO SCHOLARS\n\n\nOnce upon a time there were two scholars. One was named Liu Tschen and\nthe other Yuan Dschau. Both were young and handsome. One spring day\nthey went together into the hills of Tian Tai to gather curative\nherbs. There they came to a little valley where peach-trees blossomed\nluxuriantly on either side. In the middle of the valley was a cave,\nwhere two maidens stood under the blossoming trees, one of them clad\nin red garments, the other in green. And they were beautiful beyond\nall telling. They beckoned to the scholars with their hands.\n\n\"And have you come?\" they asked. \"We have been waiting for you\noverlong!\"\n\nThen they led them into the cave and served them with tea and wine.\n\n\"I have been destined for the lord Liu,\" said the maiden in the red\ngown; \"and my sister is for the lord Yuan!\"\n\nAnd so they were married. Every day the two scholars gazed at the\nflowers or played chess so that they forgot the mundane world\ncompletely. They only noticed that at times the peach-blossoms on the\ntrees before the cave opened, and at others that they fell from the\nboughs. And, at times, unexpectedly, they felt cold or warm, and had\nto change the clothing they were wearing. And they marveled within\nthemselves that it should be so.\n\nThen, one day, they were suddenly overcome by homesickness. Both\nmaidens were already aware of it.\n\n\"When our lords have once been seized with homesickness, then we may\nhold them no longer,\" said they.\n\nOn the following day they prepared a farewell banquet, gave the\nscholars magic wine to take along with them and said:\n\n\"We will see one another again. Now go your way!\"\n\nAnd the scholars bade them farewell with tears.\n\nWhen they reached home the gates and doors had long since vanished,\nand the people of the village were all strangers to them. They crowded\nabout the scholars and asked who they might be.\n\n\"We are Liu Tschen and Yuan Dschau. Only a few days ago we went into\nthe hills to pick herbs!\"\n\nWith that a servant came hastening up and looked at them. At last he\nfell at Liu Tschen's feet with great joy and cried: \"Yes, you are\nreally my master! Since you went away, and we had no news of any kind\nregarding you some seventy years or more have passed.\"\n\nThereupon he drew the scholar Liu through a high gateway, ornamented\nwith bosses and a ring in a lion's mouth, as is the custom in the\ndwellings of those of high estate.\n\nAnd when he entered the hall, an old lady with white hair and bent\nback, leaning on a cane, came forward and asked: \"What man is this?\"\n\n\"Our master has returned again,\" replied the servant. And then,\nturning to Liu he added: \"That is the mistress. She is nearly a\nhundred years old, but fortunately is still strong and in good\nhealth.\"\n\nTears of joy and sadness filled the old lady's eyes.\n\n\"Since you went away among the immortals, I had thought that we should\nnever see each other again in this life,\" said she. \"What great good\nfortune that you should have returned after all!\"\n\nAnd before she had ended the whole family, men and women, came\nstreaming up and welcomed him in a great throng outside the hall.\n\nAnd his wife pointed out this one and that and said: \"That is so and\nso, and this is so and so!\"\n\nAt the time the scholar had disappeared there had been only a tiny boy\nin his home, but a few years old. And he was now an old man of eighty.\nHe had served the empire in a high office, and had already retired to\nenjoy his old age in the ancestral gardens. There were three\ngrand-children, all celebrated ministers; there were more than ten\ngreat-grand-children, of whom five had already passed their examinations\nfor the doctorate; there were some twenty great-great-grand-children, of\nwhom the oldest had just returned home after having passed his induction\nexaminations for the magistracy with honor. And the little ones, who\nwere carried in their parents' arms, were not to be counted. The\ngrand-children, who were away, busy with their duties, all asked for\nleave and returned home when they heard that their ancestor had\nreturned. And the girl grand-children, who had married into other\nfamilies, also came. This filled Liu with joy, and he had a family\nbanquet prepared in the hall, and all his descendants, with their wives\nand husbands sat about him in a circle. He himself and his wife, a\nwhite-haired, wrinkled old lady, sat in their midst at the upper end.\nThe scholar himself still looked like a youth of twenty years, so that\nall the young people in the circle looked around and laughed.\n\nThen the scholar said: \"I have a means of driving away old age!\"\n\nAnd he drew out his magic wine and gave his wife some of it to drink.\nAnd when she had taken three glasses, her white hair gradually turned\nblack again, her wrinkles disappeared, and she sat beside her husband,\na handsome young woman. Then his son and the older grand-children\ncame up and all asked for a drink of the wine. And whichever of them\ndrank only so much as a drop of it was turned from an old man into a\nyouth. The tale was bruited abroad and came to the emperor's ears. The\nemperor wanted to call Liu to his court, but he declined with many\nthanks. Yet he sent the emperor some of his magic wine as a gift. This\npleased the emperor greatly, and he gave Liu a tablet of honor, with\nthe inscription:\n\n \"The Common Home of Five Generations\"\n\nBesides this he sent him three signs which he had written with his own\nimperial brush signifying:\n\n \"Joy in longevity\"\n\nAs to the other of the two scholars, Yuan Dschau, he was not so\nfortunate. When he came home he found that his wife and child had long\nsince died, and his grand-children and great-grand-children were\nmostly useless people. So he did not remain long, but returned to the\nhills. Yet Liu Tschen remained for some years with his family, then\ntaking his wife with him, went again to the Tai Hills and was seen no\nmore.\n\n Note: This tale is placed in the reign of the Emperor\n Ming Di (A.D. 58-75). Its motive is that of the legend\n of the Seven Sleepers, and is often found in Chinese\n fairy tales.\n\n\n\n\nXXXIII\n\nTHE MISERLY FARMER\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a farmer who had carted pears to market.\nSince they were very sweet and fragrant, he hoped to get a good price\nfor them. A bonze with a torn cap and tattered robe stepped up to his\ncart and asked for one. The farmer repulsed him, but the bonze did not\ngo. Then the farmer grew angry and began to call him names. The bonze\nsaid: \"You have pears by the hundred in your cart. I only ask for one.\nSurely that does you no great injury. Why suddenly grow so angry about\nit?\"\n\nThe bystanders told the farmer that he ought to give the bonze one of\nthe smaller pears and let him go. But the farmer would not and did\nnot. An artisan saw the whole affair from his shop, and since the\nnoise annoyed him, he took some money, bought a pear and gave it to\nthe bonze.\n\nThe bonze thanked him and said: \"One like myself, who has given up the\nworld, must not be miserly. I have beautiful pears myself, and I\ninvite you all to eat them with me.\" Then some one asked: \"If you have\npears then why do you not eat your own?\" He answered: \"I first must\nhave a seed to plant.\"\n\nAnd with that he began to eat the pear with gusto. When he had\nfinished, he held the pit in his hand, took his pick-ax from his\nshoulder; and dug a hole a couple of inches deep. Into this he thrust\nthe pit, and covered it with earth. Then he asked the folk in the\nmarket place for water, with which to water it. A pair of curiosity\nseekers brought him hot water from the hostelry in the street, and\nwith it the bonze watered the pit. Thousands of eyes were turned on\nthe spot. And the pit could already be seen to sprout. The sprout grew\nand in a moment it had turned into a tree. Branches and leaves\nburgeoned out from it. It began to blossom and soon the fruit had\nripened: large, fragrant pears, which hung in thick clusters from the\nboughs. The bonze climbed into the tree and handed down the pears to\nthe bystanders. In a moment all the pears had been eaten up. Then the\nbonze took his pick-ax and cut down the tree. Crash, crash! so it went\nfor a while, and the tree was felled. Then he took the tree on his\nshoulder and walked away at an easy gait.\n\nWhen the bonze had begun to make his magic, the farmer, too, had\nmingled with the crowd. With neck outstretched and staring eyes he had\nstood there and had entirely forgotten the business he hoped to do\nwith his pears. When the bonze had gone off he turned around to look\nafter his cart. His pears had all disappeared. Then he realized that\nthe pears the bonze had divided had been his own. He looked more\nclosely, and the axle of his cart had disappeared. It was plainly\nevident that it had been chopped off quite recently. The farmer fell\ninto a rage and hastened after the bonze as fast as ever he could. And\nwhen he turned the corner, there lay the missing piece from the axle\nby the city wall. And then he realized that the pear-tree which the\nbonze had chopped down must have been his axle. The bonze, however,\nwas nowhere to be found. And the whole crowd in the market burst out\ninto loud laughter.\n\n Note: The axle in China is really a handle, for the\n little Chinese carts are one-wheel push-carts with two\n handles or shafts.\n\n\n\n\nXXXIV\n\nSKY O'DAWN\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a man who took a child to a woman in a\ncertain village, and told her to take care of him. Then he\ndisappeared. And because the dawn was just breaking in the sky when\nthe woman took the child into her home, she called him Sky O'Dawn.\nWhen the child was three years old, he would often look up to the\nheavens and talk with the stars. One day he ran away and many months\npassed before he came home again. The woman gave him a whipping. But\nhe ran away again, and did not return for a year. His foster-mother\nwas frightened, and asked: \"Where have you been all year long?\" The\nboy answered: \"I only made a quick trip to the Purple Sea. There the\nwater stained my clothes red. So I went to the spring at which the sun\nturns in, and washed them. I went away in the morning and I came back\nat noon. Why do you speak about my having been gone a year?\"\n\nThen the woman asked: \"And where did you pass on your way?\"\n\nThe boy answered: \"When I had washed my clothes, I rested for a while\nin the City of the Dead and fell asleep. And the King-Father of the\nEast gave me red chestnuts and rosy dawn-juice to eat, and my hunger\nwas stilled. Then I went to the dark skies and drank the yellow dew,\nand my thirst was quenched. And I met a black tiger and wanted to ride\nhome on his back. But I whipped him too hard, and he bit me in the\nleg. And so I came back to tell you about it.\"\n\n [Illustration: \"'AND I CROSSED THE WATER ON THE SHOE.'\"\n --_Page 91_]\n\nOnce more the boy ran away from home, thousands of miles, until he\ncame to the swamp where dwelt the Primal Mist. There he met an old man\nwith yellow eyebrows and asked him how old he might be. The old man\nsaid: \"I have given up the habit of eating, and live on air. The\npupils of my eyes have gradually acquired a green glow, which enables\nme to see all hidden things. Whenever a thousand years have passed I\nturn around my bones and wash the marrow. And every two thousand years\nI scrape my skin to get rid of the hair. I have already washed my\nbones thrice and scraped my skin five times.\"\n\nAfterward Sky O'Dawn served the Emperor Wu of the Han dynasty. The\nEmperor, who was fond of the magic arts, was much attached to him. One\nday he said to him: \"I wish that the empress might not grow old. Can\nyou prevent it?\"\n\nSky O'Dawn answered: \"I know of only one means to keep from growing\nold.\"\n\nThe Emperor asked what herbs one had to eat. Sky O'Dawn replied: \"In\nthe North-East grow the mushrooms of life. There is a three-legged\ncrow in the sun who always wants to get down and eat them. But the\nSun-God holds his eyes shut and does not let him get away. If human\nbeings eat them they become immortal, when animals eat them they grow\nstupefied.\"\n\n\"And how do you know this?\" asked the Emperor.\n\n\"When I was a boy I once fell into a deep well, from which I could not\nget out for many decades. And down there was an immortal who led me to\nthis herb. But one has to pass through a red river whose water is so\nlight that not even a feather can swim on it. Everything that touches\nits surface sinks to the depths. But the man pulled off one of his\nshoes and gave it to me. And I crossed the water on the shoe, picked\nthe herb and ate it. Those who dwell in that place weave mats of\npearls and precious stones. They led me to a spot before which hung a\ncurtain of delicate, colored skin. And they gave me a pillow carved of\nblack jade, on which were graven sun and moon, clouds and thunder.\nThey covered me with a dainty coverlet spun of the hair of a hundred\ngnats. A cover of that kind is very cool and refreshing in summer. I\nfelt of it with my hands, and it seemed to be formed of water; but\nwhen I looked at it more closely, it was pure light.\"\n\nOnce the Emperor called together all his magicians in order to talk\nwith them about the fields of the blessed spirits. Sky O'Dawn was\nthere, too, and said: \"Once I was wandering about the North Pole and I\ncame to the Fire-Mirror Mountain. There neither sun nor moon shines.\nBut there is a dragon who holds a fiery mirror in his jaws in order to\nlight up the darkness. On the mountain is a park, and in the park is a\nlake. By the lake grows the glimmer-stalk grass, which shines like a\nlamp of gold. If you pluck it and use it for a candle, you can see all\nthings visible, and the shapes of the spirits as well. It even\nilluminates the interior of a human being.\"\n\nOnce Sky O'Dawn went to the East, into the country of the fortunate\nclouds. And he brought back with him from that land a steed of the\ngods, nine feet high. The Emperor asked him how he had come to find\nit.\n\nSo he told him: \"The Queen-Mother of the West had him harnessed to her\nwagon when she went to visit the King-Father of the East. The steed\nwas staked out in the field of the mushrooms of life. But he trampled\ndown several hundred of them. This made the King-Father angry, and he\ndrove the steed away to the heavenly river. There I found him and rode\nhim home. I rode three times around the sun, because I had fallen\nasleep on the steed's back. And then, before I knew it, I was here.\nThis steed can catch up with the sun's shadow. When I found him he was\nquite thin and as sad as an aged donkey. So I mowed the grass of the\ncountry of the fortunate clouds, which grows once every two-thousand\nyears on the Mountain of the Nine Springs and fed it to the horse; and\nthat made him lively again.\"\n\nThe Emperor asked what sort of a place the country of the fortunate\nclouds might be. Sky O'Dawn answered: \"There is a great swamp there.\nThe people prophesy fortune and misfortune by the air and the clouds.\nIf good fortune is to befall a house, clouds of five colors form in\nthe rooms, which alight on the grass and trees and turn into a colored\ndew. This dew tastes as sweet as cider.\"\n\nThe Emperor asked whether he could obtain any of this dew. Sky O'Dawn\nreplied: \"My steed could take me to the place where it falls four\ntimes in the course of a single day!\"\n\nAnd sure enough he came back by evening, and brought along dew of\nevery color in a crystal flask. The Emperor drank it and his hair grew\nblack again. He gave it to his highest officials to drink, and the old\ngrew young again and the sick became well.\n\nOnce, when a comet appeared in the heavens, Sky O'Dawn gave the\nEmperor the astrologer's wand. The Emperor pointed it at the comet and\nthe comet was quenched.\n\nSky O'Dawn was an excellent whistler. And whenever he whistled in full\ntones, long drawn out, the motes in the sunbeams danced to his music.\n\nOnce he said to a friend: \"There is not a soul on earth who knows who\nI am with the exception of the astrologer!\"\n\nWhen Sky O'Dawn had died, the Emperor called the astrologer to him\nand asked: \"Did you know Sky O'Dawn?\"\n\nHe replied: \"No!\"\n\nThe Emperor said: \"What do you know?\"\n\nThe astrologer answered: \"I know how to gaze on the stars.\"\n\n\"Are all the stars in their places?\" asked the Emperor.\n\n\"Yes, but for eighteen years I have not seen the Star of the Great\nYear. Now it is visible once more.\"\n\nThen the Emperor looked up towards the skies and sighed: \"For eighteen\nyears Sky O'Dawn kept me company, and I did not know that he was the\nStar of the Great Year!\"\n\n Note: The mother of Sky O'Dawn, (Dung Fang So) who makes\n so mysterious an appearance on earth, according to one\n tradition, is the third daughter of the Lord of the\n Heavens. (Comp. Note to No. 16). Dung Fang So is an\n incarnation of the Wood Star or Star of the Great Year\n (Jupiter). The King-Father of the East, one of the Five\n Ancients, is the representative of wood (comp. No. 15).\n Red chestnuts, like fire-dates, are fruits of the gods,\n and bestow immortality. Sky O'Dawn was an excellent\n whistler. Whistling is a famous means of magic among the\n Taoists. The Emperor Wu of the Han dynasty, was a prince\n who is reputed to have devoted much attention to the\n magic arts. He reigned from 140 to 86 B.C. The\n three-legged crow in the sun is the counterpart of the\n three-legged ram-toad in the moon. The Red River recalls\n the Weak River by the Castle of the Queen-Mother of the\n West.\n\n\n\n\nXXXV\n\nKING MU OF DSCHOU\n\n\nIn the days of King Mu of Dschou a magician came out of the uttermost\nWest, who could walk through water and fire, and pass through metal\nand stone. He could make mountains and rivers change place, shift\nabout cities and castles, rise into emptiness without falling, strike\nagainst solid matter without finding it an obstruction; and he knew a\nthousand transformations in all their inexhaustible variety. And he\ncould not only change the shape of things but he could change men's\nthoughts. The King honored him like a god, and served him as he would\na master. He resigned his own apartments that the magician might be\nlodged in them, had beasts of sacrifice brought to offer him, and\nselected sweet singers to give him pleasure. But the rooms in the\nKing's palace were too humble--the magician could not dwell in them;\nand the King's singers were not musical enough to be allowed to be\nnear him. So King Mu had a new palace built for him. The work of\nbricklayers and carpenters, of painters and stainers left nothing to\nbe desired with regard to skill. The King's treasury was empty when\nthe tower had reached its full height. It was a thousand fathoms high,\nand rose above the top of the mountain before the capital. The King\nselected maidens, the loveliest and most dainty, gave them fragrant\nessences, had their eyebrows curved in lines of beauty, and adorned\ntheir hair and ears with jewels. He garbed them in fine cloth, and\nwith white silks fluttering about them, and had their faces painted\nwhite and their eyebrows stained black. He had them put on armlets of\nprecious stones and mix sweet-smelling herbs. They filled the palace\nand sang the songs of the ancient kings in order to please the\nmagician. Every month the most costly garments were brought him, and\nevery morning the most delicate food. The magician allowed them to do\nso, and since he had no choice, made the best of it.\n\nNot long afterward the magician invited the King to go traveling with\nhim. The King grasped the magician's sleeve, and thus they flew up\nthrough the air to the middle of the skies. When they stopped they\nfound they had reached the palace of the magician. It was built of\ngold and silver, and adorned with pearls and precious stones. It\ntowered high over the clouds and rain; and none could say whereon it\nrested. To the eye it had the appearance of heaped-up clouds. All that\nit offered the senses was different from the things of the world of\nmen. It seemed to the King as though he were bodily present in the\nmidst of the purple depths of the city of the air, of the divine\nharmony of the spheres, where the Great God dwells. The King looked\ndown, and his castles and pleasure-houses appeared to him like hills\nof earth and heaps of straw. And there the King remained for some\ndecades and thought no more of his kingdom.\n\nThen the magician again invited the King to go traveling with him once\nmore. And in the place to which they came there was to be seen neither\nsun nor moon above, nor rivers or sea below. The King's dazzled eyes\ncould not see the radiant shapes which showed themselves; the King's\ndulled ears could not hear the sounds which played about them. It\nseemed as though his body were dissolving in confusion; his thoughts\nbegan to stray, and consciousness threatened to leave him. So he\nbegged the magician to return. The magician put his spell upon him,\nand it seemed to the King as though he were falling into empty space.\n\nWhen he regained consciousness, he was sitting at the same place where\nhe had been sitting when the magician had asked him to travel with him\nfor the first time. The servants waiting on him were the same, and\nwhen he looked down, his goblet was not yet empty, and his food had\nnot yet grown cold.\n\nThe King asked what had happened. And the servants answered, \"The King\nsat for a space in silence.\" Whereupon the King was quite bereft of\nreason, and it was three months before he regained his right mind.\nThen he questioned the magician. The magician said: \"I was traveling\nwith you in the spirit, O King! What need was there for the body to go\nalong? And the place in which we stayed at that time was no less real\nthan your own castle and your own gardens. But you are used only to\npermanent conditions, therefore visions which dissolve so suddenly\nappear strange to you.\"\n\nThe King was content with the explanation. He gave no further thought\nto the business of government and took no more interest in his\nservants, but resolved to travel afar. So he had the eight famous\nsteeds harnessed, and accompanied by a few faithful retainers, drove a\nthousand miles away. There he came to the country of the great\nhunters. The great hunters brought the King the blood of the white\nbrant to drink, and washed his feet in the milk of mares and cows.\nWhen the King and his followers had quenched their thirst, they drove\non and camped for the night on the slope of the Kunlun Mountain, south\nof the Red River. The next day they climbed to the peak of Kunlun\nMountain and gazed at the castle of the Lord of the Yellow Earth.\nThen they traveled on to the Queen-Mother of the West. Before they got\nthere they had to pass the Weak River. This is a river whose waters\nwill bear neither floats nor ships. All that attempts to float over it\nsinks into its depths. When the King reached the shore, fish and\nturtles, crabs and salamanders came swimming up and formed a bridge,\nso that he could drive across with the wagon.\n\nIt is said of the Queen-Mother of the West that she goes about with\nhair unkempt, with a bird's beak and tiger's teeth, and that she is\nskilled in playing the flute. Yet this is not her true figure, but\nthat of a spirit who serves her, and rules over the Western sky. The\nQueen-Mother entertained King Mu in her castle by the Springs of Jade.\nAnd she gave him rock-marrow to drink and fed him with the fruit of\nthe jade-trees. Then she sang him a song and taught him a magic\nformula by means of which one could obtain long life. The Queen-Mother\nof the West gathers the immortals around her, and gives them to eat of\nthe peaches of long life; and then they come to her with wagons with\npurple canopies, drawn by flying dragons. Ordinary mortals sink in the\nWeak River when they try to cross. But she was kindly disposed to King\nMu.\n\nWhen he took leave of her, he also went on to the spot where the sun\nturns in after running three thousand miles a day. Then he returned\nagain to his kingdom.\n\nWhen King Mu was a hundred years old, the Queen-Mother of the West\ndrew near his palace and led him away with her into the clouds.\n\nAnd from that day on he was seen no more.\n\n Note: King Mu of Dschou reigned from 1001 to 946 B.C.\n With his name are associated the stories of the\n marvelous travels into the land of the far West, and\n especially to the Queen-Mother (who is identified by\n some with Juno). The peaches of immortality suggest the\n apples of the Hesperides. (Comp. with the story of \"The\n Ape Sun Wu Kung.\")\n\n\n\n\nXXXVI\n\nTHE KING OF HUAI NAN\n\n\nThe King of Huai Nan was a learned man of the Han dynasty. Since he\nwas of the blood royal the emperor had given him a kingdom in fee. He\ncultivated the society of scholars, could interpret signs and foretell\nthe future. Together with his scholars he had compiled the book which\nbears his name.\n\nOne day eight aged men came to see him. They all had white beards and\nwhite hair. The gate-keeper announced them to the King. The King\nwished to try them, so he sent back the gate-keeper to put\ndifficulties in the way of their entrance. The latter said to them:\n\"Our King is striving to learn the art of immortal life. You gentlemen\nare old and feeble. How can you be of aid to him? It is unnecessary\nfor you to pay him a visit.\"\n\nThe eight old men smiled and said: \"Oh, and are we too old to suit\nyou? Well, then we will make ourselves young!\" And before they had\nfinished speaking they had turned themselves into boys of fourteen and\nfifteen, with hair-knots as black as silk and faces like\npeach-blossoms. The gate-keeper was frightened, and at once informed\nthe King of what had happened. When the King heard it, he did not even\ntake time to slip into his shoes, but hurried out barefoot to receive\nthem. He led them into his palace, had rugs of brocade spread for\nthem, and beds of ivory set up, fragrant herbs burned and tables of\ngold and precious stones set in front of them. Then he bowed before\nthem as pupils do before a teacher, and told them how glad he was that\nthey had come.\n\nThe eight boys changed into old men again and said: \"Do you wish to go\nto school to us, O King? Each one of us is master of a particular art.\nOne of us can call up wind and rain, cause clouds and mists to gather,\nrivers to flow and mountains to heave themselves up, if he wills it\nso. The second can cause high mountains to split asunder and check\ngreat streams in their course. He can tame tigers and panthers and\nsoothe serpents and dragons. Spirits and gods do his bidding. The\nthird can send out doubles, transform himself into other shapes, make\nhimself invisible, cause whole armies to disappear, and turn day into\nnight. The fourth can walk through the air and clouds, can stroll on\nthe surface of the waves, pass through walls and rocks and cover a\nthousand miles in a single breath. The fifth can enter fire without\nburning, and water without drowning. The winter frost cannot chill\nhim, nor the summer heat burn him. The sixth can create and transform\nliving creatures if he feel inclined. He can form birds and beasts,\ngrasses and trees. He can transplace houses and castles. The seventh\ncan bake lime so that it turns to gold, and cook lead so that it turns\nto silver; he can mingle water and stone so that the bubbles\neffervesce and turn into pearls. The eighth can ride on dragons and\ncranes to the eight poles of the world, converse with the immortals,\nand stand in the presence of the Great Pure One.\"\n\nThe King kept them beside him from morning to night, entertained them\nand had them show him what they could do. And, true enough, they could\ndo everything just as they had said. And now the King began to distil\nthe elixir of life with their aid. He had finished, but not yet\nimbibed it when a misfortune overtook his family. His son had been\nplaying with a courtier and the latter had heedlessly wounded him.\nFearing that the prince might punish him, he joined other discontented\npersons and excited a revolt. And the emperor, when he heard of it,\nsent one of his captains to judge between the King and the rebels.\n\nThe eight aged men spoke: \"It is now time to go. This misfortune has\nbeen sent you from heaven, O King! Had it not befallen you, you would\nnot have been able to resolve to leave the splendors and glories of\nthis world!\"\n\nThey led him on to a mountain. There they offered sacrifices to\nheaven, and buried gold in the earth. Then they ascended into the\nskies in bright daylight. The footprints of the eight aged men and of\nthe king were imprinted in the rock of the mountain, and may be seen\nthere to this very day. Before they had left the castle, however, they\nhad set what was left of the elixir of life out in the courtyard. Hens\nand hounds picked and licked it up, and all flew up into the skies. In\nHuai Nan to this very day the crowing of cocks and the barking of\nhounds may be heard up in the skies, and it is said that these are the\ncreatures who followed the King at the time.\n\nOne of the King's servants, however, followed him to an island in the\nsea, whence he sent him back. He told that the King himself had not\nyet ascended to the skies, but had only become immortal and was\nwandering about the world. When the emperor heard of the matter he\nregretted greatly that he had sent soldiers into the King's land and\nthus driven him out. He called in magicians to aid him, in hope of\nmeeting the eight old men himself. Yet, for all that he spent great\nsums, he was not successful. The magicians only cheated him.\n\n Note: The King of Huai Nan was named Liu An. He belonged\n to the Han dynasty. He dabbled largely in magic, and\n drew to his court many magicians whose labors are\n collected in the philosophical work which bears his\n name. Liu An lived at the time of the Emperor Wu (see\n No. 34). The latter having no heirs, Liu An entered into\n a conspiracy which, however, was discovered. As a\n consequence he killed himself, 122 B.C. Our fairy-tale\n presents these events in their legendary transformation.\n\n\n\n\nXXXVII\n\nOLD DSCHANG\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a man who went by the name of Old Dschang.\nHe lived in the country, near Yangdschou, as a gardener. His neighbor,\nnamed Sir We, held an official position in Yangdschou. Sir We had\ndecided that it was time for his daughter to marry, so he sent for a\nmatch-maker and commissioned her to find a suitable husband. Old\nDschang heard this, and was pleased. He prepared food and drink,\nentertained the match-maker, and told her to recommend him as a\nhusband. But the old match-maker went off scolding.\n\nThe next day he invited her to dinner again and gave her money. Then\nthe old match-maker said: \"You do not know what you wish! Why should a\ngentleman's beautiful daughter condescend to marry a poor old gardener\nlike yourself? Even though you had money to burn, your white hair\nwould not match her black locks. Such a marriage is out of the\nquestion!\"\n\nBut Old Dschang did not cease to entreat her: \"Make an attempt, just\none attempt, to mention me! If they will not listen to you, then I\nmust resign myself to my fate!\"\n\nThe old match-maker had taken his money, so she could not well refuse,\nand though she feared being scolded, she mentioned him to Sir We. He\ngrew angry and wanted to throw her out of the house.\n\n\"I knew you would not thank me,\" said she, \"but the old man urged it\nso that I could not refuse to mention his intention.\"\n\n\"Tell the old man that if this very day he brings me two white\njade-stones, and four hundred ounces of yellow gold, then I will give\nhim my daughter's hand in marriage.\"\n\nBut he only wished to mock the old man's folly, for he knew that the\nlatter could not give him anything of the kind. The match-maker went\nto Old Dschang and delivered the message. And he made no objection;\nbut at once brought the exact quantity of gold and jewels to Sir We's\nhouse. The latter was very much frightened and when his wife heard of\nit, she began to weep and wail loudly. But the girl encouraged her\nmother: \"My father has given his word now and cannot break it. I will\nknow how to bear my fate.\"\n\nSo Sir We's daughter was married to Old Dschang. But even after the\nwedding the latter did not give up his work as a gardener. He spaded\nthe field and sold vegetables as usual, and his wife had to fetch\nwater and build the kitchen fire herself. But she did her work without\nfalse shame and, though her relatives reproached her, she continued to\ndo so.\n\nOnce an aristocratic relative visited Sir We and said: \"If you had\nreally been poor, were there not enough young gentlemen in the\nneighborhood for your daughter? Why did you have to marry her to such\na wrinkled old gardener? Now that you have thrown her away, so to\nspeak, it would be better if both of them left this part of the\ncountry.\"\n\nThen Sir We prepared a banquet and invited his daughter and Old\nDschang to visit him. When they had had sufficient to eat and drink he\nallowed them to get an inkling of what was in his mind.\n\nSaid Old Dschang: \"I have only remained here because I thought you\nwould long for your daughter. But since you are tired of us, I will be\nglad to go. I have a little country house back in the hills, and we\nwill set out for it early to-morrow morning.\"\n\nThe following morning, at break of dawn, Old Dschang came with his\nwife to say farewell. Sir We said: \"Should we long to see you at some\nlater time, my son can make inquiries.\" Old Dschang placed his wife on\na donkey and gave her a straw hat to wear. He himself took his staff\nand walked after.\n\nA few years passed without any news from either of them. Then Sir We\nand his wife felt quite a longing to see their daughter and sent their\nson to make inquiries. When the latter got back in the hills he met a\nplow-boy who was plowing with two yellow steers. He asked him: \"Where\nis Old Dschang's country house?\" The plow-boy left the plow in the\nharrow, bowed and answered: \"You have been a long time coming, sir!\nThe village is not far from here: I will show you the way.\"\n\nThey crossed a hill. At the foot of the hill flowed a brook, and when\nthey had crossed the brook they had to climb another hill. Gradually\nthe landscape changed. From the top of the hill could be seen a\nvalley, level in the middle, surrounded by abrupt crags and shaded by\ngreen trees, among which houses and towers peeped forth. This was the\ncountry house of Old Dschang. Before the village flowed a deep brook\nfull of clear, blue water. They passed over a stone bridge and reached\nthe gate. Here flowers and trees grew in luxurious profusion, and\npeacocks and cranes flew about. From the distance could be heard the\nsound of flutes and of stringed instruments. Crystal-clear tones rose\nto the clouds. A messenger in a purple robe received the guest at the\ngate and led him into a hall of surpassing splendor. Strange\nfragrances filled the air, and there was a ringing of little bells of\npearl. Two maid-servants came forth to greet him, followed by two rows\nof beautiful girls in a long processional. After them a man in a\nflowing turban, clad in scarlet silk, with red slippers, came floating\nalong. The guest saluted him. He was serious and dignified, and at the\nsame time seemed youthfully fresh. At first We's son did not recognize\nhim, but when he looked more closely, why it was Old Dschang! The\nlatter said with a smile: \"I am pleased that the long road to travel\nhas not prevented your coming. Your sister is just combing her hair.\nShe will welcome you in a moment.\" Then he had him sit down and drink\ntea.\n\nAfter a short time a maid-servant came and led him to the inner rooms,\nto his sister. The beams of her room were of sandalwood, the doors of\ntortoise-shell and the windows inlaid with blue jade; her curtains\nwere formed of strings of pearls and the steps leading into the room\nof green nephrite. His sister was magnificently gowned, and far more\nbeautiful than before. She asked him carelessly how he was getting\nalong, and what her parents were doing; but was not very cordial.\nAfter a splendid meal she had an apartment prepared for him.\n\n\"My sister wishes to make an excursion to the Mountain of the\nFairies,\" said Old Dschang to him. \"We will be back about sunset, and\nyou can rest until we return.\"\n\nThen many-colored clouds rose in the courtyard, and dulcet music\nsounded on the air. Old Dschang mounted a dragon, while his wife and\nsister rode on phenixes and their attendants on cranes. So they rose\ninto the air and disappeared in an easterly direction. They did not\nreturn until after sunset.\n\nOld Dschang and his wife then said to him: \"This is an abode of the\nblessed. You cannot remain here overlong. To-morrow we will escort you\nback.\"\n\nOn the following day, when taking leave, Old Dschang gave him eighty\nounces of gold and an old straw hat. \"Should you need money,\" said he,\n\"you can go to Yangdschou and inquire in the northern suburb for old\nWang's drug-shop. There you can collect ten million pieces of copper.\nThis hat is the order for them.\" Then he ordered his plow-boy to take\nhim home again.\n\nQuite a few of the folks at home, to whom he described his adventures,\nthought that Old Dschang must be a holy man, while others regarded the\nwhole thing a magic vision.\n\nAfter five or six years Sir We's money came to an end. So his son took\nthe straw hat to Yangdschou and there asked for old Wang. The latter\njust happened to be standing in his drug-shop, mixing herbs. When the\nson explained his errand he said: \"The money is ready. But is your hat\ngenuine?\" And he took the hat and examined it. A young girl came from\nan inner room and said: \"I wove the hat for Old Dschang myself. There\nmust be a red thread in it.\" And sure enough, there was. Then old Wang\ngave young We the ten million pieces of copper, and the latter now\nbelieved that Old Dschang was really a saint. So he once more went\nover the hills to look for him. He asked the forest-keepers, but they\ncould tell him naught. Sadly he retraced his steps and decided to\ninquire of old Wang, but he had also disappeared.\n\nWhen several years had passed he once more came to Yangdschou, and was\nwalking in the meadow before the city gate. There he met Old Dschang's\nplow-boy. The latter cried out: \"How are you? How are you?\" and drew\nout ten pounds of gold, which he gave to him, saying: \"My mistress\ntold me to give you this. My master is this very moment drinking tea\nwith old Wang in the inn.\" Young We followed the plow-boy, intending\nto greet his brother-in-law. But when he reached the inn there was no\none in sight. And when he turned around the plow-boy had disappeared\nas well. And since that time no one ever heard from Old Dschang again.\n\n Note: The match-maker, according to Chinese custom--and\n the custom of other oriental peoples--is an absolutely\n necessary mediator between the two families. There are\n old women who make their living at this profession.\n\n\n\n\nXXXVIII\n\nTHE KINDLY MAGICIAN\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a man named Du Dsi Tschun. In his youth he\nwas a spendthrift and paid no heed to his property. He was given to\ndrink and idling. When he had run through all his money, his relatives\ncast him out. One winter day he was walking barefoot about the city,\nwith an empty stomach and torn clothes. Evening came on and still he\nhad not found any food. Without end or aim he wandered about the\nmarket place. He was hungry, and the cold seemed well nigh\nunendurable. So he turned his eyes upward and began to lament aloud.\n\nSuddenly an ancient man stood before him, leaning on a staff, who\nsaid: \"What do you lack since you complain so?\"\n\n\"I am dying of hunger,\" replied Du Dsi Tschun, \"and not a soul will\ntake pity on me!\"\n\nThe ancient man said: \"How much money would you need in order to live\nin all comfort?\"\n\n\"If I had fifty thousand pieces of copper it would answer my purpose,\"\nreplied Du Dsi Tschun.\n\nThe ancient said: \"That would not answer.\"\n\n\"Well, then, a million!\"\n\n\"That is still too little!\"\n\n\"Well, then, three million!\"\n\nThe ancient man said: \"That is well spoken!\" He fetched a thousand\npieces of copper out of his sleeve and said: \"That is for this\nevening. Expect me to-morrow by noon, at the Persian Bazaar!\"\n\nAt the time set Du Dsi Tschun went there, and, sure enough, there was\nthe ancient, who gave him three million pieces of copper. Then he\ndisappeared, without giving his name.\n\nWhen Du Dsi Tschun held the money in his hand, his love for\nprodigality once more awoke. He rode pampered steeds, clothed himself\nin the finest furs, went back to his wine, and led such an extravagant\nlife that the money gradually came to an end. Instead of wearing\nbrocade he had to wear cotton, and instead of riding horseback he went\nto the dogs. Finally he was again running about barefoot and in rags\nas before, and did not know how to satisfy his hunger. Once more he\nstood in the market-place and sighed. But the ancient was already\nthere, took him by the hand and said: \"Are you back already to where\nyou were? That is strange! However, I will aid you once more!\"\n\nBut Du Dsi Tschun was ashamed and did not want to accept his help. Yet\nthe ancient insisted, and led him along to the Persian Bazaar. This\ntime he gave him ten million pieces of copper, and Du Dsi Tschun\nthanked him with shame in his heart.\n\nWith money in hand, he tried to give time to adding to it, and saving\nin order to gain great wealth. But, as is always the case, it is hard\nto overcome ingrown faults. Gradually he began to fling his money away\nagain, and gave free rein to all his desires. And once more his purse\ngrew empty. In a couple of years he was as poor as ever he had been.\n\nThen he met the ancient the third time, but was so ashamed of himself\nthat he hid his face when he passed him.\n\nThe ancient seized his arm and said: \"Where are you going? I will help\nyou once more. I will give you thirty million. But if then you do not\nimprove you are past all aid!\"\n\nFull of gratitude, Du Dsi Tschun bowed before him and said: \"In the\ndays of my poverty my wealthy relatives did not seek me out. You alone\nhave thrice aided me. The money you give me to-day shall not be\nsquandered, that I swear; but I will devote it to good works in order\nto repay your great kindness. And when I have done this I will follow\nyou, if needs be through fire and through water.\"\n\nThe ancient replied: \"That is right! When you have ordered these\nthings ask for me in the temple of Laotsze beneath the two mulberry\ntrees!\"\n\nDu Dsi Tschun took the money and went to Yangdschou. There he bought a\nhundred acres of the best land, and built a lofty house with many\nhundreds of rooms on the highway. And there he allowed widows and\norphans to live. Then he bought a burial-place for his ancestors, and\nsupported his needy relations. Countless people were indebted to him\nfor their livelihood.\n\nWhen all was finished, he went to inquire after the ancient in the\ntemple of Laotsze. The ancient was sitting in the shade of the\nmulberry trees blowing the flute. He took Du Dsi Tschun along with him\nto the cloudy peaks of the holy mountains of the West. When they had\ngone some forty miles into the mountains, he saw a dwelling, fair and\nclean. It was surrounded by many-colored clouds, and peacocks and\ncranes were flying about it. Within the house was a herb-oven nine\nfeet high. The fire burned with a purple flame, and its glow leaped\nalong the walls. Nine fairies stood at the oven, and a green dragon\nand a white tiger crouched beside it. Evening came. The ancient was no\nlonger clad like an ordinary man; but wore a yellow cap and wide,\nflowing garments. He took three pellets of the White Stone, put them\ninto a flagon of wine, and gave them to Du Dsi Tschun to drink. He\nspread out a tiger-skin against the western wall of the inner chamber,\nand bade Du Dsi Tschun sit down on it, with his face turned toward the\nEast. Then he said to him: \"Now beware of speaking a single word--no\nmatter what happens to you, whether you encounter powerful gods or\nterrible demons, wild beasts or ogres, or all the tortures of the\nnether world, or even if you see your own relatives suffer--for all\nthese things are only deceitful images! They cannot harm you. Think\nonly of what I have said, and let your soul be at rest!\" And when he\nhad said this the ancient disappeared.\n\nThen Du Dsi Tschun saw only a large stone jug full of clear water\nstanding before him. Fairies, dragon and tiger had all vanished.\nSuddenly he heard a tremendous crash, which made heaven and earth\ntremble. A man towering more than ten feet in height appeared. He\ncalled himself the great captain, and he and his horse were covered\nwith golden armor. He was surrounded by more than a hundred soldiers,\nwho drew their bows and swung their swords, and halted in the\ncourtyard.\n\nThe giant called out harshly: \"Who are you? Get out of my way!\"\n\nDu Dsi Tschun did not move. And he returned no answer to his\nquestions.\n\nThen the giant flew into a passion and cried with a thundering voice:\n\"Chop off his head!\"\n\nBut Du Dsi Tschun remained unmoved, so the giant went off raging.\n\nThen a furious tiger and a poisonous serpent came up roaring and\nhissing. They made as though to bite him and leaped over him. But Du\nDsi Tschun remained unperturbed in spirit, and after a time they\ndissolved and vanished.\n\nSuddenly a great rain began to fall in streams. It thundered and\nlightninged incessantly, so that his ears rang and his eyes were\nblinded. It seemed as though the house would fall. The water rose to a\nflood in a few moments' time, and streamed up to the place where he\nwas sitting. But Du Dsi Tschun remained motionless and paid no\nattention to it. And after a time the water receded.\n\nThen came a great demon with the head of an ox. He set up a kettle in\nthe middle of the courtyard, in which bubbled boiling oil. He caught\nDu Dsi Tschun by the neck with an iron fork and said: \"If you will\ntell me who you are I will let you go!\"\n\nDu Dsi Tschun shut his eyes and kept silent. Then the demon picked\nhim up with the fork and flung him into the kettle. He withstood the\npain, and the boiling oil did not harm him. Finally the demon dragged\nhim out again, and drew him down the steps of the house before a man\nwith red hair and a blue face, who looked like the prince of the\nnether world. The latter cried: \"Drag in his wife!\"\n\nAfter a time Du Dsi Tschun's wife was brought on in chains. Her hair\nwas torn and she wept bitterly.\n\nThe demon pointed to Du Dsi Tschun and said: \"If you will speak your\nname we will let her go!\"\n\nBut he answered not a word.\n\nThen the prince of evil had the woman tormented in all sorts of ways.\nAnd she pleaded with Du Dsi Tschun: \"I have been your wife now for ten\nyears. Will you not speak one little word to save me? I can endure no\nmore!\" And the tears ran in streams from her eyes. She screamed and\nscolded. Yet he spoke not a word.\n\nThereupon the prince of evil shouted: \"Chop her into bits!\" And there,\nbefore his eyes, it seemed as though she were really being chopped to\npieces. But Du Dsi Tschun did not move.\n\n\"The scoundrel's measure is full!\" cried the prince of evil. \"He shall\ndwell no longer among the living! Off with his head!\" And so they\nkilled him, and it seemed to him that his soul fled his body. The\nox-headed demon dragged him down into the nether regions, where he\ntasted all the tortures in turn. But Du Dsi Tschun remembered the\nwords of the ancient. And the tortures, too, seemed bearable. So he\ndid not scream and said not a word.\n\nNow he was once more dragged before the prince of evil. The latter\nsaid: \"As punishment for his obstinacy this man shall come to earth\nagain in the shape of a woman!\"\n\nThe demon dragged him to the wheel of life and he returned to earth\nin the shape of a girl. He was often ill, had to take medicine\ncontinually, and was pricked and burned with hot needles. Yet he never\nuttered a sound. Gradually he grew into a beautiful maiden. But since\nhe never spoke, he was known as the dumb maid. A scholar finally took\nhim for his bride, and they lived in peace and good fellowship. And a\nson came to them who, in the course of two years was already beyond\nmeasure wise and intelligent. One day the father was carrying the son\non his arm. He spoke jestingly to his wife and said: \"When I look at\nyou it seems to me that you are not really dumb. Won't you say one\nlittle word to me? How delightful it would be if you were to become my\nspeaking rose!\"\n\nThe woman remained silent. No matter how he might coax and try to make\nher smile, she would return no answer.\n\nThen his features changed: \"If you will not speak to me, it is a sign\nthat you scorn me; and in that case your son is nothing to me,\neither!\" And with that he seized the boy and flung him against the\nwall.\n\nBut since Du Dsi Tschun loved this little boy so dearly, he forgot the\nancient's warning, and cried out: \"Oh, oh!\"\n\nAnd before the cry had died away Du Dsi Tschun awoke as though from a\ndream and found himself seated in his former place. The ancient was\nthere as well. It must have been about the fifth hour of the night.\nPurple flames rose wildly from the oven, and flared up to the sky. The\nwhole house caught fire and burned like a torch.\n\n\"You have deceived me!\" cried the ancient. Then he seized him by the\nhair and thrust him into the jug of water. And in a minute the fire\nwent out. The ancient spoke: \"You overcame joy and rage, grief and\nfear, hate and desire, it is true; but love you had not driven from\nyour soul. Had you not cried out when the child was flung against the\nwall, then my elixir would have taken shape and you would have\nattained immortality. But in the last moment you failed me. Now it is\ntoo late. Now I can begin brewing my elixir of life once more from the\nbeginning and you will remain a mere mortal man!\"\n\nDu Dsi Tschun saw that the oven had burst, and that instead of the\nphilosopher's stone it held only a lump of iron. The ancient man cast\naside his garments and chopped it up with a magic knife. Du Dsi Tschun\ntook leave of him and returned to Yangdschou, where he lived in great\naffluence. In his old age he regretted that he had not completed his\ntask. He once more went to the mountain to look for the ancient. But\nthe ancient had vanished without leaving a trace.\n\n Note: The \"pieces of copper\" are the ancient Chinese\n copper coins, with a hole in the middle, usually hung on\n strings to the number of 500 or 1000. Money had a\n greater purchasing value in ancient China, however, than\n in the China of to-day. The \"Persian Bazaar\": During the\n reign of the Tang dynasty China maintained an active\n intercourse with the West, traces of which are at\n present being investigated in Central Asia. At that time\n Persian bazaars were no novelty in the city of Si-An-Fu,\n then the capital. \"Herb-oven\": a tripod kettle used for\n brewing the elixir of life, with which the fairies,\n dragon and tiger (both the last-mentioned\n star-incarnations) are connected. In order to prepare\n the elixir the master must have absolute endurance. It\n is for this reason that he had placed Du Dsi Tschun in\n his debt by means of kindness. The yellow cap which the\n master wears is connected with the teachings of the\n Yellow Ancient (comp. w. No. 15). The \"prince of the\n nether world,\" Yan Wang, or Yan Lo Wang, is the Indian\n god Yama. There are in all ten princes of the nether\n world, of whom the fifth is the highest and most feared.\n \"Obstinacy,\" literally; his real offense is reticence,\n or the keeping secret of a thing. This quality belongs\n to the Yin, the dark or feminine principle, and\n determines Du Dsi Tschun's reappearance on earth as a\n woman. \"Purple flames rose wildly from the oven\": Though\n Du Dsi Tschun had overcome his other emotions, so that\n fear and terror did not affect him, love, and love in\n its highest form, mother-love, still remained in him.\n This love created the flames which threatened to destroy\n the building. The highest point in Taoism--as in\n Buddhism--is, however, the absolute negation of all\n feeling.\n\n\n\n\nNATURE AND ANIMAL TALES\n\n\n\n\nXXXIX\n\nTHE FLOWER-ELVES\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a scholar who lived retired from the world\nin order to gain hidden wisdom. He lived alone and in a secret place.\nAnd all about the little house in which he dwelt he had planted every\nkind of flower, and bamboos and other trees. There it lay, quite\nconcealed in its thick grove of flowers. With him he had only a boy\nservant, who dwelt in a separate hut, and who carried out his orders.\nHe was not allowed to appear before his master unless summoned. The\nscholar loved his flowers as he did himself. Never did he set his foot\nbeyond the boundaries of his garden.\n\nIt chanced that once there came a lovely spring evening. Flowers and\ntrees stood in full bloom, a fresh breeze was blowing, the moon shone\nclearly. And the scholar sat over his goblet and was grateful for the\ngift of life.\n\nSuddenly he saw a maiden in dark garments come tripping up in the\nmoonlight. She made a deep courtesy, greeted him and said: \"I am your\nneighbor. We are a company of young maids who are on our way to visit\nthe eighteen aunts. We should like to rest in this court for awhile,\nand therefore ask your permission to do so.\"\n\nThe scholar saw that this was something quite out of the common, and\ngladly gave his consent. The maiden thanked him and went away.\n\nIn a short time she brought back a whole crowd of maids carrying\nflowers and willow branches. All greeted the scholar. They were\ncharming, with delicate features, and slender, graceful figures. When\nthey moved their sleeves, a delightful fragrance was exhaled. There is\nno fragrance known to the human world which could be compared with it.\n\nThe scholar invited them to sit down for a time in his room. Then he\nasked them: \"Whom have I really the honor of entertaining? Have you\ncome from the castle of the Lady in the Moon, or the Jade Spring of\nthe Queen-Mother of the West?\"\n\n\"How could we claim such high descent?\" said a maiden in a green gown,\nwith a smile. \"My name is Salix.\" Then she presented another, clad in\nwhite, and said: \"This is Mistress Prunophora\"; then one in rose, \"and\nthis is Persica\"; and finally one in a dark-red gown, \"and this is\nPunica. We are all sisters and we want to visit the eighteen\nzephyr-aunts to-day. The moon shines so beautifully this evening and\nit is so charming here in the garden. We are most grateful to you for\ntaking pity on us.\"\n\n\"Yes, yes,\" said the scholar.\n\nThen the sober-clad servant suddenly announced: \"The zephyr-aunts have\nalready arrived!\"\n\nAt once the girls rose and went to the door to meet them.\n\n\"We were just about to visit you, aunts,\" they said, smiling. \"This\ngentleman here had just invited us to sit for a moment. What a\npleasant coincidence that you aunts have come here, too. This is such\na lovely night that we must drink a goblet of nectar in honor of you\naunts!\"\n\nThereon they ordered the servant to bring what was needed.\n\n\"May one sit down here?\" asked the aunts.\n\n\"The master of the house is most kind,\" replied the maids, \"and the\nspot is quiet and hidden.\"\n\nAnd then they presented the aunts to the scholar. He spoke a few\nkindly words to the eighteen aunts. They had a somewhat irresponsible\nand airy manner. Their words fairly gushed out, and in their\nneighborhood one felt a frosty chill.\n\nMeanwhile the servant had already brought in table and chairs. The\neighteen aunts sat at the upper end of the board, the maids followed,\nand the scholar sat down with them at the lowest place. Soon the\nentire table was covered with the most delicious foods and most\nmagnificent fruits, and the goblets were filled with a fragrant\nnectar. They were delights such as the world of men does not know! The\nmoon shone brightly and the flowers exhaled intoxicating odors. After\nthey had partaken of food and drink the maids rose, danced and sung.\nSweetly the sound of their singing echoed through the falling gloam,\nand their dance was like that of butterflies fluttering about the\nflowers. The scholar was so overpowered with delight that he no longer\nknew whether he were in heaven or on earth.\n\nWhen the dance had ended, the girls sat down again at the table, and\ndrank the health of the aunts in flowing nectar. The scholar, too, was\nremembered with a toast, to which he replied with well-turned phrases.\n\nBut the eighteen aunts were somewhat irresponsible in their ways. One\nof them, raising her goblet, by accident poured some nectar on\nPunica's dress. Punica, who was young and fiery, and very neat, stood\nup angrily when she saw the spot on her red dress.\n\n\"You are really very careless,\" said she, in her anger. \"My other\nsisters may be afraid of you, but I am not!\"\n\nThen the aunts grew angry as well and said: \"How dare this young chit\ninsult us in such a manner!\"\n\nAnd with that they gathered up their garments and rose.\n\nAll the maids then crowded about them and said: \"Punica is so young\nand inexperienced! You must not bear her any ill-will! To-morrow she\nshall go to you switch in hand, and receive her punishment!\"\n\nBut the eighteen aunts would not listen to them and went off.\nThereupon the maids also said farewell, scattered among the\nflower-beds and disappeared. The scholar sat for a long time lost in\ndreamy yearning.\n\nOn the following evening the maids all came back again.\n\n\"We all live in your garden,\" they told him. \"Every year we are\ntormented by naughty winds, and therefore we have always asked the\neighteen aunts to protect us. But yesterday Punica insulted them, and\nnow we fear they will help us no more. But we know that you have\nalways been well disposed toward us, for which we are heartily\ngrateful. And now we have a great favor to ask, that every New Year's\nday you make a small scarlet flag, paint the sun, moon and five\nplanets on it, and set it up in the eastern part of the garden. Then\nwe sisters will be left in peace and will be protected from all evil.\nBut since New Year's day has passed for this year, we beg that you\nwill set up the flag on the twenty-first of this month. For the East\nWind is coming and the flag will protect us against him!\"\n\nThe scholar readily promised to do as they wished, and the maids all\nsaid with a single voice: \"We thank you for your great kindness and\nwill repay it!\" Then they departed and a sweet fragrance filled the\nentire garden.\n\nThe scholar, however, made a red flag as described, and when early in\nthe morning of the day in question the East Wind really did begin to\nblow, he quickly set it up in the garden.\n\nSuddenly a wild storm broke out, one that caused the forests to bend,\nand broke the trees. The flowers in the garden alone did not move.\n\nThen the scholar noticed that Salix was the willow; Prunophora the\nplum; Persica the peach, and the saucy Punica the Pomegranate, whose\npowerful blossoms the wind cannot tear. The eighteen zephyr-aunts,\nhowever, were the spirits of the winds.\n\nIn the evening the flower-elves all came and brought the scholar\nradiant flowers as a gift of thanks.\n\n\"You have saved us,\" they said, \"and we have nothing else we can give\nyou. If you eat these flowers you will live long and avoid old age.\nAnd if you, in turn, will protect us every year, then we sisters, too,\nwill live long.\"\n\nThe scholar did as they told him and ate the flowers. And his figure\nchanged and he grew young again like a youth of twenty. And in the\ncourse of time he attained the hidden wisdom and was placed among the\nImmortals.\n\n Note. Salix: the names of the \"Flower Elves\" are given\n in the Chinese as family names, whose sound suggests the\n flower-names without exactly using them. In the\n translation the play on words is indicated by the Latin\n names. \"Zephyr-aunts\": In Chinese the name given the\n aunt is \"Fong,\" which in another stylization means\n \"wind.\"\n\n\n\n\nXL\n\nTHE SPIRIT OF THE WU-LIAN MOUNTAIN\n\n\nTo the west of the gulf of Kiautschou is the Wu-Lian Mountain, where\nthere are many spirits. Once upon a time a scholar who lived there was\nsitting up late at night, reading. And, as he stepped out before the\nhouse, a storm rose up suddenly, and a monster stretched out his claws\nand seized him by the hair. And he lifted him up in the air and\ncarried him away. They passed by the tower which looks out to sea, a\nBuddhist temple in the hills. And in the distance, in the clouds, the\nscholar saw the figure of a god in golden armor. The figure looked\nexactly like the image of Weto which was in the tower. In its right\nhand it held an iron mace, while its left pointed toward the monster,\nand it looked at it with anger. Then the monster let the scholar fall,\nright on top of the tower, and disappeared. No doubt the saint in the\ntower had come to the scholar's aid, because his whole family\nworshiped Buddha dutifully.\n\nWhen the sun rose the priest came and saw the scholar on his tower. He\npiled up hay and straw on the ground; so that he could jump down\nwithout hurting himself. Then he took the scholar home, yet there\nwhere the monster had seized his hair, the hair remained stiff and\nunyielding. It did not improve until half a year had gone by.\n\n Note: This legend comes from Dschungschong, west of the\n gulf of Kiautschou. \"The tower which looks out to sea,\"\n a celebrated tower which gives a view of the ocean. At\n present the people give this name to the Tsingtau Signal\n Station. Weto (Sanscrit, Veda), a legendary Boddhisatva,\n leader of the hosts of the four kings of heaven. His\n picture, with drawn sword, may be found at the entrance\n of every Buddhist temple. In China, he is often\n represented with a mace (symbolizing a thunderbolt)\n instead of a sword. When this is the case he has\n probably been confused with Vaisramana.\n\n\n\n\nXLI\n\nTHE KING OF THE ANTS\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a scholar, who wandered away from his home\nand went to Emmet village. There stood a house which was said to be\nhaunted. Yet it was beautifully situated and surrounded by a lovely\ngarden. So the scholar hired it. One evening he was sitting over his\nbooks, when several hundred knights suddenly came galloping into the\nroom. They were quite tiny, and their horses were about the size of\nflies. They had hunting falcons and dogs about as large as gnats and\nfleas.\n\nThey came to his bed in the corner of the room, and there they held a\ngreat hunt, with bows and arrows: one could see it all quite plainly.\nThey caught a tremendous quantity of birds and game, and all this game\nwas no larger than little grains of rice.\n\nWhen the hunt was over, in came a long procession with banners and\nstandards. They wore swords at their side and bore spears in their\nhands, and came to a halt in the north-west corner of the room. They\nwere followed by several hundred serving-men. These brought with them\ncurtains and covers, tents and tent-poles, pots and kettles, cups and\nplates, tables and chairs. And after them some hundreds of other\nservants carried in all sorts of fine dishes, the best that land and\nwater had to offer. And several hundred more ran to and fro without\nstopping, in order to guard the roads and carry messages.\n\nThe scholar gradually accustomed himself to the sight. Although the\nmen were so very small he could distinguish everything quite clearly.\n\nBefore long, a bright colored banner appeared. Behind it rode a\npersonage wearing a scarlet hat and garments of purple. He was\nsurrounded by an escort of several thousands. Before him went runners\nwith whips and rods to clear the way.\n\nThen a man wearing an iron helmet and with a golden ax in his hand\ncried out in a loud voice: \"His Highness is graciously pleased to look\nat the fish in the Purple Lake!\" Whereupon the one who wore the\nscarlet hat got down from his horse, and, followed by a retinue of\nseveral hundred men, approached the saucer which the scholar used for\nhis writing-ink. Tents were put up on the edge of the saucer and a\nbanquet was prepared. A great number of guests sat down to the table.\nMusicians and dancers stood ready. There was a bright confusion of\nmingled garments of purple and scarlet, crimson and green. Pipes and\nflutes, fiddles and cymbals sounded, and the dancers moved in the\ndance. The music was very faint, and yet its melodies could be clearly\ndistinguished. All that was said, too, the table-talk and orders,\nquestions and calls, could be quite distinctly heard.\n\nAfter three courses, he who wore the scarlet hat said: \"Quick! Make\nready the nets and lines for fishing!\"\n\nAnd at once nets were thrown out into the saucer which held the water\nin which the scholar dipped his brush. And they caught hundreds of\nthousands of fishes. The one with the scarlet hat contented himself\nwith casting a line in the shallow waters of the saucer, and caught a\nbaker's dozen of red carp.\n\nThen he ordered the head cook to cook the fish, and the most varied\ndishes were prepared with them. The odor of roasting fat and spices\nfilled the whole room.\n\nAnd then the wearer of the scarlet hat in his arrogance, decided to\namuse himself at the scholar's expense. So he pointed to him and said:\n\"I know nothing at all about the writings and customs of the saints\nand wise men, and still I am a king who is highly honored! Yonder\nscholar spends his whole life toiling over his books and yet he\nremains poor and gets nowhere. If he could make up his mind to serve\nme faithfully as one of my officials, I might allow him to partake of\nour meal.\"\n\nThis angered the scholar, and he took his book and struck at them. And\nthey all scattered, wriggling and crawling out of the door. He\nfollowed them and dug up the earth in the place where they had\ndisappeared. And there he found an ants' nest as large as a barrel, in\nwhich countless green ants were wriggling around. So he built a large\nfire and smoked them out.\n\n Note: This charming tale is taken from the Tang Dai\n Tsung Schu.\n\n\n\n\nXLII\n\nTHE LITTLE HUNTING DOG\n\n\nOnce upon a time, in the city of Shansi, there lived a scholar who\nfound the company of others too noisy for him. So he made his home in\na Buddhist temple. Yet he suffered because there were always so many\ngnats and fleas in his room that he could not sleep at night.\n\nOnce he was resting on his bed after dinner, when suddenly two little\nknights with plumes in their helmets rode into the room. They might\nhave been two inches high, and rode horses about the size of\ngrasshoppers. On their gauntleted hands they held hunting falcons as\nlarge as flies. They rode about the room with great rapidity. The\nscholar had no more than set eyes on them when a third entered, clad\nlike the others, but carrying a bow and arrows and leading a little\nhunting dog the size of an ant with him. After him came a great throng\nof footmen and horsemen, several hundred in all. And they had hunting\nfalcons and hunting dogs by the hundred, too. Then the fleas and gnats\nbegan to rise in the air; but were all slain by the falcons. And the\nhunting dogs climbed on the bed, and sniffed along the walls trailing\nthe fleas, and ate them up. They followed the trace of whatever hid in\nthe cracks, and nosed it out, so that in a short space of time they\nhad killed nearly all the vermin.\n\nThe scholar pretended to be asleep and watched them. And the falcons\nsettled down on him, and the dogs crawled along his body. Shortly\nafter came a man clad in yellow, wearing a king's crown, who climbed\non an empty couch and seated himself there. And at once all the\nhorsemen rode up, descended from their horses and brought him all the\nbirds and game. They then gathered beside him in a great throng, and\nconversed with him in a strange tongue.\n\nNot long after the king got into a small chariot and his bodyguards\nsaddled their horses with the greatest rapidity. Then they galloped\nout with great cries of homage, till it looked as though some one were\nscattering beans and a heavy cloud of dust rose behind them.\n\nThey had nearly all of them disappeared, while the scholar's eyes\nwere still fixed on them full of terror and astonishment, and he could\nnot imagine whence they had come. He slipped on his shoes and looked;\nbut they had vanished without a trace. Then he returned and looked all\nabout his room; but there was nothing to be seen. Only, on a brick\nagainst the wall, they had forgotten a little hunting dog. The scholar\nquickly caught it and found it quite tame. He put it in his paint-box\nand examined it closely. It had a very smooth, fine coat, and wore a\nlittle collar around its neck. He tried to feed it a few bread-crumbs,\nbut the little dog only sniffed at them and let them lie. Then it\nleaped into the bed and hunted up some nits and gnats in the folds of\nthe linen, which it devoured. Then it returned and lay down. When the\nnight had passed the scholar feared it might have run away; but there\nit lay, curled up as before. Whenever the scholar went to bed, the dog\nclimbed into it and bit to death any vermin it could find. Not a fly\nor gnat dared alight while it was around. The scholar loved it like a\njewel of price.\n\nBut once he took a nap in the daytime, and the little dog crawled into\nbed beside him. The scholar woke and turned around, supporting himself\non his side. As he did so he felt something, and feared it might be\nhis little dog. He quickly rose and looked, but it was already\ndead--pressed flat, as though cut out of paper!\n\nBut at any rate none of the vermin had survived it.\n\n Note: This tale is taken from the Liau Dschai (\"Strange\n Stories\") of P'u Sung Lang (b. 1622). It is a parallel\n of the preceding one and shows how the same material\n returns in a different working-out.\n\n\n\n\nXLIII\n\nTHE DRAGON AFTER HIS WINTER SLEEP\n\n\nOnce there was a scholar who was reading in the upper story of his\nhouse. It was a rainy, cloudy day and the weather was gloomy. Suddenly\nhe saw a little thing which shone like a fire-fly. It crawled upon the\ntable, and wherever it went it left traces of burns, curved like the\ntracks of a rainworm. Gradually it wound itself about the scholar's\nbook and the book, too, grew black. Then it occurred to him that it\nmight be a dragon. So he carried it out of doors on the book. There he\nstood for quite some time; but it sat uncurled, without moving in the\nleast.\n\nThen the scholar said: \"It shall not be said of me that I was lacking\nin respect.\" With these words he carried back the book and once more\nlaid it on the table. Then he put on his robes of ceremony, made a\ndeep bow and escorted the dragon out on it again.\n\nNo sooner had he left the door, than he noticed that the dragon raised\nhis head and stretched himself. Then he flew up from the book with a\nhissing sound, like a radiant streak. Once more he turned around\ntoward the scholar, and his head had already grown to the size of a\nbarrel, while his body must have been a full fathom in length. He gave\none more snaky twist, and then there was a terrible crash of thunder\nand the dragon went sailing through the air.\n\nThe scholar then returned and looked to see which way the little\ncreature had come. And he could follow his tracks hither and thither,\nto his chest of books.\n\n Note: This tale is also from the \"Strange Stories.\" The\n dragon, head of all scaled creatures and insects,\n hibernates during the winter according to the Chinese\n belief. At the time he is quite small. When the first\n spring storm comes he flies up to the clouds on the\n lightning. Here the dragon's nature as an atmospheric\n apparition is expressed.\n\n\n\n\nXLIV\n\nTHE SPIRITS OF THE YELLOW RIVER\n\n\nThe spirits of the Yellow River are called Dai Wang--Great King. For\nmany hundreds of years past the river inspectors had continued to\nreport that all sorts of monsters show themselves in the waves of the\nstream, at times in the shape of dragons, at others in that of cattle\nand horses, and whenever such a creature makes an appearance a great\nflood follows. Hence temples are built along the river banks. The\nhigher spirits of the river are honored as kings, the lower ones as\ncaptains, and hardly a day goes by without their being honored with\nsacrifices or theatrical performances. Whenever, after a dam has been\nbroken, the leak is closed again, the emperor sends officials with\nsacrifices and ten great bars of Tibetan incense. This incense is\nburned in a great sacrificial censer in the temple court, and the\nriver inspectors and their subordinates all go to the temple to thank\nthe gods for their aid. These river gods, it is said, are good and\nfaithful servants of former rulers, who died in consequence of their\ntoil in keeping the dams unbroken. After they died their spirits\nbecame river-kings; in their physical bodies, however, they appear as\nlizards, snakes and frogs.\n\nThe mightiest of all the river-kings is the Golden Dragon-King. He\nfrequently appears in the shape of a small golden snake with a square\nhead, low forehead and four red dots over his eyes. He can make\nhimself large or small at will, and cause the waters to rise and fall.\nHe appears and vanishes unexpectedly, and lives in the mouths of the\nYellow River and the Imperial Canal. But in addition to the Golden\nDragon-King there are dozens of river-kings and captains, each of whom\nhas his own place. The sailors of the Yellow River all have exact\nlists in which the lives and deeds of the river-spirits are described\nin detail.\n\nThe river-spirits love to see theatrical performances. Opposite every\ntemple is a stage. In the hall stands the little spirit-tablet of the\nriver-king, and on the altar in front of it a small bowl of golden\nlacquer filled with clean sand. When a little snake appears in it, the\nriver-king has arrived. Then the priests strike the gong and beat the\ndrum and read from the holy books. The official is at once informed\nand he sends for a company of actors. Before they begin to perform the\nactors go up to the temple, kneel, and beg the king to let them know\nwhich play they are to give. And the river-god picks one out and\npoints to it with his head; or else he writes signs in the sand with\nhis tail. The actors then at once begin to perform the desired play.\n\nThe river-god cares naught for the fortunes or misfortunes of human\nbeings. He appears suddenly and disappears in the same way, as best\nsuits him.\n\nBetween the outer and the inner dam of the Yellow River are a number\nof settlements. Now it often happens that the yellow water moves to\nthe very edge of the inner walls. Rising perpendicularly, like a wall,\nit gradually advances. When people see it coming they hastily burn\nincense, bow in prayer before the waters, and promise the river-god a\ntheatrical performance. Then the water retires and the word goes\nround: \"The river-god has asked for a play again!\"\n\nIn a village in that section there once dwelt a wealthy man. He built\na stone wall, twenty feet high, around the village, to keep away the\nwater. He did not believe in the spirits of the river, but trusted in\nhis strong wall and was quite unconcerned.\n\nOne evening the yellow water suddenly rose and towered in a straight\nline before the village. The rich man had them shoot cannon at it.\nThen the water grew stormy, and surrounded the wall to such a height\nthat it reached the openings in the battlements. The water foamed and\nhissed, and seemed about to pour over the wall. Then every one in the\nvillage was very much frightened. They dragged up the rich man and he\nhad to kneel and beg for pardon. They promised the river-god a\ntheatrical performance, but in vain; but when they promised to build\nhim a temple in the middle of the village and give regular\nperformances, the water sank more and more and gradually returned to\nits bed. And the village fields suffered no damage, for the earth,\nfertilized by the yellow slime, yielded a double crop.\n\nOnce a scholar was crossing the fields with a friend in order to visit\na relative. On their way they passed a temple of the river-god where a\nnew play was just being performed. The friend asked the scholar to go\nin with him and look on. When they entered the temple court they saw\ntwo great snakes upon the front pillars, who had wound themselves\nabout the columns, and were thrusting out their heads as though\nwatching the performance. In the hall of the temple stood the altar\nwith the bowl of sand. In it lay a small snake with a golden body, a\ngreen head and red dots above his eyes. His neck was thrust up and his\nglittering little eyes never left the stage. The friend bowed and the\nscholar followed his example.\n\nSoftly he said to his friend: \"What are the three river-gods called?\"\n\n\"The one in the temple,\" was the reply, \"is the Golden Dragon-King.\nThe two on the columns are two captains. They do not dare to sit in\nthe temple together with the king.\"\n\nThis surprised the scholar, and in his heart he thought: \"Such a tiny\nsnake! How can it possess a god's power? It would have to show me its\nmight before I would worship it.\"\n\nHe had not yet expressed these secret thoughts before the little snake\nsuddenly stretched forth his head from the bowl, above the altar.\nBefore the altar burned two enormous candles. They weighed more than\nten pounds and were as thick as small trees. Their flame burned like\nthe flare of a torch. The snake now thrust his head into the middle of\nthe candle-flame. The flame must have been at least an inch broad, and\nwas burning red. Suddenly its radiance turned blue, and was split into\ntwo tongues. The candle was so enormous and its fire so hot that even\ncopper and iron would have melted in it; but it did not harm the\nsnake.\n\nThen the snake crawled into the censer. The censer was made of iron,\nand was so large one could not clasp it with both arms. Its cover\nshowed a dragon design in open-work. The snake crawled in and out of\nthe holes in this cover, and wound his way through all of them, so\nthat he looked like an embroidery in threads of gold. Finally all the\nopenings of the cover, large and small, were filled by the snake. In\norder to do so, he must have made himself several dozen feet long.\nThen he stretched out his head at the top of the censer and once more\nwatched the play.\n\nThereupon the scholar was frightened, he bowed twice, and prayed:\n\"Great King, you have taken this trouble on my account! I honor you\nfrom my heart!\"\n\nNo sooner had he spoken these words than, in a moment, the little\nsnake was back in his bowl, and just as small as he had been before.\n\nIn Dsiningdschou they were celebrating the river god's birthday in his\ntemple. They were giving him a theatrical performance for a birthday\npresent. The spectators crowded around as thick as a wall, when who\nshould pass but a simple peasant from the country, who said in a loud\nvoice: \"Why, that is nothing but a tiny worm! It is a great piece of\nfolly to honor it like a king!\"\n\nBefore ever he had finished speaking the snake flew out of the temple.\nHe grew and grew, and wound himself three times around the stage. He\nbecame as thick around as a small pail, and his head seemed like that\nof a dragon. His eyes sparkled like golden lamps, and he spat out red\nflame with his tongue. When he coiled and uncoiled the whole stage\ntrembled and it seemed as though it would break down. The actors\nstopped their music and fell down on the stage in prayer. The whole\nmultitude was seized with terror and bowed to the ground. Then some of\nthe old men came along, cast the peasant on the ground, and gave him a\ngood thrashing. So he had to cast himself on his knees before the\nsnake and worship him. Then all heard a noise as though a great many\nfirecrackers were being shot off. This lasted for some time, and then\nthe snake disappeared.\n\nEast of Shantung lies the city of Dongschou. There rises an\nobservation-tower with a great temple. At its feet lies the\nwater-city, with a sea-gate at the North, through which the flood-tide\nrises up to the city. A camp of the boundary guard is established at\nthis gate.\n\nOnce upon a time there was an officer who had been transferred to\nthis camp as captain. He had formerly belonged to the land forces, and\nhad not yet been long at his new post. He gave some friends of his a\nbanquet, and before the pavilion in which they feasted lay a great\nstone shaped somewhat like a table. Suddenly a little snake was seen\ncrawling on this stone. It was spotted with green, and had red dots on\nits square head. The soldiers were about to kill the little creature,\nwhen the captain went out to look into the matter. When he had looked\nhe laughed and said: \"You must not harm him! He is the river-king of\nDsiningdschou. When I was stationed in Dsiningdschou he sometimes\nvisited me, and then I always gave sacrifices and performances in his\nhonor. Now he has come here expressly in order to wish his old friend\nluck, and to see him once more.\"\n\nThere was a band in camp; the bandsmen could dance and play like a\nreal theatrical troupe. The captain quickly had them begin a\nperformance, had another banquet with wine and delicate foods\nprepared, and invited the river-god to sit down to the table.\n\nGradually evening came and yet the river-god made no move to go.\n\nSo the captain stepped up to him with a bow and said: \"Here we are far\nremoved from the Yellow River, and these people have never yet heard\nyour name spoken. Your visit has been a great honor for me. But the\nwomen and fools who have crowded together chattering outside, are\nafraid of hearing about you. Now you have visited your old friend, and\nI am sure you wish to get back home again.\"\n\nWith these words he had a litter brought up; cymbals were beaten and\nfire-works set off, and finally a salute of nine guns was fired to\nescort him on his way. Then the little snake crawled into the litter,\nand the captain followed after. In this order they reached the port,\nand just when it was about time to say farewell, the snake was already\nswimming in the water. He had grown much larger, nodded to the captain\nwith his head, and disappeared.\n\nThen there were doubts and questionings: \"But the river-god lives a\nthousand miles away from here, how does he get to this place?\"\n\nSaid the captain: \"He is so powerful that he can get to any place, and\nbesides, from where he dwells a waterway leads to the sea. To come\ndown that way and swim to sea is something he can do in a moment's\ntime!\"\n\n Note: \"The Spirits of the Yellow River.\" The place of\n the old river-god Ho Be (Count of the Stream), also\n mentioned in No. 63, has to-day been taken by the Dai\n Wang in the popular belief. These spirits are thought to\n have placed many hindrances in the way of the erection\n of the railroad bridge across the Yellow River. The\n \"spirit-tablet\": images of the gods were first\n introduced in China by the Buddhists. The old custom,\n which Confucianism and ancestor-worship still follow,\n holds that the seat of the gods is a small wooden tablet\n on which the name of the god to be honored is written.\n Theatrical performances as religious services are as\n general in China as they were in ancient Greece.\n Dsiningdschou is a district capital on the Imperial\n Canal, near the Yellow River.\n\n\n\n\nXLV\n\nTHE DRAGON-PRINCESS\n\n\nIn the Sea of Dungting there is a hill, and in that hill there is a\nhole, and this hole is so deep that it has no bottom.\n\nOnce a fisherman was passing there who slipped and fell into the hole.\nHe came to a country full of winding ways which led over hill and dale\nfor several miles. Finally he reached a dragon-castle lying in a great\nplain. There grew a green slime which reached to his knees. He went\nto the gate of the castle. It was guarded by a dragon who spouted\nwater which dispersed in a fine mist. Within the gate lay a small\nhornless dragon who raised his head, showed his claws, and would not\nlet him in.\n\nThe fisherman spent several days in the cave, satisfying his hunger\nwith the green slime, which he found edible and which tasted like\nrice-mush. At last he found a way out again. He told the district\nmandarin what had happened to him, and the latter reported the matter\nto the emperor. The emperor sent for a wise man and questioned him\nconcerning it.\n\nThe wise man said: \"There are four paths in this cave. One path leads\nto the south-west shore of the Sea of Dungting, the second path leads\nto a valley in the land of the four rivers, the third path ends in a\ncave on the mountain of Lo-Fu and the fourth in an island of the\nEastern Sea. In this cave dwells the seventh daughter of the\nDragon-King of the Eastern Sea, who guards his pearls and his\ntreasure. It happened once in the ancient days, that a fisherboy dived\ninto the water and brought up a pearl from beneath the chin of a black\ndragon. The dragon was asleep, which was the reason the fisherboy\nbrought the pearl to the surface without being harmed. The treasure\nwhich the daughter of the Dragon-King has in charge is made up of\nthousands and millions of such jewels. Several thousands of small\ndragons watch over them in her service. Dragons have the peculiarity\nof fighting shy of wax. But they are fond of beautiful jade-stones,\nand of kung-tsing, the hollowgreen wood, and like to eat swallows. If\none were to send a messenger with a letter, it would be possible to\nobtain precious pearls.\"\n\n [Illustration: \"A FISHERBOY DIVED INTO THE WATER AND BROUGHT UP A\n PEARL FROM BENEATH THE CHIN OF A BLACK DRAGON.\"\n --_Page 138_]\n\nThe emperor was greatly pleased, and announced a large reward for\nthe man who was competent to go to the dragon-castle as his messenger.\n\nThe first man to come forward was named So Pi-Lo. But the wise man\nsaid: \"A great-great-great-great-grandfather of yours once slew more\nthan a hundred of the dragons of the Eastern Sea, and was finally\nhimself slain by the dragons. The dragons are the enemies of your\nfamily and you cannot go.\"\n\nThen came a man from Canton, Lo-Dsi-Tschun, with his two brothers, who\nsaid that his ancestors had been related to the Dragon-King. Hence\nthey were well liked by the dragons and well known to them. They\nbegged to be entrusted with the message.\n\nThe wise man asked: \"And have you still in your possession the stone\nwhich compels the dragons to do your will?\"\n\n\"Yes,\" said they, \"we have brought it along with us.\"\n\nThe wise man had them show him the stone; then he spoke: \"This stone\nis only obeyed by the dragons who make clouds and send down the rain.\nIt will not do for the dragons who guard the pearls of the sea-king.\"\nThen he questioned them further: \"Have you the dragon-brain vapor?\"\n\nWhen they admitted that they had not, the wise man said: \"How then\nwill you compel the dragons to yield their treasure?\"\n\nAnd the emperor said: \"What shall we do?\"\n\nThe wise man replied: \"On the Western Ocean sail foreign merchants who\ndeal in dragon-brain vapor. Some one must go to them and seek it from\nthem. I also know a holy man who is an adept in the art of taming\ndragons, and who has prepared ten pounds of the dragon-stone. Some one\nshould be sent for that as well.\"\n\nThe emperor sent out his messengers. They met one of the holy man's\ndisciples and obtained two fragments of dragon-stone from him.\n\nSaid the wise man: \"That is what we want!\"\n\nSeveral more months went by, and at last a pill of dragon-brain vapor\nhad also been secured. The emperor felt much pleased and had his\njewelers carve two little boxes of the finest jade. These were\npolished with the ashes of the Wutung-tree. And he had an essence\nprepared of the very best hollowgreen wood, pasted with sea-fish lime,\nand hardened in the fire. Of this two vases were made. Then the bodies\nand the clothing of the messengers were rubbed with tree-wax, and they\nwere given five hundred roasted swallows to take along with them.\n\nThey went into the cave. When they reached the dragon-castle, the\nlittle dragon who guarded the gate smelled the tree-wax, so he\ncrouched down and did them no harm. They gave him a hundred roasted\nswallows as a bribe to announce them to the daughter of the\nDragon-King. They were admitted to her presence and offered her the\njade caskets, the vases and the four hundred roasted swallows as\ngifts. The dragon's daughter received them graciously, and they\nunfolded the emperor's letter.\n\nIn the castle there was a dragon who was over a thousand years old. He\ncould turn himself into a human being, and could interpret the\nlanguage of human beings. Through him the dragon's daughter learned\nthat the emperor was sending her the gifts, and she returned them with\na gift of three great pearls, seven smaller pearls and a whole bushel\nof ordinary pearls. The messengers took leave, rode off with their\npearls on a dragon's back, and in a moment they had reached the banks\nof the Yangtze-kiang. They made their way to Nanking, the imperial\ncapital, and there handed over their treasure of gems.\n\nThe emperor was much pleased and showed them to the wise man. He said:\n\"Of the three great pearls one is a divine wishing-pearl of the third\nclass, and two are black dragon-pearls of medium quality. Of the seven\nsmaller pearls two are serpent-pearls, and five are mussel-pearls. The\nremaining pearls are in part sea-crane pearls, in part snail and\noyster-pearls. They do not approach the great pearls in value, and yet\nfew will be found to equal them on earth.\"\n\nThe emperor also showed them to all his servants. They, however,\nthought the wise man's words all talk, and did not believe what he\nsaid.\n\nThen the wise man said: \"The radiance of wishing-pearls of the first\nclass is visible for forty miles, that of the second class for twenty\nmiles, and that of the third for ten miles. As far as their radiance\ncarries, neither wind nor rain, thunder nor lightning, water, fire nor\nweapons may reach. The pearls of the black dragon are nine-colored and\nglow by night. Within the circle of their light the poison of serpents\nand worms is powerless. The serpent-pearls are seven-colored, the\nmussel-pearls five-colored. Both shine by night. Those most free from\nspots are the best. They grow within the mussel, and increase and\ndecrease in size as the moon waxes and wanes.\"\n\nSome one asked how the serpent and sea-crane pearls could be told\napart, and the wise man answered: \"The animals themselves recognize\nthem.\"\n\nThen the emperor selected a serpent-pearl and a sea-crane pearl, put\nthem together with a whole bushel of ordinary pearls, and poured the\nlot out in the courtyard. Then a large yellow serpent and a black\ncrane were fetched and placed among the pearls. At once the crane\ntook up a sea-crane pearl in his bill and began to dance and sing and\nflutter around. But the serpent snatched at the serpent-pearl, and\nwound himself about it in many coils. And when the people saw this\nthey acknowledged the truth of the wise man's words. As regards the\nradiance of the larger and smaller pearls it turned out, too, just as\nthe wise man had said.\n\nIn the dragon-castle the messengers had enjoyed dainty fare, which\ntasted like flowers, herbs, ointment and sugar. They had brought a\nremnant of it with them to the capital; yet exposed to the air it had\nbecome as hard as stone. The emperor commanded that these fragments be\npreserved in the treasury. Then he bestowed high rank and titles on\nthe three brothers, and made each one of them a present of a thousand\nrolls of fine silk stuff. He also had investigated why it was that the\nfisherman, when he chanced upon the cave, had not been destroyed by\nthe dragons. And it turned out that his fishing clothes had been\nsoaked in oil and tree-wax. The dragons had dreaded the odor.\n\n Note: As regards the Dragon-King of the Eastern Sea, see\n Nos. 18 and 74. The pearl under the dragon's chin comes\n from Dschuang Dsi. With regard to So Pi-Lo and\n Lo-Dsi-Tschun, see No. 46.\n\n\n\n\nXLVI\n\nHELP IN NEED\n\n\nSome twenty miles east of Gingdschou lies the Lake of the Maidens. It\nis several miles square and surrounded on all sides by thick green\nthickets and tall forests. Its waters are clear and dark-blue. Often\nall kinds of wondrous creatures show themselves in the lake. The\npeople of the vicinity have erected a temple there for the Dragon\nPrincess. And in times of drought all make pilgrimage there to offer\nup prayers.\n\nWest of Gingdschou, two hundred miles away, is another lake, whose god\nis named Tschauna, and who performs many miracles. During the time of\nthe Tang dynasty there lived in Gingdschou a mandarin by name of\nDschou Bau. While he was in office it chanced that in the fifth month\nclouds suddenly arose in the sky, piling themselves up like mountains,\namong which wriggled dragons and serpents; they rolled up and down\nbetween the two seas. Tempest and rain, thunder and lightning arose so\nthat houses fell to pieces, trees were torn up by the roots, and much\ndamage was done the crops. Dschou Bau took the blame upon himself, and\nprayed to the heavens that his people might be pardoned.\n\nOn the fifth day of the sixth month he sat in his hall of audience and\ngave judgment; and suddenly he felt quite weary and sleepy. He took\noff his hat and laid down on the cushions. No sooner had he closed his\neyes than he saw a warrior in helmet and armor, with a halberd in his\nhand, standing on the steps leading to the hall, who announced: \"A\nlady is waiting outside who wishes to enter!\" Dschou Bau asked him:\n\"Who are you?\" The answer was: \"I am your door-keeper. In the\ninvisible world I already have been performing this duty for many\nyears.\" Meanwhile two figures clad in green came up the steps, knelt\nbefore him and said: \"Our mistress has come to visit you!\" Dschou Bau\nrose. He beheld lovely clouds, from which fell a fine rain, and\nstrange fragrances enchanted him. Suddenly he saw a lady clad in a\nsimple gown, but of surpassing beauty, float down from on high, with a\nretinue of many female servants. These were all neat and clean in\nappearance, and waited upon the lady as though she were a princess.\nWhen the latter entered the hall she raised her arms in greeting.\nDschou Bau came forward to meet her and invited her to be seated. From\nall sides bright-colored clouds came floating in, and the courtyard\nwas filled with a purple ether. Dschou Bau had wine and food brought\nand entertained them all in the most splendid way. But the goddess sat\nstaring straight before her with wrinkled brows, and seemed to feel\nvery sad. Then she rose and said with a blush: \"I have been living in\nthis neighborhood for many years. A wrong which has been done me,\npermits me to pass the bounds of what is fitting, and encourages me to\nask a favor of you. Yet I do not know whether you wish to save me!\"\n\n\"May I hear what it is all about,\" answered Dschou Bau. \"If I can help\nyou, I will be glad to place myself at your disposal.\"\n\nThe goddess said: \"For hundreds of years my family has been living in\nthe depth of the Eastern Sea. But we were unfortunate in that our\ntreasures excited the jealousy of men. The ancestor of Pi-Lo nearly\ndestroyed our entire clan by fire. My ancestors had to fly and hide\nthemselves. And not long ago, our enemy Pi-Lo himself wanted to\ndeliver an imperial letter in the cave of the Sea of Dungting. Under\nthe pretext of begging for pearls and treasures, he wished to enter\nthe dragon-castle and destroy our family. Fortunately a wise man saw\nthrough his treacherous purpose, and Lo-Dsi-Tschun and his brothers\nwere sent in his stead. Yet my people did not feel safe from future\nattacks. For this reason they withdrew to the distant West. My father\nhas done much good to mankind and hence is highly honored there. I am\nhis ninth daughter. When I was sixteen I was wedded to the youngest\nson of the Rock-Dragon. But my good husband had a fiery temper, which\noften caused him to offend against the laws of courtesy, and in less\nthan a year's time the punishment of heaven was his portion. I was\nleft alone and returned to the home of my parents. My father wished me\nto marry again; but I had promised to remain true to the memory of my\nhusband, and made a vow not to comply with my father's wish. My\nparents grew angry, and I was obliged to retire to this place in view\nof their anger. That was three years ago. Who could imagine that the\ncontemptible dragon Tschauna, who was seeking a wife for his youngest\nbrother, would try to force the wedding-gift upon me? I refused to\naccept it; but Tschauna knew how to gain his point with my father, and\nwas determined to carry out his intention. My father, regardless of my\nwishes, promised me to him. And then the dragon Tschauna appeared with\nhis youngest brother and wanted to carry me off by sheer force of\narms. I encountered him with fifty faithful followers, and we fought\non the meadow before the city. We were defeated, and I am more than\never afraid that Tschauna will attempt to drag me off. So I have\nplucked up courage to beg you to lend me your mercenaries so that I\nmay beat off my foes and remain as I am. If you will help me I will be\ngrateful to you till the end of my days.\"\n\nDschou Bau answered: \"You come from a noble family. Have you no\nkinsfolk who will hasten to help you in your need, that you are\ncompelled to turn to a mortal man?\"\n\n\"It is true that my kinsfolk are far-famed and numerous. If I were to\nsend out letters and they came to my aid, they would rub out that\nscaly scoundrel Tschauna as one might rub garlic. But my deceased\nhusband offended the high heavens and he has not yet been pardoned.\nAnd my parents' will, too, is opposed to mine, so that I dare not call\nupon my kinsfolk for help. You will understand my need.\" Then Dschou\nBau promised to help her, and the princess thanked him and departed.\n\nWhen he awoke, he sighed long thinking over his strange experience.\nAnd the following day he sent off fifteen hundred soldiers to stand\nguard by the Lake of the Maidens.\n\nOn the seventh day of the sixth month Dschou Bau rose early. Darkness\nstill lay before the windows, yet it seemed to him as though he could\nglimpse a man before the curtain. He asked who it might be. The man\nsaid: \"I am the princess's adviser. Yesterday you were kind enough to\nsend soldiers to aid us in our distress. But they were all living men,\nand such cannot fight against invisible spirits. You will have to send\nus soldiers of yours who have died, if you wish to aid us.\"\n\nDschou Bau reflected for a time, and then it occurred to him that of\ncourse such must be the case. So he had his field-secretary examine\nthe roster to see how many of his soldiers had fallen in battle. And\nthe latter counted up to some two thousand foot-soldiers and\nfive-hundred horsemen. Dschou Bau appointed his deceased officer Mong\nYuan as their leader, and wrote his commands on a paper which he\nburned, in order thus to place them at the princess's disposal. The\nliving soldiers he recalled. When they were being reviewed in the\ncourtyard after their return, a soldier suddenly fell unconscious. It\nwas not until early the following morning that he came to his senses\nagain. He was questioned and replied: \"I saw a man clad in red who\napproached me and said: 'Our princess is grateful for the aid your\nmaster has so kindly given her. Yet she still has a request to make\nand has asked me to call you.' I followed him to the temple. The\nprincess bade me come forward and said to me: 'I thank your master\nfrom my heart for sending me the ghost soldiers, but Mong Yuan, their\nleader is incapable. Yesterday the robbers came with three thousand\nmen, and Mong Yuan was beaten by them. When you return and again see\nyour master, say that I earnestly beg him to send me a good general.\nPerhaps that will save me in my need.' Then she had me led back again\nand I regained consciousness.\"\n\nWhen Dschou Bau had heard these words, which seemed to fit strangely\nwell with what he had dreamed, he thought he would try to see if this\nwere really the case. Therefore he chose his victorious general\nDschong Tschong-Fu to take the place of Mong Yuan. That evening he\nburned incense, offered wine and handed over to the princess this\ncaptain's soul.\n\nOn the twenty-sixth of the month news came from the general's camp\nthat he had suddenly died at midnight on the thirteenth. Dschou Bau\nwas frightened, and sent a man to bring him a report. The latter\ninformed him that the general's heart had hardly ceased to beat, and\nthat, in spite of the hot summer weather, his body was free from any\ntrace of decay. So the order was given not to bury him.\n\nThen one night an icy, spectral wind arose, which whirled up sand and\nstones, broke trees and tore down houses. The standing corn in the\nfields was blown down. The storm lasted all day. Finally, the crash of\na terrific thunderbolt was heard, and then the skies cleared and the\nclouds scattered. That very hour the dead general began to breathe\npainfully on his couch, and when his attendants came to him, he had\nreturned to life again.\n\nThey questioned him and he told them: \"First I saw a man in a purple\ngown riding a black horse, who came up with a great retinue. He\ndismounted before the door. In his hand he held a decree of\nappointment which he gave me, saying: 'Our princess begs you most\nrespectfully to become her general. I hope that you will not refuse.'\nThen he brought forth gifts and heaped them up before the steps.\nJade-stones, brocades, and silken garments, saddles, horses, helmets\nand suits of mail--he heaped them all up in the courtyard. I wished to\ndecline, but this he would not allow, and urged me to enter his\nchariot with him. We drove a hundred miles and met a train of\nthree-hundred armored horsemen who had ridden out to escort me. They\nled me to a great city, and before the city a tent had been erected in\nwhich played a band of musicians. A high official welcomed me. When I\nentered the city the onlookers were crowded together like walls.\nServants ran to and fro bearing orders. We passed through more than a\ndozen gates before we reached the princess. There I was requested to\ndismount and change my clothes in order to enter the presence of the\nprincess, for she wished to receive me as her guest. But I thought\nthis too great an honor and greeted her below, on the steps. She,\nhowever, invited me to seat myself near her in the hall. She sat\nupright in all her incomparable beauty, surrounded by female\nattendants adorned with the richest jewels. These plucked lute-strings\nand played flutes. A throng of servitors stood about in golden girdles\nwith purple tassels, ready to carry out her commands. Countless crowds\nwere assembled before the palace. Five or six visitors sat in a circle\nabout the princess, and a general led me to my place. The princess\nsaid to me: 'I have begged you to come here in order to entrust the\ncommand of my army to you. If you will break the power of my foe I\nwill reward you richly.' I promised to obey her. Then wine was\nbrought in, and the banquet was served to the sound of music. While we\nwere at table a messenger entered: 'The robber Tschauna has invaded\nour land with ten thousand footmen and horsemen, and is approaching\nour city by various roads. His way is marked by columns of fire and\nsmoke!' The guests all grew pale with terror when they heard the news.\nAnd the princess said: 'This is the foe because of whom I have sought\nyour aid. Save me in my hour of need!' Then she gave me two chargers,\na suit of golden armor, and the insignia of a commander-in-chief, and\nbowed to me. I thanked her and went, called together the captains, had\nthe army mustered and rode out before the city. At several decisive\npoints I placed troops in ambush. The enemy was already approaching in\ngreat force, careless and unconcerned, intoxicated by his former\nvictories. I sent out my most untrustworthy soldiers in advance, who\nallowed themselves to be beaten in order to lure him on. Light-armed\nmen then went out against him, and retreated in skirmish order. And\nthus he fell into my ambush. Drums and kettledrums sounded together,\nthe ring closed around them on all sides and the robber army suffered\na grievous defeat. The dead lay about like hemp-stalks, but little\nTschauna succeeded in breaking through the circle. I sent out the\nlight horsemen after him, and they seized him before the tent of the\nenemy's commanding general. Hastily I sent word to the princess, and\nshe reviewed the prisoners before the palace. All the people, high and\nlow, streamed together, to acclaim her. Little Tschauna was about to\nbe executed in the market place when a messenger came spurring up with\na command from the princess's father to pardon him. The princess did\nnot dare to disobey. So he was dismissed to his home after he had\nsworn to give up all thought of realizing his traitorous plans. I was\nloaded with benefits as a reward for my victory. I was invested with\nan estate with three thousand peasants, and was given a palace, horses\nand wagons, all sorts of jewels, men-servants and women-servants,\ngardens and forests, banners and suits of mail. And my subordinate\nofficers, too, were duly rewarded. On the following day a banquet was\nheld, and the princess herself filled a goblet, sent it to me by one\nof her attendants, and said: 'Widowed early in life, I opposed the\nwishes of my stern father and fled to this spot. Here the infamous\nTschauna harassed me and well-nigh put me to shame. Had not your\nmaster's great kindness and your own courage come to my assistance,\nhard would have been my lot!' Then she began to thank me and her tears\nof emotion flowed like a stream. I bowed and begged her to grant me\nleave of absence, so that I might look after my family. I was given a\nmonth's leave and the following day she dismissed me with a splendid\nretinue. Before the city a pavilion had been erected in which I drank\nthe stirrup-cup. Then I rode away and when I arrived before our own\ngate a thunder-peal crashed and I awoke.\"\n\nThereupon the general wrote an account of what had happened to Dschou\nBau, in which he conveyed the princess's thanks. Then he paid no\nfurther heed to worldly matters, but set his house in order and turned\nit over to his wife and son. When a month had passed, he died without\nany sign of illness.\n\nThat same day one of his officers was out walking. Suddenly he saw a\nheavy cloud of dust rising along the highway, while flags and banners\ndarkened the sun. A thousand knights were escorting a man who sat his\nhorse proudly and like a hero. And when the officer looked at his\nface, it was the general Dschong Tschong-Fu. Hastily he stepped to the\nedge of the road, in order to allow the cavalcade to pass, and\nwatched it ride by. The horsemen took the way to the Lake of the\nMaidens, where they disappeared.\n\n Note: The expression: \"Dschou Bau took the blame upon\n himself\" is explained by the fact that the territorial\n mandarin is responsible for his district, just as the\n emperor is for the whole empire. Since extraordinary\n natural phenomena are the punishment of heaven, their\n occurrence supposed the guilt of man. This train of\n thought is in accord with the idea, as in this case,\n that differences occurring among the spirits of the air\n lead to misfortune, since where virtue is in the\n ascendant in the mortal world, the spirits are prevented\n from giving way to such demonstrations. \"Drums and\n kettledrums sounded together\": the kettledrums sounded\n the attack, and the drums the retreat. The simultaneous\n sounding of both signals was intended to throw the\n enemy's army into disorder.\n\n\n\n\nXLVII\n\nTHE DISOWNED PRINCESS\n\n\nAt the time that the Tang dynasty was reigning there lived a man named\nLiu I, who had failed to pass his examinations for the doctorate. So\nhe traveled home again. He had gone six or seven miles when a bird\nflew up in a field, and his horse shied and ran ten miles before he\ncould stop him. There he saw a woman who was herding sheep on a\nhillside. He looked at her and she was lovely to look upon, yet her\nface bore traces of hidden grief. Astonished, he asked her what was\nthe matter.\n\nThe woman began to sob and said: \"Fortune has forsaken me, and I am in\nneed and ashamed. Since you are kind enough to ask I will tell you\nall. I am the youngest daughter of the Dragon-King of the Sea of\nDungting, and was married to the second son of the Dragon-King of Ging\nDschou. Yet my husband ill-treated and disowned me. I complained to my\nstep-parents, but they loved their son blindly and did nothing. And\nwhen I grew insistent they both became angry, and I was sent out here\nto herd sheep.\" When she had done, the woman burst into tears and lost\nall control of herself. Then she continued: \"The Sea of Dungting is\nfar from here; yet I know that you will have to pass it on your\nhomeward journey. I should like to give you a letter to my father, but\nI do not know whether you would take it.\"\n\nLiu I answered: \"Your words have moved my heart. Would that I had\nwings and could fly away with you. I will be glad to deliver the\nletter to your father. Yet the Sea of Dungting is long and broad, and\nhow am I to find him?\"\n\n\"On the southern shore of the Sea stands an orange-tree,\" answered the\nwoman, \"which people call the tree of sacrifice. When you get there\nyou must loosen your girdle and strike the tree with it three times in\nsuccession. Then some one will appear whom you must follow. When you\nsee my father, tell him in what need you found me, and that I long\ngreatly for his help.\"\n\nThen she fetched out a letter from her breast and gave it to Liu I.\nShe bowed to him, looked toward the east and sighed, and, unexpectedly,\nthe sudden tears rolled from the eyes of Liu I as well. He took the\nletter and thrust it in his bag.\n\nThen he asked her: \"I cannot understand why you have to herd sheep. Do\nthe gods slaughter cattle like men?\"\n\n\"These are not ordinary sheep,\" answered the woman; \"these are\nrain-sheep.\"\n\n\"But what are rain-sheep?\"\n\n\"They are the thunder-rams,\" replied the woman.\n\nAnd when he looked more closely he noticed that these sheep walked\naround in proud, savage fashion, quite different from ordinary sheep.\n\nLiu I added: \"But if I deliver the letter for you, and you succeed in\ngetting back to the Sea of Dungting in safety, then you must not use\nme like a stranger.\"\n\nThe woman answered: \"How could I use you as a stranger? You shall be\nmy dearest friend.\"\n\nAnd with these words they parted.\n\nIn course of a month Liu I reached the Sea of Dungting, asked for the\norange-tree and, sure enough, found it. He loosened his girdle, and\nstruck the tree with it three times. At once a warrior emerged from\nthe waves of the sea, and asked: \"Whence come you, honored guest?\"\n\nLiu I said: \"I have come on an important mission and want to see the\nKing.\"\n\nThe warrior made a gesture in the direction of the water, and the\nwaves turned into a solid street along which he led Liu I. The\ndragon-castle rose before them with its thousand gates, and magic\nflowers and rare grasses bloomed in luxurious profusion. The warrior\nbade him wait at the side of a great hall.\n\nLiu I asked: \"What is this place called?\"\n\n\"It is the Hall of the Spirits,\" was the reply.\n\nLiu I looked about him: all the jewels known to earth were there in\nabundance. The columns were of white quartz, inlaid with green jade;\nthe seats were made of coral, the curtains of mountain crystal as\nclear as water, the windows of burnished glass, adorned with rich\nlattice-work. The beams of the ceiling, ornamented with amber, rose in\nwide arches. An exotic fragrance filled the hall, whose outlines were\nlost in darkness.\n\nLiu I had waited for the king a long time. To all his questions the\nwarrior replied: \"Our master is pleased at this moment to talk with\nthe priest of the sun up on the coral-tower about the sacred book of\nthe fire. He will, no doubt, soon be through.\"\n\nLiu I went on to ask: \"Why is he interested in the sacred book of the\nfire?\"\n\nThe reply was: \"Our master is a dragon. The dragons are powerful\nthrough the power of water. They can cover hill and dale with a single\nwave. The priest is a human being. Human beings are powerful through\nfire. They can burn the greatest palaces by means of a torch. Fire and\nwater fight each other, being different in their nature. For that\nreason our master is now talking with the priest, in order to find a\nway in which fire and water may complete each other.\"\n\nBefore they had quite finished there appeared a man in a purple robe,\nbearing a scepter of jade in his hand.\n\nThe warrior said: \"This is my master!\"\n\nLiu I bowed before him.\n\nThe king asked: \"Are you not a living human being? What has brought\nyou here?\"\n\nLiu I gave his name and explained: \"I have been to the capital and\nthere failed to pass my examination. When I was passing by the Ging\nDschou River, I saw your daughter, whom you love, herding sheep in the\nwilderness. The winds tousled her hair, and the rain drenched her. I\ncould not bear to see her trouble and spoke to her. She complained\nthat her husband had cast her out and wept bitterly. Then she gave me\na letter for you. And that is why I have come to visit you, O King!\"\n\nWith these words he fetched out his letter and handed it to the king.\nWhen the latter had read it, he hid his face in his sleeve and said\nwith a sigh: \"It is my own fault. I picked out a worthless husband\nfor her. Instead of securing her happiness I have brought her to shame\nin a distant land. You are a stranger and yet you have been willing to\nhelp her in her distress, for which I am very grateful to you.\" Then\nhe once more began to sob, and all those about him shed tears.\nThereupon the monarch gave the letter to a servant who took it into\nthe interior of the palace; and soon the sound of loud lamentations\nrose from the inner rooms.\n\nThe king was alarmed and turned to an official: \"Go and tell them\nwithin not to weep so loudly! I am afraid that Tsian Tang may hear\nthem.\"\n\n\"Who is Tsian Tang?\" asked Liu I.\n\n\"He is my beloved brother,\" answered the king. \"Formerly he was the\nruler of the Tsian-Tang River, but now he has been deposed.\"\n\nLiu I asked: \"Why should the matter be kept from him?\"\n\n\"He is so wild and uncontrollable,\" was the reply, \"that I fear he\nwould cause great damage. The deluge which covered the earth for nine\nlong years in the time of the Emperor Yau was the work of his anger.\nBecause he fell out with one of the kings of heaven, he caused a great\ndeluge that rose and covered the tops of five high mountains. Then the\nking of heaven grew angry with him, and gave him to me to guard. I had\nto chain him to a column in my palace.\"\n\nBefore he had finished speaking a tremendous turmoil arose, which\nsplit the skies and made the earth tremble, so that the whole palace\nbegan to rock, and smoke and clouds rose hissing and puffing. A red\ndragon, a thousand feet long, with flashing eyes, blood-red tongue,\nscarlet scales and a fiery beard came surging up. He was dragging\nalong through the air the column to which he had been bound, together\nwith its chain. Thunders and lightnings roared and darted around his\nbody; sleet and snow, rain and hail-stones whirled about him in\nconfusion. There was a crash of thunder, and he flew up to the skies\nand disappeared.\n\nLiu I fell to earth in terror. The king helped him up with his own\nhand and said: \"Do not be afraid! That is my brother, who is hastening\nto Ging Dschou in his rage. We will soon have good news!\"\n\nThen he had food and drink brought in for his guest. When the goblet\nhad thrice made the rounds, a gentle breeze began to murmur and a fine\nrain fell. A youth clad in a purple gown and wearing a lofty hat\nentered. A sword hung at his side. His appearance was manly and\nheroic. Behind him walked a girl radiantly beautiful, wearing a robe\nof misty fragrance. And when Liu I looked at her, lo, it was the\ndragon-princess whom he had met on his way! A throng of maidens in\nrosy garments received her, laughing and giggling, and led her into\nthe interior of the palace. The king, however, presented Liu I to the\nyouth and said: \"This is Tsian Tang, my brother!\"\n\nTsian Tang thanked him for having brought the message. Then he turned\nto his brother and said: \"I have fought against the accursed dragons\nand have utterly defeated them!\"\n\n\"How many did you slay?\"\n\n\"Six hundred thousand.\"\n\n\"Were any fields damaged?\"\n\n\"The fields were damaged for eight hundred miles around.\"\n\n\"And where is the heartless husband?\"\n\n\"I ate him alive!\"\n\n [Illustration: \"TSIAN TANG BROUGHT OUT A PLATTER OF RED AMBER ON\n WHICH LAY A CARBUNCLE.\"\n --_Page 157_]\n\nThen the king was alarmed and said: \"What the fickle boy did was not\nto be endured, it is true. But still you were a little too rough\nwith him; in future you must not do anything of the sort again.\" And\nTsian Tang promised not to.\n\nThat evening Liu I was feasted at the castle. Music and dancing lent\ncharm to the banquet. A thousand warriors with banners and spears in\ntheir hands stood at attention. Trombones and trumpets resounded, and\ndrums and kettledrums thundered and rattled as the warriors danced a\nwar-dance. The music expressed how Tsian Tang had broken through the\nranks of the enemy, and the hair of the guest who listened to it rose\non his head in terror. Then, again, there was heard the music of\nstrings, flutes and little golden bells. A thousand maidens in\ncrimson and green silk danced around. The return of the princess was\nalso told in tones. The music sounded like a song of sadness and\nplaining, and all who heard it were moved to tears. The King of the\nSea of Dungting was filled with joy. He raised his goblet and drank\nto the health of his guest, and all sorrow departed from them. Both\nrulers thanked Liu I in verses, and Liu I answered them in a rimed\ntoast. The crowd of courtiers in the palace-hall applauded. Then the\nKing of the Sea of Dungting drew forth a blue cloud-casket in which\nwas the horn of a rhinoceros, which divides the water. Tsian Tang\nbrought out a platter of red amber on which lay a carbuncle. These\nthey presented to their guest, and the other inmates of the palace\nalso heaped up embroideries, brocades and pearls by his side.\nSurrounded by shimmer and light Liu I sat there, smiling, and bowed\nhis thanks to all sides. When the banquet was ended he slept in the\nPalace of Frozen Radiance.\n\nOn the following day another banquet was held. Tsian Tang, who was not\nquite himself, sat carelessly on his seat and said: \"The Princess of\nthe Dungting Sea is handsome and delicately fashioned. She has had\nthe misfortune to be disowned by her husband, and to-day her marriage\nis annulled. I should like to find another husband for her. If you\nwere agreeable it would be to your advantage. But if you were not\nwilling to marry her, you may go your way, and should we ever meet\nagain we will not know each other.\"\n\nLiu I was angered by the careless way in which Tsian Tang spoke to\nhim. The blood rose to his head and he replied: \"I served as a\nmessenger, because I felt sorry for the princess, but not in order to\ngain an advantage for myself. To kill a husband and carry off a wife\nis something an honest man does not do. And since I am only an\nordinary man, I prefer to die rather than do as you say.\"\n\nTsian Tang rose, apologized and said: \"My words were over-hasty. I\nhope you will not take them ill!\" And the King of the Dungting Sea\nalso spoke kindly to him, and censured Tsian Tang because of his rude\nspeech. So there was no more said about marriage.\n\nOn the following day Liu I took his leave, and the Queen of the\nDungting Sea gave a farewell banquet in his honor.\n\nWith tears the queen said to Liu I: \"My daughter owes you a great debt\nof gratitude, and we have not had an opportunity to make it up to you.\nNow you are going away and we see you go with heavy hearts!\"\n\nThen she ordered the princess to thank Liu I.\n\nThe princess stood there, blushing, bowed to him and said: \"We will\nprobably never see each other again!\" Then tears choked her voice.\n\nIt is true that Liu I had resisted the stormy urging of her uncle, but\nwhen he saw the princess standing before him in all the charm of her\nloveliness, he felt sad at heart; yet he controlled himself and went\nhis way. The treasures which he took with him were incalculable. The\nking and his brother themselves escorted him as far as the river.\n\nWhen, on his return home, he sold no more than a hundredth part of\nwhat he had received, his fortune already ran into the millions, and\nhe was wealthier than all his neighbors. He decided to take a wife,\nand heard of a widow who lived in the North with her daughter. Her\nfather had become a Taoist in his later years and had vanished in the\nclouds without ever returning. The mother lived in poverty with the\ndaughter; yet since the girl was beautiful beyond measure she was\nseeking a distinguished husband for her.\n\nLiu I was content to take her, and the day of the wedding was set. And\nwhen he saw his bride unveiled on the evening of her wedding day, she\nlooked just like the dragon-princess. He asked her about it, but she\nmerely smiled and said nothing.\n\nAfter a time heaven sent them a son. Then she told her husband:\n\"To-day I will confess to you that I am truly the Princess of Dungting\nSea. When you had rejected my uncle's proposal and gone away, I fell\nill of longing, and was near death. My parents wanted to send for you,\nbut they feared you might take exception to my family. And so it was\nthat I married you disguised as a human maiden. I had not ventured to\ntell you until now, but since heaven has sent us a son, I hope that\nyou will love his mother as well.\"\n\nThen Liu I awoke as though from a deep sleep, and from that time on\nboth were very fond of each other.\n\nOne day his wife said: \"If you wish to stay with me eternally, then we\ncannot continue to dwell in the world of men. We dragons live ten\nthousand years, and you shall share our longevity. Come back with me\nto the Sea of Dungting!\"\n\nTen years passed and no one knew where Liu I, who had disappeared,\nmight be. Then, by accident, a relative went sailing across the Sea of\nDungting. Suddenly a blue mountain rose up out of the water.\n\nThe seamen cried in alarm: \"There is no mountain on this spot! It must\nbe a water-demon!\"\n\nWhile they were still pointing to it and talking, the mountain drew\nnear the ship, and a gaily-colored boat slid from its summit into the\nwater. A man sat in the middle, and fairies stood at either side of\nhim. The man was Liu I. He beckoned to his cousin, and the latter drew\nup his garments and stepped into the boat with him. But when he had\nentered the boat it turned into a mountain. On the mountain stood a\nsplendid castle, and in the castle stood Liu I, surrounded with\nradiance, and with the music of stringed instruments floating about\nhim.\n\nThey greeted each other, and Liu I said to his cousin: \"We have been\nparted no more than a moment, and your hair is already gray!\"\n\nHis cousin answered: \"You are a god and blessed: I have only a mortal\nbody. Thus fate has decreed.\"\n\nThen Liu I gave him fifty pills and said: \"Each pill will extend your\nlife for the space of a year. When you have lived the tale of these\nyears, come to me and dwell no longer in the earthly world of dust,\nwhere there is nothing but toil and trouble.\"\n\nThen he took him back across the sea and disappeared.\n\nHis cousin, however, retired from the world, and fifty years later,\nand when he had taken all the pills, he disappeared and was never seen\nagain.\n\n Note: The outcast princess is represented as \"herding\n sheep.\" In Chinese the word sheep is often used as an\n image for clouds. (Sheep and goats are designated by the\n same word in Chinese.) Tsian Tang is the name of a\n place used for the name of the god of that place. The\n deluge is the flood which the great Yu regulated as\n minister of the Emperor Yau. It is here represented in\n an exaggerated sense, as a deluge.\n\n\n\n\nXLVIII\n\nFOX-FIRE\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a strong young farmer who came home late\none evening from market. His way led him past the gardens of a wealthy\ngentleman, in which stood a number of tall buildings. Suddenly he saw\nsomething shining floating in the air inside the gardens, something\nwhich glowed like a ball of crystal. He was astonished, and climbed\nthe wall around the gardens, but there was not a human being in sight;\nall he saw was, at a distance, something which appeared to be a dog,\nlooking up at the moon. And whenever it blew its breath out a ball of\nfire came out of its mouth, and rose to the moon. And whenever it drew\nits breath in the ball sank down again, and it caught it in its jaws.\nAnd so it went on without a stop. Then the farmer realized that it was\na fox, who was preparing the elixir of life. He hid in the grass and\nwaited until the ball of fire came down again, at about the height of\nhis own head. Then he stepped hastily from his hiding-place, took it\naway and at once swallowed it. And he could feel it glow as it passed\ndown his throat into his stomach. When the fox saw what had happened\nhe grew angry. He looked furiously at the farmer, but feared his\nstrength. For this reason he did not dare attack him, but went angrily\non his way.\n\nFrom that time on the farmer-boy could make himself invisible, was\nable to see ghosts and devils, and had intercourse with the\nspirit-world. In cases of sickness, when people lay unconscious, he\ncould call back their souls, and if some one had committed a sin he\ncould plead for them. He earned much money owing to these gifts.\n\nWhen he reached his fiftieth year, he withdrew from all things and\nwould no longer exercise his arts. One summer evening he was sitting\nin his courtyard, enjoying the cool air. While there he drank a number\nof goblets of wine, and by midnight had fallen fast asleep. Suddenly\nhe awoke, feeling ill. It seemed as though some one were patting him\non the back, and before he knew it, the ball of fire had leaped out\nfrom his throat. At once a hand reached for it and a voice said: \"For\nthirty long years you kept my treasure from me, and from a poor\nfarmer-lad you have grown to be a wealthy man. Now you have enough,\nand I would like to have my fire-ball back again!\"\n\nThen the man knew what had happened, but the fox was gone.\n\n Note: The thought underlying the story is the belief\n that the fox prepares the elixir of life out of his own\n breath, which he allows to rise to the moon. If a thief\n can rob him of the elixir he gains supernatural powers.\n\n\n\n\nGHOST STORIES\n\n\n\n\nXLIX\n\nTHE TALKING SILVER FOXES\n\n\nThe silver foxes resemble other foxes, but are yellow, fire-red or\nwhite in color. They know how to influence human beings, too. There is\na kind of silver fox which can learn to speak like a man in a year's\ntime. These foxes are called \"Talking Foxes.\"\n\nSouth-west of the bay of Kaiutschou there is a mountain by the edge of\nthe sea, shaped like a tower, and hence known as Tower Mountain. On\nthe mountain there is an old temple with the image of a goddess, who\nis known as the Old Mother of Tower Mountain. When children fall ill\nin the surrounding villages, the magicians often give orders that\npaper figures of them be burned at her altar, or little lime images of\nthem be placed around it. And for this reason the altar and its\nsurroundings are covered with hundreds of figures of children made in\nlime. Paper flowers, shoes and clothing are also brought to the Old\nMother, and lie in a confusion of colors. The pilgrimage festivals\ntake place on the third day of the third month, and the ninth day of\nthe ninth month, and then there are theatrical performances, and the\nholy writings are read. And there is also an annual fair. The girls\nand women of the neighborhood burn incense and pray to the goddess.\nParents who have no children go there and pick out one of the little\nchildren made of lime, and tie a red thread around its neck, or even\nsecretly break off a small bit of its body, dissolve it in water and\ndrink it. Then they pray quietly that a child may be sent them.\n\nBehind the temple is a great cave where, in former times, some talking\nfoxes used to live. They would even come out and seat themselves on\nthe point of a steep rock by the wayside. When a wanderer came by they\nwould begin to talk to him in this fashion: \"Wait a bit, neighbor;\nfirst smoke a pipe!\" The traveler would look around in astonishment,\nto see where the voice came from, and would become very much\nfrightened. If he did not happen to be exceptionally brave, he would\nbegin to perspire with terror, and run away. Then the fox would laugh:\n\"Hi hi!\"\n\nOnce a farmer was plowing on the side of the mountain. When he looked\nup he saw a man with a straw hat, wearing a mantle of woven grass and\ncarrying a pick across his shoulder coming along the way.\n\n\"Neighbor Wang,\" said he, \"first smoke a pipeful and take a little\nrest! Then I will help you plow.\"\n\nThen he called out \"Hu!\" the way farmers do when they talk to their\ncattle.\n\nThe farmer looked at him more closely and saw then that he was a\ntalking fox. He waited for a favorable opportunity, and when it came\ngave him a lusty blow with his ox-whip. He struck home, for the fox\nscreamed, leaped into the air and ran away. His straw hat, his mantle\nof woven grass and the rest he left lying on the ground. Then the\nfarmer saw that the straw hat was just woven out of potato-leaves; he\nhad cut it in two with his whip. The mantle was made of oak-leaves,\ntied together with little blades of grass. And the pick was only the\nstem of a kau-ling plant, to which a bit of brick had been fastened.\n\nNot long after, a woman in a neighboring village became possessed. A\npicture of the head priest of the Taoists was hung up in her room,\nbut the evil spirit did not depart. Since there were none who could\nexorcise devils in the neighborhood, and the trouble she gave was\nunendurable, the woman's relatives decided to send to the temple of\nthe God of War and beg for aid.\n\nBut when the fox heard of it he said: \"I am not afraid of your Taoist\nhigh-priest nor of your God of War; the only person I fear is your\nneighbor Wang in the Eastern village, who once struck me cruelly with\nhis whip.\"\n\nThis suited the people to a T. They sent to the Eastern village, and\nfound out who Wang was. And Wang took his ox-whip and entered the\nhouse of the possessed woman.\n\nThen he said in a deep voice: \"Where are you? Where are you? I have\nbeen on your trail for a long time. And now, at last, I have caught\nyou!\"\n\nWith that he snapped his whip.\n\nThe fox hissed and spat and flew out of the window.\n\nThey had been telling stories about the talking fox of Tower Mountain\nfor more than a hundred years when one fine day, a skilful archer came\nto that part of the country who saw a creature like a fox, with a\nfiery-red pelt, whose back was striped with gray. It was lying under a\ntree. The archer aimed and shot off its hind foot.\n\nAt once it said in a human voice: \"I brought myself into this danger\nbecause of my love for sleep; but none may escape their fate! If you\ncapture me you will get at the most no more than five thousand pieces\nof copper for my pelt. Why not let me go instead? I will reward you\nrichly, so that all your poverty will come to an end.\"\n\nBut the archer would not listen to him. He killed him, skinned him\nand sold his pelt; and, sure enough, he received five thousand pieces\nof copper for it.\n\nFrom that time on the fox-spirit ceased to show itself.\n\n Note: The silver fox is known in Chinese as \"Pi,\" the\n same word also being used for \"panthers,\" since this\n legendary beast partakes of the nature of both animals.\n \"The Old Mother\" is really the mother-goddess of the\n Taischan. But in other localities she is chiefly honored\n as a child-giving goddess. \"A picture of the head priest\n of the Taoists\": Talismans painted by the head priest of\n the Taoists or the Taoist pope, the so-called \"Master of\n the Heavens,\" (Tian Schi) have special virtues against\n all kinds of sorcery and enchantment. The war god Guan\n Di also is appealed to as a savior in all sorts of\n emergencies.\n\n\n\n\nL\n\nTHE CONSTABLE\n\n\nIn a city in the neighborhood of Kaiutschou there once lived a\nconstable by the name of Dung. One day when he returned from a hunt\nafter thieves the twilight had already begun to fall. So before he\nwaded through the stream that flowed through the city he sat down on\nthe bank, lit a pipe and took off his shoes. When he looked up, he\nsuddenly saw a man in a red hat dressed as a constable crouching\nbeside him.\n\nAstonished, he inquired: \"Who are you? Your clothes indicate that you\nare a member of our profession, but I have never yet seen you among\nthe men of our local force. Tell me, pray, whence you come?\"\n\nThe other answered: \"I am weary, having come a long journey, and would\nlike to enjoy a pipeful of tobacco in your company. I am sure you will\nnot object to that.\"\n\nDung handed him a pipe and tobacco.\n\nBut the other constable said: \"I do not need them. Just you keep on\nsmoking. It is enough for me to enjoy the odor.\"\n\nSo they chatted awhile together, and together waded through the\nstream. And gradually they became quite confidential and the stranger\nsaid: \"I will be quite frank with you. I am the head constable of the\nNether World, and am subject to the Lord of the Great Mountain. You\nyourself are a constable of reputation here in the upper world. And,\nbecause of my skill, I have standing in the world below. Since we are\nso well suited to each other, I should like to enter into a bond of\nbrotherhood with you.\"\n\nDung was agreeable and asked: \"But what really brings you here?\"\n\nSaid the other: \"In your district there lives a certain Wang, who was\nformerly superintendent of the granaries, and at that time caused the\ndeath of an officer. This man has now accused him in the Nether World.\nThe King of the Nether World cannot come to a decision in the case,\nand therefore has asked the Lord of the Great Mountain to settle it.\nThe Lord of the Great Mountain has ordered that Wang's property and\nlife be shortened. First his property is to be sequestered here in the\nupper world, and then his soul is to be dragged to the nether one. I\nhave been sent out by the Judge of the Dead to fetch him. Yet the\nestablished custom is, when some one is sent for, that the constable\nhas first to report to the god of the city. The god of the city then\nissues a summons, and sends one of his own spirit constables to seize\nthe soul and deliver it over to me. Only then may I take it away with\nme.\"\n\nDung asked him further particulars; but the other merely said: \"Later\non you will see it all for yourself.\"\n\nWhen they reached the city Dung invited his colleague to stay at his\nhome, and entertained him with wine and food. But the other only\ntalked and touched neither the goblet nor the chop-sticks.\n\nSaid Dung: \"In my haste I could not find any better meal for you. I am\nafraid it is not good enough.\"\n\nBut his guest replied: \"Oh no, I am already surfeited and satisfied! We\nspirits feed only on odors; in which respect we differ from men.\"\n\nIt was late at night before he set out to visit the temple of the city\ngod.\n\nNo sooner did morning dawn than he reappeared to take farewell and\nsaid: \"Now all is in order: I am off! In two years' time you will go\nto Taianfu, the city near the Great Mountain, and there we will meet\nagain.\"\n\nDung began to feel ill at ease. A few days later, in fact, came the\nnews that Wang had died. The district mandarin journeyed to the dead\nman's natal village in order to express his sympathy. Among his\nfollowers was Dung. The inn-keeper there was a tenant of Wang's.\n\nDung asked him: \"Did anything out of the ordinary happen when Sir Wang\ndied?\"\n\n\"It was all very strange,\" answered the inn-keeper, \"and my mother who\nhad been very busy in his house, came home and fell into a violent\nfever. She was unconscious for a day and a night, and could hardly\nbreathe. She came to on the very day when the news of Sir Wang's death\nwas made public, and said: 'I have been to the Nether World and I met\nhim there. He had chains about his neck and several devils were\ndragging him along. I asked him what he had done, but he said: \"I have\nno time to tell you now. When you return ask my wife and she will tell\nyou all!\"' And yesterday my mother went there and asked her. And\nWang's wife told her with tears: 'My master was an official, but for a\nlong time he did not make any head-way. He was superintendent of the\ngranaries in Nanking, and in the same city was a high officer, with\nwhom my master became very intimate. He always came to visit at our\nhouse and he and my master would talk and drink together. One day my\nmaster said to him: \"We administrative mandarins have a large salary\nand a good income besides. You are an officer, and have even reached\nthe second step in rank, yet your salary is so small that you cannot\npossibly make it do. Have you any other income aside from it?\" The\nofficer replied: \"We are such good friends that I know I can speak\nopenly to you. We officers are compelled to find some additional\nsources of revenue in order that our pockets may not be altogether\nempty. When we pay our men we make a small percentage of gains on the\nexchange; and we also carry more soldiers on our rosters than there\nactually are present. If we had to live on our salaries we would die\nof hunger!\"\n\n\"'When my husband heard him say this he could not rid himself of the\nidea that by disclosing these criminal proceedings the State would be\nindebted to him, and that it would surely aid his plans for\nadvancement. On the other hand, he reflected that it would not be\nright to abuse his friend's confidence. With these ideas in his mind\nhe retired to his inner rooms. In the courtyard stood a round\npavilion. Lost in heavy thought, he crossed his hands behind his back,\nand for a long time walked round and round the pavilion. Finally he\nsaid with a sigh: \"Charity begins at home; I will sacrifice my\nfriend!\" Then he drew up his report, in which the officer was\nindicted. An imperial order was issued, the matter was investigated,\nand the officer was condemned to death. My husband, however, was at\nonce increased in rank, and from that time on advanced rapidly. And\nwith the exception of myself no one ever knew anything of the matter.'\nWhen my mother told them of her encounter with Wang in the Nether\nWorld, the whole family burst into loud weeping. Four tents full of\nBuddhist and Taoist priests were sent for, who fasted and read masses\nfor thirty-five days in order that Wang might be delivered. Whole\nmountains of paper money, silk and straw figures were burned, and the\nceremonies have not as yet come to an end.\"\n\nWhen Dung heard this he was very much frightened.\n\nTwo years later he received an order to journey to Taianfu in order to\narrest some robbers there. He thought to himself: \"My friend, the\nspirit, must be very powerful indeed, to have known about this trip so\nfar in advance. I must inquire for him. Perhaps I will see him again.\"\n\nWhen he reached Taianfu he sought out an inn.\n\nThe inn-keeper received him with the words: \"Are you Master Dung, and\nhave you come from the bay of Kaiutschou?\"\n\n\"I am the man,\" answered Dung, alarmed, \"how do you happen to know\nme?\"\n\nThe inn-keeper replied: \"The constable of the temple of the Great\nMountain appeared to me last night and said: 'To-morrow a man by the\nname of Dung who is a good friend of mine is coming from the bay of\nKaiutschou!' And then he described your appearance and your clothes to\nme exactly, and told me to make careful note of them, and when you\ncame to treat you with the greatest consideration, and to take no pay\nfrom you, since he would repay me lavishly. So when I saw you coming\neverything was exactly as my dreams had foretold, and I knew you at\nonce. I have already prepared a quiet room for you, and beg that you\nwill condescend to make yourself at ease.\"\n\nJoyfully Dung followed him, and the inn-keeper waited on him with the\ngreatest consideration, and saw that he had great plenty to eat and to\ndrink.\n\nAt midnight the spirit arrived. Without having opened the door, he\nstood by Dung's bedside, gave him his hand, and asked how things had\ngone with him since he had last seen him.\n\nDung answered all his questions and thanked him into the bargain for\nappearing to the inn-keeper in a dream.\n\nHe continued to live for some days at the inn. During the day he went\nwalking on the Great Mountain and at night his friend came to visit\nhim and talked with him, and at the same time asked him what had\nhappened to Sir Wang.\n\n\"His sentence has already been spoken,\" answered the other. \"This man\npretended to be conscientious, and traitorously brought about the\ndeath of his friend. Of all sins there is no greater sin than this. As\na punishment he will be sent forth again into the world as an animal.\"\nThen he added: \"When you reach home you must take constant care of\nyour health. Fate has allowed you seventy-eight years of mortal life.\nWhen your time is up I will come to fetch you myself. Then I will see\nthat you obtain a place as constable in the Nether World, where we can\nalways be together.\"\n\nWhen he had said this, he disappeared.\n\n Note: \"The Constable\" is a tale of modern origin. The\n Lord of the Great Mountain (Taischan) is even greater\n than Yan Wang, the God of Death. His Temple of the\n Easterly Holy Mountain (Dung Yuo Miau), is to be found\n in every district capital. These temples play an\n important part in the care of the dead before interment.\n\n\n\n\nLI\n\nTHE DANGEROUS REWARD\n\n\nOnce upon a time a man named Hu-Wu-Bau, who lived near the Great\nMountain, went walking there one day. And there, under a tree, he met\na messenger in a red robe who called out to him: \"The Lord of the\nGreat Mountain would like to see you!\" The man was much frightened,\nbut dared offer no objection. The messenger bade him shut his eyes,\nand when he was allowed to open them again after a short time, he\nfound himself standing before a lofty palace. He entered it to see the\ngod. The latter had a meal prepared for him and said: \"I only sent for\nyou to-day because I had heard you intended traveling to the West. And\nin that case I should like to give you a letter to take to my\ndaughter.\"\n\n\"But where is your daughter?\" asked the man.\n\n\"She is married to the river-god,\" was the reply. \"All you need to do\nis to take along the letter lying there. When you reach the middle of\nthe Yellow River, beat against the side of the ship and call out:\n'Greencoat!' Then some one will appear and take the letter from you.\"\n\nAnd with these words he handed Hu-Wu-Bau the letter, and he was taken\nback again to the upper world.\n\nWhen he came to the Yellow River on his journey, he did what the Lord\nof the Great Mountain had told him, and cried: \"Greencoat!\" And sure\nenough, a girl in green garments rose from the water, took him by the\nhand and told him to close his eyes. Then she led him into the palace\nof the river-god and he delivered the letter. The river-god\nentertained him splendidly, and thanked him as best he knew how. At\nparting he said: \"I am grateful that you have made this long journey\nto see me. I have nothing to give you, however, save this pair of\ngreen silk shoes. While you are wearing them you can keep on walking\nas long as you like and never grow weary. And they will give you the\nsecond sight, so that you will be able to see the spirits and gods.\"\n\nThe man thanked him for the gift and returned to his ship. He\ncontinued on his journey to the West, and after a year had passed,\ncame back again. When he reached the Great Mountain, he thought it\nwould be fit and proper to report to the god. So he once more knocked\nagainst the tree and gave his name. In a moment the red-clad messenger\nappeared and led him to the Lord of the Mountain. So he reported that\nhe had delivered the letter to the river-god, and how all things were\nthere, and the Lord of the Mountain thanked him. During the meal which\nthe god had prepared for him, he withdrew for a few moments to a quiet\nspot. Suddenly he saw his deceased father, bound and loaded with\nchains, who together with several hundred other criminals, was doing\nmenial labor.\n\nMoved to tears, he asked: \"O my father, why are you here?\"\n\nHis father replied: \"During my life on earth I happened to tread on\nbread, hence I was condemned to hard labor at this spot. I have passed\ntwo years in this manner, yet their bitterness has been unspeakable.\nSince you are acquainted with the Lord of the Mountain, you might\nplead for me, and beg him to excuse me from this task and make me the\nfield-god in our village.\"\n\nHis son promised to do so, and went back and pleaded with the Lord of\nthe Mountain as he had agreed. The latter seemed inclined to listen to\nhis prayer, yet said warningly: \"The quick and the dead tread\ndifferent paths. It is not well for the dead and the living to abide\nnear one another permanently.\"\n\nThe man returned home. Yet, in about a year's time nearly all his\nchildren had died. In the terror of his heart he turned to the Lord of\nthe Great Mountain. He beat on the tree; the red-coat came and led him\ninto the palace. There he told of his misfortune and begged the god to\nprotect him. The Lord of the Mountain smiled: \"Did I not tell you in\nthe start that the quick and the dead tread different paths, and that\nit is not well if they abide near each other permanently? Now you see\nwhat has happened!\" Yet he sent his messenger to fetch the man's\nfather. The father came and the god spake to him as follows: \"I\nforgave you your offense and sent you back to your home as a\nfield-god. It was your duty to bring happiness to your family.\nInstead, nearly all of your grand-children have died off. Why is\nthis?\"\n\nAnd the father said: \"I had been away from home so long that I was\noverjoyed to return. Besides I had meat and drink in overflowing\nmeasure. So I thought of my little grand-children and called them to\nme.\"\n\nThen the Lord of the Great Mountain appointed another field-god for\nthat village, and also gave the father another place. And from that\ntime no further misfortune happened to the family of Hu-Wu-Bau.\n\n Note: The Lord of the Great Mountain was originally\n Huang Fe-Hu, a faithful servant of the tyrant\n Dschou-Sin. Because of an insult offered him, he joined\n King Wu, and when the latter overcame the tyrant, was\n made Lord of the Mountain, and overlord of the ten\n princes of the nether world.\n\n\n\n\nLII\n\nRETRIBUTION\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a boy named Ma, whose father taught him\nhimself, at home. The window of the upper story looked out on the rear\nupon a terrace belonging to old Wang, who had a garden of\nchrysanthemums there. One day Ma rose early, and stood leaning against\nthe window, watching the day dawn. And out came old Wang from his\nterrace and watered his chrysanthemums. When he had just finished and\nwas going in again, along came a water-carrier, bearing two pails on\nhis shoulders, who seemed to want to help him. But the old man grew\nannoyed and motioned him off. Yet the water-carrier insisted on\nmounting the terrace. So they pulled each other about on the\nterrace-edge. It had been raining, the terrace was slippery, its\nborder high and narrow, and when the old man thrust back the\nwater-carrier with his hand, the latter lost his balance, slipped and\ntumbled down the slope. Then the old man hastened down to pick him up;\nbut the two pails had fallen on his chest and he lay there with feet\noutstretched. The old man was extremely frightened. Without uttering a\nsound, he took hold of the water-carrier's feet, and dragged him\nthrough the back door to the bank of the stream which flowed by the\ngarden. Then he fetched the pails and set them down beside the corpse.\nAfter that he went home, locked the door and went to bed again.\n\nLittle Ma, in spite of his youth, thought it would be better to say\nnothing about an affair of this kind, in which a human life was\ninvolved. He shut the window and withdrew. The sun rose higher, and\nsoon he heard a clamor without: \"A dead man is lying on the\nriver-bank!\" The constable gave notice, and in the afternoon the judge\ncame up to the beating of gongs, and the inspector of the dead knelt\ndown and uncovered the corpse; yet the body showed no wound. So it was\nsaid: \"He slipped and fell to his death!\" The judge questioned the\nneighbors, but the neighbors all insisted that they knew nothing of\nthe matter. Thereupon the judge had the body placed in a coffin,\nsealed it with his seal, and ordered that the relatives of the\ndeceased be found. And then he went his way.\n\nNine years passed by, and young Ma had reached the age of twenty-one\nand become a baccalaureate. His father had died, and the family was\npoor. So it came about that in the same room in which he had formerly\nstudied his lessons, he now gathered a few pupils about him, to\ninstruct them.\n\nThe time for examinations drew near. Ma had risen early, in order to\nwork. He opened the window and there, in the distant alley, he saw a\nman with two pails gradually drawing nearer. When he looked more\nclosely, it was the water-carrier. Greatly frightened, he thought that\nhe had returned to repay old Wang. Yet he passed the old man's door\nwithout entering it. Then he went a few steps further to the house of\nthe Lis; and there went in. The Lis were wealthy people, and since\nthey were near neighbors the Mas and they were on a visiting footing.\nThe matter seemed very questionable to Ma, and he got up and followed\nthe water-carrier.\n\nAt the door of Li's house he met an old servant who was just coming\nout and who said: \"Heaven is about to send a child to our mistress! I\nmust go buy incense to burn to the gods in order to show our\ngratitude!\"\n\nMa asked: \"Did not a man with two pails of water on his shoulder just\ngo in?\"\n\nThe servant said there had not, but before he had finished speaking a\nmaid came from the house and said: \"You need not go to buy incense,\nfor I have found some. And, through the favor of heaven, the child has\nalready come to us.\" Then Ma began to realize that the water-carrier\nhad returned to be born again into the life of earth, and not to exact\nretribution. He wondered, though, for what merit of his the former\nwater-carrier happened to be re-born into so wealthy a family. So he\nkept the matter in mind, and from time to time inquired as to the\nchild's well-being.\n\nSeven more years went by, and the boy gradually grew up. He did not\nshow much taste for learning, but he loved to keep birds. Old Wang was\nstill strong and healthy. And though he was by this time more than\neighty years old, his love for his chrysanthemums had only increased\nwith age.\n\nOne day Ma once more rose early, and stood leaning against his window.\nAnd he saw old Wang come out upon his terrace and begin to water his\nchrysanthemums. Little Li sat in the upper story of his house flying\nhis pigeons. Suddenly some of the pigeons flew down on the railing of\nthe flower-garden. The boy was afraid they might fly off and called\nthem, but the pigeons did not move. The boy did not know what to do:\nhe picked up stones and threw them at the birds. By mistake one of\nthem struck old Wang. The old man started, slipped, and fell down over\nthe terrace. Time passed and he did not rise. He lay there with his\nfeet outstretched. The boy was very much frightened. Without uttering\na sound he softly closed his window and went away. The sun gradually\nrose higher, and the old man's sons and grandsons all came out to look\nfor him. They found him and said: \"He slipped and fell to his death!\"\nAnd they buried him as was the custom.\n\n Note: This little tale, from the \"Sin Tsi Hia,\" is a\n literary masterpiece because of the exactness with which\n the punishment follows upon the act, long after the\n latter has been forgiven, and all chance of mishap\n seemed to have passed.\n\n\n\n\nLIII\n\nTHE GHOST WHO WAS FOILED\n\n\nThere are ghosts of many kinds, but the ghosts of those who have hung\nthemselves are the worst. Such ghosts are always coaxing other living\npeople to hang themselves from the beams of the roof. If they succeed\nin persuading some one to hang himself, then the road to the Nether\nWorld is open to them, and they can once more enter into the wheel of\ntransformation. The following story of such a ghost is told by persons\nworthy of belief.\n\nOnce upon a time there lived a man in Tsing Tschoufu who had passed\nhis military examination, and had been ordered to Tsinanfu to report\nfor duty. It was at the season of rains. So it happened that evening\ncame on before he could reach the town-inn where he had expected to\npass the night. Just as the sun was setting he reached a small village\nand asked for a night's lodging. But there were only poor families in\nthe village who had no room for him in their huts. So they directed\nhim to an old temple which stood outside the village, and said he\ncould spend the night there.\n\nThe images of the gods in the temple were all decayed, so that one\ncould not distinguish one from the other. Thick spider-webs covered\nthe entrance, and the dust lay inches high everywhere. So the soldier\nwent out into the open, where he found an old flight of steps. He\nspread out his knapsack on a stone step, tied his horse to an old\ntree, took his flask from his pocket and drank--for it had been a hot\nday. There had been a heavy rain, but it had just cleared again. The\nnew moon was on the decline. The soldier closed his eyes and tried to\nsleep.\n\nSuddenly he heard a rustling sound in the temple, and a cool wind\npassed over his face and made him shudder. And he saw a woman come out\nof the temple, dressed in an old dirty red gown, and with a face as\nwhite as a chalk wall. She stole past quietly as though she were\nafraid of being seen. The soldier knew no fear. So he pretended to be\nasleep and did not move, but watched her with half-shut eyes. And he\nsaw her draw a rope from her sleeve and disappear. Then he knew that\nshe was the ghost of one who had hung herself. He got up softly and\nfollowed her, and, sure enough, she went into the village.\n\nWhen she came to a certain house she slipped into the court through a\ncrack in the door. The soldier leaped over the wall after her. It was\na house with three rooms. In the rear room a lamp was burning dimly.\nThe soldier looked through the window into the room, and there was a\nyoung woman of about twenty sitting on the bed, sighing deeply, and\nher kerchief was wet through with tears. Beside her lay a little\nchild, asleep. The woman looked up toward the beam of the ceiling. One\nmoment she would weep and the next she would stroke the child. When\nthe soldier looked more closely, there was the ghost sitting up on the\nbeam. She had passed the rope around her neck and was hanging herself\nin dumb show. And whenever she beckoned with her hand the woman looked\nup toward her. This went on for some time.\n\nFinally the woman said: \"You say it would be best for me to die. Very\nwell, then, I will die; but I cannot part from my child!\"\n\nAnd once more she burst into tears. But the ghost merely laughed and\ncoaxed her again.\n\nSo the woman said determinedly: \"It is enough. I will die!\"\n\nWith these words she opened her chest of clothes, put on new garments,\nand painted her face before the mirror. Then she drew up a bench and\nclimbed up on it. She undid her girdle and knotted it to the beam. She\nhad already stretched forth her neck and was about to leap from the\nbench, when the child suddenly awoke and began to cry. The woman\nclimbed down again and soothed and quieted her child, and while she\nwas petting it she wept, so that the tears fell from her eyes like a\nstring of pearls. The ghost frowned and hissed, for it feared to lose\nits prey. In a short time the child had fallen asleep again, and the\nwoman once more began to look aloft. Then she rose, again climbed on\nthe bench, and was about to lay the noose about her neck when the\nsoldier began to call out loudly and drum on the window-pane. Then he\nbroke it and climbed into the room. The woman fell to the ground and\nthe ghost disappeared. The soldier recalled the woman to\nconsciousness, and then he saw something hanging down from the beam,\nlike a cord without an end. Knowing that it belonged to the ghost of\nthe hanged woman he took and kept it.\n\nThen he said to the woman: \"Take good care of your child! You have\nbut one life to lose in this world!\"\n\nAnd with that he went out.\n\nThen it occurred to him that his horse and his baggage were still in\nthe temple. And he went there to get them. When he came out of the\nvillage there was the ghost, waiting for him in the road.\n\nThe ghost bowed and said: \"I have been looking for a substitute for\nmany years, and to-day, when it seemed as though I should really get\none, you came along and spoiled my chances. So there is nothing more\nfor me to do. Yet there is something which I left behind me in my\nhurry. You surely must have found it, and I will ask you to return it\nto me. If I only have this one thing, my not having found a substitute\nwill not worry me.\"\n\nThen the soldier showed her the rope and said with a laugh: \"Is this\nthe thing you mean? Why, if I were to give it back to you then some\none is sure to hang themselves. And that I could not allow.\"\n\nWith these words he wound the rope around his arm, drove her off and\nsaid: \"Now be off with you!\"\n\nBut then the ghost grew angry. Her face turned greenish-black, her\nhair fell in wild disorder down her neck, her eyes grew bloodshot, and\nher tongue hung far out of her mouth. She stretched forth both hands\nand tried to seize the soldier, but he struck out at her with his\nclenched fist. By mistake he hit himself in the nose and it began to\nbleed. Then he sprinkled a few drops of blood in her direction and,\nsince the ghosts cannot endure human blood, she ceased her attack,\nmoved off a few paces and began to abuse him. This she did for some\ntime, until the cock in the village began to crow. Then the ghost\ndisappeared.\n\nIn the meantime the farmer-folk of the village had come to thank the\nsoldier. It seems that after he had left the woman her husband had\ncome home, and asked his wife what had happened. And then for the\nfirst time he had learned what had occurred. So they all set out\ntogether along the road in order to look for the soldier outside the\nvillage. When they found him he was still beating the air with his\nfists and talking wildly. So they called out to him and he told them\nwhat had taken place. The rope could still be seen on his bare arm;\nyet it had grown fast to it, and surrounded it in the shape of a red\nring of flesh.\n\nThe day was just dawning, so the soldier swung himself into his saddle\nand rode away.\n\n Note: This tale has been handed down traditionally, and\n is given as told among the people.\n\n\n\n\nLIV\n\nTHE PUNISHMENT OF GREED\n\n\nOnce upon a time there lived a man south of the Yangtze-kiang. He had\ntaken a position as a teacher in Sutschoufu, on the border of\nShantung. But when he got there he found that the schoolhouse had not\nyet been completed. Yet a two-story building in the neighborhood had\nbeen rented, in which the teacher was to live and hold school in the\nmeantime. This house stood outside the village, not far from the river\nbank. A broad plain, overgrown with tangled brush, stretched out from\nit on every side. The teacher was pleased with the view.\n\nWell, one evening he was standing in the door of his house watching\nthe sun go down. The smoke that rose from the village chimneys\ngradually merged with the twilight shadows. All the noises of the day\nhad died away. Suddenly, off in the distance, along the river bank, he\nbeheld a fiery gleam. He hurried away at once in order to see what it\nmight be. And there, on the bank, he found a wooden coffin, from which\ncame the radiance he had noticed. Thought the teacher to himself: \"The\njewels with which they adorn the dead on their journey shine by night.\nPerhaps there are gems in the coffin!\" And greed awoke in his heart,\nand he forgot that a coffin is a resting-place of the dead and should\nbe respected. He took up a large stone, broke the cover of the coffin,\nand bent over to look more closely. And there in the coffin lay a\nyouth. His face was as white as paper, he wore a mourning turban on\nhis head, his body was wrapped in hempen garments, and he wore straw\nsandals on his feet. The teacher was greatly frightened and turned to\ngo away. But the corpse had already raised itself to a sitting\nposture. Then the teacher's fear got the better of him, and he began\nto run. And the corpse climbed out of its coffin and ran after him.\nFortunately the house was not far away. The teacher ran as fast as he\ncould, flew up the steps and locked the door after him. Gradually he\ncaught his breath again. Outside there was not a sound to be heard. So\nhe thought that perhaps the corpse had not followed him all the way.\nHe opened the window and peered down. The corpse was leaning against\nthe wall of the house. Suddenly it saw that the window had been\nopened, and with one leap it bounded up and in through it. Overcome by\nterror, the teacher fell down the stairs of the house, and rolled\nunconscious to the bottom of the flight. And when he did so the\ncorpse fell down on the floor of the room above.\n\nAt the time the school children had all long since gone home. And the\nowner of the house lived in another dwelling, so that no one knew\nanything about what had happened. On the following morning the\nchildren came to school as usual. They found the door locked, and when\nthey called no one answered. Then they broke down the door and found\ntheir teacher lying unconscious on the ground. They sprinkled him with\nginger, but it took a long time before he woke from his coma. When\nthey asked he told them all that had occurred. Then they all went\nupstairs and took away the corpse. It was taken outside the village\nlimits and burned, and the bones which remained were once more laid in\nthe coffin. But the teacher said, with a sigh: \"Because of a moment's\ngreed, I nearly lost my life!\" He resigned his position, returned home\nand never, through all the days of his life, did he speak of gain\nagain.\n\n Note: The corpse wears a mourning turban and is dressed\n in mourning. According to local tradition, young people\n who die before their parents, are laid in their coffins\n clad in mourning, so that even in death they may do\n their duty and be able to mourn their parents when the\n latter shall have died. The tale is taken from the Su\n Tsi Hia.\n\n\n\n\nLV\n\nTHE NIGHT ON THE BATTLEFIELD\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a merchant, who was wandering toward\nShantung with his wares, along the road from the South. At about the\nsecond watch of the night, a heavy storm blew up from the North. And\nhe chanced to see an inn at one side of the road, whose lights were\njust being lit. He went in to get something to drink and order\nlodgings for the night, but the folk at the inn raised objections. Yet\nan old man among them took pity on his unhappy situation and said: \"We\nhave just prepared a meal for warriors who have come a long distance,\nand we have no wine left to serve you. But there is a little side room\nhere which is still free, and there you may stay overnight.\" With\nthese words he led him into it. But the merchant could not sleep\nbecause of his hunger and thirst. Outside he could hear the noise of\nmen and horses. And since all these proceedings did not seem quite\nnatural to him, he got up and looked through a crack in the door. And\nhe saw that the whole inn was filled with soldiers, who were sitting\non the ground, eating and drinking, and talking about campaigns of\nwhich he had never heard. After a time they began calling to each\nother: \"The general is coming!\" And far off in the distance could be\nheard the cries of his bodyguard. All the soldiers hurried out to\nreceive him. Then the merchant saw a procession with many paper\nlanterns, and riding in their midst a man of martial appearance with a\nlong beard. He dismounted, entered the inn, and took his place at the\nhead of the board. The soldiers mounted guard at the door, awaiting\nhis commands, and the inn-keeper served food and drink, to which the\ngeneral did full justice.\n\nWhen he had finished his officers entered, and he said to them: \"You\nhave now been underway for some time. Go back to your men. I shall\nrest a little myself. It will be time enough to beat the assembly when\nthe order to advance is given.\"\n\nThe officers received his commands and withdrew. Then the general\ncalled out: \"Send Asti in!\" and a young officer entered from the left\nside of the house. The people of the inn locked the gates and withdrew\nfor the night, while Asti conducted the long-haired general to a door\nat the left, through a crack of which shone the light of a lamp. The\nmerchant stole from his room and looked through the crack in the door.\nWithin the room was a bed of bamboo, without covers or pillows. The\nlamp stood on the ground. The long-bearded general took hold of his\nhead. It came off and he placed it on the bed. Then Asti took hold of\nhis arms. These also came off and were carefully placed beside the\nhead. Then the old general threw himself down on the bed crosswise,\nand Asti took hold of his body, which came apart below the thighs, and\nthe two legs fell to the ground. Then the lamp went out. Overcome by\nterror the merchant hurried back to his room as fast as he could,\nholding his sleeves before his eyes, and laid down on his bed, where\nhe tossed about sleepless all night.\n\nAt last he heard a cock crow in the distance. He was shivering. He\ntook his sleeves from his face and saw that dawn was stealing along\nthe sky. And when he looked about him, there he was lying in the\nmiddle of a thick clump of brush. Round about him was a wilderness,\nnot a house, not even a grave was to be seen anywhere. In spite of\nbeing chilled, he ran about three miles till he came to the nearest\ninn. The inn-keeper opened the door and asked him with astonishment\nwhere he came from at that early hour. So the merchant told him his\nexperiences and inquired as to the sort of place at which he had spent\nthe night. The inn-keeper shook his head: \"The whole neighborhood is\ncovered with old battlefields,\" was his reply, \"and all sorts of\nsupernatural things take place on them after dark.\"\n\n Note: This tale is taken from the Sin Tsi Hia.\n\n\n\n\nLVI\n\nTHE KINGDOM OF THE OGRES\n\n\nIn the land of Annam there once dwelt a man named Su, who sailed the\nseas as a merchant. Once his ship was suddenly driven on a distant\nshore by a great storm. It was a land of hills broken by ravines and\ngreen with luxuriant foliage, yet he could see something along the\nhills which looked like human dwellings. So he took some food with him\nand went ashore. No sooner had he entered the hills than he could see\nat either hand the entrances to caves, one close beside the other,\nlike a row of beehives. So he stopped and looked into one of the\nopenings. And in it sat two ogres, with teeth like spears and eyes\nlike fiery lamps. They were just devouring a deer. The merchant was\nterrified by this sight and turned to flee; but the ogres had already\nnoticed him and they caught him and dragged him into their cave. Then\nthey talked to each other with animal sounds, and were about to tear\nhis clothes from his body and devour him. But the merchant hurriedly\ntook a bag of bread and dried meat out and offered it to them. They\ndivided it, ate it up and it seemed to taste good to them. Then they\nonce more went through the bag; but he gestured with his hand to show\nthem that he had no more.\n\nThen he said: \"Let me go! Aboard my ship I have frying-pans and\ncooking-pots, vinegar and spices. With these I could prepare your\nfood.\"\n\nThe ogres did not understand what he was saying, however, and were\nstill ferocious. So he tried to make them understand in dumb show, and\nfinally they seemed to get an idea of his meaning. So they went to the\nship with him, and he brought his cooking gear to the cave, collected\nbrush-wood, made a fire and cooked the remains of the deer. When it\nwas done to a turn he gave them some of it to eat, and the two\ncreatures devoured it with the greatest satisfaction. Then they left\nthe cave and closed the opening with a great rock. In a short space of\ntime they returned with another deer they had caught. The merchant\nskinned it, fetched fresh water, washed the meat and cooked several\nkettles full of it. Suddenly in came a whole herd of ogres, who\ndevoured all he had cooked, and became quite animated over their\neating. They all kept pointing to the kettle which seemed too small to\nthem. When three or four days had passed, one of the ogres dragged in\nan enormous cooking-pot on his back, which was thenceforth used\nexclusively.\n\nNow the ogres crowded about the merchant, bringing him wolves and deer\nand antelopes, which he had to cook for them, and when the meat was\ndone they would call him to eat it with them.\n\nThus a few weeks passed and they gradually came to have such\nconfidence in him that they let him run about freely. And the merchant\nlistened to the sounds which they uttered, and learned to understand\nthem. In fact, before very long he was able to speak the language of\nthe ogres himself. This pleased the latter greatly, and they brought\nhim a young ogre girl and made her his wife. She gave him valuables\nand fruit to win his confidence, and in course of time they grew much\nattached to each other.\n\nOne day the ogres all rose very early, and each one of them hung a\nstring of radiant pearls about his neck. They ordered the merchant to\nbe sure and cook a great quantity of meat. The merchant asked his wife\nwhat it all meant.\n\n\"This will be a day of high festival,\" answered she, \"we have invited\nthe great king to a banquet.\"\n\nBut to the other ogres she said: \"The merchant has no string of\npearls!\"\n\nThen each of the ogres gave him five pearls and his wife added ten, so\nthat he had fifty pearls in all. These his wife threaded and hung the\npearl necklace about his neck, and there was not one of the pearls\nwhich was not worth at least several hundred ounces of silver.\n\nThen the merchant cooked the meat, and having done so left the cave\nwith the whole herd in order to receive the great king. They came to a\nbroad cave, in the middle of which stood a huge block of stone, as\nsmooth and even as a table. Round it were stone seats. The place of\nhonor was covered with a leopard-skin, and the rest of the seats with\ndeerskins. Several dozen ogres were sitting around the cave in rank\nand file.\n\nSuddenly a tremendous storm blew up, whirling around the dust in\ncolumns, and a monster appeared who had the figure of an ogre. The\nogres all crowded out of the cave in a high state of excitement to\nreceive him. The great king ran into the cave, sat down with his legs\noutstretched, and glanced about him with eyes as round as an eagle's.\nThe whole herd followed him into the cave, and stood at either hand of\nhim, looking up to him and folding their arms across their breasts in\nthe form of a cross in order to do him honor.\n\nThe great king nodded, looked around and asked: \"Are all the folk of\nthe Wo-Me hills present?\"\n\nThe entire herd declared that they were.\n\nThen he saw the merchant and asked: \"From whence does he hail?\"\n\nHis wife answered for him, and all spoke with praise of his art as a\ncook. A couple of ogres brought in the cooked meat and spread it out\non the table. Then the great king ate of it till he could eat no more,\npraised it with his mouth full, and said that in the future they were\nalways to furnish him with food of this kind.\n\nThen he looked at the merchant and asked: \"Why is your necklace so\nshort?\"\n\nWith these words he took ten pearls from his own necklace, pearls as\nlarge and round as bullets of a blunderbuss. The merchant's wife\nquickly took them on his behalf and hung them around his neck; and the\nmerchant crossed his arms like the ogres and spoke his thanks. Then\nthe great king went off again, flying away like lightning on the\nstorm.\n\nIn the course of time heaven sent the merchant children, two boys and\na girl. They all had a human form and did not resemble their mother.\nGradually the children learned to speak and their father taught them\nthe language of men. They grew up, and were soon so strong that they\ncould run across the hills as though on level ground.\n\nOne day the merchant's wife had gone out with one of the boys and the\ngirl and had been absent for half-a-day. The north wind was blowing\nbriskly, and in the merchant's heart there awoke a longing for his old\nhome. He took his son by the hand and went down to the sea-shore.\nThere his old ship was still lying, so he climbed into it with his\nboy, and in a day and a night was back in Annam again.\n\nWhen he reached home he loosened two of his pearls from his chain,\nand sold them for a great quantity of gold, so that he could keep\nhouse in handsome style. He gave his son the name of Panther, and when\nthe boy was fourteen years of age he could lift thirty hundred weight\nwith ease. Yet he was rough by nature and fond of fighting. The\ngeneral of Annam, astonished at his bravery, appointed him a colonel,\nand in putting down a revolt his services were so meritorious that he\nwas already a general of the second rank when but eighteen.\n\nAt about this time another merchant was also driven ashore by a storm\non the island of Wo-Me. When he reached land he saw a youth who asked\nhim with astonishment: \"Are you not from the Middle Kingdom?\"\n\nThe merchant told him how he had come to be driven ashore on the\nisland, and the youth led him to a little cave in a secret valley.\nThen he brought deer-flesh for him to eat, and talked with him. He\ntold him that his father had also come from Annam, and it turned out\nthat his father was an old acquaintance of the man to whom he was\ntalking.\n\n\"We will have to wait until the wind blows from the North,\" said the\nyouth, \"then I will come and escort you. And I will give you a message\nof greeting to take to my father and brother.\"\n\n\"Why do you not go along yourself and hunt up your father?\" asked the\nmerchant.\n\n\"My mother does not come from the Middle Kingdom,\" replied the youth.\n\"She is different in speech and appearance, so it cannot well be.\"\n\nOne day the wind blew strongly from the North, and the youth came and\nescorted the merchant to his ship, and ordered him, at parting, not to\nforget a single one of his words.\n\nWhen the merchant returned to Annam, he went to the palace of\nPanther, the general, and told him all that had happened. When Panther\nlistened to him telling about his brother, he sobbed with bitter\ngrief. Then he secured leave of absence and sailed out to sea with two\nsoldiers. Suddenly a typhoon arose, which lashed the waves until they\nspurted sky-high. The ship turned turtle, and Panther fell into the\nsea. He was seized by a creature and flung up on a strand where there\nseemed to be dwellings. The creature who had seized him looked like an\nogre, so Panther addressed him in the ogre tongue. The ogre,\nsurprised, asked him who he was, and Panther told him his whole story.\n\nThe ogre was pleased and said: \"Wo-Me is my old home, but it lies\nabout eight thousand miles away from here. This is the kingdom of the\npoison dragons.\"\n\nThen the ogre fetched a ship and had Panther seat himself in it, while\nhe himself pushed the ship before him through the water so that it\nclove the waves like an arrow. It took a whole night, but in the\nmorning a shoreline appeared to the North, and there on the strand\nstood a youth on look-out. Panther recognized his brother. He stepped\nashore and they clasped hands and wept. Then Panther turned around to\nthank the ogre, but the latter had already disappeared.\n\nPanther now asked after his mother and sister and was told that both\nwere well and happy, so he wanted to go to them with his brother. But\nthe latter told him to wait, and went off alone. Not long after he\ncame back with their mother and sister. And when they saw Panther,\nboth wept with emotion. Panther now begged them to return with him to\nAnnam.\n\nBut his mother replied: \"I fear that if I went, people would mock me\nbecause of my figure.\"\n\n\"I am a high officer,\" replied Panther, \"and people would not dare to\ninsult you.\"\n\nSo they all went down to the ship together with him. A favorable wind\nfilled their sails and they sped home swiftly as an arrow flies. On\nthe third day they reached land. But the people whom they encountered\nwere all seized with terror and ran away. Then Panther took off his\nmantle and divided it among the three so that they could dress\nthemselves.\n\nWhen they reached home and the mother saw her husband again, she at\nonce began to scold him violently because he had said not a word to\nher when he went away. The members of his family, who all came to\ngreet the wife of the master of the house, did so with fear and\ntrembling. But Panther advised his mother to learn the language of the\nMiddle Kingdom, dress in silks, and accustom herself to human food.\nThis she agreed to do; yet she and her daughter had men's clothing\nmade for them. The brother and sister gradually grew more fair of\ncomplexion, and looked like the people of the Middle Kingdom.\nPanther's brother was named Leopard, and his sister Ogrechild. Both\npossessed great bodily strength.\n\nBut Panther was not pleased to think that his brother was so\nuneducated, so he had him study. Leopard was highly gifted; he\nunderstood a book at first reading; yet he felt no inclination to\nbecome a man of learning. To shoot and to ride was what he best loved\nto do. So he rose to high rank as a professional soldier, and finally\nmarried the daughter of a distinguished official.\n\nIt was long before Ogrechild found a husband, because all suitors were\nafraid of their mother-in-law to be. But Ogrechild finally married one\nof her brother's subordinates. She could draw the strongest bow, and\nstrike the tiniest bird at a distance of a hundred paces. Her arrow\nnever fell to earth without having scored a hit. When her husband went\nout to battle she always accompanied him, and that he finally became a\ngeneral was largely due to her. Leopard was already a field marshal at\nthe age of thirty, and his mother accompanied him on his campaigns.\nWhen a dangerous enemy drew near, she buckled on armor, and took a\nknife in her hand to meet him in place of her son. And among the\nenemies who encountered her there was not a single one who did not\nflee from her in terror. Because of her courage the emperor bestowed\nupon her the title of \"The Superwoman.\"\n\n Note: The ogres here mentioned are the primitive\n inhabitants of the Island of Ceylon, also called\n Rakshas, who appear in legend as man-devouring monsters.\n\n\n\n\nLVII\n\nTHE MAIDEN WHO WAS STOLEN AWAY\n\n\nIn the western portion of the old capital city of Lo Yang there was a\nruined cloister, in which stood an enormous pagoda, several hundred\nstories high. Three or four people could still find room to stand on\nits very top.\n\nNot far from it there lived a beautiful maiden, and one very hot\nsummer's day she was sitting in the courtyard of her home, trying to\nkeep cool. And as she sat there a sudden cyclone came up and carried\nher off. When she opened her eyes, there she was on top of the pagoda,\nand beside her stood a young man in the dress of a student.\n\nHe was very polite and affable, and said to her: \"It seems as though\nheaven had meant to bring us together, and if you promise to marry me,\nwe will be very happy.\" But to this the maiden would not agree. So the\nstudent said that until she changed her mind she would have to remain\non the pagoda-top. Then he produced bread and wine for her to satisfy\nher hunger and thirst, and disappeared.\n\nThereafter he appeared each day and asked her whether she had changed\nher mind, and each day she told him she had not. When he went away he\nalways carefully closed the openings in the pagoda-top with stones,\nand he had also removed some of the steps of the stairs, so that she\ncould not climb down. And when he came to the pagoda-top he always\nbrought her food and drink, and he also presented her with rouge and\npowder, dresses and mandarin-coats and all sorts of jewelry. He told\nher he had bought them in the market place. And he also hung up a\ngreat carbuncle-stone so that the pagoda-top was bright by night as\nwell as by day. The maiden had all that heart could wish, and yet she\nwas not happy.\n\nBut one day when he went away he forgot to lock the window. The maiden\nspied on him without his knowing it, and saw that from a youth he\nturned himself into an ogre, with hair as red as madder and a face as\nblack as coal. His eyeballs bulged out of their sockets, and his mouth\nlooked like a dish full of blood. Crooked white fangs thrust\nthemselves from his lips, and two wings grew from his shoulders.\nSpreading them, he flew down to earth and at once turned into a man\nagain.\n\nThe maiden was seized with terror and burst into tears. Looking down\nfrom her pagoda she saw a wanderer passing below. She called out, but\nthe pagoda was so high that her voice did not carry down to him. She\nbeckoned with her hand, but the wanderer did not look up. Then she\ncould think of nothing else to do but to throw down the old clothes\nshe had formerly worn. They fluttered through the air to the ground.\n\nThe wanderer picked up the clothes. Then he looked up at the pagoda,\nand quite up at the very top he saw a tiny figure which looked like\nthat of a girl; yet he could not make out her features. For a long\ntime he wondered who it might be, but in vain. Then he saw a light.\n\n\"My neighbor's daughter,\" said he to himself, \"was carried away by a\nmagic storm. Is it possible that she may be up there?\"\n\nSo he took the clothes with him and showed them to the maiden's\nparents, and when they saw them they burst into tears.\n\nBut the maiden had a brother, who was stronger and braver than any one\nfor miles around. When the tale had been told him he took a heavy ax\nand went to the pagoda. There he hid himself in the tall grass and\nwaited for what would happen. When the sun was just going down, along\ncame a youth, tramping the hill. Suddenly he turned into an ogre,\nspread his wings and was about to fly. But the brother flung his ax at\nhim and struck him on the arm. He began to roar loudly, and then fled\nto the western hills. But when the brother saw that it was impossible\nto climb the pagoda, he went back and enlisted the aid of several\nneighbors. With them he returned the following morning and they\nclimbed up into the pagoda. Most of the steps of the stairway were in\ngood condition for the ogre had only destroyed those at the top. But\nthey were able to get up with a ladder, and then the brother fetched\ndown his sister and brought her safely home again.\n\nAnd that was the end of the enchantment.\n\n Note: In this tale the ogre is a Yakscha or a Fe Tian Ya\n Tscha.\n\n\n\n\nLVIII\n\nTHE FLYING OGRE\n\n\nThere once lived in Sianfu an old Buddhist monk, who loved to wander\nin lonely places. In the course of his wanderings he once came to the\nKuku-Nor, and there he saw a tree which was a thousand feet high and\nmany cords in breadth. It was hollow inside and one could see the sky\nshining down into it from above.\n\nWhen he had gone on a few miles, he saw in the distance a girl in a\nred coat, barefoot, and with unbound hair, who was running as fast as\nthe wind. In a moment she stood before him.\n\n\"Take pity on me and save my life!\" said she to him.\n\nWhen the monk asked her what was the trouble, she replied: \"A man is\npursuing me. If you will tell him you have not seen me, I will be\ngrateful to you all my life long!\"\n\nWith that she ran up to the hollow tree and crawled into it.\n\nWhen the monk had gone a little further, he met one who rode an\narmored steed. He wore a garment of gold, a bow was slung across his\nshoulders, and a sword hung at his side. His horse ran with the speed\nof lightning, and covered a couple of miles with every step. Whether\nit ran in the air or on the ground, its speed was the same.\n\n\"Have you seen the girl in the red coat?\" asked the stranger. And when\nthe monk replied that he had seen nothing, the other continued:\n\"Bonze, you should not lie! This girl is not a human being, but a\nflying ogre. Of flying ogres there are thousands of varieties, who\nbring ruin to people everywhere. I have already slain a countless\nnumber of them, and have pretty well done away with them. But this one\nis the worst of all. Last night the Lord of the Heavens gave me a\ntriple command, and that is the reason I have hurried down from the\nskies. There are eight thousand of us under way in all directions to\ncatch this monster. If you do not tell the truth, monk, then you are\nsinning against heaven itself!\"\n\nUpon that the monk did not dare deceive him, but pointed to the hollow\ntree. The messenger of the skies dismounted, stepped into the tree and\nlooked about him. Then he once more mounted his horse, which carried\nhim up the hollow trunk and out at the end of the tree. The monk\nlooked up and could see a small, red flame come out of the tree-top.\nIt was followed by the messenger of the skies. Both rose up to the\nclouds and disappeared. After a time there fell a rain of blood. The\nogre had probably been hit by an arrow or captured.\n\nAfterward the monk told the tale to the scholar who wrote it down.\n\n Note: This flying ogre is also of the Yakscha tribe.\n\n\n\n\nLIX\n\nBLACK ARTS\n\n\nThe wild people who dwell in the South-West are masters of many black\narts. They often lure men of the Middle Kingdom to their country by\npromising them their daughters in marriage, but their promises are not\nto be trusted. Once there was the son of a poor family, who agreed to\nlabor for three years for one of the wild men in order to become his\nson-in-law. At the end of that time the wedding was celebrated, and\nthe couple were given a little house for a home. But no sooner had\nthey entered it than the wife warned her husband to be on his guard,\nsince her parents did not like him, and would seek to do him harm. In\naccordance with the custom she entered the house first with a lighted\nlantern, but when the bridegroom followed her she had disappeared. And\nthus it went, day by day. During the daytime she was there, but when\nevening came she disappeared.\n\nAnd one day, not long after they had been married, his wife said to\nhim: \"To-morrow morning my mother celebrates her birthday, and you\nmust go to congratulate her. They will offer you tea and food. The tea\nyou may drink, but be sure not to touch any of the food. Keep this in\nmind!\"\n\nSo the following day the wife and husband went to her mother's home\nand offered their congratulations. Her parents seemed highly pleased,\nand served them with tea and sweets. The son-in-law drank, but ate\nnothing, though his wife's parents, with kind words and friendly\ngestures, kept urging him to help himself. At last the son-in-law did\nnot know what to do, and thought that surely they could mean him no\nill. And seeing the fresh caught eels and crabs on the plate before\nhim, he ate a little of them. His wife gave him a reproachful glance,\nand he offered some excuse for taking his leave.\n\nBut his mother-in-law said: \"This is my birthday. You simply must\ntaste my birthday noodles!\"\n\nWith that she placed a great dish before him, filled with noodles that\nlooked like threads of silver, mingled with fat meat, and spiced with\nfragrant mushrooms. During all the time he had been living in the\ncountry the son-in-law had never yet seen such an appetizing dish. Its\npleasant odor rose temptingly to his nostrils, and he could not resist\nraising his chop-sticks. His wife glanced over at him, but he\npretended that he did not see her.\n\nShe coughed significantly, but he acted as though he did not hear.\nFinally she trod on his foot under the table; and then he regained\ncontrol of himself.\n\nHe had not as yet eaten half of the food and said: \"My hunger is\nsatisfied.\"\n\nThen he took leave, and went off with his wife.\n\n\"This is a serious matter,\" said the latter. \"You would not listen to\nmy words, and now you will surely have to die!\"\n\nBut still he did not believe her, until he suddenly felt terrible\npains, which soon grew unbearable, so that he fell to the ground\nunconscious. His wife at once hung him up by the feet from the beam of\nthe roof, and put a panful of glowing charcoal under his body, and a\ngreat jar of water, into which she had poured sesame oil, in front of\nthe fire, directly below his mouth. And when the fire had heated him\nthoroughly, he suddenly opened his mouth--and can you imagine what\ncame out of it? A squirming, crawling mass of poisonous worms,\ncentipedes, toads and tadpoles, who all fell into the jar of water.\nThen his wife untied him, carried him to bed, and gave him wine\nmingled with realgar to drink. Then he recovered.\n\n\"What you ate in the belief that they were eels and crabs,\" said his\nwife, \"were nothing but toads and tadpoles, and the birthday noodles\nwere poisonous worms and centipedes. But you must continue to be\ncareful. My parents know that you have not died, and they will think\nup other evil plans.\"\n\nA few days later his father-in-law said to him: \"There is a large tree\ngrowing on the precipice which juts over the cave. In it is the nest\nof the phenix. You are still young and able to climb, so go there\nquickly and fetch me the eggs!\"\n\nHis son-in-law went home and told his wife.\n\n\"Take long bamboo poles,\" said she, \"and tie them together, and fasten\na curved sword at the top. And take these nine loaves of bread and\nthese hens' eggs, there are seven times seven of them. Carry them\nalong with you in a basket. When you come to the spot you will see a\nlarge nest up in the branches. Do not climb the tree, but chop it down\nwith the curved sword. Then throw away your poles, and run for dear\nlife. Should a monster appear and follow you, throw him the loaves of\nbread, three loaves at a time, and finally throw down the eggs on the\nground and make for home as quickly as you can. In this way you may\nescape the danger which threatens you.\"\n\nThe man noted all she said exactly and went. And sure enough he saw\nthe bird's nest--it was as large as a round pavilion. Then he tied his\ncurved sword to the poles, chopped at the tree with all his strength,\nlaid down his poles on the ground and never looked around but ran for\ndear life. Suddenly he heard the roaring of a thunder-storm rising\nabove him. When he looked up he saw a great dragon, many fathoms long\nand some ten feet across. His eyes gleamed like two lamps and he was\nspitting fire and flame from his maw. He had stretched out two feelers\nand was feeling along the ground. Then the man swiftly flung the\nloaves into the air. The dragon caught them, and it took a little time\nbefore he had devoured them. But no sooner had the man gained a few\nsteps than the dragon once more came flying after him. Then he flung\nhim more loaves and when the loaves came to an end, he turned over his\nbasket so that the eggs rolled over the ground. The dragon had not yet\nsatisfied his hunger and opened his greedy jaws wide. When he suddenly\ncaught sight of the eggs, he descended from the air, and since the\neggs were scattered round about, it took some time before he had\nsucked them all. In the meantime the man succeeded in escaping to his\nhome.\n\nWhen he entered the door and saw his wife, he said to her, amid sobs:\n\"It was all I could do to escape, and I am lucky not to be in the\ndragon's stomach! If this sort of thing keeps up much longer I am\nbound to die!\"\n\nWith these words he kneeled and begged his wife pitifully to save his\nlife.\n\n\"Where is your home?\" asked his wife.\n\n\"My home is about a hundred miles away from here, in the Middle\nKingdom, and my old mother is still living. The only thing that\nworries me is that we are so poor.\"\n\nHis wife said: \"I will flee with you, and we will find your mother.\nAnd waste no regrets on your poverty.\"\n\nWith that she gathered up all the house held in the way of pearls and\nprecious stones, put them in a bag and had her husband tie it around\nhis waist. Then she also gave him an umbrella, and in the middle of\nthe night they climbed the wall with the aid of a ladder, and stole\naway.\n\nHis wife had also said to him: \"Take the umbrella on your back and run\nas fast as ever you can! Do not open it, and do not look around! I\nwill follow you in secret.\"\n\nSo he turned North and ran with all his might and main. He had been\nrunning for a day and a night, had covered nearly a hundred miles, and\npassed the boundaries of the wild people's country, when his legs gave\nout and he grew hungry. Before him lay a mountain village. He stopped\nat the village gate to rest, drew some food from his pocket and began\nto eat. And he looked around without being able to see his wife.\n\nSaid he to himself: \"Perhaps she has deceived me after all, and is not\ncoming with me!\"\n\nAfter he had finished eating, he took a drink from a spring, and\npainfully dragged himself further. When the heat of the day was\ngreatest a violent mountain rain suddenly began to fall. In his haste\nhe forgot what his wife had told him and opened his umbrella. And out\nfell his wife upon the ground.\n\nShe reproached him: \"Once more you have not listened to my advice. Now\nthe damage has been done!\"\n\nQuickly she told him to go to the village, and there to buy a white\ncock, seven black tea-cups, and half a length of red nettlecloth.\n\n\"Do not be sparing of the silver pieces in your pocket!\" she cried\nafter him as he went off.\n\nHe went to the village, attended to everything, and came back. The\nwoman tore the cloth apart, made a coat of it and put it on. No sooner\nhad they walked a few miles before they could see a red cloud rising\nup in the South, like a flying bird.\n\n\"That is my mother,\" said the woman.\n\nIn a moment the cloud was overhead. Then the woman took the black\ntea-cups and threw them at it. Seven she threw and seven fell to earth\nagain. And then they could hear the mother in the cloud weeping and\nscolding, and thereupon the cloud disappeared.\n\nThey went on for about four hours. Then they heard a sound like the\nnoise of silk being torn, and could see a cloud as black as ink, which\nwas rushing up against the wind.\n\n\"Alas, that is my father!\" said the woman. \"This is a matter of life\nand death, for he will not let us be! Because of my love for you I\nwill now have to disobey the holiest of laws!\"\n\nWith these words she quickly seized the white cock, separated its head\nfrom its body, and flung the head into the air. At once the black\ncloud dissolved, and her father's body, the head severed from the\ntrunk, fell down by the edge of the road. Then the woman wept\nbitterly, and when she had wept her fill they buried the corpse.\nThereupon they went together to her husband's home, where they found\nhis old mother still living. They then undid the bag of pearls and\njewels, bought a piece of good ground, built a fine house, and became\nwealthy and respected members of the community.\n\n Note: Realgar: The Chinese believe that realgar is a\n mithridate and tonic.\n\n\n\n\nHISTORIC LEGENDS\n\n\n\n\nLX\n\nTHE SORCERER OF THE WHITE LOTUS LODGE\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a sorcerer who belonged to the White Lotus\nLodge. He knew how to deceive the multitude with his black arts, and\nmany who wished to learn the secret of his enchantments became his\npupils.\n\nOne day the sorcerer wished to go out. He placed a bowl which he\ncovered with another bowl in the hall of his house, and ordered his\npupils to watch it. But he warned them against uncovering the bowl to\nsee what might be in it.\n\nNo sooner had he gone than the pupils uncovered the bowl and saw that\nit was filled with clear water. And floating on the water was a little\nship made of straw, with real masts and sails. They were surprised and\npushed it with their fingers till it upset. Then they quickly righted\nit again and once more covered the bowl. By that time the sorcerer was\nalready standing among them. He was angry and scolded them, saying:\n\"Why did you disobey my command?\"\n\nHis pupils rose and denied that they had done so.\n\nBut the sorcerer answered: \"Did not my ship turn turtle at sea, and\nyet you try to deceive me?\"\n\nOn another evening he lit a giant candle in his room, and ordered his\npupils to watch it lest it be blown out by the wind. It must have been\nat the second watch of the night and the sorcerer had not yet come\nback. The pupils grew tired and sleepy, so they went to bed and\ngradually fell asleep. When they woke up again the candle had gone\nout. So they rose quickly and re-lit it. But the sorcerer was already\nin the room, and again he scolded them.\n\n\"Truly we did not sleep! How could the light have gone out?\"\n\nAngrily the sorcerer replied: \"You let me walk fifteen miles in the\ndark, and still you can talk such nonsense!\"\n\nThen his pupils were very much frightened.\n\nIn the course of time one of his pupils insulted the sorcerer. The\nlatter made note of the insult, but said nothing. Soon after he told\nthe pupil to feed the swine, and no sooner had he entered the sty than\nhis master turned him into a pig. The sorcerer then at once called in\na butcher, sold the pig to the man, and he went the way of all pigs\nwho go to the butcher.\n\nOne day this pupil's father turned up to ask after his son, for he had\nnot come back to his home for a long time. The sorcerer told him that\nhis son had left him long ago. The father returned home and inquired\neverywhere for his son without success. But one of his son's\nfellow-pupils, who knew of the matter, informed the father. So the\nfather complained to the district mandarin. The latter, however,\nfeared that the sorcerer might make himself invisible. He did not dare\nto have him arrested, but informed his superior and begged for a\nthousand well-armed soldiers. These surrounded the sorcerer's home and\nseized him, together with his wife and child. All three were put into\nwooden cages to be transported to the capital.\n\nThe road wound through the mountains, and in the midst of the hills up\ncame a giant as large as a tree, with eyes like saucers, a mouth like\na plate, and teeth a foot long. The soldiers stood there trembling and\ndid not dare to move.\n\nSaid the sorcerer: \"That is a mountain spirit. My wife will be able to\ndrive him off.\"\n\nThey did as he suggested, unchained the woman, and she took a spear\nand went to meet the giant. The latter was angered, and he swallowed\nher, tooth and nail. This frightened the rest all the more.\n\nThe sorcerer said: \"Well, if he has done away with my wife, then it is\nmy son's turn!\"\n\nSo they let the son out of his cage. But the giant swallowed him in\nthe same way. The rest all looked on without knowing what to do.\n\nThe sorcerer then wept with rage and said: \"First he destroys my wife,\nand then my son. If only he might be punished for it! But I am the\nonly one who can punish him!\"\n\nAnd, sure enough, they took him out of his cage, too, gave him a\nsword, and sent him out against the giant. The sorcerer and the giant\nfought with each other for a time, and at last the giant seized the\nsorcerer, thrust him into his maw, stretched his neck and swallowed\nhim. Then he went his way contentedly.\n\nAnd now when it was too late, the soldiers realized that the sorcerer\nhad tricked them.\n\n Note: The Lodge of the White Lotus is one of the secret\n revolutionary societies of China. It harks back to Tung\n Tian Giau Dschu as its founder. Compare note to No. 18.\n The \"mountain spirit,\" of course, is an optical illusion\n called up by the sorcerer, by means of which he frees\n his family and himself from the soldiers.\n\n\n\n\nLXI\n\nTHE THREE EVILS\n\n\nOnce upon a time, in the old days, there lived a young man by the name\nof Dschou Tschu. He was of more than ordinary strength, and no one\ncould withstand him. He was also wild and undisciplined, and wherever\nhe was, quarrels and brawls arose. Yet the village elders never\nventured to punish him seriously. He wore a high hat on his head,\nadorned with two pheasants' wings. His garments were woven of\nembroidered silk, and at his side hung the Dragonspring sword. He was\ngiven to play and to drinking, and his hand was inclined to take that\nwhich belonged to others. Whoever offended him had reason to dread the\nconsequences, and he always mixed into disputes in which others were\nengaged. Thus he kept it up for years, and was a pest throughout the\nneighborhood.\n\nThen a new mandarin came to that district. When he had arrived, he\nfirst went quietly about the country and listened to the people's\ncomplaints. And they told him that there were three great evils in\nthat district.\n\nThen he clothed himself in coarse garments, and wept before Dschou\nTschu's door. Dschou Tschu was just coming from the tavern, where he\nhad been drinking. He was slapping his sword and singing in a loud\nvoice.\n\nWhen he reached his house he asked: \"Who is weeping here so\npitifully?\"\n\nAnd the mandarin replied: \"I am weeping because of the people's\ndistress.\"\n\nThen Dschou Tschu saw him and broke out into loud laughter.\n\n\"You are mistaken, my friend,\" said he. \"Revolt is seething round\nabout us like boiling water in a kettle. But here, in our little\ncorner of the land, all is quiet and peaceful. The harvest has been\nabundant, corn is plentiful, and all go happily about their work. When\nyou talk to me about distress I have to think of the man who groans\nwithout being sick. And who are you, tell me that, who instead of\ngrieving for yourself, are grieving for others? And what are you doing\nbefore my door?\"\n\n\"I am the new mandarin,\" replied the other. \"Since I left my litter I\nhave been looking about in the neighborhood. I find the people are\nhonest and simple in their way of life, and every one has sufficient\nto wear and to eat. This is all just as you state. Yet, strange to\nsay, when the elders come together, they always sigh and complain. And\nif they are asked why, they answer: 'There are three great evils in\nour district!' I have come to ask you to do away with two of them, as\nto the third, perhaps I had better remain silent. And this is the\nreason I weep before your door.\"\n\n\"Well, what are these evils?\" answered Dschou Tschu. \"Speak freely,\nand tell me openly all that you know!\"\n\n\"The first evil,\" said the mandarin, \"is the evil dragon at the long\nbridge, who causes the water to rise so that man and beast are drowned\nin the river. The second evil is the tiger with the white forehead,\nwho dwells in the hills. And the third evil, Dschou Tschu--is\nyourself!\"\n\nThen the blush of shame mounted to the man's cheek, and he bowed and\nsaid: \"You have come here from afar to be the mandarin of this\ndistrict, and yet you feel such sympathy for the people? I was born in\nthis place and yet I have only made our elders grieve. What sort of a\ncreature must I be? I beg that you will return home again. I will see\nto it that matters improve!\"\n\nThen he ran without stopping to the hills, and hunted the tiger out of\nhis cave. The latter leaped into the air so that the whole forest was\nshaken as though by a storm. Then he came rushing up, roaring, and\nstretching out his claws savagely to seize his enemy. Dschou Tschu\nstepped back a pace, and the tiger lit on the ground directly in front\nof him. Then he thrust the tiger's neck to the ground with his left\nhand, and beat him without stopping with his right, until he lay dead\non the earth. Dschou Tschu loaded the tiger on his back and went home.\n\nThen he went to the long bridge. He undressed, took his sword in his\nhand, and thus dived into the water. No sooner had he disappeared,\nthan there was a boiling and hissing, and the waves began to foam and\nbillow. It sounded like the mad beating of thousands of hoofs. After a\ntime a stream of blood shot up from the depths, and the water of the\nriver turned red. Then Dschou Tschu, holding the dragon in his hand,\nrose out of the waves.\n\nHe went to the mandarin and reported, with a bow: \"I have cut off the\ndragon's head, and have also done away with the tiger. Thus I have\nhappily accomplished your command. And now I shall wander away so that\nyou may be rid of the third evil as well. Lord, watch over my country,\nand tell the elders that they need sorrow no more!\"\n\nWhen he had said this he enlisted as a soldier. In combat against the\nrobbers he gained a great reputation and once, when the latter were\npressing him hard, and he saw that he could not save himself, he bowed\nto the East and said: \"The day has come at last when I can atone for\nmy sin with my life!\" Then he offered his neck to the sword and died.\n\n Note: A legendary tale rather than a folk-story, with a\n fine moral.\n\n\n\n\nLXII\n\nHOW THREE HEROES CAME BY THEIR DEATHS BECAUSE OF TWO PEACHES\n\n\nAt the beginning of his reign Duke Ging of Tsi loved to draw heroes\nabout him. Among those whom he attached to him were three of quite\nextraordinary bravery. The first was named Gung Sun Dsia, the second\nTian Kai Giang, the third Gu I Dsi. All three were highly honored by\nthe prince, but the honor paid them made them presumptuous, they kept\nthe court in a turmoil, and overstepped the bounds of respect which\nlie between a prince and his servants.\n\nAt the time Yan Dsi was chancellor of Tsi. The duke consulted him as\nto what would be best to do. And the chancellor advised him to give a\ngreat court banquet and invite all his courtiers. On the table, the\nchoicest dish of all, stood a platter holding four magnificent\npeaches.\n\nThen, in accordance with his chancellor's advice, the Duke rose and\nsaid: \"Here are some magnificent peaches, but I cannot give one to\neach of you. Only those most worthy may eat of them. I myself reign\nover the land, and am the first among the princes of the empire. I\nhave been successful in holding my possessions and power, and that is\nmy merit. Hence one of the peaches falls to me. Yan Dsi sits here as\nmy chancellor. He regulates communications with foreign lands and\nkeeps the peace among the people. He has made my kingdom powerful\namong the kingdoms of the earth. That is his merit, and hence the\nsecond peach falls to him. Now there are but two peaches left; yet I\ncannot tell which ones among you are the worthiest. You may rise\nyourselves and tell us of your merits. But whoever has performed no\ngreat deeds, let him hold his tongue!\"\n\nThen Gung Sun Dsia beat upon his sword, rose up and said: \"I am the\nprince's captain general. In the South I besieged the kingdom of Lu,\nin the West I conquered the kingdom of Dsin, in the North I captured\nthe army of Yan. All the princes of the East come to the Duke's court\nand acknowledge the overlordship of Tsi. That is my merit. I do not\nknow whether it deserves a peach.\"\n\nThe Duke replied: \"Great is your merit! A peach is your just due!\"\n\nThen Tian Kai Giang rose, beat on the table, and cried: \"I have fought\na hundred battles in the army of the prince. I have slain the enemy's\ngeneral-in-chief, and captured the enemy's flag. I have extended the\nborders of the Duke's land till the size of his realm has been\nincreased by a thousand miles. How is it with my merit?\"\n\nThe Duke said: \"Great is your merit! A peach is your just due!\"\n\nThen Gu I Dsi arose; his eyes started from their sockets, and he\nshouted with a loud voice: \"Once, when the Duke was crossing the\nYellow River, wind and waters rose. A river-dragon snapped up one of\nthe steeds of the chariot and tore it away. The ferry-boat rocked like\na sieve and was about to capsize. Then I took my sword and leaped into\nthe stream. I fought with the dragon in the midst of the foaming\nwaves. And by reason of my strength I managed to kill him, though my\neyes stood out of my head with my exertions. Then I came to the\nsurface with the dragon's head in one hand, and holding the rein of\nthe rescued horse in the other, and I had saved my prince from\ndrowning. Whenever our country was at war with neighboring states, I\nrefused no service. I commanded the van, I fought in single combat.\nNever did I turn my back on the foe. Once the prince's chariot stuck\nfast in the swamp, and the enemy hurried up on all sides. I pulled the\nchariot out, and drove off the hostile mercenaries. Since I have been\nin the prince's service I have saved his life more than once. I grant\nthat my merit is not to be compared with that of the prince and that\nof the chancellor, yet it is greater than that of my two companions.\nBoth have received peaches, while I must do without. This means that\nreal merit is not rewarded, and that the Duke looks on me with\ndisfavor. And in such case how may I ever show myself at court again!\"\n\nWith these words he drew his sword and killed himself.\n\nThen Gung Sun Dsia rose, bowed twice, and said with a sigh: \"Both my\nmerit and that of Tian Kai Giang does not compare with Gu I Dsi's and\nyet the peaches were given us. We have been rewarded beyond our\ndeserts, and such reward is shameful. Hence it is better to die than\nto live dishonored!\"\n\nHe took his sword and swung it, and his own head rolled on the sand.\n\nTian Kai Giang looked up and uttered a groan of disgust. He blew the\nbreath from his mouth in front of him like a rainbow, and his hair\nrose on end with rage. Then he took sword in hand and said: \"We three\nhave always served our prince bravely. We were like the same flesh and\nblood. The others are dead, and it is my duty not to survive them!\"\n\nAnd he thrust his sword into his throat and died.\n\nThe Duke sighed incessantly, and commanded that they be given a\nsplendid burial. A brave hero values his honor more than his life. The\nchancellor knew this, and that was why he purposely arranged to incite\nthe three heroes to kill themselves by means of the two peaches.\n\n Note: Duke Ging of Tsi (Eastern Shantung) was an older\n contemporary of Confucius. The chancellor Yan Dsi, who\n is the reputed author of a work on philosophy, is the\n same who prevented the appointment of Confucius at the\n court of Tsi.\n\n\n\n\nLXIII\n\nHOW THE RIVER-GOD'S WEDDING WAS BROKEN OFF\n\n\nAt the time of the seven empires there lived a man by the name of\nSi-Men Bau, who was a governor on the Yellow River. In this district\nthe river-god was held in high honor. The sorcerers and witches who\ndwelt there said: \"Every year the river-god looks for a bride, who\nmust be selected from among the people. If she be not found then wind\nand rain will not come at the proper seasons, and there will be scanty\ncrops and floods!\" And then, when a girl came of age in some wealthy\nfamily, the sorcerers would say that she should be selected. Whereupon\nher parents, who wished to protect their daughter, would bribe them\nwith large sums of money to look for some one else, till the sorcerers\nwould give in, and order the rich folk to share the expense of buying\nsome poor girl to be cast into the river. The remainder of the money\nthey would keep for themselves as their profit on the transaction. But\nwhoever would not pay, their daughter was chosen to be the bride of\nthe river-god, and was forced to accept the wedding gifts which the\nsorcerers brought her. The people of the district chafed grievously\nunder this custom.\n\nNow when Si-Men entered into office, he heard of this evil custom. He\nhad the sorcerers come before him and said: \"See to it that you let me\nknow when the day of the river-god's wedding comes, for I myself wish\nto be present to honor the god! This will please him, and in return he\nwill shower blessings on my people.\" With that he dismissed them. And\nthe sorcerers were full of praise for his piety.\n\nSo when the day arrived they gave him notice. Si-Men dressed himself\nin his robes of ceremony, entered his chariot and drove to the river\nin festival procession. The elders of the people, as well as the\nsorcerers and the witches were all there. And from far and near men,\nwomen and children had flocked together in order to see the show. The\nsorcerers placed the river-bride on a couch, adorned her with her\nbridal jewels, and kettledrums, snaredrums and merry airs vied with\neach other in joyful sound.\n\nThey were about to thrust the couch into the stream, and the girl's\nparents said farewell to her amid tears. But Si-Men bade them wait and\nsaid: \"Do not be in such a hurry! I have appeared in person to escort\nthe bride, hence everything must be done solemnly and in order. First\nsome one must go to the river-god's castle, and let him know that he\nmay come himself and fetch his bride.\"\n\nAnd with these words he looked at a witch and said: \"You may go!\" The\nwitch hesitated, but he ordered his servants to seize her and thrust\nher into the stream. After which about an hour went by.\n\n\"That woman did not understand her business,\" continued Si-Men, \"or\nelse she would have been back long ago!\" And with that he looked at\none of the sorcerers and added: \"Do you go and do better!\" The\nsorcerer paled with fear, but Si-Men had him seized and cast into the\nriver. Again half-an-hour went by.\n\nThen Si-Men pretended to be uneasy. \"Both of them have made a botch of\ntheir errand,\" said he, \"and are causing the bride to wait in vain!\"\nOnce more he looked at a sorcerer and said: \"Do you go and hunt them\nup!\" But the sorcerer flung himself on the ground and begged for\nmercy. And all the rest of the sorcerers and witches knelt to him in a\nrow, and pleaded for grace. And they took an oath that they would\nnever again seek a bride for the river-god.\n\nThen Si-Men held his hand, and sent the girl back to her home, and the\nevil custom was at an end forever.\n\n Note: Si-Men Bau was an historical personage, who lived\n five centuries before Christ.\n\n\n\n\nLXIV\n\nDSCHANG LIANG\n\n\nDschang Liang was a native of one of those states which had been\ndestroyed by the Emperor Tsin Schi Huang. And Dschang Liang determined\nto do a deed for his dead king's sake, and to that end gathered\nfollowers with whom to slay Tsin Schi Huang.\n\nOnce Tsin Schi Huang was making a progress through the country. When\nhe came to the plain of Bo Lang, Dschang Liang armed his people with\niron maces in order to kill him. But Tsin Schi Huang always had two\ntraveling coaches which were exactly alike in appearance. In one of\nthem he sat himself, while in the other was seated another person.\nDschang Liang and his followers met the decoy wagon, and Dschang Liang\nwas forced to flee from the Emperor's rage. He came to a ruined\nbridge. An icy wind was blowing, and the snowflakes were whirling\nthrough the air. There he met an old, old man wearing a black turban\nand a yellow gown. The old man let one of his shoes fall into the\nwater, looked at Dschang Liang and said: \"Fetch it out, little one!\"\n\nDschang Liang controlled himself, fetched out the shoe and brought it\nto the old man. The latter stretched out his foot to allow Dschang\nLiang to put it on, which he did in a respectful manner. This pleased\nthe old man and he said: \"Little one, something may be made of you!\nCome here to-morrow morning early, and I will have something for you.\"\n\nThe following morning at break of dawn, Dschang Liang appeared. But\nthe old man was already there and reproached him: \"You are too late.\nTo-day I will tell you nothing. To-morrow you must come earlier.\"\n\nSo it went on for three days, and Dschang Liang's patience was not\nexhausted. Then the old man was satisfied, brought forth the Book of\nHidden Complements, and gave it to him. \"You must read it,\" said he,\n\"and then you will be able to rule a great emperor. When your task is\ncompleted, seek me at the foot of the Gu Tschong Mountain. There you\nwill find a yellow stone, and I will be by that yellow stone.\"\n\nDschang Liang took the book and aided the ancestor of the Han dynasty\nto conquer the empire. The emperor made him a count. From that time\nforward Dschang Liang ate no human food and concentrated in spirit. He\nkept company with the four whitebeards of the Shang Mountain, and with\nthem shared the sunset roses in the clouds. Once he met two boys who\nwere singing and dancing:\n\n \"Green the garments you should wear,\n If to heaven's gate you'd fare;\n There the Golden Mother greet,\n Bow before the Wood Lord's feet!\"\n\nWhen Dschang Liang heard this, he bowed before the youths, and said to\nhis friends: \"Those are angel children of the King Father of the East.\nThe Golden Mother is the Queen of the West. The Lord of Wood is the\nKing Father of the East. They are the two primal powers, the parents\nof all that is male and female, the root and fountain of heaven and\nearth, to whom all that has life is indebted for its creation and\nnourishment. The Lord of Wood is the master of all the male saints,\nthe Golden Mother is the mistress of all the female saints. Whoever\nwould gain immortality, must first greet the Golden Mother and then\nbow before the King Father. Then he may rise up to the three Pure Ones\nand stand in the presence of the Highest. The song of the angel\nchildren shows the manner in which the hidden knowledge may be\nacquired.\"\n\nAt about that time the emperor was induced to have some of his\nfaithful servants slain. Then Dschang Liang left his service and went\nto the Gu Tschong Mountain. There he found the old man by the yellow\nstone, gained the hidden knowledge, returned home, and feigning\nillness loosed his soul from his body and disappeared.\n\nLater, when the rebellion of the \"Red Eyebrows\" broke out, his tomb\nwas opened. But all that was found within it was a yellow stone.\nDschang Liang was wandering with Laotsze in the invisible world.\n\nOnce his grandson Dschang Dau Ling went to Kunlun Mountain, in order\nto visit the Queen Mother of the West. There he met Dschang Liang.\nDschang Dau Ling gained power over demons and spirits, and became the\nfirst Taoist pope. And the secret of his power has been handed down in\nhis family from generation to generation.\n\n Note: \"In a yellow robe,\" is an indication of Taoism:\n compare with No. 38. \"The Book of Hidden Complements\"\n (Yin Fu Ging). Compare with Lia Dsi, Introduction.\n\n\n\n\nLXV\n\nOLD DRAGONBEARD\n\n\nAt the time of the last emperor of the Sui dynasty, the power was in\nthe hands of the emperor's uncle, Yang Su. He was proud and\nextravagant. In his halls stood choruses of singers and bands of\ndancing girls, and serving-maids stood ready to obey his least sign.\nWhen the great lords of the empire came to visit him he remained\ncomfortably seated on his couch while he received them.\n\nIn those days there lived a bold hero named Li Dsing. He came to see\nYang Su in humble clothes in order to bring him a plan for the\nquieting of the empire.\n\nHe made a low bow to which Yang Su did not reply, and then he said:\n\"The empire is about to be troubled by dissension and heroes are\neverywhere taking up arms. You are the highest servant of the imperial\nhouse. It should be your duty to gather the bravest around the throne.\nAnd you should not rebuff people by your haughtiness!\"\n\nWhen Yang Su heard him speak in this fashion he collected himself,\nrose from his place, and spoke to him in a friendly manner.\n\nLi Dsing handed him a memorial, and Yang Su entered into talk with him\nconcerning all sorts of things. A serving-maid of extraordinary beauty\nstood beside them. She held a red flabrum in her hand, and kept her\neyes fixed on Li Dsing. The latter at length took his leave and\nreturned to his inn.\n\nLater in the day some one knocked at his door. He looked out, and\nthere, before the door, stood a person turbaned and gowned in purple,\nand carrying a bag slung from a stick across his shoulder.\n\nLi Dsing asked who it was and received the answer: \"I am the\nfan-bearer of Yang Su!\"\n\nWith that she entered the room, threw back her mantle and took off her\nturban. Li Dsing saw that she was a maiden of eighteen or nineteen.\n\nShe bowed to him, and when he had replied to her greeting she began:\n\"I have dwelt in the house of Yang Su for a long time and have seen\nmany famous people, but none who could equal you. I will serve you\nwherever you go!\"\n\nLi Dsing answered: \"The minister is powerful. I am afraid that we will\nplunge ourselves into misfortune.\"\n\n\"He is a living corpse, in whom the breath of life grows scant,\" said\nthe fan-bearer, \"and we need not fear him.\"\n\nHe asked her name, and she said it was Dschang, and that she was the\noldest among her brothers and sisters.\n\nAnd when he looked at her, and considered her courageous behavior and\nher sensible words, he realized that she was a girl of heroic cast,\nand they agreed to marry and make their escape from the city in\nsecret. The fan-bearer put on men's clothes, and they mounted horses\nand rode away. They had determined to go to Taiyuanfu.\n\nOn the following day they stopped at an inn. They had their room put\nin order and made a fire on the hearth to cook their meal. The\nfan-bearer was combing her hair. It was so long that it swept the\nground, and so shining that you could see your face in it. Li Dsing\nhad just left the room to groom the horses. Suddenly a man who had a\nlong curling mustache like a dragon made his appearance. He came along\nriding on a lame mule, threw down his leather bag on the ground in\nfront of the hearth, took a pillow, made himself comfortable on a\ncouch, and watched the fan-bearer as she combed her hair. Li Dsing saw\nhim and grew angry; but the fan-bearer had at once seen through the\nstranger. She motioned Li Dsing to control himself, quickly finished\ncombing her hair and tied it in a knot.\n\nThen she greeted the guest and asked his name.\n\nHe told her that he was named Dschang.\n\n\"Why, my name is also Dschang,\" said she, \"so we must be relatives!\"\n\nThereupon she bowed to him as her elder brother.\n\n\"How many are there of you brothers?\" she then inquired.\n\n\"I am the third,\" he answered, \"and you?\"\n\n\"I am the oldest sister.\"\n\n\"How fortunate that I should have found a sister to-day,\" said the\nstranger, highly pleased.\n\nThen the fan-bearer called to Li Dsing through the door and said:\n\"Come in! I wish to present my third brother to you!\"\n\nThen Li Dsing came in and greeted him.\n\nThey sat down beside each other and the stranger asked: \"What have you\nto eat?\"\n\n\"A leg of mutton,\" was the answer.\n\n\"I am quite hungry,\" said the stranger.\n\nSo Li Dsing went to the market and brought bread and wine. The\nstranger drew out his dagger, cut the meat, and they all ate in\ncompany. When they had finished he fed the rest of the meat to his\nmule.\n\nThen he said: \"Sir Li, you seem to be a moneyless knight. How did you\nhappen to meet my sister?\"\n\nLi Dsing told him how it had occurred.\n\n\"And where do you wish to go now?\"\n\n\"To Taiyuanfu,\" was the answer.\n\nSaid the stranger: \"You do not seem to be an ordinary fellow. Have you\nheard anything regarding a hero who is supposed to be in this\nneighborhood?\"\n\nLi Dsing answered: \"Yes, indeed, I know of one, whom heaven seems\ndestined to rule.\"\n\n\"And who might he be?\" inquired the other.\n\n\"He is the son of Duke Li Yuan of Tang, and he is no more than twenty\nyears of age.\"\n\n\"Could you present him to me some time?\" asked the stranger.\n\nAnd when Li Dsing has assured him he could, he continued: \"The\nastrologers say that a special sign has been noticed in the air above\nTaiyuanfu. Perhaps it is caused by the very man. To-morrow you may\nawait me at the Fenyang Bridge!\"\n\nWith these words he mounted his mule and rode away, and he rode so\nswiftly that he seemed to be flying.\n\nThe fan-bearer said to him: \"He is not a pleasant customer to deal\nwith. I noticed that at first he had no good intentions. That is why I\nunited him to us by bonds of relationship.\"\n\nThen they set out together for Taiyuanfu, and at the appointed place,\nsure enough, they met Dragonbeard. Li Dsing had an old friend, a\ncompanion of the Prince of Tang.\n\nHe presented the stranger to this friend, named Liu Wendsing, saying:\n\"This stranger is able to foretell the future from the lines of the\nface, and would like to see the prince.\"\n\nThereupon Liu Wendsing took him in to the prince. The prince was\nclothed in a simple indoor robe, but there was something impressive\nabout him, which made him remarked among all others. When the stranger\nsaw him, he fell into a profound silence, and his face turned gray.\nAfter he had drunk a few flagons of wine he took his leave.\n\n\"That man is a true ruler,\" he told Li Dsing. \"I am almost certain of\nthe fact, but to be sure my friend must also see him.\"\n\nThen he arranged to meet Li Dsing on a certain day at a certain inn.\n\n\"When you see this mule before the door, together with a very lean\njackass, then you may be certain I am there with my friend.\"\n\nOn the day set Li Dsing went there and, sure enough he saw the mule\nand the jackass before the door. He gathered up his robe and descended\nto the upper story of the inn. There sat old Dragonbeard and a Taoist\npriest over their wine. When the former saw Li Dsing he was much\npleased, bade him sit down and offered him wine. After they had\npledged each other, all three returned to Liu Wendsing. He was engaged\nin a game of chess with the prince. The prince rose with respect and\nasked them to be seated.\n\nAs soon as the Taoist priest saw his radiant and heroic countenance he\nwas disconcerted, and greeted him with a low bow, saying: \"The game is\nup!\"\n\nWhen they took their leave Dragonbeard said to Li Dsing: \"Go on to\nSianfu, and when the time has come, ask for me at such and such a\nplace.\"\n\nAnd with that he went away snorting.\n\nLi Dsing and the fan-bearer packed up their belongings, left Taiyuanfu\nand traveled on toward the West. At that time Yang Su died, and great\ndisturbance arose throughout the empire.\n\nIn the course of a few days Li Dsing and his wife reached the\nmeeting-place appointed by Dragonbeard. They knocked at a little\nwooden door, and out came a servant, who led them through long\npassages. When they emerged magnificent buildings arose before them,\nin front of which stood a crowd of slave girls. Then they entered a\nhall in which the most valuable dowry that could be imagined had been\npiled up: mirrors, clothes, jewelry, all more beautiful than earth is\nwont to show. Handsome slave girls led them to the bath, and when they\nhad changed their garments their friend was announced. He stepped in\nclad in silks and fox-pelts, and looking almost like a dragon or a\ntiger. He greeted his guests with pleasure and also called in his\nwife, who was of exceptional loveliness. A festive banquet was served,\nand all four sat down to it. The table was covered with the most\nexpensive viands, so rare that they did not even know their names.\nFlagons and dishes and all the utensils were made of gold and jade,\nand ornamented with pearls and precious stones. Two companies of girl\nmusicians alternately blew flutes and chalameaus. They sang and\ndanced, and it seemed to the visitors that they had been transported\nto the palace of the Lady of the Moon. The rainbow garments fluttered,\nand the dancing girls were beautiful beyond all the beauty of earth.\n\nAfter they had banqueted, Dragonbeard commanded his servitors to bring\nin couches upon which embroidered silken covers had been spread. And\nafter they had seen everything worth seeing, he presented them with a\nbook and a key.\n\nThen he said: \"In this book are listed the valuables and the riches\nwhich I possess. I make you a wedding-present of them. Nothing great\nmay be undertaken without wealth, and it is my duty to endow my sister\nproperly. My original intention had been to take the Middle Kingdom in\nhand and do something with it. But since a ruler has already arisen to\nreign over it, what is there to keep me in this country? For Prince\nTang of Taiyuanfu is a real hero, and will have restored order within\na few years' time. You must both of you aid him, and you will be\ncertain to rise to high honors. You, my sister, are not alone\nbeautiful, but you have also the right way of looking at things. None\nother than yourself would have been able to recognize the true worth\nof Li Dsing, and none other than Li Dsing would have had the good\nfortune to encounter you. You will share the honors which will be your\nhusband's portion, and your name will be recorded in history. The\ntreasures which I bestow upon you, you are to use to help the true\nruler. Bear this in mind! And in ten years' time a glow will rise far\naway to the South-east, and it shall be a sign that I have reached my\ngoal. Then you may pour a libation of wine in the direction of the\nSouth-east, to wish me good fortune!\"\n\nThen, one after another, he had his servitors and slave-girls greet\nLi Dsing and the fan-bearer, and said to them: \"This is your master\nand your mistress!\"\n\nWhen he had spoken these words, he took his wife's hand, they mounted\nthree steeds which were held ready, and rode away.\n\nLi Dsing and his wife now established themselves in the house, and\nfound themselves possessed of countless wealth. They followed Prince\nTang, who restored order to the empire, and aided him with their\nmoney. Thus the great work was accomplished, and after peace had been\nrestored throughout the empire, Li Dsing was made Duke of We, and the\nfan-bearer became a duchess.\n\nSome ten years later the duke was informed that in the empire beyond\nthe sea a thousand ships had landed an army of a hundred thousand\narmored soldiers. These had conquered the country, killed its prince,\nand set up their leader as its king. And order now reigned in that\nempire.\n\nThen the duke knew that Dragonbeard had accomplished his aim. He told\nhis wife, and they robed themselves in robes of ceremony and offered\nwine in order to wish him good fortune. And they saw a radiant crimson\nray flash up on the South-eastern horizon. No doubt Dragonbeard had\nsent it in answer. And both of them were very happy.\n\n Note: Yang Su died in the year 606 A.D. The Li Dsing of\n this tale has nothing in common with Li Dsing, the\n father of Notscha (No. 18). He lived as a historical\n personage, 571-649 A.D. Li Yuan was the founder of the\n Tang dynasty, 565-635 A.D. His famous son, to whom he\n owed the throne, the \"Prince of Tang,\" was named Li Schi\n Min. His father abdicated in 618 in his favor. This tale\n is not, of course, historical, but legendary. Compare\n with the introduction of the following one.\n\n\n\n\nLXVI\n\nHOW MOLO STOLE THE LOVELY ROSE-RED\n\n\nAt the time when the Tang dynasty reigned over the Middle Kingdom,\nthere were master swordsmen of various kinds. Those who came first\nwere the saints of the sword. They were able to take different shapes\nat will, and their swords were like strokes of lightning. Before their\nopponents knew they had been struck their heads had already fallen.\nYet these master swordsmen were men of lofty mind, and did not lightly\nmingle in the quarrels of the world. The second kind of master\nswordsmen were the sword heroes. It was their custom to slay the\nunjust, and to come to the aid of the oppressed. They wore a hidden\ndagger at their side and carried a leather bag at their belt. By magic\nmeans they were able to turn human heads into flowing water. They\ncould fly over roofs and walk up and down walls, and they came and\nwent and left no trace. The swordsmen of the lowest sort were the mere\nbought slayers. They hired themselves out to those who wished to do\naway with their enemies. And death was an everyday matter to them.\n\nOld Dragonbeard must have been a master swordsman standing midway\nbetween those of the first and of the second order. Molo, however, of\nwhom this story tells, was a sword hero.\n\nAt that time there lived a young man named Tsui, whose father was a\nhigh official and the friend of the prince. And the father once sent\nhis son to visit his princely friend, who was ill. The son was young,\nhandsome and gifted. He went to carry out his father's instructions.\nWhen he entered the prince's palace, there stood three beautiful\nslave girls, who piled rosy peaches into a golden bowl, poured sugar\nover them and presented them to him. After he had eaten he took his\nleave, and his princely host ordered one of the slave girls, Rose-Red\nby name, to escort him to the gate. As they went along the young man\nkept looking back at her. And she smiled at him and made signs with\nher fingers. First she would stretch out three fingers, then she would\nturn her hand around three times, and finally she would point to a\nlittle mirror which she wore on her breast. When they parted she\nwhispered to him: \"Do not forget me!\"\n\nWhen the young man reached home his thoughts were all in confusion.\nAnd he sat down absent-mindedly like a wooden rooster. Now it happened\nthat he had an old servant named Molo, who was an extraordinary being.\n\n\"What is the trouble, master,\" said he. \"Why are you so sad? Do you\nnot want to tell your old slave about it?\"\n\nSo the boy told him what had occurred, and also mentioned the signs\nthe girl had made to him in secret.\n\nSaid Molo: \"When she stretched out three fingers, it meant that she is\nquartered in the third court of the palace. When she turned round her\nhand three times, it meant the sum of three times five fingers, which\nis fifteen. When she pointed at the little mirror, she meant to say\nthat on the fifteenth, when the moon is round as a mirror, at\nmidnight, you are to go for her.\"\n\nThen the young man was roused from his confused thoughts, and was so\nhappy he could hardly control himself.\n\nBut soon he grew sad again and said: \"The prince's palace is shut off\nas though by an ocean. How would it be possible to win into it?\"\n\n\"Nothing easier,\" said Molo. \"On the fifteenth we will take two\npieces of dark silk and wrap ourselves up in them, and thus I will\ncarry you there. Yet there is a wild dog on guard at the slave girl's\ncourt, who is strong as a tiger and watchful as a god. No one can pass\nby him, so he must be killed.\"\n\nWhen the appointed day had come, the servant said: \"There is no one\nelse in the world who can kill this dog but myself!\"\n\nFull of joy the youth gave him meat and wine, and the old man took a\nchain-hammer and disappeared with it.\n\nAnd after no more time had elapsed than it takes to eat a meal he was\nback again and said: \"The dog is dead, and there is nothing further to\nhinder us!\"\n\nAt midnight they wrapped themselves in dark silk, and the old man\ncarried the youth over the tenfold walls which surrounded the palace.\nThey reached the third gateway and the gate stood ajar. Then they saw\nthe glow of a little lamp, and heard Rose-Red sigh deeply. The entire\ncourt was silent and deserted. The youth raised the curtain and\nstepped into the room. Long and searchingly Rose-Red looked at him,\nthen seized his hand.\n\n\"I knew that you were intelligent, and would understand my sign\nlanguage. But what magic power have you at your disposal, that you\nwere able to get here?\"\n\nThe youth told her in detail how Molo had helped him.\n\n\"And where is Molo?\" she asked.\n\n\"Outside, before the curtain,\" was his answer.\n\nThen she called him in and gave him wine to drink from a jade goblet\nand said: \"I am of good family and have come here from far away. Force\nalone has made me a slave in this palace. I long to leave it. For\nthough I have jasper chop-sticks with which to eat, and drink my wine\nfrom golden flagons, though silk and satin rustle around me and jewels\nof every kind are at my disposal, all these are but so many chains and\nfetters to hold me here. Dear Molo, you are endowed with magic powers.\nI beg you to save me in my distress! If you do, I will be glad to\nserve your master as a slave, and will never forget the favor you do\nme.\"\n\nThe youth looked at Molo. Molo was quite willing. First he asked\npermission to carry away Rose-Red's gear and jewels in sacks and bags.\nThree times he went away and returned until he had finished. Then he\ntook his master and Rose-Red upon his back, and flew away with them\nover the steep walls. None of the watchmen of the prince's palace\nnoticed anything out of the way. At home the youth hid Rose-Red in a\ndistant room.\n\nWhen the prince discovered that one of his slave-girls was missing,\nand that one of his wild dogs had been killed, he said: \"That must\nhave been some powerful sword hero!\" And he gave strict orders that\nthe matter should not be mentioned, and that investigations should be\nmade in secret.\n\nTwo years passed, and the youth no longer thought of any danger.\nHence, when the flowers began to bloom in the spring, Rose-Red went\ndriving in a small wagon outside the city, near the river. And there\none of the prince's servants saw her, and informed his master. The\nlatter sent for the youth, who, since he could not conceal the matter,\ntold him the whole story exactly as it had happened.\n\nSaid the prince: \"The whole blame rests on Rose-Red. I do not reproach\nyou. Yet since she is now your wife I will let the whole matter rest.\nBut Molo will have to suffer for it!\"\n\n [Illustration: \"THEN HE TOOK HIS MASTER AND ROSE-RED UPON HIS BACK\n AND FLEW WITH THEM OVER THE STEEP WALLS.\"\n --_Page 234_]\n\nSo he ordered a hundred armored soldiers, with bows and swords, to\nsurround the house of the youth, and under all circumstances to take\nMolo captive. But Molo drew his dagger and flew up the high wall.\nThence he looked about him like a hawk. The arrows flew as thick as\nrain, but not one hit him. And in a moment he had disappeared, no one\nknew where.\n\nYet ten years later one of his former master's servants ran across him\nin the South, where he was selling medicine. And he looked exactly as\nhe had looked ten years before.\n\n Note: This fairy-tale has many features in common with\n the fairy-tales of India, noticeably the use of the sign\n language, which the hero himself does not understand,\n but which is understood by his companion.\n\n\n\n\nLXVII\n\nTHE GOLDEN CANISTER\n\n\nIn the days of the Tang dynasty there lived a certain count in the\ncamp at Ludschou. He had a slave who could play the lute admirably,\nand was also so well versed in reading and writing that the count\nemployed her to indite his confidential letters.\n\nOnce there was a great feast held in the camp. Said the slave-girl:\n\"The large kettledrum sounds so sad to-day; some misfortune must\nsurely have happened to the kettledrummer!\"\n\nThe count sent for the kettledrummer and questioned him.\n\n\"My wife has died,\" he replied, \"yet I did not venture to ask for\nleave of absence. That is why, in spite of me, my kettledrum sounded\nso sad.\"\n\nThe count allowed him to go home.\n\nAt that time there was much strife and jealousy among the counts along\nthe Yellow River. The emperor wished to put an end to their\ndissensions by allying them to each other by marriages. Thus the\ndaughter of the Count of Ludschou had married the son of the old Count\nof Webo. But this did not much improve matters. The old Count of Webo\nhad lung trouble, and when the hot season came it always grew worse,\nand he would say: \"Yes, if I only had Ludschou! It is cooler and I\nmight feel better there!\"\n\nSo he gathered three thousand warriors around him, gave them good pay,\nquestioned the oracle with regard to a lucky day, and set out to take\nLudschou by force.\n\nThe Count of Ludschou heard of it. He worried day and night, but could\nsee no way out of his difficulties. One night, when the water-clock\nhad already been set up, and the gate of the camp had been locked, he\nwalked about the courtyard, leaning on his staff. Only his slave-girl\nfollowed him.\n\n\"Lord,\" said she, \"it is now more than a month since sleep and\nappetite have abandoned you! You live sad and lonely, wrapped up in\nyour grief. Unless I am greatly deceived it is on account of Webo.\"\n\n\"It is a matter of life and death,\" answered the count, \"of which you\nwomen understand nothing.\"\n\n\"I am no more than a slave-girl,\" said she, \"and yet I have been able\nto guess the cause of your grief.\"\n\nThe count realized that there was meaning in her words and replied:\n\"You are in truth an extraordinary girl. It is a fact that I am\nquietly reflecting on some way of escape.\"\n\nThe slave-girl said: \"That is easily done! You need not give it a\nthought, master! I will go to Webo and see how things are. This is the\nfirst watch of the night. If I go now, I can be back by the fifth\nwatch.\"\n\n\"Should you not succeed,\" said the count, \"you merely bring misfortune\nupon me the more quickly.\"\n\n\"A failure is out of the question,\" answered the slave-girl.\n\nThen she went to her room and prepared for her journey. She combed her\nraven hair, tied it in a knot on the top of her head, and fastened it\nwith a golden pin. Then she put on a short garment embroidered with\npurple, and shoes woven of dark silk. In her breast she hid a dagger\nwith dragon-lines graved on it, and upon her forehead she wrote the\nname of the Great God. Then she bowed before the count and\ndisappeared.\n\nThe count poured wine for himself and waited for her, and when the\nmorning horn was blown, the slave-girl floated down before him as\nlight as a leaf.\n\n\"Did all go well?\" asked the count.\n\n\"I have done no discredit to my mission,\" replied the girl.\n\n\"Did you kill any one?\"\n\n\"No, I did not have to go to such lengths. Yet I took the golden\ncanister at the head of Webo's couch along as a pledge.\"\n\nThe count asked what her experience had been, and she began to tell\nher story:\n\n\"I set out when the drums were beating their first tattoo and reached\nWebo three hours before midnight. When I stepped through the gate, I\ncould see the sentries asleep in their guard-rooms. They snored so\nthat it sounded like thunder. The camp sentinels were pacing their\nbeats, and I went in through the left entrance into the room in which\nthe Count of Webo slept. There lay your relative on his back behind\nthe curtain, plunged in sweet slumber. A costly sword showed from\nbeneath his pillow; and beside it stood an open canister of gold. In\nthe canister were various slips. On one of them was set down his age\nand the day of his birth, on another the name of the Great Bear God.\nGrains of incense and pearls were scattered over it. The candles in\nthe room burned dimly, and the incense in the censers was paling to\nash. The slave-girls lay huddled up, round about, asleep. I could have\ndrawn out their hair-pins and raised their robes and they would not\nhave awakened. Your relative's life was in my hand, but I could not\nbring myself to kill him. So I took the golden canister and returned.\nThe water-clock marked the third hour when I had finished my journey.\nNow you must have a swift horse saddled quickly, and must send a man\nto Webo to take back the golden canister. Then the Lord of Webo will\ncome to his senses, and will give up his plans of conquest.\"\n\nThe Count of Ludschou at once ordered an officer to ride to Webo as\nswiftly as possible. He rode all day long and half the night and\nfinally arrived. In Webo every one was excited because of the loss of\nthe golden canister. They were searching the whole camp rigorously.\nThe messenger knocked at the gate with his riding-whip, and insisted\non seeing the Lord of Webo. Since he came at so unusual an hour the\nLord of Webo guessed that he was bringing important information, and\nleft his room to receive the messenger. The latter handed him a letter\nwhich said: \"Last night a stranger from Webo came to us. He informed\nus that with his own hands he had taken a golden canister from beside\nyour bed. I have not ventured to keep it and hence am sending it back\nto you by messenger.\" When the Lord of Webo saw the golden canister he\nwas much frightened. He took the messenger into his own room, treated\nhim to a splendid meal, and rewarded him generously.\n\nOn the following day he sent the messenger back again, and gave him\nthirty thousand bales of silk and a team of four horses along as a\npresent for his master. He also wrote a letter to the Count of\nLudschou:\n\n\"My life was in your hand. I thank you for having spared me, regret my\nevil intentions and will improve. From this time forward peace and\nfriendship shall ever unite us, and I will let no thought to the\ncontrary enter my mind. The citizen soldiery I have gathered I will\nuse only as a protection against robbers. I have already disarmed the\nmen and sent them back to their work in the fields.\"\n\nAnd thenceforward the heartiest friendship existed between the two\nrelatives North and South of the Yellow River.\n\nOne day the slave-girl came and wished to take leave of her master.\n\n\"In my former existence,\" said the slave-girl, \"I was a man. I was a\nphysician and helped the sick. Once upon a time I gave a little child\na poison to drink by mistake instead of a healing draught, and the\nchild died. This led the Lord of Death to punish me, and I came to\nearth again in the shape of a slave-girl. Yet I remembered my former\nlife, tried to do well in my new surroundings, and even found a rare\nteacher who taught me the swordsman's art. Already I have served you\nfor nineteen years. I went to Webo for you in order to repay your\nkindness. And I have succeeded in shaping matters so that you are\nliving at peace with your relatives again, and thus have saved the\nlives of thousands of people. For a weak woman this is a real service,\nsufficient to absolve me of my original fault. Now I shall retire from\nthe world and dwell among the silent hills, in order to labor for\nsanctity with a clean heart. Perhaps I may thus succeed in returning\nto my former condition of life. So I beg of you to let me depart!\"\n\nThe count saw that it would not be right to detain her any longer. So\nhe prepared a great banquet, invited a number of guests to the\nfarewell meal, and many a famous knight sat down to the board. And all\nhonored her with toasts and poems.\n\nThe count could no longer hide his emotion, and the slave-girl also\nbowed before him and wept. Then she secretly left the banquet-hall,\nand no human being ever discovered whither she had gone.\n\n Note: This motive of the intelligent slave-girl also\n occurs in the story of the three empires. \"On her\n forehead she wrote the name of the Great God\": Regarding\n this god, Tai I, the Great One, compare annotation to\n No. 18. The God of the Great Bear, i.e., of the\n constellation. The letters which are exchanged are quite\n as noticeable for what is implied between the lines, as\n for what is actually set down.\n\n\n\n\nLXVIII\n\nYANG GUI FE\n\n\nThe favorite wife of the emperor Ming Huang of the Tang dynasty was\nthe celebrated Yang Gui Fe. She so enchanted him by her beauty that he\ndid whatever she wished him to do. But she brought her cousin to the\ncourt, a gambler and a drinker, and because of him the people began to\nmurmur against the emperor. Finally a revolt broke out, and the\nemperor was obliged to flee. He fled with his entire court to the land\nof the four rivers.\n\nBut when they reached a certain pass his own soldiers mutinied. They\nshouted that Yang Gui Fe's cousin was to blame for all, and that he\nmust die or they would go no further. The emperor did not know what to\ndo. At last the cousin was delivered up to the soldiers and was slain.\nBut still they were not satisfied.\n\n\"As long as Yang Gui Fe is alive she will do all in her power to\npunish us for the death of her cousin, so she must die as well!\"\n\nSobbing, she fled to the emperor. He wept bitterly and endeavored to\nprotect her; but the soldiers grew more and more violent. Finally she\nwas hung from a pear-tree by a eunuch.\n\nThe emperor longed so greatly for Yang Gui Fe that he ceased to eat,\nand could no longer sleep. Then one of his eunuchs told him of a man\nnamed Yang Shi Wu, who was able to call up the spirits of the\ndeparted. The emperor sent for him and Yang Shi Wu appeared.\n\nThat very evening he recited his magic incantations, and his soul left\nits body to go in search of Yang Gui Fe. First he went to the Nether\nWorld, where the shades of the departed dwell. Yet no matter how much\nhe looked and asked he could find no trace of her. Then he ascended to\nthe highest heaven, where sun, moon and stars make their rounds, and\nlooked for her in empty space. Yet she was not to be found there,\neither. So he came back and told the emperor of his experience. The\nemperor was dissatisfied and said: \"Yang Gui Fe's beauty was divine.\nHow can it be possible that she had no soul!\"\n\nThe magician answered: \"Between hill and valley and amid the silent\nravines dwell the blessed. I will go back once more and search for her\nthere.\"\n\nSo he wandered about on the five holy hills, by the four great rivers\nand through the islands of the sea. He went everywhere, and finally\ncame to fairyland.\n\nThe fairy said: \"Yang Gui Fe has become a blessed spirit and dwells in\nthe great south palace!\"\n\nSo the magician went there and knocked on the door. A maiden came out\nand asked what he wanted, and he told her that the emperor had sent\nhim to look for her mistress. She let him in. The way led through\nbroad gardens filled with flowers of jade and trees of coral, giving\nforth the sweetest of odors. Finally they reached a high tower, and\nthe maiden raised the curtain hanging before a door. The magician\nkneeled and looked up. And there he saw Yang Gui Fe sitting on a\nthrone, adorned with an emerald headdress and furs of yellow swans'\ndown. Her face glowed with rosy color, yet her forehead was wrinkled\nwith care.\n\nShe said: \"Well do I know the emperor longs for me! But for me there\nis no path leading back to the world of men! Before my birth I was a\nblessed sky-fairy, and the emperor was a blessed spirit as well. Even\nthen we loved each other dearly. Then, when the emperor was sent down\nto earth by the Lord of the Heavens, I, too, descended to earth and\nfound him there among men. In twelve years' time we will meet again.\nOnce, on the evening of the seventh day, when we stood looking up at\nthe Weaving Maiden and the Herd Boy, we swore eternal love. The\nemperor had a ring, which he broke in two. One half he gave to me, the\nother he kept himself. Take this half of mine, bring it to the\nemperor, and tell him not to forget the words we said to each other in\nsecret that evening. And tell him not to grieve too greatly because of\nme!\"\n\nWith that she gave him the ring, with difficulty suppressing her\nsobs. The magician brought back the ring with him. At sight of it the\nemperor's grief broke out anew.\n\nHe said: \"What we said to each other that evening no one else has ever\nlearned! And now you bring me back her ring! By that sign I know that\nyour words are true and that my beloved has really become a blessed\nspirit.\"\n\nThen he kept the ring and rewarded the magician lavishly.\n\n Note: The emperor Ming Huang of the Tang dynasty ruled\n from 713 to 756 A.D. The introduction to the tale is\n historical. The \"land of the four rivers\" is Setchuan.\n\n\n\n\nLXIX\n\nTHE MONK OF THE YANGTZE-KIANG\n\n\nBuddhism took its rise in southern India, on the island of Ceylon. It\nwas there that the son of a Brahminic king lived, who had left his\nhome in his youth, and had renounced all wishes and all sensation.\nWith the greatest renunciation of self he did penance so that all\nliving creatures might be saved. In the course of time he gained the\nhidden knowledge and was called Buddha.\n\nIn the days of the Emperor Ming Di, of the dynasty of the Eastern\nHans, a golden glow was seen in the West, a glow which flashed and\nshone without interruption.\n\nOne night the emperor dreamed that he saw a golden saint, twenty feet\nin height, barefoot, his head shaven, and clothed in Indian garb\nenter his room, who said to him: \"I am the saint from the West! My\ngospel must be spread in the East!\"\n\nWhen the ruler awoke he wondered about this dream, and sent out\nmessengers to the lands of the West in order to find out what it\nmeant.\n\nThus it was that the gospel of Buddha came to China, and continued to\ngain in influence up to the time of the Tang dynasty. At that time,\nfrom emperors and kings down to the peasants in the villages, the wise\nand the ignorant alike were filled with reverence for Buddha. But\nunder the last two dynasties his gospel came to be more and more\nneglected. In these days the Buddhist monks run to the houses of the\nrich, read their sutras and pray for pay. And one hears nothing of the\ngreat saints of the days gone by.\n\nAt the time of the Emperor Tai Dsung, of the Tang dynasty, it once\nhappened that a great drought reigned in the land, so that the emperor\nand all his officials erected altars everywhere in order to plead for\nrain.\n\nThen the Dragon-King of the Eastern Sea talked with the Dragon of the\nMilky Way and said: \"To-day they are praying for rain on earth below.\nThe Lord of the Heavens has granted the prayer of the King of Tang.\nTo-morrow you must let three inches of rain fall!\"\n\n\"No, I must let only two inches of rain fall,\" said the old dragon.\n\nSo the two dragons made a wager, and the one who lost promised as a\npunishment to turn into a mud salamander.\n\nThe following day the Highest Lord suddenly issued an order saying\nthat the Dragon of the Milky Way was to instruct the wind and cloud\nspirits to send down three inches of rain upon the earth. To\ncontradict this command was out of the question.\n\nBut the old dragon thought to himself: \"It seems that the Dragon-King\nhad a better idea of what was going to happen than I had, yet it is\naltogether too humiliating to have to turn into a mud salamander!\" So\nhe let only two inches of rain fall, and reported back to the heavenly\ncourt that the command had been carried out.\n\nYet the Emperor Tai Dsung then offered a prayer of thanks to heaven.\nIn it he said: \"The precious fluid was bestowed upon us to the extent\nof two inches of depth. We beg submissively that more may be sent\ndown, so that the parched crops may recover!\"\n\nWhen the Lord of the Heavens read this prayer he was very angry and\nsaid: \"The criminal Dragon of the Milky Way has dared diminish the\nrain which I had ordered. He cannot be suffered to continue his guilty\nlife. So We Dschong, who is a general among men on earth, shall behead\nhim, as an example for all living beings.\"\n\nIn the evening the Emperor Tai Dsung had a dream. He saw a giant enter\nhis room, who pleaded with hardly restrained tears: \"Save me, O\nEmperor! Because of my own accord I diminished the rainfall, the Lord\nof the Heavens, in his anger, has commanded that We Dschong behead me\nto-morrow at noon. If you will only prevent We Dschong from falling\nasleep at that time, and pray that I may be saved, misfortune once\nmore may pass me by!\"\n\nThe emperor promised, and the other bowed and left him.\n\nThe following day the emperor sent for We Dschong. They drank tea\ntogether and played chess.\n\nToward noon We Dschong suddenly grew tired and sleepy; but he did not\ndare take his leave. The emperor, however, since one of his pawns had\nbeen taken, fixed his gaze for a moment on the chess-board and\npondered, and before he knew it We Dschong was already snoring with a\nnoise like a distant thunder. The emperor was much frightened, and\nhastily called out to him; but he did not awake. Then he had two\neunuchs shake him, but a long time passed before he could be aroused.\n\n\"How did you come to fall asleep so suddenly!\" asked the emperor.\n\n\"I dreamed,\" replied We Dschong, \"that the Highest God had commanded\nme to behead the old dragon. I have just hewn off his head, and my arm\nstill aches from the exertion.\"\n\nAnd before he had even finished speaking a dragon's head, as large as\na bushel-measure, suddenly fell down out of the air. The emperor was\nterribly frightened and rose.\n\n\"I have sinned against the old dragon,\" said he. Then he retired to\nthe inner chambers of his palace and was confused in mind. He remained\nlying on his couch, closed his eyes, said not a word, and breathed but\nfaintly.\n\nSuddenly he saw two persons in purple robes who had a summons in their\nhands. They spoke to him as follows: \"The old Dragon of the Milky Way\nhas complained against the emperor in the Nether World. We beg that\nyou will have the chariot harnessed!\"\n\nInstinctively the emperor followed them, and in the courtyard there\nstood his chariot before the castle, ready and waiting. The emperor\nentered it, and off they went flying through the air. In a moment they\nhad reached the city of the dead. When he entered he saw the Lord of\nthe High Mountain sitting in the midst of the city, with the ten\nprinces of the Nether World in rows at his right and left. They all\nrose, bowed to him and bade him be seated.\n\nThen the Lord of the High Mountain said: \"The old Dragon of the Milky\nWay has really committed a deed which deserved punishment. Yet Your\nMajesty has promised to beg the Highest God to spare him, which prayer\nwould probably have saved the old dragon's life. And that this matter\nwas neglected over the chess-board might well be accounted a mistake.\nNow the old dragon complains to me without ceasing. When I think of\nhow he has striven to gain sainthood for more than a thousand years,\nand must now fall back into the cycle of transformations, I am really\ndepressed. It is for this reason I have called together the princes of\nthe ten pits of the Nether World, to find a way out of the difficulty,\nand have invited Your Majesty to come here to discuss the matter. In\nheaven, on earth and in the Nether World only the gospel of Buddha has\nno limits. Hence, when you return to earth great sacrifices should be\nmade to the three and thirty lords of the heavens. Three thousand six\nhundred holy priests of Buddha must read the sutras in order to\ndeliver the old dragon so that he may rise again to the skies, and\nkeep his original form. But the writings and readings of men will not\nbe enough to ensure this. It will be necessary to go to the Western\nHeavens and thence bring words of truth.\"\n\nThis the emperor agreed to, and the Lord of the Great Mountain and the\nten princes of the Nether World rose and said as they bowed to him:\n\"We beg that you will now return!\"\n\nSuddenly Tai Dsung opened his eyes again, and there he was lying on\nhis imperial couch. Then he made public the fact that he was at fault,\nand had the holiest among the priests of Buddha sent for to fetch the\nsutras from the Western Heavens. And it was Huan Dschuang, the Monk of\nthe Yangtze-kiang, who in obedience to this order, appeared at court.\n\nThe name of this Huan Dschuang had originally been Tschen. His father\nhad passed the highest examinations during the reign of the preceding\nemperor, and had been intrusted with the office of district mandarin\non the Yangtze-kiang. He set out with his wife for this new district,\nbut when their ship reached the Yellow River it fell in with a band of\nrobbers. Their captain slew the whole retinue, threw father Tschen\ninto the river, took his wife and the document appointing him\nmandarin, went to the district capital under an assumed name and took\ncharge of it. All the serving-men whom he took along were members of\nhis robber-band. Tschen's wife, however, together with her little boy,\nhe imprisoned in a tower room. And all the servants who attended her\nwere in the confidence of the robbers.\n\nNow below the tower was a little pond, and in this pond rose a spring\nwhich flowed beneath the walls to the Yellow River. So one day\nTschen's wife took a little basket of bamboo, pasted up the cracks and\nlaid her little boy in the basket. Then she cut her finger, wrote down\nthe day and hour of the boy's birth on a strip of silk paper with the\nblood, and added that the boy must come and rescue her when he had\nreached the age of twelve. She placed the strip of silk paper beside\nthe boy in the basket, and at night, when no one was about, she put\nthe basket in the pond. The current carried it away to the\nYangtze-kiang, and once there it drifted on as far as the monastery on\nthe Golden Hill, which is an island lying in the middle of the river.\nThere a priest who had come to draw water found it. He fished it out\nand took it to the monastery.\n\nWhen the abbot saw what had been written in blood, he ordered his\npriests and novices to say nothing about it to any one. And he brought\nup the boy in the monastery.\n\nWhen the latter had reached the age of five, he was taught to read the\nholy books. The boy was more intelligent than any of his\nfellow-students, soon grasped the meaning of the sacred writings, and\nentered more and more deeply into their secrets. So he was allowed to\ntake the vows, and when his head had been shaven was named: \"The Monk\nof the Yangtze-kiang.\"\n\nBy the time he was twelve he was as large and strong as a grown man.\nThe abbot, who knew of the duty he still had to perform, had him\ncalled to a quiet room. There he drew forth the letter written in\nblood and gave it to him.\n\nWhen the monk had read it he flung himself down on the ground and wept\nbitterly. Thereupon he thanked the abbot for all that the latter had\ndone for him. He set out for the city in which his mother dwelt, ran\naround the yamen of the mandarin, beat upon the wooden fish and cried:\n\"Deliverance from all suffering! Deliverance from all suffering!\"\n\nAfter the robber who had slain his father had slipped into the post he\nheld by false pretences, he had taken care to strengthen his position\nby making powerful friends. He even allowed Tschen's wife, who had now\nbeen a prisoner for some ten years, a little more liberty.\n\nOn that day official business had kept him abroad. The woman was\nsitting at home, and when she heard the wooden fish beaten so\ninsistently before the door and heard the words of deliverance, the\nvoice of her heart cried out in her. She sent out the serving-maid to\ncall in the priest. He came in by the back door, and when she saw that\nhe resembled his father in every feature, she could no longer restrain\nherself, but burst into tears. Then the monk of the Yangtze-kiang\nrealized that this was his mother and he took the bloody writing out\nand gave it to her.\n\nShe stroked it and said amid sobs: \"My father is a high official, who\nhas retired from affairs and dwells in the capital. But I have been\nunable to write to him, because this robber guarded me so closely. So\nI kept alive as well as I could, waiting for you to come. Now hurry to\nthe capital for the sake of your father's memory, and if his honor is\nmade clear then I can die in peace. But you must hasten so that no one\nfinds out about it.\"\n\nThe monk then went off quickly. First he went back to his cloister to\nbid farewell to his abbot; and then he set out for Sianfu, the\ncapital.\n\nYet by that time his grandfather had already died. But one of his\nuncles, who was known at court, was still living. He took soldiers and\nsoon made an end of the robbers. But the monk's mother had died in the\nmeantime.\n\nFrom that time on, the Monk of the Yangtze-kiang lived in a pagoda in\nSianfu, and was known as Huan Dschuang. When the emperor issued the\norder calling the priests of Buddha to court, he was some twenty years\nof age. He came into the emperor's presence, and the latter honored\nhim as a great teacher. Then he set out for India.\n\nHe was absent for seventeen years. When he returned he brought three\ncollections of books with him, and each collection comprised\nfive-hundred and forty rolls of manuscript. With these he once more\nentered the presence of the emperor. The emperor was overjoyed, and\nwith his own hand wrote a preface of the holy teachings, in which he\nrecorded all that had happened. Then the great sacrifice was held to\ndeliver the old Dragon of the Milky Way.\n\n Note: The emperor Tai Dsung is Li Schi Min, the Prince\n of Tang mentioned in No. 65. He was the most glorious\n and splendid of all Chinese rulers. The \"Dragon-King of\n the Eastern Sea\" has appeared frequently in these\n fairy-tales. As regards the \"Lord of the High Mountain,\"\n and the ten princes of the Nether World, comp. Nos. 38\n and 50. The Highest Lord is Yu Huang, the Lord of Jade\n or of Nephrite. Huan Dschuang was originally known as\n Tschen. Regarding his father's fate subsequent to his\n being drowned, and that of his sons in the spirit-world\n see No. 24. The \"bamboo basket\" is a Moses motive which\n occurs in other Chinese fairy-tales. \"The Monk of the\n Yangtze-kiang\" is, literally, (in Chinese, Giang Liu Ho\n Schang) \"The monk washed ashore by the stream.\" \"Wooden\n fish\": A hollow piece of wood in the form of a fish,\n which is beaten by the Buddhists as sign of\n watchfulness. Three collections of books--the Tripitaka.\n As regards one of the legendary companions of Huan\n Dschuang on his journey, see No. 74.\n\n\n\n\nLITERARY FAIRY TALES\n\n\n\n\nLXX\n\nTHE HEARTLESS HUSBAND\n\n\nIn olden times Hanchow was the capital of Southern China, and for that\nreason a great number of beggars had gathered there. These beggars\nwere in the habit of electing a leader, who was officially entrusted\nwith the supervision of all begging in the town. It was his duty to\nsee that the beggars did not molest the townsfolk, and he received a\ntenth of their income from all his beggar subjects. When it snowed or\nrained, and the beggars could not go out to beg, he had to see to it\nthat they had something to eat, and he also had to conduct their\nweddings and funerals. And the beggars obeyed him in all things.\n\nWell, it happened that there was a beggar king of this sort in Hanchow\nby the name of Gin, in whose family the office had been handed down\nfrom father to son for seven generations. What they had taken in by\nway of beggars' pence they had lent out on interest, and so the family\nhad gradually become well-to-do, and finally even rich.\n\nThe old beggar-king had lost his wife at the age of fifty. But he had\nan only child, a girl who was called \"Little Golden Daughter.\" She had\na face of rare beauty and was the jewel of his love. She had been\nversed in the lore of books from her youth up, and could write,\nimprovise poems and compose essays. She was also experienced in\nneedlework, a skilled dancer and singer, and could play the flute and\nzither. The old beggar-king above all else wanted her to have a\nscholar for a husband. Yet because he was a beggar-king the\ndistinguished families avoided him, and with those who were of less\nstanding than himself he did not wish to have anything to do. So it\ncame about that Little Golden Daughter had reached the age of eighteen\nwithout being betrothed.\n\nNow at that time there dwelt in Hanchow, near the Bridge of Peace, a\nscholar by the name of Mosu. He was twenty years of age, and\nuniversally popular because of his beauty and talent. His parents were\nboth dead, and he was so poor that he could hardly manage to keep\nalive. His house and lot had long since been mortgaged or sold, and he\nlived in an abandoned temple, and many a day passed at whose end he\nwent hungry to bed.\n\nA neighbor took pity on him and said to him one day: \"The beggar-king\nhas a child named Little Golden Daughter, who is beautiful beyond all\ntelling. And the beggar-king is rich and has money, but no son to\ninherit it. If you wish to marry into his family his whole fortune\nwould in the end come to you. Is that not better than dying of hunger\nas a poor scholar?\"\n\nAt that time Mosu was in dire extremity. Hence, when he heard these\nwords he was greatly pleased. He begged the neighbor to act as a\ngo-between in the matter.\n\nSo the latter visited the old beggar-king and talked with him, and the\nbeggar-king talked over the matter with Little Golden Daughter, and\nsince Mosu came from a good family and was, in addition, talented and\nlearned, and had no objection to marrying into their family, they were\nboth much pleased with the prospect. So they agreed to the proposal,\nand the two were married.\n\nSo Mosu became a member of the beggar-king's family. He was happy in\nhis wife's beauty, always had enough to eat and good clothes to wear.\nSo he thought himself lucky beyond his deserts, and lived with his\nwife in peace and happiness.\n\nThe beggar-king and his daughter, to whom their low estate was a thorn\nin the flesh, admonished Mosu to be sure to study hard. They hoped\nthat he would make a name for himself and thus reflect glory on their\nfamily as well. They bought books for him, old and new, at the highest\nprices, and they always supplied him liberally with money so that he\ncould move in aristocratic circles. They also paid his examination\nexpenses. So his learning increased day by day, and the fame of it\nspread through the entire district. He passed one examination after\nanother in rapid succession, and at the age of twenty-three was\nappointed mandarin of the district of Wu We. He returned from his\naudience with the emperor in ceremonial robes, high on horseback.\n\nMosu had been born in Hanchow, so the whole town soon knew that he had\npassed his examination successfully, and the townsfolk crowded\ntogether on both sides of the street to look at him as he rode to his\nfather-in-law's house. Old and young, women and children gathered to\nenjoy the show, and some idle loafer called out in a loud voice:\n\n\"The old beggar's son-in-law has become a mandarin!\"\n\nMosu blushed with shame when he heard these words. Speechless and out\nof sorts he seated himself in his room. But the old beggar-king in the\njoy of his heart did not notice his ill humor. He had a great\nfestival banquet prepared, to which he invited all his neighbors and\ngood friends. But most of the invited guests were beggars and poor\nfolk, and he insisted that Mosu eat with them. With much difficulty\nMosu was induced to leave his room. Yet when he saw the guests\ngathered around the table, as ragged and dirty as a horde of hungry\ndevils, he retired again with disdain. Little Golden Daughter, who\nrealized how he felt, tried to cheer him up again in a hundred and one\nways, but all in vain.\n\nA few days later Mosu, with his wife and servants, set out for the new\ndistrict he was to govern. One goes from Hanchow to Wu We by water. So\nthey entered a ship and sailed out to the Yangtze-kiang. At the end of\nthe first day they reached a city where they anchored. The night was\nclear and the moonrays glittered on the water, and Mosu sat in the\nfront part of the ship enjoying the moonlight. Suddenly he chanced to\nthink of the old beggar-king. It was true that his wife was wise and\ngood, but should heaven happen to bless them with children, these\nchildren would always be the beggar's nephews and nieces, and there\nwas no way of preventing such a disgrace. And thus thinking a plan\noccurred to him. He called Little Golden Daughter out of the cabin to\ncome and enjoy the moonlight, and she came out to him happily. Men\nservants and maid servants and all the sailors had long since gone to\nsleep. He looked about him on all sides, but there was no one to be\nseen. Little Golden Daughter was standing at the front of the ship,\nthinking no evil, when a hand suddenly thrust her into the water. Then\nMosu pretended to be frightened, and began to call out: \"My wife made\na misstep and has fallen into the water!\"\n\nAnd when they heard his words, the servants hurried up and wanted to\nfish her out.\n\nBut Mosu said: \"She has already been carried away by the current, so\nyou need not trouble yourselves!\" Then he gave orders to set sail\nagain as soon as possible.\n\nNow who would have thought that owing to a fortunate chance, Sir Hu,\nthe mandarin in charge of the transportation system of the province,\nwas also about to take charge of his department, and had anchored in\nthe same place. He was sitting with his wife at the open window of the\nship's cabin, enjoying the moonlight and the cool breeze.\n\nSuddenly he heard some one crying on the shore, and it sounded to him\nlike a girl's voice. He quickly sent people to assist her, and they\nbrought her aboard. It was Little Golden Daughter.\n\nWhen she had fallen into the water, she had felt something beneath her\nfeet which held her up so that she did not sink. And she had been\ncarried along by the current to the river-bank, where she crept out of\nthe water. And then she realized that her husband, now that he had\nbecome distinguished, had forgotten how poor he had been, and for all\nshe had not been drowned, she felt very lonely and abandoned, and\nbefore she knew it her tears began to flow. So when Sir Hu asked her\nwhat was the matter, she told him the whole story. Sir Hu comforted\nher.\n\n\"You must not shed another tear,\" said he. \"If you care to become my\nadopted daughter, we will take care of you.\"\n\nLittle Golden Daughter bowed her thanks. But Hu's wife ordered her\nmaids to bring other clothes to take the place of the wet ones, and to\nprepare a bed for her. The servants were strictly bidden to call her\n\"Miss,\" and to say nothing of what had occurred.\n\nSo the journey continued and in a few days' time Sir Hu entered upon\nhis official duties. Wu We, where Mosu was district mandarin, was\nsubject to his rule, and the latter made his appearance in order to\nvisit his official superior. When Sir Hu saw Mosu he thought to\nhimself: \"What a pity that so highly gifted a man should act in so\nheartless a manner!\"\n\nWhen a few months had passed, Sir Hu said to his subordinates: \"I have\na daughter who is very pretty and good, and would like to find a\nson-in-law to marry into my family. Do you know of any one who might\nanswer?\"\n\nHis subordinates all knew that Mosu was young and had lost his wife.\nSo they unanimously suggested him.\n\nSir Hu replied: \"I have also thought of that gentleman, but he is\nyoung and has risen very rapidly. I am afraid he has loftier\nambitions, and would not care to marry into my family and become my\nson-in-law.\"\n\n\"He was originally poor,\" answered his people, \"and he is your\nsubordinate. Should you care to show him a kindness of this sort, he\nwill be sure to accept it joyfully, and will not object to marrying\ninto your family.\"\n\n\"Well, if you all believe it can be done,\" said Sir Hu, \"then pay him\na visit and find out what he thinks about it. But you must not say\nthat I have sent you.\"\n\nMosu, who was just then reflecting how he might win Sir Hu's favor,\ntook up the suggestion with pleasure, and urgently begged them to act\nas his go-between in the matter, promising them a rich reward when the\nconnection was established.\n\nSo they went back again and reported to Sir Hu.\n\nHe said: \"I am much pleased that the gentleman in question does not\ndisdain this marriage. But my wife and I are extremely fond of this\ndaughter of ours, and we can hardly resign ourselves to giving her up.\nSir Mosu is young and aristocratic, and our little daughter has been\nspoiled. If he were to ill-treat her, or at some future time were to\nregret having married into our family, my wife and I would be\ninconsolable. For this reason everything must be clearly understood in\nadvance. Only if he positively agrees to do these things would I be\nable to receive him into my family.\"\n\nMosu was informed of all these conditions, and declared himself ready\nto accept them. Then he brought gold and pearls and colored silks to\nSir Hu's daughter as wedding gifts, and a lucky day was chosen for the\nwedding. Sir Hu charged his wife to talk to Little Golden Daughter.\n\n\"Your adopted father,\" said she, \"feels sorry for you, because you are\nlonely, and therefore has picked out a young scholar for you to\nmarry.\"\n\nBut Little Golden Daughter replied: \"It is true that I am of humble\nbirth, yet I know what is fitting. It chances that I agreed to cast my\nlot with Mosu for better or for worse. And though he has shown me but\nlittle kindness, I will marry no other man so long as he lives. I\ncannot bring myself to form another union and break my troth.\"\n\nAnd thus speaking the tears poured from her eyes. When Sir Hu's wife\nsaw that nothing would alter her resolve, she told her how matters\nreally stood.\n\n\"Your adopted father,\" said she, \"is indignant at Mosu's\nheartlessness. And although he will see to it that you meet again, he\nhas said nothing to Mosu which would lead him to believe that you are\nnot our own daughter. Therefore Mosu was delighted to marry you. But\nwhen the wedding is celebrated this evening, you must do thus and so,\nin order that he may taste your just anger.\"\n\nWhen she had heard all this, Little Golden Daughter dried her tears,\nand thanked her adopted parents. Then she adorned herself for the\nwedding.\n\nThe same day, late at evening, Mosu came to the house wearing golden\nflowers on his hat, and a red scarf across his breast, riding on a\ngaily trapped horse, and followed by a great retinue. All his friends\nand acquaintances came with him in order to be present at the festival\ncelebration.\n\nIn Sir Hu's house everything had been adorned with colored cloths and\nlanterns. Mosu dismounted from his horse at the entrance of the hall.\nHere Sir Hu had spread a festival banquet to which Mosu and his\nfriends were led. And when the goblet had made the rounds three times,\nserving-maids came and invited Mosu to follow them to the inner rooms.\nThe bride, veiled in a red veil, was led in by two maid-servants.\nFollowing the injunctions of the master of the ceremony, they\nworshiped heaven and earth together, and then the parents-in-law.\nThereupon they went into another apartment. Here brightly colored\ncandles were burning, and a wedding dinner had been prepared. Mosu\nfelt as happy as though he had been raised to the seventh heaven.\n\nBut when he wanted to leave the room, seven or eight maids with bamboo\ncanes in their hands appeared at each side of the door, and began to\nbeat him without mercy. They knocked his bridal hat from his head, and\nthen the blows rained down upon his back and shoulders. When Mosu\ncried for help he heard a delicate voice say: \"You need not kill that\nheartless bridegroom of mine completely! Ask him to come in and greet\nme!\"\n\nThen the maids stopped beating him, and gathered about the bride, who\nremoved her bridal veil.\n\nMosu bowed with lowered head and said: \"But what have I done?\"\n\nYet when he raised his eyes he saw that none other than his wife,\nLittle Golden Daughter, was standing before him.\n\nHe started with fright and cried: \"A ghost, a ghost!\" But all the\nservants broke out into loud laughter.\n\nAt last Sir Hu and his wife came in, and the former said: \"My dear\nson-in-law, you may rest assured that my adopted daughter, who came to\nme while I was on my way to this place, is no ghost.\"\n\nThen Mosu hastily fell on his knees and answered: \"I have sinned and\nbeg for mercy!\" And he kowtowed without end.\n\n\"With that I have nothing to do,\" remarked Sir Hu, \"if our little\ndaughter only gets along well with you, then all will be in order.\"\n\nBut Little Golden Daughter said: \"You heartless scoundrel! In the\nbeginning you were poor and needy. We took you into our family, and\nlet you study so that you might become somebody, and make a name for\nyourself. But no sooner had you become a mandarin and a man of\nstanding, than your love turned into enmity, and you forgot your duty\nas a husband and pushed me into the river. Fortunately, I found my\ndear adopted parents thereby. They fished me out, and made me their\nown child, otherwise I would have found a grave in the bellies of the\nfishes. How can I honorably live again with such a man as you?\"\n\nWith these words she began to lament loudly, and she called him one\nhard-hearted scoundrel after another.\n\nMosu lay before her, speechless with shame, and begged her to forgive\nhim.\n\nNow when Sir Hu noticed that Little Golden Daughter had sufficiently\nrelieved herself by her scolding, he helped Mosu up and said to him:\n\"My dear son-in-law, if you repent of your misdeed, Little Golden\nDaughter will gradually cease to be angry. Of course you are an old\nmarried couple; yet as you have renewed your vows this evening in my\nhouse, kindly do me a favor and listen to what I have to say: You,\nMosu, are weighed with a heavy burden of guilt, and for that reason\nyou must not resent your wife's being somewhat indignant, but must\nhave patience with her. I will call in my wife to make peace between\nyou.\"\n\nWith these words Sir Hu went out and sent in his wife who finally,\nafter a great deal of difficulty, succeeded in reconciling the two, so\nthat they agreed once more to take up life as husband and wife.\n\nAnd they esteemed and loved each other twice as much as they had\nbefore. Their life was all happiness and joy. And later, when Sir Hu\nand his wife died, they mourned for them as if in truth they had been\ntheir own parents.\n\n Note: \"To marry into\": as a rule the wife enters the\n home of her husband's parents. But when there is no male\n heir, it is arranged that the son-in-law continues the\n family of his wife's parents, and lives in their home.\n The custom is still very prevalent in Japan, but it is\n not considered very honorable in China to enter into a\n strange family in this way. It is characteristic that\n Mosu, as a punishment for disdaining to \"marry into\" a\n family the first time, is obliged to \"marry into\" a\n second time, the family of Sir Hu.\n\n The costume here described is still the wedding-costume\n of China. \"Little Golden Daughter\" said: \"You heartless\n scoundrel!\"; despite her faithfulness, in accordance\n with Chinese custom, she is obliged to show her anger\n over his faithlessness; this is necessary before the\n matter can be properly adjusted, so that she may\n \"preserve her face.\"\n\n\n\n\nLXXI\n\nGIAUNA THE BEAUTIFUL\n\n\nOnce upon a time there was a descendant of Confucius. His father had a\nfriend, and this friend held an official position in the South and\noffered the young man a place as secretary. But when the latter\nreached the town where he was to have been active, he found that his\nfather's friend had already died. Then he was much embarrassed, seeing\nthat he did not have the means to return home again. So he was glad to\ntake refuge in the Monastery of Puto, where he copied holy books for\nthe abbot.\n\nAbout a hundred paces west of the monastery stood a deserted house.\nOne day there had been a great snowfall, and as young Kung\naccidentally passed by the door of the house, he noticed a well\ndressed and prepossessing youth standing there who bowed to him and\nbegged him to approach. Now young Kung was a scholar, and could\nappreciate good manners. Finding that the youth and himself had much\nin common, he took a liking to him, and followed him into the house.\nIt was immaculately clean; silk curtains hung before the doors, and on\nthe walls were pictures of good old masters. On a table lay a book\nentitled: \"Tales of the Coral Ring.\" Coral Ring was the name of a\ncavern.\n\nOnce upon a time there lived a monk at Puto who was exceedingly\nlearned. An aged man had led him into the cave in question, where he\nhad seen a number of volumes on the book stands. The aged man had\nsaid: \"These are the histories of the various dynasties.\" In a second\nroom were to be found the histories of all the peoples on earth. A\nthird was guarded by two dogs. The aged man explained: \"In this room\nare kept the secret reports of the immortals, telling the arts by\nmeans of which they gained eternal life. The two dogs are two\ndragons.\" The monk turned the pages of the books, and found that they\nwere all works of ancient times, such as he had never seen before. He\nwould gladly have remained in the cave, but the old man said: \"That\nwould not do!\" and a boy led him out again. The name of that cave,\nhowever, was the Coral Ring, and it was described in the volume which\nlay on the table.\n\nThe youth questioned Kung regarding his name and family, and the\nlatter told him his whole history. The youth pitied him greatly and\nadvised him to open a school.\n\nKung answered with a sigh: \"I am quite unknown in the neighborhood,\nand have no one to recommend me!\"\n\nSaid the youth: \"If you do not consider me altogether too unworthy and\nstupid, I should like to be your pupil myself.\"\n\nYoung Kung was overjoyed. \"I should not dare to attempt to teach you,\"\nhe replied, \"but together we might dedicate ourselves to the study of\nscience.\" He then asked why the house had been standing empty for so\nlong.\n\nThe youth answered: \"The owner of the house has gone to the country.\nWe come from Shensi, and have taken the house for a short time. We\nonly moved in a few days ago.\"\n\nThey chatted and joked together gaily, and the young man invited Kung\nto remain overnight, ordering a small boy to light a pan of charcoal.\n\nThen he stepped rapidly into the rear room and soon returned saying:\n\"My father has come.\"\n\nAs Kung rose an aged man with a long, white beard and eyebrows stepped\ninto the room and said, greeting him: \"You have already declared your\nwillingness to instruct my son, and I am grateful for your kindness.\nBut you must be strict with him and not treat him as a friend.\"\n\nThen he had garments of silk, a fur cap, and shoes and socks of fur\nbrought in, and begged Kung to change his clothes. Wine and food were\nthen served. The cushions and covers of the tables and chairs were\nmade of stuffs unknown to Kung, and their shimmering radiance blinded\nthe eye. The aged man retired after a few beakers of wine, and then\nthe youth showed Kung his essays. They were all written in the style\nof the old masters and not in the new-fangled eight-section form.\n\nWhen he was asked about this, the youth said with a smile: \"I am quite\nindifferent to winning success at the state examinations!\" Then he\nturned to the small boy and said: \"See whether the old gentleman has\nalready fallen asleep. If he has, you may quietly bring in little\nHiang-Nu.\"\n\nThe boy went off, and the youth took a lute from an embroidered case.\nAt once a serving-maid entered, dressed in red, and surpassingly\nbeautiful. The youth bade her sing \"The Lament of the Beloved,\" and\nher melting tones moved the heart. The third watch of the night had\npassed before they retired to sleep.\n\nOn the following morning all rose early and study began. The youth was\nexceptionally gifted. Whatever he had seen but once was graven in his\nmemory. Hence he made surprising progress in the course of a few\nmonths. The old custom was followed of writing an essay every five\ndays, and celebrating its completion with a little banquet. And at\neach banquet Hiang-Nu was sent for.\n\nOne evening Kung could not remove his glance from Hiang-Nu. The youth\nguessed his thoughts and said to him: \"You are as yet unmarried. Early\nand late I keep thinking as to how I can provide you with a charming\nlife companion. Hiang-Nu is the serving-maid of my father, so I cannot\ngive her to you.\"\n\nSaid Kung: \"I am grateful to you for your friendly thought. But if the\ngirl you have in mind is not just as beautiful as Hiang-Nu, then I\nwould rather do without.\"\n\nThe youth laughed: \"You are indeed inexperienced if you think that\nHiang-Nu is beautiful. Your wish is easily fulfilled.\"\n\nThus half a year went by and the monotonous rainy season had just\nbegan. Then a swelling the size of a peach developed in young Kung's\nbreast, which increased over night until it was as large as a tea-cup.\nHe lay on his couch groaning with pain, and unable to eat or to sleep.\nThe youth was busy day and night nursing him, and even the old\ngentleman asked how he was getting along.\n\nThen the youth said: \"My little sister Giauna alone is able to cure\nthis illness. Please send to grandmother, and have her brought here!\"\n\nThe old gentleman was willing, and he sent off his boy.\n\nThe next day the boy came back with the news that Giauna would come,\ntogether with her aunt and her cousin A-Sung.\n\nNot long after the youth led his sister into the room. She was not\nmore than thirteen or fourteen years of age, enchantingly beautiful,\nand slender as a willow-tree. When the sick man saw her he forgot all\nhis pain and his spirits rose.\n\nThe youth said to his sister Giauna: \"This is my best friend, whom I\nlove as a brother! I beg of you, little sister, to cure him of his\nillness!\"\n\nThe maiden blushed with confusion; then she stepped up to the\nsick-bed. While she was feeling his pulse, it seemed to him as though\nshe brought the fragrance of orchards with her.\n\nSaid the maiden with a smile: \"No wonder that this illness has\nbefallen him. His heart beats far too stormily. His illness is serious\nbut not incurable. Now the blood which has flowed has already\ngathered, so we will have to cut to cure.\"\n\nWith that she took her golden armlet from her arm and laid it on the\naching place. She pressed it down very gently, and the swelling rose a\nfull inch above the armlet so that it enclosed the entire swelling.\nThen she loosed a pen-knife with a blade as thin as paper from her\nsilken girdle. With one hand she held the armlet, and with the other\nshe took the knife and lightly passed it around the bottom of the\nring. Black blood gushed forth and ran over mattress and bed. But\nyoung Kung was so enchanted by the presence of the beautiful Giauna\nthat not only did he feel no pain, but his one fear was that the whole\naffair might end too soon, and that she would disappear from his\nsight. In a moment the diseased flesh had been cut away, and Giauna\nhad fresh water brought and cleansed the wound. Then she took a small\nred pellet from her mouth, and laid it on the wound, and when she\nturned around in a circle, it seemed to Kung as though she drew out\nall the inflammation in steam and flames. Once more she turned in a\ncircle, and he felt his wound itch and quiver, and when she turned for\nthe third time, he was completely cured.\n\nThe maiden took the pellet into her mouth again and said: \"Now all is\nwell!\" Then she hastened into the inner room. Young Kung leaped up in\norder to thank her.\n\nTrue, he was now cured of his illness, but his thoughts continued to\ndwell on Giauna's pretty face. He neglected his books and sat lost in\nday-dreams.\n\nHis friend had noticed it and said to him: \"I have at last succeeded,\nthis very day, in finding an attractive life companion for you.\"\n\nKung asked who she might be.\n\n\"The daughter of my aunt, A-Sung. She is seventeen years of age, and\nanything but homely.\"\n\n\"I am sure she is not as beautiful as Giauna,\" thought Kung. Then he\nhummed the lines of a song to himself:\n\n \"Who once has seen the sea close by,\n All rivers shallow streams declares;\n Who o'er Wu's hill the clouds watched fly,\n Says nothing with that view compares.\"\n\nThe youth smiled. \"My little sister Giauna is still very young,\" said\nhe. \"Besides, she is my father's only daughter, and he would not like\nto see her marry some one from afar. But my cousin A-Sung is not\nhomely either. If you do not believe me, wait until they go walking in\nthe garden, and then you may take a look at them without their knowing\nit.\"\n\nKung posted himself at the open window on the look-out, and sure\nenough, he saw Giauna come along leading another girl by the hand, a\ngirl so beautiful that there was none other like her. Giauna and she\nseemed to be sisters, only to be told apart by a slight difference in\nage.\n\nThen young Kung was exceedingly happy and begged his friend to act for\nhim in arranging the marriage, which the latter promised to do. The\nnext day he came to Kung, and told him amid congratulations that\neverything was arranged. A special court was put in order for the\nyoung pair, and the wedding was celebrated. Young Kung felt as though\nhe had married a fairy, and the two became very fond of each other.\n\nOne day Kung's friend came to him in a state of great excitement and\nsaid: \"The owner of this house is coming back, and my father now\nwishes to return to Shensi. The time for us to part draws near, and I\nam very sad!\"\n\nKung wished to accompany them, but his friend advised him to return to\nhis own home.\n\nKung mentioned the difficulties in the way, but the youth replied:\n\"That need not worry you, because I will accompany you.\"\n\nAfter a time the father came, together with A-Sung, and made Kung a\npresent of a hundred ounces of gold. Then the youth took Kung and his\nwife by the hand, and told them to close their eyes. As soon as they\ndid so off they went through the air like a storm-wind. All Kung could\nnotice was that the gale roared about his ears.\n\nWhen some time had passed the youth cried: \"Now we have arrived!\" Kung\nopened his eyes and saw his old home, and then he knew that his friend\nwas not of human kind.\n\nGaily they knocked at the door of his home. His mother opened it and\nwhen she saw that he had brought along so charming a wife she was\ngreatly pleased. Then Kung turned around to his friend, but the latter\nhad already disappeared.\n\nA-Sung served her mother-in-law with great devotion, and her beauty\nand virtue was celebrated far and near. Soon after young Kung gained\nthe doctorate, and was appointed inspector of prisons in Shensi. He\ntook his wife along with him, but his mother remained at home, since\nShensi was too far for her to travel. And heaven gave A-Sung and Kung\na little son.\n\nBut Kung became involved in a dispute with a traveling censor. The\nlatter complained about Kung and he was dismissed from his post.\n\nSo it happened that one day he was idling about before the city, when\nhe saw a handsome youth riding a black mule. When he looked more\nclosely he saw that it was his old friend. They fell into each others'\narms, laughing and weeping, and the youth led him to a village. In the\nmidst of a thick grove of trees which threw a deep shade, stood a\nhouse whose upper stories rose to the skies. One could see at a glance\nthat people of distinction lived there. Kung now inquired after sister\nGiauna, and was told that she had married. He remained over night and\nthen went off to fetch his wife.\n\nIn the meantime Giauna arrived. She took A-Sung's little son in her\narms and said: \"Cousin, this is a little stranger in our family!\"\n\nKung greeted her, and again thanked her for the kindness she had shown\nhim in curing his illness.\n\nShe answered with a smile: \"Since then you have become a distinguished\nman, and the wound has long since healed. Have you still not forgotten\nyour pain?\"\n\nThen Giauna's husband arrived, and every one became acquainted. And\nafter that they parted.\n\nOne day the youth came sadly to Kung and said: \"We are threatened by a\ngreat misfortune to-day. I do not know whether you would be willing to\nsave us!\"\n\nKung did not know what it might be; but he gladly promised his aid.\nThen the youth called up the entire family and they bowed down in the\nouter court.\n\nHe began: \"I will tell you the truth just as it is. We are foxes. This\nday we are threatened by the danger of thunder. If you care to save\nus, then there is a hope that we may manage to stay alive; if not,\nthen take your child and go, so that you are not involved in our\ndanger.\"\n\nBut Kung vowed that he would share life and death with them.\n\nThen the youth begged him to stand in the door with a sword in his\nhand, and said: \"Now when the thunder begins to roll you must stand\nthere and never stir.\"\n\nSuddenly dark clouds rose in the sky, and the heavens grew gloomy as\nif night were closing down. Kung looked about him, but the buildings\nhad all disappeared, and behind him he could only see a high barrow,\nin which was a large cave whose interior was lost in darkness. In the\nmidst of his fright he was surprised by a thunderbolt. A heavy rain\npoured down in streams, and a storm wind arose which rooted up the\ntallest trees. Everything glimmered before his eyes and his ears were\ndeafened. But he held his sword in his hand, and stood as firm as a\nrock. Suddenly in the midst of black smoke and flashes of lightning,\nhe saw a monster with a pointed beak and long claws, which was\ncarrying off a human body. When he looked more closely he recognized\nby the dress that it was Giauna. He leaped up at the monster and\nstruck at him with his sword, and at once Giauna fell to the ground.\nA tremendous crash of thunder shook the earth, and Kung fell down\ndead.\n\nThen the tempest cleared away, and the blue sky appeared once more.\n\nGiauna had regained consciousness, and when she saw Kung lying dead\nbeside her she said amid sobs: \"He died for my sake! Why should I\ncontinue to live?\"\n\nA-Sung also came out, and together they carried him into the cave.\nGiauna told A-Sung to hold his head while her brother opened his\nmouth. She herself took hold of his chin, and brought out her little\nred pellet. She pressed it against his lips with her own, and breathed\ninto his lungs. Then the breath came back to his throat with a\nrattling noise, and in a short time he was himself once more.\n\nSo there was the whole family reunited again, and none of its members\nhad come to harm. They gradually recovered from their fright, and were\nquite happy: when suddenly a small boy brought the news that Giauna's\nhusband and his whole family had been killed by the thunder. Giauna\nbroke down, weeping, and the others tried to comfort her.\n\nFinally Kung said: \"It is not well to dwell too long amid the graves\nof the dead. Will you not come home with me?\"\n\nThereupon they packed up their belongings and went with him. He\nassigned a deserted garden, which he carefully walled off, to his\nfriend and his family as a dwelling-place. Only when Kung and A-Sung\ncame to visit them was the bolt drawn. Then Giauna and her brother\nplayed chess, drank tea and chatted with them like members of the same\nfamily.\n\nBut Kung's little son had a somewhat pointed face, which resembled a\nfox's, and when he went along the street, the people would turn\naround and say: \"There goes the fox-child!\"\n\n Note: \"Not in the new-fangled eight-section form\": Ba Gu\n Wen Dschang, i.e., essays in eight-section form,\n divided according to strict rules, were the customary\n theses in the governmental examinations in China up to\n the time of the great educational reform. To-day there\n is a general return to the style of the old masters, the\n free form of composition. \"The danger of thunder\": Three\n times the foxes must have escaped the mortal danger of\n thunder.\n\n\n\n\nLXXII\n\nTHE FROG PRINCESS\n\n\nThere where the Yangtze-kiang has come about half-way on its course to\nthe sea, the Frog King is worshiped with great devotion. He has a\ntemple there and frogs by the thousand are to be found in the\nneighborhood, some of them of enormous size. Those who incur the wrath\nof the god are apt to have strange visitations in their homes. Frogs\nhop about on tables and beds, and in extreme cases they even creep up\nthe smooth walls of the room without falling. There are various kinds\nof omens, but all indicate that some misfortune threatens the house in\nquestion. Then the people living in it become terrified, slaughter a\ncow and offer it as a sacrifice. Thus the god is mollified and nothing\nfurther happens.\n\nIn that part of the country there once lived a youth named Sia\nKung-Schong. He was handsome and intelligent. When he was some six or\nseven years of age, a serving-maid dressed in green entered his home.\nShe said that she was a messenger from the Frog King, and declared\nthat the Frog King wished to have his daughter marry young Sia. Old\nSia was an honest man, not very bright, and since this did not suit\nhim, he declined the offer on the plea that his son was still too\nyoung to marry. In spite of this, however, he did not dare look about\nfor another mate for him.\n\nThen a few years passed and the boy gradually grew up. A marriage\nbetween him and a certain Mistress Giang was decided upon.\n\nBut the Frog King sent word to Mistress Giang: \"Young Sia is my\nson-in-law. How dare you undertake to lay claim to what does not\nbelong to you!\" Then Father Giang was frightened, and took back his\npromise.\n\nThis made Old Sia very sad. He prepared a sacrifice and went to his\ntemple to pray. He explained that he felt unworthy of becoming the\nrelation of a god. When he had finished praying a multitude of\nenormous maggots made their appearance in the sacrificial meat and\nwine, and crawled around. He poured them out, begged forgiveness, and\nreturned home filled with evil forebodings. He did not know what more\nhe could do, and had to let things take their course.\n\nOne day young Sia went out into the street. A messenger stepped up to\nhim and told him, on the part of the Frog King that the latter\nurgently requested Sia to come to him. There was no help for it; he\nhad to follow the messenger. He led him through a red gateway into\nsome magnificent, high-ceilinged rooms. In the great hall sat an\nancient man who might have been some eighty years of age. Sia cast\nhimself down on the ground before him in homage. The old man bade him\nrise, and assigned him a place at the table. Soon a number of girls\nand women came crowding in to look at him. Then the old man turned to\nthem and said: \"Go to the room of the bride and tell her that the\nbridegroom has arrived!\"\n\nQuickly a couple of maids ran away, and shortly after an old woman\ncame from the inner apartments, leading a maiden by the hand, who\nmight have been sixteen years of age, and was incomparably beautiful.\nThe old man pointed to her and said: \"This is my tenth little\ndaughter. It seemed to me that you would make a good pair. But your\nfather has scorned us because of our difference in race. Yet one's\nmarriage is a matter that is of life-long importance. Our parents can\ndetermine it only in part. In the end it rests mainly with one's\nself.\"\n\nSia looked steadily at the girl, and a fondness for her grew in his\nheart. He sat there in silence. The old man continued: \"I knew very\nwell that the young gentleman would agree. Go on ahead of us, and we\nwill bring you your bride!\"\n\nSia said he would, and hurried to inform his father. His father did\nnot know what to do in his excitement. He suggested an excuse and\nwanted to send Sia back to decline his bride with thanks. But this Sia\nwas not willing to do. While they were arguing the matter, the bride's\ncarriage was already at the door. It was surrounded by a crowd of\ngreencoats, and the lady entered the house, and bowed politely to her\nparents-in-law. When the latter saw her they were both pleased, and\nthe wedding was announced for that very evening.\n\nThe new couple lived in peace and good understanding. And after they\nhad been married their divine parents-in-law often came to their\nhouse. When they appeared dressed in red, it meant that some good\nfortune was to befall them; when they came dressed in white, it\nsignified that they were sure to make some gain. Thus, in the course\nof time, the family became wealthy.\n\nBut since they had become related to the gods the rooms, courtyards\nand all other places were always crowded with frogs. And no one\nventured to harm them. Sia Kung-Schong alone was young and showed no\nconsideration. When he was in good spirits he did not bother them, but\nwhen he got out of sorts he knew no mercy, and purposely stepped on\nthem and killed them.\n\nIn general his young wife was modest and obedient; yet she easily lost\nher temper. She could not approve her husband's conduct. But Sia would\nnot do her the favor to give up his brutal habit. So she scolded him\nbecause of it and he grew angry.\n\n\"Do you imagine,\" he told her, \"that because your parents can visit\nhuman beings with misfortune, that a real man would be afraid of a\nfrog?\"\n\nHis wife carefully avoided uttering the word \"frog,\" hence his speech\nangered her and she said: \"Since I have dwelt in your house your\nfields have yielded larger crops, and you have obtained the highest\nselling prices. And that is something after all. But now, when young\nand old, you are comfortably established, you wish to act like the\nfledgling owl, who picks out his own mother's eyes as soon as he is\nable to fly!\"\n\nSia then grew still more angry and answered: \"These gifts have been\nunwelcome to me for a long time, for I consider them unclean. I could\nnever consent to leave such property to sons and grandsons. It would\nbe better if we parted at once!\"\n\nSo he bade his wife leave the house, and before his parents knew\nanything about it, she was gone. His parents scolded him and told him\nto go at once and bring her back. But he was filled with rage, and\nwould not give in to them.\n\nThat same night he and his mother fell sick. They felt weak and could\nnot eat. The father, much worried, went to the temple to beg for\npardon. And he prayed so earnestly that his wife and son recovered in\nthree days' time. And the Frog Princess also returned, and they lived\ntogether happily and contented as before.\n\nBut the young woman sat in the house all day long, occupied solely\nwith her ornaments and her rouge, and did not concern herself with\nsewing and stitching. So Sia Kung-Schong's mother still had to look\nout for her son's clothes.\n\nOne day his mother was angry and said: \"My son has a wife, and yet I\nhave to do all the work! In other homes the daughter-in-law serves her\nmother-in-law. But in our house the mother-in-law must serve the\ndaughter-in-law.\"\n\nThis the princess accidentally heard. In she came, much excited, and\nbegan: \"Have I ever omitted, as is right and proper, to visit you\nmorning and evening? My only fault is that I will not burden myself\nwith all this toil for the sake of saving a trifling sum of money!\"\nThe mother answered not a word, but wept bitterly and in silence\nbecause of the insult offered her.\n\nHer son came along and noticed that his mother had been weeping. He\ninsisted on knowing the reason, and found out what had happened.\nAngrily he reproached his wife. She raised objections and did not wish\nto admit that she had been in the wrong. Finally Sia said: \"It is\nbetter to have no wife at all than one who gives her mother-in-law no\npleasure. What can the old frog do to me after all, if I anger him,\nsave call misfortunes upon me and take my life!\" So he once more drove\nhis wife out of the house.\n\nThe princess left her home and went away. The following day fire broke\nout in the house, and spread to several other buildings. Tables,\nbeds, everything was burned.\n\nSia, in a rage because of the fire, went to the temple to complain:\n\"To bring up a daughter in such a way that she does not please her\nparents-in-law shows that there is no discipline in a house. And now\nyou even encourage her in her faults. It is said the gods are most\njust. Are there gods who teach men to fear their wives? Incidentally,\nthe whole quarrel rests on me alone. My parents had nothing to do with\nit. If I was to be punished by the ax and cord, well and good. You\ncould have carried out the punishment yourself. But this you did not\ndo. So now I will burn your own house in order to satisfy my own sense\nof justice!\"\n\nWith these words he began piling up brush-wood before the temple,\nstruck sparks and wanted to set it ablaze. The neighbors came\nstreaming up, and pleaded with him. So he swallowed his rage and went\nhome.\n\nWhen his parents heard of it, they grew pale with a great fear. But at\nnight the god appeared to the people of a neighboring village, and\nordered them to rebuild the house of his son-in-law. When day began to\ndawn they dragged up building-wood and the workmen all came in throngs\nto build for Sia. No matter what he said he could not prevent them.\nAll day long hundreds of workmen were busy. And in the course of a few\ndays all the rooms had been rebuilt, and all the utensils, curtains\nand furniture were there as before. And when the work had been\ncompleted the princess also returned. She climbed the stairs to the\ngreat room, and acknowledged her fault with many tender and loving\nwords. Then she turned to Sia Kung-Schong, and smiled at him\nsideways. Instead of resentment joy now filled the whole house. And\nafter that time the princess was especially peaceable. Two whole years\npassed without an angry word being said.\n\nBut the princess had a great dislike for snakes. Once, by way of a\njoke, young Sia put a small snake into a parcel, which he gave her and\ntold her to open. She turned pale and reproached him. Then\nSia-Kung-Schong also took his jest seriously, and angry words passed.\n\nAt last the princess said: \"This time I will not wait for you to turn\nme out. Now we are finally done with one another!\" And with that she\nwalked out of the door.\n\nFather Sia grew very much alarmed, beat his son himself with his\nstaff, and begged the god to be kind and forgive. Fortunately there\nwere no evil consequences. All was quiet and not a sound was heard.\n\nThus more than a year passed. Sia-Kung-Schong longed for the princess\nand took himself seriously to task. He would creep in secret to the\ntemple of the god, and lament because he had lost the princess. But no\nvoice answered him. And soon afterward he even heard that the god had\nbetrothed his daughter to another man. Then he grew hopeless at heart,\nand thought of finding another wife for himself. Yet no matter how he\nsearched he could find none who equalled the princess. This only\nincreased his longing for her, and he went to the home of the Yuans,\nto a member of which family it was said she had been promised. There\nthey had already painted the walls, and swept the courtyard, and all\nwas in readiness to receive the bridal carriage. Sia was overcome with\nremorse and discontent. He no longer ate, and fell ill. His parents\nwere quite stunned by the anxiety they felt on his account, and were\nincapable of helpful thought.\n\nSuddenly while he was lying there only half-conscious, he felt some\none stroke him, and heard a voice say: \"And how goes it with our real\nhusband, who insisted on turning out his wife?\"\n\nHe opened his eyes and it was the princess.\n\nFull of joy he leaped up and said: \"How is it you have come back to\nme?\" The princess answered: \"To tell the truth, according to your own\nhabit of treating people badly, I should have followed my father's\nadvice and taken another husband. And, as a matter of fact, the\nwedding gifts of the Yuan family have been lying in my home for a long\ntime. But I thought and thought and could not bring myself to do so.\nThe wedding was to have been this evening and my father thought it\nshameful to have the wedding gifts carried back. So I took the things\nmyself and placed them before the Yuan's door. When I went out my\nfather ran out beside me: 'You insane girl,' he said, 'so you will not\nlisten to what I say! If you are ill-treated by Sia in the future I\nwash my hands of it. Even if they kill you you shall not come home to\nme again!'\"\n\nMoved by her faithfulness the tears rolled from Sia's eyes. The\nservants, full of joy, hurried to the parents to acquaint them with\nthe good news. And when they heard it they did not wait for the young\npeople to come to them, but hastened themselves to their son's rooms,\ntook the princess by the hand and wept. Young Sia, too, had become\nmore settled by this time, and was no longer so mischievous. So he and\nhis wife grew to love each other more sincerely day by day.\n\nOnce the princess said to him: \"Formerly, when you always treated me\nso badly, I feared that we would not keep company into our old age.\nSo I never asked heaven to send us a child. But now that all has\nchanged, and I will beg the gods for a son.\"\n\nAnd, sure enough, before long Sia's parents-in-law appeared in the\nhouse clad in red garments, and shortly after heaven sent the happy\npair two sons instead of one.\n\nFrom that time on their intercourse with the Frog-King was never\ninterrupted. When some one among the people had angered the god, he\nfirst tried to induce young Sia to speak for him, and sent his wife\nand daughter to the Frog Princess to implore her aid. And if the\nprincess laughed, then all would be well.\n\nThe Sia family has many descendants, whom the people call \"the little\nfrog men.\" Those who are near them do not venture to call them by this\nname, but those standing further off do so.\n\n Note: \"Little frog men,\" Wa Dsi, is the derogatory name\n which the North Chinese give the Chinese of the South on\n occasion.\n\n\n\n\nLXXIII\n\nROSE OF EVENING\n\n\nOn the fifth day of the fifth month the festival of the Dragon Junk is\nheld along the Yangtze-kiang. A dragon is hollowed out of wood,\npainted with an armor of scales, and adorned with gold and bright\ncolors. A carved red railing surrounds this ship, and its sails and\nflags are made of silks and brocade. The after part of the vessel is\ncalled the dragon's tail. It rises ten feet above the water, and a\nboard which floats in the water is tied to it by means of a cloth.\nUpon this board sit boys who turn somersaults, stand on their heads,\nand perform all sorts of tricks. Yet, being so close to the water\ntheir danger is very great. It is the custom, therefore, when a boy is\nhired for this purpose, to give his parents money before he is\ntrained. Then, if he falls into the water and is drowned, no one has\nhim on their conscience. Farther South the custom differs in so much\nthat instead of boys, beautiful girls are chosen for this purpose.\n\nIn Dschen-Giang there once lived a widow named Dsiang, who had a son\ncalled Aduan. When he was no more than seven years of age he was\nextraordinarily skilful, and no other boy could equal him. And his\nreputation increasing as he grew, he earned more and more money. So it\nhappened that he was still called upon at the Dragon Junk Festival\nwhen he was already sixteen.\n\nBut one day he fell into the water below the Gold Island and was\ndrowned. He was the only son of his mother, and she sorrowed over him,\nand that was the end of it.\n\nYet Aduan did not know that he had been drowned. He met two men who\ntook him along with them, and he saw a new world in the midst of the\nwaters of the Yellow River. When he looked around, the waves of the\nriver towered steeply about him like walls, and a palace was visible,\nin which sat a man wearing armor and a helmet. His two companions said\nto him: \"That is the Prince of the Dragon's Cave!\" and bade him kneel.\n\nThe Prince of the Dragon's Cave seemed to be of a mild and kindly\ndisposition and said: \"We can make use of such a skilful lad. He may\ntake part in the dance of the willow branches!\"\n\nSo he was brought to a spot surrounded by extensive buildings. He\nentered, and was greeted by a crowd of boys who were all about\nfourteen years of age.\n\nAn old woman came in and they all called out: \"This is Mother Hia!\"\nAnd she sat down and had Aduan show his tricks. Then she taught him\nthe dance of the flying thunders of Tsian-Tang River, and the music\nthat calms the winds on the sea of Dung-Ting. When the cymbals and\nkettledrums reechoed through all the courts, they deafened the ear.\nThen, again, all the courts would fall silent. Mother Hia thought that\nAduan would not be able to grasp everything the very first time; so\nshe taught him with great patience. But Aduan had understood\neverything from the first, and that pleased old Mother Hia. \"This\nboy,\" said she, \"equals our own Rose of Evening!\"\n\nThe following day the Prince of the Dragon's Cave held a review of his\ndancers. When all the dancers had assembled, the dance of the Ogres\nwas danced first. Those who performed it all wore devil-masks and\ngarments of scales. They beat upon enormous cymbals, and their\nkettledrums were so large that four men could just about span them.\nTheir sound was like the sound of a mighty thunder, and the noise was\nso great that nothing else could be heard. When the dance began,\ntremendous waves spouted up to the very skies, and then fell down\nagain like star-glimmer which scatters in the air.\n\nThe Prince of the Dragon Cave hastily bade the dance cease, and had\nthe dancers of the nightingale round step forth. These were all lovely\nyoung girls of sixteen. They made a delicate music with flutes, so\nthat the breeze blew and the roaring of the waves was stilled in a\nmoment. The water gradually became as quiet as a crystal world,\ntransparent to its lowest depths. When the nightingale dancers had\nfinished, they withdrew and posted themselves in the western\ncourtyard.\n\nThen came the turn of the swallow dancers. These were all little\ngirls. One among them, who was about fifteen years of age, danced the\ndance of the giving of flowers with flying sleeves and waving locks.\nAnd as their garments fluttered, many-colored flowers dropped from\ntheir folds, and were caught up by the wind and whirled about the\nwhole courtyard. When the dance had ended, this dancer also went off\nwith the rest of the girls to the western courtyard. Aduan looked at\nher from out the corner of his eye, and fell deeply in love with her.\nHe asked his comrades who she might be and they told him she was named\n\"Rose of Evening.\"\n\nBut the willow-spray dancers were now called out. The Prince of the\nDragon Cave was especially desirous of testing Aduan. So Aduan danced\nalone, and he danced with joy or defiance according to the music. When\nhe looked up and when he looked down his glances held the beat of the\nmeasure. The Dragon Prince, enchanted with his skill, presented him\nwith a garment of five colors, and gave him a carbuncle set in golden\nthreads of fish-beard for a hair-jewel. Aduan bowed his thanks for the\ngift, and then also hastened to the western courtyard. There all the\ndancers stood in rank and file. Aduan could only look at Rose of\nEvening from a distance, but still Rose of Evening returned his\nglances.\n\nAfter a time Aduan gradually slipped to the end of his file and Rose\nof Evening also drew near to him, so that they stood only a few feet\naway from each other. But the strict rules allowed no confusion in the\nranks, so they could only gaze and let their souls go out to each\nother.\n\nNow the butterfly dance followed the others. This was danced by the\nboys and girls together, and the pairs were equal in size, age and the\ncolor of their garments. When all the dances had ended, the dancers\nmarched out with the goose-step. The willow-spray dancers followed the\nswallow dancers, and Aduan hastened in advance of his company, while\nRose of Evening lingered along after hers. She turned her head, and\nwhen she spied Aduan she purposely let a coral pin fall from her hair.\nAduan hastily hid it in his sleeve.\n\nWhen he had returned, he was sick with longing, and could neither eat\nnor sleep. Mother Hia brought him all sorts of dainties, looked after\nhim three or four times a day, and stroked his forehead with loving\ncare. But his illness did not yield in the least. Mother Hia was\nunhappy, and yet helpless.\n\n\"The birthday of the King of the Wu River is at hand,\" said she. \"What\nis to be done?\"\n\nIn the twilight there came a boy, who sat down on the edge of Aduan's\nbed and chatted with him. He belonged to the butterfly dancers, said\nhe, and asked casually: \"Are you sick because of Rose of Evening?\"\nAduan, frightened, asked him how he came to guess it. The other boy\nsaid, with a smile: \"Well, because Rose of Evening is in the same case\nas yourself.\"\n\nDisconcerted, Aduan sat up and begged the boy to advise him. \"Are you\nable to walk?\" asked the latter. \"If I exert myself,\" said Aduan, \"I\nthink I could manage it.\"\n\nSo the boy led him to the South. There he opened a gate and they\nturned the corner, to the West. Once more the doors of the gate flew\nopen, and now Aduan saw a lotus field about twenty acres in size. The\nlotus flowers were all growing on level earth, and their leaves were\nas large as mats and their flowers like umbrellas. The fallen blossoms\ncovered the ground beneath the stalks to the depth of a foot or more.\nThe boy led Aduan in and said, \"Now first of all sit down for a little\nwhile!\" Then he went away.\n\nAfter a time a beautiful girl thrust aside the lotus flowers and came\ninto the open. It was Rose of Evening. They looked at each other with\nhappy timidity, and each told how each had longed for the other. And\nthey also told each other of their former life. Then they weighted the\nlotus-leaves with stones so that they made a cozy retreat, in which\nthey could be together, and promised to meet each other there every\nevening. And then they parted.\n\nAduan came back and his illness left him. From that time on he met\nRose of Evening every day in the lotus field.\n\nAfter a few days had passed they had to accompany the Prince of the\nDragon Cave to the birthday festival of the King of the Wu River. The\nfestival came to an end, and all the dancers returned home. Only, the\nKing had kept back Rose of Evening and one of the nightingale dancers\nto teach the girls in his castle.\n\nMonths passed and no news came from Rose of Evening, so that Aduan\nwent about full of longing and despair. Now Mother Hia went every day\nto the castle of the god of the Wu River. So Aduan told her that Rose\nof Evening was his cousin, and entreated her to take him along with\nher so that he could at least see her a single time. So she took him\nalong, and let him stay at the lodge-house of the river-god for a few\ndays. But the indwellers of the castle were so strictly watched that\nhe could not see Rose of Evening even a single time. Sadly Aduan went\nback again.\n\nAnother month passed and Aduan, filled with gloomy thoughts, wished\nthat death might be his portion.\n\nOne day Mother Hia came to him full of pity, and began to sympathize\nwith him. \"What a shame,\" said she, \"that Rose of Evening has cast\nherself into the river!\"\n\nAduan was extremely frightened, and his tears flowed resistlessly. He\ntore his beautiful garments, took his gold and his pearls, and went\nout with the sole idea of following his beloved in death. Yet the\nwaters of the river stood up before him like walls, and no matter how\noften he ran against them, head down, they always flung him back.\n\nHe did not dare return, since he feared he might be questioned about\nhis festival garments, and severely punished because he had ruined\nthem. So he stood there and knew not what to do, while the\nperspiration ran down to his ankles. Suddenly, at the foot of the\nwater-wall he saw a tall tree. Like a monkey he climbed up to its very\ntop, and then, with all his might, he shot into the waves.\n\nAnd then, without being wet, he found himself suddenly swimming on\nthe surface of the river. Unexpectedly the world of men rose up once\nmore before his dazzled eyes. He swam to the shore, and as he walked\nalong the river-bank, his thoughts went back to his old mother. He\ntook a ship and traveled home.\n\nWhen he reached the village, it seemed to him as though all the houses\nin it belonged to another world. The following morning he entered his\nmother's house, and as he did so, heard a girl's voice beneath the\nwindow saying: \"Your son has come back again!\" The voice sounded like\nthe voice of Rose of Evening, and when she came to greet him at his\nmother's side, sure enough, it was Rose of Evening herself.\n\nAnd in that hour the joy of these two who were so fond of each other\novercame all their sorrow. But in the mother's mind sorrow and doubt,\nterror and joy mingled in constant succession in a thousand different\nways.\n\nWhen Rose of Evening had been in the palace of the river-king, and had\ncome to realize that she would never see Aduan again, she determined\nto die, and flung herself into the waters of the stream. But she was\ncarried to the surface, and the waves carried and cradled her till a\nship came by and took her aboard. They asked whence she came. Now Rose\nof Evening had originally been a celebrated singing girl of Wu, who\nhad fallen into the river and whose body had never been found. So she\nthought to herself that, after all, she could not return to her old\nlife again. So she answered: \"Madame Dsiang, in Dschen-Giang is my\nmother-in-law.\" Then the travelers took passage for her in a ship\nwhich brought her to the place she had mentioned. The widow Dsiang\nfirst said she must be mistaken, but the girl insisted that there was\nno mistake, and told Aduan's mother her whole story. Yet, though the\nlatter was charmed by her surpassing loveliness, she feared that Rose\nof Evening was too young to live a widow's life. But the girl was\nrespectful and industrious, and when she saw that poverty ruled in her\nnew home, she took her pearls and sold them for a high price. Aduan's\nold mother was greatly pleased to see how seriously the girl took her\nduties.\n\nNow that Aduan had returned again Rose of Evening could not control\nher joy. And even Aduan's old mother cherished the hope that, after\nall, perhaps her son had not died. She secretly dug up her son's\ngrave, yet all his bones were still lying in it. So she questioned\nAduan. And then, for the first time, the latter realized that he was a\ndeparted spirit. Then he feared that Rose of Evening might regard him\nwith disgust because he was no longer a human being. So he ordered his\nmother on no account to speak of it, and this his mother promised.\nThen she spread the report in the village that the body which had been\nfound in the river had not been that of her son at all. Yet she could\nnot rid herself of the fear that, since Aduan was a departed spirit,\nheaven might refuse to send him a child.\n\nIn spite of her fear, however, she was able to hold a grandson in her\narms in course of time. When she looked at him, he was no different\nfrom other children, and then her cup of joy was filled to\noverflowing.\n\nRose of Evening gradually became aware of the fact that Aduan was not\nreally a human being. \"Why did you not tell me at once?\" said she.\n\"Departed spirits who wear the garments of the dragon castle, surround\nthemselves with a soul-casing so heavy in texture that they can no\nlonger be distinguished from the living. And if one can obtain the\nlime made of dragon-horn which is in the castle, then the bones may be\nglued together in such wise that flesh and blood will grow over them\nagain. What a pity that we could not obtain the lime while we were\nthere!\"\n\nAduan sold his pearl, for which a merchant from foreign parts gave him\nan enormous sum. Thus his family grew very wealthy. Once, on his\nmother's birthday, he danced with his wife and sang, in order to\nplease her. The news reached the castle of the Dragon Prince and he\nthought to carry off Rose of Evening by force. But Aduan, alarmed,\nwent to the Prince, and declared that both he and his wife were\ndeparted spirits. They examined him and since he cast no shadow, his\nword was taken, and he was not robbed of Rose of Evening.\n\n Note: \"Rose of Evening\" is one of the most idyllic of\n Chinese art fairy-tales. The idea that the departed\n spirit throws no shadow has analogies in Norse and other\n European fairy-tales.\n\n\n\n\nLXXIV\n\nTHE APE SUN WU KUNG\n\n\nFar, far away to the East, in the midst of the Great Sea there is an\nisland called the Mountain of Flowers and Fruits. And on this mountain\nthere is a high rock. Now this rock, from the very beginning of the\nworld, had absorbed all the hidden seed power of heaven and earth and\nsun and moon, which endowed it with supernatural creative gifts. One\nday the rock burst, and out came an egg of stone. And out of this\nstone egg a stone ape was hatched by magic power. When he broke the\nshell he bowed to all sides. Then he gradually learned to walk and to\nleap, and two streams of golden radiance broke from his eyes which\nshot up to the highest of the castles of heaven, so that the Lord of\nthe Heavens was frightened. So he sent out the two gods,\nThousandmile-Eye and Fine-Ear, to find out what had happened. The two\ngods came back and reported: \"The rays shine from the eyes of the\nstone ape who was hatched out of the egg which came from the magic\nrock. There is no reason for uneasiness.\"\n\nLittle by little the ape grew up, ran and leaped about, drank from the\nsprings in the valleys, ate the flowers and fruits, and time went by\nin unconstrained play.\n\nOne day, during the summer, when he was seeking coolness, together\nwith the other apes on the island, they went to the valley to bathe.\nThere they saw a waterfall which plunged down a high cliff. Said the\napes to each other: \"Whoever can force his way through the waterfall,\nwithout suffering injury, shall be our king.\" The stone ape at once\nleaped into the air with joy and cried: \"I will pass through!\" Then he\nclosed his eyes, bent down low and leaped through the roar and foam of\nthe waters. When he opened his eyes once more he saw an iron bridge,\nwhich was shut off from the outer world by the waterfall as though by\na curtain.\n\nAt its entrance stood a tablet of stone on which were graven the\nwords: \"This is the heavenly cave behind the water-curtain on the\nBlessed Island of Flowers and Fruits.\" Filled with joy, the stone ape\nleaped out again through the waterfall and told the other apes what he\nhad found. They received the news with great content, and begged the\nstone ape to take them there. So the tribe of apes leaped through the\nwater on the iron bridge, and then crowded into the cave castle where\nthey found a hearth with a profusion of pots, cups and platters. But\nall were made of stone. Then the apes paid homage to the stone ape as\ntheir king, and he was given the name of Handsome King of the Apes. He\nappointed long-tailed, ring-tailed and other monkeys to be his\nofficials and counselors, servants and retainers, and they led a\nblissful life on the Mountain, sleeping by night in their cave castle,\nkeeping away from birds and beasts, and their king enjoyed untroubled\nhappiness. In this way some three hundred years went by.\n\nOne day, when the King of the Apes sat with his subjects at a merry\nmeal, he suddenly began to weep. Frightened, the apes asked him why he\nso suddenly grew sad amid all his bliss. Said the King: \"It is true\nthat we are not subject to the law and rule of man, that birds and\nbeasts do not dare attack us, yet little by little we grow old and\nweak, and some day the hour will strike when Death, the Ancient, will\ndrag us off! Then we are gone in a moment, and can no longer dwell\nupon earth!\" When the apes heard these words, they hid their faces and\nsobbed. But an old ape, whose arms were connected in such a way that\nhe could add the length of one to that of the other, stepped forth\nfrom the ranks. In a loud tone of voice he said: \"That you have hit\nupon this thought, O King, shows the desire to search for truth has\nawakened you! Among all living creatures, there are but three kinds\nwho are exempt from Death's power: the Buddhas, the blessed spirits\nand the gods. Whoever attains one of these three grades escapes the\nrod of re-birth, and lives as long as the Heavens themselves.\"\n\nThe King of the Apes said: \"Where do these three kinds of beings\nlive?\" And the old ape replied: \"They live in caves and on holy\nmountains in the great world of mortals.\" The King was pleased when he\nheard this, and told his apes that he was going to seek out gods and\nsainted spirits in order to learn the road to immortality from them.\nThe apes dragged up peaches and other fruits and sweet wine to\ncelebrate the parting banquet, and all made merry together.\n\nOn the following morning the Handsome King of the Apes rose very\nearly, built him a raft of old pine trees and took a bamboo staff for\na pole. Then he climbed on the raft, quite alone, and poled his way\nthrough the Great Sea. Wind and waves were favorable and he reached\nAsia. There he went ashore. On the strand he met a fisherman. He at\nonce stepped up to him, knocked him down, tore off his clothes and put\nthem on himself. Then he wandered around and visited all famous spots,\nwent into the market-places, the densely populated cities, learned how\nto conduct himself properly, and how to speak and act like a well-bred\nhuman being. Yet his heart was set on learning the teaching of the\nBuddhas, the blessed spirits and the holy gods. But the people of the\ncountry in which he was were only concerned with honors and wealth.\nNot one of them seemed to care for life. Thus he went about until nine\nyears had passed by unnoticed. Then he came to the strand of the\nWestern Sea and it occurred to him: \"No doubt there are gods and\nsaints on the other side of the sea!\" So he built another raft,\nfloated it over the Western Sea and reached the land of the West.\nThere he let his raft drift, and went ashore. After he had searched\nfor many days, he suddenly saw a high mountain with deep, quiet\nvalleys. As the Ape King went toward it, he heard a man singing in the\nwoods, and the song sounded like one the blessed spirits might sing.\nSo he hastily entered the wood to see who might be singing. There he\nmet a wood-chopper at work. The Ape King bowed to him and said:\n\"Venerable, divine master, I fall down and worship at your feet!\" Said\nthe wood-chopper: \"I am only a workman; why do you call me divine\nmaster?\" \"Then, if you are no blessed god, how comes it you sing that\ndivine song?\" The wood-chopper laughed and said: \"You are at home in\nmusic. The song I was singing was really taught me by a saint.\" \"If\nyou are acquainted with a saint,\" said the Ape King, \"he surely cannot\nlive far from here. I beg of you to show me the way to his dwelling.\"\nThe wood-chopper replied: \"It is not far from here. This mountain is\nknown as the Mountain of the Heart. In it is a cave where dwells a\nsaint who is called 'The Discerner.' The number of his disciples who\nhave attained blessedness is countless. He still has some thirty to\nforty disciples gathered about him. You need only follow this path\nwhich leads to the South, and you cannot miss his dwelling.\" The Ape\nKing thanked the wood-chopper and, sure enough, he came to the cave\nwhich the latter had described to him. The gate was locked and he did\nnot venture to knock. So he leaped up into a pine tree, picked\npine-cones and devoured the seed. Before long one of the saint's\ndisciples came and opened the door and said: \"What sort of a beast is\nit that is making such a noise?\" The Ape King leaped down from his\ntree, bowed, and said: \"I have come in search of truth. I did not\nventure to knock.\" Then the disciple had to laugh and said: \"Our\nmaster was seated lost in meditation, when he told me to lead in the\nseeker after truth who stood without the gate, and here you really\nare. Well, you may come along with me!\" The Ape King smoothed his\nclothes, put his hat on straight, and stepped in. A long passage led\npast magnificent buildings and quiet hidden huts to the place where\nthe master was sitting upright on a seat of white marble. At his right\nand left stood his disciples, ready to serve him. The Ape King flung\nhimself down on the ground and greeted the master humbly. In answer to\nhis questions he told him how he had found his way to him. And when he\nwas asked his name, he said: \"I have no name. I am the ape who came\nout of the stone.\" So the master said: \"Then I will give you a name. I\nname you Sun Wu Kung.\" The Ape King thanked him, full of joy, and\nthereafter he was called Sun Wu Kung. The master ordered his oldest\ndisciple to instruct Sun Wu Kung in sweeping and cleaning, in going in\nand out, in good manners, how to labor in the field and how to water\nthe gardens. In the course of time he learned to write, to burn\nincense and read the sutras. And in this way some six or seven years\nwent by.\n\nOne day the master ascended the seat from which he taught, and began\nto speak regarding the great truth. Sun Wu Kung understood the hidden\nmeaning of his words, and commenced to jerk about and dance in his\njoy. The master reproved him: \"Sun Wu Kung, you have still not laid\naside your wild nature! What do you mean by carrying on in such an\nunfitting manner?\" Sun Wu Kung bowed and answered: \"I was listening\nattentively to you when the meaning of your words was disclosed to my\nheart, and without thinking I began to dance for joy. I was not giving\nway to my wild nature.\" Said the master: \"If your spirit has really\nawakened, then I will announce the great truth to you. But there are\nthree hundred and sixty ways by means of which one may reach this\ntruth. Which way shall I teach you?\" Said Sun Wu Kung: \"Whichever you\nwill, O Master!\" Then the Master asked: \"Shall I teach you the way of\nmagic?\" Said Sun Wu Kung: \"What does magic teach one?\" The Master\nreplied: \"It teaches one to raise up spirits, to question oracles, and\nto foretell fortune and misfortune.\" \"Can one secure eternal life by\nmeans of it?\" inquired Sun Wu Kung. \"No,\" was the answer. \"Then I will\nnot learn it.\" \"Shall I teach you the sciences?\" \"What are the\nsciences?\" \"They are the nine schools of the three faiths. You learn\nhow to read the holy books, pronounce incantations, commune with the\ngods, and call the saints to you.\" \"Can one gain eternal life by means\nof them?\" \"No.\" \"Then I will not learn them.\" \"The way of repose is a\nvery good way.\" \"What is the way of repose?\" \"It teaches how to live\nwithout nourishment, how to remain quiescent in silent purity, and sit\nlost in meditation.\" \"Can one gain eternal life in this way?\" \"No.\"\n\"Then I will not learn it.\" \"The way of deeds is also a good way.\"\n\"What does that teach?\" \"It teaches one to equalize the vital powers,\nto practise bodily exercise, to prepare the elixir of life and to hold\none's breath.\" \"Will it give one eternal life?\" \"Not so.\" \"Then I will\nnot learn it! I will not learn it!\" Thereupon the Master pretended to\nbe angry, leaped down from his stand, took his cane and scolded: \"What\nan ape! This he will not learn, and that he will not learn! What are\nyou waiting to learn, then?\" With that he gave him three blows across\nthe head, retired to his inner chamber, and closed the great door\nafter him.\n\nThe disciples were greatly excited, and overwhelmed Sun Wu Kung with\nreproaches. Yet the latter paid no attention to them, but smiled\nquietly to himself, for he had understood the riddle which the Master\nhad given him to solve. And in his heart he thought: \"His striking me\nover the head three times meant that I was to be ready at the third\nwatch of the night. His withdrawing to his inner chamber and closing\nthe great door after him, meant that I was to go in to him by the back\ndoor, and that he would make clear the great truth to me in secret.\"\nAccordingly he waited until evening, and made a pretense of lying down\nto sleep with the other disciples. But when the third watch of the\nnight had come he rose softly and crept to the back door. Sure enough\nit stood ajar. He slipped in and stepped before the Master's bed. The\nMaster was sleeping with his face turned toward the wall, and the ape\ndid not venture to wake him, but knelt down in front of the bed. After\na time the Master turned around and hummed a stanza to himself:\n\n \"A hard, hard grind,\n Truth's lesson to expound.\n One talks oneself deaf, dumb and blind,\n Unless the right man's found.\"\n\nThen Sun Wu Kung replied: \"I am waiting here reverentially!\"\n\nThe Master flung on his clothes, sat up in bed and said harshly:\n\"Accursed ape! Why are you not asleep? What are you doing here?\"\n\nSun Wu Kung answered: \"Yet you pointed out to me yesterday that I was\nto come to you at the third watch of the night, by the back door, in\norder to be instructed in the truth. Therefore I have ventured to\ncome. If you will teach me in the fulness of your grace, I will be\neternally grateful to you.\"\n\nThought the Master to himself: \"There is real intelligence in this\nape's head, to have made him understand me so well.\" Then he replied:\n\"Sun Wu Kung, it shall be granted you! I will speak freely with you.\nCome quite close to me, and then I will show you the way to eternal\nlife.\"\n\nWith that he murmured into his ear a divine, magical incantation to\nfurther the concentration of his vital powers, and explained the\nhidden knowledge word for word. Sun Wu Kung listened to him eagerly,\nand in a short time had learned it by heart. Then he thanked his\nteacher, went out again and lay down to sleep. From that time forward\nhe practised the right mode of breathing, kept guard over his soul and\nspirit, and tamed the natural instincts of his heart. And while he did\nso three more years passed by. Then the task was completed.\n\nOne day the Master said to him: \"Three great dangers still threaten\nyou. Every one who wishes to accomplish something out of the ordinary\nis exposed to them, for he is pursued by the envy of demons and\nspirits. And only those who can overcome these three great dangers\nlive as long as the heavens.\"\n\nThen Sun Wu Kung was frightened and asked: \"Is there any means of\nprotection against these dangers?\"\n\nThen the Master again murmured a secret incantation into his ear, by\nmeans of which he gained the power to transform himself seventy-two\ntimes.\n\nAnd when no more than a few days had passed Sun Wu Kung had learned\nthe art.\n\nOne day the Master was walking before the cave in the company of his\ndisciples. He called Sun Wu Kung up to him and asked: \"What progress\nhave you made with your art? Can you fly already?\"\n\n\"Yes, indeed,\" said the ape.\n\n\"Then let me see you do so.\"\n\nThe ape leaped into the air to a distance of five or six feet from the\nground. Clouds formed beneath his feet, and he was able to walk on\nthem for several hundred yards. Then he was forced to drop down to\nearth again.\n\nThe Master said with a smile: \"I call that crawling around on the\nclouds, not floating on them, as do the gods and saints who fly over\nthe whole world in a single day. I will teach you the magic\nincantation for turning somersaults on the clouds. If you turn one of\nthose somersaults you advance eighteen thousand miles at a clip.\"\n\nSun Wu Kung thanked him, full of joy, and from that time on he was\nable to move without limitation of space in any direction.\n\nOne day Sun Wu Kung was sitting together with the other disciples\nunder the pine-tree by the gate, discussing the secrets of their\nteachings. Finally they asked him to show them some of his\ntransforming arts. Sun Wu Kung could not keep his secret to himself,\nand agreed to do so.\n\nWith a smile he said: \"Just set me a task! What do you wish me to\nchange myself into?\"\n\nThey said: \"Turn yourself into a pine-tree.\"\n\nSo Sun Wu Kung murmured a magic incantation, turned around--and there\nstood a pine-tree before their very eyes. At this they all broke out\ninto a horse-laugh. The Master heard the noise and came out of the\ngate, dragging his cane behind him.\n\n\"Why are you making such a noise?\" he called out to them harshly.\n\nSaid they: \"Sun Wu Kung has turned himself into a pine-tree, and this\nmade us laugh.\"\n\n\"Sun Wu Kung, come here!\" said the Master. \"Now just tell me what\ntricks you are up to? Why do you have to turn yourself into a\npine-tree? All the work you have done means nothing more to you than a\nchance to make magic for your companions to wonder at. That shows\nthat your heart is not yet under control.\"\n\nHumbly Sun Wu Kung begged his forgiveness.\n\nBut the Master said: \"I bear you no ill will, but you must go away.\"\n\nWith tears in his eyes Sun Wu Kung asked him: \"But where shall I go?\"\n\n\"You must go back again whence you came,\" said the Master. And when\nSun Wu Kung sadly bade him farewell, he threatened him: \"Your savage\nnature is sure to bring down evil upon you some time. You must tell no\none that you are my pupil. If you so much as breathe a word about it,\nI will fetch your soul and lock it up in the nethermost hell, so that\nyou cannot escape for a thousand eternities.\"\n\nSun Wu Kung replied: \"I will not say a word! I will not say a word!\"\n\nThen he once more thanked him for all the kindness shown him, turned a\nsomersault and climbed up to the clouds.\n\nWithin the hour he had passed the seas, and saw the Mountain of\nFlowers and Fruits lying before him. Then he felt happy and at home\nagain, let his cloud sink down to earth and cried: \"Here I am back\nagain, children!\" And at once, from the valley, from behind the rocks,\nout of the grass and from amid the trees came his apes. They came\nrunning up by thousands, surrounded and greeted him, and inquired as\nto his adventures. Sun Wu Kung said: \"I have now found the way to\neternal life, and need fear Death the Ancient no longer.\" Then all the\napes were overjoyed, and competed with each other in bringing flowers\nand fruits, peaches and wine, to welcome him. And again they honored\nSun Wu Kung as the Handsome Ape King.\n\nSun Wu Kung now gathered the apes about him and questioned them as to\nhow they had fared during his absence.\n\nSaid they: \"It is well that you have come back again, great king! Not\nlong ago a devil came here who wanted to take possession of our cave\nby force. We fought with him, but he dragged away many of your\nchildren and will probably soon return.\"\n\nSun Wu Kung grew very angry and said: \"What sort of a devil is this\nwho dares be so impudent?\"\n\nThe apes answered: \"He is the Devil-King of Chaos. He lives in the\nNorth, who knows how many miles away. We only saw him come and go amid\nclouds and mist.\"\n\nSun Wu Kung said: \"Wait, and I will see to him!\" With that he turned a\nsomersault and disappeared without a trace.\n\nIn the furthest North rises a high mountain, upon whose slope is a\ncave above which is the inscription: \"The Cave of the Kidneys.\" Before\nthe door little devils were dancing. Sun Wu Kung called harshly to\nthem: \"Tell your Devil-King quickly that he had better give me my\nchildren back again!\" The little devils were frightened, and delivered\nthe message in the cave. Then the Devil-King reached for his sword and\ncame out. But he was so large and broad that he could not even see Sun\nWu Kung. He was clad from head to foot in black armor, and his face\nwas as black as the bottom of a kettle. Sun Wu Kung shouted at him:\n\"Accursed devil, where are your eyes, that you cannot see the\nvenerable Sun?\" Then the devil looked to the ground and saw a stone\nape standing before him, bare-headed, dressed in red, with a yellow\ngirdle and black boots. So the Devil-King laughed and said: \"You are\nnot even four feet high, less than thirty years of age, and\nweaponless, and yet you venture to make such a commotion.\" Said Sun Wu\nKung: \"I am not too small for you; and I can make myself large at\nwill. You scorn me because I am without a weapon, but my two fists can\nthresh to the very skies.\" With that he stooped, clenched his fists\nand began to give the devil a beating. The devil was large and clumsy,\nbut Sun Wu Kung leaped about nimbly. He struck him between the ribs\nand between the wind and his blows fell ever more fast and furious. In\nhis despair the devil raised his great knife and aimed a blow at Sun\nWu Kung's head. But the latter avoided the blow, and fell back on his\nmagic powers of transformation. He pulled out a hair, put it in his\nmouth, chewed it, spat it out into the air and said: \"Transform\nyourself!\" And at once it turned into many hundreds of little apes who\nbegan to attack the devil. Sun Wu Kung, be it said, had eighty-four\nthousand hairs on his body, every single one of which he could\ntransform. The little apes with their sharp eyes, leaped around with\nthe greatest rapidity. They surrounded the Devil-King on all sides,\ntore at his clothes, and pulled at his legs, until he finally measured\nhis length on the ground. Then Sun Wu Kung stepped up, tore his knife\nfrom his hand, and put an end to him. After that he entered the cave\nand released his captive children, the apes. The transformed hairs he\ndrew to him again, and making a fire, he burned the evil cave to the\nground. Then he gathered up those he had released, and flew back with\nthem like a storm-wind to his cavern on the Mountain of Flowers and\nFruits, joyfully greeted by all the apes.\n\nAfter Sun Wu Kung had obtained possession of the Devil-King's great\nknife, he exercised his apes every day. They had wooden swords and\nlances of bamboo, and played their martial music on reed pipes. He\nhad them build a camp so that they would be prepared for all dangers.\nSuddenly the thought came to Sun Wu Kung: \"If we go on this way,\nperhaps we may incite some human or animal king to fight with us, and\nthen we would not be able to withstand him with our wooden swords and\nbamboo lances!\" And to his apes he said: \"What should be done?\" Four\nbaboons stepped forward and said: \"In the capital city of the Aulai\nempire there are warriors without number. And there coppersmiths and\nsteelsmiths are also to be found. How would it be if we were to buy\nsteel and iron and have those smiths weld weapons for us?\"\n\nA somersault and Sun Wu Kung was standing before the city moat. Said\nhe to himself: \"To first buy the weapons would take a great deal of\ntime. I would rather make magic and take some.\" So he blew on the\nground. Then a tremendous storm-wind arose which drove sand and stones\nbefore it, and caused all the soldiers in the city to run away in\nterror. Then Sun Wu Kung went to the armory, pulled out one of his\nhairs, turned it into thousands of little apes, cleared out the whole\nsupply of weapons, and flew back home on a cloud.\n\nThen he gathered his people about him and counted them. In all they\nnumbered seventy-seven thousand. They held the whole Mountain in\nterror, and all the magic beasts and spirit princes who dwelt on it.\nAnd these came forth from seventy-two caves and honored Sun Wu Kung as\ntheir head.\n\nOne day the Ape King said: \"Now you all have weapons; but this knife\nwhich I took from the Devil-King is too light, and no longer suits me.\nWhat should be done?\"\n\nThen the four baboons stepped forward and said: \"In view of your\nspirit powers, O king, you will find no weapon fit for your use on all\nthe earth! Is it possible for you to walk through the water?\"\n\nThe Ape King answered: \"All the elements are subject to me and there\nis no place where I cannot go.\"\n\nThen the baboons said: \"The water at our cave here flows into the\nGreat Sea, to the castle of the Dragon-King of the Eastern Sea. If\nyour magic power makes it possible, you could go to the Dragon-King\nand let him give you a weapon.\"\n\nThis suited the Ape King. He leaped on the iron bridge and murmured an\nincantation. Then he flung himself into the waves, which parted before\nhim and ran on till he came to the palace of water-crystal. There he\nmet a Triton who asked who he was. He mentioned his name and said: \"I\nam the Dragon-King's nearest neighbor, and have come to visit him.\"\nThe Triton took the message to the castle, and the Dragon-King of the\nEastern Sea came out hastily to receive him. He bade him be seated and\nserved him with tea.\n\nSun Wu Kung said: \"I have learned the hidden knowledge and gained the\npowers of immortality. I have drilled my apes in the art of warfare in\norder to protect our mountain; but I have no weapon I can use, and\nhave therefore come to you to borrow one.\"\n\nThe Dragon-King now had General Flounder bring him a great spear. But\nSun Wu Kung was not satisfied with it. Then he ordered Field-Marshal\nEel to fetch in a nine-tined fork, which weighed three thousand six\nhundred pounds. But Sun Wu Kung balanced it in his hand and said: \"Too\nlight! Too light! Too light!\"\n\nThen the Dragon-King was frightened, and had the heaviest weapon in\nhis armory brought in. It weighed seven thousand two hundred pounds.\nBut this was still too light for Sun Wu Kung. The Dragon-King assured\nhim that he had nothing heavier, but Sun Wu Kung would not give in and\nsaid: \"Just look around!\"\n\nFinally the Dragon-Queen and her daughter came out, and said to the\nDragon-King: \"This saint is an unpleasant customer with whom to deal.\nThe great iron bar is still lying here in our sea; and not so long ago\nit shone with a red glow, which is probably a sign it is time for it\nto be taken away.\"\n\nSaid the Dragon-King: \"But that is the rod which the Great Yu used\nwhen he ordered the waters, and determined the depth of the seas and\nrivers. It cannot be taken away.\"\n\nThe Dragon-Queen replied: \"Just let him see it! What he then does with\nit is no concern of ours.\"\n\nSo the Dragon-King led Sun Wu Kung to the measuring rod. The golden\nradiance that came from it could be seen some distance off. It was an\nenormous iron bar, with golden clamps on either side.\n\nSun Wu Kung raised it with the exertion of all his strength, and then\nsaid: \"It is too heavy, and ought to be somewhat shorter and thinner!\"\n\nNo sooner had he said this than the iron rod grew less. He tried it\nagain, and then he noticed that it grew larger or smaller at command.\nIt could be made to shrink to the size of a pin. Sun Wu Kung was\noverjoyed and beat about in the sea with the rod, which he had let\ngrow large again, till the waves spurted mountain-high and the\ndragon-castle rocked on its foundations. The Dragon-King trembled with\nfright, and all his tortoises, fishes and crabs drew in their heads.\n\nSun Wu Kung laughed, and said: \"Many thanks for the handsome present!\"\nThen he continued: \"Now I have a weapon, it is true, but as yet I have\nno armor. Rather than hunt up two or three other households, I think\nyou will be willing to provide me with a suit of mail.\"\n\nThe Dragon-King told him that he had no armor to give him.\n\nThen the ape said: \"I will not leave until you have obtained one for\nme.\" And once more he began to swing his rod.\n\n\"Do not harm me!\" said the terrified Dragon-King, \"I will ask my\nbrothers.\"\n\nAnd he had them beat the iron drum and strike the golden gong, and in\na moment's time all the Dragon-King's brothers came from all the other\nseas. The Dragon-King talked to them in private and said: \"This is a\nterrible fellow, and we must not rouse his anger! First he took the\nrod with the golden clamps from me, and now he also insists on having\na suit of armor. The best thing to do would be to satisfy him at once,\nand complain of him to the Lord of the Heavens later.\"\n\nSo the brothers brought a magic suit of golden mail, magic boots and a\nmagic helmet.\n\nThen Sun Wu Kung thanked them and returned to his cave. Radiantly he\ngreeted his children, who had come to meet him, and showed them the\nrod with the golden clamps. They all crowded up and wished to pick it\nup from the ground, if only a single time; but it was just as though a\ndragon-fly had attempted to overthrow a stone column, or an ant were\ntrying to carry a great mountain. It would not move a hair's breadth.\nThen the apes opened their mouths and stuck out their tongues, and\nsaid: \"Father, how is it possible for you to carry that heavy thing?\"\nSo he told them the secret of the rod and showed them its effects.\nThen he set his empire in order, and appointed the four baboons\nfield-marshals; and the seven beast-spirits, the ox-spirit, the\ndragon-spirit, the bird-spirit, the lion-spirit and the rest also\njoined him.\n\nOne day he took a nap after dinner. Before he did so he had let the\nbar shrink, and had stuck it in his ear. While he was sleeping he saw\ntwo men come along in his dream, who had a card on which was written\n\"Sun Wu Kung.\" They would not allow him to resist, but fettered him\nand led his spirit away. And when they reached a great city the Ape\nKing gradually came to himself. Over the city gate he saw a tablet of\niron on which was engraved in large letters: \"The Nether World.\"\n\nThen all was suddenly clear to him and he said: \"Why, this must be the\ndwelling-place of Death! But I have long since escaped from his power,\nand how dare he have me dragged here!\" The more he reflected the\nwilder he grew. He drew out the golden rod from his ear, swung it and\nlet it grow large. Then he crushed the two constables to mush, burst\nhis fetters, and rolled his bar before him into the city. The ten\nPrinces of the Dead were frightened, bowed before him and asked: \"Who\nare you?\"\n\nSun Wu Kung answered: \"If you do not know me then why did you send for\nme and have me dragged to this place? I am the heaven-born saint Sun\nWu Kung of the Mountain of Flowers and Fruits. And now, who are you?\nTell me your names quickly or I will strike you!\"\n\nThe ten Princes of the Dead humbly gave him their names.\n\nSun Wu Kung said: \"I, the Venerable Sun, have gained the power of\neternal life! You have nothing to say to me! Quick, let me have the\nBook of Life!\"\n\nThey did not dare defy him, and had the scribe bring in the Book. Sun\nWu Kung opened it. Under the head of \"Apes,\" No. 1350, he read: \"Sun\nWu Kung, the heaven-born stone ape. His years shall be three hundred\nand twenty-four. Then he shall die without illness.\"\n\nSun Wu Kung took the brush from the table and struck out the whole ape\nfamily from the Book of Life, threw the Book down and said: \"Now we\nare even! From this day on I will suffer no impertinences from you!\"\n\nWith that he cleared a way for himself out of the Nether World by\nmeans of his rod, and the ten Princes of the Dead did not venture to\nstay him, but only complained of him afterward to the Lord of the\nHeavens.\n\nWhen Sun Wu Kung had left the city he slipped and fell to the ground.\nThis caused him to wake, and he noticed he had been dreaming. He\ncalled his four baboons to him and said: \"Splendid, splendid! I was\ndragged to Death's castle and I caused considerable uproar there. I\nhad them give me the Book of Life, and I struck out the mortal hour of\nall the apes!\" And after that time the apes on the Mountain no longer\ndied, because their names had been stricken out in the Nether World.\n\nBut the Lord of the Heavens sat in his castle, and had all his\nservants assembled about him. And a saint stepped forward and\npresented the complaint of the Dragon-King of the Eastern Sea. And\nanother stepped forward and presented the complaint of the ten Princes\nof the Dead. The Lord of the Heavens glanced through the two\nmemorials. Both told of the wild, unmannerly conduct of Sun Wu Kung.\nSo the Lord of the Heavens ordered a god to descend to earth and take\nhim prisoner. The Evening Star came forward, however, and said: \"This\nape was born of the purest powers of heaven and earth and sun and\nmoon. He has gained the hidden knowledge and has become an immortal.\nRecall, O Lord, your great love for all that which has life, and\nforgive him his sin! Issue an order that he be called up to the\nheavens, and be given a charge here, so that he may come to his\nsenses. Then, if he again oversteps your commands, let him be punished\nwithout mercy.\" The Lord of the Heavens was agreeable, had the order\nissued, and told the Evening Star to take it to Sun Wu Kung. The\nEvening Star mounted a colored cloud and descended on the Mountain of\nFlowers and Fruits.\n\nHe greeted Sun Wu Kung and said to him: \"The Lord had heard of your\nactions and meant to punish you. I am the Evening Star of the Western\nSkies, and I spoke for you. Therefore he has commissioned me to take\nyou to the skies, so that you may be given a charge there.\"\n\nSun Wu Kung was overjoyed and answered: \"I had just been thinking I\nought to pay Heaven a visit some time, and sure enough, Old Star, here\nyou have come to fetch me!\"\n\nThen he had his four baboons come and said to them impressively: \"See\nthat you take good care of our Mountain! I am going up to the heavens\nto look around there a little!\"\n\nThen he mounted a cloud together with the Evening Star and floated up.\nBut he kept turning his somersaults, and advanced so quickly that the\nEvening Star on his cloud was left behind. Before he knew it he had\nreached the Southern Gate of Heaven and was about to step carelessly\nthrough. The gate-keeper did not wish to let him enter, but he did not\nlet this stop him. In the midst of their dispute the Evening Star came\nup and explained matters, and then he was allowed to enter the\nheavenly gate. When he came to the castle of the Lord of the Heavens,\nhe stood upright before it, without bowing his head.\n\nThe Lord of the Heavens asked: \"Then this hairy face with the pointed\nlips is Sun Wu Kung?\"\n\nHe replied: \"Yes, I am the Venerable Sun!\"\n\nAll the servants of the Lord of the Heavens were shocked and said:\n\"This wild ape does not even bow, and goes so far as to call himself\nthe Venerable Sun. His crime deserves a thousand deaths!\"\n\nBut the Lord said: \"He has come up from the earth below, and is not as\nyet used to our rules. We will forgive him.\"\n\nThen he gave orders that a charge be found for him. The marshal of the\nheavenly court reported: \"There is no charge vacant anywhere, but an\nofficial is needed in the heavenly stables.\" Thereupon the Lord made\nhim stablemaster of the heavenly steeds. Then the servants of the Lord\nof the Heavens told him he should give thanks for the grace bestowed\non him. Sun Wu Kung called out aloud: \"Thanks to command!\" took\npossession of his certificate of appointment, and went to the stables\nin order to enter upon his new office.\n\nSun Wu Kung attended to his duties with great zeal. The heavenly\nsteeds grew sleek and fat, and the stables were filled with young\nfoals. Before he knew it half a month had gone by. Then his heavenly\nfriends prepared a banquet for him.\n\nWhile they were at table Sun Wu Kung asked accidentally:\n\"Stablemaster? What sort of a title is that?\"\n\n\"Why, that is an official title,\" was the reply.\n\n\"What rank has this office?\"\n\n\"It has no rank at all,\" was the answer.\n\n\"Ah,\" said the ape, \"is it so high that it outranks all other\ndignities?\"\n\n\"No, it is not high, it is not high at all,\" answered his friends.\n\"It is not even set down in the official roster, but is quite a\nsubordinate position. All you have to do is to attend to the steeds.\nIf you see to it that they grow fat, you get a good mark; but if they\ngrow thin or ill, or fall down, your punishment will be right at\nhand.\"\n\nThen the Ape King grew angry: \"What, they treat me, the Venerable Sun,\nin such a shameful way!\" and he started up. \"On my Mountain I was a\nking, I was a father! What need was there for him to lure me into his\nheaven to feed horses? I'll do it no longer! I'll do it no longer!\"\n\nHola, and he had already overturned the table, drawn the rod with the\ngolden clamps from his ear, let it grow large and beat a way out for\nhimself to the Southern gate of Heaven. And no one dared stop him.\n\nAlready he was back in his island Mountain and his people surrounded\nhim and said: \"You have been gone for more than ten years, great king!\nHow is it you do not return to us until now?\"\n\nThe Ape King said: \"I did not spend more than about ten days in\nHeaven. This Lord of the Heavens does not know how to treat his\npeople. He made me his stablemaster, and I had to feed his horses. I\nam so ashamed that I am ready to die. But I did not put up with it,\nand now I am here once more!\"\n\nHis apes eagerly prepared a banquet to comfort him. While they sat at\ntable two horned devil-kings came and brought him a yellow imperial\nrobe as a present. Filled with joy he slipped into it, and appointed\nthe two devil-kings leaders of the vanguard. They thanked him and\nbegan to flatter him: \"With your power and wisdom, great king, why\nshould you have to serve the Lord of the Heavens? To call you the\nGreat Saint who is Heaven's Equal would be quite in order.\"\n\nThe ape was pleased with this speech and said: \"Good, good!\" Then he\nordered his four baboons to have a flag made quickly, on which was to\nbe inscribed: \"The Great Saint Who Is Heaven's Equal.\" And from that\ntime on he had himself called by that title.\n\nWhen the Lord of the Heavens learned of the flight of the ape, he\nordered Li Dsing, the pagoda-bearing god, and his third son, Notscha,\nto take the Ape King prisoner. They sallied forth at the head of a\nheavenly warrior host, laid out a camp before his cave, and sent a\nbrave warrior to challenge him to single combat. But he was easily\nbeaten by Sun Wu Kung and obliged to flee, and Sun Wu Kung even\nshouted after him, laughing: \"What a bag of wind! And he calls himself\na heavenly warrior! I'll not slay you. Run along quickly and send me a\nbetter man!\"\n\nWhen Notscha saw this he himself hurried up to do battle.\n\nSaid Sun Wu Kung to him: \"To whom do you belong, little one? You must\nnot play around here, for something might happen to you!\"\n\nBut Notscha cried out in a loud voice: \"Accursed ape! I am Prince\nNotscha, and have been ordered to take you prisoner!\" And with that he\nswung his sword in the direction of Sun Wu Kung.\n\n\"Very well,\" said the latter, \"I will stand here and never move.\"\n\nThen Notscha grew very angry, and turned into a three-headed god with\nsix arms, in which he held six different weapons. Thus he rushed on to\nthe attack.\n\nSun Wu Kung laughed. \"The little fellow knows the trick of it! But\neasy, wait a bit! I will change shape, too!\"\n\nAnd he also turned himself into a figure with three heads and with six\narms, and swung three gold-clamp rods. And thus they began to fight.\nTheir blows rained down with such rapidity that it seemed as though\nthousands of weapons were flying through the air. After thirty rounds\nthe combat had not yet been decided. Then Sun Wu Kung hit upon an\nidea. He secretly pulled out one of his hairs, turned it into his own\nshape, and let it continue the fight with Notscha. He himself,\nhowever, slipped behind Notscha, and gave him such a blow on the left\narm with his rod that his knees gave way beneath him with pain, and he\nhad to withdraw in defeat.\n\nSo Notscha told his father Li Dsing: \"This devil-ape is altogether too\npowerful! I cannot get the better of him!\" There was nothing left to\ndo but to return to the Heavens and admit their overthrow. The Lord of\nthe Heavens bowed his head, and tried to think of some other hero whom\nhe might send out.\n\nThen the Evening Star once more came forward and said: \"This ape is so\nstrong and so courageous, that probably not one of us here is a match\nfor him. He revolted because the office of stablemaster appeared too\nlowly for him. The best thing would be to temper justice with mercy,\nlet him have his way, and appoint him Great Saint Who Is Heaven's\nEqual. It will only be necessary to give him the empty title, without\ncombining a charge with it, and then the matter would be settled.\" The\nLord of the Heavens was satisfied with this suggestion, and once more\nsent the Evening Star to summon the new saint. When Sun Wu Kung heard\nthat he had arrived, he said: \"The old Evening Star is a good fellow!\"\nand he had his army draw up in line to give him a festive reception.\nHe himself donned his robes of ceremony and politely went out to meet\nhim.\n\nThen the Evening Star told him what had taken place in the Heavens,\nand that he had his appointment as Great Saint Who Is Heaven's Equal\nwith him.\n\nThereupon the Great Saint laughed and said: \"You also spoke in my\nbehalf before, Old Star! And now you have again taken my part. Many\nthanks! Many thanks!\"\n\nThen when they appeared together in the presence of the Lord of the\nHeavens the latter said: \"The rank of Great Saint Who Is Heaven's\nEqual is very high. But now you must not cut any further capers.\"\n\nThe Great Saint expressed his thanks, and the Lord of the Heavens\nordered two skilled architects to build a castle for him East of the\npeach-garden of the Queen-Mother of the West. And he was led into it\nwith all possible honors.\n\nNow the Saint was in his element. He had all that heart could wish\nfor, and was untroubled by any work. He took his ease, walked about in\nthe Heavens as he chose, and paid visits to the gods. The Three Pure\nOnes and the Four Rulers he treated with some little respect; but the\nplanetary gods and the lords of the twenty-eight houses of the moon,\nand of the twelve zodiac signs, and the other stars he addressed\nfamiliarly with a \"Hey, you!\" Thus he idled day by day, without\noccupation among the clouds of the Heavens. On one occasion one of the\nwise said to the Lord of the Heavens: \"The holy Sun is idle while day\nfollows day. It is to be feared that some mischievous thoughts may\noccur to him, and it might be better to give him some charge.\"\n\nSo the Lord of the Heavens summoned the Great Saint and said to him:\n\"The life-giving peaches in the garden of the Queen-Mother will soon\nbe ripe. I give you the charge of watching over them. Do your duty\nconscientiously!\"\n\nThis pleased the Saint and he expressed his thanks. Then he went to\nthe garden, where the caretakers and gardeners received him on their\nknees.\n\nHe asked them: \"How many trees in all are there in the garden?\"\n\n\"Three thousand six hundred,\" replied the gardener. \"There are\ntwelve-hundred trees in the foremost row. They have red blossoms and\nbear small fruit, which ripens every three thousand years. Whoever\neats it grows bright and healthy. The twelve hundred trees in the\nmiddle row have double blossoms and bear sweet fruit, which ripens\nevery six thousand years. Whoever eats of it is able to float in the\nrose-dawn without aging. The twelve hundred trees in the last row bear\nred-striped fruit with small pits. They ripen every nine thousand\nyears. Whoever eats their fruit lives eternally, as long as the\nHeavens themselves, and remains untouched for thousands of eons.\"\n\nThe Saint heard all this with pleasure. He checked up the lists and\nfrom that time on appeared every day or so to see to things. The\ngreater part of the peaches in the last row were already ripe. When he\ncame to the garden, he would on each occasion send away the caretakers\nand gardeners under some pretext, leap up into the trees, and gorge\nhimself to his heart's content with the peaches.\n\nAt that time the Queen-Mother of the West was preparing the great\npeach banquet to which she was accustomed to invite all the gods of\nthe Heavens. She sent out the fairies in their garments of seven\ncolors with baskets, that they might pick the peaches. The caretaker\nsaid to them: \"The garden has now been entrusted to the guardianship\nof the Great Saint Who is Heaven's Equal, so you will first have to\nannounce yourselves to him.\" With that he led the seven fairies into\nthe garden. There they looked everywhere for the Great Saint, but\ncould not find him. So the fairies said: \"We have our orders and must\nnot be late. We will begin picking the peaches in the meantime!\" So\nthey picked several baskets full from the foremost row. In the second\nrow the peaches were already scarcer. And in the last row there hung\nonly a single half-ripe peach. They bent down the bough and picked it,\nand then allowed it to fly up again.\n\nNow it happened that the Great Saint, who had turned himself into a\npeach-worm, had just been taking his noon-day nap on this bough. When\nhe was so rudely awakened, he appeared in his true form, seized his\nrod and was about to strike the fairies.\n\nBut the fairies said: \"We have been sent here by the Queen-Mother. Do\nnot be angry, Great Saint!\"\n\nSaid the Great Saint: \"And who are all those whom the Queen-Mother has\ninvited?\"\n\nThey answered: \"All the gods and saints in the Heavens, on the earth\nand under the earth.\"\n\n\"Has she also invited me?\" said the Saint.\n\n\"Not that we know of,\" said the fairies.\n\nThen the Saint grew angry, murmured a magic incantation and said:\n\"Stay! Stay! Stay!\"\n\nWith that the seven fairies were banned to the spot. The Saint then\ntook a cloud and sailed away on it to the palace of the Queen-Mother.\n\nOn the way he met the Bare-Foot God and asked him: \"Where are you\ngoing?\"\n\n\"To the peach banquet,\" was the answer.\n\nThen the Saint lied to him, saying: \"I have been commanded by the\nLord of the Heavens to tell all the gods and saints that they are\nfirst to come to the Hall of Purity, in order to practise the rites,\nand then go together to the Queen-Mother.\"\n\nThen the Great Saint changed himself into the semblance of the\nBare-Foot God and sailed to the palace of the Queen-Mother. There he\nlet his cloud sink down and entered quite unconcerned. The meal was\nready, yet none of the gods had as yet appeared. Suddenly the Great\nSaint caught the aroma of wine, and saw well-nigh a hundred barrels of\nthe precious nectar standing in a room to one side. His mouth watered.\nHe tore a few hairs out and turned them into sleep-worms. These worms\ncrept into the nostrils of the cup-bearers so that they all fell\nasleep. Thereupon he enjoyed the delicious viands to the full, opened\nthe barrels and drank until he was nearly stupefied. Then he said to\nhimself: \"This whole affair is beginning to make me feel creepy. I had\nbetter go home first of all and sleep a bit.\" And he stumbled out of\nthe garden with uncertain steps. Sure enough, he missed his way, and\ncame to the dwelling of Laotzse. There he regained consciousness. He\narranged his clothing and went in. There was no one to be seen in the\nplace, for at the moment Laotzse was at the God of Light's abode,\ntalking to him, and with him were all his servants, listening. Since\nhe found no one at home the Great Saint went as far as the inner\nchamber, where Laotzse was in the habit of brewing the elixir of life.\nBeside the stove stood five gourd containers full of the pills of life\nwhich had already been rolled. Said the Great Saint: \"I had long since\nintended to prepare a couple of these pills. So it suits me very well\nto find them here.\" He poured out the contents of the gourds, and ate\nup all the pills of life. Since he had now had enough to eat and\ndrink he thought to himself: \"Bad, bad! The mischief I have done\ncannot well be repaired. If they catch me my life will be in danger. I\nthink I had better go down to earth again and remain a king!\" With\nthat he made himself invisible, went out at the Western Gate of\nHeaven, and returned to the Mountain of Flowers and Fruits, where he\ntold his people who received him the story of his adventures.\n\nWhen he spoke of the wine-nectar of the peach garden, his apes said:\n\"Can't you go back once more and steal a few bottles of the wine, so\nthat we too may taste of it and gain eternal life?\"\n\nThe Ape King was willing, turned a somersault, crept into the garden\nunobserved, and picked up four more barrels. Two of them he took under\nhis arms and two he held in his hands. Then he disappeared with them\nwithout leaving a trace and brought them to his cave, where he enjoyed\nthem together with his apes.\n\nIn the meantime the seven fairies, whom the Great Saint had banned to\nthe spot, had regained their freedom after a night and a day. They\npicked up their baskets and told the Queen-Mother what had happened to\nthem. And the cup-bearers, too, came hurrying up and reported the\ndestruction which some one unknown had caused among the eatables and\ndrinkables. The Queen-Mother went to the Lord of the Heavens to\ncomplain. Shortly afterward Laotzse also came to him to tell about the\ntheft of the pills of life. And the Bare-Foot God came along and\nreported that he had been deceived by the Great Saint Who Is Heaven's\nEqual; and from the Great Saint's palace the servants came running and\nsaid that the Saint had disappeared and was nowhere to be found. Then\nthe Lord of the Heavens was frightened, and said: \"This whole mess is\nundoubtedly the work of that devilish ape!\"\n\nNow the whole host of Heaven, together with all the star-gods, the\ntime-gods and the mountain-gods was called out in order to catch the\nape. Li Dsing once more was its commander-in-chief. He invested the\nentire Mountain, and spread out the sky-net and the earth-net, so that\nno one could escape. Then he sent his bravest heroes into battle.\nCourageously the ape withstood all attacks from early morn till\nsundown. But by that time his most faithful followers had been\ncaptured. That was too much for him. He pulled out a hair and turned\nit into thousands of Ape-Kings, who all hewed about them with\ngolden-clamped iron rods. The heavenly host was vanquished, and the\nape withdrew to his cave to rest.\n\nNow it happened that Guan Yin had also gone to the peach banquet in\nthe garden, and had found out what Sun Wu Kung had done. When she went\nto visit the Lord of the Heavens, Li Dsing was just coming in, to\nreport the great defeat which he had suffered on the Mountain of\nFlowers and Fruits. Then Guan Yin said to the Lord of the Heavens: \"I\ncan recommend a hero to you who will surely get the better of the ape.\nIt is your grandson Yang Oerlang. He has conquered all the beast and\nbird spirits, and overthrown the elves in the grass and the brush. He\nknows what has to be done to get the better of such devils.\"\n\nSo Yang Oerlang was brought in, and Li Dsing led him to his camp. Li\nDsing asked Yang Oerlang how he would go about getting the better of\nthe ape.\n\nYang Oerlang laughed and said: \"I think I will have to go him one\nbetter when it comes to changing shapes. It would be best for you to\ntake away the sky-net so that our combat is not disturbed.\" Then he\nrequested Li Dsing to post himself in the upper air with the magic\nspirit mirror in his hand, so that when the ape made himself\ninvisible, he might be found again by means of the mirror. When all\nthis had been arranged, Yang Oerlang went out in front of the cave\nwith his spirits to give battle.\n\nThe ape leaped out, and when he saw the powerful hero with the\nthree-tined sword standing before him he asked: \"And who may you be?\"\n\nThe other said: \"I am Yang Oerlang, the grandson of the Lord of the\nHeavens!\"\n\nThen the ape laughed and said: \"Oh yes, I remember! His daughter ran\naway with a certain Sir Yang, to whom heaven gave a son. You must be\nthat son!\"\n\nYang Oerlang grew furious, and advanced upon him with his spear. Then\na hot battle began. For three hundred rounds they fought without\ndecisive results. Then Yang Oerlang turned himself into a giant with a\nblack face and red hair.\n\n\"Not bad,\" said the ape, \"but I can do that too!\"\n\nSo they continued to fight in that form. But the ape's baboons were\nmuch frightened. The beast and planet spirits of Yang Oerlang pressed\nthe apes hard. They slew most of them and the others hid away. When\nthe ape saw this his heart grew uneasy. He drew the magic\ngiant-likeness in again, took his rod and fled. But Yang Oerlang\nfollowed hard on his heels. In his urgent need the ape thrust the rod,\nwhich he had turned into a needle, into his ear, turned into a\nsparrow, and flew up into the crest of a tree. Yang Oerlang who was\nfollowing in his tracks, suddenly lost sight of him. But his keen eyes\nsoon recognized that he had turned himself into a sparrow. So he flung\naway spear and crossbow, turned himself into a sparrow-hawk, and\ndarted down on the sparrow. But the latter soared high into the air as\na cormorant. Yang Oerlang shook his plumage, turned into a great\nsea-crane, and shot up into the clouds to seize the cormorant. The\nlatter dropped, flew into a valley and dove beneath the waters of a\nbrook in the guise of a fish. When Yang Oerlang reached the edge of\nthe valley, and had lost his trail he said to himself: \"This ape has\nsurely turned himself into a fish or a crab! I will change my form as\nwell in order to catch him.\" So he turned into a fish-hawk and floated\nabove the surface of the water. When the ape in the water caught sight\nof the fish-hawk, he saw that he was Yang Oerlang. He swiftly swung\naround and fled, Yang Oerlang in pursuit. When the latter was no\nfurther away than the length of a beak, the ape turned, crept ashore\nas a water-snake and hid in the grass. Yang Oerlang, when he saw the\nwater-snake creep from the water, turned into an eagle and spread his\nclaws to seize the snake. But the water-snake sprang up and turned\ninto the lowest of all birds, a speckled buzzard, and perched on the\nsteep edge of a cliff. When Yang Oerlang saw that the ape had turned\nhimself into so contemptible a creature as a buzzard, he would no\nlonger play the game of changing form with him. He reappeared in his\noriginal form, took up his crossbow and shot at the bird. The buzzard\nslipped and fell down the side of the cliff. At its foot the ape\nturned himself into the chapel of a field-god. He opened his mouth for\na gate, his teeth became the two wings of the door, his tongue the\nimage of the god, and his eyes the windows. His tail was the only\nthing he did not know what to do with. So he let it stand up stiffly\nbehind him in the shape of a flagpole. When Yang Oerlang reached the\nfoot of the hill he saw the chapel, whose flagpole stood in the rear.\nThen he laughed and said: \"That ape is really a devil of an ape! He\nwants to lure me into the chapel in order to bite me. But I will not\ngo in. First I will break his windows for him, and then I will stamp\ndown the wings of his door!\" When the ape heard this he was much\nfrightened. He made a bound like a tiger, and disappeared without a\ntrace in the air. With a single somersault he reached Yang Oerlang's\nown temple. There he assumed Yang Oerlang's own form and stepped in.\nThe spirits who were on guard were unable to recognize him. They\nreceived him on their knees. So the ape then seated himself on the\ngod's throne, and had the prayers which had come in submitted to him.\n\nWhen Yang Oerlang no longer saw the ape, he rose in the air to Li\nDsing and said: \"I was vying with the ape in changing shape. Suddenly\nI could no longer find him. Take a look in the mirror!\" Li Dsing took\na look in the magic spirit mirror and then he laughed and said: \"The\nape has turned himself into your likeness, is sitting in your temple\nquite at home there, and making mischief.\" When Yang Oerlang heard\nthis he took his three-tined spear, and hastened to his temple. The\ndoor-spirits were frightened and said: \"But father came in only this\nvery minute! How is it that another one comes now?\" Yang Oerlang,\nwithout paying attention to them, entered the temple and aimed his\nspear at Sun Wu Kung. The latter resumed his own shape, laughed and\nsaid: \"Young sir, you must not be angry! The god of this place is now\nSun Wu Kung.\" Without uttering a word Yang Oerlang assailed him. Sun\nWu Kung took up his rod and returned the blows. Thus they crowded out\nof the temple together, fighting, and wrapped in mists and clouds once\nmore gained the Mountain of Flowers and Fruits.\n\nIn the meantime Guan Yin was sitting with Laotzse, the Lord of the\nHeavens and the Queen-Mother in the great hall of Heaven, waiting for\nnews. When none came she said: \"I will go with Laotzse to the\nSouthern Gate of Heaven and see how matters stand.\" And when they saw\nthat the struggle had still not come to an end she said to Laotzse:\n\"How would it be if we helped Yang Oerlang a little? I will shut up\nSun Wu Kung in my vase.\"\n\nBut Laotzse said: \"Your vase is made of porcelain. Sun Wu Kung could\nsmash it with his iron rod. But I have a circlet of diamonds which can\nenclose all living creatures. That we can use!\" So he flung his\ncirclet through the air from the heavenly gate, and struck Sun Wu Kung\non the head with it. Since he had his hands full fighting, the latter\ncould not guard himself against it, and the blow on the forehead\ncaused him to slip. Yet he rose again and tried to escape. But the\nheavenly hound of Yang Oerlang bit his leg until he fell to the\nground. Then Yang Oerlang and his followers came up and tied him with\nthongs, and thrust a hook through his collar-bone so that he could no\nlonger transform himself. And Laotzse took possession of his diamond\ncirclet again, and returned with Guan Yin to the hall of Heaven. Sun\nWu Kung was now brought in in triumph, and was condemned to be\nbeheaded. He was then taken to the place of execution and bound to a\npost. But all efforts to kill him by means of ax and sword, thunder\nand lightning were vain. Nothing so much as hurt a hair on his head.\n\nSaid Laotzse: \"It is not surprising. This ape has eaten the peaches,\nhas drunk the nectar and also swallowed the pills of life. Nothing can\nharm him. The best thing would be for me to take him along and thrust\nhim into my stove in order to melt the elixir of life out of him\nagain. Then he will fall into dust and ashes.\"\n\nSo Sun Wu Kung's fetters were loosed, and Laotzse took him with him,\nthrust him into his oven, and ordered the boy to keep up a hot fire.\n\nBut along the edge of the oven were graven the signs of the eight\nelemental forces. And when the ape was thrust into the oven he took\nrefuge beneath the sign of the wind, so that the fire could not injure\nhim; and the smoke only made his eyes smart. He remained in the oven\nseven times seven days. Then Laotzse had it opened to take a look. As\nsoon as Sun Wu Kung saw the light shine in, he could no longer bear to\nbe shut up, but leaped out and upset the magic oven. The guards and\nattendants he threw to the ground and Laotzse himself, who tried to\nseize him, received such a push that he stuck his legs up in the air\nlike an onion turned upside down. Then Sun Wu Kung took his rod out of\nhis ear, and without looking where he struck, hewed everything to\nbits, so that the star-gods closed their doors and the guardians of\nthe Heavens ran away. He came to the castle of the Lord of the\nHeavens, and the guardian of the gate with his steel whip was only\njust in time to hold him back. Then the thirty-six thunder gods were\nset at him, and surrounded him, though they could not seize him.\n\nThe Lord of the Heavens said: \"Buddha will know what is to be done.\nSend for him quickly!\"\n\nSo Buddha came up out of the West with Ananada and Kashiapa, his\ndisciples. When he saw the turmoil he said: \"First of all, let weapons\nbe laid aside and lead out the Saint. I wish to speak with him!\" The\ngods withdrew. Sun Wu Kung snorted and said: \"Who are you, who dare to\nspeak to me?\" Buddha smiled and replied: \"I have come out of the\nblessed West, Shakiamuni Amitofu. I have heard of the revolt you have\nraised, and am come to tame you!\"\n\nSaid Sun Wu Kung: \"I am the stone ape who has gained the hidden\nknowledge. I am master of seventy-two transformations, and will live\nas long as Heaven itself. What has the Lord of the Heavens\naccomplished that entitles him to remain eternally on his throne? Let\nhim make way for me, and I will be satisfied!\"\n\nBuddha replied with a smile: \"You are a beast which has gained magic\npowers. How can you expect to rule here as Lord of the Heavens? Be it\nknown to you that the Lord of the Heavens has toiled for eons in\nperfecting his virtues. How many years would you have to pass before\nyou could attain the dignity he has gained? And then I must ask you\nwhether there is anything else you can do, aside from playing your\ntricks of transformation?\"\n\nSaid Sun Wu Kung: \"I can turn cloud somersaults. Each one carries me\neighteen thousand miles ahead. Surely that is enough to entitle me to\nbe the Lord of the Heavens?\"\n\nBuddha answered with a smile: \"Let us make a wager. If you can so much\nas leave my hand with one of your somersaults, then I will beg the\nLord of the Heavens to make way for you. But if you are not able to\nleave my hand, then you must yield yourself to my fetters.\"\n\nSun Wu Kung suppressed his laughter, for he thought: \"This Buddha is a\ncrazy fellow! His hand is not a foot long; how could I help but leap\nout of it?\" So he opened his mouth wide and said: \"Agreed!\"\n\nBuddha then stretched out his right hand. It resembled a small\nlotus-leaf. Sun Wu Kung leaped up into it with one bound. Then he\nsaid: \"Go!\" And with that he turned one somersault after another, so\nthat he flew along like a whirlwind. And while he was flying along he\nsaw five tall, reddish columns towering to the skies. Then he thought:\n\"That is the end of the world! Now I will turn back and become Lord of\nthe Heavens. But first I will write down my name to prove that I was\nthere.\" He pulled out a hair, turned it into a brush, and wrote with\ngreat letters on the middle column: \"The Great Saint Who Is Heaven's\nEqual.\" Then he turned his somersaults again until he had reached the\nplace whence he had come. He leaped down from the Buddha's hand\nlaughing and cried: \"Now hurry, and see to it that the Lord of the\nHeavens clears his heavenly castle for me! I have been at the end of\nthe world and have left a sign there!\"\n\nBuddha scolded: \"Infamous ape! How dare you claim that you have left\nmy hand? Take a look and see whether or not 'The Great Saint Who Is\nHeaven's Equal,' is written on my middle finger!\"\n\nSun Wu Kung was terribly frightened, for at the first glance he saw\nthat this was the truth. Yet outwardly he pretended that he was not\nconvinced, said he would take another look, and tried to make use of\nthe opportunity to escape. But Buddha covered him with his hand,\nshoved him out of the gate of Heaven, and formed a mountain of water,\nfire, wood, earth and metal, which he softly set down on him to hold\nhim fast. A magic incantation pasted on the mountain prevented his\nescape.\n\nHere he was obliged to lie for hundreds of years, until he finally\nreformed and was released, in order to help the Monk of the\nYangtze-kiang fetch the holy writings from out of the West. He honored\nthe Monk as his master, and thenceforward was known as the Wanderer.\nGuan Yin, who had released him, gave the Monk a golden circlet. Sun Wu\nKung was induced to put it on, and it at once grew into his flesh so\nthat he could not remove it. And Guan Yin gave the Monk a magic\nformula by means of which the ring could be tightened, should the ape\ngrow disobedient. But from that time on he was always polite and\nwell-mannered.\n\n Note: This tale, like \"The Pilgrim's Progress,\" is an\n allegory, the ape symbolizing the human heart. Yet\n despite its allegorical character, a number of\n mythological and fairy-tale motives are incorporated in\n it. The ape himself suggests Hanumant, the companion of\n Rama. Yo Huang is the Lord of the Heavens. The stone ape\n is the stone heart of natural man. The Buddhas, blessed\n spirits and gods, represent the ideals of Buddhism,\n Taoism and Confucianism. Sun Wu Kung: In Chinese apes\n are called Hu Sun, but the word Hu having an unlucky\n meaning, the Master chooses Sun as a family name, while\n at the same time the letter-sign is freed from the\n radical indicating an animal. Wu Kung--\"the magic\n awaking to nothingness\" (Nirwana). The different ways:\n magic, the way of raising spirits; the sciences: The\n three faiths are: Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism; to\n these are added six \"schools\": the Yin-Yang School, the\n Mo-Di School, Medicine, War, Law, Miscellaneous, so that\n nine directions in all are represented. Quiescence is\n the Taoism for non-activity, while Action is the Taoism\n for care of the body, as inaugurated by We Be Yang. The\n Devil-King of Chaos, i.e., sensuality, whose seat is\n supposed to be in Kidneys. \"Red garments,\" colors, here\n all have an allegorical meaning. Death, i.e., Yama. The\n Evening Star is the star of metal; Sun Wu Kung also\n personifies a metal, hence the Evening Star appears as\n his apologist. As regards Li Dsing and Notscha see No.\n 18. As regards the Queen Mother of the West, see No. 15.\n As regards Yang Oerlang, see No. 17. Guan Yin is\n generally worshipped throughout China as the Feminine\n goddess. The motive of the magic flight is found\n frequently in fairy-tales the world over. Guan Yin is\n often represented holding a vase, Bau Ping. Laotzse's\n circlet or ring is the Tao. The eight elemental powers,\n i.e., Ba Gua. Buddha: while Sun Wu Kung is equipped to\n struggle against all external powers, he is conquered by\n Buddha, who does not combat him, but subdues him by his\n omnipresence. The Monk of the Yangtze-kiang is Huan\n Dschuang, see No. 69. The circlet or ring which can be\n made tighter when the ape does not obey, reappears in\n Hauff's fairy-tale of \"The Young Englishman,\" as a\n cravat.\n\n\nTHE END\n\n\n\n\nTranscriber's Note\n\nArchaic spelling, e.g. rimes, phenix, is preserved as printed. Variable\nspelling has been made consistent where there was a prevalence of one\nform; otherwise it is preserved as printed, e.g. Kaiutschou &\nKiautschou, Laotzse & Laotsze.\n\nPunctuation errors have been repaired. Hyphenation, and capitalisation\nof proper nouns, has been made consistent. Typographic errors, e.g.\nomitted or transposed letters, have been repaired.\n\nThe following amendments have been made:\n\n Page 24--repeated 'the' deleted--\"... \"The Wolf and the\n Seven Kids,\" ...\"\n\n Page 76--(I) added to end of title for consistency with\n the table of contents--\"THE EIGHT IMMORTALS (I)\"\n\n Page 82--omitted word Lan added--\"Lan Tsai Ho, who is also\n pictured as a woman, ...\"\n\n Page 82--(II) added to end of title for consistency with\n the table of contents--\"THE EIGHT IMMORTALS (II)\"\n\n Page 85--omitted word Yuan added--\"\"We are Liu Tschen and\n Yuan Dshau. Only a few days ago ...\"\"\n\n Page 289--superfluous 'the' deleted before 'Evening'--\"Only,\n the King had kept back Rose of Evening ...\"\n\nPage 186--mentions the \"Su Tsi Hia\"--other similar references in the\ntext are to the \"Sin Tsi Hia\" but, as the transcriber has been unable\nto confirm whether this is from the same source, it has been preserved\nas printed.\n\nPage 224--refers to a serving-maid holding a \"red flabrum in her\nhand.\" Flabrum is a Latin word for breeze. This may be a typo for\nflagrum, a kind of scourge, but as it is impossible to be certain, it\nhas been preserved as printed.\n\nPage 227--mentions a man who \"descended to the upper story\"--this\nshould probably read \"ascended to the upper story\" but has been\npreserved as printed.\n\nPage 278--mentions a man \"now, when young and old\"--this may be an\nerror for \"young and bold\" but has been preserved as printed.\n\nA number of the notes to the stories refer to other stories. On page\n17, there is a reference to No. 81. There is no story with this\nnumber, and, as the transcriber was unable to determine which story\nthe author was referring to, it has been preserved as printed.\n\nThe following amendments to references have also been made:\n\n Page 17--67 amended to 68, and Fee amended to Fe--\"...\n (see No. 68, \"Yang Gui Fe\").\"\n\n Page 24--48 amended to 49--\"... the same beast as \"the\n talking silver fox\" in No. 49, ...\"\n\n Page 41--37 amended to 34--\"... (comp. \"Sky O'Dawn,\" No.\n 34); ...\"\n\n Page 52--73 amended to 74--\"... occurs in the tale of Sun\n Wu Kung (No. 74).\"\n\n Page 64--68 amended to 69--\"As regards the Monk of the\n Yangtze-kiang, comp. with No. 69.\"\n\n Page 75--31 amended to 30--\"... frequently used in the\n preparation of the elixir of life (comp. No. 30).\"\n\n Page 83--63 amended to 51--\"As regards the field-god, see\n No. 51.\"\n\n Page 137--62 amended to 63--\"... the old river-god Ho Be\n (Count of the Stream), also mentioned in No. 63, ...\"\n\n Page 142--75 amended to 74--\"As regards the Dragon-King\n of the Eastern Sea, see Nos. 18 and 74.\"\n\n Page 142--45 amended to 46--\"With regard to So Pi-Lo and\n Lo-Dsi-Tschun, see No. 46.\"\n\n Page 251--64 amended to 65--\"... the Prince of Tang\n mentioned in No. 65.\"\n\n Page 251--49 amended to 50--\"... and the ten princes of\n the Nether World, comp. Nos. 38 and 50.\"\n\n Page 251--73 amended to 74--\"As regards one of the\n legendary companions of Huan Dschuang on his journey,\n see No. 74.\"\n\n Page 329--68 amended to 69--\"The Monk of the\n Yangtze-kiang is Huan Dschuang, see No. 69.\"\n\nIllustrations have been moved where necessary so that they are not in\nthe middle of a paragraph. The frontispiece illustration and advertising\nmaterial has been moved to follow the title page.","title":"The Chinese Fairy Book","tradition":"myth-cosmogony","translated_text":null,"word_count":98169}