Tag Archives: legend

From legend to myth: the Legendary figure of Guanyu and the God of loyality and courage

Nationality: Chinese
Age: 21

Context:

The informant shares a legendary figure that later transformed into a god with mythic characteristics. The context of this legend takes place during the Three Kingdoms period in China, around the years 220-280. This is a period of upheaval characterized by distinct individuals. The protagonist of the legend, Guanyu, is one of them, serving under the Shu dynasty. Other two kingdoms were the Wu Dynasty and the Wei Dynasty. It was a time when the three nations fiercely struggled for the orthodox king of China. Guanyu was a fearless warrior and was also the sworn brother of the king of Shu.

Text:

“Guanyu was captured by Lu Meng, a general in the Wu Dynasty. After he captured Guanyu, he beheaded him and sent the head in a box as a gift to Cao Cao, the king of the Wei Dynasty. He did this because at the time, Wei was the most powerful kingdom, and Wu wanted to befriend Wei to fight Shu. When Cao Cao opened the box, he found out that it was Guanyu’s head. The head of Guanyu jumped out of the box and tried to bite. It scared Cao Cao so much that his headache attacked. But regardless of the hostile relationship between Shu and Wei, Cao Cao admired Guanyu as a warrior of great courage and loyalty. He buried Guanyu with great honor and built temples in his name. Some say that it’s because Cao Cao was afraid of the fury of the Shu Dynasty for losing the King’s brother; others say that Cao Cao truly admired Guanyu. But that’s where the legend ends.

However, the myth of Guanyu starts there. Guanyu had been woven into Taoism and become one of the Taoist gods. He is the one that represents loyalty between friends and brothers. Many of the gang members in China would worship Guanyu as a sign of the bond between their members.”

Analysis:

The transformation of Guanyu from a legendary figure to a mythic god can be seen as a natural progression in the process of cultural storytelling. In folklore, legendary figures often embody the values and qualities admired by the society that creates and perpetuates their stories. As these values become more deeply ingrained in the culture, it’s common for these figures to take on a more divine or supernatural aspect.

In the case of Guanyu, his legendary status as a courageous and loyal warrior made him a powerful symbol for the values of loyalty and brotherhood. By incorporating Guanyu into the Taoist pantheon as a god, he became a representation of these values in a more profound and spiritual way. This transition allowed for a more profound connection to Guanyu’s virtues, as people could now seek his divine assistance and protection in their lives. Also, it becomes a mythtic figure because it teaches people how to behave in life and what to believe, without the fact that many people live up to the tradtions of Guanyu, he would remain a legend.

Interestingly, Guanyu as a mythtic figure was viewed differently in different groups. In Taoists, Guanyu was one of the four great protectors of Taoism. In Buddism, Guanyu was the Galan Budda, which resembles the chief of police in the world of budda. In the business world, merchants and ordinary people view him as Martial God of Wealth who save guard their wealth and good luck. Others view Guan yu as Guandi, God of war who controls over evil spririt of the world.

legends about the ghost building in Shenyang

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Nationality: China
Age: 21
Occupation: student

Context:

My informant learnt about the ghost story from his father, who is a native of the Shenyang city.

text:

“There is a ghost building in Shenyang, which the old generation knows where it is, but they tacitly agreed that they would not tell the younger generation its location. They hid it because they were afraid that if young people knew about it, kids would form explore teams and seek advanture in the ghost building. So that’s why I don’t know where it is but my father know where it is.

I don’t know what happened before abou this building, but it’s hounted, and very severe. One after another, people moved out of that building. They would connect, or call the police and say ‘哎！有鬼有鬼有鬼，’or ‘Oh there is ghost!’ And because everyone moved out of the building, it become quite a big deal to the real estate developer of this building. And it also had bad influence to the local security, people were scared. The government thinks this is not the way things should be, so they sent out a team of police officer to the ghost building one night, to see what’s the real deal there.

And because it was a very famous hounted house, the police also knew about it, and they were scared as well. The police, as they should, brought guns with them.And they also brought wine, to strengthen their courage. So their plan was to drink in the ghost building and see what will hanppens. After they drunk, they slept. But the next morning when they woke up, every single one of the police officer was dragged outside of the building. They were slept in bed, but they woke up outside. So there is something wrong with the building.”

Analysis:

This is a classic example of a haunted house legend. The legend is passed down through oral tradition and is a part of the local culture. The fact that the older generation knows about the ghost building but does not disclose its location to the younger generation adds an element of mystery and intrigue to the story. This legend of the hounted house is a legend that contextual the influence of space angd time into our belief. The time of this legend appeared just after the open up of China, when there were lots of superstitious belife as well as ideas that call for science and anti-superstitious.

The emphasis on the severity of the haunting and the repeated instances of people moving out of the building due to ghostly encounters build the suspense and contribute to the eerie atmosphere of the legend. And because legends might be true, the use of the phrase “哎！有鬼有鬼有鬼”(Oh there is a ghost!) adds authenticity to the legend, as this phrase is commonly used in Chinese ghost stories and adds an element of cultural familiarity to the tale.

This legend offers insight into the beliefs and superstitions of the people of Shenyang city, as well as their attitudes towards the supernatural. The fact that people were so afraid of the haunted building that they moved out and reported ghostly encounters to the police suggests that belief in ghosts and spirits was widespread in the community. It also highlights the impact that supernatural beliefs could have on everyday life, such as the impact on the real estate market and local security. It also implied that the supersitous belief of ghost does not limit to the ordinary people, but as well as the people in the government, who supposedly based on communist doctrine, reject any superstious belief and firmly believe in science. The contridiction between dogmatic belief of the state and the actual practice of the people is particularly interesting in this context.

Ghost story in Chinese village in Sheng yang

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Nationality: China
Age: 21
Occupation: student

Text:

“The entrance of the village had a big millstone that the entire community shared. Every night, there would be a small, white thingy that people thought was a small white ghost, running around the millstone over and over again. And you can’t get close to it. I mean, if you get close to it, it would jump on you and start to tickle you. It would tickle you until you laughed to an extent that you couldn’t breathe anymore and died. My grandma said she saw it once, but she was not tickled by it. And after the Cultural Revolution, this little thing was gone forever.”

Context:

This legend was passed down from the informant’s grandma. The legend took place long before the Cultural Revolution in China. Our informant thinks it was the “Elimination of the Old Four” movement by the Chinese government at the time that had eliminated the ghost. The “Old Four” include old ideology, old culture, old tradition, and old customs. It was a time when many historical treasures were destroyed. The informant thinks that the villagers believed that the ghost belonged to the Old Four, so it was gone after the movement.

interpretation:

This is a great example of explaining personal experience or rationalizing it with existing legends. It’s a kind of belief enhanced by the informant’s grandma’s own sightings. Similar experiences around the village might have occurred, and added up to the formation of the ghost legend. Obviously, it’s an unwanted ghost. My interpretation of the tickling is that the ghost is small, probably a childlike figure. It’s not rational for a child to kill grown people, and laughing is often associated with children.

The “elimination of the old four” movement, or “除四旧” (pinyin: chú sì jiù), was a movement in China during the cultural revolution that caused a lot of historical antiques and culture to be destroyed. The “old four” refers to old ideas, old culture, old customs, and old habits. The movement firmly grasped the idea that old and superstitious ideas, or anything counter-scientific, went against the principle of communism. This movement’s dogma provided the villagers of Shenyang with a spiritual tool to wash away what they feared in their collective past. The small ghost by the millstone might have been a troublesome existence in the lives of the villagers. In the context of the elimination of the old four, it was eliminated and washed away like all the other things deemed bad and counter to the Communist Party.


					

		
		
	


	

				

			
						

				La Cacica de Moca
			

								

			

			
Nationality: Puerto Rican
	
		

				

			

Context
LV is my grandmother, who was born in Moca, Puerto Rico. Her father was from Aguadila, Puerto Rico. Her mother was from Moca, Puerto Rico. Moca is a small town that’s 50 miles away from the major cities. It’s known for its landscapes and agriculture. LV lived there until she was 17 years old and now resides in Chicago, Illinois. She only speaks Spanish, but the following is translated into English in literal form.










Text





DO (Interviewer): Thank you for telling me so many stories from your childhood. Do you have any from later on that you remember. Maybe specifically ones about Moca. 





LV: La Cacica, Ana (The Female Chief, Ana). 





DO: What did Ana do?





LV: She was a leader of the Taíno who fought against them when they came. 





DO: Who are “they”?





LV: The Spanish. The conquistadors. Ana was known as being powerful. She used her knowledge to outsmart them, but she was also smart. She fought them hard. She led the fights and she won. But, they got her. And she died. Many say she still wanders the forests. The ones you see right about the town. 





DO: Why was Ana’s story one that you remembered?





LV: She taught me pride. I was proud to be from Moca. I was proud to be morenita (translates to brown-skinned). I was proud to be a woman. She believed in fighting for what is right. There is a festival to honor her now.





Analysis





As my grandmother said, this legend is one of pride and honor. Ana represented the Taínos who often get overlooked in modern Puerto Rican culture or stories. When Spain came to conquer Puerto Rico and its land, people like Ana’s character stood up in the midst of oppression. There is a festival that happens every year to showcase Moca’s culture and history, and Ana is celebrated. This legend encourages resistance, resilience, and pride in not only the town but in its Taíno roots. While the Spanish may have conquered Puerto Rico, stories like these teach the importance of remembering those who fought for the island. Today Puerto Rico still struggles to gain independence and representation, allowing characters like Ana de Moca to serve as an inspiration even in modern times. 

					

		
		
	


	

				

			
						

				La Yegua de Moca
			

								

			

			
Nationality: Puerto Rican
	
		

				

			

Context
LV is my grandmother, who was born in Moca, Puerto Rico. Her father was from Aguadila, Puerto Rico. Her mother was from Moca, Puerto Rico. Moca is a small town that’s 50 miles away from the major cities. It’s known for its landscapes and agriculture. LV lived there until she was 17 years old and now resides in Chicago, Illinois. She only speaks Spanish, but the following is translated into English in literal form.










Text





DO: When you were a little girl, do you remember any stories specific to your town that you loved.





LV: Yes. La Yegua de Moca (The Mare of Moca). It was my favorite. Mother told me it when I was a small girl. 





DO: What do you remember about it?





LV: It was about a girl. The girl was named Ramona and she was in love with a man who worked a finca (slang that translates into property or farm). She was rich and had beautiful things but he was poor. You know how these things go. She wanted to run away, and far. But her dad caught her and she was locked away. To escape and be with her love, to the devil she sold her soul. He turned her into the most beautiful white horse, but of course the devil is a trickster. She had to live forever like that. A white horse. You know how my town is all mountains and green, she had to wander as a horse in those mountains forever. 





DO: Wow. It’s a sad story, why do you like it so much?





LV: I don’t know, to tell you the truth. I like the idea of her being free at least in the way that she was free from her father. 





Analysis





This is a famous myth in Moca sometimes literally just being called “La Moca.” It’s part of the town’s cultural identity and connects with something important to them: agriculture and land. Both characters were tied to a farm in some way, Ramona was the daughter of a wealthy farm owner and her lover was a farm worker. This story shows the cultural beliefs about wealth and social status. Ramona’s father would rather have her locked away than be with someone in a lower class, showing how important status can be to this town. It also demonstrates how important religion is to Puerto Rico’s culture. Ramona sells her soul to the devil and thus is punished for the rest of her life. In Puerto Rican culture, God is everything. Having the character speak to the devil and then be punished for all eternity illustrates what they believe happens when you stray from God.