Sankai ibutsu: An Early Seventeenth-Century
Illustrated Manuscript
MasakoNakagawa

Villanova

University

Japanese

The Sankai ibutsu !-!-i • • and the Shan-hai jing I-]-l•
The Sankai ibutsu (Mythical Creatures of the Mountains and Seas, two volumes)
is a large Nara ehon ,•, y• •,• • (22.0 cm. x 30.2 cm.), a Japanese illustrated book fromthe seventeenth century. It is housed in the Spencer Collection of the New York Public
Library. William Augustus Spencer (1870-1912) established a trust fund to purchase thefinest illustrated books that could be procured from any country and in any language.
Over 8000 items belong to the Spencer Collection. Among them the Japanese collection,
numbering more than 600, covers all varieties of representative illustrated books andmanuscripts of Japan from the twelfth century to the end of the nineteenth century. The
catalogue of the Japanese collection is available under the title, Catalogue of Japanese
Illustrated Books and Manuscripts in the Spencer Collection of the New York Pub#c
Library by Shigeo Sorimachi • •J- • •. In the foreword to his catalogue Sorimachi
states, "Even in Japan, there are only one or two collections equal to this one both inquality and in quantity" (p. 18).
The English notations in the back of the first volume of the Sankai ibutsu read,"Sankai ibutsu (Pictorial Depictions of the Monsters of the Mountains and the Seas)
painted by Naka no In • ha © t,• /v, in the early 17th-century. Presented to His
Imperial Majesty Meiji the Great in 1880," and "Purchased for The Spencer Collection,
The New York Public Library from Shigeo Sorimachi, Tokyo Japan, Spring 1940." The
Sankai ibutsu was on exhibition in Tokyo in August 1979 while the International
Conference on Nara Picture Books was being held.
This exquisite Sankai ibutsu introduces 47 mythical creatures from ancient China.
These creatures consist of mythical beings, hybrid forms, strange animals and fish. The
elaborate illustrations of each creature in landscape settings with full colors and gold
paint are complemented by short explanatory texts. Most of the creatures are derived
from the sections on beings and animals or birds found in the San-ts 'ai t'u-hui _•__Jjf [] •(Tripartite Picture Assembly) which was compiled by Wang Ch'i qZ • (1565-1614) inNanking about 1610. These sections of the San-ts 'ai t'u-hui, in turn, are indebted to the
Shah-hal ching (The Classic of the Mountains and Seas). The Shan-hai ching is theclosest parallel in Chinese literature to the medieval Latin bestiaries and books on
marvels and monsters. The present text of the Shan-hai thing in eighteen volumes wasedited by Kuo P'o •g • (276-324). The first five chapters are believed to have been
written before 250 B.C.E, the next eight before 20 B.C.E., and it is said to have reached
its present state before 250 C.E. The Shah-hal ching is considered to have once been the
text for an illustrated geographical map and was classified as a geographical work until
the T'ang dynasty. It was said that mythical creatures had been depicted on the map
which was lost.
24

The Shan-hai ching is traditionally considered to be a work of Y• •, the founderof the Hsia dynasty in 2205 B.C.E., and I •:, a minister of the preceding ruler Shun •, alegendary ruler, 2255-2205 B.C.E. It was said to be an expert on animals as well as on
the use of fire. In their initial flood-controlling efforts, Yt• and I traveled across theempire and produced a sort of log, or record, of what they saw and encountered in theirtravels, which became the Shah-hal ching. Later, this book served as a guide to travelers
visiting holy mountains and other sites, informing them of the strange creatures, animals,
hybrids, and spirits, that they might encounter in their wanderings. It also informed thetravelers of the power that such creatures might wield, of the consequences of meeting
them, consuming their flesh, or wearing their fur, and of sacrificial rites. Althoughrejected as unsound by Ssu-ma Ch'ien • ,1• •]• in the Shih-chi • • (Records of theGrand Historian), the contents of the Shah-hal ching combined with the traditional
authorship of antiquity may imply its roots in the ancient mythological world.

Mythology and Sankai ibutsu
Many of the 47 creatures of the Sankai ibutsu are in a hybrid form. In the ancientworld animals were regarded with admiration and affection until the eighth century
B.C.E. when they became man's potential enemy largely due to the development ofagriculture as a primary occupation. 2 Especially, many of the hybrids found in volume
one of the Sankai ibutsu are partially a human form and belong .to the category of shen:•I, holy spirits attached to particular localities. Michael Loewe points out the following
two principals for formation of such hybrids:
1. Identification of man with the animal world.

Tribal ancestors were traced toanimals; attempts were made to make contact with the animal spirits of another world bymeans of physical assimilation.
2. Euhemerisation: man was transforming his image of mighty being from animal
into human forms; the myths and gods of an earlier origin were transformed into beingsof authentic history)
A close examination of the sources of the Sankai ibutsu reveals that fourteencreatures (30%, the items asterisked below) are derived from the last four pages of the
San-ts 'ai t u-hui, "Beings," Section 14.

Sankai ibutsu
Volume 1
1. YO-•rh*
2. Feng-t'ai*
3. Ju-shou*
4. Chiao-ch'ung*
5. T'ien-wu*
6. Ch'iang-liang*
7. Shen-pa

•_•
•j•
)•J•
•j•
•:•:
• J•:

;•

Volume 2
25
26
27
28
29
30
31

1 Twitchett and Loewe, eds., Cambridge History of China, vol. 1, p. 658.
2 Michael Loewe, Chinese ldeas of Life andDeath, p. 71.
3 Michael Loewe, "Man and Beast," p. 100.

25

8. She-shih*
9. Chu-yin*
10. Ti-chiang*
11. Hsiang-i shih*
12. Fei-yi
13. Ku*14. Shen-lu*
15. Ch't•eh-shen*
16. Han-fang bird
17. HsOan-ho
18. Luan
19. Pi-yi bird
20. Yo-tsu
21. Tzu-shu
22. Shu-ssu
23. Fu-chi
24. T'o-chi

Twelve of these fourteen mostly humanoid monsters belong to the first and second
categories of Heinz Mode's classification, which are believed to be older than the others:

body or with an animal body in a markedly
posture, with an animal head, or some other features of animal origin.

1. Monsters with a humanhuman
The earliest of all.
2. Monsters with an animal, or in unmistakably animal posture,
combined with a human head, a human chest, or other purely human feature.
3. Monsters made up of parts (body and head) taken from different
animal species or with other animal features added.
4. Monstrous figures and combinations with deliberate reduplication or

simplification, one-legged, long-eared, etc.
5. Natural phenomena or man-made objects are given human or animalfeatures and turned into new entities, often with only small, symbolic changes. 4

Three creatures among the twelve humanoid types in Sankai ibutsu are Mode category
The following .is the text and its accompanying
one and associated with snakes.
illustrations of those three creatures:
3. Ju-shou

Ju-shou is the gold spirit of the West. There is a green snake wrapped around its left ear.
Ju-shou rides on two dragons, has thick hair around its face and eyes, and holds a halberd
in its tiger claws.
6. Ch'iang-liang

4 Heinz Mode, Fabulous Beasts and Demons, p. 18

26

The central mountain in the Great Beyond (Ta Huang 7k• • ) is called Pei-chi
There lives a spirit with a snake in its mouth. It has a tiger's head, a human body, four
horse hoofs, long arms, and is called Ch'iang-liang.
42. Hei-jen
There is a being called Hei-jen on Mt. I-chu • •_ 1-[1. It has a tiger's head and holds
snake in each hand while chewing them.

aA shamanistic interpretation may shed light on these three creatures. Shamans are
sometimes portrayed in animal or hybrid form; they may be shown accompanied bysnakes. 5 The Shah-hal ching states that in the land of Wu Hsien (the Shaman Hsien)
there are those who brandish green or blue snakes in their right hand and red snakes intheir let't hands. This is on Mount Teng-pao, where a whole host of shamans move up

and down. 6
A shamanistic tradition certainly spread well beyond the boundaries of China.
Sankai ibutsu, no. 42, Hei-jen above holds snakes in both hands, the posture not unlikethat of Qudeshet, the Western Asiatic goddess. Although the significance of a snake
might differ, there are religious and shamanistic representations from other cultures,
which exhibit some degree of similarity,
Sankai ibutsu and Creation Myths
Although not a humanoid form, Ti-chiang is included-in the above-mentioned
fourteen beings. The text reads:
A spirit lives on Mt. T'ien.

It looks like a leather sack. The top of its back is red andyellow, and its body glows like fire. It has six feet and four wings. It is chaos with noface. It can sing and dance, and is called Ti-chiang.

This text is derived from the San-ts 'ai t'u-hui, "Beings," Section 14 and the Shah-hal
ching, Hsi-shan ching. This mythical being, Ti-chiang, is also called Hun-tun •'•: •(Chaos). According to the Chuang-tzu (a Taoist text from third century, B.C.E.), theemperor of the North Sea, Hu ,•,, and the emperor of the South Sea, Hu •, used to meetsometimes at the residence of the emperor of the Central Domain, Hun-tun. In order torepay Hun-tun's hospitality, Hu and Hu bored for him seven orifices (eyes, ears, nostrils,
and mouth) at the rate of one orifice a day. On the seventh day, however, Hun-tun died(the sacrifice of primordial beings). Mythological accounts regarding Hun-tun, theprimal being, are not all in agreement. He is also depicted as a long-haired dog. The dog
has eyes, but cannot see; ears, but cannot hear; and he is without five viscera. 7 Hun-tun isalso said to be the Yellow Emperor himself or, according to the Tso chuan •/•. (fourth
century, B.C.E.), he is the evil son of an early sage ruler.
Mitarai Masaru • •- • • in his Kodai Chftgoku no kamigami: kodai densetsu no
kenky• speculates that Ti-chiang (Hun-tun) may be a wild swan or goose from the
5 Twitchett and Loewe, eds., Cambridge History of China, vol. 1, p. 672.
6 Michael Loewe, Chinese Ideas of Life andDeath, p. 104.
7 Pierre Grimal, Larousse World Mythology, p. 274.

27

iconographic similarity between chiang •_ and hung •'• .8 He also notes that the bird Tichiang is related to a shamanistic dance. In ancient China shamans were sometimes
depicted wearing feathers during their ritual dance. As stated in the Sankai ibutsu, Tichiang can sing and dance. His dancing may reflect the shaman's ecstatic dance
preceding his meeting with the spirit. 9
Creation myths are recorded in many other cultures. In Indian mythology Brahma
emerged from the golden egg created by the waters of chaos. Japanese myth states that
there was only chaos until Heaven and Earth separated. In connection with Hun-tun (Tichiang), however, the creation myth of Norse mythology is of more interest. Much of ourknowledge of the Teutonic religion which extended through Germany, Scandinavia, andEngland stems from/he Elder Edda and/he Younger Edda compiled by the Icelandic
historian Snorri Sturluson (1173-1241) in Iceland during the Middle Ages. The Eddas
state that there were two places: one in the south, Muspell, was all fire and light; and one
in the north, Niflheim, was icy and dark. The two atmospheres met in an emptinessbetween them called Ginnungagap. There the hot and the cold mixed and caused
moisture to form and life to begin, first as the evil frost giant Ymir. 10 Here its similarity
to the account of Hun-tun in the Chuang-tzu should be noted.
Chu-yin (the flaming dragon) in Sankai ibutsu is also considered to be related to
Ti-chiang:
Chu-yin is the name of the spirit which lives on Mt. Chung beyond the Northem Sea.
When it opens its eyes, day breaks. When it weeps, night falls, when it breathes softly,
spring turns into summer, and when it blows hard, the winter begins. It neither drinks
Its breath makes the wind. Chu-yin is a red dragon with a body over one
nor eats.
hundred li long and the face of a man.

Certainly, Ti-chiang and Chu-yin, both of which relate to the primordial beings, suggest
the episodic nature of China's ancient myth. Derk Bodde argues that Chinese myths are
not homogeneous creations, but rather amalgams, still incomplete at the time of theirrecordings, and he suspects that they derive from regionally and ethnically diversified
materials. 11 In ancient Chinese culture individual myths took their place, but nosystematic mythology in the form of an integrated body of material came into being. 12
Centuries of Confucian tradition in China tended to disregard descriptions of mythicalcreatures as a production of the imagination; even if those texts are admitted to having
its later Japanese version,
once existed, the evidence, including the Shah-hal ching and
the Sankai ibutsu, implies the existence of a mythological tradition of diverse nature inancient China.

8 Mitarai Masaru, Kodai Chftgoku no kamigami: kodai densetsu no kenk•, pp. 715, 716.
9 It6 Seiji, Nihon shinwa to Ch•tgoku shinwa, p. 201.
10 David Adams Leeming, A Dictionary of Creation Myths, p. 134.
11 In his Essays on Chinese Civilization.
12 Twitchett and Loewe, eds., Cambridge History of China, vol. I, p. 657.

28

Abbreviations:
HE: John A.

Goodall, Heaven and Earth:

120 Album Leaves
1610. London: Lund Humphries, 1979.

from a Ming

Encyclopedia: San-ts 'ait 'u-huL
SHC: Hsiao-Chieh Cheng, Hui-Chen Pai Cheng and Kenneth Lawrence, trans.,
Shah Hal Ching. Taiwan: The Committee for Compilation and Examination of the Seriesof Chinese Classics, 1985.
STTH: Wang Ch'i :qz 2•, San-ts 'ai t'u-hui -:• [] •', 3 vols.
hua shu-tien, 1988.

Shanghai: Hsin-

Sankai ibutsu (Mysterious Creatures of the Mountains and Seas)
Volume I
1. YO-•rh [Source: STTH, p. 869]
In the water [fiver] of Han-erh lives

YO-erh, the deity of mountain climbing.
Wearing red clothes and a yellow crown, holding a long ruler, he rides a horse.
He likes to fide. Y0-•rh was seen at the time of Duke Huan of Ch'i. 13 The
Kuan Tzu t•__• [written by Kuan Chung in the seventh century B.C.E.] says that
Ya-erh appears when the ruler is victorious.
2. Feng-t'ai [SHC, Chung Shan Ching, p. 94; STTH, p. 870]
There are many deep green jade stones (ts'ang ,vii) on Mt. Ho•[l IJ-I

An

auspicious spirit called Feng-t'ai resides there. This spirit which rules overmatters of happiness and virtue resembles a person with a tiger's tail. It prefers
to live on the south side of Mt. Pei • •. Wherever it goes, there is brilliance.
.The spirit Feng-t'ai TM excites the ch 'i •, [vital power] 15 of heaven and earth andis able to form clouds and cause rain. Feng-t'ai appears in the Spring andAutumn Annals (Ch 'un-ch 'iu ¢•:ff• ) by Confucius.
3. Ju-shou [SHC, Hai Wai Hsi Ching, p. 157; HE, p. 42; STTH, p. 870]
Ju-shou, the gold spirit of the West. There is a green snake wrapped around its
left ear. Ju-shou rides on two dragons, has thick hair around its face and eyes,
and holds a halberd in its tiger's claws.
4. Chiao-ch'ung[SHC, Chung Shan Ching, p. 105; STTH, p. 872]
The spirit which resides on Mr. Yang-hsO [• • I_1_1 has a human form and twoheads. It is called Chiao-ch'ung.
5. T'ien-wu[SHC, Wai Tung Ching, p. 172; STTH, p. 869]

13 Duke Huan died in 643 B.C.E. He was the most celebrated among five chiet'mins.
14 T'ai-feng •I• in SHC (Shan Hai Ching).
15 Ch'i •is a spiritually active principle.

29

There is a spirit in the Chao Yang Valley g•j [• • called T'ien-wu. He is thelord of the waters. 16 T'ien-wu has a tiger body and a human face, eight heads,
eight feet, and eight tails, all of them green and yellow.
6. Ch'iang-liang [SHC, Ta Huang Pei Ching, pp. 246, 247; STTH, p. 871]
The central mountain in the Great Beyond (Ta Huang) is called Pei-chi. There
lives a spirit with a snake in its mouth. It has a tiger's head, a human body, four
horse hoofs, long arms, and is called Ch'iang-liang. 17
7. Shen-pa [SHC, Hsi Shan Ching, p. 40; STTH, p. 2237]
The spirit ofMt. Kang I•lJ I_1_1 is this spirit of drought. It is a type of hobgoblin, a8

Shen-pa has a human face and an animal body but only one hand and one foot.
Where it resides, there is no rain.

8. She-shih [SHC, Hai .Wai Tung Ching, p. 171; STTH, p. 871]
The She Pi's corpse is the name of this spirit. It lives to the north of the Land of
Big People. It has an animal body, a human head and face, and large ears
around which two green snakes are twisted. It is called Kan Yti's • • corpse. 19
9. Chu-yin [SHC, Hai Wai Pei Ching, p. 163; STTH, p. 870]
Chu-yin is the name of the spirit which lives on Mt. Chung • I_l_l beyond theNorthern Sea. When it opens its eyes, day breaks. When it weeps, :° night falls.
When it breathes softly, spring turns into summer and when it blows hard, thewinter begins. It neither drinks nor eats. Its breath makes the wind. Chu-yin is:a [about 33 miles] and thea red dragon with a body over one hundred li longface of a man.
10. Ti-chiang [SHC, p. 34; STTH, p. 871]
A spirit that lives on Mt. T'ien • kLI. It looks like a leather sack. The top of its
back is red and yellow, and its body glows like fire. 2: It has six feet and fourwings and no face. It can sing and dance, and is called Ti-chiang.
11. Hsiang-i shih [SHC, Hai Wai Pei Ching, p. 164; HE, p. 73 and p. 81; STTH,
p. 871]To the north of the K'un-lun J•moutains and to the east of Ju-li lives Hsiangshih, the minister ofKung Kung •zl•-V .23 Hsiang-i shih has a green and yellow
snake's body, but its nine heads all have human faces. He dares not head for the
16 Pai (817 One of the devouring creatures personified by the dancers in the Great Exocism
Festivals in Classical China, p. 88).
18 Ch'ih Mei •1•. See Festivals in Classical China, p. 102.
19 Shih, a corpse, is one who impersonates the dead at a sacrifice.
20 SHC reads "its eyes close."
21 One thousand li long (SHC)I
22 The text reads "seik6 ari •5•f; •b 9 ." "Sei" is animal spirit.
23 Kung Kung was said to have occupied the Nine Divisions of China.

3O(Derk Bodde,north because he strongly fears the platform Of Kung Kung with threeserpentine-tiger forms on each of four corners. :4 When Hsiang-i shih venturesout with all nine heads erect, it heads south.
12. Fei-yi [SHC, Pei Shan Ching, p. 50; STTH, p. 2250]
A snake spirit that resides on Mt. Yang. It is called Fei-yi and resembles a snakewith two bodies, six legs, and four wings. If someone catches a glimpse of Fei-

yi, there will be a great drought throughout the nation. During the reign ofEmperor T'ang •t• ,:5 the snake spirit appeared and a nine-year drought
followed.
13. Ku [SHC, Hsi Shan Ching, p. 30; HE, p. 42; STTH. p. 869]
The spirit Ku resides on Mt. Chung. 26 It has the face of a human and the bodyof a dragon.
14. Shen-lu [SHC, Hai Nei Hsi Ching, p. 188; STTI-I, p. 869]
There is a spirit serving the Heavenly Ruler (T'ien Ti • •) called Shen-lu. It
is also called by the name Chien-wu !•-•=. It has the body of a tiger with nineheads with human faces. It rules the nine regions.
15. Ch'iaeh-shen [SHC, Nan Shan Ching, p. 8; HE, p. 42; STTH, p. 870]
Ch'tieh-shen, the spirit of Mr. Ch'0eh, has the body of a bird and the head of a
dragon. In ancient times, a jade chang • [a pointed demi-seeptre] 27 and pi •[an annular disk] were used when a sacrificial animal was offered to it in thetemple ceremonies.
16. Hao-fang [SHC, Hsi Shan Ching, p. 33; STTH, p. 2171]
There is a bird that lives on Mt. I-chang •j•_• LL!. It looks like a crane with redmarkings and a white bill, but it has only one foot. It is called the Hao-fang
bird. If someone sees this strange bird there will be a natural disaster. The"Canons of Yao and Shun" [in the Shang shu • • or Book of History] says thatduring the reign of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, a man presented a cranewith one foot to the Emperor's court. The people were all awestruck. TungFang-shuo • jy • :8 then told the Emperor that it was the Hao;fang bird fromthe Shah Hai Ching. Indeed, it was this one.
17. Hsiaan-ho [STTH, p. 2158]
A black crane lives on Mt. Lei -•" LLI, its color as dark as black lacquer. When it
lives to be 360 years old, it turns pure black. This black crane once appeared24

According to John A. Goodall's Heaven and Earth, they are three serpentine-tiger forms

whose heads all face south.
25 T'ang is the founder of the Shang dynasty, 1766 B.C.E
26 According to SHC, Ku is the son of Mt. Chung.
27 The chang was a symbol of the South in which quarters the mountain was placed.
28 Tung Fang-shuo served Emperor Wu (r. 140-85 B.C.E.) of the Han Dynasty.
believed to be a supernatural being sent into this world as punishment.
31

He

was

when the monarch held a music concert. Another time several of the black birds
flew over the Koulkun mountains [in Tibet] when the Yellow Emperor took amusic lesson. 29
18. Luan [SHC, Hsi Shan Ching, p. 24; HE, p. 51; STTH, p. 2156]
A bird of a different type lives on Mt. Nti-ma 2•" • ILl. It looks like a pheasantwith a long tail and the colorings of beautiful gems. It is called Luan and its
appearance is an omen of world peace. During the reign of King Ching •-,z• ofthe Chou Dynasty, 3° Luan was presented to the court by the westem frontier

tribes.
19. Pi-yi bird [SHC, Hai Wai Nan Ching, p. 147/Hsi Shan Ching, p. 29; STTH,
p. 2157]
There are the Pi-yi [united wings] birds 31 in the Land of Chieh Hsiung ,• J]f• [].
Erh ya • •f: 32 says that there are Pi-yi birds in the south. The Pi-yi must unite
their wings in order to fly. This bird is called Chien. The Chien resemble a wild
duck with one eye and one wing, in green and red colors. Two of them combine
their wings and then fly. When the king is virtuous and insightful, these birds
appear.
20. Yo-tsu [STTH, p. 2191]
The Yo-tsu lives on Mt. Jan-hsOeh.

to a3P4hoenix, multi-coloredand purple, but it is actually a spirit bird.It isKuosimilar• says that when the Yo[]Ya

33

cried on Mt. Ch'i • I_1_1, the home of the ancestors of the Chou, it wasomen of the beginning of the Chou Dynasty.

tsu

an

21. Tzu-shu [SHC, Tung Shan Ching, p. 69; STTH, p. 2194]
A bird that lives on Mt. Chfi-fu • •)• I_1_1 and resembles a chicken with a rat tail.
It is called the Tzu-shu [Tzu rat]. Its appearance presages a great drought.

22. Shu-ssu [SHC, Hsi Shan Ching, p. 19; STTH, p. 2191]
It resembles a crow with human feet and is called Shu-ssu.

goiter.

It is eaten to cure

23. Fu-chi [SHC, Hsi Shan Ching, pp. 24, 25; STTI-I, p. 2195]
A bird that lives on Mt. Lu-t'ai •g ;• IJ-I It is similar to a rooster but has ahuman face. It is named Fu-chi after its call. When it appears, it means an army

is coming.

The Yellow Empror is a legendary monarch of high antiquity.
King Ching may be either •',_q•orThe same birds appeared as Man-man in Hsi Shan Ching.
A lexicographical work by Liu Hsi, about 200 C.E.
Black, red, blue, white, and yellow.
Kuo Yu (Narratives of the States) by Tso Ch'iu-ming, Chou dynasty, contains conversations
related to political intrigues.
29
30
31
32
33
34

32

24. T'o-chi
A bird that lives on Mt. Hsi • kl_l. It measures seven feet from its body to head
and is named the T'o-chi. 35 It looks like a chicken with a long neck.

Volume II
25. Chu [SHC, Nan Shan Ching, p. 6; STTH, p. 2191]
A bird lives on Mt. Ch'ang-she :• • k[-I. It looks like an owl with a bird bodyand a human head and face. Its feet resemble human hands. The bird is called
Chu. It calls out its name. Its appearance means the country's ruler and thoseneglected officials will be banished.
26. I-t'u [SHC, Hsi Shan Ching, pp. 34, 35; STTH, p. 2193]
A bird lives on Mt. I-wang •, •_• I_1_1. It resembles a crow with three heads andsix tails. It is both male and female in one body, and laughs well. It is called It'u. If eaten, it prevents one from dozing off. 36 If wearing it at the waist, it

wards off danger.

27. Po-tse [STTH, p. 2223]
The Marsh Beast lives on Mt.

Tung-wang • • I_1_1. It is named Po-tse. It
speaks well. When the monarch is bright and insightful, it appears. Once the
Yellow Emperor, on his hunting expedition, arrived at the Eastern Sea where the
Po-tse appeared and spoke to him. Sometimes it prevents harms.
[SHC, Han Nei Pei Ching, p. 196; STTH, p. 2203]
Ma-shih Land •j• L:• [] is located in the area beyond the sea. A benevolent beast
lives there. It resembles a tiger with a long tail. It carries living creatures anddoes not eat them. It is called Tsou-wu. One can ride on it a thousand li [about
333 miles] in a single day. Liu T'ao 37 '• [by Lu Wang, Chou Dynasty] statesthat after King Wen •qz [the first Chou king] was imprisoned by Chou [the last
Shang king], the Tsou-wu was hunted down and presented to Chou. He was sopleased that he released King Wen.
28. Tsou-wu

29. Ch'iung-ch'i [SHC, Hsi Shan Ching, p. 41/Hai Nei Ching, p. 196; STTH, p.
2224]
A beast that lives on Mt. Kuei • I-[I It sounds like the braying of an ass. 3s It
resembles a cow. When a fight breaks out, it comes to the rescue. The beast is
not straightforward in nature. It eats men.
30. Mo [HE, p. 103, STTH, p. 2223]
In the mountains of the south, there lives a beast. It has an elephant's trunk, theeyes of a rhinoceros, an ox's tail, and a tiger's paws. Its body is yellow and
35
36
37
38

T'o J• means a camel.
sTrI-I reads "pu-mei" ;•FI• (prevent color-blindness).
Liu T'ao (Six Scabbards) is a book on military science.
Sqq'I-I reads "lo-wei wei-mao" l•j• •e; (the tail of a mule and bristling hair).

33

black, and is called the Mo [tapir]. By sleeping on its pelt one can ward off
pestilence. 39 A man should make a sketch of the Mo in order to be protectedfrom evil. It eats copper and iron but nothing else.
31. Pi-chien beast [STTH, p. 2234]

There is a beast in the west, called Pi-chien, also Ch'iung-chi•eh • ]i•. The
front part of its body is that of a mouse [or rat], the back that of a rabbit. Erh ya
calls it Ch'iung-hsti. It feeds in the Sea of North, eating licorice root. It leaves
When one Ch'iung-hsO comes, itsome of liquorice root at the end of feeding.
This
while
carrying
another
Ch'iung-hs0.
beast appears when the monarch
runs
is benevolent and insightful.

[HE, p. 58 and p. 62; STTH, p. 2216]
The Lung-ma emerges from the River Meng ff7 •. It is a benevolent horse. It
is eight feet (ch 'ih), five inches (ts'un) tall with a long neck and wings at its
side. Beside these grow hair which hangs down. It can walk on water withoutsinking. If an ordinary person is employed as a sage, 4° then Heaven does notheed the Way and the Earth does not value the precious. Therefore, the Lungma emerges from the river.
32. Lung-ma

33. Hsieh-ch'ih [STTI-I, p. 2202]
A divine beast that lives on Mt. Tung-wang, called Hsieh-ch'ih. It appeared
during the regin of Yao • (2357-55 B.C.). It wards off evil. It resembles alamb with one hom and four feet. When a ruler is successful in the matter of
litigation, it comes to the Censorate. According to an old story, it is a censor
and ritualist, also called Hsieh-ch'ih, a divine sheep. The king of Ch'u • :q:: 41
captured the Hsieh-ch'ih.
34. Ma-ch'ang [SHC, Chung Shan Ching, p. 91; HE, p. 83; STTH, p. 2225]
A beast that lives on Mt. Man-chu, called Ma-ch'ang. It has the face of a man
and a tiger,s body. It makes a sound like a baby and eats people. 42
35. Hsiao [SHC, p. 42; STTH, 2234]
The Hsiao lives on Mt. Yen-tzu • I• 1_13. It has the face of a man, the body of abear, with large wings. 43 If seen, there will be a severe drought.

[SHC, Chung Shan Ching, p. 136; STTH, p. 2238]
The Liang-ch'u lives on Mt. Mo-shih • :• ILl. It looks like a wildcat, with awhite head and a tiger's claws. Its appearance may be an omen of a battle in the
36. Liang-ch'ustate.

39 In Japan "'Mo" (Jap. Baku) is believed to devour bad dreams.
40 HE reads, "Ifa sage employs people."
41 A feudal state, 740 330 B.C.E.
42 The manticore, the man-eating tiger of the bestiaries, also,
shown with a human head (HE, p. 91).
43 SHC here reads "the tail of a dog."34

by some strange imagining, is37. K'uei [SHC, Ta Huang Tung Ching, p. 218; STTH, p. 2216]
There is a beast in the East Sea. It is like a cow, with a deep green body, nohorns, and one foot. When it comes and goes, there is always a storm. Its voice
is like a thunder and is called K'uei. During the reign of the Yellow Emperor, it
Later, when the drum waswas caught and a drum was made out of its skin.
beaten with its bone, 44 it sounded like thunder, and could be heard 500//away.
38. Hsing-hsing [SHC, Nan Shang Ching, p. 1/Hai Nei Nan Ching, p. 180/Hai
Nei Ching, p. 256; STTH, p. 2240]
A beasts live on Mt. Ch(ieh. It has a human face with the body of a pig,
resembling an ape, with long hair. It speaks well but never laughs. The Hsinghsing likes to play in a group. People place wine on a road and tie sandals,
awaiting it. 45 The Hsing-hsing says they try to trap him so it does not drink
wine at first, but later it cannot resist and finally becomes drunk. Then people
pull the shoes and capture him. That is why it says that the Hsing-hsing knows
going but not coming.

39. Ch'ih-pao [STTH, p. 2219]
The Ch'ih-pao [red leopard] is a beast on Mt. Lung-t'ai • gj• I_1_1. It has a redbody with yellow mottles and deer hoofs, and is called Ch'ih-pao. The sectionof King Hstian in the Book of Odes 46 says that the king had a lord ofHan • [asmall feudal state] chase and capture the beast. The king gave the lord anorthern state. The lord as an Earl presented the leopard's skins. These were
the red leopard and yellow bear.
40. Wo-wa [STTH, p. 2217]
A dragon emerged from the Wei river and lives in the water of the Chou in theWest, where live many Water Horses. It holds its tail under its arms, 47 and iscalled Wo-wa. Chou-li ]-• • says that it is mottled in black. In the fourth yearof the Yiaan-fu reign of the Emperor Wu of the Han, the Wo-wa emerged fromthe water in Tun-huang. Its appearance is believed to be a particularly goodomen.

41. T'u-lou [SHC, Hsi Shan Ching, p. 31; STTH, p. 2232]
A beast lives in the K'un-lun hills, called T'u-lou. It resembles

a ghost withfour horns. The horns are sharp yet hard to hit. When the horns come in contact
with an object, the T'u-lou eats a fallen man.

44 SHC reads, 'q'he Yellow Emperor caught one, made a dram of its skin and beat it with thebone of a lei shou -• • (thunder animals) (p. 218). In Derk Bodde's Festivals in Classical
China, K'uei is one of the creatures that are destroyed in the Exorcism (pp. 106, 107).
45 Nan chung chih reads, '•When the hsing-hsing of the mountain valley see wine and sandals,
they know who set the trap and even know the names of his ancestors. They call out the names
and curse them, saying: Slave! Trying to trap me." (SHC, p. 183).
46 Shih ching, said to have been compiled by Confucius.
47 ST17-I reads "wen-pi niu-wei" •z:•.• (striped arms and the tail of cow).

3542. Hei-jen [SHC, Hai Nei Ching, p. 257; HE, p. 81]
There is a being called Hei-jen on Mt. I-chu. It has a tiger's head and holds asnake in each hand while chewing them.
43. Ch0eh-tuan [STTH, p. 2229]
There is a beast in the Tartar area, called ChOeh-tuan. Yin I •-• in the Han Shu• • [History of the Former Han Dynasty, by Pan Ku of the Later Han] saysthat the Chtieh-tuan resembles a cow. Its horn should be made into a bow.
44. Pa-she [SHC, Hai Nei Nan Ching, p. 180; STTH, p. 2250]
The Pa-she [python] lives in a place beyond the South Sea. It is eight hundred
feet [one hundred hsin] long and green, yellow, red, and black in color. It eats
The Jan • snake also
an elephant, then after three years expels the bones.
48
digested,
the snake twists itself
swallows a deer.
When the meat is fullyaround a tree, mashing it up, and expels the bones in its belly out through its
scales. The Jan is the same type as the Pa-she.
45. Jen fish [SHC, Pei Shan Ching, p. 57; STTH, p. 2267]
From Mt. Lung-hou • • ILl the Wang-chieh river flows to the east. In thewater live a lot of the Jen fish. The Jen fish resembles a beast, with four feet. It
makes a sound like a small child. If eaten, it cures epidemics. 49
46. Ch'ang-she [SHC, Pei Shan Ching, p. 48; STTH, p. 2250]
It is
The Ch'ang-she [long snake] lives on Mt. Ta-ch'eng • • I_1_1
5°
makes
sound
like
drums.
hundred feet [one hundred hsin] long. It
a

eight

47. Fei fish [SHC, Chung Shan Ching, p. 93; STTH, p. 2266]
Many Fei fish live in the river ofMt. K'uei • IJ-I. It resembles a small pig, witha red striped body. It has three legs and a horn Ifwom at the waist, it prevents
fear of thunder and lightning. Also, it wards offweapons.

Selected Bibliography

Anderson, George K. OM and Middle English Literature from the Beginnings to 1485.
New York: Collier Books, 1962.
Anderson, M. D. Animal Carvings in British Churches. London: Cambridge University
Press, 1938.
Bagrow, Leo. History of Cartography. London: C.A.Watts and Co. and Lts., 1964.
48 Shui ching (Book of Waters) by Sang Ch'in, Han dynasty, says about the Jan snake that eatsdeer (SHC, pp. 184, 185).
49 SHC says it prevents idiocy.
50 SHC reads that there is a snake called the ch 'ang-she (long snake) with hair like a pig's mane(p. 48).

36

Barnard, Noel, ed. Early Chinese Art and Its Possible Influence in the Pacific Basin.
Vol. 1. New York: Intercultural Arts Press, 1972.
Bodde, Derk. Festivals in Classical China: New Year and Other Annual Observances
during the Han Dynasty, 206 B.C.-A.D. 220. Princeton: Princeton University Press,
1975.

Essays on Chinese Civilization. Eds. Charles Le Blanc and Dorothy Borei.
Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1981.
Chang, K. C. Art, Myth, and Ritual: The Path to Political Authority in Ancient China.
Cambridge, Mass. and London: Harvard University Press, 1983.
Shang Civilization. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1980.
Cheng, Hsiao-Chieh, Hui-Chen Pai Cheng and Kenneth Lawrence Thern, trans. Shang
Hai Ching: Legendary Geography and Wonders of Ancient China. Taipei: National
Institute for Compilation and Translation, 1985.
Coblin, Weldon South. An Introductory Study of Textual and Linguistic Problems in
Erh-ya. Ph:D. Thesis. University of Washington, 1972.
Curley, Michael J., trans. Physiologus. Austin and London: University of Texas Press,
1979.

Doniger, Wendy. The Implied Spider: Politics and Theology In Myth. New York:
Columbia University Press, 1998.
Friedmann, Herbert. A Bestiary for Saint Jerome: Animal Symbolism in European
Religious Art. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1980.
Goodall, John A. Heaven and Earth: 120 Album Leaves from a Ming Encyclopedia: Sants 'ai t'u-hui, 1610. London: Lund Humphries, 1979.
Green, Miranda. The Gods of the Celts. Totowa, NJ: Barnes and Noble Books, 1986.
Grimal, Pierre. Larousse World Mythology. trans. Patricia Beardsworth. New York:
Excalibur Books, 1965.
Hentze, C. Chinese Tomb Figures: A Study in the Beliefs and Folklore of Ancient China.
London: Edward Goldston, 1928.
Hirth, Friedrich. The Ancient History of China. New York: Books for Libraries Press,
1969.

Ichiko Teiji. Zusetsu Nihon no koten, 13: Otogizrshi [] •-•(The Classics of Japan, Illustrated. Vol. 13: Fairy Tales). Tokyo: Shfieisha, 1980.
It6 Seiji •- j• • •. Nihon shinwa to Ch•goku shinwa(Japanese Myths and Chinese Myths). Tokyo: Gakuseisha, 1979.
James, Simon. The World of the Celts. London and New York: Thames and Hudson,
1993.

Kao, Karl S. Y., ed. Classical Chinese Tales of the Supernatural and the Fantastic:
Selections from the Third to the Tenth

Century. Bloomington: Indiana University

Press, 1985.

Keightley, David N. Sources of Shang History: The Oracle-Bone Inscriptions of Bronze
Age China. Berkeley, Los Angeles, and London: University of California Press,
1978.
ed.

The Origins of Chinese Civilization. Berkeley, Los Angeles, and London:
University of California Press, 1983.
Leeming, David Adams. A Dictionary of Creation Myths. New York: Oxford University

Press, 1996.
37

Bestiary: Beasts and Monsters in Myth andFolklore. New York: Tudor Publishing Company, 1969.
Loewe, Michael. Chinese Ideas of Life and Death: Faith, Myth and Reason in the Han
Period. London: George Allen & Unwin, 1982.
"Man and Beast." Numen 25.2 (1978).
Ma, Y. W. and Joseph S. M. Lau, ed. Traditional Chinese Stories: Themes andVariations. New York: Columbia University Press, 1978.
Mair, Victor H., ed. The Bronze Age and Early Iron Age Peoples of Eastern Central
Asia. Philadelphia: The Institute for the Study &Man, 1998.
McCulloch, Florence. Medieval Latin andFrench Bestiaries. Chapel Hill: University of
Lehner, Ernest and Johanna.

A Fantstic

North Carolina Press, 1962.
Mitarai Masaru • •- •b• P•. Kodai Chftgoku no kamigami: kodai densetsu no kenky• -••-• • [] 69 •g0/e -•- • •'• :• 69 ;fi• • (Gods in Ancient China: A Study of Ancient

Legends). Tokyo: S6gensha, 1984.
Mode, Heinz. Fabulous Beasts andDemons. London: Phaidon Press, 1975.
Ogawa Takuji zJ• ) l[ •j• •'•. Shina rekishi chiri kenky• • •J• • •, :• • • "• (Studies in
Chinese History and Geography)i Tokyo: K6bund6 shob6, 1928.
Quirke, Stephen and Jeffrey Spencer, ed. The British Museum Book of Ancient Egypt.
New York: Thames and Hudson, 1992.
Rawson, Jessica. "Commanding the Spirits: Control Through Bronze and Jade."
Orientations 29.2 (February 1998): 33-45.
Sacks, David. Encyclopedia of the Ancient Greek World. New York: Facts On File, Inc.,
1995.

Sorimachi, Shigeo. Catalogue of Japanese Illustrated Books and Manuscripts in the
Spencer Collection of The New York Public Library. Tokyo: Kobuns6, 1978.
Strouhal, Eugen. Life of the Ancient Egyptians. London: University of Oklahoma Press,
1992.

Twitchett, Denis and Loewe, Michael, eds. Cambridge History of China, Vol. 1: The
Ch'in and Han Empires, 221 B.C.-A.D. 220. Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press, 1986.
Watson, Burton. Records of the Grand Historian of China: Translated from The Shih chi
ofSsu-ma Ch 'ien. New York and London: Columbia University Press, 1961.
Wirtjes, Hanneke, ed. The Middle English Physiologus. Cambridge: Oxford University
Press, 1991.
Woodward, David, ed. Art and Cartography: Six Historical Essays: Chicago andLondon: University of Chicago Press, 1987.
Wu, K. C. The Chinese Heritage. New York: Crown Publishers, Inc., 1982.
Yang, C. K. Religion in Chinese Society: A Study of Contemporary Social Functions of

Religion and Some of Their Historical Factors.
University of California Press, 1961.

38

Berkeleyand Los

Angeles: