Also known as wa Huang and nu Yin, the Nu Wa family in historical records is the pioneer of Chinese culture and the God of blessing the country.
According to legend, Nuwa created human beings 70 times a day. She created human beings with yellow clay, created human society and established marriage system. Because of the collapse of the earth, she melted colored stones to make up for the sky and chopped turtles to make up for the four poles, leaving behind the myth of Nuwa's making up for the sky.
Nu Wa is not only a female who mends the heaven and saves the world, but also a goddess who creates human beings by kneading earth. She is also a god of nature who creates all things. She has great powers to transform all things, and can create at least 70 things every day. She was the creator of the world, so she was called the mother of the earth. She was widely worshipped by the people for a long time.
Ancient mythology
According to the information of prehistoric people's struggle against flood and their life imprint of reproductive worship provided by archaeological sites, remains and painted pottery patterns, the historical and cultural origin of Nuwa lies in the inheritance of the concept of female worship in primitive matriarchal society.
There are also titles such as wa Huang, Ling WA, di WA, Feng Huang, nu Yin, nu Huang, nu Di, nu Xi Shi, Shen Nu, Yin Huang, Yin Di, di Nu, etc. in historical records, Nu Wa's surname, Feng (or Feng, nu), is the mother of the earth in ancient legends.
It is said that her name is fenglixi (or fenglixi), and she is an ancient goddess in Chinese historical mythology and legend who has greatly saved all things. It is said that she is the mother of the Chinese people. She kindly created life and bravely took care of the living beings from natural disasters. She is the creator God and the first Mother God widely and long worshipped by the people. She has great powers to transform all things, and can create at least 70 things every day.
It is said that Nuwa imitated herself with loess and created human society. [1] There is also a legend that Nuwa mended the sky, that is, there was a great disaster in nature. The sky collapsed and the earth collapsed. Birds and beasts of prey came out to harm the people. Nuwa smelted five colored stones to repair the sky, killed the beasts and birds of prey, and rebuilt the quadrupole pillar to level the world. [3] In addition, it is said that Nu Wa made some musical instruments called Sheng Huang, Se and long, so people regarded Nu Wa as the goddess of music. In the records, she established a marriage system for human beings, making young men and women marry each other and reproduce, so she was also passed down as the goddess of marriage. [2] When Nu Wa saw that people were working at sunrise and resting at sunset, her life was monotonous, and she felt pity for them. She turned dew into wine and gave it to the people. People drink mellow beauty, relieve fatigue, relax muscles and blood, people are grateful, to wine to respect Nu Wa, later became etiquette, Nu Wa was respected as the God of etiquette.
The myth of Nuwa has a dual nature. In the first series, Nu Wa, as the goddess of creation, appeared in the image of a God, known as the mother of human beings and the mother of earth. The second is Nuwa, as a virtuous king in ancient times, appearing in the image of human beings, who is the leader of matriarchal clan and one of the three emperors in ancient times.
Historical status
Nu Wa is the common ancestor of the Chinese nation and the mother of the Chinese nation. Nuwa culture has a long history, broad and profound, rich content, is the prehistoric civilization and the excellent traditional culture of the Chinese nation, is also an important research object of Chinese prehistoric civilization.
Nuwa is recorded in the ancient books of pre Qin Dynasty, such as Shi Zhen Pian, Chu Ci, Li Ji, Shan Hai Jing, Huai Nan Zi, and the historical materials since Qin and Han Dynasties, such as Han Shu, general meaning of customs, Emperor Century, Du Yi Zhi, Lu Shi, Yi Shi, Shi Ji, etc. It plays an important role in the whole ancient culture series. It is an important part of the history of human development and folk custom research, and its value is: first, it has outstanding historical and cultural research value, and it is an important historical material for inheriting Chinese civilization and national spirit; second, it plays an important role in enhancing national cohesion and building a harmonious society; third, it plays an important role in strengthening entrepreneurship, enriching the cultural treasure house of the Chinese nation, and promoting cultural exchanges; fourth, it plays an important role in strengthening national cohesion and building a harmonious society It reflects the peculiar folk and folk cultural phenomenon, and has far-reaching historical significance for life etiquette, human survival and cultural inheritance. [11]
Nuwa's status changed from time to time, sometimes above, sometimes within, sometimes under the three emperors. It is said that there are three reasons
1、 In myths and legends, Nuwa transformed all things, and her status was very high, above the three emperors;
2、 According to the legend, Fuxi and Nuwa were both blood relatives and husband and wife. They were all family members. When they were included in the three emperors, sometimes both of them were chosen, sometimes only one was chosen as the representative;
3、 The prominent position of Shangshu in the Scriptures made the views of Fuxi, Shennong and Huangdi recognized by most people. Moreover, Nuwa was in the matriarchal society, and then in the paternal society, where men were respected, so she was under the three emperors.
Creation Myth
In the myth of Nu Wa, from the initial transformation of Nu Wa into God, then to the transformation of all things, to the creation of man and the mending of heaven, all these achievements are carried out in the state of opposition between heaven and earth. Before Nu Wa, there was no heaven, no earth and no man. Since the birth of Nu Wa, she first changed her body into God, and the appearance of God led to the birth of heaven. Then Nu Wa changed everything with her body, followed by the appearance of all things, and the earth also appeared. At this time, heaven and earth were peaceful.
It can be seen from the records of Nuwa in Shanhaijing, Chuci, ShuoWenJieZi and other ancient books of Qin and Han dynasties that Nuwa turned into all things and Protoss, which is consistent with the idea of transforming the body organs into all things (and gods) after the fall of ancient gods in the creation myths of all nations in the world. Comparing Nu Wa with the ancient creation myths recorded by other countries, this description shows that at the beginning of creation, before everything else, the material used by God to create can only be his own body.
Scholars have come to the conclusion from the study of ancient books such as Shanhaijing, Huainanzi, Chuci, Tongyi of customs, shuijingzhu, duyizhi, taipingyulan, etc., that the most outstanding achievements of Nuwa, one of the mythical and legendary figures, are "kneading earth to make man", "refining stone to mend the sky", "making Shenghuang" and "setting up marriage and combining husband and wife". But one point is often ignored, that is, the folk living myth and legend reflects that Nuwa is the creator of all things in the world.
In many parts of China, there is a legend that Nuwa made chickens on the first day of the first lunar month, dogs on the second lunar month, pigs on the third lunar month, sheep on the fourth lunar month, cattle on the fifth lunar month, horses on the sixth lunar month, and human beings on the seventh lunar month. Some living myths also say that Nu Wa's body has become land, her bones have become mountains, her hair has become vegetation, her blood has become a river, just like Pangu, the great God of creation. These living myths and legends are the continuation of ancient beliefs in today's folk, and deserve people's special attention.
The ancients believed that chicken, dog, pig and sheep represented spring, summer, autumn and winter, and cattle and horses represented earth and heaven. That's why Ban Gu said in the book of the Han Dynasty (the first chapter of the annals of the law and calendar), "seven, the four seasons of heaven and earth, is the beginning of man." This is one of the sources of calling the seventh day of the first month "human day". Xu Shen also emphasized in Shuowen: "WA, the ancient goddess, is the one who cultivates all things." That is to say, Nu Wa is not only a woman who made up the sky and made man, but also a great God of nature who created all things.
According to the records of Chu silk book of Changsha bullet depot, when Nu Wa Fu Xi created things, there was heaven and earth, but it was still a desolation. So Fu Xi married Nu Wa, gave birth to four children, and named everything.
