Chinese Mythology & Legends

Baihu, The White Tiger — The Warrior God of the West, Metal, and Slaughter

📍 Baihu

The White Tiger is the divine beast of Metal in the West. It governs matters of

Baize — The Illustrated Compendium of All Demons, Knowing Ghosts and Spirits

📍 Baize

The Emperor made a tour of inspection, traveling east to the sea and ascending M

Bìfāng, The One-Legged Flame — The Ancient Bird That Brings Fire

📍 Bìfāng

There is a bird here, shaped like a crane with one leg, red markings on a blue-g

Chongmingniao, The Double-Brightness Bird — A Four-Eyed Auspicious Bird That Wards Off Evil

📍 Chongmingniao

Chongmingniao, The Double-Brightness Bird

Dapeng, The Great Roc — The Carefree Giant Bird That Soars Ten Thousand Miles

📍 Dapeng

In the Northern Sea there is a fish, and its name is Kun. The Kun is so huge tha

Fenghuang (Chinese Phoenix) — All Birds Pay Homage, Virtue and Propriety Under Heaven

📍 Fenghuang

Five hundred li further east lies Mount Danxue. On this mountain dwells a bird t

Hundun, The Faceless Chaos — The Faceless, Mindless Primordial Chaos Beast

📍 Hundun

There is a deity whose form resembles a yellow sack, red as cinnabar fire, with

Loong (Chinese Dragon) — Chief of Scaled Creatures, Supreme Among Beasts

📍 Loong

In the northeast corner of the Great Wilderness, there is a mountain called Xion

Nian Shou, The New Year Monster — The Village-Devouring Beast of New Year's Eve

📍 Nian Shou

Nian Shou, The New Year Monster

Nine-Tailed Fox — The Enchanting Vixen of a Thousand Years of Cultivation

📍 Nine-Tailed Fox

Three hundred li further east, there is a mountain called Qingqiu. On it lives a

Qilin — An Auspicious Sign of Benevolent Beasts Descending to Bring Peace

📍 Qilin

The qilin, the phoenix, the spirit turtle, and the divine dragon are collectivel

Qinglong, The Azure Dragon — The Eastern Dragon Deity of Spring

📍 Qinglong

There are four great divine beasts in the heavens, used to mark the four cardina

Qióngqí, The Winged Tyrant — The Winged Beast That Inverts Good and Evil

📍 Qióngqí

On Guī Mountain there is a beast, shaped like an ox, with hedgehog-like bristles

Taotie — The Insatiably Gluttonous Ancient Beast

📍 Taotie

There is a beast, with the body of a sheep and the face of a man, its eyes benea

Taowu, The Stubborn Brute — The Unyielding Ancient Beast

📍 Taowu

There is a beast whose shape resembles a tiger with dog-like fur, two chi in len

Xièzhì, The Judge of Heaven — The Divine Beast That Distinguishes Loyalty from Treachery

📍 Xièzhì

In the northeastern wilderness there is a beast called Xièzhì. It has a single h

Xuanwu, The Black Tortoise-Serpent — The United Guardian of the North

📍 Xuanwu

Xuanwu, The Black Tortoise-Serpent

Zhuque, The Vermilion Bird — Southern Fire Virtue, Bright Flame of the Celestial Office

📍 Zhuque

The south belongs to the virtue of fire, governed by the Vermilion Bird. It spre

Bái Sù Zhēn, The White Snake Immortal — A Thousand Years of Cultivation for a Single Umbrella Encounter at Broken Bridge

📍 Bái Sù Zhēn

Bái Sù Zhēn, The White Snake Immortal

Beidou Xingjun (Lord of the Northern Dipper) — The Northern Star Deity Who Governs Life and Death

📍 Beidou Xingjun

Beidou Xingjun (Lord of the Northern Dipper)

Caishen, God of Wealth — The Deity of Prosperity and Good Fortune

📍 Caishen

If there were a popularity contest among Chinese deities, Caishen (the God of We

Chang'e, The Moon Goddess — The Lonely Queen Who Ascended to the Moon

📍 Chang'e

The story of Chang'e is probably one of the most frequently adapted legends in C

Ksitigarbha (Dizang Wang) — Vow Not to Attain Buddhahood Until Hell Is Empty

📍 Ksitigarbha (Dizang Wang)

With a shaved, rounded head or wearing a five-Buddha crown, draped in a monk's r

Erlang Shen — The Outsider War God with a Piercing Third Eye

📍 Erlang Shen

In a celestial bureaucracy full of officials, administrators, and cosmic manager