As you begin to read or listen to this book, you will become familiar with all the gods and goddesses of Chinese culture. The historical context will become clear, as well as the institutions, the law, the rules about sexuality, marriage, and children, and so much more. Understanding these aspects of their society before fully becoming engaged in the folklore that was the popular belief at the time, is essential to your comprehension of the cultural anecdotes in those tales. Towards the end of the book, you’ll also learn about Confucianism, Monism, Taoism, Buddhism, and other dominating religious or spiritual paths that have been common in China. Are you curious yet? Then get ready for a unique combination of mystery and historicity.

This authoritative volume examines the two main faiths, Confucianism and Daoism, that developed before China had meaningful contact with the rest of the world. Aspects of Buddhism later joined features of these faiths to form elements of Chinese ideology and, with the beliefs in immortals and the worship of ancestors, they led to a popular religion. The narrative describes the gods and goddesses that dominated China's mythology and folk culture, roughly from the 3rd millennium to 221 BCE, including the Baxian (Eight Immortals), Chang'e (moon goddess), Guandi (god of war), the Men Shen (door spirits), and Pan Gu (first man).

Compiled from ancient and scattered texts and based on groundbreaking new research, Handbook of Chinese Mythology is the most comprehensive English-language work on the subject ever written from an exclusively Chinese perspective. This work focuses on the Han Chinese people but ranges across the full spectrum of ancient and modern China, showing how key myths endured and evolved over time. A quick reference section covers all major deities, spirits, and demigods, as well as important places, mythical animals and plants, and related items.

Offering a provocative glimpse into a world dominated by traditional rules of etiquette and inhabited by demons, dragon-gods, and spirits, this volume presents a wealth of information illuminating the ideas and beliefs that governed the daily lives of Chinese people long before the revolutions of the 20th century. Engrossing and informative, the book will appeal not only to lovers of folklore but to everyone interested in Chinese art, culture or philosophy. 32 b&w illustrations.

The Chinese people often told stories that taught the listener about their culture. In this myth, the monkey king goes on an adventure to find a way to live forever. The Chinese monkey spirit myth is retold in this brilliantly illustrated Chinese Myth. Aligned to Common Core Standards and correlated to state standards. Short Tales is an imprint of Magic Wagon, a division of ABDO.