Shining Myth

Author: Liu Wuhui
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-07-01
Features:
Long, long ago, before heaven and earth existed, the universe was in chaos, like a round, egg. The yolk inside was Pan Gu, the ancestor of humankind. Pan Gu nurtured within this egg for eighteen thousand years before finally breaking out. After emerging, he used his enormous palm to split the round mass into two parts—one light and clear, the other heavy and turbid. The light and clear part rose continuously, one zhang per day, and after eighteen thousand years, it gradually formed the high blue sky. The heavy and turbid part sank continuously, one zhang per day, and after eighteen thousand years, it gradually formed the vast, boundless earth. As for Pan Gu himself, he grew one zhang each day, and after eighteen thousand years, he became an incredibly towering giant.
After the formation of heaven and earth, there was only Pan Gu alone in the world. At first, he was quite happy and felt good, roaming freely in the heaven and earth he had split open. Whenever he was in a good mood, the sky would be clear; but if he blinked his eyes carelessly, "whoosh! whoosh!" lightning would flash across the sky. When Pan Gu grew tired from playing, he would lie down and sleep. The snoring he made while sleeping became the rolling thunder in the sky. With no one else in the world, his mood sometimes worsened over time. Then the sky would become gloomy. When he became angry, dark clouds would churn in the sky; and whenever he sighed, the air he exhaled became fierce winds, causing sand and stones to fly across the earth. Sometimes Pan Gu would even cry because he was so lonely. When he cried, his tears would form torrential rain, which, upon reaching the ground, gradually gathered to form rivers, lakes, and seas.
Pan Gu lived alone in the heaven and earth he had created for a very long time. One day, he finally collapsed and never woke up again. After his death, his body transformed into towering mountains and dense forests, his hair and sweat into lush trees and beautiful flowers, and his skin into fertile land that nurtured all kinds of animals. From then on, the earth was filled with the songs of birds and the fragrance of flowers, displaying a vibrant vitality.
Knowledge Link: Children, do you know how heaven and earth were formed? Astronomers tell us that the Earth is round and was formed by a big bang. Look, how clever our ancestors were—they imagined heaven and earth as an egg in ancient times. Compared to Western legends, their story is much more advanced. Even today, the custom of eating wontons is still passed down in folk traditions, said to be in memory of Pan Gu. The idiom "open up heaven and earth" originates from this legend.
Character Index:
Pan Gu: A name, believed to be the ancestor of humankind. He split heaven and earth and transformed his body into the home of modern humans.