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Yuenü
Yuenü () was a swordswoman from the state of Yue, in the modern Chinese province of Zhejiang. She is also known as ''Maiden of the Southern Forest''. In Chinese mythology, she is a reincarnation of Jiutian Xuannü. Life and legacy Yuenü lived during the reign of Goujian of Yue (496-465 BCE). From a young age, she learned archery and how to use a sword by hunting with her father. The King of Yue planned to attack the state of Wu and when he heard about her skills, he invited her to court. Along the way, she was challenged by an old man who was in reality a magic white ape: Upon meeting the king, the Maiden reveals the secret to her fighting ability is the application of yin and yang energy, which are metaphorically described as the opening and closing of large and small swinging doors. Furthermore, she claims that, while strengthening the spirit, one should remain outwardly calm. Her exposition on the art of the sword impressed the king, who decreed that her skills be in t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yue (state)
Yue (, Old Chinese: ''*''), also known as Yuyue (), was a state in ancient China which existed during the first millennium BC the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods of China's Zhou dynasty in the modern provinces of Zhejiang, Shanghai and Jiangsu. Its original capital was Kuaiji (modern Shaoxing); after its conquest of Wu, Yue relocated its court north to the city of Wu (modern-day Suzhou). Yue was conquered by Chu in 306 BC. History A specific kingdom, which had been known as the "Yue Guo" () in modern Zhejiang, was not mentioned until it began a series of wars against its northern neighbor Wu during the late 6th century BC. According to the ''Records of the Grand Historian'' and '' Discourses of the States'', the Yue are descended from Wuyu, the son of Shao Kang which as known as the sixth king of the Xia dynasty. With help from Wu's enemy Chu, Yue was able to be victorious after several decades of conflict. The famous Yue King Goujian destroyed and ann ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zhejiang
Zhejiang ( or , ; , also romanized as Chekiang) is an eastern, coastal province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable cities include Ningbo and Wenzhou. Zhejiang is bordered by Jiangsu and Shanghai to the north, Anhui to the northwest, Jiangxi to the west and Fujian to the south. To the east is the East China Sea, beyond which lies the Ryukyu Islands. The population of Zhejiang stands at 64.6 million, the 8th highest among China. It has been called 'the backbone of China' due to being a major driving force in the Chinese economy and being the birthplace of several notable persons, including the Chinese Nationalist leader Chiang Kai-shek and entrepreneur Jack Ma. Zhejiang consists of 90 counties (incl. county-level cities and districts). The area of Zhejiang was controlled by the Kingdom of Yue during the Spring and Autumn period. The Qin Empire later annexed it in 222 BC. Under the late Ming dynasty and the Qing ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sword Of The Yue Maiden
''Sword of the Yue Maiden'', alternatively translated as ''Yue Maiden's Sword'', is a wuxia novelette by Jin Yong (Louis Cha). It was first serialised in January 1970 in the Hong Kong newspaper '' Ming Pao Evening Supplement''. Although this is the last wuxia short work by the author, its historical setting, in the Spring and Autumn period, is the earliest among Jin Yong's works chronologically. Plot The story is set in southern China during the Spring and Autumn period, against the backdrop of the conflict between the states of Wu and Yue. A team of swordsmen from Wu defeats the best swordsmen of Yue. Fan Li, an adviser to King Goujian of Yue, discovers Aqing, a young shepherdess, who defeats the Wu swordsmen with ease. It is revealed that Aqing learned her skills while playing mock sword duels with a white gibbon. Fan Li allows Aqing to train the soldiers of Yue in swordsmanship. Aqing gradually falls in love with Fan Li. King Goujian of Yue finally defeats his rival, King ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chinese Mythology
Chinese mythology () is mythology that has been passed down in oral form or recorded in literature in the geographic area now known as Greater China. Chinese mythology includes many varied myths from regional and cultural traditions. Much of the mythology involves exciting stories full of fantastic people and beings, the use of magical powers, often taking place in an exotic mythological place or time. Like many mythologies, Chinese mythology has in the past been believed to be, at least in part, a factual recording of history. Along with Chinese folklore, Chinese mythology forms an important part of Chinese folk religion. Many stories regarding characters and events of the distant past have a double tradition: ones which present a more historicized or euhemerized version and ones which present a more mythological version. Many myths involve the creation and cosmology of the universe and its deities and inhabitants. Some mythology involves creation myths, the origin of things, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Reincarnation
Reincarnation, also known as rebirth or transmigration, is the philosophical or religious concept that the non-physical essence of a living being begins a new life in a different physical form or body after biological death. Resurrection is a similar process hypothesized by some religions, in which a soul comes back to life in the same body. In most beliefs involving reincarnation, the soul is seen as immortal and the only thing that becomes perishable is the body. Upon death, the soul becomes transmigrated into a new infant (or animal) to live again. The term transmigration means passing of soul from one body to another after death. Reincarnation (''Punarjanma'') is a central tenet of the Indian religions such as Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, and Sikhism; as well as certain Paganist religious groups, although there are Hindu and Buddhist groups who do not believe in reincarnation, instead believing in an afterlife. In various forms, it occurs as an esoteric belief in many s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jiutian Xuannü
In Chinese mythology, Jiutian Xuannü is the goddess of war, sex, and longevity.. Etymology This goddess was initially known as ''Xuannü'' ().. The name has been variously translated as the "Dark Lady" or the "Mysterious Lady". in English. In the late Tang dynasty, the Daoist master Du Guangting (850–933) created the title ''Jiutian Xuannü'' (九天玄女), adding ''Jiutian'' (meaning " f theNine Heavens"), to refer to the goddess. She is closely related to Sunü, who is her divine sister. Both their names combined, as ''xuansu zhidao'' (), signify the Daoist arts of the bedchamber. Stories The ''Yongcheng Jixian Lu'' (), written by the Daoist master Du Guangting (850–933), contains a biographical account of Jiutian Xuannü. It mentions that Jiutian Xuannü is the teacher of Huangdi and the disciple of Xi Wangmu.. The work relates a story about the goddess appearing before Huangdi during a time when the latter was in conflict with Chiyou. Chiyou had caused a great mi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Goujian
Goujian () (reigned 496–465 BC) was the king of the Kingdom of Yue (越國, present-day northern Zhejiang) near the end of the Spring and Autumn period (春秋). He was the son of Marquis Yunchang. Goujian's reign coincided with arguably the last major conflict of the Spring and Autumn period, the struggle between Wu and Yue, wherein he eventually led his state to victory, annexing the rival. As such, King Goujian is sometimes considered the last of the Five Hegemons. War between Wu and Yue The war between Wu and Yue comprised several separate phases. It began when a Yue princess, who was married to one of the princes of the neighboring state of Wu, left her husband and fled back to the State of Yue. This became the spark for the war to come. Also, as Yunchang developed Yue's strength, he came into conflict with King Helü of Wu, causing a feud between the two states. Upon the death of Yunchang and the accession of Goujian, Helü seized the opportunity and launched an at ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Archery
Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In modern times, it is mainly a competitive sport and recreational activity. A person who practices archery is typically called an archer, bowman, or toxophilite. History Origins and ancient archery The oldest known evidence of the bow and arrow comes from South African sites such as Sibudu Cave, where the remains of bone and stone arrowheads have been found dating approximately 72,000 to 60,000 years ago.Backwell L, d'Errico F, Wadley L.(2008). Middle Stone Age bone tools from the Howiesons Poort layers, Sibudu Cave, South Africa. Journal of Archaeological Science, 35:1566–1580. Backwell L, Bradfield J, Carlson KJ, Jashashvili T, Wadley L, d'Errico F.(2018). The antiquity of bow-and-arrow technology: evidence from Middle Stone Age layers ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wu (state)
Wu (; Old Chinese: ''*'') was one of the states during the Western Zhou dynasty and the Spring and Autumn period. It was also known as Gouwu ( /''*''/) or Gongwu ( /''*''/) from the pronunciation of the local language. Wu was located at the mouth of the Yangtze River east of the State of Chu. Its first capital was at Meili (probably in modern Wuxi) and was later moved to Gusu (姑蘇, modern Suzhou) and then Helu City (the old town of present-day Suzhou). History A founding myth of Wu, first recorded by Sima Qian in the Han dynasty, traced its royal lineage to Taibo, a relative of King Wen of Zhou. According to the ''Records of the Grand Historian'', Taibo was the oldest son of Gugong Danfu and the elder uncle of King Wen who started the Zhou Dynasty. Gugong Danfu had three sons named Taibo, Zhongyong, and Jili. Taibo was the oldest of three brothers, Jili being the youngest. Realizing that his youngest brother, Jili, was favored by his father to inherit the throne of Pre ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yin And Yang
Yin and yang ( and ) is a Chinese philosophy, Chinese philosophical concept that describes opposite but interconnected forces. In Chinese cosmology, the universe creates itself out of a primary chaos of material energy, organized into the cycles of yin and yang and formed into objects and lives. Yin is the receptive and yang the active principle, seen in all forms of change and difference such as the annual cycle (winter and summer), the landscape (north-facing shade and south-facing brightness), sexual coupling (female and male), the formation of both men and women as characters and sociopolitical history (disorder and order). Taiji (philosophy), Taiji or Tai chi () is a Chinese cosmological term for the "Supreme Ultimate" state of undifferentiated absolute and infinite potential, the oneness before duality, from which yin and yang originate. It can be compared with the old ''Wuji (philosophy), wuji'' (, "without pole"). In the cosmology pertaining to yin and yang, the mate ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chinese Martial Arts
Chinese martial arts, often called by the umbrella terms Kung fu (term), kung fu (; ), kuoshu () or wushu (sport), wushu (), are Styles of Chinese martial arts, multiple fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in Greater China. These fighting styles are often classified according to common traits, identified as "families" of martial arts. Examples of such traits include ''Shaolin kung fu, Shaolinquan'' () physical exercises involving Five Animals, All Other Animals () mimicry or training methods inspired by Chinese philosophies, Old Chinese philosophies, religions and legends. Styles that focus on qi manipulation are called ''Internal martial arts, internal'' (; ), while others that concentrate on improving muscle and cardiovascular fitness are called ''Styles of Chinese martial arts#External styles, external'' (; ). Geographical association, as in ''northern'' (; ) and ''southern'' (; ), is another popular classification method. Terminology ''Kung fu'' and ''wu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chinese Swordsmanship
Chinese swordsmanship encompasses a variety of sword fighting styles native to China. No Chinese system teaches swordsmanship exclusively (as is the case with modern sports such as fencing or kendo), but many eclectic schools of Chinese martial arts include instruction for using one or two-handed versions of the single-edged sword (dao) and the double-edged sword (jian). Many Chinese martial arts styles teach swordsmanship. Wudang Sword is an umbrella term for all sword styles taught in the Wudang chuan family of martial arts. Taijijian is the swordsmanship taught within Taijiquan. Shuangdao () is the Chinese term for the wielding of two dao simultaneously. History Warring State Period Sword was firstly practiced by Wu and Yue nations, approximately at 50 cm length. Laozi, an ancient Chinese philosopher during the warring state period, quoted that "道可道非常道，名可名非常名。", meaning that the ways which could be told are not the true ways, names wh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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