The ''qianlima'' (; also ''chollima'', ''cheollima'', and ''senrima''; ) is a mythical horse that originates from the
Chinese classics
Chinese classic texts or canonical texts () or simply dianji (典籍) refers to the Chinese texts which originated before the imperial unification by the Qin dynasty in 221 BC, particularly the "Four Books and Five Classics" of the Neo-Confucian ...
and is commonly portrayed in East Asian mythology. The winged horse is said to be too swift and elegant to be mounted by any mortal man and is named after its ability to travel one thousand
li in a single day.
Since the 3rd century BCE, the ''qianlima'' was used as a metaphor for exceptionally talented people and animals, such as
Red Hare
The Red Hare or Chi Tu () was a famous horse owned by the warlord Lü Bu, who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China.
In historical records
The Red Hare was mentioned in Lü Bu's biographies in the historical texts ''Records of the T ...
. The ''chollima'' is an important symbol in
North Korea
North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...
and is the namesake of the
Chollima Movement
The Chollima Movement () was a state-sponsored Stakhanovite movement in North Korea intended to promote rapid economic development. Launched in 1956 or 1958, the movement emphasized "ideological incentives to work harder" and the personal guidance ...
.
China
Beginning around the 3rd century BCE,
Chinese classics
Chinese classic texts or canonical texts () or simply dianji (典籍) refers to the Chinese texts which originated before the imperial unification by the Qin dynasty in 221 BC, particularly the "Four Books and Five Classics" of the Neo-Confucian ...
mention
Bole, a mythological horse-tamer, as an
exemplar An exemplar is a person, a place, an object, or some other entity that serves as a predominant example of a given concept (e.g. "The heroine became an ''exemplar'' in courage to the children"). It may also refer to:
* Exemplar, a well-known scienc ...
of horse judging. Bole is frequently associated with the fabled ''qianlima'' () "thousand-''miles'' horse", which was supposedly able to gallop one thousand ''
li'' (approximately 400 km) in a single day (e.g.
Red Hare
The Red Hare or Chi Tu () was a famous horse owned by the warlord Lü Bu, who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China.
In historical records
The Red Hare was mentioned in Lü Bu's biographies in the historical texts ''Records of the T ...
,
sweats blood horse). ''Qianlima'' was a
literary Chinese
Classical Chinese, also known as Literary Chinese (古文 ''gǔwén'' "ancient text", or 文言 ''wényán'' "text speak", meaning
"literary language/speech"; modern vernacular: 文言文 ''wényánwén'' "text speak text", meaning
"literar ...
word for people with latent talent and ability; and Spring (1988:180) suggests, "For centuries of Chinese history, horses had been considered animals capable of performing feats requiring exceptional strength and endurance. Possibly it is for this reason that from early times horses have been used allegorically to represent extraordinary people." Bole recognizing a ''qianlima'' was a metaphor for a wise ruler selecting talented ''shi'' "
scholar-officials
The scholar-officials, also known as literati, scholar-gentlemen or scholar-bureaucrats (), were government officials and prestigious scholars in Chinese society, forming a distinct social class.
Scholar-officials were politicians and governmen ...
". Thus, (Henry 1987:28) "Geniuses in obscurity were called thousand ''li'' horses who had not yet met their
ole.
Japan
Keitoku Senrima (Kim Ge-dok), a professional
middleweight
Middleweight is a weight class in combat sports.
Boxing Professional
In professional boxing, the middleweight division is contested above and up to .
Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have be ...
boxer in Japan, uses the
stage name
A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...
"Senrima" (the Japanese form of Qianlima/Chollima) to reference North Korea's Chollima campaigns and thereby express his
Zainichi Korean
comprise ethnic Koreans who have permanent residency status in Japan or who have become Japanese citizens, and whose immigration to Japan originated before 1945, or who are descendants of those immigrants. They are a group distinct from South ...
heritage.
North Korea
![Chollima statue 05](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a2/Chollima_statue_05.JPG)
The ''chollima'' is an important symbol in
North Korea
North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...
. It is used as the nickname of
its national association football team. The state also gave the name to the
Chollima Movement
The Chollima Movement () was a state-sponsored Stakhanovite movement in North Korea intended to promote rapid economic development. Launched in 1956 or 1958, the movement emphasized "ideological incentives to work harder" and the personal guidance ...
, which promoted fast economic development, similar to that of the Chinese
Great Leap Forward
The Great Leap Forward (Second Five Year Plan) of the People's Republic of China (PRC) was an economic and social campaign led by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from 1958 to 1962. CCP Chairman Mao Zedong launched the campaign to reconstruc ...
and the Soviet
Stakhanovite movement
The term Stakhanovite () originated in the Soviet Union and referred to workers who modeled themselves after Alexey Stakhanov. These workers took pride in their ability to produce more than was required, by working harder and more efficiently, thu ...
. After the
Korean War
, date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
, the country required rebuilding to function again. In order to expedite the construction, President
Kim Il-sung
Kim Il-sung (; , ; born Kim Song-ju, ; 15 April 1912 – 8 July 1994) was a North Korean politician and the founder of North Korea, which he ruled from the country's establishment in 1948 until his death in 1994. He held the posts of ...
devised the slogan "rush as the speed of ''chollima''".
Several statues are found of this creature in
Pyongyang
Pyongyang (, , ) is the capital and largest city of North Korea, where it is known as the "Capital of the Revolution". Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River about upstream from its mouth on the Yellow Sea. According to the 2008 populatio ...
, the capital of North Korea. The
Chollima Statue
The Chollima Statue () is a monument on in Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea. The monument symbolizes the "Chollima speed" of the Chollima Movement. The legendary winged horse Chollima depicted by the monument is said to travel 1,000 ' ...
symbolizes "heroism, the constant, fighting spirit of the Korean people, and the innovations and advance so quickly, at the speed of the ''chollima''". A notable one can be found near , which was finished on 15 April 1961. It stands roughly 46 meters high and 16 meters long, measured from the pavement to the top of the Red Letter of the
Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea
The Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea ( ko, 조선로동당 중앙위원회) is the highest party body between national meetings of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), the ruling party of North Korea. According to WPK rules, the ...
representing the working class.
See also
*
Longma
The ''longma'' is a fabled winged horse with dragon scales in Chinese mythology. Seeing a ''longma'' was an omen of a legendary sage-ruler, particularly one of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors.
Name
The Chinese language, Chinese word ...
*
Pegasus
Pegasus ( grc-gre, Πήγασος, Pḗgasos; la, Pegasus, Pegasos) is one of the best known creatures in Greek mythology. He is a winged divine stallion usually depicted as pure white in color. He was sired by Poseidon, in his role as hor ...
*
Tianma
Tianma ( ', "heavenly horse") was a winged flying horse in Chinese folklore. It was sometimes depicted with chimerical features such as dragon scales and was at times attributed the ability to sweat blood, possibly inspired by the parasite ''Par ...
*
Tulpar
Tulpar / ; ba, Толпар, ; tt-Cyrl, Тулпар, ; ky, Тулпар; tr, Tulpar; uz, Tulpor / ; ug, تۇلپار is a winged or swift horse in Turkic mythology (for example, Kazakh and Tatar mythology), similar to Pegasus. Tulpar i ...
*
Horse in Chinese mythology
Horses are an important motif in Chinese mythology. There are many myths about horses or horse-like beings, including the pony. Chinese mythology refers to those myths found in the historical geographic area of China.The geographic area of "China ...
References
{{National symbols of North Korea
Chinese legendary creatures
East Asian mythology
Korean legendary creatures
Horses in mythology
Winged horses
Horse in Chinese mythology