Yunü () is a goddess in Chinese mythology and Chinese traditional religion who, along with her male counterpart Jintong (Golden Boy), are favored servants of the

Jade Emperor The Jade Emperor or Yudi ( or , ') in Chinese culture, traditional religions and myth is one of the representations of the first god ( '). In Daoist theology he is the assistant of Yuanshi Tianzun, who is one of the Three Pure Ones, the three ...

and Zhenwudadi. They are originally from the Taoist or Daoist Religion. In the ''

Avatamsaka Sutra The ' (IAST, sa, 𑀅𑀯𑀢𑀁𑀲𑀓 𑀲𑀽𑀢𑁆𑀭) or ''Buddhāvataṃsaka-nāma-mahāvaipulya-sūtra (The Mahāvaipulya Sūtra named “Buddhāvataṃsaka”)'' is one of the most influential Mahāyāna sutras of East Asian B ...

'', Jintong and Yunü seek enlightenment and are acolytes of the goddess

Guan Yin Guanyin () is a Bodhisattva associated with compassion. She is the East Asian representation of Avalokiteśvara ( sa, अवलोकितेश्वर) and has been adopted by other Eastern religions, including Chinese folk religion. She w ...

Goddess of Mercy Guanyin () is a Bodhisattva associated with compassion. She is the East Asian representation of Avalokiteśvara ( sa, अवलोकितेश्वर) and has been adopted by other Eastern religions, including Chinese folk religion. She ...

. In this context, Yunü is called Longnü and Jintong is called Shancai Tongzi. They are also believed to serve as guides in the underworld and the protectors of houses and temples. Some of the statue could be found on some graves at Bukit Brown Cemetery as is believed to serve as guides in the Spirit World or the Underworld. This couple helps virtuous souls over a golden bridge to paradise, and helps souls whose good deeds outweighed the bad, over a silver bridge to paradise. Therefore by erecting the Golden Boy and Jade Maiden by the grave of the deceased, living family members hope that the deceased will not venture into the courts of hell but instead lead their afterlife in paradise.

Legends

Yunü and Jintong have appeared in several stories since the

Song A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetitio ...

and Yuan dynasties and have become important figures in Chinese mythology. Specific examples are the southern opera version of the legend, ''Jintong and Yunü'', and Yuan dynasty writer Jia Zhongming's

zaju ''Zaju'' was a form of Chinese opera which provided entertainment through a synthesis of recitations of prose and poetry, dance, singing, and mime, with a certain emphasis on comedy (or, happy endings). Although with diverse and earlier roots, ''za ...

by the same name. In this context, Yunü is called Longnü and Jintong is called Shancai Tongzi. According to the ''Shenyijing'', Yunü and her companions loved to play

touhu TouHu is a traditional Chinese game that requires players to throw arrows or sticks from a set distance into a large, sometimes ornate, canister. It was a popular game among the Han Chinese from the Spring and Autumn Period to the end of the Qin ...

(投壺), a Chinese game in which arrows or darts are thrown into a vase. In the classic Chinese novel ''

Journey to the West ''Journey to the West'' () is a Chinese novel published in the 16th century during the Ming dynasty and attributed to Wu Cheng'en. It is regarded as one of the greatest Classic Chinese Novels, and has been described as arguably the most popu ...

'', Yunü is a servant maid of the Jade Emperor in Heaven. She falls in love with a star god called

Kui Mulang Kui Mulang () is a deity in traditional Chinese spiritual beliefs. He is considered to be one of the 28 Mansions, which are Chinese constellations. These constellations are the same as those studied in Western astrology. Kui Mulang originated fr ...

and decides to elope with him. However, she doesn't want to ruin Heaven's pureness, so she decides to reincarnate as a human. She enters the human world as Baihuaxiu (百花羞), the third princess of the Kingdom of Baoxiang (寶象國). Meanwhile, Kui Mulang also travels to Earth and waits for her, becoming a demon lord known as Yellow Robe. The demon kidnaps the princess (who has no memory of her existence as Yunü), marries her and they have two children. Some folktales say that

Xue Dingshan Xue () is the pinyin romanization of the Chinese surname 薛 (Xuē). It is romanized as Hsüeh in Wade-Giles. In Hong Kong and Macau it is usually romanized through its Cantonese pronunciation Sit. In Korean, it corresponds to Seol (설), in Ja ...

and

Fan Lihua Fan Lihua (樊梨花) is a fictional folk heroine in Chinese folklore and a legendary female general from the Western Liang during the early years of the Tang Dynasty. She was the wife of Xue Dingshan and the daughter-in-law of the famous early Ta ...

were originally the Golden Boy and Jade Girl. The

was furious with them and wanted to punish them for breaking the celestial utensils. Fortunately, the

Old Man of the South Pole The Old Man of the South Pole (in or ja, 南極老人) is the Taoist deification of Canopus, the brightest star of the constellation Carina. It is the symbol of happiness and longevity in Far Eastern culture. Description The Old Man of the S ...

begged for their mercy and was demoted to the mortal world. In the ''Hanyi ji'' play, the protagonists Qi Liang and Meng Jiang are reincarnations of Jintong and Yunü. In most popular versions of ''

The Butterfly Lovers The Butterfly Lovers is a Chinese legend of a tragic love story of a pair of lovers, Liang Shanbo () and Zhu Yingtai (), whose names form the title of the story. The title is often abbreviated to Liang Zhu (). The story was selected as one o ...

'', the protagonists Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai are human reincarnations of Jintong and Yunü who are expelled from Heaven Court by Guanyin or the Jade Emperor for their sin and forced to live as a thwarted couple for three or seven generations before being reunited and restored to their original status.

In popular culture

*Yunü is a common designation for a beautiful woman or, in

Daoism Taoism (, ) or Daoism () refers to either a school of philosophical thought (道家; ''daojia'') or to a religion (道教; ''daojiao''), both of which share ideas and concepts of Chinese origin and emphasize living in harmony with the ''Tao'' ...

, for a fairy or

immortal Immortality is the ability to live forever, or eternal life. Immortal or Immortality may also refer to: Film * ''The Immortals'' (1995 film), an American crime film * ''Immortality'', an alternate title for the 1998 British film '' The Wisdom of ...

. *Literary works often refer to attractive and well-matched couples as a Jintong and Yunü. *Yunü is a common name for ''

Usnea ''Usnea'' is a genus of mostly pale grayish-green fruticose lichens that grow like leafless mini-shrubs or tassels anchored on bark or twigs.Field Guide to California Lichens, Stephen Sharnoff, Yale University Press, 2014, The genus is in the f ...

'' (''nüluo'', 女蘿), a species of lichen. *During the Spring Festival, pictures featuring Yunü and Jintong can be found on the doors of many households. *There are several mountain peaks bearing Yunü's name (Yunü feng 玉女峯), such as the

Huashan Mount Hua () is a mountain located near the city of Huayin in Shaanxi, Shaanxi Province, about east of Xi'an. It is the "Western Mountain" of the Sacred Mountains of China, Five Great Mountains of China and has a long history of religious sign ...

Yünu (華山玉女), one in the

Wuyi Mountains The Wuyi Mountains or Wuyishan (; formerly known as Bohea Hills in early Western documents) are a mountain range located in the prefecture of Nanping, in northern Fujian province near the border with Jiangxi province, China. The highest peak in ...

(武夷山), and another in Yuntai Mountains (云台山).

References

{{reflist

Sources

* Li Jianping 李劍平, ed. (1998). Zhongguo shenhua renwu cidian 中國神話人物辞典 (Xi'an : Shanxi renmin chubanshe), 144. Chinese goddesses Deities in Taoism