THE DIVINE HEROES

1. His brother Xiang asked him to come and help repair the store house
2. When Shun’s wives were informed they were troubled we will give you some new clothes to wear
3. Shun set off the next day clad in a colourful feathery cloak
4. His family pretended to greet him kindly and brought him a ladder to work on repairing the top of the broken storehouse
5. Shun didn’t notice then piling straw inside and removed the ladder
6. A torch was used to light the straw
7. The cruel stepmother called out We are sending you to heaven to meet your wretched mother
8. At that moment his feathery cloak was transformed into wings and he flew away into the sky
9. Shun’s father came to him to apologize and asked him to come and help the family work on a well
10. Shun’s wives gave him a new set of clothes. They were scaly like a dragon’s skin and he had to wear then under his old coat
11. When he arrived at the well site his family lowered him down on a rope but hardly had he reached the bottom when the rope snapped.
12. Earth and stones showered down on his head
13. Shun ripped off his coat and he turned into a golden dragon and he ducked into the underground stream and swam out into another well.
14. At the news of his death his two wives were in despair Xiang began to divide up the property, I will take his bow and arrows and his wives.
15. Suddenly the family felt a presence in the doorway Shun was standing there watching the scene
16. Shun’s tolerance of his family remained, the brother was still scheming
17. Shun was invited to a banquet by his step brother
18. His wives provided Shun with a small bag of medicine, mix it into your bath water and bathe in it just before you go to dinner
19. Shun had a place of honor, his wine cup was kept full. Shun emptied his glass at every toast
20. Behind the door waited a carefully placed razor-sharp axe
21. Shun drank cup after cup of wine, members of his family began to feel drunk but Shun remained sober and returned home safely.
22. Yao was informed of Shun’s family loyalty, of his kindliness and wisdom
23. Yao wished to see Shun for himself and devised a series of tests
24. At the end of the tests Yao was convinced and handed over his power to Shun

a) Yi lived during the reign of Yao not long after the Yellow Emperor

b) Ten mysterious suns appeared in the heaven.

c) The sky was a blinding world of suns, no shadow could be found on earth

d) The crops weathered in the heat, the people could barely breath

e) They soon found almost nothing to eat

f) These ten sons were the suns of Di Jun god of the east

g) They lived on Fusang, an enormous tree which towered high into the air above the boiling Eastern Sea

h) The tree had nine branches along its trunk and a special branch at the top

i) Before this disaster one of the suns would rise to the top branch each day and begin the voyage over the earth

j) Each day their mother prepared a flying cart drawn by six dragons

k) First the boy washed himself in the boiling sea then mounted the dragon cart

l) Each dat the cart rose to the top of the Fusang tree and began the voyage across the sky

m) The passage of the sun each day was very regular

n) Usually the mother accompanied her son as far as Beichuan there she would stop her cart and her son fly alone across the sky

o) Until this time the heat and the light on earth had been orderly. Day in day out with the help of their mother the ten suns carried out her plan

p) But one night left alone these ten suns began to talk in the hot darkness

q) Debating till dawn they then rushed away from Yanggu, kicking over their mother’s cart

r) Suddenly free they burst joyfully into the sky and danced over the earth

s) They vowed to remain united and strong

t) The people below suffered they could not endure the burning heat and their hunger

u) King Yao was deeply troubled by this new disaster he invited the most powerful sorceress to perform her magic arts and drive away the suns

v) The people began to prepare for the witch’s arrival, she was said to wander the earth on a one horned dragon-fish

w) On her arrival the people beat drums, chanted and prayed

x) The witch prayed with all her powers through the night darkness but still the suns rose up

y) The praying people harried to hide leaving the witch alone and exposed

z) Sweat poured from her glowing skin, she gasped for air and tried to shade her head,

aa) Her powerful magic was useless, she crumpled to the earth struck dead

bb) The disaster was spreading to every corner of the earth, the people grieved and suffered

cc) King Yao suffered ten thousand times for his people he turned to the god of the east

dd) Day after day the god heard King Yao’s petition but he dare not raise a hand against his sons

ee) He saw the earth’s disaster and sent his official Yi to go down to help

ff) Yi was a small god in the heaven but he was a good archer, his fame had spread wide

gg) He was sent with his wife Chang E to stop the destruction

hh) Yi left the Heavenly Palace and harried to King Yao

ii) Together they made a tour of the land Yi was horrified to see the people half burning moaning with thirst

jj) Yi pitied the people and was furious at the rebel suns

kk) In that moment of rage he forgot the god’s exact words "Threaten those suns with your bow"

ll) He could think of nothing but to destroy them

mm) YI stood on the open plain, he tightened his bowstring and counted ten arrows in his quiver

nn) He stretched his powerful arm and released an arrow which streaked through the air hitting one of the suns which cracked and split

oo) Brilliant sparks and golden feathers burst forth into the air and when the sun hit the earth it turned into a strange three legged crow

pp) The air began to cool a little and there were nine suns left

qq) Like lightening one arrow after another flew into the sky, the earth grew cooler and cooler

rr) King Yao was watching, as the suns fell he remembered how their old sun had warmed them

ss) Secretly he sent an official to steal away one of yi’s arrows

qq) Yi reached back after his ninth arrow to grasp nothing but air then he lowered his bow

uu) This is how Yi was prevented from killing all the suns, he was praised by all the people.

1. During the reign of Yao there came a great flood
2. King Yao felt a knife pierce his heart
3. The Dukes and officials said Let Gun lead the people out of this disaster
4. Gun felt sympathy for the people and descended to earth
5. He noticed an eagle and tortoise coming towards him, each helping the other
6. They said to Gun why was he looking so sad
7. He told them he wanted to get rid of the flood but didn’t know how.
8. The eagle and tortoise told Gun about Xi Rang, Endless Earth
9. When dropped in the world this earth could grow into mountains but it was the most treasured possession of the Supreme God
10. Gun got the earth and he started to place it in the muddy water
11. Land appeared everywhere and the waters fell back into the oceans the people returned to build their homes and towns
12. The Supreme God learned of his own grandson’s theft and he flew into a rage
13. The official Zhu Rong was ordered to kill Gun and return with the Endless Earth
14. On Mount Yushan he found Gun and murdered him he stole back the earth and the floods returned
15. Gun could not lie at peace knowing that he had failed the people
16. The spirit of Gun would not leave him, and a new life a son who would be called Yu was growing inside his belly
17. The Supreme God feared that Gun would become an evil spirit and plague him so he ordered his officials to cut open the belly of the corpse
18. As the official slit open Gun’s belly a fabulous dragon with a pair of sharp horns burst up and coiled high into the sky. This was Yu
19. Gun was transformed into a yellow dragon with little power as he had transferred it all to Yu
20. The Supreme God thought the people had suffered long enough he decided to yield to Yu
21. He gave Yu the Endless Earth and asked Ling Long to help Yu
22. Gong Gong the god of the waters had been angered and would not be reasoned with
23. Yo called together all the spirits and fairies of the earth
24. One Yu had finished with the god of the water he was able to tackle the flood
25. He ordered an enormous turtle to follow him and drop the endledd earth where they heard the cries of drowning people
26. Yu knew that he would have to regulate the course of the rivers so that the flood water would flow towards the sea
27. Ling Long proceeded to drag his tail leaving deep scratches, the faries and spirits dug out gullies for the water to flow to the sea
28. Dragon Gate Mountain in Luliang Mts. stood in the way of the Yellow River
29. Yu split the mountain in two, the water then poured down over the steep cliffs
30. Fish that jump the gate become dragons and fly into the sky
31. Where the river flows eastward, three hundred li downstream, in the gorge are 3 more gates - Gate of Ghosts,Fairies, People. The water rushes over in 3 great rapids
32. There were many dangers and setbacks in regulating the rivers
33. The goddess Yao Ji heard of Yu’s struggle and assigned a maidservant to teach him magic arts.
34. A tunnel was bored right through Wushan Mountain so the flood waters could drain
35. The ruler Shun heir of King Yao offered Yu control of the kingdom