Nüwa

The character nü (Chinese: 女; lit. 'female') is a common prefix on the names of goddesses. The proper name is wa, also read as gua (Chinese: 媧). The Chinese character is unique to this name. Birrell translates it as 'lovely', but notes that it "could be construed as 'frog', which is consistent with her aquatic myth.[7] In Chinese, the word for 'whirlpool' is wo (Chinese: 渦), which shares the same pronunciation with the word for 'snail' (Chinese: 蝸). These characters all have their right side constructed by the word wa (Chinese: 咼), which can be translated as 'spiral' or 'helix' as noun, and as 'spin' or 'rotate' when as verb, to describe the 'helical movement'. This mythical meaning has also been symbolically pictured as compasses in the hand which can be found on many paintings and portraits associated with her.

Her reverential name is Wahuang (Chinese: 媧皇; lit. 'Empress Wa').[8]

Image of Nüwa from Gujin Tushu Jicheng by Chen Menglei, Qing dynasty

The Huainanzi relates Nüwa to the time when Heaven and Earth were in disruption:

Going back to more ancient times, the four pillars were broken; the nine provinces were in tatters. Heaven did not completely cover [the earth]; Earth did not hold up [Heaven] all the way around [its circumference]. Fires blazed out of control and could not be extinguished; water flooded in great expanses and would not recede. Ferocious animals ate blameless people; predatory birds snatched the elderly and the weak. Thereupon, Nüwa smelted together five-colored stones in order to patch up the azure sky, cut off the legs of the great turtle to set them up as the four pillars, killed the black dragon to provide relief for Ji Province, and piled up reeds and cinders to stop the surging waters. The azure sky was patched; the four pillars were set up; the surging waters were drained; the province of Ji was tranquil; crafty vermin died off; blameless people [preserved their] lives.[9][lower-alpha 1]

The catastrophes were supposedly caused by the battle between the deities Gonggong and Zhuanxu (an event that was mentioned earlier in the Huainanzi),[lower-alpha 2] the five-colored stones symbolize the five Chinese elements (wood, fire, earth, metal, and water), the black dragon was the essence of water and thus cause of the floods, Ji Province serves metonymically for the central regions (the Sinitic world).[12] Following this, the Huainanzi tells about how the sage-rulers Nüwa and Fuxi set order over the realm by following the Way (道) and its potency (德).[9]

The Classic of Mountains and Seas, dated between the Warring States period and the Han Dynasty, describes Nüwa's intestines as being scattered into ten spirits.[13]

In Liezi (c. 475 – 221 BC), Chapter 5 "Questions of Tang" (卷第五 湯問篇), author Lie Yukou describes Nüwa repairing the original imperfect heaven using five-colored stones, and cutting the legs off a tortoise to use as struts to hold up the sky.[14]

In Songs of Chu (c. 340 – 278 BC), Chapter 3 "Asking Heaven" (Chinese: 问天), author Qu Yuan writes that Nüwa molded figures from the yellow earth, giving them life and the ability to bear children. After demons fought and broke the pillars of the heavens, Nüwa worked unceasingly to repair the damage, melting down the five-coloured stones to mend the heavens.[15]

In Shuowen Jiezi (c. 58 – 147 AD), China's earliest dictionary, under the entry for Nüwa author Xu Shen describes her as being both the sister and the wife of Fuxi. Nüwa and Fuxi were pictured as having snake-like tails interlocked in an Eastern Han Dynasty mural in the Wuliang Temple in Jiaxiang county, Shandong province.

In Duyi Zhi (獨異志; c. 846 – 874 AD), Volume 3, author Li Rong gives this description.

Long ago, when the world first began, there were two people, Nü Kua and her older brother. They lived on Mount K'un-lun. And there were not yet any ordinary people in the world. They talked about becoming husband and wife, but they felt ashamed. So the brother at once went with his sister up Mount K'un-lun and made this prayer: "Oh Heaven, if Thou wouldst send us two forth as man and wife, then make all the misty vapor gather. If not, then make all the misty vapor disperse." At this, the misty vapor immediately gathered. When the sister became intimate with her brother, they plaited some grass to make a fan to screen their faces. Even today, when a man takes a wife, they hold a fan, which is a symbol of what happened long ago.[16]

There are stories that have her as the "consort" of Fuxi rather than his sister.[2]

In Yuchuan Ziji (玉川子集 c. 618 – 907 AD), Chapter 3 ("與馬異結交詩" 也稱 "女媧本是伏羲婦"), author Lu Tong describes Nüwa as the wife of Fuxi.

In Siku Quanshu, Sima Zhen (679–732) provides commentary on the prologue chapter to Sima Qian's Shiji, "Supplemental to the Historic Record: History of the Three August Ones", wherein it is found that the Three August Ones are Nüwa, Fuxi, and Shennong; Fuxi and Nüwa have the same last name, Feng (Chinese: 風; Hmong: Faj).[lower-alpha 3]

Nüwa as depicted on one of the Mawangdui silk banners, Han dynasty

In the collection Four Great Books of Song (c. 960 – 1279 AD), compiled by Li Fang and others, Volume 78 of the book Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era contains a chapter "Customs by Yingshao of the Han Dynasty" in which it is stated that there were no men when the sky and the earth were separated. Thus Nüwa used yellow clay to make people. But the clay was not strong enough so she put ropes into the clay to make the bodies erect. It is also said that she prayed to gods to let her be the goddess of marital affairs. Variations of this story exist.

In Ming dynasty myths about the transition from the Shang dynasty to the Zhou dynasty, Nüwa made evil decisions that ultimately benefited China, such as sending a fox spirit to encourage the debauchery of King Zhou, which led to him being deposed.[17] Other tales have her and Fuxi as exclusively the "great gentle protectors of humanity" unwilling to use subterfuge.[18]

Nüwa and Fuxi were also thought to be gods of silk.[19]

Nüwa and Fuxi on the murals (rubbing depicted) of the Wu Liang shrines, Han dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD)

The iconography of Fuxi and Nüwa vary in physical appearance depending on the time period and also shows regional differences.[20] In Chinese tomb murals and iconography, Fuxi and Nüwa generally have snake-like bodies and human face or head.[20][21][22]

Nüwa is often depicted holding a compass or multiple compasses, which were a traditional Chinese symbol of a dome-like sky.[1] She was also thought to be an embodiment of the stars and the sky[1] or a star god.

Fuxi and Nüwa can be depicted as individual figures arranged as a symmetrical pair or they can be depicted in double figures with intertwined snake-like bodies.[20] Their snake-like tails can also be depicted stretching out towards each other.[20] Fuxi and Nüwa can also appear individually on separate tomb bricks.[20] They generally hold or embrace the sun or moon discs containing the images of a bird (or a three-legged crow) or a toad (sometimes a hare) which are the sun and moon symbolism respectively, and/or each holding a try square or a pair of compasses, or holding a longevity mushroom (Chinese: 靈芝; pinyin: lingzhi) plant.[20][22] Fuxi and Nüwa holding the sun and the moon appears as early as the late Western Han dynasty.[20] Other physical appearance variation, such as lower snake-like body shape (e.g. thick vs thin tails), depictions of legs (i.e. legs found along the snake-like body) and wings (e.g. wings with feathers which protrude from their backs as found in late Western Han Xinan (新安) Tomb or smaller quills found on their shoulders), and in hats and hairstyles, also exist.[20]

In the Luoyang regions murals dating to the late Western Han dynasty, Fuxi and Nüwa are generally depicted as individual figures, each one found at each side of the central ridge of tomb chambers as found in the Bu Qianqiu Tomb.[20] They can also be found without intertwining tails from the stone murals of the same period.[20] Since the middle of the Eastern Han dynasty, their tails started to intertwine.[20]

In the Gansu murals dating to the Wei and Western Jin period, one of the most typical features of Fuxi is the "mountain-hat" (Chinese: 山字形; pinyin: Shanzixing) which looks like a three-peaked cap while Nüwa is depicted wearing various hairstyles characteristic of Han women.[20] Both deities dressed in wide-sleeved clothing, which reflects typical Han clothing style also commonly depicted in Han dynasty art.[20]

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  Fuxi and Nüwa.
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  Fuxi and Nuwa with tower and twin dragons, China, unearthed from a cliff tomb, Alkali factory, Pengshan, Eastern Han dynasty, 25-220 AD.
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  Fuxi and Nuwa holding the sun disc and moon disc respectively, Eastern Han dynasty, 25-220 AD.
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  The two conjoined figures are Fuxi and Nuwa holding a compass and a ruler respectively; a painting discovered at the Astana Graves. Burial objects in the Turpan region often display a strong Chinese influence as Chinese Han culture was introduced early in its history.[23]
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  Fuxi and Nüwa. 1967 Astana Cemetery
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• Dream of the Red Chamber (1754) narrates how Nuwa gathered 36,501 stones to patch the sky but left one unused. The unused stone plays an important role in the novel's storyline.[39]
• A goddess Nüwa statue named Sky Patching by Prof. Yuan Xikun was exhibited at Times Square, New York City, on 19 April 2012 to celebrate Earth Day (2012), symbolized the importance of protecting the ozone layer.[40] Previously, this 3.9 meters statue was exhibited on Beijing and now is placed on Vienna International Centre, Vienna since 21 November 2012.[41]
• Chinese video game series The Legend of Sword and Fairy (1995-) shows Nuwa broke up with Fuxi, she has five descendants: Zhao Ling'er, Lin Qing'er, Zi Xuan, Li Yiru and Xiao Man.
• "Goddess Nuwa patches up the sky" (2013) is an application for iPhone and iPad by Zero Studio.[42]
• The story of Nuwa patching the sky was being retold by "Carol Chen" on her book "Goddess Nuwa Patches Up the Sky" (2014) which was illustrated by "Meng Xianlong".[43]
• The 2014 hong kong movie The Monkey King directed by Cheang Pou-soi shows the battle between Jade Emperor (Chow Yun Fat) and Bull Demon King (Aaron Kwok). Nuwa (Zhang Zilin) sacrifices herself to repair heaven and make a heavenly gate to protect heaven from invading demons.[44]
• Added as a playable Chinese goddess in SMITE.
• Nuwa is a major character in Shin Megami Tensei V
• Nu Wa is a playable character in the Dynasty Warriors series.
• In the 2022 mobile game Dislyte, Feng Nuxi is a Legendary Esper with the powers of Nuwa.
• In Gremlins, Nuwa is the one who created the Mogwai

• Flood Mythology of China

• Birrell, Anne (1993), Chinese Mythology: An Introduction, Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.
• Lewis, Mark Edward (2006), The Flood Myths of Early China, Albany: State University of New York Press, ISBN 978-0-7914-6663-6.
• Major, John S.; et al., eds. (2010), The Huainanzi: A Guide to the Theory and Practice of Government in Early Han China, New York: Columbia University Press, ISBN 978-0-231-14204-5.

• Allan, Sarah (1991), The shape of the turtle: myth, art, and cosmos in early China, SUNY series in Chinese philosophy and culture, SUNY Press, ISBN 0-7914-0460-9

• Media related to Nuwa at Wikimedia Commons