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| Fengshen Yanyi Fengshen Bang |
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|---|---|
 Illustrations of Fengshen Yanyi. Left:Bi Gan and Wen Zhong; Right: King Zhou and Daji |
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| Author | Xu Zhonglin Lu Xixing |
| Original title | 封神演義 封神榜 |
| Country | China |
| Language | Chinese |
| Genre(s) | Fantasy |
| Publication date | 16th century |
| Media type | |
Fengshen Yanyi (simplified Chinese: 封神演义; traditional Chinese: 封神演義; pinyin: fēngshén yǎnyì) (translated as The Investiture of the Gods or The Creation of the Gods), also known as Fengshen Bang (simplified Chinese: 封神榜; traditional Chinese: 封神榜; pinyin: fēngshén bǎng), is one of the major vernacular Chinese epic fantasy novels written in the Ming Dynasty.
The story is set in the era of the declining Shang Dynasty and rise of the Zhou Dynasty. It intertwines numerous elements of Chinese mythology, including gods and goddesses, immortals and spirits. The authorship of Fengshen Yanyi is attributed to Xu Zhonglin or Lu Xixing.
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Plot summary
This epic novel is a romanticised retelling of the overthrow of the unscrupulous and merciless ruler King Zhou of Shang by King Wu of Zhou. The story integrates oral and written tales of the many Taoist heroes and immortals, and various spirits (usually represented in avatar form as foxes, chickens, and sometimes even inanimate objects like Jade Pipa) that take part in the struggle. Bewitched by his concubine Daji, who is actually a fox spirit in disguise, King Zhou murders loyal ministers with draconian punishments. After the fall of the Shang Dynasty and exorcism of Daji by Jiang Ziya, King Wu of Zhou builds his own dynasty, creating the Zhou feudal system. Even slain enemies from the Shang's side are endowed with heavenly ranking and essentially elevated to the position of gods, hence the title.
Some famous anecdotes
In Fengshen Yanyi, there are many stories (altogether 100 stories) in which many gods, goddesses and immortals came to the Earth and changed the fate of everything with their magical power. Here are some famous ones:
Nüwa and King Zhou
King Zhou visits the temple of the ancient Chinese goddess Nüwa to perform his worship. He notices that the statue of the goddess is very attractive. The lewd king spouts blasphemy before the statue, "It'd be good if I could marry Her". He writes poems on the walls to express his lust for the goddess. He has offended Nüwa unknowingly and Nüwa foresees that King Zhou is destined to be the last ruler of the Shang Dynasty. She sends the thousand-year old fox spirit, nine-headed pheasant spirit and jade pipa spirit to bewitch the king and hasten his downfall. The king becomes obsessed with the spirits, who disguise themselves as beauties, and starts to neglect his state affairs and rule with cruelty. The people suffer under his tyranny and join King Wu of Zhou to rise up and overthrow him.
Daji and Bo Yi Kao
King Zhou allows Western Duke Ji Chang to stay in You (present-day Henan) under house arrest for almost seven years. Ji Chang's eldest son Boyikao came to Zhaoge (present-day Hebi, Henan) to plead with King Zhou to let his father return home. Daji falls in love with the handsome young man and requests the king to permit Boyikao to teach her how to play the guqin. Daji attempts to seduce Boyikao but he shoves her away and denounces her as a shameless woman. The irate Daji complains to King Zhou that Boyikao bullied her. The king is furious and he has Boyikao killed, minced into paste and cooked with congee, and served to his father. Ji Chang knows divination and by means of the Bagua, he is aware that the congee contains human flesh from his son. He bears with the emotional pain and consumes the congee. King Zhou lowers his guard against Ji Chang after that and allows him to return home. Ji Chang builds his kingdom and plans to avenge his son.
Ji Chang and Jiang Ziya
Jiang Ziya (aka Jiang Taigong, Lü Shang) is an apprentice of the immortal Yuanshi Tianzun. He leaves his master at the age of 72. He only uses a straight fishhook without bait, three feet above the water, for angling. His neighbours are puzzled by his odd method of fishing. They ask him for the reason out of curiosity. Jiang replies, "What I'm angling is not a single fish, but the king and the great many vassals. Only those who really wish to go on the hook will be fished by me." Jiang meant that he was waiting for a wise ruler who recognises his talent and needs him.
Some people told Western Duke Ji Chang about the weird old man and Ji Chang becomes interested in him. One day, Ji Chang pays a visit to Jiang. Jiang demands that the duke helps him pull his cart. Ji Chang does so and stops pulling after he moved 800 steps forwards. Jiang tells the duke that his future kingdom (the Zhou Dynasty) will exist for 800 years. Ji Chang wishes to pull the cart for a few more steps but he is too exhausted to move forward. Jiang Ziya becomes the chancellor of Zhou afterwards and assists Ji Chang in building his dynasty.
Bi Gan loses his heart
From the prophecy revealed by the oracle bones, Jiang Ziya predicts that King Zhou's loyal and benevolent courtier, Bi Gan, will die soon. He gives a charm to Bi Gan. Before long, Daji tells the king that she has a heart attack and only a "delicate seven-aperture heart" (七巧玲瓏心) can relieve her agony. No one in the palace has that type of heart except Bi Gan. Bi Gan swallows the charm given by Jiang Ziya, grabs his heart, pulls it out of his body and presents it to King Zhou. Bi Gan does not die immediately nor sheds a single drop of blood. Instead, he walks out of the palace and follows Jiang's instructions to go straight home without looking back.
When he is only a few steps away from home, a female huckster yells from behind, "Hey! Cheap cabbages without stems (hearts)!" (The "heart" rhetorically refers to the stem of the plant). Bi Gan turns around asks the huckster in curiosity, "How can there be cabbages without stems?" The old lady puts on an evil grin and replies, "You're right, sir. Cabbages cannot live without stems just as men cannot live without hearts." Bi Gan shouts, falls and dies. The huckster is actually the jade pipa spirit in disguise.
Adaptations
The novel is prominent in modern Chinese culture and has been adapted into numerous television series and video games, even in Japanese popular culture.
- Gods of Honour - a 2001 Hong Kong TV series adaptation of the novel.
- The Legend and the Hero - a 2008/2009 two-part Chinese TV series adaptation of the novel.
- Hoshin Engi - a Japanese Manga based on the novel.
- Battle Houshin - a Japanese video game based on the novel.
- Tales of the Teahouse Retold: Investiture of the Gods - a novel by Katherine Liang Chew (ISBN 0-595-65161-5)
See also
External links
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