Yu the Great

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Yu the Great, Color on silk. National Palace Museum

Yu the Great (大禹 Dà-Yǔ), was the legendary founder of the Xia Dynasty.^[1] Occasionally identified as one of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, he is best remembered for teaching the people flood control techniques to tame China's rivers and lakes.

Yu established his capital at Yang City (陽城). According to the Bamboo Annals, in the second year of his reign, the prime minister of the previous king of Shun died. In the 5th year, he held the first meeting with all the leaders of the states (諸侯) at Tushan (涂山). In the 8th year, he held a second meeting with all the leaders of states at Kuaiji (會稽), and in order to reinforce his hold on the throne, killed one of the northern leaders, Fangfeng (防風氏). Yu is the only Chinese ruler posthumously honored with the appellation "the Great,".

Birth and ancestry

Traditionally, Yu is regarded as a descendant of Huangdi, the Yellow Emperor. Yu's father, Gun (鯀), was enfeoffed at Shiniu of Mount Wen, in modern day Beichuan County, Sichuan province. Yu was born there, but moved at a young age with his family to Chong, which is modern-day Mount Songshan.

The flood

According to the legend of China's Great Flood, Yu's father, Gun, was assigned by King Yao (堯) to tame the raging waters. In 9 years, Gun had built earthen dikes all over the land in the hope of containing the waters. But during a period of heavy flooding, the earthen dikes collapsed everywhere and the project failed miserably. Gun was executed by King Shun (舜), to whom Yao had handed the rulership. Shun recruited Yu as successor to his father's flood-control efforts. Instead of building more dikes, Yu began to dredge new river channels, to serve both as outlets for the torrential waters, and as irrigation conduits to distant farm lands. Yu spent a backbreaking thirteen years at this task, with the help of some 20,000 workers.

"Passing his own door three times" is a tale of Yu's dedication. It is said that when Yu was given the task of fighting the flood, he had been married only five days. He then said goodbye to his wife, saying that he does not know when he will return. His wife then asked him what name to give if a son is born. Yu replied, Qi (啟), a character meaning five days in ancient Chinese. During his thirteen years of fighting the flood, Yu passed by his own family's doorstep three times. The first time he passed by hearing that his wife was in labor. The second time he passed by, his wife was holding his son's hand as he was learning his first steps. The third time, his son greeted him and enjoined him to come in for rest. Each time, Yu refused to go in the door, saying that the flood was rendering countless people homeless, he could not rest in his own.

For this engineering feat, Yu has been remembered as an examplar of perseverance and determination and revered as the perfect civil servant. Stories continue to dwell on his single-minded dedication. In spite of passing his own house three times during those thirteen years, he never once stopped in for a family visit, reasoning that a personal reunion would distract him from dealing with the public crisis at hand.

King Shun was so impressed by Yu's engineering work and diligence that he passed the throne to Yu instead of to his own son, following King Yao's example in rewarding merit. At the end of Great Yu's life, however, his ministers favoured passing the throne to Yu's son, Qi (啟), instituting a hereditary monarchy. This created China's first hereditary dynasty, the Xia Dynasty (ca.2070 BCE - 1600 BCE).

Death

Yu was said to have died at Kuaiji Mountain (south of present day Shaoxing) while on a hunting tour on the southern frontier of his empire, and was buried there. A mausoleum was built in the 6th century BCE in his honor.^[2] A number of emperors in imperial times have travelled there to perform ceremonies in his honor, notably Qin Shi Huang. A temple, Dayu Ling (大禹陵), has been built on the traditional site where the ceremonies are performed. He ruled China for 45 years according to the Bamboo Annals.

In mythology

In many versions of the Flood mythology, Yu seems to be in possession of god-like characteristics. For example, his brilliant engineering idea was, according to some, caused by the "Divine Favour" of the "responding dragon and turtle." Yu is further mythologized when it is claimed that he was born from the corpse of his father, Gun.

According to legend, Yu created the Sanmenxia "Three Passes Gorge" by cutting a mountain ridge with a divine battle-axe (Yue) to control flooding.

In popular culture

Yu, played by Vince Crestejo , is the eldest of the System Lords,as seen in the science fiction television series Stargate SG1. He did not assume the role of a god , but rather one of China's earliest emperors, and is notable for several positive influences made during his reign. In the show, he has been introduced as Yu the Great in Fair Game, and the Jade Emperor, the exalted Yu Huang Shang Ti in Summit, who are separate figures in Chinese mythology.

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