Topic Archive

Myths about folklore

Explore myths connected by the recurring theme of folklore across cultures, characters, and sacred places.

59 myths currently featured for folklore.

The Eight Immortals Battling the Arrogant Dragon King of the East Sea

🐉 Chinese MythologyBohai Sea, Shandong, ChinaLi Tieguai • Zhongli Quan • Lu Dongbin

After attending the Peach Banquet of the Queen Mother of the West, the Eight Immortals decide to cross the East Sea by using their unique magical treasures instead of riding the clouds. This unconventional display of power disturbs the underwater palace of Ao Guang, the Dragon King, leading to a violent confrontation and the capture of Lan Caihe. The ensuing battle tests the unity and divine...

Lan Caihe Wandering the Streets in a Tattered Blue Gown, Singing of Immortality

🐉 Chinese MythologyChang'an (Xi'an), Shaanxi, ChinaLan Caihe • The Eight Immortals

Lan Caihe, an eccentric and gender-ambiguous member of the Eight Immortals, is famously depicted as a wandering street performer in the ancient capital of Chang'an. Clad in a tattered blue gown and wearing only one boot, they sang cryptic songs about the transience of mortal life and the eternal nature of the Tao while carrying a bamboo basket of magical flowers. Their presence served as a...

Zhongli Quan Teaching Lu Dongbin the Secrets of Alchemy and Immortality

🐉 Chinese MythologyMount Zhongnan, Shaanxi, ChinaZhongli Quan • Lü Dongbin • The Eight Immortals

The legend of the scholar Lu Dongbin and his transformative encounter with the immortal Zhongli Quan, beginning with the famous 'Yellow Millet Dream.' After realizing the vanity of worldly success, Lu Dongbin undergoes a series of spiritual trials and deep alchemical instruction in the Zhongnan Mountains. Through the mastery of internal alchemy and the cultivation of the Tao, he eventually...

Tieguai Li Forced to Possess the Body of a Starved Beggar After His Disciple Burns His Body

🐉 Chinese MythologyMount Dangshan, Anhui, ChinaLi Tieguai • Laozi • Li Qing

Li Tieguai, once a handsome and talented Daoist student, attempted a spiritual journey to the heavens while leaving his body in the care of his disciple. However, due to a family emergency, the disciple burned the body a day before Li's return, forcing the immortal's spirit to take residence in the corpse of a recently deceased beggar. This transformation turned Li into a ragged, crippled...

Bai Suzhen Imprisoned Beneath the Leifeng Pagoda Until the Lake Dries Up

🐉 Chinese MythologyLeifeng Pagoda, Hangzhou, ChinaBai Suzhen • Xu Xian • Xiaoqing

The Legend of the White Snake tells the story of Bai Suzhen, a snake spirit who transforms into a human and marries a kind physician named Xu Xian. Their love is challenged by the monk Fahai, who views their union as unnatural and eventually traps Bai Suzhen under the Leifeng Pagoda. The story concludes with the eventual liberation of Bai Suzhen through the filial piety and scholarly success...

Bai Suzhen and Xiaoqing Fiercely Summoning a Massive Flood to Drown Jinshan Temple

🐉 Chinese MythologyJinshan Temple, Zhenjiang, ChinaBai Suzhen (Lady White Snake) • Xiaoqing (Green Snake) • Xu Xian

This myth details the climactic battle where the white snake spirit Bai Suzhen and her sister Xiaoqing summon the Yangtze River to flood Jinshan Temple. Driven by love and desperation, they attempt to rescue Bai's husband, Xu Xian, who was imprisoned by the dogmatic monk Fahai. The event is a central tragedy in the Legend of the White Snake, illustrating the clash between spiritual law and...

The Monk Fahai Kidnapping Xu Xian and Hiding Him in the Jinshan Temple

🐉 Chinese MythologyJinshan Temple, Zhenjiang, ChinaXu Xian • Bai Suzhen • Fahai

Driven by a rigid belief that spirits and humans must never coexist, the powerful Buddhist monk Fahai abducts the young scholar Xu Xian and imprisons him within the Jinshan Temple. This act of spiritual interference forces Xu Xian's wife, the White Snake spirit Bai Suzhen, to wage a catastrophic war against the monastery. The ensuing battle between divine Buddhist magic and the elemental...

Bai Suzhen Stealing the Magical Lingzhi Herb from Kunlun Mountain to Revive Xu Xian

🐉 Chinese MythologyKunlun Mountains, Xinjiang, ChinaBai Suzhen • Xu Xian • Xiaoqing

After her husband Xu Xian dies of shock upon seeing her true snake form, the white snake spirit Bai Suzhen journeys to the forbidden Kunlun Mountains. She risks her life and immortality to steal the sacred Lingzhi herb, an elixir capable of restoring the dead. Through her bravery and the mercy of the celestial gods, she successfully retrieves the herb and revives her beloved.

Bai Suzhen Inadvertently Scaring Xu Xian to Death by Revealing Her True Snake Form

🐉 Chinese MythologySuzhou, Jiangsu, ChinaBai Suzhen • Xu Xian • Xiaoqing

During the Dragon Boat Festival in Suzhou, the white snake spirit Bai Suzhen is pressured by her husband Xu Xian into drinking Realgar wine, which weakens her human disguise. As she rests, she involuntarily reverts to her true form as a giant white serpent, and when Xu Xian discovers her in the bedroom, the shock is so great that his heart fails and he dies instantly. This tragic event leads...

Bai Suzhen Magically Creating an Umbrella to Share with Xu Xian

🐉 Chinese MythologyBroken Bridge, West Lake, HangzhouBai Suzhen • Xu Xian • Xiao Qing

Deep within the spiritual peaks of Mount Emei, a white snake achieves immortality and transforms into the beautiful woman Bai Suzhen. Seeking to experience the human world, she travels to Hangzhou's West Lake where she meets a kind scholar named Xu Xian during a sudden spring rain. By magically summoning a paper umbrella, she creates a chance to share shelter with him, sparking one of the...