CHINESE SUPERSTITIONS - University of Oregon

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summoned to his aid the mysterious peacock, which assuming the
form of a warrior with 24 heads and 18 arms, entwined therewith
the body of the "Heaven-pervading" Sovereign Teacher", T'ung-t'ien
kiao-chu ^ 3R %. jfe, while Lao-lze y£ ^ dealt him such heavy
blows that fire issued from his eyes, mouth and nostrils. Reduced
to extremities, Chun-t'i tifk $| strikes him with his magic wand, and
falling from the back of his buffalo, he disappears over the horizon
under the shape
of a dust-storm.
The "Beginning, honoured of Heaven", Yuen-shi t'ien-tsun j£
&a ^ M-i thanked Cliun-t'i tf^L $|
taking the city, and the gods
the Western Paradise (1).
for his invaluable assistance in
returned to their blissful abodes in
Smarting under his wounds and defeated, the "Heaven-pervading
Sovereign Teacher", T'ung-t'ien kiao-chu || ^ |^ i, swore
vengeance against his antagonists. Summoning to his aid the genii
of the 28 constellations (2), he sallied forth from the fortified place
of T'ung-kwan $f §|, and attacked the troops of Wu-wang ^ 3: (3).
Here again, Chun-t'i i^L fj| carried the day, and defeated his two
opponents. Armed with his magic sword, Wu-yun J=j |!| engaged
in a single combat with Chun-t'i rfj| H§, and endeavoured to pierce
him with a sword-thrust, but the warrior opened his mouth, and
lo ! a blue lotus-flower sprang forth and arrested the weapon. A
(1) The Taoist heavens is situated in the region around the North Pole,
or in the Islands of the Genii. The idea of a Western Paradise is entirely
Buddhistic. Taoism is the most abject of all the religions that the world has
known, and never rose till it borrowed from Buddhism. Edkins. Religion in
China, p. 03.
(2)
These are 28 stellar mansions, or resting-places of the sun and moon
in their revolutions. Some correspond with our signs of the zodiac, though
all are not included within 23° North or South of the ecliptic. Mayers.
Chinese Reader's Manual, p. 358.
(3) Wu-ioang ^ 3E (B.C. 1169-1116). The posthumous
title of the
founder of the Chow j^ dynasty. He took the lead in a vast assembly of the
nobles and people, and engaged the forces of Chow-sin %,f ^, completely
overthrowing the tyrant and his dynasty. Mayers. Chinese Reader's Manual,
p. 264.