CHINESE SUPERSTITIONS - University of Oregon

— 414— .
occasions. When Ngao-kwang ffi Jf (1)
heard of the death of his
son, he became exceedingly angry, and exclaimed: "my son belonged
to the race of the genii ; he
could fly amidst the clouds, and impart
life-giving germs to the world ; how have you been so rash as to
kill him? 11
Having uttered these words, he engaged in a struggle
with Na-t'o % P^, but was soon cast to the ground.
His adversary trampled on his body, and stripping him of his
clothes, found he was covered over with scales (2), like those of a fish.
Na-t'o ty$ fl£ dragged them off till the blood flowed on all sides.
Overwhelmed with pain, the dragon-king craved for mercy. Na-t' o tyfiffc
spared his life, but ordered him to be transformed into a little blue
snake, which he hid in his sleeve. He then returned to his home.
2. The White-Dragon, Peh-lung £j f|.
About 5 miles North-West of Soochow-fu |^ >)\] Jff, in the
province of Kiangsu f£ f$fc,
is found the temple of the White
Dragon, Peh-lung-shen-miao £j f| jffl Jfj, erected on the Ynng-shan
H lLj hill. In A.D. 977, the emperor T'ai-tsung -fc t^, of the
Northern Sung dynasty, Peh-Sung ^ ^, had it transferred to
Ts'ao-hsiang T%j ^,
and rebuilt on the Southern side of the hill.
In A.D. 1077, Slien-tsung f\fy ^, of the same dynast}% trans-
ported it back to its original site.
In A.D. 1160, Kao-lsung "j^ ^ (3), of the Southern Sung
(1) Ngao-kwang %% $|. This dragon-king inhabits the Eastern Seas',
and seems to be the same personage as the Hindu Sagara. Despite his
defeat at the hands of Na-t'o PJP Pjj, he is worshipped in China as the principal
dragon-king, and especially invoked for rain in seasons of drought. Eitel.
Sanscrit-Chinese Dictionary, p. 107 (Sagara).
(2) Nctgas reside under the rocks l
supporting M Meru, and are frequently
represented with fish-tails, hence the idea of a scaly body. Griinwedel and
Burgess. Buddhist Art in India, p. 43-45.
(8) Kao-tsung th ^ ruled at Nanking ]^j ^f. He was a weak and
superstitious monarch, and spent his whole reign in a struggle against the
Kin & Tartars, who seized all North of the Yellow River, and even crossed
the Yangtze, compelling the emperor to flee to Hangchow $i M- He
abdicated after a reign of 3G years, but still lived on to the ripe old age of 84.
M c Gowan. The Imperial History of China, p. 406.