Chinese Folk Tales

Although it took many years, in fact decades, for Shun to eventually become the emperor, it was all worth it. There was finally peace under heaven. How did Shun manage that and who came after Shun?

What is an ideal leader like, in the minds of the Chinese people? I think the answer can be best demonstrated by learning about the two ancient Chinese emperors, Yao and Shun. Today we will talk about Emperor Shun, who had a quite unfortunate childhood. Why is that?

How great would someone have to be, to be remembered as virtuous, kind and magnanimous thousands of years later? In this episode and the next, we will introduce Emperor Yao and Emperor Shun, who have been admired and loved by the Chinese people and looked up to by Chinese leaders. What is a perfect leader like in the eyes of the Chinese people?

What did your Mom say when you asked her "Where did I come from"? The stories about the births of the founders of Shang and Zhou Dynasties might come handy when your child asks you the same question. So where did they come from?

Separating heaven and earth, wait a minute, didn't Pangu the giant already do that? Yes, he was the first one to do so but not the last. Who else tried to separate heaven and earth and why?

Being an emperor was no easy job, especially at a time when giants and monsters roamed the land, too. In this episode, a giant fought with the Yellow Emperor with his head cut off. How did he manage that?

The first major battle in Chinese history was the one between the Yellow Emperor and Chi You. It wasn't just a simple mortal affair though. Some interesting supernatural creatures were involved, too. What were they like and what did they do?

Why do Chinese people call themselves the descendants of the Yan and Yellow Emperors? Were these emperors real or mystical?

We've spent some time talking about the great hero Hou Yi. Was this handsome archer single or already taken? In fact, he was very happily married, to a fairy that was even more famous than he is!

Hou Yi is a very familiar name to the Chinese people and not just because he shot down the extra nine suns. Monsters of various sorts were out there haunting humans. Guess who stood out to tackle the challenge?