Fenghuang (鳳凰, Chinese)
Alternative Names (異名):
鳳凰, 凤凰, Fènghuáng, Fenghuang, 봉황(Korean), bonghwang, hō-ō(Japanese), Phượng Hoàng(Vietnamese)
Fenghuang (Chinese: 鳳凰/凤凰; pinyin: Fènghuáng; Japanese: 鳳凰 hō-ō; Korean: 봉황 bonghwang; Vietnamese: Phượng Hoàng) are mythological Chinese birds that reign over all other birds. The males are called Feng and the females Huang. In modern times, however, such a distinction of gender is often no longer made and the Feng and Huang are blurred into a single feminine entity so that the bird can be paired with the Chinese dragon, which has male connotations. The Fenghuang is also called the "August Rooster" (traditional Chinese: 鶤雞; pinyin: kūnjī) since it sometimes takes the place of the Rooster in the Chinese Zodiac. In the West, it is commonly referred to as the Chinese phoenix and occasionally Ho-Oh bird (from the Japanese name hō-ō).
Appearance
A common depiction was of it attacking snakes with its talons and its wings spread. According to scripture Erya - chapter 17 Shiniao, Fenghuang is said to be made up of the beak of a rooster, the face of a swallow, the forehead of a fowl, the neck of a snake, the breast of a goose, the back of a tortoise, the hindquarters of a stag and the tail of a fish.
Origin
The images of the Fenghuang have appeared in China for over 7,000 years, often in jade and originally on good-luck totems. It is a totem of eastern tribes in ancient China. Current theories suggest that it is likely based in part - for example the snake-like neck - on folk memory of the Asian Ostrich which was common in prehistoric China but became extinct several thousand years ago. That this bird was well-known to the early modern humans in Asia, noted for its peculiarity, and hunted for food, is attested by numerous archaeological finds, such as pottery decorated with painted ostriches, and bones by early campsites.
Fenghuang seems to have no connection with the phoenix of the Western world, which derives from Egyptian mythology. Peculiarly, the "Western" (actually: Ancient Egyptian) phoenix may also in part reference a prehistoric bird, the Bennu Heron. Unlike the Fenghuang, which is a chimera not very much like any actual bird (though elements of a cock and a cursorial groundbird probably best interpreted as an ostrich are recognizable), the Egyptian phoenix was a rather conventional animal most often considered similar to a heron or eagle which "merely" had a supernatural lifestyle.
During the Han Dynasty (2,200 years ago) the phoenix was used as a symbol depicting the direction south, shown as a male (feng, 鳳) and female (huang, 凰) phoenix facing each other. It was also used to symbolize the Empress in a pairing with a dragon where the dragon represents the Emperor. It might come from the merging of eastern and western tribes of ancient China.[citation needed] The phoenix represented power sent from the heavens to the Empress. If a phoenix was used to decorate a house it symbolized that loyalty and honesty were in the people that lived there. Or alternatively, phoenix only stays when the ruler is without darkness and corruption (政治清明).
Meaning
The Fenghuang has very positive connotations. It is a symbol of high virtue and grace. The Fenghuang also symbolizes the union of yin and yang. It appears in peaceful and prosperous times but hides when trouble is near. Shan Hai Jing - chapter 1 Nanshan jing records each part of Fenghuang's body symbolizes a word, the head represents virtue (德), the wing represents duty (義)，the back represents propriety (禮) the abdomen says belief (信) and the chest represents mercy (仁).
In ancient China, they can often be found in the decorations for weddings or royalty, along with dragons. This is because the Chinese considered the dragon and phoenix symbolic of blissful relations between husband and wife, another common yin and yang metaphor
Modern usage
"Fèng talon" (鳳爪) is a Chinese dish of chicken feet cooked in a black bean sauce.
"Fènghuáng" is a common element in the names of Chinese girls (likewise, "dragon" for boys' names).
"Dragon and Fèng infants" (龍鳳胎) is an expression meaning a set of boy and girl fraternal twins.
Fenghuang is also a county in western Hunan province of China, formerly a sub-prefecture. Its name is written with the same Chinese characters as the mythological bird.
In Korea, it has been used for the royal emblem or the presidential emblem.
The Vermilion Bird of the South, one of the Four Symbols (Ssu Ling) of Chinese myth, is sometimes mistaken for the Fenghuang, when in reality, they are two separate entities
See also
Chinese dragon
Chinese mythology
Phoenix (mythology)
Huma (mythology)
Byōdō-in ("Phoenix Hall" in Uji, Japan)
Phoenix Program
Links
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_mythology
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Chinese_mythology
Chinese mythology | Legendary birds | Chinese legendary creatures
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