KISAH DELAPAN DEWA (BA XIAN)

Delapan Dewa atau dalam bahasa Mandarin disebut Ba Xian (Hanzi:八仙) berasal dari mitologi Taoisme, dan termasuk dewa dewi terkenal dalam kisah klasik Tionghoa.

Mereka adalah simbol keberuntungan bagi masyarakat Tionghoa. Masing-masing dewa mewakili 8 kondisi kehidupan : anak muda, lansia, kemiskinan, kekayaan, rakyat jelata, ningrat, pria dan wanita. Diceritakan bahwa sebagian besar dilahirkan pada zaman dinasti Tang dan dinasti Sung. Walaupun penjelasan mengenai mereka telah ada sejak dinasti Tang, namun pengelompokkan ke dalam kategori delapan dewa baru terjadi pada masa dinasti Ming.

Ke delapan dewa tersebut adalah:

Zhong Li Quan

Li Tie Guai

Lü Dong Bin

Zhang Guo Lao

He Xian Gu

Lan Cai He

Han Xiang Zi

Cao Guo Jiu

Delapan Dewa adalah salah satu tema favorit dari seniman-seniman Tiongkok dan kebanyakan menjadi objek yang digambarkan dalam keramik dan porselen. Mereka juga banyak muncul dalam literatur Tiongkok.

The Eight Immortals (Chinese: 八仙; pinyin: Bāxiān; Wade–Giles: Pa¹-hsien¹) are a group of legendary xian (immortals; transcendents; saints) in Chinese mythology. Each Immortal's power can be transferred to a power tool (法器) that can bestow life or destroy evil. Together, these eight tools are called the "Covert Eight Immortals" (暗八仙 àn ~). Most of them are said to have been born in the Tang or Song Dynasty. They are revered by the Taoists and are also a popular element in secular Chinese culture. They are said to live on a group of five islands in the Bohai Sea, which includes Penglai Mountain-Island. In literature before the 1970s, they were sometimes translated as the Eight Genies. First described in the Yuan Dynasty, they were probably named after the Eight Immortal Scholars of the Han.

Symbolism

The Eight Immortals are sometimes identified with the eight trigrams of the bagua, with aspects of nature, and with ancient artifacts:

Name 8 Trigrams Aspect of Nature Family Ancient Artifact

Han Xiangzi, Full Yang , Sun, Father, Flute

Lan Caihe, Full Yin Moon Mother Basket Flower

Cao Guojiu Yang Above Thunder Older Son Castanets

He Xiangu Yin Below Wood Older Daughter Lotus Flower

Li Tieguai Yang Middle Water Middle Son Calabash, Iron Crutch

Lü Dongbin Yin Middle Fire Middle Daughter Sword

Zhang Guolao Yang Below Volcano Younger Son Drum

Zhongli Quan Yin Above Cyclone Younger Daughter Fa