Three-legged crow
The three-legged (or tripedal) crow is a creature found in various mythologies and arts of Asia, Asia Minor, and North Africa.[1][2] It is believed by many cultures to inhabit and represent the sun.
The creature has been featured in myths from Egypt, where it appears on wall murals.[2] It has also been found figured on ancient coins from Lycia and Pamphylia.[1]
In East Asian mythologies the three-legged crow is most often associated with the sun.
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China [edit]
In Chinese mythology and culture, the three-legged crow is called the Sanzuwu (Chinese: 三足烏; pinyin: sānzúwū; Cantonese: sam1zuk1wu1; Shanghainese: sae tsoh u) and is present in many myths and is also mentioned in the Shanhaijing. The earliest known depiction of a three-legged crow appears in Neolithic pottery of the Yangshao culture.[3] The Sanzuwu is also of the Twelve Medallions that is used in the decoration of formal imperial garments in ancient China.[4] A silk painting from the Western Han excavated at the Mawangdui archaeological site also depicts a Sanzuwu perched on a tree.
Sun Crow in Chinese Mythology [edit]
The most popular depiction and myth of a Sanzuwu is that of a sun crow called the Yangwu (Chinese: 陽烏; pinyin: yángwū) or more commonly referred to as the Jīnwū (Chinese: 金烏; pinyin: jīnwū) or "golden crow". Even though it is described as a crow or raven, it is usually colored red instead of black.[5]
According to folklore, there were originally ten sun crows which settled in 10 separate suns. They perched on a red mulberry tree called the Fusang (Chinese: 扶桑; pinyin: fúsāng), literally meaning the Leaning Mulberry Tree, in the East at the foot of the Valley of the Sun. This mulberry tree was said to have many mouths opening from its branches.[6] Each day one of the sun crows would be rostered to travel around the world on a carriage, driven by Xihe the 'mother' of the suns. As soon as one sun crow returned, another one would set forth in its journey crossing the sky. According to Shanhaijing, the sun crows loved eating two sorts of mythical grasses of immortality, one called the Diri (Chinese: 地日; pinyin: dìrì), or "ground sun", and the other the Chunsheng (Chinese: 春生; pinyin: chūnshēng), or "spring grow". The sun crows would often descend from heaven on to the earth and feast on these grasses, but Xihe did not like this thus she covered their eyes to prevent them from doing so.[7] Folklore also held that, at around 2170 BC, all ten sun crows came out on the same day, causing the world to burn; Houyi the celestial archer saved the day by shooting down all but one of the sun crows. (See Mid-Autumn Festival for variants of this legend.)
Other depictions of the Sanzuwu in Chinese Mythology [edit]
In Chinese mythology, the Fènghuáng is commonly depicted as being two legged but there are some instances in art in which it has a three legged appearance.[8][9] Xi Wangmu (Queen Mother of the West) is also said to have three green birds (Chinese: 青鳥; pinyin: qīngniǎo) that gathered food for her and in Han-period religious art they were depicted has having three-legs.[10] [11] In the Yongtai Tomb dating to the Tang Dynasty Era, when the Cult of Xi Wangu flourished, the birds are also shown as being three-legged.[12]
Japan [edit]
In Japanese mythology, this flying creature is a raven or a Jungle Crow called Yatagarasu (八咫烏, "eight-span crow") [13] and the appearance of the great bird is construed as evidence of the will of Heaven or divine intervention in human affairs.[14]
Although Yatagarasu is mentioned in a number of places in the Shintō canon, the depictions are primarily seen on Edo wood art, dating back to the early 1800s wood-art era. Although not as celebrated current day, the crow is a mark of rebirth and rejuvenation; the animal that has historically cleaned up after great battles symbolized the renaissance after such tragedy.
Yatagarasu the Crow-God himself is symbolic specifically of guidance. This great crow was sent from heaven as a guide for Emperor Jimmu on his initial journey from the region which would become Kumano to what would become Yamato. It is generally accepted that Yatagarasu is an incarnation of Taketsunimi no mikoto, but none of the early surviving documentary records are quite so specific.[15]
In more than one instance, Yatagarasu appears as a three legged crow in Kojiki.
Both the Japan Football Association and subsequently its administered teams such as the Japan national football team use the symbol of Yatagarasu in their emblems and badges respectively.[16] The winner of the Emperor's Cup is also given the honor of wearing the Itachi emblem the following season.
In popular culture [edit]
- In the 2010 Three Kingdoms TV series, Sun Quan's robes are often decorated with Sun Crows.
- The Sun Crow (referred to as the Huoniao) is a recurring demon in the Shin Megami Tensei franchise.
- Yatagarasu is the name of a CHILD in the My-HiME anime, belonging to Shiho Munakata.[citation needed]
- In contemporary Korean dramas set in Goguryeo, like Jumong or Kingdom of the Winds, the Samjoko is a symbol of power.[citation needed]
- In the game Genji: Dawn of the Samurai, one of the bosses is a giant, fire-wielding three-legged bird.[citation needed]
- In the game Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth, the Yatagarasu is the name of the world-renowned "Great Thief" known for "stealing the truth." Much like the Yatagarasu has 3 legs, the thief who goes by this name is actually a group of three people.
- In the game franchise Touhou Project, Utsuho is a raven who swallows the corpse of the Yatagarasu prior to the events of Subterranean Animism.
- There is a spirit card in Yu-Gi-Oh that is named Yata-Garasu.
- Iori Yagami's Neo Max from The King of Fighters XIII is called Kin 1218 Shiki: Yatagarasu (Forbidden Method 1218: Eight-Span Crow), a reference to the above creature.
- In Naruto, the character Itachi Uchiha and his actions in the story are loosely based on the legend of Yatagarasu.
- In the 2012 anime K, Misaki Yata's nickname is "Yatagarasu".
- In the iOS game Geomon, there is an Esper called Sanzwu and described as "the three-legged crow."
Notes [edit]
- ^ a b Volker, T. (1975). The Animal in Far Eastern Art and Especially in the Art of the Japanese. Brill. p. 39.
- ^ a b Chosun.com.
- ^ Allan, Sarah (1991), The shape of the turtle: myth, art, and cosmos in early China, SUNY Press, p. 31, ISBN 0-7914-0460-9
- ^ Roy Bates. 10,000 Chinese Numbers. Lulu.com. p. 246. ISBN 0-557-00621-X.
- ^ Katherine M. Ball (2004). Animal motifs in Asian art: an illustrated guide to their meanings and aesthetics. Courier Dover Publications. p. 241. ISBN 0-486-43338-2, 9780486433387 Check
|isbn=value (help). - ^ Allan 1991, p. 27
- ^ Lihui Yang; Deming An; Jessica Anderson Turner (2005). Handbook of Chinese mythology. ABC-CLIO. pp. 95–96. ISBN 1-57607-806-X, 9781576078068 Check
|isbn=value (help). - ^ Feng Huang, Emperor of Birds
- ^ Ancient Spiral: The Phoenix
- ^ Richard E. Strassberg (2002). A Chinese bestiary: strange creatures from the guideways through mountains and seas. University of California Press. p. 195. ISBN 0-520-21844-2, 9780520218444 Check
|isbn=value (help). - ^ Xi Wangmu Summary
- ^ China 1999 - Tang Dynasty Day
- ^ Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1962). Studies in Shinto and Shrines, pp. 143-152.
- ^ Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1963). Vicissitudes of Shinto, p. 11.
- ^ Ponsonby-Fane, p. 147.
- ^ http://www.jfa.or.jp/eng/general_info/index.html
References [edit]
- Ponsonby-Fane, Richard Arthur Brabazon. (1962). Studies in Shinto and Shrines. Kyoto: Ponsonby Memorial Society. OCLC 399449
- ____________. (1963). Vicissitudes of Shinto. Kyoto: Ponsonby Memorial Society. OCLC 36655
