Yunhua (), also known as Yunhua Nü (), is a goddess in Chinese mythology and the mother of Erlang Shen. Her story appears in the Ming dynasty Erlang Baojuan (), Journey to the West, and later legends about Erlang Shen. Her identity and relationship to the Jade Emperor differ between these traditions. In Erlang Baojuan, she is associated with the Three Flowers Gathering and is the younger sister of Tianhua and Jinhua. In Journey to the West, Erlang Shen's mother is described as the Jade Emperor's younger sister, but she is not named Yunhua in the novel.
Legend
Erlang Baojuan
The Ming dynasty Erlang Baojuan () presents Yunhua as one of three female deities associated with the Three Flowers Gathering (). Her sisters are Tianhua and Jinhua. Yunhua descends to the human world and meets Yang Tianyou, who is the mortal incarnation of the Golden Boy. The two marry and have a son, Yang Jian, who later becomes Erlang Shen.
After Yunhua's marriage is discovered, she is punished and imprisoned beneath a mountain. Yang Jian later learns of his mother's imprisonment and seeks to rescue her. With the assistance of the Queen Mother of the West, he splits the mountain and frees Yunhua. The story also includes Yang Jian's pursuit of the sun while carrying a mountain.
The genealogy of Yunhua differs between versions of the Erlang legends. Some later accounts identify the mother of Erlang Shen with other female deities associated with Mount Hua, including Huayue Sanniang (), also known as the Three Holy Mother (). The Huayue goddess, however, has a separate earlier tradition. In the Tang dynasty Guangyi ji, the Huayue goddess is the third daughter of Xiyue Dadi, the deity of Mount Hua and is not identified as the mother of Erlang Shen. Later traditions connected the Huayue goddess with the story of Liu Chenxiang and the legend of splitting Mount Hua to rescue his mother.
Journey to the West In Journey to the West, the story of Erlang Shen's mother is told briefly. During his confrontation with Sun Wukong in chapter 6, Erlang identifies himself as the son of the Jade Emperor's sister, who descended to the human world and married a mortal named Yang Jun. She gave birth to a son who later split Peach Mountain with an axe to rescue her. The novel does not give the mother the name Yunhua.
Mythological sites
Several sites in China are associated with local traditions about Yunhua and the legend of Yang Jian splitting a mountain to rescue his mother.
Banla Mountain (), about 1 km southeast of Dade Township in Zhangwu County, Liaoning, is traditionally identified with the mountain split by Yang Jian to rescue Yunhua. The mountain was formerly known as Taoshan (). Local tradition holds that remains of Yunhua are found at the foot of the mountain, guarded by a turtle and an eagle.
Shiliu Mountain () in Baoji, Shaanxi, is also associated with the legend. According to local tradition, the mountain was once Taoshan and was split by Yang Jian to rescue Yunhua. A large crevice at the summit is identified as the mark left by the split. An Erlang Temple stands on the mountain.
Cixiao Pavilion (), in the western part of Erlangshen Cultural Relic Park, is dedicated to the legend of Yunhua and Yang Jian's rescue of his mother. A statue of Yunhua is enshrined inside the pavilion.
Mount Erlang in Wugang, Henan, is associated with another local legend concerning Yang Jian. According to the tradition, Yang Jian passed through the area while pursuing the sun, and his actions gave rise to several of the mountain's peaks.
Yunmen Mountain (), about 6 km south of Qingzhou, Shandong, is associated with the legend of Yang Jian splitting a mountain. Local tradition identifies a cleft in the mountain with the act, while a poem by the Ming dynasty writer refers to a divine axe splitting the mountain's peaks.
Conflations Yunhua is often mistakenly conflated with the Wushan goddess Yaoji, despite the fact that Yaoji has no connection to Yang Jian. None of the relevant ancient texts mention Yang Jian's birth mother's name as Yaoji. The misrepresentation that led to this conflation originated from the 2005 TV series Lotus Lantern, where Yang Jian's mother was mistakenly portrayed as Yaoji.
In popular culture Portrayed by Tang Bik-wan in 1959 Hong Kong film The Fairy Third Sister's Trip to the World of Men () Portrayed by Liu Tianyue in 2019 Chinese television series Investiture of the Gods Portrayed by Weng Hong in 2021 Chinese film The Magic Lotus Lantren Appeared in 2022 Chinese 3D animated film New Gods: Yang Jian
References