Mythology

Mythology



This picture depicts a statue of Yu the Great fighting serpents. The serpents can represent a river or a flowing body of water, while the battle is a representation of his attempt to tame the water and stop flooding. This is a portrayal of Yu's God like attributes similar to other kings during that time, as he is depicted as more than human in this statue, able to fight very powerful and immense creatures using only his abilities.

The early history of China can be highly suspect. Most of what is known about the history of China before the Shang Dynasty comes from the writings of the Shang Dynasty. These writings are usually highly mythological and suggest a history that is much older than can be possible considering the evidence available. These writings are derive from the “Oracle Bones,” “The Records of the Grand Historian,” and “Bamboo Annals,” and later continued by the Zhou Dynasty, which encompasses the history of former emperors and dynasties usually in a highly mythological and magical portrayal (1). Although this could provide evidence that such rulers did exist, it obvious does not portray history in an accurate or fully acceptable historical or empirical account.

For example, the historical evidence of the Xia Dynasty originates from evidence found in the Shang Dynasty records and within the Shang Dynasties writings, which some can be backed up by Archeological records though not in a direct way. The mythological story of Yu the Great, for example, is a story of a man who helped China by ending a flooding crisis and was able to build a civilization through his efforts and god like influence (1,8). Some of this story like the flooding for example can be backed up by archeological evidence, maybe by discovering sites where the land was manipulated. However, nothing about this evidence will direct to the Xia Dynasty unless historical account of the era is found written down. Up to this point in time, since the Xia Dynasty is doubted by some to have existed, it is safe to assume that no such evidence has been discovered (8). Therefore, any artifacts discovered to have existed before the Shang Dynasty’s reign suggest that nothing links it directly to the Xia Dynasty nor the Shang.

However, according to the historical records provided by the Shang and the archeological evidence, if Yu the Great existed, he existed sometime in the early history of Ancient China. Mythological evidence suggest that he was a descendent of the first emperor of China, the Yellow Emperor, and a man with the ability to tame water, usually in a magical sense, such as being able to move it without touching it and having the ability to walk on its surface, usually through the use of God like powers (1,2, 4). Assumingly, however, if Yu the Great existed he achieved this feat through irrigation and by doing so he stopped the flooding that possibly might have hindered the growth of the civilization in an area such as found in Erlitou. Though this is unlikely to have occurred, early evidence of civilizations suggest that people did practice irrigation (6). Though no evidence exists to suggest that a man named Yu the Great actually managed to achieve this feat. Some evidence of Yu’s existence could perhaps be found through his [|lineage] and perhaps through the emergence of the Shang Dynasty, because of its cultural link to the past.

According to the Shiji, and the Jí zhŏng shū, early writings of Chinese histories, the earliest emperor of China was referred to as the Yellow Emperor (10). He was a member of the founders of China and early civilization. His importance in society derives from his ability to unify a group of nomadic tribes to eventually settle in areas in China (10). However Due in part to his ingenuity and intellectual capabilities the Yellow Emperor was said to have stratified a form of government that later prosper, this having occurred sometime before the Xia Dynasty and way before 3000 BCE (10,11).



A picture of the Yellow Emperor. His existence is likely questionable since evidence seems to point to a lack of a thriving civilization during his proposed time of existence. Although the possibility does exists that someone by his characterization did exist and later became part of legend.

However, this mythological evidence suggest that the Yellow emperor is mostly part of Chinese legend, because it is likely that no civilization powerful enough existed, considering that even the Xia Dynasty's history is lacking due to the small size of its civilization. The Yellow emperor is therefore most likely a myth that was found in the writings of the Shang Dynasty and was probably passed down through the ages. Yet, since he is part of a myth, his character is most likely divine similar to the kings and rulers of the Egyptian Dynasties and Yu the Great, who is said to be his descendant, thus providing evidence that perhaps someone that became well known and referenced as the Yellow emperor might have actually existed (1). However, this evidence actually weakens the chance that Yu the Great existed since it suggests that his lineage is likely false, placing further evidence into question, since it is hard to assume that the Yellow Emperor existed. when considering the evidence and the possibility that the Yellow Emperor existed, or even a civilization during the proposed time, is almost entirely unlikely, since evidence seems to be lacking before the Shang Dynasty making it almost impossible to suggest that an empire existed before that time. The reasons for this are numerous and include geography, population growth, and population isolation. Therefore, the possibility that a civilization existed, or a Dynasty before the Xia Dynasty, or the Bronze Age, is almost certainly a myth.