A.P.P.L.E

Do you still remember Wu Gang (吴刚), the man who lives in the moon that has to cut down the ‘ever-lasting’ cassia tree in the previous story? This is another tale told to children during the Moon Festival. Same story, different versions - Wu Gang has to chopped down the cassia tree in the moon. Let’s find out why he has to do that.

[Version 1]
It is said that, there was a cassia tree, as tall as 500 feet, in the moon. During the Han Dynasty, a man named Wu Gang wanted to be immortal, however he was not paying full attention during his learning process. This had make the Heaven Emperor very angry, and sent him to the Moon Palace, ordered him to chop down the cassia tree. “If you are able to chop down the cassia tree, you will become immortal,” said the Heaven Emperor. However, once Wu Gang pulled out his axes after chopping the cassia tree, the magical tree immediately healed. Day by day, Wu Gang kept trying to chop down the tree but failed. Therefore, he stayed in the moon kept chopping the ‘unchoppable” cassia tree. Until today, we can slightly see a shadow that looks like a man chopping a tree continuously in the moon.

[Version 2]
Wu Gang, also known as Wu Quan (吴权), was a man from XiHe （西河）province. When Wu Gang was away from home for 3 years, to acquire the skill of immortality, Bo Ling (伯陵，the grandson of God of Sun, Yan 炎帝) had an affair with Wu Gang’s wife. Furthermore, Bo Ling and Wu Gang’s wife gave birth to 3 sons. Wu Gang was very furious about this matter and killed Bo Ling. The killing of Bo Ling, trigger the anger of the God of Sun, so the God of Sun sent Wu Gang to the moon and ordered him to chop down the immortal tree - cassia tree. The cassia tree was 500 feet tall and would join back again right after being chopped. The God of Sun used this as a punishment towards Wu Gang for killing his grandson.

Wu Gang’s wife was guilty for what had happened to him, so she ordered her 3 sons to fly up to the moon to accompany Wu Gang. A son transformed into a toad, another transformed into a rabbit (the so called Jade rabbit), and it is uncertain of what had happend to the 3rd son.

[Version 3]
Wu Gang of the NanTian Gate (南天门, one of the gate to Heaven) was very close to Chang’e (嫦娥, the Moon Lady), who lived in the moon. However, he always went to meet Chang’e and lost his responsibility to guard the heaven gate. When the Jade Emperor (玉皇大帝, the greatest in the Heaven) knew about this, he was very angry and punished Wu Gang to chop the cassia tree in the moon. Telling Wu Gang that he could not return to NanTian Gate nor meet Chang’e, if he could not chop down the cassia trees.

Wu Gang chopped the tree from winter to summer. using half year time, Wu Gang had almost finish chopping the cassia trees. But, this time the Jade Emperor sent a crow to take away Wu Gang’s clothes which was hanging on the tree. Wu Gang immediately put down his axe and chased the crow. When he got back his clothes and went back to continue his task, all the branches and leaves of the cassia tree had grown back. From that day onwards, whenever Wu Gang almost finished chopping off the cassia tree, the crow would make sound to disturb Wu Gang. Once Wu Gang stopped down and stared at the crow, all the branches and leaves of the cassia tree would grow back again.

Years after years, Wu Gang still never managed to chop down the cassia tree. Only during 16th August of the Lunar year, a leaf from the cassia tree would drop down to the Earth. Whoever gain this leaf will be blessed with wealth.

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There’s another version which I found it very hard to translate and not really that interesting, so I just left that one out, it’s also related to the cassia tree. hehe

I just knew that this so called Wu Gang has to chop down a tree in the moon. Now I finally know the reason(s). Have you heard this tale before?

My eyes were closed. I felt a refreshing breeze all around me, my body was light as if I were a bird. Gentle whispers and soft laughters all around. For a moment, I thought I was in heaven. When I opened my eyes, to my surprise I saw Genie King and Genie Princess. I was actually invited by NAFA to join the ride while I was having my dream. “Wow!” I exclaimed. I was sitting on a magical flying carpet with all trustful Genie buddies. Suddenly, I heard a fading loud voice from far down shouting, “Nanda kore?!” (What’s that?!) Eventually some Japanese guy saw something flying in the night sky, excited and astonished, yet uncertain of what he had seen. We were far in the sky away from the ground. I looked down and saw a very beautiful night scene.

Oh my gosh! We were in Tokyo, Japan! What a nice ride traveling around the world! Now, Genie Princess asked me to make a wish so she could make my wish come true. I told her, I wish that the $1,000,000.00 dream could be true. In reply, she said, “You have to work hard on this by your own. I can only be your guardian along the path. Take your time and think carefully of what you wish to have, dear.”
Hey, I thought of what I need now! Then I told the kind Genie Princess that I wanted to slim down a little more. She nodded, as if she already knew what I was thinking. Before leaving the team to get back to my home, both Genie King and Genie Princess reminded me to put on their Genie symbols in my blog, and they will make my wish come true.My phone rang. It was the morning alarm alert. Crap! After all it was a dream? Getting a bit disappointed, I woke up and wanted to get ready for work. I paused for a moment. Hey, it’s a public holiday (in Sarawak) today! Means, I don’t have to work! Wow, guess what? I got the weight management product right on my table!
Now, I can continue to slim down! Genie Princess really kept her promise, doesn’t she?

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Do you like my story?
I was actually tagged by NAFA. The tagging games always require you to tag someone too! So, I would like to invite the following buddies to join the ride (tagging the below):
1. Cherry
2. Colleen
3. Levian
4. Kenneth
5. SpookyGraceHere’s the instructions.

*Start Copying Here*

Rules:

1. Write a short paragraph about your visit by the two Genies and include a link to the blog that passed on the Genie Symbol to you.

2. COPY the Rules and ENTIRE List below and post it on your blog.

3. List down your wish.

4. Place your name below the last name on the list and pass on the Genie Symbol to at least 5 other bloggers.

5. Please put up either one (or both) of the Symbols of the Genies on your blog to show that the Genies have visited your blog. Codes are given below:

<br /><a href=”http://mariuca.blogspot.com/” target=”_blank”><img alt=”Genie Princess” src=”http://img234.imageshack.us/img234/162/geniefrv1.th.jpg” border=”0″ /></a></p> <p>

Do you still remember the legends told during Mooncake Festival or Mid Autumn Festival when we were kids? Chang’e (嫦娥) is one of the characters. We were told that there’s a pretty goddess named Chang’e, a rabbit and a man named Wu Gang living in the moon. Have you ever believe in those legends when you looked up into the moon?

Does the moon pattern looks like a Chinese lady?There are several versions for the story of Chang’e. But somehow, I still don’t understand why is this related to the Mooncake festival… Maybe because of worshiping the moon goddess? Or it simply symbolize the Moon? We’ll find out more in this month articles.

[Version 1]
According to legend, Chang’e and her husband Houyi were immortals living in heaven. One day, the ten sons of the Jade Emperor transformed into ten suns, causing the earth to scorch. Having failed to order his sons to stop ruining the earth, the Jade Emperor summoned Houyi for help. Houyi, using his legendary archery skills, shot down nine of the sons, but spared one son to be the sun. The Jade Emperor was obviously not pleased with Houyi’s solution to save the earth: nine of his sons were dead. As punishment, the Jade Emperor banished Houyi and Chang’e to live as mere mortals on earth.

Seeing that Chang’e felt extremely miserable over her loss of immortality, Houyi decided to journey on a long, perilous quest to find the pill of immortality so that the couple could be immortals again. At the end of his quest he met the Queen Mother of the West who agreed to give him the pill, but warned him that each person would only need half the pill to become immortal.

Houyi brought the pill home and stored it in a case. He warned Chang’e not to open the case and then left home for a while. Like Pandora in Greek mythology, Chang’e became too curious: she opened up the case and found the pill just as Houyi was returning home. Nervous that Houyi would catch her discovering the contents of the case, she accidentally swallowed the entire pill. She started to float into the sky because of the overdose. Although Houyi wanted to shoot her in order to prevent her from floating further, he could not bear to aim the arrow at her. Chang’e kept on floating until she landed on the moon.

While she became lonely on the moon without her husband, she did have company. A jade rabbit, who manufactured elixirs, also lived on the moon. The mythologies of Japan and Korea also feature references about rabbits living on the moon.

Another companion is the woodcutter Wu Gang. The woodcutter offended the gods in his attempt to achieve immortality and was therefore banished on the moon. Wu Gang was allowed to leave the moon if he could cut down a tree that grew there. The problem was that each time he chopped the tree, the tree would instantly grow back, effectively condemning him to live on the moon for eternity.

[Version 2]
Chang’e was a beautiful young girl working in the Jade Emperor’s palace in heaven, where immortals, good people and fairies lived. One day, she accidentally broke a precious porcelain jar. Angered, the Jade Emperor banished her to live on earth, where ordinary people lived. She could return to the Heaven, if she contributed a valuable service on earth.

Chang’e was transformed into a member of a poor farming family. When she was 18, a young hunter named Houyi from another village spotted her, now a beautiful young woman. They became friends.

One day, a strange phenomenon occurred — 10 suns arose in the sky instead of one, blazing the earth. Houyi, an expert archer, stepped forward to try to save the earth. He successfully shot down nine of the suns, becoming an instant hero. He eventually became king and married Chang’e.

But Houyi grew to become a tyrant. He sought immortality by ordering an elixir be created to prolong his life. The elixir in the form of a single pill was almost ready when Chang’e came upon it. She either accidentally or purposely swallowed the pill. This angered King Houyi, who went after his wife. Trying to flee, she jumped out the window of a chamber at the top of palace — and, instead of falling, she floated into the sky toward the moon.

King Houyi tried to shoot her down with arrows, but without success. Her companion, a rabbit, is constantly pounding the elixir of immortality in a large mortar.

The moon is also inhabited by a woodcutter who tries to cut down the cassia tree, giver of life. But as fast as he cuts into the tree, it heals itself, and he never makes any progress. The Chinese use this image of the cassia tree to explain mortal life on earth — the limbs are constantly being cut away by death, but new buds continually appear.

Meanwhile, King Houyi ascended to the sun and built a palace. So Chang’e and Houyi came to represent the yin and yang, the moon and the sun.

[Version 3]
Many years after she was already the moon goddess, Chang’e looked down upon Earth and saw that a terribly cruel emperor sat on the throne. To help the people, she allowed herself to be reborn into the mortal world. The other members of her mortal family were either killed or enslaved by the emperor, but Chang’e managed to escape to the countryside.

Meanwhile, the emperor was aging and obsessed with discovering the elixir of life. He had people all over the land brought to him and demanded of them how to find the elixir of life; nobody knew, of course, but the emperor would not accept ignorance for an answer and executed all those who could not answer.

In the countryside, Chang’e met the Buddhist goddess of compassion, Guan Yin, who proceeded to give Chang’e a small elixir. Chang’e brought the elixir to the emperor. The suspicious emperor worried that it was poison and demanded that Chang’e taste the elixir first. She did, showing no ill effects, so then the emperor took the elixir and promptly died. Then, Chang’e also left the mortal world; the effects of the elixir had only been delayed for her. However, instead of dying, she ascended to the moon to retake her place as a goddess.

[Source: Wikipedia]

I remembered I heard something similar like version 1 and 2 but not 3.
Which version have you heard of?