Jade Mountain (mythology)

Jade Mountain (Chinese: 玉山; pinyin: Yùshān) is a mythological mountain in Chinese mythology and the residence of The Queen Mother of the West.^[1]

Place

Jade Mountain should not be confused with any geographic places named Yushan. Also note, Jade Mountain and Feather Mountain (Chinese: 羽山; pinyin: Yǔshān) are both important places in Chinese mythology, but the Chinese word yu in both cases has a different character.

It has been suggested that the mountain corresponds to a location in the Kunlun Mountains and that "jade mountain" is a common Chinese name to describe a snow-capped peak.^[2]

Background

Jade Mountain is mentioned in Chapter 2 of the Han dynasty text Classic of Mountains and Seas as being the residence of the Queen Mother of the West.^[3] It is thought that Jade Mountain, along with the Queen Mother of the West, date back to much earlier; the 4th century BCE Zhuangzi also describes her residence as being on a mountain.^[4]

See also

• Kunlun Mountain: a mythical mountain, dwelling of various divinities, and fabulous plants and animals
• Mount Buzhou: mythical mountain
• Mount Penglai: paradise; a fabled fairy isle on the China Sea
• Moving Sands

References

1. Yang, Lihui; et al. (2005). Handbook of Chinese Mythology. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-533263-6. pp. 162, 219
2. Ye 叶, Shuxian 舒宪 (2014). "《山海经》与白玉崇拜的起源———黄帝食玉与西王母献白环神话发微" [The Classic of the Mountains and Seas and the origin of white jade worship: the transmission of the legends of the Yellow Emperor eating jade and the Queen Mother of the West gifting a white bracelet]. Minzu Yishu 民族艺术 (in Chinese) (6): 19–26. doi:10.16564/j.cnki.1003-2568.2014.06.008.
3. "Xi Shan Jing 西山经". Shan Hai Jing 山海经. Online: Ctext.org. p. 49.
4. Dubs, Homer H. (1942). "An Ancient Chinese Mystery Cult". The Harvard Theological Review. 35 (4): 221–240. doi:10.1017/s0017816000029679. JSTOR 1508356.