The ancient Chinese myth of Kuafu as recorded in the
Shanhai-Jing and that of Zaofu in the Shi-Ji constitute a pair,
in which the two heroes—Kuafu and Zaofu—stand in contrast
to each other in many regards. Kaofu was a giant who raced
unsuccessfully against the sun and died of thirst. Dying he
threw away his walking stick, which turned into Deng-lin Forest
(Peach Forest). Zaofu was a legendary chariot-driver, who
caught fleet steeds in the Peach Forest and presented them to
Mu-wang, a king of the Chou dynasty. Mu-wang visited Xiwang-
mu (The Western Royal Mother) in her fabulous habitat
in the far west. During his absence, Yan-wang of Xu kingdom
of eastern China revolted against Mu-wang, who immediately
drove back to China to destroy him. Zaofu, who drove the
chariot of Mu-wang, was rewarded with Zhao city as his fief
for his service.
These two myths have some features in common; both
concern the movement of the sun, and both have a horse-breeding
culture as their cultural background. On the other hand, they
differ from each other in some points : Kaofu ran on foot,
whereas Zaofu drove a swift chariot. Kuafu was a being defiant
to the Order of Nature on the one hand, Zaofu was a servant
to the Order of Society. The myth of Kuafu is thus a transformation
of that of Zaofu, or vice versa. In addition to the
fundamental contrast between Kuafu and Zaofu, we recognize
another counterpart to Kuafu in Chiyou. The latter was a
giant antagonist to the mythical YelIow Emperor, thus beirlg
defiant to the Order of Society, while Kuafu is defiant to the Order
of Nature. The fetter laid on Chiyou turned into a maple tree,
as the walking stick of Kuafu turned into the Peach Forest.
夸父と造父 : 構造分析の試み
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