Guan Yu

126

Guan Yu : biography

Unknown – 219

In fiction

A mural of Guan Yu’s "Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles" (千里走單騎) in the [[Summer Palace, Beijing.]]

Luo Guanzhong’s historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms glorified Guan Yu by portraying him as a righteous and loyal warrior. Guan Yu was one of the most altered and aggrandised characters in the novel, which accounted for his popular image in Chinese society.

See the following for some fictitious stories in Romance of the Three Kingdoms involving Guan Yu:

  • Oath of the Peach Garden
  • Battle of Sishui Pass
  • Battle of Hulao Pass
  • List of fictitious stories in Romance of the Three Kingdoms#Guan Yu’s three conditions
  • List of fictitious stories in Romance of the Three Kingdoms#Guan Yu slays Yan Liang and Wen Chou
  • List of fictitious stories in Romance of the Three Kingdoms#Guan Yu crosses five passes and slays six generals
  • List of fictitious stories in Romance of the Three Kingdoms#Guan Yu slays Cai Yang at Gucheng
  • List of fictitious stories in Romance of the Three Kingdoms#Guan Yu releases Cao Cao at Huarong Trail
  • List of fictitious stories in Romance of the Three Kingdoms#Guan Yu attends a banquet alone armed with only a blade
  • List of fictitious stories in Romance of the Three Kingdoms#Hua Tuo heals Guan Yu’s arm
  • Lü Meng#In fiction
  • List of fictitious stories in Romance of the Three Kingdoms#Events after Guan Yu’s death

Family

Guan Yu had two known sons — Guan Ping and Guan Xing. Guan Xing inherited his father’s title "Marquis of Hanshou Village" (漢壽亭侯) and served in the state of Shu during the Three Kingdoms period.(子興嗣。興字安國,少有令問,丞相諸葛亮深器異之。弱冠為侍中、中監軍,數歲卒。) Sanguozhi vol. 36. Guan Yu also had a daughter. Sun Quan once proposed a marriage between his son and Guan Yu’s daughter, but Guan rejected the proposal. Her name was not recorded in history, but she was known as "Guan Yinping" (關銀屏) or "Guan Feng" (關鳳) in folktales and Chinese opera. Guan Yu had an alleged third son, Guan Suo, who is not mentioned in historical texts and appears only in folklore and the historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms.

Guan Xing’s son, Guan Tong (關統), married a princess (one of Liu Shan’s daughters) and served as a "General of the Household" (中郎將) in the Rapid as Tigers (虎賁) division of the imperial guards. Guan Tong had no son when he died, so he was succeeded by his younger half-brother Guan Yi (關彝).(子統嗣,尚公主,官至虎賁中郎將。卒,無子,以興庶子彝續封。) Sanguozhi vol. 36.

According to the Shu Ji (蜀記), after the fall of Shu in 263, Pang Hui (Pang De’s son) massacred Guan Yu’s family and descendants to avenge his father, who was executed by Guan Yu after the Battle of Fancheng in 219.(蜀記曰:龐德子會,隨鍾、鄧伐蜀,蜀破,盡滅關氏家。) Shu Ji annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 36.

Worship of Guan Yu

Guan Yu was deified as early as the Sui Dynasty (581–618), and is still popularly worshipped today among the Chinese people. He is variedly worshipped as an indigenous Chinese deity, a bodhisattva in Buddhist tradition and as a guardian deity in Taoism and many religious bodies. He is also held in high esteem in Confucianism. These roles are not necessarily contradictory or even distinguished within the Chinese religious system, which often merge multiple ancient philosophies and religions.

In the Western world, Guan Yu is sometimes called the Taoist God of War, probably because he is one of the most well-known military generals worshipped by the Chinese people. This is a misconception of his role, as, unlike the Greco-Roman deity Mars or the Norse god Týr, Guan Yu, as a god, does not necessarily bless those who go to battle but rather, people who observe the code of brotherhood and righteousness.

General worship

In general worship, Guan Yu is widely referred to as "Emperor Guan" (關帝), short for his Taoist title "Saintly Emperor Guan" (關聖帝君), and as "Guan Gong" (關公; literally: "Lord Guan"). Temples and shrines dedicated exclusively to Guan can be found in parts of mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, and other places with Chinese influence such as Vietnam, South Korea, and Japan. Some of these temples, such as the Emperor Guan Temple in Xiezhou (解州), Shanxi, were built exactly in the layout of a palace, befitting his status as an "emperor".