Shunfeng'er, or With-the-Wind Ear, is a divine general of folk belief and classical fiction who can hear sounds from afar. He is usually named together with Qianliyan. Wikidata classes him as a water deity and describes him as a heavenly god also known as the Water Essence General. His name is a divine epithet, and the accounts give differing origins and names, so the title stays as it was.[1][2]
Relation to Mazu
Chinese Wikipedia says he was originally a monster who appeared together with Qianliyan and harmed the world, was subdued by Mazu and became a divine general with the power to hear every sound in the world. In folk accounts, the two guardians who watch and listen on Mazu's behalf are Qianliyan, also called the Gold Essence General, who holds a halberd in the left hand and raises the right hand to his brow to look far, and Shunfeng'er, also called the Water Essence General, who holds a crescent axe in the right hand and points the left to his ear.[2]
Several origins
The article lists several traditions. One says the two were transformed from the essences of metal and water. Another says they were Gao Ming and Gao Jue, brothers and generals of King Zhou of Shang, killed in battle against Jiang Ziya. Their spirits lingered on Peach Blossom Mountain until Lin Moniang, later Mazu, subdued them with sacred tools, after which they cultivated the Way and became her two helpers once she became a goddess. A third says they were heavenly generals sent down by the Jade Emperor to wait and help Mazu rescue those in distress at sea. Another source says Mazu is an incarnation of Guanyin, so that Qianliyan "watches disasters a thousand li away" and Shunfeng'er "listens to sounds and relieves suffering", and the two words together make up the sense of Guanyin.[2]
Appearance in popular accounts
The article describes Qianliyan as green-faced, green-robed and two-horned, and Shunfeng'er as red-faced, red-robed and one-horned, with an axe in his right hand and his left hand pointing at his ear. Both have eyes like bronze bells, teeth like short swords, a body more than ten feet tall and a voice like a bronze bell. A folk tale adds that Gao Ming could see a thousand li and Gao Jue could hear a thousand li, so that King Zhou knew King Wu of Zhou's plans in advance. Jiang Ziya saw through them with a demon-revealing mirror, had the whole army beat gongs and wave great banners, and scattered dog's blood so that the two lost their power and died.[2]
In fiction
The article also notes that in Journey to the South, also called the Story of the Five Manifestations, Shunfeng'er is a demon subdued by Huaguang together with the White Tiger spirit and Qianliyan. This site lists him as appearing in Investiture of the Gods and Journey to the West, but the sources used here do not describe those episodes.[2]
Basic facts
- Form of address: Shunfeng'er, also written 順風耳[1]
- Kind: water deity, heavenly god, also called the Water Essence General[1]
- Counterpart: Qianliyan[2]
- Appears in: Investiture of the Gods, Journey to the West