West Lake Legends

The “West Lake Legends” is a general term referring to all kinds of folk stories that have been passed down around West Lake and in Hangzhou area in different dynasties, which were created and narrated by the common people, and is an oral folk literature form about the way of life in the West Lake area as well as Hangzhou area.

It has a long history. Litterateurs and artists of all dynasties adapted and recreated the folk stories of West Lake, forming a large number of popular works. According to incomplete statistics, there are more than 630 existing legends about West Lake.

These legends are characterized by "famous mountains, famous waters, and famous people", represented by the Legend of the White Snake, the Legend of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai, the Legend of Jigong, the Legend of Su Dongpo, the Legend of Yue Fei, and the Legend of Yu Qian. The scenic areas are made even more fascinating by these legends, which add historical and cultural connotations to them; with the growth of tourism, legends have also gained a sense of reality and popularity among the people due to the popularity of the scenic areas. The collection, editing and publication of the Legend of West Lake had a great impact on folk literature circles across the country and contributed to the development of local folk literature.

The Jade Ball

Legend has it that West Lake is a jade ball that fell from the heavens.

Once upon a time, there lived a jade dragon on the east side of the Milky Way and a colorful phoenix on its west side. One day they came to a fairy island, and there they found a piece of shining jade stone. One of them pecked at it with its beak, and the other polished it with its claws. Day after day, month after month, year after year, they finally polished the jade stone into a sparkling jade ball.

Wherever the auspicious radiance of this jade ball shone, there appeared beautiful mountains and rivers, and flowers of different varieties in full bloom; Wherever the auspicious air of the jade ball spread, good harvests and long life were seen. 

The news reached heaven, and was heard by the Queen Mother of the West. She was so envious that she resolved to obtain this rare treasure. So she sent two gods to steal the jade ball while the Jade Dragon and the Colorful Phoenix were sleeping. When the Jade Dragon and the Colorful Phoenix found out that the jade ball had fallen into the hands of the Queen Mother of the West, they were furious and demanded that she returned it. But the Queen Mother of the West would not have it so. So, the two sides fought each other and scrambled for the jade ball. In the chaos, the jade ball in the hands of the Queen Mother of the West rolled out of the Heavenly Palace and fell to the mortal world.

As soon as the jade ball fell to the earth, it changed in an instant into a clear and bright lake, now known as West Lake. Unwilling to part with the pearl, the Jade Dragon and the Colorful Phoenix also descended to the immortal world and transformed into two mountains that guard the lake.

The two mountains are the Jade Dragon Mountain (Jade Emperor Mountain) and the Phoenix Mountain on the banks of West Lake today.

To this day, there are still two ancient songs circulating in Hangzhou, saying "The jade ball of the West Lake descends from the sky, and the dragon and the phoenix arrive in Qiantang (now Hangzhou)."

The Stone Incense Burner

There are three stone pagodas in West Lake, resembling three magic gourds growing in the sparkling water. On the night of every Mid-Autumn Festival, when the moon is in the sky, people like to light candles in the round holes of the stone pagodas and paste thin paper over the holes, after which, many small moons are reflected on the water. The moon shines on the pagodas, and the pagodas reflect "the moon". The view is intoxicating. That is the famous scene of "Three Pools Mirroring the Moon".

These three pagodas are said to have been built by Lu Ban (the Chinese god of carpentry and the patron of builders and contractors). According to legend, Lu Ban took his little sister to Hangzhou and opened a store there. At that point, an evil black fish spirit caused trouble in town and flooded the area. Later, the black fish spirit demanded to marry the little sister of Lu Ban. To save the common people, Lu Ban's little sister, though reluctant, first consented, and then asked Lu Ban to build a stone incense burner as a dowry. After the stone incense burner was finished, the black fish spirit moved it to the lake. During the process, the incense burner turned upside down and entrapped the evil black fish spirit at the bottom of the lake, suffocating it. The stone incense burner was also stuck in the mud at the bottom of the lake and only its three gourd-like feet were visible above the water.