Tiangou, Celestial Chinese Dog
Tiangou is a creature — depicted as a dog or meteor — in Chinese folklore that ate the moon or sun during an eclipse. Its name translates directly to “Heavenly Dog” and, in addition to eating celestial bodies, Tiangou was assigned the task of guarding the gates of heaven. Tiangou’s enormous size made him an obvious choice for the task; however, that same characteristic struck fear in the heart of humanity.
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Zhang Xian — another supernatural folklore character, tasked with the protection of children (especially boys) — defended humans from Tiangou during eclipses. He shot arrows at the massive dog, deterring the animal from devouring the moon or sun. In addition to Zhang Xian, the ancient Chinese would beat drums and light firecrackers to scare Tiangou out of the sky. We know the ancient Chinese took these events seriously as Chinese astronomers have kept records of solar eclipses for over 4,000 years!
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Tiangou is not the only canine known for chasing and devouring celestial bodies — the Norse referenced a wolf (or wolves) that did the same (Hati, Skoll, and/or Fenrir). Within the Norse mythos, the wolves completed their task during Ragnarök, an event marking the destruction of the universe. The ancient Norse believed Earth became shrouded in darkness right before its collapse.
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The similarity of myths from cultures that are worlds apart never ceases to amaze me.
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