Tradition / Region: Chinese Mythology
Alternate Names: Heavenly Dog
Category: Dog
The Myth
Tiangou, the Heavenly Dog, is a powerful creature of the sky known throughout ancient China.
In one form, it is seen as a dark, enormous dog that appears during eclipses. When the Sun or Moon suddenly darkens, people said it was because Tiangou had risen into the heavens and begun to devour it. The creature was believed to swallow the heavenly body, causing the sky to dim until the light returned again.
One story tells that after the hero Hou Yi shot down the nine extra suns that scorched the world, he received an elixir of immortality from the Queen Mother of the West. Before he could drink it, his wife Chang’e secretly consumed the potion herself and began to float upward toward the heavens.
At that moment, Hou Yi’s black dog entered the room and licked the remaining drops of the elixir. The magic transformed it. Growing larger and more powerful, the dog leapt into the sky and chased after Chang’e. Terrified, she fled to the Moon and hid there.
The dog followed her and swallowed the Moon itself, taking Chang’e with it.
When the Queen Mother of the West learned what had happened, she seized the creature. Recognizing that it had once belonged to Hou Yi, she did not destroy it. Instead, she ordered the dog to release the Moon and Chang’e, and she set it as a guardian of the gates of Heaven. From then on, it was known as Tiangou, the Heavenly Dog.
In other traditions, Tiangou is not only feared but also respected. In a more benevolent form it appears as a celestial guardian, linked to the stars and said to protect against misfortune, robbers, and danger.
Another story tells that a divine archer named Zhang Xian watches the sky for the Heavenly Dog. When Tiangou threatens the heavens, Zhang Xian draws his bow and shoots to drive it away, protecting both the sky and the lives of the people below.
Thus Tiangou is remembered as both a devourer of the Moon and a guardian of Heaven — a celestial dog whose presence explains the darkening of the sky and whose power reaches across both myth and the stars.
Gallery
Sources
Wikipedia contributors. (n.d.). Tiangou. In Wikipedia, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiangou
Interpretive Lenses
Religious Readings
- Christian Ascetic Deep Dive
Philosophical Readings
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Psychological Readings
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Esoteric Deep Dive
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Political / Social Readings
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