Legend of Liu Yi

Name of China's national intangible cultural heritage: Legend of Liu Yi

Applicant: Hanting District, Weifang City, Shandong Province

Project No.: 1039

Project No.: I-95

Time of publication: 2011 (the third batch)

Category: Folk Literature

Region: Shandong Province

Type: new item

Applicant: Hanting District, Weifang City, Shandong Province

Protected by: cultural center of Hanting District, Weifang City

Introduction to the legend of Liu Yi

Applicant: Hanting District, Weifang City, Shandong Province

The legend of Liuyi is widely spread in the surrounding areas of Liuyi mountain, Zhuli Town, Hanting district. It is also popular in Yantai and Qingdao in eastern Shandong, Dongying in Northwest Shandong and Binzhou. Since the Tang Dynasty, the legend of Liu Yi has been widely spread among the people. In Tang Dynasty, Li Chaowei wrote the classical Chinese novel biography of Liu Yi, while Shang Zhongxian wrote the opera biography of Liu Yi. Since then, the content of the legend of Liu Yi has been constantly enriched and spread for more than a thousand years. The local legend of Liu Yi has been formed. The main contents of the legend are as follows:

Liu Minglun, the fifth ancestor of Liu Yi, moved from Sichuan to Meihua village in Weidong in the ninth year of emperor Yang of Sui Dynasty. Liu Yi's father, Liu Xingfang, does good deeds and accumulates virtue. He ferries people in Yanxi river every day. Liu Xingfang was supposed to be childless. The immortals felt that he was sincere and gave birth to his precious son Liu Yi for his good deeds. Liu Yi's family was poor when he was young. He was intelligent and filial. He studied hard. He was filial and honest. He was a teacher in a private school and married a wife. When Liu Yi was a child, he used to ask for a loan from his grandmother's family because of his poor family. His grandmother's family didn't treat him well, so he had the story of "killing cats when he was hungry, and not baking lights when he was frozen to death.". When Liu Yi was an adult, he traveled all over the world and spent the night in the rain in the mountains to marry a tiger girl. Later, he went to Chang'an to take the exam. When he got home, he met the Dragon Girl and passed a letter to her to marry her. When Emperor Taizong conquered Korea, he passed by here. Because Liu Yi and Longnu had made great contributions to protect him, Emperor Taizong granted Liu Yi the title of King Ping of Tanghe and Longnu the title of Lady of the state of food. In his prime, Liu Yi was tired of his official career. He went to the mountains to become an immortal. He showed many miraculous signs, benefiting all living beings and praying for rain. Therefore, many folklores about Liu Yi's manifestation, such as Tianchi praying for rain, Haiyan taochi, folk worship, retribution for the poor, storytelling series, new year's Eve ShouSui, birthday festival, Yellow River Ferry and so on, spread all over Eastern and Northern Shandong. Because of the people's worship, temples were built to worship them. The temple fair of Liuyi mountain has lasted for thousands of years, with a wide range of believers. Up to now, the incense has flourished, and the people's faith has increased.

It is of great historical and practical significance to protect and inherit this folklore.