The origin of the Pangu myth and the relationship between Pangu and Panhu have always been controversial issues among historians. The "Kangxi Dictionary" compiled in the early Qing Dynasty initially interpreted Pangu as the ancestor of all things in the world, and also quoted the Jin Qianbao "Sou Shen Ji" as saying: "The name of the dog. The Gaoxin family has a dog with colorful writing, named Panhu." Xia Zengyou, director of the Peking University Library at the end of the Qing Dynasty and the beginning of the Republic of China, said in the book "Ancient History": "The name Pangu is not found in ancient books. It is suspected that it is not an old theory of the Han people, or that Pangu has a similar sound. Panhu is the ancestor of the Southern Barbarians. "It is believed that the Han people mistook Panhu, a mythological figure from a southern ethnic minority, as their own and created Pangu. But later he changed his opinion. He said in the article "Pangu Kao": "The theory that Pangu is Panhu began with Xia Suiqing (see "Ancient History"). I believed it in the past, but now I know it is wrong." From Lu Simian to the recent He Xin believes that the most likely source of the Pangu myth is India.
The basis is that the theme of Pangu myth is quite similar to the story of Brahma's cosmic transformation recorded in the Buddhist "Vedas", especially the "Ettariya Vubani Shatan". The International Association for Yao Studies held the first International Symposium on Yao Studies in Hong Kong in May 1986, and the following year held a special symposium on Pangu and Panhu in Hong Kong. Jao Tsung-i, a master of Chinese traditional culture in Hong Kong, pointed out an important fact in his speech. From a brief description of a certain document, we can know that the portrait of Pangu existed in the murals of Chengdu, Sichuan in 154 (the second year of Yongxing in the Eastern Han Dynasty). In the same mural, next to Pangu is the image of Laozi.
French anthropologist Jacques Lemoine, the first president of the International Yao Research Association, was reminded of a comparison made by French sinologist Marble. Ma Bole once talked about a creation myth about the incarnation of Laozi's body, which is quite similar to the Pangu myth: "Laozi was born with the sun in his left eye, the moon in his right eye, the Kunlun Mountains in his head, the stars in his beard, the dragon in his bones, and the flesh in his flesh. For beasts, their bones are for snakes...".
Jacques believes that although it cannot be said that Indian mythology has no influence on Chinese mythology, the former transformed the universe from its senses, and the latter transformed the universe from its body. If China adopts Indian myths have also been combined with Chinese legends in their retellings, making Pangu resemble a candle dragon in many places, especially the Indian model.
The question is: if Pangu adopted Indian mythology, how could he be widely circulated among the many people in South China who worshiped him? The answer is: this story comes more from Taoist legends than from Buddhist legends. At least in Mianyao, the legend of Pangu is fully integrated into Taoist activities. He also pointed out: "The Pangu myth is circulated among several ethnic groups in South China and cannot be regarded as the Panhu story - an identity myth." (Jacques Lemoine: "Is Panhu Pangu?", published in "Journal of the Central University for Nationalities", 1989-2)
Regarding the origin of the Pangu myth and its relationship with Panhu, various opinions have important implications for promoting There are benefits to thinking about the issues, and maybe the discussion can continue. However, according to the information currently available and the opinions of most people, the Pangu myth originated in southern China, that is, "between Wu and Chu" as Ren Fang said, and is currently mainly spread among the people in Jiangnan and South China.
The Yao people worship Pangu, praising him as the founder of the world and the ancestor of mankind. This is different in divinity from King Panhu (Panhu), who is worshiped as the ancestor of the nation. .
Moreover, Pangu appears in recorded books earlier than Panhu. In many places, the Yao folk will never confuse Pangu with Panhu like some mythologists. The scriptures of Shigong and Daogong have always preserved the singing of two different myths, which is an example.
As for the confusion of the two into one in some places, it may be due to errors in the records in the Chinese texts (including local chronicles), or it may be that the early Panhu belief degenerated into Pangu belief. In any case, it is a fact that the Yao people respect Pangu as the distant ancestor of mankind. Pangu, as a mythical figure who created the world, is praised among the Yao and other ethnic groups, reflecting people's hazy memories of the ancient prehistoric era.