Hou Yi

The Archer Who Shot Down the Suns

Domain: Archery & Heroism
Alignment: Chaotic Good
Element: Fire
Relics of Power: Crimson Celestial Bow

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5 sections of this entry are open to everyone: the summary, the people, the symbols, the lineage and the sources. The other 9 (Name and epithets, In the ancient sources, The myths, Worship and archaeology, How the god was depicted, What scholars debate, After antiquity, Did you know?, Codex relic) are part of the full Codex: PRO opens the whole study of all 500 deities, and without a subscription you can read one full entry a day, just like in the app.

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The People

People

Chinese

Region

China

Period

c. 1600 BC – present

The Chinese deities bring together traditions of Taoism, Buddhism, and folk religion, worshipped for millennia across China. Presided over by the Jade Emperor, they form a vast celestial bureaucracy mirroring the earthly empire. They are honored in temples, at Chinese New Year, and at the altars of homes and ancestors.

Chinese New Year greets the gods with fireworks, dancing lions, and offerings to the Kitchen God, who ascends to heaven to report on the family's conduct. The Dragon Boat Festival honors the poet Qu Yuan, and at Qingming families sweep the tombs and venerate the ancestors.

At a glance

Houyi is the legendary divine archer, the heroic savior of the terrestrial biosphere and protective titan of humanity in classical Chinese mythology. When the ten suns, sons of the celestial god Di Jun, rose together into the firmament, scorching the crops and boiling the rivers, Houyi seized his celestial red bow and shot down nine of them in mid-air, sparing only the tenth to light the world with benevolence. He destroyed the colossal monsters that devoured the survivors, obtained the elixir of immortality from the goddess Xiwangmu on Mount Kunlun, and suffered the tragic loss of his beloved wife Chang'e. He is honored as the supreme patron of archery and of selfless bravery. He is the imperishable emblem of Chinese cosmic chivalry, placing his strength at the service of peace and the well-being of mortal beings.

14 min read · Reviewed on September 28, 2026 · How we research

Sacred symbols

The crimson bow, the arrows, the ten sun-crows and the elixir of immortality

Family

Hou Yi

Unions

Chang'e

Genealogy according to Huainanzi, capítulos 8 e 14; Shan Hai Jing 18; Chuci, Tianwen; Shiji 4

Sources and further reading

Primary sources

Liu An, Huainanzi. translation: John S. Major, 2010.
Anônimo, Shan Hai Jing. translation: Anne Birrell, 1999.
Qu Yuan, Chuci. translation: David Hawkes, 1985.
Zuo Qiuming, Zuo Zhuan. translation: Stephen Durrant, Wai-yee Li e David Schaberg, 2016.

Studies

Sarah Allan, The Shape of the Turtle: Myth, Art, and Cosmos in Early China. State University of New York Press, 1991.
Anne Birrell, Chinese Mythology: An Introduction. Johns Hopkins University Press, 1993.
Gu Jiegang, Gushi Bian (Debates on Ancient History). Kaiming Shudian, 1931.
Derk Bodde, Essays on Chinese Civilization. Princeton University Press, 1981.

Name and epithets

The compound divine name Houyi (后羿) is formed from the archaic honorific title hou (后), which in the Shang and Xia periods designated a supreme ruler, royal lord, or sovereign of noble lineage, and yi (羿), the hero's pe…

In the ancient sources

Huainanzi., 2nd century BCE.. The main narrative record detailing the shooting down of the nine suns and the extermination of the mythic beasts by Yi. Shan Hai Jing., 4th century BCE..

The myths

The Slaying of the Nine Rebel Suns and the Salvation of the Terrestrial Biosphere.. During the reign of the virtuous sage emperor Yao, a terrible cosmic catastrophe threatened to extinguish all life on the solid earth:…

Worship and archaeology

The cult and living memory of Houyi are inseparably intertwined with the most affectionate celebrations of the Mid-Autumn Festival (Zhongqiu Jie), the second most important festive date in the whole Chinese cultural cal…

How the god was depicted

The plastic and iconographic representation of Houyi in traditional Chinese art, from the carved stone reliefs of the Han dynasty tombs to the woodcut illustrations of the Ming dynasty editions and contemporary painting…

What scholars debate

The Duality between the Mythic Archer and the Historical Tyrant of Xia.. Historians of archaic China and archaeologists of the Doubting Antiquity Movement (Yigupai), led by Gu Jiegang in the twentieth century, investiga…

After antiquity

In contemporary Chinese society and in international pop culture, Houyi is revered as the definitive archetype of the altruistic hero, of unshakable bravery, and of moving marital fidelity.

Did you know?

In the original myth of the Shan Hai Jing, the ten suns were three-legged golden crows that inhabited the branches of the colossal Fusang tree.

Codex relic

Crimson Celestial Bow. A divine bow whose arrows shot down nine scorching suns and saved the earth from drought.

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