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Chinese Queen Mother of the West: Xi Wang Mu (西王母)

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Encyclopedia of Psychology and Religion

The Chinese Queen Mother of the West (Xi Wang Mu) is a very ancient goddess who was absorbed into Daoism. Her powers include the peaches of fertility and immortality, and the female Yin. She originated in the Kunlun Mountain mythology, which is the most complete and large collection of ancient Chinese mythology. The large Kunlun Mountain Range is on the border between the Xinjian province and the northern border of Tibet. Its highest mountain is called Kunlun Goddess (Liushu Shan), rising 7167 m (23,514 ft). In very early Chinese mythology, this region was ruled by the Queen Mother of the West. The mythical region slowly moved farther west into an intangible region, as the Silk Road brought China Western curiosities such as Greek images. Her tradition is an important one of the intangible cultural heritages listed by the Chinese government (ihchina 2014).

Xi Wang Mu is also called “Wang Mu (Queen Mother),” “Jin Mu(Gold Mother),”Yao chi Lao Mu (Old Mother of the Yao Pool ),” “Yao Chi...

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Correspondence to Minqin Wang (王敏琴) or Lee Bailey .

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Wang (王敏琴), M., Bailey, L. (2018). Chinese Queen Mother of the West: Xi Wang Mu (西王母). In: Leeming, D. (eds) Encyclopedia of Psychology and Religion. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27771-9_200178-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27771-9_200178-1

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